Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Governance mode in reverse logistics: A research framework

As the reverse supply chain for sustainability reasons has been attracting increasing attention, this theoretical work focuses on the governance mode of reverse logistics. It is a less explored sub-field in the reverse supply chain literature where manufacturers, distributors, and retailers have important roles in the chain governance. Manufacturers often engage professional third-party logistics (3PLs) firms to manage their products due to the complexity, variety, and trade compliance of such products. While such engagement can reduce the burden of product management for the manufacturers, the potential loss of competitive advantage or a conflict of interest can affect the manufacturers' reputation and profitability. Based on the literature as well as our initial fieldwork in several industries, we develop a research framework to explore the governance choice of manufacturers for reverse logistics, and examine the factors affecting the preference between self-governance and the outsourcing to third parties such as the 3PLs.
Zr-based metallic glass as a novel MEMS bonding material

In this study, for the first time we successfully bonded Si substrates with sputtered Zr-Al-Cu-Ni metallic glassy material. The surface pre-treatment with formic acid vapor plays a remarkable function for oxides removal before bonding. Metallic glasses have fundamentally glassy structure and exhibit a Newtonian viscous flow in the supercooled liquid region. The polymer-like plastic fluidity performs superior wettability which improves interfacial integrity. This paper introduces a unique functional material and reveals its high potential for MEMS bonding application.
Supporting automated vulnerability analysis using formalized vulnerability signatures

Adopting publicly accessible platforms such as cloud computing model to host IT systems has become a leading trend. Although this helps to minimize cost and increase availability and reachability of applications, it has serious implications on applications' security. Hackers can easily exploit vulnerabilities in such publically accessible services. In addition to, 75% of the total reported application vulnerabilities are web application specific. Identifying such known vulnerabilities as well as newly discovered vulnerabilities is a key challenging security requirement. However, existing vulnerability analysis tools cover no more than 47% of the known vulnerabilities. We introduce a new solution that supports automated vulnerability analysis using formalized vulnerability signatures. Instead of depending on formal methods to locate vulnerability instances where analyzers have to be developed to locate specific vulnerabilities, our approach incorporates a formal vulnerability signature described using OCL. Using this formal signature, we perform program analysis of the target system to locate signature matches (i.e. signs of possible vulnerabilities). A newly-discovered vulnerability can be easily identified in a target program provided that a formal signature for it exists. We have developed a prototype static vulnerability analysis tool based on our formalized vulnerability signatures specification approach. We have validated our approach in capturing signatures of the OWSAP Top10 vulnerabilities and applied these signatures in analyzing a set of seven benchmark applications.
Power Estimation of Embedded Multiplier Blocks in FPGAs

The use of embedded multiplier blocks has become a norm in DSP applications due to their high performance and low power consumption. However, as their implementation details in commercial field-programmable gate arrays are not available to users, and the power estimates given by the tested low-level tool are not accurate enough to validate high-level models, the work on power estimation of these blocks is very limited. We present a dynamic power estimation methodology for the embedded multipliers in Xilinx Virtex-II Pro chips. The methodology is an adaptation of an existing power estimation method for lookup-table-based components and uses information about the type of architecture of the embedded block. The power model is characterized and verified by on-board measurements and is ready for integration with high-level power optimization techniques. The experimental results show that the average accuracy of the model is higher than the average accuracy of the low-level commercial tool.
The Evolution of Four Hybrid Sterility Loci in Us Weedy Red Rice

iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I extend my deepest gratitude to my advisor, Ana Caicedo whose support and creativity allowed me the opportunity to work in her lab and bring this project to fruition. She has been an amazingly dedicated mentor throughout my educational career in the lab. Special thanks to my committee members, Elsbeth Walker and Li-Jun Ma for all their insight and helpful suggestions throughout this project. I would like to thank all the members of my lab for always providing useful feedback and a laugh when needed. Thanks to Carrie Thurber for lending me her expertise throughout the years. I would especially like to thank Lauren Resnick and Mike Reagon for their intellectual contributions to this project. I would also like to thank Sherin Perera for running countless PCR reactions. I would also like to extend my gratitude to Peter Hepler and Caleb Rounds for all their help with the microscopy work. Thank you to the Bezanilla lab for allowing me access to their microscope I would like to thank the National Science Foundation for providing the funding to make this research possible. A special thank you to my family for their relentless love and moral support over the years. The accumulation of independent mutations in two populations of an ancestral species over time often leads to reproductive isolation. Reproductive isolation between diverging populations is re-enforced by genetic mating barriers that occur either pre-or post-zygotically. Hybrid sterility is the most common form of post-zygotic isolation in plants. Four post-zygotic sterility loci have been recently cloned in Oryza sativa, Sa, s5, DPL1 and DPL2; these loci explain, in part, the limited hybridization that occurs between the domesticated cultivated rice varieties, the United States, cultivated fields of japonica rice are often invaded by conspecific weeds that have been shown to be of indica origin. Crop-weed hybrids have been identified in crop fields, but at low frequencies. This study aimed to examine the role of these known hybrid incompatibility loci in the interaction between cultivated and weedy rice, and further assess the evolutionary processes acting at these loci. We identified a novel neutral allele at Sa, designated SaFX, that seemingly acts to restore fertility. Additionally, we found a strikingly high frequency of neutral-type alleles in weedy populations at multiple loci, suggesting that weedy individuals, particularly those of the SH and BRH groups, should be able to freely hybridize with the local japonica crop.
Energy efficient Hybrid Clustering Algorithm for Wireless Sensor Network

Improvements to sensor devices including micro-electro mechanical devices that are used for information collection and dissemination has led to the introduction of Wireless Sensor Networks (WSN). Sensor nodes in a WSN are deployed over an area to collect data from the surroundings and to perform additional actions including data aggregation and storage, computations and data transmission to gateway devices. Clustering is a technique used to organize and structure the sensor network to split it into sub-networks, each with a controller node called the Cluster Head (CH). This technique reduces sensor node energy consumption and prolongs the network lifetime. The CH aggregates the data from the respective cluster members and transmits the aggregated data to the next level in the network. In this paper, a clustering algorithm named Energy Aware Neighbor Oriented Clustering (EANOC) is proposed to improve the network lifetime. EANOC is underpinned by earlier work into a Hybrid Weight Based Clustering Algorithm (HWCA) and focuses on a new neighborhood discovery type. The selection of the propagation model, transmission range, and the receiver signal strength indication value have a significant impact on the rate of energy utilization. Simulation results show that EANOC outperforms HWCA and the Dynamic Load-Balancing Cluster-Based Protocol in attaining longer network lifetime.
A Novel Algorithm Based on Contourlet Transform for Medical Image Segmentation

In this paper, a novel algorithm in the contourlet domain is presented for segmenting lumbar vertebra in CT image. Firstly we apply the contourlet transform to the image, use its multiscale and multidirectional characteristics to get the coefficients that they can effectively capture the contours of an image and depict them sparsely. Secondly, C-Means clustering algorithm is applied to derive the edge information from the contourlet coefficients. Experimental results are encouraging, which illustrate the effectiveness of the algorithm. Compared with the wavelet-based method, our algorithm can get a satisfactory results.
Calcineurin Inhibitor–Free Monotherapy in Human Leukocyte Antigen–Identical Live Donor Renal Transplantation

Background. Most recent trials in human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-identical living donor (LD) renal transplantation have used immunosuppressive regimens with no induction therapy, corticosteroid-free long-term treatment, and calcineurin inhibitor minimization. Patients and Methods. Seven HLA-identical LD recipients were prospectively enrolled. Immunosuppression included induction therapy with antithymocyte globulins for 10 days and long-term monotherapy with mycophenolate mofetil (2 g/day) in six cases and sirolimus (target trough levels: 6–10 ng/mL) in the last case. A single preoperative steroid bolus was administered. Results. After a median follow-up time of 26 months (range: 5–50 months), patient and graft survival was 100%. Only one patient experienced borderline lesions at 3 months and received steroids for a 5-month period. All patients had a protocol biopsy at 3 months, and four had a second at 12 months. Acute cellular rejection was not observed. Median serum creatinine at 3 months, 12 months, and last follow-up were 103.1, 107.1, and 106.1 &mgr;mol/L, respectively. For four patients, measured glomerular filtration rate was evaluated at 3 months, and the mean value was 71.2 mL/min/1.73 m2. Conclusions. Induction therapy with antithymocyte globulins followed by mycophenolate mofetil or sirolimus monotherapy provides excellent patient and graft survival, excellent renal function, and no acute rejection episodes in HLA-identical LD renal transplant recipients.
PD-L1 Expression in Melanocytic Lesions Does Not Correlate with the BRAF V600E Mutation

Rodić and colleagues analyzed archival melanocytic lesions and cultured melanomas and found no correlation between melanocyte PD-L1 expression and BRAF V600E mutation, indicating that distinct biomarkers should be used to select patients for BRAF inhibitor and PD-1/PD-L1 checkpoint blockade therapies. PD-L1 expression in melanoma correlates with response to PD-1 pathway–blocking antibodies. Aberrant tumor-cell PD-L1 expression may be oncogene driven and/or induced by IFNγ. Melanomas express PD-L1 in association with tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TIL), but the potential contribution of the BRAF V600E mutation (BRAFmut) to induced PD-L1 expression has not been determined. Fifty-two archival melanocytic lesions were assessed for PD-L1 expression, TIL infiltration, and BRAFmut simultaneously. IFNγ-induced PD-L1 expression in cultured melanomas was assessed in parallel according to BRAF status. Melanocyte PD-L1 expression was observed in 40% of specimens, and BRAFmut was observed in 42% of specimens, but no significant concordance was found between these variables. Almost all melanocytes displaying PD-L1 expression were observed to be adjacent to TILs, irrespective of BRAF status. TIL− lesions were not more likely to be associated with BRAFmut, when compared with TIL+ lesions. Baseline expression of PD-L1 by melanoma cell lines was virtually nil, regardless of BRAFmut status, and the intensity of IFN-induced PD-L1 expression in melanoma cell lines likewise did not correlate with BRAF mutational status. PD-L1 expression in melanocytic lesions does not correlate with the BRAFmut. Thus, distinct populations of melanoma patients will likely benefit from BRAF inhibitors versus PD-1 pathway blockade. Cancer Immunol Res; 3(2); 110–5. ©2014 AACR.
Modification of hard-limiting multilayer neural networks for confidence evaluation

The central theme of this paper is to overcome the inability of feed forward neural networks with hard limiting units to provide confidence evaluation. We consider a Madaline architecture for a 2-group classification problem and concentrate on the probability density function for the neural activation of the first-layer units. As the following layers perform a Boolean table, the expectation value of the output is determined, utilizing the probability of a pattern to perform a definite binary input for the Boolean table. The Madaline architecture can be modified to the introduced /spl Sigma/-/spl Pi/-/spl Sigma/ network, which evaluates the expectation value. Several assumptions on the distribution of the neural activation lead to a clear and simple architecture, which is applied to an OCR problem.
Design and analysis of a touch mode MEMS capacitive pressure sensor for IUPC

In this paper, a novel design of diaphragm based pressure sensor has been proposed, which may find its application in Intra Uterine Pressure Catheter (IUPC) system. The novelty of the device lies in the fact that it has got patterned slots over the top layer of the diaphragm similar to a chess-board pattern. This sensor is then compared with a plane diaphragm of same dimensions. In same range of input pressure, results show that the plane diaphragm has capacitive sensitivity of 0.06385 pF/kPa, while in the slotted diaphragm, it is 0.17355 pF/kPa, three times as that of the plane one. However, the static pull-in voltage comes out to be almost 16 volt due to constant air gap of 0.4 μm for both the cases. Due to pull-in voltage in the range of 11-20 volts, it can also be used as an electrostatic actuator in switching networks.
The Reliability of the Leisure Diagnostic Battery Short Form Version B in Assessing Healthy, Older Individuals: A Preliminary Study

The purpose of this preliminary study was to test the reliability of the Leisure Diagnostic Battery (LDB) Short Form Version B. Thirty-two healthy, older individuals residing in public housing were surveyed using the LDB Short Form Version B. The individuals completed the LDB twice at a three week interval. Intraclass correlation coefficient was used to estimate reliability and alpha coefficient was used to aid in interpreting reliability. The results were inconclusive. Alpha coefficient was acceptable; however, reliability was only moderate. The LDB Short Form Version B for use with healthy, older individuals may require further investigation.
Upstream Polling Protocols for Flow Control in PON/xDSL Hybrid Access Networks

In a hybrid PON/xDSL access network, multiple customer premise equipment (CPE) nodes connect over individual digital subscriber lines (DSLs) to a drop-point device. The drop-point device, which is typically reverse powered from the customer, is co-located with an optical network unit (ONU) of the passive optical network (PON). We demonstrate that the drop-point experiences very high buffer occupancies when no flow control or standard Ethernet PAUSE frame flow control is employed. In order to reduce the buffer occupancies in the drop-point, we introduce two gated flow control protocols that extend the polling-based PON medium access control to the DSL segments between the CPEs and the ONUs. We analyze the timing of the gated flow control mechanisms to specify the latest possible time instant when CPEs can start the DSL upstream transmissions so that the ONU can forward the upstream transmissions at the full PON upstream transmission bit rate. Through extensive simulations for a wide range of bursty traffic models, we find that the gated flow control mechanisms, specifically, the ONU and CPE grant sizing policies, enable effective control of the maximum drop-point buffer occupancies.
Regression analysis of clustered interval-censored failure time data with the additive hazards model

This paper discusses regression analysis of clustered failure time data, which means that the failure times of interest are clustered into small groups instead of being independent. Clustering occurs in many fields such as medical studies. For the problem, a number of methods have been proposed, but most of them apply only to clustered right-censored data. In reality, the failure time data is often interval-censored. That is, the failure times of interest are known only to lie in certain intervals. We propose an estimating equation-based approach for regression analysis of clustered interval-censored failure time data generated from the additive hazards model. A major advantage of the proposed method is that it does not involve the estimation of any baseline hazard function. Both asymptotic and finite sample properties of the proposed estimates of regression parameters are established and the method is illustrated by the data arising from a lymphatic filariasis study.
Zero-Order Statistics: A Mathematical Framework for the Processing and Characterization of Very Impulsive Signals

Impulsive or heavy-tailed processes with infinite variance appear naturally in a variety of practical problems that include wireless communications, teletraffic, hydrology, geology, and economics. Most signal processing and statistical methods available in the literature have been designed under the assumption that the processes possess finite variance, and they usually break down in the presence of infinite variance. Although methods based on fractional lower-order statistics (FLOS) have proven successful in dealing with infinite variance processes, they fail in general when the noise distribution has very heavy algebraic tails. In this paper, we introduce a new approach to statistical moment characterization which is well defined over all processes with algebraic or lighter tails. Unlike FLOS, these zero-order statistics (ZOS), as we will call them, provide a common ground for the analysis of basically any distribution of practical use known today. Three new parameters, namely the geometric power, the zero-order location and the zero-order dispersion, constitute the foundation of ZOS. They play roles similar to those played by the power, the expected value and the standard deviation, in the theory of second-order processes. We analyze the properties of the new parameters, and derive a ZOS framework for location estimation that gives rise to a novel mode-type estimator with important optimality properties under very impulsive noise. Several simulations are presented to illustrate the potential of ZOS methods
Angiotensin II stimulates the production of NO and peroxynitrite in endothelial cells

Pueyo, Maria E. , Jean-FrançoisArnal, Jacques Rami, and Jean-Baptiste Michel. Angiotensin II stimulates the production of NO and peroxynitrite in endothelial cells. Am. J. Physiol. 274 (Cell Physiol. 43): C214–C220, 1998. — Angiotensin II (ANG II) produces vasoconstriction by a direct action on smooth muscle cells via AT1 receptors. These receptors are also present in the endothelium, but their function is poorly understood. This study was therefore undertaken to determine whether ANG II elicits the release of nitric oxide (NO) from cultured rat aortic endothelial cells. NO production, measured by the accumulation of nitrite and nitrate, was enhanced by 1027 M ANG II. The biological activity of the NO released by ANG II action was evaluated by measuring its guanylate cyclase-stimulating activity in smooth muscle cells. The guanosine 38,58-cyclic monophosphate (cGMP) content of smooth muscle cells was significantly increased by exposure of supernatant from ANG II-stimulated endothelial cells. These effects resulted from the activation of NO synthase, as they were inhibited by the L-arginine analogs. These ANG II actions were mediated by the AT1 receptor, as shown by their inhibition by the AT1 antagonist losartan. The cGMP production by reporter cells was inhibited by the calmodulin antagonist W-7, suggesting that ANG II activates endothelial calmodulin-dependent NO synthase. This hypothesis is also supported by the increase of intracellular free calcium induced by ANG II in endothelial cells. ANG II also stimulated luminol-enhanced chemiluminescence in endothelial cells. This effect was inhibited by Nv-monomethylL-arginine and superoxide dismutase, suggesting that this luminol-enhanced chemiluminescence reflected an increase in peroxynitrite production. Thus ANG II stimulates NO release from macrovascular endothelium, which may modulate the direct vasoconstrictor effect of ANG II on smooth muscle cells. However, this beneficial effect may be counteracted by the simultaneous production of peroxynitrite, which could contribute to several pathological processes in the vascular wall.
Building with straw in post-emergency conditions: The case of Haiti

Depending on the context, straw bale constructions can be appropriate for the improvement of the housing conditions in poor Countries or in post-emergency conditions. In the paper, starting from the case of Haiti, the problem is faced with a systemic approach. First, the situation is analysed; then, different construction techniques are discussed; a design of a dedicated press is presented; a construction realised is described; finally the ongoing projects are depicted.
Blood pressure and cardiovascular risk profiles of Africans who migrate to a Western country.

OBJECTIVES Africans who live in Western countries have a higher prevalence of hypertension and other cardiovascular risk factors than do age-matched Africans who live in Africa. We conducted a community survey to evaluate cardiovascular risk in Africans who recently migrated to Italy. METHODS Participants (N=83) from sub-Saharan Africa were recruited from an outpatient clinic for immigrants. Information on immigration date, family history of cardiovascular disease, physical activity, and smoking was obtained for all participants. Anthropometric parameters, blood pressure measurements, and laboratory analyses--including lipid profiles, plasma glucose, renal function, and serum and urinary electrolytes--were performed. RESULTS Although participants who had recently arrived in Italy had a low cardiovascular risk, the correlations were significant between the length of time in Italy and body weight (r=.47, P<.001), body mass index (r=.59, P<.0001), waist circumference (r=.54, P<.0001), total cholesterol (r=.41, P<.001), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (r=.46, P<.0001), systolic blood pressure (r=.31, P<.01), and diastolic blood pressure (r=.23, P<.05). The rise in systolic and diastolic blood pressure was positively correlated with body weight, body mass index, and waist circumference (P<.05 for all) and inversely correlated with 24-hour urinary potassium (systolic blood pressure, r=-.35, P<.01; diastolic blood pressure, r=-.42, P<.0001). CONCLUSIONS The length of residence in Italy is associated with progressive modifications in cardiovascular risk even in a relatively short period of time. The inverse correlation between blood pressure and urinary potassium may reflect dietary changes, with a possible reduction in fruit and vegetable consumption compared with their original diet.