Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
SSDCVA: Support system to the diagnostic of cerebral vascular accident for physiotherapy students

The aim of this paper is to provide an Intelligent Pedagogical Agents Based On Cases to aid in the diagnosis and treatment of patients with neurological disorders. The study proposes an architecture which facilitates the decision making process of students in the healthcare field, in order to advice adequate treatment for patients suffering a Cerebral Vascular Accident (CVA).
Exosomes Isolated from Mycobacteria-Infected Mice or Cultured Macrophages Can Recruit and Activate Immune Cells In Vitro and In Vivo

More than 2 billion people are infected with Mycobacterium. tuberculosis; however, only 5–10% of those infected will develop active disease. Recent data suggest that containment is controlled locally at the level of the granuloma and that granuloma architecture may differ even within a single infected individual. Formation of a granuloma likely requires exposure to mycobacterial components released from infected macrophages, but the mechanism of their release is still unclear. We hypothesize that exosomes, which are small membrane vesicles containing mycobacterial components released from infected macrophages, could promote cellular recruitment during granuloma formation. In support of this hypothesis, we found that C57BL/6 mouse-derived bone marrow macrophages treated with exosomes released from M. tuberculosis-infected RAW264.7 cells secrete significant levels of chemokines and can induce migration of CFSE-labeled macrophages and splenocytes. Exosomes isolated from the serum of M. bovis bacillus Calmette-Guérin–infected mice could also stimulate macrophage production of chemokines and cytokines ex vivo, but the level and type differed during the course of a 60-d infection. Of interest, the exosome concentration in serum correlated strongly with mouse bacterial load, suggesting some role in immune regulation. Finally, hollow fiber-based experiments indicated that macrophages treated with exosomes released from M. tuberculosis-infected cells could promote macrophage recruitment in vivo. Exosomes injected intranasally could also recruit CD11b+ cells into the lung. Overall, our study suggests that exosomes may play an important role in recruiting and regulating host cells during an M. tuberculosis infection.
An ICT Reconstruction Algorithm for Rotation Off-Centered Scan

Abstract The detected samples of ICT have variable sizes. Different scanning models and corresponding reconstruction algorithms are designed to enlarge the field of view under the condition of a detector of fixed size, such as rotation off-centered、detector displaced. Generally, rebinning method is applied to rotation off-centered scanning model. Fan beam projections are rebinned to parallel beam data. Then, the data which is lost can be compensated by mirrored projections. The disadvantage of rebinning method is spatial resolution can be degraded due to interpolation in rebinning process. In addition, rebinning method is not suitable extended to cone beam data. This paper proposes a reconstruction algorithm applied to rotation off-centered scan. This method weights the redundant projection data sampled twice with a parker type function first. Then a fan beam reconstruction algorithm is applied to obtain slice images. Spatial resolution cannot be degraded without interpolation. We perform experiment with line pair to prove the validity and advantage of this method. We reconstruct images by rebinning method and our method separately. The results show a superior spatial resolution of our method. Key word: industrial CT, rotation off-centered scan, detector displaced scan, spatial resolution, field of view
Can Cognitive Radio Access to TV White Spaces Support Future Home Networks?

There is a growing demand for high data-rate mobile and indoor services at a reasonable cost, and using an indoor wireless system at end of the ADSL+ or fibre line is one potential way of meeting this demand. Industry players such as fixed-line and cellular operators have adopted similar approaches but based around different wireless technologies such as WiFi or HSPA femtocells and potentially LTE/WiMAX in the future. However due to issues related to interference in the license-exempt band and limited spectrum availability in the licensed band there are some doubts as to whether or not the available wireless options will be able to effectively distribute the high bandwidths within a home environment. With use of cognitive radio technology, the digital TV switchover program, offers a potential opportunity to address this issue. The aim of this paper is to assess the feasibility of using the TV White Space(TVWS) spectrum for home networking services and compare the performance with that of other license-exempt spectral bands, namely 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz ISM band. It studies the limitations in presence of interference and identifies the operating conditions when the system performance would start to become unacceptable. Using analytical and simulation techniques, it is shown that the performance of TVWS spectral outperforms the 5 GHz and 2.4 GHz for low to medium traffic loadings (around 2 Mb/s per home) at significantly lower energy requirements. However, to achieve these gains (a) the use of spectrum aggregation techniques and (b) operation at low power levels, i.e, below 3 dBm per channel becomes essential. The work also shows that for heavy traffic loadings (6 Mb/s and above per home) in dense deployment densities, TVWS band should be used as complementary interface for congestion relief instead. \end{abstract}
Σ/sigma DC/DC conversion for computing and telecom applications

A novel DC/DC conversion architecture, Sigma/sigma DC/DC, is proposed. A tiny regulated converter with only about 2% of total output power is seamlessly mated with the unregulated resonant DC/DC transformer (DCX) which is responsible for about 98% of the total power during both the steady state and transient. The resonant DCX is always operated at the best point during steady state for the highest efficiency with the compelling features of negligible switching loss, simple driving of synchronous rectifier and fast dynamic response. By taking advantage of the ultra-low output impedance of the DCX, the tiny regulated converter is deemed to steer the big unregulated DCX toward the output voltage regulation, soft starting and output current limiting, and current sharing for N+l redundancy. Thus, the overall efficiency is determined by the DCX while the output regulations are executed by the tiny regulated converter. Theoretical analysis on the steady state and transient operation, as well as the design guideline is provided. Finally, 96% overall efficiency has been demonstrated in a 400 KHz 200 V/12 V DC/DC design.
A Comparison of Listener and Speaker Perception of Stuttering Events

This study compared judgments of stuttering made by six persons who stutter (PWS) with the highly agreed upon judgements of stuttering made by eight independent listeners. Listeners' judgements were based on at least seven of the eight judges agreeing on whether stuttering occurred or not on a given segment. Judgements of whether stuttering occurred were made immediately by the speakers as suggested by Moore and Perkins (1990). Comparisons of speakers' judgements of stuttering to listeners' judgements of stuttering revealed a Cohen's Kappa of 0.276 (significant beyond the .001 level). Analysis of results shows high listener/speaker agreement on nonstuttered words (as identified by speakers), but low listener/speaker agreement on stuttered words (as identified by speakers). Abrege La presente etude compare les jugements sur le begaiement poses par six personnes qui begaient elles-memes avec ceux sur lesquels s'entendaient largement huit auditeurs independants. Au moins sept des huit juges devaient etre d'accord sur la presence ou I'absence de begaiement dans un segment donne pour que I'on retienne leur jugement. A la suggestion de Moore et Perkins (1990), les locuteurs ont juge sur-le-champ s'ils avaient begaye ou non. Les comparaisons des avis des deux groupes revelent une concordance Kappa de Cohen de 0,276 (Iargement superieure au niveau 0,01). Une analyse des resultats indique que les auditeurs et les locuteurs s'entendent largement sur les mots qui n'ont pas ete begayes (selon ce qu'ont dit les locuteurs), mais qu'ils s'entendent peu quant aux mots qui ont ete beg ayes (selon ceux qu'ont identifies les locuteurs).
Molecular Characterization of Contaminating Infectious Anemia Virus of Chickens in Live Commercial Vaccines Produced in the 1990s

SUMMARY. The presence of infectious chicken anemia virus (CAV) was detected in a previous study by nested-PCR as a contaminant in seven commercial vaccines, produced in the 1990s by three different manufacturers, prepared against the most relevant virus etiologies. In order to phylogenetically characterize the genome and compare it to CAV isolates from Brazil and other parts of the world, sequences of approximately 675 bp of the gene encoding the hypervariable region of VP1 protein of three CAV vaccine contaminant strains were studied. The CAV genome in contaminated vaccines showed high similarity (>98.9%) with the Brazilian BR91/99 and Argentinian ArgA001028 (>99%) strains. However, the comparison with the Cuxhaven-1 vaccine strain showed a lower identity of between 96.8% and 97.7%, and comparing it with the CAV26P4 vaccine strain showed an identity between 97.2% and 98.2%; both are available in Brazil. Such differences might be relevant for the highly conserved CAV genome. CAV contaminants were positioned in the same genetic group (clusters) with the Brazilian strain BR91/99 and Argentinian strain ArgA001028. Results indicated that the contamination of live vaccines by CAV may have influenced CAV epidemiology in the Brazilian and Argentinian poultry industry. RESUMEN. Caracterización molecular de los virus de la anemia infecciosa del pollo detectados como contaminantes en vacunas comerciales producidas en la década de los noventas. En un estudio previo, se detectó mediante un método de PCR anidado la presencia del virus de la anemia infecciosa del pollo (CAV) como contaminantes en siete vacunas comerciales contra etiologías variadas, que fueron producidas en los años noventas por tres laboratorios diferentes. Con el objetivo de caracterizar filogenéticamente el genoma y compararlo con aislamientos del virus de la anemia de Brasil y de otras partes del mundo, se estudiaron las secuencias de aproximadamente 675 pares de bases que codificaban para la región hipervariable de la proteína VP1 de tres cepas del virus de la anemia que fueron contaminantes de vacunas. El genoma del virus de la anemia que se encontró en las vacunas contaminadas mostro una similitud alta (>98.9%), con la cepa brasileña BR91/99 y con la estirpe argentina ArgA001028 (>99%). Sin embargo, la comparación con la cepa vacunal Cuxhaven-1, mostró una similitud de entre 96.8 a 97.7% y de 97.2 a 98.2% con la estirpe vacunal CAV26P4, ambas cepas son usadas en Brasil para producir vacunas comerciales contra el virus de la anemia. Estas diferencias pueden ser relevantes debido a que el genoma del virus de la anemia infecciosa es altamente conservado. Los virus contaminantes de la anemia infecciosa se agruparon en el mismo grupo genético (clúster) con la cepa brasileña BR91/99 y de Argentina ArgA001028. Estos resultados indican que la contaminación de las vacunas vivas con el virus de la anemia infecciosa pudo haber influenciado la epidemiología del virus en la industria avícola de Brasil y Argentina.
Excessive Drinking Among African American Men: Individual and Contextual Correlates

In this article, the authors explored associations of multiple domains with regular drinking and getting drunk among adult African American men. Questionnaire-based, computer-assisted interviews were conducted with 484 men in Atlanta, Georgia. Data analysis involved multivariate logistic regression analyses. Findings show that being older increased the odds of both drinking behaviors. Sensation seeking increased the odds of regular drinking, and having experienced childhood sexual and physical abuse increased the odds of getting drunk. Having health insurance reduced the odds of both outcomes. Insurance coverage and the heterogeneity among adult African American men must be considered in risk reduction efforts.
A comparison of bootstrap methods and an adjusted bootstrap approach for estimating the prediction error in microarray classification

This paper first provides a critical review on some existing methods for estimating the prediction error in classifying microarray data where the number of genes greatly exceeds the number of specimens. Special attention is given to the bootstrap‐related methods. When the sample size n is small, we find that all the reviewed methods suffer from either substantial bias or variability. We introduce a repeated leave‐one‐out bootstrap (RLOOB) method that predicts for each specimen in the sample using bootstrap learning sets of size ln. We then propose an adjusted bootstrap (ABS) method that fits a learning curve to the RLOOB estimates calculated with different bootstrap learning set sizes. The ABS method is robust across the situations we investigate and provides a slightly conservative estimate for the prediction error. Even with small samples, it does not suffer from large upward bias as the leave‐one‐out bootstrap and the 0.632+ bootstrap, and it does not suffer from large variability as the leave‐one‐out cross‐validation in microarray applications. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
A Correction to the Research Article Titled "Direct Response to Notch Activation: Signaling Crosstalk and Incoherent Logic" by A. Krejčí, F. Bernard, B. Housden, S. Collins, S. J. Bray

Identification of the direct target genes of Notch reveals complex input into multiple signaling pathways that goes beyond coordination of transcriptional networks. Micromanaging Development By combining microarray gene expression data with occupancy by a key DNA binding transducer in the Notch pathway, Krejčí et al. set a gold standard for target genes that are regulated directly by Notch. The analysis also reveals incoherent network logic in which Notch signaling activates both positive and negative regulators of several pathways, which may allow Notch to micromanage multiple signaling networks and poise cells for different responses depending on the context. Detailed analysis of several Notch direct target genes in vivo reveals that many of the identified genes participate in regulation of adult muscle progenitors in Drosophila. Notch is the receptor in one of a small group of conserved signaling pathways that are essential at multiple stages in development. Although the mechanism of transduction impinges directly on the nucleus to regulate transcription through the CSL [CBF-1/Su(H)/LAG-1] DNA binding protein, there are few known direct target genes. Thus, relatively little is known about the immediate cellular consequences of Notch activation. We therefore set out to determine the genome-wide response to Notch activation by analyzing the changes in messenger RNA (mRNA) expression and the sites of CSL occupancy within 30 minutes of activating Notch in Drosophila cells. Through combining these data, we identify high-confidence direct targets of Notch that are implicated in the maintenance of adult muscle progenitors in vivo. These targets are enriched in cell morphogenesis genes and in components of other cell signaling pathways, especially the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) pathway. Also evident are examples of incoherent network logic, where Notch stimulates the expression of both a gene and the repressor of that gene, which may result in a transient window of competence after Notch activation. Furthermore, because targets comprise both positive and negative regulators, cells become poised for both outcomes, suggesting one mechanism through which Notch activation can lead to opposite effects in different contexts.
Fuzzy analysis for overlapping community structure of complex network

We consider the problem of fuzzy community detection in networks, which complements the concept of overlapping community structure. Using the optimization method to approximate network feature matrix is an important approach for conventional fuzzy community detection. In order to retain valuable physical meaning of the approximation, we discard redundant constraints in the process of approximation which is accordingly reduced to a problem of symmetrical non-negative matrix factorization (s-NMF). The resulting fuzzy metric, which is termed clique-node similarity degree (CNSD), is able to grasp very subtle topology information of the node's neighborhood. Based on the CNSD, we introduce a new measure that is able to identify the key nodes that are critical to the connection of the adjacent communities. The technique is able to discover the fuzzy community structure of different real world networks with high confidence.
[Rectal cancer staging with endoscopic ultrasonography: correlation with pathological staging].

OBJECTIVE our aim was to evaluate the accuracy of endosonography (EUS) in our experience, to stage rectal cancer. MATERIAL AND METHODS we prospectively included all patients with rectal cancer staged in our unit from September 2002 until February 2006 in a database. We selected those patients who had a complete EUS examination and were surgically treated without neoadjuvant therapy. Once we had the results of the histopathological staging (pTN), which was considered the gold standard, we compared the results of the previous EUS staging (uTN) with those of the pTN. We calculated the sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value and accuracy for each T stage, and for N staging considered as N positive or negative. We also calculated the global accuracy for T stage. We also calculated the agreement of uTN with pTN staging using the kappa index for N stage, and quadratic weighted kappa index for T stage. RESULTS we staged 120 patients with rectal cancer during the mentioned period. Of these, 36 patients met inclusion criteria and were evaluated, 21 women and 15 men. Mean age was 68,53+/-10,15 yo (range: 48-90). Global T stage accuracy was 83%. N stage accuracy was 72%. We obtained a S, E, PPV, NPV and A of 91, 100, 100, 96 and 97% for T1; 82, 88, 75, 91 and 86% for T2; 86, 91, 86, 91 and 89% for T3; and 14, 86, 20, 80 and 72% for N stage respectively. Kappa value for T stage was 0,87 indicating a "very good" agreement between uT and pT according to the kappa index criteria. Kappa value for N stage agreement was 0,005; "poor" according to the same criteria. CONCLUSIONS in our experience, the diagnostic accuracy of EUS for T and N staging of rectal cancer is 83% and 72% respectively, similar results as previously published. uT staging for rectal cancer shows a "very good" agreement with pT staging.
Stereo vision based mapping and immediate virtual walkthroughs

This thesis investigates stereo vision based techniques for supporting work with teleoperated mobile robots. In particular, the tasks of navigation and control of the robot in unknown environments as well as control of the manipulator are considered. Support is required with map overviews and images from novel viewpoints. Challenges are to create maps and novel images in real time, exclusively from image sequences of a calibrated stereo camera that is allowed to move arbitrarily in three dimensions. Furthermore, no assumptions are made about the environment. These requirements have led to research in the areas of stereo vision, camera motion estimation, mapping and novel view synthesis. Several contributions have been made in these areas. Firstly, the behaviour of stereo correlation is analysed and a new real time stereo algorithm derived, which has reduced matching errors compared to traditional algorithms. Secondly, a new robust real time camera motion estimation method is described, which exclusively uses stereo images and permits arbitrary camera motion. Thirdly, a new method for creating two-dimensional maps from images of a stereo camera under arbitrary three-dimensional motion is presented. Finally, novel view synthesis is performed in disparity space of source stereo images using a new method. All the proposed techniques have been integrated into the Immediate Reality Scanner (IRIS) system. The system performs incremental mapping, immediate virtual walkthroughs and dynamic novel views exclusively from a stereo camera under arbitrary three-dimensional motion. Mapping and immediate virtual walkthroughs can be performed in real time, concurrently to scanning the environment. The thesis describes camera calibration, stereo processing, camera motion estimation, map building, novel view synthesis and the integration into IRIS, including evaluations in all areas. It is concluded that IRIS does not only fulfil the requirements of the anticipated application on teleoperated mobile robots, but could also be used in a wide range of robotics and non-robotics applications. It is believed that IRIS is the first system that allows incremental mapping and immediate virtual walkthroughs in real time concurrently to scanning an unconstrained environment with an arbitrarily moving stereo camera.
An Overview on SDN Architectures with Multiple Controllers

Software-defined networking offers several benefits for networking by separating the control plane from the data plane. However, networks’ scalability, reliability, and availability remain as a big issue. Accordingly, multicontroller architectures are important for SDN-enabled networks. This paper gives a comprehensive overview of SDN multicontroller architectures. It presents SDN and its main instantiation OpenFlow. Then, it explains in detail the differences between multiple types of multicontroller architectures, like the distribution method and the communication system. Furthermore, it provides already implemented and under research examples of multicontroller architectures by describing their design, their communication process, and their performance results.
Error modeling and calibration of exteroceptive sensors for accurate mapping applications

Reliable robotic perception and planning are critical to performing autonomous actions in uncertain, unstructured environments. In field robotic systems, automation is achieved by interpreting exteroceptive sensor information to infer something about the world. This is then mapped to provide a consistent spatial context, so that actions can be planned around the predicted future interaction of the robot and the world. The whole system is as reliable as the weakest link in this chain. In this paper, the term mapping is used broadly to describe the transformation of range-based exteroceptive sensor data (such as LIDAR or stereo vision) to a fixed navigation frame, so that it can be used to form an internal representation of the environment. The coordinate transformation from the sensor frame to the navigation frame is analyzed to produce a spatial error model that captures the dominant geometric and temporal sources of mapping error. This allows the mapping accuracy to be calculated at run time. A generic extrinsic calibration method for exteroceptive range-based sensors is then presented to determine the sensor location and orientation. This allows systematic errors in individual sensors to be minimized, and when multiple sensors are used, it minimizes the systematic contradiction between them to enable reliable multisensor data fusion. The mathematical derivations at the core of this model are not particularly novel or complicated, but the rigorous analysis and application to field robotics seems to be largely absent from the literature to date. The techniques in this paper are simple to implement, and they offer a significant improvement to the accuracy, precision, and integrity of mapped information. Consequently, they should be employed whenever maps are formed from range-based exteroceptive sensor data. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.