Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Successive cancellation decoder for very long polar codes

Polar codes are a family of error correcting codes that achieves the symmetric capacity of memoryless channels when the code length N tends to infinity. However, moderate code lengths are required in most of wireless digital applications to limit the decoding latency. In some other applications, such as optical communications or quantum key distribution, the latency introduced by very long codes is not an issue. The main challenge is to design codes with the best error correction capability, a tractable complexity and a high throughput. In such a context, SC decoding is an interesting solution because its performance improves with N while the computational complexity scales almost linearly. In this paper, we propose to improve the scalability of SC decoders thanks to four architectural optimizations. The resulting SC decoder is implemented on an FPGA device and favorably compares with state-of-the-art scalable SC decoders. Moreover, a 222 polar code SC decoder is implemented on a Stratix-5 FPGA. This code length is twice larger than the ones achieved in previous works. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first architecture for which a N = 4 million bits polar code can be actually decoded on a reconfigurable circuit.
Lung tumors in strain a mice: Application for studies in cancer chemoprevention

Strain A mice develop a high incidence of spontaneous lung tumors during their lifetime. These tumors may be found in some animals as early as 3 to 4 weeks of age, increasing to nearly 100% by 24 months of age. The strain A mouse is also highly susceptible to the induction of lung tumors by several classes of chemical carcinogens and has been used extensively as a mouse lung tumor bioassay for assessing the carcinogenic activity of a variety of chemicals.
Maternal depressive symptoms in infancy: Unique contribution to children's depressive symptoms in childhood and adolescence?

Abstract This prospective 20-year study assessed associations between maternal depressive symptoms in infancy, childhood, and adolescence, and child and adolescent depressive symptoms in a sample of families at high psychosocial risk. Maternal symptomatology was assessed with the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale (CES-D) when children were infants (12 months), school-aged (age 8), and adolescents (age 19). Children's depressive symptoms were measured at age 8 (Dimensions of Depression Profile for Children and Adolescents) and age 19 (CES-D). Maternal depressive symptoms during infancy contributed to the prediction of child depressive symptoms at age 8, after controlling for concurrent maternal depressive symptoms, clinical risk in infancy, and gender. Clinical risk in infancy marginally contributed to the prediction model. Disorganization of attachment in infancy and maternal hostility were independent predictors of depressive symptoms at age 8 and did not mediate the relation between maternal and child depressive symptoms. Depressive symptoms in adolescence were predicted by gender, children's depressive symptoms at age 8, maternal depressive symptoms in adolescence, and maternal depressive symptoms in infancy. There was no moderating effect of gender. Adding to previous evidence on the importance of early maternal depression, maternal depressive symptoms during infancy were related to the development of depressive symptoms in childhood and adolescence even when other variables of potential relevance were controlled.
KChIP3 Rescues the Functional Expression of Shal Channel Tetramerization Mutants*

KChIP proteins regulate Shal, Kv4.x, channel expression by binding to a conserved sequence at the N terminus of the subunit. The binding of KChIP facilitates a redistribution of Kv4 protein to the cell surface, producing a large increase in current along with significant changes in channel gating kinetics. Recently we have shown that mutants of Kv4.2 lacking the ability to bind an intersubunit Zn2+ between their T1 domains fail to form functional channels because they are unable to assemble to tetramers and remain trapped in the endoplasmic reticulum. Here we find that KChIPs are capable of rescuing the function of Zn2+ site mutants by driving the mutant subunits to assemble to tetramers. Thus, in addition to known trafficking effects, KChIPs play a direct role in subunit assembly by binding to monomeric subunits within the endoplasmic reticulum and promoting tetrameric channel assembly. Zn2+-less Kv4.2 channels expressed with KChIP3 demonstrate several distinct kinetic changes in channel gating, including a reduced time to peak and faster entry into the inactivated state as well as extending the time to recover from inactivation by 3–4 fold.
Issues in the evaluation and treatment of anxiety and depression in migrant women in the perinatal period

Objectives: Perinatal depression and anxiety are prevalent in migrant women. The main aims of this literature review were to understand the psychosocial determinants of depression and anxiety in migrant women antenatally and to explore common clinical presentations. In addition, we aimed to identify barriers and facilitating factors for help-seeking and treatment, in order to identify directions for service development and improvement. Methods: A review of the literature was performed using electronic databases. Results: Depression and anxiety are over represented in migrant women in the perinatal period. Somatic symptoms are common presentations for emotional distress. An identified difficulty is a perceived lack of support, often as a result of cultural dislocation and social isolation. Significant barriers to help-seeking include the perception that limited assistance is available and reluctance to share personal information with an unknown clinician. Preferred therapeutic approaches include the use of clinical consultants from the same or similar culture, as well as practical and emotional support rather than medical management of symptoms. Conclusion: Clinicians should be aware of psychosocial issues in this vulnerable population. Group programmes with a focus on education about mental and physical health, available supports, and socialisation are effective in engaging and assisting pregnant migrant women.
Sustained proliferation, multi‐lineage differentiation and maintenance of primitive human haemopoietic cells in NOD/SCID mice transplanted with human cord blood

Time course studies of sublethally irradiated non‐obese mice with severe combined immunodeficiency (NOD/SCID mice) transplanted intravenously with 107 human cord blood cells showed a rapid and parallel regeneration of human erythroid, granulopoietic, megakaryopoietic and B‐lymphoid progenitors, as well as more primitive subpopulations of CD34+ cells (defined by their multi‐lineage in vitro colony‐forming ability, coexpression of Thy‐1, or functional activity in long‐term culture‐initiating cell [LTC‐IC] assays), in the marrow, spleen and blood. Maximum numbers of human cells were reached within 6 weeks and were then sustained for another 18–20 weeks. 3H‐thymidine suicide studies showed all types of in vitro clonogenic human progenitors tested and the human LTC‐IC to be proliferating in vitro throughout this period. A 2‐week course of injections of human Steel factor, interleukin‐3, granulocyte‐macrophage colony‐stimulating factor and erythropoietin given just prior to assessment of the mice had no effect on any of these human engraftment parameters. 4–6 weeks post‐transplant, the marrow of primary NOD/SCID recipients contained human cells that were able to regenerate lymphopoiesis and/or myelopoiesis in secondary irradiated NOD/SCID mice. These findings establish a baseline for the kinetics of engraftment, multi‐lineage differentiation and self‐renewal of human cord blood stem cells in this xenogeneic transplant model and thus set the stage for future studies of their regulation in vivo.
Binge Drinking and Associated Health Risk Behaviors Among High School Students

OBJECTIVES. Underage drinking contributes to the 3 leading causes of death (unintentional injury, homicide, and suicide) among persons aged 12 to 20 years. Most adverse health effects from underage drinking stem from acute intoxication resulting from binge drinking. Although binge drinking, typically defined as consuming ≥5 drinks on an occasion, is a common pattern of alcohol consumption among youth, few population-based studies have focused specifically on the characteristics of underage binge drinkers and their associated health risk behaviors. METHODS. We analyzed data on current drinking, binge drinking, and other health risk behaviors from the 2003 National Youth Risk Behavior Survey. Prevalence estimates and 95% confidence intervals were calculated by using SAS and SUDAAN statistical software. Logistic regression was used to examine the associations between different patterns of alcohol consumption and health risk behaviors. RESULTS. Overall, 44.9% of high school students reported drinking alcohol during the past 30 days (28.8% binge drank and 16.1% drank alcohol but did not binge drink). Although girls reported more current drinking with no binge drinking, binge-drinking rates were similar among boys and girls. Binge-drinking rates increased with age and school grade. Students who binge drank were more likely than both nondrinkers and current drinkers who did not binge to report poor school performance and involvement in other health risk behaviors such as riding with a driver who had been drinking, being currently sexually active, smoking cigarettes or cigars, being a victim of dating violence, attempting suicide, and using illicit drugs. A strong dose-response relationship was found between the frequency of binge drinking and the prevalence of other health risk behaviors. CONCLUSIONS. Binge drinking is the most common pattern of alcohol consumption among high school youth who drink alcohol and is strongly associated with a wide range of other health risk behaviors. Effective intervention strategies (eg, enforcement of the minimum legal drinking age, screening and brief intervention, and increasing alcohol taxes) should be implemented to prevent underage alcohol consumption and adverse health and social consequences resulting from this behavior.
Multiscale Optimization for the Management of Runoff Risks in Agricultural Watersheds

This paper presents a novel combined optimization approach to the problem of runoff risk management in agricultural watersheds. Starting with important rains, the runoff risk increases according to the agricultural activities practiced by farmers on their parcels of land. To minimize the risk, we propose to optimize the distribution of crops on the parcels. The redistribution must take into account a number of agronomic, economic, and hydrologic constraints. Two criteria allow the estimation of the runoff risks. On the scale of the digital terrain model, a cellular automaton evaluates a global criterion at the watershed outlet. At the scale of the parcels, a local criterion evaluates the modification of risks generated by a variation of crops on two parcels. We compare the results of these two criteria on the watershed of Villers-Ecalles, Haute Normandie, France.
Potential of Reduction in Total Tumor Volume Measured with 3D‐MRI as a Prognostic Factor for Locally‐Advanced Breast Cancer Patients Treated with Primary Chemotherapy

Abstract: For accurate assessment of the response to primary chemotherapy (PCT) for locally advanced breast cancer, we measured reduction in total tumor volume (TTV) by using three‐dimensional magnetic resonance imaging (3D MRI), and examined the relationship between this reduction and patient prognosis. Fifty‐one patients with locally advanced breast cancer were treated with four cycles of docetaxel (60 mg/m2) before surgery. Tumor size was measured with calipers, ultrasonography (US) and conventional two‐dimensional (2D) MRI before and after chemotherapy. TTV was measured with 3D MRI. These and other clinicopathological parameters were statistically analyzed to determine the prognosis for the patients. Median follow‐up time was 46 months (1–64 months). Of the 51 patients, 25 developed distant recurrences. Patients whose TTV decreased by 75% or more after PCT showed significantly better prognosis than others, while tumor size measured with calipers, US and 2D MRI showed no significant relationship with patient prognosis. Of the clinicopathological parameters, only reduction in TTV and histological grade showed a significant association with distant recurrence‐free survival (p = 0.03 and 0.02, log‐rank test), while stepwise multivariate Cox’s proportional hazards analysis identified TTV as the strongest independent prognostic factor. Reduction in TTV measured with 3D MRI can be a useful prognostic factor for patients with locally advanced breast cancer treated with PCT.
Effects of Extreme Temperatures on Years of Life Lost for Cardiovascular Deaths: A Time Series Study in Brisbane, Australia

Background—Extreme temperatures are associated with cardiovascular disease (CVD) deaths. Previous studies have investigated the relative CVD mortality risk of temperature, but this risk is heavily influenced by deaths in frail elderly people. To better estimate the burden of extreme temperatures, we estimated their effects on years of life lost due to CVD. Methods and Results—The data were daily observations on weather and CVD mortality for Brisbane, Australia, between 1996 and 2004. We estimated the association between daily mean temperature and years of life lost due to CVD, after adjusting for trend, season, day of the week, and humidity. To examine the nonlinear and delayed effects of temperature, a distributed lag nonlinear model was used. The model’s residuals were examined to investigate whether there were any added effects due to cold spells and heat waves. The exposure–response curve between temperature and years of life lost was U-shaped, with the lowest years of life lost at 24°C. The curve had a sharper rise at extremes of heat than of cold. The effect of cold peaked 2 days after exposure, whereas the greatest effect of heat occurred on the day of exposure. There were significantly added effects of heat waves on years of life lost. Conclusions—Increased years of life lost due to CVD are associated with both cold and hot temperatures. Research on specific interventions is needed to reduce temperature-related years of life lost from CVD deaths.
Conservation genetics, foraging distance and nest density of the scarce Great Yellow Bumblebee (Bombus distinguendus)

The conservation genetics of bees is of particular interest because many bee species are in decline, so jeopardizing the essential ecosystem service of plant pollination that they provide. In addition, as social haplodiploids, inbred bees may be vulnerable to the extra genetic load represented by the production of sterile diploid males. Using microsatellite markers, we investigated the genetic structure of populations of the Great Yellow Bumblebee (Bombus distinguendus Morawitz) in the UK, where this species has undergone a precipitous decline. By means of a mixture of analytical methods and simulation, we also extended—and then applied—genetic methods for estimating foraging distance and nest density in wild bees. B. distinguendus populations were characterized by low expected heterozygosity and allelic richness, inbreeding coefficients not significantly different from zero, absence of detected diploid males, absence of substantial demographic bottlenecking, and population substructuring at large (c. 100+ km) but not small (10s of km) spatial scales. The minimum average effective population size at our sampling sites was low (c. 25). In coastal grassland (machair), the estimated modal foraging distance of workers was 391 m, with 95% of foraging activity occurring within 955 m of the nest, and estimated nest density was 19.3 nests km‐2. These findings show that B. distinguendus exhibits some genetic features of scarce, declining or fragmented populations. Moreover, B. distinguendus workers appear to forage over above‐average distances and nests remain thinly distributed even in current strongholds. These considerations should inform future conservation actions for this and similar species.
The Term Structure of Redenomination Risk

This paper assesses redenomination risk in the euro area. We first estimate daily default-risk-free yield curves for French, German, and Italian bonds that can be redenominated and for bonds that cannot. Then, we extract the compensation for redenomination risk from the yield spreads between these two types of bonds. Redenomination risk primarily shows up at the short end of yield curves. At the height of the euro crisis, spreads between first-year yields were close to 7% for Italy and up to -2% for Germany. The ECB's interventions designed to reduce the risk of a breakup successfully did so for Italy, but increased it for France and Germany.
Restored plasticity in a mouse model of neurofibromatosis type 1 via inhibition of hyperactive ERK and CREB

Patients with neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1), resulting from neurofibromin gene mutations, frequently suffer from deficits in learning and spatial memory. Mice heterozygous for functional deletion of the NF1 gene (NF1+/– mice) also exhibit compromised spatial learning, and deficits in early‐stage hippocampal long‐term potentiation (LTP). Neurofibromin is a multifunctional protein which acts in part as an inhibitory constraint on Ras signalling, and the deficits in early‐stage LTP and spatial learning have been linked to Ras hyperactivation. However, the downstream targets of Ras hyperactivation that lead to cognitive disruption are unknown. The levels of activity of signalling molecules potentially downstream of Ras were therefore studied in NF1+/– mice. Elevated phospho‐ERK (pERK) levels were observed in the hippocampi from NF1+/– mice, while phospho‐Akt/PKB (pAkt) and phospho‐eIF4E (peIF4E) levels were unchanged relative to wild‐type mice. Hippocampal levels of phospho‐CREB (pCREB) were also increased, suggesting potential changes in late‐phase LTP in NF1+/– mice. Indeed, LTP was found to be impaired for at least 4 h following induction in NF1+/– mice, linking neurofibromin function with the long‐term maintenance of LTP. Remarkably, U0126, an inhibitor of ERK activation, at doses which reduced the hyperactive pERK levels in NF1+/– mice to the levels observed in control mice, caused a reduction in the deficits in early‐phase LTP and completely rescued the long‐term LTP deficits. In contrast to the abundant evidence that reductions in ERK activity lead to impaired plasticity, these data indicate that ERK hyperactivation in a partial model of type 1 neurofibromatosis leads to deficits in long‐lasting hippocampal plasticity.
Tat protein from HIV-1 binds to Mycobacterium avium via a bacterial integrin. Effects on extracellular and intracellular growth.

We examined the interaction between HIV-1 Tat protein and the opportunistic pathogen Mycobacterium avium. AIDS-associated strains of M. avium were shown to bind Tat protein quite avidly in an attachment assay. The attachment of M. avium to Tat was shown to occur via the integrin alpha 5 beta 1 present on the mycobacterial cell surface. M. avium strains were shown to bind the viral Tat protein with high affinity in a specific fashion (600 binding sites with a Kd of 1 to 5 nM). M. avium coated with Tat protein were shown to be more infective for human alveolar macrophages than untreated M. avium. Other HIV-1 Ags had no such effects (e.g., p24, p17). Examination of the cytokine profile of infected macrophages showed that M. avium-Tat complexes induced higher levels of TGF beta-1 (TGF beta 1) than M. avium alone or M. avium that had been in contact with other viral proteins. Conditioned media from HIV-1-infected H9 cells released a factor that enhanced M. avium intramacrophage growth, and was partially neutralized by an anti-Tat Ab. Finally, Tat protein (purified or present in conditioned media from infected cells) moderately enhanced the growth of M. avium strains in extracellular media, and exposure of M. avium to Tat protein in the presence of IL-6 enhanced the growth of AIDS-associated strains. These data argue for an interaction between the Tat viral product and the opportunistic pathogen M. avium which may contribute to the exquisite susceptibility of AIDS subjects to this pathogen.
A temperature compensation system for silicon pressure sensor based on neural networks

We present a temperature compensation system for silicon piezoresistive pressure sensor based on neural network. This system can be used for measuring the pressure of various media. And the design can simplify the implementing hardware of pressure measurement system. Compared with traditional design, it can output three signals: current signal, digital signal based on RS485 and Zigbee wireless signal, which make the system more practical to use. Due to temperature drift of silicon piezoresistive sensors, a program developed on LabVIEW in PC is used for temperature compensation using neural networks. The efficacy of neural networks has been verified by linearity, zero temperature drift and sensitivity temperature drift of pressure sensor after temperature compensation. After being tested over temperature range and pressure range, the accuracy of pressure measurement system from 0.7%FS (full scale) has been promoted up to 0.2%FS.
Hemispheric asymmetry for spectral and temporal processing in the human antero‐lateral auditory belt cortex

The present study investigates the acoustic basis of the hemispheric asymmetry for the processing of speech and music. Experiments on this question ideally involve stimuli that are perceptually unrelated to speech and music, but contain acoustic characteristics of both. Stimuli in previous studies were derived from speech samples or tonal sequences. Here we introduce a new class of noise‐like sound stimuli with no resemblance of speech or music that permit independent parametric variation of spectral and temporal acoustic complexity. Using these stimuli in a functional MRI experiment, we test the hypothesis of a hemispheric asymmetry for the processing of spectral and temporal sound structure by seeking cortical areas in which the blood oxygen level dependent (BOLD) signal covaries with the number of simultaneous spectral components (spectral complexity) or the temporal modulation rate (temporal complexity) of the stimuli. BOLD‐responses from the left and right Heschl's gyrus (HG) and part of the right superior temporal gyrus covaried with the spectral parameter, whereas covariation analysis for the temporal parameter highlighted an area on the left superior temporal gyrus. The portion of superior temporal gyrus in which asymmetrical responses are apparent corresponds to the antero‐lateral auditory belt cortex, which has been implicated with spectral integration in animal studies. Our results support a similar function of the anterior auditory belt in humans. The findings indicate that asymmetrical processing of complex sounds in the cerebral hemispheres does not depend on semantic, but rather on acoustic stimulus characteristics.