Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Analysis of the effect of bypass on the performance of heat sinks using flow network modeling (FNM)

Heat sinks are used in electronics cooling systems to provide extra area for transfer of the heat dissipated by semiconductor devices. However, in presence of clearance regions around the heat sink, flow that would otherwise go through the heat sink bypasses it. This study uses the technique of flow network modeling (FNM) to analyze the effect of flow bypass on the heat transfer performance of a plate fin heat sink. The physical situation analyzed corresponds to a typical wind tunnel test cell used for characterization of the heat sink performance. Results of network analysis predict that increasing the bypass region has a strong effect on decreasing the flow rate through the heat sink. Therefore, the effectiveness of the heat sink is reduced when large clearance regions are present around it. The network analysis is shown to be very easy, quick, and accurate. It can be used for analysis of the placement of heat sinks in practical cooling systems.
PGFM response to exogenous oxytocin and determination of the half-life of oxytocin in nonpregnant mares.

We investigated the half-life of oxytocin in reproductively normal mares and the prostaglandin response after oxytocin administrations. Mares were given oxytocin, 10 or 25 iu, i.v. , on the day of, or 2 days after, ovulation, and frequent jugular blood samples were collected for analysis of oxytocin and Prostaglandin F metabolite (PGFM) by RIA. Neither dose of oxytocin nor day of treatment affected the half-life of the exogenous oxytocin, which was determined to be 6.8 min. A significant increase in PGFM was observed within 6 min of oxytocin administration and peak values were observed within 10 min. PGFM response after oxytocin administration on the day of ovulation appeared elevated compared to the response 2 days after ovulation.
Examining the Sources and Effects of Local Dependence.

Conditional item independence, also known as local independence, is necessary for the accurate estimation of item parameters within item response theory (IRT). Given that the condition of local independence will be violated to at least some degree when unidimensional models are used to represent multidimensional data, it is important to study the robustness of the unidimensional IRT models under these conditions. This paper identifies the sources and effects of local dependence for a national standardized achievement English test. The G-squared index and NOHARM (C. Fraser, 1988) residual analysis were selected as the most appropriate measures of evaluating the sources of local dependence. Results of the two analyses show that the last 20 items of the English test contain local dependence, which is primarily a speededness effect. It is also apparent that the item parameter estimates of the three-parameter model were affected by this dependence. Results are similar to those of previous research in that local dependence was found to affect estimated information and reliability when the test was scored polytomously. (Contains 6 tables, 6 figures, and 20 references.) (SLD) ******************************************************************** * Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document. ***************AAA.A******A;. Ak******A***************. A*AA**************
Security versus energy tradeoffs in host-based mobile malware detection

The rapid growth of mobile malware necessitates the presence of robust malware detectors on mobile devices. However, running malware detectors on mobile devices may drain their battery, causing users to disable these protection mechanisms to save power. This paper studies the security versus energy tradeoffs for a particularly challenging class of malware detectors, namely rootkit detectors. We investigate the security versus energy tradeoffs along two axes: attack surface and malware scanning frequency, for both code and data based rootkit detectors. Our findings, based on a real implementation on a mobile handheld device, reveal that protecting against code-driven attacks is relatively cheap, while protecting against all data-driven attacks is prohibitively expensive. Based on our findings, we determine a sweet spot in the security versus energy tradeoff, called the balanced profile, which protects a mobile device against a vast majority of known attacks, while consuming a limited amount of extra battery power.
A Reference Method for User Story Requirements in Agile Systems Development

User story literature nearly exclusively studies how to create, prioritise, or ensure the quality of a user story. Little is known about other activities and artefacts involved preceding or following these activities in systems development. Consequentially, software teams seeking to leverage user stories’ full potential do not know how to incorporate user stories into all aspects of their software development process. This paper constructs a reference method by examining and consolidating the user story life-cycle obtained in a multi-case study research project. Practitioners can take inspiration from this method to learn the improvements possible with user stories.
Profiling Protein Families from Partially Aligned Sequences

Profile Hidden Markov Models (PHMMs) are recognized as powerful computational vehicles for homology search of protein sequences. Extant PHMM training approaches either use completely unaligned or aligned sequences. The PHMMs resulting from these two training approaches present contrasting tradeoffs w.r. t. alignment information and the accuracy of the search outcome. This paper describes a PHMM based technique for modeling protein families from partially aligned sequences. By exploiting the observation that partially aligned sequences give rise to independent subsequences, PHMMs corresponding to these subsequences are composed to build PHMMs for the entire sequences. An interesting aspect of the technique is that it gives rise to a family of PHMMs which are parameterized w.r. t. the alignment information. We present experimental comparison of the performance of our technique against several state of the art homology detection methods.
Energy-Efficient Reconfigurable SRAM: Reducing Read Power Through Data Statistics

This paper introduces a framework for designing data-dependent SRAMs taking advantage of statistical dependencies present in the binary values processed and stored in the intermediary stages of various algorithms. To demonstrate the framework, a reconfigurable conditional precharge (CP) SRAM is designed in a 28-nm fully-depleted silicon-on-insulator CMOS process. To reduce read power consumption, the SRAM reconfigures its prediction scheme for each column as the data statistics evolve. A 10T bit cell, a prediction-based CP circuit, and a compact column circuit implemented in a 16-kbit SRAM test chip demonstrate the power savings of 63%, 50%, and up to 69% for the applications sparse fast Fourier transform, object detection, and motion estimation, respectively, as compared with similar memories with naive prediction. Analysis tools for optimal prediction selection for the presented class of low-power memories are also provided.
The Estimation of Buried Pipe Diameters by Generalized Hough Transform of Radar Data

The generalized Hough transform method is applied to the measurement of the diameters of buried cylindrical pipes by Ground Penetration Radar (GPR). 600 MHz radar scans across long pipes, buried in one metre or so of soil, show complex reflection patterns consisting of a series of inverted hyperbolic arcs. The time of flight t(y) as the radar probe is scanned along an axis, y, perpendicular to the pipe, shows an arc whose shape and position depends on 4 unknown variables: y0, the position of the center of the pipe along the scan, z0, the depth of the pipe center, R0, its radius and V0 the velocity in the medium. Analytic expressions for the solution of these variables have been obtained. They use sets of times ti at corresponding positions yi, along the arc, depending on the number of variables to be determined. In the generalized Hough method many such sets of times are chosen randomly from points on the arcs. The results are presented for example as peaks in an accumulator space for each variable. The method is demonstrated for a 0.18 m radius concrete pipe buried at a nominal 1 m depth in a road. Using data acquired at 600MHz frequency (around 0.16m wavelength in soil) the estimated radius was 0.174 ± 0.059 m.
Long-term effect of hospital pay for performance on mortality in England.

BACKGROUND A pay-for-performance program based on the Hospital Quality Incentive Demonstration was introduced in all hospitals in the northwest region of England in 2008 and was associated with a short-term (18-month) reduction in mortality. We analyzed the long-term effects of this program, called Advancing Quality. METHODS We analyzed 30-day in-hospital mortality among 1,825,518 hospital admissions for eight conditions, three of which were covered by the financial-incentive program. The hospitals studied included the 24 hospitals in the northwest region that were participating in the program and 137 elsewhere in England that were not participating. We used difference-in-differences regression analysis to compare risk-adjusted mortality for an 18-month period before the program was introduced with subsequent mortality in the short term (the first 18 months of the program) and the longer term (the next 24 months). RESULTS Throughout the short-term and the long-term periods, the performance of hospitals in the incentive program continued to improve and mortality for the three conditions covered by the program continued to fall. However, the reduction in mortality among patients with these conditions was greater in the control hospitals (those not participating in the program) than in the hospitals that were participating in the program (by 0.7 percentage points; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.3 to 1.2). By the end of the 42-month follow-up period, the reduced mortality in the participating hospitals was no longer significant (-0.1 percentage points; 95% CI, -0.6 to 0.3). From the short term to the longer term, the mortality for conditions not covered by the program fell more in the participating hospitals than in the control hospitals (by 1.2 percentage points; 95% CI, 0.4 to 2.0), raising the possibility of a positive spillover effect on care for conditions not covered by the program. CONCLUSIONS Short-term relative reductions in mortality for conditions linked to financial incentives in hospitals participating in a pay-for-performance program in England were not maintained.
A Semantic Approach to Recognizing Textual Entailment

Exhaustive extraction of semantic information from text is one of the formidable goals of state-of-the-art NLP systems. In this paper, we take a step closer to this objective. We combine the semantic information provided by different resources and extract new semantic knowledge to improve the performance of a recognizing textual entailment system.
Interferences with two-site immunoassays by human anti-mouse antibodies formed by patients treated with monoclonal antibodies: comparison of different blocking reagents.

The most widely used approach for reducing interferences with two-site immunoassays by human anti-mouse antibodies (HAMAs) developed by many patients after exposure to murine immunoglobulins is to include high amounts of nonspecific mouse IgG within the assay buffer (1)(2). Recently, Mossner et al. (3) have developed a polymerized form of murine IgG (MAK33), which they found to be superior to normal mouse IgG for blocking HAMA interferences. In contrast, we observed false-positive values for the cancer antigen 125 (CA 125), because of HAMA interferences in samples from ovarian cancer patients treated with the anti-CA-125 antibody OC125, which could be corrected by preincubation with mouse IgG but not with MAK33 (4). The aim of the present study was to examine whether treatment with other monoclonal antibodies gives rise to additional HAMAs that are insensitive to MAK33 and to further characterize this specific HAMA response. Sixty-four serum samples were obtained from 51 ovarian cancer patients who, in the course of several clinical studies (5)(6)(7)(8), had received multiple infusions of one of four murine monoclonal antibodies: OC125 (16 patients), B43.13 (8 patients), ACA125 (18 patients), and B72.3 (9 patients). The procedures followed in this study were in accordance with the standards of the ethical committee of our faculty. The interfering HAMA activity of the samples was quantified with a bridging HAMA assay (HAMA-ELISA medac, Medac) involving polyclonal murine IgG in both capture and detection steps before and after preincubation (30 min at room temperature) with the following: (a) polyMAK-33 (MAK33), a polymerized murine IgG1,κ preparation (gift of Boehringer Mannheim, Mannheim, Germany); (b) Immunoglobulin Inhibiting Reagent (IIR) a formulation of immunoglobulins targeted against HAMAs (gift of Bioreclamation, East Meadow, NY); (c) polyclonal mouse IgG (reagent grade, Sigma Chemical Co.); and (d) mouse IgG of different …
The Antiproliferative and Apoptotic Effects of Sirtinol, a Sirtuin Inhibitor on Human Lung Cancer Cells by Modulating Akt/β-Catenin-Foxo3A Axis

Sirtuins, NAD+-dependent deacetylases, could target both histones and nonhistone proteins in mammalian cells. Sirt1 is the major sirtuin and has been shown to involve various cellular processes, including antiapoptosis, cellular senescence. Sirt1 was reported to be overexpressed in many cancers, including lung cancer. Sirtinol, a specific inhibitor of Sirt1, has been shown to induce apoptosis of cancer cells by elevating endogenous level of reactive oxygen species. In the study, we investigated the effect of sirtinol on the proliferation and apoptosis of nonsmall cell lung cancer (NSCLC) H1299 cells. The results of proliferation assay and colony formation assay showed the antigrowth effect of sirtinol. The annexin-V staining further confirmed the apoptosis induction by sirtinol treatment. Interestingly, the levels of phosphorylated Akt and β-catenin were significantly downregulated with treating the apoptotic inducing doses. On the contrary, sirtinol treatment causes the significantly increased level of FoxO3a, a proapoptotic transcription factor targeted by Sirt1. These above results suggested that sirtinol may inhibit cell proliferation of H1299 cells by regulating the axis of Akt-β-catenin-FoxO3a. Overall, this study demonstrates that sirtinol attenuates the proliferation and induces apoptosis of NSCLC cells, indicating the potential treatment against NSCLC cells by inhibiting Sirt1 in future applications.
Impact of nutritional status on body functioning in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and how to intervene

Purpose of reviewChronic obstructive pulmonary disease is the fifth leading cause of mortality in the world. This study reviews diet as a risk or protective factor for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, mechanisms of malnutrition, undernutrition consequences on body functioning and how to modulate nutritional status of patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Recent findingsDifferent dietary factors (dietary pattern, foods, nutrients) have been associated with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and the course of the disease. Mechanical disadvantage, energy imbalance, disuse muscle atrophy, hypoxemia, systemic inflammation and oxidative stress have been reported to cause systemic consequences such as cachexia and compromise whole body functioning. Nutritional intervention makes it possible to modify the natural course of the disease provided that it is included in respiratory rehabilitation combining bronchodilators optimization, infection control, exercise and, in some patients, correction of hypogonadism. SummaryDiet, as a modifiable risk factor, appears more as an option to prevent and modify the course of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Reduction of mechanical disadvantage, physical training and anabolic agents should be used conjointly with oral nutrition supplements to overcome undernutrition and might change the prognosis of the disease in some cases. Major research challenges address the role of systemic inflammation and the best interventions for controlling it besides smoking cessation.
AZGP1 Autoantibody Predicts Survival and Histone Deacetylase Inhibitors Increase Expression in Lung Adenocarcinoma

Introduction: The importance of &agr;-2-glycoprotein 1, zinc (AZGP1) in lung adenocarcinoma (AD) remains largely unknown. Analysis of serum autoantibodies to tumor antigens combined with gene expression profiling of primary tumors may provide insight into the mechanisms underlying lung carcinogenesis and identify new AD biomarkers. Methods: T7 phage cDNA libraries were used to identify AZGP1 autoantibodies in the serum of 473 patients (192 ADs, 192 matched controls, and 89 additional ADs for confirmation of findings). AZGP1 mRNA expression was examined in 86 ADs and 10 control lung tissue samples using oligonucleotide microarrays. AZGP1 protein expression was studied in 230 tissue samples (222 ADs; 8 controls) with immunohistochemistry. Kaplan-Meier analyses were used to correlate circulating autoantibody and tissue mRNA production with survival. AD cell lines A549 and SKLU1 were treated with 5-aza-2`-deoxycytidine (5-AZA) and trichostatin A (TSA) to examine the role of promoter methylation and histone deacetylation in the expression of AZGP1. Real-time polymerase chain reaction was used to quantify the effects of treatment. Results: In patients with AD, AZGP1 autoantibodies were observed in 40% of serum samples. Autoantibody production correlated with improved overall 5-year survival (p = 0.002) and improved survival in those with stage I to II disease (p = 0.008). A verification analysis was performed for the survival benefit and found similar results with p values of 0.02 and 0.036, respectively. Although abundant mRNA expression was found in a subset of tumors, mRNA expression did not correlate with prognosis. In normal lung, AZGP1 mRNA and protein expression were low or absent, whereas in AD they were highly expressed in 31.3% and 42.8% of samples, respectively. To determine whether AZGP1 expression in this subset of tumors might be affected by epigenetic mechanisms, low AZGP1-expressing A549 and SKLU1 AD cell lines were treated with TSA and 5-AZA. A 713-fold and 169-fold increase in mRNA expression were noted on treatment with TSA, respectively. Treatment with 5-AZA had minimal effect on AZGP1 mRNA expression. Conclusions: The presence of AZGP1 serum autoantibody may be used as a prognostic marker in patients with AD. Furthermore, up-regulation of AZGP1 mRNA in AD may be affected by chromatin remodeling by means of histone acetylation.
Effects of a 50 Hz sinusoidal magnetic field on cell adhesion molecule expression in two human osteosarcoma cell lines (MG‐63 and Saos‐2)

The possibility that a sinusoidal 50 Hz magnetic field with a magnetic flux density of 0.5 mT can induce variations in the expression of cell adhesion molecules (CAMs) in two human osteosarcoma cell lines (MG‐63 and Saos‐2) was investigated. In particular, the expression of two important integrins, VLA‐2, the receptor for collagen, and VLA‐5, the receptor for fibronectin, as well as CD44, were examined in both cell lines after these had been exposed for 7 and 14 days to a 50 Hz, 0.5 mT field. Cell surface morphology (scanning electron microscopy), cell growth characteristics (growth curves and cell cycle phase distribution), and cell death (necrosis and apoptosis) were also examined. The results demonstrate that no variations in surface morphology and cell death occurred between control and exposed cells in both MG‐63 and Saos‐2 cells, while significant changes were noted in cell growth and fibronectin and CD44 expression in MG‐63 cells. The results are discussed in view of the important role that CAMs play in controlling various cancer cell functions, particularly proliferation and metastasis. Bioelectromagnetics 24:327‐338, 2003. © 2003 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Essays on Microeconomics of the Household Bengt Holmstrom Professor of Economics Thesis Supervisor

These essays are concerned with the problem of cooperation among individuals in a household and among households in a community under lack of commitment. The first chapter provides a theoretical investigation of consumption patterns in a household in which income is stochastic and some expenditures are public to household members. It is shown that in the constrained efficient agreement, private expenditures of household members do not necessarily co-move, as they do in both the first-best agreement and the constrained efficent agreement when all expenditures are private. In particular, the absence of co-movement of private expenditures in the household do not necessarily imply the absence of mutual insurance; and, indeed, negative correlation in private expenditures can be consistent with a cooperative agreement. These results indicate that caution should be used in interpreting the correlation of private expenditures of household members as a measure of cooperation and mutual insurance within the household. Chapter two investigates the effect of lack of commitment on household savings in a constrained efficient mutual insurance agreement among different households. It is shown that a saving rule is part of the agreement if and only if risk aversion changes with wealth. If not, no gains can be had from contracting on savings. Under reasonable assumptions about risk preferences, the constrained efficient agreement tends to depress savings to a greater extent for poorer individuals than for richer individuals, thus increasing inequality in consumption and wealth over time relative to the case where savings are not contracted. Chapter three (co-authored with Harounan Kazianga) provides evidence, using a survey of agricultural households in Burkina Faso, that plots owned by the head of the household is farmed much more intensively than plots, with similar characteristics and planted to the same crops, owned by other household members (of both genders). As in previous studies, this evidence is inconsistent with the assumption of Pareto efficiency in household decisions, but additionally suggests that status within the household rather than gender per se may be the most important factor in determining the allocation of productive resources within the household. We argue that the higher yields achieved by the household head may be explained in terms of social norms that require him to spend the earnings from some farms under his control exclusively on household public goods, as has been observed in the anthropological literature on this region. Thesis Supervisor: Abhijit Banerjee Title: Professor of Economics Thesis Supervisor: Bengt Holmstrom Title: Professor of Economics
Solving link-oriented tasks in signed network via an embedding approach

In this paper, we study the link-oriented tasks in signed network, i.e., labeling link signs and predicting new links. Usually, prior arts directly focus on the link signs, while their intrinsic structural regularities have been largely ignored. Furthermore, these techniques suffer the sensitiveness to the high dimension and sparsity of networks. To deal with these tasks, with verifying the effect of second-order distance in signed network, we propose a novel Link-oriented Signed Network Embedding (LSNE) model, in which network embedding technique is adapted to capture both first-order and second-order distance. Along this line, the link-oriented tasks will be intuitively solved. Extensive experiments on two real-world datasets demonstrate that LSNE could significantly outperform the comparison approaches.