Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Retour à l'OCDE... un commentaire indirect sur le document de la Banque mondiale « better results from public institutions »

Ce bref commentaire remet en question certaines des idees courantes a propos des differences entre la reforme de la gestion publique dans les pays developpes et dans les pays en developpement. Nous laissons entendre que les echecs en matiere de reforme sont habituels dans les deux systemes, tout comme l’absence de donnees a propos des consequences finales des reformes. Dans les deux cas, les meilleures donnees disponibles indiquent que la reforme de la gestion est un processus iteratif et exploratoire, qui doit s’appuyer sur des connaissances locales, contextualisees, ainsi que sur une expertise formelle. Le document Better public institutions de la Banque mondiale contient une analyse interessante de cette situation et presente de precieuses informations. La veritable epreuve, comme toujours, sera de voir si ces idees peuvent etre mises en œuvre.
Effects of Temperature and Sodium Chloride Concentration on the Phospholipid and Fatty Acid Compositions of a Halotolerant Planococcus sp

The phospholipid headgroup composition and fatty acid composition of a gram-positive halotolerant Planococcus sp. (strain A4a) were examined as a function of growth temperature (5 to 35°C) and NaCI content (O to 1.5 M) of the growth medium. When the growth temperature was decreased, the relative amount of mono-unsaturated branched-chain fatty acids increased. When Planococcus sp. strain A4a was grown in media containing high NaCl concentrations, the relative amount of the major fatty acid, Cal5:0, increased. The relative amount of anionic phospholipid also increased when the NaCl concentration of the growth medium was increased. The increase in anionic phospholipid content resulted from a decrease in the relative mole percent content of phosphatidylethanolamine and an increase in the relative mole percent content of cardiolipin.
Efficient signatures with linear space complexity for detecting Boolean function equivalence

A novel technique for generating efficient signatures has been proposed for characterizing Boolean functions. The computed signatures can be found to be insensitive to permutations of input variables. Such a signature can be used to find a match for a given function in a large library of Boolean functions. This paper utilizes the concept of A-transform used to solve the problem of probabilistic design verification. It has been proved analytically that for number of variables less than 5, the generated signature is unique. Randomly generated functions of 5, 6, and 7 variables, aliasing has been observed to be within 0.5%. This basic scheme is next modified to arrive at a signature with linear space complexity. The efficiency of the modified signature to distinguish nonequivalent Boolean functions can be found to be above 0.99 for Actel type multiplexor based FPGAs.
Vision-Based Hand Interaction in Augmented Reality Environment

A new vision-based framework and system for human–computer interaction in an Augmented Reality environment is presented in this article. The system allows the users to interact with computer-generated virtual objects using their hands directly. With an efficient color segmentation algorithm, the system is adaptable to different light conditions and backgrounds. It is also suitable for real-time applications. The dominant features on the palm are detected and tracked to estimate the camera pose. After the camera pose relative to the user's hand has been reconstructed, 3D virtual objects can be augmented naturally onto the palm for the user to inspect and manipulate. With off-the-shelf web camera and computer, natural bare-hand based interactions with 2D and 3D virtual objects can be achieved with low cost.
The essential cell division protein FtsN contains a critical disulfide bond in a non‐essential domain

Disulfide bonds are found in many proteins associated with the cell wall of Escherichia coli, and for some of these proteins the disulfide bond is critical to their stability and function. One protein found to contain a disulfide bond is the essential cell division protein FtsN, but the importance of this bond to the protein's structural integrity is unclear. While it evidently plays a role in the proper folding of the SPOR domain of FtsN, this domain is non‐essential, suggesting that the disulfide bond might also be dispensable. However, we find that FtsN mutants lacking cysteines give rise to filamentous growth. Furthermore, FtsN protein levels in strains expressing these mutants were significantly lower than in a strain expressing the wild‐type allele, as were FtsN levels in strains incapable of making disulfide bonds (dsb‐) exposed to anaerobic conditions. These results strongly suggest that FtsN lacking a disulfide bond is unstable, thereby making this disulfide critical for function. We have previously found that dsb‐ strains fail to grow anaerobically, and the results presented here suggest that this growth defect may be due in part to misfolded FtsN. Thus, proper cell division in E. coli is dependent upon disulfide bond formation.
Pharmacokinetics of Diethylcarbamazine after Single Oral Dose at Two Different Times of Day in Human Subjects

In most Wuchereria bancrofti and Brugia malayi infections, the microfilaria are found in the blood in greatest number between 10 p.m. and 2 a.m., indicating that chronotherapy may be beneficial in treating such infections. This study reports the influence of time of administration on the pharmacokinetics of diethylcarbamazine (DEC) in healthy volunteers. The study was conducted in 12 healthy volunteers by administering a 150 mg single oral dose of diethylcarbamazine citrate at 0600 or 1800 h in a balanced crossover design with the approval of an institutional ethics committee. The subjects fasted for about 10 hours before and 3 hours after drug treatment. Blood samples were collected at predetermined time intervals, and the drug content in the serum was estimated using HPLC with an electrochemical detector. Pharmacokinetic analysis was performed using noncompartmental methods employing WinNonlin (version 3.1), and the means of various pharmacokinetic parameters were compared for any dosing time‐related changes using a paired t‐test at a probability level of 95%. The mean ± SD values of pharmacokinetic parameters of DEC for the treatments at 0600 versus 1800 h were as follows: Cmax, 500 ± 227 versus 637 ± 401 ng/ml; tmax, 2.3 ± 0.7 versus 2.7 ± 1 h; Ka, 2.23 ± 0.72 versus 1.96 ± 0.97 h−1; t1/2, 14.6 ± 6.7 versus 11.4 ± 4.9 h; AUC0‐t, 5,334 ± 1,853 versus 6,901 ± 4,203 ng·h/ml; AUC0‐∞, 5,840 ± 1,922 versus 7,220 ± 4,205 ng·h/ml; CL/F, 36,058 ± 19,011 versus 32,189 ± 25,293 ml/h/kg; Vd/F, 570 ± 225 versus 533 ± 447 L; and MRT, 17.7 ± 5.9 versus 15.3 ± 5.2 h. None of the parameters was significantly changed (p > 0.05)as a function of time of administration.
Hypoglycemia: still the limiting factor in the glycemic management of diabetes.

OBJECTIVE To review the prevalence of, risk factors for, and prevention of hypoglycemia from the perspective of the pathophysiologic aspects of glucose counterregulation in diabetes. METHODS This review is based on personal experience and research and the relevant literature. RESULTS Although it can result from insulin excess alone, iatrogenic hypoglycemia is generally the result of the interplay of therapeutic insulin excess and compromised defenses against declining plasma glucose concentrations. Failure of beta-cells of the pancreas -- early in patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus but later in those with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) -- causes loss of the first 2 physiologic defenses: a decrease in insulin and an increase in glucagon. Such patients are critically dependent on epinephrine, the third physiologic defense, and neurogenic symptoms that prompt the behavioral defense (carbohydrate ingestion). An attenuated sympathoadrenal response to declining glucose levels -- caused by recent antecedent hypoglycemia, prior exercise, or sleep -- causes hypoglycemia-associated autonomic failure (HAAF) and thus a vicious cycle of recurrent hypoglycemia. Accordingly, hypoglycemia is infrequent early in T2DM but becomes increasingly more frequent in advanced (absolutely endogenous insulin-deficient) T2DM, and risk factors for HAAF include absolute endogenous insulin deficiency; a history of severe hypoglycemia, hypoglycemia unawareness, or both; and aggressive glycemic therapy per se. CONCLUSION By practicing hypoglycemia risk reduction -- addressing the issue, applying the principles of aggressive glycemic therapy, and considering both the conventional risk factors and those indicative of HAAF -- it is possible both to improve glycemic control and to minimize the risk of hypoglycemia in many patients.
Adrenocortical carcinoma: surgical progress or status quo?

Hypothesis Outcome of patients with adrenocortical carcinoma (ACC) has improved with the advent of more widely available and higher quality imaging. Operative management strategies and use of adjuvant therapy have not changed. Design Retrospective review of patient histories, imaging studies, operative data, adjuvant therapy, and outcomes at a single institution. Follow-up was complete for a mean of 53 months. Data was compared with prior institutional experience. Setting Tertiary care referral center. Patients All patients undergoing operative management for ACC during the period from 1980 to 1996. Main Outcome Measures Determinants of recurrence, survival, and the effect of adjuvant therapy on overall outcome. Results Fifty-eight patients (30 men, 28 women) with a mean age of 53 years underwent primary operative management for ACC. Functional tumors were identified in 27 patients (47%). Mean tumor size was 12.5 cm. Stage according to the TNM staging system (AJCC Cancer Staging Manual ) at presentation was I (n = 0), II (n = 30), III (n = 7), and IV (n = 21). Surgical management included curative resection in 41 (71%), noncurative resection in 14 (24%), and open biopsy in 3 (5%). Perioperative mortality was 5%. Recurrence occurred in 30 patients (73%) with a median time to recurrence of 17 months. Five-year survival by the Kaplan-Meier method was 37%. Prognostic factors ( P Conclusions (1) Surgical resection remains the principal treatment for stage I to III disease. (2) Adjuvant therapy may improve survival in patients with stage III or IV disease. (3) Current patients were more likely to present at an earlier stage, undergo curative resections, and have improved 5-year survival than institutional historical comparisons.
Tests of an Interactive, Phrasebook-style Post-laryngectomy Voice-replacement System

The article presents the results of tests of a portable post-laryngectomy voice replacement system that allows a silently articulating speaker to select and play back short phrases contained in a 60-phrase phrasebook. Such a system could be a useful communication tool for post-laryngectomy patients unable to use tracheo-oesophageal speech. Experiments on two non-pathological speakers and one person having undergone a total laryngectomy in 1998 are presented. Results are promising and provide proof of principle for a more sophisticated system currently being developed.
Two Atypical Carbonic Anhydrase Homologs From the Planula Larva of the Scleractinian Coral Fungia scutaria

In cnidarians, the enzyme carbonic anhydrase (CA) is important to inorganic carbon (Ci) flux in processes including calcification and dinoflagellate symbiont photosynthesis. Although CA is known to function in Ci delivery to symbionts in adults with mature symbioses, it is not known when CA becomes active in this capacity during the onset of symbiosis in developing hosts. We identified two CA cDNA sequences from the planula larvae of the Hawaiian scleractinian coral Fungia scutaria. Expression of these larval CAs did not differ between infected and uninfected larvae or vary over the course of infection. Bioinformatic analyses of the two homologs showed that the sequences are unusually short and are missing some residues that support active site structure in other CAs. This is the first description of a short form of CA. Phylogenetic analyses of the larval CAs grouped them with membrane-bound homologs from vertebrates. Studies in other calcifying cnidarians have identified membrane-associated CAs as functioning in calcification, and therefore the two larval CAs could play a role in the onset of calcification during metamorphosis. A longer CA isoform was amplified from adult F. scutaria cDNA but not from larvae, suggesting that the longer form is not expressed in larvae. The longer form grouped with cytosolic CAs including a symbiotic anemone homolog implicated in Ci delivery to dinoflagellate symbionts. The apparent absence of this “symbiosis” CA in larvae suggests that the Ci supply mechanism is not active during the initial onset of the association.
Albuminuria in children

Purpose of reviewAlbuminuria is a marker of present and future cardiovascular and renal morbidity, and mortality, in adults. Because the roots of these diseases extend back into childhood, assessment of albuminuria has become relevant to child and adolescent clinical care. Recent findingsNormal levels of albumin excretion in children are well below the cut-off for microalbuminuria. In healthy children, albuminuria relates to fasting insulin, but not blood pressure, BMI, lipid levels, fasting glucose, or insulin resistance. In obese children, albuminuria relates to multiple measures of insulin resistance. In children with type 1 diabetes, hemoglobin A1c seems to be the most consistent clinical predictor of microalbuminuria although multiple mechanisms seem to be involved, including genetic polymorphisms. Children with type 2 diabetes and hypertension already exhibit microalbuminuria. SummaryWhen considering the population as a whole, children make ideal subjects in which to study the natural history of albuminuria given their relative lack of multiple morbidities commonly seen in adults. The unfortunate rise in ‘adult’ diseases in the pediatric age group makes this especially relevant. There is a need for longitudinal studies examining predictors of elevated urinary albumin levels as well as potential treatment strategies.
Cloning and Expression of ESAT-6 Gene of Mycobacterium bovis in Escherichia coli

The gene encoding ESAT-6 from Mycobacterium bovis Vallee111 chromosomal DNA was amplified by using polymerase chain reaction (PCR), the PCR product was approximately 288bp DNA segment. The PCR product was cloned into pGEM-T vector and the cloning plasmid pGEM-T-ESAT-6 was constructed successfully. The purified ESAT-6 gene was subcloned into the expression vector pGEX-4T-3, and the prokaryotic expression Plasmid pGEX-4T-3-ESAT-6 was constructed. Plasmid containing pGEX-4T-3-ESAT-6 was transformed into competence Escherichia coli BL21 (DE3). The bacterium was induced by isopropyl-beta-D- thiogalactopyranoside (IPTG) and its lysates were loaded directly onto sodium dodecyl sulphate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE), approximately 34 kDa exogenous protein was observed on the SDS-PAGE. The protein was analyzed by using Western-blotting. The results indicated that the protein was of antigenic reactivity of M. bovis . The results were expected to lay foundation for further studies on the subunit vaccine, DNA vaccine and diagnostic reagents of ESAT-6 gene in their prevention against bovine tuberculosis.
Multi-linear Generalised Radon Transforms 2

holds for all open sets U ⊆ Σ in a sufficiently small neighbourhood of the origin. We have already seen that (1) holds for non-trivial values of p only if the family Xπ of associated vector fields satisfies the Hörmander condition. A deeper fact is that the converse of this statement is true. This converse may be expressed in a very precise fashion which relates the range of Lebesgue exponents for which (1) holds to the degrees of the Hörmander-tuples. This result will be discussed in some detail in the following notes. To begin we give a heuristic argument which provides some necessary conditions on p for (1) to hold, stated in terms of the degrees of the Hörmander-tuples. This line of reasoning will lead to a conjecture on the sharp range of p for which T is strong-type. Before we proceed it is useful to once again reformulate the problem. Suppose (p1, . . . , pk) satisfy
Marital Conflict

Marital conflict has deleterious effects on mental, physical, and family health, and three decades of research have yielded a detailed picture of the behaviors that differentiate distressed from nondistressed couples. Review of this work shows that the singular emphasis on conflict in generating marital outcomes has yielded an incomplete picture of its role in marriage. Recently, researchers have tried to paint a more textured picture of marital conflict by studying spouses' backgrounds and characteristics, investigating conflict in the contexts of support giving and affectional expression, and considering the ecological niche of couples in their broader environment.
Induction and concurrent chemotherapy with high-dose thoracic conformal radiation therapy in unresectable stage IIIA and IIIB non-small-cell lung cancer: a dose-escalation phase I trial.

PURPOSE Local control rates at conventional radiotherapy doses (60 to 66 Gy) are poor in stage III non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Dose escalation using three-dimensional thoracic conformal radiation therapy (TCRT) is one strategy to improve local control and perhaps survival. PATIENTS AND METHODS Stage III NSCLC patients with a good performance status (PS) were treated with induction chemotherapy (carboplatin area under the curve [AUC] 5, irinotecan 100 mg/m(2), and paclitaxel 175 mg/m(2) days 1 and 22) followed by concurrent chemotherapy (carboplatin AUC 2 and paclitaxel 45 mg/m(2) weekly for 7 to 8 weeks) beginning on day 43. Pre- and postchemotherapy computed tomography scans defined the initial clinical target volume (CTV(I)) and boost clinical target volume (CTV(B)), respectively. The CTV(I) received 40 to 50 Gy; the CTV(B) received escalating doses of TCRT from 78 Gy to 82, 86, and 90 Gy. The primary objective was to escalate the TCRT dose from 78 to 90 Gy or to the maximum-tolerated dose. RESULTS Twenty-nine patients were enrolled (25 assessable patients; median age, 59 years; 62% male; 45% stage IIIA; 38% PS 0; and 38% > or = 5% weight loss). Induction CIP was well tolerated (with filgrastim support) and active (partial response rate, 46.2%; stable disease, 53.8%; and early progression, 0%). The TCRT dose was escalated from 78 to 90 Gy without dose-limiting toxicity. The primary acute toxicity was esophagitis (16%, all grade 3). Late toxicity consisted of grade 2 esophageal stricture (n = 3), bronchial stenosis (n = 2), and fatal hemoptysis (n = 2). The overall response rate was 60%, with a median survival time and 1-year survival probability of 24 months and 0.73 (95% CI, 0.55 to 0.89), respectively. CONCLUSION Escalation of the TCRT dose from 78 to 90 Gy in the context of induction and concurrent chemotherapy was accomplished safely in stage III NSCLC patients.
Software Design Principles to Enhance SDN Architecture

SDN as a network architecture emerged on top of existing technologies and knowledge. Through defining the controller as a software program, SDN made a strong connection between networking and software engineering. Traditionally, network programs were vendor specific and embedded in hardware switches and routers. SDN focuses on isolation between control and forwarding or data planes. However, in the complete SDN network, there are many other areas (i.e. CPU, memory, hardware, bandwidth and software). In this paper, we propose extending SDN architecture and propose isolation layers with the goal of improving the overall network design. Such flexible architecture can support future evolution and changes without the need to significantly change original components or modules.
Pliable natural biocide: Jaburetox is an intrinsically disordered insecticidal and fungicidal polypeptide derived from jack bean urease

Jaburetox is a polypeptide derived from jack bean (Canavalia ensiformis) urease and toxic to a broad spectrum of insects, phytopathogenic filamentous fungi and yeasts of medical importance. The elucidation of the structural basis for the mode of action of Jaburetox is the focus of this multifaceted study. Jaburetox in solution is a monomer of 11.0 kDa featuring a large hydrodynamic radius, suggestive of a disordered polypeptide. The intrinsically disordered nature of Jaburetox was theoretically predicted by a comprehensive bioinformatics analysis and experimentally confirmed by light scattering as well as by circular dichroism and NMR spectroscopy. NMR signal assignment provided backbone secondary chemical shifts that indicated that Jaburetox has a low propensity to assume a stable secondary structure. 15N relaxation studies revealed significant backbone mobility, especially in the N‐terminal portion of the polypeptide. The solution structure of Jaburetox shows the presence of an α‐helical motif close to the N terminus, together with two turn‐like structures situated in the central portion of the protein and close to the C terminus. Similar regions were predicted as potential protein–protein interaction sites using computational tools. The knowledge of the structural properties of Jaburetox in solution is a key step to correlate its structural and biological activities.
The Strategic Management of Trade Secrets in Technology-based Firms

The importance of trade secrets to the effective strategic management of technology-based firms can make the difference between economic success and failure for significant new product lines, or even the firm itself. This article proposes the conceptual outlines of a framework addressing the strategic management of trade secrets. The author identifies three environments that strongly influence strategy formulation (legal and market) and strategy implementation (organizational). A conceptual framework for trade secret strategy formulation is developed, offering a logical approach to reaching a managerial choice of trade secrecy over other forms of intellectual property protection. Discussion of trade secret strategy implementation invokes an emphasis on managerial control structures and mechanisms, focusing on the use of the trade secret audit, the identification of components of an implementation strategy (e.g., employee education, controlling physical and electronic access, and monitoring competitors), and an ever vigilant defense of trade secret protection pursued in the courts.
Multiple Designs of Fuzzy Controllers for Car Parking Using Evolutionary Algorithm

This paper proposes an automatic method to design a fuzzy logic multiple controllers for the automated car parking problem. To tackle the problem, design of a fuzzy logic controller is solved using multi-objective evolutionary optimization framework, which requires three factors: an encoding scheme, design of multi-objective evaluation criteria, and design of proper evolutionary operations. Along with the parameters of antecedent membership functions, consequent parameter vectors are defined in a chromosome so that a fuzzy logic controller can modify its antecedent/consequent parameters and rule structure simultaneously during evolution. Three optimization criteria are proposed to find a set of good fuzzy logic controllers using Pareto optimality.