Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Houttuyniae Herba Attenuates Kainic Acid-Induced Neurotoxicity via Calcium Response Modulation in the Mouse Hippocampus

Abstract Epilepsy is a complex neurological disorder characterized by the repeated occurrence of electrical activity known as seizures. This activity induces increased intracellular calcium, which ultimately leads to neuronal damage. Houttuyniae Herba, the aerial part of Houttuynia cordata, has various pharmacological effects and is widely used as a traditional herb. In the present study, we evaluated the protective effects of Houttuyniae Herba water extract on kainic acid-induced neurotoxicity. Kainic acid directly acts on calcium release, resulting in seizure behavior, neuronal damage, and cognitive impairment. In a rat primary hippocampal culture system, Houttuyniae Herba water extract significantly protected neuronal cells from kainic acid toxicity. In a seizure model where mice received intracerebellar kainic acid injections, Houttuyniae Herba water extract treatment resulted in a lower seizure stage score, ameliorated cognitive impairment, protected neuronal cells against kainic acid-induced toxicity, and suppressed neuronal degeneration in the hippocampus. In addition, Houttuyniae Herba water extract regulated increases in the intracellular calcium level, its related downstream pathways (reactive oxygen species production and mitochondrial dysfunction), and calcium/calmodulin complex kinase type II immunoreactivity in the mouse hippocampus, which resulted from calcium influx stimulation induced by kainic acid. These results demonstrate the neuroprotective effects of Houttuyniae Herba water extract through inhibition of calcium generation in a kainic acid-induced epileptic model.
Humsher: a predictive keyboard operated by humming

This paper presents Humsher -- a novel text entry method operated by the non-verbal vocal input, specifically the sound of humming. The method utilizes an adaptive language model for text prediction. Four different user interfaces are presented and compared. Three of them use dynamic layout in which n-grams of characters are presented to the user to choose from according to their probability in given context. The last interface utilizes static layout, in which the characters are displayed alphabetically and a modified binary search algorithm is used for an efficient selection of a character. All interfaces were compared and evaluated in a user study involving 17 able-bodied subjects. Case studies with four disabled people were also performed in order to validate the potential of the method for motor-impaired users. The average speed of the fastest interface was 14 characters per minute, while the fastest user reached 30 characters per minute. Disabled participants were able to type at 14 -- 22 characters per minute after seven sessions.
Effectiveness of a health education intervention based on the Health Belief Model to improve oral health behaviours among adolescents

Background : Oral diseases remain a global problem affecting many communities in the world. Since oral diseases are related to behaviours of an individual, they can be largely prevented by modifying their health behaviours. Adolescence is a challenging time and they would be benefited from oral health promotion interventions. Health Belief Model has shown to be effective in modification of an individual’s health behaviors. Objective :To determine the effectiveness of a health education intervention, based on the Health Belief Model to improve oral health behaviours of 15-year-old school children in the Kegalle district. Methods: The study included three groups of students; 208 in each group selected from 06 comparable schools. The intervention group received HBM based health education intervention. One control group received a didactic education intervention while the other acted as an inactive control group. Oral health related perceptions, oral health related behaviours and oral health status of the students in three groups were assessed before the intervention and after a follow up period of six months and compared. Results :There were no statistically significant differences in oral health related perceptions, oral health related behaviours and oral health status between groups prior to the intervention. Following the intervention all above variables improved significantly in the HBM group while only the level of plaque and the use of fluoride toothpaste improved in the didactic education group. Conclusions :An oral health education intervention based on the HBM significantly improved oral heath related perceptions, behaviours and oral health status of the 15-year-old students in the Kegalle district.
Growth and spatially resolved luminescence of low dimensional structures in sintered ZnO

Sintering of ZnO pressed powder under Ar flow at temperatures between 1250 and 1300 °C leads to the formation of elongated microstructures and nanostructures, with different morphologies, on the sample surface. Rods and needles with cross-sectional dimensions ranging from tens of nanometres to several tens of microns and up to hundreds of microns in length are obtained. In an advanced stage of growth, nanoneedles are frequently arranged in bundles, forming the walls of tubes with different cross-sectional dimensions. In addition, microcombs and microfeathers consisting of well oriented nanoneedles are observed. Cathodoluminescence (CL) in the scanning electron microscope (SEM) has been used to characterize the structures grown. The formation of the elongated structures causes spectral changes, in particular an enhancement of the green–orange luminescence. High CL emission from the internal surface of the tubes has been observed.
Interactive screen experiments: innovative virtual laboratories for distance learners

The desirability and value of laboratory work for physics students is a wellestablished principle and issues arise where students are inherently remote from their host institution, as is the case for the UK's Open University. In this paper, we present developments from the Physics Innovations Centre for Excellence in Teaching and Learning (piCETL) in the production and technology of the virtual laboratory resources, Interactive Screen Experiments, and the benefits and drawbacks of such resources. We also explore the motivations behind current implementation of Interactive Screen Experiments and examine evaluation strategies and outcomes through a series of case studies.
Solving influence diagrams using heuristic search

Existing methods for solving influence diagrams are mostly based on the bottom-up dynamic programming technique. These methods may waste computation in solving decision scenarios that have zero probabilities or are unreachable from any initial state by following an optimal decision policy. Heuristic search was applied in (Qi & Poole 1995) to address these limitations, but their algorithm uses a trivial infinity upper bound and fails to fully utilize the potential of heuristic search. This paper develops an improved heuristic search algorithm for solving influence diagrams based on a more informative upper bound computed by relaxing the models. The algorithm is shown to be able to significantly improve the efficiency and scalability of existing methods for solving influence diagrams.
The Peeling Behavior of Thin Films with Finite Bending Stiffness and the Implications on Gecko Adhesion

Analytical thin film peeling models, such as the Kendall model, are formulated under restricting assumptions concerning the strip geometry, the material behavior, the peeling kinematics, and the contact behavior. Recently, such models have been applied to study the peeling of gecko spatulae, although the gecko spatula is significantly different from an idealized thin film. The bending stiffness of the spatula especially has a strong influence on the peeling force which is neglected in the Kendall model. This is demonstrated here by several detailed finite element computations, based on a geometrically exact deformation model and a refined contact description for van der Waals adhesion. Therefore, the peeling of an elastic strip is considered and the influence of the bending stiffness is studied. It is shown that the adhesion induces a bending moment within the strip that can become very large and must, therefore, be accounted for in the strip formulation and evaluation of the work of adhesion. Further, the implications on the computation of the peeling behavior of gecko spatulae are discussed. It is observed that the spatula geometry lies in the range where the peeling work attains a maximum.
The Transformation of Teacher and Student Roles in the European Higher Education Area

This article illustrates how the creation of the European Higher Education Area is subverting the traditional roles of students and teachers in tertiary language education. It portrays the shift which has been made from the previous teacher-directed, lecture-based system which has traditionally prevailed in European Higher Education to the present-day student-centered, meaning-based model. The new learning modalities and teacher and student roles to which the European Higher Education Area has given rise are all practically examined, using five pedagogical innovation projects as a backdrop. Evidence is then furnished by presenting the results of a qualitative study on the attitudes which student-centered learning is generating in the participating student body. A survey administered in June 2006, 2007, and 2008 to the regular participants in the pedagogical innovation projects yields very positive outcomes for a tertiary education system which is centered on the student and testifies to the progressive consolidation of the new credit system at the University of Jaen in Spain.
Electrical transport properties of single-crystalline Mn–Zn ferrous ferrite

Electrical transport properties, electrical conductivity, and thermoelectric power of a single-crystalline Mn_0. 45Zn_0. 43Fe_2. 12O_4 were measured as functions of temperature in the range of 25 to 1000 °C. According to the small polaron hopping model, the values of the activation energy for small polaron hopping (E_H) were obtained from the conductivity data in three different temperature regions: 0.032 eV for T < T _C, 0.12 eV for T _C < T < 600 °C, and 0.25 eV for 600 °C < T < 1000 °C. The behavior of conductivity and thermoelectric power data above T _C is discussed in connection with cation redistribution.
Monitoring of Glass Transition at a Polymer Surface by Localized Surface Plasmon Resonance

The present work investigates glass transition at the surface of a polymer by means of localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR), associated with gold nanoparticles (Au NPs). Au NPs at an average size of 8 nm, were vacuum deposited on poly isobutyl methacrylate (PiBMA) films. Subsequently, time series LSPR spectra of NPs on PiBMA were acquired in a temperature controlled optical cell. The penetration of Au NPs into polymer induces a shift in LSPR spectra due to altering dielectric environment encompassing the NPs. The effective dielectric constant surrounding the NPs was deduced from the LSPR optical extinction peak. Then, depth and velocity of penetration were derived from the effective dielectric constant. The onset of NP penetration was found to be at between 40 and 45 oC, which is below the reported glass transition of PiBMA by 10 to 15 oC. A steady penetration velocity was observed until complete embedding that was found to be temperature activated at 0.65 eV.
Measurement of the birefringence of UV-written channel silica waveguides by magnetooptic polarization-mode coupling

We report the measurement of the birefringence in integrated-optical waveguides using magnetooptical coupling between the two principal polarizations of the fundamental mode. We demonstrate this measurement technique for directly ultraviolet (UV)-written channel waveguides in silica on-silicon and silica-on-silica. The dependence of the waveguide birefringence on the UV-writing power and UV polarization is investigated. The results are compared with the birefringence of etched waveguides in comparable material systems. An analytical formula for the form birefringence in buried channel waveguides is developed, and measured data are compared with theoretical results.
Electrical impedance myography at frequencies up to 2 MHz

Extension of the frequency range of electrical impedance myography (EIM) to 2 MHz discloses a major rise in the reactance of muscle above 3–500 kHz, together with a slow decrease in the resistance consonant with the Kramers–Kronig relations. This ‘upturn’ phenomenon is found when the distant current electrode configuration of EIM is employed, but not when the current electrodes are placed close to the voltage measuring area. In that case the impedance qualitatively mimics the commonly used 3-element resistor–capacitor model. The possibility that the upturn is an artifact of the measuring system rather than a true property of the tissue is examined in detail. In particular, experiments are reported which argue against the transmission line mechanism proposed to explain similar increases in reactance in some high frequency whole-body BIA studies. Also, scaling of X versus R plots for muscle segments of different lengths strongly suggests that the upturn is as much a property of the underlying tissue as is the low frequency maximum in reactance.
Social Relationship Analysis and Prediction Based on Location Information

With the development of smart terminal and smart phones, it is more and more conveniently that obtains the peoples locations and movements trajectory. Even though humans daily movement is free and random, we also can find some regular pattern and periodic movements in daily life. These regular movements and locations make up the daily life pattern. The interactions between two daily life pattern cause person-to-person social relation and effect its changing. So we can describe persons life pattern with location data and we also can describe and infer the relations. In this paper, we propose a new method to quantify and predict social relationship affinity with absolute location and approximation location data.
Batch-Mode Active Learning with Semi-supervised Cluster Tree for Text Classification

In web mining, there are situations in which only few data is labeled which imposes difficulties on traditional web page classification algorithms. Active learning scheme is then proposed to sample the most representative unlabeled data, which are then annotated by external oracles. Most present active methods are based on series-mode query strategy, which deduces the process of active learning inefficient and unstable. In this paper, we propose a novel text oriented active semi-supervised classification model, which is so-called active SSC. Comparing with other active approaches, our model has the characteristic of comprehensibility, and thus it is easy to design a batch-mode query strategy. Experimental results on public text data showed our method is an effect and stable active approach.
In-orbit demonstration of rendezvous laser radar for unmanned autonomous rendezvous docking

The National Space Development Agency of Japan (NASDA) performed unmanned autonomous rendezvous docking (RVD) experiments using the Engineering Test Satellite VII (ETS-VII) in 1998 and 1999. In these experiments, a rendezvous laser radar (RVR) was used as the primary navigation sensor during the final approach phase (relative distances from 500 m to 2 m). The RVR functioned properly, and its characteristics, which are measurement accuracy, optical propagation, and acquisition/tracking, satisfied the requirements. The experimental results show that RVR is effective for autonomous rendezvous docking.
The influence of caecectomy on amino acid availability of three feedstuffs for ganders

1. Experiments were conducted to assess the influence of caecectomy on amino acid availability (AAA) of three feedstuffs for goose. 2. Nine caecectomised and 9 intact Yangzhou ganders, 24 weeks old, were used in these experiments. Fish meal, soybean meal and cottonseed meal were used as the sole source of protein. The endogenous amino acid (AA) losses were evaluated by a nitrogen (N)-free diet method. The influence of caecectomy on apparent amino acid availability (AAAA) in fish meal, soybean meal and cottonseed meal was assessed in experiment 1 and true amino acid availability (TAAA) of three protein diets was determined in experiment 2. 3. Results showed that, in the soybean meal and cottonseed meal, the AAAA and TAAA of most AA determined by the intact ganders were higher than in the caecectomised ganders; in the fish meal, the AAAA and TAAA of most AA determined by the intact ganders were lower than in the caecectomised ganders. 4. Results of the present study suggest that the effect of caecectomy on AAA in geese was dependent on the feedstuff assayed, and it was better to use caecectomised poultry for AAA assessment.
Breaking the Billion-Variable Barrier in Real-World Optimization Using a Customized Evolutionary Algorithm

Despite three decades of intense studies of evolutionary computation (EC), researchers outside the EC community still have a general impression that EC methods are expensive and are not efficient in solving large-scale problems. In this paper, we consider a specific integer linear programming (ILP) problem which, although comes from a specific industry, is similar to many other practical resource allocation and assignment problems. Based on a population based evolutionary optimization framework, we develop a computationally fast method to arrive at a near-optimal solution repeatedly. Two popular softwares (glpk and CPLEX) are not able to handle around 300 and 2,000 integer variable version of the problem, respectively, even after running for several hours. Our proposed method is able to find a near-optimal solution in less than second on the same computer. Moreover, the main highlight of this study is that our method scales in a sub-quadratic computational complexity in handling 50,000 to one billion variables. We believe that this is the first time such a large-sized real-world constrained problem has ever been handled using any optimization algorithm. The study clearly demonstrates the reasons for such a fast and scale-up application of the proposed method. The work should remain as a successful case study of EC methods for years to come.
Analysis of Interface Crack in Polymer Liner Subjected to Hygrothermal Stress

Polymeric materials such as epoxy are widely used as coating layers for the containment building of the nuclear power plant. These layers may be damaged through a hygrothermal process and residual stresses can reach significant levels near the free edges, possibly leading to interface debonding or delamination. Interfacial stress singularities induced in a laminate model consisting of the epoxy coating layer and the concrete substrate is investigated using the time-domain boundary element method. The epoxy layer is assumed to be a linear viscoelastic material and moisture effects are assumed to be analogous to thermal effects. The overall stress intensity factor for the case of a small interfacial edge crack of length a has been computed.
Comparison of platelet counting technologies in equine platelet concentrates.

OBJECTIVE (1) To compare the performance of 4 platelet counting technologies in equine platelet concentrates and (2) to evaluate the ability of the Magellan platelet rich plasma (PRP) system to concentrate equine platelets. STUDY DESIGN Experimental study to assess method agreement. ANIMALS Adult mixed breed horses (n = 32). METHODS Acid citrate dextrose-A anti-coagulated whole blood was collected and PRP produced using the Magellan system according to the manufacturer's instructions. Platelets were quantified using 4 counting methods: optical scatter (Advia 2120), impedance (CellDyn 3700), hand counting, and fluorescent antibody flow cytometry. Platelet concentrations were compared using Passing and Bablok regression analyses and mixed model ANOVA. Significance was set at P < . 05. RESULTS Platelet concentrations measured in identical PRP samples were consistently higher for the Advia 2120 than the CellDyn 3700. Systematic and proportional biases were observed between these 2 automated methods when analyzed by regression analysis of the larger sample size. No bias (systematic or proportional) was observed among any of the other counting methods. Despite the bias detected between the 2 automated systems, there were no significant differences on average among the 4 counting methods evaluated, based on the ANOVA. The Magellan system consistently generated high platelet concentrations as well as higher than expected WBC concentrations. CONCLUSIONS The Magellan system delivered desirably high platelet concentrations; however, WBC concentrations may be unacceptably high for some orthopedic applications. All 4 platelet counting methods tested were equivalent on average and therefore suitable for quantifying platelets in equine PRP used for clinical applications.
Feature Selection and Blind Source Separation in an EEG-Based Brain-Computer Interface

Most EEG-based BCI systems make use of well-studied patterns of brain activity. However, those systems involve tasks that indirectly map to simple binary commands such as "yes" or "no" or require many weeks of biofeedback training. We hypothesized that signal processing and machine learning methods can be used to discriminate EEG in a direct "yes"/"no" BCI from a single session. Blind source separation (BSS) and spectral transformations of the EEG produced a 180-dimensional feature space. We used a modified genetic algorithm (GA) wrapped around a support vector machine (SVM) classifier to search the space of feature subsets. The GA-based search found feature subsets that outperform full feature sets and random feature subsets. Also, BSS transformations of the EEG outperformed the original time series, particularly in conjunction with a subset search of both spaces. The results suggest that BSS and feature selection can be used to improve the performance of even a "direct," single-session BCI.