Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A Time-Based Technique for Testing LC-Tank Oscillators

This paper describes a new architecture that explores time-based signal-processing concepts for testing LC-tank radio-frequency (RF) oscillator circuits, and in particular, quadrature oscillators, while relying on low-frequency digital test equipment. The proposed system has two inputs that are two step-like signals with a time separation that is externally controlled. The output of the system is an amplified and digitized time separation that is a function of the time separation between the applied input steps and the oscillator output frequency characteristics. Coarse time digitization circuits are used to read the output, from which the frequency of oscillation of the oscillator is deduced. A proof-of-concept circuit is designed and fabricated in a standard 0.18-μm CMOS process. Experimental results confirm the feasibility of the proposed approach, which is demonstrated in this work with the successful on-chip measurement of 1.5 and 1.7 GHz oscillation frequencies.
The meaning of leisure for women: an integrative review of the research

Researchers are beginning to correct the distortion and invisibility of information about women's leisure. The purpose of this integrative review is to synthesize the recent literature concerning women's leisure in order to explore the complex interrelationships and dimensions of women's lives. In examining the literature, assumptions about leisure and feminist perspectives are offered as a context for understanding women's lives. The consistencies in the research literature, as well as the contradictions, associated with the meaning of leisure in women's lives are presented. The author concludes that frameworks and hypotheses for better understanding women's lives are emerging, a variety of methods are being used to collect appropriate data, and both women and men have the potential for helping to empower women through continuing research on the meaning of leisure in women's lives.
Evaluating QoS Parameters for IPTV Distribution in Heterogeneous Networks

The present work presents an architecture developed to evaluate the QoS parameters for the IPTV heterogeneous network. At its very basic level lie two software technologies: Video LAN and Windows Media Services with two operating systems: Windows and Linux. Three types of streams are analyzed, which will be transmitted to a Linux VLC client through means of the aggregation and access servers. The first stream is generated in real time by a capture camera, processed by the encapsulated VC-1 encoder and sent to the Media Server, while the second one is of VoD(Video on Demand) type and the third one will be handled by DVBViewer through the MPEG TS form. The first stream is transcoded in H.264-AAC such that the Linux stations will recognize its format. Through the simultaneous transmission of the three streams, we are analyzing their performance from a QoS parameters point of view by means of an application implemented in C programming language. The stream transporting the DVB-S television content was proven to ensure the best performance regarding loss of packets, delays and jitter.
Analysis and reduction of transcription translation coupled models for gene expression

Abstract The aim of this paper is to analyze and to reduce coupled transcription-translation models developed in (Kremling (2007)), which are a detailed representation of the process describing how the information in DNA turns into proteins in a cell, with polymerase and ribosomes. The full model is of high dimensions, and may be complex to deal with. Under assumptions on the parameters, we can write the full system in the form of a slow fast system. The fast part is a monotone system and we prove its global stability. We put this fast part to its quasi steady state, and show that it is possible to obtain a small reduced model (with three variables) having essentially the same dynamical behavior.
Minimizing age of information in vehicular networks

Emerging applications rely on wireless broadcast to disseminate time-critical information. For example, vehicular networks may exchange vehicle position and velocity information to enable safety applications. The number of nodes in one-hop communication range in such networks can be very large, leading to congestion and undesirable levels of packet collisions. Earlier work has examined such broadcasting protocols primarily from a MAC perspective and focused on selective aspects such as packet error rate. In this work, we propose a more comprehensive metric, the average system information age, which captures the requirement of such applications to maintain current state information from all other nearby nodes. We show that information age is minimized at an optimal operating point that lies between the extremes of maximum throughput and minimum delay. Further, while age can be minimized by saturating the MAC and setting the CW size to its throughput-optimal value, the same cannot be achieved without changes in existing hardware. Also, via simulations we show that simple contention window size adaptations like increasing or decreasing the window size are unsuitable for reducing age. This motivates our design of an application-layer broadcast rate adaptation algorithm. It uses local decisions at nodes in the network to adapt their messaging rate to keep the system age to a minimum. Our simulations and experiments with 300 ORBIT nodes show that the algorithm effectively adapts the messaging rates and minimizes the system age.
Nrf3 Negatively Regulates Antioxidant-response Element-mediated Expression and Antioxidant Induction of NAD(P)H:Quinone Oxidoreductase1 Gene*

Antioxidant-response element (ARE) and nuclear factor Nrf2-mediated expression and coordinated induction of genes encoding chemopreventive proteins, including NQO1, are critical mechanisms in chemoprotection. Recently, Nrf3, a new member of the Nrf family with substantial homology to Nrf2, was identified and cloned. In this report, we have investigated the role of Nrf3 in ARE-mediated gene expression and induction of NQO1 in response to antioxidants. Overexpression of Nrf3 in Hep-G2 cells led to a concentration-dependent decrease in transfected and endogenous NQO1 gene expression and induction in response to antioxidant tert-butylhydroquinone (t-BHQ). Deletion mutation analysis revealed that Nrf3 repression of NQO1 gene expression required heterodimerization and DNA binding domains but not transcriptional activation domain of Nrf3. Bandshift and supershift assays with in vitro transcribed and translated proteins and nuclear extracts from Hep-G2 cells treated with Me2SO and t-BHQ and immunoprecipitation assays demonstrated that Nrf3 associates with small Maf proteins to bind to the ARE. RNA interference specific to Nrf3 reduced intracellular Nrf3 leading to increased expression and induction of transfected and endogenous NQO1 gene expression in response to t-BHQ. These results combined suggest that Nrf3 is a negative regulator of ARE-mediated gene expression.
Selective Harmonic Mitigation Technique for High-Power Converters

In high-power applications, the maximum switching frequency is limited due to thermal losses. This leads to highly distorted output waveforms. In such applications, it is necessary to filter the output waveforms using bulky passive filtering systems. The recently presented selective harmonic mitigation pulsewidth modulation (SHMPWM) technique produces output waveforms where the harmonic distortion is limited, fulfilling specific grid codes when the number of switching angles is high enough. The related technique has been previously presented using a switching frequency that is equal to 750 Hz. In this paper, a special implementation of the SHMPWM technique optimized for very low switching frequency is studied. Experimental results obtained applying SHMPWM to a three-level neutral-point-clamped converter using a switching frequency that is equal to 350 Hz are presented. The obtained results show that the SHMPWM technique improves the results of previous selective harmonic elimination pulsewidth modulation techniques for very low switching frequencies. This fact highlights that the SHMPWM technique is very useful in high-power applications, leading its use to an important reduction of the bulky and expensive filtering elements.
The Personal Characteristics and Pedgagogical Styles of Effective Abstinence Education Instructors

The Personal Characteristics and Pedagogical Styles of Effective Abstinence Education Instructors Karen D. Hill Department of Sociology, BYU Master of Science The purpose of this study was to explore the personal characteristics and pedagogical style of effective abstinence instructors. Abstinence instructors receive regular training and evaluation and tend to remain in the abstinence education field for multiple years. Abstinence education programs are offered throughout the United States and present a pool of participants in which to sociologically examine the dynamics of the relationship of adolescents and instructors in a youth prevention program. This qualitative study is based on in-depth personal interviews of eight abstinence instructors who shared insights into their own teaching experiences, expressed their thoughts about who they are as a person and their experiences that impacted their teaching, what they know about teaching methods and relating to students, and how what they care about informed their instructional delivery. Three abstinence program administrators also presented their insights into effective abstinence instruction. Effective abstinence educators embody personal characteristics and pedagogical styles common to effective teachers in public schools and other positive youth development programs. Supporting the concept of teacher immediacy (Mehrabian, 1969, 1981), interview data indicate that abstinence instructors perceive that integrating who they are, what they know and what they care about into their teaching style and classroom persona increases their effectiveness. Findings from this study may inform recruitment, training, evaluation and retention of prevention program instructors for youth.
Using hidden Markov models to analyze gene expression time course data

MOTIVATION Cellular processes cause changes over time. Observing and measuring those changes over time allows insights into the how and why of regulation. The experimental platform for doing the appropriate large-scale experiments to obtain time-courses of expression levels is provided by microarray technology. However, the proper way of analyzing the resulting time course data is still very much an issue under investigation. The inherent time dependencies in the data suggest that clustering techniques which reflect those dependencies yield improved performance. RESULTS We propose to use Hidden Markov Models (HMMs) to account for the horizontal dependencies along the time axis in time course data and to cope with the prevalent errors and missing values. The HMMs are used within a model-based clustering framework. We are given a number of clusters, each represented by one Hidden Markov Model from a finite collection encompassing typical qualitative behavior. Then, our method finds in an iterative procedure cluster models and an assignment of data points to these models that maximizes the joint likelihood of clustering and models. Partially supervised learning--adding groups of labeled data to the initial collection of clusters--is supported. A graphical user interface allows querying an expression profile dataset for time course similar to a prototype graphically defined as a sequence of levels and durations. We also propose a heuristic approach to automate determination of the number of clusters. We evaluate the method on published yeast cell cycle and fibroblasts serum response datasets, and compare them, with favorable results, to the autoregressive curves method.
Personal recognition based on the Gabor features of colour palmprint images

In this paper a personal recognition system based on the Gabor features of colour palmprint images is described. The features are extracted by a bank of Gabor filters from the palmprint region represented by three primary spectral components: R, G and B. The system, based on fusion at the matching-score level, is used to improve the recognition accuracy. The recognition results of the system are compared with the results of a grey-level-based palmprint-recognition system for the same database.
Lack of Emotional Support from Parents Early in Life and Alcohol Abuse Later in Life

The purpose of this study is to examine the association between lacking emotional support from parents early in life and adult alcohol abuse. A series of logistic regression models were run with data collected from a nationally representative sample of over 2,500 adults ages 25–74. The findings reveal a linear relationship between level of deficiency in early maternal support and odds of alcohol abuse during adulthood, with even moderate deficiencies being associated with elevated risk. Further examination suggests that this association persists throughout adulthood. This association does not appear to be explained by the early initiation of alcohol use, but poor psychological well-being during adulthood does account for a large portion of this association. These findings expand our understanding of the risks associated with poor parental support during childhood, and underscore the importance of adopting a life course perspective in studying the social determinants of alcohol problems among adults.
Teaching quality measurement and improvement, cost-effectiveness, and patient satisfaction in undergraduate medical education: the UME-21 experience.

BACKGROUND The health care system in the United States is changing at an ever-increasing rate. Recent reports by the Institute of Medicine raising concerns regarding rates of medical errors and suggesting the need for reengineering of the health care delivery system have focused attention on the need for quality measurement and improvement. METHODS We abstracted data from final written reports submitted by 18 Undergraduate Medical Education for the 21st Century (UME-21) schools, as well as other materials available from participating UME-21 schools. Specific curricular innovations developed and implemented were identified. Additionally, senior medical students' responses to the annual Graduation Questionnaire administered by the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) were available for analysis. The change from 1999 to 2001 in the proportion of seniors rating instruction in quality assurance as adequate was compared among four groups of UME-21 schools and the other 107 US medical schools. RESULTS Eleven of the 18 schools specifically addressed the content areas of quality measurement and improvement, including utilization management (27% of schools), cost-effectiveness (45% of schools), use of clinical practice guidelines (73% of schools), and patient satisfaction assessment (45% of schools). Each school developed unique approaches and educational materials pertinent to the content area. Overall, the percentage of seniors rating the relative amount of instructional time devoted to quality assurance in medicine by their school's curriculum as adequate or better rose from 49% to 66% between 1999 and 2001 at the 11 UME-21 schools that introduced initiatives in quality improvement into their curricula. This change was significantly higher than the pattern at other US medical schools between 1999 and 2001, at which seniors' ratings rose only from 43% to 56%. CONCLUSIONS Curriculum development and implementation addressing quality improvement in medical practice accelerate improvement of students' perception that their education has adequately addressed this subject area. This article summarizes some of the experiences, curricular approaches, successes, failures, and lessons learned in quality improvement by schools participating in the UME-21 project.
A simulation framework for real-time assessment of dynamic ride sharing demand responsive transportation models

Sustainable mobility is not merely a technological question. While automotive technology will be part of the solution, it will also be combined with a paradigm shift from car ownership to vehicle usage, which itself will be facilitated by the application of Information and Communication Technologies that make it possible for a user to have access to a mobility service from anywhere to anywhere at any time. Multiple Passenger Ridesharing and its variants appear to be one of the promising mobility concepts that are emerging. However, in implementing these systems while accounting specifically for time dependencies and time windows that reflect user needs, challenges are raised in terms of real-time fleet dispatching and dynamic route calculation. This paper analyzes and evaluates both aspects through microscopic simulation emulating real-time traffic information while also interacting with a Decision Support System. The paper presents and discusses the obtained results for a Barcelona model.
Modulation Rate Adaptation in Urban and Vehicular Environments: Cross-Layer Implementation and Experimental Evaluation

Accurately selecting modulation rates for time-varying channel conditions is critical for avoiding performance degradations due to rate overselection when channel conditions degrade or underselection when channel conditions improve. In this paper, we design a custom cross-layer framework that enables: 1) implementation of multiple and previously unimplemented rate adaptation mechanisms; 2) experimental evaluation and comparison of rate adaptation protocols on controlled, repeatable channels as well as residential urban and downtown vehicular and nonmobile environments in which we accurately measure channel conditions with 100- s granularity; and 3) comparison of performance on a per-packet basis with the ideal modulation rate obtained via exhaustive experimental search. Our evaluation reveals that SNR-triggered protocols are susceptible to overselection from the ideal rate when the coherence time is low (a scenario that we show occurs in practice even in a nonmobile topology), and that “in situ” training can produce large gains to overcome this sensitivity. Another key finding is that a mechanism effective in differentiating between collision and fading losses for hidden terminals has severely imbalanced throughput sharing when competing links are even slightly heterogeneous. In general, we find trained SNR-based protocols outperform loss-based protocols in terms of the ability to track vehicular clients, accuracy within outdoor environments, and balanced sharing with heterogeneous links (even with physical layer capture).
A new tracking system for the robust extraction of retinal vessel structure

Identification and measurement of blood vessels in retinal images could allow quantitative evaluation of clinical features, which may allow early diagnosis and effective monitoring of therapies in retinopathy. A new system is proposed for the automatic extraction of the vascular structure in retinal images, based on a sparse tracking technique. After processing pixels on a grid of rows and columns to determine a set of starting points (seeds), the tracking procedure starts. It moves along the vessel by analyzing subsequent vessel cross sections (lines perpendicular to the vessel direction), and extracting the vessel center, calibre and direction. Vessel points in a cross section are found by means of a fuzzy c-means classifier. When tracking stops because of a critical area, e.g. low contrast, bifurcation or crossing, a "bubble technique" module is run. It grows and analyzes circular scan lines around the critical points, allowing the exploration of the vessel structure beyond the critical areas. After tracking the vessels, identified segments are connected by a greedy connection algorithm. Finally bifurcations and crossings are identified analyzing vessel end points with respect to the vessel structure. Numerical evaluation of the performances of the system compared to human expert are reported.
EDUCATIONAL INEQUALITIES IN REPEAT ABORTION: A LONGITUDINAL REGISTER STUDY IN FINLAND 1975–2010

Summary The proportion of repeat abortions among all abortions has increased over the last decades in Finland. This study examined the association of education with the likelihood of repeat abortion, and the change in this association over time using reliable longitudinal data. A unique set of register data from three birth cohorts were followed from age 20 to 45, including about 22,000 cases of repeat abortion, and analysed using discrete-time event-history models. Low education was found to be associated with a higher likelihood of repeat abortion. Women with low education had abortions sooner after the preceding abortion, and were more often single, younger and had larger families at the time of abortion than more highly educated women. The educational differences were more significant for later than earlier cohorts. The results show a lack of appropriate contraceptive use, possibly due to lack of knowledge of, or access to, services. There is a need to improve access to family planning services, and contraceptives should be provided free of charge. Register data overcome the common problems of under-reporting of abortion and attrition ensuring the results are reliable, unique and of interest internationally.
Can we live in a self-tuning universe?

The self-tuning brane scenario is an attempt to solve the cosmological constant problem in the context of extra dimensions. Rather than making the vacuum energy small, this approach proceeds by removing the gravitational effect of vacuum energy on the expansion of the universe. Such behavior is only possible through changing the Friedmann equation of conventional cosmology, and we discuss difficulties in obtaining cosmological evolution compatible with observation in this context. Specific models considered include a bulk scalar field coupling to the brane via a conformal transformation of the brane metric, and via a rescaling of the brane volume element.
Comparing TMS perturbations to occipital and parietal cortices in concurrent TMS-fMRI studies—Methodological considerations

Neglect and hemianopia are two neuropsychological syndromes that are associated with reduced awareness for visual signals in patients’ contralesional hemifield. They offer the unique possibility to dissociate the contributions of retino-geniculate and retino-colliculo circuitries in visual perception. Yet, insights from patient fMRI studies are limited by heterogeneity in lesion location and extent, long-term functional reorganization and behavioural compensation after stroke. Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) has therefore been proposed as a complementary method to investigate the effect of transient perturbations on functional brain organization. This concurrent TMS-fMRI study applied TMS perturbation to occipital and parietal cortices with the aim to ‘mimick’ neglect and hemianopia. Based on the challenges and interpretational limitations of our own study we aim to provide tutorial guidance on how future studies should compare TMS to primary sensory and association areas that are governed by distinct computational principles, neural dynamics and functional architecture.