Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Cortical Surface-Based Analysis II: Inflation, Flattening, and a Surface-Based Coordinate System

The surface of the human cerebral cortex is a highly folded sheet with the majority of its surface area buried within folds. As such, it is a difficult domain for computational as well as visualization purposes. We have therefore designed a set of procedures for modifying the representation of the cortical surface to (i) inflate it so that activity buried inside sulci may be visualized, (ii) cut and flatten an entire hemisphere, and (iii) transform a hemisphere into a simple parameterizable surface such as a sphere for the purpose of establishing a surface-based coordinate system.
Applications of Stainless Steel in Automobile Industry

Mounting energy crisis, stringent emission law and strict safety rules have guided car manufacturers to improve strength/weight ratio of the vehicle, thereby promoting several applications of stainless steels in the car body. Moreover, use of stainless steels also improves aesthetics and minimizes life cycle cost. In automobiles, presently 45-50% of stainless steels are used in exhaust systems. To improve efficiency, complex designs are being used and performance criteria of the material are getting tougher. New techniques such as tube hydroforming are also being explored using austenitic stainless steel for the complicated designs utilizing the benefits of high ductility of these grades. Since corrosion resistance remains fundamental requirement for these applications, selection of grades and stabilizing elements are critical for such applications and depend primarily on operating conditions. Different grades and effect of their composition on elevated temperature strength, creep strength, endurance limit and corrosion resistance are presented. Stainless steels are also being used in other applications such as fuel tank, bumper, chassis for buses and trucks. With the development of new varieties of austenitic, ferritic and martensitic stainless steels, automotive industry is intensively exploring their potential.
State-Related Changes in MEG Functional Connectivity Reveal the Task-Positive Sensorimotor Network

Functional connectivity measures applied to magnetoencephalography (MEG) data have the capacity to elucidate neuronal networks. However, the task-related modulation of these measures is essential to identifying the functional relevance of the identified network. In this study, we provide evidence for the efficacy of measuring “state-related” (i.e., task vs. rest) changes in MEG functional connectivity for revealing a sensorimotor network. We investigate changes in functional connectivity, measured as cortico-cortical coherence (CCC), between rest blocks and the performance of a visually directed motor task in a healthy cohort. Task-positive changes in CCC were interpreted in the context of any concomitant modulations in spectral power. Task-related increases in whole-head CCC relative to the resting state were identified between areas established as part of the sensorimotor network as well as frontal eye fields and prefrontal cortices, predominantly in the beta and gamma frequency bands. This study provides evidence for the use of MEG to identify task-specific functionally connected sensorimotor networks in a non-invasive, patient friendly manner.
Robust PCA as Bilinear Decomposition With Outlier-Sparsity Regularization

Principal component analysis (PCA) is widely used for dimensionality reduction, with well-documented merits in various applications involving high-dimensional data, including computer vision, preference measurement, and bioinformatics. In this context, the fresh look advocated here permeates benefits from variable selection and compressive sampling, to robustify PCA against outliers. A least-trimmed squares estimator of a low-rank bilinear factor analysis model is shown closely related to that obtained from an ℓ0-(pseudo)norm-regularized criterion encouraging sparsity in a matrix explicitly modeling the outliers. This connection suggests robust PCA schemes based on convex relaxation, which lead naturally to a family of robust estimators encompassing Huber's optimal M-class as a special case. Outliers are identified by tuning a regularization parameter, which amounts to controlling sparsity of the outlier matrix along the whole robustification path of (group) least-absolute shrinkage and selection operator (Lasso) solutions. Beyond its ties to robust statistics, the developed outlier-aware PCA framework is versatile to accommodate novel and scalable algorithms to: i) track the low-rank signal subspace robustly, as new data are acquired in real time; and ii) determine principal components robustly in (possibly) infinite-dimensional feature spaces. Synthetic and real data tests corroborate the effectiveness of the proposed robust PCA schemes, when used to identify aberrant responses in personality assessment surveys, as well as unveil communities in social networks, and intruders from video surveillance data.
Assessment of the carpal tunnel syndrome by high-frequency ultrasound images of the wrist: A feasibility study

Ultrasound images have been frequently applied to diagnose the carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) based on the analysis of morphological information in the median nerve. Yet the image resolution of most current clinical ultrasound scanners was not able to provide substantial sensitivity and quantitative information for the diagnosis. To jump over this hurdle, a 30 MHz high frequency ultrasound system and image processing scheme were developed to obtain morphology of the median nerve and the kinetic information from tissues in the wrist. The synthetic aperture focusing technique with adaptive weighting was utilized to improve the spatial resolution and signal-to-noise ratio of acquired images. The kinetic information of the wrist was obtained from analyzing a correlation of ultrasonic images associated with movements of extended fingers and those of flexed fingers. The correlation coefficients varied from 1 to 0.74±0.09 corresponding to fingers from extended to flexed movements. This study demonstrated that high frequency ultrasound could be applied to diagnose CTS.
FDG PET for Gauging of Sarcoid Disease Activity

Abstract Fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG), labeled with a positron emitting fluorine-18 (18F), is a synthesized glucose analogue and is well known for its application in a wide variety of clinical conditions such as cancer. Visualizing metabolic activity of inflammation is another application of FDG in positron emission tomography (PET). Here, active granulomas appear to have a high affinity for FDG, which is reflected in a high sensitivity of FDG PET imaging. This has led to novel applications of FDG PET in sarcoidosis diagnosis and management. Although chest radiography and high-resolution computed tomography are still the cornerstones of diagnosing pulmonary involvement, FDG PET appears to be superior to both techniques in imaging active sites of disease. FDG PET also correlates well with serum biomarkers such as soluble interleukin-2 receptor in symptomatic patients, and even visualizes active lesions in the context of normal serum biomarkers. Moreover, FDG PET activity in lung parenchyma correlates with decrease of lung function values over time. Also in cardiac involvement in sarcoidosis, FDG PET is a promising technique complementary to magnetic resonance imaging, especially in guiding treatment. New developments, such as applications for quantitative organ-specific measurement, are proceeding and will probably enhance the clinical implementation of FDG PET in sarcoidosis.
catena-Poly[lead(II)-bis(μ2-pyridazine-3-carboxylato-κ3 N 2,O:O)]

In the title structure, [Pb(C5H3N2O2)2]n, the PbII ion is six-coordinated by two pyridazine-3-carboxylate ligands via N and O atoms, with the carboxylato O atoms acting as bidentate and bridging adjacent PbII ions, giving rise to catenated molecular ribbons propagating along the a-axis direction. The ribbons are connected by C—H⋯O hydrogen bonds and van der Waals interactions.
Determination of optimum moisture content of a clay using nonlinear ultrasonic technique

The determination of optimum moisture content is very important for soil materials. Conventionally the optimum moisture content is estimated by the measurement of void ratio (or dry density) of soil samples, which is sometimes time-consuming and tedious. This paper proposes a nondestructive evaluation (NDE) technique based on the nonlinear ultrasonic theory to determine the optimum moisture content of clay. It is found the nonlinear parameter of material defined by the nonlinear ultrasonic technique presents a similar variation trend with the void ratio of clay, corresponding to the increased moisture content. The same optimum moisture content is found by observing the variation of nonlinear parameter and void ratio. The results indicate the developed nonlinear ultrasonic technique could be a fast and convenient testing method for the determination of optimum moisture content of soil materials.
A Prototypical Small-Molecule Modulator Uncouples Mitochondria in Response to Endogenous Hydrogen Peroxide Production

A high membrane potential across the mitochondrial inner membrane leads to the production of the reactive oxygen species (ROS) implicated in aging and age‐related diseases. A prototypical drug for the correction of this type of mitochondrial dysfunction is presented. MitoDNP‐SUM accumulates in mitochondria in response to the membrane potential due to its mitochondria‐targeting alkyltriphenylphosphonium (TPP) cation and is uncaged by endogenous hydrogen peroxide to release the mitochondrial uncoupler, 2,4‐dinitrophenol (DNP). DNP is known to reduce the high membrane potential responsible for the production of ROS. The approach potentially represents a general method for the delivery of drugs to the mitochondrial matrix through mitochondria targeting and H2O2‐induced uncaging.
Delay analysis for real-time streaming media in multi-hop ad hoc networks

In this paper, we investigate an important issue for real-time multimedia over multi-hop ad-hoc networks on different layers. Such application requires receiver playback buffers to smooth network delay variation and reconstruct the periodic nature of the transmitted packets. Packets arriving after their schedule deadline are considered late and are not played out. This requires that the network is able to offer quality of service appropriate for the delay bounds of the real-time application constrains. Our primary contribution concerns the study of the end to end delay. Based on the latter results, we approximate the loss rate of a real-time traffic which requires a delay bounds constraints. Then, we propose a cross layer scheme from the network layer to the MAC layer to support real-time traffic. In this scheme, we reduce the loss rate by decreasing the packets that arrive after their schedule deadline. Through numerical and simulation results, we demonstrate the utility and efficiency of our approach.
Neuroendocrine prostate cancer xenografts with large‐cell and small‐cell features derived from a single patient's tumor: Morphological, immunohistochemical, and gene expression profiles

Small‐cell carcinoma (SCC) of the prostate is an AR‐negative variant of prostate cancer found at progression in 10–20% of castrate‐resistant disease. Its finding predicts a distinct clinical course and a poor prognosis. Large‐cell neuroendocrine carcinoma (LCNEC) is a much rarer variant that behaves similarly to SCC. The biological mechanisms that drive these disease variants are poorly understood.
The Effect of the Molecular Architecture on the Antioxidant Properties of Chitosan Gallate

To elucidate the structure–antioxidant activity relationships of chitosan gallate (CG), a series of CG derivatives with different degrees of substitution (DS’s) and molecular weights (MWs) were synthesized from chitosan (CS) and gallic acid (GA) via a free radical graft reaction. A higher MW led to a lower DS of CG. The structures of CG were characterized by FT-IR and 1H NMR, and results showed that GA was mainly conjugated to the C-2 and C-6 positions of the CS chain. The antioxidant activity (the DPPH radical scavenging activity and reducing power) were enhanced with an increased DS and a decreased MW of CG. A correlation between antioxidant activities and the DS and MW of CG was also established. In addition, a suitable concentration (0~250 μg/mL) of CG with different MWs (32.78~489.32 kDa) and DS’s (0~92.89 mg·GAE/g CG) has no cytotoxicity. These results should provide a guideline to the application of CG derivatives in food or pharmacology industries.
A self-training method for learning to rank with unlabeled data

This paper presents a new algorithm for bipartite ranking functions trained with partially labeled data. The algorithm is an extension of the self-training paradigm developed under the classification framework. We further propose an efficient and scalable optimization method for training linear models though the approach is general in the sense that it can be applied to any classes of scoring functions. Empirical results on several common image and text corpora over the Area Under the ROC Curve (AUC) and the Average Precision measure show that the use of unlabeled data in the training process leads to improve the performance of baseline supervised ranking functions.
Development of a Computer Writing System Based on EOG

The development of a novel computer writing system based on eye movements is introduced herein. A system of these characteristics requires the consideration of three subsystems: (1) A hardware device for the acquisition and transmission of the signals generated by eye movement to the computer; (2) A software application that allows, among other functions, data processing in order to minimize noise and classify signals; and (3) A graphical interface that allows the user to write text easily on the computer screen using eye movements only. This work analyzes these three subsystems and proposes innovative and low cost solutions for each one of them. This computer writing system was tested with 20 users and its efficiency was compared to a traditional virtual keyboard. The results have shown an important reduction in the time spent on writing, which can be very useful, especially for people with severe motor disorders.
Gene Expression of Protein-Coding and Non-Coding RNAs Related to Polyembryogenesis in the Parasitic Wasp, Copidosoma floridanum

Polyembryony is a unique form of development in which many embryos are clonally produced from a single egg. Polyembryony is known to occur in many animals, but the underlying genetic mechanism responsible is unknown. In a parasitic wasp, Copidosoma floridanum, polyembryogenesis is initiated during the formation and division of the morula. In the present study, cDNA libraries were constructed from embryos at the cleavage and subsequent primary morula stages, times when polyembryogenesis is likely to be controlled genetically. Of 182 and 263 cDNA clones isolated from these embryos, 38% and 70%, respectively, were very similar to protein-coding genes obtained from BLAST analysis and 55 and 65 clones, respectively, were stage-specific. In our libraries we also detected a high frequency of long non-coding RNA. Some of these showed stage-specific expression patterns in reverse transcription quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) analysis. The stage-specificity of expression implies that these protein-coding and non-coding genes are related to polyembryogenesis in C. floridanum. The non-coding genes are not similar to any known non-coding RNAs and so are good candidates as regulators of polyembryogenesis.
A retargeting methodology of nano-watt CMOS reference circuit based on advanced compact MOSFET model

In retargeting of a nano-watt CMOS reference circuit, we adopt an advanced compact MOSFET model to describe the drain current consistently in strong and weak inversion levels. Based on this model, we describe all bias conditions in terms of ratios of the channel widths and lengths. Taking the effect of very long channels into account, we formulate the threshold voltage as a function of the drain-source voltage. Furthermore, we introduce a tuning parameter with the empirical range and fix all transistor sizes sweeping this parameter as well as applying a simulation. In case studies, we retargeted a circuit from the 180nm/1.8V process to the 90nm/1.2V, 2.5V, 3.3V processes. Besides, we fabricated the circuit in the 90nm/1.2V process, and confirmed the good measurement results such as less than 12.8%/V supply voltage variation and only 1.1nW power consumption.
In Vivo Tracking of Human Neural Progenitor Cells in the Rat Brain Using Magnetic Resonance Imaging is Not Enhanced by Ferritin Expression

Rapid growth in the field of stem cell research has generated a lot of interest in their therapeutic use, especially in the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases. Specifically, human neural progenitor cells (hNPCs), unique in their capability to differentiate into cells of the neural lineage, have been widely investigated due to their ability to survive, thrive, and migrate toward injured tissues. Still, one of the major roadblocks for clinical applicability arises from the inability to monitor these cells following transplantation. Molecular imaging techniques, such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), have been explored to assess hNPC transplant location, migration, and survival. Here we investigated whether inducing hNPCs to overexpress ferritin (hNPCsFer), an iron storage protein, is sufficient to track these cells long term in the rat striatum using MRI. We found that increased hypointensity on MRI images could establish hNPCFer location. Unexpectedly, however, wild-type hNPC transplants were detected in a similar manner, which is likely due to increased iron accumulation following transplantation-induced damage. Hence, we labeled hNPCs with superparamagnetic iron oxide (SPIO) nanoparticles to further increase iron content in an attempt to enhance cell contrast in MRI. SPIO-labeling of hNPCs (hNPCs-SPIO) achieved increased hypointensity, with significantly greater area of decreased T2* compared to hNPCFer (p < 0.0001) and all other controls used. However, none of the techniques could be used to determine graft rejection in vivo, which is imperative for understanding cell behavior following transplantation. We conclude that in order for cell survival to be monitored in preclinical and clinical settings, another molecular imaging technique must be employed, including perhaps multimodal imaging, which would utilize MRI along with another imaging modality.
Transcription analysis of the Staphylococcus aureus gene encoding penicillin-binding protein 4

The high level of cross-linking found in Staphylococcus aureus peptidoglycan is dependent on the low-molecular-weight penicillin-binding protein PBP4. Recently, the PBP4 gene, pbpD, was cloned and shown to be adjacent to and divergently transcribed relative to the putative ABC-type transporter gene, abcA. Disruption of abcA (in strain KB400) was previously shown to result in heightened resistance to several antibiotics known to interact with PBP4, suggesting that the regulation of pbpD is affected by abcA. In this report, this hypothesis was confirmed by use of a Northern (RNA) blot analysis which revealed increased accumulation of pbpD-specific transcripts in KB400 compared to that in the wild-type strain, 8325-4. By using reverse-phase high-performance liquid chromatography to examine the structure of the peptidoglycan, it was demonstrated that the increased expression of pbpD resulted in an increased level of peptidoglycan cross-linking in the staphylococcal cell wall. Promoter fusion studies demonstrated that the abcA mutation caused approximately 7-fold and 100-fold increases in pbpD and abcA promoter activities, respectively. Primer extension experiments revealed that these genes have long, untranslated leader sequences that result in a transcriptional overlap of 80 bp. Interestingly, deletion of a 26-bp region containing an inverted repeat sequence resulted in the loss of expression from both the abcA and the pbpD promoters. These data provide evidence that abcA and pbpD are under the control of a common regulatory mechanism that may involve the transport function of the abcA gene product.
p-n Junction Photocurrent Modelling Evaluation under Optical and Electrical Excitation

Based upon the quasi-equilibrium approximation, the validity of p-n junction modelling, has been experimentally investigated under synchronous electrical and optical excitation of silicon photo-diodes. The devices had areas of 8.2 mm2 and reverse bias saturation currents of the order of 10-10 A. Their current-voltage (I-V) response was exploited experimentally both in the dark and under various illumination levels. The quoted values for the saturation current, the ideality factor, the series resistance and the reverse-bias photocurrent are investigated for the simulation of the I-V curves via the quasi-equilibrium model. In addition, the measured I-V data have been further analysed to estimate the produced photocurrent as a function of the applied bias (forward or reverse) under given illumination levels. Comparisons between the simulated curves and the experimental data allowed a detailed photocurrent modelling validation. The proposed approach could be useful towards studying other parameters of optically activated p-n junctions such as: the bias dependence of the minority carrier diffusion lengths and/or the generated rates of electron-hole pairs (EHP).
GreenTube: power optimization for mobile videostreaming via dynamic cache management

Mobile video streaming has become one of the most popular applications in the trend of smartphone booming and the prevalence of 3G/4G networks, i.e., HSPA, HSPA+, and LTE. However, the prohibitively high power consumption by 3G/4G radios in smartphones reduces battery life significantly and thus severely hurts user experience. To tackle this challenge, we designed GreenTube, a system that optimizes power consumption for mobile video streaming by judiciously scheduling downloading activities to minimize unnecessary active periods of 3G/4G radio. GreenTube achieves this by dynamically managing the downloading cache based on user viewing history and network condition. We implemented GreenTube on Android-based smartphones. Experimental results show that GreenTube achieves large power reductions of more than 70% (on the 3G/4G radio) and 40% (for the whole system). We believe GreenTube is a desirable upgrade to the Android system, especially in the light of increasing LTE popularity.
New Developments in Biodegradable Starch-based Nanocomposites

Abstract This contribution outlines the new developments in thermoplastic starch-based (nano)composites useful for more specific applications compatible with our environment, partially based on our ongoing research over the past few years. Accordingly, melt-intercalating starch macromomolecules into layered silicates (e.g., natural clays) has proved to be an efficient way for preparation of thermoplastic starch-layered silicate nanocomposites with interesting thermo-mechanical properties, as well as improved solvent-resistance. Cellulosic (nano)whiskers were also added as another environmentally benign (nano)filler in starch-based compositions. The design of such thermoplastic starch-based (nano)composites with enhanced properties relies upon the control over the phase behavior and morphology of the nanofiller within the matrix by more defined interfacial compatibility as well as by fine tuning of processing parameters. A special emphasis was also given to the introduction of layered silicates (nano)filler in biodegradable melt-blends made of hydrophilic thermoplastic starch and hydrophobic biodegradable polyesters as a valuable way to increase the compatibility between the two polymeric partners.