Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Intelligent network selection and energy reduction for mobile devices

The popularity of mobile devices has stimulated rapid progress in both Wi-Fi and cellular technologies. Before LTE was widely deployed, Wi-Fi speeds dominated cellular network speeds. But that is no longer true today. In a study we conducted with a crowd-sourced measurement tool used by over 1,000 users in 16 countries, we found that 40% of the time LTE outperforms Wi-Fi, and 75% of the time the difference between LTE and Wi-Fi throughput is higher than 1 Mbits/s. Thus, instead of the currently popular “always prefer Wi-Fi” policy, we argue that mobile devices should use the best available combination of networks: Wi-Fi, LTE, or both. Selecting the best network combination, however, is a challenging problem because: 1) network conditions vary with both location and time; 2) many network transfers are short, which means that the decision must be made with low overhead; and, 3) the best choice is determined not only by best network performance, but also constrained by practical factors such as monetary cost and battery life. In this dissertation, we present Delphi, a software controller for network selection on mobile devices. Delphi makes intelligent network selection decisions according to current network conditions and monetary cost concerns, as well as battery-life considerations. Our experiments show that Delphi reduces application network transfer time by 46% for web browsing and by 49% for video streaming, compared with Android’s default policy of always using Wi-Fi when it is available. Delphi can also be configured to achieve high 3 throughput while being energy efficient; in this configuration, it achieves 1.9× the throughput of Android’s default policy while only consuming 6% more energy. Delphi improves performance but uses the cellular network more extensively than the status quo, consuming more energy than before. To address this problem, we develop a general method to reduce the energy consumption of cellular interfaces on mobile devices. The key idea is to use the statistics of data transfers to determine the best times at which to put the radio in different power states. These techniques not only make Delphi more useful in practice but can be deployed independently without Delphi to improve energy efficiency for any cellular-network-enabled devices. Experiments show that our techniques reduce energy consumption by 15% to 60% across various traffic patterns. Dissertation Supervisor: Hari Balakrishnan Title: Professor
Transjugular Intrahepatic Portasystemic Shunt vs Surgical Shunt in Good-Risk Cirrhotic Patients

Hypothesis: In good-risk patients with variceal bleeding undergoing portal decompression, surgical shunt is more effective, more durable, and less costly than angiographic shunt (transjugular intrahepatic portasystemic shunt [TIPS]). Design: Retrospective case-control study. Setting: Academic referral center for liver disease. Patients: Patients with Child-Pugh class A or B cirrhosis with at least 1 prior episode of bleeding from portal hypertension (gastroesophageal varices, portal hypertensive gastropathy). Intervention: Portal decompression by angiographic (TIPS) or surgical (portacaval, distal splenorenal) shunt.
The Masticatory Normative Indicator

There is no established quantitative, objective method to differentiate individuals with good masticatory function from those lacking this attribute. The aim of this study was to specify a normal range of median particle size values for masticated raw carrots collected just before being swallowed. The masticatory normative indicator (MNI) value thus obtained was based on seven studies carried out by different investigators using different methods for measuring particle size in carrot boluses. A simple mathematical transformation of variables and the choice of an interval of ±1.96 times the standard deviation gave 4.0 mm as the upper limit of normal median particle size for carrots in a population of young persons with good oral health. This value identifies boluses that may be considered as resulting from impaired mastication, as illustrated in healthy individuals with experimentally hampered mastication, denture wearers, and individuals presenting with obesity or Down syndrome.
The illusion of improved physical fitness and reduced mortality.

PURPOSE To conduct a computer simulation to assess the effects of measurement error on prospective epidemiological studies that attribute mortality outcomes to apparent changes in the independent variable (e.g., physical fitness or activity) at baseline. METHODS As an example, we evaluated the design of the Aerobics Center Longitudinal Study (ACLS). This study compared apparent changes in fitness between two baseline visits to mortality during a subsequent 5-yr follow-up period. Unfit men who were reclassified as fit at the second baseline examination (6.6% of sample) and fit men who were reclassified as unfit (2.3%) had follow-up mortality rates that were between those of men who were consistently classified as fit or unfit. This study design was simulated assuming that differences between baseline treadmill test durations were due to measurement error alone. Based on our own data, we estimated that repeat measurements of treadmill test duration have correlation of r = 0.89 in the absence of any real fitness change. RESULTS There is excellent agreement between the published ACLS risk reductions and our simulated reductions for both cardiovascular disease (CVD) and total mortality. Compared with the "Unfit-->Unfit" (the referent group), the estimated relative risks from the simulations for men who were reclassified as fit (i.e., "Unfit-->Fit") were 0.57 for total mortality and 0.52 for CVD mortality, and for men who remained classified as fit ("Fit-->Fit"), they were 0.33 for total mortality and 0.20 for CVD mortality. CONCLUSION The imprecision of the fitness measurement alone (i.e., measurement error) is sufficient to produce the reported ACLS risk reductions in initially unfit men who get reclassified as fit in a subsequent clinic visit. This statistical artifact will apply to other studies that use this design.
Solution-processed, hybrid 2D/3D MoS2/Si heterostructures with superior junction characteristics

We report a theoretical and experimental investigation of the hybrid heterostructure interfaces between atomically thin MoS2 nanocrystals (NCs) on Si platform for their potential applications towards next-generation electrical and optical devices. Mie theory-based numerical analysis and COMSOL simulations based on the finite element method have been utilized to study the optical absorption characteristics and light–matter interactions in variable-sized MoS2 NCs. The size-dependent absorption characteristics and the enhancement of electric field of the heterojunction in the UV-visible spectral range agree well with the experimental results. A lithography-free, wafer-scale, 2D material on a 3D substrate hybrid vertical heterostructure has been fabricated using colloidal n-MoS2 NCs on p-Si. The fabricated p-n heterojunction exhibited excellent junction characteristics with a high rectification ratio suitable for voltage clipper and rectifier applications. The current–voltage characteristics of the devices under illumination have been performed in the temperature range of 10–300 K. The device exhibits a high photo-to-dark current ratio of ∼3 × 103 and a responsivity comparable to a commercial Si photodetector. The excellent heterojunction characteristics demonstrate the great potential of MoS2 NC-based hybrid electronic and optoelectronic devices in the near future.
Cloning and sequence analysis of the meso-diaminopimelate decarboxylase gene from Bacillus methanolicus MGA3 and comparison to other decarboxylase genes

The lysA gene of Bacillus methanolicus MGA3 was cloned by complementation of an auxotrophic Escherichia coli lysA22 mutant with a genomic library of B. methanolicus MGA3 chromosomal DNA. Subcloning localized the B. methanolicus MGA3 lysA gene into a 2.3-kb SmaI-SstI fragment. Sequence analysis of the 2.3-kb fragment indicated an open reading frame encoding a protein of 48,223 Da, which was similar to the meso-diaminopimelate (DAP) decarboxylase amino acid sequences of Bacillus subtilis (62%) and Corynebacterium glutamicum (40%). Amino acid sequence analysis indicated several regions of conservation among bacterial DAP decarboxylases, eukaryotic ornithine decarboxylases, and arginine decarboxylases, suggesting a common structural arrangement for positioning of substrate and the cofactor pyridoxal 5'-phosphate. The B. methanolicus MGA3 DAP decarboxylase was shown to be a dimer (M(r) 86,000) with a subunit molecular mass of approximately 50,000 Da. This decarboxylase is inhibited by lysine (Ki = 0.93 mM) with a Km of 0.8 mM for DAP. The inhibition pattern suggests that the activity of this enzyme in lysine-overproducing strains of B. methanolicus MGA3 may limit lysine synthesis.
New CMOS current-mode amplitude shift keying demodulator (ASKD) dedicated for implantable electronic devices

We propose in this paper a new CMOS integrated amplitude shift-keying (ASK) demodulator dedicated for implantable electronic device (IED) systems. ASK modulation is commonly used in the wireless data transmission systems of IEDs. The proposed ASK demodulator (ASKD) is used to extract digital data from two-level ASK modulated current signal. The ASKD allows to detect current levels with very small modulation depth which is defined as the difference between the two allowable ASK amplitude levels. The design is not complex and it is less sensitive to process variation. The circuit is implemented with 0.18 /spl mu/m, 1.8 V CMOS technology and currently it is under fabrication. Preliminary post-layout simulation results allow to prove the proposed concept for an input signal of 250 KHz at current amplitude varying between 4 and 4.5 /spl mu/A.
Association of microtia with maternal obesity and periconceptional folic acid use

The study objective was to examine the association of microtia with maternal intake of folic‐acid‐containing supplements and obesity. The study data included deliveries from 1997 to 2005 from the National Birth Defects Prevention Study. Non‐syndromic cases of microtia were compared to non‐malformed, population‐based liveborn control infants, by estimating adjusted odds ratios (AORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) from logistic regression models that included maternal race/ethnicity, education, and study site. Maternal obesity was only weakly associated with microtia. Maternal periconceptional intake of folic‐acid‐containing vitamin supplements reduced the risk for microtia, but only among non‐obese women (OR: 0.63; 95% CI: 0.44–0.91). The reduced risk was stronger when analyses were restricted to isolated cases (OR: 0.51; 95% CI: 0.34–0.77), and it was independent of the level of maternal dietary folate intake. Adjusting for maternal race/ethnicity did not reveal alternative interpretations of this association. This analysis suggests that maternal periconceptional intake of folic‐acid‐containing supplements may provide protection from microtia for non‐obese women. © 2010 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
A prospective randomized trial of megadose methylprednisolone and high dose dexamethasone for traumatic optic neuropathy.

PURPOSE To determine whether the improvement in visual acuity obtained when using high dose dexamethasone in the treatment of traumatic optic neuropathy was comparable to that of megadose methylprednisolone. METHOD A total of forty-four patients with traumatic optic neuropathy were prospectively randomized and selected to receive intravenous high dose dexamethasone or megadose methylprednisolone within 2 weeks of injury. Age, gender, cause of injury, interval from injury to treatment, initial, post-pulse, and final visual acuity were analysed statistically to compare the dexamethasone and methylprednisolone groups. RESULTS The mean interval to treatment was not significantly different (p=0.28) for the dexamethasone group at 5.5 days compared to the methylprednisolone group at 4.1 days. Visual improvement of at least two lines of the Snellen chart or two levels of unmeasured visual acuity was shown in 9 patients (37.5%) of the dexamethasone group and 10 patients (50%) of the methylprednisolone group. There was no statistically significant difference between the initial and post-pulse visual acuity (p=1.0) and the initial and final visual outcome (p=0.60) in the dexamethasone group compared with the methylprednisolone group. CONCLUSION There was no significant difference in the visual acuity obtained after treatment with intravenous dexamethasone or methylprednisolone for traumatic optic neuropathy.
The Slavery Hypertension Hypothesis—Natural Selection and Scientific Investigation: A Commentary

Transforming Anthropology, Vol. 13, Issue 2, pp. 119–124, ISSN 1051-0559, electronic ISSN 1548-7466. © 2005 by the American Anthropological Association. All rights reserved. Please direct all requests for permission to photocopy or reproduce article content through the University of California Press’s Rights and Permissions website, at http://www.ucpress. edu/journals/rights.htm. George J. Armelagos THE SLAVERY HYPERTENSION HYPOTHESIS—NATURAL SELECTION AND SCIENTIFIC INVESTIGATION: A COMMENTARY
The acquisition of auxiliaries BE and HAVE: an elicitation study*

Auxiliary syntax is recognized to be one of the more complex aspects of language that children must acquire. However, there is much disagreement among researchers concerning children's early understanding of auxiliaries, with some researchers advocating a relatively abstract grammar as the basis for auxiliary syntax, while others view the acquisition of auxiliary syntax as the gradual accumulation of linguistic knowledge, initially tied to individual lexical items. To investigate the status of children's early knowledge of auxiliary syntax, two studies were carried out. In study 1, 28 children (M=3;1) were tested for their use of the auxiliaries BE and HAVE in declaratives, while in study 2, 19 children (M=3;3) were tested for their use of these auxiliaries in questions. Although overall error rates were low, there were differences between BE and HAVE in the proportion and types of errors observed in declaratives and questions, and some individual children showed very high error rates. The implications of these findings for different models of auxiliary syntax in children's early utterances are discussed.
Survival and Changes in Comorbidities After Bariatric Surgery

Objective:To evaluate survival rates and changes in weight-related comorbid conditions after bariatric surgery in a high-risk patient population as compared with a similar cohort of morbidly obese patients who did not undergo surgery. Summary Background Data:Morbid obesity is increasingly becoming a major public health issue. Existing studies are limited in their ability to assess the risks and benefits of bariatric surgery because few studies compare surgical patients to a similar, morbidly obese, nonsurgical cohort, especially in high-risk populations like the elderly and disabled. Methods:A retrospective cohort analysis using Medicare fee-for-service patients from 2001 to 2004. Survival rates and diagnosed presence of 5 conditions commonly comorbid with morbid obesity were examined for morbidly obese patients who did and did not undergo bariatric surgery, with up to 2 years follow-up. Results:Morbidly obese Medicare patients who underwent bariatric surgery had increased survival rates over the 2 years of this study when compared with a similar morbidly obese nonsurgical group (P < 0.001). For patients under the age of 65, this survival advantage started at 6 months postoperatively and for patients over age 65, at 11 months. The surgical group also experienced significant improvements in the diagnosed prevalence of 5 weight-related comorbid conditions (diabetes, sleep apnea, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, and coronary artery disease) relative to the nonsurgical cohort after 1 year postsurgery (P < 0.001). Conclusions:Bariatric surgery appears to increase survival even in the high-risk, Medicare population, both for individuals aged 65 and older and those disabled and under 65. In addition, the diagnosed prevalence of weight-related comorbid conditions declined after bariatric surgery relative to a control cohort of morbidly obese patients who did not undergo surgery.
La revista femenina: falso emblema de la mujer liberada

El largo proceso en la equiparacion de los roles sexuales se enfrenta de continuo a los referentes que, desde los medios de comunicacion, se ofrecen a la mujer y que pueden imponerse con facilidad sobre aquellos ofrecidos desde la propia sociedad. Los medios tienen una enorme facilidad para convertirse en elementos fundamentales de conocimiento, ? como saber que piensa, como actua, como vive una mujer moderna? Las mujeres que aparecen en los medios son mas reales que la realidad misma porque son arquetipos ajustados a un modelo, liberados de las particularidades que imprime la individualidad. Se debe atribuir a los medios la responsabilidad inherente a su propia influencia social, ya que son capaces de retrasar o estimular los cambios que la propia sociedad demanda. La mujer lee pocos periodicos, solo el 37% de lectores de periodicos son mujeres[1]. Sin embargo, estas suponen el 73% de la audiencia de las revistas del corazon y el 96% de las revistas femeninas[2]. Por lo tanto, las revistas son el escaparate en que se mira la mujer, de ahi la importancia de un discurso que frena la transformacion de la sociedad al reforzar creencias y valores tradicionales y obviar toda posicion de cambio.
Spacecraft trajectory planning with avoidance constraints using mixed-integer linear programming

A method for finding fuel-optimal trajectories for spacecraft subjected to avoidance requirements is introduced. These include avoidance of collisions with obstacles or other vehicles and prevention of thruster plumes from one spacecraft impinging on another spacecraft. The necessary logical constraints for avoidance are appended to a fuel-optimizing linear program by including binary variables in the optimization. The resulting problem is a mixed-integer linear program (MILP) that can be solved using available software. The logical constraints can also be used to express the configuration requirements for maneuvers where only the final relative alignment of the vehicles is important and the assignment of spacecraft within the fleet is not specified. The collision avoidance, trajectory optimization, and fleet assignment problems can be combined into a single MILP to obtain the optimal solution for these maneuvers. The MILP problem formulation, including these various avoidance constraints, is presented, and then several examples of their application to spacecraft maneuvers, including reconfiguration of a satellite formation and close inspection of the International Space Station by a microsatellite, are shown. These examples clearly show that the trajectory design methods presented are particularly well suited to proposed formation flying missions that involve multiple vehicles operating in close proximity.
Streptomyces coelicolor XdhR is a direct target of (p)ppGpp that controls expression of genes encoding xanthine dehydrogenase to promote purine salvage

The gene encoding Streptomyces coelicolor xanthine dehydrogenase regulator (XdhR) is divergently oriented from xdhABC, which encodes xanthine dehydrogenase (Xdh). Xdh is required for purine salvage pathways. XdhR was previously shown to repress xdhABC expression. We show that XdhR binds the xdhABC–xdhR intergenic region with high affinity (Kd ∼ 0.5 nM). DNaseI footprinting reveals that this complex formation corresponds to XdhR binding the xdhR gene promoter at two adjacent sites; at higher protein concentrations, protection expands to a region that overlaps the transcriptional and translational start sites of xdhABC. While substrates for Xdh have little effect on DNA binding, GTP and ppGpp dissociate the DNA–XdhR complex. Progression of cells to stationary phase, a condition associated with increased (p)ppGpp production, leads to elevated xdhB expression; in contrast, inhibition of Xdh by allopurinol results in xdhB repression. We propose that XdhR is a direct target of (p)ppGpp, and that expression of xdhABC is upregulated during the stringent response to promote purine salvage pathways, maintain GTP homeostasis and ensure continued (p)ppGpp synthesis. During exponential phase growth, basal levels of xdhABC expression may be achieved by GTP serving as a lower‐affinity XdhR ligand.
Sustainable Management of Plant Quarantine Pests: The Case of Olive Quick Decline Syndrome

The disease outbreak of Xylella fastidiosa subsp. pauca strain CoDiRO (Complesso del Disseccamento Rapido dell’Olivo) in Salento (Apulia, South Italy) associated with severe cases of olive quick decline syndrome may represent not just a new disease paradigm, but a challenge for policy formulation and science communication in plant pathology. Plant health management can be achieved by applying a technocratic model, in which objective science is thought to directly inform policy-making, or via decisionistic or inclusive models, in which scientific considerations drive risk assessment. Each could be applied to X. fastidiosa and CoDiRO strain management, thanks to consistent literature related to pathogen/host interactions, hosts, vectors, and diagnostic tools, reviewed here. However, consensus among stakeholders seems to be necessary in order to avoid plant health management failures or gridlocks, due to environmental, economic, and social implications in the X. fastidiosa threat. Here we discuss the role of consensus in building scientific opinion, reporting different approaches of governance after severe disease outbreaks in Europe. These case studies, and the available risk analysis for Xylella strains, should drive policy formulations towards more cooperative networks.
Follow-up study of olfactory deficits, cognitive functions, and volume loss of medial temporal lobe structures in patients with mild cognitive impairment.

BACKGROUND At 3 years after diagnosis, the risk of Alzheimer disease (AD) for patients with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) is estimated to be 18% to 30%. To improve treatment of patients at high dementia risk there is a need for a better prediction of the risk for transition from MCI to AD. Olfactory deficits are a hypothetical predictor of conversion form MCI to AD. Furthermore, several studies point at volumetric reduction of medial temporal lobe structures as predictors of conversion form MCI to AD. The primary aim of this study was to evaluate whether investigations of odor deficits in MCI combined with neuropsychological tests and MRI examinations can improve prediction of the development of dementia. METHODS Changes in olfactory functions, cognitive functions, and volume of medial temporal lobe structures (hippocampus, parahippocampal gyrus, and amygdala) were evaluated in a 24-month follow-up study in 49 MCI patients and 33 controls. RESULTS In the MCI group, a prediction of strong cognitive functions deterioration based on poor performance in Olfactory Identification tests shows sensitivity of 57% and specificity of 88%. The test based on cognitive functions only shows a sensitivity of 44%, and 89%, respectively. Combined tests having a criteria of poor olfactory identification performance AND poor results of neuropsychological tests showed a sensitivity of 100% and specificity of 84%. Furthermore, correlation was found between the results of Olfactory Identification tests at baseline and deterioration of cognitive functions at follow up. Odor identification threshold did not appear to be a dementia predictor. A correlation of progress of cognitive function deterioration, odor identification deterioration, and decrease of volume of the hippocampus was also observed. CONCLUSIONS Prediction of MCI to dementia conversion can be improved by supplementing the neuropsychological tests with odor identification tests. A follow up study of hippocampus volume reduction, OI performance and cognitive functions deterioration will further increase prediction accuracy.