Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Relationship between inflammatory markers and clinical patterns of atrial fibrillation in patients with congestive heart failure.

BACKGROUND Occurence of atrial fibrillation (AF) adversely affects left atrial size and cardiac function. This arrhythmia is also associated with an increase of plasma CRP and fibrinogen concentration. It is not clear whether elevated levels of inflammatory markers in patients with congestive heart failure (CHF) are associated with AF, clinical symptoms or adverse cardiac remodelling. AIM To investigate the association between levels of inflammatory markers and selected clinical and echocardiographic parameters as well as used treatment in the population of CHF patients with various forms of AF. METHODS The cross-sectional study included 99 patients with CHF divided into 3 groups. Group I included patients with sinus rhythm. Group II consisted of patients admitted to hospital with AF and discharged with sinus rhythm (the category of paroxysmal and persistent AF). Group III comprised patients with permanent AF. In all patients plasma CRP and fibrinogen concentrations were measured and echocardiographic examination was carried out. Left atrial dimension (LA), ejection fraction (LVEF) and right ventricular systolic pressure (RVSP) were assessed. RESULTS Mean CRP concentration in group III (5.83+/-5.36 mg/l) was significantly higher than in group I (p=0.001) and group II (p=0.033). In the group with permanent AF mean fibrinogen concentration was elevated to a higher level (391.0+/-77.3 mg/dl) than in group II (p=0.007) and group I (p=0.099). Mean LA and RV dimensions and RVSP in group III were significantly higher than in group I and group II. Multivariable analysis revealed that plasma CRP concentration was significantly associated with the presence of arterial hypertension (p <0.001) and LA enlargement (p=0.007). A significant association between fibrinogen level and CRP level (p=0.038), presence of permanent AF (p=0.045) and metabolic syndrome (p <0.05) was found. Values of ln CRP were significantly correlated with LA diameter (r=0.24; p=0.015). CONCLUSIONS Increased plasma CRP level in patients with CHF were significantly associated with arterial hypertension and LA enlargement. Permanent form of AF and CRP level have been shown to be significantly associated with increased plasma fibrinogen concentration in the course of CHF.
A 24GHz FMCW radar transmitter in 0.13 μm CMOS

A transmitter for 24 GHz ISM applications integrated in 0.13 mum CMOS is presented. The high integration level includes VCO, PA and division by four at a record minimal area of 0.3 mm2. Measurements of the mounted chip including bondwires show an output power of +6 dBm with a phase noise of -102 dBc/Hz@1 MHz offset at a power consumption of 64 mW from a single 1.5 V supply.
Flexible tracking of auditory attention

Auditory selective attention plays a central role in the human capacity to reliably process complex sounds in multi-source environments. The ability to track the attentional state of individuals in such environments is of interest to neuroscientists and engineers due to its importance in the study of attention-related disorders and its potential application in the hearing aid and advertising industries. The underlying neural basis of auditory attention is not well established, however evidence exists to suggest that cortical activity entrainment to the temporal envelope of speech is modulated by attention. Leveraging this ﬁnding, we introduce a probabilistic approach based on Hidden Markov Model Regression (HMMR) to decode the attentional state of the listener with respect to a given speech stimulus. Our method is novel in that it uses only the target stream to detect the attended segments, while existing methods require knowledge about the target and distractor. This is a particular advantage in real-world applications where the number of sources are often time-variant and unknown to the decoder. We use synthetic data to evaluate robustness and tracking capability, and real electrophysiological data to demonstrate how the proposed method achieves accuracies commensurate to BCI (Brain Computer Interface) systems deployed in the ﬁeld.
[Optical coherence tomography of macular holes].

OBJECTIVE To study the characteristics and clinical application value of the optical coherence tomography (OCT) of macular holes. METHOD A total of 35 patients with the clinical diagnosis of macular hole were examined with OCT between September and December 1998. OCT imaging was conducted through a dilated pupil, and the OCT images were analyzed and measured. RESULTS Of the 35 patients examined with OCT, there were pseudohole and epimacular membrane in one eye, vitreofoveal traction in one eye, macular holes in 36 eyes, and 3 patients had macular hole in bilateral eyes. In 4 eyes, there were partial-thickness macular holes, and the defect of partial thickness of neural epithelium in the fovea without halo of retinal detachment was shown in the OCT image. In 32 eyes, there were full-thickness holes; the OCT displayed complete losing of the whole thickness of the neural epithelium in the fovea, sharp edge of the hole and the halo of retinal detachment around the hole. Sometimes nonreflective cavities could be seen within the retina, and the retinal thickness around the hole was increased. According to Gass stage classification of macular hole, there were 2 eyes with impending hole, 3 eyes in stage 2, 15 eyes in stage 3 and 6 eyes in stage 4. 4 eyes underwent vitrectomy. The OCT imaging after the surgery demonstrated the closure of hole and the disappearance of halo surrounding the hole. Through quantitative measurement, the diameter of the hole was (565.88 +/- 40.35) microm, the diameter of the halo was (1,338.76 +/- 147.57) microm, and the retinal thickness surrounding the hole was (391.87 +/- 18.97) microm. The sizes of the hole and the halo and the retinal thickness around the hole were correlated with the vision. CONCLUSION OCT is a novel noninvasive, noncontact imaging technique. It is helpful in the diagnosis and differential diagnosis of the macular hole; the progress of the hole can be quantitatively estimated, and it is also helpful in selection of operation and assessment of operative therapeutic effects.
On the role of form and kinematics on the hydrodynamics of self-propelled body/caudal fin swimming

SUMMARY We carry out fluid–structure interaction simulations of self-propelled virtual swimmers to investigate the effects of body shape (form) and kinematics on the hydrodynamics of undulatory swimming. To separate the effects of form and kinematics, we employ four different virtual swimmers: a carangiform swimmer (i.e. a mackerel swimming like mackerel do in nature); an anguilliform swimmer (i.e. a lamprey swimming like lampreys do in nature); a hybrid swimmer with anguilliform kinematics but carangiform body shape (a mackerel swimming like a lamprey); and another hybrid swimmer with carangiform kinematics but anguilliform body shape (a lamprey swimming like a mackerel). By comparing the performance of swimmers with different kinematics but similar body shapes we study the effects of kinematics whereas by comparing swimmers with similar kinematics but different body shapes we study the effects of form. We show that the anguilliform kinematics not only reaches higher velocities but is also more efficient in the viscous (Re∼102) and transitional (Re∼103) regimes. However, in the inertial regime (Re=∞) carangiform kinematics achieves higher velocities and is also more efficient than the anguilliform kinematics. The mackerel body achieves higher swimming speeds in all cases but is more efficient in the inertial regime only whereas the lamprey body is more efficient in the transitional regime. We also show that form and kinematics have little overall effect on the 3-D structure of the wake (i.e. single vs double row vortex streets), which mainly depends on the Strouhal number. Nevertheless, body shape is found to somewhat affect the small-scale features and complexity of the vortex rings shed by the various swimmers.
A Novel Zooming Algorithm for Distribution Load Flow Analysis for Smart Grid

In this paper, a novel algorithm for calculating distribution load flow (DLF) for smart grid is presented. The algorithm can provide a DLF solution in a specific area of interest in the distribution system without the necessity of including all of the distribution system laterals in the DLF problem. The system laterals excluded from the DLF solution are replaced by equivalent loads using a proposed lumping technique. The proposed DLF zooming method thus reduces the size of the DLF problem and hence minimizes the effect of system size on the DLF solution time. The construction of the DLF problem is based on a novel automated recursive process, which enables fast accommodation of changes in the network topology of smart grid. The simulation results validate the accuracy of the proposed DLF zooming algorithm and provide a favorable evaluation of its performance for smart grid operation.
On the inhibition of 5‐lipoxygenase product formation by tryptanthrin: mechanistic studies and efficacy in vivo

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Leukotrienes (LTs) are pro‐inflammatory mediators produced by 5‐lipoxygenase (5‐LO). Currently available 5‐LO inhibitors either lack efficacy or are toxic and novel approaches are required to establish a successful anti‐LT therapy. Here we provide a detailed evaluation of the effectiveness of the plant‐derived alkaloid tryptanthrin as an inhibitor of LT biosynthesis.
Cellular Entry of Hantaviruses Which Cause Hemorrhagic Fever with Renal Syndrome Is Mediated by β3 Integrins

ABSTRACT Hantaviruses replicate primarily in the vascular endothelium and cause two human diseases, hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS) and hantavirus pulmonary syndrome (HPS). In this report, we demonstrate that the cellular entry of HFRS-associated hantaviruses is facilitated by specific integrins expressed on platelets, endothelial cells, and macrophages. Infection of human umbilical vein endothelial cells and Vero E6 cells by the HFRS-causing hantaviruses Hantaan (HTN), Seoul (SEO), and Puumala (PUU) is inhibited by antibodies to αvβ3 integrins and by the integrin ligand vitronectin. The cellular entry of HTN, SEO, and PUU viruses, but not the nonpathogenic Prospect Hill (PH) hantavirus (i.e., a virus with no associated human disease), was also mediated by introducting recombinant αIIbβ3 or αvβ3 integrins into β3-integrin-deficient CHO cells. In addition, PH infectivity was not inhibited by αvβ3-specific sera or vitronectin but was blocked by α5β1-specific sera and the integrin ligand fibronectin. RGD tripeptides, which are required for many integrin-ligand interactions, are absent from all hantavirus G1 and G2 surface glycoproteins, and GRGDSP peptides did not inhibit hantavirus infectivity. Further, a mouse-human hybrid β3integrin-specific Fab fragment, c7E3 (ReoPro), also inhibited the infectivity of HTN, SEO, and PUU as well as HPS-associated hantaviruses, Sin Nombre (SN) and New York-1 (NY-1). These findings indicate that pathogenic HPS- and HFRS-causing hantaviruses enter cells via β3 integrins, which are present on the surfaces of platelets, endothelial cells, and macrophages. Since β3integrins regulate vascular permeability and platelet function, these findings also correlate β3 integrin usage with common elements of hantavirus pathogenesis.
Gas Metabolism Evidence in Support of the Juxtaposition of Hydrogen-Producing and Methanogenic Bacteria in Sewage Sludge and Lake Sediments

We developed new techniques to measure dissolved H2 and H2 consumption kinetics in anoxic ecosystems that were not dependent on headspace measurements or gas transfer-limited experimentation. These H2 metabolism parameters were then compared with measured methane production rates, and estimates of H2 production and interspecies H2 transfer were made. The H2 pool sizes were 205 and 31 nM in sewage sludge from an anaerobic digestor and in sediments (24 m) from Lake Mendota, respectively. The H2 turnover rate constants, as determined by using in situ pool sizes and temperatures, were 103 and 31 h−1 for sludge and sediment, respectively. The observed H2 turnover rate accounted for only 5 to 6% of the expected H2-CO2-dependent methanogenesis in these ecosystems. Our results are in general agreement with the results reported previously and are used to support the conclusion that most of the H2-dependent methanogenesis in these ecosystems occurs as a consequence of direct interspecies H2 transfer between juxtapositioned microbial associations within flocs or consortia.
Distributed call admission control in mobile/wireless networks

The major focus of this paper is distributed call admission control in mobile/wireless networks the purpose of which is to limit the call hand-off dropping probability in loss systems or the cell overload probability in lossless systems. Hand-off dropping or cell overload are consequences of congestion in wireless networks. Our call admission control algorithm takes into consideration the number of calls in adjacent cells in addition to the number of calls in the cell where a new call request is made, in order to make a call admission decision. This is done by every base station in a distributed manner without the involvement of the network call processor. The admission rule is simple enough that the admission decision can be made in real time. Furthermore, we show that our distributed call admission control scheme limits the hand-off dropping or the cell overload probability to a predefined level almost independent of load conditions. This is an important requirement of future wireless/mobile networks with quality-of-service provisioning.
Judgements of social inappropriateness in adults with Tourette's syndrome

Introduction. Socially inappropriate behaviour has frequently been reported in Tourette's syndrome (TS), but has not been studied experimentally. The current study was designed to examine the appropriateness of self-disclosures in TS using an emotional self-disclosure task. Methods. Adult participants with TS-alone (20) and matched controls (20) were compared on two social judgement tasks, one examining the regulation of behaviour in an emotional self-disclosure task requiring participants to generate examples of autobiographical events, and the other examining mentalistic judgement of others’ behaviour on a faux pas task. Results. Those with TS-alone and controls showed no group differences for judges’ or participants’ ratings of inappropriateness on the self-disclosure task, although only the self-ratings of the control group corresponded to the judges’ ratings. On the faux pas task, those with TS-alone were impaired relative to controls in detecting socially inappropriate behaviour. There was also some evidence of executive dysfunction in the TS-alone group. Conclusions. TS-alone is linked to a mixed pattern of preserved and impaired performance on social cognition measures, and further work is needed to determine the contributions of social and/or executive contributions to everyday functioning.
Dynamic Dual-Reference Sensing Scheme for Deep Submicrometer STT-MRAM

As process technology downscales, read reliability has become a critical barrier for spin transfer torque magnetic random access memory (STT-MRAM), owing to the increasing process-temperature-voltage (PVT) variations, decreasing critical switching current of magnetic tunnel junction (MTJ) and supply voltage. To deal with the read reliability challenge, we propose herein a dynamic dual-reference sensing (DDRS) scheme. The key features of the proposed DDRS scheme include: (a) two reference signals, generated by two reference cells with the same structures as those of the data cells, are provided to the sensing circuit; (b) the reference signals are adaptively dynamical depending on the content stored in the target data cell; (c) two output signals are obtained to decide the sensing result, adding redundancy for supporting self-error detection (SED) capability. The proposed DDRS scheme can achieve a great improvement in sensing margin (SM) and bit error rate (BER), in comparison with conventional sensing schemes. In addition, no regularity problems exist in the proposed DDRS scheme, as the reference cells maintain exactly the same structures as those of the data cells. Our simulation results show that the proposed DDRS scheme can achieve a $\sim 7\times $ increase in average SM, and a ~ 70% reduction in average BER, compared with conventional sensing schemes.
Three‐Dimensional Bichiral Plasmonic Crystals Fabricated by Direct Laser Writing and Electroless Silver Plating

Negative refraction is a striking optical phenomenon with several promising applications, including a “superlens” with sub-wavelength resolution that, in principle, is only limited by fabrication imperfections. [ 1 ] Although negative refraction does not occur naturally, it can be attained in artificially engineered optical media, so-called metamaterials. In the original description, negative refraction was predicted for simultaneous negative values of the electric permittivity and the magnetic permeability. [ 2 ] Recently, J. B. Pendry pointed out an alternative route to negative refraction by exploiting chirality in combination with a resonant system with a photonic band gap. [ 3 ] The fundamental viability of this approach has already been demonstrated experimentally at GHz and low THz frequencies. [ 4 , 5 ] Since chirality is inherently a three-dimensional (3D) phenomenon, realization of this approach at optical frequencies requires a technique for fabricating sufficiently small 3D chiral structures consisting of the appropriate materials. [ 6 ] Here, we report on the fabrication and optical properties of 3D bichiral plasmonic crystals which were fabricated by 3D direct laser writing and subsequent electroless silver plating. M. Thiel et al. fabricated chiral photonic crystals consisting of 3D dielectric (photoresist) helices arranged vertically on a two-dimensional (2D) square lattice. [ 7 ] Transmittance measurements for circularly polarized light propagating along the helix axis found stop bands when the pitch of the dielectric helices matched the wavelength of light in the dielectric. Since this structure was uniaxial, its optical properties depended strongly on the angle of incidence. In a subsequent publication, Thiel et al. presented bichiral dielectric photonic crystals with a 3D simple cubic lattice. [ 8 ] The chosen architecture was inspired by blue-phase cholesteric liquid crystals. [ 9–11 ] The photonic crystal consisted of three sets of 3D dielectric helices, one set oriented along each of the three orthogonal axes of the simple cubic lattice. To obtain mechanically stable structures, the helix axes
AN INTELLIGENT CONTENT BASED IMAGE RETRIEVAL SYSTEM FOR MAMMOGRAM IMAGE ANALYSIS

An automated segmentation method which dynamically selects the parenchymal region of interest (ROI) based on the patients breast size is proposed from which, statistical features are derived. SVM classifier is used to model the derived features to classify the breast tissue as dense, glandular and fatty. Then K-nn with different distance metrics namely city-block, Euclidean and Chebchev is used to retrieve the first k similar images closest to the given query image. The proposed method was tested with MIAS database and achieves an average precision of 86.15%. The results reveals that the proposed method could be employed for effective content based mammograms retrieval.
The Nursing Worklife Model: extending and refining a new theory.

AIMS We tested a modification of Leiter and Laschinger's Nursing Worklife Model by examining the impact of structural empowerment on professional work environment factors that lead to nursing job satisfaction. BACKGROUND The original model explains how five magnet hospital practice domains described by Lake (2002) interact to influence nurses' work lives by either contributing to or mitigating burnout. METHODS A non-experimental design was used. Five hundred randomly selected nurses in Michigan were surveyed (response rate 66%, n = 332). Instruments included the Conditions for Work Effectiveness Questionnaire-II, the Practice Environment Scale of the Nursing Work Index, and the Index of Work Satisfaction. Path analysis was used to test the model. RESULTS The final model fit the data well (chi2 = 96.4, d.f. = 10, NFI: 0.90, CFI: 0.43, RMSEA: 0.18), supporting both hypotheses. CONCLUSIONS The expanded Nursing Worklife Model demonstrates the role of empowerment in creating positive practice conditions that contribute to job satisfaction.
Headspace Constituents of the Tree Remain of Cinnamomum camphora

Abstract The volatile ingredients isolated from a fresh tree of Cinnamomum camphora (camphor tree) and from a tree remain of C. camphora were collected by using headspace techniques and analyzed by means of gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS). 99.77% of the constituents consisting 23 components from the fresh tree, 98.68% of the constituents consisting 24 components from the tree remain were identified. Of these ingredients, camphor was obtained as the most abundant component.
Cardiac rehabilitation for the elderly: Qi Gong and group discussions.

BACKGROUND Over the last decade several studies have shown that patients with coronary artery disease even above the age of 70 can be successfully treated with advanced medical and surgical methods. Unfortunately, rehabilitation programmes for this group are rarely offered. It is important to develop forms of rehabilitation that are adapted to the specific needs of this increasing group of elderly patients. The aim of this randomized study was to investigate whether the combination of Qi Gong and group discussions would increase physical ability for elderly patients > or =73 years with coronary artery disease. METHODS A total of 95 patients (66 men and 29 women), with documented coronary artery disease, were randomized to an intervention group (n=48) mean age 77+/-3 (73-82) or to a control group (n=47) mean age 78+/-3 (73-84). The intervention groups met weekly over 3 months. The control group got usual care. Physical ability was assessed at baseline and after the intervention. RESULTS Patients in the intervention group increased their self-estimated level of physical activity (P=0.011), and their performance in the one-leg stance test for the right leg (P=0.029), co-ordination (P=0.021) and the box-climbing test for right leg (P=0.035). CONCLUSION A combination of Qi Gong and group discussions appear to be a promising rehabilitation for elderly cardiac patients in terms of improving self-reported physical activity, balance and co-ordination. This could be an option for elderly patients who do not participate in the ordinary cardiac rehabilitation.
Sequential decision-making strategy for a demand response aggregator in a two-settlement electricity market

This paper proposes a novel sequential decisionmaking strategy for a demand response aggregator that participates in the day-ahead market and reacts to imbalance prices. Finding such a participation strategy requires solving a multistage optimization problem under uncertainty that entails both an open-loop (day-ahead market) and a nested closed-loop (imbalance system) problem. Driven by the possibility of using data-driven models and reinforcement learning techniques, we formulate the problem as a Markov decision process. Standard methods for solving Markov decision processes, however, suffer from the curse of dimensionality. To address this challenge, we use techniques from approximate dynamic programming. Our proposed method applies a cross-entropy method with a simulation-based approximate policy iteration algorithm nested inside. The cross-entropy method is compared with a separated planning method, that optimizes the day-ahead and real-time decisions separately. The paper presents an empirical evaluation of the presented method for an aggregator with a fleet of electric vehicles using data from the Belgian electricity market. Moreover, it is assumed that the aggregator is a price taker in both the day-ahead and real-time market.