Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Cold storage for low-cost air-conditioning

Building heating, ventilation and air-conditioning (HVAC) consumes 50% of the building energy consumption. Such high costs are based on the conventional HVAC cycles for air cooling based on grid connected buildings. However, there are alternative passive and active cold storage systems that can be used to reduce building HVAC costs for on grid systems and provide a solution for off-grid HVAC. Such systems depend on harnessing the night time cold and using it for day time air cooling. Such systems can be driven by a solar photovoltaic powered fan. Although there is no mechanism for humidity control to attain recommended conditions (40–60% relative humidity and 21–26°C dry bulb temperature), temperatures can be attained to improve indoor thermal comfort. This paper reports tests conducted in Johannesburg that demonstrate the potential of such technology under sub-tropical conditions. Tests were conducted for a phase change material with a melting point of 25°C for varying air flow rates and air temperature. The PCM was encapsulated in aluminium casing providing good thermal contact between the PCM and air. Although the tests were conducted on a special test rig, results demonstrated potential to reduce air temperature by 3°C before supplying into the conditioned space.
An Analysis of Client ’ s Strategy Content and Strategy Process : Impact on Risk Assessment and Audit Planning

Auditing firms have been developing and implementing business risk-based audit approaches since the mid-1990s (Bell et al. 1997; Gramling et al. 2001; Ballou and Heitger 2002; O’Donnell and Schultz 2003 a, b). Such approaches propose to start an audit by understanding the client’s industry, regulatory, and market environments using a set of techniques referred to as “strategic analysis” (SA). This study uses an experiment to investigate two research questions related to SA. First, I investigate whether auditors who use a SA make more accurate assessments of client business risk and the risk of material misstatement and its components, and whether they select more effective audit tests to detect potential misstatements than auditors who do not use SA. Second, I examine whether the analysis of a client’s strategy content or strategy process is more helpful to the auditor in risk assessment. I test the hypotheses in a 2 (SA-content) x 2 (SA-process) between-subjects experiment with audit seniors as participants. The results show the following. First, the analyses of strategy content and/or strategy process lead to higher accuracy in assessing the risk of material misstatement at both the entity and business process level. Second, analysis of strategy content results in smaller deviations from the benchmark for inherent risk assessments. Third, when auditors focus on strategy process, their assessments of the strength of the control environment are more accurate. Finally, the proportion of correctly selected audit procedures is significantly higher for the group that did not perform strategic analysis. In sum, results of this study provide preliminary evidence in support of “systems thinking” driven analyses of client strategy content and strategy process during the orientation phase of an audit. The finding with respect to the selection of audit procedures may serve as a warning, but it also warrants future investigation. Modifications of methodologies used to understand a client business and make risk assessments cannot be considered fully successful if they do not improve the linkage between assessed risks and appropriate audit procedures.
Differential expression of components of the retinoic acid signaling pathway in the adult mouse olfactory epithelium

Position within a tissue often correlates with cellular phenotype, for example, differential expression of odorant receptors and cell adhesion molecules across the olfactory mucosa (OM). The association between position and phenotype is often paralleled by gradations in the concentration of retinoic acid (RA), caused by differential expression of the RA synthetic enzymes, the retinaldehyde dehydrogenases (RALDH). We show here that RALDH‐1, ‐2, and ‐3 are enriched in the sustentacular cells, deep fibroblasts of the lamina propria, and the superficial fibroblasts, respectively, of the ventral and lateral OM as compared to the dorsomedial OM. The shift from high to low expression of the RALDHs matches the boundary defined by the differential expression of OCAM/mamFasII. Further, we found that RA‐binding proteins are expressed in the epithelium overlying the RALDH‐3 expressing fibroblasts of the lamina propria. Both findings suggest that local alterations in RA concentration may be more important than a gradient of RA across the epithelial plane, per se. In addition, RALDH‐3 is found in a small population of basal cells in the ventral and lateral epithelium, which expand and contribute to the neuronal lineage following MeBr lesion. Indeed, transduction with a retrovirus expressing a dominant negative form of retinoic acid receptor type alpha blocks the reappearance of mature, olfactory marker protein (OMP) (+) olfactory neurons as compared to empty vector. These results support the notion of a potential role for RA, both in maintaining the spatial organization of the normal olfactory epithelium and in reestablishing the neuronal population during regeneration after injury. J. Comp. Neurol. 520:3707–3726, 2012. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Tensile Stress Characterisation of Granular Materials and Granular Transport in Porous Media

The study of granular materials is important for a variety of reasons. First their mechanics are not yet completely understood. In particular, the liquid phase in unsaturated and saturated granulates plays a dominant role in defining their strength, depending on its amount and distribution. This is of interest in many fields, from environmental sciences and engineering to construction, petroleum, and pharmaceutical industries. Second, the behaviour and modelling of particle-laden flows through granular media is still an evolving field of study. Such flows have significant relevance since they occur in a variety of different environments, both natural and industrial. The capability of predicting the effects and consequences of such flows on both the granular media and the fluid is of great importance. In this thesis, several aspects of unsaturated and saturated granular media are investigated by experimental means. Regarding unsaturated granular media, the effects of fluid redistribution and particle rearrangement on the internal stress of the medium under extension are considered. The study focuses on the saturation regime in which the liquid is only present as capillary bridges connecting the grains. Different types of fluid are used, to test for the effect of liquid surface tension. The effect of particle rearrangement is studied varying the compaction of the granular packing. The tensile stresses of the granular packing are finally evaluated for the different cases. Results show that both fluid redistribution and particle rearrangement play a role in the evolution of tensile stress inside the material. As far as saturated granular media are regarded, this thesis focuses on particle-laden flows through deep bed filters. The aim is the investigation
Formal Analysis of Sensor Network Encryption Protocol (SNEP)

In this paper, a formal analysis of a security protocol in the field of wireless sensor networks is presented. Sensor network encryption protocol (SNEP) describes basic primitives for providing confidentiality, authentication between two nodes, data integrity and weak message freshness in a wireless sensor network. It was designed as base component of security protocols for sensor networks (SPINS). SNEP is modelled in two scenarios using the high-level formal language HLPSL, and verified using the model checking tool Avispa, where two main security properties are checked: authenticity and confidentiality of relevant messages components. The first case is the communication between the base station and networks nodes in order to retrieve node confidential information. The second case is a key distribution protocol in a sensor network using SNEP for securing messages. As a result of this analysis, one attack have been found: a false request message from an intruder. In that case, the intruder impersonates the base station and creates false requests. This way, the intruder may obtain confidential data from a node in the network. A solution to this attack is proposed in the paper.
Energy Conservation in China’s Cement Industry

China, as the world’s largest cement producer, accounts for more than 60% of global cement production. With the continuous development of the Chinese economy, resource and environmental constraints are becoming increasingly serious, and energy saving and emission reduction has become one of the choices with which all industries are faced in the process of development. The cement industry is one of the major sources of China’s carbon dioxide emissions and its effect on energy saving and emissions’ reduction determines the realization of the national goals of energy conservation and emissions reduction. Taking China’s cement industry as the main focus, this paper carries out quantitative analysis of the relationship between energy consumption in the cement industry and a number of variables: energy structure, energy prices, energy efficiency and total output value of the cement industry based on a cointegration model. The study further analyzes the energy saving potential of the cement industry by assuming different scenarios. The research results show that the energy saving potential of the cement industry is 19.06% and 33.69%, with medium and high energy efficiency, respectively.
Dependency Structure Matrix, Genetic Algorithms, and Effective Recombination

In many different fields, researchers are often confronted by problems arising from complex systems. Simple heuristics or even enumeration works quite well on small and easy problems; however, to efficiently solve large and difficult problems, proper decomposition is the key. In this paper, investigating and analyzing interactions between components of complex systems shed some light on problem decomposition. By recognizing three bare-bones interactionsmodularity, hierarchy, and overlap, facet-wise models are developed to dissect and inspect problem decomposition in the context of genetic algorithms. The proposed genetic algorithm design utilizes a matrix representation of an interaction graph to analyze and explicitly decompose the problem. The results from this paper should benefit research both technically and scientifically. Technically, this paper develops an automated dependency structure matrix clustering technique and utilizes it to design a model-building genetic algorithm that learns and delivers the problem structure. Scientifically, the explicit interaction model describes the problem structure very well and helps researchers gain important insights through the explicitness of the procedure.
Early visual brain areas reflect the percept of an ambiguous scene

When a visual scene allows multiple interpretations, the percepts may spontaneously alternate despite the stable retinal image and the invariant sensory input transmitted to the brain. To study the brain basis of such multi-stable percepts, we superimposed rapidly changing dynamic noise as regional tags to the Rubin vase-face figure and followed the corresponding tag-related cortical signals with magnetoencephalography. The activity already in the earliest visual cortical areas, the primary visual cortex included, varied with the perceptual states reported by the observers. These percept-related modulations most likely reflect top-down influences that accentuate the neural representation of the perceived object in the early visual cortex and maintain the segregation of objects from the background.
A comprehensive evaluation of feature selection algorithms in hyperspectral image classification

Nowadays, hyperspectral images have been an attractive subject for many researches in remote sensing area since they provide abundant information due to their wide range of spectral bands. On the one hand, classification plays a significant role in extraction of information for different applications. On the other hand, providing a huge amount of data by hyperspectral images may lead to complexity and bring some redundancy due to high correlation among the hyperspectral bands. In order to reduce the redundancy, feature selection algorithms have been carried out to remove irrelevant features to efficiently use the classifier and to achieve a significant accuracy with minimum costs. In this work, a comprehensive analysis of well known feature selection algorithms will be conducted with different classifiers on some commonly used hyperspectral datasets. The contribution of this paper is to present an extensive benchmark study on using feature selection algorithms with hyperspectral dataset. The analysis of feature selection algorithms will be carried out by considering number of training samples, classification accuracy and computational time.
An analytical model for interfacial stresses in double-lap bonded joints

ABSTRACT Due to their many advantages, adhesively bonded joints are widely used to join components in composite structures. However, premature failure due to debonding and peeling of the joint is the major concern for this technique. Existing analytical models suffer from two major drawbacks: 1) not satisfying zero-shear stress boundary conditions at the adhesive layer’s free edges[1] and 2) failure to distinguish the peel stress along two adherend/adhesive interfaces[2]. In this study, we develop a novel three parameter elastic foundation (3PEF) model to analyze a representative adhesively bonded joint, the symmetric double-lap joint, which is believed to have relatively low peel stresses. Explicit closed-form expressions of shear and peel stresses along two adhesive/adherend interfaces are yielded. This new model overcomes the existing model’s major drawbacks by satisfying all boundary conditions and predicting various peeling stresses along two adherend/adhesive interfaces. It not only reaches excellent agreement with existing solutions and numerical results based on finite element analysis but also correctly predicts the failure mode of an experimentally tested double-lap joint. This new model therefore reveals the peel stresses’ significant role in the failure of the double-lap joint, but the classical 2PEF model cannot create it.
On RAM priority queues

Priority queues are some of the most fundamental data structures. For example, they are used directly for task scheduling in operating systems. Moreover, they are essential to greedy algorithms. We study the complexity of integer priority queue operations on a RAM with arbitrary word size, modeling the possibilities in standard imperative programming languages such as C. We present exponential improvements over previous bounds, and we show tight relations to sorting. Our first result is a RAM priority queue supporting find-min in constant time and insert and delete-min in time O(log log n), where n is the current number of keys in the queue. This is an exponential improvement over the $O(\sqrt{\log n})$ bound of Fredman and Willard [ Proceedings of the 22nd ACM Symposium on the Theory of Computing, Baltimore, MD, pp. 1--7]. Plugging this priority queue into Dijkstra's algorithm gives an O(mlog log m) algorithm for the single source shortest path problem on a graph with m edges, as compared with the previous $O(m\sqrt{\log m})$ bound based on Fredman and Willard's priority queue. The above bounds assume $O(n 2^{{\varepsilon} w})$ space, where w is the word length and ${\varepsilon}>0$. They can, however, be achieved in linear space using randomized hashing. Our second result is a general equivalence between sorting and priority queues. A priority queue is monotone if the minimum is nondecreasing over time, as in many greedy algorithms. We show that on a RAM, the amortized operation cost of a monotone priority queue is equivalent to the per-key cost of sorting. For example, the equivalence implies that the single source shortest paths problem on a graph with m edges is no harder than that of sorting m keys. With the current RAM sorting, this gives an O(m log log m) time bound, as above, but the relation holds regardless of the future developments in RAM sorting. From the equivalence result, for any fixed ${\varepsilon}>0$, we derive a randomized monotone $O(\sqrt{\log n}^{1+{\varepsilon}})$ priority queue with expected constant time decrease-key. Plugging this into Dijkstra's algorithm gives an $O(n\sqrt{\log n}^{1+{\varepsilon}}+m)$ algorithm for the single source shortest path problem on a graph with n nodes and m edges, complementing the above O(mlog log m) algorithm if $m\gg n$. This improves the O(nlog n/log log n + m) bound by Fredman and Willard [Proceedings of the 31st IEEE Symposium on the Foundations of Computer Science, St. Louis, MO, 1990, pp. 719--725], based on their O(log n/log log n) priority queue with constant decrease-key.
Type III Secretion of Salmonella enterica Serovar Typhimurium Translocated Effectors and SseFG

ABSTRACT The type III secretion system (TTSS) encoded by Salmonellaenterica serovar Typhimurium pathogenicity island 2 (SPI2) is employed by Salmonella enterica for interaction with host cells during the intracellular phase of pathogenesis. This TTSS secretes a set of SPI2-encoded proteins in vitro and translocates Salmonella serovar Typhimurium translocated effectors (STE) that are encoded by genes outside of SPI2 into host cells. Using an epitope-tagging approach, we analyzed secretion of proteins by the TTSS of SPI2 and identified SseF and SseG as further secreted substrate proteins. Three members of the STE family, SifA, SifB, and SseJ, were secreted under conditions that also induce secretion of SPI2-encoded substrate proteins.
Characterization of the interaction between a SirR family transcriptional factor of Mycobacterium tuberculosis, encoded by Rv2788, and a pair of toxin–antitoxin proteins RelJ/K, encoded by Rv3357 and Rv3358

Toxin–antitoxin (TA) systems play significant roles in the regulation of bacterial growth and persistence, and their functions usually depend on protein–protein interaction between their constituent TA proteins. However, the regulatory mechanisms of these systems, particularly their interaction with other cellular components, are still poorly understood. This study investigated cross‐talk between the TA module RelJ/K (Rv3357/Rv3358) and the transcriptional regulator staphylococcal iron regulator repressor (SirR, Rv2788) from Mycobacterium tuberculosis. We characterized the physical interaction of SirR with both RelJ and RelK using bacterial two‐hybrid, pull‐down and co‐immunoprecipitation assays. Similarly to RelK, SirR regulates the DNA‐binding activity of RelJ and alleviates its inhibitory effect on the activity of the Rv3357p promoter. Furthermore, SirR may replace RelJ to alleviate the inhibitory effect of the toxin RelK on bacterial growth. Conversely, both RelJ and RelK competitively inhibit the interaction between SirR and their respective promoters. Thus, our results show that SirR interacts with a pair of toxin and antitoxin proteins, and exhibits antitoxin‐like function to neutralize the toxin. These findings demonstrate a novel function of the SirR regulator of M. tuberculosis as well as a novel mechanism of regulation of TA systems.
Probing Point Defects in Fluorite-Structured Actinide and Analogue Oxides

Microcrystalline CeO2 and ThO2 were irradiated at room temperature with 945 MeV, 1.1 GeV, and 2.2 GeV Au ions in order to characterize effects of electronic energy deposition on atomic structures and structural stability. Atomic structural modifications were characterized using neutron and X-ray diffraction, total scattering, and pair distribution function analysis, and Raman spectroscopy. Energetic destabilization was quantified using drop-solution calorimetry. Structural analyses showed that swift heavy ion irradiation results in the production of primarily oxygen Frenkel defects in CeO2 and ThO2 and the two materials show different damage accumulation mechanisms. A large variety of oxygen defect clusters and defect complexes containing Ce and oxygen vacancies were observed in CeO2 after irradiation and were attributed to the redox capability of cerium cations. The stability of irradiation-induced point defects was investigated using isochronal annealing experiments and differential scanning calorimetry. Structural analyses showed that swift heavy ion irradiated CeO2 and ThO2 anneal via two and one distinct annealing stages within the temperature range studied. The low temperature annealing stage of CeO2 was strongly influenced by the annealing atmosphere and was attributed to surface or near-surface diffusion mechanisms and/or cation oxidation. Additional low-temperature annealing mechanisms in CeO2 and ThO2 were attributed to annihilation of oxygen aggregates. Hightemperature annealing stages were attributed to cation vacancy migration in agreement with studies of UO2. These combined structural and calorimetric studies showed that electronic energy deposition primarily influences the oxygen sublattice and oxygen Frenkel defects are annealed at relatively low temperatures. The observation of oxygen defect clusters and Ce/OV complexes in CeO2 suggests that cation redox in fluorite structured oxides strongly influences defect clustering. Small oxygen defect clusters can exhibit low migration barriers relative to isolated oxygen interstitials. Therefore, further studies of defect kinetics are needed in order to determine the influence of defect clustering on atomic
Targeting ROS1 with Anaplastic Lymphoma Kinase Inhibitors: A Promising Therapeutic Strategy for a Newly Defined Molecular Subset of Non–Small-Cell Lung Cancer

Chromosomal rearrangements involving the ROS1 receptor tyrosine kinase have been described in a variety of human malignancies including non–small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC), cholangiocarcinoma and glioblastoma multiforme. Recently, clinicopathologic characteristics of c-ros oncogene 1, receptor tyrosine kinase (ROS1)-rearranged NSCLC patients have been described. Furthermore, anaplastic lymphoma kinase inhibitor, novel class of drugs targeting this tyrosine kinase receptor is currently under clinical trial in this molecular subset of NSCLC patients. This review will focus on the current knowledge of ROS1 rearrangements in NSCLC, methods to detect ROS1 rearrangement, and targeting ROS1-rearranged NSCLC patients with anaplastic lymphoma kinase inhibitors.
Clinical usefulness of microarray‐based IgE detection in children with suspected food allergy

Background: Component‐resolved diagnostics using microarray technology has recently been introduced into clinical allergology, but its applicability in children with food allergy has hardly been investigated so far. The aim of this study was to evaluate the utility of microarray‐based IgE detection in the diagnostic workup of food allergy and to compare this new diagnostic tool with established methods of allergen‐specific IgE detection.
Using Feature Structures to Improve Verb Translation in English-to-German Statistical MT

SCFG-based statistical MT models have proven effective for modelling syntactic aspects of translation, but still suffer problems of overgeneration. The production of German verbal complexes is particularly challenging since highly discontiguous constructions must be formed consistently, often from multiple independent rules. We extend a strong SCFG-based string-to-tree model to incorporate a rich feature-structure based representation of German verbal complex types and compare verbal complex production against that of the reference translations, finding a high baseline rate of error. By developing model features that use source-side information to influence the production of verbal complexes we are able to substantially improve the type accuracy as compared to the reference.