Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Performance Improvement of Relaying in Downlink Networks Using Superposition Coding

In this paper, we investigate a joint relaying and superposition coding (SupC-R) transmission strategy for downlink networks. By relaxing the orthogonality constraint between different users, the SupC-R strategy facilitates coordination and channel sharing among different data flows, by which the disparity in the channel qualities of different users, as an inherent feature of downlink network topology, is utilized as benefits for potential performance gains. The inter-user interference due to non-orthogonality can be steered by smart design of superposition coding (SupC), including both the selection of the superposition factor and the decoding order. At the same time, channel sharing saves time and leads to more efficient utilization of network resources. The analytical and numerical results show significant gains of SupC-R over its conventional relaying counterpart. The effect of the channel disparity on the design of SupC and the performance of the resultant SupC-R strategy is highlighted.
Physiological mechanisms adopted by chondrocytes in regulating longitudinal bone growth in rats.

1. Chondrocyte activities within growth plate cartilage are the principal determinants of longitudinal bone growth, and it was the aim of this investigation to assess how these cell activities are modulated under various growth rate conditions. Using proximal tibial growth plates from rats of different ages, growth rate was determined by fluorochrome labelling and incident light fluorescence microscopy. Various cellular parameters contributing to longitudinal bone growth were quantified by light microscopic stereology. The size of the proliferating cell population ('growth fraction') was estimated by autoradiography (using [3H]thymidine labelling). 2. A comparison between data for suckling (21‐day‐old) and fast‐growing (35‐day‐old) rats revealed that growth acceleration is achieved almost exclusively by cell‐shape modelling, namely by an increase in final cell height and a decrease in lateral diameter, whereas final cell volume and surface area are slightly reduced. Cell proliferation rate in the longitudinal direction and net matrix production per cell remain unchanged. The physiological increase in linear growth rate thus appears to be based principally upon a controlled structural modulation of the chondrocyte phenotype. On the other hand, a physiological reduction in growth rate (i.e. growth deceleration) effected during the transition from pre‐puberty (35‐day‐old rats) to maturity (80‐day‐old rats) is achieved by simultaneous decreases in several chondrocyte parameters, including cell height (i.e. phenotype modulation), cell volume and proliferation rate (in the longitudinal direction). However, chondrocytes continue to produce matrix at a level comparable to that attained during the period characterized by high growth rates (i.e. at 21 and 35 days). Cartilage matrix thus appears to play a subordinate role in regulating longitudinal bone growth rate. The duration of the hypertrophic cell activity (i.e. phenotype modulation) phase remains constant (at approximately 2 days) under the various growth rate conditions. 3. The findings presented in this study indicate that measurement of bulk parameters such as [35S]sulphate incorporation into matrix components, [3H]thymidine uptake by cells and growth plate height are of limited value as estimators of longitudinal bone growth, since changes in the parameters that these measurements quantify bear little relationship to changes in linear growth rate, and may be useful only as indicators of total growth plate activity.
Effect of diabetes and metabolic control on de novo bone formation following guided bone regeneration.

OBJECTIVES To evaluate histologically and morphometrically the effect of experimental diabetes and metabolic control on de novo bone formation following guided bone regeneration (GBR). METHODS Thirty-five Wistar rats were allocated in three experimental groups: (a) uncontrolled, streptozotocin-induced diabetes (D); (b) insulin-controlled diabetes (CD); (c) healthy (H). A standardised titanium microimplant with sandblasted and acid-etched surface was placed into the inferior border of the mandible bilaterally. On the test site, the microimplant was covered with a titanium reinforced expanded polytetrafluoroethylene membrane securely fixed in the mandible according to the GBR principle. The contralateral site served as control. Following 90 days of healing, undecalcified sections were prepared and planimetric measurements of the per cent vertical height of newly formed bone and the per cent new bone-to-implant contact were performed. RESULTS In all experimental groups, at the GBR treated sites, significant neo-osteogenesis was observed. The vertical height of the newly formed bone and per cent bone-to-implant contact were not statistically significantly different among the H (51.3 + or - 7.2% and 50 + or - 6.8%), D (30.5 + or - 13.4% and 35 + or - 16.8%) and CD (41.6 + or - 8.3% and 39.9 + or - 6.5%) groups. However, uncontrolled diabetes was related to higher outcome variability and increased rate of infectious complications. In the control sites, marginal bone loss was observed in the D group, whereas, in the H and CD groups, minimal new bone formation was observed. CONCLUSIONS Significant de novo bone formation can be achieved via GBR treatment even in the presence of uncontrolled diabetes, although less predictably compared with the healthy status. Insulin-mediated metabolic control may reverse these adverse effects.
STRESS ANALYSIS OF THICK SPHERICAL PRESSURE VESSEL COMPOSED OF TRANSVERSELY ISOTROPIC FUNCTIONALLY GRADED INCOMPRESSIBLE HYPERELASTIC MATERIALS

In this paper closed form analytical solution for stress components of thick spherical shell made of transversely isotropic functionally graded hyperelastic material subjected to internal and external pressure is presented. Reinforced neo-Hookean strain energy function with variable material parameters is used to model pressure vessel material. The material constants of strain energy function are graded along the radial direction based on a power law function and have been calculated from experimental data by using Levenberg-Marquardt nonlinear regression method. Stress components and stretches of pressure vessel have been obtained for centrally symmetric condition. Following this, profiles of extension ratio, deformed radius of sphere, normalized radial stress and normalized circumferential stress are plotted as a function of radius of sphere in the undeformed configuration for different material inhomogeneity parameter (m). The obtained results show that the inhomogeneity properties of FGMs structure parameter have a significant influence on the displacement, stretch and stresses distribution along the radial direction.
Localising unsafe software resource usage with typed code model

The article presents a method for quality assurance on resource leakage by defect search automation using developed model of program code. Resources requested by the program are identified and assigned extended types storing state markers. Detection occurs by assignment of this markers to elements of code model according to resource management functions, evidencing resource availability. Further analysis is taken place by propagation of the markers according to the rules of a model. Rules are structured a in way that prevents unsafe use of resource handles. Inability to apply specific rule at analysis stage signifies that resource is used in unsafe way, creating potential security flaw in a program.
A measurement scale of corporate social responsibility in gambling industry

ABSTRACT Corporate social responsibility (CSR) was one of the important marketing tools for Macau gaming companies nowadays. Responsible gambling (RG), which was a part of CSR, had been part of the Chief Executive policy since 2007. This study developed a measurement scale of CSR in Macau from a customer’s perspective using three dimensions, economic, social, and environmental. A multistage method was applied to develop a valid and reliable scale. To implement successful marketing strategies, gambling operators needed to identify important CSR areas and areas where extra work was required. This study provided a systemic method to measure CSR in the gambling industry and provided important implications to managers in the gambling industry.
Phosphorylation of Telomeric Repeat Binding Factor 1 (TRF1) by Akt Causes Telomere Shortening

Telomeric repeat binding factor 1 (TRF1) belongs to the shelterin complex, which modulates the telomere structures. Akt/protein kinase B activation caused genomic instability and contributes to tumorigenesis, although the molecular mechanism remained little known. Here, we show the direct interaction between Akt and TRF1. In vitro kinase assays showed the phosphorylation of a putative Akt phosphorylation site (Threonine 273) in wild type TRF1, but not the mutant TRF1 (T273A), by Akt. Overexpression of Akt decreased telomere length in a HTC cell line. These results indicate that Akt plays an important role in telomere length regulation, contributing to genomic instability and tumorigenesis.
Implementation of a Direct-From-Recovery-Room Discharge Pathway: A Process Improvement Effort

Background. The authors describe a process improvement effort to achieve direct-from-recovery-room discharge for elective laparoscopic cholecystectomy patients— without prior patient selection. Methods. The authors developed and implemented a new pathway, and then measured the learning curve (ie, success rate over time for direct discharge) and compared patients achieving direct discharge with patients admitted after surgery. Results. The learning curve between the first patient and steady-state performance was 56 patients. A total of 80% of patients achieved direct discharge. Directly discharged patients were younger (P < .001), had lower ASA physical status classifications (P < .005), and left the recovery room earlier in the day (P < .0001). However, elderly patients and those with high ASA scores frequently could be directly discharged from the recovery room. Conclusions. Through small team based rapid cycle process improvement, direct-from-recovery-room discharge of laparoscopic cholecystectomy patients can be achieved in an unselected patient population with a short learning curve.
Investigation of Cell Culturing on High-Aspect-Ratio, Three-Dimensional Silicon Microstructures

In this paper, we show that vertical, high-aspect-ratio 1-D photonic crystals (PhCs), consisting of periodic arrays of 3-μm-thick silicon walls separated by 5-μm-wide gaps with depth of 50 μ m (U-grooves), fabricated by electrochemical micromachining, can be combined with mesenchymal cells directly grown into the gaps. Silicon micromachined dice incorporating side-by-side regions with 2- and 3-D structures, namely, flat silicon, shallow (1-2 μm deep) V-grooves, and high-aspect-ratio U-grooves were used as microincubators for culturing SW613-B3, HeLa, SW480, and MRC-5V1 cell lines. Fluorescence microscopy images, obtained after cell fixation, highlight that all the tested cell lines, characterized by different morphologies, are able to grow and proliferate on 2-D microstructures as well as on the “extreme” environment of the PhC structure. More important, SW480 and MRC-5V1 cell lines exhibit the peculiar ability to penetrate into the PhC structure, extending their body deeply in the narrow gaps between adjacent silicon walls, and to grow attached to the vertical surfaces of such 3-D microstructures. This last result represents a first significant step toward the realization of a new class of cell-based biosensors, exploiting cells as bioreceptors and high-aspect-ratio PhCs as transducers, for label-free optical detection of cellular activities involving changes in cell morphology and/or adhesion.
Nucleotide sequence analysis of pRS1, a cryptic plasmid from Oenococcus oeni.

A new cryptic plasmid, pRS1, from an Oenococcus oeni strain isolated from Spanish wines is reported. Nucleotide sequence analysis (2523 bp) revealed the presence of three major open reading frames (ORFs) whose nucleotide sequence and encoded proteins exhibit high homology with those of pOg32, a previously described plasmid of O. oeni. Common features in other plasmids from O. oeni (i.e., pLo13 and pOg32) have been found in pRS1. They have three major ORFs in the same strand; the putative encoded proteins by two of these ORFs exhibit homology with the replication (Rep) and the recombination (Pre) proteins, respectively, of the pT181 plasmid family and related gram-positive bacteria plasmids; these plasmids contain the DNA sequences required for plasmid replication by the rolling circle mechanism and for recombination (i.e., double-strand origin, DSO; single-strand origin, SSO; recombination-specific sites, RSA and RSB); and finally, all these plasmids have a third ORF of unknown function. These features suggest that pRS1 could constitute together with pLo13 and pOg32 a family of small cryptic plasmids of O. oeni.
Epidemiology of urinary melatonin in women and its relation to other hormones and night work.

OBJECTIVE Light exposure during night work suppresses melatonin production, and night work has been associated with an increased cancer risk. There is little information, however, about the interrelationships of night work, urinary melatonin levels, and levels of plasma steroid hormones in women. METHOD We examined the reproducibility of morning urinary measurements of 6-sulfatoxymelatonin over a 3-year period in 80 premenopausal women. We assessed correlations between average urinary melatonin and plasma steroid hormone levels and evaluated potential associations between night work and hormone levels, using current and long-term shift work information from two large, prospective cohorts, the Nurses' Health Study cohorts. RESULTS The intraclass correlation for creatinine-adjusted 6-sulfatoxymelatonin was 0.72 (95% confidence interval, 0.65, 0.82). We found significantly increased levels of estradiol after longer durations of night work (geometric mean levels of estradiol, 8.8 pg/mL for women who never worked night shifts versus 10.1 pg/mL for women who worked 15 or more years of night shifts; P for trend = 0.03). We observed a significant inverse association between increasing number of nights worked within the 2 weeks preceding urine collection and urinary melatonin levels (r = -0.30, P = 0.008), but no association of recent night work with estradiol (r = 0.10, P = 0.41). CONCLUSION A single morning urinary melatonin measurement is a reasonable marker for long-term melatonin levels among premenopausal women. Women who work on rotating night shifts seem to experience changes in hormone levels that may be associated with the increased cancer risk observed among night-shift workers.
Abundance, Depth Distribution, and Composition of Aerobic Bacteriochlorophyll a-Producing Bacteria in Four Basins of the Central Baltic Sea

ABSTRACT The abundance, vertical distribution, and diversity of aerobic anoxygenic phototrophic bacteria (AAP) were studied at four basins of the Baltic Sea. AAP were enumerated by infrared epifluorescence microscopy, and their diversity was analyzed by using pufM gene clone libraries. In addition, numbers of CFU containing the pufM gene were determined, and representative strains were isolated. Both approaches indicated that AAP reached maximal abundance in the euphotic zone. Maximal AAP abundance was 2.5 × 105 cells ml−1 (11% of total prokaryotes) or 1.0 × 103 CFU ml−1 (9 to 10% of total CFU). Environmental pufM clone sequences were grouped into 11 operational taxonomic units phylogenetically related to cultivated members of the Alpha-, Beta-, and Gammaproteobacteria. In spite of varying pufM compositions, five clones were present in all libraries. Of these, Jannaschia-related clones were always found in relative abundances representing 25 to 30% of the total AAP clones. The abundances of the other clones varied. Clones potentially affiliated with typical freshwater Betaproteobacteria sequences were present at three Baltic Sea stations, whereas clones grouping with Loktanella represented 40% of the total cell numbers in the Gotland Basin. For three alphaproteobacterial clones, probable pufM phylogenetic relationships were supported by 16S rRNA gene analyses of Baltic AAP isolates, which showed nearly identical pufM sequences. Our data indicate that the studied AAP assemblages represented a mixture of marine and freshwater taxa, thus characterizing the Baltic Sea as a “melting pot” of abundant, polyphyletic aerobic photoheterotrophic bacteria.
Um modelo dinâmico estocástico para o gerenciamento da carteira de projetos de desenvolvimento de novos produtos.

The process of developing new products’s projects is usually costly for a company, in view of the series of decisions that have to be taken over the development pipeline to achieve a porfolio that will bring the best possible payback, within the given constrains. In this way, this work objected develop a mathematical model that is able to help in the decision maken relative to the development, analyzing wich project portfolio has ecconomic viability, aiming the profits maximization. Through a bibliography research, data were obtained referring to another models in the literature, as well existing gaps and, so, the model was created, with the help of the dynamic stochastic programming, that incorporates characteristics considered important, because they generate a closer aproximmation to the reality, such as uncertainties, dynamism and resource limits. Lastly, an example was created to ilustrate a policy applied to the model and test it behavior.
Localization of the Ezrin Binding Epitope for Glycated Proteins

Abstract: ERM proteins (ezrin, radixin, and moesin) have recently been identified as a new class of AGE‐binding proteins. ERM proteins link the plasma membrane with the actin cytoskeleton and regulate cell shape, motility, adhesion, and signal transduction. ERM proteins have three structural domains: the N‐terminal domain, a coiled midregion, and the C‐terminal domain. The N‐terminal domain binds to a number of plasma membrane ligands and is involved in signal transduction, while the C‐domain binds to actin filaments. Binding studies with isolated structural domains showed that glycated proteins bind to an epitope within the N‐terminal domain of ezrin (aa 1‐324). It is postulated that some of the cellular effects of AGEs leading to diabetic complications may be mediated by binding to this region of ezrin, thereby interrupting the cross‐linking between the plasma membrane and actin cytoskeleton and downstream signaling pathways. Indeed, changes in actin arrangement, cell shape, and adhesion have been described in diabetes, and AGE‐BSA inhibits ezrin‐dependent tubulogenesis of LLC‐PK1 proximal tubular cells. For future development of antagonists, further identification of the ezrin‐binding epitope for glycated proteins is required.
Block coordinated beamforming algorithm for multi-cell MISO downlink systems

This paper investigates the coordinated beam-forming design for multi-cell MISO downlink beamforming system, aiming at maximizing the sum rate. In the proposed scheme, convex approximation approach is used to first recast the primal non-convex problem into an approximate problem of minimizing the sum of weighted inverse SINR. Then, an alternating optimization method is developed to address the approximate problem based on uplink-downlink duality. We show that our solution is globally optimal in the case of two-BS cooperation with a total power constraint, and is also effective in a general case. When extending to per-BS power constraints, an alternating optimization algorithm with provable convergence to stationary point is proposed following a similar procedure. Our simulation results show that the proposed scheme has a fast convergence and achieves a sum rate performance very close to the optimal performance obtained by exhaustive search.
Examining the Impact of Gender on the Factor Structure of the Psychopathic Personality Inventory—Revised

Research on the factor structure of psychopathy has yielded mixed results, supporting anywhere from one to three factors. Additionally, most of this research has used all-male samples, and the possibility of structural invariance across gender has not been examined. Using a mixed-gender sample of 360 undergraduates, the factor structure of the Psychopathic Personality Inventory—Revised was examined using confirmatory factor analysis and multiple group analysis. One-, two-, and three-factor models were tested and compared with each other. When males and females were combined, none of the three models provided adequate fit to the data. Multiple group analyses revealed partial invariance across gender for all three models. Model comparison criteria supported use of both the one- and two-factor models, taking into account variable factor structure across gender. The importance of considering structural differences based on biological sex when assessing psychopathic traits is discussed.
Mastermind-1 is required for Notch signal-dependent steps in lymphocyte development in vivo

Mastermind (Mam) is one of the elements of Notch signaling, an ancient system that plays a pivotal role in metazoan development. Genetic analyses in Drosophila and Caenorhabditis elegans have shown Mam to be an essential positive regulator of this signaling pathway in these species. Mam proteins bind to and stabilize the DNA-binding complex of the intracellular domains of Notch and CBF-1, Su(H), Lag-1 (CSL) DNA-binding proteins in the nucleus. Mammals have three Mam proteins, which show remarkable similarities in their functions while having an unusual structural diversity. There have also been recent indications that Mam-1 functionally interacts with other transcription factors including p53 tumor suppressor. We herein describe that Mam-1 deficiency in mice abolishes the development of splenic marginal zone B cells, a subset strictly dependent on Notch2, a CSL protein and Delta1 ligand. Mam-1 deficiency also causes a partially impaired development of early thymocytes, while not affecting the generation of definitive hematopoiesis, processes that are dependent on Notch1. We also demonstrate the transcriptional activation of a target promoter by constitutively active forms of Notch to decrease severalfold in cultured Mam-1-deficient cells. These results indicate that Mam-1 is thus required to some extent for Notch-dependent stages in lymphopoiesis, thus supporting the notion that Mam is an essential component of the canonical Notch pathway in mammals.
Development of accounting in Fiji, 1801–2016

This article reviews the development of accounting in Fiji. Although this article mentions the pre-European contact period (before 1800), four key phases during which accounting developments occurred are examined. These are the pre-colonial period (1801–1873), the colonial period (1874–1970), Fiji as a Sovereign State under the 1970 Constitution (1971–1986) and the Fijian Sovereign State following the 1987 coups (1987–2016). In each of these periods, a number of major accounting developments that occurred in the country are reviewed and the players responsible for the developments are identified. Directions for future accounting history research are suggested.