Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Analytical Prediction of Eddy-Current Loss in Armature Windings of Permanent Magnet Brushless AC Machines

This paper presents an analytical model for prediction of eddy current loss in armature windings of permanent magnet brushless AC machines. The developed model can either be used in the case of internal or external rotor radial-field machines topologies. First, a 2-D exact analytical solution of magnetic field distribution in an actual geometry of slotted surface mounted PM radial flux synchronous machines is established. It involves solution of Maxwell's equations in slots, airgap and PM's region. Then, magnetic vector potential solution in the slots is used for prediction of resistance limited eddy current in armature windings. Finally, results from this analytical model are compared to corresponding finite element analyses.
EEG-based brain-controlled lower extremity exoskeleton rehabilitation robot

Brain-computer interfaces (BCIs), based on electroencephalography (EEG), have been proved to play an important role in motor rehabilitation, motor replacement, prosthesis control, and assistive technologies. BCIs can classify EEG signals and translate the brain activities into useful commands for external devices. This paper presents a brain-controlled lower extremity exoskeleton rehabilitation robot with a motor-imagery (MI)-based BCI to enhance active rehabilitation participation. Four healthy individuals performed MI tasks of left and right hand movements to control the speed of gait training. The proposed paradigm could be further implemented by adding motor tasks and promoting MI classification accuracy.
A design method for plug-and-play control of large-scale systems with a varying number of subsystems

This paper presents an online procedure to design decentralised controllers for a large-scale system when subsystems are added or removed. As the dynamics of all subsystems depend upon each other through the physical couplings, the main challenge of the controller design is to ensure global I/O stability and a required I/O performance of the overall large-scale system. For this purpose, plug-and-play control is devoted to the following two issues: first, the set-up of a model to describe the global system behaviour by limited model information only. Second, the design of the control station of the added subsystem based on this model with respect to local design requirements in order to guarantee the satisfaction of global system specifications. Furthermore, it is allowed to adjust neighbouring control stations to ensure a good overall system performance neighbouring subsystems are allowed to adjust their control stations. As a consequence, a new subsystem can be “plugged-in” and automatically “plays” together with the existing subsystems to guarantee a global performance. The overall procedure is experimentally evaluated by application to a thermo-fluid plant.
Diode laser vaporization of prostate as treatment for benign prostatic enlargement: initial results of 73 patients with 1 year follow-up.

OBJECTIVE Our objective is to evaluate the efficacy, safety and 12 month outcome of a 980 nm diode laser with Twister fiber in the treatment of benign prostatic enlargement. MATERIALS AND METHODS Between February 2011 and January 2013, 73 patients with benign pros- tatic enlargement had undergone diode laser vaporization of prostate at our institution. The fol- lowing parameters were assessed at baseline, and after a follow-up period of 3 and 12 months: International Prostate Symptom Score, peak urinary flow rate, post-void residual urine volume, and quality of life score. RESULTS The procedure was completed successfully in all patients with no intraoperative complications. At 12 months postoperatively the percentage improvements in IPSS was -69.09%, Qmax +197%, PVR -88.54%, and QoL -68.29%. CONCLUSION Diode laser vaporization of prostate is safe and effective method for treatment of benign prostatic enlargement.
Form from motion parallax and form from luminance contrast: vernier discrimination.

UNLABELLED Some objects are perfectly camouflaged when stationary, but are clearly visible when moving; the boundaries of such an object are defined entirely by motion parallax. Little is known about the eye's ability to make spatial discriminations between motion-defined objects. In this study, subjects viewed a pseudo-random pattern of dots within which a camouflaged bar was made visible by relative motion of dots. Vernier acuity for the motion-defined bar was 27-45 sec arc for three subjects, much less than the interdot separation of 360 sec arc, much less than the 2 deg receptive field size for motion, and comparable with the foveal intercone separation of 30 sec arc. It is proposed that an opponent-orientation process and an opponent-position process can both contribute to vernier judgements for motion-defined objects. Real-world motion contrast commonly confounds the following cues for figure-ground segregation: (1) different texture velocities on either side of the figure's boundary; (2) in any given time interval, texture in figure and ground moves different distances; and (3) texture continually appears and disappears along the figure's boundary. When cues (2) and (3) were eliminated, thus ensuring figure-ground segregation was achieved entirely by motion-sensitive neural elements, vernier acuity was 44 +/- 5 sec arc compared with 36 +/- 8 sec arc for a dotted bar defined by luminance contrast. CONCLUSION Vernier acuity for a dotted bar whose boundary was defined entirely by motion-sensitive neural elements was similar to vernier acuity for a dotted bar whose boundary was defined by luminance contrast.
A Business Analysis of Asian Baseball Leagues

This study reviews previous research on sports economics and applied descriptive analyses to derive policy recommendations for the Korean Baseball Organization and the Nippon Professional Baseball. We discuss various aspects of the contemporary baseball business, and compare them with the American Major League Baseball (MLB). One distinctive characteristic common to both Asian leagues is the governance structure, where member teams are owned by major conglomerates. We explore this characteristic to assess the business objectives of the Korean Baseball Organization and the Nippon Professional Baseball, and find that their sources of competitive balance differ from those in MLB. Our conclusion suggests that their business objective should begin to move slowly toward one similar to that of MLB, and safeguards should be implemented to maintain a reasonable competitive balance. We also conclude that sports diplomacy and the creation of international competition are important because international competition and the success of national teams are critical for fan demand.
Novel dual-band planar resonator and admittance inverter for filter design and applications

This paper presents, for the first time, the design of planar resonators and admittance inverters that can operate at two widely separated frequency bands. Design equations of the proposed structure and its application to pass-band filter design are given. These building blocks feature dual-band operation, compact planar design and low-insertion loss. For demonstration, the measured results of a dual-band microstrip filter operating at 900 & 2000 MHz based on the proposed configuration are shown.
Revenue Diversification in Housing Nonprofits

Scholars often draw on resource dependence theory and institutional theory to explain nonprofit behavior in light of resource constraints, but few studies include empirical indicators of environmental constraints. This study examines the degree to which variables in the state-level funding environment promote (or deter) revenue diversification for housing nonprofits. It uses a hierarchical linear model (HLM) to capture constraint at two levels: the funding environment at the state level and organizational-level factors. Analyzing data from 990 housing nonprofits in 26 states and public funding environment variables for each of those states from 2008 to 2010, we find that state funding has a negative impact on revenue diversification for housing nonprofits. By including empirical indicators of the level of constraint for specific funding sources, we add to the body of literature that questions normative nonprofit financial management and provide evidence nonprofit leaders can use to inform their resource development strategies.
NEOCLASSICAL THEORY OF TECHNICAL PROGRESS AND RELATIVE FACTOR SHARES

In its simplest form neoclassical theory, sometimes called Clark's neoclassical fairy tale, is chiefly characterized by continuous factor substitutability and a single, homogeneous capital good. It is this form of the model that has been most widely used in analyzing the theory of production and distribution, as well as the cognate theory of capital and growth. It is possible, of course, to make the simple model more "realistic" by introducing limited input substitutability and heterogeneous capital goods. ' The price paid for greater generality, however, is increased complexity and reduced ability simultaneously to analyze several related areas.
Smoking cessation and quality of life: the effect of amount of smoking and time since quitting.

BACKGROUND Knowledge of the impact of smoking cessation on health-related quality of life may be important in encouraging smokers to quit. We determined whether the difference in quality of life between ex- and current smokers is influenced by amount of smoking or time since quitting. METHODS Data were collected within a cross-sectional study among a random sample of the general population in The Netherlands. Health-related quality of life was measured with the RAND-36 questionnaire (adapted from SF-36). Smoking behavior was assessed with a self-administered questionnaire. Adjusted differences in quality of life scores between ex- and current smokers were tested with multivariate analysis of variance, among 9,660 men and women aged 20-59 years, without history of tobacco-related chronic diseases. RESULTS Ex-smokers reported significantly higher quality of life scores than current smokers. This was more pronounced for mental health, especially for role functioning limitations due to emotional problems (difference 6.5 points; P < 0.0001), than for physical health dimensions. Differences were generally larger between ex- and current heavy smokers than between ex- and current light or moderate smokers (P trend <0.05 when ex-smokers had quit <5 or > or =10 years ago). No significant trend was observed with time since quitting. CONCLUSIONS Generally, the higher the amount of smoking, the higher were quality of life differences between ex- and current smokers.
Protein identification at the low femtomole level from silver-stained gels using a new fritless electrospray interface for liquid chromatography-microspray and nanospray mass spectrometry.

Conventional capillary liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry (LC/MS) typically employs low microl/min flow rates with gas/liquid sheath to enhance spray stability. Over the past several years a number of reports have demonstrated success with electrospray (ES) interface designs optimized for submicroliter/min flows which have clear advantages in terms of enhancement of detection limit, lower sample consumption, and ability to accommodate a wider range of buffer conditions. We report here a fritless electrospray interface (FESI) design that is inexpensive and robust and can be operated and adapted to accommodate a variety of applications for submicroliter/min flow rates. The novelty of this interface revolves around the use of a fritless microcapillary column and precolumn application of electrospray voltage at a microtee junction to achieve stable microspray and nanospray flow rates. This sheathless FESI device eliminates postcolumn dead volume since small particles (</= 10 micron) are packed directly into laser-pulled fused silica capillary needles from which a spray originates. For analysis of proteins/peptides in solution, low femtomole sensitivity has been achieved (attomoles for selected-ion monitoring), while low nanogram sensitivity was attained for proteins derived from in-gel-digested silver-stained bands from 1-D and 2-D gels. Several applications for tandem MS protein/peptide identification using LC-microspray, LC-nanospray, or infusion nanospray are presented.
WMRB: Learning to Rank in a Scalable Batch Training Approach

We propose a new learning to rank algorithm, named Weighted Margin-Rank Batch loss (WMRB), to extend the popular Weighted Approximate-Rank Pairwise loss (WARP). WMRB uses a new rank estimator and an efficient batch training algorithm. The approach allows more accurate item rank approximation and explicit utilization of parallel computation to accelerate training. In three item recommendation tasks, WMRB consistently outperforms WARP and other baselines. Moreover, WMRB shows clear time efficiency advantages as data scale increases.
Knowledge assimilation processes of rapidly internationalising firms: Longitudinal case studies of Scottish SMEs

Purpose – The accumulation of knowledge and learning by firms has been identified as being critical to their internationalisation. This paper aims to explore the knowledge assimilation processes of rapidly internationalising small to medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs). Design/methodology/approach – This is a qualitative enquiry in two stages. First, four case studies were selected from firms that were participating in an internationalisation programme run by Scottish Enterprise, the regional development agency. Data collection involved semi‐structured interviews with chief executive officers (CEOs) and programme providers, and archival data. Second, two focus groups were held with six CEOs participating in the programme.Findings – The findings indicate that knowledge sharing is important for rapidly internationalising SMEs and that firms adopted high levels of formality in assimilating knowledge. Two key aspects of formality were identified as important; formal planned events to share explicit and tacit knowl.
Biomimetic Spiking Neural Network (SNN) Systems for ‘In Vitro’ Cells Stimulation

Millions of people are affected by neurological disorders. Brain-Machine Interfaces (BMIs) and neuroprosthesis have been the object of extensive research and may represent a valid treatment for diverse neurological diseases. The realization of neuroprostheses requires technologies to interact with neuronal cell assemblies in the nervous system, and to drive them into a desired state or to produce a specific behavior. One of the best solutions to design this kind of neuroprostheses is to implement a real-time hardware Spiking Neural Network (SNN). Not only will it mimic the electrical behavior of one biological neuron but also the dynamic of a neural network with plasticity rules. In this work, we present digital hardware implementation of biomimetic SNNs for stimulating in vitro cells. By connecting living neurons with electronic SNNs, we are intending to develop a model system for a brain-electronics interface.
Modified puncture technique for reduction of paraphymosis.

PATIENTS AND METHODS A total of 45 patients underwent reduction of paraphymosis at LN Hospital, Delhi, India and Leighton Hospital, Crewe, UK from August 1991 to September 1999 using the multiple puncture and glans squeeze technique. These were divided into 3 grades: grade 1, paraphymosis without engorgement of glans; grade 2, paraphymosis with engorgement of glans; and grade 3, paraphymosis with associated skin changes (non-pitting oedema, cheese-cutting of the shaft of the penis or erosions). RESULTS Grade 1 (6) patients were reduced by simply pulling the foreskin back into the normal position. Grade 2 (37) patients were reduced by the above-mentioned technique. Grade 3 (2) patients could not be reduced by this technique and the band had to be divided. CONCLUSIONS Difficult paraphymosis with gross engorgement of the glans can be successfully reduced by this technique as long as the skin changes are not marked.
Activation and Allosteric Modulation of Human μ Opioid Receptor in Molecular Dynamics

Allosteric protein modulation has gained increasing attention in drug design. Its application as a mechanism of action could bring forth safer and more effective medicines. Targeting opioid receptors with allosteric modulators can result in better treatment of pain, depression, and respiratory and immune disorders. In this work we use recent reports on negative modulators of μ opioid receptor as a starting point for identification of allosteric sites and mechanisms of opioid receptor modulation using homology modeling and docking and molecular dynamics studies. An allosteric binding site description is presented. Results suggest a shared binding region for lipophilic allosteric ligands, reveal possible differences in the modulation mechanism between cannabinoids and salvinorin A, and show ambiguous properties of the latter. Also, they emphasize the importance of native-like environment in molecular dynamics simulations and uncover relationships between modulator and orthosteric ligand binding and receptor behavior. Relationships between ligands, transmission switch, and hydrophobic lock are analyzed.
Diagnostic efficacy of unconjugated plasma metanephrines for the detection of pheochromocytoma.

BACKGROUND Recently, measurement of plasma metanephrines was suggested to improve the detection of pheochromocytoma compared with the other common biochemical tests. OBJECTIVE To examine the diagnostic precision of measurements of plasma metanephrines, plasma catecholamines, and urinary catecholamines and to assess their variability. METHODS Plasma metanephrine as well as plasma and urinary catecholamine concentrations were measured by high-performance liquid chromatography with electrochemical detection. Before surgery, responses of plasma metanephrines and catecholamines to change of posture were determined. Intraoperatively, metanephrines and catecholamines were measured before skin incision, during maximal mechanical tumor manipulation, and repetitively after the tumor was separated from the circulation. Patients were reexamined 1 and 3 months after surgery. Patients with pheochromocytoma (n = 17) and with histologically proved other adrenal tumors (n = 14) were studied before, during, and after surgery. RESULTS Measurement of plasma metanephrines and plasma and urinary catecholamines provided 100% and 82% sensitivity, respectively, for the detection of pheochromocytoma (P<.001). Levels of plasma catecholamines but not metanephrines increased in response to change of posture (norepinephrine, P =.03; epinephrine, P =.07) and intraoperative stress (norepinephrine, P =.002; epinephrine, P =.009). CONCLUSIONS Plasma metanephrines offer improved efficacy for the diagnosis of pheochromocytoma. Less variability in response to external factors may favor plasma metanephrines in the screening for this disease. Arch Intern Med. 2000;160:2957-2963
The use of acute and preventative medical services by a general population: relationship to alcohol consumption.

AIMS To investigate the hypothesis that increasing alcohol consumption is accompanied by increasing use of acute, but decreasing use of preventative, medical services among the general population. DESIGN AND PARTICIPANTS Health and life-style survey of 41,000 randomly-sampled adults in SE England who self-completed a validated questionnaire covering socio-demographics, alcohol and tobacco usage and use of acute (A&E department and general practitioner) and preventative (dental, optician, mammography and cervical cytology) services: the response rate was 60%. MEASUREMENTS Comparative use of acute and preventative health care services by patients with varying consumption of alcoholic beverages. This was estimated by the odds ratio for service use, after correcting for the following confounding variables; age, social class, ethnic group, employment status, whether lives with children or with other adults, whether is a career, limiting long-term illness, depression status, smoking habit and use of private health insurance. FINDINGS There was increased use of accident and emergency services by the harmful and intermediate drinking groups compared with the safe drinking group. Male abstainers attended their A&E departments more frequently than 'safe limit' drinkers. With respect to preventative services, both male and female abstainers and harmful drinkers used dental services less than safe limit drinkers. For females, mammography and cervical cytology services were less frequently used by abstainers and by harmful drinkers. CONCLUSIONS This study supports the generally held view that heavy alcohol consumers are disproportionate users of acute medical services but they are relative under-users of preventative medical care services. Alcohol abstainers are also over-users of acute services, but under-users of preventative services. These latter observations are relevant to the claims that moderate alcohol consumers have lower apparent morbidity and mortality rates compared to abstainers.
Economic Injustice in Nigeria (Acts 2:44-45): The Niger Delta Experience

Crude oil exploration and production is a blessing to the region where it is being carried out in developed nations but in the case of the Niger Delta of Nigeria it is like a curse. Using the economic liberation theology model as a method, this paper aimed at examining the situation of economic injustice in the Niger Delta of Nigeria in the light of Acts 2:44-45; 6:1. It also aimed at proffering some kind of solution to the problem by arousing the interest of and challenging the Nigerian church and state leaders to re-examine the issue of the Niger Delta region. The paper showed that the economic injustice being perpetrated against the region is the neglect of the region by the Federal Government and the Multinationals operating in the region. The work also showed that commissions and ministry such as the Niger Delta Development Commission and Federal Ministry of Niger Delta were set as a way to remedy the problem but monies being appropriated and released by the Federal Government not withstanding the fact that some monies go into private pockets does not commensurate with developmental needs of the region. The work was concluded on the presupposition that infrastructural and environmental development can tantamount to economic liberation for the region.
The adenylation domain of tyrocidine synthetase 1--structural and functional role of the interdomain linker region and the (S/T)GT(T/S)GXPKG core sequence.

Sequence analysis of peptide synthetases revealed extensive structure similarity with firefly luciferase, whose crystal structure has recently become available, providing evidence for the localization of the active site at the interface between two subdomains separated by a distorted linker region [Conti, E. , Franks, N. P. & Brick, P. (1996) Structure 4, 287-298]. The functional importance of two flexible loops, corresponding to the linker region of firefly luciferase and the highly conserved (S/T)GT(T/S)GXPKG core sequence, has been studied in view of the proposed conformational changes by the use of mutant analysis, limited proteolysis and chemical modification of tyrocidine synthetase 1. Substitution of the highly conserved Arg416, residing in the loop separating the subdomains of the adenylation domain, resulted in profound loss of activity. Limited proteolysis of the mutant suggested significant structural changes as manifested by lack of protection to degradation in the presence of substrates, revealing a probable disturbance of the induced-fit mechanism regulating the transformation from an open to a closed conformation. Mutants, obtained by replacement of the conserved Lys186 from the (S/T)GT(T/S)GXPKG core sequence, displayed only minor differences in substrate-binding affinity despite significant reduction of catalytic efficiency. Residue Lys186 appears to play an important role in either stabilization of the bound substrate through charge-charge-interactions, and/or fixing of the loop for maintainance of the active-site conformation.