Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Experimental Validation of a Sampled-Data Passivity-Based Controller for Coordination of Converters in a Fuel Cell System

This paper deals with the control of a hybrid source combining a proton exchange membrane fuel cell and supercapacitors. To achieve this objective, an interconnection and damping assignment passivity-based control in a sampled-data context is implemented. This paper first details with this new controller and shows that it ensures the stabilization of the hybrid system at its desired equilibrium point under large range of sampling periods. These considerations are followed by a detailed discussion on experimental results achieved on a 1.2-kW test bench.
Public space strategic planning based on Z generation preferences

The purpose of this study was to plan strategic public space based on A generation preferences. Human behaviour considered as a basic factor in architecture planning and design. As human, architecture always develop in line with human development and the tendency of human behaviour. The condition of politics, economy, security and technology development until now has affected the behaviour tendency, especially the generation Z (human who born after 1995). This generation is generations who have grown up in rapid digital technology development, and these generations are the productive generation until next decade. Hence, this research aim is to identify some facility in public space based on generation Z needs and preferences, as a benchmark for public space architecture strategic planning and design. This research is an explorative research, so then the data collecting use open questionnaire method which collected to 220 data from Z generation. Sampling phase will take with snowball sampling online questionnaire. The data those have collected will analyse with Distribution and Cluster Analysis. The results show that shopping mall became the most visited public space by generation Z, it seems from distribution analysis result. From distribution analysis about their favourite activities in their favourite public space, the most activities done in public space are shopping, eating and adventuring. Thus, it can be formulated several criteria of public space which favoured by generation Z are flexible, unique, give enough privacy, and contemplative.
LV Contour Extraction Using Difference of Gaussian Weighting Function and Random Walk Approach

Image segmentation is the first step prior to any medical analysis. With the increase in modern disease variety, the images (specially cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) images) to be segmented are found complex in nature. That might be due to noise, color geometry etc. Random walk method is proved to be good enough to this type of images. Simultaneously, it is robust noise and it does not require any pre-condition to perform. In the present paper we show the importance of weighting function, that is used in the method, on the algorithm output. This paper presents a new approach using difference of Gaussian (DoG) weighting function in the random walk method. We compare the frequently used Gaussian weighting function with DoG and show DoG to be the better one. Finally using DoG weighting function, the random walk method is performed on CMR data for left ventricle contour extraction. The result using DoG weighting function is found to be encouraging than that of Gaussian weighting function. Index Terms—Cardiac magnetic resonance image, Gaussian weighting function, difference of Gaussian weighting function, random walker.
Compiler support for floating‐point computation

Predictability is a basic requirement for compilers of floating‐point code—it must be possible to determine the exact floating‐point operations that will be executed for a particular source‐level construction. Experience shows that many compilers fail to provide predictability, either because of an inadequate understanding of its importance or from an attempt to produce locally better code. Predictability can be attained through careful attention to code generation and a knowledge of the common pitfalls. Most language standards do not completely define the precision of floating‐point operations, and so a good compiler must also make a good choice in assigning precisions of subexpression computation. Choosing the widest precision that will be used in the expression usually gives the best trade‐off between efficiency and accuracy. Finally, certain optimizations are particularly useful for floating‐point and should be included in a compiler aimed at scientific computation. But predictability is more important than efficiency; obtaining incorrect answers fast helps no one.
Grey matrix application in the optimal design of rifle muzzle noise reducer

The Taguchi method and grey system theory are used to find the optimal design for a rifle muzzle noise reducer. According to the existing research results and after interviews with domain experts, the critical design factors which influence the reducer's performance are found to be: (1) the existence of a front cover, (2) the diameter of the outside exhaust hole and the location of the exhaust hole on the extension tube, (4) the diameter of the outside tube, and (5) the length of the outside tube. Using these five factors and their different levels, the L/sub 18/(2/sup 1/*3/sup 7/) orthogonal array was chosen for our combination of experiments. Based on the raw data obtained from test firings, both SNR (signal-to-noise ratio) analysis and grey matrix analysis are presented to conduct verification studies. This methodology is used to confirm the stability of the optimal combination. The results of the verification study give more confidence for the optimal reducer's parameters to achieve the optimal quality. The results of our study show that the significant factors for reducing the muzzle noise, under /spl alpha/ = 0.05, are the diameter of the outside exhaust hole and the location of the exhaust hole on the extension tube. Using a reducer with a combination designed by the Taguchi method, the muzzle noise can be reduced by 18.45%.
Caractérisation de tissus cutanés superficiels hypertrophiques par spectroscopie multimodalité in vivo : instrumentation, extraction et classification de données multidimensionnelle

L'objectif de ce travail de recherche est le developpement, la mise au point et la validation d'une methode de spectroscopie multi-modalites en diffusion elastique et autofluorescence pour caracteriser des tissus cutanes cicatriciels hypertrophiques in vivo. Ces travaux sont reposes sur trois axes. La premiere partie des travaux presente l'instrumentation : developpement d'un systeme spectroscopique qui permet de realiser des mesures de multimodalites in vivo de maniere automatique et efficace. Des procedures metrologiques sont mise en place pour caracteriser le systeme developpe et assurer la repetabilite les resultats de mesure. La deuxieme partie presente une etude preclinique. Un modele animal et un protocole experimental ont ete mises en place pour creer des cicatrices hypertrophiques sur lesquelles nous pouvons recueillir des spectres a analyser. La troisieme partie porte sur la classification des spectres obtenus. Elle propose des methodes algorithmiques pour debruiter et corriger les spectres mesures, pour extraire automatiquement des caracteristiques spectrales interpretables et pour selectionner un sous-ensemble de caracteristiques "optimales" en vue d'une classification efficace. Les resultats de classification realisee respectivement par trois methodes (k-ppv, ADL et RNA) montrent que la faisabilite d'utiliser la spectroscopie bimodale pour la caracterisation de ce type de lesion cutane. Par ailleurs, les caracteristiques selectionnees par notre methode montrent que la cicatrisation hypertrophique implique un changement de structure tissulaire et une variation de concentration de porphyrine
Determinants of smallholder indigenous chicken farmers market participation decisions and value of sales in Gulu district

Indigenous chicken play an important role in the livelihoods of the rural poor in developing countries. They not only act as a source of nutrition but also supplement household incomes. Despite the tremendous market opportunities available for the farmers, there are still low levels of market participation for indigenous chicken farmers in Gulu district and other parts of Uganda. In light of this, a research study was motivated to ascertain the drivers of smallholder indigenous chicken farmers’ market participation in Gulu district. Using cross-sectional data from households in selected sub counties in Gulu district, a two-stage Heckman model was used to model the decision of the smallholder farmers to participate in the market and then determine the factors affecting the value of sales thereafter. Results from the descriptive statistics showed that there were 126 market participants and 24 non-participants. Both flock size and non-farm incomes differed significantly (5%) between market participants and non-participants. The participants had a larger flock size while non-participants had more income. The results of the probit model further revealed that the first stage of market participation was significantly affected by distance of the household to the market (1%), flock size (10%), and ownership of a bicycle (1%). In the second stage (outcome model), the OLS results revealed that flock size, distance to the market and market price of indigenous chicken significantly (1%) affected the indigenous chicken farmer’s value of sales. In conclusion, creation of effective marketing systems that would help reduce transaction costs of the indigenous chicken, provision of extension and veterinary services will not only increase the flock sizes kept by the smallholder farmers but also the value of sales of indigenous chicken for the farmers that participate in the market. Key words: Heckman model, smallholder farmers, indigenous chicken, market participation, Gulu district.
High-throughput Hardware Architectures of the JH Round-three SHA-3 Candidate - An FPGA Design and Implementation Approach

Hash functions are exploited by many cryptographic primitives that are incorporated in crucial cryptographic schemes and commercial security protocols. Nowadays, there is an active international competition, launched by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), for establishing the new hash standard, SHA-3. One of the semi-finalists is the JH algorithm. In this paper, two high throughput hardware architectures of the complete JH algorithm are presented. The difference between them is the existence of 3 pipeline stages at the second one. They both are designed to support all the possible versions of the algorithm and are implemented in Xilinx Virtex-4, Virtex-5, and Virtex-6 FPGAs. Based on the experimental results, the proposed architectures outperform the existing ones in terms of Throughput/Area factor, regarding all FPGA platforms and JH algorithm’s versions.
Common Ownership Types and Their Effects on Innovation and Competition

In corporate innovation, the type of institutional ownership matters. Using exogenous shocks from mergers of financial institutions, we identify two countervailing effects of common ownership on corporate innovation. Higher common ownership by focused, long-term dedicated institutional investors promotes innovation output and impact, as measured by number of patents and non-self citations. Meanwhile, higher common ownership by diversified, short-term transient investors discourages these. Moreover, the effects of common ownership by diversified, long-term quasi-indexing institutions on innovation vary with industry competitiveness. Evidence suggests that common ownership affects innovation through the channels of firm valuation and financing constraint. These results contribute to an ongoing debate on the effects of common institutional ownership on competition.
Fanconi's syndrome, acute renal failure, and tonsil ulcerations after colloidal bismuth subcitrate intoxication.

A 22-year-old woman ingested 5.4 g of colloidal bismuth subcitrate (CBS) in a suicide attempt. After ingestion, she presented with Fanconi's syndrome and acute renal failure to our unit. On the third day after ingestion, she was anuric. Ulcerations of both tonsils were observed 8 days after intoxication. Sodium-2,3-dimercapto-1-propanesulfonate (DMPS) is shown to be an effective chelating agent of heavy metal intoxications, but it has only a small effect on elimination of bismuth salts in patients with renal insufficiency without hemodialysis. In our case, we initiated hemodialysis and intravenous treatment with DMPS 60 hours after intoxication. By repeated measurements of bismuth concentrations in serum and dialyzed fluid, we showed its successful elimination. Serum bismuth level decreased from 640 microg/L to 15 microg/L within 6 days. With elimination of bismuth, renal function improved, and tonsil ulcerations healed. Hemodialysis was discontinued on day 14. Follow-up examination 6 weeks later showed normal renal function. Clinicians should be aware that acute renal failure and tonsil ulcerations can occur after CBS intoxication. Generally, acute renal failure caused by CBS intoxication is reversible. Treatment with the chelating agent DMPS in combination with hemodialysis is highly effective in reducing the serum bismuth level in patients with acute renal failure.
An Efficient Concept Drift Detection Method for Streaming Data under Limited Labeling

In data stream analysis, detecting the concept drift accurately is important to maintain the classification performance. Most drift detection methods assume that the class labels become available immediately after a data sample arrives. However, it is unrealistic to attempt to acquire all of the labels when processing the data streams, as labeling costs are high and much time is needed. In this paper, we propose a concept drift detection method under the assumption that there is limited access or no access to class labels. The proposed method detects concept drift on unlabeled data streams based on the class label information which is predicted by a classifier or a virtual classifier. Experimental results on synthetic and real streaming data show that the proposed method is competent to detect the concept drift on unlabeled data stream. key words: concept drift detection, limited labeling, probability estimates, streaming data
Health Insurance in Myanmar: The Views and Perception of Healthcare Consumers and Health System Informants on the Establishment of a Nationwide Health Insurance System

(1) Background: Health insurance and social protection in Myanmar are negligible, which leaves many citizens at risk of financial hardship in case of a serious illness. The aim of this study is to explore the views of healthcare consumers and compare them to the views of key informants on the design and implementation of a nationwide health insurance system in Myanmar. (2) Method: Data were collected through nine focus group discussions with healthcare consumers and six semi-structured interviews with key health system informants. (3) Results: The consumers supported a mandatory basic health insurance and voluntary supplementary health insurance. Tax-based funding was suggested as an option that can help to enhance healthcare utilization among the poor and vulnerable groups. However, a fully tax-based funding was perceived to have limited chances of success given the low level of government resources available. Community-based insurance, where community members pool money in a healthcare fund, was seen as more appropriate for the rural areas. (4) Conclusion: This study suggests a healthcare financing mechanism based on a mixed insurance model for the creation of nationwide health insurance. Further inquiry into the feasibility of the vital aspects of the nationwide health insurance is needed.
Repetitive Control With Adaptive Sampling Frequency for Wind Power Generation Systems

This paper presents a novel repetitive control (RC) for wind power generation systems (WPGS), which achieves optimal performance in steady-state conditions due to a variable sampling/switching period technique (VSPT). The main objective of VSPT is to obtain an integer number of samples per grid period, which solves the main problem of RC, i.e., the loss of rejection to periodic disturbances due to grid frequency drift. The sampling/switching frequency is adjusted with a variable sampling period filter phase-locked loop, which also adds robustness to the system due to its inherent tolerance to grid voltage distortion and unbalances, and events such as frequency steps and faults. The control and synchronism subsystems are described, designed, and verified experimentally in a 10-kW WPGS. The results obtained prove the accuracy of the proposed control even under severe disturbances, typical in grids with high WPGS penetration, providing ancillary functions to enhance reliability and reduce operational costs.
Reprogramming mediated by stem cell fusion

Advances in mammalian cloning prove that somatic nuclei can be reprogrammed to a state of totipotency by transfer into oocytes. An alternative approach to reprogram the somatic genome involves the creation of hybrids between somatic cells and other cells that contain reprogramming activities. Potential fusion partners with reprogramming activities include embryonic stem cells, embryonic germ cells, embryonal carcinoma cells, and even differentiated cells. Recent advances in fusion‐mediated reprogramming are discussed from the standpoints of the developmental potency of hydrid cells, genetic and epigenetic correlates of reprogramming, and other aspects involved in the reprogramming process. In addition, the utility of fusion‐mediated reprogramming for future cell‐based therapies is discussed.
Slow pace of antileishmanial drug development

The protozoan parasite Leishmania is endemic in large parts of the world which causes leishmaniasis. Its visceral form is fatal if not treated and is caused mostly by Leishmania donovani, Leishmania infantum and Leishmania chagasi. Given the difficulties linked to vector (sandfly) control and the lack of an effective vaccine, the control of leishmaniasis relies mostly on chemotherapy. Unfortunately, the prevalence of parasites becoming resistant to the first-line drug pentavalent antimony (SbV) is increasing worldwide. Few alternative drugs are available that includes amphotericin B, pentamidine and miltefosine (oral). Already, decreases in efficacy, resistance and toxicity have been noted against these drugs. Dry antileishmanial pipeline further indicates the slow pace of drug discovery in this field where resistance as a major barrier. Full understanding of the genetic and molecular basis of the parasite is lagging. Since leishmaniasis is a neglected disease and occurs predominantly in the developing world largely, therefore, it is unaddressed. The pharma industry argues that development of the new drug is too costly and risky to invest in low return neglected diseases is very high. Research is also needed to identify new and effective drug targets. The lack of drug research and development for neglected diseases will require some new strategies. We have discussed the various cause of slow pace of antileishmanial drug discovery in this review to pay attention of researchers and also take the public and private initiative to make the process fast for new antileishmanial drug development.
Measure elasticity and viscosity using the out-of-plane shear wave

Tissue elasticity μ<sub>1</sub> and viscosity μ<sub>2</sub> can be estimated by evaluating dispersion of shear wave propagation velocity over a range of frequencies. Alternatively, μ<sub>1</sub> and μ<sub>2</sub> can be calculated from shear wave attenuation α<sub>s</sub> and velocity c<sub>s</sub> at a single frequency. For shear waves generated by a focused ultrasound beam, attenuation due to geometric spreading makes it difficult to estimate as correctly. In this study, we use a wide unfocused beam to generate quasi-planar radiation force (minimal diffraction) and monitor the out-of-plane (elevation direction) shear wave propagation using another transducer. Frequency dependent c<sub>s</sub> and α<sub>s</sub> values are calculated from the 2D Fourier transform (k-space) of the spatiotemporal shear wave data, using peak extraction and a full-width-of-half-maximum (FWHM) method. Simulation and experiment studies show good agreement between the results using the proposed method and the theoretical or independent measurement results. With the two probes placed on one side of the target or integrated into a 2D array probe, the proposed method could be applied to study in vivo tissue viscoelastic properties.
Advances in Brief The Ras-Mitogen-activated Protein Kinase Pathway Is Critical for the Activation of Matrix Metalloproteinase Secretion and the Invasiveness in v-crk-transformed 3 Y 11

To search for the intracellular signaling pathway critical for the secretion of matrix metalloproteinases (MMP), we studied the effects of dominant negative Ras (S17N Ras) and dominant negative MEK1 (MEK1AA) expression in v-crk-transformed 3Y1. Expression of either S17N Ras or MEK1AA dramatically suppressed the augmented secretion of MMP-2 and MMP-9 in v-crk-transfected 3Y1. Similarly, a Ras farnesyltransferase inhibitor, manumycin A, and a MEK1 inhibitor, U0126, suppressed MMP secretion in a dose-dependent manner, whereas a PI3 kinase inhibitor, wortmannin, could not. In addition, the suppression of MMP secretion by S17N Ras showed good correlation with the inhibition ofin vitro invasiveness of the cells. In contrast, expression of dominant negative C3G did not suppress MMP secretion, although it substantially blocked the c-Jun N-terminal kinase activation. Taken together, the Ras-MEK1 pathway, but not the C3G-JNK pathway, seems to play a key role in the activation of MMP secretion and, hence, the invasiveness of v-crk-transformed cells.
Music Recommender System CS 365 : Artificial Intelligence

In this project, we have designed, implemented and analyzed a song recommendation system. We used Million Song Dataset[1] provided by Kaggle to find correlations between users and songs and to learn from the previous listening history of users to provide recommendations for songs which users would prefer to listen most. In this paper, we will discuss the problems we faced, methods we have implemented, results and their analysis. We have got best results for memory based collaborative filtering algorithm. We believe that content-based model would have worked better if we would have enough memory and computational power to use the whole available metadata and training dataset. Keywordsrecommendation systems, music, Million Song Dataset, collaborative filtering, content-based
Measurement of resistant starch.

A robust and reliable method was developed to measure resistant starch (RS), i.e., starch that enters the large intestine. In vivo conditions were reflected as much as possible while a user-friendly format was maintained. Parameters investigated included a-amylase concentration, pH of incubation, maltose inhibition of alpha-amylase, the need for amyloglucosidase inclusion, the effect of shaking and stirring on determined values, and problems in recovering and analyzing the RS-containing pellet. The RS values obtained were in good agreement with published in vivo data. An interlaboratory evaluation of the method has been completed (First Action Method 2002.02).