Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Symmetric tri-band balun architecture with a systematic design procedure

A new structure for a passive tri-band balun, operating at three arbitrary frequencies, is presented in this paper. The proposed technique makes effective use of the existing dual-band balun. The resulting architecture is symmetric and enables simple even- and odd-mode analysis to simplify the design equations. The simplified analysis leads to closed form equations with two free design variables. The presence of free design variables provide the opportunity to develop a simplified systematic design procedure for wide range of frequencies. The proposed technique is validated at arbitrarily chosen frequencies of 1GHz, 2GHz, and 2.5GHz in a simulation framework. Furthermore, to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed technique, a prototype has been developed on Rogers 5880 substrate. The obtained simulation and measurement results are in good agreement.
Non-full rank space-time trellis codes for serially concatenated system

The feasibility of the non-full rank space-time trellis codes (NFR-STTCs) for the serially concatenated system is described carefully in this letter and a QPSK-based NFR-STTC suitable for the system is proposed. As the simulation results show, over the flat block Rayleigh fading channels, a concatenated system with the proposed NFR-STTC inner code can achieve full diversity, and improve the coding gains compared with other concatenated systems adopting full-rank space-time trellis codes (FR-STTCs) of the same complexity. The introduction of the NFR-STTC to serial concatenation space-time (SCST) system provides a new research community of SCST.
CARDIOVASCULAR RISK PREDICTION IN CHILDREN - WITH FOCUS ON OBESITY

The majority of children at risk for future cardiovascular disease who need specific and systematic cardiovascular risk assessments are obese children. However, there are still many unresolved questions related to pathophysiology, recognition and management of obese children. Currently, the most prevalent paradigm for identifying children at risk for cardiovascular events is based on the population approach and identification of the level and/or number of traditional risk factors. However risk assessment methods based on, traditional risk factors solely have proven to be suboptimal and unreliable. Since early atherosclerosis commonly occurs in the absence of abnormal threshold levels of risk factors, the traditional risk factors based approach has recently shifted to “individual-based approach”. Such a new concept is focused on the identification of asymptomatic structural target organ changes or more recently subclinical functional cardiac or vascular target organ changes to identify children at risk.
Space-Surface Bistatic SAR Image Enhancement Based on Repeat-Pass Coherent Fusion With Beidou-2/Compass-2 as Illuminators

Low signal power density limits the performance of space-surface bistatic synthetic aperture radar (SS-BiSAR) using Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) satellites as illuminators. To tackle this problem, in this letter, a novel bistatic SAR image enhancement technique based on repeat-pass coherent fusion is proposed. The works in this letter include three aspects. First, repeat-pass experiments are designed to ensure the best resolution. Second, a modified CLEAN technique is applied to remove the direct signal interference from the focused BiSAR images. Third, a coherence-processing method is proposed to implement coherence of each repeat-pass BiSAR image and then they are coherently fused to obtain a quality-improved BiSAR image. Twenty-two days of repeat-pass BiSAR experiments with Beidou-2/Compass-2 inclined geosynchronous orbit satellites as illuminators have been designed and conducted. The data were processed by the proposed method. The results show that the method can obtain better image quality compared with the traditional noncoherent fusion method and the single-day imaging result, which validates the proposed method and proves the huge potential in realizing local area monitoring with SS-BiSAR using GNSS satellites as illuminators.
Enhancing Iterative Decoding of Cyclic LDPC Codes Using Their Automorphism Groups

For cyclic LDPC codes, we propose to use their automorphism groups to improve the iterative decoding performance. The basic idea is to construct nonequivalent parity-check matrices via column permutations. Three types of iterative decoders are devised to take advantage of the code's automorphism group. In this paper we focus on cyclic LDPC codes defined by a circulant parity-check matrix and consider two known subgroups of the automorphism group of a cyclic code. For the large class of idempotent-based cyclic LDPC codes in the literature, we show that the two subgroups only provide equivalent parity-check matrices and thus cannot be harnessed for iterative decoding. Towards exploiting the automorphism group of a code, we propose a new class of cyclic LDPC codes based on pseudo-cyclic MDS codes with two information symbols, for which nonequivalent parity-check matrices are obtained. Simulation results show that for our constructed codes of short lengths, the automorphism group can significantly enhance the iterative decoding performance.
L‐3‐hydroxyacyl‐CoA dehydrogenase II protects in a model of Parkinson's disease

The neurotoxin 1‐methyl‐4‐phenyl‐1,2,3,6‐tetrahydropyridine (MPTP) impairs mitochondrial respiration and damages dopaminergic neurons as seen in Parkinson's disease (PD). Here, we report that L‐3‐hydroxyacyl‐CoA dehydrogenase type II/amyloid binding alcohol dehydrogenase (HADH II/ABAD), a mitochondrial oxidoreductase enzyme involved in neuronal survival, is downregulated in PD patients and in MPTP‐intoxicated mice. We also show that transgenic mice with increased expression of human HADH II/ABAD are significantly more resistant to MPTP than their wild‐type littermates. This effect appears to be mediated by overexpression of HADH II/ABAD mitigating MPTP‐induced impairment of oxidative phosphorylation and ATP production. This study demonstrates that HADH II/ABAD modulates MPTP neurotoxicity and suggests that HADH II/ABAD mimetics may provide protective benefit in the treatment of PD. Ann Neurol 2004;56:51–60
Soil moisture causes dynamic adjustments to root reinforcement that reduce slope stability

In steep soil‐mantled landscapes, the initiation of shallow landslides is strongly controlled by the distribution of vegetation, whose roots reinforce the soil. The magnitude of root reinforcement depends on the number, diameter distribution, orientation and the mechanical properties of roots that cross potential failure planes. Understanding how these properties vary in space and time in forests remains a significant challenge. Here we test the hypothesis that spatio‐temporal variations in root reinforcement along a hillslope occur as a function of topographic soil moisture gradients. To test this hypothesis we compared root reinforcement measurements from relatively dry, divergent noses to relatively wet, convergent hollows in the southern Appalachian Mountains, North Carolina, USA. Our initial results showed that root reinforcement decreased in areas of higher soil moisture because the tensile strength of roots decreased. A post hoc laboratory experiment further demonstrated that root tensile strength decreased as root moisture content increased. This effect is consistent with other experiments on stem woods showing that increased water content in the cell wall decreases tensile strength. Our experimental data demonstrated that roots can adjust to changes in the external root moisture conditions within hours, suggesting that root moisture content will change over the timescale of large storm events (hours–days). We assessed the effects of the dynamic changes in root tensile strength to the magnitude of apparent cohesion within the infinite slope stability model. Slopes can be considerably less stable when precipitation‐driven increases in saturated soil depth both increase pore pressures and decrease root reinforcement. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
A Clinical Survey on Hopelessness of Nurses and Their Perceptionof Spirituality or Spiritual Care

Background and objectives: In this hospital-based survey, we aimed to determine the level of hopelessness and the perception of spirituality or spiritual care, and correlation between them in a sample of Turkish nurses. Method: The Beck Hopelessness Scale (BHS) and The Spirituality and Spiritual Care Rating Scale (SSCRS) were used to determine level of hopelessness and perception of spirituality or spiritual care, respectively. Data on sociodemographics and understanding of spirituality were collected with the Study Questionnaire Form. Results: Eighty nurses (77 females, 3 males; mean age, 27.9 ± 4.0 years) participated in the study. Most of the participants (70%) were aware of the importance of spirituality and spiritual care. Total scores were 5.4 ± 4.7 and 52.88 ± 4.79 for BHS and SSCRS scales. There was a weak and negative correlation between total scores of BHS and SSCRS (r=-0.266, p=0.017). Sociodemographic parameters (age, gender, education) and understanding and practice of spiritual care have no or limited effect on the BHS and SSCRS scores. Conclusion: In conclusion, the education, perception, and practice of spiritual care are not sufficient among Turkish nurses. Hopelessness of nurses negatively affects their perception of spirituality and spiritual care.
Cellular Requirements for Bovine Immunodeficiency Virus Vif-Mediated Inactivation of Bovine APOBEC3 Proteins

ABSTRACT Human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) and simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV) viral infectivity factor (Vif) form a CRL5 E3 ubiquitin ligase complex to suppress virus restriction by host APOBEC3 (A3) proteins. The primate lentiviral Vif complex is composed of the unique cofactor core binding factor β (CBF-β) and canonical ligase components Cullin 5 (CUL5), Elongin B/C (ELOB/C), and RBX2. However, the mechanism by which the Vif protein of the related lentivirus bovine immunodeficiency virus (BIV) overcomes its host A3 proteins is less clear. In this study, we show that BIV Vif interacts with Cullin 2 (CUL2), ELOB/C, and RBX1, but not with CBF-β or CUL5, to form a CRL2 E3 ubiquitin ligase and degrade the restrictive bovine A3 proteins (A3Z2Z3 and A3Z3). RNA interference-mediated knockdown of ELOB or CUL2 inhibited BIV Vif-mediated degradation of these A3 proteins, whereas knockdown of CUL5 or CBF-β did not. BIV Vif with mutations in the BC box (Vif SLQ-AAA) or putative VHL box (Vif YI-AA), which cannot interact with ELOB/C or CUL2, respectively, lost the ability to counteract bovine A3 proteins. Moreover, CUL2 and UBE2M dominant negative mutants competitively inhibited the BIV Vif-mediated degradation mechanism. Thus, although the general strategy for inhibiting A3 proteins is conserved between HIV-1/SIV and BIV, the precise mechanisms can differ substantially, with only the HIV-1/SIV Vif proteins requiring CBF-β as a cofactor, HIV-1/SIV Vif using CUL5-RBX2, and BIV Vif using CUL2-RBX1. IMPORTANCE Primate lentivirus HIV-1 and SIV Vif proteins form a ubiquitin ligase complex to target host antiviral APOBEC3 proteins for degradation. However, the mechanism by which the nonprimate lentivirus BIV Vif inhibits bovine APOBEC3 proteins is unclear. In the present study, we determined the mechanism for BIV Vif-mediated degradation of bovine APOBEC3 proteins and found that it differs from the mechanism of HIV-1/SIV Vif by being CBF-β independent and requiring different ubiquitin ligase scaffolding proteins (CUL2-RBX1 instead of CUL5-RBX2). BIV Vif is the only known retroviral protein that can interact with CUL2. This information broadens our understanding of the distinct mechanisms by which the Vif proteins of different lentiviruses facilitate viral infection. This novel mechanism for assembly of the BIV Vif-APOBEC3 ubiquitin ligase complex advances our understanding of viral hijacking of host E3 ubiquitin ligases and illustrates the evolutionary flexibility of lentiviruses.
AutoTutor: an intelligent tutoring system with mixed-initiative dialogue

AutoTutor simulates a human tutor by holding a conversation with the learner in natural language. The dialogue is augmented by an animated conversational agent and three-dimensional (3-D) interactive simulations in order to enhance the learner's engagement and the depth of the learning. Grounded in constructivist learning theories and tutoring research, AutoTutor achieves learning gains of approximately 0.8 sigma (nearly one letter grade), depending on the learning measure and comparison condition. The computational architecture of the system uses the . NET framework and has simplified deployment for classroom trials.
Resilience and indicators of adjustment during rehabilitation from a spinal cord injury.

OBJECTIVES The purposes of this study were to (a) identify changes in resilience and indicators of adjustment (i.e., satisfaction with life, depressive symptomatology, spirituality, functional independence) during inpatient rehabilitation after spinal cord injury (SCI) and (b) examine the relationship between each variable at different stages of the rehabilitation process. DESIGN The sample consisted of 42 individuals with a SCI, including 33 men and 9 women who were inpatients for a mean stay of 51 days (SD = 14.63). A repeated measures design was employed, with questionnaires completed at 3 times during the rehabilitation program (admit, 3 weeks, and discharge). RESULTS Results from the repeated measures multivariate analysis of covariance and post hoc follow-up tests indicated that there was no significant change in resilience, but that there was significant change for each indicator of adjustment during inpatient rehabilitation. Findings also indicated significant correlations between resilience, satisfaction with life, spirituality, and depressive symptoms. CONCLUSION Future studies that focus on developing interventions and examine the factors that predict resilience could help build resilience, which in turn may improve rehabilitation outcomes.
Gβ promotes pheromone receptor polarization and yeast chemotropism by inhibiting receptor phosphorylation

The Gβ subunit promotes mating responses in yeast by keeping pheromone receptors at the cell surface. Protected pheromone receptors signal In budding yeast, opposite mating types signal to each other by secreting distinct pheromones, which bind to and activate receptors on the surface of compatible cells. The stimulated cell produces a mating projection (shmoo), which is enriched in pheromone receptors, that grows along the pheromone gradient to fuse with the shmoo of a mating partner. Ismael et al. imaged pheromone-treated yeast cells and found that the G protein β subunit, which is activated by ligand-bound pheromone receptors, competed with a kinase for access to receptors at the site closest to the highest amount of pheromone. In this way, the phosphorylation and internalization of receptors occurring in the rest of the cell was inhibited at this local site, which enabled the receptor to persist at the cell surface and stimulate growth of the shmoo. Gradient-directed cell migration (chemotaxis) and growth (chemotropism) are processes that are essential to the development and life cycles of all species. Cells use surface receptors to sense the shallow chemical gradients that elicit chemotaxis and chemotropism. Slight asymmetries in receptor activation are amplified by downstream signaling systems, which ultimately induce dynamic reorganization of the cytoskeleton. During the mating response of budding yeast, a model chemotropic system, the pheromone receptors on the plasma membrane polarize to the side of the cell closest to the stimulus. Although receptor polarization occurs before and independently of actin cable–dependent delivery of vesicles to the plasma membrane (directed secretion), it requires receptor internalization. Phosphorylation of pheromone receptors by yeast casein kinase 1 or 2 (Yck1/2) stimulates their internalization. We showed that the pheromone-responsive Gβγ dimer promotes the polarization of the pheromone receptor by interacting with Yck1/2 and locally inhibiting receptor phosphorylation. We also found that receptor phosphorylation is essential for chemotropism, independently of its role in inducing receptor internalization. A mathematical model supports the idea that the interaction between Gβγ and Yck1/2 results in differential phosphorylation and internalization of the pheromone receptor and accounts for its polarization before the initiation of directed secretion.
Sketching Model and Higher Order Neighborhood Markov Random Field-Based SAR Image Segmentation

The Markov random field (MRF) model has been successfully applied to synthetic aperture radar (SAR) image segmentation because of its excellent ability of capturing the local contextual information in the prior model. However, the geometric structures of the SAR image are always ignored when capturing the contextual information in the prior model. Therefore, this letter presents a new SAR image segmentation method based on the sketching model and higher order neighborhood MRF. In this approach, the sketching model is utilized to represent the geometric structures of the SAR image. Meanwhile, a higher order neighborhood is constructed to capture the complex priors. Then, according to the structure fluctuation in the higher order neighborhood, the homogeneous and heterogeneous neighborhoods are distinguished. Finally, the local energy function in the prior model is constructed in the higher order neighborhood with different characteristics. Specifically, the energy functions considering the labeling consistency and focusing on the structure preservations are designed for the homogeneous and heterogeneous neighborhoods, respectively. In this way, the ability of the prior model is improved by adding the geometric structures into the energy functions. Experiments on the real SAR images demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed method in labeling consistency and structure preservations.
Analysis and design of a novel direct flux control scheme for induction machine

In this paper, a improved torque controller of induction machine based on direct control of stator flux linkage vector is presented. The fundamental relationship between the rotating speed of the stator flux linkage and torque is analyzed and the design principle of controller is presented. A simple structure with only one proportional-integral (PI) controller is shown to implement the torque and flux control adequately. Parameters of PI regulator are easily found in the proposed design principle. Fixed switching frequency and low torque ripple are obtained with PI control and space vector modulation (SVM) method. Satisfactory modeling results indicate the feasibility of the proposed direct flux control scheme
Modeling the Rollovers of Sandy Clinoforms from the Gravity Effect on Wave-Agitated Sand

Abstract Clinoforms on coasts exposed to ocean waves form from sand exported from the shoreface during extreme wave conditions and deposited where wave action diminishes. Elsewhere, it is shown that during upper 5-percentile wave conditions, wave-induced shear stresses exceed the sediment threshold of motion to below the clinoform rollovers. Experiments and theory suggest that, where bed sediments are agitated by waves, the effect of gravity should move particles down-slope with a flux proportional to the slope. Combined with considerations of continuity, this implies a diffusion of the sediment topography, a property that would explain the smooth seabed morphology found at sandy rollovers where recorded with multibeam sonar. For situations where this gravity effect dominates, a simple analytical expression developed here shows how the rollover curvature should relate to wave properties and to the offshore component of sediment flux. More sharply curved rollovers are expected where waves have short periods or where the sediment flux is large. Relative sediment fluxes were calculated using the model from rollover curvature and wave properties for sites from California, southeast Australia, and Atlantic and Mediterranean Iberia. The relative magnitudes of the fluxes are roughly as would be expected from local physiography and coastal erosion rates. For sandy clinoforms developed under mainly wave influences, the model could be useful for exploring variations within clinoform datasets (e.g., how varied convexity in an area of uniform wave properties reflects varied sediment flux) and for interpreting how varied curvatures of rollovers within seismic stratigraphy reflect how wave climate and flux have varied in the past.
Changes in Middle Cerebral Artery Blood Flow Velocity During Sonolysis Using a Diagnostic Transcranial Probe With a 2‐MHz Doppler Frequency in Healthy Volunteers

Ultrasound has various biological effects in the human body. The effects of continuous monitoring with ultrasound (sonolysis) on vasodilatation of the radial artery were described recently. We wanted to ascertain whether similar changes in the blood flow velocity during sonolysis could also be detected in the middle cerebral artery.
The cost of comorbidities in treatment for HIV/AIDS in California

Background Antiretroviral therapy has increased longevity for people living with HIV (PLWH). As a result, PLWH increasingly experience the common diseases of aging and the resources needed to manage these comorbidities are increasing. This paper characterizes the number and types of comorbidities diagnosed among PLWH covered by Medicare and examines how non-HIV comorbidities relate to outpatient, inpatient, and pharmaceutical expenditures. Methods The study examined Medicare expenditures for 9767 HIV-positive Californians enrolled in Medicare in 2010 (7208 persons dually covered by Medicare and Medicaid and 2559 with Medicare only). Costs included both out of pocket costs and those paid by Medicare and Medicaid. Comorbidities were determined by examining diagnosis codes. Findings Medicare expenditures for Californians with HIV averaged $47,036 in 2010, with drugs accounting for about 2/3 of the total and outpatient costs 19% of the total. Inpatient costs accounted for 18% of the total. About 64% of the sample had at least one comorbidity in addition to HIV. Cross-validation showed that adding information on comorbidities to the quantile regression improved the accuracy of predicted individual expenditures. Non-HIV comorbidities relating to health habits—diabetes, hypertension, liver disease (hepatitis C), renal insufficiency—are common among PLWH. Cancer was relatively rare, but added significantly to cost. Comorbidities had little effect on pharmaceutical costs, which were dominated by the cost of antiretroviral therapy, but had a major effect on hospital admission. Conclusions Comorbidities are prevalent among PLWH and add substantially to treatment costs for PLWH. Many of these comorbidities relate to health habits that could be addressed with additional prevention in ambulatory care, thereby improving health outcomes and ultimately reducing costs.