Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Determination of Motor Vehicle Profiles for Non-Methane Organic Compounds in the Mexico City Metropolitan Area.

Non-methane organic compound (NMOC) profiles for on-road motor vehicle emissions were measured in a downtown tunnel and parking garages in Mexico City during 1996. Hydrocarbon samples from the tunnel and ambient air samples (C2-C12) were collected using stainless steel canisters, and carbonyl compounds were collected using 2,4-dinitrophenylhydrazine (DNPH) impregnated cartridges. Canister samples were analyzed by gas chromatog-raphy/flame ionization detection (GC/FID) to ascertain detailed hydrocarbon composition. DNPH samples were analyzed by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). NMOC source profiles were quantified for evaporative emissions from refueling, cold start, and hot soak, and on-road operating conditions. The ultimate purpose will be to determine the apportionment of ambient NMOC concentrations using the Chemical Mass Balance (CMB) model. The tunnel profile contained 42.3 ppbC% of alkanes, 20.6 ppbC% of unsaturated compounds, and 22.4 ppbC% of aromatics. The most abundant species were acetylene with 7.22 ppbC%, followed by ipentane with 5.69 ppbC%, and toluene with 5.42 ppbC%. These results were compared with those from studies in the United States. The cold start profile was found to be similar to the tunnel profile, although there were differences in the content of acetylene, isopentane, and oxygenates. The abundance of saturated NMOC in the hot soak profile was similar to gasoline head space profiles; it was also much larger than saturated NMOC in the roadway profile.
Association between renal disease and outcomes among HIV-infected women receiving or not receiving antiretroviral therapy.

BACKGROUND The associations of proteinuria and an elevated creatinine level with progression to acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) and death in the era of highly antiretroviral therapy (HAART) have not been fully described. METHODS This analysis includes 2038 human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected women from the Women's Interagency HIV Study. Time to the development of a new AIDS-defining illness (ADI) and death was modeled using proportional hazards regression before the widespread availability of HAART and after initiation of HAART. RESULTS Of the 2038 subjects, the 14.1% of women with proteinuria had lower CD4 lymphocyte counts and higher viral loads (P<.0001 for all) at baseline and before initiation of HAART. Before the widespread availability of HAART, proteinuria was associated with an increased risk for development of ADI (hazard ratio [HR], 1.37; P=.005), and proteinuria and an elevated creatinine level were both associated with an increased risk of death (for proteinuria: HR, 1.35 [P=.04]; for creatinine: HR, 1.72 per decrease in the inverse unit [P=.02]). Among women initiating HAART, an elevated creatinine level remained associated with an increased risk of development of ADI (HR, 1.54 per decrease in the inverse unit; P=.03), and proteinuria and an elevated creatinine level were associated with an increased risk of death (for proteinuria: HR, 2.07 [P=.005]; for creatinine: HR, 1.96 per decrease in the inverse unit [P=.04]). CONCLUSIONS Proteinuria and an elevated creatinine level were associated with an increased risk of death and development of ADI. These associations may reflect the direct role of the kidney in modulating HIV disease, or they may act as markers of greater comorbidity.
Multi-slice computed tomography: A tool for non-invasive temperature measurement?

Purpose: To investigate the potential of multi-slice computed tomography (MSCT) as a tool for non-invasive temperature measurement. Materials and methods: Samples of water, 0.9% saline, sunflower oil and dilutions of (1:32, 1:64, 1:128) contrast agent (Iopromid 370, BayerSchering Pharma, Berlin) were heated in a plexiglass phantom. In a first set-up, samples of 0.9% saline solution were scanned at defined temperatures (25°–75°C; 5°C intervals) using a clinical CT scanner. Scan parameters (tube current–time product, tube voltage, collimation, slice thickness) were systematically varied. In a second set-up samples of the different fluids (water, sunflower oil, contrast agent dilutions) were scanned using the following scan protocol: 250 mAs, 140 kV, 1.2 mm collimation, 9.6 mm slice thickness. CT numbers were measured in reconstructed axial images at the different temperatures. A regression analysis was performed to investigate the relationship between temperature and CT number. Results: Standard deviation of measured CT numbers decreased with increasing tube current–time product, increasing tube voltage, thicker collimation and higher slice thickness. Regression analysis showed an inverse relationship between temperature and CT number for all fluids with regression coefficients of −0.471 (0.9% saline), 0.447 (water), −0.679 (sunflower oil), −0.420 (contrast agent 1:32), −0.414 (contrast agent 1:64) and −0.441 (contrast agent 1:128), respectively. Conclusion: Multi-slice computed tomography can depict thermal density expansion of different fluids. Based on these results the implementation of a temperature discrimination of several degrees C at a high spatial resolution is achievable.
Homologous desensitization with gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) also diminishes gonadotrope responsiveness to maitotoxin: a role for the GnRH receptor-regulated calcium ion channel in mediation of cellular desensitization.

Maitotoxin (MTX) stimulates gonadotropin release from pituitary cell cultures. The time course and efficacy of LH release in response to GnRH and to MTX are similar; both secretagogues require extracellular Ca2+ and are inhibited by the selective Ca2+ ion channel antagonist methoxyverapamil (D600). LH release in response to either GnRH or MTX is not measurably inhibited by two other chemical classes of Ca2+ ion channel inhibitors represented by nifedipine and by diltiazem. The two secretagogues are nonadditive in their action on LH release when presented at high doses and prior studies indicate that MTX has no endogenous ionophoretic activity. These observations indicate that MTX likely stimulates LH release due to activation of the GnRH receptor associated Ca2+-ion channel in the gonadotrope. We have therefore assessed the functional state of this channel during the development of homologous desensitization of the gonadotrope to GnRH by measuring the ability of MTX to stimulate LH release. Cells were desensitized with GnRH in the presence of 3 mM EGTA. Under these conditions, the cells become refractory to GnRH in the absence of gonadotropin release since the latter process, but not the former, requires extracellular Ca2+. Accordingly, this approach allows assessment of the degree of desensitization in the absence of the influence of gonadotropin depletion. Such desensitized cells are less responsive to GnRH. Desensitized pituitary cells also respond with diminished efficacy and potency to MTX three or more hours after GnRH treatment but not at an earlier time (1 h) when GnRH receptors are diminished. These data are consistent with a model in which homologous desensitization is viewed as developing in two phases. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Tracking Vocal Pitch through Noise: Neural Correlates in Nonprimary Auditory Cortex

In natural environments, a sound can be heard as stable despite the presence of other occasionally louder sounds. For example, when a portion in a voice is replaced by masking noise, the interrupted voice may still appear illusorily continuous. Previous research found that continuity illusions of simple interrupted sounds, such as tones, are accompanied by weaker activity in the primary auditory cortex (PAC) during the interruption than veridical discontinuity percepts of these sounds. Here, we studied whether continuity illusions of more natural and more complex sounds also emerge from this mechanism. We used psychophysics and functional magnetic resonance imaging in humans to measure simultaneously continuity ratings and blood oxygenation level-dependent activity to vowels that were partially replaced by masking noise. Consistent with previous results on tone continuity illusions, we found listeners' reports of more salient vowel continuity illusions associated with weaker activity in auditory cortex (compared with reports of veridical discontinuity percepts of physically identical stimuli). In contrast to the reduced activity to tone continuity illusions in PAC, this reduction was localized in the right anterolateral Heschl's gyrus, a region that corresponds more to the non-PAC. Our findings suggest that the ability to hear differently complex sounds as stable during other louder sounds may be attributable to a common suppressive mechanism that operates at different levels of sound representation in auditory cortex.
Parameters Recovery via Calibration in the Heston Model: A Comprehensive Review

Numerous publications take a perfect recovery of the actual parameters during a calibration of stochastic volatility models, such as the Heston model and other continuous option pricing models, for granted. However, we show that this is a misleading assumption and that a high accuracy in capturing the true model parameters is not guaranteed for standard calibration approaches, as they are commonly utilized in the financial industry. Having conducted several thousand model calibrations within an artificial testing environment, we are able to identify three factors that influence the resulting calibrated parameters strongly. These are the number of calibration instruments (i.e., option prices or implied Black-Scholes volatilities) available for the calibration, the error measure selected for the calibration, as well as the choice of initial values (particularly their distance to the known true model parameters). Using synthetic, yet generic, data instead of market observed data, we are able to avoid model risk and contribute purely to the literature on calibration risk. We quantify the impact of these factors on the calibration performance by measuring the calibration error (i.e., the distance between the calibrated and known true model parameters). Based on our numerical results, we are able to derive conclusions which can be useful for academics and practitioners alike. We further specify a calibration setup which does not assure, but significantly increases, the probability of a perfect or near-perfect model calibration.
Homooligopeptides composed of hydrophobic amino acid residues interact in a specific manner by taking alpha-helix or beta-structure toward lipid bilayers.

In order to investigate the role of each amino acid residue in determining the secondary structure of the transmembrane segment of membrane proteins in a lipid bilayer, we made a conformational analysis by CD for lipid-soluble homooligopeptides, benzyloxycarbonyl-(Z-)Aaan-OEt (n = 5 - 7), composed of Ala, Leu, Val, and Phe, in three media of trifluoroethanol, sodium dodecyl sulfate micelle, and phospholipid liposomes. The lipid-peptide interaction was also studied through the observation of bilayer phase transition by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The CD studies showed that peptides except for Phe oligomers are present as a mainly random structure in trifluoroethanol, as a mixture of alpha-helix, beta-sheet, beta-turn, and/or random in micelles above the critical micellization concentration and preferably as an extended structure of alpha-helical or beta-structure in dipalmitoyl-D,L-alpha-phosphatidylcholine (DPPC) liposomes of gel state. That the beta-structural content of Val oligomers in lipid bilayers is much higher than that in micelles and the oligopeptides of Leu (n = 7) and Ala (n = 6) can take an alpha-helical structure with one to two turns in lipid bilayers despite their short chain lengths indicates that lipid bilayers can stabilize the extended structures of both alpha-helical and beta-structures of the peptides. The DSC study for bilayer phase transition of DPPC/peptide mixtures showed that the Leu oligomer virtually affects neither the temperature nor the enthalpy of the transition, while Val and Ala oligomers slightly reduce the transition enthalpy without altering the transition temperature. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Optimization of RNA Extraction for PCR Quantification of Aromatic Compound Degradation Genes

ABSTRACT Seven different bacterial strains and primer sets and a mixed community were used to evaluate the use of reverse transcriptase quantitative PCR (Q-PCR) and Q-PCR of oxygenase genes to assess various approaches for monitoring the bioremediation of polluted sites. Differences in maximum activity were seen when different RNA extraction kits were compared.
Resolution of mucus plugging and atelectasis after intratracheal rhDNase therapy in a mechanically ventilated child with refractory status asthmaticus

Objective: To report the dramatic resolution of unilateral mucus plugging and atelectasis in a mechanically ventilated child with refractory status asthmaticus after intratracheal recombinant human DNase (rhDNase) therapy. Design: Case report. Setting: Critical care unit. Patient: A 7‐yr‐old boy with status asthmaticus, severe respiratory failure and barotrauma unresponsive to conventional therapy. Fiberoptic bronchoscopy confirmed widespread mucus impaction of the subsegmental bronchi of the left lung without response to bronchoscopic lavage. Interventions: Two 10‐mg doses of intratracheal rhDNase were administered 8 hrs apart. Main Results: The left‐sided atelectasis resolved 3 hrs after the first dose of rhDNase. Improvements in gas exchange and tidal volumes were sustained and particularly noticeable after the second dose. The patient was successfully extubated 26 hrs after receiving the rhDNase treatment without any adverse effects. Conclusions: rhDNase should be considered as a potential therapy for refractory mucus plugging and atelectasis in intubated patients with status asthmaticus.
Classification of silicon solar cells using Electroluminescence texture analysis

An automated procedure for classification of polycrystalline silicon solar cells with respect to their electrical characteristics is presented in this work. Electrical characteristics of solar cells are a very important issue in the photovoltaic panel production process, as they affect the final product quality. The procedure is composed of two sequential steps: in the first step a vector of features is extracted from the Electroluminescence intensity images of photovoltaic cells, making use of a texture analysis technique named Sum and Difference Histogram. In the second step the classification is carried out through a particular structure of Neural Network and a proper decision rule. The technique is especially suited to be implemented in production line, as it is fast and has a low computational complexity. Moreover, experimental results demonstrate the good performances in terms of successful classification.
The Pet Food Industry: An Innovative Distribution Channel for Animal Welfare Meat?

This paper investigates the notion of launching an innovative pet food segment labelled “made from animal welfare meat” to achieve an added value for by-products that accrue in the production of animal welfare meat. Since the pet food market is characterized by a large premium segment and pet owners are generally believed to be interested in the welfare of animals, the idea seems promising at first sight, but there is a lack of reliable evidence. Therefore, the main objective of this investigation was to determine, based on existing data from previous studies, the particular interest of pet owners in the welfare of farm animals before further cost-intensive studies are developed and conducted. The results of a comparison of pet owners’ and non–pet own-ers’ attitudes to the issue of animal welfare in livestock farming revealed highly significant differences. Pet owners not only have a more critical attitude towards intensive livestock farming but are also very interested in animal welfare meat and show a significantly higher willingness-to-pay for animal-friendly meat products. On the basis of these findings, specific studies analysing the market potential and the feasibility of pet food made of animal welfare meat are highly recommended.
Regulation of Arrestin Binding by Rhodopsin Phosphorylation Level*

Arrestins ensure the timely termination of receptor signaling. The role of rhodopsin phosphorylation in visual arrestin binding was established more than 20 years ago, but the effects of the number of receptor-attached phosphates on this interaction remain controversial. Here we use purified rhodopsin fractions with carefully quantified content of individual phosphorylated rhodopsin species to elucidate the impact of phosphorylation level on arrestin interaction with three biologically relevant functional forms of rhodopsin: light-activated and dark phosphorhodopsin and phospho-opsin. We found that a single receptor-attached phosphate does not facilitate arrestin binding, two are necessary to induce high affinity interaction, and three phosphates fully activate arrestin. Higher phosphorylation levels do not increase the stability of arrestin complex with light-activated rhodopsin but enhance its binding to the dark phosphorhodopsin and phospho-opsin. The complex of arrestin with hyperphosphorylated light-activated rhodopsin is less sensitive to high salt and appears to release retinal faster. These data suggest that arrestin likely quenches rhodopsin signaling after the third phosphate is added by rhodopsin kinase. The complex of arrestin with heavily phosphorylated rhodopsin, which appears to form in certain disease states, has distinct characteristics that may contribute to the phenotype of these visual disorders.
A miniature, broadband, non-dispersive phase shifter based on CRLH TL unit cells

This paper proposes a topology to develop a miniature, wideband, well-matched, non-dispersive phase shifter with low insertion loss on the basis of composite right/left handed (CRLH) transmission line (TL) unit cells. To demonstrate the proposed approach, a lumped element design was prototyped. The lumped element design operates at a center frequency of 2.4 GHz with 50% bandwidth. Experimental results of the lumped element design demonstrate return loss ≥ 10 dB, insertion loss ≤ 0.5 dB, with a phase shift of 45 +/- 1.5 degrees over the entire bandwidth.
The Spoken Dutch Corpus and its Exploitation Environment

The Spoken Dutch Corpus project (1998-2003) is aimed at the development of a corpus of 1,000 hours of speech. The corpus is being annotated with various types of transcriptions and annotations and will be distributed together with the speech recordings. In order for users to access the data efficiently and with relative ease, exploitation software is being developed that can handle both sound files and other types of data files. After a brief introduction in which the goals of the project are outlined, the present paper first describes the Spoken Dutch Corpus as it is presently being constructed and then goes on to describe in some detail the exploitation software. The exploitation environment makes it possible to view the data contained in the Spoken Dutch Corpus as one item in a network of other similarly structured corpora. Our outlook on such a corpus universe can be found in the ‘Future Work’ section.
Association of chronotype and social jetlag with human non-verbal intelligence

ABSTRACT The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of chronotype and social jetlag (SJL) on intelligence. Subjects were aged 14–25 years (n = 1008). A significant effect of intelligence on academic performance, as measured by the Raven’s Standard Progressive Matrices test, was found (F2,917 = 11.75, P < 0.0001, η2 = 0.03). When SJL was less than 2 hours, the intelligence of people with late chronotype was found to be higher than that of subjects with early and intermediate chronotypes (F2,305 = 3.12, P < 0.05, η2 = 0.02). A negative effect of SJL on the results of intelligence testing was noted only in subjects with late chronotype (F2,536 = 2.61, P < 0.05, η2 = 0.02). Our data suggest that people with late chronotype have a higher level of intelligence, but these advantages disappear when SJL ≥2 hours.
Low complexity detail preserving multi-exposure image fusion for images with balanced exposure

Multi-exposure image fusion has undergone considerable growth in the last few years, but the challenge still remains to design an algorithm which is efficient in fusion yet low in complexity, such that it can be implemented for real time applications on embedded platforms which have low computational power. A simple, low complexity algorithm for multi-exposure image fusion is proposed in this paper to cater to this need. The algorithm is designed for the image sequences that spread evenly over the exposure range, without any bias towards under or overexposedness. The fusion algorithm assigns weights to pixels of images to be fused, based on the exposure of the input images. The fusion algorithm is free from filtering and transformation, and is carried out on per pixel basis, thus making it highly efficient in terms of computational complexity. The experimental results show that our algorithm produces visually comparable results with some of the commonly used algorithms, which are computationally much more complex. Also, the proposed algorithm is immune to ghosting artifacts caused due to spatial misalignment of the input images.
Ascertaining the Role of Socio-Economic-Demographic and Government Food Policy Related Factors on the Per Capita Intake of Dietary Fiber Derived from Consumption of Various Foods in the United States

The 2010 USDA Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommended that individuals consume around 25 grams of dietary fiber per person per day. Yet despite these recommendations, consumers do not purchase enough foods high in dietary fiber. To investigate the factors behind this behavior, we use the Nielsen Homescan data to create a quarterly panel from 2004 through 2014 of 9,896 households from across the United States. This research contributes to the literature by simultaneously investigating per capita purchases of products containing fiber: (1) bread (2) pasta, (3) tortilla, (4) fresh fruit, (5) fresh vegetables and beans, (6) frozen fruit, (7) frozen vegetables and beans, (8) canned fruit, (9) canned vegetables and beans. We perform the estimation using a random effects panel Tobit model in order to account for the censored nature of the available data. Preliminary results suggest that those with a higher income or education report more consumption of fiber from fresh and frozen vegetables and less from pasta. Those living below 130 percent and 185 percent of the poverty level do not seem to purchase significantly less fiber per capita relative to those above these poverty levels. A test of the effectiveness of fiber consumption promotion in the 2010 Dietary Guidelines seems to show mixed results
Caffeine and heat shock induce adenylate cyclase in Dictyostelium discoideum

When vegetative cells of Dictyostelium discoideum were incubated in nutrient medium containing 5 mM caffeine, adenylate cyclase was induced and exceeded control values 30‐fold after 6 h of incubation. The effect was dose‐dependent and blocked by cycloheximide. Contact site A, a developmentally regulated membrane glycoprotein characteristic of aggregation‐competent cells, was not induced by the treatment. The expression of a developmentally regulated gene coding for an unknown protein and hybridizing with the cDNA clone P26E8 was also stimulated, indicating that the regulation of expression occurs at the transcript level. Cells pretreated with caffeine in growth medium, washed and developed in starvation buffer showed an acceleration of development by 2 h as judged by stream formation and the appearance of contact sites A. The same effects were observed when cells were incubated under heat shock conditions (30°C). The results indicate that caffeine stimulates the expression of devevelopmentally regulated early genes, and that their products, together with exogeneous factor(s), initiate subsequent steps of development.