Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Highly Organic Soil Stabilization by Using Sugarcane Bagasse Ash (SCBA)

The study objective is to develop alternative binders that are environment friendly by utilizing sugarcane bagasse ash (SCBA) in the organic soil stabilization. Together with SCBA, Ordinary Portland Cement (OPC), calcium chloride (CaCl 2 ) and silica sand (K7) were used as additives to stabilize the peat. In obtaining the optimal mix design, specimens of stabilized peat were tested in unconfined compression. It was found that stabilized peat comprising 20% and 5% (PCB1-20 and PCB2-5) partial replacement of OPC with SCBA 1 and SCBA 2 attain the maximum unconfined compressive strength (UCS) and discovered greater than UCS of peat-cement (PC) specimen. At the optimal mix design, the UCS of the stabilized peat specimens increased with increasing of curing time, preloading rate, OPC and K7 dosage. For PCB1-20 mixture, inclusion of a minimum OPC of 300kg/m 3 and K7 of 500kg/m 3 along with curing under 20kPa pressure is recommendable for the peat stabilization to be effective. However for PCB2-5, it suggested to use more OPC and K7 dosage or alternatively increase the preloading during curing to 40kPa in order to achieve target UCS. It can be concluded that SCBA 1 has better quality than SCBA 2 in peat stabilization especially the contribution made by its fine particle size.
Distributing Recognition in Computational Paralinguistics

In this paper, we propose and evaluate a distributed system for multiple Computational Paralinguistics tasks in a client-server architecture. The client side deals with feature extraction, compression, and bit-stream formatting, while the server side performs the reverse process, plus model training, and classification. The proposed architecture favors large-scale data collection and continuous model updating, personal information protection, and transmission bandwidth optimization. In order to preliminarily investigate the feasibility and reliability of the proposed system, we focus on the trade-off between transmission bandwidth and recognition accuracy. We conduct large-scale evaluations of some key functions, namely, feature compression/decompression, model training and classification, on five common paralinguistic tasks related to emotion, intoxication, pathology, age and gender. We show that, for most tasks, with compression ratios up to 40 (bandwidth savings up to 97.5 percent), the recognition accuracies are very close to the baselines. Our results encourage future exploitation of the system proposed in this paper, and demonstrate that we are not far from the creation of robust distributed multi-task paralinguistic recognition systems which can be applied to a myriad of everyday life scenarios.
Novel Transthyretin Amyloid Fibril Formation Inhibitors: Synthesis, Biological Evaluation, and X-Ray Structural Analysis

Transthyretin (TTR) is one of thirty non-homologous proteins whose misfolding, dissociation, aggregation, and deposition is linked to human amyloid diseases. Previous studies have identified that TTR amyloidogenesis can be inhibited through stabilization of the native tetramer state by small molecule binding to the thyroid hormone sites of TTR. We have evaluated a new series of β-aminoxypropionic acids (compounds 5–21), with a single aromatic moiety (aryl or fluorenyl) linked through a flexible oxime tether to a carboxylic acid. These compounds are structurally distinct from the native ligand thyroxine and typical halogenated biaryl NSAID-like inhibitors to avoid off-target hormonal or anti-inflammatory activity. Based on an in vitro fibril formation assay, five of these compounds showed significant inhibition of TTR amyloidogenesis, with two fluorenyl compounds displaying inhibitor efficacy comparable to the well-known TTR inhibitor diflunisal. Fluorenyl 15 is the most potent compound in this series and importantly does not show off-target anti-inflammatory activity. Crystal structures of the TTR∶inhibitor complexes, in agreement with molecular docking studies, revealed that the aromatic moiety, linked to the sp2-hybridized oxime carbon, specifically directed the ligand in either a forward or reverse binding mode. Compared to the aryl family members, the bulkier fluorenyl analogs achieved more extensive interactions with the binding pockets of TTR and demonstrated better inhibitory activity in the fibril formation assay. Preliminary optimization efforts are described that focused on replacement of the C-terminal acid in both the aryl and fluorenyl series (compounds 22–32). The compounds presented here constitute a new class of TTR inhibitors that may hold promise in treating amyloid diseases associated with TTR misfolding.
A robust nonsymmetric student's-t finite mixture model for MR image segmentation

In this paper, a nonsymmetric Student's-t distribution model is proposed for magnetic resonance (MR) image segmentation based on Markov random field (MRF) and weighted mean template. The presented nonsymmetric Student's-t distribution with longer tails and one more parameter compared to Gaussian distribution is implemented because in real applications, the distribution of data set does not totally follow symmetric distribution. Thus, our method fits much closer to different shapes of observed data. With the help of MRF and weighted mean template, the spatial information is also taken into consideration in MR image segmentation. Then, the expectation-maximization (EM) algorithm is introduced to solve the problem of parameter learning. The accuracy and effectiveness of the proposed method is quantitatively assessed in both simulated and clinical MR images.
Nephrogenic diabetes insipidus caused by mutation of Tyr205: A key residue of V2 vasopressin receptor function

Mutations in the V2 vasopressin receptor (AVPR2) are the most frequent genetic cause of the inherited nephrogenic diabetes insipidus (NDI). About 50% of all missense mutations found in extracellular loops of AVPR2 introduce additional cysteine residues, e.g. R181C, G185C, and Y205C. To explain the loss of receptor function two mechanistic models were suggested: First, the introduction of an additional extracellular Cys residue disrupts the conserved disulfide bond connecting the first and the second extracellular loop. And second, the mutationally introduced Cys residue forms a second disulfide bond with a free Cys residue within the second exoloop. Herein, we took advantage of a new NDI‐causing mutation Y205H which affects a codon frequently found to be mutated to Cys in NDI patients. In contrast to Y205C the two mechanisms described above cannot account for the loss of receptor function of Y205H. In‐depth functional characterization of mutant AVPR2 showed that also for Y205C the lack of a Tyr residue at position 205 is responsible for the abolished receptor function rather than the formation of a disastrous second disulfide bond. The concerted experimental and phylogenetic analysis emphasizes that Y205 is a key residue in maintaining the structure of AVPR2 and other members of the vasopressin receptor family. © 2005 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Influence of grinding residual stresses on contact loading strength degradation in Y-TZP

The influence of grinding surface stresses in Y-TZP doped with 2.5% molar yttria on the contact loading response has been studied. It is shown that by grinding with different pressures compression residual stresses are induced in a surface layer of about 10 µm in depth. Their effect is manifested by shorter indentation cracks in ground specimens, but they recover the original lengths of annealed specimens after a surface thin layer is removed by polishing. The response to cyclic contact loading with a ball of 1.96 mm in diameter has been studied by looking to the damage that takes place below the indenter, as well as by measuring the flexure biaxial strength after 1, 103 and 105 cycles and for different load amplitudes. It is found that there is a threshold load, that is, a maximum contact load below which there is no degradation in the strength. This threshold is lower when transformability is higher and it depends on the number of contact cycles. But after a given large number of cycles, no further important additional degradation takes place. Under repeated contact loading in annealed specimens at loads for which a marked degradation in strength is detected, nucleation and growth of like-radial cracks is the main cause for the loss of strength, while for of ground specimens the extension of these defects is impeded by the compression surface residual stresses.
Changes in Tissue Oxygen Saturation with Well- and Tight-Fitted Compression Sleeves During an Incremental Exercise on Treadmill

Background: Effects of lower-limb compression garments on hemodynamics during walking or running remain unclear. Objectives: The purpose was to examine the changes in tissue oxygen saturation (StO2) with well- and tight-fitted compression sleeves - before, during and after an exercise on treadmill. Methods: 14 athletes came to the laboratory three times to complete the same session with or without well- (COMP) and tight-fitted (COMP+) calf compression sleeves. The session included an incremental exercise on treadmill: 2 min at each intensity - 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7 km/h - each was preceded and followed by a 10-minute rest in a seated position. Calf StO2 was recorded using near infrared spectroscopy before, during and after the exercise. Results: StO2 significantly increased with COMP and COMP+ before (+ 25.2 ± 2.7 % and +22.5 ± 2.7 %) and after the exercise (+ 11.0 ± 1.5 % and +10.2 ± 1.7 %). StO2 also increased while walking but declined as the intensity progressed (+ 14.6 ± 1.9 %, +11.7 ± 1.7 %, +8.5 ± 1.8 %, +8.1 ± 1.8 %, + 5.2 ± 1.7, +3.1 ± 2.0 % and -1.3 ± 4.0 % with COMP vs. +11.3 ± 2.0 %, +8.5 ± 1.7 %, +6.0 ± 1.9 %, +5.9 ± 1.7 %, + 2.9 ± 1.6 %, -0.2 ± 2.2 % and -6.5 ± 3.6 % with COMP+). With COMP+ the significance phased out earlier (2 km/h vs. 4 km/h with COMP) and was altered at 7 km/h (while the effects were trivial with COMP). The differential was considered small compared to without (Cohen’s d = - 0.38; 95 % CI -5.46 to 4.69) and COMP (d = 0.27; 95 % CI -5.30 to 5.84). Conclusions: This study gives ground to the hypothesis that wearing calf compression sleeves may be useful during prolonged efforts involving sections of low-velocity walks (i.e. < 6 km/h such as Nordic walking or ultra-trail races), by virtue of their effect on StO2. It also appears that compression sleeves could be useful in re-oxygenating tired muscles after exercise. Finally this work provides information about the modalities for using compression garments. Indeed, using very tight-fitted compression garments may alter the hemodynamics and potentially jeopardize performances.
3D-QSPR Method of Computational Technique Applied on Red Reactive Dyes by Using CoMFA Strategy

Cellulose fiber is a tremendous natural resource that has broad application in various productions including the textile industry. The dyes, which are commonly used for cellulose printing, are “reactive dyes” because of their high wet fastness and brilliant colors. The interaction of various dyes with the cellulose fiber depends upon the physiochemical properties that are governed by specific features of the dye molecule. The binding pattern of the reactive dye with cellulose fiber is called the ligand-receptor concept. In the current study, the three dimensional quantitative structure property relationship (3D-QSPR) technique was applied to understand the red reactive dyes interactions with the cellulose by the Comparative Molecular Field Analysis (CoMFA) method. This method was successfully utilized to predict a reliable model. The predicted model gives satisfactory statistical results and in the light of these, it was further analyzed. Additionally, the graphical outcomes (contour maps) help us to understand the modification pattern and to correlate the structural changes with respect to the absorptivity. Furthermore, the final selected model has potential to assist in understanding the charachteristics of the external test set. The study could be helpful to design new reactive dyes with better affinity and selectivity for the cellulose fiber.
Femtosecond laser ablated durable superhydrophobic PTFE sheet for oil/water separation

Femtosecond laser microfabrication has been attracting increasing interest of researchers in recent years, and been applied on interface science to control the wettability of solid surfaces. Herein, we fabricate a kind of rough microstructures on polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) sheet by femtosecond laser. The femtosecond laser ablated surfaces show durable superhydrophobicity and ultralow water adhesion even after storing in a harsh environment for a long time, including strong acid, strong alkali, and high temperature. A penetrating microholes array was further generated on the rough superhydrophobic PTFE sheet by a subsequent mechanical drilling process. The as-prepared material was successfully applied in the field of oil/water separation due to the inverse superhydrophobicity and superoleophilicity.
Investigation of the bending behaviour of multi-ply dry carbon fibre non-crimped fabrics

Abstract An experimental study on the bending behaviour of dry single-ply and multi-ply preforms is presented. The study is based on five carbon fibre non-crimped fabrics (NCF), of which four are biaxial (two 0°/90° and two ±45°) and one is a triaxial (0°/±45°) NCF. The influence of superficial density (300 g/m², 600 g/m²), type of stitching (tricot, pillar, hybrid), number of plies (1–6), fibre orientation, testing direction (0° and 90°) as well as testing velocity (0.136 rad/s, 0.273 rad/s) on the bending behaviour were examined. The results indicate that NCFs with comparatively high superficial density require higher bending forces (up to 73%). Furthermore, the type of stitching enormously influences the bending behaviour. It was also found that the relation between bending force and increasing number of plies is quasi-linear. No influence of testing velocity on the resultant bending forces was found for the investigated speed ranges.
Urinary Glycoprotein Biomarker Discovery for Bladder Cancer Detection Using LC/MS-MS and Label-Free Quantification

Background: Cancers of the urinary bladder are the fifth most commonly diagnosed malignancy in the United States. Early clinical diagnosis of bladder cancer remains a major challenge, and the development of noninvasive methods for detection and surveillance is desirable for both patients and health care providers. Approach: To identify urinary proteins with potential clinical utility, we enriched and profiled the glycoprotein component of urine samples by using a dual-lectin affinity chromatography and liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry platform. Results: From a primary sample set obtained from 54 cancer patients and 46 controls, a total of 265 distinct glycoproteins were identified with high confidence, and changes in glycoprotein abundance between groups were quantified by a label-free spectral counting method. Validation of candidate biomarker alpha-1-antitrypsin (A1AT) for disease association was done on an independent set of 70 samples (35 cancer cases) by using an ELISA. Increased levels of urinary A1AT glycoprotein were indicative of the presence of bladder cancer (P < 0.0001) and augmented voided urine cytology results. A1AT detection classified bladder cancer patients with a sensitivity of 74% and specificity of 80%. Summary: The described strategy can enable higher resolution profiling of the proteome in biological fluids by reducing complexity. Application of glycoprotein enrichment provided novel candidates for further investigation as biomarkers for the noninvasive detection of bladder cancer. Clin Cancer Res; 17(10); 3349–59. ©2011 AACR.
Treatment of ventricular tachyarrhythmias resulting from amitriptyline toxicity in dogs.

This study was designed to analyze the effects of lidocaine and sodium bicarbonate on ventricular arrhythmias resulting from amitriptyline infusion in dogs. Amitriptyline was infused i.v. at 0.5 mg/kg/min for 30 min, followed by 1 mg/kg/min to dogs anesthetized with morphine and alpha-chloralose. When arrhythmia occurred, the infusion rate was reduced by one-third and the effect of various interventions studied. In the initial 18 dogs, lidocaine, sodium bicarbonate or isotonic saline was administered i.v. to six dogs each in a randomized, blinded fashion. The prevalence of ventricular ectopic complexes was not changed after isotonic saline, but was reduced by lidocaine at concentrations greater than or equal to 5 mg/l and by sodium bicarbonate. The effects of lidocaine were transient and associated with significant blood pressure reduction. Sodium bicarbonate produced more dramatic and sustained arrhythmia reversal along with a reduction in amitriptyline-induced conduction slowing. Administration of hypertonic sodium chloride in equimolar quantities to sodium bicarbonate failed to affect amitriptyline-induced ventricular arrhythmias significantly, but hyperventilation to a pH similar to that produced by sodium bicarbonate (7.48) significantly reduced the frequency of amitriptyline-induced ventricular ectopy. When amitriptyline was infused into dogs ventilated with various respiratory rates, ventricular arrhythmia resulted in 18 of 18 (100%) dogs with pH less than 7.42, 2 of 4 (50%) dogs with pH between 7.48 and 7.51 and 0 of 8 (0%) dogs with a pH between 7.59 and 7.65 (P less than or equal to .001). These results suggest that sodium bicarbonate is effective treatment for amitriptyline-induced cardiac arrhythmias with beneficial effects largely due to alkalinization. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Technical Concept and Technology Choices for Implementing a Tangible Version of the Sokoban Game

This paper presents and discusses the technical concept of a virtual reality version of the Sokoban game with a tangible interface. The underlying rationale is to provide spinal-cord injury patients who are learning to use a neuroprosthesis to restore their capability of grasping with a game environment for training. We describe as relevant elements to be considered in such a gaming concept: input, output, virtual objects, physical objects, activity tracking and personalised level recommender. Finally, we also describe our experiences with instantiating the overall concept with hand-held mobile phones, smart glasses and a head mounted cardboard setup.
A comprehensive profile of the sociodemographic, psychosocial and health characteristics of Ontario home care clients with dementia.

INTRODUCTION This study provides a comprehensive summary of the sociodemographic, psychosocial and health characteristics of a large population-based cohort of Ontario home care clients (aged 50 years and over) with dementia and examines the variation in these characteristics in those with co-existing neurological conditions. METHODS Clients were assessed with the Resident Assessment Instrument-Home Care (RAI-HC) between January 2003 and December 2010. Descriptive analyses examined the distribution of these characteristics among clients with dementia relative to several comparison groups, as well as clients with other recorded neurological conditions. RESULTS Approximately 22% of clients (n=104 802) had a diagnosis of dementia (average age 83 years, 64% female) and about one in four within this group had a co-existing neurological condition (most commonly stroke or Parkinson disease). About 43% of those with dementia did not live with their primary caregiver. Relative to several comparison groups, clients with dementia showed considerably higher levels of cognitive and functional impairment, aggression, anxiety, wandering, hallucinations/delusions, caregiver distress and a greater risk for institutionalization. Conversely, they showed a lower prevalence of several chronic conditions and lower levels of recent health service use. Depressive symptoms were relatively common in the dementia and other neurological groups. CONCLUSION Clients with co-existing neurological conditions exhibited unique clinical profiles illustrating the need for tailored and flexible home care services and enhanced caregiver assistance programs.
ArcheoTUI—Driving virtual reassemblies with tangible 3D interaction

ArcheoTUI is a new tangible user interface for the efficient assembly of the 3D scanned fragments of fractured archeological objects. An efficient user interaction for the complex task to orientate or position two 3D objects relative to each other is essential, eventually in addition to automatic matching techniques. Our key idea is to use tangible props for the manipulation of the virtual fragments. In each hand, the user manipulates an electromagnetically tracked prop, and the translations and rotations are directly mapped to the corresponding virtual fragments on the display. For each hand, a corresponding foot pedal is used to clutch the movements of the hands. Hence, the user's hands can be repositioned, or the user can be switched. The software of ArcheoTUI is designed to easily change assembly hypotheses, beyond classical undo/redo, by using a scene graph. We designed ArcheoTUI on the demand of archeaologists and in a direct collaboration with them, and we conducted two user studies on site at their workplace. The first user study revealed that the interface, and especially the foot pedal, was accepted, and that all the users managed to solve simple assembly tasks. In a second user study, we compare a different clutching mechanism with buttons on the props to the foot pedal mechanism. This second user study revealed that the movement of the hands is more similar to real-world assembly scenarios when using the foot pedals, and that the users can keep on concentrating on the actual assembly task. Finally, we show how the virtual assembly is used for a fractured archeological finding.
Functional Domains of Histone Deacetylase-3*

Post-translational modifications of histones, in general, and acetylation/deacetylation, in particular, can dramatically alter gene expression in eukaryotic cells. In humans, four highly homologous class I HDAC enzymes (HDAC1, HDAC2, HDAC3, and HDAC8) have been identified to date. Although HDAC3 shares some structural and functional similarities with other class I HDACs, it exists in multisubunit complexes separate and different from other known HDAC complexes, implying that individual HDACs might function in a distinct manner. In this current study, to understand further the cellular function of HDAC3 and to uncover possible unique roles this protein may have in gene regulation, we performed a detailed analysis of HDAC3 using deletion mutations. Surprisingly, we found that the non-conserved C-terminal region of HDAC3 is required for both deacetylase and transcriptional repression activity. In addition, we discovered that the central portion of the HDAC3 protein possesses a nuclear export signal, whereas the C-terminal part of HDAC3 contributes to the protein's localization in the nucleus. Finally, we found that HDAC3 forms oligomers in vitro and in vivo and that the N-terminal portion of HDAC3 is necessary for this property. These data indicate that HDAC3 comprises separate, non-overlapping domains that contribute to the unique properties and function of this protein.
The Principle of Minimum Chemical Distance and the Principle of Minimum Structure Change

Abstract The principle of minimum chemical distance (PMCD) is derived from the general theory of the BE- and R-matrices, and makes precise the vague classical “principle of minimum structure change”. In fact, the PMCD may be seen as the principle of minimum structure change in mathematical terms. It provides a quantitative measure of chemical similarity of isomeric molecular systems. Its applications lie in the fields of correlations of substructures, elucidation of reaction mechanisms, and evaluation of synthetic pathways as is illustrated by examples. The mathematical foundations of the computer assisted application of the PMCD are presented.