Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Jul 10, 2020 Joint image reconstruction method with correlative multi-channel prior for x-ray

Rapid developments in photon-counting and energy-discriminating detectors have the potential to provide an additional spectral dimension to conventional x-ray grayscale imaging. Reconstructed spectroscopic tomographic data can be used to distinguish individual materials by characteristic absorption peaks. The acquired energy-binned data, however, suffer from low signal-to-noise ratio, acquisition artifacts, and frequently angular undersampled conditions. New regularized iterative reconstruction methods have the potential to produce higher quality images and since energy channels are mutually correlated it can be advantageous to exploit this additional knowledge. In this paper, we propose a novel method which jointly reconstructs all energy channels while imposing a strong structural correlation. The core of the proposed algorithm is to employ a variational framework of parallel level sets to encourage joint smoothing directions. In particular, the method selects reference channels from which to propagate structure in an adaptive and stochastic way while preferring channels with a high data signal-to-noise ratio. The method is compared with current state-of-the-art multi-channel reconstruction techniques including channel-wise total variation and correlative total nuclear variation regularization. Realistic simulation experiments demonstrate the performance improvements achievable by using correlative regularization methods.
Performance of RC Beams with Embedded Steel Trusses Using Nonlinear FEM Analysis

The current study investigates the shear performance of reinforced concrete (RC) beams with embedded steel trusses at small shear span to depth ratios a/d using nonlinear finite element (FE) model. Twenty-one (FE) models have been built using ABAQUS software to investigate the effect of different a/d ratios and web reinforcement on the shear performance and failure load of RC beams with embedded steel trusses. This research focuses on obtaining failure loads, failure modes, crack propagation, and midspan deflection from the developed FE models. The numerical results indicated that, using RC beams with embedded truss with different a/d ratios increased significantly the ultimate shear strength compared with the common RC beams. Furthermore, the numerical results confirmed that embedment of steel trusses in RC beams would significantly improve the structural behavior of RC beams at different a/d ratios. In addition, the results indicated that the shear reinforcement has a small effect on failure and midspan deflection of RC beams with embedded angle trusses at different a/d ratios.
CLEP_A_278554 1281..1285

1Department of Clinical Epidemiology, Aarhus University Hospital, Aarhus N, Denmark; 2Department of Urology, Aarhus University Hospital, Aarhus N, Denmark Background and Aim: Benign prostatic hyperplasia comprises a significant burden to ageing men due to frequently associated lower urinary tract symptoms and the risk of developing serious complications, such as acute urinary retention. Healthcare databases are a valuable source of epidemiological research; however, continuous validation of definitions is imperative. We examined the positive predictive values of International Classification of Diseases, 10th Revision (ICD-10), diagnostic coding for benign prostatic hyperplasia and acute urinary retention in men in the Danish National Patient Registry. Methods: We investigated a random sample of 100 men diagnosed with benign prostatic hyperplasia and 100 men diagnosed with acute urinary retention between 2011 and 2017 in the Central Denmark Region. Using medical record review as reference standard, we estimated the positive predictive value with corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CI) overall and stratified by age, type of hospital (university hospital vs regional hospital), type of hospital contact (inpatient, outpatient or emergency room), calendar year group (2011–2013, 2014–2017), and department (department of urology, geriatrics, endocrinology or emergency room). Results: Medical records were available for all 200 sampled patients. We found an overall positive predictive value (PPV) of 95% (95% CI: 89–98%) for benign prostatic hyperplasia and 98% (95% CI: 93–99%) for acute urinary retention. The PPVs were consistent across age, type of hospital, type of hospital contact, calendar year group, and department. Conclusion: The PPVs of ICD-10 codes for benign prostatic hyperplasia and acute urinary retention recorded in the Danish National Patient Registry are high.
X-Ray Backlighting for the National Ignition Facility

X-ray backlighting is a powerful tool for diagnosing a large variety of high-energy-density phenomena. Traditional area backlighting techniques used at Nova and Omega cannot be extended efficiently to NIF-scale. New, more efficient backlighting sources and techniques are required and have begun to show promising results. These include a backlit-pinhole point projection technique, pinhole and slit arrays, distributed polychromatic sources, and picket fence backlighters. In parallel, there have been developments in improving the data SNR and hence quality by switching from film to CCD-based recording media and by removing the fixed-pattern noise of MCP-based cameras.
Subunit in a B Lymphoma Cell Line b a Ig-Aberrant Trafficking of the B Cell Receptor

The B cell Ag receptor (BCR) has two important functions: ﬁrst, it binds and takes up Ag for presentation to T lymphocytes; and second, it transmits signals that regulate B cell development. Normal expression of the BCR requires the association of the Ag binding subunit, membrane IgM (mIgM), with the signaling component, the Ig- ab heterodimer. After assembly in the endoplasmic reticulum, the intact BCR travels through the secretory pathway to the cell surface. In this paper, we report two variants of the B lymphoma cell lines, WEHI 279 and WEHI 231, that have both lost the ability to express m heavy chain and consequently do not express mIgM. However, these variants do express the Ig- ab heterodimer. In one variant, WEHI 279*, the Ig- ab remained trapped intracellularly in the absence of mIgM. The other variant, 303.1. 5.LM, expressed an aberrantly glycosylated Ig- ab on the cell surface that was capable of signaling after cross-linking with anti-Ig- b Abs. Further characterization uncovered a point mutation in the 303.1. 5.LM mb1 gene that would change a proline for a leucine in the extracellular domain of Ig- a . The 303.1. 5.LM Ig- ab could not associate with a wild-type mIgM after m heavy chain was reconstituted by DNA transfection. Thus, this mutation could deﬁne a region of the Ig- a polypeptide that is important for recognition by the endoplasmic reticulum quality control system, for association with glycosylating enzymes, and for the association of Ig- ab subunits with mIgM subunits to create a complete BCR complex. The Journal of Immunology, 2000, 165: 1427–1437.
The Effectiveness of Low-Level LASER Therapy for Nonspecific Chronic Low Back Pain

Background and Objectives: Recently, low level laser therapy (LLLT) has been widely used to reduce pain caused by musculoskeletal disorders as low back pain. Though it is being suggested that LLLT is an effective method to relieve pain in patients with non-specific chronic low back pain (NSCLBP) and widely utilized, therapeutic outcomes of LLLT in NSCLBP are varied and conflicting. However there is still lack of evidence regarding its effectiveness on functional outcomes. This study aims to identify the effectiveness and therapeutic efficiency of LLLT in treating NSCLBP. Materials and Methods: In this current study, 58 participants (patients from nearby hospitals) were included in experimental (32) and control (26) groups where they received LASER + Exercises (Arm 1) and Heat Therapy + Exercises (Arm 2) respectively for consecutive three weeks, two sessions per week. Assessments were conducted for pain and AROM (forward flexion, extension, right and left side-flexion of lower back) at the baseline and at the end of the intervention. The data were analyzed with the time; baseline, and end of intervention and between two groups using two-way repeated measure MANOVA with significant at 5% significant level with 95% CI. Results: According to the analysis, it was found that there is no statistically significance between the groups except for back extension at baseline. There is a significant improvement ( P ≤ .005) in all the variables in both the groups separately and experimental group have higher improvement than the control group. Conclusion: It can be concluded that the LLLT is an effective treatment modality for treating NSCLBP.
IgH Switch Recombination in Mouse B Cells Essential Role of Stat5 for IL-5-Dependent

IL-5 stimulation of CD38-activated murine splenic B cells induces (cid:1) - (cid:2) 1 CSR at the DNA level leading to a high level of IgG1 production. Further addition of IL-4 in the system enhances IL-5-dependent (cid:1) - (cid:2) 1 CSR. Although some of the postreceptor signaling events initiated by IL-5 in activated B cells have been characterized, the involvement of Stat in IL-5 signaling has not been thoroughly evaluated. In this study, we examined the activation of Stat5 and activation-induced cytidine deaminase (AID) in CD38-activated murine splenic B cells by IL-5. The role of Stat5a and Stat5b in IL-5-induced (cid:1) - (cid:2) 1 CSR and also IgG1 and IgM production was documented, as IL-5 does not act on CD38-stimulated splenic B cells from Stat5a (cid:3) / (cid:3) and Stat5b (cid:3) / (cid:3) mice. Expression levels of CD38-induced germline (cid:2) 1 transcripts and AID in Stat5a (cid:3) / (cid:3) and Stat5b (cid:3) / (cid:3) B cells upon IL-5 stimulation were comparable to those of wild-type B cells. The impaired (cid:1) - (cid:2) 1 CSR by Stat5b (cid:3) / (cid:3) B cells, but not by Stat5a (cid:3) / (cid:3) B cells, was rescued in part by IL-4, as the addition of IL-4 to the culture of CD38- and IL-5-stimulated B cells induced (cid:1) - (cid:2) 1 CSR leading to IgG1 production. Analysis of cell division cycle number of wild-type B cells revealed that (cid:1) - (cid:2) 1 CSR was observed after ﬁve or six cell divisions. Stat5a (cid:3) / (cid:3) and Stat5b (cid:3) / (cid:3) B cells showed similar cell division cycles, but they did not undergo (cid:1) - (cid:2) 1 CSR. Our data support the notion that both Stat5a and Stat5b are essential for IL-5-dependent (cid:1) - (cid:2) 1 CSR and Ig secretion; however, their major target may not be AID. Stat5a and Stat5b are not redundant, but rather are at least partially distinctive in their function. The Journal of Immunology, 2001, 167: 5018–5026.
EFFECTS OF CHRONIC PAIN ON SOME REPRODUCTIVE ASPECTS IN ADULT MALE ALBINO RATS

The present work was designed to evaluate the effects of chronic pain on some reproductive aspects in adult male albino rats. ABSTRACT Background: Chronic pain is a self-reinforcing pathological state in which plastic changes in the stress system may contribute to the patient’s suffering and pain-related disability. Psychological stress has been perceived clinically as a potential risk factor affecting male fertility. However, its potential effect on spermatogenesis and testicular function has received little attention compared with the role of testicular oxidative-stress mechanisms. Objective: The present work was designed to evaluate the effects of chronic pain on some reproductive aspects in adult male albino rats. Material and methods: Twenty adult male albino rats of local strain weighing 135 - 150 g were chosen to be the model of the present study. They were divided into two equal groups: Group I (Control group) received no treatment, and Group II (Chronic pain group) were subjected to induction of chronic pain by daily subcutaneous injection of 0.5 ml of 2.5% formalin into the plantar surface of one hindpaw for two weeks. Blood samples were withdrawn, serum was separated for determination of serum fasting glucose, corticosterone, testosterone, and prolactin levels. Rats were killed and pelvi-abdominal cavities were opened to obtain testes, epididymis and prostate for studying histopathological changes. Results: Chronic pain was associated with significant changes in behavior and hormonal profile of the reproductive functions in addition to histopathological disturbances. Conclusion: Chronic pain has a drawback effects on the behavioral and reproductive functions. So, a great importance of treating pain must be paid to avoid its drawback effects on the body functions.
Transient responses of magnetorheological elastomer and isolator under shear mode

Magnetorheological elastomer (MRE)-based smart devices have been widely studied as versatile real-time actuators for the application of efficient control of vibration systems. However, the inherent time delay that exists in MRE actuators may cause performance degradation or even lead to system instability. The purpose of this paper is to explore the response time of a vibration isolation system based on an MRE isolator working in shear mode, and analyze its relative influence factors. The transient response tests are set up under various step currents and static shear strains. Furthermore, the response time of the MRE material is identified by model fitting with the separation of current response time. The results reveal that the response time of MRE isolator is composed primarily of current response (rests with current drive unit and coil configuration unit), magnetic flux density response (comes from eddy currents) and shear force response (derives from the response of the MRE material and the electro-magneto-mechanical coupling behavior of isolator). As with MREs, the response time of MRE isolators mainly hinges on the variation of transient current amplitude, but does not highly correlate to the shear strain. This paper also offers advice on minimizing the response time from various aspects, by analyzing the transient response. Besides the intrinsic importance of contributing to the response evaluation and effective design of MRE actuators, this study will also conduce to the optimal design of controllers for MRE real-time control systems.
Dynamic analysis of a composite rotor

Rotor dynamic is a branch of applied mechanics that plays a major role in keeping the vibrational energy as small as possible. It covers several topics, two of them are the base of this study: modelling and analysis. The use of composite materials in rotor dynamic analysis gives an important calculation to design efficient rotating composite shaft. The energy expressions of a composite rotor system are obtained by the use of rotating coordinate system. Lagrange’s equation obtains the equation of motions, and the finite element method solves those equations to obtain the matrices of the rotor system with the use of the MATLAB program that can handle complex and large matrices. Those mathematical models are used in order to explain the dynamic behavior of composite rotor. This model is used to investigate the unbalance response of a rotating composite shaft supported by flexible journal bearings in transient regime. The numerical results show that composite shaft made of Boron/Epoxy have better dynamic characteristics than Graphite/Epoxy.
Mitigation of Uncertainties in Hybrid Renewable Energy Systems

— Electricity is very important facility for the human being. All the convectional energy resource is changing day by day. So it is necessary to shift from convectional to non-convectional energy resources. Although solar and wind energy are two of the most viable renewable sources. Little research has been done on operating both energy sources along the side one another in order to take the advantage of their complementary characters. In this content autonomous photovoltaic and wind hybrid energy systems have been found to be more economically viable alternative to full fill the energy demands of numerous isolated consumers world side. In this article, an optimal design of a hybrid solar-wind energy plant is developed with different ideas of the hybrid system configuration with appropriate exercising of power with respect to source, load and battery. This article also observes and identify the different hybrid renewable system and then identify the uncertainties caused by it and overcome that uncertainties.
Appendix A . 1 Evaluation of the R-package ReadMe

A.1 Evaluation of the R-package ReadMe Additionally to our own implementation, we evaluated the performance of the software provided along with HK2010 (Hopkins, King, Knowles, & Melendez, 2017). The R-package ReadMe contains all functions necessary to create word stem profiles, run proportional classification and evaluate the results. In compliance with our content analysis scenario, we test for accuracy of predicting proportions in arbitrary data subsets. For this, we use one large training set (50 % of the entire manifesto data), but splits of our test set into N subsets w.r. t. different metadata facets: a) the entire test set (50 % of the data), b) 10 non-overlapping random splits of the entire test set of roughly even size, c) 46 splits of single manifestos, d) 8 diachronic splits by year, e) 4 splits by country, f) 25 splits by party.
RECENT ADVANCED NICOTINE DRUG DELIVERY SYSTEM AND NICOTINE ABUSE

W hile the proportion of the adult population that smokes has declined steadily in several westernized societies, the rate of successful quit attempts is still low. This is because smokers develop nicotine dependence, a powerful addiction that may require multiple attempts and long-term treatment to achieve enduring abstinence. Currently available first-line agents for smoking cessation therapy include nicotine replacement therapy (available in several formulations, including transdermal patch, gum, nasal spray, inhaler, and lozenge), bupropion (an atypical antidepressant), and varenicline (a partial agonist of the α4β2 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor that was recently developed and approved specifically for smoking cessation therapy). Second-line agents are nortriptyline (a tricyclic antidepressant agent) and the antihypertensive agent clonidine. With the exception of varenicline, which has been shown to offer significant improvement in abstinence rates over bupropion, all of the available treatments appear similarly effective. The adverse event profiles of nortriptyline and clonidine make them more appropriate for second-line therapy, when first-line treatments have failed or are not tolerated. However, the currently marketed smoking cessation drugs reportedly lack high levels of efficacy, particularly in real-life settings. New medications and vaccines with significant clinical advantage are now in the advanced stage of development and offer promise. These include nicotine vaccines and monoamine type B inhibitors. In this review article we discuss current and emerging pharmacotherapies for tobacco dependence focusing on their mechanisms of action, efficacy and adverse event profiles.
In-flight calibration of the GLAST Large Area Telescope calorimeter

The Large Area Telescope (LAT) is one of the two instruments onboard th e Gamma-ray Large Area Space Telescope (GLAST), the next generation high-energy ga mma-ray telescope, to be launched in Winter 2007-2008. It is comprised of sixteen identical towers in a four by four grid, each tower containing a silicon tracker and a CsI calorimeter that together will give the incident dir ection of the pair-converting photon and the photon energy. The instrument is covered by an anti-coin cidence detector to reject charged particle background. We will present the methods for calibrating the calor imeter on orbit using galactic cosmic rays from H to Fe, that will be necessary to ensure a satisfactory performance of the LAT in its energy range from 20 MeV to more than 300 GeV.
Cognitive Products: System Architecture and Operational Principles

—Future commercial products and product assemblies could greatly beneﬁt from recent developments in machine learning, providing the foundation of cognitive products equipped with sensors and actuators and embedded into tangible objects operating in the real world. This paper identiﬁes key challenges in the related ﬁelds and provides motivation for further advancements particularly in the domain of resource-constrained distributed and embedded Artiﬁcial Intelligence. Enabling cognitive capabilities, such as perception, reasoning, learning and planning, could result in higher reliability, adaptivity and improved performance, however it would require an increased involvement of non-technical disciplines like cognitive neuroscience. We propose a generic top-level cognitive architecture providing a reference to various research areas involved in this multifaceted ﬁeld. Conceptual prototypes of two cognitive products, targeting real-world industrial environments, are presented and discussed.
A 2-D Magnetoinductive Wave Device for Freer Wireless Power Transfer

In this paper, we present a wireless power transfer (WPT) system with a two-dimensional (2-D) magnetoinductive wave (MIW) device composed by two orthogonal sets of 1-D MIW devices woven together. The device is made by 112 double-spiral coils, a geometry that we have optimized to render a low attenuation propagation. This approach enables a charging area of 22 × 22 cm2 from which a receiver device can be supplied with energy with optimum efficiency from 32 different locations with the use of a single excitation port. We present a detailed optimization of the design and fabrication of the device. To describe the behavior of the device, we use a modeling method based on the impedance matrix that allows us to include all coupling interactions among the increased number of cells. With this method, we are able to find the optimal operating conditions like the location of the excitation and the coupling conditions of the receiver device. With the proposed 2-D MIW device, we can provide up to 5 W to a load of 5 $\Omega$ located at the optimal axial separation. We corroborate our calculations with vector network analysis and dc output power measurements. Furthermore, we demonstrate the device supplying to distinct types of loads simultaneously. This paper is accompanied by a supplementary file showing the required MATLAB script and input files to calculate the mutual inductance between a receiver and the cells of the pad.
ON THE SUSPENSION ORDER OF RP )

It is shown that the suspension order of the k -fold cartesian product ( RP 2 m ) [ k ] of real projective 2 m -space RP 2 m is less than or equal to the suspension order of the k -fold symmetric product SP k RP 2 m of RP 2 m and greater than or equal to 2 r + s +1 , where k and m satisfy 2 r ≤ 2 m < 2 r +1 and 2 s ≤ k < 2 s +1 . In particular RP 2 × RP 2 has suspension order 8, and for ﬁxed m ≥ 1 the suspension orders of the spaces ( RP 2 m ) [ k ] are unbounded while their stable suspension orders are constant and equal to 2 φ (2 m ) .
Knowledge sharing and job performance: the intervening role of technological competency in knowledge-based industries

- This study examines the intervening influence of technological competency on the relationship between the employee’s knowledge sharing and job performance in knowledge-based industries in Sri Lanka. Knowledge sharing, technological competency and job performance were measured in a sample of 141 managers who are employed in the profession of Database Administration & Development, Systems & Network Administration, Web Development & Programming and Software Engineering. The results of the hierarchical regression indicated that tacit and explicit knowledge sharing positively correlated with job performance while tacit and explicit knowledge sharing correlated together. Furthermore, technological competency has shown a partial mediation effect and thereby weakening the strength of association between tacit knowledge sharing and job performance. A perfect mediation effect by technological competency is reported on the relationship between explicit knowledge sharing and job performance.