Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Ejercicio y envejecimiento: cambios transcripcionales y epigenéticos en un modelo murino de envejecimiento acelerado

Este trabajo de tesis se centro en tres ambitos de gran interes social, economico y biomedico: envejecimiento, epigenetica y ejercicio fisico como estilo de vida saludable. Actualmente el envejecimiento es uno de los principales ejes de la investigacion cientifica actual debido principalmente al patron de piramide poblacional y el aumento de la proporcion de patologias asociadas a este proceso. Ademas, los recientes hallazgos en el campo de la epigenetica muestran la implicacion de este tipo de regulacion en la mayoria de procesos celulares y funciones biologicas. La modulacion epigenetica ejercida por el entorno y los habitos de vida hacen de esta ciencia una de las mas interesantes en la busqueda de herramientas preventivas y terapeuticas de patologias cronicas y asociadas a envejecimiento. Asimismo, el ejercicio fisico es uno de los factores de estilo de vida mas estudiados y recomendados por las autoridades sanitarias a nivel mundial como habito saludable. En este contexto, el objetivo principal de esta tesis fue identificar marcadores de envejecimiento y su posible regulacion epigenetica mediante la practica de ejercicio fisico en el modelo murino de senescencia acelerada SAMP8 empleando como control la cepa SAMR1. Observamos que los ratones SAMP8 presentan rasgos de inflamacion cronica y alteraciones de factores de remodelacion de cromatina durante todo su ciclo vital. El entorno proinflamatorio presente en los ratones senescentes se ha visto reflejado por el aumento de IL6 y por una respuesta exacerbada a LPS, debido al menos en parte a la reduccion en la expresion del factor epigenetico RCOR2. Ademas, se observo alteracion en la expresion genica de diversos componentes remodeladores de cromatina, implicados principalmente en la regulacion de los niveles de metilacion de histonas. En concordancia con estos resultados, los ratones SAMP8 mostraron un aumento de histona H3 trimetilada en lisina 4 en linfocitos, hipocampo y corteza cerebral, lo cual sugiere que los mecanismos de regulacion de metilacion de histona H3 lisina 4, podrian ser la via por la cual se establece la relacion entre inflamacion y envejecimiento en los ratones SAMP8. En cuanto a la modulacion por ejercicio fisico, se observaron beneficios derivados de la practica a nivel fenotipico, neurovascular y transcripcional. En hipocampo, el aumento en los niveles de vascularizacion observado en los ratones SAMP8 se vio acompanado del aumento de factores neurotroficos como el Bdnf y otros componentes de su via, Trkb y neuritina, implicados en fenomenos de plasticidad neuronal y neurogenesis. Por otro lado, la matriz extracelular mostro ser el compartimento mas sensible al ejercicio fisico. Tambien se observaron cambios a nivel epigenetico, concretamente en acetilacion de histonas y microARNs asociados a desarrollo neuronal y enfermedades neurologicas. Todos estos datos apoyan el uso del ejercicio fisico como terapia complementaria para la prevencion y tratamiento del deterioro cognitivo y enfermedad de Alzheimer.
Nanoprocesses in polymer‐derived Si–O–C ceramics: Electronmicroscopic observations and reaction kinetics

Nickel acetate doped poly(methylphenylsilsesquioxane) with and without silicon filler loading was pyrolysed in argon atmosphere between 800 and 1500 °C. The ceramic residues were investigated with specific view of the nanoaggregates formed in pores during the polymer‐to‐ceramic conversion. After pyrolysis at 900 °C carbon nanotubes as well as nanowires with a crystalline SiC core and an amorphous SiO2 shell were found in Si filler‐free and Si filler‐loaded samples, respectively. The evolution of the microstructure and the composition of these carbon nanotubes and SiC/SiO2 nanowires were studied by HREM, SEM, EELS, EFTEM and evolved gas analysis. (© 2005 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
A dynamic model for solar radiation in the Tyrrhenian Basin of Central Mediterranean area

Studying the level of solar radiation is important for problems related to both environmental pollution and alternative energy development. In this work a space-time model for solar radiation in the Tyrrhenian basin is presented. Three main features of the model must be stressed because of their importance in modelling space-time variability of a phenomenon. The first and most important one is that relations between solar radiation in different sites are an outcome of the model’s estimation procedure. With this approach spatial weights are not bound to be symmetrical and proportional to distance between locations or to be constant over time. The second one is the presence of a simultaneous effect among locations as the solar radiation in one of them is a function of what simultaneously happens in all the other ones. The third main feature of the model is represented by constrained estimation on the basis of a priori knowledge about the phenomenon that allows to cope the problem of the increased number of parameters.
Cathode signal in a TPC directional detector: implementation and validation measuring the drift velocity

Low-pressure gaseous TPCs are well suited detectors to correlate the directions of nuclear recoils to the galactic Dark Matter (DM) halo. Indeed, in addition to providing a measure of the energy deposition due to the elastic scattering of a DM particle on a nucleus in the target gas, they allow for the reconstruction of the track of the recoiling nucleus. In order to exclude the background events originating from radioactive decays on the surfaces of the detector materials within the drift volume, efforts are ongoing to precisely localize the track nuclear recoil in the drift volume along the axis perpendicular to the cathode plane. We report here the implementation of the measure of the signal induced on the cathode by the motion of the primary electrons toward the anode in a MIMAC chamber. As a validation, we performed an independent measurement of the drift velocity of the electrons in the considered gas mixture, correlating in time the cathode signal with the measure of the arrival times of the electrons on the anode.
Reproducibility and Stationarity for the Schizophrenia Quality of Life Scale Revision 4 (SQLS-R4) on Taiwan Population

Objective Although the Schizophrenia Quality of Life Scale Revision 4 (SQLS-R4) is a feasible quality of life (QoL) instrument for people with schizophrenia, the reproducibility and stationarity of SQLS-R4 are underdeveloped. The purposes of this study were (1) to examine the reproducibility, including the relative and the absolute reliabilities of the SQLS-R4; (2) to establish the stationarity of the SQLS-R4 through measurement invariance. Methods One hundred people with schizophrenia filled out the SQLS-R4 twice with an interval of 2 weeks. The relative and absolute reliabilities were examined using intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC), the percentages of standard error of measurement (SEM%), and the smallest real difference (SRD%). The measurement invariance was done through nested models of confirmatory factor analyses. Results Both the relative (ICC=0.728 to 0.886) and absolute reliabilities (SEM%=3.13% to 8.47%; SRD%=8.64% to 16.58%) were satisfactory for SQLS-R4, which suggested its adequate stability. The measurement invariance of the three-factor construct of SQLS-R4 remained the same across time for people with schizophrenia. Also, factor loadings (P of Δχ2=0.122), item intercepts (P of Δχ2=0.516), and residual variances of measured items (P of Δχ2=0.370) of SQLS-R4 were partial invariance. Conclusion The reproducibility and stationarity were established for SQLS-R4, and the results suggested that the SQLS-R4 is reliable and valid across time. Healthcare professionals can use the SQLS-R4 to longitudinally monitor the QoL of people with schizophrenia. In addition, the SQLS-R4 may be used to measure intervention effects on people with schizophrenia.
Management paradox of groupers (Epinephelinae) fishing in the Gökova Bay (Eastern Mediterranean), Turkey

The present study attempts to find out the paradox in management of grouper fishing in southern Aegean Sea, Turkey. The study also proposes some suggestions for a more rational and more effective management of this species. Material of the study is composed of records of fishing cooperatives in the area, interview with the cooperative managers, annual grouper length values and catch-effort data. Throughout the season, 2411 fishing operations have been carried, 383 of which have been focused on especially groupers. The total catch has been recorded as 1448 kg, with a CPUE value of 3.78 kg per vessel. The study also reveals that the ratio of groupers caught below legally allowed length is 13.3%, however, considering outputs of the studies made on the biology of the species, it has also been observed that 85% of the sampled groupers in Gokova bay are prematurely caught before they reach the sexual maturity required for guaranteed sustainability, and thus the species is endangered. Hence, it is very essential to determine the reproductive cycle of groupers, which are the most important species in the fishery of Gokova Bay. However, species selectivity is impossible with the currently used gears. Therefore it would be more rational and effective to determine the reproduction areas of the related species and declare these areas "No Take Zones" which is going to affect postively not only the species but also whole ecoystem they live in.
Phase magnification by two-axis countertwisting for detection-noise robust interferometry

Entanglement-enhanced atom interferometry has the potential of surpassing the standard quantum limit and eventually reaching the ultimate Heisenberg bound. The experimental progress is, however, hindered by various technical noise sources, including the noise in the detection of the output quantum state. The influence of detection noise can be largely overcome by exploiting echo schemes, where the entanglement-generating interaction is repeated after the interferometer sequence. Here, we propose an echo protocol that uses two-axis counter-twisting as the main nonlinear interaction. We demonstrate that the scheme is robust to detection noise and its performance is superior compared to the already demonstrated one-axis twisting echo scheme. In particular, the sensitivity maintains the Heisenberg scaling in the limit of a large particle number. Finally, we show that the protocol can be implemented with spinor Bose-Einstein condensates. Our results thus outline a realistic approach to mitigate the detection noise in quantum-enhanced interferometry.
Rational Evaluation of Actions Under Complete Uncertainty

This work analyzes the problem of individual choice of actions under complete uncertainty. In this context, each action consists of a set of di erent possible outcomes with no probability distribution associated with them. The work examines and de nes a class of choice procedures in which: a): the evaluation of sets (actions) is element- induced; and b): certain assumption of rationality, which is an adaptation of Sen's condition, is satis ed. Some results of characterization show that different well-known rules can be reinterpreted as particular cases within the de ned class, each of them responding to di erent attitudes towards uncertainty by the agent.
Experimental Investigation and Material Characterization of A356 Based Composite (Tio2) By Friction Stir Processing

4 ABSTRACT: Friction stir processing (FSP) was used to incorporate TiO2 particles into the matrix of A356 alloy to form composite material. The mechanical properties of the composite material are strongly dependant Aluminium A356 on the microstructural parameters of the system matrix-reinforcement, a judicious selection of a certain number of variables has to be achieved to optimize the properties of the composite. Different tool rotation speed of 1500 r/min and 2000 r/min and constant travel speed of 30 mm/min were used in this study. The results indicated that the uniform distribution of TiO2 particles in A356 matrix by FSP process can improve the mechanical properties of specimens.
The Distribution and Frequency of Oral Veillonella spp. Associated with Chronic Periodontitis

Six species of oral Veillonella, V. atypica, V. denticariosi, V. dispar, V. parvula, V. rogosae, and V. tobetsuensis, have been suggested to facilitate succession of species in developing oral biofilms in vivo. However, the pathogenicity and distribution of oral Veillonella species in periodontal pockets have not been clarified. In this study, the distribution and frequency of oral Veillonella in periodontal pockets were examined at species level. Subgingival plaques were collected from eighteen patients who presented with chronic periodontitis. Samples were cultured under anaerobic condition after homogenization, dilution, and inoculation. Genomic DNA was extracted from each isolate for polymerase chain reaction analysis after CFUs were counted. To identify the Veillonella species present in the isolates, the speciesspecific primers for six oral Veillonella were used. V. parvula was the predominant species in the periodontal pockets. V. atypica, V. dispar, and V. tobetsuensis were the next most abundant species. This is the first report indicating the distribution and frequency of oral Veillonella spp. in the subgingival biofilm from periodontal pockets. As conclusion, V. parvula was frequently isolated from periodontal pockets as the predominant species. Therefore, V. parvula associated with the state of chronic periodontitis. K e y w o r d s
Modeling of PAH transport in soils and groundwater

Risk assessment for groundwater resources requires most of the time the use of numerical models. These models are used to describe the migration and the transport of pollutants and to predict the contaminant evolution. the models and their parameters selection depend on the extension and the quality of the diagnosis data. the modeller has to know the limits of application of the modelling approach to improve the quality of the assessment. the research program TRANSPOL was undertaken in order to bring a better and a common practice of the use of transport models for various groups of pollutants with similar behaviour (PAH, metals, chlorine solvents . PAHs have a specific behaviour due to their strong affinity for the organic matter, their low solubility, and their density. These compounds are often associated with other contaminants and they are the major pollutants of disused coke plants, wood preservative treatment plants and ancient gas production plants. PAHs can also be found in the environment after major incidents or spills (fuels may indeed contain significant PAHs concentration). the particular behaviour of those compounds and their present and past uses justify to study the transport of the soluble and non-soluble phases. Naphthalene was especially studied with two complementary approaches. Naphthalene is used commonly as a tracer of pollution for the PAHs contamination due to its high solubility and its low capacity of adsorption, which increase its mobility.
Battlefield Target Localization Using Acoustic Vector Sensors and Distributed Processing

We deriv eand analyze fast wideband algorithms for locating airborne targets using a passiv e acoustic sensor system. The system consists of a distributed array of a small, lightweight acoustic vector sensors, either located in xed positions on the battle eld or carried by individual soldiers. These sensors measure the acoustic pressure and all three components of particle velocity at a single point | the use of such sensors, which have numerous advan tages o ver traditional pressure sensors, has recently become possible with the development of a new air-based particle velocity sensor now available commercially. We deriv e a bearing-only estimator based on estimation of the acoustic intensity vector applicable to single vector sensor. The estimator provides a local estimate of target bearing without the need for in ter-sensor communication, which is useful if the sensor is carried by a battle eld unit, for example. We then develop a 3-D location estimator by combining the local bearing estimates at a central processor. We also calculate an optimal performance measure for the local bearing based on the Cram er-Rao bound and use it to assess the full potential of our distributed array concept and the e ciency of our algorithms. Numerical simulations are used to show the e ectiveness of our solutions. This w orkw as supported by the Air Force O ce of Scienti c Researc hunder Grants F49620-97-1-0481 and F49620-99-1-0067, the National Science Foundation under Grant MIP-9615590 and the O ce of Naval Researc h under Grant N00014-98-1-0542. Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited.
Kinetically controlled glass transition measurement of organic aerosol thin films using broadband dielectric spectroscopy

Abstract. Glass transitions from liquid to semi-solid and solid phase states have important implications for reactivity, growth, and cloud-forming (cloud condensation nuclei and ice nucleation) capabilities of secondary organic aerosols (SOAs). The small size and relatively low mass concentration of SOAs in the atmosphere make it difficult to measure atmospheric SOA glass transitions using conventional methods. To circumvent these difficulties, we have adapted a new technique for measuring glass-forming properties of atmospherically relevant organic aerosols. Aerosol particles to be studied are deposited in the form of a thin film onto an interdigitated electrode (IDE) using electrostatic precipitation. Dielectric spectroscopy provides dipole relaxation rates for organic aerosols as a function of temperature (373 to 233 K) that are used to calculate the glass transition temperatures for several cooling or heating rates. IDE-enabled broadband dielectric spectroscopy (BDS) was successfully used to measure the kinetically controlled glass transition temperatures of aerosols consisting of glycerol and four other compounds with selected cooling and heating rates. The glass transition results agree well with available literature data for these five compounds. The results indicate that the IDE-BDS method can provide accurate glass transition data for organic aerosols under atmospheric conditions. The BDS data obtained with the IDE-BDS technique can be used to characterize glass transitions for both simulated and ambient organic aerosols and to model their climate effects.
An empirical examination of import demand for pulses in India

India is the largest producer and importer of pulses in the world. Since 1970, the Indian food economy has undergone major policy reforms, including trade liberalisation, that had the effect of opening up its domestic pulse market to international trade. This market is very lucrative and of major significance to the world pulse economy. Therefore, given the increasing evidence linking import demand and economic variables, an understanding of the impact of these variables on import demand for pulses in India is warranted. The import demand functions for total pulses, chickpea and lentils were estimated by autocorrelation regression procedure using time-series data for the period 1970 through to 2000. Empirical results indicate that real GDP, population, urbanisation, exchange rate and relative price are key determinants of import demand for pulses in India.
Extracting semantic sets from the World Wide Web using unsupervised learning

The exponential growth of World Wide Web poses many challenges for web researchers in the process of extracting qualitative knowledge. Many modern knowledge acquisition approaches exploit the redundancy of the Web to extract semantic information. In this paper, we propose a statistics based method of finding a set of semantically related terms, given a small set of seed items. We used an Expectation-Maximization algorithm for unsupervised learning to extract semantic clusters by making use of redundant information available in the web pages. We evaluated and compared our results with similar applications, Google sets and SEAL (set expander for any language). We also present a method for labeling the sets or clusters extracted from the Web given the seed terms. Labels are useful for building the concept taxonomies.
SUSTAINABLE TOURISM IN INHAMBANE-MOZAMBIQUE

This paper analyses the role of sustainability in promoting tourism development in sub-Saharan Africa using data from a questionnaire undertaken in Inhambane province, Mozambique in 2010, a region that adopted a tourism strategy to promote growth. A mixed logit regression is adopted. Policy implications of the research findings are discussed.
An Empirical Study on the Impact of R&D Investment and Employee Involvement on Innovation Commercialization: Evidence from IT Firms in China

Using a sample of 126 firms in Chinese IT industry, we developed an empirical model which tests the impact of R&D investment and employee involvement (EI) on innovation commercialization. The results showed that the expenditure of R&D has a positive effect on performance of innovation commercialization, while the number of R&D staff has trivial impact on that. The results also revealed that EI has no direct effect on commercialization performance, but plays a moderating role in the effect of R&D investment on commercialization of innovation. More specifically, the R&D expenditure of a firm with high involvement system has a less positive impact on the number of new products, but a more positive effect on the profit of new products.
The Land of Fires. Evaluating a State Law to Restore the Narrative Power of Local Communities

This study proposes a public evaluation of the Law 6/2014, approved by Italian Parliament to counteract a longstanding waste emergency in the area known as Land of Fires, in the provinces of Naples and Caserta, Campania region. The authors intended to explore, together with its recipients and from a sociological perspective, a state law, its impact, and the complex and interactive link between health and popular mobilization. It is intended, therefore, to propose a concrete idea of evaluation that is not impose from above and managed by neutral evaluators (technical experts). Based on in-depth work field, the evaluation process described here is configured as a non-hierarchical participative act, realized through a methodology aimed at encouraging self-control practices, taking possession of their own context by subjects that are not evaluated but rather co-evaluator, within a space of negotiation that can also become a field of conflict, open to different interpretations
The Importance of Quality Attributes in Enterprise Resourse Planning Selection for Small Companies - A Case Study

During the last ten years, Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems have become one of the most important pieces of technology for companies, assisting in streamlining a company’s information infrastructure. As vendor technology has improved, this has led to the possibility of small companies being offered ERP solutions to implement and integrate into their existing systems, or to buy an ERP system ‘off the shelf’. All too often companies select an ERP without looking into what the needs of the company are, and particularly the Quality Attributes (QA) of a system are ignored. Identifying these attributes could assist small companies and vendors in assessing, choosing, and implementing the correct systems in the future. This study examines the QA associated with ERP systems, paying particular attention to the QA associated with ERP systems for small companies. This paper will use interviews, related work, and a thematic analysis to identify Quality Attributes, and identify which are the perceived Quality Attributes for staff at a small company, and discuss if the attributes found are useful to small companies when choosing an ERP system.