Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Comparison of Median Urinary Iodine Concentration as an Indicator of Iodine Status among Pregnant Women, School-Age Children, and Nonpregnant Women

Background Most surveys that assess the iodine status of populations target school-age children, whereas others may target nonpregnant women with the assumption that the iodine status of these groups is representative of other groups in the same population. Objective To assess whether the median urinary iodine concentration (UIC) of school-age children or nonpregnant women can be used to accurately represent the iodine status of pregnant women. Methods Using the World Health Organization Vitamin and Mineral Nutrition Information System and a literature review, we identified urinary iodine surveys that included pregnant women and school-age children and/or nonpregnant women in the same location and year using estimates from the smallest geographic level to increase the number of data points. Linear regression was used to assess the relationships between the median UIC for the comparisons. Results There were 48 survey pairs with pregnant women and school-age children (total sample sizes of 8,622 and 16,844, respectively), and 26 pairs with pregnant and nonpregnant women (sample sizes of 3,222 and 5,520, respectively). The country contributing the most data points was China. When the median UIC in school-age children or nonpregnant women indicated iodine intake was adequate or above requirements, approximately half the time pregnant women had inadequate iodine intake. Conclusions Adequate iodine nutrition status of school-age children or nonpregnant women may not indicate adequate iodine nutrition status among pregnant women. In order to assess the iodine status of pregnant women, the iodine status would need to be assessed in this group.
Phone-to-word decoding through statistical machine translation and complementary system combination

In this paper, phone-to-word transduction is first investigated by coupling a speech recognizer, generating for each speech segment a phone sequence or a phone confusion network, with the efficient decoder of confusion networks adopted by MOSES, a popular statistical machine translation toolkit. Then, system combination is investigated by combining the outputs of several conventional ASR systems with the output of a system embedding phone-to-word decoding through statistical machine translation. Experiments are carried out in the context of a large vocabulary speech recognition task consisting of transcription of speeches delivered in English during the European Parliament Plenary Sessions (EPPS). While only a marginal performance improvements is achieved in system combination experiments when the output of the phone-to-word transducer is included in the combination, partial results show a great potential for improvements.
In Situ Single-Nanoparticle Spectroscopy Study of Bimetallic Nanostructure Formation.

Bimetallic nanostructures (NSs), with utility in catalysis, are typically prepared using galvanic exchange (GE), but the final catalyst morphology is dictated by the dynamics of the process. In situ single nanoparticle (NP) optical scattering spectroscopy, coupled with ex situ electron microscopy, is used to capture the dynamic structural evolution of a bimetallic NS formed in a GE reaction between Ag and [PtCl6 ](2-) . We identify an early stage involving anisotropic oxidation of Ag to AgCl concomitant with reductive deposition of small Pt clusters on the NS surface. At later stages of GE, unreacted Ag inclusions phase segregate from the overcoated AgCl as a result of lattice strain between Ag and AgCl. The nature of the structural evolution elucidates why multi-domain Ag/AgCl/Pt NSs result from the GE process. The complex structural dynamics, determined from single-NP trajectories, would be masked in ensemble studies due to heterogeneity in the response of different NPs.
Experimental assessment of modulated S-parameters reliability in modeling and testing wideband radiofrequency amplifiers

The paper intends to show the inadequacy of traditional S-parameters in modeling and testing radiofrequency (RF) amplifiers when operating with wideband signals, such as those involved in emerging wireless and/or wireline communication systems. The use of new parameters, the so-called modulated S-parameters, is encouraged and supported. Their measurement no longer requires a sinusoidal signal as test stimulus but a digitally modulated signal of the same type the RF amplifier has to operate with. The reliability of the new parameters is assessed through a number of experiments conducted on a RF amplifier, mainly addressed to very wide bandwidth industrial and commercial applications. Both sinusoidal and modulated S-parameters are evaluated and their ability in describing the real performance of the amplifier when operating with typical wideband signals, such as those involved in third-generation (3G) communication systems, is compared.
A purification method for improving the process yield and quality of recombinant human granulocyte colony‐stimulating factor expressed in Escherichia coli and its characterization

A purification method employing a process‐control strategy was developed for improving the yield of rhG‐CSF (recombinant human granulocyte colony‐stimulating factor). A purity of ≥99% with an overall yield of 2.18 g/l was achieved in the present study. Analysis of the product during purification indicated that detergents removed 72% of LPS (lipopolysaccharides) and 98% of HCPs (host cell proteins) without removing nucleic acid. Cysteine concentration was a key parameter in protein refolding. The bed height and HETP (height equivalent theoretical plates) value in the SEC (size‐exclusion chromatography) column was evaluated and its impact on the resolution was studied. Formulation during SEC was found to be crucial for increasing the product yields with saving of time and process costs. The yield obtained in the present study is nearly four times higher than that reported in the literature. The product obtained was found to be acceptable for toxicological studies.
Particle swarm optimization (PSO)-based self tuning proportional, integral, derivative (PID) for bearing navigation control system on quadcopter

Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) is an unmanned aircraft that is controlled manually or automatically over long distances. The quadcopter UAV is rapidly developed in recent years due to various purposes. One of the quadcopter navigation system, the UAV moves towards different coordinates by controlling vertical axis rotation angle (yaw) or bearing. In this research, we propose self-tuning proportional integral derivative (PID) control using particle swarm optimization (PSO) method for bearing navigation. Global positioning system (GPS) is used to determine the coordinates of bearing angle to the destination. HMC5883L compass sensor is used to calculate the actual angle of the quadcopter from the earth electromagnetic field. Based on the test results, the quadcopter successfully holds fixed coordinates with settling time at 6.4s and average error after settling time is 5.4o. Based on test result of coordinate changes, the quadcopter is able to reach the aim as fixed coordinates with average error of 7.9o. In the experiment with disturbance, an average offset error of 1.89o and settling time of 4.1 seconds has been achieved. The best PSO self-tuning limits are obtained at Kp = 0.15 to 0.3, Ki = 0.06 to 0.6, and Kd = 0.005 to 0.1. The PSO values used were C1 = 1.5, C2 = 2 and the weight of inertia from 0.7 to 1.2.
Linewidth enhancement factor in InGaAs quantum-dot amplifiers

We report systematic measurements of the linewidth enhancement factor (LEF) in an electrically pumped InGaAs quantum-dot (QD) amplifier in the temperature range from 50 K to room temperature. At injection currents below transparency, the value of the linewidth enhancement factor of the ground-state interband (excitonic) transition is between 0.4 and 1, and increases with increasing carrier density. Additionally, we investigate the spectral dependence of the LEF by tuning the wavelength of our optical probe from below resonance with the ground state of the QDs up to resonance with the first optically active excited-state transition. We find a decrease of the LEF with increasing photon energy at all investigated temperatures.
Development of a novel diffusion-based method to estimate the size of the aggregated Abeta species responsible for neurotoxicity.

beta-Amyloid peptide (Abeta) is the primary protein component of senile plaques in Alzheimer's disease and is believed to be responsible for the neurodegeneration associated with the disease. Abeta is toxic only when aggregated, however, the size and structure of the aggregated species associated with toxicity is unknown. In the present study, we developed a diffusion-based method to simultaneously separate and detect the biological activity of toxic Abeta oligomers and used the method to examine the relationship between size of aggregated protein and toxicity to SH-SY5Y cells. From these measurements, the effective diffusivity and hydrodynamic radius of the toxic oligomeric species of Abeta could be determined. A sensitivity analysis was performed to examine the effects of model assumptions used in data analysis on the effective diffusivity calculated. The method provides a new estimate of the size of small toxic Abeta species associated with fibril formation. This work contributes to our understanding of the relationship between Abeta structure and toxicity and with further refinements may aid in our ability to design agents which alter the Abeta aggregation/dissociation processes associated with neurotoxicity.
Direct detection OFDMA‐PON based on optical single sideband modulation and polarisation multiplexing

A low complexity scheme is proposed for direct detection orthogonal frequency division multiple access passive optical network, based on optical single sideband modulation and polarisation multiplexing. By utilising Hermitian symmetry mapping and Hilbert transformation, the hardware requirement is reduced. Theoretical expressions are presented to explain the cross‐polarisation interference, and a channel estimation algorithm is proposed for polarisation crosstalk. In addition, system parameters are discussed to optimise the performance of the proposed scheme. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Customer segmentation and visualization by combination of self-organizing map and cluster analysis

To perceive the characteristics of customers from market information, it is necessary to aggregate the market information. So, we used a self-organizing map (SOM), arecency, frequency and monetary (RFM) analysis, and other methods to propose the classification of customers. In addition, we propose a visualization of the analysis results. In this study, we consider the combination of cluster analysis and the SOM for further consolidation of small clusters and visualization.
Concerning maximal packing arrangements of binary disk mixtures

The determination of the maximal packing arrangements of two-dimensional, binary hard disks of radii RS and RL (with RS6RL) for su0ciently small RS amounts to 1nding the optimal arrangement of the small disks within a tricusp: the nonconvex cavity between three close-packed large disks. We present a particle-growth Monte Carlo algorithm for the generation of geometric packings of equi-sized hard disks within such a tricusp. The 1rst 19 members of an in1nite sequence of maximal density structures thus produced are reported. In addition, the Monte Carlo algorithm is applied to the geometric packing of disks within a 8at-sided equilateral triangle and compared to published results for that packing problem. We perform an analysis of geometric properties of the packings, e.g. packing fractions and symmetries of structures con1ned to both containers. Interestingly, we 1nd a non-monotonic increase in the packing fraction with increasing number of disks packed within both the 8at-sided triangle and tricusp. It is important to note that for disk packings within a 8at-sided equilateral triangle, this non-monotonic behavior of the packing fraction had not been reported in previously published works. For the 8at-sided equilateral triangle, local maxima occur at the triangular integers NS=1; 3; 6; 10; 15 : : : ; as well as NS = 12; where NS is the number of disks in each packing. However, local maxima for packings within the tricusp exist at NS =1; 3; 6; 10; 18 : : : : Finally, we analyze the asymptotic approach to the upper bound on the packing fraction of the in1nite sequence of maximal structures of disks con1ned to the tricusp. c © 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. PACS: 05.20. −y; 05.70. Fh; 61.50. Ah
A Lissencephaly‐1 homologue is essential for mitotic progression in the planarian Schmidtea mediterranea

COVER PHOTOGRAPH: Pseudocolored low magnification image of the planarian Schmidtea mediterranea immunostained using (in top right image) anti‐β‐tubulin (white), anti‐phosphorylated histone H3 (green) and DAPI (magenta), which label the central nervous system, mitotic cells and nuclei, respectively. Center image was captured using DIC. At higher magnification, these stains were used to analyze the mitotic spindle apparatus of dividing cells. From Cowles et al., Developmental Dynamics 241:901–910, 2012.
Microfluidic chip of immunoassay system for kidney studies

In this research, we have demonstrated a microfluidic chip which is able to manipulate and pattern the cell in the different culture chamber for Kidney studies integrated the dielectrophoresis (DEP) force. This design enables Escherichia coli (E. coli) Lipopolysaccharides (LPS) to stimulate human monocytic leukemia cell line (THP-1) without contact proximal tubular cell (HK-2). Therefore, cell-cell interaction can only be achieved by the transmission of cytokine. Epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) of HK-2 was observed after treated with IL-1β 150pg/ml for 72 hours in a 24-well plate. On the other hand, the result of DEP patterning shows a potential way to make cells proliferate on the condition of adjustable and appropriate cell density.
Learning-based approach for multiprocessor scheduling under timing constraints and N-Queens problems

This paper presents a learning-based algorithm to address the deadline scheduling problem. This problem consists of searching for feasible schedules of n tasks on m identical processors under hard-real-time constraints. Unlike existing works, the proposed algorithm is time limited rather than time and space limited since the problem under study is NP-hard. Two learning functions are integrated to direct the search toward possible feasible schedules. Experimental results show a significant success ratio improvement of the proposed scheduling algorithm compared to plain heuristics and metaheuristics namely ACO. We propose a new look for N-Queens problem as deadline scheduling and we show how our algorithm can deal with the N-Queens problem and its possible applicability to cope with CSP problems.
Antenna Gain Enhancement Using a Holey Superstrate

Antenna gain enhancement using a holey dielectric superstrate on a microstrip patch antenna is presented. Antenna gain is increased by creating an in-phase electric-field area on the upper surface of the superstrate. In order to create the in-phase field, the effective permittivity of the superstrate is controlled by changing the radius of the holes in the superstrate. The proposed antenna is fabricated and measured. It achieves a 2.3-dB gain enhancement when the superstrate is added over the microstrip antenna at the design frequency of 5.8 GHz. The electric field is also simulated and it is observed to follow similar phase distributions on the superstrate.
Directed graph based carbon flow tracing for demand side carbon obligation allocation

In order to achieve carbon emission abatement, some researchers and policy makers have cast their focus on demand side carbon abatement potentials. This paper addresses the problem of carbon flow calculation in power systems and carbon obligation allocation at demand side. A directed graph based method for tracing carbon flow is proposed. In a lossy network, matrices such as carbon losses, net carbon intensity (NCI) and footprint carbon intensity (FCI) are obtained with the proposed method and used to allocate carbon obligation at demand side. Case studies based on realistic distribution and transmission systems are provided to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed method.
Cloning and characterization of a novel NAD+‐dependent glyceraldehyde‐3‐phosphate dehydrogenase gene from Candida glycerinogenes and use of its promoter

A 3950 bp genomic fragment from Candida glycerinogenes, WL2002‐5, containing the CgGAP gene encoding a glyceraldehyde‐3‐phosphate dehydrogenase homologous to GAP genes in other yeasts using degenerate primers, was cloned and characterized with inverse PCR. Sequence analysis revealed a 1164 bp open reading frame encoding a putative peptide of 387 deduced amino acids, with a molecular mass of 36 kDa. The CgGAP protein consisted of an N‐terminal NAD+‐binding domain and a central catalytic domain. Six stress‐response elements were found in the upstream region of the CgGAP gene. The influence of CgGAP on glycolysis was investigated. Functional analysis revealed that Saccharomyces cerevisiae transformed with CgGAP was restored to the wild‐type phenotype when cultured in high‐osmolarity medium, suggesting that it is a functional GAP protein. Promoter studies in S. cerevisiae using the green fluorescent protein (gfp) gene as a reporter showed that the GAP promoter (PCgGAP) is constitutively expressed in S. cerevisiae cells grown on glucose. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Irrational Suffering – An Impact of Cognitive Behavioural Therapy on the Depression Level and the Perception of Pain in Cancer Patients

International Association for the Study of Pain (IASP) provides the definition of pain according to which pain is an unpleasant sensory and emotional experience associated with actual or potential tissue damage, or described in terms of such damage (cf. Witte & Stein, 2010). Therefore pain is a phenomenon which extends beyond the somatosensory dimension and its perception is determined by a number of factors, among which mental factors deserve special attention as they can be modified by psychological interventions. Pain is not always confined to a physical sensation. In the following paper the term ‘pain’ is reserved for somatic pain. However, the experience of such pain might become a threat to the integrity of the self, which is accompanied by despair. The sensations of this kind will be described as ‘suffering’.
Quantifying Search and Switching Costs in the U.S. Auto Insurance Industry

type="main"> I estimate demand for auto insurance in the presence of two types of market frictions: search and switching costs. I develop an integrated utility-maximizing model in which consumers decide over which and how many companies to search and from which company to purchase. My modelling approach rationalizes observed consideration sets as being the outcomes of consumers' search processes. I find search costs to range from $35 to $170 and average switching costs of $40. Search costs are the most important driver of customer retention and their elimination is the main lever to increase consumer welfare in the auto insurance industry.
High‐resolution mapping of amplifications and deletions in pediatric osteosarcoma by use of CGH analysis of cDNA microarrays

Conventional cytogenetic and comparative genomic hybridization (CGH) studies have shown that osteosarcomas (OSs) are characterized by complex structural and numerical chromosomal alterations and gene amplification. In this study, we used high‐resolution CGH to investigate recurrent patterns of genomic imbalance by use of DNA derived from nine OS tumors hybridized to a 19,200‐clone cDNA microarray. In six OSs, there was copy number gain or amplification of 6p, with a minimal region of gain centering on segment 6p12.1. In seven OSs, the pattern of amplification affecting chromosome arm 8q showed high‐level gains of 8q12–21.3 and 8q22–q23, with amplification of the MYC oncogene at 8q24.2. Seven OSs showed copy number gain or amplification of 17p between the loci bounded by GAS7 and PMI (17p11.2–17p12), and three of these tumors also showed small losses at 17p13, including the region containing TP53. An in silico analysis of the distribution of segmental duplications (duplicons) in this region identified a large number of tracts consisting of paralogous sequences mapping to the 17p region, encompassing the region of deletions and amplifications in OS. Interestingly, within this same region there were clusters of duplicons and several genes that are expressed during bone morphogenesis and in OS. In summary, microarray CGH analysis of the chromosomal imbalances of OS confirm the overall pattern observed by use of metaphase CGH and provides a more precise refinement of the boundaries of genomic gains and losses that characterize this tumor. © 2003 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Fast convergence of joint demodulation and decoding based on joint sparse graph for spatially coupling data transmission

Spatially coupling data transmission (SCDT) is a multiple access technique. Since both SCDT and low density parity-check (LDPC) codes can be represented by a factor graph, a joint sparse graph (JSG) including the single graphs of SCDT and LDPC codes is constructed. Based on the JSG, the joint demodulation and decoding (JDD) by applying belief propagation (BP) algorithm in the parallel schedule is performed, but its convergence rate is slow. In order to accelerate convergence rate, a new serial schedule is proposed. The extrinsic information transfer (EXIT) charts of iterative JDD are investigated for the two schedules and employed to evaluate their converge behaviour. EXIT analysis and simulation results demonstrate that about half iteration number can be saved at the cost of marginal system performance loss. Furthermore, compared with separate demodulation and decoding, turbo-structured JDD and the uncoupling structured JDD, the JDD based on JSG for SCDT by utilizing serial schedule achieves the best performance.
Plasma MicroRNAs as Novel Biomarkers for Patients with Intraductal Papillary Mucinous Neoplasms of the Pancreas

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is one of the most fatal cancers worldwide, partly because methods are lacking to detect disease at an early, operable stage. Noninvasive PDAC precursors called intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasms (IPMN) exist, and strategies are needed to aid in their proper diagnosis and management. Data support the importance of miRNAs in the progression of IPMNs to malignancy, and we hypothesized that miRNAs may be shed from IPMN tissues and detected in blood. Our primary goals were to measure the abundance of miRNAs in archived preoperative plasma from individuals with pathologically confirmed IPMNs and healthy controls and discover plasma miRNAs that distinguish between IPMN patients and controls and between “malignant” and “benign” IPMNs. Using novel nCounter technology to evaluate 800 miRNAs, we showed that a 30-miRNA signature distinguished 42 IPMN cases from 24 controls [area underneath the curve (AUC) = 74.4; 95% confidence interval (CI), 62.3–86.5, P = 0.002]. The signature contained novel miRNAs and miRNAs previously implicated in pancreatic carcinogenesis that had 2- to 4-fold higher expression in cases than controls. We also generated a 5-miRNA signature that discriminated between 21 malignant (high-grade dysplasia and invasive carcinoma) and 21 benign (low- and moderate-grade dysplasia) IPMNs (AUC = 73.2; 95% CI, 57.6–88.9, P = 0.005), and showed that paired plasma and tissue samples from patients with IPMNs can have distinct miRNA expression profiles. This study suggests feasibility of using new cost-effective technology to develop a miRNA-based blood test to aid in the preoperative identification of malignant IPMNs that warrant resection while sparing individuals with benign IPMNs the morbidity associated with overtreatment. Cancer Prev Res; 8(9); 826–34. ©2015 AACR.