Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
DETC 03 / DTM-0000 EMPIRICAL STUDY ON PRODUCT FLEXIBILITY

Product flexibility can be defined as the degree of responsiveness (or adaptability) for any future change in a product design. Making a design more flexible leads to reduction in redesign cost. When considering the efforts taken in the past to understand product flexibility and develop associated metrics, most of prior research focused towards the manufacturing domain rather than the product itself. In this paper we study product flexibility by finding the physical parameters that affect it by conducting an empirical study on existing products in the market. The number of parts, functions, interfaces, type of interfaces, modules, the way these modules are arranged, and OEM parts are found to directly affect product flexibility. From this a set, guidelines are derived to improve product flexibility and design for it. This research is a significant step, which will lead us to our future objective of developing a generic metric and comparison design method. 1.0 INTRODUCTION Product flexibility should be considered in design due to the changing nature of competition, constantly improving the performance and functionality of products and being responsive to differing customer needs. Despite this, product flexibility remains poorly understood in theory and poorly addressed in practice. Few metrics have been developed in the past to measure product flexibility. Such measures are based on factors such as the time required to switch from one part mix (combination of parts) to another, the adaptability of a manufacturing system to changes in part mix and the number of new parts introduced per year. These measures were developed with a prior focus on manufacturing. In this paper we study product flexibility from a fundamental point of view by correlating the flexibility with different physical parameters. An understanding of product flexibility is gained through empirically evaluating the flexibility of products in order to identify those parameters that directly correlate. So the main objective of this paper is to illustrate specific relations among these factors and flexibility so that careful consideration of these factors may provide guidance in design. A supporting goal of this paper is to develop a method to evaluate flexibility of product design, and derive a set of guidelines to guide product architecture to a desired state of flexibility. Given knowledge of these factors, the future objective of this research is to develop a metric for product flexibility such that a designer may evaluate the flexibility of a product by simply measuring a specified set of parameters. This metric can be thought of as a generic measure of product flexibility since the measure does not reflect product flexibility with respect to a particular change. In this sense, the measure is general or generic. Of course, the bottom line is to facilitate the design of products to be flexible to future changes. 2.0 BACKGROUND Product flexibility can be defined as degree of responsiveness (or adaptability) for any future change in a
Broadband Monopolar Microstrip Patch Antenna With Shorting Vias and Coupled Ring

A center-fed circular patch antenna with shorting vias and a coupled annular ring is proposed. With a low-profile configuration, the antenna provides a wide bandwidth by merging three resonant modes, including the TM02 mode of the circular patch, the TM01 mode generated by the shorting vias, and the TM02 mode of the coupled annular ring. The antenna operating in these modes would produce an omnidirectional pattern in the horizontal plane similar to that generated by a monopole antenna. A reduced structure is used to simplify the simulation in optimizing the bandwidth of the antenna. Measured results show that the antenna achieves a bandwidth of 27.4% for a profile of 0.029 wavelengths and has a gain of about 6 dBi.
Effects of lutein supplement on serum inflammatory cytokines, ApoE and lipid profiles in early atherosclerosis population.

AIM The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of lutein supplement on serum cytokines, apoE and lipoprotein profiles in early atherosclerosis population. METHODS Early atherosclerosis patients (n= 65) were randomized to receive placebo (A+P, n= 31) or 20 mg/d lutein (A+L, n= 34) for 3 months. RESULTS Serum lutein increased significantly compared to baseline after lutein supplements in A+L group (p<0.001). Lutein supplements resulted in a significant decrease in serum interleukin-6 (IL-6) and monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1) at 3 month in A+L group (p<0.05). Intragroup comparison revealed a significant difference in the changes of serum MCP-1 between A+L and A+P groups (p= 0.021). The serum low-density lipoprotein (LDL) and triglyceride (TG) significantly decreased in A+L group (p<0.05). The changes in serum lutein were negatively associated with those in serum LDL in A+L group (r=-0.384, p=0.043), while no such relationship was observed in A+P group (r= 0.087, p= 0.685). CONCLUSION An increase in serum lutein after supplementation can reduce inflammatory cytokines and regulate serum lipids, which may pay important roles in early atherosclerosis.
MIMIC II: a massive temporal ICU patient database to support research in intelligent patient monitoring

Development and evaluation of intensive care unit (ICU) decision-support systems would be greatly facilitated by the availability of a large-scale ICU patient database. Following our previous efforts with the MIMIC (Multi-parameter Intelligent Monitoring for Intensive Care) Database, we have leveraged advances in networking and storage technologies to develop a far more massive temporal database, MIMIC II. MIMIC II is an ongoing effort: data is continuously and prospectively archived from all ICU patients in our hospital. MIMIC II now consists of over 800 ICU patient records including over 120 gigabytes of data and is growing. A customized archiving system was used to store continuously up to four waveforms and 30 different parameters from ICU patient monitors. An integrated user-friendly relational database was developed for browsing of patients' clinical information (lab results, fluid balance, medications, nurses' progress notes). Based upon its unprecedented size and scope, MIMIC II will prove to be an important resource for intelligent patient monitoring research, and will support efforts in medical data mining and knowledge-discovery.
Exercising Testing in Adult Normal Subjects and Cardiac Patients *

1. Several approaches to assessment of physical work capacity in the upright posture in normal adults and cardiac patients have been reviewed critically. 2. Preliminary experience has been presented with a new multistage treadmill test of maximal exercise which permits appraisal of either a physically trained normal subject or an impaired but ambulatory cardiac patient. 3. The most effective means of differentiating cardiacs from normals has been an estimate of the total oxygen intake/Kg of body weight. 4. The need for monitoring the circulation with respect to arrhythmias, ischemia and/or hypotension has been emphasized. The authors wish to acknowledge their appreciation of many physicians, particularly Dr. Robert M. Levenson of the Seattle Cardiac Work Evaluation Clinic, and medical and graduate students who have assisted in the testing of patients and normals. The assistance of Mrs. Gladys Pettet is gratefully acknowledged also.
Feasibility study on evaluation of audience's concentration in the classroom with deep convolutional neural networks

In this paper, we developed an estimation system for degree of audience's concentration by estimating individual's behavior with a deep learning approach. Our system firstly detects candidate location of audiences (CLAs) from the movie with Ada-boost classifier composed of Haar-like filters and their integration process. Then, each CLA is investigated to determine the target audience is “concentrated”, “not concentrated” or “no exist” with 5-layered deep convolutional neural networks (DCNN). We used a total of 13 movies of which 3 movies were used for training of DCNN and the remains for evaluation. Our system achieved audience detection performance of precision = 84.8% and recall = 61.8% and estimation accuracy of individual attention as 72.8%.
A novel approach for accurate identification of splice junctions based on hybrid algorithms

The precise prediction of splice junctions as ‘exon-intron’ or ‘intron-exon’ boundaries in a given DNA sequence is an important task in Bioinformatics. The main challenge is to determine the splice sites in the coding region. Due to the intrinsic complexity and the uncertainty in gene sequence, the adoption of data mining methods is increasingly becoming popular. There are various methods developed on different strategies in this direction. This article focuses on the construction of new hybrid machine learning ensembles that solve the splice junction task more effectively. A novel supervised feature reduction technique is developed using entropy-based fuzzy rough set theory optimized by greedy hill-climbing algorithm. The average prediction accuracy achieved is above 98% with 95% confidence interval. The performance of the proposed methods is evaluated using various metrics to establish the statistical significance of the results. The experiments are conducted using various schemes with human DNA sequence data. The obtained results are highly promising as compared with the state-of-the-art approaches in literature.
Toward Scatterometer Winds Assimilation in the Mesoscale HARMONIE Model

Data assimilation (DA) experiments have been conducted with the high-resolution limited-area model HirLAM Aladin Regional Mesoscale Operational NWP In Euromed (HARMONIE), which is operational at most weather centers, which are part of the European HirLAM consortium. Recently, the assimilation of scatterometer ocean surface winds was introduced, showing limited forecast skill improvement. Possible explanations are discussed. These include model bias and the time mismatch between observation and analysis time, which introduces nonnegligible correlated errors in a three-dimensional (3-D) variational assimilation system. Also, ignoring the time mismatch increases the innovation, i.e., the observation minus background (model short-term forecast), by about 20% for scatterometer winds. The use of observations as point observations in most DA systems needs reconsideration for mesoscale DA. The introduction of observation operators, taking into account the instrument footprint, would improve the innovation by about 5% for scatterometer winds. Additional directions for improved use of observations in HARMONIE are discussed based on the notice that DA is an inherent deterministic concept. Hence, the selection of the spatial scale for deterministic DA should depend primarily on the 4-D observation coverage rather than the effective model resolution.
Thiol-Disulfide Exchange by Thrombospondin

In studies with labeled thrombin derivatized with a photoactivatable cross-linking reagent, Danishefsky and Detwiler observed that after photoactivation a labeled complex with a mass greater than 500 kd was recovered in the supernatant solution. When the derivatized thrombin was added to the supernatant solution of platelets activated with the ionophore A23187 and photoactivated, there was incorporation of label into a similar complex, indi­ cating that the complex included a protein released from activated platelets. The complex formed within 20 sec, the period of photoactivation. It did not form with fibrinogen or α2-macroglobulin, but it did form with purified TSP. The significance of this study was the demonstration that thrombin and TSP formed a complex with sufficient affinity (ap­ parently greater than that with fibrinogen or α2macroglobulin) to permit cross-linking by the photoactivatable reagent.
Linearization of CMOS triple cascode push-pull power amplifiers by second harmonic feedback

A linearity enhancement technique to a CMOS triple cascode push-pull power amplifier (PA) by second harmonic feedback has been proposed. The Second harmonic feedback is optimized to improve linearity based on the concept that the linearity is depend on the second harmonic feedback amplitude and phase. In order to feed second harmonics back to the push-pull PAs, we adopt a balun with a branching filter fabricated by using multi-layered organic substrates. The PA was fabricated in 0.18-µm CMOS process and was implemented on the balun by flip-chip connection. Because of the low breakdown voltage of CMOS power transistors, triple cascode configuration was adapted. It has been demonstrated that using second harmonic feedback, PAE and output power with a wideband code division multiple access (WCDMA) modulated signal are improved by 5.3% and 2.5dB respectively at adjacent channel leakage power ratio (ACLR) of −39dBc, and it has been demonstrated PAE of 28.8% and output power of 24.5dBm, respectively.
Time and direction of arrival detection and filtering for imaging in strongly scattering random media

We study detection and imaging of small reflectors in heavy clutter, using an array of transducers that emits and receives sound waves. Heavy clutter means that multiple scattering of the waves in the heterogeneous host medium is strong and overwhelms the arrivals from the small reflectors. Building on the adaptive time-frequency filter of [Borcea et al, SIIMS 2011;4(3)], we propose a robust method for detecting the direction of arrival of the direct echoes from the small reflectors, and suppressing the unwanted clutter backscatter. This improves the resolution of imaging. We illustrate the performance of the method with realistic numerical simulations in a non-destructive testing setup.
Quantitative aspects of the sympathetic neuro-hormonal control of the heart rate.

Summary. In cats stimulation of the accelerans nerves exerts a much stronger effect on the heart rate than the hormones released at a similar activation of the adrenal medullas. This is in accordance with the characteristics of the sympatho-adrenal control of other autonomic effectors. The heart response is sometimes seen to vanish quite rapidly on interruption of a low-frequency accelerans nerve stimulation. It is therefore discussed whether the prompt reflex decreases of stroke volume, known to occur on baroceptor stimulation in man, really necessitate the assumption of a direct vagal control of the heart ventricles. It is after all not impossible that this is the consequence of an inhibition of a tonic sympathetic influence on the heart and adjacent capacity vessels, factors which both must result in some decrease of stroke volume.
Crystal Structure of d-Hydantoinase from Burkholderia pickettii at a Resolution of 2.7 Angstroms: Insights into the Molecular Basis of Enzyme Thermostability

ABSTRACT d-Hydantoinase (d-HYD) is an industrial enzyme that is widely used in the production of d-amino acids which are precursors for semisynthesis of antibiotics, peptides, and pesticides. This report describes the crystal structure of d-hydantoinase from Burkholderia pickettii (HYDBp) at a 2.7-Å resolution. The structure of HYDBp consists of a core (α/β)8 triose phosphate isomerase barrel fold and a β-sheet domain, and the catalytic active site consists of two metal ions and six highly conserved amino acid residues. Although HYDBp shares only moderate sequence similarity with d-HYDs from Thermus sp. (HYDTsp) and Bacillus stearothermophilus (HYDBst), whose structures have recently been solved, the overall structure and the structure of the catalytic active site are strikingly similar. Nevertheless, the amino acids that compose the substrate-binding site are less conserved and have different properties, which might dictate the substrate specificity. Structural comparison has revealed insights into the molecular basis of the differential thermostability of d-HYDs. The more thermostable HYDTsp contains more aromatic residues in the interior of the structure than HYDBp and HYDBst. Changes of large aromatic residues in HYDTsp to smaller residues in HYDBp or HYDBst decrease the hydrophobicity and create cavities inside the structure. HYDTsp has more salt bridges and hydrogen-bonding interactions and less oxidation susceptible Met and Cys residues on the protein surface than HYDBp and HYDBst. Besides, HYDTsp also contains more rigid Pro residues. These factors are likely to make major contributions to the varying thermostability of these enzymes. This information could be exploited in helping to engineer more thermostable mesophilic enzymes.
Title of Dissertation Local Feature Representations for Facial Expression Recognition Based on Differences of Gray Color Values of Neighboring Pixels

Title of Dissertation Local Feature Representations for Facial Expression Recognition Based on Differences of Gray Color Values of Neighboring Pixels Author Mohammad Shahidul Islam Degree Doctor of Philosophy (Computer Science and Information Systems) Year 2013 A fruitful way for creating any innovative system in a computing environment is to integrate a sufficiently user-friendly interface with the ordinary end user. Successful design of such a user-friendly interface, however, means more than just the ergonomics of the panels and displays. It also requires that engineers precisely define what information to use and how, where, and when to use it. Facial expression as a natural, non-intrusive and efficient way of communication has been considered as one of the possible inputs of such interfaces. The research interest in facial expression recognition has grown due to its potential applications. Many local feature representations such as Gabor filters, LBP had been proposed for facial expression recognition. However, accuracy rates and running time of facial expression recognition achieved by these representations have yet to be improved. The work of this thesis aims at designing a robust and effective Facial Expression Recognition (FER) system that uses simple but effective gray scale invariant local descriptors for face expression recognition. The local feature pattern at a pixel is computed based on differences of gray color values of its neighboring pixels. The pattern represents the changes of gray color values of pixels in its surrounding area. Four alternative local feature representations are proposed depending on the numbers of considered directions and neighboring pixels. To create the feature vector for an image, the facial image is divided into blocks and the histograms counting the occurrences of all
Predictors of Physical Restraint Use in Hospitalized Veterans at End of Life: An Analysis of Data from the BEACON Trial.

BACKGROUND The use of physical restraints in dying patients may be a source of suffering and loss of dignity. Little is known about the prevalence or predictors for restraint use at end of life in the hospital setting. OBJECTIVE The objective was to determine the prevalence and predictors of physical restraint use at the time of death in hospitalized adults. METHODS Secondary analysis was performed on data from the "Best Practices for End-of-Life Care for Our Nation's Veterans" (BEACON) trial conducted between 2005 and 2011. Medical record data were abstracted from six Veterans Administration Medical Centers (VAMCs). Data on processes of care in the last seven days of life were abstracted from the medical records of 5476 who died in the six VAMCs. We prospectively identified potential risk factors for restraint use at the time of death from among the variables measured in the parent trial, including location of death, medications administered, nasogastric tube, intravenous (IV) fluids, family presence, and receipt of a palliative care consultation. RESULTS Physical restraint use at time of death was documented in 890 decedents (16.3%). Restraint use varied by location of death, with patients in intensive settings being at higher risk. Restraint use was significantly more likely in patients with a nasogastric tube and those receiving IV fluids, benzodiazepines, or antipsychotics. CONCLUSIONS This is the first study to document that one in six hospitalized veterans were restrained at the time of death and to identify predictors of restraint use. Further research is needed to identify intervention opportunities.
A Bayesian Framework for Learning Rule Sets for Interpretable Classification

We present a machine learning algorithm for building classifiers that are comprised of a small number of short rules. These are restricted disjunctive normal form models. An example of a classifier of this form is as follows: If X satisfies (condition A AND condition B) OR (condition C) OR . , then Y = 1. Models of this form have the advantage of being interpretable to human experts since they produce a set of rules that concisely describe a specific class. We present two probabilistic models with prior parameters that the user can set to encourage the model to have a desired size and shape, to conform with a domain-specific definition of interpretability. We provide a scalable MAP inference approach and develop theoretical bounds to reduce computation by iteratively pruning the search space. We apply our method (Bayesian Rule Sets - BRS) to characterize and predict user behavior with respect to in-vehicle context-aware personalized recommender systems. Our method has a major advantage over classical associative classification methods and decision trees in that it does not greedily grow the model.
Research on steelmaking — Continuous casting production scheduling system based on virtual real fusion

In general the steelmaking-continuous casting production scheduling process can't be carried out according to a pre-generated dispatch plan due to changes in factors such as changes in orders, delays in charge arrival time, machine failures in processing time. In this paper, a new concept “Steelmaking — Continuous Casting Production Scheduling System Based on Virtual Real Fusion” (SCCVRS) was proposed. The aim of this method is to eliminate the influence of some uncertainties for the steelmaking — continuous casting production by fusing the virtual real system. In this paper, a method of establishing a virtual system dynamic in steelmaking-continuous casting production environment is proposed, and the Gantt chart is used to demonstrate how to adjust the time lists of the affected charges because of uncertainties.
Robust control for satellite attitude regulation during on-orbit assembly

In the future, large satellites may be automatically assembled on-orbit in order to reduce weight and increase volume efficiency in launchers. During this process, it may be important to maintain satellite attitude. This paper presents a dynamic model, including reaction wheels and a twisting-algorithm-based sliding-mode controller, to maintain attitude during a simple self-assembly process. Simulation results of this controller are compared with results from other controllers found in the literature.