Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Technical Note: How accurate can stalagmite formation temperatures be determined using vapour bubble radius measurements in fluid inclusions?

Abstract. Stalagmites are natural archives containing detailed information on continental climate variability of the past. Microthermometric measurements of fluid inclusion homogenisation temperatures allow determination of stalagmite formation temperatures by measuring the radius of stable laser-induced vapour bubbles inside the inclusions. A reliable method for precisely measuring the radius of vapour bubbles is presented. The method is applied to stalagmite samples for which the formation temperature is known. An assessment of the bubble radius measurement accuracy and how this error influences the uncertainty in determining the formation temperature is provided. We demonstrate that the nominal homogenisation temperature of a single inclusion can be determined with an accuracy of ±0.25 °C, if the volume of the inclusion is larger than 105 μm3. With this method, we could measure in a proof-of-principle investigation that the formation temperature of 10–20 yr old inclusions in a stalagmite taken from the Milandre cave is 9.87 ± 0.80 °C, while the mean annual surface temperature, that in the case of the Milandre cave correlates well with the cave temperature, was 9.6 ± 0.15 °C, calculated from actual measurements at that time, showing a very good agreement. Formation temperatures of inclusions formed during the last 450 yr are found in a temperature range between 8.4 and 9.6 °C, which corresponds to the calculated average surface temperature. Paleotemperatures can thus be determined within ±1.0 °C.
Onthological essence of Vyacheslav Ivanov's symbolic hermeneutics in the context of Martin Heidegger's philosophy

Vyacheslav Ivanov's works devoted to Goethe's creative activity and interpreted from the point of view of comparative studies allow us to start the research concerning resonance harmony between Ivanov's symbolic interpretation of Goethe's creativity and Heidegger's philosophy. On the one hand, hermeneutic interpretation of some theoretical propositions of Ivanov concerning symbolism in the light of Heidegger's ontological philosophy gives us the opportunity to establish essential comprehension of symbolic images. On the other hand, Heidegger's ontological concept "non- secrecy of being" may be comprehended through the method of symbolic interpretation worked out by Ivanov. (Sayapova A.M., Arsenteva E.F. Onthological essence of Vyacheslav Ivanov's symbolic hermeneutics in the context of Martin Heidegger's philosophy. Life Sci J 2014;11(6):560-564) (ISSN:1097-8135). http://www.lifesciencesite. com. 84
8 Functional Foods Based on Traditional Chinese Medicine

The primary role of foods is to satisfy hunger and provide people with necessary nutrients, while today more and more foods or phytochemical compounds from edible plants are used to prevent nutrition-related diseases and to increase physical and mental well-being of people. These products are called functional foods, which were introduced first in Japan in the early 1980s. In the last decades, functional food industries have been developed rapidly, and functional foods have been accepted in many countries by the public due to the demand for healthier foods and products. However, there is no clear definition regarding functional foods so far at global level (Menrad, 2003; Kaushik and Kaushik, 2010). Different countries have a different regulatory framework for functional foods. The modern concept of functional food was proposed first by the Japanese academic society in the early 1980s. The legislation for functional foods was first implemented as “Foods for Special Health Use (FOSHU)” in 1991 (Arai et al., 2001). According to FOSHU, functional foods refer to natural or formulated foods containing ingredients that aid specific body functions in addition to being nutritious. Functional foods consist of foodand drink-based formulations. This first legislation highlighted the functional food as a food which should be consumed as part of the daily diet (not a capsule, tablet, or powder). A working definition of functional foods has been developed by Functional Food Science in Europe (FUFOSE) in the 1990s, stating that this is a food item that beneficially affects one or more target functions in the body beyond adequate nutritional effects in a way that is relevant to either an improved state of health and well being and /or reduction of risk of disease. The American Dietetic Association (ADA, 1999) described functional foods as any potentially healthful food or food ingredient that may provide a health benefit beyond the traditional nutrients that it contains. This is a simple definition for spanning the vast topic of food and health. The International Food Information Council (IFIC, 1998) defines functional foods as foods that provide health benefits beyond basic nutrition. Generally, functional foods may be classified as conventional food, probiotics and nutraceuticals. Conventional food includes whole foods with functional effects at some physiological level, for example, nuts and tomatoes (Kaushik
Global Sea Surface Flux Estimates Obtained Through Ocean Data Assimilation

Oceanic state estimation has advanced suÆciently that it is now possible to make estimates of the atmospheric forcing elds required to reproduce global ocean observations. Here we use the data assimilation results from nine years of observations during the World Ocean Circulation Experiment to assess the adjustments of surface ux elds of momentum, heat and freshwater, necessary to make the a priori ocean-forcing elds from the National Center for Environmental Prediction (NCEP) consistent with the observed ocean. Independent estimates of the adjustments from bulk formula and regional eld observations are also employed to evaluate the results. Adjustments required of the NCEP freshwater and heat exchanges are all within the crude prior error bars on these elds, and on the large scale are consistent with known de ciencies in the NCEP products. Windstress adjustments are also everywhere within the prior error bars, but exhibit regional features that are due to ocean model failures to resolve intense boundary currents. On the largest scales, the inferred adjustments to NCEP winds are consistent with inferences made from satellite wind measurements. Rapid improvements in all of these procedures and results are anticipated.
Comparisons of series and parallel systems with components sharing the same copula

The paper is devoted to study stochastic comparisons of series and parallel systems with vectors of component lifetimes sharing the same copula. We show that, under some conditions on the common copula, the series system with heterogeneous components is worse than the series system with homogeneous components having a common reliability function, which is equal to the average of the reliability functions of the heterogeneous components. However, we show that this property is not necessarily true for arbitrary copulas. We obtain similar properties for parallel systems and for general coherent systems. For these purposes, we introduce in our analysis the notion of the mean function of a copula. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Damping of PWM Current-Source Rectifier Using a Hybrid Combination Approach

An inductor-capacitor (LC) filter is normally required at the input of a pulse-width modulation (PWM) current source rectifier (CSR), to assist in the commutation of switching devices and to mitigate line current harmonics. To dampen the LC resonance introduced by the input filter, an effective damping method is proposed in this paper by using a hybrid combination of a virtual harmonic resistive damper and a three-step control signal compensator. The virtual harmonic resistor, which is immune to system parameter variations, can dampen the LC resonance caused by an external disturbance or control command changes without affecting the fundamental power flow. But the high-pass filter used for fundamental component elimination leads to poor dynamics. Therefore, a proposed three-step compensator is inserted into the DC current closed-loop control path which can effectively eliminate the resonance within the control loop by shaping the modulation signal. Compared to the two-step Posicast controller, the proposed three-step compensator has significant implementation advantages in medium voltage CSRs, where a low switching frequency is needed. By using a hybrid combination approach, dynamics of the virtual harmonic resistor can be improved with the transient overshoot mitigated by the three-step compensator. At the same time, the parameter sensitivity of the three-step compensator can be reduced, as any residual resonant oscillations can be dampened by the virtual resistor. Simulation and experimental results are provided to verify the effectiveness of the proposed approach.
Optimization of PEG coated nanoscale gold particles for enhanced radiation therapy

Nanoscale gold particles are being used as a radiation dose enhancer in cancer research. The purpose of this study was to optimize the uptake of polyethylene glycol (PEG) functionalized gold nanoparticles (GNPs) for an enhanced therapeutic effect during radiation therapy. PEG is widely used in providing NPs with stealth properties, thus prolonging blood circulation times. However, PEG minimizes PEG-GNP interaction with cell surface ligands resulting in significantly lower in vitro cellular uptake. As intracellular localization of GNPs maximizes its therapeutic enhancement, there is a need to improve the uptake of PEG-GNPs. To enhance uptake, RGD peptide containing an integrin binding domain was conjugated along with PEG. Spherical GNPs of diameters 14 and 50 nm and PEG chain lengths of 2 kDa were used for the study. Nanoparticles functionalized with both RGD peptide and PEG had higher uptake than NPs functionalized with PEG alone. The enhancement in uptake was higher for 14 nm NPs as compared to 50 nm NPs. Our radiation therapy results showed that smaller NPs conjugated with PEG and RGD peptides have a three-fold therapeutic enhancement as compared to larger NPs in MDA-MB-231 cells at clinically relevant 6 MV energy. This study will shed light on clinical use of GNPs in radiation therapy in the near future.
DOMAIN 3 METABOLISM Methionine

This review focuses on the steps unique to methionine biosynthesis, namely the conversion of homoserine to methionine. The past decade has provided a wealth of information concerning the details of methionine metabolism and the review focuses on providing a comprehensive overview of the field, emphasizing more recent findings. Details of methionine biosynthesis are addressed along with key cellular aspects, including regulation, uptake, utilization, AdoMet, the methyl cycle, and growing evidence that inhibition of methionine biosynthesis occurs under stressful cellular conditions. The first unique step in methionine biosynthesis is catalyzed by the metA gene product, homoserine transsuccinylase (HTS, or homoserine O-succinyltransferase). Recent experiments suggest that transcription of these genes is indeed regulated by MetJ, although the repressorbinding sites have not yet been verified. Methionine also serves as the precursor of S-adenosylmethionine, which is an essential molecule employed in numerous biological processes. S-adenosylhomocysteine is produced as a consequence of the numerous AdoMet-dependent methyl transfer reactions that occur within the cell. In E. coli and Salmonella, this molecule is recycled in two discrete steps to complete the methyl cycle. Cultures challenged by oxidative stress appear to experience a growth limitation that depends on methionine levels. E. coli that are deficient for the manganese and iron superoxide dismutases (the sodA and sodB gene products, respectively) require the addition of methionine or cysteine for aerobic growth. Modulation of methionine levels in response to stressful conditions further increases the complexity of its regulation.
An Electro-Hydraulically Controlled Cylinder on a Loader Crane

With tighter emission regulations for road vehicles pushing the technology forward, fuel savings are indirectly affecting the designs and technical solutions of loader cranes. By decentralizing the hydraulic power through driving each actuator separately, the goal of a more efficient crane drive is strived for. This thesis analyzes if the simple concept of a pump-controlled cylinder directly driven by an induction motor is achievable for a loader crane. Further, the crucial role of the induction motor is studied both mathematically and physically. A special research is also performed on energy efficiency and the capability of electric energy regeneration. By forming the transfer function of the system and performing measurements on a physical setup, the conclusion is drawn that the proposed pump-controlled cylinder concept is fully functional for its purpose which implies that the technology is promising. The report identifies a number of complications with this configuration, such as the induction motor demonstrating reduced performance at high loads and low speeds. Suggestions of improvements are presented with regards to these issues. The thesis also demonstrates high efficiency during a lifting motion and that the possibility of efficient electric energy regeneration is achievable if an optimum lowering speed is considered.
Novel and robust silicon controlled rectifier (SCR) based devices for on-chip ESD protection

Silicon controlled rectifiers (SCRs) are frequently used to build on-chip electrostatic discharge (ESD) structures, but SCRs are not sufficiently robust to meet a wide range of ESD requirements in various integrated circuits. In this paper, a novel and robust SCR-based device called the HHLVTSCR is presented. It is demonstrated that the HHLVTSCR can exhibit various characteristics useful for ESD solutions by the adjustment of the channel types (N or P type), terminal connections, or lateral dimensions in the HHLVTSCR. Examples are also included to illustrate how HHVLTSCRs can be used to provide ESD protection in two different IC applications.
UvA-DARE (Digital Academic Repository) Hard X-Ray Lags in Active Galactic Nuclei: Testing the Distant Reverberation Hypothesis with NGC

We present an X-ray spectral and temporal analysis of the variable active galaxy NGC 6814, observed with Suzaku during 2011 November. Remarkably, the X-ray spectrum shows no evidence for the soft excess commonly observed amongst other active galaxies, despite its relatively low level of obscuration, and is dominated across the whole Suzaku bandpass by the intrinsic powerlaw-like continuum. Despite this, we clearly detect the presence of a lowfrequency hard lag of ∼1600 s between the 0.5–2.0 and 2.0–5.0 keV energy bands at greater than 6σ significance, similar to those reported in the literature for a variety of other active galactic nuclei (AGNs). At these energies, any additional emission from, e.g., a very weak, undetected soft excess, or from distant reflection must contribute less than 3% of the observed countrates (at 90% confidence). Given the lack of any significant continuum emission component other than the powerlaw, we can rule out models that invoke distant reprocessing for the observed lag behavior, which must instead be associated with this continuum emission. These results are fully consistent with a propagating fluctuation origin for the low-frequency hard lags, and with the interpretation of the high-frequency soft lags—a common feature seen in the highest quality AGN data with strong soft excesses—as reverberation from the inner accretion disk.
The Effect of Mandatory Employer-Sponsored Insurance (ESI) on Health Insurance Coverage and Labor Force Utilization in Hawaii: Evidence from the Current Population Survey (CPS) 1994-2004

Using data from the Current Population Surveys, we examine the impact of Hawaii’s mandatory employer-sponsored insurance on health insurance coverage and employment structure in Hawaii. We find empirical evidence of three phenomena. First, private employer-sponsored insurance coverage for full-time workers (more than 20 hours per week) is more prevalent in Hawaii, other things held constant, than in other states and the U.S. as a whole. Second, there is avoidance of the employer-mandate in Hawaii by skirting the 20 hour rule, which changes the both the distribution of employment and the distribution of employment-based insurance coverage by hours worked. Third, Hawaii workers who match with part-time jobs without employer-sponsored health insurance obtain publicly provided health insurance or military coverage with higher probability than their counterparts elsewhere in the U.S. These results suggest that employer mandates induce both higher rates of coverage and labor market sorting.
An Ultra-Precision XYΘ Z Piezo-Micropositioner Part II : Experiment and Performance

The performance of an ultra-precision three dimensional micropositioner using the built-in multilayer piezoelectric actuators and sensors is presented. The com­ pact design utilizes the monolithic mechanism to achieve the translation in the Xand Y-axes and rotation in the 8Z axis with high stiffness and high damping. Hysteresis, nonlinearity, and drift of piezoelectric effects are improved by incorporating the sensors in a feedback control. Exper­ iments demonstrate that the micropositioner is capable of a 10 nm resolution over the travel range of 17.8 Jm in the Xand Y-axes and a 0.15 Jrad resolution over the range of 585 Jrad in the 8Z axis. The crossaxis interferences are within 1.14% of the full range. The results agree well with the predictions by the theoretical models.
Lessons from a failure : Generating tailored smoking cessation letters

Vol. 24 No. 1 Articles Charles Abraham Rosen – Scientist and visionary: 1917–2002 PE Hart and NJ Nilsson Norman Russell Nielsen: 1941–2002 R Perrault Saul Amarel: 1928–2002 T Mitchell and CA Kulikowski In memoriam: Raymond Reiter June 12, 1939–September 16, 2002 J Minker Intelligent control of a water-recovery system – Three years in the trenches P Bonasso, D Kortenkamp and C Thronesbery TAC-03 – A supply-chain trading competition N Sadeh, R Arunachalam, J Eriksson, N Finne and S Janson
Stochastic Precoding for MISO Interference Channels with Channel Mean Feedback

Two linear precoding strategies are investigated for multiple-input single-out (MISO) interference channels with channel mean feedback at transmitters. The interference at each receiver is treated as additive noise. The challenge here is that previous analysis with perfect channel state information (CSI) at transmitters does not apply. Based on stochastic ordering, the altruistic non-equilibrium stochastic zero forcing strategy is first proposed, generalizing traditional zero forcing which requires perfect CSI. Interestingly, the precoding matrices here are all rank-one as in traditional zero forcing. The competitive use of the common channel is also formulated as a strategic game. Different from the perfect CSI case, with channel mean feedback, infinitely many Nash equilibria exist in general, which are not necessarily rank-one. Comparisons of the above two precoding strategies reveal no overall dominance of one over the other, thereby establishing stochastic zero forcing as an appealing alternative to the prevailing Nash equilibrium strategies.
University ’ s repository of research publications and other research outputs Generating multimedia presentations : from plain text to screenplay Book Chapter

In many Natural Language Generation (NLG) applications, the output is limited to plain text – i.e., a string of words with punctuation and paragraph breaks, but no indications for layout, or pictures, or dialogue. In several projects, we have begun to explore NLG applications in which these extra media are brought into play. This paper gives an informal account of what we have learned. For coherence, we focus on the domain of patient information leaflets, and follow an example in which the same content is expressed first in plain text, then in formatted text, then in text with pictures, and finally in a dialogue script that can be performed by two animated agents. We show how the same meaning can be mapped to realisation patterns in different media, and how the expanded options for expressing meaning are related to the perceived style and tone of the presentation. Throughout, we stress that the extra media are not simple added to plain text, but integrated with it: thus the use of formatting, or pictures, or dialogue, may require radical rewording of the text itself.
A direct-conversion receiver for DVB-H

A 240mW direct-conversion DVB-H receiver in a 0.35 /spl mu/m BiCMOS process is presented. The receiver covers UHF bands IV and V, and exhibits a nominal 80dB gain, 8.5dB NF, and 8.5dBm IIP3. The IC includes an LNA, dual quadrature mixers, baseband filtering, three 4/spl times/ VCO, an integer PLL, and a reference oscillator.
Novel Routes for Sintering of Ultra-high Temperature Ceramics and their Properties

Abstract : The objective is to obtain new knowledge about mechanism of activated sintering of eutectic systems based on refractory compounds as well as regularities of structure formation of UHTCs. The suggested approach is to find out methods of elevation of diffusion mobility of surface atoms of grains being sintered. The effective way to increase this mobility is introducing additives in charge that together with the main phases form eutectic systems. The primary results obtained: 1. Mechanisms of eutectic interactions and processes ongoing in eutectic systems at high temperatures were investigated, namely: -A) at the boundary of grains of eutectic alloys, diffusion zones are formed where the processes of eutectic melting develop as well as processes responsible for sintering; -B) it is showed that Debay temperature of Al in composite is 288 that is about by 25% lower than that in monophase sample. Thus, at high temperatures the thermal vibration amplitude of aluminum atoms in grains of eutectic alloys is by 25% higher than in monophase condition and it defines the elevated diffusion activity at sintering. 2. In the ZrB2-SiC-5% Cr3C2 system, hot pressing allows to obtain porous free ceramics at temperatures 1500-1600 deg , and in the mode of free sintering at temperatures 1800-1900 , meanwhile the ceramic ZrB2-SiC has a porosity about 0-5% at hot pressing at temperatures 2100-2200 . Sintering of ZrB2-SiC-5% Cr3C2 ceramic occurs in conditions of eutectic interactions with disappearing liquid phase and formation of secondary high temperature phases (on the base of ZrC and CrB) in diffusion zones. 3. A result of eutectic interaction of sintered compositions ZrB2-SiC-5% Cr3C2 is also the elevated creep rate of those that is one of the factors of intensification of their sintering. 4. As a result of investigations performed, being based on the proposed approach, new compositions of perspective UHTCs were developed.
MgSiO4 perovskite: a HRTEM study

Abstract Selected-area electron diffraction patterns for the [110] zone of MgSiO3 perovskite are consistent with the orthorhombic unit cell obtained by X-ray diffraction (a = 4.775, b = 4.929, c = 6.897 Å). Various areas of a crystal fragment show diffuse streaking along c*, and well-developed satellite reflections that give a 3-fold repeat along [11̅0]*. Another fragment shows doubled cell dimensions when viewed down [1̅30]. The variable occurrence of the satellite reflectioncs and diffuse streaking indicate subtle variations in ordering, chemistry, or both. Images obtained by high-resolution transmission electron microscopy contain perfectly ordered regions, out-of-phase boundaries, and intergrowths of the two orthorhombic forms of perovskite.