Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Modeling and experimental validation of sharpening mechanism based on thermal oxidation for fabrication of ultra-sharp silicon nanotips

This paper aims at modeling the thermal oxidation of silicon pillars leading to the formation of very sharp silicon tips. The model is used to determine optimum process parameters with respect to the initial shape of the silicon pillars and the geometry of the desired tip. The modeling concept is to extend a previous approach, which predicts the oxidation mechanism of silicon cylinders versus their initial radius. The silicon pillar geometry is approximated by a superposition of silicon cylindrical structures featuring a local curvature radius. Experimental validation has been performed for several initial silicon pillar shapes, at 1000/spl deg/C and 1100/spl deg/C under dry oxidation conditions, leading to formation of very sharp silicon tips. The numerical predictions are shown to agree well with these experimental data. The motivation of this study aims at designing and fabricating a nanoelectromechanical filter device. Its vibrating part consists of a silicon nanotip, covered with a thin gold layer, the geometrical features of which affect the center frequency of the nanofilter device.
100, 000 false positives for every real terrorist: Why anti-terror algorithms don't work

Can terrorist attacks be predicted and prevented using classification algorithms? Can predictive analytics see the hidden patterns and data tracks in the planning of terrorist acts? According to a number of IT firms that now offer programs to predict terrorism using predictive analytics, the answer is yes. According to scientific and application-oriented literature, however, these programs raise a number of practical, statistical and recursive problems. In a literature review and discussion, this paper examines specific problems involved in predicting terrorism. The problems include the opportunity cost of false positives/false negatives, the statistical quality of the prediction and the self-reinforcing, corrupting recursive effects of predictive analytics, since the method lacks an inner meta-model for its own learning- and pattern-dependent adaptation. The conclusion is algorithms don’t work for detecting terrorism and is ineffective, risky and inappropriate, with potentially 100,000 false positives for every real terrorist that the algorithm finds.
Hepatic venous pressure gradient measurement in patients with liver cirrhosis: a correlation with disease severity and variceal bleeding.

UNLABELLED The aim of present study was to evaluate relationships between degree of portal hypertension, severity of the disease, and bleeding status in patients with liver cirrhosis. PATIENTS AND METHODS All study patients with liver cirrhosis underwent hepatic venous pressure gradient measurements, endoscopy, clinical and biochemical evaluation. Liver function was evaluated according to Child-Turcotte-Pugh (Child's) scoring system. Patients with decompensated cirrhosis (presence of severe ascites, acute variceal bleeding occurring within 14 days, hepatorenal syndrome, cardiopulmonary disorders, transaminase levels >10 times higher the upper normal limit), active alcohol intake, use of antiviral therapy and/or beta-blockers were excluded from the study. RESULTS One hundred twenty-eight patients with liver cirrhosis (male/female, 67/61; mean age, 53.8+/-12.7 years) were included into the study. Etiology of cirrhosis was viral hepatitis, alcoholic liver disease, cryptogenic and miscellaneous reasons in 57, 49, 14, and 8 patients, respectively. Child's stages A, B, and C of liver cirrhosis were established in 28 (21.9%), 70 (54.9%), and 30 (23.4%) patients, respectively. The mean hepatic venous pressure gradient significantly differed among patients with different Child's classes: 13.8+/-5.3 mm Hg, 17.3+/-4.6 mm Hg, and 17.7+/-5.05 mm Hg in Child's A, B, and C classes, respectively (P=0.003). The mean hepatic venous pressure gradient in patients with grade I, II, and III varices was 14.8+/-4.5, 16.1+/-4.3, and 19.3+/-4.7 mm Hg, respectively (P=0.0001). Since nonbleeders had both small and large esophageal varices, patients with large varices were analyzed separately. The mean hepatic venous pressure gradient in patients with large (grade II and III) varices was significantly higher than that in patients with small (grade I) varices (17.8+/-4.8 mm Hg vs 14.6+/-4.8 mm Hg, P=0.007). Thirty-four (26.6%) patients had a history of previous variceal bleeding; all of them had large (20.6% - grade II, and 79.4% - grade III) varices. In patients with large varices, the mean hepatic venous pressure gradient was significantly higher in bleeders than in nonbleeders (18.7+/-4.7 mm Hg vs 15.9+/-4.7 mm Hg, P=0.006). CONCLUSIONS Hepatic venous pressure gradient correlates with severity of liver disease, size of varices, and bleeding status. Among cirrhotics with large esophageal varices, bleeders have a significantly higher hepatic venous pressure gradient than nonbleeders. Hepatic venous pressure gradient measurement is useful in clinical practice selecting cirrhotic patients at the highest risk of variceal bleeding and guiding to specific therapy.
Infectious Molecular Clones from a Simian Immunodeficiency Virus-Infected Rapid-Progressor (RP) Macaque: Evidence of Differential Selection of RP-Specific Envelope Mutations In Vitro and In Vivo

ABSTRACT A minor fraction of simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV)-infected macaques progress rapidly to AIDS in the absence of SIV-specific immune responses. Common mutations in conserved residues of env in three SIVsmE543-3-infected rapid-progressor (RP) macaques suggest the evolution of a common viral variant in RP macaques. The goal of the present study was to analyze the biological properties of these variants in vitro and in vivo through the derivation of infectious molecular clones. Virus isolated from a SIVsmE543-3-infected RP macaque, H445 was used to inoculate six naive rhesus macaques. Although RP-specific mutations dominated in H445 tissues, they represented only 10% of the population of the virus stock, suggesting a selective disadvantage in vitro. Only one of these macaques (H635) progressed rapidly to AIDS. Plasma virus during primary infection of H635 was similar to the inoculum. However, RP-specific mutations were apparently rapidly reselected by 4 to 9 weeks postinfection. Terminal plasma from H635 was used as a source of viral RNA to generate seven full-length, infectious molecular clones. With the exception of one clone, which was similar to SIVsmE543-3, clones with RP-specific mutations replicated with delayed kinetics in rhesus peripheral blood mononuclear cells and human T-cell lines. None of the clones replicated in monocyte-derived or alveolar macrophages, and all used CCR5 as their major coreceptor. RP variants appear to be well adapted to replicate in vivo in RP macaques but are at a disadvantage in tissue culture compared to their parent, SIVsmE543-3. Therefore, tissue culture may not provide a good surrogate for replication of RP variants in macaques. These infectious clones will provide a valuable reagent to study the roles of specific viral variants in rapid progression in vivo.
An allocation optimization method for partially-reliable instruction scratch-pad memory in embedded systems

In this paper, we propose the use of a memory system which has partially reliable SPM in order to optimize energy consumption while ensuring required reliability. An allocation method for such memory system is formulated as integer linear programming whose solution leads to energy-optimal consumption while ensuring required reliability. Evaluation shows that proposed method is effective when overhead for error correction is large.
Comparative Evaluation of Semiautomated COBAS AMPLICOR Hepatitis B Virus (HBV) MONITOR Test and Manual Microwell Plate-Based AMPLICOR HBV MONITOR Test

ABSTRACT Comparative evaluation of the semiautomated COBAS AMPLICOR hepatitis B virus (HBV) MONITOR Test (COBAS-HBV) and manual AMPLICOR HBV MONITOR Test (AMPLICOR-HBV) on 208 serum samples revealed no significant difference in the sensitivities of the two assays. Twenty samples tested HBV DNA negative and 183 samples tested HBV DNA positive by both assays. Three samples tested positive by COBAS-HBV only and two samples tested positive by AMPLICOR-HBV only. HBV DNA concentrations determined by the two assays were significantly related (n = 183, r = 0.97,P < 0.0001), which indicates that COBAS-HBV could replace AMPLICOR-HBV. The major inconvenience of COBAS-HBV is the required performance of appropriate predilutions of high-titer samples in order to extend the narrow dynamic range of the assay.
Tobler ’ s Law , Urbanization , and Electoral Bias : Why Compact , Contiguous Districts are Bad for the Democrats

When one of the major parties in the United States wins a substantially larger share of the seats than its vote share would seem to warrant, the conventional explanation lies in manipulation of maps by the party that controls the redistricting process. Yet this paper uses a unique data set from Florida to demonstrate a common mechanism through which substantial partisan bias can emerge purely from residential patterns. When partisan preferences are spatially dependent and partisanship is highly correlated with population density, any districting scheme that generates relatively compact, contiguous districts will tend to produce bias against the urban party. In order to demonstrate this empirically, we apply automated districting algorithms driven solely by compactness and contiguity parameters, building winner-take-all districts out of the precinct-level results of the tied Florida presidential election of 2000. The simulation results demonstrate that with 50 percent of the votes statewide, the Republicans can expect to win around 59 percent of the seats without any “intentional” gerrymandering. This is because urban districts tend to be homogeneous and Democratic while suburban and rural districts tend to be moderately Republican. Thus in Florida and other states where Democrats are highly concentrated in cities, the seemingly apolitical practice of requiring compact, contiguous districts will produce systematic pro-Republican electoral bias.
Quantifying above‐cloud aerosol using spaceborne lidar for improved understanding of cloudy‐sky direct climate forcing

[1] Estimates of global mean direct climate forcing by absorbing aerosols located above boundary layer clouds are large, uncertain, and almost entirely unconstrained by observations. Spaceborne lidar offers a new opportunity for global constraints. Here we examine techniques for using liquid water clouds as lidar targets, allowing aerosol optical depth and Angstrom exponent to be deduced directly from aerosol effects on light transmission. Two such techniques are examined using data from the Cloud-Aerosol Lidar and Infrared Pathfinder Satellite Observations (CALIPSO). The first is a previously reported method based on measurements of cloud depolarization ratio (DR) at 532-nm wavelength. The second is a new method using measurements of cloud color ratio (CR), which is the ratio of the signal from the cloud at 1064 nm to that at 532 nm. Optical depth retrievals from these two methods compare favorably over the eastern tropical Atlantic Ocean during August 2006, when biomass burning aerosols are frequently advected over marine stratiform clouds. The CR technique is mainly sensitive to fine-mode aerosols and essentially insensitive to clouds and coarse-mode dust. Because anthropogenic aerosol is predominantly found in the fine mode, the CR technique can be used to help identify situations where anthropogenic cloudy-sky direct radiative forcing is occurring. We demonstrate this capability using 6 months data over the eastern tropical Atlantic Ocean.
Climate‐related genetic variation in drought‐resistance of Douglas‐fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii)

There is a general assumption that intraspecific populations originating from relatively arid climates will be better adapted to cope with the expected increase in drought from climate change. For ecologically and economically important species, more comprehensive, genecological studies that utilize large distributions of populations and direct measures of traits associated with drought‐resistance are needed to empirically support this assumption because of the implications for the natural or assisted regeneration of species. We conducted a space‐for‐time substitution, common garden experiment with 35 populations of coast Douglas‐fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii var. menziesii) growing at three test sites with distinct summer temperature and precipitation (referred to as ‘cool/moist’, ‘moderate’, or ‘warm/dry’) to test the hypotheses that (i) there is large genetic variation among populations and regions in traits associated with drought‐resistance, (ii) the patterns of genetic variation are related to the native source‐climate of each population, in particular with summer temperature and precipitation, (iii) the differences among populations and relationships with climate are stronger at the warm/dry test site owing to greater expression of drought‐resistance traits (i.e., a genotype × environment interaction). During midsummer 2012, we measured the rate of water loss after stomatal closure (transpirationmin), water deficit (% below turgid saturation), and specific leaf area (SLA, cm2 g−1) on new growth of sapling branches. There was significant genetic variation in all plant traits, with populations originating from warmer and drier climates having greater drought‐resistance (i.e., lower transpirationmin, water deficit and SLA), but these trends were most clearly expressed only at the warm/dry test site. Contrary to expectations, populations from cooler climates also had greater drought‐resistance across all test sites. Multiple regression analysis indicated that Douglas‐fir populations from regions with relatively cool winters and arid summers may be most adapted to cope with drought conditions that are expected in the future.
Novel Algorithms for High-Accuracy Joint Position and Orientation Estimation in 5G mmWave Systems

We propose a method for accurate estimation of the User Equipment (UE) position and antenna orientation. For this, we exploit the sparsity of the mm-wave channel, and employ a compressive sensing approach with iterative refinement steps for accurate estimation of the channel parameters, including the departure and arrival angles as well as the time-of-arrival for each observed propagation path. Based on the estimated channel parameters, we formulate an iterative Gibbs sampler to obtain statistical descriptions for the unknown UE position and orientation along with the unknown scatterer positions, even in the absence of a Line-Of-Sight path.
Innovation in Diabetes Care: Improving Consumption of Healthy Food Through a “Chef Coaching” Program: A Case Report

Nutrition therapy as part of lifestyle care is recommended for people with type 2 diabetes. However, most people with diabetes do not follow this guideline. Changing eating habits involves obtaining knowledge and building practical skills such as shopping, meal preparation, and food storage. Just as fitness coaches use their specific knowledge base in fitness to enhance the effectiveness of their coaching, credentialed chefs trained as health coaches might combine their culinary expertise with coaching in order to improve clients’ food choices and lifestyles. This report documents the case of a 55-year-old white male physician, single and living alone, who was recently diagnosed with type 2 diabetes and reported chronic stress, sedentary behavior, and unhealthy eating habits. He participated in a chef coaching program of 8 weekly one-on-one 30-minute coaching sessions via Skype delivered by a chef trained as a health coach. During the first five meetings, the patient's goals were primarily culinary; however, with his success in accomplishing these goals, the patient progressed and expanded his goals to include other lifestyle domains, specifically exercise and work-life balance. At the end of the program, the patient had improved both his nutritional and exercise habits, his confidence in further self-care improvement, and his health parameters such as HgA1c (8.8% to 6.7%; normal <6.5%). We conclude that chef coaching has the potential to help people with diabetes improve their practical culinary skills and implement them so that they eat better and, further, has the potential to help them improve their overall self-care. We intend to further develop chef coaching and assess its potential as we learn from its implementation.
Image restoration in the dual advanced Compton camera system

We developed an image restoration method for an advanced Compton camera (ACC) making use of Compton scattering and recoiled electrons. In this paper, we simulated a system with two ACCs located perpendicular to each other with an Electron Gamma Shower ver.5 (EGS5) code, and reconstructed images with a modified source space tree algorithm. Moreover, we deblurred the reconstructed images with a parametric Wiener filter. The results of simulations confirmed the validity of our proposed methods.
Multiplex PCR Assays for Simultaneous Detection of Six Major Serotypes and Two Virulence-Associated Phenotypes of Streptococcus suis in Tonsillar Specimens from Pigs

ABSTRACT Multiplex PCR assays for the detection and identification of various Streptococcus suis strains in tonsillar specimens from pigs were developed and evaluated. In two separate reactions, five distinct DNA targets were amplified. Three targets, based on the S. suis capsular polysaccharide (cps) genes specific for serotypes 1 (and 14), 7, and 9, were amplified in multiplex PCR I. Two other targets, based on the serotype 2- (and 1/2-) specific cps gene and the epf gene, encoding the EF proteins of virulent serotype 2 and highly virulent serotype 1 strains, were amplified in multiplex PCR II. To identify false-negative results, firefly luciferase (luc) DNA and primers based on the luc gene were included in the assay. The multiplex PCR assays were evaluated with tonsillar specimens from pigs infected with S. suis strains. The results obtained with the PCR assays were compared with the results obtained with a bacteriological examination. Most (94%) of the results obtained with multiplex PCR assays were confirmed by the bacteriological examination. The PCR method seems to be more sensitive compared to the bacteriological method, since the remaining 6% of the samples were positive by PCR and negative by bacteriological examination. These results indicate that the PCR method is highly specific for the detection of S. suis strains most frequently involved in clinical disease in infected pig herds. The serotypes found by PCR in tonsillar specimens from diseased pigs were compared with the serotypes of the strains isolated from the affected tissues of the same pigs. The results showed that there is significant association between carriership and clinical illness for S. suis serotype 9 and EF-positive serotype 2 strains and not for serotype 7 and EF-negative serotype 2 (or 1/2) strains.
SELECTIVE MEDIUM FOR CARBOHYDRATE-UTILIZING TRANSDUCTANTS OF STAPHYLOCOCCUS AUREUS

Murphey, W. H. (The University of Texas, Dallas), and E. D. Rosenblum. Selective medium for carbohydrate-utilizing transductants of Staphylococcus aureus. J. Bacteriol. 87:1198–1201. 1964. —The composition and properties of modified eosin-methylene blue agar are described. It is an efficient, selective medium for isolation of carbohydrate-utilizing staphylococci from large, nonutilizing populations. The medium has been used to measure the rate of transduction of mannitol fermentation and to demonstrate genetic recombination in mannitol-negative mutants of Staphylococcus aureus.
Risk Factors for Campylobacter Colonization in Broiler Flocks in Japan

The present study was conducted to estimate the prevalence of and to identify the risk factors for Campylobacter colonization in broiler flocks in Japan. Camplylobacter colonization status in flock was evaluated by culturing pooled caecal excrement from 124 broiler flocks. Potential exposure to risk factors was evaluated with a questionnaire for the broiler producers. Odds ratios (ORs) were calculated using a multivariable logistic regression analysis. The prevalence of Campylobacter‐positive flocks was 43.5% (upper and lower limits of 95% confidence interval (CI95%): 34.8, 52.3). Multivariable logistic regression model identified two variables as risk factors for Campylobacter colonization. The ORs of Campylobacter colonization were higher in flocks in western Japan (OR = 2.68; CI95%: 1.04, 6.91) than in eastern Japan, and in flocks supplied with undisinfected drinking water (OR = 7.41; CI95%: 3.11, 17.66) than in those supplied with disinfected drinking water. These findings indicate that water may play an important role in Campylobacter colonization in broiler flocks in Japan and the use of disinfected water may reduce the risk of Campylobacter colonization.
Response of selected poultry cecal probiotic bacteria and a primary poultry salmonella typhimurium isolate grown with or without glucose in liquid batch culture

Abstract The objective of this study was to determine whether fermentation by a cecal probiotic co‐culture of an Enterococcus sp. and Veillonella sp. would inhibit the in vitro growth of a S typhimurium poultry isolate. The growth rates of S. typhimurium and Enterococcus were significantly reduced at pH 5. At the two pH levels, there was a significant (p < 0.001) increase at 24 h in colony forming units for each of the bacteria enumerated from the mixed culture compared to the respective pure culture enumerations. S. typhimurium was not inhibited in mixed cultures. The mixed cultures produced more acetate than any of the pure cultures and lactate produced by Enterococcus appeared to be utilized by Veillonella.
The Manpower Shortage in Occupational Therapy: Implications for Ontario

A consistently increasing imbalance between the supply of and demand for occupational therapists has led to a critical manpower shortage in occupational therapy. Based on a review of various government reports and related literature, this paper provides an overview of the extent of this manpower problem, identifies factors affecting retention and attrition of occupational therapists and discusses strategies to improve retention and reduce attrition. To address the supply-demand imbalance, recommendations in relation to education, employment, immigration and service delivery for the occupational therapy profession in Ontario are proposed.
PET measurement of brain acetylcholinesterase activities in cortex and subcortical areas

We appreciate the letter concerning our manuscript entitled “Dementia with Lewy bodies can be welldifferentiated from Alzheimer’s disease by measurement of brain acetylcholinesterase activity – A [C]MP4A PET study” by Professor Bohnen, and we would like to make a response. We have prepared a reply to the letter by Professor Bohnen and colleagues. We feel that it will be of special interest for the readers of International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry.