Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Hybrid Extension of a Flexible Software Defined RFID Reader

A hybrid solution for a software defined RFID reader is presented in this work. Commercial RFID systems operate at a level, where only a restrictive amount of parameters are configurable and transparency is not given. Therefore these systems cannot be configured to make them tailored to specific applications. For that reason, a flexible software reader providing these requirements is used as the starting point of this work. This software reader is an open source project by CGran, based on a software defined radio and a USRP hardware frontend. However the flexibility is paid for by a time critical communication of the USB transfer between USRP and PC host. A hybrid concept was developed to improve this time critical application and reduce the maximum required delay for a response. The following design intends to transfer the transmission components to the hardware, where it is controlled by short commands, instead of sending the transmission data sample wise by the software reader. It is shown that this solution achieves a better performance due to a decreased response delay and furthermore provides a backward compatibility to the original concept of the software reader.
New Spectral Evidence of an Unaccounted Component of the Near-infrared Extragalactic Background Light from the CIBER

The extragalactic background light (EBL) captures the total integrated emission from stars and galaxies throughout the cosmic history. The amplitude of the near-infrared EBL from space absolute photometry observations has been controversial and depends strongly on the modeling and subtraction of the zodiacal light (ZL) foreground. We report the first measurement of the diffuse background spectrum at 0.8–1.7 μm from the CIBER experiment. The observations were obtained with an absolute spectrometer over two flights in multiple sky fields to enable the subtraction of ZL, stars, terrestrial emission, and diffuse Galactic light. After subtracting foregrounds and accounting for systematic errors, we find the nominal EBL brightness, assuming the Kelsall ZL model, is nW m−2 sr−1 at 1.4 μm. We also analyzed the data using the Wright ZL model, which results in a worse statistical fit to the data and an unphysical EBL, falling below the known background light from galaxies at λ < 1.3 μm. Using a model-independent analysis based on the minimum EBL brightness, we find an EBL brightness of nWm−2 sr−1 at 1.4 μm. While the derived EBL amplitude strongly depends on the ZL model, we find that we cannot fit the spectral data to ZL, Galactic emission, and EBL from solely integrated galactic light from galaxy counts. The results require a new diffuse component, such as an additional foreground or an excess EBL with a redder spectrum than that of ZL.
Investigation of the thermal and tissue injury behaviour in microwave thermal therapy using a porcine kidney model

Minimally invasive microwave thermal therapies are being developed for the treatment of small renal cell carcinomas (RCC, d<3 cm). This study assessed the thermal history and corresponding tissue injury patterns resulting from microwave treatment of the porcine renal cortex. Three groups of kidneys were evaluated: (1) in vitro treated, (2) in vivo with 2-h post-treatment perfusion (acute) and (3) in vivo with 7-day post-treatment perfusion (chronic). The kidneys were treated with an interstitial water-cooled microwave probe (Urologix, Plymouth, MN) that created a lesion centered in the renal cortex (50 W for 10 min). The thermal histories were recorded at 0.5 cm radial intervals from the probe axis for correlation with the histologic cellular and vascular injury. The kidneys showed a reproducible 2 cm chronic lesion with distinct histologic injury zones identified. The thermal histories at the edge of these zones were found using Lagrangian interpolation. The threshold thermal histories for microvascular injury and stasis appeared to be lower than that for renal epithelial cell injury. The Arrhenius kinetic injury models were fit to the thermal histories and injury data to determine the kinetic parameters (i.e. activation energy and frequency factor) for the thermal injury processes. The resultant activation energies are consistent in magnitude with those for thermally induced protein denaturation. A 3-D finite element thermal model based on the Pennes bioheat equation was developed and solved using ANSYS (V7.0). The real geometry of the kidneys studied and temperature dependent thermal properties were used in this model. The specific absorption rate (SAR) of the microwave probe required for the thermal modelling was experimentally determined. The results from the thermal modelling suggest that the complicated change of local renal blood perfusion with temperature and time during microwave thermal therapy can be predicted, although a first order kinetic model may be insufficient to capture blood flow changes. The local blood perfusion was found to be a complicated function of temperature and time. A non-linear model based on the degree of vascular stasis was introduced to predict the blood perfusion. In conclusion, interstitial microwave thermal therapy in the normal porcine kidney results in predictable thermal and tissue injury behaviour. Future work in human kidney tissue will be necessary to confirm the clinical significance of these results.
NRZ-PM-QPSK 16 $\times$ 100 Gb/s Transmission Over Installed Fiber With Different Dispersion Maps

We present a set of experiments of 16 × 100 Gb/s (1.6 Tb/s) coherent wavelength-division-multiplexing nonreturn-to-zero polarization-multiplexed quadrature phase-shift-keying transmission over installed standard single-mode fiber, probing different dispersion maps and precompensation. We tested the maximum tolerable span loss over 16 spans versus transmitted power. We also assessed the maximum reach. The results clearly show that avoiding in-line dispersion-compensating units grants a substantial performance advantage over optically compensated links, for a wide range of possible scenarios.
BMP-4 increases activin A gene expression during osteogenic differentiation of mouse embryonic stem cells

Abstract Activin A is a growth factor released by mature osteoblasts that has a critical effect on bone formation. We investigated the effect of bone morphogenetic protein (BMP)-4 on activin A gene expression during in vitro osteogenic differentiation of mouse embryonic stem (ES) cells. Embryoid bodies were cultured in retinoic acid (RA) for three days and then without RA for two days. Seeded cells received osteogenic medium with β-glycerophosphate, L-ascorbic acid 2-phosphate and dexamethasone during 19 days, with or without BMP-4. Six independent experiments were carried out. Real-time PCR was used to detect gene expression of activin A, Oct-4, Nanog, osteocalcin, RUNX2 and bone alkaline phosphatase. Immunofluorescence was used to co-localize activin A with the undifferentiation marker stage-specific embryonic antigen 1. Cells treated with BMP-4 had an increased gene expression of activin A, osteocalcin and bone alkaline phosphatase (p < 0.05). In conclusion, BMP-4 increases activin A gene expression during mouse ES cell differentiation into bone precursors.
Immunomodulatory adjuvant therapy in severe community-acquired pneumonia

Severe pneumonia has a high mortality (38.2%) despite evidence-based therapy. Rising rates of antimicrobial resistance increase the urgency to develop new treatment strategies. Multiple adjuvant therapies for pneumonia have been investigated but none are currently licensed. Profound immune dysregulation occurs in patients with severe infection. An initial hyper-inflammatory response is followed by a secondary hypo-inflammatory response with ‘immune-paralysis’. There is focus on the development of immunostimulatory agents to improve host ability to combat primary infection and reduce secondary infections. Successful treatments must be targeted to immune response; promising biomarkers exist but have not yet reached common bedside practice. We explore evidence for adjuvant therapies in community-acquired pneumonia. We highlight novel potential treatment strategies using a broad-based search strategy to include publications in pneumonia and severe sepsis. We explore reasons for the failure to develop effective adjuvant therapies and highlight the need for targeted therapy specific to immune activity.
Molar height and dentoalveolar compensation in adult subjects with skeletal open bite.

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the skeletal and dentoalveolar components in adult subjects with skeletal open bite in the presence or absence of dental compensation. MATERIALS AND METHODS The study sample included 69 adult female subjects who belonged to three groups according to skeletal vertical relationships and overbite. A total of 15 variables (5 angular, 10 linear) were evaluated. Values in the dentally compensated open bite group (COBG), the dentally noncompensated open bite group (NCOBG), and the control group with normal vertical skeletal relationships and overbite (CG) were compared by means of parametric statistics. RESULTS The COBG and the NCOBG showed significantly greater incisor and molar heights in both jaws than the CG. No significant difference in upper or lower molar height was found between COBG and NCOBG. Incisor height was significantly greater in COBG than in NCOBG. Elongation in the incisor region was accompanied by significant narrowing of the lower anterior alveolar process in both skeletal open bite groups. Proclination of the upper incisors was significantly smaller in the COBG than in the other groups. CONCLUSIONS Dentoalveolar components consisting of incisor elongation and inclination play a significant role in compensating for skeletal open bite configuration in adult subjects. Increased molar height is a common finding in adults with skeletal open bite.
Motivated to Penalize: Women's Strategic Rejection of Successful Women

Two studies tested the hypothesis that females penalize women who succeed in male gender-typed jobs to salvage their own self-views regarding competence. The authors proposed that women are motivated to penalize successful women (i.e., characterize them as unlikable and interpersonally hostile) to minimize the self-evaluative consequences of social comparison with a highly successful female target. Results supported the hypothesis. Whereas both male and female participants penalized successful women, blocking this penalization reduced female—but not male—participants' self-ratings of competence (Study 1). Moreover, positive feedback provided to female participants about their potential to succeed (Study 2) weakened negative reactions to successful women without costs to subsequent self-ratings of competence. These results suggest that the interpersonal derogation of successful women by other women functions as a self-protective strategy against threatening upward social comparisons.
Studies on adenosine triphosphate transphosphorylases. IX. Kinetic properties of the crystalline adenosine triphosphate-creatine transphosphorylase from calf brain.

Abstract The steady state kinetics of the calf brain ATP-creatine transphosphorylase seems to be adequately expressed by a random quasi-equilibrium type of mechanism with a rate-limiting step at the interconversion of the ternary complexes and for a case without independent binding of the substrates. Values for the kinetic parameters at pH 8.8, 30°, have been deduced. The over-all equilibrium constant, calculated kinetically from the Haldane relations, agreed satisfactorily with the thermodynamic value assigned previously (Kuby and Noltmann, The enzymes, Vol. 6, 1962, p. 515). Values for Ks1 versus Ks1 (i.e. intrinsic dissociation constants of the substrate from the ternary and binary complexes, respectively) differed very significantly (e.g. for the forward reaction: Kmgatp2- and Kmgatp2- were 1.35 x 10-4 and 0.93 x 10-3 m, Kcreatine and Kcreatine were 3.7 x 10-3 m and 2.9 x 10-2 m, respectively). The possibility might then be entertained, that at pH 8.8, an enhancement in binding of the individual substrate in the ternary complex has occurred compared to the binary enzyme-substrate complex (cf. Morrison and James, Biochem. J., 97, 37 (1965)). Also, it has been tentatively concluded that ADP3- may compete with MgADP- for binding to the enzyme with a type of inhibition at high ADP0 concentrations which has been evaluated in terms of an abortive and inactive ternary complex with creatine phosphate2-, and which forms also in a random manner. The kinetic parameters have also been estimated for the calf muscle isoenzyme at pH 8.8 (and calculated for the above mechanism). Certain distinguishing kinetic features of each isoenzyme at pH 8.8 are then briefly outlined. A further comparison of the calf brain enzyme's kinetic data obtained at pH 8.8 with those obtained at pH 7.4 reveal several significant differences in the derived parameters, especially in Vmaxreverse (with a large increase), in Kcr∼p2- (with a large decrease), and in comparatively smaller (or even insignificant) decreases between respective Ks1 and Ks1 values (in which case, the brain-type enzyme seems to approach the muscle-type enzyme in its kinetic characteristics). An over-all evaluation of the data (physical, chemical, and kinetic) gathered for the calf brain ATP-creatine transphosphorylase seems to lead to the conclusion that it is susceptible to gross conformational changes as a result of environmental influences, in contrast to the more stable molecular unit to be found in the muscle-type ATP-creatine transphosphorylase.
Study of Cynops pyrrhogaster notochord differentiation using a novel monoclonal antibody

Two monoclonal antibodies which reacted specifically with the notochord of the early Cynops pyrrhogaster embryo were screened. The antigen molecules were detected within and around the notochord. They were first found mostly between the neural plate and the dorsal part of the notochord in the early neurula (stage 15). They were subsequently detected between the notochord and the somite in the advanced embryo, and they were last detected between the notochord and the underlying endoderm. Whole‐mount labeling indicated that the antigen molecules were first detected in the anterior half of the notochord in the early neurula (stage 15). The signals gradually spread along the anterior–posterior axis, especially towards the posterior region. This fact suggests that notochord differentiation progresses from the anterior region which first receives the dorsal mesoderm‐inducing signals released horizontally from the lower dorsal marginal zone during early gastrulation. The present study suggested that: (i) notochord differentiation proceeds from the anterior region; and (ii) secretion of the antigen molecules results in the drawing of a boundary between the adjacent tissues.
Temporal Characteristics of Large IP Traffic Flows

Several studies of Internet traffic have shown that it is a small percentage of the flows that dominate the traffic. This is often referred to as the mice and elephants phenomenon. It has been proposed that this might be one of very few invariants of Internet traffic and that this property could somehow be used for traffic engineering purposes. The idea being that one in a scalable way could control a major part of the traffic by only keeping track of a small number of flows. But for this the large flows must also be stable in the meaning that they should be among the largest flows during long periods of time. In this work we analyse packet traces of Internet traffic and study the temporal characteristics of large aggregated traffic flows defined by destination address prefixes.
The effect of IL-28A on human cord blood CD4+ T cells

Background and aim: The utilization of umbilical cord blood transplantation (UCBT) has been increasing because of the potential advantage of rapid accessibility and the lesser risk of graft-versus-host disease (GVHD), thus allowing less strict HLA matching. IL-28A, also known as IFN-λ2, has been regarded as a member of a new cytokine family that shares some features with type I interferon (IFN) and was shown to have antiviral activity. The aim of this study was to identify biological activity of IL-28 on cord blood CD4+ T cells. Materials and methods: In this study, we cultured CD4+ T cells with IL-28A (20 ng/ml), IL-2 (20 ng/ml) and 5μg/ml MACS Anti-Biotin MACSiBead Particles (bead-to-cell ratio 1:2) for 2 weeks. Results: Flow cytometry analyses showed that IL-28A cannot be effective on CD25 and Foxp3 expression on cord blood CD4+ T cells, and it is not involved in proliferation of these cells. Treg suppression assay also showed that this cytokine cannot induce production of regulatory T cells. Conclusion: We showed that IL-28A is not involved in expression of CD25 and Foxp3 markers and proliferation of CD4+CD25− T cells, and that our findings also suggest that induction of Foxp3 in T cells activated by anti-CD3/anti-CD28 does not result in the regulatory activity in these cells.
Stakeholder Collaboration in Fisheries Research: Integrating Knowledge Among Fishing Leaders and Science Partners in Northern New England

Cooperative research in fisheries science and management is increasing throughout the United States, in part because of the increasing trust and credibility divide between fishermen and scientists. For example, the Northeast Consortium was established to, among other goals, help bring fishermen's information, experience, and expertise into the scientific framework needed for fisheries management. This research begins to examine whether cooperative research integrates fishermen's and scientists' knowledge, particularly among highly engaged industry leaders and their science partners. Findings are presented from three surveys—individuals engaged in commercial fishing in northern New England (n = 295), and fishermen (n = 60), and scientists (n = 37) participating in Northeast Consortium projects—examining: (1) whether knowledge integration was considered important and achievable, and why; and (2) whether and how fishermen and scientists learned about the scientific process or fishermen and fishing, respectively, from participating in cooperative research. Ramifications of the study and recommendations for research program managers are discussed.
Reference generator for grid connected converters without direct supply synchronization

In recent years there have been many strategies have been proposed for use of proportional plus resonant P-R controllers both in the stationary and in the synchronous reference frame that demonstrate grid-connected converter performance can be improved under non-ideal supply conditions such as supply asymmetry and supply voltage distortion. However, when employed in systems with high frequency variability such as micro-grids, the synchronization method required for operation in the synchronous reference frame or for dynamic retuning of the resonant controller may negatively impact the performance of the controller. A method is presented here based on current decomposition that uses an efficient RDFT algorithm to compute equivalent admittances and allows control of grid connected VSCs to be performed in the stationary reference frame without direct supply synchronization. In this paper the proposed method is described and then performance is evaluated for systems with high frequency variability and non-ideal supply voltage conditions.
Educational Resilience Among Youth at Risk

Educational experts and others recognize the importance of early school experiences on later educational outcomes. Following a sample of youth based on 692 files from low-income, single parent families over time, from one urban school district in the Southeastern United States, 1989–1990 to 1996–1997, we apply event history analytic techniques to examine the relationship between first grade retention and completing high school. The findings indicate that being retained in the first grade increases the risk of dropping out of high school years later. The results also show a link between retention, extracurricular activity participation, and high school completion. The risk of dropping out is lower for those youth who were retained and were involved in activities during high school. The implication is that educational trajectories can be redirected such that positive educational outcomes can occur.
Adapting the Bloom filter to multithreaded environments

Many classical algorithms like the Bloom filter were envisioned and created at a time when computers were the size of rooms and multithreading was not yet even explored theoretically. The landscape of modern mainstream computer systems today is heavily dominated with multi-core CPU-s but the effort to make full use of such systems is still ongoing. The Bloom filter has proven itself useful both as a core algorithm and as a supportive or optimizing addition to other data classification algorithms. This work explores adaptations to the basic Bloom filter algorithm for use in multithreaded applications on contemporary SMP systems and the consequences of such adaptations to its overall efficiency.
A SAT-based Method for Basis Path Testing using KodKod

A large portion of automated testing techniques has been developed for the statement or branch test coverage criteria. Among structural criteria, however, research on basis path testing has received little attention. The basis path testing requires a set of basis paths to be executed during testing. However, traditional testing methods for basis path generation consider only the control flow of a program and furthermore ignore loop. As a consequence, infeasible basis paths can be generated. In this paper, we present a goal-oriented testing method based on SAT(Boolean SATisfiability) for basis path testing. Specifically, the proposed method makes advantage of KodKod which is an efficient constraint solver for first order logic with relations. In the proposed method, KodKod is used to formulate a program and the basis path testing criterion to generate feasible basis paths of optimal lengths. Our method can generate test inputs on which basis paths are executed. We present a case study with some empirical results to show that the proposed method can generate feasible basis paths of optimal lengths effectively.