Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Bandwidth Enhancement of a Planar Printed Quasi-Yagi Antenna With Size Reduction

A compact planar printed quasi-Yagi antenna is presented. The proposed antenna consists of a microstrip line to slotline transition structure, a driver dipole and two parasitic strips. The driver dipole is connected to the slotline through coplanar stripline (CPS). The ground plane is modified by symmetrically adding two extended stubs to reduce the lateral size. Experimental and simulated results show that the proposed quasi-Yagi antenna has a wide bandwidth and good unidirectional radiation characteristics. Compared with conventional printed quasi-Yagi antennas, the width of the proposed quasi-Yagi antenna is reduced by approximately 16.7%. The proposed antenna presents an excellent end-fire radiation with a front-to-back ratio greater than 10 dB. Its measured bandwidth is from 3.6-11.6 GHz with a ratio of about 3.22: 1. A moderate gain, which is better than 4 dBi, is obtained.
A 6.7 MHz to 1.24 GHz $\text{0.0318}\;{\text{mm}^{\text{2}}}$ Fast-Locking All-Digital DLL Using Phase-Tracing Delay Unit in 90 nm CMOS

In this paper, an all-digital delay-locked loop (ADDLL) with a phase-tracing delay unit (PTDU) has been proposed to achieve wide-operating frequency range, low power, and low cost. For the wide-range DLL, the long delay line is replaced by a PTDU which includes two gated ring oscillators (GROs) for generating the wide delay range with a reduced die area. According to the dual-loop control scheme in this work, the input clock rising edge and falling edge are tracked independently to ensure that the ADDLL output maintains the duty cycle of the input reference. Furthermore, the ADDLL utilizes an open-loop scheme to achieve fast lock time of five clock cycles for all supported input frequencies. The proposed ADDLL has been fabricated in TSMC 90 nm CMOS technology and supports a wide-operating frequency range from 6.7 MHz to 1.24 GHz within a small active area of 0.0318 mm2. The measured peak-to-peak and root-mean-square jitter at 1.24 GHz are 2.22 ps and 424.62 fs, respectively. The ADDLL consumes 14.5 mW while operating at 1.24 GHz.
The effect of pricing rules on a constrained wholesale electricity market : an agent based approach

This thesis presents a comparative computational study of the performance of two different pricing mechanisms in a day-ahead wholesale electricity market, where performance is measured as the average level of payments made by the system operator to the generators. It focusses on two key pricing mechanisms: a uniform price based buy-back pricing model, defined as a short run approximation to the market design in Great Britain, and a nodal pricing model based on Locational Marginal Pricing rules. The research uses a game theory based approach for modelling themarket, allowing multiple rounds of the game to be played and statistically reliable results to be obtained. The research develops an agent based simulation of the day ahead markets for both of the pricing mechanisms, and is simulated on a constrained electricity grid. The agents developed for the simulation each represent a generator and are designed to be profit maximising with respect to a parent generation company. Agents employ an evolutionary algorithm in order to create optimised bids for the generation of electricity based on the current market state. Simulations of the market are performed using a styalised 29-Node transmission grid. A series of experiments are performed comparing the performance of the nodal and buy-back pricing mechanisms, under a series of different operating conditions. It is seen in all of the observed cases that the nodal market design averages a higher level of payments to its participants, and the indication is that the agents in a nodal market are able to explore the higher risk strategies more profitably than their buy-back counterparts. This work also highlights the value of creating evolutionary agents that are robust and flexible in analysing market designs. This research demonstrates that the greater the level of competition in a market the more efficiently market participants act. In addition to this the agents competing with a uniform based Buy Back pricing system appears far more restricted by higher levels of competition than their Nodal counterparts.
A reconfigurable decoupling and matching network for a frequency agile compact array

A novel frequency reconfigurable compact array incorporating a reconfigurable decoupling and matching network (DMN) is proposed. The array radiating part consists of two printed monopole antennas. An inductive biasing line is devised to control the PIN diode states so that the array operating frequency is switchable between 2.5 and 3.5 GHz bands. The element spacing is chosen to be as small as 0.05 λ0 at 2.5 GHz, which leads to a strong mutual coupling between antenna ports. A reconfigurable DMN is proposed to mitigate the mutual coupling effect for both 2.5 and 3.5 GHz bands. Simulation results show that the use of the DMN realizes a well matched (S11 <;= -10 dB) and decoupled (S21 <;= -20 dB) bandwidth of 70 MHz and 120 MHz in the lower and higher bands, respectively. The antenna total efficiency can be substantially affected by the internal resistor when the PIN diodes are in the `ON' state. The compact size and frequency reconfigurability feature greatly save the antenna real estate. The decoupled array can be useful for a multi-input multi-output (MIMO) diversity system.
Could social tags enrich the library subject index

Social tagging aims to generate folksonomies through the users’ collaboration and activation. This paper is motivated by the trend of several libraries to adopt social tagging functionalities and presents a tag analysis study aiming to exploit a social tag collection for the benefit of the subject description of an academic library material. In this context, cataloguers are interviewed to assess the semantic value of the concepts expressed by the set of social tags and discuss the possibility of their incorporation in the well-formed and structured library authority file.
Colicinogeny and related phenomena.

INTRODUCTION . TWO MAJOR GROUPS OF COLICIN FACTORS . Relationships at the Level of Plasmid DNA. Recombination Between Col Factors and Other Plasmids . SURVIVAL OF COL FACTORS IN BACTERIAL CELLS: ADAPTATION TO THE HOST CELL ENVIRONMENT . Host Range. Experimental Approaches to the Problem . Regulation of the Number of Col Factors per Cell . Functions Contributed by Hosts and by Col Factors . Intermediates . Incompatibility . RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN THE FERTILITY SYSTEMS OF COL FACTORS Sex Pili . Fertility Inhibition . Exclusion . Transfer of Chromosomal Genes . Transfer of Group I Col Factors . COLICINS . Relationships Between Colicins. Colicin Synthesis in Relation to Lysogeny. EFFECTS OF COLICINS ON SENSITIVE BACTERIA . Analogous Systems . Initial Contact with the Cell: Receptors . Effects of Colicins on the Cytoplasmic Membrane . Comparable Effects of Other Proteins. Action of Colicins E3-CA38 and E2-P9 . Immunity to the Effects of Colicins, Bacteriophages, Bacteriophage Ghosts, and Sex Pili . ECOLOGY OF COL FACTORS AND COLICINS. Methods of Study . Investigations Using Gnotobiotic Animals . Succession of Strains in the Intestine . Colicins and Disease . Significance of Colicins Outside the Intestine . ECOLOGY OF OTHER BACTERIOCINS . Streptococcus . Staphylococcus. Pseudomonas . Pasteurella . Neisseria . CONCLUDING REMARKS . LITERATURE CITED .
[Hungarian Diet and Nutritional Status Survey -- the OTAP2009 study. II. Energy and macronutrient intake of the Hungarian population].

UNLABELLED The Hungarian Diet and Nutritional Status Survey is the fourth in the row of the Hungarian national dietary surveys conducted by the Institute for Food and Nutrition Science. AIMS The present study was performed to provide valid, up-to-date data on energy and nutrient intakes and dietary habits of the Hungarian adult population. METHODS The energy and nutrient intakes were calculated on validated three-day dietary records of a representative sample by age and gender of the Hungarian population aged ≥ 18 ys. RESULTS The energy percentage of fat was too high (39 E% for men and 36 E% for women), that of carbohydrate was too low (45 E% for men and 48 E% for women), whereas that of protein met the recommendation (15 E% for men and 15 E% for women). CONCLUSIONS Reduction of the nutritional risk factors would greatly reduce the mortality and morbidity rates of nutrition-related diseases.
Identification of a minimal region of loss on the short arm of chromosome 1 in Wilms tumor

We have analyzed the short arm of chromosome 1 using loss of heterozygosity (LOH) analysis in Wilms tumors (WT) to identify a minimal region of loss. 1909 WT, 22 malignant rhabdoid tumors of the kidney and 90 clear cell carcinomas of the kidney (CCSK) were subjected to LOH analysis using five markers flanked by D1S243 and D1S244. 225 WT and 4 CCSK displayed LOH for this region. A group of 16 cases which had lost heterozygosity for at least one locus but also retained heterozygosity for at least one locus within this region were more finely analyzed using a panel of 24 microsatellite markers. A minimum region of loss located between D1S2694 and D1S244 spanning an area of 3.23 Mb was found in 15/16 of these tumors. No evidence for a second locus within this region was identified. This region of loss overlaps that found in neuroblastoma and harbors candidate genes highly expressed in fetal kidney i.e., LZIC, ICAT, and DNB5. Denaturing HPLC and quantitative RT‐PCR analysis of these three genes, however, revealed no aberrations in WT samples retaining heterozygosity (8 cases) or displaying LOH 1p (8 cases). Further studies are required to identify the presumed tumor suppressor gene located within this region of 1p. © 2007 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Comparative analysis of quantitative efficiency evaluation methods for transportation networks

An effective evaluation of transportation network efficiency could offer guidance for the optimal control of urban traffic. Based on the introduction and related mathematical analysis of three quantitative evaluation methods for transportation network efficiency, this paper compares the information measured by them, including network structure, traffic demand, travel choice behavior and other factors which affect network efficiency. Accordingly, the applicability of various evaluation methods is discussed. Through analyzing different transportation network examples it is obtained that Q-H method could reflect the influence of network structure, traffic demand and user route choice behavior on transportation network efficiency well. In addition, the transportation network efficiency measured by this method and Braess’s Paradox can be explained with each other, which indicates a better evaluation of the real operation condition of transportation network. Through the analysis of the network efficiency calculated by Q-H method, it can also be drawn that a specific appropriate demand is existed to a given transportation network. Meanwhile, under the fixed demand, both the critical network structure that guarantees the stability and the basic operation of the network and a specific network structure contributing to the largest value of the transportation network efficiency can be identified.
Bloodstream Infection in Neutropenic Cancer Patients Related to Short-Term Nontunnelled Catheters Determined by Quantitative Blood Cultures, Differential Time to Positivity, and Molecular Epidemiological Typing with Pulsed-Field Gel Electrophoresis

ABSTRACT To determine the rate of catheter-related bloodstream infection (CRBSI) among cases of primary bloodstream infection (BSI) in febrile neutropenic cancer patients with short-term nontunnelled catheters, quantitative paired blood cultures (Isolator) from the central venous catheter (CVC) and peripheral vein were obtained between November 1999 and January 2001. Bactec blood culture bottles were obtained to determine the differential time to positivity (DTP). CRBSI was defined as a quantitative blood culture ratio of >5:1 (CVC versus peripheral) with proven identity of isolates from positive peripheral and CVC blood cultures as confirmed by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis. Forty-nine episodes of primary BSI were detected among 235 cancer patients with febrile neutropenia. Of these, 18 episodes (37%) were CRBSI and 31 (63%) were BSI with an unknown portal of entry. Coagulase-negative staphylococci were present in nine cases of CRBSI (50%). The identity of isolates from peripheral and CVC blood cultures was confirmed in all cases. Earlier positivity (>2 h) of CVC-drawn versus peripheral blood cultures was observed in 18 of 22 CRBSI-associated blood cultures (sensitivity, 82%; specificity, 88%; positive predictive value, 75%; negative predictive value, 92%). In summary, CRBSI accounted for 37% of cases of primary BSI in this population of neutropenic cancer patients. DTP compares favourably with quantitative blood cultures for the diagnosis of CRBSI and may be particularly useful for patients in whom catheter salvage is highly desirable.
Effect of ribavirin on subacute sclerosing panencephalitis virus infections in hamsters

The antiviral activity of ribavirin was studied in hamsters infected with subacute sclerosing panencephalitis (SSPE) virus. Ribavirn did not improve the survival of infected hamsters when administered intraperitoneally at the maximal nonlethal dose of 50 mg/kg/day for 10 days. However, when administered intracranially, ribavirin improved the survival of infected hamsters in a dose-dependent manner. The 50% effective dose was calculated to be 1.4 mg/kg/day, and the selectivity index, based on the ratio of the 50% lethally toxic dose (31 mg/kg/day) to the 50% effective dose, was 22. When begun 12 h, but not 36 h, postinfection, ribavirin at a dose of 10 mg/kg/day completely prevented mortality and inhibited the replication of SSPE virus in brains of infected hamsters. Intrathecal or intraventricular administration of ribavirin should be explored for potential use in the treatment of patients with SSPE.
A Conditional Mouse Model for Measuring the Frequency of Homologous Recombination Events In Vivo in the Absence of Essential Genes

ABSTRACT The ability to detect and repair DNA damage is crucial to the prevention of various diseases. Loss of function of genes involved in these processes is known to result in significant developmental defects and/or predisposition to cancer. One such DNA repair mechanism, homologous recombination, has the capacity to repair a wide variety of lesions. Knockout mouse models of genes thought to be involved in DNA repair processes are frequently lethal, making in vivo studies very difficult, if not impossible. Therefore, we set out to develop an in vivo conditional mouse model system to facilitate investigations into the involvement of essential genes in homologous recombination. To test our model, we measured the frequency of spontaneous homologous recombination using the pink-eyed unstable mouse model, in which we conditionally excised either Blm or full-length Brca1 (breast cancer 1, early onset). These two genes are hypothesized to have opposing roles in homologous recombination. In summary, our in vivo data supports in vitro studies suggesting that BLM suppresses homologous recombination, while full-length BRCA1 promotes this process.
The Design and Implementation of Messenger On-the-Drive

Telematics enhances the operations of a modern car. The Messenger on-the-drive (MOD) is developed as an inter-vehicle multi-networked voice/text communication utility, which enables the seamless wireless or telecommunications among the drivers and passengers in a fleet of cars. Two core features of Stream Control Transmission Protocol (SCTP), multi-streaming and multihoming, are applied for implementing the MOD project. We also use Partial Reliable SCTP (PR-SCTP), a characteristic extension of SCTP, to provide low latency handover in multi-network. By integrating our proprietary works and other open source projects, the MOD was successfully built.
Plasma Angiopoietin 2 Concentrations Are Related to Impaired Lung Function and Organ Failure in a Clinical Cohort Receiving High-Dose Interleukin 2 Therapy

ABSTRACT Introduction: The pathophysiology and therapeutic options in sepsis-induced lung injury remain elusive. High-dose interleukin 2 therapy (HDIL-2) is an important protocol for advanced malignancies but is limited by systemic inflammation and pulmonary edema that is indistinguishable from sepsis. In preclinical models, IL-2 stimulates angiopoietin 2 (AngP-2) secretion, which increases endothelial permeability and causes pulmonary edema. However, these relationships have not been fully elucidated in humans. Furthermore, the relevance of plasma AngP-2 to organ function is not clear. We hypothesized that plasma AngP-2 concentrations increase during HDIL-2 and are relevant to clinical pathophysiology. Methods: We enrolled 13 subjects with metastatic melanoma or renal cell carcinoma admitted to receive HDIL-2 and collected blood and spirometry data daily. The plasma concentrations of AngP-2 and IL-6 were measured with enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Results: At baseline, the mean AngP-2 concentration was 2.5 (SD, 1.0) ng/mL. Angiopoietin 2 concentrations increased during treatment: the mean concentration on the penultimate day was 16.0 (SD, 4.5) ng/mL and increased further to 18.6 (SD, 4.9) ng/mL (P < 0.05 vs. penultimate) during the last day of therapy. The forced expiratory volume in 1 s decreased during treatment. Interestingly, plasma AngP-2 concentrations correlated negatively with forced expiratory volume in 1 s (Spearman r = −0.78, P < 0.0001). Plasma AngP-2 concentrations also correlated with plasma IL-6 concentrations (r = 0.61, P < 0.0001) and Sequential Organ Failure Assessment scores (r = 0.68, P < 0.0001). Conclusions: Plasma AngP-2 concentrations increase during HDIL-2 administration and correlate with pulmonary dysfunction. High-dose IL-2 may serve as a clinical model of sepsis and acute lung injury. Further investigation is warranted.
Case study: beverage temperature at aid stations in ironman triathlon.

PURPOSE The aim of this study was to measure the effect of environmental conditions and aid-station beverage- cooling practices on the temperature of competitor beverages. METHODS Environmental and beverage temperatures were measured at three cycling and two run course aid stations at the 2010 Langkawi, Malaysia (MA), and Port Macquarie, Australia (AU), Ironman triathlon events. To measure the specific effect of radiant temperature, additional fluid-filled (600 ml) drink bottles (n = 12) were cooled overnight (C) and then placed in direct sun (n = 6) or shade (n = 6) near to a cycle aid station at AU. RESULTS During both events, beverage temperature increased over time (p < .05) as environmental conditions, particularly radiant temperature increased (p < .05). Mean beverage temperature ranged between 14-26°C and during both events was above the palatable range (15-22°C) for extended periods. At AU, bottles placed in direct sunlight heated faster (6.9 ± 2.3 °C·h-1) than those in the shade (4.8 ±1.1°C·h-1, p = .05). CONCLUSION Simple changes to Ironman aid-station practices, including shade and chilling beverages with ice, result in the provision of cooler beverages. Future studies should investigate whether provision of cool beverages at prolonged endurance events influences heat-illness incidence, beverage-consumption patterns, and competitor performance.
Beam Hardening Correction for Middle-Energy Industrial Computerized Tomography

In this paper, a new beam hardening correction (BHC) method for middle-energy industrial computerized tomography (CT) is presented. Our method is derived from linearization and is straightforward without iteration involved. The linearization is commonly used as a preprocessing method in BHC. Conventionally, only one-material objects can be conveniently corrected by linearization. In industrial CT, two-material objects, especially cylinders with high-Z material outside and low-Z material inside are frequently encountered. Our approach focuses on this kind of objects. The new method works well as long as the two-material object meets the conditions that the thickness of the outer material (usually wall) is thick enough and the second-order item of the Taylor expansion of the linearization is relatively small. We pointed out and proved that there is an approximately constant scaling factor difference between our linearization step and an ideal correction based on prior knowledge of objects. The scaling factor magnifies the attenuation coefficient of the inner material after reconstruction. Therefore, a weighting function is introduced into our algorithm as a restoration. To sum up, there are three steps in our method: 1) correct raw projections by the mapping function of the outer material; 2) reconstruct the cross-section image from the modified projections; 3) scale the image by a weighting function. With this method, the beam hardening artifacts are greatly reduced and the overall attenuation coefficients are accurately obtained. We also presented a compensation step to remove the countercupping artifacts in case that the conditions are not fully met. Our method is well verified in both numerical simulations and practical experiments on a 450-KeV CT system
A phase II clinical trial of self-imposed time-out treatment for stuttering in adults and adolescents

Purpose. This study reports the development and clinical trial of a new treatment program for persistent developmental stuttering in adolescents and adults. The treatment is based on the operant procedure of self-imposed time-out. This involves the person stopping speaking for a short period after each stutter. Method. Twenty-two participants completed Stage 1 (Instatement and Generalisation) of the program and 18 completed Stage 2 (Maintenance) of the program. Stuttering outcome was measured from independent audio and video recordings made outside and inside the clinic, before and after treatment. Speech naturalness was measured at the end of Stage 1. Secondary analyses were conducted to investigate whether responsiveness to the program was related to stuttering severity or age. Participants completed an extensive self-report inventory at the end of treatment. Results. There was a range of responsiveness to the treatment, with more than half the participants reducing their stuttering by more than 50%. Participants with more severe types of stuttering appeared to respond better but no other predictors of responsiveness were identified. Speech sounded reasonably natural after treatment. Participants' perceptions of the treatment were for the most part positive with the majority reporting that the treatment was easier to use and more effective than treatment based on prolonged-speech. Conclusions. The self-imposed time-out treatment program reported here is clearly effective for a significant number of adolescents and adults who stutter. Given that it does not require speech restructuring and the constant attention to speech that this involves, this could be a treatment of choice for those who are likely to respond. Consequently, further research is needed to determine which clients seeking behavioural treatment for their stuttering will benefit most from this program. Further research is also needed to determine the extent to which the effectiveness of time-out is increased when combined with other behavioural treatments.