Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Multi-Band MIMO Antenna Design with User-Impact Investigation for 4G and 5G Mobile Terminals

In this study, we propose a design of a multi-band slot antenna array applicable for fourth-generation (4G) and fifth-generation (5G) smartphones. The design is composed of double-element square-ring slot radiators fed by microstrip-line structures for easy integration with radio frequency (RF)/microwave circuitry. The slot radiators are located on the corners of the smartphone printed circuit board (PCB) with an overall dimension of 75 × 150 mm2. The proposed multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) antenna is designed to meet the requirements of 4G and 5G mobile terminals with essential bandwidth for higher data rate applications. For −10 dB impedance bandwidth, each single-element of the proposed MIMO design can cover the frequency ranges of 2.5–2.7 GHz (long-term evolution (LTE) 2600), 3.45–3.8 GHz (LTE bands 42/43), and 5.00–5.45 GHz (LTE band 46). However, for −6 dB impedance bandwidth, the radiation elements cover the frequency ranges of 2.45–2.82 GHz, 3.35–4.00 GHz, and 4.93–5.73 GHz. By employing the microstrip feed lines at the four different sides of smartphone PCB, the isolation of the radiators has been enhanced and shows better than 17 dB isolation levels over all operational bands. The MIMO antenna is implemented on an FR-4 dielectric and provides good properties including S-parameters, efficiency, and radiation pattern coverage. The performance of the antenna is validated by measurements of the prototype. The simulation results for user-hand/user-head impacts and specific absorption rate (SAR) levels of the antenna are discussed, and good results are achieved. In addition, the antenna elements have the potential to be used as 8-element/dual-polarized resonators.
Self-Seeding Microwells to Isolate and Assess the Viability of Single Circulating Tumor Cells

The availability of viable tumor cells could significantly improve the disease management of cancer patients. Here we developed and evaluated a method using self-seeding microwells to obtain single circulating tumor cells (CTC) and assess their potential to expand. Conditions were optimized using cells from the breast cancer cell line MCF-7 and blood from healthy volunteers collected in EDTA blood collection tubes. 43% of the MCF-7 cells (nucleus+, Ethidium homodimer-1-, Calcein AM+, α-EpCAM+, α-CD45-) spiked into 7.5 mL of blood could be recovered with 67% viability and these could be further expanded. The same procedure tested in metastatic breast and prostate cancer patients resulted in a CTC recovery of only 0–5% as compared with CTC counts obtained with the CellSearch® system. Viability of the detected CTC ranged from 0–36%. Cell losses could be mainly contributed to the smaller size and greater flexibility of CTC as compared to cultured cells from cell lines and loss during leukocyte depletion prior to cell seeding. Although CTC losses can be reduced by fixation, to obtain viable CTC no fixatives can be used and pore size in the bottom of microwells will need to be reduced, filtration conditions adapted and pre-enrichment improved to reduce CTC losses.
The Role of mTORC1 in Mechanically-Induced Increases in Translation and Skeletal Muscle Mass.

Skeletal muscle mass is, in part, regulated by the rate of mRNA translation (i.e. protein synthesis). The conserved serine/threonine kinase, mTOR (the mammalian/mechanistic target of rapamycin), found in the multi-protein complex, mTOR complex 1 (mTORC1), is a major positive regulator of protein synthesis. The purpose of this review is to describe some of the critical steps in translation initiation, mTORC1 and its potential direct and indirect roles in regulating translation, and evidence that mTORC1 regulates protein synthesis and muscle mass, with a particular focus on basal conditions and the response to mechanical stimuli. Current evidence suggests that for acute contraction models of mechanical stimuli, there is an emerging pattern that the early increase in protein synthesis may be governed by a rapamycin-sensitive mTORC1-dependent mechanism, while at later post-stimulation time points, the mechanism may change to a rapamycin-insensitive mTORC1-dependent or even a mTORC1-independent mechanism. Furthermore, evidence suggests that mTORC1 appears to be absolutely necessary for muscle fiber hypertrophy induced by chronic mechanical loading but may only play a partial role in the hypertrophy induced by more intermittent types of acute resistance exercise, with the possibility of mTORC1-independent mechanisms also playing a role. Despite the progress that has been made, many questions about the activation of mTORC1, and its downstream targets, remain to be answered. Further research will hopefully provide novels insights into the regulation of skeletal muscle mTORC1 that may eventually be translated into novel exercise programing and/or targeted pharmacological therapies aimed at preventing muscle wasting and/or increasing muscle mass.
Hepatitis C virus infection induces endoplasmic reticulum stress and apoptosis in human fetal liver stem cells

The cellular mechanisms by which hepatitis C virus (HCV) replication might mediate cytopathic effects are controversial and not entirely clear. In this study, we found that blood‐borne HCV (bbHCV) infection could lead to endoplasmic reticulum (ER)‐stress and mitochondria‐related/caspase‐dependent apoptosis at the early stages of infection based on use of the highly efficient bbHCV cell culture model established previously. Sections of bbHCV‐infected human fetal liver stem cells (hFLSCs) revealed convolution and nonlinear ER, cell vacuolization, swelling of mitochondria, and numerous double membrane vesicles (DMVs). The percentage of apoptotic hFLSCs infected by bbHCV reached 29.8% at 16 h postinfection, and the amount of cytochrome c increased remarkably in the cytosolic protein fraction. However, over time, apoptosis was inhibited due to the activation of NF‐κB. The expression of NF‐κB‐p65, Bcl‐xL, XIAP, and c‐FLIPL in hFLSCs was increased significantly 24 h after in infection by bbHCV. The accelerated cell death cycles involving apoptosis, regeneration and repair by bbHCV infection might give rise to the development of cirrhosis, and ultimately to hepatocellular carcinogenesis. Copyright © 2019 Pathological Society of Great Britain and Ireland. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Oxytocin promotes coordinated out-group attack during intergroup conflict in humans

Intergroup conflict contributes to human discrimination and violence, but persists because individuals make costly contributions to their group’s fighting capacity. Yet how group members effectively coordinate their contributions during intergroup conflict remains poorly understood. Here we examine the role of oxytocin for (the coordination of) contributions to group attack or defense in a multi-round, real-time feedback economic contest. In a double-blind placebo-controlled study with N=480 males in an Intergroup Attacker-Defender contest game, we found that oxytocin reduced contributions to attack and over time increased attacker’s within-group coordination of contributions. However, rather than becoming peaceful, attackers given oxytocin better tracked their rival’s historical defense and coordinated their contributions into well-timed and hence more profitable attacks. Our results reveal coordination of contributions as a critical component of successful attacks and subscribe to the possibility that oxytocin enables individuals to contribute to in-group efficiency and prosperity even when doing so implies outsiders are excluded or harmed. Editorial note: This article has been through an editorial process in which the authors decide how to respond to the issues raised during peer review. The Reviewing Editor's assessment is that all the issues have been addressed (see decision letter).
Preparation and characterization of size-controlled glioma spheroids using agarose hydrogel microwells

Treatment of glioblastoma, the most common and aggressive type of primary brain tumors, is a major medical challenge and the development of new alternatives requires simple yet realistic models for these tumors. In vitro spheroid models offer attractive platforms to mimic the tumor behavior in vivo and have thus, been increasingly applied for assessment of drug efficacy in various tumors. The aim of this study was to produce and characterize size-controlled U251 glioma spheroids towards application in glioma drug evaluation studies. To this end, we fabricated agarose hydrogel microwells with cylindrical shape and diameters of 70–700 μm and applied these wells without any surface modification for glioma spheroid formation. The resultant spheroids were homogeneous in size and shape, exhibited high cell viability (> 90%), and had a similar growth rate to that of natural brain tumors. The final size of spheroids depended on cell seeding density and microwell size. The spheroids’ volume increased linearly with the cell seeding density and the rate of this change increased with the well size. Lastly, we tested the therapeutic effect of an anti-cancer drug, Di-2-pyridylketone-4,4-dimethyl-3-thiosemicarbazone (Dp44mT) on the resultant glioma spheroids and demonstrated the applicability of this spheroid model for drug efficacy studies.
Automated exchange system between simulation, visualization and construction tools

In today's planning processes, it is necessary that assembly processes, component transport to the production facility and the use of components are optimally matched. To realize this matching, these processes must be carried out as detailed as possible. This is where the conflict between the least possible effort in the bidding phase, in which the focus is on the fast creation of a basic factory layout and an appealing communication of the planned system. By increasing costs, lack of time and cost-intensive physical hardware devices production industry respond to these increasingly with digital planning tools in product development. Through the development of an automatic exchange system between simulation, visualization and construction tools a possibility should be developed to combine intralogistics systems from any planning tools of the digital factory. The use of open source standard AutomationML forms the basis of the automatic exchange system.
The Economic Crisis in Uruk during the Last Years of Assyrian Rule in the Light of the So-Called Nabu-usallim Archives

Etude de la fin de l'empire neo-assyrien a l'aide de documents economiques et politiques couvrant 70ans: regnes d'Assurbanipal (siege de Nippur, conquete d'Uruk), d'Assur-etelli-ilani et Sin-sar-iskun. Interet de 22textes des archives de Nabu-usallim (Uruk).
SELECTION OF ACADEMIC TUTORS IN HIGHER EDUCATION USING DECISION TREES

In this paper, we present a method for the tutoring process in order to improve academic tutoring in higher education. The method includes identifying the main skills of tutors in an automated manner using decision trees, one of the most used algorithms in the machine learning community for solving several real-world problems with high accuracy. In our study, the decision tree algorithm was able to identify those skills and personal affinities between students and tutors. Experiments were carried out using a data set of 277 students and 19 tutors, which were selected by random sampling and voluntary participation, respectively. Preliminary results show that the most important attributes for tutors are communication, self-direction and digital skills. At the same time, we introduce a tutoring process where the tutor assignment is based on these attributes, assuming that it can help to strengthen the student's skills demanded by today's society. In the same way, the decision tree obtained can be used to create cluster of tutors and clusters of students based on their personal abilities and affinities using other machine learning algorithms. The application of the suggested tutoring process could set the tone to see the tutoring process individually without linking it to processes of academic performance or school dropout.
Oncoming Vehicle Detection with Variable-Focus Liquid Lens

Computer vision plays an important role in autonomous vehicle, robotics and manufacturing fields. Depth perception in computer vision requires stereo vision, or fuse together a single camera with other depth sensors such as radar and Lidar. Depth from focus using adjustable lens has not been applied in autonomous vehicle. The goal of this paper is to investigate the application of depth from focus for oncoming vehicle detection. Liquid lens is used to adjust optical power while acquiring images with the camera. The distance of the oncoming vehicle can be estimated by measuring the oncoming vehicle’s sharpness in the images with known lens settings. The results show the system detecting oncoming vehicle at ±2 meter and ±4 meter using depth from focus technique. Estimation of oncoming vehicles above 4 meter can be done by analysing the relative size of the vehicle detected.
Flexible authoring and delivery of online courses using IMS LD

Since the publication of the IMS Learning Design (IMS LD) specification in 2003 many initiatives have been undertaken to build authoring tools that are simple enough to be used by non-technical instructors and teachers. IMS LD’s technical complexity is believed to be a major burden for the adoption of the specification. We have developed a new approach for course authoring and delivery that hides most of the complexities and is powerful enough to create highly flexible online courses. Key aspects in this approach are (1) integration of IMS LD authoring and delivery tools in order to enable teachers to adapt courses in runtime, (2) use of templates to standardize aspects of the learning design. This article reports on the research and development of this approach, as well as a first implementation by the OUNL as part of an integrated e-learning system
Design of totally self-checking checkers for Bose-Lin, Bose and Blaum codes

Some efficient systematic codes have recently been developed for detecting t unidirectional errors (Bose-Lin code) and burst unidirectional errors (Bose, Blaum codes). Since unidirectional errors are the most common errors in VLSI circuits, such codes should find widespread use. Totally self-checking (TSC) checker designs have been found for the three codes mentioned above. The designs are easily testable, economical, and have a modular structure. The design for the Bose-Lin code requires at most only 8r-4 codeword tests, where r is the number of checkbits. The number of codeword tests for the TSC checkers for the Bose code and the Blaum code is at most 8r+4 and 2'+8r, respectively. <<ETX>>
A 12-Bit, 300-MS/s Single-Channel Pipelined-SAR ADC With an Open-Loop MDAC

Compared to pipelined analog-to-digital converters (ADCs), pipelined- successive approximation register (SAR) ADCs have been actively explored for better energy efficiency in recent years. Nonetheless, the pipelined-SAR architecture inherently limits the sampling speed of the ADC due to the slow operation of the first SAR ADC, which becomes an increasingly important limitation with the recent expansion of high-speed applications. In this paper, we introduce our new design of a pipelined-SAR ADC to enable faster speed. New loop-unrolled architecture with the split capacitor is used for the first SAR ADC to improve the speed. A resistive open-loop multiplying digital-to-analog converter with a new calibration scheme is designed to reduce the power consumption at high speed. As a result, the 65-nm design can achieve 300-MS/s sampling rate with a single channel. It is among the fastest pipelined-SAR ADC design so far. The peak signal-to-noise-and-distortion ratio is 63.6 dB with a 10-MHz input. It consumes 12.5-mW power from a 1.2-V supply to achieve a power efficiency of 34 fJ/conversion-step.
An Adaptive Multi-Layer Block Data-Hiding Algorithm that uses Edge Areas of Gray-Scale Images

Embedding data into smooth regions introduces stego-images with poor security and visual quality. Edge adaptive steganography, in which the flat regions are not employed to carry a message at low embedding rates, was proposed. However, for the high embedding rates, smooth regions are contaminated to hide a secret message. In this paper, we present an adaptive multi-layer block data-hiding (MBDH) algorithm, in which the embedding regions are adaptively selected according to the number of the secret message bits and the texture characteristic of a cover-image. Via employing the MBDH algorithm, more secret message bits are embedded into the sharp regions. Therefore, the smooth regions are not used, even at high embedding rates. Furthermore, most of edge adaptive steganography algorithms have a limited capacity when the smooth regions are not employed in data hiding. The proposed scheme solves this issue when it can embed more secret bits into the selected regions while the perceptual quality of stego-images is still maintained. The experimental results were evaluated on 10,000 natural gray-scale images. The visual attack, targeted steganalysis, and universal steganalysis are employed to examine the performance of the proposed scheme. The results show that the new scheme significantly overcomes the previous edge-based approaches and least significant bit (LSB) based methods in term of security and visual quality.
Implementing Blockchains for Efficient Health Care: Systematic Review

Background The decentralized nature of sensitive health information can bring about situations where timely information is unavailable, worsening health outcomes. Furthermore, as patient involvement in health care increases, there is a growing need for patients to access and control their data. Blockchain is a secure, decentralized online ledger that could be used to manage electronic health records (EHRs) efficiently, therefore with the potential to improve health outcomes by creating a conduit for interoperability. Objective This study aimed to perform a systematic review to assess the feasibility of blockchain as a method of managing health care records efficiently. Methods Reviewers identified studies via systematic searches of databases including PubMed, MEDLINE, Scopus, EMBASE, ProQuest, and Cochrane Library. Suitability for inclusion of each was assessed independently. Results Of the 71 included studies, the majority discuss potential benefits and limitations without evaluation of their effectiveness, although some systems were tested on live data. Conclusions Blockchain could create a mechanism to manage access to EHRs stored on the cloud. Using a blockchain can increase interoperability while maintaining privacy and security of data. It contains inherent integrity and conforms to strict legal regulations. Increased interoperability would be beneficial for health outcomes. Although this technology is currently unfamiliar to most, investments into creating a sufficiently user-friendly interface and educating users on how best to take advantage of it would lead to improved health outcomes. International Registered Report Identifier (IRRID) RR2-10.2196/10994
ANCIENT MESOPOTAMIAN GARDENS AND THE IDENTIFICATION OF THE HANGING GARDENS OF BABYLON RESOLVED

tamarisk. Meals are enjoyed in the shade of the tamarisk, skilled men gather in the shade of the date-palm, the drum is beaten, men give praise, and the king rejoices in his palace. The two trees, brother and sister, are quite different; the tamarisk and the palm-tree compete with each other. They argue and quarrel together. The tamarisk says: 'I am much bigger! ' And the date-palm argues back, saying: 'I am much better than you! You, O tamarisk, are a useless tree. What good are your branches? There's no such thing as a tamarisk fruit! Now, my fruits grace the king's table; the king himself eats them, and people say nice things about me. I make a surplus for the gardener, and he gives it to the queen; she, being a mother, nourishes her child upon the gifts of my strength, and the adults eat them too. My fruits are always in the presence of royalty'. The tamarisk makes his voice heard; his speech is even more boastful. 'My body is superior to yours! It's much more beautiful than anything of yours. You are like a slavegirl who fetches and carries daily needs for her mistress'. He goes on to point out the king's table, couch, and eating bowl are made from tamarisk wood, that the king's clothes are made using tools of tamarisk wood; likewise the temples of the gods are full of objects made from tamarisk. The date-palm counters by pointing out that her fruits are the central offering in the cult; once they have been taken from the tamarisk dish, the bowl is used to collect up the garbage.
Nonlinear compensation of strain-type weighing sensor

The objective of this research was to investigate the possibility of compensating for the nonlinearity of the strain-type weighing sensor.Because of the internal and external factors,the relationship between the input weight and the output voltage of the sensor presented nonlinear characteristic.This paper applied the curve fitting method to establish the inverse model of the weighing sensor.It used the model held in the microcontroller to compensate for the nonlinearity of the sensor in real time.The research results show that this processing method can implement the nonlinear compensation of the sensor and eliminate zero drift effectively.Hardware/software co-design has been confirmed helpful and practical in system design.
Towards Comprehensive Information Security Awareness: A Systematic Classification of Concerns among University Students

In this paper, we have systematically identified and classified information security concerns (ISCs) of university students into areas where users perceive information security threats. 354 university students were asked to elicit their level of concern on a given set of 74 ISCs using a 7-point scale. Factor analysis (PCA) produced an 11-factor solution, each factor depicting an area of concern. These areas were related to Personal (legal awareness), Social (Sociality), Institutional (Staff member lapses, University networks), Technological (Online social network use, Intrusive service providers, Web browsing and email, Smartphone use, Electronic device use, and Conventional threats), and Non-technological (Cards and wallets security) aspects of student’s day-to-day life. The majority of the students (66%) showed concerns related to online social network use, whereas, only 40% of them shown concerns related to sociality. The highest level of concerns was related to service providers, whereas the lowest level of concerns was related to sociality. Information security, concerns, information security awareness, students, areas of concern, factor analysis, principal component analysis, affinity diagram
Road mark recognition using HOG-SVM and correlation

In this study we present a novel approach for road mark detection and recognition based on the commercial VIAPIX® module. The proposed approach combines two different techniques, an optical one based on correlation and a numerical technique based on the linear SVM (Support Vector Machine) classifier using HOG (Histogram of Gradient) as descriptor. The first step of our proposed approach consists to applying an inverse perspective mapping of the image acquired by the VIAPIX® module. Then, white color segmentation is applied in order to detect all road marks on the road. Next, a classification of the detected objects is performed using the correlation technique. Finally, the linear SVM technique is used for validating the recognized objects.