Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
CRYPTOCURRENCY AS AN INSTRUMENT OF TERRORIST FINANCING

The purpose of the article is to explain the use of cryptocurrency as a terrorist financing tool. This article has emphasized the ways, which terrorists appraise for being a reliable fundraising means and their adoption. Methodology. For the purposes of the study, the methods of scientific abstraction, synthesis, observation, generalization, as well as the method of induction of literature and legal documents were used to determine the features of bitcoin, promoting and preventing its use for terrorism financing. Results. The development of the Internet and electronic devices has radically changed all spheres of human life, including criminal activity. Digitalization has led to the improvement of ordinary crimes and the emergence of new types of crime, which, in principle, cannot exist without special digital electronic devices. Among the first implementers of new technologies were terrorists, who took advantage of digitalization to increase profitability. Thus, terrorists have now significantly increased their attention to cryptocurrency as a digital means of payment, namely Bitcoin. Bitcoin has a number of features that have attracted the attention of criminals as a way to evade responsibility for a crime. In particular, decentralization avoids the need for confirmation by a central authority, and pseudo-anonymity provides a certain level of anonymity. In addition, terrorists are aware that Bitcoin's confidentiality is extremely fragile and needs to be enhanced. The paper analyzes several ways to enhance anonymity, such as software that anonymizes traffic and prevents IP identification, peer-to-peer mixers, centralized mixing services (tumbler), and other approaches. It is worth emphasizing that for the fight against crime, the main issue is the de-anonymization of the Bitcoin owner/user, which allows the identification of the criminal. Currently, law enforcement agencies use direct and indirect de-anonymization, proliferation analysis, quantitative analysis, time analysis, and transactional network analysis, among others, to achieve the above goal, which are discussed in detail in this article. In addition, agencies around the world investigated and uncovered terrorist groups and their financial facilitators. Specifically, on August 13, 2020, the U.S. Department of Justice's Office of Public Affairs announced "the largest cryptocurrency seizure in the context of terrorism in history. " To investigate the agenda, the legal documents of those investigations that contain information about the terrorist fund-raising mechanism were examined and analyzed. The legal documents revealed that these investigations used the aforementioned de-anonymization approaches.
The Daily Expression of ABCC4 at the BCSFB Affects the Transport of Its Substrate Methotrexate

The choroid plexuses (CPs), located in the brain ventricles, form an interface between the blood and the cerebrospinal fluid named the blood-cerebrospinal barrier, which, by the presence of tight junctions, detoxification enzymes, and membrane transporters, limits the traffic of molecules into the central nervous system. It has already been shown that sex hormones regulate several CP functions, including the oscillations of its clock genes. However, it is less explored how the circadian rhythm regulates CP functions. This study aimed to evaluate the impact of sex hormones and circadian rhythms on the function of CP membrane transporters. The 24 h transcription profiles of the membrane transporters rAbca1, rAbcb1, rAbcc1, rAbcc4, rAbcg2, rAbcg4, and rOat3 were characterized in the CPs of intact male, intact female, sham-operated female, and gonadectomized rats. We found that rAbcc1 is expressed in a circadian way in the CPs of intact male rats, rAbcg2 in the CPs of intact female rats, and both rAbcc4 and rOat3 mRNA levels were expressed in a circadian way in the CPs of intact male and female rats. Next, using an in vitro model of the human blood–cerebrospinal fluid barrier, we also found that methotrexate (MTX) is transported in a circadian way across this barrier. The circadian pattern of Abcc4 found in the human CP epithelial papilloma cells might be partially responsible for MTX circadian transport across the basal membrane of CP epithelial cells.
An Electro-Optic Sensor for Measurement of Intensive DC Electric Field

A lithium niobate (LN) integrated electro-optic (EO) sensor incorporated with a rotating shielding electrode has been designed, fabricated and experimentally demonstrated for measurement of intensive direct current (DC) electric field. As only the shielding electrode is rotated, there is no optical fiber rotation connection problem. Experimental results reveal that the sensor can be used to detect the DC electric field from 4 kV/m to 220 kV/m in the time domain, and the linear correlation coefficient of the input/output is 0.9997. The sensor has potential capability to be used for measurement of the intensive DC electric field.
A Prospective, Real-World, Multinational Study of Naloxegol for Patients with Cancer Pain Diagnosed with Opioid-Induced Constipation—The NACASY Study

Simple Summary Prescription opioid pain medications help ease pain, but they also cause some unwanted side effects such as constipation. In this study we evaluated the safety and efficacy of naloxegol used to treat constipation that is caused by opioids. We found that naloxegol improved constipation and quality of life in patients with cancer-related pain and opioid-induced constipation. Abstract The Naloxegol Cancer Study (NACASY) was a multinational European study aimed to evaluate the 4-week safety and efficacy of naloxegol in a real-world setting in patients with cancer pain diagnosed with opioid-induced constipation. The primary safety endpoint was the incidence of adverse events leading to study discontinuation. We recruited 170 patients who received at least one dose of naloxegol (i.e., safety population). Out of 170 patients, 20 (11.8%, 95%CI 6.9–16.6) discontinued the study due to adverse events, and, of them, 12 (7.1%, 95%CI 3.2–10.9%) were study discontinuations due to naloxegol-related adverse events. From 76 patients subjects who had completed both 4 weeks of treatment and 28 days of the diary, 55 patients (72.4%, 95% CI 62.3–82.4%) were regarded as responders (i.e., showed ≥3 bowel-movements per week and an increase of ≥1 bowel-movement over baseline) to naloxegol treatment. The Patient Assessment of Constipation—Quality of Life Questionnaire total score and all its subscales improved from baseline to 4 weeks of follow up. Our findings support and provide new evidence about the beneficial effect of naloxegol in terms of improvement of constipation and quality-of-life in patients with cancer-related pain and opioid-induced constipation and show a safety profile consistent with previous pivotal and real-world studies.
A User-Friendly Approach for Routine Histopathological and Morphometric Analysis of Skeletal Muscle Using CellProfiler Software

Adult skeletal muscle is capable of active and efficient differentiation in the event of injury in both physiological and pathological conditions, such as in Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD). DMD is characterized by different features, such as continuous cycles of degeneration/regeneration, fiber heterogeneity, chronic inflammation and fibrosis. A well-defined and standardized approach for histological and morphometric analysis of muscle samples is necessary in order to measure and quantify specific regenerative parameters in myopathies. Indeed, non-automatic methods are time-consuming and prone to error. Here, we describe a simple automatized computational approach to quantify muscle parameters with specific pipelines to be run by CellProfiler software in an open-source and well-defined fashion. Our pipelines consist of running image-processing modules in CellProfiler with the aim of quantifying different histopathological muscle hallmarks in mdx mice compared to their wild-type littermates. Specifically, we quantified the minimum Feret diameter, centrally nucleated fibers and the number of macrophages, starting from multiple images. Finally, for extracellular matrix quantification, we used Sirius red staining. Collectively, we developed reliable and easy-to-use pipelines that automatically measure parameters of muscle histology, useful for research in myobiology. These findings should simplify and shorten the time needed for the quantification of muscle histological properties, avoiding challenging manual procedures.
The Novel Protease Activities of JMJD5–JMJD6–JMJD7 and Arginine Methylation Activities of Arginine Methyltransferases Are Likely Coupled

The surreptitious discoveries of the protease activities on arginine-methylated targets of a subfamily of Jumonji domain-containing family including JMJD5, JMJD6, and JMJD7 pose several questions regarding their authenticity, function, purpose, and relations with others. At the same time, despite several decades of efforts and massive accumulating data regarding the roles of the arginine methyltransferase family (PRMTs), the exact function of this protein family still remains a mystery, though it seems to play critical roles in transcription regulation, including activation and inactivation of a large group of genes, as well as other biological activities. In this review, we aim to elucidate that the function of JMJD5/6/7 and PRMTs are likely coupled. Besides roles in the regulation of the biogenesis of membrane-less organelles in cells, they are major players in regulating stimulating transcription factors to control the activities of RNA Polymerase II in higher eukaryotes, especially in the animal kingdom. Furthermore, we propose that arginine methylation by PRMTs could be a ubiquitous action marked for destruction after missions by a subfamily of the Jumonji protein family.
Grid-Supportive Loads—A New Approach to Increasing Renewable Energy in Power Systems

This paper demonstrates the potential of inverter-based loads to support grid reliability during power system transients thereby enabling reliable integration of renewable energy in power systems. Such loads are referred to in this paper as grid-supportive loads (GSLs). A new GSL model is developed that simulates the transient response capabilities that can be programmed in electronic loads. The model’s design enables it to be easily integrated in widely used commercial power system transient analysis software. Theoretical expressions are derived that explain the workings of the GSL model. The performance, numerical stability, and impact of the GSL model is validated on 9-bus and 2000-bus synthetic power system models using generator tripping and bus fault disturbances. Results on the 2000 bus system show that in the absence of frequency support from wind/solar generation resources, just 20% of loads with grid-supportive capabilities can improve frequency response by up to 2000 MW/0.1 Hz and reduce deviation in frequency at nadir by up to 60% compared to the situation when GSLs are absent. Power system reliability also improves under fault events. It is further shown that GSLs can aid in integrating more renewable generation without degrading the overall transient response of the power system.
Sleepless in Solitude—Insomnia Symptoms Severity and Psychopathological Symptoms among University Students during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Poland

Since 25 March 2020, all schools, colleges, and universities in Poland have indefinitely closed and, where possible, have activated distance learning because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Considering that the undergraduate years are usually characterized by a high prevalence of emotional disorders and sleep problems, it can be expected that the current situation may have a remarkable impact on the student population. This study aimed to investigate the occurrence of sleep problems among Polish university students as well as the relationship of insomnia symptoms severity with psychopathological symptoms, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms, and behavioral factors, such as substance use, changes in the amount of sleep, and the level of physical activity during the COVID-19 pandemic. Data were collected from 1111 Polish university students via an online survey conducted between IV and VI 2020. The survey included demographic variables, the level of psychopathological symptoms (General Health Questionnaire, GHQ-28), insomnia (Insomnia Severity Index, ISI), and symptoms of posttraumatic stress (Impact of Events Scale-Revised, IES-R). The results showed that over half of the studied group of students had some form of sleep disturbances during the period of data collection, with moderate-to-severe insomnia symptoms noted in 21.6%. At the same time, the majority of the sample declared they slept more during the pandemic. A significant positive correlation was observed between the severity of insomnia symptoms and PTSD symptoms, as well as GHQ scores, increased substance use, and decreased physical activity. An additional association between the presence of dreams related to the event and insomnia symptoms as well as GHQ scores has been found. The results suggest that sleep problems may be prevalent among university students during the pandemic. Moreover, although the symptoms of insomnia, as well as the severity of sleep disturbance, significantly correlated with all the investigated variables, the direction of those associations remains to be established.
A Three Stages Detail Injection Network for Remote Sensing Images Pansharpening

Multispectral (MS) pansharpening is crucial to improve the spatial resolution of MS images. MS pansharpening has the potential to provide images with high spatial and spectral resolutions. Pansharpening technique based on deep learning is a topical issue to deal with the distortion of spatio-spectral information. To improve the preservation of spatio-spectral information, we propose a novel three-stage detail injection pansharpening network (TDPNet) for remote sensing images. First, we put forward a dual-branch multiscale feature extraction block, which extracts four scale details of panchromatic (PAN) images and the difference between duplicated PAN and MS images. Next, cascade cross-scale fusion (CCSF) employs fine-scale fusion information as prior knowledge for the coarse-scale fusion to compensate for the lost information during downsampling and retain high-frequency details. CCSF combines the fine-scale and coarse-scale fusion based on residual learning and prior information of four scales. Last, we design a multiscale detail compensation mechanism and a multiscale skip connection block to reconstruct injecting details, which strengthen spatial details and reduce parameters. Abundant experiments implemented on three satellite data sets at degraded and full resolutions confirm that TDPNet trades off the spectral information and spatial details and improves the fidelity of sharper MS images. Both the quantitative and subjective evaluation results indicate that TDPNet outperforms the compared state-of-the-art approaches in generating MS images with high spatial resolution.
Acanthaster planci Inhibits PCSK9 Gene Expression via Peroxisome Proliferator Response Element (PPRE) and Activation of MEK and PKC Signaling Pathways in Human Liver Cells

A constantly elevated level of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) is mainly associated with the development of atherosclerosis. The use of statins as a treatment for reducing plasma LDL-C levels has led, in some cases, to adverse side effects, including a decrease in hepatic LDL receptor (LDLR), the receptor responsible for the uptake of circulating LDL-C. Proprotein convertase subtilisin/kexin type 9 (PCSK9) is an enzyme responsible for directing the LDLR–LDL-C complex to lysosomal degradation upon transport into cells, preventing the recycling of LDLR to the cell surface. Therefore, PCSK9 may offer a new target for reducing the levels of plasma LDL-C. In this study, we investigated the mechanisms of action of a selected fraction of A. planci on PCSK9 gene expression, as well as the effect of the fraction on the level of LDLR protein and the uptake of LDL-C. Using real-time PCR, it was shown that the selected A. planci fraction reduced the gene expression of PCSK9 in human liver HepG2 cells. Immunocytochemistry analysis demonstrated that the selected A. planci fraction increased the LDLR protein level and LDL-C uptake in HepG2 cells. Promoter mutational and gene expression analyses revealed that PPRE, a binding site for peroxisome proliferator–activated receptor (PPAR), was responsible for mediating the inhibitory effect of the selected fraction on PCSK9 mRNA. In addition, MAP kinase and PKC components of the signal transduction pathway were activated, inducing the action of the selected A. planci fraction in decreasing PCSK9 gene expression. These findings suggest that the selected fraction shows good potential for reducing circulating LDL-C and, thus, may be a good therapeutic intervention to prevent the progression of atherosclerosis.
High-fidelity Modelling of an Electric Sport Utility Vehicle

The development and validation of a high-fidelity dynamic model of an electric sport utility vehicle (SUV) is presented. The developed model of the electric vehicle system consists of two main subsystems: the high-fidelity vehicle dynamics model, and the highfidelity electrical powertrain subsystem that is comprised of an alternating-current (AC) electric motor, a 3-phase inverter, and motor controllers. The high-fidelity models are developed in MapleSim and Simulink. Specifically, the high-fidelity vehicle dynamics model is developed using the MapleSim multibody and tire dynamics libraries. A simple longitudinal model is developed in Simulink to cross-validate the high-fidelity MapleSim model by comparing the vehicle dynamics responses of the two models. The electrical powertrain components are developed and implemented in the following order: the AC electric motor is developed first followed by the 3-phase voltage source inverter. Motor controllers are developed next, and lastly the electrical powertrain subsystem is assembled by combining the AC electric motor, the 3-phase inverter, and the motor controllers. Previous research results and literature on AC electric motors are studied thoroughly to develop an AC electric motor model suitable for electric vehicle applications. The 3-phase voltage source inverter is developed to convert a constant voltage signal into 3-phase AC voltage signals that are used by the AC electric motor. Lastly, the motor controllers are designed to control the electric motor responses, such as developed motor torque or speed. At each stage of the powertrain component model developments, the developed models are verified by studying their simulation results. Experimental motor data from vehicle testing is available, so the experimental torque-speed curves are used to tune the AC electric motor parameters. Once all the individual components are developed and validated, the high-fidelity electric vehicle system is created in Simulink by assembling the MapleSim vehicle dynamics model and the electrical powertrain subsystem which is developed in Simulink. For the models developed in MapleSim, they are exported as Simulink blocks so that they could be run alongside with the Simulink models. A driver controller is included to calculate required reference motor torque to track a reference speed input. A brake module is designed to simulate a brake system found in an electric vehicle where regenerative and mechanical brake systems cooperate to deliver braking torque. The electric vehicle system model is simulated using the driving cycles that represent city, highway, and aggressive driving scenarios. The simulation results, such as the vehicle’s longitudinal speed and developed motor torque and currents, are presented and studied to verify that the electric vehicle system can operate under different driving scenarios.
Impact of delivery rate on the acute response to intravenous nicotine: A human laboratory study with implications for regulatory science

Faster delivery rate enhances the abuse potential of drugs of abuse, yet systematic studies on the impact of delivery rate on the acute effects of nicotine in humans are lacking. Using an intravenous (IV) nicotine infusion procedure that allows precise control of rate of delivery, we examined the impact of nicotine delivery rate on the positive subjective drug effects, smoking urges, withdrawal, heart rate, blood pressure and attention function in smokers. Twenty‐four male and female (ages 21–35) dependent smokers attended five experimental sessions, following overnight abstinence from smoking. Using a crossover design, participants attended five sessions, where they were assigned to a random sequence of saline infusion or 1 mg nicotine delivered over 1, 2.5, 5 or 10 min at rates of 1, 0.4, 0.2 or 0.1 mg/min, respectively. The positive subjective effects of nicotine were most robust under the two faster delivery rate conditions, 1‐ and 0.4‐mg nicotine/min. In contrast, all nicotine delivery rates were equally more effective than saline in alleviating urges to smoke. Likewise, nicotine‐induced heart rate increases did not vary with the rate of nicotine delivery. Lastly, the cognitive enhancing effects of nicotine were observed only under the two slowest delivery rate conditions—0.1‐ and 0.2‐mg nicotine/min. Collectively, these findings support the critical role of delivery rate in optimizing nicotine's abuse potential versus potential therapeutic effects and have timely implications for developing novel therapeutics for nicotine dependence, as well as for tobacco regulatory science.
Implicit summation by parts operators for finite difference approximations of first and second derivatives

Implicit ﬁnite difference approximations are derived for both the ﬁrst and second derivatives. The boundary closures are based on the banded-norm summation-by-parts framework and the boundary conditions are imposed using a weak (penalty) enforcement. Up to 8th order global convergence is achieved. The ﬁnite difference approximations lead to implicit ODE systems. Spectral resolution characteristics are achieved by proper tuning of the internal difference stencils. The accuracy and stability properties are demonstrated for linear hyperbolic problems in 1D and the 2D compressible Euler equations. © 2022 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Inc. This is an open access article under the CC BY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
Effect of time-gate on antenna planar near-field measurement in time domain

The technology of antenna near-field measurement in time domain can measure the broad-band fields and radiation fields of antenna excited by short-duration time pulse.Compared with frequency-domain measurement technology,one of its unique characteristic is the application of time-gate technique for signal processing.On basis of the time-domain experimental system built,the effect of time-gate on antenna planar near-field measurement in time domain is analyzed.The measured results of antenna patterns at three frequecy bands and analysis conclusions are presented in this paper.
Semi‐natural habitat surrounding farms promotes multifunctionality in avian ecosystem services

1. Farmland birds can suppress insect pests, but may also consume beneficial insects, damage crops and potentially carry foodborne pathogens. As bird communities shift in response to farming practices, so too do the benefits (services) and costs (disservices) from birds. Understanding how and why ecosystem services and disservices