Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Structural and metabolic changes in rhizophores of the Cerrado species Chrysolaena obovata (Less.) Dematt. as influenced by drought and re-watering

The high fructan contents in underground organs of Cerrado species, high water solubility, and fast metabolism of these compounds highlight their role as carbon storage and as an adaptive feature in plants under drought. In this study, we showed that anatomical structure, in association with soluble compounds and metabolism of inulin-type fructans were modified in rhizophores of Crysolaena obovata submitted to water suppression and recovery after re-watering. Plants were subjected to daily watering (control), suppression of watering for 22 days (water suppression) and suppression of watering followed by re-watering after 10 days (re-watered). Plants were collected at time 0 and after 3, 7, 10, 12, 17, and 22 days of treatment. In addition to changes in fructan metabolism, high proline content was detected in drought stressed plants, contributing to osmoregulation and recovery after water status reestablishment. Under water suppression, total inulin was reduced from approx. 60 to 40%, mainly due to exohydrolase activity. Concurrently, the activity of fructosyltransferases promoted the production of short chain inulin, which could contribute to the increase in osmotic potential. After re-watering, most parameters analyzed were similar to those of control plants, indicating the resumption of regular metabolism, after water absorption. Inulin sphero-crystals accumulated in parenchymatic cells of the cortex, vascular tissues and pith were reduced under drought and accompanied anatomical changes, starting from day 10. At 22 days of drought, the cortical and vascular tissues were collapsed, and inulin sphero-crystals and inulin content were reduced. The localization of inulin sphero-crystals in vascular tissues of C. obovata, as well as the decrease of total inulin and the increase in oligo:polysaccharide ratio in water stressed plants is consistent with the role of fructans in protecting plants against drought.
Glomerular filtration rate predicts arterial events in women with systemic lupus erythematosus.

OBJECTIVES To determine whether renal function predicts the development of cardiovascular disease and other arterial vascular events in patients with SLE. METHOD An inception cohort of 437 females was studied. Baseline estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) was calculated using serum creatinine and the abbreviated Modification of Diet in Renal Disease Study Group formula. Arterial events including myocardial infarction, angina, transient ischaemic attacks, cerebral vascular accidents and other arterial events were documented at up to 15 years since the first visit. Disease activity was determined using SLEDAI. Patients were classified into those with or without arterial events and further into events that occurred within or after 3 years since the first visit (events <3 years, events ≥3 years). The association between eGFR and risks of arterial events was investigated using the Cox proportional hazards model. RESULTS There was a total of 58 arterial events of which 51.9% were events ≥ 3 years. Patients with arterial events had a significantly lower baseline eGFR and were significantly older than those without arterial events. Furthermore, baseline eGFR was significantly lower in events <3 years compared with events ≥ 3 years. Baseline eGFR, age and baseline SLEDAI were significantly associated with the risks of arterial events [eGFR: hazard ratio (HR) = 0.986; age: HR = 1.032; SLEDAI: HR = 1.041]. CONCLUSION Lower baseline eGFR, older age and higher SLEDAI score were significantly associated with increasing odds of developing arterial events at an earlier stage of SLE.
Evidence for Functional Protein Fragment Homology in Viral Genome Types

In this paper evidence is presented that supports the hypothesis that amino acid usage bias is a fundamental property of viral genome types. Clues to the biological basis for the observed differences in viral amino acid usage are examined. Capsid proteins are analyzed to evaluate the hypothesis that replication mechanism is exclusively responsible for observed amino acid usage profile bias. DSSP secondary structure characterization data is examined to evaluate the competing hypothesis that genome types universally use different sets of functionally equivalent amino acid fragments as building blocks.
A Multi-Objective Evolutionary Algorithm Based on Decomposition for Optimal Design of Yagi-Uda Antennas

This paper presents a multi-objective evolutionary algorithm based on decomposition (MOEA/D) to design broadband optimal Yagi-Uda antennas. A multi-objective problem is formulated to achieve maximum directivity, minimum voltage standing wave ratio and maximum front-to-back ratio. The algorithm was applied to the design of optimal 3 to 10 elements Yagi-Uda antennas, whose optimal Pareto fronts are provided in a single picture. The multi-objective problem is decomposed by Chebyshev decomposition, and it is solved by differential evolution (DE) and Gaussian mutation operators in order to provide a better approximation of the Pareto front. The results show that the implemented MOEA/D is efficient for designing Yagi-Uda antennas.
The influence of error propagation on the capacity of wireless networks

In this paper, it is shown that the achievable throughput capacity of wireless networks suffers from a fundamental limitation under finite node resource constraints. It is shown that this reduction results from a fundamental lower bound on the error performance of the wireless-channel model. In particular, the problem is addressed for the classic parallel-unicast problem introduced by Gupta-Kumar (2000). Under an AWGN channel-model assumption and for a path-loss exponent of α > 2, it is shown that the best available scheme for this setup achieves a throughput-capacity scaling of only Θ(n−1/2(log n)−1) per node. This is significant since an upper bound on asymptotic throughput capacity, scaling as Θ(n−1/2), was earlier shown to have been achieved by a scheme introduced by Franceschetti et. al. in 2006. The gap between achievability and the upper bound did not figure in past work on this problem, mainly due to transmission models that implicitly assume wireless nodes to have unlimited storage and encoding/decoding capabilities. Under the assumption of finite node memory, it is shown that such transmission models are unjustified in a strict information-theoretic sense. The new reduction in capacity scaling occurs from a necessity to modify the schemes used for showing achievability, in order to ensure that the failure probability is arbitrarily small. The analysis presented in this paper employs well-known sphere-packing bounds on the error probability of any block code in terms of the channel-error exponent. The result shows that for wireless networks with resource-constrained nodes, (a) the tightness of the best-known upper bound on capacity scaling still needs to be investigated, and (b) perhaps a better scheme that achieves higher capacity-scaling can be devised, but it is still an open problem.
Optimizing 3D Triangulations to Recapture Sharp Edges

In this report, a technique for optimizing 3D triangulations is proposed. The method seeks to minimize an energy defined as a sum of energy terms for each edge in a triangle mesh. The main contribution is a novel per edge energy w hich strikes a balance between penalizing dihedral angle yet allowing sharp ed ges. The energy is minimized using edge swapping, and this can be done either in a gr eedy fashion or using simulated annealing. The latter is more costly, but effecti vely avoids local minima. The method has been used on a number of models. Particularly good res ults have been obtained on digital terrain models. It is demonstrated how the me t od has been able to recapture sharp edges which are clearly present in the data but not reflected by the original triangulation of the elevation points. [triangulatio n] [simulated annealing][edge swap]
Age- and gender-specific reference intervals for total homocysteine and methylmalonic acid in plasma before and after vitamin supplementation.

We present reference intervals for total homocysteine and methylmalonic acid in plasma based on samples from 126 women (ages 20-85 years, median 49 years) and 109 men (ages 20-84 years, median 50 years). The central 0.95 interval for methylmalonic acid was 0.08-0.28 micromol/L. Supplementation with cyanocobalamin caused a nonsignificant decrease in methylmalonic acid. Supplementation with folic acid caused a decrease in homocysteine concentrations, with data analysis identifying two significantly different clusters: 182 subjects with the lowest initial concentrations (7.76 +/- 1.54 micromol/L, mean +/- SD) and the smallest decrease (1.26 +/- 0.96 micromol/L), and 53 subjects with the highest initial concentrations (12.33 +/- 2.04 micromol/L) and greatest decrease (4.14 +/- 1.32 micromol/L). We argue in favor of the age- and gender-specific central 0.95 intervals obtained for the 182 subjects before being supplemented with folic acid: 4.6-8.1 micromol/L for subjects at <30 years; 4.5-7.9 micromol/L for women, ages 30-59 years; 6.3-11.2 micromol/L for men, ages 30-59 years; and 5.8-11.9 micromol/L for subjects at >60 years.
Easiness of acceptance metric for effective human robot interactions in therapeutic pet robots

It is essential for robots to be highly usable to achieve increased acceptance among target population. In this paper, we put forward a metric that measures easiness of acceptance using the length of time to initiate interaction, total interaction time, time needed to identify perception-reaction phenomenon, its occurrence, number of violations and affective interaction factor. This measure would be useful as a parameter to compare different target groups, robots, and different nature of interaction. Experiments were conducted to validate the proposed metric in an eldercare nursing home using a therapeutic pet robot ERIC (Elderly Rehabilitation Interactive Companion), a dog-like robot. Results of the statistical analysis showed no significant difference in Easiness of Acceptance (EOA) estimation for between subject experiments in groups with similar characteristics for pre and post training trials. But, significant differences in EOA estimation was witnessed for within subject experiments for pre and post training trials.
Experiences with Agile Practices in the Global Studio Project

We report on our experiences using agile practices in a global software development project. Specifically, we report on the communication and collaboration patterns that were discovered using the social network analysis methodology. We used as a case study the Global Studio Project Version 3.0, where Extreme Programming practices were applied to one of the remote software development teams. We summarize our conclusions about Extreme Programming usage in global software development projects by presenting ten lessons learned from the application of Extreme Programming practices to the Global Studio Project Version 3.0.
A multi-agent brokerage platform for media content recommendation

Abstract Near real time media content personalisation is nowadays a major challenge involving media content sources, distributors and viewers. This paper describes an approach to seamless recommendation, negotiation and transaction of personalised media content. It adopts an integrated view of the problem by proposing, on the business-to-business (B2B) side, a brokerage platform to negotiate the media items on behalf of the media content distributors and sources, providing viewers, on the business-to-consumer (B2C) side, with a personalised electronic programme guide (EPG) containing the set of recommended items after negotiation. In this setup, when a viewer connects, the distributor looks up and invites sources to negotiate the contents of the viewer personal EPG. The proposed multi-agent brokerage platform is structured in four layers, modelling the registration, service agreement, partner lookup, invitation as well as item recommendation, negotiation and transaction stages of the B2B processes. The recommendation service is a rule-based switch hybrid filter, including six collaborative and two content-based filters. The rule-based system selects, at runtime, the filter(s) to apply as well as the final set of recommendations to present. The filter selection is based on the data available, ranging from the history of items watched to the ratings and/or tags assigned to the items by the viewer. Additionally, this module implements (i) a novel item stereotype to represent newly arrived items, (ii) a standard user stereotype for new users, (iii) a novel passive user tag cloud stereotype for socially passive users, and (iv) a new content-based filter named the collinearity and proximity similarity (CPS). At the end of the paper, we present off-line results and a case study describing how the recommendation service works. The proposed system provides, to our knowledge, an excellent holistic solution to the problem of recommending multimedia contents.
A NOTE ON MATRIX MODEL WITH IR CUTOFF AND AdS/CFT

We study effective gauge theory at finite temperature on a three-sphere in the presence of an IR cutoff using AdS/CFT. Comparing with the thermodynamic behavior of its gravity dual, we analyze a phenomenological matrix model which describes the gauge theory in the strongly coupled regime. Subsequently, we study the behavior of the model as a function of the IR cutoff. We further argue that a similar matrix model represents the effective gauge theory on R3 with an IR-cutoff and analyze the model numerically.
A multiplexer based decoder for flash analog-to-digital converters

A decoder for flash analog-to-digital converters with short critical path, regular structure, and small area is presented. The decoder is based on 2:1 multiplexers connected as a tree. Each level of the tree divides the input thermometer scale in two and calculates one of the bits in the binary output. In comparison with the Wallace tree decoder and the folded decoder the length of the critical path is approximately reduced to one third and one half, respectively. The amount of hardware is also reduced, which is likely to translate to a power saving, compared with the Wallace tree decoder and the folded decoder.
Double fine adventure and the double hermeneutic videogame

This paper establishes a hermeneutic method for interpreting videogames. The method is termed double hermeneutic because of the player's ability to affect the interpreted information. The double hermeneutic differs between games and game types, forming different double hermeneutic circles (DHCs) that players must access in order to experience games according to their designs. The paper bases its argument on the adventure game and suggests that the traditional point-and-click interface and 2D representation support the adventure game hermeneutic, which functions in synergy with the form's aesthetic discourse.
The Evolution of the Cuban HIV/AIDS Network

An individual detected as HIV positive in Cuba is asked to provide a list of his/her sexual contacts for the previous 2 years. This allows one to gather detailed information on the spread of the HIV epidemic. Here we study the evolution of the sexual contact graph of detected individuals and also the directed graph of HIV infections. The study covers the Cuban HIV epidemic between the years 1986 and 2004 inclusive and is motivated by an earlier study on the static properties of the network at the end of 2004. We use a variety of advanced graph algorithms to paint a picture of the growth of the epidemic, including an examination of diameters, geodesic distances, community structure and centrality amongst others characteristics. The analysis contrasts the HIV network with other real networks, and graphs generated using the configuration model. We find that the early epidemic starts in the heterosexual population and then grows mainly through MSM (Men having Sex with Men) contact. The epidemic exhibits a giant component which is shown to have degenerate chains of vertices and after 1989, diameters are larger than that expected by the equivalent configu
Leading the Next Industrial Revolution

Trusted Supplier In industrial automation, engineers and technical decision makers face growing performance demands, exacting deadlines, and increasingly challenging customer requirements. Fundamental to meeting these challenges and building competitive products is finding a trusted, reliable silicon vendor. With a strong reputation earned after supplying leading-edge silicon for nearly half a century, Intel is a dedicated partner to the industrial industry. Intel offers the reliability, proven innovation, quality products, and responsive customer support developers need to respond to demanding customer requirements and deadlines.
Binary Absorption in Tableaux-Based Reasoning for Description Logics

A fundamental problem in Description Logics (DLs) is satisfiability, the problem of checking if a given DL terminology T remains sufficiently unconstrained to enable at least one instance of a given DL concept C to exist. It has been known for some time that lazy unfolding is an important optimization technique in model building algorithms for satisfiability [2]. It is also imperative for large terminologies to be manipulated by an absorption generation process to maximize the benefits of lazy unfolding in such algorithms, thereby reducing the combinatorial effects of disjunction in underlying chase procedures [5]. In this paper, we propose a generalization of the absorption theory and algorithms developed by Horrocks and Tobies [6, 7]. The generalization, called binary absorption, makes it possible for lazy unfolding to be used for parts of terminologies not handled by current absorption algorithms and theory. The basic idea of binary absorption is to avoid the need to internalize (at least some of the) terminological axioms of the form
Blunted IL17/IL22 and Pro-Inflammatory Cytokine Responses in the Genital Tract and Blood of HIV-Exposed, Seronegative Female Sex Workers in Kenya

Background Identifying the immune correlates of reduced susceptibility to HIV remains a key goal for the HIV vaccine field, and individuals who are HIV-exposed, seronegative (HESN) may offer important clues. Reduced systemic immune activation has been described in HESN individuals. Conversely, pro-inflammatory T cell subsets, particularly CD4+ T cells producing the cytokine IL17 (Th17 cells), may represent a highly susceptible target for HIV infection after sexual exposure. Therefore, we characterized the cellular pro-inflammatory and IL17/IL22 cytokine immune milieu in the genital mucosa and blood of HESN female sex workers (FSWs). Methods and Results Blinded lab personnel characterized basal and mitogen-induced gene and cytokine immune responses in the cervix and blood of HESN FSWs (n = 116) and non-FSW controls (n = 17) using qPCR and ELISA. IL17 and IL22 production was significantly reduced in both the cervix and blood of HESNs, both in resting cells and after mitogen stimulation. In addition, HESN participants demonstrated blunted production of both pro-inflammatory cytokines and β-chemokines. Discussion and Conclusions We conclude that HIV exposure without infection was associated with blunted IL17/IL22 and pro-inflammatory responses, both systemically and at the site of mucosal HIV exposure. It will be important for further studies to examine the causal nature of the association and to define the cell subsets responsible for these differences.
1 Wireless Sensor Networks : Local Multicast Study

Wireless sensor networks and Ad-hoc network in the region Multicast (Geocasting) means to deliver the message to all nodes in a given geographical area from the source point. Regional Multicast practical application of the specified area and other regions may be formed to broadcast transmission and location-related business information, extensive advertising, or to send an urgent message. Regional multicast protocol design goal is to ensure messaging and low transport costs. Most have been proposed agreement does not guarantee message delivery, although some other guaranteed messaging protocol has triggered high transmission costs. The goal now is to ensure that research messaging and low-cost local transmission protocol and its algorithm, to promote the development of domain communication. This paper introduces the research background and research results, and proposed to solve the problems and ideas. Keywords— Multicast Region, Geographic Multicast, Routing, Wireless Sensor Networks, Mobile Ad-hoc Network.
Screening for Fabry Disease by Urinary Globotriaosylceramide Isoforms Measurement in Patients with Left Ventricular Hypertrophy

Background: Left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) is a frequent echocardiographic feature in Fabry disease (FD) and in severe cases may be confused with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) of other origin. The prevalence of FD in patients primarily diagnosed with HCM varies considerably in screening and case finding studies, respectively. In a significant proportion of patients, presenting with only mild or moderate LVH and unspecific clinical signs FD may remain undiagnosed. Urinary Gb3 isoforms have been shown to detect FD in both, women and men. We examined whether this non-invasive method would help to identify new FD cases in a non-selected cohort of patients with various degree of LVH. Methods and results: Consecutive patients older than 18 years with a diastolic interventricular septal wall thickness of ≥12mm determined by echocardiography were included. Referral diagnosis was documented and spot urine was collected. Gb3 was measured by mass spectroscopy. Subjects with an elevated Gb3-24:18 ratio were clinically examined for signs of FD, α-galactosidase-A activity in leukocytes was determined and GLA-mutation-analysis was performed. We examined 2596 patients. In 99 subjects urinary Gb3 isoforms excretion were elevated. In these patients no new cases of FD were identified by extended FD assessment. In two of three patients formerly diagnosed with FD Gb3-24:18 ratio was elevated and would have led to further diagnostic evaluation. Conclusion: Measurement of urinary Gb3 isoforms in a non-selected cohort with LVH was unable to identify new cases of FD. False positive results may be prevented by more restricted inclusion criteria and may improve diagnostic accuracy of this method.