Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Distributed event driven optimization for network utility maximization

The network utility maximization problem has wide applications in wireless sensor networks and power grids. In this paper, we propose a distributed event driven optimization method to the network utility maximization problem, which can be regarded as an extension of the classical dual decomposition algorithm. By exploiting the dual problem, we are able to design an active triggering condition on the link side and a passive one on the source side. In particular, the communication triggering logic mediates the information transmission from links to sources. We subsequently present a sufficient condition for the convergence of the flow to the optimal value as well as the reduction of communication frequency. The numerical example verifies that the optimal solution could be achieved distributedly with drastically slashed communication costs.
Perceived Overqualification, Emotional Support, and Health

In the present study, we examined the effects of perceived overqualification on health and the moderating effect of emotional support. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses found 2 indicators of perceived overqualification: “mismatch” and “no-grow. ” Perceived mismatch had a significant negative effect on health but perceived no-grow did not. The main effect revealed that the greater the perceived emotional support, the greater the health. The significant interaction of perceived emotional support and mismatch, and perceived emotional support and no-grow on health indicates that the negative effects of overqualification on health was greater for those perceiving low emotional support than for those perceiving high emotional support. The significance of social support in illuminating the relationship between perceived overqualification and health are discussed.
A blendshape model that incorporates physical interaction

The linear blendshape technique has been intensively used for computer animation and games because of its simplicity and effectiveness. However, it cannot describe rotational deformations and deformations because of self collision or scene interaction. In this paper, we present a new technique to address these two major limitations by introducing physical‐based simulation to blendshapes. The proposed technique begins by constructing a mass–spring system for each blendshape target. Each system is initialized in its steady state by setting the rest length of each spring as the edge length of the corresponding target. To begin shape interpolation, we linearly interpolate the rest lengths of the springs according to a given interpolation factor α ∈ [0,1]. The interpolated shape is then generated by computing the equilibrium of the mass–spring system with the interpolated rest lengths. Results from our technique show physically plausible deformations even in the case of large rotations between blendshape targets. In addition, the new blendshape model is able to interact with other scene elements by introducing collision detection and handling to the mass–spring system. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Coverage Specification for Test Case Intent Preservation in Regression Suites

Regression testing ensures that previous faults do not recur. When a fault is reported and fixed, the testing team augments the test suite with a new test case that exercises the fault in the original program. Typically the new test case covers patterns of program elements associated with the fault. However, this test might become obsolete (i.e., does not cover the targeted patterns anymore) when other code modifications are made. Nevertheless, current coverage metrics might still report acceptable values thus misleading the testing team. In this paper, we present a coverage specification language and a methodology to preserve the intent of test cases in a regression test suite. We implemented our methodology for C programs and for def-use program elements. With our method, a) a coverage specification language enables testers to specify def-use pairs and associate them with tests; b) the def-use pairs' specifications recognize the pairs across subsequent versions of the program; and c) the tool computes run time assembly level addresses for def-use pairs and guarantees intent preservation. Preliminary results show that our method works for program changes involving insertions and deletions of several lines of code.
Acute tramadol poisoning and its clinical and laboratory findings

Background: Tramadol is a centrally acting analgesic with opioid and nonopioid properties, which extensively used in the relief of mild to moderate pain. Tramadol poisoning is a common cause of acute pharmaceutical poisoning in Iran. There are a few studies about clinical and laboratory findings related to acute tramadol poisoning. Therefore, the aim of this study was to demonstrate the clinical and laboratory findings in tramadol acute poisoning cases. Materials and Methods: This was a retrospective descriptive study of patients with acute tramadol poisoning who referred to Loghman Hakim Hospital Poison Center during January to April 2012. Data such as patient's age, sex, time of ingestion, ingested dose, cause of poisoning, mean duration of hospitalization, patient's clinical presentations, laboratory findings, therapeutic measures, and patient's outcome have collected in a predesigned checklist. Results: A total of 144 patients including 111 men (77%) and 33 women (23%) with acute tramadol poisoning was included in this study. The mean ingested dose was 1971.2 mg (100-20000 mg). Seizure (47.91%) was the most frequent clinical symptom. Blood gas on admission showed pH (7.3 ± 0.1), PCO2 (49.7 ± 8.6 mmHg) and HCO3− (24.1 ± 3.8 mEq/L), indicating pure acute respiratory acidosis may be occurred in tramadol-intoxicated patients. There were significant differences between tramadol-intoxicated cases with and without a seizure with regard to the time interval between ingestion and admission on hospital, ingested dose and PCO2. Conclusion: Seizure and rise of PCO2 were the most findings in this study.
Diverging Alternative Splicing Fingerprints in the Transforming Growth Factor-β Signaling Pathway Identified in Thoracic Aortic Aneurysms

Impaired regulation of the transforming growth factor-β (TGFβ) signaling pathway has been linked to thoracic aortic aneurysm (TAA). Previous work has indicated that differential splicing is a common phenomenon, potentially influencing the function of proteins. In the present study we investigated the occurrence of differential splicing in the TGFβ pathway associated with TAA in patients with bicuspid aortic valve (BAV) and tricuspid aortic valve (TAV). Affymetrix human exon arrays were applied to 81 intima/media tissue samples from dilated (n = 51) and nondilated (n = 30) aortas of TAV and BAV patients. To analyze the occurrence of alternative splicing in the TGFβ pathway, multivariate techniques, including principal component analysis and OPLS-DA (orthogonal partial least squares to latent structures discriminant analysis), were applied on all exons (n = 614) of the TGFβ pathway. The scores plot, based on the splice index of individual exons, showed separate clusters of patients with both dilated and nondilated aorta, thereby illustrating the potential importance of alternative splicing in TAA. In total, differential splicing was detected in 187 exons. Furthermore, the pattern of alternative splicing is clearly differs between TAV and BAV patients. Differential splicing was specific for BAV and TAV patients in 40 and 86 exons, respectively, and splicings of 61 exons were shared between the two phenotypes. The occurrence of differential splicing was demonstrated in selected genes by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction. In summary, alternative splicing is a common feature of TAA formation. Our results suggest that dilatation in TAV and BAV patients has different alternative splicing fingerprints in the TGFβ pathway.
Effect of time of day on the relationship between lactate and ventilatory thresholds: a brief report.

The purpose of this investigation was to study the effect of time of day on the relationship between lactate (LT) and ventilatory thresholds (VT) of pulmonary oxygen uptake (VO2). Seven moderately active male volunteers (26.3 ± 3.0 years, 1.74 ± 0.08 m, 76 ± 5 kg) performed a maximal incremental test (increases of 30 W every 2 min) on a cycle ergometer on consecutive days at 0900 h, 1400h and 1900 h in a randomized fashion. The anaerobic threshold was determined using both ventilatory gas analysis and blood lactate measures. Each of the following variables was recorded both at VT and the LT; heart rate (HR, beats.min(-1)), minute ventilation (VE, L.min(-1)), respiratory exchange ratio (RER), time to threshold (Time, sec), oxygen uptake (VO2, ml·kg(-1). min(-1)) and VO2 as a percentage of maximal oxygen uptake (%VO2max). The correlations between VT and LT variables analyzed by Pearson product moment correlations for each time of day. ANOVA was used to compare the data obtained at different times of the day. There were no significant differences for the data related to time of day either for ventilatory gas analysis or lactate measurements. The correlation coefficients between VT and LT variables were moderate to high (r=0.56-0.94) for time of day. However, the correlations for HR, VO2, and %VO2max (r=0.81-0.94) were slightly stronger compared with Time, VE and RER (r=0.56-0.88). It was concluded that, the data at VT and LT were not influenced by time of day.
Race differences among noncustodial fathers noncompliant in child support: Involvement and self-perceptions of fathering

Abstract There are more than 21.2 million children who live with only one parent in the United States (US Census 2007). Of the 13.6 million noncustodial parents, the majority of whom are fathers, more than 2.6 million are low-income fathers who do not pay child support (Sorensen, 2002). This is a diverse group, yet little research has focused on racial differences among low income noncustodial fathers who do not pay child support. Understanding who these fathers are, and how they are involved in their children’s lives is important for social policy and for parenting programs that seek to involve fathers beyond financial child support. This paper provides a description of race differences among low-income, noncustodial fathers convicted of the non-payment of child support. Comparisons between White and African American/Black fathers are made for the amount of fathering involvement, the type of fathering involvement, and self-perceptions of fathering. Findings reveal no significant differences between African American/Black and White fathers’ type of involvement and perceptions of fathering, although there is a trend for African American/Black fathers to have more contact with their children compared with White fathers. Findings demonstrate that low-income, noncustodial fathers face multiple barriers to staying involved with their children, and practitioners should recognize the context of background factors that might influence father involvement.
Sparse auto-associative neural networks: theory and application to speech recognition

This paper introduces the sparse auto-associative neural network (SAANN) in which the internal hidden layer output is forced to be sparse. This is achieved by adding a sparse regularization term to the original reconstruction error cost function, and updating the parameters of the network to minimize the overall cost. We show applicability of this network to phoneme recognition by extracting sparse hidden layer outputs (used as features) from a network which is trained using perceptual linear prediction (PLP) cepstral coefﬁcients in an unsupervised manner. Experiments with the SAANN features on a state-of-the-art TIMIT phoneme recognition system show a relative improvement in phoneme error rate of 5.1% over the baseline PLP features.
Classification of Protein Structure using SVM

-Protein domains are portion block of protein sequence that evolved independent function. Therefore, the classification of protein domain is becoming very important in order to produce new sequence with new function. However the main issue in protein domain classification is to classify the domain correctly into their category since the sequence coincidently classify to both category. Therefore, to overcome this issue, this dissertation proposed a method of functionally classifying genes by using gene expression data from DNA microarray hybridization experiments. The method is based on the theory of support vector machines (SVMs). SVMs are considered a supervised computer learning method because they exploit prior knowledge of gene function to identify unknown genes of similar function from expression data. SVMs avoid several problems associated with unsupervised clustering methods, such as hierarchical clustering and self-organizing maps. SVMs have many mathematical features that make them attractive for gene expression analysis, including their flexibility in choosing a similarity function, sparseness of solution when dealing with large data sets, the ability to handle large feature spaces, and the ability to identify outliers. We test SVM that use different similarity metrics, as well as some other supervised learning methods and find that the SVM best identified different sets of genes with a common function using expression data. Finally, we use SVM to predict functional roles for uncharacterized yeast (Open Reading Frames) ORF based on their expression data.
Role of cortical tension in bleb growth

Blebs are spherical membrane protrusions often observed during cell migration, cell spreading, cytokinesis, and apoptosis, both in cultured cells and in vivo. Bleb expansion is thought to be driven by the contractile actomyosin cortex, which generates hydrostatic pressure in the cytoplasm and can thus drive herniations of the plasma membrane. However, the role of cortical tension in bleb formation has not been directly tested, and despite the importance of blebbing, little is known about the mechanisms of bleb growth. In order to explore the link between cortical tension and bleb expansion, we induced bleb formation on cells with different tensions. Blebs were nucleated in a controlled manner by laser ablation of the cortex, mimicking endogenous bleb nucleation. Cortical tension was modified by treatments affecting the level of myosin activity or proteins regulating actin turnover. We show that there is a critical tension below which blebs cannot expand. Above this threshold, the maximal size of a bleb strongly depends on tension, and this dependence can be fitted with a model of the cortex as an active elastic material. Together, our observations and model allow us to relate bleb shape parameters to the underlying cellular mechanics and provide insights as to how bleb formation can be biochemically regulated during cell motility.
Development of a high resolution plantar pressure monitoring pad based on fiber Bragg grating (FBG) sensors.

BACKGROUND High importance is given to plantar pressure monitoring in the field of biomedical engineering for the diagnosis of posture related ailments associated with diseases such as diabetes and gonarthrosis. OBJECTIVE This paper presents the proof-of-concept development of a new high resolution plantar pressure monitoring pad based on fiber Bragg grating (FBG) sensors. METHODS In the proposed configuration, the FBG sensors are embedded within layers of carbon composite material (CCM) in turn conforming to an arc shape. A total of four such arc shaped sensors are instrumented in the pad at the locations of the forefoot and the hind foot. As a test of the pad, static plantar pressure is monitored on normal subjects under various posture conditions. The pad is evaluated both as a standalone platform as well as a pad inserted inside a standard shoe. RESULTS An average pressure sensitivity of 1.2 pm/kPa and a resolution of approximately 0.8 kPa is obtained in this special configuration. The pad is found to be suitable in both configurations- stand-alone pad as well as an insert inside a standard shoe. CONCLUSION The proposed set up offers a cost-effective high resolution and accurate plantar pressure measurement system suitable for clinical deployment. The novelty of the developed pressure pad lies in its ability to be used both as platform type as well as inserted in-sole type sensor system.
Compactly Accessible Categories and Quantum Key Distribution

Compact categories have lately seen renewed interest via applications to quantum physics. Being essentially finite-dimensional, they cannot accomodate (co)limit-based constructions. For example, they cannot capture protocols such as quantum key distribution, that rely on the law of large numbers. To overcome this limitation, we introduce the notion of a compactly accessible category, relying on the extra structure of a factorisation system. This notion allows for infinite dimension while retaining key properties of compact categories: the main technical result is that the choice-of-duals functor on the compact part extends canonically to the whole compactly accessible category. As an example, we model a quantum key distribution protocol and prove its correctness categorically.
Temporary Single-Cell Coating for Bioprocessing with a Cationic Polymer

Temporary single-cell coating is a useful tool for cell processing, allowing manipulation of cells to prevent cell attachment and agglomeration, before re-establishing normal cell function. In this work, a speckled coating method using a known polycation [poly(l-lysine), PLL] is described to induce cell surface electrostatic charges on three different cell types, namely, two bone cancer cell lines and fibroblasts. The morphology of the PLL speckled coating on the cell surface, internalization and metabolization of the polymer, and prevention of cellular aggregations are reported. Polymer concentration was found to be the key parameter controlling both capsule morphology and cell health. This approach allows a temporary cell coating over the course of 1–2 h, with cells exhibiting phenotypically normal behavior after ingesting and metabolizing the polymer. The process offers a fast and efficient alternative to aid single-cell manipulation for bioprocessing applications. Preliminary work on the application of PLL speckled cell coating in enabling reliable bioprinting is also presented.
Effects of Hyperoxia on Brain Tissue Oxygen Tension in Non-Sedated, Non- Anesthetized Arctic Ground Squirrels: An Animal Model of Hyperoxic Stress

Arctic Ground Squirrels (AGS) are classic hibernators known for their tolerance to hypoxia. AGS have been studied as a model of hypoxia with potential as a medical research model. Problem statement: Their unique resistance to the stressors of low oxygen led us to hypothesize that AGS might also be adaptable to hyperoxia. Approach: This study examined the physiological pattern associated with hyperoxia in response to brain tissue oxygen partial pressure (PtO2), brain temperature (Tbrain), global oxygen consumption (VO2) and respiratory frequency (fR) using non-sedated and nonanesthetized Arctic Ground Squirrels (AGS) and rats. Results: We found that 1) 100% inspired oxygen (FiO2) increased the baseline values of brain PtO2 significantly in both summer euthermic AGS (24.4 ± 3.6-87.3 ± 3.6 mmHg, n=6) and in rats (18.2 ± 5.2-73.3 ± 5.2 mmHg, n = 3); PtO2 was significantly higher in AGS than in rats during hyperoxic exposure; 2) hyperoxic exposure had no effect on brain temperature in either AGS or rats, with the brain temperatures maintaining constancy before, during and after 100% O2 exposure; 3) systemic metabolic rates increased significantly during hyperoxic exposure in both euthermic AGS and rats; moreover, VO2 were significantly lower in AGS than in rats during hyperoxic exposure; 4) the respiratory rates for rats were maintained before, during and after 100% O2 exposure, while the respiratory responding patterns to hyperoxic exposure changed after exposure in AGS. AGS fR was significantly lower after hyperoxic exposure than before the exposure. Conclusion: These results suggest that hyperoxic ventilation induced PtO2 and VO2 differences between AGS and rats and led to altered respiratory patterns between these species. AGS and the rat serves as an excellent comparative model for hypoxic and hyperoxic stress studies of the brain.
Smart mirror: A novel framework for interactive display

Our lifestyle has evolved in such a way that optimizing time is the most important thing. Based on the user studies and prototype implementation, we present the development of an innovating appliance that incorporates interactive services of information, offered through a user interface on the surface of a mirror. Our work is based on the idea that we all looks at the mirror when we go out, so why wouldn't the mirror become smart. The framework will offer basic services, like the presentation of personalized weather data, time, date and will incorporate some additional functionality, like reminder service by mobile synchronization and through social media. Our framework is based on detecting presence of human using Passive Infrared sensors and Wi-Fi connectivity. Once a person comes in front of the mirror, it displays the information that is being fed from the web. This data or information includes calendar, time, weather, news feed, notifications and so on. Our framework also discusses about the speech recognition and its application in control mechanism in home appliances and opening and closing of shelf. We use speech recognition to automate many tasks that usually requires hands-on human interaction, such as recognizing spoken commands to perform something like turning on lights or shutting a door. Our framework also introduces speech activated music player, and plays the music when a person gives a command.
Diagnosis of Tuberculosis-Latest Diagnostic Tools

Microscopy has been a diagnostic tool for TB for over a century, and still currently the most rapid diagnostic method. Standard light microscopy (LM) and fluorescent microscopy (FM) are common methods. The recent development of light emitting diodes (LED), with the ap‐ propriate fluorescent light output for FM and low power consumption, has led to the devel‐ opment of simple, robust LED FM microscopes, requiring minimal mains or battery power and no dark room requirement. The WHO has recommended rolling it out as an alternative to LMs in resource-limited settings, based on studies that have shown comparable perform‐ ance of LM and standard FM systems [4,5].
Metabolic syndrome and its characteristics among obese patients attending an obesity clinic.

INTRODUCTION The increased prevalence of metabolic syndrome worldwide is closely related to the rising obesity epidemic. The objectives of the study were to determine the prevalence and identify the associated and prognostic factors that influence the risk of metabolic syndrome among obese patients attending the Obesity Clinic at Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia. METHODS A study was conducted involving 102 obese persons who attended the Obesity Clinic from January 1 to December 31, 2005. Metabolic syndrome was defined according to the International Diabetes Federation criteria. RESULTS The overall prevalence of metabolic syndrome among obese patients was 40.2 percent. The prevalence was higher in females (43.7 percent) than in males (32.3 percent). The prevalence of metabolic syndrome was noted to increase with increasing body mass index class, from class 1 to class 2. However, the prevalence was lower in obesity class 3. The prevalence of metabolic comorbidities of raised blood pressure, reduced high density lipoprotein, high triglyceride and raised fasting blood glucose was 42, 40, 36 and 17 percent, respectively. A quarter of obese patients in this study had no other comorbidity. Based on logistic regression multivariable analysis, age was the only significant associated factor that influenced the risk of having metabolic syndrome. CONCLUSION The prevalence of metabolic syndrome was high and the highest comorbidity was high blood pressure. Age was the only significant risk factor of having this syndrome.