Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A Novel Method of Discrete-Time Signal Amplification Using NEMS Devices

In this paper, we propose a novel technique of realizing discrete-time (D-T) signal amplification using Nano-Electro-Mechanical systems (NEMS). The amplifier uses mechanical switches instead of traditional solid-state devices and acts as an inherent sample and hold amplifier. The proposed NEMS D-T amplifier operates on a wide dynamic range of signals without consuming the dc power. Moreover, the proposed amplifier does not suffer from the leakage current and the nonlinearity associated with the sampling ohmic switch. As a proof of concept, the proposed NEMS D-T amplifier is demonstrated in circuit simulations using the calibrated verilog-A models of the NEMS device. The simulated amplifier achieves a gain of ~5, handles the maximum differential input signal of 0.65 V, and consumes only $0.6~\mu \text{W}$ of power for a sampling frequency of 100 kHz. The nonidealities present in the proposed amplifier are highlighted and possible ways to overcome them are discussed. Finally, the design considerations required for the NEMS D-T amplifier are described.
Permo-Triassic Boundary Superanoxia and Stratified Superocean: Records from Lost Deep Sea

Pelagic cherts of Japan and British Columbia, Canada, recorded a long-term and worldwide deep-sea anoxic (oxygen-depleted) event across the Permo-Triassic (or Paleozoic and Mesozoic) boundary (251 ± 2 million years ago). The symmetry in lithostratigraphy and redox condition of the boundary sections suggest that the superocean Panthalassa became totally stratified for nearly 20 million years across the boundary. The timing of onset, climax, and termination of the oceanic stratification correspond to global biotic events including the end-Guadalupian decline, the end-Permian extinction, and mid-Triassic recovery.
Coping with Temporal Constraints in Multimedia Presentation Planning

Computer-based presentation systems enable the realization of effective and dynamic presentation styles that incorporate multiple media. Obvious examples are animated user interface agents which verbally comment on multimedia objects displayed on the screen while performing cross-media and cross-window pointing gestures. The design of such presentations must account for the temporal coordination of media output and the agent's behavior. In this paper we describe a new presentation system which not only creates the multimedia objects to be presented, but also generates a script for presenting the material to the user. In our system, this script is forwarded to an animated presentation agent running the presentation. The paper details the kernel of the system which is a component for planning temporally coordinated multimedia.
O PENSAMENTO DO ESTRATEGISTA: FATORES QUE ASSEGURAM A TOMADA DE DECISÕES ESTRATÉGICAS NAS PEQUENAS E MÉDIAS EMPRESAS

O comportamento organizacional esta associado a tomada de decisao estrategica adotada por agentes indutores internos, considerados estrategistas. Esse comportamento leva a organizacao a buscar melhor desempenho em posicoes de mercado e no uso de recursos tangiveis e intangiveis. Este trabalho propoe avancar no entendimento de como esses agentes atuam na formulacao de estrategias, elaboram heuristicas, conduzem os negocios nessa busca por melhor desempenho. Para tanto, adotou-se o metodo RepGrid (Kelly, 1955) aplicado a proprietarios de pequenas e medias empresas (PMEs) em uma regiao produtora de calcados de Nova Serrana – MG. Os resultados identificaram os fatores de atencao dos agentes na elaboracao de estrategias, os quais centralizam a decisao no dirigente e em seus socios; baseiam-se em resultados financeiros; avaliam tanto as questoes internas atuais quanto as externas de mercado; e conduzem um processo emergente e pouco formalizado.
A novel approach using a minimum cost maximum flow algorithm for fault-tolerant topology reconfiguration in NoC architectures

An approach using a minimum cost maximum flow algorithm is proposed for fault-tolerant topology reconfiguration in a Network-on-Chip system. Topology reconfiguration is converted into a network flow problem by constructing a directed graph with capacity constraints. A cost factor is considered to differentiate between processing elements. This approach maximizes the use of spare cores to repair faulty systems, with minimal impact on area, throughput and delay. It also provides a transparent virtual topology to alleviate the burden for operating systems.
Ca2+ oscillation frequency regulates agonist-stimulated gene expression in vascular endothelial cells

A physiological membrane-receptor agonist typically stimulates oscillations, of varying frequencies, in cytosolic Ca2+ concentration ([Ca2+]i). Whether and how [Ca2+]i oscillation frequency regulates agonist-stimulated downstream events, such as gene expression, in non-excitable cells remain unknown. By precisely manipulating [Ca2+]i oscillation frequency in histamine-stimulated vascular endothelial cells (ECs), we demonstrate that the gene expression of vascular cell adhesion molecule 1 (VCAM1) critically depends on [Ca2+]i oscillation frequency in the presence, as well as the absence, of histamine stimulation. However, histamine stimulation enhanced the efficiency of [Ca2+]i-oscillation-frequency-regulated VCAM1 gene expression, versus [Ca2+]i oscillations alone in the absence of histamine stimulation. Furthermore, a [Ca2+]i oscillation frequency previously observed to be the mean frequency in histamine-stimulated ECs was found to optimize VCAM1 mRNA expression. All the above effects were abolished or attenuated by blocking histamine-stimulated generation of intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS), another intracellular signaling pathway, and were restored by supplementary application of a low level of H2O2. Endogenous NF-κB activity is similarly regulated by [Ca2+]i oscillation frequency, as well as its co-operation with ROS during histamine stimulation. This study shows that [Ca2+]i oscillation frequency cooperates with ROS to efficiently regulate agonist-stimulated gene expression, and provides a novel and general strategy for studying [Ca2+]i signal kinetics in agonist-stimulated downstream events.
Accelerated hematopoietic stem cell aging in a mouse model of dyskeratosis congenita responds to antioxidant treatment

Mutations in DKC1, encoding telomerase associated protein dyskerin, cause X‐linked dyskeratosis congenita (DC), a bone marrow (BM) failure, and cancer susceptibility syndrome. Decreased accumulation of telomerase RNA resulting in excessive telomere shortening and premature cellular senescence is thought to be the primary cause of disease in X‐linked DC. Affected tissues are those that require constant renewal by stem cell activity. We previously showed that in Dkc1Δ15 mice, which contain a mutation that is a copy of a human mutation causing DC, mutant cells have a telomerase‐dependent proliferative defect and increased accumulation of DNA damage in the first generation before the telomeres are short. We now demonstrate the presence of the growth defect in Dkc1Δ15 mouse embryonic fibroblasts in vitro and show that accumulation of DNA damage and levels of reactive oxygen species increase with increasing population doublings. Treatment with the antioxidant, N‐acetyl cysteine (NAC), partially rescued the growth disadvantage of mutant cells in vitro and in vivo. Competitive BM repopulation experiments showed that the Dkc1Δ15 mutation is associated with a functional stem cell defect that becomes more severe with increasing age, consistent with accelerated senescence, a hallmark of DC hematopoiesis. This stem cell phenotype was partially corrected by NAC treatment. These results suggest that a pathogenic Dkc1 mutation accelerates stem cell aging, that increased oxidative stress might play a role in the pathogenesis of X‐linked DC, and that some manifestations of DC may be prevented or delayed by antioxidant treatment.
A Double-Balanced Quadrature-Input Quadrature-Output Regenerative Frequency Divider for UWB Synthesizer Applications

This paper presents the design and analysis of a proposed double-balanced quadrature-input quadrature-output (QIQO) regenerative divider for ultra-wideband (UWB) synthesizer applications. By fully utilizing the quadrature phase outputs already existed in a quadrature voltage-controlled oscillator (QVCO) or any other quadrature signal generator (QSG), the proposed QIQO divider provides a mechanism to achieve an output IQ phase sequence that is inherently tracked with the input IQ phase sequence. Moreover, compared with conventional dividers, the QIQO divider provides not only smaller and better-matched input loading to the QSG but also improved quadrature phase accuracy, wider operation range, smaller third harmonics, and lower power consumption. Fabricated in a 0.18-mum CMOS process, the QIQO divider measures an image rejection of -62dBc with a frequency operation range of larger than 18.4% from 8.6 GHz to 10.34 GHz while consuming 7.2 mW at 0.9-V supply.
Combining Generative/Discriminative Learning for Automatic Image Annotation and Retrieval

In order to bridge the semantic gap exists in image retrieval, this paper propose an approach combining generative and discriminative learning to accomplish the task of automatic image annotation and retrieval. We firstly present continuous probabilistic latent semantic analysis (PLSA) to model continuous quantity. Furthermore, we propose a hybrid framework which employs continuous PLSA to model visual features of images in generative learning stage and uses ensembles of classifier chains to classify the multi-label data in discriminative learning stage. Since the framework combines the advantages of generative and discriminative learning, it can predict semantic annotation precisely for unseen images. Finally, we conduct a series of experiments on a standard Corel dataset. The experiment results show that our approach outperforms many state-of-the-art approaches.
Role of reaction resistance in limiting carbon monoxide uptake in rabbit lungs.

The contribution of reaction resistance to overall resistance to pulmonary carbon monoxide (CO) uptake [DLCO/(ThetaCO . Vc), where DLCO is lung CO diffusing capacity, ThetaCO is CO uptake conductance of erythrocytes, and Vc is pulmonary capillary blood volume] was determined in 10 anesthetized, paralyzed, and artificially ventilated rabbits. On the basis of the classical double-reciprocal equation of F. G. W. Roughton and R. E. Forster (J. Appl. Physiol. 11: 290-302, 1957), DLCO/(ThetaCO . Vc) was obtained by solving the relation DLCO/(ThetaCO . Vc) = 1 - 2/(DLNO/DLCO), where DLNO/DLCO represents the ratio between the respective single-breath diffusing capacities (DL) of nitric oxide (NO) and CO pulmonary capillary blood. The lungs of eight rabbits were inflated, starting from residual volume, by using 55 ml of indicator gas mixture (0.2% CO and 0.05% NO in nitrogen). DL values were calculated by taking the end-tidal partial pressures of CO and NO as analyzed by using a respiratory mass spectrometer. The overall value was DLCO/(ThetaCO . Vc) = 0.4 +/- 0.025 (mean +/- SD). Because of the use of O2-free indicator gas mixtures, the end-tidal O2 partial pressures were approximately 21 Torr. In one other rabbit, the application of 0.2% CO and 0.001% NO yielded DLCO/(ThetaCO . Vc) = 0.39; in the tenth rabbit, however, inspiratory volume was varied, and an identical value was found at functional residual capacity. We conclude that the contribution of reaction resistance to overall resistance to pulmonary CO uptake is independent of the inspiratory NO concentration used, including, with respect to the pertinent literature, the conclusion that in rabbits, dogs, and humans this contribution amounts to 40% when determined at functional residual capacity.
Positive and negative regulation of sequences upstream of the form II cbb CO2 fixation operon of Rhodobacter sphaeroides

The unlinked form I and form II Calvin cycle CO2 fixation (cbb) operons of the photosynthetic bacterium Rhodobacter sphaeroides are located on different genetic elements, yet both operons are positively regulated by the transcription activator protein CbbR, the product of the cbbR gene located immediately upstream of the form I operon. By employing deletion mutagenesis, and a newly constructed promoter probe vector, the form II operon promoter (cbbFIIp) and three other promoters (Up, Vp, and Wp) were localized within 2.1 kb upstream of the form II operon. Mutations in both cbbR and the first gene of the form I operon (cbbFI) elicited both positive and negative responses when transcriptional fusions controlled by these four promoters were examined. With the exception of Wp, all these upstream promoters were repressed by oxygen. In addition, these promoters were associated with open reading frames of unknown function whose deduced amino acid sequences showed no significant relationship to proteins in current databases. The results of these experiments suggest that the promoter sequences and genes upstream of the form II cbb operon may be intimately involved with control of the cbb regulon of this photosynthetic organism.
Smiling reflects different emotions in men and women

Abstract We present evidence that smiling is positively associated with positive affect in women and negatively associated with negative affect in men. In line with Vigil's model, we propose that, in women, smiling signals warmth (trustworthiness cues), which attracts fewer and more intimate relationships, whereas in men, smiling signals confidence and lack of self-doubt (capacity cues), which attracts numerous, less-intimate relationships.
Early Experience with Laparoscopic Ileal Pouch-Anal Anastomosis for Ulcerative Colitis

The purpose of this study was to describe our minimally invasive technique and outline perioperative and medium-term outcomes in patients undergoing laparoscopic ileal pouch-anal anastomosis (LIPAA) for ulcerative colitis. Data were obtained from a prospectively collected database of 13 LIPPA procedures performed for ulcerative colitis between May 1994 and November 2000. Medium-term quality-of-life follow-up was obtained by telephone interview. Eight males and five females had an LIPAA performed, all of whom had previously undergone total abdominal colectomy with ileostomy. Median operative time was 255 minutes (range, 200–398 minutes) with one conversion (8%) due to adhesions. There were no deaths or intraoperative complications; however, six patients experienced seven postoperative complications within 30 days of final closure of defunctioning ileostomy (two leaks, two wound infections, one pulmonary embolus, and two reoperations for small bowel obstruction). Median length of stay was 7 days (range, 5–13 days). Median follow-up was 24 months (range, 6–66 months). The median number of day and night bowel movements was 6.0 (range, 3–10) and 1.0 (range, 0–3), respectively, with five patients requiring medication to control frequency. None had incontinence of stool or retrograde ejaculation; however, one had occasional incontinence of gas, three had occasional nocturnal soiling, and one was impotent. Three patients (23%) had pouchitis, all treated successfully with oral antibiotics. All patients were satisfied with the outcome of their operation and all preferred their pouch to previous ileostomy. Patients reported their overall social, emotional, and physical well being to be satisfactory to excellent. Results of the SF-36, a generic quality-of-life survey, were similar to those from studies of patients following an open pelvic pouch procedure. The LIPAA is technically feasible in experienced centers. We believe that the technique is still evolving and that more time and experience is required to refine the procedure.
Dendritic Cell Podosome Dynamics Does Not Depend on the F-actin Regulator SWAP-70

In addition to classical adhesion structures like filopodia or focal adhesions, dendritic cells similar to macrophages and osteoclasts assemble highly dynamic F-actin structures called podosomes. They are involved in cellular processes such as extracellular matrix degradation, bone resorption by osteoclasts, and trans-cellular diapedesis of lymphocytes. Besides adhesion and migration, podosomes enable dendritic cells to degrade connective tissue by matrix metalloproteinases. SWAP-70 interacts with RhoGTPases and F-actin and regulates migration of dendritic cells. SWAP-70 deficient osteoclasts are impaired in F-actin-ring formation and bone resorption. In the present study, we demonstrate that SWAP-70 is not required for podosome formation and F-actin turnover in dendritic cells. Furthermore, we found that toll-like receptor 4 ligand induced podosome disassembly and podosome-mediated matrix degradation is not affected by SWAP-70 in dendritic cells. Thus, podosome formation and function in dendritic cells is independent of SWAP-70.
TIFA: Enabling Real-Time Querying and Storage of Massive Stream Data

With the proliferation of network applications and user groups, the network stream data scale are getting larger and larger. To manage and analyze the massive data to get better service for end users (a.k.a. network optimization) or understanding of impacts of new network applications are attracting many researchers. This paper focuses on the storage and real-time retrieval of network traffic for analysis. We address this problem by integrating Time Machine and FastBit as a real-time querying and storage of massive stream data system, named TIFA. TIFA is designed for operation in Gbps network, accompanied with UTM as a module or an independent device. It leverages multiple large volume storages, and can achieve Ten TB level in volume. It has been proved useful in the performance of querying and storage of massive stream data in the experiments. Keywords—TIFA, Time Machine, FastBit, Query, Storage, Massive Stream Data
On Kernelized Multi-armed Bandits

We consider the stochastic bandit problem with a continuous set of arms, with the expected reward function over the arms assumed to be fixed but unknown. We provide two new Gaussian process-based algorithms for continuous bandit optimization-Improved GP-UCB (IGP-UCB) and GP-Thomson sampling (GP-TS), and derive corresponding regret bounds. Specifically, the bounds hold when the expected reward function belongs to the reproducing kernel Hilbert space (RKHS) that naturally corresponds to a Gaussian process kernel used as input by the algorithms. Along the way, we derive a new self-normalized concentration inequality for vector- valued martingales of arbitrary, possibly infinite, dimension. Finally, experimental evaluation and comparisons to existing algorithms on synthetic and real-world environments are carried out that highlight the favorable gains of the proposed strategies in many cases.
Socioeconomic and socioecological determinants of AIDS stigma and the mediating role of AIDS knowledge and media use

Background: Stigmatic attitudes toward people with HIV impede prevention efforts; it is important to understand determinants of AIDS stigma. Previous research has shown that AIDS stigma is associated with socioeconomic and socioecological factors. However, little research has investigated the mechanisms that underlie these associations. In this study, we hypothesized a mediation model and tested the role of AIDS knowledge and HIV/AIDS-related media use in explaining the link between educational level and urban versus rural residence, on the one hand, and AIDS stigma, on the other. Methods: Cross-sectional data were gathered from 977 urban and rural residents of northwest Ethiopia. Kalichman et al.'s nine-item scale was used to measure AIDS stigma. Structural equation modeling, using the maximum likelihood method, was employed to test the hypothesized mediation model. Results: Thirty-five percent of respondents endorsed at least one of the nine AIDS stigma items. Although AIDS stigma was found to be generally low, disparities were discerned between population sub-groups. Mediation analysis showed that whereas education and urban residence are positively associated with HIV/AIDS-related media use and AIDS knowledge, only AIDS knowledge is negatively associated with AIDS stigma. Conclusions: AIDS knowledge is not only a factor that is negatively and significantly associated with AIDS stigma, but can also explain the links between AIDS stigma and its antecedents. This underscores the need to leverage ongoing HIV/AIDS awareness raising and education programs in the region, and the importance of mass media to counteract AIDS stigma in general and the gaps in such attitudes between population sub-groups.
Considering the Effects of Nonresponse on Correlations Between Surveyed Variables

Nonresponse to organizational surveys is a vexing problem. Although scholars have a reasonable understanding of how systematic nonresponse influences estimates of population means, they are likely to have less context for understanding how it impacts correlations. We present the results of a simulation study designed to provide a frame of reference for understanding the extent to which systematic nonresponse can bias observed correlations between surveyed variables. Although there were cases where notable levels of bias were observed in the correlations, the majority of situations simulated resulted in mean observed correlations that were within . 05 of the true correlation. The variety of situations simulated allows researchers to evaluate the external validity of observed correlations in their data – a critical goal for survey researchers in practice and academics.
Commencing Execution

Peal-time search algorithms interleave search with execution in order to accomplish a task ei~ciently. Deciding when to begin execution of the current best action is crucial for creating high a performance r altime search algorithm. This paper explores the question of when to commence execution for an on-line search performed with limited computation. We ex*mine Good’s ideslised algorithm for deciding when to begin execution and illustrate some of its llmltations. We then present a revised, idealised algorithm that removes ome of these limitations. The revised algorithm has been used u s basis for an algorithm that makes on-the-fly decisions for a simplified robot courier tuk. Previous empirical results show that this new algorithm outperforms previously used alsorithms. In this paper, we show that the di~erence in performance is bounded by a ratio of two to one. We discuss the situations where this limit is approached and suggest hat overlappins search with execution in these situations is most beneficial.
Crystal structure of the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) glycoprotein H/glycoprotein L (gH/gL) complex

The Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) is a γ-herpesvirus that infects B cells and epithelial cells and that has been linked to malignancies in both cell types in vivo. EBV, like other herpesviruses, has three glycoproteins, glycoprotein B (gB), gH, and gL, that form the core membrane fusion machinery mediating viral penetration into the cell. The gH and gL proteins associate to form a heterodimeric complex, which is necessary for efficient membrane fusion and also implicated in direct binding to epithelial cell receptors required for viral entry. To gain insight into the mechanistic role of gH/gL, we determined the crystal structure of the EBV gH/gL complex. The structure is comprised of four domains organized along the longest axis of the molecule. Comparisons with homologous HSV-2 gH/gL and partial pseudorabies virus gH structures support the domain boundaries determined for the EBV gH/gL structure and illustrate significant differences in interdomain packing angles. The gL subunit and N-terminal residues of gH form a globular domain at one end of the structure, implicated in interactions with gB and activation of membrane fusion. The C-terminal domain of gH, proximal to the viral membrane, is also implicated in membrane fusion. The gH/gL structure locates an integrin binding motif, implicated in epithelial cell entry, on a prominent loop in the central region of the structure. Multiple regions of gH/gL, including its two extreme ends, are functionally important, consistent with the multiple roles of gH/gL in EBV entry.