Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Assimilation Dynamics of Different Diet Sources by the Sea Cucumber Holothuria scabra, with Evidence from Stable Isotope Signature

The sea cucumber Holothuria scabra has a high commercial value and a great potential to be cultivated. A thorough feeding strategy is needed to overcome juvenile rearing technique constraints. Stable isotope analysis can be used for determining diet sources of sea cucumbers that play a role as deposit feeders. This study aims to determine suitable diet sources and elucidate the potential of organic matter assimilation of H. scabra by combining three different mixed diets including 10% seagrass Enhalus acoroides bulk, 45% grass Pennisetum purpureum and 45% of cow feces (diet A); 20% seagrass E. acoroides, 40% grass P. purpureum and 40% of cow feces (diet B) and 33% seagrass E. acoroides, 33% grass P. purpureum and 33% cow feces (diet C) and Short Research Article Indriana et al.; ARRB, 28(2): 1-10, 2018; Article no.ARRB. 42591 2 identifying the fecal pellet isotopic properties and compare it to the diet sources and the surrounding sediment. Stable isotope signature of H. scabra and its prospected diet sources, altogether with sediments and fecal pellets were plotted in a conservative bi-plot δ 13 C and δ 15 N. The isotopic value of fecal pellets and diet sources indicate a low assimilation rate, the organic matter contained in the sediment is similar to that of the diet sources. Sea cucumber feeds the bulk of the sediment and the detritus of the diet sources and then assimilates the organic matter as soon as the bulk enters the intestine. Due to the low assimilation rates, we suggest for the mariculture of H. scabra that the food should be homogenised and then mixed into the sediment, where the sea cucumber is cultured.
Exploiting common randomness: A resource for network secrecy

We investigate the problem of secure communication in a simple network with three communicating parties, two distributed sources who communicate over orthogonal channels to one destination node. The cooperation between the sources is restricted to a rate limited common random source they both observe. The communication channels are erasure channels with strictly causal channel state information of the destination available publicly. A passive adversary is present in the system eavesdropping on any one of the channels. We design a linear scheme that ensures secrecy against the eavesdropper. By deriving an outer bound for the problem we prove that the scheme is optimal in certain special cases.
Role of TAK1 and TAB1 in BMP signaling in early Xenopus development

Transforming growth factor‐β (TGF‐β) superfamily members elicit signals through stimulation of serine/threonine kinase receptors. Recent studies of this signaling pathway have identified two types of novel mediating molecules, the Smads and TGF‐β activated kinase 1 (TAK1). Smads were shown to mimic the effects of bone morphogenetic protein (BMP), activin and TGF‐β. TAK1 and TAB1 were identified as a MAPKKK and its activator, respectively, which might be involved in the up‐regulation of TGF‐β superfamily‐induced gene expression, but their biological role is poorly understood. Here, we have examined the role of TAK1 and TAB1 in the dorsoventral patterning of early Xenopus embryos. Ectopic expression of Xenopus TAK1 (xTAK1) in early embryos induced cell death. Interestingly, however, concomitant overexpression of bcl‐2 with the activated form of xTAK1 or both xTAK1 and xTAB1 in dorsal blastomeres not only rescued the cells but also caused the ventralization of the embryos. In addition, a kinase‐negative form of xTAK1 (xTAK1KN) which is known to inhibit endogenous signaling could partially rescue phenotypes generated by the expression of a constitutively active BMP‐2/4 type IA receptor (BMPR‐IA). Moreover, xTAK1KN could block the expression of ventral mesoderm marker genes induced by Smad1 or 5. These results thus suggest that xTAK1 and xTAB1 function in the BMP signal transduction pathway in Xenopus embryos in a cooperative manner.
Fracture Behavior of a Stitched Warp-Knit Carbon Fabric Composite

Tests were conducted on several types of fracture specimens made from a carbon/epoxy composite. The composite material was stitched prior to introducing epoxy resin. Boeing, used this material to develop a composite wing box for a transport aircraft in the NASA Advanced Composites Transport Program. The specimens included compact, extended compact, and center notched tension specimens. The specimens were cut from panels with three orientations in order to explore the effects of anisotropy. The panels were made with various thicknesses to represent a wing, skin from tip to root. All fractures were not self-similar depending on specimen type and orientation. Unnotched tension specimens were also tested to measure elastic constants and strengths. The normal and shear strains were calculated on fracture planes using a series representation of strain fields for plane anisotropic crack problems. The fracture parameters were determined using a finite element method. Characteristic distances for critical tension and shear strains were calculated for each specimen and a failure criterion based on the interaction of tension and shear strains was proposed.
Towards a Comparative Database of Dysarthric Articulation

This work describes ongoing data collection of synchronized acoustic and kinematic features of dysarthric speech. Recordings consist of electromagnetic articulographic measurements and 3D reconstructions from video over a variety prompts read by individuals with cerebral palsy and matching nondysarthric subjects. Preliminary results show a preponderance of mispronounced plosives in dysarthric speech, and greater articulatory variability. An experiment with a standard hidden Markov model for speech recognition resulted in 84% triphone recognition accuracy for non-dysarthric speech, but only 6% accuracy for individuals with cerebral palsy.
Genetic counseling and testing for Alzheimer disease: Joint practice guidelines of the American College of Medical Genetics and the National Society of Genetic Counselors

Alzheimer disease is the most common cause of dementia. It occurs worldwide and affects all ethnic groups. The incidence of Alzheimer disease is increasing due, in part, to increased life expectancy and the aging baby boomer generation. The average lifetime risk of developing Alzheimer disease is 10–12%. This risk at least doubles with the presence of a first-degree relative with the disorder. Despite its limited utility, patients express concern over their risk and, in some instances, request testing. Furthermore, research has demonstrated that testing individuals for apolipoprotein E can be valuable and safe in certain contexts. However, because of the complicated genetic nature of the disorder, few clinicians are prepared to address the genetic risks of Alzheimer disease with their patients. Given the increased awareness in family history thanks to family history campaigns, the increasing incidence of Alzheimer disease, and the availability of direct to consumer testing, patient requests for information is increasing. This practice guideline provides clinicians with a framework for assessing their patients' genetic risk for Alzheimer disease, identifying which individuals may benefit from genetic testing, and providing the key elements of genetic counseling for AD.
Integrin phosphorylation is modulated during the differentiation of F-9 teratocarcinoma stem cells

The retinoic acid-induced differentiation of F-9 teratocarcinoma cells in monolayer culture is accompanied by the accumulation of fibrillar fibronectin deposits, the appearance of a highly structured actin cytoskeleton, and the redistribution of integrin to apparent sites of substrate contact. We have studied the 140-kD fibronectin receptor during this process and report that although the integrin molecule is present in equivalent amounts before and after differentiation, the level of integrin phosphorylation decreases dramatically as the cells differentiate. This loss of phosphorylation coincides temporally with the observed changes in actin, fibronectin, and integrin organization. The phosphorylation state of integrin thus may mediate developmentally regulated cell-matrix interactions.
Microbial alkane production for jet fuel industry: motivation, state of the art and perspectives

Bio‐jet fuel has attracted a lot of interest in recent years and has become a focus for aircraft and engine manufacturers, oil companies, governments and researchers. Given the global concern about environmental issues and the instability of oil market, bio‐jet fuel has been identified as a promising way to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions from the aviation industry, while also promoting energy security. Although a number of bio‐jet fuel sources have been approved for manufacture, their commercialization and entry into the market is still a far way away. In this review, we provide an overview of the drivers for intensified research into bio‐jet fuel technologies, the type of chemical compounds found in bio‐jet fuel preparations and the current state of related pre‐commercial technologies. The biosynthesis of hydrocarbons is one of the most promising approaches for bio‐jet fuel production, and thus we provide a detailed analysis of recent advances in the microbial biosynthesis of hydrocarbons (with a focus on alkanes). Finally, we explore the latest developments and their implications for the future of research into bio‐jet fuel technologies.
Unified Information and Control Flow in Hierarchical Task Networks

Much recent planning research has focused on two related issues. First, there has been a strong interest in information-gathering (or "sensing", or "knowledgeproducing") actions. Second, has been an investigation of plans with sophisticated control structures, such as conditional branches and loops. But the combination of these two lines of research poses a representational problem: plans with information-gathering actions that can be executed more than once can have complex information-flow and control-flow relationships. In this paper, we present a framework for the representation and execution of hierarchical plans with information producing actions, conditional branches, periodic actions, and loops. Our framework subsumes several techniques found in the recent literature.
Application of a first peak non-limiting type FCL

First peak non-limiting type FCL can be utilized for various purposes especially when fault occurs on the load at the outgoing feeder. One of them is to use for preventing spread of voltage sag until the circuit breaker operation. Another is to use for minimizing the blackout area through the protection coordination between main circuit breaker at feeder and the multi-circuit breaker in series at the same line in the underground distribution line. In these two cases, the fault current in itself is not the only factor to consider if the fault current does not exceed the ratings of circuit breakers. The real problem is specific situations caused by fault current as noted above. In order to solve these problems, LSIS has developed first peak non-limiting type FCL depending on customer requirements and installed in POSCO and KEPCO power girds. First peak non-limiting type is more simple, easy to use, and economical than first peak limiting type. This article also reports recent activity by LSIS on development of a 23 kV superconducting fault current limiter and its application in the KEPCO grid.
Ordered treemap layouts

Treemaps, a space-filling method of visualizing large hierarchical data sets, are receiving increasing attention. Several algorithms have been proposed to create more useful displays by controlling the aspect ratios of the rectangles that make up a treemap. While these algorithms do improve visibility of small items in a single layout, they introduce instability over time in the display of dynamically changing data, and fail to preserve an ordering of the underlying data. This paper introduces the ordered treemap, which addresses these two shortcomings. The ordered treemap algorithm ensures that items near each other in the given order will be near each other in the treemap layout. Using experimental evidence from Monte Carlo trials, we show that compared to other layout algorithms ordered treemaps are more stable while maintaining relatively favorable aspect ratios of the constituent rectangles. A second test set uses stock market data.
Fund Flows, Performance, Managerial Career Concerns, and Risk-Taking

We develop a unified model of the interactions among investors, fund companies, and fund managers. We show that the interplay between a manager's incentives from her compensation structure and career concerns leads to a nonmonotonic (approximately U-shaped) relation between her risk choices and prior performance relative to her peers. Significantly outperforming (underperforming) managers are less (more) likely to be fired in the future and are also more likely to increase relative risk. Ceteris paribus, relative risk declines with the level of employment risk faced by a manager. Using a large sample of mutual fund managers, we find strong support for the hypothesized U-shaped relation between relative risk and prior performance. Our findings also highlight the importance of employment risk as the underlying driver of risk shifting by fund managers. Our theoretical model also generates additional hypotheses that link determinants of the fund flow--performance relation and managers' employment risk to their risk-taking behavior. In support, our empirical analysis shows that funds with higher expense ratios have less convex fund flow--performance relations and less convex U-shaped relations between relative risk and prior performance; funds with younger managers, who face greater employment risk, have more convex U-shaped relative risk--prior performance relations; and managers in larger fund families have lower incentives to engage in risk shifting, thereby leading to a less convex U-shaped relation. This paper was accepted by Wei Xiong, finance.
Pollution and whitewashing attacks in a P2P live streaming system: Analysis and counter-attack

P2P live streaming are increasingly popular nowadays. Due to their popularity, these systems may be a target of attacks and opportunistic user behavior. In this paper, we address the pollution attacks in such systems. We present a pollution damage model and also analyze a reputation system as a tool to fight attacks in P2P live streaming systems. The model we propose evidences that attacks are harmful even in a system with a small number of polluters. In this case, peers must have more than 3 times network bandwidth than they should have in a system without polluters. Our experimental results on PlanetLab show that just check data integrity is not an effective protection. In this case, we observe a very high data loss rate. Finally, the reputation system is effective against pollution attack. When peers do not whitewash their identities, the reputation system quickly identifies polluters. In this case, the overhead and loss rate can be negligible. During a whitewashing, the new approach presents less than 20% overhead and 3% of loss.
Error-Control Coding for Physical-Layer Secrecy

The renewed interest for physical-layer security techniques has put forward a new role for error-control codes. In addition to ensuring reliability, carefully designed codes have been shown to provide a level of information-theoretic secrecy, by which the amount of information leaked to an adversary may be controlled. The ability to achieve information-theoretic secrecy relies on the study of alternative coding mechanisms, such as channel resolvability and privacy amplification, in which error-control codes are exploited as a means to shape the distribution of stochastic processes. This use of error-control codes, which goes much beyond that of correcting errors, creates numerous new design challenges. The objective of this paper is threefold. First, the paper aims at providing system engineers with explicit tools to build simple secrecy codes in order to stimulate interest and foster their integration in communication system prototypes. Second, it aims at providing coding and information theorists with a synthetic overview of the theoretical concepts and techniques for secrecy. Finally, it aims at highlighting the open challenges and opportunities faced for the integration of these codes in practical systems.
Smartphone-based indoor positioning utilizing motion recognition

More than half of the population in Western Europe and North America own a smartphone, providing a large market for both indoor and outdoor location-based services. In order to gain a ubiquitous solution for a smartphone-based indoor positioning, motion recognition may be utilized. Motion recognition can be used to adapt relative positioning solutions as well as the position filtering process. The presented motion recognition is based on classic machine learning techniques, filtered within the time and motion domain to gain a more robust estimation. The outcome of the motion recognition is used within a Pedestrian Dead Reckoning (PDR) algorithm as well as in a particle filter, but is especially helpful within the step detection process of the PDR. Within the step length estimation of PDR, the step length is strongly overestimated when walking on stairs. Contrary, when walking fast, the step length is underestimated by standard step length models. This estimation can be improved using motion recognition.
An approximation algorithm for client assignment in client/server systems

One type of distributed systems is the client/server system consist of clients and servers. In order to improve the performance of such a system, client assignment strategy plays an important role. There are two criteria to evaluate the load on the servers - total load and load balance. The total load increases when the load balance decreases, vice versa. It has been proved that finding the best client assignment is NP-hard. In this paper, we propose a new model for the client assignment problem and design an algorithm based on Semidefinite programming (SDP). Our method has a (relaxed) performance ratio 0.87 when only 2 servers exist. In general case, our method becomes a heuristic, and the ratio of each iteration is 0.87. We are the first one to give these bounds. Our simulation results are compared with the state-of-art client assignment method, and our strategy outperforms it in terms of running time while keeps the load in similar level.
Cesarean section and offspring's risk of inflammatory bowel disease: A national cohort study

Background: Intestinal bacteria have been implicated in the etiology of the common inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease. Because delivery by cesarean section disturbs the normal bacterial colonization of the newborn's intestine, we determined the risk of IBD according to mode of delivery. Methods: A register‐based national cohort study of 2.1 million Danes born 1973–2008. The effect of mode of delivery on IBD incidence in the age‐span 0–35 years was estimated by means of confounder‐adjusted incidence rate ratios (IRRs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) obtained in Poisson regression analysis. Information on mode of delivery was obtained from the Danish Medical Birth Registry and cases of IBD were identified in the Danish National Patient Registry 1977–2008. Results: During 32.6 million person‐years of follow‐up, a total of 8142 persons were diagnosed with IBD before age 36 years. Cesarean section was associated with moderately, yet significantly, increased risk of IBD at age 0–14 years (IRR 1.29, 95% CI 1.11–1.49), regardless of parental disposition to IBD. Assuming causality, an estimated 3.2% of IBD cases before age 15 years were attributable to cesarean section. Conclusions: Rates of IBD with onset in childhood are moderately increased after birth by cesarean section but underlying mechanisms remain unclear. Even if the association is causal, the possible impact of increasing cesarean section practices on the overall burden of IBD in childhood is small. (Inflamm Bowel Dis 2011;)
AberOWL: an ontology portal with OWL EL reasoning

The field of biological and biomedical science quickly generate large quantities of data and knowledge; often, domain knowledge is formalised using ontologies expressed in the Web Ontology Language (OWL). Ontology repositories such as Bioportal and Ontobee have been an important infrastructural component for managing ontologies, specifically to search, browse and download ontologies over the Web. We present the AberOWL system, a novel ontology repository that allows access to multiple ontologies through automated reasoning, utilizing parts of the OWL of the ontologies alongside a web interface and web services. AberOWL contains over 300 ontologies and integrates reasoning over ontologies with access to literature and SPARQL endpoints.
In-toeing and out-toeing gait conservative treatment; hip anteversion and retroversion: 10-year follow-up

Background: In-toeing and out-toeing rotational deformities are among the most common referrals for consultation with orthopedic specialists. Although a few number of patients need surgical interventions, most of them get better spontaneously without major complications in adult life. In this study, we investigated the prevalence of permanent gait deformities due to hip rotational disorders in a group of patients who underwent conservative treatments. Materials and Methods: This retrospective cohort study was conducted in the orthopedic department on patients with rotational deformities of the lower extremities (hip anteversion and hip retroversion). From 2,983 patients, 611 were included in this study and followed up for 10 years. Medial rotation of the hip, lateral rotation of the hip, and tibia fibula angle (TFA) of each patient were measured independently. Results: In this study, 611 patients were assessed and 323 (143 male and 180 female) were followed up in our study. Two hundred and seventy patients had in-toeing gait disorders due to hip anteversion, which 178 of them were corrected conservatively (%). Furthermore, among 53 patients with out-toed gait due to hip retroversion, 44 patients (%) were corrected in the same conditions (P = 0.001). It was determined that gait disorders were corrected conservatively in 102 of 143 males and 120 of 180 females (P = 0.37). Conclusion: Our findings showed that rotational deformities are expected to be corrected by conservative management. It is better to consider surgical procedures as the last therapeutic option.