Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Tuberculosis elimination: dream or reality? The case of Cyprus

To the Editor: The World Health Organization (WHO)-recommended strategy of tuberculosis (TB) control has evolved from the DOTS (directly observed treatment, short course) strategy to the Stop TB strategy [1, 2]. By breaking the chain of transmission through rapid diagnosis and effective treatment of infectious TB cases, this strategy allowed the development of national TB programmes and proved to be highly cost-effective [3, 4]. However, in order to accelerate the decline of the TB pandemic, WHO has planned a post-2015 strategy focusing on the concept of TB elimination [5–8]. To reach elimination (defined as fewer than one sputum smear-positive case per million inhabitants), countries should ensure that diagnosis and treatment of latent TB infection (LTBI) supplements detection and treatment of active TB disease [7–10]. A recent survey conducted by the European Respiratory Society (as part of its 2012–2013 Presidential plan) and WHO in Europe has demonstrated that the majority of countries do not have all the interventions in place to reach elimination [11], and stressed the importance of studying model countries able to demonstrate that TB elimination can be reached [12–14]. The aim of the present study was to show the progress achieved by Cyprus towards the elimination targets. Cyprus has been selected because of its solid TB control programme, the quality of surveillance data and health services, and its small population (865 878 in 2012). The way …
Sincronização entre um oscilador de fase e um forçamento externo

Varios sistemas de interesse fisico e biologico podem ser descritos como osciladores auto-sustentados, que mantem seu comportamento oscilatorio por meio de um aporte de energia. Do ponto de vista dinâmico, o comportamento de tais sistemas pode ser descrito por meio de um ciclo limite estavel no espaco de fase, e o movimento sobre ele e parametrizado por uma fase com uma dada frequencia natural. Neste trabalho investigamos o forcamento externo periodico no tempo deste tipo de sistema, destacando os fenomenos de sincronizacao de frequencias, travamento de fase e sincronizacao generalizada. Um mapa unidimensional e obtido para estender o tratamento matematico geral, que supoe forcamento debil, para o caso de forcamento intenso.
A Hybrid optimal control structure of DFIG Wind Energy Convert System

This paper proposes a Hybrid optimization, which combines intelligent genetic algorithm and nonlinear least squares method. The Hybrid optimization can achieve the optimal tuning value of ADRC controller. Under the control structure of Maximum Power Point Tracking(MPPT)strategy and Active Disturbances Rejection Control (ADRC), the ADRC controller which is tuned by the Hybrid optimization can find the optimal operation point for the Wind Energy Convert System(WECS) with Doubly Fed Induction Generator(DFIG).
A new motor with stator magnet using the magnetization reversal technique

This paper proposes a new motor with stator magnet using the magnetization reversal technique. The proposed motor has a magnet which has a small coercive force in the stator tooth. In this motor, a pulse current is added to stator magnet to change its magnetized direction. Then the stator magnet becomes a magnetic pole, and the motor is driven by generating an alternating magnetic field by the stator. Since the effective current value to generate the torque is smaller than the conventional stator winding motor, it is possible to drastically reduce the copper loss. This paper verified its principle by using Finite Element Analysis.
Selective interaction between the chromatin‐remodeling factor BRG1 and the heterochromatin‐associated protein HP1α

Mammalian heterochromatin protein 1 (HP1) α, HP1β and HP1γ are closely related non‐histone chromosomal proteins that function in gene silencing, presumably by organizing higher order chromatin structures. Here, we show by co‐immunoprecipitation that HP1α, but neither HP1β nor HP1γ, forms a complex with the BRG1 chromatin‐remodeling factor in HeLa cells. In vitro, BRG1 interacts directly and preferentially with HP1α. The region conferring this preferential binding has been mapped to residues 106–180 of the HP1α C‐terminal chromoshadow domain. Using site‐directed mutagenesis, we have identified three amino acid residues I113, A114 and C133 in HP1α (K, P and S in HP1β and HP1γ) that are essential for the selective interaction of HP1α with BRG1. Interestingly, these residues were also shown to be critical for the silencing activity of HP1α. Taken together, these results demonstrate that mammalian HP1 proteins are biochemically distinct and suggest an entirely novel function for BRG1 in modulating HP1α‐containing heterochromatic structures.
Brazil's Bolsa Familia and young adult workers: A parallel RDD approach to large datasets

Regression-Discontinuity Design is a non-experimental method to estimate the impacts of social welfare programs in situations where the treatment assignment is determined by whether an observed variable (running variable) is above or below a known cutoff point. The main idea behind RDD is that individuals whose running variable is just above or just below the cutoff are similar, and so, any differences in the outcome between the two groups (just below and just above) may be attributed to the treatment. Despite the existence of many recent works on the RDD subject, the existing software that implements the state of the art RDD procedures is unfit to deal with very large datasets, which are increasingly more common. The purpose of this work is to present a Parallel Computing Approach refactoring of a well-known RDD algorithm and apply it to a dataset from Bolsa Familia with more than 13 million observations. The objective of the RDD study is to evaluate the impact of the program on the labor choices of needy 18-year-old Brazilian boys and girls. We verified that the parallel approach was able to process Bolsa Familia data in a reasonable time and that it outperformed other existing RDD implementations.
A Catalog of Broad Absorption Line Quasars from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey Early Data Release

We present a catalog of 224 broad absorption line quasars (BALQSOs) from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey's Early Data Release Quasar Catalog, including a relatively complete and homogeneous subsample of 131 BALQSOs. Since the identification of BALQSOs is subject to considerable systematic uncertainties, we attempt to create a complete sample of SDSS BALQSOs by combining the results of two automated selection algorithms and a by-eye classification scheme. One of these automated algorithms finds broad absorption line troughs by comparing with a composite quasar spectrum. We present the details of this algorithm and compare this method with one that uses a power-law fit to the continuum. The BALQSOs in our sample are further classified as high-ionization BALQSOs (HiBALs), low-ionization BALQSOs (LoBALs), and BALQSOs with excited iron absorption features (FeLoBALs); composite spectra of each type are presented. We further present a study of the properties of the BALQSOs in terms of the balnicity distribution, which rises with decreasing balnicity. This distribution of balnicities suggests that the fraction of quasars with intrinsic outflows may be significantly underestimated.
Basolateral Amygdala Inactivation Impairs Learning-Induced Long-Term Potentiation in the Cerebellar Cortex

Learning to fear dangerous situations requires the participation of basolateral amygdala (BLA). In the present study, we provide evidence that BLA is necessary for the synaptic strengthening occurring during memory formation in the cerebellum in rats. In the cerebellar vermis the parallel fibers (PF) to Purkinje cell (PC) synapse is potentiated one day following fear learning. Pretraining BLA inactivation impaired such a learning-induced long-term potentiation (LTP). Similarly, cerebellar LTP is affected when BLA is blocked shortly, but not 6 h, after training. The latter result shows that the effects of BLA inactivation on cerebellar plasticity, when present, are specifically related to memory processes and not due to an interference with sensory or motor functions. These data indicate that fear memory induces cerebellar LTP provided that a heterosynaptic input coming from BLA sets the proper local conditions. Therefore, in the cerebellum, learning-induced plasticity is a heterosynaptic phenomenon that requires inputs from other regions. Studies employing the electrically-induced LTP in order to clarify the cellular mechanisms of memory should therefore take into account the inputs arriving from other brain sites, considering them as integrative units. Based on previous and the present findings, we proposed that BLA enables learning-related plasticity to be formed in the cerebellum in order to respond appropriately to new stimuli or situations.
Effect of a metabolically created systemic acidosis on calcium homeostasis and the diurnal variation in urine pH in the non-lactating pregnant dairy cow

Reducing the dietary cation-anion difference (DCAD) has been shown to be an effective means of preventing parturient paresis in confinement systems where cows are offered a total mixed ration containing DCAD-reducing mineral compounds (anionic salts). Such a supplementation strategy is not possible in cows being group fed forages precalving, and little is known about the effect of supplementing these cows with large amounts of anionic salts twice daily. Eight non-lactating, pregnant Holstein-Friesian cows were allocated to two levels of DCAD (−20 and +18 meq/100 g DM) for 24 d, with an intensive Ca balance undertaken in metabolism stalls following a 2-week acclimatization to diet. The basal diet was 3 kg DM of crushed barley and 7 kg DM of pasture-hay. Urine and faeces were collected separately, weighed daily for 5 d and analysed for Ca content. Urinary Ca, creatinine and hydroxyproline concentration and plasma Ca concentration were determined during the period of the balance study. The diurnal pattern in urine and rumen pH was determined over 2 d. Decreasing DCAD reduced (P<0·001) the pH of urine, and increased (P<0·05) Ca absorption. Plasma Ca concentration was not affected by DCAD, and DCAD did not affect the output of urinary hydroxyproline, a marker of bone resorption. Twice-daily supplementation of anionic salts was sufficient to reduce the pH of blood and increase gastrointestinal Ca absorption. There was no diurnal variation in the pH of urine, suggesting that time of sampling to determine efficacy of DCAD in reducing systemic pH was not important.
BIST architecture to detect defects in tsvs during pre-bond testing

Through Silicon Vias (TSVs) are critical elements in three dimensional integrated circuits (3-D ICs). The detection of defective TSVs in the earliest process step is of major concern. Hence, testing TSVs is usually done at different stages of the fabrication process. In this context, this work proposes a simple pre-bond GIST architecture to improve the detection of hard and weak defects.
User perceptions of soft robot arms and fingers for healthcare

Safety and acceptability are critical issues when people are interacting with robots in healthcare. Traditional robot arms are hard and inflexible, and may cause harm to users on impact. Soft robotic arms may be safer and more acceptable in these situations. Similarly robot fingers made of soft materials may be more acceptable and safer than fingers made of hard materials. Robot designers need to know how best to design arms for healthcare scenarios. There is limited research on the acceptability of soft robotic arms and fingers to date. This study aimed to investigate people's reactions to the touch of soft robotic arms and fingers, compared to more traditional hard forms, and to human arms and fingers. A second aim was to investigate people's perceptions of the usefulness of the arms and fingers for healthcare tasks. Thirty five community participants were blindfolded and participated in touching tasks for: 3 arms (soft robot, hard robot, and human) and four fingers (soft robot, medium robot, hard robot, and human) in a randomised order. The soft arm was rated significantly more human-like but also more fragile and less reliable than the hard arm. Participants perceived the soft arm as good for intimate tasks like washing the body, but the hard arm was perceived as better for weight-bearing tasks. The soft finger was rated significantly more creepy, fragile and unreliable than the other fingers. The medium robot finger was rated the most human-like of the robot fingers and was the favourite robot finger. These findings suggest people perceive soft robots to be more fragile than hard robots and as more appropriate for personal tasks. Overly soft fingers may be too creepy to be acceptable.
Degeneracy in maximal clique decomposition for Semidefinite Programs

Exploiting sparsity in Semidefinite Programs (SDP) is critical to solving large-scale problems. The chordal completion based maximal clique decomposition is the preferred approach for exploiting sparsity in SDPs. In this paper, we show that the maximal clique-based SDP decomposition is primal degenerate when the SDP has a low rank solution. We also derive conditions under which the multipliers in the maximal clique-based SDP formulation is not unique. Numerical experiments demonstrate that the SDP decomposition results in the schur-complement matrix of the Interior Point Method (IPM) having higher condition number than for the original SDP formulation.
Formal aspects of concurrency control in long-duration transaction systems using the NT/PV model

In the typical database system, an execution is correct if it is equivalent to some serial execution. This criterion, called serializability, is unacceptable for new database applications which require long-duration transactions. We present a new transaction model which allows correctness criteria more suitable for these applications. This model combines three enhancements to the standard model: nested transactions, explicit predicates, and multiple versions. These features yield the name of the new model, nested transactions with predicates and versions, or NT/PV. The modular nature of the NT/PV model allows a straightforward representation of simple systems. It also provides a formal framework for describing complex interactions. The most complex interactions the model allows can be captured by a protocol which exploits all of the semantics available to the NT/PV model. An example of these interactions is shown in a CASE application. The example shows how a system based on the NT/PV model is superior to both standard database techniques and unrestricted systems in both correctness and performance.
Managing Risk in Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) Supply Chains' Using Quality Function Deployment (QFD) Approach

Supply chain risk management (SCRM) is the process of risk mitigation in supply chains achieved through collaboration, coordination and application of risk management tools among the partners, to ensure continuity coupled with long-term profitability of the supply chain. Supply chain risks emanate from multiple sources and similarly risk mitigation in supply chains is dependent on several variables. The most difficult part of supply chain risk management is prioritizing risks and an understanding of the relationships among various types of risks and risk mitigation variables. Drawing from the standard framework, in this research a modified house of quality is developed to understand the relationships between various supply chain risks and risk mitigation variables. It helps to prioritize various risks and understand the current status of the supply chain and the deficient areas with regard to risk mitigation capabilities. The structured QFD process provides the supply chain managers a conceptual map that enables the improvement of planning and control of various risks that could impact a supply chain.
A critical role of two positively charged amino acids in the Jas motif of Arabidopsis JAZ proteins in mediating coronatine- and jasmonoyl isoleucine-dependent interactions with the COI1 F-box protein.

SUMMARY Coronatine is an important virulence factor produced by several pathovars of the bacterial pathogen Pseudomonas syringae. The structure of coronatine is similar to that of a class of plant hormones called jasmonates (JAs). An important step in JA signaling is the SCF(COI1) E3 ubiquitin ligase-dependent degradation of JAZ repressor proteins. We have recently shown that jasmonoyl isoleucine (JA-Ile) promotes physical interaction between Arabidopsis JAZ1 and COI1 (the F-box component of SCF(COI1)) proteins, and that the JA-Ile-dependent COI1-JAZ1 interaction could be reconstituted in yeast cells (i.e. in the absence of other plant proteins). Here we show that coronatine, but not its two biosynthetic precursors, also promotes interaction between Arabidopsis COI1 and multiple JAZ proteins. The C-terminal Jas motif, but not the N-terminal (NT) domain or central ZIM domain of JAZ proteins, is critical for JA-Ile/coronatine-dependent interaction with COI1. Two positively charged amino acid residues in the Jas domain were identified as essential for coronatine-dependent COI1-JAZ interactions. Mutations of these two residues did not affect the ability of JAZ1 and JAZ9 to interact with the transcription factor AtMYC2. Importantly, transgenic Arabidopsis plants expressing JAZ1 carrying these two mutations exhibited JA-insensitive phenotypes, including male sterility and enhanced resistance to P. syringae infection. These results not only suggest that coronatine and JA-Ile target the physical interaction between COI1 and the Jas domain of JAZ repressors, but also illustrate the critical role of positively charged amino acids in the Jas domain in mediating the JA-Ile/coronatine-dependent JAZ interaction with COI1.
A Method for Interactive 3D Reconstruction of Piecewise Planar Objects from Single Images

We present an approach for 3D reconstruction of objects from a single image. Obviously, constraints on the 3D structure are needed to perform this task. Our approach is based on user-provided coplanarity, perpendicularity and parallelism constraints. These are used to calibrate the image and perform 3D reconstruction. The method is described in detail and results are provided.
Erasure/list random coding error exponents are not universally achievable

We study the problem of universal decoding for unknown discrete memoryless channels in the presence of erasure/list option at the decoder, in the random coding regime. Specifically, we harness a universal version of Forney's classical erasure/list decoder developed in earlier studies, which is based on the competitive minimax methodology, and guarantees universal achievability of a certain fraction of the optimum random coding error exponents. In this paper, we derive an exact single-letter expression for the maximum achievable fraction. Examples are given in which the maximal achievable fraction is strictly less than unity, which imply that, in general, there is no universal erasure/list decoder which achieves the same random coding error exponents as the optimal decoder for a known channel. This is in contrast to the situation in ordinary decoding (without the erasure/list option), where optimum exponents are universally achievable, as is well known. It is also demonstrated that previous lower bounds derived for the maximal achievable fraction are not tight in general.
A Real-World Experience With the Supera Interwoven Nitinol Stent in Femoropopliteal Arteries

Purpose: To evaluate the safety and midterm patency of the Supera interwoven nitinol stent in a real-world population and determine deployment and patient-related factors that may predispose to loss of patency. Methods: A retrospective analysis was conducted of 111 consecutive limbs from 97 patients (mean age 75.3 years; 68 men) with severe atherosclerotic disease of the superficial femoral and popliteal arteries that were treated with Supera stents between June 2012 and October 2014. Half the patients had claudication (56%); the remainder had rest pain (19%) and tissue loss (26%). Forty-eight (43%) lesions were chronic total occlusions, and more than half were classified as TransAtlantic Inter-Society Consensus C (22%) or D (30%). Results: All 146 Supera stents (1.32 stents per limb) were deployed successfully, extending over a mean length of 175.5±130.5 mm to treat lesions averaging 151.5±127.1 mm long. At 30 days, Kaplan-Meier estimated freedom from death, target lesion revascularization, and amputation was 97.3%. Primary patency and freedom from clinically driven target lesion revascularization rates were 87.1% and 95.0% at 6 months, respectively, and 78.9% and 87.6% at 12 months, respectively. Four distinct mechanisms for failure were identified in the 13 limbs in which patency was lost; stent intussusception (n=4), compromised inflow or outflow (n=2), gross oversizing (n=1), and neoplastic thrombophilia (n=1); the cause of 5 occlusions could not be identified. Conclusion: In this heterogeneous group that included long and complex atheromatous femoropopliteal lesions, the Supera stent achieved excellent clinical and patency results at 1 year. Further improvement may be achieved through careful patient selection and the avoidance of deployment pitfalls.
Home based therapy for severe malnutrition with ready-to-use food

Background: The standard treatment of severe malnutrition in Malawi often utilises prolonged inpatient care, and after discharge results in high rates of relapse. Aims: To test the hypothesis that the recovery rate, defined as catch-up growth such that weight-for-height z score >0 (WHZ, based on initial height) for ready-to-use food (RTUF) is greater than two other home based dietary regimens in the treatment of malnutrition. Methods: HIV negative children >1 year old discharged from the nutrition unit in Blantyre, Malawi were systematically allocated to one of three dietary regimens: RTUF, RTUF supplement, or blended maize/soy flour. RTUF and maize/soy flour provided 730 kJ/kg/day, while the RTUF supplement provided a fixed amount of energy, 2100 kJ/day. Children were followed fortnightly. Children completed the study when they reached WHZ >0, relapsed, or died. Outcomes were compared using a time-event model. Results: A total of 282 children were enrolled. Children receiving RTUF were more likely to reach WHZ >0 than those receiving RTUF supplement or maize/soy flour (95% v 78%, RR 1.2, 95% CI 1.1 to 1.3). The average weight gain was 5.2 g/kg/day in the RTUF group compared to 3.1 g/kg/day for the maize/soy and RTUF supplement groups. Six months later, 96% of all children that reached WHZ >0 were not wasted. Conclusions: Home based therapy of malnutrition with RTUF was successful; further operational work is needed to implement this promising therapy.