Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Stress–Strain Analysis of a Pipeline With Inner and Outer Corrosion Defects

A numerical simulation method is adopted to analyze the effects of three types of defect geometries ((1) a single defect on the inner surface, (2) a single defect on the outer surface, and (3) double coaxial defects on the inner surface and the outer surface. ) on the residual strength of corroded X60 steel pipelines and equivalent stress and plastic strain distribution of the local defect area. The results show that the defect geometry exerts obvious effects on stress–strain distribution. The earliest plastic deformation occurs at the edge of the inner surface defect (type 1), but it occurs on the central part of both the outer surface defect (type 2) and the double defects (type 3). The appearance of defects greatly weakens the stability of the pipeline. For equivalent sum total corrosion defect depth, a single defect is more harmful to the pipeline than double defects.
Asymmetrical multilevel inverter using ratio-three based sources

This paper proposes a base-three ratio for the selection of asymmetrical multilevel inverter voltage source. The advantage is the optimum output voltage quality for a particular power circuit configuration. The series H-bridges topology with four-cell per arm inverter has been investigated. This configuration conventionally forms a 9-level inverter when used in symmetrical multilevel inverter. However with the proposed voltage selection in asymmetrical multilevel inverter, the number of levels increases to 81. A lookup table-based controller has been designed and shown to provide high quality output voltage for a wide range of modulation index. Simulation has been conducted to show that the optimum output voltage quality has been produced. Examination of the switching signals reveals that the higher voltage cells operate at lower frequency. Investigation on the input currents of the inverter shows that the higher power H-bridge cells require unidirectional current if the load power factor is high enough.
‘Location, Location, Location’: a spatial approach for rare variant analysis and an application to a study on non-syndromic cleft lip with or without cleft palate

Motivation: For the analysis of rare variants in sequence data, numerous approaches have been suggested. Fixed and flexible threshold approaches collapse the rare variant information of a genomic region into a test statistic with reduced dimensionality. Alternatively, the rare variant information can be combined in statistical frameworks that are based on suitable regression models, machine learning, etc. Although the existing approaches provide powerful tests that can incorporate information on allele frequencies and prior biological knowledge, differences in the spatial clustering of rare variants between cases and controls cannot be incorporated. Based on the assumption that deleterious variants and protective variants cluster or occur in different parts of the genomic region of interest, we propose a testing strategy for rare variants that builds on spatial cluster methodology and that guides the identification of the biological relevant segments of the region. Our approach does not require any assumption about the directions of the genetic effects. Results: In simulation studies, we assess the power of the clustering approach and compare it with existing methodology. Our simulation results suggest that the clustering approach for rare variants is well powered, even in situations that are ideal for standard methods. The efficiency of our spatial clustering approach is not affected by the presence of rare variants that have opposite effect size directions. An application to a sequencing study for non-syndromic cleft lip with or without cleft palate (NSCL/P) demonstrates its practical relevance. The proposed testing strategy is applied to a genomic region on chromosome 15q13.3 that was implicated in NSCL/P etiology in a previous genome-wide association study, and its results are compared with standard approaches. Availability: Source code and documentation for the implementation in R will be provided online. Currently, the R-implementation only supports genotype data. We currently are working on an extension for VCF files. Contact: heide.fier@googlemail.com
Quantum Computation : The Grand Mathematical Challenge for the Twenty-First Century and the Millennium

Synopses and accompanying reading lists follow. Lecture notes will be available to those who register. Advance registration fees: $80 ($35/student/unemployed/emeritus); on-site registration fees: $95 ($45 student/unemployed/emeritus). Registration and housing information can be found in this issue of the Notices; see the section “Registering in Advance and Hotel Accommodations” in the announcement for the meetings in Washington, DC.
Long-Term Efficacy and Safety of Celecoxib in Alzheimer’s Disease

Background/Aims: Cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) may play an important role in the neuropathology of Alzheimer’s disease (AD). The efficacy and safety of celecoxib (200 mg bid), a COX-2 selective inhibitor, were assessed in patients ≧50 years with established mild-to-moderate AD to determine whether treatment was effective in retarding deterioration of cognitive function. Methods: This was a 52-week, multicenter, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-group study. The primary efficacy end points were the change from baseline to week 52 in the Alzheimer’s Disease Assessment Scale-Cognitive Behavior (ADAS-cog) composite score and the week 52 Clinician’s Interview-Based Impression of Change Plus (CIBIC+). Results: At 52 weeks, change in ADAS-cog scores from baseline was similar for placebo and celecoxib 200 mg bid groups (5.00 and 4.39, respectively). CIBIC+ scores were also similar (4.83 and 4.92). Two extension studies were conducted but were terminated early based on these efficacy results. Safety data from all 3 studies indicated that celecoxib was generally well-tolerated. Conclusion: Celecoxib 200 mg bid did not slow the progression of AD in this study, and the occurrence of adverse events was as expected for an elderly population with a complex chronic medical condition.
Prevalence of Glomerulopathies in Canine Mammary Carcinoma

The incidence and prevalence of paraneoplastic glomerulopathy, especially associated with carcinoma, are a matter of debate and the causal link between cancer and glomerular diseases remains unclear. The aim of this study was to evaluate renal biopsies of selected bitches with spontaneous mammary gland carcinoma. We hypothesized that dogs with mammary carcinomas would show histologic evidence of glomerular pathology. A prospective study was performed in dogs with naturally occurring mammary carcinoma that were undergoing tumor resection and ovariohysterectomy. We evaluated renal biopsies of 32 bitches with spontaneous mammary gland carcinoma and 11 control dogs without mammary gland neoplasia. Samples were obtained from the left kidney and the biopsy material was divided for light microscopy (LM), immunofluorescence (IF) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Light microscopy abnormalities were identified in 78.1% of dogs with mammary carcinoma (n = 25) and in none of the dogs in the control group. Focal glomerular mesangial matrix expansion was the most common alteration (n = 15, 60.0%), but mesangial cell proliferation (n = 9, 36.0%) and focal segmental glomerulosclerosis (n = 9, 36.0%), synechiae (n = 7, 28.0%), and globally sclerotic glomeruli (n = 6, 24.0%) were also frequent in dogs with malignancy. Immunofluorescence microscopy revealed strong IgM staining was demonstrated in 64.3% (n = 18) of carcinoma dogs. Transmission electron microscopy from dogs with carcinoma revealed slight changes, the most frequent of which was faint sub-endothelial and mesangial deposits of electron-dense material (78%). Mesangial cell interpositioning and segmental effacement of podocyte foot processes were identified in some specimens (45%). Changes in the glomerulus and proteinuria are common in dogs with naturally occurring mammary carcinoma and this condition appears to provide an excellent large animal model for cancer-associated glomerulopathy in humans.
When should we NOT transfer functional annotation between sequence paralogs?

Current automated computational methods to assign functional labels to unstudied genes often involve transferring annotation from orthologous or paralogous genes, however such genes can evolve divergent functions, making such transfer inappropriate. We consider the problem of determining when it is correct to make such an assignment between paralogs. We construct a benchmark dataset of two types of similar paralogous pairs of genes in the well-studied model organism S. cerevisiae: one set of pairs where single deletion mutants have very similar phenotypes (implying similar functions), and another set of pairs where single deletion mutants have very divergent phenotypes (implying different functions). State of the art methods for this problem will determine the evolutionary history of the paralogs with references to multiple related species. Here, we ask a first and simpler question: we explore to what extent any computational method with access only to data from a single species can solve this problem.We consider divergence data (at both the amino acid and nucleotide levels), and network data (based on the yeast protein-protein interaction network, as captured in BioGRID), and ask if we can extract features from these data that can distinguish between these sets of paralogous gene pairs. We find that the best features come from measures of sequence divergence, however, simple network measures based on degree or centrality or shortest path or diffusion state distance (DSD), or shared neighborhood in the yeast protein-protein interaction (PPI) network also contain some signal. One should, in general, not transfer function if sequence divergence is too high. Further improvements in classification will need to come from more computationally expensive but much more powerful evolutionary methods that incorporate ancestral states and measure evolutionary divergence over multiple species based on evolutionary trees.
Effect of Electroacupuncture Combined With Tolterodine on Treating Female Mixed Urinary Incontinence

PURPOSE: To examine the effectiveness of combination therapy of electroacupuncture and tolterodine in treating female patients with mixed urinary incontinence. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Seventy-one women with mixed urinary incontinence were recruited to receive electroacupuncture therapy or combination therapy with electroacupuncture and tolterodine 2 mg orally twice a day for 8 weeks. In electroacupuncture therapy, the acupoints, including BL32 (Ci Liao), BL35 (Hui Yang), SP6 (San Yin Jiao), and ST36 (Zu San Li), were selected with the stimulation of a low-frequency (20 Hz) disperse-dense wave. The International Consultation on Incontinence Questionnaire score, the number of incontinence episodes, and urine leakage were measured before and after the treatment to evaluate the effect. RESULTS: Response rates were 73.5% and 78.4% in electroacupuncture therapy group and in the combination therapy group respectively. No significant differences were found when group outcomes were compared. The International Consultation on Incontinence Questionnaire score, the number of incontinence episodes, and urine leakage improved significantly (P < .001) after 8 weeks compared with baseline values in both groups. Significantly more patients in the combination therapy group experienced more than 50% reduction in the number of incontinent episodes than in the electroacupuncture group (75.7% vs 58.8%, P < .01). They also had significantly less urine leakage than those in electroacupuncture therapy group (11.2 ± 7.6 g vs 15 ± 9.1 g) (P < .05). CONCLUSIONS: The effect of electroacupuncture for female mixed urinary incontinence may be enhanced by tolterodine.
The human δ2 glutamate receptor gene is not mutated in patients with spinocerebellar ataxia

The human glutamate receptor delta 2 gene (GRID2) shares 90% homology with the orthologous mouse gene. The mouse Grid2 gene is involved with functions of the cerebellum and spontaneous mutation of Grid2 leads to a spinocerebellar ataxia-like phenotype. To investigate whether such mutations occur in humans, we screened for mutations in the coding sequence of GRID2 in 24 patients with familial or sporadic spinocerebellar ataxia and in 52 normal controls. We detected no point mutations or insertion/deletion mutations in the 16 exons of GRID2. However, a polymorphic 4 nucleotide deletion (IVS5-121_-118 GAGT) and two single nucleotide polymorphisms (c.1251G>T and IVS14-63C>G) were identified. The frequency of these polymorphisms was similar between spinocerebellar ataxia patients and normal controls. These data indicate that spontaneous mutations do not occur in GRID2 and that the incidence of spinocerebellar ataxia in humans is not associated with GRID2 mutation or polymorphisms.
Spectrum-efficient operating policy for energy-harvesting clustered wireless networks

We consider a clustered wireless network composed of energy-harvesting access points (APs) to improve both spectrum efficiency and energy efficiency. Each AP only uses the harvested energy for transmission and becomes inactive when the harvested energy is less than the required energy for transmission. The number of inactive APs increases as the number of users being served by an AP increases. Considering the relationship between the number of served users and the active AP density, we propose a spectrum-efficient operating policy designed to ensure that an AP serves the closest n users rather than all users in the cluster. We derive the outage probability and the area spectral efficiency (ASE) for an energy-harvesting clustered wireless network in closed form using stochastic geometry. Numerical results show that there is an optimal number of served users per AP that maximizes the ASE, which verifies that the ASE can be increased by the proposed spectrum-efficient operating policy.
Case Report: Effectiveness of Pulsed Dye Laser 585 nm in Treating Multiple Keloids in Young Female with Body Dysmorphic Disorder (BDD) had Multiple Plastic Surgeries, Jeddah, 2017

Flash Lamp Pulsed Dye Laser (FPDL) is a non-ablative technology that has an excellent reputation in vascular lesion treatment. It is always the first line treatment for scars; these can be successfully treated using different methods, such as ablative lasers or plastic surgery. 43 year old Saudi female known to have body dysmorphic disorder, had long history of repetitive plastic surgeries in different body sites came complaining of her inappropriate body shape and her weight planning for more plastic surgeries. Patients presented 9 months back complaining of multiple keloids at the sites of previous plastic surgeries. PDL 585 nm was started (fluence 4.0 j/cm, pulse width 20 ms, pulse rate 1.5 Hz). PDL showed subjective and clinically improvement in treating keloids, decreasing the size and thickness. Further trials are recommended to confirm our results.
A fine-grained parallel completion procedure

We present a parallel Knuth-Bendix completion algorithm where the inner loop, deriving the consequences of adding a new rule to the system, is multi-threaded. The selection of the best new rule in the outer loop, and hence the completion strategy, is exactly the same as for the sequential algorithm. Our implementation, which is within the PARSAC-2 parallel symbolic computation system, exhibits good parallel speedups on a standard multi-processor workstation.
Experimental investigation of the effect of TiO2 nanofluid and KCl salt on polymeric water-based drilling fluid properties

In petroleum industries, nanofluids have the potential to improve the characteristics of the fluids used in drilling wells or Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR) processes. In this study, a water based mud containing polymer was considered as the base fluid. Different concentrations of TiO2 nanoparticle (0, 0.5 and 0.75 wt%) and different concentrations of KCl salt (0, 0.5, 1.5, and 3 wt%) were added to the base fluid and exposed to different temperatures (30, 50, 70 and 90 °C) with 19 different shear rates for investigating the effects of nanoparticle concentration, salt concentration, temperature and shear rate on viscosity of the base mud. Presence of TiO2 particles enhanced not only the rheological behavior but also electrical and thermal conductivity of fluid up to 25% and 43%, respectively. Furthermore, the stability of the fluid containing salt and nanoparticle was investigated in these temperatures owing to the fact that the temperature could cause degradation of the fluid. For the purpose of investigating this phenomenon, the after cooling experiment was conducted. In addition, the data gathered in this investigation were examined by using three famous rheological models (Power law, Herschel-Bulkley and Herschel-Bulkley-Papanastasiou models) and the rheological parameters of each model were determined.
Rupture point analysis of intestinal anastomotic healing in rats under the action of pure Copaíba (Copaifera Iangsdorfii) oil.

PURPOSE Analyze the mechanical strength of digestive tract scar after intestinal anastomosis surgery in animals treated with pure Copaíba oil. METHODS 60 Wistar rats, male, about 250 days old and weighting around 350g were used. The rats were randomly divided into two groups: Group O, with 30 animals that received Copaíba oil and Group C, with 30 animals that received saline. Each group was subdivided into three subgroups, containing 10 rats each. They were designated O7, O14, O28, C7, C14 and C28, according to the post-operative assessment date at 7, 14 and 28 days, respectively. On these dates euthanasia was performed with the removal of the bowel segment containing the anastomosis and assigning the samples to tensile test for assessing Maximum Stress, Maximum Tensile Strength and Maximum Rupture Strength. RESULTS On the three variables of the study, the results indicate that, for the three assessment periods (7, 14 and 28 days) there was no significant difference between the oil and control groups. CONCLUSION For the mechanical tests proposed by this study, Copaíba oil didn t show any effectiveness in increasing the anatomosis strength.
Carrier Frequency Offset Estimation Using Cyclic Prefix in GFDM Systems for Machine Type Communication Application

Long term evolution (LTE) era in telecommunication technology will be soon replaced by 5G network with better performance in terms of latency, speed and capacity. One of the new development existing in 5G technology is the machine type communication (MTC) as one of the extension of internet of things (IoT). MTC guarantees low power, low cost, and the loose synchronization in narrowband. The cyclic prefix (CP) technique for simple synchronization from LTE technology needs to be improved as it is not suitable for 5G scenarios. If it is implemented to the orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) waveform, each symbol will require a separate CP which is not practical for narrowband application in 5G. In this paper, a new scheme of carrier frequency offset (CFO) estimation technique using cyclic prefix (CP) in Generalized Frequency Division Multiplexing (GFDM) system is proposed. Simulations using the proposed technique has been carried out and the result shows that it gives low mean square error. The proposed technique is able to increase the estimated range of normalized CFO and effectively improve the decreasing performance caused by CFO degradation effect.
Francisella tularensis infection in a stone marten (Martes foina) without classic pathological lesions consistent with tularemia

The current report describes the isolation and typing of a strain of Francisella tularensis, the causative agent of tularemia, from the spleen of a stone marten (Martes foina) showing no classic lesions consistent with the disease. The identification of this bacterium, belonging to the World Health Organization risk 3 category and considered to have a low infectious dose, could be performed only because of an ongoing project screening F. tularensis in the environment sensu lato. The findings described herein should alert diagnostic laboratories of the possible presence of F. tularensis in clinical samples in countries where tularemia is endemic even in cases with no consistent anamnesis and from unsuspected animal species.
Design of Tribologically Enhanced Polymeric Materials for Biomedical Applications

Anytime two surfaces are in normal contact, accompanied by tangential motion, there is potential for deterioration of one or both surfaces. Gradual wear, or the removal of surface material, is typically an undesirable event. Therefore, the need for lubrication arises to minimize the amount of shear stress that develops between opposing surfaces. This reduction in shear stress is characterized by the coefficient of friction (COF). Friction is one of the primary subjects of interest in tribology, the science of the friction and wear of articulating surfaces. A number of fascinating tribological systems can be found in nature. One example which has drawn a considerable interest is articular cartilage. This smooth white tissue lines the articulating surfaces of our joints and sustains a tremendous amount of stress while maintaining smooth joint motion and low COF. The low COF exhibited by articular cartilage is unmatched by any man-made material. The phenomenal tribological properties of this biphasic material are attributed to a combination of a unique boundary lubrication mechanism and its ability to support interstitial fluid pressurization This dissertation details the synthesis and characterization of novel tribologically enhanced polymeric materials which show great potential for several biomedical applications. Design of these material relied on the use of biomimetic tribological mechanisms. The overarching characterization described in this investigation provides valuable insight into the physical and mechanical characteristics of these unique materials. DESIGN OF TRIBOLOGICALLY ENHANCED POLYMERIC MATERIALS FOR BIOMEDICAL APPLICATIONS
Approaches to Graphene, Carbon Nanotube and Carbon nanohorn, Synthesis, Properties and Applications

By far the most important members of carbon-based materials family, are graphene, Carbon Nanotube (CNT) and Carbon Nanohorn (CNH). Thanks to their outstanding features and effective applications, have been broadly researched in recent times. Numerous ways have been proposed to synthesize graphene, CNT and CNH. This paper presents an overview of approaches to graphene, CNT and CNH synthesis, properties and applications. Most of the ways to create graphene is related to Hummer's method. Thanks to the exclusive electrical and thermal properties of graphene, it has been applied to build batteries, gas and vapor sensors, and elimination of numerous pollutants from water. Also, this review involves the conventional definition of the carbon nanotubes growth mechanism. Undoubtedly, an expert interpretation of nanotube growth at the atomic scale is one of the major challenges to improve nanotubes bulk synthesis procedure. In fact, a controlled growth may lead to get the ideal form of nanotube. Moreover, carbon nanohorn is a new member of single-graphene tubules family with a diameter of 3-6 nm and a length 35-45 nm. According to the latest reports, a new fluid including carbon nanohorns and ethylene glycol can be used for solar energy applications. Carbon nanohorns have an important role in increasing sunlight absorption as for the pure base fluid. Nanohorn spectral characteristics are far more interesting than those of amorphous carbon for the exclusive application. They can be used in important industries such as gas sensors, drug delivery, detecting some food borne contaminants.