Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Twenty Years of Polymer‐Clay Nanocomposites

Summary: More than twenty years have passed since we invented PCN, in which only a few wt. -% of silicate is randomly and homogeneously dispersed in the polymer matrix. When molded, these nanocomposites show superior properties compared to those of pristine polymers. The number of papers on PCN has increased rapidly in recent years, reaching over 500 in 2005 alone. Being pioneers of this new technology, we review its history relative to the following epochal events: In 1985 we invented nylon 6-clay hybrid (NCH), the first PCN. In 1989, cars equipped with a NCH part were launched. In 1997, Gilman found revolutionary fire retardancy in NCH. In 1997, a PP-clay nanocomposite was prepared using a compatibilizer. In 1998, a compounding method for producing PCN was completed. In 2002, Haraguchi invented a revolutionary nanocomposite hydrogel. So far, only nylon-clay nanocomposites have been used in practice, but other PCN will become increasingly useful in the future. SEM of etched NCH film.
Model for controlling a target human's attention in multi-party settings

It is a major challenge in HRI to design a social robot that is able to direct a target human's attention towards an intended direction. For this purpose, the robot may first turn its gaze to him/her in order to establish eye contact. However, such a turning action of the robot may not in itself be sufficient to make eye contact with the target person in all situations, especially when the robot and the person are not facing each other or the human is intensely engaged in a task. In this paper, we propose a conceptual model of attention control with five phases: attention attraction, eye contact, attention avoidance, gaze back, and attention shift. We conducted two experiments to validate our model in human-robot interaction scenarios.
Statistical models of appearance for medical image analysis and computer vision

Statistical models of shape and appearance are powerful tools for interpreting medical images. We assume a training set of images in which corresponding landmark points have been marked on every image. From this data we can compute a statistical model of the shape variation, a model of the texture variation and a model of the correlations between shape and texture. With enough training examples such models should be able to synthesize any image of normal anatomy. By finding the parameters which optimize the match between a synthesized model image and a target image we can locate all the structures represented by the model. Two approaches to the matching will be described. The Active Shape Model essentially matches a model to boundaries in an image. The Active Appearance Model finds model parameters which synthesize a complete image which is as similar as possible to the target image. By using a difference decomposition approach the current difference between target image and synthesized model image can be used to update the model parameters, leading to rapid matching of complex models. We will demonstrate the application of such models to a variety of different problems.
Washable and Reliable Textile Electrodes Embedded into Underwear Fabric for Electrocardiography (ECG) Monitoring

A medical quality electrocardiogram (ECG) signal is necessary for permanent monitoring, and an accurate heart examination can be obtained from instrumented underwear only if it is equipped with high-quality, flexible, textile-based electrodes guaranteeing low contact resistance with the skin. The main objective of this article is to develop reliable and washable ECG monitoring underwear able to record and wirelessly send an ECG signal in real time to a smart phone and further to a cloud. The article focuses on textile electrode design and production guaranteeing optimal contact impedance. Therefore, different types of textile fabrics were coated with modified poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):poly(styrenesulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS) in order to develop and manufacture reliable and washable textile electrodes assembled to female underwear (bras), by sewing using commercially available conductive yarns. Washability tests of connected underwear containing textile electrodes and conductive threads were carried out up to 50 washing cycles. The influence of standardized washing cycles on the quality of ECG signals and the electrical properties of the textile electrodes were investigated and characterized.
J- and Ks-Band Galaxy Counts and Color Distributions in the AKARI North Ecliptic Pole Field

We present the J- and Ks-band galaxy counts and galaxy colors covering 750 arcmin2 in the deep AKARI north ecliptic pole (NEP) field, using the Florida Multi-object Imaging Near-IR Grism Observational Spectrometer on the Kitt Peak National Observatory 2.1 m telescope. The limiting magnitudes with a signal-to-noise ratio of 3 in the deepest regions are 21.85 and 20.15 in the J and Ks bands, respectively, in the Vega magnitude system. The J- and Ks-band galaxy counts in the AKARI NEP field are broadly in good agreement with those of other results in the literature; however, we find some indication of a change in the galaxy number count slope at J ∼ 19.5 and over the magnitude range 18.0 < Ks < 19.5. We interpret this feature as a change in the dominant population at these magnitudes because we also find an associated change in the B - Ks color distribution at these magnitudes, where the number of blue samples in the magnitude range 18.5 < Ks < 19.5 is significantly larger than that of Ks < 17.5.
FaRoC: Fast and Robust Supervised Canonical Correlation Analysis for Multimodal Omics Data

One of the main problems associated with high dimensional multimodal real life data sets is how to extract relevant and significant features. In this regard, a fast and robust feature extraction algorithm, termed as FaRoC, is proposed, integrating judiciously the merits of canonical correlation analysis (CCA) and rough sets. The proposed method extracts new features sequentially from two multidimensional data sets by maximizing their relevance with respect to class label and significance with respect to already-extracted features. To generate canonical variables sequentially, an analytical formulation is introduced to establish the relation between regularization parameters and CCA. The formulation enables the proposed method to extract required number of correlated features sequentially with lesser computational cost as compared to existing methods. To compute both significance and relevance measures of a feature, the concept of hypercuboid equivalence partition matrix of rough hypercuboid approach is used. It also provides an efficient way to find optimum regularization parameters employed in CCA. The efficacy of the proposed FaRoC algorithm, along with a comparison with other existing methods, is extensively established on several real life data sets.
Material Processing Using Microorganisms : An Investigation of Microbial Action on Metals

Seeds of developing a new type of material processing using a microbiogenic function are searched with a microbial corrosion test of metals under the seawater. The behavior of microorganisms on corrosion of metals (mild steel, copper and aluminum sheets) is examined, and their action on these metals is discussed. As a result, three processing methods (biomachining, biodeposition and biorecycle) are proposed and discussed.
A very low profile, shock-resistant, surface-mountable quartz crystal unit

A very low profile, surface-mountable quartz crystal unit capable of withstanding shock levels of 100000 Gs or more has been developed. An AT-cut, 33 MHz, 3rd overtone unit has overall dimensions of . 31 in (7.9 mm) diameter and 0.05 in (1.3 mm) maximum height. The unit consists of a top cover, a resonator plate, and a bottom cover. All three pieces are made of identically oriented, polished and deep-etched, swept, premium-Q quartz. A finite-element model of the three-piece sandwich, constructed using both orthotropic and general-purpose anisotropic elements, allowed the unit to be designed to the high G level. To obtain the necessary material properties, measurements were made of the breaking strength of samples of the quartz used for a range of surface treatments. Bond shear strength and bond tensile strength were measured. <<ETX>>
Assessment of lower arm movements using one inertial sensor

Reduction of the number of sensors needed to evaluate arm movements, makes a system for the assessment of human body movements more suitable for clinical practice and daily life assessments. In this study, we propose an algorithm to reconstruct lower arm orientation, velocity and position, based on a sensing system which consists of only one inertial measurement unit (IMU) to the forearm. Lower arm movements were reconstructed using a single IMU and assuming that within a measurement there are moments without arm movements. The proposed algorithm, together with a single IMU attached to the forearm, may be used to evaluate lower arm movements during clinical assessments or functional tasks. In this pilot study, reconstructed quantities were compared with an optical reference system. The limits of agreement in the magnitude of the orientation vector and the norm of the velocity vectors are respectively 4.2 deg (normalized, 5.2 percent) and 7.1 cm/s (normalized, 5.8 percent). The limit of agreement of the difference between the reconstructed positions of both sensing systems were relatively greater 7.7 cm (normalized, 16.8 percent).
The use of trastuzumab in New Zealand women with breast cancer

Trastuzumab was first funded in New Zealand for use in HER2+ve stage I–III breast cancer in 2007. This observational study aims to ascertain the patterns of use of trastuzumab in women with invasive HER2+ve breast cancer, and assess the effectiveness of adjuvant trastuzumab in women with stage I–III HER2+ve breast cancer.
Cooperation for spectral and energy efficiency in ultra-dense small cell networks

Extensive deployment of small cells in heterogenous cellular networks introduces both challenges and opportunities. Challenges come with reuse of limited frequency resources, which always introduce both intra- and inter-interference among small cells and macrocells. The opportunities refer to more potential inter- and intra-tier cooperation gains, in particular for ultra-dense heterogeneous and small cell networks. In addition to current spectral efficiency optimization, energy efficiency will also be a critical performance requirement for future green communications, especially when small cells are densely deployed to enhance the user's quality of experience. In this article, potential cooperation gains are explored via a cooperative bargaining game to counter challenges of mitigating interference and saving energy, thus improving both spectral and energy efficiency. We survey the current optimization and trade-offs of spectral and energy efficiency, and introduce the basics of cooperative game theory. Then a utility function is presented with spectral and energy efficiency coupled together. Furthermore, we present the bargaining cooperative game theoretic framework to explore potential cooperation gains. Moreover, two applications are investigated for the dedicated and co-channel deployment cases, including cooperative relay with spectrum leasing and cooperative capacity offload. Finally, we conclude the article with potential challenges of the presented cooperative framework and some thoughts for future research directions.
Removal of Anionic Dyes from Aqueous Solutions using Local Activated Kaolins as Adsorbers

There are significant amounts of unused dyes remaining in wastewater from dyeing industry. The release of these effluents causes abnormal coloration of surface waters and there is a risk of toxicity. This research involved the efficient adsorption of anionic dyes (coriacide bordeau 3B, derma blue R67 and the coriacide brown 3J) used in tanning industry by local natural and treated clays; DD3 and KT2, a low-cost material abundant in highly weathered soils from Algerian East. The activated kaolins were characterized by chemical analyses (XRF), X-ray diffraction, Fourier Transform IR, Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) to obtain information about their structure and surface texture. The adsorption kinetics was investigated using the parameters such as contact time, amount of clay, solution initial dye concentration and acid activation. The adsorption capacity of all three dyes on local kaolinite clays exceeds 90 % observed after 40 to 80 min. Compared to adsorption experiments on bentonite, the results show that the kaolin has the best adsorption capacity for anionic dyes under the experimental conditions of this work.
Reconciling Apparent Conflicts between Mitochondrial and Nuclear Phylogenies in African Elephants

Conservation strategies for African elephants would be advanced by resolution of conflicting claims that they comprise one, two, three or four taxonomic groups, and by development of genetic markers that establish more incisively the provenance of confiscated ivory. We addressed these related issues by genotyping 555 elephants from across Africa with microsatellite markers, developing a method to identify those loci most effective at geographic assignment of elephants (or their ivory), and conducting novel analyses of continent-wide datasets of mitochondrial DNA. Results showed that nuclear genetic diversity was partitioned into two clusters, corresponding to African forest elephants (99.5% Cluster-1) and African savanna elephants (99.4% Cluster-2). Hybrid individuals were rare. In a comparison of basal forest “F” and savanna “S” mtDNA clade distributions to nuclear DNA partitions, forest elephant nuclear genotypes occurred only in populations in which S clade mtDNA was absent, suggesting that nuclear partitioning corresponds to the presence or absence of S clade mtDNA. We reanalyzed African elephant mtDNA sequences from 81 locales spanning the continent and discovered that S clade mtDNA was completely absent among elephants at all 30 sampled tropical forest locales. The distribution of savanna nuclear DNA and S clade mtDNA corresponded closely to range boundaries traditionally ascribed to the savanna elephant species based on habitat and morphology. Further, a reanalysis of nuclear genetic assignment results suggested that West African elephants do not comprise a distinct third species. Finally, we show that some DNA markers will be more useful than others for determining the geographic origins of illegal ivory. These findings resolve the apparent incongruence between mtDNA and nuclear genetic patterns that has confounded the taxonomy of African elephants, affirm the limitations of using mtDNA patterns to infer elephant systematics or population structure, and strongly support the existence of two elephant species in Africa.
Updated European Heart Rhythm Association practical guide on the use of non-vitamin-K antagonist anticoagulants in patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation: Executive summary

In 2013, the European Heart Rhythm Association (EHRA) published a Practical Guide on the use of non-VKA oral anticoagulants (NOACs) in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) (Heidbuchel H, Verhamme P, Alings M, Antz M, Hacke W, Oldgren J, Sinnaeve P, Camm AJ, Kirchhof P, European Heart Rhythm A. European Heart Rhythm Association Practical Guide on the use of new oral anticoagulants in patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation. Europace 2013;15:625-651; Heidbuchel H, Verhamme P, Alings M, Antz M, Hacke W, Oldgren J, Sinnaeve P, Camm AJ, Kirchhof P. EHRA practical guide on the use of new oral anticoagulants in patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation: executive summary. Eur Heart J 2013;34:2094-2106). The document received widespread interest, not only from cardiologists but also from neurologists, geriatricians, and general practitioners, as became evident from the distribution of >350 000 copies of its pocket version (the EHRA Key Message Booklet) world-wide. Since 2013, numerous new studies have appeared on different aspects of NOAC therapy in AF patients. Therefore, EHRA updated the Practical Guide, including new information but also providing balanced guiding in the many areas where prospective data are still lacking. The outline of the original guide that addressed 15 clinical scenarios has been preserved, but all chapters have been rewritten. Main changes in the Update comprise a discussion on the definition of 'non-valvular AF' and eligibility for NOAC therapy, inclusion of finalized information on the recently approved edoxaban, tailored dosing information dependent on concomitant drugs, and/or clinical characteristics, an expanded chapter on neurologic scenarios (ischaemic stroke or intracranial haemorrhage under NOAC), an updated anticoagulation card and more specifics on start-up and follow-up issues. There are also many new flow charts, like on appropriate switching between anticoagulants (VKA to NOAC or vice versa), default scenarios for acute management of coronary interventions, step-down schemes for long-term combined antiplatelet-anticoagulant management in coronary heart disease, management of bleeding, and cardioversion under NOAC therapy. The Updated Guide is available in full in EP Europace (Heidbuchel H, Verhamme P, Alings M, Antz M, Diener HC, Hacke W, Oldgren J, Sinnaeve P, Camm AJ, Kirchhof P, Advisors. Updated European Heart Rhythm Association Practical Guide on the use of non-vitamin K antagonist anticoagulants in patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation. Europace 2015;17:1467-1507), while additional resources can be found at the related ESC/EHRA website (www.NOACforAF.eu).
Gait Reconstruction From Motion Artefact Corrupted Fabric-Embedded Sensors

‘‘Fabric-embedded sensors” are of growing interest in clinical diagnostics and rehabilitation studies that desire the measurement and analysis of human movement outside the laboratory environment. A major issue limiting their usage is the undesired effect of fabric motion artefacts corrupting movement signals. While supervised calibration methods can be used to eliminate these artefacts, these methods make assumptions on the fabric motion, and are unable to address changes in user motion (e.g., locomotion speed) or clothing deformation. In this letter, an unsupervised latent space regression method is presented for learning body movements from fabric motion corrupted sensors, while simultaneously allowing for automatic recalibration. Experiments in this letter show that unsupervised gait learning performs equally as well as supervised learning when removing motion artefacts. This allows for the implementation of adaptive motion artefact methods in real-world sensor-embedded clothing.
Drug-Free Interventions to Reduce Pain or Opioid Consumption After Total Knee Arthroplasty: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

Importance There is increased interest in nonpharmacological treatments to reduce pain after total knee arthroplasty. Yet, little consensus supports the effectiveness of these interventions. Objective To systematically review and meta-analyze evidence of nonpharmacological interventions for postoperative pain management after total knee arthroplasty. Data Sources Database searches of MEDLINE (PubMed), EMBASE (OVID), Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, Web of Science (ISI database), Physiotherapy Evidence (PEDRO) database, and ClinicalTrials.gov for the period between January 1946 and April 2016. Study Selection Randomized clinical trials comparing nonpharmacological interventions with other interventions in combination with standard care were included. Data Extraction and Synthesis Two reviewers independently extracted the data from selected articles using a standardized form and assessed the risk of bias. A random-effects model was used for the analyses. Main Outcomes and Measures Postoperative pain and consumption of opioids and analgesics. Results Of 5509 studies, 39 randomized clinical trials were included in the meta-analysis (2391 patients). The most commonly performed interventions included continuous passive motion, preoperative exercise, cryotherapy, electrotherapy, and acupuncture. Moderate-certainty evidence showed that electrotherapy reduced the use of opioids (mean difference, −3.50; 95% CI, −5.90 to −1.10 morphine equivalents in milligrams per kilogram per 48 hours; P = .004; I2 = 17%) and that acupuncture delayed opioid use (mean difference, 46.17; 95% CI, 20.84 to 71.50 minutes to the first patient-controlled analgesia; P < .001; I2 = 19%). There was low-certainty evidence that acupuncture improved pain (mean difference, −1.14; 95% CI, −1.90 to −0.38 on a visual analog scale at 2 days; P = .003; I2 = 0%). Very low-certainty evidence showed that cryotherapy was associated with a reduction in opioid consumption (mean difference, −0.13; 95% CI, −0.26 to −0.01 morphine equivalents in milligrams per kilogram per 48 hours; P = .03; I2 = 86%) and in pain improvement (mean difference, −0.51; 95% CI, −1.00 to −0.02 on the visual analog scale; P < .05; I2 = 62%). Low-certainty or very low-certainty evidence showed that continuous passive motion and preoperative exercise had no pain improvement and reduction in opioid consumption: for continuous passive motion, the mean differences were −0.05 (95% CI, −0.35 to 0.25) on the visual analog scale (P = .74; I2 = 52%) and 6.58 (95% CI, −6.33 to 19.49) opioid consumption at 1 and 2 weeks (P = .32, I2 = 87%), and for preoperative exercise, the mean difference was −0.14 (95% CI, −1.11 to 0.84) on the Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Arthritis Index Scale (P = .78, I2 = 65%). Conclusions and Relevance In this meta-analysis, electrotherapy and acupuncture after total knee arthroplasty were associated with reduced and delayed opioid consumption.
Clustering Acoustic Segments Using Multi-Stage Agglomerative Hierarchical Clustering

Agglomerative hierarchical clustering becomes infeasible when applied to large datasets due to its O(N 2) storage requirements. We present a multi-stage agglomerative hierarchical clustering (MAHC) approach aimed at large datasets of speech segments. The algorithm is based on an iterative divide-and-conquer strategy. The data is first split into independent subsets, each of which is clustered separately. Thus reduces the storage required for sequential implementations, and allows concurrent computation on parallel computing hardware. The resultant clusters are merged and subsequently re-divided into subsets, which are passed to the following iteration. We show that MAHC can match and even surpass the performance of the exact implementation when applied to datasets of speech segments.
From Traffic and Pedestrian Follow-the-Leader Models with Reaction Time to First Order Convection-Diffusion Flow Models

In this work, we derive first order continuum traffic flow models from a microscopic delayed follow-the-leader model. These are applicable in the context of vehicular traffic flow as well as pedestrian traffic flow. The microscopic model is based on an optimal velocity function and a reaction time parameter. The corresponding macroscopic formulations in Eulerian or Lagrangian coordinates result in first order convection-diffusion equations. More precisely, the convection is described by the optimal velocity while the diffusion term depends on the reaction time. A linear stability analysis for homogeneous solutions of both continuous and discrete models is provided. The conditions match those of the car-following model for specific values of the space discretization. The behavior of the novel model is illustrated thanks to numerical simulations. Transitions to collision-free self-sustained stop-and-go dynamics are obtained if the reaction time is sufficiently large. The results show that the dynamics of th.