Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Frequency of Concrete Words Modulates Prefrontal Activation during Semantic Judgments

The effect of word frequency on semantic processing was characterized by studying two groups of right-handed participants using fMRI. Stimuli were presented in blocks of either high frequency or low frequency word triplets where a sample word appeared above a pair of test words. One group (n = 8) made semantic judgments by selecting the word from the test pair that was more closely associated with the sample. Stimulus triplets were designed such that relatedness between sample and "correct" items was obvious. The other group (n = 8) read the words silently without making any semantic decision and pressed a button on completing the reading of each triplet. Semantic judgments while no less accurate, were associated with greater left prefrontal BOLD signal change when they involved low frequency words, whereas there was no reliable effect of word frequency in the reading condition. These findings suggest that retrieval effort modulates left prefrontal activity when deliberate access to semantics is required.
Low Topped Convection and Total Lightning Observations from North Alabama

Total lightning observations from the North Alabama Lightning Mapping Array (NALMA) have been used in operations with the Huntsville National Weather Service office since 2003. In a partnership with NASA's Short-term Prediction Research and Transition (SPoRT) Center, observations from this very high frequency (VHF) detection network are used for several activities. Predominantly, the NALMA data are used to enhance the situational awareness of forecasters which in turn leads to a better analysis of storm intensification and improved severe thunderstorm and tornado warnings. Total lightning observations also are used in lightning safety situations aiding with airport weather warnings alerting to the threat of imminent lightning activity. The training that SPoRT provides on the use of NALMA data, as well as data available from other networks, emphasizes lightning jumps as precursors to severe weather. Specifically, a lightning jump is a rapid increase in total lightning activity, which is strongly related to the updraft strength of the thunderstorm. This is used to great effect in numerous severe weather warning events. However, lightning jumps do not always precede severe weather manifestation, and there are several notable cases where this has not occurred. In particular are events from 6 May 2009 and 21 January 2010. In each case a thunderstorm produced an EF-2 rated tornado with very little total lightning observed. Both cases occurred just outside (6 May) or in (21 January) Huntsville, which is in the heart of the NALMA network and therefore had no detection efficiency issues. Analysis of these two events demonstrates that these were low-topped thunderstorms. Here the lightning production was limited as the updraft did not extend into the mixed phased region where charging primarily occurs. This presentation will take a preliminary look at the two low-topped convection events just mentioned, along with several other cases that serve as a “null” set of data for using total lightning as a precursor to severe weather. Future research will investigate whether limited lightning production is commonly observed with low-topped convection, or if these are special cases.
BATHYMETRY CHANGES ANALYSIS IN SERANG DISTRICT WATERS CAUSED BY SEABED SAND EXPLOITATION

Morphological changes. i.e. shoreline change and bathymetry change of Serang District were significantly influence by natural factors as well as human activities of sand mining (seabed sand exploitation). Bathymetric data were obtained through direct bathymetry measurements using Single-Beam Echosounder (Echotrac CVM Teledyne Odom Hydrographic) and GPS- Real Time Kinematic (RTK) as well as through secondary data from digitization data of DISHIDROS and LPI BIG. The data obtained is then processed to obtain the volume of moved bed sediment using 2 different topography overlays, from the bathymetry analysis result, we obtained the volume of natural sediment transported is 95,800 m 3 with the value of average thickness is 0.036 m. therefore, the volume which is caused by human factors (sand mining activities during 2003-2013) is 5,578,470 m 3 with the sand mining area extents of 261.9 Ha. Resulting the small basin with 2.13 m depth. Keywords: bathymetry, lontar village, morphology, sand mining, coastal zone
Armor Plate Surface Roughness Measurements

Abstract : The accuracy and limitations of DoD high frequency radar signature prediction codes depend on the approximations included in the underlying algorithms. At Ka-Band and above, accurate representation of the target surfaces becomes a limiting factor in the electromagnetic simulation, since the resolution requirements are on the same order as fabrication tolerances. Even if accurate representation of test vehicles can be obtained, there may still be discrepancies in the modeled surface condition (i.e., surface texture and coatings) that could become important at high frequency. We measure waviness and roughness of various plates to know the parameter range for smooth aluminum and rolled homogenous armor (RHA). We also modify the plates by grit blasting to determine how parameters might change during surface preparation for painting. Using these roughness parameters and typical electrical characteristics for paint, we can estimate the effect of surface condition on RCS predictions at Ka-Band. For the painting process and surface roughness typical of ground vehicles, theory predicts only a small difference compared to smooth metal targets.
Studying Group Behaviors: A tutorial on text and network analysis methods

Many important technical and policy decisions are made by small groups, especially by deliberative committees of technical experts. Such committees are charged with fairly combining information from multiple perspectives to reach a decision that one person could not make alone. Committees are social entities and are therefore affected by any number of mechanisms recorded in the social sciences. Our challenge is to determine which of these mechanisms are likely to be encountered in the deliberative process and to evaluate how they might impact upon decision outcomes. In particular, we examine the role of committee deliberations on the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's (FDA's) advisory panels.
A deterministic BIST scheme based on EDT-compressed test patterns

The paper presents a novel deterministic built-in self-test (BIST) scheme. The proposed solution seamlessly integrates with on-chip EDT-based decompression logic and takes advantage of two key observations: (1) specified positions of ATPG-produced test cubes are typically clustered within a single or a few scan chains for a small number of successive scan shift cycles, (2) only a small fraction of the specified positions are necessary to detect a fault, and most of the remaining ones have several alternatives that can be obtained by inverting preselected scan slices (all scan cells within a given cycle). The proposed approach elevates compression ratios to values typically unachievable through conventional reseeding-based solutions. Experimental results obtained for large industrial designs illustrate feasibility of the proposed logic BIST scheme and are reported herein.
Attack detection and prevention in the Cyber Physical System

This paper proposes cyber-attack detection and prevention of Cyber Physical System. The Chi square detector and Fuzzy logic based attack classifier (FLAC) were used to identify distributed denial of service and False data injection attacks. The fuzzy attributes for selecting the mentioned attacks are activity profiling, average packet rate, change point detection algorithm, cusum algorithm, unexpired session of users, injected incomplete information, reuse of session key. An example scenario has been created using OpNET Simulator. Simulation results depict that the use of Chi-square detector and FLAC are able to detect the mentioned cyber physical attacks with high accuracy. Compared to existing Fuzzy logic based attack detector, the proposed model outperforms the traditional distributed denial of service and false data detector.
Nondeterminism and Fully Abstract Models

— We study the semantics ofsome nondeterministic languages derivedfrom PCF [8]. In particular we discuss how Milner" s results in [5] can (or cannoi) be applied to obtain models,for our languages, which arefully abstract with respect to the (standard) operational semantics. Résumé. — Nous étudions ici la sémantique de quelques langages non déterministes, dérivés du PCF [8]. En particulier, nous discutons dans quelle mesure les résultats de Milner [5] peuvent être utilisés pour obtenir des modèles, pour nos langages, qui soient « pleinement abstraits » par rapport à la sémantique opérationnelle usuelle.
Significance of Data Warehousing and Data Mining in Business Applications

-Information technology is now required in every aspect of our lives which help business and enterprise to make use of applications like decision support system, query and reporting online analytical processing, predictive analysis and business performance management. In this aspect this paper focuses on the significance and role of Data Warehousing and Data Mining technology in business. A Data Warehouse is a central repository of relational database designed for query and analysis. If helps the business organization to consolidate data from different varying sources. These warehouses are analyzed by the latest technique known as Data Mining. In Data Mining data sets will be explored to yield hidden and unknown predictions which can be used in future for the efficient decision making. Now companies use techniques of Data Mining that involves pattern recognition, mathematical and statistical techniques to search Data Warehouses and help the analyst in recognizing significant trends, facts relationships and anomalies.
The Effects of Cold Exposure on Leukocytes, Hormones and Cytokines during Acute Exercise in Humans

The purpose of the study was to examine the effects of exercise on total leukocyte count and subsets, as well as hormone and cytokine responses in a thermoneutral and cold environment, with and without an individualized pre-cooling protocol inducing low-intensity shivering. Nine healthy young men participated in six experimental trials wearing shorts and t-shirts. Participants exercised for 60 min on a treadmill at low (LOW: 50% of peak VO2) and moderate (MOD: 70% VO2peak) exercise intensities in a climatic chamber set at 22°C (NT), and in 0°C (COLD) with and without a pre-exercise low-intensity shivering protocol (SHIV). Core and skin temperature, heart rate and oxygen consumption were collected continuously. Blood samples were collected before and at the end of exercise to assess endocrine and immunological changes. Core temperature in NT was greater than COLD and SHIV by 0.4±0.2°C whereas skin temperature in NT was also greater than COLD and SHIV by 8.5±1.4°C and 9.3±2.5°C respectively in MOD. Total testosterone, adenocorticotropin and cortisol were greater in NT vs. COLD and SHIV in MOD. Norepinephrine was greater in NT vs. other conditions across intensities. Interleukin-2, IL-5, IL-7, IL-10, IL-17, IFN-γ, Rantes, Eotaxin, IP-10, MIP-1β, MCP-1, VEGF, PDGF, and G-CSF were elevated in NT vs. COLD and/or SHIV. Furthermore, IFN-γ, MIP-1β, MCP-1, IL-10, VEGF, and PDGF demonstrate greater concentrations in SHIV vs. COLD, mainly in the MOD condition. This study demonstrated that exercising in the cold can diminish the exercise-induced systemic inflammatory response seen in a thermoneutral environment. Nonetheless, prolonged cooling inducing shivering thermogenesis prior to exercise, may induce an immuno-stimulatory response following moderate intensity exercise. Performing exercise in cold environments can be a useful strategy in partially inhibiting the acute systemic inflammatory response from exercise but oppositely, additional body cooling may reverse this benefit.
STAT1 Expression in Dendritic Cells, but Not T Cells, Is Required for Immunity to Leishmania major1

The generation of Th1 responses is important for resistance to intracellular pathogens, including the parasite, Leishmania major. Although IFN-γR/STAT1 signaling promotes a Th1 response via the up-regulation of T-bet, the requirement for STAT1 in Th1 cell differentiation remains controversial. Although in some cases Th1 cells develop independently of STAT1, STAT1−/− mice fail to develop a Th1 response during L. major infection. However, the interpretation of this result is complicated by the role STAT1 plays in Ag presentation and, more importantly, in elimination of parasites by macrophages, because both defective Ag presentation and increased parasite burden can influence Th cell development. To resolve this issue, we assessed the ability of STAT1−/− T cells to become Th1 cells and protect mice against L. major following adoptive transfer into STAT1-sufficient mice. We found that whereas T-bet is critical for the differentiation of protective Th1 cells during L. major infection, IFN-γR and STAT1 are dispensable. Given that a STAT1-independent Th1 cell response was generated by STAT1-sufficient APCs, but not by STAT1−/− cells, we next addressed whether dendritic cells (DCs) require STAT1 signaling to effectively present Ag. We found that STAT1−/− DCs had impaired up-regulation of MHC and costimulatory molecules, and, as a consequence, the absence of STAT1 resulted in reduced Th1 cell priming. Taken together, these results demonstrate that T cell expression of STAT1 is not required for the development of Th1 cells protective against L. major and instead stress the importance of STAT1 signaling in DCs for the optimal induction of Th1 responses.
Offline Washing Schemes for Residue Removal in Digital Microfluidic Biochips

A digital microfluidic biochip (DMB) is often deployed for multiplexing several assays in space and in time. The residue left by one assay may contaminate the droplets used for subsequent assays. Biochemical assays involving cell culture and those based on particle microfluidics also require sweeping of residual media from an active droplet on-chip. Thus, fluidic operations such as washing or residue removal need to be performed routinely either to clean contamination from the droplet pathways or to rinse off certain droplets on the chip. In this work, several graph-based techniques are presented for offline washing of biochips that may have either a regular geometry (e.g., a 2D array of electrodes), or an irregular geometry (e.g., an application-specific layout). The schemes can be used for total washing, that is, for cleaning the entire biochip or for selective washing of sites or pathways located sparsely on the chip. The problem of reducing the path length and washing time of the droplets is investigated with or without capacity constraints. The proposed algorithms for offline washing make use of several techniques such as graph traversal, integer linear programming (ILP) modeling, and customized heuristics based on the nature of the geometric distribution of the contamination profile. The contaminated pathways are assumed to be Manhattan or curved, and hence the techniques are applicable to the conventional field-actuated DMBs as well as to the emerging classes of light-actuated and active-matrix DMBs. These techniques will be useful in enhancing the reliability of a wide class of emerging digital microfluidic healthcare devices
Improved Maturity and Ripeness Classifications of Magnifera Indica cv. Harumanis Mangoes through Sensor Fusion of an Electronic Nose and Acoustic Sensor

In recent years, there have been a number of reported studies on the use of non-destructive techniques to evaluate and determine mango maturity and ripeness levels. However, most of these reported works were conducted using single-modality sensing systems, either using an electronic nose, acoustics or other non-destructive measurements. This paper presents the work on the classification of mangoes (Magnifera Indica cv. Harumanis) maturity and ripeness levels using fusion of the data of an electronic nose and an acoustic sensor. Three groups of samples each from two different harvesting times (week 7 and week 8) were evaluated by the e-nose and then followed by the acoustic sensor. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and Linear Discriminant Analysis (LDA) were able to discriminate the mango harvested at week 7 and week 8 based solely on the aroma and volatile gases released from the mangoes. However, when six different groups of different maturity and ripeness levels were combined in one classification analysis, both PCA and LDA were unable to discriminate the age difference of the Harumanis mangoes. Instead of six different groups, only four were observed using the LDA, while PCA showed only two distinct groups. By applying a low level data fusion technique on the e-nose and acoustic data, the classification for maturity and ripeness levels using LDA was improved. However, no significant improvement was observed using PCA with data fusion technique. Further work using a hybrid LDA-Competitive Learning Neural Network was performed to validate the fusion technique and classify the samples. It was found that the LDA-CLNN was also improved significantly when data fusion was applied.
Comparative Electropharmacological Actions of Some Constituents from Ginkgo biloba Extract in Guinea-pig Ventricular Cardiomyocytes

Effects of the constituents from Ginkgo biloba extract (GBE) on the action potentials and the ionic currents in guinea pig ventricular cardiomyocytes were investigated using whole-cell and current-clamp techniques. The constituents, ginkgolides A, B, C and quercetin, had depressant effects at 0.1–3μM on the action potential configuration. Ginkgolide A (1–3 μM) prolonged the action potential (action potential duration: APD) at 75% and 90% repolarizations (APD75 and APD90). However, ginkgolides B and C at low concentrations prolonged APD, but at higher concentrations (>1 μM) shortened APD. Quercetin at 3 μM prolonged the APD, but not at the lower concentrations. These constituents also inhibited the Vmax. The resting potential was unaffected. In voltage-clamp experiments, ginkgolides A and B (0.1–3 μM) markedly and concentration-dependently increased the Ca2+ current (ICa) and the delayed rectifier K+ current (IK), and decreased the inwardly rectifying K+ current (IK1). On the other hand, ginkgolide C failed to affect the ICa but increased the IK by 14.0 ± 2.3% (n = 6, P < 0.05) at 1 μM. Quercetin inhibited ICa, and enhanced IK but decreased IK1. These responses to the constituents were almost reversible (80–90% of control) after a 10- to 20-min washout. These results indicate that even at acute administrations, these constituents produce the effective actions on the APD and the underlying ionic currents in cardiomyocytes. Each constituent does not exhibit a uniform response, although GBE acts as a net.
A patient preference comparison of Azarga™ (brinzolamide/timolol fixed combination) vs Cosopt® (dorzolamide/timolol fixed combination) in patients with open-angle glaucoma or ocular hypertension

Purpose To determine patient preference of and ocular discomfort with fixed combination brinzolamide/timolol compared with fixed combination dorzolamide/timolol. Methods In a prospective, double-masked, randomized, active-controlled, crossover, multicenter study, patients received 1 drop of brinzolamide/timolol and dorzolamide/timolol in both eyes on consecutive days in random order. Ocular discomfort was rated 1 minute after instillation of each medication, and preference was noted on Day 2. Adverse events, if any, were solicited at each visit. Results 127 subjects with ocular hypertension or open-angle glaucoma were included in the intent-to-treat analysis. Of the 106 subjects who expressed a drug preference, 79.2% preferred brinzolamide/timolol (p < 0.0001). Ocular discomfort scores were significantly higher with dorzolamide/timolol than brinzolamide/timolol (2.9 vs 1.4, respectively; p < 0.0001). Significantly more patients reported ocular pain and discomfort after dorzolamide/timolol instillation and transient blurred vision after brinzolamide/timolol instillation. Conclusions Patients with ocular hypertension or open-angle glaucoma preferred the brinzolamide/timolol fixed combination over the dorzolamide/timolol fixed combination. This is likely due to the greater ocular discomfort associated with dorzolamide/timolol. The differences in preference, discomfort, and adverse events are likely attributable to formulation differences given the similarities of the active ingredients. Stronger patient preference for brinzolamide/timolol may lead to better therapeutic compliance.
Cancer and Inflammation: Promise for Biologic Therapy

Cancers often arise as the end stage of inflammation in adults, but not in children. As such there is a complex interplay between host immune cells during neoplastic development, with both an ability to promote cancer and limit or eliminate it, most often complicit with the host. In humans, defining inflammation and the presence of inflammatory cells within or surrounding the tumor is a critical aspect of modern pathology. Groups defining staging for neoplasms are strongly encouraged to assess and incorporate measures of the presence of apoptosis, autophagy, and necrosis and also the nature and quality of the immune infiltrate. Both environmental and genetic factors enhance the risk of cigarette smoking, Helicobacter pylori, hepatitis B/C, human papilloma virus, solar irradiation, asbestos, pancreatitis, or other causes of chronic inflammation. Identifying suitable genetic polymorphisms in cytokines, cytokine receptors, and Toll-like receptors among other immune response genes is also seen as high value as genomic sequencing becomes less expensive. Animal models that incorporate and assess not only the genetic anlagen but also the inflammatory cells and the presence of microbial pathogens and damage-associated molecular pattern molecules are necessary. Identifying micro-RNAs involved in regulating the response to damage or injury are seen as highly promising. Although no therapeutic strategies to prevent or treat cancers based on insights into inflammatory pathways are currently approved for the common epithelial malignancies, there remains substantial interest in agents targeting COX2 or PPARγ, ethyl pyruvate and steroids, and several novel agents on the horizon.
Enhanced Absorption and Growth Inhibition with Amino Acid Monoester Prodrugs of Floxuridine by Targeting hPEPT1 Transporters

A series of amino acid monoester prodrugs of floxuridine was synthesized and evaluated for the improvement of oral bioavailability and the feasibility of target drug delivery via oligopeptide transporters. All floxuridine 5′-amino acid monoester prodrugs exhibited PEPT1 affinity, with inhibition coefficients of Gly-Sar uptake (IC50) ranging from 0.7 – 2.3 mM in Caco-2 and 2.0 – 4.8 mM in AsPC-1 cells, while that of floxuridine was 7.3 mM and 6.3 mM, respectively. Caco-2 membrane permeabilities of floxuridine prodrugs (1.01 – 5.31 x 10-6 cm/sec) and floxuridine (0.48 x 10-6 cm/sec) were much higher than that of 5-FU (0.038 x 10-6 cm/sec). MDCK cells stably transfected with the human oligopeptide transporter PEPT1 (MDCK/hPEPT1) exhibited enhanced cell growth inhibition in the presence of the prodrugs. This prodrug strategy offers great potential, not only for increased drug absorption but also for improved tumor selectivity and drug efficacy.