Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
DYNAMICAL EFFECTS OF NOISE ON NONLINEAR SYSTEMS

DYNAMICAL EFFECTS OF NOISE ON NONLINEAR SYSTEMS OZER DUMAN M.S. in Physics Supervisor: Assist. Prof. Dr. Giovanni Volpe August, 2014 Randomness and nonlinear dynamics consitute the most essential part of many events in nature. Therefore, a better and comprehensive understanding of them is a crucial step in describing natural phenomena as well as the prospect of predicting their future outcome. Besides the interest from a fundamental point of view, it is also useful in a wide variety of applications requiring delicate and careful use of energy. Especially recent advances in microand nano-scale technology requires harnessing the underlying noise itself as it is relatively hard to exert forces without damaging the system at that scale. The main aim of this work is to study the effects of noise on nonlinear dynamics. We show that the interplay between noise, nonlinearity and nonequilibrium conditions leads to a finite drift with the potential to change the dynamics of the system completely in a predictable and tunable fashion. We report that the noise-induced drift disrupts the phase space of a 2-D nonlinear system by shifting the fixed point by a finite amount which may result in dramatic alterations over the temporal behavior of the system. We track such alterations to several multi-dimensional model systems from ecology, soft matter and statistical physics. In a 2-D ecological model describing two species competing for the same resource, it is found that the system switches between coexistence and extinction states depending on the shift due to the noise-induced drift whereas for an aggregate of Brownian particles, it is shown that noise-induced drift selectively shifts the probability distribution in certain geometries which can be used in the realization of a microparticle sorter in the mould of Feynman ratchets. In the case of the aggregate consisting of microswimmers, tunable anomalous diffusion depending on the confinement length is reported.
Electroacupuncture Attenuates Fibromyalgia Pain via Toll-like Receptor 4 in the Mouse Brain

Background: Fibromyalgia (FM) is characterized by complex pain symptoms lacking impersonal considerations in diagnosis and treatment evaluation, which often happens in women. Chronic and persistent widespread pain is the key symptom disturbing patients with FM, leading to depression, obesity, and sleep disturbances. Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) activation produces a harmful sensory input involved in central pain; this is the focus of this study. Electroacupuncture (EA) has beneficial effects in reducing FM pain, but its connection with TLR4 signaling is still unknown. Methods: Intermittent cold stress significantly induced mechanical and thermal pain. EA, but not sham EA, reliably attenuated mechanical and thermal hyperalgesia. The increased inflammatory mediators in FM mice were reduced in the EA group, but not in the sham group. Results: All TLR4 and related molecule levels increased in the FM mice’s hypothalamus, periaqueductal gray (PAG), and cerebellum. These increases could be attenuated by EA but not sham stimulation. Activation of TLR4 by lipopolysaccharide (LPS) significantly induced FM and can be further reversed by a TLR4 antagonist. Conclusions: These mechanisms provide evidence that the analgesic effect of EA is related to the TLR4 pathway. In addition, we showed that inflammation can activate the TLR4 pathway and provided new possible therapeutic targets for FM pain.
Iron Deficiency and Iron Deficiency Anemia in Women with and without Obesity: NHANES 2001–2006

Obesity has been linked to numerous health and nutritional problems, including impaired iron metabolism, a common cause of anemia. We aimed to determine the prevalence of anemia, iron deficiency (ID), and iron deficiency anemia (IDA) among women aged 20–49 years based on body mass index (BMI) status. We used measures of iron status and body mass index from the 2001–2006 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). Mean serum ferritin, erythrocyte protoporphyrin, and soluble transferrin receptor were higher, while those of serum iron, percent transferrin saturation, and mean cell volume (MCV) were lower in women with obesity than those with normal weight (all p < 0.016). ID based on the ferritin model was 12.5 ± 1.0% vs. 22.9 ± 1.6% (p < 0.001); 9.0 ± 0.9% vs. 20.0 ± 1.3% (p < 0.001) based on the MCV model; and 8.1 ± 1.0% vs. 10.5 ± 1.2% (p > 0.05) based on the BII model for women with normal weight and women with obesity, respectively. Anemia prevalence was 5.5 ± 0.8% (normal) vs. 9.3 ± 1.0% (obese) (p = 0.005). The IDA estimates based on the ferritin and MCV models were similar but higher than that from the BII model (p < 0.001). Generally, the prevalence rates of ID and anemia (and IDA) were higher for women with obesity, but the method used to define deficiency mattered. The choice of iron indices is important for estimating ID and IDA in populations with obesity.
Antioxidant Activities of Natural Compounds from Caribbean Plants to Enhance Diabetic Wound Healing

Diabetic wound healing is a global medical challenge. Several studies showed that delayed healing in diabetic patients is multifactorial. Nevertheless, there is evidence that excessive production of ROS and impaired ROS detoxification in diabetes are the main cause of chronic wounds. Indeed, increased ROS promotes the expression and activity of metalloproteinase, resulting in a high proteolytic state in the wound with significant destruction of the extracellular matrix, which leads to a stop in the repair process. In addition, ROS accumulation increases NLRP3 inflammasome activation and macrophage hyperpolarization in the M1 pro-inflammatory phenotype. Oxidative stress increases the activation of NETosis. This leads to an elevated pro-inflammatory state in the wound and prevents the resolution of inflammation, an essential step for wound healing. The use of medicinal plants and natural compounds can improve diabetic wound healing by directly targeting oxidative stress and the transcription factor Nrf2 involved in the antioxidant response or the mechanisms impacted by the elevation of ROS such as NLRP3 inflammasome, the polarization of macrophages, and expression or activation of metalloproteinases. This study of the diabetic pro-healing activity of nine plants found in the Caribbean highlights, more particularly, the role of five polyphenolic compounds. At the end of this review, research perspectives are presented.
Development and Earliest Validation of a Portable Device for Quantification of Hallux Extension Strength (QuHalEx)

Hallux strength is associated with sports performance and balance across the lifespan, and independently predicts falls in older adults. In rehabilitation, Medical Research Council (MRC) Manual Muscle Testing (MMT) is the clinical standard for hallux strength assessment, but subtle weakness and longitudinal changes in strength may go undetected. To address the need for research-grade yet clinically feasible options, we designed a new load cell device and testing protocol to Quantify Hallux Extension strength (QuHalEx). We aim to describe the device, protocol and initial validation. In benchtop testing, we used eight precision weights to apply known loads from 9.81 to 78.5 N. In healthy adults, we performed three maximal isometric tests for hallux extension and flexion on the right and left sides. We calculated the Intraclass Correlation Coefficient (ICC) with 95% confidence interval and descriptively compared our isometric force–time output to published parameters. QuHalEx benchtop absolute error ranged from 0.02 to 0.41 (mean 0.14) N. Benchtop and human intrasession output was repeatable (ICC 0.90–1.00, p < 0.001). Hallux strength in our sample (n = 38, age 33.5 ± 9.6 years, 53% female, 55% white) ranged from 23.1 to 82.0 N peak extension force and 32.0 to 142.4 N peak flexion, and differences of ~10 N (15%) between toes of the same MRC grade (5) suggest that QuHalEx is able to detect subtle weakness and interlimb asymmetries that are missed by MMT. Our results support ongoing QuHalEx validation and device refinement with a longer-term goal of widespread clinical and research application.
Model checking of emergent behaviour properties of robot swarms

This paper presents a case study on scalability of explicit state model checking. Three state space reduction methods - state vector compression, bit state hashing, and symmetry reduction - were applied on an exercise with the objective of verifying a distributed coordination algorithm for robot swarms. Based on the analysis results, the feasibility of using explicit state model checking to prove properties of large multi-agent systems is questioned and the limitations faced in verifying a dynamic cleaning algorithm are outlined.
Output Feedback Control of Fuzzy Systems via Reduced-Order Approximation Technique

This article focuses on the problem of designing the reduced-order dynamic output feedback (DOF) controller for discrete-time T–S fuzzy plants. Differing from the existing methodologies, the reduced-order approximation technique is applied to simplify the pregiven high-order DOF controller. The key point is to construct a reduced-order closed-loop model to approximate the original high-order closed-loop system. First, a new error auxiliary system between the high-order closed-loop system and the reduced-order closed-loop model is obtained. The sufficient conditions to guarantee that the corresponding error system is asymptotically stable with a prescribed $\mathcal {H}_{\infty }$ performance index are developed. Then, the parameters of the desired reduced-order controller are derived by utilizing the projection lemma and the cone complementary linearization algorithm. Finally, the advantages of the proposed technique are illustrated by a series of simulation analysis.
Testing for Shifts in the Vertical Distribution of Plankton Using a Robust Kolmogorov-Smirnov Like Statistic

Ecological communities often occur along important physical gradients such as altitude, moisture, and light. The two sample Kolmogorov-Smirnov statistic can be used to test for equality of two population abundance profiles along a gradient. Standard Monte Carlo methods demonstrate the well known fact that this procedure is highly sensitive to the presence of extra-multinomial variation-that is, local population patchiness. However, the distribution of a scaled version of the Kolmogorov-Smirnov test statistic is shown to be insensitive to large departures from the simple random sampling assumption. The procedure was developed to investigate day-night shifts in the vertical distribution of zooplankton.
Generalized inverted exponential distribution under progressive first-failure censoring

This article deals with progressive first-failure censoring, which is a generalization of progressive censoring. We derive maximum likelihood estimators of the unknown parameters and reliability characteristics of generalized inverted exponential distribution using progressive first-failure censored samples. The asymptotic confidence intervals and coverage probabilities for the parameters are obtained based on the observed Fisher's information matrix. Bayes estimators of the parameters and reliability characteristics under squared error loss function are obtained using the Lindley approximation and importance sampling methods. Also, highest posterior density credible intervals for the parameters are computed using importance sampling procedure. A Monte Carlo simulation study is conducted to analyse the performance of the estimators derived in the article. A real data set is discussed for illustration purposes. Finally, an optimal censoring scheme has been suggested using different optimality criteria.
Squeezing mechanical motion of graphene resonator

Parametric effects in mechanical resonator have been studied recently. Most of the recent studies are focused in the engineering of the parametric modulation in order to beat the so called 3 dB limit and achieve the quantum squeezed state. Here we report on squeezing of the motion of a graphene nanomechanical resonator, through parametric modulation. We obtained squeezing efficiency up to 3 dB, limited by the squeezing scheme. We show that this squeezing scheme can be combined with optomechanical cooling, in order to achieve very low phonon occupation in one of the two quadratures of the resonator.
Impact of pre-sowing red laser irradiation of corn seeds on quality and quantity of harvest yield

As the population increases, more people need to be fed. In order to find a physical method that influence the corn production, this work is dedicated to evaluating the impact of pre-sowing red laser irradiation of corn (Zea mays L.) seeds on harvest yield. The aim was to analyze the influence of red laser radiation on corn seeds, on the quantity and quality of yield, on large-scale and open field production. It is hypothesized that at least one red laser irradiation treatment could improve corn crop yield. In radiation, a red laser diode at 660 nm with a power of 100 mW was used, two radiation densities were used (D1: 2 mW cm-2 and D2: 4 mW cm-2), applied during 4 exposure times (T1: 15, T2: 30, T3: 60 and T4: 120 s) and a control group without treatment (C). A random arrangement was used, in a 2 x 4 factorial scheme, totaling 8 treatments and control, with four replications. The data were subjected to an ANOVA and the means were compared with the Tukey test (HSD; p ≤ 0.05). The D2-T4 treatment produced the most significant impact concerning the control, improving yield by 19±1% (3 t ha-1), cob length 18±1%, cob diameter 22±3%, weight (16±2%) and corn kernels size (14±2%). We also find negative effects on yield, D2-T1 decreased crop yield around 16±1% (2.24 t ha-1). The results show a way to include this technique as a technique that can to increase or decrease corn yield. Keywords: Cob length; Maize; open field; Thousand kernel weight.
Genetic and Other Determinants for the Severity of Coccidioidomycosis: A Clinician’s Perspective

The endemic fungal infection, coccidioidomycosis, occurs after inhalation of one or very few Coccidioides spp. spores. Infections produce diverse clinical manifestations, ranging from insignificant to extremely destructive, even fatal. Approaches to understanding this range of consequences have traditionally categorized patients into a small number of groups (asymptomatic, uncomplicated self-limited, fibro-cavitary, and extra-thoracic disseminated) and then looked for immunologic differences among them. Recently, variants within genes of innate pathways have been found to account, in part, for infections that result in disseminated disease. This discovery raises the very attractive theory that, in patients without severe immunosuppression, much of the disease spectrum can be accounted for by various combinations of such deleterious variants in innate pathways. In this review, we summarize what is known about genetic determinants that are responsible for the severity of coccidioidal infections and how complex innate genetic differences among different people might account for the spectrum of disease observed clinically.
New Generalized p-Value Approach for Noninferiority Analysis

The underlying statistical exercise in some noninferiority studies is to test a composite null hypothesis of a nonzero difference in the means of two normally distributed populations. These noninferiority studies are often analyzed under equal variances assumption. Unequal variances frequently occur in practice. In this article, we propose a noncentral t-distribution-based generalized test for proving noninferiority in the presence of unequal variances. We provide a simple SAS IML code to calculate the new generalized p-value. We compare the new generalized p-value with that of the Student's central t-distribution-based Tsui–Weerahandi generalized test. We conclude that Tsui–Weerahandi generalized test is conservative.
Self-preservation in a zero pressure gradient rough-wall turbulent boundary layer

A self-preservation (SP) analysis is carried out for a zero pressure gradient (ZPG) rough-wall turbulent boundary layer with a view to establishing the requirements of complete SP (i.e. SP across the entire layer) and determining if these are achievable. The analysis shows that SP is achievable in certain rough-wall boundary layers (irrespectively of the Reynolds number $Re$ ), when the mean viscous stress is zero or negligible compared to the form drag across the entire boundary layer. In this case, the velocity scale $u^{\ast }$ must be constant, the length scale $l$ should vary linearly with the streamwise distance $x$ and the roughness height $k$ must be proportional to $l$ . Although this result is consistent with that of Rotta (Prog. Aeronaut. Sci., vol. 2 (1), 1962, pp. 1–95), it is derived in a more rigorous manner than the method employed by Rotta. Further, it is noted that complete SP is not possible in a smooth-wall ZPG turbulent boundary layer. The SP conditions are tested against published experimental data on both a smooth wall (Kulandaivelu, 2012, PhD thesis, The University of Melbourne) and a rough wall, where the roughness height increases linearly with $x$ (Kameda et al., J. Fluid Sci. Technol., vol. 3 (1), 2008, pp. 31–42). Complete SP in a ZPG rough-wall turbulent boundary layer seems indeed possible when $k\propto x$ .
Stability analysis of Lure systems under aperiodic sampled‐data control

This article deals with the stability analysis of Lure type systems through aperiodic sampled‐data control laws, where the nonlinearity is assumed to be both sector and slope restricted. The proposed method is based on the use of a new class of looped‐functionals, which depends on the nonlinearity and its slope, and on a generalized Lure type function, that is quadratic on both the states and the nonlinearity and has a Lure‐Postnikov integral term. On this basis, conditions in the form of linear matrix inequalities to certify global or regional asymptotic stability of the closed‐loop system are obtained. These conditions are then used in optimization problems for computing the maximum intersampling interval or the maximum sector bounds for which the stability of the sampled‐data closed‐loop system is guaranteed. Numerical examples to illustrate the results are provided.
Effects on Glyco-Metabolic Control after 12 Months of Treatment with a Supplement of Ilex Paraguariensis, White Mulberry and Chromium Picolinate in Non-Diabetic Patients with Dysglycemia

The primary endpoint of the current study was to evaluate whether the effects previously demonstrated in the 3-month study could be maintained for 12 months. Patients were randomized to take Glicoset® in addition to a standardized diet, or to follow a standardized diet alone for 12 months. Glicoset® was self-administered once a day, 1 tablet during the breakfast. After 12 months, 31.9 % of patients retuned to a normal glycemic status in the group treated with nutraceutical + diet vs 3.3 % of patients in diet alone group (p < 0.05). At the end of the study 43.6% were classified as IFG in the group treated with nutraceutical + diet group vs 37% in diet alone group (p < 0.05). In the group treated with nutraceutical + diet, 24.5% were classified as IGT at the end of the study vs 51.1% in diet alone group (p < 0.01). In diet alone group, 8.7% developed type 2 diabetes mellitus vs 0 patients in diet + nutraceutical group (p < 0.05). Total cholesterol, LDL-C, and Tg were lower in the group treated with the nutraceutical combination. The positive effects on glycemic and lipid profile already showed in a 3 months study were also maintained after 12 months of treatment with a nutraceutical containing Ilex Paraguariensis, White Mulberry and Chromium Picolinate.
Riemannian Structures Subordinate to Certain Almost Tangent Structures

Almost tangent structures have been studied by Eliopoulos [1] and certain Riemannian structures subordinate to almost tangent structures have been studied by Closs [2]. In this paper we investigate those subordinate Riemannian structures for which the underlying almost tangent structure is without torsion and those for which the fundamental form is closed. Similar studies have been carried out with respect to Riemannian structures subordinate to almost complex structures by Lichnerowicz [4] and with respect to Riemannian structures subordinate to almost product structures by Legrand [5].
A Protocol for the Automatic Construction of Highly Curated Genome-Scale Models of Human Metabolism

Genome-scale metabolic models (GEMs) have emerged as a tool to understand human metabolism from a holistic perspective with high relevance in the study of many diseases and in the metabolic engineering of human cell lines. GEM building relies on either automated processes that lack manual refinement and result in inaccurate models or manual curation, which is a time-consuming process that limits the continuous update of reliable GEMs. Here, we present a novel algorithm-aided protocol that overcomes these limitations and facilitates the continuous updating of highly curated GEMs. The algorithm enables the automatic curation and/or expansion of existing GEMs or generates a highly curated metabolic network based on current information retrieved from multiple databases in real time. This tool was applied to the latest reconstruction of human metabolism (Human1), generating a series of the human GEMs that improve and expand the reference model and generating the most extensive and comprehensive general reconstruction of human metabolism to date. The tool presented here goes beyond the current state of the art and paves the way for the automatic reconstruction of a highly curated, up-to-date GEM with high potential in computational biology as well as in multiple fields of biological science where metabolism is relevant.
Efficient and Effective Nonconvex Low-Rank Subspace Clustering via SVT-Free Operators

With the growing interest in convex and nonconvex low-rank matrix learning problems, the widely used singular value thresholding (SVT) operators associated with rank relaxation functions often face higher computational complexity, particularly for large-scale data matrices. To improve the efficacy of low-rank subspace clustering and overcome the issue of high computational complexity, this work proposes an efficient and effective method that avoids the need for singular value decomposition (SVD) computations in the iteration scheme. This can be achieved through the use of a computationally efficient and compact formulation, as well as automatic removal of the optimal mean, which reduces time consumption and enhances evaluation performance. A unified clustering framework based on Schatten-<inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$p$ </tex-math></inline-formula> norm regularized by <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\ell _{2,q}$ </tex-math></inline-formula>-norm can be formulated using this processing way, where inner element suppression can be achieved by choosing appropriate <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$p$ </tex-math></inline-formula>, <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$q \in (0,1)$ </tex-math></inline-formula>. Additionally, calculating the optimal mean enhances the robustness of the proposed method in the presence of outliers. Unlike the general iteration scheme of the alternating direction method of multiplier (ADMM) algorithms that introduce auxiliary splitting variables, the proposed alternating re-weighted least square (ARwLS) algorithm uses matrix inverse and multiplication computations to obtain analytic solutions, resulting in faster processing speeds for each sub-problem. To further investigate, we provide the computational complexity of each iteration and the theoretical analysis of the convergence property, where the derived solution is a stationary point. Experimental results on synthetic data and several benchmark datasets demonstrate the promising efficiency and efficacy of the proposed clustering method compared to classical and competing algorithms.