Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Evaluation of fetal intracranial anatomy by static and real‐time ultrasound

Improvements in ultrasound technology have now made possible detailed visualization of fetal intracranial anatomy. Structures such as the midbrain, thalami, and lateral ventricles can be routinely imaged. Measurements of the ratio between lateral ventricular width and cerebral hemispheric width demonstrate a steady decrease from a mean of 56% at 15 wk gestation to 28% at term reflecting the relatively more rapid growth of the cerebral hemispheres as compared with the cerebral ventricles. Application of this new ultrasound data greatly facilitates accurate and consistent biparietal diameter estimations and early diagnosis of fetal hydrocephalus and other fetal cranial anomalies. This article describes the axial fetal cranial anatomy as demonstrated sonically and includes a table for normal fetal ventricular size at various gestational ages, based on evaluation of 196 normal fetuses. Some of the more common fetal cranial anomalies amenable to ultrasound diagnosis in utero are discussed.
Modeling and simulation of vehicle steer by wire system

The steer by wire system offer many benefits compare with conventional steering system. By eliminating the mechanical linkage of column shaft between the steering wheel and the front wheel system, it gives more space efficiency, fuel efficiency in term of functionality and at the same time present challenges to the designer. Many researchers have done their control strategy on steer by wire system in past recent years. This paper presents the control strategy for the wheel synchronization and the variable steering ratio. Mathematical modeling was created for steering wheel and front wheel model. The steering wheel and the front wheel system is control using PID controller and introduce a new feedforward variable steering ratio based on under propensity equation method. A simulation was made and compared in order to analysis the system performance.
Instrumental Conditioning Driven by Neutral Stimuli : A Model Tested with a Simulated Robotic Rat

Current models of reinforcement learning are based on the assumption that learning must be guided by rewarding (unconditioned) stimuli. On the other hand, there is empirical evidence that dopamine bursts, which are commonly considered as the reinforcement learning signals, can also be triggered by apparently neutral stimuli, and that this can lead to conditioning phenomena in absence of any rewarding stimuli. In this paper we present a computational model, based on an hypothesis proposed in Redgrave and Gurney (2006), in which dopamine release is directly triggered by the superior colliculus (a dorsal midbrain structure) when it detects novel visual stimuli and this supports instrumental conditioning similarly to that usually ascribed to rewarding stimuli. The model incorporates various biological constraints, for example the anatomical and physiological data related to the micro-architecture of the superior colliculus presented in Binns and Salt (1997). The model is validated by reproducing with a simulated robotic rat the results of an experiment with real rats on the role of intrinsically reinforcing properties of apparently neutral stimuli reported in Reed et al. (1996).
Challenges for Tourism in Natural Areas – Cost of Carbon and Natural Disasters

Tourism involves travel, and travelling is inherently dependent on carbon-based fuel. The low cost of carbon fuels resulted in massive expansions of global tourism with many countries now depending on tourism exports for their national economies. However, oil is a finite resource and tourism’s dependence on it creates major vulnerabilities. It is also increasingly recognised that to combat man-made global climate change it is essential to put a price on carbon, for example through carbon taxes or Emissions Trading Schemes. The implications of a diminishing availability of cheap carbon-based fuel are extremely complex and far reaching, both for society as a whole and for tourism.
Robust Cooperative Spectrum Sensing for MIMO Cognitive Radio Networks Under CSI Uncertainty

This paper considers the problem of cooperative spectrum sensing in multiuser multiple-input multiple-output cognitive radio networks considering the presence of uncertainty in the channel state information (CSI) of the secondary user channels available at the fusion center. Several schemes are proposed that employ cooperative decision rules based on local sensor decisions transmitted to the fusion center by the cooperating nodes over an orthogonal multiple access channel. First, fusion rules are derived under perfect CSI at the fusion center for both antipodal and nonantipodal signaling. Then, a robust detector, termed the uncertainty statistics-based likelihood ratio test, which optimally combines the decisions of different secondary users, is obtained for scenarios with CSI uncertainty. A generalized likelihood ratio test based robust detector is also derived for this scenario. Closed-form expressions are obtained to characterize the probabilities of false alarm <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$(P_{\text{FA}})$ </tex-math></inline-formula> and detection <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$(P_D)$</tex-math> </inline-formula> at the fusion center. Simulation results are presented to compare the performance of the proposed schemes with that of the conventional uncertainty agnostic detectors and also to corroborate the analytical expressions developed.
Evolution of Taxis Responses in Virtual Bacteria: Non-Adaptive Dynamics

Bacteria are able to sense and respond to a variety of external stimuli, with responses that vary from stimuli to stimuli and from species to species. The best-understood is chemotaxis in the model organism Escherichia coli, where the dynamics and the structure of the underlying pathway are well characterised. It is not clear, however, how well this detailed knowledge applies to mechanisms mediating responses to other stimuli or to pathways in other species. Furthermore, there is increasing experimental evidence that bacteria integrate responses from different stimuli to generate a coherent taxis response. We currently lack a full understanding of the different pathway structures and dynamics and how this integration is achieved. In order to explore different pathway structures and dynamics that can underlie taxis responses in bacteria, we perform a computational simulation of the evolution of taxis. This approach starts with a population of virtual bacteria that move in a virtual environment based on the dynamics of the simple biochemical pathways they harbour. As mutations lead to changes in pathway structure and dynamics, bacteria better able to localise with favourable conditions gain a selective advantage. We find that a certain dynamics evolves consistently under different model assumptions and environments. These dynamics, which we call non-adaptive dynamics, directly couple tumbling probability of the cell to increasing stimuli. Dynamics that are adaptive under a wide range of conditions, as seen in the chemotaxis pathway of E. coli, do not evolve in these evolutionary simulations. However, we find that stimulus scarcity and fluctuations during evolution results in complex pathway dynamics that result both in adaptive and non-adaptive dynamics depending on basal stimuli levels. Further analyses of evolved pathway structures show that effective taxis dynamics can be mediated with as few as two components. The non-adaptive dynamics mediating taxis responses provide an explanation for experimental observations made in mutant strains of E. coli and in wild-type Rhodobacter sphaeroides that could not be explained with standard models. We speculate that such dynamics exist in other bacteria as well and play a role linking the metabolic state of the cell and the taxis response. The simplicity of mechanisms mediating such dynamics makes them a candidate precursor of more complex taxis responses involving adaptation. This study suggests a strong link between stimulus conditions during evolution and evolved pathway dynamics. When evolution was simulated under conditions of scarce and fluctuating stimulus conditions, the evolved pathway contained features of both adaptive and non-adaptive dynamics, suggesting that these two types of dynamics can have different advantages under distinct environmental circumstances.
Milk Marketing Order Winners and Losers

Do milk marketing orders affect various demographic groups differently? To answer this question, we use supermarket scanner data to estimate an incomplete demand system for dairy products. Based on these estimates, we simulate substitution effects among dairy products and the welfare impacts of price changes resulting from changes in milk marketing orders for various consumer groups. While we find little difference in own- and cross-price substitution elasticities of demand, the welfare effects of price changes vary substantially across demographic groups, with some losing and others winning from this government program. Families with young children suffer from marketing orders, while wealthier childless couples benefit. Additionally, we find that households with lower incomes pay a larger percentage of their income due to marketing orders than those with higher income levels.
Rubella immune status among immigrant and nonimmigrant women in Spain

A cross‐sectional study of seroprevalence of rubella antibodies was carried out in all immigrant pregnant women (1,627) from February 2006 to June 2010. For each immigrant woman one Spanish pregnant woman was recruited. The seroprevalence of IgG antibodies against rubella in immigrant women was 92% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 90.4–93.3), and in native women was 97.7% (95%CI: 96.7–98.4) (P < 0.001). Immunity against was lowest among women from Latin America (odds ratio [OR]: 0.17), followed by women from Asia (OR: 0.20), Sub‐Saharan Africa (OR: 0.27) and Northern Africa (OR: 0.37). Female immigrants from developing countries should be targeted for immunization to reduce the risk of congenital rubella. J. Med. Virol. 84:548–550, 2012. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Discriminative Descriptor-Based Observation Model for Visual Tracking

Varying illumination and partial occlusion are two main difficulties in visual tracking. Existing methods based on appearance information cannot solve these problems effectively since appearance is sensitive to lighting and the appearances under occlusions are quite different. In this paper, we propose a descriptor-based dynamic tracking approach that can track objects under partial occlusions and varying illumination. Instead of global appearance, an object is represented by a set of invariant feature descriptors that are generated from local regions around some salient points. By integrating the local descriptor information into the observation model, our method is effective under varying illumination and partial occlusions
Transcriptional regulation of myeloid‐derived suppressor cells

Myeloid‐derived suppressor cells are a heterogeneous group of pathologically activated immature cells that play a major role in the negative regulation of the immune response in cancer, autoimmunity, many chronic infections, and inflammatory conditions, as well as in the regulation of tumor angiogenesis, tumor cell invasion, and metastases. Accumulation of myeloid‐derived suppressor cells is governed by a network of transcriptional regulators that could be combined into 2 partially overlapping groups: factors promoting myelopoiesis and preventing differentiation of mature myeloid cells and factors promoting pathologic activation of myeloid‐derived suppressor cells. In this review, we discuss the specific nature of these factors and their impact on myeloid‐derived suppressor cell development.
Characterization of Surface-Treated Coir Fiber Obtained from Environmental Friendly Bioextraction

This study presents an ecofriendly color improvement method for clean bioextracted coir fiber with biogas recovery. The fiber samples were subjected to treatment with hydrogen peroxide (H2O2)and were optimized at 0.08% with 1:10 fiber to water ratio for 24 h. Combination treatments with (nitric acid) HNO3 and H2O2 were also studied, and matching color of H2O2 treatment at 0.08% was resulted by the treatment of the fiber with 0.016 N HNO3 and 0.03% H2O2, respectively. There was no significant difference in mechanical properties of the samples. The scanning electron microscopic studies of the samples could show significant improvement of surface finish by the treatments.
Studies of material and process compatibility in developing compact silicon vapor chambers

The performance and long-term reliability of a silicon vapor chamber (SVC) developed for thermal management of high-power electronics critically depend on compatibility of the component materials. A hermetically sealed SVC presented in this paper is composed of bulk silicon, glass-frit as a bonding agent, lead/tin solder as an interface sealant and a copper charging tube. These materials, in the presence of a water/vapor environment, may chemically react and release noncondensable gas (NCG), which can weaken structural strength and degrade the heat transfer performance with time. The present work reports detailed studies on chemical compatibility of the components and potential solutions to avoid the resulting thermal performance degradation. Silicon surface oxidation and purification of operating liquid are necessary steps to reduce performance degradation in the transient period. A lead-based solder with its low reflow temperature is found to be electrochemically stable in water/vapor environment. High glazing temperature solidifies molecular bonding in glass-frit and mitigates PbO precipitation. Numerous liquid flushes guarantee removal of chemical residual after the charging tube is soldered to SVC. With these improvements on the SVC material and process compatibility, high effective thermal conductivity and steady heat transfer performance are obtained.
LXRs control lipid-inducible expression of the apolipoprotein E gene in macrophages and adipocytes.

Apolipoprotein E (apoE) secreted by macrophages in the artery wall exerts an important protective effect against the development of atherosclerosis, presumably through its ability to promote lipid efflux. Previous studies have shown that increases in cellular free cholesterol levels stimulate apoE transcription in macrophages and adipocytes; however, the molecular basis for this regulation is unknown. Recently, Taylor and colleagues [Shih, S. J., Allan, C. , Grehan, S. , Tse, E. , Moran, C. & Taylor, J. M. (2000) J. Biol. Chem. 275, 31567-31572] identified two enhancers from the human apoE gene, termed multienhancer 1 (ME.1) and multienhancer 2 (ME.2), that direct macrophage- and adipose-specific expression in transgenic mice. We demonstrate here that the nuclear receptors LXRalpha and LXRbeta and their oxysterol ligands are key regulators of apoE expression in both macrophages and adipose tissue. We show that LXR/RXR heterodimers regulate apoE transcription directly, through interaction with a conserved LXR response element present in both ME.1 and ME.2. Moreover, we demonstrate that the ability of oxysterols and synthetic ligands to regulate apoE expression in adipose tissue and peritoneal macrophages is reduced in Lxralpha-/- or Lxrbeta-/- mice and abolished in double knockouts. Basal expression of apoE is not compromised in Lxr null mice, however, indicating that LXRs mediate lipid-inducible rather than tissue-specific expression of this gene. Together with our previous work, these findings support a central role for LXR signaling pathways in the control of macrophage cholesterol efflux through the coordinate regulation of apoE, ABCA1, and ABCG1 expression.
Partitioning locomotor energy use among and within muscles Muscle blood flow as a measure of muscle oxygen consumption

SUMMARY Linking the mechanics and energetics of locomotion in vertebrates has been hampered by a lack of information regarding the energy use of individual skeletal muscles in vivo. Here, we present a review of the available data concerning the relationship between the rates of skeletal muscle blood flow and oxygen consumption (V̇O2). In active muscle, during aerobically supported exercise, there is a linear relationship between these variables, irrespective of the muscle fiber type and intensity of exercise through most of the aerobic exercise range. We conclude that the rate of blood flow is the best available indicator of aerobic metabolic rate in multiple individual muscles or regions of muscles during locomotion. The practical considerations of using the injectable microsphere technique to measure muscle blood flow in this context are discussed.
Titanium, Niobium, Zirconium, and Tantalum for Medical and Surgical Applications

/ (cid:4) ), Ti-6Al-4V ELI ( (cid:2) / (cid:4) ), and (cid:4) -Ti-15Mo. The first paper compared the slow strain rate stress corrosion cracking (SCC) of these alloys with and without a notch. Results showed no differences in SCC in distilled water and Ringers solution in either smooth or notched samples and analysis of fracture surfaces showed no SCC morphology. The paper by Roach et al. compared tension-tension corrosion fatigue (CF) of these same alloys under the same conditions as the previous paper. The results of this research showed no effect of testing media on the fatigue of smooth or notched samples but a pronounced effect of the notch with a reduction in fatigue properties for all alloys evaluated. The final paper of the session (Zardiackas et al.) examined the effect of anodization on the CF and SCC of Grade 4 CP titanium with high oxygen content. Results showed no difference in any of the properties evaluated regardless of whether samples were anodized or not anodized.
Evaluation of antimicrobial activity of extracts of Tibouchina candolleana (melastomataceae), isolated compounds and semi-synthetic derivatives against endodontic bacteria

This work describes the phytochemical study of the extracts from aerial parts of Tibouchina candolleana as well as the evaluation of the antimicrobial activity of extracts, isolated compounds, and semi-synthetic derivatives of ursolic acid against endodontic bacteria. HRGC analysis of the n-hexane extract of T. candolleana allowed identification of β-amyrin, α-amyrin, and β-sitosterol as major constituents. The triterpenes ursolic acid and oleanolic acid were isolated from the methylene chloride extract and identified. In addition, the flavonoids luteolin and genistein were isolated from the ethanol extract and identified. The antimicrobial activity was investigated via determination of the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) using the broth microdilution method. Amongst the isolated compounds, ursolic acid was the most effective against the selected endodontic bacteria. As for the semi-synthetic ursolic acid derivatives, only the methyl ester derivative potentiated the activity against Bacteroides fragilis.
Issues on Workflow Specification and Execution

In this paper, we present a three-layered approach to workflow management, where in the first layer, workflows are modeled using the workflow specification approach TRAMs. In the second layer, workflow specifications are mapped into the software architecture model Broker/Services. Workflows are executed by the workflow execution engine EVE that constitutes the third layer. Furthermore, we introduce a new project that aims at enabling interorganizational, market-based workflow management.
Effect of illuminated nifedipine, a potent antioxidant, on intestinal and vascular smooth muscles

1 The effects of nifedipine (Nif) and its illuminated nitroso product nitrosopine (NTP) were investigated on lipid peroxidation, KC1 elevated smooth muscle tension, and ionic currents of single smooth muscle cells. 2 Illumination of Nif at 400–700 nm within 24–48 h changed it completely to a potent antioxidant, NTP. 3 Nif relaxed the KCl‐induced contractions of guinea‐pig taenia caeci and rat aorta and reduced the amplitude of the evoked inward Ca2+ current of taenia caeci cells in a concentration‐dependent manner. NTP (up to 100 μm) was ineffective in this respect. Pretreatment by NTP (10 μm) did not affect the actions of Nif. 4 The evidence suggests that NTP, generated by day‐light illumination from Nif, exerts antioxidant activity but is devoid of voltage‐dependent Ca2+ channel (VDC) blocking property and does not interfere with the action of Nif on the smooth muscle cell membrane VDC.
Effective spreading from multiple leaders identified by percolation in social networks

Social networks constitute a new platform for information propagation, but its success is crucially dependent on the choice of spreaders who initiate the spreading of information. In this paper, we remove edges in a network at random and the network segments into isolated clusters. The most important nodes in each cluster then form a group of influential spreaders, such that news propagating from them would lead to an extensive coverage and minimal redundancy. The method well utilizes the similarities between the pre-percolated state and the coverage of information propagation in each social cluster to obtain a set of distributed and coordinated spreaders. Our tests on the Facebook networks show that this method outperforms conventional methods based on centrality. The suggested way of identifying influential spreaders thus sheds light on a new paradigm of information propagation on social networks.
Hsa_circ_0001649: A circular RNA and potential novel biomarker for hepatocellular carcinoma.

BACKGROUND It has been shown that circular RNA (circRNA) is associated with human cancers, however, few studies have been reported in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). OBJECTIVE To estimate clinical values of a circular RNA, Hsa_circ_0001649, in HCC. METHODS Expression level of hsa_circ_0001649 was detected in HCC and paired adjacent liver tissues by real-time quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reactions (qRT-PCRs). Differences in expression level of hsa_circ_0001649 were analyzed using the paired t-test. Tests were performed between clinical information and hsa_circ_0001649 expression level by analysis of variance (ANOVA) or welch t-test and a receiver operating characteristics (ROC) curve was established to estimate the value of hsa_circ_0001649 expression as a biomarker in HCC. RESULTS hsa_circ_0001649 expression was significantly downregulated in HCC tissues (p = 0.0014) based on an analysis of 89 paired samples of HCC and adjacent liver tissues and the area under the ROC curve (AUC) was 0.63. Furthermore, hsa_circ_0001649 expression was correlated with tumor size (p = 0.045) and the occurrence of tumor embolus (p = 0.017) in HCC. CONCLUSIONS We first found hsa_circ_0001649 was significantly downregulated in HCC. Our findings indicate hsa_circ_0001649 might serve as a novel potential biomarker for HCC and may function in tumorigenesis and metastasis of HCC.
Statistically Delay-Guaranteed, Energy-Optimal Data Delivery Scheme inWireless Sensor Networks

In sensor routing algorithms, energy efficiency is considered as the main concern since every node is battery-powered. However, some sensor applications require high priority feature like delay-guaranteed data deliveries if it is critical to notice important events within a predefined deadline such as in surveillance systems. In this paper, we set up a data delivery scheme making use of variable transmission range and propose a way to determine the optimal transmission range to provide statistical delay bound and energy efficiency. Note that these two metrics are in the tradeoff relation and then, we apply our scheme to GEAR to achieve energy awareness which is critical to extend the lifetime of sensor networks. Furthermore, we identify the delay reaction phenomenon, a big obstacle in providing guaranteed delay, and also propose two experimental counter-plans to remove this phenomenon