Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Lossless compression of biomedical signals by MPEG-4 ALS with enhanced encoding tools

Enhanced encoding tools for MPEG-4 audio lossless coding (ALS) international standard were developed, with the goal of improving compression performance of time-series biomedical data. The multichannel coding (MCC) tool of this standard exploits interchannel redundancies to reduce the bit rate. To improve compression performance with the MCC, we have devised a multichannel linear prediction tool, which achieves around a 0.1% better compression ratio than that of the conventional method. We have also developed an interchannel dependency analysis tool, which performs about 1000 times faster than the conventional one. By combining these tools, biomedical signals are losslessly compressed to about 1/3 in a practical computational load. Compressed biomedical data will be decoded even 100 years from now, because the bitstream still remains compliant with the MPEG standard.
Nuclear spin-3/2 electric quadrupole relaxation as a quantum computation process

In this work we applied a quantum circuit treatment to describe the nuclear spin relax-ation. From the Redfield theory, we obtain a description of the quadrupolar relaxationas a computational process in a spin 3/2 system, through a model in which the envi-ronment is comprised by five qubits and three different quantum noise channels. Theinteraction between the environment and the spin 3/2 nuclei is described by a quantumcircuit fully compatible with the Redfield theory of relaxation. Theoretical predictionsare compared to experimental data, a short review of quantum channels and relaxationin NMR qubits is also present.
Quantitative Social Dialectology: Explaining Linguistic Variation Geographically and Socially

In this study we examine linguistic variation and its dependence on both social and geographic factors. We follow dialectometry in applying a quantitative methodology and focusing on dialect distances, and social dialectology in the choice of factors we examine in building a model to predict word pronunciation distances from the standard Dutch language to 424 Dutch dialects. We combine linear mixed-effects regression modeling with generalized additive modeling to predict the pronunciation distance of 559 words. Although geographical position is the dominant predictor, several other factors emerged as significant. The model predicts a greater distance from the standard for smaller communities, for communities with a higher average age, for nouns (as contrasted with verbs and adjectives), for more frequent words, and for words with relatively many vowels. The impact of the demographic variables, however, varied from word to word. For a majority of words, larger, richer and younger communities are moving towards the standard. For a smaller minority of words, larger, richer and younger communities emerge as driving a change away from the standard. Similarly, the strength of the effects of word frequency and word category varied geographically. The peripheral areas of the Netherlands showed a greater distance from the standard for nouns (as opposed to verbs and adjectives) as well as for high-frequency words, compared to the more central areas. Our findings indicate that changes in pronunciation have been spreading (in particular for low-frequency words) from the Hollandic center of economic power to the peripheral areas of the country, meeting resistance that is stronger wherever, for well-documented historical reasons, the political influence of Holland was reduced. Our results are also consistent with the theory of lexical diffusion, in that distances from the Hollandic norm vary systematically and predictably on a word by word basis.
High Critical Current Density MgB2

The highest critical transition temperature (Tc) among all the intermetallic superconductors in that was discovered MgB2 has changed the previous approaches to the theory of supercon‐ ductivity because the Tc limit in metallic superconductors had been believed to be ~ 30 K, which is predicted by the Bardeen-Cooper-Schrieffer (BCS) theory [1]. In the BCS theory of super‐ conductivity [2, 3], the expression for Tc is derived as Tc =θe (−1/λeff), where θ is always equal to the MgB2 Debye temperature, θD. λeff is defined as the electron and phonon coupling constant λ = N(EF)× V. N(EF) is the normal state electron number density the Fermi surface, and V is the average electron interaction matrix element corresponding to the attraction. A weak coupling, λ << 1, is assumed to exist between the electrons and phonons in the initial BCS theory. In this case, the value of Tc is limited to Tc ≈ 30 K. According to the BCS theory, an element or compound with larger N(EF), V, and θD has high Tc value. However, θD of MgB2 is comparable to those of other diborides and other light materials. Furthermore, the N(EF) is relatively low because of the absence of d-electrons. Thus, the unusually high Tc in MgB2 has confused researchers with respect to the origin of its superconductivity. Considerable theoretical and experimental work has been conducted to explore the superconducting mechanism in MgB2. MgB2 is the first superconductor to be proved to have two distinct superconducting gaps in its superconducting state [4]. Initially, an unconventional exotic superconducting mechanism was suggested for the material [5, 6]. Then, other researchers proposed hole superconductivity, which is similar to what occurs in high temperature superconductors (HTS), based on the fact that holes are the dominant charge carriers in the normal state [7, 8]. MgB2 has now been accepted as a phonon-mediated BCS type superconductor. The superconductivity is attributed to selective coupling between specific electronic states and specific phonons, such as the E2g mode. The unusually high Tc value arises from the strong phonon anharmonicity.
Lithocarpus orbicarpus (Fagaceae), a new species of Stone Oak from Phang Nga province, Thailand

Abstract A new species is described, Lithocarpus orbicarpus Strijk, collected from Ton Pariwat Wildlife Sanctuary, Mueang district, Phang Nga Province in the Peninsular Floristic Region of Thailand. We provide the first technical illustrations and colour photographs of the new species, as well as a description of its conservation status and the collecting locality. The species can be easily distinguished by its unique orbicular acorns, each covered with a dense pattern of irregularly placed scales, which completely conceal the nut, except for a tiny apical pore, and which are arranged in a dense cluster on an erect woody spike. We also provide an amendment to the existing diagnostic key to Lithocarpus, and discuss important differences with morphologically similar species found in Thailand and the surrounding region.
FCM algorithm besed on Normalized Mahalanobis distances in image clustering

The popular fuzzy c-means algorithm (FCM) based on Euclidean distance function converges to a local minimum of the objective function, which can only be used to detect spherical structural clusters. Gustafson-Kessel(GK) clustering algorithm was developed to detect non-spherical structural clusters. However, GK clustering algorithm needs added constraint of fuzzy covariance matrix, In this paper, an improved Fuzzy C-Means algorithm based on a Normalized Mahalanobis distance (FCM-NM) by taking a new threshold value and a new convergent process is proposed The experimental results of two real data sets in image classification show that our proposed new algorithm has the better performance.
DNA replication meets genetic exchange: Chromosomal damage and its repair by homologous recombination

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences Colloquium on the roles of homologous recombination in DNA replication are summarized. Current findings in experimental systems ranging from bacteriophages to mammalian cell lines substantiate the idea that homologous recombination is a system supporting DNA replication when either the template DNA is damaged or the replication machinery malfunctions. There are several lines of supporting evidence: (i) DNA replication aggravates preexisting DNA damage, which then blocks subsequent replication; (ii) replication forks abandoned by malfunctioning replisomes become prone to breakage; (iii) mutants with malfunctioning replisomes or with elevated levels of DNA damage depend on homologous recombination; and (iv) homologous recombination primes DNA replication in vivo and can restore replication fork structures in vitro. The mechanisms of recombinational repair in bacteriophage T4, Escherichia coli, and Saccharomyces cerevisiae are compared. In vitro properties of the eukaryotic recombinases suggest a bigger role for single-strand annealing in the eukaryotic recombinational repair.
Optical properties of TiO2 nanotube arrays fabricated by the electrochemical anodization method

Perpendicularly self-aligned TiO2 nanotube samples of size of 3 × 5 cm2 were fabricated by the electrochemical anodization method using a solution containing NH4F. Influences of the technological conditions such as NH4F concentration and anodization voltage were studied. It was found that NH4F concentration in the solution and anodization voltage significantly affect the diameter and length of a TiO2 nanotube. The diameter and the length of a TiO2 nanotube were observed and estimated by using scanning electron microscopy. It has shown that the largest diameter and the longest length of about 80 nm and 20 μm, respectively, were obtained for the sample anodized in a solution containing 0.4% of NH4F, under a voltage of 48 V. Photoluminescence spectra excited by laser lights having wavelengths of 325 and 442 nm (having energies higher and lower than the band gap energy of TiO2) was recorded at room temperature for the TiO2 nanotube arrays. An abnormal luminescence result was observed. It is experimental evidence that the manufactured TiO2 nanotube array is an expected material for hydrogen splitting from water by photochemical effect under sunlight as well as for the nano solar cells.
Experimental procurement of the complete 3D etch rate distribution of Si in anisotropic etchants based on vertically micromachined wagon wheel samples

This is part I of a series of two papers dedicated to the presentation of a novel, large throughput, experimental procedure to determine the three-dimensional distribution of the etch rate of silicon in a wide range of anisotropic etchants, including a total of 30 different etching conditions in KOH, KOH+IPA, TMAH and TMAH+Triton solutions at various concentrations and temperatures. The method is based on the use of previously reported, vertically micromachined wagon wheels (WWs) (Wind and Hines 2000 Surf. Sci. 460 21–38; Nguyen and Elwenspoek 2007 J. Electrochem. Soc. 154 D684–91), focusing on speeding up the etch rate extraction process for each WW by combining macrophotography and image processing procedures. The proposed procedure positions the WWs as a realistic alternative to the traditional hemispherical specimen. The obtained, extensive etch rate database is used to perform wet etching simulations of advanced systems, showing good agreement with the experimental counterparts. In part II of this series (Gosálvez et al J. Micromech. Microeng. 21 125008), we provide a theoretical analysis of the etched spoke shapes, a detailed comparison to the etch rates from previous studies and a self-consistency study of the measured etch rates against maximum theoretical values derived from the spoke shape analysis.
Time-delay margin computation of Model Reference Adaptive Control using the Razumikhin theorem

This paper deals with the computation of timedelay margins of state feedback Model Reference Adaptive Control (MRAC) with σ-modification for single input Linear Time Invariant (LTI) plants. Unlike previous results dealing with the computation of time-delay margins, a direct MRAC (without specific modification to accommodate for the time-delay) is considered in the tracking case. The time-delay margin is derived from the Lyapunov-Razumikhin proof of Uniform Ultimate Boundedness (UUB) of the delayed system. Key assumptions of the approach are the availability of known bounds for the tracking command and its derivative and the availability of known (conservative) bounds for the matched parametric uncertainties. Under these assumptions, UUB is established locally using a quadratic Lyapunov function. The satisfaction of the conditions of the Lyapunov-Razumikhin theorem is established using Sum-Of-Squares programming.
A novel self-routing scheme for all-optical packet switched networks with arbitrary topology

Due to limited available photonic devices, optical networks in the near future will likely employ routing schemes that do not require sophisticated processing of optical packets. In this paper, we propose a novel self-routing scheme for all-optical packet networks that can be applied to networks with arbitrary topology. The proposed routing scheme requires only single bit processing and can be implemented with existing technologies.
Expression of Matrix Metalloproteinases and Endogenous Inhibitors Within Ascending Aortic Aneurysms of Patients With Marfan Syndrome

Background— Marfan syndrome (MFS) is known to cause ascending thoracic aortic aneurysms (ATAAs). Transforming growth factor beta (TGF-&bgr;) has recently been implicated in this process. Imbalances between the matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) and their endogenous inhibitors (TIMPs) have also been shown to contribute to aneurysm formation. Whether and to what degree MMP, TIMP, and TGF-&bgr; signaling profiles are altered in ATAAs in MFS compared with non-MFS patients remains unknown. Methods and Results— ATAA samples taken during aortic replacement from age-matched MFS (n=9) and non-MFS (n=18) patients were assessed for representative subtypes of all MMP classes, all 4 known TIMPs, and type 2 TGF-&bgr; receptors (TGFBR2). Results were expressed as a percentage (mean±SEM) of reference control samples (100%; n=18) obtained from patients without ATAA. In MFS, decreased MMP-2 (76±7; P<0.05 versus control), increased MMP-12 (161±27% versus control; P<0.05), and increased MT1-MMP (248±64% versus 91±21 non-MFS and control; P<0.05) were observed. TIMP-3 (74±23%) was reduced compared with control values (P<0.05) and TIMP-2 was elevated (128±31%) compared with non-MFS (73±19%; P<0.05). In non-MFS samples, MMP-1 (70±16%), MMP-3 (77±18%), MMP-8 (75±11%), MMP-9 (69±14%), and MMP-12 (85±15%) were decreased compared with control (P<0.05). TIMPs 1 to 3 were reduced in non-MFS compared with control values (P<0.05). TGFBR2 were increased in MFS (193±32%) compared with non-MFS (95±16%) and controls (P<0.05). Conclusions— A unique MMP and TIMP portfolio was observed in ATAAs from MFS compared with non-MFS patients. In addition, MFS samples showed evidence of increased TGF-&bgr; signaling. These differences suggest disparate mechanisms of extracellular matrix remodeling between these 2 groups of patients.
Superplastic Deformation of Al-Al4C3 Composites

Deformation of the Al-Al 4 C 3 composites with different volume fraction of Al 4 C 3 phase was tested at different temperatures and different strain rates. As shown, at temperatures 400-450°C and the highest strain rate applied 10 -1 s -1 , a significant ductility growth was observed. According to the results of TEM analysis, it is supposed to be the result of dynamic grain polygonization, grain slip and rotation, partial recrystallization and dislocation creep in the tested system, known as strain induced dynamic recovery. Increase of the volume fraction of secondary phase in the investigated composite changed the deformation mechanism (from more slip on grain boundaries to more grain rotation).
Carbon-allotropes: synthesis methods, applications and future perspectives

The element carbon has been used as a source of energy for the past few hundred years, and now in this era of technology, carbon has played a significant and very prominent role in almost all fields of science and technology. So as an honour to this marvellous element, we humans should know about its various forms of existence. In this review article, we shed light on all possible carbon-allotropes; similarities in their synthesis techniques and the starting materials; their wide range of possible availability; and finally, future perspectives and applications. A brief introduction is given on the types, structures, and shapes of the allotropes of carbon for a better understanding.
Dislocation sources in discrete dislocation simulations of thin-film plasticity and the Hall-Petch relation

A discrete dislocation simulation has been developed to investigate thin-film plasticity on a mesoscopic scale. Dislocation interactions and dislocation self-stresses are calculated within the isotropic linear elasticity theory. The simulation is used to investigate the formation of dislocation pile-ups in a single columnar grain, where the boundaries are introduced as impenetrable obstacles. In analogy to the Hall-Petch model global plastic deformation is assumed to occur when the stress on the grain boundary exerted by the pile-up exceeds a certain critical value. The production of dislocations by a Frank-Read source and the dislocation evolution in the glide plane are simulated. For sources which are small compared to the grain size and for small numbers of dislocations the flow stress is well described by an analytical model of Friedman and Chrzan (1998 Phil. Mag. A 77 1185) if an appropriate Hall-Petch constant is used. If the source size scales with grain size, the flow stress depends on the inverse grain size instead of the square root of the inverse grain size below a critical size.
Aflatoxin exposure during the first 36 months of life was not associated with impaired growth in Nepalese children: An extension of the MAL-ED study

Exposure to aflatoxin, a mycotoxin common in many foods, has been associated with child growth impairment in sub-Saharan Africa. To improve our understanding of growth impairment in relation to aflatoxin and other risk factors, we assessed biospecimens collected in Nepalese children at 15, 24, and 36 months of age for aflatoxin exposure. Children (N = 85) enrolled in the Bhaktapur, Nepal MAL-ED study encompassed the cohort analysed in this study. Exposure was assessed through a plasma biomarker of aflatoxin exposure: the AFB1-lysine adduct. The aflatoxin exposures in the study participants were compared to anthropometrics at each time period (length-for-age [LAZ], weight-for-age [WAZ], and weight-for-length [WLZ] z-scores), growth trajectories over time, age, and breastfeeding status. Results demonstrated chronic aflatoxin exposure in this cohort of children, with a geometric mean of 3.62 pg AFB1-lysine/mg albumin. However, the chronic aflatoxin exposure in this cohort was not significantly associated with anthropometric z-scores, growth trajectories, age, or feeding status, based on the available time points to assess aflatoxin exposure. Low mean levels of aflatoxin exposure and infrequent occurrence of stunting, wasting, or underweight z-score values in this cohort are possible contributing factors to a lack of evidence for an association. Further research is needed to examine whether a threshold dose of aflatoxin exists that could induce child growth impairment.
Estrogen-Related Receptor α1 Transcriptional Activities Are Regulated in Part via the ErbB2/HER2 Signaling Pathway

We previously showed that (a) estrogen-related receptor α1 (ERRα1) down-modulates estrogen receptor (ER)–stimulated transcription in low ErbB2–expressing MCF-7 mammary carcinoma cells, and (b) ERRα and ErbB2 mRNA levels positively correlate in clinical breast tumors. We show here that ERRα1 represses ERα-mediated activation in MCF-7 cells because it failed to recruit the coactivator glucocorticoid receptor interacting protein 1 (GRIP1) when bound to an estrogen response element. In contrast, ERRα1 activated estrogen response element– and ERR response element–mediated transcription in ERα-positive, high ErbB2–expressing BT-474 mammary carcinoma cells, activation that was enhanced by overexpression of GRIP1. Likewise, regulation of the endogenous genes pS2, progesterone receptor, and ErbB2 by ERRα1 reflected the cell type–specific differences observed with our reporter plasmids. Importantly, overexpression of activated ErbB2 in MCF-7 cells led to transcriptional activation, rather than repression, by ERRα1. Two-dimensional PAGE of radiophosphate-labeled ERRα1 indicated that it was hyperphosphorylated in BT-474 relative to MCF-7 cells; incubation of these cells with anti-ErbB2 antibody led to reduction in the extent of ERRα1 phosphorylation. Additionally, mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPK) and Akts, components of the ErbB2 pathway, phosphorylated ERRα1 in vitro. ERRα1-activated transcription in BT-474 cells was inhibited by disruption of ErbB2/epidermal growth factor receptor signaling with trastuzumab or gefitinib or inactivation of downstream components of this signaling, MAPK kinase/MAPK, and phosphatidylinositol-3-OH kinase/Akt, with U0126 or LY294002, respectively. Thus, ERRα1 activities are regulated, in part, via ErbB2 signaling, with ERRα1 likely positively feedback-regulating ErbB2 expression. Taken together, we conclude that ERRα1 phosphorylation status shows potential as a biomarker of clinical course and antihormonal- and ErbB2-based treatment options, with ERRα1 serving as a novel target for drug development. (Mol Cancer Res 2007;5(1):71–86)
Exchanging Description Logic Knowledge Bases

In this paper, we study the problem of exchanging knowledge between a source and a target knowledge base (KB), connected through mappings. Differently from the traditional database exchange setting, which considers only the exchange of data, we are interested in exchanging implicit knowledge. As representation formalism we use Description Logics (DLs), thus assuming that the source and target KBs are given as a DL TBox+ABox, while the mappings have the form of DL TBox assertions. We study the problem of translating the knowledge in the source KB according to these mappings. We define a general framework of KB exchange, and address the problems of representing implicit source information in the target, and of computing different kinds of solutions, i.e., target KBs with specified properties, given a source KB and a mapping. We develop first results and study the complexity of KB exchange for DL-LiteRDFS, a DL corresponding to the FOL fragment of RDFS, and for DL-LiteR.
An effective object recognition system by a mobile application

Unparalleled growth in the sharing of media via networks has prompted a great deal of research into issues pertaining to image retrieval. The training and verification of image retrieval systems requires a large number of labelled images with ground truth; however, most researchers employ synthetic datasets for their experiments. In this study, we developed a system based on a mobile phone App for the collection of information pertaining to the location of objects in images. The proposed system is simple and easy to use. Experiments demonstrate the excellent performance of the proposed system with regard to accuracy and response time. This study demonstrates the feasibility of collecting image information using mobile phones.
Optimal Eye Movement Strategies in Visual Search ( Supplement )

Here we derive the ideal searcher for the case of dynamic (temporally uncorrelated) external and internal noise, and we describe (without proof) the ideal searcher for the case of static (temporally correlated) external noise and dynamic (temporally uncorrelated) internal noise. As a check on the accuracy of the formulas for these ideal searchers, they were derived via two separate methods: a direct derivation from the joint probability distributions (WG) and a derivation based upon the theory of Kalman filtering (JN).