Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Optimisation of asymmetric flow field-flow fractionation for the characterisation of nanoparticles in coated polydisperse TiO2 with applications in food and feed

ABSTRACT Titanium dioxide (TiO2) has various applications in consumer products and is also used as an additive in food and feeding stuffs. For the characterisation of this product, including the determination of nanoparticles, there is a strong need for the availability of corresponding methods of analysis. This paper presents an optimisation process for the characterisation of polydisperse-coated TiO2 nanoparticles. As a first step, probe ultrasonication was optimised using a central composite design in which the amplitude and time were the selected variables to disperse, i.e., to break up agglomerates and/or aggregates of the material. The results showed that high amplitudes (60%) favoured a better dispersion and time was fixed in mid-values (5 min). In a next step, key factors of asymmetric flow field-flow fraction (AF4), namely cross-flow (CF), detector flow (DF), exponential decay of the cross-flow (CFexp) and focus time (Ft), were studied through experimental design. Firstly, a full-factorial design was employed to establish the statistically significant factors (p < 0.05). Then, the information obtained from the full-factorial design was utilised by applying a central composite design to obtain the following optimum conditions of the system: CF, 1.6 ml min–1; DF, 0.4 ml min–1; Ft, 5 min; and CFexp, 0.6. Once the optimum conditions were obtained, the stability of the dispersed sample was measured for 24 h by analysing 10 replicates with AF4 in order to assess the performance of the optimised dispersion protocol. Finally, the recovery of the optimised method, particle shape and particle size distribution were estimated.
Recommendations for usable security in online health social networks

The paper discusses a usable security evaluation of two online health social networks: websites that provide health information and health services through online social networking tools. This allows patients to share their personal health information with other patients and their health-care providers, a key priority in such environments. Security features must be usable and effective; and recommendations are provided to improve their usability features. These can impact positively on their adoption by the intended users: the patients.
Correlation between biomechanical responses of posterior sclera and IOP elevations during micro intraocular volume change.

PURPOSE This study tested the hypothesis that intraocular pressure (IOP) elevations, induced by controlled increase of intraocular volume, are correlated with the biomechanical responses of the posterior sclera. METHODS Porcine globes were tested within 48 hours postmortem. The first group of globes (n = 11) was infused with 15 μL of phosphate-buffered saline at three different rates to investigate rate-dependent IOP elevations. The second group (n = 16) was first infused at the fast rate and then underwent inflation tests to investigate the relationship between IOP elevations (ΔIOP) and scleral strains. The strains in the superotemporal region of the posterior sclera were measured by ultrasound speckle tracking. Linear regression was used to examine the association between ΔIOP due to micro-volumetric infusion and the scleral strains at a specific inflation pressure. RESULTS The average ΔIOP was 14.9 ± 4.3 mm Hg for the infusion of 15 μL in 1 second. The ΔIOP was greater for the faster infusion rates but highly correlated across different rates (P < 0.001). A significant negative association was found between the ΔIOP and the tangential strains in both the circumferential (R(2) = 0.54, P = 0.003) and meridian (R(2) = 0.53, P = 0.002) directions in the posterior sclera. CONCLUSIONS This study showed a substantial increase in IOP, with a large intersubject variance during micro-volumetric change. A stiffer response of the sclera was associated with larger IOP spikes, providing experimental evidence linking corneoscleral biomechanics to IOP fluctuation. In vivo measurement of corneoscleral biomechanics may help better predict the dynamic profile of IOP.
Securing Bluetooth-based payment system using honeypot

Wireless technologies provide a new channel for implementation of mobile payments systems. In this regard, the potential of short-range wireless technologies such as Bluetooth is enormous. These systems can be used for proximity payment to vending machines or offering banking service in the bank area. However, unsolved security issues are the biggest barriers to the growth of mobile payment. This paper is focused on the security of banking services which can be offered through Bluetooth technology. We propose a solution using honeypots in bank environment to mitigate the risk of Bluetooth-enabled payment transactions. In this paper, we try to elaborate how honeypot systems can be exploited to reduce the chance of Bluetooth enabled attacks' success by limiting the client device discoverability for attackers.
Competitiveness and the Equilibrium Real Exchange Rate in Morocco

This paper assesses several indicators of competitivene ss and economic performance of Morocco. The recent improvement of the net external position hasn't been accompanied by higher growth and more dynamic export. The paper also gauges the degree of the deviation of the real exchange rate of the dirham from its equilibrium level (ERER) using the Edward's Model and the CGER methodology and concludes that since 2002 the dirham is undervalued. A forward - looking scenario which incorporates the impact of the ongoing implementation of the FTA with the UE and the needed increase in the rate of investment points to the existence of potential pressures towards depreciation on the ERER at medium term.
Limitações teóricas da literatura convencional sobre impactos regionais de política monetária

The aim of this paper is to analyze the theoretical limitations of the mainstream’s Works related to the regional impacts of monetary policy. After a general presentation of the conventional framework, followed by the typology proposed in Dow & Rodriguez-Fuentes (1997), we present our arguments based on the Post-Keynesian theory against the traditional approach. In our view, the Post-Keynesian framework is the most appropriate for analyzing this type of dynamics. Its theoretical elements have the best explanation for the dynamics of the monetary policy at a regional level, once they take into account the role played by uncertainty and liquidity preference of economic agents and institutions, which are essential for the understanding the regional economics in a "center – periphery” context.
Demonstration of ChaKi.NET – beyond the corpus search system

ChaKi.NET is a corpus management system for dependency structure annotated corpora. After more than 10 years of continuous development, the system is now usable not only for corpus search, but also for visualization, annotation, labelling, and formatting for statistical analysis. This paper describes the various functions included in the current ChaKi.NET system.
Electric Field Force-Based Detection of Rotational Symmetry in 3D Model

In this paper, we propose a method to describe the rotational symmetry in 3D shapes. This symmetry is deterministically found through the use of a physical quantity: electric field force. He describes the measure of the shape's rotational symmetry with respect to every axis passing through the center mass. This algorithm can deal with complex and ill-defined models because of its physical background. 3D model supposed as charged body, we get the electric field force distribution by placing some testing charges on the big circle of the 3D model, and then get the rotational symmetry by calculating the difference of the electric field force.
Global bounded controlled consensus of multi-agents systems with non-identical nodes and communication time-delay topology

This paper investigates the global bounded consensus problem of Networked Multi-Agent Systems exhibiting non-linear, non-identical agent dynamics with communication time-varying delay. Globally bounded controlled consensus conditions based on pinning control method and adaptive pinning control method are derived. The proposed consensus criteria ensures that all agents eventually move along desired trajectories in terms of boundedness. The proposed controlled consensus criteria generalizes the case of identical agent dynamics to the case of non-identical agent dynamics, and many related results of other researches in this area can be viewed as special cases of the above results. We finally demonstrate the effectiveness of the theoretical results by means of a numerical simulation.
Customized Treatment in Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer Based on EGFR Mutations and BRCA1 mRNA Expression

Background Median survival is 10 months and 2-year survival is 20% in metastatic non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) treated with platinum-based chemotherapy. A small fraction of non-squamous cell lung cancers harbor EGFR mutations, with improved outcome to gefitinib and erlotinib. Experimental evidence suggests that BRCA1 overexpression enhances sensitivity to docetaxel and resistance to cisplatin. RAP80 and Abraxas are interacting proteins that form complexes with BRCA1 and could modulate the effect of BRCA1. In order to further examine the effect of EGFR mutations and BRCA1 mRNA levels on outcome in advanced NSCLC, we performed a prospective non-randomized phase II clinical trial, testing the hypothesis that customized therapy would confer improved outcome over non-customized therapy. In an exploratory analysis, we also examined the effect of RAP80 and Abraxas mRNA levels. Methodology/Principal Findings We treated 123 metastatic non-squamous cell lung carcinoma patients using a customized approach. RNA and DNA were isolated from microdissected specimens from paraffin-embedded tumor tissue. Patients with EGFR mutations received erlotinib, and those without EGFR mutations received chemotherapy with or without cisplatin based on their BRCA1 mRNA levels: low, cisplatin plus gemcitabine; intermediate, cisplatin plus docetaxel; high, docetaxel alone. An exploratory analysis examined RAP80 and Abraxas expression. Median survival exceeded 28 months for 12 patients with EGFR mutations, and was 11 months for 38 patients with low BRCA1, 9 months for 40 patients with intermediate BRCA1, and 11 months for 33 patients with high BRCA1. Two-year survival was 73.3%, 41.2%, 15.6% and 0%, respectively. Median survival was influenced by RAP80 expression in the three BRCA1 groups. For example, for patients with both low BRCA1 and low RAP80, median survival exceeded 26 months. RAP80 was a significant factor for survival in patients treated according to BRCA1 levels (hazard ratio, 1.3 [95% CI, 1–1.7]; P = 0.05). Conclusions/Significance Chemotherapy customized according to BRCA1 expression levels is associated with excellent median and 2-year survival for some subsets of NSCLC patients , and RAP80 could play a crucial modulating effect on this model of customized chemotherapy. Trial Registration ClinicalTrials.gov NCT00883480
Knowledge Management for Medical Computational Problem Solving: An Ontological Approach

This paper presents an ontological approach that manages the Medical Computational Problem Solving (MCPS) by means of organizing and visualizing their existing knowledge. Medical Computational Problems are medical problems, the solution of which deals with mathematical or statistical models, such as data mining, signal or image processing, etc. Thus to define the MCPS requires the Medical domain of knowledge for the problem definition and additional fields of knowledge for the solution definition. Prototype Med-CPS ontology is proposed to combine, exchange and reuse knowledge representation of the different domains. The structure and the flow of the knowledge that manage Med-CPS ontology by making in-depth analysis of the requirements of a Knowledge Base System that could be associated with this ontology is presented and analysed. The Med-CPS ontology is implemented and tested in protégé.
Reducing energy costs and peak electrical demand through optimal control of building thermal storage

This paper describes an investigation into the use of building thermal capacitance as a means of reducing the operating costs associated with maintaining adequate comfort conditions in buildings (termed dynamic building control). The state of the building thermal storage can be controlled through variations of the zone temperatures over time within the thermal comfort region. The primary opportunities in varying zone setpoints in an optimal fashion are associated with shifting cooling loads from daytime to nighttime to (1) reduce peak electrical demands, (2) take advantage of low nighttime electrical rates, (3) offset mechanical cooling with free cooling at night, and (4) enhance equipment operation at more favorable part-load conditions. The approach utilized in this study was to apply dynamic optimization techniques to computer simulations of buildings and their associated cooling systems for a range of conditions in order to determine the maximum possible savings. Results indicate that both energy costs and peak electrical use can be significantly reduced through optimal structures. However, the cost savings depend upon several factors, including (1) utility rate structure, (2) part-load characteristics of the cooling plant and air-handling system, (3) weather, (4) the occupancy schedule, and (5) building thermal capacitance.
A Uniform Publish-Subscribe Infrastructure for Communication in Wireless Mobile Environments

In near future the transportation sector will be communication enabled. Devices in vehicles will be able to communicate and thus make a new range of services possible. However, heterogeneous communication capabilities and vehicle mobility complicates the art of designing and implementing these new systems and therefore it is important to have communication middleware that hides the complexity of low level network programming and presents a clean and understandable abstraction over communication to the application programmer. It has previously been shown that the publish-subscribe messaging paradigm provides a good communication abstraction for wireless networks of mobile nodes. In this paper we present PSI, a uniform publish-subscribe based infrastructure, for communication in wireless mobile environments. In PSI the application is divided into software components that each handles a well defined part of the functionality and communicate with other components using the publish-subscribe paradigm. From a components perspective it makes no difference where the receivers of a message are located-in the same process, in another process on the same node, or in a process on a remote node. All communication is handled uniformly. By showing how the infrastructure is used in a concrete instance we argue that it meets the requirements for middleware stated above and provides a good programming model for distributed systems in mobile environments
Evolution of water conservation mechanisms in Drosophila

SUMMARY Flies of the genus Drosophila inhabit a wide range of habitats, from the tropics to deserts to boreal forests. The primary physiological mechanism allowing Drosophila and other insects to survive in arid habitats is a reduction in rates of water loss. To understand mechanisms of water retention in greater detail, we investigated the three main routes by which Drosophila lose water: excretion, cuticular transpiration and respiratory loss through the spiracles. Excretory losses comprised <6% of total water flux and did not differ between xeric (cactophilic) and mesic species. No consistent relationship was observed between water-loss rates and the composition, physical properties or amounts of cuticular hydrocarbons, suggesting that cuticular transpiration did not differ among species from different habitats. Metabolic rates and water-loss rates were highly correlated. Cactophilic Drosophila were less active, and female cactophiles had lower metabolic rates than female mesic species of the same size. They were also more likely to exhibit a pattern of cyclic CO2 release that may help to conserve water. We conclude that lower overall rates of water loss are achieved primarily by reduction of respiratory losses.
A Longitudinal Study of Depth of Inheritance and its Effects on Programmer Maintenance Effort

Inheritance is a defining feature of the object oriented paradigm. Amongst other things, it enables the programmer to establish conceptual relations between domain objects, and promotes the partitioning of systems to increase reuse and dynamic extension. That notwithstanding, it has received some criticism especially in relation to the burden of comprehension it imposes on maintainers. As a result, measurements of this code feature have been incorporated into several established metrics as contributing to the level of predicted effort. The question of its negative impact on maintenance effort is not a new one, indeed it has been revisited several times over the past 15 years. However, there is little hard empirical evidence quantifying its effects. Much of the previous research arrives at inconclusive and in some cases contradictory findings. While some of these previous studies have a strong empirical foundation, the maintenance tasks investigated have by and large been confined to small and somewhat idealised source code bases. Furthermore, many of these studies were performed in laboratory settings employing students as experimental subjects. They may not therefore be representative of typical maintenance scenarios. This paper attempts to re-examine this subject. It is hoped, that the methodology employed will enable its findings to be more extensible to production situations. To this end, a large open source project was chosen as a subject for study. Data was extracted from this project using repository mining techniques by means of several custom tools which are discussed. These tools established the inheritance hierarchies of the source code and captured their evolution over a time frame of six years. The resulting data was then statistically analysed. Special attention was paid to establishing the presence of large scale restructuring operations. Such operations have been predicted as a strategy to cope with accumulating conceptual discrepancies in maintained software. The study found that while such a signature was present, it was most likely due to seasonal effects. The depth of inheritance of associated code could not be correlated with this signature to any significant degree. A functional relationship between the number of file revisions and their distribution within the repository was also observed. This along with the previous results is presented and discussed.
Histogram-Based Fast Adaptive Bilateral Filter for Ultrasound Speckle Reduction

Tissue structure including lesions in ultrasound images is important in clinical diagnosis. The way to suppress noise effectively and to preserve the structure is vital for diagnosis and also for image postprocessing. In order to reduce speckle and improve the quality of ultrasound images, this paper presents a fast adaptive bilateral filter (FABF) based on local histogram. The presented filter is derived from a conventional bilateral filter and is adaptively adjusted by speckle detection based on histogram matching. The criterion of speckle region is defined from a similarity value obtained from local histogram matching between the processing window and a reference speckle area. The presented filter can effectively reduce the speckle noise and, at the same time, maintain the tissue structure. In phantom and in vivo data, the proposed method can improve the quality of an ultrasound image in terms of tissue SNR and CNR values.
Bringing the Corner-Store Service Online: Challenges and Promises of Online Personalization

One salient feature of the Internet that distinguishes it from previous technologies for mass communication is it’s bi-directional nature: just as a myriad of firm and product information is available for consumers, so is an abundance of consumer information accessible to firms. This feature allows for firms to use consumer information to define and create value, thereby more accurately personalizing the customer service experience provided to a user, based on information acquired through user interaction. Online personalization mechanisms harness the information-richness of the Internet in order to provide automated customer service. Personalization is emerging as a promising alternative to traditional means of customer conversion, such as branding, telephone customer service, and price discounts. In this and other ways, the role that information technology (IT) plays in business is evolving. IT is becoming the single interface for sales, service, and postsales support. Thus, the concept of customer acquisition and retention, which has traditionally fallen within the area of marketing, is permeating the realm of information systems design. How companies manage customer service is not highly reflected in their use of IT. However, the correct means through which to transform consumers into a contributing part of the evolution of products and shopping experiences is still largely unknown.
Contact Path Geometries

Contact path geometries are curved geometric structures on a contact manifold comprising smooth families of paths modeled on the family of all isotropic lines in the projectivization of a symplectic vector space. Locally such a structure is equivalent to the graphs in the space of independent and depedent variables of the family of solutions of a system of an odd number of second order ODE's subject to a single maximally non-integrable constraint. A subclass of contact path geometries is distinguished by the vanishing of an invariant contact torsion. For this subclass the equivalence problem is solved by constructing a normalized Cartan connection using the methods of Tanaka-Morimoto-\v{C}ap-Schichl. The geometric meaning of the contact torsion is described. If a secondary contact torsion vanishes then the locally defined space of contact paths admits a split quaternionic contact structure (analogous to the quaternionic contact structures studied by O. Biquard).