Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Decreases in Molecular Diffusion, Perfusion Fraction and Perfusion-Related Diffusion in Fibrotic Livers: A Prospective Clinical Intravoxel Incoherent Motion MR Imaging Study

Purpose This study was aimed to determine whether pure molecular-based diffusion coefficient (D) and perfusion-related diffusion parameters (perfusion fraction f, perfusion-related diffusion coefficient D*) differ in healthy livers and fibrotic livers through intra-voxel incoherent motion (IVIM) MR imaging. Material and Methods 17 healthy volunteers and 34 patients with histopathologically confirmed liver fibrosis patients (stage 1 = 14, stage 2 = 8, stage 3& 4 = 12, METAVIR grading) were included. Liver MR imaging was performed at 1.5-T. IVIM diffusion weighted imaging sequence was based on standard single-shot DW spin echo-planar imaging, with ten b values of 10, 20, 40, 60, 80, 100, 150, 200, 400, 800 sec/mm2 respectively. Pixel-wise realization and regions-of-interest based quantification of IVIM parameters were performed. Results D, f, and D* in healthy volunteer livers and patient livers were 1.096±0.155 vs 0.917±0.152 (10−3 mm2/s, p = 0.0015), 0.164±0.021 vs 0.123±0.029 (p<0.0001), and 13.085±2.943 vs 9.423±1.737 (10−3 mm2/s, p<0.0001) respectively, all significantly lower in fibrotic livers. As the fibrosis severity progressed, D, f, and D* values decreased, with a trend significant for f and D*. Conclusion Fibrotic liver is associated with lower pure molecular diffusion, lower perfusion volume fraction, and lower perfusion-related diffusion. The decrease of f and D* in the liver is significantly associated liver fibrosis severity.
GPS-Free Localization Algorithm for Wireless Sensor Networks

Localization is one of the most fundamental problems in wireless sensor networks, since the locations of the sensor nodes are critical to both network operations and most application level tasks. A GPS-free localization scheme for wireless sensor networks is presented in this paper. First, we develop a standardized clustering-based approach for the local coordinate system formation wherein a multiplication factor is introduced to regulate the number of master and slave nodes and the degree of connectivity among master nodes. Second, using homogeneous coordinates, we derive a transformation matrix between two Cartesian coordinate systems to efficiently merge them into a global coordinate system and effectively overcome the flip ambiguity problem. The algorithm operates asynchronously without a centralized controller; and does not require that the location of the sensors be known a priori. A set of parameter-setting guidelines for the proposed algorithm is derived based on a probability model and the energy requirements are also investigated. A simulation analysis on a specific numerical example is conducted to validate the mathematical analytical results. We also compare the performance of the proposed algorithm under a variety multiplication factor, node density and node communication radius scenario. Experiments show that our algorithm outperforms existing mechanisms in terms of accuracy and convergence time.
Migraine with aura and brain magnetic resonance imaging abnormalities in patients with CADASIL.

BACKGROUND Migraine with aura (MA) is one of the clinical hallmarks of CADASIL (cerebral autosomal dominant arteriopathy with subcortical infarcts and leukoencephalopathy), a small vessel disease of the brain caused by mutations in the NOTCH3 gene, but its exact mechanisms are unknown. OBJECTIVES To describe the patterns of MA in CADASIL and to compare brain magnetic resonance signal abnormalities between CADASIL patients with and without MA. DESIGN Comparison of brain magnetic resonance signal abnormalities between cases and controls. SETTING Patients with CADASIL seen at Lariboisière Hospital. PATIENTS Forty-one CADASIL patients with MA and 31 age-matched CADASIL controls without MA. RESULTS The mean age at onset of MA was significantly younger in women compared with men and occurred a mean of 15 years prior to stroke onset. A majority of patients (56%) reported at least 1 migraine attack with atypical aura. All CADASIL patients either with or without MA had white matter signal abnormalities on T2-weighted imaging. There was no difference in the frequency and distribution of brain signal abnormalities between CADASIL patients with and without MA. CONCLUSIONS In CADASIL, MA is characterized by an unusually high frequency of attacks of migraine with atypical aura. The distribution and extent of magnetic resonance signal abnormalities did not differ according to migraine phenotype.
Automated die inking: A pattern recognition-based approach

Manual wafer-level die inking is a common procedure for excluding die locations that are likely to be defective. Although this is a more cost-effective process, as compared to the expensive burn-in tests, it remains a labor-intensive step during IC testing. For each manufactured wafer, test engineers have to visually inspect every failure map in order to identify any regions where additional die need to be marked and discarded. Towards reducing this cost, we introduce a novel pattern recognition methodology to learn and automatically generate the inking patterns from the failure maps, thus eliminating the need for human intervention. Effectiveness is demonstrated on an industrial set of manually inked wafers.
ASIC for high-speed-gating and free running operation of SPADs

Single photon detection at telecom wavelengths is of importance in many industrial applications ranging from quantum cryptography, quantum optics, optical time domain reflectometry, non-invasive testing of VLSI circuits, eye-safe LIDAR to laser ranging. In practical applications, the combination of an InGaAs/InP APD with an appropriate electronic circuit still stands as the best solution in comparison with emerging technologies such as superconducting single photon detectors, MCP-PMTs for the near IR or up-conversion technique. An ASIC dedicated to the operation of InGaAs/InP APDs in both gated mode and free-running mode is presented. The 1.6mm2 chip is fabricated in a CMOS technology. It combines a gate generator, a voltage limiter, a fast comparator, a precise timing circuit for the gate signal processing and an output stage. A pulse amplitude of up to +7V can be achieved, which allows the operation of commercially available APDs at a single photon detection probability larger than 25% at 1.55&mgr;m. The avalanche quenching process is extremely fast, thus reducing the afterpulsing effects. The packaging of the diode in close proximity with the quenching circuit enables high speed gating at frequencies larger than 10MHz. The reduced connection lengths combined with impedance adaptation technique provide excellent gate quality, free of oscillations or bumps. The excess bias voltage is thus constant over the gate width leading to a stable single photon detection probability and timing resolution. The CMOS integration guarantees long-term stability, reliability and compactness.
Prosthetic fitting in a patient with a transtibial amputation due to a congenital vascular malformation of the right leg

Background: The problems of prescribing a prosthesis for a young girl with severe congenital vascular malformation deformity leading to a transtibial amputation. Case description and methods: Due to the high risk of recurrent bleeding and limitations regarding full weight bearing of the stump, a normal socket fitting process was not possible. Using a multidisciplinary approach, a prosthesis was designed to enable full weight bearing in a flexed knee position with ischial tuberosity support to prevent full weight bearing on the tibial part of the stump. Findings and outcomes: After training and adjustments to the design, a definitive prosthesis with a free motion mechanical knee joint could be used. During the training with this prosthesis, no skin problems were observed, and at the end of the rehabilitation, the patient had a high level of activities of daily living and sports. Conclusion: The above prosthetic solution with an adjusted socket design proved to be successful in this case. Clinical relevance In a patient with severe congenital vascular malformation deformity leading to a transtibial amputation, fitting of a good prosthesis without full weight bearing of the stump proved to be successful.
Preocupación ambiental y comportamientos ecológicos

Environmental concern and ecological behaviours. Environmental concern has been used as a descriptive parameter of the level of environmental awareness, and as a predictive variable of environmental behaviour. Recently, the use of the environmental concern concept has been questioned, especially as a predictive variable of environmental behaviour. This work, based on the level of environmental concern in a Spanish sample, seeks to identify relevant variables and the factorial structure underlying environmental concern. It is concluded that there is a need to use specific measures of environmental concern. Finally, the predictive power of different attitudinal factors is defined with regard to a set of environmental behaviours. The predictive capacity of some environmental concern factors is also confirmed. These factors include the estimation of the costs of ecological behaviour, social norms and personal norms (the alarm factor).
Lung cancer practice guidelines: lessons learned and issues addressed by the Ontario Lung Cancer Disease Site Group.

PURPOSE The primary objective was to identify the lessons learned and issues addressed by the Disease Site Group (DSG) developing guidelines on lung cancer for practitioners in the province of Ontario. METHODS The minutes of the Ontario Lung Cancer Disease Site Group (LCDSG) and the meeting notes of a medical sociologist who attended all LCDSG meetings were reviewed to identify the disease-specific and generic issues addressed by the LCDSG during guideline development. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION The Ontario LCDSG has completed three practice guidelines and has five evidence-based recommendations (EBRs) in production. Topics for guideline development were selected on the basis of known practice variability (eg, advanced-stage non-small-cell lung cancer [NSCLC]); the size of the patient population that could potentially be affected by the guideline; results of phase II trials of new and potentially expensive agents (vinorelbine, paclitaxel, and docetaxel); and randomized controlled clinical trials that support new practice standards (combined modality therapy for unresectable stage III NSCLC). The wording of each EBR reflects the strength and quality of the evidence in support of the treatment option, the primary outcome(s), and the individual physician and discipline values concerning treatment outcomes in the absence of known patient values.
Comprehensive evaluation of association measures for fault localization

In statistics and data mining communities, there have been many measures proposed to gauge the strength of association between two variables of interest, such as odds ratio, confidence, Yule-Y, Yule-Q, Kappa, and gini index. These association measures have been used in various domains, for example, to evaluate whether a particular medical practice is associated positively to a cure of a disease or whether a particular marketing strategy is associated positively to an increase in revenue, etc. This paper models the problem of locating faults as association between the execution or non-execution of particular program elements with failures. There have been special measures, termed as suspiciousness measures, proposed for the task. Two state-of-the-art measures are Tarantula and Ochiai, which are different from many other statistical measures. To the best of our knowledge, there is no study that comprehensively investigates the effectiveness of various association measures in localizing faults. This paper fills in the gap by evaluating 20 well-known association measures and compares their effectiveness in fault localization tasks with Tarantula and Ochiai. Evaluation on the Siemens programs show that a number of association measures perform statistically comparable as Tarantula and Ochiai.
Integer Programming Models for Flat Origami

This paper describes an integer programming model for a special class of flat foldable origami and shows how to use it to test foldability of crease patterns, as well as to find folds that satisfy some given properties, for example color pattern requirements when duo paper is used. To represent a crease pattern within this model, all its crease lines must be segments of a square grid or 45-degree segments passing through points of the same grid. The integer programming formulation is large, and does not allow an easy solution except for crease patterns based on small grids. Some suggestions for practical implementers are offered, but the problem remains quite open.
Predictors of Patient Satisfaction With Telephone Nursing Services

Patient satisfaction has been shown to be a factor in clinical outcomes, health care quality, and patient follow-through. Thus, a high level of satisfaction is a desired outcome of patient care. This article examines predictors of patient satisfaction with telephone nursing services among a sample of 1,939 respondents, using a conceptual model derived from the literature and preliminary work. The study was conducted in medical offices and call centers of a large national health maintenance organization. Calls were taped and content coded and then matched with caller questionnaire data. In the final multivariate predictive models, patient health status; caller ratings of expectations met by the nurse for listening, clarity, and collaboration; and nurse competence were the strongest predictors of satisfaction. Consistent with the literature, findings suggest that nurses should expand interpersonal communication skills, and systems should reduce barriers to effective listening, clarity, and collaboration with callers.
Is the Gut Microbiota a New Factor Contributing to Obesity and Its Metabolic Disorders?

The gut microbiota refers to the trillions of microorganisms residing in the intestine and is integral in multiple physiological processes of the host. Recent research has shown that gut bacteria play a role in metabolic disorders such as obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular diseases. The mechanisms by which the gut microbiota affects metabolic diseases are by two major routes: (1) the innate immune response to the structural components of bacteria (e.g., lipopolysaccharide) resulting in inflammation and (2) bacterial metabolites of dietary compounds (e.g., SCFA from fiber), which have biological activities that regulate host functions. Gut microbiota has evolved with humans as a mutualistic partner, but dysbiosis in a form of altered gut metagenome and collected microbial activities, in combination with classic genetic and environmental factors, may promote the development of metabolic disorders. This paper reviews the available literature about the gut microbiota and aforementioned metabolic disorders and reveals the gaps in knowledge for future study.
Fault diagnosis based on the artificial immune algorithm and negative selection

Modern manufacturing techniques depend upon systems that produce high volumes with consistent quality in order to ensure maximum productivity. One source of reduced productivity is equipment failure. To minimize these production losses, we propose an intelligent system that is incorporated into the architecture of a machine for detecting the onset of equipment malfunctioning, and to generate corrective action. The intelligent diagnostic system is based upon the artificial immune algorithm and the technique of negative selection. The proposed immune based system monitors a machine's transition states during an operating cycle and immediately detects the occurrence of an anomaly.
Analysis and Prediction of the Metabolic Stability of Proteins Based on Their Sequential Features, Subcellular Locations and Interaction Networks

The metabolic stability is a very important idiosyncracy of proteins that is related to their global flexibility, intramolecular fluctuations, various internal dynamic processes, as well as many marvelous biological functions. Determination of protein's metabolic stability would provide us with useful information for in-depth understanding of the dynamic action mechanisms of proteins. Although several experimental methods have been developed to measure protein's metabolic stability, they are time-consuming and more expensive. Reported in this paper is a computational method, which is featured by (1) integrating various properties of proteins, such as biochemical and physicochemical properties, subcellular locations, network properties and protein complex property, (2) using the mRMR (Maximum Relevance & Minimum Redundancy) principle and the IFS (Incremental Feature Selection) procedure to optimize the prediction engine, and (3) being able to identify proteins among the four types: “short”, “medium”, “long”, and “extra-long” half-life spans. It was revealed through our analysis that the following seven characters played major roles in determining the stability of proteins: (1) KEGG enrichment scores of the protein and its neighbors in network, (2) subcellular locations, (3) polarity, (4) amino acids composition, (5) hydrophobicity, (6) secondary structure propensity, and (7) the number of protein complexes the protein involved. It was observed that there was an intriguing correlation between the predicted metabolic stability of some proteins and the real half-life of the drugs designed to target them. These findings might provide useful insights for designing protein-stability-relevant drugs. The computational method can also be used as a large-scale tool for annotating the metabolic stability for the avalanche of protein sequences generated in the post-genomic age.
Axiomatic attribution for multilinear functions

We study the attribution problem. That is, given a real-valued characteristic function f of n variables and initial and final values r and s for its independent variables, our objective is to divide the responsibility for the change f(s) - f(r) in the characteristic function among each of its independent variables. We call these assigned responsibilities attributions, and we would like the attributions to form a complete partition of the total change. When r=0, the attribution problem coincides with a standard cost sharing model from the social choice literature (cf. Moulin [2]), where the characteristic function is the cost function, the independent variables are the demands of the agents, and the attributions are cost shares for the agents. We follow the cost sharing literature in identifying good attribution methods axiomatically (for a classical example, see Friedman and Moulin [1]). We consider: Additivity -- attributions are additive in the characteristic function, Dummy -- if the characteristic function does not depend on a variable, then its attribution is zero, and Affine Scale Invariance -- attributions are invariant under simultaneous affine transformation of the characteristic function and the variables. First, we show that when the characteristic function is the sum of a multilinear function and an additively separable one, every attribution method satisfying these axioms is a random order method. Intuitively, a multilinear function is determined by its values on the vertices of a hypercube, so its attributions should depend on these values alone, leading to the space of random order methods. The proof proceeds by using this idea to count dimensions. Second, in our main result, we show that there is a unique attribution method satisfying these axioms and Anonymity (which requires attributions to be invariant under relabeling of the variables) if and only if the characteristic function is the sum of a multilinear function and an additively separable one. The main technical tool is the use of Stokes' Theorem to compare attribution methods. The resulting method coincides with the classical Aumann-Shapley and Shapley-Shubik methods, and thus we term it the Aumann-Shapley-Shubik method. When the characteristic function is multilinear, our result prescribes this method for use; to this end, we provide a computationally efficient implementation. Together, our results single out the class of multilinear characteristic functions as a particularly nice one for attribution problems. We give several examples of natural attribution problems where such functions arise, including pay-per-click advertising, website traffic analysis, portfolio analysis, and performance analysis of sports teams.
Neural representation of reward information : coding by single cells and populations in rat orbitofrontal cortex

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Multipurpose Image Authentication Method based on Vector Quantization

This paper presents a novel multipurpose image authentication scheme for both content authentication and copyright protection. The vector quantization (VQ) algorithm and standard deviation (SD) are adopted to generate authentication and ownership verification information. The experimental results show that this scheme not only distinguishes non-malicious manipulation from others clearly but also verifies ownership and locates the regions of the image that have been tampered.
An SLAM Algorithm Based on Square-root Cubature Particle Filter

The lack of the latest measurement information and the Particle serious degradation cause low estimation precision in the tradition particle filter SLAM (simultaneous localization and mapping). For solve this problem, a SRCPF-SLAM (square cubature particle filter simultaneous localization and mapping) is proposed in this paper. The algorithm fuses the latest measurement information in the stage of the prior distribution updated of the particle filter SLAM. It designs importance density function by SRCKF (Square-root Cubature kalman filter) that is more close to the posterior density, and it spreads the square root of state covariance. So, the algorithm ensures the symmetry and the positive semi-definiteness of the covariance matrix and improves numerical estimation precision and stability. The simulation results show that the proposed algorithm has higher accuracy of the state estimation when compared with the the PF-SLAM (particle filter simultaneous localization and mapping) algorithm, EPF-SLAM (extend particle filter simultaneous localization and mapping) algorithm and the UPF-SLAM (unscented particle filter simultaneous localization and mapping) algorithm. DOI : http://dx.doi. org/10.11591/telkomnika.v12i6. 5059 Full Text: PDF