Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A Mathematical Framework for Deep Learning in Elastic Source Imaging

An inverse elastic source problem with sparse measurements is of concern. A generic mathematical framework is proposed which incorporates a low- dimensional manifold regularization in the conventional source reconstruction algorithms thereby enhancing their performance with sparse datasets. It is rigorously established that the proposed framework is equivalent to the so-called \emph{deep convolutional framelet expansion} in machine learning literature for inverse problems. Apposite numerical examples are furnished to substantiate the efficacy of the proposed framework.
An investigation into the impact of cryogenic environment on mechanical stresses in FRP composites

Fibre reinforced polymer (FRP) composites are fast becoming a highly utilised engineering material for high performance applications due to their light weight and high strength. Carbon fibre and other high strength fibres are commonly used in design of aerospace structures, wind turbine blades, etc. and potentially for propellant tanks of launch vehicles. For the aforementioned fields of application, stability of the material is essential over a wide range of temperature particularly for structures in hostile environments. Many studies have been conducted, experimentally, over the last decade to investigate the mechanical behaviour of FRP materials at varying subzero temperature. Likewise, tests on aging and cycling effect (room to low temperature) on the mechanical response of FRP have been reported. However, a relatively lesser focused area has been the mechanical behaviour of FRP composites under cryogenic environment. This article reports a finite element method of investigating the changes in the mechanical characteristics of an FRP material when temperature based analysis falls below zero. The simulated tests are carried out using a finite element package with close material properties used in the cited literatures. Tensile test was conducted and the results indicate that the mechanical responses agree with those reported in the literature sited.
Reactive Oxygen Species within the Spinal Cord Impairs Arterial Baroreflex Control of Renal Sympathetic Nerve Activity

Clinical and experimental studies have shown that sustained increase in renal sympathetic nerve activity (rSNA) contributes to hypertension. Previous studies by our group showed that antioxidant treatments improve arterial baroreceptor reflex, which is a powerful beat-to-beat negative feedback control of arterial blood pressure (BP). We hypothesized that reactive oxygen species (ROS) contribute to arterial baroreflex control of rSNA by acting on sympathetic preganglionic neurons in the spinal cord. We then performed the intrathecal (i.t.) administration of tempol (4-hydroxy-2, 2, 6, 6-tetramethylpiperidine-N-oxyl) (5nmol), a superoxide dismutase mimetic. We evaluated the cardiovascular effects, basal and reflex rSNA evoked by i.t. injection of tempol. No significant changes in basal levels of heart rate (HR), mean arterial pressure (MAP) and rSNA were found. However, tempol significantly increased renal reflex sympathoinhibitory responses (pre tempol: -0.61 ± 0.15; post tempol: -1.55 ± 0.14* spikes/s/mmHg). Thus, the results suggest that ROS exert a tonic inhibitory influence on the activity of spinal neurons with barosensitive properties, and it seems to be a preferential influence on fibers involved in reflex sympathoinhibitory responses. Our study raises the possibility that ROS in the spinal cord mediate part of the baroreflex dysfunction in cardiovascular diseases, such as hypertension and heart failure, which is detrimental to patient outcome.
Interference Mitigation in D2D Communication Underlaying LTE-A Network

The mobile data traffic has risen exponentially in recent days due to the emergence of data intensive applications, such as online gaming and video sharing. It is driving the telecommunication industry as well as the research community to come up with new paradigms that will support such high data rate requirements within the existing wireless access network, in an efficient and effective manner. To respond to this challenge, device-to-device (D2D) communication in cellular networks is viewed as a promising solution, which is expected to operate, either within the coverage area of the existing eNB and under the same cellular spectrum (in-band) or separate spectrum (out-band). D2D provides the opportunity for users located in close proximity of each other to communicate directly, without traversing data traffic through the eNB. It results in several transmission gains, such as improved throughput, energy gain, hop gain, and reuse gain. However, integration of D2D communication in cellular systems at the same time introduces new technical challenges that need to be addressed. Containment of the interference among D2D nodes and cellular users is one of the major problems. D2D transmission radiates in all directions, generating undesirable interference to primary cellular users and other D2D users sharing the same radio resources resulting in severe performance degradation. Efficient interference mitigation schemes are a principal requirement in order to optimize the system performance. This paper presents a comprehensive review of the existing interference mitigation schemes present in the open literature. Based on the subjective and objective analysis of the work available to date, it is also envisaged that adopting a multi-antenna beamforming mechanism with power control, such that the transmit power is maximized toward the direction of the intended D2D receiver node and limited in all other directions will minimize the interference in the network. This could maximize the sum throughput and hence, guarantees the reliability of both the D2D and cellular connections.
Paediatric schistosomiasis: What we know and what we need to know

Schistosomiasis affects over 200 million people worldwide, most of whom are children. Research and control strategies directed at preschool-aged children (PSAC), i.e., ≤5 years old, have lagged behind those in older children and adults. With the recent WHO revision of the schistosomiasis treatment guidelines to include PSAC, and the recognition of gaps in our current knowledge on the disease and its treatment in this age group, there is now a concerted effort to address these shortcomings. Global and national schistosome control strategies are yet to include PSAC in treatment schedules. Maximum impact of schistosome treatment programmes will be realised through effective treatment of PSAC. In this review, we (i) discuss the current knowledge on the dynamics and consequences of paediatric schistosomiasis and (ii) identify knowledge and policy gaps relevant to these areas and to the successful control of schistosome infection and disease in this age group. Herein, we highlight risk factors, immune mechanisms, pathology, and optimal timing for screening, diagnosis, and treatment of paediatric schistosomiasis. We also discuss the tools required for treating schistosomiasis in PSAC and strategies for accessing them for treatment.
Antioxidant Phytochemicals in Fresh Produce: Exploitation of Genotype Variation and Advancements in Analytical Protocols

Horticultural commodities (fruit and vegetables) are the major dietary source of several bioactive compounds of high nutraceutical value for humans, including polyphenols, carotenoids and vitamins. The aim of the current review was dual. Firstly, toward the eventual enhancement of horticultural crops with bio-functional compounds, the natural genetic variation in antioxidants found in different species and cultivars/genotypes is underlined. Notably, some landraces and/or traditional cultivars have been characterized by substantially higher phytochemical content, i.e., small tomato of Santorini island (cv. “Tomataki Santorinis”) possesses appreciably high amounts of ascorbic acid (AsA). The systematic screening of key bioactive compounds in a wide range of germplasm for the identification of promising genotypes and the restoration of key gene fractions from wild species and landraces may help in reducing the loss of agro-biodiversity, creating a healthier “gene pool” as the basis of future adaptation. Toward this direction, large scale comparative studies in different cultivars/genotypes of a given species provide useful insights about the ones of higher nutritional value. Secondly, the advancements in the employment of analytical techniques to determine the antioxidant potential through a convenient, easy and fast way are outlined. Such analytical techniques include electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) and infrared (IR) spectroscopy, electrochemical, and chemometric methods, flow injection analysis (FIA), optical sensors, and high resolution screening (HRS). Taking into consideration that fruits and vegetables are complex mixtures of water- and lipid-soluble antioxidants, the exploitation of chemometrics to develop “omics” platforms (i.e., metabolomics, foodomics) is a promising tool for researchers to decode and/or predict antioxidant activity of fresh produce. For industry, the use of optical sensors and IR spectroscopy is recommended to estimate the antioxidant activity rapidly and at low cost, although legislation does not allow its correlation with health claims.
Makespan minimisation on parallel batch processing machines with non-identical job sizes and release dates

The problem we study in this paper arises from the washing step of hospital sterilisation services. Washers in the washing step are capable of handling more than one medical device set as long as their capacity is not exceeded. The medical device set sizes and arrival times to the sterilisation service may be different, but they all have the same washing duration. Thus, we model the washing step as a batch scheduling problem where medical device sets are treated as jobs with non-identical sizes and release dates, but equal processing times. The main findings we present in this paper are the following. First, we study two special cases for which polynomial algorithms are presented. We then develop a 2-approximation algorithm for the general problem. Finally, we develop a MILP model and compare it with another MILP model from the literature. Computational results show that our MILP model outperforms the model from the literature.
Title Passivity analysis of discrete-time hybrid systems usingpiecewise polynomial storage functions

This paper proposes some sufficient criteria based on the computation of polynomial and piecewise polynomial storage functions for checking passivity of discrete-time hybrid systems in piecewise affine or piecewise polynomial form. The computation of such storage functions is performed by means of convex optimization techniques via the sum of squares decomposition of multivariate polynomials.
UvA-DARE (Digital Academic The method of regions and next-to-soft corrections in Drell-Yan production

We perform a case study of the behaviour of gluon radiation beyond the soft approximation, using as an example the Drell–Yan production cross section at NNLO. We draw a careful distinction between the eikonal expansion, which is in powers of the soft gluon energies, and the expansion in powers of the threshold variable 1 − z , which involves important hard-collinear effects. Focusing on the contribution to the NNLO Drell–Yan K-factor arising from real–virtual interference, we use the method of regions to classify all relevant contributions up to next-to-leading power in the threshold expansion. With this method, we reproduce the exact two-loop result to the required accuracy, including z -independent non-logarithmic contributions, and we precisely identify the origin of the soft-collinear interference which breaks simple soft-gluon factorisation at next-to-eikonal level. Our results pave the way for the development of a general factorisation formula for next-to-leading-power threshold logarithms, and clarify the nature of loop corrections to a set of recently proposed next-to-soft theorems. © 2015 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. This is an open access article under the CC BY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Funded by SCOAP 3 .
AtMyb56 Regulates Anthocyanin Levels via the Modulation of AtGPT2 Expression in Response to Sucrose in Arabidopsis

Sucrose is a crucial compound for the growth and development of plants, and the regulation of multiple genes depends on the amount of soluble sugars present. Sucrose acts as a signaling molecule that regulates a proton-sucrose symporter, with its sensor being the sucrose transporter. Flavonoid and anthocyanin biosynthesis are regulated by sucrose, and sucrose signaling can affect flavonoid and anthocyanin accumulation. In the present study, we found a Myb transcription factor affecting accumulation of anthocyanin. AtMyb56 showed an increase in its expression in response to sucrose treatment. Under normal conditions, anthocyanin accumulation was similar between Col-0 (wild type) and atmyb56 mutant seedlings; however, under sucrose treatment, the level of anthocyanin accumulation was lower in the atmyb56 mutant plants than in Col-0 plants. Preliminary microarray analysis led to the investigation of the expression of one candidate gene, AtGPT2, in the atmyb56 mutant. The phosphate translocator, which is a plastidial phosphate antiporter family, catalyzes the import of glucose-6-phosphate (G-6-P) into the chloroplast. AtGPT2 gene expression was altered in atmyb56 seedlings in a sucrose-dependent manner in response to circadian cycle. Furthermore, the lack of AtMyb56 resulted in altered accumulation of maltose in a sucrose-dependent manner. Therefore, the sucrose responsive AtMyb56 regulates AtGPT2 gene expression in a sucrose-dependent manner to modulate maltose and anthocyanin accumulations in response to the circadian cycle.
Reply to comment on: waist‐to‐height ratio, body mass index and waist circumference for screening pediatric cardio‐metabolic risk factors: a meta‐analysis

Dear Editor, We appreciate the interest of Dr Tian on our paper and the effort in evaluating our review. Dr Tian has raised concern on the methodological validity of pooling area under the curve (AUC) in our previous review. (1) We have pooled the AUC values because of two reasons. First of all, this method is consistent with another review conducted among adults so that the findings are more comparable. (2) Secondly, area under the ROC curve is useful in the early stages of diagnosis, especially for tests that do not require subjective interpretation. (3,4) That suits the scope of our review, which assesses the cardio-metabolic outcomes. We did consider using other methods to summarize our results, but too few studies have provided adequate information. For example, the numbers of the true/false positive and true/false negative are needed for combining the data by the hierarchical summary receiver operator characteristics (HSROC) method. However, among all outcomes in our review, only 3 out of the 10 studies on metabolic syndrome(5–7) and 3 out of the 11 studies on hypertension (8–10) have adequate information to compute those 4 values based on the reported sensitivity, specificity and prevalence of outcome. HSROC models were fitted for the two outcomes using the R-function “HSROC” developed by Schiller et al.(11) The pooled sensitivity and specificity of WHtR to screen for metabolic syndrome are 75.6% (95% C.I. = 37.8%–100%) and 93.9% (95% C.I. = 56.3%– 100%), respectively, while that for hypertension are 35.6% (95% C.I. = 15.2%–73.0%) and 94.4% (95% C.I. = 47.1%–100%), respectively. (Fig. 1)WHtR is sensitive to screen for metabolic syndrome and specific to screen for both outcomes. It is notable that only three studies were included in the analysis of each outcome, and the 95% confidence intervals were quite wide. When compared with sensitivity and specificity, AUC value is more easily accessible. That facilitates a more comprehensive evaluation on the current evidence. There is a trade-off between comprehensiveness of the analysis and the usage of a more sophisticated method. After careful consideration, we have opted for chosen the former advantage, with no major loss in the validity when screening for cardiometabolic outcomes.
Confirming QTLs and Finding Additional Loci Conditioning Sheath Blight Resistance in Rice Using Recombinant Inbred Lines

(QTLs) is to identify loci of similar location and effect in multiple populations and/or environments. The literature contains two prior 1995;Marchetti etal. , 1996;McClung etal. ,1997). These publications reporting the location of QTLs affecting resistance to techniques are based on phenotypic evaluation of resissheath blight (SB) disease in rice (Oryza sativa L.), but lack of agree- tance in inoculated field plots. Disease response is not ment between QTLs in the studies left all 12 unconfirmed, limiting consistent, however, even within inoculated research the potential of marker-assisted selection of this trait with worldwide plots. This inconsistency is experienced as differences importance.Theearlierlinkageanalyseswereimpreciseduetohetero- between replications as well as in year-to-year and locazygosity, segregation, and limited plot size and replication. We evalu- tion-to-location differences. The development of SB is atedareplicatedsetofpure-breedingrecombinantinbredlines(RILs) sensitive to surrounding humidity and temperature, to increase reliability of the quantitative disease data and in turn which are themselves affected by plant density, tiller improve accuracy of the QTL mapping. The RILs were F2:10 descennumber,leaf angleandlength, lodging,and waterdepth. dants from an early-generation ‘Lemont’ ‘Teqing’ population wherein SB resistance QTLs (SB-QTLs) were first identified. The As these plant traits and/or water depth vary within and present study confirmed the location and effect of six SB-QTLs, con- between plots, disease severity also varies. The nongefirmed the existence but not the specific location of another, and netic macro- and micro-environmental factors affecting identified eight new loci. Three of the confirmed QTLs were also disease severity are so numerous and of strong impact found to be independent from undesirable plant height and maturity that one generally observes a range of disease severity effects.Thisresearchdemonstrated theimportanceofusingreplicated even within plots containing genetically pure materials, phenotypic data for reliably establishing the identity and effect of such as released cultivars. Thus, the disease index develputative QTLs for complex traits such as SB resistance. Further oped by Marchetti and Bollich (1991) was designed to marker development to facilitate marker-assisted selection of these account for differences in disease severity observed bethree SB-QTLs is warranted. tween plants within single plots. On a larger scale, with southern U.S. coastal weather patterns, very late and sometimes very early maturing
Lipid Deposition in Kidney Diseases: Interplay Among Redox, Lipid Mediators, and Renal Impairment.

SIGNIFICANCE The relationship between lipid disturbances and renal diseases has been studied for several decades, and it is well recognized that when the balance of renal lipid uptake, synthesis, oxidation, and outflow is disrupted, lipids will undergo oxidation, be sequestrated as lipid droplets, generate toxic metabolites, and cause nephrotoxicity in diverse renal diseases. Recent Advances: During renal disorders, redox signaling is a pivotal event promoting or resulting from lipid disorders. Accordingly, a vicious cycle of lipid redox dysregulation could be developed, accelerating the renal damage. CRITICAL ISSUES The aim of this concise review is to introduce the connection among redox, lipid abnormalities and kidney damage in various conditions. And we summarized current understanding of the lipid redox loop implicated in acute kidney injury, chronic kidney disease, metabolic abnormalities, aging, and genetic pitfalls. FUTURE DIRECTIONS Despite recent advances, further investigations are required to clarify the complicated molecular and regulatory mechanisms among redox, lipid mediators and renal disorders. Moreover, exploring an ideal target for potential therapies should be discussed and studied in future.
On the Embedding Problem for Discrete-Time Markov Chains

When a discrete-time homogenous Markov chain is observed at time intervals that correspond to its time unit, then the transition probabilities of the chain can be estimated using known maximum likelihood estimators. In this paper we consider a situation when a Markov chain is observed on time intervals with length equal to twice the time unit of the Markov chain. The issue then arises of characterizing probability matrices whose square root(s) are also probability matrices. This characterization is referred to in the literature as the embedding problem for discrete time Markov chains. The probability matrix which has probability root(s) is called embeddable. In this paper for two-state Markov chains, necessary and sufficient conditions for embeddability are formulated and the probability square roots of the transition matrix are presented in analytic form. In finding conditions for the existence of probability square roots for (k x k) transition matrices, properties of row-normalized matrices are examined. Besides the existence of probability square roots, the uniqueness of these solutions is discussed: In the case of nonuniqueness, a procedure is introduced to identify a transition matrix that takes into account the specificity of the concrete context. In the case of nonexistence of a probability root, the concept of an approximate probability root is introduced as a solution of an optimization problem related to approximate nonnegative matrix factorization.
Nucleation and growth during the formation of polycrystalline silicon thin films

Polycrystalline Silicon (poly-Si) thin films on foreign substrates are interesting for large area electronic devices like displays, sensors and solar cells. Such films can be formed by the aluminum-induced layer exchange (ALILE) process. In the ALILE process aluminum, amorphous silicon (a-Si) bi-layers exchange their positions with a concurrent crystallization of the silicon during a simple annealing step below the eutectic temperature of the Al/Si system (Teu = 577 °C). The resulting poly-Si layer is large grained which promises high carrier mobilities and exhibits a preferential, crystallographic (100) orientation which facilitates low-temperature, epitaxial thickening. Within this thesis glass/Al/a-Si layer stacks are investigated in-situ during the ALILE process with an optical microscope. The role of a thin interlayer between the Al and a-Si is studied. While nucleation in isothermal annealing experiments is caused by supersaturation of silicon in the aluminum layer additional nucleation can be enforced by supercooling the sample during annealing. The use of temperature profiles during annealing reveals the mechanism of the ALILE process. The process is discussed on the basis of thermodynamic consideration and elucidated within the Al/Si phase diagram. The definition of Si concentration limits in the Al demonstrates that the large grains in the resulting poly-Si film are caused by a characteristic self-limiting suppression of nucleation during the layer exchange process. When the Si concentration is above the saturation concentration but below a critical concentration existing grains grow but additional nucleation is suppressed. From the thermodynamic considerations on nucleation and growth a model is derived explaining the origin of the preferential orientation. Both experimental and theoretical results obtained in this thesis allow to develop recipes for an optimized polycrystalline silicon layer formation. Poly-crystalline silicon thin-film solar cells based on the seed layer concept have the potential to achieve high efficiencies at very low costs which make them suitable candidates for the medium-term future solar cell technology.