Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Non-Isothermal Crystallization Kinetics of Mg61Zn35Ca4 Glassy Alloy

The non-isothermal crystallization kinetics of Mg61Zn35Ca4 glassy alloy prepared via melt-spinning were studied by using isoconversion method. The crystalline characterization of Mg61Zn35Ca4 was examined by X-ray diffraction. Different scanning calorimeter was used to investigate the non-isothermal crystallization kinetics at different heating rates (3-60 K/min). The calculated value of Avrami exponent obtained by Matusita method indicated that the crystalline transformation for Mg61Zn35Ca4 is a complex process of nucleation and growth. The Kissinger-Akahira-Sunose method was used to investigate the activation energy. The activation energy of crystallization varies with the extent of crystallization and hence with temperature. The Sestak-Berggren model was used to describe the non-isothermal crystallization kinetics.
[Effects of mild hypothermia plus ifenprodil on apoptosis inducing factor translocation after global cerebral ischemia-reperfusion in rats].

OBJECTIVE To explore the effects of mild hypothermia combined with ifenprodil on the survival of neuronal and translocation of apoptosis inducing factor (AIF) following global cerebral ischemia-reperfusion to understand the mechanism of combination in cerebral resuscitation. METHODS Eighty male SD rats were randomly divided into 5 groups of sham (I), model (II), ifenprodil (III), mild hypothermia (IV) and ifenprodil plus mild hypothermia (V) (n = 16 each). Group I completed all procedures except for ventricular fibrillation (VF) and cardio pulmonary resuscitation (CPR). For groups II and V, the model of global cerebral ischemia-reperfusion was established and VF induced with transoesophageal cardiac pacing; groups III and V received by an intraperitoneal injection of ifenprodil immediately after reperfusion and other groups had an equal volume of distilled water. Rectal temperature was cooled down to (32 ± 1)°C in groups IV and V by rubbing body surface with ethanol in 10 min after reperfusion and maintained 4 hours continuously while other groups at (37 ± 1)°C. In hippocampal CA1 region at 24 hours after reperfusion, the pathomorphological changes and quantity of pyramidal cells were detected with hematoxylin and eosin staining, nuclear translocation of AIF was shown with immunofluorescence technique and the nuclear expression level of AIF was measured with Western blot. RESULTS Compared with group I (75.0 ± 3.2), the number of pyramidal cells decreased in other groups (P < 0.05); compared with group II (36.0 ± 1.2), the number increased in group III (46.8 ± 1.3), IV (49.0 ± 2.7) and V (61.3 ± 2.60) (P < 0.05). In particular, cell count increased significantly in group V (P < 0.05). Compared to group I, the translocation of AIF form mitochondria to nucleus was detected in other groups; compared with group I (0.022 ± 0.003), the expression level of AIF in the nucleus was higher in other groups (P < 0.05). Compared with group II (1.020 ± 0.029) , the expression levels of AIF in groups III (0.870 ± 0.016), IV (0.820 ± 0.050) and V (0.550 ± 0.050) were lower (P < 0.05). And it decreased significantly in group V (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION Mild hypothermia plus ifenprodil may alleviate neuronal damage after global cerebral ischemia/reperfusion injury through mitigating its pro-apoptotic role after AIF translocation.
Effects of Dietary Isoflavones from Puerariae Radix on Lipid and Bone Metabolism in Ovariectomized Rats

Puerariae radix, the dried root of Pueraria lobata Ohwi, is one of the earliest and most important edible crude herbs used for various medical purposes in oriental medicine. This study evaluated the metabolic effects of total isoflavones from P. lobata (PTIF) in ovariectomized (OVX) rats. The OVX rats were divided into four groups treated with distilled water, 17β-estradiol (E2 10 μg/kg, once daily, i.p.) and PTIF (30 and 100 mg/kg, once daily, p.o.) for eight weeks. The treatments with high-dose PTIF significantly decreased the bone mineral density (BMD) loss in the femur and inhibited the increase in body weight and lipoprotein levels compared to the OVX-control group without elevating the serum levels of the liver enzymes, aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and alanine transaminase (ALT). Furthermore, PTIF exhibits a hepatoprotective effect in OVX-induced hepatic steatosis, indicated with reduced hepatic lipid contents. Taken together, our findings suggest that PTIF may be useful for controlling lipid and bone metabolism, at least in OVX rats. Further research is necessary to determine whether PTIF will have the same effects in humans.
A Cluster of CO2 Change Characteristics with GOSAT Observations for Viewing the Spatial Pattern of CO2 Emission and Absorption

Satellite observations can be used to detect the changes of CO2 concentration at global and regional scales. With the column-averaged CO2 dry-air mole fraction (Xco2) data derived from satellite observations, the issue is how to extract and assess these changes, which are related to anthropogenic emissions and biosphere absorptions. We propose a k-means cluster analysis to extract the temporally changing features of Xco2 in the Central-Eastern Asia using the data from 2009 to 2013 obtained by Greenhouse Gases Observing Satellite (GOSAT), and assess the effects of anthropogenic emissions and biosphere absorptions on CO2 changes combining with the data of emission and vegetation net primary production (NPP). As a result, 14 clusters, which are 14 types of Xco2 seasonal changing patterns, are obtained in the study area by using the optimal clustering parameters. These clusters are generally in agreement with the spatial pattern of underlying anthropogenic emissions and vegetation absorptions. According to correlation analysis with emission and NPP, these 14 clusters are divided into three groups: strong emission, strong absorption, and a tendency of balancing between emission and absorption. The proposed clustering approach in this study provides us with a potential way to better understand how the seasonal changes of CO2 concentration depend on underlying anthropogenic emissions and vegetation absorptions.
Extended optimal stochastic production control model with application to economics

This study considers an inventory control system meeting uncertain demand in continuous time.The demand is a function of both time and price, with the price evolves as a Wiener process with no drift. The goal is to use the stochastic optimal control principle to completely solve a production planning model for the demand rate.A stochastic optimal control problem is formulated in which the stochastic differential equations of a type known as Ito’s equations are considered which are perturbed by a Markov diffusion process and analyzed by the optimal control of a single dimension stochastic production planning model. The existence of a complete solution to the associated HJB equation is established and the optimal policy is characterized. Numerical examples and solutions of this optimal control model are then presented.
Optimizing D2D transmission for secure and reliable smart grid communication

Smart grid (SG) has been recognized as a promising solution to manage and distribute electricity in the next generation power systems. The large number of devices in power systems make the wired communication a non feasible solution, thus wireless transmission becomes necessary. However this demands a huge portion of radio spectrum. In this work, we aim to provide the secure and reliable SG communication through an efficient spectrum sharing mechanism. Specifically, we consider an underlay transmission and seek to minimize the interference under complete spectrum reuse while guaranteeing the required secrecy rate as well as end to end delay. A mathematical optimization problem is formulated and convex optimization techniques are exploited to find the near optimal solution. Further a suboptimal solution is also proposed to reduce the computational complexity. Simulation results are presented to verify the effectiveness of the proposed schemes.
Analysis of quantisation effects in adaptive array antennas

Adaptive antennas are used to increase the spectral efficiency in mobile telecommunication systems. The precision required in the beamforming and in the calibration process is evaluated by simulations and verified by measurements on an adaptive antenna testbed. As a performance measure, the carrier to interference ratio (CIR) on adaptive antenna output is used. A theoretical expression for the output CIR is derived and compared with simulations and measurements. The testbed is designed for the DCS-1800 system and operates in the uplink only. It uses the hybrid-digital-analog beamformer, where the weights are computed in a DSP, but the beamforming is performed on RF or IF frequency using analog phase-shifters and attenuators. We show how the simulation tool can be used to make the design balanced and thus avoiding overor under-dimensioning of hardware parameters such as weight accuracy and calibration accuracy. This is important for the system-designer, and can be used to find performance bottlenecks.
A simple analytical method for residual stress measurement on suspended MEM structures using surface profilometry

This paper presents an analytical method to calculate residual stress and Young's modulus in clamped–clamped beams. These types of structures are a typical building block of many MEMS devices, and this guarantees accurate transferability of the measured parameters. The method is based on the determination of beam bending as a function of applied load by means of a surface profiler, and as a function of beam length. By modeling analytically both the elastic and the stress contribution to beam bending, it is possible to obtain both the stress value and Young's modulus by a simple fitting of the experimental data. Results are presented for electrodeposited gold beam arrays of different widths, but the method is in principle exploitable for every type of suspended film where the residual stress strongly influences the material properties. Accuracy and limitations of the method are also discussed.
Thermal and Mechanical Properties of a Poly(ε-caprolactone)/Graphite Oxide Composite

The effect of graphite oxide (GO) as the enforcing filler on the properties of poly(ϵ-caprolactone) (PCL) was investigated in this study. Through the introduction of GO, the Young's modulus of PCL was increased from 340 to 1000 MPa, and the tensile strength of PCL was increased from 15 to 26 MPa. Furthermore, the interlayer distance of GO (0.6 nm) was found to expand to 1.1 nm in the PCL/GO composite, which indicated the intercalation of the PCL chain into the GO layers. Because of this intercalation structure of the PCL/GO composite, GO showed a higher reinforcing effect than graphite on the mechanical properties of PCL. The intercalation should have enabled much effective load transfer in the PCL/GO composites. Moreover, GO showed a nucleating effect toward the crystallization of PCL, as the nonisothermal crystallization peak temperature shifted from 25°C for pure PCL to about 34°C for the PCL/GO composites. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2008
Analysis of PM2.5and PM10 in the Atmosphere of Mexico City during 2000-2002

Abstract During the last 10 years, high atmospheric concentrations of airborne particles recorded in the Mexico City metropolitan area have caused concern because of their potential harmful effects on human health. Four monitoring campaigns have been carried out in the Mexico City metropolitan area during 2000-2002 at three sites: (1) Xalos-toc, located in an industrial region; (2) La Merced, located in a commercial area; and (3) Pedregal, located in a residential area. Results of gravimetric and chemical analyses of 330 samples of particulate matter (PM) with an aerodynamic diameter less than 2.5 μm (PM2.5) and PM with an aerodynamic diameter less than 10 μm (PM10) indicate that (1) PM2.5/PM10 average ratios were 0.42, 0.46, and 0.52 for Xalostoc, La Merced, and Pedregal, respectively; (2) the highest PM2.5 and PM10 concentrations were found at the industrial site; (3) PM2.5 and PM10 concentrations were lower at nighttime; (4) PM2.5 and PM10 spatial averages concentrations were 35 and 76 μg/m3, respectively; and (5) when the PM2.5 standard was exceeded, nitrate, sulfate, ammonium, organic carbon, and elemental carbon concentrations were high. Twenty-four hour averaged PM2.5 concentrations in Mexico City and Sao Paulo were similar to those recorded in the 1980s in Los Angeles. PM10 concentrations were comparable in Sao Paulo and Mexico City but 3-fold lower than those found in Santiago.
Treatment of large and/or multiple hepatic malignancies: open surgical approaches of radiofrequency ablation.

BACKGROUND/AIMS Patients with hepatic malignancies are often poor candidates for resection because of the lack of hepatic reserve as a result of coexisting cirrhosis or the presence of multiple tumors. The purpose of this study was to determine the safety and efficacy of open intraoperative radiofrequency ablation of unresectable hepatic malignancies with size larger than 4 cm in diameter and/or more than three in number. METHODOLOGY Between May 2000 and September 2003, 30 patients (24 men, 6 women; age range, 59-72 years; mean age, 63 years) with 51 hepatic malignancies. The maximal diameter of all tumors ranged from 1.0 to 10cm (mean +/- SD, 3.2 +/- 1.8). RESULTS All tumors achieved necrosis completely in a single session. The mean follow-up from the initial ablation in this study was 18.9 +/- 10.1 months (range, 0-41). The 1-, 2 and 3-year overall survival rates were 86.1%, 71.6% and 71.6%, respectively. The 1-, 2 and 3-year disease-free survival rates were 70.9%, 37.6% and 25.1%, respectively. CONCLUSIONS Open radiofrequency ablation is a safety and efficient approach for hepatic malignancies sized more than 4 cm in diameter and/or located more than three in number.
Chinese Anti鄄 Cancer a Ssociation

Small nucleolar RNAs (snoRNAs) are non鄄 coding RNA (ncRNA) molecules, which are associated with specific proteins to form small nucleolar ribonucleoparticles. However, the function of snoRNAs in cancer still remains elusive. Recently, several independent lines of evidence have indicated that these ncRNAs might have crucial roles in controlling tumorigenesis, and snoRNAs could be potential biomarkers for
Feasibility of Focused Stepping Practice During Inpatient Rehabilitation Poststroke and Potential Contributions to Mobility Outcomes

Background. Optimal physical therapy strategies to maximize locomotor function in patients early poststroke are not well established. Emerging data indicate that substantial amounts of task-specific stepping practice may improve locomotor function, although stepping practice provided during inpatient rehabilitation is limited (<300 steps/session). Objective. The purpose of this investigation was to determine the feasibility of providing focused stepping training to patients early poststroke and its potential association with walking and other mobility outcomes. Methods. Daily stepping was recorded on 201 patients <6 months poststroke (80% < 1 month) during inpatient rehabilitation following implementation of a focused training program to maximize stepping practice during clinical physical therapy sessions. Primary outcomes included distance and physical assistance required during a 6-minute walk test (6MWT) and balance using the Berg Balance Scale (BBS). Retrospective data analysis included multiple regression techniques to evaluate the contributions of demographics, training activities, and baseline motor function to primary outcomes at discharge. Results. Median stepping activity recorded from patients was 1516 steps/d, which is 5 to 6 times greater than that typically observed. The number of steps per day was positively correlated with both discharge 6MWT and BBS and improvements from baseline (changes; r = 0.40-0.87), independently contributing 10% to 31% of the total variance. Stepping activity also predicted level of assistance at discharge and discharge location (home vs other facility). Conclusion. Providing focused, repeated stepping training was feasible early poststroke during inpatient rehabilitation and was related to mobility outcomes. Further research is required to evaluate the effectiveness of these training strategies on short- or long-term mobility outcomes as compared with conventional interventions.
Dynamic Population Games for Optimal Dispatch on Hierarchical Microgrid Control

In the path to the future implementation of the smart grid, microgrids are presented as a cornerstone. An efficient and optimal microgrid operation is paramount. In this paper, we present a hierarchical microgrid management system using task sharing and an evolutionary game theory based dispatch strategy as a coordination algorithm to integrate the three main control levels needed for microgrid operation, which can be considered as a distributed intelligent system. The proposed algorithm shares the total load demanded into the distributed generators efficiently, while the microgrid utility is maximized dynamically, increasing the system reliability. Some simulation results are presented to illustrate the effectiveness of the dynamic performance of the proposed approach compared with a traditional hierarchical algorithm.
Tensile and Morphology Properties of Polylactic Acid/Treated Typha latifolia Composites

This paper is focused to investigate the effect of treated natural fiber (typha latifolia) content on tensile and morphology properties of polylactic acid (PLA)/treated typha latifolia (T-TyLa) composites. The composite was compounded using heated two roll mill and the composite samples were prepared through compression molding. Tensile test and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analysis were carried out to study the properties of PLA/T-TyLa composites. The results showed that the tensile strength of PLA/T-TyLa composites was decreased for about 43% with initial addition of T-TyLa content. The tensile modulus of the composites was increased (23%-91%) with increasing of fiber content. However, increased in fiber content reduced the elongation at break for about 53%-67% of PLA/T-TyLa composites. The optimum increment was obtained at 30 wt% of fiber content. SEM results showed that fiber dispersion was better for PLA/T-TyLa composites at lower fiber content.
Prevalence and clinical significance of antinuclear antibodies in Iranian women with unexplained recurrent miscarriage

Background: Antinuclear antibodies (ANAs) in women with recurrent miscarriage have been reported. The presence of moderate to high titers of these antibodies represents an autoimmune condition that can endanger the health of the fetus in pregnant women. Objective: In this study, we evaluated the prevalence of ANAs in Iranian women with a history of two or more unexplained abortion. Materials and Methods: 560 women with unexplained recurrent miscarriage and 560 healthy controls accounted for this study over a period of 13 months. ANAs were detected by indirect immunofluorescence technique. Results: ANAs were detected in 74 of 560 (13.21%) patient with recurrent miscarriage, and in only 5 of 560 (0.9%) controls (p<0.001). ANA positivity was generally found with low-positive results (1.40-1.80) in about 38% of positive cases, whereas moderate titres (1.160-1.320) and high titres (>1.640) were seen in about 46% and 16% of cases respectively. Finally evaluating of microscopic ANA patterns revealed that about half of positive cases had antibodies against DNA- histone complex, associated with systemic lupus erythematosus disease. Conclusion: Antinuclear antibodies are not uncommon in women with unexplained recurrent miscarriage, suggesting the possible role of an autoimmune disorder on abortion, at least in a subgroup of patients.
Continuance Intention in Crowdsourcing Processes

With the growing popularity of Crowdsourcing (CS), companies are developing different strategies to tap into the creativity of the crowd. Some of these strategies imply the long-term involvement of communities of external individuals. Since participation in CS is voluntary, it is important to understand the determinants of participation. Several studies exist that investigated the motivations of participants in CS initiatives. These studies, however, did not make distinction between people who participate only once and people who after the first experience intend to participate again. This research attempts to explore the determinants of repeated participation, critical for the success of long-term CS strategies. We investigate the impact of intrinsic and extrinsic motivations on the intention continue for participants in CS initiatives. To address this objective, a survey involving individuals, who have participated at least once in CS initiatives, has been conducted. Hierarchical regression analysis has been used to test the hypotheses. The findings demonstrate that intrinsic motivations impact on the intention to continue for participants in CS initiatives. The impact of extrinsic motivations (i.e. monetary rewards and reputation) was found to be not significant. As a consequence, companies willing to adopt long-term CS strategies need to leverage intrinsic motivations in order to involve communities of external individuals in their innovation processes.
Adaptive Cruise Control System using Balance-Based Adaptive Control technique

In this paper, a nonlinear Balance-Based Adaptive Control (B-BAC) technique is proposed for the design of an Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC) System. The architecture for ACC system represents the cascade control and it includes two control loops. The B-BAC technique accounts for system nonlinearities and it allows for split range control of both the brake and the throttle so it can be utilized in the design of the inner-loop control, while the outer-loop control is based on a simple proportional controller. The results of the simulation prove the effectiveness of the proposed algorithm in distance and speed tracking as well as providing the smooth variation of the vehicle acceleration.
Leadership in Librarianship

Two SURVEYS WERE ADMINISTERED to library professionals holding titular headships in order to develop a list of perceived library leaders. This list was used to learn the locus (subfield) of leadership and the degree of fieldwide integration as evidenced by the extent of shared perceptions by respondents. Results revealed that leaders tend to be associated most strongly with a category labeled “other” whose members may serve as professionals’ professionals; that is, high status field members and directing professional associations. Some fieldwide integration is indicated by agreement on the nomination of two people by a significant portion of respondents from six subfields. Nominators in three subfields frequently concurred in their leader choices creating a de facto community of shared perceptions, and, by implication, shared values which, in turn, may influence the profession’s agenda and priorities.
The effect of antiviral therapy on t ( 14 ; 18 ) translocation and immunoglobulin gene rearrangement in patients with chronic hepatitis C virus infection

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