Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Induced Pacemaker Activity on Toad Skin

The electrical transients produced on the isolated abdominal skin obtained from Bufo arenarum Hensel, under the influence of inward current pulses of constant intensity have been studied. When both faces of the skin are bathed with Ringer's solution, short pulses of inward current give rise to transient variations of the potential difference between both faces of the skin with "all-or-nothing" characteristics (action potentials, AP). When the outer face is bathed with a modified Ringer solution with low sodium content (2.4 mM), the transients are longer and they are only evident when the pulse is several hundred milliseconds long. With even longer pulses (several seconds) a repetitive activity can be elicited, with the electrical characteristics of a "pacemaker" activity. In all these "excitability" phenomena Na+ may be replaced by Li+ in the outer solution. The logarithm of the duration of AP's is inversely related to the logarithm of the increase in concentration of Na+ or Li+ in the solution bathing the external face of the skin. The duration of AP's is increased when the Ca++ concentration in the outer solution is raised. This effect is more evident with low sodium concentration on the outside. The evolution of the slope conductance during repetitive activity has been determined. The site and mechanisms of the "excitable" behavior of the skin and the induced repetitive activity are discussed. Under the experimental conditions employed the behavior of the skin is compared with that of normally excitable plasma membranes.
Uniaxial fiber Bragg grating accelerometer: Enhanced sensitivity and bandwidth

The fiber Bragg grating (FBG) accelerometer presented has a modified cantilever beam design, which places a section of the fiber that contains the FBG perpendicular to the cantilever surface, between the tip of the cantilever and the sensor frame. This elongates the FBG axis uniformly in order to get the highest possible strain along the grating, resulting in the enhancement of the Bragg wavelength shift and the natural frequency. And obtaining a sensitivity of 330 pm per acceleration and a bandwidth of 227.3 Hz.
Optimisation of the Recovery Section of a Polyolefin Catalyst Manufacturing Process

During the production of Ziegler-Natta catalysts, comparatively large amounts of washing effluents are generated. It is of significant importance – both in terms of economic competence and environmental concern – that these washing effluents are treated for recovering the components. The objective of this work was to develop and optimise the separation processes of the recovery section of a catalyst manufacturing plant. The methods proposed in the initial design were proven suitable for the purposes. It was shown that it is possible and highly economical to recover the valuable components from the motherliquor and washing effluents. It was also proven, that these components can be efficiently reused in the washing stages without harmfully affecting the catalyst properties. The recovery efficiency of a continuous evaporator was proven high: over 90 % of the most valuable component, titanium tetrachloride, was recovered. The evaporator was most feasible when operated at reduced pressures. The separation of the key components via distillation was proven economically feasible. However, the toluene column condenser is proposed to be a partial condenser instead of total. The accumulation of light components in the toluene recovery cycle can be effectively avoided via bleeding the vapour from this condenser out from the process. The accuracy of modelling the separation units was increased via regression of the binary interaction parameters of the key components. The parameters for describing the nonidealities were regressed from experimental vapour-liquid equilibrium data. Via these experiments it was also proven that there are no azeotropes within the studied binary mixtures and hence conventional distillation is possible. The effects of the impurities in the washing liquids were shown to have practically no effect on the catalyst composition, morphology or polymerisation properties. Hence, these recovered components can be recovered and reused in the washing stages at the studied conditions. Overall, the concept was proven technically and economically feasible. The variable operating cost of not having the recovery section was 158 €/kgcatalyst. The economic worth of the optimised recovery section with the proposed corrections was 86,3 € per unit quantity; thus reducing the variable operating cost to 71,7 €/kgcatalyst.
Design and optimization of a parallel guidance device for minimal invasive spinal surgery

For most of the spinal surgeries, the pedicle screw insertion operation is a significant difficult procedure. To solve accurate position and keep the screw path in operation, a parallel guide device based on 3-RPS parallel mechanism is proposed in this paper. According to three degrees of freedom (Dofs), the inverse solution of the parallel mechanism, the workspace of parallel mechanism and institutional flexibility are calculated. And based on the finite element analysis, first six order natural frequency of parallel mechanism are analyzed. The integrated optimization method is used based on the kinematics and dynamics indexes. The frequency of the dynamic response of the different dimensions is gained by finite element software. The experimental design of Box-behken is used to get more sample data for fitting function by using least square method. Work spaces of institutions and frequency of the dynamic response is got. Kinematic indexes are the work spaces and institutional flexibility and the indexes of the dynamics is the first-order frequency response. Both as the objective function, to get optimal structural parameters size by genetic algorithm optimization based on kinematics and dynamics. By this approach, a good kinematics index and dynamic index of the parallel mechanism are obtained. Such a combination of both the formation of multi-objective optimization design can provide the basis of strong theoretical guidance for future engineering applications.
Rate Distortion Optimization for H.264 Interframe Coding: A General Framework and Algorithms

Rate distortion (RD) optimization for H.264 interframe coding with complete baseline decoding compatibility is investigated on a frame basis. Using soft decision quantization (SDQ) rather than the standard hard decision quantization, we first establish a general framework in which motion estimation, quantization, and entropy coding (in H.264) for the current frame can be jointly designed to minimize a true RD cost given previously coded reference frames. We then propose three RD optimization algorithms-a graph-based algorithm for near optimal SDQ in H.264 baseline encoding given motion estimation and quantization step sizes, an algorithm for near optimal residual coding in H.264 baseline encoding given motion estimation, and an iterative overall algorithm to optimize H.264 baseline encoding for each individual frame given previously coded reference frames-with them embedded in the indicated order. The graph-based algorithm for near optimal SDQ is the core; given motion estimation and quantization step sizes, it is guaranteed to perform optimal SDQ if the weak adjacent block dependency utilized in the context adaptive variable length coding of H.264 is ignored for optimization. The proposed algorithms have been implemented based on the reference encoder JM82 of H.264 with complete compatibility to the baseline profile. Experiments show that for a set of typical video testing sequences, the graph-based algorithm for near optimal SDQ, the algorithm for near optimal residual coding, and the overall algorithm achieve on average, 6%, 8%, and 12%, respectively, rate reduction at the same PSNR (ranging from 30 to 38 dB) when compared with the RD optimization method implemented in the H.264 reference software.
Ghana Engaging the Private Sector in Education: SABER Pilot Country Report 2015

1. Encouraging Innovation by Providers Policies allow independent private schools to make their own decisions on appointing, deploying, and dismissing teachers; schools determine teacher salary levels; schools set class size standards and determine the curricula. The only restriction placed on independent private schools requires them to follow centrally-mandated teacher certification standards to maintain active registration.
Properties of Procoagulant Platelets: Defining and Characterizing the Subpopulation Binding a Functional Prothrombinase*

Objective—The goal of this study was to define and characterize the subpopulation of platelets capable of regulating the functional interactions of factors Va (FVa) and Xa (FXa) on the thrombin-activated platelet surface. Methods and Results—Flow cytometric analyses were used to define and characterize platelet subpopulations. At a concentration of thrombin known to elicit maximal platelet activation, platelet-derived FVa release, and prothrombinase assembly/function, only a subpopulation of platelets was positive for FVa and FXa binding. An additional subpopulation bound lower levels of FVa but little, if any, FXa. Fluorescence microscopy analyses confirmed these data. Phenotypically, platelets capable of binding FXa were more highly reticulated and demonstrated significantly increased expression of several key adhesion molecules, including P-selectin, glycoprotein Ib&agr;, and integrins &agr;IIb and &bgr;3. This platelet subpopulation was also defined by the expression of a nondissociable, membrane-bound pool of functional platelet-derived FVa, which made up ≈35% to 50% of the total membrane-bound cofactor. Conclusion—The ability of activated platelets to support thrombin generation is defined by a subpopulation of platelets expressing a nondissociable pool of platelet-derived FVa and increased adhesive receptor density. This subpopulation is hypothesized to play a significant role in regulating both normal hemostasis and pathological thrombus formation because the adherent properties of platelets and their ability to mount and sustain a procoagulant response are crucial steps in both of these processes.
3D Magnetic Field Sensor Concept for Use in Inertial Measurement Units (IMUs)

We report on the design, fabrication, and characterization of a microfabricated 3D magnetic field sensor that is suitable for co-integration with inertial sensors to form single-chip inertial measurement units. In contrast to classical resonant MEMS magnetometers, which are based on Lorentz force measurement, our sensor uses permanent magnetic materials and piezoresistive detection with silicon strain gauges of nanometric section, leading to low power consumption and high sensitivity for small sensor size. Thin multilayers of CoFe and PtMn as ferro- and antiferromagnetic materials are integrated within the MEMS fabrication process. Sensitivities of 1.09 V/T for x- and y- components of the magnetic field and 0.124 V/T for z- component of the magnetic field were measured, respectively. To be sensitive to magnetic fields along all three spatial directions, two permanent magnetization directions on the same die are required. Implementation of the two magnetization directions was validated by a measured correlation of 99.7% between x- and y- sensitivity axes. Power consumption of the 3D sensor is for polarization with a 100 μA dc current. With resolutions of 100 nT/√Hz for x- and y-component of the magnetic field and 350 nT/√Hz for z- component, the sensor is suitable for precise measurement of earth magnetic field.
Optimal Behavior of Electric Vehicle Parking Lots as Demand Response Aggregation Agents

With increasing environmental concerns, the electrification of transportation plays an outstanding role in the sustainable development. In this context, plug-in electric vehicle (PEV) and demand response have indispensable impacts on the future smart grid. Since integration of PEVs into the grid is a key element to achieve sustainable energy systems, this paper presents the optimal behavior of PEV parking lots in the energy and reserve markets. To this end, a model is developed to derive optimal strategies of parking lots, as responsive demands, in both price-based and incentive-based demand response programs (DRPs). The proposed model reflects the impacts of different DRPs on the operational behavior of parking lots and optimizes the participation level of parking lots in each DRP. Uncertainties of PEVs and electricity market are also considered by using a stochastic programming approach. Numerical studies indicate that the PEV parking lots can benefit from the selective participation in DRPs.
A unified framework for non-Brownian suspension flows and soft amorphous solids

While the rheology of non-Brownian suspensions in the dilute regime is well understood, their behavior in the dense limit remains mystifying. As the packing fraction of particles increases, particle motion becomes more collective, leading to a growing length scale and scaling properties in the rheology as the material approaches the jamming transition. There is no accepted microscopic description of this phenomenon. However, in recent years it has been understood that the elasticity of simple amorphous solids is governed by a critical point, the unjamming transition where the pressure vanishes, and where elastic properties display scaling and a diverging length scale. The correspondence between these two transitions is at present unclear. Here we show that for a simple model of dense flow, which we argue captures the essential physics near the jamming threshold, a formal analogy can be made between the rheology of the flow and the elasticity of simple networks. This analogy leads to a new conceptual framework to relate microscopic structure to rheology. It enables us to define and compute numerically normal modes and a density of states. We find striking similarities between the density of states in flow, and that of amorphous solids near unjamming: both display a plateau above some frequency scale ω∗ ∼ |zc - z|, where z is the coordination of the network of particle in contact, zc = 2D where D is the spatial dimension. However, a spectacular difference appears: the density of states in flow displays a single mode at another frequency scale ωmin ≪ ω∗ governing the divergence of the viscosity.
Making campus bridging work for researchers: a case study with mlRho

An increasing number of biologists' computational demands have outgrown the capacity of desktop workstations and they are turning to supercomputers to run their simulations and calculations. Many of today's computational problems, however, require larger resource commitments than even individual universities can provide. XSEDE is one of the first places researchers turn to when they outgrow their campus resources. XSEDE machines are far larger (by at least an order of magnitude) than what most universities offer. Transitioning from a campus resource to an XSEDE resource is seldom a trivial task. XSEDE has taken many steps to make this easier, including the Campus Bridging initiative, the Campus Champions program, the Extended Collaborative Support Service (ECSS) [1] program, and through education and outreach. In this paper, our team of biologists and application support analysts (including a Campus Champion) dissect a computationally intensive biology project and share the insights we gain to help strengthen the programs mentioned above. We worked on a project to calculate population mutation and recombination rates of tens of genome profiles using mlRho [2], a serial, open-source, genome analysis code. For the initial investigation, we estimated that we would need 6.3 million service units (SUs) on the Ranger system. Three of the most important places where the biologists needed help in transitioning to XSEDE were (i) preparing the proposal for 6.3 million SUs on XSEDE, (ii) scaling up the existing workflow to hundreds of cores and (iii) performance optimization. The Campus Bridging initiative makes all of these tasks easier by providing tools and a consistent software stack across centers. Ideally, Campus Champions are able to provide support on (i), (ii) and (iii), while ECSS staff can assist with (ii) and (iii). But (i), (ii) and (iii) are often not part of a Campus Champion's regular job description. To someone writing an XSEDE proposal for the first time, a link to the guidelines and a few pointers may not always be enough for a successful application. In this paper we describe a new role for a campus bridging expert to play in closing the gaps between existing programs and present mlRho as a case study.
Endomicroscopic image retrieval and classification using invariant visual features

This paper investigates the use of modern content based image retrieval methods to classify endomicroscopic images into two categories: neoplastic (pathological) and benign. We describe first the method that maps an image into a visual feature signature which is a numerical vector invariant with respect to some particular classes of geometric and intensity transformations. Then we explain how these signatures are used to retrieve from a database the k closest images to a new image. The classification is finally achieved through a procedure of votes weighted by a proximity criterion (weighted k-nearest neighbors). Compared with several previously published alternatives whose maximal accuracy rate is almost 67% on the database, our approach yields an accuracy of 80% and offers promising perspectives.
Bioaccumulation of Trace Metals in Golden Rabbit fish Siganus guttatus, Collected in Selected Seagrass Meadows of Northern Mindanao, Philippines

Bioaccumulation of Trace Metals in Golden Rabbit fish Siganus guttatus, Collected in Selected Seagrass Meadows of Northern Mindanao, Philippines The high-value Golden Rabbit fish (Siganus guttatus) was used to assess the current levels of trace metals zinc (Zn), copper (Cu), aluminium (Al) and cadmium (Cd) in 3 different seagrass meadows. The level of trace metals detected in the flesh of S. guttatus was at in the order of Al (18.360 mg/kg) >Zn (15.783 mg/kg) >Cu (1.0046 mg/kg) >Cd (0.100 mg/kg). Highest Al concentration was found in S. guttatus samples from Rizal, Zamboanga del Norte, as well as the toxic Cd. Human risk assessment based on the average Filipino consumption, showed that it is still safe to consume the fish S. guttatus on a daily basis. In general, Al was the most interactive element while Cd was the least. Regular monitoring of trace metals in these important seagrass meadows is recommended to avoid human health risk and ecological toxicity that may arise.
Functional neurological disorders: the neurological assessment as treatment

The neurologist's role in patients with functional disorders has traditionally been limited to making the diagnosis, excluding a ‘disease’ and pronouncing the symptoms to be ‘non-organic’ or ‘psychogenic’. In this article, I argue that there are multiple opportunities during routine assessment of a patient with a functional disorder for the neurologist to take the lead with treatment. These opportunities occur throughout history taking, during the examination and, with greatest potential for treatment, at the end of the consultation. Elements of the neurologist's discussion that may be most useful include (a) emphasis that symptoms are genuine, common and potentially reversible; (b) explanation of the positive nature of the diagnosis (ie, not a diagnosis of exclusion); (c) simple advice about distraction techniques, self-help techniques and sources of information; (d) referral on to appropriate physiotherapy and/or psychological services; and (e) offering outpatient review. I also discuss how new diagnostic criteria for Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders-5 and changes proposed for International Classification of Diseases may facilitate changes that allow neurologists to bring their management of patients with functional disorders in line with other multidisciplinary neurological disorders in the outpatient clinic.
Modelo flexible de movimiento de torso, brazo, antebrazo y muñeca

Human motion analysis is an open research area that focuses on explaining, by using different kind of sensors, the movements made by a person and how they are accomplished. An important task of this research area is proposing computational models able to represent human motion. People move differently from each other, and some factors such as the age or loss of physical abilities change their motion patterns, for that, it is necessary to develop, on one hand flexible methods and motion models; i.e. able to represent the movements of several groups of people, and on the other hand simple ones; i.e. based on unsophisticated instruments, such as wearable systems. The main goal of this research is proposing and implementing a flexible motion model based on signals of wireless inertial sensors and an electromyograph to represent the motion of the trunk, arm, forearm and wrist of a person with or without motion impairments. This motion model could be used as a tool to analyse in detail the motion of people to determine quantitatively the differences in their range of motion. The developed model represents the motion of ten degrees of freedom of the body: three of the trunk, three of the shoulder, two of the elbow and two of the wrist. Our motion model is divided into two parts, on one hand, the first part consists of a kinematic model that uses the information given by three inertial measurement units to represent the motion of the trunk, arm and forearm. On the other hand, the second part consists of a model based on an ensemble of classifiers able to represent the motion of the wrist by analysing characteristics obtained through the electromyographic signals of the forearm. Two experiments were conducted in order to validate both parts of our motion model. For the kinematic model, a reaching task was used as case study and movement trajectories were compared. Namely, the trajectories of the nape, arm and hand of five healthy people and one apoplexy patient obtained through our motion model and through an optical system comprising
Role of Porphyromonas gingivalis HmuY in Immunopathogenesis of Chronic Periodontitis

Periodontitis is a multifactorial disease, with participation of bacterial, environmental, and host factors. It results from synergistic and dysbiotic multispecies microorganisms, critical “keystone pathogens,” affecting the whole bacterial community. The purpose of this study was to review the role of Porphyromonas gingivalis in the immunopathogenesis of chronic periodontitis, with special attention paid to HmuY. The host response during periodontitis involves the innate and adaptive immune system, leading to chronic inflammation and progressive destruction of tooth-supporting tissues. In this proinflammatory process, the ability of P. gingivalis to evade the host immune response and access nutrients in the microenvironment is directly related to its survival, proliferation, and infection. Furthermore, heme is an essential nutrient for development of these bacteria, and HmuY is responsible for its capture from host heme-binding proteins. The inflammatory potential of P. gingivalis HmuY has been shown, including induction of high levels of proinflammatory cytokines and CCL2, decreased levels of IL-8, and increased levels of anti-HmuY IgG and IgG1 antibodies in individuals with chronic periodontitis. Therefore, the HmuY protein might be a promising target for therapeutic strategies and for development of diagnostic methods in chronic periodontitis, especially in the case of patients with chronic periodontitis not responding to treatment, monitoring, and maintenance therapy.