Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Initial Clinical Experience with a Minute Ventilation Sensing Rate Modulated Pacemaker: Improvements in Exercise Capacity and Symptomatology

A minute ventilation sensing rate modulated pacemaker was implanted in nine patients with bradycardia. Minute ventilation is sensed in this pacemaker by means of a standard bipolar pacing electrode. Compared with exercise in the constant rate ventricular pacing (WI) mode at 1 month after pacemaker implantation, rate responsive pacing resulted in an improvement of exercise capacity of 33 ± 5% (from 437 ± 42 s in the WI mode to 593 ±57 s in the rate modulated mode, P < 0.01, Bruce protocol). This improvement was maintained in the seven patients in whom an exercise test was repeated at 3 months after implantation. The pacing rate was significantly correlated with oxygen consumption (r = 0.8A ± 0.04) and measured minute ventilation (r = 0.76 ± 0.06), Symptomatology in these patients was assessed by means of self‐assessment questionnaires in a double blind, randomized cross‐over study in which the pacemaker was alternatively programmed into the WI and rate modulated modes. Significant improvements in “shortness of breath” and “energy during daily activities” were documented during rate modulated pacing and “palpitations” and “chest pain” were not worsened. Most patients preferred the rate modulated mode during the study. In conclusion, rate modulated pacing by sensing minute ventilation resulted in better exercise capacity and symptomatology. The pacing rate also showed good correlation with the individual's oxygen requirement.
Contention-free and application-specific network-on-chip generation for embedded systems

Abstract Although Network-on-Chip (NoC) architectures present an interesting alternative to bus-based multiprocessor systems-on-chip (MPSoCs), they also need some effort to tackle communication contention problem. In this work we propose an efficient approach to application-specific irregular topology generation for contention-free NoC. We take advantage of a priori knowledge of the communication characteristic of the application (embedded system) to perform computation and communication scheduling and route generation with regard for performance constraints. In the result we obtain customized and minimal topology. During topology generation we take into consideration energy and resource issues, so our methodology assumes simple router architecture and minimal number of links. Provided experimental results confirm benefits of our methodology.
Frequency discrimination of random-amplitude tones.

The ability of human observers to discriminate frequencies of tones between 1000–15 000 cps was measured in a temporal two‐alternative forced‐choice discrimination experiment. On each trial, one of the test tones, selected at random, was attenuated by a random amount ranging from 8 to 20 dB in 2‐dB steps. Comparison of the results of this experiment with those of previous experiments in which fixed‐amplitude tones were used, indicates little difference between the observers' abilities to discriminate frequencies of fixed‐ and random‐amplitude tones at 1000 cps. Discrimination with random‐amplitude tones becomes relatively poorer, however, as frequency is increased. For example, the classical data show a frequency just‐noticeable difference (jnd) of 40 cps at 10 000 cps; in the present experiment, with random‐amplitude signals, the observers were unable to achieve 75% correct responses until ΔF was 300 cps.
A C 2 Four-Point Subdivision Scheme with Fourth Order Accuracy and its Extensions

We present a new four-point subdivision scheme that generates C curves. It reproduces cubic polynomials, has a basic limit function with support [−4, 3], and is close to being interpolatory. The refinement rule is based on local cubic interpolation, followed by evaluation at 1/4 and 3/4 of the refined interval. We investigate the approximation properties of this four-point scheme and extend it to a new family of 2n-point schemes. The performance of the new schemes is demonstrated by several examples. §
Regional registration and curvature descriptors for expression resistant 3D face recognition

Registration plays a vital role in 3D face recognition. In the registration phase, some fiducial points are needed. In this paper, a method is proposed to automatically localize landmark points. In addition, the performance of registration is affected by deformations caused by expression variations. It is asserted that regional registration and recognition is resistant to facial deformations. Finally, we propose to use translation and rotation invariant curvature descriptors as surface features to deal with erronous registration. In experiments conducted on the Bosphorus 3D face database, which contains significant expression variations, the performance of the proposed system was satisfactory.
Investigation of memory-based multi-objective optimization evolutionary algorithm in dynamic environment

As the research of dynamic optimization arising, memory-based strategy has gained public attention recently. However, few studies on developing dynamic multi-objective optimization algorithms and even fewer studies on multi-objective memory-based strategy were reported previously. In this paper, we try to address such an issue by proposing several memory-based multi-objective evolutionary algorithms and experimentally investigating different multi-objective dynamic optimization schemes, which include restart, explicit memory, localsearch memory and hybrid memory schemes. This study is to provide pre-trial research of how to appropriately organize and effectively reuse the changed Pareto-optimal decision values (i.e., Pareto-optimal solutions: POS) information.
The Fission Yeast Inhibitor of Growth (ING) Protein Png1p Functions in Response to DNA Damage*

In budding yeast and human cells, ING (inhibitor of growth) tumor suppressor proteins play important roles in response to DNA damage by modulating chromatin structure through collaborating with histone acetyltransferase or histone deacetylase complexes. However, the biological functions of ING family proteins in fission yeast are poorly defined. Here, we report that Png1p, a fission yeast ING homolog protein, is required for cell growth under normal and DNA-damaged conditions. Png1p was further confirmed to regulate histone H4 acetylation through collaboration with the MYST family histone acetyltransferase 1 (Mst1). Additionally, both fission yeast PNG1 and MST1 can functionally complement their budding yeast correspondence homologs YNG2 and ESA1, respectively. These results suggest that ING proteins in fission yeast might also conserve function, similar to ING proteins in budding yeast and human cells. We also showed that decreased acetylation in Δpng1 cells resulted in genome-wide down-regulation of 756 open reading frames, including the central DNA repair gene RAD22. Overexpression of RAD22 partially rescued the png1 mutant phenotype under both normal and DNA-damaged conditions. Furthermore, decreased expression of RAD22 in Δpng1 cells was confirmed to be caused by decreased H4 acetylation at its promoter. Altogether, these results indicate that Png1p is required for histone H4 acetylation and functions upstream of RAD22 in the DNA damage response pathway.
Automatic Keyphrase Generation Automatic Keyphrase Generation

Keyphrases are useful for many purposes like document summarization, clustering and indexing. However, only a minority of documents have keyphrases assigned for them. As manually assigning keyphrases to documents can be expensive and time-consuming, automatic keyphrase generation has attracted attention of many researchers. In this project, we introduce a new feature set that illustrates the linguistics characteristics and the “logical position” of phrase in a given document. Empirical results show that the new feature set does have a significant improvement over the well-known Kea algorithm (Frank, Paynter, Witten, Gutwin, and Nevill-Manning, 1999). We have also created a corpus that has been annotated for keyphrases by multiple readers. We believe that this corpus can serve for future work on keyphrase generation. Subject Descriptors: H.3. 1 Content Analysis and Indexing
Increased Expression of Activation Markers on CD8 Lymphocytes in Children with Human Immunodeficiency Virus-1 Infection

ABSTRACT: The aims of the present study were to analyze the impact of perinatal human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-1 infection on lymphocyte maturation in children, to determine the expression of activation markers on CD8+ cells, and to define predictors of survival in HIV-infected children. Seventy-one children presenting HIV-related symptoms were included in the study; 29 were less than 2 y old and 42 were 2 to 12 y of age. Results were compared with those obtained in normal children of a similar age. In HIV-infected children the proportion of CD4+ and CD8+ CD45RA+ cells was significantly decreased, whereas that of CD8+, CD8+CD38+, and CD8+CD45RO+ cells was strikingly increased compared with controls. In children less than 2 y old the absolute number of CD4+ and CD8+CD45RA+ cells decreased, and the number of CD8+CD45RO+ cells increased significantly, whereas the number of CD8+ and CD8+CD38+ cells did not change. The absolute number of CD4+ T cells declined with age both among controls and among HIV-infected children. In contrast, the absolute number of CD8+ cells and CD8 subsets decreased with age only in controls but not in infected children. In HIV-1-infected children the expression of the CD38 and CD45RO markers on CD8+ cells was significantly correlated, indicating that these were activated cells. The survival of less than 2-y-old children with AIDS symptoms was positively correlated with the total number of CD8 cells and CD8+CD38+ cells at time of entry into the study. Most of the children who died by the end of the study had a CD8 count of less than 750/mm3 and a CD38+CD8+ count of less than 600/mm3 when first seen, whereas most of those who were alive had higher counts.
Effects of cirrus near the tropopause on anvil cirrus dynamics

Recent space and airborne observations have noted tenuous cirrus near the tropopause and above deep convective anvil outflow. We use a cloud‐resolving model, initialized with aircraft observations taken during the CRYSTAL‐FACE experiment, to explore the effects of such cirrus layers on anvil evolution. Numerical simulations demonstrate that anvil cirrus spreads because strong absorption of thermal radiation and emission at cloud base and top creates horizontal heating gradients between the cloud and its environment. The presence of a second layer of cirrus near the tropopause forces the upper part of the anvil to equilibrate to warmer radiative temperatures than would normally be associated with a clear upper atmosphere. Compared to a case without thin cirrus, the associated reduction to heating gradients at anvil cloud top corresponds to reduced anvil spreading and turbulent kinetic energy, by as much as 19% and 40%, respectively. These results suggest that tropopause cirrus can affect climate indirectly, by altering anvil cirrus dynamics.
Neutrophil Elastase Enhances Sputum Solubilization in Cystic Fibrosis Patients Receiving DNase Therapy

Cystic fibrosis patients suffer from chronic lung infection and inflammation due to the secretion of viscous sputum. Sputum viscosity is caused by extracellular DNA, some of which originates from the release of neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs). During NET formation neutrophil elastase (NE) partially processes histones to decondense chromatin. NE is abundant in CF sputum and is thought to contribute to tissue damage. Exogenous nucleases are a palliative treatment in CF as they promote sputum solubilization. We show that in a process reminiscent of NET formation, NE enhances sputum solubilization by cleaving histones to enhance the access of exogenous nucleases to DNA. In addition, we find that in Cf sputum NE is predominantly bound to DNA, which is known to downregulate its proteolytic activity and may restrict host tissue damage. The beneficial role of NE in CF sputum solubilization may have important implications for the development of CF therapies targeting NE.
A novel mutual authentication scheme for Internet of Things

This paper presents a novel mutual identity authentication scheme which can be applied securely in Internet of Things. Based on secure hash algorithm(SHA), feature extraction and elliptic curve cryptography(ECC), we propose an asymmetric mutual authentication scheme between the platform and the terminal node, which imposes light computation and communication cost, through security analysis it is also shown that the proposed scheme is secure and feasible for applications in the Internet of Things.
Assay of salsolinol in peripheral blood mononuclear cells of alcoholics and healthy subjects by gas chromatography‐mass spectrometry

Endogenous 6,7‐dihydroxy‐1‐methyl‐1,2,3,4‐tetrahydroisoquinoline (salsolinol) could be a potential marker involved in the aetiology of alcoholism.Whereas the amount of salsolinol in plasma and urine depends on several dietary conditions, the salsolinol from peripheral mononuclear cells should be formed endogenously. Salsolinol was quantified in lymphocytes of 10 controls and 11 alcoholics (after 1 and 13 weeks of abstinence) using solid phase extraction and gas chromatography/mass spectrometry. Alcoholics showed significantly lower salsolinol concentration than the controls. After 13 weeks of abstinence a further significant decrease of SAL levels could be seen in the lymphocytes of alcoholics. The findings of this study support the theory that salsolinol might be a trait marker in alcoholism.
Towards the Open Source Reference Architectures

Software architectures have received increasing attention by playing a significant role in determining the success and quality of software systems. In particular, reference architecture is a special type of architecture that captures the essence of software systems of a specific domain, achieving therefore well-recognized understanding of that domain. In spite of this, it is not observed concern in order to widely disseminate reference architectures and, as a consequence, the knowledge encompassed by these architectures. At the same time, Open Source Software (OSS) has been largely developed and used in both academy and industry. A diversity of OSS has been made available and has contributed to the software development through dissemination of knowledge that is encompassed mainly in the source code. Specifically, its success is due to OSS licences that have adequately supported its development and evolution. Thus, applying this same idea in order to disseminate reference architectures seems to be very interesting. The main contribution of this paper is to propose Open Source Reference Architecture (OSRA) that, based on principles of OSS, aims at promoting dissemination and evolution of reference architectures, intending to contribute to a more effective software development.
The treatment of cutaneous T‐cell lymphoma with photopheresis

ABSTRACT: Photopheresis or extracorporeal photochemotherapy (ECP) is an immunomodulating procedure that has been available for the treatment of cutaneous T‐cell lymphoma (CTCL) since 1987. A concentrated white blood cell (WBC) sample spiked with 8‐methoxypsoralen (methoxsalen) is exposed to an ultraviolet A light source, then all blood components are returned to the patient. Treatment of mycosis fungoides (MF) and Sézary syndrome (SS) with ECP has been reported in over 400 patients. The combined overall response rate for all stages of CTCL is 55.7% (244 out of 438) with 17.6% (77 out of 438) achieving a complete response. Efficacy in treating certain clinical stages (IB, IIA, III and IVA) and skin stages (T2 and T4) of MF and SS is favorable, although randomized trials comparing ECP to other standard therapies are needed. The use of ECP to treat early stage patients remains controversial. Efforts to establish the effectiveness of combining ECP with other newer immunoadjuvant therapies and modifications of the procedure to enhance immunomodulation are exciting prospects for patients with CTCL.
RESPIRATORY RESISTANCE AND THE EFFECT OF EXERCISE IN FEMALE TEEN ATHLETES WITH PARADOXICAL VOCAL FOLD MOTION

Title of Document: RESPIRATORY RESISTANCE AND THE EFFECT OF EXERCISE IN FEMALE TEEN ATHLETES WITH PARADOXICAL VOCAL FOLD MOTION Sally J. K. Gallena, Doctor of Philosophy, 2012 Directed By: Assistant Professor, Wei Tian Department of Hearing and Speech Sciences Paradoxical vocal fold motion (PVFM) disorder, often referred to as vocal cord dysfunction (VCD), interferes with breathing because the vocal folds adduct during inspiration making it difficult to inhale. When PVFM is triggered by exercise, it can impact competitive play. Athletes with PVFM are often misdiagnosed as having exercise-induced asthma, but do not respond to asthma treatment. Directly visualizing the larynx (laryngoscopy) when symptoms are present is the current “gold standard” for diagnosing PVFM. However, laryngoscopy is invasive and expensive. Standardized noninvasive alternative methodologies are needed for clinically feasible assessment of PVFM by the speech-language pathologist. Respiratory resistance (Rr), measured with the Airflow Perturbation Device (APD), may be useful for assessing PVFM because vocal fold adduction can increase Rr markedly. This research comprises three studies with an overarching goal to validate an objective, non-invasive measure of Rr for identifying abnormal constriction of the laryngeal airway associated with PVFM disorder. Study 1 compared APD-measured Rr to glottal area (GA) assessed through laryngoscopy in a healthy subject feigning PVFM-type breathing. Study 2 assessed intraand intersession test-retest reliability of APD-determined Rr for a control group of 12 healthy female teenage athletes during resting tidal breathing (RTB) and post-exercise breathing (PEB). Study 3 examined differences between the same 12 healthy athletes with 12 athletes diagnosed with PVFM matched for sex, age, and activity level, for Rr, exercise duration, and dyspnea ratings for RTB and PEB. The results revealed: 1) a strong negative correlation (r = -0.824) between Rr and GA suggesting that the APD can indirectly measure changes in the laryngeal airway; 2) strong test-retest reliability for APD-measured inspiratory (Ri) and expiratory (Re) resistance during RTB (ICC > .95), and PEB (ICC >.85); and 3) in control athletes, Ri and Re decreased during PEB as compared with RTB, whereas in athletes with PVFM, both Ri and Re increased during PEB with statistical significance reached for Ri (p <.001). During exercise, athletes with PVFM reported severe dyspnea and exercised for shorter durations. This research demonstrates that a diagnostic protocol for PVFM should include measures of Rr, exercise duration, and perceived dyspnea. RESPIRATORY RESISTANCE AND THE EFFECT OF EXERCISE IN FEMALE TEEN ATHLETES WITH PARADOXICAL VOCAL FOLD MOTION
The use of salivary biomarkers in occupational and environmental medicine

Correspondence to: Dr D S-Q Koh, Department of Community, Occupational and Family Medicine, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Block MD3, 16 Medical Drive, Singapore 117597, Singapore; cofkohd@nus.edu. sg __________________________ T he use of saliva as a diagnostic fluid is a relatively recent trend. This is not surprising when one considers its many advantages and the fact that saliva contains a wide array of constituents. Saliva collection is non-invasive compared with phlebotomy, and, as a result, more acceptable to patients. As obtaining saliva is easy, self-collection after instruction is possible and there is no need for trained staff. Moreover, it does not carry the risk of needle-stick injuries. Saliva collection is also less likely to cause stress compared with other invasive procedures such as phlebotomy, an important consideration when researching biomarkers of stress. Lastly, saliva samples can reflect real-time levels of biomarkers, unlike other biological fluids, such as urine, which is stored in the bladder for a few hours before sampling.
Efficient Hybrid Channel Access for Data Intensive Sensor Networks

In this paper, we introduce novel probabilistic transmission protocols for data intensive wireless sensor networks. The protocols combine a randomized transmission scheme with scheduling based on heuristics to alleviate network performance degradation due to excessive collisions and retransmissions. In particular, by utilizing local information about sensor neighbors, our protocols minimize collisions in areas with high channel contention. The simulation results of our hybrid techniques show improved performance of data delivery and reduced energy consumption compared to carrier-sensing based IEEE 802.15. 4 CAP mode and time-division based DRAND.
Filet-o-Fish: practical and dependable domain-specific languages for OS development

We address a persistent problem with using domain-specific languages to write operating systems: the effort of implementing, checking, and debugging the DSL usually outweighs any of its benefits. Because these DSLs generate C by templated string concatenation, they are tedious to write, fragile, and incompatible with automated verification tools. We present Filet-o-Fish (FoF), a semantic language to ease DSL construction. Building a DSL using FoF consists of safely composing semantically-rich building blocks. This has several advantages: input files for the DSL are formal specifications of the system's functionality, automated testing of the DSL is possible via existing tools, and we can prove that the C code generated by a given DSL respects the semantics expected by the developer. Early experience has been good: FoF is in daily use as part of the tool chain of the Barrelfish multicore OS, which makes extensive use of domain-specific languages to generate low-level OS code. We have found that the ability to rapidly generate DSLs we can rely on has changed how we have designed the OS.
Design of array antenna using CRLH TL power divider supporting infinite wavelength

In this paper, a series feed network which is able to equally excite N number of antenna elements without regards to element spacing or the number of element is proposed. By using the additional microstrip radiating patches on the CRLH TL which acts as a series feed network, the proposed array antenna shows broadside beam pattern with a high gain. The equivalent circuit model of the CRLH TL is achieved by Ansoft Designer, and the antenna structure is optimized by 3-D field simulation tool, CST MWS (Micro Wave Studio).
Integrin-associated protein: a 50-kD plasma membrane antigen physically and functionally associated with integrins

Phagocytosis by monocytes or neutrophils can be enhanced by interaction with several proteins or synthetic peptides containing the Arg-Gly-Asp sequence. Recently we showed that an mAb, B6H12, specifically inhibited this enhancement of neutrophil phagocytosis by inhibiting Arg-Gly-Asp binding to the leukocyte response integrin (Gresham, H. D., J. L. Goodwin, P. M. Allen, D. C. Anderson, and E. J. Brown. 1989. J. Cell Biol. 108:1935-1943). Now, we have purified the antigen recognized by B6H12 to homogeneity. Surprisingly, it is a 50-kD molecule that is expressed on the plasma membranes of all hematopoietic cells, including erythrocytes, which express no known integrins. On platelets and placenta, but not on erythrocytes, this protein is associated with an integrin that can be recognized by an anti-beta 3 antibody. In addition, both the anti-beta 3 and several mAbs recognizing the 50-kD protein inhibit Arg-Gly-Asp stimulation of phagocytosis. These data demonstrate an association between integrins and the 50-kD protein on several cell types. For this reason, we call it Integrin-associated Protein (IAP). We hypothesize that IAP may play a role in signal transduction for enhanced phagocytosis by Arg-Gly-Asp ligands.