Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Thesis for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Piezoelectric and ferroelectric device technologies for microwave oscillators

The purpose of this thesis is to investigate piezoelectric and ferroelectric thin film device technologies for application in microwave oscillators. Thin film varactors based on ferroelectric materials are considered. Experimental development of practical varactors based on paraelectric phase BaxSr1−xTiO3, in terms of layout design and model extraction, is presented in the thesis. Experimental results of voltage-controlled oscillators based on ferroelectric varactors operating at 16 GHz and 19 GHz are also presented. The ferroelectric device technology is furthermore compared to traditional varactor technologies, and discussed from the perspective of oscillator applications. Thin film bulk acoustic resonators based on piezoelectric materials and biased electrostrictive materials are considered. Specifically, fixed-frequency resonators based on AlN and tunable resonators based on paraelectric phase BaxSr1−xTiO3 are investigated in the thesis. An integration concept is developed for AlN resonators, and experimentally demonstrated by 2 GHz oscillators. Additionally, modelling and measurement techniques for resonators based on AlN and BaxSr1−xTiO3 are developed. The investigated technologies are compared to traditional planar resonator technologies.
Sexually transmitted infections: control strategies

Clinical Review p 1160 Sexually transmitted infections, including HIV and hepatitis B, remain one of the greatest global public health challenges. Over the past five years notable rises have been observed in the United Kingdom in the incidence of genital chlamydial infection (76%), gonorrhoea (55%), and infectious syphilis (54%)1; such sustained rises have not been seen since the late 1960s and 1970s.2 Similar increases have also been seen in other countries in Western3 and Eastern4 Europe and the United States.5 The highest rates of sexually transmitted infections occur among 16-24 year olds, particularly older teenagers.1 Ethnic and socioeconomic inequalities in sexually transmitted infection rates exist in the US5 and the UK,6 with higher rates among black ethnic groups and lower socioeconomic groups. If we are to reverse these trends and reduce inequalities we need to understand their underlying determinants. Some rises may reflect improved detection, particularly for genital chlamydial infection (with new diagnostic technologies), and deteriorating healthcare infrastructure (in the former states of the USSR). However, the major factor behind the …
Revalidation and quality assurance: the application of the MUSIQ framework in independent verification visits to healthcare organisations

Objectives We present a national evaluation of the impact of independent verification visits (IVVs) performed by National Health Service (NHS) England as part of quality assuring medical revalidation. Organisational visits are central to NHS quality assurance. They are costly, yet little empirical research evidence exists concerning their impact, and what does exist is conflicting. Setting The focus was on healthcare providers in the NHS (in secondary care) and private sector across England, who were designated bodies (DBs). DBs are healthcare organisations that have a statutory responsibility, via the lead clinician, the responsible officer (RO), to implement medical revalidation. Participants All ROs who had undergone an IVV in England in 2014 and 2015 were invited to participate. 46 ROs were interviewed. Ethnographic data were gathered at 18 observations of the IVVs and 20 IVV post visit reports underwent documentary analysis. Primary and secondary outcome measures Primary outcomes were the findings pertaining to the effectiveness of the IVV system in supporting the revalidation processes at the DBs. Secondary outcomes were methodological, relating to the Model for Understanding Success in Quality (MUSIQ) and how its application to the IVV reveals the relevance of contextual factors described in the model. Results The impact of the IVVs varied by DB according to three major themes: the personal context of the RO; the organisational context of the DB; and the visit and its impact. ROs were largely satisfied with visits which raised the status of appraisal within their organisations. Inadequate or untimely feedback was associated with dissatisfaction. Conclusions Influencing teams whose prime responsibility is establishing processes and evaluating progress was crucial for internal quality improvement. Visits acted as a nudge, generating internal quality review, which was reinforced by visit teams with relevant expertise. Diverse team membership, knowledge transfer and timely feedback made visits more impactful.
Modeling of Personalized Recommendation System Based on Ontology

These models are designed to enable personalized recommendation to handle the semantic phenomenon. Based on ontology, the method of document feature extraction and user interest model were improved. Two personalized recommendation models were proposed for different scenes. Taking the web pages about vehicle for example, results show that the model can do personalized recommendation effectively, and recommended results corresponded with the user's real and original interest.
Heaps don't lie: countering unsoundness with heap snapshots

Static analyses aspire to explore all possible executions in order to achieve soundness. Yet, in practice, they fail to capture common dynamic behavior. Enhancing static analyses with dynamic information is a common pattern, with tools such as Tamiflex. Past approaches, however, miss significant portions of dynamic behavior, due to native code, unsupported features (e.g., invokedynamic or lambdas in Java), and more. We present techniques that substantially counteract the unsoundness of a static analysis, with virtually no intrusion to the analysis logic. Our approach is reified in the HeapDL toolchain and consists in taking whole-heap snapshots during program execution, that are further enriched to capture significant aspects of dynamic behavior, regardless of the causes of such behavior. The snapshots are then used as extra inputs to the static analysis. The approach exhibits both portability and significantly increased coverage. Heap information under one set of dynamic inputs allows a static analysis to cover many more behaviors under other inputs. A HeapDL-enhanced static analysis of the DaCapo benchmarks computes 99.5% (median) of the call-graph edges of unseen dynamic executions (vs. 76.9% for the Tamiflex tool).
Measurement and modeling of dielectric properties of Pb(Zr,Ti)O3 ferroelectric thin films

In this study, the real and imaginary parts of the complex permittivity of lead zirconate titanate ferroelectric thin films are studied in the frequency range of 100 Hz to 100 MHz. The permittivity is well fitted by the Cole-Cole model. The variation of the relaxation time with the temperature is described by the Arrhenius law and an activation energy of 0.38 eV is found. Because of its nonlinear character, the dielectric response of the ferroelectric sample depends on the amplitude of the applied ac electric field. The permittivity is composed of three different contributions: the first is due to intrinsic lattice, the second is due to domain wall vibrations, and the third is due to domain wall jumps between pinning centers. This last contribution depends on the electric field, so it is important to control the field amplitude to obtain the desired values of permittivity and tunability.
Musicality and the intrinsic motive pulse: evidence from human psychobiology and infant communication

Musicality in human motives, the psycho-biological source of music, is described as a talent inherent in the unique way human beings move, and hence experience their world, their bodies and one another. It originates in the brain images of moving and feeling that generate and guide behaviour in time, with goal-defining purposefulness and creativity. Intelligent perception, cognition and learning, and the potentiality for immediate sympathy between humans for expressions of intrinsic motives in narrative form (linguistic and non-linguistic), depend on this spontaneous, self-regulating brain activity. It is proposed that evolution of human bipedal locomotion and the pressure of social intelligence set free a new polyrhythmia of motive processes, and that these generate fugal complexes of the Intrinsic Motive Pulse (IMP), with radical consequences for human imagination, thinking, remembering and communicating. Gestural mimesis and rhythmic narrative expression of purposes and images of awareness, regulated by, and regulating, dynamic emotional processes, form the foundations of human intersubjectivity, and of musicality. Acquired musical skill and the conventions of musical culture are animated from this core process in the human mind. Research on the dynamics of protoconversations and musical games with infants elucidates the rhythmic and prosodic foundations of sympathetic engagement in expressive exchanges. Developments in the first year prove the importance of the impulses of natural musicality in the emergence of cooperative awareness, and show how shared participation in the expressive phrases and emotional transformations of vocal games can facilitate not only imitation of speech, but interest in all shared meanings, or conventional uses, of objects and actions. Disturbances of early communication attributable to emotional unavailability of a depressed mother, or those due to sensory, motor or emotional handicap that causes a child to fail to react in an expected normal way, both confirm the crucial function in the development of intelligence and personality of sympathetic motives shared between adult and child in a secure and affectionate relationship, and offer a way of promoting development by supporting these motives. These facts establish that the parameters of musicality are intrinsically determined in the brain, or innate, and necessary for human development. Through their effects in emotional integration and the collaborative learning that leads to mastery of cultural knowledge, cultural skills, and language, they express the essential generator of human cognitive development.
A Novel Magnetic Actuator Capable of Free Movement on a Magnetic Substance

This paper proposes a magnetic actuator capable of movement on a magnetic substance by means of the inertia force produced by the vibration of a mass-spring model. The magnetic actuator is operated by the difference in frictional force during one period of vibration. The experimental results reveal that this magnetic actuator is able to pull a load mass of 110 g. Furthermore, this actuator is able to propel a load mass of approximately 8.5 times the weight of the actuator itself. The maximum efficiency of the actuator was 12.9% for an actuator pulling its own weight. The results also demonstrate that the magnetic actuator can move stably in slide-on-ceiling and wall-climbing plane motions. This magnetic actuator is able to move freely without a control unit on an iron rail of any shape.
Differentially expressed genes in the lens of mimecan-null mice.

PURPOSE Members of the small leucine-rich proteoglycans (SLRP) gene family are essential for normal collagen fibrillogenesis in various connective tissues and important regulators of cellular growth, differentiation, and tissue repair. Mimecan is a member of this gene family and is expressed in many connective tissues. We have previously reported that knockout of the mouse mimecan gene results in abnormal collagen fibrillogenesis, mainly in the cornea and skin. During the course of our studies on biological roles of mimecan in the eye, we found that this gene is expressed in the mouse lens. Here, we sought to identify gene expression changes in the lens that are associated with the absence of mimecan. METHODS Reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction amplification (RT-PCR), in situ hybridization (ISH), and immunohistochemistry (IHC) were used to determine mimecan expression in human and mouse eyes. Microarray hybridization was used to determine gene expression differences between lenses isolated from mimecan-null and wild type mice. Relative quantitative RT-PCR was used to verify the expression levels of a subset of the identified genes. RESULTS By ISH and IHC, mimecan mRNA was detected in cornea and lens at embryonic day 16.5 (E16.5) and postnatal day 10 (P10) mouse eyes. By RT-PCR, mimecan mRNA was detected in human cornea, lens, iris, and retina. In mimecan-null mice lenses, microarray analysis of 5,002 mouse genes demonstrated a more than two fold increase in expression of 65 genes and a more than two fold decrease in expression of 76 genes. Among genes with increased expression were cell adhesion molecules, G-protein coupled receptors, intracellular signaling molecules, genes involved in protein biosynthesis and degradation, and genes involved in immune function. Decreased expression was found in extracellular matrix molecules, calcium binding and transporting proteins, and genes known for their roles in regulating cellular motility. Intriguingly, decreased gene expression was observed with two SLRP family members, biglycan and condroadherin, as well as with several stress-response proteins, including gammaA-crystallin, hemoglobin alpha 1, and metallothionein 1. Quantitative RT-PCR confirmed changes in expression of 12 genes selected from the arrays. CONCLUSIONS In this report we present the first demonstration that mimecan is constitutively expressed in the vertebrate lens. The results from gene expression profiling reveal the ability of mimecan to influence expression of biglycan and chondroadherin, thereby indicating possible novel regulatory interactions between these SLRP family members. As with mimecan, the expression of chondroadrein in vertebrate lens has not been reported previously. Our results provide insight into the function of mimecan in the lens and enable further characterization of molecular mechanisms by which this protein exerts its biological roles.
RNA-seq analysis of Drosophila clock and non-clock neurons reveals neuron-specific cycling and novel candidate neuropeptides

Locomotor activity rhythms are controlled by a network of ~150 circadian neurons within the adult Drosophila brain. They are subdivided based on their anatomical locations and properties. We profiled transcripts "around the clock" from three key groups of circadian neurons with different functions. We also profiled a non-circadian outgroup, dopaminergic (TH) neurons. They have cycling transcripts but fewer than clock neurons as well as low expression and poor cycling of clock gene transcripts. This suggests that TH neurons do not have a canonical circadian clock and that their gene expression cycling is driven by brain systemic cues. The three circadian groups are surprisingly diverse in their cycling transcripts and overall gene expression patterns, which include known and putative novel neuropeptides. Even the overall phase distributions of cycling transcripts are distinct, indicating that different regulatory principles govern transcript oscillations. This surprising cell-type diversity parallels the functional heterogeneity of the different neurons.
Hierarchical Video Representation with Trajectory Binary Partition Tree

As early stage of video processing, we introduce an iterative trajectory merging algorithm that produces a region-based and hierarchical representation of the video sequence, called the Trajectory Binary Partition Tree (BPT). From this representation, many analysis and graph cut techniques can be used to extract partitions or objects that are useful in the context of specific applications. In order to define trajectories and to create a precise merging algorithm, color and motion cues have to be used. Both types of informations are very useful to characterize objects but present strong differences of behavior in the spatial and the temporal dimensions. On the one hand, scenes and objects are rich in their spatial color distributions, but these distributions are rather stable over time. Object motion, on the other hand, presents simple structures and low spatial variability but may change from frame to frame. The proposed algorithm takes into account this key difference and relies on different models and associated metrics to deal with color and motion information. We show that the proposed algorithm outperforms existing hierarchical video segmentation algorithms and provides more stable and precise regions.
The chicken c-fos gene: cloning and nucleotide sequence analysis

Using a DNA probe from an avian transforming virus, NK24, that contains the fos gene and that was newly isolated and characterized (M. Nishizawa, N. Goto, and S. Kawai, J. Virol. 61:3733-3740, 1987), we cloned and sequenced the chicken c-fos gene. Results showed that this gene, like the mouse or human c-fos gene, contains four exons encoding a predicted gene product of 367 amino acids which is about 79% homologous to p55c-fos (mouse), excluding several small insertions or gaps. The predicted gene product, however, contains two nonhomologous regions, as suggested by sequence analysis of the NK24 genome. About half the identical amino acids of these gene products are encoded by different codons, and the guanine-plus-cytosine content in the third letter of each codon used in the entire chicken c-fos coding region is high (93%). The 5'-flanking region of the TATA box contains a sequence that is homologous to a putative transcriptional regulatory sequence in the mouse or human c-fos gene. The 3'-noncoding region of chicken c-fos is strikingly homologous to that of mouse or human c-fos and covers a 67-base-pair adenine-plus-thymine-rich stretch which was previously reported to be essential for an inhibitory effect on the expression of the mouse c-fos gene.
Bureau of Labor Statistics

To identify occupations related to the planning and administration of urban programs and to provide a basis for future employment studies and manpower requirements, interviews were conducted in five cities with officials who had knowledge of planning and administrative activities and manpower. The cities varied according to size, characteristics, and location. Several hundred professional, administrative and technical job titles were identified and condensed into 40 occupation groups, ranging from chief executives to technical level planning aids. Occupational shortages occurred mainly at entry levels for city planners, administrative specialists, and planning aids and assistants. Some efforts to alleviate manpower shortages included increasing salary levels, instituting educational aid programs, substituting personnel of a lower grade, and using technician level aids and assistants to support high level planning and administrative personnel. Some research needs are: (1) development of wide scale occupational surveys, (2) development of projections of future manpower requirements, and (3) studies of occupational mobility and job opportunity. Job descriptions, study procedure employment statistics, and a study abstract are appended. (Author/SB) PLANNING MD AMINNIMATIVE PERSONNEL
Unsupervised approach for object matching using Speeded Up Robust Features

Autonomous object counting system is of great use in retail stores, industries and also in research processes. In this paper, a Speeded Up Robust Feature (SURF) based robust algorithm for identifying, counting and locating all instances of a defined object in any image, has been proposed. The defined object is referred to as prototype and the image in which one wishes to count the prototype is referred to as scene image. The algorithm starts by detecting the interest points for SURF in both, prototype and scene images. The SURF points on prototype are first clustered using density based clustering; then SURF points in each cluster are matched with those in scene image. The SURF points in scene image that have been matched w.r. t. a single cluster, are clustered using the same clustering algorithm. Each cluster formed in scene image represents an instance of prototype object in the image. Homography transforms are further used to give exact location and span of each prototype object in the scene image. Once the span of each prototype is defined, SURF points within this span are matched with the prototype image and then Homography transform is once again applied while considering the newly matched SURF points; thus eliminating noisy detection/s of prototype. While the same process is repeated with each cluster, a novel centroid based algorithm for merging repeated detections of same prototype instance is used. Carrying the benefits of SURF and Homography transforms, the algorithm is capable of detecting all prototype instances present in scene image, irrespective of their scale and orientation. The complete algorithm has also been integrated into a desktop application, which uses camera feed to report the real time count of the prototype in the scene image.
Global Well-posedness and Scattering for the Defocusing Energy-critical Nonlinear Schr¨odinger Equation in R

We obtain global well-posedness, scattering, uniform regularity, and global L6t,x spacetime bounds for energy-space solutions to the energycritical nonlinear Schrödinger equation in R. Our arguments closely follow those in [8], though our derivation of the frequency-localized interaction Morawetz estimate is somewhat simpler. As a consequence, our method yields a better bound on the L6t,x-norm.
A group of facial normal descriptors for recognizing 3D identical twins

In this paper, to characterize and distinguish identical twins, three popular texture descriptors: i.e. local binary patterns (LBPs), gabor filters (GFs) and local gabor binary patterns (LGBPs) are employed to encode the normal components (x, y and z) of the 3D facial surfaces of identical twins respectively. A group of facial normal descriptors are thus achieved, including Normal Local Binary Patterns descriptor (N-LBPs), Normal Gabor Filters descriptor (N-GFs) and Normal Local Gabor Binary Patterns descriptor (N-LGBPs). All these normal encoding based descriptors are further fed into sparse representation classifier (SRC) for identification. Experimental results on the 3D TEC database demonstrate that these proposed normal encoding based descriptors are very discriminative and efficient, achieving comparable performance to the best of state-of-the-art algorithms.
An Approach for Underwater Target Detection by Inhomogeneous Illumination

The key of underwater target detection is to solve the back-scattering problem which is generated by the suspended particles during the light transmission. In fact, for underwater homogeneous illumination or laser, the strong back-scattering is mainly generated at the range close to the detector, yielding low visibility. This paper presents a new approach for underwater target detection by inhomogeneous illumination, which intensity distribution relates to the attenuation pattern of light transmission with an inverse form. The proposed approach was tested in underwater experiments, showing that it is effective to decrease the back-scattering within a wide field of view (FOV) and to increase the detection distance.
HIV prevalence during pregnancy in Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico.

]. A high percentage of Mexican men who have sex with men also engage in high -risk sex with women, as a study at the Tijuana -San Diego border recently revealed. The Tijuana/San Diego border crossing is the busiest land port of entry in the world, with over 131 000 legal border crossings daily. Recently, the California Department of Health Services released a study among high-risk men who have sex with men in Tijuana and San Diego. The study revealed that 43% of Tijuana men reported unprotected heterosexual intercourse, and 39% of men reported having sexual partners from across the border in their lifetime [