Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Criteria used in selecting effective requirements elicitation procedures

New methods, methodologies and procedures are often introduced within information systems without discussing the effectiveness thereof. We investigate the effectiveness of a requirements elicitation procedure for deriving process model structures. There were three activities that 'rigged' this study before comments were possible on the effectiveness of the requirements elicitation procedure: identification of the characteristics that the procedure adhered to, investigating the usefulness of the procedure, and using the procedure. Each of these activities is discussed. The higher education institution is used as illustrative case domain.
Effects of Hyperbaric Oxygen on Metabolic Capacity of the Skeletal Muscle in Type 2 Diabetic Rats with Obesity

We investigated whether hyperbaric oxygen enhances the oxidative metabolic capacity of the skeletal muscle and attenuates adipocyte hypertrophy in type 2 diabetic rats with obesity. Five-week-old male Otsuka Long-Evans Tokushima fatty (OLETF) and Long-Evans Tokushima Otsuka (LETO) rats were used as diabetic animals and nondiabetic controls, respectively, and assigned to control and hyperbaric oxygen groups. Animals in the hyperbaric oxygen group were exposed to an atmospheric pressure of 1.25 with an oxygen concentration of 36% for 3 h daily. The glucose level at 27 weeks of age was significantly higher in OLETF rats than in LETO rats, but the elevation was inhibited in OLETF rats exposed to hyperbaric oxygen. The slow-to-fast fiber transition in the skeletal muscle was observed in OLETF rats, but the shift was inhibited in OLETF rats exposed to hyperbaric oxygen. Additionally, the oxidative enzyme activity of muscle fibers was increased by hyperbaric oxygen. The adipocyte size was larger in OLETF rats than in LETO rats, but hypertrophied adipocytes were not observed in OLETF rats exposed to hyperbaric oxygen. Hyperbaric oxygen enhances glucose and lipid metabolism in the skeletal muscle, indicating that hyperbaric oxygen can prevent elevation of glucose and adipocyte hypertrophy in diabetic rats with obesity.
MyMeal: an interactive user-tailored meal visualization tool for teenagers battling eating disorders

and feel comfortable with what constitutes a so-called normalsize meal. One example of a visual aid available to registered dietitians and familiar to many Canadians is Canada’s Food Guide for Healthy Living (see Figure 1) [1], similar to the well-recognized American Food Pyramid (see Figure 2) [2]. This color-coded handout displays the major food groups, examples of foods found in each group, recommended daily servings, and examples of what constitutes a serving: For example, one slice of bread is equivalent to one serving from the grain-products food group. For foods with undefined shapes, imperial and metric measurements are provided: For example, one cup or 250 mL of milk is equivalent to one serving from the milk-products food group. Although both the Canadian and American food guides provide an overview of which foods should be included in a healthy diet, the relative sizes Chelsea is a 13-year-old adolescent who was diagnosed one year ago with anorexia nervosa, an eating disorder characterized by self-starvation and excessive weight loss. To meet her under any circumstance that did not involve food, you probably wouldn’t guess that she had an eating disorder (ED). But when you ask her about her feelings toward eating, food, and meal planning, her anxieties are evident. She finds planning a meal extremely difficult, particularly when incorporating healthy quantities of “stressful” foods like carbohydrates and fats into a meal. She relies on her parents to plan her meals and uses measuring cups to determine true portion sizes, because through her eyes, everything looks like too much food. Nutrition counseling can help adolescents like Chelsea, who are recovering from EDs, to improve their understanding of how to plan balanced meals. Food guides and sample menus are available for teaching teenagers about healthy portion sizes, but none provides a visual reference about what a healthy and balanced meal, as well as a proper portion, should look like. Since patients with EDs have demonstrably abnormal perceptions of the size of food, a meal-visualization tool could help patients with EDs feel more comfortable about portions by helping them understand what appropriate food portions look like in the context of a balanced meal.
Unsteady flows in pipes with finite curvature

Motivated by the study of blood flow in a curved artery, we consider fluid flow through a curved pipe of uniform curvature, δ, driven by a prescribed oscillatory axial pressure gradient. The curved pipe has finite (as opposed to asymptotically small) curvature, and we determine the effects of both the centrifugal and Coriolis forces on the flow. In addition to δ, the flow is parameterized by the Dean number, D, the Womersley number, α, and a secondary streaming Reynolds number, Rs. Asymptotic solutions are developed for the case when δ≪1, α≪1 and the magnitude of the axial pressure gradient is small, using regular perturbation techniques. For intermediate values of the governing parameters, a pseudospectral code is used to obtain numerical solutions. For flows driven by a sinusoidal pressure gradient (D=0), we identify three distinct classes of stable solutions: 2π-periodic symmetric, 2π-periodic asymmetric, and asymmetric solutions that are either quasi-periodic, or periodic with period 2πk for k∈ $\mathbb{N}$. The transition between solutions is dependent on the value of δ; thus pipes with finite curvature may exhibit qualitatively different transitions between the solution classes as the governing parameters are varied from those of curved pipes with asymptotically small curvature. When α≫1, matched asymptotic expansions are used to simplify the system, and the resulting equations are solved analytically for Rs≪1, δ≪1 and numerically for larger parameter values. We then determine the effect of a non-zero steady component of the pressure gradient (D≠0), and show that, for certain parameter values, when D is above a critical value the periodic asymmetric solutions regain spatial symmetry. Finally, we show that the effects of finite curvature can lead to substantial quantitative differences in the wall shear stress distribution and discuss briefly the physiological implications of the results for blood flow in arteries.
Heme Oxygenase-1 and Ferritin are Increased in Cerebral Arteries after Subarachnoid Hemorrhage in Monkeys

Hemoglobin is a key factor in the production of cerebral vasospasm. Metabolism of hemoglobin involves breakdown of heme by heme oxygenase (HO) and sequestration of the released iron in ferritin. We determined whether subarachnoid hemorrhage induces these proteins in cerebral arteries and, if so, in which cells they are produced. Whether the changes correlated with vasospasm also was investigated. Subarachnoid hemorrhage was created in monkeys, and vasospasm was assessed by angiography in cohorts of animals killed 3, 7, or 14 days after the hemorrhage. Ferritin and HO-1 messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA) and protein were measured by competitive reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction and Western blotting in hemorrhage-side and control-side cerebral arteries and brain tissue. The location of these proteins was determined by immunohistochemistry. There was significant vasospasm 3 and 7 days but not 14 days after subarachnoid hemorrhage. There were no significant changes in mRNA for HO-1 or ferritin in cerebral arteries or brain tissue at any time. There was a significant increase in HO-1 and ferritin protein in hemorrhage-side compared with control-side cerebral arteries at 3, 7, and 14 days. The increase in HO-1 protein was maximal at 3 days, whereas the increase in ferritin protein was maximal at 7 days. There was no detectable increase in HO-1 or ferritin protein in brain tissue at any time. Immunohistochemistry localized HO-1 protein and ferritin to cells in the adventitia of the arterial wall. We show that subarachnoid hemorrhage is associated with a significant increase in HO-1 and ferritin proteins in cerebral arteries that begins at least as early as 3 days after the hemorrhage and that persists for up to 14 days.
Shining evolutionary light on human sleep and sleep disorders

Sleep is essential to cognitive function and health in humans, yet the ultimate reasons for sleep—i.e. ‘why’ sleep evolved—remain mysterious. We integrate findings from human sleep studies, the ethnographic record, and the ecology and evolution of mammalian sleep to better understand sleep along the human lineage and in the modern world. Compared to other primates, sleep in great apes has undergone substantial evolutionary change, with all great apes building a sleeping platform or ‘nest’. Further evolutionary change characterizes human sleep, with humans having the shortest sleep duration, yet the highest proportion of rapid eye movement sleep among primates. These changes likely reflect that our ancestors experienced fitness benefits from being active for a greater portion of the 24-h cycle than other primates, potentially related to advantages arising from learning, socializing and defending against predators and hostile conspecifics. Perspectives from evolutionary medicine have implications for understanding sleep disorders; we consider these perspectives in the context of insomnia, narcolepsy, seasonal affective disorder, circadian rhythm disorders and sleep apnea. We also identify how human sleep today differs from sleep through most of human evolution, and the implications of these changes for global health and health disparities. More generally, our review highlights the importance of phylogenetic comparisons in understanding human health, including well-known links between sleep, cognitive performance and health in humans.
A near-optimum channel access protocol based on incremental collision resolution and distributed transmission queues

We introduce a new stable multiple access protocol for broadcast channels shared by multiple stations, which we call the incremental collision resolution multiple access (ICRMA) protocol. ICRMA dynamically divides the channel into cycles of variable length; each cycle consists of a contention period and a queue-transmission period. The queue-transmission period is a variable-length train of packets, which are transmitted by stations that have been added to the distributed transmission queue by successfully completing a collision-resolution round in a previous contention period. During the contention period, stations with one or more packets to send compete for the right to be added to the data-transmission queue using a deterministic tree-splitting algorithm. A single round of collision resolution is allowed in each contention period. Analytical results show that collision resolution in ICRMA is much more efficient than DQRAP's. Simulation and analytical results show that ICRMA's throughput is within 5% of the throughput achieved by the ideal channel access protocol based on a distributed transmission queue and incremental collision resolution.
Selecting signature oligonucleotides to identify organisms using DNA arrays

MOTIVATION DNA arrays are a very useful tool to quickly identify biological agents present in some given sample, e.g. to identify viruses causing disease, for quality control in the food industry, or to determine bacteria contaminating drinking water. The selection of specific oligos to attach to the array surface is a relevant problem in the experiment design process. Given a set S of genomic sequences (the target sequences), the task is to find at least one oligonucleotide, called probe, for each sequence in S. This probe will be attached to the array surface, and must be chosen in a way that it will not hybridize to any other sequence but the intended target. Furthermore, all probes on the array must hybridize to their intended targets under the same reaction conditions, most importantly at the temperature T at which the experiment is conducted. RESULTS We present an efficient algorithm for the probe design problem. Melting temperatures are calculated for all possible probe-target interactions using an extended nearest-neighbor model, allowing for both non-Watson-Crick base-pairing and unpaired bases within a duplex. To compute temperatures efficiently, a combination of suffix trees and dynamic programming based alignment algorithms is introduced. Additional filtering steps during preprocessing increase the speed of the computation. The practicability of the algorithms is demonstrated by two case studies: The identification of HIV-1 subtypes, and of 28S rDNA sequences from >or=400 organisms.
Steric and not structure-specific factors dictate the endocytic mechanism of glycosylphosphatidylinositol-anchored proteins

Diverse glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI)-anchored proteins enter mammalian cells via the clathrin- and dynamin-independent, Arf1-regulated GPI-enriched early endosomal compartment/clathrin-independent carrier endocytic pathway. To characterize the determinants of GPI protein targeting to this pathway, we have used fluorescence microscopic analyses to compare the internalization of artificial lipid-anchored proteins, endogenous membrane proteins, and membrane lipid markers in Chinese hamster ovary cells. Soluble proteins, anchored to cell-inserted saturated or unsaturated phosphatidylethanolamine (PE)-polyethyleneglycols (PEGs), closely resemble the GPI-anchored folate receptor but differ markedly from the transferrin receptor, membrane lipid markers, and even protein-free PE-PEGs, both in their distribution in peripheral endocytic vesicles and in the manner in which their endocytic uptake responds to manipulations of cellular Arf1 or dynamin activity. These findings suggest that the distinctive endocytic targeting of GPI proteins requires neither biospecific recognition of their GPI anchors nor affinity for ordered-lipid microdomains but is determined by a more fundamental property, the steric bulk of the lipid-anchored protein.
Snap-on code

This Chapter covers the emissions of airborne particulate matter (PM) from road transport which are due to vehicle tyre and brake wear (SNAP code 070700) and road surface wear (SNAP code 070800). PM emissions from vehicle exhaust are not included. The focus is on primary non-exhaust particles in other words those particles emitted directly as a result of the wear of surfaces and not those resulting from the resuspension of previously deposited material. The sources of such PM emissions are considered in relation to the general vehicle classes identified in the Road Transport Chapter of the Guidebook (SNAPS 0701-0705), these being passenger cars, light-duty trucks, heavy-duty vehicles and two-wheelers.
Do you hear what I hear? Using acoustic probing to detect smartphone locations

Many context-aware smartphone applications depend on specific conditions for gathering data, e.g., specific phone locations or orientations. As a result, the significant overhead of keeping all this information in mind is imposed on their users. Besides averting the interest of potential application users, these requirements defeat one of the main purposes of these mobile data collection, namely simplifying life through mobile sensing applications. This is not a problem that solely affects the users, but the developers of the applications alike. As even the most diligent users often do not manage to follow the strict data collection guidelines at all times, errors in the collected data may ultimately lead to the provision of wrong services and thus to degraded application quality. In this paper, we thus present a solution to determine the location of a phone in order to support context-aware applications. It offers the possibility to detect the position of the phone with an accuracy of 97 %, as well as being able to correlate it with the type of the location of the user. Our system can be used to improve existing mobile sensing applications by facilitating various services that depend on the phone location, e.g., seamlessly adapting the ringtone volume or setting a phone's flight mode.
The successful use of pronuclear embryo transfers the day following oocyte retrieval.

A retrospective analysis of results from 114 initiated in-vitro fertilization cycles utilizing pronuclear embryo transfer is presented. Patients were unselected for age or infertility criteria, constituted a continuous series and were grouped according to response to stimulation (Group 1, ideal; Group 2, suboptimal) or ovarian reserve (Group 3, poor). At 16-18 h post-insemination, embryos were scored for alignment of pronuclei and nucleoli and the appearance of the cytoplasm, generating an embryo score (ES). Transfers were performed 24-26 h post-insemination using two to six embryos with the highest ES. A corrected score was calculated (total score/number of embryos; CS). A total of 114 initiated cycles resulted in 97 oocyte retrievals with 38 clinical pregnancies (39%; 15% implantation). Pregnancy rates were significantly different between the three groups; 37 pregnancies in Group 1 (55% clinical pregnancy; 20% implantation), none in Group 2 and one in Group 3 (6%; 2% implantation: P < 0.001). The ES of transferred embryos correlated with groups. There was a strong correlation between CS and implantation and delivery rates. CS >15 resulted in a 28% implantation; 65% delivery rate. CS <14 resulted in four pregnancies, one delivered. The data show that oocyte quality and pronuclear embryo morphology are related to implantation and that pronuclear embryos can be successfully selected for embryo transfer.
Performance of a Single Action Partially Observable Markov Decision Process in a Recognition Task

Partially Observable Markov Decision Processes (POMDPs) have been applied extensively to planning in environments where knowledge of an underlying process is confounded by unknown factors[3, 4, 7]. By applying the POMDP architecture to basic recognition tasks, we introduce a novel pattern recognizer that operates under partially observable conditions. This Single Action Partially Observable Markov Decision Process (SA-POMDP) is then compared to a well-known pattern recognizer, the Hidden Markov Model (HMM). Our results indicate that the SA-POMDP’s performance surpasses that of the HMM in simple recognition tasks and exhibits a unique resistance to noisy inputs during the recognition process.
The Degree of Oneness Conor Ryan Computer Science Department University College Cork Ireland conor

This paper investigates the use of diploid structures and the possibility of using diploidy in non-standard, non-binary Genetic Algorithms. Unlike the conventional implementation of diploidy in GAs, which typically involves the use of dominance operators, the diploid schemes presented in this paper avoid the use of dominance altogether, while still being rooted firmly in natural biology. The use of diploid structures allows a population to adapt more quickly in unstable environments, which allows the varying of testcases, whether through evolution to gently increase the difficulty of the problem or through some other selection method to reduce testing time. Two new schemes are introduced, additive diploidy and polygenic inheritance, both of which outperform current methods, and both of which are general enough to be applied to a GA with any number of phenotypes, without any need for the use of dominace operators.
Automated physics-based design of synthetic riboswitches from diverse RNA aptamers

Riboswitches are shape-changing regulatory RNAs that bind chemicals and regulate gene expression, directly coupling sensing to cellular actuation. However, it remains unclear how their sequence controls the physics of riboswitch switching and activation, particularly when changing the ligand-binding aptamer domain. We report the development of a statistical thermodynamic model that predicts the sequence-structure-function relationship for translation-regulating riboswitches that activate gene expression, characterized inside cells and within cell-free transcription–translation assays. Using the model, we carried out automated computational design of 62 synthetic riboswitches that used six different RNA aptamers to sense diverse chemicals (theophylline, tetramethylrosamine, fluoride, dopamine, thyroxine, 2,4-dinitrotoluene) and activated gene expression by up to 383-fold. The model explains how aptamer structure, ligand affinity, switching free energy and macromolecular crowding collectively control riboswitch activation. Our model-based approach for engineering riboswitches quantitatively confirms several physical mechanisms governing ligand-induced RNA shape-change and enables the development of cell-free and bacterial sensors for diverse applications.
Approximate string matching: a simpler faster algorithm

We give two algorithms for finding all approximate matches of a pattern in a text, where the edit distance between the pattern and the matching text substring is at most k. The first algorithm, which is quite simple, runs in time $O(\frac{nk^3}{m}+n+m)$ on all patterns except k-break periodic strings (defined later). The second algorithm runs in time $O(\frac{nk^4}{m}+n+m)$ on k-break periodic patterns. The two classes of patterns are easily distinguished in O(m)time.
Location-based augmented reality game to engage students in discovering institutional landmarks

Geocaching has emerged as an activity to promote the discovery, and group work (competitive or collaborative), with physical activity that challenges participants around finding clues to solve puzzles using mobile devices. Geocaching has been in used in entertainment, teaching, and physical activity applications. Traditional approaches use QR codes, beacons, apps and websites to guide the user through the experience. However, current advances in mobile devices provide hardware and software features to create more immersive and interactive scenarios. In our project, we used augmented reality to provide engaging interactions and information about historic landmarks within the Mil. Nueva Granada University. The goal is to have fresh year students getting familiar with the landmarks and develop awareness of its significance. Each landmark triggers a mini-game that leads to next clue. To gather the student's thoughts on the app, participants were invited to try the app and fill a questionnaire.