Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Analysis of country-wide internet outages caused by censorship

In the first months of 2011, Internet communications were disrupted in several North African countries in response to civilian protests and threats of civil war. In this paper we analyze episodes of these disruptions in two countries: Egypt and Libya. Our analysis relies on multiple sources of large-scale data already available to academic researchers: BGP interdomain routing control plane data; unsolicited data plane traffic to unassigned address space; active macroscopic traceroute measurements; RIR delegation files; and MaxMind's geolocation database. We used the latter two data sets to determine which IP address ranges were allocated to entities within each country, and then mapped these IP addresses of interest to BGP-announced address ranges (prefixes) and origin ASes using publicly available BGP data repositories in the U.S. and Europe. We then analyzed observable activity related to these sets of prefixes and ASes throughout the censorship episodes. Using both control plane and data plane data sets in combination allowed us to narrow down which forms of Internet access disruption were implemented in a given region over time. Among other insights, we detected what we believe were Libya's attempts to test firewall-based blocking before they executed more aggressive BGP-based disconnection. Our methodology could be used, and automated, to detect outages or similar macroscopically disruptive events in other geographic or topological regions.
Energetic Requirement of Insulin Secretion Distal to Calcium Influx

A number of agents that inhibit oxidative phosphorylation by different mechanisms (carbonyl cyanide m-chlorophenylhydrazone [CCCP], sodium azide, oligomycin) induced an increase of cytoplasmic Ca2+ concentration ([Ca2+]i) in pancreatic β-cells, as measured by microfluorimetry with digital imaging. All three agents are known inhibitors of insulin secretion, and the secretory response to 20 mmol/l glucose was found to be abolished in spite of elevated [Ca2+]i. Two reasons could account for this dissociation between increase of [Ca2+]i and insulin secretion: 1) the increase did not take place at a site critical for exocytosis, 2) a threshold concentration of a metabolism-derived factor like ATP exists for the induction of exocytosis. The increase of [Ca2+]i by CCCP and sodium azide involved release of Ca2+ from internal stores, whereas oligomycin induced a slow D 600–inhibitable Ca2+ influx. Because CCCP and sodium azide, but not oligomycin, decreased the mitochondrial membrane potential concomitantly with the increase of [Ca2+]i, release of Ca2+ from the mitochondria most probably plays a decisive role for the internal mobilization. A Ca2+ influx induced by 40 mmol/l K+ or 250 μmol/l tolbutamide was unimpaired in the presence of oligomycin, but oligomycin completely abolished insulin secretion in response to these agents. While CCCP and sodium azide opened ATP-sensitive K+ channels, oligomycin was virtually ineffective, although it could be shown to significantly reduce β-cell ATP production. By comparison of the effects of different inhibitors of oxidative phosphorylation, we conclude that the initiation of exocytosis in β-cells is particularly sensitive to a decrease of energy metabolism, more than ATP-sensitive K+ channels or voltage-dependent Ca2+ channels. Thus, any increase of [Ca2+]i in β-cells that occurs in a situation of a decreased ATP supply is unlikely to elicit a secretory response.
High-sensitivity low-cost temperature sensor based on symmetrical metal-cladding optical waveguide

The temperature-dependent reflection spectrums of ultrahigh order guided modes of symmetrical metal-cladding waveguide (SMCW) are measured in angular interrogation. The results show that the reflection spectrum is characterized by extremely narrow resonance dip, which agrees well with numerical calculation. Based on the falling or rising edge of resonance dip of ultrahigh order guided modes of SMCW, a temperature sensor with characteristic of high sensitivity is proposed. Meanwhile, by experimentally determine the linear character between the shift of resonance angle and the variation of temperature, a method of angle compensation is put forward to extend the sensing range. Owing to its characteristics of high sensitivity, low cost and easy fabrication, the temperature sensor based on SMCW will be a promising sensor in many fields.
Structural and luminescent characteristics of pulsed laser deposited Eu3+-doped Y2O3 thin films

Thin films of Eu-doped Y2O3 were deposited using the pulsed laser ablation technique on amorphous fused silica substrates. The effect of oxygen partial pressure (pO2) and substrate temperature on the structural and optical characteristics of the deposited films were investigated. All the deposited films were crystalline, showing preferred orientation along the (111) plane, irrespective of oxygen partial pressure and substrate temperature. The film deposited at 0.005 mbar pO2 exhibited better crystallinity with minimum FWHM at a substrate temperature of 600°C. All the films deposited at various substrate temperatures and different partial pressure (at 600°C) exhibited a red luminescence peak at 615 nm corresponding to the 5D0–7F1 transition in Eu3+. Photoluminescence excitation spectra exhibited two bands, one corresponding to band to band excitation (212 nm) of the host and the other to charge transfer band excitation (245 nm). A microstructure analysis revealed that surface roughness of the as-deposited films increases with increase in oxygen partial pressure.
Characteristics of Insertional Mutants of Pseudomonas syringae with Reduced Epiphytic Fitness

Random Tn5 mutagenesis was used to identify genes ir. Pseudomonas syringae which contribute to epiphytic fitness. Mutants were selected on the basis of deficiencies in epiphytic growth or survival on plants rather than deficiencies in predetermined phenotypes exhibited in culture. A sample freezing procedure was used to measure the population sizes of 5,300 mutants of P. syringae exposed to alternating wet and dry conditions on bean leaves in growth chambers. Eighty-two mutants exhibited reduced population sizes. Of these mutants, over half exhibited a reduced ability to survive the stresses associated with dry leaves, while others grew more slowly or attained reduced stationary-phase population sizes on leaves. While some epiphytic fitness mutants were altered in phenotypes that could be measured in culture, many mutants were not altered in any in vitro phenotype examined. Only three of the epiphytic fitness mutants were auxotrophs, and none had catabolic deficiencies for any of 31 organic compounds tested. Other mutants that exhibited reductions in one or more of the following were identified: motility, osmotolerance, desiccation tolerance, growth rate in batch culture, and extracellular polysaccharide production. All of the mutants retained the abilities to produce disease symptoms on the compatible host plant, bean, to incite a hypersensitive response on the non-host plant, tobacco, and to produce a fluorescent pyoverdine siderophore.
Formation and perforation of closing plates in the chick embryo

The morphology of the closing plates between adjacent pharyngeal arches was examined in chick embryos between stages 11 and 21 (HamburgerHamilton). Each closing plate is formed by apposition between the basal surfaces of portions of the pharyngeal pouch endoderm and the ectoderm of the overlying pharyngeal cleft. Initial contact between ectoderm and endoderm occurs at several small points which are separated by regions containing mesenchymal cells and extracellular material. Contact between the opposed epithelia is made by extension of cellular processes through the intervening basal laminae and extracellular space. Endodermal and ectodermal cells then interdigitate to create a cellular layer which rapidly thins. The interposed extracellular material is sequestered into small pools as cellular interdigitation proceeds. Perforations form through certain regions of closing plates 1–3 and persist during the stages studied. Small slit‐like depressions appear between cells of the closing plate just prior to perforation. The initial perforations enlarge until they are separated only by thin cellular strands. These strands presumably rupture, leaving small cellular accumulations which persist for a short time marking the junction between ectoderm and endoderm along the walls of adjacent pharyngeal arches. Clear evidence of cell degeneration is rare. These results suggest that cellular reorganization, rather than cell death, is a major mechanism of initial perforation.
Co-assembly of N-type Ca2+ and BK channels underlies functional coupling in rat brain

Activation of large conductance Ca2+-activated potassium (BK) channels hastens action potential repolarisation and generates the fast afterhyperpolarisation in hippocampal pyramidal neurons. A rapid coupling of Ca2+ entry with BK channel activation is necessary for this to occur, which might result from an identified coupling of Ca2+ entry through N-type Ca2+ channels to BK channel activation. This selective coupling was extremely rapid and resistant to intracellular BAPTA, suggesting that the two channel types are close. Using reciprocal co-immunoprecipitation, we found that N-type channels were more abundantly associated with BK channels than L-type channels (CaV1.2) in rat brain. Expression of only the pore-forming α-subunits of the N-type (CaV2.2) and BK (Slo27) channels in a non-neuronal cell-line gave robust macroscopic currents and reproduced the interaction. Co-expression of CaV2.2/CaVβ3 subunits with Slo27 channels revealed rapid functional coupling. By contrast, extremely rare examples of rapid functional coupling were observed with co-expression of CaV1.2/CaVβ3 and Slo27 channels. Action potential repolarisation in hippocampal pyramidal neurons was slowed by the N-type channel blocker ω-conotoxin GVIA, but not by the L-type channel blocker isradipine. These data showed that selective functional coupling between N-type Ca2+ and BK channels provided rapid activation of BK channels in central neurons.
Combining thermodynamic principles with Preisach models for superelastic shape memory alloy wires

We present a simple model for simulating the response of a superelastic shape memory alloy wire based on the thermodynamics of irreversible processes, which can simulate the full thermomechanical response including internal hysteresis loops, at different temperatures, with minimal data input. The key idea is to separate the dissipative response and the elastic response of shape memory alloys using a Gibbs potential based formulation, and then use a Preisach model for the dissipative part of the response. This enables better handling of the features observed in the superelastic response such as those due to changes in temperature and internal hysteresis loops. We compare the predicted response with experiments performed on 0.75 mm NiTi shape memory alloy wires at three different temperatures.
Reflections on mathematical models of deformation waves in elastic microstructured solids

This paper describes the mathematical models derived for wave propagation in solids with internal structure. The focus of the overview is on one-dimensional models which enlarge the classical wave equation by higher-order terms. The crucial parameter in models is the ratio of characteristic lengths of the excitation and the internal structure. Novel approaches based on the concept of internal variables permit one to take the thermodynamical conditions into account directly. Examples of generalisations include frequency-dependent multiscale models, nonlinear models and thermoelasticity. The substructural complexity within the framework of elasticity gives rise to dispersion of waves. Dispersion analysis shows that acoustic and optical branches of dispersion curves together describe properly wave phenomena in microstructured solids. In the case of nonlinear models, the governing equations are of the Boussinesq type. It is argued that such models of waves in solids with microstructure display properties that can be analysed as phenomena of complexity.
Dark rearing alters the normal development of spatiotemporal response properties but not of contrast detection threshold in mouse retinal ganglion cells

The mouse visual system is immature when the eyes open two weeks after birth. As in other mammals, some of the maturation that occurs in the subsequent weeks is known to depend on visual experience. Development of the retina, which as the first stage of vision provides the visual information to the brain, also depends on light‐driven activity for proper development but has been less well studied than visual cortical development. The critical properties for retinal encoding of images include detection of contrast and responsiveness to the broad range of temporal stimulus frequencies present in natural stimuli. Here we show that contrast detection threshold and temporal frequency response characteristics of ON and OFF retinal ganglion cells (RGCs), which are poor at eye opening, subsequently undergo maturation, improving RGC performance. Further, we find that depriving mice of visual experience from before birth by rearing them in the dark causes ON and OFF RGCs to have smaller receptive field centers but does not affect their contrast detection threshold development. The modest developmental increase in temporal frequency responsiveness of RGCs in mice reared on a normal light cycle was inhibited by dark rearing only in ON but not OFF RGCs. Thus, these RGC response characteristics are in many ways unaffected by the experience‐dependent changes to synaptic and spontaneous activity known to occur in the mouse retina in the two weeks after eye opening, but specific differences are apparent in the ON vs. OFF RGC populations. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Develop Neurobiol 74: 692–706, 2014
Man vs. machine: Utility of a computerized structured diagnostic tool in clinical practice

The Composite International Diagnostic Interview (CIDI) is a standardized, structured diagnostic interview for the assessment of mental disorders. It was designed to be used by trained lay interviewers to conduct epi­ demiological surveys and there is also a computerized version (CIDI­ Auto). However, the validity of CIDI diagnosis has been questioned, and some previous studies have shown an inadequate level of agreement with clinical diagnosis (Komiti et al., 2001). In the present study, a file review of a consecutive sample of patients who attended a psychiatric outpatient clinic was conducted. The CADE clinic spe­ cializes in the diagnostic evaluation of outpatients referred by general practi­ tioners and psychiatrists. Patients completed the CIDI­Auto, had a clini­ cal interview with a psychiatrist or senior trainee psychiatrist, and diag­ nostic agreement was achieved by consensus in a clinical meeting with researchers and clinicians. Consensus with CIDI diagnoses was recorded (agree or disagree). In total, there was sufficient data to include 52 patients from the 71 files examined. For these patients, 196 diagnoses were generated by CIDI (a mean of 3.8 diagnoses per patient) across seven categories of disorder (Table 1). Clinicians assigned a mean of 2.3 diagnoses per patient and disa­ greement with CIDI diagnoses was common. No mention was made of agreement or disagreement for 61 CIDI­generated diagnoses. Possible causes for the poor level of agreement were considered. In the category with the highest level of disagreement, bipolar disorder, clini­ cians preferred a diagnosis of bipolar II disorder to the bipolar I disorder diagnosis assigned by the CIDI in four our of seven cases of disagree­ ment, and in the other cases, clini­ cians rejected a diagnosis of bipolar disorder, instead assigning anxiety Letters
Essential Oil Composition, Antioxidant, Cytotoxic and Antiviral Activities of Teucrium pseudochamaepitys Growing Spontaneously in Tunisia

The chemical composition, antioxidant, cytotoxic and antiviral activities of the essential oil obtained by hydrodistillation from the aerial parts of Teucrium pseudochamaepitys (Lamiaceae) collected from Zaghouan province of Tunisia are reported. The essential oil was analyzed by gas chromatography equipped with a flame ionization detector (GC-FID) and gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (GC/MS). Thirty-one compounds were identified representing 88.6% of the total essential oil. Hexadecanoic acid was found to be the most abundant component (26.1%) followed by caryophyllene oxide (6.3%), myristicin (4.9%) and α-cubebene (3.9%). The antioxidant capacity of the oil was measured on the basis of the scavenging activity to the stable 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH). The IC50 value of the oil was evaluated as 0.77 mg·mL−1. In addition, the essential oil was found to possess moderate cytotoxic effects on the HEp-2 cell line (50% cytotoxic concentration (CC50) = 653.6 µg·mL−1). The potential antiviral effect was tested against Coxsackievirus B (CV-B), a significant human and mouse pathogen that causes pediatric central nervous system disease, commonly with acute syndromes. The reduction of viral infectivity by the essential oil was measured using a cytopathic (CPE) reduction assay.
Experimental Manipulation of Body Size to Estimate Morphological Scaling Relationships in Drosophila

The scaling of body parts is a central feature of animal morphology1-7. Within species, morphological traits need to be correctly proportioned to the body for the organism to function; larger individuals typically have larger body parts and smaller individuals generally have smaller body parts, such that overall body shape is maintained across a range of adult body sizes. The requirement for correct proportions means that individuals within species usually exhibit low variation in relative trait size. In contrast, relative trait size can vary dramatically among species and is a primary mechanism by which morphological diversity is produced. Over a century of comparative work has established these intra- and interspecific patterns3,4. Perhaps the most widely used approach to describe this variation is to calculate the scaling relationship between the size of two morphological traits using the allometric equation y=bxα, where x and y are the size of the two traits, such as organ and body size8,9. This equation describes the within-group (e.g., species, population) scaling relationship between two traits as both vary in size. Log-transformation of this equation produces a simple linear equation, log(y) = log(b) + αlog(x) and log-log plots of the size of different traits among individuals of the same species typically reveal linear scaling with an intercept of log(b) and a slope of α, called the 'allometric coefficient'9,10. Morphological variation among groups is described by differences in scaling relationship intercepts or slopes for a given trait pair. Consequently, variation in the parameters of the allometric equation (b and α) elegantly describes the shape variation captured in the relationship between organ and body size within and among biological groups (see 11,12). Not all traits scale linearly with each other or with body size (e.g., 13,14) Hence, morphological scaling relationships are most informative when the data are taken from the full range of trait sizes. Here we describe how simple experimental manipulation of diet can be used to produce the full range of body size in insects. This permits an estimation of the full scaling relationship for any given pair of traits, allowing a complete description of how shape covaries with size and a robust comparison of scaling relationship parameters among biological groups. Although we focus on Drosophila, our methodology should be applicable to nearly any fully metamorphic insect.
ARTIFICIAL RETARDATION OF FATIGUE CRACK GROWTH BY THE INFILTRATION OF CRACKS BY FOREIGN MATERIALS

The effects of inducing artificial crack closure into fatigue cracks in AISI 304 stainless steel by infiltrating foreign materials have been investigated. The foreign materials used include pure epoxy resin and resin mixed with 0.3 μm and 4 μm TiO 2 , 4 μm Fe, as well as 18 μm AISI 316L stainless steel. In all the cases studied, different degrees of crack growth retardation have been achieved. When the particle size was small enough or when the prop-opening load for infiltration was large enough, crack arrest occurred. Crack retardation and arrest were mainly caused by the infiltrated material rather than the propping load. A rigid-wedge model was found to have limited value in predicting the possible outcome of an infiltration. On the other hand, the degree of crack closure immediately on resumption of a test after infiltration could tell whether the treatment was going to be successful or not.
A Study on the Injection Characteristics of Biodiesel Fuels Injected through Common-rail Injection System

The object of this work is to analyze the macroscopic spray performance and atomization characteristics between diesel and biodiesel fuels. In this study, the effects of mixture ratios of biodiesel fuel on the spray tip penetration, fuel injection rate, spray cone angle, and the atomization characteristics such as droplet size, droplets distribution, and spray arrival time according to the axial distance were investigated at various injection parameters. It is revealed that the injection rate is more affected by injection pressure than mixture ratio. And, the spray development process is closely matched between diesel and biodiesel fuels. However, the droplet atomization characteristics of biodiesel shows deteriorated results as the mixture ratio of biodiesel increased because of the high viscosity and density.
Promoting Efficiency and Separation of Concerns through a Hybrid Model Based on Ontologies for Context-Aware Computing

Several projects in context-aware computing have adopted ontologies for modeling context information, due to their powerful constructors for modeling highly dependent concepts and their mechanisms for describing complex inferences. However, the implementation of ontologies introduces some scalability and performance problems for context-aware systems, which usually have to handle high-volume of distributed information. To circumvent this drawback, some research efforts have proposed the adoption of hybrid context models. This paper presents a hybrid context model for the MoCA, a middleware for developing and deploying context-aware collaborative applications for mobile users