Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Alzheimer’s Disease, Neuroprotection, and CNS Immunosenescence

This review is focused on discussing in some detail possible neuroprotective functions of microglial cells. We strive to explain how loss of these essential microglial functions might contribute toward the development of characteristic neuropathological features that characterize Alzheimer’s disease. The conceptual framework guiding our thinking is provided by the hypothesis that microglial senescence accounts for impaired neuronal protection and consequent neurodegeneration.
An Excitable Electronic Circuit as a Sensory Neuron Model

An electronic circuit device, inspired on the FitzHugh–Nagumo model of neuronal excitability, was constructed and shown to operate with characteristics compatible with those of biological sensory neurons. The nonlinear dynamical model of the electronics quantitatively reproduces the experimental observations on the circuit, including the Hopf bifurcation at the onset of tonic spiking. Moreover, we have implemented an analog noise generator as a source to study the variability of the spike trains. When the circuit is in the excitable regime, coherence resonance is observed. At sufficiently low noise intensity the spike trains have Poisson statistics, as in many biological neurons. The transfer function of the stochastic spike trains has a dynamic range of 6 dB, close to experimental values for real olfactory receptor neurons.
Disciplining Expectations: Using Survey Data in Learning Models

Do learning models of expectations formation capture actual expectations? In this study we address this question by using data from the Survey of Professional Forecasters in the estimation of a dynamic stochastic general equilibrium model under learning. Exploiting the moments of this data allows us to identify the parameters of the model better, particularly those related with the formation of the expectations. We find that, without the use of survey data, inflation expectations estimated under the assumption of learning capture some features of the data not related with actual expectations, such as changes in the trend of inflation. Once surveys are included, learning not only matches actual expectations but also emerges as a key determinant of inflation persistence, explaining around 30 percent, while exogenous shocks only account for approximately 15 percent.
The Importance of a Critical Protonation State and the Fate of the Catalytic Steps in Class A β-Lactamases and Penicillin-binding Proteins*

β-Lactamases and penicillin-binding proteins are bacterial enzymes involved in antibiotic resistance to β-lactam antibiotics and biosynthetic assembly of cell wall, respectively. Members of these large families of enzymes all experience acylation by their respective substrates at an active site serine as the first step in their catalytic activities. A Ser-X-X-Lys sequence motif is seen in all these proteins, and crystal structures demonstrate that the side-chain functions of the serine and lysine are in contact with one another. Three independent methods were used in this report to address the question of the protonation state of this important lysine (Lys-73) in the TEM-1 β-lactamase from Escherichia coli. These techniques included perturbation of the pKa of Lys-73 by the study of the γ-thialysine-73 variant and the attendant kinetic analyses, investigation of the protonation state by titration of specifically labeled proteins by nuclear magnetic resonance, and by computational treatment using the thermodynamic integration method. All three methods indicated that the pKa of Lys-73 of this enzyme is attenuated to 8.0–8.5. It is argued herein that the unique ground-state ion pair of Glu-166 and Lys-73 of class A β-lactamases has actually raised the pKa of the active site lysine to 8.0–8.5 from that of the parental penicillin-binding protein. Whereas we cannot rule out that Glu-166 might activate the active site water, which in turn promotes Ser-70 for the acylation event, such as proposed earlier, we would like to propose as a plausible alternative for the acylation step the possibility that the ion pair would reconfigure to the protonated Glu-166 and unprotonated Lys-73. As such, unprotonated Lys-73 could promote serine for acylation, a process that should be shared among all active-site serine β-lactamases and penicillin-binding proteins.
The TRANSLATION Framework for archaeological excavation data: transparent negotiation and sharing of local application terminologies, instances and ontologies. A progress report submitted for continuation towards a PhD

The Semantic Web is rapidly maturing thanks to consolidation of its technologies and an incipient body of linked data available to the public. Nevertheless, there is a danger that we may throw the baby out with the bathwater. Whilst the utility of bridging separate conceptualizations of a domain through explicit specifications (ontologies) is clear, it does not follow that we want to abandon the original data models. The purpose of this research will be to investigate SW methodologies that loosely-couple local ontologies so that the semantic structures they embody are still accessible to the end-user for comparison and analysis. The discipline of archaeology provides an excellent case-study in this regard. The fragmentary nature of its sources, and the diverse theoretical approaches of its practitioners render any attempt to establish a universal ‘world-view’ impossible. The result, whilst superficially homogenous, conceals conceptual rifts which may be of great significance. The need to express one’s work in terms of another’s ontology can also give rise to concerns of disenfranchisement that impede user adoption. A successful Semantic Web methodology should first permit contributors to describe their own data in their own (ontological) terms, and then provide the resources by which any user can create (or select) alignments to other Domain or Application ontologies. This research aims to develop a process by which resource providers are able to publish their data to the Semantic Web in a manner that keeps its semantic origins as transparent as possible via an explicit ontology. Thereafter, alignment should be made possible in a ‘pluggable’ fashion so that alternative combinations of meaning can be explored. Its primary output will be the TRANSLATION Framework: a piece of modular open source software deployed as a case study to explore the benefits of Semantic technologies. This report is intended to provide both computer scientists and archaeologists with a plan of the work to be undertaken.
Using the Universal Modality: Gains and Questions

The paper investigates a simple and natural enrichment of the usual modal language ! £ = ! £<O) with an auxiliary 'universal' modality (! ) having Kripke semantics: (! )� is true at a world of a model iffis valid in the model . The enriched language � = ! £<O, (! ) turns out to be fairly different from the classical one. In particular the notions of satisfiability, validity and consequence in models become interreducib le. Section 2 is devoted to modal definability in �. Model-theoretic characterization s of this definability are obt ained . �definability is proved to be equivalent with sequential definability in ! £ introduced by Kapron . In section 3 the minimal normal . 'l1i! -logic Kw, is axiomatized and a general model -completeness theorem for the family of normal exten­ sions of K(ID is proved. Section 4 deals with minimal extensions-�logics axiomatized with schemata of ! £ over KIIDA general study on transfer of properties of ! £-Iogics to their minimal extensions is initiated. Transfer of incompleteness, strong completeness, compact­ ness and filtration is proved. The problems of transferring completeness, finite comp lete­ ness and decidability are investigated and several general results are obtained. Uniform reductions of these properties ofIogics to corresponding natural properties in their classical fragments are established. For a large class of ! e-Iog ics, completeness is shown to be inherited in their minimal extensions. However, the general transferring problems re­ main still open. In section 5 several concrete completeness and decidability results for logics with essentially .! lfi! J-axiomatics are stated and some other applications of (! ) are sketc hed. In an appendix independent join of . lfi! J-Iogics is introduced and proved to pre­ serve completeness when applied to minimal extensions. Besides the technical results, the paper pursues two main purposes: first, to advertise the universal modality as a natural and helpful tool, providing a better medium for the mission of modality; and second, to illustrate the typical problems arising when enricha ments of modal languages are investigated.
Research and practice on teaching computer science undergraduates based on educational games

With the development of computer technology and network invasively and continuously, computer has already become a part of our life. Computer could supply new teaching mode combined education with game. Now college should be education between oriented-student and oriented-society which cannot stick into textbook, but can blend theory and practice. Therefore, animate and visualized education mode is a necessary path to motive students seeking knowledge continuously. This paper focuses on computer science curriculum to discuss how to combine course content with educational games. It suggests a novel heuristic teaching mode of education with games melted into course to train student search much more knowledge. And it describes the basic theory, characteristics and process by showing a case named GameAI course. Thus it would be an example to guide other courses to change teaching mode.
Head circumference and height in autism: A study by the collaborative program of excellence in autism

Data from 10 sites of the NICHD/NIDCD Collaborative Programs of Excellence in Autism were combined to study the distribution of head circumference and relationship to demographic and clinical variables. Three hundred thirty‐eight probands with autism‐spectrum disorder (ASD) including 208 probands with autism were studied along with 147 parents, 149 siblings, and typically developing controls. ASDs were diagnosed, and head circumference and clinical variables measured in a standardized manner across all sites. All subjects with autism met ADI‐R, ADOS‐G, DSM‐IV, and ICD‐10 criteria. The results show the distribution of standardized head circumference in autism is normal in shape, and the mean, variance, and rate of macrocephaly but not microcephaly are increased. Head circumference tends to be large relative to height in autism. No site, gender, age, SES, verbal, or non‐verbal IQ effects were present in the autism sample. In addition to autism itself, standardized height and average parental head circumference were the most important factors predicting head circumference in individuals with autism. Mean standardized head circumference and rates of macrocephaly were similar in probands with autism and their parents. Increased head circumference was associated with a higher (more severe) ADI‐R social algorithm score. Macrocephaly is associated with delayed onset of language. Although mean head circumference and rates of macrocephaly are increased in autism, a high degree of variability is present, underscoring the complex clinical heterogeneity of the disorder. The wide distribution of head circumference in autism has major implications for genetic, neuroimaging, and other neurobiological research. © 2006 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
An Exploration of Teachers’ Skills, Perceptions and Practices of ICT in Teaching and Learning in the Ghanaian Second-Cycle Schools

This study was conducted to explore teachers’ skills, perceptions, and practices about ICT in second-cycle institutions in Ghana. Questionnaires were distributed to 273 teachers in different departments, 241 were returned, and 231 were valid for data analysis, representing a response rate of 85%. The validity of the questionnaire was approved by a panel of experts in the field. The Cronbach’s alpha reliability coefficient was 0.91. Descriptive statistics and correlation were used to analyze data. Of the 231 teachers, 66% were males and 34% were females. Majority of the respondents were between the ages 30-39. The correlation analysis revealed positive correlation between ICT use and teachers’ competences. Further, teachers’ perceptions in terms of using ICT were found to be positive but not statistically significant. Finally, the study revealed inverse correlations among ICT use, age, and teaching experience. The descriptive results indicated that teachers’ knowledge in basic ICT applications as well as integrating ICT into teaching and learning processes was low. These results provide evidence that the introduction of ICT in teaching and learning has not brought any change in the delivery of education in second-cycle schools in Ghana. This also implies that teachers have not shifted from teacher-centered instruction to student-centered learning. From the findings of the study, it is recommended that courses such as computer supported learning, ICTs and designing instructional materials should be introduced in initial teacher training programs to improve teachers’ level of confidence and perceptions towards the use of ICT.
Coordinated motion planning of multiple mobile robots in formation

This paper presents an approach to coordinating a group of mobile robots that move along the designed paths. Subject to the constraints of velocity/acceleration bounds and collision avoidance, the robots are required to maintain the formation relationship while moving. The coordination is realized by posing the coordination problem as a velocity optimization problem in motion planning and then properly planning robots' velocities along the paths. The linear interactive and general optimizer (lingo) is utilized to achieve the velocity optimization goal. Simulations are performed on a group of mobile robots to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed approach in coordinated motion planning with the formation requirement.
MICROSCOPIC LOAD SHARING IN A DUPLEX STAINLESS STEEL AND THE INFLUENCE OF PHASE PROPERTIES

Duplex stainless steel SAF 2507 was strain hardened and aged, respectively, which results in a similar increase in the 0.2% proof stress but different property ratio of austenite (γ) to ferrite (α). γ is the harder phase in the deformed specimen but the softer one in the aged condition. X-ray diffraction experiments under in-situ tensile loading with a peak stress close to the 0.2% proof stress were carried out to study the microscopic load sharing and the influence of the relative phase properties. It was observed that under elastic loading, the phase incompatibility caused a slight load transfer from α to γ in the deformed specimen but from γ to α in the aged one. In case of loading of the deformed specimen in the elasto-plastic regime, as both phases yielded under similar applied stress, the phase interaction due to microplasticity was weak and had no obvious influence on the load partitioning. On the other hand, significant load transfer from γ to α accompanied yielding of γ in the aged specimen in the same regime. The specimens were uploaded to the same peak stress after unloading. With elastic loading prevails in the second cycle, γ in the deformed and α in the aged specimen, both having tensile residual stress, take a larger share of the applied load.
EVALUATION OF HEATING METHOD FOR THE PACEMAKER DETERMINATION

This paper describes certain changes in the heart frequency, which are produced by localized heating of various parts of the sinus venosus. It was formerly found by Gaskell (1) that the heating of the sinus venosus causes an acceleration while heating of atria and ventricle had no remarkable effect on heart rate. In this phenomenon, however, there are still some problems to be solved. One unsettled question is, whether the whole sinus venosus must be warmed or whether it is sufficient to warm only a particular part of the sinus in order to cause tachycardia. The experiments to be reported were carried out in an attempt to answer this question by using a small thermode.
Situation-oriented clustering of sightseeing spot images using visual and tag information

Now a day, the tourists get used to take many photos in a journey and share these sightseeing spot images on album websites. The meaningful grouping of these images will become important and useful. In particular, sightseeing spot scenes are vary with different situations, such as weather conditions and seasons. Thus the categorization of different situations is expected to be beneficial for tourists to plan when to visit there. This paper proposes a hybrid approach which integrates content-based image clustering with filtering based on tag information of image. Content-based image clustering categorizes sightseeing spot images into night, sunrise/sunset, cloudy, and shine situations based on color feature extraction from ROI (region of interest). By using geotag information, collected images can be limited to a reasonable boundary to eliminate outliers. Furthermore, by using the timestamp of images, the four situation categories constructed by content-based image clustering are further verified to increase the accuracy. Experimental results show that the hybrid approach of content-based image clustering and tag-based filtering is effective for obtaining clusters with high precision and recall.
Multi - black hole solutions in five-dimensions

Using a recently developed generalized Weyl formalism, we construct an asymptotically flat, static vacuum Einstein solution that describes a superposition of multiple five-dimensional Schwarzschild black holes. The spacetime exhibits a $U(1)\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}U(1)$ rotational symmetry. It is argued that for certain choices of parameters the black holes are collinear and so may be regarded as a five-dimensional generalization of the Israel-Khan solution. The black holes are kept in equilibrium by membranelike conical singularities along the two rotational axes; however, they still distort one another by their mutual gravitational attraction. We also generalize this solution to one describing multiple charged black holes, with fixed mass-to-charge ratio, in Einstein-Maxwell-dilaton theory.
Dépenses militaires et croissance économique dans un contexte non linéaire. Le cas français

L’objet de cet article est de proposer de nouvelles conclusions empiriques a la relation depenses militaires-croissance economique pour la France. Compte tenu de la complexite de cette relation, nous utilisons un modele non lineaire, ce qui est original pour le cas de la France. Les resultats sont les suivants : (i) l’approche non lineaire est preferee a l’approche lineaire ; (ii) la variable de transition est la valeur retardee du taux de croissance ; (iii) le comportement asymetrique de l’effort de defense est mis en avant, en fonction du regime de croissance : pour les cas de croissance faible et de croissance elevee, l’effet est negatif, mais devient positif pour une croissance intermediaire.
Chandra Evidence for AGN Feedback in the Spiral Galaxy NGC 6764

We report the Chandra detection of X-ray emission spatially coincident with the kiloparsec-scale radio bubbles in the nearby (DL ∼ 31 Mpc) AGN-starburst galaxy NGC 6764. The X-ray emission originates in hot gas (kT ∼ 0.75 keV), which may either be contained within the radio bubbles, or in a shell of hot gas surrounding them. We consider three models for the origin of the hot gas: (1) a starburst-driven galactic wind, (2) shocked gas associated with the expanding radio bubbles, and (3) gas heated and entrained into the bubbles by jet/ISM interactions in the inner AGN outflow. We rule out a galactic wind based on significant differences from known galactic wind systems. The tight correspondence between the brightest X-ray emission and the radio emission in the inner outflow from the Seyfert nucleus, as well as a correlation between X-ray and radio spectral features suggestive of shocks and particle acceleration, lead us to favor the third model; however, we cannot firmly rule out a model in which the bubbles are driving large-scale shocks into the galaxy ISM. In either AGN-driven heating scenario, the total energy stored in the hot gas is high, ~1056 ergs, comparable to the energetic impact of low-power radio galaxies such as Centaurus A, and will have a dramatic impact on the galaxy and its surroundings.
Data and decision fusion for distributed spectrum sensing in cognitive radio networks

With dynamic spectrum access coming into focus for future mobile applications, Cognitive Radio technologies have emerged as a promising area for further research. As spectrum sensing forms an important functionality for these systems, the following areas were investigated into in this paper. Firstly, the basic spectrum sensing schemes were integrated with data and decision fusion techniques to improve performance in the presence of multiple secondary users. Further analysis of Ad Hoc sensing schemes was done with emphasis on distributed sensing schemes. The effects of varying the number of participating neighbours on fusion values were studied in detail. It was seen that varying the sensing time and the number of participating neighbours produces changes in the throughput and detection probabilities. The changes produced by varying these parameters were discussed in detail.
Electro-Thermal-Stress analysis of a LDMOS FET Breakdown under High Power Microwave pulses

This paper presents thermal and stress breakdown effects in a LDMOS FET under the impact of High Power Microwave pulses. Experimental investigations of the LDMOS FET-based power amplifier (PA) are performed under HPM pulses. The Electro-Thermal- Stress (E-T-S) breakdown of the device is observed. To characterize temperature and stress distribution of the LDMOS FET, we developed a physical electro-thermal-stress model using time-domain finite-element method. Simulations are performed and compared with measurements. This research can provide useful knowledge for understanding the reliability of RF power devices.
Hardware efficient LBIST with complementary weights

In this paper, a novel logic BIST (built-in self test) scheme with complementary weights is proposed. The BIST implementation combines random patterns with complementary-weight weighted patterns. A heuristic algorithm based on deterministic test set is developed to compute weight set with complementary weights. Hardware similar to bit-flipping is used to produce complementary weights. For random resistant ISCAS circuits, complete fault coverage can be achieved with very low hardware overhead. Experiments show that two complementary weights are sufficient for weighted random pattern testing and it presents a novel direction for exploiting weighted patterns.
Clinical applications of the sustained-release dexamethasone implant for treatment of macular edema

Macular edema is one of the leading causes of vision loss among patients with retinal vein occlusion, diabetic retinopathy, and posterior chamber inflammatory disease. However, the treatment of macular edema is considerably limited by the difficulty in delivering effective doses of therapeutic agents into the vitreous cavity. In recent years, the development of a sustained-release dexamethasone intravitreal implant (Ozurdex®) has enabled more controlled drug release at a stable rate over a long period of time, with a potentially lower rate of adverse events. Clinical studies indicate that this dexamethasone implant is a promising new treatment option for patients with persistent macular edema resulting from retinal vein occlusion, diabetic retinopathy, and uveitis or Irvine-Gass syndrome.