Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Practical aspects of building a constrained random test framework for safety-critical embedded systems

In the safety-critical embedded system industry, one of the key challenges is to demonstrate the robustness and dependability of the product prior to market release, which is typically done using various verification and validation (V&V) strategies. Directed verification testing is a common strategy that performs black-box testing at the system level; however, it only samples a small set of specific system behaviors and requires heavily manual effort. In this paper, we describe our experience and lessons learned of applying the concept of constrained random testing on safety-critical embedded systems as a complimentary testing methodology. Constrained random testing enables us to cover many more system behaviors through random input variations, random fault injections, and automatic output comparisons. Additionally, it can reduce manual effort and increase confidence on the dependability of both firmware and hardware.
Segmented inner plexiform layer thickness as a potential biomarker to evaluate open-angle glaucoma: Dendritic degeneration of retinal ganglion cell

Purpose To evaluate the changes of retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL), ganglion cell layer (GCL), inner plexiform layer (IPL), and ganglion cell-inner plexiform layer (GCIPL) thicknesses and compare structure-function relationships of 4 retinal layers using spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT) in macular region of glaucoma patients. Methods In cross-sectional study, a total of 85 eyes with pre-perimetric to advanced glaucoma and 26 normal controls were enrolled. The glaucomatous eyes were subdivided into three groups according to the severity of visual field defect: a preperimetric glaucoma group, an early glaucoma group, and a moderate to advanced glaucoma group. RNFL, GCL, IPL, and GCIPL thicknesses were measured at the level of the macula by the Spectralis (Heidelberg Engineering, Heidelberg, Germany) SD-OCT with automated segmentation software. For functional evaluation, corresponding mean sensitivity (MS) values were measured using 24–2 standard automated perimetry (SAP). Results RNFL, GCL, IPL, and GCIPL thicknesses were significantly different among 4 groups (P < .001). Macular structure losses were positively correlated with the MS values of the 24–2 SAP for RNFL, GCL, IPL, and GCIPL (R = 0.553, 0.636, 0.648 and 0.646, respectively, P < .001). In regression analysis, IPL and GCIPL thicknesses showed stronger association with the corresponding MS values of 24–2 SAP compared with RNFL and GCL thicknesses (R2 = 0.420, P < .001 for IPL; R2 = 0.417, P< .001 for GCIPL thickness). Conclusions Segmented IPL thickness was significantly associated with the degree of glaucoma. Segmental analysis of the inner retinal layer including the IPL in macular region may provide valuable information for evaluating glaucoma.
Intracellular K+ Is Required for the Inactivation-Induced High-Affinity Binding of Cisapride to HERG Channels

Many commonly used medications can cause long QT syndrome and thus increase the risk of life-threatening arrhythmias. High-affinity human Ether-à-go-go-related gene (HERG) potassium channel blockade by structurally diverse compounds is almost exclusively responsible for this side effect. Understanding drug-HERG channel interactions is an important step in avoiding drug-induced long QT syndromes. Previous studies have found that disrupting HERG inactivation reduces the degree of drug block and have suggested that the inactivated state is the preferential state for drug binding to HERG channels. However, recent studies have also shown that inactivation does not dictate drug sensitivity of HERG channels. In the present study, we examined the effect of inactivation gating on cisapride block of HERG. Modulation of HERG inactivation was achieved by either changing extracellular K+ or Cs+ concentrations or by mutations of the channel. We found that although inactivation facilitated cisapride block of the HERG K+ current, it was not coupled with cisapride block of HERG when the Cs+ current was recorded. Furthermore, cisapride block of the HERG K+ current was not linked with inactivation in the mutant HERG channels F656V and F656M. Our results suggest that inactivation facilitates cisapride block of HERG channels through affecting the positioning of Phe-656.
Analog operation of Junctionless Nanowire Transistors down to liquid helium temperature

The aim of this work is to analyze the analog operation of Junctionless Nanowire Transistors at temperatures down to liquid helium temperature. The analysis is performed in terms of the transconductance, open loop voltage gain and output conductance for experimental long channel devices. It is shown that the temperature reduction can affect significantly the analog performance of the devices.
The epidemiology of anxiety disorders

This section on personality disorders and neuroses differs from the usual Current Opinion approach, which entails a search of the recent literature to determine which areas of research are topical, followed by an invitation to persons familiar with those areas to review them. Topicality means that some things are regularly written about, whereas issues of lesser topicality tend to be ignored. The present issue includes reviews on four anxiety disorders, written by the authors of one of the standard texts in the area [1,2], and an editorial on the relative importance of the anxiety disorders in comparison with the affective, personality and substance use disorders. It was hoped that, by enlisting authors with shared expertise, a coherent overview of the anxiety disorders would result. There is no article on obsessive± compulsive disorder because little has changed since the last review.
Affine Registration of label maps in Label Space.

Two key aspects of coupled multi-object shape analysis and atlas generation are the choice of representation and subsequent registration methods used to align the sample set. For example, a typical brain image can be labeled into three structures: grey matter, white matter and cerebrospinal fluid. Many manipulations such as interpolation, transformation, smoothing, or registration need to be performed on these images before they can be used in further analysis. Current techniques for such analysis tend to trade off performance between the two tasks, performing well for one task but developing problems when used for the other. This article proposes to use a representation that is both flexible and well suited for both tasks. We propose to map object labels to vertices of a regular simplex, e.g . the unit interval for two labels, a triangle for three labels, a tetrahedron for four labels, etc. This representation, which is routinely used in fuzzy classification, is ideally suited for representing and registering multiple shapes. On closer examination, this representation reveals several desirable properties: algebraic operations may be done directly, label uncertainty is expressed as a weighted mixture of labels (probabilistic interpretation), interpolation is unbiased toward any label or the background, and registration may be performed directly. We demonstrate these properties by using label space in a gradient descent based registration scheme to obtain a probabilistic atlas. While straightforward, this iterative method is very slow, could get stuck in local minima, and depends heavily on the initial conditions. To address these issues, two fast methods are proposed which serve as coarse registration schemes following which the iterative descent method can be used to refine the results. Further, we derive an analytical formulation for direct computation of the "group mean" from the parameters of pairwise registration of all the images in the sample set. We show results on richly labeled 2D and 3D data sets.
A serious game enhancing social tenants' behavioral change towards energy efficiency

The energy consumption of the current building stock represents about 40% of the total final energy consumption in Europe. New gamification techniques may play a significant role in helping users adopt new and more energy efficient behaviours. This paper presents the advances achieved within the context of the EU-funded project EnerGAware — Energy Game for Awareness of energy efficiency in social housing communities. The main objective of the project, funded by the European Union under the Horizon2020 programme, is to reduce the energy consumption and carbon emissions in a sample of European social housing by changing the energy efficiency behaviour of the social tenants through the implementation of a serious game linked to the real energy use of the participants' homes.
O Mannosylation of α-Dystroglycan Is Essential for Lymphocytic Choriomeningitis Virus Receptor Function

ABSTRACT α-Dystroglycan (α-DG) was identified as a common receptor for lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus (LCMV) and several other arenaviruses including the human pathogenic Lassa fever virus. Initial work postulated that interactions between arenavirus glycoproteins and α-DG are based on protein-protein interactions. We found, however, that susceptibility toward LCMV infection differed in various cell lines despite them expressing comparable levels of DG, suggesting that posttranslational modifications of α-DG would be involved in viral receptor function. Here, we demonstrate that glycosylation of α-DG, and in particular, O mannosylation, which is a rare type of O-linked glycosylation in mammals, is essential for LCMV receptor function. Cells that are defective in components of the O-mannosylation pathway showed strikingly reduced LCMV infectibility. As defective O mannosylation is associated with severe clinical symptoms in mammals such as congenital muscular dystrophies, it is likely that LCMV and potentially other arenaviruses may have selected this conserved and crucial posttranslational modification as the primary target structure for cell entry and infection.
A Novel Mesh Routing Using the Nodes with Identical Tree Level

Contemporary wireless sensor network (WSN) adopts IEEE 802.15. 4 in its MAC and PHY layers. The mesh routing introduced in IEEE 802.15. 5 standard, referred to as the basic mesh routing below, improves reliability and robustness of routing in WSNs since there are multiple routes from a node to the sink. In this paper, the mesh routing with identical level (MRIL) is proposed, which constructs the mesh using the tree generated per IEEE 802.15. 5 standard, the two-hop neighbors of the nodes, and the nodes in the same level chains with each consisting of the nodes having identical tree level. The MRIL outperforms the basic mesh routing in terms of energy consumption, the average number of hops traversed per packet, the sizes of memory used to keep neighbor lists and connectivity matrices at nodes, and the number of packet transmissions in exchanging link state information.
Impact of the Internet on Relationships: Perception of Male and Female Students of Pakistan

Thisstudy finds out the perception of male and female students regarding the role of the Internet in changing their relationships with the opposite sex, family members and anonymous people.When it was a matter of collective perception, students agreedthat the Internet played a role in changing relationships with the opposite sex, family membersand anonymous people; however, they offered no opinion about the role of the Internet in increasing romantic relationships. Pakistan is a conservative society, which may compelstudents to keep their opinion reserved regarding romantic relationships.The results of the study revealed that the Internet has brought family memberscloser to each other, enhancing the unity among them and strengthening the family tieswhich have increased the sense of responsibility among youth.The perception of males and femaleswas not significantly different. However, the perception of users and non-users of the Internetwas different. The non-users disagreed that the Internet had a role in changing relationships, while users indicated their agreement on its role in bringing change to youngsters’ relationships.
Model Driven Development of Android Application Prototypes from Windows Navigation Diagrams

In recent years, the growth of smartphone market has led to the increasing development of mobile application. The rapid approach of mobile application development would respond to the market growth. This paper presents a model driven approach for creating preliminary GUI source code of Android application from windows navigation diagrams. The input diagram is converted to XML used as the metadata for model transformation. The final results of XML and Java files will be obtained for each UI layout where the XML file contains UI element information, and the Java file contains the actions. The proposed methodology would promote the reusability due to the use of UI layout template. The automation with model transformation would also ensure the integrity of interfaces generated from the design with windows navigation diagrams.
AAC Modeling Intervention Research Review

A systematic review of research on the effects of interventions that include communication partner modeling of aided augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) on the language acquisition of individuals with complex communication needs was conducted. Included studies incorporated AAC modeling as a primary component of the intervention, defined as the communication partners (a) modeling aided AAC as they speak and (b) participating in the context of a naturalistic communication interaction. This review used a best-evidence approach, including nine single-case studies, with 31 participants, and 70 replications, and one quasi-experimental randomized group design study, including 63 participants. The results of the review indicated that AAC modeling intervention packages led to meaningful linguistic gains across four areas including (a) pragmatics, marked by increases in communication turns; (b) semantics, marked by receptive and expressive vocabulary increases; (c) syntax, marked by multi-symbol turn increases; and (d) morphology, marked by increases in target morphology structures.
Exercise Treatment for Major Depression: Maintenance of Therapeutic Benefit at 10 Months

Objective The purpose of this study was to assess the status of 156 adult volunteers with major depressive disorder (MDD) 6 months after completion of a study in which they were randomly assigned to a 4-month course of aerobic e-ercise, sertraline therapy, or a combination of e-ercise and sertraline. Methods The presence and severity of depression were assessed by clinical interview using the Diagnostic Interview Schedule and the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HRSD) and by self-report using the Beck Depression Inventory. Assessments were performed at baseline, after 4 months of treatment, and 6 months after treatment was concluded (ie, after 10 months). Results After 4 months patients in all three groups e-hibited significant improvement; the proportion of remitted participants (ie, those who no longer met diagnostic criteria for MDD and had an HRSD score <8) was comparable across the three treatment conditions. After 10 months, however, remitted subjects in the e-ercise group had significantly lower relapse rates (p = .01) than subjects in the medication group. Exercising on one’s own during the follow-up period was associated with a reduced probability of depression diagnosis at the end of that period (odds ratio = 0.49, p = .0009). Conclusions Among individuals with MDD, e-ercise therapy is feasible and is associated with significant therapeutic benefit, especially if e-ercise is continued over time.
Associations of leptin, insulin and lipids with retinal microvasculature in children and adolescents

Abstract Background: We investigated whether cardiometabolic risk factors measured in serum (total cholesterol [TC], high-density lipoprotein [HDL], triglyceride, leptin, insulin, glucose and insulin resistance) are associated with the retinal microvasculature, a marker of cardiovascular aging, in healthy children and adolescents. Moreover, we tested whether these associations are due to direct biological effects or more indirectly due to adiposity-related side effects. Methods: We recruited 168 healthy Flemish children (7–16 years old, 54.8% boys). Blood samples and retinal photographs were taken during clinical examinations. Arteriolar and venular vessel calibers were calculated using a semi-automated computer program. Multivariable regression models were used and adjusted for age, sex, mean arterial pressure (MAP) and alternate retinal caliber. In a second step, we adjusted for body mass index z-score (zBMI). Results: Only continuous serum leptin was associated with retinal parameters, i.e. wider arterioles; however, this disappeared after adjustment for zBMI. Children with high cardiometabolic risk factors (>90th percentile for serum leptin, insulin and insulin resistance) had wider arterioles compared to children with lower concentrations, even after additional adjustment for zBMI. No significant associations were found with lipids. Conclusions: In this healthy population of children and adolescents, the hormones insulin and leptin and insulin resistance were associated with retinal microvasculature alterations, mainly in children with high cardiometabolic factors (>90th percentile), while lipids were not. These associations were independent of zBMI.
Assessment of emotional distress in chronic kidney disease patients and kidney transplant recipients.

OBJECTIVE To assess the presence of emotional distress in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD), and the effect of kidney transplant on these symptoms. MATERIAL AND METHODS This was a two-part study. Part one was cross-sectional, observational, and descriptive, where 75 patients with CKD were evaluated for emotional distress with the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HAD) and the Symptom Checklist 90 (SCL-90). In part two, we longitudinally followed 19% of the study cohort to examine symptomatological changes after their kidney transplantation. RESULTS The results of the HAD indicated that 30.7% of the study cohort with End-Stage Renal Disease (ESRD) showed anxious symptoms, and 25.3% showed depressive symptoms. The change in the HAD total score before and after kidney transplant was not significant. However, a significant decrease in total score on the SCL-90 was observed before and after transplantation. CONCLUSION Improvement on emotional distress was found after kidney transplantation.
Energy absorption is reduced with oleic acid supplements in human short bowel syndrome.

BACKGROUND Oleic acid premeal supplements have been described as a method to trigger the ileal brake and thus lengthen transit time and the opportunity for nutrient absorption. The aims of this study were to determine whether oleic acid supplements would lengthen transit time and improve absorption of nutrients in study participants with short bowel syndrome as well as affect diarrhea or patient weight. METHODS A double-blind, controlled, random-order crossover trial was conducted in 8 study participants with longstanding and severe short bowel syndrome, employing blue food color appearance, breath hydrogen testing, and radio-opaque markers as measures of transit time. Absorption of energy, protein, fat, and fluid was conducted by classic nutrient balance methods. Diarrhea was estimated by daily stool weight and number of bowel actions. Although 8 patients were enrolled, only 7 completed the study. RESULTS Transit time was not significantly different between oleic acid and placebo treatment, although peptide YY levels trended higher with the oleic acid treatment. Energy absorption was reduced 14% by oleic acid, significantly more than the 3% reduction by placebo. Fat, protein, and fluid absorption was not changed significantly. Neither diarrhea nor patient body weight was changed by oleic acid. CONCLUSIONS Energy absorption is reduced by oleic acid supplements in severe short bowel syndrome. The study may have lacked power to determine whether oleic acid affects diarrhea or body weight.
State dependent statistical timing model for voltage scaled circuits

This paper presents a novel statistical state-dependent timing model for voltage over scaled (VoS) logic circuits that accurately and rapidly finds the timing distribution of output bits. Using this model erroneous VoS circuits can be represented as error-free circuits combined with an error-injector. A case study of a two point DFT unit employing the proposed model is presented and compared to HSPICE circuit simulation. Results show an accurate match, with significant speedup gains.
Social Status and Optimal Income Taxation

This paper examines the optimal (first-best) fiscal policy in a stochastic, infinite-horizon representative agent model that exhibits consumption-enhanced as well as wealth-enhanced social status in the household utility. We show that the optimal labor tax rate is a positive constant that is used to correct negative consumption externalities. The optimal capital tax rate is also positive in order to overturn agents' status-seeking capital over-accumulation. Moreover, we find that in contrast to a conventional automatic stabilizer, the optimal capital tax moves in the opposite direction with shocks to firms' production technology. This result turns out to be qualitatively consistent with the discernible empirical evidence that many countries have implemented procyclical fiscal policies.
Music Speaks Us: Some Psychoanalytic Considerations on Music Therapy

The psychoanalytic interest in music is quite recent, if it is true that the father of psychoanalysis, Sigmund Freud, has never devoted a research to music as such. Nevertheless, we think that music therapy could benefit from a proficuous dialogue with psychoanalysis. In this manuscript, using different psychoanalytical tools, we have provided a unitary interpretation of the meaning and the potentiality of music therapy, showing why music has to be considered the primordial authentic language and in which sense "music speaks us" (to paraphrase Heidegger's famous statement: "Die Sprache spricht, nicht der Mensch"). Since ancient times it is well known that music has a therapeutic effect and power, but only recently neuroscience has confirmed the biological effects of music on human brain. Music acts as containing and structuring factor that can heal the psychological wounds of the Self and feeds and nourishes the patient himself. During the music therapy session, the patient should recover and re-discover his early and genuine relationship with music. He goes back to his infant-hood and becomes familiar again with a pre- verbal language, which is the authentic language of his Self.
Tracking human movement in office environment using video processing

In this paper, we proposed an approach of multi-person movement tracking in office environment without any identity conflicts. Simple image processing with frame differentiation method is applied to identify multiple human motion. An Expert System is applied to predict next camera occurrence of the tracking human. The main objective of this work is to detect and track multi-human motion using single camera in more than a room in an office.