Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Effect of casting procedures in the structure and flow behaviour of semisolid A356 alloy

Purpose: Evaluation of different casting methods to produce raw material for thixoforming, aiming costs reduction in the production of thixoformable alloys. Reduction of costs may stimulate the commercial use of the semisolid processing technology (SSM). Design/methodology/approach: It is analysed the effect of different casting routes in the microstructure features in semisolid A356 alloy, and in its rheological behaviour. Different casting procedures were investigated: a) pouring in water cooled Cu mould; b) same as „a)” adding electromagnetic stirring; c) same as „a)” adding mechanical vibration; d) same as „b)” with addition of grain refiner; e) same as „c)” with addition of grain refiner. Cast materials were reheated to the semisolid sate and the effect of different holding times upon the globularization of the primary phase was analysed for each cast structure. The semisolid material in each condition was evaluated concerning rheological behaviour. Mechanical properties of thixoformed products were evaluated using flexion tests. Findings: Despite the several methods currently in use to produce raw material for thixoforming, this work shows that the best combination of quality of thixoformable material/ production cost /process operationality can be achieved using casting in permanent mould, under water cooling and mechanical vibration. Resulting cast material under this condition presents grain size smaller than 100 μm, ideal for SSM. Lower the grain size, lower the primary globule size and higher the roundness of the primary phase particle and lower the apparent viscosity of the semisolid. In the best condition achieved, apparent viscosity measured was circa 105 Pa.s (similar to the working range for glass), leading to a probable homogeneous die filling during thixoforming in high pressure die casting machines (HPDC). Research limitations/implications: Regardless the best microstructure for SSM resulting from casting under mechanical vibration, it is still necessary to reach the optimum casting condition in terms of vibration in order to improve, even more, refinement of the microstructure. Practical implications: The suggested process is a simple technique to reduce costs in the production of raw material for thixoforming. The technology is easily implementable in industries. Originality/value: The development of a simple, original, low cost method to produce raw material for SSM technology.
The macro-event property and the layered structure of the clause

We ask whether there is a “macro-event phrase,” a uniform level of syntax at which complex scenarios may be described as single events under the Macro-Event Property (MEP). The MEP is a form-meaning mapping property that constrains the compatibility of event descriptions with time-positional modifiers. An examination of English infinitival complements, Ewe serial verb constructions, and Japanese converb constructions suggests that the putative crosslinguistic “macro-event phrase” is the verbal core of the Layered Structure of the Clause theory of Role and Reference Grammar. Across languages, simple cores necessarily have the MEP, whereas complex cores have it if and only if they are integrated by ‘cosubordinate’ nexus, defined as a symmetric union of two cores that together behave like a single core. We furthermore argue that this connection between core cosubordinations and the MEP may help explain why cosubordinate cores seem to always share an argument through control.
Immunohistochemical Localization of Enkephalins in Adult Rat Testis: Evidence for a Gonadotrophin Control

Summary: The recent detection of immunoreactive POMC derived pep tides in the male reproductive tract raised the possibility that these hormones might regulate reproductive function. In addition, a variety of studies suggested that POMC derived peptides have paracrine effects in the testis. In this present study, after HCG addition to the organ culture medium, Sertoli cells cytoplasma became immunoreactive with the enkephalins antisera.
Change Detection in SAR Images Based on Deep Semi-NMF and SVD Networks

With the development of Earth observation programs, more and more multi-temporal synthetic aperture radar (SAR) data are available from remote sensing platforms. Therefore, it is demanding to develop unsupervised methods for SAR image change detection. Recently, deep learning-based methods have displayed promising performance for remote sensing image analysis. However, these methods can only provide excellent performance when the number of training samples is sufficiently large. In this paper, a novel simple method for SAR image change detection is proposed. The proposed method uses two singular value decomposition (SVD) analyses to learn the non-linear relations between multi-temporal images. By this means, the proposed method can generate more representative feature expressions with fewer samples. Therefore, it provides a simple yet effective way to be designed and trained easily. Firstly, deep semi-nonnegative matrix factorization (Deep Semi-NMF) is utilized to select pixels that have a high probability of being changed or unchanged as samples. Next, image patches centered at these sample pixels are generated from the input multi-temporal SAR images. Then, we build SVD networks, which are comprised of two SVD convolutional layers and one histogram feature generation layer. Finally, pixels in both multi-temporal SAR images are classified by the SVD networks, and then the final change map can be obtained. The experimental results of three SAR datasets have demonstrated the effectiveness and robustness of the proposed method.
A characterization of the stochastic process underlying a stochastic Petri net

Stochastic Petri nets (SPNs) with generally distributed firing times are isomorphic to generalized semi-Markov processes (GSMPs), but simulation is the only feasible approach for their solution. The authors explore a hierarchy of SPN classes where modeling power is reduced in exchange for an increasingly efficient solution. Generalized stochastic Petri nets (GSPNs), deterministic and stochastic Petri nets (DSPNs), semi-Markovian stochastic Petri nets (SM-SPNs), timed Petri nets (TPNs), and generalized timed Petri nets (GTPNs) are particular entries in the hierarchy. Additional classes of SPNs for which it is shown how to compute an analytical solution are obtained by the method of the embedded Markov chain (DSPNs are just one example in this class) and state discretization, which the authors apply not only to the continuous-time case (PH-type distributions), but also to the discrete case. <<ETX>>
Liquid crystal elastomer actuators: Synthesis, alignment, and applications

Liquid crystal elastomers (LCEs) are a unique class of materials which combine rubber elasticity with the orientational order of liquid crystals. This combination can lead to materials with unique properties such as thermal actuation, anisotropic swelling, and soft elasticity. As such, LCEs are a promising class of materials for applications requiring stimulus response. These unique features and the recent developments of the LCE chemistry and processing will be discussed in this review. First, we emphasize several different synthetic pathways in conjunction with the alignment techniques utilized to obtain monodomain LCEs. We then identify the synthesis and alignment techniques used to synthesis LCE-based composites. Finally, we discuss how these materials are used as actuators and sensors. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part B: Polym. Phys. 2017, 55, 395–411
Semantics-aware visual localization under challenging perceptual conditions

Visual place recognition under difficult perceptual conditions remains a challenging problem due to changing weather conditions, illumination and seasons. Long-term visual navigation approaches for robot localization should be robust to these dynamics of the environment. Existing methods typically leverage feature descriptions of whole images or image regions from Deep Convolutional Neural Networks. Some approaches also exploit sequential information to alleviate the problem of spatially inconsistent and non-perfect image matches. In this paper, we propose a novel approach for learning a discriminative holistic image representation which exploits the image content to create a dense and salient scene description. These salient descriptions are learnt over a variety of datasets under large perceptual changes. Such an approach enables us to precisely segment the regions of an image which are geometrically stable over large time lags. We combine features from these salient regions and an off-the-shelf holistic representation to form a more robust scene descriptor. We also introduce a semantically labeled dataset which captures extreme perceptual and structural scene dynamics over the course of 3 years. We evaluated our approach with extensive experiments on data collected over several kilometers in Freiburg and show that our learnt image representation outperforms off-the-shelf features from the deep networks and hand-crafted features.
Efficiency Measurements in Induction Motors: Comparison of Standards

Recently, given the need to reduce the emission of greenhouse effect gases and limiting the steady increase in energy demand, were have proposed new standards of efficiency levels of electric motors. From them have been defined efficiency categories, which determine the limits for so called Standard Efficiency Motors, High Efficiency, Efficiency Premium, etc. Most countries, therefore, have established legal restrictions on the use of motors with low efficiency. A small error in the motor efficiency measurement could lead to an incorrect categorization. In this sense recently have been revised standards that establish testing procedures. Each one, in turn, provides different alternatives more or less accurate to estimate the motor efficiency based on the tools that are included (dynamometer torque sensor, windings temperature measurement, etc.). In this paper a comparison of some of the most commonly used standards for the motor efficiency measurement is presented. The comparison is made in reference to the so-called direct method, where the input and output power of a motor is directly measured with a strict control of ambient (laboratory), engine temperature and feeding conditions. The comparisons allow conclusions about the probable errors in the application of each standard.
The phonological loop in medicated patients with Parkinson's disease: presence of phonological similarity and word length effects.

OBJECTIVE: To test the verbal subsystem of Baddeley's working memory model (the phonological loop) in patients with Parkinson's disease. METHODS: Fifteen patients with idiopathic Parkinson's disease and 15 controls were tested with a span paradigm to assess the effects reflecting the functioning of the phonological loop: the phonological similarity effect (in verbal and visual presentation), and the word length effect (in visual presentation). RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: The patients did not show any dysfunction of the phonological loop, reflected by the presence of phonological similarity and word length effects, but had lower spans than controls. The implications of these results for the working memory model are discussed.
Identification of the transition from compensatory to feedforward behavior in manual control

The human in manual control of a dynamical system can use both feedback and feedforward control strategies and will select a strategy based on performance and required effort. Literature has shown that feedforward control is used during tracking tasks in response to predictable targets. The influence of an external disturbance signal on the utilization of a feedforward control strategy has never been investigated, however. We hypothesized that the human will use a combined feedforward and feedback control strategy whenever the predictable target signal is sufficiently strong, and a predominantly feedback strategy whenever the random disturbance signal is dominant. From the data of a human-in-the-loop experiment we conclude that feedforward control is used in all the considered experimental conditions, including those where the disturbance signal is dominant and feedforward control does not deliver a marked performance advantage.
Electropathological Substrate of Long-Standing Persistent Atrial Fibrillation in Patients With Structural Heart Disease: Longitudinal Dissociation

Background—The electropathological substrate of persistent atrial fibrillation (AF) in humans is largely unknown. The aim of this study was to compare the spatiotemporal characteristics of the fibrillatory process in patients with normal sinus rhythm and long-standing persistent AF. Methods and Results—During cardiac surgery, epicardial mapping (244 electrodes) of the right atrium (RA), the left lateral wall (LA), and the posterior left atrium (PV) was performed in 24 patients with long-standing persistent AF. Twenty-five patients with normal sinus rhythm, in whom AF was induced by rapid pacing, served as a reference group. A mapping algorithm was developed that separated the complex fibrillation process into its individual elements (wave mapping). Parameters used to characterize the substrate of AF were (1) the total length of interwave conduction block, (2) the number of fibrillation waves, and (3) the ratio of block to collision of fibrillation waves (dissociation index). In 4403 maps of persistent AF, no evidence for the presence of stable foci or rotors was found. Instead, many narrow wavelets propagated simultaneously through the atrial wall. The lateral boundaries of these waves were formed by lines of interwave conduction block, predominantly oriented parallel to the atrial musculature. Lines of block were not fixed but continuously changed on a beat-to-beat basis. In patients with persistent AF, the total length of block in the RA was more than 6-fold higher than during acute AF (median, 21.1 versus 3.4 mm/cm2; P<0.0001). The highest degree of interwave conduction block was found in the PV area (33.0 mm/cm2). The number of fibrillation waves during persistent AF was 4.5/cm2 compared with 2.3 during acute AF, and the dissociation index was 7.3 versus 1.5 (P<0.0001). The interindividual variation of these parameters among patients was high. Conclusions—Electric dissociation of neighboring atrial muscle bundles is a key element in the development of the substrate of human AF. The degree of the pathological changes can be measured on an individual basis by electrophysiological parameters in the spatial domain.
Impact of telomerase ablation on organismal viability, aging, and tumorigenesis in mice lacking the DNA repair proteins PARP-1, Ku86, or DNA-PKcs

The DNA repair proteins poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase-1 (PARP-1), Ku86, and catalytic subunit of DNA-PK (DNA-PKcs) have been involved in telomere metabolism. To genetically dissect the impact of these activities on telomere function, as well as organismal cancer and aging, we have generated mice doubly deficient for both telomerase and any of the mentioned DNA repair proteins, PARP-1, Ku86, or DNA-PKcs. First, we show that abrogation of PARP-1 in the absence of telomerase does not affect the rate of telomere shortening, telomere capping, or organismal viability compared with single telomerase-deficient controls. Thus, PARP-1 does not have a major role in telomere metabolism, not even in the context of telomerase deficiency. In contrast, mice doubly deficient for telomerase and either Ku86 or DNA-PKcs manifest accelerated loss of organismal viability compared with single telomerase-deficient mice. Interestingly, this loss of organismal viability correlates with proliferative defects and age-related pathologies, but not with increased incidence of cancer. These results support the notion that absence of telomerase and short telomeres in combination with DNA repair deficiencies accelerate the aging process without impacting on tumorigenesis.
Kin recognition and adjustment of reproductive effort in zebra finches

The differential allocation theory predicts that females should invest more in offspring produced with attractive partners, and a number of studies support this prediction in birds. Females have been shown to increase reproductive investment when mated to males showing elaborated sexual traits. However, mate attractiveness might also depend on the interaction between male and female genotypes. Accordingly, females should invest more in offspring sired by individuals that are genetically dissimilar or carry superior alleles. Here, we show in zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata) that pairs of unfamiliar genetic brothers and sisters are less likely to reproduce in comparison with randomly mated pairs. Among the brother–sister pairs, those that attempted to breed laid smaller clutches and of lower total clutch mass. Our results provide the first experimental evidence that females adjust their reproductive effort in response to the genetic similarity of their partners. Importantly, these results imply a female ability to assess relatedness of a social mate without prior association.
Visual Tracking of Silhouettes for Human-Robot Interaction

The interaction between man and machines has become an important topic for the robotics community as it can generalise the use of robots. One of the requirements for this interaction is that a robot be able to detect and analyse the motion of a person in its vicinity. This paper describes a Monte-Carlo based method for human head/hand detection and tracking in video streams. The tracked part is modelled by a spline. The pose estimation consists in fitting the model to the current image gradient taking into account with motion measurements. Results of detection and tracking using these combined criteria are illustrated. The limits of the method are also discussed. Finally, future extensions are proposed, based on colour segmentation, to improve the robustness of the method.
Is platelet release of 2-arachidonoyl-glycerol a mediator of cognitive deficits? An endocannabinoid theory of schizophrenia and arousal.

The discovery of blood platelet's ability to release 2-arachidonoyl-glycerol (2-AG), a highly lipophilic cannabinoid molecule may usher in a radical change in our understanding of how the vascular system interacts with the brain. This paper primarily extends Kayai's second messenger imbalance theory of schizophrenia, suggesting that 2-AG is the unidentified second messenger system that Kayai theorized was unbalanced in schizophrenia; furthermore, that a chronic over-release of 2-AG by platelets may be a causal factor in the cognitive deficits associated with negative symptom schizophrenia. Finally, platelet release of 2-AG may also be the causal agent in the cognitive deficits associated with states of high arousal, shock and in other conditions that feature heightened platelet activation. As such, heightened platelet activation may be a profoundly important vector for changing endogenous cannabinoid levels in the brain.
FinCCM: Fingerprint Crowdsourcing, Clustering and Matching for Indoor Subarea Localization

Fingerprinting based on received signal strength (RSS) is becoming a research focus in indoor localization. However, its time-consuming and labor-intensive site survey is a big hurdle for practical deployments. This letter proposes a novel indoor subarea localization scheme based on fingerprint passive crowdsourcing and unsupervised clustering, which first classifies unlabeled RSS measurements into several clusters and then relates clusters to indoor subareas to generate subarea fingerprints. In the online positioning phase, an observed fingerprint is located into the subarea with the least fingerprint difference. Our experimental results show that in typical indoor scenarios, the proposed scheme can achieve 95% subarea hitting rate to correctly locate a smartphone to its subarea.
EmotionWatch: Visualizing Fine-Grained Emotions in Event-Related Tweets

Spectators are increasingly using social platforms to express their opinions and share their emotions during big public events. Those reactions reveal the subjective perception of the event and extend its understanding. This has motivated us to develop a system to explore and visualize volume, patterns, and trends of user sentiments as they evolve over time. Previous work in sentiment analysis and opinion mining has addressed these issues. But the majority of them distinguish only two polarity categories, leaving a more detailed and insightful analysis to be desired. In this paper, we suggest using a fine-grained, multi-category emotion model to classify and visualize users' emotional reactions in public events. We describe EmotionWatch, a tool that constructs visual summaries of public emotions, and apply it to the 2012 Olympics as a test case. We report findings from a user study evaluating the usability of the tool and validating the emotion model. Results show that users prefer a more detailed inspection of public emotions over the simplified analysis. Despite its complexity, users were able to effectively grasp, understand, and interpret the emotional reactions using EmotionWatch. The same user study also pointed out few design improvements for the future development of analogous systems.
An empirically derived three-dimensional Laplace resonance in the Gliese 876 planetary system

We report constraints on the three-dimensional orbital architecture for all four planets known to orbit the nearby M dwarf Gliese 876 based solely on Doppler measurements and demanding long-term orbital stability. Our data set incorporates publicly available radial velocities taken with the ELODIE and CORALIE spectrographs, High Accuracy Radial velocity Planet Searcher (HARPS), and Keck HIgh Resolution Echelle Spectrometer (HIRES) as well as previously unpublished HIRES velocities. We first quantitatively assess the validity of the planets thought to orbit GJ 876 by computing the Bayes factors for a variety of different coplanar models using an importance sampling algorithm. We find that a four-planet model is preferred over a three-planet model. Next, we apply a Newtonian Markov chain Monte Carlo algorithm to perform a Bayesian analysis of the planet masses and orbits using an N-body model in three-dimensional space. Based on the radial velocities alone, we find that a 99 per cent credible interval provides upper limits on the mutual inclinations for the three resonant planets (Φ_(cb) <6∘. 20 for the cc and bb pair and Φ_(be) < 28∘. 5 for the b and e pair). Subsequent dynamical integrations of our posterior sample find that the GJ 876 planets must be roughly coplanar (Φ_(cb) < 2∘. 60 and Φ_(be) <7∘. 87), suggesting that the amount of planet–planet scattering in the system has been low. We investigate the distribution of the respective resonant arguments of each planet pair and find that at least one argument for each planet pair and the Laplace argument librate. The libration amplitudes in our three-dimensional orbital model support the idea of the outer three planets having undergone significant past disc migration.
Rhythmical classification of languages based on voice parameters

It has been demonstrated that speech rhythm classes (e.g. stress-timed, syllable-timed) can be distinguished acoustically and perceptually on the basis of the variability of consonantal and vocalic interval durations. It has moreover been shown that even infants are able to use these cues to distinguish between languages from different rhythm classes. Here we demonstrate that the same classification is possible in the acoustic domain based simply on the durational variability of voiced and voiceless intervals in speech. The advantages of such a procedure will be discussed and we will argue that 'voice' possibly offers a more plausible cue for infants to distinguish between languages of different rhythmic class.