Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Septin1 is required for spindle assembly and chromosome congression in mouse oocytes

The bipolar spindle is a complex molecular machinery that drives chromosome congression and segregation. During meiosis in the mouse multiple microtubule organizing centers aggregate to form a bipolar intermediate followed by elongation and establishment of the barrel‐shaped acentriolar meiotic spindle. Previous studies have shown that septin1 is localized to spindle poles in mitosis, suggesting its possible involvement in spindle assembly. We, therefore, asked whether perturbation of septin1 will impair the process of spindle assembly and investigated localization and function during mouse oocyte meiotic maturation. Septin1 was localized to the spindle at metaphase and at the midbody during cytokinesis. Disruption of septin1 function using siRNA caused a decrease in PBE and extensive spindle defects. Moreover, the process of chromosome congression was impaired. However, septin1 depletion did not cause aneuploidy in oocyte with an extruded polar body. Taken together, our results show that septin1 is a key player in spindle assembly and chromosome congression in mouse meiosis. Developmental Dynamics 240:2281–2289, 2011. © 2011 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Effect of Planting Geometry and Nutrient Levels on the Productivity of Buckwheat

Buckwheat (Fagopyrum species) is an old traditional underutilized crop plant belonging to the family Polygonaceae that been used as staple food for local communities in India, Nepal, Bhutan and China predominantly in the hilly and temperate area of Europe and East Asia. It is curative herb or feed for animals long back until the expansion and industrialization of agriculture masked this crop and left behind all its significance, advantages and potential in the race towards the maximum amount producing crops. It grows well in all areas with low fertile soil, limited rainfall, used as a green manure and plant for erosion control thus, source of income for farmers. Buckwheat is eaten during fasting in India considering it to be a fruit not as a grain. Buckwheat grains are an important source of macro elements such as K, Ca, Mg, and Na as well as micro elements such as Mn, Zn, Se, and Cu (Wei et al., 2003), and they contain rutin, riboflavin, pyridoxine, thiamine, lysine, methionine, arginine, and threonine (Fabjan et al., 2003).
Nano-engineered Composites Reinforced with Aligned Carbon Nanotubes (CNTs)

We present the implementation of aligned carbon nanotubes (CNTs) as a method to enhance properties of traditional advanced composites. The hybrid composites are 3-dimensional architectures of aligned CNTs, and existing advanced fibers and polymeric resins creating nanoengineered composites. Our work to date has focused on interlaminar strength and toughness, and electrical and thermal conductivities of two laminate-level architectures. The first approach utilizes aligned CNT forests placed between ply layers perpendicular to the fiber direction to create “nano-stitches”. The second approach involves growing the CNTs directly on woven alumina fibers, so that the CNTs extend radially outward from every fiber forming “fuzzy fibers”. Three standard processing routes for are reviewed: nano-stitching of graphite/epoxy prepreg, nanostitching of graphite/epoxy cloth in a resin-infusion process, and hand layup of fuzzy fiber ceramic cloth.
Operational Flash Flood Warning Systems with Global Applicability

The availability of global meteorological information (observations and forecasts) and widespread digital data on the land surface now affords the use of hydrometeorological modelling in an operational environment to provide numerical guidance for local forecasts and warnings of flash flooding by meteorological and disaster management agencies. Flash floods are among the deadliest natural disasters and can have significant impact on the natural environment and infrastructure. Working with national meteorological and hydrologic services, the Hydrologic Research Center has developed and implemented regional software systems to convey remotely sensed data and guidance products for rapid decisions regarding flash flood warnings. The systems integrate satellite-based and in-situ observations of precipitation with hydrologic models of the land surface to provide real-time assessment of hydrologic conditions at small spatial scales characteristic of flash flood occurrence. System design includes regional and local components to accommodate (a) the need for computational power at the regional level to process spatially distributed real-time data, and (b) the capability for local forecaster adjustments in real-time a quick warning dissemination through appropriate local channels. Regional or country operational systems have been implemented (or are under development) in Central America, Southern Africa, Southeast Asia, the Black Sea-Middle East region, Southeastern Europe, South Asia, Romania, Mexico, and the Republic of South Africa. This paper highlights the system design, capabilities, and challenges faced, including the characterization and conveyance of local forecast uncertainty in decision making by NMHSs, effective forecaster training, and effective dissemination to disaster response organizations.
Dynamic Adaptive Ant System: A reinforcement ant algorithm using LMS algorithm

In this paper, we have proposed a modified model of dynamic pheromone updation for ant system, entitled as Dynamic Adaptive Ant System (DAAS) by incorporating the dynamic property in the pheromone trail factor with the help of Least Means Square (LMS) algorithm. Here, static pheromone trail factor, ρ, in ant learning equation, has been made dynamic and adaptive to increase the effectiveness of the algorithm and to resolve the basic shortcoming of easily falling into local optima and slow convergence speed. DAAS modifies its properties in accordance to the requirement of surrounding domain and for the betterment of its performance in dynamic environment. The experimental evaluation has been conducted to find out the usefulness of the new strategy, using selective benchmark problems from TSP library [8]. Our algorithm shows effective and comparable results as compared to other existing approaches.
Waitlist characteristics of patients at a single‐center intestinal and multivisceral transplant program

Intestinal transplantation (ITX) can be a successful treatment for patients with irreversible intestinal failure and associated severe complications. Because of long waiting periods and organ shortages, the precise identification of eligible patients and their early referral to centers that perform ITX is important. We retrospectively analyzed all patients who were referred to our center between 2000 and 2011 concerning their referral criteria, waitlist characteristics, and outcome. A total of 87 patients (47 male patients, 40 female patients; median age 39.8 ± 13.4 years) were referred to our center. All patients presented with intestinal failure caused by short bowel syndrome or motility disorders. About 80.5% of patients were evaluated for isolated ITX, modified multivisceral (mMVTX), or multivisceral transplantation (MVTX). About 56.3% were listed at EUROTRANSPLANT, 33.3% suffered from severe secondary organ failure requiring MVTX, and 34.5% were transplanted. 14.3% (all MVTX‐candidates) died on the waitlist as a result of infectious complications. The high proportion of MVTX candidates underlines the need for early referral to specialized centers. MVTX‐candidates have a high waitlist mortality for different reasons. However, the current allocation policy for MVTX does not mirror the severity of disease and may therefore contribute to high waitlist mortality.
Sum-Rate Maximization in Two-Way AF MIMO Relaying: Polynomial Time Solutions to a Class of DC Programming Problems

Sum-rate maximization in two-way amplify-and-forward (AF) multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) relaying belongs to the class of difference-of-convex functions (DC) programming problems. DC programming problems occur also in other signal processing applications and are typically solved using different modifications of the branch-and-bound method which, however, does not have any polynomial time complexity guarantees. In this paper, we develop two efficient polynomial time algorithms for the sum-rate maximization in two-way AF MIMO relaying. The first algorithm guarantees to find at least a Karush-Kuhn-Tucker (KKT) solution. There is a strong evidence, however, that such a solution is actually globally optimal. The second algorithm that is based on the generalized eigenvectors shows the same performance as the first one with reduced computational complexity. The objective function of the problem is represented as a product of quadratic fractional ratios and parameterized so that its convex part (versus the concave part) contains only one (or two) optimization variables. One of the algorithms is called POlynomial Time DC (POTDC) and is based on semi-definite programming (SDP) relaxation, linearization, and an iterative Newton-type search over a single parameter. The other algorithm is called RAte-maximization via Generalized EigenvectorS (RAGES) and is based on the generalized eigenvectors method and an iterative search over two (or one, in its approximate version) optimization variables. We derive an upper-bound for the optimal value of the corresponding optimization problem and show by simulations that this upper-bound is achieved by both algorithms. It provides an evidence that the algorithms find a global optimum. The proposed methods are also superior to other state-of-the-art algorithms.
Inertial Measures of Motion for Clinical Biomechanics: Comparative Assessment of Accuracy under Controlled Conditions – Changes in Accuracy over Time

Background Interest in 3D inertial motion tracking devices (AHRS) has been growing rapidly among the biomechanical community. Although the convenience of such tracking devices seems to open a whole new world of possibilities for evaluation in clinical biomechanics, its limitations haven’t been extensively documented. The objectives of this study are: 1) to assess the change in absolute and relative accuracy of multiple units of 3 commercially available AHRS over time; and 2) to identify different sources of errors affecting AHRS accuracy and to document how they may affect the measurements over time. Methods This study used an instrumented Gimbal table on which AHRS modules were carefully attached and put through a series of velocity-controlled sustained motions including 2 minutes motion trials (2MT) and 12 minutes multiple dynamic phases motion trials (12MDP). Absolute accuracy was assessed by comparison of the AHRS orientation measurements to those of an optical gold standard. Relative accuracy was evaluated using the variation in relative orientation between modules during the trials. Findings Both absolute and relative accuracy decreased over time during 2MT. 12MDP trials showed a significant decrease in accuracy over multiple phases, but accuracy could be enhanced significantly by resetting the reference point and/or compensating for initial Inertial frame estimation reference for each phase. Interpretation The variation in AHRS accuracy observed between the different systems and with time can be attributed in part to the dynamic estimation error, but also and foremost, to the ability of AHRS units to locate the same Inertial frame. Conclusions Mean accuracies obtained under the Gimbal table sustained conditions of motion suggest that AHRS are promising tools for clinical mobility assessment under constrained conditions of use. However, improvement in magnetic compensation and alignment between AHRS modules are desirable in order for AHRS to reach their full potential in capturing clinical outcomes.
Neuronal boost to evolutionary dynamics

Standard evolutionary dynamics is limited by the constraints of the genetic system. A central message of evolutionary neurodynamics is that evolutionary dynamics in the brain can happen in a neuronal niche in real time, despite the fact that neurons do not reproduce. We show that Hebbian learning and structural synaptic plasticity broaden the capacity for informational replication and guided variability provided a neuronally plausible mechanism of replication is in place. The synergy between learning and selection is more efficient than the equivalent search by mutation selection. We also consider asymmetric landscapes and show that the learning weights become correlated with the fitness gradient. That is, the neuronal complexes learn the local properties of the fitness landscape, resulting in the generation of variability directed towards the direction of fitness increase, as if mutations in a genetic pool were drawn such that they would increase reproductive success. Evolution might thus be more efficient within evolved brains than among organisms out in the wild.
Leveraging on Deep Memory Hierarchies to Minimize Energy Consumption and Data Access Latency on Single-Chip Cloud Computers

Recent advances in chip design and integration technologies have led to the development of Single-Chip Cloud computers which are a microcosm of cloud datacenters. Those computers are based on Network-on-Chip (NoC) architectures with deep memory hierarchies. Developing scheduling algorithms to reduce data access latency as well as energy consumption is a major challenge for such architectures. In this paper, we propose a set of algorithms to jointly address the problem of task scheduling and data allocation in a unified approach. Moreover, we present a feasible system model for NoC based multicores considering a three-level memory hierarchy that effectively captures the energy consumed by various elements of system including: processing cores, caches, and NoC subsystem. Simulation results show the superiority of proposed algorithms compared to two state-of-the-art algorithms found in the literature. The experimental results clearly indicate that algorithms performing data and task scheduling in a joint fashion are superior against techniques implementing task and data scheduling separately.
The attack on DDIMT: Dynamic data and indirect mutual trust for cloud computing

Cloud computing offers a kind of on-demand computing method that lets users use IT resources such as network, operating system, hardware, software, application and so on when needing them. However, cloud computing faces many security issues including data integrity, data confidentiality and access control. Recently, Barsoum et al. presents a cloud-based data access scheme that allows the data owner to benefit from the facilities offered by the CSP and enables indirect mutual trust between them. They declare that their scheme can assure data integrity, newness and CSP's defense. However, through our security analysis, their scheme still has some security vulnerabilities. It will easily suffer from the integrity attack, newness attack and CSP's defense attack. In other words, Although CSP have corrupted the outsourced data or ignore the data-updated request issued by the owner, the CSP is able to cheat authorized user into passing through the integrity checking, On the contrary, the owner also accuses CSP of having corrupted the outsourced data, whereas in reality the CSP not.
Functionally Testable Path Delay Faults on a Microprocessor

The impact of delay defects on these functionally untestable paths on overall circuit performance involves identification of such paths determining the achievable path delay fault coverage and reducing the subsequent test generation effort. The experimental results for two microprocessors (Parwan and DLX) indicate that a significant percentage of structurally testable paths are functionally untestable.
Usual interstitial pneumonia in rheumatoid arthritis-associated interstitial lung disease

Interstitial lung disease is a common manifestation of rheumatoid arthritis; however, little is known about factors that influence its prognosis. The aim of the present study was to determine whether or not the usual interstitial pneumonia pattern found on high-resolution computed tomography (HRCT) is of prognostic significance in rheumatoid arthritis-associated interstitial lung disease (RA-ILD). Patients with RA-ILD were identified retrospectively (n = 82). The relationship of a definite usual interstitial pneumonia pattern on HRCT to survival was determined and compared to that in a cohort of patients with radiologically diagnosed idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (n = 51). A definite usual interstitial pneumonia pattern was seen in 20 (24%) out of 82 patients with RA-ILD. These patients showed worse survival than those without this pattern (median survival 3.2 versus 6.6 yrs), and a similar survival to those with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. On multivariate analysis, a definite usual interstitial pneumonia pattern on HRCT was associated with worse survival (hazard ratio of 2.3). Analysis of specific HRCT features demonstrated that traction bronchiectasis and honeycomb fibrosis were associated with worse survival (hazard ratio of 2.6 and 2.1, respectively). Female sex (hazard ratio of 0.30) and a higher baseline diffusing capacity of the lung for carbon monoxide (hazard ratio of 0.96) were associated with better survival. A definite usual interstitial pneumonia pattern on HRCT has important prognostic implications in RA-ILD.
Treatment Implications

Developing pharmacotherapies to treat alcohol dependence and associated health problems traditionally has been based on gaining a better understanding of the neuroscience underlying alcohol-drinking behavior. To date, three medications have been approved for the treatment of alcohol dependence: disulfiram (Antabuse®), naltrexone (Revia®, Vivitrol®, and Naltrel®), and acamprosate (Campral®). However, these medications have modest efficacy, and there is a great need for newer medications that target different neurochemical systems and which could be used either as adjunctive treatments or to treat subpopulations of drinkers. Furthermore, it also is important to improve current treatment options by understanding and incorporating differences in how people with certain genes respond to medication (i.e., pharmacogenetic differences).
Shoulder Surfing attack in graphical password authentication

Information and computer security is supported largely by passwords which are the principle part of the authentication process. The most common computer authentication method is to use alphanumerical username and password which has significant drawbacks. To overcome the vulnerabilities of traditional methods, visual or graphical password schemes have been developed as possible alternative solutions to text-based scheme. A potential drawback of graphical password schemes is that they are more vulnerable to shoulder surfing than conventional alphanumeric text passwords. When users input their passwords in a public place, they may be at risk of attackers stealing their password. An attacker can capture a password by direct observation or by recording the individual's authentication session. This is referred to as shoulder- surfing and is a known risk, of special concern when authenticating in public places. In this paper we will present a survey on graphical password schemes from 2005 till 2009 which are proposed to be resistant against shoulder surfing attacks.
Enhanced HMAC structure based burst header authentication design for optical burst switched networks

Optical burst switching is one of the promising next generation technology to meet the bandwidth intensive applications. OBS proves to be satisfactory technology for the future internet, but it also suffers from security attacks. The objective of this proposed work is to design a burst header authentication design using an enhanced HMAC (EHMAC) structures. HMAC structures are used to verify the authentication and integrity of a message. The EHMAC design proposed in this paper provides 4.7% improved avalanche effect than the conventional design. Also, the proposed EHMAC has been synthesized using Xilinx ISE 14.6. The device utilization of this proposed design shows this structure could be implementable in a single COTS FPGA and this is more suitable for real-time applications in optical burst switched networks.
OS Issues for Coordination and Collaboration in Ad Hoc Networks

In a network all nodes need to coordinate and collaborate efficiently and securely with each other to maintain the integrity and usefulness of the network to achieve a common objective. This is especially true in Ad Hoc Networks which are actually multi-hop wireless networks. Coordination and collaboration among nodes is only possible if power consumption at these nodes are managed efficiently since significant power is consumed whenever a node or nodes either transmits or receives packets. Reducing power consumption is clearly an important goal because battery life is not expected to increase significantly in the coming years. At the same time, this coordination and collaboration between the nodes must be achieved securely. This paper discusses two important operating system issues, power management and security, which affects the coordination and collaboration process in ad-hoc networks. It also discusses the power conserving behavior of Power Aware Multi-Access protocol for Ad Hoc Networks (PAMAS) as well as three different security approaches which deals with the coordination and collaboration of nodes within a Ad Hoc Network that is created for a meeting, a network of portable appliance and a mobile military network.
Air Pollution with Asbestos in Several Cities in Romania

The general population is exposed to low levels of asbestos primarily by inhalation. Small quantities of asbestos fibers are ubiquitous in air. They may arise from natural sources (e.g., the effect of weathering on asbestos containing minerals), from windblown soil from hazardous waste sites where asbestos is not properly stored, and from deterioration of automobile clutches and brakes or breakdown of asbestos-containing (mainly chrysotile) materials, such as insulation. Because of these properties, asbestos fibers have been used in a wide range of manufactured goods. In 1989, EPA identified the following asbestos product categories. Many of these materials may still be in use (EPA, 2010).
Do Rising Returns to Skills Affect Employer Wage Structures

If high-wage employers are largely purchasing high-skill employees, then rising returns to skills should increase inequality between highand low-wage employers. We test this and related hypotheses with 40 years of detailed wage data from 228 large Midwestern employers and from 12 years of data from 42 New York employers. As seen in other datasets, wage inequality rises overall and between highand low-wage occupations. However, despite this rise in the returns to observable skills, inequality between highand low-wage employers is stable. Moreover, decreased sorting of observable skills does not explain the stability. In addition to skill differences, wage inequality between employers could be due to transitory shocks and errors. However, these employer wage differentials last many years and their persistence has not declined over time. While inconsistent with general human capital and transitory shocks as explanations for employer wage differences, these findings are consistent with a stable role for efficiency wage, compensating differences, and rent-sharing as determinants of compensation. As such, the findings also do not support the common assertion that employers’ wage structures have weakened due to increased dynamism in labor and product markets.