Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Gas Turbine Performance - What Makes The Map?

The power and efficiency characteristics of a gas turbine are the result of a complex interaction of different turbomachines and a combustion system. This tutorial addresses the basic characteristics of each of the components, and defines the rules under which they interact, as well as typical control limits and control concepts. Important nondimensional characteristics such as Mach number and Reynolds number are introduced. The concept of component matching is explained.
Challenge of adopting multiple process improvement frameworks

[Abstract]: The phenomenon of organisations concurrently implementing multiple process frameworks was highlighted in a recent survey conducted at the Australian Information Technology Service Management Forum. While the survey gathered insights on the status, issues and expectations of organisations implementing the IT Infrastructure Library (ITIL), it was evident from the data collected that many of these organisations are also adopting other frameworks such as Control Objectives for Information and related Technology (CobiT), Capability Maturity Model Integration (CMMI) and ISO 9001 (Quality Management System). Although a few practitioner articles have reported on this phenomenon, no research has been undertaken to determine the extent or motivation of organisations undertaking concurrent implementation of process frameworks and the challenges that they are facing. This paper describes the processes included in ITIL, CobiT, CMMI and ISO 9001 and their increasing international diffusion throughout the Information Technology community. The possible motivation, significance and implications of this practice of multiple process frameworks adoption is explored based on the survey results and a case study. In highlighting the dearth of research to date, future research is called upon to provide theoretical support for the models, to explore the impact on worker morale and productivity, to assist managers to sequence process implementation, and to evaluate cost effectiveness.
Cloning, sequencing and functional overexpression of the Streptococcus equisimilis H46A gapC gene encoding a glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase that also functions as a plasmin(ogen)-binding protein. Purification and biochemical characterization of the protein.

We previously identified DNA sequences involved in the function of the complex promoter of the streptokinase gene from Streptococcus equisimilis H46A, a human serogroup C strain known to express this gene at a high level. As a prerequisite to understanding possible mechanisms that control the balance between the plasminogen activating and plasmin(ogen) binding capacities of H46A, we describe here its gapC gene encoding glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GraP-DH, EC 1.2.1.12), a glycolytic enzyme apparently transported to the cell surface where it functions as a plasmin(ogen). binding protein. The gapC gene was cloned and sequenced and found to code for a 336-amino-acid polypeptide (approximately 35.9 kDa) exhibiting 94.9% sequence identity to the Plr protein from Streptococcus pyogenes shown by others to be capable of plasmin binding [Lottenberg, R. , Broder, C. C. , Boyle, M. D. , Kain, S. J., Schroeder, B. L. & Curtiss, R. III (1992) J. Bacteriol. 174, 5204-5210]. To study the properties of the GapC protein, its gene was inducibly overexpressed in Escherichia coli from QIAexpress expression plasmids to yield the authentic GapC or (His)6GapC carrying a hexahistidyl N-terminus to permit affinity purification. Both proteins were functionally active, exhibiting specific GraP-DH activities of about 80 kat/mol (approximately 130 U/mg) after purification. Their binding parameters [association (ka) and dissociation (kd) rate constants, and equlibrium dissociation constants (Kd = kd/ka)] for the interaction with human Gluplasminogen and plasmin were determined by real-time biospecific interaction analysis using the Pharmacia BIAcore instrument. For comparative purposes, the commercial GraP-DH from Bacillus stearothermophilus (BstGraP-DH), a nonpathogenic organism, was included in these experiments. The Kd values for binding of plasminogen to GapC, (His)6GapC and BstGraP-DH were 220 nM, 260 nM and 520 nM, respectively, as compared to 25 nM, 17 nM and 98 nM, respectively, for the binding to plasmin. These data show that both the zymogen and active enzyme possess low-affinity binding sites for the gapC gene product and that the hexahistidyl terminus does not affect its function. Prior limited treatment with plasmin enhanced the subsequent plasminogen binding capacity of all three GraP-DHs, presumably by the exposure of new C-terminal lysine residues for binding to the zymogen.
Atherosclerosis in India: An Autopsy Study of the Aorta and the Coronary, Cerebral, Renal, and Pulmonary Arteries

Striking differences in the extent and severity of atherosclerosis were observed when our results were compared with those reported from the United States, Japan, and Jamaica, and South India by Gore et al.4 Up to the age of 30 years the mean atherosclerotic indices of aorta from these sources were not significantly different. Subsequently, however, the mean atherosclerotic index in our cases was almost equal to that reported from South India but it was much less than that recorded in the U.S.A. and significantly less than that reported from Japan and Jamaica. It is thus seen that the factors that initiate atherogenesis are different from those that are effective in the formation of the later grades of lesions, since the same amount of streaking does not lead to an equal amount of fibrous plaque formation. It also shows that there are important geographic differences in the prevalence of these latter factors. Similarly, the coronary atherosclerosis was almost equal in our and the South Indian series but in both these places it was less advanced than that obtained in the U.S.A. , Japan, and Jamaica.
City lights: contextual views in minimal space

City Lights are space-efficient fisheye techniques that provide contextual views along the borders of windows and subwindows that describe unseen objects in all directions. We present a family of techniques that use a range of graphical dimensions to depict varied information about unseen objects. City Lights can be used alone or in conjunction with scrollbars, 2D overview+detail, and interaction techniques such as zoomable user interfaces.
Cognitive Roles of Anterior and Posterior Pedunculopontine Tegmentum Subregions

ii List of Abbreviations iii Acknowledgments iv Table of Contents v List of Tables vii List of Figures viii Chapter 1 1 1 The Pedunculopontine Tegmentum (PPT) 1 1.1 Cell Biology 1 1.2 Connectivity 3 1.3 PPT Function 7 1.4 Role in Thalamocortical Systems 9 1.5 Role in Prepulse Inhibition 10 1.6 Role in Striatal Reinforcement Learning 15 1.7 Objectives, Hypotheses, and Approach 22 Chapter 2 23 2 Methods 23 2.1 Animals: Housing and Handling 23 2.2 Stereotaxic Surgery 23 2.3 Behavioral Paradigms 25 2.4 Data Analysis 27 2.5 Histology 29 Chapter 3 31 3 Results 31 vi 3.1 Lesion Analysis: Post-Surgery Spontaneous Turning Behavior and Histological Quantification 31 3.2 Locomotor Data: Ambulatory Distance and Average Velocity 36 3.3 Startle Amplitude 40 3.4 Short-term Habituation 44 3.5 Long-term Habituation 46 3.6 Prepulse Inhibition 48 3.7 Morris Water Maze 51 Chapter 4 56 4 Discussion 56 4.1 Methodological Issues 56 4.2 Locomotor Activity 59 4.3 Amplitude and Habituation of the Startle Response 59 4.4 Prepulse Inhibition of the Startle Response 61 4.5 Morris Water Maze 63 Chapter 5 65 5 Conclusions 65 References 66 Appendices 88 Curriculum Vitae 90
A framework for understanding student drop-out in the further education context

This research represents a systematic investigation and analysis of student drop-out in a college of Further Education. Traditionally, this aspect of post-compulsory education has been under-researched. Colleges are beginning to recognise the benefits of curriculum research. While there remains a certain amount of hostility towards such non-traditional activity, such research resistance, in its institutional context forms part of the discussion within the thesis. Student drop-out has been defined as premature withdrawal from a course of study. The investigation focused on the experiences of drop-outs while they attended college, their school history, their family relationships and their personal explanations for leaving College. A multiple strategy method (loose triangulation) was used to gather information about drop-outs and these data were analysed both quantitatively and qualitatively. Further Education, and especially the recent changes brought about by 'incorporation' of Colleges under the aegis of 'market forces' has formed the context for the research field. The research identified several significant factors relative to student retention. The most significant being the mismatch between the prior expectations of prospective students with the reality encountered once their course commences. Other barriers to successful completion were also identified, the most significant of which was the attitude of teachers at the drop-out's previous school. Family relationships were also found to be instrumental in student completion. Four types of drop-out have been identified: 1. the early drop-out, who enroled on the wrong course, 2. the opportunist drop-out, who came to College because they had nothing better to do at the time, 3. the consumer drop-out, who buys a course (usually skills based) and leaves when they are satisfied that they have learnt enough, 4. the life crisis drop-out, who is the victim of accident, ill health or misfortune. The empirical evidence collected during this research contradicts the commonly accepted view that drop-outs are a 'drain' on society. It is shown that the word 'drop-out' has developed a power of its own and is employed in the social control of students. The research concludes that student retention can be improved and course completion rates increase. When monitoring procedures adequately reflect the real number of students dropping out, coupled with prevention methods which recognise the need for better preenrolment guidance, and meaningful intervention to reclaim these lost students and redirect their studies, drop-out could become a phenomenon of the past.
Biological Systems as Heterogeneous Information Networks: A Mini-review and Perspectives

In the real world, most objects and data have multiple types of attributes and inter-connections. Such data structures are named "Heterogeneous Information Networks" (HIN) and have been widely researched. Biological systems are also considered to be highly complicated HIN. In this work, we review various applications of HIN methods to biological and chemical data, discuss some advanced topics, and describe some future research directions.
Gene3D: merging structure and function for a Thousand genomes

Over the last 2 years the Gene3D resource has been significantly improved, and is now more accurate and with a much richer interactive display via the Gene3D website (http://gene3d.biochem.ucl.ac.uk/). Gene3D provides accurate structural domain family assignments for over 1100 genomes and nearly 10 000 000 proteins. A hidden Markov model library, constructed from the manually curated CATH structural domain hierarchy, is used to search UniProt, RefSeq and Ensembl protein sequences. The resulting matches are refined into simple multi-domain architectures using a recently developed in-house algorithm, DomainFinder 3 (available at: ftp://ftp.biochem.ucl.ac.uk/pub/gene3d_data/DomainFinder3/). The domain assignments are integrated with multiple external protein function descriptions (e.g. Gene Ontology and KEGG), structural annotations (e.g. coiled coils, disordered regions and sequence polymorphisms) and family resources (e.g. Pfam and eggNog) and displayed on the Gene3D website. The website allows users to view descriptions for both single proteins and genes and large protein sets, such as superfamilies or genomes. Subsets can then be selected for detailed investigation or associated functions and interactions can be used to expand explorations to new proteins. Gene3D also provides a set of services, including an interactive genome coverage graph visualizer, DAS annotation resources, sequence search facilities and SOAP services.
The athletic female.

A 20-year Perspective: What Has Changed? , Judy Mahle Lutter. Problems Facing the Athletic Female, Mary Lloyd Ireland. Psychological, Sociological, and Cultural issues Concerning the Athletic Female, Diane L. Gill. Osteoporosis in the Athletic Female: Amenorrhea and Amenorrheic Osteoporosis, Elizabeth A. Arendt. Diet and Menstrual status as Determinants of Injury Risk of the Athletic Female, Tom Lloyd. Exercise and Pregnancy, Judy Mahle Lutter and Valerie Lee. Oral Contraceptives and the Athletic Female, Pat J. Kulpa. Issues Specific to the Predolescent and Adolescent Athletic Female, Deborah L. Squire. Substance Abuse by the Athletic Female, Herbert A. Haupt. Eating Disorders Among Athletic Females, Nancy Clark. Nutritional Problems and Training Intensity, Activity Level, and Athletic Performance, Nancy Clark. Strength Training and the Athletic Female, Terry R. Malone and Barbara Sanders. Conditioning the Ageing Female, Gregory A. Peters. Off-Season Conditioning, John W. Uribe and Merl J. Miller. Sport-Specific Training, Barbara Hoogenboom. Muscle Imbalances in the Athletic Female, Shirley A. Sahrmann. Upper Extremity Injuries, Letha Y. Griffin. Lower Extremity Injuries, Jerome V. Ciullo. Provocative Issues and Recommendations for Future Research.
A protocol for measuring the direct effect of cycling on neuromuscular control of running in triathletes

Abstract The direct effects of cycling on movement and muscle recruitment patterns (neuromuscular control) during running are unknown but critical to success in triathlon. We outline and test a new protocol for investigating the direct influence of cycling on neuromuscular control during running. Leg movement (three-dimensional kinematics) and muscle recruitment (surface electromyography, EMG) were compared between a control run (no prior exercise) and a 30-min transition run that was preceded by 20 min of cycling. We conducted three experiments investigating: (a) the repeatability (between-day reliability) of the protocol; (b) the ability of the protocol to investigate, in highly trained national or international triathletes, the direct influence of cycling on neuromuscular control during running independent of neuromuscular fatigue; and (c) the ability of the protocol to provide a control, or baseline, measure of neuromuscular control (determined using a measure of stability) without causing fatigue. Kinematic and EMG measures of neuromuscular control during running showed moderate to high repeatability: mean coefficients of multiple correlation for repeatability of EMG and kinematics were 0.816 ± 0.014 and 0.911 ± 0.031, respectively. The protocol provided a robust baseline measure of neuromuscular control during running without causing neuromuscular fatigue (coefficients of multiple correlation for stability of EMG and kinematics were 0.827 ± 0.023 and 0.862 ± 0.054), while EMG and force data provided no evidence of fatigue. The protocol outlined here is repeatable and can be used to measure any direct influence of cycling on neuromuscular control during running.
Anomalous diameter distribution shifts estimated from FIA inventories through time

Summary In the past decade, the United States Department of Agriculture Forest Service's Forest Inventory and Analysis Program (FIA) has replaced regionally autonomous, periodic, state-wide forest inventories using various probability proportional to tree size sampling designs with a nationally consistent annual forest inventory design utilizing systematically spaced clusters of fixed- area plots. This has resulted in significant changes in the spatial-temporal distribution of observations on the nation's forest resource. This paper discusses the resulting changes in the observation of the distribution of tree diameters measured at 1.37 m above ground level. We show that in three of the four FIA regions, a significant portion of the upper end of the diameter distribution has thus far gone unobserved by the new inventory design. We conclude that the reason is not that the larger diameter trees have become less common but rather that there is a low enough probability of observing these trees that they are not being observed. This postulate is supported by the observation that large-diameter trees are not missing from the data acquired by the fourth FIA region (the Pacific Northwest), which uses an additional sampling mechanism for large-diameter trees. We explore the implications of this effect in addition to potential solutions.
Fiber consistency measures on brain tracts from digital streamline, stochastic and global tractography

Tractography is the process used to estimate the structure of the nervous fibers in the interior of the brain in vivo from magnetic resonance data (MR). There are several methods of tractography, which are usually divided into local and global. The first attempt to reconstruct each fiber separately, while the latter try to reconstruct all the neural structures at the same time, looking for a configuration that best fits the provided data. Global methods have proven to be more accurate and reliable than local methods for synthetic data. Universidad de Valladolid However to date there are no studies that define the relationship between MR acquisition parameters and the results of stochastic or global tractography with real data. This Master thesis is intended to show the influence of some parameters of acquisition as the factor of dissemination of sequences of acquisition, the spacing between voxels or the number of gradients in the variability of the obtained tractographies.
Efficient time recursive coherence spectrum estimation

The coherence spectrum is of notable interest as a bivariate spectral measure in a variety of application, and the topic has lately attracted notable interest with the recent formulation of several high-resolution data adaptive estimators. In this work, we present computationally efficient time recursive implementations of the recent iterative adaptive approach (IAA) estimator, examining both the case of complete data sets and when some observations are missing. The algorithms continues the recent development of exploiting the estimators' inherently low displacement rank of the necessary products of Toeplitz-like matrices, extending these to time-updating formulations for the IAA-based coherence estimation algorithm. Numerical simulations together with theoretical complexity measures illustrate the performance of the proposed algorithm.
Sperm characteristics, antioxidant status and hormonal profile in rats treated with artemisinin

The indiscriminate use, abuse and patients’ noncompliance to normal prescription of artemisinin and its derivatives are a common practice during the treatment for drug‐resistant malaria parasites in most developing countries. This study investigated the influence of artemisinin on the testicular and epididymal sperm antioxidant systems as well as on the plasma levels of hormones from the pituitary and thyroid components of the brain–pituitary–testicular axis. Oral exposure of rats to 0, 7 and 35 mg kg−1 artemisinin for 7 days showed that the testicular antioxidant status at both therapeutic dose (7 mg kg−1) and overdose (35 mg kg−1), and the sperm antioxidant status at therapeutic dose of artemisinin remained unaffected compared with control. However, increased hydrogen peroxide and lipid peroxidation levels were accompanied by a concomitant decrease in glutathione peroxidase and glutathione‐S‐transferase activities as well as glutathione level in spermatozoon of rats administered with overdose of artemisinin. While plasma levels of all the hormones investigated remained unaffected, severe epididymal degeneration with concomitant decrease in sperm quantity and quality was observed in rats treated with overdose of artemisinin compared with control. Overall, induction of oxidative stress in the epididymis, but not in the testes, could cause reproductive deficits in individuals unduly undergoing artemisinin therapy.
[Risperidone in the early treatment of first-episode psychosis: a two-year follow-up study].

INTRODUCTION: The main goals of any antipsychotic pharmacological treatment are the improvement of negative, positive, behavioral, affective and cognitive symptoms related to psychotic disorders, a good side-effects profile and again an improvement in patients quality of life and social - environmental relationships. The development of new atypical antipsychotic drugs has opened new therapeutical bias. Nevertheless only a few clinical studies have been developed studying new atypical antipsychotic role on first psychotic episodes. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We developed an open, observational, multicenter and prospective study in order to evaluate effectiveness, tolerability and security of early treatment with risperidone in patients affected by a first psychotic episode (DSM IV diagnostic criteria) and the long-term effect of this treatment on the clinical evolution of these patients. We recruited 436 patients (age 18-65) who had never before received any antipsychotic drug. RESULTS: The most prevalent diagnosis was schizophrenia and other psychotic disorders no substance abuse related (90.6%). The average dosage of risperidone used during this study was 5.12 mg/d and most of the patients remained on risperidone monotherapy. We observed a statistically significant improvement in psychopathological scale PANSS (total; positive, negative and general subescales), Global Activity Scale (EEAG) and Clinical Global Impression Scale (CGI) scores from first month treatment on. This improvement was maintained during the two-year follow up period. We also observed an improvement in Young Mania Scale and Hamilton Depression Scale scores sustained from first month up to the end of the study. The number of patients hospitalized importantly decreased and most of them (95.9%) were ambulatory patients at the end of the study. We also observed a decrease on UKU neurological side-effects scale scores (including parkinsonism) from sixth month up to the end of the study and from basal to final evaluation. Other side effects related were amenorrhea (2.1%) and weight gain (1.6%). Investigators' opinion about risperidone efficacy and tolerability was good or very good in 84.4% and 91.6% respectively. DISCUSSION: This study concludes that risperidone is an effective, well tolerated an secure antipsychotic drug in the treatment of patients with a first psychotic episode, and in our opinion is a first rank therapeutical alternative in these kind of patients.
Phospholipase C-β1 Hypofunction in the Pathogenesis of Schizophrenia

Schizophrenia is a mental disorder that is characterized by various abnormal symptoms. Previous studies indicate decreased expression of phospholipase C-β1 (PLC-β1) in the brains of patients with schizophrenia. PLC-β1-null (PLC-β1−/−) mice exhibit multiple endophenotypes of schizophrenia. Furthermore, a study of PLC-β1 knockdown in the medial prefrontal cortex of mice has shown a specific behavioral deficit, impaired working memory. These results support the notion that disruption of PLC-β1-linked signaling in the brain is strongly involved in the pathogenesis of schizophrenia. In this review, we broadly investigate recent studies regarding schizophrenia-related behaviors as well as their various clinical and biological correlates in PLC-β1−/− and knockdown mouse models. This will provide a better understanding of the pathological relevance of the altered expression of PLC-β1 in the brains of patients with schizophrenia. Evidence accumulated will shed light on future in-depth studies, possibly in human subjects.