Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Who interrupted me? Analyzing the effect of PU activity on cognitive user performance

Cognitive Networks have been proposed to opportunistically discover and exploit (temporarily) unused licensed spectrum bands. With the exception of TV white spaces, secondary users (SUs) can access the medium only intermittently, due to deferring to primary user (PU) transmissions and scanning for new channels. This raises the following questions: (i) what sort of delays can an SU expect on a channel given the PU utilization of this channel? (ii) how do specific characteristics of the PU activity patterns (e.g. burstiness) further affect performance? These questions are of key importance for the design of efficient algorithms for scheduling, spectrum handoff, etc. In this paper, we propose a queueing analytical model to answer them. We model the PU activity pattern as an ON-OFF alternating renewal process with generic ON and OFF durations, and derive a closed form expression for packet delays by solving a variant of the M/G/1 queue. Contrary to the common belief that low utilization channels are good channels, we show that the expected SU delay on a channel, and thus the best channel to use, is a subtle interplay between the ON and OFF duration distributions of the primary users, and the SU traffic load. We validate our analysis against simulations for different PU activity profiles.
Convergence of DLLR rapid speaker adaptation algorithms

Discounted Likelihood Linear Regression (DLLR) is a speaker adaptation technique for cases where there is insufficient data for MLLR adaptation. Here, we provide an alternative derivation of DLLR by using a censored EM formulation which postulates additional adaptation data which is hidden. This derivation shows that DLLR, if allowed to converge, provides maximum likelihood solutions. Thus the robustness of DLLR to small amounts of data is obtained by slowing down the convergence of the algorithm and by allowing termination of the algorithm before overtraining occurs. We then show that discounting the observed adaptation data by postulating additional hidden data can also be extended to MAP estimation of MLLR-type adaptation transformations.
Duodenal intraepithelial lymphocyte‐count revisited

Background: The number of intraepithelial lymphocytes in the duodenum was determined 30 years ago, the suggested normal upper limit being 40 lymphocytes per 100 epithelial cells. Methods: Duodenal mucosa was analysed from 18 healthy individuals and 56 consecutive patients biopsied because of epigastralgia (17 cases), diarrhoea (10 cases), oesophagitis (10 cases), iron‐deficiency (9 cases) and B12‐deficiency (10 cases) showing normal histology, along with 10 cases of active coeliac disease. The biopsies were fixed in 4% formalin overnight and embedded in paraffin. Three micrometre thick sections were stained with haematoxylin and eosin and CD3. At least 300 epithelial cells were counted, the number of intraepithelial lymphocytes was given as the mean/100 epithelial cells. Extensive statistical analyses were performed. Results: In the healthy individuals the mean number (s) of intraepithelial lymphocytes/100 epithelial cells was 10.8 (2.6) and 13.2 (3.8) in H&E and CD3 stained sections, respectively. The upper limit of the confidence interval for CD3 staining was 29. There was no significant difference between normal individuals and the clinical groups, with the exception of coeliac disease. Conclusion: Two‐step analysis of intraepithelial lymphocyte‐determination is suggested: (a) semiquantitative estimate on H&E‐stained sections (normal ratio of 1:5 between lymphocytes and enterocytes; upper normal limit 20 lymphocytes) and (b) CD3‐staining and counting if intraepithelial lymphocytosis is suspected. The upper normal range of intraepithelial lymphocytes is set at 25 CD3+ lymphocytes/100 epithelial cells. Values between 25 and 29 are regarded as ‘borderline’ and 30 or more represent pathologic intraepithelial lymphocytosis in the duodenum.
EFFECTS OF MODULATED VHF FIELDS ON THE CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEM *

The existence of brief epochs in which electroencephalographic and neuronal activities are strongly correlated has been repeatedly established in different areas of the brain. For example, periodic slow oscillations of neuronal membrane potentials, frequency related to the concomitant local electroencephalogram (EEG), have been recorded in various cortical areas1-’ and in hippocampal and thalamic Therefore, the EEG appears to reflect the attenuated undulations of the membrane potential of a surrounding population of neurons, and rhythmic electroencephalographic patterns could be generated by extracellular summation of simultaneous transient slow electrical events in a population of cells. On the other hand, weak extracellular voltage gradients (1-5 mV/mm) have been shown to significantly affect the excitability, or firing thresholds, of stretch receptor neurons in the crayfish and spinal motor neurons in the As pointed out earlier by Nelson,’ complex structural organization of brain tissues, as seen in the cerebrum, should be highly favorable for multiple electric field interactions, both in the intricate rate of overlapping dendritic trees and between the macromolecules of the extracellular space and the glycoproteins of the outer surface of the cell membrane. ’-“ Indeed, extremely weak vhf fields [ I47 MHz, 1 mW/cm2]], amplitude modulated at brain wave frequencies, have been shown to strongly influence spontaneous and conditioned EEG patterns in the cat. “. l” The hypothesis was offered that the weak electrical forces induced in the brain were modifying the excitability of the central neurons and that these changes were reflected in the recorded transient EEG episodes. The extracellular electrical gradients could exert their forces on the multiequilibrium system that exists in the outer zone of the neuronal membrane, where monoand divalent cations compete for binding sites on polyanionic macromolecules and polar ends of intrinsic membrane proteins.L6-20 Local variations in the surrounding electric field could result in slight modifications of the negative binding sites, either by triggering configurational changes of the surface macromolecules or by inducing small displacements of the surface-bound cations. These alterations would, in turn, influence the activity of adjacent ions, which would disturb further the molecular arrangement of the surface macromolecules, thus propagating and multiplying the initial electrical disturbance. Concurrent work in this laboratory*’ indicated that weak pulsed electric currents (2-5 mV/mm, 200 pulses/sec) applied across the cat cortex were able to trig-
Characterization of Screen-Printed Organic Electrochemical Transistors to Detect Cations of Different Sizes

A novel screen-printing fabrication method was used to prepare organic electrochemical transistors (OECTs) based on poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) doped with polysterene sulfonate (PEDOT:PSS). Initially, three types of these screen-printed OECTs with a different channel and gate areas ratio were compared in terms of output characteristics, transfer characteristics, and current modulation in a phosphate buffered saline (PBS) solution. Results confirm that transistors with a gate electrode larger than the channel exhibit higher modulation. OECTs with this geometry were therefore chosen to investigate their ion-sensitive properties in aqueous solutions of cations of different sizes (sodium and rhodamine B). The effect of the gate electrode was additionally studied by comparing these all-PEDOT:PSS transistors with OECTs with the same geometry but with a non-polarizable metal gate (Ag). The operation of the all-PEDOT:PSS OECTs yields a response that is not dependent on a Na+ or rhodamine concentration. The weak modulation of these transistors can be explained assuming that PEDOT:PSS behaves like a supercapacitor. In contrast, the operation of Ag-Gate OECTs yields a response that is dependent on ion concentration due to the redox reaction taking place at the gate electrode with Cl− counter-ions. This indicates that, for cation detection, the response is maximized in OECTs with non-polarizable gate electrodes.
Small-Volume Adenosine, Lidocaine, and Mg2+ 4-Hour Infusion Leads to 88% Survival after 6 Days of Experimental Sepsis in the Rat without Antibiotics

ABSTRACT Innovative host-directed drug therapies are urgently required to treat sepsis. We tested the effect of a small-volume 0.9% NaCl adenosine, lidocaine, and Mg2+ (ALM) bolus and a 4-h intravenous infusion on survivability in the rat model of polymicrobial sepsis over 6 days. ALM treatment led to a significant increase in survivability (88%) compared to that of controls (25%). Four controls died on day 2 to 3, and two died on day 5. Early death was associated with elevated plasma and lung inflammatory markers (interleukin-6 [IL-6], IL-1β, C-reactive protein), reduced white blood cell (WBC) count, hypoxemia, hypercapnia, acidosis, hyperkalemia, and elevated lactate, whereas late death was associated with a massive cytokine storm, a neutrophil-dominated WBC rebound/overshoot, increased lung oxidant injury, edema, and persistent ischemia. On day 6, seven of eight ALM survivors had inflammatory and immunological profiles not significantly different from those of sham-treated animals. We conclude in the rat model of experimental sepsis that small-volume ALM treatment led to higher survivability at 6 days (88%) than that of controls (25%). Early death in controls (day 2 to 3) was associated with significantly elevated plasma levels of IL-1β, IL-6, and C-reactive protein, severe plasma lymphocyte deficiency, reduced neutrophils, and acute lung injury. Late death (day 5) was associated with a massive neutrophil inflammatory storm, increased lung injury, and persistent ischemia. Possible mechanisms of ALM protection are discussed.
Diagnostics of welded joints using passive and active magnetic methods

As the quality of welded joints transfers to the load carrying capacity of structures, welded joints naturally become the object of diagnostic tests. Welded joints are mainly tested in order to find out the places with structural or mechanical non-homogeneities. It is caused by the fact that the existence of welding imperfections significantly decreases mechanical properties of the welded joint and especially its fatigue strength. The paper presents some results of diagnostic tests for welded joints of steel components carried out with the use of passive and active magnetic methods. Faults of the welded joint occurring within a tested object cause the phenomenon of magnetic anomalies existing over a tested surface and this phenomenon has been used to detect welding imperfections. A specially designed measurement matrix consisting of 768 oneaxial miniature magnetic field sensors has been used to record the magnetic flux leakage. The paper includes a comparison of the effectiveness of diagnosing using the passive and active magnetic method. Moreover, it was shown that the magnetic diagnostics provides rapid inspection of quality of welded joints with no need for special preparation of joints for testing which is relevant for its practical applications and results in low costs of such tests.
Display-camera calibration from eye reflections

We present a novel technique for calibrating display-camera systems from reflections in the user's eyes. Display-camera systems enable a range of vision applications that need controlled illumination, including 3D object reconstruction, facial modeling and human computer interaction. One important issue, though, is the geometric calibration of the display, which requires additional hardware and tedious user interaction. The proposed approach eliminates this requirement by analyzing patterns that are reflected in the cornea, a mirroring device that naturally exists in any display-camera system. We introduce an optimization strategy that is able to refine eye and spherical mirror calibration results. When applied to the eye, it even outperforms spherical mirror calibration unoptimized. Furthermore, we obtain a robust estimation of eye poses which can be used for eye tracking applications. Despite the difficult working conditions, the calibration results are good and should be sufficient for many applications.
Regulation of the Different Chromatin States of Autosomes and X Chromosomes in the Germ Line of C. elegans

The Maternal-Effect Sterile (MES) proteins are essential for germline viability in Caenorhabditis elegans. Here, we report that MES-4, a SET-domain protein, binds to the autosomes but not to the X chromosomes. MES-2, MES-3, and MES-6 are required to exclude MES-4 and markers of active chromatin from the X chromosomes. These findings strengthen the emerging view that in the C. elegansgerm line, the X chromosomes differ in chromatin state from the autosomes and are generally silenced. We propose that all four MES proteins participate in X-chromosome silencing, and that the role of MES-4 is to exclude repressors from the autosomes, thus enabling efficient repression of the Xs.
An Equivalent Circuit Model of the Traveling Wave Electrode for Carrier-Depletion-Based Silicon Optical Modulators

We propose an equivalent circuit model for the coplanar waveguide (CPW) which serves as the traveling wave electrode to drive carrier-depletion-based silicon modulators. Conformal mapping and partial capacitance techniques are employed to calculate each element of the circuit. The validity of the model is confirmed by the comparison with both finite-element simulation and experimental result. With the model, we calculate the modulation bandwidth for different CPW dimensions and termination impedances. A 3 dB modulation bandwidth of 15 GHz is demonstrated with a traveling wave electrode of 3 mm. The calculation indicates that, by utilizing a traveling wave electrode of 2 mm, we can obtain a 3 dB modulation bandwidth of 28 GHz.
Do radionuclide and echocardiographic techniques give a universal cut off value for left ventricular ejection fraction that can be used to select patients for treatment with ACE inhibitors after myocardial infarction?

OBJECTIVE--To determine whether echocardiography and radionuclide angiography give comparable results when the left ventricular ejection fraction is measured early after myocardial infarction and thus whether, irrespective of the method used, a single value for the ejection fraction could be used as a guide for starting treatment with an angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitor. DESIGN--Prospective comparison of measurement of left ventricular ejection fraction by echocardiography and radionuclide angiography. SETTING--Coronary care units of two university teaching hospitals in Glasgow. PATIENTS--99 patients studied within 36 hours of acute myocardial infarction. OUTCOME MEASURES--Left ventricular ejection fraction assessed by echocardiography and radionuclide angiography. RESULTS--70 (77%) of the 99 patients had ejection fraction measured by both echocardiographic and radionuclide techniques, 30 in centre 1 and 40 in centre 2. In centre 1 the mean difference (SD) in ejection fraction (radionuclide angiography--echocardiography) was -8 (10%); 95% CI -12 to -4%. In centre 2 the mean difference was -14 (11%); 95% CI -17 to -11%. If patients had been treated with an ACE inhibitor on the basis of a radionuclide ejection fraction of < 40% then 93% in centre 1 (28 of 30) and 98% in centre 2 (39 of 40) would have been treated. This compares with 63% (19 of 30) and 50% (20 of 40), respectively if echocardiography had been used as a guide. CONCLUSION--Measurement of ejection fraction is highly dependent on the method used and it is therefore impossible to quote a universally applicable figure for left ventricular ejection fraction below which an ACE inhibitor should be used after myocardial infarction.
Dynamically adaptable mobile agents for scaleable software and service management

Two hard sub-problems have emerged relating to the use of mobile agents for service management tasks. First, what is their impact on security, and second, how can they receive a flexible capacity to adapt to an open range of different environments on demand, without introducing too stringent prior assumptions. In this paper, we present work towards solving the second problem, which is of particular interest to management software, because it typically needs to excert fine-grained and therefore particular resource control. We suggest a mechanism that reassembles mobile agents from smaller sub-components during arrival at each hop. The process incorporates patterns of unmutable and mutable sub-components, and is informed by the conditions of each local environment. We discuss different kinds of software adaptation and draw a distinction between static and continuous forms. Our software prototype for dynamic adaptation provides a concept for exchanging environment-dependent implementations of mobile agents during runtime. Dynamic adaptation enhances efficiency of mobile code in terms of bandwidth usage and scalability.
An 8μW 100kS/s successive approximation ADC for biomedical applications

A successive approximation analog-to-digital converter (SA-ADC) for biomedical application is presented. It is based on 0.18-μm standard CMOS technology and operates at low supply voltage at 1V. Boosted switch for sample-and-hold stage, split capacitor array for DAC, and clocked rail-to-rail comparator are used to achieve low-power consumption. The ADC has signal-to-noise-and-distortion ratio of 53dB for supply voltage of 1V, at sampling rate of 100kS/s and power consumption of 8μW.
Formalin Fixation at Low Temperature Better Preserves Nucleic Acid Integrity

Fixation with formalin, a widely adopted procedure to preserve tissue samples, leads to extensive degradation of nucleic acids and thereby compromises procedures like microarray-based gene expression profiling. We hypothesized that RNA fragmentation is caused by activation of RNAses during the interval between formalin penetration and tissue fixation. To prevent RNAse activation, a series of tissue samples were kept under-vacuum at 4°C until fixation and then fixed at 4°C, for 24 hours, in formalin followed by 4 hours in ethanol 95%. This cold-fixation (CF) procedure preserved DNA and RNA, so that RNA segments up to 660 bp were efficiently amplified. Histological and immunohistochemical features were fully comparable with those of standard fixation. Microarray-based gene expression profiles were comparable with those obtained on matched frozen samples for probes hybridizing within 700 bases from the reverse transcription start site. In conclusion, CF preserves tissues and nucleic acids, enabling reliable gene expression profiling of fixed tissues.
Advances in base- and mobile-station aided cooperative wireless communications: An overview

In recent years, there has been an upsurge of research interest in cooperative wireless communications in both academia and industry. This article presents a simple overview of the pivotal topics in both mobile station (MS)- and base station (BS)- assisted cooperation in the context of cellular radio systems. Owing to the ever-increasing amount of literature in this particular field, this article is by no means exhaustive, but is intended to serve as a roadmap by assembling a representative sample of recent results and to stimulate further research. The emphasis is initially on relay-base cooperation, relying on network coding, followed by the design of cross-layer cooperative protocols conceived for MS cooperation and the concept of coalition network element (CNE)-assisted BS cooperation. Then, a range of complexity and backhaul traffic reduction techniques that have been proposed for BS cooperation are reviewed. A more detailed discussion is provided in the context of MS cooperation concerning the pros and cons of dispensing with high-complexity, power-hungry channel estimation. Finally, generalized design guidelines, conceived for cooperative wireless communications, are presented.
Concerted Regulation of cGMP and cAMP Phosphodiesterases in Early Cardiac Hypertrophy Induced by Angiotensin II

Left ventricular hypertrophy leads to heart failure and represents a high risk leading to premature death. Cyclic nucleotides (cAMP and cGMP) play a major role in heart contractility and cyclic nucleotide phosphodiesterases (PDEs) are involved in different stages of advanced cardiac diseases. We have investigated their contributions in the very initial stages of left ventricular hypertrophy development. Wistar male rats were treated over two weeks by chronic infusion of angiotensin II using osmotic mini-pumps. Left cardiac ventricles were used as total homogenates for analysis. PDE1 to PDE5 specific activities and protein and mRNA expressions were explored. Rats developed arterial hypertension associated with a slight cardiac hypertrophy (+24%). cAMP-PDE4 activity was specifically increased while cGMP-PDE activities were broadly increased (+130% for PDE1; +76% for PDE2; +113% for PDE5) and associated with increased expressions for PDE1A, PDE1C and PDE5A. The cGMP-PDE1 activation by Ca2+/CaM was reduced. BNP expression was increased by 3.5-fold, while NOX2 expression was reduced by 66% and AMP kinase activation was increased by 64%. In early cardiac hypertrophy induced by angiotensin II, all specific PDE activities in left cardiac ventricles were increased, favoring an increase in cGMP hydrolysis by PDE1, PDE2 and PDE5. Increased cAMP hydrolysis was related to PDE4. We observed the establishment of two cardioprotective mechanisms and we suggest that these mechanisms could lead to increase intracellular cGMP: i) increased expression of BNP could increase “particulate” cGMP pool; ii) increased activation of AMPK, subsequent to increase in PDE4 activity and 5′AMP generation, could elevate “soluble” cGMP pool by enhancing NO bioavailability through NOX2 down-regulation. More studies are needed to support these assumptions. Nevertheless, our results suggest a potential link between PDE4 and AMPK/NOX2 and they point out that cGMP-PDEs, especially PDE1 and PDE2, may be interesting therapeutic targets in preventing cardiac hypertrophy.
*informatics: Identifying and Tracking Informatics Sub-Discipline Terms in the Literature

Summary Objective: To identify the breadth of informatics sub-discipline terms used in the literature for enabling subsequent organization and searching by sub-discipline. Methods: Titles in five literature sources were analyzed to extract terms for informatics sub-disciplines: 1) United States (U.S.) Library of Congress Online Catalog, 2) English Wikipedia, 3) U.S. National Library of Medicine (NLM) Catalog, 4) PubMed, and 5) PubMed Central. The extracted terms were combined and standardized with those in four vocabulary sources to create an integrated list: 1) Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH), 2) Medical Subject Headings (MeSH), 3) U.S. National Cancer Institute Thesaurus (NCIt), and 4) EMBRACE Data and Methods (EDAM). Searches for terms in titles from each literature source were conducted to obtain frequency counts and start years for characterizing established and potentially emerging sub-disciplines. Results: Analysis of 6,949 titles from literature sources and 67 terms from vocabulary sources resulted in an integrated list of 382 terms for informatics sub-disciplines mapped to 292 preferred terms. In the last five decades, “bioinformatics”, “medical informatics”, “health informatics”, “nursing informatics”, and “biomedical informatics” were associated with the most literature. In the current decade, potentially emerging sub-disciplines include “disability informatics”, “neonatal informatics”, and “nanoinformatics” based on literature from the last five years. Conclusions: As the field of informatics continues to expand and advance, keeping upto-date with historical and current trends will become increasingly challenging. The ability to track the accomplishments and evolution of a particular sub-discipline in the literature could be valuable for supporting informatics research, education, and training.