Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Title A block-diagonal structured model reduction scheme for powergrid networks

We propose a block-diagonal structured model order reduction (BDSM) scheme for fast power grid analysis. Compared with existing power grid model order reduction (MOR) methods, BDSM has several advantages. First, unlike many power grid reductions that are based on terminal reduction and thus error-prone, BDSM utilizes an exact column-by-column moment matching to provide higher numerical accuracy. Second, with similar accuracy and macromodel size, BDSM generates very sparse block-diagonal reduced-order models (ROMs) for massive-port systems at a lower cost, whereas traditional algorithms such as PRIMA produce full dense models inefficient for the subsequent simulation. Third, different from those MOR schemes based on extended Krylov subspace (EKS) technique, BDSM is input-signal independent, so the resulting ROM is reusable under different excitations. Finally, due to its blockdiagonal structure, the obtained ROM can be simulated very fast. The accuracy and efficiency of BDSM are verified by industrial power grid benchmarks.
Habitat filtering not dispersal limitation shapes oceanic island floras: species assembly of the Galápagos archipelago.

Remote locations, such as oceanic islands, typically harbour relatively few species, some of which go on to generate endemic radiations. Species colonising these locations tend to be a non-random subset from source communities, which is thought to reflect dispersal limitation. However, non-random colonisation could also result from habitat filtering, whereby only a few continental species can become established. We evaluate the imprints of these processes on the Galápagos flora by analysing a comprehensive regional phylogeny for ~ 39 000 species alongside information on dispersal strategies and climatic suitability. We found that habitat filtering was more important than dispersal limitation in determining species composition. This finding may help explain why adaptive radiation is common on oceanic archipelagoes - because colonising species can be relatively poor dispersers with specific niche requirements. We suggest that the standard assumption that plant communities in remote locations are primarily shaped by dispersal limitation deserves reconsideration.
Local Phase-Based Fuzzy Connectedness Segmentation of Ultrasound Images

Ultrasound (US) image segmentation is one of the most difficult and challenging among medical imaging modalities due to the poor signal-to-noise ratio, signal dropouts, and speckle patterns characteristic of US images. Previous methods avoided the use of purely intensity-based segmentation approaches, because of the intensity inhomogeneities present within the structures of interest. However, local phase, derived from the monogenic signal, extracts structural information from US images, being invariant to contrast. By combining different scales of the local phase, feature asymmetry can be calculated to represent edge information. This paper proposes a novel ultrasound segmentation approach based on the fuzzy connectedness framework. A new affinity function is designed to drive the segmentation algorithm using structural and edge information based on local phase, instead of intensities and intensity gradients. Quantitative and qualitative results are illustrated on US images of the fetal arm, the object of interest being the adipose tissue, which is an indicator of fetal nutrition.
Calcium signaling and acute pancreatitis: specific response to a promiscuous messenger.

An increase in cytosolic free calcium concentration is used as a key signaling messenger in virtually every cell throughout the phylogenetic tree. Calcium regulates a host of kinetically distinct processes ranging from neurotransmitter release and skeletal muscle contraction (which operate on a submillisecond time frame) to gene transcription and cell proliferation (which operate over a time course of hours to days). This impressive array of vital functions controlled by calcium nevertheless poses a fundamental problem in cell signaling: How can the same messenger selectively activate only one (or a handful) of calcium-dependent responses to best fit the requirements of the cell at that particular instant? Put another way, how does a cell decode the calcium signal? The calcium signaling system has obviously evolved specificity; however, it is not foolproof, and when calcium signaling goes awry, the consequences can be devastating. A particular striking example is described in this issue of PNAS by Raraty et al. (1). In an elegant series of experiments, Raraty et al. have now unraveled the link between calcium signaling and trypsin activation within acinar cells. Premature activation of trypsin within the granules is often fatal, because it results in autodigestion of the pancreas. It had been suspected for some time that aberrant calcium signaling plays a major role in the etiology of acute pancreatitis, and now that suspicion has been confirmed.
Evolution von Datenmodellen : Relational ... geschachtelt (NF 2 ) relational ... objektorientiert?

In diesem Aufsatz beschreiben wir das Modell der geschachtelten (NF2 = Non-FirstNormal-Form) Relationen; was verstehen wir darunter, wie sind sie aus dem bekannten relationalen Datenmodell entstanden, und wie passen sie in die Diskussion um objektorientierte Datenbanksysteme? Wir verstehen NF2-Relationen als eine konsequente Weiterentwicklung der "relationalen Idee" der Konstruktor Relation wird wiederholt angewendet hin zu komplexeren Datenstrukturen. Der Vorteil des Relationenmodells, nämlich seine mächtige Anfragesprache (SQL) kann dabei beibehalten werden. Zwar gestatten geschachtelte Relationen die direkte Modellierung von hierarchischen Beziehungen, für allgemeinere Beziehungstypen sind sie jedoch immer noch zu eingeschränkt, hierzu benötigt man Referenzen (Surrogates, IDs) . Ein weiterer Schritt der Verallgemeinerung ("rekursiv geschachtelte Relationen" ) beseitigt diese Restriktion noch gründlicher. Dieser letzte Schritt ist zugleich auch der Übergang von einem Datenmodell zu einem Objektmodell, schlägt also die Brücke zwischen relationalen Datenbanken und objektorientierten bzw. semantischen Datenmodellen.
Efficient use of medical IS: diagnosing chest pain

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the contribution of medical information systems (IS) to efficient use of information when diagnosing chest pain complaints with suspected acute myocardial infarction (AMI) as regards ordering of tests and accuracy of diagnosis.Design/methodology/approach – In total, 102 physicians were asked to diagnose three cases of chest pain in patients consulting an emergency department (ED) in a simulation study. Half of the participants had access to a medical IS with complete patient information and the other half of the physicians did not.Findings – It was found that participants who viewed the medical IS ordered fewer clinical examinations. Participants who viewed the medical histories made a more accurate main differential diagnosis (DD) of AMI. Physicians with access to the medical history reported significantly higher levels of confidence in their decisions, regardless of seniority.Originality/value – The findings suggest that IS leads to better utilization o.
Robust player imitation using multiobjective evolution

The problem of how to create NPC AI for videogames that believably imitates particular human players is addressed. Previous approaches to learning player behaviour is found to either not generalize well to new environments and noisy perceptions, or to not reproduce human behaviour in sufficient detail. It is proposed that better solutions to this problem can be built on multiobjective evolutionary algorithms, with objectives relating both to traditional progress-based fitness (playing the game well) and similarity to recorded human behaviour (behaving like the recorded player). This idea is explored in the context of a modern racing game.
Palm tocotrienol-rich fraction supplementation suppressed stress-induced gastric oxidative stress in rats.

Palm tocotrienol-rich fraction (TRF), an extract from palm oil containing both tocotrienol and tocopherol, is known for its antioxidant effect. The present study investigated the effect of palm TRF on the stomach using a water immersion restraint stress (WRS) model. Fortytwo male Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into three groups and were administered 60 mg/kg/d of palm TRF, α-tocopherol or vehicle only for 28 days. At the end of the treatment period, half of the rats from each group were subjected to WRS for 3.5 hours, after which the rats were sacrificed. The stomachs were then examined for lesions and measured for thiobarbituric acid reactive substance content and xanthine oxidase activity. Rats exposed to WRS showed gastric mucosal lesions. Pretreatments of the palm TRF and α-tocopherol reduced the occurrence of the lesions. WRS also increased gastric malondialdehyde content and xanthine oxidase activity significantly, but the increase in the oxidative stress parameters were significantly suppressed by both vitamin E pretreatments. However, the effects of palm TRF and α-tocopherol on the parameters measured were not different. In conclusion, palm TRF has the ability to protect against gastric mucosal injury, likely via its ability to inhibit oxidative stress.
VARIOUS TYPES AND MANAGEMENT OF BREAST CANCER: AN OVERVIEW

Now days, breast cancer is the most frequently diagnosed life-threatening cancer in women and the leading cause of cancer death among women. Since last two decades, researches related to the breast cancer has lead to extraordinary progress in our understanding of the disease, resulting in more efficient and less toxic treatments. Increased public awareness and improved screening have led to earlier diagnosis at stages amenable to complete surgical resection and curative therapies. Consequently, survival rates for breast cancer have improved significantly, particularly in younger women. This article addresses the types, causes, clinical symptoms and various approach both non- drug (such as surgery and radiation) and drug treatment (including chemotherapy, gene therapy etc.) of breast cancer.
Dendritic Cells Pulsed with an Anti-Idiotype Antibody Mimicking Carcinoembryonic Antigen (CEA) Can Reverse Immunological Tolerance to CEA and Induce Antitumor Immunity in CEA Transgenic Mice

In this report, we have studied the immunogenicity of the nominal antigen, carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA), and that of an anti-idiotype antibody, 3H1, which mimics CEA and can be used as a surrogate for CEA. We have demonstrated that immunization of CEA transgenic mice with bone marrow-derived mature dendritic cells (DC) loaded with anti-idiotype 3H1 or CEA could reverse CEA unresponsiveness and result in the induction of CEA-specific immune responses and the rejection of CEA-transfected MC-38 colon carcinoma cells, C15. Immunized mice splenocytes proliferated in an antigen-specific manner by a mechanism dependent on the functions of CD4, MHC II, B7–2, CD40, CD28, and CD25. However, immune splenic lymphocytes isolated from 3H1-DC-vaccinated mice when stimulated in vitro with 3H1 or CEA secreted significantly higher levels of Th1 cytokines than did CEA-DC vaccinated mice. DC vaccination also induced antigen-specific effector CD8+ T cells capable of expressing interluekin-2, IFN-γ, and tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α and displayed cytotoxic activity against C15 cells in an MHC class I-restricted manner. 3H1-DC vaccination resulted in augmented CTL responses and the elevated expression of CD69, CD25, and CD28 on CD8+ CTLs. The immune responses developed in 3H1-DC-immunized mice resulted in rejection of C15 tumor cells in nearly 100% of experimental mice, whereas only 40% of experimental mice immunized with CEA-DC were protected from C15 tumor growth. These findings suggest that under the experimental conditions used, 3H1-DC vaccination was better than CEA-DC vaccination in breaking immune tolerance to CEA and inducing protective antitumor immune responses in this murine model transgenic for human CEA.
Isoprenylation of Plant Proteins in Vivo

Protein isoprenylation in vivo is demonstrated using spinach seedlings labeled with [3H]mevalonate. This report provides evidence for the occurrence of a large number of isoprenylated proteins in plants. Seedlings, without roots, were labeled quantitatively through the cut stem. Mevinolin treatment of the seedlings resulted in increased incorporation of radiolabel into proteins. Approximately 30 labeled bands could be detected after autoradiography of SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis-separated polypeptides, ranging in molecular mass from 6 to 200 kDa. Methyl iodide hydrolysis resulted in the release of covalently bound farnesol, geranylgeraniol, phytol, and some unidentified isoprenoid compounds from mevalonate-labeled proteins. It was found that all cellular fractions contained some isoprenylated proteins, although most were located in the mitochondria and nuclei. Subfractionation of the nucleus revealed that the majority of isoprenylated proteins in this compartment were components of the nuclear matrix. The results demonstrate that in vivo labeling of a complex organism can be performed using a plant system in order to study protein isoprenylation and distribution of modified proteins in different cellular compartments.
Dynamic signature verification based on DCT of local features

A handwritten especially signature is the mean accepted method to declare someone's identity, although one's signature may change overtime and it's not nearly as unique or difficult to imitate, such as fingerprints. In signature verification field, much attention has been paid on features because verification system able to overcome its problems such as forgeries, insensitive to intra-personal variability and sensitive to inter-personal variability. In this paper, we present a simple and efficient approach to on-line signature verification based on discrete cosine transform applied to 19 time signals as position, pressure and angles of pen. Experiments are carried out on two benchmark databases, SVC2004 and SUSIG. A simple method based on mean and variance of classification error is used to search for the best performing signals. The proposed system is tested with different classifier for skilled forgery and the equal error rates were 5.07%, 4.33% and 1.67% for SVC2004 Task1&2, Task2 and SUSIG databases, respectively.
An examination of dietary restraint, appetite and disinhibition using electrophysiological measurement of parotid activity

The central issue examined by the present research was the degree to which disinhibited eating could be accounted for by cognitive versus physiological factors. The Boundary Model holds that disinhibitory cognitions after the ingestion of a preload lead to excessive ingestion. The present research contends that inconsistent meal sizes, typical of most dieters, leads to a conditioned exaggeration of physiological response to food, making it difficult to stop eating once started. Validation of a measure of physiological appetite (electrophysiologica1 recording of the parotid gland, ESG) is presented: ESG to food reliably distinguished fasted from nonfasted, and restrained from nonrestrained subjects. ESG was then used to test the hypothesis that physiological response to food would be a better predictor of disinhibited eating than either dietary restraint or subjective appetite. Although ESG was the best predictor of amount eaten following a preload, subjective appetite also contributed to the prediction. Dietary restraint did not. It was also found that elevated ESG and subjective appetite were correlated with inconsistent eating patterns on diet records. The results suggest that disinhibited eating is not caused exclusively by disinhibitory cognitions, but that heightened physiological response to food, possibly resulting from the conditioning effects of irregular eating patterns, also contributes. iii
Measuring salivary flow: challenges and opportunities.

BACKGROUND Saliva is being studied extensively and is being used for risk assessment, diagnosis and monitoring high-risk behavior and disease progression. A variety of medical conditions and medications are associated with salivary gland hypofunction. The major disadvantage in the use of saliva for health-related purposes is the lack of standardization in saliva collection methods. METHODS The authors provide a brief overview of different methods of saliva collection and the advantages and disadvantages associated with each method, as well as of how to assess the salivary flow rate. RESULTS The authors present the complete set up and step-by-step guidelines for the collection of unstimulated and stimulated whole saliva. CONCLUSIONS The life expectancy of people will continue to increase with advances in medicine and therapeutic modalities, and the prevalence of salivary gland hypofunction in the elderly population will increase owing to their longevity. The assessment of salivary gland hypo-function will need to be incorporated into everyday clinical practice. CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS The saliva collection methods outlined in this article can be used by dentists to assess patients at risk of developing diseases and by scientists for scholarly activities.
Functional role of TRIM E3 ligase oligomerization and regulation of catalytic activity

TRIM E3 ubiquitin ligases regulate a wide variety of cellular processes and are particularly important during innate immune signalling events. They are characterized by a conserved tripartite motif in their N‐terminal portion which comprises a canonical RING domain, one or two B‐box domains and a coiled‐coil region that mediates ligase dimerization. Self‐association via the coiled‐coil has been suggested to be crucial for catalytic activity of TRIMs; however, the precise molecular mechanism underlying this observation remains elusive. Here, we provide a detailed characterization of the TRIM ligases TRIM25 and TRIM32 and show how their oligomeric state is linked to catalytic activity. The crystal structure of a complex between the TRIM25 RING domain and an ubiquitin‐loaded E2 identifies the structural and mechanistic features that promote a closed E2~Ub conformation to activate the thioester for ubiquitin transfer allowing us to propose a model for the regulation of activity in the full‐length protein. Our data reveal an unexpected diversity in the self‐association mechanism of TRIMs that might be crucial for their biological function.
Lateral electromigration and diffusion of Fc epsilon receptors on rat basophilic leukemia cells: effects of IgE binding

We have used in situ electromigration and post-field relaxation (Poo, M.-m., 1981, Annu. Rev. Biophys. Bioeng., 10:245-276) to assess the effect of immunoglobulin E (IgE) binding on the lateral mobility of IgE- Fc receptors in the plasmalemma of rat basophilic leukemia (RBL) cells. Bound IgE sharply increased the receptor's electrokinetic mobility, whereas removal of cell surface neuraminic acids cut it to near zero. In contrast, we found only a small difference between the lateral diffusion coefficients (D) of vacant and IgE-occupied Fc receptors (D: 4 vs. 3 X 10(-10) cm2/s at 24 degrees C). This is true for monomeric rat IgE; with mouse IgE, the difference in apparent diffusion rates was slightly greater (D: 4.5 vs. 2.3 X 10(-10) cm2/s at 24 degrees C). This range of D values is close to that found in previous photobleaching studies of the IgE-Fc epsilon receptor complex in RBL cells and rat mast cells. Moreover, enzymatic depletion of cell coat components did not measurably alter the diffusion rate of IgE-occupied receptors. Thus, binding of fluorescent macromolecular probes to cell surface proteins need not severely impede lateral diffusion of the probed species. If the glycocalyx of RBL cells does limit lateral diffusion of the Fc epsilon receptor, it must act primarily on the receptor itself, rather than on receptor-bound IgE.
ICDA: A Platform for Intelligent Care Delivery Analytics

The identification of high-risk patients is a critical component in improving patient outcomes and managing costs. This paper describes the Intelligent Care Delivery Analytics platform (ICDA), a system which enables risk assessment analytics that process large collections of dynamic electronic medical data to identify at-risk patients. ICDA works by ingesting large volumes of data into a common data model, then orchestrating a collection of analytics that identify at-risk patients. It also provides an interactive environment through which users can access and review the analytics results. In addition, ICDA provides APIs via which analytics results can be retrieved to surface in external applications. A detailed review of ICDA's architecture is provided. Descriptions of four use cases are included to illustrate ICDA's application within two different data environments. These use cases showcase the system's flexibility and exemplify the types of analytics it enables.
Programming norm-aware agents

Normative organisations provide a means to coordinate the activities of individual agents in multiagent settings. The coordination is realized at run time by creating obligations and prohibitions (norms) for individual agents. If an agent cannot meet an obligation or violates a prohibition, the organisation imposes a sanction on the agent. In this paper, we consider norm-aware agents that deliberate on their goals, norms and sanctions before deciding which plan to select and execute. A norm-aware agent is able to violate norms (accepting the resulting sanctions) if it is in the agent's overall interests to do so, e.g., if meeting an obligation would result in an important goal of the agent becoming unachievable. Programming norm-aware agents in conventional BDI-based agent programming languages is difficult, as they lack support for deliberating about goals, norms, sanctions and deadlines. We present the norm-aware agent programming language N-2APL. N-2APL is based on 2APL and provides support for beliefs, goals, plans, norms, sanctions and deadlines. We give the syntax and semantics of N-2APL, and show that N-2APL agents are rational in the sense of committing to a set of plans that will achieve the agent's most important goals and obligations by their deadlines while respecting its most important prohibitions.
Tempe Fermentation of Whole Grain Barley Increased Human Iron Absorption and in vitro Iron Availability

In the present study, iron absorption from a tempe fermented whole-grain barley meal was measured, and results were compared to in vitro estimation of available iron from an equivalent meal. The tempe meal (TM) was prepared from barley fermented with Rhizopus oligosporus to reduce the phytate content <0.5 µmol/g, and boiled barley with preserved phytate content was used as reference meal (BBM). Iron was added to obtain a total content of 3 mg/meal in the human study, and to the in vitro meals 7 mg of iron was added. The iron absorption from TM and BBM was 5.5±1.5% and 3.0±0.7% respectively, and in vitro iron availability was 4.9±0.2% in TM and 1.7±0.1% in BBM (absorbed fraction of total iron/meal). To conclude, iron absorption from a barley meal was improved by reducing the phytate content via tempe fermentation, and iron absorption was predicted by direction in the in vitro experiments.
Researching Women's Literacy in Mali: A Case Study of Dialogue among Researchers, Practitioners, and Policy Makers

Les resultats des recherches en education doivent idealement servir a ameliorer la politique et la pratique de l'education. Mais il est vital d'etablir une communication entre chercheurs et responsables politiques afin d'exploiter au mieux ces resultats. Cet article presente une etude de cas a propos du dialogue etablit entre l'auteur et les decideurs a la suite d'une recherche ayant porte sur l'alphabetisation des femmes au Mali. L'auteur decrit la portee de ce dialogue et ses insuffisances.