Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Nonsingular terminal sliding mode control for the speed regulation of permanent magnet synchronous motor with parameter uncertainties

The drive performance of permanent magnet synchronous motor (PMSM) can be deteriorated due to various disturbances. In this paper, the problem of speed control for a PMSM system with parameter uncertainties is investigated. A new control algorithm based on nonsingular terminal sliding mode control (NTSMC) is proposed, where the controller is developed for speed regulation. Compared with conventional strategies, this new controller provides improved performance for speed regulation of PMSM when subject to parameter uncertainties, in that it achieves fast dynamic response and strong robustness. Simulation studies are conducted to verify the effectiveness of this proposed method.
Perceptual and linguistic category formation in infants

It is known that infants are aware of the category of objects in daily life before explicit vocabulary acquisition starts. It has been suggested that the ability of categorization is likely to play an essential role in its overall cognitive development. In this study, we conducted a series of experiments using stimuli that have various attributes in order to understand the process of such a categorization in an infant's pre-linguistic development. We consider two possible cognitive processes of linguistic categorization. One possible scenario is that certain members of the categories are derived from similarity with the most representative members of a category (prototypical members). Alternatively, the coupling of each category member-ship with relevant labels can be traced to the symbol grounding problem. Our results are consistent with an interpretation that the cortical systems involved in language development is inseparably linked with prototype effects in categorization.
Ecological Fallacies and the Analysis of Areal Census Data

In many countries census data are only reported for areal units and not at the individual level. This custom raises the spectre of ecological fallacy problems. In this paper, a 10% sample census (from the United Kingdom) and individual census data (from Italy) are used to provide an empirical demonstration of the nature and magnitude of these problems. It is concluded that ecological fallacy effects are endemic to areal census data, although their magnitude is perhaps not as large as might have been expected. The principal difficulty is that there is at present no way of predicting in advance the degree of severity likely to be associated with particular variables and particular techniques. Finally, a suggestion is made concerning how the potentially serious practical consequences can be reduced.
RENAL BIOPSY STUDIES CORRELATED WITH RENAL CLEARANCE OBSERVATIONS IN HYPERTENSIVE PATIENTS TREATED BY RADICAL SYMPATHECTOMY.

The morphologic changes in the kidneys of patients who have died from essential hypertension and its complications are well known. The structural pattern at death is informative, but it offers little clue as to the intervening degenerative processes responsible for the terminal picture. A noteworthy effort has been made in recent years to fill the void. Various investigators (1, 2, 3) have applied the ingenious renal clearance procedures devised by Smith (4) to hypertensive patients and have obtained consistent and definite data. Anatomical studies also have been pursued in living patients, and recently one of us (B. C.) reported a small series of renal biopsies, taken during life from patients with various degrees of essential hypertension (5). The specimens were obtained during operation for sympathectomy, and all showed diffuse vascular disease. Since this preliminary report the number of biopsies has been increased to more than 100.2 No attempt was made at that time to consider anatomic findings in relation to renal clearance data or to the clinical status. In the first portion of the present communication, such an attempt has been made, and the microscopic appearance of renal tissue from 20 living patients has been correlated with the function of the kidneys. The quantitative clearance procedures include measurement of rate of formation of glomerular filtrate, renal plasma flow, and maximal capacity of the tubules to excrete diodrast.3 The second portion of the paper deals
Optimizing dual half bridge converter for full range soft switching and high efficiency

This paper is concerned with finding the optimum operating points of a soft-switched dual half bridge bidirectional dc-dc converter. Phase shift modulation (θ) with a fixed duty cycle is used to control the converter [1] but the soft switching range is limited. In this paper the soft switching range and efficiency of the converter are highly improved by recruiting duty cycle (d) as the second control parameter. It is shown that for a wide voltage range on both dc buses, soft switching can be achieved for any power level including zero to full load in both directions. The regions of soft switching on the (θ,d) plane are analyzed and the trajectories of the optimal (θ,d) values for highest efficiencies are extracted. A precise simulated model of the converter is developed to verify and fine tune the analytic results. Finally a 250 KHz, 1.5Kw prototype is designed and implemented to verify the results in practice.
Maximizing Broadcast Load in Multi-Channel Multi-Interface Wireless Mesh Networks

With the enhancement in channel bandwidth and mobile devices, more broadcast applications will be deployed in the wireless mesh networks (WMNs). While traditional approaches focus on finding a single broadcast tree in the network, we aim at maximizing the number of broadcast trees/calls that can be carried. In this paper, we first formulate an Integer Linear Program (ILP) for solving the minimum-channel-utilization broadcast tree problem in multi-channel multi-interface WMNs. In our ILP, channel assignment, routing, and scheduling are jointly considered for finding a broadcast tree that can minimize the maximum channel utilization. Intuitively, this balances all the accepted traffic load in the network, which in turn maximizes the chance of accepting future calls. However, solving ILP usually takes time and is less suitable for a system with real-time call arrival. An efficient heuristic algorithm is then designed. Our simulation results show that the proposed heuristic gives real-time response and provides comparable good performance as the ILP approach.
Fast-scale instability of single-stage power-factor-correction power supplies

This paper describes the fast-scale bifurcation phenomena of a single-stage power-factor-correction (PFC) power supply which is a cost effective design for low-power applications. The circuit employs a cascade configuration of a boost converter and a forward converter, which share an active switch and operate in discontinuous conduction mode, to provide input PFC and tight output regulation. Main results are illustrated by "exact" circuit simulations as well as theoretical analysis based on the use of Jacobians. This work provides a convenient means of predicting stability boundaries which can facilitate the selection of practical parameter values for maintaining stable operation.
Query optimizing on a decentralized web search engine

Currently, most web search engines perform search on nearly a whole copy of the web corpus. There are also tools to add search functionality to a single site. Nonetheless, there is little research into search related to online communities: set of related websites or weblogs. To fill this gap, a peer-to-peer search engine is presented in this paper. This p2p search engine is designed to provide small- and middle-scale online communities such as blog sites and news sites the ability to perform text search within the community. It organizes nodes on a Distributed Hash Table (DHT) based peer-to-peer network. Communities are formed in a self-organizing style. P2P IR systems may cause increased internal traffic among nodes in answering a multi-term query. In this paper, we focused on this issue and proposed several techniques to optimize the multi-term query process in a P2P framework. Our proposed algorithms are evaluated by simulation. The simulation results show that our proposed algorithms have good scalability and can improve performance of the system by about two orders of magnitude in the best case.
Immobilized biomolecules in analysis : a practical approach

Silane-modified surfaces for biomaterial immobilization avidin-biotin immobilization systems antibodies as immobilization reagents bioanalytical applications of self-assembled monolayers protein adsorption: friend or foe? micropatterning cell adhesiveness sol-gel matrices for protein entrapment immobilization of "smart" polymer-protein conjugates kinetic analysis of the interaction between an analyte in solution and an immobilized protein spectroscopic characterization of immobilized proteins immobilization using electrogenerated polymers.
Baseline-corrected space-by-time non-negative matrix factorization for decoding single trial population spike trains

Activity of populations of sensory neurons carries stimulus information in both the temporal and the spatial dimensions. This poses the question of how to compactly represent all the information that the population codes carry across all these dimensions. Here, we developed an analytical method to factorize a large number of retinal ganglion cells’ spike trains into a robust low-dimensional representation that captures efficiently both their spatial and temporal information. In particular, we extended previously used single-trial space-by-time tensor decomposition based on non-negative matrix factorization to efficiently discount pre-stimulus baseline activity. On data recorded from retinal ganglion cells with strong pre-stimulus baseline, we showed that in situations were the stimulus elicits a strong change in firing rate, our extensions yield a boost in stimulus decoding performance. Our results thus suggest that taking into account the baseline can be important for finding a compact information-rich representation of neural activity.
Corrosion of high chrome wear part materials used in vertical roller mills

The corrosion resistance of two high chrome wear facings, manganese cold workable steel and heat treated white cast iron, was investigated. The addition of Cl− to the aqueous solution unexpectedly improves the corrosion resistance. Tribocorrosion experiments show that the current density increases but with magnitudes of no importance in industrial vertical roller mill applications. However, these corrosion magnitudes might show significant material losses in other industrial applications such as marine industries including oil drilling. The investigated wear part materials are not specifically designed to withstand abrasive marine conditions; however, the applied scientific approach might be used on such materials.
Probing the Limits of Genetic Recoding in Essential Genes

Changing the Code Easily and efficiently expanding the genetic code could provide tools to genome engineers with broad applications in medicine, energy, agriculture, and environmental safety. Lajoie et al. (p. 357) replaced all known UAG stop codons with synonymous UAA stop codons in Escherichia coli MG1655, as well as release factor 1 (RF1; terminates translation at UAG), thereby eliminating natural UAG translation function without impairing fitness. This made it possible to reassign UAG as a dedicated codon to genetically encode nonstandard amino acids while avoiding deleterious incorporation at native UAG positions. The engineered E. coli incorporated nonstandard amino acids into its proteins and showed enhanced resistance to bacteriophage T7. In a second paper, Lajoie et al. (p. 361) demonstrated the recoding of 13 codons in 42 highly expressed essential genes in E. coli. Codon usage was malleable, but synonymous codons occasionally were nonequivalent in unpredictable ways. Thirteen codons could be removed from all essential ribosomal protein-coding genes across 80 Escherichia coli strains. Engineering radically altered genetic codes will allow for genomically recoded organisms that have expanded chemical capabilities and are isolated from nature. We have previously reassigned the translation function of the UAG stop codon; however, reassigning sense codons poses a greater challenge because such codons are more prevalent, and their usage regulates gene expression in ways that are difficult to predict. To assess the feasibility of radically altering the genetic code, we selected a panel of 42 highly expressed essential genes for modification. Across 80 Escherichia coli strains, we removed all instances of 13 rare codons from these genes and attempted to shuffle all remaining codons. Our results suggest that the genome-wide removal of 13 codons is feasible; however, several genome design constraints were apparent, underscoring the importance of a strategy that rapidly prototypes and tests many designs in small pieces.
Channel Model for Satellite Communication Links Above 10GHz Based on Weibull Distribution

Modern satellite communication networks will employ frequencies above 10GHz. At these frequency bands, rain attenuation is the dominant fading mechanism. In this paper, a novel channel model, a synthesizer for generating rain attenuation time series for satellite links operating at 10GHz and above is presented. The proposed channel model modifies Maseng-Bakken (M-B) model since it generates rain attenuation time series that follow the Weibull distribution. The new stochastic dynamic model is based on the first-order Stochastic Differential Equations (SDEs) and considers rain attenuation induced on a slant path as a Weibull-based stochastic process. Moreover, the theoretical expressions for the computation of the exceedance probability of hitting time random variable are presented. The hitting time statistics may be employed for the optimum design of Fade Mitigation Techniques (FMTs). The synthesizer is verified in terms of the exceedance probability and the theoretical CCDF of hitting time comparing to these derived from the simulations in the numerical results section.
Inhibiting triglyceride synthesis improves hepatic steatosis but exacerbates liver damage and fibrosis in obese mice with nonalcoholic steatohepatitis

In the early stages of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), triglycerides accumulate in hepatocytes. Diacylglycerol acyltransferase 2 (DGAT2) catalyzes the final step in hepatocyte triglyceride biosynthesis. DGAT2 antisense oligonucleotide (ASO) treatment improved hepatic steatosis dramatically in a previous study of obese mice. According to the 2‐hit hypothesis for progression of NAFLD, hepatic steatosis is a risk factor for nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) and fibrosis. To evaluate this hypothesis, we inhibited DGAT2 in a mouse model of NASH induced by a diet deficient in methionine and choline (MCD). Six‐week‐old genetically obese and diabetic male db/db mice were fed either the control or the MCD diet for 4 or 8 weeks. The MCD diet group was treated with either 25 mg/kg DGAT2 ASO or saline intraperitoneally twice weekly. Hepatic steatosis, injury, fibrosis, markers of lipid peroxidation/oxidant stress, and systemic insulin sensitivity were evaluated. Hepatic steatosis, necroinflammation, and fibrosis were increased in saline‐treated MCD diet–fed mice compared to controls. Treating MCD diet–fed mice with DGAT2 ASO for 4 and 8 weeks decreased hepatic steatosis, but increased hepatic free fatty acids, cytochrome P4502E1, markers of lipid peroxidation/oxidant stress, lobular necroinflammation, and fibrosis. Progression of liver damage occurred despite reduced hepatic expression of tumor necrosis factor alpha, increased serum adiponectin, and striking improvement in systemic insulin sensitivity. Conclusion: Results from this mouse model would suggest accumulation of triglycerides may be a protective mechanism to prevent progressive liver damage in NAFLD. (HEPATOLOGY 2007.)
BIO012179 1..4

What is the most humane way to kill amphibians and small reptiles that are used in research? Historically, such animals were often killed by cooling followed by freezing, but this method was outlawed by ethics committees because of concerns that ice-crystals may form in peripheral tissues while the animal is still conscious, putatively causing intense pain. This argument relies on assumptions about the capacity of such animals to feel pain, the thermal thresholds for tissue freezing, the temperature-dependence of nerve-impulse transmission and brain activity, and the magnitude of thermal differentials within the bodies of rapidly-cooling animals. A review of published studies casts doubt on those assumptions, and our laboratory experiments on cane toads (Rhinella marina) show that brain activity declines smoothly during freezing, with no indication of pain perception. Thus, cooling followed by freezing can offer a humanemethod of killing cane toads, andmay bewidely applicable to other ectotherms (especially, small species that are rarely active at low body temperatures). More generally, many animal-ethics regulations have little empirical basis, and research on this topic is urgently required in order to reduce animal suffering.
Peculiar case of calcifying fibrous tumor presenting as a free-floating intraperitoneal body

Introduction: calcifying fibrous tumor (cFt) is a rare, benign soft tissue tumor of unknown etiology. Previously reported in the subcutaneous and deep tissues of the extremities and trunk, sporadic accounts of intra-abdominal cFts associated with the peritoneum, mesentery and bowel have recently arose. case report: We present a previously unreported entity of a free-floating intra-abdominal presentation of cFt. We discuss its classical histological and immunohistochemical findings, possible differential diagnoses, and its implications on clinical management. conclusion: calcifying fibrous tumor (cFt) should be considered as a possible differential diagnosis of free-floating peritoneal masses
Potential impacts of climate change on wood deterioration

Climate changes were discussed in many disciplines during recent years. The discussion mainly focused on three aspects: the significance of climate changes, anthropogenic sources for climate changes and finally potential consequences on ecological and economical patterns. This study concentrates on potential impacts of global warming and corresponding moistening on the durability of wooden building components. From experimental test set-ups in the field, climatic data, wood temperature and wood moisture content were used for mathematic modelling of decay. On that basis, a first attempt is made to quantify the influence of climate changes on wood decay rates for various scenarios. It became obvious that warming and humidification will lead to significantly reduced service lives of wooden building components. The quantity of climate induced changes strongly depends on the geographical position and the present climate. Differences between climatically divergent places are shown exemplarily for the sites Uppsala, Freiburg, Portsmouth, Bordeaux and Zagreb.
Vertical Information Restraints: Pro- and Anticompetitive Impacts of Minimum-Advertised-Price Restrictions

We consider vertical contracts in which the retail market may involve search frictions. Minimum-advertised-price (MAP) restrictions act as a restraint on customers’ information and can therefore increase search frictions in the retail sector. Such restraints thereby soften retail competition—an impact also generated by resale price maintenance (RPM). However, by accommodating (consumer or retailer) heterogeneity, MAP restrictions can allow for higher manufacturer profits than RPM. We show that these restrictions can do so through facilitating price discrimination among consumers, encouraging service provision, and facilitating manufacturer collusion. Thus, welfare effects may be positive or negative compared with RPM or with the absence of such restrictions.
The Stress-Inducible Immediate-Early Responsive Gene IEX-1 Is Activated in Cells Infected with Herpes Simplex Virus 1, but Several Viral Mechanisms, Including 3′ Degradation of Its RNA, Preclude Expression of the Gene

ABSTRACT The accumulation of cellular transcripts from cells infected with herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV-1) as measured with the aid of Affymetrix microchips has been reported elsewhere. Among these transcripts were genes that respond to stress and that could have a noxious effect on viral replication. We have selected the stress-inducible cellular gene encoding the immediate-early response protein IEX-1 to verify and determine the significance of the accumulation of these transcripts in infected cells. We report that we verified the increase in accumulation of IEX-1 transcripts after infection by Northern analyses and real-time PCR. These transcripts reach peak levels between 3 and 7 h after infection and decrease thereafter. However, IEX-1 protein was detected in cells 1 h after infection but not at later intervals. Studies designed to elucidate the failure of IEX-1 protein to be synthesized revealed the following points. (i) IEX-1 RNA transported to the cytoplasm after 1 h of infection consisted of at least two populations, a partially degraded population and a population consisting of unspliced IEX-1 RNA. Neither of these RNAs could translate the authentic IEX-1 protein. (ii) The partially degraded IEX-1 RNA was not detected in the cytoplasm of cells infected with a mutant virus lacking the UL41 gene encoding the virion host shutoff protein (vhs). Although degradation of RNA mediated by vhs was reported to be 5′ to 3′, the partially degraded IEX-1 RNA lacked the 3′ sequences rather than the 5′ sequences. (iii) The unspliced pre-RNA form containing the IEX-1 intron sequences was detected in the cytoplasm of cell infected with wild-type virus but not in those infected with a mutant lacking the α27 gene encoding the infected cell protein No. 27. (iv) Overexpression of IEX-1 protein by transduction of the gene prior to infection with 1 PFU of HSV-1 per cell had no effect on the accumulation of late genes and virus yield. We conclude that the failure of IEX-1 to express its protein reflects the numerous mechanisms by which the virus thwarts the cells from expressing its genes after infection.
Functional amyloids: interrelationship with other amyloids and therapeutic assessment to treat neurodegenerative diseases

ABSTRACT Misfolded β-sheet structures of proteins leading to neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer's disease (AD) and Parkinson's disease (PD) are in the spotlight since long. However, not much was known about the functional amyloids till the last decade. Researchers have become increasingly more concerned with the degree of involvement of these functional amyloids in human physiology. Interestingly, it has been found that the human body is exposed to a tremendous systemic amyloid burden, especially, during aging. Although many findings regarding these functional amyloids come up every day, some questions still remain unanswered like do these functional amyloids directly involve in the fibrillization of amyloid beta (Aβ) 42 peptide or enhance the Aβ42 aggregation rate; whether functional bacterial amyloids (FuBA) co-localize with the senile plaques of AD or not. A detailed review of the latest status regarding the interrelationship between functional amyloids, pathogenic amyloids and misfolded prions and therapeutic assessment of functional amyloids for the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases can help identify an alternative medication for neurodegeneration. A unique mathematical model is proposed here for alteration of Aβ42 aggregation kinetics in AD to carve out the future direction of therapeutic consideration.