Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Interval Type-2 Fuzzy Neural System Based Control with Recursive Fuzzy C-Means Clustering

This paper focuses on the design of a novel control approach. Its contribution to the existing literature is that in the design of an interval type-2 fuzzy neural system, recursive fuzzy c-means clustering algorithm is used and the designed algorithm is applied in control applications. The center and the standard deviation values of the interval type-2 Gaussian membership functions at the antecedent part of the Takagi-Sugeno-Kang type fuzzy rules are determined by the use of the recursive fuzzy c-means clustering algorithm. The parameters at the consequent parts are tuned based on the gradient descent approach. The effectiveness of the designed algorithm is tested by simulation studies on a 2-DOF helicopter system and by experimental studies on a real-time servo system. The performance of the proposed method is compared with a traditional neuro-fuzzy structure and an interval type-2 fuzzy neural system, which are both adopted from the literature. The results obtained illustrate the efficacy of the proposed control approach.
Navigating a bumpy road. Developing sexuality education that supports young people’s sexual agency

ABSTRACT The complexity of young people’s strategic negotiation of sexual agency constitutes a challenge for professionals working in the area of sexuality education. This paper explores how comprehensive sexuality education can support young people to develop sexual agency in all its forms: embodied, bonded, narrative and moral. A first step is to base sexuality education on the recognition of the connectedness of young people to different people and to different sexual cultures. This implies that comprehensive sexuality education should provide the tools that can help young people in the process of taking up a position, forming an identity and embodying a sexual self within their own social and cultural context. Moreover, comprehensive sexuality education should not only be aimed at empowering individuals, but should also address different sexual cultures, gender norms and other social norms, to stimulate critical consciousness and collective agency, and thereby create an environment that enables and supports young people’s agency and diminishes inequality and restrictive norms.
Crambescidin-816 Acts as a Fungicidal with More Potency than Crambescidin-800 and -830, Inducing Cell Cycle Arrest, Increased Cell Size and Apoptosis in Saccharomyces cerevisiae

In this paper, we show the effect of crambescidin-816, -800, and -830 on Saccharomyces cerevisiae viability. We determined that, of the three molecules tested, crambescidin-816 was the most potent. Based on this result, we continued by determining the effect of crambescidin-816 on the cell cycle of this yeast. The compound induced cell cycle arrest in G2/M followed by an increase in cell DNA content and size. When the type of cell death was analyzed, we observed that crambescidin-816 induced apoptosis. The antifungal effect indicates that crambescidins, and mostly crambescidin-816, could serve as a lead compound to fight fungal infections.
Light-keypad interaction through coated double glazing

Interaction through glass has been demanding in industry, business, education, advertising and entertainment fields. Different technologies exist and work in varied circumstances. For example: acoustics or vibration detection, computer vision, capacitive interactive foils, infrared and others. The existing technologies tend to not work reliably through double-glazing and in outdoors conditions. This paper introduces an easy-to-implement, inexpensive solution, which is using light sensors to detect human actions and to interact with a computer. Light-Keypad can be used on any transparent medium, including through thick, coated double-glazing. This is a non-intrusive interactive method that may be used on existing objects and structures without modifying them. The prototype product has been used successfully in our current research project exploring the urban impact of digital screens.
Electrostatic and Steric Contributions to Block of the Skeletal Muscle Sodium Channel by μ-Conotoxin

Pore-blocking toxins are valuable probes of ion channels that underlie electrical signaling. To be effective inhibitors, they must show high affinity and specificity and prevent ion conduction. The 22-residue sea snail peptide, μ-conotoxin GIIIA, blocks the skeletal muscle sodium channel completely. Partially blocking peptides, derived by making single or paired amino acid substitutions in μ-conotoxin GIIIA, allow a novel analysis of blocking mechanisms. Replacement of one critical residue (Arg-13) yielded peptides that only partially blocked single-channel current. These derivatives, and others with simultaneous substitution of a second residue, were used to elucidate the structural basis of the toxin's blocking action. The charge at residue-13 was the most striking determinant. A positive charge was necessary, though not sufficient, for complete block. Blocking efficacy increased with increasing residue-13 side chain size, regardless of charge, suggesting a steric contribution to inhibition. Charges grouped on one side of the toxin molecule at positions 2, 12, and 14 had a weaker influence, whereas residue-16, on the opposite face of the toxin, was more influential. Most directly interpreted, the data suggest that one side of the toxin is masked by close apposition to a binding surface on the pore, whereas the other side, bearing Lys-16, is exposed to an aqueous cavity accessible to entering ions. Strong charge-dependent effects emanate from this toxin surface. In the native toxin, Arg-13 probably presents a strategically placed electrostatic barrier rather than effecting a complete steric occlusion of the pore. This differs from other well-described channel inhibitors such as the charybdotoxin family of potassium channel blockers and the sodium channel-blocking guanidinium toxins (tetrodotoxin and saxitoxin), which appear to occlude the narrow part of the pore.
Transformational Play

Videogames are a powerful medium that curriculum designers can use to create narratively rich worlds for achieving educational goals. In these worlds, youth can become scientists, doctors, writers, and mathematicians who critically engage complex disciplinary content to transform a virtual world. Toward illuminating this potential, the authors advance the theory of transformational play. Such play involves taking on the role of a protagonist who must employ conceptual understandings to transform a problem-based fictional context and transform the player as well. The authors first survey the theory and then ground their discussion in two units that, as part of their design-based research methodology, have simultaneously given rise to and been informed by their theory of transformational play. They close with a discussion of research and design challenges.
Electrooptic sampling of transient fields from the passage of high charge electron bunches

When a relativistic electron bunch traverses a structure, strong electric fields are induced in its wake. We present measurements of the electric field as a function of time as measured at a fixed location in the beam line. For a 12 nC bunch of duration 4.2 ps FWHM, the peak field is measured >0.5 MV/m. Time resolution of ~5 ps is achieved using electro-optic sampling with a lithium tantalate (LiTaO_3) crystal and a short-pulse infrared laser synchronized to the beam. We present measurements under several different experimental conditions and discuss the influence of mode excitation in the structure.
Periventricular leukomalacia in very low birth weight preterm neonates with high risk for neonatal sepsis.

OBJECTIVE To investigate the association between periventricular leukomalacia (PVL) and neonatal sepsis in very low birth weight infants (VLBWI). METHODS We studied VLBWI with a clinical suspicion of infection who had been born at our institution between the 1st of August, 2005 and the 31st of July, 2007. Children were excluded if they died before reaching 14 days, had malformations of the central nervous system or congenital infections. Ultrasound brain scans were carried out on the third day and weekly up until the sixth week of life or discharge. Periventricular leukomalacia was diagnosed by persistent diffuse periventricular hyperechogenecity for more than 7 days, or by periventricular cysts. The VLBWI were separated into two groups on the basis of the presence or absence of PVL. Sepsis was defined as clinical manifestation plus a positive culture. The Mann-Whitney, chi-square and t tests were applied followed by logistic regression. RESULTS A total of 88 VLBWI were studied. Of these, 62 (70.5%) survived and 51 (57.8%) had PVL. Both groups were similar in terms of birth weight, gestational age, Apgar score, type of delivery, SNAPPE-II score, presence of necrotizing enterocolitis, persistent ductus arteriosus and deaths. Sepsis and mechanical ventilation were more common in the group with PVL (23.5 and 2.7%, p = 0.005; 86 and 59%, p = 0.004, respectively). Both of these were identified as, independent risk factors for PVL by logistic regression (p = 0.027 and 0.015, respectively). CONCLUSIONS Chorioamnionitis has been defined as a risk factor for PVL. We have demonstrated that neonatal sepsis is also an important risk factor. We believe that the systemic inflammatory response is the principal factor involved in the etiopathogenesis of PVL among VLBWI.
Dynamic topic detection and tracking based on knowledge base

In order to solve the sparse initial information problem when the topic model was established ever before, this paper establishes the Wikipedia based news event knowledge base. Referring to this knowledge base, we calculate the weight of the news model, make the similarity measurement based on the time distance, make the clustering based on time line, and apply the dynamic threshold strategy to detect and track the topics automatically in the news materials. The experiment result verifies the validity of this method.
Robust Scheme for Iris Presentation Attack Detection Using Multiscale Binarized Statistical Image Features

Vulnerability of iris recognition systems remains a challenge due to diverse presentation attacks that fail to assure the reliability when adopting these systems in real-life scenarios. In this paper, we present an in-depth analysis of presentation attacks on iris recognition systems especially focusing on the photo print attacks and the electronic display (or screen) attack. To this extent, we introduce a new relatively large scale visible spectrum iris artefact database comprised of 3300 iris normal and artefact samples that are captured by simulating five different attacks on iris recognition system. We also propose a novel presentation attack detection (PAD) scheme based on multiscale binarized statistical image features and linear support vector machines. Extensive experiments are carried out on four different publicly available iris artefact databases that have revealed the outstanding performance of the proposed PAD scheme when benchmarked with various well-established state-of-the-art schemes.
Intelligent Query by Humming System

This research proposes new system which finds the music by using Query-by-Humming (QBH). For finding a stored music, the features of humming data are selected by using G.729 feature extractor. We normalize the extracted features by using mean-shifting, median filtering, average filtering and min-max scaling methods. Then the corresponding music is matched based on dynamic time warping (DTW) algorithm. As experiment, we compared the matching performance by using the database of Roger Jang's Corpus in MIREX.
Resilient and Virtually Perfect Revenue From Perfectly Informed Players

We put forward a new extensive-form mechanism that, in a general context with perfectly informed players and quasi-linear utilities, • Virtually achieves optimal revenue at a unique subgame-perfect equilibrium; • Is perfectly resilient to the problems of collusion, complexity, and privacy; and • Works for any number of players n > 1.
The Metagenome-Derived Enzymes LipS and LipT Increase the Diversity of Known Lipases

Triacylglycerol lipases (EC 3.1.1.3) catalyze both hydrolysis and synthesis reactions with a broad spectrum of substrates rendering them especially suitable for many biotechnological applications. Most lipases used today originate from mesophilic organisms and are susceptible to thermal denaturation whereas only few possess high thermotolerance. Here, we report on the identification and characterization of two novel thermostable bacterial lipases identified by functional metagenomic screenings. Metagenomic libraries were constructed from enrichment cultures maintained at 65 to 75°C and screened resulting in the identification of initially 10 clones with lipolytic activities. Subsequently, two ORFs were identified encoding lipases, LipS and LipT. Comparative sequence analyses suggested that both enzymes are members of novel lipase families. LipS is a 30.2 kDa protein and revealed a half-life of 48 h at 70°C. The lipT gene encoded for a multimeric enzyme with a half-life of 3 h at 70°C. LipS had an optimum temperature at 70°C and LipT at 75°C. Both enzymes catalyzed hydrolysis of long-chain (C12 and C14) fatty acid esters and additionally hydrolyzed a number of industry-relevant substrates. LipS was highly specific for (R)-ibuprofen-phenyl ester with an enantiomeric excess (ee) of 99%. Furthermore, LipS was able to synthesize 1-propyl laurate and 1-tetradecyl myristate at 70°C with rates similar to those of the lipase CalB from Candida antarctica. LipS represents the first example of a thermostable metagenome-derived lipase with significant synthesis activities. Its X-ray structure was solved with a resolution of 1.99 Å revealing an unusually compact lid structure.
Host Cellular Immune Response to Pneumococcal Lung Infection in Mice

ABSTRACT Although there is substantial evidence that pneumolysin is an important virulence factor in pneumococcal pneumonia, relatively little is known about how it influences cellular infiltration into the lungs. We investigated how the inability of mutant pneumococci to produce pneumolysin altered the pattern of inflammation and cellular infiltration into the lungs. The effect on bacterial growth in the lungs also was assessed. There were three phases of growth of wild-type bacteria in the lungs: a decline followed by a rapid increase and then stasis or decline. The absence of pneumolysin was associated with a more rapid early decline and then a much slower increase in numbers. The pattern of inflammatory-cell accumulation also had distinct stages, and the timing of these stages was influenced by the presence of pneumolysin. Neutrophils began to accumulate about 12 to 16 h after infection with wild-type pneumococci. This accumulation occurred after the early decline in pneumococcal numbers but coincided with the period of rapid growth. Following infection with pneumococci unable to make pneumolysin, neutrophil influx was slower and less intense. Coincident with the third stage of pneumococcal growth was an accumulation of T and B lymphocytes at the sites of inflammation, but the accumulation was not associated with an increase in the total number of lymphocytes in the lungs. Lymphocyte accumulation in the absence of pneumolysin occurred but was delayed.
Gustatory Stimuli Representing Different Perceptual Qualities Elicit Distinct Patterns of Neuropeptide Secretion from Taste Buds

Taste stimuli that evoke different perceptual qualities (e.g., sweet, umami, bitter, sour, salty) are detected by dedicated subpopulations of taste bud cells that use distinct combinations of sensory receptors and transduction molecules. Here, we report that taste stimuli also elicit unique patterns of neuropeptide secretion from taste buds that are correlated with those perceptual qualities. We measured tastant-dependent secretion of glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1), glucagon, and neuropeptide Y (NPY) from circumvallate papillae of Tas1r3+/+, Tas1r3+/− and Tas1r3 −/− mice. Isolated tongue epithelia were mounted in modified Ussing chambers, permitting apical stimulation of taste buds; secreted peptides were collected from the basal side and measured by specific ELISAs. Appetitive stimuli (sweet: glucose, sucralose; umami: monosodium glutamate; polysaccharide: Polycose) elicited GLP-1 and NPY secretion and inhibited basal glucagon secretion. Sweet and umami stimuli were ineffective in Tas1r3−/− mice, indicating an obligatory role for the T1R3 subunit common to the sweet and umami taste receptors. Polycose responses were unaffected by T1R3 deletion, consistent with the presence of a distinct polysaccharide taste receptor. The effects of sweet stimuli on peptide secretion also required the closing of ATP-sensitive K+ (KATP) channels, as the KATP channel activator diazoxide inhibited the effects of glucose and sucralose on both GLP-1 and glucagon release. Both sour citric acid and salty NaCl increased NPY secretion but had no effects on GLP-1 or glucagon. Bitter denatonium showed no effects on these peptides. Together, these results suggest that taste stimuli of different perceptual qualities elicit unique patterns of neuropeptide secretion from taste buds.
Service Placement in Fog Computing Using Constraint Programming

This paper investigates whether the use of Constraint Programming (CP) could enable the development of a generic and easy-to-upgrade placement service for Fog Computing. Our contribution is a new formulation of the placement problem, an implementation of this model leveraging Choco-solver and an evaluation of its scalability in comparison to recent placement algorithms. To the best of our knowledge, our study is the first one to evaluate the relevance of CP approaches in comparison to heuristic ones in this context. CP interleaves inference and systematic exploration to search for solutions, letting users on what matters: the problem description. Thus, our service placement model not only can be easily enhanced (deployment constraints/objectives) but also shows a competitive tradeoff between resolution times and solutions quality.
Schoolwide Application of Positive Behavior Support in an Urban High School

The nuances of the application of schoolwide positive behavior supports (PBS) in an urban high school setting were investigated. Impact of implementation was measured using qualitative interviews and observations, including the School-wide Evaluation Tool (SET), Effective Behavior Support Survey, Student Climate Survey, and office disciplinary referrals. The results indicated that schoolwide PBS was implemented in an urban high school setting with some success. The overall level of implementation of PBS reached 80% as measured by the SET. Staff and teachers increased their level of perceived priority for implementing PBS in their school. A decrease in monthly discipline referrals to the office and the proportion of students who required secondary and tertiary supports was noted. These findings seem to indicate that PBS may be an important process for improving outcomes for teachers and students in urban high school settings.
Radiation pressure and the photon momentum in dielectrics

We review the magnitudes of the photon momenta in free space, derived by Maxwell and Einstein, and those in homogeneous, dispersionless and lossless dielectrics, associated with Abraham and Minkowski. These momenta determine the forces exerted by light beams on material objects, as measured in radiation pressure experiments. It is shown that conservation conditions for components of the electromagnetic energy–momentum tensors derived by Abraham and Minkowski, also by Einstein and Laub, are equivalent relations simply derived from Maxwell's equations. The challenge for theory is the reliable interpretation of experimental momentum transfers from light to matter, which requires extensions of the basic theory to include material dispersion and surface effects. The main experiments are reviewed, together with details of a Lorentz-force theory that accounts for them. It is shown that the Abraham kinetic momentum is associated with the overall motion of a dielectric sample, while the Minkowski canonical momentum applies to the motion of bodies embedded in the dielectric.
Disorder-driven non-Fermi liquid behaviour of correlated electrons

Systematic deviations from standard Fermi-liquid behaviour have been widely observed and documented in several classes of strongly correlated metals. For many of these systems, mounting evidence is emerging that the anomalous behaviour is most likely triggered by the interplay of quenched disorder and strong electronic correlations. In this review, we present a broad overview of such disorder-driven non-Fermi liquid behaviour, and discuss various examples where the anomalies have been studied in detail. We describe both their phenomenological aspects as observed in experiment, and the current theoretical scenarios that attempt to unravel their microscopic origin.
Eﬃcient Numerical and Parallel Methods for Beam Dynamics Simulations

Eﬃcient numerical and parallel methods have been used at Argonne National Laboratory (ANL) to develop petascalable software packages for beam dynamics simulations. This paper is an summary of the numerical methods and parallel algorithms used and developed in the past ﬁve years at ANL. It is an extension to the paper “Developing petascalable algorithms for beam dynamics simulations,” on proceeding of the ﬁrst International Particle Accelerator Conference IPAC-2010 [33]. In this paper, numerical methods and parallel algorithms for our beam dynamics simulations are summarized. These include the standard particle-in-cell (PIC) method, direct Vlasov solvers and scalable Poisson solvers. Eﬃcient parallel algorithms for these methods on supercomputers have been implemented and have successfully used tens of thousands processors on the IBM Blue Gene/P system at the Argonne Leadership Computing Facility (ALCF). Among them, scalable Poisson solvers in three dimensions, to account for space charge eﬀects, are the most challenging. Several methods have been used to solve Poisson’s equation eﬃciently in diﬀerent situations. The ALCF provides a suitable environment to perform large scale beam dynamics simulations. High-order numerical methods have been adopted to increase the accuracy. Domain decomposition methods have been used for parallelizing the solvers, and good scaling has been achieved. Preliminary results for the direct Vlasov solvers have been obtained in up to four dimensions. The parallel beam dynamics code PTRACK, which uses the PIC method to solve Poisson’s equation, has been used as a workhorse for end-to-end simulations and large-scale design optimizations for linear accelerators.
Differential Expression of Plasticity-Related Genes in Waking and Sleep and Their Regulation by the Noradrenergic System

Behavioral studies indicate that the ability to acquire long-term memories is severely impaired during sleep. It is unclear, however, why the highly synchronous discharge of neurons during sleep should not be followed by the induction of enduring plastic changes. Here we show that the expression of phosphorylated CRE-binding protein, Arc, andBDNF, three genes whose induction is often associated with synaptic plasticity, is high during waking and low during sleep. We also show that the induction of these genes during waking depends on the activity of the noradrenergic system, which is high in waking and low in sleep. These molecular results complement behavioral evidence and provide a mechanism for the impairment of long-term memory acquisition during sleep.