Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Gene Transfer of Extracellular Superoxide Dismutase Increases Superoxide Dismutase Activity in Cerebrospinal Fluid

Background and Purpose— Copper-zinc superoxide dismutase (CuZnSOD) is expressed intracellularly, while extracellular SOD (EC-SOD) is released from cells. The purpose of this study was to determine whether gene transfer of CuZnSOD increases SOD activity predominantly in tissues, and gene transfer of EC-SOD increases SOD activity in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). We also determined whether heparin or dextran sulfate releases EC-SOD into CSF. Methods— We injected recombinant adenoviruses expressing EC-SOD (AdEC-SOD), CuZnSOD (AdCuZnSOD), or &bgr;-galactosidase (Ad&bgr;-gal) into the cisterna magna of rabbits. Results— Total SOD activity in CSF was 39±11 U/mL (mean±SE) before virus injection. Three days later, total SOD activity in CSF increased to 148±22 U/mL after AdEC-SOD and 92±10 U/mL after AdCuZnSOD (P <0.05 versus AdEC-SOD), with no change after Ad&bgr;-gal (49±5 U/mL). EC-SOD protein was detected in CSF after AdEC-SOD but not AdCuZnSOD or Ad&bgr;-gal. Injection of heparin or dextran sulfate into the cisterna magna increased total SOD activity 27-fold and 32-fold over basal values, respectively, in CSF of rabbits that received AdEC-SOD. In contrast to effects in CSF, total SOD activity in basilar artery and meninges was significantly higher after AdCuZnSOD and tended to be higher after AdEC-SOD than after Ad&bgr;-gal. Conclusions— We have developed a method for intracranial gene transfer of CuZnSOD and EC-SOD. After gene transfer, CuZnSOD was expressed mainly in tissues, and EC-SOD was released into the CSF, especially after injection of heparin or dextran sulfate. Gene transfer of different isoforms of SOD may be useful in studies of cerebral vascular physiology and pathophysiology.
Cepheid Period-Radius and Period-Luminosity Relations and the Distance to the Large Magellanic Cloud

We have used the infrared Barnes-Evans surface brightness technique to derive the radii and distances of 34 Galactic Cepheid variables. Radius and distance results obtained from both versions of the technique are in excellent agreement. The radii of 28 variables are used to determine the period-radius (PR) relation. This relation is found to have a smaller dispersion than in previous studies, and is identical to the PR relation found by Laney & Stobie from a completely independent method, a fact which provides persuasive evidence that the Cepheid PR relation is now determined at a very high confidence level. We use the accurate infrared distances to determine period-luminosity (PL) relations in the V, I, J, H, and K passbands from the Galactic sample of Cepheids. We derive improved slopes of these relations from updated LMC Cepheid samples and adopt these slopes to obtain accurate absolute calibrations of the PL relation. By comparing these relations to the ones defined by the LMC Cepheids, we derive strikingly consistent and precise values for the LMC distance modulus in each of the passbands that yield a mean value of μ0(LMC) = 18.46 ± 0.02. By analyzing the observed dispersions of the PL relations defined by the LMC and Galactic samples of Cepheids, we disentangle the contributions due to uncertainties in the reddenings, in distance measurement, and due to metallicity effects, and we estimate the intrinsic dispersion of the PL relation with the Wesenheit function. Assuming that the Galactic Cepheid distances are typically accurate to ±3% (as shown in a previous paper), and assuming an intrinsic spread in [Fe/H] of ~0.4 dex among the Cepheids of our sample as obtained by Fry & Carney, the observed dispersion of the Galactic Cepheid PL relation suggests a metallicity dependence of Δμ/Δ[Fe/H] ≈ 0.2, about half the value suggested by Sasselov et al. from EROS data. Since this estimate of the metallicity dependence of the PL (V) relation is rather uncertain, however, we prefer to retain μ0(LMC) = 18.46 as our best value, but with an increased uncertainty of ±0.06, most of which is due to the uncertainty in the appropriate metallicity correction. Our results show that the infrared Barnes-Evans technique is very insensitive to both Cepheid metallicity and adopted reddening, and therefore is a very powerful tool to derive accurate distances to nearby galaxies by a direct application of the technique to their Cepheid variables, rather than by comparing PL relations of different galaxies, which introduces much more sensitivity to metallicity and absorption corrections that are usually difficult to determine.
Image deblurring based on maximization of edginess

It is natural and almost inevitable to obtain images that are overly smooth and noisier than possible best out of image sensors. Blurring is generally noticeable in the regions containing edges and appears as softening effect by averaging. It is important to restore and enhance blurred and noisy images in many imaging applications. In this study, an image quality measure called edginess is used and a recursive algorithm is proposed for maximization of edginess. As shown by the experimental studies, maximization of edginess improves signal to noise ratio and the proposed algorithm generates sharper images.
Interactions between Simulated Tropical Cyclones and an Environment with a Variable Coriolis Parameter

Abstract Numerical simulations of tropical cyclones are performed to examine the effects of a variable Coriolis parameter on the structure and intensity of hurricanes. The simulations are performed using the nonhydrostatic fifth-generation Pennsylvania State University–National Center for Atmospheric Research Mesoscale Model using a 5-km fine mesh and fully explicit representation of moist processes. When a variable Conolis parameter ( f ) environment is applied to a mature tropical cyclone, a persistent north-northwesterly shear develops over the storm center as a result of an interaction between the primary circulation of the storm and the gradient in absolute vorticity. As a result, the variable-f storm quickly develops a persistent wavenumber-1 asymmetry in its inner-core structure with upward motion and rainfall concentrated on the left side of the shear looking downshear, in agreement with earlier studies. In comparison, the constant-f storm develops weak transient asymmetries in structure that are .
Prefrontal–Inferotemporal Interaction Is Not Always Necessary for Reversal Learning

Prefrontal cortex (PFC) is thought to have a wide-ranging role in cognition, often described as executive function or behavioral inhibition. A specific example of such a role is the inhibition of representations in more posterior regions of cortex in a “top-down” manner, a function thought to be tested by reversal learning tasks. The direct action of PFC on posterior regions can be directly tested by disconnecting PFC from the region in question. We tested whether PFC directly inhibits visual object representations in inferotemporal cortex (IT) during reversal learning by studying the effect, in macaque monkeys, of disconnecting PFC from IT by crossed unilateral ablations. We tested two visual object reversal learning tasks, namely serial and concurrent reversal learning. We found that the disconnection severely impairs serial reversal learning but leaves concurrent reversal learning completely intact. Thus, PFC cannot be said to always have direct inhibitory control over visual object representations in reversal learning. Furthermore, our results cannot be explained by generalized theories of PFC function such as executive function and behavioral inhibition, because those theories do not make predictions that differentiate different forms of reversal learning. The results do, however, support our proposal, based on other experimental evidence from macaque monkeys, that PFC has a highly specific role in the representation of temporally complex events.
What's decidable about hybrid automata?

Hybrid automata model systems with both digital and analog components, such as embedded control programs. Many verification tasks for such programs can be expressed as reachability problems for hybrid automata. By improving on previous decidability and undecidability results, we identify a boundary between decidability and undecidability for the reachability problem of hybrid automata. On the positive side, we give an (optimal) PSPACE reachability algorithm for the case of initialized rectangular automata, where all analog variables follow independent trajectories within piecewise-linear envelopes and are reinitialized whenever the envelope changes. Our algorithm is based on the construction of a timed automaton that contains all reachability information about a given initialized rectangular automaton. The translation has practical significance for verification, because it guarantees the termination of symbolic procedures for the reachability analysis of initialized rectangular automata. The translation also preserves the? -languages of initialized rectangular automata with bounded nondeterminism. On the negative side, we show that several slight generalizations of initialized rectangular automata lead to an undecidable reachability problem. In particular, we prove that the reachability problem is undecidable for timed automata augmented with a single stopwatch.
Three-Dimensional Architecture and Biogenesis of Membrane Structures Associated with Hepatitis C Virus Replication

All positive strand RNA viruses are known to replicate their genomes in close association with intracellular membranes. In case of the hepatitis C virus (HCV), a member of the family Flaviviridae, infected cells contain accumulations of vesicles forming a membranous web (MW) that is thought to be the site of viral RNA replication. However, little is known about the biogenesis and three-dimensional structure of the MW. In this study we used a combination of immunofluorescence- and electron microscopy (EM)-based methods to analyze the membranous structures induced by HCV in infected cells. We found that the MW is derived primarily from the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) and contains markers of rough ER as well as markers of early and late endosomes, COP vesicles, mitochondria and lipid droplets (LDs). The main constituents of the MW are single and double membrane vesicles (DMVs). The latter predominate and the kinetic of their appearance correlates with kinetics of viral RNA replication. DMVs are induced primarily by NS5A whereas NS4B induces single membrane vesicles arguing that MW formation requires the concerted action of several HCV replicase proteins. Three-dimensional reconstructions identify DMVs as protrusions from the ER membrane into the cytosol, frequently connected to the ER membrane via a neck-like structure. In addition, late in infection multi-membrane vesicles become evident, presumably as a result of a stress-induced reaction. Thus, the morphology of the membranous rearrangements induced in HCV-infected cells resemble those of the unrelated picorna-, corona- and arteriviruses, but are clearly distinct from those of the closely related flaviviruses. These results reveal unexpected similarities between HCV and distantly related positive-strand RNA viruses presumably reflecting similarities in cellular pathways exploited by these viruses to establish their membranous replication factories.
Measuring and explaining the marriage boom in the developed world

Abstract Using aggregated data from 25 developed countries over a lengthy period of time, this article presents a measure of the marriage boom observed in the twentieth century and an explanation for its causes. One of my main conclusions is that even though it basically developed after the Second World War, its origins are to be found before it. I found that, contrary to the views of some scholars, this boom was not a short-lived phenomenon, but actually lasted for 90 years on average. Using panel data analysis techniques, I am able to show that the rise in women’s education, state spending on social benefits, and larger percentages of people employed in the primary sector tended to discourage marriage. I also found a quadratic relationship between the nuptiality index and the per capita income and mortality rates.
Age and gender differences in the control of vertical ground reaction force by the hip, knee and ankle joints

[Purpose] This study examined the relationships between joint moment and the control of the vertical ground reaction force during walking in the elderly and young male and female individuals. [Subjects and Methods] Forty elderly people, 65 years old or older (20 males and 20 females), and 40 young people, 20 to 29 years old (20 males and 20 females), participated in this study. Joint moment and vertical ground reaction force during walking were obtained using a 3D motion analysis system and force plates. Stepwise linear regression analysis determined the joint moments that predict the amplitude of the vertical ground reaction force. [Results] Knee extension moment was related to the vertical ground reaction force in the young males and females. On the other hand, in the elderly females, hip, ankle, and knee joint moments were related to the first peak and second peak forces, and the minimum value of vertical ground reaction force, respectively. [Conclusion] Our results suggest that the young males and females make use of the knee joint moment to control of the vertical ground reaction force. There were differences between the elderly and the young females with regard to the joints used for the control of the vertical ground reaction force.
Avoiding Oscillations Due to Intelligent Route Control Systems

Intelligent Route Control (IRC) systems are increasingly deployed in multihomed networks. IRC systems aim to optimize the cost and performance of outgoing traffic, based on measurement-driven dynamic path switching techniques. In this paper, we first show that IRC systems can introduce sustained traffic oscillations, causing significant performance degradation instead of improvement. This happens, first, when IRC systems do not take into account the self-load effect, i.e., when they ignore that the performance of a path can change after additional traffic is switched to that path. Second, oscillations can take place when different IRC systems get synchronized due to significant overlap of their measurement time windows. We then propose measurement methodologies and path switching algorithms that can effectively deal with the previous two issues. The proposed IRC techniques use available bandwidth estimation to avoid the self-load effect, and they introduce a random component in the path switching decision or time scale. We evaluate the proposed techniques under diverse traffic conditions. When the background traffic is stationary, IRC systems should switch paths conservatively, only upon major traffic fluctuations. With nonstationary background traffic and congestion periods that last for a time scale Tw, IRC systems improve performance only if they can detect congestion and switch paths much faster than Tw; otherwise, they cause oscillations and hurt performance. We also show that the gradual deployment of randomized IRC systems, in the presence of traffic from deterministic IRC systems, can play a stabilizing role and benefits early adopters.
Design and analysis of a novel compact compliant actuator with variable impedance

Compliant Actuators are desirable for human friendly robotics, especially for assistive and rehabilitation robots that have direct physical interaction with human users. Various designs of Series Elastic Actuators (SEA) have been developed for these applications. This paper presents a novel SEA design with variable impedance for human-friendly robotics applications that overcomes the major limitations in the existing SEA designs. This novel design consists of a servomotor, a ball screw, a torsional spring between the motor and the ball screw, and a set of translational springs between the ball screw nut and the external load. The soft translational springs are used to handle the low force operation and reduce output impedance, stiction, and external shock load. The torsional spring, being in the high speed range, has high effective stiffness and improves the system bandwidth in large force operation when the translational springs are fully compressed. We first review the merits and the limitations of current series elastic actuators. We then explain the construction and the working principle of our new design, followed by the dynamic modeling and analysis of the actuator. We also show the preliminary testing results of a prototype actuator designed for a lower limb exoskeleton for gait rehabilitation.
Delirium in Diabetic Ketoacidosis: A Case Report

A 15-year-old female patient with known type 1 diabetes mellitus was referred because of abdominal pain. On admission, she was alert but dehydrated with marked Kussmaul breathing. Blood glucose was 414 mg/dL (23 mmol/L). Blood gas analysis revealed severe metabolic acidosis (pH: 6.99) with an elevated anion gap (29.8 mmol/L) and an increased base excess (-25.2 mmol/L). At the sixth hour of treatment with intravenous fluids and insulin, the patient became delirious. The delirium persisted despite the normalization of the acidosis and became difficult to manage. Brain imaging studies revealed neither brain edema nor other intracranial pathology. No evidence of intoxication could be found. The patient gradually regained consciousness and was diagnosed as a case of severe diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) associated with infection. We were unable to find a similar case in the pediatric literature and thought that reporting this unusual case would be a contribution to the literature on DKA in children. Conflict of interest:None declared.
Aquatic noise pollution: implications for individuals, populations, and ecosystems

Anthropogenically driven environmental changes affect our planet at an unprecedented scale and are considered to be a key threat to biodiversity. According to the World Health Organization, anthropogenic noise is one of the most hazardous forms of anthropogenically driven environmental change and is recognized as a major global pollutant. However, crucial advances in the rapidly emerging research on noise pollution focus exclusively on single aspects of noise pollution, e.g. on behaviour, physiology, terrestrial ecosystems, or on certain taxa. Given that more than two-thirds of our planet is covered with water, there is a pressing need to get a holistic understanding of the effects of anthropogenic noise in aquatic ecosystems. We found experimental evidence for negative effects of anthropogenic noise on an individual's development, physiology, and/or behaviour in both invertebrates and vertebrates. We also found that species differ in their response to noise, and highlight the potential underlying mechanisms for these differences. Finally, we point out challenges in the study of aquatic noise pollution and provide directions for future research, which will enhance our understanding of this globally present pollutant.
Streaming compressed 3D data on the web using JavaScript and WebGL

With the development of Web3D technologies, the delivery and visualization of 3D models on the web is now possible and is bound to increase both in the industry and for the general public. However the interactive remote visualization of 3D graphic data in a web browser remains a challenging issue. Indeed, most of existing systems suffer from latency (due to the data downloading time) and lack of adaptation to heterogeneous networks and client devices (i.e. the lack of levels of details); these drawbacks seriously affect the quality of user experience. This paper presents a technical solution for streaming and visualization of compressed 3D data on the web. Our approach leans upon three strong features: (1) a dedicated progressive compression algorithm for 3D graphic data with colors producing a binary compressed format which allows a progressive decompression with several levels of details; (2) the introduction of a JavaScript halfedge data structure allowing complex geometrical and topological operations on a 3D mesh; (3) the multi-thread JavaScript/WebGL implementation of the decompression scheme allowing 3D data streaming in a web browser. Experiments and comparison with existing solutions show promising results in terms of latency, adaptability and quality of user experience.
Mining Labelled Tensors by Discovering both their Common and Discriminative Subspaces

Conventional non-negative tensor factorization (NTF) methods assume there is only one tensor that needs to be decomposed to low-rank factors. However, in practice data are usually generated from different time periods or by different class labels, which are represented by a sequence of multiple tensors associated with different labels. This raises the problem that when one needs to analyze and compare multiple tensors, existing NTF is unsuitable for discovering all potentially useful patterns: 1) if one factorizes each tensor separately, the common information shared by the tensors is lost in the factors, and 2) if one concatenates these tensors together and forms a larger tensor to factorize, the intrinsic discriminative subspaces that are unique to each tensor are not captured. The cause of such an issue is from the fact that conventional factorization methods handle data observations in an unsupervised way, which only considers features and not labels of the data. To tackle this problem, in this paper we design a novel factorization algorithm called CDNTF (common and discriminative subspace non-negative tensor factorization), which takes both features and class labels into account in the factorization process. CDNTF uses a set of labelled tensors as input and computes both their common and discriminative subspaces simultaneously as output. We design an iterative algorithm that solves the common and discriminative subspace factorization problem with a proof of convergence. Experiment results on solving graph classification problems demonstrate the power and the effectiveness of the subspaces discovered by our method.
Laryngeal tonal characteristics of Punjabi — An experimental study

This paper is an attempt towards an experimental study of tonal aspects of laryngeal phoneme [J]/h/ in Punjabi. Punjabi belongs to the Indo-Aryan language family but because of its tonal features it is different from other languages of the family. Every tonal aspect of [J]/h/, including most exceptions, has been experimentally examined. Words containing [J]/h/ in various positions have been recorded by native Punjabi (Malwai dialect) speakers. This data has been analyzed using speech analysis tools. Orthographically, [J] /h/ is used in all word positions i.e. initial, medial & final but is tonal in some cases. It has been pointed out in the literature on Punjabi linguistics Harkirat Singh (1991), Dr. Atam Singh (1993); it is pronounced at initial position but is tonal at medial and final position. Phonetically it is represented by a high rising tone /ó/ or low rising tone /ò/ on top of the accompanying vowel. Also, the pronunciation of [J] i.e. half /h/ is so weak that it is perceived as a tone which has also been experimentally verified. This analysis will aid the future speech researchers in building the Punjabi speech systems and speech data.