Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Compact Measurement Schemes for Bit-Line Swing, Sense Amplifier Offset Voltage, and Word-Line Pulse Width to Characterize Sensing Tolerance Margin in a 40 nm Fully Functional Embedded SRAM

This paper proposes schemes for the direct measurement of bit-line (BL) voltage swing, sense amplifier (SA) offset voltage, and word-line (WL) pulse width, demonstrated in a 40 nm CMOS 32 kb fully functional SRAM macro with <;2% area penalty. This is the first such scheme to enable the optimal tuning of WL-pulse (WLP) width according to on-site measurement results for BL voltage swing, dynamic read stability, and write margin, all of which depend on WLP width. It also eliminates the need for additional margins related to BL voltage swing, which has conventionally been required to ensure adequate tolerances against simulation errors and inaccurate estimation of SA offset voltage. This opens up possibilities for a more aggressive approach to deal with WLP width instead of only ensuring the target BL voltage swing.
Analytical Modeling of SRAM Dynamic Stability

In this paper, for the first time, a theory for evaluating dynamic noise margins of SRAM cells is developed analytically. The results allow predicting the transient error susceptibility of an SRAM cell using a closed-form expression. The key innovation involves using the methods of nonlinear system theory in developing the model. It is shown that when a transient noise of given magnitude affects a sensitive node of a cell, the bi-stable, feedback-driven nature of the cell determines whether the noise will be suppressed or will evolve to eventually flip state. The specific formal and quantitative result is a closed-form expression that can be used to predict whether a cell flip will occur for a noise signal with specific characteristics, and for a given SRAM cell design. Experiments show excellent match between the analytical prediction and the SPICE simulation results
MIMO broadcast channels with Gaussian CSIT and application to location based CSIT

Channel State Information at the Transmitter (CSIT), which is crucial in multi-user systems, is always imperfect in practice. In this paper we focus on the optimization of beamformers for the expected weighted sum rate (EWSR) in the MIMO Broadcast Channel (BC) (multi-user MIMO downlink). We first review some beamformer (BF) designs for the perfect CSIT case, such as Weighted Sum MSE (WSMSE) and we introduce the Weighted Sum SINR (WSSINR) point of view, an optimal form of the Signal to Leakage plus Noise Ratio (SLNR) or Signal to Jamming plus Noise Ratio (SJNR) approaches. The discussion then turns to mean and covariance Gaussian CSIT. We review an exact Monte Carlo based approach and a variety of approximate techniques and bounds that all reduce to problems of the (deterministic) form of perfect CSIT. Other simplified exact solutions can be obtained through massive MIMO asymptotics, or the more precise large MIMO asymptotics. Whereas in the perfect CSI case, all reviewed approaches are equivalent, they differ in the partial CSIT case. In particular the expected WSSINR approach is significantly better than expected WSMSE, with large MIMO asymptotics introducing some further tweaking weights that yield a deterministic approach that becomes exact when the number of antennas increases. The complexity and relative performance of the in the end many possible approaches and approximations are then compared.
Clinical update on the use of biomarkers of airway inflammation in the management of asthma

Biological markers are already used in the diagnosis and treatment of cardiovascular disease and cancer. Biomarkers have great potential use in the clinic as a noninvasive means to make more accurate diagnoses, monitor disease progression, and create personalized treatment regimes. Asthma is a heterogeneous disease with several different phenotypes, generally triggered by multiple gene-environment interactions. Pulmonary function tests are most often used objectively to confirm the diagnosis. However, airflow obstruction can be variable and thus missed using spirometry. Furthermore, lung function measurements may not reflect the precise underlying pathological processes responsible for different phenotypes. Inhaled corticosteroids and β2-agonists have been the mainstay of asthma therapy for over 30 years, but the heterogeneity of the disease means not all asthmatics respond to the same treatment. High costs and undesired side effects of drugs also drive the need for better targeted treatment of asthma. Biomarkers have the potential to indicate an individual’s disease phenotype and thereby guide clinicians in their decisions regarding treatment. This review focuses on biomarkers of airway inflammation which may help us to identify, monitor, and guide treatment of asthmatics. We discuss biomarkers obtained from multiple physiological sources, including sputum, exhaled gases, exhaled breath condensate, serum, and urine. We discuss the inherent limitations and benefits of using biomarkers in a heterogeneous disease such as asthma. We also discuss how we may modify our study designs to improve the identification and potential use of potential biomarkers in asthma.
Parametric model for vocal effort interpolation with harmonics plus noise models

It is known that voice quality plays an important role in expres- sive speech. In this paper, we present a methodology for modi- fying vocal effort level, which can be applied by text-to-speech (TTS) systems to provide the flexibility needed to improve the naturalness of synthesized speech. This extends previous work using low order Linear Prediction Coefficients (LPC) where the flexibility was constrained by the amount of vocal effort levels available in the corpora. The proposed methodology overcomes these limitations by replacing the low order LPC by ninth or- der polynomials to allow not only vocal effort to be modified towards the available templates, but also to allow the generation of intermediate vocal effort levels between levels available in training data. This flexibility comes from the combination of Harmonics plus Noise Models and using a parametric model to represent the spectral envelope. The conducted perceptual tests demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed technique in per- forming vocal effort interpolations while maintaining the signal quality in the final synthesis. The proposed technique can be used in unit-selection TTS systems to reduce corpus size while increasing its flexibility, and the techniques could potentially be employed by HMM based speech synthesis systems if appropri- ate acoustic features are being used. Index Terms: vocal effort interpolation, harmonics plus noise model, expressive speech synthesis
A Novel Genotype of GB Virus C: Its Identification and Predominance among Injecting Drug Users in Yunnan, China

GB virus C (GBV-C) is prevalent globally and particularly among individuals at risk of parental exposures. Based on genetic diversity, this virus is now classified into six genotypes and many subtypes with distinct geographical distribution. In this study, 120 Injecting Drug Users (IDUs) were recruited from Yunnan province, China. Among them, 43 (35.8%) were positive for GBV-C RNA, 70 (58.3%) and 103 (85.8%) sero-positive for HIV-1 and HCV respectively. This revealed 18.3% of IDUs having GBV-C/HIV/HCV triple infection, which is significantly higher than 7.5% of GBV-C/HIV-1 and 10% of GBV-C/HCV dual infection rates (P<0.05). Based on 5′UTR sequences, the identified 43 viral isolates can be classified into three phylogenetic groups: one (2.3%) and two (4.7%) belonged to genotype 3 and 4, respectively, and the remaining 40 (93%) formed a new group with 97% of bootstrap support. This new GBV-C group was further confirmed by characterizing the E2 region and full-length genome sequences. Analysis of 187 nt 5′UTR sequence showed three previous reported isolates from Southeast Asia were re-classified into this new group. It implies they have the same origin with strains from Yunnan. Although we provisionally assigned this new group as GBV-C genotype 7, a simpler five groups of GBV-C nomenclature is recommended. Genotype 4, 6 and the newly designated genotype 7 could be reclassified as one group, which may represent a single GBV-C genotype. The classification of the other four groups was corresponding to that of previous reported genotype 1, 2, 3 and 5. Furthermore, the diversity of amino acid sequence in the E2 region was analyzed. The inhibitory effect of GBV-C genotype 7 on HIV-1 cell entry could be deduced. Since GBV-C may have a beneficial effect on AIDS disease progression and interact with HCV during co-infection, this finding may raise interests in future studies on this virus that was previously thought to be a “non-pathogenic virus”.
Mindless Visualisations

The wonder and, unfortunately, to the detriment of visualisation for the representation and comprehension of complex data sets is that to be most successful requires that they are tailored to suit the task and underlying data. Such a restriction enables visualisations to be well designed for the tasks to which they are known to be applied to, and also to accommodate the style and range of data to be expected as normal. The problem with this repeated redesign of visualisations is that the interface is often neglected, and can even be solely dependent on the implementing technology used for the visualisation. It is important to add such issues as the interface to visualisation considerations, and to provide reusable concepts that will integrate with a range of metaphors and displays. This position paper examines the issues surrounding such visualisation interfaces and presents a discussion of those issues.
Implementation aspects of the DPA-resistant logic style MDPL

An important task when implementing cryptographic algorithms in hardware is to provide adequate protection against differential power analysis (DPA) attacks. During the last years, several countermeasures against these attacks have been proposed. One of them is a logic style called masked dual-rail pre-charged logic (MDPL). This article discusses several implementation aspects of this logic style. First, it is shown how MDPL circuits can be built using a semi-custom design flow. Subsequently, the area requirements, the speed, the power consumption and the DPA resistance of MDPL circuits are analyzed based on a case study. This case study shows that the power consumption of MDPL circuits is significantly higher than the one of corresponding CMOS circuits. Motivated by this observation, new low-power techniques for MDPL circuits are proposed. During the time when MDPL circuits do not perform operations that are critical for DPA attacks, the proposed low-power techniques reduce the power consumption of MDPL circuits by about a factor of four
Effects of maternal caloric restriction and exercise during lactation.

In affluent populations, breast-feeding women often wish to return to their prepregnancy weight as soon as possible postpartum and may restrict energy intake or increase exercise to achieve this goal. Gradual weight loss (< or = 2 kg/mo) seems to have no adverse effect on milk volume or composition, provided that the mother is not undernourished and is breast-feeding her infant on demand. Aerobic exercise improves cardiovascular fitness and does not affect milk energy transfer to the infant, but exercise alone is not likely to increase the rate of weight loss unless dietary intake is controlled. Less information is available on the effect of rapid weight loss. Data from a recent randomized intervention trial indicate that a short-term (11 d) energy deficit of 35%, achieved by dieting or a combination of dieting and increased exercise, results in weight loss > 1 kg/wk and does not adversely affect lactation. Exercise enhances maintenance of lean body mass and is therefore a recommended component of any weight loss program. Maternal plasma prolactin concentration generally increases under conditions of negative energy balance, which may serve to protect lactation. Further research is required on the longer-term effect of energy restriction and on the effects of energy balance in lactating women with low fat reserves.
Effect of comorbidities and postoperative complications on mortality after hip fracture in elderly people: prospective observational cohort study

Abstract Objectives To evaluate postoperative medical complications and the association between these complications and mortality at 30 days and one year after surgery for hip fracture and to examine the association between preoperative comorbidity and the risk of postoperative complications and mortality. Design Prospective observational cohort study. Setting University teaching hospital. Participants 2448 consecutive patients admitted with an acute hip fracture over a four year period. We excluded 358 patients: all those aged < 60; those with periprosthetic fractures, pathological fractures, and fractures treated without surgery; and patients who died before surgery. Interventions Routine care for hip fractures. Main outcome measures Postoperative complications and mortality at 30 days and one year. Results Mortality was 9.6% at 30 days and 33% at one year. The most common postoperative complications were chest infection (9%) and heart failure (5%). In patients who developed postoperative heart failure mortality was 65% at 30 days (hazard ratio 16.1, 95% confidence interval 12.2 to 21.3). Of these patients, 92% were dead by one year (11.3, 9.1 to 14.0). In patients who developed a postoperative chest infection mortality at 30 days was 43% (8.5, 6.6 to 11.1). Significant preoperative variables for increased mortality at 30 days included the presence of three or more comorbidities (2.5, 1.6 to 3.9), respiratory disease (1.8, 1.3 to 2.5), and malignancy (1.5, 1.01 to 2.3). Conclusions In elderly people with hip fracture, the presence of three or more comorbidities is the strongest preoperative risk factor. Chest infection and heart failure are the most common postoperative complications and lead to increased mortality. These groups offer a clear target for specialist medical assessment.
Variation in dust properties in a dense filament of the Taurus molecular complex (L1506)

Aims. We observed the L1506 filament, which is located in the Taurus molecular complex, with the Herschel PACS and SPIRE instruments. Our aim is to prove the variation in grain properties along the entire length of the filament. In particular, we want to determine above which gas density this variation arises and what changes in the grain optical properties/size distribution are required.Methods. We use the 3D radiative transfer code CRT, coupled to the dust emission and extinction code DustEM, to model the emission and extinction of the dense filament. We test a range of optical properties and size distributions for the grains: dust of the diffuse interstellar medium (interstellar PAHs and amorphous carbons and silicates) and both compact and fluffy aggregates.Results. We find that the grain opacity has to increase across the filament to fit simultaneously the near-IR extinction and Herschel emission profiles of L1506. We interpret this change to be a consequence of the coagulation of dust grains to form fluffy aggregates. Grains similar to those in the diffuse medium have to be present in the outer layers of the cloud, whereas aggregates must prevail above gas densities of a few 103 H/cm3. This corresponds to line-of-sights with visual extinction in the V band of the order of 2 to 3. The dust opacity at 250 μm is raised by a factor of 1.8 to 2.2, while the grain average size is increased by a factor of 5. These exact numbers depend naturally on the dust model chosen to fit the data. Our findings agree with the constraints given by the study of the gas molecular lines. Using a simple approach, we show that the aggregates may have time to form inside the filament within the cloud lifetime. Our model also characterises the density structure of the filament, showing that the filament width is not constant along L1506 but instead varies by a factor of the order of 4.Conclusions. We confirm the need for an increase in the far-IR dust opacity to explain the emission and extinction in L1506C, which we interpret as being due to dust growth. We also show that this opacity variation is valid along the entire length of the L1506 dense filament.
System architecture for cross border payment: a case study for the financial services industry

The financial services industry is changing rapidly as a result of advances in information technology (IT), telecommunications and the Internet. Technological innovations and increasing customer demand have led to the emergence of new services and new organizational forms for financial services firms. Willingly or unwillingly, banks are being forced to move toward worldwide operation. This enables them to offer services and credit facilities on a global scale, tailored to customers regardless of where they are based. However, variations among national markets present obstacles as well as opportunities to companies attempting to "go global. " This paper describes specific problems and solutions for the globalization of banking services, and a case study carried out on payment services for an international bank to develop system architecture for cross border payment. The proposed architecture aims to keep apart of the processes local, but transfers the core of the transaction operations to a centralized system with clear services and clear interfaces. The bi-directional translation of formats makes standardized processing possible, while output for the specific contexts can be provided in the original formats. An important property of the architecture is that the rich context has been integrated into the handling of transactions.
Expression of NGF in hepatocellular carcinoma cells with its receptors in non‐tumor cell components

Nerve growth factor (NGF) is suggested to have a role in tumor progression in addition to its role in differentiation and survival of neuronal cells. We investigated expression of NGF and its receptors, TrkA and p75NTR, in hepatocellular carcinomas (HCCs). Although hepatocytes and hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) showed respectively weak and intense NGF immunostaining in the background livers of patients suffering from liver cirrhosis (LC) or chronic hepatitis (CH), intense staining was demonstrated in HCC cells of 33 of 54 (61.1%) tumors. RT‐PCR detected NGF mRNA in 7 freshly‐isolated HCC samples, and in 2 of 4 cases, in which both background livers and tumors could be analyzed, NGF mRNA was more abundant in the tumors than the background livers. TrkA was detected in the smooth muscle cells of hepatic arteries, but it was negative in tumor cells as well as non‐neoplastic hepatocytes. p75NTR and α‐smooth muscle actin (αSMA) was expressed in HSCs in the background liver and fibroblast‐like cells in stromal septa, whereas HSCs within the HCC tissues were mostly negative for p75NTR but positive for αSMA. This suggests that HSCs in HCC have a different property from those in background livers. Furthermore, the stromal septa contained abundant nerve fibers, which may be related to the increased NGF expression in HCC cells. NGF and its receptors are then thought to have a role in cellular interactions involving HCC cells, HSCs, arterial cells and nerve cells in HCC tissues. © 2004 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Scientific Workflow Systems for 21st Century e-Science, New Bottle or New Wine?

With the advances in e-Sciences and the growing complexity of scientific analyses, more and more scientists and researchers are relying on workflow systems for process coordination, derivation automation, provenance tracking, and bookkeeping. While workflow systems have been in use for decades, it is unclear whether scientific workflows can or even should build on existing workflow technologies, or they require fundamentally new approaches. In this paper, we analyze the status and challenges of scientific workflows, investigate both existing technologies and emerging languages, platforms and systems, and identify the key challenges that must be addressed by workflow systems for e-science in the 21st century.
Motivation in physical education classes

This article presents a brief overview of empirical studies in school physical education (PE) that have employed self-determination theory (SDT) and, where relevant, proposes ideas for future research in this area. First, we review research on teachers' interpersonal style and its relation to students' motivation. Second, we discuss intervention studies aimed at optimizing teachers' interactions with students. Third, we present an overview of findings suggesting that basic psychological needs and motivational regulations predict various cognitive, affective, and behavioral outcomes in PE. Finally, we provide practical recommendations for PE teachers drawing from initial intervention studies in PE.
HSP70-hom Gene Polymorphism in Allogeneic Hematopoietic Stem-Cell Transplant Recipients Correlates with the Development of Acute Graft-versus-Host Disease

Background. A number of genetic polymorphisms have been shown to be associated with the outcome after allogeneic hematopoietic stem-cell transplantation (HSCT). In the present study, HSP70-hom polymorphism (+2763 G/A) was analyzed in the patients and donors of allogeneic HSCT in relation to transplantation outcome, susceptibility for generation of severe toxic lesions, and acute (a) graft-versus-host disease (GVHD). Methods. One hundred thirty-three recipients of allogeneic hematopoietic stem cells and 64 haploidentical and matched unrelated donors were investigated. All these individuals were typed for dimorphism within the HSP70-hom gene (+2763 G/A) with the use of amplification refractory mutation system technique. Results. Patients with the HSP-AA homozygous genotype presented more frequently with grade II to IV toxic lesions (12 of 14 vs. 61 of 105, P=0.039) and aGVHD (12 of 16 vs. 56 of 114, P=0.045). Conversely, DRB1*11 was associated with a lower risk of aGVHD manifestation (10 of 31 vs. 58 of 99, P=0.009). These contrary associations of HSP-AA and DRB1*11 with the risk of aGVHD were confirmed using logistic regression modeling in multivariable analysis (HSP-AA, odds ratio [OR]=3.833, P=0.004; DRB1*11, OR=0.224, P=0.048). None of donor HSP genotypes or patient-donor incompatibility within HSP alleles was associated with susceptibility to toxic complications or aGVHD. Conclusions. Polymorphism of the HSP70-hom gene is associated with the development of posttransplant complications. Recipient HSP-AA homozygous genotype is a risk factor for aGVHD.
ZPD Incidence Development Strategy for Demand of Internet in Life-Science Teaching of Comprehensive Regional Higher Education Institutes

Many regional higher education institutes (mainly be regional university) have been founded from 1998 in China. From 2006, most of those regional higher education institutes promoted to be comprehensive regional higher education institutes (CRHEIs) in succession. Students in those CRHEIs become more and more, and the quality of teaching should be improved. In this paper, we analyses internet–based teaching and learning issues at CRHEIs level and comprehensive nationwide higher education institutes (CNHEIs) level. We get that internet integration in CRHE need to be in lined with proper strategy.
Investigation of bilayer equivalence of periodic graphene gated structures

We investigate electron transmission through graphene periodic gated structures. Such structures are useful because of their high modulation ability, and low energy consumption. In periodic graphene gated structures the linear dispersion relation of charge carriers is modified and, besides the formation of minibands, electrons and holes acquire a finite effective mass. Because the wavefunction remains spinorial, a periodic graphene gated structure can, in principle, act as a sheet of bilayer graphene. We investigate in this paper if such an equivalence is justified or not.