Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A study on HCI induced gate leakage current model used for reliability simulations in 90nm n-MOSFETs

In this paper, we propose a Hot Carrier Injection (HCI) induced gate leakage current model used for reliability simulations in 90nm n-channel MOSFETs (n-MOSFETs). As far as we have investigated, existing papers and reports regarding on HCI degradation model equations are based on the substrate current induced by the impact ionization effect. These degradation models cannot be applied for any circuit simulations without using the substrate terminal of n-MOSFETs. Since the proposed model and extraction method estimate the HCI current from the gate terminal, substrate terminals of n-MOSFETs are not necessary for simulating degradations in any circuit. The proposed HCI gate leakage model is implemented in BSIM4 source codes of our SPICE3 fully compatible simulator (MDT-SPICE). Model parameters including BSIM4 and our models are accurately extracted with DC current measurements of 90nm n-MOSFETs. It is confirmed that the proposed model showed more accurate gate current simulations than BSIM4 model comparing with the measurement of the gate current.
Outdoor Air Pollution and Acute Respiratory Infections Among Children in Developing Countries

Acute respiratory infections (ARIs) are the most common cause of illness and death in children in the developing world. This review focuses on outdoor air pollutants associated with pediatric ARI mortality and morbidity. Studies were identified using MEDLINE and other electronic databases. Four studies showed an increase in infant mortality in relation to outdoor air pollution. Short-term follow-up and time-series studies suggest that air pollutants act as risk factors for respiratory infection. Air pollution exposure increases the incidence of upper- and lower-respiratory infections in children. Because complex pollution mixtures are present in the studied urban areas, pollutant levels at which ARI risk would be expected to increase cannot be determined. Children may be at greater risk, given the poor environmental and nutritional conditions prevalent in developing countries.
FEV(1) is associated with risk of asthma attacks in a pediatric population.

BACKGROUND FEV(1) is endorsed by the National Asthma Education and Prevention Program as a means for grading asthma severity. However, few data exist on the relationship between FEV(1) and asthma outcomes during long-term follow-up. OBJECTIVE We explored the relationship between the percent predicted FEV(1) (FEV(1)%) and subsequent asthma attacks in a longitudinal study of pediatric lung health. METHODS A retrospective cohort of 13,842 children (100,292 observations) seen annually over a 15-year interval was analyzed for measurement of pulmonary function, and a respiratory questionnaire was completed. Up to grade 9, a standard questionnaire was completed by a parent or guardian; thereafter it was completed by the patient. For each observation, the report of an attack during the past year was paired with FEV(1) recorded at the field survey 1 year earlier. RESULTS A progressive decrease in the proportion of individuals reporting an attack was associated with increasing decile of FEV(1)%. Two categorization schemes for FEV(1)% were examined: a scheme based on the National Asthma Education and Prevention Program recommendations (<60%, 60%-80%, and >80%), and an alternative scheme (<80%, 80%-100%, and >100%). In multivariate models, FEV(1)% was an independent predictor of attacks: among the parental report group, the odds ratios were 2.1 (95% CI, 1.3-3.4) and 1.4 (95% CI, 1.2-1.6) for FEV(1)% < 60% and FEV(1)% of 60% to 80% compared with FEV(1)% > 80%, respectively; and among the self-report group, odds ratios were 5.3 (95% CI, 2.2-12.9) and 1.4 (95% CI, 1.2-1.7) for FEV(1)% < 60% and FEV(1)% of 60% to 80% compared with FEV(1)% > 80%, respectively. With the alternative classification scheme, the relationship was similar, but the difference in risk between categories of FEV(1)% decreased. CONCLUSION The strong association between FEV(1)% and risk of asthma attack over the subsequent year supports an emphasis on objective measures of lung function in assessment of risk for adverse asthma outcomes.
Towards a 'safe' use of design patterns to improve OO software testability

Design-for-testability is a very important issue in software engineering. It becomes crucial in the case of OO designs where control flows are generally not hierarchical, but are diffuse and distributed over the whole architecture. We introduce the concept of a "testing conflict" when potentially concurrent client/supplier relationships between the same classes along different paths exist in a system. Such conflicts may be hard to test, especially when dynamic binding and polymorphism are involved. We describe the conflicts using topological class configuration diagrams. An overall architecture is represented as a combination of the initial design and several patterns. We focus on the design patterns as coherent subsets in the architecture, and we explain how their use can provide a way for limiting the complexity of testing for conflicts, and of confining their effects to the classes involved in the pattern.
Perceptions of power and interactional dominance in interpersonal relationships

This investigation uses dyadic power theory (Dunbar, 2000, 2004; Rollins & Bahr, 1976) to examine the relationship between dominance and power and the behavioral manifestations of power in close relationships. Ninety-seven couples (58 married, 39 cohabiting) completed a problem-solving task together while being videotaped. The videotapes were coded for a variety of verbal and nonverbal dominant control attempts including dysfluencies, interruptions, frequency of adaptor and illustrator gestures, vocal characteristics, and general perceptions of dominance. The results revealed that individuals’ perceptions of power led to more dominant communication behavior during discussions with their partner. Comparisons between the perceptions of participants and observers and the implications for future research are also discussed.
Metacognitions about alcohol use in problem drinkers.

In this study 10 patients with problem drinking behaviour were assessed using a semi-structured interview to investigate (a) whether they held positive and/or negative metacognitive beliefs about alcohol use, (b) whether alcohol use was perceived to have an impact on negative emotions, (c) whether alcohol was used as a coping strategy, and if so what its main goal was, (d) how individuals knew whether they had achieved their goal and what signalled the cessation of using and (e) how alcohol use impacted on self-consciousness. All patients endorsed positive metacognitive beliefs and six endorsed negative metacognitive beliefs about alcohol use. Positive metacognitive beliefs concerned the usefulness of alcohol as an emotional, cognitive and image self-regulation tool. Negative metacognitive beliefs concerned uncontrollability and harm. Seven patients indicated that during a drinking episode negative emotions subsided. Nine out of ten patients stated that alcohol was used as a coping strategy and that its main goal was to reduce negative emotions and/or improve mood. However, nine out of ten patients also reported that they did not know how to determine whether they had achieved their goals. Instead the signal for stopping use came from being sick and/or blacking out. All patients reported that alcohol use helped to reduce self-consciousness. The results support a metacognitive conceptualization in which problem drinking is supported by disruptions of metacognitive monitoring and control. The conceptual implications for understanding problem drinking from a metacognitive perspective are discussed. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Sociocultural construction of food ways in low-income Mexican-American women with diabetes: a qualitative study.

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES The aim of the study was to explore how low-income Hispanic women, with at least 10 years of having type 2 diabetes, successfully manage the disease within a sociocultural context, especially in relation to foodways. BACKGROUND Managing type 2 diabetes is challenging, particularly for underserved populations such as low-income Hispanic women. This population segment has higher rates of type 2 diabetes, diabetes-related complications, obesity, and sedentary lifestyles than the general U.S. POPULATION Dietary management is a critical aspect of diabetes care, but it is perhaps the most difficult health behaviour to modify. DESIGN A qualitative and ethnographically based study was used. METHODS Participant observation and individual interviews explored the interrelationships of culture, food habits and type 2 diabetes among 12 low-income Hispanic women residing in an impoverished rural community located on the Texas-Mexico border. RESULTS Hispanic women used unique strategies to adjust their diet, particularly portion control; for example, they emphasised the 'use of the fork', based on the notion that Hispanic finger foods are less healthy. Women categorised foods as bad or acceptable, depending on the context, such as important family or social gatherings. Those with years of diabetes experience confidently took charge of the disease based on knowledge of their bodies and a desire to avoid complications, while acknowledging brief infractions of dietary 'rules' and balancing various social roles and expectations. CONCLUSIONS Hispanic women manage their type 2 diabetes within a sociocultural environment. Those with expertise make changes in how they eat to care for their diabetes, but also continue to maintain traditional foodways. RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE Foodways are critical to most cultural groups and modifying dietary behaviours can be challenging. Clinicians must develop self-management guidance within the sociocultural context of the patient if diabetes outcomes are to improve and be sustained.
DNA methylation patterns associated with asparagine synthetase expression in asparagine-overproducing and -auxotrophic cells

In Chinese hamster ovary cells, the gene for asparagine synthetase, which spans 20 kilobase pairs, was found to contain a cluster of potential sites for CpG methylation in a 1-kilobase-pair region surrounding the first exon. Fourteen of the sites that could be assayed for methylation by MspI-HpaII digestions were found in this region, with an additional nine MspI sites spread throughout the remainder of the gene. The methylation status of the gene was analyzed in a series of cell lines that differed in the amount of asparagine synthetase activity. The level of expression showed a direct correlation with the extent of methylation of a subset of the MspI sites found in the 5' region of the gene. The rest of the gene was completely methylated in most cell lines. Wild-type cells, which expressed a basal level of asparagine synthetase activity, were partially demethylated in the 5' region. In contrast, asparagine-requiring N3 cells, which lacked detectable mRNA for asparagine synthetase, were methylated throughout the entire gene. Spontaneous revertants of strain N3, selected for growth in asparagine-free medium, exhibited extensive hypomethylation of the asparagine synthetase gene. The methylation pattern of the gene in cell lines that overproduced the enzyme was also examined. Albizziin-resistant cell lines, which had amplified copies of the gene, were extensively demethylated in the 5' region. Overexpression of asparagine synthetase in beta-aspartyl hydroxamate-resistant lines without amplified copies of the gene was also correlated with DNA hypomethylation.
A 220mW 14b 40MSPS gain calibrated pipelined ADC

In this paper, a pipelined ADC based on digital calibration of gain errors is presented. The ADC achieves 85dBFS SNDR and 84dBFS SFDR with a 50dB DC gain OTA in the first stage. The calibration algorithm is based on test signal injection. At 40MSPS the power dissipation is 220mW from a 2.5V supply. The ADC is designed in a 0.25/spl mu/m CMOS process and occupies an area of 6.5mm/sup 2/.
Résolution variable et information privilégiée pour la reconnaissance d'images. (Varying resolution and privileged information for image recognition)

La classification des images revet un interet majeur dans de nombreuses tâches de reconnaissance visuelle, en particulier pour la reconnaissance de vehicules au sol via les systemes aeroportes, ou les images traitees sont de faible resolution du fait de la large distance entre le porteur et la scene observee. Durant l'apprentissage, des donnees complementaires peuvent etre disponibles, qu'il s'agisse de connaissances sur les conditions de prise de vue ou de la version haute-resolution des images. Dans nos travaux, on s'interesse au probleme de la reconnaissance d'images faiblement resolues en prenant en compte des informations complementaires pendant l'apprentissage. On montre d'abord l'interet des reseaux convolutionnels profonds pour la reconnaissance d'images faiblement resolues, en proposant notamment une architecture apprise sur les donnees. D'autre part, on s'appuie sur le cadre de l'apprentissage avec information privilegiee pour beneficier des donnees d'entrainement complementaires, ici les versions haute-resolution des images. Nous proposons deux methodes d'integration de l'information privilegiee dans l'apprentissage des reseaux de neurones. Notre premier modele s'appuie sur ces donnees complementaires pour calculer un niveau de difficulte absolue, attribuant un poids important aux images les plus facilement reconnaissables. Notre deuxieme modele introduit une contrainte de similitude entre les modeles appris sur chaque type de donnees. On valide experimentalement nos deux modeles dans plusieurs cas d'application, notamment dans un contexte oriente grain-fin et sur une base de donnees contenant du bruit d'annotation.
Toward the Development of Critical Health Communication Praxis

The field of research and practice that is generally incorporated under the rubric of "health communication" is currently dominated by social psychological models of behavior and theoretical perspectives informed by the stimulus–response school of communication. This article argues that the field needs to incorporate critical cultural and political theory into its scholarly inquiry and informed practice to a greater extent than it currently does.
Abca1 Deficiency Affects Alzheimer's Disease-Like Phenotype in Human ApoE4 But Not in ApoE3-Targeted Replacement Mice

ATP-binding cassette transporter A1 (ABCA1) transporter regulates cholesterol efflux and is an essential mediator of high-density lipoprotein (HDL) formation. In amyloid precursor protein (APP) transgenic mice, Abca1 deficiency increased amyloid deposition in the brain paralleled by decreased levels of Apolipoprotein E (ApoE). The APOEε4 allele is the major genetic risk factor of sporadic Alzheimer's disease (AD). Here, we reveal the effect of Abca1 deficiency on phenotype in mice expressing human ApoE3 or ApoE4. We used APP/E3 and APP/E4 mice generated by crossing APP/PS1ΔE9 transgenic mice to human APOE3- and APOE4-targeted replacement mice and examined Abca1 gene dose effect on amyloid deposition and cognition. The results from two behavior tests demonstrate that lack of one copy of Abca1 significantly exacerbates memory deficits in APP/E4/Abca1−/+ but not in APP/E3/Abca1−/+ mice. The data for amyloid plaques and insoluble amyloid-β (Aβ) also show that Abca1 hemizygosity increases Aβ deposition only in APP/E4/Abca1−/+ but not in APP/E3/Abca1−/+ mice. Our in vivo microdialysis assays indicate that Abca1 deficiency significantly decreases Aβ clearance in ApoE4-expressing mice, while the effect of Abca1 on Aβ clearance in ApoE3-expressing mice was insignificant. In addition, we demonstrate that plasma HDL and Aβ42 levels in APP/E4/Abca1−/+ mice are significantly decreased, and there is a negative correlation between plasma HDL and amyloid plaques in brain, suggesting that plasma lipoproteins may be involved in Aβ clearance. Overall, our results prove that the presence of functional Abca1 significantly influences the phenotype of APP mice expressing human ApoE4 and further substantiate therapeutic approaches in AD based on ABCA1–APOE regulatory axis.
Sequential decision fusion of multibiometrics applied to text-dependent speaker verification for controlled errors

Reliability of the performance of biometric identity verification systems remains a significant challenge. Individual biometric samples of the same person (identity class) are not identical at each presentation and performance degradation arises from intra-class variability and inter-class similarity. These limitations lead to false accepts and false rejects that are dependent. It is therefore difficult to reduce the rate of one type of error without increasing the other. The focus of this dissertation is to investigate a method based on classifier fusion techniques to better control the trade-off between the verification errors using text-dependent speaker verification as the test platform. A sequential classifier fusion architecture that integrates multi-instance and multisample fusion schemes is proposed. This fusion method enables a controlled trade-off between false alarms and false rejects. For statistically independent classifier decisions, analytical expressions for each type of verification error are derived using base classifier performances. As this assumption may not be always valid, these expressions are modified to incorporate the correlation between statistically dependent decisions from clients and impostors. The architecture is empirically evaluated by applying the proposed architecture for text dependent speaker verification using the Hidden Markov Model based digit dependent speaker models in each stage with multiple attempts for each digit utterance. The trade-off between the verification errors is controlled using the parameters, number of decision stages (instances) and the number of attempts at each decision stage (samples), fine-tuned on evaluation/tune set. The statistical validation of the derived expressions for error estimates is evaluated on test data. The performance of the sequential method is further demonstrated to depend on the order of the combination of digits (instances) and the nature of repetitive attempts (samples). The false rejection and false acceptance rates for proposed fusion are estimated using the base classifier performances, the variance in correlation between classifier decisions and the sequence of classifiers with favourable dependence selected using the 'Sequential Error Ratio' criteria. The error rates are better estimated by incorporating user-dependent (such as speaker-dependent thresholds and speaker-specific digit combinations) and class-dependent (such as clientimpostor dependent favourable combinations and class-error based threshold estimation) information. The proposed architecture is desirable in most of the speaker verification applications such as remote authentication, telephone and internet shopping applications. The tuning of parameters - the number of instances and samples - serve both the security and user convenience requirements of speaker-specific verification. The architecture investigated here is applicable to verification using other biometric modalities such as handwriting, fingerprints and key strokes.
Introduction to 3D reconstruction of macromolecules using single particle electron microscopy

AbstractSingle-particle electron microscopy has now reached maturity, becoming a commonly used method in the examination of macromolecular structure. Using a small amount of purified protein, isolated molecules are observed under the electron microscope and the data collected can be averaged into a 3D reconstruction. Single-particle electron microscopy is an appropriate tool for the analysis of proteins that can only be obtained in modest quantities, like many of the large complexes currently of interest in biomedicine. Whilst the use of electron microscopy expands, new methods are being developed and improved to deal with further challenges, such as reaching higher resolutions and the combination of information at different levels of structural detail. More importantly, present methodology is still not robust enough when studying certain “tricky” proteins like those displaying extensive conformational flexibility and a great deal of user expertise is required, posing a threat to the consistency of the final structure. This mini review describes a brief outline of the methods currently used in the 3D analysis of macromolecules using single-particle electron microscopy, intended for those first approaching this field. A summary of methods, techniques, software, and some recent work is presented. The spectacular improvements to the technique in recent years, its advantages and limitations compared to other structural methods, and its future developments are discussed.
Autistic Behaviour in Moebius Syndrome

ABSTRACT. Seventeen children and young adults with Moebius syndrome were examined with a view to finding symptoms of autism. Some 40% of the group showed all or many of the symptoms typical of autistic disorder. The high frequency of autistic symptoms in Moebius syndrome might be a marked overrepresentation and could be suggestive of a common underlying neurobiological deficit at the brainstem level.
Event detection from image hosting services by slightly-supervised multi-span context models

We present a method to detect social events in a set of pictures from an image hosting service (Flickr). This method relies on the analysis of user-generated tags, by using statistical models trained on both a small set of manually annotated data and a large data set collected from the Internet. Social event modeling relies on multi-span topic model based on LDA (Latent Dirichlet Allocation). Experiments are conducted in the experimental setup of MediaEval'2011 evaluation campaign. The proposed system outperforms significantly the best system of this benchmark, reaching a F-measure score of about 71%.
The 'makers and shapers' of tourism policy in the Northern Territory of Australia -- A policy network analysis of actors and their relational constellations

This paper explores the actors and their relational constellation in the Northern Territory tourism policy domain. The policy network approach is employed as an analytical tool to describe and explain the complex nature of the interaction between the various players who assembled around a single policy issue, the development of the Northern Territory Tourism Development Masterplan (TDMP). In this case study, the focus is therefore set on issue-specific communication networks which underlie the formulation process of that tourism plan. To map the pattern of relationships two main questions are at the forefront - 'who are the core actors? ' and 'what is the nature of their interaction? '.