Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Hydroxyethyl Starch (HES) 130/0.4 Provides Larger and Faster Increases in Tissue Oxygen Tension in Comparison with Prehemodilution Values than HES 70/0.5 or HES 200/0.5 in Volunteers Undergoing Acute Normovolemic Hemodilution

Stable hemodynamics and improved rheology are important effects of hemodilution with hydroxyethyl starch (HES) infusions. One clinical indicator of improved rheology is increased tissue oxygen tension (tpO2). In this prospective, randomized, double-blinded, crossover study, we examined the effects of acute normovolemic hemodilution with HES 130/0.4 on hemodynamics and skeletal muscle tpO2 in comparison with conventional HES solutions. Twelve healthy volunteers were randomly enrolled in each group. At an interval of >8 days, volunteers donated 18% of their calculated blood volume within 30 min and randomly received 6% HES 130/0.4, 6% HES 70/0.5, or 6% HES 200/0.5 (crossover design) in a 1:1.2 ratio to their blood loss. Hemodynamic variables, tpO2 in the quadriceps muscle, hematocrit, plasmatic HES concentrations, plasma viscosity, colloid osmotic pressures, and platelet aggregation were measured until 6 h after the infusion of HES. No differences were found among groups with respect to changes of hemodynamics, hematocrit, or platelet aggregation. With HES 200, colloid osmotic pressures and plasma viscosities were larger than after HES 70 (P < 0.05). HES 130 in comparison with HES 70 and 200 caused the fastest (30 min versus 90 min and 150 min after hemodilution;P < 0.05) and largest increase of tpO2 in comparison to baseline (+93% versus +33% and 40%;P < 0.05). In healthy volunteers undergoing acute normovolemic hemodilution, the newly designed HES 130/0.4 showed a more pronounced and earlier increase of skeletal muscle tpO2 in comparison with prehemodilution values than HES 70/0.5 or 200/0.5.
Joint pairing and power allocation optimization in multichannel MABC-based two-way relaying

We consider two-way amplify-and-forward relaying in a multichannel system with two end nodes and a single relay, using a two-slot multi-access broadcast (MABC) relaying strategy. We investigate the problem of joint subchannel pairing and power allocation to maximize the achievable sum-rate in the network, under an individual power budgets at each node. To solve this challenging joint optimization problem, an iterative approach is proposed to decompose the problem into pairing optimization and joint power allocation optimization, and solve them iteratively. For the joint power allocation at the relay and the two end nodes, we propose another iterative optimization procedure to optimize the power at the two end nodes and at the relay iteratively. By using different forms of optimization parameters, the sum-rate maximization problem turns out to be convex and the optimal solutions can be obtained for each subproblem. The simulation performance demonstrates the gain of joint optimization approach over other pairing-only or power-allocation-only optimization approaches.
Reconstructing long‐term human impacts on plant communities: an ecological approach based on lake sediment DNA

Paleoenvironmental studies are essential to understand biodiversity changes over long timescales and to assess the relative importance of anthropogenic and environmental factors. Sedimentary ancient DNA (sedaDNA) is an emerging tool in the field of paleoecology and has proven to be a complementary approach to the use of pollen and macroremains for investigating past community changes. SedaDNA‐based reconstructions of ancient environments often rely on indicator taxa or expert knowledge, but quantitative ecological analyses might provide more objective information. Here, we analysed sedaDNA to investigate plant community trajectories in the catchment of a high‐elevation lake in the Alps over the last 6400 years. We combined data on past and present plant species assemblages along with sedimentological and geochemical records to assess the relative impact of human activities through pastoralism, and abiotic factors (temperature and soil evolution). Over the last 6400 years, we identified significant variation in plant communities, mostly related to soil evolution and pastoral activities. An abrupt vegetational change corresponding to the establishment of an agropastoral landscape was detected during the Late Holocene, approximately 4500 years ago, with the replacement of mountain forests and tall‐herb communities by heathlands and grazed lands. Our results highlight the importance of anthropogenic activities in mountain areas for the long‐term evolution of local plant assemblages. SedaDNA data, associated with other paleoenvironmental proxies and present plant assemblages, appear to be a relevant tool for reconstruction of plant cover history. Their integration, in conjunction with classical tools, offers interesting perspectives for a better understanding of long‐term ecosystem dynamics under the influence of human‐induced and environmental drivers.
Fluid overload is associated with impaired oxygenation and morbidity in critically ill children*

Rationale: Fluid overload is common in the critically ill and is thought to contribute to oxygenation failure and mortality. Since increasing disease severity often requires more fluid for resuscitation, it is unclear whether fluid overload is a causative factor in morbidity or is simply an indicator of disease severity. Objective: Investigate the association between fluid overload and oxygenation while controlling for severity of illness by daily Pediatric Logistic Organ Dysfunction scores. Design and Setting: Retrospective chart review, tertiary children’s hospital. Patients and Methods: The oxygenation index, fluid overload percent, and daily Pediatric Logistic Organ Dysfunction scores were obtained in a retrospective chart review of 80 patients (mean age 58.7 ± 73.0 months) with respiratory failure. Univariate and multivariate approaches were used to assess the independent relation between fluid overload percent and duration of stay and ventilation. Interventions: None. Main Results: Higher peak fluid overload percent predicted higher peak oxygenation index, independent of age, gender, and Pediatric Logistic Organ Dysfunction (p = .009). Fluid overload percent ≥15% on any given day was also independently associated with that day’s oxygenation index, controlled for age, gender, and Pediatric Logistic Organ Dysfunction (p < .05). Peak fluid overload percent and severe fluid overload percent (≥15%) were both independently associated with longer duration of ventilation (p = .004, p = .01), and pediatric intensive care unit (p = .008, p = .01) and hospital length of stay (p = .02, p = .04), controlled for age, gender, Pediatric Logistic Organ Dysfunction, and in the case of ventilation, respiratory admission. Conclusion: This is the first study to report that positive fluid balance adversely affected the pediatric intensive care unit course in children who did not receive renal replacement therapy. While timely administration of fluids is lifesaving, positive fluid balance after hemodynamic stabilization may impact organ function and negatively influence important outcomes in critically ill patients.
Observed Structure of Addresses in IP Traffic

We investigate the structure of addresses contained in IPv4 traffic-specifically, the structural characteristics of destination IP addresses seen on Internet links, considered as a subset of the address space. These characteristics have implications for algorithms that deal with IP address aggregates, such as routing lookups and aggregate-based congestion control. Several example address structures are well modeled by multifractal Cantor-like sets with two parameters. This model may be useful for simulations where realistic IP addresses are preferred. We also develop concise characterizations of address structures, including active aggregate counts and discriminating prefixes. Our structural characterizations are stable over short time scales at a given site, and different sites have visibly different characterizations, so that the characterizations make useful "fingerprints" of the traffic seen at a site. Also, changing traffic conditions, such as worm propagation, significantly alter these fingerprints
Planck intermediate results: XXXVI. Optical identification and redshifts of Planck SZ sources with telescopes at the Canary Islands observatories

We present the results of approximately three years of observations of Planck Sunyaev-Zeldovich (SZ) sources with telescopes at the Canary Islands observatories as part of the general optical follow-up programme undertaken by the Planck Collaboration. In total, 78 SZ sources are discussed. Deep-imaging observations were obtained for most of these sources; spectroscopic observations in either in long-slit or multi-object modes were obtained for many. We effectively used 37.5 clear nights. We found optical counterparts for 73 of the 78 candidates. This sample includes 53 spectroscopic redshift determinations, 20 of them obtained with a multi-object spectroscopic mode. The sample contains new redshifts for 27 Planck clusters that were not included in the first Planck SZ source catalogue (PSZ1).
Out of Amazonia again and again: episodic crossing of the Andes promotes diversification in a lowland forest flycatcher

Most Neotropical lowland forest taxa occur exclusively on one side of the Andes despite the availability of appropriate habitat on both sides. Almost all molecular phylogenies and phylogenetic analyses of species assemblages (i.e. area cladograms) have supported the hypothesis that Andean uplift during the Late Pliocene created a vicariant barrier affecting lowland lineages in the region. However, a few widespread plant and animal species occurring in lowland forests on both sides of the Andes challenge the generality of this hypothesis. To understand the role of the Andes in the history of such organisms, we reconstructed the phylogeographic history of a widespread Neotropical flycatcher (Mionectes oleagineus) in the context of the other four species in the genus. A molecular phylogeny based on nuclear and mitochondrial sequences unambiguously showed an early basal split between montane and lowland Mionectes. The phylogeographic reconstruction of lowland taxa revealed a complex history, with multiple cases in which geographically proximate populations do not represent sister lineages. Specifically, three populations of M. oleagineus west of the Andes do not comprise a monophyletic clade; instead, each represents an independent lineage with origins east of the Andes. Divergence time estimates suggest that at least two cross-Andean dispersal events post-date Andean uplift.
On the state-of-the-art of particle methods for coastal and ocean engineering

ABSTRACT The article aims at providing an up-to-date review on several latest advancements related to particle methods with applications in coastal and ocean engineering. The latest advancements corresponding to accuracy, stability, conservation properties, multiphase multi-physics multi-scale simulations, fluid-structure interactions, exclusive coastal/ocean engineering applications and computational efficiency are reviewed. The future perspectives for further enhancement of applicability and reliability of particle methods for coastal/ocean engineering applications are also highlighted.
Multi-push Display using 6-axis Motion Platform

This study designed and developed a novel tactile display that provides a multi-push sensation by using a 6-axis motion platform. The display mechanically controls the position and orientation of a surface panel. A user touching an on-screen button with one finger can push the button vertically. When the user subsequently touches the display with a second finger, the surface panel declines and the position of the first finger remains unchanged. Thus, the user can push at two positions on the surface panel. We also developed a prototype system with six servomotors and a touch panel based on the principle of frustrated total internal reflection.
Virtualization of IT infrastructure for small and medium businesses

Small and medium businesses (SMBs) are adopting virtualization to improve server utilization and consolidation. However, virtualization can also be used to create a virtualized environment for the whole IT infrastructure. This paper presents a review of the various virtualization techniques and open source implementations. These techniques enable SMBs of all sizes to create a virtualized environment for their IT systems and their own infrastructure. In this context, SMBs can move forward with virtualization beyond just servers and also virtualize the entire network infrastructure that were traditionally hardware bound. As a result, SMBs can reduce their IT budgets and the time spent on routine IT administration tasks.
Role of Transient Elastography (Fibroscan) in Early prediction of Role of Transient Elastography (Fibroscan) in Early prediction of Hepatitis C Virus Related Hepatocellular Carcinoma Hepatitis C Virus Related Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Background : Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the ﬁ fth-leading cause of cancer-related deaths globally. Liver biopsy is the gold standard for diagnosing liver ﬁ brosis and cirrhosis. Instead of a liver biopsy, there are many noninvasive diagnostic tools for assessing hepatic ﬁ brosis as a risk factor for HCC, such as FibroScan. Aim of the study : Assess the role of transient elastography (FibroScan) in the prediction of (HCC) in chronic hepatitis C virus patients. Patients and methods : A case e control study that included 133 patients with cirrhosis and HCC and 133 patients with HCV-liver cirrhosis without HCC was carried out. Each patient had their medical history and thorough clinical examination done. They were assessed for liver stiffness using FibroScan. All patients underwent triphasic CT scan, and routine laboratory investigations were taken from each patient such as liver function test, CBC, and tumor markers. Results : Males resembled the majority, and patients with HCC were signi ﬁ cantly older than those without HCC ( P value < 0.001). Our data shows that sensitivity analysis of liver stiffness measured by transient elastography (FibroScan) can be used to discriminate between the cirrhotic group without HCC and HCC group at a cutoff level of > 24.3, with 90.5% sensitivity, 85.7% speci ﬁ city, 86.4% PPV, and 90% NPV (AUC ¼ 0.941 and P -value less than 0.001). Conclusion : FibroScan can signi ﬁ cantly predict HCC among patients post-HCV treatment using a cutoff point of liver stiffness > 24.3 kPa.
How sensitive are mountain glaciers to climate change? Insights from a block model

ABSTRACT Simple models of glacier volume evolution are important in understanding features of glacier response to climate change, due to the scarcity of data adequate for running more complex models on a global scale. Two quantities of interest in a glacier's response to climate changes are its response time and its volume sensitivity to changes in the equilibrium line altitude (ELA). We derive a simplified, computationally inexpensive model of glacier volume evolution based on a block model with volume–area–length scaling. After analyzing its steady-state properties, we apply the model to each mountain glacier worldwide and estimate regionally differentiated response times and sensitivities to ELA changes. We use a statistical method from the family of global sensitivity analysis methods to determine the glacier quantities, geometric and climatic, that most influence the model output. The response time is dominated by the climatic setting reflected in the mass-balance gradient in the ablation zone, followed by the surface slope, while volume sensitivity is mainly affected by glacier size, followed by the surface slope.
Working Papers / Documents de travail

This paper develops an overlapping generations model that links a public health system to a pay-as-you-go (PAYG) pension system. It relies on two assumptions. First, the health system directly ﬁnances curative health spending on the elderly. Second, public pensions partially depend on health status by introducing a component indexed to society’s average level of old-age disability. Reducing the average disability rate in the economy then lowers pension beneﬁts as the need to ﬁnance long-term care services also drops. We study the eﬀects of introducing such a ‘comprehensive’ Social Security system on individual decisions, capital accumulation, and welfare. We ﬁrst show that health investments can boost savings and capital accumulation under certain conditions. Second, if individuals are suﬃciently concerned with their health when old, it is optimal to introduce a health-dependent pension system, as this will raise social welfare compared to a system where pensions are not tied to the society’s average level of old-age disability. Our analysis thus highlights an important policy recommendation: making PAYG pension schemes partially health-dependent can be beneﬁcial to society. JEL Classiﬁcation : H55, I15, O41.
Geological record of marine tsunami backwash: The role of the hydraulic jump

Tsunamis are marked by distinct phases of uprush during coastal inundation and backwash when tsunami water recedes. Especially in the case of a steep coastal profile, the return flow may operate in a Froude‐supercritical regime, eroding the flooded area and transporting large volumes of sediment seawards. Important sediment accumulation occurs when the supercritical flow goes through a hydraulic jump where it becomes subcritical upon deceleration. An inferred example in coarse‐grained, mixed carbonates from the Lower Pleistocene on Rhodes (Greece) is described, with offshore bars up to 10 m long with scour‐and‐fill structures and steep antidune stratification. In finer‐grained sandy depositional systems such structures may be much longer, up to hundreds of metres. It is suggested here that, analogous to some turbidite beds, the apparent lack of structures or the presence of faint stratification that is common for graded sand layers within marine tsunamiites may in fact consist of extremely low‐angle, landward‐dipping backset‐strata that formed under a landward‐migrating hydraulic jump during the basinward retreat of tsunami water. Numerical simulations that focus on the internal stratification of backwash‐generated offshore bars support this hypothesis. The recognition of such deposits in the sedimentary record enlarges the toolbox for assessing the past frequency of tsunamis in coastal areas.
What Can Experiments Reveal About the Origins of Music?

The origins of music have intrigued scholars for thousands of years. In this article I discuss the role of experiments in discussions of these issues. I argue that potentially useful kinds of evidence are those that address the innateness and the specificity of different components of musical behavior. At present there is some evidence for innate influences on music, but little evidence for capacities that are clearly specific to music. Although future experiments could potentially alter this picture, there is currently little unambiguous support for the notion that music is an adaptation.
The Impact of Aging on Brain Pituitary Adenylate Cyclase The Impact of Aging on Brain Pituitary Adenylate Cyclase Activating Polypeptide Pathology and Cognition in Mice and Activating Polypeptide Pathology and Cognition in Mice and Rhesus Macaques

Pituitary adenylate cyclase activating polypeptide (PACAP) is associated with Alzheimer’s disease (AD), but its age-related effects are unknown. We chose the rhesus macaque due to its closeness to human anatomy and physiology. We examined four variables: aging, cognitive performance, amyloid plaques and PACAP. Delayed nonmatching-to-sample recognition memory scores declined with age and correlated with PACAP levels in the striatum, parietal and temporal lobes. Because amyloid plaques were the only AD pathology in the old rhesus macaque, we further studied human amyloid precursor protein (hAPP) transgenic mice. Aging was associated with decreased performance in the Morris Water Maze (MWM). In wild type (WT) C57BL/6 mice, the performance was decreased at age 24–26 month whereas in hAPP transgenic mice, it was decreased as early as 9–12 month. Neuritic plaques in adult hAPP mice clustered in hippocampus and adjacent cortical regions, but did not propagate further into the frontal cortex. Cerebral PACAP protein levels were reduced in hAPP mice compared to age-matched WT mice, but the genetic predisposition dominated cognitive decline. Taken together, these data suggest an association among PACAP levels, aging, cognitive function and amyloid load in nonhuman primates, with both similarities and differences from human AD brains. Our results suggest caution in choosing animal models and in extrapolating data to human AD studies.
Zoonotic potential of Mycobacterium avium ssp. paratuberculosis: the current position

A possible association between Mycobacterium avium ssp. paratuberculosis (Map) and Crohn's disease was first suggested in 1913, when similarities between the gross pathology and symptoms of Johne's disease in cattle and those of Crohn's disease in humans were first noted. Crohn's disease is now generally believed to have a multifactorial aetiology with genetic predisposition, environmental factors (infectious agent, diet or smoking), and abnormal inflammatory response all playing a part. Evidence supporting a link between Map and Crohn's disease includes: higher detection rates of Map by PCR and culture in gut samples from Crohn's patients compared with controls; demonstration of a serological response to Map antigens in Crohn's patients; and anti-Map antibiotic therapy resulting in remission, or substantial improvement in disease condition, in many patients. The available scientific evidence has been reviewed by a number of expert groups in recent years. The consensus opinion, at present, is that the available information is insufficient to prove or disprove that Map is a cause of Crohn's disease, but the hypothesis is still plausible. The recent discovery of a susceptibility gene in Crohn's patients, NOD2/CARD15, does not preclude a role for Map in the pathogenesis of at least some cases of Crohn's disease, as the function of this gene is bacterial sensing in the gut. If Map does contribute to the causation of Crohn's disease then it may not be acting as a conventional infectious agent.
Ginseng Extracts Restore High-Glucose Induced Vascular Dysfunctions by Altering Triglyceride Metabolism and Downregulation of Atherosclerosis-Related Genes

The king of herbs, Panax ginseng, has been used widely as a therapeutic agent vis-à-vis its active pharmacological and physiological effects. Based on Chinese pharmacopeia Ben Cao Gang Mu and various pieces of literature, Panax ginseng was believed to exert active vascular protective effects through its antiobesity and anti-inflammation properties. We investigated the vascular protective effects of ginseng by administrating ginseng extracts to rats after the induction of diabetes. We found that Panax ginseng can restore diabetes-induced impaired vasorelaxation and can reduce serum triglyceride but not cholesterol level in the diabetic rats. The ginseng extracts also suppressed the expression of atherosclerosis-related genes and altered the expression of lipid-related genes. The results provide evidence that Panax ginseng improves vascular dysfunction induced by diabetes and the protective effects may possibly be due to the downregulation of atherosclerosis-related genes and altered lipid metabolism, which help to restore normal endothelium functions.