Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Glacial advances in the Rakaia Valley, New Zealand

Abstract Re-alignment of the road near the Rakaia Gorge bridge (S82) has clearly exposed deposits of the Woodlands and younger glacial advances, and their erosional or faulted relationships. Renewed geomorphological mapping in the area indicates that the Tui Creek Advance was in three phases, not one as previously recognised, so that it may have the status of a full glaciation. New details of the deposits and geo-morphology related to the three phases of the last (Acheron) advance of the Otira Glaciation indicate greater aggradation than previously supposed, and the formation of a complex of lakes during fluctuations of the glacier.
Watershed transform for text lines extraction on binary Arabic handwriten documents

We propose an approach for automatic text line detection on binary handwritten documents. Our algorithm is based on the Watershed transform to localize components of the same lines. The analysis of the neighbouring regions of each connected component, allow us to link those that satisfy some constraints such as linearity in order to group them in the same line. The preliminary results are promising and show that the proposed approach is language independent.
Node Immunization with Time-Sensitive Restrictions

When we encounter a malicious rumor or an infectious disease outbreak, immunizing k nodes of the relevant network with limited resources is always treated as an extremely effective method. The key challenge is how we can insulate limited nodes to minimize the propagation of those contagious things. In previous works, the best k immunised nodes are selected by learning the initial status of nodes and their strategies even if there is no feedback in the propagation process, which eventually leads to ineffective performance of their solutions. In this paper, we design a novel vaccines placement strategy for protecting much more healthy nodes from being infected by infectious nodes. The main idea of our solution is that we are not only utilizing the status of changing nodes as auxiliary knowledge to adjust our scheme, but also comparing the performance of vaccines in various transmission slots. Thus, our solution has a better chance to get more benefit from these limited vaccines. Extensive experiments have been conducted on several real-world data sets and the results have shown that our algorithm has a better performance than previous works.
Four‐Year Experience With Palmaz‐Schatz Stenting in Coronary Angioplasty Complicated by Dissection With Threatened or Present Vessel Closure

BackgroundAbrupt vessel closure after percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty (PTCA) is associated with major adverse events. Different surgical and nonsurgical approaches have been advocated to treat or prevent this complication. This study summarizes our 4-year experience with Palmaz-Schatz stenting for the management of 339 patients with present or threatened occlusion after PTCA. Methods and ResultsStent implantation was attempted in a total of 339 and 4959 patients with PTCA during the study period and was successful in 327 (96.5%). During the follow-up, events like death, myocardial infarction, need for revascularization (bypass surgery and repeat in- stent angioplasty), and major vascular complications were recorded. Angiographic follow-up at 6 months was performed in 89.3% of the eligible patients. As part of an initial policy, stenting was intended as a bridge to nonemergency bypass surgery in 26 patients. In 301 patients for whom stenting was intended as permanent treatment, early clinical course (first 4 weeks) was characterized by a 1.3% cardiac mortality and a 4.0% nonfatal myocardial infarction rate; bypass surgery was necessary in 1%, and 6.3% required early repeat PTCA. Surgical repair for peripheral vascular complications was required in 5.6%, and major bleeding events were encountered in 9%. The incidence of subacute stent closure was 6.9%, with subsequent recanalization successful in 86%; subacute stent closure was predicted by presence of vessel occlusion before stenting and localization of the stent in a vessel other than the right coronary artery. Survival rate at 2 years was 95.4%, survival without myocardial infarction was 91.1%, and event-free survival was 70.7%. Survival at 2 years was lower for patients with stents in bypass vein grafts and with myocardial infarction after stenting. Six-month control angiography revealed a restenosis rate of 29.6%. ConclusionsPatients with present or threatened occlusion after PTCA may benefit from Palmaz-Schatz stenting. It is associated with a low mortality and myocardial infarction rate and with a long-term event- free rate comparable to that of uncomplicated PTCA.
International Journal of Nanomedicine Dovepress Synthesis of Fluorapatite–hydroxyapatite Nanoparticles and Toxicity Investigations

In this study, calcium phosphate nanoparticles with two phases, fluorapatite (FA; Ca 10 (PO 4) 6 F 2) and hydroxyapatite (HA; Ca 10 (PO 4) 6 (OH) 2), were prepared using the sol-gel method. Ethyl phosphate, hydrated calcium nitrate, and ammonium fluoride were used, r espectively, as P, Ca, and F precursors with a Ca:P ratio of 1:72. Powders obtained from the sol-gel process were studied after they were dried at 80°C and heat treated at 550°C. The degree of crystallinity, particle and crystallite size, powder morphology, chemical structure, and phase analysis were investigated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and Zetasizer experiments. The results of XRD analysis and FTIR showed the presence of hydroxyapatite and fluorapatite phases. The sizes of the crystallites estimated from XRD patterns using the Scherrer equation and the crystallinity of the hydroxyapatite phase were about 20 nm and 70%, respectively. T ransmission electron microscope and SEM images and Zetasizer experiments showed an average size of 100 nm. The in vitro behavior of powder was investigated with mouse fibroblast cells. The results of these experiments indicated that the powders were biocompatibile and would not cause toxic reactions. These compounds could be applied for hard-tissue engineering.
Fault-tolerance, malleability and migration for divide-and-conquer applications on the grid

Grid applications have to cope with dynamically changing computing resources as machines may crash or be claimed by other, higher-priority applications. In this paper, we propose a mechanism that enables fault-tolerance, malleability (e.g. the ability to cope with a dynamically changing number of processors) and migration for divide-and-conquer applications on the grid. The novelty of our approach is restructuring the computation tree, which eliminates redundant computation and salvages partial results computed by the processors leaving the computation. This enables the applications to adapt to dynamically changing numbers of processors and to migrate the computation without loss of work. Our mechanism is easy to implement and deploy in grid environment. The overhead it incurs is close to zero. We have implemented our mechanism in the Satin system. We have evaluated the performance of our system on the DAS-2 wide-area system and on the testbed of the European GridLab project.
CO2 exchange along a hydrologic gradient in the Kenai Lowlands, AK: feedback implications of wetland drying and vegetation succession

Boreal wetlands hold vast stocks of soil carbon (C), which may be vulnerable to changes in climate. In southcentral Alaska, wetlands of the Kenai Lowlands have experienced a warming and drying trend that has led to woody vegetation encroachment into herbaceous wetlands. We examined whether predicted higher rates of gross ecosystem photosynthesis (GEP) would be offset by higher rates of ecosystem respiration (ER) in woody wetland communities. We measured net ecosystem exchange (NEE) in four communities along a hydrologic and vegetation gradient during (1) a warm and dry growing season, (2) a more typical cool and wet growing season and (3) the intervening winter. We fit simple GEP and ER models to our data and estimated annual NEE for each community using hourly measurements of photosynthetically active radiation and air temperature. We found that woody communities exhibited greater GEP than herbaceous communities under cool and moist conditions, but more similar GEP under warm and dry conditions. Woody communities also showed greater ER than herbaceous communities during all seasons, outpacing GEP during the warm and dry growing season. On an annual basis, we estimated that herbaceous communities were either net sinks or approximately CO2 neutral, ranging from −132·8 to 4·7 g CO2–C m−2 y−1. In contrast, woody communities were sources of CO2 to the atmosphere, ranging from 78·8 to 181·7 g CO2–C m−2 y−1. Our results suggest that the initial encroachment of woody vegetation into herbaceous wetlands will lead to a substantial loss of C, particularly if conditions continue to become warmer and drier. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
The Way Forward for Livestock and the Environment

Livestock provide many benefits to society, but at the same time, they generate considerable pressure on land, water and biomass resources and are responsible for 18 percent of total greenhouse gas emissions. The total demand for livestock products may almost double by 2050, mostly in the developing world due to increases in population density, urbanisation and incomes. At the same time, existing trade-offs and competing demands for natural resources with other sectors will intensify, making it necessary to take a combination of measures to reduce the environmental footprint of livestock production. Measures such as sustainable intensification of crop-livestock systems, payments for ecosystem services, income diversification in pastoral systems, regulation of industrial systems and livestock-product demand management could play a significant role in ensuring sustainable livestock production, livelihoods and environmental protection. This chapter examines the main environmental interactions of livestock production and suggests ways to improve them.
Self-Stimulation of the Brain

My conclusions are these: (i) The cells which mediate primary rewarding effects are located in a midline system running from the midbrain through the hypothalamus and midline thalamus and into the subcortical and cortical groups of the rhinencephalon. (ii) The cell groups which mediate primary rewarding effects are different from those which mediate primary punishing effects. (iii) Despite this relative independence, there are, undoubtedly, relationships of mutual inhibition existing between these two systems. Rewards do, among other things, tend to reduce sensitivity to pain, and punishments do tend to reduce rewarding effects. (iv) These primary reward systems of the brain are subdivided into specific drive-reward subsystems mediating the specific drives such as hunger and sex. (v) Because there are also subsystems of this set of rewarding structures sensitive to different chemical effects, it is reasonable to hope that eventually it will be possible to control the reward systems pharmacologically in cases where behavior disorders seem to result from deficits or surfeits of positive motivation.
Parameter estimation by reduced-order linear associative memory (ROLAM)

In a series of papers the authors have shown that nonlinear parameter estimation by linear association provides accurate estimates of the parameters in complex systems described by nonlinear differential equations even in the presence of additive white noise of considerable power. The technique is based on linearly associating the system's output with a set of parameter values spanning the region of interest. When an actual output is measured, the system's unknown parameters could be estimated by a matrix inversion. The size of the inverted matrix, being equal to the length of the output vector, poses a limiting factor upon the generalization of the technique. Here, the authors propose a modification which requires the inversion of a matrix whose dimension equals the number of model parameters. The modified version is called reduced-order associative memory (ROLAM). The technique is applied to two complex lumped-parameter nonlinear models: the Van der Pol relaxation oscillator and the passive neuron model of the granule cells. Results validate ROLAM as a parameter-estimation tool which is especially suited in cases where the number of parameters is large, the number of samples in the observation signal is high, or when on-line parameter estimation is required. It is also shown that ROLAM provides an optimal parameter estimate in the special case of single-parameter nonlinear models.
Interannual Variability of Meridional Heat Transport in a Numerical Model of the Upper Equatorial Pacific ocean

Abstract The interannual heat budget of the Pacific equatorial upwelling zone is studied using a primitive equation, a reduced gravity model of the upper Pacific equatorial ocean. The model is forced with monthly mean FSU winds from 1971 to 1990. A meridional overturning cell transports heat poleward with poleward flowing warm surface water compensated by colder, deeper equatorward flow. A horizontal cell transports heat equatorward as warmer equatorward flow, which enters the equatorial zone near the western boundary to feed the Equatorial Undercurrent, is compensated by colder poleward flow in the eastern basin. The heat transported by transient eddies is equatorward. Heat transport anomalies from the 20-year mean balance the time rate of change of heat content on interannual and seasonal timescales. Anomalies of surface heat flux do not contribute significantly to the interannual heat budget. Although each simulated ENSO event develops differently, similarities in the interannual heat budget emerge. He.
Adherence to the “Mediterranean Diet” in Spain and Its Relationship with Cardiovascular Risk (DIMERICA Study)

Background: Nutritional studies focus on traditional cultural models and lifestyles in different countries. The aim of this study was to examine the adherence to the Mediterranean diet, life habits, and risk factors associated with cardiovascular diseases among people living in different geographical regions in Spain. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted in each region. The sampling scheme consisted of a random three-stage stratified sampling program according to geographic region, age, and gender. A total of 1732 subjects were asked to complete a questionnaire designed to assess their nutrient intake, dietary habits, and exercise. A diet score that assesses the adherence of participants to the Mediterranean diet (range 0–10) was also applied. Results: Southeastern Spain had the lowest score for adherence to the Mediterranean diet because of the low consumption of fish and plant products. A lower adherence score to the Mediterranean diet was strongly associated with the prevalence of hypertension (p = 0.018). Conclusions: A low level of adherence to the Mediterranean diet is accompanied by a high prevalence of hypertension and, therefore, a raised cardiovascular risk in the country. The adherence score could help identify individuals at greater cardiovascular risk.
EFFECTS OF MUSCLE FATIGUE ON SHOULDER JOINT POSITION SENSE

INTRODUCTION The shoulder complex relies heavily on sensory-motor control for maintaining functional joint stability, due to its poor osseous and capsuloligamentous stability. Proprioceptive deficits have been related to shoulder injuries and some studies have shown that muscle fatigue can also decrease propriocetive acuity [1-3]. However, these studies have focused on shoulder internal and external rotation movements, which may not be functional for the general population. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the effects of muscle fatigue on shoulder joint position sense during an active repositioning task at different angles of shoulder elevation in the scapular plane.
Performance Evaluation and Benchmarking of Six Texture-Based Feature Sets for Segmenting Historical Documents

Recently, texture-based features have been used for digitized historical document image segmentation. It has been proven that these methods work effectively with no a priori knowledge. Moreover, it has been shown that they are robust when they are applied on degraded documents under different noise levels and types. In this paper an approach of evaluating texture-based feature sets for segmenting historical documents is presented in order to compare them. We aim at determining which texture features could be more adequate for segmenting graphical regions from textual ones on the one hand and for discriminating text in a variety of situations of different fonts and scales on the other hand. For this purpose, six well-known and widely used texture-based feature sets (autocorrelation function, Grey Level Co occurrence Matrix, Gabor filters, 3-level Haar wavelet transform, 3-level wavelet transform using 3-tap Daubechies filter and 3-level wavelet transform using 4-tap Daubechies filter) are evaluated and compared on a large corpus of historical documents. An additional insight into the computation time and complexity of each texture-based feature set is given. Qualitative and numerical experiments are also given to demonstrate each texture-based feature set performance.
Towards an Innovative Validation-Driven Approach to Lean Product Development

Many software products contain unnecessary functionality. Industrial reports show 45% of the features in analyzed software products are never used. Software-centric organizations have been trying to sustain their competitive advantage by re-defining their product development strategy. Recent attempts to re-strategize the product development process tend towards customer-centric approaches. We propose a validation-driven model based around proven lean principles, agile methods, and value-driven design. To increase the model’s likelihood of success, the study discusses suitable guidelines and deployment protocols that have been evolved in industrial settings
Millimeter and sub-terahertz wave generation with an on-chip colliding pulse mode-locked laser diode

We report the generation of millimeter and sub-terahertz waves with an on-chip colliding pulse mode-locked laser diode (OCCP-MLLD) by using two different approaches. The first approach is the pulsed source method based on an OCCP-MLLD structure that allows on-chip integration using multimode interference reflectors (MIRs). The OCCP-MLLD is capable of generating a carrier at 70 GHz due to the colliding pulse mode locking regime. The second approach is the optical heterodyning method using an on-chip colliding pulse mode-locked laser with an arrayed waveguide grating optical filter (OCCP-AWG). The OCCP-AWG provides a carrier at 90 GHz by filtering two optical modes.
An Improvement of the Performance of Multiple-Aperture SAR Interferometry (MAI)

Multiple-aperture synthetic aperture radar (SAR) interferometry (MAI) enables the measurement of along-track surface deformations by means of split-beam SAR processing. This paper examines the effects of flat-Earth and topographic phases on the MAI phase and derives formulas to correct them. Detailed MAI processing steps are introduced and discussed with particular consideration given to coherence improvement, as well as to computational efficiency. Forward- and backward-looking MAI pairs have different perpendicular baselines, which play a key role in phase distortion; consequently, an orbital deviation of only a few centimeters could result in a significant flat-Earth phase. A second-order polynomial model was used to estimate the perpendicular baseline difference. European Remote Sensing 2 satellite SAR data sets of the Hector Mine earthquake event in 1999 were used for performance evaluation. The proposed processing with the flat-Earth and topographic phase corrections achieved precision of along-track deformation ranging from 10.2 to 13.1 cm. Two coseismic pairs were compared and the standard deviation of the difference between the two independent measurements was 7.0 cm, with a mean difference of -0.24 cm. Thus, the measurement accuracy of MAI was improved using flat-Earth correction and coherence enhancement.
The effect of water on high‐temperature deformation in olivine

Numerous natural single crystal specimens of olivine were examined to assess the levels of intrinsic water (hydrogen) concentration and to measure their plastic deformation characteristics within controlled environments in constant strain-rate experiments. Our efforts to characterize the "water" content of the natural specimens, as well as to artificially "wet" single crystals, have indicated that the olivine structure can retain "water" in very small amounts only (a maximum of 55 H/106 Si was observed). Moreover, compressional creep deformation experiments at differential stresses between 10 and 450 bars, with strain-rates from 10−6 to 10−5 sec−1 under zero confining pressure, and at a temperature of 1575°C, demonstrate no loss in strength for single crystal specimens deformed in "wet", relative to "dry", experimental environments. Our "wet" environments were obtained from an H2O-H2 gas mixture with controlled oxygen fugacity within the olivine stability region, whereas "dry" conditions were obtained by using a CO2-CO gas flow. The results of this study, as well as those from other recent investigations, suggest strongly that the "water weakening" effect, which has been observed in natural olivine and dunite, is most likely due to the increase of oxygen partial pressure resulting from the high temperature decomposition of H2O, rather than the hydrolysis of crystal bonds.
Zero-Shot Learning of Language Models for Describing Human Actions Based on Semantic Compositionality of Actions

We propose a novel framework for zero-shot learning of topic-dependent language models, which enables the learning of language mod- els corresponding to specific topics for which no language data is available. To realize zero- shot learning, we exploit the semantic compo- sitionality of the target topics. Complex topics are normally composed of several elementary semantic components. We found that the lan- guage model that corresponds to a particular topic can be approximated with a linear com- bination of language models corresponding to elementary components of the target topics. On the basis of the findings, we propose sim- ple methods of zero-shot learning. To confirm the effectiveness of the proposed framework, we apply the methods to the problem of gen- erating natural language descriptions of short Kinect videos of simple human actions.