Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
PEAKASO: peak-temperature aware scan-vector optimization

In this paper, an algorithm for scan vector ordering, PEAKASO, is proposed to minimize the peak temperature during scan testing. Given a circuit with scan and the scan vectors, hotspot is predicted by window-based power analysis. The peak temperature on the hotspot is minimized by global scan vector ordering which expedites heat dissipation to ambient air through large thermal gradient. Further peak temperature reduction is achieved by local scan vector reordering based on overheat precompensation. As an output, PEAKASO provides a scan vector order with lower peak temperature. Note that the scan vectors themselves are not changed at all (only the order is changed), and thus there is no impact on fault coverage and no design overhead. Experimental results on benchmark circuits show that 4.3 - 9.7% peak temperature reduction can be achieved, compared with a scan vector order that is optimized only for average power consumption. Such temperature reduction can be very significant in terms of test time reduction (by 40-60%) under the same peak temperature constraint.
Evolutionary crossroads in developmental biology: Cnidaria

There is growing interest in the use of cnidarians (corals, sea anemones, jellyfish and hydroids) to investigate the evolution of key aspects of animal development, such as the formation of the third germ layer (mesoderm), the nervous system and the generation of bilaterality. The recent sequencing of the Nematostella and Hydra genomes, and the establishment of methods for manipulating gene expression, have inspired new research efforts using cnidarians. Here, we present the main features of cnidarian models and their advantages for research, and summarize key recent findings using these models that have informed our understanding of the evolution of the developmental processes underlying metazoan body plan formation.
An Image-Based Visual Servoing for Manipulator

In this paper, an image-based controller for tracking control of robot manipulators using a single camera is proposed. The proposed controller has robustness to parametric uncertainties of the robot manipulator and compensation for uncertainties included in the image Jacobian. The stability of the closed-loop system is proved by Lyapunov approach. The performance of the proposed method is demonstrated by simulation experiments on a 3-link robot manipulator with three degree of freedom.
Molding Micropatterns of Elasticity on PEG‐Based Hydrogels to Control Cell Adhesion and Migration

We present an innovative and simple, soft UV lithographic method “FIll‐Molding In Capillaries” (FIMIC) that combines soft lithography with capillary force driven filling of micro‐channels to create smooth hydrogel substrates with a 2D micro‐pattern on the surface. The lithographic procedure involves the molding of a polymer; in our case a bulk PEG‐based hydrogel, via UV‐curing from a microfabricated silicon master. The grooves of the created regular line pattern are consequently filled with a second hydrogel by capillary action. As a result, a smooth surface is obtained with a well‐defined pattern design of the two different polymers on its surface. The FIMIC method is very versatile; the only prerequisite is that the second material is liquid before curing in order to enable the filling process. In this specific case we present the proof of principle of this method by applying two hydrogels which differ in their crosslinking density and therefore in their elasticity. Preliminary cell culture studies on the fabricated elasticity patterned hydrogels indicate the preferred adhesion of the cells to the stiffer regions of the substrates, which implies that the novel substrates are a very useful platform for systematic cell migration studies, e.g. more fundamental investigation of the concept of “durotaxis”.
Formation Temperature and Growth Behavior of Thin Plate Martensite in Fe–Ni–C Alloys

changes at about -150°C from a lenticular to a thin plate. In this investigation, the relation between the transition temperature from the lenticular to the thin plate and the carbon content of Fe-Ni-C alloys was examined by adjusting the carbon content up to 0.9% and the nickel content from 25 to 35%. Furthermore, some features in the progress of transformation to the thin plate martensite from austenite were observed as compared with those of lenticular martensite. The main results obtained are as follows. (1) The transition temperature at which the morphology of martensite in Fe-Ni-C alloys changes from the lenticular to the thin plate rises with increase in carbon content. For example, in
Ultrasonic doppler flowmeter-guided occipital nerve block

Background Greater occipital nerve block is used in the treatment of headaches and neuralgia in the occipital area. We evaluated the efficacy of ultrasonic doppler flowmeter-guided occipital nerve block in patients experiencing headache in the occipital region in a randomized, prospective, placebo-controlled study. Methods Twenty-six patients, aged 18 to 70, with headache in the occipital region, were included in the study. Patients received a greater occipital nerve block performed either under ultrasonic doppler flowmeter guidance using 1% lidocaine or the traditional method. Sensory examination findings in the occipital region were evaluated. Results The complete block rate of greater occipital nerve blockade in the doppler group was significantly higher than in the control group respectively (76.9% vs. 30.8%, P < 0.05). Only one patient in the control group had a complication (minimal bleeding). Conclusions Ultrasonic doppler flowmeter-guided occipital nerve block may be a useful method for patients suffering headache in the occipital region.
fMRI Scanner Noise Interaction with Affective Neural Processes

The purpose of the present study was the investigation of interaction effects between functional MRI scanner noise and affective neural processes. Stimuli comprised of psychoacoustically balanced musical pieces, expressing three different emotions (fear, neutral, joy). Participants (N=34, 19 female) were split into two groups, one subjected to continuous scanning and another subjected to sparse temporal scanning that features decreased scanner noise. Tests for interaction effects between scanning group (sparse/quieter vs continuous/noisier) and emotion (fear, neutral, joy) were performed. Results revealed interactions between the affective expression of stimuli and scanning group localized in bilateral auditory cortex, insula and visual cortex (calcarine sulcus). Post-hoc comparisons revealed that during sparse scanning, but not during continuous scanning, BOLD signals were significantly stronger for joy than for fear, as well as stronger for fear than for neutral in bilateral auditory cortex. During continuous scanning, but not during sparse scanning, BOLD signals were significantly stronger for joy than for neutral in the left auditory cortex and for joy than for fear in the calcarine sulcus. To the authors' knowledge, this is the first study to show a statistical interaction effect between scanner noise and affective processes and extends evidence suggesting scanner noise to be an important factor in functional MRI research that can affect and distort affective brain processes.
Evaluation of RPL with a transmission count-efficient and trust-aware routing metric

Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) often need to operate under strict requirements on energy consumption and be capable of self-adapting to the presence of non-trusted nodes which do not fully cooperate in the packet forwarding operation. In such an environment, the mechanism employed for the calculation of routing paths of minimum cost in terms of the number of transmissions executed for the reliable communication between the data source and the data sink is essential to prevent unnecessary nodes' energy depletion and help prolong the network's lifetime. In this paper, we study a routing metric, TXPFI, that captures the expected number of frame transmissions - including retransmissions - needed for the successful delivery of data from the source to the destination in the presence of malicious nodes and lossy links, and validate its applicability to the IETF RPL routing protocol. Through extensive simulations we evaluate the capability of TXPFI to compute routing paths of minimum transmission count and compare it against a number of metrics suitable for transmission count-efficient and trust-aware routing in WSNs. The results show that the use of TXPFI in RPL can lead to significant transmission count savings.
Learning to Recognize Blogs: A Preliminary Exploration

We present results of our experiments with the application of machine learning on binary blog classification, i.e. determining whether a given web page is a blog page. We have gathered a corpus in excess of half a million blog or blog-like pages and pre-classified them using a simple baseline. We investigate which algorithms attain the best results for our classification problem and experiment with resampling techniques, with the aim of utilising our large dataset to improve upon our baseline. We show that the application of off-the-shelf machine learning technology to perform binary blog classification offers substantial improvement over our baseline. Further gains can sometimes be achieved using resampling techniques, but these improvements are relatively small compared to the initial gain.
Engineered Bacillus pumilus laccase-like multi-copper oxidase for enhanced oxidation of the lignin model compound guaiacol

Laccases and laccase-like multi-copper oxidases (LMCOs) are versatile and robust biocatalysts applied in a variety of oxidative processes, and various studies have attempted to improve their catalytic activity. Here we report the engineering of a bacterial LMCO for enhanced oxidation of the lignin-related compound guaiacol by a combination of structure-guided mutagenesis and DNA shuffling. Mutant L9 showed a 1.39 mM Km for guaiacol and a 2.5-fold increase in turnover rate (kcat/Km = 2.85·104 M-1s-1).
Molecular basis for improved gene silencing by Dicer substrate interfering RNA compared with other siRNA variants

The canonical exogenous trigger of RNA interference (RNAi) in mammals is small interfering RNA (siRNA). One promising application of RNAi is siRNA-based therapeutics, and therefore the optimization of siRNA efficacy is an important consideration. To reduce unfavorable properties of canonical 21mer siRNAs, structural and chemical variations to canonical siRNA have been reported. Several of these siRNA variants demonstrate increased potency in downstream readout-based assays, but the molecular mechanism underlying the increased potency is not clear. Here, we tested the performance of canonical siRNAs and several sequence-matched variants in parallel in gene silencing, RNA-induced silencing complex (RISC) assembly, stability and Argonaute (Ago) loading assays. The commonly used 19mer with two deoxythymidine overhangs (19merTT) variant performed similarly to canonical 21mer siRNA. A shorter 16mer variant (16merTT) did not perform comparably in our assays. Dicer substrate interfering RNA (dsiRNA) demonstrated better gene silencing by the guide strand (target complementary strand), better RISC assembly, persistence of the guide strand and relatively more loading of the guide strand into Ago. Hence, we demonstrate the advantageous properties of dsiRNAs at upstream, intermediate and downstream molecular steps of the RNAi pathway.
The isolation of useful bioproducts remaining from the large-scale fermentation of Penicillium chrysogenum

Chitin, a homopolymer of s-(1-4) linked N-acetyl D-glucosamine units, and its deacetylated derivative chitosan have unique properties that may allow their utilisation in a diverse array of high-value applications. Currently chitinous materials are commercially produced from the waste products of the seafood processing industry, this supply is seasonal and the extraction procedures required harsh, resulting in products with heterogeneous characteristics. In this work novel methods of extraction of chitinous material from the dry fungal biomass remaining from the large-scale fermentation of Penicillium chrysogenum in the penicillin manufacturing industry were investigated, with the aim of avoiding or minimising the harsh chemical treatments. This work was carried out in partnership with Angel Biotechnology, who produce penicillin commercially and provided the waste biomass. It was determined that the chitinous material present in this biomass was too intractable for this to be a suitable commercial source of chitin, as large quantities of non-chitinous polysaccharide impurities remained in the product. Attempted enzymatic degradations of the fungal cell wall did not increase the level of purity of the extract. Comparison to other fungal sources of chitinous material indicated that P. chrysogenum does not provide the most efficient source of chitinous material. During the course of these studies it became apparent that there is no agreed literature procedure for the determination of the degree of deacetylation (DDA) of chitinous material, this characteristic is essential in determining the physiochemical properties of the polymer. In reviewing the procedures available we concluded that (^15)N solid-state NMR offered the most reliable method, however, its use was limited by the low natural abundance of (^15)N. We therefore developed a novel, efficient and directed strategy for the (^15)N labelling of chitinous material in fungal cells walls. This allows the direct determination of the DDA of chitinous material in whole fungal cells without the need for lengthy extraction procedures. The whole cell CPMAS ssNMR techniques developed may find many applications, such as monitoring cell wall biogenesis in response to varying nutrient conditions. Additionally, this may allow the rapid screening of fungal species to determine the concentration and DDA of chitinous material.
Cervical Spinal Cord, Root, and Bony Spine Injuries: A Closed Claims Analysis

Background:The aim of this study was to characterize cervical cord, root, and bony spine claims in the American Society of Anesthesiologists Closed Claims database to formulate hypotheses regarding mechanisms of injury. Methods:All general anesthesia claims (1970–2007) in the Closed Claims database were searched to identify cervical injuries. Three independent teams, each consisting of an anesthesiologist and neurosurgeon, used a standardized review form to extract data from claim summaries and judge probable contributors to injury. Results:Cervical injury claims (n = 48; mean ± SD age 47 ± 15 yr; 73% male) comprised less than 1% of all general anesthesia claims. When compared with other general anesthesia claims (19%), cervical injury claims were more often permanent and disabling (69%; P < 0.001). In addition, cord injuries (n = 37) were more severe than root and/or bony spine injuries (n = 10; P < 0.001), typically resulting in quadriplegia. Although anatomic abnormalities (e.g., cervical stenosis) were often present, cord injuries usually occurred in the absence of traumatic injury (81%) or cervical spine instability (76%). Cord injury occurred with cervical spine (65%) and noncervical spine (35%) procedures. Twenty-four percent of cord injuries were associated with the sitting position. Probable contributors to cord injury included anatomic abnormalities (81%), direct surgical complications (24% [38%, cervical spine procedures]), preprocedural symptomatic cord injury (19%), intraoperative head/neck position (19%), and airway management (11%). Conclusion:Most cervical cord injuries occurred in the absence of traumatic injury, instability, and airway difficulties. Cervical spine procedures and/or sitting procedures appear to predominate. In the absence of instability, cervical spondylosis was the most common factor associated with cord injury.
Suicide by Occupation: Does Access to Means Increase the Risk?

Objective: To examine suicide by identified occupational groups in New Zealand over a period of 30 years, focusing on groups predicted to have high suicide rates because of access to and familiarity with particular methods of suicide. Method: Suicide data (including open verdicts) for the period 1973–2004 were examined, excluding 1996 and 1997 for which occupational data were not available. Occupational groups of interest were dentists, doctors, farmers (including farm workers), hunters and cullers, military personnel, nurses, pharmacists, police and veterinarians. Crude mortality rates were calculated based on numbers in each occupational group at each quinquennial census, 1976–2001. Standardized mortality ratios were calculated using suicide rates in all employed groups (the standard population). Results: Few of the occupations investigated had high risks of suicide as assessed by standardized mortality ratios, and some were at lower risk than the total employed population. Standardized mortality ratios were elevated for male nurses (1.7; 95% CI: 1.2–2.5), female nurses (1.3; 95% CI: 1.0–1.6), male hunters and cullers (3.0; 95% CI: 1.7–4.8), and female pharmacists (2.5; 95% CI: 0.8–5. 9). Doctors, farmers and veterinarians were not at high risk, and men in the police and armed forces were at low risk. Access to means appeared to have influenced the method chosen. Nurses, doctors and pharmacists were more likely to use poisoning than were other employed people (3, 4 and 5 times respectively, compared with all others employed). Farmers and hunters and cullers were more than twice as likely as all others employed to use firearms. Conclusions: Access to means may be less important in some circumstances than in others, perhaps because of the presence of other factors that confer protection. Nevertheless, among the groups we studied with access to lethal means were three groups whose risk of suicide has so far received little attention in New Zealand: nurses, female pharmacists, and hunters and cullers.
The Expression of Sterigmatocystin and Penicillin Genes in Aspergillus nidulans Is Controlled by veA, a Gene Required for Sexual Development

ABSTRACT Secondary metabolism is commonly associated with morphological development in microorganisms, including fungi. We found that veA, a gene previously shown to control the Aspergillus nidulans sexual/asexual developmental ratio in response to light, also controls secondary metabolism. Specifically, veA regulates the expression of genes implicated in the synthesis of the mycotoxin sterigmatocystin and the antibiotic penicillin. veA is necessary for the expression of the transcription factor aflR, which activates the gene cluster that leads to the production of sterigmatocystin. veA is also necessary for penicillin production. Our results indicated that although veA represses the transcription of the isopenicillin synthetase gene ipnA, it is necessary for the expression of acvA, the key gene in the first step of penicillin biosynthesis, encoding the delta-(l-alpha-aminoadipyl)-l-cysteinyl-d-valine synthetase. With respect to the mechanism of veA in directing morphological development, veA has little effect on the expression of the known sexual transcription factors nsdD and steA. However, we found that veA regulates the expression of the asexual transcription factor brlA by modulating the α/β transcript ratio that controls conidiation.
Transit-Stub Architecture for Peer-to-Peer SIP

A transit-stub P2PSIP architecture is proposed in this paper. In this architecture, heterogeneous P2PSIP overlays are interconnected in a decentralized approach provided by a transit overlay. A special SIP element, P2PSIP router, is designed to exchange SIP routing information and route SIP messages. Our architecture reacts to the change of route information quickly. Performance analysis indicates that session setup latency and register overhead are significantly reduced compared to those of the flat P2PSIP approach when applying the locality based grouping scheme. Finally, we describe deployment scenarios for the architecture and present our implementation.
Effective Pre-Stress Identification for a Simply-Supported PRC Bridge Based on the Dynamic Response Induced by the Passing Vehicle

A new method is proposed to identify the bridge effective pre-stress from the dynamic responses induced by the vehicle moving on a simply-supported beam bridge with eccentric straight pre-stress, based on the sensitivity analysis. The bridge is modeled as Euler beam elements and the moving vehicle is modeled as a two-degree freedom system with five parameters. After calculating dynamic responses of the bridge by vehicle-bridge coupled vibration analysis, the dynamic responses sensitivity can be obtained by using the direct derivation method, and the regularization method is adopted to identify the effective pre-stress. The effects on the identified results from different responses, different measuring locations and different road surface roughness are considered in the numerical simulations. The simulation studies indicate that the proposed method can be used to identify the effective pre-stress accurately and effectively for a simply-supported PRC beam bridges.
Fluoxetine induces alkalinization of astroglial cytosol through stimulation of sodium-hydrogen exchanger 1: dissection of intracellular signaling pathways

Clinical evidence suggest astrocytic abnormality in major depression (MD) while treatment with anti-psychotic drugs affects astroglial functions. Astroglial cells are involved in pH homeostasis of the brain by transporting protons (through sodium-proton transporter 1, NHE1, glutamate transporters EAAT1/2 and proton-lactate co-transporter MCT1) and bicarbonate (through the sodium-bicarbonate co-transporter NBC or the chloride-bicarbonate exchanger AE). Here we show that chronic treatment with fluoxetine increases astroglial pHi by stimulating NHE1-mediated proton extrusion. At a clinically relevant concentration of 1 μM, fluoxetine significantly increased astroglial pHi from 7.05 to 7.34 after 3 weeks and from 7.18 to 7.58 after 4 weeks of drug treatment. Stimulation of NHE1 is a result of transporter phosphorylation mediated by several intracellular signaling cascades that include MAPK/ERK1/2, PI3K/AKT and ribosomal S6 kinase (RSK). Fluoxetine stimulated phosphorylation of ERK1/2, AKT and RSK in a concentration dependent manner. Positive crosstalk exists between two signal pathways, MAPK/ERK1/2 and PI3K/AKT activated by fluoxetine since ERK1/2 phosphrylation could be abolished by inhibitors of PI3K, LY294002 and AKT, triciribine, and AKT phosphorylation by inhibitor of MAPK, U0126. As a result, RSK phosphorylation was not only inhibited by U0126 but also by inhibitor of LY294002. The NHE1 phoshorylation resulted in stimulation of NHE1 activity as revealed by the NH4Cl-prepulse technique; the increase of NHE1 activity was dependent on fluoxetine concentration, and could be inhibited by both U0126 and LY294002. Our findings suggest that regulation of astrocytic pHi and brain pH may be one of the mechanisms underlying fluoxetine action.
A STUDY OF NODE DEGREE DISTRIBUTIONS IN AMINO ACID INTERACTION NETWORKS

A protein interaction network is a graph whose vertices are the protein’s amino acids and whose edges are the interactions between them. Using a graph theory approach, we study the properties of these networks. In a first time, we lead a topological description of structural families to observe how proteins from the same family have homogeneous topological properties. Second, we compare the studied graphs to the general model of scale-free networks. In particular, we are interested in the degree distribution and the mean degree of vertices. The results show a correlation between these two measures.