Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Exact spectrum and partition function of SU(m|n) supersymmetric Polychronakos model

By using the fact that Polychronakos-like models can be obtained through the `freezing limit' of related spin Calogero models, we calculate the exact spectrum as well as the partition function of the S U ( m | n ) supersymmetric Polychronakos (SP) model. It turns out that, similar to the non-supersymmetric case, the spectrum of the S U ( m | n ) SP model is also equally spaced. However, the degeneracy factors of corresponding energy levels crucially depend on the values of bosonic degrees of freedom ( m ) and fermionic degrees of freedom ( n ). As a result, the partition functions of the SP models are expressed with some novel q -polynomials. Finally, by interchanging the bosonic and fermionic degrees of freedom, we obtain a duality relation among the partition functions of the SP models.
Effects of intra-abdominal pressure on liver function assessed with the LiMON in critically ill patients.

BACKGROUND Intra-abdominal pressure (IAP) and intra-abdominal hypertension (IAH) are associated with significant morbidity and mortality in critically ill patients. Our aim was to assess the effects of IAH on liver function using the noninvasive liver function monitoring system LiMON and to assess the prognostic value of IAP in critically ill patients. METHODS We conducted a retrospective analysis of critically ill patients who were treated in the intensive care unit (ICU). The IAP and indocyanine green plasma disappearance rate (ICG-PDR) measurements were made within 24 hours after admission to the ICU and repeated 12 hours later. Intra-abdominal pressure was measured via a Foley bladder catheter, and ICG elimination tests were conducted concurrently using the LiMON. RESULTS We included 30 critically ill patients (17 women and 13 men aged 28-89 yr) in our analysis. Statistical analysis showed that the baseline IAP values were significantly higher among nonsurvivors than survivors (19.38 [standard deviation; SD 2.08] v. 13.07 [SD 0.99]). The twelfth-hour IAP values were higher than baseline measurements among nonsurvivors (21.50 [SD 1.96]) and lower than baseline measurements among survivors (11.71 [SD 1.54]); the difference between groups was significant (p < 0.001). The baseline ICG-PDR values were significantly lower among nonsurvivors than survivors (10.86 [SD 3.35] v. 24.51 [SD 6.78]), and the twelfth-hour ICGPDR values were decreased in all groups; the difference between groups was significant (p < 0.001). CONCLUSION Our results suggest that measurement of ICG-PDR with the LiMON is a good predictor of the effects of IAP on liver function and, thus, can be recommended for the evaluation of critically ill patients.
A DC-DC Boost Converter for Photovoltaic Application

Within the photovoltaic (PV) power-generation market, the ac PV module has shown obvious growth. However, a high voltage gain converter is essential for the module's grid connection through a dc-ac inverter. This paper proposes a converter that employs a floating active switch to isolate energy from the PV panel when the ac module is OFF; this particular design protects installers and users from electrical hazards. Without extreme duty ratios and the numerous turns-ratios of a coupled inductor, this converter achieves a high step-up voltage-conversion ratio; the leakage inductor energy of the coupled inductor is efficiently recycled to the load. These features explain the module's high-efficiency performance.
Toxicity caused by para-substituted phenols on Tetrahymena pyriformis: the structure-activity relationships

The toxicity of thirty para-substituted phenols on Tetrahymena pyriformis was modelled using an original methodology that uses the complex structural information of the compounds. Two models were built. The methodology allows atomic properties to be assigned to toxicity based on the selection of pairs of descriptors from the entire family, which is called Molecular Descriptors Family (MDF). One model has two independent structural descriptors and the other has four. The model with four descriptors proved to have high estimated and predictive abilities (over 97% of toxicity could be explained by structural information). The partial charge distribution by bonds (molecular topology) and space (molecular geometry) interaction proved to be related with the toxicity of para-substituted phenols on Tetrahymena pyriformis . The predictive ability of the model was tested by using the following methods: the cross-validation leave-one-out and the training versus test experiments . The comparisons among the models were performed using the correlated correlations method. The embedding of the complex information from the structure using MDF methodology can lead to further investigations of the mechanism of chemicals toxicity on Tetrahymena pyriformis .
The Function of Two Rho Family GTPases Is Determined by Distinct Patterns of Cell Surface Localization

ABSTRACT Rho family GTPases are critical regulators in determining and maintaining cell polarity. In Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Rho3 and Cdc42 play important but distinct roles in regulating polarized exocytosis and overall polarity. Cdc42 is highly polarized during bud emergence and is specifically required for exocytosis at this stage. In contrast, Rho3 appears to play an important role during the isotropic growth of larger buds. Using a novel monoclonal antibody against Rho3, we find that Rho3 localizes to the cell surface in a dispersed pattern which is clearly distinct from that of Cdc42. Using chimeric forms of these GTPases, we demonstrate that a small region at the N terminus is necessary and sufficient to confer Rho3 localization and function onto Cdc42. Analysis of this domain reveals two essential elements responsible for distinguishing function. First, palmitoylation of a cysteine residue by the Akr1 palmitoyltransferase is required both for the switch of function and the switch of localization properties of this domain. Second, two basic residues distal to the palmitoylation site are required for regulating binding affinity with the Exo70 and Sec3 effectors. This demonstrates the importance of localization and effector binding in determining how these GTPases evolved specific functions at distinct stages of polarized growth.
Parallel Processing of Remotely Sensed Hyperspectral Images On Heterogeneous Networks of Workstations Using HeteroMPI

The development of efficient techniques for transforming massive volumes of remotely sensed hyperspectral data into scientific understanding is critical for space-based Earth science and planetary exploration. Although most available parallel processing strategies for information extraction and mining from hyperspectral imagery assume homogeneity in the underlying computing platform, heterogeneous networks of computers (HNOCs) have become a promising cost-effective solution, expected to play a major role in many on-going and planned remote sensing missions. In this paper, we develop a new morphological parallel algorithm for hyperspectral image classification using HeteroMPI, an extension of MPI for programming high-performance computations on HNOCs. The main idea of HeteroMPI is to automate and optimize the selection of a group of processes that executes a heterogeneous algorithm faster than any other possible group in a heterogeneous environment. In order to analyze the impact of many-to-one (gather) communication operations introduced by our proposed algorithm, we resort to a recently proposed collective communication model. The parallel algorithm is validated using two heterogeneous clusters at University College Dublin and a massively parallel Beowulf cluster at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center.
The entropy-driven X-ray evolution of galaxy clusters

Observations of the evolution of the galaxy cluster X-ray luminosity function suggest that the entropy of the intra-cluster medium plays a significant role in determining the development of cluster X-ray properties. I present a theoretical framework in which the evolution of the entropy of the central intra-cluster gas is explicitly taken into account. The aim of this work is to develop a theoretical context within which steadily improving measurements of the X-ray luminosities and temperatures of distant galaxy clusters can be interpreted. I discuss the possible range of entropy evolution parameters and relate these to the physical processes heating and cooling the intra-cluster medium. The practical application of this work is demonstrated by combining currently available evolutionary constraints on the X-ray luminosity function and the luminosity--temperature correlation to determine the best-fitting model parameters.
Protein 4.1 tumor suppressors: getting a FERM grip on growth regulation

Members of the Protein 4.1 superfamily have highly conserved FERM domains that link cell surface glycoproteins to the actin cytoskeleton. Within this large and constantly expanding superfamily, at least five subgroups have been proposed. Two of these subgroups, the ERM and prototypic Protein 4.1 molecules, include proteins that function as tumor suppressors. The ERM subgroup member merlin/schwannomin is inactivated in the tumor-predisposition syndrome neurofibromatosis 2 (NF2), and the prototypic 4.1 subgroup member, Protein 4.1B, has been implicated in the molecular pathogenesis of breast, lung and brain cancers. This review focuses on what is known of mechanisms of action and critical protein interactions that may mediate the unique growth inhibitory signals of these two Protein 4.1 tumor suppressors. On the basis of insights derived from studying the NF2 tumor suppressor, we propose a model for merlin growth regulation in which CD44 links growth signals from plasma membrane to the nucleus by interacting with ERM proteins and merlin.
The 2008 MedSLT System

MedSLT is a grammar-based medical speech translation system intended for use in doctor-patient diagnosis dialogues, which provides coverage of several different subdomains and multiple language pairs. Vocabulary ranges from about 350 to 1000 surface words, depending on the language and subdomain. We will demo three different versions of the system: an anyto-any multilingual version involving the languages Japanese, English, French and Arabic, a bidirectional English $ Spanish version, and a mobile version running on a hand-held PDA. We will also demo the Regulus development environment, focussing on features which support rapid prototyping of grammar-based speech translation systems.
Nanobodies as novel agents for disease diagnosis and therapy

The discovery of naturally occurring, heavy-chain only antibodies in Camelidae, and their further development into small recombinant nanobodies, presents attractive alternatives in drug delivery and imaging. Easily expressed in microorganisms and amenable to engineering, nanobody derivatives are soluble, stable, versatile, and have unique refolding capacities, reduced aggregation tendencies, and high-target binding capabilities. This review outlines the current state of the art in nanobodies, focusing on their structural features and properties, production, technology, and the potential for modulating immune functions and for targeting tumors, toxins, and microbes.
Improving accuracy in back-of-device multitouch typing: a clustering-based approach to keyboard updating

Recent work has shown that a multitouch sensor attached to the back of a handheld device can allow rapid typing engaging all ten fingers. However, high error rates remain a problem, because the user can not see or feel key-targets on the back. We propose a machine learning approach that can significantly improve accuracy. The method considers hand anatomy and movement ranges of fingers. The key insight is a combination of keyboard and hand models in a hierarchical clustering method. This enables dynamic re-estimation of key-locations while typing to account for changes in hand postures and movement ranges of fingers. We also show that accuracy can be further improved with language models. Results from a user study show improvements of over 40% compared to the previously deployed "naive" approach. We examine entropy as a touch precision metric with respect to typing experience. We also find that the QWERTY layout is not ideal. Finally, we conclude with ideas for further improvements.
A language-independent personal voice controller with embedded speaker verification

In this paper, we introduce a personal voice controller for name dialing. As a personal system, all the control commands are trained based on owner-selected phrases in the owner’s language. Since the owner’s voice characteristics is modeled together with the command voice, the system has embedded speaker veri(cid:12)cation capability without additional processing. In other words, once the system is trained, the system can only accept the voice commands from the owner. Impos-tor’s command can be rejected although the command may be in the owner’s list. The controller can recognize the speaker’s command and dial the destinate phone number automatically. Such a system is useful for wireless handsets and portable communication devices. Its implementation requires much less memory space and computation resource compared to a speaker-independent system. Preliminary experiments showed that the proposed system has the state-of-the-art performances in both speech recognition and speaker veri(cid:12)cation.
An Energy Efficient Cluster-Head Selection for Wireless Sensor Networks

Recent advances in wireless sensor networks have led to many new protocols specifically designed for sensor networks where energy awareness is an essential consideration. Clustering is a key routing technique used to reduce energy consumption. Clustering sensors into groups, so that sensors communicate information only to cluster-heads and then the cluster-heads communicate the aggregated information to the base station, saves energy and thus prolonging network lifetime. In this paper, we propose an energy efficient cluster-head selection algorithm for adapting clusters and rotating cluster head positions to evenly distribute the energy load among all the nodes. Our proposed model is extended to the LEACH’s stochastic cluster-head selection algorithm by modifying the probability of each node to become cluster-head based on remaining energy level of sensor nodes for transmission. Simulation results show that our proposed model could better implement load balance and prolong the lifetime of the network.
Browsing 3D bookmarks in BED

We show a practical use of VRML (Virtual Reality Modeling Language) to represent a portion of the web in 3D. Some issues of abstract data space visualization are addressed and a few propositions that improve navigation and legibility are made. BED (Bookmarks Exploring Dabbler) 3D bookmark generator is based on VRML version 1.0; therefore, only static scenes can be created. The interaction in such scenes is limited to navigation and link selection, there is no way to manipulate objects and modify the scene
Relief of Spatiotemporal Accessibility Overloading with Optimal Resource Placement

With the effects of global warming, some epidemic diseases via mosquito (e.g. mosquito-borne diseases) become more serious, such as dengue fever and zika virus. It is reported that the epidemic disease may cause many challenges to the hospital management due to the unexpected burst with uncertain reasons. Furthermore, the imperfect cares during the propagation of epidemic diseases, such as dengue fever (so far the appropriate treatment is not well established), may lead to the increasing mortality rate which should be avoided. In this paper, a novel paradigm for optimizing the placement of medical resource is proposed in pursuit of reducing the overloading cases in hospitals during the epidemic outbreak in the urban area. In this paper we explore the first paper to explore two important issues, including the strategy to evaluate the service quality and the solution to dynamically dispatch the medical resource, along with the spatial variation of epidemic outbreak. As validated in our experimental results in real data of dengue outbreak happening in Tainan (2015), we present the feasibility of our framework to deploy a dynamic placement strategy for medical resource assignment.
Membrane properties of isolated mudpuppy taste cells

The voltage-dependent currents of isolated Necturus lingual cells were studied using the whole-cell configuration of the patch-clamp technique. Nongustatory surface epithelial cells had only passive membrane properties. Small, spherical cells resembling basal cells responded to depolarizing voltage steps with predominantly outward K+ currents. Taste receptor cells generated both outward and inward currents in response to depolarizing voltage steps. Outward K+ currents activated at approximately 0 mV and increased almost linearly with increasing depolarization. The K+ current did not inactivate and was partially Ca++ dependent. One inward current activated at -40 mV, reached a peak at -20 mV, and rapidly inactivated. This transient inward current was blocked by tetrodotoxin (TTX), which indicates that it is an Na+ current. The other inward current activated at 0 mV, peaked at 30 mV, and slowly inactivated. This more sustained inward current had the kinetic and pharmacological properties of a slow Ca++ current. In addition, most taste cells had inwardly rectifying K+ currents. Sour taste stimuli (weak acids) decreased outward K+ currents and slightly reduced inward currents; bitter taste stimuli (quinine) reduced inward currents to a greater extent than outward currents. It is concluded that sour and bitter taste stimuli produce depolarizing receptor potentials, at least in part, by reducing the voltage- dependent K+ conductance.
COMPARISON OF DEFECT DETECTION IN ALUMINUM AND STEEL PLATES USING AN ELECTROMAGNETIC ACOUSTIC TRANSDUCER

Non-Destructive testing is useful in rail, pipeline and aerospace industries for maintenance of equipment, such as thickness measurements, corrosion and defect detection in materials. In this work a finite element analysis of an Electromagnetic acoustic transducer is presented. EMAT is an emerging technology that provides a non contact process of testing materials compared to ultrasonic sensors that requires a coupling medium. The acoustic properties of the material are investigated, which involves the coupling of several physical parameters, which includes mechanical and electromagnetic properties. An investigation of defect detection in an aluminum and steel plate material is conducted. Results obtained shows the model is capable of detecting defects in aluminium and steel plates using an Electromagnetic acoustic transducer.
How do institutional review boards apply the federal risk and benefit standards for pediatric research?

CONTEXT Federal regulations allow children in the United States to be enrolled in clinical research only when the institutional review board (IRB) determines that the risks are minimal or a minor increase over minimal, or that the research offers a prospect of direct benefit. Despite this reliance on IRBs, no data exist on how IRBs apply the risk and benefit categories for pediatric research. OBJECTIVE To determine how IRB chairpersons apply the federal risk and benefit categories for pediatric research. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS Telephone survey, conducted between May and August 2002 of 188 randomly selected chairpersons of IRBs in the Unites States. The survey consisted of 21 questions to assess the application of federal risk standards to research procedures, whether certain interventions offer a prospect of direct benefit to participating children, and the extent to which IRBs use the federal definition of minimal risk when categorizing the risks of research procedures in children. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Responses regarding categorization of the risk level and direct benefits of pediatric research procedures. RESULTS A single blood draw was the only procedure categorized as minimal risk by a majority (152 or 81%) of the 188 respondents. An electromyogram was categorized as minimal or a minor increase over minimal risk by 100 (53%) and as more than a minor increase over minimal risk by 77 (41%). Allergy skin testing was categorized as minimal risk by 43 IRB chairpersons (23%), a minor increase over minimal risk by 81 (43%), and more than a minor increase over minimal risk by 51 (27%). Regarding benefits, 113 chairpersons (60%) considered added psychological counseling to be a direct benefit, while participant payment was considered a direct benefit by 10% (n = 19). CONCLUSIONS Application of the federal risk and benefit categories for pediatric research by IRB chairpersons is variable and sometimes contradicted by the available data on risks and the regulations themselves. To protect children from excessive risks while allowing appropriate research, IRB chairpersons need guidance on applying the federal risk and benefit categories and also need data on the risks children face in daily life and during routine physical or psychological tests.
Exploiting netw ork proximity in peer-to-peer overla y netw orks

Generic peer-to-peer (p2p) overlay networks like CAN, Chord, Pastry andTapestryoffer a novel platform for a variety of scalableand decentr alizeddistributedapplications. Thesesystemsprovide efficient and fault-tolerant routing, object location and load balancingwithin a self-organizing overlay network. One importantaspectof thesesystemsis how they exploit networkproximity in the underlyingInternet. In this paper, we presenta comprehensivestudyof the networklocality propertiesof a p2poverlaynetwork.Results obtainedvia analysisand via simulationof two large-scale topology modelsindicatethat it is possibleto efficientlyexploit networkproximity in self-organizingp2psubstrates. A simpleheuristicmeasur esa scalarproximitymetricamonga small numberof nodes,incurring only a modestadditional overheadfor organizing and maintaining the overlay network. Theresultinglocality propertiesimprove application performanceand reducenetworkusage in the Internetsubstantially. Finally, we studythe impact of proximity-based routingon theload balancingin thep2poverlay.
Efficacy of the prescription of physical activity in the obese child population.

OBJECTIVE To determine the effectiveness of prescribing physical activity to the population of overweight and obese children, in accordance with the levels of evidence. METHODS To find literature pertaining to the intervention of physical activity in overweight and obese children. four electronic databases were used: Pubmed, Embase, Cochrane and Lilacs. The search was conducted with a cut-off date of June 2012. Randomized controlled clinical trials of intervention programs involving physical activity for both overweight and obese children were selected. Two independent researchers reviewed and evaluated the quality of the studies, and extracted intervention and result data. RESULTS A total of 204 studies were identified. 19 randomized controlled studies which complied with inclusion and exclusion criteria were included. These studies evaluated the impact of physical activity among obese children and compared different types of intervention based on exercise and diet or both with the objective of reducing weight in obese children. CONCLUSIONs: It is necessary to conduct studies on obese children with bigger sample sizes to determine the effects of the treatment, and more importantly, to devise comprehensive programs that include a structured exercise program complemented by a dietary program. Likewise, the development of public health policies that allow for the development of national programs for weight and obesity control in Colombian children and adults should be developed, taking into account that the causes of obesity are multiple, including social, familiar, metabolic, and dietary aspects.