Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Fundamental studies on the synthesis dynamics of nanoparticles by laser ablation in pressurized water

Understanding the synthesis dynamics of nanoparticles in liquid–phase laser ablation is very important to optimize and control the size and the structure of nanoparticles. In the present study, firstly, we investigated the synthesis dynamics of nanoparticles synthesized by laser ablation in water, in particular the place of the growth of nanoparticles. Secondly, we investigated the effect of cavitation bubble on the synthesis dynamics of nanoparticles. Thirdly, for the first time, we examined the effect of water pressure on the synthesis dynamics of nanoparticles, the dynamics of cavitation bubble, and the size and the structure of nanoparticles. In chapter 2, we examined the effect of water pressure on the dynamics of cavitation bubble by shadowgraph imaging technique. We observed that increasing water pressure affects the dynamics of cavitation bubble. In chapter 3, we investigated the dynamics of cavitation bubble theoretically by solving Rayleigh–Plesset model for spherical bubble filled with liquid vapor. We introduced modifications to fit the dynamics of the cavitation bubble produced by liquid–phase laser ablation. We estimated the pressure and the temperature inside the cavitation bubble. In addition, we observed that, increasing the pressure of the ambient water affects the thermodynamic parameters of water. In chapter 4, we investigated the growth processes of nanoparticles by employing simultaneous shadowgraph and laser light scattering techniques. We observed that the growth of nanoparticles occurred inside the cavitation bubble from the early phase of expansion to the collapse and the boundaries of cavitation bubble were the favorite places for the growth processes. In chapter 5, we examined the effect of water pressure on the growth of nanoparticles. As a result, we observed that the size of nanoparticles was constant inside the cavitation bubble from the early phase of expansion to the collapse and the growth occurred in the number of nanoparticles. In addition, we expected that both of the size and the number of nanoparticles decreased with pressurizing the ambient liquid. In chapter 6, we synthesized the semiconductor ZnO nanoparticles and examined the effect of water pressure on the size and the structure of nanoparticles. We observed that increasing water pressure decreases the size of ZnO nanoparticles and affected their structure. Chapter
Present and future therapy for hepatitis C virus

The treatment of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection has developed enormously over recent years. Early treatment of acute HCV infection with interferon-α can prevent chronicity and a significant proportion of patients with chronic HCV can be cured with the current standard therapy consisting of pegylated interferon-α and ribavirin. However, the improvement of current treatment regimens and the development of new antiviral drugs will be essential within the next few years. This review focuses on the present and future concepts for treating HCV infection, including prevention of infection, antiviral therapy of acute and chronic HCV and the management of patients after liver transplantation.
8 Segmentation of Brain MRI

Effective, precise and consistent brain cortical tissue segmentation from magnetic resonance (MR) images is one of the most prominent issues in many applications of medical image processing. These applications include surgical planning (Kikinis et al., 1996), surgery navigation (Grimson et al., 1997), multimodality image registration (Saeed, 1998), abnormality detection (Rusinek et al., 1991), multiple sclerosis lesion quantification (Udupa et al., 1997), brain tumour detection (Vaidyanathan et al., 1997), functional mapping (Roland et al., 1993), etc. Traditionally, the purpose of segmentation is to partition the image into non-overlapping, constituent regions (or called classes, clusters, subsets or sub-regions) that are homogeneous with respect to intensity and texture (Gonzalez & Woods, 1992). If the domain of the image is given by 硬, then the segmentation problem is to determine the sets 鯨賃 ⊂ 硬, whose union is the entire domain 硬. Thus, the sets that make up a segmentation must satisfy
[The effect of plasmapheresis on cytokine serum levels and adhesion molecules in ANCA-positive renal vasculitis].

BACKGROUND Increased serum levels of proinflammatory cytokines may contribute to the organ damage in active ANCA-positive renal vasculitis (ANCA-A). Plasma exchange (PE) may influence the activity of vasculitis not only by removal of pathogenic autoantibodies, but also by lowering of serum levels of circulating cytokines. METHODS AND RESULTS Serum levels of IL-1, IL. 1ra, IL-6, IL-8, ICAM-1 and VCAM-1 were measured using ELISA in 10 pts with active ANCA-positive renal vasculitis (5 pts with Wegener's granulomatosis-WG, 5 pts with microscopic polyangiitis-MPA) during the course of therapeutic PE. Cytokines and adhesion molecules were measured in samples of serum obtained in the beginning and at the end of the 1st, 3rd and 5th PE and in the samples of filtrate obtained during the same PE. Pts with ANCA had before the 1st PE in comparison with controls higher serum levels of IL-1ra, IL-8, ICAM-1 and VCAM-1. There were increased serum levels of IL-6, IL-8, ICAM-1 and VCAM-1 in pts with MPA and increased serum levels of all measured cytokines and adhesion molecules in pts with WG. At the end of the course of PE there was the decrease of serum levels of IL-ira and VCAM-1 in pts with ANCA and IL-1ra and ICAM-1 in WG. Single PE led in pts with ANCA only to the decrease of serum levels of ICAM-1 and VCAM-1. On the other hand, there was no change of serum levels of IL-1 and IL-8 serum levels of IL-1ra and IL-6 even increased at the end of single PE, in spite of high levels of all cytokines and adhesion molecules in plasmafiltrate. CONCLUSIONS Serum levels of soluble adhesion molecules decrease after PE, but serum levels of proinflammatory cytokines are not reduced even by the course of PE. Removal of these substances by PE is obviously counteracted by their increased production, possibly further stimulated by the contact of blood with synthetic membrane. Insufficient influence of PE on the elimination of proinflammatory cytokines may partially explain its limited effect in some patients with ANCA-positive renal vasculitis.
Philosophical Aspects of Quantum Information Theory 1

Quantum information theory represents a rich subject of discussion for those interested in the philosphical and foundational issues surrounding quantum mechanics for a simple reason: one can cast its central concerns in terms of a long-familiar question: How does the quantum world differ from the classical one? Moreover, deployment of the concepts of information and computation in novel contexts hints at new (or better) means of understanding quantum mechanics, and perhaps even invites re-assessment of traditional material conceptions of the basic nature of the physical world. In this paper I review some of these philosophical aspects of quantum information theory, begining with an elementary survey of the theory, seeking to highlight some of the principles and heuristics involved. We move on to a discussion of the nature and definition of quantum information and deploy the findings in discussing the puzzles surrounding teleportation. The final two sections discuss, respectively, what one might learn from the development of quantum computation (both about the nature of quantum systems and about the nature of computation) and consider the impact of quantum information theory on the traditional foundational questions of quantum mechanics (treating of the views of Zeilinger, Bub and Fuchs, amongst others).
Optional Endoreplication and Selective Elimination of Parental Genomes during Oogenesis in Diploid and Triploid Hybrid European Water Frogs

Incompatibilities between parental genomes decrease viability of interspecific hybrids; however, deviations from canonical gametogenesis such as genome endoreplication and elimination can rescue hybrid organisms. To evaluate frequency and regularity of genome elimination and endoreplication during gametogenesis in hybrid animals with different ploidy, we examined genome composition in oocytes of di- and triploid hybrid frogs of the Pelophylax esculentus complex. Obtained results allowed us to suggest that during oogenesis the endoreplication involves all genomes occurring before the selective genome elimination. We accepted the hypothesis that only elimination of one copied genome occurs premeiotically in most of triploid hybrid females. At the same time, we rejected the hypothesis stating that the genome of parental species hybrid frogs co-exist with is always eliminated during oogenesis in diploid hybrids. Diploid hybrid frogs demonstrate an enlarged frequency of deviations in oogenesis comparatively to triploid hybrids. Typical for hybrid frogs deviations in gametogenesis increase variability of produced gametes and provide a mechanism for appearance of different forms of hybrids.
Hyper-document Structure: Maintaining Discourse Coherence in Non-linear Documents Conference Item Hyper-document Structure: Maintaining Discourse Coherence in Non-linear Documents

Copyright and Moral Rights for the articles on this site are retained by the individual authors and/or other copyright owners. For more information on Open Research Online's data policy on reuse of materials please consult the policies page. Résumé: Le passage du texte linéaire á l'hypertexte pose le problème d'exprimer la cohérence du discours dans une texte non-linéaire ou le marques linguistiques du discours ne fonctionnent pas. Pendant que l'hypertexte introduit des nouvelles possibilités d'organisation du discours, il aussi nécessite d'utiliser des nouveaux dispositifs qui peuvent supporter l'expression de la cohérence par l'exploitation des caractéristiques techniques et des capacités expressives du médium. Dans cet article nous montrons comment, dans l'hypertexte, la notion de structure abstraite de document inclut graphiques animés en tant qu'une forme de métalangage pour la construction du discours. Abstract: The passage from linear text to hypertext poses the challenge of expressing discourse coherence in non-linear text, where linguistic discourse markers no longer work. While hypertext introduces new possibilities for discourse organisation, it also requires the use of new devices which can support the expression of coherence by exploiting the technical characteristics and expressive capabilities of the medium. In this paper we show how in hypertext the notion of abstract document structure encompasses animated graphics as a form of metalanguage for discourse construction.
Visual Processing Impairments and Decrements in Regional Brain Activity in Alzheimer’s Disease

The relationships between intermediate visual processes, involving object and space perception, and regional brain activity using positron emission tomography and single photon emission tomography were investigated in 16 patients with Alzheimer’s disease. Significant region specific correlations were found between unfamiliar face matching and cerebral activity in the left occipito-temporal region and middle/inferior temporal regions bilaterally. Letter-word identification correlated significantly with brain activity in the angular gyri and occipital association cortices bilaterally, as well as a broad region of activation in the left hemisphere temporal, parietal and occipital lobes. Additionally, a significant correlation was found between ratings of performance of instrumental activities of daily living and brain activity in occipito-temporal and middle/inferior temporal regions. The present study demonstrates that the neuropathological distribution typically seen in Alzheimer’s disease corresponds to impairments in specific aspects of intermediate visual perceptual processing, and it is related to the daily living skills of patients with Alzheimer’s disease.
COMPARATIVE STUDIES ON THE EFFECTS OF LA SOTA AND KOMAROV VACCINE ANTIBODIES ON ORGAN DISTRIBUTION , PERSISTENCE AND SHEDDING OF KUDU 113 VIRUS IN CHICKENS

Vaccines derived from the lentogenic and mesogenic strains are used for the protection of clinical ND in chickens. No information is available on the protection offered by these vaccines against virus replication and shedding in Nigeria. This study compared the abilities of La Sota and Komarov vaccines to protect chickens against replication and shedding in chickens challenged with the velogenic Kudu 113 virus. Five hundred and fifty day old chicks were assigned into four groups; unvaccinated and unchallenged (G1), unvaccinated and challenged (G2) La Sota vaccinated and challenged (G3) and Komarov vaccinated and challenged (G4). Batches of birds in G2, G3 and G4 were taken at specified intervals for challenge with Kudu 113. Virus distribution and persistence in organs and shedding in the faeces of the infected birds were assessed. Both vaccines did not prevent viral replication and shedding but significantly reduced the distribution and shedding of Kudu 113. Komarov vaccine showed higher reduction of viral replication and shedding when compared with La Sota. Peak distribution and shedding in both cases were seen between days 4 and 7 PC and virus persisted in the faeces of infected chickens for a maximum of 14 days in G4 and 21 days in G3.
Shape From Focus by Total Variation

Usually, in Shape From Focus (SFF) methods, a single focus measure is applied on an image sequence to obtain an initial depth map and then an approximation technique is used to recover three-dimensional (3D) shape of an object. However, different focus measures perform differently in diverse conditions and it is hard to get accurate 3D shape based on a single focus measure. In this paper, we propose a nonlinear Total Variation (TV) based method for recovering 3D shape of an object by diffusing several initial depth maps obtained through different focus measures. Several experiments have been conducted using images of synthetic and real objects to evaluate the performance of the proposed method. Comparative analysis demonstrates of the effectiveness of the proposed approach.
The Case for Specialized File Systems, or, Fighting File System Obesity

research interests involve file systems and operating systems, performance benchmark-ing and tuning, and green computing. Vasily Tarasov is a third year PhD student in the Computer Science Department of Stony Brook University. His scientific interests include operating systems, computer architectures, software engineering, green technologies, and services science. systems has increased drastically in recent decades, and it keeps increasing. The ext2 file system in the Linux kernel has over 8,000 lines of code (LoC), ext3 doubles this, and ext4 doubles it again. A working development version of btrfs file system already has over 52,000 LoC, XFS is over 77,000 LoC, and other network-based file systems easily exceed 100,000 LoC. We believe that the amount of functionality provided in modern file systems is overkill for many of the usage scenarios, and this often hurts performance, energy efficiency, and even reliability [1]. Instead of creating gigantic general-purpose file systems that are hard to develop, debug, maintain, and tune for specific workloads, we propose to develop minimalistic file systems, each tuned for a particular case. The growth of complexity is mainly caused by the expanding functionality integrated in a file system. In fact, the list of the features supported by modern file systems is impressive: journaling, B-tree-based search for objects, flexible data extents, access control lists (ACLs), extended attributes, encryp-tion, checksumming, etc. ReiserFS allows programmers to write plugins for it; large file systems such as zfs and btrfs integrate complex storage pool management and deduplication. Features such as access-permission checks, hardlinks and symlinks, unlimited file name length and file size, as well as arbitrary directory depths, are no longer considered extra features: any self-respecting file system must support them. But should this " must " really be so strict? Too Many features The large variety of features supported by modern file systems is, in part, the desire of file system developers to satisfy as many end users as possible. Depending on the specific situation, different characteristics are required from a file system. In emergency cases, reliability is the most important factor; for storing military data, security is crucial; enterprise servers require high performance; and in mobile platforms, energy efficiency plays an important role. When all corresponding features go into one file system, the final user obtains not
On hazard-free patterns for fine-delay fault testing

This work proposes an effective method for applying fine-delay fault testing in order to improve defect coverage of especially resistive opens. The method is based on grouping conventional delay-fault patterns into sets of almost equal-length paths. This narrows the overall path length distribution and allows running the pattern sets at a higher speed, thus enabling the detection of small delay faults. These small delay faults are otherwise undetectable because they are masked by longer paths. A requirement for this method is to have hazard-free paths. To obtain these (almost) hazard-free paths we use a fast and simple postprocessing step that filters out paths with hazards. The experimental data shows the effectiveness and the necessity of this filtering process.
Towards markerless visual servoing of grasping tasks for humanoid robots

Vision-based grasping for humanoid robots is a challenging problem due to a multitude of factors. First, humanoid robots use an “eye-to-hand” kinematics configuration that, on the contrary to the more common “eye-in-hand” configuration, demands a precise estimate of the position of the robot's hand. Second, humanoid robots have a long kinematic chain from the eyes to the hands, prone to accumulate the calibration errors of the kinematics model, which offsets the measured hand-to-object relative pose from the real one. In this paper, we propose a method able to solve these two issues jointly. A robust pose estimation of the robot's hand is achieved via a 3D model-based stereo-vision algorithm, using an edge-based distance transform metric and synthetically generated images of a robot's arm-hand internal computer-graphics model (kinematics and appearance). Then, a particle-based optimization method adapts on-line the robot's internal model to match the real and the synthetically generated images, effectively compensating the kinematics calibration errors. We evaluate the proposed approach using a position-based visual-servoing method on the iCub robot, showing the importance of the continuous visual feedback in humanoid grasping tasks.
Repellency of controlled-release treated-cotton fabrics based on permethrin and bioallethrin against mosquitoes

Monochlorotriazinyl-β -cyclodextrin (MCT-β -CD) was fixed permanently onto the surface of cotton fabrics. The fixed MCT-β -CD form inclusion complexes with insecticides (permethrin and bioallethrin). MCT-β -CD-finished cotton fabrics loaded with insecticides are effective in reducing malaria morbidity and mortality due to effective personal protection against mosquitoes. Bioassays show that the treated fabrics have fast action against mosquitoes at the range of concentrations studied. The toxic activity of the treated fabrics increased by increasing the insecticide concentration in the treated fabrics, and also increased by increasing the exposure times. The results show that there are great losses of the effective insecticides in control samples by washing, whereas treated fabrics retain a high level of insecticides.
Laser brackets debonding: Tm:YAP, Nd:YAG, and GaAs diode lasers evaluation

The study demonstrates the possibility of using laser radiation for the ceramic bracket removing. Three laser radiations were examined for this effect and the removing possibility and velocity together with enamel and root damage were investigated. A diode pumped Tm:YAP microchip laser generating a wavelength 1.9 μm, diode pumped Nd:YAG laser with 1.44 μm wavelength, GaAs diode with 0.808 μm were used for the debonding purpose. The measurement of transmission and absorption of the basic element - bracket, adhesive resin, and enamel was also made with the goal to explain the source of the heat and bracket debonding. The explanation of the debonding effect is also presented. From the results it is possible to conclude that continuously running diode pumped microchip Tm:YAP laser having output power 1W can be a good candidate for ceramic bracket debonding procedure.
Structural Properties of Titanium-Nickel Films on Silicon Carbide Following High Temperature Annealing

Structural properties of Ni/Ti films deposited on 4H-SiC and annealed at temperatures from 800 to 1040°C have been studied. Films with three different metal deposition sequences were investigated by X-ray diffraction and Auger electron spectroscopy: (A) Ti(100 nm)/Ni(50 nm); (B) Ti(4 nm)/Ni(50 nm)/Ti(100 nm); and (C) Ti(4 nm)/Ni(150 nm). A distinct spatial separation of nickel silicide and titanium carbide layers was observed in all samples. It was discovered that the distribution of the products of the solid state chemical reaction in samples (A) and (B) was independent on the deposition sequence of Ti and Ni layers. The titanium carbide layer located on the interface and covered by the clearly separated nickel silicide layer was detected in both samples after heat treatments.
Toward Autonomous Excavation of Fragmented Rock: Full-Scale Experiments

This paper presents the results and subsequent analysis of full-scale excavation experiments aimed at developing a practical understanding of how actuator forces evolve during excavation and how they relate to the interactions that occur between an excavator's end-effector and its environment. Our focus is on the excavation problem for fragmented rock, as is common in mining and construction applications. Based on an analysis of the experimental data, an example admittance-type autonomous excavation controller is postulated.
A power sharing series power BJT array with isolated low voltage control for AC power control applications

A technique for a continuously variable AC resistance using a series BJT array is presented. This array provides high power dissipation capability and uniform voltage and power distribution across the individual transistors. The array, controlled using a set of optoisolators to maintain the electrical isolation between the control circuits and the power stage, could be used as the basis to develop several useful techniques including a solid state AC regulator with comparable performance to the commonly used ferro-resonant systems; a linear AC electronic load suitable for testing UPS and other power conditioners; and, in other AC power control applications such as switching capacitors in AC resonant circuits
Stabilize an n-dimensional quantized nonlinear feedforward system with 1 bit

This paper studies the stabilizability of an n-dimensional quantized feedforward nonlinear system. The state of that system is first quantized into a finite number of bits, then sent through a digital network to the controller. In order to save network bandwidth, people pursue as less quantization bits as possible to maintain stability of such a system. In DePersis' paper [1], n bits are used to stabilize the n-dimensional system by assigning one bit for each state variable (dimension). This paper extends that result by stabilizing the whole system with a single bit under the same assumptions. Its key contribution is a dynamic quantization policy which dynamically assigns the single bit to the most “important” state variable. Under this policy, the quantization error exponentially converges to 0 and the asymptotic stability of the system can, therefore, be guaranteed. Because 1 bit is the smallest bit number in each packet, the new policy achieves the minimum stabilizable bit number for that n-dimensional feedforward nonlinear system.