Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Collaborative Transportation Systems

Abstract-We propose a new class of applications for Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITSs), called collaborative transportation applications that aim at solving transportation problems such as congestion and parking. Specifically, we define two applications: SmartPark and SmartRide that leverage short-range wireless communication. We quantify the potential benefits these collaborative transportation applications can offer to an individual and to the public. To this extent, we conduct both the realistic simulations and the analysis of the performance of a taxi cab fleet from San Francisco. Our analysis shows that both collaborative transportation applications can provide with significant savings in travel times, fuel consumptions, etc. Finally, we discuss the functional requirements of collaborative transportation applications and we present the challenges that these applications are facing.
Effects of tai chi chuan on anxiety and sleep quality in young adults: lessons from a randomized controlled feasibility study

Objective To determine feasibility and estimate the effect of a 10-week tai chi chuan (TCC) intervention on anxiety and sleep quality in young adults. Participants Seventy-five adults (18–40 years) from a predominately undergraduate midsized university. Methods This was an assessor blinded, randomized feasibility trial, and participants were randomized into one of three groups: 10 weeks of TCC meeting 2 times per week, 10 weeks of TCC with a DVD of the curriculum, and control group receiving a handout on anxiety management. Anxiety and sleep quality were assessed 4 times: baseline, 4 weeks, 10 weeks (immediate post-intervention), and 2 months post-intervention. Retention was defined as a participant attending the baseline assessment and at least one other assessment. Adherence to the intervention was set a priori as attendance at 80% of the TCC classes. Results Eighty-five percent of participants were retained during the intervention and 70% completed the 2 month follow-up assessments. To increase statistical power, the two TCC groups were combined in the analyses of anxiety and sleep quality measures. No significant changes in anxiety were found in the control group, while levels of anxiety decreased significantly over time in the two TCC groups. Sleep quality scores improved across time for all three groups, but adherent TCC participants reported greater improvement than control participants. Conclusion TCC may be an effective nonpharmaceutical means of improving anxiety and poor sleep quality in young adults.
Effects of cadmium exposure and intermittent anoxia on nitric oxide metabolism in eastern oysters, Crassostrea virginica

SUMMARY Nitric oxide (NO) is an intracellular signaling molecule synthesized by a group of enzymes called nitric oxide synthases (NOS) and involved in regulation of many cellular functions including mitochondrial metabolism and bioenergetics. In invertebrates, the involvement of NO in bioenergetics and metabolic responses to environmental stress is poorly understood. We determined sensitivity of mitochondrial and cellular respiration to NO and the effects of cadmium (Cd) and intermittent anoxia on NO metabolism in eastern oysters, Crassostrea virginica. NOS activity was strongly suppressed by exposure to 50 μg l–1 Cd for 30 days (4.76 vs 1.19 pmol NO min–1 mg–1 protein in control and Cd-exposed oysters, respectively) and further decreased during anoxic exposure in Cd-exposed oysters but not in their control counterparts. Nitrate/nitrite content (indicative of NO levels) decreased during anoxic exposure to less than 10% of the normoxic values and recovered within 1 h of re-oxygenation in control oysters. In Cd-exposed oysters, the recovery of the normoxic NO levels lagged behind, reflecting their lower NOS activity. Oyster mitochondrial respiration was inhibited by exogenous NO, with sensitivity on a par with that of mammalian mitochondria, and ADP-stimulated mitochondrial respiration was significantly more sensitive to NO than resting respiration. In isolated gill cells, manipulations of endogenous NOS activity either with a specific NOS inhibitor (aminoguanidine) or a NOS substrate (l-arginine) had no effect on respiration, likely due to the fact that mitochondria in the resting state are relatively NO insensitive. Likewise, Cd-induced stimulation of cellular respiration did not correlate with decreased NOS activity in isolated gill cells. High sensitivity of phosphorylating (ADP-stimulated) oyster mitochondria to NO suggests that regulation of bioenergetics is an evolutionarily conserved function of NO and that NO-dependent regulation of metabolism may be most prominent under the conditions of high metabolic flux when the ADP-to-ATP ratio is high.
Phosphorylation and Intramolecular Stabilization of the Ligand Binding Domain in the Nuclear Receptor Steroidogenic Factor 1

ABSTRACT Steroidogenic factor 1 (SF-1) is an orphan nuclear receptor with no known ligand. We showed previously that phosphorylation at serine 203 located N′-terminal to the ligand binding domain (LBD) enhanced cofactor recruitment, analogous to the ligand-mediated recruitment in ligand-dependent receptors. In this study, results of biochemical analyses and an LBD helix assembly assay suggest that the SF-1 LBD adopts an active conformation, with helices 1 and 12 packed against the predicted alpha-helical bundle, in the apparent absence of ligand. Fine mapping of the previously defined proximal activation function in SF-1 showed that the activation function mapped fully to helix 1 of the LBD. Limited proteolyses demonstrate that phosphorylation of S203 in the hinge region mimics the stabilizing effects of ligand on the LBD. Moreover, similar effects were observed in an SF-1/thyroid hormone LBD chimera receptor, illustrating that the S203 phosphorylation effects are transferable to a heterologous ligand-dependent receptor. Our collective data suggest that the hinge together with helix 1 is an individualized specific motif, which is tightly associated with its cognate LBD. For SF-1, we find that this intramolecular association and hence receptor activity are further enhanced by mitogen-activated protein kinase phosphorylation, thus mimicking many of the ligand-induced changes observed for ligand-dependent receptors.
Nitric oxide proxies and ocular perfusion pressure in primary open angle glaucoma

Background: To investigate the levels of nitric oxide (NO) markers in plasma and aqueous humour of patients with primary open angle glaucoma (POAG) and their relation to ocular perfusion pressure. Methods: Cyclic guanosine monophosphate (cGMP) and nitrite (NO2 −) were determined in plasma and aqueous humour of 38 patients with POAG and 46 controls. Blood pressure and IOP were measured to calculate ocular perfusion pressure (PP). Results: cGMP and NO2 − plasma levels were significantly decreased in glaucoma patients compared with controls (p = 0.001 v p = 0.004). In the aqueous humour of subjects with POAG, cGMP and NO2 − concentrations were also lower than in normal eyes (p = 0.0001 v p = 0.001). There was a linear association between cGMP in plasma and aqueous humour in glaucomas and controls (r = 0.514, p = 0.029 and r = 0.558, p = 0.004) and this relation differed in the two groups (p = 0.003). Considering glaucoma patients with controls, a positive correlation was found between cGMP and PP (r = 0.379, p = 0.01) and between NO2 − and PP (r = 0.339, p = 0.040). The cGMP/PP correlation was of borderline statistical significance in controls (p = 0.050), whereas it did not attain statistical significance in POAG, as well as the association between NO2 − and PP when glaucomas and controls were considered separately. Conclusions: The authors found alterations of NO markers in the plasma and aqueous humour of glaucoma patients. Primary or secondary impaired NO balance could alter ocular perfusion pressure.
Design of Rapid Medical Evacuation System for Trauma Patients Resulting from Biological and Chemical Terrorist Attacks

In the event of a large scale, biological or chemical terrorist attack it is unlikely that local emergency response organizations will have sufficient quantities of dedicated ambulances to evacuate all of the affected victims. As a potential solution to this problem, we have developed a device that can be retrofitted to a variety of government or civilian utility vehicles in order to convert them for emergency medical transport (US Pat. 7,028,351). Each installed device allows the host vehicle to safely transport either a single patient on a stretcher or multiple ambulatory patients. Additionally, each device provides a means for temporary or permanent attachment of emergency medical equipment. When not in use, the device can be collapsed to improve ease and efficiency of storage. Preliminary analyses of certain highly loaded structures on the device were carried out using known principles of solid mechanics. The analyses were carried out assuming the highest reasonable loading condition. This condition was determined to occur when the device is configured for the transport three 95th percentile males and 20 kg of medical equipment. This loading condition was assumed to be more severe than any that might occur due to an attendant performing CPR, or any other medical procedures, on a single supine patient. The base sections of the load bearing stretcher supports were then modeled using 3D CAD software and run through a finite element analysis (FEA) as a means to more accurately simulate the stresses that are likely to occur in the actual parts. As the device must be highly mobile, these analyses were used to confirm that the load bearing structures can be manufactured from low cost materials and still be light enough to be easily transported. Future work will include sizing and installation studies to ensure that the production version of the device can be rapidly implemented in a wide variety of private, commercial, and government utility vehicles
Examine the impact of Modulation Order and Sub- bands on PAPR Reduction Techniques using Various Modulator in 802.11a/b/g

In the modern era of communication Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) technique is the most widely used in wireless technology. With some advantage come few issues such as Peak to Average Power Ratio (PAPR) that leads High Power Amplifiers (HPA) to be worked in nonlinear region which causes inter-modulation distortion and out of band radiation. To overcome with this problem, several techniques were used. Whereas, this paper uses most efficient signal scrambling technique, Partial Transmit Sequence (PTS) and Selected Mapping (SLM) to be worked with various modulators such as Orthogonal Quadrature Phase Shift Key (OQPSK) and Quadrature Amplitude Modulator (QAM) and Binary Phase Shift Key (BPSK) . Under different modulator and different parameters like Sub-Band, Modulation factor, these techniques were analyzed and compared.
Self-Stabilizing Clock Synchronization in the Presence of ByzantineFaults ( Preliminary Version ) Shlomi Dolevy

We initiate a study of bounded clock synchronization under a more severe fault model than that proposed by Lamport and Melliar-Smith [LM-85]. Realistic aspects of the problem of synchronizing clocks in the presence of faults are considered. One aspect is that clock synchronization is an on-going task, thus the assumption that in any period of the execution at least two thirds of the processors are nonfaulty is too optimistic. To cope with this reality we suggest self-stabilizing protocols that stabilize in any (long enough) period in which less than a third of the processors are faulty. Another aspect is that the clock value is bounded. A single transient fault may cause the clock to reach the upper bound. Therefore we suggest a bounded clock that wraps around when appropriate. We present two randomized self-stabilizing protocols for synchronizing bounded clocks in the presence of Byzantine processor failures. The rst protocol assumes that processors have a common pulse, while the second protocol does not. A new type of distributed counter based on the Chinese remainder theorem is used as part of the rst protocol.
Evaluation of Psycho-Educational Interventions in Treating Traumatized Latinas: Awareness, Coping, and Behavior Change

The current study is descriptive and takes a look at the Saber es Poder, or SEP curriculum. The treatment groups were offered in the Portland, Oregon Metropolitan Area, at 4 outpatient mental health clinics. Data was gathered 4 times; once at baseline and at the end of each treatment phase. The Posttraumatic Diagnostic Scale (PDS), the Brief Symptoms Inventory-18 Questions (BSI-18), The Trauma Recovery and Empowerment Scale (TRES), The Trauma Recovery and Empowerment Protocol (TREP) were the published measures used. Other measures were the Culture, the Participant Satisfaction, the Awareness, Coping, and Behavior Scales. A fidelity measure was also used to test adherence. Hypothesis 1 said SEP groups could be held performed to fidelity (>70%). One group exceeded the fidelity requirement at 73% or above. Three groups failed to complete the 25-session protocol and could not be ranked. Hypothesis 2 said participants would experience an increase in awareness, coping and pro-recovery behavior. The completing group (n=5) showed mixed results. Two showed overall gains in the pro-recovery direction. Three show gains on only some scales. Context factors that inform score interpretation are discussed Hypothesis 3 and 4, which related to customer satisfaction, attendance and symptom reduction, could not be adequately explored due to low n. However preliminary data does appear to support a positive relationship between attendance and satisfaction, as well as attendance and symptom relief, particularly when participation is defined as not only attendance but also by “showing up” in a cognitive sense. Further research into the qualitative experience of trauma related distress for Latinas, as well as review and clarification of scale construction should be addressed in future research. Degree Type Dissertation
Behind Smoke and Mirrors: A Political Approach to Decoupling

In this paper, we examine neglected dimensions of decoupling - i.e., its power and political aspects. We draw on an empirical study of the reaction of two hospital subunits and an external agency (the Regional Health Agency) to a policy implementation, to contribute to the recent renewed interest in decoupling. We first reconsider the distinction between internal and external actors by investigating how they interact in their responses to the new policy implementation. While observing different forms of decoupling, we show how power and politics allow us to understand how these forms are articulated and related. Furthermore, we highlight that contexts characterized by institutional complexity are particularly propitious for decoupling. Finally, we outline that how actors use logics to justify their claims might differ significantly from how they enact those logics. More broadly, this paper contributes by bringing back power and politics into the analysis of institutional processes.
The Pseudo-Eutectic Microstructure and Enhanced Properties in Laser-Cladded Hypereutectic Ti–20%Si Coatings

Ti5Si3 is an attractive light weight reinforcement phase in hypereutectic Ti–Si-based alloys, however, the proeutectic Ti5Si3 phase is brittle and is easily coarsened when the alloy is prepared under normal solidification conditions, thereby limiting its engineering applications in the aviation and biological industries. In this study, a hypereutectic Ti–20%Si coating with a pseudo-eutectic α-Ti + Ti5Si3 microstructure was successfully fabricated on a commercially available Ti alloy by laser cladding under non-equilibrium rapid solidification conditions. The fine, rod-like and well-dispersed eutectic Ti5Si3 phase, without the primary Ti5Si3 phase, that was produced resulted in a considerable improvement in hardness, corrosion resistance, and fracture resistance when compared to the same compositional alloy prepared by the conventional arc melting technique.
Dissociation between intrahepatic triglyceride content and insulin resistance in familial hypobetalipoproteinemia.

BACKGROUND & AIMS Hepatic steatosis is associated with insulin resistance, but it is not clear whether increased intrahepatic triglyceride (IHTG) content causes the resistance or is a marker. Subjects with familial hypobetalipoproteinemia (FHBL) have high levels of IHTG because of a genetic defect in hepatic export of triglycerides, and provide a unique cohort to study the relationship between steatosis and insulin sensitivity. METHODS One group of lean subjects with normal IHTG content (2.2% +/- 0.6% of liver volume) (n = 6), and 3 groups of overweight and obese subjects matched for body mass index, were studied: (1) normal IHTG content (3.3% +/- 0.5%; n = 6), (2) high IHTG content (21.4% +/- 2.6%) due to nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD; n = 6), and (3) high IHTG content (18.1% +/- 2.2%) due to FHBL (n = 3). A hyperinsulinemic-euglycemic clamp procedure, in conjunction with glucose tracer infusion, was used to determine multiorgan insulin sensitivity. RESULTS Hepatic insulin sensitivity (reciprocal of glucose rate of appearance [micromol x kg fat-free mass(-1) x min(-1)] x insulin [mU/L]) was greatest in the Lean group (2.0 +/- 0.4); it was the same among subjects with FHBL (0.8 +/- 0.1) and the group with normal IHTG content, matched for body mass index (0.7 +/- 0.1), but greater than the NAFLD group (0.3 +/- 0.1) (P < .01). Muscle insulin sensitivity (percent increase in glucose uptake during insulin infusion) was greatest in the Lean group (576% +/- 70%). Muscle insulin sensitivity was similar in subjects with FHBL and those with normal IHTG (319% +/- 77%, 326% +/- 27%, respectively), but greater than the NAFLD group (145% +/- 18%) (P < .01). CONCLUSIONS Steatosis is dissociated from insulin resistance in FHBL, which suggests that increased IHTG content is a marker, not a cause, of metabolic dysfunction.
Efficient online cohort selection method for speaker verification

Cohort normalization is a method for normalizing the scores in speaker verification in order to reduce undesirable variation arising from acoustically mismatched conditions. A particular form of cohort normalization, unconstrained cohort normalization (UCN) is addressed in this study. The UCN method has been shown to give excellent results but its major drawback is the huge computational load arising from the search of the cohort speakers. In this paper, we propose a fast cohort search algorithm, that quantizes the test vector sequence and uses the quantized data for both impostor and claimant scoring. Results on the NIST-1999 corpus show a speed-up factor of 23:1 compared to full search. Furthermore, the equal error rates are decreased from those of the full search.
EVOLUTIONARY PROCESSES IN POPULATIONS OF COPPER TOLERANT AGROSTIS TENUIS Sibth.

A considerable number of genecological studies on many plant species have described differentiation into local populations, amongst which those of Turesson, Gregor, and Clausen Keck and Hiesey are of note. These, and the majority of subsequent works on this subject assumed the paramount importance of natural selection in the evolutionary process. Because differences in morphology, physiology, etc., could be found between populations, natural selection was assumed to have brought about such differences; evidence for the occurrence of natural selection was indirect. In the plant kingdom direct evidence in the form of data showing changes in gene frequencies between generations is scant. The studies of Kemp (1937), Sylven (1937), Charles (1964), Barber (1966), and Aston and Bradshaw (1966), are exceptions. In the animal kingdom by contrast, the early work of Bumpus (1898), and di Cesnola (1907) on the snail Helix abustorum showed the occurrence of such changes. In more recent years, the role of natural selection in animal populations has received considerable attention, of which the works of Kettlewell (1961) on Lepidoptera, Sheppard (1958) on Cepea nemoralis, and Kurten (1964) on Ursus spelaeus are notable examples. The adult plants found in any natural population represent the resultant of the interaction of natural variation, gene flow, and natural selection, in otlier words, the status quo. Plants raised from seed produced by such populations, by contrast, show the potential variability of the population before the operation of selection. A
Intergenic variants of HBS1L-MYB are responsible for a major quantitative trait locus on chromosome 6q23 influencing fetal hemoglobin levels in adults

Individual variation in fetal hemoglobin (HbF, α2γ2) response underlies the remarkable diversity in phenotypic severity of sickle cell disease and β thalassemia. HbF levels and HbF-associated quantitative traits (e.g., F cell levels) are highly heritable. We have previously mapped a major quantitative trait locus (QTL) controlling F cell levels in an extended Asian-Indian kindred with β thalassemia to a 1.5-Mb interval on chromosome 6q23, but the causative gene(s) are not known. The QTL encompasses several genes including HBS1L, a member of the GTP-binding protein family that is expressed in erythroid progenitor cells. In this high-resolution association study, we have identified multiple genetic variants within and 5′ to HBS1L at 6q23 that are strongly associated with F cell levels in families of Northern European ancestry (P = 10−75). The region accounts for 17.6% of the F cell variance in northern Europeans. Although mRNA levels of HBS1L and MYB in erythroid precursors grown in vitro are positively correlated, only HBS1L expression correlates with high F cell alleles. The results support a key role for the HBS1L-related genetic variants in HbF control and illustrate the biological complexity of the mechanism of 6q QTL as a modifier of fetal hemoglobin levels in the β hemoglobinopathies.
LASTEN ÄÄNTEELLINEN KEHITYS: TUTKIMUSMETODOLOGIAA

Tuula Savinainen-Makkonen, Oulun yliopistoLasten aanteellisen kehityksen tutkimusmenetelmallisista kaytanteistaon Suomessa kayty toistaiseksi vain vahan keskustelua. Tama artikkelikasittelee lasten aanteellisen kehityksen tutkimusmenetelmia lahinnatieteellisen tutkimuksen toteuttamisen nakokulmasta mutta myos kaytannonpuheterapiatyohon liittyen. Artikkelissa kuvataan yleisimmat aanteellisenkehityksen tutkimusmenetelmat ja menetelmien soveltamiseen liittyviavalintoja. Aineistonkeruuseen liittyvista asioista kerrotaan seikkaperaisestija aineistonkeruun yhteytta tutkimusaineiston laatuun painotetaan.Litterointikaytanteista ja haasteista kerrotaan nimenomaan suomalaistutkijannakokulmasta. Lisaksi artikkelissa pohditaan fonologiseen analyysiin jatutkimusten raportointiin liittyvia seikkoja muun muassa kieltenvalisenvertailun nakokulmasta. Artikkelin toivotaan toimivan johdantonaaanteellisen kehityksen tutkimusmetodiikkaan esimerkiksi opinnaytetyotaansuunnitteleville tai aanteellisen kehityksen tutkimusmetodiikastakiinnostuneille kliinikoille.Avainsanat: Fonologia, tutkimusmenetelmat, aineistonkeruu, transkriptio, raportointi, aanteellinen kehitysKeywords: Phonology, research methods, data collection, transcription
Improvement of Probabilistic Acoustic Tube model for speech decomposition

Current model-based speech analysis tends to be incomplete - only a part of parameters of interest (e.g. only the pitch or vocal tract) are modeled, while the rest that might as well be important are disregarded. The drawback is that without joint modeling of parameters that are correlated, the analysis on speech parameters may be inaccurate or even incorrect. Under this motivation, we have proposed such a model called PAT (Probabilistic Acoustic Tube), where pitch, vocal tract and energy are jointly modeled. This paper proposes an improved version of PAT model, named PAT2, where both signal and probabilistic modeling are tremendously renovated. Compared to related works, PAT2 is much more comprehensive, which incorporates mixed excitation, glottal wave and phase modeling. Experimental results show its ability in decomposing speech into desirable parameters and its potential for speech synthesis.