Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Control of transmission power and carrier sense threshold to enhance throughput and fairness for dense WLANs

Carrier Sense Multiple Access with Collision Avoidance (CSMA/CA) adopted in IEEE 802.11 WLAN suffers from serious problems of hidden terminal and exposed terminal. This will get worse if the environment becomes highly dense. The rise of channel interference among stations (STA) and the deterioration of the total network throughput as the result of these terminal problems need to be mitigated. A possible solution is to enable STAs to control transmission power and carrier sense threshold based on the information retrieved from the access point (AP). However, broadcasting message frames from AP to all STAs for identification purpose will cause much overhead. The proposed control scheme applies Bloom filter to distinguish associated STAs within the same basic service set (BSS) from the others while minimizing the overhead. The aim of this proposed scheme is to enhance the total throughput of the network and improve fairness of each STA in dense WLAN.
Multi-Policy Optimization in Decentralized Autonomic Systems (Extended Abstract)

This paper addresses the challenge of multi-policy optimization in decentralized autonomic systems. We evaluate several multi-policy reinforcement learning-based optimization techniques in an urban traffic control simulation, a canonical example of a decentralized autonomic system. Our results indicate that W-learning, which learns separately for each policy and then selects between nominated actions based on current action importance, is a suitable approach for optimization towards multiple policies on non-collaborating agents in heterogeneous autonomic environments.
OS and compiler considerations in the design of the IA-64 architecture

Increasing demands for processor performance have outstripped the pace of process and frequency improvements, pushing designers to find ways of increasing the amount of work that can be processed in parallel. Traditional RISC architectures use hardware approaches to obtain more instruction-level parallelism, with the compiler and the operating system (OS) having only indirect visibility into the mechanisms used.The IA-64 architecture [14] was specifically designed to enable systems which create and exploit high levels of instruction-level parallelism by explicitly encoding a program's parallelism in the instruction set [25]. This paper provides a qualitative summary of the IA-64 architecture features that support control and data speculation, and register stacking. The paper focusses on the functional synergy between these architectural elements (rather than their individual performance merits), and emphasizes how they were designed for cooperation between processor hardware, compilers and the OS.
Identifying Topical Twitter Communities via User List Aggregation

A particular challenge in the area of social media analysis is how to find communities within a larger network of social interactions. Here a community may be a group of microblogging users who post content on a coherent topic, or who are associated with a specific event or news story. Twitter provides the ability to curate users into lists, corresponding to meaningful topics or themes. Here we describe an approach for crowdsourcing the list building efforts of many different Twitter users, in order to identify topical communities. This approach involves the use of ensemble community finding to produce stable groupings of user lists, and by extension, individual Twitter users. We examine this approach in the context of a case study surrounding the detection of communities on Twitter relating to the London 2012 Olympics.
New Distance Measure for Sequence Comparison using Cumulative Frequency Distribution

Comparison of two promoter sequences is proposed in this paper. Motifs are extracted from promoter sequences using available software tool ‘TF SEARCH’. The promoter sequences are compared using cumulative frequency distribution of motifs. For experimental study, promoter sequences of different mammals of the enzyme Citrate synthase of TCA (kreb) cycle in CMP (Central Metabolic Pathway) are considered. Results reveal high similarity in motif sequences of different organisms in the same chromosome. Also some amount of similarity is present among motif sequences of different chromosomes of the same organism. General Terms Pattern Recognition, bioinformatics
Cold Model Experiment on Infiltration of Mould Flux in Continuous Casting of Steel: Simple Analysis Neglecting Mould Oscillation

A new cold model of continuous casting is developed to clarify the infiltration of mould flux into channel between a mould and a solidifying shell. In the experiment, silicone oil is poured and infiltrated down into the channel between an acrylic plate and a moving belt. In contrast with most of the previous analyses that assumed a fixed thickness of the liquid flux film, this model is based on an idea that the thickness can be varied depending on the balance of forces acting on the shell: static pressure in the molten steel pool, and dynamic and static pressure in the mould flux channel. Furthermore, a linear gauge sensor that is in contact with the acrylic plate monitors the film thickness of oil, while in continuous casting the thickness of mould flux cannot be measured during the operation.Simple experiments without oscillating motion clearly reveal that the infiltration behavior is largely dependent on the profile of channel: In the channel that becomes narrower in downward direction, the infiltration of oil is enhanced with the increase of both belt velocity and oil viscosity. In contrast, for the channel that becomes wider along the downward direction, the increase of the velocity and the viscosity reduces the oil infiltration.In continuous casting operation, the increase of both casting velocity and viscosity of mould flux decreases the mould flux consumption. Those observations indicate that the infiltration of mould flux is strongly governed by the channel that becomes wider in casting direction.
Randomized Trial of a Lay Health Advisor and Computer Intervention to Increase Mammography Screening in African American Women

Background: Low-income African American women face numerous barriers to mammography screening. We tested the efficacy of a combined interactive computer program and lay health advisor intervention to increase mammography screening. Methods: In this randomized, single blind study, participants were 181 African American female health center patients of ages 41 to 75 years, at ≤250% of poverty level, with no breast cancer history, and with no screening mammogram in the past 15 months. They were assigned to either (a) a low-dose comparison group consisting of a culturally appropriate mammography screening pamphlet or (b) interactive, tailored computer instruction at baseline and four monthly lay health advisor counseling sessions. Self-reported screening data were collected at baseline and 6 months and verified by medical record. Results: For intent-to-treat analysis of primary outcome (medical record–verified mammography screening, available on all but two participants), the intervention group had increased screening to 51% (45 of 89) compared with 18% (16 of 90) for the comparison group at 6 months. When adjusted for employment status, disability, first-degree relatives with breast cancer, health insurance, and previous breast biopsies, the intervention group was three times more likely (adjusted relative risk, 2.7; 95% confidence interval, 1.8-3.7; P < 0.0001) to get screened than the low-dose comparison group. Similar results were found for self-reported mammography stage of screening adoption. Conclusions: The combined intervention was efficacious in improving mammography screening in low-income African American women, with an unadjusted effect size (relative risk, 2.84) significantly higher (P < 0.05) than that in previous studies of each intervention alone. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev; 19(1); 201–10
Fabrication of Bionic Silicon Surfaces with Lotus Effect and their Micro Tribological Performance

With the miniature of micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS), surface effect is substantially increased, and the resulting friction, abrasion and stiction are becoming bottlenecks of the development of MEMS industry. In this paper, firstly, the feature size and topography on lotus leaf surfaces is investigated, as well as the mechanism of lotus effect applied in MEMS to reduce friction and prevent stiction is analyzed; secondly, two approaches of fabricating bionic silicon surfaces with lotus effect are proposed; finally, test results on the micro tribological performance of the mimicked silicon surfaces are presented, which demonstrates that to mimic lotus effect on silicon surfaces is a novel approach to prevent stiction and reduce friction . However, the effectiveness of stiction prevention and friction reduction is related to the size and shape of the textured structures.
Magnetic Phase Transition of La1-xSrxMnO3 Induced by Charge Transfer and Interdiffusion

Rare earth manganites under hole doping, R1-xBxMnO3 (R = La, Nd, Pr and B = Sr, Ca, Ba), have a rich charge carrier-temperature-magnetism phase diagram. The phases are tunable by applying external constraints, such as strain and boundary conditions. For example, the ferromagnetic phase dominated by the double-exchange mechanism can be transformed into an antiferromagnetic phase by controlling the doping level. In this work, using first principles calculations based on density functional theory, we study the bilayer system La0.67Sr0. 33MnO3 (LSMO)/SrRuO3 (SRO) composed of two ferromagnetic materials. The original ferromagnetism in LSMO becomes A-type antiferromagnetism at the interface. Such intriguing behavior at transition-metal oxide interfaces in the LSMO/SRO bilayer, stemming from coexisting interdiffusion and charge transfer from the SRO layer, is similar to a hole-doped LSMO layer attached to a substrate with electric polarization. Our result qualitatively and quantitatively explains recent experimental evidence of a dramatic change in the strength of magnetization for different terminations of LSMO/SRO bilayers.
Carbohydrates: a limit on bacterial diversity within the colon

The human large intestine is recognised as a physiologically important organ responsible for the conservation of water and salts. Through its resident bacteria, it is also capable of complex, enzyme catalysed, hydrolyticdigestive functions that have a high biological impact on the host. These microorganisms metabolise dietary components, principally complex carbohydrates that are not hydrolysed or absorbed in the upper gastrointestinal tract, and in this way, sequester energy for the host, through fermentation. This process involves a series of anaerobic, energy‐yielding, catabolic reactions which complete digestive processes in the gut, resulting in end products that in turn influence the distribution of microbial species present as well as having some systemic effects. Some of the bacteria are thought to possess important health‐promoting activities, especially with respect to their influence on mucosal and systemic immune responses to disease. These bioactivities can be modulated by substrates that support and influence microbial development, growth and survival. For these reasons, it is necessary to review dietary factors that may delimit bacterial diversity, to be able to predict responses and sensitivities to various environmental pressures and manipulations that occur in this area of human microbiology.
Improved Uniformity of Resistive Switching Behaviors in HfO2 Thin Films with Embedded Al Layers

A technical solution is presented to improve the uniformity of HfO 2 -based resistive switching memory by embedding thin Al layers between HfO 2 and electrode layers. Compared with those pure HfO 2 devices, a remarkably improved uniformity of switching parameters such as forming voltages, set voltages, and resistances in high/low states was demonstrated in the HfO 2 devices with embedded Al layers. Al atoms are assumed to diffuse into HfO 2 thin films and are intended to localize oxygen vacancies due to reduced oxygen vacancy formation energy, thus stabilizing the generation of conductive filaments, which helps improve the resistive switching uniformity.
Sensitivity of Computational Control Problems

It is well-known that many factors contribute to the accurate and efficient numerical solution of mathematical problems such as those arising in computational control system design. In simple terms these are the arithmetic of the machine on which the calculations are carried out, sensitivity (or conditioning) of the mathematical model to small changes of the data and the numerical stability of the algorithms. It happens quite often that these concepts are confused. We define these concepts and demonstrate some of the subtleties that often lead to confusion. In particular we demonstrate with several examples what may happen when a problem is modularized, i.e., split into subproblems for which computational modules are available. For three classical problems in computational control, pole placement, linear quadratic control and optimal H1 control, we then discuss the conditioning of the problems and point out sources of difficulties. We give some ill-conditioned examples for which even numerically stable methods fail. We also stress the need for condition and error estimators that supplement the numerical algorithm and inform the user about potential or actual difficulties, and we explain what can be done to avoid these difficulties.
SIRT1 Activators Suppress Inflammatory Responses through Promotion of p65 Deacetylation and Inhibition of NF-κB Activity

Chronic inflammation is a major contributing factor in the pathogenesis of many age-associated diseases. One central protein that regulates inflammation is NF-κB, the activity of which is modulated by post-translational modifications as well as by association with co-activator and co-repressor proteins. SIRT1, an NAD+-dependent protein deacetylase, has been shown to suppress NF-κB signaling through deacetylation of the p65 subunit of NF-κB resulting in the reduction of the inflammatory responses mediated by this transcription factor. The role of SIRT1 in the regulation of NF-κB provides the necessary validation for the development of pharmacological strategies for activating SIRT1 as an approach for the development of a new class of anti-inflammatory therapeutics. We report herein the development of a quantitative assay to assess compound effects on acetylated p65 protein in the cell. We demonstrate that small molecule activators of SIRT1 (STACs) enhance deacetylation of cellular p65 protein, which results in the suppression of TNFα-induced NF-κB transcriptional activation and reduction of LPS-stimulated TNFα secretion in a SIRT1-dependent manner. In an acute mouse model of LPS-induced inflammation, the STAC SRTCX1003 decreased the production of the proinflammatory cytokines TNFα and IL-12. Our studies indicate that increasing SIRT1-mediated NF-κB deacetylation using small molecule activating compounds is a novel approach to the development of a new class of therapeutic anti-inflammatory agents.
A Review on Grafting of Biofibers for Biocomposites

A recent increase in the use of biofibers as low-cost and renewable reinforcement for the polymer biocomposites has been seen globally. Biofibers are classified into: lignocellulosic fibers (i.e., cellulose, wood and natural fibers), nanocellulose (i.e., cellulose nanocrystals and cellulose nanofibrils), and bacterial cellulose, while polymer matrix materials can be petroleum based or bio-based. Green biocomposites can be produced using both biobased fibers and polymers. Incompatibility between the hydrophilic biofibers and hydrophobic polymer matrix can cause performance failure of resulting biocomposites. Diverse efforts have focused on the modification of biofibers in order to improve the performances of biocomposites. “Grafting” copolymerization strategy can render the advantages of biofiber and impart polymer properties onto it and the performance of biocomposites can be tuned through changing grafting parameters. This review presents a short overview of various “grafting” methods which can be directly or potentially employed to enhance the interaction between biofibers and a polymer matrix for biocomposites. Major grafting techniques, including ring opening polymerization, grafting via coupling agent and free radical induced grafting, have been discussed. Improved properties such as mechanical, thermal, and water resistance have provided grafted biocomposites with new opportunities for applications in specific industries.
Caregivers for people with end-stage lung disease: Characteristics and unmet needs in the whole population

Introduction End-stage lung disease (ESLD) (predominantly caused by chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and restrictive lung disease) is a significant cause of death. Little is known about community care for people with ESLD especially in the period leading to death. This paper describes demographic characteristics of caregivers, and key characteristics of the deceased irrespective of specialist service utilization. Methods The South Australian Health Omnibus is an annual, random, face-to-face, cross-sectional survey conducted statewide. For the last eight years questions about end of life have been asked of 3000 respondents annually (participation rate 77.9%). Directly standardized to the whole population, this study describes people who cared for someone with ESLD until death. Results One third (6370/18267) had someone die in the last five years from a terminal illness, 644 from ESLD (3.5% of respondents; 10.2% of deaths). One in five (20.8%) provided physical care: 43 respondents provided day-to-day and 63 provided intermittent hands-on care for an average of 40.1 months (SD 56.9). Caregivers were on average 51.2 years old (range 17–85; SD 16.5) and one in five was a spouse. Additional support to provide physical care was an unmet need by 17% of caregivers. The deceased were an average of 73.9 years old (range 47–92; SD 10.4). Only 31.1% were assessed as ‘comfortable’ or ‘very comfortable’ in the last fortnight of life. Discussion Given the health consequences of caregiving, caregivers of people with ESLD would benefit from prospectively defining their needs given the time for which intense caregiving is provided.
Deep Structure for end-to-end inverse rendering

Inverse rendering in a 3D format denoted to recovering the 3D properties of a scene given 2D input image(s) and is typically done using 3D Morphable Model (3DMM) based methods from single view images. These models formulate each face as a weighted combination of some basis vectors extracted from the training data. In this paper a deep framework is proposed in which the coefficients and basis vectors are computed by training an autoencoder network and a Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) simultaneously. The idea is to find a common cause which can be mapped to both the 3D structure and corresponding 2D image using deep networks. The empirical results verify the power of deep framework in finding accurate 3D shapes of human faces from their corresponding 2D images on synthetic datasets of human faces.
Corpus Cavernosum from Men with Vasculogenic Impotence Is Partially Resistant to Adenosine Relaxation due to Endothelial A2B Receptor Dysfunction

Although adenosine has been implicated in penile erection in human males, the receptor subtype responsible for adenosine regulation of human corpus cavernosum (HCC) smooth muscle tone is still a matter of debate. Using selective adenosine agonists and antagonists, we aimed at characterizing the adenosine receptors mediating relaxation of precontracted (with 1 μM phenylephrine) HCC strips. HCC specimens were collected from control subjects (organ donors) and from patients with severe vasculogenic erectile dysfunction (ED). In control subjects, adenosine and 5′-N-ethyl-carboxamide adenosine (NECA) fully relaxed HCC. The selective A2A receptor agonist 2-[4-(2-p-carboxy ethyl)phenylamino]-5′-N-ethylcarboxamido adenosine (CGS21680C) produced only a partial relaxation (30-50%) of HCC, which could be further enhanced by simultaneous application of 100 μM NECA. The selective A2B receptor antagonist N-(4-acetylphenyl)-2-[4-(2,3,6,7-tetrahydro-2,6-dioxo-1,3-dipropyl-1H-purin-8-il)phenoxy] acetamida (MRS1706) (10 nM) attenuated NECA-induced relaxation without affecting CGS21680C action. The A2A receptor antagonist 4-{2-[7-amino-2-(2-furyl)[1,2,4]triazolo-[2,3-a][1,3,5]triazin-5-ylamino]ethyl}phenol (ZM241385) (50 nM) consistently reduced the actions of both agonists. In contrast to CGS21680C, NECA-induced relaxation was attenuated when endothelial production of NO and prostanoids was reduced by 100 μM NG-nitro-l-arginine and 10 μM indomethacin, respectively. HCC strips from patients with vasculogenic ED were partially resistant to NECA but kept relaxation to CGS21680C; the remaining effect was sensitive to blockade of A2A receptors with 50 nM ZM241385. Data suggest that adenosine regulates HCC smooth muscle tone through the activation of two receptor populations, CGS21680C-sensitive (A2A) and -insensitive (A2B) receptors, located on smooth muscle fibers and on endothelial cells, respectively. Endothelial dysfunction may be correlated with a loss of adenosine A2B receptor activity in penile vessels from men with vasculogenic ED.
Estimation of Survival Distributions of Treatment Policies in Two‐Stage Randomization Designs in Clinical Trials

Summary. Some clinical trials follow a design where patients are randomized to a primary therapy at entry followed by another randomization to maintenance therapy contingent upon disease remission. Ideally, analysis would allow different treatment policies, i.e., combinations of primary and maintenance therapy if specified up‐front, to be compared. Standard practice is to conduct separate analyses for the primary and follow‐up treatments, which does not address this issue directly. We propose consistent estimators for the survival distribution and mean restricted survival time for each treatment policy in such two‐stage studies and derive large‐sample properties. The methods are demonstrated on a leukemia clinical trial data set and through simulation.