Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Energetic demand and physical conditioning of table tennis players. A study review

ABSTRACT Table tennis is a racket sport characterised by an intermittent movement profile, including short rallies interspersed with short breaks. In contrast to other racket sports, information is lacking regarding the: (i) physiological responses during table tennis matches and training; and (ii) practical recommendations for enhancing aerobic and anaerobic performance in table tennis by improving cardio-metabolic and neuro-muscular fitness, anthropometry and nutritional strategies. Therefore, this review article attempts to narratively provide an overview of the physiology of table tennis by describing the metabolic mechanisms underlying match play and outlining a framework for practical recommendations for improving cardio-metabolic and neuro-muscular fitness, anthropometry as well as nutritional strategies. A second aim was to stimulate future research on table tennis and to point out study limitations in this context. In general, the most important finding is that the rally duration is short at around 3.5s, with a longer rest time of around 8–20s, resulting in an effort-rest ratio ranging from 0.15 to 0.22 in official matches and energetic demands during match relatively low. Future studies should focus on the relationship between energetic demand and table tennis performance with a view to predicting performance in table tennis using physiological parameters.
Influence of resin type and flake thickness on properties of OSB

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationships between strand thickness and resin type within a 3-layer oriented strandboard to improve dimensional stability. A secondary objective was to study the impact that strand area has with two resin types. Variables studied were two strand thicknesses (432 and 635 mm), and two resin types (MDI and PF) both interacting with a face to core ratio of 1:1. All combinations of these variables were produced resulting in 16 panel varieties. Changing strand thickness resulted in limited improvement of dimensional stability and mechanical properties when compared to the impact of resin type and placement within the panel. PF as a surface resin and MDI as a core resin with thinner surface strands resulted in the lowest thickness swell results. This study found contradictory data surrounding interactions between face and core variables, as well as the importance of strand thickness in determining thickness swell.
ORCHARD: Visual object recognition accelerator based on approximate in-memory processing

In recent years, machine learning for visual object recognition has been applied to various domains, e.g., autonomous vehicle, heath diagnose, and home automation. However, the recognition procedures still consume a lot of processing energy and incur a high cost of data movement for memory accesses. In this paper, we propose a novel hardware accelerator design, called ORCHARD, which processes the object recognition tasks inside memory. The proposed design accelerates both the image feature extraction and boosting-based learning algorithm, which are key subtasks of the state-of-the-art image recognition approaches. We optimize the recognition procedures by leveraging approximate computing and emerging non-volatile memory (NVM) technology. The NVM-based in-memory processing allows the proposed design to mitigate the CMOS-based computation overhead, highly improving the system efficiency. In our evaluation conducted on circuit- and device-level simulations, we show that ORCHARD successfully performs practical image recognition tasks, including text, face, pedestrian, and vehicle recognition with 0.3% of accuracy loss made by computation approximation. In addition, our design significantly improves the performance and energy efficiency by up to 376x and 1896x, respectively, compared to the existing processor-based implementation.
The Full Spectrum of Biomedical Informatics Research and Education at OHSU

Although the biomedical informatics field is small relative to others in the life and health sciences, the breadth of subject domains, types of research, and occupations is vast. The biomedical informatics program at Oregon Health & Science University exemplifies the breadth in the field. At the center of our full spectrum of activities in informatics, however, is a core philosophy of the discipline that drives our research, educational, and other programs.
Enhancing SSDs with multi-stream: What? why? how?

The adoption of SSDs has become very prominent, but they still suffer from challenges to control write amplification. Traditional SSDs have single active append point where new data writes can be stored. Data of different lifetime stored together causes high write amplification. Recently, multi-stream SSDs are developed that allows multiple active append points. These multiple active append points can be used to store data of different lifetime in different locations within SSD. Such a data placement according to the lifetime of data would considerably reduce internal write amplification of SSD. For using multi-stream SSDs it is required to attach stream-id to each new incoming data writes. According to these stream-ids, the flash transition layer (FTL) of a multi-stream SSD then appends data to different erase blocks. Thus, multi-stream SSDs will help to reduce write amplification. But, to efficiently use this new multi-stream SSDs, it is important to properly identify streamids of data with respect to its lifetime. The lifetime of data is expected using different features that data exhibits like frequency, sequentiality etc. Stream-id identification using different features may have different impact on the final write amplification of multi-stream SSDs, depending on workload. Thus, it is required to quantify the impact of different data features that are used for stream-id identification on the resultant write amplification. Additionally, the combination of these data features may be used for stream-id identification, so it is also important to be able to study the impact of such different combinations. In order to address above challenges towards efficiently using multi-stream SSDs, here we propose a portable and adoptable framework to study the impact of stream-id identification using different workload data features and their combinations on write amplification of multi-stream SSDs. Our evaluation results show that use of appropriate features according to workload can considerably reduce the Write Amplification Factor (WAF) when compared to the legacy SSDs.
Inclusion of Konjac Flour in the Gestation Diet Changes the Gut Microbiota, Alleviates Oxidative Stress, and Improves Insulin Sensitivity in Sows

ABSTRACT Although dietary fibers contribute to health and physiology primarily via the fermentative actions of the gut microbiota of the hosts, few studies have focused on how these interactions influence the metabolic status of sows. Here, the effects of inclusion of konjac flour (KF) in a gestation diet on oxidative stress status, insulin sensitivity, and gut microbiota were investigated to elucidate the correlation between the microbiota and metabolic changes in sows. Sows were assigned to either control or 2.2% KF dietary treatment during gestation. The gut microbiota population in sows during gestation and lactation was assessed by 16S rRNA gene sequencing. The oxidative stress parameters, homeostasis model assessment (HOMA) values, and fatty acids in the blood of sows were also assessed. Compared to the control diet group, KF significantly reduced the serum levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and 8-hydroxy-deoxyguanosine (8-OHdG) but increased the serum concentrations of glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) in sows on day 1 in lactation. Additionally, sows in the KF group had a lower HOMA insulin resistance value but a higher HOMA insulin sensitivity (HOMA-IS) value. KF induced changes in the gut microbial composition at the phylum and genus levels. The increased relative abundances of Akkermansia and Roseburia in the KF group were positively correlated with the HOMA-IS. Overall, dietary KF alleviated oxidative stress and improved insulin sensitivity of sows, and the changes in the gut microbiota in response to KF may have been correlated with the host metabolism response. IMPORTANCE To date, the effect of dietary fiber on metabolism responses and gut microbiota in sows has not been investigated. Here, KF supplementation of a gestation diet in sows was found to alleviate oxidative stress and to improve insulin sensitivity. Pyrosequencing analysis revealed that KF treatment induces changes in the gut microbiota composition at the phylum and genus levels. Moreover, the changes of gut microbiota in response to KF may be correlated with the host metabolism response.
Micro Latch-Up Analysis on Ultra-Nanometer VLSI Technologies: A New Monte Carlo Approach

Ultra-scale devices based on technologies below 20nm are nowadays widely adopted due to their elevated computing features and low power consumption. These characteristics made them attractive even for fields where the high reliability is the major concern like automotive or aerospace ones. In order to guarantee a high reliability level, one of the major challenge in these application fields is the protection versus the micro latch-up effect: a phenomenon that temporarily affects the logical behavior of technology cells at various locations across the die provoking circuit misbehavior. In this paper, we propose a new analysis flow for detecting the occurrences of micro latch-up event considering the physical layout of a circuit. In details, a circuit layers has been developed in order to identify the micro latch-up sensitive points in the 3D layout geometry, while a Monte-Carlo approach has been developed to calculate the micro latch-up error rate on routing interconnection nodes. Experimental results have been performed by fault simulation on a benchmark circuit implemented in six different variants of routing congestions using a 15 nm COTS technology library demonstrating the feasibility of the proposed approach.
Suppressing vibration in a multilayers composite material plate using quantum-behaved particle swarm optimization and sliding mode control system

In this paper, a quantum-behaved particle swarm optimization sliding mode control system (QPSOSM) is proposed to suppress the vibration of a multilayers composite material plate. Moreover, in this paper, fabricating a suppresser vibration setup box (SVSB) for the problem of an active vibration of a cantilevered 1-clamped 3-free composite plate is investigated. A mesh-free method is employed to create the shape functions. Also, the formulation of the problem is based on the classical laminated plate theory and the principle of virtual displacements. In this study, a function of the sliding surface is considered as an objective function and then the control effort is produced by the quantum particle swarm method and the sliding mode control strategy. At the end, the performance of the proposed QPSOSM control system and the fabricated SVSB controller are shown by simulation and experimental results.
Joint Encoding and Grouping Multiple Node Pairs for Physical-Layer Network Coding With Low-Complexity Algorithm

How to put fifth-generation (5G) into the commercial service by 2020 is still challenging. Since physical-layer network coding (PNC) does not bring unnecessary redundancy and offers satisfactory end-to-end services, it is promising to provide network services in 5G networks. Existing works on PNC mainly focus on the case that two packets are simultaneously sent by a node pair for information exchange, and the transmitted signals are superposed and encoded at a relay. To further exploit the potential performance improvement of PNC, this study aims at encoding multiple packets through jointly processing multiple superposed signals sent by diverse node pairs. Particularly, we formulate the problem of joint-encoding method design as a binary integer programming model and propose a low-complexity solution based on the idea of filling a Latin rectangle. We find that network throughput enhancement does not accompany the increasing number of coded node pairs, and some node pairs cannot be encoded together since they fail to decode the resulting encoded packet. Therefore, the decodability-based node pair grouping scheme is further investigated. Simulation results in various scenarios show that the proposed low-complexity scheme performs neck to neck to the optimum one with high computational complexity.
Lysine-acetylation as a fundamental regulator of Ran function: Implications for signaling of proteins of the Ras-superfamily

The small GTP-binding protein Ran is involved in the regulation of essential cellular processes in interphase but also in mitotic cells: Ran controls the nucleocytoplasmic transport of proteins and RNA, it regulates mitotic spindle formation and nuclear envelope assembly. Deregulations in Ran dependent processes were implicated in the development of severe diseases such as cancer and neurodegenerative disorders. To understand how Ran-function is regulated is therefore of highest importance. Recently, several lysine-acetylation sites in Ran were identified by quantitative mass-spectrometry, some being located in highly important regions such as the P-loop, switch I, switch II and the G5/SAK motif. We recently reported that lysine-acetylation regulates nearly all aspects of Ran-function such as RCC1 catalyzed nucleotide exchange, intrinsic nucleotide hydrolysis, its interaction with NTF2 and the formation of import- and export-complexes. As a hint for its biological importance, we identified Ran-specific lysine-deacetylases (KDACs) and -acetyltransferases (KATs). Also for other small GTPases such as Ras, Rho, Cdc42, and for many effectors and regulators thereof, lysine-acetylation sites were discovered. However, the functional impact of lysine-acetylation as a regulator of protein function has only been marginally investigated so far. We will discuss recent findings of lysine-acetylation as a novel modification to regulate Ras-protein signaling.
DNA Sequence Variants in the Five Prime Untranslated Region of the Cyclooxygenase-2 Gene Are Commonly Found in Healthy Dogs and Gray Wolves

The aim of this study was to investigate the frequency of regional DNA variants upstream to the translation initiation site of the canine Cyclooxygenase-2 (Cox-2) gene in healthy dogs. Cox-2 plays a role in various disease conditions such as acute and chronic inflammation, osteoarthritis and malignancy. A role for Cox-2 DNA variants in genetic predisposition to canine renal dysplasia has been proposed and dog breeders have been encouraged to select against these DNA variants. We sequenced 272–422 bases in 152 dogs unaffected by renal dysplasia and found 19 different haplotypes including 11 genetic variants which had not been described previously. We genotyped 7 gray wolves to ascertain the wildtype variant and found that the wolves we analyzed had predominantly the second most common DNA variant found in dogs. Our results demonstrate an elevated level of regional polymorphism that appears to be a feature of healthy domesticated dogs.
Realization of Dual-Hop Networks in Wi-Fi Direct and Performance Evaluation

Wireless LANs are used as a common choice of Internet access at homes, offices, campuses and public areas such as airports and supermarkets. Wireless LANs support device-to-device (D2D) communication using ad-hoc mode, however the ad-hoc mode was not widely adopted in real implementations. Wi-Fi Alliance released a standard for D2D communication called Wi-Fi Direct (formerly known as Wi-Fi P2P). Wi-Fi Direct works on the client-server model, where a single device called P2P group owner manages the communication between client devices. The basic entity of Wi-Fi Direct architecture is called a P2P group which is a single-hop network. However dual-hop and multi-hop networks can be established in Wi-Fi Direct. In this paper, we present the formation of such dual-hop and multi-hop links using Wi-Fi Direct. A review of several physical layer models to evaluate the performance of dual-hop networks is presented. In addition, the performance of the dual-hop network model over Rayleigh fading channel is compared with the direct link.
Subsequent thoracic cancers among patients diagnosed with lung cancer: a SEER database analysis

Abstract Background: Population-based data on the development of subsequent thoracic cancers following the initial diagnosis of lung cancer are scarce. We evaluated this clinical scenario in lung cancer patients registered within the Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results (SEER) database. Methods: The SEER database (1988–2013) was queried using the SEER*Stat program to determine the clinico-pathological features of lung cancer patients who develop subsequent thoracic cancers as well as the characteristics of these subsequent cancers. Associations were ascertained with chi-squared tests and survival analysis was performed using Kaplan–Meier methods. Standardized incidence ratios (SIRs) were calculated to determine the risk of each type of subsequent cancer. Results: A total of 223,274 lung cancer patients were identified and included in the current study. In this cohort, 6387 patients developed subsequent thoracic cancers. The following were associated with a higher likelihood of second cancers: female gender, younger age, white race, adenocarcinoma histology, married, lower AJCC stage, earlier year of diagnosis and local treatment with surgery rather than radiotherapy (p < .0001 for all parameters). In the subset of patients with subsequent thoracic cancers, survival was best for patients with second primary breast cancer followed by patients with lung or esophageal cancer (p < .0001). SIR analyses showed an excess risk for the development of esophageal cancer and second primary lung cancer following an initial diagnosis of lung cancer. This risk persists regardless of gender or receipt of radiotherapy (p < .05 for all scenarios). Conclusion: There is an excess risk for the development of esophageal cancer and second primary lung cancer following an initial lung cancer diagnosis. This risk is present irrespective of gender or receipt of radiotherapy.
A Survival Strategy for Pseudomonas aeruginosa That Uses Exopolysaccharides To Sequester and Store Iron To Stimulate Psl-Dependent Biofilm Formation

ABSTRACT Exopolysaccharide Psl is a critical biofilm matrix component in Pseudomonas aeruginosa, which forms a fiber-like matrix to enmesh bacterial communities. Iron is important for P. aeruginosa biofilm development, yet it is not clearly understood how iron contributes to biofilm development. Here, we showed that iron promoted biofilm formation via elevating Psl production in P. aeruginosa. The high level of iron stimulated the synthesis of Psl by reducing rhamnolipid biosynthesis and inhibiting the expression of AmrZ, a repressor of psl genes. Iron-stimulated Psl biosynthesis and biofilm formation held true in mucoid P. aeruginosa strains. Subsequent experiments indicated that iron bound with Psl in vitro and in biofilms, which suggested that Psl fibers functioned as an iron storage channel in P. aeruginosa biofilms. Moreover, among three matrix exopolysaccharides of P. aeruginosa, Psl is the only exopolysaccharide that can bind with both ferrous and ferric ion, yet with higher affinity for ferrous iron. Our data suggest a survival strategy of P. aeruginosa that uses exopolysaccharide to sequester and store iron to stimulate Psl-dependent biofilm formation. IMPORTANCE Pseudomonas aeruginosa is an environmental microorganism which is also an opportunistic pathogen that can cause severe infections in immunocompromised individuals. It is the predominant airway pathogen causing morbidity and mortality in individuals affected by the genetic disease cystic fibrosis (CF). Increased airway iron and biofilm formation have been proposed to be the potential factors involved in the persistence of P. aeruginosa in CF patients. Here, we showed that a high level of iron enhanced the production of the key biofilm matrix exopolysaccharide Psl to stimulate Psl-dependent biofilm formation. Our results not only make the link between biofilm formation and iron concentration in CF, but also could guide the administration or use of iron chelators to interfere with biofilm formation in P. aeruginosa in CF patients. Furthermore, our data also imply a survival strategy of P. aeruginosa under high-iron environmental conditions.
Bloom Filters, Adaptivity, and the Dictionary Problem

An approximate membership query data structure (AMQ)—such as a Bloom, quotient, or cuckoo filter—maintains a compact, probabilistic representation of a set S of keys from a universe U. It supports lookups and inserts. Some AMQs also support deletes. A query for x in S returns "present. " A query for x not in S returns "present" with a tunable false positive probability epsilon, and otherwise returns "absent. " AMQs are widely used to speed up dictionaries that are stored remotely (e.g., on disk or across a network). The AMQ is stored locally (e.g., in memory). The remote dictionary is only accessed when the AMQ returns "present. " Thus, the primary performance metric of an AMQ is how often it returns "absent" for negative queries. Existing AMQs offer weak guarantees on the number of false positives in a sequence of queries. The false-positive probability epsilon holds only for a single query. It is easy for an adversary to drive an AMQ's false-positive rate towards 1 by simply repeating false positives. This paper shows what it takes to get strong guarantees on the number of false positives. We say that an AMQ is adaptive if it guarantees a false-positive probability of epsilon for every query, regardless of answers to previous queries. We establish upper and lower bounds for adaptive AMQs. Our lower bound shows that it is impossible to build a small adaptive AMQ, even when the AMQ is immediately told whenever a query is a false positive. On the other hand, we show that it is possible to maintain an AMQ that uses the same amount of local space as a non-adaptive AMQ (up to lower order terms), performs all queries and updates in constant time, and guarantees that each negative query to the dictionary accesses remote storage with probability epsilon, independent of the results of past queries. Thus, we show that adaptivity can be achieved effectively for free.
New targets and therapies for gastrointestinal stromal tumors

ABSTRACT Introduction: The majority of gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST) are driven by an abnormal receptor tyrosine kinase (RTK) signaling, occurring mainly due to somatic mutations in KIT or platelet derived growth factor receptor alpha (PDGFRA). Although the introduction of tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) has revolutionized therapy for GIST patients, with time the vast majority of them develop TKI resistance. Advances in understanding the molecular background of GIST resistance allows for the identification of new targets and the development of novel strategies to overcome or delay its occurrence. Areas covered: The focus of this review is on novel, promising therapeutic approaches to overcome heterogeneous resistance to registered TKIs. These approaches involve new TKIs, including drugs specific for a mutated form of KIT/PDGFRA, drugs with inhibitory effect against multiple RTKs, compounds targeting dysregulated downstream signaling pathways, drugs affecting KIT expression and degradation, inhibitors of cell cycle, and immunotherapeutics. Expert commentary: As the resistance to standard TKI treatment can be heterogeneous, a combinational approach for refractory GIST could be beneficial. Moreover, the understanding of the molecular background of resistant disease would allow development of a more personalized approach for these patients and their response to targeted therapy could be monitored closely using ‘liquid biopsy’.