Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Energy optimization for video monitoring system in agricultural areas using single board computer nodes and wireless ad hoc networks

This paper presents the design and implementation of a set of prototype nodes that have the ability to establish communication links in ad hoc mode. The prototypes were implemented using low cost, single board computers with embedded Linux (Raspberry Pi devices). The implemented stations aim to set a wireless sensor network for the capture of variables applied to agricultural environments. In particular, a camera module has been included on a node for remote video monitoring of farming zones, and also a GPS module for the capture of geolocation information. Nodes can be accessed remotely by means of the developed web interface. The routing process between nodes is carried out using the S-OLSR mechanism (OLSR modification) in order to set up routes taking into account the energy limitations as well as the location of each device in the topology. Results describe the contribution of this work to the design of monitoring applications on agricultural zones by means of the deployment of autonomous ad hoc nodes and energy routing optimization.
Case study: Class diagram restructuring

This case study is an update-in-placerefactoringtransformationon UML class diagrams. Its aim is toremove clones of attributes from a class diagram, and to identify new classes which abstract groupsof classes that share common data features.It is used as one of a general collection of transformations (such as the removal of redundantinheritance, or multiple inheritance) which aim to improve the quality of a speciﬁcation or designlevel class diagram.The transformationis a typical example of a model refactoring,and illustrates the issues involvedin such transformations.
HPLC Analysis of Supercritical Carbon Dioxide and Compressed Propane Extracts from Piper amalago L. with Antileishmanial Activity

Piper amalago L. leaves were extracted with supercritical carbon dioxide and compressed propane under different conditions, and with chloroform by the conventional maceration method. These methods were compared for the pyrrolidine alkaloid content. Supercritical carbon dioxide (SFE-CO2) at 313 K and 12.55 MPa showed the highest selectivity for the main compound (600.53 mg/g of extract). A gradient high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) method was developed and validated to quantify the alkaloid N-[7-(3′,4′-methylenedioxyphenyl)-2(Z),4(Z)-heptadienoyl]pyrrolidine (1) in the extracts. The HPLC method showed linearity, precision and accuracy, allowing the quantitative analysis of the alkaloid in all the samples. All the extracts were tested against the promastigote and intracellular amastigote forms of Leishmania amazonensis. The antileishmanial activity was evaluated in terms of inhibitory concentration for 50% of protozoa (IC50). The cytotoxicity was also evaluated against J774A1 macrophages, and the cytotoxic concentrations for 50% of macrophages were obtained (CC50). The SFE-CO2 (313 K; 12.55 MPa) extract showed the highest antileishmanial activity with the following IC50 values of 16 and 7 µg/mL against the promastigotes and intracellular amastigotes forms, respectively. The extract showed low cytotoxicity with a CC50 value of 93 µg/mL.
Ketamine Pharmacology: An Update (Pharmacodynamics and Molecular Aspects, Recent Findings)

For more than 50 years, ketamine has proven to be a safe anesthetic drug with potent analgesic properties. The active enantiomer is S(+)‐ketamine. Ketamine is mostly metabolized in norketamine, an active metabolite. During “dissociative anesthesia”, sensory inputs may reach cortical receiving areas, but fail to be perceived in some association areas. Ketamine also enhances the descending inhibiting serotoninergic pathway and exerts antidepressive effects. Analgesic effects persist for plasma concentrations ten times lower than hypnotic concentrations. Activation of the (N‐Methyl‐D‐Aspartate [NMDA]) receptor plays a fundamental role in long‐term potentiation but also in hyperalgesia and opioid‐induced hyperalgesia. The antagonism of NMDA receptor is responsible for ketamine's more specific properties. Ketamine decreases the “wind up” phenomenon, and the antagonism is more important if the NMDA channel has been previously opened by the glutamate binding (“use dependence”). Experimentally, ketamine may promote neuronal apoptotic lesions but, in usual clinical practice, it does not induce neurotoxicity. The consequences of high doses, repeatedly administered, are not known. Cognitive disturbances are frequent in chronic users of ketamine, as well as frontal white matter abnormalities. Animal studies suggest that neurodegeneration is a potential long‐term risk of anesthetics in neonatal and young pediatric patients.
Improved Performance Scheme for Joint Transmission in Downlink Coordinated Multi-Point Transmission

In this paper, improved performance scheme for joint transmission(JT) is proposed in downlink(DL) coordinated multi-point(CoMP) in case of the constraint transmission power. This scheme is that a serving transmission point(TP) requests the JT to an inter-TP and it selects a precoding technique according to the channel state information(CSI) from user equipment(UE). The simulation results show that the bit error rate(BER) and the throughput performances of the proposed scheme provide the high spectral efficiency and the reliable data at the cell edge. Keywords—CoMP, joint transmission, minimum mean square error, zero-forcing, zero-forcing dirty paper coding.
PURPLE REVEALED: SIMULATION AND COMPUTER-AIDED CRYPTANALYSIS OF ANGOOKI TAIPU B

PURPLE was the designation given by U. S. cryptanalysts to the cipher machine used by the Japanese Foreign Office for secure communications before and during WW 2. We present the structure and internal wiring of the machine, as well as details of the keying procedures and a system of abbreviations, which was used in the messages. We have also written a computer simulation of the PURPLE machine. Operation of the simulator is demonstrated by deciphering portions of the 14-part message delivered to the United States on Dec. 7, 1941. Finally, an automated cryptanalysis method for the PURPLE system is presented.
Walking the Web of trust

Most currently deployed public key infrastructures (PKIs) are hierarchically oriented and rely on a centralized design. Hierarchical PKIs may be appropriate solutions for many usage-scenarios, but there exists the viable alternative of the 'Web of Trust'. In a web of trust, each user of the system can choose for himself whom he elects to trust, and whom not. After contrasting the properties of web-of-trust based PKIs to those of hierarchical PKIs, an introduction to webs of trust and to quantitative trust calculations is given. The paper concludes with the presentation of an efficient, sub-exponential algorithm that allows heuristic computations of trust paths in a web of trust.
Entry and intracellular localization of Legionella dumoffii in Vero cells.

Organisms of some Legionella species are known to internalize and multiply within epithelial cell lines. During the study on interaction between Legionella spp. and Vero cells, we found that L. dumoffii Tex-KL (ATCC 33343) can enter into Vero cells approximately four to 20 times more often than five other strains of four species of legionella. The mode of entry between L. dumoffii Tex-KL and L. pneumophila Philadelphia-1 was compared and studied by treating Vero cells with reagents which inhibit phagocytosis and endocytosis. Monodansylcadaverine, cytochalasin D and nocodazol were used as inhibitors of receptor-mediated endocytosis, microfilament-dependent phagocytosis and polymerization of microtubules, respectively. The uptake of L. dumoffii Tex-KL required receptor-mediated endocytosis by Vero cells, while the uptake of L. pneumophila Philadelphia-1 used mainly microfilament-dependent phagocytosis. Polymerization of microtubules was necessary for Vero cells for the uptake of both strains of legionella. An electron microscopic examination revealed that some organisms of the L. dumoffii strain Tex-KL escaped from endosomal vacuoles into cytoplasm in the early stage of infection, and proliferated in the cytoplasm. At that period, most of the bacteria were surrounded by rough endoplasmic reticula. In contrast, L. pneumophila Philadelphia-1 proliferated only within ribosome-lined endosome. We suggest that L. dumoffii Tex-KL internalize and proliferate in Vero cells in a different way to L. pneumophila Philadelphia-1, and that there is a variety of the mode of interaction between Legionella spp. and epithelial cells.
Robust attitude control of a quadrotor system against disturbance using a time-delayed control method: Experimental studies

This paper presents the attitude control of a quad-rotor system by using a time-delayed control (TDC) method. The TDC is known as a robust controller against the disturbance. The TDC uses the previous information to cancel out unknown dynamics by estimating the acceleration which is the most important term. A weight is attached to the frame to give intentional disturbance to the system. Roll and pitch angles are jointly disturbed by a weight so that the coupling effect is present. TDC is used to deal with not only the disturbance but also the coupling effect. Experimental studies of controlling the attitude of a quad-rotor system are presented in the laboratory to validate the performance of the proposed control scheme. Practical parameters are found empirically to give the best performance.
Testosterone has opposite effects on male growth in lizards (Sceloporus spp.) with opposite patterns of sexual size dimorphism

SUMMARY Sexual size dimorphism (SSD) has received considerable attention from evolutionary biologists, but relatively little is known about the physiological mechanisms underlying sex differences in growth that lead to SSD. Testosterone (T) stimulates growth in many male-larger vertebrates, but inhibits growth in the female-larger lizard Sceloporus undulatus. Thus, opposite patterns of SSD may develop in part because of underlying differences in the hormonal regulation of male growth. In the present study, we examined the effects of T on male growth in two sympatric congeners with opposite patterns of SSD (S. virgatus: female-larger; S. jarrovii: male-larger). During the mating season, yearling males of both species have higher plasma T levels than females, but whereas yearling males of S. virgatus grow only half as fast as females, yearling males of S. jarrovii grow more quickly than females. Thus, we hypothesized that T inhibits growth in yearling S. virgatus males, but promotes growth in yearling S. jarrovii males. In support of this hypothesis, we found that castrated (CAST) males of S. virgatus grew faster than castrated males given T implants (TEST). In contrast, TEST males of S. jarrovii grew faster than CAST males. Our results provide the first direct evidence for opposite effects of T on male growth in closely related species with opposite patterns of SSD. We speculate that growth inhibition by T reflects an energetic trade-off between growth and reproductive investment, and propose that such `costs' of male reproduction may help explain the evolution of female-larger SSD in Sceloporus.
Primary clear cell adenocarcinoma of the peritoneum presents as Sister Mary Joseph's nodule: a case report and literature review.

BACKGROUND Sister Mary Joseph's nodule (SMJN) is a raised nodule around the umbilicus and is often a clinical sign of metastatic malignancy with poor prognosis. Primary clear cell adenocarcinoma of the peritoneum is rare. Herein the authors describe a case of primary peritoneal clear cell adenocarcinoma presenting with SMJN as an initial sign. CASE A 59-year-old woman was admitted into the present hospital complaining of an enlarged, painful umbilical nodule, and increasing abdominal distention. After the biopsy of the peritoneal nodule, primary clear cell adenocarcinoma of the peritoneum was diagnosed. The patient underwent multiple courses of aggressive chemotherapy combined with radiotherapy and surgery and has survived for more than four years. CONCLUSION Considering that SMJN is a rare sign of visceral malignancies, clinicians should be aware of this rare clinical sign when determining the differential diagnosis. Umbilical metastasis is usually indicates a poor prognosis. However, the present case suggests that long-term survival is possible.
Alpha-Actinin 4 Is Associated with Cancer Cell Motility and Is a Potential Biomarker in Non–Small Cell Lung Cancer

Background: Differential expression and secretion of alpha-actinin 4 (ACTN4) in the lung cancer cell lines CL1-0 and CL1-5 have been reported in previous proteomic studies. The aim of this study is to investigate the functional properties of the ACTN4 protein in non–small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) cells and evaluate its clinical importance. Methods: We used RNA interference to knock down and overexpress ACTN4 protein to evaluate the effects of this intervention on cancer cell invasion and migration, as well as on microscopic cellular morphology. Furthermore, we examined by immunohistochemistry the expression of ACTN4 protein in tissue samples at different stages of lung cancerand compared the protein levels of ACTN4 in blood plasma samples from patients with histologically confirmed lung cancer and healthy controls. Results: CL1-5 cell motility was significantly suppressed by the knockdown of ACTN4 protein. The morphology of CL1-5 cells changed from a predominantly mesenchymal-like shape into a globular shape in response to ACTN4 protein knockdown. A quantitative immunohistochemical assessment of lung cancer tissues revealed that ACTN4 protein level was considerably higher in cancerous tissues than in the adjacent normal ones, and the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve was 0.736 (p < 0.001). According to an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, the plasma levels of ACTN4 protein were significantly different between cancer patients and healthy controls, and the areas under the receiver operating characteristic curves were 0.828 and 0.909, respectively, for two independent cohorts (p < 0.001). Conclusions: We demonstrate that the knockdown of ACTN4 protein inhibited cell invasion and migration. These results suggest that ACTN4 is associated with lung cancer cell motility. Thus, the level of ACTN4 in cancerous tissue and plasma is related to the presence of lung cancer.
Learning to Teach Reading: A Theory-Practice Approach to Psychology Teaching in University Teacher Education

The report portrays a theory-practice psychology course on reading education in a German teacher education programme. Having completed a theoretical course phase that is largely based on knowledge from cognitive and educational psychology, pre-service student-teachers applied their acquired knowledge by working with a fifth-grader in five individual reading lessons. During the sessions, students were supported by a mentor and received individual video feedback as well as peer feedback. The students also kept a learning journal to document and reflect on their practical experiences. The results from a small-scale evaluation study suggest that the course format bears a high potential for meaningful learning experiences regarding both general teaching practice and reading instruction.
Competences of combat sports and martial arts educators in light of the holistic fair self-defence model of training

Material/methods: The research included 135 combat sports and martial arts educators representing 19 countries of different continents. Methods: (1) Monographic method and research of chronicles and creating opinion documents; (2) Diagnostic sounding in form of a questionnaire (own elaboration) and interview; (3) Method of creation and use of a model. This model is the essential base of the elaboration of the questionnaire addressed to the combat sports and martial arts educators, and then it was also used to elaborate the basic classifi cation criteria and evaluation of the obtained answers.
A Collaborative Information Sharing Platform for Virtual Manufacturing Analysis Preparation

Virtual manufacturing (VM) has been studied in various activities of manufacturing. The objectives of the studies depend on the nature of investigation: ranging from optimization of product and process design, workplace design, simulation of plant operation and layouts, to improvement of manual operations in ergonomic studies. VM helps to shorten the product development process by its ability of various analyses in product and process design. It is important to convey effectively the product design information with the most current data to all people interested in the design. This paper presents a research work in two folds, firstly on the development of a Collaborative Information Sharing Platform (CISP), and secondly on the development of VM simulation models. The information of the VM simulation models can be shared and accessed by all interested parties through connections of the developed platform CISP. Simulation models for the manufacture of an AC motor are illustrated. The simulation models emphasize the integrative approach in product and process design, where same product data source is shared and used for analyses in virtual environment for the various manufacturing activities involved in the production of the electrical motor. Activities include product development, production planning, assembly analysis, work study, workplace design, operation simulation and plant layout.
Adversarial queuing on the multiple-access channel

We consider broadcasting on the multiple-access channel when packets are injected continuously. Multiple-access channel is a synchronous system with the properties that a single transmission at a round delivers the message to all nodes, while multiple simultaneous transmissions result in a conflict which prevents delivering messages to any among the recipients. The traditional approach to dynamic broadcasting has been concerned with stability of protocols under suitable stochastic assumptions about injection rates. We study deterministic protocols competing against adversaries restricted by injection rate and burstiness of traffic. Stability means that the number of packets in queues is bounded by a constant in any execution, for a given number of stations, protocol, and adversary. Strong stability denotes the property that the number of queued packets is proportional to the burstiness of traffic, that is, the maximum number of packets an adversary may inject simultaneously. There are three natural classes of protocols we consider. The weakest acknowledgement-based protocols have a station rely on its local clock and on a feedback from the channel during its own attempts of transmissions. Full-sensing protocols allow a station to rely on a global clock and to store the history of all the previous successes/failures of transmissions in the course of an execution. A station running an adaptive protocol can rely on a global clock, may add control bits to be piggybacked on messages, and may store the complete history of the feedback from the channel during an execution. It turns out that there is no adaptive broadcast protocol stable for the injection rate λ = 1 for the multiple-access channel with at least n ≥ 4 stations, even when collision detection is available. We show that a simple full-sensing protocol is universally stable, which means it can handle any constant injection rate λ ‹ 1 in a stable manner. A more involved full-sensing protocol is shown to be both universally stable and strongly-stable for injection rate ρ (n) ≤ 1over>d lg2 n, where d>0 is a sufficiently large constant and n is the number of stations. We show that there is an acknowledgement-based protocol that is strongly stable for injection rate ρ(n)≤ 1<over>d lg2 n, for a sufficiently large constant d0. Regarding the stability of acknowledgement-based protocols, we show that no such a protocol is stable for injection rate ρ(n)> 2<over>1+lg n. This implies that there are no universally stable acknowledgement-based protocols. We show that when collision detection is available, then a simple full-sensing protocol is both universally stable and strongly stable for injection rate ρ(n)≤ 1<over>2 lgn. As a complementary fact, we prove that no adaptive protocol for a channel with collision detection can be strongly stable for the injection rate that satisfies ρ (n) = ω (1<over>log n). This shows that the protocol we give is optimal with respect to injection rates it handles in a strongly stable manner.
Combined Testing for Chlamydia, Gonorrhea, and Trichomonas by Use of the BD Max CT/GC/TV Assay with Genitourinary Specimen Types

ABSTRACT The BD Max CT/GC/TV (MAX) assay is a true multiplex assay for simultaneous detection of chlamydia (CT), gonorrhea (GC), and trichomonas (TV). We evaluated assay performance for women using endocervical and vaginal swabs as well as urine specimens. A total of 1,143 women were tested for CT, GC, and TV and, subsequently, another 847 (1,990 total women) for CT and GC only, with positivity rates for CT, GC, and TV of 7.1%, 2.3%, and 13.5%, respectively. In men, the performance for CT and GC was determined using only urine specimens. TV performance was not assessed in male urine samples. Among men, 181/830 (21.8%) and 108/840 (12.9%) chlamydia and gonorrhea infections, respectively, were identified. Comparator assays included BD ProbeTec Chlamydia trachomatis Qx (CTQ)/Neisseria gonorrhoeae Qx (GCQ), Hologic Aptima Combo 2 (AC2) and Aptima TV (ATV), trichomonas microscopy, and culture. MAX CT sensitivity was 99.3% (95% confidence interval [CI], 96.1% to 99.9%), 95.7% (90.8% to 98.0%), 91.5% (85.8% to 95.1%), and 96.1% (92.2% to 98.1%) for vaginal swabs, endocervical swabs, female urine samples, and male urine samples, respectively. MAX GC sensitivity was 95.5% (84.9% to 98.7%), 95.5% (84.9% to 98.7%), 95.7% (85.5% to 99.8%), and 99.1% (94.9% to 99.8%) in the same order. MAX TV sensitivity was 96.1% (91.7% to 98.2%) for vaginal swabs, 93.4% (88.3% to 96.4%) for endocervical swabs, and 92.9% (87.8% to 96.0%) for female urine samples. Specificity for all organisms across all sample types was ≥98.6%. Performance estimates for the MAX assays were consistent with estimates calculated for the comparator assays (all P values were >0.1). The availability of a CT/GC/TV multiplexed assay on a benchtop instrument with a broad menu has the potential to facilitate local sexually transmitted infection (STI) testing at smaller laboratories and may encourage expanded screening for these highly prevalent infections.