Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Low-Dose Atypical Antipsychotic Risperidone Improves the 5-Year Outcome in Alzheimer's Disease Patients with Sleep Disturbances

Sleep disturbances (SD) accelerate the progression of Alzheimer's disease (AD) and increase the stress of caregivers. However, the long-term outcome of disturbed nocturnal sleep/wake patterns in AD and on increased stress of spousal caregivers is unclear. This study assessed the 5-year effect of nocturnal SD on the long-term outcome in AD patients. A total of 156 donepezil-treated mild-moderate AD patients (93 AD + SD and 63 AD - SD as a control group) were recruited. The AD + SD patients were formed into 4 subgroups according to the preferences of spousal caregivers for treatment with atypical antipsychotics (0.5-1 mg risperidone, n = 22), non-benzodiazepine hypnotic (5-10 mg zolpidem tartrate, n = 33), melatonin (2.55 mg, n = 9), or no-drug treatment (n = 29). SD were evaluated by polysomnography, sleep scale, and cognitive scale examinations. Moreover, all spousal caregivers of AD patients were assessed using a series of scales, including sleep, anxiety, mood, and treatment attitude scales. Our data showed that nocturnal sleep/wake disturbances were significantly associated with lower 5-year outcomes for AD patients, earlier nursing home placement, and more negative emotions of spousal caregivers. Treatment with low-dose atypical antipsychotic risperidone improved the 5-year outcome in AD + SD patients. In conclusion, low-dose atypical antipsychotic risperidone improves the 5-year outcome in AD patients with SD. Moreover, improvement of nocturnal sleep problems in AD patients will also bring better emotional stability for AD caregivers.
Working Memory and Mental Imagery in Early Visual Cortex

Early visual areas contain specific information about visual items maintained in working memory, suggesting a role for early visual cortex in more complex cognitive functions [1– 4]. It is an open question, however, whether these areas also underlie the ability to internally generate images de novo (i.e., mental imagery). Research on mental imagery has to this point focused mostly on whether mental images activate early sensory areas, with mixed results [5–7]. Recent studies suggest that multivariate pattern analysis of neural activity patterns in visual regions can reveal content-specific representations during cognitive processes, even though overall activation levels are low [1–4]. Here, we used this approach [8, 9] to study item-specific activity patterns in early visual areas (V1–V3) when these items are internally generated. We could reliably decode stimulus identity from neural activity patterns in early visual cortex during both working memory and mental imagery. Crucially, these activity patterns resembled those evoked by bottomup visual stimulation, suggesting that mental images are indeed ‘‘perception-like’’ in nature. These findings suggest that the visual cortex serves as a dynamic ‘‘blackboard’’ [10, 11] that is used during both bottom-up stimulus processing and top-down internal generation of mental content.
UMA ABORDAGEM VIA CONTROLE PREDITIVO ROBUSTO PARA SISTEMAS NÃO-LINEARES INCERTOS LINEARIZADOS POR REALIMENTAÇÃO DE ESTADOS

In this paper the problem of controlling a class of nonlinear uncertain dynamical systems is revisited based on a Model Predictive Control (MPC) approach. The fundamental ideal in the proposed methodology is to consider an uncertain linear model associated with the attempt of feedback linearizing(FL) the nonlinear uncertain system, while taking into account the original nonlinear system’s input constraints. Polytopic uncertainties are employed to encompass both parametric uncretainties in the nonlinear system model and remaining mismatches related to the non-exact feedback linearization. Finally, a Robust MPC (RMPC) controller synthesis procedure is outlined relying on usual relaxed Linear Matrix Inequalities (LMI) conditions that shows superior performance when compared to standard LMIs. Keywords— Feedback Linearization, Robust Model Predictive Control (RMPC), Uncertain Systems, LMIs. Resumo— Neste artigo, o problema de controle de uma classe de sistemas não-lineares com presença de incertezas paramétricas e com restrição na entrada de controle é revistado sob a perspectiva do controle preditivo. A metodologia proposta consiste em inicialmente obter um modelo linear incerto, fruto da linearização por realimentação de estados do sistema não-linear incerto, com restrição na entrada de controle. As incertezas são descritas na forma politópica e incluem as incertezas paramétricas do sistema original e erros de linearização. Por fim, o projeto do controle robusto preditivo para o sistema linear incerto obtido é desenvolvido utilizando condições relaxadas usuais baseadas em desigualdades matriciais lineares (LMIs), mostrando ter desempenho superior quando comparado a formulações padrões. Palavras-chave— Linearização por Realimentação de Estados, Controle Preditivo Robusto, Sistemas Incertos, LMIs.
Automating the Quest for Novel Prokaryotic Diversity ( Revisited )

Previously, we demonstrated the value of using techniques drawn from the field of exploratory data analysis (EDA) for the analysis and visualization of large sets of sequence data (notably SSU rRNA gene sequences) that are used to construct a comprehensive taxonomy of prokaryotes. While the approach is computationally efficient and quite useful in uncovering a variety of taxonomic and annotation errors, the methods suffered from some practical limitations; notably bottlenecks in the preprocessing of data for our analyses. Work is currently underway to address these limitations that will greatly expedite the preprocessing steps through a pipeline approach. In addition, new methods are under active development that will automatically flag misidentified and potentially novel sequences within a given dataset and automatically place such sequences into close proximity to their nearest neighbors, based on 16S rDNA sequence homology. These methods will also permit linking of EDA plots, derived from such analyses to external data and information resources.
Performance Evaluation of ORPL Routing Protocol in a Downward-centric Traffic Scenario

ORPL is an extension of IPv6 RPL routing protocol with opportunistic routing, which shows lower latency and less energy consumption than existing tree-based routing protocols such as CTP and RPL. To identify the reason for performance degradation of ORPL in a downward-centric scenario, we use Contiki OS to implement testbed simulations with different ratios of upwards and downwards traffic pattern. ORPL only considers upwards traffic for EDC (Expected Duty Cycles) calculation. In a downward-centric traffic scenario, traffic congestion is caused by unnecessary routing set merging operations.
CHEMICAL TECHNOLOGY Vol . 10 , No . 4 , 2016 Chemical Technology

The thermochemical fuel properties of melon seed husk (MSH) were characterized to examine its solid biofuel (SBF) potential for future bioenergy utilization. MSH is a cheap, abundant and renewable source of lignocellulosic waste generated from the extraction of vegetable oil from melon seeds. Thermochemical characterization was examined by proximate, ultimate, and thermogravimetric (TG-DTG) analyses, as well as Fourier transform infra-red (FT-IR) spectroscopy. The results showed that MSH exhibits significant volatile matter, fixed carbon, carbon and low nitrogen, sulphur and ash content with a heating value (HHV) of 19.02 MJ/kg. FTIR analysis indicated functional groups for aliphatic, ester, ketone, alcohol, and aromatic compounds. Thermal decomposition of MSH occurred in three stages: drying (303–448 K), devolatization (448–673 K) and char degradation (673–1073 K).
Controllable Crystallization of CH 3 NH 3 Sn 0 . 25 Pb 0 . 75 I 3 Perovskites for Hysteresis-Free Solar Cells with Efficiency Reaching 15 . 2 %

© 2017 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim wileyonlinelibrary.com (1 of 8) 1605469 As for the recent widely studied materials of hybrid organometallic halide perovskites, alloying is also effective to modify the absorption wavelength region. The most widely used CH3NH3PbI3 and CH3NH3SnI3 have the absorption edge at about 800 and 950 nm, respectively. [3,4] Interestingly, the SnPb alloyed perovskite materials can extend the absorption edge to over 1000 nm. [4–6] For instance, CH3NH3Sn0.5Pb0. 5I3 perovskite solar cells (PVSCs) constructed on mesostructured substrates can harvest the light in the wavelength up to 1060 nm. [5–7] However, due to the reducibility of Sn(II), the required experimental conditions for Sn and SnPbbased materials are typically more rigorous than for the pure Pb-based ones. It is still challenging to control the film formation and crystallinity of SnPbbased perovskite materials, which hinders the enhancement of device performances. [3,5,8] More works on the film formation and microstructure control of Sn-contained perovskite materials are required to improve device performances toward those reported in pure Pb-based PVSCs. Importantly, some fundamental issues in the Sn-contained system, such as Sn and Pb distributions, need to be addressed for understanding and improving device performances. Herein, we introduce dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) to realize the film formation and microstructure control of SnPb alloyed perovskite films. By controlling the crystallization rate, the MASn0.25Pb0. 75I3 films show the large enhancement of perovskite crystallinity with the 20-fold enhanced (110) peak intensity and the strong (110) preferred orientation with the texture coefficient improved by 2.6 times to a value of 0.88. Smooth and pinhole-free SnPb alloyed perovskite films on planar substrates are successfully fabricated. Furthermore, the introduction of DMSO is found to prevent the formation of the colloidal coagulation observed in prolonged-storage precursors and ameliorate inhomogeneous Sn/Pb distributions. Finally, hysteresisfree planar-heterojunction MASn0.25Pb0. 75I3 PVSCs achieve the power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 15.2%, which is, to the best of knowledge, the highest value among SnPb alloyed PVSCs. [4–6,9,10] Controllable Crystallization of CH3NH3Sn0.25Pb0. 75I3 Perovskites for Hysteresis-Free Solar Cells with Efficiency Reaching 15.2%
Clinical significance of serum markers reflecting gastric function and H. pylori infection in colorectal cancer

Purpose: The study was conducted to investigate the relationship of serum pepsinogens PGI, PGII, gastrin-17, and Hp-IgG with colorectal cancer (CRC), aiming to explore the clinical significance of serum markers reflecting gastric function and H. pylori infection in CRC. Methods: A total of 569 CRC cases and 569 age and sex-matched controls were enrolled in this study between June 2012 and April 2016 from The First Hospital of China Medical University. The serum markers reflecting gastric function and H. pylori infection were detected using ELISA, including PGI, PGII, PGI/II ratio, G-17 and Hp-IgG. Information of clinicopathological parameters and tumor biomarkers was collected from the medical records of inpatients, including CEA, CA199, CA125, CA153 and AFP. Results: Serum PGII, G-17 levels and Hp-IgG were increased in CRC, while PGI and PGI/II ratio appeared no significant difference between CRC and controls. In subgroup analysis, PGII was more significant in males (P=0.014). Hp-IgG was demonstrated higher in age<60y (P=0.001). With respect to the association with serum tumor biomarkers, G-17 level was associated with the rise of CA125 (P=0.005, OR (95%CI): 4.89 (1.90-12.57)), Hp-IgG increasing was associated with the rise of CA125 (P=0.024, OR (95%CI): 4.10 (1.54-10.93)). Conclusions: Serum PGII, G-17 and Hp-IgG were associated with CRC risk. The serum levels of G-17 and Hp-IgG were associated with the rise of CA125 in patients with CRC
A comparison of injection pain with articaine with adrenaline, prilocaine with phenylpressin and lidocaine with adrenaline.

OBJECTIVE The objective of the present study was to investigate the pain on injection of articaine with adrenaline, prilocaine with phenylpressin , and lidocaine with adrenaline. STUDY DESIGN The study sample was comprised of 497 consecutively seen patients received 497 maxillary buccal infiltration injections or inferior alveolar block injections of 4% articaine with 1:200.000 adrenaline, 3% prilocaine with 1.08 mcg phenylpressin, or 2% lidocaine with 1:100.000 adrenaline. Immediately after the injection, patients were asked to rate their injection pain on a six-point scale. RESULTS There were no significant differences among the anesthetic solutions for injection pain. Patients usually reported mild or no injection pain for all of anesthetic administrations. CONCLUSION Under the conditions of this study that lidocaine with adrenaline, articaine with adrenaline and prilocaine with phenylpressin seemed to be similar for pain on injection and they could be quite painless.
Broadcast Approach to Multiple Access With Local CSIT

A two-user multiple access channel is considered, in which the channels undergo slow block fading and the state of each channel is known only to its corresponding transmitter. This paper proposes a novel broadcast strategy for multiple access communication in this channel. In the broadcast approach, in principle, a transmitter with CSI uncertainty sends multiple independent superimposed information layers where the rate of each layer is adapted to a specific channel realization. In the existing broadcast approaches to multiuser communication, the transmitters often directly adopt a single-user strategy and each transmitter adapts its transmission to one unknown channel. The novel aspect of the proposed strategy is that it adapts the designed codebooks to the state of the entire network. This is motivated by the fact that the contribution of each user to the network-wide measures (e.g., capacity region) depends not only on the user’s direct channel to the receiver, but also on the qualities of other channels. Average achievable rate region and outer bounds on the capacity region are characterized. Furthermore, the expected capacity region is investigated, where most part of the capacity region boundary is characterized. Finally, an asymptotic capacity region is also characterized.
Diplopia Associated with Refractive Surgery

When diplopia occurs after refractive surgery, a systematized approach to diagnosis and treatment is useful. First, determine if the problem is monocular or binocular. Monocular diplopia usually is caused by anterior segment complications and should be referred to an anterior segment surgeon. If the problem is binocular, determine if there is iatrogenic monovision. If monovision was created by the refractive surgery, determine if the double vision is due to fixation switch diplopia. If so, the monovision state needs to be reversed. If fixation switch is not the cause of the symptoms, try “optical rescue. ” If monovision is not present, check old refraction and motility records, and correct any residual refractive error. Strabismus may need to be treated with surgery, orthoptic exercises, or prisms.
LOCOMOTION CONTROL OF PASSIVE DYNAMIC WALKERS BASED ON INTERNAL ENERGY

The compass model is a simple locomotion model composed of two leg segments connected through a hip joint. In [2] it is shown how this robot is able to exhibit a stable walk along a slope using its natural dynamics. Unfortunately, this is strictly bounded to the initial conditions, the mechanics of the robot and the kind of slope. In this work we propose a simple control strategy based on energy control. By observing human locomotion one can see how the mechanical energy is on average constant and continuously turns between kinetic and potential (gravitational and elastic). Assuming that a human walks with a constant energy and considering purely elastic collisions the total energy is preserved and a stable walk can be obtained. Unfortunately in the real world collisions are not purely elastic and usually lead to certain energy drop. Starting from these observations this paper proposes an under actuated control strategy based on energy shaping which is able to achieve a stable walk both on slopes and horizontal ground. The underlying idea is to stabilize the system internal energy implicitly leading to recover the energy lost on impacts. The actuation acts on a single rotational joint placed at the hip.
IMECE 2008-66444 SOLID STATE ELECTROCHEMICAL SENSOR FOR MONITORING LEAN DIRECT INJECTION ENGINES

This work presents a novel scheme for the use of an oxygen sensor operating in dynamic engine conditions. Our modeling and experimental work show that a solid state, single cell, amperometric oxygen sensor located inside the cylinder of a lean direct injection engine produces a signal that provides different information depending on the stroke. During the intake stroke, the sensor’s signal is proportional to the partial pressure of oxygen, facilitating exhaust gas recirculation. During the compression stroke of a diesel engine prior to fuel injection, the sensor’s output indicates the cylinder pressure, which is useful for control and diagnostic purposes. The signal during the power stroke confirms combustion. During the exhaust stroke, the sensor’s signal indicates the oxygen quantity after combustion. Our model of engine and sensor operation simulates the changes in air properties including temperature, pressure, and oxygen concentration over the entire four strokes of the diesel cycle; these parameters affect the diffusivity of oxygen and the signal output. The model describes a sensor signal limited by diffusion or electrolytic conductivity depending on electrode design parameters (dimensions, porosity, tortuosity, etc). Knowledge of the sensor temperature and the engine crank angle are required in order to evaluate the signal. Experimental results confirm the pressure dependence of the oxygen sensor’s output signal when using air as the analyte fluid. INTRODUCTION The higher efficiency of lean engines make them attractive compared to conventional gasoline engines. Recent advances in computer control and in exhaust cleanup address historical problems with diesel engines [1]. Further advances in efficiency are possible by sensors under development that facilitate improved engine operation. Several excellent review articles provide details on the operation of solid state electrochemical gas sensors located in exhaust manifolds and tailpipes of automobiles [2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8]. Locating an amperometric sensor inside the cylinder of a lean direct injection engine enables advanced engine control and diagnostics. Although some have proposed optical detectors for sensing oxygen, the view ports get fouled, restricting their use to the laboratory [9, 10]. A single cell, amperometric sensor composed of partially stabilized zirconia responds to variations in temperature and pressure. Changes in temperature and pressure affect the diffusivity of oxygen to the cathode, the site of the electrochemical reduction of oxygen. When temperature is known or held constant, a single cell oxygen sensor designed for operation in the mass transport limited regime yields a signal that can be calibrated to indicate pressure during compression. Monitoring the pressure is useful for (1) determination of pilot fuel injection (2) diagnostic information about each cylinder such as seals, gaskets, valves, blow-by etc., (3) detection of misfire, and (4) calculation of PV-work.
Microsatellite markers for Grosmannia alacris (Ophiostomataceae, Ascomycota) and other species in the G. serpens complex.

PREMISE OF THE STUDY Polymorphic microsatellite markers were developed for the pine-infecting fungus, Grosmannia alacris. METHODS AND RESULTS Sixteen microsatellite markers were developed by using inter-simple sequence repeat (ISSR)-PCRs and 454 sequencing methods. Seven of these markers showed polymorphisms for a South African population of G. alacris, and 13 markers showed polymorphism when European isolates were included. Most of the primer pairs also amplified four closely related species: G. serpens, Leptographium gibbsii, L. castellanum, and L. yamaokae. CONCLUSIONS These new markers will be useful for population studies of G. alacris and other species in the G. serpens complex.
1,2,3,4-Tetra-O-acetyl-β-d-gluco­pyran­uronic acid monohydrate at 120 K and anhydrous 1,2,3,4-tetra-O-acetyl-β-d-glucopyranose at 292 K

The structure of the title acid as the monohydrate, C14H18O11·H2O, displays hydrogen bonding which connects the mol­ecules in layers parallel to (10\overline{1}). In the anhydrous glucopyran­ose, C14H20O10, only chain connectivity is attained but, due to disorder of the OH group, only partially and in two modes, one less favoured than the other. This provides incomplete connectivity between mol­ecules in corrugated layers parallel to (010).
Listener adaptation to foreig

This study investigated talker-independent perceptual learning of a foreign accent by exposing native English listeners to Chinese-accented English and then testing their perception of English produced by a novel Chineseaccented talker. Training conditions involved exposure to either a single or multiple Chinese-accented talkers. Control conditions involved either no training or task training with native English talkers. A talker-specific training condition in which the training talker was the same as the Chinese-accented test talker was also included. Results showed better performance on the posttraining test with the Chinese-accented talker after both the single and multiple talker training conditions relative to the no-training control. However, test performance following single talker training was equivalent to post-test performance following the task training condition (training with native English talkers), demonstrating a strong task familiarity effect. Performance following the multiple talker training was significantly better than following either the single talker or the task training conditions, and was equivalent to performance following the talkerspecific training. These findings suggest that, with exposure to sufficient variability, listeners can develop highly generalized cognitive representations of Chineseaccented speech.
Multicarrier Interleave-Division Multiple-Access Systems with Adaptive Pilot-Based User Interleavers

This paper considers a novel approach to multicarrier orthogonal frequency division multiplexing-based interleavedivision multiple-access (OFDM-IDMA) that facilitates both channel estimation and multi-user detection. Specifically, users employ interleavers based upon their channel state information (CSI) to optimize pilot symbol locations, instead of random interleavers as in conventional IDMA. Two variants of this approach are considered: pilot symbols time-multiplexed into the transmit signal after channel encoding, and pilot symbols encoded along with the information bits prior to CSI-based relocation. The encoding of pilot symbols is shown to offer an additional performance benefit at the channel decoders. Simulation results are presented to verify the advantages of the proposed methods with respect to conventional IDMA with uniform and/or uncoded pilot symbols.
Will Urban Migrants Formally Insure Their Rural Relatives? Family Networks and Rainfall Index Insurance in Burkina Faso

We present findings from a pilot study exploring whether and how existing ties between urban migrants and rural farmers may be used to provide the latter improved access to formal insurance. Urban migrants in Ouagadougou (the capital of Burkina Faso) originating from nearby villages were offered, at the prevailing market price, a rainfall index insurance product that can potentially protect their rural relatives from adverse weather shocks. The product had an uptake of 22% during the two-week subscription window. Uptake rates were higher by 17-22 ppts among urban migrants who were randomly offered an insurance policy that would make pay-outs directly to the intended beneficiary rather than the subscriber. We argue that rainfall index insurance can complement informal risk-sharing networks by mitigating problems of informational asymmetry and self-control issues.