Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A Bidirectional Multiple-Input Multiple-Output Modular Multilevel DC–DC Converter and its Control Design

This paper introduces a multiple-input multiple-output modular multilevel dc-dc converter (MIMO-MMC) and its associated control scheme. The proposed topology has a bidirectional structure and may be utilized in both low- and high-power applications ranging from approximately 100 W-10 MW. The modular structure of the MIMO-MMC enables efficient component utilization through module voltage and current sharing capabilities. The topology can supply or extract regulated power from an arbitrary number of controllable voltage nodes without requiring source or load multiplexing, resulting in minimized filtering requirements. The MIMO-MMC's structure is described, and the steady-state operation of the converter is theoretically analyzed. The dynamic models of the converter for both step-down and step-up configuration are derived and employed to devise an effective control algorithm for closed-loop operation. A general method is provided for stability analysis of the proposed closed-loop system followed by a case study verifying stability of the system at different operating points. The steady-state operation and dynamic response of the converter under both configurations is investigated through simulation and experiment.
Strong irritants masquerading as skin allergens: the case of benzalkonium chloride

Chemicals may possess a number of hazards to human health including the ability to cause skin irritation and contact allergy. Identification and characterization of these properties should fall within predictive toxicology, but information derived from human exposure, including clinical experience, is also of importance. In this context, it is of interest to review the case of benzalkonium chloride, a cationic surfactant. This chemical is a well‐known skin irritant, but on occasions it has also been reported to have allergenic properties, typically on the basis of positive diagnostic patch test data. Because the accumulated knowledge concerning the properties of a chemical is employed as the basis for its regulatory classification (e.g. in Europe), as well as for informing the clinical community with respect to the diagnosis of irritant versus allergic contact dermatitis (ACD), it is important to distinguish properly which chemicals are simply irritants from those which are both irritant and allergenic on skin. A review of the information on benzalkonium chloride confirms that it is a significant skin irritant. However, both predictive test results and clinical data lead to the conclusion that benzalkonium chloride is, at most, an extremely rare allergen, except perhaps in the eye, but with many supposed cases of ACD being likely to arise from the misinterpretation of patch test data. As a consequence, this substance should not normally be regarded as, or classified as, a significant skin sensitizer.
Web‐based GIS Approaches to Enhance Public Participation in Wind Farm Planning

Planning information pertaining to the potential visual impacts of proposed construction developments is particularly important in the case of wind farm planning, given the high levels of concern amongst members of the public regarding the perceived negative visual impacts of wind turbines on the landscape. Previous research has highlighted the shortcomings associated with traditional visualization techniques used to assess these impacts, and also the means by which such information is then disseminated to the wider public during the consultation stages of the wind farm planning process. This research is concerned with examining the potential of Web‐based mapping and digital landscape visualization techniques for addressing some of these shortcomings. This article reports the findings of a Web‐based survey study designed to evaluate the potential of online GIS‐based approaches for improving the effectiveness and dissemination of wind farm visualizations and enhancing public participation in the wind farm planning process. Results from the survey study add to the research literature by demonstrating how innovative Web‐based approaches have real potential for augmenting existing methods of information provision and public participation in the planning process. The findings of this study are also potentially transferrable to other landscape planning scenarios.
A mapping algorithm for low-latency network slices

Future 5G network provides network slices for applications of different areas on the same physical network. Low-latency is the most key indicators of demand for the slices. How to establish the low-latency network slices is an essential question. This article proposes a mapping algorithm for low-latency network slices based on linear programming. Firstly, this problem can be defined as a linear programming problem with a low-latency objective and the logical constraints. Then, reduce the difficulty of solving this problem through simplifying time latency parameters. Finally, an improved mapping algorithm which will subdivide the large-scale slices into several subgraphs is proposed to reduce the complexity of solving the problem. The simulation experiment proves that the algorithm is effective to solve the low-latency network slices mapping problem.
Statistical comparison of subspace based DOA estimation algorithms in the presence of sensor errors

A non-asymptotic statistical performance analysis using matrix approximation is applied to subspace based algorithms for direction-of-arrival (DOA) estimation in the presence of sensor errors. In particular, the MUSIC, min-norm, state-space realization (TAM and DDA) and ESPRIT algorithms are analyzed. An analytical expression of the variance of the DOA estimation error is developed for theoretical comparison in a greatly simplified and self-contained fashion. The tractable formulas provide insight into the algorithms. Simulation results verify the analysis. <<ETX>>
Effects of routing algorithms on the transmission of layered streaming media

Layered streaming media has become a popular alternative for the transmission of multimedia over IP networks. The characteristics of layered streams allow more flexibility than other multimedia types of transmission. However, the effects and the advantages that routing algorithms used on the Internet have on layered streams have not been addressed widely. In this paper, we present three different routing algorithms: shortest path, load balancing and intelligent routing; and their effect on layered streaming media in terms of loss, delay variation and network complexity. Simulations that implement the different algorithms support our results. Finally, we conclude that selective routing is beneficial for the transmission of layered streaming media.
Compressive Ultrasound Imaging Based on Analog to Information Conversion

The paper proposes a compressive sensing method adapted to ultrasound imaging, following the recently developed Analog to Information (AIC) framework. First, basis functions in time domain based on waveform were constructed to achieve sparse signal representation. Second, utilizing the basis functions and using AIC framework, a system is designed with lowered the sampling rates and reduced the total data size of ultrasound imaging. The results show that in the experiment the sampling rate below Nyquist frequency and only 30% amount of data are used to implement ultrasound imaging without reducing the quality of image. The sampling rate is lowered and the amount of data is reduced greatly by the proposed method based on compressive sensing.
Dual-Threshold Cooperative Sensing Based on Coherent MAC in Cognitive Radio

This paper studies the detection of the primary signal under noise uncertainty. A coherent MAC (Multiple Access Control) cooperative sensing scheme is proposed, adopted dual-threshold detection determined by the noise uncertainty range. Using the one-bit hard combine make the cooperative overhead reduce from O(N) to O(1). Simulation shows that the proposed method is superior to the traditional collaborative detection method on performance.
A novel approach based on an extended cuckoo search algorithm for the classification of tweets which contain Emoticon and Emoji

Twitter is a popular microblogging service that allows its users to view and share limited character messages (known as “tweets”) with the public. This paper proposes a tweet sentiment classification framework which pre-processes information from Emoticon and Emoji in such way that their textual representation is included to enrich the tweet. Once the tweets are pre-processed, a hybrid computational intelligence approach is applied for classifying the tweets into positive and negative. The proposed hybrid approach is based on a compilation of several methods: the Singular Value Decomposition and dimensionality reduction method to reduce the dimensionality of the data; the Extended Binary Cuckoo Search algorithm, to further reduce the matrix by selecting the most suitable dimensions; and the Support Vector Machine classifier which is trained to identify whether a tweet is positive or negative. The experimental results revealed that the proposed approach yields higher classification accuracy and faster processing times than the baseline model which involves applying the Extended Binary Cuckoo Search algorithm and Support Vector Machine classifier to the original matrix, without using Singular Value Decomposition and dimensionality reduction.
Aberrant Tau Phosphorylation by Glycogen Synthase Kinase-3β and JNK3 Induces Oligomeric Tau Fibrils in COS-7 Cells*

Neurofibrillary tangles (NFTs) are found in a wide range of neurodegenerative disorders, including Alzheimer's disease. The major component of NFTs is aberrantly hyperphosphorylated microtubule-associated protein tau. Because appropriate in vivo models have been lacking, the role of tau phosphorylation in NFTs formation has remained elusive. Here, we describe a new model in which adenovirus-mediated gene expression of tau, ΔMEKK, JNK3, and GSK-3β in COS-7 cells produces most of the pathological phosphorylation epitopes of tau including AT100. Furthermore, this co-expression resulted in the formation of tau aggregates having short fibrils that were detergent-insoluble and Thioflavin-S-reactive. These results suggest that aberrant tau phosphorylation by the combination of these kinases may be involved in “pretangle,” oligomeric tau fibril formation in vivo.
Prevalence , awareness , treatment and control of hypertension and diabetes mellitus among the elderly : the 2004 National Health Examination Survey

Introduction: This study aims to determine the prevalence of hypertension, diabetes mellitus, and both conditions combined, and to examine factors related to awareness, treatment and control among the elderly in Thailand. Methods: Data from a multistaged National Health Examination Survey III of 19,374 individuals aged 60 years and older in Thailand was used. Information on the socioeconomic status was obtained by interview. Blood pressure was measured with a sphygmomanometer. Fasting plasma glucose was obtained. Logistic regression models were used to examine the determinants of awareness, treatment and control of blood pressure and plasma glucose. Results: Age-adjusted prevalence of hypertension was 51.1 percent, diabetes mellitus 14.0 percent, and diabetes mellitus with hypertension 8.0 percent. Overall, the proportion of unawareness for hypertension, diabetes mellitus and both conditions combined were 56.1, 41.2 and 21.9 percent, respectively. For those undergoing treatment for the control of blood pressure (less than 140/90 mmHg) was 12.4 percent, diabetes mellitus (fasting plasma glucose less than 140 mg/ dL) 26.4 percent, and control of both conditions combined was 7.4 percent. Factors associated with unawareness and inadequate controls of the illnesses were subjects from rural areas, with low income, low educational levels, currently working, and the oldest age group. Conclusion: There was a high prevalence of hypertension and diabetes mellitus among the older people in Thailand, with high percentages of unawareness and inadequate control for those treated. Screening programmes for early detection, treatment and control of hypertension and diabetes mellitus need to be improved.
Identification of Mycobacterium leprae antigens from a cosmid library: characterization of a 15-kilodalton antigen that is recognized by both the humoral and cellular immune systems in leprosy patients

Screening of the Mycobacterium leprae cosmid library with pooled sera from lepromatous leprosy (LL) patients by a colony immunoblot technique resulted in the identification of about 100 colonies that produced immunologically reactive proteins. Twenty-four of these clones were purified, analyzed, and found to comprise two groups according to the reactivity of the recombinant proteins with LL sera and to the DNA restriction patterns of the recombinant plasmids and cosmids. Proteins specified by clones from group I reacted strongly with LL patients' sera on a Western blot (immunoblot), demonstrating a 15-kDa protein band designated A15. The A15 antigen also reacted with pooled sera from patients with tuberculoid leprosy from the United States and Brazil. Clones from group II did not show any reactive protein band on a Western blot, when reacted with patients' sera. DNAs from cosmids of group II all contain a 10-kb PstI fragment that hybridized to the unique repetitive M. leprae DNA. Sequence analysis of a 1.2-kb fragment containing the entire coding sequence of A15 revealed three open reading frames (ORFs), only one of which (ORF II) contains sufficient genetic information to encode for A15. Part of the A15 gene was found to exist also in a group of lambda gt11:M. leprae clones previously isolated in our laboratory by immunological screening with LL patients' sera. One of the lambda gt11 clones (L8) expresses a beta-galactosidase fusion protein with 89 amino acids from the C terminus of A15. An important result was that the fusion protein was clearly recognized by T cells from leprosy patients. Interestingly, Mycobacterium tuberculosis-stimulated T cells from M. leprae nonresponder (LL as well as borderline tuberculoid) patients were able to respond to the isolated recombinant M. leprae antigen, indicating that nonresponsiveness to M. leprae antigens can be reversible. The sequence of the M. leprae DNA fused to the beta-galactosidase gene of lambda gt11 clone L8 was identical to that of a lambda gt11:M. leprae clone isolated recently that expresses an immunologically reactive fusion protein (S. Laal, Y. D. Sharma, H. K. Prasad, A. Murtaza, S. Singh, S. Tangri, R. Misra, and I. Nath, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 88:1054-1058, 1991). Besides the complete sequence of the A15 gene, sequencing data of two flanking ORFs are presented. Downstream from ORF II (A15), ORF III has a high degree of similarity to the genes for tomato ATP-dependent proteases that are members of a larger class of highly conserved proteases ubiquitous among prokaryotes and eukaryotes. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)
Synthesis and Modification of Carbon Nanomaterials utilizing Microwave Heating

Microwave‐assisted synthesis and processing represents a growing field in materials research and successfully entered the field of carbon nanomaterials during the last decade. Due to the strong interaction of carbon materials with microwave radiation, fast heating rates and localized heating can be achieved. These features enable the acceleration of reaction processes, as well as the formation of nanostructures with special morphologies. A comprehensive overview is provided here on the possibilities and achievements in the field of carbon‐nanomaterial research when using microwave‐based heating approaches. This includes the synthesis and processing of carbon nanotubes and fibers, graphene materials, carbon nanoparticles, and capsules, as well as porous carbon materials. Additionally, the principles of microwave‐heating, in particular of carbon materials, are introduced and important issues, i.e., safety and reproducibility, are discussed.
The potential of conversational agents to provide a rapid HIV counseling and testing services

In low-and middle-income countries where demand for health services outstrips the available supply of skilled labor, advances in information and communication technologies have already been shown to hold promise. While much of the mHealth literature continues to explore mature technologies such as text message and web portals, continual advancement in machine learning opens innovative new areas of exploration for public health practitioners. This paper explores one such possibility, a conversational agent, able to guide users through an HIV counseling and testing session. Using commercially available software (http://api.ai), an agent was designed and built according to the Center for Disease Control's guidelines for the provision of HIV counseling and testing in a non-clinical setting. The agent was linked to the Telegram chat client (http://telegram.org) and 10 testers were invited to participate in a simulated HIV counseling interaction. Six testers found that talking to the agent felt natural, and equivalent to chatting to a human. Seven said they would feel comfortable taking a real HIV test with the agent. Key concerns with the current agent were the use of overly formal language, the speed at which the agent responded (too fast) and the agent either misunderstanding or not understanding the tester. Positive sentiment towards the agent included the fact that testers felt like the session was more private and anonymous, and avoided the need for them to visit a public health facility and stand in a long queue to get tested.
B lymphocytes repress hepatic tumorigenesis but not development in Hras12V transgenic mice

Increasing reports show noninflammation underlying HCC, challenging our understanding of the roles of the immune system in hepatocarcinogenesis. By exploring a mouse model of hepatic tumor induced by hepatocyte‐specific expression of the Hras12V oncogene without obvious inflammation, we found that the proportion of B cells, but not T cells, progressively and significantly decreased in 3, 5‐month‐old transgenic mice (Tg) compared with non‐transgenic mice. Notably, the proportions of total and activated B and T cells all significantly decreased in 9‐month‐old Tg with multiple massive hepatic tumors. Together with the decreased B cell proportion, serum IgG1/2 also significantly decreased in 5, 9‐month‐old Tg. Interestingly, homozygous Tg showed significantly higher B cell proportion and IgG2 levels, accompanied by significantly lower incidences of liver nodules but not adenomas and carcinomas compared with heterozygous Tg. Treatment of Tg with PCI‐32765, a potent Bruton's tyrosine kinase (BTK) inhibitor for suppressing B cell proliferation and activation, significantly decreased the B cell proportion and IgG2 levels, accompanied by a significantly higher incidence of liver nodules, but had no effects on adenoma and carcinoma. Treatment of Tg with insulin‐like growth factor 1 (IGF‐1) significantly increased the B cell proportion and IgG2 levels, accompanied by a significantly lower incidence of liver nodules and carcinoma, but had no effects on adenoma. Conclusively, B cells and IgG2 may play important roles in suppressing hepatic tumorigenesis, but not development. In addition, hepatocyte‐specific expression of the ras oncogene may play roles in suppressing B cells, while developed hepatic tumors suppress both B and T cells.
Infrared Photodetectors Based on CVD‐Grown Graphene and PbS Quantum Dots with Ultrahigh Responsivity

Infrared photodetectors based on single-layer CVD-grown graphene and PbS quantum dots, which are fabricated by solution processing, show ultrahigh responsivities of up to 10(7) A/W under infrared light illumination. The devices fabricated on flexible plastic substrates have excellent bending stability. The photoresponse is attributed to the field-effect doping in graphene films induced by negative charges generated in the quantum dots.
Théoriser la violence en Améerique: Retour sur trente ans d'ethnographie.

PHILIPPE BOURGOIS THEORIZING VIOLENCE IN THE AMERICAS A THIRTY-YEAR ETHNOGRAPHIC RETROSPECTIVE This thirty year retrospective analysis of violence at my fieldwork sites in the Americas (Nicaragua, El Salvador, Costa Rica, Panama, USA) explores the importance and difficulty of recognizing the continuities of violence across historical eras as an ethnographer. Expanding on the continuum of violence concept, I propose the utility of identifying the mutually reinforcing interface of three overlapping categories of invisible violence: structural, symbolic and normalized. If theory is meant to help us see more, then theorizing violence through a continuum of categories of invisibility is useful because it contravenes the political effects of the contemporary hyper-visibility of interpersonal and petty criminal street violence. The increasing global reach of a punitive version of corporate neoliberalism over the past two decades has lumpenized large sectors of the urban and rural poor. Recognizing the links between categories of invisible violence in this globalized context of social inequality explains the demobilization of class-based demands for economic redistribution and populist support for physically repressive forms of governmentality that punish the poor deemed unworthy.
Overview of the HIV‐1 Lentiviral Vector System

Replication‐defective oncoretroviral vectors have been the most widely used vehicles for gene‐transfer studies because of their capacity to efficiently introduce and stably express transgenes in mammalian cells. A limitation of oncoretroviral vectors is that cell division is required for proviral integration into the host genome. By comparison, lentiviruses such as human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV‐1) have evolved a nuclear‐import machinery that allows them to infect nondividing as well as dividing cells. This unique property has led to the development of lentiviral vectors for gene delivery to a variety of nondividing or slowly dividing cells including neurons and glial cells of the central nervous system and others. This unit is intended to provide an overview of HIV‐1 molecular biology and an introduction to successive generations of HIV‐1‐based lentiviral vectors.
Leader-following formation control problem of unicycles

This paper proposes a distributed strategy to solve the leader-following formation problem for multiple under-actuated unicycles. Our distributed control law, dependent on the relative information of its nearest neighbor and itself, can not only enable a network of autonomous mobile agents to circulate around a target of interest, but also achieve any physically feasible formation.