Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Relay-Aided Proactive Eavesdropping with Learning-Based Power and Location Optimization

This work investigates a relay-aided proactive eavesdropping network, where a legitimate monitor eavesdrops on communication between suspicious users via a friendly amplify-and-forward full-duplex (FD) relay. The closed-form expressions are derived, including the decoding outage probability for the suspicious link, the eavesdropping non-outage probability for the eavesdropping link, and the average eavesdropping rate (AER). To maximize the AER, separate optimization problems for the power and location of the relay are settled, employing the good fitting characteristic of the deep feedforward neural network. Then, a low-complexity learning-based iteration algorithm is proposed to solve the joint optimization problem. Numerical results demonstrate the effectiveness and optimality of the proposed algorithm, and show that the optimized FD relay-aided proactive eavesdropping scheme outperforms the existing benchmark schemes in terms of the AER.
Accuracy of Model-based and Learning-based Approaches for Image Noise Variance Estimation

This paper deals with the problem of noise parameters’ estimation from noisy image patches. We consider two estimators - model- and learning-based ones - with ability to estimate noise standard deviation (SD) and predict confidence of this estimate individually for each image patch. The model-based approach represents maximum likelihood estimator (MLE) of fractional Brownian motion (fBm) field parameters, and learning-based is NoiseNet convolutional neural network (CNN) trained on real-life images. We compare efficiency and ability to predict noise SD estimates confidence in two domains: pure fBm data and real-life images. We demonstrate that the learning-based approach is less effective on pure fBm data due to bias, and the model-based approach fails for complex image patches from real-life images. Based on analysis of this paper, usage of synthetic fBm data could be suggested as additional source of training data for learning-based methods of noise parameters estimation.
Design and Simulation of Large Flowrate Fuel Metering Valve of Aero engine Based on AMESim

Large flowrate fuel metering valve is a critical regulating unit in the afterburner of aero-engine. Study on the flowrate metering valve is essential for optimizing the flight envelope of aero-engine. Addressing the problem of the low control accuracy of fuel flowrate, this paper proposes a new double control chamber metering valve to improve the pressure sensitivity and decrease the zero position error of the electrohydraulic servo valve. Meanwhile, by adding the damping piston in the main stage of constant pressure difference compensation valve, the pressure difference variation between inlet and outlet of the metering valve can be suppressed effectively. Firstly, mathematical models of the metering valve are derived. Then, the optimized system can be built on the AMEsim platform to analyze the pressure-flow characteristics. The result indicates the new large flowrate fuel metering valve has better performance than the original one in flowrate stability and control accuracy. The conclusion is of essential guidance for the optimum structural design and intelligent control of the metering valve.
MQTT- CoAP Interconnector: IoT Interoperability Solution for Application Layer Protocols

Internet of Things (IoT) is a developing technology from recent decades which works on heterogeneous machines and technology interoperate without human involvement. The challenge of IoT automation is to coordinate autonomous devices, sensors and real-time applications for seamless communication. Many organizations and researchers have demonstrated various solutions for a wide range of IoT devices. However, the available system provides its specific IoT infrastructure, devices, APIs and data formats, which leads to interoperability issues. A new data interoperability solution MQTT-CoAP Interconnector (MCI) is designed for interoperability of MQTT and CoAP protocols at the application layer of IoT. It works as a bridge between the local message of MQTT and remote message of CoAP with data parsing capacity. MCIis the lightweight interoperability solution designed with consideration of resource-constrained devices of the IoT ecosystem. As compared to available open-source solutions, MCI performs better considering communication parameters like transmission time, throughput, latency and packet loss. Thus, the MCI interoperability solution can benefit to resolve one of the major issues of the IoT ecosystem.
Security in the Embedded System: Attacks and Countermeasures

Embedded systems help humans to lead a convenient life. Most of the devices employed are modified to work smart for the needs of humans. Embedded systems are widely used in electronics, aviation, communication, health care, home appliances and many more. Security is always a concern when it comes to the embedded system because of its limitations such as power constraint, cost, and processing power. The modern trend of integrating the embedded systems with internet introduces more attack vectors and exposes the attack surface. The incorporation of networking capabilities may introduce attacks such as packet injection, Man In The Middle (MITM) attack, and replay attacks. Hence, the security of these systems is being crucial to the vendors and consumers. Furthermore, it opens new facet for the attacks to target and exploits the system for profit and personal gain. Now, it has been converted into one of the preferred targets for the attackers. In this paper, the vulnerabilities and threats present in the embedded systems are discussed along with the countermeasures for mitigating those attacks. The reader can gain insight into how the embedded systems are being attacked and how the preventive measures are taken.
Barley C-Hordein as the Calibrant for Wheat Gluten Quantification

The lack of certified reference materials has been one major challenge for gluten quantification in gluten-free products. In this study, the feasibility of using barley C-hordein as the calibrant for wheat gluten in R5 sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was investigated. The gluten composition and total gluten R5 reactivity ranged largely depending on the genotypes and the growing environment. The conversion factor of gliadin to gluten averaged 1.31 for common wheat, which is smaller than the theoretical factor of 2. Each gluten group had varying reactivity against the R5 antibody, where ω1. 2-, γ- and α-gliadins were the main reactive groups from wheat gluten. A mixture of wheat cultivars or one single cultivar as the reference material can be difficult to keep current. Based on the average R5 reactivity of total gluten from the 27 common wheat cultivars, here we proposed 10% C-hordein mixed with an inert protein as the calibrant for wheat gluten quantification. In spiking tests of gluten-free oat flour and biscuits, calibration using 10% C-hordein achieved the same recovery as the gliadin standard with its cultivar-specific conversion factor. For its good solubility and good affinity to the R5 antibody, the application of C-hordein increases the probability of developing a series of reference materials for various food matrices.
Real-Time Denoising of Volumetric Path Tracing for Direct Volume Rendering

Direct volume rendering (DVR) using volumetric path tracing (VPT) is a scientific visualization technique that simulates light transport with objects’ matter using physically-based lighting models. Monte Carlo (MC) path tracing is often used with surface models, yet its application for volumetric models is difficult due to the complexity of integrating MC light-paths in volumetric media with none or smooth material boundaries. Moreover, auxiliary geometry-buffers (G-buffers) produced for volumes are typically very noisy, failing to guide image denoisers relying on that information to preserve image details. This makes existing real-time denoisers, which take noise-free G-buffers as their input, less effective when denoising VPT images. We propose the necessary modifications to an image-based denoiser previously used when rendering surface models, and demonstrate effective denoising of VPT images. In particular, our denoising exploits temporal coherence between frames, without relying on noise-free G-buffers, which has been a common assumption of existing denoisers for surface-models. Our technique preserves high-frequency details through a weighted recursive least squares that handles heterogeneous noise for volumetric models. We show for various real data sets that our method improves the visual fidelity and temporal stability of VPT during classic DVR operations such as camera movements, modifications of the light sources, and editions to the volume transfer function.
Changes in Low Back Muscle Activity and Spine Kinematics in Response to Smartphone Use During Walking.

STUDY DESIGN Within-subject design of an experimental study. OBJECTIVE To determine the effects of smartphone use on the activity level of the lumbar erector spinae muscles and spine kinematics during walking. SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND DATA Using a smartphone while walking makes the user hold the phone steady and look downward to interact with the phone. Walking with this non-natural posture of the head and the arms may alter the spine kinematics and increase the muscular load on the low back extensor muscles. METHODS Twenty healthy young individuals participated in the laboratory experiment. Each participant walked on a treadmill in five different conditions; normal walking without using a phone, conducting one-handed browsing while walking, two-handed texting while walking, walking with one arm bound, and walking with both arms bound. Spine kinematics variables and the myoelectric activity levels of the lumbar erector spinae muscles were quantified and compared between the five walking conditions. RESULTS Participants walked with significantly (p < .05) more thoracic kyphosis and lumbar lordosis when using a phone compared to when walking without using the phone. The median level of muscle activity was also 16.5% (browsing) to 31.8% (texting) greater for the two smartphone use conditions than for the normal walking condition, and the differences were significant (p < .05). Between the normal walking and the two bound arm walking conditions, no significant difference in the muscle activity was found. CONCLUSIONS Study results show that the concurrent use of a smartphone while walking could pose a larger muscular load to the lumbar erector spinae muscles than that of normal walking. Habitual use of a smartphone while walking could be a risk factor for low back musculoskeletal problems. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE N/A.
Nutrients Leaching in Response to Long-Term Fertigation and Broadcast Nitrogen in Blueberry Production

Nutrient leaching losses from horticultural production threaten the quality of groundwater and freshwater systems worldwide. The objectives of this study were to (a) assess the effects of annual applications of ammonium sulfate fertilizer through fertigation (FERT) and broadcast (BROAD) on nutrient leaching losses and (b) determine the links among chemical property changes in leachates and soil with berry yields after 9 and 11 years of blueberry production. The long-term blueberry site was established in 2008 using seven combinations of treatments including an unfertilized control (CONT) and three N fertilizer rates (100%, 150%, 200% of recommended rates) using BROAD and FERT methods. Nutrients concentrations (NO3−-N, NH4+-N and SO42−-S) and chemical properties (pH and electrical conductivity (EC)) of leachate, sawdust and soil and berries were assessed. All FERT methods resulted in concentrations of NO3−-N in the leachates > 100 mg L−1 with a maximum of 200 mg L−1 for FERT-200 during the growing season due to the easy transport of dissolved nutrients with the irrigation water. All BROAD methods resulted into concentrations of NO3−-N in the leachates >10 mg L−1 with a maximum of 35 mg L−1 for BROAD-200 between April and July, as well as between November and April, indicating two periods of NO3−-N leaching losses. The pattern observed with BROAD indicates that irrigation water in the summer and heavy rainfall in the winter contribute to NO3−-N leaching losses. Concentrations of NH4+-N in the leachates >1 mg L−1 were measured under FERT with a peak at 64.78 mg L−1 for FERT-200, during the period April to August, due to NH4+’s ability to quickly move through the sawdust layer with irrigation water. Principal component analysis linked berry yield decrease with ammonium sulfate applications above recommended rates (FERT and BROAD) and with changes in soil pH and EC. Our results demonstrated that excess fertilizer applications above recommended rates using FERT and BROAD can threaten the sustainability of blueberry production by enhancing nutrient leaching losses and reducing berry yield.
Wearable wireless low-cost electrogoniometer design with Kalman filter for joint range of motion measurement and 3D modeling of joint movements

Joint movements are the key factor for the mobility of the people during daily activities. The evaluation of the joint movements is determined by the range of motion (ROM) parameters. The ROM might change due to age, gender, and some diseases. Therefore, it is essential to measure ROM accurately and compare it with the normal values of the healthy people. In this study, a low-cost, wireless, and wearable electrogoniometer was designed for highly precise and accurate measurements. The stability of the measurements is guaranteed with the quaternion based Kalman filter. The measurements of the developed system are compared with the traditional goniometer. The concordance correlation coefficient is calculated as a similarity metric, and the result is obtained as 1 . In addition, a GUI was prepared to present 3D visualization of the movements in real-time with the ROM measurements and give visual feedback to the physiotherapists during physical examinations and to the patient during the home therapy sessions. The measurements also can be recorded using the GUI for retrospective analysis.
Les communautés microbiennes des nuages : implication dans la chimie atmosphérique

La concentration microbienne des nuages collectes depuis le sommet du puy de Dome se situe, en bruit de fond, autour de 5x10puissance 4 cell. ML-1 pour les bacteries, et 5x10puissance3 cell. ML-1 pour les champignons. La plus grande partie d'entres elles est viable, comme le montrent les mesures de concentration en ATP. Les souches isolees presentent des proprietes physiologiques d'interet pour la survie dans le nuage (pigments, capacite de se developper a basse temperature). Ils sont capables de degrader, meme a basse temperature, des composes organiques presents en quantite importante dans l'eau des nuages , comme le formiate, l'acetate, le lactate, le succinate, le methanol et le formaldehyde. Enfin, plusieurs souches ont une capacite elevee a agir comme noyau glacogene. Cette etude suggere que les microorganismes pourraient etre impliques dans les processus chimiques et physiques qui se deroulent dans les nuages, et leur importance est a ce titre, a reconsiderer de facon globale
Molecular mechanisms of telomere biology disorders.

Genetic mutations that affect telomerase function or telomere maintenance result in a variety of diseases collectively called telomeropathies. This wide spectrum of disorders, which include dyskeratosis congenita (DC), pulmonary fibrosis (PF) and aplastic anemia (AA), is characterized by severely short telomeres, often resulting in hematopoietic stem cell failure in the most severe cases. Recent work has focused on understanding the molecular basis of these diseases. Mutations in the catalytic TERT and TR subunits of telomerase compromise activity, while others, such as those found in the telomeric protein TPP1, reduce the recruitment of telomerase to the telomere. Mutant telomerase-associated proteins TCAB1 and dyskerin, and the telomerase RNA maturation component PARN, affect the maturation and stability of telomerase. In contrast, disease-associated mutations in either CTC1 or RTEL1 are more broadly associated with telomere replication defects. Yet even with the recent surge in studies decoding the mechanisms underlying these diseases, a significant proportion of DC mutations remain uncharacterized or poorly understood. Here we review the current understanding of the molecular basis of telomeropathies and highlight experimental data that illustrate how genetic mutations drive telomere shortening and dysfunction in these patients. This review connects insights from both clinical and molecular studies to create a comprehensive view of the underlying mechanisms that drive these diseases. Through this, we emphasize recent advances in therapeutics and pin-point disease-associated variants that remain poorly defined in their mechanism of action. Finally, we suggest future avenues of research that will deepen our understanding of telomere biology and telomere-related disease.
Calculation of Dose Deposition in 3D Voxels by Heavy Ions and Simulation of gamma-H2AX Experiments

The biological response to high-LET radiation is different from low-LET radiation due to several factors, notably difference in energy deposition and formation of radiolytic species. Of particular importance in radiobiology is the formation of double-strand breaks (DSB), which can be detected by -H2AX foci experiments. These experiments has revealed important differences in the spatial distribution of DSB induced by low- and high-LET radiations [1,2]. To simulate -H2AX experiments, models based on amorphous track with radial dose are often combined with random walk chromosome models [3,4]. In this work, a new approach using the Monte-Carlo track structure code RITRACKS [5] and chromosome models have been used to simulate DSB formation. At first, RITRACKS have been used to simulate the irradiation of a cubic volume of 5 m by 1) 450 1H+ ions of 300 MeV (LET 0.3 keV/ m) and 2) by 1 56Fe26+ ion of 1 GeV/amu (LET 150 keV/ m). All energy deposition events are recorded to calculate dose in voxels of 20 m. The dose voxels are distributed randomly and scattered uniformly within the volume irradiated by low-LET radiation. Many differences are found in the spatial distribution of dose voxels for the 56Fe26+ ion. The track structure can be distinguished, and voxels with very high dose are found in the region corresponding to the track "core". These high-dose voxels are not found in the low-LET irradiation simulation and indicate clustered energy deposition, which may be responsible for complex DSB. In the second step, assuming that DSB will be found only in voxels where energy is deposited by the radiation, the intersection points between voxels with dose > 0 and simulated chromosomes were obtained. The spatial distribution of the intersection points is similar to -H2AX foci experiments. These preliminary results suggest that combining stochastic track structure and chromosome models could be a good approach to understand radiation-induced DSB and chromosome aberrations.
An Approach to Force Control by Model Predictive Velocity Control with Constraints

This paper presents a force control system design by model predictive control scheme. Recently, a lot of research has been carried out on the robots that take the place of human labor. One of the challenges of such robots is deformable object manipulation to working on food processing, surgery, etc. For handling deformable objects by a rigid robot manipulator is required an advanced reaction force control methodology. Such force control methods have to consider suitable force application without excess and deficiency forces for preventing to drop and destroy in contact with unknown objects. To realize this, it is required to directly consider constraints on control input, rate of input, velocity, etc. Model predictive control is known as one of the key techniques in control fields, and it has a potential for stable force control implementation by considering constraints. This paper attempts to design a new force control system by utilizing model predictive velocity control based on an augmented state-space model with a disturbance term. Finally, the performances of the proposed method via numerical simulation are shown.
Inner retinal dehiscence and macular microhole secondary to vitreomacular traction

Macular microholes are focal defects in the ellipsoid zone which occur in the foveal area. They are caused by prolonged sun gaze, trauma, welding arc exposure, tamoxifen use and vitreomacular traction. [1 2][1] Isolated presence of microhole during clinical evaluation without a history of the above
Recombinant glycine receptors: stoichiometry and kinetics

Glycine receptors (GlyR) are anion-permeable channels that belong to the pentameric ligand-gated ion channel family. Different GlyR subtypes are known. The main synaptic form is thought to be α1β heteropentamers which mediate fast synaptic inhibition in the adult spinal cord and brainstem. Data on recombinant receptors suggest two possible stoichiometries for this subtype, 2α1:3β and 3α1:2β. Evidence for the first comes from experiments on oocytes, whereas a study in mammalian cells favours the latter, raising the possibility that stoichiometry depends on the expression system. Here, we assess the stoichiometry of α1β GlyRs in Xenopus oocytes using two different electrophysiological approaches. The first involves the use of a reporter mutation at the conserved 9΄ position of the pore-lining domain. In other receptors, this mutation shifts agonist sensitivity in proportion to the number of mutated subunits. Recordings from mutant receptors failed to point towards one or the other stoichiometry. The second approach involved single-channel recordings from conductance mutants. This approach was also inconclusive for stoichiometry. However, we provide evidence that oocytes are not a suitable expression system for the study of heteromeric glycine receptors as they are highly prone to contamination by homomers. α2 homomeric GlyRs are predominant early in development and are replaced by α1 subunits in the first postnatal days. We investigated the activation mechanism of these channels in HEK293 cells by maximum likelihood fitting of single-channel data, at a wide range of glycine concentrations. The mechanism we propose suggests that α2 channels can open only when all binding sites are occupied by glycine, and only after the channel undergoes a conformational change ('flip') that links binding to gating. Macroscopic data favour a two binding site model. The scheme can describe adequately macroscopic currents from fast concentration jumps experiments when desensitization is included in the model.