Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Characterizing Seller-Driven Black-Hat Marketplaces

This paper investigates two seller-driven black-hat online marketplaces, SEOClerks and MyCheapJobs, aiming to shed light on the services they offer as well as sellers and customers they attract. We perform a measurement-based analysis based on complete crawls of their websites and find that the vast majority of services target popular social media and e-commerce websites, such as website backlinks, Instagram followers, or Twitter retweets, and estimate revenues to be at least $1.3M for SEOClerks and $116K for MyCheapJobs. Our analysis uncovers the characteristics of these two non-underground seller-driven marketplaces and shows that many top sellers belong to an "insider ring", where accounts created close to the marketplaces' launch account for the majority of the sales. We provide first-of-its-kind evidence that marketplace operators may be involved in perpetuating fraudulent activities and hope to facilitate deployment of technical, legal, and economic countermeasures.
Characterization of the frameshift stimulatory signal controlling a programmed –1 ribosomal frameshift in the human immunodeficiency virus type 1

Synthesis of the Gag-Pol protein of the human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) requires a programmed –1 ribosomal frameshifting when ribosomes translate the unspliced viral messenger RNA. This frameshift occurs at a slippery sequence followed by an RNA structure motif that stimulates frameshifting. This motif is commonly assumed to be a simple stem–loop for HIV-1. In this study, we show that the frameshift stimulatory signal is more complex than believed and consists of a two-stem helix. The upper stem–loop corresponds to the classic stem–loop, and the lower stem is formed by pairing the spacer region following the slippery sequence and preceding this classic stem–loop with a segment downstream of this stem–loop. A three-purine bulge interrupts the two stems. This structure was suggested by enzymatic probing with nuclease V1 of an RNA fragment corresponding to the gag/pol frameshift region of HIV-1. The involvement of the novel lower stem in frameshifting was supported by site-directed mutagenesis. A fragment encompassing the gag/pol frameshift region of HIV-1 was inserted in the beginning of the coding sequence of a reporter gene coding for the firefly luciferase, such that expression of luciferase requires a –1 frameshift. When the reporter was expressed in COS cells, mutations that disrupt the capacity to form the lower stem reduced frameshifting, whereas compensatory changes that allow re-formation of this stem restored the frameshift efficiency near wild-type level. The two-stem structure that we propose for the frameshift stimulatory signal of HIV-1 differs from the RNA triple helix structure recently proposed.
Analysis of Oxide Inclusions in Steel by Fast Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy Scanning: An Approach to Quantification

Laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) measurements were performed on a steel sample to investigate the feasibility of obtaining fast information on cleanness. A calibration approach was considered to enable the quantification of the elemental composition of non-metallic inclusions; the same data was also used to estimate the size of the inclusions. For the first time, the quantified chemical composition data obtained by LIBS for non-metallic inclusions was compared to the corresponding results obtained from scanning electron microscopy–energy dispersive X-ray (SEM-EDX) analysis, the conventional method used for steel cleanness assessment, and proved successful. Due to the speed of analysis and the systematic recording of the signal from the scanned area, LIBS enables the analysis of larger areas of sample and in significantly shorter time than with automated SEM-EDX. This paper summarizes the hitherto obtained results for the fast analysis of inclusions in steel by LIBS.
Protein consumption and bone mineral density in the elderly : the Rancho Bernardo Study.

The role of dietary protein in osteoporosis is unclear, with previous studies having suggested both protection and harm. The associations of total, animal, and vegetable protein with bone mineral density (BMD) and the variations in these associations with calcium intake were studied in a community-dwelling cohort of 572 women and 388 men aged 55-92 years (Rancho Bernardo, California). Multiple linear regression analyses adjusted for standard osteoporosis covariates showed a positive association between animal protein consumption, assessed by food frequency questionnaires in 1988-1992, and BMD, measured 4 years later. This association was statistically significant in women. For every 15-g/day increase in animal protein intake, BMD increased by 0.016 g/cm2 at the hip (p = 0.005), 0.012 g/cm2 at the femoral neck (p = 0.02), 0.015 g/cm2 at the spine (p = 0.08), and 0.010 g/cm2 for the total body (p = 0.04). Conversely, a negative association between vegetable protein and BMD was observed in both sexes. Some suggestion of effect modification by calcium was seen in women, with increasing protein consumption appearing to be more beneficial for women with lower calcium intakes, but evidence for this interaction was not consistently strong. This study supports a protective role for dietary animal protein in the skeletal health of elderly women.
Myostatin inhibitor ACE‐031 treatment of ambulatory boys with Duchenne muscular dystrophy: Results of a randomized, placebo‐controlled clinical trial

Introduction: ACE‐031 is a fusion protein of activin receptor type IIB and IgG1‐Fc, which binds myostatin and related ligands. It aims to disrupt the inhibitory effect on muscle development and provide potential therapy for myopathies like Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD). Methods: ACE‐031 was administered subcutaneously every 2–4 weeks to DMD boys in a randomized, double‐blind, placebo‐controlled, ascending‐dose trial. The primary objective was safety evaluation. Secondary objectives included characterization of pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics. Results: ACE‐031 was not associated with serious or severe adverse events. The study was stopped after the second dosing regimen due to potential safety concerns of epistaxis and telangiectasias. A trend for maintenance of the 6‐minute walk test (6MWT) distance in the ACE‐031 groups compared with a decline in the placebo group (not statistically significant) was noted, as was a trend for increased lean body mass and bone mineral density (BMD) and reduced fat mass. Conclusion: ACE‐031 use demonstrated trends for pharmacodynamic effects on lean mass, fat mass, BMD, and 6MWT. Non–muscle‐related adverse events contributed to the decision to discontinue the study. Myostatin inhibition is a promising therapeutic approach for DMD. Muscle Nerve 55: 458–464, 2017
Vestibular Evoked Myogenic Potentials in Newborns

This study presents a novel method for recording vestibular evoked myogenic potential (VEMP) in newborns, used to investigate the maturation of sacculocollic reflex at birth.Twenty full-term newborns aged 2–5 days old were enrolled in this study. During natural sleep, each newborn underwent distortion product otoacoustic emission test, and VEMP test using the head rotation method. For comparison, 20 healthy adults also underwent VEMP test using the same method. Based on adult criteria, 40 newborn ears revealed normal VEMPs in 40%, prolonged VEMPs in 35%, and absent VEMPs in 25%, indicating that great variation exists in the maturation of the sacculocollic reflex at birth. Comparison of VEMP characteristics between healthy newborns and adults revealed nonsignificant difference in the response rate and the latency of n23. However, significant differences existed in the latency of p13, interpeak p13-n23 interval and p13-n23 amplitude between newborns and adults. In conclusion, VEMPs in newborns can be easily recorded by the head rotation method. Prolonged or absent VEMPs in newborns may reflect incomplete maturity of the sacculocollic reflex pathway, especially the myelination. A further large number of newborns receiving MRI scan for other reasons may undergo VEMP test to verify this hypothesis.
A high-speed 7 bit A/D converter

A 7 bit two-step parallel A/D converter has been designed using a new quantizer-subtractor circuit. The small delay in the new circuit allows digital signal sampling by latching comparators. A sample and hold unit is not needed which results in a fully integrable A/D function. Analog input signals up to 5 MHz can be digitally sampled with sampling frequencies up to 50 MHz. A double layer metallization process is used to reduce the die size to 2.4/spl times/2.5 mm.
Intraoperative imprint cytology for breast cancer sentinel nodes: is it worth it?

Re‐operative surgery is stressful for patients and is an additional burden to an already stretched public health system. Intraoperative confirmation of breast cancer metastases in sentinel lymph nodes (SLNs) provides the necessary information for the surgeon to proceed with immediate axillary dissection, avoiding the need for a second operation, its associated cost, morbidity and adjuvant treatment delays. Our challenge was to implement a technique that was rapid, inexpensive and had a negligible false positive rate. The aim of this study was to determine whether touch imprint cytology (TIC) could reduce returns to theatre without compromising patient safety and pathology department and operating theatre efficiency.
Étude de la réduction segmentale en français parlé à travers différents styles : apports des grands corpus et du traitement automatique de la parole à l’étude du schwa, du /ʁ/ et des réductions à segments multiples

Ce travail sur la reduction segmentale (i.e. deletion ou reduction temporelle) en francais spontane nous a permis non seulement de proposer deux methodes de recherche pour les etudes en linguistique, mais egalement de nous interroger sur l'influence de differents facteurs de variation sur divers phenomenes de reduction et d'apporter des connaissances sur la propension a la reduction des segments. Nous avons applique la methode descendante qui utilise l'alignement force avec variantes lorsqu’il s’agissait de phenomenes de reduction specifiques. Lorsque ce n'etait pas le cas, nous avons utilise la methode ascendante qui examine des segments absents et courts. Trois phenomenes de reduction ont ete choisis : l'elision du schwa, la chute du /ʁ/ et la propension a la reduction des segments. La methode descendante a ete utilisee pour les deux premiers. Les facteurs en commun etudies sont le contexte post-lexical, le style, le sexe et la profession. L’elision du schwa en syllabe initiale de mots polysyllabiques et la chute du /ʁ/ post-consonantique en finale de mots ne sont pas toujours influencees par les memes facteurs. De meme, l’elision du schwa lexical et celle du schwa epenthetique ne sont pas conditionnees par les memes facteurs. L’etude sur la propension a la reduction des segments nous a permis d'appliquer la methode ascendante et d’etudier la reduction des segments de maniere generale. Les resultats suggerent que les liquides et les glides resistent moins a la reduction que les autres consonnes et que les voyelles nasales resistent mieux a la reduction que les voyelles orales. Parmi les voyelles orales, les voyelles hautes arrondies ont tendance a etre plus souvent reduites que les autres voyelles orales.
Influence of temperature on the vibro-acoustic behavior of claw-pole alternators

Audible noise of automotive alternators is a key point for future cars. Its reduction requires a multiphysic approach including electromagnetic, vibro-acoustic and thermal aspects. In this perspective, this paper investigates the influence of stator temperature on the acoustic noise of a claw-pole alternator. Experimental results show a clear reduction of sound power level and change in noise peak frequencies with an increased temperature. An experimental modal analysis of the stator is carried out to explain this effect. Based on these measurements, a model is developed to predict the resonant frequencies of the wound stator at different temperatures.
In Situ Evolution of Virus-Specific Cytotoxic T Cell Responses in the Lung

ABSTRACT Cytotoxic T cells (CTL) play a critical role in the clearance of respiratory viral infections, but they also contribute to disease manifestations. In this study, we infected mice with a genetically modified pneumonia virus of mice (PVM) that allowed visualization of virus-specific CTL and infected cells in situ. The first virus-specific T cells entered the lung via blood vessels in the scattered foci of PVM-infected cells, which densely clustered around the bronchi at day 7 after infection. At this time, overall pulmonary virus load was maximal, but the mice showed no overt signs of disease. On days 8 to 9, T cells gained access to the infected bronchial epithelium and to the lung interstitium, which was associated with a reduction in the number of virus-infected cells within the initial clusters but could not prevent further virus spread throughout the lung tissue. Interestingly, recruitment of virus-specific CTL throughout the parenchyma was still ongoing on day 10, when the virus infection was already largely controlled. This also represented the peak of clinical disease. Thus, disease was associated with an exuberant T cell infiltration late in the course of the infection, which may be required to completely eliminate virus at residual foci of infection. PVM-induced immunopathology may thus result from the need to generate widespread T cell infiltrates to complete the elimination of virus-infected cells in a large organ like the lung. This experimental model provides the first insights into the spatiotemporal evolution of pulmonary antiviral T cell immunity in vivo.
Use of cloud radar observations for model evaluation: A probabilistic approach

[1] The use of narrow-beam, ground-based active remote sensors (such as cloud radars and lidars) for long-term observations provides valuable new measurements of the vertical structure of cloud fields. These observations might be quite valuable as tests for numerical simulations, but the vastly different spatial and temporal scales of the observations and simulation must first be reconciled. Typically, the observations are averaged over time and those averages are claimed to be representative of a given model spatial scale, though the equivalence of temporal and spatial averages is known to be quite tenuous. This paper explores an alternative method of model evaluation based on the interpretation of model cloud predictions as probabilistic forecasts at the observation point. This approach requires no assumptions about statistical stationarity and allows the use of an existing, well-developed suite of analytic tools. Time-averaging and probabilistic evaluation techniques are contrasted, and their performance is explored using a set of “perfect” forecasts and observations extracted from a long cloud system model simulation of continental convection. This idealized example demonstrates that simple time averaging always obscures forecast skill regardless of model domain size. Reliability diagrams are more robust, though scalar scores derived from the diagrams are sensitive to the forecast probability distribution. Forecasts by cloud system and weather forecasting models then provide examples as to how probabilistic techniques might be used in a variety of contexts.
Produktionsplanung und -steuerung mittels bionischem Scheduler

Kurzfassung Die Herstellung kundeninnovierter Produkte erfordert einen Paradigmenwechsel bei bekannten Verfahren der Produktionsplanung- und -steuerung (PPS), da diese die benötigte Flexibilität und Reaktionsfähigkeit nicht erreichen können. Die Verwendung eines bionischen Systems in einem dafür neu entwickelten PPS-Verfahren ist ein vielversprechender Ansatz zur Ermöglichung der Herstellung hochvarianter Produkte. Der Beitrag erläutert die Funktionsweise dieser bionischen Steuerung und zeigt, wie die PPS für die hohe Flexibilität erweitert werden muss.
La hipótesis débil del mercado eficiente: evaluación de estrategias de inversión activas basadas en la utilización de algoritmos genéticos e indicadores técnicos bursátiles

Esta investigacion estudia la eficiencia del mercado intradiario de futuros sobre el IBEX 35 para el horizonte temporal comprendido entre los anos 2001 y 2012, ambos inclusive, a traves de la evaluacion del indicador tecnico de las medias moviles exponenciales, realizando un analisis empirico que estudia la fiabilidad de las senales generadas por dicho instrumento, considerando la rentabilidad y el riesgo de las estrategias activas y los costes de transaccion. En el trabajo, ademas de examinar los resultados alcanzados mediante la aplicacion de estrategias de inversion activas basadas en un amplio espectro de combinaciones de medias moviles exponenciales, tambien se analizan otros aspectos como la importancia que en la implementacion de tales estrategias puede tener la frecuencia de datos utilizada para el calculo de las medias, la influencia que el mercado estadounidense puede tener sobre los resultados alcanzados en la aplicacion de estas estrategias o el efecto sobre tales resultados del riesgo derivado de mantener las posiciones abiertas entre las sesiones de negociacion.Asimismo, al objeto de estudiar si la diversificacion entre diferentes estrategias de inversion permite una reduccion del riesgo, analizamos los resultados alcanzados mediante la combinacion de estrategias basadas en la utilizacion de las medias moviles exponenciales, aplicando el modelo clasico de seleccion de carteras de Markowitz (1952, 1959). En el marco de este proceso, para la determinacion de la composicion de las carteras eficientes en los terminos planteados en el problema de optimizacion, se emplea un algoritmo genetico.Por ultimo, se pretende evitar tambien uno de los aspectos mas criticados en los estudios realizados sobre analisis tecnico, como es el relativo a la falta de robustez de los resultados alcanzados.
Simulation of a wireless power transfer system for electric vehicles with power factor correction

Wireless power transfer has been a popular topic of recent research. Most research has been done to address the limitations of coil-to-coil efficiency. However, little has been done to address the problem associated with the low input power factor with which the systems operate. This paper details the steps taken to analyze a wireless power transfer system from the view of the power grid under a variety of loading conditions with and without power factor correction.
Comparative Analysis of Serum Proteomes to Discover Biomarkers for Ossification of the Posterior Longitudinal Ligament

Study Design. Serum proteomes from normal subjects and the patients with ossification of the posterior longitudinal ligament (OPLL) were analyzed by using proteomics. Objectives. To identify novel serologic biomarkers for diagnosing OPLL. Summary of Background Data. OPLL can compress the spinal cord, and special planning is required for surgeries that are done from the front of the cervical spine. However, the definitive serologic biomarkers for OPLL are still unclear. Methods. The 2-dimensional electrophoresis patterns of sera from OPLL patients and normal subjects were compared. The differentially expressed spots were identified by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry and electrospray ionization quadruple time-of-flight mass spectrometry. Results. Nine spots that were differentially expressed in the sera of OPLL patients were found and were identified. PRO2675, human serum albumin in a complex with myristic acid and tri-iodobenzoic acid, an unknown protein, chain B of the crystal structure of deoxy-human hemoglobin beta6, pro-apolipoprotein, ALB protein, retinol binding protein and chain A of human serum albumin mutant R218h complexed with thyroxine (3,3′,5,5′, tetraiodo-L-thyronine), were up-regulated in the sera of OPLL patients, whereas &agr;1-microglobulin/bikunin precursor was down-regulated. Conclusions. These proteins could be used as diagnostic biomarkers of OPLL.
HVS-MRMR wrapper method for variables selection

This paper presents a new variable selection algorithm uses the heuristic variable selection (HVS) and Minimum Redundancy Maximum Relevance (MRMR). Our algorithm based on wrapper approach using multi-layer perceptron. We call this algorithm a HVS-MRMR Wrapper for variables selection. The relevance of a set of variables is measured by a convex combination of the relevance given by HVS criterion and the MRMR criterion. This approach selects new relevant variables. We evaluate the performance of HVS-MRMR on four benchmark classification problems. The experimental results show that HVS-MRMR selects a less number of variables with high classification accuracy compared to MRMR, HVS. HVS-MRMR can be applied to various classification problems requiring high classification accuracy.
Experimental Bacteriophage Protection against Staphylococcus aureus Abscesses in a Rabbit Model

ABSTRACT In a rabbit model of wound infection caused by Staphylococcus aureus, 2 × 109 PFU of staphylococcal phage prevented abscess formation in rabbits when it was injected simultaneously with S. aureus (8 × 107 CFU) into the same subcutaneous site. Phage multiplied in the tissues. Phages might be a valuable prophylaxis against staphylococcal infection.
Female Mate Preference and Sexual Conflict: Females Prefer Males That Have Had Fewer Consorts

Different aspects of male quality as a mate can vary independently. When this is the case, females may need to use multiple cues to accurately assess overall mate quality. We examined the pattern of mating preference in the cockroach Nauphoeta cinerea. Sexual conflict occurs in this species because male manipulation of female mating receptivity can result in reduced female fitness. We predicted that since females cannot remate within a single reproductive bout because of male manipulation, females should assess male mating history to avoid mating with males with low fertility caused by sperm exhaustion. In a mate‐preference experiment, we found that females discriminated against males who had mated multiple times. Females also discriminated against males who had consorted with several females but had been prevented from mating with those females. Thus, females appeared to be able to detect cues on males that were derived from previous mates and to use this information to avoid mating with sperm‐exhausted males. We suggest that females may commonly use multiple cues to assess different aspects of mate quality, especially when male quality changes over time. This is an under‐studied phenomenon that could help explain individual variation in female mating preferences.
Propagation of an Air Discharge at Atmospheric Pressure in a Capillary Glass Tube: Influence of the Tube Radius on the Discharge Structure

The experimental and simulated optical emissions of an air discharge at atmospheric pressure propagating in a capillary glass tube are compared for two tube radii: 100 and 300 μm. For 300 μm, both experimental and calculated optical emissions show a tubular structure of the discharge. For 100 μm, the emission of the discharge appears to be more homogeneous radially.