Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Size effect influence on the electronic properties of Ge2Sb2Te5 films prepared by ion plasma sputtering

Physical and chemical criteria for ion plasma deposition of chalcogenide glass nano-films have been studied. Research results demonstrate structure, temperature dependences and electrical conductivity data of nanoscaled Ge2Sb2Te5 films. Thin films were obtained by ion-plasma sputtering with thickness from 25 to 175 nm. Scanning and Transmission Electron Microscopy images revealed amorphous and homogeneous film structure. Temperature dependence of films electrical conductivity investigation was performed. It has been shown that with decreasing film thickness the conductivity decreases and the activation energy of conductivity increases. It has been found from studies of the current-voltage Ge2Sb2Te5 film characteristics reversible switching effect caused by a reversible phase transformation "amorphous ↔polycristalline state" takes place. The threshold voltage Uth and switching time tsw with decreasing film thickness were reduced significantly.
Contactless Functionality Inspection of Flat-Panel-Display Pixels and Thin-Film Transistors by Capacitive Coupling

A fast and thorough detection of structural and functional defects of flat-panel displays, large-area image detectors, and printed electronics requires a contactless and flexible inspection technique. Moreover, to accelerate the development of new products and to increase yields, efficient device characterization including the analysis of single component functionality and testing under operating conditions is essential. In this contribution, a contactless inspection method solely based on capacitive coupling is used to analyze pixel and thin-film transistor (TFT) functionality of active-matrix liquid crystal and electrophoretic display backplanes. Employing a capacitively coupled sensor, the measurement of the evolution of the pixel electrode voltage during TFT operation (switching) yields display flicker and TFT parameters, such as TFT on- and off-currents, TFT threshold, and intrinsic capacitance. To confirm the measurement results, the pixel voltage was also measured with an active voltage probe brought into contact with the pixel electrodes under test.
Identification of the Substrate Specificity-conferring Amino Acid Residues of 4-Coumarate:Coenzyme A Ligase Allows the Rational Design of Mutant Enzymes with New Catalytic Properties*

4-Coumarate:coenzyme A ligases (4CLs) generally use, in addition to coumarate, caffeate and ferulate as their main substrates. However, the recently cloned Arabidopsis thaliana isoform At4CL2 is exceptional because it has no appreciable activity with ferulate. On the basis of information obtained from the crystal structure of the phenylalanine-activating domain of gramicidin S-synthetase, 10 amino acid residues were identified that may form the substrate binding pocket of 4CL. Among these amino acids, representing the putative “substrate specificity motif,” only one residue, Met293, was not conserved in At4CL2, compared with At4CL1 and At4CL3, two isoforms using ferulate. Substitution of Met293 or Lys320, another residue of the putative substrate specificity motif, which in the predicted three-dimensional structure is located in close proximity to Met293, by smaller amino acids converted At4CL2 to an enzyme capable of using ferulate. The activity with caffeate was not or only moderately affected. Conversely, substitution of Met293 by bulky aromatic amino acids increased the apparent affinity (K m ) for caffeate up to 10-fold, whereas single substitutions of Val294 did not affect substrate use. The results support our structural assumptions and suggest that the amino acid residues 293 and 320 of At4CL2 directly interact with the 3-methoxy group of the phenolic substrate and therefore allow a first insight into the structural principles determining substrate specificity of 4CL.
An analysis of capabilities of Pakistan as an offshore IT services outsourcing destination

Developed economies view outsourcing as a viable option for attaining competitive market position. Many of the emerging economies have succeeded in capturing and increasing their share in the global outsourcing market. In this paper we review the factors that helped some of the emerging economies to attain the current successful position. Using the country selection framework [Trediman and Breg, 2001] we have analyzed and evaluated the potential of Pakistan for offshore outsourcing. The SWOT analysis identifies the weak and problem areas for Pakistan in this regard and it also indicates a number of areas upon which it can build to capture the existing opportunities.
Nonlocal Allen–Cahn systems: analysis and a primal–dual active set method

We show existence and uniqueness of a solution for the non-local vector-valued Allen-Cahn variational inequality in a formulation involving Lagrange multipliers for local and non-local constraints. Furthermore, we propose and analyze a primal-dual active set method for local and non-local vector-valued Allen-Cahn variational inequalities. The local convergence behaviour of the primal-dual active set algorithm is studied by interpreting the approach as a semi-smooth Newton method and numerical simulations are presented demonstrating its efficiency.
Expression of phosphoinositide‐specific phospholipase C isoenzymes in cultured astrocytes activated after stimulation with lipopolysaccharide

Signal transduction pathways, involved in cell cycle and activities, depend on various components including lipid signalling molecules, such as phosphoinositides and related enzymes. Many evidences support the hypothesis that inositol lipid cycle is involved in astrocytes activation during neurodegeneration. Previous studies investigated the pattern of expression of phosphoinositide‐specific phospholipase C (PI‐PLC) family isoforms in astrocytes, individuating in cultured neonatal rat astrocytes, supposed to be quiescent cells, the absence of some isoforms, accordingly to their well known tissue specificity. The same study was conducted in cultured rat astrocytoma C6 cells and designed a different pattern of expression of PI‐PLCs in the neoplastic counterpart, accordingly to literature suggesting a PI signalling involvement in tumour progression. It is not clear the role of PI‐PLC isoforms in inflammation; recent data demonstrate they are involved in cytokines production, with special regard to IL‐6. PI‐PLCs expression in LPS treated neonatal rat astrocytes performed by using RT‐PCR, observed at 3, 6, 18 and 24 h intervals, expressed: PI‐PLC beta1, beta4 and gamma1 in all intervals analysed; PI‐PLC delta1 at 6, 18 and 24 h; PI‐PLC delta3 at 6 h after treatment. PI‐PLC beta3, delta4 and epsilon, present in untreated astrocytes, were not detected after LPS treatment. Immunocytochemical analysis, performed to visualize the sub‐cellular distribution of the expressed isoforms, demonstrated different patterns of localisation at different times of exposure. These observations suggest that PI‐PLCs expression and distribution may play a role in ongoing inflammation process of CNS. J. Cell. Biochem. 109: 1006–1012, 2010. © 2010 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Unified Technique for on-Line Testing of Digital Circuits: Delay and Stuck-at Fault Models

This work is concerned with the development of generic, nonintrusive, and flexible algorithms for the design of digital circuits with on-line testing (OLT) capability. Most of the works presented in the literature on OLT have used single stuck at (s - a) fault models. However, in the deep submicron technology, single s - a fault models may not capture more than a fraction of the real defects. To cater to the problem it is now advocated that additional fault models such as bridging faults, transition faults, delay faults, etc., are also used. The proposed technique is one of the first works that facilitates a unified scheme for on-line detection of delay faults and s - a faults with a high value of n for n-Detect tests. The technique can handle generic digital circuits with cell count as high as 15,000 and having the order of 2500 states. Results for the design of on-line detectors for various ISCAS89 benchmark circuits are provided. The results illustrate that with marginal increase in the area overhead, if compared to the ones with single s - a fault coverage only, the proposed scheme also provides coverage for the delay faults.
Large Eddy and Detached Eddy Simulations Using an Unstructured Multigrid Solver

Abstract : This work is concerned with the development of an efficient parallel Large Eddy Simulation (LES) and Detached Eddy Simulation (DES) capability using unstructured meshes. The advantages of unstructured meshes include flexible modeling of complex geometries, adaptive meshing capabilities, and homogeneous data structures well suited for massively parallel computer architectures. On the other hand, unstructured mesh techniques require additional computer resources as compared to cartesian or structured mesh methods, and the achievable accuracy of the particular unstructured mesh discretization must be carefully considered. The approach developed in this work is based on an existing steady-state unstructured mesh solver which relies on agglomeration multigrid for rapid convergence and has been shown to scale well on inexpensive personal computer (PC) clusters as well as on massively parallel supercomputers using thousands of processors1.
Effects of body surface area-indexed calculations in the morbidly obese: a mathematical analysis.

OBJECTIVE Cardiac and stroke indices routinely are used to communicate the adequacy of circulation, especially by cardiac anesthesiologists. However, indexed values may be distorted when derived using conventional formulae on morbidly obese patients. In extreme cases, distortion of the raw value by the indexed value may suggest inappropriate therapeutic interventions. This study attempted to highlight threshold values of body surface area (BSA) that place morbidly obese patients at risk of being overtreated. DESIGN Mathematical analysis. PARTICIPANTS Simulated patients. INTERVENTIONS BSA was derived using the commonly used Mosteller and Dubois and Dubois formulae on a range of simulated patients. These simulated BSAs then were applied to normal cardiac output (CO) and stroke volume (SV) values to identify the threshold at which BSA-indexed values result in a change in classification to abnormal. Additionally, the effects of 7 different published BSA formulae were examined, using a range of height-weight combinations. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS Critical thresholds at which BSA calculations would classify normal CO and SV as abnormal are presented in a tabular form. Among the 7 BSA formulae, there was substantial variation in predicted BSA at a given height-weight combination when values typically associated with morbid obesity are used. CONCLUSION In morbidly obese patients, cardiac and stroke indices can be misleading relative to the underlying raw values (CO and SV) as a result of distortion by widely used BSA formulae. The authors caution against relying on threshold cardiac and stroke indices as triggers for the initiation of hemodynamic therapies in the morbidly obese. Further research on what BSA formula should be used on patients with very extreme body types is warranted.
Changes in Equivalent and Gradient Refractive Index of the Crystalline Lens with Accommodation

The ocular dimensions and refraction of the eye were measured for accommodation stimulus levels of 0.0, 1.5, 3.5, 5.5, and 8.0 D for 11 subjects aged 18 to 28 years, mean 21.2 ± 2.62 years using keratometry, autorefraction, A-Scan ultrasonography, and video phakometry techniques. The subjects had refractive errors in the range +0.50 to -4.25 D, mean -1.88 ± 1.64 D. With the maximum level of accommodation the anterior chamber depth decreased by 0.23 ± 0.09 mm, the lens thickness increased by 0.28 ± 0.09 mm, and no significant differences were recorded in axial length or vitreous chamber depth. The radius of curvature of the anterior surface of the crystalline lens decreased from 11.54 ± 1.27 to 6.59 ± 0.97 mm and the posterior surface from -6.67 ± 0.97 to -5.30 ± 0.4 mm. We determined the equivalent refractive index to be 1.4277 ± 0.0011, with no significant differences at different levels of accommodation. When the crystalline lens was modeled as a gradient refractive index (GRIN) structure with elliptical iso-indicial lines, the mean surface refractive index of the lens was 1.3859 ± 0.0009 for an assumed central refractive index of 1.406. The power of the anterior surface of the lens increased from 4.38 ± 0.49 to 7.59 ± 0.34 D, the posterior surface increased from 7.67 ± 1.28 to 9.32 ± 0.64 D, and the GRIN power increased from 9.70 ± 1.31 to 13.74 ± 0.77 D for the maximum accommodative stimulus of 8.00 D. On the basis of the model used, a substantial part of the increase in power of the crystalline lens with accommodation resulted from the change in refractive index distribution within the lens.
Development of the signalling pathways associated with sperm capacitation during epididymal maturation

As spermatozoa mature within the epididymis they acquire the potential for capacitation and ultimately fertilization. In biochemical terms, the former is reflected in the progressive activation of a signal transduction pathway characterized by cAMP‐mediated induction of phosphotyrosine expression on the sperm tail. In this study, we have examined the cellular mechanisms controlling this maturational event. Caput epididymal spermatozoa exhibited tyrosine phosphorylation on the sperm head that was largely unresponsive to cAMP and not significantly impaired by removal of extracellular HCO3−. In contrast, caudal epididymal spermatozoa exhibited low levels of phosphorylation on the sperm head, yet responded dramatically to cAMP by phosphorylating a new set of proteins on the sperm tail via mechanisms that were highly dependent on extracellular HCO3−. The impact of extracellular HCO3− depletion on caudal cells was not associated with a significant change in the redox regulation of cAMP but could be fully reversed by buffering the intracellular pH with N‐Tris[Hydroxymethyl]methyl‐3‐amino‐propanesulfonic acid (TAPS). The pattern of tyrosine phosphorylation was also profoundly influenced by the presence or absence of added extracellular calcium. In the presence of this cation, only caudal spermatozoa could respond to increased extracellular cAMP with tyrosine phosphorylation of the sperm tail. However, in calcium‐depleted medium, this difference completely disappeared. Under these conditions, caput and caudal spermatozoa were equally competent to exhibit phosphotyrosine expression on the sperm tail in response to cAMP. These results emphasize the pivotal role played by calcium and HCO3− in modulating the changes in tyrosine phosphorylation observed during epididymal maturation. Mol. Reprod. Dev. 64: 446–457, 2003. © 2003 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Vaccinia Virus Infection Disarms the Mitochondrion-Mediated Pathway of the Apoptotic Cascade by Modulating the Permeability Transition Pore

ABSTRACT Many viruses have evolved strategies that target crucial components within the apoptotic cascade. One of the best studied is the caspase 8 inhibitor, crmA/Spi-2, encoded by members of the poxvirus family. Since many proapoptotic stimuli induce apoptosis through a mitochondrion-dependent, caspase 8-independent pathway, we hypothesized that vaccinia virus would encode a mechanism to directly modulate the mitochondrial apoptotic pathway. In support of this, we observed that Jurkat cells, which undergo Fas-mediated apoptosis exclusively through the mitochondrial route, were resistant to Fas-induced death following infection with a crmA/Spi-2-deficient strain of vaccinia virus. In addition, vaccinia virus-infected cells subjected to the proapoptotic stimulus staurosporine exhibited decreased levels of both cytochromec released from the mitochondria and caspase 3 activation. In all cases we found that the loss of the mitochondrial membrane potential, which occurs as a result of opening the multimeric permeability transition pore complex, was prevented in vaccinia virus-infected cells. Moreover, vaccinia virus infection specifically inhibited opening of the permeability transition pore following treatment with the permeability transition pore ligand atractyloside and t-butylhydroperoxide. These studies indicate that vaccinia virus infection directly impacts the mitochondrial apoptotic cascade by influencing the permeability transition pore.
Phytochemical Content, Health Benefits, and Toxicology of Common Edible Flowers: A Review (2000–2015)

Edible flowers contain numerous phytochemicals which contribute to their health benefits, and consumption of edible flowers has increased significantly in recent years. While many researchers have been conducted, no literature review of the health benefits of common edible flowers and their phytochemicals has been compiled. This review aimed to present the findings of research conducted from 2000 to 2015 on the species, traditional application, phytochemicals, health benefits, and the toxicology of common edible flowers. It was found in 15 species of common edible flowers that four flavonols, three flavones, four flavanols, three anthocyanins, three phenolic acids and their derivatives were common phytochemicals and they contributed to the health benefits such as anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-cancer, anti-obesity, and neuroprotective effect. Toxicology studies have been conducted to evaluate the safety of common edible flowers and provide information on their dosages and usages.
Towards accurate LSPR biosensors based on the projection method: A direct measurement for refractive index

We present a simple and accurate method to improve both accuracy and precision for localized surface plasmon resonance biosensors based on gold nanotube structures. The finite difference time domain (FDTD) method and the nanoimprint lithography technique were used in simulating and fabricating the nanotubes, respectively. The method provides a direct measure for the refractive index and achieves an increased accuracy as compared to other established methods.
An approximated closed form solution for nonuniform transmission lines

An approximated closed form analytic solution is introduced for arbitrary Nonuniform Transmission Lines (NTLs), using a novel approach. First, the differential equations of NTLs are written as a suitable matrix differential equation. Then the matrix differential equation is solved to obtain the chain parameter matrix of NTLs. The obtained solution can be applied to arbitrary lossy and dispersive NTLs. The validation of the introduced solution is studied finally.
Identification of sequence types among the M-nontypeable group A streptococci

Streptococcal diseases, namely, acute glomerulonephritis and acute rheumatic fever, are common features in the aboriginal population of the Northern Territory of Australia. We examined the group A streptococcal M types identified during various surveys conducted since 1987. Streptococci were predominantly isolated from skin infections. A high proportion of the isolates could not be serotyped by conventional means and were designated M nontypeable (MNT). M-specific DNA sequences from the MNT isolates were examined, and sequence types were proposed for the classification of MNTs. This allowed a more precise estimate of the M types present in a population study.
Modulation of the cGMP‐gated ion channel in frog rods by calmodulin and an endogenous inhibitory factor.

1. Outer segment patches excised in the light were used to investigate the effects of exogenous calmodulin and an endogenous inhibitory factor on the cGMP‐gated channel of frog rods. 2. Calmodulin shifted to the right the dose‐response relation for activation of the channels by 8‐Br‐cGMP, but did not change the maximum current or the form of the relation. Reversal of this effect by removal of calmodulin was accelerated by brief exposure to saturating [8‐Br‐cGMP]. Inhibition by calmodulin required calcium and gave as much as a 5‐fold decrease in current for an [8‐Br‐cGMP] functionally comparable to the presumed physiological [cGMP]. 3. Exposure to low [Ca2+]i (tens of nanomolar) appeared to irreversibly remove or inactivate an endogenous channel inhibitory factor from the patches, increasing the current at low [8‐Br‐cGMP]. Like calmodulin, this factor slowed the voltage‐dependent channel‐gating kinetics and did not change the maximum current. However, unlike calmodulin, the endogenous factor remained stably associated with the patches at high [Ca2+]i (1 microM), even with exposure to saturating [8‐Br‐cGMP]. 4. After the low‐Ca2+ treatment increased the current, calmodulin reduced the current to about the same level as it had before the low‐Ca2+ treatment, giving a larger fractional suppression. Furthermore, patches with high initial sensitivity to 8‐Br‐cGMP had small low‐Ca2+ effects and large calmodulin effects, while the reverse was true for patches with low initial agonist sensitivity. 5. Application of trypsin to the intracellular surface of the patch prevented the responses to calmodulin and to low [Ca2+]i, suggesting involvement of a cytoplasmic portion of the channel. However, trypsin also reduced the total agonist‐induced patch current. 6. Our results are consistent with a model in which calmodulin and an endogenous calcium‐binding protein compete for the same site, inhibiting channel opening or cGMP binding. The tight association of the endogenous factor with the channel even at relatively low [Ca2+]i suggests that in the transducing rod it may inhibit the channels most of the time in darkness and in dim light, preventing any potential inhibitory effects of calmodulin. The endogenous factor would be expected to leave the channel only in bright or prolonged light, when the [Ca2+]i is thought to be very low.
Objective Picture Quality Scale (cid:0)PQS(cid:1) For Image Coding

(cid:0) A new methodology for the determination of an objective metric for still image coding is reported(cid:1) This methodology is applied to obtain a Picture Quality Scale (cid:2)PQS(cid:3) for the coding of achromatic images over the full range of image quality de(cid:4)ned by the subjective Mean Opin(cid:5) ion Score (cid:2)MOS(cid:3)(cid:1) This Picture Quality Scale takes into ac(cid:5) count the properties of visual perception for both global fea(cid:5) tures and localized disturbances(cid:1) PQS closely approximates the MOS(cid:6) with a correlation coe(cid:7)cient of more than (cid:8)(cid:1)(cid:9)(cid:10)(cid:6) as compared to (cid:8)(cid:1)(cid:11)(cid:12) obtained using the conventional WMSE(cid:1) Extensions and applications of the methodology and of the resulting metric are discussed(cid:1)
Rapid Mixing of Local Graph Dynamics

Graph dynamics arise naturally in many contexts. For instance in peer-to-peer networks, a participating peer may replace an existing connection with one neighbour by a new connection with a neighbour's neighbour. Several such local rewiring rules have been proposed to ensure that peer-to-peer networks achieve good connectivity properties (e.g. high expansion) in equilibrium. However it has remained an open question whether there existed such rules that also led to fast convergence to equilibrium. In this work we provide an affirmative answer: We exhibit a local rewiring rule that converges to equilibrium after each participating node has undergone only a number of rewirings that is poly-logarithmic in the system size. The proof involves consideration of the whole isoperimetric profile of the graph, and may be of independent interest.