Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Learning complicated concepts reliably and usefully

We show how to learn from examples (Valiant style) any concept representable as a boolean function or circuit, with the help of a teacher who breaks the concept into sub concepts and teaches one subconcept per lesson. Each subconcept corresponds to a gate in the boolean circuit. The learner learns each subconcept from examples which have been randomly drawn according to an arbitrary probability distribution, and labeled as positive or negative instances of the sub-concept by the teacher. The learning procedure runs in time polynomial in the size of the circuit. The learner outputs not the unknown boolean circuit, but rather a program which, for any input, either produces the same answer as the unknown boolean circuit, or else says "I don't know. " Thus the output of this learning procedure is reliable. Furthermore, with high probability the output program is nearly always useful in that it says "I don't know" very rarely. A key technique is to maintain a hierarchy of explicit "version spaces. " Our main contribution is thus a learning procedure whose output is reliable and nearly always useful; this has not been previously accomplished within Valiant's model of learn ability.
RF MEMS band pass filter

RF MEMS Band pass filter based on MEMS technology for IF application in future multiband communication system is proposed in this paper. The placement of mechanical couplers and input-output electrodes enhances the output in resonant mode 1 and 3 while suppresses the output in resonant mode 2 and 4. Filter performance was achieved by exploring two design strategies low loss structural material and mechanical coupling. With these strategies device achieves narrow pass band and higher bandwidth. The device is CMOS process compatible and can be fabricated using silicon and metals. The ability of the device to change operating frequency in real time is demonstrated.
Factors affecting intention to quit among IT professionals

Turnover among information technology (IT) professionals still remains a challenge for many companies. IT professionals suffer from high stress levels. This, in turn, may lead to burnout and result in quitting their jobs. Knowing the factors that affect the quitting decision of IT professionals is important for companies to decrease the turnover rate of qualified employees. To this end, this study investigated the impact of stressors, job stress, organizational commitment, locus of control and job satisfaction on intention to quit among IT professionals in Turkey. A total of 204 questionnaires were collected from IT professionals. The results show that job satisfaction is explained by stressors and locus of control, whereas the effect of job stress on job satisfaction is found to be insignificant. Additionally, both organizational commitment and job satisfaction predict intention to quit. The paper concludes with discussion and recommendations for future research.
Biophysical Characteristics of Healthy Skin and Nonlesional Skin in Atopic Dermatitis: Short-Term Effects of Ultraviolet A and B Irradiation

The present study was designed to evaluate basic differences in surface structure and viscoelastic properties of nonatopic versus atopic skin and facultative acute changes following ultraviolet irradiation. Therefore, biophysical measurements by means of profilometry and cutometry were carried out on sun-protected unaffected gluteal skin areas in both groups before and 24 h after single UVA and UVB irradiations. The results indicate that the clinically unaffected skin of patients with atopic eczema differs from normal skin in terms of increased roughness parameters, but not concerning depth of furrows or viscoelastic properties (viscosity and biological elasticity, cutometrically calculated). Single UVA irradiation with 50 J/cm2 induced neither measurable changes in the skin’s surface structure nor in its viscoelastic properties in both groups after 24 h. However, irradiation with a single erythemogenic dose of 1 MED UVB was followed by a short-term significant increase in the depths of furrows and decrease in biological elasticity in normal and atopic skin, accompanied by an increase in viscosity in normal skin.
Development and characterization of simple sequence repeats for Bipolaris sorokiniana and cross transferability to related species

Simple sequence repeats (SSR) markers were developed from a small insert genomic library for Bipolaris sorokiniana, a mitosporic fungal pathogen that causes spot blotch and root rot in switchgrass. About 59% of sequenced clones (n = 384) harbored SSR motifs. After eliminating redundant sequences, 196 SSR loci were identified, of which 84.7% were dinucleotide repeats and 9.7% and 5.6% were tri- and tetra-nucleotide repeats, respectively. Primer pairs were designed for 105 loci and 85 successfully amplified loci. Sixteen polymorphic loci were characterized with 15 B. sorokiniana isolates obtained from infected switchgrass plant materials collected from five states in USA. These loci successfully cross-amplified isolates from at least one related species, including Bipolaris oryzae, Bipolaris spicifera and Bipolaris victoriae, that causes leaf spot on switchgrass. Haploid gene diversity per locus across all isolates studied varied 0.633–0.861. Principal component analysis of SSR data clustered isolates according to their respective species. These SSR markers will be a valuable tool for genetic variability and population studies of B. sorokiniana and related species that are pathogenic on switchgrass and other host plants. In addition, these markers are potential diagnostic tools for species in the genus Bipolaris.
Calidad de la auditoría, Second-Tier y tamaño: su efecto en las empresas fracasadas no cotizadas españolas

Este trabajo tiene por objetivo analizar el efecto del tamaño de la empresa auditada en la probabilidad de que el auditor incurra en fallo al emitir una opinión, lo que representa una menor calidad de la auditoría. Los resultados obtenidos para una muestra de empresas no cotizadas españolas en situación concursal, distinguiendo entre firmas Big4, Second-Tier y el resto, permiten concluir que existe un comportamiento diferenciado de las auditoras en función del tamaño de la empresa auditada. Así, las firmas Big4 y las Second Tier presentan una mayor calidad de la auditoría en las empresas de mayor dimensión respecto al resto de auditoras, lo cual refleja la importancia de la protección de la reputación del auditor sobre su posible dependencia de la empresa auditada. Por otro lado, los resultados revelan que las firmas Second-Tier presentan una mayor probabilidad de incurrir en fallo que el resto de auditores cuando se consideran empresas pequeñas; lo cual podría explicarse por su menor preocupación por el riesgo reputacional, considerando la menor visibilidad y riesgo de litigio de este tipo de empresas. No obstante, no se observa una peor calidad de las firmas Second-Tier cuando el fracaso es inminente.
Seasonal Changes in Water Quality Parameters and Sediment Nutrients in Jagadishpur Reservoir, a Ramsar Site in Nepal

Physical and chemical characteristics of waters in reservoirs are influenced by seasonal fluctuations in water and also by agricultural runoff. Such fluctuations are more frequent in Jagadishpur reservoir where rain events are strongly seasonal. To carry out the study, water samples were collected from six sites where as the soil samples were taken from four sites in four seasons (winter, spring, monsoon and autumn) in 2006. The soil and water nutrients both varied seasonally affecting the productivity of the reservoir. The productivity of the reservoir was maximum in monsoon and minimum in autumn. The release of phosphorus and nitrogen from the lake sediment to water column plays a key role in determining the nutrient level in reservoirs. The reservoir was found to be polytrophic: eutrophic on the basis of transparency and total nitrogen and hypereutrophic on the basis of phosphate concentration. Key words: productivity; polytrophic; eutrophic; hypereutrophic DOI: 10.3126/njst.v9i0. 3180 Nepal Journal of Science and Technology 9 (2008) 149-156
Cephalosporin susceptibility of methicillin-resistant, coagulase-negative staphylococci

Coagulase-negative staphylococci were tested for susceptibility to methicillin, cephradine, ceftriaxone, cephalothin, and cefamandole by standard broth microdilution. Most of the 26 methicillin-resistant isolates were susceptible to cephalothin and cefamandole, but very few were susceptible to ceftriaxone, and none was susceptible to cephradine. The proportion of bacterial cells that grew in the presence of 128 micrograms of methicillin per ml was calculated for each methicillin-resistant isolate. Those with every cell or 1 in 10 cells resistant to 128 micrograms of methicillin per ml included the isolates that were most resistant to the cephalosporins and highly resistant to methicillin. Those with 1 cell resistant in 10(5) or 10(6) cells were the isolates most susceptible to the cephalosporins, and their methicillin MICs were lower. When cells resistant to 128 micrograms of methicillin per ml were used as inocula for broth microdilution tests, resistance to cephradine remained the same, but resistance to ceftriaxone, cephalothin, and cefamandole increased significantly. Cefamandole was the only cephalosporin which retained antibacterial activity against some methicillin-resistant isolates (12 of 26). Cephradine, ceftriaxone, cephalothin, and cefamandole resistance appeared to be expressed by the same cells that expressed methicillin resistance. In this way, cross resistance was demonstrated between methicillin and the cephalosporins.
Line Filter Design of Parallel Interleaved VSCs for High-Power Wind Energy Conversion Systems

The voltage source converters (VSCs) are often connected in parallel in a wind energy conversion system to match the high power rating of the modern wind turbines. The effect of the interleaved carriers on the harmonic performance of the parallel connected VSCs is analyzed in this paper. In order to achieve low-switching losses, the 60° clamp discontinuous pulsewidth modulation (DPWM1) is used to modulate the VSCs. A step-by-step design procedure of the line filter, which ensures the desired harmonic performance under all operating conditions, is presented. The analytical harmonic solution for the two parallel interleaved VSCs is derived in order to obtain the worst case voltage magnitude of the individual harmonic components. The required value of the filter admittance for the specific harmonic component is obtained by using the worst case voltage magnitude and the allowable harmonic injection limit. In order to achieve the desired filter performance with optimal values of the filter parameters, the use of an LC trap branch with the conventional LCL filter is proposed. The expressions for the resonant frequencies of the proposed line filter are derived and used in the design to selectively choose the values of the line filter components. The analysis and design methodology are also verified experimentally.
Inhibition of Metabotropic Glutamate Receptor Signaling by the Huntingtin-binding Protein Optineurin*

Huntington disease is caused by a polyglutamine expansion in the huntingtin protein (Htt) and is associated with excitotoxic death of striatal neurons. Group I metabotropic glutamate receptors (mGluRs) that are coupled to inositol 1,4,5-triphosphate formation and the release of intracellular Ca2+ stores play an important role in regulating neuronal function. We show here that mGluRs interact with the Htt-binding protein optineurin that is also linked to normal pressure open angled glaucoma and, when expressed in HEK 293 cells, optineurin functions to antagonize agonist-stimulated mGluR1a signaling. We find that Htt is co-precipitated with mGluR1a and that mutant Htt functions to facilitate optineurin-mediated attenuation of mGluR1a signaling. In striatal cell lines derived from HttQ111/Q111 mutant knock-in mice mGluR5-stimulated inositol phosphate formation is also severely impaired when compared with striatal cells derived from HttQ7/Q7 knock-in mice. In addition, we show that a missense single nucleotide polymorphism optineurin H486R variant previously identified to be associated with glaucoma is selectively impaired in mutant Htt binding. Although optineurin H486R retains the capacity to bind to mGluR1a, optineurin H486R-dependent attenuation of mGluR1a signaling is not enhanced by the expression of mutant Htt. Because G protein-coupled receptor kinase 2 (GRK2) protein expression is relatively low in striatal tissue, we propose that optineurin may substitute for GRK2 in the striatum to mediate mGluR desensitization. Taken together, these studies identify a novel mechanism for mGluR desensitization and an additional biochemical link between altered glutamate receptor signaling and Huntington disease.
Biología y conservación del Cóndor Andino (Vultur gryphus) en Argentina

El Cóndor Andino (Vultur gryphus) se distribuye actualmente por el oeste de América del Sur. Aunque está catalogado como una especie cercana a la amenaza e incluido en CITES I, ha sido poco estudiada y, en la actualidad, aún se desconocen muchos aspectos de su biología. En este trabajo se presenta una revisión bibliográfica sobre la biología y el estatus de conservación del Cóndor Andino, con énfasis en la información conocida para Argentina, y se proponen líneas de investigación orientadas a su conservación. Al norte de su distribución las poblaciones han sido diezmadas, en algunos casos hasta la extinción. Hacia el sur, las poblaciones aún contarían con un estatus favorable, pero existen síntomas de retracción. Esta especie posee una de las tasas reproductivas más bajas del mundo y una de las mayores tasas de supervivencia entre las aves. Las características de su comportamiento (grandes concentraciones para alimentarse y pernoctar), hacen de ella una especie muy sensible a disturbios. Esto podría causar la pérdida masiva de individuos de una población, llevándola a un estado crítico, considerando que no posee capacidad de respuesta demográfica rápida. Algunas amenazas que estaría sufriendo incluyen la matanza por considerarla una especie cazadora, la ingesta de cebos tóxicos y municiones de plomo, la colisión contra tendidos eléctricos, la cacería furtiva, la competencia por alimento y las trampas cepo, entre otras. Es necesario obtener estimaciones poblacionales, tasas de supervivencia, ponderar los factores de mortalidad, detectar áreas de importancia para la especie y determinar la disponibilidad y distribución del alimento en cada país. Las características biológicas del Cóndor Andino, junto con el desconocimiento y las amenazas humanas, generan una combinación peligrosa para su supervivencia.
Control Scheme for Switched Reluctance Drives with Minimized DC-Link Capacitance

This paper presents a control scheme which allows minimization of dc-link capacitance in switched reluctance drives. In SRMs the demagnetization energy of the outgoing phase causes a voltage increase in the dc-link. Therefore, large dc-link capacitors are required in conventional drives to absorb this energy to avoid overvoltages. The proposed control scheme balances the power flow between phases in such a way that the demagnetization energy of the outgoing phase does not flow back into the dc-link but directly into the incoming phase. Using this scheme, electrolytic capacitors can be replaced by film or ceramic capacitors leading to longer life-time and higher reliability.
RENAL HYPERTROPHY IN METABOLIC ACIDOSIS AND ITS RELATION TO AMMONIA EXCRETION.

The chronic ingestion of NH4Cl causes a true growth of the rat kidney. This involves a symmetrical increase in wet weight, dry weight, and nitrogen of the kidney tissue. Total DNA and RNA are also elevated, indicating that both cell numbers and cell size have increased. The renal hypertrophy in chronic metabolic acidosis is the same order of magnitude as that seen in the remaining kidney after unilateral nephrectomy. The renal growth-stimulating effects of acidosis and unilateral nephrectomy are additive. In the acidotic rat the renal hypertrophy that occurs after unilateral nephrectomy can maintain a high rate of ammonia excretion without any further change in renal glutaminase activity of the remaining kidney. Thus in certain species the stimulation of renal growth may play a part in the increasing capacity to excrete ammonia during sustained metabolic acidosis.
A Quasi-Coherent Sampling Method for Wideband Data Acquisition

This paper proposes a quasi-coherent equivalent-time sampling method to acquire repetitive wideband waveform signals with high throughput. We have already proposed a new sampling system which incorporates the pretrigger ability and the time jitter reduction function for a fluctuated input signal while maintaining the waveform recording efficiency. The quasi-coherent sampling method proposed in this paper can be adopted to it in order to improve its data acquisition throughput significantly. Numerical simulation results show effectiveness of our proposed method.
Performance analysis of a packet voice messaging system

A preliminary generic architecture is proposed for a packet voice messaging system (PVMS) which provides 'answering machine' service in a packet-switched environment. Its performance is considered in light of constraints imposed by the required quality of stored speech. A critical element in determining this quality is overflow in the PVMS packet buffer, which buffers packets of voice samples delivered to the PVMS for storage. A two-dimensional Markov chain analysis of the buffer occupancy of the PVMS is developed. Mean values and distributions of buffer occupancy are derived and validated against simulation. From these distributions, the probability of packet loss due to buffer overflow can be estimated, and the buffer can be sized to restrict overflow to an acceptably low level. In addition, the disk block size can be chosen to balance the tradeoff between the packet buffer size and wasted disk space. <<ETX>>
Pulmonary artery pressure limits exercise capacity at high altitude

Altitude exposure is associated with decreased exercise capacity and increased pulmonary vascular resistance (PVR). Echocardiographic measurements of pulmonary haemodynamics and a cardiopulmonary exercise test were performed in 13 healthy subjects at sea level, in normoxia and during acute hypoxic breathing (1 h, 12% oxygen in nitrogen), and in 22 healthy subjects after acclimatisation to an altitude of 5,050 m. The measurements were obtained after randomisation, double-blinded to the intake of placebo or the endothelin A receptor blocker sitaxsentan (100 mg·day−1 for 7 days). Blood and urine were sampled for renal function measurements. Normobaric as well as hypobaric hypoxia increased PVR and decreased maximum workload and oxygen uptake (V′O2,max). Sitaxsentan decreased PVR in acute and chronic hypoxia (both p<0.001), and partly restored V′O2,max, by 30 % in acute hypoxia (p<0.001) and 10% in chronic hypoxia (p<0.05). Sitaxsentan-induced changes in PVR and V′O2,max were correlated (p = 0.01). Hypoxia decreased glomerular filtration rate and free water clearance, and increased fractional sodium excretion. These indices of renal function were unaffected by sitaxsentan intake. Selective endothelin A receptor blockade with sitaxsentan improves mild pulmonary hypertension and restores exercise capacity without adverse effects on renal function in hypoxic normal subjects.
The Differential Effectiveness of Psychosocial and Biogenetic Causal Explanations in Reducing Negative Attitudes toward “Mental Illness”

Given the apparent failure of the "mental illness is an illness like any other" approach to reducing negative stereotypes of people with mental health problems, the differential effects of biogenetic and psychosocial explanations of psychiatric symptoms were evaluated. Attitude measures were administered to young New Zealand adults before and after a video portraying a young man with psychotic symptoms followed by either biogenetic or psychosocial explanations. Consistent with previous studies, the "medical model" approach significantly increased perceptions of dangerousness and unpredictability. Following the psychosocial explanation there was a slight but statistically insignificant improvement in attitudes. Participants who knew users of psychiatric services, or who had used services themselves, had more positive attitudes than other participants. It is recommended that destigmatization programs minimize efforts to persuade the public that mental health problems are biogenetic illnesses, and focus instead on increasing exposure to users of mental health services. Further research is required to determine whether such exposure should include life histories, so as to highlight the psychosocial causes of mental health problems.
Clinicopathological evaluation of T2-gastric cancer among age groups.

BACKGROUND/AIMS Although the recent results of surgical treatments for T2-gastric cancer (defined as: tumor invasion of the muscularis propria or the subserosa) have been comparatively favorable, frequency of lymph node metastasis is high and recurrence often happens. METHODOLOGY A retrospective study on T2-gastric cancer in 347 patients who underwent curative resection between 1975 and 1995 was performed to address this issue. These 347 patients were divided into 3 groups according to age: group I (72 cases) < 50 years old; group II (202 cases) not < 50 years but < 70 years old; and group III (73 cases) > or = 70 years old. RESULTS There was an apparent tendency that gastric cancer in aged patients is more likely to become differentiated cancer and spread easily to the liver. CONCLUSIONS The data suggest that aged patients should be more carefully followed for any hematogenous metastases including liver metastases. Removal of hepatic metastases or regional hepatic infusion chemotherapy may then salvage some patients even elderly patients.
Stability of Time-tradeoff Utilities in Survivors of Myocardial Infarction

To investigate whether time-tradeoff utilities of survivors of myocardial infarction change over time and whether changes in utilities correlate with changes in functional status, the authors conducted serial interviews using a time tradeoff and three measures of functional status in a cohort of 67 patients who had recently had myocardial infarction. The patients were also asked to rate their overall health on a rating scale and were asked about chest pain, exercise status, and employment status. Each patient was interviewed two to five times over one and a half years. The mean (95% Cl) time-tradeoff score for all patients was 0.88 (0.84, 0.93). Over a mean interval of 8.4 months, 28 (42%) patients changed Karnofsky scores, 28 (42%) changed Specific Activity Scale classes, and 11 (16%) changed New York Heart Association classes, with most changes representing improvements in functional status. Scores on the rating scale improved by a mean (95% Cl) of 0.06 [(0.03, 0.10); p < 0.002], but scores on the time tradeoff remained stable, with a mean (95% Cl) change of 0.03 [(-0.02, 0.08); p = NS]. Changes in time-tradeoff scores did not correlate with changes in Specific Activity Scale classes (Kendall's τ = 0.21), New York Heart Association classes (τ = -0.02), or Karnofsky scores (τ = 0.14); with changes on the verbal rating scale (R = 0.20); with changes in chest pain status (τ = -0.05), exercise status (τ = 0.11), or employment status (τ = 0.11); or with interim hospitalizations (τ = 0.05). The authors conclude that, in this relatively stable group of survivors of myocardial infarction, time-tradeoff utilities remained stable, and that changes in time-tradeoff utilities did not correlate with changes in function. Key words: functional status; quality of life; utility; patient preferences; myocardial infarction. (Med Decis Making 1993;13:161-165)