Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Water Relations of Cotton Plants under Nitrogen Deficiency: I. Dependence upon Leaf Structure.

Cotton plants (Gossypium hirsutum L.) grown on deficient levels of N exhibited many of the characteristics associated with drought resistance. In N-deficient plants, leaf areas and leaf epidermal cells were smaller than at the same nodes in high-N plants. N-deficient leaves lost only about half as much water per unit change in water potential as did high-N leaves. In addition, they maintained a greater relative water content than high-N leaves at any given potential. Osmotic potentials (determined from pressure-volume curves) were slightly lower in N-deficient leaves. This difference in solute concentration was not from organic acids, which were almost unchanged. Sugar concentrations could account for only about 25% of the difference.Leaves of N-deficient plants contained considerably more dry matter per unit moisture. Most of this difference in dry weight was in the crude cell wall fraction. The pressure-volume curves and other indirect evidence strongly suggested that cell walls of N-deficient leaves were substantially more rigid than cell walls of high-N leaves. The effects of N deficiency on cell wall properties mimic the changes which occur during drought adaptation.
The effects of blur upon perimetric thresholds. A method for determining a quantitative estimate of retinal contour.

Introduction This paper serves a twofold purpose. Some of the effects of blur of the retinal image upon perimetric thresholds are considered, and a clinical procedure is presented which utilizes these characteristics in order to provide a quantitative estimate of retinal contour. The method does not provide a measure of the true contour, but rather provides a precise reference or relative contour which may be compared with that obtained in other portions of the retina, or which may be compared with a similar set of determinations obtained at a different time. The procedure is based upon the assumption that the contrast or luminous increment threshold is lowest when the perimetric test target, imaged upon its corresponding retinal area, is focused upon the retina. The clinical method permits quantitative determination of shifts in a fore-and-aft direction of the retinal receptors in that part of the visual field usually studied with a
Subthreshold Performance of Dual-Material Gate CMOS Devices and Circuits for Ultralow Power Analog/Mixed-Signal Applications

Analog circuits based on the subthreshold operation of CMOS devices are very attractive for ultralow power, high gain, and moderate frequency applications. In this paper, the analog performance of 100 nm dual-material gate (DMG) CMOS devices in the subthreshold regime of operation is reported for the first time. The analog performance parameters, namely drain-current (Id), transconductance (gm), transconductance generation factor (gm/Id), early voltage (VA), output resistance (Ro) and intrinsic gain for the DMG n-MOS devices, and and for the DMG p-MOS devices are systematically investigated with the help of extensive device simulations. The effects of different capacitances on the unity-gain frequency are also studied. The DMG CMOS devices are found to have significantly better performance as compared to their single-material gate (SMG) counterpart. More than 70% improvement in the voltage gain is observed for the CMOS amplifiers when dual-material gates, instead of single-material gates, are used in both the n- and p-channel devices.
The inferior olive of a prosimian primate, Galago senegalensis. II. Olivocerebellar projections to the vestibulocerebellum

Olivocerebellar projections to the vestibulocerebellum of Galago senegalensis, a prosimian primate, were studied by using a horseradish peroxidase (HRP) method. Following implants of HRP into the flocculus, labeled cells are found in subgroup d of contralateral medial accessory olive (MAO), while labeled somata are present throughout subgroups c and d after injections of HRP into the nodulus and adjacent parts of the uvula. Labeled cells are also located throughout the dorsomedial cell column (DMCC) and a small contingent of HRP‐filled cells are seen in dorsomedial areas of the ventrallamellae of the principal olivary nucleus (PO) after HRP placements in nodu‐ lus and uvula. Subsequent to injections of paraflocculus, labeled cells are found in subgroup a of MAO, in the lateral bend of PO, and in its ventral lamella (VLPO).
Computer-enhanced emotion in facial expressions

Benson and Perrett's (1991b) computer–based caricature procedure was used to alter the positions of anatomical landmarks in photographs of emotional facial expressions with respect to their locations in a reference norm face (e.g. a neutral expression). Exaggerating the differences between an expression and its norm produces caricatured images, whereas reducing the differences produces ‘anti–caricatures’. Experiment 1 showed that caricatured (+50 % different from neutral) expressions were recognized significantly faster than the veridical (0 %, undistorted) expressions. This held for all six basic emotions from the Ekman and Friesen (1976) series, and the effect generalized across different posers. For experiment 2, caricatured (+50 %) and anti–caricatured (−50 %) images were prepared using two types of references norm; a neutral–expression norm, which woud be optimal if facial expression recognition involves monitoring changes in the positioning of underlying facial muscles (excluding neutral) in the Ekman & Friesen (1976) series. The results showed that the caricatured images were identified significantly faster, and the anti–caricatured images significantly slower, than the veridical expressions. Furthermore, the neutral–expression and average–expression norm caricatures produced the same pattern of results.
Optimizing DNN Adaptation for Recognition of Enhanced Speech

Speech enhancement directly using deep neural network (DNN) is of major interest due to the capability of DNN to tangibly reduce the impact of noisy conditions in speech recognition tasks. Similarly, DNN based acoustic model adaptation to new environmental conditions is another challenging topic. In this paper we present an analysis of acoustic model adaptation in presence of a disjoint speech enhancement component, identifying an optimal setting for improving the speech recognition performance. Adaptation is derived from a consolidated technique that introduces in the training process a regularization term to prevent overfitting. We propose to optimize the adaptation of the clean acoustic models towards the enhanced speech by tuning the regularization term based on the degree of enhancement. Experiments on a popular noisy dataset (e.g., AURORA-4) demonstrate the validity of the proposed approach.
Ionic liquids in heterocyclic synthesis.

2.5. Ionic Liquids Presented in This Review 2020 3. Cyclocondensation Reactions 2020 4. Synthesis of Three-Membered Heterocycles 2022 4.1. Aziridines 2022 5. Synthesis of Five-Membered Heterocycles 2022 5.1. Pyrroles 2022 5.2. Furans 2022 5.3. Thiophenes 2023 5.4. Pyrazoles 2024 5.5. Imidazoles 2025 5.6. Isoxazoles 2027 5.7. Oxazoles, Oxazolines, and Oxazolidinones 2027 5.8. Thiazoles and Thiazolidinones 2028 6. Synthesis of Six-Membered Heterocycles 2030 6.1. Pyridines 2030 6.2. Quinolines 2031 6.3. Acridines 2033 6.4. Pyrans 2033 6.5. Flavones 2035 6.6. Pyrimidines and Pyrimidinones 2035 6.7. Quinazolines 2037 6.8. -Carbolines 2038 6.9. Dioxanes 2039 6.10. Oxazines 2039 6.11. Benzothiazines 2040 6.12. Triazines 2040 7. Synthesis of Seven-Membered Heterocycles: Diazepines 2041
Topological regulation of cell division in Escherichia coli involves rapid pole to pole oscillation of the division inhibitor MinC under the control of MinD and MinE

Placement of the Z ring at midcell in Escherichia coli is assured by the action of the min system, which blocks usage of potential division sites that exist at the cell poles. This activity of min is achieved through the action of an inhibitor of division, MinC, that is activated by MinD and topologically regulated by MinE. In this study, we have used a functional GFP–MinC fusion to monitor the location of MinC. We find that GFP–MinC is a cytoplasmic protein in the absence of the other Min proteins. The addition of MinD, a peripheral membrane protein that interacts with MinC, results in GFP–MinC appearing on the membrane. In the presence of both MinD and MinE, GFP–MinC oscillates rapidly between the halves of the cell. Thus, MinC is positioned by the other Min products, but in a dynamic manner so that it is in position to inhibit Z ring assembly away from midcell.
F‐actin‐based Ca signaling—a critical comparison with the current concept of Ca signaling

A short comparative survey on the current idea of Ca signaling and the alternative concept of F‐actin‐based Ca signaling is given. The two hypotheses differ in one central aspect, the mechanism of Ca storage. The current theory rests on the assumption of Ca‐accumulating endoplasmic/sarcoplasmic reticulum‐derived vesicles equipped with an ATP‐dependent Ca pump and IP3‐ or ryanodine‐sensitive channel‐receptors for Ca‐release. The alternative hypothesis proceeds from the idea of Ca storage at the high‐affinity binding sites of actin filaments. Cellular sites of F‐actin‐based Ca storage are microvilli and the submembrane cytoskeleton. Several specific features of Ca signaling such as store‐channel coupling, quantal Ca release, spiking and oscillations, biphasic and “phasic” uptake kinetics, and Ca‐induced Ca release (CICR), which are not adequately described by the current concept, are inherent properties of the F‐actin system and its dynamic state of treadmilling. J. Cell. Physiol. 209: 270–287, 2006. © 2006 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
An integral formula of hyperbolic type for solutions of the Dirac equation on Minkowski space with initial conditions on a hyperboloid

The Dirac equation for spinor-valued fields f on the Minkowski space of even dimension form a hyperbolic system of partial differential equations. In the paper, we are showing how to reconstruct the solution from initial data given on the upper sheet H+ of the hyperboloid. In particular, we derive an integral formula expressing the value of f in a chosen point p as an integral over a compact cycle given by the intersection of the null cone with H+ in the Minkowski space M.
Recursive Identification of Micropositioning Stage Based on Sandwich Model With Hysteresis

In this brief, a recursive identification method for a micropositioning stage with piezo actuators is proposed. This method utilizes a sandwich model for describing nonlinear dynamics of the stage. In this model, both power amplifier with filtering circuit and the flexure hinge with load are described by linear dynamic submodels, respectively, whereas a Duhem hysteresis submodel is employed for describing the performance of the piezo actuator. An extended recursive identification algorithm is proposed for estimating the corresponding parameters of the sandwich model, and the convergence of the proposed algorithm is analyzed. Finally, the experimental results of a real positioning stage with piezo actuators are presented and discussed.
Do Companies Benefit from Public Research Organizations? The Impact of the Fraunhofer Society in Germany

Among available policy levers to boost innovation, investment in applied research organisations has received little empirical attention. In this paper, we analyse the case of the Fraunhofer Society, the largest public applied research organization in Germany. We analyse whether project interaction with Fraunhofer affects the performance and strategic orientation of firms. To that end, we assemble a unique dataset based on the confidential Fraunhofer-internal project management system and merge it with the German contribution to the Community Innovation Survey (CIS), which contains panel information on firm performance. Using instrumental variables that exploit the scale heteroscedasticity of the independent variable (Lewbel, 2012), we identify the causal effects of Fraunhofer interactions on firm performance and strategies. We find a strong, positive effect of project interaction on growth in turnover and productivity. In particular, we find that a one percent increase in the size of the contracts with FhG leads to an increase in growth rate of sales by 1.3 percentage points, and to an increase in the growth rate of productivity by 0.8 percentage points in the short-run. We also provide evidence of considerable long-run effects accumulating to 18% growth in sales and 12% growth in productivity over the course of 15 years. More detailed analyses reveal, amongst others, that the performance effects become stronger the more often firms interact with Fraunhofer and that interactions aiming at generation of technology have a stronger effect than interactions aiming merely at the implementation of existing technologies. Finally, we provide evidence on the macroeconomic productivity effects of Fraunhofer interactions on the German economy. Our results indicate that doubling Fraunhofer revenues from industry (+€ 0.68 bn.) would increase overall productivity in the German economy by 0.55%.
What are the benefits of subsidized early childcare? : evidence from Kenya

Previous research shows that the gains associated with Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) greatly exceed its costs. A study of early education programs in the U.S., for example, found a 7.3 fold benefits-to-costs ratio (Garcia et al., 2016). Unfortunately, nearly all of the Cost Benefit Analyses (CBA) of ECCE programs are conducted in highincome countries. CBA studies in lowand middle-income countries are rare because of limited rigorous evaluations of ECCE programs and challenges to monetizing benefits. GrOW Research Series Policy Brief
Female Labor Force Participation in Third World Countries: An Empirical Analysis

The study identified the socio-economic and demographic factors of both married and unmarried females in third world countries. Almost all the countries have same problems but we have selected Pakistan as a sample country. The main purpose of this study was to examine which factors forced women to participate in labor market. So the best technique of data collection was survey of both married and unmarried females between the ages of 20 to 49. Two models (probit and logit) were used to analyze the factors which effect on FLFP. The result showed that some factors e.g. age; education and marital status have significant effect on FLFP. The findings showed that educated women and those who belong to joint families are more participate because of financial pressure. Keywords—Education, Financial status, Family pressure Labor Market participation.
Imagerie de diffusion à haute résolution angulaire : étude du modèle q-ball par couplage simulations-fantômes et applications au suivi de fibres et à la parcellisation du cortex

Par la mesure du deplacement des molecules d'eau au niveau microscopique, l'IRM de diffusion permet d'etudier la microstructure des tissus de la matiere blanche de facon non invasive. Dans ce travail de these, nous nous interessons au probleme direct souleve par l'IRM de diffusion : connaissant une geometrie de croisement de fibre precise, quel est le signal fourni par cette technique ? Pour cela nous avons realise des fantomes physiques de diffusion, qui, a partir d'acquisitions sur IRM, vont pouvoir nous aider a valider le modele q-ball. Nous avons egalement realise un simulateur numerique afin de comparer les resultats acquis et simules. L'une des applications les plus attractives de l'IRM de diffusion est le suivi des faisceaux de fibres de la matiere blanche. Pour resoudre ce probleme inverse, nous proposons un algorithme de tractographie probabiliste regularise, utilisant le modele q-ball. Par dela la simple reconstruction visuelle des trajectoires des faisceaux de fibres de la substance blanche, l'IRM de diffusion et les algorithmes de tractographie permettent d'inferer la connectivite anatomique cerebrale. Nous nous sommes donc egalement interesses a la parcellisation du manteau cortical a partir des informations de connectivite. Les enjeux de ce travail sont multiples :L’ interpretation de la mesure fournie par l'IRM de diffusion n'est pas encore maitrisee dans son ensemble. Il est donc necessaire de travailler sur des fantomes physiques ou numeriques pour mieux comprendre le phenomene. D'autre part, la structure du cerveau humain est encore mal connue et les outils de tractographie fournis par l'IRM de diffusion permettent de progresser dans ce domaine.
Femoral nerve block after intra‐operative subcutaneous bupivacaine injection

Atracurium and hypoxaemic episodes D.A. Sudhaman, PFARCS A dangerous failure of a pulse oximeter I . J . Broome, FGAnaes M.I. Reynolds, FCAnaes The laryngeal mask: cautionary tales P.A. Wilkinson. FFARCS A . M. Cyna, DRCOG and D . M . MacLeod, M B J . R. Campl7e:l. FFA RCS J . Criswell, M B and R . John, FCAnaes The laryngeal mask and difficult tracheal intubation A . Ravalia, FFARCS and J . M. Goddard, FFARCS The management of hyponatraemia P.J. Horsey, FFARCS Diabetes and hypotension G . Shorten, FFARCSI and G . Furness, FFARCSI Another cause for bradycardia during neurosurgery P . Jmhi, FFARCS, C. Green, FFARCS and J .
Gm over ID design for UWB distributed amplifier

This paper presents the optimized design of a conventional four-stage distributed amplifier for Ultra-Wide Band applications (UWB). The design flow exploits the gm/ID methodology in order to optimize the size of the transistors to achieve the best tradeoff between gain, input/output matching, noise figure and power DC consumption. The circuit was designed using a 0.13 μm process from IHP Microelectronics, it exhibits a gain of 11 dB over the frequency range from 3.1 to 10.6 GHz and an average noise figure of 2.65 dB. The input/output return loss are lower than 16 dB and the amplifier dissipates only 26 mW with 1.2 V supply. Finally, the chip measures only 1.07 mm × 0.7 mm.
Organophosphorus Pesticide Residues in Vegetable and Soil Samples from Alau Dam and Gongulong Agricultural Areas, Borno State, Nigeria

The Concentrations of organophosphorus pesticide residues (dichlorvos, diazinon, chlorpyrifos, and fenitro-thion) were determine in some vegetables (spinach, lettuce, cabbage, tomato and onion) and soil samples from different depths within Alau Dam and Gongulong agricultural areas in Borno State, Nigeria. Samples collection and preparation were carried out using standard procedures. The concentrations of all the pesticides in the vegetables and soil samples were determined using GC/MS SHIMADZU (GC-17A) equipped with electron capture detector (ECD). The highest concentra-tions of diclorvos, diazinon, chlorpiryfos and fenithrothion in the Alau Dam and Gongulong agricultural areas were ob-served in the leaf of tomato, while the lowest concentrations were observed in the root of spinach. The concentrations of all the pesticides in the soil samples were observed to be higher at a depth of 21-30cm, while the lowest concentrations were observed at a depth of 0-10cm. The concentrations of all the organophosphorus pesticides in the vegetables and soil samples from the two agricultural areas were observed to be at alarming levels, much higher than the maximum residue limits (MRLs) and acceptable daily intake values (ADIs) set for vegetables and soil by the Cordex 2009 (WHO and FAO). The occurrence of pesticides in the vegetables and soil samples is a major threat to human that depends on these vegetables as food. Hence, the need for continuous monitoring is recommended so as to regulate the used of this pesticide in the study areas.
Increase in blood–brain barrier permeability, oxidative stress, and activated microglia in a rat model of blast‐induced traumatic brain injury

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) as a consequence of exposure to blast is increasingly prevalent in military populations, with the underlying pathophysiological mechanisms mostly unknown. In the present study, we utilized an air‐driven shock tube to investigate the effects of blast exposure (120 kPa) on rat brains. Immediately following exposure to blast, neurological function was reduced. BBB permeability was measured using IgG antibody and evaluating its immunoreactivity in the brain. At 3 and 24 hr postexposure, there was a transient significant increase in IgG staining in the cortex. At 3 days postexposure, IgG immunoreactivity returned to control levels. Quantitative immunostaining was employed to determine the temporal course of brain oxidative stress following exposure to blast. Levels of 4‐hydroxynonenal (4‐HNE) and 3‐nitrotyrosine (3‐NT) were significantly increased at 3 hr postexposure and returned to control levels at 24 hr postexposure. The response of microglia to blast exposure was determined by autoradiographic localization of 3H‐PK11195 binding. At 5 days postexposure, increased binding was observed in the contralateral and ipsilateral dentate gyrus. These regions also displayed increased binding at 10 days postexposure; in addition to these regions there was increased binding in the contralateral ventral hippocampus and substantia nigra at this time point. By using antibodies against CD11b/c, microglia morphology characteristic of activated microglia was observed in the hippocampus and substantia nigra of animals exposed to blast. These results indicate that BBB breakdown, oxidative stress, and microglia activation likely play a role in the neuropathology associated with TBI as a result of blast exposure. © 2010 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Towards Compositional Safety Analysis via Semantic Representation of Component Failure Behaviour

In dependable systems engineering safety assessment of complex designs that involve software and hardware components is one of the most difficult tasks required. Due to the different modelling languages and models that are used for complementary tasks, the model and specification artefacts are not easily shared by the experts involved in the design process. Moreover, the structural and semantic differences of the used language representations open a possibility for inconsistencies between the corresponding models. This work explores the role of an ontology representation of component failure behaviour as a basis for automated model transformations, as well as a library of reusable knowledge artefacts to be used in different modelling languages and models. The presented approach was motivated by recent findings and requirements derived from European industrial-driven research and development projects This work is partly funded by the European Space Agency (ESA) Contract Ref: RFQ3-12080/07/NL/FM/na.
Pictorial essay: Interventional radiology in the management of hemodialysis vascular access - A single-center experience

Abstract Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a worldwide public health problem and is associated with high morbidity and mortality. The majority of patients with CKD stage 5 (CKD-5), who cannot undergo renal transplant, depend on maintenance hemodialysis by surgically created access sites. Native fistulae are preferred over grafts due to their longevity. More than half of these vital portals for dialysis access will fail over time. Screening procedures to select high-risk patients before thrombosis or stenosis appears have resulted in aggressive management. These patients are referred for angiographic evaluation and/or therapy. We present the patterns of dialysis-related interventions done in our institution.