Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
High-performance bi-directional AC-DC converters for PHEV with minimised DC bus capacitance

Power electronic energy conversion systems for applications such as PHEV typically require single phase AC-DC bi-directional energy transfer with galvanic isolation. A common topology is an AC-DC single phase voltage source inverter, followed by a galvanically isolated high frequency DC-DC bi-directional dual active bridge. A major challenge for this topology is to minimize the intermediate DC bus capacitance, preferably down to a value where electrolytic capacitors are not required. For a single phase system, this is particularly challenging because of the need to match the oscillating power flow from the AC side, to a steady state power flow on the DC side of the system. This paper identifies the fundamental limiting issues for the DC bus capacitance in this application, and presents an optimized converter control strategy that minimizes its value. The analysis is confirmed by matching simulation and experimental results.
Electrically controllable double series (DS) line with left- or right-handed propagation

A reconfigurable artificial transmission line based on a novel unit cell configuration is presented. The double series (DS) unit cell consists of a series resonator in the series and the shunt branch of the unit cell. Basic theory of the DS line is given by using the transmission line approach. To tune the propagation constant and the characteristic impedance of the artificial transmission line varactors are used. A biasing network for the DS line is designed to apply a DC controlling voltage to the varactors. That way an either right- or left-handed transmission band can be obtained which is demonstrated by simulation and experiment.
Ploughing effects on soil organic matter after twenty years of conservation tillage in Lower Saxony , Germany

Conservation tillage may concentrate organic matter and carbon in the soil, thus improving soil quality and counteracting CO2-increase in the atmosphere. In parts of Germany however, continuous conservation tillage can cause problems in soil and crop management, resulting in a need to shift to short-term conventional tillage, such as mouldboard ploughing. The objective of the present research was to follow the fate of soil organic matter, when soil is ploughed after long-term minimum tillage in the temperate climate of Lower Saxony. In minimum tillage, shallow cultivation was restricted to stubble cleaning and seedbed preparation, using a rotary harrow or rototiller. After 20 years of shallow cultivation, soil organic carbon, soil nitrogen and microbial biomass carbon were concentrated in the top 5 cm of a loess-derived silt loam (Orthic Luvisol). In the 50 cm soil pro®le, mass of soil organic carbon tended to be higher by about 5 Mg haÿ1 as compared to conventionally ploughed soil, which contained roughly 65 Mg haÿ1. In the ploughed soil, soil nitrogen amounted to about 6.8 Mg haÿ1, whereas in the minimum tilled soil it was roughly 1.0 Mg haÿ1 higher. Total microbial biomass carbon ̄uctuated between 800 and 1300 kg haÿ1, the differences between tillage systems being less distinct. Ploughing the old minimum tilled land destroyed the strati®cation of soil organic matter. Moreover, during the winter months (November±March) the surplus of soil organic carbon and nitrogen masses, enriched by conservation tillage, was completely decomposed, presumably a consequence of its labile quality. Inverting the minimum tilled soil did not increase concentrations of organic carbon and nitrogen in the lower part of the Ap-horizon, but it did increase concentration of microbial biomass carbon. We conclude that organic matter strati®cation and accumulation as a result of long-term minimum tillage were completely lost by a single application of inversion tillage in the course of a relatively mild winter. # 1999 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.
Prevalence of Obesity in Patients with Psoriasis: Results of the National Study PsoHealth3

Background: Psoriasis is frequently associated with obesity which possibly contributes to reduced treatment response. Objectives: Assessment of the prevalence of obesity in patients with psoriasis in Germany 2013/2014. Patients and Methods: The frequency of overweight and obesity was assessed by the body mass index (BMI) and evaluated according to the severity of psoriasis [Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI)]. Results: This national, cross-sectional survey involved 83 dermatological practices and outpatient clinics, including 1,265 patients (mean age 52 years; 43.4% female). The BMI of patients with psoriasis in 2013/2014 was found to be 28.0 and therefore was significantly higher compared to that of patients with psoriasis in 2007 with a BMI of 26.9 as well as compared to the normal population in 2013 with an overall BMI of 25.9. Conclusions: The prevalence of obesity in patients with psoriasis is higher than in the normal population. The trend towards a higher BMI in patients with psoriasis continues over time.
High density lipoproteins and kidney function: the friend turned foe?

The crucial role of low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) in cardiovascular disease (CVD) and mortality has been extensively demonstrated, and thus reducing LDL-C is one of the key therapeutic approaches for cardiovascular risk reduction (1). However, the exact role of high density lipoproteins (HDL) is still an enigma and as research expands it is getting even more complicated. In this scenario, the work of Bowe and co-workers (2) adds a new piece of this puzzle by demonstrating the existence of an U-shape distribution of the risk of all-cause mortality in relation to HDL-C levels with a reduced risk only in those with intermediate HDL-C levels (between 25 and 50 mg/dL). This relation between HDL-C and all-cause mortality was previously reported, specifically in hemodialysis patients (3). Nevertheless, Bowe et al . (2) have investigated patients without a previous history of end-stage renal disease (ESRD), dialysis or kidney transplant, further demonstrating the U-shape association between HDL-C levels and mortality even in the absence of established kidney disease.
Formulary Forum Doxercalciferol Treatment of Secondary Hyperparathyroidism

Objective: To review the pharmacology, pharmacokinetics, effectiveness, safety, and therapeutic considerations related to the use of doxercalciferol in the treatment of secondary hyperparathyroidism. Data Sources: A MEDLINE search (1966–June 2006) was conducted using the key words vitamin D, ergocalciferols, and secondary hyperparathyroidism. Text word searches were also performed for the terms 1-ά-hydroxy-vitamin D2,1-ά-hydroxyergocalciferol, Hectorol, and doxercalciferol. Searches were limited to studies published in English and conducted in human subjects. Study Selection and Data Extraction: All published clinical studies evaluating the safety and effectiveness of doxercalciferol in secondary hyperparathyroidism were reviewed, and anecdotal patient reports were also evaluated. Selected clinical studies involving the use of calcitriol and/or paricalcitol in the treatment of secondary hyperparathyroidism were also included. Data Synthesis: Doxercalciferol effectively reduces parathyroid hormone levels in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD). Both oral and intravenous administration can significantly increase serum calcium and/or phosphorus levels as evidenced by placebo-controlled clinical trials. This agent has not been studied comparatively with calcitriol or paricalcitol to assess relative safety. Conclusions: Doxercalciferol is approved for and effective in the treatment of secondary hyperparathyroidism related to CKD, both before and during dialysis, but has not demonstrated a lower incidence of hypercalcemia and/or hyperphosphatemia in relation to other vitamin D therapies. The drug is available in both oral and intravenous dosage forms. Doxercalciferol should be maintained as a formulary alternative for patients unresponsive to or intolerant of other vitamin D therapies, but comparative randomized studies are needed to differentiate its place in therapy.
Increased CD8+ Cytotoxic T Cell Responses to Myelin Basic Protein in Multiple Sclerosis1

Autoreactive T cells of CD4 and CD8 subsets recognizing myelin basic protein (MBP), a candidate myelin autoantigen, are thought to contribute to and play distinct roles in the pathogenesis of multiple sclerosis (MS). In this study we identified four MBP-derived peptides that had high binding affinity to HLA-A2 and HLA-A24 and characterized the CD8+ T cell responses and their functional properties in patients with MS. There were significantly increased CD8+ T cell responses to 9-mer MBP peptides, in particular MBP111–119 and MBP87–95 peptides that had high binding affinity to HLA-A2, in patients with MS compared with healthy individuals. The resulting CD8+ T cell lines were of the Th1 phenotype, producing TNF-α and IFN-γ and belonged to a CD45RA−/CD45RO+ memory T cell subset. Further characterization indicated that the CD8+ T cell lines obtained were stained with MHC class I tetramer (HLA-A2/MBP111–119) and exhibited specific cytotoxicity toward autologous target cells pulsed with MBP-derived peptides in the context of MHC class I molecules. These cytotoxic CD8+ T cell lines derived from MS patients recognized endogenously processed MBP and lysed COS cells transfected with genes encoding MBP and HLA-A2. These findings support the potential role of CD8+ CTLs recognizing MBP in the injury of oligodendrocytes expressing both MHC class I molecules and MBP.
Droop Scheme With Consideration of Operating Costs

Although many droop schemes have been proposed for distributed generator (DG) control in a microgrid, they mainly focus on achieving proportional power sharing based on the DG kVA ratings. Other factors like generation costs, efficiencies, and emission penalties at different loads have not been considered even though they are different for different types of DGs. This letter thus proposes an alternative droop scheme, which can better distinguish the different operating characteristics and objectives of the DGs grouped together in a weighted droop expression. The power sharing arrived in the steady state will meet the intended objectives, as demonstrated in the experiment with a defined objective of minimizing the total microgrid operating cost.
Medical Treatment of Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease – Beyond the Proton Pump Inhibitors

Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) is interesting pathophysiologically. Whilst the clinical expression is related primarily to acid-peptic injury to the esophagus, reflux disease is fundamentally a motility disorder caused by abnormal lower esophageal sphincter (LES) function. Additionally, abnormal esophageal defence mechanisms may contribute to disease expression, particularly in patients with more severe esophagitis. Opportunities exist, therefore, for medical treatment to be directed towards several pathophysiological mechanisms: acid secretion, LES function, esophageal clearance and esophageal mucosal defence. Over the past 20 years there have been major advances in the medical management of reflux disease. Up until the development of the H2-receptor antagonists, medical management relied on symptomatic relief wtih antacids and life-style measures of minimal or no efficacy. Healing of esophagitis was essentially unachievable except, possibly in some instances, with high-dose antacids [1], a cumbersome approach that was unacceptable to many patients. The advent of the H2-receptor antagonists and cisapride heralded the first realistic capability to control reflux disease medically, albeit with only moderate success. The capacity to potently inhibit acid secretion with proton pump inhibitors has made it possible to control reflux disease in almost all patients. It might seem, therefore, that the fight is over. Exploitation of other therapeutic options and fine tuning of existing ones, however, are very worthwhile aims even for patients whose reflux disease is well controlled with existing options, but are especially important for the minority of patients with severe esophagitis or with high-volume reflux whose problem is not adequately controlled. This review explores the potential options for future advances in the pharmacotherapy of reflux disease. Three main areas will be discussed: esophageal motility, particularly control of the LES, acid suppression and mucosal protection.
Probabilistic and Worst Case Analyses of Classical Problems of Combinatorial Optimization in Euclidean Space

The classical problems reviewed are the traveling salesman problem, minimal spanning tree, minimal matching, greedy matching, minimal triangulation, and others. Each optimization problem is considered for finite sets of points in ℝd, and the feature of principal interest is the value of the associated objective function. Special attention is given to the asymptotic behavior of this value under probabilistic assumptions, but both probabilistic and worst case analyses are surveyed.
Sleep problems in childhood: a longitudinal study of developmental change and association with behavioral problems.

OBJECTIVE The objective of the study was to examine specificity, order of appearance, and developmental changes in the relationships between sleep problems and behavioral problems in children. METHOD Four hundred ninety children were selected from a large-scale longitudinal study of children growing up in adoptive and nonadoptive (biological) families in Colorado. Parental ratings of children's sleep and behavioral problems on the Child Behavior Checklist were obtained from ages 4 to 15 years. RESULTS Sleep problems decreased from age 4 years to mid-adolescence, but there was modest stability of individual differences across this age range (r = 0.29). Regression analyses indicated that sleep problems at age 4 predicted behavioral/emotional problems in mid-adolescence after accounting for child sex, adoptive status, and stability of behavioral/emotional problems. Finally, the correlation between sleep problems and depression/anxiety increased significantly during this age period from r = 0.39 at age 4 years to r = 0.52 at mid-adolescence. CONCLUSIONS Early sleep problems may forecast behavioral/emotional problems, and there may be important developmental change in the overlap between sleep problems and behavioral/emotional problems.
Predictors of flourishing for adolescents with asthma

Abstract Objective: The purpose of this study was to examine well-being or flourishing of adolescents with asthma as well as factors influencing flourishing for these adolescents. Methods: A secondary analysis of data collected for the 2011–2012 National Survey of Children’s Health was conducted. Flourishing of adolescents with and without asthma was compared. Parent coping and anger, child sex and age and child flourishing were examined for adolescents with asthma. Results: Youth with asthma had lower flourishing than those without this disease. Positive parent coping was related to flourishing, while parent anger negatively influenced flourishing of adolescents with asthma. Interaction terms were significant, indicating that the aforementioned variables interacted with adolescent age and sex. Conclusions: Study results point to a complex relationship between parent- and adolescent-level factors and adolescent well-being. Further research is needed to examine relations among flourishing and health outcomes in youth with asthma.
Common-mode rejection in a phased-array filtenna of connected dipoles

In this work we describe an effective strategy for the avoidance of common-mode resonances excited in a printed array of loaded dipoles with inherent filtering properties (filtenna). Previous works demonstrated that, for E-plane scanning, such resonances occur due to the unbalanced excitation of the dipoles. The present approach is based on the use of an X-band hybrid-ring connected to the filtenna structure. A design with operational bandwidth spanning from 8.5 to 10.5 GHz is presented and validated with simulations.
Evidence for hemi‐gap junctional channels in isolated horizontal cells of the skate retina

Prolonged depolarization of isolated, voltageclamped skate retinal horizontal cells produces an outward current that exhibits a late onset and develops slowly with time. This current, which we refer to as the Q‐current, is associated with an increase in membrane conductance, and is present when other voltage‐gated conductances have been pharmacologically blocked. The reversal potential for the Q‐current, obtained using tail current analysis, was close to 0 mV. The magnitude of the current was greatly reduced by superfusion with 25 mM acetate, and by 4 mM cobalt chloride, 2 mM 1‐octanol, and a saturated solution of the general anesthetic halothane. In addition, the low‐molecular weight fluorescent dye Lucifer yellow, applied extracellularly, entered the cells during activation of the Q‐current, whereas a 3 kD dextran‐fluorescein complex did not cross the cell membrane. The effects of divalent cations, the nonspecific nature of the ionic current suggested by its reversal potential, the entry of Lucifer yellow, and the ability of acetate, halothane, cobalt, and octanol to block the current lead us to hypothesize that the Q‐current results from the opening of hemi‐gap junctional channels that mediate electrical coupling between skate horizontal cells. © 1993 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Algorithms for Solving Nonconvex Block Constrained Quadratic Problems

Non-convex Quadratically Constrained Quadratic Programs with block-separable convex constraints are generally NP-hard. These problems appear in many applications such as estimation and control, complex unimodular programming, and MAX-CUT type problems. SDP relaxation is the best known upper bound approximation for this problem. We suggest the Block Optimal Ascent (BOA) algorithm to obtain lower approximation. The algorithm uses block hidden convexity to apply block alternating minimization and we prove it has a sublinear rate of convergence. A better approximation can be obtained using a ’good’ initial point, based on the novel approach of using the SDP relaxation solution. A quantitative study shows that using BOA from this initial point has superior performance.
Research of evaluation information processing of inventory optimization based on grey clustering and fuzzy evaluation method

Market competition is no longer among individual enterprises, but among the Supply Chains of enterprises. How to set up and maintain a reasonable inventory level to balance the risk and loss brought by the shortage of inventory shortage and the increased inventory cost and capital cost caused by too much inventory has become an imperative problem to logistics enterprises. In this paper, the AHP method is used to determine the various classification indexes weights of the inventory, and based on the gray clustering analysis, inventory optimization evaluation model and algorithm is presented with fuzzy evaluation method, which provides a broad prospect for logistics enterprise inventory optimization and evaluation technology.
A Recurrent Presentation of Hand, Foot, and Mouth Disease

Hand foot and mouth disease, a virus most commonly caused by coxsackievirus A16, is an illness usually affecting young children. It is a clinical diagnosis of multiple oral, hand, and foot lesions lasting roughly 7–10 days, resolving with symptomatic treatment only. Although uncommon, we report a case that reoccurred within four weeks and then again nine months after the original infection with dermatologic lesions located in the same distribution.
Retrospective study of Fine Needle Aspiration Cytology of thyroid lesions according to The Bethesda System for Reporting Thyroid Cytopathology ( TBSRTC )

BACKGROUND & Objectives: Fine needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) plays important role in diagnosis of thyroid lesions. However conventional reporting of cytology lack standardize format. To overcome this obstacle and to facilitate communication between cytopathologist and clinician, "The Bethesda System for Reporting Thyroid Cytopathology" (TBSRTC) proposed at Bethesda in 2007. Aims: Objective of this study was to classify thyroid FNAC according to TBSRTC, calculate malignancy risk and compare data with literature. Settings and Design: Analytical cross sectional study. MATERIALS AND METHODS: All the FNAC of thyroid lesions came during August 2013 to December 2014 were classified in to six categories of TBSRTC. Distribution of cases in each category was calculated. Histopathology examination carried out whenever tissue was available and malignancy risk calculated. RESULTS: During the study period, total of 134 thyroid FNAC were reported according to TBSRTC. Non diagnostic(ND), benign, atypical follicular lesion of undetermined significance(AFLUS), follicular neoplasm(FN), suspicious of malignancy(SM) and malignancy were reported in 4.5%, 85.8%, 0.7%, 7.5%, 0.7% and 0.7% cases respectively. Follow up by histopathological examination available in 24 cases and malignancy risk was calculated as 33% in FN, zero percent in ND and benign categories. As no case available for follow up, malignancy risk was not calculated for AFLUS, SM and malignant categories. CONCLUSION: Use of TBSRTC for thyroid FNAC reporting helps to highlight increased malignancy risk associated with FN, SM and malignant categories as well as provide data in a standardize pattern to compare between different studies related to cytology of thyroid lesions.
Oral administration of antigen in the treatment of eye disease

Feeding antigens to experimental animals can result in oral tolerance, a peripheral immunological non-responsiveness induced by the processing of exogenous antigen through gut associated lymphoid tissue.1 Oral administration of autoantigen has been shown to ameliorate disease in a number of rodent models of organ specific autoimmune conditions including experimental autoimmune uveoretinitis (EAU),1-5 experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE),6 experimental granulomatous colitis,7and experimental autoimmune thyroiditis.8 Because antigen feeding protocols have been shown to be effective even in sensitised recipients with established disease, induction of oral tolerance represents a novel potential strategy for the treatment of human autoimmune disease, allergy and possibly graft rejection. The mechanisms involved in induction and maintenance of oral tolerance depend critically upon antigen dosage.13 Immunisation with high doses of antigen leads to energy of antigen reactive cells, whereas lower antigen doses induce a form of immune deviation or active suppression. Anergy reflects the situation in which antigen reactive cells are generated but are functionally inactive: the molecular mechanisms involved are uncertain. Immune deviation operates through induction of a population of transforming growth factor beta …
Software defined radar: An open source platform for prototype GPR development

This discussion paper explores the potential of Software Defined Radio (SDR) technology to provide flexible and low-cost subsurface radar prototypes for the GPR community. Unlike traditional fixed hardware implementations, SDR uses software configurable RF modules which can be used to implement customized signal encoding, decoding and processing. However, the full potential of SDR has not yet been fully understood or exploited for radar-based applications, and so is of special interest for GPR development. This paper introduces the fundamental concepts behind SDRs and describes the underlying hardware and software architectures that are used to implement them. It also provides a simple reference design using open source GNU Radio software and the Universal Software Radio Peripheral (USRP) hardware to indicate how low-cost radar configurations can be designed and evaluated. The benefits and challenges of SDR-based radar architectures are highlighted, and opportunities discussed for new and enhanced subsurface sensing capabilities. Overall, SDR technology is seen to provide new opportunities to boost future radar research and development to provide enhanced GPR system capabilities.