Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
ROD AND CONE SIGNALING TRANSMISSION IN THE RETINA OF ZEBRAFISH: AN ERG STUDY

It has been suggested that in lower vertebrates, visual signals are propagated in the retina using mixed bipolar cell pathways. In this article, we examined rod and cone signaling transmission in the retina of teleost zebrafish. Full-field electroretinograms (ERGs) were recorded from the cornea of control or 2-amino-4-phosphonobutyric acid (APB)-treated zebrafish. During dark adaptation following bright light adaptation, the intensity-response (V-log I) curve for both the ERG b- and d-waves shifted. In control animals, the b-wave response displayed a typical visual Purkinje shift and became more sensitive. By contrast, the d-wave- became less sensitive. In the early dark adaptation, cone-dominant signals were readily recorded in both b- and d-waves. In the late dark adaptation, rod signals became dominant. However, no obvious d-wave was recorded. Intraocular injections of APB selectively blocked the b-wave, but revealed the d-wave in both early and late dark adaptation
A study on reusing resources of speech synthesis for closely-related languages

This thesis describes research on building a text-to-speech (TTS) framework that can accommodate the lack of linguistic information of under-resource languages by using existing resources from another language. It describes the adaptation process required when such limited resource is used. The main natural languages involved in this research are Malay and Iban language. The thesis includes a study on grapheme to phoneme mapping and the substitution of phonemes. A set of substitution matrices is presented which show the phoneme confusion in term of perception among respondents. The experiments conducted study the intelligibility as well as perception based on context of utterances. The study on the phonetic prosody is then presented and compared to the Klatt duration model. This is to find the similarities of cross language duration model if one exists. Then a comparative study of Iban native speaker with an Iban polyglot TTS using Malay resources is presented. This is to confirm that the prosody of Malay can be used to generate Iban synthesised speech. The central hypothesis of this thesis is that by using a closely-related language resource, a natural sounding speech can be produced. The aim of this research was to show that by sticking to the indigenous language characteristics, it is possible to build a polyglot synthesised speech system even with insufficient speech resources.
Single proximal tubules of the Necturus kidney. II. Effect of 2, 4-dinitro-phenol and ouabain on water reabsorption.

The effect of ouabain and 2,4-dinitrophenol on water reabsorption from the proximal tubule of the kidney of Necturus maculosus has been studied using the collection and stopped flow perfusion techniques previously described. The intravenous administration of ouabain in collection experiments results in a decrease in water reabsorption from 32.7% (normal controls) to 15.4%. In stopped flow perfusion experiments on control animals, water reabsorption after 20 minutes is 27.2%. When 2,4-dinitrophenol or ouabain is added to the perfusion fluids, values of 10.2% and 9.8%, respectively, are observed. The experimental findings demonstrate that water reabsorption in the proximal tubule is inhibited by these agents. The results are in agreement with the hypothesis of active reabsorption of sodium from the proximal tubule of the kidney of Necturus.
FORMATIVE OBSIDIAN PROCUREMENT AT TRES ZAPOTES, VERACRUZ, MEXICO: IMPLICATIONS FOR OLMEC AND EPI-OLMEC POLITICAL ECONOMY

Abstract We report the results of chemical sourcing of obsidian artifacts from Tres Zapotes using X-ray fluorescence analysis. This is the first obsidian sourcing study for this major Olmec and Epi-Olmec center in which samples are drawn from secure archaeological proveniences specifically assigned to Early, Middle, Late Formative, and Protoclassic periods. We employed a stratified random sampling strategy to select 180 obsidian artifacts from excavated assemblages, supplementing the random sample with another 24 specimens drawn from rare visual categories. Consequently, we are able to characterize changes in the relative importance of different obsidian sources in the political economy of Tres Zapotes across the critical transition from Olmec to Epi-Olmec society with greater confidence than has been possible for the Gulf lowlands while extending our observations to the full sample of 5,713 visually characterized obsidian artifacts—2,695 of which come from the well-dated Formative contexts examined in this article. Our study confirms the absence of obsidian from Otumba and from Guatemalan sources in the excavated Olmec assemblage in favor of sources from eastern Puebla and Veracruz, supporting a model of overlapping autonomous networks for obsidian procurement at Gulf Olmec sites. Presence of the Guatemalan San Martín Jilotepeque source in Epi-Olmec contexts may relate to the reestablishment of trans-Isthmian contacts, while increasing prevalence of Zaragoza-Oyameles obsidian from eastern Puebla marks the beginning of a long-term trend. Although more even representation of obsidian sources in Epi-Olmec contexts is consistent with the hypothesized transition from an exclusionary Olmec political economy toward a more “corporate” system associated with power sharing among factional leaders at Tres Zapotes, neither Olmec nor Epi-Olmec elites monopolized a particular obsidian source or technology.
DEFINING THE MAJOR LINEAGES OF RED ALGAE (RHODOPHYTA) 1

Previous phylogenetic studies of the Rhodophyta have provided a framework for understanding red algal phylogeny, but there still exists the need for a comprehensive analysis using a broad sampling of taxa and sufficient phylogenetic information to clearly define the major lineages. In this study, we determined 48 sequences of the PSI P700 chl a apoprotein A1 (psaA) and rbcL coding regions and established a robust red algal phylogeny to identify the major clades. The tree included most of the lineages of the Bangiophyceae (25 genera, 48 taxa). Seven well‐supported lineages were identified with this analysis with the Cyanidiales having the earliest divergence and being distinct from the remaining taxa; i.e. the Porphyridiales 1–3, Bangiales, Florideophyceae, and Compsopogonales. We also analyzed data sets with fewer taxa but using seven proteins or the DNA sequence from nine genes to resolve inter‐clade relationships. Based on all of these analyses, we propose that the Rhodophyta contains two new subphyla, the Cyanidiophytina with a single class, the Cyanidiophyceae, and the Rhodophytina with six classes, the Bangiophyceae, Compsopogonophyceae, Florideophyceae, Porphyridiophyceae classis nov. (which contains Porphyridium, Flintiella, and Erythrolobus), Rhodellophyceae, and Stylonematophyceae classis nov. (which contains Stylonema, Bangiopsis, Chroodactylon, Chroothece, Purpureofilum, Rhodosorus, Rhodospora, and Rufusia). We also describe a new order, Rhodellales, and a new family, Rhodellaceae (with Rhodella, Dixoniella, and Glaucosphaera).
Introduction to Evolvable Hardware - A Practical Guide for Designing Self-Adaptive Systems

PREFACE. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS. ACRONYMS. 1 INTRODUCTION. 1.1 Characteristics of Evolvable Circuits and Systems. 1.2 Why Evolvable Hardware Is Good (and Bad! ). 1.3 Technology. 1.4 Evolvable Hardware vs. Evolved Hardware. 1.5 Intrinsic vs. Extrinsic Evolution. 1.6 Online vs. Offline Evolution. 1.7 Evolvable Hardware Applications. References. 2 FUNDAMENTALS OF EVOLUTIONARY COMPUTATION. 2.1 What Is an EA? 2.2 Components of an EA. 2.2.1 Representation. 2.2.2 Variation. 2.2.3 Evaluation. 2.2.4 Selection. 2.2. 5 Population. 2.2. 6 Termination Criteria. 2.3 Getting the EA to Work. 2.4 Which EA Is Best? References. 3 RECONFIGURABLE DIGITAL DEVICES. 3.1 Basic Architectures. 3.1.1 Programmable Logic Devices. 3.1.2 Field Programmable Gate Array. 3.2 Using Reconfigurable Hardware. 3.2.1 Design Phase. 3.2.2 Execution Phase. 3.3 Experimental Results. 3.4 Functional Overview of the POEtic Architecture. 3.4.1 Organic Subsystem. 3.4.2 Description of the Molecules. 3.4.3 Description of the Routing Layer. 3.4.4 Dynamic Routing. 3.5 Remarks. References. 4 RECONFIGURABLE ANALOG DEVICES. 4.1 Basic Architectures. 4.2 Transistor Arrays. 4.2.1 The NASA FTPA. 4.2.2 The Heidelberg FPTA. 4.3 Analog Arrays. 4.4 Remarks. References. 5 PUTTING EVOLVABLE HARDWARE TO USE. 5.1 Synthesis vs. Adaption. 5.2 Designing Self-Adaptive Systems. 5.2.1 Fault Tolerant Systems. 5.2.2 Real-Time Systems. 5.3 Creating Fault Tolerant Systems Using EHW. 5.4 Why Intrinsic Reconfiguration for Online Systems? 5.5 Quantifying Intrinsic Reconfiguration Time. 5.6 Putting Theory Into Practice. 5.6.1 Minimizing Risk With Anticipated Faults. 5.6.2 Minimizing Risk With Unanticipated Faults. 5.6. 3 Suggested Practices. 5.7 Examples of EHW-Based Fault Recovery. 5.7. 1 Population vs. Fitness-Based Designs. 5.7. 2 EHW Compensators. 5.7. 3 Robot Control. 5.7. 4 The POEtic Project. 5.7. 5 Embryo Development. 5.8 Remarks. References. 6 FUTURE WORK. 6.1 Circuit Synthesis Topics. 6.1.1 Digital Design. 6.1.2 Analog Design. 6.2 Circuit Adaption Topics. References. INDEX . ABOUT THE AUTHORS.
A Non-Convex Optimization Technique for Sparse Blind Deconvolution -- Initialization Aspects and Error Reduction Properties

Sparse blind deconvolution is the problem of estimating the blur kernel and sparse excitation, both of which are unknown. Considering a linear convolution model, as opposed to the standard circular convolution model, we derive a sufficient condition for stable deconvolution. The columns of the linear convolution matrix form a Riesz basis with the tightness of the Riesz bounds determined by the autocorrelation of the blur kernel. Employing a Bayesian framework results in a non-convex, non-smooth cost function consisting of an $\ell_2$ data-fidelity term and a sparsity promoting $\ell_p$-norm ($0 \le p \le 1$) regularizer. Since the $\ell_p$-norm is not differentiable at the origin, we employ an $\epsilon$-regularized $\ell_p$-norm as a surrogate. The data term is also non-convex in both the blur kernel and excitation. An iterative scheme termed alternating minimization (Alt. Min.) $\ell_p-\ell_2$ projections algorithm (ALPA) is developed for optimization of the $\epsilon$-regularized cost function. Further, we demonstrate that, in every iteration, the $\epsilon$-regularized cost function is non-increasing and more importantly, bounds the original $\ell_p$-norm-based cost. Due to non-convexity of the cost, the accuracy of estimation is largely influenced by the initialization. Considering regularized least-squares estimate as the initialization, we analyze how the initialization errors are concentrated, first in Gaussian noise, and then in bounded noise, the latter case resulting in tighter bounds. Comparisons with state-of-the-art blind deconvolution algorithms show that the deconvolution accuracy is higher in case of ALPA. In the context of natural speech signals, ALPA results in accurate deconvolution of a voiced speech segment into a sparse excitation and smooth vocal tract response.
Hormesis, Adaptive Epigenetic Reorganization, and Implications for Human Health and Longevity

Hormesis is a common phenomenon in a number of biomedical areas. However, the basic nature of this phenomenon remains largely unknown. Therefore, significant uncertainty is inevitable in attempts to apply hormesis as a pro-health and anti-aging tool. Evidence supporting that hormetic-like effects may be the result of a generalized whole-organism adaptive epigenetic response is reviewed. Specific hormesis-inducing interventions during development would allow to achieve an optimal balance between activation and repression of various genes and thus to prevent age-related degenerative diseases and slow aging. The reasons that oscillating temperature mild stress could potentially be used for human application are discussed.
EVALUACIÓN EMOCIONAL PROTOTÍPICA DE MÚSICA DE VALENCIA AFECTIVA POSITIVA Y NEGATIVA

Esta investigacion estudio las asociaciones implicitas entre prototipos de emociones y musica de valencia afectiva positiva (musica alegre) y negativa (musica triste). Para ello se recurrio a una version modificada del Test de Asociaciones Implicitas, el cual se aplico a 59 estudiantes universitarios, entre los 18 y los 23 anos, (56 % mujeres). Los resultados mostraron que los participantes categorizaron mas rapidamente adjetivos vinculados con afectos de alegria o tristeza cuando se asocian de forma congruente con musica designada como “movida” o “suave” respectivamente. Se discuten las implicaciones para el estudio del procesamiento emocional de la musica desde el enfoque prototipico de las emociones.
Continuous paravertebral block in children

oesophageal pressure and positive intragastric pressure causing a pressure gradient to enhance reflux across the lower oesophageal sphincter [3]. However, it seems as though gastro-oesophageal reflux is not ‘inevitable’ after hiccup at induction of anaesthesia, as suggested by McVey and Goodman, but occurs in about 40% of cases. Similarly, regurgitation into the pharynx is not inevitable after gastro-oesophageal reflux but depends on upper oesophageal sphincter function.
Crystalline Plasticity on Copper (001), (110), and (111) Surfaces during Nanoindentation

Molecular dynamics (MD) simulations are performed to study crystalline plasticity during nano- indentation by comparing the elastic-plastic response of three copper substrates with surfaces (001), (110), and (111) crystallographic planes. The effects of elas- tic anisotropy and crystallographic symmetry on the re- duced modulus, dislocation nucleation, and subsequent microstructure evolution, are investigated. The reduced modulus of (111) surface is found to be the largest, while that of (001) surface is the smallest. Elastic stress dis- tribution calculated from finite element method (FEM) is qualitatively consistent with the MD simulation re- sults. Significant differences exist in the deformation behavior in the three different crystallographic orienta- tions. The differences in the load-displacement curves for the three different cases are correlated with those in the corresponding evolutions of the underlying disloca- tion structure. Yielding platforms exist typically in load- displacement curve of Cu (001), which can be attributed to effective resistance of dislocation locks. Load drops are typically characteristic of Cu (111) and (110), due to a more mobile dislocation structure.
Very Delayed Infarction after Mild Focal Cerebral Ischemia: A Role for Apoptosis?

The temporal evolution of cerebral infarction was examined in rats subjected to transient occlusion of both common carotid arteries and the right middle cerebral artery. After severe (90-min) ischemia, substantial right-sided cortical infarction was evident within 6 h and fully developed after 1 day. After mild (30-min) ischemia, no cortical infarction was present after 1 day. However, infarction developed after 3 days; by 2 weeks, infarction volume was as large as that induced by 90-min ischemia. These data suggest that infarction after mild focal ischemia can develop in a surprisingly delayed fashion. Some evidence of neuronal apoptosis was present after severe ischemia, but only to a limited degree. However, 3 days after mild ischemia, neurons bordering the maturing infarction exhibited prominent TUNEL staining, and DNA prepared from the periinfarct area of ischemic cortex showed internucleosomal fragmentation. Furthermore, pretreatment with 1 mg/kg cycloheximide markedly reduced infarction volume 2 weeks after mild ischemia. These data raise the possibility that apoptosis, dependent on active protein synthesis, contributes to the delayed infarction observed in rats subjected to mild transient focal cerebral ischemia.
Thesis: The Distributed Radix Join Algorithm - Efficient Distributed Join Processing on Modern Hardware

The ever increasing volume of data in scientific as well as commercial information systems calls for scalable databases. Distributed database systems can satisfy this demand as they are scalable to higher performance requirements simply by adding more computing nodes. However, they require efficient ways to query distributed relations in order to achieve high performance. We describe an efficient distributed algorithm for joining two large distributed relations. Our algorithm achieves a throughput of 140 M tuples per second on a cluster, consisting of 16 standard desktop machines. Furthermore, an analysis of the scalability of the algorithm is provided and it is shown that its performance on today’s commodity hardware is bound by the underlying network bandwidth.
Design of locally-clocked asynchronous finite state machines using synchronous CAD tools

Controllers based on Synchronous Finite State Machines (SFSM) are widely used in the control unit design of embedded digital systems. These systems present critical requirements, such as power consumption, robustness, speed, etc. In this context, the asynchronous paradigm shows interesting features that fit as an alternative for the design, but the lack of appropriate tools and the high difficulty of the design are already drawbacks. This paper proposes a new method to design asynchronous FSM with local clock. The existence of a local clock reduces the requirements of asynchronous logic, enabling the synthesis in any PLD, such as CPLDs and FPGAs, without the need of satisfying any type of macro-cells mapping. Furthermore, when compared to other methods found in literature, it uses of conventional logic minimization tools that greatly facilitate the designing. The proposed method starts from a popular specification known as Extended Burst Mode (XBM) and uses a logic minimization synchronous tool for the synthesis. The achieved results show a high potential of practical implementation of this method for AFSM synthesis in PLDs.
Evidence for a Direct Role of Cyclo‐Oxygenase 2 in Implant Wear Debris‐Induced Osteolysis

Aseptic loosening is a major complication of prosthetic joint surgery and is manifested as chronic inflammation, pain, and osteolysis at the bone implant interface. The osteolysis is believed to be driven by a host inflammatory response to wear debris generated from the implant. In our current study, we use a selective inhibitor (celecoxib) of cyclo‐oxygenase 2 (COX‐2) and mice that lack either COX‐1 (COX‐1−/−) or COX‐2 (COX‐2−/−) to show that COX‐2, but not COX‐1, plays an important role in wear debris‐induced osteolysis. Titanium (Ti) wear debris was implanted surgically onto the calvaria of the mice. An intense inflammatory reaction and extensive bone resorption, which closely resembles that observed in patients with aseptic loosening, developed within 10 days of implantation in wild‐type and COX‐1−/− mice. COX‐2 and prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) production increased in the calvaria and inflammatory tissue overlying it after Ti implantation. Celecoxib (25 mg/kg per day) significantly reduced the inflammation, the local PGE2 production, and osteolysis. In comparison with wild‐type and COX‐1−/− mice, COX‐2−/− mice implanted with Ti had a significantly reduced calvarial bone resorption response, independent of the inflammatory response, and significantly fewer osteoclasts were formed from cultures of their bone marrow cells. These results provide direct evidence that COX‐2 is an important mediator of wear debris‐induced osteolysis and suggests that COX‐2 inhibitors are potential therapeutic agents for the prevention of wear debris‐induced osteolysis.
Coffee inhibition of CYP3A4 in vitro was not translated to a grapefruit‐like pharmacokinetic interaction clinically

Grapefruit can augment oral medication bioavailability through irreversible (mechanism‐based) inhibition of intestinal CYP3A4. Supplementary data from our recent coffee–drug interaction clinical study showed some subjects had higher area under the plasma drug concentration ‐ time curve (AUC) and plasma peak drug concentration (Cmax) of the CYP3A4 probe felodipine compared to aqueous control. It was hypothesized that coffee might interact like grapefruit in responsive individuals. Beans from six geographical locations were consistently brewed into coffee that was separated chromatographically to a methanolic fraction for in vitro inhibition testing of CYP3A4 metabolism of felodipine at 1% coffee strength. The effect of simultaneous incubation and 10‐min preincubation with coffee fractions determined whether coffee had direct and mechanism‐based inhibitory activity. A subsequent five‐way randomized balanced controlled crossover clinical study evaluated the clinical pharmacokinetic interaction with single‐dose felodipine. Grapefruit juice, water, or three of the in vitro tested coffees were ingested at 300 mL alone 1 h before and then with felodipine. In vitro, all six coffees decreased felodipine metabolism for both simultaneous and preincubation exposure compared to corresponding control. Five coffees demonstrated mechanism‐based inhibition. Grapefruit increased felodipine AUC0–8 (25 vs. 13 ng.h/mL, P < 0.001) and Cmax (5.8 vs. 2.7 ng/mL, P < 0.001) and decreased dehydrofelodipine/felodipine AUC0–8 ratio (0.84 vs. 1.29, P < 0.001), while the three coffees caused no change in these parameters compared to water. Despite high in vitro potency of CYP3A4 inhibition, the coffees did not cause a clinical pharmacokinetic interaction possibly from insufficient amount of inhibitor(s) in coffee reaching intestinal CYP3A4 during the absorption phase of felodipine. The results of this study highlight the need for follow‐up clinical testing when in vitro results indicate the possibility of an interaction.