Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Investigation of the phosphorus removal capacities of basic oxygen furnace slag under variable conditions

ABSTRACT Effects of reaction time, initial phosphorus concentration, basic oxygen furnace slag (BOF-slag) dosage and size, and temperature on the phosphorus removal capacities (PRCs) of BOF-slag have been investigated in detail through batch tests. Weakly bound phosphorus, Fe- and Al-associated phosphorus, and Ca-associated phosphorus from fresh and reacted BOF-slag were analysed using sequential chemical extraction processes. It was determined that the PRCs of BOF-slag increased with the increase of initial phosphorus concentration and temperature while it decreased with the increase of BOF-slag dosage and size. The phosphorus removed by BOF-slag was primarily assigned to weakly bound phosphorus and Ca-associated phosphorus. Weakly bound phosphorus showed a significant decrease with the increase in all experimental parameter values. However, Ca-associated phosphorus exhibited a prominent increase with increasing reaction time, initial phosphorus concentration, and temperature. These demonstrate that experimental parameters can simultaneously affect the PRCs of BOF-slag and the ways of phosphorus removal by BOF-slag.
Innovativeness of Advertising Activities in the Polish Market – Advertisers’ Abilities and Recipients’ Perception

The development of advertising competition forces to undertake measures aimed at increasing effectiveness of the process of influencing potential customers. Advertisers more and more often reach for non-conventional and innovative solutions that are a part of innovativeness in a broad sense. This is facilitated by the development of modern mass media. The article touches the problem of the possibility to implement innovative solutions in advertising and perception thereof among consumers. The grounds for considerations are quantitative research surveys carried out among enterprises conducting their active advertising as well as recipients of those activities.
Special air-gap element for 2-D FEM analysis of electrical Machines accounting for rotor skew

The paper develops a special air-gap element based on the analytical solution of Laplace equation combined with standard finite elements, for analysis of electrical machines with rotor skew. It has been implemented for the analysis of a surface permanent-magnet machine. The results obtained have been compared to the ones of a standard 3-D finite-element model and are in good agreement with the measured ones.
Sensor Property of a Novel EAP Device with Ionic-liquid-based Bucky Gel

Bucky gel actuator is a novel electro-active polymer (EAP), which is a low-voltage driven dry soft actuator. Its device has a bimorph structure with polymer-supported bucky gel electrodes and a polymer-supported ionic gel electrolyte. It can be fabricated by layer-by-layer casting, to form any shape easily. Some of the EAP materials can be used as a sensor as well as an actuator. If sensor function and actuator function exist in a same device, both function can be integrated with keeping the advantages of functional polymeric material. Miniature actuator-sensor systems and feedback control systems can be constructed; therefore, possibility of application can be expanded. In this paper, we verify the sensor device property of bucky gel devices. Based on the experiment, the relationship between an output signal and a deformation is investigated, and an estimation method of a deformation is demonstrated.
The 19‐kD antigen and protective immunity in a murine model of tuberculosis

The 19‐kD antigen is a cell wall‐associated lipoprotein present in Mycobacterium tuberculosis and in bacille Calmette–Guérin (BCG) vaccine strains. Expression of the 19‐kD antigen as a recombinant protein in two saprophytic mycobacteria—M. vaccae and M. smegmatis—resulted in abrogation of their ability to confer protection against M. tuberculosis in a murine challenge model, and in their ability to prime a DTH response to cross‐reactive mycobacterial antigens. Induction of an immune response to the 19‐kD antigen by an alternative approach of DNA vaccination had no effect on subsequent M. tuberculosis challenge. These results are consistent with a model in which the presence of the 19‐kD protein has a detrimental effect on the efficacy of vaccination with live mycobacteria. Targeted inactivation of genes encoding selected antigens represents a potential route towards development of improved vaccine candidates.
Mathematik Bernstein-Sato ideals , associated strati cations , and computer-algebraic aspects

Global and local Bernstein-Sato ideals, Bernstein-Sato polynomials and Bernstein-Sato polynomials of varieties are introduced, their basic properties are proven and their algorithmic determination with the method of Briançon/Maisonobe is presented. Strati cations with respect to the local variants of the introduced polynomials and ideals with the methods of Bahloul/Oaku and Levandovskyy/Martín-Morales are treated and the method of Bahloul/ Oaku is generalized. Moreover, factors of local Bernstein-Sato ideals for disjoint varieties of components, common factors of components and transversally intersecting varieties of components are given. Furthermore, the connection of multivariate and univariate Bernstein-Sato ideals and polynomials B(f1,.,fr) and bf1·. ·fr is examined. Budur's approach to determining upper and lower bounds of Bernstein-Sato ideals is presented. Finally, as an application, the computation of annDn(f ) for f ∈ C[x] and α ∈ C is described.
Star-shaped mediation in influence games

We are interested in analyzing the properties of multi-agent systems [13] where a set of agents have to take a decision among two possible alternatives with the help of the social environment or network of the system itself. The ways in which people influence each other through their interactions in a social network and, in particular, the social rules that can be used for the spread of influence have been proposed in an alternative simple game model [11]. However not all individuals play the same role in the process of taking a decision. In this paper we are interested in formalizing and analyzing the simple game model that results in a mediation system. In this scenario we have a social network together with an external participant, the mediator. The mediator can interact, in different degrees, with the agents and thus help to reach a decision.
Flexible Wire-Component for Weaving Electronic Textiles

In this paper, we present the development of a wire component suitable for direct integration to the textile during weaving. The components are used for the development of electronic textiles and wearable smart clothing prototypes. First, a 3D-printed adapter suitable for prototyping is discussed. The method focuses on attaching SO-8 chip to the conductive yarns on the surface of a knitted or woven textile. Second, a wire component processor is built, and an electronic textile developed. Finally, the problems of the electronic textiles are discussed.
Decreased actin solubility observed during ATP‐depletion is mimicked by severing agents but not depolymerizing agents in isolated and cultured proximal tubular cells

The microvilli of the apical membrane of proximal tubule (PT) cells are supported by the underlying actin cytoskeleton. Ischaemic or anoxic ATP‐depletion leads to the disruption of the actin cytoskeleton, resulting in microvillar retraction and loss of membrane polarity. Using isolated PT cells, we have previously demonstrated that actin filaments (F‐actin) are likely severed during ATP‐depletion. A sequential extraction protocol revealed a decrease in actin solubility, resulting in the sequestration of a distinct F‐actin pool with the insoluble cellular complex in ATP‐depleted PT cells. We demonstrate here that decreased actin solubility is not only a reliable end‐marker of ATP‐depletion induced injury in freshly isolated PT cells, but also serves as a biochemical marker in the cultured proximal tubular cell line LLC‐PK1. In the present studies, we also investigated specific actin‐binding drugs to determine if they mimic the effects observed during energy depletion. Jasplakinolide (JP), a compound which binds F‐actin and prevents depolymerization, did not effect actin solubility during ATP‐depletion. Furthermore, swinholide A (SA), an F‐actin severing agent, resulted in decreased actin solubility, mimicking the effects of ATP‐depletion. Interestingly, latrunculin A (LA), an agent which depolymerizes F‐actin, did not reduce actin solubiltity, but rather resulted in an increase in digitonin‐soluble actin. Taken collectively, our results support previous work and suggest that disruption of the actin cytoskeleton during ATP‐depletion is mediated by F‐actin severing/fragmentation and not depolymerization. The differential effects of F‐actin disrupting agents and the consistencies observed in both models of ischaemic injury will provide a basis for a more detailed understanding of the pathological events of PT‐cell dysfunction.
Delivery of RNA interference triggers to sensory neurons in vivo using herpes simplex virus

Importance of the field: Pain is a hugely important area of research attracting considerable academic and commercial interest. However, the application of RNA interference (RNAi) to the study of nociceptive processes and the development of new analgesics has been limited by the specific challenges associated with the delivery of RNAi triggers to the cell bodies of sensory neurons in the dorsal root ganglia (DRG). Areas covered in this review: In the past five years, delivery of small-interfering RNA (siRNA) to the DRG and spinal cord has achieved effective and specific silencing of targeted genes in various animal models of pain. However, delivery of short-hairpin RNA (shRNA) or artificial microRNA (miRNA) to sensory neurons in vivo has not been feasible using most delivery systems currently available. What the reader will gain: Replication-defective vectors based on herpes simplex virus (HSV), which are particularly efficient at targeting DRG neurons, have been recently engineered to express shRNA and artificial miRNA. Whilst silencing induced by siRNA is transient and requires relatively high doses of silencing triggers, HSV-mediated expression of shRNA/miRNA in sensory neurons allows silencing of targeted genes for at least one week following a single injection.Take home message: The potential to use inducible or tissue-specific promoters and to simultaneously silence multiple gene targets, in addition to recent studies suggesting that artificial miRNAs may have improved safety profiles, hold clear advantages for the use of miRNA-based vectors for gene silencing in sensory neurons.
Cooperative Interference Alignment for the Multiple Access Channel

Abstract : We propose a novel communication technique for the multiple access channel (MAC), cooperative interference alignment (C-IA), which combines the ideas of interference alignment and successive interference cancellation. We prove that C-IA is sum-degree-of-freedom (DoF) optimal and derive bounds on the per-user DoF gain, showing that under mild conditions, nonzero DoF are achievable for all users simultaneously. An interesting open problem is extending the DoF analysis for delayed CSI.
Prevalence of a mutation causing C2 deficiency in systemic lupus erythematosus.

OBJECTIVE In an effort to establish whether a 28 base pair (bp) deletion in the gene for the 2nd component of complement (C2) constitutes a significant genetic risk factor for systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), we determined the frequency of this mutation in SLE and control populations. The MHC associations of this mutation were also established. METHODS Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was used to amplify DNA, and the wild type and mutant alleles were distinguished by gel electrophoresis. RESULTS Among 122 Caucasoid patients with SLE, 2 homozygous and 2 heterozygous carriers of the 28 bp deletion were found, giving a gene frequency of 0.0246. In contrast, 6 of 427 North American Caucasoid controls were heterozygous for the 28 bp deletion, giving a gene frequency of 0.0070 (p < 0.05). Carriers of the 28 bp deletion in C2 frequently carried the DRB1*1501 allele. The 28 bp deletion in C2 was not found in 194 African-American controls or in 127 African-American patients with SLE. CONCLUSIONS A direct assay for the most common form of C2 deficiency established that the 28 bp deletion in the C2 gene is significantly more common in Caucasoid patients with SLE compared to controls (p < 0.05). When only heterozygous carriers of the 28 bp deletion were enumerated, they were not found more frequently in the Caucasoid population with SLE compared to controls.
Dealing with Big Data

This book chapter attempts to counter anxieties in the humanities and social science about the role of big data in research by focusing on approaches which, by being firmly grounded in the traditional values of disciplines, enhance existing methods to produce fruitful research. Big data poses many methodological challenges, but these pressures should prompt scholars to pay much closer attention to methodological issues than they have in the past.
Biclustering of Gene Expression Data using a Two - Phase Method

Biclustering is a very useful data mining technique which identifies coherent patterns from microarray gene expression data. A bicluster of a gene expression dataset is a subset of genes which exhibit similar expression patterns along a subset of conditions. Biclustering is a powerful analytical tool for the biologist and has generated considerable interest over the past few decades. Many biclustering algorithms optimize a mean squared residue to discover biclusters from a gene expression dataset. In this paper a Two-Phase method of finding a bicluster is developed. In the first phase, a modified version of k-means algorithm is applied to the gene expression data to generate k clusters. In the second phase, an iterative search is performed to check the possibility of removing more genes and conditions within the given threshold value of mean squared residue score. Experimental results on yeast dataset show that our approach can effectively find high quality biclusters General Terms Biclustering, Algorithm, Experiments.
Influence of Salmonella enterica Serovar Enteritidis Infection on the Development of the Cecum Microbiota in Newly Hatched Chicks

ABSTRACT Terminal restriction fragment length polymorphism and quantitative PCR showed that the cecal microbiota of chicks up to the age of 21 days was dominated by representatives of the orders Enterobacteriales, Clostridiales, and Lactobacillales. Salmonella enterica serovar Enteritidis infection caused the greatest changes in the gut microbiota when 1-day-old chicks were infected, compared with the infection of 4- and 16-day-old chicks.
Preventive Therapy for Periodontal Diseases

Rational approaches to the prevention of destructive periodontitis should be based on a clear understanding of etiology and pathogenesis. However, we are dealing with a heterogeneous family of diseases in which different factors operate. It is an oversimplification to regard poor oral hygiene, and hence an accumulation of non-specific dental bacterial plaque, as the major risk factor. Epidemiological evidence indicates that host factors are likely to be of overriding importance for the most severe forms. The limitations of non-specific plaque control are therefore discussed. Specific inhibitors of virulence factors provide a logical approach, but their clinical application awaits improved knowledge. Improvement of general health and resistance to disease by proper nutrition, the avoidance of intercurrent disease, and elimination of smoking and stress-induced risk are encouraged. The genetic basis of susceptibility to periodontitis is increasingly understood, and, while gene therapy is not likely to be a practicable approach to prevention, genetic markers of risk are emerging.
Views for Data Selection in Dataware House

Introduction A data warehouse (DW) is a repository of information retrieved from multiple, possibly heterogeneous, autonomous, distributed database and other information sources for the purpose of complex querying, analysis, and decision support. Data in the DW are selectively collected from the sources, processed in order to resolve inconsistencies, and integrated advance ( at design time) before data loading. DW data are usually organized multi-dimensionally to support on line analytical processing (OLAP). A DW can be seen abstractly as a set of materialized views defined over the source relations. During the initial design of a DW, the DW designer faces the problem of deciding which views to materialize in the DW. This problem has been addressed in the literature for different classes of queries and views, and with different design goals.
Indirect energy gap of 13C diamond.

Optical-absorption and luminescence measurements on $^{13}\mathrm{C}$ and $^{12}\mathrm{C}$ diamonds establish that the indirect energy gap is 13.6\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}0.2 meV higher for $^{13}\mathrm{C}$ than for $^{12}\mathrm{C}$ diamond. Zero-parameter calculations, allowing for the changes in electron-phonon coupling and lattice parameter, give an estimated shift of 16.5\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}2.5 meV.
Power-Saving ICT Platform That Guarantees Network Bandwidth for Cloud-Service Systems

A power-saving ICT platform that guarantees network bandwidth for a cloud-service system is proposed. On this platform, virtual-machine (VM) migration and guaranteed network bandwidth are managed at the same time. In a conventional power-saving platform for an ICT system, VM migration based on CPU load is only considered. However, excessive VM migration might produce network congestion, since network flows are also aggregated as VM migration. A new VM migration function that guarantees network bandwidth (namely, maintaining service-access bandwidth from a user to a server even after the migration) is therefore proposed. On the proposed platform, loads of network traffic and servers are monitored. In addition, future loads are predicted on the basis of past-history data concerning the CPU loads and network-bandwidth load. VM migration is then executed only if enough bandwidth for accessing the VM after the migration is guaranteed. A prototype platform was constructed by open-source emulation software and real network nodes and evaluated. The evaluation results indicate that the platform can achieve power saving and migration with guaranteed network bandwidth.
Augmented Reality Advertisements in Tourism Marketing

The rapid growth in the use of smart phones and respective mobile applications has created new ways for the tourism industry to market the services to customers. The growing use of smart phones is driving the mobile applications market to be one of the fastest growing media outlets in the history of consumer technology. Augmented reality, or AR, has become one of the new advertising and marketing tool. Many brands use AR to attract customers and to increase customer engagement. AR allows smart phone and tablet computer users to point their phone or tablet cameras at certain objects—be they print advertisement or even coffee cups—that trigger a 3D video. Augmented reality gives businesses opportunity to unexpectedly integrate the digital world with the real world. This chapter presents the profile of AR applications and AR advertisements in the tourism industry.
Albumin overload activates intrarenal renin–angiotensin system through protein kinase C and NADPH oxidase-dependent pathway

Objective Inappropriate activation of the intrarenal renin–angiotensin system (RAS) plays an important role in the pathogenesis of hypertension and renal injury. However, the underlying mechanisms remain elusive. Proteinuria has been shown to elicit the renal activation of RAS. The present study was performed to test the intracellular signal pathway involved in albumin-triggered activation of RAS. Design and methods NRK52E cells, a rat renal proximal tubular cell line, were incubated with increased levels of albumin. The rat model of protein overload was established in female Wistar–Kyoto rats that were subjected to unilateral nephrectomy followed by daily intraperitoneal injection of BSA at various doses (0.5, 1.0, and 5.0 g/kg) or combination with intragastric administration of apocynin (100 mg/kg per day), an inhibitor of NADPH oxidase. Results Exposure of the cells to high levels of albumin activated the RAS through the endocytic receptors megalin and cubilin. High levels of albumin triggered the production of intracellular reactive oxygen species by a protein kinase C (PKC)-NADPH oxidase-dependent pathway and this, in turn, led to activation of nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) and activation protein-1 (AP-1). Inhibition of PKC or NADPH oxidase abolished albumin-induced activation of RAS. In a protein overload rat model, activation of RAS in renal proximal tubular cells was significantly increased, coincident with activation of PKC, NADPH oxidase, NF-κB, and AP-1. Chronic inhibition of NADPH oxidase by apocynin largely ameliorated intrarenal activation of RAS. Conclusion Exposure of renal tubular epithelial cells with high levels of albumin triggers activation of RAS via a PKC-NADPH oxidase-dependent pathway.
A new perceptually weighted distance measure for vector quantization of the STFT amplitudes in the speech application

In this paper, a new perceptually weighted Euclidean distance function is proposed for the VQ of the speech signal. It employs a logarithmic preprocessing and utilizes the listening characteristics of the ear for the definition of the perceptually weighted Euclidean distance function. Simulation results show that the proposed VQ process has less spectral distortion (SD) than its conventional Euclidean counterpart does.
MICROCIRCULATION AND VASCULAR REACTIVITY DURING ENDOTOXEMIA AND ENDOTOXIN TOLERANCE IN HUMANS

The purpose of the study was to investigate microcirculation and vascular reactivity during experimental endotoxemia and endotoxin tolerance in humans by comparing different methods of approach. Endotoxin tolerance was induced in nine healthy volunteers by intravenous injection of 2 ng · kg−1 · d−1 LPS for 5 consecutive days. Microcirculation and vascular reactivity were monitored before and after LPS administrations on days 1 and 5 by near-infrared spectroscopy, sidestream dark-field imaging, and forearm blood flow by venous occlusion strain-gauge plethysmography during local intra-arterial infusion of endothelial-dependent vasodilator acetylcholine (0.5, 2, and 8 &mgr;g · min−1 · dL−1). LPS administration induced a significant rise in all measured cytokines. During subsequent LPS administrations, the increase in cytokine levels was almost completely abolished, indicating the development of tolerance. Near-infrared spectroscopy showed 79% (interquartile range [IQR], 62%-92%) attenuation of recovery slope after ischemia 2 h after LPS administration on day 1 (P = 0.04), which was absent on day 5 (P = 0.72). Sidestream dark-field imaging showed 33% (IQR, 14%-40%) and 30% (IQR, 10%-33%) diminished flow in medium and large microvessels, respectively, 2 h after LPS administration on day 1 (P = 0.07 and 0.04, respectively), which was absent on day 5 (P = 0.47 for both vessels). Forearm blood flow measurements showed an attenuation of acetylcholine-induced vasodilatory response, with 67% (IQR, 45%-72%) 4 h after the first LPS administration (P = 0.01), but not when tolerance was present on day 5 (P = 0.61). Human endotoxemia results in endothelial dysfunction that can be adequately detected with different methods and was restored with development of LPS tolerance.