Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A Novel Parallel-Series Feeding Network Based on Three-Way Power Divider for Microstrip Antenna Array

A novel parallel-series feeding network for microstrip antenna arrays has been presented. A three-way power divider is utilized to connect the subarrays with the series-fed transmission lines. The proposed power divider is composed of seven transmission lines with different characteristic impedances and two isolation resistors. By changing the characteristic impedance of the transmission lines, the power division ratio can be adjusted. Meanwhile, good match and reasonable isolation performance can be obtained simultaneously. The proposed approach has been verified experimentally by using a 20-unit road side unit (RSU) antenna array operating at 5.815 GHz frequency range for a electronic toll collection (ETC) system. The proposed feeding network can be simply implemented on a single-layer substrate.
AERODYNAMIC DIAMETER MEASUREMENT OF CELLULOSE ACETATE FIBERS FROM CIGARETTE FILTERS: WHAT IS THE POTENTIAL FOR HUMAN EXPOSURE?

Aerodynamic diameter is a major determinant of particle and fiber deposition and toxicity in the respiratory tract. To characterize cellulose acetate fibers released from the filter end of cigarettes puffed under conditions approximating smoking, we designed multistage impactors to determine the aerodynamic diameters of large fibers with circumscribed diameters between 20 and 35 µm and aspect ratios ranging from subfiber ratios up to 40. This range of diameters encompasses all of the cellulose acetate fiber sizes that are commercially manufactured. When commercially available cigarettes with filters made from acetate fibers in this circumscribed diameter range were puffed directly into the impactor, on average 10 fibers/cigarette were released and their aerodynamic diameters were determined. In our studies, we found that the aerodynamic diameters of the cellulose acetate fibers were always greater than 23 µm. Using standard lung deposition models, we concluded that the fibers are nonrespirable with a very low probability of penetration to the distal lung. Our findings, which demonstrate release of only a small number of these large fibers with an extremely low likelihood of reaching the distal lung, indicate that these fibers are not a risk for human lung disease.
Sexual Counseling for the Nontherapist

Sexual health is a part of total health. Sexual problems can cause marital dissolution and emotional impoverishment. The physician is seen as a wise authority figure often and one who can provide sexual guidance and counsel. To be an effective counselor, an obstetrician/gynecologist must acquire sexual knowledge, comfort, and counseling skills. A sexual history is a recommended routine--as part of the new workup, when management of organic problems and treatment (mastectomy, hysterectomy, radical vulvectomy) necessitate inquiry into the patient's sexual practices and sexual value system, and when the patient presents with suspected "functional" or obscure complaints (hyperventilation, palpitations, chronic pelvic pain, recurrent vaginal discharge without obvious pathogens, chronic concerns that everything is all right "down there", cancerphobia). The sexual problem history is readily applicable, especially when a patient presents with an explicit sexual concern. The PLISSIT method is a paradigm that can be utilized effectively with usual referral for intensive therapy (sex therapy) if sexual counseling is ineffectual. The obstetrician/gynecologist can play an important role in facilitating healthful sexual changes in women and couples, enhancing intimacy, and enriching the marital bond.
Handheld usability

Handheld devices have common challenges: small displays, awkward data input mechanisms, and spotty wireless connectivity. Good user interface design can overcome each of these challenges, or at least accommodate them in a fashion that benefits the user. The goal of this tutorial is to present challenges and strategies for designing user interfaces for handheld devices. It discusses how information architecture, paper prototyping, and usability testing are adapted from desktop software design for two-way email pagers, PDAs, and mobile telephone handsets. WAP, i-mode, RIM OS, Motorola Wisdom, Windows CE/Pocket PC, and Symbian OS will also be introduced.
Evaluation of myocardial, hepatic, and renal perfusion in a variety of clinical conditions using an intravenous ultrasound contrast agent (Optison) and second harmonic imaging

OBJECTIVE To assess the potential of intravenous Optison, a second generation ultrasound contrast agent, and various ultrasound imaging modes to determine myocardial, kidney, and liver perfusion in normal subjects and patients with left ventricular dysfunction or chronic pulmonary disease together with renal or hepatic dysfunction. METHODS Five normal subjects and 20 patients underwent grey scale echocardiographic imaging of myocardium, kidney, and liver during 505 intravenous injections of Optison. Images were assessed qualitatively by two independent observers and quantitatively using video densitometry to determine the peak contrast enhancement effect. RESULTS Qualitative analysis showed that intermittent harmonic imaging was superior to either conventional fundamental or continuous harmonic imaging for all organs. Quantitative analysis showed that the peak change in echocardiographic intensity v baseline during continuous harmonic imaging was 11 units for myocardium (p < 0.03), 7 units for kidney (NS), and 14 units for liver (p < 0.05). During intermittent harmonic imaging the peak change was significantly greater, being 33 units for myocardium (p < 0.0001), 24 units for kidney (p < 0.0002), and 16 units for liver (p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS Organ tissue perfusion can be demonstrated following intravenous injection of Optison, particularly when used in combination with intermittent harmonic imaging techniques. This contrast agent is effective in a variety of clinical conditions.
Research on the enterprise strategic theory based on enterprise environment: Evolution course and evolution enlightenment

Enterprise strategy that changes with the environment is related to the survival of enterprises and has attracted the attention of academic. Many scholars studied them from different angles, but few study the evolution of strategic theories from the enterprise environment angle. Therefore, this paper tried to review the development course of enterprise strategy theory based on basic definition enterprise environment implications and described the development course of hidden evolution rule.
Maximum product of effective channel gains: an innovative user selection algorithm for downlink multi-user multiple input and multiple output

Recently, zero-forcing beamforming has been widely used for multiple-input and multiple-output broadcast channels, because it could provide suboptimal capacity with low complexity. To increase the sum data rate, a good user selection algorithm is attractive. In this paper, a new user selection algorithm named maximum product of effective channel gains is presented. The proposed algorithm is described mathematically, and the lower bound of the sum capacity is demonstrated to be proportional to the product of effective channel gains. Our simulation results show that maximum product of effective channel gains can achieve higher sum rate compared with the classical algorithm, semi-orthogonal user selection, with the same complexity order, especially when the signal-to-noise ratio is high; in addition, the complexity of the proposed algorithm is superior to minimum of the Frobenius norm of the pseudo-inverse algorithm. Meanwhile, the number of users that can be served simultaneously is equal to the number of transmission antennas, which is the maximum performance that can be achieved.Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Intravenous and Intracavitary Use of Contrast‐Enhanced Ultrasound in the Evaluation and Management of Complicated Pediatric Pneumonia

Pediatric pneumonia can be complicated by necrotizing pneumonia or a parapneumonic effusion either in the form of an empyema or a clear effusion. Ultrasonography (US) and computed tomography represent well‐established modalities for evaluation of complicated pediatric pneumonia. Contrast‐enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) was recently introduced and is gaining increasing acceptance in pediatric imaging. In this case series, we present our initial experience with both intravenous and intracavitary use of CEUS in children with complicated pneumonia. Intravenous CEUS accurately and confidently showed necrotizing pneumonia and delineated pleural effusions, whereas intracavitary CEUS accurately identified the chest catheter location and patency and showed the presence of loculations, suggesting the use of fibrinolytics.
Paradoxical Exacerbation of Psoriasis in AIDS: Proposed Explanations Including the Potential Roles of Substance P and Gram-negative Bacteria

Psoriasis, a TH1-induced disorder, is not more common in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection than in the general population. However, it may appear for the first time or pre-existing psoriasis may worsen and be difficult to treat in HIV disease. The paradoxical exacerbation of psoriasis in AIDS has not been fully explained. Various explanations have been proposed including (a) the reduction of Langerhans' cells (LCs) in HIV disease, (b) the direct epidermal proliferative effect of HIV, (c) the altered cytokine profile in HIV disease, (d) HIV-induced macrophage nitric oxide (NO) production, (e) the increased CD8/CD4 T-cell ratio in HIV infection and (f) the increased colonization of skin by Staphylococcus aureus. However, the observations that (a) LCs cells play an important role in the pathogenesis of psoriasis and a variety of topical and systemic psoriasis treatments cause a reversible decrease in LC function, (b) psoriasis may improve in end-stage HIV infection, (c) overproduction of some TH2 cytokines and underproduction of IL-2 in HIV infection, and (d) the presence of NO favors a TH2 response over a TH1 response make the first four explanations difficult to interpret. Since psoriasis is exacerbated in HIV infection possibly due to the increased staphylococcal colonization, and psoriatic keratinocytes could aggravate HIV infection through production of TNF-α, it could be reasoned that in HIV-positive psoriatics a strong vicious cycle is present between the degree of immune deficiency and the staphylococcal colonization, explaining the poor prognosis of both AIDS and psoriasis in these patients. With reference to the studies which indicate significant involvement of substance P (SP) in the pathogenesis of psoriasis and on the other hand increased release of this agent by HIV-infected immune cells it is proposed that SP plays an important role in creating the paradox. Since in HIV-positive psoriatics the source of SP is largely immune cells not neurons, capsaicin, which exerts its action selectively on a subpopulation of neurons, could not be of significant therapeutic value. As SP significantly enhances HIV-1 replication in latently infected immune cells, psoriatic lesions, being heavily infiltrated with immune cells and having high concentrations of SP, could serve as high HIV-replication foci, with the resultant rapid progression of the infection towards AIDS. Additionally, given that lipopolysaccharide is supposed to exacerbate psoriasis, increase of Gram-negative infections or cutaneous colonization with these organisms in AIDS may partly explain the paradox. Understanding the HIV-induced immunodysregulation that is associated with psoriasis in some HIV-seropositive patients may assist in the delineation of the immunopathogenesis of the disease in HIV-seronegative psoriatics.
A spoken question answering system based on conditional knowledge

A conditional schema is a graph-based structure which is able to represent conditional knowledge. This structure was introduced in [11]. The inference mechanism corresponding to the conditional schema representations was developed in [12]. In this paper we propose a question answering system that can represent and process conditional knowledge using these mechanisms. The structure of such a system is presented and an implementation by means of Java platform is briefly described.
An Improved HEXBS Motion Estimation Algorithm and Hardware Design for H.264/AVC

Motion estimation plays an important role in the H.264 video compression, it occupies most parts of the entire computation. An improved hexagon-based search algorithm (HEXBS) and its hardware implementation is proposed. The number of the search points of the first template is reduced. The improved algorithm adopts two types search pattern: large cross search pattern and small cross search pattern. In addition, the algorithm can make full use of hardware resources, it works in a parallel way efficiently and is able to process very high definition real-time videos. The proposed architecture is simulated by Modalism 6.5 SE, synthesized to the Xilinx Virtex4 XC4VLX15 FPGA device. The simulation results show that this architecture can achieve 110MHz, and 140M pixels can be processed per second, which meets the requirements of real-time applications.
Detection of Complex Genetic Alterations in Human Glioblastoma Multiforme Using Comparative Genomic Hybridization

The aim of the present study was to detect complex genetic alterations in human glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) by comparative genomic in situ hybridization (CGH). Of the 24 GBM that were examined, increased fluorescence intensities indicating chromosomal polysomy of chromosome 7 and gene amplification at chromosome 7p were found in 42% of the tumors. In addition, signal enhancement of chromosome 19 was present in 29% and at 12q13–15 in 21% of the tumors. We also detected reduction of fluorescence intensities indicating gross deletions on chromosomes 10 (58%), 9p (46%), and 13 (29%). There was a close correlation of CGH results when compared with Southern analysis of the EGFR gene localized on chromosome 7 and loss of heterozygosity detection of chromosome 9 and 10 by microsatellite PCR. A close correlation was also observed between copy number changes of chromosome 7 and deletions of chromosome 10. Amplification of chromosome 12q and deletions of chromosomes 9p and 13 seemed to be complementary in the tumors investigated in the present study
A New Hesitant Fuzzy Linguistic TOPSIS Method for Group Multi-Criteria Linguistic Decision Making

Hesitant fuzzy linguistic decision making is a focus point in linguistic decision making, in which the main method is based on preference ordering. This paper develops a new hesitant fuzzy linguistic TOPSIS method for group multi-criteria linguistic decision making; the method is inspired by the TOPSIS method and the preference degree between two hesitant fuzzy linguistic term sets (HFLTSs). To this end, we first use the preference degree to define a pseudo-distance between two HFLTSs and analyze its properties. Then we present the positive (optimistic) and negative (pessimistic) information of each criterion provided by each decision maker and aggregate these by using weights of decision makers to obtain the hesitant fuzzy linguistic positive and negative ideal solutions. On the basis of the proposed pseudo-distance, we finally obtain the positive (negative) ideal separation matrix and a new relative closeness degree to rank alternatives. We also design an algorithm based on the provided method to carry out hesitant fuzzy linguistic decision making. An illustrative example shows the elaboration of the proposed method and comparison with the symbolic aggregation-based method, the hesitant fuzzy linguistic TOPSIS method and the hesitant fuzzy linguistic VIKOR method; it seems that the proposed method is a useful and alternative decision-making method.
Research on insect identification based on pattern recognition technology

This paper presents a method of insect recognition using computer vision technology. First, we extracted fourteen features from images of some species of insects. These features are rectangularity, elongation, roundness, eccentricity, sphericity, lobation, compactness and seven Hu moment invariants. Second, a machine learning algorithm named Random Trees was employed, to play a role of a classifier in pattern recognition. The classifier was trained with the extracted features and the trained result was saved in a database. Then, the data can be loaded from the database into the algorithm, and then the algorithm can be used to recognize the species of insects which have been trained. In order to implement these algorithms, a series of software modules were developed to extract features, train algorithm, and do recognitions, based on an open source computer vision library named OpenCV, which is portable on Windows and Unix platforms.
Integrating China into the Global Economy . By Nicholas Lardy. Washington, D.C.: Brookings Institution Press, 2002. x, 244 pp. $48.95 (cloth); $19.95 (paper).

The "China boom" of the mid-1990s will certainly go down as one of the classic episodes of world economic history. During it, trade, foreign direct investment, and direct and indirect portfolio investment all surged, and the China phenomenon was merged with a wider "Asia Megatrends" mentality that, for many, ended in the Asian Crisis of 1997. In China, however, despite some slowdowns, the story continued and came to an institutional turning point with accession to the World Trade Organization in 2002— the moment when China was finally brought within the world trading framework. The WTO accession was a remarkable result of negotiations to which there were only two important partners: China and the United States. Of the China dimensions to this story, we know something, but certainly not all, since the internal debates over the WTO will have related to intraparty struggles, the political succession to Jiang Zemin, and the narrower arguments about the strategy for China's economic future. The American side is somewhat more transparent, but the question to answer in some respects is harder: How did an administration that seemed so deeply committed to the view that the Chinese economy did not sufficiently match the criteria of a market system to justify WTO membership suddenly decide that it did? The clear message in the midto late 1990s was that administrative interference, invisible barriers to trade and resource allocation, and a long record of violations of intellectual property rights debarred Chinese entry. It is hard to see how much of this changed in the run up to the agreement, and Chinese officials have frequently stated that, when important Chinese interests are at stake, they will ignore or circumvent WTO market-access commitments. We must hope that eventually Charlene Barshevsky (former U.S. trade representative) will tell her own story.
Pathophysiology of Diabetic Macular Edema

Visual impairment associated with diabetes mellitus (DM) and diabetic eye disease may result from DME (DME), macular ischemia, vitreous hemorrhage, or diabetic tractional retinal detachment. Of all these causes, DME is the most common cause of vision loss in this patient population. Data from the Wisconsin Epidemiologic Study of Diabetic Retinopathy suggest that the 14-year incidence of DME is 26%. DME is clinically seen as thickening of the retina. The Early Treatment Diabetic Retinopathy Study has further classified it to assist physicians in decision-making regarding its treatment. On angiography, it is seen as leakage in the macula with dye pooling in areas of longstanding macular edema. The reasons for visual loss in DME are multifactorial and include light scattering, impaired cell-to-cell interaction and disturbances of normal ionic balances in the retina. The study of pathophysiology looks at the detailed malfunctioning that arises from or-alternately-causes disease. This article will attempt to explain the still elusive pathophysiology of DME.
On the presence of (O-acyl)-omega-hydroxy fatty acids and of their esters in human meibomian gland secretions.

A recent exchange of opinions1–3 on the nature and quantity of wax esters (WEs), free fatty acids (FFAs), (O-acyl)-ω-hydroxy FA (OAHFA), and steryl-containing derivatives of OAHFA (OAHFA-St) in human meibomian gland secretions (or meibum4) has undoubtedly contributed to a better understanding of the nature of this complex secretion. Each approach described in those publications has its strengths and weaknesses. As this topic is very technical, but may have important physiological implications, a brief methodological introduction seems to be warranted.
Person‐related determinants of TV viewing and computer time in a cohort of young Dutch adults: Who sits the most?

We aimed to assess the associations of person‐related factors with leisure time television (TV) viewing and computer time among young adults. We analyzed self‐reported TV viewing (h/week) and leisure computer time (h/week) from 475 Dutch young adults (47% male) who had participated in the Amsterdam Growth and Health Longitudinal Study at the age of 32 and 36 years. Sociodemographic factors (i.e., marital and employment status), physical factors (i.e., skin folds, aerobic fitness, neuromotor fitness, back problems), psychological factors (i.e., problem‐ and emotion‐focused coping, personality), lifestyle (i.e., alcohol consumption, smoking, energy intake, physical activity), and self‐rated health (i.e., general health status, mild health complaints) were assessed. Univariable and multivariable generalized estimating equations were performed. Male gender, higher sum of skin folds, lower values of aerobic fitness, higher rigidity, higher self‐sufficiency/recalcitrance, and smoking were positively associated with TV time. Male gender, higher sum of skin folds, higher scores on self‐esteem, low energy intake, and a not so good general health status were significantly associated with higher computer time. Determinants of TV viewing and computer time were not identical, suggesting that both behaviors (a) have different at‐risk populations and (b) should be targeted differently.
Abatement of synthetic landfill gas including limonene by biotrickling filter and membrane biofiltration

In this study, a single silicone rubber membrane biofilter was compared to a lava rock biotrickling filter to examine the aerobic biofiltration of synthetic landfill gas including odorous limonene. The membrane bioreactor and biotrickling filter showed, respectively, maximum elimination capacities of 17 g m−3 h−1 and 31.3 g m−3 h−1 for limonene and removal efficiencies of 11 % and 18 % for methane. The membrane bioreactor was apparently mass transfer-limited and the biotrickling filter was reaction-limited.
Machine Learning The Art of Human Movement

The goal of our project is to solve a physics-based reinforcement learning challenge “Learning to Run” by training a physiologically-based human model to navigate a course (with obstacles) as quickly as possible. We experimented with a list of state-of-art RL algorithms such as DDPG, PPO, and Continuous DQN. Due to the nature of the high-dimensional and continuous state and action space, we discovered that training is computationally intensive, and require long training cycles. It was challenging to debug and fine tune parameters. After some state space transformation, we can successfully train a walkable model, and also found that DDPG is the most promising and produce better results given the slowness of the simulator.