Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Using printed dipole antenna and PIN diodes for wideband frequency reconfiguration

A reconfigurable printed dipole antenna which is able to switch between the several frequency bands across 1:3 bandwidth is presented. The PIN diodes are used as switches. The influence of the biasing circuit including DC wires, DC block capacitors and RF chocks on the performance of the antenna is investigated. All the simulations have been carried out by CST Microwave Studio. It is shown that a wideband frequency reconfiguration across a 1:3 bandwidth is possible using printed dipole antenna and PIN diodes.
An automatic, multichamber soil-washing apparatus for removing fungal spores from soil.

An automatic soil-washing apparatus is described which enabled the washing of fungus spores out of large numbers of soil samples simultaneously. Tests of the apparatus indicated that superficial spores were removed from most of the soil particles. This allowed organisms growing in soil as vegetative mycelium to be isolated more readily without the serious competition commonly encountered from organisms sporulating heavily in the soil. Virtually no cross-contamination of soil samples occurred in the multichambered apparatus.
ELECTROMAGNETIC SCATTERING FROM 1-D SEA SURFACE WITH LARGE WINDSPEED BY USING ITERATIVE PHYSICAL OPTICS ALGORITHM

In the paper, the electromagnetic scattering (EM) from a one-dimensional (1-D) perfectly electric conducting (PEC) randomly rough sea surface with large windspeed is investigated by the iterative physical optics (IPO) algorithm. In this method the multiple coupling interactions among points on sea surface are considered. To improve computational efficiency, the local coupling technique is adopted to accelerate the iterative process. In numerical results, the EM scattering by 1-D sea surface for different polarizations is calculated and compared with that by the conventional method of moments (MOM), as well as the computing time and memory requirements. In addition, the influence of some parameters on the scattering of sea surface are investigated and discussed in detail, such as the threshold of coupling distance, iteration numbers, and windspeed.
Suggesting Sentences for ESL using Kernel Embeddings

Sentence retrieval is an important NLP application for English as a Second Language (ESL) learners. ESL learners are familiar with web search engines, but generic web search results may not be adequate for composing documents in a specific domain. However, if we build our own search system specialized to a domain, it may be subject to the data sparseness problem. Recently proposed word2vec partially addresses the data sparseness problem, but fails to extract sentences relevant to queries owing to the modeling of the latent intent of the query. Thus, we propose a method of retrieving example sentences using kernel embeddings and N-gram windows. This method implicitly models latent intent of query and sentences, and alleviates the problem of noisy alignment. Our results show that our method achieved higher precision in sentence retrieval for ESL in the domain of a university press release corpus, as compared to a previous unsupervised method used for a semantic textual similarity task.
A thoracic extradural chordoid meningioma: a unique case report and literature review

Abstract We describe the unique case of a patient being diagnosed with a thoracic extradural chordoid meningioma following her presentation with mild lower limb pyramidal weakness and a T8 sensory level. This is the first report of an extradural chordoid meningioma being identified in the thoracic spine. The tumour was successfully resected through a posterior thoracic laminectomy approach. Post-operatively, her neurological deficit resolved and to date she has not experienced a radiological recurrence. In this report, we review the literature and discuss this unusual tumour’s characteristics and prognostic significance.
Esophageal motility after laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy

Background Laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy (LSG) modifies the upper gastrointestinal tract motility. Controversial data currently exist. The aim of the study was to evaluate esophageal motility before and after LSG. Patients and methods Morbid obese patients scheduled for LSG underwent reflux symptoms evaluation and manometry preoperatively and postoperatively. The preoperative and postoperative results were compared and analyzed. Results Eighteen patients were enrolled. Heartburn and regurgitation improved in 38.9% and 11.1% of the patients, but deteriorated in 11.1% and 27.8% of the patients, respectively. Lower esophageal sphincter (LES) total length decreased postoperatively (p=0.002). Resting and residual pressures tended to decrease postoperatively (mean difference [95% confidence interval]: −4 [−8.3/0.2] mmHg, p=0.060; −1.4 [−3/0.1] mmHg, p=0.071, respectively). Amplitude pressure decreased from 95.7±37.3 to 69.8±26.3 mmHg at the upper border of LES (p=0.014), and tended to decrease at the distal esophagus from 128.5±30.1 to 112.1±35.4 mmHg (p=0.06) and mid-esophagus from 72.7±34.5 to 49.4±16.7 mmHg (p=0.006). Peristaltic normal swallow percentage increased from 47.2±36.8 to 82.8±28% (p=0.003). Postoperative regurgitation was strongly negatively correlated with LES total length (Spearman’s r=−0.670). When groups were compared according to heartburn status, statistical significance was observed between the groups of improvement and deterioration regarding postoperative residual pressure and postoperative relaxation (p<0.002, p<0.002, respectively). With regard to regurgitation status, there was statistically significant difference between groups regarding preoperative amplitude pressure at the upper border of LES (p<0.056). Conclusion Patients developed decreased LES length and weakened LES pressure after LSG. Esophageal body peristalsis was also affected in terms of decreased amplitude pressure, especially at the upper border of LES. Nevertheless, body peristalsis was normalized postoperatively. LSG might not deteriorate heartburn. Regurgitation might increase following LSG due to shortening of LES length, particularly in patients with range of preoperative amplitude pressure at the upper border of LES of 38.9–92.6 mmHg.
On a result of S. Sherman concerning doubly stochastic matrices

He also defines, following Hardy, Littlewood and Polya [3 ] a partial ordering of n-dimensional real vectors: a <b if, and only if, there exists a d.s. matrix P such that a = Pb. In the above named article, the author investigates a conjecture of S. Kakutani to the effect that, if two d.s. matrices are such that Pia <P3a for every real vector a, then P1 <P3. For this purpose he constructs a linear mapping of all vectors of the form P3a onto vectors Pla, and extends this mapping to a mapping ,6 of the whole euclidean n-space onto the range of Pi. However, A. Horn (as quoted in [2]) points out, with the aid of a counter-example, that such an extension does not always preserve the properties of a mapping effected by a d.s. matrix, and thus Kakutani's conjecture is not true without restriction. On the other hand, if every vector is of the form P3a, i.e. if the matrix P3 is regular, it is readily verified that Sherman's construction has the required properties and thus in this case, Kakutani's conjecture holds true. It is the object of the present note to give an elementary proof of this fact, as well as to derive a more or less intuitive description of Sherman's partial ordering of d.s. matrices.
Silicon Evaluation of Cell-Aware ATPG Tests and Small Delay Tests

This paper presents silicon results for two such proposed fault models: the cell aware fault model and the small delay defect fault model. The corresponding tests including cell-aware ATPG tests and Fast-than at-speed TDF tests are evaluated on an industrial design. Results from a high volume manufacturing experiment on a 65nm Serial Attached SCSI (SAS) RAID-On-a-Chip (ROC) device are presented. The incremental value of these fault models and tests beyond our current test flow is discussed.
Identification and functional characterization of a sulfate transporter induced by both sulfur starvation and mycorrhiza formation in Lotus japonicus.

Arbuscular mycorrhizas (AMs) are one of the most widespread symbioses in the world. They allow plants to receive mineral nutrients from the symbiotic fungus which in turn gets back up to 20% of plant carbon and completes its life cycle. Especially in low-nutrient conditions, AM fungi are capable of significantly improving plant phosphate and nitrogen acquisition, but fewer data are available about sulfur (S) nutrition. We focused on S metabolism in Lotus japonicus upon mycorrhizal colonization under sulfur starvation or repletion. We investigated both tissue sulfate concentrations and S-related gene expression, at cell-type or whole-organ level. Gene expression and sulfate tissue concentration showed that Rhizophagus irregularis colonization can improve plant S nutritional status under S starvation. A group 1 sulfate transporter, LjSultr1;2, induced by both S starvation and mycorrhiza formation, was identified. Its transcript was localized in arbuscule-containing cells, which was confirmed with a promoter-GUS assay, and its function was verified through phenotyping of TILLING mutants in nonmycorrhizal seedlings. LjSultr1;2 thus appears to encode a key protein involved in plant sulfate uptake. In contrast to phosphate transporters, a single gene, LjSultr1;2, seems to mediate both direct and symbiotic pathways of S uptake in L. japonicus.
Effect of dietary oregano essential oil on performance of chickens and on iron-induced lipid oxidation of breast, thigh and abdominal fat tissues

1. We studied the effect of dietary oregano essential oil (50 and 100 mg/kg of feed) on the performance of broilers, and determined the susceptibility of the resulting broiler meat to ironinduced lipid oxidation. 2. Performance of the birds was unaffected by the experimental diets. Therefore, dietary oregano oil exerted no growth-promoting effect on broilers. 3. Iron-induced lipid oxidation showed that as oregano oil increased in the diet, malondialdehyde values decreased in tissue samples, suggesting that the oil, particularly at 100 mg/kg of feed, exerted an antioxidant effect on chicken tissues. 4. Dietary α -tocopheryl acetate supplementation at 200 mg/kg of feed displayed greater antioxidant activity than oregano oil at either supplementation rate. 5. Thigh muscle was more susceptible to oxidation than breast muscle, although the former contained α -tocopherol at higher concentration. Muscle α -tocopherol is an important factor influencing lipid oxidation, but the influence of polyunsaturated fatty acids and content of pro-oxidants must be taken into consideration too.
Proarrhythmic versus antiarrhythmic mechanisms of cardiac resynchronization therapy

Cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) has recently become an established therapy for patients with NYHA class III/IV systolic heart failure and prolonged QRS duration [1]. In addition to improvement in exercise capacity, NYHA symptoms class, and quality of life, evidence of the arrest or reversal of ventricular remodeling has been demonstrated [2]. A recent meta-analysis found that CRT reduces mortality from progressive heart failure and suggested a trend toward longer survival in patients treated with CRT [3]. Total mortality was also reduced in two recent trials, one of which included CRT in combination with defibrillation therapy, while the other did not [4, 5]. Although a delayed or halted progression of cardiac dysfunction may be sufficient to prevent malignant ventricular tachyarrhythmias, there is still lingering uncertainty regarding the presence and magnitude of antiarrhythmic effects of CRT per se. Furthermore, there is experimental as well as anecdotal clinical evidence that left ventricular pacing may have proarrhythmic potential. The present review examines the available experimental and clinical evidence of potential proarrhythmic effects of CRT and the proposed electrophysiological mechanisms. Similarly, the evidence for antiarrhythmic effects of CRT will be reviewed. A potential proarrhythmic effect of CRT in a subgroup of patients is an issue of considerable importance in view of the current controversy regarding the need of ICD backup in a majority of, if not in all patients receiving CRT. The arguments for [6] and against [7] this position seem to reflect, in part, differing points of views on each side of the Atlantic ocean.
5-methyltryptophan-resistant mutations lniked with the arginine G marker in Escherichia coli

G. N. Cohen and F. Jacob (2) described the regulator-constitutive mutants of the tryptophan operon in Escherichia coli; these mutants are resistant to 5-methyltryptophan, a structural analogue of tryptophan which inhibits protein synthesis. Other mutants that synthesize the altered anthranilate synthetase, which is insensitive to allosteric inhibition by tryptophan or 5-methyltryptophan, were also found among those resistant to 5-methyltryptophan (8, 10). We reported that 5-methyltryptophan-resistant mutants independently isolated from strain KY913(HfrH) can be classified into three groups: (i) mutants linked with thr, (ii) mutants linked with cysB and the tryptophan cluster, and (iii) mutants linked with argG (6). The first group of mutants showing the constitutive synthesis of the tryptophan biosynthetic enzymes presumably represent trpR mutants. The second group of mutants were found to be operator constitutive (S. Hiraga, J. Mol. Biol., in press). In this communication, we report on some properties of the third group of mutants that were found to be cotransduced with argG by phage P1 at 60 to 80% (Table 1). The gene or genes for these mutations are termed mtr (5-methyl-tryptophan resistance). To test whether the mtr mutations have any regulatory effect on the expression of the tryptophan operon, anthranilate synthetase, and tryptophan synthetase (EC 4.2.1.20), activities were measured under conditions of repression and derepression. The synthesis of anthranilate synthetase and tryptophan synthetase was repressible in these mutants (Table 1). In
Chronic urticaria in patients with autoimmune thyroiditis: significance of severity of thyroid gland inflammation.

BACKGROUND There is a clear association between autoimmune thyroiditis (AT) and chronic urticaria/angioedema (CUA). However, not all patients with AT demonstrate urticaria. AIMS The aim of the study was to investigate in which patients with AT did CUA become a problem. A sensitive inflammation marker, neopterine (NP) was used to confirm whether the severity of inflammation in the thyroid gland was responsible for urticaria or not. METHODS Neopterine levels were assessed in patients with AT with urticaria and without urticaria. Furthermore, levels were compared in relation to pre and post levothyroxine treatment. Twenty-seven patients with urticaria (Group 1) and 28 patients without urticaria (Group 2) were enrolled in the study. A course of levothyroxine treatment was given to all patients, and urine neopterine levels before and after the trial were obtained. RESULTS All patients completed the trial. Mean age in Group 1 and Group 2 was similar (35.70 ± 10.86 years and 38.36 ± 10.38 years, respectively) (P=0.358). Pre-treatment urine neopterine levels were significantly higher in Group 1 (P=0.012). Post-treatment levels decreased in each group, as expected. However, the decrease in the neopterine level was insignificant in the patients of Group 2 (P=0.282). In Group 1, a significant decrease in post-treatment neopterine levels (P=0.015) was associated with the remission of urticaria. CONCLUSION In patients with CUA and AT, pre-treatment elevated levels of NP, and its decrease with levothyroxine treatment along with symptomatic relief in urticaria, may be evidence of the relationship between the degree of inflammation in thyroid and presence of urticaria.
Recent advances in hydrogen research as a therapeutic medical gas

Abstract Recent basic and clinical research has revealed that hydrogen is an important physiological regulatory factor with antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and anti-apoptotic protective effects on cells and organs. Therapeutic hydrogen has been applied by different delivery methods including straightforward inhalation, drinking hydrogen dissolved in water and injection with hydrogen-saturated saline. This review summarizes currently available data regarding the protective role of hydrogen, provides an outline of recent advances in research on the use of hydrogen as a therapeutic medical gas in diverse models of disease and discusses the feasibility of hydrogen as a therapeutic strategy. It is not an overstatement to say that hydrogen's impact on therapeutic and preventive medicine could be enormous in the future.
Proteins with SH2 domains: transducers in the tyrosine kinase signaling pathway.

SH22 domains are protein motifs consisting of approximately 100 amino acids which were originally described by Sadowski et a! (1). This domain was discovered when the noncatalytic domains of cytoplasmic tyrosine kinases such as fps were compared to src (1) and subsequently described in the enzyme PLC-y (2, 3) and the oncogene v-ak (4). Interest in SH2 domains has heightened with the recent finding that these domains directly bind to protein sequences containing phosphotyrosmne (5). This finding, coupled with the fact that SH2 domains are found in molecules involved in growth factor mediated intracellular signaling and oncogenesis, indicates that SH2 domains are important in pathways utilized in growth control (6, 7). The focus of this review will be to discuss the general characteristics of 5H2 domains by reviewing several of the important SH2 domain containing proteins. In understanding the terminology of SH2 domains, it is instructive to examine the structure of src (Fig. 1 ). The tyrosine kinase domain of src represents src homology region 1, but this designation is not commonly utilized. Immediately amino-terminal to the tyrosine kinase domain lies the SH2 domain, which is designated in some other papers as the B and C box (3, 4). Next to the SH2 domain lies the SH3 domain, also known as the A box (3, 4). SH3 domains are approximately 50 amino acids long, and their function remains unknown, although they are found in cytoskeletal proteins such as spectnin (8). Proteins with SH2 domains often have accompanying SH3 domains (Fig. 1), and there is also a large group of proteins that have the SH3 domain only (5). Extensive comparisons of the amino acid sequence of SH2 domains have been published (5). Fig. 2 displays the amino acid sequence of a limited number of SH2 (Fig. 2A) and SH3 domains (Fig. 2B). Approximately 30 residues in SH2 domains are highly conserved, and three
Population effects of the bombing of Oklahoma City.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE The explosion at the Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City on April 19, 1995, affected many members of the community as well as direct victims. Our goal was to measure the exposure and effects among the general population. METHODS We conducted surveys of the Oklahoma City metropolitan area and a control area to measure exposure and impact, primarily stress and psychological distress. RESULTS Of the adults in the Oklahoma City MSA, 61.5 percent (58.5 percent to 64.5 percent with 95 percent confidence) reported experiencing at least one direct result of the bombing. In population terms, about 433 thousand adults (between 412 thousand and 457 thousand, with 95 percent confidence) were exposed to one or more of the consequences of the bombing. Oklahomans reported higher rates (about double) of increased alcohol use, smoking more or starting smoking. They reported more stress (about double), psychological distress (about double), post-traumatic stress-disorder components, and intrusive thoughts (double) related to the bombing than in the control area. Oklahomans also reported higher rates of seeking help for their stress or taking steps to reduce stress. The differences persisted into 1996, more than a year after the bombing. CONCLUSION The exposure to the bombing was widespread, including more than half the adults in the metropolitan area surrounding Oklahoma City. The psychological effects were high and, while decreasing, persisted more than a year after the bombing. Primary care practitioners should screen their patients, who may normally not be considered victims, for exposure to the effects of a terrorist disaster for an extended period of time.
Bi-Section Algorithm for Solving Linear Bi-Level Programming Problem

The bi-level programming problem (BLPP) is significant because of its application in several areas such as transportation, finance, management, computer science and so on. This problem is an appropriate tool to model these real problems. It has been proven that the general BLPP is an NP-hard problem. Therefore, the BLPP is a practical and complicated problem so solving this problem would be significant. In this paper, we attempt for developing an algorithm based on bi-section algorithm to solve BLPP. Using the Karush-Kuhn-Tucker conditions the bi-level programming problem is converted to a non-smooth single level problem, and then it is smoothed by heuristic method for using proposed bi-section algorithm. The smoothed problem is solved using bi-section algorithm which is an exact method for solving the problem. The presented approach achieves an efficient and feasible solution in an appropriate time which has been evaluated by solving test problems.
Multiple voices in ICT design with children – a nexus analytical enquiry

Children's participation in information and communication technology (ICT) design is an established interdisciplinary research field. Methods for children's participation have been developed, but a closer link between theory and design has been called for, as well as an examination of various participants influencing children's participation in ICT design. This paper addresses these gaps by introducing the research strategy of nexus analysis as a promising theoretical framework. Especially the concepts of ‘interaction order’ and ‘historical body’ are utilised in the analysis of six empirical studies on ICT design with children. The analysis shows that through the participating children there were also ‘others’ involved, multiple voices to be heard, often invisible but informing design. Some of these ‘others’ have already been acknowledged in literature but the issue has not been examined in depth and common vocabulary for this is lacking. Some practical implications will be offered by illustrating how to consider these concepts in different phases of ICT design: when establishing relationships with children, involving children as participant designers and analysing the results of these participative processes.
The influence of electronic word-of-mouth on consumers' quadratic selection: Based on the positive research of banks in mainland China

Based on Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) predecessors have studied the impact of Internet word-of-mouth on consumer's first selection. However, what is its impact on consumer's quadratic selection? This research, taking the baking industry as a carrier, analyzes the relationship among the credibility of electronic word-of-mouth, trust, perceived risk, attraction and the intention to use. The result of this research indicates that trust and attraction produces a significant positive impact on the intention to use the bank; but the perceived risk is not positively influential to the intention to use to the bank. Simultaneity, it finds that when the intonation of word-of-mouth is different, male and female would have different intentions to use the bank.
Antimicrobial activity of carvacrol related to its chemical structure

Aims: To investigate the relation between the chemical structure and the antimicrobial activity of carvacrol, eugenol, menthol and two synthesized carvacrol derivative compounds: carvacrol methyl ether and carvacryl acetate against bacteria, Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas fluorescens, Staphylococcus aureus, Lactobacillus plantarum, Bacillus subtilis, a yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae and one fungi Botrytis cinerea.