Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Introduction to the focus issue on granular materials.

In a review paper [H. M. Jaeger, S. R. Nagel, and R. P. Behringer, "Granular solids, liquids and gases," Rev. Mod. Phys. 68, 1259-1273 (1996)] a few years ago, we wrote about granular material as a distinctive form of matter that exhibits behavior rather different from that of ordinary solids, liquids, or gases. We traced this distinction to three characteristic properties. First, the individual particles making up a granular material are typically large so that thermal energy is irrelevant compared to gravitational energy. Consequently, concepts from equilibrium statistical mechanics are often not applicable. Second, the interactions between particles are frictional and can be mobilized to different degrees depending on the preparation history, giving rise to memory effects, i.e., a static pile will remember how it was formed. Third, when particles collide they do so inelastically so that a "gas" of particles will slow down and come to rest in clumps. In the intervening years, the research on granular matter has progressed rapidly and this may be a good time to ask what we have learned since that article was written. In this spirit, the present special issue of the journal Chaos assembles a spectrum of papers discussing recent developments in the field. (c) 1999 American Institute of Physics.
Transmission and isolation of signals in buildings at 60 GHz

A b s t r a c t : This communication presents a model, based on reflection and transmission of plane waves in a dielectric slab, for the estimation of transmission and isolation through building walls and floors, being applied for 60 GHz. The internal reflections phenomenon is negligible for the usual thicknesses of building materials, with the exception of glass, acrylic glass and plasterboard. In the same conditions, the estimation of isolation can be done by using the product of the attenuation coefficient by the wall thickness, and it is seen that at least a value of 20 dB is obtained. As a general conclusion, only glass and plasterboard are not effective in isolating cells with the same frequency group.
PH-Asistido: un editor dirigido por la sintaxis para el lenguaje específico del dominio hoshimi

Resumen. Ensenar programacion no es una tarea simple, porque el docente debe enfrentar los problemas tradicionales del proceso de ensenanzaaprendizaje, asi como tambien sortear los inconvenientes proporcionados por el dominio de aplicacion y por el lenguaje de programacion. Desde un punto de vista, es claro que si el dominio de aplicacion no es atrayente, el estudiante no se sentira motivado a resolver los problemas planteados por el docente. Por otra parte, los lenguajes de programacion generalmente utilizan una sintaxis y un idioma que a los estudiantes les cuesta entender. Por estas razones, la elaboracion de herramientas para facilitar la ensenanza de la programacion representa un desafio relevante para los profesionales de la informatica educativa. Con el proposito de evitar los inconvenientes previamente expuestos, se desarrollo PH-Asistido, una herramienta cuyo principal proposito es facilitar la ensenanza de la programacion a traves de: i) La utilizacion de un dominio atrayente para la ensenanza de la programacion: el Proyecto Hoshimi, ii) La extension del Lenguaje del Proyecto Hoshimi con acciones que simplifican la programacion, y iii) La definicion e implementacion de un editor visual proactivo dirigido por la sintaxis que evita que el estudiante disperse su atencion en obstaculos poco relacionados con el problema a resolver.
Multi-Access Edge Computing Based Vehicular Network: Joint Task Scheduling and Resource Allocation Strategy

With the progress of 5G technology, Internet of vehicles (IoV) has entered a stage of rapid development. The deficiencies of cloud computing, such as centralized deployment, network congestion and the long distance from the terminal, make it hard to satisfy vehicular service demands. As a promising computing paradigm, Multi-access Edge Computing (MEC) can be applied to IoV scenarios. The resource management in the changeable MEC environment has become a challenging problem to be addressed. In particular, it should be noticed that IoV tasks have different sensitivities to delay and need to be treated differently. In this article, we focus on the Joint Task Scheduling and Resource Allocation problem in the MEC based vehicular system, proposing a JTSRA algorithm. Firstly, we classify computing tasks into different priorities according to their delay tolerances. Based on this, in order to improve processing efficiency, we design an approach to adjust the order of tasks. Moreover, we further transform the computing resource allocation problem into the Markov decision process and solve it with reinforcement learning. Finally, the feasibility and effectiveness of the proposed scheme are verified by simulation.
COSIVU — Compact, smart and reliable drive unit for fully electric vehicles

COSIVU is a three year collaborative research project that ended in September 2015 and which has been funded within the European Green Car Initiative (now the European Green Vehicle Initiative). COSIVU addresses one of the most critical technical parts in fully electrical vehicles (FEV) besides the energy storage system: the mechatronic drive-train unit. The COSIVU project has delivered a new system architecture for multiple wheel drive-trains by a smart, compact and durable single-wheel drive unit with integrated electric motor, full silicon carbide (SiC) power electronics (switches and diodes), a novel control and health monitoring module with wireless communication, and an advanced ultra-compact cooling solution. DfR utilizing FEM simulations ensures first time right solutions. This paper presents the main results including the architecture of the drive train solution as well as the modular design of the inverter based on Inverter Building Blocks, one per phase. Performance tests are presented here for the first time for both the heavy duty commercial vehicle solution performed in a test rig by Volvo, and the tests of the COSIVU solution adapted to a passenger car done by Elaphe.
Velar and dental stop consonant softening in Romance

Experimental and descriptive evidence from the Romance languages suggests that velar and dental stop consonant softening, i.e., the process by which stops of these places of articulation turn mostly into palatoalveolar or alveolar affricates or fricatives, has proceeded gradually through intermediate (alveolo)palatal stop realizations. Several arguments are adduced in support of this interpretation: the presence of (alveolo)palatal stops and of (alveolo)palatal consonants of other manners of articulation in Romance languages and dialects, whether through gestural blending, gestural strengthening or other production strategies; alternations between (alveolo)palatal stops and affricates in several dialectal areas; variability in closure location for (alveolo)palatal stops in general, which accounts for their confusion with dental or velar stops; experimental evidence from speech production and perception studies. Moreover, there appears to be a plausible relationship between (alveolo)palatal stop realizations differing in closure fronting, and differences in fronting in the affricate and fricative outcomes of original Latin dental and velar stops. Historically, those differences depend mainly on place of articulation and voicing for the original stop as well as on the contextual and position conditions in which the stop occurred. The present investigation reveals that fine articulatory detail needs to be taken into consideration in the formulation of phonetic explanations of sound change.
Modelos de clases latentes aplicados a las encuestas de percepción ciudadana: estudio de caso

En el ambito de las ciencias sociales existe una gran cantidad de situaciones o fenomenos que no pueden ser directamente observados o cuantifi cados, ya sea porque se trata de un concepto abstracto o una caracteristica subyacente (la calidad de vida, el liderazgo de un gobernante, los resultados de una gestion gubernamental, etcetera. Los conceptos de esta naturaleza pueden agruparse bajo la denominacion generica de variables latentes, es decir, subyacen en el fenomeno bajo estudio, pero no son directamente observables. Su estudio se lleva a cabo mediante variables observadas (manifi estas), que se consideran indicadoras de estas variables. La idea principal es que las variables indicadoras sirvan para defi nir o medir la variable latente (Vermunt & Magidson, 2000). El estudio de las llamadas variables latentes, ha dado lugar al surgimiento de los conocidos modelos de variables latentes.
RELEASE AND VELOCITY OF MICRONIZED DEXAMETHASONE IMPLANTS WITH AN INTRAVITREAL DRUG DELIVERY SYSTEM: Kinematic Analysis With a High-Speed Camera

Purpose: Ozurdex, a novel dexamethasone (DEX) implant, is released by a drug delivery system into the vitreous cavity. We analyzed the mechanical release aperture of the novel applicator, obtained real-time recordings using a high-speed camera system and performed kinematic analysis of the DEX application. Design: Experimental study. Methods: The application of intravitreal DEX implants (6 mm length, 0.46 mm diameter; 700 &mgr;g DEX mass, 0.0012 g total implant mass) was recorded by a high-speed camera (500 frames per second) in water (Group A: n = 7) or vitreous (Group B: n = 7) filled tanks. Kinematic analysis calculated the initial muzzle velocity as well as the impact on the retinal surface at approximately 15 mm of the injected drug delivery system implant in both groups. A series of drug delivery system implant positions was obtained and graphically plotted over time. Results: High-speed real-time recordings revealed that the entire movement of the DEX implant lasted between 28 milliseconds and 55 milliseconds in Group A and 1 millisecond and 7 milliseconds in Group B. The implants moved with a mean muzzle velocity of 820 ± 350 mm/s (±SD, range, 326–1,349 mm/s) in Group A and 817 ± 307 mm/s (±SD, range, 373–1,185 mm/s) in Group B. In both groups, the implant gradually decelerated because of drag force. With greater distances, the velocity of the DEX implant decreased exponentially to a complete stop at 13.9 mm to 24.7 mm in Group A and at 6.4 mm to 8.0 mm in Group B. Five DEX implants in Group A reached a total distance of more than 15 mm, and their calculated mean velocity at a retinal impact of 15 mm was 408 ± 145 mm/s (±SD, range, 322–667 mm/s), and the consecutive normalized energy was 0.55 ± 0.44 J/m2 (±SD). In Group B, none of the DEX implants reached a total distance of 6 mm or more. An accidental application at an angle of 30 grade and consecutively reduced distance of approximately 6 mm may result in a mean velocity of 844 and mean normalized energy of 0.15 J/m2 (SD ± 0.47) in a water-filled eye. Conclusion: The muzzle velocity of DEX implants is approximately 0.8 m/s and decreases exponentially over distance. The drag over time in vitreous is faster than in water. The calculated retinal impact energy does not reach reported damage levels for direct foreign bodies or other projectiles.
Biclustering sobre datos de expresión génica basado en búsqueda dispersa

Los datos de expresion genica, y su particular naturaleza e importancia, motivan no solo el desarrollo de nuevas tecnicas sino la formulacion de nuevos problemas como el problema del biclustering. El biclustering es una tecnica de aprendizaje no supervisado que agrupa tanto genes como condiciones. Este doble agrupamiento lo diferencia del clustering tradicional sobre este tipo de datos ya que este solo agrupa o bien genes o condiciones. La presente tesis presenta un nuevo algoritmo de biclustering que permite el estudio de distintos criterios de busqueda. Dicho algoritmo utiliza esquema de busqueda dispersa, o scatter search, que independiza el mecanismo de busqueda del criterio empleado. Se han estudiado tres criterios de busqueda diferentes que motivan las tres principales aportaciones de la tesis. En primer lugar se estudia la correlacion lineal entre los genes, que se integra como parte de la funcion objetivo empleada por el algoritmo de biclustering. La correlacion lineal permite encontrar biclusters con patrones de desplazamiento y escalado, lo que mejora propuestas anteriores. En segundo lugar, y motivado por el significado biologico de los patrones de activacion-inhibicion entre genes, se modifica la correlacion lineal de manera que se contemplen estos patrones. Por ultimo, se ha tenido en cuenta la informacion disponible sobre genes en repositorios publicos, como la ontologia de genes GO, y se incorpora dicha informacion como parte del criterio de busqueda. Se anade un termino extra que refleja, por cada bicluster que se evalue, la calidad de ese grupo de genes segun su informacion almacenada en GO. Se estudian dos posibilidades para dicho termino de integracion de informacion biologica, se comparan entre si y se comprueba que los resultados son mejores cuando se usa informacion biologica en el algoritmo de biclustering. Las tres aportaciones descritas, junto con una serie de pasos intermedios, han dado lugar a resultados publicados tanto en revistas como en conferencias nacionales e internacionales.
El lipopolisacárido bacteriano: una potente endotoxina con múltiples actividades biológicas, recientes avances en estructura, genética y bioquímica

Los lipopolisacaridos (LPS) constituyen el antigeno O y la endotoxina de las bacterias Gram-negativas. Estan localizados en la membrana externa de la envoltura celular bacteriana y juegan un papel muy importante en la patogenesis de las infecciones bacterianas, asi como en la interaccion con el hospedero y su sistema de defensa. Basicamente el LPS se compone de una porcion lipidica muy conservada entre las especies, denominada lipido A, inmersa en la cara externa de la membrana externa de la bacteria, y una porcion hidrofilica compuesta por azucares que presenta una gran variabilidad estructural. El lipido A es responsable de las propiedades patofisiologicas de las endotoxinas. El polisacarido O, que es la porcion mas externa, le confiere a la bacteria su especificidad serologica. El oligosacarido nuclear o core une el polisacarido O al liquido A. En general, los genes responsables de la sintesis del LPS estan organizados ya sea en grupos de genes contiguos como en la sintesis del nucleo y el polisacarido O, o bien, dispersos alrededor del cromosoma bacteriano como en el caso del lipido A. La mayoria de los pasos de la via biosintetica del LPS han sido elucidados al menos en las enterobacterias. Tanto las interacciones moleculares de enzimas y sistratos durante la sintesis comoe el transporte del LPS hasta la membrana externa bacteriana son aspectos de constante investigacion hoy en dia, debido a las implicaciones en la biologia de estos microorganismos y en el potencial uso farmacologico de analogos o antagonistas de LPS en la terapeutica del choque endotoxico. Esta revision pretende actualizar los aspectos relevantes de la estructura, bioquimica y genetica de esta importante molecula bacteriana
UN PSEUDOPROBLEMA PARA EL MINIMISMO

El objetivo principal de este articulo es contribuir al debate entre contextualistas y minimistas, mostrando como uno de los principales argumentos en contra del minimismo, que denominare el "Argumento de la perdida de generalidad de la nocion de implicatura", descansa en una mala comprension o en una simplificacion del mecanismo de generacion de implicaturas conversacionales
Selective Drainage for Pancreatic, Biliary, and Duodenal Obstruction Secondary to Chronic Fibrosing Pancreatitis

Twenty-eight patients underwent surgery for intractable pain, duodenal or extrahepatic biliary obstruction secondary to chronic pancreatitis. Eleven had pancreatic duct obstruction alone, six biliary obstruction alone, seven combined pancreatic and biliary, two combined biliary and duodenal, one combined pancreatic and duodenal, and one simultaneous pancreatic, biliary, and duodenal obstruction. Pancreatitis was secondary to alcohol in all but one case. The following operations were performed: longitudinal pancreatojejunostomy (20), choledochoduodenostomy (8), choledochojejunostomy (7), cholecystojejunostomy (1), and gas-trojejunostomy (4). Of the 20 patients with pancreatic duct drainage, pain relief was complete in 11 and partial in six. Initial incomplete relief of pain, or recurrence, stimulated further diagnostic procedures, leading to improvement or correction of the problem in five patients. A significant (p < 0.01) fall in alkaline phosphatase (935 ± 228 to 219 ± 61 U/L) occurred following surgery. One patient was subsequently found to have pancreatic carcinoma. Two patients were lost to follow-up and four patients died (one perioperative and three late). In conclusion, the possibility of pancreatic, biliary, and duodenal obstruction must be considered in symptomatic patients with chronic pancreatitis. Surgery must be individualized. Drainage procedures, either alone or in combination, are associated with a low morbidity and improved clinical condition and may be preferable to resection in the surgical management of these patients.
durante a imobilização nas propriedades mecânicas do músculo esquelético

RESUMO A estimulacao eletrica neuromuscular (EENM) e um importante recurso utilizado em medicina esportiva para acelerar processos de recuperacao. O objetivo deste estudo foi analisar os efeitos da EENM durante a imobilizacao do musculo gastrocnemio, em posicoes de alongamento (LP) e encurtamento (SP). Para tanto, 60 ratas femeas jovens Wistar foram distribuidas em seis grupos e acompanhadas durante sete dias: controle (C), eletroestimuladas (EE), imobilizadas em encurtamento (ISP), imobilizadas em alongamento (ILP), imobilizadas em encurtamento e eletroestimuladas (ISP + EE) e imobilizadas em alongamento e eletroestimuladas (ILP + EE). Para a imobilizacao, o membro posterior direito foi envolvido por uma malha tubular e ataduras de algodao juntamente a atadura gessada. A EENM foi utilizada com frequencia de 50Hz, 10 minutos por dia, totalizando 20 contracoes em cada sessao. Apos sete dias os animais foram submetidos a eutanasia e os musculos gastrocnemios retirados para a realizacao do ensaio mecânico de tracao em uma maquina universal de ensaios (EMIC ®). A partir dos graficos carga versus alongamento, foram calculadas as seguintes propriedades mecânicas: alongamento no limite de proporcionalidade (ALP), carga no limite de proporcionalidade (CLP) e rigidez. As imobilizacoes SP e LP promoveram reducoes significativas (p < 0,05) nas propriedades de ALP e CLP, sendo mais acentuada no grupo ISP. Quando utilizada a EENM, houve acrescimo significativo (p < 0,05) dessas propriedades somente no grupo ISP. Ja em relacao a rigidez, foi observada reducao significativa (p < 0,05) somente do grupo C para o grupo ISP. Quando utilizada a EENM, a rigidez do grupo ILP + EE foi significativamente (p < 0,05) maior e mais proxima do grupo C que a do grupo ISP + EE. Neste modelo experimental, a imobilizacao dos musculos em alongamento atrasou o processo de atrofia, e a estimulacao eletrica, realizada durante a imobilizacao, contribuiu para a manutencao das propriedades mecânicas durante o periodo de imobilismo, principalmente no grupo ILP + EE.
Effects of protease therapy in the remnant kidney model of progressive renal failure.

This study investigated whether protease treatment ameliorates the progressive course of chronic failure in the rat model of subtotal nephrectomy. Fourteen male Wistar rats underwent 5/6 nephrectomy, and were randomized into a control group (C, n = 7) given 2 ml of 0.9% NaCl intraperitoneally (i.p.) daily, and a study group (P, n = 7) treated with 12 mg Phlogenzym (combination of trypsin, bromelain, and rutosid) in 2 ml saline i.p. daily. After 6 weeks treatment, the Phlogenzym group showed lower proteinuria (C: 19.6 +/- 9.1 vs. 10.2 +/- 6.2 mg/24 h, p < 0.05). Endogenous creatinine clearance was higher (C: 192.3 +/- 99.4, P: 300.5 +/- 47.9 microliters/min per 100 g, p < 0.05), while plasma creatinine was decreased (C: 106.7 +/- 33.9, P: 76.0 +/- 6.3 mumol/l, p < 0.01). Blood urea nitrogen levels did not change, although urea clearance tended to a higher level in the protease-treated rats. Decreased renal formation of cytokines was reflected by a lower urinary excretion ratio of transforming growth factor (TGF)-beta/ creatinine (C: 0.363 +/- 0.183, P: 0.232 +/- 0.085 ng TGF-beta/mg creatinine, p < 0.05). Renal morphology revealed less infiltration of mononuclear cells and an amelioration of interstitial fibrosis as expressed by the volume index of the cortical region (C: 17.17 +/- 1.43; P: 12.3 +/- 0.5%, p < 0.001). In addition, the activities of lysosomal proteinases (cathepsin B, L + B, and H), which are decreased in the remnant kidney model of chronic renal failure, were significantly higher in the enzyme-treated group both in isolated glomeruli and proximal tubules. The body and kidney weight tended to be lower, probably due to a catabolic action of the enzymes. In summary, we provide evidence that protease treatment may be beneficial in a nonimmune mediated renal disease. Phlogenzym ameliorated the course of chronic renal failure in the rat model of subtotal nephrectomy and retarded the development of tubulointerstitial fibrosis. Decreased cytokine formation in the remnant kidney is supposed to play a key role.
Extraordinary conservation of entire chromosomes in insects over long evolutionary periods

Comparison of the genomes of different Drosophila species has shown that six different chromosomes, the so‐called ‘‘Muller elements,” constitute the building blocks for all Drosophila species. Here, we confirm previous results suggesting that this conservation of the Muller elements extends far beyond Drosophila, to at least tephritid fruit flies, thought to have diverged from drosophilids 60–70 mYr ago. Less than 10 percent of genes differ in chromosome location between the two insect groups. Within chromosomes, however, the order is highly scrambled, as expected from the comparison between Drosophila species. The data also support the notion that the sex chromosomes of tephritid flies originated from an ancestor of the dot chromosome 4 of Drosophila. Overall, therefore, no new chromosome has been created for perhaps a billion generations over the two evolutionary lines. This stability at the chromosome level, which appears to extend to all Diptera including mosquitoes, is in stark contrast to other groups such as mammals, birds, fish and plants, in which chromosome numbers and organization vary enormously among species that have diverged over much fewer generations.
Aller et venir : des verbes de déplacement aux auxiliaires aspectuels-temporels-modaux

Apres avoir decrit le fonctionnement des verbes aller et venir, nous developpons l’hypothese selon laquelle leur grammaticalisation en auxiliaires s’effectue sur la base de l’element spatial qui structure tant leur semantisme commun – le deplacement vers une destination – que leur difference : l’orientation deictique (venir) / non deictique (aller) du deplacement. Nous testons cette hypothese en analysant les principaux emplois des periphrases de structure [aller / venir (+prep.) + V(infinitif, gerondif)]. After a description of how movement verbs aller and venir work, we develop an hypothesis according to which their grammaticalisation into auxiliaries relies on the spatial element that structures their shared semantics – movement towards a destination - as well as their distinctive feature : a deictic (venir) or non deictic (aller) orientation of the movement. We test that hypothesis against an analysis of the main uses of periphrases in the [aller / venir (+ prep.) + V(infinitive, present participle)] pattern.