Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Compact reconfigurable waveguide circular polarizer

A waveguide circular polarizer with reconfigurable polarization sense is proposed in this paper. The polarizer can be switched between right and left hand circular polarization. The polarization sense is controlled by RF MEMS switches, which commute between two states for allowing or blocking adequately two different signal paths inside the waveguide structure. The polarizer is made up of three building blocks, involving E-plane waveguide MEMS SP2T switch, ridge to waveguide transitions and a septum-orthomode transducer. A switchable Ku-band polarizer prototype is designed and tested as a proof of concept. The experimental performance shows acceptable return losses and axial ratio levels in the 12.7 to 14.8 GHz band (15.3% fractional bandwidth). The proposed structure is compact and is useful for applications that require fast polarization switching.
VSWR-protected 90 W L-band AlGaN/GaN power amplifier

Solid-state power amplifiers need protection against reflected power at the output caused by load mismatch. The standard method for protection is to include a ferrite-based isolator at the output. The isolator will redirect all reflected power to a dissipating load resistor and will ensure that the output of the amplifier always sees a 50 Ω load. Disadvantage of such isolator is the large size, weight and limited possibility for integration and miniaturization. In this work a protection circuit is presented that can replace the isolator and still offer full protection against any power reflection at the output of the amplifier. This protection circuit is based on measurement of the reflected power and a feedback loop to adjust the gain of a driver-stage, also known as fold-back protection. The driver-stage and output stage are implemented in AlGaN/GaN MMIC and power-bar technology. This protection circuit has been demonstrated on a 2-stage, 90 W L-band power amplifier, intended to be used in satellite payloads for various space applications.
Molecular biology of glutathione peroxidase 4: from genomic structure to developmental expression and neural function

Abstract Selenoproteins have been recognized as modulators of brain function and signaling. Phospholipid hydroperoxide glutathione peroxidase (GPx4/PHGPx) is a unique member of the selenium-dependent glutathione peroxidases in mammals with a pivotal role in brain development and function. GPx4 exists as a cytosolic, mitochondrial, and nuclear isoform derived from a single gene. In mice, the GPx4 gene is located on chromosome 10 in close proximity to a functional retrotransposome that is expressed under the control of captured regulatory elements. Elucidation of crystallographic data uncovered structural peculiarities of GPx4 that provide the molecular basis for its unique enzymatic properties and substrate specificity. Monomeric GPx4 is multifunctional: it acts as a reducing enzyme of peroxidized phospholipids and thiols and as a structural protein. Transcriptional regulation of the different GPx4 isoforms requires several isoform-specific cis-regulatory sequences and trans-activating factors. Cytosolic and mitochondrial GPx4 are the major isoforms exclusively expressed by neurons in the developing brain. In stark contrast, following brain trauma, GPx4 is specifically upregulated in non-neuronal cells, i.e., reactive astrocytes. Molecular approaches to genetic modification in mice have revealed an essential and isoform-specific function for GPx4 in development and disease. Here we review recent findings on GPx4 with emphasis on its molecular structure and function and consider potential mechanisms that underlie neural development and neuropathological conditions.
Arabidopsis NRT1.5 Is Another Essential Component in the Regulation of Nitrate Reallocation and Stress Tolerance1[W]

Nitrate reallocation to plant roots occurs frequently under adverse conditions and was recently characterized to be actively regulated by Nitrate Transporter1.8 (NRT1.8) in Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) and implicated as a common response to stresses. However, the underlying mechanisms remain largely to be determined. In this study, characterization of NRT1.5, a xylem nitrate-loading transporter, showed that the mRNA level of NRT1.5 is down-regulated by salt, drought, and cadmium treatments. Functional disruption of NRT1.5 enhanced tolerance to salt, drought, and cadmium stresses. Further analyses showed that nitrate, as well as Na+ and Cd2+ levels, were significantly increased in nrt1.5 roots. Important genes including Na+/H+ exchanger1, Salt overly sensitive1, Pyrroline-5-carboxylate synthase1, Responsive to desiccation29A, Phytochelatin synthase1, and NRT1.8 in stress response pathways are steadily up-regulated in nrt1.5 mutant plants. Interestingly, altered accumulation of metabolites, including proline and malondialdehyde, was also observed in nrt1.5 plants. These data suggest that NRT1.5 is involved in nitrate allocation to roots and the consequent tolerance to several stresses, in a mechanism probably shared with NRT1.8.
The Design and Simulation of a Cusp Electron Beam Source for a W-Band Gyro-BWO Experiment

Presented is the design of a cusp electron gun that is be used in a Gyrotron-Backward Wave Oscillator which is operating in the W-Band (75 - 110 GHz) frequency range. A cusp gun uses a non-adiabatic magnetic field reversal to impart azimuthal motion on an electron beam forming an axis-encircling beam. The cusp gun was designed to generate a beam of 2 A at 40 kV with a pitch factor of 1.65, in order to operate at a centre frequency of 94 GHz. The beam had an axial velocity spread of 7.4% with a beam radius spread of 12.2% and alpha spread of 10.1%.
The ras‐related ypt protein is an ubiquitous eukaryotic protein: isolation and sequence analysis of mouse cDNA clones highly homologous to the yeast YPT1 gene.

The YPT1 gene of the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae codes for a guanine nucleotide‐binding protein which is essential for cell viability. Using as hybridization probe cloned yeast YPT1 gene sequences, we have isolated from cDNA libraries prepared from RNA of mouse F9 and C3H10T1/2 cells several overlapping cDNA clones with identical sequence in the regions of overlap. The cDNAs were derived from a gene, designated ypt1, which codes for a protein of 205 amino acids with 71% homology to the yeast YPT1 gene product. Amino acid sequences typical for guanine nucleotide‐binding proteins and characteristic for ypt proteins are perfectly conserved in the mouse ypt1 protein. Two mRNAs of 1600 and 3200 nucleotides, originating from the mouse ypt1 gene and differing in the length of their 3′‐non‐translated region, were identified in mouse F9 cells and in all mouse tissues examined. A monoclonal antibody specifically recognizing the 23.5‐kd yeast YPT1 protein cross‐reacted with a protein of identical size on protein blots of mouse, rat, pig, bovine and human cell lines.
Experimental study of overvoltage on distribution lines induced by artificially rocket-triggered lightning

Lightning induced overvoltage is the important reason for the insulation flashover of power distribution line. In order to reduce the lightning accident and to improve the power supply reliability of the distribution network, it is of outstanding significance for engineering purposes to study the lightning current and induced overvoltage on distribution lines. So a 280 meter-long 10 kV power distribution experimental line has been established in Guangzhou which is the most frequently-occurred area of thunderstorms in China. Therefore, the experiment platform is set up to measure overvoltage and the current is measured by Rogowski coils. All the measured lightning currents are accompanied by return-stroke process for many times, which the amplitude of initial lightning current is between -22.5~35.4 kA and the peak of the return-stroke current is between -40.8~24.2 kA. And the data of the lightning induced overvoltage on 10kV distribution line has been acquired four times. After analysis, the empirical formula of calculating overvoltage induced by rocket-triggered lightning is in the range of the error of the engineering application.
MPC-based controller for augmented boiler-NOx model

This paper addresses the problem of controlling a drum type boiler operation as well as its NOx emission level. For that purpose an augmented model integrating both boiler and NOx models has been developed. The system has multiple roots at the origin causing poor phase and gain stability margins. In addition, one of its inputs has been considered as an undesirable disturbance. Different control strategies have been studied and benchmarked. A two-stage Augmented Model Predictive control (MPC) controller with constraints demonstrated best performance. Computer simulations show the performance of such approach.
Roles of Tom70 in Import of Presequence-containing Mitochondrial Proteins*

Mitochondrial protein traffic requires precise recognition of the mitochondrial targeting signals by the import receptors on the mitochondrial surface including a general import receptor Tom20 and a receptor for presequence-less proteins, Tom70. Here we took a proteome-wide approach of mitochondrial protein import in vitro to find a set of presequence-containing precursor proteins for recognition by Tom70. The presequences of the Tom70-dependent precursor proteins were recognized by Tom20, whereas their mature parts exhibited Tom70-dependent import when attached to the presequence of Tom70-independent precursor proteins. The mature parts of the Tom70-dependent precursor proteins have the propensity to aggregate, and the presence of the receptor domain of Tom70 prevents their aggregate formation. Therefore Tom70 plays the role of a docking site for not only cytosolic chaperones but also aggregate-prone substrates to maintain their solubility for efficient transfer to downstream components of the mitochondrial import machineries.
Contextual genetic algorithm for compressive sensing reconstruction of VHR images

Reconstructing missing data in very high resolution (VHR) multispectral images represents a complex image processing challenge. In this paper, we propose a new method for the reconstruction of areas obscured by clouds. It is based on compressive sensing (CS) theory, which allows to find sparse signal representations in underdetermined linear equation systems. Here we propose a novel implementation which exploits genetic algorithms (GAs) and a new strategy for the selection of atoms belonging to the dictionary. To illustrate the performances of the proposed method, a thorough experimental analysis on FORMOSAT-2 images is reported and discussed. It includes a simulation study and a comparison with a state-of-the-art technique for cloud removal.
EMTDC Simulation Model for FACTS Device

This paper describes the impact of the FACTS application on the power network using EMTDC simulation package. KEPCO (Korea Electric Power Corporation) has begun the operation of the plusmn80 MVA UPFC (unified power flow controller) from the year 2003 on the 154 kV transmission system. The UPFC consists of two voltage source inverters (VSI), STATCOM and SSSC, which are connected through a common DC link capacitor. Through a combination of both VSIs, the UPFC can control bus voltage, real and reactive power flow. But, in some cases, each VSI can be operated independently according to operation modes. After all, The UPFC can be operated 3 operation mode; SSSC, STATCOM and UPFC mode. The paper describes the fundamental operating effects and basic control approach of a SSSC mode operation of KEPCO UPFC to the power system
Case series utilizing drop-out casting for the treatment of knee joint extension motion loss following anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction.

STUDY DESIGN Case series. CASE DESCRIPTION Four patients who had developed knee extension motion loss following anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction were referred to physical therapy for treatment. They were treated with drop-out casting and completed a Lower Extremity Functional Scale at baseline, at the time of application of the drop-out casting, and at discharge. OUTCOMES Three males and 1 female with a mean age of 20.5 years (range, 18-22 years) were referred to physical therapy a mean of 31 days (range, 19-49 days) following bone-patella tendon-bone autograft anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction. The mean number of physical therapy sessions attended was 29.5 visits (range, 20-47 visits). The mean improvement in knee extension range of motion (ROM) and knee flexion ROM prior to the application of drop-out casting was 4.3 degrees (range, -1 degree to 10 degrees) and 24.3 degrees (range, 0 degree to 40 degrees), respectively. The mean improvement on the Lower Extremity Functional Scale was 10.3 points prior to drop-out casting. At time of discharge, the total mean improvement in knee extension ROM loss was 11.0 degrees (range, 4 degrees to 15 degrees), knee flexion ROM was 30.8 degrees (range, 22 degrees to 35 degrees), and Lower Extremity Functional Scale was 12 points (range, -5 to 21 points). Two of the patients were able to complete a running program without difficulty, while the other 2 patients had difficulty with higher-level activities. DISCUSSION Despite the low incidence of knee extension ROM loss following surgery, the inability to achieve full knee extension does occur and can have debilitating consequences. When early emphasis of full passive knee extension has been inadequate, these results suggest that improving knee extension motion without inhibiting knee flexion motion is possible with the use of a drop-out cast. Future research should focus on comparison of drop-out casting to dynamic splinting, as well as the optimal frequency and duration of low-load long-duration stretching using a drop-out cast.
Software implementation of the OSIRIS iris recognition algorithm in FPGA

In this paper, we present a software implementation of an iris recognition algorithm on a FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array). We use the OSIRIS reference systems developed in the framework of the BioSecure project which is an implementation of the well-knoun Daugman approach [10]. This system is composed of two modules. The first one uses the Hough transform to segment and normalize the iris. The second module applies a Gabor filter on the normalized image and calculates the similarity score between two images using the Hamming distance. OSIRIS algorithm has performance (EER=7.04%) when it is running on the PC in ICE 2005 Database. This system is coded in C++ using the library OpenCV (Open Source Computer Vision). This library is difficult to implement it in FPGA. that's why, we first remove this library in our code than improve this algorithm. Finally, we implement it on a CYCLONE II DE2 Board FPGA using the NIOS II processor which is characterized by its flexibility and programmability.
Comparative Evaluation of Enhancing Retention of Dislodged Crowns Using Preparation Modifications and Luting Cements: An In-Vitro Study

Background: Complete cast crowns are good alternatives and have best longevity for the restoration of damaged posterior teeth. Occasionally, a crown with clinically acceptable margins, preparation design, and occlusion becomes loose. Providers often debate whether such a crown can be successfully recemented with any degree of confidence that it will not be dislodged under normal masticatory function. It has been documented that resistance form increases by placing grooves opposing each other in a crown and tooth; cements also have a role to play in retention of crowns. To determine whether the addition of horizontal groove in the internal surface of the crown and/or tooth preparation will increase retention of the crowns, without remaking them and achieving better retention with cements. Materials and Methods: A total of 80 extracted human mandibular molars were taken and standard preparation was done. After the crowns were ready, the groove was made in the internal surface of the crown and on the tooth, which were cemented with glass ionomer cement and resin cement. The tensile force needed to dislodge the crowns and teeth after cementation was found out. Result: The mean tensile force needed to dislodge the crown and tooth combination was highest for the group in which crown had a groove without any groove on the tooth and cemented using resin cement (252.60N). Conclusion: It can be concluded from the study that it is best to recement a crown and tooth combination using resin cement where the crown has a groove, and the tooth has no groove.
Dimeric and Monomeric Organization of Photosystem II

The supramolecular organization of photosystem II (PSII) was characterized in distinct domains of the thylakoid membrane, the grana core, the grana margins, the stroma lamellae, and the so-called Y100 fraction. PSII supercomplexes, PSII core dimers, PSII core monomers, PSII core monomers lacking the CP43 subunit, and PSII reaction centers were resolved and quantified by blue native PAGE, SDS-PAGE for the second dimension, and immunoanalysis of the D1 protein. Dimeric PSII (PSII supercomplexes and PSII core dimers) dominate in the core part of the thylakoid granum, whereas the monomeric PSII prevails in the stroma lamellae. Considerable amounts of PSII monomers lacking the CP43 protein and PSII reaction centers (D1-D2-cytochrome b559 complex) were found in the stroma lamellae. Our quantitative picture of the supramolecular composition of PSII, which is totally different between different domains of the thylakoid membrane, is discussed with respect to the function of PSII in each fraction. Steady state electron transfer, flash-induced fluorescence decay, and EPR analysis revealed that nearly all of the dimeric forms represent oxygen-evolving PSII centers. PSII core monomers were heterogeneous, and a large fraction did not evolve oxygen. PSII monomers without the CP43 protein and PSII reaction centers showed no oxygen-evolving activity.
Beyond Photorealism

For around 30 years the computer graphics research community has pursued photorealism as though it were the ultimate form of visual expression. Yet, as an art form, photorealism is one of many abstrations that an artist might use to convey ideas, shape, structure, emotion and mood. In this paper we describe how techniques and wisdom learned from photorealistic computer graphics can be adapted and applied to a diverse range of alternative styles for visual expression.
Identification of Culicoides obsoletus (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae) as a vector of bluetongue virus in central Italy

In 2001 and 2002, 235 outbreaks of bluetongue were observed in the Lazio and Tuscany regions of central Italy. During entomological surveillance Culicoides imicola, the main vector of bluetongue virus in the Mediterranean region, was detected in only 14 of 28 municipalities affected by outbreaks; Culicoides obsoletus was the most abundant species, contributing 83 per cent of individuals in catches, whereas C imicola contributed only 2 per cent. In affected municipalities the maximum catch of C obsoletus was 18,000 specimens, compared with 54 of C imicola. In October 2002 bluetongue virus serotype 2 was isolated from a single pool of wild-caught, non-blood-engorged parous C obsoletus inoculated on to BHK-21 cells. Its identity was confirmed by reverse transcriptase-PCR.
Design and Testing of a Generic Algorithm for Assessment of Human Walking

This paper addressed a novel scheme of training Support Vector Machines (SVMs) for automatic discrimination of the change of human walking patterns. In order to classify gait patterns with higher accuracy, the independent component analysis (ICA) algorithm was proposed as a new pre-processing technique to extract gait features for initiating the training set of SVM. The gait data of 30 young and 30 elderly participants were acquired during normal walking, and were analyzed using the proposed method. The test results indicated that the ICA algorithm could obtain more gait features containing high-order statistical information about the change of young-old walking pattern, and ICA-based SVM has achieved an evidently improved the generalization performance, compared with PCA-based SVM. The proposed model could be functioned as an efficient tool for the assessment of the human walking in the future clinical application.
Commentary: nuclear receptors and myosin heavy chain gene expression in the aged myocardium.

I N studies of the heart, "recapitulation of the fetal gene program" refers to a set of gene products normally pres ent.during fetal development that are poorly expressed in the neonatal or adult myocardium, and which accumulate in the hypertrophied and diseased myocardium (1). One of the first examples of this paradoxical pattern of gene ex pression was demonstrated for two cardiac isoforms of myosin heavy chain (MHC). Beta MHC is predominant in fetal rodent ventricle, but not atria. Just before birth, tran scriptional activation and repression of the genes coding for a- and fj-MHC respectively result in the loss of the fj isoform from the ventricles in the adult myocardium. With cardiac hypertrophy, fj-MHC is reexpressed and replaces a-MHC as the predominant form in the ventricle. A similar transition to fj-MHC predominance has been described with aging (2), but the mechanisms underlying this switch are largely unknown. In this issue of the The Journal ofGerontology: Biologi cal Sciences, Long and colleagues (3) present data suggest ing a link between the age-related switch in a- and fj-MHC gene expression in heart and altered abundance of members of the nuclear receptor superfamily. In particular, the authors suggest that alterations in (THR) fj1 and the retinoid X may be responsible, at least in part, for decreased a-MHC and increased fj-MHC abundance in aging myocardium. Al the mechanisms underlying transitions in
Modular hybrid solid state pulsed power generator

Recently, the pulsed power systems have found wide applications. For this reason, using the pulsed power generators that in addition to responding to the needs of the user, are providing the advantages of compactness, high flexibility, high repetition rate and cost efficiency is inevitable. This paper proposes a converter which is a combination of Marx topologies and solid state voltage multipliers. It is capable of producing high voltage pulses with varying amplitudes at different frequencies where is modular and flexible. The resonant circuit used in this structure can reduce the stress on switching element and increase the output voltage while providing a zero current switching for the full bridge converter. Its analytical design is described and its verification is proved by the simulation results in MATLAB\SIMULINK. As a proof of concept, the measurement results taken from the experimental prototype, are presented as well.
Characterising Volatile Organic Compounds from Sewer Emissions by Thermal Desorption Coupled with Gas-chromatography-mass Spectrometry

An analytical method was developed to characterise volatile organic compounds (VOCs) emitted from sewer networks by actively collecting the samples using sorbent tubes followed by the Thermal Desorber coupled with Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (TD-GC-MS). The method parameters including sorbent tubes materials, tube desorption temperature, desorption time and cold trap desorption temperature were selected and optimized. Validation of TD-GC-MS method showed good precision, linearity and accuracy. Breakthrough tests showed that there is no significant breakthrough when 5,000 ppm (v/v) stock solution was spiked into sorbent tubes (breakthrough volume <1 %). The method was evaluated by collecting VOCs from two sewer sites in Sydney. The identification of key chemical groups at individual site is important for monitoring odour annoyance and developing design criteria for odour and VOC abatement systems.