Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Energy efficient low static-power voltage level shifter

: Level shifter circuits are necessary parts of modern SoCs, as they interface different voltage domain signals. This paper presents an energy-ef ﬁ cient level up shifter capable of converting sub-threshold input signal to higher levels. The proposed design uses the feedback mechanism of a regulated gate cascode to achieve energy ef ﬁ cient operation. Once the desired output level is achieved, large static current does not ﬂ ow, and static power is further minimized using a transistor stack. Implementing in a 90-nm process, post-layout simulation results show that the proposed level shifter has a propagation delay of 21.2 ns, a total energy-per-transition of only 77.5 fJ, and a static power dissipation of 7.2 nW.
Toll‐like Receptor and RIG‐1‐like Receptor Signaling

Toll‐like receptors (TLRs) and RIG‐I‐like receptors (RLRs) constitute distinct families of pattern‐recognition receptors that sense nucleic acids derived from viruses and trigger antiviral innate immune responses. TLR3, TLR7, and TLR9 are membrane proteins localized to the endosome that recognize viral double‐stranded RNA, single‐stranded RNA, and DNA, respectively, while RLRs, including RIG‐I, Mda5, and LGP2, are cytoplasmic proteins that recognize viral RNA. Upon recognition of these nucleic acid species, TLRs and RLRs recruit specific intracellular adaptor proteins to initiate signaling pathways culminating in activation of NF‐κB, MAP kinases, and IRFs that control the transcription of genes encoding type I interferon and other inflammatory cytokines, which are important for eliminating viruses. Here, we review recent insights into the signaling pathways initiated by TLR and RLR and their roles in innate and adaptive immune responses.
Input-to-state stability of time-delay systems: Criteria and open problems

We state a characterization of input-to-state stability (ISS) for a broad class of control systems, including time-delay systems, partial differential equations, ordinary differential equations, switched systems etc. Next we specify this result for a general class of nonlinear time-delay systems. We show that in this case some additional refinements are possible. Finally, we throw some light on several important open problems in ISS theory of time-delay systems: whether timeinvariant forward complete systems necessarily have bounded reachability sets and whether limit property and uniform limit properties are equivalent for nonlinear time-delay systems.
The Relationship Between of Manufacturing Flexibility, Innovation Capability, and Operational Performance in Indonesian Manufacturing SMEs

This study examined the relationship between manufacturing flexibility competence and operational performance with technological innovation capability as mediator variables. A survey method was applied to collect data pertaining to the variables being investigated. The findings indicated that manufacturing flexibility competence is positively associated with technological innovation capability and operational performance. The findings also suggested that technological innovation capability types mediated positively to the operational performance implication of manufacturing flexibility competence. This implies that manufacturing organizations pursuing manufacturing flexibility competence need to develop technological innovation capability in obtaining a high operational performance.
Video inpainting detection and localization using inconsistencies in optical flow

In this paper we present a passive novel approach to detect and temporally localize video inpainting forgery based on optical flow consistency. The proposed algorithm comprises of two stages. In the first step, it detects whether the given video is inpainted or authentic using optical flow and in the second step temporal localization is performed. In order to evaluate the robustness of the proposed algorithm, experiments are performed against two popular and efficient inpainting techniques. We test our algorithm on comprehensive public datasets like PETS and SULFA. Experiments show that our approach is effective in detecting two popular inpainting types with good accuracy.
Application of the dual-grid scheme in BoR-FDTD for the simulation of reflector antennas

The dual-grid (DG) technique is proposed in the body-of-revolution FDTD algorithm (BoR-FDTD) to simulate large BoR antennas in a short computation time. The antenna under test here is of Cassegrain type and is illuminated by a corrugated horn with pass-band filtering characteristics at 9.78 GHz (X-band). The proposed technique is 6 times faster than the conventional BoR-FDTD algorithm. A parametric study to determine maximum gain of the design is performed in shorter time by taking the advantage of the proposed scheme.
Glucocorticoid regulation of transforming growth factor beta 1 activity and binding in osteoblast-enriched cultures from fetal rat bone

Transforming growth factor beta (TGF-beta) enhances replication and bone matrix protein synthesis and associates with distinct binding sites in osteoblast-enriched cultures from fetal rat bone. In the organism high levels of or sustained exposure to glucocorticoids alters bone cell activity and decreases bone mass, effects that may be mediated in part by changes in local TGF-beta actions in skeletal tissue. Preexposure of osteoblast-enriched cultures to 100 nM cortisol reduced the stimulatory effects of TGF-beta 1 on DNA and collagen synthesis by 40 to 50%. Binding studies showed that cortisol moderately enhanced total TGF-beta 1 binding, but chemical cross-linking and polyacrylamide gel electrophoretic analysis revealed an increase only within Mr 250,000 (type III) TGF-beta-binding complexes, which are thought to represent extracellular TGF-beta storage sites. In contrast, a decrease in TGF-beta 1 binding was detected in Mr 65,000 (type I) and 85,000 (type II) complexes, which have been implicated as signal-transducing TGF-beta receptors. Our present studies therefore indicate that glucocorticoids can decrease the anabolic effects of TGF-beta 1 in bone, and these may occur in part by a redistribution of its binding toward extracellular matrix storage sites. Alterations of this sort could contribute to bone loss associated with glucocorticoid excess.
Two-dimensional FEA of dowels of different compositions and external surface configurations.

PURPOSE The degree of stress generated in the endodontically treated and restored tooth can be influenced by the composition and configuration of the dowels used for the restoration. Using two-dimensional (2D) finite element analysis (FEA), this study tested the hypothesis that the characterization of the stress distribution can be influenced by which evaluation method is employed: protrusion loading and 4-point flexural strength test or varying the type of material (carbon and glass fiber) or the external configuration of the dowel (smooth and serrated). MATERIALS AND METHODS For simulation of the protrusion load test, models were generated with Mechanical-AutoCAD V6 software from an image of an anatomical plate, one maxillary central incisor, and two dowels and exported to Ansys 9.0. The bone region model was fixed, and a tangential load of 1 N with a 135 degrees inclination to the tooth longitudinal axis was applied at the level of the palatal surface of the crown. In the simulation of a 4-point flexural strength test, a 1 N perpendicular load was applied in two points to the dowel. The dental materials and structures were considered elastic, isotropic, homogeneous, and linear, with the exception of the dowel, which was assumed to exhibit orthotropic behavior. Mechanical properties were defined based on a review of the literature, and the model was meshed with an eight node tetrahedral element. RESULTS The stress results from both tests were analyzed according to von Mises criteria and principal stresses (Sx). Data from the 4-point flexural strength test simulation showed that, for the serrated dowels, a higher stress concentration was found; however, no difference in the occlusal load for material or dowel configuration was found. CONCLUSIONS These results suggest that although the external configuration of the dowel influences direct loading, when the dowel is integrated to the tooth and setting material, the influence on biomechanical behavior disappears.
Culture influence on the use of the IAS/IFRS

This study aims to identify the cultural factors that lead countries to converge with or to adopt IAS/IFRS. Basically, we presented a review of literature that associate between culture and the adoption of IAS/IFRS. Second, we classify different countries based on their standardisation strategies. In the different models, we tested the influence of cultural factors to the use of IASB standards. The findings show that the implementation of the Big 4 in the countries and their membership in the European continent and in North America promoting the use of IAS/IFRS. However, Anglo-Saxon colonisation's and religious affiliation encouraged the full adoption of these standards.
ESTUDO SOBRE A INFLUÊNCIA DO NÍVEL DE CONHECIMENTO DE GOVERNANÇA CORPORATIVA SOBRE A DECISÃO DE INVESTIMENTO

The adoption of good corporate governance practices as a protection form for minority shareholders are being discussed for quite some time, especially after major accounting scandals. However, little or almost nothing has been studied about these shareholders’ views with respect to such practices. Therefore, this article aims to analyze the knowledge influence from corporate governance on the investment decision by the minority shareholders standpoint. Thus, we intend to meet and see if the companies' actions have influenced somehow the investors decision. This work is methodologically classified as an exploratory-descriptive study, using the questionnaire technique for data collection. It was found that the adoption of good governance practices do not influence the investment decision, preferring to examine the characteristics related to the risk and business return. This might be explained by the fact that the investors do not have a broad knowledge about corporate governance.
Copper(II) proteins are amenable for NMR investigations

Abstract The possibility of investigating copper proteins by nuclear magnetic resonance is here treated. It is shown that the solution structure and dynamic information can be obtained on Type I Cu(II) proteins, which have a relatively short electron relaxation time (τS = 10-10 s). The experimental approach, in this case, is routine, although tailored for fast-relaxing nuclei. In the case of Type II Cu(II) proteins, when the electron relaxation times are larger (τS = 10-8 - 10-9 s) and proton linewidths are broadened beyond detectable limits, heteronuclear 13C spectra with direct detection can be used and the solution structure can again be obtained. In this review, it is shown that Cu(II) proteins are now amenable for NMR investigation, the size being the only limit as in diamagnetic proteins.
Financing of Innovative Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises. A Research in Turkey

Today’s business realm involves a vast variety of businesses and business groups; small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) being one of the most prominent. Despite countless investigations from many different business-related perspectives, their innovation perspective is rarely subjected. This current study chooses this perspective and moves a step beyond by considering financing of these businesses. In other words, this study covets to uncover how innovative SMEs are financed, how much these businesses care about professionalization towards financing issues, and what problems they face in their financing processes. Emphasizing innovative SMEs in techno parks in Turkey, this study discloses noteworthy facts from the Turkish context. Major findings pinpoint a low priority towards a professional financing approach and problems related with external and long-term financing opportunities. A noteworthy implication about both external and long-term financing is that they are entirely dependent on exogenous factors. Most of the participating businesses are on micro and small scales, besides being very young.
Experimental studies of compressive sensing for SAR with Ka-band chamber room and Ku-band airplane SAR data

Compressive sensing (CS) is one of the solutions for reducing the data rate of sensor systems. In our previous study, there were certain issues yet to be addressed in the analysis of accuracy of CS reconstruction comparing with original synthetic aperture radar (SAR) imagery. In this paper, we have additionally shown the calculation cost and effectiveness of CS for SAR imagery using chamber room experimental data and actual Ku-band airplane SAR data. The calculation cost is more than 300 times that of original SAR imaging but we can reduce the observation data into half. The difference between complex values of original and CS-reconstructed SAR images is typically −20 dB in the case of Ku-band airplane. We have demonstrated that the CS-based SAR is a powerful tool when the loss of signal-to noise ratio due to observation loss and calculation cost are disregarded.
The Antecedents of Consumers’ Negative Attitudes Toward SMS Advertising: A Theoretical Framework and Empirical Study

Short message service (SMS) advertising refers to the transmission of advertising via mobile phones in the form of text-based messages (Haghirian, Madlberger, and Tanuskova 2005). Recent marketing research indicates that investigations on consumers’ attitudes toward SMS advertising are limited, and empirical examination of antecedents that negatively influence attitudes toward SMS advertising is even scarcer. As a consequence of this lack of knowledge, current practices of mobile advertising might be ineffective. This research examines irritation, privacy concerns, and intrusiveness perception as main factors that provoke a negative attitude toward SMS advertising. Using structural equation modeling (SEM), the analyzed data show that privacy concerns affects perceived intrusiveness on mobile phones, which subsequently causes consumers’ irritation. Finally, irritation has a major negative effect on attitudes toward SMS advertising.
THE EFFECT OF THE MARKET ON STOCK'S SPREAD: THE CASE OF THE ATHENS STOCK EXCHANGE

This paper presents a portfolio trading model which attempts to explain changes in market spread due to general market conditions. For 18 large and 13 medium capitalization stocks in the Athens Stock Exchange (ASE), we estimate the adverse selection and the order handling component of the bid-ask spread as well as the probability of a same side trade continuation based on a portfolio model of price formation which combines the work of Madhavan et al. (1997) and Huang and Stoll (1997). We find that, information coming out of the movements of the general ASE index does not affect significantly the low cap stocks, while there are indica­
Corporate Support for Employee Volunteerism Within Canada: A Cross-Cultural Perspective

Company support for employee volunteerism (CSEV) is one mechanism whereby businesses meet the escalating expectation for corporate social responsibility (CSR). Institutional theory is applied to examine patterns of convergence and divergence in CSR programs cross culturally, with a particular focus on intra-country cultural differences. Using a national (Canada) survey of businesses, we examine cross-cultural differences regarding CSEV in two regions of Canada—French Canada (Quebec) and English Canada. Our results suggest that cultural differences, rooted in historical conditions, may shape CSEV program implementation in Canada. Quebec companies are less likely to engage in CSEV. If they do encourage employee volunteerism, they may exclude certain cause types from support and appear to focus more on the external benefits of CSEV, such as community perception, than do firms in English Canada. Recognizing that no nation is culturally homogenous, our study illustrates that CSR and CSEV may vary significantly whenever or wherever cultural differences occur. Businesses and nonprofit organizations need to consider culture as an important variable when implementing corporate volunteer programs.
Utilization of enterobactin and other exogenous iron sources by Haemophilus influenzae, H. parainfluenzae and H. paraphrophilus.

The ability of Haemophilus influenzae, H. parainfluenzae and H. paraphrophilus to utilize iron complexes, iron-proteins and exogenous microbial siderophores was evaluated. In a plate bioassay, all three species used not only ferric nitrate but also the iron chelates ferric citrate, ferric nitrilotriacetate and ferric 2,3-dihydroxybenzoate. Each Haemophilus species examined also used haemin, haemoglobin and haem-albumin as iron sources although only H. influenzae could acquire iron from transferrin or from haemoglobin complexed with haptoglobin. None of the haemophili obtained iron from ferritin or lactoferrin or from the microbial siderophores aerobactin or desferrioxamine B. However, the phenolate siderophore enterobactin supplied iron to both H. parainfluenzae and H. paraphrophilus, and DNA isolated from both organisms hybridized with a DNA probe prepared from the Escherichia coli ferric enterobactin receptor gene fepA. In addition, a monospecific polyclonal antiserum raised against the E. coli 81 kDa ferric enterobactin receptor (FepA) recognized an iron-repressible outer membrane protein (OMP) in H. parainfluenzae of between 80 and 82 kDa (depending on the strain). This anti-FepA serum did not cross-react with any of the OMPs of H. paraphrophilus or H. influenzae. The OMPs of each Haemophilus species were also probed with antisera raised against the 74 kDa Cir or 74 kDa IutA (aerobactin receptor) proteins of E. coli. Apart from one H. parainfluenzae strain (NCTC 10665), in which an OMP of about 80 kDa cross-reacted with the anti-IutA sera, no cross-reactivity was observed between Cir, IutA and the OMPs of H. influenzae, H. parainfluenzae or H. paraphrophilus. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Probabilistic Optimal Reactive Power Planning in Distribution Systems With Renewable Resources in Grid-Connected and Islanded Modes

Reactive power planning has always been a key research area in power distribution engineering; technically and economically. However, the problem needs to be revisited to consider several aspects of modern distribution systems, such as a high penetration level of renewable resources with intermittent nature; the microgrid concept and the possibility of system operation in grid-connected or isolated single microgrid mode, or isolated multiple microgrids; and probabilistic or hourly load profile. Motivated by these needs and considering all these aspects, this paper presents a generalized approach for probabilistic optimal reactive power planning in modern distribution systems. A new index is defined to probabilistically assess the success of microgrids in terms of real and reactive power adequacy and voltage limit constraints. Afterward, the reactive power planning is performed to reduce the annual energy losses of the grid-connected system and increase the defined microgrid success index. The problem formulation and solution algorithms are presented in this paper. The well-known PG&E 69-bus distribution system is selected as a test case, and through several sensitivity studies, the effect of optimization coefficients on the design and the robustness of the algorithm are investigated. A cost-benefit case study is also presented to determine the optimum total size of distributed reactive sources for the system under study.
Strain Gradients Correlate with Sites of Exercise‐Induced Bone‐Forming Surfaces in the Adult Skeleton

Physical activity is capable of increasing adult bone mass. The specific osteogenic component of the mechanical stimulus is, however, unknown. Using an exogenous loading model, it was recently reported that circumferential gradients of longitudinal normal strain are strongly associated with the specific sites of periosteal bone formation. Here, we used high‐speed running to test this proposed relation in an exercise model of bone adaptation. The strain environment generated during running in a mid‐diaphyseal tarsometatarsal section was determined from triple‐rosette strain gages in six adult roosters (>1 year). A second group of roosters was run at a high speed (1500 loading cycles/day) on a treadmill for 3 weeks. Periosteal surfaces were activated in five out of eight animals. Mechanical parameters as well as periosteal activation (as measured by incorporated fluorescent labels) were quantified site‐specifically in 12 30° sectors subdividing a mid‐diaphyseal section. The amount of periosteal mineralizing surface per sector correlated strongly (R2 = 0.63) with the induced peak circumferential strain gradients. Conversely, peak strain magnitude and peak strain rate were only weakly associated with the sites of periosteal activation. The unique feature of this study is that a specific mechanical stimulus (peak circumferential strain gradients) was successfully correlated with specific sites of periosteal bone activation induced in a noninvasive bone adaptation model. The knowledge of this mechanical parameter may help to design exercise regimens that are able to deposit bone at sites where increased structural strength is most needed.
Why Intended Business Model Innovation Fails to Deliver: Insights from a Longitudinal Study in the German Smart Energy Market

This paper aims to explore whether intended business model innovation (BMI) activities enhance exploration capabilities of incumbent firms. We report findings from a longitudinal study that spans from 2010 to 2014. We find that even though incumbent firms generated 21 generic business models in 2010, only one has been successfully implemented by incumbents by February 2014. The majority has been pioneered by new entrants. These findings suggest that intended BMI activities can only partly contribute to overcoming the challenges associated with exploration. While evidence suggests that they are effective in overcoming some cognitive challenges, a second set of cognitive challenges and all action-level challenges remain.
Adolescent development of neuron structure in dentate gyrus granule cells of male syrian hamsters

Hippocampal function, including spatial cognition and stress responses, matures during adolescence. In addition, hippocampal neuron structure is modified by gonadal steroid hormones, which increase dramatically at this time. This study investigated pubertal changes in dendritic complexity of dentate gyrus neurons. Dendrites, spines, and cell bodies of Golgi‐impregnated neurons from the granule cell layer were traced in pre‐, mid‐, and late‐pubertal male Syrian hamsters (21, 35, and 49 days of age). Sholl analysis determined the number of intersections and total dendritic length contained in concentric spheres set at 25‐μm increments from the soma. Spine densities were quantified separately in proximal and distal segments of a subset of neurons used for the Sholl analysis. We found that the structure of neurons in the lower, but not upper, blade of the dentate gyrus changed during adolescence. The lower, infrapyramidal blade showed pruning of dendrites close to the cell body and increases in distal dendritic spine densities across adolescence. These data demonstrate that dentate gyrus neurons undergo substantial structural remodeling during adolescence and that patterns of maturation are region specific. Furthermore, these changes in dendrite structure, which alter the electrophysiological properties of granule cells, are likely related to the adolescent development of hippocampal‐dependent cognitive functions such as learning and memory, as well as hippocampus‐mediated stress responsivity. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Develop Neurobiol, 2008.