Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
An Efficient Certificateless Aggregate Signature Scheme for Vehicular Ad-Hoc Networks

The state-of-the-art telecommunication technologies have widely been adapted for sensing the traffic related information and collection of it. Vehicular Ad-Hoc Networks (VANETs) have emerged as a novel technology for revolutionizing the driving experiences of human. The most effective and widely recognized way for mutual authentication among entities in VANETs is digital signature scheme. The new and attractive paradigm which eliminates the use of certificates in public key cryptography and solves the key escrow problem in identity based cryptography is certificateless cryptography. A new certificateless aggregate signature scheme is proposed in the paper for VANETs with constant pairing computations. Assuming the hardness of computational Diffie-Hellman Problem, the scheme is proved to be existentially unforgeable in the random oracle model against adaptive chosen-message attacks.
[Respiration-gated radiotherapy: current techniques and potential benefits].

Respiration-gated radiotherapy offers a significant potential for improvement in the irradiation of tumor sites affected by respiratory motion such as lung, breast and liver tumors. An increased conformality of irradiation fields leading to decreased complications rates of organs at risk (lung, heart.) is expected. Respiratory gating is in line with the need for improved precision required by radiotherapy techniques such as 3D conformal radiotherapy or intensity modulated radiotherapy. Reduction of respiratory motion can be achieved by using either breath hold techniques or respiration synchronized gating techniques. Breathhold techniques can be achieved with active, in which airflow of the patient is temporarily blocked by a valve, or passive techniques, in which the patient voluntarily breath-hold. Synchronized gating techniques use external devices to predict the phase of the respiration cycle while the patient breaths freely. These techniques presently investigated in several medical centers worldwide. Although promising, the first results obtained in lung and liver cancer patients require confirmation. Physical, technical and physiological questions still remain to be answered. This paper describes the most frequently used gated techniques and the main published clinical reports on the use of respiration-gated radiotherapy in order to evaluate the impact of these techniques.
Leadership and Retention: Research Needed

Numerous studies provide empirical support for the relationships between effective leadership style and job satisfaction, retention, and organizational productivity. The intent of this article is to provide a synthesis of data-based studies that have evaluated the relationship between the leadership behaviors of nurse administrators and staff nurse retention. Understanding the current state of knowledge regarding leadership and staff nurse retention provides a foundation for directing future research efforts.
Borderline personality symptomatology and compliance with general health care among internal medicine outpatients

Abstract Objectives. The extant literature on borderline personality disorder (BPD) and compliance with mental health treatment contains conflicting findings. However, among those individuals with this type of personality dysfunction, reduced compliance with mental health treatment appears to be the predominant theme. To our knowledge, the relationship between BPD and compliance with general health care has not been studied. In addition, there is no prior study in this area examining a primary care population. Methods. Using a cross-sectional survey methodology among a sample of internal medicine outpatients (N = 261), we assessed borderline personality symptoms with two self-report measures and general health care compliance or adherence with four self-report measures. Results. With the exception of on-time arrival for doctor appointments, the remaining compliance variables demonstrated statistically significant relationships at the p < 0.01–0.001 levels, with borderline personality symptoms predicting reduced compliance (i.e., conscientiousness with medical treatment, regular dental check-ups, timely completion of laboratory work, following doctor's exercise and nutrition instructions, remembering to take medications, and Medical Outcomes Study General Adherence Score). Conclusions. Compared with participants without borderline personality symptoms, those participants with such symptoms in this study evidenced lower general health care compliance.
Implementation of control and protection logics for a bidirectional DC/DC converter

In this paper, a control strategy for a bidirectional DC/DC power converter is discussed, and the logics to guarantee the operation correctness in various operative modes and for safety requirements are considered. In Buck (or step- down) mode, a voltage PI regulator is proposed, whereas in Boost (or step-up) mode an inner current control loop is introduced to guarantee a more effective current tracking, and to avoid damages due to overcurrents. Furthermore, a Finite State Machine (FSM) approach has been adopted to model the converter behavior and, in particular, to describe the protection logics for both Buck and Boost working modes, along with a special configuration called “Buffer control”, easily described using the FSM approach as composition of states. Numerical simulations results and real measurements show the effectiveness of the control strategy combined with a FSM logic description, rising up as a flexible approach to control a power converter device and to define its behavior in a desired working mode, as for buffer control.
Research on Influence Factors of Quantitative Perception of Internet Word of Mouth Based on Online Reviews

In order to accurately measure the value of internet word of mouth (iwom). Based on each attribute of online reviews, which are the major form of iwom, we proposes the influence factors of iwom, include the quantifiable indicators: the number of online reviews, the rating, the proportion of negative reviews, the price of product, and the unquantifiable indicators which can control of the false online reviews and express consumer emotion: the feature words of product attributes, the emotional intensity of reviews. Then we build the model of influence factors of iwom perception. And we take the influence of endogenous into account. Before and after the control of the endogenous influence, we find that the relationship between influence factors and iwom has changed by using cross section analysis and first order difference analysis.
One Health--'joining the dots'.

To achieve the goals of the One Health agenda, multiand interdisciplinary approaches are essential. It is now common to bring people from different backgrounds together to work on a single disease problem, with a large number of multi-partner consortia currently funded by the European Commission, the European and Developing Countries Clinical Trials Partnership (EDCTP), the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and others. Within institutions, mechanisms to increase interactions across disciplines include common seminars, retreats, and the formation of themed virtual centres. Despite the willingness of most scientists to cooperate in research towards a common goal, the existence of different professional cultures has been identified as a barrier in achieving One Health objectives. Cooperation, complementarities and convergence are required to achieve our goals. More effective communication, better teaching to increase awareness of One Health issues and more meetings that bring both animal and human health experts together are needed in order to join the dots across the disciplines in One Health.
Causal representation of patient illness for electrolyte and acid-base diagnosis

Much of the medical knowledge in the first generation Al in Medicine programs is phenomenological; that is, it describes the associations among phenomena without knowledge of the underlying causal mechanisms. Although these AIM programs provide a good first approximation of the way clinicians reason, they fail to reproduce clinicians'' reasoning based on a deeper understanding of the phenomena. More specifically, they do not deal with the knowledge of disease at different levels of detail, nor do they utilize causal relations to organize and explain the clinical facts and disease hypothesis. They also cannot deal with illnesses resulting from multiple diseases, especially when one disease alters the presentation of the others. Finally, they are unable to capture the notions of adequacy and parsimony that play such a large role in diagnosis. To explore these issues and rectify these deficiencies, we have undertaken the task of providing expert consultation for electrolyte and acid-base disturbances. This thesis reports the implementation of ABEL, the diagnostic component of the consultation program. In it, we explore the problems of modeling the causal understanding of a patient''s illness. We develop techniques for dealing with illness resulting from multiple interacting diseases. We describe a multi-level representation of causal knowledge, and explore issues of the aggregation of available case specific knowledge into concise summaries of the patient''s illness. We discuss structural criteria for evaluation parsimony, coherence and adequacy of diagnostic explanations. We also explore some of the issues involved in information gathering and propose expectation-driven diagnostic planning as a means of improving it. Finally, we discuss the issues of explanation and justification of the program''s understanding and argue that these facilities are crucial for acceptability of a consultation program.
New Delay-Dependent Robust Exponential Stability Criteria of LPD Neutral Systems with Mixed Time-Varying Delays and Nonlinear Perturbations

This paper is concerned with the problem of robust exponential stability for linear parameter-dependent (LPD) neutral systems with mixed time-varying delays and nonlinear perturbations. Based on a new parameter-dependent Lyapunov-Krasovskii functional, Leibniz-Newton formula, decomposition technique of coefficient matrix, free-weighting matrices, Cauchy’s inequality, modified version of Jensen’s inequality, model transformation, and linear matrix inequality technique, new delay-dependent robust exponential stability criteria are established in terms of linear matrix inequalities (LMIs). Numerical examples are given to show the effectiveness and less conservativeness of the proposed methods.
Acute Effects of Automated Continuous Positive Airway Pressure on Blood Pressure in Patients with Sleep Apnea and Hypertension

Background: The obstructive sleep apnea-hypopnea syndrome (OSAHS) is characterized by repetitive upper airway obstructions during sleep, and it might cause cardiovascular complications such as myocardial infarction, arrhythmias, and systemic and pulmonary hypertension. Objectives: We investigated the acute effects of automatic continuous positive airway pressure (automated CPAP) on blood pressure in patients with OSAHS and hypertension. Methods: Polysomnography was used and ambulatory blood pressure measurements were done in 12 patients with OSAHS. Blood pressure and heart rate were measured at night (10 p.m. to 6 a.m.) and during the day (6 a.m. to 10 p.m.). During these periods systolic, diastolic and mean blood pressure and heart rate of the patients on the diagnostic day were compared with those on the treatment day. Results: Patients had moderate or severe OSAHS; their mean age was 52.8 ± 4.2 years. Systolic, diastolic and mean blood pressure and heart rate between the diagnostic and treatment day were not significantly different. Standard deviations of all these parameters during the night of the treatment day (9.1 ± 4.5, 7.5 ± 3.3, 8.0 ± 3.0 mm Hg, and 4.8 ± 1.5 beats/min, respectively) were significantly lower than during the night of the diagnostic day (12.6 ± 4.9 mm Hg, p = 0.023, 10.8 ± 3.5 mm Hg, p = 0.004, 11.6 ± 4.4 mm Hg, p = 0.006 and 6.9 ± 1.6 beats/min, p = 0.003, respectively). We did not find similar results during daytime periods. Conclusions: Automated CPAP therapy in patients with sleep apnea and hypertension did not decrease systolic and diastolic blood pressures and heart rates acutely. However, it might reduce the variability of these parameters during sleep in patients, but not during the day. It might be suggested that automated CPAP reduces cardiovascular morbidity of OSAHS via stabilizing heart rate and blood pressure during sleep.
Role of Fine Needle Aspiration Cytology in Diagnosis of Chest Lesions

Objectives: Fine needle aspiration cytology and biopsy provides a highly accurate diagnostic method which can be performed rapidly with minimal risk. It provides a definitive diagnosis in most patients at low cost with minimal trauma. The aim of this study is to assess the value of fine needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) in the diagnosis of chest lesions. Methods: FNA specimens from 57 patients with suspected pulmonary neoplasms were subjected to immediate cytology assessment. Direct smears were prepared in the radiology department and fixed in ethanol alcohol in four slides. The cellular content was assessed and, if possible, a provisional diagnosis offered. A second FNA was requested if the initial aspirate seemed of doubtful adequacy. The diagnostic accuracy was examined by review of clinical and radiological data in all patients. Results: Satisfactory diagnostic material was obtained in 53 patients on a single aspirate and following a second FNA in 4 patients with inadequate specimens. Of the 57 aspirates, 37 were malignant. Most of tumors occurred in the age ranged between (50-59) years old. The male constitute the 2/3 rd of malignant tumor. Adenocarcinoma constitutes the majority of primary lung cancer 61.8%, this indicates the benefit of FNAC for diagnosis of peripheral lesions of the chest, as this tumor tends to occur peripherally. All malignant diagnoses were confirmed on clinical and/or pathological review. FNA accurately distinguished primary small cell and large cell carcinomas in those patients with pathological follow up. Complications were recorded in four (7%) patients, all of them were developed pneumothorax, a chest drain was required in one patient. The others managed conservatively. Conclusions: Percutaneous FNA cytology provides safe, simple and accurate diagnosis in the investigation of chest lesions.
Perspectives on exhaled nitric oxide

The history of nitric oxide (NO) in the respiratory field dates back to the beginning of the 1990s with the pioneering study by Lars Gustafsson et al describing the presence of endogenous NO in the exhaled breath of human beings. Soon after, independent studies showed that exhaled NO concentrations (FENO) is higher in asthmatics than in normal subjects. Not all asthmatics demonstrate a high FENO, reflecting the heterogeneity of asthma. High values of FENO are associated with over-expression of corticosteroid-sensitive iNOS isoform and allergic/eosinophilic inflammation. A major feature of elevated FENO in asthma is the prediction of inhaled corticosteroid (ICS) response, and FENO more than 50 ppb in adults is a strong indicator of likely ICS sensitivity. In addition, FENO values are elevated in asthma when asthma control deteriorates, identifying patients at risk of exacerbations, and, on the other hand, FENO reductions during ICS therapy precede improvement in respiratory symptoms and lung function, suggesting that FENO is a sensitive predictor of loss of asthma control. FENO also predicts the response to biological therapy (anti-IgE, -IL-5 and -IL-13 antibodies) in severe asthma but, interestingly, FENO values fall only after treatment with anti-IL-13 and -IL-4/IL-13 receptor antibodies. The use of FENO as a Type-2 inflammatory biomarker, in constellation with other Type-2 markers, could help to determine who might benefit from ICS and biological treatment. It remains to find out more precise cut-off values of FENO to identify potential ICS responders in specific phenotypes.
Wireless 1.25 Gb/s transceiver module at 60 GHz-band

A 1.25 Gb/s 60 GHz-band compact transceiver module uses ASK modulation. CPW MMICs and planar filters are flip-chip mounted in TX and RX LTCC MCMs. The transmitter exhibits 9.6 dBm output power. The receiver shows -50 dBm minimum received power for 1.25 Gb/s error-free transmission. The transceiver module is 82/spl times/53/spl times/7 mm/sup 3/ (30 cc).
Reliable adaptive modulation using long-range prediction at a different carrier frequency

For fast vehicle speeds, reliable adaptive transmission requires prediction of future channel state information (CSI) since the channel conditions are rapidly time-variant. We propose to use past channel observations of one carrier to predict future CSI and perform adaptive modulation for another correlated carrier. A statistical model of the prediction error that depends on the frequency and time correlation is developed and is used in the design of reliable adaptive modulation methods. Significant gains relative to nonadaptive techniques are demonstrated for sufficiently correlated channels and realistic prediction range. Both Jakes (1974) fading model and a novel realistic physical model of frequency selective fading are used to validate performance of the proposed method.
Local Post-Stratification in Dual System Accuracy and Coverage Evaluation for the U.S. Census

We consider a local post-stratification approach to analyze the capture–recapture dual system Accuracy and Coverage Evaluation (A.C.E.) data associated with the 2000 U.S. Census. The local post-stratification is carried out via a nonparametric regression estimation of the census enumeration and the correct enumeration functions. We propose a nonparametric population size estimator that is designed to accommodate some key aspects of the A.C. E. : missing values, erroneous enumerations, and extra covariates affecting the missingness and correct enumeration. The resulting estimates are compared with estimates from a conventional post-stratification and a logistic regression approach in an analysis on the 2000 Census A.C. E. data.
Concentrations of some organic acids in potato tubers depending on weed control method, cultivar and storage conditions.

Three-year-long field and storage experiments were carried out to evaluate changes in concentrations of some organic acids in ‘Rywal’ and ‘Saturna’ potato tubers as affected by herbicides used during the growing period. The tubers were stored for 3 and 6 months at 4oC and 8oC at relative humidity of 95%. The weed control method did not change acid concentrations in the tubers. However, significant differences between the cultivars were seen. ‘Saturna’ had a higher content of citric, tartaric and fumaric acids, while that of malic acid was lower than in the ‘Rywal’ cultivar. There was a negative correlation between organic acids under study and malic acid after the harvest. The storage period and a lower storage temperature promoted accumulation of malic acid in both cultivars. A reverse relationship was noted in the case of other acids under study. The highest decrease, up to 70%, was found for fumaric acid assessed after 6 months of storage of the ‘Saturna’ cultivar.
Thin-film crystalline silicon solar cells

A photoelectric conversion efficiency of over 10% has been achieved in thin-film polycrystalline silicon solar cells which consists of a 2 μm thick layer of polycrystalline silicon with a very small grain size (microcrystalline silicon) formed by low-temperature plasma CVD. This has shown that if the recombination velocity at grain boundaries can be made very small, then it is not necessarily important to increase the size of the crystal grains, and that an adequate current can be extracted even from a thin film due to the light trapping effect of silicon with a low absorption coefficient. As a result, this technology may eventually lead to the development of lowcost solar cells. Also, an initial efficiency as high as 12% has been achieved with a tandem solar cell module of microcrystalline silicon and amorphous silicon, which has now started to be produced commercially. An even greater initial efficiency of 14.5% has been achieved in devices with a small size area, and further increases of efficiency can be expected.
An analysis of disk flutter in hard disk drives in an aerodynamic simulation

We performed a numerical simulation using a three-disk model with shrouds to evaluate the effect of air flows in the axial direction in a hard disk drive. And to clarify the relationships between disk surface pressure and disk flutter that have been a matter of conjecture, we performed a response analysis using the unsteady hydrodynamic force that was obtained as the excitation force by our numerical simulation.
Optical orthogonal codes-New bounds and an optimal construction

A technique for constructing optimal OOCs (optical orthogonal codes) is presented. It provides the only known family of optimal (with respect to family size) OOCs having lambda =2. The parameters (n, omega , lambda ) are respectively (p/sup 2m/-1, p/sup m/+1,2), where p is any prime and the family size is p/sup m/-2. Three distinct upper bounds on the size of an OOC are presented that, for many values of the parameter set (n, omega , lambda ), improve upon the tightest previously known bound. >
Distinctive MMN relative to sound types in adults with intellectual disability

The effect of stimulus characteristics (vowel vs pure tone) upon mismatch negativity (MMN) was compared between adults with intellectual disability and healthy controls. Either vowels (synthesized vowels /e/ and /o/) or pure tones (1940 and 851 Hz corresponding to the F2 frequencies of /e/ and /o/, respectively) were presented using an oddball procedure. Both groups showed identical results in latency (vowel MMN>pure tone MMN) and less amplitudes for vowels. However, the disabled group demonstrated amplitude attenuation regardless of the stimulus type, although the vowel MMN amplitude showed a descending trend with age in both groups. These results suggest that auditory sensory memory in intellectual disability might have an insufficient capacity yet share a property common to controls.
Biological half‐life of normal and truncated human IgG3 in scid mice

The fractional catabolic rate of IgG in the body is regulated with precision in order to maintain appropriate serum concentrations. We have investigated the turnover rate of normal human IgG3, a newly identified, naturally occurring, truncated form of IgG3 and a human‐mouse chimeric IgG3 antibody in an immunodeficient mouse strain, C.B‐17 scid (SCID), lacking endogenous Ig. The half‐life of non‐truncated, normal serum IgG3 as well as the chimeric antibody was about 7 days, whereas truncated IgG3 had a shorter half‐life of about 5 days. Due to the inherent immune defect, the SCID mouse could represent a versatile animal model for the determination of turnover rates, inasmuch as an immune response will not be mounted against foreign antigens.
Interleaved buck converter with continuous supply current using OCC technique

In the conventional buck converter the supply current is discontinuous which may produce electromagnetic interference (EMI). In order to minimize the EMI problems an interleaved buck converter with continuous supply current has been introduced. Also due to the advantage of improved step-down conversion ratio, the interleaved buck converter can be used for high step-down and high frequency applications. The main features of the converter also include lower switch stress and lower output current ripple. The topology consists of two input capacitors which help in the reduction of the voltage stress across the switches. One-cycle control (OCC) technique is used to provide the switching pulses for the switches. The simulation has been carried out using MATLAB software in order to evaluate the overall performance of the converter.