Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Age-Related Differences in Dorsolateral Prefrontal Cortex BOLD Activity during Cognitive Control Task: An fMRI Study

Cognitive control is used in everyday life to inhibit inherent thoughts and actions to successfully complete a given task. The current investigation used a subset of the overall data set from a larger study (Wilk & Morton, 2012). Participants completed a size-congruency task, while their blood-oxygen-level dependent (BOLD) activity was measured through functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Region of interest analyses revealed no significant age-related differences in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC) BOLD activation. Nonetheless, the findings of this study confirmed that the left and right dlPFC are indeed involved during cognitive control processing. Additionally, through exploratory analyses, the right inferior frontal junction (IFJ) and right dorsal premotor cortex (dPMC) were revealed to have significant age-related increases in BOLD signal. Future studies should further examine the potential age-related changes in the dlPFC, along with other various brain regions to investigate possible functional networks that may be responsible for cognitive control.
Aggregation of a parthenogenetic diploid embryo and a male embryo improves the blastocyst development and parthenogenetic embryonic stem cell derivation

Parthenogenetically derived mammalian embryos, with no paternal genome, are not viable and die, largely from defective placental growth attributed to a lack of paternal effect, resulting in the low blastulation rate and low derivation efficiency of parthenogenetic embryonic stem cells (pESCs). Therefore, the present study, by the optimization of parthenogenetic embryo production and the aggregation of the parthenogenetic diploid embryo and the identified male embryo, aims to investigate a method to improve the development of parthenogenetic embryo and pESC derivation in mice. Using different chemical combinations for the optimization, we found that the heterozygous diploid type had a significantly higher blastulation rate than the haploid type (P < 0.05). The treatment of strontium chloride (SrCl2) combined with cytochalasin B for 4 h produced the highest heterozygous diploid rate and blastulation rate. Our self-made concave hole system was used for the aggregation of the parthenogenetic heterozygous diploid embryo with the male embryo identified by the duplex PCR method, and we found that the chimeric embryo had an improved rate of blastulation and pESC isolation.
Hill model of transpolar potential saturation: Comparisons with MHD simulations

[1] We present a comparison between a simple but general model of solar wind-magnetosphere-ionosphere coupling (the Hill model) and the output of a global magnetospheric MHD code, the Integrated Space Weather Prediction Model (ISM). The Hill model predicts transpolar potential and region 1 currents from environmental conditions specified at both boundaries of the magnetosphere: at the solar wind boundary, electric field strength, ram pressure, and interplanetary magnetic field direction; at the ionospheric boundary, conductance and dipole strength. As its defining feature, the Hill model predicts saturation of the transpolar potential for high electric field intensities in the solar wind, which accords with observations. The model predicts how saturation depends on boundary conditions. We compare the output from ISM runs against these predictions. The agreement is quite good for non-storm conditions (differences less than 10%) and still good for storm conditions (differences up to 20%). The comparison demonstrates that global MHD codes (like ISM) can also exhibit saturation of transpolar potential for high electric field intensities in the solar wind. We use both models to explore how the strength of solar wind-magnetosphere-ionosphere coupling depends on the strength of Earth's magnetic dipole, which varies on short geological timescales. As measured by power into the ionosphere, these models suggest that magnetic storms might be considerably more active for high dipole strengths.
A method of nonlinearities of transformer no-load characteristic modelling

In the paper a way in which changes of the no-load characteristic are taken into account in the mathematical model of the transformer is presented. Changes of saturation within core of transformer are presented as a combined non-linear flux curve. Analysis of magnetization of the transformer core and simulation of no-load state for distribution transformer of 30 kVA power rating and 15.75/0.4 kV/kV (especially supplying VLV) transformation ratio rating were carried out. Slowa kluczowe: Magnesowanie, nasycenie, modelowanie transformatora.
Liquid Crystal-Reconfigurable Antenna Concepts for Space Applications at Microwave and Millimeter Waves

Novel approaches of tunable devices for millimeter wave applications based on liquid crystal (LC) are presented. In the first part of the paper, a novel concept of a tunable LC phase shifter realized in Low Temperature Cofired Ceramics technology is shown while the second part of the paper deals with a tunable high-gain antenna based on an LC tunable reflectarray. The reflectarray features continuously beam scanning in between . Also first investigations on radiation hardness of LCs are carried out, indicating that LCs might be suitable for space applications.
Employer sanctions on hiring illegal labor : An experimental analysis of firm compliance

The employer sanctions provision of the 1986 Immigration Reform and Control Act penalizes employers who knowingly hire unauthorized workers. Under IRCA, employers are subject to civil and/or criminal penalties; however, given the widespread availability of counterfeit documentation, in some cases it becomes difficult to discern the employment eligibility status of some workers. Using experimental methods, this study provides some evidence that marginal increases in employer compliance rates are significantly higher when employers have perfect information on the employment eligibility status of its potential workers than when they do not. The experimental results suggest that increases in government spending for employer sanctions enforcement may be more effective if the informational asymmetry faced by employers is solved first. A possible solution to this problem may lie in the adoption of tamper-proof documentation such as a national identification card. # 1998 Elsevier Science B.V. JEL classi®cation: C91; D82; K42
Vesicles in contact with nanoparticles and colloids

Flexible membranes which are in contact with dispersed nanoparticles or colloids are theoretically studied. For closed vesicles, the membrane/particle interactions change the "spontaneous" curvature of the membrane provided the surrounding solution contains more than one species of particles. If the membrane/particle interactions are repulsive, the membrane curves toward the larger particles. If the membrane/particle interactions are attractive, the membrane curves away from the adsorption layers of small particles but wraps itself around large particles which become completely encapsulated.
Parametric feedback cooling of levitated optomechanics in a parabolic mirror trap

Levitated optomechanics, a new experimental physics platform, holds promise for fundamental science and quantum technological sensing applications. We demonstrate a simple and robust geometry for optical trapping in vacuum of a single nanoparticle based on a parabolic mirror and the optical gradient force. We demonstrate parametric feedback cooling of all three motional degrees of freedom from room temperature to a few millikelvin. A single laser at 1550 nm and a single photodiode are used for trapping, position detection, and cooling for all three dimensions. Particles with diameters from 26 to 160 nm are trapped without feedback to 10−5 mbar, and with feedback-engaged, the pressure is reduced to 10−6 mbar. Modifications to the harmonic motion in the presence of noise and feedback are studied, and an experimental mechanical quality factor in excess of 4×107 is evaluated. This particle manipulation is key to building a nanoparticle matter-wave interferometer in order to test the quantum superposition principle in the macroscopic domain.
Vitamin D status of individuals exposed to varying degrees of sunlight due to Occupational Requirements

Vitamin D is a group of fat-soluble secosteroids responsible for enhancing intestinal absorption of calcium, iron, magnesium, phosphate and zinc. 1 billion people worldwide have Vitamin D deficiency or insufficiency. The purpose of present study is to compare serum Vitamin D Levels of individuals exposed to varying degrees of sunlight and correlate with the effect of dietary intake and environmental factors on serum Vitamin D levels, as well as the examine the effect of supplementation for two months on improvement is status of severely deficient subjects. A total of sixty subjects within the age group of 22-60 years were selected for the study. The subjects were selected from different places and occupations based on the degree of exposure to sunlight. Information on Nutritional assessment / dietary intake was collected using a questionnaire. Serum vitamin D levels were assessed by HPLC using a Diode Array Detector. The dietary intake of vitamin D rich food is low in all the three groups, and low intake of vitamin D fortified food items as well as vitamin D supplements was observed in all three groups. Results with respect to serum vitamin D levels indicated that among group I subjects with zero exposure to sunlight, only 5 could be classified under “deficiency” category and rest of the 15 subjects belonged to the “severe deficiency” category. With respect to group II subjects who were completely exposed to sunlight, 17 out of 20 could be classified under the “deficiency” category and only 3 belonged to the “sufficient” category based on their serum vitamin D levels, inspite of adequate exposure to sunlight, probably due to low intake of vitamin D rich foods. Among group III subjects who were moderately exposed to sunlight, 19 belonged to “sufficient” category and only 1 subject could be classified under “deficient” category. The results of ANOVA shows significant difference between three group means (p= 1.55E-07). There is significant difference between group I (complete exposure to sunlight) and group II (zero exposure to sunlight) and also between group II (zero exposure to sunlight) and group III (moderate exposure to sunlight). However there is no significant difference between group I (complete exposure to sunlight) and group III (moderate exposure to sunlight), (P<0.01) Significant at 1% level.
Dynamic Path Planning of Emergency Vehicles Based on Travel Time Prediction

The dynamic paths planning problem of emergency vehicles is usually constrained by the factors including time efficiency, resources requirement, and reliability of the road network. Therefore, a two-stage model of dynamic paths planning of emergency vehicles is built with the goal of the shortest travel time and the minimum degree of traffic congestion. Firstly, according to the dynamic characteristics of road network traffic, a polyline-shaped speed function is constructed. And then, based on the real-time and historical data of travel speed, a new kernel clustering algorithm based on shuffled frog leaping algorithm is designed to predict the travel time. Secondly, combined with the expected travel time, the traffic congestion index is defined to measure the reliability of the route. Thirdly, aimed at the problem of solving two-stage target model, a two-stage shortest path algorithm is proposed, which is composed of -paths algorithm and shuffled frog leaping algorithm. Finally, based on the data of floating vehicles of expressway in Beijing, a simulation case is used to verify the above methods. The results show that the optimization path algorithm meets the needs of the multiple constraints.
Modeling Pfiesteria piscicida population dynamics: a new approach for tracking size and mass in mixotrophic species

We have developed a generalized dynamic, numerical model to study Pfiesteria popu- lation dynamics based on available observations and literature. We have incorporated formulations into this model which allow us to track changes in cell size in relation to food availability and other environmental conditions, which can be used for modeling a variety of cell-size dependent physio- logical functions. With this model, we are able to follow the time dependency of both individual size and abundance of Pfiesteria zoospores in cultures. We also have developed a general, starvation- based trigger mechanism for cyst formation for mixotrophic species like Pfiesteria, which is based on the size of zoospores determined by previous food conditions and the decrease or increase in size determined by the current food conditions. The model results suggest that zoospore concentration can be regulated effectively by both bottom-up control by food availability and the top-down control by zooplankton grazing. Model sensitivity analysis shows that the results are fairly robust with respect to changes in the model parameter values. This paper represents a significant step forward in our efforts to model complicated life-cycle phenomena in dinoflagellates like Pfiesteria and, in so doing, also provides some important new approaches for tracking cell size and cyst formation.
Seasonal variation of aerosol size distribution at Puy de Dôme (1465 m a.s.l., central France)

H. Venzac, K. Sellegri, P. Villani, D. Picard, and P. Laj Laboratoire de Météorologie Physique, Observatoire de Physique du Globe de Clermont-Ferrand, Université Blaise Pascal, 24 avenue des Landais, 63177 Aubière, France Received: 18 June 2008 – Accepted: 25 July 2008 – Published: 19 August 2008 Correspondence to: K. Sellegri (k.sellegri@opgc.univ-bpclermont.fr) Published by Copernicus Publications on behalf of the European Geosciences Union.
A Review on Detecting Stepping Stone Intrusion

based attackers do not launch the attack from their own host, instead they use intermediary previously compromised hosts to login remotely to some host and from that host logging to another host and so on, and they launch the attack on behalf of the last host in the chain. Those hosts are called stepping stones and this type of attack is known as stepping stones intrusion. They complicated the detection by enlarge this host chain. Many algorithms had bee proposed and they vary on how to detect those hosts that used as a stepping stone according to detect the intrusion. This paper review the stepping stones intrusion and the algorithms used to detect such type of intrusion and how they vary in detecting stepping stone and their resistance to time jittering and chaff attack perturbation.
Dietary effects on antioxidants, oxidised LDL and homocysteine

Dietary vegetables and fruit may play a significant role in atherosclerosis. We investigated the effects of a high intake of vegetables, berries, and citrus fruit along with a diet low in total and saturated fat on plasma concentrations of lipids, lipoprotein(a), antioxidants, oxidised LDL (OxLDL), folate, homocysteine, and on serum paraoxonase-1 activity. We also determined whether gene polymorphisms affect diet response of plasma homocysteine and serum paraoxonase-1 activity. Thirty-seven healthy females consumed two diets (low and high vegetable diets) in a controlled crossover intervention. The plasma measurements were determined at the baseline and at the end of diet periods. The average plasma concentrations of total, LDL, and HDL cholesterol were 5.0 mmol/l, 2.8 mmol/l, and 1.7 mmol/l, respectively, on the low vegetable diet, and decreased by 8%, 8%,and 5%, respectively, in response to the high vegetable diet. The high vegetable diet increased the plasma concentrations of alpha-carotene, beta-carotene, lutein-zeaxanthin, beta-cryptoxanthin, and vitamin C by 133%, 134%, 107%, 65%, and 25%, respectively, compared with the low vegetable diet. There were no differences in the plasma concentrations of OxLDL between the low and high vegetable diets. The mean serum paraoxonase-1 activity was lower at the end of the high vegetable diet (226 U/ l) than at the end of the low vegetable diet (240 U/l). Subjects having a genotype with high baseline paraoxonase-1 activity showed the most extensive reduction in their serum enzyme activities. The high vegetable diet enhanced the serum and erythrocyte folate concentrations by 78% and 14%, respectively, and reduced the plasma homocysteine by 13% compared with the low vegetable diet. The dietary treatment was effective even among subjects homozygous for C677T mutation in methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase gene, who are susceptible to high homocysteine levels. In conclusion, a high intake of vegetables, berries, and citrus fruit resulted in reduced plasma total and LDL cholesterol concentrations and enhanced plasma antioxidant levels. The high vegetable diet also effectively increased blood folate concentrations and reduced plasma homocysteine
An Approach to Solve Two-Person Matrix Game via Entropy

This paper presents an Entropy Optimization Model on matrix game (two-person zero-sum game). The entropy function of the matrix game has been considered to the objective function and formulate the models. Obviously the formulated models are non-linear programming problem. For each player, this type of model is established and corresponding eecting solution is shown. Eectiveness is illustrated with the help of numerical example.
I am wild about cabbage: evaluative ‘semantic sequences’ and cross-linguistic (dis)similarities

The paper investigates the phraseology of evaluation in two comparable corpora of discussions from blogs in Italian and in English. Subjectivity markers are taken as an indication of the significant role that the writer’s ‘self’ plays in the genre, ideal territory for an analysis of the language of evaluation. After considering collocates and grammar patterns of the selected markers, the analysis centres on evaluative ‘semantic sequences’ by aligning typical recurrent surface arrangements with strings of prototypical meaning elements such as ‘entity or process evaluated’, ‘evaluation’ and different ‘sources of evaluation’. Four types of sequences are identified: ‘basic’, ‘framed’, ‘dialogic’ and ‘concessive’. The results attest for substantial semantic similarities over and above lexico-syntactic and inter-linguistic mismatches. Semantic sequences can be shown to be useful tools for cross-linguistic analysis.
Autism and B-Vitamin Deficiency Linked to Alcohol and Sugar Intake and the WIC Program

Objective:The CDC has warned against drinking while pregnant noting in guidelines this year that no amount of alcohol is advised. The CDC has also previously recommended abstention in regard to Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS) whose alcohol intake varies with the amount of binge drinking. The objective is to compare autism rate to alcohol consumption. Method:The Institute for Health Metrics at Seattle Washington has listed the average alcohol consumption for 48 states. For 2009 the autism rates are known and the average alcohol consumption are listed. In addition, the alcohol rate is also known for all counties. These results were compared to previously reported WIC rates and autism rates that had been previously reported in the counties of three states. Results:Comparison of the autism rate to the alcohol consumption rate showed a strong positive relationship. In the counties of three states there was also a strong direct relationship of alcohol consumption to the autism rate. These counties showed an inverse relationship to the WIC rates. Conclusions:The results of a positive correlation between alcohol consumption and the autism by states and counties is consistent with the precautions cited by the CDC.
Cytotoxicity of Dioscin and Biotransformed Fenugreek

Trigonella foenum-graecum, commonly known as fenugreek, is widely used as a spice in India, Pakistan, and China for centuries. It has been suggested that biotransformation of the glycosides by various microorganisms increase the biological activity and bioavailability. This study aims to characterize the biotransformation of the fenugreek saponins by food microorganisms and to assess the cytotoxicity of the biotransformed fenugreek extract and dioscin which is a compound produced during biotransformation against various cell lines. The production of dioscin was confirmed by TLC and LC-MS analysis. The cytotoxicities against HT-29 colon cell line were increased after biotransformation by Aspergillus usamii, Bifidobacterium infantis, Bifidobacterium sp. Int57, and Leuconostoc paramesenteroides but decreased by Aspergillus niger. The IC50 values of dioscin against five different tumor cell line cells ranged 0.72-3.22 and 2.88-8.53 μM in 2% and 10%(v/v) FBS containing media, respectively. Real time cell analysis showed that HT-29 cells died immediately after treatment with dioscin above 7.5 μM. Dioscin at 5 μM increased sub G1 phase cells when assessed with flow cytometric analysis. Since caspase-3 activity was increased by dioscin, cytotoxicity of dioscin might be related to apoptosis. Taken together, the structure and the level of saponin components in fenugreek were differentially affected by various food microorganisms. The safety and the cytotoxicity of dioscin produced during biotransformation need to be further evaluated in vivo.
Electron and ion internal transport barriers in Tore Supra and JET

Formation of core regions in Tore Supra and JET tokamaks with reduced transport coefficients is reported. Characteristics of the enhanced confinement regions and the physics process involved in their formation and maintenance should be considered separately when the electron or ion components are predominantly heated. In Tore Supra and JET, central electron temperature transitions are observed by injecting lower hybrid waves at modest power levels during the current ramp-up phase of the discharges. Transport analyses stress the importance of the low magnetic shear in the core to explain the anomalous electron transport reduction. With high-power dominant ion heating schemes in JET (neutral beam injection and ion cyclotron resonance heating), internal transport barriers have been obtained in plasmas fuelled with a mixture of deuterium-tritium (D-T) ions leading to a successful production of fusion power (8.2 MW) in this regime. Similar additional power levels to those applied in pure deuterium (D-D) plasmas are required to establish internal transport barriers in D-T plasmas. In D-D and D-T plasmas, ion thermal diffusivities are reduced close to their neoclassical levels in the plasma core and electron thermal diffusivities decrease by one order of magnitude at midplasma radius. The combined role of magnetic shear and velocity shear can explain the formation and evolution of plasma core regions with low energy transport coefficients.
An electro-thermally and laterally driven polysilicon microactuator

A novel electro-thermally and laterally driven microactuator made of polysilicon has been designed, fabricated, and tested. The operational principle is based on the asymmetrical thermal expansion of the microstructure with different lengths of two beams, but not based on the variable cross sections of the microstructure. A microgripper to demonstrate one possible application of the microactuator is fabricated and characterized. The input voltage of this design is less than 10 dc to produce 20 m displacement with about 0.6 mJ heat dissipation, and the maximum temperature is less than 600C. A gripping force up to 2.8 N can be generated. Simulation results are compared with the experimental data and show good agreement. Some design parameters strongly influencing the performance of the microactuator are discussed also.