Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Transmission network planning under a pricebased demand response program

Traditional transmission planning is primarily a trade off between congestions costs mainly driven by the supply side and transmission investments cost treating demand as fixed and unresponsive to market process either in the short or long term. In this paper a price-based demand response program is incorporated into the transmission planning problem. Using an iterative procedure, transmission network capacities are proposed and based on these capacities nodal prices are calculated. The nodal prices then trigger demand response leading to new demand levels. The process is repeated until convergence. As in practice the nodal prices as well as demand elasticity may change in the course of the year, therefore a multi-level load model associated with different elasticity is considered assuming the total energy consumption does not change beyond a pre-set amount although the demand level can alter in response to the price signal. In order to calculate the nodal price accurately, a transmission investment allocation method taking into account Use of System and Reliability Charges is also proposed. Since in practice transmission capacities come in standard discrete sizes the transmission planning process is formulated as a mixed-integer optimization problem. The proposed method is tested on modified IEEE 24 bus test system.
Protein Structure Analysis Online

Computational biology/chemistry tools are used in most areas of life/health science research. These methods are continually being developed and their use can present difficulties for both experienced and novice investigators. To facilitate the use of these applications, many packages have been implemented online during these last 5 years. This unit focuses on online computational methods with a special emphasis on structural refinement/atomic simulations, protein electrostatic calculations, searches for functional sites, searches for druggable pockets, protein docking and small molecule docking, and prediction of potential impact of amino acid variations on the structure and function of the protein molecules. Curr. Protoc. Protein Sci. 50:2.13. 1‐2.13. 23. © 2007 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Państwo jako podmiot własności publicznej

Streszczenie: W artykule zaprezentowano kilka luźnych wątków. Po pierwsze, odwołano się do kwestii interpretacyjnych. Po drugie, przyjęto kryterium czasowe do nakreślenia wagi problemu. Po trzecie, nawiązano do ekonomii sektora publicznego, ekonomii instytucjonalnej oraz szkoły neoaustriackiej. Autorka, wybierając wskazany w tytule wątek spośród szerokiego wachlarza zagadnień, chciała skupić się na płaszczyźnie poznawczej. Trudności nastręczał fakt wielokrotnego odwoływania się już wcześniej innych autorów do tematyki państwa. Ominięcie zakresu dotąd mocno eksponowanego nie było zatem łatwe. Wobec powyższego, artykuł jest krótką syntezą kilku problemów badawczych. Ich głębsze rozpoznanie, rozwinięcie i dalsza analiza, w połączeniu z bogatą kwerendą biblioteczną, może stanowić zaczyn obszernej monografii naukowej.
Institutional complexity in Thai state-owned enterprises:the implementation of performance measurement systems

This study explores institutional complexity in Thai State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs). In doing so, a qualitative approach has been employed in this study in order to identify institutional logics in the field of Thai SOEs and to understand organisational and individual perceptions of institutional complexity in the implementation of performance measurement systems (PMS) and how they respond to the complexity. To achieve this goal, two Thai SOEs were studied, both of which faced challenges in the implementation of Economic Value Management (EVM) and Balance Scorecard (BSC) as well as difficulties in linking their individual BSC and incentive systems. The qualitative data were collected from semi-structured interviews and document reviews. The empirical aspects of this study reveal that the institutional logics in the field of Thai SOEs are the logic of bureaucracy, commercial operations, social activities, seniority and unity. Regarding the multiple institutional logics embedded, SOEs experienced the institutional complexity in the implementation of PMS. The results suggest that the organisations have decoupled the EVM and loosely coupled the BSC from organisational practices to cope with institutional complexity and conflict institutional demands. Also, the evidence shows that the institutional logics influence SOEs’ actions towards resisting changes incentive systems and the relationship between individual BSC and incentives.
A window into the belly: lessons from a pioneering surgeon

that interfere with surgical training of the trainee. Such a process may actually unearth certain aspects of the training programme that may either aid the trainee or deter his / her progress. The advantage of Process excellence is that it allows an objective comparison following the intervention to the outcomes before the change. This could thus result in further changes in the training system that could lead to further improvements. Another possible application is in the imparting of training in complex surgical procedures by breaking up the procedures into step-wise processes that would help identify key steps. Special training could then be imparted in these key steps. Six Sigma can also be used to objectively quantify the competence and efficiency of procedures, clinicians and trainees. The surgical fraternity needs to explore and adopt suitable ‘tools’ from other non-medical disciplines and apply them in order to create best practice standards in clinical practice and surgical training. This would go a long way in improving standards across the board and also make a major difference in surgical training, ongoing training of practicing surgeons, as well as, up-gradation of the ‘skill sets’.
NEW PATIENTS PRESENTING TO THEIR GP WITH DYSPEPSIA: DOES HELICOBACTER PYLORI ERADICATION MINIMISE THE COST OF MANAGING THESE PATIENTS?

Fifty‐seven patients newly presenting to their GP with dyspepsia agreed to take part in a pharmacist‐led clinic which tested and treated for Helicobacter pylori. Of these patients, 63% (36/57) tested positive and received eradication therapy. For 78% (28/36), eradication was successful with the first course of treatment, 89% (25/28) remaining symptom‐free over the six‐month follow‐up. Eradication was successful for a further 17% (6/36) after a second attempt; again, these patients remained free of symptoms over the follow‐up period. Thus, of the initial patients, 54% (31/57) were successfully treated, with no further symptoms. Such results had significant consequences on the expected direct cost of management per patient from a GP viewpoint. Using decision analysis it was found that H. pylori eradication for patients presenting with dyspepsia for the first time could result in considerable cost savings per patient in the long term.
Update in diffuse parenchymal lung disease 2012.

In 2012, relevant articles were published in the area of diffuse parenchymal lung diseases (DPLDs). Most of them were focused on idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), the most aggressive DPLD, others on sarcoidosis, and some on less common disorders such as lymphangioleiomyomatosis. Studies in IPF revealed novel pathogenic mechanisms, putative biomarkers to predict outcome, and recently completed clinical trials, whereas in sarcoidosis most studies dealt with the identification of gene variants associated with increased risk. The concept of subclinical interstitial lung disease (ILD), meaning the presence of functional restriction or chest tomographic abnormalities in asymptomatic subjects, was underlined by two population-based studies, and our journal housed an important debate on the clinically meaningful endpoints needed to evaluate the treatment of IPF. This update highlights the advancesmade over the past year, primarily focused on those published in this journal.
HRM and performance

1. Introduction 2. HRM and Strategy: Does it Matter? 3. Human Resource Management in its Context: An Institutional Approach 4. A Multidimensional Perspective on Performance 5. The Contextually-Based Human Resource Theory 6. The Contextually-Based Human Resource Theory in Practice 7. Contrasting Metal and IT Sectors: Internal Versus External Regulation of Flexibility 8. Continuing Divergence of HRM Practices: The Case of the United States and the Netherlands 9. Changing HR Roles: Towards a Real Balanced HRM Scorecard Epilogue
A comparative study on different photovoltaic array topologies under partial shading conditions

This paper mainly analyzes the performance of different photovoltaic array configurations under various shading patterns. A Matlab/Simulink based simulation model of a PV module is utilized as the smallest building block of the mentioned topologies. The model is validated using the datasheet parameters of the ‘SOLAREX MSX-60’ PV module. The performance and output characteristics of ‘Series-Parallel’, ‘Total-Cross-Tied’ and ‘Bridge-Link’ array topologies are analyzed and compared using a 6×6 PV array under 6 different shading scenarios. The effects of bypass diodes during partial shading conditions are considered and the analysis results are presented and compared with and without bypass diodes. The mentioned shading scenarios are defined in such a way to simulate the passage of a cloud in different patterns. The results show that all the mentioned topologies have similar performances under identical illuminations while the ‘Total-Cross-Tied’ (TCT) configuration, despite the high complexity of the system, outperforms both ‘Series-Parallel’ (SP) and ‘Bridge-Link’ (BL) structures under partial shading conditions. ‘Bridge-Link’ and ‘Series-Parallel’ configurations stand on the 2nd and 3rd performance stages respectively while a Series-Parallel connection presents the least system complexity. The analyses and results provide detailed information on the characteristics of different array topologies which can be utilized by system designers to estimate the power yield and choose the most appropriate system configuration with respect to the existing environmental conditions to improve the overall efficiency.
The Impact of Obesity on the Rise in Esophageal Adenocarcinoma Incidence: Estimates from a Disease Simulation Model

Background: The United States has experienced an alarming and unexplained increase in the incidence of esophageal adenocarcinoma (EAC) since the 1970s. A concurrent increase in obesity has led some to suggest a relationship between the two trends. We explore the extent of this relationship. Methods: Using a previously validated disease simulation model of white males in the United States, we estimated EAC incidence 1973 to 2005 given constant obesity prevalence and low population progression rates consistent with the early 1970s. Introducing only the observed, rising obesity prevalence, we calculated the incremental incidence caused by obesity. We compared these with EAC incidence data from the National Cancer Institute's Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) registry to determine obesity's contribution to the rise therein. Incidences were converted to absolute numbers of cases using U.S. population data. Results: Using constant obesity prevalence, we projected a total of 30,555 EAC cases cumulatively over 1973 to 2005 and 1,151 in 2005 alone. Incorporating the observed obesity trend resulted in 35,767 cumulative EACs and 1,608 in 2005. Estimates derived from SEER data showed 111,223 cumulative and 7,173 cases in 2005. We conclude that the rise in obesity accounted for 6.5% of the increase in EAC cases that occurred from 1973 to 2005 and 7.6% in the year 2005. Conclusion: Using published OR for EAC among obese individuals, we found that only a small percentage of the rise in EAC incidence is attributable to secular trends in obesity. Impact: Other factors, alone and in combination, should be explored as causes of the EAC epidemic. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev; 20(11); 2450–6. ©2011 AACR.
Health Promotion and Senior Women With Limited Incomes

Health promotion is increasingly being recognized as making an important contribution to the well-being of Canada's seniors. Most research relating to this topic, however, has focused on middle-income senior men and women. An exploratory study1 using ethnographic methods was conducted to explore and describe the health promotion experience of senior women living on limited incomes. Interviews with a total of 11 urban senior women living on limited incomes were analyzed. A major finding of this study was that the women utilized a wide variety of "ways of living" that are presented in the model, Health Promotion as Self Nurturance. Health promotion was perceived to be influenced by living on a limited income by most participants; however, 3 of the participants believed that their health status and income level were unrelated. Findings are discussed and implications for community health nurses are offered.
High-resolution magnetic resonance imaging of carotid atherosclerotic plaques - a correlation study with histopathology.

BACKGROUND This study aimed to utilize high-resolution magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to investigate the characteristics of stable and vulnerable carotid arteriosclerotic plaques, with correlations to histopathological findings. PATIENTS AND METHODS High-resolution MRI was performed in 817 patients, using three-dimensional magnetic resonance angiography. Plaque composition was evaluated by measuring the areas occupied by calcification, a lipid-rich necrotic core, intra-plaque haemorrhage, and fibrous cap rupture. Plaque morphology was analysed by measuring vessel wall area, thickness, and luminal area at the bifurcation of the common carotid artery. Plaque tissues were sampled during carotid endarterectomy and examined using haematoxylin-eosin, Oil Red O, Masson trichrome staining, and immunohistochemical staining for CD68. RESULTS Patients were divided into stable plaque group (n = 462) and vulnerable plaque group (n = 355), based on intraoperative observations and postoperative histopathological findings. Compared to the stable plaque group, the vulnerable plaque group exhibited increased vessel wall areas and thickness, and decreased mean luminal areas (P < 0.001). The vulnerable plaque group also had a lower collagen content, a higher lipid content, and higher CD68 expression in plaque tissues on histological examinations (P < 0.01). Incidences of lipid-rich necrotic core (38.1 % vs. 34.3 %), intra-plaque haemorrhage (26.9 % vs. 22.8 %), plaque calcification (45.2 % vs. 40.9 %), and fibrous cap rupture (36.0 % vs 39.8 %) in the plaques were concordant with MRI observations and histopathological findings (p > 0.05). CONCLUSIONS Stable and vulnerable carotid plaques had different morphologies and compositions. High-resolution MRI can assess such differences qualitatively and quantitatively in vivo and provide guidance for risk stratification and management.
Genetics of Migraine: An Update

Observations including the long‐recognized tendency of migraine to run in families, the high concordance rates for migraine in twins reared together or apart, and the association of specific mutations with a rare migraine form are consistent with a genetic contribution to the disorder. This paper summarizes major findings to date on the genetics of migraine. Study of the heritability of migraine, particularly the common forms of migraine, is beset by several challenges including the absence of easily measurable biological markers, uncertainty about the etiologic and clinical overlap among migraine types, and the apparently complex interplay of environmental and genetic factors in determining migraine phenotype. Nevertheless, significant progress has been realized in recent years. Familial hemiplegic migraine, a rare migraine variant, appears to be transmitted by a Mendelian, autosomal dominant mode of inheritance involving mutations in at least 2 genes. These genes do not seem to be critically involved in the other forms of migraine; however, several other susceptibility loci for more common forms of migraine have been identified in recent genome‐wide screens and candidate‐locus studies. These and other data suggest that the genetic contribution to migraine is complex, multifactorial, and subject to significant modification by environmental factors.
Transformed diffuse large B‐cell lymphomas with gains of the discontinuous 12q12‐14 amplicon display concurrent deregulation of CDK2, CDK4 and GADD153 genes

Transformation of the indolent follicular lymphoma (FL) to the aggressive diffuse large B‐cell lymphoma (DLBCL) results in resistance to therapy with shortened survival. It has been demonstrated that the 12q12‐14 region was mainly amplified in DLBCL cases but not in their FL counterparts. Therefore, we examined the DNA copy number and protein expression profiles for CDK2, CDK4 and GADD153, three genes that map to 12q12‐14, in a set of 44 paired FL/DLBCL samples from 22 patients. The concordant amplification of these genes occurred in seven of 22 (32%) of FL cases, compared with 15 of 22 (68%) of DLBCL cases. At the protein level, 15 of 22 of the DLBCL samples (68%) showed strong staining for the CDK2 protein, compared with five of 21 of FL samples (24%). The majority of the DLBCL samples (16/22, 72%) expressed the CDK4 protein, whereas the majority of the FL samples (12/21, 57%) showed no expression of this protein. Except for one DLBCL case, no expression of the GADD153 protein could be detected. The deregulation of the CDK2 and CDK4 genes at the genetic and protein levels suggest a functional role for these genes in the transformation process and could potentially provide targets for prognostic tests or therapeutic interventions.
MASCE: A Multi-Agent System for Collaborative E-Learning

E-learning has become one of the most popular teaching methods in recent years. One of its modes is the blended learning where learners can read teaching materials asynchronously from a teaching website and collaborate with their peers, while providing for necessary face-to-face explanation, discussion, and physical operation in the classroom. In the computational intelligence field, the intelligent agent paradigm gained a tremendous interest in many application domains over the last two decades . This research project paper focuses on the use of intelligent agents in the sphere of e-learning education with the help of collaborative learning. Intelligent agents - the so called e-assistants or helper programs - can sit inside a computer and make the learning in e- learning happen dynamically to suit the need of the user. They can trap the user's likes and dislikes in various areas, the level of knowledge and the learning style and accordingly recommend the best matching helpers for collaboration. The paper introduces a multi-agent system for collaborative e-learning (MASCE). MASCE is to assist teaching and learning process and also to encourage collaborative learning among peers. This system shall be used in a blended learning environment as a supplement to the face-to-face lecture where students can use the system in the lab or from home after attending the traditional lecture in the faculty. The objective is to incorporate the intelligence of the multi- agent system (MAS) in a way that enables it to actively and intelligently support the educational processes, where multiple agents can interact to exchange information so that students may collaborate on how best to gain knowledge.
Ceftaroline efficacy against high-MIC clinical Staphylococcus aureus isolates in an in vitro hollow-fibre infection model

Objectives The current CLSI and EUCAST clinical susceptible breakpoint for 600 mg q12h dosing of ceftaroline (active metabolite of ceftaroline fosamil) for Staphylococcus aureus is ≤1 mg/L. Efficacy data for S. aureus infections with ceftaroline MIC ≥2 mg/L are limited. This study was designed to generate in-depth pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamics (PK/PD) understanding of S. aureus isolates inhibited by ≥ 2 mg/L ceftaroline using an in vitro hollow-fibre infection model (HFIM). Methods The PK/PD target of ceftaroline was investigated against 12 diverse characterized clinical MRSA isolates with ceftaroline MICs of 2 or 4 mg/L using q8h dosing for 24 h. These isolates carried substitutions in the penicillin-binding domain (PBD) and/or the non-PBD. Additionally, PD responses of mutants with ceftaroline MICs ranging from 2 to 32 mg/L were evaluated against the mean 600 mg q8h human-simulated dose over 72 h. Results The mean stasis, 1 log10-kill and 2 log10-kill PK/PD targets were 29%, 32% and 35% f T>MIC, respectively. In addition, these data suggest that the PK/PD target for MRSA is not impacted by the presence of substitutions in the non-PBD commonly found in isolates with ceftaroline MIC values of ≤ 2 mg/L. HFIM studies with 600 mg q8h dosing demonstrated a sustained long-term bacterial suppression for isolates with ceftaroline MICs of 2 and 4 mg/L. Conclusions Overall, efficacy was demonstrated against a diverse collection of clinical isolates using HFIM indicating the utility of 600 mg ceftaroline fosamil for S. aureus isolates with MIC ≤4 mg/L using q8h dosing.
FinFET-based variation resilient 8T SRAM cell

Due to increase in Vt (threshold voltage) variation caused by global and local process variations in ultrashort-channel devices, CMOS-based 6T SRAM cell and its variants cannot be operated at voltage lower than 600 mV. Therefore, this paper presents a FinFET-based 8T SRAM cell to mitigate impact of process variation. In this work, various design metrics are assessed and compared with MOSFET-based RD8T SRAM cell. The proposed design offers 4.35× and 1.86× improvements in TRA (read access time) and TWA (write access time) respectively compared to RD8T. It proves its robustness against process variations by featuring narrower spread in TRA distribution (6.95×) and TWA distribution (5.04×) compared with RD8T. These improvements are achieved at the expense of 11.65× higher read power and 13.75× higher write power. However, proposed bitcell exhibits 3.64× narrower spread in read power and 1.94× narrower spread in write power. Our bitcell achieves 6% improvement in RSNM compared with RD8T at the cost of reduction in WSNM (write static noise margin). However, it is still RSNM limited and is more balanced in terms of RSNM and WSNM.
AUTOMATIC RECOGNITION OF CORONAL TYPE II RADIO BURSTS: THE AUTOMATED RADIO BURST IDENTIFICATION SYSTEM METHOD AND FIRST OBSERVATIONS

Major space weather events such as solar flares and coronal mass ejections are usually accompanied by solar radio bursts, which can potentially be used for real-time space weather forecasts. Type II radio bursts are produced near the local plasma frequency and its harmonic by fast electrons accelerated by a shock wave moving through the corona and solar wind with a typical speed of ∼1000 km s−1. The coronal bursts have dynamic spectra with frequency gradually falling with time and durations of several minutes. This Letter presents a new method developed to detect type II coronal radio bursts automatically and describes its implementation in an extended Automated Radio Burst Identification System (ARBIS 2). Preliminary tests of the method with spectra obtained in 2002 show that the performance of the current implementation is quite high, ∼80%, while the probability of false positives is reasonably low, with one false positive per 100–200 hr for high solar activity and less than one false event per 10000 hr for low solar activity periods. The first automatically detected coronal type II radio burst is also presented.