Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
PANCHROMATIC OBSERVATIONS OF THE TEXTBOOK GRB 110205A: CONSTRAINING PHYSICAL MECHANISMS OF PROMPT EMISSION AND AFTERGLOW

We present a comprehensive analysis of a bright, long-duration (T90 ∼ 257 s) GRB 110205A at redshift z = 2.22. The optical prompt emission was detected by Swift/UVOT, ROTSE-IIIb, and BOOTES telescopes when the gamma-ray burst (GRB) was still radiating in the γ-ray band, with optical light curve showing correlation with γ-ray data. Nearly 200 s of observations were obtained simultaneously from optical, X-ray, to γ-ray (1 eV to 5 MeV), which makes it one of the exceptional cases to study the broadband spectral energy distribution during the prompt emission phase. In particular, we clearly identify, for the first time, an interesting two-break energy spectrum, roughly consistent with the standard synchrotron emission model in the fast cooling regime. Shortly after prompt emission (∼1100 s), a bright (R = 14.0) optical emission hump with very steep rise (α ∼ 5.5) was observed, which we interpret as the reverse shock (RS) emission. It is the first time that the rising phase of an RS component has been closely observed. The full optical and X-ray afterglow light curves can be interpreted within the standard reverse shock (RS) + forward shock (FS) model. In general, the high-quality prompt and afterglow data allow us to apply the standard fireball model to extract valuable information, including the radiation mechanism (synchrotron), radius of prompt emission (RGRB ∼ 3 × 1013 cm), initial Lorentz factor of the outflow (Γ0 ∼ 250), the composition of the ejecta (mildly magnetized), the collimation angle, and the total energy budget.
Objective and subjective quality assessment with expert and non-expert viewers

The purpose of this study was to investigate whether objective models can be equally accurate for expert and non-expert viewers. We measured in both expert and non-expert viewers the subjective video quality of several high definition video sequences, which had been processed at several bit-rates using MPEG-2 and H.264 codecs. The results showed only a small but statistically significant difference, particularly at low bit-rates, in perceived quality between experts and non-experts. These subjective data were then compared to objective quality measurements obtained with a JND-based model and the standard PSNR. We found that the JND model performed better than the PSNR, but its predictive performance differed significantly for expert and non-expert viewers.
Perturbations of Amino Acid Metabolism Associated with Glyphosate-Dependent Inhibition of Shikimic Acid Metabolism Affect Cellular Redox Homeostasis and Alter the Abundance of Proteins Involved in Photosynthesis and Photorespiration1[W][OA]

The herbicide glyphosate inhibits the shikimate pathway of the synthesis of amino acids such as phenylalanine, tyrosine, and tryptophan. However, much uncertainty remains concerning precisely how glyphosate kills plants or affects cellular redox homeostasis and related processes in glyphosate-sensitive and glyphosate-resistant crop plants. To address this issue, we performed an integrated study of photosynthesis, leaf proteomes, amino acid profiles, and redox profiles in the glyphosate-sensitive soybean (Glycine max) genotype PAN809 and glyphosate-resistant Roundup Ready Soybean (RRS). RRS leaves accumulated much more glyphosate than the sensitive line but showed relatively few changes in amino acid metabolism. Photosynthesis was unaffected by glyphosate in RRS leaves, but decreased abundance of photosynthesis/photorespiratory pathway proteins was observed together with oxidation of major redox pools. While treatment of a sensitive genotype with glyphosate rapidly inhibited photosynthesis and triggered the appearance of a nitrogen-rich amino acid profile, there was no evidence of oxidation of the redox pools. There was, however, an increase in starvation-associated and defense proteins. We conclude that glyphosate-dependent inhibition of soybean leaf metabolism leads to the induction of defense proteins without sustained oxidation. Conversely, the accumulation of high levels of glyphosate in RRS enhances cellular oxidation, possibly through mechanisms involving stimulation of the photorespiratory pathway.
Brain delivery of intranasal in situ gel of nanoparticulated polymeric carriers containing antidepressant drug: behavioral and biochemical assessment

Abstract This study was aimed for brain delivery of Tramadol HCl (centrally acting synthetic opioid) following intranasal administration for treatment of depression. Chitosan nanoparticles (NPs) were prepared by ionic gelation method followed by the addition of developed NPs with in the Pluronic and HPMC-based mucoadhesive thermo-reversible gel. Developed formulation optimized based on the various parameters such as particle size, entrapment efficiency, in vitro release study. Depression induction was done by forced swim test and evaluated by various behavioral and biochemical parameters. Furthermore, results showed significantly increased in locomotors activity, body weight as compared to control group. It also showed alteration in biochemical parameters such glutathione level and catalase levels significantly increased other than lipid peroxidation and nitrite level was found to be decreased after intranasal administration of formulation. Thus, intranasal TRM HCl NP-loaded in situ gel was found to be a promising formulation for the treatment of depression.
Region segmentation using edge based circle growing

A new region segmentation method using edge based circle growing technique to construct texture regions for a natural image is proposed. This method can be used in object based coding for constructing closed regions to form contours. Also, it is robust against broken, noisy and isolated edges. Unlike the previous relaxation methods, e.g. the snake scheme, initialization parameters are not required to do region segmentation in this new method. Simulation results have shown that automatic region segmentation of the natural image can be achieved using this new method.
IMPLICATIONS OF INVASION BY JUNIPERUS VIRGINIANA ON SMALL MAMMALS IN THE SOUTHERN GREAT PLAINS

Abstract Changes in landscape cover in the Great Plains are resulting from the range expansion and invasion of eastern red cedar (Juniperus virginiana). By altering the landscape and local vegetation, red cedar is changing the structure and function of habitat for small mammals. We examined effects of invasion by eastern red cedar on small mammals in 3 plant communities (tallgrass prairie, old field, and cross-timbers forest) in the cross-timbers ecoregion in Oklahoma. We sampled small mammals seasonally from May 2001 to August 2002 by using Sherman live traps and mark–recapture techniques on 3.24-ha, 450-trap grids in each plant community. We sampled vegetation in two hundred twenty-five 12 × 12-m cells within each grid. The structure of the small-mammal community differed among the 3 habitat types, with higher species diversity and richness in the tallgrass-prairie and old-field sites. Overall, the small-mammal community shifted along a gradient of increasing eastern red cedar. In the old-field and tallgrass-prairie plots, occurrence of grassland mammals decreased with increasing red cedar, whereas only 1 woodland mammal species increased. In the cross-timbers forest site, percent woody cover (<1 m in height), rather than cover of red cedar, was the most important factor affecting woodland mammal species. Examination of our data suggests that an increase in overstory cover from 0% to 30% red cedar can change a species-rich prairie community to a depauperate community dominated by 1 species, Peromyscus leucopus. Losses in species diversity and changes in mammal distribution paralleled those seen in avian communities invaded by eastern red cedar. Our results highlight ecological effects of invasion by eastern red cedar on diversity and function at multiple trophic levels.
A new method suitable for real-time generator coherency determination

The aim of this paper is to illustrate that wide area generator speed measurements combined with Fourier analysis can be used to determine coherent generator groups. Studies are based on simulations in a 68-bus test system. Three test cases are investigated where the new method is compared to conventional methods based on the generator speed, modal analysis, and phasor angle measurement. The method introduced in this paper has proven to be an interesting alternative for generator coherency determination. It gives almost identical results to the offline methods based on the generator speed or modal analysis. Based on their trustworthiness the test cases indicate that the method reflects a more accurate coherency than the conventional online method based on phasor angle measurement. Moreover, compared with online applications using modal analysis the method supports real-time applications better according to its less extensive computational requirements.
Exploring Virtual Environments with an EEG-based BCI through Motor Imagery / Erkundung von virtuellen Welten durch Bewegungsvorstellungen mit Hilfe eines EEG-basierten BCI

Abstract In this paper, we describe the possibility of navigating in a virtual environment using the output signal of an EEG-based Brain-Computer Interface (BCI). The graphical capabilities of virtual reality (VR) should help to create new BCI-paradigms and improve feedback presentation. The objective of this combination is to enhance the subject's learning process of gaining control of the BCI. In this study, the participant had to imagine left or right hand movements while exploring a virtual conference room. By imaging a left hand movement the subject turned virtually to the left inside the room and with right hand imagery to the right. In fact, three trained subjects reached 80% to 100% BCI classification accuracy in the course of the experimental sessions. All subjects were able to achieve a rotation in the VR to the left or right by approximately 45° during one trial. Zusammenfassung In dieser Arbeit wird die Möglichkeit der Navigation innerhalb einer virtuellen Welt unter Verwendung eines EEG-basierten Brain-Computer Interface (BCI) präsentiert. Die graphischen Fähigkeiten von Virtuellen Realitäten (VR) sollen dabei helfen neue BCI-Paradigmen zu entwicklen und die Art der Feedbackpräsentation zu verbessern. Das Ziel dieser Kombination ist es, den Lernprozess der Versuchsperson zu fördern, um eine bessere BCI-Kontrolle zu erreichen. In dieser Arbeit hatten die Probanden sich entweder eine linke oder rechte Handbewegung vorzustellen, während ein virtueller Konferenzraum erkundet wurde. Durch die Vorstelleung einer linken Handbewegung wurde die Versuchsperson virtuell im Raum nach links und durch die Vorstellung einer rechten Handbewegung nach rechts gedreht. Drei trainierte Probanden erreichten eine BCI–Klassifikationsgenauigkeit zwischen 80% und 100% im Verlauf der Messungen. Alle Probanden waren in der Lage sich virtuell nach links und rechts zu drehen und erreichten eine durchschnittliche Drehung von 45° pro Versuch.
A Pilot Study of Food Supplementation to Improve Adherence to Antiretroviral Therapy Among Food-Insecure Adults in Lusaka, Zambia

Background:The provision of food supplementation to food-insecure patients initiating antiretroviral therapy (ART) may improve adherence to medications. Methods:A home-based adherence support program at 8 government clinics assessed patients for food insecurity. Four clinics provided food supplementation, and 4 acted as controls. The analysis compared adherence (assessed by medication possession ratio), CD4, and weight gain outcomes among food-insecure patients enrolled at the food clinics with those enrolled at the control clinics. Results:Between May 1, 2004, and March 31, 2005, 636 food- insecure adults were enrolled. Food supplementation was associated with better adherence to therapy. Two hundred fifty-eight of 366 (70%) patients in the food group achieved a medication possession ratio of 95% or greater versus 79 of 166 (48%) among controls (relative risk = 1.5; 95% confidence interval: 1.2 to 1.8). This finding was unchanged after adjustment for sex, age, baseline CD4 count, baseline World Health Organization stage, and baseline hemoglobin. We did not observe a significant effect of food supplementation on weight gain or CD4 cell response. Conclusions:This analysis suggests that providing food to food-insecure patients initiating ART is feasible and may improve adherence to medication. A large randomized study of the clinical benefits of food supplementation to ART patients is urgently needed to inform international policy.
The networked enterprise and the role of Intellectu al property rights

The big hierarchical firm seems to be part of past history. In 1949, the Ford Motors Company was described in the Encyclopedia Britannica as a huge company, owning mines, railroads, hevea plantations, ships, electric plant, foundry, cement works, hospitals, professional schools. etc (see Berger, 2005). Michelin or Renault in France, and many other companies in various sectors and countries had also the same profile of big integrated companies.
Value Chains Versus Supply Chains

The concept of a Value Chain has existed for twenty years but we find it still is an unclear concept. It has been suggested that the third generation supply chain is based on customer intimacy and is fully synchronized. In this paper, the authors discuss the need to relate the concepts of the value chain and the supply chain in a more comprehensive and integrative manner. We begin with a discussion of value and the development of the concept of value chain. We then discuss similarities and differences of the value chain and the supply chain, and conclude with suggestions regarding the need for synchronizing value and supply chains to optimize business performance.
New approaches of quality concept in current context

Quality has become the most important concept of modern management. Currently, the quality means more than the traditional notion of quality products and services found in previous years. Current definitions cover improvement (decrease) in cost of products, performance in their distribution, time of arrival of product on market and response to market changes. We approach the new tendencies in quality: procedural quality, transformational quality, total quality, global quality.
Portable instrument for eddy currents Non-Destructive Testing based on heterodyning techniques

In this work an eddy current testing instrument employing heterodyning based measurements is presented. The instrument is composed of a portable computer and a dedicated electronic measurement circuitry to operate a specific type of probe. A DDS waveform generator and a transconductance amplifier are used to drive the probe with high amplitude currents and frequency up to 10 MHz. The probe output voltage is amplified up to 60 dB and down-converted to a lower intermediary frequency. The signal is converted into the digital domain and processed to compute the real and imaginary parts of the probe output voltage. The developed dedicated electronics were installed inside a rugged laptop computer to form a standalone instrument with post-processing and visualization capabilities. Electrical characterization and application results using the instrument and a particular eddy current probe are presented.
A Critical Appraisal of the Sovereign Debt Crisis in India and the United States: A Comparative Study

Problem Statement: Traditionally the analysis of sovereign debt in developing economies has focused on external debt. However, in recent years, several developing countries have adopted aggressive policies to remove the external sovereign debt, replacing it by the country issued debt. This study is an attempt to examine the level of indebtedness of the Government of India with special reference to the United States. Further, it seeks to determine the effects of the sovereign debt crisis emanating from the United States on a developing economy like India. The study also examines the possible compromise between the internal and external borrowing and whether a switch to domestic borrowing can play a positive role in reducing the risks of sovereign finance. Approach: To achieve the same the research methodology adopted is primarily doctrinal wherein most of information is collected from secondary sources and authoritative reports from the World Bank, International Monetary Fund, Reserve Bank of India annual report and other scholarly writings by leading policy makers and economists. Results: The research documents that since the domestic economy in India is not isolated from the global economy, there will certainly be a few jerks felt in India. Both imports and exports will be affected. Exports from India to the United States, especially IT services, will issue an impact. The study also shows that since the beginning of the financial crisis in industrial countries sovereign debt has increased dramatically and they are set to continue increasing for the foreseeable future. Furthermore our data also documents other crises that often accompany default: including inflation, exchange rate crashes, banking and currency crisis. Conclusion: The path pursued by the tax authorities in a number of industrial countries is unsustainable. The Privatization program is one of the most attractive answers to the question of reducing the sovereign debt. This paper suggests that the traditional dichotomy between external and domestic debt does not make much sense in a world of open capital accounts and that, although the recent switch to domestic borrowing has important positive implications for debt management, policy makers should not be too complacent.
A Unified Framework for Analysis and Design of a Digitally Current-Mode Controlled Buck Converter

Mixed-signal current-mode control (MCMC) implementation has been gaining popularity, because of the tuning flexibility using the digital voltage controller Gc(z) along with the fast-changing analog current controller. Generally a continuous-time frequency-domain approach is adopted for the design of Gc(z); however, this method often fails to capture sub-harmonic, more generally the fast-scale instability due to finite discretization effects. This paper derives approximate discrete-time models and proposes a unified framework to derive closed-form stability conditions and discrete-time small-signal models of a synchronous buck converter under MCMC. Considering the effects due to finite output-voltage sampling and the effective series resistance (ESR) of the output capacitor, the stability boundary in MCMC is found to be significantly restricted compared to its analog counterpart. Further, design methods are proposed to enhance stability boundary with improved transient performance by tuning the controller directly in the digital domain. A buck converter prototype is made, and the MCMC technique is realized using an FPGA device. Analytical predictions are verified experimentally.
Risk Management For Software Projects

The risks associated with software are increasing with the growth of the software industry. Modern software development presents specific challenges and risk areas to the software industry which need to be considered and managed. With more and more organizations investing substantial resources in software development, risk management becomes crucial. In this paper we will discuss some of the risk management threats and try to find some solutions or techniques to tackle the risks.
Relationship between Corporate Sustainability Practices and Financial Performance: Evidence from the GRI Reporting Companies

This main purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between corporate sustainability practices and financial performance, using a cross-sectional sample of the listed UK and US companies. We comprehensively reviewed and evaluated the sustainability reports of the companies, which were prepared using the GRI sustainability reporting guidelines, and investigated how companies have addressed concerns related to community, diversity, environmental performance, and ethical practices from 2005 to 2009. We developed four indices derived from companies’ disclosure on community, diversity, environment, and ethical codes or standards of practices mirroring business-case arguments for corporate sustainable practices. We find an increase in the disclosure of activities underlying the diversity and ethical practices after 2008, which might be related to public demand in these countries for more transparency and concerns about ethical practices after the global financial crisis. Our results show that the UK companies’ disclosures are higher than the US companies’ in relation to community, diversity, environment, and ethical practices. Our empirical results show those global companies’, which are promoting workforce diversity, recruitment, and promotion, and active participation in other diversity related issues have positive effect on financial performance after controlling for the industry characteristics and growth opportunities. The research findings implies that innovation in computing power and language would ease the choice of reporting medium in future, in this regard, XBRL is one of the way forward that could used for reporting on sustainable development in real time. This is the first study to have examined the sustainable business practices of the global companies using GRI sustainability reporting guidelines over the period of 5 years.
Gonorrhoea in the Manchester Region*

Gonorrhoea infections treated in the venereal diseases clinics of England and Wales increased from 18,064 in 1951 to 37,026t in 1961. A study of certain epidemiological factors associated with the increased incidence of gonorrhoea between 1951 and 1961 in the clinics of the City of Manchester (Laird, 1962) showed that: (a) The increase in incidence commenced in 1955 and was relatively greater in those aged under 25 years. (b) Infections in males born in the U.K. had not increased since 1955 and the total for U.K. males in 1961 was only 70 per cent. of the 1951 total. (c) Infections in U.K. male teenagers had increased since 1955 but the numbers were still small and not rising (59 in 1959 and 39 in 1961). (d) Except for teenagers, the increase in male infections since 1955 had been confined to immigrants, amongst whom West Indians predominated. (e) Repeated infection in certain individuals was a significant factor in the increase in males and, here again, immigrants, especially West Indians, made the major contribution. (f) In thefemale, gonorrhoea infections increased in all age groups between 1955 and 1961. The increase was small (18-6 per cent.) in those aged 25 years and over, and moderate (73 7 per cent.) in those aged 20-24 years; but teenage infections increased from 44 in 1955 to 126 in 1961 (186 per cent.). As the total numbers were still greater in 1961 than in 1959, this rising trend in females shows no sign of abating. (g) Some part of the increase in females since 1951 and 1955 may have been due to better casefinding and improved diagnosis; on the other hand, the increase may have been greater than the figures indicate because the use of "epidemiological treatment" leads to some cases of gonorrhoea being placed in another diagnostic category. (h) The male consorts of half the total of teenage girls with gonorrhoea were known to be immigrants.