Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
GNSS NLOS and Multipath Error Mitigation using Advanced Multi-Constellation Consistency Checking with Height Aiding

High sensitivity multi-constellation GNSS receivers can dramatically improve the satellite availability in an urban environment. However, positioning accuracy remains a challenge because of blockage, reflection and diffraction of signals by buildings. In typical urban positioning scenarios, the receiver often receives a mixture of nonline-of-sight (NLOS) signals, multipath-contaminated direct line-of-sight (LOS) signals, and clean direct-LOS signals. Multi-constellation GNSS allows maximising the positioning accuracy by selecting only those signals that are least contaminated by multipath and NLOS propagation to form the navigation solution. A technique exploring the consistency among received signals using randomly draw subsets of all available signals is proposed in this research. The implementation of the algorithm follows an estimation scheme known as RANdom SAmple Consensus (RANSAC). A pre-defined cost function is firstly used to select the best available subset of measurements. A reference solution is produced from the best available subset. The “residuals” of all received signals, i.e. the differences between the observed measurements and the predictions from the reference solution, are examined. The examination features a receiver autonomous integrity monitoring (RAIM) like statistical test based on specific distributions. A final solution is produced from measurements passed the examination plus the best available subset. In addition, height aiding from a terrain elevation database is used as an additional ranging measurement to further enhance the positioning performance. Two GPS/GLONASS data sets collected from different urban areas of central London were used for testing. Different versions of the cost function and the effect of introducing height aiding are tested. The results show an improvement of positioning accuracy over conventional least-squares algorithm and previous consistency-checking algorithm through reduction of the impact of multipath and NLOS propagation errors.
Changes in abdominal obesity and age-related macular degeneration: the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities Study.

OBJECTIVE To examine the association between changes in waist-hip ratio (WHR), a measure of abdominal obesity, and age-related macular degeneration (AMD). METHODS A total of 12 515 persons from a population-based cohort study, aged 45 to 64 years in 1987 to 1989, were followed up over 6 years. The percentage change in WHR during follow-up was ranked into sex-specific deciles; an increase in WHR was defined as the top 10% of change and a decrease in WHR as the bottom 10%. The association of increased or decreased WHR and presence of AMD at follow-up was determined using logistic regression adjusting for potential confounders. RESULTS The average change in WHR was an increase of 2%, ranging from a decrease of 44% to an increase of 102%. A decrease in WHR of 3% or more was associated with 29% lower odds of any AMD (odds ratio = 0.71; 95% confidence interval, 0.52-0.97). This effect was most pronounced among obese participants at baseline, where a decrease in WHR was associated with 59% lower odds of AMD (odds ratio = 0.41; 95% confidence interval, 0.20-0.82). CONCLUSIONS Middle-aged persons who had a 3% or greater reduction in WHR over time were less likely to have AMD, particularly among those who were initially obese.
Fiber-Optic Salinity Sensor Using Fiber-Optic Displacement Measurement With Flat and Concave Mirror

A simple intensity modulated displacement sensor is proposed for sensing salinity based on different concentration of sodium chloride (NaCl) in deionized water. The proposed sensor uses a 594-nm He-Ne laser as light source due to the high absorbance of NaCl within that wavelength. The peak voltage and its position of the displacement from both flat and concave mirror are studied. For a concentration change from 0% to 12%, the peak voltage decreases linearly from 2.46 to 1.48 mV, while its corresponding position from the flat mirror increases linearly from 1.00 to 1.35 mm with a linearity of more than 96% and 99%, respectively. Similarly, the peak voltage corresponding to the displacement with concave mirror decreases linearly from 3.67 to 3.57 mV, while its position increases linearly from 1.20 to 1.45 mm with a linearity of more than 98% and 95%, respectively. From the experimental results, it is concluded that as the concentration or density of NaCl increases, the peak voltage decreases proportionately. The stability, high sensitivity, simplicity of design, and low fabrication cost make this sensor suitable for chemical, pharmaceutical, biomedical, and process-control application.
Fuzzy Logic Based Decision Maker System for Choosing Cars Using MATLAB

The Decision maker is developed using fuzzy logic . The Decision Maker helps the user with the decision about which car to buy by considering his own criteria. It uses the basic fuzzy set operations. The Decision Maker with a GUI has been developed in MATLAB. Its GUI displays a menu containing options of small cars and luxury cars. By clicking on any of the options, the user can display the list of all the cars in that category and their different parameters which are to be considered for the decision to choose a car. Then the user enters the list of cars regarding which the decision has to be made and the criteria which the user wants to consider to buy the car with the scale of importance for each criteria. The user also enters a score for each car with respect to each criteria. The Decision Maker then finds an appropriate car for the users according to the criteria entered by him.
Analysis of Dynamic Differential Swing Limited Logic for Low-Power Secure Applications

Low-power secure applications such as Radio Frequency IDentification (RFID) and smart cards represent extremely constrained environments in terms of power consumption and die area. This paper investigates the power, delay and security performances of the dynamic differential swing limited logic (DDSLL). A complete analysis of an advanced encryption standard (AES) S-box is conducted using a low-power (LP) 65 nm CMOS technology node. Measurements show that the DDSLL S-box has 35% less power consumption than the static CMOS S-box, with an area increase of only 12%, at the expense of a 2.5× increase in delay which remains fairly acceptable for low-power applications such as RFIDs and smart cards. Also when compared to other dynamic differential logic (DDL) styles, simulation results show that DDSLL and dynamic current mode logic (DyCML) consume the same power which is about 1.8× less that of sense amplifier based logic (SABL). The effect of process variations is also studied, measurement results show that the DDSLL style has lower variability in terms of dynamic power as the activity factor (αF) is deterministic thanks to glitch-free operation. As for security, the perceived information metric demonstrates that the DDSLL S-box has a 3× security margin compared to static CMOS. Therefore, DDSLL presents an interesting tradeoff between improved security and area constrained low-power designs.
Low back pain (acute).

INTRODUCTION Low back pain (LBP) affects about 70% of people in resource-rich countries at some point. Acute low back pain is usually perceived as self-limiting; however, one year later, as many as 33% of people still have moderate-intensity pain and 15% have severe pain. It has a high recurrence rate; 75% of those with a first episode have a recurrence. Although acute episodes may resolve completely, they may also increase in severity and duration over time. METHODS AND OUTCOMES We conducted a systematic review and aimed to answer the following clinical questions: What are the effects of oral drug treatments for low back pain? What are the effects of local injections for low back pain? What are the effects of non-drug treatments for low back pain? We searched: Medline, Embase, The Cochrane Library, and other important databases up to May 2007 (Clinical Evidence reviews are updated periodically, please check our website for the most up-to-date version of this review). We included harms alerts from relevant organisations such as the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the UK Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA). RESULTS We found 34 systematic reviews, RCTs, or observational studies that met our inclusion criteria. We performed a GRADE evaluation of the quality of evidence for interventions. CONCLUSIONS In this systematic review we present information relating to the effectiveness and safety of the following interventions: acupuncture, advice to stay active, analgesics (paracetamol, opioids), back exercises, back schools, bed rest, behavioural therapy, electromyographic biofeedback, epidural corticosteroid injections, lumbar supports, massage, multidisciplinary treatment programmes, muscle relaxants, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), spinal manipulation (in the short term), temperature treatments (short wave diathermy, ultrasound, ice, heat), traction, and transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS).
Three-phase switched capacitor converter without electrolytic capacitor for Power LEDs and low output current ripple

This paper presents a three-phase switched capacitor converter to drive power light-emitting diodes (LEDs). The proposed converter does not utilize electrolytic capacitors, providing a high useful lifetime. In addition, the converter does not have diode bridge input rectifier, which can increase the converter efficiency. Moreover, it can stabilize the output current in open loop control, without needing current sensors, which reduces the project cost. A 54 W prototype was implemented to demonstrate the feasibility of the proposed converter. Experimental results are presented and discussed. The prototype presented a power factor of 0.98 and an efficiency of 79 %.
Filtrage pour la construction de résumés multidocuments guidée par un profil : Résumé automatique de textes

Dans cet article, nous presentons une methode de filtrage permettant de selectionner a partir d'un ensemble de documents les extraits de textes les plus significatifs relativement a un profil defini par un utilisateur. Pour ce faire, nous mettons l'accent sur l'utilisation conjointe de profils structures et d'une analyse thematique des documents. Cette analyse permet egalement d'etendre le vocabulaire definissant un profil en fonction du document traite en selectionnant les termes de ce dernier les plus etroitement lies aux termes du profil. Tous ces aspects assurent une plus grande finesse du filtrage tout en permettant la selection d'extraits de documents ayant un lien plus tenu avec les profils mais davantage susceptibles d'apporter des informations nouvelles et donc interessantes. L'interet de l'approche presentee a ete illustre au travers du systeme REDUIT qui a fait l'objet d'une evaluation concernant a la fois le filtrage de documents et l'extraction de passages.
Sources of Suffering in Patients With Advanced Disease

Background: Relief of suffering is a central goal for palliative care. Achievement of this goal can be difficult, however, due to the complex nature of suffering. Methods: A psychosocial perspective is used to understand suffering and to identify interventions to relieve suffering in patients with advanced disease. Results: Clinical experience and research suggest that attending to the psychosocial aspects as well as the medical aspects of palliative care has the potential of further reducing the suffering experienced by patients with advanced disease. Conclusions: Suffering is best viewed as a subjective phenomenon t hat can be influenced by biological, psychological and social processes. Interventions in each of these areas can help to relieve patient suffering.
Synthesis and Biological Activity of a Novel Class of Purine Nucleoside Phosphorylase Inhibitors

Abstract Purine nucleoside phosphorylase. (PNP, EC. 2.4.2.1) functions as a salvage enzyme in the purine and is important in the T-cell portion of the immune system As such, PNP is an important therapeutic target for diseases which are T-cell mediated. The biochemical basis for using PNP inhibitors as well as the various classes of inhibitors developed has been recently reviewed. Using X-ray crystallography we have designed and synthesized a series of 7-substituted 2-amino-1,5-dihydroHpyrrolo[3,2-djpyrimidin-4-ones which are potent PNP inhibitors . 2-5 The 3-(pyridinylmethyl) derivative 1 (BCX-34, peldesine, IC50 = 0.036 ± 0.003 μM) is in clinical trials for the treatment of cutaneous T-cell Ivqphoma. acute lymphoblastic leukemia and HIV infections.
RECONSTITUIÇÃO IMUNOLÓGICA APÓS TRANSPLANTE ALOGÉNICO DE CÉLULAS ESTAMINAIS

*Apresentado em parte na Sessao Educacional da Reuniao Anual da Sociedade Portuguesa de Hematologia 2003 Os doentes submetidos a transplante alogenico de celulas estaminais tem uma imunossupressao que ultrapassa o primeiro ano pos-transplante. A reconstituicao imunologica apos um transplante de celulas estaminais depende de varios factores, tais como a idade do receptor, o grau de parentesco e de compatibilidade HLA entre dador e receptor, o grau de deplecao de celulas T in vivo ou in vitro, a emergencia e eventual tratamento da doenca do enxerto contra o hospedeiro. Enquanto que os neutrofilos e as celulas natural killer recuperam nos primeiros dois meses postransplante, a reconstituicao das imunidades humoral e celular e significativamente mais lenta. E impossivel dissociar a emergencia de novos linfocitos B da timopoiese, que parece ser determinante para a normal reconstituicao da globalidade da imunidade adquirida apos o transplante. A analise seriada da recuperacao das contagens de celulas T e seus subtipos, sua funcao e, mais recentemente, dos circulos de DNA epissomico libertados quando do rearranjo dos genes do receptor de celulas T, revelam um atraso significativo na reconstituicao da funcao T em doentes adultos, com doenca do enxerto contra o hospedeiro cronica extensa e nos primeiros nove meses pos-transplante em doentes submetidos a transplante com deplecao de celulas T. A incidencia de infeccoes oportunistas graves e mais elevada nestes doentes. Assim, com o intuito de reduzir a mortalidade pos-transplante, e importante o desenvolvimento de estrategias para a aceleracao da recuperacao imunologica. Sabe-se hoje que a imunoterapia celular postransplante com leucocitos do dador fortalece o sistema imune incipiente do dador no receptor. Estudos preliminares em modelos animais sugerem tambem que a interleucina7 e o factor de crescimento dos queratinocitos estimulam a timopoiese, melhorando assim a reconstituicao imunologica pos-transplante.
No Sustained Impact of Intermittent Extracorporeal Liver Support on Thrombocyte Time Course in a Randomized Controlled Albumin Dialysis Trial

Reduction of platelets is a common finding in patients with liver disease and can be aggravated by extracorporeal therapies, e.g. artificial liver support. The impact of extracorporeal albumin dialysis on the time count and time course of platelets in liver failure patients was evaluated in a randomized controlled clinical trial. Mean thrombocyte reduction during a single extracorporeal liver support therapy was −15.1% [95%CI: −17.7; −12.5]. No differences were found between treatments of patients with a more reduced platelet count (<100 GPT/L: −15.6% [−19.5; −11.7%]; n = 43) compared to patients with normal or slightly decreased thrombocytes (−14.6% [−18.3%; −11.0%]; n = 43; P = 0.719). The variation of platelet count within 24 h after onset of extracorporeal therapy treatment was less, albeit significant (−3.5% [−6.3%; −0.7%], P < 0.016). Absolute thrombocyte variability was comparable between both groups (with extracorporeal therapy −5.6 GPT/L [−9.7; −1.4], without extracorporeal therapy −1.3 GPT/L [−7.3; 4.7]; P = 0.243), whereas relative decrease of thrombocytes within a 24‐h period of extracorporeal therapy was greater than the changes in patients without extracorporeal therapy (−3.5% [−6.3%; −0.7%] vs. 2.0% [−2.0%; 5.9%]; P = 0.026]. Within a period of two weeks after enrollment, no significant differences of platelet count were observed either between the two groups or in the time course (Pgroup = 0.337, Ptime = 0.277). Reduction of platelets during intermittent extracorporeal liver support was less pronounced within a 24‐h period as before and after a single treatment and was comparable to variations in the control group without extracorporeal therapy.
Learning to ignore the mask in texture segmentation tasks.

Although traditionally texture segmentation has been regarded as an automatic, preattentive process, participants confronted with texture segmentation in experimental settings (i.e., with brief presentation time and subsequent masking) are initially unable to perform the task. According to perceptual learning concepts, participants must learn to fine-tune their sensory channels before perception improves under restricted viewing conditions. The present article proposes an alternative perspective that emphasizes the role of the mask. Four experiments showed that the amount of observed learning depends on the structural and temporal homogeneity or heterogeneity of the mask. The authors suggest that learning consists of separating the task-relevant signal stemming from the texture from the task-irrelevant signal of the mask and of ignoring the mask.
Perceptual Defensiveness and Death Anxiety

This study investigated the relationship between the extent of defensive responding on a perceptual recognition task and score on the Handal death anxiety scale. The results did not confirm the hypothesis that perceptually defensive respondents (those with elevated thresholds for death words as opposed to neutral words) would tend to have lower scores on the death anxiety inventory. Additional research into multilevel criteria of death anxiety is suggested along with improving the internal consistency of the Handal death anxiety scale.
Which finger? Early effects of attentional selection within the hand are absent when the hand is viewed

The sight of a hand can bias the distribution of spatial attention, and recently it has been shown that viewing both hands simultaneously can facilitate spatial selection between tactile events at the hands when these are far apart. Here we directly compared the electrophysiological correlates of within‐hand and between‐hands tactile–spatial selection to investigate whether within‐hand selection is similarly facilitated by viewing the fingers. Using somatosensory event‐related potentials, we have shown that effects of selection between adjacent fingers of the same hand at early somatosensory components P45 and N80 were absent when the fingers were viewed. Thus, we found a detrimental effect of vision on tactile–spatial within‐body part (i.e. hand) selection. In contrast, effects of tactile–spatial selection between hands placed next to each other, which were first found at the P100 component, were unaffected by vision of the hands. Our findings suggest that (i) within‐hand and between‐hands selection can operate at different stages of processing, and (ii) the effects of vision on within‐hand and between‐hands attentional selection may reflect fundamentally different mechanisms.
Inflammation and tuberculosis: host‐directed therapies

Tuberculosis (TB) is an airborne infectious disease that kills almost two million individuals every year. Multidrug‐resistant (MDR) TB is caused by strains of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (M. tb) resistant to isoniazid and rifampin, the backbone of first‐line antitubercular treatment. MDR TB affects an estimated 500 000 new patients annually. Genetic analysis of drug‐resistant MDR‐TB showed that airborne transmission of undetected and untreated strains played a major role in disease outbreaks. The need for new TB vaccines and faster diagnostics, as well as the development of new drugs, has recently been highlighted. The major problem in terms of current TB research and clinical demands is the increasing number of cases of extensively drug‐resistant and ‘treatment‐refractory’ TB. An emerging scenario of adjunct host‐directed therapies is intended to target pulmonary TB where inflammatory processes can be deleterious and lead to immune exhaustion. ‘Target‐organ‐saving’ strategies may be warranted to prevent damage to infected tissues and achieve focused, clinically relevant and long‐lasting anti‐M. tb cellular immune responses. Candidates for such interventions may be biological agents or already approved drugs that can be ‘re‐purposed’ to interfere with biologically relevant cellular checkpoints. Here, we review current concepts of inflammation in TB disease and discuss candidate pathways for host‐directed therapies to achieve better clinical outcomes.
Characterization and regulation of CD69 expression on rheumatoid arthritis synovial fluid T cells.

OBJECTIVE To study CD69+ synovial fluid (SF) T cells and the mechanisms regulating CD69 expression in rheumatoid arthritis (RA). METHODS One or 2 color flow cytometry was used to determine CD69 and other surface markers. Cultures of SF T cells alone or mixed with autologous SF non-T cells were used for CD69 maintenance assays. RESULTS SF T cells were enriched in CD69+. These cells were mainly CD3+, CD8+ and CD25-. CD69 was maintained on SF T cells cultured with SF non-T cells but not when the former were cultured alone or in the presence of different supernatants from RA SF T and non-T cells cultures with sustained CD69 expression. Pretreatment of T and non-T cells with anti-CD18 monoclonal antibody inhibited CD69 expression, while paraformaldehyde-"fixed" non-T cells effectively maintained it. CONCLUSION SF T cells exhibit a phenotype with evidence of past and recent activation. Our studies demonstrate that most of the recently activated SF T cells are CD8+. We also found that continuous cell-to-cell interaction between T and non-T cells are responsible for the maintenance of this particular state of activation of SF T cells.
Web of Science, Scopus and Google Scholar: A content comprehensiveness comparison

Purpose – The research aim for this study was to compare three citation resources with one another to identify the citation resource with the most representative South African scholarly environmental sciences citation coverage. This paper focuses on the results of the content verification process which measured amongst others the citation counts, multiple copies and inconsistencies encountered across the three citation resources ISI Web of Science, Scopus and Google Scholar. Design/methodology/approach – The research, the first phase of a longitudinal study, used a comparative research design method with a purposive, non-probability sample. Data from the South African scholarly environmental sciences journals for the year range 2004-2008 (first phase) were extracted from the three citation resources and compared. Findings – It became evident during the verification process that the citation resources retrieved varied results. The total citation counts indicated that ISI Web of Science (WOS) retrieved the .