Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Understanding channel selection dynamics in dense Wi-Fi networks

This paper aims to explain and analyze a growing problem in dense-urban wireless networks, that of co-existence between low-cost residential access points (APs) and actively-managed service provider APs in overlapping spatial, frequency, and time domains. Through detailed simulations and testbed experiments, the impact of increasing density of highly-adaptive service provider APs on the performance of typical residential APs is measured in terms of their respective channel assignment schemes. Simulation results with dense deployment of up to 500 APs/sq.km. show the benefits of centralized channel assignments, even in the presence of independent APs. In addition, it is shown that for a fixed AP density, an increase in the percentage of AP under the centralized scheme results in an increase in the throughput of surrounding independent APs. The broader implications of the simulation findings are discussed in order to develop a better macro-level understanding of dense Wi-Fi networks.
Imitation and Matching of Hand and Finger Postures

Converging evidence from patients with unilateral brain lesions, from a patient with callosal disconnection, and from functional imaging in healthy subjects suggests different competencies of both hemispheres for imitation and matching of hand and finger postures. Whereas the left hemisphere is fully competent for processing hand postures, an additional right hemisphere contribution is needed for finger postures. I propose that the left hemisphere is responsible for coding gestures with reference to knowledge about the structure of the human body, whereas a right hemisphere contribution is needed for visuospatial exploration and analysis of gestures. Single case studies of patients with visuoimitative apraxia and results of functional imaging suggest a prominent role for left area 40 for body-part coding. Additional activation of left MT/V5 in the functional neuroimaging study may be related to processing of the motion implied by the gesture which is presented as a static image.
The Role of Diet- and Host-Related Factors in Nutrient Bioavailability and Thus in Nutrient-Based Dietary Requirement Estimates

To convert physiological requirements into dietary requirements, adjustments are needed for some nutrients that take into account certain diet- and host-related factors specific to a country or region. Nutrients whose requirements should be adjusted in this way include calcium, magnesium, iron, zinc, protein, folate, vitamin A, and carotenoids. The diet-related factors that must be considered depend on the nature of the habitual diet and may include the chemical form of the nutrient and the nature of the dietary matrix, interactions between nutrients and/or organic components, and food preparation and processing practices within the country or region. The host-related factors can be further subdivided into intestinal and systemic factors. Reductions in the secretion of hydrochloric acid, gastric acid, and/or intrinsic factor, together with alterations in the permeability of the intestinal mucosa, are all examples of intestinal factors that can markedly influence the absorption of certain nutrients, but that are often ignored when setting dietary requirements. Systemic factors that should also be considered include nutrient status of the host, age, sex, ethnicity, genotype, and physiological state (e.g., pregnancy or lactation), and chronic and acute infectious disease states. Algorithms can estimate the bioavailability of iron, zinc, protein, folate, vitamin A, and carotenoids, although their accuracy is limited by the complex interactions among the absorption modifiers in the whole diet. For calcium and magnesium, the amount available for absorption is still estimated from their major food sources in the habitual diet. Currently, there are often large differences in the adjustments employed to convert physiological requirements to dietary requirements, even among countries consuming diets of similar patterns.
Analysis of nonlinear dynamics in delta modulators for PWM control

This paper studies dynamics of the delta modulators for PWM control of inverters. First, we introduce normal form circuit equation and 1-D return map. We then clarify that the system exhibits nonperiodic behavior in wide parameter region. Second, we apply compulsory switching to the circuit. This switching can stabilize the operation in some wide parameter region for controlling inverters and can cause chaotic phenomena in other parameter region.
Clinical reasoning and knowledge management in final year medical students: the role of Student-led Grand Rounds

Objectives The development of clinical reasoning and decision-making skills is often limited in medical school curricula. In reality, medical graduates acquire these skills during their first few years of residency. For many, this can be stressful as they may be working under limited supervision as a part of their rotations. Methods Student-led Grand Rounds was developed to transfer both explicit and tacit knowledge to final year medical students. This pilot project was to apply the principles of knowledge management to allow students to be exposed to the reasoning and decision making of common clinical presentations. Student feedback through questionnaires was collated at the end of the program. Results Based on feedback and focus groups, modifications were made to produce a stable program in subsequent clinical rotations. Formal feedback was collated from all the 76 students who participated in the first year. This represented 100% of the cohort for this clinical school for that year. There was a 100% response rate as the feedback forms were given and collected at the end of the last session per block. The student responses were both in ratings defined in a feedback forms and in written comments. A total of 74 of the 76 students rated the program highly. They enjoyed the nonthreatening interactions. The remaining two students preferred more didactic teaching. Conclusion This initiative allows an efficient transfer and utilization of knowledge. This could maximize the acquisition of practical knowledge by medical students as they finish their course in the transition to graduate medical practice.
Relationship between Static Mobility of the First Ray and First Ray, Midfoot, and Hindfoot Motion during Gait

The relationship between a static measure of dorsal first ray mobility and dynamic motion of the first ray, midfoot, and hindfoot during the stance phase of walking was investigated in healthy, asymptomatic subjects who represented the spectrum of static flexibility. Static first ray mobility of 15 subjects was measured by a load cell device and ranged from stiff (3.1 mm) to lax (8.0 mm). Using three-dimensional motion analysis, mean first ray dorsiflexion/eversion and mid-/hindfoot eversion peak motion, time-to-peak, and eversion excursion were evaluated. Subjects with greater static dorsal mobility of the first ray demonstrated significantly greater time-to-peak hindfoot eversion and eversion excursion (p >.01), and midfoot peak eversion and eversion excursion (p > .01). No significant association was found between static first ray mobility and first ray motion during gait. This research provides evidence that the dynamic response of the foot may modulate the consequences of first ray mobility and that compensory strategies are most effective when static measures of dorsal mobility are most extreme.
Log-convexity property of the feasible SIR region in power-controlled cellular systems

Power optimization problems are sometimes more convenient to be solved in the signal-to-interference ratio (SIR) domain. However, this methodology requires a characterization of the feasible SIR region. We derive a log-convexity property of the feasible SIR region, which is potentially useful for the design of a power-controlled system.
New drugs in breast cancer

The 1990s have seen the emergence of several classes of new efficacious drugs which have become established as treatment for breast cancer. Thus, aromatase inhibitors, taxanes and herceptin have all emerged as potentially valuable therapeutic agents for treatment of advanced breast cancer. Bisphosphonates have found a place in preventing skeletal complications in breast cancer patients with bone metastasis. Tamoxifen has a new role in chemoprevention in patients at high risk of breast cancer. This paper summarises these results.
Expression of MBP, PLP, MAG, CNP, and GFAP in the Human Alcoholic Brain.

BACKGROUND Chronic and excessive alcohol misuse results in neuropathological damage in the cerebral cortex. The damage includes white matter loss, brain atrophy, and selective loss of neurons in the superior frontal gyrus. Chronic alcohol misuse also results in alterations in the expression of a number of genes, including a selective reprogramming of myelin gene expression in the frontal cortex. METHODS The expression of cyclic nucleotide phosphodiesterase, glial fibrillary acidic protein, myelin-associated glycoprotein, myelin basic protein, and myelin proteolipid protein were assessed in the superior frontal gyrus and the primary motor cortex of control, uncomplicated alcoholic, and cirrhotic alcoholic cases. RESULTS Overall, the expression of cyclic nucleotide phosphodiesterase, glial fibrillary acidic protein, myelin-associated glycoprotein, and myelin basic protein were significantly lower in the cirrhotic alcoholic cases compared with controls, with a similar tendency for myelin proteolipid protein. There was a strong correlation between the expression of the proteins studied and the brain weight of the individual case, but this interaction did not confound the overall analysis. There was no significant difference between controls and uncomplicated alcoholics. CONCLUSIONS The loss of myelin proteins occurred without gross changes in brain pathology or brain weight and was not restricted to pathologically susceptible brain regions. It is not possible to determine whether the loss of myelin proteins in cirrhotic alcoholics is the result of cirrhosis per se or the combination of alcohol misuse and liver cirrhosis. Future studies comparing cases with alcoholic and nonalcoholic cirrhosis of the liver disease are required to elucidate this further.
HOW I DO IT Refinement of Minimally Invasive Esophagectomy Techniques After 15 Years of Experience

Intoduction In an effort to reduce the morbidity and mortality associated with open esophagectomy, a minimally invasive approach to esophagectomy was introduced at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC) in 1996. The objective of this article is to discuss the optimization and refinement of minimally invasive esophagectomy (MIE) techniques over the 15-year experience at UPMC. We also reviewed the literature on technical improvements in MIE. Method Literature highlights for MIE and related meta-analyses comparing open esophagectomy and MIE were reviewed. The rationale and outcomes of techniques refinements were discussed in detail. Results Most meta-analyses and systematic reviews confirm the feasibility and safety of MIE and suggest similar oncologic outcomes as compared with open esophagectomy. Since 1996, over 1,000 minimally invasive esophagectomies have been performed at UPMC. We have made several refinements to the MIE procedure that we believe significantly improved our surgical outcomes. It included adjustment of width of the gastric conduit, application of omental flap, and conversion from minimally invasive, three-hole esophagectomy to minimally invasive Ivor Lewis esophagectomy. Conclusion MIE became a mainstay in the surgical treatment of esophageal cancer at UPMC. The technical improvements detailed above make the UPMC approach to MIE a feasible, safe, and efficient procedure.
A prospective trial of intrauterine insemination of motile spermatozoa versus timed intercourse.

STUDY OBJECTIVE The efficacy of intrauterine insemination (IUI) of selected motile sperm. DESIGN Prospective randomized sequential alternating cycle trial comparing IUI with luteinizing hormone (LH)-timed intercourse. SETTING Clinical infertility service. PATIENTS Couples selected included unexplained infertility (n = 73), cervical mucus hostility (n = 24), moderate semen defect (n = 110), and severe semen defect (n = 78). Two hundred eighty-five couples undertook 600 IUI cycles and 505 LH-timed intercourse. RESULTS Overall, IUI was slightly more effective than LH-timed intercourse with a pregnancy rate of 6.2% versus 3.4% per cycle. When individual categories were considered only, IUI for severe semen defect was significantly better (5.6% versus 1.3%, P less than 0.05). The first IUI cycle was more effective when compared with both subsequent IUI cycles and the initial LH-timed cycle. Overall, 74% (27/37) of IUI pregnancies occurred in the first cycle. CONCLUSIONS Compared with LH-timed intercourse, IUI provided little or no improved expectation of pregnancy but was beneficial in couples with severe semen defect. The occurrence of pregnancy was limited per cycle and confined essentially to the initial cycle of treatment. Continued IUI is considered to be unrewarding.
A twenty minute perchlorate discharge test.

The conventional perchlorate discharge test consists of observing the discharge of unbound thyroidal iodide-131 1–2 hr after its oral administration using oral potassium perchlorate; it is both insensitive and inaccurate. To improve the sensitivity, accuracy and speed of this test, sodium perchlorate has been used intravenously only 10 min after intravenous iodide-131. Preliminary data indicate that very small amounts of unbound thyroidal iodide-131 can be seen to be rapidly discharged by this technique. This quick intravenous test may allow diagnosis of minor thyroid binding disorders.
Spatially oriented movements in the absence of proprioception

Four patients, each with a cerebrovascular accident in a different arterial supply, had unilaterally impaired somatosensory function that included deficits in the perception of touch and proprioception. In spite of central nervous system lesions and absent proprioception, all patients accurately performed spatially oriented movements with the deafferented hand. These observations suggest that execution of certain motor programs can proceed effectively without peripheral feedback.
4-Chloro-6-methoxypyrimidin-2-amine–succinic acid (2/1)

The asymmetric unit of the title compound, 2C5H6ClN3O·C4H6O4, consists of one 4-chloro-6-methoxypyrimidin-2-amine molecule and one half-molecule of succinic acid which lies about an inversion centre. In the crystal, the acid and base molecules are linked through N—H⋯O and O—H⋯N hydrogen bonds, forming a tape along [1-10] in which R 2 2(8) and R 4 2(8) hydrogen-bond motifs are observed. The tapes are further interlinked through a pair of C—H⋯O hydrogen bonds into a sheet parallel to (11-2).
Diabetic Retinopathy in Identical Twins

The prevalence and features of diabetic retinopathy have been examined in 95 pairs of identical twins, 31 concordant for insulin-dependent diabetes (IDD), 27 discordant for IDD, and 37 concordant for non-insulin-dependent diabetes (NIDD). Optic fundi were examined after pupillary dilatation and retinopathy was classified as nil, background, or severe. In the NIDD twins, 35 of the 37 pairs were in the same category including all but one of the 15 pairs with the same duration of diabetes. However, in insulin-dependent diabetic pairs the situation was quite different; only 21 of 31 pairs were in the same retinopathy category, and of the 10 pairs of co-twins with the same duration of diabetes 5 pairs showed a striking difference for retinopathy. There was no significant difference in the prevalence of retinopathy in the concordant and discordant IDD twin pairs. Diabetic retinopathy was not observed in 32 unaffected co-twins of diabetics. We conclude that genetic factors may be important in the etiology of retinopathy in non-insulin-dependent diabetes but that nongenetic factors must be important in the pathogenesis of retinopathy in insulin-dependent diabetes.
Characterization of a Shiga Toxin 2e-Converting Bacteriophage from an Escherichia coli Strain of Human Origin

ABSTRACT An infectious Shiga toxin (Stx) 2e-converting bacteriophage (φP27) was isolated from Stx2e-producing Escherichia coliONT:H− isolate 2771/97 originating from a patient with diarrhea. The phage could be transduced to E. colilaboratory strain DH5α, and we could show that lysogens were able to produce biologically active toxin in a recA-dependent manner. By DNA sequence analysis of a 6,388-bp HindIII restriction fragment of φP27, we demonstrated that thestx2e gene was located directly downstream ofileZ and argO tRNA genes. Although no analogue of an antiterminator Q encoding gene was present on this fragment, a lysis cassette comprising two holin genes which are related to the holin genes of Pseudomonas aeruginosa phage φCTX and a gene homologous to the endolysin gene gp19 of phage PS3 were detected. The results of our study demonstrated for the first time that Stx2e can be encoded in the genome of an infectious bacteriophage.
Biotic ligand modeling approach: Synthesis of the effect of major cations on the toxicity of metals to soil and aquatic organisms

The biotic ligand model (BLM) approach is used to assess metal toxicity, taking into account the competition of other cations with the free metal ions for binding to the biotic ligand sites of aquatic and soil organisms. The bioavailable fraction of metals, represented by the free metal ion, is a better measure than the total concentration for assessing their potential risk to the environment. Because BLMs are relating toxicity to the fraction of biotic ligands occupied by the metal, they can be useful for investigating factors affecting metal bioaccumulation and toxicity. In the present review, the effects of major cations on the toxicity of metals to soil and aquatic organisms were comprehensively studied by performing a meta‐analysis of BLM literature data. Interactions at the binding sites were shown to be species‐ and metal‐specific. The main factors affecting the relationships between toxicity and conditional binding constants for metal binding at the biotic ligand appeared to be Ca2+, Mg2+, and protons. Other important characteristics of the exposure medium, such as levels of dissolved organic carbon and concentrations of other cations, should also be considered to obtain a proper assessment of metal toxicity to soil and aquatic organisms. Environ Toxicol Chem 2015;34:2194–2204. © 2015 SETAC
Giant-cell tumor of bone.

Of 327 patients who had a giant-cell tumor of bone and were seen at the Istituto Rizzoli, 293 were treated at the Institute, and 280 of these were followed for two to forty-four years. The distribution according to sex and age of the patient and site of the tumor was similar to the distributions in major reports of large series. The tumor usually involved the metaphysis and the epiphysis, but was occasionally limited to the metaphysis, and in only 2 per cent of the patients was it adjacent to an open growth plate. The tumor on occasion invaded the articular space, also involving the ligaments and the synovial membrane. Extension to an adjacent bone through the joint occurred in 5 per cent of the tumors. Our radiographic grading, which is roughly comparable with the staging system of Enneking et al., was Grade I in 4 per cent, II in 74 per cent, and III in 22 per cent of 266 patients before treatment. A pathological fracture was apparent on the first radiograph in 9 per cent of the patients. In the 280 patients with adequate follow-up, 331 surgical procedures were performed. The rate of local recurrence was 27 per cent in the 151 intralesional procedures, 8 per cent in the 122 marginal excisions, and zero in the fifty-eight wide or radical procedures. These results did not correlate with the radiographic grade of the lesion. Of the fifty-one local recurrences that were seen after treatment at our institution, 90 per cent appeared in the first three years after surgery. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Joint attention in spoken human-robot interaction

Gaze during situated language production and comprehension is tightly coupled with the unfolding speech stream – speakers look at entities before mentioning them (Griffin, 2001; Meyer et al., 1998), while listeners look at objects as they are mentioned (Tanenhaus et al., 1995). Thus, a speaker’s gaze to mentioned objects in a shared environment provides the listener with a cue to the speaker’s focus of visual attention and potentially to an intended referent. The coordination of interlocutor’s visual attention, in order to learn about the partner’s goals and intentions, has been called joint attention (Moore and Dunham, 1995; Emery, 2000). By revealing the speakers communicative intentions, such attentional cues thus complement spoken language, facilitating grounding and sometimes disambiguating references (Hanna and Brennan, 2007). Previous research has shown that people readily attribute intentional states to nonhumans as well, like animals, computers, or robots (Nass and Moon, 2000). Assuming that people indeed ascribe intentional states to a robot, joint attention may be a relevant component of human-robot interaction as well. It was the objective of this thesis to investigate the hypothesis that people jointly attend to objects looked at by a speaking robot and that human listeners use this visual information to infer the robot’s communicative intentions. Five eye-tracking experiments in a spoken human-robot interaction setting were conducted and provide supporting evidence for this hypothesis. In these experiments, participants’ eye movements and responses were recorded while they viewed videos of a robot that described and looked at objects in a scene. The congruency and alignment of robot gaze and the spoken references were manipulated in order to establish the relevance of such gaze cues for utterance comprehension in participants. Results suggest that people follow robot gaze to objects and infer referential intentions from it, causing both facilitation and disruption of reference resolution, depending on the match or mismatch between inferred intentions and the actual utterance. Specifically, we have shown in Experiments 1-3 that people assign attentional and intentional states to a robot, interpreting its gaze as cue to intended referents. This interpretation