Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
An Absorber-Integrated Taper Slot Antenna

The characteristic of quiet zone is essential for anechoic chambers that have been extensively used in the over-the-air tests. Multireflection in the anechoic chambers of the probe antennas could deteriorate the quiet zone and hence limit the capability of systems to detect small signals, throughput of multiple-input and multiple-output and radio frequency parameter measurement. In this paper, the authors developed an integrated approach of antenna-absorber codesign for a taper slot antenna (TSA) with low radar cross section (RCS). Low RCS antenna minimizes the reflection coefficient of the sampling antennas, the building block of anechoic chamber. This antenna is composed of an open-boundary TSA and shaped expanded polypropylene absorbers that surround the antenna. This new type of hybrid TSA is typically designed for anechoic chamber working from 0.6 to 6 GHz. The measured boresight reflectivity of the hybrid antenna has been achieved at least –27 dB from 0.6 to 6 GHz.
Management of Postmenopausal Hot Flushes With Venlafaxine Hydrochloride: A Randomized, Controlled Trial

OBJECTIVE: To examine the efficacy of extended-release venlafaxine for the treatment of postmenopausal hot flushes. METHODS: Eighty postmenopausal women with more than 14 hot flushes per week were randomized to receive treatment with extended-release venlafaxine or placebo. Participants received 37.5 mg daily for 1 week, followed by 75 mg daily for 11 weeks. Daily hot flush severity scores and adverse effects were recorded by subjects. Baseline and monthly follow-up questionnaires assessed patient-perceived hot flush score, quality of life, and sexual function. Participants were treated for 12 weeks. RESULTS: Of the 80 subjects who enrolled in the study, 40 were in the treatment group and 40 in the control group. Of these, 61 completed the study (treatment, n = 29; control, n = 32). Subjective assessment at monthly visits of the effects of hot flush symptoms on daily living were significantly improved in the treatment group (P < .001). Hot flush severity scores based on daily diaries were somewhat lower in the treatment group, but the between-group difference did not reach statistical significance (P = .25). Three side effects, dry mouth, sleeplessness, and decreased appetite, were significantly more frequent in the venlafaxine group, but others, including dizziness, tremors, anxiety, diarrhea, and rash, were significantly less frequent. Ninety-three percent of participants in the venlafaxine group chose to continue treatment at the conclusion of the study. CONCLUSION: Extended-release venlafaxine, 75 mg per day, is an effective treatment for postmenopausal hot flushes in otherwise healthy women, based on a significant decrease in patient-perceived hot flush score. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: I
Circulating CD40 autoantibody and suPAR synergy drives glomerular injury.

Focal segmental glomerulosclerosis (FSGS) remains among the leading causes of end-stage kidney disease in children and adults, and has the highest rate of recurrence of all glomerular diseases after kidney transplantation, with florid proteinuria and accelerated renal allograft loss (1). FSGS is a heterogeneous disease with a spectrum of phenotypes based on the existence of recurrent (rFSGS) and non-recurrent (nrFSGS) disease after transplantation, which cannot be easily predicted on disease histopathology (2), and differential disease responses to treatment i.e., immunosuppression (3), plasmapheresis (4), anti-CD20 antibody, and intravenous immunoglobulin (5) in the native and post-transplant states. In addition, infection, drug use, and secondary maladaptive responses after loss of nephrons from any cause may also cause FSGS. Various gene mutations (6) and circulating factors such as suPAR (7) and autoantibodies to CD40 and other glomerular antigens (8) have been associated with FSGS pathogenesis.
Evaluating Therapeutic Benefit in Postsurgical Analgesia Requires Global Assessment: An Example From Liposome Bupivacaine in Hemorrhoidectomy

Abstract Background and Objective: Interpreting analgesic efficacy based solely on measures of pain intensity can be misleading. Here, we use data from an adult hemorrhoidectomy study to demonstrate the importance of evaluating pain intensity scores with other outcome measures in interpreting analgesic study results. Methodology: We looked for coordinated outcome measures including pain intensity at rest using a numeric rating scale (NRS), postsurgical consumption of rescue medication, subject-reported results from the Brief Pain Inventory, subject satisfaction with postsurgical analgesia, and adverse events. Results: The analgesic efficacy of liposome bupivacaine was reflected in a significant reduction in pain intensity scores at each timed assessment during the first 12 to 24 hours after surgery (meanNRS at 12 hours: liposome bupivacaine, 2.2; placebo, 2.9; P = 0.04), and less consumption of opioid rescue medications thereafter through 72 hours postsurgery (mean total amount of opioids consumed: liposome bupivacaine, 10 mg; placebo, 18 mg; P = 0.0006). These observations are supported by results of other outcome measures, including time to first use of opioid rescue medication, pain-related interference of subject functionality, and subject satisfaction with postsurgical analgesia. Conclusion: Liposome bupivacaine produced superior analgesia when compared with placebo at early postoperative time points, but appropriate use of rescue medication diminished this effect after 12 hours. However, based on our assessment of multiple outcome measures used in the study, it appears that the therapeutic benefit associated with the tested analgesic lasted throughout the 72-hour study period.
Up-Conversion and Self-Stimulated Raman Laser in a Codoped Microsphere

In this letter, Yb<sup>3+</sup>-Eu<sup>3+</sup> codoped sol-gel films are applied to the surface of silica microspheres. Under the excitation with 976 nm laser, we observe the luminescence of Eu<sup>3+</sup> with relatively low pump power. The Yb<sup>3+</sup> → Eu<sup>3+</sup> energy transfer process and the pump power dependence are studied. Because of high energy density of the Yb<sup>3+</sup>-Eu<sup>3+</sup> codoped microsphere (YECM), the threshold power for the downconversion (Yb<sup>3+</sup>:<sup>2</sup>F<sub>5/2</sub> → <sup>2</sup>F<sub>7/2</sub>) laser is as low as 8.99 μW. In addition, a self-stimulated cascaded Raman laser (SSCRL) is observed, which is stimulated by the down-conversion laser of the YECM.
Interesterification of rapeseed oil with anhydrous milk fat and its stearin fraction. II. Modifications of melting properties

Introduction Chemical and/or physical modification of oils and fats are commonly used by food industry to widen their range of applications (1,2). Lipase-catalysed interesterification of anhydrous milk fat (AMF) and various vegetable oils is now a well documented procedure (3-7). The purpose of this technique is to produce original structured fats with properties different from a simple blending, that may be used as spreads or introduced into pastry. The new fats contain higher amounts of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) than butter, which provides health benefits (8,9). To our knowledge only a few authors associated AMF fractionation with blending and interesterification (10,11), although this combination may be used to increase the ratio of vegetable oil in blends and thus the PUFA content of the product. The compositional changes occurring during the lipase-catalysed interesterification of AMF/rapeseed oil (RO) and AMF stearin fraction (AMFSF)/RO blends were described in the first part of this study. In the present and second part are reported the resulting changes in physical properties, especially the melting behaviour through solid fat content (SFC), dropping point (DP) and fusion profiles by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC).
Vecuronium neuromuscular blockade at the adductor muscles of the larynx and adductor pollicis.

The differences between neuromuscular blockade of the adductor muscles of the vocal cords and the adductor pollicis were examined in 20 adult women anesthetized with fentanyl and propofol. Vecuronium 0.04 or 0.07 mg/kg was given as a single bolus by random allocation. The force of contraction of the adductor pollicis was recorded. Laryngeal response was measured as pressure changes in the cuff of the tracheal tube positioned between the vocal cords. Train-of-four stimulation was applied to the recurrent laryngeal nerve at the notch of the thyroid cartilage and to the ulnar nerve at the wrist. Neuromuscular blockade had a faster onset, was less intense, and recovered more rapidly at the vocal cords. With 0.04 mg/kg, maximum blockade of first twitch (T1) was 55 +/- 8 (mean +/- standard error of the mean [SEM]) and 88 +/- 4% at the vocal cords and the adductor pollicis, respectively (P = 0.006). Onset time was 3.3 +/- 0.1 and 5.7 +/- 0.2 min, respectively (P = 0.000001), and time to 90% T1 recovery was 11.3 +/- 1.6 and 26.1 +/- 1.8 min, respectively (P = 0.001). With 0.07 mg/kg, onset time was unchanged; maximum blockade was more intense, being 88 +/- 4 and 98 +/- 1%, respectively (P = 0.04 between muscles); and time to 90% T1 recovery was 23.3 +/- 1.8 min at the vocal cords versus 40.3 +/- 2.9 min at the adductor pollicis (P = 0.001). Approximately 1.73 times as much vecuronium was required at the larynx compared with the dose required at the adductor pollicis for the same intensity of blockade. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Molecular interactions of the neuronal GPI‐anchored lipocalin Lazarillo

Lazarillo, a glycoprotein involved in axon growth and guidance in the grasshopper embryo, is the only member of the lipocalin family that is attached to the cell surface by a GPI anchor. Recently, the study of Lazarillo homologous genes in Drosophila and mouse has revealed new functions in the regulation of lifespan, stress resistance and neurodegeneration. Here we report an analysis of biochemical properties of Lazarillo to gain insight into the molecular basis of its physiological function. Recombinant forms of the grasshopper protein were expressed in two different systems to test: (1) potential binding of several hydrophobic ligands; (2) protein–protein homophilic interactions; and (3) whether interaction with the function‐blocking mAb 10E6 interferes with ligand binding. We tested 10 candidate ligands (retinoic acid, heme, bilirubin, biliverdin, ecdysterone, juvenile hormone, farnesol, arachidonic acid, linoleic acid and palmitic acid), and monitored binding using electrophoretic mobility shift, absorbance spectrum, and fluorimetry assays. Our work indicates binding to heme and retinoic acid, resulting in increased electrophoretic mobility, as well as to fatty acids, resulting in multimerization. Retinoic acid and fatty acids binding were confirmed by fluorescence titration, and heme binding was confirmed with absorbance spectrum assays. We demonstrate that Lazarillo oligomerizes in solution and can form clusters in the plasma membrane when expressed and GPI‐anchored to the cell surface, however it is unable to mediate cell–cell adhesion. Finally, by ligand‐mAb competition experiments we show that ligand‐binding alone cannot be the key factor for Lazarillo to perform its function during axonal growth in the grasshopper embryo. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
TV Remote Control for Elderly

In this project the design of a TV remote control for elderly was approached taking into account their needs and their visual and motor deficiencies. Following the iterative design process preliminary user interviews were conducted and an easy to use TV remote control was designed as well as evaluated. The device is equipped with the basic controls for volume and changing channels and it also introduces four e-ink screens placed on the favorite channels buttons, in order to provide an intuitive interaction that substitutes the traditional numeric keyboard. The final prototype was tested and highly appreciated by the users.
The impact of Internet use patterns on political engagement: A focus on online deliberation and virtual social capital

While numerous studies have examined the impact of the Internet on civic engagement in politics, inconclusive results have been revealed that optimistic and pessimistic accounts compete with each other. This study contends that the political effects of the medium depend upon the way it is used, and examines how different patterns of Internet use yield different political consequences in the case of South Korea, a country where political influence of the Internet is crucial. The primary modes of Internet use in focus are e-deliberation and e-social capital. By analyzing an online survey, we find that the former is a significant predictor of citizens' political engagement whereas the latter has only limited impacts. The study concludes that the proliferation of virtual communities over the net, in and of itself, is not an indicator of political revitalization, but deliberative practices of citizens could be an integral element to regenerate civic political life.
Radiation damage and annealing in 1310-nm InGaAsP/InP lasers for the CMS tracker

Radiation damage in 1310 nm InGaAsP/InP multi-quantum-well lasers caused by 0.8 MeV neutrons is compared with the damage from other radiation sources, in terms of the increase in laser threshold current. The annealing behavior is then presented both in terms of both temperature and forward-bias current dependence. The annealing can be described by a model where radiation induced defects have a uniform distribution of activation energies for annealing. This model can then be used to predict the long-term damage expected for lasers operating inside the CMS tracker.
Validation and calibration of the Actical accelerometer in preschool children.

PURPOSE Decreased physical activity (PA) is likely a contributor to the rising prevalence of obesity in children. Lack of valid and acceptable measures of PA has been an issue in studies involving young children. The Actical accelerometer is a promising tool for measurement of PA in young children. The purpose of this study was to calibrate and validate the Actical accelerometer for use with 3- to 5-yr-old children. METHODS Eighteen preschool children wore an Actical accelerometer and a Cosmed portable metabolic system during a period of rest, while performing three structured activities in a laboratory setting (used for calibration), and during 20 min each of unstructured indoor and outdoor activities at their preschool (used for cross-validation). Expired respiratory gases were collected, and oxygen consumption was measured on a breath-by-breath basis. Accelerometer data were collected in 15-s intervals. RESULTS For the accelerometer calibration, the correlation between VO2 and counts was r = 0.89 across all activities. The calibration equation established was VO2 = counts x 15 s(-1) (0.01437) + 9.73 (R2 = 0.96, SEE = 3.02). The cut-point for moderate activity (20 mL x kg(-1) x min(-1)) was 715 counts x 15 s(-1) (sensitivity 97.2%, specificity 91.7%), and the cut-point for vigorous activity (30 mL x kg(-1) x min(-1)) was 1411 counts x 15 s(-1) (sensitivity 98.2%, specificity 61.1%). For the cross-validation, the intraclass correlation coefficient was R = 0.59 and the Spearman correlation coefficient was R = 0.80 (P < 0.001) between measured and predicted VO2. Percentage of agreement, kappa, and modified kappa for moderate activity were 0.73, 0.40, and 0.46, respectively. For vigorous activity, the same measures were 0.85, 0.26, and 0.71, respectively. CONCLUSION The Actical accelerometer is a valid tool for measuring PA in young children.
Two‐dimensional crystallization of proteins on planar lipid films and structure determination by electron crystallography *

Electron crystallography constitutes a powerful new method for determining the struture of biological macromolecules. This method is best adapted to the study of ordered assemblies of macromolecules, and principally to two‐dimensional (2‐D) crystals of proteins. Obtaining protein 2‐D crystals ordered at high resolution constitutes the major limiting step in the application of this approach. Considerable interest has been raised by the development of a rational method of 2‐D crystallization based on the specific binding of proteins to planar lipid films. The applicability of this method is quasi‐general in the case of soluble proteins. Its basic principles, together with examples taken from work in our group, are presented here.
Outils pour la rétro-conception de protocoles. Analyse et classification

La retro-conception de protocoles de communication consiste a developper des methodes et outils permettant d’inferer un modele de ce protocole. Elle est utilisee dans de nombreux domaines d’application, allant de l’interoperabilite a l’audit de securite. Durant les douze dernieres annees, de nombreux outils ont ete developpes pour automatiser tout ou partie de l’inference de protocole. Ils s’aident de differentes techniques, que les auteurs choisissent et adaptent en fonction du but ﬁnal de leur retro-conception. Le but de cet article est de presenter un etat de l’art de ces differents outils, en essayant de degager les grandes familles de techniques utilisees jusqu’a ce jour.
Author ' s personal copy Attentional capture by masked colour singletons

We tested under which conditions a colour singleton of which an observer is unaware captures attention. To prevent visual awareness of the colour singleton, we used backward masking. We find that a masked colour singleton cue captures attention if it matches the observer’s goal to search for target colours but not if it is task-irrelevant. This is also reflected in event-related potentials to the visible target: the masked goal-matching cue elicits an attentional potential (N2pc) in a target search task. By contrast, a non-matching but equally strong masked colour singleton cue failed to elicit a capture effect and an N2pc. Results are discussed with regard to currently pertaining conceptions of attentional capture by col-
L’importance du recoupement des cooccurrents de deuxième ordre pour étudier la corrélation entre la spécificité et la monosémie

This paper involves a quantitative semantic study of typical vocabulary in a technical corpus. The study aims to find out whether the most typical or specialised lexical items of the technical corpus are the most monosemous items. Hence, the main research question concerns the correlation between the typicality rank and the monosemy rank of all typical lexical items at the level of single word items. Typical lexical items or keywords were identified using keyword analysis. The log likelihood test statistic provides a typicality coefficient (keyness), which indicates the degree of typicality. The semantic analysis was quantified by implementing monosemy in terms of “semantic homogeneity”. The degree of monosemy of a keyword was calculated by means of a monosemy measure, based on the formal overlap of the second order co-occurrents. A simple regression analysis showed a negative correlation between typicality rank and monosemy rank. As a matter of fact, the most typical lexical items of the technical corpus turned out not to be the most monosemous items. In order to fine-tune the results of the regression analysis and to enrich the overlap measure, which is mainly based on statistical co-occurrence information, the monosemy measure was refined yielding a technical monosemy measure, weighted for the typicality of the second order co-occurrents. This technical monosemy measure calculates the degree of typical or technical monosemy. Finally, the results of the two overlap measures were compared with respect to the correlation between typicality rank and (technical) monosemy rank of the typical lexical items of the technical corpus.
Nitric Oxide and Septic Vascular Dysfunction

S eptic shock is characterized by a systemic inflammatory response syndrome, hypotension with vasopressor-resistant systemic vasodilation, and development of multiple organ hypoperfusion and dysfunction (1). Organ failure in sepsis is thought to be mediated by a combination of direct parenchymal cytotoxicity and locally ineffective delivery or use of oxygen and nutrients (2). Sepsis is the leading cause of death in noncoronary intensive care units (1), while infectious disease, in general, is the third leading cause of death (after cardiovascular disease and cancer) in the United States (3). The mortality of patients with septic shock is approximately 50% (4,5), and it is an important cause of early (, 3 days) death in patients with severe sepsis (5). Sepsis leads to elaboration of a self-amplifying cascade of proor antiinflammatory cytokines and mediators, including a number of vasoactive substances (prostaglandins, nitric oxide [NO], endothelins, platelet activating factor [PAF], leukotrienes) (1). NO appears to be an important mediator of impaired vascular responsiveness to vasoconstrictor agents in sepsis. Inhibition of NO synthesis improves vasopressor-responsiveness and increases blood pressure (BP) in most septic animal models and in humans; however, animal studies reveal numerous adverse effects of NO synthase (NOS) inhibition (6–10). This article reviews the role of NO in the pathogenesis of septic vascular dysfunction, focusing on the physiologic role of endothelial NO production in regulating blood flow distribution and tissue perfusion and the adverse effects of sepsis and of NOS inhibitors on endothelial function. Contributions of NO to the physiologic regulation of renal function are reviewed, and the renal effects of sepsis and NOS inhibition are discussed in detail. The effects of sepsis and NOS inhibition in the pulmonary and splanchnic circulations are likewise reviewed. We discuss promising data suggesting that selective inhibition of the inducible NOS (iNOS) isoform favorably affects global and regional hemodynamics in animal experiments and improves short-term survival when compared with either standard (catecholamine) or isoform-nonselective NOS inhibitor support. Finally, we conclude that the balance between beneficial and deleterious effects of NO in human sepsis will ultimately determine whether NOS inhibitors become standard components of septic shock therapy.
A Minor Historical Rule of GRAVE Concern in the Volta-Comoe Languages

The Volta-Comoe languages1 belonging to Greenberg's (1963) Niger-Congo undergo a historical change in which underlying labial /b/ is reflexed as velar [g] and labio-palatal [Ɉɥ] in their Central members and as [b] in their Eastern and Western subgroups. We maintain that this process can be accounted for naturally by positing the feature Grave proposed by Jakobson, Fant and Halle (1956) in their early work on distinctive-feature phonology. This permits one to say that a non-back grave segment changed to a back one in specified linguistic contexts. Other processes which help explain the change are palatalisation, vowel-labialisation, consonant-labialisation and velar fronting. Keywords: Volta-Comoe, grave, dialects, acute, palatalisation
Capture of extracellular zinc ions by astrocytes

Synaptic zinc ions released during synaptic transmission interact with pre‐ and postsynaptic neuroreceptors, thus modulating neurotransmission. It is likely that they have to be efficiently cleared from the extracellular milieu to assure subsequent synaptic events. Both neurons and glia are assumed to participate in this clearance by mechanisms that are not fully understood. In this study, electron microscopic zinc cytochemistry has shown zinc‐electrondense particles associated with hippocampal astrocytic membranes frequently found accumulated in stacked lamellae. In cultured astrocytes, the use of zinc fluorochromes and endocytic markers allowed the simultaneous imaging of the capture of extracellular zinc simultaneously to plasma membrane markers; this endocytic process was inhibited by high sucrose concentrations. Finally, electron microscopy of zinc‐loaded and fluorochrome photoconverted cells demonstrated some early events of extracellular zinc capture as well as its late accumulation in lysosome‐like organelles. © 2006 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.