Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Distributed Space – Time Coding Using Multiple Symbol Differential Detection

: Differential distributed space-time coding (DDSTC) technique has been considered for relay networks to provide both diversity gain and high throughput in the absence of channel state information. Conventional differential detection(CDD) two-symbol non-coherent detection over slow-fading channels has been examined. It is shown that the performance of CDD severely degrades in fast-fading channels and an irreducible error floor exists at high signal-to-noise ratio region. To overcome the error floor experienced with fast-fading, a nearly optimal “multiple-symbol” differential detection (MSDD) is developed. The MSDD algorithm jointly processes a larger window of received signals for detection and significantly improves the performance of D-DSTC in fast-fading channels. The error performance of the MSDD algorithm is illustrated with simulation results under different fading scenarios.
Furin-Mediated Cleavage of the Feline Foamy Virus Env Leader Protein

ABSTRACT The molecular biology of spuma or foamy retroviruses is different from that of the other members of the Retroviridae. Among the distinguishing features, the N-terminal domain of the foamy virus Env glycoprotein, the 16-kDa Env leader protein Elp, is a component of released, infectious virions and is required for particle budding. The transmembrane protein Elp specifically interacts with N-terminal Gag sequences during morphogenesis. In this study, we investigate the mechanism of Elp release from the Env precursor protein. By a combination of genetic, biochemical, and biophysical methods, we show that the feline foamy virus (FFV) Elp is released by a cellular furin-like protease, most likely furin itself, generating an Elp protein consisting of 127 amino acid residues. The cleavage site fully conforms to the rules for an optimal furin site. Proteolytic processing at the furin cleavage site is required for full infectivity of FFV. However, utilization of other furin proteases and/or cleavage at a suboptimal signal peptidase cleavage site can partially rescue virus viability. In addition, we show that FFV Elp carries an N-linked oligosaccharide that is not conserved among the known foamy viruses.
Masking agents for use in foods.

Publisher Summary This chapter describes many flavor ingredients and combinations for masking agents. There is no single ingredient capable of fixing all flavor issues. Rather, the solution to masking undesirable flavor notes in food and beverage systems relies on the right combination of different agents. Masking agents work in different ways depending upon what they are masking and the food application. Most commercial masking agents are complex mixes of modifiers, inhibitors, and enhancers that cover an undesirable flavor characteristic by providing other sensations (taste modifying) or by competing with specific receptor sites (taste suppressing), or accentuating other flavors (taste enhancers). Masking tastes is embedded in our culture: for instance, sugar has been used for centuries to mask any bitterness or sourness. When drinking a cup of coffee, it is a common practice to add some sugar to reduce the bitter taste. Most fat-free salad dressings were particularly sweet because the oil in traditional salad dressings mellows the acidity of vinegar; however, when the oil was removed, the formulators often disguised the acidity with sugar. Because masking agents are often a blend of ingredients, how they work can be explained by understanding some of the taste phenomena in which they may be involved. These include, but are not limited to, adaptation, cross-adaptation, taste blocking, and taste modifying.
Structural and electronic properties of Li-intercalated graphene on SiC(0001)

We investigate the structural and electronic properties of Li-intercalated monolayer graphene on SiC(0001) using combined angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy and first-principles density functional theory. Li intercalates at room temperature both at the interface between the buffer layer and SiC and between the two carbon layers. The graphene is strongly n-doped due to charge transfer from the Li atoms and two pi bands are visible at the (K) over bar point. After heating the sample to 300 degrees C, these pi bands become sharp and have a distinctly different dispersion to that of Bernal-stacked bilayer graphene. We suggest that the Li atoms intercalate between the two carbon layers with an ordered structure, similar to that of bulk LiC6. An AA stacking of these two layers becomes energetically favourable. The pi bands around the (K) over bar point closely resemble the calculated band structure of a C6LiC6 system, where the intercalated Li atoms impose a superpotential on the graphene electronic structure that opens gaps at the Dirac points of the two pi cones.
On the Hardness of Approximating Some Optimization Problems That Are Supposedly Easier Than MAX CLIQUE

We focus our attention on the class RMAX(2) of NP optimization problems. Owing to recent developments in interactive proof techniques, RMAX(2) was shown to be the lowest class of logical classification that contains problems hard to approximate. Namely, the RMAX(2)-complete problem MAX CLIQUE (of finding the size of the largest clique in a graph) is not approximable in polynomial time within any constant factor unless NP=P. We are interested in problems inside RMAX(2) that are not known to be complete but are still hard to approximate. We point out that one such problem is MAXlog n, n, considered by Berman and Schnitger: given m conjunctions, each of them consisting of log m propositional variables or their negations, find the maximal number of simultaneously satisfiable conjunctions. We also obtain the approximation hardness results for some other problems in RMAX(2). Finally, we discuss the question of whether or not the problems under consideration are RMAX(2)-complete.
Analysis of Combined Natural Convection and Radiation Heat Transfer Using a Similarity Solution

A similarity solution for laminar boundary layer in a buoyancy induced flow over an isothermal, vertical wall in the presence of radiation is developed. Radiation heat transfer is taken into account by application of the Rosseland approximation in the energy conservation equation. The family of similarity solutions to the governing equations is presented. The computed results show that thermal and momentum boundary layer thickness values are increased as a result of radiation heat transfer. Furthermore for higher values of the radiation parameter, the maximum velocity inside the boundary layer increases.
Clinical and electrophysiological evaluation of shoulder functions in spinal accessory nerve-preserving neck dissection

The aim of this study was to evaluate shoulder functions after neck dissection with preservation of the spinal accessory nerve by objective physical examination, electromyographic findings, and subjective patient complaints, and also to investigate the effect of the type of neck dissection. Materials and methods: The present study included 29 patients on whom unilateral selective or modified radical neck dissection was performed for head and neck cancer and/or metastasis to the neck. Electromyographical findings, range of motion, and pain scores of the shoulder joint were determined for the operated and nonoperated (control) sides. Results: An electromyographic examination of the trapezius and sternocleidomastoid muscle with superficial and pin electrodes showed a statistically significant difference when comparing the latency and amplitude values of the operated and nonoperated sides (P < 0.05). Flexion, abduction, and external rotation of the shoulder joint were found to be significantly affected on the operated side (P < 0.05). Electrophysiological differences were not found with regards to neck dissection types. Mild or moderate pain was observed at the early stage with a visual pain scale. Conclusion: Despite spinal accessory nerve preservation during neck dissection, electrophysiological changes and alterations in clinical functions might be seen in all areas of the nerve that innerves the shoulder muscles.
Longest-path Algorithm to Solve Uncovering Problem of Hidden Markov Model

Uncovering problem is one of three main problems of hidden Markov model (HMM), which aims to find out optimal state sequence that is most likely to produce a given observation sequence. Although Viterbi is the best algorithm to solve uncovering problem, I introduce a new viewpoint of how to solve HMM uncovering problem. The proposed algorithm is called longest-path algorithm in which the uncovering problem is modeled as a graph. So the essence of longest-path algorithm is to find out the longest path inside the graph. The optimal state sequence which is solution of uncovering problem is constructed from such path.
Neem oil (Azadirachta indica) nanoemulsion--a potent larvicidal agent against Culex quinquefasciatus.

BACKGROUND Nanoemulsion composed of neem oil and non-ionic surfactant Tween 20, with a mean droplet size ranging from 31.03 to 251.43 nm, was formulated for various concentrations of the oil and surfactant. The larvicidal effect of the formulated neem oil nanoemulsion was checked against Culex quinquefasciatus. RESULTS O/W emulsion was prepared using neem oil, Tween 20 and water. Nanoemulsion of 31.03 nm size was obtained at a 1:3 ratio of oil and surfactant, and it was found to be stable. The larger droplet size (251.43 nm) shifted to a smaller size of 31.03 nm with increase in the concentration of Tween 20. The viscosity of the nanoemulsion increased with increasing concentration of Tween 20. The lethal concentration (LC50) of the nanoemulsion against Cx. quinquefasciatus was checked for 1:0.30, 1:1.5 and 1:3 ratios of oil and surfactant respectively. The LC50 decreased with droplet size. The LC50 for the ratio 1:3 nanoemulsions was 11.75 mg L(-1). CONCLUSION The formulated nanoemulsion of 31.03 nm size was found to be an effective larvicidal agent. This is the first time that a neem oil nanoemulsion of this droplet size has been reported. It may be a good choice as a potent and selective larvicide for Cx. quinquefasciatus.
Nephrotoxicity of cadmium-metallothionein: protection by zinc and role of glutathione.

Chronic cadmium (Cd) exposure can cause renal proximal tubular dysfunction resulting from the release of Cd metallothionein (CdMT) from the liver and its accumulation and degradation in the renal tubular epithelial cells. Pretreatment with zinc (Zn) can protect against acute CdMT nephrotoxicity. While induction of MT by Zn plays a part in Zn protection, other factors, such as glutathione (GSH), may also be involved because protection is offered even in MT-null mice. The present study was designed to investigate the involvement of GSH in Zn protection against acute CdMT nephrotoxicity. The study was carried out in MT-null mice to remove the induction of MT by Zn as a confounding variable. Three approaches were used to modulate renal cortex GSH levels: buthionine sulfoximine (BSO) was administered to inhibit GSH synthesis, and GSH and Zn were administered to increase the GSH levels. Both GSH and Zn were effective in protecting against CdMT nephrotoxicity. Elevation in renal cortex GSH levels, however, was not essential for Zn protection, as a low dose of Zn that caused no significant increase in renal GSH also protected against CdMT. On the other hand, maintenance of normal GSH status was essential for Zn protection, as inhibition of GSH synthesis abolished this protection. Both GSH and Zn reduced the accumulation of Cd as well as MT in the renal cortex, with Zn causing greater reduction in Cd accumulation than that of MT. The relative intracellular distribution of Cd was unaltered. These results suggest that in MT-null mice Zn protects against CdMT nephrotoxicity by possibly displacing some of the Cd from CdMT as well as reducing the uptake of CdMT, and that this protection requires the maintenance of normal GSH status.
Entropy-constrained predictive trellis coded quantization: application to hyperspectral image compression

A training-sequence-based entropy-constrained predictive trellis coded quantization (ECPTCQ) scheme is presented for encoding autoregressive sources. For encoding a first-order Gauss-Markov source, the MSE performance of an 8-state ECPTCQ system exceeds that of entropy-constrained DPCM by up to 1.0 dB. In addition, a hyperspectral image compression system is developed which utilizes ECPTCQ. A hyperspectral image sequence compressed at 0.15 bits/pixel/band retains peak signal-to-noise ratios greater than 42 dB over most spectral bands. <<ETX>>
Measurements of Riemannian two-disks and two-spheres

We prove that any Riemannian two-sphere with area at most 1 can be continuously mapped onto a tree in a such a way that the topology of fibers is controlled and their length is less than 7.6. This result improves previous estimates and relies on a similar statement for Riemannian two-disks.
Segmentation and recognition for handwritten 2-letter state names

Proposes a new splitting algorithm for two-letter state name (state-name abbreviation) segmentation to recognize the state name on mail pieces. The merit of this algorithm is that the splitting point is located near the center of 0-projections, and it is especially effective for images in which the widths of each latter are different, such as "IN", "HI", "WI" and "MI". The performance of the algorithm is tested by real USPS mail envelopes. The correct segmentation rate obtained by the segmentation algorithm is 95.4% (91.7% by Kimura's splitting method) for two-letter state name images (932 images). <<ETX>>
AdChoices? Compliance with Online Behavioral Advertising Notice and Choice Requirements. Revised Version

Abstract : Online behavioral advertisers track users across websites, often without users' knowledge. Over the last 12 years, the online behavioral advertising industry has responded to the resulting privacy concerns and pressure from the FTC by creating private self-regulatory bodies. These include the Network Advertising Initiative (NAI) and an umbrella organization known as the Digital Advertising Alliance (DAA). In this paper, we enumerate the DAA and NAI notice and choice requirements and check for compliance with those requirements by examining NAI members' privacy policies and reviewing ads on the top 100 websites. We also test DAA and NAI opt-out mechanisms and categorize how their members define opting out. Our results show that most members are in compliance with some of the notice and choice requirements, but two years after the DAA published its Self-Regulatory Principles, there are still numerous instances of noncompliance. Most examples of noncompliance are related to the enhanced notice requirement, which requires advertisers to mark behavioral ads with a link to further information and a means of opting out.
Receptor‐activated calcium influx in human airway smooth muscle cells.

1. Fluorescence measurements of intracellular calcium concentrations ([Ca2+]i) were made on cultured human airway smooth muscle cells using the dye Fura‐2. The response to either histamine (100 microM) or bradykinin (1 microM) was biphasic, with a transient increase in [Ca2+]i followed by a sustained [Ca2+]i increase lasting many minutes. The average steady‐state (plateau) [Ca2+]i following agonist activation was 267 +/‐ 5 nM, whereas the average basal [Ca2+]i was 148 +/‐ 4 nM. 2. The sustained rise in [Ca2+]i required the continued presence of either histamine or bradykinin and was dependent on extracellular Ca2+. The magnitude of the transient rise in [Ca2+]i was not dependent on extracellular Ca2+. Sustained, receptor‐activated rises in [Ca2+]i were rapidly abolished by chelation of extracellular Ca2+, or addition of non‐permeant polyvalent cations, whereas these agents had minor effects in the absence of agonist. These data indicate that the sustained increase in [Ca2+]i was dependent on receptor‐activated Ca2+ influx. 3. Receptor‐activated Ca2+ influx was not affected by treatment with organic Ca2+ channel antagonists (nifedipine (10 microM), nisoldipine (10 microM) or diltiazem (10 microM] or agonists (Bay K 8644 (500 nM to 10 microM) or Bay R 5417 (500 nM]. The magnitude of the sustained rise was also not affected by pre‐treatment with ouabain (100 microM) indicating little involvement of Na(+)‐Ca2+ exchange in the influx mechanism. 4. Receptor‐activated Ca2+ influx could be completely inhibited by several polyvalent cations (Co2+, Mn2+, Ni2+, ‐Cd2+ or La3+). Quantitative estimates of the potency of block were obtained for Ni2+ and La3+. These measurements indicate that the pKi for Ni2+ was 3.6 and for La3+ was 3.5. 5. Both Mn2+ and Co2+ ions caused a time‐dependent quench of intracellular Fura‐2; however, permeation of neither ion was increased following receptor activation, indicating that the influx pathway is not permeable to these cations. 6. Fura‐2 was used to monitor the rate of Ba2+ entry into airway smooth muscle cells by monitoring the Ca(2+)‐Fura‐2 and Ba(2+)‐Fura‐2 isosbestic points as well as the 340 and 380 nm signals. Cell activation did not increase the rate of Ba2+ entry indicating that the Ca2+ influx pathway was poorly permeant to Ba2+ ions. Ba2+ (2 mM) was able to inhibit Ca2+ entry as shown by its effects on the Ba(2+)‐independent, Ca(2+)‐dependent wavelength (371 nm). 7. The voltage dependence of Ca2+ influx was examined before and after agonist‐induced activation. The effect of KCl‐induced depolarization prior to cell activation was to cause a slight increase in [Ca2+]i. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)
Continuities in homeownership and residential relocations

In most Western countries, home owners are much less likely to change residence than renters. In the last few decades, the rise in home ownership in the Netherlands has been spectacular. This would imply that the population has become less mobile, which has consequences for the functioning of the housing market -at least, if the relationship between home ownership and residential mobility has not changed. This research addresses the question of whether the effect of home ownership on the probability of residential mobility has changed over the last few decades and if so, how. Using data from the 1981–98 Netherlands Housing Demand surveys and logistic regression models, it is found that the difference between home owners and renters in residential mobility has changed over time. The results indicate a decrease in the effect of home ownership with an interruption in 1984–85. This finding might indicate stability in the effect of home ownership, except for periods of booms or busts on the housing market. 2.
Organizational Factors and Office Workers' Health After the World Trade Center Terrorist Attacks: Long-Term Physical Symptoms, Psychological Distress, and Work Productivity

Objective: To assess if organizational factors are predictors of workers’ health and productivity after the World Trade Center attacks. Methods: We conducted a survey of 750 workers and compared those who had direct exposures to the World Trade Center attacks (south of Canal Street workers; primary victims) with those less directly exposed (north of Canal Street workers; other victims and non-victims). Results: South of Canal Street workers reported headache more frequently than north of Canal Street workers did (P = 0.0202). Primary victims reported headache and cough more frequently than did other victims and non-victims (P = 0.0086 and 0.0043, respectively). Defensive organizational culture was an independent predictor of cough and job stress, and job stress was an independent predictor of on-the-job productivity losses. Conclusion: Organizational variables may modify health and productivity outcomes after a large-scale traumatic event in the workplace.
Antinuclear antibody factors and nuclear staining in mothers of children affected with Down's syndrome.

SUMMARY Sera from 50 mothers of G^trisomy affected children and from 50 age-matched mothers, whose offspring included no chromosomal-aneuploidy affected children, were tested for presence of antinuclear antibody factors and nuclear staining with human squamous epithelium and with mouse liver. Consistently, more of the mothers of Gi-trisomy affected children included positive findings in both tests, compared to the age-matched mothers.
Pain assessment, sedation, and analgesic administration in the intensive care unit.

ANALGESIC protocols, efﬁcacy, and outcomes for acute postoperative pain management have been studied extensively and are widely adopted. 1 In this issue of A NESTHESIOLOGY , Payen et al. 2 report analyses of data from the DOLOREA study, a prospective, multicenter, observational survey evaluating the analgesia and sedation practices of mechanically ventilated patients during the ﬁrst week of intensive care unit (ICU) stay. This is the second report from these data acquired from 44 ICUs in France. The ﬁrst analyses showed that a large proportion of mechanically ventilated patients were treated with sedatives and analgesics but were not concomitantly evaluated for sedation and analgesia. 3 From this ﬁrst study, it is clear that protocols for the use of analgesic drugs in the ICU were not widely established or used. The current article analyzing data from the DOLOREA database 2 evaluates the interdependence of pain treatment and sedation protocols in ICU patients requiring mechanical ventilation. This analysis indicates that mechanically ventilated patients who were assessed for both their level of pain and their degree of sedation received reduced hypnotic drug dosing compared with those who were not assessed for pain and sedation. Evaluation for sedation and analgesia was associated with a reduction in time of ventilator support and duration of ICU stay when compared against patients with similar severity of illness and no assessment of analgesia. ventila-tor-associated pneumonia (VAP), increased length of stay (LOS), and greater mortality in intensive care unit patients.
The FIRE3-Mediated Sterol Response of the FAS Promoter Requires NF-Y/CBF as a Coactivator

Abstract The transcription of the fatty acid synthase (FAS) gene is regulated by the sterol status of the cell via cleavage of the sterol regulatory elementbinding protein (SREBP). When human HepG2 hepatoma cells were cotransfected with an expression plasmid for mature SREBP-1a together with FAS promoter/reporter constructs significant increases in reporter activity were observed. Deletion analysis of the FAS promoter between 151 and 52 relative to the transcription start site pinpoint two ciselements important in sterol regulation of the FAS gene. One element, FIRE3, between 71 and 52 can bind in vitro translated and transcribed SREBP-1a whereas the other element, the inverted CCAAT element ICE( 97/ 92), binds the trimeric transcription factor NFY/CBF as shown with rat liver extract and reconstituted, recombinant NFY. The results clearly show that the coactivator for SREBP-1a in this cell line is NFY. This finding was confirmed by using a dominant negative form of NFYA, NFYAm29, which interferes with the effect of ectopically expressed SREBP-1a on FAS reporter activity.