Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Computational characteristics and hardware implications of brain tissue simulations

Understanding the link between the brain’s anatomy and its function through computer simulations of neural tissue models is a widely used approach in computational neuroscience. This technique enables rapid prototyping and testing of hypotheses, allowing researchers to bridge the scales of biological phenomena. Until recently, the constant trend of improvement in computational power has supported an exponential growth in the scale and level of detail of in silico experiments. However, a systematic characterization of the performance landscape has not yet been carried out. In this work we intend to capture intrinsic computational properties of the existing modelling abstractions and answer questions about the intricate relationship between simulation algorithms and modern hardware architecture. Our first contribution is a novel set of hardwareagnostic metrics that enables us to bring focus to the heterogeneous landscape of brain tissue models. We develop a methodology able to capture subtle differences between cell-based models and quantify their impact on performance based on hardware features. We show that lumping simulation experiments together by referring to numbers of neurons and synapses without further detail hides fundamental differences in computational and hardware requirements across models. In addition to analysing different neuron representations, we investigate the impact of biological heterogeneity on the performance of a cortical microcircuit model. Our analysis indicates that while general-purpose computers have until now sustained highperformance simulations of all brain tissue models, the next generation of in silico models will require hardware tailored to the underlying abstraction. We find that all formalisms saturate the memory bandwidth with a fairly small number of shared memory threads, but the reasons behind this are quite different: conductance-based models are dominated by the large memory traffic of clock-driven kernels, while current-based models are most affected by event-driven execution and memory latency. In distributed simulations the latency of the interconnect fabric is the root cause for a significant degradation in performance. We argue that performance analyses such as ours are required to enable the next generation of brain tissue simulations – or else scientific progress risks being hindered by the presence of severe hardware bottlenecks. Our methodology provides a common tool to facilitate the communication between modellers, developers and hardware designers in order to sustain the larger memory and performance requirements of future brain tissue simulations.
Facile synthesis and comparative study of poly(L-lactide) with linear-comb and star-comb architecture

In this work, two series of linear-comb and star-comb well defined graft poly(L-lactide) (PLLA) have been synthesized conveniently by one-pot ring-opening polymerization (ROP) of L-lactide using functionalized polybutadiene macroinitiators. The used organocatalyst of 1,8-diazabicyclo[5,4,0]undec-7-ene (DBU) allows the polymerization of L-lactide to proceed rapidly at room temperature. Kinetic studies of the ROP reaction in this system indicate first-order kinetics in monomer concentration. 1H NMR and GPC techniques are employed to characterize the synthesized polymers, validating the formation of the desired comb structures with controllable chain length. Linear-comb and star-comb graft PLLA were comparatively studied as well as with linear PLLA by DSC and POM. The results reveal that the comb structure gives a remarkable improvement of PLLA crystallization ability in both crystallinity and growth rate of spherulites. Furthermore, the more compacted star-comb structure imposes restriction on chain mobility, which weakens the growth effect to some extent. It is found that the glass transition temperature (Tg) and melting temperature (Tm) significantly depend on the side chain length and backbone structure. Rheological studies of both melt and instinct viscosity of the solution show that star-comb PLLA has the lowest hydrodynamic volume compared with linear-comb PLLA and linear PLLA.
Black-tailed deer and what they fear

Predation is a potent ecological and evolutionary force, shaping the behavior of animals to minimize risk. Behavior itself can therefore provide clues into the predation pressure experienced by a population. We investigated anti-predator vigilance behavior in a California coastal population of black-tailed deer in response to vocal cues from three predator species of varying current and historical risk: grey wolf, coyote, and red-tail hawk. Vigilance was measured as the proportion of a herd alerting to a call and the length in time of the alert response. For adult deer, we found no difference in the proportion of herd alerting to wolf, coyote, or hawk vocalizations, and only a non-significant trend toward longer alert responses to coyote than to hawk vocalizations. Furthermore, responses by adults did not vary depending on whether fawns were present or absent in the herd. This low degree of discernment in antipredator vigilance behavior among adults may reflect relaxed selection in the century-plus absence of wolves from the Point Reyes area. Differences in vigilance response by predator species were more pronounced among fawns than adult deer, with fawns showing significantly stronger vigilance responses to red-tail hawk vocalizations than to wolf vocalizations. Taken together, these results suggest that the specific behavior under study—alert response to predator species vocalization—is governed more by current ecological forces than past evolutionary ones. Vigilance responses at both life stages, with fawns showing strong discernment between an abundant avian predator and an extinct canid predator and adults showing little discernment between abundant lowthreat species and an extinct high-threat species, seem better to reflect actual risk of predation than a genetic legacy of past predation pressure on the
Impact of Viral Nervous Necrosis (VNN) Disease as a New Threat to Global Fisheries and Aquaculture Development, a Review

Viral Nervous Necrosis (VNN) causes viral encephalopathy and retinopathy (VER), a hazardous and devastating disease of many species of cultured and marine fish worldwide. It caused by betanodaviruses a serious concern especially in the fry and young fish. This virus infects most of the cultured fishes causing severe mortality. Our current review focuses chiefly on recent studies performed on VNN disease. Recent outbreaks have been reported in China, Indonesia, Singapore and India, affecting the mariculture and aquaculture industry. It also decreased dramatically Mullet stocks in the Caspian Sea. The four main genotypes of VNN were found in all continentals’ except South America. The economic loss due to the virus is mainly due to mortality and spread of infection both vertically and horizontally. Our investigation in recent years suggest that more research and epidemiological surveys should be conducted, especially in critical areas were mariculture farms are planned to be established. Therefore, finding new rapid diagnosis tools, Monitoring and Surveillance program, and effective vaccines, Control, Prevention and Eradication in the comprehensive program should be considered globally.
Corrosion by Sulfate Reducing Bacteria that Utilize Nitrate

16S rRNA gene sequencing was used to identify a sulfate-reducing bacterium (SRB) from a Danish North Sea oilfield water injection system. This species was cultivated, purified and subsequently identified as being >97% similar to Desulfovibrio gracilis. Like some other Desulfovibrio species this SRB, strain OP102, could reduce nitrate as an electron acceptor and produce ammonia in the absence of sulfate. In addition, in the presence of sulfate, when nitrate was dosed at 100 mg/l it was again reduced by the bacterium, with some ammonium production. Therefore, this mechanism could be important in oilfield systems where nitrate is applied to prevent sulfide generation by SRB which leads to reservoir souring. In static tests the influence of this Desulfovibrio on corrosion was assessed using carbon steel coupons, in the presence of sulfate and in the presence of sulfate with 100 mg/l nitrate. Corrosion rates were less than 1.5 mpy when coupons were incubated in the same water, with sulfate and with nitrate. Furthermore, the occurrence of pitting corrosion was fairly low under all circumstances.
Adaptation sur tablette tactile d'un logiciel éducatif pour enfants en âge préscolaire

Cette recherche porte sur l’adaptation d’un logiciel educatif destine aux enfants non lecteurs vers une utilisation mobile et tactile. Le logiciel existant etant prevu pour une utilisation sur ordinateur fixe, nous avions pour objectifs de l’adapter a une nouvelle utilisation sur tablette tactile. Dans le cadre de ce memoire, nous avons dans un premier temps identifie les contraintes a prendre en compte lors d’un developpement de logiciel pour les plateformes mobiles, puis nous avons specifie les differences d’interaction a integrer afin d’adapter le logiciel a son nouvel dispositif : la tablette tactile. Le logiciel a ensuite ete developpe en tenant compte des recommandations retenues et a ete teste aupres de 5 enfants afin de valider sa facilite d’utilisation. Les tests ont permis de constater que l’utilisation du logiciel etait relativement intuitive, sauf lorsqu’il s’agit d’executer des actions de type drag’n’drop qui s’averent difficiles pour de si jeunes enfants.
Effect of garlic oil added to feed and water of laying hens on table egg quality.

The effect of supplementing layer diets with garlic oil on table egg quality was investigated. The study involved 135 general-purpose Rosa 1 hens assi gned to three groups of 45 hens each. Birds were kept on litter and fed ad libitum with the same complete diet. Group 1 (control) rec eived this feed throughout a 42-day experiment, while lay ers from the experimental groups received twice a week an aqueous solution of pressed garlic oil in feed (group 2) or in drinking water (group 3). At 1, 14, 28 and 42 days of the experime nt, 10 eggs were randomly chosen from each group to analyse their quality traits. In addition, 6 yolks were randomly chosen from each group of analysed eggs to determine total, HDL and LDL ch olesterol. The results obtained were subjected to analysis of variance and significant d ifferences were determined using Duncan’s test. The garlic preparation had no effect on laying rate and weight of eggs laid by generalpurpose Rosa 1 hens. No differences were found in m ajority of egg and egg shell quality traits. The use of garlic oil as a feed supplement for layi ng hens significantly decreased the level of total cholesterol in egg yolk. Hens given water with the garlic oil laid eggs with reduced cholesterol in yolk, although this effect was slightly smaller than in hens given the garlic oil in feed. As the leve l of total cholesterol decreased, LDL cholesterol in the egg yolks from the experimental groups decreased and HDL cholesterol slightly increased. T he present results show that garlic oil used in layer nutrition lowers the level of cholesterol in egg yolk, but is more effective when supplemented in feed.
FULMINANT DENOVO CUTANEOUS LYMPHOMA PRESENTED AS D ’EMBLEE

Mycosis fungoides is a cutaneous T-cell lymphoma characterized by infiltration of skin with patches, plaques & nodules composed of T-lymphocytes. It is most common type of CTCL. Tumor d’emblee is the term used for patient presenting with skin tumors arising denovo. We report a case of MF d’emblee variant with tumors of only 20 days duration.
The Making of Aloe vera Powder (Aloe vera L.) with Foam-mat Drying Method

Aloe vera gel contains nutrients that are complex but easily damaged so it is deemed necessary for further processing into high value products such as powder. The study was conducted to determine the combination of the concentration of the filler (maltodextrin) and foaming agent (tween 80) is right in making a quality aloe vera powder using foam-mat drying. The design of the study is a randomized block design of two factors, namely the concentration of maltodextrin (5%, 10%, 15 %) and the concentration of tween 80 (0.1%, 0.2%, 0.3%). The best Aloe vera powder is obtained at a concentration of 15% maltodextrin and 0.3% tween 80, which composition of the water content 10.28%, the activity of free radicals capture 36.63%, 8.33% yield, vitamin C 118.13 mg/g, protein 4.70%, minerals 1.86%, fat 0.30%, 0.27% fiber, light beige-colored and has air bubbles on the surface micrograph of powder. The results of this study is expected to be a reference in the development of Aloe vera powder manufacturing industry. Keywords: aloe vera powder, filler (maltodextrin), foaming agent (tween 80), foam-mat drying
Hydrated Layer Formation on Tricalcium and Dicalcium Silicate Surfaces: Experimental Study and Numerical Simulations

In this paper, an original approach is used to study the calcium silicate hydrate (C−S−H) layer formation on the surface of grains of anhydrous silicate during tricalcium and dicalcium silicate hydration from the variation of the rate of hydration with lime concentration. The effects of C−S−H nucleation and growth on the curves for the degree of reaction against time have been separated in both experimental study of the rate of hydration in controlled conditions and numerical simulation of the growth of C−S−H on a surface from a particle aggregation model. The influence of the number of nuclei and of the different growth modes has been quantified.
Raman imaging on high‐quality graphene grown by hot‐filament chemical vapor deposition

We report the synthesis of high-quality graphene on Cu foils using hot-filament chemical vapor deposition technique and demonstrate that by suitably varying the CH4 and H2 flow rates, one can also obtain hydrogenated graphene. Micro-Raman spectroscopy studies confirm the growth of monolayer graphene as inferred from the intensity ratio of 2D to G peak which is nearly four in unhydrogenated samples. Detailed Raman area mapping confirms the uniform coverage of monolayer graphene. The grown layer is also transferred onto a Si substrate over ~10 × 10 mm sq. area. The present results provide a leap in synthesis technology of high-quality graphene and pave way for scaling up the process.
Rosin: Recent advances and potential applications in novel drug delivery system

Gum exudates are among the oldest natural polymer. Natural gums have remained one of the major areas of interest for the researchers for their applicability in the drug delivery system because of their wide availability, inexpensiveness and availability in a variety of structures with varied properties. They can be easily modified chemically, biochemically and are highly stable, safe, non-toxic, gel forming and in addition are biodegradable. Rosin is one of the natural gums obtained as resinous constituent of the oleoresin exuded by various species of pine, mostly conifers. Rosin consists primarily of abietic- and pimaric-type resin acids (or rosin acids) with characteristic hydrophobic hydrophenanthrene rings which impart them excellent film-forming properties. Rosin and its derivatives are biopolymers that are increasingly used for their pharmaceutical applications. In the pharmaceutical field, it has been investigated for film-forming and coating properties, microencapsulation and as a matrix material in the tablets for sustained and controlled drug release. This article reviews the literature on rosin and its derivative and describes the varied applications of the rosin and their future exploitation in novel drug delivery systems.
The management of an international open access repository : the case of E-LIS

E-LIS is the largest open access repository in the field of library and information science and is maintained voluntarily by an international team of librarians and information professionals. As from April 2009, it contains at about 9000 full text documents in 37 languages from more than 5600 authors from 90 countries. Additionally to the provision of services to authors and associations in the field, the management of policy issues is crucial for the repository administration. Thus E-LIS has, inter alia, completed a policy audit and intends to formulate and communicate its policies in a standardized way.
An empirical characterisation of signal versus noise in CO2 data

Abstract Uncertainties in the interpretations of CO2 data arise from errors in the observations and model relations. The space–time variations of CO2 on the global scale are analysed in terms of the singular-value decomposition, in order to obtain a characterisation of observational error that matches the requirements of global-scale estimation of fluxes. It is found that for monthly-mean data, a first-order moving average model of error is a far better representation than earlier assumptions of independent white noise.
Novel Bio-Imaging Techniques Based on Molecular Switching

Novel Bio-Imaging Techniques Based on Molecular Switching Xinxin Zhu Fluorescence microscopy has been a fundamental imaging tool for life science research. Fluorescence basically involves only two molecular states: the ground molecular state and the first singlet excited state (the fluorescent state). Astonishingly, it greatly diversified the applicability of fluorescence microscopy in many different ways by incorporating additional molecular states and switching fluorescent molecules through these three or even more molecular states during the fluorescence process. This switching mechanism between additional molecular states, either long lifetime or short lifetime, and two original molecular states actually adds nonlinearity into the linear fluorescence process, which empowers fluorescence microscopy additional imaging capabilities. Herein, we developed four distinct new imaging techniques by taking advantage of this molecular switching mechanism: dark state dynamics sensing and imaging by fluorescence anomalous phase advance, genetically-encoded microviscosity sensor using protein-flexibility mediated photochromism, deep tissue imaging with super-nonlinear fluorescence microscopy, and light-driven fluorescent timer for simultaneous spatial-temporal mapping of protein dynamics in live cells. The first technique, dark state dynamics sensing and imaging, effectively correlates the first triplet state of fluorescent organic dyes with the fluorescence process to produce fluorescence emission with unexpected phase advance compared with the excitation light, that reflects the real-time information of organic dyes’ dark states. The last three techniques all harness the unique on-off switch capability of the optical highlighter fluorescent proteins: Dronpa, a photo-switchable fluorescent protein, is demonstrated to experience medium friction during the chromophore’s cis-trans isomerization process while photo-switching from the bright state to the dark state; multiphoton fluorescence microscope could achieve higher order nonlinearity and thus deeper image depth in the scattering sample by the population transfer kinetics of the photoinduced molecular switches, such as photo-activatable fluorescent protein etc.; a photo-convertible fluorescent protein, mEos2, shows slow color conversion from green to red under extremely weak near-UV light, that could be used to time protein age. No matter fluorescent organic dyes or optical highlighter fluorescent proteins, the nonlinearity has been demonstrated to create new fluorescence imaging techniques by switching fluorescent molecules between additional molecular states and two original molecular states involved in the fluorescence process.
Fluorescence and Light Scattering Studies of Aromatic Polymers Near the Critical Concentration C

The phase diagram of polymer solutions has been of interest for many years. The boundary between the dilute and semi-dilute concentration regions is known as the critical concentration (c*) and is theoretically defined as the concentration where polymer-polymer interactions begin to occur. The critical concentration has historically been determined using scattering techniques, osmometry, and viscosity measurements. However, there are several disadvantages to each of these techniques. This phase boundary is related to the polymer radius, increasing the utility of determinations of c*. The intent of this project was to develop a method of determining c* using common laboratory equipment that allows easier sample preparation than the currently accepted methods. These c* values were compared to results obtained using accepted methods. The critical concentration was determined from fluorescence excitation spectroscopy of four narrow molecular weight distribution samples of polystyrene (Mw =225,000 D 1,500,000 D) in decahydronapthalene and three broad molecular weight distribution samples of poly(bisphenol A) carbonate in dichloromethane. The polystyrene samples were studied at both 20°C and 30°C while the poly(bisphenol A) carbonate samples were studied at 25°C. A discontinuity in the plot of the corrected intensity of a dimer complex band in the excitation spectra vs. concentration allowed determination of the critical concentration.
Oxidation studies of SiGe

We have studied the kinetics and mechanism of oxidation of SiGe alloys deposited epitaxially onto Si substrates by low‐temperature chemical vapor deposition. Ge is shown to enhance oxidation rates by a factor of about 3 in the linear regime, and to be completely rejected from the oxide so that it piles up at the SiO2/SiGe interface. We demonstrate that Ge plays a purely catalytic role, i.e., it enhances the reaction rate while remaining unchanged itself. Electrical properties of the oxides formed under these conditions are presented, as well as microstructures of the oxide/substrate, Ge‐enriched/SiGe substrate, and SiGe/Si substrate interfaces, and x‐ray photoemission studies of the early stages of oxidation. Possible mechanisms are discussed and compared with oxidation of pure silicon.
Dielectric Property of 0.45NiFe2O4+0.55BaTiO3 Ceramic Composites

The standard double sintering ceramic method was used to prepare the 0.45NiFe2O4 +0.55BaTiO3 composites. Complex impedance analysis enables us to separate the contributions from grain and grain boundary in the samples. Impedance spectroscopy measurements were conducted in a frequency range from 20 Hz to 2 MHz and in a temperature range from 75 to 200°C. The impedance measurements have also shown the evidence of grain boundary conduction and lowering of barrier to the motion of charge carriers with rise in temperature. We also found that the relaxation frequency shift to high side with increase in temperature.
Super Symmetric Boolean Functions

– Super symmetry is a type of matrix-based symmetry that extends the concept of total symmetry. Super symmetric functions are “even more symmetric” than totally symmetric functions. Even if a function is not super symmetric, the super symmetric transpose matrices can be used to detect partial super symmetries. These partial symmetries can be mixed arbitrarily with ordinary symmetric variable pairs to create large sets of mutually symmetric variables. In addition, one can detect subsets of super symmetric inputs, which are distinct from partial super symmetries. Super symmetry allows many new types of Boolean function symmetry to be detected and exploited.
Properties of the double well potential and relaxation processes in a model glass

We use computer simulation to investigate the topology of the potential energy V({R}) and to search for double well potentials (DWPs) in a model glass. By a sequence of newtonian and dissipative dynamics we find different minima of V({R}) and the energy profile along the least action paths joining them. At variance with previous suggestions, we find that the parameters describing the DWPs are correlated. Moreover, the trajectory of the system in the 3N-d configurational phase space follows a quasi-1-d manifold. The motion parallel to the path is characterized by jumps between minima, and is nearly uncorrelated from the orthogonal, harmonic dynamics.