Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Improved confinement with reversed magnetic shear in TFTR.

Highly peaked density and pressure profiles in a new operating regime have been observed on the Tokamak Fusion Test Reactor (TFTR). The q-profile has a region of reversed magnetic shear extending from the magnetic axis to r/a {approximately}0.3-0.4. The central electron density rises from 0.45 x 10{sup 20} m{sup {minus}3} to nearly 1.2 x 10{sup 20} m{sup {minus}3} during neutral beam injection. The electron particle diffusivity drops precipitously in the plasma core with the onset of the improved confinement mode and can be reduced by a factor of {approximately}50 to near the neoclassical particle diffusivity level.
What Artificial Neurons Tell us about Real Brains

The neural plausibility of connectionist models is supposed to be their selling point, yet they are notorious for being neurally implausible. Despite several decades of debate about the merits of connectionism, this central puzzle remains unresolved. My suggestion is that we understand connectionist models as idealized, abstract models of neural mechanisms. This not only makes sense of some statements by the Parallel Distributed Processing (PDP) Research Group about their methodology that have been long misinterpreted, but also affords a more nuanced picture of the many levels at which connectionist models might be pitched than the views often assumed in discussions of connectionism. Connectionist models may target ∗Thanks to the Max Planck Institute for History of Science, the Centre for Integrative Neuroscience, Tübingen, and the Rotman Institute of Philosophy for providing funding during the writing of this paper. I am grateful to Peter Machamer, Kenneth Schaffner, Elizabeth Irvine, Sarah Robins, Tim Bayne, and Steve Gotts for helpful comments. Thanks also to Melissa Jacquart for motivational prodding.
Vertébroplastie et envahissement tumoral du mur postérieur : faisabilité, résultats à propos de 63 cas

OBJECTIFS : Evaluer la faisabilite et l’innocuite de la vertebroplastie percutanee chez les patients avec atteinte vertebrale tumorale du mur posterieur en vue d’une consolidation. MATERIEL ET METHODES : Etude retrospective sur 661 patients consecutifs ayant beneficie d’une cimentoplastie de decembre 2010 a novembre 2013. Les criteres d’inclusion etaient la presence de lesions vertebrales tumorales avec rupture du mur posterieur et/ou atteinte epidurale, hyperalgiques ou a haut risque fracturaire. RESULTATS : L’analyse statistique a ete menee sur 63 vertebroplasties indiquees dans 44% des cas pour metastases, 40% pour myelome et 16% pour angiome agressif. 70% des lesions etaient osteolytiques, 27% mixtes, 3% condensantes. 73% des patients etaient consideres comme instable avant le geste selon le score de Kostuik (≥ a 3). Dans 93,6% des procedures, le rachis a ete considere comme consolide apres vertebroplastie (p<0,0001). Une fuite de ciment a ete mise en evidence dans 65,1% des procedures, toujours minime et non compliquee : vasculaire dans 25,4% et extra vasculaire dans 55,6% des procedures dont 7,9% intracanalaires et 3,2% foraminales. DISCUSSION : Contrairement au dogme contre-indiquant la cimentoplastie en cas d’atteinte du mur posterieur et conformement aux donnees recemment publiees, notre etude tend a montrer une excellente faisabilite et innocuite de cette technique y compris en cas d’atteinte epidurale. Il s’agit d’une technique simple, mini-invasive, rapide, bien toleree sous anesthesie locale, de faible cout. Cette procedure permet egalement la realisation de biopsie osseuse, et peut etre realisee en association aux autres traitements vertebraux locaux.
Protection by pyruvate of rat retinal cells against zinc toxicity in vitro, and pressure-induced ischemia in vivo.

PURPOSE To examine whether zinc accumulation occurs during retinal neuronal death after pressure-induced ischemia in rats and whether pyruvate protects against such death. METHODS To induce transient retinal ischemia, intraocular pressure was increased above systolic pressure for 65 minutes. Pyruvate was administered through the tail vein for 12 hours after ischemia to determine its effect on degeneration of retinal neurons. Retinas were removed and sectioned, and zinc accumulation was visualized with N-(6-methoxy-8-quinolyul)-p-carboxybenzoyl-sylphonamide (TFL-Zn) fluorescence microscopy, and neuronal death was determined with acid fuchsin staining. For in vitro studies, retinal cell cultures were prepared from newborn rat pups and used for experiments at days in vitro (DIV) 7 to 10. RESULTS After retinal ischemia, staining revealed that most zinc-accumulating neurons were injured neurons, suggesting that endogenous zinc may contribute to ischemic neuronal death in the retina. In vitro studies showed that 15 minutes of exposure to 300 to 500 microM zinc resulted in the death of a substantial number of retinal cells in culture, and that this death was preceded by poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP)-mediated depletion of nicotinamide-adenine dinucleotide (NAD+) and adenosine triphosphate (ATP). Pyruvate, but not lactate, protected against this zinc-induced cell death in vitro. Consistent with this finding, in vivo studies showed that compared with control rats, pyruvate-treated rats had a substantial reduction in the number of cells showing signs of cell death. CONCLUSIONS The present results suggest endogenous zinc contributes to retinal cell death after ischemia. Pyruvate potently protected against zinc toxicity in cultured rat retinal cells and reduced ischemia-induced cell death in rat retinas.
Debridement performance index and its correlation with complete closure of diabetic foot ulcers

In recent years there has been wider acceptance of aggressive surgical debridement as a means to accelerate closure of diabetic foot ulcers. In a clinical trial by Steed et al.1 involving the use of a topically applied growth factor, thorough surgical debridement of surrounding callus, necrotic ulcer bed, and undermined ulcers' edges was associated with greater incidence of healing and effectiveness of the therapeutic agent. However, at present there is no established way to judge the appropriate extent of debridement and its performance. Here we describe a scoring system to assess whether debridement has been performed adequately. Our scoring system consists of the following three categories: debridement of a) callus; b) ulcer's edge undermining; and c) wound bed necrotic tissue. We assigned a score of 0–2 to each of these categories using the following criteria: 0 = debridement needed but not done, 1 = debridement needed and done, and 2 = debridement not needed. These three scores are then added to give a total ranging from 0 to 6, with the highest number being the optimal score. This instrument, the Debridement Performance Index, evaluates both the adequacy of debridement and whether the ulcer has been or is being properly debrided. To initiate the validation of this scoring system and determine its predictive value for wound closure by week 12, we applied it to 143 patients with diabetic foot ulcers who had been treated in a clinical trial involving either standard therapy (n = 65) or the application of a bioengineered skin construct (n = 78). We blindly evaluated sequential digital photographs of each diabetic foot ulcer and applied the Debridement Performance Index score at day 0, before initiation of either treatment. We found that the lower the baseline Debridement Performance Index the lower the incidence of ultimate wound closure by week 12 ( p = 0.0276). Patients with a Debridement Performance Index between 3 and 6 were 2.4 times more likely to heal than those with a score of 0–2. After controlling for treatment, the Debridement Performance Index was found to be an independent predictor of wound closure (odds ratio = 2.4 95% confidence interval = 1.0–5.6). In conclusion, this novel scoring system for debridement performance appears to be very promising as a predictive tool for determining outcome in clinical trials and, most likely, in clinical practice. (WOUND REP REG 2002;10:354–359)
Second-hand Smoke Exposure and Blood Lead Levels in U.S. Children

Background: Lead is a component of tobacco and tobacco smoke, and smokers have higher blood lead levels than do nonsmokers. Methods: We examined the relation between second-hand smoke exposure and blood lead levels in a nationally representative sample of 5592 U.S. children, age 4–16 years, who participated in the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (1988–1994). Linear and logistic regression modeling was used to adjust for known covariates. Results: Geometric mean blood lead levels were 1.5 &mgr;g/dL, 1.9 &mgr;g/dL, and 2.6 &mgr;g/dL for children with low, intermediate, and high cotinine levels, respectively. The adjusted linear regression model showed that geometric mean blood lead levels were 38% higher (95% confidence interval [CI] = 25–52%) in children with high cotinine levels compared with children who had low cotinine levels. The logistic regression models showed that children with high cotinine levels were more likely to have blood lead levels ≥10 &mgr;g/dL than were children with low cotinine levels (odds ratio [OR] = 4.4; CI = 1.9–10.5). Conclusions: Second-hand smoke could be associated with increased blood lead levels in U.S. children aged 4-16 years.
Accuracy of Automatic Cross-Corpus Emotion Labeling for Conversational Speech Corpus Commonization

There exists a major incompatibility in emotion labeling framework among emotional speech corpora, that is, category-based and dimension-based. Commonizing these requires inter-corpus emotion labeling according to both frameworks, but doing this by human annotators is too costly for most cases. This paper examines the possibility of automatic cross-corpus emotion labeling. In order to evaluate the effectiveness of the automatic labeling, a comprehensive emotion annotation for two conversational corpora, UUDB and OGVC, was performed. With a state-of-the-art machine learning technique, dimensional and categorical emotion estimation models were trained and tested against the two corpora. For the emotion dimension estimation, the automatic cross-corpus emotion labeling for the different corpus was effective for the dimensions of aroused-sleepy, dominant-submissive and interested-indifferent, showing only slight performance degradation against the result for the same corpus. On the other hand, the performance for the emotion category estimation was not sufficient.
Una historia de corta y pega

El autor propone un pequeno recorrido de la historia del area y del volumen desde los griegos hasta hoy en dia. La presentacion es mas o menos cronologica y anacronica, nos permitiremos el pecado de modernizar las nociones y definiciones para facilitar su entendimiento.
Dynamic functional connectomics signatures for characterization and differentiation of PTSD patients

Functional connectomes (FCs) have been recently shown to be powerful in characterizing brain conditions. However, many previous studies assumed temporal stationarity of FCs, while their temporal dynamics are rarely explored. Here, based on the structural connectomes constructed from diffusion tensor imaging data, FCs are derived from resting‐state fMRI (R‐fMRI) data and are then temporally divided into quasi‐stable segments via a sliding time window approach. After integrating and pooling over a large number of those temporally quasi‐stable FC segments from 44 post‐traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) patients and 51 healthy controls, common FC (CFC) patterns are derived via effective dictionary learning and sparse coding algorithms. It is found that there are 16 CFC patterns that are reproducible across healthy controls, and interestingly, two additional CFC patterns with altered connectivity patterns [termed signature FC (SFC) here] exist dominantly in PTSD subjects. These two SFC patterns alone can successfully differentiate 80% of PTSD subjects from healthy controls with only 2% false positive. Furthermore, the temporal transition dynamics of CFC patterns in PTSD subjects are substantially different from those in healthy controls. These results have been replicated in separate testing datasets, suggesting that dynamic functional connectomics signatures can effectively characterize and differentiate PTSD patients. Hum Brain Mapp 35:1761–1778, 2014. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Determinants of rolling stock maintenance cost in metros

This study examines the economies of scale and the determinants of rolling stock maintenance costs for 24 urban rail transit operators. The estimates reveal significant returns to scale in maintenance for both per car and per car kilometre. The econometric analysis also provides statistically significant cost elasticities for wages and staff hours, suggesting substitution effects between factors. Staff outsourcing is found to significantly decrease costs, whereas higher levels of fleet availability at the peak and rolling stock failures increase it. The effect of the age of rolling stock and the network is negligible on rolling stock maintenance costs; however, the analysis reveals a downward trend in rolling stock costs among the metros in the CoMET and Nova consortia.
Graph clustering by congruency approximation

The authors consider the general problem of graph clustering. Graph clustering manipulates the graph-based data structure and the entries of the solution vectors are only allowed to take non-negative discrete values. Finding the optimal solution is NP-hard, so relaxations are usually considered. Spectral clustering retains the orthogonality rigorously but ignores the non-negativity and discreteness of the solution. Sym non-negative matrix factorisation can retain the non-negativity rigorously but it is hard to reach the orthogonality. In this study, they proposed a novel method named congruent approximate graph clustering (CAC), which can retain the non-negativity rigorously and can reach the orthogonality properly by congruency approximation. Furthermore, the solution obtained by CAC is sparse, which is approximate with the ideal discrete solution. Experimental results on several real image benchmark datasets indicate that CAC achieves encouraging results compared with state-of-the-art methods.
Relationship between phytosterol levels and components of the metabolic syndrome in the PROCAM study

Background Components of the metabolic syndrome such as hypertriglyceridemia, low high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol and obesity have been shown to be associated with increased cholesterol synthesis and reduced cholesterol absorption. In the present study, we measured the lathosterol/cholesterol ratio as an index of cholesterol synthesis and the ratios of cholestanol, campesterol and sitosterol to cholesterol as indices of cholesterol absorption, as well as components of the metabolic syndrome, in 324 men and 168 women from the PROCAM study, an epidemiological study in which raised sitosterol was previously associated with increased coronary risk. Our aim was to determine if the indices of cholesterol synthesis and absorption show a graded relationship with severity of metabolic syndrome. Results No differences were seen between men and women with regard to the relationship of either the lathosterol/cholesterol or the sitosterol/cholesterol ratios and severity of metabolic syndrome. On multiple regression analysis in men and women together, body mass index showed a positive relationship with the lathosterol/cholesterol ratio (r=0.257, P<0.001) and a negative relationship with the sitosterol/cholesterol ratio (r=-0.221, P<0.001). HDL-cholesterol showed a negative relationship with the lathosterol/cholesterol ratio (r=-0.166, P=0.001). Triglycerides showed a negative relationship with the sitosterol/cholesterol ratio (r=0.141, P=0.005). Overall, these relationships were graded across quintiles of HDL cholesterol, body mass index and triglyceride and across an index of metabolic syndrome severity (number of components present). Only the cholestanol/cholesterol ratio showed a graded relationship with estimated overall coronary risk. Conclusions The metabolic syndrome is associated with increased cholesterol synthesis and reduced cholesterol absorption in a relationship that is graded across severity of the individual components of the syndrome and across an index of the severity of the metabolic syndrome as a whole.
Tissue factor-dependent pathway in severe preeclampsia revisited: a Brazilian cohort study

Previously we investigated the tissue factor (TF)-dependent coagulation pathway and key haemostatic cofactors in white women with preeclampsia (P-EC) and suggested that plasma factor VII (FVII) levels can differentiate women with P-EC from healthy nonpregnant women or normal pregnant women, at the same trimester, with high sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values. Here we re-examine the TF-dependent pathway in a large cohort of Brazilian women. A total of 240 women were studied. These included healthy nonpregnant women (n = 79), normotensive pregnant women (n = 80) and women with severe P-EC (n = 81). Commercially available enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays were used to measure plasma FVII, activated factor VII (FVIIa), TF and tissue factor pathway inhibitor (TFPI). All study participants were matched for age. Pregnant women (with/without P-EC) were matched for gestational age and parity. Plasma levels of FVII, FVIIa and TFPI were significantly increased in women with severe P-EC compared with healthy nonpregnant women (P < 0.01) or normotensive pregnant women (P < 0.01). FVIIa was also higher in normotensive pregnant women compared with nonpregnant women (P < 0.01). However, no such significant trends were observed for plasma TF levels (P = 0.074). In conclusion, circulating FVII, FVIIa and TFPI were significantly elevated in women with severe P-EC in the absence of comparable changes in plasma TF levels. The present work is in agreement with our previous report on FVII levels in white women with P-EC. Thus, this lends further support to the notion that plasma FVII levels are potentially valuable diagnostic marker for P-EC, irrespective of ethnicity.
Lack of association of a single-nucleotide polymorphism of the mu-opioid receptor gene with anxiety-related traits: results from a cross-sectional study of adults and a longitudinal study of children.

There is evidence from animal experiments that the mu- and delta-opioid receptors may play a role in anxiety and depression. It might therefore be expected that functional polymorphisms of these genes in humans are associated with anxiety and depression. We investigated a single-nucleotide polymorphism (Asn40Asp) of the mu-opioid receptor gene (OPRM1). This association was investigated in two samples: 1) a cross-sectional survey of 867 community-living adults aged 18-79 years who were assessed for anxiety and depression symptoms and related personality traits; and 2) a longitudinal study of childhood temperament in which 660 children were followed from infancy to the mid-teens and assessed for anxiety-related temperament and behavior problems. The data did not support a role for the Asn40Asp polymorphism in anxiety and depression, despite adequate statistical power to detect small effects.
Transcription, Recording, and Authority in ‘Classic’ Minimalism

Abstract This article considers several prominent pieces of minimalism in their movement from primary sound recording to secondary transcription. In place of the score-based formalism of much musicological scholarship on minimalism, I draw on my own archival work and interviews to consider the frequency of transcriptions of minimalism, as well as the politico-historical aspects of minimalism's development that are elided when the distinction between score and transcription is not taken into account. I argue that defining minimalism in relation to material practices of composing, writing, performing, and listening – rather than to formal features like gradual process, long duration, and diatonicism – helps in defining minimalism as a cohesive field of musical production.
Co-inherited Gilbert's syndrome: a factor determining hyperbilirubinemia in homozygous beta-thalassemia.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE Patients with thalassemia major and intermedia show a marked variability of serum indirect bilirubin levels. In this paper we tested the hypothesis related to the variability of the glucuronidation bilirubin rate which depends on the configuration of the A(TA)nTAA motif of the UGT1*1 glucuronosyltransferase gene promoter. DESIGN AND METHODS We studied the configuration of the A(TA)nTAA motif in 26 patients with thalassemia major and 34 with thalassemia intermedia. RESULTS In patients with thalassemia major and in those with thalassemia intermedia significantly higher bilirubin levels were found in patients with the (TA)7/(TA)7 genotype, than in those with the (TA)7/(TA)6 or (TA)6/(TA)6 genotype. INTERPRETATION AND CONCLUSIONS These results indicate that the (TA)7/(TA)7 genotype, the configuration found in patients with Gilbert's syndrome, is capable of modifying the clinical phenotype of homozygous beta-thalassemia. This is an example of the role played by co-inherited modifying gene(s) on the extent of clinical heterogeneity of monogenic disorders.
Novel synthesis of wideband filter using open-short-circuited stepped impedance resonators

A wideband filter consisting of a cascade connection of open-short-circuited stepped impedance resonators (OSSIRs) is proposed with a corresponding synthesis theory. The pseudo-Chebyshev-function-based formulae are derived to design the wideband filter with an arbitrary fractional bandwidth. By introducing the center frequency of the passband as a designable parameter, the distance between the center frequencies of the passband and spurious can be also controlled in our novel synthesis technique. To validate the proposed technique, a wideband filter with a bandwidth of 3-5GHz is designed, simulated, fabricated and measured. The measured responses of the filter agree well with the simulation and theoretical ones, which validates the effectiveness of the newly-proposed filter structure and the corresponding design scheme.
Differential Susceptibilities of Anopheles albimanus and Anopheles pseudopunctipennis to Infections with Coindigenous Plasmodium vivaxVariants VK210 and VK247 in Southern Mexico

ABSTRACT The susceptibilities to coindigenous Plasmodium vivaxof colonized Anopheles albimanus and Anopheles pseudopunctipennis from southern Mexico were investigated by simultaneous feeding with infected blood obtained from patients. The genes encoding circumsporozoite protein variant types (VK210 and VK247) in blood samples were determined by PCR and oligonucleotide probe hybridization. A. albimanus was more susceptible to VK210, and A. pseudopunctipennis was more susceptible to VK247.
Design of a high-speed low-power multiport register file

This paper proposes a full custom design of a 9-write and 17-read multi-port register file. The proposed register file can fulfill one read-after-write access in one system cycle with a synchronous read and an asynchronous write. The design employs a single-ended sense amplifier and a high-speed SCL address-decoder as write decoder controlled by VCLK, which is generated through a novel positive edge check circuit. The register file is implemented in SMIC 0. 13µm CMOS technology and passes the final verification. The post simulation results show that the write delay of the register file in the worst case is 2.5ns and the read delay is 1.8ns. The read-after-write timing is 2.9ns. The power of register file is 109mW in the worst case.