Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The involvement of frontally modulated attention in hypnosis and hypnotic susceptibility: cortical evoked potential evidence

The frontal N100 difference wave (N100d) between cortical evoked potentials to frequent and infrequent tones was compared before and during hypnosis in subjects with high and low hypnotic susceptibility (n = 10,11). This was to test putative alterations in attention, novelty detection in particular, modulated by anterior functions including the anterior cingulate to auditory stimuli extraneous to hypnosis. Susceptibility was measured with the HGSHS:A and validated with a laboratory scale during the experiment. Results showed that in the highly susceptible participants the N100d was clearly manifested in the pre-hypnosis control condition, was later attenuated following instructions of hypnosis and was virtually absent after further hypnosis. The effect was due to attenuated responding to the infrequent stimulus, without change to the frequent stimulus. This compromise extended to the later frontal P300 wave whose amplitude was reduced by 50% with hypnosis and was negligible by the end of hypnosis. The parietal P300 was reduced in both hypnosis conditions to a similar degree. These results were consistent with a progressive reduction throughout the hypnotic induction in focused attention to stimuli incidental to hypnosis capable of frontal modulation and frontal activation to the novel stimulus. In contrast the participants with low susceptibility showed an opposite pattern of change in the N100d. Though absent before hypnosis there was a progressive increase in the N100d from the first to the second hypnosis recording. This was underpinned by changes in response amplitudes to both frequent and infrequent stimuli, without systematic changes to the P300. Their results supported a dispersion of attentional resources and an absence of frontal activation in the pre-hypnosis baseline, compatible with a lack of focused attention and engagement of frontal functions theorized to be necessary for hypnosis. Furthermore subjects with low hypnotizability showed a longer P300 latency at the central parietal peak compatible with more prolonged processing of the rare stimulus, in keeping with a more posterior bias in processing. This may militate against the induction of hypnosis, theorized to require initial engagement of anterior processes, and here supported by the results in the highly hypnotizable participants. Copyright © 2002 British Society of Experimental and Clinical Hypnosis
AERODYNAMIC INVESTIGATION OF THE DEFORMABLE MEMBRANE AIRFOIL WITH EXCESS LENGTH

Original scientific paper The deformable membrane airfoils (DMA) are considered in the present paper, which could be potentially used on a new class of modern Micro Aerial Vehicles for their compact and lightweight form. Numerical simulations of low Reynolds number airflow around the DMA with excess length were performed and compared with the results obtained in the experiment. The aerodynamic performance was studied using a fluid-structure interaction between the DMA with excess length and the surrounding fluid flow. Fluid part was solved using Reynolds averaged Navier – Stokes (RANS) equations and applying the resulting pressure distribution to the airfoil. Experiment was performed in the low-turbulence wind tunnel with a model of an airfoil made from a deformable membrane with excess length, fixed at the leading and trailing edge. Measurements were obtained for the predetermined range of excess length ratio (0,025 to 0,150) and angle of incidence (0° to 15°), and showed a reasonable agreement with the numerical results with smallest discrepancies at 1,8 %. Investigation of the excess length shows that it could increase longitudinal stability of the airfoil in the non-oscillating regime, compared to standard rigid airfoils.
Microenvironment and Immunology Fibroblast-Speci fi c Protein 1 / S 100 A 4 – Positive Cells Prevent Carcinoma through Collagen Production and Encapsulation of Carcinogens

Stromal restraints to cancer are critical determinants of disease but they remain incompletely understood. Here, we report a novel mechanism for host surveillance against cancer contributed by fibroblast-specific protein 1 (FSP1)þ/ S100A4þfibroblasts. Mechanistic studies offibrosarcoma formation caused by subcutaneous injection of the carcinogen methylcholanthrene (MCA) had suggested that IFN-g receptor signaling may restrict MCA diffusion by inducing expression of collagen (foreign body reaction). We tested the hypothesis that this reaction encapsulated MCA and limited carcinogenesis by determining whether its ability to induce fibrosarcomas was impaired in the absence of proliferating fibroblasts. We found that FSP1þ/S100A4þ fibroblasts accumulated around the carcinogen where they produced collagens, encapsulating MCA and protecting epithelial cells from DNA damage. Ablation of these cells at the site of MCA injection by local administration of ganciclovir in FSP-TK transgenic mice altered tumor morphology to an epithelial phenotype, indicating that, in the absence of encapsulating fibroblasts, MCA targeted epithelial cells. Notably, we showed that destruction of the fibrous capsule around the MCA by local injection of collagenase induced rapid tumor development in mice that were otherwise durably tumor free. Our findings demonstrate that the FSP1þ/S100A4þ fibroblasts prevent epithelial malignancy and that collagen encapsulation of carcinogens protects against tumor development. Together, this study provides a novel mechanism for host surveillance against cancer. Cancer Res; 73(9); 2770–81. 2013 AACR.
Privacy prevention based on trust model for P2P streaming systems

In P2P streaming networks, the main sources of illegal media contents sharing are streaming clients who ignore copyright laws and provide contents deliver services. To stop illegally media contents sharing activities with the boundary of a P2P streaming network, we propose a time-space dynamic trust model for legalizing peers' content delivery services. We incorporate time dimension using time-frame, which captures experience and recommendation's time-sensitivity. At the same time, we introduce space dimension using IP addresses, which reflects the peers' physical locations and relations. Together, these two dimensions are adjusted using positive feedback control mechanism, thus, trust valuation can reflect the dynamics of the trust environment. Theoretical analysis and simulation results show that, out proposed trust model has advantages in modeling time-space dynamic trust relationship. It is capable to detect and penalize the illegally media contents sharing peers, as well as those that exhibit malicious behavior. Moreover, the trust model can filter out dishonest peers effectively.
IFN-β Impairs Superoxide-Dependent Parasite Killing in Human Macrophages: Evidence for a Deleterious Role of SOD1 in Cutaneous Leishmaniasis1

Type I IFNs (IFN-α/β) have only recently gained considerable attention as immunomodulators in nonviral infectious diseases. IFN-β has been shown to protect, in a NO-dependent manner, against murine Old World leishmaniasis caused by Leishmania major, but data in New World leishmaniasis are lacking. We found that IFN-β dose-dependently increases parasite burden in Leishmania amazonensis- as well as Leishmania braziliensis-infected human macrophages, independent of endogenous or exogenous NO. However, IFN-β significantly reduced superoxide release in Leishmania-infected as well as uninfected human macrophages. This decrease in superoxide production was paralleled by a significant IFN-β-mediated increase in superoxide dismutase 1 (SOD1) protein levels. Additionally, IFN-β inhibition of leishmanicidal activity was mimicked by SOD1 and antagonized by either pharmacological or small interfering RNA-mediated inhibition of SOD1. Finally, pronounced SOD1 expression in situ was demonstrated in biopsies from New World cutaneous leishmaniasis patients. These findings reveal a hitherto unknown IFN-β/SOD1 axis in Leishmania infection and suggest that inhibition of SOD-associated pathways could serve as strategy in the treatment of L. amazonensis as well as L. braziliensis infection, major human pathogens.
Collaborative feasibility study of a biphasic system (Roche Septi-Chek AFB) for rapid detection and isolation of mycobacteria

A study to delineate the feasibility of a biphasic-culture approach for detection and isolation of mycobacteria from clinical specimens except blood was conducted in four medical centers. The biphasic system (Septi-Chek AFB, Roche Diagnostic Systems, Nutley, N.J.) was compared with conventional mycobacterial isolation media and the BACTEC system. Septi-Chek AFB showed the highest degree of mycobacterial recovery. In addition, Septi-Chek AFB consistently shortened the time required for recovery of mycobacteria from clinical specimens and supported the growth of small inoculum numbers of stock cultures of 14 mycobacterial species. The study indicates the feasibility and potential advantages of the biphasic approach for detection and isolation of mycobacteria.
Using a field probe to study the mechanism of partial discharges in very small air gaps under direct voltage

Due to the growing use of high-voltage direct current (HVDC) for power transmission, it is of interest whether the diagnostic tools introduced in the past for insulation condition assessment of high-voltage alternating current (HVAC) apparatus are also applicable for quality assurance tests of HVDC equipment. This refers in particular to the measurement of partial discharges (PD) in compliance with the international standard IEC 60270 [1], [2]. As PD events in gaseous cavities embedded in the bulk dielectric of HV equipment are the most harmful ones, the mechanism of such internal discharges should be well known to judge the PD severity as well as to specify appropriate procedures and quantities for PD tests under direct voltage. According to Devins cavity discharges can be classified as "Townsendlike discharges" and "streamer-like discharges" [3]. Even if this classification seems to be reasonable for cavity discharges under both alternating and direct voltage [4]-[6], this has been rejected by Bartnikas. So, he argued in [7] that "the term 'streamer' by itself, when applied to PD in relatively short gaps or small cavity diameters, introduces unnecessarily a misleading term in the PD lexicon. PD, when occurring in short gaps, may assume different forms: rapid and slow rise time spark-type pulses. " This is also consistent with the worldwide established PD model according to Kreuger [8], which is based on the hypothesis that the virtual cavity capacitance is discharged via a conductive spark channel. Despite simplicity, this concept was rejected by Pedersen and his coworkers [9], [10]. As an alternative, they promoted a more sophisticated field-theoretical approach based on a dipole model. As their concept is not easily understandable, this was presented in a more simplified manner in this Magazine [11], [12] as well as in [13].
Threshold-voltage balance for minimum supply operation

The difference between the threshold voltages (Vt) of PMOS and NMOS transistor is a critical issue in the operation of low voltage circuits. The P/N Vt balancing profit is analyzed in terms of sub-threshold leakage current, minimum supply voltage, and static noise margin. Balancing the P/N Vt reduces the lowest required supply voltage by 0.15-0.3 V. The use of our proposed Vt matching scheme enables CMOS LSI minimum supply voltage processing at 0.1 V.
Design and migration challenges for an Alpha microprocessor in a 0.18 /spl mu/m copper process

An Alpha microprocessor design is implemented in a 0.18 /spl mu/m CMOS process, utilizing 7 layers of copper interconnect. Process features include nominal and low Vt transistor options, low-K FSG dielectric and a refractory metal local interconnect layer. The design is leveraged from a 0.35 /spl mu/m aluminum design. It contains 15.5M transistors on a 10/spl times/12 mm/sup 2/ die and is packaged in a flip chip ceramic land grid array. The microprocessor runs with a 1.65 V nominal supply and consumes 65 W. This microprocessor operates at >1.3 GHz.
Railway Traffic Management - Meet & Pass Problem

With the growing interest in the railway sector, mainly because of energetic reasons, there is also a need to increase the efficiency of the railway lines. One way to optimize this sector is to improve quality in the train control process itself. Nowadays, train dispatching is still mostly done by human operators that use elementary tools and thereby solving conflicts sub-optimally. Motivated by these factors, this report presents a model capable of detecting and solving conflicts, for single track railways. More specifically, this model proposes two resolutions methods: a heuristic resolution and a search for the optimal solution. To evaluate the quality of the developed model, several tests were made, obtaining encouraging results. These results showed that it is possible to solve conflicts optimally or near optimally, in a feasible amount of time. This program comes with a graphic interface so that the interaction with the dispatcher can be more user friendly. The major novelties of this work regard the improvement on the conflict detection process, the introduction of capacity conflicts, and the creation of several parameters to adjust the search for the optimal solution.
Physiological versus pathological left ventricular hypertrophy

Athletes commonly develop what is regarded as a benign increase in cardiac mass in response to physical training. However, prolonged training may lead to a degree of cardiac remodeling that mimics hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM). Left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) can be defined echocardiographically as a left ventricular wall thickness (LVWT) of greater than 12mm. A LVWT of 12-16mm represents a “grey zone” of overlap between physiological LVH and mild HCM. In this situation, an enlarged left ventricular (LV) cavity size (>56mm) in the absence of symptoms is highly suggestive of physiological LVH. Other markers that favor physiological LVH include normal LV diastolic function, a concentric pattern of hypertrophy, left atrial size <50mm and absence of LV outflow tract obstruction. Where diagnostic doubt remains, Holter monitoring, cardiopulmonary exercise testing, cardiac magnetic resonance imaging or trial of detraining can be considered. The correct diagnosis is essential as HCM increases an athlete’s risk of sudden cardiac death and may result in disqualification from professional sport.
An Adaptive Extended Kalman Filter for Target Image Tracking

A simple extended Kalman filter has been designed to track targets using outputs from a forward-looking infrared (FLIR) sensor as measurements. It exploits knowledge unused by current correlation trackers ¿ size, shape, and motion characteristics of target, and atmospheric jitter spectral description ¿ to yield enhanced performance. In order to track air-to-air missiles at close range, it incorportateson-line adaptation to target shape effects, changing target motion characteristics, and maximum signal intensity. It is shown to possess considerable performance potential for highly maneuverable targets despite background clutter.
Research on Traffic Flow Prediction in the Big Data Environment Based on the Improved RBF Neural Network

This paper proposes an optimized prediction algorithm of radial basis function neural network based on an improved artificial bee colony (ABC) algorithm in the big data environment. The algorithm first uses crossover and mutation operators of the differential evolution algorithm to replace the search strategy of employed bees in the ABC algorithm, then improves the search strategy of onlookers in the ABC algorithm to produce an optimal candidate food source near the population. The algorithm can better balance local and global searching capability. To verify the efficiency of this algorithm in the big data environment, apply it to Lozi and Tent chaotic time series and measured traffic flow time series, and then compare it with K-nearest neighbor model, radial basis function (RBF) neural network model, improved back propagation neural network model, and RBF neural network based on a cloud genetic algorithm model. The experimental results indicate that the accuracy of prediction for Lozi and Tent chaotic time series and the measured traffic flow improves greatly in the big data environment using the proposed algorithm, which proves the effectiveness of the proposed algorithm in predicting traffic flow time series.
Toll‐like receptor 2 plays a critical role in maintaining mucosal integrity during Citrobacter rodentium‐induced colitis

Inflammatory bowel diseases and infectious gastroenteritis likely occur when the integrity of intestinal barriers is disrupted allowing luminal bacterial products to cross into the intestinal mucosa, stimulating immune cells and triggering inflammation. While specific Toll‐like receptors (TLR) are involved in the generation of inflammatory responses against enteric bacteria, their contributions to the maintenance of intestinal mucosal integrity are less clear. These studies investigated the role of TLR2 in a model of murine colitis induced by the bacterial pathogen Citrobacter rodentium. C. rodentium supernatants specifically activated TLR2 in vitro while infected TLR2–/– mice suffered a lethal colitis coincident with colonic mucosal ulcerations, bleeding and increased cell death but not increased pathogen burden. TLR2–/– mice suffered impaired epithelial barrier function mediated via zonula occludens (ZO)‐1 in naïve mice and claudin‐3 in infected mice, suggesting this could underlie their susceptibility. TLR2 deficiency was also associated with impaired production of IL‐6 by bone marrow‐derived macrophages and infected colons cultured ex vivo. As IL‐6 has antiapoptotic and epithelial repair capabilities, its reduced expression could contribute to the impaired mucosal integrity. These studies report for the first time that TLR2 plays a critical role in maintaining intestinal mucosal integrity during infection by a bacterial pathogen.
A model for evaluation of gastric sensitivity in awake rats

We developed a model for the evaluation of gastric sensitivity to distension in awake rats. A balloon made from a latex condom was chronically placed in the stomach and three stainless steel electrodes were implanted in the neck muscles. Isobaric distensions were performed with a barostat by step of 5 mmHg with 10 min inflation and 2 min deflation. Gastric pressure, integrated neck electromyogram (EMG) and gastric volume were continuously monitored on a potentiometric recorder. Gastric distension at 15 or 20 mmHg induced a typical posture associated with contractions of the neck muscles. Pain threshold was defined as the pressure inducing an increase of integrated neck EMG greater than 100%.
Low pass filters with stepped impedance resonators and DGS structures

Two different methods to design microstrip low pass filter operating at 6 GHz are discussed in this paper. In the first method filter structure is designed without any slots on the ground plane and the second method consists of interdigital slots on the ground plane. Interdigital slot consists of metal fingers, which enhances the performance of the filter. The resonant frequency can easily be changed by tuning the length of the metal fingers. Based on the comparative study, it is found that in the second method the return loss is enhanced to −22.5 dB. The insertion loss is found to be 0.1 dB in the passband. It is inferred that the filter becomes compact and the return loss is improved, using interdigital slots in the design.
Effectiveness of Cultural Adaptations of Interventions Aimed at Smoking Cessation, Diet, and/or Physical Activity in Ethnic Minorities. A Systematic Review

Background The importance of cultural adaptations in behavioral interventions targeting ethnic minorities in high-income societies is widely recognized. Little is known, however, about the effectiveness of specific cultural adaptations in such interventions. Aim To systematically review the effectiveness of specific cultural adaptations in interventions that target smoking cessation, diet, and/or physical activity and to explore features of such adaptations that may account for their effectiveness. Methods Systematic review using MEDLINE, PsycINFO, Embase, and the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials registers (1997–2009). Inclusion criteria: a) effectiveness study of a lifestyle intervention targeted to ethnic minority populations living in a high income society; b) interventions included cultural adaptations and a control group that was exposed to the intervention without the cultural adaptation under study; c) primary outcome measures included smoking cessation, diet, or physical activity. Results Out of 44904 hits, we identified 17 studies, all conducted in the United States. In five studies, specific cultural adaptations had a statistically significant effect on primary outcomes. The remaining studies showed no significant effects on primary outcomes, but some presented trends favorable for cultural adaptations. We observed that interventions incorporating a package of cultural adaptations, cultural adaptations that implied higher intensity and those incorporating family values were more likely to report statistically significant effects. Adaptations in smoking cessation interventions seem to be more effective than adaptations in interventions aimed at diet and physical activity. Conclusion This review indicates that culturally targeted behavioral interventions may be more effective if cultural adaptations are implemented as a package of adaptations, the adaptation includes family level, and where the adaptation results in a higher intensity of the intervention. More systematic experiments are needed in which the aim is to gain insight in the best mix of cultural adaptations among diverse populations in various settings, particularly outside the US.
Shaping field correlation with entangled quantum antennas

A quantum antenna can shape spatial entanglement of emitted photons originating from entangled states of antennas emitters. In contrast to the classical antenna, the quantum antenna can shape the second and higher order correlations without affecting amplitudes of the field. The shape and directivity of the correlations can be optimized using techniques of quantum state inference. Positive and negative correlated twin-photon, and multi-photon entangled states can be produced from the same antenna for different initial states of emitters.
A Multi-Agent System for Controlled Charging of a Large Population of Electric Vehicles

The share of electric vehicles (EVs) is expected to increase significantly in the vehicle market sales in the forthcoming years. Uncontrolled charging of EVs can affect adversely the normal operation of the power system, especially at the distribution level. This paper proposes a distributed, multi-agent EV charging control method based on the Nash Certainty Equivalence Principle that considers network impacts. Convergence of the method when the EVs control agents are uncoupled and weakly-coupled is discussed. The efficiency of the proposed management system is evaluated through simulation of a realistic, urban distribution network.