Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Renal function and associated mortality risk in adults commencing HIV antiretroviral therapy in Zimbabwe

Background: People with HIV (PWH) in sub-Saharan Africa appear to have a higher incidence of renal disease than other global regions but data are limited. This renal impairment may be associated with an increased mortality risk. Aims: To define the prevalence of renal disease and explore its association with mortality risk in a cohort from Zimbabwe commencing antiretroviral therapy (ART) for HIV infection. Methods: A retrospective study of all patients aged at least 18 years, commenced on ART for HIV infection at the Newlands Clinic in Harare, Zimbabwe between January 2007 and September 2019 was conducted. Data were extracted from electronic medical records. Patients with no baseline creatinine measurement were excluded. Baseline characteristics were assessed as potential predictors for mortality by Cox proportional hazard regression. Results: Three thousand and thirty-nine patients were eligible for inclusion. Most were female (62.1%), with a median age of 36 years (IQR 30–43). At baseline, 7.3% had an estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) 90 ml/min per 1.73 m2 or less and 11.4% had proteinuria. Over a median follow-up period of 4.6 years (IQR 2.5–6.9), the mortality rate was 8.7%. One half of deaths (49.2%) occurred within the first year. In multivariable analysis, a baseline eGFR between 60 and 90 ml/min per 1.73 m2 [hazard ratio 2.22, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.46–3.33, P < 0.001] and proteinuria (hazard ratio 2.10, 95% CI 1.35–3.27, P < 0.001) were associated with increased mortality risk. Conclusion: Baseline renal impairment was common. Both a reduced eGFR or proteinuria were independently associated with a doubling of mortality risk. These should serve as markers in the clinical setting of at-risk patients.
Numerical methods for the detection of phase defect structures in excitable media

Electrical waves that rotate in the heart organize dangerous cardiac arrhythmias. Finding the region around which such rotation occurs is one of the most important practical questions for arrhythmia management. For many years, the main method for finding such regions was so-called phase mapping, in which a continuous phase was assigned to points in the heart based on their excitation status and defining the rotation region as a point of phase singularity. Recent analysis, however, showed that in many rotation regimes there exist phase discontinuities and the region of rotation must be defined not as a point of phase singularity, but as a phase defect line. In this paper, we use this novel methodology and perform a comparative study of three different phase definitions applied to in silico data and to experimental data obtained from optical voltage mapping experiments on monolayers of human atrial myocytes. We introduce new phase defect detection algorithms and compare them with those that appeared in literature already. We find that the phase definition is more important than the algorithm to identify sudden spatial phase variations. Sharp phase defect lines can be obtained from a phase derived from local activation times observed during one cycle of arrhythmia. Alternatively, similar quality can be obtained from a reparameterization of the classical phase obtained from observation of a single timeframe of transmembrane potential. We found that the phase defect line length was (35.9 ± 6.2) mm in the Fenton-Karma model and (4.01 ± 0.55) mm in cardiac human atrial myocyte monolayers. As local activation times are obtained during standard clinical cardiac mapping, the methods are also suitable to be applied to clinical datasets. All studied methods are publicly available and can be downloaded from an institutional web-server.
Origin, diversification, and biogeography of forest birds across temperate forest regions in the Northern Hemisphere

regions. Abstract Technological and methodological advances in biogeography, phylogenetics, and bioinformatics during the past couple of decades provide greatly enhanced insights into the evolutionary history of birds in space and time. Molecular data, especially next-generation DNA sequencing, have produced a revolution in reconstructing the phylogenetic history of lineages. These advances shed a new light on the mode, tempo, and spatial context of differentiation processes that shaped the composition and structure of extant forest bird communities of temperate forests of the Northern Hemisphere. This paper offers a framework for understanding this history based on analytical tools that allow us to decipher the imprint of changes in the geographic configuration of land masses and in climates since the Mesozoic, with a focus on the temperate-tropical flyways that connect the massive forest blocks of the Northern to those of the Southern Hemispheres. Differentiation of most extant bird lineages and species has been shown to have begun in a deeper past than formerly thought, although recent analyses from molecular phylogenies also support the much-debated Late Pleistocene model of speciation. Geographical connections between tropical and temperate realms make north-south flyways important drivers of differentiation for many lineages. The histories of differentiation and colonisation of clades, including both resident and long-distance migrants, are discussed in relation to two alternative theories, the ‘southern home theory’ and the ‘northern home theory’. The region-specific characters of the bird faunas and differences between the main temperate forest blocks of the Northern Hemisphere are discussed in light of the hypotheses concerning dispersal processes related with geographical configuration of land masses. Differential dispersal-colonisation rates from tropical regions and subsequent diversification in temperate regions (and vice versa) are also considered. The causes of the observed decline in diversification rates during the Pleistocene are examined from phylogenetic reconstructions of various
Numerical study of the effect of geometric parameters on compressive mechanical properties of metallic lattice cylinders

In the current research, the numerical simulations were done on 15 cylindrical lattice specimens under compressive stress at a constant strain rate using Abaqus software. The lattice cylinders have different strut thicknesses of 3, 4, and 5 mm, and with the fillets in the radiuses of 0.3, 0.6, 0.9, and 1.2 mm, respectively. The mechanical properties of the AlSi11Cu2 (Fe) aluminum alloy were used. The Mises stress distribution was evaluated to determine the effect of fillet radius on the lattice structure for the strut thickness of 3 mm. Also, the effective strain distribution of the lattice structure was investigated after different stages of deformation. After comparing the simulation results, it was shown that by applying fillets with a radius of 0.3 mm in lattice cylinders, the maximum energy absorption and maximum force can be achieved at the ultimate tensile strength (UTS) point. Also, the optimal strain can be obtained at the UTS point.
Soft error rate mitigation techniques for modern microcircuits

A unique circuit hardening technique is described, which can totally eliminate both alpha and neutron induced soft errors from deep submicron microcircuits. This hardening technique, termed temporal sampling, addresses both traditional static latch SEUs (single event upsets) as well as SET (single event transient) induced errors. This approach mitigates the SER (soft error rate) of modern microcircuits with minimal impact on design flow, physical layout area, and circuit performance.
Living Room Culture—An Anthropological Study of Television Usage Behaviors

Traditionally, research at Thomson has been conducted in the laboratory. This study, however, took place in users' homes. This work investigated the television (TV) viewing behaviors of nine households over an 10-week period and was designed to provide a better understanding of how and why people watch TV within the home. Applying a combination of methods from the fields of human factors and anthropology, viewing behaviors were observed via computer-logged TV commands, interviews, questionnaires, photographs, and other methods. Analysis of the resulting data will cover three major areas: 1) tabulation of computer-logged TV usage behaviors, 2) tabulation and interpretation of personal observations, and 3) comparison of the computer-logged data with the personal observations. This analysis will result in a more complete list of user requirements that includes both behavioral and emotional usability issues. Such requirements will be applied to the design of future consumer electronics.
Ubiquitin‐conjugating enzyme V variant 1 enables cellular responses toward fibroblast growth factor signaling in endothelium

Ubiquitination has been shown to provide an essential regulatory role in modulating the duration and amplitude of the signaling activity in angiogenesis. While successive enzymatic reactions mediated by three distinct types of enzymes commonly known as E1, E2, and E3 are required for ubiquitination, the role of E3s which govern the final step of ubiquitination has been extensively analyzed in angiogenesis. In contrast, the role of E2s, which determine the context and functional consequences of ubiquitination, remains largely unknown with respect to angiogenesis. To better elucidate the role of E2s in modulating endothelial behaviors during angiogenesis, we first systematically analyze the expression pattern of E2s in endothelial cells (ECs) using previously published scRNA‐seq data and identify ubiquitin‐conjugating enzyme variant 1 (UBE2V1), an unconventional E2 without innate catalytic activity, as one of the most abundantly expressed E2s in ECs. While ubiquitously expressed in diverse cell types, abrogation of UBE2V1 significantly impairs proliferation and viability of human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) without affecting other cell types, suggesting that UBE2V1 is likely to possess nonredundant functions in ECs. Consistent with this idea, UBE2V1 appears to be critical for morphogenesis and migration of ECs during angiogenesis. Interestingly, we find that UBE2V1 is essential for fibroblast growth factor 2 (FGF2)‐induced angiogenesis, but appears to have minor effects on vascular endothelial growth factor‐A‐induced angiogenesis in vitro as well as in vivo. Therefore, it seems that UBE2V1 could enable ECs to distinguish two related yet distinct angiogenic cues. Mechanistically, we show that UBE2V1 promotes ubiquitination of MEK kinase 1, a key mediator of FGF2 signaling, to enhance phosphorylation of extracellular signal‐regulated kinase 1/2 in HUVECs. Taken together, our results illustrate the unique role of UBE2V1 as a key modulator for angiogenic behaviors in ECs.
A Review of Genetic Algorithm Applications in Supply Chain Network Design

Strategic decisions related to the design and planning of the supply chain revolve around design of the network. This chapter introduces how genetic algorithms are applied to solve the supply chain network design problem. A classification of the recent research in the field provides a valuable insight into current state of literature and outlines directions for future research.
Reliability assesment of distribution systems with distributed generation based on Bayesian networks

Reliability assessment is of primary importance in designing and planning distribution systems that operate in an economical manner with minimal interruption of customer loads. Distributed generation (DG) units are subject to failures as all other generation units, the random behavior of these units must be taken into account in the analysis. In this paper, a new method based on Bayesian Networks is introduced for reliability analysis of distribution systems with distributed generation. The method permits not only computing the reliability indices of a distribution system but also presenting the effect of each component or some components on the system reliability. Thus the shortcomings of traditional reliability assessment methods are overcome. The impacts of DG units, their location, DG unit capacity in each location and their availability, on distribution system reliability are investigated using a study case of distribution including distributed generation.
Gross variations in relative size of brain and its subdivisions among fishes: An overview

Fishes are the aquatic vertebrates inhabiting all the levels of the water column. Different species of fishes are well adapted to successfully live in all types of water bodies. They possess a well-developed nervous system to combat all the challenges they encounter in their specified habitat in the water column. Fishes that are migratory in nature are also able to overcome the problems faced by them in moving from one type of water body to the other. Although the sub divisions of the brain in different species of fish are same, there occurs a considerable variation among them owing to the whole brain size, shape and size of sub divisions etc. Studies have reported variations in whole brain size and enlargement of a particular brain subdivision that may be correlated with the body size, ecological niche or habitat of the species or cognitive ability of the species. Most of the studies performed with this objective reported interspecific variations among fishes. Fewer studies however, reported intraspecific morphological variations in brain/brain subdivisions among the fish population. Nevertheless, brains are energetically costly organs. Super class Pisces including all the fishes is a diverse group with respect to body size and habitat within water column and all such studies are so scattered that it is difficult to summarize them all. Therefore, the aim of this paper is to discuss and provide information about the variations in the brain size and in its subdivisions and unique brain structures found in fishes. Such studies were conducted in earlier times also and are gaining a great interest since past 10 years.
Knowledge-based functional design of industrial robots

This paper presents an expert functional design model and software modeling environment for designing the architecture of industrial robots. The modeling environment comprises an integrated knowledge base, an inference engine, a working memory, and an explanation unit and is implemented in CLIPS. The functional design model is based on the authors’ behaviour-driven, function-environment-structure (B-FES) formalism, which has been tailored to meet the special requirements of industrial robot design. A universal robot template has been created and a library of typical components of a robot has been compiled. Nine customized templates were generated from the universal template. Web links to the websites of manufacturers/suppliers provide easy access to data on robot components. The architectural design solutions are assessed by a set of user-defined performance criteria, such as precision, flexibility and short cycle time. Application of the approach is demonstrated through a case study of the functional design of a printed circuit board assembly robot. The authors argue that this approach is new for configuring robots and can significantly reduce the time, effort and number of errors made.
Criticality Analysis of Platform Supply Vessel (PSV)

III! NOTATION.AND. ABBREVIATIONS.VII! LIST.OF. FIGURES.VIII! LIST.OF. TABLES.IX! 1! INTRODUCTION.1! 1.1! BACKGROUND! 1! 1.2! PROBLEM! STATEMENT! 2! 1.3! RESEARCH! QUESTIONS! 3! 1.4! RESEARCH! PURPOSE! AND! OBJECTIVES! 4! 1.5! LIMITATION! OF! THE! RESEARCH! 4! 2! RESEARCH.APPROACH. AND.METHODOLOGY. 5! 2.1! RESEARCH! PURPOSE! 5! 2.2! RESEARCH! APPROACH! 6! 2.3! RESEARCH! STRATEGY! 7! 2.4! DATA! COLLECTION! 8! 2.5! DATA! ANALYSIS! 9! 3! THEORETICAL.FRAME. OF.REFERENCE. 11! 3.1! INTRODUCTION! 11! 3.2! RISK! 11! 3.3! ELEMENTS! OF! RISK! ANALYSIS! 14! 3.3.1! Risk(assessment(. (15! 3.3.2! Risk(management(. (15! 3.3.3! Risk(communication(. (16! 3.4! CRITICALITY! ANALYSIS! 16! 3.4.1! Qualitative(analysis(. (17! 3.4.1.1! Risk! matrix! 18! 3.4.2! Quantitative(analysis(. (21! 3.4.2.1! Criticality! number! 23! 3.4.2.2! RPN! number! 24! 3.5! ISSUE! AND! CHALLENGES! OF! OPERATION! IN! ARCTIC! CONDITION! 27! 4! RESULT.AND. DISCUSSION. 31! 4.1! THE! CRITICALITY! ANALYSIS! METHODS! IN! TROMS! OFFSHORE! 31! 4.2! IMPROVEMENT! OF! CRITICALITY! ANALYSIS! METHODS! OF! TROMS! OFFSHORE! 35! 4.3! CASE! STUDY! 38! 5! CONCLUSIONS.AND. SUGGESTIONS.FOR. FURTHER.RESEARCH. 43! 5.1! CONCLUSIONS! 43! 5.2! SUGGESTIONS! FOR! FURTHER! RESEARCH! 43! 6! REFERENCES. 44!
On the Interplay Between Solar Wind Parameters and ULF Wave Power as a Function of Geomagnetic Activity at High‐ and Mid‐latitudes

Using ground magnetometer measurements from the IMAGE array over the timespan of one solar cycle, we apply wavelets to statistically assess the power of ultra‐low frequency (ULF) waves from L = 3.34 to L = 13.6 as a function of Kp, solar wind speed ( Vsw ${V}_{\text{sw}}$ ), solar wind dynamic pressure ( Pdyn ${P}_{\text{dyn}}$ ), Dst, and Bz ${B}_{z}$ . We find that although geomagnetic storms account for the overwhelming majority of ULF wave power at mid latitudes, this effect decreases for higher L‐shells. We present analysis of the effect of interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) Bz ${B}_{z}$ on ULF wave power for different values of Kp and Vsw ${V}_{\text{sw}}$ , revealing a strong inter‐dependency especially in relation to Vsw ${V}_{\text{sw}}$ . A parameterization additionally incorporating Bz ${B}_{z}$ appears to be more important at large‐L. Further, analysis for positive Bz ${B}_{z}$ reveals a perhaps unexpected additional dependence on Vsw ${V}_{\text{sw}}$ which points to effects of the interplanetary magnetic field cone angle and Kelvin‐Helmholtz instabilities. Finally, we derive ULF wave radial diffusion coefficients from the measured ULF wave power spectral densities and briefly discuss their importance for radiation belt dynamics. Interestingly, in part because of the correlation between Dst‐defined storm times and high Kp, we find that the low‐Kp radial diffusion coefficients during storms are higher than previously assumed almost certainly because of the dominance of nonstorm epochs in the statistics of median ULF wave power under conditions of low Kp. These inter‐dependencies should be taken into account in future specification models for ULF wave radial diffusion coefficients when applied in storm time simulations.
Bilateral control of teleoperators with flexible joints by the H infinity approach

The proposed paper describes a new method to synthesize a 'generalized bilateral master-slave system'. It uses two criteria: a transparency distance, which measures the performance objective and a passivity distance which measures the stability objective. These criteria are useful to better understand or extend the previous results published on the subject. This method relies on Passivity concept, on impedance control and on H infinity robust control. We will split the synthesis of the Master Slave System into two distinct problems. The first one is the synthesis of a bilateral control law which defines a passive linkage between the two manipulators. The second problem is the synthesis of a control law, specific for each manipulator which increases the sensitivity of the manipulator to external forces, in order to provide backdrivability. It also has to secure the passivity of the closed loop system. The first problem is now well understood then we focus on the second problem and we propose a new synthesis solution. In the control design method we explicitly take into account the facts that manipulators have flexible joints, they suffer from dry friction, sensor noises and neglected dynamics. The synthesis issue of the control is clearly related to H infinity optimization problem of which viable computer algorithms are available. Experimental results illustrate the proposed controller design.
Information Availability and Team Performance: A Network-Centric Supply Chain Simulation

Future concepts of operations purport that sophisticated information technology will significantly enhance mission effectiveness through two fundamental aspects: “speed of command” and “self synchronization. ” On one hand, unlimited availability of information may serve to enhance the overall awareness of individuals and teams. On the other hand, unrestricted information push may serve to distract, overwhelm, and overload individuals and teams, thereby compromising their situation awareness and decision-making effectiveness. The question remains, how much information is enough? The purpose of this study was to assess the impact of information availability on decision-making by utilizing a four-person supply chain management simulation. View of information and communication were manipulated to constrain information availability. Results indicated better performance for conditions with more information availability, including unrestricted information push. Overall, these results illustrated the importance of capabilities such as anticipation and redundancy, which seem to be vital to collaborative tasks.
Heat Generation, Temperature, and Thermal Stress of Structurally Integrated Piezo-Actuators

While converting electrical energy into mechanical energy to actuate structures, piezoelectric (PZT) elements experience a temperature increase due to internal heat generation caused by their mechanical damping and dielectric loss. In practice, if the actuation is operated at system resonance or with a relatively high electrical field, the heat generation throughout PZT actuators may be significant. The temperature rise of PZT elements may result in the acceleration of material aging, even thermal damage. The situation becomes worse if the actuated host structures are made of thermalresistant materials, such as polymeric matrix composites and glass. In addition, the temperature distribution in PZT elements induces thermal stress that may increase the overall stress level and reduce the maximum safe stress. However, investigations done to date on these issues have been limited. This paper presents a simple analytical approach to estimate temperature rise and thermal stress in PZT patch actuators due to dynamic excition. A onedimensional heat transfer model is developed for integrated PZT/plate structures. The temperature field of the PZT actuators is analytically found and the corresponding thermal stress is predicted. To determine the internal heat dissipation in PZT actuators, an electromechanical impedance model developed by the authors is directly applied. The dissipative power in the systems, consumed by mechanical damping and dielectric loss of the PZT actuators, and structural damping of the host structure, is first determined. The dissipative power is then treated as the equivalent thermal dissipation to create a distributed heat source throughout the PZT actuators and host structures. In the case studies, the PZT patch elements were used to actuate a simplysupported plate. The impact of the thermal stress on the overall stress level is discussed in the paper. The effects of actuator thickness and material properties on the actuator temperature and the thermal stress level have also been investigated.
An Investigation To The Recycling Of Spent Engine Oil

This paper describes an investigation carried out to study the recycling of spent engine oil as a result of indiscriminate disposal of the spent engine oil into the surrounding which has contributed immensely to the level of environmental pollution in our society and nation at large. This paper identify a unique method by which the spent oil is adequately recycled for reuse, the cost of recycling is relatively low compared from its production from crude oil as the numbers of purification stages are reduced. From the research carried out it was discovered that when 25 liters of spent oil was recycled appropriately, 10 liters of lubricating oil was obtained from the process whereas 220 liters of crude oil would be required to produce the same 10 liters of oil.