Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A Kind of Tightly Coupled Array With Nonuniform Short-Circuited Branches for the Radiation of UWB Pulses

In this article, a kind of tightly coupled array (TCA) with nonuniform short-circuited branches (NSCBs) is proposed. It indicates that the introduction of the NSCBs fundamentally changes the working principle of the TCA and makes it operate like an electromagnetic combined antenna. Arms of the array elements, the short-circuited branches (SCBs), together with the ground plane, compose current loops, which act as magnetic dipoles, and the array elements themselves are electric dipoles, so the TCA becomes an array of electromagnetic combined dipoles in theory. Thus, the backplane short-circuited effect (BSE) and the edge truncation effect (ETE), which limit the working band of the TCA, are avoided simultaneously. Therefore, the working band of TCA remarkably improves, so that it can be applied to radiate the ultrawideband (UWB) pulses with band ratio over 10:1. Then, based on the theory of electromagnetic combined dipoles, the TCA with NSCBs is designed and optimized. A practical such TCA integrated with feeding baluns is developed and measured. The developed TCA with NSCBs has a working band of 287 MHz–6.45 GHz, and the band ratio is 22.5:1. The distance between the array and the ground plate is 20 mm, and the total height of the array antenna is 35 mm, which is only 3.4% of the wavelength of the lower cutoff frequency, which makes a low-profile UWB antenna. Finally, the TCA is excited by a UWB pulse with an amplitude of 3.06 kV, and the performance is measured and calculated in the pulse mode. It indicates that the UWB pulse radiating system has an effective potential of 3.54 kV, and the effective potential gain is 1.16.
Spatial variability in Alpine reservoir regulation: deriving reservoir operations from streamflow using generalized additive models

Abstract. Reservoir regulation affects various streamflow characteristics, from low to high flows, with important implications for downstream water users. However, information on past reservoir operations is rarely publicly available, and it is hardly known how reservoir operation signals, i.e. information on when water is stored in and released from reservoirs, vary over a certain region. Here, we propose a statistical model to reconstruct reservoir operation signals in catchments without information on reservoir operation. The model uses streamflow time series observed downstream of a reservoir that encompass a period before and a period after a known year of reservoir construction. In a first step, a generalized additive model (GAM) regresses the streamflow time series from the unregulated pre-reservoir period on four covariates including temperature, precipitation, day of the year, and glacier mass balance changes. In a second step, this GAM, which represents natural conditions, is applied to predict natural streamflow, i.e. streamflow that would be expected in the absence of the reservoir, for the regulated period. The difference between the observed regulated streamflow signal and the predicted natural baseline should correspond to the reservoir operation signal. We apply this approach to reconstruct the seasonality of reservoir regulation, i.e. information on when water is stored in and released from a reservoir, from a dataset of 74 catchments in the central Alps with a known reservoir construction date (i.e. date when the reservoir went into operation). We group these reconstructed regulation seasonalities using functional clustering to identify groups of catchments with similar reservoir operation strategies. We show how reservoir management varies by catchment elevation and that seasonal redistribution from summer to winter is strongest in high-elevation catchments. These elevational differences suggests a clear relationship between reservoir operation and climate and catchment characteristics, which has practical implications. First, these elevational differences in reservoir regulation can and should be considered in hydrological model calibration. Furthermore, the reconstructed reservoir operation signals can be used to study the joint impact of climate change and reservoir operation on different streamflow signatures, including extreme events.
Accurate fabrication of anamorphic microlenses and efficient collimation of tapered unstable‐resonator diode lasers

Highly precise f/0.9 refractive anamorphic microlenses have been fabricated in GaP substrates by mass‐transport smoothing of etched multiple‐mesa structures. Astigmatic outputs from tapered unstable‐resonator lasers have been collimated to a nearly round beam of near diffraction‐limited 0.43° divergence. Initial good efficiencies (as high as 35%) have been obtained in coupling the laser output into a single‐mode fiber. These lenses are highly promising for realizing simple compact optical systems that exploit the high power capability of tapered lasers.
Architectures for evanescent frequency tuning of microring resonators in micro-opto-electro-mechanical SOI platforms

Microring resonators are important elements in a wide variety of optical systems, ranging from optical switches and tunable filterbanks to optical sensors. In these structures, the resonant frequencies are normally controlled by tuning the effective index of refraction. In optical switches and filters, this has traditionally been achieved through electro-optic or thermo-optic effects. In sensors, the effective refractive index is changed by the presence of the measurand. Adding a mechanical degree of freedom to these optical systems allows additional evanescent frequency tuning. In particular, the presence of a cantilever in the near-field of the optical mode can tune the effective refractive index. A specific cantilever displacement can therefore induce a desired resonant frequency shift. Alternatively, a measured shift in the resonant frequency can be associated with a cantilever displacement, and be used for pressure or acceleration sensing. In this paper, we explore a geometry that can be used for controlling the resonant frequency of a microring resonator through evanescent field perturbation, using a cantilever defined in the same silicon layer as the optical waveguides, in a silicon-on-insulator platform. The effects of the lateral gap size between the optical waveguide and the cantilever, and the cantilever vertical displacement, on both the resonant frequency and quality factor of the resonator, are evaluated through finite-difference timedomain computations for wavelengths centered at 1550 nm. The presence of the cantilever in the near-field of the optical mode changes the effective refractive index, resulting in frequency tuning, but also lowers the quality factor due to additional coupling into the membrane.
Blood–Brain Barrier Integrity Damage in Bacterial Meningitis: The Underlying Link, Mechanisms, and Therapeutic Targets

Despite advances in supportive care and antimicrobial treatment, bacterial meningitis remains the most serious infection of the central nervous system (CNS) that poses a serious risk to life. This clinical dilemma is largely due to our insufficient knowledge of the pathology behind this disease. By controlling the entry of molecules into the CNS microenvironment, the blood–brain barrier (BBB), a highly selective cellular monolayer that is specific to the CNS’s microvasculature, regulates communication between the CNS and the rest of the body. A defining feature of the pathogenesis of bacterial meningitis is the increase in BBB permeability. So far, several contributing factors for BBB disruption have been reported, including direct cellular damage brought on by bacterial virulence factors, as well as host-specific proteins or inflammatory pathways being activated. Recent studies have demonstrated that targeting pathological factors contributing to enhanced BBB permeability is an effective therapeutic complement to antimicrobial therapy for treating bacterial meningitis. Hence, understanding how these meningitis-causing pathogens affect the BBB permeability will provide novel perspectives for investigating bacterial meningitis’s pathogenesis, prevention, and therapies. Here, we summarized the recent research progress on meningitis-causing pathogens disrupting the barrier function of BBB. This review provides handy information on BBB disruption by meningitis-causing pathogens, and helps design future research as well as develop potential combination therapies.
Supplementary Learning Control for Energy Management Strategy of Hybrid Electric Vehicles at Scale

Deep reinforcement learning (DRL) based energy management strategy (EMS) for hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) has shown its effectiveness in energy saving. However, there is a huge gap between simulation and the real application of DRL-based methods due to its uncertainty and low converge speed. This paper proposes a supplementary learning controller (SLC) based on DRL to compensate for an existing rule-based EMS. The proposed SLC searches for an optimal solution for the action which works alongside the rule-based EMS. Due to the existing rule-based EMS, the SLC can get an optimal solution while reducing the uncertainty of algorithm to the system. In order to improve the converge speed, a distributed architecture is designed for the DRL-based HEV SLC at scale. The actor of SLC in each vehicle interacts with its own driving cycle by searching actions according to a shared neural network, and sends the experience to the cloud. The learner in the cloud replays samples of experience and updates the neural network. The performance of the proposed SLC for HEV EMS at scale was demonstrated in different conditions. The proposed HEV SLC is a good step for the DRL-based HEV EMS method transferring from simulation to real application.
Virtual modeling of asphalt mixture beam using density and distributional controls of aggregate contact

The characteristic indicators of aggregate contacts in asphalt mixtures, including the number, orientation, and area of contact regions, significantly affect skeleton morphology and mixture stability. To investigate the influence of indicators on mixture stability, structures with diverse characteristics of aggregate contacts are required. This study proposes an algorithm for the virtual modeling of asphalt mixture beams, which supports the density and distributional controls of aggregate contacts in the microstructure. The methodology comprises three main steps: (1) three‐dimensional models of coarse aggregates conforming to the predefined gradation and volumetric content are randomly selected from a digital library of realistic aggregates, (2) contact relations of aggregates are established during the adaptive arrangement of aggregates in samples with prescribed control parameters of aggregate contact using self‐developed codes, and (3) air voids are randomly scattered in the sample without overlapping aggregates according to the volumetric content of the air voids, and an asphalt mortar model is then constructed using Boolean operations. Four beam samples with different contact characteristics were obtained using the proposed method to conduct simulations of three‐point bending tests. The number and spatial distribution of aggregate contacts in beam models are consistent with the prescribed parameters, showing the reliability of the proposed method for the control of aggregate contact in asphalt mixtures. A comprehensive comparison of the results of the laboratory test and simulations validates the ability of the digital beam to capture the macroscale response of asphalt mixtures. Furthermore, simulation results indicate that the sample with the greatest number and distribution uniformity of aggregate contacts has the largest peak strength and fracture energy, which is beneficial for the understanding of the relationship between the indicators of aggregate contacts and the rutting and fatigue resistance of mixtures.
Assessment of Antifungal Pharmacodynamics

Pharmacokinetic-pharmacodynamic (PK-PD) analysis is of central importance to the progress of an antifungal agent into clinical use. It is crucial to ensure that preclinical studies give the best possible prediction of the way drugs are likely to behave in a clinical setting. This review details the last 30 years of progress in terms of disease model design, efficacy outcome selection and translational modelling in antifungal PK-PD studies. The principles of how PK-PD parameters inform current clinical practice are also discussed, including a review of how these apply to existing and novel agents.
Radial cavity mode excitation in fluorescent core-shell microcavities

In this letter the authors show that the optical mode spectrum of fluorescent dielectric microparticles can be entirely altered by coating the particles with a semitransparent gold layer. While the particles show the frequently observed whispering gallery mode (WGM) excitations without the metal shell, WGMs are suppressed after the coating procedure. Instead, the observed mode spectra can be explained by the evolution of radial modes, which the authors refer to as “spherical Fabry-Perot modes” in analogy to the mode patterns observed in planar Fabry-Perot interferometers.
The Lower Limbs of Sprinters Have Larger Relative Mass But Not Larger Normalized Moment of Inertia than Controls

ABSTRACT Purpose Sprinters exhibit inhomogeneous muscularity corresponding to musculoskeletal demand for sprinting execution. An inhomogeneous morphology would affect the mass distribution, which in turn may affect the mechanical difficulty in moving from an inertia perspective; however, the morphological characteristics of sprinters from the inertia perspective have not been examined. Here we show no corresponding differences in the normalized mass and normalized moment of inertia between the sprinters and untrained nonsprinters. Methods We analyzed fat- and water-separated magnetic resonance images from the lower limbs of 11 male sprinters (100 m best time of 10.44–10.83 s) and 12 untrained nonsprinters. We calculated the inertial properties by identifying the tissue of each voxel and combining the literature values for each tissue density. Results The lower-limb relative mass was significantly larger in sprinters (18.7% ± 0.7% body mass) than in nonsprinters (17.6% ± 0.6% body mass), whereas the normalized moment of inertia of the lower limb around the hip in the anatomical position was not significantly different (0.044 ± 0.002 vs 0.042 ± 0.002 [a. u.]). The thigh relative mass in sprinters (12.9% ± 0.4% body mass) was significantly larger than that in nonsprinters (11.9% ± 0.4% body mass), whereas the shank and foot relative masses were not significantly different. Conclusions We revealed that the mechanical difficulty in swinging the lower limb is not relatively larger in sprinters in terms of inertia, even though the lower-limb mass is larger, reflecting their muscularity. We provide practical implications that sprinters can train without paying close attention to the increase in lower-limb mass and moment of inertia.
Eliciting prior information to enhance the predictive performance of Bayesian graphical models

Both knowledge-based systems and statistical models are typically concerned with making predictions about future observables. Here we focus on assessment of predictive performance and provide two techniques for improving the predictive performance of Bayesian graphical models. First, we present Bayesian model averaging, a technique for accounting for model uncertainty. Second, we describe a technique for eliciting a prior distribution for competing models from domain experts. We explore the predictive performance of both techniques in the context of a urological diagnostic problem.
Forces from the rear: deformed microtubules in neuronal growth cones influence retrograde flow and advancement

The directed motility of growth cones at the tip of neuronal processes is a key function in neuronal path-finding and relies on a complex system of interacting cytoskeletal components. Despite intensive research in this field, many aspects of the mechanical roles of actin structures and, in particular, of microtubules throughout this process remain unclear. Mostly, force generation is ascribed to actin–myosin-based structures such as filopodia bundles and the dynamic polymer gel within the lamellipodium. Our analysis of microtubule buckling and deformation in motile growth cones reveals that extending microtubule filaments contribute significantly to the overall protrusion force. In this study, we establish a relationship of the local variations in stored bending energy and deformation characteristics to growth cone morphology and retrograde actin flow. This implies the relevance of microtubule pushing and deformation for general neurite advancement as well as steering processes.
Baseline Gait and Motor Function Predict Long-Term Severity of Neurological Outcomes of Viral Infection

Neurological dysfunction following viral infection varies among individuals, largely due to differences in their genetic backgrounds. Gait patterns, which can be evaluated using measures of coordination, balance, posture, muscle function, step-to-step variability, and other factors, are also influenced by genetic background. Accordingly, to some extent gait can be characteristic of an individual, even prior to changes in neurological function. Because neuromuscular aspects of gait are under a certain degree of genetic control, the hypothesis tested was that gait parameters could be predictive of neuromuscular dysfunction following viral infection. The Collaborative Cross (CC) mouse resource was utilized to model genetically diverse populations and the DigiGait treadmill system used to provide quantitative and objective measurements of 131 gait parameters in 142 mice from 23 CC and SJL/J strains. DigiGait measurements were taken prior to infection with the neurotropic virus Theiler’s Murine Encephalomyelitis Virus (TMEV). Neurological phenotypes were recorded over 90 days post-infection (d.p.i.), and the cumulative frequency of the observation of these phenotypes was statistically associated with discrete baseline DigiGait measurements. These associations represented spatial and postural aspects of gait influenced by the 90 d.p.i. phenotype score. Furthermore, associations were found between these gait parameters with sex and outcomes considered to show resistance, resilience, or susceptibility to severe neurological symptoms after long-term infection. For example, higher pre-infection measurement values for the Paw Drag parameter corresponded with greater disease severity at 90 d.p.i. Quantitative trait loci significantly associated with these DigiGait parameters revealed potential relationships between 28 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) and different aspects of gait influenced by viral infection. Thus, these potential candidate genes and genetic variations may be predictive of long-term neurological dysfunction. Overall, these findings demonstrate the predictive/prognostic value of quantitative and objective pre-infection DigiGait measurements for viral-induced neuromuscular dysfunction.
Organic residues from ultraviolet irradiation of interstellar ice analogs

Interstellar ices are widely observed in the infrared spectra of regions where stars and planetary systems form. Photochemical and thermal evolution of these ices is simulated and studied in our labora- tory where the resulting production of complex organic residues is rou- tinely performed. Observations of their variability with slightly differ- ent starting chemical conditions can be performed by means of infrared spectroscopy. Organic residues have interesting chemical properties that make them good potential candidates for prebiotic chemistry. Nu- merous other analytical methods (GC-MS, HPLC, mass spectrometry, etc.) can be combined to refine the knowledge of their chemical com- position and structure. We present here some results on the obtained organic residue resulting from subsequent heating and sublimation of the irradiated ices which show the formation of some macromolecular species.
Synthesis and Significance of Arachidonic Acid, a Substrate for Cyclooxygenases, Lipoxygenases, and Cytochrome P450 Pathways in the Tumorigenesis of Glioblastoma Multiforme, Including a Pan-Cancer Comparative Analysis

Simple Summary Glioblastoma multiforme is a brain tumor with a very unfavorable prognosis, where the vast majority of patients do not survive a year after diagnosis. One line of research that may help in designing more successful therapeutic approaches is the synthesis and metabolism of arachidonic acid, which is then converted into a large number of different lipid mediators, including prostaglandins and leukotrienes (by cyclooxygenases and lipoxygenases, respectively). In this paper, we discuss the synthesis of arachidonic acid in glioblastoma multiforme tumors as well as the significance of lipid mediators synthesized from arachidonic acid, which can increase the proliferation of glioblastoma multiforme cancer cells, cause angiogenesis, inhibit the anti-tumor response of the immune system, and be responsible for resistance to treatment. Abstract Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is one of the most aggressive gliomas. New and more effective therapeutic approaches are being sought based on studies of the various mechanisms of GBM tumorigenesis, including the synthesis and metabolism of arachidonic acid (ARA), an omega-6 polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA). PubMed, GEPIA, and the transcriptomics analysis carried out by Seifert et al. were used in writing this paper. In this paper, we discuss in detail the biosynthesis of this acid in GBM tumors, with a special focus on certain enzymes: fatty acid desaturase (FADS)1, FADS2, and elongation of long-chain fatty acids family member 5 (ELOVL5). We also discuss ARA metabolism, particularly its release from cell membrane phospholipids by phospholipase A2 (cPLA2, iPLA2, and sPLA2) and its processing by cyclooxygenases (COX-1 and COX-2), lipoxygenases (5-LOX, 12-LOX, 15-LOX-1, and 15-LOX-2), and cytochrome P450. Next, we discuss the significance of lipid mediators synthesized from ARA in GBM cancer processes, including prostaglandins (PGE2, PGD2, and 15-deoxy-Δ12,14-PGJ2 (15d-PGJ2)), thromboxane A2 (TxA2), oxo-eicosatetraenoic acids, leukotrienes (LTB4, LTC4, LTD4, and LTE4), lipoxins, and many others. These lipid mediators can increase the proliferation of GBM cancer cells, cause angiogenesis, inhibit the anti-tumor response of the immune system, and be responsible for resistance to treatment.
From committed employees to rebels: the role of prosocial rule-breaking, age, and entrepreneurial self-efficacy

Abstract Exploring the critical but largely overlooked rule-breaking nature of entrepreneurship, we study how a specific form of rule-breaking—prosocial rule-breaking (PSRB), can impact people’s entrepreneurial career intentions. Based on the virtue-based model of entrepreneurial rule-breaking, stewardship theory, and the expectancy framework, we expect that employees’ affective organizational commitment will lead to employees’ PSRB, which, under some conditions, is related to their tendency to quit and start new businesses. Our moderated mediation analyses on time-lagged data from two samples in China support an indirect relationship between affective organizational commitment and entrepreneurial intentions mediated by PSRB and moderated by age and entrepreneurial self-efficacy simultaneously. We discuss theoretical and practical implications.