Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Ventilation for acceptable indoor air quality

About the author John E. Janssen, Member ASHRAE, has served as chairman of SPC 62-1981R since 1983 when an early review of Standard 62-1981 was started. He also served as vice chairman of SPC 62-73R, the committee that produced Standard 621981. Janssen retired from Honeywell after 35 years during which he conducted research on controls for ventilation, temperature control, flowmeters and thermal radiation properties.
A novel method of medium effect for loading incident wave in hybrid ray-tracing/FDTD algorithm

ABSTRACT A novel method has been proposed in this paper, which is going to combine the reflection, transmission, and diffraction of electromagnetic waves as one phenomenon – medium effect. Based on medium effect, medium separation method is proposed as a strengthened algorithm for the ray-tracing/FDTD method and as a key to invisibility theory. For the medium effect, obstacles will be considered as controlled sources, and final results are obtained by calculating those controlled sources. Medium separation method will be used as a new interface for hybrid ray-tracing/FDTD algorithm and as a key compensated soft source to realize the theory of perfect invisibility. It can inject any electromagnetic wave into scatterers directly without TF/SF boundary; hence, it is easy to realize the simulation of part of scatterers with finite size, which is illuminated by electromagnetic waves. The medium effect and the method of medium separation are introduced in detail in this paper. Simulation results obtained by medium separation method are in good agreement with the calculation results by traditional FDTD algorithm.
Genetic susceptibility to high myopia in Han Chinese population

Abstract High myopia is a common ocular genetic disease in the world. The study sought to investigate the effect of the Insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) and Matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9) genes polymorphisms on high myopia in a Han population of China. This study recruited 216 unrelated Han Chinese subjects, including 103 cases with high myopia and 113 controls. Four tagging single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of IGF-1 and MMP-9 genes were genotyped using the Sequenom MassARRAY method. The chi-square test showed that the family history was significantly correlated with myopia. The SNP genotypes were all in Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium (P > 0.05). Among the four SNPs, there were statistically significant differences in the genotype and allele frequencies of rs2236416 between the groups (P = 0.024). The significant associations of rs2236416 between cases and controls also appeared after Bonferroni multiple correction (P = 0.024). Then, there were significant differences in the genotypes dominant model and codominant model of rs2236416 between groups (P = 0.007 and P = 0.004, respectively). rs5742632 showed a significant difference between the cases and the controls in the recessive model (P = 0.037). Our findings indicated that rs2236416 of MMP-9 was associated with myopia in the population. The result suggested MMP-9 gene locus may play a role in myopia.
The sound symbolism of food: the frequency of initial /PA-/ in words for (staple) food

Abstract In different languages around the world, morphemes representing the (cooked form of) staple food or food in general tend to begin with a [+labial] phoneme followed by a [+low] phoneme (/pa-/, /ma-/, /fa-/, /wa-/, etc.). This article provides evidence for this phonological similarity by analyzing 66 sample languages’ morphemes representing the staple food within the society where each language is spoken. About a fourth of the morphemes referring to staple food begin with a [+labial] first phoneme followed by a [+low] second phoneme, which is a much higher proportion compared to another list of basic morphemes in the same 66 languages. I further argue that the motivation for this crosslinguistic tendency is the iconic association between the mouth-opening gesture and the concept of eating.
Detecting Secure Memory Deallocation Violations with CBMC

Scrubbing sensitive data before releasing memory is a widely accepted but often ignored programming practice for developing secure software. Consequently, confidential data such as cryptographic keys, passwords, and personal data, can remain in memory indefinitely, thereby increasing the risk of exposure to hackers who can retrieve the data using memory dumps or exploit vulnerabilities such as Heartbleed and Etherleak. We propose an approach for detecting a specific memory safety bug called Improper Clearing of Heap Memory Before Release, also known as Common Weakness Enumeration 244, in C programs. The CWE-244 bug in a program allows the leakage of confidential information when a variable is not wiped before heap memory is freed. Our approach combines taint analysis and model checking to detect this weakness. We have three main phases: (1) perform a coarse flow-insensitive inter-procedural static analysis on the program to construct a set of pointer variables that could point to sensitive data; (2) instrument the program with required dynamic variable tracking, and assertion logic for memory wiping before deallocation; and (3) invoke a model checker, the C-Bounded Model Checker (CBMC) in our case, to detect assertion violation in the instrumented program. We develop a tool, \toolname, implementing our instrumentation based algorithm, and we provide experimental validation on the Juliet Test Suite --- the tool is able to detect all the CWE-244 instances present in the test suite. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first work which presents a solution to the problem of detecting unscrubbed secure memory deallocation violations in programs.
A False Sense of Security?: Revisiting the State of Machine Learning-Based Industrial Intrusion Detection

Anomaly-based intrusion detection promises to detect novel or unknown attacks on industrial control systems by modeling expected system behavior and raising corresponding alarms for any deviations. As manually creating these behavioral models is tedious and error-prone, research focuses on machine learning to train them automatically, achieving detection rates upwards of 99%. However, these approaches are typically trained not only on benign traffic but also on attacks and then evaluated against the same type of attack used for training. Hence, their actual, real-world performance on unknown (not trained on) attacks remains unclear. In turn, the reported near-perfect detection rates of machine learning-based intrusion detection might create a false sense of security. To assess this situation and clarify the real potential of machine learning-based industrial intrusion detection, we develop an evaluation methodology and examine multiple approaches from literature for their performance on unknown attacks (excluded from training). Our results highlight an ineffectiveness in detecting unknown attacks, with detection rates dropping to between 3.2% and 14.7% for some types of attacks. Moving forward, we derive recommendations for further research on machine learning-based approaches to ensure clarity on their ability to detect unknown attacks.
Robust Anomaly based Attack Detection in Smart Grids under Data Poisoning Attacks

Anomaly-based attack detection methods are often used to detect data integrity or data falsification attacks in advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) of smart grids. However, there is a lack of studies on the effect of data poisoning attacks against the anomaly based attack detectors that depend on some form of machine learning. In this paper, we introduce some data poisoning attack strategies against anomaly-based attack detectors in smart metering infrastructure and show its impact. Specifically, we propose a whitebox and black box approach to poisoning attacks. Then, we propose modifications to improve the robustness of previous anomaly detection algorithms by modifying certain design choices for learning the thresholds for the anomaly detector. Specifically, we offer theoretical insights and experimental proof to explain why and when they mitigate data poisoning. These design choices include both the regression type and the loss function choice. We measure attack mitigation performance with two NIST specified metrics for CPS systems in the test set using a real smart metering dataset. Finally, we offer recommendations on energy utility's best anomaly detector design choices under varying attack parameters.
A STATISTICAL REVIEW OF AVIATION AIRFRAME ICING ACCIDENTS

For years, airframe icing has been recognized as a significant aviation hazard. An occurrence is defined as an accident when the operation of an aircraft, with the intent of flight, results in substantial damage to the aircraft or death or serious injury to any person. In contrast, an incident is an occurrence that influences the safety of an aircraft operation. The NTSB database was used to identify accidents in which airframe icing was either a cause or factor during the 19-year period from 1982-2000, with a factor defined as any condition or situation that played a role in the cause of the accident.
Active Licking Shapes Cortical Taste Coding

Neurons in the gustatory cortex (GC) represent taste through time-varying changes in their spiking activity. The predominant view is that the neural firing rate represents the sole unit of taste information. It is currently not known whether the phase of spikes relative to lick timing is used by GC neurons for taste encoding. To address this question, we recorded spiking activity from >500 single GC neurons in male and female mice permitted to freely lick to receive four liquid gustatory stimuli and water. We developed a set of data analysis tools to determine the ability of GC neurons to discriminate gustatory information and then to quantify the degree to which this information exists in the spike rate versus the spike timing or phase relative to licks. These tools include machine learning algorithms for classification of spike trains and methods from geometric shape and functional data analysis. Our results show that while GC neurons primarily encode taste information using a rate code, the timing of spikes is also an important factor in taste discrimination. A further finding is that taste discrimination using spike timing is improved when the timing of licks is considered in the analysis. That is, the interlick phase of spiking provides more information than the absolute spike timing itself. Overall, our analysis demonstrates that the ability of GC neurons to distinguish among tastes is best when spike rate and timing is interpreted relative to the timing of licks. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Neurons represent information from the outside world via changes in their number of action potentials (spikes) over time. This study examines how neurons in the mouse gustatory cortex (GC) encode taste information when gustatory stimuli are experienced through the active process of licking. We use electrophysiological recordings and data analysis tools to evaluate the ability of GC neurons to distinguish tastants and then to quantify the degree to which this information exists in the spike rate versus the spike timing relative to licks. We show that the neuron's ability to distinguish between tastes is higher when spike rate and timing are interpreted relative to the timing of licks, indicating that the lick cycle is a key factor for taste processing.
Detection of Borrelia garinii in the USA

Borrelia garinii, is a cause of Lyme disease in Europe and Asia. For the first time, we report it in the southeastern United States in rodents. Whole genome sequencing and phylogenetic analysis revealed that USA-located B. garinii is part of a clade consisting primarily of few European and majority of Far Eastern strains. Continued surveillance of wildlife hosts and ticks is necessary to assess the ecological status and public health risks of B. garinii in southeastern US.
Generation of a human ovarian granulosa cell model from induced pluripotent stem cells

Sex development is an intricate and crucial process in all vertebrates that ensures the continued propagation of genetic diversity within a species, and ultimately their survival. Perturbations in this process can manifest as variations/differences of sex development (VSD/DSD). Primary gonadal somatic cells – the ovarian granulosa cells (GCs) in the case of women – represent the absolute model to investigate mechanism of disease in VSDs. Collection of these cells in humans is laborious and invasive, while classical animal models fail to recapitulate the human phenotype and function. Furthermore, in patients with the most severe forms of VSD gonadal cells are totally absent. It is therefore vital to develop an alternative cell-model. In view of this, we established an efficient method to reprogram donor-derived urinary progenitor cells (UPs) and differentiate iPSCs into granulosa-like cells (GLCs). The UPs presented a less invasive and high-quality cell source, improving the clinical applicability of the model along with utilising a non-integrative reprogramming method that eliminates alteration of the original genome. This novel GLC model closely resembles human GCs in morphology and marker gene expression of GC cell-fate and essential function. These results provide the prospect to generate patient-specific personalised GC models to investigate mechanism of disease in VSDs and could improve understanding of the intricacies in female gonadal development.
Evidence of divergent selection in a parasite due to its host immunological respond

We investigated if an immunological response (i.e. fibrosis) in threespine stickleback fish can cause divergent selection in its tapeworm Schistocephalus solidus. We pooled tapeworms from six populations in Vancouver Island (BC, Canada) and sequenced the whole genome of these pools. Then we used a modified Population Branch Statistics (PBS) technique based on FST comparisons to find loci under divergent selection due to fibrosis. We found at least eight loci under divergent selection in tapeworm populations caused by this strong immunological respond to infection from the fish.
Systematic Review on Cybersecurity Risks and Behaviours: Methodological Approaches

This paper presents a systematic literature review regarding risk perception and precautionary behaviour related to cybersecurity. Objectives encompassed identifying issues related to methodological approaches, the studies’ operationalisation and other essential topics, highlighting significant gaps to be fulfilled in future investigations. The study included a search in the multidisciplinary databases of Science Direct, Web of Science, and the Scientific Repositories of Open Access in Portugal, focusing on publications after 2016. A total of nine articles were analysed. The review was developed using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-analysis Protocols’ research method. Also, publications were coded using the NVivo 12 software for synthesising the results. The small number of studies considered for analysis revealed that risk perception and precautionary behaviour concerning cybersecurity is still an under-explored study area. Furthermore, methodological gaps are highlighted for future works. Studies in the cybersecurity field provide a dataset for policymakers, directing efforts and predicting responses to digital technologies, making this subject matter highly substantial.
Application of Smartphone Otoscope in Telemedicine in Rural Medical Consortium in Eastern China in the COVID-19 Era

Purpose This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of smartphone otoscope telemedicine in the rural medical consortium in East China in the COVID-19 era. Methods This prospective study was conducted within a rural medical consortium that provides health care services by integrating medical resources in the same area. When a patient visited primary health care (PHC) for ear diseases, the PHC provider used a smartphone otoscope to examine the patient's external ear canal and eardrum, and then sent photos or videos of the patient's ear to the otolaryngologist at the lead hospital via WeChat group. The otolaryngologist provided remote diagnosis and management recommendations to the PHC provider. The following data were recorded: age and gender, outpatient diagnosis, disease duration, sides, duration of treatment, telemedicine visits, treatment outcomes, patient satisfaction, and PHC providers' self-evaluation score. Results A total of 83 patients were included in the study, including 43 males and 40 females, with a mean age of 44.6 ± 19.7 years (range 3–83 years). The duration of treatment for these patients was 14.0 (7,14) days. PHC visits were 2.2 ± 1.1 times (range: 1–7 times). Telemedicine visits ranged from 1 to 5, with a mean of 1.8 ± 0.9. Among of patients, 62 (74.7%) were cured, 21 (25.3%) improved, and 0 (0%) were ineffective. Sixty-five patients (78.3%) were very satisfied, 16 (19.3%) patients were somewhat satisfied, and two patients (2.4%) were dissatisfied. Based on the self-reported helpfulness, the primary health care providers assessed telemedicine as very helpful (n = 63, 75.9%), helpful (n = 20, 24.1%), and unhelpful (n = 0, 0%). Conclusions Smartphone otoscope telemedicine in the medical consortium can effectively improve the ability of rural PHC providers to diagnose and treat ear diseases, save time and costs for patients, and improve patient satisfaction.
Experimental Study on Gas Flow in a Rough Microchannel

The shape and relative roughness of a rough surface have an important influence on microscale flow and heat transfer. In this study, a rectangular silicon microchannel (0.8 mm width and 11.9 μm height) with a large width-depth ratio is fabricated by the MEMS micromachining process. The silicon surface of the microchannel and the two-dimensional rough contours of the glass surface are measured, and the fractal dimensions taken as the only quantitative parameter of the surface morphology are calculated. The three-dimensional morphology of the silicon surface is measured by a confocal laser microscope and atomic force microscope. On this basis, a microscale gas flow performance test system is designed and built, and the flow characteristics of nitrogen and helium in rough silicon microchannel are experimentally studied. The experimental results show that the rough profiles of the silicon surface and the glass surface have possessed self-affine characteristics. Both nitrogen and helium show a certain degree of boundary slip when they flow in a microchannel. The degree of slip of helium flow is larger than that of nitrogen flow, which verifies the rarefied effect of microscale gas flow.
Shielding of Photosynthetic Apparatus by Consortia of Bacterial Endophytes in Tomato Plants Suffering From Fusarium Wilt

Fusarium oxysporum is one of the most damaging plant pathogens causing Fusarium wilt in many plants leading to serious economic loss. The fungus colonizes the xylem, which leads to resistance in water flow in the plant thereby affecting the rate of photosynthesis. The present study focuses on the selection of bacterial endophytes isolated from tomato plants and evaluating their potential to antagonize Fusarium oxysporum in tomato in vivo. The results obtained indicated that two endophytic isolates, namely Pseudomonas fluorescens BUMD5 and Bacillus velezensis BUMD9, could act as efficient biocontrol agents (BCAs) as they inhibited the growth of pathogen by 67.2 and 69.1%, respectively, in vitro. Both the isolates were found to produce hydrolytic enzymes chitinase and protease. They also produced siderophore and hydrogen cyanide (HCN). The consortia of both the isolates significantly reduced the infection percentage by about 67% and a 3-fold decrease in disease severity was observed as compared to pathogen control. The treatment of infected plants with these potent isolates was also beneficial in improving the overall photosynthetic performance index (PI). Thus, plants treated with consortia of these isolates exhibited better overall plant growth despite being infected by the pathogen.
Experience-Dependent Egr1 Expression in the Hippocampus of Japanese Quail

The hippocampal formation (HF) is a structure critical to navigation and many forms of memory. In mammals, the firing of place cells is widely regarded as the fundamental unit of HF information processing. Supporting homology between the avian and mammalian HF, context-specific patterns of Egr1 have been reported in birds that are comparable to those produced by place cell firing in mammals. Recent electrophysiological data, however, suggest that many avian species lack place cells, potentially undermining the correspondence between Egr1 and place cell-related firing in the avian brain. To clarify this, the current study examines Egr1 expression in Japanese quail under conditions known to elicit only weakly spatially modulated firing patterns and report robust context-dependent Egr1 expression. These data confirm that context-dependent expression of Egr1 is not dependent on precise place fields and provide insight into how these birds are able to perform complex spatial tasks despite lacking mammalian-like place cells.
Systems-Level Mapping of Cancer Testis Antigen 1b/a to Sarcoma Pathways Identifies Activated Ran Binding-2 E3 SUMO-Protein Ligase and Transducin-Like Enhancer Protein 1

Here we describe the identification of genes and their encoded proteins that are expressed in advanced grade tumors by reconstruction of a sarcoma cancer testis gene 1b/a (catg1b/a) network. CTAG1B/A is an ortholog of the yeast/Drosophila transcription factor Pcc1p, and a member of the KEOPS transcription complex. It has been implicated in telomere maintenance and transcriptional regulation through association with chromatin remodeling factors and is only expressed during adult testis germ cell differentiation. Ctag1b/a is re-activated in synovial sarcomas and myxoid liposarcomas but not in differentiated liposarcomas. We mapped CTAG1B/A protein to sarcoma transcription pathways with gene set expression analysis (GSEA) and using independent samples, we immunohistochemically identified expression of at least two network neighbors, RANBP2, and TLE1, thus validating our approach. This work demonstrates that mapping unknown genes to functional pathways by network re-construction is a powerful tool that can be used to identify candidate oncoproteins.
Akkermansia muciniphila Ameliorates Clostridioides difficile Infection in Mice by Modulating the Intestinal Microbiome and Metabolites

Clostridioides difficile is a common cause of nosocomial infection. Antibiotic-induced dysbiosis in the intestinal microbiota is a core cause of C. difficile infection (CDI). Akkermansia muciniphila plays an active role in maintaining gastrointestinal balance and might offer the protective effects on CDI as probiotics. Here, we investigated the effects and mechanisms of A. muciniphila on CDI. C57BL/6 mice (n = 29) were administered A. muciniphila MucT (3 × 109 CFUs, 0.2 mL) or phosphate-buffered saline (PBS) by oral gavage for 2 weeks. Mice were pretreated with an antibiotic cocktail and subsequently challenged with the C. difficile strain VPI 10463. A. muciniphila treatment prevented weight loss in mice and reduced the histological injury of the colon. And it also alleviated inflammation and improved the barrier function of the intestine. The administration effects of A. muciniphila may be associated with an increase in short-chain fatty acid production and the maintenance of bile acids’ steady-state. Our results provide evidence that administration of A. muciniphila to CDI mice, with an imbalance in the microbial community structure, lead to a decrease in abundance of members of the Enterobacteriaceae and Enterococcaceae. In short, A. muciniphila shows a potential anti-CDI role by modulating gut microbiota and the metabolome.