Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Ultrasonography based imaging criterion to ascertain pancreatic enlargement in pediatric acute pancreatitis

Imaging studies have shown enlargement of pancreatic parts in children diagnosed with acute pancreatitis. The purpose here is to develop imaging based diagnostic evaluation criterion for acute pancreatitis in children. This study included 62 children of acute pancreatitis in the age range of 0.33 to 13 years, as reported in a single hospital center (1994-2019). A study was planned including 1116 normal healthy children in the age range of 0.16 to 18 years for pancreatic evaluation during 2016-17. Ultrasonography based measurement of three pancreatic parts were obtained for each individual in disease and normal groups. Age-adjusted receiver operating characteristics curve analysis was performed on each pancreatic part independently to derive respective cut-offs using a training set. These cut-offs were further referred to dichotomize the measurement data for each individual and was subjected to multiple logistic regression with presence/absence of acute pancreatitis as dependent variable. A probability score and accordingly the cut-off were obtained indicating a collective impression of enlargement of pancreas in disease condition independently for males and females. On test data, the accuracy of age-adjusted cut-offs for three parts was near 80% for males, while it ranged between 81-85% for females. ROC analysis of probability score resulted into threshold value of 0.024 for males and 0.044 for females, with sensitivity of 94.11% and 90.91% respectively. The classification accuracy of score derived for males and females was nearly same (83%). The extent of enlargement of pancreas in acute pancreatitis in children can be determined using the MLR method along with hypoechogenicity.
Nuclear envelope impairment is facilitated by the herpes simplex virus 1 Us3 kinase

Background: Capsids of herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV-1) are assembled in the nucleus, translocated either to the perinuclear space by budding at the inner nuclear membrane acquiring tegument and envelope, or released to the cytosol in a “naked” state via impaired nuclear pores that finally results in impairment of the nuclear envelope. The Us3 gene encodes a protein acting as a kinase, which is responsible for phosphorylation of numerous viral and cellular substrates. The Us3 kinase plays a crucial role in nucleus to cytoplasm capsid translocation. We thus investigate the nuclear surface in order to evaluate the significance of Us3 in maintenance of the nuclear envelope during HSV-1 infection. Methods: To address alterations of the nuclear envelope and capsid nucleus to cytoplasm translocation related to the function of the Us3 kinase we investigated cells infected with wild type HSV-1 or the Us3 deletion mutant R7041(∆Us3) by transmission electron microscopy, focused ion-beam electron scanning microscopy, cryo-field emission scanning electron microscopy, confocal super resolution light microscopy, and polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. Results: Confocal super resolution microscopy and cryo-field emission scanning electron microscopy revealed decrement in pore numbers in infected cells. Number and degree of pore impairment was significantly reduced after infection with R7041(∆Us3) compared to infection with wild type HSV-1. The nuclear surface was significantly enlarged in cells infected with any of the viruses. Morphometric analysis revealed that additional nuclear membranes were produced forming multiple folds and caveolae, in which virions accumulated as documented by three-dimensional reconstruction after ion-beam scanning electron microscopy. Finally, significantly more R7041(∆Us3) capsids were retained in the nucleus than wild-type capsids whereas the number of R7041(∆Us3) capsids in the cytosol was significantly lower. Conclusions: The data indicate that Us3 kinase is involved in facilitation of nuclear pore impairment and, concomitantly, in capsid release through impaired nuclear envelope.
An Enantiopure Cyclometallated Iridium Complex Displaying Long‐Lived Phosphorescence both in Solution and in the Solid State

A new enantiopure cyclometallated iridium complex bearing a [4]helicenic C perpendicular to C--coordinating and two N perpendicular to C--coordinating dfppy (2-(2,4-difluorophenyl)-pyridyl) ligands was prepared. This complex displayed long-lived phosphorescence both in solution and in the solid state. Its chiroptical properties, namely electronic circular dichroism and circularly polarized luminescence, were also examined. Comparison with former chiral complexes enabled assignment of the Delta(Ir)-(-) and ? (Ir)-(+) absolute configurations.
Déterminant de la croissance pro-pauvre au Sénégal

Les politiques de croissance pro-pauvre sont de plus en plus encouragees partout dans le monde. Dans le but d’atteindre les Objectifs du Developpement Durable (ODD) et du Plan Senegal Emergent (PSE), le Senegal a mene plusieurs politiques de developpement. Ce papier a donc pour objectif d’analyser les determinants de la croissance economique au Senegal entre 1990 et 2016. Pour ce faire, la methode des moindres carres ordinaires et le modele a correction d’erreur sont utilises. Les resultats de la premiere methode montrent que le taux d’inflation, le taux d’ouverture commerciale et la valeur ajoutee agricole sont les variables qui affectent la croissance economique au Senegal. En revanche, les resultats des MCE revelent que l’exportation, l’aide publique au developpement et la valeur ajoutee agricole sont les variables qui expliquent la croissance economique du Senegal a court terme.
Local Feature Descriptors with Deep Hypersphere Learning

Recent works have demonstrated the power of L2 normalization in local feature descriptor learning. While the descriptors are typically learned in the Euclidean space, the similarity between descriptors is often evaluated on a unit hypersphere due to the post-processing of L2 normalization for descriptors, which creates a gap between the training stage and the usage stage of feature descriptors. To bridge the gap, we propose a hyperspherical descriptor learning model, where the whole network is projected onto the hyperspherical space. In addition, a squared angular triplet loss is designed to enable the proposed hyperspherical model to learn angularly discriminative descriptors. Experiments on UBC dataset show that the proposed hyperspherical descriptor outperforms its Euclidean counterparts and the state-of-the-art methods on the feature matching task.
A Low Power Voltage Spike Detection Circuit for Cap-less LDO

ABSTRACT A low-power voltage spike detection (VSD) circuit for a cap-less low-dropout regulator (LDO) is presented in this paper. The LDO is based on the cascoded flipped voltage follower (CAFVF) topology, and the transients in the output voltage are controlled by the spike detection circuits and these circuits get activated only during the transient period. The overshoot voltage spike detection (OVSD) circuit senses the output voltage via intermediate voltage and reduces the current through the power MOSFET by charging the gate capacitance and restores the output voltage whenever the output voltage rises. The undershoot voltage spike detection (UVSD) circuit directly detects the output voltage and increases the current through the power MOSFET by discharging the gate capacitance and restores back the output voltage whenever the output voltage drops. The VSD circuit consumes only a bias current of in the steady state. This LDO is implemented in CMOS technology and achieved a good load transient response with settling time with the maximum voltage spike of over the load current range of to .
Chemical alteration of substrates during initial thermophilic phase of composting.

Composting technologies has been used successfully for treatment of organic waste from agriculture, industrial process and urban activities. Some examples of organic waste are food waste, orange juice process, swine and cattle manure, poultry, sugar cane mill waste, biosolids (sludge). These represent a valuable reservoir of plant nutrients in organic forms, particularly nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P) and sulphur (S). However, before the use of such materials as fertilizers, they must be converted into a stable product free of odours and pathogens, and in a physical form that is suitable for soil application. Aerobic-thermophilic (35-65 oC) composting is a proven technology that can achieve these objectives. Composting as a process involves the biological decomposition of organic matter under controlled, aerobic conditions into a humus-like stable product [1]. The value of a compost as a soil ameliorant can be due to several factors: (i) to improve the chemical composition of soil through the supply of plant nutrients; (ii) to improve the physical condition of soil through lower bulk density, resulting in improved aeration and water holding capacity. Biochemical manifestations occurring during composting process include an increase in humic substances over time, specifically, humic acids. Carbohydrates are the primary source of energy for microorganisms in the process, following by cellulose and hemicellulose. Lignin is degraded through microbial action to smaller polyphenolic compounds and intermediate phenols. The enzymatic action turns these compounds in quinines and later condensed humic acids [1].
Gender, Education, and Attitudes toward Women’s Leadership in Three East Asian Countries: An Intersectional and Multilevel Approach

Despite their achievements in the past few decades, women remain largely excluded from impactful leadership positions in many countries and fields. In this research, we focus on how gender and education shape public opinions that favor men over women for political and economic leadership in three East Asian countries. Utilizing an intersectional theoretical framework and multilevel methodological approach to analyze the World Value Survey data, we investigate the heterogeneous effects of education on gender attitudes between men and women and how such heterogeneity is conditioned by national contexts. We found that the negative association between higher levels of education and traditional gender attitudes is much stronger among women than among men, especially in Japan. National contexts not only directly shape gender attitudes but also modify the main and interactive effects of gender and education on attitudes toward women leadership. This research contributes to the emergent literature on the contingency of intersectionality and highlights the utility of multilevel analysis in intersectional and/or comparative studies.
Fragmented QRS formation may be associated with increased carotid intima-media thickness in patients with end-stage renal disease

Objectives: The aim of this study was to evaluate the relationship between carotid intima-media thickness and the presence of fragmented QRS in end-stage renal disease patients. Methods: The study included 100 end-stage renal disease patients who received hemodialysis treatment. Two groups were formed according to the presence of electrocardiography and fragmented QRS: the fragmented QRS (+) (Group I) and the fragmented QRS (-) (Group II). Echocardiographic measurements of the cardiac dimensions and carotid intima-media thickness were examined. Results: The study population included 41 end-stage renal disease patients with fragmented QRS (48.8% male) and a control group of 59 end-stage renal disease patients without fragmented QRS (35.6% male) on electrocardiography. Left ventricular end systolic diameters (p = 0.012),left ventricular end diastolic diameters (p < 0.001), left atrial diameter (p = 0.001), interventricular septal thickness (p < 0.001), posterior wall thickness (p < 0.001) and left ventricular hypertrophy (p < 0.001), blood urea nitrogen (p = 0.011), creatinine (p = 0.014), uric acid (p < 0.05) and parathyroid hormone (p < 0.05) values were found to be significantly increased in the fragmented QRS (+) group. The right and left carotid intima-media thickness values were significantly higher in fragmented QRS (+) patients than fragmented QRS (-) patients (right:[0.81 ± 0.19] vs [0.62 ± 0.14] mm, p < 0.001) and left: [0.83 ± 0.19 vs 64 ± 0.14], p < 0.001; respectively). Conclusions: In end-stage renal disease patients, the presence of fragmented QRS, left ventricular hypertrophy and increased carotid intima-media thickness are important markers in the evaluation of the inflammatory process of atherosclerosis.
High gain and wideband circularly polarized S‐shaped patch antenna with reactive impedance surface and frequency‐selective surface configuration for Wi‐Fi and Wi‐Max applications

In this paper, broadband circularly polarized S‐shaped patch antenna is designed with a reactive impedance surface (RIS). Besides the RIS structure, the frequency‐selective surface (FSS) superstrate is deployed to enrich the antenna gain. The S‐shaped patch is modeled on an FR4 glass epoxy and its feed position is set to resonate at 5.3 GHz. The 6 × 6 array size of square patches forms the RIS structure which is inserted in the middle of the S‐shaped patch and ground plane to enhance −10 dB impedance bandwidth and 3 dB axial ratio bandwidth. The 6 × 6 array of unit cells forms the FSS superstrate which is deployed approximately half‐wavelength (≈λ/2) height above the ground plane to act like a Fabry Perot cavity (FPC) resonator antenna for improving the antenna gain. The combination of RIS and FSS with an S‐shaped patch antenna improves the −10 dB impedance bandwidth, 3 dB axial ratio bandwidth, and the gain simultaneously. The proposed antenna resonates over a wide frequency range with a −10 dB impedance bandwidth of 31.8% (4.81–6.63 GHz) and the antenna has a good 3 dB axial ratio bandwidth of 18.9% (4.99–6.03 GHz). The antenna peak gain is around 10 dBi. The proposed antenna prototype is measured in the anechoic chamber and the measured results mimic the simulation results.
Microbial reduction of selenium oxyanions: energy-yielding and detoxification reactions

Selenium (Se), a semi-metallic chemical element in the oxygen group (group 16 [VIa]) of the periodic table, can be beneficial – even essential in some instances – for microbes and animals, including humans, when present at a suitable concentration, whereas no essential Se requirement has been shown for higher plants (Lenz & Lens, 2009; Winkel et al., 2015). Se is an essential trace element required for the biosynthesis of seleno-amino acids such as selenocysteine (Se-Cys) (Bock et al., 1991; Gromer et al., 2005) and selenomethionine (Se-Met, the major dietary form) (Schrauzer, 2000). These are potent antioxidants as well as a source of Se for the synthesis of Se-dependent antioxidant and repair proteins such as glutathione peroxidases, thioredoxin reductases, and methionine sulfoxide reductases (Flohe et al., 1973; Kim & Gladyshev, 2007; Mustacich & Powis, 2000; Zoidis et al., 2018). Multiple selenoproteins have been identified in eukaryotes, ranging from yeasts (Tastet et al., 2008) to humans (Papp et al., 2018), but Se is also found in prokaryotic proteins such as formate dehydrogenase from Methanococcus jannaschii (Jones et al., 1983) formylmethanofuran dehydrogenase from Methanopyrus kandleri (Vorholt et al., 1997), and thiol/disulfide oxidoreductase from Geobacter sulfurreducens (Kryukov & Gladyshev, 2004).
Large-Scale Heterogeneous Computing for 3D Deterministic Particle Transport on Tianhe-2A Supercomputer

Scalable parallel algorithm for particle transport is one of the main application fields in high-performance computing. Discrete ordinate method (S n ) is one of the most popular deterministic numerical methods for solving particle transport equations. In this paper, we introduce a new method of large-scale heterogeneous computing of one energy group time-independent deterministic discrete ordinates neutron transport in 3D Cartesian geometry (Sweep3D) on Tianhe-2A supercomputer. In heterogeneous programming, we use customized Basic Communication Library (BCL) and Accelerated Computing Library (ACL) to control and communicate between CPU and the Matrix2000 accelerator. We use OpenMP instructions to exploit the parallelism of threads based on Matrix 2000. The test results show that the optimization of applying OpenMP on particle transport algorithm modified by our method can get 11.3 times acceleration at most. On Tianhe-2A supercomputer, the parallel efficiency of 1.01 million cores compared with 170 thousand cores is 52%.
Fast Hybrid Image Retargeting

Image retargeting changes the aspect ratio of images while aiming to preserve content and minimise noticeable distortion. Fast and high-quality methods are particularly relevant at present, due to the large variety of image and display aspect ratios. We propose a retargeting method that quantifies and limits warping distortions with the use of content-aware cropping. The pipeline of the proposed approach consists of the following steps. First, an importance map of a source image is generated using deep semantic segmentation and saliency detection models. Then, a preliminary warping mesh is computed using axis aligned deformations [1], enhanced with the use of a distortion measure to ensure low warping deformations. Finally, the retargeted image is produced using a content-aware cropping algorithm. In order to evaluate our method, we perform a user study based on the RetargetMe benchmark. Experimental analyses show that our method outperforms recent approaches, while running in a fraction of their execution time.
CHAPTER 1. Structures, Nomenclature and General Chemistry of Carotenoids and Their Esters

Carotenoids are widespread isoprenoids that intervene in actions ranging from the collection of light and photoprotection to the regulation of gene expression and communication within or between species, to mention only some examples. They are, therefore, much more than natural pigments, as they are versatile compounds that are eliciting increasing interest in different disciplines, such as plant science, agriculture, food science and technology, nutrition and health, among others. Although carotenoids in humans are found almost exclusively free, in foods they can be associated with other molecules, like sugars, proteins or fatty acids. Such associations can result in substantial changes in their properties. Indeed, food xanthophylls are commonly found in the form of esters, above all in many fruits. This modification markedly influences properties such as solubility and susceptibility to oxidation, which in turn can have impacts on relevant aspects that explain their levels in foods and humans, such as their biosynthesis, deposition, stability and bioavailability, among others. The study of the esterification of carotenoids is undoubtedly gaining popularity. In this chapter, nomenclature and structural aspects related to isoprenoids, carotenoids, fatty acids and, finally, carotenoid esters are presented, with references to some physical–chemical properties and their importance at different levels.
Density of defect states retrieved from the hysteretic gate transfer characteristics of monolayer MoS2 field effect transistors

Defect states play an important role in low-dimensional semiconductor devices. However, it becomes increasingly challenging to find the density of defect states for ultra-scaled devices using traditional capacitive techniques such as capacitance-voltage (CV) method and deep level transient spectroscopy (DLTS). Here, we proposed a model to quantitatively retrieve the density of defect states from the hysteretic gate transfer characteristics of field effect transistors (FETs), and applied it to monolayer MoS2 FETs before and after superacid treatment. We found that the superacid treatment significantly reduced the density of deep level defects. As a result, the photoluminescence was enhanced 19 folds due to the suppression of non-radiative recombination via deep level defects.Defect states play an important role in low-dimensional semiconductor devices. However, it becomes increasingly challenging to find the density of defect states for ultra-scaled devices using traditional capacitive techniques such as capacitance-voltage (CV) method and deep level transient spectroscopy (DLTS). Here, we proposed a model to quantitatively retrieve the density of defect states from the hysteretic gate transfer characteristics of field effect transistors (FETs), and applied it to monolayer MoS2 FETs before and after superacid treatment. We found that the superacid treatment significantly reduced the density of deep level defects. As a result, the photoluminescence was enhanced 19 folds due to the suppression of non-radiative recombination via deep level defects.
CHAPTER 16. Essentiality, Bioavailability, and Health Benefits of α-Tocopherol Stereoisomers

Vitamin E is the term that describes eight structurally-related vitamers, specifically four tocopherols (α-, β-, γ-, and δ-) and four tocotrienols (α-, β-, γ-, and δ-). Although each vitamer has antioxidant activity that prevents the cyclic progression of lipid peroxidation, α-tocopherol is the only form that is essential for humans because it prevents and reverses clinical deficiency of vitamin E. These vitamers also differ substantially in their bioavailability, which results in α-tocopherol accumulating to the greatest extent in the circulation and tissues in humans. In nature, α-tocopherol exists as a single stereoisomer (2R, 4′R, 8′R- or RRR-α-tocopherol) whereas most dietary supplements and fortified foods contain an all racemic mixture of eight α-tocopherol stereoisomers. Importantly, only 50% of these stereoisomers are appreciably bioavailable, and therefore capable of contributing to dietary α-tocopherol requirements in humans. This chapter will therefore focus on the bioavailability, metabolism, and trafficking of vitamin E forms along the gut–liver axis. It will also discuss their structure–function aspects concerning their ability to contribute to dietary vitamin E requirements and associated health benefits.
Speleothem Records of the Hydroclimate Variability throughout the Last Glacial Cycle from Manita peć Cave (Velebit Mountain, Croatia)

We present stable carbon (δ13C) and oxygen (δ18O) isotope records from two partially coeval speleothems from Manita peć Cave, Croatia. The cave is located close to the Adriatic coast (3.7 km) at an elevation of 570 m a.s. l. The site experienced competing Mediterranean and continental climate influences throughout the last glacial cycle and was situated close to the ice limit during the glacial phases. U-Th dating constrains the growth history from Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 5 to MIS 3 and the transition from MIS 2 to MIS 1. 14C dating was used to estimate the age of the youngest part of one stalagmite found to be rich in detrital thorium and thus undatable by U-Th. On a millennial scale, δ18O variations partly mimic the Dansgaard–Oeschger interstadials recorded in Greenland ice cores (Greenland Interstadials, GI) from GI 22 to GI 13. We interpret our δ18O record as a proxy for variations in precipitation amount and/or moisture sources, and the δ13C record is interpreted as a proxy for changes in soil bioproductivity. The latter indicates a generally reduced vegetation cover towards MIS 3–MIS 4, with shifts of ~8‰ and approaching values close to those of the host rock. However, even during the coldest phases, when a periglacial setting and enhanced aridity sustained long-residence-time groundwater, carbonic-acid dissolution remains the driving force of the karstification processes. Speleothem morphology follows changes in environmental conditions and complements regional results of submerged speleothems findings. Specifically, narrow sections of light porous spelaean calcite precipitated during the glacial/stadial sea-level lowstands, while the warmer and wetter conditions were marked with compact calcite and hiatuses in submerged speleothems due to sea-level highstands. Presumably, the transformation of this littoral site to a continental one with somewhat higher amounts of orographic precipitation was a site-specific effect that masked regional environmental changes.