SIRIS-Lab/unlabelled-sti-corpus huggingface dataset:
Abdennour Benantar (dir.), Le Maghreb et la crise entre les monarchies du Golfe. Une neutralité positive, París, L’Harmattan, 2021, 184 P.

Reseña de la obra de Abdennour Benantar (dir.), Le Maghreb et la crise entre les monarchies du Golfe. Une neutralité positive, París, L’Harmattan, 2021, 184 P.
Reporte de la Sociedad Internacional de Continencia (ICS): Terminología de la Disfunción Neurogénica del Tracto Urinario Inferior en el Adulto (DNTUIA)

Introducción: La terminología para la disfunción neurogénica del tracto urinario inferior en adultos. (DNTUIA) debe definirse y organizarse en un reporte de concenso con base clínica.&#x0D; Métodos: Este reporte fue creado por un Grupo de Trabajo bajo el patrocinio por el Comité de Dirección de Estandarización (SSC) de la Sociedad Internacional de Continencia (ICS), por sus siglas en inglés), revisado perodicamente por pares externos. Todas las definiciones relevantes para la DNTUIA se actualizaron con base en la investigación durante los últimos 14 años. Esto incluyó un proceso extenso de 18 sesiones de revisión internas y externas para examinar exhaustivamente cada definición, tomando decisiones mediante la opinión colectiva (consenso).&#x0D; La traducción al español (México) se llevó a cabo inicialmente, con asesoria de expertos traductores neurourologos posteriormente, reunidos 8 veces y compartido por revisores externos por pares, expertos en redacción, ortografia y gramática.&#x0D; Resultados: Se desarrolló un reporte de la terminología para la DNTUIA, abarcando 97 definiciones (42 NUEVAS y 8 MODIFICADAS). Estos se basan clínicamente en los diagnósticos más comunes. La claridad y la facilidad de uso han sido objetivos clave para que los profesionistas y personal en entrenamiento puedan interpretarlo en todos los diferentes grupos involucrados, no solo en la disfunción del tracto urinario inferior, sino también en muchas otras especialidades médicas. Ha sido el esfuerzo del grupo mexicano para que esta nueva terminología sea comprendida, para todo el grupo médico hispanohablante.&#x0D; Conclusión: Se produjo un reporte consensado de la terminología relacionada con la DNTUIA para apoyar la práctica clínica y la investigación.
A reduction theory for codes and lattices in cryptography

Codes and lattices are two major mathematical platforms to build quantum-resistant cryptosystems. Theose cryptosystems will soon be standardized and deployed, replacing historical solutions threatened by Shor's quantum algorithm.
These new cryptosystems rely on the hardness of finding short vectors in a code or in a lattice, a computational problem called reduction. Our confidence in their security relies on the relentless effort of cryptanalysis: quantifying, elucidating and trying to invalidate such hardness assumptions. 

*My ERC project aims at discovering faster cryptanalytic algorithms and at building better cryptography via the development of a unified reduction theory enabling a systematic transfer of techniques between codes and lattices.* As an underpinning example for this project, I have successfully transferred the seminal LLL reduction algorithm to binary codes, an algorithm still playing a central role in the cryptanalysis of lattices. 

This unified theory will also lead to better mathematical and algorithmic abstractions, improve the clarity, generality, and composability of known techniques. Such qualitative enhancements will also help to obtain quantitative ones. In turn, I will implement these enhancements into open-source libraries, designed for either high-performance or ease-of-use, in order to stimulate further algorithmic exploration by the community.

Beyond algorithms, my approach will also create new connections between existing mathematical theories and the hardness of code and lattice problems. For instance, it leads to consider moduli spaces as a new powerful tool for proving average-case hardness.

By its contributions to both the theoretical and practical aspects of the hardness of lattice and code problems, this project will play a key role in the ongoing transition to quantum-resistant cryptography.
Comparative study of fin geometries for heat sinks in natural convection

In this paper, we investigate the simulation of natural convection heat transfer of a power electronic component mounted on a heat sink. The heat dissipation is ensured by conduction from the base plate to a heat sink through the fins, and subsequently to the ambient air by convection. This work represents a comparative study of four heat sinks configurations having fins of various profiles adapted for dissipating heat by the use of finite element simulation. The four designs used in our simulation are: two types of parallel plate fins (model 1 and model 2), staggered pin fins which composed of circular and square fins, and a plate fin heat sink with some elliptical pins between plate fins. Each heat sink combination are tested by using Aluminum and Copper materials, and then compared with the Graphite-metal which have an excellent anisotropic thermal conductivity. Besides, the temperature distribution and thermal resistance of these heat sinks are compared and analyzed with a temperature input of 60°C. The objective is to determine the best shape of heat sink with a low mass and low thermal resistance. To select the optimum types of heat sinks, twelve models are compared under the same conditions. As result of our simulation, it is found that the Graphite-metal heat sink provides the lowest thermal resistance versus Copper and Aluminum. Furthermore, it appears that, when pin fins of heatsink are elliptical, the capability of heat dissipation is the best.
ACOUSTIC EMISSION MONITORING OF WOOD CHIP REFINERS

By measuring the energy and frequency of acoustic emission from wood chips and fibers being broken down into mechanical pulp between opposing refiner discs, one is able to determine the physical parameters of the refined pulp, observe if rot is present, observe the degree of sulphonation and determine species of wood being refined. The apparatus comprises an acoustical transducer positioned to produce a signal representative of acoustical energy and frequency of wood chips between refiner discs, a filter for filtering out frequencies of the signal below about 25 kHz and a display device to display acoustical energy and frequency from the signal.
INDICATING MEANS FOR A DOOR OPERATOR DEVICE

Indicating means (G) for a door operator device. Said indicating means (G) being for indicating either or both of a door fully opened and/or fully closed condition, said door operator device having drive means (M) for moving the door to said positions in response to operation of initiating means (X) connected therewith, said operator device having circuit switch means (A and B) to switch off the drive when the door has reached either of said positions, and wherein said indicating means (G) is operatively interconnectable with said door operator device to provide said indication when the door is in the respective fully opened or closed condition.
Exceed – european energy efficient buildingdistrict database: from data to information to knowledge

The European Union is undertaking consistent action to enforce and promote energy efficiency in building sector. The new energy efficient constructions, expression of the European efforts to decrease CO2 emissions, represent a growing share of the building stock. Now there is an unavoidable need to learn from what we are doing, or have recently done, to improve the quality and the performances of the future building sector. This proposal plans the creation of European Energy Efficient building & district Database (ExcEED). ExcEED will be a solid and well-structured database with measured and qualitative information from beyond the state of the art buildings. The key aspects of the database will be:
• A set of tools that allows geo-clustered, statistical, and knowledge analysis of the data;
• A collection of tailored Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) that will “transform data into information”;
• The ability to analyse building-district interaction;
• The existence of the database and associated analyses will be guaranteed beyond the project conclusion thanks to a model of financial self-support; 
• The ability to continuously gather new data thanks to specific features (e.g. occupant surveys) that increase project visibility among designers with interest in the major rating schemes (e.g. LEED);
• The connection with the major EU financed databases on buildings (i.e. Building Observatory). 
The advanced tools and KPIs associated to the database will allow the analysis of energy performance and environmental quality at the level of single building/district, geo-cluster of buildings, and European new or renovated building stock. The analysis will result in knowledge to inform single building managers, designers, and European policy makers.
Achieving SUSTainability through an integrated approach to the management of CULTural heritage

Many valuable heritage sites in the SEE region are under pressure. Cultural heritage is often used to respond to economic concerns (tourism), rarely to valorise culturally a territory, its people, its traditions, its roots. The innovative approach of SUSTCULT is that cultural heritage has a social and ecological intrinsic significance which shall be safeguarded as a source of sustainable development (SD). Improving the effectiveness of cultural sites management is a priority and the common cultural and political challenge to be addressed by SEE partners is the integration of cultural heritage management into planning and development of urban settlements and territories. SUSTCULT's main objective is to improve the effectiveness of heritage sites management through the development, testing and dissemination of an holistic approach capable of valorising the complexity of SEE cultural heritage. The SUSTCULT partnership includes Italy, Slovenia, Albania, Greece, FYROM, Romania and Hungary; it involves 12 institutions with diverse competencies and experience: diversity in cultural management capacity, cultural resources and contexts are valorised and subsidiarity and multilevel cooperation is ensured. Expected results are: Increased awareness among wider public and stakeholders of the SEE heritage value and its potential for attracting financial resources and sustainable growth; Shared knowledge and geo-referenced information on cultural heritage; Transferable framework for the sustainable management of heritage through the development of a common methodology; Greater institutional capacity in managing and promoting heritage; Greater use of ICT for mapping and promoting cultural resources; Improved management and integration of cultural heritage sites in planning instruments; Better understanding and knowledge of market opportunities and strategies for increasing tourist attractiveness of targeted sites and income generation.
Orchestrating cells on a chip: Employing surface acoustic waves towards the formation of neural networks

For the investigation of cell-cell interaction in general and for neural communication and future applications of neural networks, a controllable and well-defined network structure is crucial. We here propose the implementation of an acoustically driven system for tunable and deliberate stimulation and manipulation of cell growth on a chip. This piezoelectric chip allows us to generate a checkerboard-like standing surface acoustic wave pattern coupled to a fluid layer in a microfluidic chamber on top. Such a dynamically induced patterning lattice is shown to allow for the active positioning of the neurons and subsequent guided neurite outgrowth, thus finally overcoming the limitations of static approaches. After thorough characterization of the resulting tunable potential landscape, we successfully demonstrate cell adhesion and even growth of the such positioned cells within the well-defined pressure nodes. We demonstrate neuron growth at predetermined positions and observe a subsequent neurite outgrowth, even being correlated with the artificial potential landscape. For the very delicate and sensitive primary neural cells, this is a change of paradigm! Our experimental findings give us confidence that our hybrid lab-on-a-chip system in the near future will allow researchers to study cell-cell interaction of primary neurons. If scaled to a true network level, it will enable us to control and study how neural networks connect, interact, and communicate.
Electrical neuroimaging of memory discrimination based on single-trial multisensory learning

Multisensory experiences influence subsequent memory performance and brain responses. Studies have thus far concentrated on semantically congruent pairings, leaving unresolved the influence of stimulus pairing and memory sub-types. Here, we paired images with unique, meaningless sounds during a continuous recognition task to determine if purely episodic, single-trial multisensory experiences can incidentally impact subsequent visual object discrimination. Psychophysics and electrical neuroimaging analyses of visual evoked potentials (VEPs) compared responses to repeated images either paired or not with a meaningless sound during initial encounters. Recognition accuracy was significantly impaired for images initially presented as multisensory pairs and could not be explained in terms of differential attention or transfer of effects from encoding to retrieval. VEP modulations occurred at 100–130 and 270–310 ms and stemmed from topographic differences indicative of network configuration changes within the brain. Distributed source estimations localized the earlier effect to regions of the right posterior temporal gyrus (STG) and the later effect to regions of the middle temporal gyrus (MTG). Responses in these regions were stronger for images previously encountered as multisensory pairs. Only the later effect correlated with performance such that greater MTG activity in response to repeated visual stimuli was linked with greater performance decrements. The present findings suggest that brain networks involved in this discrimination may critically depend on whether multisensory events facilitate or impair later visual memory performance. More generally, the data support models whereby effects of multisensory interactions persist to incidentally affect subsequent behavior as well as visual processing during its initial stages.
Computational modelling of the human brain lipidome

The blood-brain barrier (BBB) is a complex interface that separates the central nervous system (CNS) from the circulatory system and serves to maintain brain homeostasis. There are native P-glycoprotein (P-gp) transporters embedded in the BBB endothelial cell membranes, which play a fundamental role in effluxing out xenobiotics. Such protections come at a steep price, since the BBB is a key roadblock in the delivery of treatments for CNS disorder, including brain tumors and Alzheimer’s, while the P-glycoprotein transporter reduces the effectiveness of chemotherapeutics and is responsible for the development of multidrug resistance (MDR). 
The HumBrain project will build the first atomistic model of a human P-gp pump embedded in a realistic model of the BBB membrane, and use molecular dynamics simulations in combination with novel free-energy techniques to provide a mechanism for the modulation of the P-gp pump by substrates and inhibitors, in order to address the origins of multidrug resistance and the origins of the high selectivity of the BBB membranes to molecules. This will be complemented by coarse-grained models to address the issue of protein-lipid modulation and alternative ways to turn off the P-gp. The models will be of sufficiently realistic representation to serve as a starting point for translational research to aid in the experimental development of the next generation CNS modulators and targets.
The HumBrain project will be carried out by an experienced researcher who worked on membrane proteins during his PhD thesis in the UK and the BBB during his postdoc in the USA in conjunction with an experimental laboratory. The experienced researcher will work with a supervisor in Denmark who has a strong background in modelling complex membranes, including neuronal membranes, as well as membrane proteins, and will benefit from the strong network of simulations present in Denmark, while bringing his expertise from USA and the UK with him.
Measuring mobile broadband networks in europe

There is a strong need for objective data about stability and performance of Mobile Broadband (MBB) networks, and for tools to rigorously and scientifically assess their performance. In particular, it is important to measure and understand the quality as experienced by the end user. Such information is very valuable for many parties including operators, regulators and policy makers, consumers and society at large, businesses whose services depend on MBB networks, researchers and innovators.

MONROE proposes to design, build and operate an open, European-scale, and flexible platform with multi-homing capabilities to run experiments on operational 3G/4G Mobile Broadband networks. One of the main objectives of MONROE is to use the platform for the identification of key MBB performance parameters, thus enabling accurate, realistic and meaningful monitoring and assessment of the performance of MBB networks. MONROE also provides WIFI connectivity mimicking multi-homing in smartphones with both MBB and WiFi interfaces, to allow experimenting on different access technologies as well as explore new ways of combining them to increase performance and robustness. The users of the platform are in the core of the MONROE project. First, following the FIRE’s philosophy, MONROE offers a user-oriented closed-loop system design in which the experimental platform is open to external users, and where users are incorporated early on in the experimental design process. Second, MONROE will provide Experiments as a Service (EaaS), thus lowering the barrier for using the platform to external experimenters and users, by providing well-documented tools and adjustable, flexible, high-level scripts to execute experiments, collect results, and analyze data. Interoperability with existing FIRE and FP7 measurement platforms, jointly with the MONROE's effort to develop business and funding models, will guarantee sustainability and usefulness of the platform.
Using Ground-Penetrating Radar to Examine Spatial Organization at the Late Classic Maya Site of El Baúl, Cotzumalhuapa, Guatemala

The Cotzumalhuapa Nuclear Zone (CNZ) is a Late Classic site consisting of three large architectural compounds linked by a series of stone-paved causeways and bridges. The majority of the site, however, lies beneath layers of recent tephra, leaving the structure of this settlement largely unknown. This study uses ground-penetrating radar (GPR) to map the subsurface near El Baul, one of the main compounds, in order to examine the spatial relationship among urban architectural features. Excavation within areas of the GPR survey provides fine-grain detail of one major architectural feature in the region, the Gavarrete Causeway. The complimentary nature of these data sets characterizes the architectural organization of the settlement at two scales. Spatial patterning between large-scale architectural features supports the hypothesis that the CNZ represents an integrated urban center with evidence of planned community organization characteristic of other Late Classic period centers across Mesoamerica.
Mathematical Model of Basal and Agonist-Dependent GIRK Channel Activity

We developed a model of GIRK channel activity. The channel activation scheme was based on sequential non-cooperative binding of 4 Gβγ molecules to channel protein (generating 5 closed states) and Gβγ independent channel opening. The kinetics of Gβγ interaction with subsequent change of channel conformation were adjusted to generate activation time of ∼ 1 s for a step rise in Gβγ concentration. The kinetics of switch from closed to open conformation were derived from single-channel analysis of GIRK1/2 recordings in Xenopus leaves oocytes. For simulation of agonist-dependent channel activation we incorporated the above scheme into a general model of G-protein cycle. This model was derived from that of Thomsen-Jaquez-Neubig. Several features were added: a) receptor was allowed to couple to G-protein in agonist-bound and in free state; b) finite affinity of Gα to Gβγ was assumed in GTP- and GDP-bound states; c) microscopic reversibility was obeyed in cyclic schemes containing reversible reactions; d) the assumption that G-protein concentration exceeded the receptor concentration was relaxed in order to enable simulation of titration experiments. We simulated the time-course of channel activation induced by step change in agonist concentration in presence and in absence of Gβγ-scavenging protein. We also simulated receptor-titration experiments. The results of simulations were compared to whole-cell experiments in Xenopus leaves oocytes. Our model produced realistic time course of channel activation and also demonstrated decremental dependence of activation time on receptor concentration. Comparing the simulation results with those expected from binary shuttle model of channel activation based on considerations of free diffusion of membrane proteins lead to the conclusion that G-protein activation by receptor is probably of catalytic collision-coupling type, while the channel and G protein were either in a tight complex or diffused in a restricted membrane domain.
Interactions between imazethapyr and bovine serum albumin: Spectrofluorimetric study

Abstract The interaction between imazethapyr (IMA) and bovine serum albumin (BSA) was investigated by fluorescence spectroscopy. The Stern–Volmer quenching constant (KSV) at three temperatures was evaluated in order to determine the quenching mechanism. The dependence of fluorescence quenching on viscosity was also evaluated for this purpose. The results showed that IMA quenches the fluorescence intensity of BSA through a static quenching process. The values of the binding constant for the formed BSA–IMA complex and the number of binding sites were found to be 1.51×105 M−1 and 0.77, respectively, at room temperature. Based on the calculated thermodynamic parameters, the forces that dominate the binding process are hydrogen bonds and van der Waals forces, and the binding process is spontaneous and exothermic. The quenching of protein fluorescence by iodide ion was used to probe the accessibility of tryptophan residues in BSA and the change in accessibility induced by the presence of IMA. According to the obtained results, the BSA–IMA complex is formed in the site where the Trp-134 is located, causing it to become less exposed to the solvent.
Solid acid catalyzed synthesis of furans from carbohydrates

The alternative feedstock, biomass (particularly lignocelluloses), having the profuse availability, is promising for the synthesis of several value-added chemicals which are currently obtained from fossil feedstock. In this article, the synthesis of two extremely significant furan chemicals viz. furfural and 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) are discussed. In the synthesis of furans from biomass, numerous challenges, i.e., use of edible sugars as substrates, selectivity to furans, their isolation in pure form, reuse of catalyst, environmental issues, etc., are perceived and in the recent past researchers tried to resolve those by developing advance methodologies. This article comprehensively summarizes the latest progress made in the above-mentioned areas and also provides commentary on the analyses of results, rationale for observed activity and mechanisms, etc. It also discusses future aspects of this work.