SIRIS-Lab/unlabelled-sti-corpus huggingface dataset:
High level synthesis for machine learning

With Deep Learning becoming ubiquitous in our life, running Deep Learning algorithms in real time on an heterogeneous set of hardware platforms is a pressing need in many aspects of our society. While traditional workflows based on standard CPUs and GPUs are established, Deep Learning inference on low-power devices (e.g., cars, smart phones, watches, etc) is gaining more attention. Typically, this would require strong background in electronic engineering to convert a neural network into a Digital Signal Processor. We propose to develop a complete open-software library to automatically convert Deep Neural Networks to electronic circuits, using High Level Synthesis tools. With a large basis of potential applications (e.g., autonomous cars, medical devices, portable monitoring devices, custom electronics as in the real-time data processing system of large-scale scientific experiments, etc.), the hls4ml library would assists users by automatising the logic circuit design as well as by reducing resource utilisation while preserving accuracy.
Transition Regions towards Industrial Symbiosis

Industrial Symbiosis (IS) is a building block of the Circular Economy, a means to sustainable growth increasing resource efficiency and SMEs competitiveness and resiliency (COM(2014) 398 final/2).  

Despite the acknowledged advantages, IS is not yet fully widespread. The challenge TRIS is facing is to enable a systemic uptake of IS in 5 European regions, supporting policy makers to increase the competitiveness of their SMEs by introducing IS practices. To do so, the TRIS consortium will: 
-Identify facilitating elements and obstacles and embed them in (or remove them from) the appropriate policy instruments.
-Reach out and engage with the actors that can drive and/or be impacted by the change and involve them in structured local networks. 

Starting from the knowledge already achieved within the Climate-KIC initiative, TRIS will benefit greatly from interregional cooperation, given the diversity in terms of geography, productive system and maturity of IS practices: the City of Birmingham, project leader, is the most advanced, Hungary and Emilia-Romagna regions have already tested pilot projects, while Småland och Öarna and Valencia regions have approached the topic more recently. Industrial Symbiosis Ltd will play both an advisory and dissemination role, acting as a bridge between the consortium and the European perspective.  

TRIS is determined to cause the following CHANGES and accomplish the following RESULTS:
-Raising awareness on the concepts of IS and its economic and environmental benefits
-Causing a mind-shift and building a cooperation culture in the stakeholder groups (including SMEs and policy actors)
-Standardize IS practices into regional policy instruments
-Launching tangible initiatives in the regions: reaching out to more SMEs, supporting their business with new IS cases/projects, preventing industrial waste production, testing new governance models.
-Bringing IS to a higher position in the European political agenda.
Pronóstico de la tendencia de COVID-19 para 2021 en el noroeste de Argentina

Using a lagged polynomial regression model, which used COVID-19 data from 2020 with no vaccines, the prediction of COVID-19 was performed in a scenario with vaccine administration for Tucumán in 2021. The modeling included the identification of a contagion breaking point between both series with the best correlation. Previously, the lag that served to obtain the smallest error between the expected and observed values was indicated by means of cross correlation. The validation of the model was carried out with real data. In 21 days, 18,640 COVID-19 cases out of 20,400 reported cases were predicted. The maximum peak of COVID-19 was estimated 21 days in advance with the expected intensity.Usando un modelo de regresión polinomial con retraso, que empleó datos de COVID-19 de 2020 con ausencia de vacunas, se realizó la predicción de COVID-19 en un escenario con administración de vacunas para Tucumán en 2021. La modelación incluyó la identificación de un punto de quiebre de contagios entre ambas series con la mejor correlación. Previamente, se indicó por medio de correlación cruzada el lag que sirvió para obtener el menor error entre los valores esperados y los observados. La validación del modelo fue realizada con datos reales. En 21 días fueron predichos 18.640 casos de COVID-19 de 20.400 casos informados. El pico máximo de COVID-19 fue estimado 21 días antes con la intensidad esperada.
Perinatal Protein Malnutrition Affects Mitochondrial Function in Adult and Results in a Resistance to High Fat Diet-Induced Obesity

Epidemiological findings indicate that transient environmental influences during perinatal life, especially nutrition, may have deleterious heritable health effects lasting for the entire life. Indeed, the fetal organism develops specific adaptations that permanently change its physiology/metabolism and that persist even in the absence of the stimulus that initiated them. This process is termed "nutritional programming". We previously demonstrated that mothers fed a Low-Protein-Diet (LPD) during gestation and lactation give birth to F1-LPD animals presenting metabolic consequences that are different from those observed when the nutritional stress is applied during gestation only. Compared to control mice, adult F1-LPD animals have a lower body weight and exhibit a higher food intake suggesting that maternal protein under-nutrition during gestation and lactation affects the energy metabolism of F1-LPD offspring. In this study, we investigated the origin of this apparent energy wasting process in F1-LPD and demonstrated that minimal energy expenditure is increased, due to both an increased mitochondrial function in skeletal muscle and an increased mitochondrial density in White Adipose Tissue. Importantly, F1-LPD mice are protected against high-fat-diet-induced obesity. Clearly, different paradigms of exposure to malnutrition may be associated with differences in energy expenditure, food intake, weight and different susceptibilities to various symptoms associated with metabolic syndrome. Taken together these results demonstrate that intra-uterine environment is a major contributor to the future of individuals and disturbance at a critical period of development may compromise their health. Consequently, understanding the molecular mechanisms may give access to useful knowledge regarding the onset of metabolic diseases.
The Hippocampus of Food-Storing Birds

when we examined sections from our control birds we saw something very striking. The hippocampus was clearly much larger in chickadees than shown in the atlas. Where the canary atlas showed a smooth curve as the dorsal surface of the brain travelled medially and descended between the hemispheres, the chickadees had a large bump. Previous work by many researchers on the songbird brain had prepared us for the idea that regions of the bird brain could vary between species. Song control nuclei vary in relative size between species and it seemed a likely hypothesis that food-storing birds, which can remember the spatial location of thousands of scattered food caches, might have a hippocampus that was bigger than the hippocampus of non-storing birds. With help from the Long Point Bird Observatory in Ontario, Anthony and I began collecting food-storing and nonstoring birds, sectioning the brains and measuring the relative size of the hippocampus. I contacted my former postdoctoral supervisor at Oxford, John Krebs, and John proposed that his team would collect European species in a parallel project. In Canada, Anthony and I, with help from George Wallace and the banders at Long Point, were able to collect individuals of 23 species from 3 food-storing families (chickadees, nuthatches and jays) and 10 non-food-storing families and subfamilies (wrens, kinglets, thrushes, mimids, starlings, warblers, cardinals, buntings, finchIn 1984–1985, Anthony Vaccarino and I performed a number of experiments on the effects of hippocampal lesions on the accuracy of cache recovery in food-storing black-capped chickadees [Sherry and Vaccarino, 1989]. Like most research, the genesis of this project involved many people. I presented a poster on memory for cache sites at the Neurobiology of Learning and Memory meeting in Irvine, Calif. in 1984 and Larry Squire pointed out to me that the obvious next experiment was to test for hippocampal involvement. I mentioned this idea to my friend Michael Leon at the same meeting, noting that I had no experience doing neurosurgery on 11-gram passerine birds and Michael, with his usual aplomb said that was no problem, there were colleagues at my own institution, the University of Toronto, like Alison Fleming, who could easily teach me the surgical skills. Alison introduced me to Anthony, who was working in Alison’s lab as an undergraduate, and we were on our way. We found that hippocampal lesions severely disrupted the ability of chickadees to find their caches. Fortunately for us, the birds continued to make caches and search for them, they just searched in the wrong places. This work formed part of Anthony’s undergraduate thesis and we published the paper in Behavioral Neuroscience in 1989 [Sherry and Vaccarino, 1989]. We had used the Stokes, Leonard and Nottebohm canary brain atlas [Stokes et al., 1974] as a guide to lesion placement but Published online: August 26, 2011
Discovery of novel low-molecular-weight HIV-1 inhibitors interacting with cyclophilin A using in silico screening and biological evaluations

Cyclophilin A has attracted attention recently as a new target of anti-human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) drugs. However, so far no drug against HIV-1 infection exhibiting this mechanism of action has been approved. To identify new potent candidates for inhibitors, we performed in silico screening of a commercial database of more than 1,300 drug-like compounds by using receptor-based docking studies. The candidates selected from docking studies were subsequently tested using biological assays to assess anti-HIV activities. As a result, two compounds were identified as the most active. Specifically, both exhibited anti-HIV activity against viral replication at a low concentration and relatively low cytotoxicity at the effective concentration inhibiting viral growth by 50%. Further modification of these molecules may lead to the elucidation of potent inhibitors of HIV-1.
Transgender and intersex protection from gender-based violence: exploring new directions

This project addresses a pressing issue: violence against individuals who challenge traditional gender norms and expectations. Recently, violence against transgender individuals -whose gender identity differs from their assigned gender at birth– and intersex individuals – whose bodies differ from the average male or female standards- has gained special attention. Such violence is labeled as 'hate crimes', 'transphobia' or 'anti-transgender violence,' rarely addressing its gender-based nature. This may prevent T/I from accessing the protection offered by the gender-based violence (GBV) framework, which is perhaps the most sophisticated system of protection within international human rights law (IHRL) today. Tensions among disciplines and interest groups may account for this. Recently, Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity (SOGI) rights has become the preferred concept to include T/I under the protection of IHRL. In addition, expanding the scope of the concept of gender in GBV beyond women seems resisted. In fact, human rights documents on GBV tend to focus on cis women -born as women and comfortable with such classification- and exclude T/I from such protection unless they ""fit"" such category, forcing their self-identification as male or female. The ‘visibility’ of violence against T/I questions legal conceptualizations of 'men' or 'women', offering a perfect opportunity to explore the potentially exclusionary effects of the m/f binary that exists in IHRL. Revisiting the conceptualizations of gender with this in mind could transform the scope of protection of the current GBV framework by including T/I and also improve the protection of women.
This research takes a comprehensive approach to GBV and SOGI issues, exploring the formal and practical potential of the GBV framework to protect T/I individuals from violence. It entails a socio-legal analysis and incorporates a case study on Argentina, which promotes T/I rights but shows high levels of violence against TG/I.
Integrated and portable image cytometer for rapid response to legionella and escherichia coli in industrial and environmental waters

The proposed project will deploy for the first time a new imaging cytometer platform capable of detecting minute quantity of micro-organisms in industrial and environmental waters. The platform is based on the integration of proprietary technologies available to the consortium partners: an automatic water concentration cartridge combined with a microfluidic cell will provide an adequate sample to a newly designed fluorescence image cytometer whose readings will be recorded and processed using a proper software interface. It will be validated for quantifying Legionella and Escherichia coli (E. coli) population within 120 minutes from obtaining the sample, overcoming in this way the main disadvantage of traditional methods used in laboratories, i.e. long time-to results which can currently last up to 12 days in the case of Legionella and 1 day for E. coli. The targeted detection limit will be 10-100 cells/L and 5-20 cells/100 mL for Legionella and E.coli, respectively. Also, the new imaging cytometer will have a portable form, a size similar to a smart-phone, which will increase its versatility and widen the possibilities of onsite applications. The relevance of the project is clear when one thinks about the high risk of legionellosis in some specific industrial environments, such as cooling waters, evaporative condensers and air conditioning systems and the fact that E. coli is one of the faecal pollution index commonly analyzed for monitoring the presence of waterborne pathogens and hence the quality of bathing waters. From a market perspective, more than 7 million of Legionella analyses are performed annually in Europe while E. coli level is included in all bathing water regulations in different EU countries. CYTO-WATER clearly falls into HORIZON 2020 topic WATER-1-2014/2015: Bridging the gap: from innovative water solutions to market replication and addresses Water Framework Directive (2000/60/EC) and in the Bathing Water Directive (2006/7/EC).
Dual action nanoparticles using microalgae extracts for chronic ulcers

Chronic ulcers are a major cause of morbidity and mortality with increasing prevalence. Ulcer healing is the ultimate therapeutic goal. Control of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and infection prevention are key factors to minimize inflammation and tissue damage in the healing process. The aim of this work is to take advantage of two remarkable properties of the green microalgae C. zofingiensis - the production of the highly antioxidative astaxanthin and a large amount of antibacterial fatty acids (FA) – and to combine them in a new therapeutic lipid nanoparticle for ulcer therapy (Figure 1). Thereby the project increases the pharmaceutical availability of the hydrophobic drug astaxanthin, circumvents its low bioavaliabality and chemical stability, all limiting its pharmaceutical significance until today. Nanoparticles will be characterized for their physical–chemical properties, cytotoxicity, in vitro proliferation enhancement, and wound healing properties toward normal human cells. Antioxidant activity of Dual-NanoMAE on 2D and 3D cell culture models will be monitored with FLIM-ROX, a sophisticated and sensitive technique developed by Prof. Dr. Ulrike Alexiev. Antimicrobial activity of nanoparticles will be evaluated against two reference biofilm forming bacterial strains, Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Finally, the capability of Dual-NanoMAE to promote ulcer healing will be evaluated on a biofilm infected ulcer model based on human cells.
FtsZ1/FtsZ2 Turnover in Chloroplasts and the Role of ARC3

Abstract Chloroplast division requires filamentation temperature-sensitive Z (FtsZ), a tubulin-like GTPase of cyanobacterial endosymbiotic origin. Plants and algae possess two distinct FtsZ protein families, FtsZ1 and FtsZ2 that co-assemble into a ring (Z-ring) at the division site. Z-ring assembly and disassembly and division site positioning is controlled by both positive and negative factors via their specific interactions with FtsZ1 and FtsZ2. Here we present the in planta analysis of Arabidopsis FtsZ1 and FtsZ2 turnover in the context of a native chloroplast division machinery. Fluorescence recovery after photobleaching analysis was conducted using fluorescently tagged FtsZ at wild-type (WT)-like levels. Rapid photobleaching, low signal-to-noise ratio, and phototropic movements of chloroplasts were overcome by (i) using progressive intervals in time-lapse imaging, (ii) analyzing epidermal rather than stromal chloroplasts, and (iii) employing image stack alignment during postprocessing. In plants of WT background, fluorescence recovery half-times averaged 117 and 325 s for FtsZ1 and FtsZ2, respectively. In plants lacking ARC3, the key negative regulator of FtsZ assembly, the turnover was threefold slower. The findings are discussed in the context of previous results conducted in a heterologous system.
Satellite observations of the 2016–2017 eruption of Bogoslof volcano: aviation and ash fallout hazard implications from a water-rich eruption

Satellite data (GOES, VIIRS, MODIS, AVHRR) were used in near real-time during the 2016–2017 eruption of Bogoslof volcano, Alaska, to detect explosive eruptive activity and to characterize the resulting volcanic clouds. This study examines satellite data to estimate volcanic cloud heights and mass eruption rates for 47 of the 70 explosive events. Eighteen of the volcanic clouds reached an altitude in excess of 8.5 km asl, where they posed a potential hazard to aviation. We estimate eruption rates were in the range of 104–107 kg/s. Eruption durations were available for 28 events, and the total mass of these events was 5.7 × 1010 kg. Most of the explosions occurred from submarine vents, producing volcanic clouds with water-rich characteristics in satellite data. We infer that these water-rich (phreatomagmatic) events contained ice-coated ash particles, which changed their visible and multispectral characteristics. Only two of the explosions produced clouds with satellite characteristics that would be considered ash-rich. We conclude that these events were relatively dry eruptions with limited access to ocean water. Although some of the explosive events transitioned from submarine to subaerial vents, we observed no change in the character of the volcanic clouds during these transitions. We speculate that enhanced removal of fine-grained volcanic ash likely occurred due to aggregation, with implications for modeling ash transport and fallout. We conclude that the majority of Bogoslof’s water-rich volcanic clouds did contain volcanic ash despite the lack of conventional “ash signature” in satellite data. This has implications for satellite monitoring of future water-rich/shallow submarine eruptions.
Diamond-Based nanomaterials and nanostructures for advanced electronic and photonic applications

We are proposing a 4-year program of knowledge transfer and networking between Aston University, UK (Aston), Cork Institute of Technology, Ireland (CIT), Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, Spain (ICN2), University of Birmingham, UK  (UoB), Zhejiang University of Technology, China (ZJUT), Nanotechplamsa Ltd, Bulgaria (NPL), B&T composites, Greece (B&T), National Institute for Research and Development in Electrical Engineering, Romania (ICPESA), and Teer Coatings Ltd, UK (TCL). 

The objective of the proposed joint exchange programme is to establish long-term stable research cooperation between the partners with complimentary expertise and knowledge. The project objectives and challenges present a balanced mix between industrial application focused knowledge transfer and development and more far-looking studies for potentially ground-breaking applications of using diamond-based nanomaterials and nanostructures for advanced electronic and photonic applications (D-SPA), including fabrication of diamond nanostructures using 3D printing technology, development of diamond-plasmon hybrid photonic devices and development of biophotonic imaging technology for sensing applications.  No one group in Europe can accomplish each work package alone.  We have to collaborate with each other in order to gain their skills and expertise in these specific areas.
Construcción de una escala sobre igualdad de género percibida en la escuela

Resumen: La estimación con pruebas estandarizadas sobre la creencia del profesorado acerca de la situación actual de la igualdad de género en las aulas resulta de interés para establecer predicciones sobre la práctica real de comportamientos sexistas en los centros educativos.El objetivo de este trabajo fue validar una escala para conocer, desde la valoración subjetiva del profesorado, cuáles son los comportamientos presentes en la escuela que actúan como transmisores de contenidos sexistas en el currículum oculto.Para la construcción de este instrumento se realizó una revisión inicial por parte de 11 expertos y un estudio piloto en el que participaron 221 docentes de centros educativos de la Comunidad de Madrid.Se determinó la fiabilidad y validez de la escala.Los resultados evidenciaron que la consistencia interna del instrumento arrojó un valor de α de Cronbach superior a ,84.El análisis factorial mostró cinco factores que explicaron el 54,5% de la varianza.Las propiedades psicométricas de la escala fueron adecuadas para medir la percepción del profesorado sobre comportamientos transmisores de contenidos sexistas en
Petrochemical Industry: Assessment and Planning Using Multicriteria Decision Aid Methods

A methodology to solve a large and complex problem is proposed. OR methods as Multilevel Planning, Network Techniques, Multicriteria Decision Aid (MCDA) and Mixed Integer Linear Programming (MILP) were used to structure the methodology. One of the principal objectives of this work is reduce the complexity of a large problem and solve it to find the better solution for the decision makers. The methodology is applied to a petrochemical industry of Mexico, which is structured in a network, having different alternative routes of production; each of them having also a different technology. This network begins from the crude oil as raw material in order to produce the basic petrochemicals until finals ones. It has been considered that basic petrochemicals will be produced through a set of Refineries with a high production of basic petrochemicals yield, searching the best configuration among it, according with the needs of basic petrochemicals coming from the final’s and its best route selected.
Augmenting Product Lines

This paper presents a generic approach for automating the augmentation of product lines using model comparison and variability modeling techniques. Product lines are subject to frequent augmentation to include more products. Our approach aims to reduce manual effort involved in this process by automatically suggesting a tentative augmented product line model, which can serve as a baseline for the final product line. The Common Variability Language (CVL), a generic variability modeling language, is used to specify product lines in this approach. The approach applies CVL Compare, a generic approach for automating the synthesis of a CVL-based product line from a set of existing product models. The approach is illustrated with an example from a train control product line.