gebhart/patrepeval huggingface dataset:
Automated Training Sample Extraction for Global Land Cover Mapping (2014)

Land cover is one of the essential climate variables of the ESA Climate Change Initiative (CCI). In this context, the Land Cover CCI (LC CCI) project aims at building global land cover maps suitable for climate modeling based on Earth observation by satellite sensors. The challenge is to generate a set of successive maps that are both accurate and consistent over time. To do so, operational methods for the automated classiﬁcation of optical images are investigated. The proposed approach consists of a locally trained classiﬁcation using an automated selection of training samples from existing, but outdated land cover information. Combinations of local extraction (based on spatial criteria) and self-cleaning of training samples (based on spectral criteria) are quantitatively assessed. Two large study areas, one in Eurasia and the other in South America, are considered. The proposed morphological cleaning of the training samples leads to higher accuracies than the statistical outlier removal in the spectral domain. An optimal neighborhood has been identiﬁed for the local sample extraction. The results are coherent for the two test areas, showing an improvement of the overall accuracy compared with the original reference datasets and a signiﬁcant reduction of macroscopic errors. More importantly, the proposed method partly controls the reliability of existing land cover maps as sources of training samples for supervised classiﬁcation.
Synthesis and characterization of a water‐soluble sulfonates copolymer of acrylamide and N‐allylbenzamide as enhanced oil recovery chemical (2012)

Abstract A novel water‐soluble polymer was prepared by copolymerization and sulfomethylation using acrylamide (AM) and N ‐allylbenzamide (NABI) as raw materials under mild conditions. The effects of ratio of AM to NABI, initiator concentration, reaction temperature, pH, and monomer concentration on the copolymerization were studied. The sulfonates copolymer was characterized by infrared (IR) spectroscopy, 1 H NMR spectroscopy, elemental analysis, and atomic force microscopy (AFM). It was found that the sulfonates copolymer could achieve up to 25%, 30% retention rate of the viscosity at a high temperature (120°C) and a vigorous shear condition (1000 s −1 ). It was also found that the sulfonates copolymer had moderate salt tolerance (NaCl, CaCl 2 , and MgCl 2 ·6H 2 O) and its viscosity could be restored to the original value when the shear rate changed from 170 to 510 s −1 and 510 to 170 s −1 . At last, the enhanced oil recovery (EOR) of the sulfonates copolymer was tested by core flood, and with up to 10.6% EOR was afforded in presence of 5000 mg/L NaCl brine at 60°C. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci., 2013
Superhydrophobic Perpendicular Nanopin Film by the Bottom-Up Process (2005)

We first fabricated the superhydrophobic film with a water contact angle of 178 degrees based on a perpendicular nanopin fractal structure by a bottom-up process. Until now, only materials with an original water contact angle larger than 90 degrees , which is classified as hydrophobicity, could be used to fabricate the superhydrophobic film (>170 degrees ) according to the possible fractal structure by a top-down process. Now, in this work, a water contact angle of about 178 degrees can be achieved using a lauric acid-coated film with an original contact angle of 75 degrees , which is classified as hydrophilicity, based on an ideal fractal structure for the superhydrophobic surface which is fabricated by the nanosize pin with 6.5 nm diameter.
Retinylidene Proteins: Structures and Functions from Archaea to Humans (2000)

Retinylidene proteins, containing seven membrane-embedded alpha-helices that form an internal pocket in which the chromophore retinal is bound, are ubiquitous in photoreceptor cells in eyes throughout the animal kingdom. They are also present in a diverse range of other organisms and locations, such as archaeal prokaryotes, unicellular eukaryotic microbes, the dermal tissue of frogs, the pineal glands of lizards and birds, the hypothalamus of toads, and the human brain. Their functions include light-driven ion transport and phototaxis signaling in microorganisms, and retinal isomerization and various types of photosignal transduction in higher animals. The aims of this review are to examine this group of photoactive proteins as a whole, to summarize our current understanding of structure/function relationships in the best-studied examples, and to report recent new developments.
Lusitanidade e lusofonia: considerações conceituais sobre realidades sociais e políticas (2010)

Lors de sa publication initiale (en français), cet article d'analyse historique et politique prenait place à la fin d'un recueil d'études avant tout littéraires: or il cherchait (et cherche) à prévenir un travers... littéraire d'approche de la lusophonie. Mettant, comme il est naturel, la langue au premier plan, l'analyse littéraire tend souvent à sous-estimer les niveaux sociaux de la langue et les groupes de pouvoir qui y sont associés. Elle tend à conforter l'idée selon laquelle la lusophonie est une dilatation de la lusitanité. Or c'est précisément ce qu'elle ne peut pas être. La lusophonie peut en revanche recouvrir une " identité légère " au sein d'une aire spécifique d'interactions avec d'autres identités.
First experience with sildenafil after Fontan operation (2013)

This initial experience provides evidence that sildenafil may be used in postoperative Fontan operation with positive effectiveness.
Characterisation of an Antibody Relevant to the Neuropathology of Alzheimer Disease (1995)

The specificity of BR88, a polyclonal antibody we raised against amino acids 1-12 of beta/A4 (beta-amyloid protein), has been reexamined in view of a claim made that it cross-reacts with tau-protein, probably the sole component of the paired helical filaments of Alzheimer disease. We have used enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays, immunoblots, and immunohistochemistry, together with appropriate controls, to show that BR88 does not cross-react with tau. This contradicts the claim in question and confirms our previous findings in which BR88 was used to show that some tangle-bearing cells displayed the N-terminus of beta/A4 on their surfaces. The conclusions formed in that earlier work therefore remain intact.
Tetracycline Therapy for Chronic Lyme Disease (1997)

Two hundred seventy-seven patients with chronic Lyme disease were treated with tetracycline for 1 to 11 months (mean, 4 months); the outcomes for these patients were generally good. Overall, 20% of the patients were cured; 70% of the patients' conditions improved, and treatment failed for 10% of the patients. Improvement frequently did not take place for several weeks; after 2 months of treatment, 33% of the patients' conditions were significantly improved (degree of improvement, 75%-100%), and after 3 months of treatment, 61% of the patients' conditions were significantly improved. Treatment outcomes for seronegative patients (20% of all patients) were similar to those for seropositive patients. Western immunoblotting showed reactions to one or more Borrelia burgdorferi-specific proteins for 65% of the patients for whom enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays were negative. Whereas age, sex, and prior erythema migrans were not correlated with better or worse treatment outcomes, a history of longer duration of symptoms or antibiotic treatment was associated with longer treatment times to achieve improvement and cure. These results support the use of longer courses of treatment in the management of patients with chronic Lyme disease. Controlled trials need to be conducted to validate these observations.
Power system basics for business professionals in our industry (2003)

The rapid changes in the business aspects of the electricity industry are making it necessary for engineers to communicate more frequently and more effectively with nontechnical people. With the heightened interest in electric power and energy systems, a broad range of "nonpower" people has expressed a need for a primer on power engineering fundamentals presented in a nontechnical manner. In response, the IEEE Power Engineering Society sponsored the preparation of such a course targeted towards the "business professional." The first offering of this course was in July 2002 as part of the IEEE PES Summer Meeting in Chicago. Power System Basics for Business Professionals was developed to improve the communication process by providing business professionals with a basic level of understanding of terminology and fundamental issues. This tutorial article provides an overview of the scope of the course.
ALTERNATIVE SPLICING: A UBIQUITOUS MECHANISM FOR THE GENERATION OF MULTIPLE PROTEIN ISOFORMS FROM SINGLE GENES (1987)

The Hippo pathway was initially discovered in Drosophila melanogaster as a key regulator of tissue growth. It is an evolutionarily conserved signaling cascade regulating numerous biological processes, including cell growth and fate decision, organ size ...Read More
Improved slow-light delay performance of a broadband stimulated Brillouin scattering system using fiber Bragg gratings (2008)

We present a technique for improving the pulse-delay performance of a stimulated Brillouin scattering (SBS) based broadband slow-light system by combining it with fiber Bragg gratings (FBG). We optimize the physical device parameters of three systems: (1) broadband SBS, (2) broadband SBS + a single FBG, and (3) broadband SBS + a double FBG for maximizing the delay performance. The optimization is performed under distortion and system resource constraints for a range of bit rates from 0.5 to 8.5 Gbps. We find that an optimized broadband SBS + a double FBG system improves the fractional delay 1.8 times that of the broadband SBS system at an optimum bit rate of 3 Gbps. Also, pump power consumption is reduced by 15% as compared to the broadband SBS system at the same bit rate.
Nonlinearly limited saturable-absorber mode locking of an erbium fiber laser (1999)

We describe an erbium fiber laser that is passively mode locked by a novel, precision antireflection-coated semiconductor saturable-absorber mirror that incorporates an additional two-photon absorber. It is shown that passive mode locking evolves from a Q-switching instability. The results are achieved by use of saturable absorbers that provide a large (15%) nonlinear (saturable) loss. Exploiting two-photon absorption can substantially reduce the peak power of the Q-switched pulses, which results in improved reliability of the laser. Moreover, two-photon absorption can be used to produce an optimal stability range for saturable-absorber mode locking.
High Efficiency Solution Processed Sintered CdTe Nanocrystal Solar Cells: The Role of Interfaces (2013)

Solution processing of photovoltaic semiconducting layers offers the potential for drastic cost reduction through improved materials utilization and high device throughput. One compelling solution-based processing strategy utilizes semiconductor layers produced by sintering nanocrystals into large-grain semiconductors at relatively low temperatures. Using n-ZnO/p-CdTe as a model system, we fabricate sintered CdTe nanocrystal solar cells processed at 350 °C with power conversion efficiencies (PCE) as high as 12.3%. JSC of over 25 mA cm(-2) are achieved, which are comparable or higher than those achieved using traditional, close-space sublimated CdTe. We find that the VOC can be substantially increased by applying forward bias for short periods of time. Capacitance measurements as well as intensity- and temperature-dependent analysis indicate that the increased VOC is likely due to relaxation of an energetic barrier at the ITO/CdTe interface.
The management of imaging dose during image‐guided radiotherapy: Report of the AAPM Task Group 75 (2007)

Radiographic image guidance has emerged as the new paradigm for patient positioning, target localization, and external beam alignment in radiotherapy. Although widely varied in modality and method, all radiographic guidance techniques have one thing in common--they can give a significant radiation dose to the patient. As with all medical uses of ionizing radiation, the general view is that this exposure should be carefully managed. The philosophy for dose management adopted by the diagnostic imaging community is summarized by the acronym ALARA, i.e., as low as reasonably achievable. But unlike the general situation with diagnostic imaging and image-guided surgery, image-guided radiotherapy (IGRT) adds the imaging dose to an already high level of therapeutic radiation. There is furthermore an interplay between increased imaging and improved therapeutic dose conformity that suggests the possibility of optimizing rather than simply minimizing the imaging dose. For this reason, the management of imaging dose during radiotherapy is a different problem than its management during routine diagnostic or image-guided surgical procedures. The imaging dose received as part of a radiotherapy treatment has long been regarded as negligible and thus has been quantified in a fairly loose manner. On the other hand, radiation oncologists examine the therapy dose distribution in minute detail. The introduction of more intensive imaging procedures for IGRT now obligates the clinician to evaluate therapeutic and imaging doses in a more balanced manner. This task group is charged with addressing the issue of radiation dose delivered via image guidance techniques during radiotherapy. The group has developed this charge into three objectives: (1) Compile an overview of image-guidance techniques and their associated radiation dose levels, to provide the clinician using a particular set of image guidance techniques with enough data to estimate the total diagnostic dose for a specific treatment scenario, (2) identify ways to reduce the total imaging dose without sacrificing essential imaging information, and (3) recommend optimization strategies to trade off imaging dose with improvements in therapeutic dose delivery. The end goal is to enable the design of image guidance regimens that are as effective and efficient as possible.
Contribution of IL-6 to the antiproliferative effect of IL-1 and tumor necrosis factor on tumor cell lines. (1989)

Abstract The role of IL-6 in the antiproliferative effect of IL-1 for tumor cell lines was investigated using IL-1-sensitive cell lines. Human recombinant IL-1 alpha and IL-6 both inhibited the growth of an IL-1-sensitive cloned human melanoma cell line (A375-C6). However, IL-1 has greater maximum growth inhibitory activity than IL-6. Conditioned medium of the tumor cells that were treated with IL-1 contained IL-6 as determined by ELISA. Northern blot analysis revealed that IL-6 mRNA expression increased in IL-1-treated cells. In addition, antibody against human IL-6 neutralized about 50% of the antiproliferative effect of IL-1. The growth of an IL-1-resistant clone of A375 cells (A375-C5), which cannot be shown to express any detectable IL-1R, was inhibited by IL-6 to the same degree as A375-C6 cells. The A375-C5 cell line did not produce IL-6 or increase IL-6 mRNA after stimulation with IL-1. These results indicate that IL-6 mediates in part the antiproliferative effect of IL-1 on A375-C6 cells by acting as an autocrine antiproliferative factor. IL-1 also inhibited the growth of a malignant human mammary cell line (MDA-MB-415). IL-6 exhibited only slight growth inhibition in this cell line. Neither IL-6 production nor IL-6 mRNA expression was induced in this cell line by IL-1. Antibody against IL-6 did not neutralize the antiproliferative effect of IL-1. Therefore, for MDA-MB-415 cells IL-6 appeared not to be involved in the antiproliferative effect of IL-1. These results indicate that the antiproliferative effect of IL-1 involves at least two pathways, one IL-6 dependent and another IL-6 independent. The contribution of IL-6 to the antiproliferative effect of TNF was also examined. IL-6 appeared not to play a role in the antiproliferative effect of TNF in these cell lines.
Characterization of cytomegalovirus pp65-HLA-A24 peptide-specific CTL lines from metastatic melanoma patients (2009)

Because of advances in immunological technology for detecting a very small number of blood CTL cells, clinicians have been able to monitor cellular immunity against CMV and evaluate the status of CMV infections in highly advanced cancer patients or transplant recipients. Our previous study using healthy volunteer PBLs revealed a significant increase in CMV HLA-A24 tetramer+ CTLs after stimulation in vitro with autologous DCs. However, the efficiency of CMV A24 peptide-specific CTL expansion in highly advanced cancer patients has yet to be studied in detail. In the present study, we tried to characterize and expand HLA-A*2402 CMVpp65 peptide (QYDPVAALF)-specific tetramer+ CTLs from HLA-A*2402+ metastatic melanoma patients, and eventually demonstrated that expansion efficiency was closely related to both post-stimulation CMV tetramer frequency and anti-CMV IgG titer. This is a novel finding regarding in vitro CMVpp65-A24 peptide-specific CTL expansion based on metastatic cancer patient-derived PBLs. Interestingly, the current results using metastatic melanoma PBLs showed a much higher frequency of CMVpp65-A24 tetramer+ CTLs and expansion efficiency than in healthy volunteers. Finally, we were successful in cloning CMVpp65 HLA-A24 peptide-specific TCR cDNAs from in vitro expanded CTL lines derived from melanoma patients. Additionally, CMVpp65 HLA-A24 peptide-specific TCR cDNA was transduced into naive T cells from patients and functionally reconstructed. The results showed that cloned CMV-specific TCR genes were efficient in reconstituting specific anti-CMV activity and might be good tools for adoptive immunotherapy against CMV infections.
Molecular Cloning of the Helodermin and Exendin-4 cDNAs in the Lizard (1998)

Helodermin and exendin-4, two peptides isolated from the salivary gland of the Gila monster, Heloderma suspectum, are approximately 50% homologous to vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP) and glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1), respectively, and interact with the mammalian receptors for VIP and GLP-1 with equal or higher affinity and efficacy. Immunohistochemical studies suggested the presence of helodermin-like peptides in mammals. To determine whether helodermin and exendin-4 are present in mammals and their evolutionary relationship to VIP and GLP-1, their cDNAs were first cloned from Gila monster salivary gland. Northern blots and reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction of multiple Gila monster tissues identified approximately 500-base pair transcripts only from salivary gland. Both helodermin and exendin-4 full-length cDNAs were approximately 500 base pairs long, and they encoded precursor proteins containing the entire amino acid sequence of helodermin and exendin-4, as well as a 44- or 45-amino acid N-terminal extension peptide, respectively, having approximately 60% homology. The size and structural organization of these cDNAs indicated that they were closely related to one another but markedly different from known cDNAs for the VIP/GLP-1 peptide family previously identified in both lower and higher evolved species. Cloning of the Gila monster VIP/peptide histidine isoleucine, pituitary adenylate cyclase activating polypeptide, and glucagon/GLP-1 cDNAs and Southern blotting of Gila monster DNA demonstrate the coexistence of separate genes for these peptides and suggests, along with the restricted salivary gland expression, that helodermin and exendin-4 coevolved to serve a separate specialized function. Probing of a variety of rat and human tissues on Northern blots, human and rat Southern blots, and genomic and cDNA libraries with either helodermin- or exendin-4-specific cDNAs failed to identify evidence for mammalian homologues. These data indicate that helodermin and exendin-4 are not the precursors to VIP and GLP-1 and that they belong to a separate peptide family encoded by separate genes. Furthermore, the existence of as yet undiscovered mammalian homologues to helodermin and exendin-4 seems unlikely.
Mechanistic understanding of degradation in bioerodible polymers for drug delivery (2002)

Abstract A new model was developed to understand the mechanism of erosion in bioerodible polymers, which is essential to accurately predict drug release and precisely design controlled release devices. This model takes into account the phenomenon of microphase separation observed for polyanhydrides of certain copolymer compositions, and assumes that erosion is dominated by degradation and, thus, in a system with a fast eroding and a slow eroding species, two rate constants—one for each species—essentially control the evolution of the polymer microstructure. Expressions were derived for the fraction of each monomer released, as well as for the porosity in the system. A partition coefficient accounts for thermodynamic partitioning of a drug into the microdomains. The solutions of the model equations were fitted to experimental data on monomer release kinetics from two polyanhydride systems to obtain the erosion rate constants. Drug release kinetics experiments are compared to the model solution for drug release, and the partition coefficient of the drug is obtained from the fits. The comparisons to the data are promising, while pointing out the limitations of the model. The model does not account for oligomer formation prior to monomer release or for the dependence of the rate constants on parameters such as the degree of crystallinity, the local pH, and the polymer molecular weight.