gebhart/patrepeval huggingface dataset:
Phrase splicing and variable substitution using the IBM trainable speech synthesis system (1999)

This paper describes a phrase splicing and variable substitution system which offers an intermediate form of automated speech production lying in-between the extremes of recorded utterance playback and full text-to-speech synthesis. The system incorporates a trainable speech synthesiser and an application specific set of pre-recorded phrases. The text to be synthesised is converted to a phone sequence using phone sequences present in the pre-recorded phrases wherever possible, and a pronunciation dictionary elsewhere. The synthesis inventory of the synthesiser is augmented with the synthesis information associated with the pre-recorded phrases used to construct the phone sequence. The synthesiser then performs a dynamic programming search over the augmented inventory to select a segment sequence to produce the output speech. The system enables the seamless splicing of pre-recorded phrases both with other phrases and with synthetic speech. It enables very high quality speech to be produced automatically within a limited domain.
Isolation and identification of acetic acid bacteria for submerged acetic acid fermentation at high temperature. (1980)

Industrial vinegar production by submerged acetic acid fermentation has been carried out using Acetobacter strains at about 30°C. To obtain strains suitable for acetic acid fermentation at higher temperature, about 1, 100 strains of acetic acid bacteria were isolated from vinegar mash, soils in vinegar factories and fruits, and their activities to oxidize ethanol at high temperature were examined. One of these strains, No. 1023, identified as Acetobacter aceti, retained full activity to produce acetic acid in continuous submerged culture at 35°C and produced 45% of activity at 38°C, while the usual strain of A. aceti completely lost its activity at 35°C. Thus the use of this strain may reduce the cooling costs of industrial vinegar production.
Ultrafast beam self-switching by using coupled vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers (2002)

Dynamic beam switching of vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers (VCSELs) has important applications for switching and routeing in optical interconnect networks. VCSEL arrays of various kinds have been quite extensively researched for tailoring and engineering near- and far-field patterns. In this paper, a new method of directional beam switching is proposed that uses two coupled VCSELs. When two VCSELs are coupled by a small separation and biased at the same steady current near threshold, then the resulting light output is dynamic at an extremely high frequency. The model equations are based on an approximation to the semiconductor Maxwell-Bloch equations. The simulations are for coupled VCSELs operating at 980 nm with circular current apertures of 5.6 μm diameter. Figures of the results will show far-field beam intensity patterns during a cycle of oscillation. The simulation results show directional switching at a speed of about 40 μm GHz and between directions about 8° apart. Results of addition simulations are also presented. Simulations that use two square VCSELs show that the frequency of oscillation increases to 50 GHz and that the far-field pattern remains similar. Finally, for four round VCSELs in a square pattern, two far-field circularly shaped beams moved left and right at a frequency of 50 GHz.
Low complexity texture mode decision method for 3D-HEVC (2015)

High efficiency video coding (HEVC) based 3D video coding (3D-HEVC) is the latest 3D video coding standard under development. In 3D-HEVC, most of coding units (CU) select merge modes as their best modes. However, they still have to check a large number of irrelevant candidate modes in mode decision process, which brings significant complexity. In this paper, we propose a low complexity texture mode decision method for dependent texture views. First, Coding modes of inter-view reference group and upper-depth CU are used to obtain a coarse combination of merge mode coded CUs in the current frame. Then, skip mode coded CUs are distinguished from merge mode coded CUs in the combination. CUs in the combination only check limited modes in mode decision process according to their determined modes. Experimental results demonstrate that the proposed method can achieve average 11.2% of encoding time saving and 69.4% of complexity reduction with negligible rate distortion performance loss.
Soft-robotic arm inspired by the octopus: II. From artificial requirements to innovative technological solutions (2012)

Soft robotics is a current focus in robotics research because of the expected capability of soft robots to better interact with real-world environments. As a point of inspiration in the development of innovative technologies in soft robotics, octopuses are particularly interesting 'animal models'. Octopus arms have unique biomechanical capabilities that combine significant pliability with the ability to exert a great deal of force, because they lack rigid structures but can change and control their degree of stiffness. The octopus arm motor capability is a result of the peculiar arrangement of its muscles and the properties of its tissues. These special abilities have been investigated by the authors in a specific study dedicated to identifying the key principles underlying these biological functions and deriving engineering requirements for robotics solutions. This paper, which is the second in a two-part series, presents how the identified requirements can be used to create innovative technological solutions, such as soft materials, mechanisms and actuators. Experiments indicate the ability of these proposed solutions to ensure the same performance as in the biological model in terms of compliance, elongation and force. These results represent useful and relevant components of innovative soft-robotic systems and suggest their potential use to create a new generation of highly dexterous, soft-bodied robots.
Fluorine and boron co-doped diamond-like carbon films deposited by pulsed glow discharge plasma immersion ion processing (2002)

Fluorine (F) and boron (B) co-doped diamond-like carbon (FB-DLC) films were prepared on different substrates by the plasma immersion ion processing (PIIP) technique. A pulse glow discharge plasma was used for the PIIP deposition and was produced at a pressure of 1.33 Pa from acetylene (C2H2), diborane (B2H6), and hexafluoroethane (C2F6) gas. Films of FB-DLC were deposited with different chemical compositions by varying the flow ratios of the C2H2, B2H6, and C2F6 source gases. The incorporation of B2H6 and C2F6 into PIIP deposited DLC resulted in the formation of F–C and B–C hybridized bonding structures. The levels of the F and B concentrations effected the chemical bonding and the physical properties as was evident from the changes observed in density, hardness, stress, friction coefficient, and contact angle of water on films. Compared to B-doped or F-doped DLC films, the F and B co-doping of DLC during PIIP deposition resulted in the formation of films that possessed a reduced hydrogen concentration and stress, while maintaining a high hardness, low friction coefficient, and high wetting contact angle.
Iterative Interference Cancellation for Co-Channel Multicarrier and Narrowband Systems (2010)

Coexistence of narrowband (NB) and multicarrier technologies will be a major concern in next generation wireless communication systems due to the co-channel interference (CCI) problem. In this paper, an efficient CCI cancellation method is proposed that may be utilized for an improved coexistence. The method treats both co-channel signals as desired signals and enhances them in an iterative manner. Through computer simulations, it is demonstrated that it yields significant gains in the symbol error rate (SER) performance of both the NB and multicarrier systems. Its computational complexity is compared with the complexity of the joint demodulation technique and it is shown to be much lower.
Determination of Intrinsic Dip and Azimuth From LWD Azimuthal-Propagation Resistivity Measurements in Anisotropic Formations (2010)

Summary With the use of both azimuthal-propagation-resistivity (APR) and main- and cross-component data, the resistivity anisotropy and its dip and azimuth angles of a massive formation (anisotropic shale or laminated sand) can be determined. The accuracy of the determined parameters depends on the amount of available data. The minimum amount of data required is two frequency main components and real and quadrature cross components. The boundary effects will distort the solution eventually; however, the anisotropy-enhanced processing will minimize the effects to extend the algorithm to a certain distance away from a boundary.
Investigation of lanthanum scintillators for 3-D PET (2003)

The main thrust for this work is the investigation and design of a positron emission tomography (PET) scanner based on new Lanthanum Halide scintillators. In three-dimensional (3-D) PET the major limitations are scanner dead-time and ability to reject randoms and scatter. Therefore, to reach the full potential of 3-D PET requires a scintillator with good timing resolution and good energy resolution. The new Lanthanum Halide scintillators have very fast decay and very high light output which leads to timing resolution and energy resolution that are both superlative. For application to PET, the authors have constructed pixels with dimensions 4 /spl times/ 4 /spl times/ 30 mm/sup 3/ and have measured energy resolution of 4.6% (fwhm) at 662 keV and a timing resolution (fwhm) of 350 ps, in coincidence with a plastic scintillator. Using a detector based on LaBr/sub 3/, a 3-D PET scanner with 90 cm diameter and 25 cm axial extent is predicted to achieve a sensitivity of 1400 kc/s//spl mu/Ci/cc and a peak NEC count-rate of 120 kc/s using the NEMA NU2-2001 standard. Further, the excellent timing resolution opens the possibility of measuring time-of-flight with sufficient accuracy to reduce the noise propagation during image reconstruction, thus leading to a significant gain in signal-to-noise. Assuming a system timing resolution of 500 ps, one can expect the effective NEC to increase by a factor of 3 for a thin patient (20 cm diameter) and a factor 6 for a very heavy patient (40 cm diameter). Thus, even with lower stoping power than other PET scanners, the combination of excellent energy resolution and timing resolution of LaBr/sub 3/ can potentially lead to a very significant improvement in PET performance.
Airfoil Aerodynamic Performance Modification using Hybrid Surface Actuators (2005)

Global modifications of the aerodynamic characteristics of a commercial transport swept airfoil at cruise (low) angles of attack (when the baseline flow is fully attached) are achieved without moving control surfaces using hybrid actuators that are surface mounted on the pressure side of the airfoil 0.21c downstream of its leading edge. Control is effected by the manipulation of trapped vorticity concentrations that are induced by leveraging the presence of a miniature, O(0.01c) obstruction integrated with a synthetic jet actuator. At Rec = 1.3·10 6 , the operation of the hybrid actuators with maximum Cµ = 0.5 10 -3 results in continuous variation of the pressure drag from 15% greater to 50% less than the pressure drag of the baseline airfoil with minimal lift penalty and consequently an increase of the lift to pressure drag ratio in excess of a factor of two. High-resolution particle image velocimetry measurements at Rec = 6.7·10 5 are used to characterize the evolution of the boundary layer on the surface of the airfoil and estimate the total drag coefficient. It is shown that the overall drag is reduced by 29% and yields an increase in L/D of 27%.
Squamotacin:  An Annonaceous Acetogenin with Cytotoxic Selectivity for the Human Prostate Tumor Cell Line (PC-3) (1996)

The bark extracts of Annona squamosa yielded a new bioactive acetogenin, squamotacin (1), and the known compound, molvizarin (2), which is new to this species. Compound 1 is identical to the potent acetogenin, bullatacin (3), except that the adjacent bistetrahydrofuran (THF) rings and their flanking hydroxyls are shifted two carbons toward the gamma-lactone ring. Compound 1 showed cytotoxic selectively for the human prostate tumor cell line (PC-3), with a potency of over 100 million times that of Adriamycin.
Large shifts in pK <sub>a</sub> values of lysine residues buried inside a protein (2011)

Internal ionizable groups in proteins are relatively rare but they are essential for catalysis and energy transduction. To examine molecular determinants of their unusual and functionally important properties, we engineered 25 variants of staphylococcal nuclease with lysine residues at internal positions. Nineteen of the Lys residues have depressed pK(a) values, some as low as 5.3, and 20 titrate without triggering any detectable conformational reorganization. Apparently, simply by being buried in the protein interior, these Lys residues acquired pK(a) values comparable to those of naturally occurring internal ionizable groups involved in catalysis and biological H(+) transport. The pK(a) values of some of the internal Lys residues were affected by interactions with surface carboxylic groups. The apparent polarizability reported by the pK(a) values varied significantly from location to location inside the protein. These data will enable an unprecedented examination of the positional dependence of the dielectric response of a protein. This study also shows that the ability of proteins to withstand the presence of charges in their hydrophobic interior is a fundamental property inherent to all stable proteins, not a specialized adaptation unique to proteins that evolved to depend on internal charges for function.
Timing Sexual Differentiation: Full Functional Sex Reversal Achieved Through Silencing of a Single Insulin-Like Gene in the Prawn, Macrobrachium rosenbergii1 (2011)

In Crustacea, an early evolutionary group (∼50 000 species) inhabiting most ecological niches, sex differentiation is regulated by a male-specific androgenic gland (AG). The identification of AG-specific insulin-like factors (IAGs) and genomic sex markers offers an opportunity for a deeper understanding of the sexual differentiation mechanism in crustaceans and other arthropods. Here, we report, to our knowledge, the first full and functional sex reversal of male freshwater prawns (Macrobrachium rosenbergii) through the silencing of a single IAG-encoding gene. These "neofemales" produced all-male progeny, as proven by sex-specific genomic markers. This finding offers an insight regarding the biology and evolution of sex differentiation regulation, with a novel perspective for the evolution of insulin-like peptides. Our results demonstrate how temporal intervention with a key regulating gene induces a determinative, extreme phenotypic shift. Our results also carry tremendous ecological and commercial implications. Invasive and pest crustacean species represent genuine concerns worldwide without an apparent solution. Such efforts might, therefore, benefit from sexual manipulations, as has been successfully realized with other arthropods. Commercially, such manipulation would be significant in sexually dimorphic cultured species, allowing the use of nonbreeding, monosex populations while dramatically increasing yield and possibly minimizing the invasion of exotic cultured species into the environment.
Spectral macro-bending loss considerations for photonic crystal fibres (2002)

Both a scalar method and a fully vectorial method have been applied to modelling the bending losses in photonic crystal fibres (PCFs). Due to a decreasing index difference between the core and the cladding towards short wavelengths, an unusual loss mechanism is seen, that is a short-wavelength loss edge. This is verified by measurements. For large-mode area PCFs, the model gives a massive overestimate, never an underestimate.
Powder Metallurgy High Nitrogen Stainless Steel (1999)

High Nitrogen Stainless Steels (HNSS) are a class of materials that possess a unique combination of outstanding strength, ductility, and corrosion properties. In this paper we report on the advantages of producing these materials via inert gas atomization and HIP consolidation. The high homogeneity and microstructural refinement of Powder Metallurgy (PM) processing was employed to produce a series of HNSS alloys with enhanced nitrogen solubility that possess mechanical and corrosion properties that are as good as or better than previously reported results. The high nitrogen solubility was achieved using alloy chemistry modifications and atmospheric nitrogen pressures. A model was generated by utilizing our own database of measured chemistry and property data that predicts nitrogen content and phase stability. Microstructure, mechanical properties, and corrosion properties are presented as a function of alloy content.
Photo-triage: Rapidly annotating your digital photographs (2003)

The Photo-triage application is meant to be an essential part of the digital photography lifestyle. It can fit as a component wherever photo management is done (shell, picture-it, media-center, etc.). The central idea is to facilitate rapid, convenient categorization of one’s personal photos into at least the following categories: hidden/private, majority, highlights, best and/or representative. See figure 1. This application is meant to fill an empty niche in the usage of digital photos: that is, there’s no easy way add metadata to photos to mark them for printing, for sharing, or for slideshows without creating separate versions of the photos and copying into separate folders. We propose a sorting metaphor that will add implicit metadata when one first goes through the photos.
<title>Direct calculation of 2D components of myocardial strain using sinusoidal MR tagging</title> (1998)

A new technique to measure local planar strain in left ventricular myocardium using two-dimensional tagged MR images is presented. This new technique is computationally fast, is fully automated, and generates dense motion estimates. It is based on using a 1-1 SPAMM tag pattern which comprise several one-dimensional sinusoidal tag patterns at different frequencies. A local deformation of the myocardium produces a variation in the local frequencies of these patterns, which can be used to compute strain components in the image plane. Local frequency is measured by scanning certain spectral peaks to create complex images, for which the local frequency is the gradient of the angle associated with their complex data points. The method is demonstrated using both simulations and real tagged MR images, and a discussion of these results and of directions for future research is provided.
Query-Answerin orithms for Information A (1996)

We describe the architecture and queryanswering algorithms used in the Information Manifold, an implemented information gathering system that provides uniform access to structured information sources on the World-Wide Web. Our architecture provides an expressive language for describing information sources, which makes it easy to add new sources and to model the fine-grained distinctions between their contents. The queryanswering algorithm guarantees that the descriptions of the sources are exploited to access only sources that are relevant to a given query. Accessing only relevant sources is crucial to scale up such a system to large numbers of sources. In addition, our algorithm can exploit run-time information to further prune information sources and to reduce the cost of query planning.
The NSWC microchannel electron source program (1992)

The microchannel electron source is currently being developed at the Naval Surface Warfare Center for cold cathode applications which require high repetition rates and short pulse widths. It is based on microchannel plate principles which, in general, allow for fast response times. However, the microchannel plate is generally limited to output currents of less than 10−4 A/cm2. We describe a method to increase the output current from a microchannel device by several orders of magnitude. Our analysis has shown that one can obtain channel current densities of order 1 A/cm2 by constructing the device from a crystalline bulk semiconductor. Carrying the analysis further suggests that current densities can be increased by another order of magnitude by incorporating an appropriate electron injection scheme. Important analytical results, as well as the present status for the fabrication of a proof-of-principle device, are discussed.
Sensitive sex determination assay applicable to bovine embryos derived from IVM and IVF (1993)

A rapid, sensitive method for sex determination which uses nested, allele-specific amplification of bovine zfx and zfy was developed. Accuracy of the sex determination assay was verified with lymphocyte-derived DNA from 24 cattle of known gender. Reliability and sensitivity of the assay in embryonic sex determination were examined by typing duplicate bovine embryo biopsies of 2-8 cells. Sex determination was possible in 38 of 40 biopsies, and agreement between biopsy assays occurred in 17 of 18 cases. Applicability of the sex determination assay was further verified by examining gender of 12 fetuses derived from sexed embryos. Embryonic and fetal gender determinations agreed in 11 of 12 cases with the twelfth yielding an ambiguous result from fetal ultrasound examination.
Synthesis and properties of water‐soluble polyphosphazenes with aminoalcoholic functions (1992)

Abstract Phosphazene polymers with 2‐(trimethylsiloxy)ethylamino, 3‐(trimethylsiloxy)propylamino and 2,3‐bis(trimethylsiloxy)propylamino substituents are described. These polymers have been prepared by reaction of the corresponding hydroxy‐protected aminoalcohol with poly(dichlorophosphazene). Total halogen replacement was achieved only with the 2‐(trimethylsiloxy)ethylamino and 3‐(trimethylsiloxy)propylamino groups. Replacement of remaining chlorine was achieved by subsequent introduction of glycine ethyl ester groups as co‐substituents. The trimethyl silyl‐protecting groups were removed by reaction of the polymer with tetrabutylammonium fluoride. This yielded water‐soluble degradable polyphosphazene derivatives with 2‐(hydroxyethyl)amino, 3‐(hydroxypropyl)amino or 2,3‐(dihydroxypropyl)amino substituents. The structures and physical properties of the prepared polymers were investigated using NMR, IR, and thermal analyses. The hydrolytical degradation of the final water‐soluble polymers was also evaluated. A significant reduction in reduced viscosity and the release of 3‐amino‐1‐propanol was observed during incubation in water at 37°C of the polyphosphazene derivative substituted with 3‐(hydroxypropyl)amino groups.
Thermal Expansion of Sintered Glass Ceramics in the System BaO–SrO–ZnO–SiO<sub>2</sub> and Its Dependence on Particle Size (2016)

The thermal expansion behavior of sintered glass-ceramics containing high concentrations of Ba1-xSrxZn2Si2O7, a phase with very low and highly anisotropic thermal expansion behavior, was investigated. The observed phase has the crystal structure of the high-temperature phase of BaZn2Si2O7, which can be stabilized by the introduction of Sr(2+) into this phase. The high anisotropy leads to microcracking within the volume of the samples, which strongly affects the dilatometric thermal expansion. However, these cracks also have an influence on the nominal thermal expansion of the as-mentioned phase, which decreases if the cracks appear. Below a grain size of approximately 80 μm, the sintered glass-ceramics have almost no cracks and show positive thermal expansion. Hence, coefficients of thermal expansion between -5.6 and 6.5 × 10(-6) K(-1) were measured. In addition to dilatometric studies, the effect of the microstructure on the thermal expansion was also measured using in situ X-ray diffraction at temperatures up to 1000 °C.