gebhart/patrepeval huggingface dataset:
System and equipment performance assessment (1995)

Reliability of service has always been of primary importance to electric power utilities and there are many publications which describe the various levels of activity and application associated with providing acceptable service. Assessment of reliability can be divided into the two fundamental segments of measuring past performance and predicting future performance. Both applications involve the collection of system and equipment performance data. The level and complexity of the data collection system is entirely dependent upon the use to be made of these data. There are many reasons for collecting system and equipment performance data. Some of the more popular applications are described. The relationship between power system and equipment performance assessment is also illustrated in this paper using the framework adopted by the Canadian electric utility industry.
The <i>Arabidopsis</i> mutant <i>feronia</i> disrupts the female gametophytic control of pollen tube reception (2003)

Reproduction in angiosperms depends on communication processes of the male gametophyte (pollen) with the female floral organs (pistil, transmitting tissue) and the female gametophyte (embryo sac). Pollen-pistil interactions control pollen hydration, germination and growth through the stylar tissue. The female gametophyte is involved in guiding the growing pollen tube towards the micropyle and embryo sac. One of the two synergids flanking the egg cell starts to degenerate and becomes receptive for pollen tube entry. Pollen tube growth arrests and the tip of the pollen tube ruptures to release the sperm cells. Failures in the mutual interaction between the synergid and the pollen tube necessarily impair fertility. But the control of pollen tube reception is not understood. We isolated a semisterile, female gametophytic mutant from Arabidopsis thaliana, named feronia after the Etruscan goddess of fertility, which impairs this process. In the feronia mutant, embryo sac development and pollen tube guidance were unaffected in all ovules, although one half of the ovules bore mutant female gametophytes. However, when the pollen tube entered the receptive synergid of a feronia mutant female gametophyte, it continued to grow, failed to rupture and release the sperm cells, and invaded the embryo sac. Thus, the feronia mutation disrupts the interaction between the male and female gametophyte required to elicit these processes. Frequently, mutant embryo sacs received supernumerary pollen tubes. We analysed feronia with synergid-specific GUS marker lines, which demonstrated that the specification and differentiation of the synergids was normal. However, GUS expression in mutant gametophytes persisted after pollen tube entry, in contrast to wild-type embryo sacs where it rapidly decreased. Apparently, the failure in pollen tube reception results in the continued expression of synergid-specific genes, probably leading to an extended expression of a potential pollen tube attractant.
CYBERNETIC PREDICTING DEVICES (1966)

Abstract : Predicting programs designed for large general-purpose computers constitute an important new tool in the control of production and economics. Nevertheless, small predicting filters have their own domain of application. They can be realized not only as programs for general-purpose computers, but also as simple analog devices with very fast response. The authors discuss three principal methods of prediction in addition to some others. Prediction of deterministic processes, i.e. extrapolation and interpolation. Prediction of stochastic processes, based on statistical prediction theory. Prediction based on adaptation or learning of the predicting filters. (Author)
Surprise, surprise! (2017)

Introduce children to the excitement of discovering ‘hidden things’ and link picture books with a discovery theme to events in their own life. Can they understand how one clue leads to another?
A comparison of two micromachined inductors (bar-type and meander-type) for fully integrated boost DC/DC power converters (2002)

Two micromachined integrated inductors (bar-type and meander-type) are realized on a silicon wafer by using modified, IC-compatible, multilevel metallization techniques. Efforts are made to minimize both the coil resistance and the magnetic reluctance by using thick electroplated conductors, cores, and vias. In the bar-type inductor, a 25 /spl mu/m thick nickel-iron permalloy magnetic core bar is wrapped with 30 /spl mu/m thick multilevel copper conductor lines. For an inductor size of 4 mm/spl times/1.0 mm/spl times/110 /spl mu/m thickness having 33 turns of multilevel coils, the achieved specific inductance is approximately 30 nH/mm/sup 2/ at 1 Mhz. In the meander-type inductor, the roles of conductor wire and magnetic core are switched, i.e., a magnetic core is wrapped around a conductor wire. This inductor size is 4 mm/spl times/1.0 mm/spl times/130 /spl mu/m and consists of 30 turns of a 35 /spl mu/m thick nickel-iron permalloy magnetic core around a 10 /spl mu/m thick sputtered aluminum conductor lines. A specific inductance of 35 nH/mm/sup 2/ is achieved at a frequency of 1 Mhz. Using these two inductors, switched DC/DC boost converters are demonstrated in a hybrid fashion. The obtained maximum output voltage is approximately double an input voltage of 3 V at switching frequencies of 300 kHz and a duty cycle of 50% for both inductors, demonstrating the usefulness of these integrated planar inductors.< <ETX xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">></ETX>
A self-heated silicon nanowire array: selective surface modification with catalytic nanoparticles by nanoscale Joule heating and its gas sensing applications (2013)

We demonstrated novel methods for selective surface modification of silicon nanowire (SiNW) devices with catalytic metal nanoparticles by nanoscale Joule heating and local chemical reaction. The Joule heating of a SiNW generated a localized heat along the SiNW and produced endothermic reactions such as hydrothermal synthesis of nanoparticles or thermal decomposition of polymer thin films. In the first method, palladium (Pd) nanoparticles could be selectively synthesized and directly coated on a SiNW by the reduction of the Pd precursor via Joule heating of the SiNW. In the second method, a sequential process composed of thermal decomposition of a polymer, evaporation of a Pd thin film, and a lift-off process was utilized. The selective decoration of Pd nanoparticles on SiNW was successfully accomplished by using both methods. Finally, we demonstrated the applications of SiNWs decorated with Pd nanoparticles as hydrogen detectors. We also investigated the effect of self-heating of the SiNW sensor on its sensing performance.
Technical Correspondence (1986)

HUFFMAN CODING I would like to clear up a couple of points about Huffman coding raised in the Technical Correspondence section of the February issue (Commun. ACM 29
A bidirectional AC-DC power converter with power factor correction (2000)

This paper presents new operation and performance of a thyristor-based AC-DC current-controlled boost-type converter that allows bidirectional power handling capability and provides input power factor correction and a near-sinusoidal input current waveform. The new converter can reduce harmonic pollution and disturbance on the supply mains. The feature of bidirectional power flow allows the stored energy in loads, such as motors, to regenerate back to the supply source, leading to an increase in overall energy efficiency and possibly a reduction in the size of the DC link capacitor. The operation is confirmed with the successful implementation of an experimental prototype.
Polarography of Thioacetazone and its Related Compounds. (1963)

Thioacetazone gives 2 steps of 2-electron reduction waves in acid media, which are ascribed to a reductive cleavage of the N-N bond in the protonated thioacetazone and a saturation of the -CH=N- group, respectively. Precedence of the protonation of base on the electrode causes in a kinetic current. In alkaline media, thioacetazone gives other reduction wave due to a 2-electron reduction of the -CH=N- group in the free base, and an anodic wave which are ascribed to the formation of a mercurous complex on the electrode. The reduction waves of benzaldehyde thiosemicarbazone and p-acetamidobenzaldehyde semicarbazone and the first reduction wave of S-methylthioacetazone are also ascribed to the reaction as similar as that of thioacetazone. The second reduction wave of S-methylthioacetazone as well as the reduction waves of S-methylisothiourea and S-ethylisothiosemicarbazide are assumed to be due to the reduction of the RSC=NH group. p-Acetamidobenzaldehyde shows 2 steps of 1-electron reduction waves at pH about 4, which overlap together and diminish at higher pH. Thiosemicarbazides in alkali give and anodic wave due to a reaction with mercurous ion.
IL-12 and Related Cytokines: Function and Regulatory Implications in<i>Candida albicans</i>Infection (2010)

IL-12 is a cytokine with links to both innate and adaptive immunity systems. In mice, its deletion leads to acute susceptibility to oral infection with the yeast Candida albicans, whereas such mice are resistant to systemic disease. However, it is an essential component of the adaptive response that leads to the generation of Th1-type cytokine responses and protection against disseminated disease. This paper presents an overview of the role of IL-12 in models of systemic and mucosal infection and the possible relationships between them.
On the bio-electrocatalytic activity of tyrosinase for oxygen reduction reaction (2013)

The application of tyrosinase, a type 3 di-nuclear copper enzyme, as a catalyst for electrochemical oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) has been explored. During the reaction, O2 binds to the coupled type 3 copper atoms inside the redox site of tyrosinase and gets reduced to water. Besides the lack of the type 1 copper atom in its structure, unlike the multi-copper oxidases, tyrosinase exhibited direct electro-catalytic activity upon employing the electrode as a pseudo-substrate. The electrocatalytic activity of tyrosinase was further enhanced by using catechol/quinone as the redox shuttle for mediated electron transfer. This enhanced bio-electrocatalytic activity of tyrosinase for ORR has been reported in detail, which could open a new frontier in mediated enzyme reactions for biological fuel cell applications.
Novel Si Networks in the Ca/Si Phase Diagram under Pressure (2014)

The rich Ca/Si binary phase diagram is explored here theoretically and over a range of pressures, through four stoichiometries: Ca2Si, CaSi, CaSi2, and CaSi3. The calculations are calibrated by recovering the known P = 1 atm structures (even as they suggest metastable alternatives for some) and by predicting correctly the range of pressures at which CaSi3, which has a positive heat of formation at P = 1 atm, can be synthesized. Ca2Si, in accord with its Zintl compound nature, features isolated Si4– ions then chains until decomposition. CaSi, which begins as a Zintl phase (albeit metallic) chain structure evolves to rings and zeolitic-channel structures, while CaSi2 explores a variety of triply connected Si polytypes to Laves phases with increasing pressure. CaSi3 has a calculated narrow range of stability of 8–18 GPa. Interestingly, all the phases studied are calculated to decompose to the elements at P ∼ 250 GPa. This unusual behavior is traced to the special compressibility of elemental Ca and the backward charge transfer from Si to Ca. All the phases studied are metallic, except that Ca2Si is a semiconductor at 1 atm.
An impedance-matching technique for increasing the bandwidth of microstrip antennas (1989)

The nature of the inherent narrow bandwidth of conventional microstrip patch antennas is considered. It is observed that, except for single-feed circularly polarized elements, their bandwidth is limited only by the resonant behavior of the input impedance and not by radiation pattern or gain variations, which usually are negligible over a moderate 10 to 20% bandwidth. Therefore, broadband impedance matching is proposed as a natural to increase the bandwidth. The maximum obtainable bandwidth is calculated using Fano's broadband matching theory. It is found that by using an optimally designed impedance-matching network, the bandwidth can be increased by a factor of at least 3.9, the exact value depending on the degree of matching required. A transmission-line prototype for a proper matching network is developed. The translation of this prototype network into a practical structure (e.g. a microstrip or stripline circuit) is considered. Practical design examples and experimental results which clearly show the validity of the technique are given.< <ETX xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">></ETX>
Durability with BookKeeper (2013)

Practical systems must often guarantee that changes to the system state are durable. Examples of such systems are databases, file systems, and messaging middleware with guaranteed delivery. One common way of implementing durability while keeping performance high is to use a log to persist updates to the system state. Such systems use the log to reconstruct the system state in the event of a crash. When implementing such a log, if the log is only stored locally, the system state is permanently lost when the server writing the log experiences a permanent hardware failure. BookKeeper is a system that exposes a log abstraction for building high performance, highly available distributed systems. BookKeeper transparently implements replication for high availability and striping for high performance. A Book- Keeper deployment comprises storage servers called bookies, which are designed to serve a large number of concurrent ledgers. BookKeeper is currently an open-source project and is in production use at Yahoo!
Combined therapy of B16(F10) murine melanoma using E. coli cytosine deaminase gene and murine interleukin-4 gene. (1998)

This paper summarizes preliminary results of combining suicide gene strategy (E. coli cytosine deaminase gene--CD) with immunotherapy (murine interleukin-4 gene) for treatment of experimental B16(F10) melanomas implanted into C57Bl/6 mice. The best therapeutic results, inhibition of tumor growth and prolonged survival time of treated vs. control mice, were obtained when plasmid expression vectors containing therapeutic genes were transferred into mice via DDAB/DOPE cationic liposome carrier on the third or fourth day following inoculation of mice with cancer cells. Extension of survival time has been noted in the case of two-gene therapy (as compared with one-gene therapy) of tumors which originated from cells transfected in vitro with CD gene and which were subsequently injected in vivo with IL-4-secreting cells. However, no improvement of therapeutic effect was obtained in case of mice treated with a combination of two genes transferred intratumorally with DDAB/DOPE cationic liposomes as compared to mice treated with a single gene only.
Metallurgical Investigations on Continuous Annealing of Low-carbon Capped-steel Sheets (1975)

Low-carbon (0 .05 -0.06 0 0 C) capped-steel sheets having excellent drawability and ductility have been obtained by a continuous annealing process. Materials suitable for the purpose are low manganese steels ( :0;: 0.25% Mn) with K values of 0 -0.15, where the K value is defined as 55 55 K = Mn(%) -16 00(% ) -3"2 0S(% ) .
Extent of T cell receptor ligation can determine the functional differentiation of naive CD4+ T cells. (1995)

Naive CD4+ T cells can differentiate into cells predominantly involved in humoral immunity, known as T helper type 2 cells (Th2), or cells involved in cell-mediated immunity, known as Th1 cells. In this report, we show that priming of CD4+ T cells bearing a transgene-encoded T cell receptor can lead to differentiation into Th1-like cells producing abundant interferon gamma when the cells are exposed to high antigen doses, while low doses of the same peptide induce cells with the same T cell receptor to differentiate into Th2-like cells producing abundant interleukin 4. Thus antigen dose is one factor that can control the differentiation fate of a naive CD4+ T cell.
Plant-inspired adaptive structures and materials for morphing and actuation: a review (2016)

Plants exhibit a variety of reversible motions, from the slow opening of pine cones to the impulsive closing of Venus flytrap leaves. These motions are achieved without muscles and they have inspired a wide spectrum of engineered materials and structures. This review summarizes the recent developments of plant-inspired adaptive structures and materials for morphing and actuation. We begin with a brief overview of the actuation strategies and physiological features associated to these plant movements, showing that different combinations of these strategies and features can lead to motions with different deformation characteristics and response speeds. Then we offer a comprehensive survey of the plant-inspired morphing and actuation systems, including pressurized cellular structures, osmotic actuation, anisotropic hygroscopic materials, and bistable systems for rapid movements. Although these engineered systems are vastly different in terms of their size scales and intended applications, their working principles are all related to the actuation strategies and physiological features in plants. This review is to promote future cross-disciplinary studies between plant biology and engineering, which can foster new solutions for many applications such as morphing airframes, soft robotics and kinetic architectures.
Intravenous administration of sodium nitrite to healthy volunteers: a single ascending dose study (1998)

De mens wordt in toenemende mate, via de voeding, blootgesteld aan nitraat. De toxiciteit van nitraat is laag. In het lichaam vindt echter omzetting plaats van nitraat in nitriet in het proximale deel van de tractus digestivus. Nitriet is toxischer dan nitraat. Bij evaluatie van de gezondheidsrisico's van nitraat moet dan ook rekening worden gehouden met de omzetting in nitriet en de orale biobeschikbaarheid en toxiciteit van nitriet in het lichaam. De planning was om een orale biobeschikbaarheidsstudie van nitriet uit te voeren. Nitriet wordt in het bloed echter snel omgezet in nitraat onder de vorming van methemoglobine. Vanwege de snelle eliminatie van nitriet zijn dan ook relatief hoge nitriet doseringen nodig om de biobeschikbaarheid te bepalen. Vanwege de door nitriet geinduceerde bloeddrukverlaging en methemoglobine vorming zijn er echter grenzen aan de hoeveelheid nitriet die nog veilig kan worden toegediend tijdens een biobeschikbaarheidsstudie. De geplande biobeschikbaarheidsstudie werd daarom voorafgegaan door een pilot-studie waarin aan 3 proefpersonen opklimmende, intraveneuze doseringen van natriumnitriet gegeven werden. Het doel was om de maximale dosis te vinden die nog veilig aan proefpersonen kan worden toegediend, te weten, een dosis die ongeveer 10-15% methemoglobine induceert. Geconcludeerd kan worden dat een dosis van 0.12 mmol NaNO2 per mmol Hemoglobine (tussen 290 en 370 mg natriumnitriet), waarbij 10.8% metHb werd geinduceerd, de hoogste, nog veilige, natriumnitriet dosis is voor proefpersonen.<br>
Bioética y ética médica: Un análisis indispensable (2007)

21 edigraphic.com La medicina es una praxis tan antigua como la humanidad, que en el transcurso del tiempo se ha basado en diversas clases de «saberes» y conocimientos que aun coexisten –entre ellos el cientifico-tecnico–, y que en general ha tenido como objetivos: aliviar el dolor, curar las heridas, y tambien prevenir y diagnosticar enfermedades, asi como proporcionar tratamiento y rehabilitacion a los enfermos. Por el caracter intersubjetivo de la relacion medico-paciente, en funcion de los fines especificos de la medicina, los medicos identificaron en su quehacer una dimension moral. La praxis medica fue quiza una de las primeras actividades humanas en donde se contemplo la necesidad de establecer preceptos morales por el propio gremio, en lo referente a ciertas nociones acerca de las implicaciones «buenas» y « malas» de una accion medica. Desde entonces las diferentes normas establecidas se han sustentado en la ideologia o cosmovision propia del momento historico y del contexto sociocultural en el que han vivido los medicos que las han ideado. En la practica medica del mundo antiguo, las reglas y actitudes morales exigidas a los medicos tuvieron una fuerte influencia de las religiones vigentes. En la medicina griega del siglo V a.C., por ejemplo, el juramento prescrito por la secta de los medicos hipocraticos establecia una serie de preceptos morales que el medico debia observar en torno a la salud y a la vida del enfermo, como un compromiso con los dioses de la medicina y la salud, pero no con los enfermos ni con la sociedad. A lo largo de la historia de la medicina los propios medicos han establecido diversos codigos morales. En la medicina contemporanea, el primer codigo etico medico (1847) fue redactado por la Asociacion Medica Americana, agrupacion aun existente, y se integraron al texto del juramento hipocratico, elementos de la moral judeo-cristiana, asi como ciertas reglas de etiqueta social. Poco antes de la Segunda Guerra Mundial y sobre todo despues de ella, esta orientacion moral medica quasi religiosa ha sido continuada por la denominada Asociacion Medica Mundial que en 1948 signo una version modernizada del juramento hipocratico conocida como Declaracion de Ginebra. Existen otras declaraciones semejantes por parte de la misma agrupacion que abordan topicos especificos: Declaraciones de Oslo, Tokio, Sydney, Hawai, etc. Tema de reflexion
Isolation and Characterization of Interfacial Materials in Bitumen Emulsions (2006)

Stable water-in-diluted-bitumen emulsions are detrimental to the commercial production of Athabasca bitumen. Isolation and characterization of interfacial materials (IM) from these emulsions are vital in order to reveal the emulsion stabilization mechanism, which is not fully understood to date. Recently, a heavy water method to isolate IM has been developed for model systems containing less than 10% bitumen. In this study, the heavy water method was improved to isolate IM from water-in-naphtha-diluted-bitumen emulsions at a bitumen concentration typically used in the commercial operation (59 wt %). Modification of the method includes an additional naphtha cleaning process for the wet IM cake. The isolated IMs were characterized by a variety of techniques such as elemental analysis, density measurements, thermal gravimetric analysis, infrared spectroscopy, Langmuir trough, and atomic force microscopy. The results show that the IMs isolated from emulsions containing 5% and 59% bitumen, referred to IM5 and IM59 respectively, are quite different. IM59 on surface of water droplets is likely in a monolayer structure, while IM5 in a multilayer structure. Asphaltene-like species could be dominant in IM5. IM59 features a higher H/C ratio and contains more volatiles, more chloroform insoluble components, and clays as compared to IM5. Carboxylates, probably in the form of sodium naphthenates, were detected in IM59 only, which may play a role in monolayer formation in the emulsion from which IM59 was obtained. Combination of monolayer structure and clays is believed to cause the high stability of emulsions at the bitumen concentration of 59%.