LLukas22/scidocs huggingface dataset:
Structure-Preserving Signatures from Type II Pairings

We investigate structure-preserving signatures in asymmetric bilinear groups with an efficiently computable homomorphism from one source group to the other, i.e., the Type II setting. It has been shown that in the Type I and Type III settings, structure-preserving signatures need at least 2 verification equations and 3 group elements. It is therefore natural to conjecture that this would also be required in the intermediate Type II setting, but surprisingly this turns out not to be the case. We construct structure-preserving signatures in the Type II setting that only require a single verification equation and consist of only 2 group elements. This shows that the Type II setting with partial asymmetry is different from the other two settings in a way that permits the construction of cryptographic schemes with unique properties. We also investigate lower bounds on the size of the public verification key in the Type II setting. Previous work on structure-preserving signatures has explored lower bounds on the number of verification equations and the number of group elements in a signature but the size of the verification key has not been investigated before. We show that in the Type II setting it is necessary to have at least 2 group elements in the public verification key in a signature scheme with a single verification equation. Our constructions match the lower bounds so they are optimal with respect to verification complexity, signature sizes and verification key sizes. In fact, in terms of verification complexity, they are the most efficient structure preserving signature schemes to date. We give two structure-preserving signature schemes with a single verification equation where both the signatures and the public verification keys consist of two group elements each. One signature scheme is strongly existentially unforgeable, the other is fully randomizable. Having such simple and elegant structure-preserving signatures may make the Type II setting the easiest to use when designing new structure-preserving cryptographic schemes, and lead to schemes with the greatest conceptual simplicity.
Massage therapy for osteoarthritis of the knee: a randomized controlled trial.

BACKGROUND
Massage therapy is an attractive treatment option for osteoarthritis (OA), but its efficacy is uncertain. We conducted a randomized, controlled trial of massage therapy for OA of the knee.


METHODS
Sixty-eight adults with radiographically confirmed OA of the knee were assigned either to treatment (twice-weekly sessions of standard Swedish massage in weeks 1-4 and once-weekly sessions in weeks 5-8) or to control (delayed intervention). Primary outcomes were changes in the Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC) pain and functional scores and the visual analog scale of pain assessment. The sample provided 80% statistical power to detect a 20-point difference between groups in the change from baseline on the WOMAC and visual analog scale, with a 2-tailed alpha of .05.


RESULTS
The group receiving massage therapy demonstrated significant improvements in the mean (SD) WOMAC global scores (-17.44 [23.61] mm; P < .001), pain (-18.36 [23.28]; P < .001), stiffness (-16.63 [28.82] mm; P < .001), and physical function domains (-17.27 [24.36] mm; P < .001) and in the visual analog scale of pain assessment (-19.38 [28.16] mm; P < .001), range of motion in degrees (3.57 [13.61]; P = .03), and time to walk 50 ft (15 m) in seconds (-1.77 [2.73]; P < .01). Findings were unchanged in multivariable models controlling for demographic factors.


CONCLUSIONS
Massage therapy seems to be efficacious in the treatment of OA of the knee. Further study of cost effectiveness and duration of treatment effect is clearly warranted. .
A Multiagent System for Optimizing Urban Traffic

For the purposes of managing an urban traffic system, a hierarchical multiagent system that consists of several locally operating agents each representing an intersection of a traffic system is proposed. Local Traffic Agents (LTAs) are concerned with the optimal performance of their assigned intersection; however, the resulting traffic light patterns may result in the failure of the system when examined at a global level. Therefore, supervision is required and achieved with the use of a Coordinator Traffic Agent (CTA). A CTA provides a means by which the optimal local light pattern can be compared against the global concerns. The pattern can then be slightly modified to accommodate the global environment, while maintaining the local concerns of the intersection. Functionality of the proposed system is examined using two traffic scenarios: traffic accident and morning rush hour. For both scenarios, the proposed multiagent system efficiently managed the gradual congestion of the traffic. As one roadway becomes more congested, the duration of the traffic lights of neighboring intersections leading towards the congested area are reduced by the CTA. If this reduction to the incoming traffic is insufficient, and the roadway continues to reach a congested state, then the LTA attempts to divert traffic using alternative directions.
An Analysis Framework for Content-based Job Recommendation

In this paper, we focus on the task of job recommendation. In particular, we consider several personalised content-based and case-based approaches to recommendation. We investigate a number of feature-based item representations, along with a variety of feature weighting schemes. A comparative evaluation of the various approaches is performed using a realworld, open source dataset.
Thermal fatigue reliability analysis for PBGA with Sn-3.8Ag-0.7Cu solder joints

In this work, thermal cycling reliability test and analysis for PBGA components with Sn-3.8Ag-0.7Cu solder joints were investigated. Based on test results, a two-parameter Weibull distribution model was used to determine the mean time to failure (MTTF) of PBGA components. The MTTF was used for validation of finite element analysis (FEA) results. FEA analysis using quarter model and submodeling method was implemented to study stress strain behavior of Sn-3.8Ag-0.7Cu lead free solder joints considering three thermal cycles. In FEA analysis, two different solder joint material constitutive models, viscoplastic Anand's model and elastic-plastic-creep model, and two different fatigue life prediction models, energy based and strain based fatigue life model, were used for comparison. Volume averaged method was used for extracting fatigue life prediction parameter. Traditional whole interface layer elements averaged method overestimates the fatigue life of solder joint due to lower energy or strain used in fatigue life model. In this paper, new averaging volume of outermost ring elements was proposed. It was shown that outermost ring elements averaging method gave better result compared to MTTF. Thermal cycling and thermal shock loads were simulated in FEA analysis to study the temperature ramp rate effects on fatigue life.
SDN for network security

Software Defined Networking, SDN, is the programmable separation of control and forwarding elements of networking that enables software control of network forwarding that can be logically and/or physically separated from physical switches and routers. The following important question is considered in this paper: to what extent can SDN-based networks address network security management problems? The new opportunities for enhancing network security brought by this separation are considered in the paper.
CPMC: Automatic Object Segmentation Using Constrained Parametric Min-Cuts

We present a novel framework to generate and rank plausible hypotheses for the spatial extent of objects in images using bottom-up computational processes and mid-level selection cues. The object hypotheses are represented as figure-ground segmentations, and are extracted automatically, without prior knowledge of the properties of individual object classes, by solving a sequence of Constrained Parametric Min-Cut problems (CPMC) on a regular image grid. In a subsequent step, we learn to rank the corresponding segments by training a continuous model to predict how likely they are to exhibit real-world regularities (expressed as putative overlap with ground truth) based on their mid-level region properties, then diversify the estimated overlap score using maximum marginal relevance measures. We show that this algorithm significantly outperforms the state of the art for low-level segmentation in the VOC 2009 and 2010 data sets. In our companion papers [1], [2], we show that the algorithm can be used, successfully, in a segmentation-based visual object category recognition pipeline. This architecture ranked first in the VOC2009 and VOC2010 image segmentation and labeling challenges.
Bottle feeding, increased overjet and Class 2 primary canine relationship: is there any association?

The aim of this study was to investigate the association between bottle feeding and prevalence rates of increased overjet and Class 2 primary canine relationship. The sample consisted of 911 children (461 boys, 450 girls) aged 3 (13.9%), 4 (40.8%), 5 (34%) and 6 (11.3%) years, with complete primary dentition. Information about nutritive and nonnutritive (pacifier and/or digit) sucking habits was collected through questionnaires. Three calibrated dentists (κ: 0.9-1.0 and Rs > 0.90) performed the clinical assessments. The children were divided into four groups: G1 - not bottle-fed; G2 - exclusively bottle-fed; G3 - breast- and bottle-fed, bottle feeding ceased before 3 years of age; and G4 - breast- and bottle-fed, bottle feeding ceased between 3 and 4 years of age. Associations between nutritive and nonnutritive sucking behaviors and the malocclusions studied were analyzed by multiple binary logistic regression (α= 0.05). The frequencies of increased overjet were: 25.3% (G1), 38.8% (G2), 39.2% (G3) and 47.8% (G4). The percentages of Class 2 canine relationship were: 27.9% (G1), 48.8% (G2), 43.4% (G3) and 43% (G4). No significant effect of bottle feeding was found. The chances of diagnosing increased overjet (O.R. = 4.42, p < 0.001) and Class 2 canine relationship (O.R. = 4.02, p < 0.001) were greater for children with pacifier and/or digit-sucking habits, compared to those without a history of nonnutritive sucking behavior. It may be suggested that bottle feeding alone is not directly associated with higher prevalence rates of increased overjet and Class 2 canine relationship in the primary dentition.
Extrapyramidal motor side-effects of first- and second-generation antipsychotic drugs.

BACKGROUND
Second-generation antipsychotics have been thought to cause fewer extrapyramidal side-effects (EPS) than first-generation antipsychotics, but recent pragmatic trials have indicated equivalence.


AIMS
To determine whether second-generation antipsychotics had better outcomes in terms of EPS than first-generation drugs.


METHOD
We conducted an intention-to-treat, secondary analysis of data from an earlier randomised controlled trial (n = 227). A clinically significant difference was defined as double or half the symptoms in groups prescribed first- v. second-generation antipsychotics, represented by odds ratios greater than 2.0 (indicating advantage for first-generation drugs) or less than 0.5 (indicating advantage for the newer drugs). We also examined EPS in terms of symptoms emergent at 12 weeks and 52 weeks, and symptoms that had resolved at these time points.


RESULTS
At baseline those randomised to the first-generation antipsychotic group (n = 118) had similar EPS to the second-generation group (n = 109). Indications of resolved Parkinsonism (OR = 0.5) and akathisia (OR = 0.4) and increased tardive dyskinesia (OR = 2.2) in the second-generation drug group at 12 weeks were not statistically significant and the effects were not present by 52 weeks. Patients in the second-generation group were dramatically (30-fold) less likely to be prescribed adjunctive anticholinergic medication, despite equivalence in terms of EPS.


CONCLUSIONS
The expected improvement in EPS profiles for participants randomised to second-generation drugs was not found; the prognosis over 1 year of those in the first-generation arm was no worse in these terms. The place of careful prescription of first-generation drugs in contemporary practice remains to be defined, potentially improving clinical effectiveness and avoiding life-shortening metabolic disturbances in some patients currently treated with the narrow range of second-generation antipsychotics used in routine practice. This has educational implications because a generation of psychiatrists now has little or no experience with first-generation antipsychotic prescription.
Systematic Abstraction of Abstract Machines

We describe a derivational approach to abstract interpretation that yields novel and transparently sound static analyses when applied to well-established abstract machines for higherorder and imperative programming languages. To demonstrate the technique and support our claim, we transform the CEK machine of Felleisen and Friedman (Proc. of the 14th ACM SIGACT-SIGPLAN Symp. Prin. Program. Langs, 1987, pp. 314–325), a lazy variant of Krivine’s machine (Higher-Order Symb. Comput. Vol 20, 2007, pp. 199–207), and the stackinspecting CM machine of Clements and Felleisen (ACM Trans. Program. Lang. Syst. Vol 26, 2004, pp. 1029–1052) into abstract interpretations of themselves. The resulting analyses bound temporal ordering of program events; predict return-flow and stack-inspection behavior; and approximate the flow and evaluation of by-need parameters. For all of these machines, we find that a series of well-known concrete machine refactorings, plus a technique of store-allocated continuations, leads to machines that abstract into static analyses simply by bounding their stores. These machines are parameterized by allocation functions that tune performance and precision and substantially expand the space of analyses that this framework can represent. We demonstrate that the technique scales up uniformly to allow static analysis of realistic language features, including tail calls, conditionals, mutation, exceptions, first-class continuations, and even garbage collection. In order to close the gap between formalism and implementation, we provide translations of the mathematics as running Haskell code for the initial development of our method.
Sense of impartiality

The distribution of indivisible good in a society has social implications on individual behavior. In this paper, I present a model of choice which permit the quantification of the sense of impartiality. This model has implication in the choice of a winner of an indivisible good among a group of eligible individuals
New DTC Control Scheme for Induction Motors fed with a Three-level Inverter

This paper presents a novel controller based on Direct Torque Control (DTC) strategy. This controller is designed to be applied in the control of Induction Motors (IM) fed with a three-level Voltage Source Inverter (VSI). This type of inverter has several advantages over the standard two-level VSI, such as a greater number of levels in the output voltage waveforms, lower dV/dt, less harmonic distortion in voltage and current waveforms and lower switching frequencies. In the new controller, torque and stator flux errors are used together with the stator flux angular frequency to generate a reference voltage vector. Experimental results of the novel system are presented and compared with those obtained for Classical DTC system employing a two-level VSI. The new controller is shown to reduce the ripple in the torque and flux responses. Lower current distortion and switching frequency of the semiconductor devices are also obtained in the new system presented.
Manganese exposure among smelting workers: relationship between blood manganese-iron ratio and early onset neurobehavioral alterations.

A biomarker for detection of early onset neurobehavioral alterations in manganism remains unknown. The purpose of this study was to use a neurobehavioral test battery to identify subtle changes in Mn-induced motor and memory dysfunction and to relate the quantifiable neurological dysfunction to an established Mn-exposure index such as blood manganese-iron ratio (MIR). A total of 323 subjects were recruited to control (n=106), low-exposure (122), and high-exposure (95) groups. The test battery consisted of standard testing procedures including the nine-hole and groove-type steadiness tester, Benton visual retention test, and Purdue pegboard coordination test. No significant health problems or clinically diagnosed neurological dysfunctions were observed. Benton test did not reveal any abnormal memory deficits among Mn-exposed smelters, nor did the groove and nine-hole tests detect any abnormality in dynamic and static steadiness in tested subjects. Purdue pegboard test showed a remarkable age-related decline in fine movement coordination among all study participants regardless of the Mn-exposure condition. Mn exposure significantly exacerbated this age-related deterioration. Statistical modeling revealed that the plasma and erythrocyte MIR (i.e., pMIR and eMIR, respectively) were associated with Purdue pegboard scores. Among all subjects whose MIR were above the cut-off value (COV), pMIR was significantly correlated with pegboard scores (r=-0.261, p=0.002), whereas for those subjects over the age of 40, the eMIR, but not pMIR, was associated with declined pegboard performance (r=-0.219, p=0.069). When both factors were taken into account (i.e., age>40 and MIR>the COV), only pMIR was inversely associated with pegboard scores. Combining their usefulness in Mn-exposure assessment, we recommend that the blood Mn-Fe ratio may serve as a reasonable biomarker not only for assessment of Mn exposure but also for health risk assessment.
Augmented borders: Big Data and the ethics of immigration control

Purpose – The aim of this paper is to consider some of the issues in light of the application of Big Data in the domain of border security and immigration management. Investment in the technologies of borders and their securitisation continues to be a focal point for many governments across the globe. This paper is concerned with a particular example of such technologies, namely, “Big Data” analytics. In the past two years, the technology of Big Data has gained a remarkable popularity within a variety of sectors, ranging from business and government to scientific and research fields. While Big Data techniques are often extolled as the next frontier for innovation and productivity, they are also raising many ethical issues. Design/methodology/approach – The author draws on the example of the new Big Data solution recently developed by IBM for the Australian Customs and Border Protection Service. The system, which relies on data collected from Passenger Name Records, aims to facilitate and automate mechanisms of profiling enable the identification of “high-risk” travellers. It is argued that the use of such Big Data techniques risks augmenting the function and intensity of borders. Findings – The main concerns addressed here revolve around three key elements, namely, the problem of categorisation, the projective and predictive nature of Big Data techniques and their approach to the future and the implications of Big Data on understandings and practices of identity. Originality/value – By exploring these issues, the paper aims to contribute to the debates on the impact of information and communications technology-based surveillance in border management.
Tumor-derived exosomes regulate expression of immune function-related genes in human T cell subsets

Tumor cell-derived exosomes (TEX) suppress functions of immune cells. Here, changes in the gene profiles of primary human T lymphocytes exposed in vitro to exosomes were evaluated. CD4(+) Tconv, CD8(+) T or CD4(+) CD39(+) Treg were isolated from normal donors' peripheral blood and co-incubated with TEX or exosomes isolated from supernatants of cultured dendritic cells (DEX). Expression levels of 24-27 immune response-related genes in these T cells were quantified by qRT-PCR. In activated T cells, TEX and DEX up-regulated mRNA expression levels of multiple genes. Multifactorial data analysis of ΔCt values identified T cell activation and the immune cell type, but not exosome source, as factors regulating gene expression by exosomes. Treg were more sensitive to TEX-mediated effects than other T cell subsets. In Treg, TEX-mediated down-regulation of genes regulating the adenosine pathway translated into high expression of CD39 and increased adenosine production. TEX also induced up-regulation of inhibitory genes in CD4(+) Tconv, which translated into a loss of CD69 on their surface and a functional decline. Exosomes are not internalized by T cells, but signals they carry and deliver to cell surface receptors modulate gene expression and functions of human T lymphocytes.
Frequency of abdominal wall hernias: is classical teaching out of date?

OBJECTIVES
Abdominal wall hernias are common. Various authors all quote the following order (in decreasing frequency): inguinal, femoral, umbilical followed by rarer forms. But are these figures outdated? We investigated the epidemiology of hernia repair (retrospective review) over 30 years to determine whether the relative frequencies of hernias are evolving.


DESIGN
All hernia repairs undertaken in consecutive adult patients were assessed. Data included: patient demographics; hernia type; and operation details. Data were analysed using Microsoft Excel 2007 and SPSS.


SETTING
A SINGLE UNITED KINGDOM HOSPITAL TRUST DURING THREE PERIODS: 1985-1988; 1995-1998; and 2005-2008.


MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES
Frequency data of different hernia types during three time periods, patient demographic data.


RESULTS
Over the three time periods, 2389 patients underwent 2510 hernia repairs (i.e. including bilateral and multiple hernias in a single patient). Inguinal hernia repair was universally the commonest hernia repair, followed by umbilical, epigastric, para-umbilical, incisional and femoral, respectively. Whereas femoral hernia repair was the second commonest in the 1980s, it had become the fifth most common by 2005-2008. While the proportion of groin hernia repairs has decreased over time, the proportion of midline abdominal wall hernias has increased.


CONCLUSION
THE CURRENT RELATIVE FREQUENCY OF DIFFERENT HERNIA REPAIR TYPE IS: inguinal; umbilical; epigastric; incisional; para-umbilical; femoral; and finally other types e.g. spigelian. This contrasts with hernia incidence figures quoted in common reference books.
Significance thresholds for QTL interval mapping tests

The problem of mapping quantitative trait loci (QTL) using genetic marker information is of great interest to the mapping community. There are many statistical methods available for detecting and/or locating QTL, all of which depend on assumptions about the distribution of the quantitative trait values. The distribution of the trait values is affected by sample size, genetic marker density, missing data patterns, environmental noise, etc., all of which affect the distribution of the test statistic used to detect/locate QTL. Failure of the test statistic distribution to follow a standard statistical distribution is the subject of current research. In order to declare a significant QTL effect it is necessary first to understand the behaviour of the test statistic under the null hypothesis so that a critical value may be employed. In this paper we discuss the choices available for obtaining critical values (threshold values) used in locating QTL via interval mapping procedures. We investigate threshold values obtained by different means (analytical approximations and empirical) for the same level of significance (type I error rate) under a normality assumption (null hypothesis of no QTL). In addition, we explore the effect of deviations from normality of the trait values on the threshold value by comparing analytical approximations and empirical threshold values for simulated backcross and F2 experiments, along with an actual experimental F2 data set.