Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Longitudinal change in everyday function and behavioral symptoms in frontotemporal dementia

Background:The relationship between behavioral changes and functional decline in frontotemporal dementia (FTD) is not well understood. Methods:Thirty-nine patients (21 behavioral variant FTD [bvFTD], 18 semantic variant primary progressive aphasia [svPPA]) were followed up longitudinally (2–4 years follow-up). Functional (Disability Assessment for Dementia) and behavioral (Cambridge Behavioural Inventory Revised) assessments were included for between-group (pairwise comparisons, mixed model analysis) and within-group analyses (bivariate correlations). Results:Functionally, patients with bvFTD were more impaired than patients with svPPA at baseline and continued to be at follow-up, despite similar disease duration. By contrast, behavioral impairments differed between patient groups at baseline and at follow-up. At baseline, patients with bvFTD exhibited higher levels of apathy and changes in eating than patients with svPPA; disinhibited and stereotypical behaviors were similar. Over the years, patients with bvFTD showed reduction in disinhibition and stereotypical behavior while apathy and eating changes increased. By contrast, all measured behaviors increased in patients with svPPA over time. Finally, only apathy made longitudinal contributions to functional disability in patients with svPPA, whereas apathy and stereotypical behavior were associated with increased disability in patients with bvFTD. Conclusions:Despite shared overlapping baseline behavioral symptoms, patients with bvFTD are more functionally impaired than patients with svPPA. Apathy has a strong role in disability for both bvFTD and svPPA, but stereotypical behaviors only contributed to functional deficits in patients with bvFTD. Our findings suggest that rigid/compulsive behaviors may in fact support activity engagement in patients with svPPA. Taken together, our results indicate that interventions to reduce disability in the FTD spectrum require an alternative rationale in comparison to Alzheimer disease dementia, and should carefully weigh the interaction of behavioral symptoms and functional status.
Combining Stereovision Matching Constraints for Solving the Correspondence Problem

A major portion of the research efforts of the computer vision community has been directed toward the study of the three-dimensional (3-D) structure of objects using machine analysis of images (Scharstein & Szeliski, 2002). We can view the problem of stereo analysis as consisting of the following steps: image acquisition, camera modelling, feature acquisition, image matching, depth determination and interpolation. The key step is that of image matching, that is, the process of identifying the corresponding points in two images that are cast by the same physical point in 3-D space (Barnard & Fishler, 1982). This chapter is devoted solely to this problem. A correspondence needs to be established between features from two images that correspond to some physical feature in space. Then, provided that the position of centres of projection, the focal length, the orientation of the optical axes, and the sampling interval of each camera are known, the depth can be established by triangulation. The stereo correspondence problem can be defined in terms of finding pairs of true matches, namely, pairs of features in two images that are generated by the same physical entity in space. These true matches generally satisfy some constraints (Tang et al., 2002): 1. Epipolar, given two features, one in an image and a second in the other one in the stereoscopic pair, if we follow a given line, established by the system geometry, these two features must lie on this line, which is the epipolar. 2. Similarity, matched features have similar local properties or attributes. 3. Smoothness, disparity values in a given neighbourhood change smoothly, except at a few depth discontinuities. 4. Ordering, the relative position among two features in an image is preserved in the other one for the corresponding matches. 5. Uniqueness, each feature in one image should be matched to a unique feature in the other image. A review of the state-of-art in stereovision matching allows us to distinguish two sorts of techniques broadly used in this discipline: area-based and feature-based. Area-based stereo techniques use correlation between brightness (intensity) patterns in the local neighbourhood of a pixel in one image with brightness patterns in the local neighbourhood of the other image (Scharstein & Szeliski, 2002; Herrera et al., 2009a,b,c; Herrera, 2010; Klaus et al., 2006). Feature-based methods use sets of pixels with similar attributes, normally, either pixels belonging to edges (Grimson, 1985; Ruichek & Postaire, 1996; Tang et al., 2002),
A high performance hardware architecture for the H.264/AVC half-pixel motion estimation refinement

This work presents a high performance hardware architecture for the H.264/AVC Half-Pixel Motion Estimation Refinement. This design can process very high definition videos like QHDTV (3840x2048) in real time processing (30 frames per second). It also presents a very optimized arrangement of interpolated samples, which is the main key to achieve an efficient search. The architecture was fully described in VHDL, synthesized to two different Xilinx FPGA devices and achieved the best results when compared to related works.
Two-Moment Decision Models and Expected Utility Maximization: Comment

The two most common approaches to analyzing behavior under uncertainty are the expected utility model (EU) and the meanstandard deviation model (MS). Jack Meyer (1987) has recently established in this Review that when the choice set consists of random variables which are represented by distribution functions that differ from one another only by location and scale parameters, EU and MS are consistent in the sense that any EU ranking of elements of a choice set can also be represented by an MS ranking. No claim has been made by Meyer regarding the EUand MS-efficient sets. However, it can be easily shown that with no additional restrictions, risk-averters' EUefficient set is a subset (in the weak sense) of the MS-efficient set. In this note we extend Meyer's work and prove that under a certain restriction on the support of the distribution, random variables which are MS efficient are also EU efficient, namely, MS and EU yield identical efficient sets. We analyze separately the relationship of MSand EU-efficient sets for all unrestricted U (with U'> 0), and alternatively for all risk-averse U (with U'> 0 and U" < 0). Only pairwise comparisons of risky options are considered.
Interaction of Polysialic Acid with CCL21 Regulates the Migratory Capacity of Human Dendritic Cells

Dendritic cells (DCs) are the most potent antigen-presenting cells (APCs). Immature DCs (iDCs) are situated in the periphery where they capture pathogen. Subsequently, they migrate as mature DCs (mDCs) to draining lymph nodes to activate T cells. CCR7 and CCL21 contribute to the migratory capacity of the DC, but it is not completely understood what molecular requirements are involved. Here we demonstrate that monocyte-derived DCs dramatically change ST8Sia IV expression during maturation, leading to the generation of polysialic acid (polySia). PolySia expression is highly upregulated after 2 days Toll-like receptor-4 (TLR4) triggering. Surprisingly, only immunogenic and not tolerogenic mDCs upregulated polySia expression. Furthermore, we show that polySia expression on DCs is required for CCL21-directed migration, whereby polySia directly captures CCL21. Corresponding to polySia, the expression level of CCR7 is maximal two days after TLR4 triggering. In contrast, although TLR agonists other than LPS induce upregulation of CCR7, they achieve only a moderate polySia expression. In situ we could detect polySia-expressing APCs in the T cell zone of the lymph node and in the deep dermis. Together our results indicate that prolonged TLR4 engagement is required for the generation of polySia-expressing DCs that facilitate CCL21 capture and subsequent CCL21-directed migration.
A Biomarker Found in Cadmium Exposed Residents of Thailand by Metabolome Analysis

First, the urinary metabolic profiling by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS), was performed to compare ten cadmium (Cd) toxicosis cases from a Cd-polluted area in Mae Sot (Thailand) with gender-matched healthy controls. Orthogonal partial list square-discrimination analysis was used to identify new biomarker candidates in highly Cd exposed toxicosis cases with remarkable renal tubular dysfunction. The results of the first step of this study showed that urinary citrate was a negative marker and myo-inositol was a positive marker for Cd toxicosis in Thailand. In the second step, we measured urinary citrate in the residents (168 Cd-exposed subjects and 100 controls) and found significantly lower levels of urinary citrate and higher ratios of calcium/citrate and magnesium/citrate, which are risk factors for nephrolithiasis, in highly Cd-exposed residents. Additionally, this inverse association of urinary citrate with urinary Cd was observed after adjustment for age, smoking and renal tubular dysfunction, suggesting a direct effect of Cd on citrate metabolism. These results indicate that urinary citrate is a useful biomarker for the adverse health effects of Cd exposure in a Thai population with a high prevalence of nephrolithiasis.
Microstimulation in visual area MT: effects of varying pulse amplitude and frequency

We have previously shown that perceptual judgements of motion direction are based in part on the activity of direction selective neurons in extrastriate visual area MT (Salzman et al., 1990, 1992). In those experiments, we applied low-amplitude microstimulation pulses (10 microA, 200 Hz) to clusters of MT neurons whose preferred directions were similar. The effect of microstimulation was to bias the monkeys' choices on a direction discrimination task toward the preferred direction of neurons at the stimulation site. The results suggest that microstimulation generated a directionally specific cortical signal by activating selectively neurons near the electrode tip. To test this notion more directly, we have now examined the behavioral effects of varying current amplitude, current frequency, and electrode position. In the majority of experiments, the directional bias in the monkeys' choices was reduced or eliminated as current amplitude increased to 80 microA. In addition, 80 microA stimulating pulses frequently impaired overall performance as measured by the percentage of correct responses. This decrement in performance indicated that 80 microA pulses introduced “noise” into the neural circuitry encoding motion direction, presumably by increasing current spread to activate a larger population of neurons representing all directions of motion. In contrast, increasing current frequency to 500 Hz (10 microA pulses) preserved the directional specificity of microstimulation effects. The precise position of the stimulating electrode also influenced the magnitude of microstimulation effects; in some cases, differences in position on the order of 100 microns determined whether an experiment yielded a very large effect or no effect at all. Thus, directionally specific activation of cortical circuitry within MT can be disrupted by increases in current spread or by small changes in electrode position. These observations suggest that the effects of low-amplitude microstimulation depend upon direct activation of a well-localized population of neurons.
Company Performance and Measures of Value Added

Foreword. Acknowledgments. 1. Introduction. 2. Traditional Measures of Performance. 3. Measures of Value Added. 4. Comparisons of Alternative Performance Measures. 5. Conclusions. Appendix A: The Firm's Cost of Capital. Appendix B: Net Present Value and Internal Rate of Return. Glossary. References. Selected AIMR Publications.
Mammoth and Elephant Phylogenetic Relationships: Mammut Americanum, the Missing Outgroup

At the morphological level, the woolly mammoth has most often been considered as the sister-species of Asian elephants, but at the DNA level, different studies have found support for proximity with African elephants. Recent reports have increased the available sequence data and apparently solved the discrepancy, finding mammoths to be most closely related to Asian elephants. However, we demonstrate here that the three competing topologies have similar likelihood, bayesian and parsimony supports. The analysis further suggests the inadequacy of using Sirenia or Hyracoidea as outgroups. We therefore argue that orthologous sequences from the extinct American mastodon will be required to definitively solve this long-standing question.
Wages, Unions, and Labour Productivity: Evidence from Indian Cotton Mills

Clark and Wolcott attribute the low productivity of Indian cotton textile workers to their preference for low work effort, and suggest that unions resisted an increase in work intensity. This article argues that low wages were due to surplus labour in agriculture. Low wages allowed the persistence of managerial inefficiencies and resulted in low productivity and work effort. It uses firm-level data from all the textile producing regions in India to examine the relationship between unions and labour productivity. The findings show that fewer workers were employed per machine in the unionized mills in Bombay and Ahmedabad, compared to the mills in less unionized regions. These findings suggest that unionization increased wages and compelled managers to raise productivity
New Directions in Statistical Signal Processing: From Systems to Brains (Neural Information Processing)

Signal processing and neural computation have separately and significantly influenced many disciplines, but the cross-fertilization of the two fields has begun only recently. Research now shows that each has much to teach the other, as we see highly sophisticated kinds of signal processing and elaborate hierachical levels of neural computation performed side by side in the brain. In New Directions in Statistical Signal Processing, leading researchers from both signal processing and neural computation present new work that aims to promote interaction between the two disciplines.The book's 14 chapters, almost evenly divided between signal processing and neural computation, begin with the brain and move on to communication, signal processing, and learning systems. They examine such topics as how computational models help us understand the brain's information processing, how an intelligent machine could solve the "cocktail party problem" with "active audition" in a noisy environment, graphical and network structure modeling approaches, uncertainty in network communications, the geometric approach to blind signal processing, game-theoretic learning algorithms, and observable operator models (OOMs) as an alternative to hidden Markov models (HMMs).
Interaction of water waves with thin plates

Various problems involving the interaction of water waves with thin plates are reduced to hypersingular boundary integral equations. Examples include scattering by submerged curved plates and by surface-piercing plates, in two dimensions; trapping of waves by submerged plates; and scattering by submerged at plates in three dimensions. Each integral equation is solved numerically,
Iron-Deficiency Anemia : Reexamining the Nature and Magnitude of the Public Health Problem An Analysis of Anemia and Child Mortality 1 , 2

The relationship of anemia as a risk factor for child mortality was analyzed by using cross-sectional, longitudinal and case-control studies, and randomized trials. Five methods of estimation were adopted: 1) the proportion of child deaths attributable to anemia; 2) the proportion of anemic children who die in hospital studies; 3) the population-attributable risk of child mortality due to anemia; 4) survival analyses of mortality in anemic children; and 5) cause-specific anemia-related child mortality. Most of the data available were hospital based. For children aged 0–5 y the percentage of deaths due to anemia was comparable for reports from highly malarious areas in Africa (Sierra Leone 11.2%, Zaire 12.2%, Kenya 14.3%). Ten values available for hemoglobin values ,50 g/L showed a variation in case fatality from 2 to 29.3%. The data suggested little if any dose-response relating increasing hemoglobin level (whether by mean value or selected cut-off values) with decreasing mortality. Although mortality was increased in anemic children with hemoglobin ,50 g/L, the evidence for increased risk with less severe anemia was inconclusive. The wide variation for mortality with hemoglobin ,50 g/L is related to methodological variation and places severe limits on causal inference; in view of this, it is premature to generate projections on population-attributable risk. A preliminary survival analysis of an infant cohort from Malawi indicated that if the hemoglobin decreases by 10 g/L at age 6 mo, the risk of dying becomes 1.72 times higher. Evidence from a number of studies suggests that mortality due to malarial severe anemia is greater than that due to iron-deficiency anemia. Data are scarce on anemia and child mortality from non-malarious regions. Primary prevention of iron-deficiency anemia and malaria in young children could have substantive effects on reducing child mortality from severe anemia in children living in malarious areas. J. Nutr. 131: 636S–648S, 2001.
Extending Magnetic Observations to Seafloor: the case of Geostar and Orion missions in the Adriatic and Tyrrhenian Seas

GEOSTAR (1 and 2) and ORION-GEOSTAR 3 seafloor missions have been performed in the frame of a European project whose main objective is the deep-sea investigation by means of an automatic multidisciplinary observatory. During the three GEOSTAR missions it has been possible to acquire scalar and vector magnetic data, useful to improve global and regional geomagnetic reference models and to define sub-surface electric conductivity structure. In this work, after a brief description on the calibration and orientation of acquired data, we propose some estimations of the electrical conductivity of the lithosphere beneath the three different measurement sites.
The l-Rank Structure of a Global Function Field

For any prime `, it is possible to construct global function fields whose Jacobians have high `-rank by moving to a sufficiently large constant field extension. This was investigated in some detail by Bauer et al. in [2]. The two main results of [2] are an upper bound on the size of the field of definition of the `-torsion J [`] of the Jacobian, and a lower bound on the increase in the base field size that guarantees a strict increase in `-rank. Here, we provide improvements to both these results, and give examples which illustrate that our techniques have the potential to yield the correct `-rank over any intermediate field of the field of definition of J [`], including base fields that might be too large to be handled directly by computer algebra packages.
Ambient noise environments in shallow tropical seas and the implications for acoustic sensing

Oceanographic in-situ measurements are becoming increasingly expensive as remote sensing tools concurrently enjoy a continuing expansion of capability. While in-situ observations will never be replaced completely, the current trend is clearly to make as much use of inferential and remotely-garnered observations as possible. In the ocean, acoustics is one of the foremost tools to use for remote interrogation of the environment. It represents the only mechanism for quickly propagating energy (and hence also information) over large distances. As a direct result, a large array of acoustic tools have been developed for communication, navigation, sonar, current profiling and so forth. All of these tools, passive more than active, are impacted by the natural background noise of the region in which they are deployed. In warm, shallow waters, the ambient noise environment is very different from colder and/or deeper waters, being dominated for some 80% of the usable bandwidth by snapping shrimp. The noise levels in the range 2-250 kHz can easily be 20 dB above that expected in similar conditions in deeper or cooler water. This is predominantly the case for SE Asian coastal regions, and even for considerable distance offshore where shallow water persists. In order to optimise the design and operable performance of acoustic systems, we need to understand the spatial and temporal statistics of this noise. Ambient noise results are presented from several tropical sites and some robust statistical features are identified. Physical models for these attributes are developed, and some strategies suggested for improving acoustic system performance in the face of this cacophony.
A deterministic approach for optimal recursive prediction of singular discrete-time systems

Abstract This paper proposes a new representation for the predictor estimates recursion and corresponding Riccati equation for discrete-time, time-variant descriptor systems. The introduced “9-block” form for the predictor and Riccati equation presents an interesting simple and symmetric structure, which enable us to treat directly the most general systems where state and measurement noises are correlated.
Forecast Evaluation with Cross-Sectional Data: The Blue Chip Surveys

If economic forecasts are to be used for decision making, then being able to evaluate their accuracy is essential. Assessing accuracy using single variables from a forecast is acceptable as a first pass, but this approach has inherent problems. This article addresses some of these problems by evaluating and comparing the general accuracy of a set of multivariate forecasts over time. ; Using the methodology developed in Eisenbeis, Waggoner, and Zha (2002), the authors compare the economic forecasts in the Blue Chip Economic Indicators Survey. The survey, published monthly since 1977, contains forecasts of many macroeconomic variables over a relatively long time span. The forecasters are a mix of economists from major investment banks, corporations, consulting firms, and academic institutions, many of whom have participated in the survey for several years. The survey thus provides a useful set of forecasts to explore the methodologies and to investigate several aspects of forecast performance over time. ; The methodology assigns each forecast a composite score based on the standard theory of probability and statistics. This single number is easy to interpret and can be used to compare forecasts even if the number of variables being forecast, or their definitions, changes over time. ; The analysis shows that the Blue Chip Consensus Forecast, which is the average of the individual forecasts, performs better than any individual forecaster although several forecasters performed almost as well as the consensus.