Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Seismic interferometry by crosscorrelation and by multidimensional deconvolution: a systematic comparison

SUMMARY Seismic interferometry, also known as Green’s function retrieval by crosscorrelation, has a wide range of applications, ranging from surface wave tomography using ambient noise, to creating virtual sources for improved reflection seismology. Despite its successful applications, the crosscorrelation approach also has its limitations. The main underlying assumptions are that the medium is lossless and that the wave field is equipartitioned. These assumptions are in practice often violated: the medium of interest is often illuminated from one side only, the sources may be irregularly distributed, and, particularly for EM applications, losses may be significant. These limitations may partly be overcome by reformulating seismic interferometry as a multidimensional deconvolution (MDD) process. We present a systematic analysis of seismic interferometry by crosscorrelation and by MDD. We show that for the non-ideal situations mentioned above, the correlation function is proportional to a Green’s function with a blurred source. The source blurring is quantified by a so-called point-spread function which, like the correlation function, can be derived from the observed data (i.e., without the need to know the sources and the medium). The source of the Green’s function obtained by the correlation method can be deblurred by deconvolving the correlation function for the point-spread function. This is the essence of seismic interferometry by MDD. We illustrate the crosscorrelation and MDD methods for controlled-source and passive data applications with numerical examples and discuss the advantages and limitations of both methods.
Political socialization or selection? Adolescent extracurricular participation and political activity in early adulthood

Previous research on the effects of extracurricular participation on subsequent political activity largely ignores the possibility that the relationship could be spurious. I examine the role of extracurricular activities in predicting adult political behavior, controlling for personality characteristics and political attitudes that potentially select people into both extracurricular and political participation. I use data from the senior cohort of High School and Beyond for the analysis. Logistic regression models are employed to predict voting, working for a political campaign, donating money to a campaign, and attending a political gathering. I also explore the issue of measurement error in the indicators for personality characteristics and political attitudes. Instrumental extracurricular activities, such as student government, positively predict political involvement in early adulthood, net of self-efficacy, sociability, political interest, political awareness, and community leadership attitudes. Personality traits and political attitudes only partially account for the association between extracurricular activities and some forms of political participation in adulthood, indicating that extracurricular participation does play a role in developing political engagement.
We Are Living in a Computer Simulation

This paper posits that we are living in a computer simulation to simulate physical reality which has the same computer simulation process as virtual reality (computer-simulated reality). The computer simulation process involves the digital representation of data, the mathematical computation of the digitized data in geometric formation and transformation in space-time, and the selective retention of events in a narrative. Conventional physics cannot explain physical reality clearly, while computer-simulated physics can explain physical reality clearly by using the computer simulation process consisting of the digital representation component, the mathematical computation component, and the selective retention component. For the digital representation component, the three intrinsic data (properties) are rest mass-kinetic energy, electric charge, and spin which are represented by the digital space structure, the digital spin, and the digital electric charge, respectively. The digital representations of rest mass and kinetic energy are 1 as attachment space for the space of matter and 0 as detachment space for the zero-space of matter, respectively, to explain the Higgs field, the reverse Higgs field, quantum mechanics, special relativity, force fields, dark matter, and baryonic matter. The digital representations of the exclusive and the inclusive occupations of positions are 1/2 spin fermion and integer spin boson, respectively, to explain spatial translation by supersymmetry transformation and dark energy. The digital representations of the allowance and the disallowance of irreversible kinetic energy are integral electric charges and fractional electric charges, respectively, to explain the confinements of quarks and quasiparticles. For the mathematical computation component, the mathematical computation involves the reversible multiverse and oscillating M-theory as oscillating membrane-string-particle whose space-time dimension (D) number oscillates between 11D and 10D and between 10D and 4D to explain cosmology. For the selective retention component, gravity, the strong force, electromagnetism, and the weak force are the retained events during the reversible four-stage evolution of our universe, and are unified by the common narrative of the evolution.
Uncalibrated dynamic visual servoing

A dynamic quasi-Newton method for uncalibrated, vision-guided robotic tracking control with fixed imaging is developed and demonstrated. This method does not require calibrated kinematic and camera models. Robotic control is achieved at each step through minimizing a nonlinear objective function, by taking quasi-Newton steps and estimating the composite Jacobian at each step. The Jacobian is estimated using a dynamic recursive least-squares algorithm. Experimental results demonstrate the validity of this approach.
Bright solitons in non-equilibrium coherent quantum matter

We theoretically demonstrate a mechanism for bright soliton generation in spinor non-equilibrium Bose–Einstein condensates made of atoms or quasi-particles such as polaritons in semiconductor microcavities. We give analytical expressions for bright (half) solitons as minimizing functions of a generalized non-conservative Lagrangian elucidating the unique features of inter and intra-competition in non-equilibrium systems. The analytical results are supported by a detailed numerical analysis that further shows the rich soliton dynamics inferred by their instability and mutual cross-interactions.
Performance analysis of reactive shortest path and multipath routing mechanism with load balance

Research on multipath routing protocols to provide improved throughput and route resilience as compared with single-path routing has been explored in details in the context of wired networks. However, multipath routing mechanism has not been explored thoroughly in the domain of ad hoc networks. In this paper, we analyze and compare reactive single-path and multipath routing with load balance mechanisms in ad hoc networks, in terms of overhead, traffic distribution and connection throughput. The results reveals that in comparison with general single-path routing protocol, multipath routing mechanism creates more overheads but provides better performance in congestion and capacity provided that the route length is within a certain upper bound which is derivable. The analytical results are further confirmed by simulation.
A survey of online failure prediction methods

With the ever-growing complexity and dynamicity of computer systems, proactive fault management is an effective approach to enhancing availability. Online failure prediction is the key to such techniques. In contrast to classical reliability methods, online failure prediction is based on runtime monitoring and a variety of models and methods that use the current state of a system and, frequently, the past experience as well. This survey describes these methods. To capture the wide spectrum of approaches concerning this area, a taxonomy has been developed, whose different approaches are explained and major concepts are described in detail.
A New Israeli Tobamovirus Isolate Infects Tomato Plants Harboring Tm-22 Resistance Genes

An outbreak of a new disease infecting tomatoes occurred in October-November 2014 at the Ohad village in Southern Israel. Symptomatic plants showed a mosaic pattern on leaves accompanied occasionally by narrowing of leaves and yellow spotted fruit. The disease spread mechanically and rapidly reminiscent of tobamovirus infection. Epidemiological studies showed the spread of the disease in various growing areas, in the South and towards the Southeast and Northern parts of the country within a year. Transmission electron microscope (TEM) analysis showed a single rod-like form characteristic to the Tobamovirus genus. We confirmed Koch’s postulates for the disease followed by partial host range determination and revealed that tomato cultivars certified to harbor the Tm-22 resistance gene are susceptible to the new viral disease. We further characterized the viral source of the disease using a range of antisera for serological detection and analyzed various virus genera and families for cross-reactivity with the virus. In addition, next generation sequencing of total small RNA was performed on two cultivars grown in two different locations. In samples collected from commercial cultivars across Israel, we found a single virus that caused the disease. The complete genome sequence of the new Israeli tobamovirus showed high sequence identity to the Jordanian isolate of tomato brown rugose fruit virus.
Dichotomy between nodal and antinodal quasiparticles in underdoped (La2-xSrx)CuO4 superconductors.

High resolution angle-resolved photoemission measurements on an underdoped (La(2-x)Srx)CuO4 system show that, at energies below 70 meV, the quasiparticle peak is well defined around the (pi/2,pi/2) nodal region and disappears rather abruptly when the momentum is changed from the nodal point to the (pi,0) antinodal point along the underlying "Fermi surface. " It indicates that there is an extra low energy scattering mechanism acting upon the antinodal quasiparticles. We propose that this mechanism is the scattering of quasiparticles across the nearly parallel segments of the Fermi surface near the antinodes.
Emotionally Up and Down, Behaviorally To and Fro

Emotional and behavioral regulation has been linked to coping and enhancement motives and associated with different patterns of alcohol use and problems. The current studies examined emotional instability, urgency, and internal drinking motives as predictors of alcohol dependence symptoms as well as the likelihood and severity of Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders—5th edition Alcohol Use Disorder (AUD). In Study 1, college drinkers (n = 621) completed alcohol involvement and behavioral/emotional functioning assessments. There was an indirect association between emotional instability and dependence symptoms via both coping and enhancement drinking motives which was potentiated by trait urgency. In Study 2, college drinkers (n = 510) completed alcohol involvement, behavioral/emotional functioning, and AUD criteria assessments. A significant indirect effect from emotional instability to the likelihood of meeting AUD criteria, via drinking to cope was found, again potentiated by urgency.
The proportion of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) complexed to alpha(1)-antichymotrypsin improves the discrimination between prostate cancer and benign prostatic hyperplasia in men with a total PSA of 10 to 30 microg/L.

BACKGROUND The aim of this study was to assess the diagnostic accuracy of the proportion of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) complexed to alpha(1)-antichymotrypsin (PSA-alpha(1)ACT:PSA ratio) in the differential diagnosis of prostate cancer (CaP) and benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) in men with total PSA of 10-30 microg/L. METHODS We used our immunoassays (ELISAs) for total PSA and PSA-alpha(1)ACT complex to study 146 men. In 123, total PSA was between 10 and 20 microg/L; 66 of these had CaP and 57 BPH. In 23 men, total PSA was between 20 and 30 microg/L; 14 of these had CaP and 9 BPH. We calculated the area under the ROC curves (AUC) for total PSA, PSA-alpha(1)ACT complex, and PSA-alpha(1)ACT:PSA ratio, and determined the cutoff points that gave sensitivities approaching 100%. RESULTS In the total PSA range between 10 and 20 microg/L, the AUC was significantly higher for the PSA-alpha(1)ACT:PSA ratio (0.850) than for total PSA (0.507) and PSA-alpha(1)ACT complex (0.710; P <0.0001). A cutoff ratio of 0.62 would have permitted diagnosis of all 66 patients with CaP (100% sensitivity) and avoided 19% of unnecessary biopsies (11 of 57 patients). In the total PSA range between 20 and 30 microg/L, the AUC for the PSA-alpha(1)ACT:PSA ratio (0.980; 95% confidence interval, 0.82-0.99) was greater than the AUC for total PSA (0.750; 95% confidence interval, 0.51-0.89; P = 0.042). In this range, a cutoff point of 0.64 would have permitted the correct diagnosis of all 14 patients with CaP and 6 of the 9 with BPH. CONCLUSIONS The diagnostic accuracy of the PSA-alpha(1)ACT:PSA ratio persists at high total PSA concentrations, increasing the specificity of total PSA. Prospective studies with large numbers of patients are needed to assess whether the ratio of PSA-alpha(1)ACT to total PSA is a useful tool to avoid unnecessary prostatic biopsy in patients with a total PSA >10 microg/L.
Salt and Fluid Intake in the Development of Hypertension in Peritoneal Dialysis Patients

Background. Although fluid overload contributes to hypertension in CAPD patients, less attention has been paid to the role of excess salt and fluid intake. Therefore, we investigated the role of salt and fluid intake in the development of hypertension in CAPD patients. Methods. A total of 165 stable CAPD patients were included into this study. Based on the blood pressure in three consecutive months, they were divided into three groups: persistent hypertensive (PH; n = 33), intercurrent hypertensive (IH; n = 58) and persistent normotensive (PN; n = 74). The IH group was further divided into two phases: normotensive and hypertensive. Fluid status was evaluated by clinical assessment and bioimpedance analysis (BIA). Results. There were no differences in age, gender, and duration of dialysis among groups. Patients were more fluid overloaded in the PH group. Extracellular water (ECW), total body water (TBW), and normalized extracellular water by height (NECW) were higher in the PH group than the PN group (16.77 ± 3.62 L vs. 14.61 ± 2.92 L for ECW, p < 0.01; 32.22 ± 8.23 L vs. 28.98 ± 6.00 L for TBW, p < 0.05; and 10.28 ± 1.86 L/m vs. 9.08 ± 1.63L/m for NECW, p < 0.01). However, patients in the PH group also had more total fluid removal (TFR) and total sodium removal (TSR) compared with the PN group (1346.82 ± 431.27 mL/d vs. 1139.28 ± 412.65 mL/d for TFR, p < 0.05; and 141.52 ± 61.57 mmol/d vs. 102.42 ± 62.51 mmol/d for TSR, p < 0.01). The same trend was demonstrated when compared values of hypertensive and normotensive phase in IH group; patients had higher ECW, TBW, NECW, TSR, and PNa when they were in hypertensive phase than in the normotensive phase. Conclusions. This study confirmed that fluid overload was closely associated with the development of hypertension in CAPD patients. It also showed that hypertensive patients were in general more fluid overloaded despite a higher fluid and sodium removal as compared with normotensive patients.
Structure of a cholesterol-binding protein deficient in Niemann–Pick type C2 disease

Niemann–Pick disease type C2 (NP-C2) is a fatal hereditary disease characterized by accumulation of low-density lipoprotein-derived cholesterol in lysosomes. Here we report the 1.7-Å resolution crystal structure of the cholesterol-binding protein deficient in this disease, NPC2, and the characterization of its ligand binding properties. Human NPC2 binds the cholesterol analog dehydroergosterol with submicromolar affinity at both acidic and neutral pH. NPC2 has an Ig-like fold stabilized by three disulfide bonds. The structure of the bovine protein reveals a loosely packed region penetrating from the surface into the hydrophobic core that forms adjacent small cavities with a total volume of ≈160 Å3. We propose that this region represents the incipient cholesterol-binding site that dilates to accommodate an ≈740-Å3 cholesterol molecule.
Diagnosis of Fibrosis and Activity by a Combined Use of Strain and Shear Wave Imaging in Patients with Liver Disease

Objective: Performing shear wave imaging is simple, but can be difficult when inflammation, jaundice, and congestion are present. Therefore, the correct diagnosis of liver fibrosis using shear wave imaging alone might be difficult in mild-to-moderate fibrosis cases. Strain imaging can diagnose liver fibrosis without the influence of inflammation. Therefore, the combined use of strain and shear wave imaging (combinational elastography) for cases without jaundice and congestion might be useful for evaluating fibrosis and inflammation. Methods: We enrolled consecutive patients with liver disease, without jaundice or liver congestion. Strain and shear wave imaging, blood tests, and liver biopsy were performed on the same day. The liver fibrosis index (LF index) was calculated by strain imaging; real-time tissue elastography, and the shear wave velocity (Vs) was calculated by shear wave imaging. Fibrosis index (F index) and activity index (A index) were calculated as a multiple regression equation for determining hepatic fibrosis and inflammation using histopathological diagnosis as the gold standard. The diagnostic ability of F index for fibrosis and A index for inflammation were compared using LF index and Vs. Results: The total number of enrolled cases was 388. The area under the receiver operating characteristic (AUROC) was 0.87, 0.80, 0.83, and 0.80, at diagnosis of fibrosis stage with an F index of F1 or higher, F2 or higher, F3 or higher, and F4, respectively. The AUROC was 0.94, 0.74, and 0.76 at diagnosis of activity grade with an A index of A1 or higher, A2 or higher, and A3, respectively. The diagnostic ability of F index for liver fibrosis and A index for inflammation was higher than for other conventional diagnostic values. Conclusions: The combined use of strain and shear wave imaging (combinational elastography) might increase the positive diagnosis of liver fibrosis and inflammation.
Primitives for active internet topology mapping: toward high-frequency characterization

Current large-scale topology mapping systems require multiple days to characterize the Internet due to the large amount of probing traffic they incur. The accuracy of maps from existing systems is unknown, yet empirical evidence suggests that additional fine-grained probing exposes hidden links and temporal dynamics. Through longitudinal analysis of data from the Archipelago and iPlane systems, in conjunction with our own active probing, we examine how to shorten Internet topology mapping cycle time. In particular, this work develops discriminatory primitives that maximize topological fidelity while being efficient. We propose and evaluate adaptive probing techniques that leverage external knowledge (e.g., common subnetting structures) and data from prior cycle(s) to guide the selection of probed destinations and the assignment of destinations to vantage points. Our Interface Set Cover (ISC) algorithm generalizes previous dynamic probing work. Crucially, ISC runs across probing cycles to minimize probing while detecting load balancing and reacting to topological changes. To maximize the information gain of each trace, our Subnet Centric Probing technique selects destinations more likely to expose their network's internal structure. Finally, the Vantage Point Spreading algorithm uses network knowledge to increase path diversity to destination ingress points.
Ammonia-oxidizing archaea as main drivers of nitrification in cold-water sponges.

The association of archaea with marine sponges was first described 15 years ago and their role in the nitrification process in Mediterranean and tropical sponges has been suggested. Here we explore the occurrence and abundance of potential ammonia-oxidizing archaea (AOA) in four morphologically different cold-water sponges (Phakellia ventilabrum, Geodia barretti, Antho dichotoma and Tentorium semisuberites) from the sublittoral and upper bathyal zone [Correction added on 30 December 2011, after first online publication on 19 December 2011: The term 'mesopelagic zone' has been replaced. ] of the Norwegian coast, and relate them to nitrification rates determined in laboratory incubations. Net nitrification rates, calculated from the sum of nitrite and nitrate release during 24 h, were up to 1880 nmol N cm(-3) day(-1); i.e. comparable with those measured in Mediterranean sponges. Furthermore, a high abundance of archaeal cells was determined by fluorescence in situ hybridizations (CARD-FISH) and quantitative PCR, targeting archaeal amoA genes (encoding the alpha subunit of ammonia monooxygenase). AmoA genes as well as amoA transcripts were either exclusively detectable from archaea or were orders of magnitudes higher in abundance than their bacterial counterparts. Phylogenetic analyses of AOA and bacterial nitrite oxidizers (genus Nitrospira) confirmed the presence of specific populations of nitrifying microorganisms in the sponge mesohyl, which either were affiliated with groups detected earlier in marine sponges or were typical inhabitants of cold- and deep-water environments. Estimated cell-specific nitrification rates for P. ventilabrum were 0.6 to 6 fmol N archaeal cell(-1) day(-1), thus comparable with planktonic organisms. Our results identify AOA as the major drivers of nitrification in four cold-water sponges, and indicate that these archaea may be considered as a relevant factor in nitrogen cycling in ocean regions with high sponge biomass.
The Annexin Protein Lipocortin 1 Regulates the MAPK/ERK Pathway*

Lipocortin 1 (annexin 1) is a calcium- and phospholipid-binding protein that modulates anti-inflammatory responses including those induced by lipopolysaccharide. To investigate the precise role of lipocortin 1 in regulating the lipopolysaccharide-induced signal transduction pathways, we generated stable RAW 264.7 macrophage cell lines expressing decreased and increased lipocortin 1 protein. Several RAW 264.7 clones with increased lipocortin 1 protein levels showed constitutive activation of the mitogen-activated protein kinase extracellular signal-regulated kinase, which was down-regulated following lipopolysaccharide treatment. Conversely, clones with decreased lipocortin 1 protein expression showed prolonged extracellular signal-regulated kinase activity, following lipopolysaccharide activation. Lipocortin 1 specifically regulates the components of the extracellular signal-regulated kinase pathway, since changes in lipocortin 1 protein expression had no affect on the related mitogen-activated protein kinases p38 and c-Jun N-terminal kinase. Lipocortin 1 modulated upstream components of the extracellular signal-regulated kinase pathway and associated with the adaptor protein growth factor binding protein. The downstream consequences of altered extracellular signal-regulated kinase activity were independent of the proinflammatory transcription factor nuclear factor kappa B. These data indicate that lipocortin 1 specifically regulates proximal signaling components of the extracellular signal-regulated kinase signal transduction pathway, resulting in the modulation of biochemical functions in RAW macrophages.