Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Neural Codes for Image Retrieval

This seminar report focuses on using convolutional neural networks for image retrieval. Firstly, we give a thorough discussion of several state-of-the-art techniques in image retrieval by considering the associated subproblems: image description, descriptor compression, nearest-neighbor search and query expansion. We discuss both the aggregation of local descriptors using clustering and metric learning techniques as well as global descriptors. Subsequently, we briefly introduce the basic concepts of deep convolutional neural networks, focusing on the architecture proposed by Krizhevsky et al. [KSH12]. We discuss different types of layers commonly used in recent architectures, for example convolutional layers, non-linearity and rectification layers, pooling layers as well as local contrast normalization layers. Finally, we shortly review supervised training techniques based on stochastic gradient descent and regularization techniques such as dropout and weight decay. Finally, following Babenko et al. [BSCL14], we discuss the use of feature activations in intermediate layers as image representation for image retrieval. After presenting experiments and comparing convolutional neural networks for image retrieval with other state-of-the-art techniques, we conclude by motivating the combined use of deep architectures and hand-crafted image representations for accurate and efficient image retrieval.
Stereoscopic 3D-TV: Visual Comfort

Among the key topics of discussion and research on three-dimensional television (3D-TV), visual comfort is certainly one of the most critical. This is because it is well known that some viewers experience visual discomfort when looking at stereoscopic displays. It is important to properly address the issue of visual comfort to avoid possible delays in the deployment of 3D-TV. Here we present a concise overview of the main topics relevant to comfort in viewing stereoscopic television and survey the key factors influencing visual comfort. Potential end users of 3D-TV, content creators, program providers, broadcasters, display manufacturers and researchers will find this overview useful.
Stroke Prevention - Medical and Lifestyle Measures

Background: According to the World Health Organization, stroke is the ‘incoming epidemic of the 21st century'. In light of recent data suggesting that 85% of all strokes may be preventable, strategies for prevention are moving to the forefront in stroke management. Summary: This review discusses the risk factors and provides evidence on the effective medical interventions and lifestyle modifications for optimal stroke prevention. Key Messages: Stroke risk can be substantially reduced using the medical measures that have been proven in many randomized trials, in combination with effective lifestyle modifications. The global modification of health and lifestyle is more beneficial than the treatment of individual risk factors. Clinical Implications: Hypertension is the most important modifiable risk factor for stroke. Efficacious reduction of blood pressure is essential for stroke prevention, even more so than the choice of antihypertensive drugs. Indications for the use of antihypertensive drugs depend on blood pressure values and vascular risk profile; thus, treatment should be initiated earlier in patients with diabetes mellitus or in those with a high vascular risk profile. Treatment of dyslipidemia with statins, anticoagulation therapy in atrial fibrillation, and carotid endarterectomy in symptomatic high-grade carotid stenosis are also effective for stroke prevention. Lifestyle factors that have been proven to reduce stroke risk include reducing salt, eliminating smoking, performing regular physical activity, and maintaining a normal body weight.
Hydrogen-Assisted Rolling-Contact Fatigue of Wind Turbines Bearings

This work analyses the effects of hydrogen-assisted rolling-contact fatigue on bearings of wind turbines. To this end, the well-known ball-on-rod test to evaluate the resistance to rolling-contact fatigue was simulated by the finite element method for obtaining the stress-strain state undergone by the bearings considering their in-service conditions. Results of this paper allow a simple estimation of the hydrogen amount in potential damage zones of the specimen.
A WFS1 haplotype consisting of the minor alleles of rs752854, rs10010131, and rs734312 shows a protective role against type 2 diabetes in Russian patients.

BACKGROUND Rare variants of the WFS1 gene encoding wolframin cause Wolfram syndrome, a monogenic disease associated with diabetes insipidus, diabetes mellitus, optic atrophy, and deafness. In contrast, common variants of WFS1 showed association with type 2 diabetes (T2D) in numerous Caucasian populations. AIM In this study, we tested whether the markers rs752854, rs10010131, and rs734312, located in the WFS1 gene, are related to the development of T2D in a Russian population. METHODS The polymorphic markers were genotyped in Russian diabetic (n = 1,112) and non-diabetic (n = 1,097) patients using a Taqman allele discrimination assay. The correlation between the carriage of disease-associated WFS1 variants and the patients' clinical and metabolic characteristics was studied using ANOVA and ANCOVA. Adjustment for confounding variables such as gender, age, body mass index, obesity, HbA1c, and hypertension was made. RESULTS Haplotype GAG, consisting of the minor alleles of rs752854, rs10010131, and rs734312, respectively, showed association with decreased risk of T2D (OR = 0.44, 95% CI = 0.32-0.61, p = 4.3 x 10(-7)). Compared to other WFS1 variants, non-diabetic individuals homozygous for GAG/CAG had significantly increased fasting insulin (p(adjusted) = 0.047) and homeostasis model assessment of β-cell function (HOMA-β) index (p(adjusted) = 0.006). Diabetic patients homozygous for GAG/GAG showed significantly elevated levels of 2-h insulin (p(adjusted) = 0.029) and HOMA-β = 0.011. CONCLUSIONS Disease-associated variants of WFS1 contribute to the pathogenesis of T2D through impaired insulin response to glucose stimulation and altered β-cell function.
Prevalence of Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders in Child Care Settings: A Meta-analysis

BACKGROUND: Children often enter a child-care system (eg, orphanage, foster care, child welfare system) because of unfavorable circumstances (eg, maternal alcohol and/or drug problems, child abuse/neglect). Such circumstances increase the odds of prenatal alcohol exposure, and thus this population can be regarded as high risk for fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD). The primary objective was to estimate a pooled prevalence for fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) and FASD in various child-care systems based on data from existing studies that used an active case ascertainment method. METHODS: A systematic literature review, using multiple electronic bibliographic databases, and meta-analysis of internationally published and unpublished studies that reported the prevalence of FAS and/or FASD in all types of child-care systems were conducted. The pooled prevalence estimates and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated by using the Mantel-Haenszel method, assuming a random effects model. Sensitivity analyses were performed for studies that used either passive surveillance or mixed methods. RESULTS: On the basis of studies that used active case ascertainment, the overall pooled prevalence of FAS and FASD among children and youth in the care of a child-care system was calculated to be 6.0% (60 per 1000; 95% CI: 38 to 85 per 1000) and 16.9% (169 per 1000; 95% CI: 109 to 238 per 1000), respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The results confirm that children and youth housed in or under the guardianship of the wide range of child-care systems constitute a population that is high-risk for FASD. It is imperative that screening be implemented in these at-risk populations.
Probing Membrane Protein Interactions with Their Lipid Raft Environment Using Single-Molecule Tracking and Bayesian Inference Analysis

The statistical properties of membrane protein random walks reveal information on the interactions between the proteins and their environments. These interactions can be included in an overdamped Langevin equation framework where they are injected in either or both the friction field and the potential field. Using a Bayesian inference scheme, both the friction and potential fields acting on the ε-toxin receptor in its lipid raft have been measured. Two types of events were used to probe these interactions. First, active events, the removal of cholesterol and sphingolipid molecules, were used to measure the time evolution of confining potentials and diffusion fields. Second, passive rare events, de-confinement of the receptors from one raft and transition to an adjacent one, were used to measure hopping energies. Lipid interactions with the ε-toxin receptor are found to be an essential source of confinement. ε-toxin receptor confinement is due to both the friction and potential field induced by cholesterol and sphingolipids. Finally, the statistics of hopping energies reveal sub-structures of potentials in the rafts, characterized by small hopping energies, and the difference of solubilization energy between the inner and outer raft area, characterized by higher hopping energies.
Fifteen, female and stressed: changing patterns of psychological distress over time.

BACKGROUND Despite a widespread view that the mental health of young people has deteriorated, the evidence base is limited by the lack of comparable datasets over time, and their capacity to test specific hypotheses about the causes of such change, in this case those particularly affecting young females. METHOD Two cohorts of 15-year-olds in the West of Scotland, surveyed in 1987 and 1999, were compared, using the 12-item version of the General Health Questionnaire to measure psychological distress (GHQ caseness, cut-off 2/3), together with items and indices of personal and performance worries. RESULTS Between 1987 and 1999, GHQ caseness increased significantly for females (from 19% to 33%), but not males (13% to 15%), a change particularly experienced by females from non-manual and skilled manual backgrounds. With one notable exception (unemployment), most worries also increased for both sexes, a gender gap emerging in respect of worries about school performance, females worrying more. While the effect of personal worries (e.g., looks and weight) on GHQ caseness persisted over time in both sexes, that of performance worries only emerged for females in 1999. Using survey date as an indicator, a relationship between proximity to exams and GHQ caseness was also only found among females in 1999. CONCLUSION The increase in levels of psychological distress among young females over this period may be explained by an increase in educational expectations, which together with more traditional concerns about personal identity, appear to have elevated levels of stress, with adverse consequences for mental health.
The Arrangement of Bristles in Drosophila 1

INTRODUCTION M U C H of the geometrical complexity of animals and plants arises by the repetition of similar structures, often in a pattern which is constant for a species. In an earlier paper (Maynard Smith, 1960) some of the mechanisms whereby a constant number of structures in a linear series might arise were discussed. In this paper an attempt is made to extend the argument to cases where such structures are arranged in two-dimensional patterns on a surface, using the arrangement of bristles in Drosophila as illustrative material. The bristles of Drosophila fall into two main classes, the microchaetes and the macrochaetes. A bristle of either type, together with its associated sensory nervecell, arises by the division of a single hypodermal cell. The macrochaetes are larger, and constant in number and position in a species, and in most cases throughout the family Drosophilidae. The microchaetes are smaller and more numerous, and show no fixed number or pattern in a species, although they do show some regularity in spacing. A number of mutants are known which alter the number and arrangement of the macrochaetes, usually by eliminating one or more pairs. An explanation is put forward of the variations in the number and arrangement of the microchaetes, and of the macrochaetes in some mutant stocks, in terms of a common morphogenetic model. This model is an extension of that suggested by Stern (1956) in the light of mathematical considerations due to Turing (1952). It is hoped that this model may have some relevance to the arrangement of other repeated structures.
NJU-Parser: Achievements on Semantic Dependency Parsing

In this paper, we introduce our work on SemEval-2012 task 5: Chinese Semantic Dependency Parsing. Our system is based on MSTParser and two effective methods are proposed: splitting sentence by punctuations and extracting last character of word as lemma. The experiments show that, with a combination of the two proposed methods, our system can improve LAS about one percent and finally get the second prize out of nine participating systems. We also try to handle the multilevel labels, but with no improvement.
Seasonal and Spatial Dynamics of Alate Aphid Dispersal in Snap Bean Fields in Proximity to Alfalfa and Implications for Virus Management

Abstract Alfalfa is a source for viruses that may be acquired by aphids and transmitted to snap bean, Phaseolus vulgaris L. Snap bean fields in proximity to alfalfa could have an increased risk of virus infection. Knowledge of the abundance and temporal and spatial dispersal patterns of commonly encountered aphids in commercial snap bean fields, varying in distance from alfalfa, could provide insight into this risk. Alate aphids were monitored using water pan traps in snap bean and alfalfa fields that were adjacent to or >1 km away from each other. The pea aphid, Acyrthosiphon pisum (Harris), was the most common aphid species captured in early-planted snap bean fields in 2002 and 2003 (56 and 23% of total, respectively), whereas the corn leaf aphid, Rhopalosiphum maidis (Fitch), also was common in 2003 (15% of total). In contrast, the yellow clover aphid, Therioaphis trifolii (Monell), and soybean aphid, Aphis glycines Matsumura, were the most abundant species trapped in late-planted snap bean fields in 2002 (77% of total) and 2003 (64% of total), respectively. These species were prevalent in traps in alfalfa as well. The abundance and temporal dispersal patterns of these species in snap beans adjacent to and >1 km away from alfalfa were similar, suggesting that the risk for virus infection may not be affected by proximity to alfalfa. A similar number of alate aphids also were captured along snap bean field edges and field centers, regardless of their proximity to alfalfa. This suggests that the aphids dispersed into snap bean randomly rather than directionally from the field edge. The implication of these results is that separating snap bean fields from alfalfa or using crop borders/barriers are not likely to be successful virus management strategies.
Chemokine RANTES Promoter Dimorphisms and Hepatocellular Carcinoma Occurrence in Patients with Alcoholic or Hepatitis C Virus–Related Cirrhosis

Background: This study explores the influence of two functional genetic polymorphisms in the regulated on activation in normal T-cell expressed and secreted(RANTES) promoter on the risk of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) occurrence in patients with alcoholic or Hepatitis C Virus (HCV)-related cirrhosis. Methods:RANTES C-28G and G-403A promoter dimorphisms and RANTES serum levels were assessed in 243 HCV-infected patients and 253 alcoholic patients, included at the time of diagnosis of cirrhosis and prospectively followed-up. Results: During a mean follow-up time of 76 months, 137 (27.6%) patients developed HCC and 170 (34.2%) died or were transplanted. During follow-up, patients with alcoholic cirrhosis and bearing two copies of the RANTES G-403 variant (2G-403 genotype, n = 156/253) had a higher rate of HCC occurrence compared with patients carrying at least one RANTES A-403 allele (26.3% vs. 8.2%, P = 0.0004). The RANTES 2G-403 genotype was a risk factor for HCC occurrence [HR = 3.0 (1.3–5.8); first quartile time to HCC occurrence: 60 vs. 120 months; LogRank = 0.007] and death [HR = 1.4 (1.0–2.0); median time to death: 55 vs. 79 months; LogRank = 0.01] in this subgroup. Carriage of the RANTES 2G-403 genotype was not associated with HCC development or death in patients with HCV-related cirrhosis. The RANTES C-28G dimorphism did not influence the occurrence of death or HCC in either cohort of patients. Conclusion: This study suggests an influence of the chemokine RANTES G-403A dimorphism on the occurrence of HCC in patients with alcoholic cirrhosis. Impact: Our findings provide clues for future studies on RANTES gene in relation to HCC susceptibility. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev; 20(7); 1439–46. ©2011 AACR.
Residual Stress Fields after Heat Treatment in Cladded Steel of Process Vessels

The influence of the heat treatment on the residual stress fields of weld cladded samples is discussed in this paper. The samples were elaborated from carbon steel plates, cladded in one of the faces with stainless steel filler metals by submerged arc welding. After the cladding process some of the samples were submitted to heat treatments with different parameters: one at 620° C for a holding time of 1 hour and the other at 540° C for a period of ten hours. The in‑depth residual stress profiles were determined by neutron diffraction. The results shown that the sample treated to 620 °C, presented the highest residual stress relaxation. The corresponding heat treatment has the industrial benefit to be shorter than the other heat treatment.
Molecular Basis of Partial Agonism at the Neurotransmitter α2A-Adrenergic Receptor and Gi-protein Heterotrimer*

To characterize the mechanism by which heterotrimeric G-proteins interpret the signals coming from various neurotransmitters of diverse efficacies (agonists and partial agonists) acting on α2A-adrenergic receptors, we used a fluorescent resonance energy transfer-based approach to study the effects of these partial agonists on the activation process of both the α2A-adrenergic receptor and its cognate Gi-protein. We show that ligands of different efficacies switch the receptor into distinct conformational states, which in turn set the speed and extent of the Gi-protein signaling. Thus, in cells the efficacy by which a receptor responds to diverse ligands is caused by the ability of the G-protein to differentiate between distinct receptor conformations. The data provide a new key characteristic underlying the mechanism of partial agonism at G-protein-coupled receptors.
Dissociation Between Regional Myocardial Dysfunction and ECG Changes During Ischemia in the Conscious Dog

The relations between regional ventricular function and regional and surface ECGs were studied in eight conscious dogs during complete and partial coronary obstructions. Wall thickness and local ECGs were measured using an implanted sonomicrometer, and 11 subcutaneous electrodes were implanted in a modified McFee vectorcardiographic array. Complete obstruction of the circumflex coronary artery (using a hydraulic occluder) produced regional hypokinesia after 15 seconds and regional dyskinesia at 1 minute. Significant ECG changes occurred first in the surface vectorcardiogram, ST segments changed at 30 seconds and mean epicardial and endocardial ECG ST segments increased after 1 minute. During mild partial coronary stenosis that produced stable reductions of systolic wall thickening (%δWT) of less than 25% of control, no ST-segment changes occurred in the surface vectorcardiogram during the 10-minute study period, although ST segments increased significantly in the endocardial and epicardial ECG. With moderate coronary stenoses that produced immediate 25-48% reductions of %δWT (average reduction 36 ± 4%), significant mean ST displacements occurred after 2 minutes in the endocardial ECG, after 3 minutes in the epicardial ECG and after 4 minutes in the surface vectorcardiogram. With coronary stenoses that produced more than 50% reduction of %A. WT (average reduction 69 ± 2%), mean endocardial ST-segment changes were noted after 2 minutes, and changes in both the mean epicardial ECG and the surface vectorcardiogram occurred after 3 minutes. Thus, during mild coronary stenosis, regional myocardial dysfunction can occur without surface ECG changes, while during moderate coronary stenosis, it occurs before endocardial ST-segment changes and precedes surface ECG alterations by several minutes. The surface ECG was slightly more sensitive than the local ECG during complete coronary occlusion and less sensitive during partial coronary obstruction. We conclude that regional contractile abnormalities provide a more sensitive indicator of ischemia than electrocardiographic ST-segment changes.
Quantum integrals and anhomomorphic logics

The basic arena for a probabilistic structure is a set A of events. Corresponding to A is a dual structure A* of coevents. We call A* an anhomomorphic logic and the coevents are given by “truth functions” from A to the two-element Boolean algebra Z2=0,1. One of the main goals of a physical theory is to describe physical reality and a coevent φ:A→Z2 provides such a description in the sense that an event A∈A “actually occurs” if and only if ϕ(A) = 1. The quantum integral over an event A with respect to a coevent ϕ is defined and its properties are treated. Integrals with respect to various coevents are computed. Quantum systems are frequently described by a quantum measure μ which gives the propensity μ(A) that an event A occurs. For φ∈A*, if ϕ(A) = 0 whenever μ(A) = 0 we say that ϕ is preclusive. Preclusivity is a reality filter because it eliminates coevents that do not describe a possible reality for the system. A quantum measure that can be represented as a quantum integral with respect to a coevent ϕ i.
Fiscal Requirements for Price Stability

This paper argues that maintaining price stability requires not only commitment to an appropriate monetary policy rule, but an appropriate fiscal policy rule as well. 'Ricardian equivalence' does not imply that fiscal policy is irrelevant, except in the case of a certain class of policies (called 'Ricardian' policies). The role of fiscal developments in inflation determination under a non-Ricardian regime is illustrated through an analysis of the U.S. bond-price support regime of the 1940s. Several recent theoretical challenges to the logical possibility of a non-Ricardian regime are addressed, and a number of consequences are then drawn for the choice of policies to ensure price stability. An example of a monetary-fiscal regime with attractive properties would combine a 'Taylor rule' for monetary policy with nominal-deficit targeting as a fiscal policy commitment.
FADD-deficient T Cells Exhibit a Disaccord in Regulation of the Cell Cycle Machinery*

FADD is an adapter protein that was originally isolated as a transducer of apoptotic signals for death domain-containing receptors. However, FADD-deficient mice are embryonic lethal and FADD −/− T cells developed from FADD −/− embryonic stem cells in theRAG-1 −/− hosts lack the full potential to proliferate when stimulated through their T-cell receptor complex, suggesting that FADD protein might play a dualistic role in mediating not only cell death signaling but other non-apoptotic cellular pathways as well. Here we show that a substantial number of freshly isolatedFADD −/− peripheral T cells are cycling but are defective in their co-stimulatory response when stimulated. Analysis of several cell cycle proteins shows normal down-regulation of p27 inhibitor but increased levels of p21, decreased levels of cyclin D2, and constitutive activation of several cyclin-dependent kinases in activated T cells. These data suggest that FADD is involved in the regulation of cell cycle machinery in T lymphocytes.