Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Meshing Non-uniformly Sampled and Incomplete Data Based on Displaced T-spline Level Sets

We propose a new method for constructing a piecewise smooth mesh from a set of unorganized data points, which may be non-uniformly sampled, noisy, and even containing holes. The method is based on the construction of an implicit representation of the surface, by using smooth (C2 in our case) T-spline scalar functions. We first generate the T- spline control grid, and use an evolution process such that the resulting T-spline level sets capture the topology and outline of the object to be reconstructed. The initial mesh with high quality is obtained from the implicit T-spline function through the marching triangulation method. Then we project each data point to the initial mesh, and get a scalar displacement field. Detailed features will be captured by the displaced mesh. We also propose an additional evolution process, which combines data-driven velocities and feature- preserving bilateral filters, in order to reproduce sharp features.
Mammalian retinal Müller cells have circadian clock function

Purpose To test whether Müller glia of the mammalian retina have circadian rhythms. Methods We used Müller glia cultures isolated from mouse lines or from humans and bioluminescent reporters of circadian clock genes to monitor molecular circadian rhythms. The clock gene dependence of the Müller cell rhythms was tested using clock gene knockout mouse lines or with siRNA for specific clock genes. Results We demonstrated that retinal Müller glia express canonical circadian clock genes, are capable of sustained circadian oscillations in isolation from other cell types, and exhibit unique features of their molecular circadian clock compared to the retina as a whole. Mouse and human Müller cells demonstrated circadian clock function; however, they exhibited species-specific differences in the gene dependence of their clocks. Conclusions Müller cells are the first mammalian retinal cell type in which sustained circadian rhythms have been demonstrated in isolation from other retinal cells.
From generic to specific deep representations for visual recognition

Evidence is mounting that ConvNets are the best representation learning method for recognition. In the common scenario, a ConvNet is trained on a large labeled dataset and the feed-forward units activation, at a certain layer of the network, is used as a generic representation of an input image. Recent studies have shown this form of representation to be astoundingly effective for a wide range of recognition tasks. This paper thoroughly investigates the transferability of such representations w.r. t. several factors. It includes parameters for training the network such as its architecture and parameters of feature extraction. We further show that different visual recognition tasks can be categorically ordered based on their distance from the source task. We then show interesting results indicating a clear correlation between the performance of tasks and their distance from the source task conditioned on proposed factors. Furthermore, by optimizing these factors, we achieve state-of-the-art performances on 16 visual recognition tasks.
BMP4-dependent expression of Xenopus Grainyhead-like 1 is essential for epidermal differentiation

Morphogen-dependent epidermal-specific transacting factors have not been defined in vertebrates. We demonstrate that a member of the grainyhead transcription factor family, Grainyhead-like 1 (XGrhl1) is essential for ectodermal ontogeny in Xenopus laevis. Expression of this factor is restricted to epidermal cells. Moreover, XGrhl1 is regulated by the BMP4 signaling cascade. Disruption of XGrhl1 activity in vivo results in a severe defect in terminal epidermal differentiation, with inhibition of XK81A1 epidermal keratin gene expression, a key target of BMP4 signaling. Furthermore, transcription of the XK81A1 gene is modulated directly by binding of XGRHL1 to a promoter-localized binding motif that is essential for high-level expression. These results establish a novel developmental role for XGrhl1 as a crucial tissue-specific regulator of vertebrate epidermal differentiation.
Altered Orientation and Flight Paths of Pigeons Reared on Gravity Anomalies: A GPS Tracking Study

The mechanisms of pigeon homing are still not understood, in particular how they determine their position at unfamiliar locations. The “gravity vector” theory holds that pigeons memorize the gravity vector at their home loft and deduct home direction and distance from the angular difference between memorized and actual gravity vector. However, the gravity vector is tilted by different densities in the earth crust leading to gravity anomalies. We predicted that pigeons reared on different gravity anomalies would show different initial orientation and also show changes in their flight path when crossing a gravity anomaly. We reared one group of pigeons in a strong gravity anomaly with a north-to-south gravity gradient, and the other group of pigeons in a normal area but on a spot with a strong local anomaly with a west-to-east gravity gradient. After training over shorter distances, pigeons were released from a gravitationally and geomagnetically normal site 50 km north in the same direction for both home lofts. As expected by the theory, the two groups of pigeons showed divergent initial orientation. In addition, some of the GPS-tracked pigeons also showed changes in their flight paths when crossing gravity anomalies. We conclude that even small local gravity anomalies at the birth place of pigeons may have the potential to bias the map sense of pigeons, while reactivity to gravity gradients during flight was variable and appeared to depend on individual navigational strategies and frequency of position updates.
Forecasting the Major Influences of Predation and Environment on Cod Recovery in the Northern Gulf of St. Lawrence

The northern Gulf of St. Lawrence (NGSL) stock of Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua), historically the second largest cod population in the Western Atlantic, has known a severe collapse during the early 1990 s and is currently considered as endangered by the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada. As for many fish populations over the world which are currently being heavily exploited or overfished, urgent management actions in the form of recovery plans are needed for restoring this stock to sustainable levels. Stochastic projections based on a statistical population model incorporating predation were conducted over a period of 30 years (2010–2040) to assess the expected outcomes of alternative fishing strategies on the stock recovery under different scenarios of harp seal (Pagophilus groenlandicus) abundance and environmental conditions. This sensitivity study shows that water temperature is key in the rebuilding of the NGSL cod stock. Model projections suggest that maintaining the current management practice under cooler water temperatures is likely to maintain the species in an endangered status. Under current or warmer conditions in the Gulf of St. Lawrence, partial recovery might only be achieved by significant reductions in both fishing and predation pressure. In the medium-term, a management strategy that reduces catch could be favoured over a complete moratorium so as to minimize socio-economic impacts on the industry.
Acute effects of nicotine on physiological and subjective sexual arousal in nonsmoking men: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial.

INTRODUCTION Chronic nicotine treatment has deleterious effects on vascular functioning and catecholamine modulation, which may compromise erectile functioning. Evidence that long-term cigarette smoking is an independent risk factor for introducing impotence is robust. However, limited studies have focused on the acute effects of smoking on physiological sexual response, and none have investigated the deleterious effects of isolated nicotine on human sexual arousal. Consequently, pathophysiological underpinnings of tobacco-induced-and particularly, nicotine-induced-erectile dysfunction are not well understood. AIM To provide the first empirical examination of the acute effects of isolated nicotine on sexual arousal in nonsmoking men. METHODS Twenty-eight sexually functional heterosexual men (mean age 21 years), each with less than 100 direct exposures to nicotine, participated in a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled, crossover trial. Participants received either Nicorette polacrilex gum (SmithKline Beecham Consumer Healthcare, Pittsburgh, PA, USA) (6 mg; approximately equivalent to smoking one high-yield cigarette) or placebo gum, matched for appearance, taste, and consistency, approximately 40 minutes prior to viewing an erotic film. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Physiological (circumferential change via penile plethysmography) and subjective (continuous self-report) sexual responses to erotic stimuli were examined, as well as changes in mood. RESULTS Nicotine significantly reduced erectile responses to the erotic films (P = 0.02), corresponding to a 23% reduction in physiological sexual arousal. This occurred in 16 of 20 men with valid physiological recordings. Nicotine had no significant effect on continuous subjective ratings of sexual arousal (P = 0.70) or on mood (all Ps > 0.05). CONCLUSIONS Isolated nicotine can significantly attenuate physiological sexual arousal in healthy nonsmoking men. These findings have implications for elucidating physiological mechanisms responsible for the effects of nicotine on sexual dysfunction, and for assisting public health policy in considering the deleterious effects of nicotine on sexual health.
Epidemiology of Classic and Novel Human Astrovirus: Gastroenteritis and Beyond

Since they were identified in 1975, human astroviruses have been considered one of the most important agents of viral acute gastroenteritis in children. However, highly divergent astroviruses infecting humans have been recently discovered and associated with extra-intestinal infections. The report of cases of fatal meningitis and encephalitis, especially in immunocompromised individuals, has broadened their disease spectrum. Although zoonotic transmission among animal and human astroviruses has not been clearly recognized, the genetic similarity between some human and animal viruses makes it likely to occur. This review provides an update on the epidemiology of both classic and novel human astroviruses, and a comprehensive view on confirmed or potential association between astrovirus and human disease.
Regularized Policy Iteration

In this paper we consider approximate policy-iteration-based reinforcement learning algorithms. In order to implement a flexible function approximation scheme we propose the use of non-parametric methods with regularization, providing a convenient way to control the complexity of the function approximator. We propose two novel regularized policy iteration algorithms by adding L2-regularization to two widely-used policy evaluation methods: Bellman residual minimization (BRM) and least-squares temporal difference learning (LSTD). We derive efficient implementation for our algorithms when the approximate value-functions belong to a reproducing kernel Hilbert space. We also provide finite-sample performance bounds for our algorithms and show that they are able to achieve optimal rates of convergence under the studied conditions.
Investigations of the reactivity of selected Pn ligand complexes

In this thesis the reactivity of the pentaphosphaferrocene Cp*FeP5 and the compound Cp'''NiP3 were investigated towards different nucleophiles, salt metathesis of the resulting anionic complexes, aswell as towards reducing agents. As a result various triple decker complexes were obtained and pentaphosphaferrocene was functionalized with organic groups.
First-order phase transition in a 2D random-field Ising model with conflicting dynamics

The effects of locally random magnetic fields are considered in a nonequilibrium Ising model defined on a square lattice with nearest-neighbor interactions. In order to generate the random magnetic fields, we have considered random variables {h} that change randomly with time according to a double-Gaussian probability distribution, which consists of two single-Gaussian distributions, centered at +ho and −ho, with the same width σ. This distribution is very general and can recover in appropriate limits the bimodal distribution () and the single-Gaussian one (ho = 0). We performed Monte Carlo simulations in lattices with linear sizes in the range L = 32–512. The system exhibits ferromagnetic and paramagnetic steady states. Our results suggest the occurrence of first-order phase transitions between the above-mentioned phases at low temperatures and large random-field intensities ho for some small values of the width σ. By means of finite size scaling, we estimate the critical exponents in the low-field region, where we have continuous phase transitions. In addition, we show a sketch of the phase diagram of the model for some values of σ.
Green-aware workload scheduling in geographically distributed data centers

Renewable (or green) energy, such as solar or wind, has at least partially powered data centers to reduce the environmental impact of traditional energy sources (brown energy with high carbon footprint). In this paper, we propose a holistic workload scheduling algorithm to minimize the brown energy consumption across multiple geographically distributed data centers with renewable energy sources. While green energy supply for a single data center is intermittent due to daily/seasonal effects, our workload scheduling algorithm is aware of different amounts of green energy supply and dynamically schedules the workload across data centers. The scheduling decision adapts to workload and data center cooling dynamics. Our experiments with real workload traces demonstrate that our scheduling algorithm greatly reduces brown energy consumption by up to 40% in comparison with other scheduling policies.
Detecting deception using critical segments

We present an investigation of segments that map to GLOBAL LIES, that is, the intent to deceive with respect to salient topics of the discourse. We propose that identifying the truth or falsity of these CRITICAL SEGMENTS may be important in determining a speaker’s veracity over the larger topic of discourse. Further, answers to key questions, which can be identified ap riori, may represent emotional and cognitive HOT SPOTS, analogous to those observed by psychologists who study gestural and facial cues to deception. We present results of experiments that use two different definitions of CRITICAL SEGMENTS and employ machine learning techniques that compensate for imbalances in the dataset. Using this approach, we achieve a performance gain of 23.8% relative to chance, in contrast with human performance on a similar task, which averages substantially below chance. We discuss the features used by the models, and consider how these findings can influence future research. Index Terms: deception, deceptive, speech
A 5-MicroRNA Signature for Lung Squamous Cell Carcinoma Diagnosis and hsa-miR-31 for Prognosis

Purpose: Recent studies have suggested that microRNA biomarkers could be useful for stratifying lung cancer subtypes, but microRNA signatures varied between different populations. Squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) is one major subtype of lung cancer that urgently needs biomarkers to aid patient management. Here, we undertook the first comprehensive investigation on microRNA in Chinese SCC patients. Experimental Design: MicroRNA expression was measured in cancerous and noncancerous tissue pairs strictly collected from Chinese SCC patients (stages I–III), who had not been treated with chemotherapy or radiotherapy prior to surgery. The molecular targets of proposed microRNA were further examined. Results: We identified a 5-microRNA classifier (hsa-miR-210, hsa-miR-182, hsa-miR-486-5p, hsa-miR-30a, and hsa-miR-140-3p) that could distinguish SCC from normal lung tissues. The classifier had an accuracy of 94.1% in a training cohort (34 patients) and 96.2% in a test cohort (26 patients). We also showed that high expression of hsa-miR-31 was associated with poor survival in these 60 SCC patients by Kaplan–Meier analysis (P = 0.007), by univariate Cox analysis (P = 0.011), and by multivariate Cox analysis (P = 0.011). This association was independently validated in a separate cohort of 88 SCC patients (P = 0.008, 0.011, and 0.003 in Kaplan–Meier analysis, univariate Cox analysis, and multivariate Cox analysis, respectively). We then determined that the tumor suppressor DICER1 is a target of hsa-miR-31. Expression of hsa-miR-31 in a human lung cancer cell line repressed DICER1 activity but not PPP2R2A or LATS2. Conclusions: Our results identified a new diagnostic microRNA classifier for SCC among Chinese patients and a new prognostic biomarker, hsa-miR-31. Clin Cancer Res; 17(21); 6802–11. ©2011 AACR.
Balancing Expressiveness and Simplicity in an Interlingua for Task Based Dialogue

In this paper we compare two interlingua representations for speech translation. The basis of this paper is a distributional analysis of the C-STAR II and NESPOLE databases tagged with interlingua representations. The C-STAR II database has been partially re-tagged with the NESPOLE interlingua, which enables us to make comparisons on the same data with two types of interlinguas and on two types of data (C-STAR II and NESPOLE) with the same interlingua. The distributional information presented in this paper show that the NESPOLE interlingua maintains the language-independence and simplicity of the C-STAR II speech-act-based approach, while increasing semantic expressiveness and scalability.
Traumatic Rotatory Displacement of the Lower Cervical Spine

Traumatic rotatory displacement (TRD) are defined as all slight anterior corporeal displacements (less than 1/3 of the vertebral body) secondary to different vectors, but with a constant and dominant rotatory component. The authors report on 47 cases of TRD (35% of all severe lower cervical spine injuries) (follow-up: 6 months to 7 years). TRD occurs only when two lesions are present: an anterior lesion in the disk and ligaments, and a posterior lesion of the articular process, as the authors confirmed earlier in an experimental study on monkeys and specimens. Depending on the nature of the posterior lesions, three anatomoclinical types occur: 1) posterior capsular lesions cause unilateral facet dislocation (UFD): ten cases; 2) bony lesions of the articular process cause unilateral facet fracture (UFF): 28 cases; 3) double bony lesions, which can set free the articular facets, are called fracture separation of the articular pillar (FSAP): nine cases. The common radiographic characteristic of these three lesions is slight anterior displacement (or antero-listhesis), which is well seen on the lateral film; only tomograms or CT scans can show the posterior lesions. Instability, as defined by Roy-Camille, Denis and our experiments, was obvious on X-rays: soon after the injury, for UFD, and some time later, for 18 UFF and three FSAP. Statistically, 25% of all cases of TRD are associated with another traumatic lesion of the lower or upper cervical spine. Clinically, there is a 30% rate of radicular complications in TRD: this figure is higher than that of other injury types. Finally, the therapeutic protocol was identical for 90% of cases of TRD: 1st: reduction by orthopedic means; 2nd: anterior interbody fusion with iliac bone graft and screwed plate. Only three UFDs could not be reduced in this way and required surgery by a posterior approach. Forty patients have had very good functional results, and no radicular signs persisted when surgery was performed soon after injury.
Learning with Memory Embeddings

Embedding learning, a.k. a. representation learning, has been shown to be able to model large-scale semantic knowledge graphs. A key concept is a mapping of the knowledge graph to a tensor representation whose entries are predicted by models using latent representations of generalized entities. Latent variable models are well suited to deal with the high dimensionality and sparsity of typical knowledge graphs. In recent publications the embedding models were extended to also consider time evolutions, time patterns and subsymbolic representations. In this paper we map embedding models, which were developed purely as solutions to technical problems for modelling temporal knowledge graphs, to various cognitive memory functions, in particular to semantic and concept memory, episodic memory, sensory memory, short-term memory, and working memory. We discuss learning, query answering, the path from sensory input to semantic decoding, and the relationship between episodic memory and semantic memory. We introduce a number of hypotheses on human memory that can be derived from the developed mathematical models.
Knot polynomial identities and quantum group coincidences

We construct link invariants using the $D_{2n}$ subfactor planar algebras, and use these to prove new identities relating certain specializations of colored Jones polynomials to specializations of other quantum knot polynomials. These identities can also be explained by coincidences between small modular categories involving the even parts of the $D_{2n}$ planar algebras. We discuss the origins of these coincidences, explaining the role of $SO$ level-rank duality, Kirby-Melvin symmetry, and properties of small Dynkin diagrams. One of these coincidences involves $G_2$ and does not appear to be related to level-rank duality.
Improving the Performance of the Granulosis Virus of Codling Moth (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) by Adding the Yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae with Sugar

ABSTRACT Studies were conducted with the codling moth granulosis virus (CpGV) to evaluate whether adding the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae Meyen ex E. C. Hansen with brown cane sugar could improve larval control of Cydia pomonella (L.). Larval mortalities in dipped-apple bioassays with S. cerevisiae or sugar alone were not significantly different from the water control. The addition of S. cerevisiae but not sugar with CpGV significantly increased larval mortality compared with CpGValone. The combination of S. cerevisiae and sugar with CpGV significantly increased larval mortality compared with CpGV plus either additive alone. The addition of S. cerevisiae improved the efficacy of CpGV similarly to the use of the yeast Metschnikowia pulcherrima (isolated from field-collected larvae). The proportion of uninjured fruit in field trials was significantly increased with the addition of S. cerevisiae and sugar to CpGV compared with CpGValone only in year 1, and from the controls in both years. In comparison, larval mortality was significantly increased in both years with the addition of S. cerevisiae and sugar with CpGV compared with CpGV alone or from the controls. The numbers of overwintering larvae on trees was significantly reduced from the control following a seasonal program of CpGV plus S. cerevisiae and sugar. The addition of a microencapsulated formulation of pear ester did not improve the performance of CpGVor CpGV plus S. cerevisiae and sugar. These data suggest that yeasts can enhance the effectiveness of the biological control agent CpGV, in managing and maintaining codling moth at low densities.