Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Relative phase information for detecting human speech and spoofed speech

The detection of human and spoofed (synthetic/converted) speech has started to receive more attention. In this study, relative phase information extracted from a Fourier spectrum is used to detect human and spoofed speech. Because original/natural phase information is almost entirely lost in spoofed speech using current synthesis/conversion techniques, a modified group delay based feature, the frequency derivative of the phase spectrum, has been shown effective for detecting human speech and spoofed speech. The modified group delay based phase contains both the magnitude spectrum and phase information. Therefore, the relative phase information, which contains only phase information, is expected to achieve a better spoofing detection performance. In this study, the relative phase information is also combined with the Mel-Frequency Cepstral Coefficient (MFCC) and modified group delay. The proposed method was evaluated using the “ASVspoof 2015: Automatic Speaker Verification Spoofing and Countermeasures Challenge” dataset. The results show that the proposed relative phase information significantly outperforms the MFCC and modified group delay. The equal error rate (EER) was reduced from 1.74% of MFCC, 0.83% of modified group delay to 0.013% of relative phase. By combining the relative phase with MFCC and modified group delay, the EER was reduced to 0.002%. Index Terms: Spoofing detection, relative phase information, group delay, GMM, countermeasures
Subset-Row Inequalities Applied to the Vehicle-Routing Problem with Time Windows

This paper presents a branch-and-cut-and-price algorithm for the vehicle-routing problem with time windows. The standard Dantzig-Wolfe decomposition of the arc flow formulation leads to a set-partitioning problem as the master problem and an elementary shortest-path problem with resource constraints as the pricing problem. We introduce the subset-row inequalities, which are Chvatal-Gomory rank-1 cuts based on a subset of the constraints in the master problem. Applying a subset-row inequality in the master problem increases the complexity of the label-setting algorithm used to solve the pricing problem because an additional resource is added for each inequality. We propose a modified dominance criterion that makes it possible to dominate more labels by exploiting the step-like structure of the objective function of the pricing problem. Computational experiments have been performed on the Solomon benchmarks where we were able to close several instances. The results show that applying subset-row inequalities in the master problem significantly improves the lower bound and, in many cases, makes it possible to prove optimality in the root node.
Eye Gaze during Observation of Static Faces in Deaf People

Knowing where people look when viewing faces provides an objective measure into the part of information entering the visual system as well as into the cognitive strategy involved in facial perception. In the present study, we recorded the eye movements of 20 congenitally deaf (10 male and 10 female) and 23 (11 male and 12 female) normal-hearing Japanese participants while they evaluated the emotional valence of static face stimuli. While no difference was found in the evaluation scores, the eye movements during facial observations differed among participant groups. The deaf group looked at the eyes more frequently and for longer duration than the nose whereas the hearing group focused on the nose (or the central region of face) more than the eyes. These results suggest that the strategy employed to extract visual information when viewing static faces may differ between deaf and hearing people.
Uptake, cellular fate and toxicity of engineered gold nanoparticles in A549 cells

Engineered gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) can be modified to produce functionalized AuNPs with potential biomedical applications. However, prior to medical use, an understanding of cellular uptake and fate is critical to assess their potential toxicity. This thesis studied 20 nm AuNPs coated with a luminescent ruthenium complex (RubySS) to fonn RubySS.AuNP, which were fully characterised prior to cellular studies in A549 cells treated for 2-72 hours. The size of internalised particles as quantified by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) was in agreement with characterisation data of particles in solution and particle size remained unchanged after up to 72hours treatment indicating non-aggregation of internalised RubySS.AuNP. Particle number increased over time, and this was confinned by quantitative analysis of confocal images, TEM and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. Macropinocytosis and clathrin-mediated endocytosis were shown to be the route of uptake, with particles trafficked via the endo-lysosomal pathway as confirmed by co-localisation with fluorescent markers of early endosomes, lysosomes and autophagosomes in a time-dependent manner that, ultimately involved autophagy as confirmed by western blotting of LC3 protein. Cellular accumulation of RubySS.AuNP also caused cellular changes related to oxidative stress including depletion of glutathione and DNA-strand breaks, but the mechanism of action remains to be elucidated.
A phase 2 trial of azacitidine and gemtuzumab ozogamicin therapy in older patients with acute myeloid leukemia.

This trial tested the safety and efficacy of a regimen consisting of hydroxyurea followed by azacitidine, 75 mg/m(2) for 7 days, and gemtuzumab ozogamicin, 3 mg/m(2) on day 8, in older patients with newly diagnosed acute myeloid leukemia. Those achieving a complete remission received 1 consolidation treatment followed by 4 cycles of azacitidine. The patients were stratified into good-risk (age 60-69 years or performance status 0-1) and poor-risk (age ≥70 years and performance status 2 or 3) groups. Specific efficacy and safety goals were defined as being supportive of further study of the regimen. Eighty-three patients were registered in the good-risk cohort and 59 in poor-risk cohort, with median age of 71 and 75 years, respectively. In the good-risk group, 35 patients (44%) achieved a complete remission. Median relapse-free and overall survivals were 8 and 11 months, respectively. Six patients (8%) died within 30 days of registration. In the poor-risk group, 19 (35%) achieved a complete remission. Median relapse-free and overall survivals were 7 and 11 months, respectively. Seven patients (14%) died early. The results of this trial met predefined goals for efficacy and safety for the poor-risk cohort but not the good-risk group.
Outcome of depressive and anxiety disorders among young adults: Results from the Longitudinal Finnish Health 2011 Study

Abstract Purpose of the study: We investigated the outcomes and outcome predictors of depressive and anxiety disorders in a general population sample of young adults with a lifetime history of these disorders. Materials and methods: The study sample was derived from a nationally representative two-stage cluster sample of Finns aged 19–34 years. The original study was carried out in 2003–2005, and the follow-up in 2011. We investigated participants diagnosed with a depressive or anxiety disorder based on a SCID interview (excluding those with only a single specific phobia) (DAX-group, N = 181). The control group included those with no DSM-IV- diagnosis (N = 290). They were followed up with the M-CIDI interview assessing 12-month depressive and anxiety disorders in 2011. Results: In 2011, 22.8% of the DAX-group was diagnosed with a depressive or anxiety disorder compared to 9.8% of the control group. Education was lower and quality of life worse in the DAX-group than in the control group. Those participants of the DAX-group who received a diagnosis in 2011 had poorer quality of life than those in remission, which emphasizes the influence of a current disorder on the quality of life. Higher score in the Mood Disorder Questionnaire (MDQ) at baseline predicted poorer quality of life in 2011. Conclusions: Thus, depressive and anxiety disorders were persistent/recurrent in one quarter of participants, significantly affecting education and quality of life. Young adults with these disorders need support to achieve their academic goals.
Folding and one straight cut suffice

The first published reference to this fold-and:cut idea is an 1873 article in Harper’s New Monthly Magazine [l]. This article tells the story of Betsy Boss showing George Washington how easily a five-pointed star could be made for the American flag, by folding a sheet of paper and making one straight cut with scissors. Folding and cutting has also been used for a magic trick by Houdini, before he became a famous escape artist [S]. Another magician, Gerald Loe, studied this idea in some detail; his Paper Capers [ll] describes how to cut out arrangements of various geometric objects, such as a circular chain of stars. Martin Gardner wrote about this problem in his famous series in Scientific American [7]. He was particularly impressed with Loe’s ability to cut out any desired letter of the alphabet. Gardner [7] was the first to state cutting out complex polygons as an open problem. What are the limits of this fold-and-cut process? What polygonal shapes can be cut out? In the full version of this paper [4], we prove
Spatial frequency response of nanocomposite holographic gratings

We investigate the spatial frequency response of a volume grating recorded in a ZrO2 nanoparticle-dispersed nanocomposite. We experimentally find that there exists the optimum recording intensity to maximize the saturated refractive index modulation amplitude of a nanocomposite grating recorded at short and long grating spacing. A strong parametric relationship between grating spacing and recording intensity is seen and an increase in the saturated refractive index modulation amplitude at shorter grating spacing (< 0.5 μm)can be obtained by using higher recording intensities than those at longer grating spacing. Such a trend can be qualitatively explained by a phenomenological model used for holographic polymer-dispersed liquid crystal gratings. We also describe another method for the improvement of the high spatial frequency response by co-doping of thiol monomer that acts as a chain-transfer agent.
Topological nature of nonlinear optical effects in solids

Study of nonlinear optical responses reveals their quantum topological nature. There are a variety of nonlinear optical effects including higher harmonic generations, photovoltaic effects, and nonlinear Kerr rotations. They are realized by strong light irradiation to materials that results in nonlinear polarizations in the electric field. These are of great importance in studying the physics of excited states of the system as well as for applications to optical devices and solar cells. Nonlinear properties of materials are usually described by nonlinear susceptibilities, which have complex expressions including many matrix elements and energy denominators. On the other hand, a nonequilibrium steady state under an electric field periodic in time has a concise description in terms of the Floquet bands of electrons dressed by photons. We show theoretically, using the Floquet formalism, that various nonlinear optical effects, such as the shift current in noncentrosymmetric materials, photovoltaic Hall response, and photo-induced change of order parameters under the continuous irradiation of monochromatic light, can be described in a unified fashion by topological quantities involving the Berry connection and Berry curvature. We found that vector fields defined with the Berry connections in the space of momentum and/or parameters govern the nonlinear responses. This topological view offers a route to designing nonlinear optical materials.
The Influence of Carbon Nanotubes Contents on Electrical and Flammability Properties of Poly(Lactic Acid)/Multiwalled Carbon Nanotubes Nanocomposites

The effects of carboxylic functionalized multi-walled carbon nanotubes (CNT) contents on electrical and flammability properties of poly(lactic) acid/CNT nanocomposites were investigated. The PLA/CNT nanocomposites were prepared by melt-blending method, where the CNT contents were varied from 1 to 9 phr. From flammability properties analysis, nanocomposites with 9 phr CNT showed the highest limiting oxygen index (LOI) of 26.5 vol% as compared to 19.5 vol% of neat PLA. All nanocomposites with higher than 5 phr CNT contents also passed the V0 class of UL-94 vertical burning test rating. The direct current electrical test revealed that the electrical conductivity increases by approximately seven orders of magnitude from 2.19 × 10-11 S/m of neat PLA to 2.00 × 10-4 S/m for PLA/CNT nanocomposites with 5 phr CNT contents. The electrical conductivity of PLA/CNT continues to increase beyond 5 phr contents, with 2.26 × 10-3 S/m and 4.29 × 10-3 S/m respectively for 7 and 9 phr contents. The good dispersion of CNT leads to formation of electron conducting CNT networks throughout the insulating PLA matrix.
Efficacy of Lantibiotic Treatment of Staphylococcus aureus-Induced Skin Infections, Monitored by In Vivo Bioluminescent Imaging

ABSTRACT Staphylococcus aureus is a bacterial pathogen responsible for the majority of skin and soft tissue infections. Antibiotics are losing their efficacy as treatment for skin and soft tissue infections as a result of increased resistance in a variety of pathogens, including S. aureus. It is thus imperative to explore alternative antimicrobial treatments to ensure future treatment options for skin and soft tissue infections. A select few lantibiotics, a group of natural defense peptides produced by bacteria, inhibit the growth of numerous clinical S. aureus isolates, including methicillin-resistant strains. In this study, the antimicrobial activities of nisin, clausin, and amyloliquecidin, separately administered, were compared to that of a mupirocin-based ointment, which is commonly used as treatment for S. aureus-induced skin infections. Full-thickness excisional wounds, generated on the dorsal surfaces of mice, were infected with a bioluminescent strain of S. aureus (strain Xen 36). The infections were monitored in real time using in vivo bioluminescent imaging. Lantibiotic treatments significantly reduced the bioluminescence of S. aureus Xen 36 to a level similar to that recorded with mupirocin treatment. Wound closure, however, was more pronounced during lantibiotic treatment. Lantibiotics thus have the potential to be used as an alternative treatment option for S. aureus-induced skin infections.
Validation of Significant Wave Height From Improved Satellite Altimetry in the German Bight

Significant wave height (SWH) is mapped globally through satellite altimetry. SWH estimation is possible because the shape of a pulse-limited altimetric waveform depends on the sea state. The algorithm for SWH also depends on the width of the point target response (PTR) function. Particularly challenging for SWH detection are coastal data, due to land and calm water interference in the altimeter footprint, and low sea states, due to an extremely sharp leading edge in the waveform that is consequently poorly sampled. Here, Adaptive Leading Edge Subwaveform Retracker (ALES), a new algorithm for reprocessing altimetric waveforms, will be validated for SWH estimation in the German Bight. This challenging region presents both low sea state and coastal issues, and an extended network of buoys of the Bundesamt fuer Seeschiffahrt und Hydrographie is available for the in situ validation. Reprocessed data from Envisat, Jason-1, and Jason-2 missions are validated against the three offshore buoys. The in situ validation is applied both at the point nearest to the buoy and at all other points along track. The skill metrics is based on bias, standard deviation, slope of regression line, and number of cycles with correlation larger than 90%. We also tested the impact of the inclusion of two additional waveform samples that are provided in the Envisat Sensor Geophysical Data Records and the adoption of different values for the width of the PTR. Results show that near coast ALES estimations of SWH are generally better correlated with buoy data than standard processed products.
Correction for “ Chemokine receptor CXCR 3 agonist prevents human T-cell migration in a humanized model of arthritic in fl am-mation

IMMUNOLOGY Correction for “Chemokine receptor CXCR3 agonist prevents human T-cell migration in a humanized model of arthritic inflammation,” by Graeme O’Boyle, Christopher R. J. Fox, Hannah R. Walden, Joseph D. P. Willet, Emily R. Mavin, Dominic W. Hine, Jeremy M. Palmer, Catriona E. Barker, Christopher A. Lamb, Simi Ali, and John A. Kirby, which appeared in issue 12, March 20, 2012, of Proc Natl Acad Sci USA (109:4598–4603; first published March 5, 2012; 10.1073/pnas.1118104109). The authors note that Fig. 5 appeared incorrectly. The corrected figure and its corresponding legend appear below.
Difference in Graft Maturity of the Reconstructed Anterior Cruciate Ligament 2 Years Postoperatively

Background: Currently, there is an ongoing debate regarding the optimal graft choice between autograft and allograft tendons in reconstruction of the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL). It has been reported that allograft tendons have a slower onset and rate of revascularization compared with autograft tendons. Hypothesis: Allograft tendons might have inferior graft maturity compared with autograft tendons in ACL reconstruction at 2 years postoperatively. Study Design: Cohort study; Level of evidence, 3. Methods: A total of 52 participants with ACL reconstruction were recruited in this study, including 30 using allograft tendons and 22 using autograft tendons. All of them had unilateral ACL reconstruction and were followed up using 3.0-T magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) at least 2 years postoperatively. Clinical examination was performed on the same day when the MRI examination was performed, including subjective functional examinations (International Knee Documentation Committee [IKDC] and Tegner Lysholm Knee Scoring Scale [TLKS]) and physical examinations (anterior drawer test and Lachman test). Four measurements based on MRI were focused on graft orientation (including tibial tunnel position and graft angles), the edematous condition of the graft, intra-articular graft width at different sites, and signal intensity of the ACL graft using the signal/noise quotient (SNQ) from a region of interest analysis. Differences in each measurement were compared between the allograft group and the autograft group. Results: All the participants returned to normal sports activities at the follow-up time point, as all of them acquired full functional strength and stability. There was no significant difference between the autograft and the allograft group with respect to IKDC or TLKS score. The knees in both of the groups were confirmed stable by physical examination before MRI. On MRI measurements, the allograft group displayed no significant difference in graft orientation compared with the autograft group (P > .05). Moreover, there was also no significant difference between allograft group and autograft group in graft width of the distal site (P > .05), middle site (P > .05), and proximal site (P > .05). However, the mean SNQ value of the allograft group was significantly higher than that of the autograft group in the distal site (6.54 ± 6.58 vs 2.98 ± 5.48; P = .0173), the middle site (7.21 ± 6.31 vs 3.56 ± 4.62; P = .0149), and the proximal site (6.61 ± 8.08 vs 2.45 ± 8.12; P = .0018). Conclusion: The allograft group had a significantly higher SNQ value compared with the autograft group in this study, indicating that allograft tendons might have inferior graft maturity than autograft tendons in ACL reconstruction at 2 years postoperatively.
Probabilistic Approach to the Identification of Input Variables to Estimate Hydraulic Conductivity

Soil hydrologic data are required for catchment-scale modeling but these data are often difficult and costly to obtain. Although pedotransfer functions (PTFs) have been used to generate these data, they are not easily transferable to other bioclimatic zones. As climate influences the development of soil structure, the incorporation of soil structure assessments may improve the effectiveness of pedotransfer functions. The objective of this study was to examine which types of categorical texture and structure data would be most useful in either improving current PTFs to estimate saturated hydraulic conductivity (K s ) or allowing PTFs to be developed in areas where measured particle-size distribution, organic matter (OM) content, and bulk density (D b ) are lacking. As soil structure is categorical data, regression trees were used to determine which input data derived from the HYPRES database would be most useful in deriving new PTFs. Jackknife cross-validation was used to generate randomized subsets of the data and the optimal size of the developmental (n = 411) and test (n = 91) data sets was derived experimentally. The relative importance of input variables was evaluated by considering the probability that the data were partitioned by each variable. The best model utilized field-based information on soil horizon, soil structure (ped size), and soil textural class and, although the accuracy was no better than existing continuous PTFs, it has the added benefit of utility in data-poor environments.
Disseminated aspergillosis

The history and the clinical and necropsy findings are presented of a patient who died from Aspergillus fumigatus pyaemia occurring as an opportunistic infection complicating a dissecting aortic aneurysm. The diagnosis was made (and treatment instituted) during life: it rested upon repeated isolation of the organism from tracheal aspirations, a positive blood culture and positive serum precipitin reactions to A. fumigatus. Debilitating disease along with large doses of antibiotics and corticosteroids provided the conditions necessary for the normally saphrophytic fungi to become pathogenic. As the therapy for aspergillosis is still ineffective, the danger of prescribing large doses of antibiotics together with corticosteroids is stressed.
Dehydration in older adults.

To the Editor. —The Council Report 1 on dehydration warrants several practical caveats. While touching briefly on the influence of serum urea nitrogen, glucose, alcohol, and hyperlipidemia on measured serum osmolality, it fails to indicate, in practice, how these may complicate the formula given for free water deficit (FWD). Since measured serum osmolality is increased by the presence of the osmotically active agents urea and alcohol, which are relatively freely diffusible across cell membranes, this measurement is of little value in assessing FWD when these are present. The information one is seeking is captured, conceptually, in the term "effective osmolality" (Eosm), which we 2 have arbitrarily calculated as follows: (For values in Systeme International (SI) units, given as mmol/L, simply eliminate the conversion factor of 18 for serum glucose. The conversion factor for sodium and potassium is 1. ) Normal Eosm is 290±5 mOsm/L. The average value of Eosm of 290
A Review on Ubiquitination of Neurotrophin Receptors: Facts and Perspectives

Ubiquitination is a reversible post-translational modification involved in a plethora of different physiological functions. Among the substrates that are ubiquitinated, neurotrophin receptors (TrkA, TrkB, TrkC, and p75NTR) have been studied recently. TrkA is the most studied receptor in terms of its ubiquitination, and different E3 ubiquitin ligases and deubiquitinases have been implicated in its ubiquitination, whereas not much is known about the other neurotrophin receptors aside from their ubiquitination. Additional studies are needed that focus on the ubiquitination of TrkB, TrkC, and p75NTR in order to further understand the role of ubiquitination in their physiological and pathological functions. Here we review what is currently known regarding the ubiquitination of neurotrophin receptors and its physiological and pathological relevance.