Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Assignment of Dynamically Perceived Tasks by Token Passing in Multirobot Systems

The problem of assigning tasks to a group of robots acting in a dynamic environment is a fundamental issue for a multirobot system (MRS) and several techniques have been studied to address this problem. Such techniques usually rely on the assumption that tasks to be assigned are inserted into the system in a coherent fashion. In this work we consider a scenario where tasks to be accomplished are perceived by the robots during mission execution. This issue has a significative impact on the task allocation process and, at the same time, makes it strictly dependent on perception capabilities of robots. More specifically, we present an asynchronous distributed mechanism based on Token Passing for allocating tasks in a team of robots. We tested and evaluated our approach by means of experiments both in a simulated environment and with real robots; our scenario comprises a set of robots that must cooperatively collect a set of objects scattered in the working environment. Each object collection task requires the cooperation of two robots. The experiments in the simulation environment allowed us to extract quantitative data from several missions and in different operative conditions and to characterize in a statistical way the results of our approach, especially when the team size increases
Post-obduction dismantling of the early regolith and related conglomerates in the Kopeto-Boulinda-Nepoui area (New Caledonia): a possible Lower Miocene uplift and paleolandscape

In New Caledonia post obduction uplift caused the erosion of the early regolith, but their timing is poorly constrained. The Nepoui Formation, on the west coast, is a witness of post-obduction deposits. This area presents stepped ferruginized surfaces from the Kopeto-Boulinda Massif to the Nepoui Peninsula, indicating a large single paleosurface slightly tilted and incised by the river system or successive planation surfaces. Palaeomagnetic analysis and petrographic study of the ferricretes capping those stepped surfaces have been performed. Samples from the Kopeto-Boulinda Massif and lower Nepoui surfaces could not be dated by paleomagnetism, except the silico-ferruginous matrix of the Nepoui conglomerate close to 10-25 Ma. This age is rather imprecise but 1) the weathering of the fluvial conglomerates fossilized by the silicification followed their deposition and 2) conglomerates are locally interstratified in Lower Miocene marine limestones. In addition the detailed petrographic study of the ferricretes confirms rearrangements of nodules and pisolites, more important in the upper parts of the toposequence, where they follow smooth upper slopes of the topography. Therefore the term of lateritic ferricretes cannot be used, as they result from the dismantling of lateritic materials capping a former landscape. The late siliceous phase has been observed locally upstream, but it is more abundant downstream. All the data can be interpreted in reconstructing a fossil paleolandscape in that part of New Caledonia triggered by a Lower Miocene uplift, responsible for the drastic erosion of oldest profiles, creation of highly incised river systems and deposition of fluvial conglomerate.
Evolution of Gene Sequence in Response to Chromosomal Location

Evolutionary forces acting on the repetitive DNA of heterochromatin are not constrained by the same considerations that apply to protein-coding genes. Consequently, such sequences are subject to rapid evolutionary change. By examining the Troponin C gene family of Drosophila melanogaster, which has euchromatic and heterochromatic members, we find that protein-coding genes also evolve in response to their chromosomal location. The heterochromatic members of the family show a reduced CG content and increased variation in DNA sequence. We show that the CG reduction applies broadly to the protein-coding sequences of genes located at the heterochromatin:euchromatin interface, with a very strong correlation between CG content and the distance from centric heterochromatin. We also observe a similar trend in the transition from telomeric heterochromatin to euchromatin. We propose that the methylation of DNA is one of the forces driving this sequence evolution.
Femoral Rollback After Cruciate-Retaining and Stabilizing Total Knee Arthroplasty

Limited data comparing the kinematics of posterior cruciate ligament-retaining or substituting total knee arthroplasty with its own intact knee under identical loadings is available. In the current study, posterior femoral translation of the lateral and medial femoral condyles under unloaded conditions was examined for intact, cruciate-retaining, cruciate ligament-deficient cruciate-retaining and posterior-substituting knee arthroplasties. Cruciate-retaining and substituting total knee arthroplasties behaved similarly to the cruciate-deficient cruciate-retaining total knee arthroplasty between 0° and 30° flexion. Beyond 30°, the posterior cruciate-retaining arthroplasty showed a significant increase in posterior translation of both femoral condyles. The posterior cruciate-substituting arthroplasty only showed a significant increase in posterior femoral translation after 90°. At 120°, both arthroplasties restored approximately 80% of that of the native knee. Posterior translation of the lateral femoral condyle was greater than that observed in the medial condyle for all knees, indicating the presence of internal tibial rotation during knee flexion. The data showed that the posterior cruciate ligament is an important structure in posterior cruciate-retaining total knee arthroplasty and proper balancing is imperative to the success of the implant. The cam-spine engagement is valuable in restoring posterior femoral translation in posterior cruciate-substituting total knee arthroplasty.
A case study of long-term cognitive and social functioning following a right temporal lobectomy in infancy

We present the rare case of an adult patient, FS, who had a right anterior temporal lobe resection during infancy to treat intractable epilepsy, and underwent a cognitive evaluation 19 years later. Given the paucity of literature on long-term outcomes for infants who receive neurosurgery for epilepsy, this case provides valuable information for both clinicians and patients. What little literature exists on infant and child surgical outcomes for epilepsy suggests a variable course, with several areas of possible cognitive and social difficulty. FS's assessment at the age of 21 revealed only mild difficulties with memory, sequencing, and visual imagery, and spared intellectual functioning, working memory, problem-solving and social cognition, along with a high level of socioeconomic functioning. Thus, the case of FS suggests that neurosurgery during infancy is not necessarily associated with large-scale cognitive impairment, and furthermore, that high levels of functioning both educationally and vocationally are possible after surgical treatment of epilepsy in infancy.
Probabilistic Caching in Wireless D2D Networks: Cache Hit Optimal Versus Throughput Optimal

Departing from the conventional cache hit optimization in cache-enabled wireless networks, we consider an alternative optimization approach for the probabilistic caching placement in stochastic wireless D2D caching networks taking into account the reliability of D2D transmissions. Using tools from stochastic geometry, we provide a closed-form approximation of cache-aided throughput, which measures the density of successfully served requests by local device caches, and we obtain the optimal caching probabilities via numerical optimization. Compared with the cache-hit-optimal case, the optimal caching probabilities obtained by cache-aided throughput optimization show notable gain in terms of the density of successfully served user requests, particularly in dense user environments.
On mutually-exclusive roles and separation of duty

Separation of Duty (SoD) is widely considered to be a fundamental principle in computer security. A Static SoD (SSoD) policy states that in order to have all permissions necessary to complete a sensitive task, the cooperation of at least a certain number of users is required. In Role-Based Access Control (RBAC), Statically Mutually Exclusive Role (SMER) constraints are used to enforce SSoD policies. In this paper, we pose and answer fundamental questions related to the use of SMER constraints to enforce SSoD policies. We show that directly enforcing SSoD policies is intractable (<b>coNP</b>-complete), while checking whether an RBAC state satisfies a set of SMER constraints is efficient. Also, we show that verifying whether a given set of SMER constraints enforces an SSoD policy is intractable (<b>coNP</b>-complete) and discuss why this intractability result should not lead us to conclude that SMER constraints are not an appropriate mechanism for enforcing SSoD policies. We show also how to generate SMER constraints that are as accurate as possible for enforcing an SSoD policy.
Late Holocene inter-annual temperature variability reconstructed from the δ18O of archaeological Ostrea angasi shells

ABSTRACT Two multi-year oxygen isotope (δ18O) records were obtained from archaeological Ostrea angasi shells, confirming the potential of this species to provide valuable environmental records for the late Holocene period in southeastern Australia. High-resolution δ18Oshell samples from the O. angasi clearly display a seasonal variability, offering insight into past climate conditions in a region where such information is presently limited. The oxygen isotope record in O. angasi reflects a combined temperature–salinity signal. Observations of δ18Oshell data from modern specimens are used as a point of reference to assist in decoupling these two influences, with the two archaeological samples compared with the δ18Oshell profile of four modern O. angasi. Assuming similar paleo- δ18Owater values at the collection sites, data from these archaeological shells present a record of temperatures during the period of their growth that are consistently lower than modern day, with mean annual temperatures ∼2°C cooler.
Silent Cerebrovascular Disease in the Elderly Correlation With Ambulatory Pressure

Does the average daily blood pressure correlate with hypertensive cerebrovascular disease better than the casual pressure, as has been reported in other target organ involvement? We investigated the associations of two abnormal findings on brain magnetic resonance imaging suggestive of a vascular etiology, low intense foci (lacunae), and periventricular hyperintense lesions on T1- and T2-weighted images, with both office and average daily blood pressure values in a population of 73 healthy normotensive and hypertensive elderly individuals (70±6 years old). Lacunae were detected in 34 subjects (47%); the number per subject ranged from 0 to 19 and was significantly correlated with advancing age. Furthermore, these changes were supposedly related to the average of noninvasive ambulatory (24-hour and during awake and asleep periods) pressure recordings but not to office pressures. The grade of periventricular hyperintensity was also significantly associated with advancing age and the average of ambulatory systolic pressure recordings, particularly during sleep, but not with office blood pressure. In comparisons of normotensive, “office hypertensive,” and hypertensive subgroups, abnormalities on magnetic resonance imaging were appropriate to the level of the 24-hour blood pressure measurements but not to that of clinic pressure. In hypertensive patients, the presence of electrocardiographic evidence of left ventricular hypertrophy was also associated with greater abnormalities on magnetic resonance imaging. We conclude that ambulatory blood pressure monitoring is superior to casual pressure measurements in predicting latent cerebrovascular disease, which is unexpectedly common in apparently healthy elderly subjects.
The Environmental Dependence of Galaxy Colors in Intermediate-Redshift X-Ray-selected Clusters

We present a wide-field imaging study of the colors of bright galaxies (<M* + 2) in a sample of 12 X-ray-selected clusters and groups of galaxies at z ~ 0.3. The systems cover one of the largest ranges in X-ray luminosity (LX ~ 1043-1045 ergs s-1), and hence mass, of any sample studied at this redshift. We find that the "red" galaxies form a tight color-magnitude relation (CMR) and that neither the slope nor zero point of this relation changes significantly over the factor of 100 in X-ray luminosity covered by our sample. Using stellar population synthesis models, we find that our data allow a maximum possible change of 2 Gyr in the typical age of the "red" galaxies on the CMR over the range of LX of our sample. We also measure the fraction of blue galaxies (fb) relative to the CMR in our clusters and find a low value of fb ~ 0.1 consistent with other X-ray-selected cluster samples. We find that there is no correlation between fb and LX over our large LX range. However, we do find that both the CMR and fb depend significantly on cluster radius, with the zero point of the CMR shifting blueward in B - R by 0.10 ± 0.036 mag out to a radius of 0.75 times the virial radius. This color change is equivalent to a luminosity-weighted age gradient of ~2.5 Gyr per log(radius) and is consistent with previous studies of the radial change in the zero point of the CMR. It thus appears that the global cluster environment, in the form of cluster mass (LX), has little influence on the properties of the bright cluster galaxies, whereas the local environment, in the form of galaxy density (radius), has a strong effect. The range of ~100 in LX corresponds to a factor of ~40 in ram pressure efficiency, thus suggesting that ram pressure stripping or other mechanisms that depend on cluster mass, like tidal stripping or harassment, are unlikely to be solely responsible for changing the galaxy population from the "blue" star-forming galaxies, which dominate low-density environments, to the "red" passive galaxies, which dominate cluster cores.
Purification and characterization of the heat-labile toxin of Bordetella pertussis

A procedure is described for purification of pertussis heat-labile toxin (PEHLT) from cells of Bordetella pertussis. The purification procedure, performed in the cold and in the presence of protease inhibitors, gives 1,350-fold purification with yields of about 60%. The toxin was shown to be a single-chain polypeptide of 140 kDa, pI 6.02. It was completely inactivated by heating at 56 degrees C for 60 min. Rabbit antiserum prepared against PEHLT neutralized the toxin and gave a single precipitin line on immunodiffusion. In immunodiffusion assays, this anti-PEHLT serum did not react with pertussis toxin, filamentous hemagglutinin, or preparations of pertussis adenylate cyclase. Purified PEHLT elicited dermonecrosis and atrophy of the spleen. PEHLT is extraordinarily active; 0.4 X 10(-12) g caused necrotic lesions in newborn mice, and with 18- to 20-g mice the 50% lethal dose was about 11 X 10(-9) g.
Induction of apoptosis in MCF-7 cells by the hemagglutinin-neuraminidase glycoprotein of Newcastle disease virus Malaysian strain AF2240

Newcastle disease virus (NDV) exerts its naturally occurring oncolysis possibly through the induction of apoptosis. We hypothesized that the binding of the virus to the cell via the hemagglutinin-neuraminidase (HN) glycoprotein may be sufficient to not only induce apoptosis but to induce a higher apoptosis level than the parental NDV AF2240 virus. NDV AF2240 induction of apoptosis in MCF-7 human breast cancer cells was analyzed and quantified. In addition, the complete HN gene of NDV strain AF2240 was amplified, sequenced and cloned into the pDisplay eukaryotic expression vector. HN gene expression was first detected at the cell surface membrane of the transfected MCF-7 cells. HN induction of apoptosis in transfected MCF-7 cells was analyzed and quantified. The expression of the HN gene alone was able to induce apoptosis in MCF-7 cells but it was a less potent apoptosis inducer compared to the parental NDV AF2240 strain. In conclusion, the NDV AF2240 strain is a more suitable antitumor candidate agent than its recombinant HN gene unless the latter is further improved by additional modifications.
Performance analysis of MAP decoded space-time orthogonal block codes for non-uniform sources

We derive a closed-form expression for the exact pairwise error probability (PEP) of a non-uniform memoryless binary source transmitted over a Rayleigh fading channel using space-time orthogonal block codes and maximum a posteriori (MAP) detection. The expression is easy to evaluate and holds for any signaling scheme. We then use this result to minimize the bit error rate of the binary antipodal signaling scheme. Numerical results for the case of binary antipodal signaling (BPSK and optimal) verify the accuracy of our formula and quantify substantial gains of MAP decoding over maximum likelihood (ML) decoding for sources with strong non-uniformity.
Intraperitoneal radioactive phosphorus (32P) versus observation after negative second-look laparotomy for stage III ovarian carcinoma: a randomized trial of the Gynecologic Oncology Group.

PURPOSE The objectives of this prospective randomized study of consolidation therapy were to evaluate recurrence-free survival (RFS), overall survival (OS), and the morbidity of intraperitoneal (IP) chromic phosphate suspension (32P) therapy in patients with stage III epithelial ovarian carcinoma who have no detectable evidence of disease at the second-look laparotomy (SLL) procedure after primary chemotherapy. PATIENTS AND METHODS In a multi-institution clinical cooperative trial, 202 eligible patients with a negative SLL were randomly selected to receive either 15 mCi IP 32P (n = 104) or no further therapy (NFT; n = 98). RESULTS With a median follow-up of 63 months in living patients, 68 patients in the IP 32P group (65%) and 63 patients in the NFT group (64%) have developed tumor recurrence. The relative risk of recurrence is 0.90 (IP 32P to NFT) (90% confidence interval [CI], 0.68 to 1.19). The 5-year RFS rate is 42% and 36% for the IP 32P and NFT groups, respectively; the difference is not statistically significant (log-rank test, P =.27). There was no statistically significant difference in OS (P =.19). The relative risk of death is 0.85 (IP 32P to NFT) (90% CI, 0.62 to 1.16). Sixteen patients (8%) experienced grade 3 or 4 adverse effects, with eight in each respective group. CONCLUSION Intraperitoneal chromic phosphate did not decrease the risk of relapse or improve survival for patients with stage III epithelial ovarian cancer after a negative SLL. Despite complete pathologic remission at SLL after initial surgery and platinum-based chemotherapy, 61% of stage III ovarian cancer patients had tumor recurrence within 5 years of negative SLL. This indicates a need for more effective initial therapy and further studies of consolidation therapy.
Effects of the Number of Channels and Speech-to-Noise Ratio on Rate of Connected Discourse Tracking Through a Simulated Cochlear Implant Speech Processor

Objective To investigate the effects of number of channels and speech-to-noise ratio on connected discourse tracking (CDT) through simulations of cochlear implant speech processing. Previous studies have used citation-form vowel and consonant materials or simple sentences. CDT rates were expected to be less likely to be limited by ceiling effects and more representative of everyday speech communication. Design Four normal-hearing subjects were presented with speech processed through a real-time sine-excited vocoder having three, four, eight, or 12 channels. Amplitude envelopes extracted from each band modulated sinusoidal carrier signals placed at each band center frequency. Speech-spectrum shaped noise was added to speech before vocoder processing at three signal to noise ratios based on real-time measurements of speech level (+7, +12, +17 dB). Results CDT rates increased significantly with number of channels up to eight in both quiet and noise, and decreased significantly with each increase in noise level from quiet. Conclusions The effects on CDT rates of the number of channels and speech-to-noise ratio are highly correlated with intelligibility measures for Hearing in Noise Test (HINT) sentences, consonants and vowels. However, HINT sentence scores even in noise show ceiling effects that obscure the advantages of processors with eight or more channels. Moderate levels of noise that have only slight effects on other measures significantly affected CDT rate. CDT rates with three or four bands of spectral information were much lower than asymptotic rates, especially in the presence of noise.
tgp: An R Package for Bayesian Nonstationary, Semiparametric Nonlinear Regression and Design by Treed Gaussian Process Models

The tgp package for R is a tool for fully Bayesian nonstationary, semiparametric nonlinear regression and design by treed Gaussian processes with jumps to the limiting linear model. Special cases also implemented include Bayesian linear models, linear CART, stationary separable and isotropic Gaussian processes. In addition to inference and posterior prediction, the package supports the (sequential) design of experiments under these models paired with several objective criteria. 1-d and 2-d plotting, with higher dimension projection and slice capabilities, and tree drawing functions (requiring maptree and combinat packages), are also provided for visualization of tgp objects.
Prognostic significance of serum p53 antibodies in patients with limited‐stage small cell lung cancer

p53 tumour suppressor gene alterations are one of the most frequent genetic events in lung cancer. A subset of patients with p53 mutation and cancer exhibited circulating serum anti‐p53 self‐antibodies (p53‐Ab). The prevalence of these antibodies in lung cancer is currently being analysed in a multicentric study. In a group of homogeneous SCLC patients, p53‐Ab were detected in 20/97 (20.6%) individuals. In this group of patients, Cox's multivariate analysis identified disease extent (p = 0.022), WHO initial performance status greater than 0 (p = 0.005), and the absence of a complete response after 6 months of treatment (p < 0.0001) as independent prognostic variables, with p53‐Ab being of borderline significance (p = 0.051). In the subset of limited‐stage SCLC patients, Cox's multivariate analysis found p53‐Ab (p = 0.033), WHO initial performance status greater than 0 (p = 0.028), and absence of a complete response (p < 0.001) to be independent prognostic variables. Thus, actuarial analysis showed that patients with limited‐stage SCLC and p53‐Ab had a median survival time of 10 months, whereas limited‐stage SCLC patients without p53‐Ab had a 17‐month median survival time (p = 0.014). Therefore, serum assay of p53‐Ab could help to identify a population of SCLC patients with an especially poor prognosis. This population could represent patients with tumours harboring aggressive p53 mutations. Int. J. Cancer (Pred. Oncol.) 89:81–86, 2000. © 2000 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.