Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Multi-agent Learning Experiments on Repeated Matrix Games

This paper experimentally evaluates multi-agent learning algorithms playing repeated matrix games to maximize their cumulative return. Previous works assessed that Q-learning surpassed Nash-based multi-agent learning algorithms. Based on all-against-all repeated matrix game tournaments, this paper updates the state of the art of multi-agent learning experiments. In a first stage, it shows that M-Qubed, S and bandit-based algorithms such as UCB are the best algorithms on general-sum games, Exp3 being the best on cooperative games and zero-sum games. In a second stage, our experiments show that two features - forgetting the far past, and using recent history with states -improve the learning algorithms. Finally, the best algorithms are two new algorithms, Q-learning and UCB enhanced with the two features, and M-Qubed.
Segmentation of Human Instances Using Grab-cut and Active Shape Model Feedback

For a long time, image segmentation has been of great interest for researchers. Although there have been many studies on automatic object segmentation, still a method which can cope with arbitrary input situations is out of reach. In this paper, we present “Active Shape Feedback Segmentation” (ASFSeg) method, which is a way to automatically segment human subjects (more accurately, pedestrians) from images. For this task, we try to use masks generated by the Active Shape Model (ASM) algorithm as a prior input for the Grab-cut technique to segment the desired human subject in the image without user interaction. To achieve this, we propose a feedback framework for the ASM sample generation. This feedback process compares the segmentation result mask from the Grab-cut stage and the samples generated in the ASM stage and then chooses the closest match to generate new samples for segmentation. This process is repeated until the system converges on one of the generated masks. Some experiments are carried out that shows the validity of our proposed method, which shows that the system can automatically segment the human subjects in provided pictures.
Weak-form Efficient Market Hypothesis, Behavioural Finance and Episodic Transient Dependencies: The Case of the Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange

This study utilizes the windowed-test procedure of Hinich and Patterson (1995) to examine the data generating process of KLSE CI returns series. Unlike previous studies, the present one relates the evidence to the popular weak-form EMH and behavioural finance, with the hope of offering some plausible explanations to the controversy arises between these two camps. Our econometrics results indicate that linear and non-linear dependencies play a significant role in the underlying data generating process. However, these dependencies are not stable as the results suggest that they are episodic and transient in nature. Along the line of our interpretations, we are able to offer some plausible explanations as to why weak-form EMH generally holds in KLSE, though the presence of linear and non-linear dependencies implies the potential of returns predictability. Specifically, these significant dependencies show up at random intervals for a brief period of time but then disappear again before they can be exploited by investors. Looking from a micro perspective, we are able to rationalize the co-existence of weak-form EMH and behavioural finance in KLSE when the statistical properties of random walk, linear and non-linear dependencies, which also co-exist in the time domain, are interpreted in the framework of information arrival and market reactions to that information.
The Role of Individual Domains and the Significance of Shedding of ATP6AP2/(pro)renin Receptor in Vacuolar H+-ATPase Biogenesis

The ATPase 6 accessory protein 2 (ATP6AP2)/(pro)renin receptor (PRR) is essential for the biogenesis of active vacuolar H+-ATPase (V-ATPase). Genetic deletion of ATP6AP2/PRR causes V-ATPase dysfunction and compromises vesicular acidification. Here, we characterized the domains of ATP6AP2/PRR involved in active V-ATPase biogenesis. Three forms of ATP6AP2/PRR were found intracellularly: full-length protein and the N- and C-terminal fragments of furin cleavage products, with the N-terminal fragment secreted extracellularly. Genetic deletion of ATP6AP2/PRR did not affect the protein stability of V-ATPase subunits. The extracellular domain (ECD) and transmembrane domain (TM) of ATP6AP2/PRR were indispensable for the biogenesis of active V-ATPase. A deletion mutant of ATP6AP2/PRR, which lacks exon 4-encoded amino acids inside the ECD (Δ4M) and causes X-linked mental retardation Hedera type (MRXSH) and X-linked parkinsonism with spasticity (XPDS) in humans, was defective as a V-ATPase-associated protein. Prorenin had no effect on the biogenesis of active V-ATPase. The cleavage of ATP6AP2/PRR by furin seemed also dispensable for the biogenesis of active V-ATPase. We conclude that the N-terminal ECD of ATP6AP2/PRR, which is also involved in binding to prorenin or renin, is required for the biogenesis of active V-ATPase. The V-ATPase assembly occurs prior to its delivery to the trans-Golgi network and hence shedding of ATP6AP2/PRR would not affect the biogenesis of active V-ATPase.
A Quantitative Comparison of Cell-Type-Specific Microarray Gene Expression Profiling Methods in the Mouse Brain

Expression profiling of restricted neural populations using microarrays can facilitate neuronal classification and provide insight into the molecular bases of cellular phenotypes. Due to the formidable heterogeneity of intermixed cell types that make up the brain, isolating cell types prior to microarray processing poses steep technical challenges that have been met in various ways. These methodological differences have the potential to distort cell-type-specific gene expression profiles insofar as they may insufficiently filter out contaminating mRNAs or induce aberrant cellular responses not normally present in vivo. Thus we have compared the repeatability, susceptibility to contamination from off-target cell-types, and evidence for stress-responsive gene expression of five different purification methods - Laser Capture Microdissection (LCM), Translating Ribosome Affinity Purification (TRAP), Immunopanning (PAN), Fluorescence Activated Cell Sorting (FACS), and manual sorting of fluorescently labeled cells (Manual). We found that all methods obtained comparably high levels of repeatability, however, data from LCM and TRAP showed significantly higher levels of contamination than the other methods. While PAN samples showed higher activation of apoptosis-related, stress-related and immediate early genes, samples from FACS and Manual studies, which also require dissociated cells, did not. Given that TRAP targets actively translated mRNAs, whereas other methods target all transcribed mRNAs, observed differences may also reflect translational regulation.
Prior-Based Dual Additive Latent Dirichlet Allocation for User-Item Connected Documents

User-item connected documents, such as customer reviews for specific items in online shopping website and user tips in location-based social networks, have become more and more prevalent recently. Inferring the topic distributions of user-item connected documents is beneficial for many applications, including document classification and summarization of users and items. While many different topic models have been proposed for modeling multiple text, most of them cannot account for the dual role of user-item connected documents (each document is related to one user and one item simultaneously) in topic distribution generation process. In this paper, we propose a novel probabilistic topic model called Prior-based Dual Additive Latent Dirichlet Allocation (PDA-LDA). It addresses the dual role of each document by associating its Dirichlet prior for topic distribution with user and item topic factors, which leads to a document-level asymmetric Dirichlet prior. In the experiments, we evaluate PDA-LDA on several real datasets and the results demonstrate that our model is effective in comparison to several other models, including held-out perplexity on modeling text and document classification application.
The relationship between grit, self-control, and early grade reading: a trial measuring soft skills in rural Tanzania

Abstract Soft skills such as grit, self-control, and self-confidence have been shown to predict outcomes in school and in life. As such, their valid and reliable measurement is of substantial interest in educational research and policy circles. However, the vast majority of this research originates in Western countries; relatively little is known regarding the measurement of soft skills in developing country contexts and whether similar types of instruments can provide evidence of these skills. This paper presents a novel means of assessing grit, self-control, and self-confidence in rural Tanzania: through the use of scenario-based self-report questionnaires. Survey instruments were administered in three regions in Tanzania to 961 Standard 2 pupils. We found that scenario-based items provided valid and, in most cases, reliable estimates of the three tested soft skills. When comparing self-reported soft skills and reading ability, we found that both grit and self-control were significant predictors of reading and mathematics performance. After controlling for sex, region, and age, grit was found to have a stronger association with reading performance than socioeconomic status.
Band structure of hydrogenated Si nanosheets and nanotubes

The band structures of fully hydrogenated Si nanosheets and nanotubes are elucidated by the use of an empirical tight-binding model. The hydrogenated Si sheet is a semiconductor with an indirect band gap of about 2.2 eV. The symmetries of the wavefunctions allow us to explain the origin of the gap. We predict that, for certain chiralities, hydrogenated Si nanotubes represent a new type of semiconductor, one with coexisting direct and indirect gaps of exactly the same magnitude. This behavior is different from that governed by the Hamada rule established for non-hydrogenated carbon and silicon nanotubes. A comparison to the results of an ab initio calculation is made.
Characterization of the inhibitory effect of voriconazole on the fungicidal activity of amphotericin B against Candida albicans in an in vitro kinetic model.

OBJECTIVES The aim of the present investigation was to study and characterize the effect of voriconazole on the fungicidal activity of amphotericin B. METHODS Four strains of Candida albicans susceptible to voriconazole were exposed to voriconazole and amphotericin B, either alone, simultaneously or sequentially in an in vitro kinetic model. Bolus doses resulting in voriconazole and amphotericin B concentrations of 0.005-5 and 2.5 mg/L, respectively, were administered. Antifungal-containing RPMI 1640 was eliminated and replaced by a fresh medium using a peristaltic pump, with a flow rate adjusted to obtain the desired half-lives. With two drugs tested, a computer-controlled dosing pump compensated for differences in the elimination rates. Using static time-kill methodology, one C. albicans strain was exposed to 5 mg/L voriconazole for varying durations followed by 2.5 mg/L amphotericin B after three repeated washes of voriconazole. RESULTS Voriconazole and amphotericin B treatment alone resulted in fungistatic and fungicidal activities, respectively. Simultaneous administration of voriconazole and amphotericin B resulted in fungicidal activity, whereas only fungistatic activity was observed when repeated doses of amphotericin B were administered sequentially after voriconazole at 24-96 h. The inhibition of the fungicidal activity of amphotericin B was voriconazole dose-dependent, but seemed to be recovered once the voriconazole concentration fell below the MIC. The fungicidal activity was quickly regained after the removal of voriconazole, irrespective of the duration of voriconazole pre-exposure. CONCLUSIONS Voriconazole inhibited the fungicidal effect of sequentially administered amphotericin B in a concentration- and time-dependent manner; the clinical significance of this needs further investigation.
Neural Networks for Fingerprinting-Based Indoor Localization Using Ultra-Wideband

This paper discusses the use of neural networks in an underground radio-localization system. In a highly aggressive environment such as mines, reliability and robustness are essential to any operational system. Using UWB as the physical wireless propagation medium and combined with fingerprinting-geolocation and neural networks, this work tends to overcome many of the problems encountered in indoor environments. Full description of the system and the adopted approach will help accentuate the role of neural networks in improving the overall performance. Moreover a comparison between MLP and RBF performance is presented, providing a clear evidence of the role and importance of the neural networks in offering good accuracy and precision to the final system.
Four evolutionary strata on the human X chromosome.

Human sex chromosomes evolved from autosomes. Nineteen ancestral autosomal genes persist as differentiated homologs on the X and Y chromosomes. The ages of individual X-Y gene pairs (measured by nucleotide divergence) and the locations of their X members on the X chromosome were found to be highly correlated. Age decreased in stepwise fashion from the distal long arm to the distal short arm in at least four "evolutionary strata. " Human sex chromosome evolution was probably punctuated by at least four events, each suppressing X-Y recombination in one stratum, without disturbing gene order on the X chromosome. The first event, which marked the beginnings of X-Y differentiation, occurred about 240 to 320 million years ago, shortly after divergence of the mammalian and avian lineages.
Effects of Video Modeling and Video Feedback on Peer-Directed Social Language Skills of a Child With Autism

Identifying practical strategies for teaching children with autism to use social language with their peers is a challenge for professionals designing treatment programs. The purpose of this multiple baseline study was to assess the effectiveness of video modeling and video feedback for teaching a child with autism to use social language with typical peers during play. Video modeling was effective in increasing social language in two of the three activities. Video feedback and prompting were required in the third activity to effect a stable rate of increased social language. Unscripted verbalizations predominated across all three activities, as did initiations. The results are discussed with reference to previous research, future directions, and implications for practice.
A Computer Modeling Tool for Comparing Novel Icd Electrode Orientations in Children and Adults

BACKGROUND Use of implantable cardiac defibrillators (ICDs) in children and patients with congenital heart disease is complicated by body size and anatomy. A variety of creative implantation techniques has been used empirically in these groups on an ad hoc basis. OBJECTIVE To rationalize ICD placement in special populations , we used subject-specific, image-based finite element models (FEMs) to compare electric fields and expected defibril-lation thresholds (DFTs) using standard and novel electrode configurations. METHODS FEMs were created by segmenting normal torso computed tomography scans of subjects ages 2, 10, and 29 years and 1 adult with congenital heart disease into tissue compartments, meshing, and assigning tissue conductivities. The FEMs were modified by interactive placement of ICD electrode models in clinically relevant electrode configurations, and metrics of relative defibril-lation safety and efficacy were calculated. RESULTS Predicted DFTs for standard transvenous configurations were comparable with published results. Although transvenous systems generally predicted lower DFTs, a variety of extracardiac orientations were also predicted to be comparably effective in children and adults. Significant trend effects on DFTs were associated with body size and electrode length. In many situations, small alterations in electrode placement and patient anatomy resulted in significant variation of predicted DFT. We also show patient-specific use of this technique for optimization of electrode placement. CONCLUSION Image-based FEMs allow predictive modeling of de-fibrillation scenarios and predict large changes in DFTs with clinically relevant variations of electrode placement. Extracardiac ICDs are predicted to be effective in both children and adults. This approach may aid both ICD development and patient-specific optimization of electrode placement. Further development and validation are needed for clinical or industrial utilization.
Target-site Mutation and Fitness Cost of Acetolactate Synthase Inhibitor-resistant Annual Bluegrass

Annual bluegrass (Poa annua L.) is an annual weed that is particularly troublesome in managed turfgrass. It has been controlled conventionally with herbicides, including acetolactate synthase (ALS) inhibitors. However, resistance to ALS inhibitors has been documented throughout the southeastern United States since 2012. A rate–response trial was conducted to confirm and determine the resistance level of suspected resistant P. annua biotypes from Mississippi (Reunion), followed by DNA sequencing to determine whether the mechanism of resistance is a target-site mutatio n. In addition, a fitness assay was conducted together with a susceptible biotype to determine whether resistance to ALS inhibitors is associated with decreased fitness. Reunion was at least 45 times more resistant to foramsulfuron than the standard susceptible biotype based on I50 estimates [I50 is the rate of herbicide giving a 50% response (50% visual necrosis)], requiring a predicted 331 g a.i./ha foramsulfuron for 50% control. DNA sequencing results identified a Trp574-to-Leu mutation in the ALS gene of the Reunion biotype, which has been shown by other studies to confer resistance to ALS inhibitors. Measurement of fitness parameters among the Reunion and susceptible biotypes demonstrated reduced seed yield, tillering, and flowering time in the resistant Reunion biotype, suggesting that ALS inhibitor resistance is possibly correlated to decreased fitness in P. annua. Alternative methods to control P. annua need to be considered as a result of the evolution of herbicide-resistant biotypes. An integrated management strategy to control P. annua weeds will help prevent further evolution of resistance. Because this study evaluated only the target-site mechanism of resistance, it is also necessary to determine whether the resistant biotype has reduced uptake, translocation, or enhanced metabolism as additional mechanisms of resistance. Consequently, a fitness study encompassing a more comprehensive list of plant parameters will provide conclusions of the fitness costs associated with ALS inhibitor resistance in P. annua. Chemical names: Foramsulfuron {1-(4,6-dimethoxypyrimidin-2-yl)-3-[2-(dimethylcarbamoyl)-5-formamidophenylsulfonyl] urea}.
Asymptotic invariants of Hadamard manifolds

ASYMPTOTIC INVARIANTS OF HADAMARD MANIFOLDS Mohamad A. Hindawi Christopher B. Croke We study various asymptotic invariants of manifolds of nonpositive curvature. First, we study the filling invariants at infinity divk for Hadamard manifolds defined by Noel Brady and Benson Farb. Among other results, we give a positive answer to the question they posed: can these invariants be used to detect the rank of a symmetric space of noncompact type? Second, we study the asymptotic cones of the universal covers of 4-dimensional closed nonpositively curved real analytic manifolds. We show that the existence of nonstandard components in the Tits boundary, discovered by Christoph Hummel and Victor Schroeder, depends only on the quasi-isometry type of the fundamental group.
Why symbolic processing of affect can disrupt negative affect: Social cognitive and affective neuroscience investigations.

188 In the Highland Indian villages of Guatemala, miniature " worry " dolls approximately 1 inch in height and made from small bits of wood, cloth, and string are given from parent to child. According to legend, parents are meant to say the following along with the presentation of the gi : " If you have a problem, then share it with a worry doll. Before going to bed, tell one worry to each doll, then place them beneath your pillow. Whilst you sleep, the dolls will take your worries away! " It is unclear whether these dolls have actually been imbued with the power to whisk away worry, however there is a great deal of evidence to suggest that the process of sharing one's worry, of putting bad feelings into words, can diminish one's emotional distress, at least under certain circumstances. is chapter examines the neurocognitive mechanisms of disruption e ects , the process by which putting feelings into words can disrupt the feelings being verbalized. e notion that labeling emotional states can help to dampen down or regulate negative emotional states is hardly new. In commentary on some of the oldest Buddhist texts, it has been written that " e skillful use of labeling … introduces a healthy degree of inner detachment since the act of apostrophizing [i.e. speaking to] one's moods and emotions diminishes one's identi cation with them " (Analayo, 2003, p. 113). Similarly, a number of western thinkers have written about disruption e ects prior to the twentieth century. e philosopher Benedict Spinoza suggested that " An emotion which is a passion, ceases to be a passion as soon as we form a clear and distinct idea thereof " (1675/2000, p. 291). In the Principles of Psychology , William James wrote that " e present conscious state when I say … 'I feel angry' is not the…direct state of anger … it is the state of saying-I-feel-angry. e act of naming them has momentarily detracted from their force " (1890, p. 190). In modern psychology, emotions are o en thought to be relatively uncontrollable with direct attempts at regulating one's own emotional state o en back ring the legacy of disruption a ects lives in various forms of talk therapies. Talk therapies such as cognitive-behavioral therapy and psychoanalysis vary greatly in their approach and the putative mechanisms supporting successful outcomes; however, they all involve individuals …
Natural Genetic Variation in the Caenorhabditis elegans Response to Pseudomonas aeruginosa

Caenorhabditis elegans responds to pathogenic microorganisms by activating its innate immune system, which consists of physical barriers, behavioral responses, and microbial killing mechanisms. We examined whether natural variation plays a role in the response of C. elegans to Pseudomonas aeruginosa using two C. elegans strains that carry the same allele of npr-1, a gene that encodes a G-protein-coupled receptor related to mammalian neuropeptide Y receptors, but that differ in their genetic backgrounds. Strains carrying an allele for the NPR-1 215F isoform have been shown to exhibit lack of pathogen avoidance behavior and deficient immune response toward P. aeruginosa relative to the wild-type (N2) strain. We found that the wild isolate from Germany RC301, which carries the allele for NPR-1 215F, shows an enhanced resistance to P. aeruginosa infection when compared with strain DA650, which also carries NPR-1 215F but in an N2 background. Using a whole-genome sequencing single-nucleotide polymorphism (WGS-SNP) mapping strategy, we determined that the resistance to P. aeruginosa infection maps to a region on chromosome V. Furthermore, we demonstrated that the mechanism for the enhanced resistance to P. aeruginosa infection relies exclusively on strong P. aeruginosa avoidance behavior, and does not involve the main immune, stress, and lifespan extension pathways in C. elegans. Our findings underscore the importance of pathogen-specific behavioral immune defense in the wild, which seems to be favored over the more energy-costly mechanism of activation of physiological cellular defenses.