Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Privacy Preserving Plans in Partially Observable Environments

Big brother is watching but his eyesight is not all that great, since he only has partial observability of the environment. In such a setting agents may be able to preserve their privacy by hiding their true goal, following paths that may lead to multiple goals. In this work we present a framework that supports the offline analysis of goal recognition settings with non-deterministic system sensor models, in which the observer has partial (and possibly noisy) observability of the agent's actions, while the agent is assumed to have full observability of his environment. In particular, we propose a new variation of worst case distinctiveness (wcd), a measure that assesses the ability to perform goal recognition within a model. We describe a new efficient way to compute this measure via a novel compilation to classical planning. In addition, we discuss the tools agents have to preserve privacy, by keeping their goal ambiguous as long as possible. Our empirical evaluation shows the feasibility of the proposed solution.
Developing Trends in the Intestinal Transplant Waitlist

The United Network for Organ Sharing database was examined for trends in the intestinal transplant (ITx) waitlist from 1993 to 2012, dividing into listings for isolated ITx versus liver‐intestine transplant (L‐ITx). Registrants added to the waitlist increased from 59/year in 1993 to 317/year in 2006, then declined to 124/year in 2012; Spline modeling showed a significant change in the trend in 2006, p < 0.001. The largest group of registrants, <1 year of age, determined the trend for the entire population; other pediatric age groups remained stable, adult registrants increased until 2012. The largest proportion of new registrants were for L‐ITx, compared to isolated ITx; the change in the trend in 2006 for L‐ITx was highly significant, p < 0.001, but not isolated ITx, p = 0.270. New registrants for L‐ITx, <1 year of age, had the greatest increase and decrease. New registrants for isolated ITx remained constant in all pediatric age groups. Waitlist mortality increased to a peak around 2002, highest for L‐ITx, in patients <1 year of age and adults. Deaths among all pediatric age groups awaiting L‐ITx have decreased; adult L‐ITx deaths have dropped less dramatically. Improved care of infants with intestinal failure has led to reduced referrals for L‐ITx.
Predicting short 802.11 sessions from RADIUS usage data

The duration of 802.11 user sessions has been widely studied in the context of analyzing user behavior and mobility. Short (smaller-than-5-minutes) sessions are never used or characterized in these analyses as they are unrelated to user behavior and considered as artifacts introduced by the wireless network. In this paper we characterize short 802.11 sessions as recorded through RADIUS authentication. We show that 50% of access points have 70% of smaller than 5 minutes sessions in a 5 months trace from the Eduroam academic wireless network in the University of Porto. Exactly because they are artifacts introduced by the network, short sessions are an important indicator for network management and the quality of the wireless access. Network managers typically do not collect and process session information but rely on SNMP to provide summaries of 802.11 usage data. We develop a modeling framework to provide predictions for the number of short sessions from SNMP data. We model the data stream of each access point using two methods of regression and one classification technique. We evaluate these models based on short session prediction accuracy. The models are trained on the 5 months data and the best results show prediction accuracy of 95.27% in polynomial regression at degree of 3.
Jstacs: A Java Framework for Statistical Analysis and Classification of Biological Sequences

Jstacs is an object-oriented Java library for analysing and classifying sequence data, which emerged from the need for a standardized implementation of statistical models, learning principles, classifiers, and performance measures. In Jstacs, these components can be used, combined, and extended easily, which allows for a direct comparison of different approaches and fosters the development of new components. Jstacs is especially tailored to biological sequence data, but is also applicable to general discrete and continuous data. Jstacs is freely available at http://www.jstacs. de under the GNU GPL license including an API documentation, a cookbook, and code examples.
Sequences close to periodic

This paper is a survey of concepts and results connected with generalizations of the notion of a periodic sequence, both classical and new. The topics discussed relate to almost periodicity in such areas as combinatorics on words, symbolic dynamics, expressibility in logical theories, computability, Kolmogorov complexity, and number theory. Bibliography: 124 titles.
Molecular Surveillance of Viral Processes Using Silicon Nitride Membranes

Here we present new applications for silicon nitride (SiN) membranes to evaluate biological processes. We determined that 50-nanometer thin films of SiN produced from silicon wafers were sufficiently durable to bind active rotavirus assemblies. A direct comparison of SiN microchips with conventional carbon support films indicated that SiN performs equivalent to the traditional substrate to prepare samples for Electron Microscopy (EM) imaging. Likewise, SiN films coated with Ni-NTA affinity layers concentrated rotavirus particles similarly to affinity-coated carbon films. However, affinity-coated SiN membranes outperformed glow-discharged conventional carbon films 5-fold as indicated by the number of viral particles quantified in EM images. In addition, we were able to recapitulate viral uncoating and transcription mechanisms directed onto the microchip surfaces. EM images of these processes revealed the production of RNA transcripts emerging from active rotavirus complexes. These results were confirmed by the functional incorporation of radiolabeled nucleotides into the nascent RNA transcripts. Collectively, we demonstrate new uses for SiN membranes to perform molecular surveillance on life processes in real-time.
Role of the Bordetella pertussis minor fimbrial subunit, FimD, in colonization of the mouse respiratory tract

Bordetella pertussis fimbriae are composed of a major subunit, Fim2 or Fim3, and the minor subunit FimD. Using immunoelectron microscopy, we provide evidence that FimD is located at the fimbrial tip. The role of FimD in colonization of the mouse respiratory tract was studied by using two fimbrial mutants: a mutant completely devoid of fimbriae (designated FimD-) and a mutant devoid of the major fimbrial subunits but still producing the minor subunit (designated FimD+). The ability of the two fimbrial mutants to colonize the nasopharynx, trachea, and lungs was compared with those of the wild type parental strain and a filamentous hemagglutinin (FHA) mutant. Of the three mutants studied, the FimD- mutant showed the greatest defect, colonizing less well in the nasopharynx, trachea, and lungs. The most pronounced defect in colonizing ability of the three mutants was observed in the trachea. However, the colonizing defect of the FHA and FimD+ mutants in the trachea was observed only during the first 3 days of infection. After 10 days, the colonization level was nearly restored to wild-type levels. The FHA and FimD+ mutants showed a slight colonization defect in the nasopharynx but no defect in the lungs. A maltose binding protein-FimD fusion protein and a peptide derived from FimD were able to bind to heparin, a member of a class of sulfated sugars which are ubiquitous in the respiratory tract. Recently it was shown (W. L. W. Hazenbos, C. A. W. Geuijen, B. M. van den Berg, F. R. Mooi, and R. van Furth, J. Infect. Dis. 171:924-929, 1995) that FimD also binds to the integrin VLA-5, and our results suggest that the binding of B. pertussis to these two molecules plays an important role in colonization of the respiratory tract of the mouse.
Identification of Two Binding Domains, One for Peptidoglycan and Another for a Secondary Cell Wall Polymer, on the N-Terminal Part of the S-Layer Protein SbsB from Bacillus stearothermophilus PV72/p2

ABSTRACT First studies on the structure-function relationship of the S-layer protein from B. stearothermophilus PV72/p2 revealed the coexistence of two binding domains on its N-terminal part, one for peptidoglycan and another for a secondary cell wall polymer (SCWP). The peptidoglycan binding domain is located between amino acids 1 to 138 of the mature S-layer protein comprising a typical S-layer homologous domain. The SCWP binding domain lies between amino acids 240 to 331 and possesses a high serine plus glycine content.
The Association between Warning Label Requirements and Cigarette Smoking Prevalence by Education-Findings from the Global Adult Tobacco Survey (GATS)

Introduction: The Guidelines for the implementation of Article 11 of the World Health Organization (WHO) Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) require that cigarette health warning labels should include pictures and take up 50% or more of the principal display area. This study examined how the association between large pictorial warnings, those covering ≥50% of the front and back of the package, and the prevalence of cigarette smoking varies by educational attainment. Methods: We pooled individual-level tobacco use data from the Global Adult Tobacco Survey (GATS) in 18 countries between 2008 and 2013 and linked them with warning label requirements during the same period from the MPOWER database and reports regarding warnings. The respondents’ self-reported exposure to warnings was examined according to education. Logistic regressions were further employed to analyze education-specific associations between large pictorial warnings and smoking prevalence, and whether such association differed by education was examined using an interaction test. Results: At the time of the survey, eight out of 18 countries had imposed graphic warning labels that covered ≥50% of the package. These warnings were associated with a 10.0% (OR = 0.89; 95% CI: 0.81, 0.97; p ≤ 0.01) lower cigarette smoking prevalence among adults with less than a secondary education or no formal education, but not among respondents with at least a secondary education. Less educated respondents were also less likely to be exposed to warnings in all 18 countries. The association between strong warnings and lower smoking prevalence among less educated respondents could be greater if their exposure to warnings increases. Conclusions: Prominent pictorial warning labels can potentially reduce health disparities resulting from smoking across different education levels.
Nuclear IRS‐1 and cancer

The family of insulin receptor substrates (IRS) consists of four proteins (IRS‐1–IRS‐4), which were initially characterized as typical cytosolic adaptor proteins involved in insulin receptor (IR) and insulin‐like growth factor I receptor (IGF‐IR) signaling. The first cloned and characterized member of the IRS family, IRS‐1, has a predicted molecular weight of 132 kDa, however, as a result of its extensive serine phosphorylation it separates on a SDS gel as a band of approximately 160–185 kDa. In addition to its metabolic and growth‐promoting functions, IRS‐1 is also suspected to play a role in malignant transformation. The mechanism by which IRS‐1 supports tumor growth is not fully understood, and the argument that IRS‐1 merely amplifies the signal from the IGF‐1R and/or IR requires further investigation. Almost a decade ago, we reported the presence of nuclear IRS‐1 in medulloblastoma clinical samples, which express viral oncoprotein, large T‐antigen of human polyomavirus JC (JCV T‐antigen). This first demonstration of nuclear IRS‐1 was confirmed by several other laboratories. Nuclear IRS‐1 was also detected by cells expressing the SV40 T‐antigen, v‐Src, in immortalized fibroblasts stimulated with IGF‐I, in hepatocytes, 32D cells, and in an osteosarcoma cell line. More recently, nuclear IRS‐1 was detected in breast cancer cells in association with estrogen receptor alpha (ERα), and in JC virus negative medulloblastoma cells expressing estrogen receptor beta (ERβ), further implicating nuclear IRS‐1 in cellular transformation. Here, we discuss how nuclear IRS‐1 acting on DNA repair fidelity, transcriptional activity, and cell growth can support tumor development and progression. J. Cell. Physiol. 227: 2992–3000, 2012. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Predicting Factors of Suicide Attempts in Karaj General Population

Objectives: The aim of this study was to determine a predictive model for suicide attempts based on risk factors in Karaj, Iran general population. The intention was to collect necessary information for plann- ing preventive, educational, and therapeutic interventions. Method: This descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted on 2300 randomly selected sample from 1.3 million Karaj residences. Information on the subjects were collected by using a modified SUPRE-MISS questionnaire. The questionnaire included questions about demographic characteristics, personal and family history, suicidal behavior, attempted suicide methods, history of taking psychoactive drugs, history of psychiatric treatments, chronic physical and mental disorders, and community stress. Data were collected by interviewing the subjects and analyzed using analysis of variance and logistic regression. Results: Out of total sample, 65% were females, 57.2% were married, 48% had high school education, and 43.8% were householders. The mean age of those with attempted suicide was 26 (+/- 9) years. The mean age of those with no attempted suicide was 32 (+/-13) years. The difference was statistically significant (p<0.01). This study showed that age (adolescence), sex (female), history of mental disorder, the lifetime use of tobacco and/or alcohol as well as unemployment can independently predict suicide attempts. Conclusion: Planning to reduce suicide attempts in researches on high-risk population as in teenagers, women, psychiatric patients, smokers and alcohol abusers is necessary. Language: fa
VALIDATING A TEST DESIGNED TO ASSESS ESL PROFICIENCY AT LOWER DEVELOPMENTAL LEVELS

This exploratory study examined relationships between a test designed to assess English-language listening comprehension and reading skills in samples of nonnative-English speakers at lower levels of developed proficiency in English as a second or foreign language (ESL or EFL). The test—called ESL-EZY—was developed by using items similar to but easier, on the average, than those being used in an existing ESL proficiency test designed for intermediate- or higher-level ESL users/learners. This paper reports evidence regarding the relationship between ESL-EZY scores and teachers' ratings of oral English proficiency in samples—assessed in diverse settings in the United States and Japan—selected to include subgroups that tend to differ relatively widely in average level of developed English proficiency. Scores on ESL-EZY were found to correlate relatively strongly with teachers' ratings within the respective subgroups; correlations were especially strong in relatively less proficient subgroups, suggesting that for younger ESL-students and other ESL-learners with limited developed functional proficiency in English as a foreign or second language, a test embodying properties similar to those represented by ESL-EZY might provide useful supplementary assessment information.
Can the Utility of Anonymized Data be Used for Privacy Breaches?

Group based anonymization is the most widely studied approach for privacy-preserving data publishing. Privacy models/definitions using group based anonymization includes k-anonymity, l-diversity, and t-closeness, to name a few. The goal of this article is to raise a fundamental issue regarding the privacy exposure of the approaches using group based anonymization. This has been overlooked in the past. The group based anonymization approach by bucketization basically hides each individual record behind a group to preserve data privacy. If not properly anonymized, patterns can actually be derived from the published data and be used by an adversary to breach individual privacy. For example, from the medical records released, if patterns such as that people from certain countries rarely suffer from some disease can be derived, then the information can be used to imply linkage of other people in an anonymized group with this disease with higher likelihood. We call the derived patterns from the published data the foreground knowledge. This is in contrast to the background knowledge that the adversary may obtain from other channels, as studied in some previous work. Finally, our experimental results show such an attack is realistic in the privacy benchmark dataset under the traditional group based anonymization approach.
Zone of Proximal Development: The Effect of Verbal Scaffolding on Improving Iranian Young EFL Learners’ Vocabulary Learning

We make use of spoken and written words every day to converse and also to convey ideas, thoughts, and emotions to those who are around us. Occasionally we- as EFL users- communicate fruitfully but sometimes we’re not fairly so successful. The term scaffolding, it was introduced by Wood, Bruner and Ross (1976) in their attempts to provide an operational definition to the concept of teaching in the zone of proximal development (ZPD) (cited in Wells, 1999). Thus, the current study aimed at investigating the effect of verbal scaffolding on improvement of vocabulary learning of Iranian EFL learners. For the sake of solving the issues related to the homogeneousness of the level of the subjects, before starting the program a language proficiency test was administered to 120 learners. Afterwards a pre-test on the participants word knowledge was taken and after the program there was a post-test for both groups in order to measure the effectiveness of the self-regulation strategies. According to the results of the quasi- experimental study self-regulation strategies are of great importance for learners, since they learn to be autonomous learners, they learn how to take control their learning, they feel they are doing something valuable, and all of these yield in a very relaxed environment for learning and using the language.
Facebook: Social Benefit or Social Problem?

The present study investigated the impact of type of Facebook use on well-being. Participants who spent time viewing and updating their own profiles were hypothesized to report higher life satisfaction and happiness than participants who spent time viewing other people’s profiles. Self-reported Facebook use and personality trait measures were also investigated. A total of 56 female students enrolled in Psychology 1000 at Brescia University College participated in the study. Participants completed six questionnaires (personality assessment, self-esteem scale, narcissism scale, Facebook use questionnaire, satisfaction with life scale, and subjective happiness scale) and were randomly assigned to one of three conditions consisting of a 10-minute computer task (i.e. either own-profile viewing, other-profile viewing, or a control group). A between-subjects oneway Anova showed no significant relationship between the experimental groups and measures of well-being. Various personality traits were significantly correlated with self-reported Facebook use. Facebook use’s impact on well-being remains unclear and requires further research.
Paroxetine increases brain-derived neurotrophic factor in postmenopausal women

Objective: Menopause is marked by a decline in ovarian function resulting in one or more climacteric symptoms. In the last few years, attention has been focused on the use of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) in the treatment of vasomotor symptoms associated with the menopausal transition. Thanks to the recent findings on the interaction between the serotoninergic system and neurotrophins, it has been suggested that brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) could contribute to the activity of SSRIs. Moreover, because endogenous gonadal hormones modulate both BDNF expression and serotonin biosynthesis and bioavailability and regulate brain functions like affective and cognitive functions, we proposed to evaluate the effects of a treatment with paroxetine, an SSRI, in a group of postmenopausal women and to clarify the possible relationship between paroxetine, plasma BDNF levels, and climacteric symptoms. Methods: A total of 119 postmenopausal women (age, 46-60 y; menopause age, 1-20 y) were included; 89 took paroxetine 10 mg/day for 6 months and 30 took estrogen + progestogen therapy (EPT) for 6 months. Blood samples were taken before the beginning of the therapy and at 3 and 6 months. The Green Climacteric Scale questionnaire was used to follow up women's clinical conditions. Results: Plasma BDNF levels significantly increased after 3 and 6 months of therapy (P < 0.001), although a negative correlation between plasma BDNF level and both age and menopause age persisted throughout the treatment. Moreover, a significant reduction in the Greene Climacteric Scale score was observed. In the EPT group, the plasma BDNF level significantly increased after 6 months of therapy. The plasma BDNF levels after 6 months of paroxetine were significantly lower than those after 6 months of EPT. Conclusions: The present data suggest that a low dose of paroxetine is effective in enhancing plasma BDNF levels, and this increase might have a role in improving climacteric symptoms, highlighting the possible role of BDNF in endocrinological and cognitive functions.
Advanced event processing and notifications in service runtime environments

Service-oriented Architecture (SOA) and Web services have become widely adopted for building cross-organizational and flexible applications. Yet, there is one issue inherent to this paradigm: services are changing regularly. Using the publish/subscribe style, subscribers can be notified when such changes occur. In current service registry standards, however, notifications are mainly used to inform about changes in the registry data, which does not include service runtime information. In this paper, we present an approach that leverages event processing mechanisms for Web services based on a rich event model that supports the full service lifecycle, including runtime information concerning service discovery and service invocation, as well as Quality of Service attributes. Furthermore, besides subscribing to events of interest, users can also search in historical event data.