Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Airlift: Video conferencing as a cloud service using inter-datacenter networks

It is typical for enterprises to rely on services from cloud providers in order to build a scalable platform with abundant available resources to satisfy user demand, and for cloud providers to deploy a number of datacenters inter-connected with high-capacity links, across different geographical regions. In this paper, we propose that video conferencing, even with its stringent delay constraints, should also be provided as a cloud service, taking full advantage of the inter-datacenter network in the cloud. We design Airlift, a new protocol designed for the inter-datacenter network, tailored to the needs of a cloud-based video conferencing service. Airlift delivers packets in live video conferences to their respective destination datacenters, with the objective of maximizing the total throughput across all conferences, yet without violating end-to-end delay constraints. In order to simplify our protocol design in Airlift, we use intra-session network coding and the concept of conceptual flows, such that the optimization problem that can be conveniently formulated as a linear program. Our real-world implementation of Airlift has been deployed over the Amazon EC2 cloud. We show that Airlift delivers a substantial performance advantage over state-of-the-art peer-to-peer solutions.
Complement levels in pneumococcal pneumonia

Levels of complement proteins and functional activity of the alternate complement pathway were assessed in 39 patients with pneumococcal pneumonia. Mean levels of C3 and properdin and the functional activity of the alternate pathway in acute sera were significantly (P less than 0.05) below normal, whereas levels of components of the early classical pathway were normal. Although levels of factor B were in the normal range, they correlated significantly with C3 levels; there was no significant relation between C3 levels and C4 or C1q levels. The 19 patients iwth pneumococcal pneumonia and bacteremia had significantly lower mean values of properdin and factor B than the 20 patients without bacteremia, suggesting a more severe depression of the alternate complement pathway with bacteremia. During convalescence, complement levels were normal or elevated in most of the patients, but mean levels of properdin remained significantly below normal in bacteremic patients. Functional activity of the alternate pathway also remained below normal. These results indicate that there is a selective depression of the alternate pathway in patients with pneumococcal pneumonia, and they are consistent with the concept that the alternate pathway has an important role in host defenses in pneumococcal infection.
Double Thompson Sampling for Dueling Bandits

In this paper, we propose a Double Thompson Sampling (D-TS) algorithm for dueling bandit problems. As indicated by its name, D-TS selects both the first and the second candidates according to Thompson Sampling. Specifically, D-TS maintains a posterior distribution for the preference matrix, and chooses the pair of arms for comparison by sampling twice from the posterior distribution. This simple algorithm applies to general Copeland dueling bandits, including Condorcet dueling bandits as its special case. For general Copeland dueling bandits, we show that D-TS achieves $O(K^2 \log T)$ regret. For Condorcet dueling bandits, we further simplify the D-TS algorithm and show that the simplified D-TS algorithm achieves $O(K \log T + K^2 \log \log T)$ regret. Simulation results based on both synthetic and real-world data demonstrate the efficiency of the proposed D-TS algorithm.
A Queueing-Theoretic Foundation of Available Bandwidth Estimation: Single-Hop Analysis

Most existing available-bandwidth measurement techniques are justified using a constant-rate fluid cross-traffic model. To achieve a better understanding of the performance of current bandwidth measurement techniques in general traffic conditions, this paper presents a queueing-theoretic foundation of single-hop packet-train bandwidth estimation under bursty arrivals of discrete cross-traffic packets. We analyze the statistical mean of the packet-train output dispersion and its mathematical relationship to the input dispersion, which we call the probing-response curve. This analysis allows us to prove that the single-hop response curve in bursty cross-traffic deviates from that obtained under fluid cross traffic of the same average intensity and to demonstrate that this may lead to significant measurement bias in certain estimation techniques based on fluid models. We conclude the paper by showing, both analytically and experimentally, that the response-curve deviation vanishes as the packet-train length or probing packet size increases, where the vanishing rate is decided by the burstiness of cross-traffic.
KMI, The Open University at NTCIR-9 CrossLink: Cross-Lingual Link Discovery in Wikipedia Using Explicit Semantic Analysis

This paper describes the methods used in the submission of Knowledge Media institute (KMI), The Open University to the NTCIR-9 Cross-Lingual Link Discovery (CLLD) task entitled CrossLink. KMI submitted four runs for link discovery from English to Chinese; however, the developed methods, which utilise Explicit Semantic Analysis (ESA), are applicable also to other language combinations. Three of the runs are based on exploiting the existing cross-lingual mapping between different versions of Wikipedia articles. In the fourth run, we assume information about the mapping is not available. Our methods achieved encouraging results and we describe in detail how their performance can be further improved. Finally, we discuss two important issues in link discovery: the evaluation methodology and the applicability of the developed methods across different textual collections.
Tissue Doppler strain-mapping in the assessment of the extent of chronic myocardial infarction: validation using magnetic resonance imaging.

AIMS The distribution of myocardial strain values can be visualized by colour-coded strain images. We examined for the first time if this strain-mapping function can be used to study the extent of prior myocardial infarction. METHODS AND RESULTS Echocardiography and cardiac magnetic resonance imaging with delayed contrast enhancement were performed in 26 patients with chronic myocardial infarction. Two-dimensional strain images of the left ventricle were obtained in all standard apical views. Myocardial segments (n = 416) were assigned a score ranging from one to four based on the strain-coded colour of the segment, with higher scores representing worse myocardial function. Strain-mapping scores and quantitative strain values averaged, respectively, 1.3 +/- 0.6 and -16.4 +/- 7.6% in segments without infarction, 1.7 +/- 1.0 and -15.0 +/- 8.6% in non-transmural infarctions, and 2.8 +/- 1.2 and -6.5 +/- 8.6% in transmural infarctions. Strain-mapping had a sensitivity of 60% and a specificity of 95% in detecting segments with transmural myocardial infarction. Corresponding values for echocardiographic wall motion analysis were 50 and 96%. Strain-mapping was possible in 80% of the segments and inter-observer agreement was substantial (kappa = 0.63). CONCLUSION Strain-mapping is a clinically applicable method for the assessment of regional myocardial function in post-myocardial infarction patients. Strain-mapping has reasonable feasibility and is more sensitive in detecting infarction damage than routine wall motion analysis.
Emotion processing facilitates working memory performance

The effect of emotional stimulus content on working memory performance has been investigated with conflicting results, as both emotion-dependent facilitation and impairments are reported in the literature. To clarify this issue, 52 adult participants performed a modified visual 2-back task with highly arousing positive stimuli (sexual scenes), highly arousing negative stimuli (violent death) and low-arousal neutral stimuli. Emotional stimulus processing was found to facilitate task performance relative to that of neutral stimuli, both in regards to response accuracy and reaction times. No emotion-dependent differences in false-alarm rates were found. These results indicate that emotional information can have a facilitating effect on working memory maintenance and processing of information.
Preservice Teacher Preparation in Meeting the Needs of Gifted and Other Academically Diverse Students

5 Chapter 1: Introduction 6 Chapter 2: Review of Literature 10 Chapter 3: Method 27 Chapter 4: Results 31 Chapter 5: Discussion 45 References 52 Appendix Appendix A: Survey of Practices with Students of Varying Needs (SOP) 56 Preparing Preservice Teachers for Diverse Learners 3
On Delaying Collision Checking in PRM Planning: Application to Multi-Robot Coordination

This paper describes the foundations and algorithms of a new probabilistic roadmap (PRM) planner that is: single-query—instead of pre-computing a roadmap covering the entire free space, it uses the two input query configurations to explore as little space as possible; bi-directional—it explores the robot's free space by building a roadmap made of two trees rooted at the query configurations; and lazy in checking collisions—it delays collision tests along the edges of the roadmap until they are absolutely needed. Several observations motivated this strategy: (1) PRM planners spend a large fraction of their time testing connections for collision; (2) most connections in a roadmap are not on the final path; (3) the collision test for a connection is most expensive when there is no collision; and (4) any short connection between two collision-free configurations has high prior probability of being collision-free. The strengths of single-query and bi-directional sampling techniques and those of delayed collision checking reinforce each other. Experimental results show that this combination reduces planning time by a large factor, making it possible to efficiently handle difficult planning problems, such as problems involving multiple robots in geometrically complex environments. This paper specifically describes the application of the planner to multi-robot planning and compares results obtained when the planner uses a centralized planning approach (PRM planning is then performed in the joint configuration space of the robots) and when it uses a decoupled approach (the PRM planner is invoked several times, first to compute a path of each robot independent of the others, and then to coordinate those paths). On a simulated six-robot welding station combining 36 degrees of freedom, centralized planning has proven to be a much more effective approach than decoupled planning.
The Role of Familiarity on Viewpoint Adaptation for Self-Face and Other-Face Images

An adaptation method was used to investigate whether self-face processing is dissociable from general face processing. We explored the viewpoint aftereffect with face images having different degrees of familiarity (never-before-seen faces, recently familiarized faces, personally familiar faces, and the participant’s own face). A face viewpoint aftereffect occurs after prolonged viewing of a face viewed from one side, with the result that the perceived viewing direction of a subsequently presented face image shown near the frontal view is biased in a direction which is the opposite of the adapting orientation. We found that (1) the magnitude of the viewpoint aftereffect depends on the level of familiarity of the adapting and test faces, (2) a cross-identity transfer of the viewpoint aftereffect is found between all categories of faces, but not between an unfamiliar adaptor face and the self-face test, and (3) learning affects the processing of the self-face in greater measure than any other category of faces. These results highlight the importance of familiarity on the face aftereffects, but they also suggest the possibility of separate representations for the self-face, on the one side, and for highly familiar faces, on the other.
Characterization of hematite ( α -Fe 2 O 3 ), goethite ( α -FeOOH), greigite (Fe 3 S 4 ), and pyrrhotite (Fe 7 S 8 ) using first-order reversal curve diagrams

[1] First-order reversal curve (FORC) diagrams have become a standard tool in rock magnetism, yet magnetite is the only magnetic mineral that is well characterized using FORC diagrams. We present FORC diagrams for predominantly single-domain (SD) synthetic aluminous hematite (a-Fe2-xAlxO3) and goethite (a-(FeAl)OOH) and natural greigite (Fe3S4) and pyrrhotite (Fe7S8) to constrain interpretation of FORC diagrams from natural samples. Hematite and goethite have low spontaneous magnetizations and negligible magnetic interactions, while greigite and pyrrhotite have higher spontaneous magnetizations and can have strong magnetic interactions. The coercivity of hematite systematically increases with Al content only for samples produced using the same synthesis method, but it is variable for samples produced with different methods even for similar Al content. This precludes use of magnetic coercivity alone to quantify the Al content of natural hematites. Goethite has much higher coercivity than hematite for all measured samples. SD and superparamagnetic (SP) behavior is common in natural greigite samples, with peak coercivities ranging from 70 mT (SD) to zero (SP). This range overlaps with that of lower-coercivity minerals, which can make greigite identification ambiguous at room temperature. Fine-grained SD pyrrhotite has slightly higher coercivities than greigite, which progressively decreases with increasing grain size within the SD size range and overlaps the range for greigite. While FORC diagrams are useful for magnetic characterization, care is needed in interpretation because of overlaps in the broad range of magnetic properties, which result from variations in domain state, for any magnetic mineral with respect to other minerals.
MSL — a model for W3C XML schema

MSL (Model Schema Language) is an attempt to formalize some of the core idea in XML Schema. The bene ts of a formal description is that it is both concise and precise. MSL has already proved helpful in work on the design of XML Query. We expect that similar techniques can be used to extend MSL to include most or all of XML Schema.
On the Effectiveness of Linear Models for One-Class Collaborative Filtering

In many personalised recommendation problems, there are examples of items users prefer or like, but no examples of items they dislike. A state-of-the-art method for such implicit feedback, or one-class collaborative filtering (OC-CF), problems is SLIM, which makes recommendations based on a learned item-item similarity matrix. While SLIM has been shown to perform well on implicit feedback tasks, we argue that it is hindered by two limitations: first, it does not produce user-personalised predictions, which hampers recommendation performance; second, it involves solving a constrained optimisation problem, which impedes fast training. In this paper, we propose LRec, a variant of SLIM that overcomes these limitations without sacrificing any of SLIM's strengths.At its core, LRec employs linear logistic regression; despite this simplicity, LRec consistently and significantly outperforms all existing methods on a range of datasets. Our results thus illustrate that the OC-CF problem can be effectively tackled via linear classification models.
How does personality relate to contextual performance, turnover, and customer service?

Personality measures are often used by organizations to select and develop employees in a way that maximizes their performance. Studies examining the relationship between personality and job performance have found some evidence for their utility in a variety of situations. Data was collected from a large restaurant company (N=9,800) in which hourly employees took a personality test for selection. Supervisory performance ratings and turnover data were also included for some employees. A three factor model of contextual performance consisting of personal support, organizational support, and conscientiousness initiative was tested and supported. The personality scales with the strongest relationship to performance, included drive and energy, friendliness, and emotional consistency. Effect sizes were relatively similar to previous meta-analytic studies, with the exception of a facet of conscientiousness which revealed a lower correlation with performance than expected. A differential pattern of correlations between the personality scales and performance dimensions was observed that supported some of the theoretically aligned constructs. The correlations between the personality variables and performance were unexpectedly higher among customer facing employees than team-based employees. No hypothesized interaction effects were supported, but some nonlinear relationships were found among some of the personality scales and performance. Drive and energy was a statistically significant predictor in decreasing the rate of turnover, however no support was found for any personality scale predicting job abandonment or involuntary turnover. Finally, a path model was tested that provided marginal support for performance mediating the relationship between personality and customer service ratings at the store level. Implications for human resource practices and recommendations for future research are discussed.
The Paradox of Sleep

A molding machine is disclosed which has a parting line of the molds at an acute angle to the horizontal. A continuous molding machine is disclosed wherein particulate matter such as sand and a binder is used to provide a succession of molds with cavities therebetween into which molten metal is poured to make a casting. The sand mold is constructed using a molding chamber and first and second pattern plates carrying patterns which face in opposite directions relative to the molding chamber. The sand is invested and the mold cured or hardened, then the pattern plates are withdrawn along opposing paths which are non-coincident. The completed sand mold is moved from the molding machine into a core setting area whereat cores are moved along the axis of the cavity which is at an acute angle to the horizontal for easy setting of these cores in prints of the mold cavities. Sprue and vent openings may also be drilled in this core setting area. The molds with the cores set therein are moved to a closing station whereat the mold is moved at an acute angle to the horizontal, generally parallel to the axis of the cavity, so that a first cavity is closed upon a second cavity of a previously completed mold. The line of molds is then moved horizontally to a metal pouring area. The foregoing abstract is merely a resume of one general application, is not a complete discussion of all principles of operation or applications, and is not to be construed as a limitation on the scope of the claimed subject matter.
British Society of Gastroenterology (BSG) guidelines for management of autoimmune hepatitis

Autoimmune hepatitis (AIH) is a chronic inflammatory liver disease which, if untreated, often leads to cirrhosis, liver failure and death. Major advances were made in its management based on controlled trials performed in England and the USA in the 1970s and 1980s. Unfortunately, in recent decades there has been a dearth of controlled clinical trials and, thus, many questions regarding the optimal management of this disease remain unanswered. Many promising newer immunosuppressive therapies await formal comparison with standard therapies and also many important details in relation to the application of standard therapies remain unclear. These guidelines describe the optimal management strategies in adults based on available published evidence, including the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases practice guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment of AIH published in 2002 and recently updated.
A Re-Evaluation of the Role of hCTR1, the Human High-Affinity Copper Transporter, in Platinum-Drug Entry into Human Cells

Cisplatin (cDDP) is an anticancer drug used in a number of malignancies, including testicular, ovarian, cervical, bladder, lung, head, and neck cancers. Its use is limited by the development of resistance, often rationalized via effects on cellular uptake. It has been claimed that human copper transporter 1 (hCTR1), the human high-affinity copper transporter, is the major entry pathway for cDDP and related drugs via a mechanism that mimics copper. This is an unexpected property of hCTR1, a highly selective copper (I) transporter. We compared the uptake rates of copper with cDDP (and several analogs) into human embryonic kidney 293 cells overexpressing wild-type or mutant hCTR1, mouse embryonic fibroblasts that do or do not express CTR1, and human ovarian tumor cells that are sensitive or resistant to cDDP. We have also compared the effects of extracellular copper, which causes regulatory endocytosis of hCTR1, to those of cDDP. We confirm the correlation between higher hCTR1 levels and higher platinum drug uptake in tumor cells sensitive to the drug. However, we show that hCTR1 is not the major entry route of platinum drugs, and that the copper transporter is not internalized in response to extracellular drug. Our data suggest the major entry pathway for platinum drugs is not saturable at relevant concentrations and not protein-mediated. Clinical trials have been initiated that depend upon regulating membrane levels of hCTR1. If reduced drug uptake is a major factor in resistance, hCTR1 is unlikely to be a productive target in attempts to enhance efficacy, although the proteins involved in copper homeostasis may play a role.
Use of ECT in Nepal: A One Year Study From the Country's Largest Psychiatric Facility.

INTRODUCTION Electro-Convulsive Therapy (ECT) refers to the electrical stimulation of the brain to produce seizures for therapeutic purpose. Since the development of ECT, it's use has been consistent. Inspite of the common use, data pertaining to the use of ECT in Nepal is lacking. AIM This study was undertaken with the aim of exploring the clinico-demographic profile of patients treated with ECT in the largest psychiatry facility in the country. MATERIALS AND METHODS It is a retrospective descriptive study of patients who were treated with ECT after admission in the inpatient psychiatry unit of Universal College of Medical Sciences Teaching Hospital, Bhairahawa, Nepal during a period of one year (August 2012 to July 2013). RESULTS Out of 1095 patients admitted during the specified period, 81 (7.39%) patients received ECT. About 44.44% of the patients belonged to 20-29 years age group. Female patients constituted more than half of the subjects (55.56%). Review of diagnostic profile showed that majority of patients receiving ECT were suffering from Schizophrenia (44.4%), followed by Bipolar Affective Disorder/Mania (29.6%), Depressive disorder (11.1%), Acute and Transient Psychotic Disorder (6.2%), Post-partum Psychosis (3.7%) and substance induced mood/psychotic disorders (3.7%). A significant majority of subjects (75.3%) received about 5-7 ECT treatments. The mean seizure duration after ECT treatment was 31.13±5.79 seconds. No any major complications were noted during ECT treatment. CONCLUSION This study suggests that ECT, use, as a treatment modality is common in young adults and females with Schizophrenia being the most common indication. Direct ECT is safe when used judiciously.