Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Widespread infection and diverse infection patterns of Wolbachia in Chinese aphids

Wolbachia are intracellular symbionts that infect a wide range of arthropods and filarial nematodes. Aphids are engaged in diverse and complex relationships with their endosymbionts. Four supergroups (A, B, M and N) of Wolbachia were previously detected in aphids and supergroups M and N were only found in aphids. In this study, we detected and described Wolbachia infections in natural populations of aphids in China. Three supergroups (A, B and M) were found in the examined aphid species. Supergroup M was preponderant, whereas supergroups A and B were only detected in certain species. Supergroup N was not found in this study. There were four infection patterns of Wolbachia in aphids, namely, infection with supergroup M alone, co‐infection with supergroups A and M, co‐infection with supergroups B and M, and co‐infection with supergroups A, B and M. The pattern of infection only with supergroup M was universal and was found in all evaluated subfamilies. Only two subfamilies, Aphidinae and Lachninae, manifested to present all four infection patterns. Three patterns were observed in Calaphidinae (M, A&M, B&M) and Eriosomatinae (M, B&M, A&B&M). Two patterns were observed in the Anoeciinae (M, A&M) and Greenideinae (M, B&M), and only one pattern (M) was observed in the remaining families and/or subfamilies of Aphidoidea. These results indicated that Wolbachia infections in Chinese aphids are widespread. Phylogenetic analyses suggest that Wolbachia supergroup M spread rapidly and recently among all host species of aphids in China. Reasons for this spread and its mechanisms are discussed along with the possible effects of Wolbachia on their aphid hosts.
Algebraic connectivity optimization of the air transportation network

In transportation networks the robustness of a network regarding nodes and links failures is a key factor for its design. The goal of this work is to design the most robust network given only the location of each node. A common way to measure the robustness of a network is to evaluate the algebraic connectivity of the graph, which was introduced by Fiedler. Several works solve the maximization of the algebraic connectivity by choosing the weights for the edges in the graph. Other works focus on the best way to add edges in a network in order to optimize the connectivity. In this work we present a practical way to find both the edges and their weights in order to optimize the network robustness. We show that this wider problem which is not currently mentioned in the literature is interesting because the two sub-problems of adding edges and choosing edge weights can not be treated separately. The new combined problem inspired by the air transportation network is formulated and exactly solved in small size network case. For larger size networks, we propose our approximation algorithm and the simulated numerical results are analysed.
Functional architecture of verbal and tonal working memory: An FMRI study

This study investigates the functional architecture of working memory (WM) for verbal and tonal information during rehearsal and articulatory suppression. Participants were presented with strings of four sung syllables with the task to remember either the pitches (tonal information) or the syllables (verbal information). Rehearsal of verbal, as well as of tonal information activated a network comprising ventrolateral premotor cortex (encroaching Broca's area), dorsal premotor cortex, the planum temporale, inferior parietal lobe, the anterior insula, subcortical structures (basal ganglia and thalamus), as well as the cerebellum. The topography of activations was virtually identical for the rehearsal of syllables and pitches, showing a remarkable overlap of the WM components for the rehearsal of verbal and tonal information. When the WM task was performed under articulatory suppression, activations in those areas decreased, while additional activations arose in anterior prefrontal areas. These prefrontal areas might contain additional storage components of verbal and tonal WM that are activated when auditory information cannot be rehearsed. As in the rehearsal conditions, the topography of activations under articulatory suppression was nearly identical for the verbal as compared to the tonal task. Results indicate that both the rehearsal of verbal and tonal information, as well as storage of verbal and tonal information relies on strongly overlapping neuronal networks. These networks appear to partly consist of sensorimotor‐related circuits which provide resources for the representation and maintenance of information, and which are remarkably similar for the production of speech and song. Hum Brain Mapp, 2009. © 2008 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Design and Simulation of Filterless Optical Networks: Problem Definition and Performance Evaluation

Filterless optical networks based on advanced transmission technologies and passive optical interconnections between nodes offer a lower-cost alternative to optical networks based on active photonic switching. A design and simulation platform is proposed for studying these novel network architectures and looking at their performance characteristics. Simulation results are presented for three reference network topologies, along with a comparative cost and performance study of active photonic and passive filterless optical network solutions.
Structural Dynamics of Knowledge Networks

We investigate the structural patterns of the appearance and disappearance of links in dynamic knowledge networks. Human knowledge is nowadays increasingly created and curated online, in a collaborative and highly dynamic fashion. The knowledge thus created is interlinked in nature, and an important open task is to understand its temporal evolution. In this paper, we study the underlying mechanisms of changes in knowledge networks which are of structural nature, i.e., which are a direct result of a knowledge network's structure. Concretely, we ask whether the appearance and disappearance of interconnections between concepts (items of a knowledge base) can be predicted using information about the network formed by these interconnections. In contrast to related work on this problem, we take into account the disappearance of links in our study, to account for the fact that the evolution of collaborative knowledge bases includes a high proportion of removals and reverts. We perform an empirical study on the best-known and largest collaborative knowledge base, Wikipedia, and show that traditional indicators of structural change used in the link analysis literature can be classified into four classes, which we show to indicate growth, decay, stability and instability of links. We finally use these methods to identify the underlying reasons for individual additions and removals of knowledge links.
Obesity due to stress: A change in glucose and lipid metabolism due to altered cortisol levels

4 List of Abbreviations . 5 Introduction . 7 Obesity. 7 Definition & Measurements . 7 Prevalence . 7 Health risks . 8 Obesity and Stress . 9 Mechanisms of stress . 10 Autonomic nervous system responses . 10 The hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis . 11 The hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis & circadian rhythm . 11 Cortisol and its effects . 11 The effects of cortisol & stress on the glucose metabolism . 13 Gluconeogenesis . 13 Glycogenolysis . 13 Insulin resistance . 14 11β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 1 . 14 Stress and the lipid metabolism . 16 The normal lipid metabolism . 16 Lipolysis . 16 TNF-α, resistin and adiponectin . 17 De novo lipogenesis . 18 Adipogenesis . 19 Stress and the central nervous system . 20 Possible treatments for obesity induced by stress . 21 Mineralocorticoid & Glucocorticoid receptor antagonists . 21 Inhibition of 11β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 1 . 21 Neuropeptide Y . 22 Other possibilities . 22 Conclusion . 23 Acknowledgements . 24
Doctors' reports of work-related hearing loss.

BACKGROUND Noise-induced hearing loss is the diagnosis that is most frequently reported to the Norwegian Labour Inspection Authority. The objective of this study was to describe the doctors' reports on noise-induced hearing loss and assess the quality of the information. MATERIAL AND METHOD The study is based on reports to the Labour Inspection Authority for the years 2005-09. We grouped the reporting incidence according to industry, gender and age on the basis of Statistics Norway's employment statistics. The reports were compared to data from Statistics Norway's living conditions survey from 2009. RESULTS A total of 7,888 reports had been submitted in the study period (2005-2009), 96% of which concerned men. The annual reporting incidence amounted to 66 per 100,000 employees; six and 120 for women and men respectively. The reporting incidence was highest in the age group 55-74 years and for the construction and manufacturing industries. Altogether 52% of the reports pertained to employees who were no longer working in the enterprise where they had been exposed to noise. The proportion of reports pertaining to employees aged under 40 years was lower than the corresponding proportion of those who reported work-related hearing loss in Statistics Norway's living conditions survey from 2009. Occupational health physicians submitted 85% of the reports. INTERPRETATION Of those exposed to noise, only a small proportion of women, younger employees and employees in enterprises with no access to occupational health services are captured by the reporting system. The same may apply to employees in industries such as transport and retail trade, but this will require further investigation.
Identification of Bacterial Species Associated with the Sheep Scab Mite (Psoroptes ovis) by Using Amplified Genes Coding for 16S rRNA

ABSTRACT This was the first molecular study of the bacterial flora of the sheep scab mite (Psoroptes ovis). A sequence analysis of genes coding for 16S rRNA revealed that Serratia marcescensand bacteria closely related to Staphylococcus intermediusor Staphylococcus chromogens and Alloiococcus otitidis were present. These bacteria were associated with skin lesions, dermatitis, and otitis media caused by P. ovis.
Phase Change Materials for Controllable Stiffness of Robotic Joints

Snake-like manipulators are well suited for operation in restricted and confined environments where the manipulator body can bend around obstacles to place an end effector at a difficult to access location. They require high stiffness when self-supporting weight against gravity and undertake precision manipulation task, but also require soft properties when operating in complex and delicate environments. A controllable stiffness manipulator has the potential to meet the application demands as it can switch between rigid and soft state. This thesis experimentally investigates the properties of four materials, (low melting point solder, hot-melt adhesive, low melting point alloy and granular material) as candidates for mechanically altering the stiffness of the joints/modules in snake-like manipulators. These materials were evaluated for bonding strength, repeatability, and activation time. Modules for a snake-like manipulator were fabricated using 3D printing and silicone casting techniques including, for the first time, variable stiffness joints that use hot-melt adhesive and low melting point alloy. These modules were evaluated for stiffness properties and low melting point solder based module was found to achieve a stiffness change 150X greater than the state of the art granular material approach. In addition, the proposed modules were able to support 25X of their own weight.
SWAP: Mitigating XSS attacks using a reverse proxy

Due to the increasing amount of Web sites offering features to contribute rich content, and the frequent failure of Web developers to properly sanitize user input, cross-site scripting prevails as the most significant security threat to Web applications. Using cross-site scripting techniques, miscreants can hijack Web sessions, and craft credible phishing sites. Previous work towards protecting against cross-site scripting attacks suffers from various drawbacks, such as practical infeasibility of deployment due to the need for client-side modifications, inability to reliably detect all injected scripts, and complex, error-prone parameterization. In this paper, we introduce SWAP (Secure Web Application Proxy), a server-side solution for detecting and preventing cross-site scripting attacks. SWAP comprises a reverse proxy that intercepts all HTML responses, as well as a modified Web browser which is utilized to detect script content. SWAP can be deployed transparently for the client, and requires only a simple automated transformation of the originalWeb application. Using SWAP, we were able to correctly detect exploits on several authentic vulnerabilities in popular Web applications.
WLC41-3: On the Performance of Cooperative Wireless Fixed Relays in Asymmetric Channels

In many scenarios the commonly assumed symmetry in multiple relay channels is unrealistic. Therefore, this paper, through analytical and simulation efforts, investigates asymmetric relay deployment where the links of cooperating nodes to destination experience unequal signal strength. An analysis of the cooperative error rate at the destination node in such networks is presented. Using the derived expressions for the cooperative error, in conjunction with the approaches used in earlier works, the end-to-end (E2E) performance of a two- hop network can be obtained. Moreover, the derived expression represents, in certain scenarios, a tight bound for the E2E error rate of the two-hop network such as when relay adopts threshold decode-and-forward strategy and/or multi-antenna processing to improve the reliability of its detection.
Joint Impact of Physical Activity and Family History on the Development of Diabetes Among Urban Adults in Mainland China

To examine the joint influences of physical activity (PA) and family history (FH) of diabetes on subsequent type 2 diabetes (T2D), the authors pooled and analyzed data from 2 community-based urban adult prospective cohort studies in 2011 in Nanjing, China. Among 4550 urban participants, the 3-year cumulative incidence of T2D was 5.1%. After adjustment for potential confounders, compared with those with FH+ and insufficient PA, the adjusted odds ratio (95% confidence interval) of developing T2D was 0.42 (0.18, 0.98) for participants with sufficient PA and FH+, 0.32 (0.22, 0.46) for participants with insufficient PA and FH−, and 0.15 (0.08, 0.28) for participants with sufficient PA and FH−. Such significant graduated associations between PA/FH and risk of developing T2D were also identified in either men or women, separately. Sufficient PA and FH− may jointly reduce the risk of developing T2D in urban Chinese adults.
A Randomized, Double-Blind Study of 30 Versus 20 mg Dexmethylphenidate Extended-Release in Children With Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder: Late-Day Symptom Control

Abstract The objective of this study was to evaluate the safety and efficacy of dexmethylphenidate extended-release (d-MPH-ER) 30 versus 20 mg in children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in a 12-hour laboratory classroom setting. In a randomized, double-blind, 3-period × 3-treatment, crossover study, children aged 6 to 12 years with Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition–diagnosed ADHD previously stabilized on MPH (40–60 mg/d) or D-MPH (20–30 mg/d) were randomized to receive D-MPH-ER 20 mg/d, 30 mg/d, or placebo for 7 days each. Primary efficacy measurements were change in the average SKAMP (Swanson, Kotkin, Agler, M-Flynn, and Pelham)–Combined score from predose to 10, 11, and 12 hours postdose [Avg(10–12)] between 30 and 20 mg D-MPH-ER. Safety was assessed by adverse events, vital sign monitoring, and electrocardiograms. A total of 165 children were randomized, and 162 were included in the intent-to-treat analysis. Mean Avg(10-12) change from predose in SKAMP-Combined score was significantly greater for D-MPH-ER 30 mg (−4.47) compared with D-MPH-ER 20 mg (−2.02; P = 0.002). Most common adverse events (≥3% in any group) were decreased appetite (6.1%, 4.9%, and 0%), headache (4.3%, 4.3%, and 1.9%), abdominal pain (3.7%, 3.1%, and 3.1%), and tachycardia (1.2%, 3.1%, and 0.6%) for D-MPH-ER 30 mg, D-MPH-ER 20 mg, and placebo, respectively). Significantly greater improvement in ADHD symptoms was noted with D-MPH-ER 30 mg compared with D-MPH-ER 20 mg at hours 10 through 12. Tolerability was comparable between doses. Dexmethylphenidate extended-release 30-mg dose may provide further benefit to patients who do not maintain optimal symptom control later in the day with D-MPH-ER 20 mg.
Blessing of Dimensionality: High-Dimensional Feature and Its Efficient Compression for Face Verification

Making a high-dimensional (e.g., 100K-dim) feature for face recognition seems not a good idea because it will bring difficulties on consequent training, computation, and storage. This prevents further exploration of the use of a high dimensional feature. In this paper, we study the performance of a high dimensional feature. We first empirically show that high dimensionality is critical to high performance. A 100K-dim feature, based on a single-type Local Binary Pattern (LBP) descriptor, can achieve significant improvements over both its low-dimensional version and the state-of-the-art. We also make the high-dimensional feature practical. With our proposed sparse projection method, named rotated sparse regression, both computation and model storage can be reduced by over 100 times without sacrificing accuracy quality.
Possible and necessary winners in voting trees: majority graphs vs. profiles

Given the preferences of several agents over a common set of candidates, voting trees can be used to select a candidate (the winner) by a sequence of pairwise competitions modelled by a binary tree (the agenda). The majority graph compactly represents the preferences of the agents and provides enough information to compute the winner. When some preferences are missing, there are various notions of winners, such as the possible winners (that is, winners in at least one completion) or the necessary winners (that is, winners in all completions). In this generalized scenario, we show that using the majority graph to compute winners is not correct, since it may declare as winners candidates that are not so. Nonetheless, the majority graph can be used to compute efficiently an upper or lower approximation of the correct set of winners.
Robust Guided Image Filtering

The process of using one image to guide the filtering process of another one is called Guided Image Filtering (GIF). The main challenge of GIF is the structure inconsistency between the guidance image and the target image. Besides, noise in the target image is also a challenging issue especially when it is heavy. In this paper, we propose a general framework for Robust Guided Image Filtering (RGIF), which contains a data term and a smoothness term, to solve the two issues mentioned above. The data term makes our model simultaneously denoise the target image and perform GIF which is robust against the heavy noise. The smoothness term is able to make use of the property of both the guidance image and the target image which is robust against the structure inconsistency. While the resulting model is highly non-convex, it can be solved through the proposed Iteratively Re-weighted Least Squares (IRLS) in an efficient manner. For challenging applications such as guided depth map upsampling, we further develop a data-driven parameter optimization scheme to properly determine the parameter in our model. This optimization scheme can help to preserve small structures and sharp depth edges even for a large upsampling factor (8x for example). Moreover, the specially designed structure of the data term and the smoothness term makes our model perform well in edge-preserving smoothing for single-image tasks (i.e., the guidance image is the target image itself). This paper is an extension of our previous work [1], [2].
Human Bornavirus infection – towards a valid diagnostic system

* Disclaimer: the article reflects the author’s but not the institution’s opinion (see also http://www.rki.de). This article is in part an evaluation and assessment of results which will be published elsewhere in detail. Contributions of unpublished raw data included here were from the Master Theses of Thomas Willemsen (epitopes on BDV Nand P-protein), Dennis Schmidt (BDV N-protein characterisation from plasma), and Steffen Zander (BDV P-protein). Corresponding author: E-mail (office): bodel/rki.de E-mail (Internet): Liv.Bode/web.de
Intake of Fruits, Vegetables, and Soy Foods in Relation to Breast Cancer Risk in Korean Women: A Case-Control Study

Abstract We conducted a case-control study to examine the relationship between fruit, vegetable, and soy food intake and breast cancer risk in Korean women. Incident cases (n = 359) were identified through cancer biopsies between March 1999 and August 2003 at two university hospitals in Seoul, Korea. Hospital-based controls (n = 708) were selected from patients in the same hospitals during the same period. Subjects were asked by personal interview to indicate their average fruit, vegetable, and soy food intake for a 12-mo period 3 yr prior to the baseline phase. A food intake–frequency questionnaire (98 items) was given by a trained dietitian. Odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated by unconditional logistic regression after adjustment for confounding factors and total energy intake. There was no association between the intake of total fruits, vegetables, or soy food and breast cancer risk. Increasing consumption of grapes was linked to a significant protective effect against risk of breast cancer (OR = 0.66; 95% CI = 0.41–0.86; P < 0.01). Among the vegetables, reduced risk was observed with high tomato intake (OR = 0.62; 95% CI = 0.38–0.81; P < 0.01). Among soy foods, high consumption of cooked soybeans, including yellow and black soybeans, had an association with reduced breast cancer (OR = 0.67; 95% CI = 0.45–0.91; P < 0.02). Our data suggest that increased intake of some fruits, vegetables, and soy foods may be associated with breast cancer risk reduction in Korean women.
BiSet: Semantic Edge Bundling with Biclusters for Sensemaking

Identifying coordinated relationships is an important task in data analytics. For example, an intelligence analyst might want to discover three suspicious people who all visited the same four cities. Existing techniques that display individual relationships, such as between lists of entities, require repetitious manual selection and significant mental aggregation in cluttered visualizations to find coordinated relationships. In this paper, we present BiSet, a visual analytics technique to support interactive exploration of coordinated relationships. In BiSet, we model coordinated relationships as biclusters and algorithmically mine them from a dataset. Then, we visualize the biclusters in context as bundled edges between sets of related entities. Thus, bundles enable analysts to infer task-oriented semantic insights about potentially coordinated activities. We make bundles as first class objects and add a new layer, “in-between”, to contain these bundle objects. Based on this, bundles serve to organize entities represented in lists and visually reveal their membership. Users can interact with edge bundles to organize related entities, and vice versa, for sensemaking purposes. With a usage scenario, we demonstrate how BiSet supports the exploration of coordinated relationships in text analytics.