Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Measurement and Analysis of Link Quality in Wireless Networks: An Application Perspective

Estimating the quality of wireless link is vital to optimize several protocols and applications in wireless networks. In realistic wireless networks, link quality is generally predicted by measuring received signal strength and error rates. Understanding the temporal properties of these parameters is essential for the measured values to be representative, and for accurate prediction of performance of the system. In this paper, we analyze the received signal strength and error rates in an IEEE 802.11 indoor wireless mesh network, with special focus to understand its utility to measurement based protocols. We show that statistical distribution and memory properties vary across different links, but are predictable. Our experimental measurements also show that, due to the effect of fading, the packet error rates do not always monotonically decrease as the transmission rate is reduced. This has serious implications on many measurementbased protocols such as rate-adaptation algorithms. Finally, we describe real-time measurement framework that enables several applications on wireless testbed, and discuss the results from example applications that utilize measurement of signal strength and error rates
Self-efficacy and social support predict benefit finding 12 months after cancer surgery: The mediating role of coping strategies

This longitudinal study investigates whether finding benefits in cancer can be predicted by assimilative and accommodative coping strategies, general self-efficacy, and received social support. Self-efficacy and social support were measured 1 month after cancer surgery, coping strategies 6 months after surgery, and benefit finding 12 months after surgery. Ninety-seven patients with cancer completed measures of benefit finding and its predictors. Four dimensions of benefit were distinguished: personal growth, acceptance of life imperfection, sensitivity to others, and improved family relationships. Path analyses revealed that self-efficacy beliefs had direct effects on personal growth, acceptance of life imperfection, and increased sensitivity to others, whereas received social support affected improved family relationships. Effects of social support were unmediated. The effects of self-efficacy on acceptance of life imperfection were mediated by accommodative coping strategies, but the effects of self-efficacy on personal growth and increased sensitivity to others were mediated by assimilative coping strategies. Resources and coping strategies predicted specific dimensions of benefit finding.
Rumination Moderates the Association Between Resting High-Frequency Heart Rate Variability and Perceived Ethnic Discrimination

Ethnic discrimination (ED) is both an unfortunate and uncontrollable phenomenon that uniquely impacts African Americans (AAs) and other individuals of ethnic minority status. Perceived ethnic discrimination (PED), defined as the degree to which an individual consciously perceives a negative event as discriminatory and threatening, largely determines the impact that ED can have on target individuals. However, research has not yet considered how individual differences in both emotion regulation abilities, as indexed by resting high-frequency heart rate variability (HF-HRV), and rumination, a maladaptive emotion regulation strategy, may predict PED in AAs. The following investigation examined this relationship in a sample of 101 college-aged students (45 AAs and 56 Caucasian Americans). Resting HF-HRV was assessed via electrocardiogram during a 5-minute-resting period. Rumination was assessed using the ruminative responses scale and everyday PED was assessed using the perceived ethnic discrimination questionnaire. Results showed a significant negative relationship between resting HF-HRV and PED in AAs only. Rumination significantly moderated this relationship, such that lower HF-HRV was related to higher PED only in AAs who reported moderate to higher, &bgr; = 0.417 (0.125), p < . 01, levels of trait rumination. These results suggest that greater HF-HRV and lesser ruminative tendencies are key factors in reducing PED and therefore possibly, negative consequences associated with ED.
Building Domain-Specific Search Engines with Machine Learning Techniques

Domain-specific search engines are growing in popularity because they offer increased accuracy and extra functionality not possible with the general, Web-wide search engines. For example, www.campsearch. com allows complex queries by age-group, size, location and cost over . summer camps. Unfortunately these domain-specific search engines are difficult and timeconsuming to maintain. This paper proposes the use of machine learning techniques to greatly automate the creation and maintenance of domain-specific search engines. We describe new research in reinforcement learning, information extraction and text classification that enables efficient spidering, identifying informative text segments, and populating topic hierarchies. Using these techniques, we have built a demonstration system: a search engine for computer science research papers. It already contaius over 50,000 papers and is publicly available at ~w. cora.justres earch, com.
Towards Inference and Learning in Dynamic Bayesian Networks using Generalized Evidence

This report introduces a novel approach to performing inference and learning inDynamic Bayesian Networks (DBN). The traditional approach to inference and learning in DBNs involves conditioning on one or more finite-length observation sequences. In this report, we consider conditioning on what we will call generalized evidence, which consists of a possibly infinite set of behaviors compactly encoded in the form of a formula, φ, in temporal logic. We then introduce exact algorithms for solving inference problems (i.e., computing P (X|φ)) and learning problems (i.e., computing P (Θ|φ)) using techniques from the field of Model Checking. The advantage of our approach is that it enables scientists to pose and solve inference and learning problems that cannot be expressed using traditional approaches. The contributions of this report include: (1) the introduction of the inference and learning problems over generalized evidence, (2) exact algorithms for solving these problems for a restricted class of DBNs, and (3) a series of case studies demonstrating the scalability of our approach. We conclude by discussing directions for future research.
Network Engineering for Atm with Virtual Paths

Thomas Bauschert Jochen Frings Rainer Siebenhaar Lehrstuhl f ur Kommunikationsnetze Technische Universit at M unchen 80290 M unchen, Germany Summary The asynchronous transfer mode is designed to supply virtual paths (VP). Using these VPs, fully meshed virtual networks can be build on top of the physical backbone network. In this paper we discuss several issues related to the cost optimal dimensioning of VP networks. The dimensioning problem is formulated as a mathematical optimization problem and a solution method is proposed. Results for a 23 node example network will be shown. Introduction Future public ATM networks will have a layered structure consisting of local networks, access networks and a long distance backbone network [1]. Network engineering will be done separately for these subnetworks in order to reduce complexity and to consider speci c demands for each layer. Only backbone facility network engineering problems will be regarded here. Two features of ATM have a substantial impact on these engineering problems: the cell based transmission allowing statistical multiplexing and the possibility to supply virtual paths. In this paper we consider only VPs with deterministic bandwidths that are not subject to statistical cell multiplexing with cells from di erent VPs. Therefore the sum of VP bandwidths on a physical link must not be greater than the link capacity (see gure 1).
The Influence of Online Consumer Reviews on the Demand for Experience Goods: The Case of Video Games

We examine the effect of online consumer reviews on the sales of video games. An inherent problem in measuring the influence of reviews on demand is that products receiving good reviews tend to be of high quality, and it is difficult to determine whether the review or the quality is responsible for the high demand. To circumvent this problem, we consider video games that are developed for both PlayStation 2 and Xbox and take a differences-in-differences approach to a structural model of game demand. Our results indicate that online consumer reviews have a significant influence on the sales of the video games. On average, one point increase in the average rating is associated with 4% increase in game sales. Negative ratings have a larger impact than positive ratings. In addition, we find that online reviews are more influential for less popular games. These results suggest the importance of managing online word of mouth for firms, especially for their less popular products.
Dynamic Pricing with Loss Averse Consumers and Peak-End Anchoring

We study the dynamic pricing implications of a new, behaviorally motivated reference price mechanism based on the peak-end memory mode. This model suggests that consumers anchor on a reference price that is a weighted average of the lowest and most recent prices. Loss-averse consumers are more sensitive to perceived losses than gains relative to this reference price. We find that a range of constant pricing policies is optimal for the corresponding dynamic pricing problem. This range is wider the more consumers anchor on lowest prices, and it persists when buyers are loss neutral, in contrast with previous literature. In a transient regime, the optimal pricing policy is monotone and converges to a steady-state price, which is lower the more extreme and salient the low-price anchor is. Our results suggest that behavioral regularities, such as peak-end anchoring and loss aversion, limit the benefits of varying prices, and caution that the adverse effects of deep discounts on the firm's optimal prices and profits might be more enduring than previous models predict.
Automatic phoneme analysis in children with Cleft Lip and Palate

Cleft Lip and Palate (CLP) is among the most frequent congenital abnormalities. The impaired facial development affects the articulation, with different phonemes being impacted inhomogeneously among different patients. This work focuses on automatic phoneme analysis of children with CLP for a detailed diagnosis and therapy control. In clinical routine, the state-of-the-art evaluation is based on perceptual evaluations. Perceptual ratings act as ground-truth throughout this work, with the goal to build an automatic system that is as reliable as humans. We propose two different automatic systems focusing on modeling the articulatory space of a speaker: one system models a speaker by a GMM, the other system employs a speech recognition system and estimates fMLLR matrices for each speaker. SVR is then used to predict the perceptual ratings. We show that the fMLLR-based system is able to achieve automatic phoneme evaluation results that are in the same range as perceptual inter-rater-agreements.
The clinical significance of anticardiolipin antibody levels in patients with acute myocardial infarction: a regional study

Introduction Acute myocardial infarction (AMI) will probably remain the most important cause of death over the next decades. Traditional risk factors of atherosclerosis could not exactly explain the development of acute coronary events such as AMI. Antiphospholipid antibody syndrome is a disorder characterized by the development of arterial and venous thrombosis. Aim In this study, we investigated the relations between acute myocardial infarction and anti-phospholipid antibody syndrome in our population representing Aegean Region people characteristics. Material and methods One hundred patients with acute myocardial infarction were consecutively included in the study (group I) and one hundred age and sex matched people with similar risk factors were enrolled in the study as a control group (group II). Anticardiolipin antibody (aCL) IgM and IgG levels were measured in the two groups. Levels of aCL IgG ≥ 48 U/ml and/or aCL IgM ≥ 44 U/ml were accepted as positive and significant. Results In patients with acute myocardial infarction, 5 patients (5%) had positive IgM levels and 8 patients (8%) were found to have positive IgG levels. All cases in the control group had negative aCL IgM and IgG antibody levels. These results were accepted as significant for both aCL antibodies between patients and controls (p < 0.001). Conclusions We concluded that aCL antibody levels are also higher in a small proportion of patients with acute myocardial infarction than controls in our region, also, and these results suggest that there may be an immune stimulus in the pathogenesis of acute coronary events.
Algorithms in the newsroom? News readers’ perceived credibility and selection of automated journalism

Automated journalism, the autonomous production of journalistic content through computer algorithms, is increasingly prominent in newsrooms. This enables the production of numerous articles, both rapidly and cheaply. Yet, how news readers perceive journalistic automation is pivotal to the industry, as, like any product, it is dependent on audience approval. As audiences cannot verify all events themselves, they need to trust journalists’ accounts, which make credibility a vital quality ascription to journalism. In turn, credibility judgments might influence audiences’ selection of automated content for their media diet. Research in this area is scarce, with existing studies focusing on national samples and with no previous research on ‘combined’ journalism – a relatively novel development where automated content is supplemented by human journalists. We use an experiment to investigate how European news readers (N = 300) perceive different forms of automated journalism in regard to message and source credibility, and how this affects their selection behavior. Findings show that, in large part, credibility perceptions of human, automated, and combined content and source(s) may be assumed equal. Only for sports articles was automated content perceived significantly more credible than human messages. Furthermore, credibility does not mediate the likelihood of news readers to either select or avoid articles for news consumption. Findings are, among other things, explained by topic-specific factors and suggest that effects of algorithms on journalistic quality are largely indiscernible to European news readers.
Do You Know What I Mean? Brain Oscillations and the Understanding of Communicative Intentions

Pointing gesture allows children to communicate their intentions before the acquisition of language. In particular, two main purposes seem to underlie the gesture: to request a desired object (imperative pointing) or to share attention on that object (declarative pointing). Since the imperative pointing has an instrumental goal and the declarative has an interpersonal one, only the latter gesture is thought to signal the infant’s awareness of the communicative partner as a mental agent. The present study examined the neural responses of adult subjects with the aim to test the hypothesis that declarative rather than imperative pointing reflects mentalizing skills. Fourteen subjects were measured in a magnetoencephalographic environment including four conditions, based on the goal of the pointing – imperative or declarative – and the role of the subject – sender or receiver of pointing. Time–frequency modulations of brain activity in each condition (declarative production and comprehension, imperative production and comprehension) were analyzed. Both low beta and high beta power were stronger during declarative than imperative condition in anterior cingulated cortex and right posterior superior temporal sulcus, respectively. Furthermore, high gamma activity was higher in right temporo-parietal junction during the sender than receiving condition. This suggests that communicative pointing modulated brain regions previously described in neuroimaging research as linked to social cognitive skills and that declarative pointing is more capable of eliciting that activation than imperative. Our results contribute to the understanding of the roles of brain rhythm dynamics in social cognition, thus supporting neural research on that topic during developmental both in typical and atypical conditions, such as autism spectrum disorder. In particular, the identification of relevant regions in a mature brain may stimulate a future work on the developmental changes of neural activation in the same regions.
Depression , suicide , and violence Suicide and depression

Introduction Suicide is a complex and multicausal phenomenon. It has a strong association with mental disorders, particularly major depressive disorder. Suicidal behaviors (both fatal and non-fatal) in patients with mood disorders are determined by their severity. Suicidal acts likely occur during depressive episodes, less often during mixed states, and very rarely in hypomania. However, the prevalence of suicidal behaviors in depressive disorders might be over-represented as a result of the misdiagnosis of normal sadness as a psychiatric disorder. There is a large amount of evidence showing that antidepressants are effective in preventing suicidal behaviors in mood disorders, but their effect remains controversial in young patients. The reduction in suicide is more prominent when combining pharmacotherapy and psychotherapy, rather than either therapy alone. This chapter reports on the epidemiology of suicidal behaviors in each type of mood disorder, discusses the boundaries between sadness and depressive disorders in relation to suicide, and highlights possible prevention strategies for suicide in patients with mood disorders.
The Incidence of Surgery in Osteochondritis Dissecans in Children and Adolescents

Background: The frequency of osteochondritis dissecans (OCD), a disorder of the subchondral bone and articular cartilage, is not well described. Purpose: To assess the frequency of pediatric OCD lesions that progress to surgery based on sex, joint involvement, and age. Study Design: Descriptive epidemiology study. Methods: A retrospective chart review (2007-2011) was performed on OCD. Inclusion criteria included OCD of any joint and patients aged 2 to 19 years. Exclusion criteria included traumatic osteochondral fractures or coexistence of non-OCD intra-articular lesions. Differences in progression toward surgery were compared between age groups, sex, and joint location. Logistical regression analysis was performed by sex, age, and ethnicity. Results: Overall, 317 patients with a total of 334 OCD lesions were found. The majority of lesions (61.7%) were in the knee, with ankle, elbow, shoulder, and foot lesions representing 25.4%, 12.0%, 0.6%, and 0.3% of all lesions, respectively. The majority of joints needing surgery were in the knee (58.5%), with ankle and elbow lesions representing 22.9% and 18.6% of surgeries performed, respectively. The percentage of all OCD lesions progressing to surgery was 35.3%; surgical progression for knee, ankle, and elbow joints was 33.5%, 31.8%, and 55.0%, respectively. Logistic regression analysis found no statistically significant different risk of progressing to surgery for OCD of the knee, elbow, and ankle between sexes. Patients aged 12 to 19 years had a 7.4-times greater risk of progression to surgery for knee OCD lesions than 6- to 11-year-olds. Patients aged 12 to 19 years were 8.2 times more likely to progress to surgery for all OCD lesions than patients aged 6 to 11 years. Progression to surgery of ankle OCD did not significantly differ based on location. Three of 4 trochlear lesions progressed to surgery, along with 1 of 1 tibial, 1 of 3 patellar, 40.3% of lateral femoral condylar, and 28.2% of medial femoral condylar lesions. Conclusion: In this large cohort study of pediatric OCD patients, 35% progressed to surgery. Progression to surgery did not differ significantly between sexes with OCD of any joint. Progression to surgery for OCD of the knee, elbow, and ankle strongly correlated with patient age at the time of diagnosis. Clinical Relevance: The knowledge of likelihood of progression to surgery of OCD by location, sex, and age is useful in counseling patients and in planning treatment. This study confirms a worse prognosis in the nonoperative treatment of older patients with OCD.
A semiclassical approach to theDirac equation

We derive a semiclassical time evolution kernel and a trace formula for the Dirac equation. The classical trajectories that enter the expressions are determined by the dynamics of relativistic point particles. We carefully investigate the transport of the spin degrees of freedom along the trajectories which can be understood geometrically as parallel transport in a vector bundle with SU(2) holonomy. Furthermore, we give an interpretation in terms of a classical spin vector that is transported along the trajectories and whose dynamics, dictated by the equation of Thomas precession, gives rise to dynamical and geometric phases every orbit is weighted by. We also present an analogous approach to the Pauli equation which we analyse in two diierent limits.
IL-1β impedes the chondrogenic differentiation of synovial fluid mesenchymal stem cells in the human temporomandibular joint

Mesenchymal stem cell-based therapy has great therapeutic potential for temporomandibular joint (TMJ) cartilage repair. However, the behavior of mesenchymal stem cells in the inflammatory milieu following their delivery remains poorly understood. Synovial fluid-derived mesenchymal stem cells (SFMSCs) are a promising resource for TMJ cartilage repair, as they are easily obtained from patients with TMJ disorders (TMD). In this study, we obtained SFMSCs from patients with TMD and expanded them in vitro; we then stimulated the cells with interleukin (IL)-8, IL-1β, IL-6, IL-10, tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α and IL-12p. The cells expressed CD90, CD44, CD105 and CD73, and were negative for CD45, CD34, CD11b, CD19 and HLA-DR. They could be induced to differentiate into osteogenic, chondrogenic, adipogenic and neurogenic lineages in vitro. Only the levels of IL-6 and IL-8 were upregulated significantly following stimulation with IL-8, IL-1β, IL-6, IL-10, TNF-α and IL-12p. Furthermore, IL-6 and IL-8 expression was driven mainly by IL-1β-dependent nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) pathway activation, and was independent of IL-8, IL-6, IL-10, TNF-α and IL-12p. IL-6 and IL-8 expression was inhibited completely by treatment with the NF-κB inhibitor, BAY11-7082. SRY-box 9 (SOX9) was downregulated and matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)13 was upregulated upon chondrogenic differentiation induced in the cells also exposed to IL-1β. Sulfated glycosaminoglycan production was also reduced upon chondrogenic differentiation in the presence of IL-6, but not IL-8. Thus, IL-1β in the inflammatory milieu is crucial in regulating SFMSCs. In doing so, IL-1β impedes the chondrogenic differentiation of SFMSCs. The upregulation of IL-6 and NF-κB pathway activation also contribute to this biological behavior. The findings of our study indicate the potential adverse effects of IL-1β on the chondrogenic differentiation of SFMSCs, and may thus provide new insight into the pathogenesis of TMD.