Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Learning pattern rules for Chinese named entity extraction

Named entity (NE) extraction in Chinese is very difficult task because of the flexibility in the language structure and uncertainty in word segmentation. It is equivalent to relation and information extraction problems in English. This paper presents a hybrid rule induction approach to extract NEs in Chinese. The method induces rules and names and their context, and generalizes these rules using linguistic lexical chaining. In order to handle the ambiguities and other contextual problems peculiar to Chinese, we supplement the basic method with other approaches such as the default-exception tree and decision tree. We tested our method on the MET2 test set and the method has been found to out-perform all reported methods with an overall F<inf>1</inf> measure of over 91%.
The Nature of Consciousness

Preface 1. The problem of phenomenal consciousness 2. Consciousness and supervenience 3. The explanatory gap 4. Consciousness and higher-order experience 5. Consciousness and higher-order thoughts 6. The structure of consciousness 7. What it is like 8. Against objectualism II: mistakes about the way things seem 9. Consciousness and representation 10. Consciousness and the natural order Bibliography Index.
Signal estimators for p-i-n and APD-based free-space optical communication systems

The channel estimation problem is addressed for freespace optical communications impaired by optical turbulence. Estimators which are motivated by the minimum mean square error (MMSE) estimation criterion are proposed for the estimation of optical signal intensity in p-i-n and APD-based freespace optical (FSO) communication systems. A shot noise limited condition is assumed. The received signal intensity is modelled using a log-normal (LN) probability density function (pdf) for low (<0.75) scintillation indices and a negative exponential pdf for scintillation indices in the vicinity of 1. When considering APD-based receivers, only the low scintillation scenario is considered. With the aid of simulation, it is shown that the proposed estimators outperform maximum likelihood (ML) estimators for small scintillation indices.
Arsenic Contamination of Ground Water and its Health Impact on Population of District of Nadia, West Bengal, India

Background: The global health impact and disease burden due to chronic arsenic toxicity has not been well studied in West Bengal. Objective: To ascertain these, a scientific epidemiological study was carried out in a district of the state. Materials and Methods: Epidemiological study was carried out by house-to-house survey of arsenic affected villages in the district of Nadia. A stratified multi-stage design has been adopted for this survey for the selection of the participants. A total number of 2297 households of 37 arsenic affected villages in all the 17 blocks were surveyed in the district. Result: Out of 10469 participants examined, prevalence rate of arsenicosis was found to be 15.43%. Out of 0.84 million people suspected to be exposed to arsenic, 0.14 million people are estimated to be suffering from arsenicosis in the district. Highest level of arsenic in drinking water sources was found to be 1362 μg/l, and in 23% cases it was above 100 μg/l. Majority of the population living in the arsenic affected villages were of low socio-economic condition, inadequate education and were farmers or doing physical labour. Chronic lung disease was found in 207 (12.81%) subjects among cases and 69 (0.78%) in controls. Peripheral neuropathy was found in 257 (15.9%) cases and 136 (1.5%) controls. Conclusion: Large number of people in the district of Nadia are showing arsenical skin lesion. However, insufficient education, poverty, lack of awareness and ineffective health care support are major factors causing immense plight to severely arsenic affected people.
Reactive oxygen species signal chloroplasts to extend themselves

When Sam Wildman’s group first reported his phase-contrast microscopic observations of chloroplast tubular extensions in 1962 (1), he was greeted with skepticism by some plant biologists, who dismissed his findings of membrane protrusions as artifacts of stress caused by long observation of leaf cells under the microscope. Following their rediscovery through GFP technology (2), it is now known that stress actually can induce the tubular formations (3), subsequently named stromules (4). But stromules are no artifact; instead, they are a feature exhibited by plastids in many different types of plant cells (4–7). Probable functions for stromules have been hypothesized for many years (4, 5, 8–10), but there has been no proof of function and little has been known about how they form. In PNAS, Brunkard et al. (11) describe their discovery that stromules do not require external structures for their formation. Furthermore, the authors demonstrate that increase in reactive oxygen species (ROS) by inhibition of photosynthesis induces stromule formation in chloroplasts.
Preference for Human Papillomavirus–Based Cervical Cancer Screening: Results of a Choice-Based Conjoint Study in Zambia

The objective of this study was to assess the conditions under which Zambian women with a history of cervical cancer screening by visual inspection with acetic acid might switch to human papillomavirus–based testing in the future. Materials and Methods We conducted a choice-based conjoint survey in a sample of women recently screened by visual inspection in Lusaka, Zambia. The screening attribute considered in hypothetical-choice scenarios included screening modality, sex and age of the examiner, whether screening results would be presented visually, distance from home to the clinic, and wait time for results. Results Of 238 women in the sample, 208 (87.4%) provided responses sufficiently reliable for analysis. Laboratory testing on a urine sample was the preferred screening modality, followed by visual screening, laboratory testing on a self-collected vaginal specimen, and laboratory testing on a nurse-collected cervical specimen. Market simulation suggested that only 39.7% (95% CI = 33.8–45.6) of the respondents would prefer urine testing offered by a female nurse in her 30s over visual inspection of the cervix conducted by a male nurse in his 20s if extra wait time were as short as 1 hour and the option of viewing how their cervix looks like were not available. Conclusions Our study suggests that, for some women, the level of preference for human papillomavirus–based screening strategies may depend highly on the process and conditions of service delivery.
Indigenous Aphid Predators Show High Levels of Preadaptation to a Novel Prey, Melanaphis sacchari (Hemiptera: Aphididae)

ABSTRACT The performance of four aphid predators, Hippodamia convergens Guerin-Meneville, Coleomegilla maculata DeGeer, Chrysopeda carnea Stephens and Orius insidiosus Say was compared on three prey species: Schizaphis graminum Rondani, Melanaphis sacchari (Zehntner), and Ephestia kuehniella Zeller eggs. Species predatory in both life stages (all except Ch, carnea) were reared on E. kuehniella eggs and switched to aphid prey for assessment of reproduction. Differences were greater between the E. kuehniella and aphid diets than between the two aphid species. Juvenile survival was high for all predators on all prey, except for O. insidiosus, which had survival on E. kuehniella > S. graminum > M. sacchari. The fastest development of Ch, carnea and O. insidiosus was obtained on E. kuehniella, whereas H. convergens developed fastest on S. graminum, and C. maculata did not differ among diets. S. graminum also yielded the largest H. convergens adults, whereas the largest adults of other predators were obtained on E. kuehniella. Female fecundity and egg viability were similarly high on both aphid diets for H. convergens and C. maculata, whereas, on E. kuehniella, 50% of the former entered reproductive diapause and the latter species had reduced fecundity. Reproductive success of Ch, carnea was S. graminum = M. sacchari > E. kuehniella, but it was similar among treatments for O. insidiosus, although female infertility ranged from 25 to 37.5%. We concluded that all the predators studied are preadapted to utilize sugarcane aphid as prey and have excellent potential to provide sustainable biological control of this newly invasive pest.
Gonorrhea in women.

Two hundred thirty-one female patients of private obstetricians and gynecologists were examined for gonorrhea, using cultural techniques. Specimens were taken from the cervix and rectum of all patients and cultured on Thayer-Martin (TM) selective medium. Six, or 2.6%, were found positive. Of these, all were in the 20- to 29-year age group; only one had knowledge of being exposed to gonorrhea; three were pregnant. The frequently asymptomatic nature of gonorrhea in females, combined with a definable incidence of infection in this patient group, suggests that more frequent use of cultural methods employing TM medium would help control this rapidly increasing disease. Cultures are particularly recommended for women under 30 years who are single, pregnant, or manifest acute vaginitis.
Renormalon disappearance in Borel sum of the 1/N expansion of the Gross-Neveu model mass gap

The exact mass gap of the O(N) Gross-Neveu model is known, for arbitrary $N$, from non-perturbative methods. However, a "naive" perturbative expansion of the pole mass exhibits an infinite set of infrared renormalons at order 1/N, formally similar to the QCD heavy quark pole mass renormalons, potentially leading to large ${\cal O}(\Lambda)$ perturbative ambiguities. We examine the precise vanishing mechanism of such infrared renormalons, which avoids this (only apparent)contradiction, and operates without need of (Borel) summation contour prescription, usually preventing unambiguous separation of perturbative contributions. As a consequence we stress the direct Borel summability of the (1/N) perturbative expansion of the mass gap. We briefly speculate on a possible similar behaviour of analogous non-perturbative QCD quantities.
Sex Differences in Ethanol Intake and Sensitivity to Aversive Effects during Adolescence and Adulthood

Aims: The present experiments examined sex differences in ethanol intake and in the influence of a social context on aversive properties of ethanol in adolescent and adult Sprague-Dawley rats. Methods: Experiment 1 examined ethanol intake, with animals receiving daily 2-h access to ethanol and water for 8 days. Experiment 2 assessed the aversive effects of ethanol using a conditioned taste aversion (CTA) paradigm, with animals placed either alone or with a same-sex, same-age peer during the ethanol intoxication phase of conditioning. Results: Ethanol intake varied with both age and sex, although the sex differences emerging at each age were opposite in nature. Adolescent males consumed more ethanol relative to their body weights than adolescent females and adults of both sexes, whereas adult females generally consumed more than adult males. The CTA test revealed no sex differences in aversive effects of ethanol in adults, whereas adolescent males were less sensitive to the aversive properties of ethanol than adolescent females when intoxication occurred in the presence of a peer. Ethanol-induced CTA was evident in adults at lower doses than in adolescents. Conclusions: These results suggest that age differences in ethanol intake in males and sex differences in intake during adolescence may be associated in part with the relative insensitivity of the male adolescents to ethanol's aversive properties, especially when intoxication occurred in a social context. However, the elevated ethanol intake observed in adult females relative to their male counterparts appears to be unrelated to the aversive properties of ethanol.
Having an Animated Coffee with a Group of Chatbots from the 19th Century

Beyond current dyadic chatbots and voice-based personal assistants, this demo showcases a novel experience where users interact with multiple, text-based conversational systems as if seating around a table with them. Two key technologies allow the seamless interaction between users and chatbots: (1) A state-of-art artificial conversational governance system which allows a natural flow of conversation without the use of vocatives to trigger the chatbot responses; (2) a conversation visualization mechanism where the utterances from participants are aesthetically projected on a tabletop. Those technologies were developed originally for "Café com os Santiagos" an artwork where visitors conversed with three chatbots portraying characters from a book in a scenographic space recreating a 19th-century coffee table. The demo allows users to seat to actually have coffee and chat with multi-chatbots characters.
Experimental Study on EHD Flow Transition in a Small Scale Wire-plate ESP

Abstract The electrohydrodynamic (EHD) flow induced by the corona discharge was experimentally investigated in an electrostatic precipitator (ESP). The ESP was a narrow horizontal Plexiglas box (1300 mm×60 mm×60 mm). The electrode set consisted of a single wire discharge electrode and two collecting aluminum plate electrodes. Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) method was used to visualize the EHD flow characteristics inside the ESP seeded with fine oil droplets. The influence of applied voltage (from 8 kV to 10 kV) and primary gas flow (0.15 m/s, 0.2 m/s, 0.4 m/s) on the EHD flow transition was elucidated through experimental analysis. The formation and transition of typical EHD flows from onset to the fully developed were described and explained. Experimental results showed that the EHD flow patterns change depends on the gas velocity and applied voltage. EHD flow starts with flow streamlines near collecting plates bending towards the wire electrode, forming two void regions. An oscillating jet forming the downstream appeared and moved towards the wire electrode as voltage increased. For higher velocities (≥0.2 m/s), the EHD transition became near wire phenomenon with a jet-like flow structure near the wire, forming a void region behind the wire and expanding as voltage increased. Fully developed EHD secondary flow in the form of counter-rotating vortices appeared upstream with high applied voltage.
Comparison of Residual Triple Antibiotic Paste, Propolis and Calcium Hydroxide on Root Canal Walls in Natural Open Apex Teeth: An In Vitro Study

Introduction: Endodontic therapy is challenging in open apex teeth. One of these problems is the residue of medicaments on root canal walls. The aim of this study was to evaluate the amount of residual materials on canal walls after the use as medicaments within natural open apex teeth. Methods and Materials: A total of 45 human extracted single-rooted premolars with open apices were selected. After cutting off the crowns, root canals were gently instrumented using #40 files and irrigated with 0.5% sodium hypochlorite. The samples were randomly divided into three groups: calcium hydroxide (CH), triple antibiotic paste (TAP) and propolis (PP). In these groups, CH, TAP, or PP were placed into the canals, respectively. The samples were then restored with temporary fillings. After one week, instrumentation was again performed as mentioned above. The samples were longitudinally cut and scanned and the remaining material in both halves was evaluated using computer software. One-way ANOVA was used to compare the average paste level remaining on the canal walls. Results: The residual amount of CH on the canal walls was significantly higher than that of PP (P=0.001). The residual amount of CH was higher than TAP but this difference was not significant (P=0.144); the residual amount of TAP was higher than PP but this difference was not significant, either (P=0.094). Conclusion: PP is superior to CH and TAP in terms of removability from the root canal system within open apex teeth.
Protective effects of recombinant osteopontin on early brain injury after subarachnoid hemorrhage in rats*

Objective: Accumulated evidence suggests that the primary cause of poor outcome after subarachnoid hemorrhage is not only cerebral arterial narrowing but also early brain injury. Our objective was to determine the effect of recombinant osteopontin, a pleiotropic extracellular matrix glycoprotein, on early brain injury after subarachnoid hemorrhage in rats. Design: Controlled in vivo laboratory study. Setting: Animal research laboratory. Subjects: One hundred seventy-seven male adult Sprague-Dawley rats weighing 300 to 370 g. Interventions: The endovascular perforation model of subarachnoid hemorrhage was produced. Subarachnoid hemorrhage or sham-operated rats were treated with an equal volume (1 &mgr;L) of pre-subarachnoid hemorrhage intracerebroventricular administration of two dosages (0.02 and 0.1 &mgr;g) of recombinant osteopontin, albumin, or vehicle. Body weight, neurologic scores, brain edema, and blood–brain barrier disruption were evaluated, and Western blot analyses were performed to determine the effect of recombinant osteopontin on matrix metalloproteinase-9, substrates of matrix metalloproteinase-9 (zona occludens-1, laminin), tissue inhibitor of matrix metalloproteinase-1, inflammation (interleukin-1&bgr;), and nuclear factor-&kgr;B signaling pathways. Measurements and Main Results: Treatment with recombinant osteopontin prevented a significant loss in body weight, neurologic impairment, brain edema, and blood–brain barrier disruption after subarachnoid hemorrhage. These effects were associated with the deactivation of nuclear factor-&kgr;B activity, inhibition of matrix metalloproteinase-9 induction, the maintenance of tissue inhibitor of matrix metalloproteinase-1, the consequent preservation of the cerebral microvessel basal lamina protein laminin, and the tight junction protein zona occludens-1. Conclusions: These results demonstrate that recombinant osteopontin treatment is effective for early brain injury after subarachnoid hemorrhage.
Reductions in Circuit Complexity: An Isomorphism Theorem and a Gap Theorem

We show that all sets that are complete for NP under nonuniformAC0reductions are isomorphic under nonuniformAC0-computable isomorphisms. Furthermore, these sets remain NP-complete even under nonuniformNC0reductions. More generally, we show two theorems that hold for any complexity class C closed under (uniform)NC1-computable many? one reductions.Gap: The sets that are complete for C underAC0andNC0reducibility coincide.Isomorphism: The sets complete for C underAC0reductions are all isomorphic under isomorphisms computable and invertible byAC0circuits of depth three. Our Gap Theorem does not hold for strongly uniform reductions; we show that there are Dlogtime-uniformAC0-complete sets forNC1that are not Dlogtime-uniformNC0-complete.
Influence of anxiety and alexithymia on brain activations associated with the perception of others’ pain in autism

ABSTRACT The circumstances under which empathy is altered in ASD remain unclear, as previous studies did not systematically find differences in brain activation between ASD and controls in empathy-eliciting paradigms, and did not always monitor whether differences were primarily due to ASD “per se”, or to conditions overlapping with ASD, such as alexithymia and anxiety. Here, we collected fMRI data from 47 participants (22 ASD) viewing pictures depicting hands and feet of unknown others in painful, disgusting, or neutral situations. We computed brain activity for painful and disgusting stimuli (vs. neutral) in whole brain and in regions of interest among the brain areas typically activated during the perception of nociceptive stimuli. Group differences in brain activation disappeared when either alexithymia or anxiety – both elevated in the ASD group – were controlled for. Regression analyses indicated that the influence of symptoms was mainly shared between autistic symptomatology, alexithymia and anxiety or driven by unique contributions from alexithymia or anxiety. Our results suggest that affective empathy may be affected in ASD, but that this association is complex. The respective contribution of alexithymia and anxiety to decreased affective empathy of people with ASD may be due to the association of those psychiatric conditions with reduced motor resonance/Theory of Mind.
Recurrent neural networks for fuzzy data

In this paper, a model-free approach for data mining in engineering is presented. The numerical approach is based on artificial neural networks. Recurrent neural networks for fuzzy data are developed to identify and predict complex dependencies from uncertain data. Uncertain structural processes obtained from measurements or numerical analyses are used to identify the time-dependent behavior of engineering structures. Structural action and response processes are treated as fuzzy processes. The identification of uncertain dependencies between structural action and response processes is realized by recurrent neural networks for fuzzy data. Algorithms for signal processing and network training are presented. The new recurrent neural network approach is verified by a fuzzy fractional rheological material model. An application for the identification and prediction of time-dependent structural behavior under dynamic loading is presented.
Practices and Technology Needs of a Network of Farmers in Tharaka Nithi, Kenya

Farmers in rural areas of Kenya generally rely on traditional agricultural practices inherited from past generations. However, population increases and climate changes have put pressure on resources such as land and water. These resource pressures have created a need to broaden and expand farming practices. We conducted an exploratory study with farmers in Tharaka Nithi, Kenya to explore their practices, if and how they used ICT, and how the technologies used might be designed to aid their practices, if at all. Overall, our results show that farmers desired more knowledge to enable them apply ICT interventions in ways that improved yields. Farmers were also interested in accessing information on soil fertility, water predictability and market opportunities. These findings suggest opportunities for technology design to support farming practices among rural communities in rural settings. We also articulate social challenges that designers will face when thinking about coming up with such solutions.
Characterization of the cytochrome b (cyt b) gene from Monilinia species causing brown rot of stone and pome fruit and its significance in the development of QoI resistance.

BACKGROUND Quinone outside inhibitor (QoI) resistance as a consequence of point mutations in the cytochrome b (cyt b) gene has been reported in numerous plant pathogenic fungi. To examine the potential for QoI resistance development in those Monilinia species causing brown rot of stone and pome fruits [Monilinia fructicola (G Winter) Honey, M. laxa (Aderhold & Ruhland) Honey and M. fructigena (Aderhold & Ruhland) Honey], an examination was made of the sequence and exon/intron structure of their cyt b genes for the presence of any point mutations and/or introns commonly associated with resistance to QoIs in fungal plant pathogens. RESULTS None of the point mutations typically linked to QoI resistance was present in any of the Monilinia isolates examined. Furthermore, the cyt b genes from M. fructicola and M. laxa, but not M. fructigena, possessed a group-I-like intron directly after codon 143. Based on the results obtained, a simple PCR assay using a single primer pair was developed, allowing discrimination between the three Monilinia species without the need for culturing. CONCLUSIONS Results suggest that resistance to QoI fungicides based on the G143A mutation is not likely to occur in M. fructicola or M. laxa. Conversely, M. fructigena may be at higher risk for developing QoI resistance owing to the absence of a G143-associated intron.