Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Modelling of 1T-NOR flash operations for consumption optimization and reliability investigation

Performance improvement of 1T-NOR Flash technology is demonstrated, thanks to the optimization of memory cell electrical operations. An electrical model is proposed, providing optimized program and erase electrical pulse patterns as a function of application-related constraints. Model output covers a wide operating range of single Flash cell, and allows to finely tune the consumption / charge pump scalability compromise. In the meanwhile, novel experimental capabilities allow the simulated electrical patterns to be applied along endurance characterization, and provide an extended description of Flash program dynamics along device aging. Optimized cycling conditions are shown to reduce power consumption with the cost of reduced program speed, but without any detrimental impact on device reliability.
A metric time-point and duration-based temporal model

Constraint-based formalisms are a useful and common way to deal with temporal reasoning tasks. Assertions represent temporal constraints between temporal objects, time-points or intervals: Metric temporal constraints between time points permit us to express a minimum and maximum temporal distance between two time points and to define a valid temporal interval for each one. However, existing approaches have limited expressiveness for representing non-disjunctive qualitative constraints of point algebra and the empirical results do not seem very adequate for managing a great number of time points or when the time for management is limited.In this paper, an efficient and expressive time point and duration-based temporal representation model with metric constraints is presented. The main features of the model refer to the formal properties of the internal time model and the specific representation of temporal constraints, which integrates constraints on time-points and on durations and is more adequate for their computational management. Sound and complete management processes are specified on the basis of model properties. From this specification, two choices for management are proposed: (i) with neither propagation nor preprocessing techniques, complete management algorithms have an O(e*n) complexity, but a linear empirical cost is obtained; (ii) with complete propagation an O(n2) complexity is achieved.
Metabolic and Lifestyle Determinants of Postprandial Lipemia Differ From Those of Fasting Triglycerides: The Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) Study

Abstract —Despite the reported association of lipoprotein responses to a fatty meal with atherosclerosis, little is known about the determinants of these responses. Plasma triglyceride, retinyl palmitate, and apolipoprotein B-48 responses to a standardized fatty meal containing a vitamin A marker were measured in 602 Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) study participants. To focus on postprandial responses specifically, which have been reported to be related to atherosclerosis independently of fasting triglycerides, analyses for determinants of postprandial responses were adjusted for fasting triglycerides. Major determinants of fasting triglycerides, namely, diabetes, obesity, other factors related to insulin resistance, and male sex, were not independently associated with postprandial responses. Fasting triglycerides were the strongest predictor of postprandial lipids, but independent of triglycerides, the predictors of postprandial responses were smoking, diet, creatinine, and alcohol. Smokers had substantially increased retinyl palmitate and apolipoprotein B-48 responses, indicators of chylomicrons and their remnants. Persons who consume more calories or &ohgr;3 fatty acids had reduced chylomicron responses. Triglyceride responses were associated positively with serum creatinine levels and negatively with moderate alcohol consumption. Thus, determinants of fasting and postprandial lipids differ. The independent atherogenic influence of postprandial lipids may relate more to smoking and diet than to obesity and insulin resistance.
Visual lipreading of voicing for French stop consonants

This study examined whether visually presented bilabials consonants are better identified than velars in a CV (C = consonant; V = vowel) or VCV context. We also investigated whether voiced and voiceless consonants sharing a same place and manner of articulation could be differentiated from each other with visual cues only. Although it is generally assumed that voicing is mainly mediated by the auditory modality, one cannot discard the possibility that the production of a voiced stop consonant produces a pattern of facial cues that could be detectable visually. Two pairs of stop consonants (/b/-/p/ and /g/-/k/) were articulated by a man and by a woman speaker in two syllabic contexts (CV monosyllables or VCV bisyllables). The bisyllables were uttered according to three speaking rates: slow, medial and fast. The materials were edited on a videotape and presented on a TV screen without sound. After each trial, participants had to choose between several written possibilities what they had perceived. Percentage of correct identifications reached 42% on average for the four consonants. Errors mostly consisted in voicing confusions (37%). Place of articulation confusions occurred in only 8% of the cases. Correct identifications were more numerous for bilabials than for velars but more particularly for monosyllables. Voiced consonants were better identidified than voiceless in both syllabic contexts, but especially for velars. This suggests that some voicing distinction is possible on the basis of visual cues.
Thicknesses of mare basalts on the Moon from gravity and topography

A new method of determining the thickness of mare basalts on the Moon is introduced that is made possible by high‐resolution gravity data acquired from NASA's Gravity Recovery and Interior Laboratory (GRAIL) mission. Using a localized multitaper spherical‐harmonic analysis, an effective density spectrum is calculated that provides an estimate of the average crustal density as a function of spherical harmonic degree. By comparing the observed effective density spectrum with one generated from a theoretical model, the thickness of mare basalts can be constrained. We assume that the grain density of the basalts is known from remote sensing data and petrologic considerations, we assign a constant porosity to the basalts, and we let both the thickness of the basalts and the density of the underlying crust vary. Using this method, the total thickness of basalts was estimated on the nearside hemisphere, yielding an average of 0.74 km with 1σ upper and lower bounds of 1.62 km and 100 m, respectively. The region of Marius Hills, which is a long‐lived volcanic complex, is found to have the thickest basalts, with an average of 2.86 km and 1σ limits of 3.65 and 1.02 km, respectively. The crust beneath the Mare Imbrium basalts is found to have an atypically high density of about 3000 kg m−3 that we interpret as representing a mafic, unfractured, impact melt sheet.
Parameter Identification of Recurrent Fuzzy Systems With Fuzzy Finite-State Automata Representation

This paper presents the identification of nonlinear dynamical systems by recurrent fuzzy system (RFS) models. Two types of RFS models are discussed: the Takagi-Sugeno-Kang (TSK) type and the linguistic or Mamdani type. Both models are equivalent and the latter model may be represented by a fuzzy finite-state automaton (FFA). An identification procedure is proposed based on a standard general purpose genetic algorithm (GA). First, the TSK rule parameters are estimated and, in a second step, the TSK model is converted into an equivalent linguistic model. The parameter identification is evaluated in some benchmark problems for nonlinear system identification described in literature. The results show that RFS models achieve good numerical performance while keeping the interpretability of the actual system dynamics.
Sound-Proof: Usable Two-Factor Authentication Based on Ambient Sound

Two-factor authentication protects online accounts even if passwords are leaked. Most users, however, prefer password-only authentication. One reason why two-factor authentication is so unpopular is the extra steps that the user must complete in order to log in. Currently deployed two-factor authentication mechanisms require the user to interact with his phone to, for example, copy a verification code to the browser. Two-factor authentication schemes that eliminate user-phone interaction exist, but require additional software to be deployed. In this paper we propose Sound-Proof, a usable and deployable two-factor authentication mechanism. Sound-Proof does not require interaction between the user and his phone. In Sound-Proof the second authentication factor is the proximity of the user's phone to the device being used to log in. The proximity of the two devices is verified by comparing the ambient noise recorded by their microphones. Audio recording and comparison are transparent to the user, so that the user experience is similar to the one of password-only authentication. Sound-Proof can be easily deployed as it works with current phones and major browsers without plugins. We build a prototype for both Android and iOS. We provide empirical evidence that ambient noise is a robust discriminant to determine the proximity of two devices both indoors and outdoors, and even if the phone is in a pocket or purse. We conduct a user study designed to compare the perceived usability of Sound-Proof with Google 2-Step Verification. Participants ranked Sound-Proof as more usable and the majority would be willing to use Sound-Proof even for scenarios in which two-factor authentication is optional.
Detection of MGMT Promoter Methylation in Normal Individuals Is Strongly Associated with the T Allele of the rs16906252 MGMT Promoter Single Nucleotide Polymorphism

Methylation of the CpG island in the MGMT promoter region is a frequent event in several cancer types including colorectal cancer, lung cancer, lymphoma, and glioblastoma. A correlation between methylation and the T allele of the rs16906252 single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) in colorectal carcinomas has previously been reported. As aberrant MGMT methylation can be an early event in tumor development, we tested the hypothesis that normal individuals possessing the T allele may be predisposed to somatic methylation at the MGMT promoter. Peripheral blood monononuclear cell DNA from 89 normal, healthy individuals was genotyped at rs1690625 and assessed for the methylation status of the MGMT promoter region using independent quantitative methodologies capable of detecting low-level methylation: MethyLight and Sensitive Melting Analysis after Real-time Methylation-Specific PCR (SMART-MSP). There was a strong association between presence of the T allele and detectable methylation (P = 0.00005) in the peripheral blood DNA. Furthermore, when a MSP assay flanking the SNP was used to amplify methylated sequences in heterozygotes, only the T allele was methylated. Thus, detectable somatic methylation of the MGMT promoter in normal individuals is strongly associated with the T allele of the rs16906252 MGMT promoter SNP.
We Can "See" You via Wi-Fi - WiFi Action Recognition via Vision-based Methods

Recently, Wi-Fi has caught tremendous attention for its ubiquity, and, motivated by Wi-Fi's low cost and privacy preservation, researchers have been putting lots of investigation into its potential on action recognition and even person identification. In this paper, we offer an comprehensive overview on these two topics in Wi-Fi. Also, through looking at these two topics from an unprecedented perspective, we could achieve generality instead of designing specific ad-hoc features for each scenario. Observing the great resemblance of Channel State Information (CSI, a fine-grained information captured from the received Wi-Fi signal) to texture, we proposed a brand-new framework based on computer vision methods. To minimize the effect of location dependency embedded in CSI, we propose a novel de-noising method based on Singular Value Decomposition (SVD) to eliminate the background energy and effectively extract the channel information of signals reflected by human bodies. From the experiments conducted, we demonstrate the feasibility and efficacy of the proposed methods. Also, we conclude factors that would affect the performance and highlight a few promising issues that require further deliberation.
Physical characteristics, blood hormone concentrations, and plasma lipid concentrations in obese horses with insulin resistance.

OBJECTIVE To compare obese horses with insulin resistance (IR) with nonobese horses and determine whether blood resting glucose, insulin, leptin, and lipid concentrations differed between groups and were correlated with combined glucose-insulin test (CGIT) results. ANIMALS 7 obese adult horses with IR (OB-IR group) and 5 nonobese mares. PROCEDURES Physical measurements were taken, and blood samples were collected after horses had acclimated to the hospital for 3 days. Response to insulin was assessed by use of the CGIT, and maintenance of plasma glucose concentrations greater than the preinjection value for > or = 45 minutes was used to define IR. Area under the curve values for glucose (AUC(g)) and insulin (AUC(i)) concentrations were calculated. RESULTS Morgan, Paso Fino, Quarter Horse, and Tennessee Walking Horse breeds were represented in the OB-IR group. Mean neck circumference and BCS differed significantly between groups and were positively correlated with AUC values. Resting insulin and leptin concentrations were 6 and 14 times as high, respectively, in the OB-IR group, compared with the nonobese group, and were significantly correlated with AUC(g) and AUC(i). Plasma nonesterified fatty acid, very low-density lipoprotein, and high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (HDL-C) concentrations were significantly higher (86%, 104%, and 29%, respectively) in OB-IR horses, and HDL-C concentrations were positively correlated with AUC values. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE Measurements of neck circumference and resting insulin and leptin concentrations can be used to screen obese horses for IR. Dyslipidemia is associated with IR in obese horses.
Social usage of instant messaging by individuals outside the workplace in Kuwait: A structural equation model

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to study factors that affect adults' acceptance of instant messaging (IM) for social and entertainment purposes in an Arab countryDesign/methodology/approach – An expanded version of the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) was used to test the impact of four factors (subjective norms, perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness, and perceived enjoyment) and a new construct, curiosity about other people, on the level of IM usage by 191 adults in Kuwait. Survey questions from prior studies were adopted and customized, and the model analyzing using Structural Equation Model with LISREL.Findings – IM usage is a different type of technology usage than work‐related forms of ICT since it is employed for social and recreational usage. Unlike prior studies that employed TAM in a work‐related setting, perceived usefulness was not a significant antecedent of usage; however, perceived enjoyment, social norms, curiosity about other people, and perceived ease of use were all importa.
1T phase as an efficient hole injection layer to TMDs transistors: a universal approach to achieve p-type contacts

Recently, the fabricated MoS2 field effect transistors (FETs) with 1T-MoS2 electrodes exhibit excellent performance with rather low contact resistance, as compared with those with metals deposited directly on 2H-MoS2 (Kappera et al 2014 Nat. Mater. 13 1128), but the reason for that remains elusive. By means of density functional theory calculations, we investigated the carrier injection at the 1T/2H MoS2 interface and found that although the Schottky barrier height (SBH) values of 1T/2H MoS2 interfaces can be tuned by controlling the stacking patterns, the p-type SBH values of 1T/2H MoS2 interfaces with different stackings are lower than their corresponding n-type SBH values, which demonstrated that the metallic 1T phase can be used as an efficient hole injection layer for 2H-MoS2. In addition, as compared to the n-type Au/MoS2 and Pd/MoS2 contacts, the p-type SBH values of 1T/2H MoS2 interfaces are much lower, which stem from the efficient hole injection between 1T-MoS2 and 2H-MoS2. This can explain the low contact resistance in the MoS2 FETs with 1T-MoS2 electrodes. Notably, the SBH values can be effectively modulated by an external electric field, and a significantly low p-type SBH value can be achieved under an appropriate electric field. We also demonstrated that this approach is also valid for WS2, WSe2 and MoSe2 systems, which indicates that the method can most likely be extended to other TMDs, and thus may open new promising avenues of contact engineering in these materials.
The Effects of Self-Esteem and Ego Threat on Interpersonal Appraisals of Men and Women: A Naturalistic Study

A naturalistic study examined the effects of self-esteem and threats to the self on interpersonal appraisals. Self-esteem scores, ego threat (operationalized as a substantial decrease in self-esteem across an average of 9 months), and their interaction were used to predict likability and personality perceptions of college men and women. The results revealed a curvilinear function explaining likability: Moderate to low self-esteem men and women were higher in likability when threatened, whereas high self-esteem men were seen as less likable when threatened. Personality ratings indicated that high self-esteem men and women who were threatened were rated highest on Antagonism (i.e., fake, arrogant, unfriendly, rude, and uncooperative). Mediational analyses revealed that differences in Antagonism statistically accounted for differences in likability. These patterns are interpreted with respect to gender and time in interpersonal perceptions as well as naturalistic versus laboratory investigations.
Nuclear Medicine in the Imaging and Management of Breast Cancer

Axillary nodal status is the most important prognostic factor for patients with breast cancer. Clinical assessment and imaging modalities are not always reliable. Surgical removal and histopathological examination of axillary lymph nodes remain essential methods of staging the axilla and planning breast cancer therapy (Chu et al, 2010; Perry, 2001) But whether axillary lymph node dissection improves survival remains controversial. Historically, nodal involvement was determined by conventional axillary dissection. (Gill, 2009) Till 1990s conventional axillary dissection was performed in all women with breast cancer with great incidence of morbidities such as pain, numbness, shoulder joint stiffness, scarring, infection and long term lymphoedema. (Mansel et al, 2006) Sentinel lymph node biopsy has recently been introduced in the treatment of women with breast cancer. The American Society of Clinical Oncology in 2005 (Lyman, 2005), and more recently the British Association of Surgical Oncology (Association of Breast Surgery, 2009) endorsed sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) as the recommended method of staging early breast cancer in clinically node negative patients. The sentinel lymph node hypothesis is that the sentinel lymph nodes are the first nodes draining a tumor and that focused histological analysis of sentinel lymph nodes is predictive of the status of the regional nodes thus accurately staging the breast disease with lower incidence of complications. (Krag et al, 1998; Morton et al, 1992) Giuliano et al (Giuliano et al, 1994) demonstrated that the status of sentinel nodes, with respect to the presence of metastases, accurately reflected the metastatic content of the local nodal basin. Early works support the feasibility and accuracy of sentinel lymph node biopsy. However, the optimal management of the axilla remains uncertain as axillary lymph node dissection, sentinel lymph node biopsy and lymphoscintigraphy have been described as reliable alternative procedures. By combining preoperative lymphatic mapping with intraoperative gamma probe detection nuclear medicine procedures are increasingly used to identify and detect the sentinel node in breast cancer, and in other malignancies.
Evaluation Tool for Rule-based Anaphora Resolution Methods

In this paper we argue that comparative evaluation in anaphora resolution has to be performed using the same pre-processing tools and on the same set of data. The paper proposes an evaluation environment for comparing anaphora resolution algorithms which is illustrated by presenting the results of the comparative evaluation of three methods on the basis of several evaluation measures.
Nondestructive Estimation of Anthocyanin Content in Grapevine Leaves

The anthocyanin (Anth) content in leaves provides valuable information about the physiological status of plants. Thus, there is a need for accurate, efficient, practical methodologies to estimate this biochemical parameter. Reflectance measurement is a means of quickly and nondestructively assessing leaf Anth content in situ. The objective of this study was to test the overall performance and accuracy of nondestructive techniques for estimating Anth content in grapevine leaves. Relationships were established between Anth content and four vegetation indices: NIR (near-infrared)/green, red/green, anthocyanin reflectance index (ARI, based on reflectances in bands within the green and the red-edge regions), and a modified anthocyanin reflectance index (MARI, based on reflectances in green, red edge, and NIR). The algorithms for Anth retrieval were calibrated. The accuracy of Anth prediction was evaluated using an independent data set containing sampled leaves from two field-grown grape cultivars (Saint Croix and Saint Pepin) with no adjustment of the coefficients after initial calibration. Although Anth in the validation data set was widely variable, from 3 to 45 nmol cm-2, the ARI and MARI algorithms were capable of accurately predicting Anth content in grapevine leaves with a root mean square error below 3 nmol cm-2 and 2.3 nmol cm-2, respectively. Such an approach has potential for developing simple hand-held field instrumentation for accurate nondestructive Anth estimation and for analyzing digital airborne or satellite imagery to assist in making informed decisions regarding vineyard management.