Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Development of a Sterne-Based Complement Fixation Test to Monitor the Humoral Response Induced by Anthrax Vaccines

Anthrax is a zoonotic disease caused by Bacillus anthracis spore-forming bacterium. Since it is primarily a disease of animals, the control in animals, and humans depend on the prevention in livestock, principally cattle, sheep, and goats. Most veterinary vaccines utilize the toxigenic, uncapsulated (pXO1+/pXO2–) B. anthracis strain 34F2 which affords protection through the production of neutralizing antibodies directed to the toxin components Protective Antigen (PA), Lethal Factor (LF), and Edema Factor (EF). The titration of specific antibodies in sera of vaccinated animals is crucial to evaluate the efficacy of the vaccination and to obtain epidemiological information for an effective anthrax surveillance. In this study, we developed a Sterne-based Complement Fixation Test (CFT) to detect specific antibodies induced in animals vaccinated with Sterne 34F2. We assessed its efficacy in laboratory animals and under field conditions by monitoring the humoral response induced by vaccination in cattle. The results indicated that the Sterne-based CFT is able to correctly identify vaccinated animals. It proved to be a very sensitive and specific test. Moreover, the Sterne-based CFT offers many benefits with regard to costs, standardization and reproducibility of the assay procedure.
Parse scoring with prosodic information

The relative size and location of prosodic phrase boundaries provides an important cue for resolving syntactic ambiguity , and can be used to improve the accuracy of automatic speech understanding. This paper describes an approach to scoring candidate sentence hypotheses and associated parses using prosodic phrase cues. Speciically, for each hypothesized parse, prosodic breaks are automatically detected and the probability of these breaks given the parse is computed based on a stochastic model of the prosody/syntax relationship. The parse probability can be used to rank sentence hypotheses and associated parses, optionally in combination with other scores. Both the prosodic break recognition algorithm and the prosody/syntax model can be automatically trained and can therefore be designed speciically for diierent speaking styles or task domains, given appropriate labeled data. We have demonstrated the potential of this approach in experiments with a corpus of ambiguous sentences spoken by FM radio announcers. Disambiguation performance is comparable to that of human listeners using the algorithm with hand-labeled breaks, although there is some performance degradation with the fully automatic system.
Convection, Thermal Bifurcation, and the Colors of A Stars

Broadband ultraviolet photometry from the TD-1 satellite and low-dispersion spectra from the short wavelength camera of IUE have been used to investigate a long-standing proposal of Böhm-Vitense that the normal main-sequence A and early-F stars may divide into two different temperature sequences: (1) a high-temperature branch (and plateau) comprised of slowly rotating convective stars, and (2) a low-temperature branch populated by rapidly rotating radiative stars. We find no evidence from either data set to support such a claim, or to confirm the existence of an “A-star gap” in the B-V color range 0.22 ≤ B-V ≤ 0.28 due to the sudden onset of convection. We do observe, nonetheless, a large scatter in the 1800-2000 Å colors of the A-F stars, which amounts to ~0.65 mag at a given B-V color index. The scatter is not caused by interstellar or circumstellar reddening. A convincing case can also be made against binarity and intrinsic variability due to pulsations of δ Sct origin. We find no correlation with established chromospheric and coronal proxies of convection, and thus no demonstrable link to the possible onset of convection among the A-F stars. The scatter is not instrumental. Approximately 0.4 mag of the scatter is shown to arise from individual differences in surface gravity as well as a moderate spread (factor of ~3) in heavy metal abundance and UV line blanketing. A dispersion of ~0.25 mag remains, which has no clear and obvious explanation. The most likely cause, we believe, is a residual imprecision in our correction for the spread in metal abundances. However, the existing data do not rule out possible contributions from intrinsic stellar variability or from differential UV line blanketing effects owing to a dispersion in microturbulent velocity.
A Hessenberg Reduction Algorithm for Rank Structured Matrices

In this paper, we show how to perform the Hessenberg reduction of a rank structured matrix under unitary similarity operations in an efficient way, using the Givens-weight representation. This reduction can be used as a first step for eigenvalue computation. We also show how the algorithm can be modified to compute the bidiagonal reduction of a rank structured matrix, this latter method being a preprocessing step for computing the singular values of the matrix. For the main cases of interest, the algorithms we describe in this paper are of complexity $O((ar+bs)n^2)$, where $n$ is the matrix size, $r$ is some measure for the average rank index of the rank structure, $s$ is some measure for the bandwidth of the unstructured matrix part around the main diagonal, and $a,b\in\mathbb{R}$ are certain weighting parameters. Numerical experiments demonstrate the stability of this approach.
[Closure of secundum atrial septal defects by the Amplatzer occluder device].

OBJECTIVES Percutaneous closure of secundum atrial septal defects (ASD) has become an important alternative treatment to surgery. We evaluated our clinical experience with, and short-term results of transcatheter closure of ASDs with the Amplatzer septal occluder in adult patients. STUDY DESIGN The study included 52 patients (36 women, 16 men; mean age 33±14 years; range 14 to 69 years) who underwent transcatheter ASD closure with the Amplatzer occluder device. The mean ASD diameter measured by transesophageal echocardiography was 19.5±5.7 mm and the mean device diameter was 24.5±5.7 mm. All the patients were assessed clinically and echocardiographically one month after the procedure. RESULTS Transcatheter ASD closure was successfully performed in 48 patients (92.3%) and failed in four patients (7.7%). Echocardiographic controls showed significant decreases in tricuspid regurgitation, right ventricular dilatation, and pulmonary artery pressure (p=0.003, p=0.026, and p=0.0001, respectively). Functional capacity of the patients also showed significant improvements (p=0.0001). After implantation, residual shunts were detected in four patients, all of which disappeared one month after the procedure. Major complications were seen in two patients. One patient developed ventricular fibrillation immediately after the procedure due to device embolization. One patient with left ventricular dysfunction developed device thrombosis due to cessation of dual antiplatelet therapy, which was successfully treated by anticoagulation therapy. Arrhythmia was not observed in any patient. CONCLUSION Percutaneous closure of secundum ASDs with the Amplatzer occluder device is a safe and effective procedure with a high success rate.
Feasibility checks and control laws for reconfigurations of spacecraft clusters

A multi-spacecraft system consists of wirelessly-connected spacecraft that share resources in Earth orbit or deep space. One of the enabling technologies of such a fractionated space architecture is cluster flight, which provides the cluster with the capability to perform a cluster scatter and regather maneuvers to rapidly evade debris-like threats or to reconfigure for scientific missions. In this work, we study the cluster reconfiguration problem. First, we propose an algorithm based on semidefinite programming to check for the feasibility of a desired configuration. Next, we provide a control law for cluster reconfiguration that requires only relative state information and the adjacency matrix of the underlying network topology. Stability analysis and simulation results are provided.
Testing Homeopathy in Mouse Emotional Response Models: Pooled Data Analysis of Two Series of Studies

Two previous investigations were performed to assess the activity of Gelsemium sempervirens (Gelsemium s.) in mice, using emotional response models. These two series are pooled and analysed here. Gelsemium s. in various homeopathic centesimal dilutions/dynamizations (4C, 5C, 7C, 9C, and 30C), a placebo (solvent vehicle), and the reference drugs diazepam (1 mg/kg body weight) or buspirone (5 mg/kg body weight) were delivered intraperitoneally to groups of albino CD1 mice, and their effects on animal behaviour were assessed by the light-dark (LD) choice test and the open-field (OF) exploration test. Up to 14 separate replications were carried out in fully blind and randomised conditions. Pooled analysis demonstrated highly significant effects of Gelsemium s. 5C, 7C, and 30C on the OF parameter “time spent in central area” and of Gelsemium s. 5C, 9C, and 30C on the LD parameters “time spent in lit area” and “number of light-dark transitions,” without any sedative action or adverse effects on locomotion. This pooled data analysis confirms and reinforces the evidence that Gelsemium s. regulates emotional responses and behaviour of laboratory mice in a nonlinear fashion with dilution/dynamization.
The PD-Utility Function for Prospect Behavior and Related Researches

Based on Partial Distribution [11],[12], we put forward a PD-utility function of prospect behavior for the first time, the profiting utility function and losing utility function. The PD-utility function can reflect sufficiently the humani¯s risk preferences properties to profiting or losing, describe and bring to light availably the important relations between profiting utility and losing utility, and interpret many conclusions in Daniel Kahnemani¯s prospect theory in analytic way. Also we present the concepts and analytic expressions of essential indexes of realized level for prospect behavior, the limit value, the balanced value, and focus value, especially the method of calculating them. The limit level is beneficial to judge the reversal position of reality movement trend, and the latter is beneficial to judge that the focus of current reality is reasonableness or not. And we give out the calculating formula for the optimal value of realized level for prospect with its appearing probability.
Malleus and Incus: Correlates of Size

Objectives: Wide ranges of dimensions of the malleus and incus have been reported for various human populations. Unaddressed are concordance of malleus and incus sizes, bilateral symmetry, whether ossicle size correlates with otitis media, and whether second-branchial arch derivatives have more variability than first-arch derivatives. We sought to quantitatively describe the malleus and incus in a population not heretofore reported, with the following hypotheses in mind: 1) an ear's malleus and incus sizes are concordant; 2) a cranium's malleus and incus sizes have bilateral symmetry; 3) the sizes of the malleus and incus are unrelated to the mastoid-size indicator of childhood otitis media; and 4) second-branchial arch derivatives have more variability than do first-arch derivatives. Methods: We performed a postmortem material analysis of 41 adult crania without clinical otitis. Results: The sizes of clinically normal mallei (eg, 21.2 to 30.7 mg) and incudes (eg, 24.4 to 37.4 mg) were varied. Concordance of malleus mass and incus mass was found. However, no relation of malleus and incus sizes with mastoid size was found. The variability of first-arch derivatives was similar to that of second-arch derivatives. Conclusions: Clinically normal mallei and incudes had masses and dimensions that varied even more than previously reported. Nevertheless, bilateral symmetry was exhibited, as was concordance of masses.
REQUIREMENTS FOR DOMAIN SPECIFIC DISCRETE EVENT SIMULATION ENVIRONMENTS

Domain specific discrete event simulation environments are supposed to enable faster and easier model development and experimentation. Unfortunately, perceived disadvantages from simulation experts hinder the wide application of this technology. We have performed laboratory experiments and simulation studies in two different domains to learn what the difficulty of domain specific simulation environments is. The lessons that we learned from these experiments and simulation studies enabled us to formulate requirements for domain specific simulation environments, for the model constructs in these environments, for the design of these environments and for guidelines for the use of these environments in simulation studies.
Performance analysis of transmit beamforming

Using the theory of random matrices, a performance analysis is given for uncoded binary transmission over multiple-input multiple-output channels, under the assumption that transmitter beamforming is used. In particular, exact finite antenna expressions are found for the average bit error rate (in the case of ergodic channels) for both noncoherent and coherent detection. Expressions for the the outage probability (in the case of quasi-static channels) are also given.
An Amplification Model for the Regional Estimation of Extreme Rainfall within Orographic Areas in Campania Region (Italy)

Orography strongly interacts with the atmospheric circulation, especially during frontal events, generating an enhanced spatial variability of the rainfall field. Regional models of extreme rainfall have to deal with these circumstances in order to provide good spatial estimation of the regionalized variable. We present a model for the regional estimation of the mean of the probability distribution of the annual daily rainfall maxima in a region (Campania, Southern Italy) with complex orography. In a recent work, we found that areas with enhanced variability of extreme rainfall, in the same region, correspond to a particular set of orographic objects, which had been classified through an automatic, GIS-based geomorphological procedure. Here, we propose an approach that considers the same orographic objects as building blocks for a regional model that is able to capture the amplification of extreme rainfall caused by orography. The regional model is then the product of a basic stationary random spatial process and an amplification factor, whose values are related to the topographic features of the orographic objects. This approach represents a step towards the improvement of the predictive ability of regional models of extreme rainfall within orographically complex areas.
Do neural nets learn statistical laws behind natural language?

The performance of deep learning in natural language processing has been spectacular, but the reasons for this success remain unclear because of the inherent complexity of deep learning. This paper provides empirical evidence of its effectiveness and of a limitation of neural networks for language engineering. Precisely, we demonstrate that a neural language model based on long short-term memory (LSTM) effectively reproduces Zipf’s law and Heaps’ law, two representative statistical properties underlying natural language. We discuss the quality of reproducibility and the emergence of Zipf’s law and Heaps’ law as training progresses. We also point out that the neural language model has a limitation in reproducing long-range correlation, another statistical property of natural language. This understanding could provide a direction for improving the architectures of neural networks.
Asynchronous Video Interviewing as a New Technology in Personnel Selection: The Applicant’s Point of View

The present study aimed to integrate findings from technology acceptance research with research on applicant reactions to new technology for the emerging selection procedure of asynchronous video interviewing. One hundred six volunteers experienced asynchronous video interviewing and filled out several questionnaires including one on the applicants’ personalities. In line with previous technology acceptance research, the data revealed that perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use predicted attitudes toward asynchronous video interviewing. Furthermore, openness revealed to moderate the relation between perceived usefulness and attitudes toward this particular selection technology. No significant effects emerged for computer self-efficacy, job interview self-efficacy, extraversion, neuroticism, and conscientiousness. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.
Risk Factors for Breast Cancer and Expression of Insulin-Like Growth Factor-2 (IGF-2) in Women with Breast Cancer in Wuhan City, China

Purpose The purpose of this study was to explore the risk factors for breast cancer and establish the expression rate of IGF-2 in female patients. Methods A case control study with 500 people in case group and 500 people in control group. A self-administered questionnaire was used to investigate risk factors for breast cancer. All cases were interviewed during a household survey. Immune-histochemical method was used to inspect the expression of IGF-2 in different tissues (benign breast lesions, breast cancer and tumor-adjacent tissue). Results Multivariate adjusted odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals were calculated using unconditional logistic regression. High body mass index (OR = 1.012,95%CI = 1.008–1.016), working attributes (OR = 1.004, 95%CI = 1.002 = 1.006), long menstrual period (OR = 1.007, 95%CI = 1.005–1.009), high parity OR = 1.003, 95%CI = 1.001–1.005) , frequent artificial abortion (OR = 1.004, 95%CI = 1.001–1.005), family history of cancer (OR = 1.003, 95%CI = 1.000–1.005), period of night shift (OR = 1.003, 95%CI = 1.001–1.006), live in high risk environment (OR = 1.005, 95%CI = 1.002–1.008), and family problems (OR = 1.010, 95%CI = 1.005–1.014) were associated with increased risk for breast cancer. In this study, good sleeping status, positive coping strategies, subjective support, and utility degree of social support were associated with reduced risk for breast cancer (OR = 0.998, 0.997, 0.985, 0.998 respectively; 95%CI = 0.996–1.000, 0.994–1.000, 0.980–0.989, 0.996–1.000, respectively). In benign breast lesions, breast cancer and tumor-adjacent tissue, IGF-2 was mainly expressed in the cytoplasm, but its expression rate was different (p<0.05). Conclusions The incidence of breast cancer is a common result of multiple factors. IGF-2 is involved in the development of breast cancer, and its expression varies in different tissues (benign breast lesions, breast cancer and tumor-adjacent tissue).
A pr 2 00 1 UPRF-2001-08 Matrix strings in a B-field

Abstract We study the discrete light-cone quantization (DLCQ) of closed strings in the background of Minkowski space-time and a constant Neveu-Schwarz B-field. For the Bosonic string, we identify the B-dependent part of the thermodynamic free energy to all orders in string perturbation theory. For every genus, B appears in a constraint in the path integral which restricts the world-sheet geometries to those which are branched covers of a certain torus. This is the extension of a previous result where the B-field was absent [1]. We then discuss the coupling of a B-field to the Matrix model of Mtheory. We show that, when we consider this theory at finite temperature and in a finite B-field, the Matrix variables are functions which live on a torus with the same Teichmüller parameter as the one that we identified in string theory. We show explicitly that the thermodynamic partition function of the Matrix string model in the limit of free strings reproduces the genus 1 thermodynamic partition function of type IIA string. This is strong evidence that the Matrix model can reproduce perturbative string theory. We also find an interesting behavior of the Hagedorn temperature.
Metric learning for generalizing spatial relations to new objects

Human-centered environments are rich with a wide variety of spatial relations between everyday objects. For autonomous robots to operate effectively in such environments, they should be able to reason about these relations and generalize them to objects with different shapes and sizes. For example, having learned to place a toy inside a basket, a robot should be able to generalize this concept using a spoon and a cup. This requires a robot to have the flexibility to learn arbitrary relations in a lifelong manner, making it challenging for an expert to pre-program it with sufficient knowledge to do so beforehand. In this paper, we address the problem of learning spatial relations by introducing a novel method from the perspective of distance metric learning. Our approach enables a robot to reason about the similarity between pairwise spatial relations, thereby enabling it to use its previous knowledge when presented with a new relation to imitate. We show how this makes it possible to learn arbitrary spatial relations from non-expert users using a small number of examples and in an interactive manner. Our extensive evaluation with real-world data demonstrates the effectiveness of our method in reasoning about a continuous spectrum of spatial relations and generalizing them to new objects.
Rapid assessment of disaster damage using social media activity

Researchers show a correlation between per-capita social media activity and disaster damage, facilitating its rapid assessment. Could social media data aid in disaster response and damage assessment? Countries face both an increasing frequency and an increasing intensity of natural disasters resulting from climate change. During such events, citizens turn to social media platforms for disaster-related communication and information. Social media improves situational awareness, facilitates dissemination of emergency information, enables early warning systems, and helps coordinate relief efforts. In addition, the spatiotemporal distribution of disaster-related messages helps with the real-time monitoring and assessment of the disaster itself. We present a multiscale analysis of Twitter activity before, during, and after Hurricane Sandy. We examine the online response of 50 metropolitan areas of the United States and find a strong relationship between proximity to Sandy’s path and hurricane-related social media activity. We show that real and perceived threats, together with physical disaster effects, are directly observable through the intensity and composition of Twitter’s message stream. We demonstrate that per-capita Twitter activity strongly correlates with the per-capita economic damage inflicted by the hurricane. We verify our findings for a wide range of disasters and suggest that massive online social networks can be used for rapid assessment of damage caused by a large-scale disaster.
Bacterial oxidation of arsenite. II. The activity of washed suspensions.

Maximum arsenite-oxidizing activity of a pseudomonad (Ps. arsenoxydansquinque) isolated from "oxidized" arsenical cattle-dipping fluids was found in cells 3-4 days old, when cultivated in a synthetic medium containing arsenite. The system is adaptive, cells cultivated in the absence of arsenite showing no arsenite-oxidizing activity.