Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A novel outdoor scene-understanding framework for unmanned ground vehicles with 3D laser scanners

Outdoor scene understanding plays a key role for unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs) to navigate in complex urban environments. This paper presents a novel 3D scene-understanding framework for UGVs to handle uncertain and changing lighting conditions outdoors. A 2D bearing angle (BA) image is deployed to perform scene understanding so that the computational burden in the process of segmentation and classification of the 3D laser point cloud can be reduced. An improved super-pixel algorithm is used for fast 3D scene segmentation, and then the Gentle–Adaboost algorithm is utilized to perform super-pixel patch classification using the texture features of the Gray Level Co-occurrence Matrix. All false classification results in the uncertain super-pixel patches of BA images are transformed back to raw 3D laser points and a re-classification is conducted to refine the 3D scene understanding for UGVs. The results from a real laser dataset taken from a large-scale campus environment show the validity and robust performance of the proposed approach, in comparison with the results from Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology dataset.
Knowing the Consequences of Unprotected Sex with Seroconcordant Partner Is Associated with Increased Safer Sex Intentions among HIV-positive Men in Kathmandu, Nepal

Unprotected sexual intercourse among HIV-positive people can adversely affect their own health by increasing their exposure to multiple strains of HIV-1 or other sexually transmitted infections (STIs). The study explored the relationship between knowledge of Nepalese HIV-positive men about the consequences of having unprotected sex with seroconcordant partners and their intention to practise safer sex with such partners. In total, 166 participants recruited conveniently in the Kathmandu Valley, Nepal, were interviewed. Each participant reported intention to practise safer sex with seroconcordant partners, know-ledge about the consequences of having unprotected sex with seroconcordant partners, perceived partner-related barriers to condom-use, belief that condoms interfere with sex, and condom-use self-efficacy. Of the 166 participants, 50.6% intended to practise safer sex every time they have sex with seroconcordant partners. Results of multiple logistic regression analysis showed that the participants who were aware of the possibility of HIV superinfection [adjusted odds ratio (AOR)=2.93, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.16-7.34, p=0.022)] or that the presence of STIs in HIV-positive persons increases progression of HIV disease (AOR=2.80, 95% CI 1.08-7.26, p=0.033) were more likely to intend to practise safer sex with seroconcordant partners. Similarly, the participants who were employed or who had lower levels of belief that condoms interfere with sex were more likely to intend to practise safer sex. The findings suggest that improving the knowledge of HIV-positive persons about the consequences of having unprotected sex with seroconcordant partners might improve their intention to practise safer sex with such partners.
The Effect of the Interaction between Obesity and Drinking  on Hyperuricemia in Japanese Male Office Workers

Background Obesity and drinking are acknowledged risk factors for hyperuricemia. However, the effect of the interaction between obesity and drinking on hyperuricemia is not well understood. Methods The cases comprised 3028 male office workers with hyperuricemia (serum uric acid level ≥7.0 mg/dL); the controls were 5348 men with a serum uric acid level less than 6.0 mg/dL. Logistic regression analysis was used to assess risk factors for hyperuricemia and the interaction between obesity and drinking in hyperuricemia. Participants were divided into 2 groups according to their BMI: individuals with a BMI of 25 or higher were classified as obese and those with a BMI less than 25 were classified as non-obese. In addition, participants were divided into 5 groups based upon their ethanol consumption. The 2 variables were then combined to create 10 groups. Results With non-obese non-drinkers as the reference category, the odds ratio for hyperuricemia was 1.80 for non-obese drinkers of less than 25 mL/day of ethanol, 2.15 for non-obese drinkers of 25–49 mL/day, 2.60 for non-obese drinkers of 50–74 mL/day, 2.56 for non-obese drinkers of 75+ mL/day, 4.40 for obese non-drinkers, 5.74 for obese drinkers of less than 25 mL/day, 6.57 for obese drinkers of 25–49 mL/day, 5.55 for obese drinkers of 50–74 mL/day, and 7.77 for obese drinkers of 75+ mL/day. The interaction between obesity and drinking in hyperuricemia was statistically significant. Conclusion Our results suggest that although combining the effects of obesity and drinking did not result in a multiplicative increase in the risk for hyperuricemia, the combined risk was greater than the sum of the effects of obesity and drinking.
Dark Fandoms: An Introduction and Case Study

ABSTRACT There is a deep and persistent cultural fascination with the macabre – public executions, true crime books, slasher films, and sites of violence attract large audiences. Although serial and mass murderers increasingly achieve fame, little attention has focused on their fans. Thus, this paper introduces the concept of dark fandoms, or communities of fans of those who have perpetrated heinous acts, and draws attention to Columbiners as one example of a dark fandom. An analysis of more than 700 threaded discussion posts from an online Reddit community reveals that the Columbiner dark fandom discussed their favorite characters from the shooting, proposed fan theories about the incident, and considered the Columbine shooting’s legacy. The implications of these findings for studies of other dark fandoms is discussed.
Narratives of parental involvement in youth sport

This study aimed to explore parents perceptions regarding their involvement in their children s sport. Specifically, the study examined parents understanding of their role as sporting parents and how this role is managed alongside other commitments. Eleven (11) married couples (11 mothers and 11 fathers) from Cyprus and seventeen (17) married couples (17 fathers and 17 mothers) from the UK participated in semi-structured interviews. Narrative analysis revealed that being a sporting parent is challenging, demanding and ever-changing process, which appears to transcend cultural specificity. Parents built up a varied portfolio of roles over two distinct yet interdependent complex social dimensions: (a) the family and (b) the sport. Furthermore, the roles parents fulfilled also varied in terms of their direction, either being personally directed to one person (e.g., athlete) or being directed towards a relationship, with parents acting as facilitators (e.g., towards the coach-athlete relationship or sibling relationships). Overall results illustrated that mothers and fathers take their children s sport seriously by trying to be positive role models and by showing an active interest in the child s development both in and out of sport, whilst dealing with their other children, their marital relationship, and their professional career. Results are discussed in relation to previous research and recommendations are offered for applied practice.
A strong converse in source coding for super-source networks

We prove a strong converse for a class of source coding problems. In each member of this class, there is one node that has access to all of the source sequences. This node has a direct link to every other node that can observe one or more source sequences. Source sequences are drawn i.i. d. according to a given distribution on a finite alphabet. The distortion measure is finite. The strong converse discussed here states that if a given rate vector R is not D-achievable, then for any sequence of block codes at rate R the probability of observing distortion no greater than D decreases exponentially to 0 as the code dimension grows without bound. The result can be applied to prove the strong converse for the Gray-Wyner problem and the multiple description problem.
Mode of action human relevance (species concordance) framework: Evolution of the Bradford Hill considerations and comparative analysis of weight of evidence

The mode of action human relevance (MOA/HR) framework increases transparency in systematically considering data on MOA for end (adverse) effects and their relevance to humans. This framework continues to evolve as experience increases in its application. Though the MOA/HR framework is not designed to address the question of “how much information is enough” to support a hypothesized MOA in animals or its relevance to humans, its organizing construct has potential value in considering relative weight of evidence (WOE) among different cases and hypothesized MOA(s). This context is explored based on MOA analyses in published assessments to illustrate the relative extent of supporting data and their implications for dose–response analysis and involved comparisons for chemical assessments on trichloropropane, and carbon tetrachloride with several hypothesized MOA(s) for cancer. The WOE for each hypothesized MOA was summarized in narrative tables based on comparison and contrast of the extent and nature of the supporting database versus potentially inconsistent or missing information. The comparison was based on evolved Bradford Hill considerations rank ordered to reflect their relative contribution to WOE determinations of MOA taking into account increasing experience in their application internationally. This clarification of considerations for WOE determinations as a basis for comparative analysis is anticipated to contribute to increasing consistency in the application of MOA/HR analysis and potentially, transparency in separating science judgment from public policy considerations in regulatory risk assessment. Copyright © 2014. The Authors. Journal of Applied Toxicology Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
Does an Equal Rights Amendment Make a Difference

Because the proposed Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) to the U.S. Constitution was never ratified, one cannot know with certainty what its impact would have been. At the state level, however, the consequences of a constitutional gender equality guarantee can be assessed empirically. This Article employs several analytical approaches to ascertain what difference an ERA has made in the largest state that adopted one in the 1970s, Texas. The record of appellate decisions establishes that the Texas ERA has proven effective as a weapon to fight sex discrimination, and that it has benefitted men as well as women. As interpreted by the Texas Supreme Court, the state's ERA elevated sex to a suspect classification subject to strict judicial scrutiny. Discriminatory laws, subject to the strict scrutiny test, can only pass constitutional muster if they serve compelling state interests that cannot be protected in any other manner. Nor do unique physical characteristics of men or women necessarily bar application of the sex equality guarantee. This standard is more exacting than that used by the U.S. Supreme Court in its equal protection analysis of gender-based discrimination and has led to the invalidation of statutes that would have withstood attack under federal doctrine.
Using ELISPOT to Expose False Positive Skin Test Conversion in Tuberculosis Contacts

Background Repeat tuberculin skin tests may be false positive due to boosting of waned immunity to past mycobacterial exposure. We evaluated whether an ELISPOT test could identify tuberculosis (TB) contacts with boosting of immunity to non-tuberculous mycobacterial exposure. Methodology/Principal Findings We conducted tuberculin and ELISPOT tests in 1665 TB contacts: 799 were tuberculin test negative and were offered a repeat test after three months. Those with tuberculin test conversion had an ELISPOT, chest X-ray and sputum analysis if appropriate. We compared converters with non-converters, assessed the probability of each of four combinations of ELISPOT results over the two time points and estimated boosting with adjustment for ELISPOT sensitivity and specificity. 704 (72%) contacts had a repeat tuberculin test; 176 (25%) had test conversion, which increased with exposure to a case (p = 0.002), increasing age (p = 0.0006) and BCG scar (p = 0.06). 114 tuberculin test converters had ELISPOT results: 16(14%) were recruitment positive/follow-up positive, 9 (8%) positive/negative, 34 (30%) negative/positive, and 55 (48%) were negative/negative. There was a significant non-linear effect of age for ELISPOT results in skin test converters (p = 0.038). Estimates of boosting ranged from 32%–41% of skin test converters with increasing age. Three converters were diagnosed with TB, two had ELISPOT results: both were positive, including one at recruitment. Conclusions/Significance We estimate that approximately one third of tuberculin skin test conversion in Gambian TB case contacts is due to boosting of immunity to non-tuberculous mycobacterial exposure. Further longitudinal studies are required to confirm whether ELISPOT can reliably identify case contacts with tuberculin test conversion that would benefit most from prophylactic treatment.
Canalization of Gene Expression in the Drosophila Blastoderm by Gap Gene Cross Regulation

Developing embryos exhibit a robust capability to reduce phenotypic variations that occur naturally or as a result of experimental manipulation. This reduction in variation occurs by an epigenetic mechanism called canalization, a phenomenon which has resisted understanding because of a lack of necessary molecular data and of appropriate gene regulation models. In recent years, quantitative gene expression data have become available for the segment determination process in the Drosophila blastoderm, revealing a specific instance of canalization. These data show that the variation of the zygotic segmentation gene expression patterns is markedly reduced compared to earlier levels by the time gastrulation begins, and this variation is significantly lower than the variation of the maternal protein gradient Bicoid. We used a predictive dynamical model of gene regulation to study the effect of Bicoid variation on the downstream gap genes. The model correctly predicts the reduced variation of the gap gene expression patterns and allows the characterization of the canalizing mechanism. We show that the canalization is the result of specific regulatory interactions among the zygotic gap genes. We demonstrate the validity of this explanation by showing that variation is increased in embryos mutant for two gap genes, Krüppel and knirps, disproving competing proposals that canalization is due to an undiscovered morphogen, or that it does not take place at all. In an accompanying article in PLoS Computational Biology (doi:10.1371/journal.pcbi.1000303), we show that cross regulation between the gap genes causes their expression to approach dynamical attractors, reducing initial variation and providing a robust output. These results demonstrate that the Bicoid gradient is not sufficient to produce gap gene borders having the low variance observed, and instead this low variance is generated by gap gene cross regulation. More generally, we show that the complex multigenic phenomenon of canalization can be understood at a quantitative and predictive level by the application of a precise dynamical model.
Pulse-coupled distributed PLLs in heterogeneous wireless networks

Decentralized time synchronization in ad hoc or sensor networks can be conveniently achieved via pulse-coupled discrete-time phase locked loops (PLLs). Previous work has characterized (frequency or phase) synchronous states and convergence conditions for homogeneous networks where all the nodes have the same power constraints. In this paper, we build on recent results on algebraic graph theory for generally non- bidirectional graphs, and address the asymptotic behavior of pulse-coupled PLLs in heterogeneous networks. We first derive necessary and sufficient conditions for global synchronization of the network. Then, we provide closed form expressions for the asymptotic frequency and phases, as a function of the network topology.
Effects of expressing emotion and altering loco color in organizational crisis responses

A crisis is inevitable. Any organization needs crisis communication plans and response strategies to protect themselves from reputational damage. This study examines whether employing sadness-expressive words and black-and-white logos in crisis response messages can be an effective strategy that leads to a more positive organizational reputation in the wake of a crisis. A 2 (emotion: presence of sadness vs. absence) x 2 (logo color: standard vs. black-andwhite) within-subject factorial experiment was conducted with 188 participants. The experimental stimuli were crisis response messages in the form of Facebook posts from four existing airline companies, including Air France, Malaysia Airlines, AirAsia, and Germanwings, in response to their real-life crisis incidents. Participants were introduced to each crisis (a total of 4) through a news article developed from a previously published story. Then, after each article reporting on the airline crisis, they were exposed to a response message from the airline. The findings show that when organizations express sadness in their messages, their sad emotion is transferred to the readers and leads to a higher organizational reputation and behavioral intention. Also, the use of a black-and-white logo in the context of sadness-present crisis response messages results in a better organizational reputation.
Design of an NGS MicroRNA predictor using multilayer hierarchical MapReduce framework

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are a group of small noncoding RNA (ncRNA) molecules that play an important role in biological functions. This paper proposes a microRNA prediction application, which is based on the multi-layer hierarchical MapReduce framework and provides four prediction workflows for four different datasets: miRNA-like sequences, miRNA cluster sequences, unknown miRNA sequences and the next generation sequencing (NGS) sequences. These workflows include four core procedures for finding the genome location, applying the biological filtering criteria and a genetic algorithm based pre-miRNA classifier. Each procedure works as a MapReduce task and uses JSON format to translate the MapReduce output to the next MapReduce procedure. Experimental results show that the proposed miRNA predictor not only achieves high sensitivity and accuracy, but also has ability to process more than million sequences in acceptable time by relying on the multi-layer hierarchical MapReduce framework.
Interphase and monoastral-mitotic phenotypes of overexpressed MAP4 are modulated by free tubulin concentrations

The microtubule-associated protein 4 (MAP4) has recently been shown to counteract destabilization of interphase microtubules caused by catastrophe promotion but not by tubulin sequestering. To address how MAP4 discriminates between destabilization of microtubules by these two mechanisms, we have evaluated the combined phenotypes of MAP4 coexpressed with Op18/stathmin family member derivatives with either catastrophe-promoting or sequestering activities. This approach relies on the finding that overexpression of MAP4 alone stabilizes microtubules during all phases of the cell cycle in human leukemia cells, and causes a potent mitotic block and a dramatic, previously unobserved, phenotype characterized by large monoastral spindles. Coexpression of either catastrophe-promoting or tubulin-sequestration-specific Op18 derivatives was found to modulate the activity of ectopic MAP4 during mitosis, but with differential functional outcome. Interestingly, the tubulin-sequestering derivative suppressed the monoastral mitotic phenotype of MAP4 (i.e. coexpression facilitated the formation of functional spindles). To evaluate whether this phenotypic suppression could be explained by tubulin-sequestration-dependent modulation of MAP4 activity, a plasma-membrane-targeted, tubulin-sequestering chimera was constructed to decrease the cytosolic free tubulin concentration substantially. This chimera likewise suppressed the monoastral phenotype caused by overexpression of MAP4, suggesting a direct downregulation of MAP4 activity by reduced free tubulin concentrations.
Permanent and Transitory Driving Forces in the Asian-Pacific Stock Markets

This paper uses weekly data from November 1987 through May 1999 to examine whether U.S. or the Japan stock market (or both) is the main driving force behind major movements in eleven emerging Asian-Pacific stock markets. We find a robust cointegrating relation linking each of the emerging market with the two matured markets of the U.S. and Japan. The results also show that the U.S., rather than Japan, is the main permanent force driving the equilibrium relations across all Asian-Pacific markets. In contrast, the effect of the Japanese market on the Asian-Pacific region is only transitory. Therefore, strategic asset portfolios in the Asian-Pacific region should include Japanese stocks to diversify any country specific risks. As to U.S. investors, the persistent influence of the U.S. market may limit long-run diversification gains from Asian-Pacific stocks. Copyright 2002 by the Eastern Finance Association.
Being Negative but Constructively: Lessons Learnt from Creating Better Visual Question Answering Datasets

Visual question answering (Visual QA) has attracted a lot of attention lately, seen essentially as a form of (visual) Turing test that artificial intelligence should strive to achieve. In this paper, we study a crucial component of this task: how can we design good datasets for the task? We focus on the design of multiple-choice based datasets where the learner has to select the right answer from a set of candidate ones including the target (i.e., the correct one) and the decoys (i.e., the incorrect ones). Through careful analysis of the results attained by state-of-the-art learning models and human annotators on existing datasets, we show that the design of the decoy answers has a significant impact on how and what the learning models learn from the datasets. In particular, the resulting learner can ignore the visual information, the question, or both while still doing well on the task. Inspired by this, we propose automatic procedures to remedy such design deficiencies. We apply the procedures to re-construct decoy answers for two popular Visual QA datasets as well as to create a new Visual QA dataset from the Visual Genome project, resulting in the largest dataset for this task. Extensive empirical studies show that the design deficiencies have been alleviated in the remedied datasets and the performance on them is likely a more faithful indicator of the difference among learning models. The datasets are released and publicly available via http://www.teds. usc.edu/website_vqa/.