Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Online learning for recency search ranking using real-time user feedback

Traditional machine-learned ranking algorithms for web search are trained in batch mode, which assume static relevance of documents for a given query. Although such a batch-learning framework has been tremendously successful in commercial search engines, in scenarios where relevance of documents to a query changes over time, such as ranking recent documents for a breaking news query, the batch-learned ranking functions do have limitations. Users' real-time click feedback becomes a better and timely proxy for the varying relevance of documents rather than the editorial judgments provided by human editors. In this paper, we propose an online learning algorithm that can quickly learn the best re-ranking of the top portion of the original ranked list based on real-time users' click feedback. In order to devise our algorithm and evaluate it accurately, we collected exploration bucket data that removes positional biases on clicks on the documents for recency-classified queries. Our initial experimental result shows that our scheme is more capable of quickly adjusting the ranking to track the varying relevance of documents reflected in the click feedback, compared to batch-trained ranking functions.
Delayed fruit harvest on yield, nutritional value and post-harvest quality of late maturing reed avocado (Persea Americana Mill)

xv CHAPTER 1: GENERAL INTRODUCTION . 1 1.1 Background . 1 1.1.1 Description of research problem . 1 1.1.2 The impact of research problem . 1 1.1.3 Possible cause/s of research problem . 2 1.1.4 Proposed solution/s . 2 1.2 Problem statement . 3 1.3 Motivation of the study . 3 1.4 Aim . 3 1.5 Objectives of the study . 3 1.6 Hypotheses . 4 1.7 Structure of the dissertation . 4 CHAPER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW . 5 iii 2.
Community driven development as participation?: involving user communities in a software design process

In this paper we report on a case study of a participatory design process we call Community Driven Development (CDD). Together with a German software company we developed a socio-technical environment to motivate users of an existing online user community to participate in the further development of a product. For the CDD approach developers and users worked together to create a functional description and different prototypes of a target product. By conducting interviews and analyzing formal and informal processes we could identify different motivations, fears, problems and benefits the participants perceived during the process. Our study shows that an existing online community can be a valuable basis for a PD process, but it calls for a careful design of the organizational and technological setting and a sensible process moderation. It also shows that existing professionalization structures in technology design arenas may always lead to an imbalanced 'participation'.
Critical pathways for management of patients with acute coronary syndromes: an assessment by the National Heart Attack Alert Program.

BACKGROUND The use of critical pathways for a variety of clinical conditions has grown rapidly in recent years, particularly pathways for patients with acute coronary syndromes (ACS). However, no systematic review exists regarding the value of critical pathways in this setting. METHODS The National Heart Attack Alert Program established a Working Group to review the utility of critical pathways on quality of care and outcomes for patients with ACS. A literature search of MEDLINE, cardiology textbooks, and cited references in any article identified was conducted regarding the use of critical pathways for patients with ACS. RESULTS Several areas for improving the care of patients with ACS through the application of critical pathways were identified: increasing the use of guideline-recommended medications, targeting use of cardiac procedures and other cardiac testing, and reducing the length of stay in hospitals and intensive care units. Initial studies have shown promising results in improving quality of care and reducing costs. No large studies designed to demonstrate an improvement in mortality or morbidity were identified in this literature review. CONCLUSIONS Critical pathways offer the potential to improve the care of patients with ACS while reducing the cost of care. Their use should improve the process and cost-effectiveness of care, but further research in this field is needed to determine whether these changes in the process of care will translate into improved clinical outcomes.
The osteology of Protostega

includes a preliminary notice of the huge Niobrara Cretaceous turtle, Protostega gigas. The type specimen was collected by Cope himself on a bluff near Butte Creek in the vicinity of Fort Wallace. It was secured in a more or less fragmentary condition after the manner of the vertebrate collecting of the earlier days of western exploration, for, in the more extended description given in the Cretaceous Vertebrata of the West, Cope says this fossil is made up of more than eight hundred separate
The Penn Jerboa: A Platform for Exploring Parallel Composition of Templates

We have built a 12DOF, passive-compliant legged, tailed biped actuated by four brushless DC motors. We anticipate that this machine will achieve varied modes of quasistatic and dynamic balance, enabling a broad range of locomotion tasks including sitting, standing, walking, hopping, running, turning, leaping, and more. Achieving this diversity of behavior with a single under-actuated body, requires a correspondingly diverse array of controllers, motivating our interest in compositional techniques that promote mixing and reuse of a relatively few base constituents to achieve a combinatorially growing array of available choices. Here we report on the development of one important example of such a behavioral programming method, the construction of a novel monopedal sagittal plane hopping gait through parallel composition of four decoupled 1DOF base controllers. For this example behavior, the legs are locked in phase and the body is fastened to a boom to restrict motion to the sagittal plane. The platform's locomotion is powered by the hip motor that adjusts leg touchdown angle in flight and balance in stance, along with a tail motor that adjusts body shape in flight and drives energy into the passive leg shank spring during stance. The motor control signals arise from the application in parallel of four simple, completely decoupled 1DOF feedback laws that provably stabilize in isolation four corresponding 1DOF abstract reference plants. Each of these abstract 1DOF closed loop dynamics represents some simple but crucial specific component of the locomotion task at hand. We present a partial proof of correctness for this parallel composition of template reference systems along with data from the physical platform suggesting these templates are anchored as evidenced by the correspondence of their characteristic motions with a suitably transformed image of traces from the physical platform.
Downregulation of tumor suppressive microRNAs in vivo in dense breast tissue of postmenopausal women

Women with dense breast tissue on mammography are at higher risk of developing breast cancer but the underlying mechanisms are not well understood. De-regulation of microRNAs (miRNAs) has been associated with the onset of breast cancer. miRNAs in the extracellular space participate in the regulation of the local tissue microenvironment. Here, we recruited 39 healthy postmenopausal women attending their mammography-screen that were assessed having extreme dense or entirely fatty breasts (nondense). Microdialysis was performed in breast tissue and a reference catheter was inserted in abdominal subcutaneous fat for local sampling of extracellular compounds. Three miRNAs, associated with tumor suppression, miR-193b, miR-365a, and miR-452 were significantly down-regulated in dense breast tissue compared with nondense breast tissue. In addition, miR-452 exhibited significant negative correlations with several pro-inflammatory cytokines in vivo, which was confirmed in vitro by overexpression of miR-452 in breast cancer cells. No differences were found of miR-21, -29a, -30c, 146a, -148a, -203, or -451 in breast tissue and no miRs were different in plasma. Extracellular miRNAs may be among factors that should be included in studies of novel prevention strategies for breast cancer.
Mutations in the genes for cardiac troponin T and alpha-tropomyosin in hypertrophic cardiomyopathy.

BACKGROUND Familial hypertrophic cardiomyopathy can be caused by mutations in the genes for beta cardiac myosin heavy chain, alpha-tropomyosin, or cardiac troponin T. It is not known how often the disease is caused by mutations in the tropomyosin and troponin genes, and the associated clinical phenotypes have not been carefully studied. METHODS Linkage between polymorphisms of the alpha-tropomyosin gene or the cardiac troponin T gene and hypertrophic cardiomyopathy was assessed in 27 families. In addition, 100 probands were screened for mutations in the alpha-tropomyosin gene, and 26 were screened for mutations in the cardiac troponin T gene. Life expectancy, the incidence of sudden death, and the extent of left ventricular hypertrophy were compared in patients with different mutations. RESULTS Genetic analyses identified only one alpha-tropomyosin mutation, identical to one previously described. Five novel mutations in cardiac troponin were identified, as well as a further example of a previously described mutation. The clinical phenotype of four troponin T mutations in seven unrelated families was similar and was characterized by a poor prognosis (life expectancy, approximately 35 years) and a high incidence of sudden death. The mean (+/- SD) maximal thickness of the left ventricular wall in subjects with cardiac troponin T mutations (16.7 +/- 5.5 mm) was significantly less than that in subjects with beta cardiac myosin heavy-chain mutations (23.7 +/- 7.7 mm, P < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS Mutations in alpha-tropomyosin are a rare cause of familial hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, accounting for approximately 3 percent of cases. Mutations in cardiac troponin T account for approximately 15 percent of cases of familial hypertrophic cardiomyopathy in this referral-center population. These mutations are characterized by relatively mild and sometimes subclinical hypertrophy but a high incidence of sudden death. Genetic testing may therefore be especially important in this group.
Long Polar Fimbriae Contribute to Colonization by Escherichia coli O157:H7 In Vivo

ABSTRACT The contribution of long polar fimbriae to intestinal colonization by Escherichia coli O157:H7 was evaluated in sheep, conventional pigs, and gnotobiotic piglets. E. coli O157:H7 strains with lpfA1 and lpfA2 mutated were recovered in significantly lower numbers and caused fewer attachment and effacement lesions than the parent strain.
Prevalence of Artemisia species pollinosis in western Poland: impact of climate change on aerobiological trends, 1995-2004.

BACKGROUND Artemisia species pollen represents a major cause of allergy in Central Europe. Variations in the pollen season, the influence of climate variables and the prevalence of pollinosis to it were analyzed in Poznan, in western Poland between 1995 and 2004. METHODS A Hirst volumetric spore trap was used for atmospheric sampling. Pollination date trend analysis and Spearman correlation tests were performed. Skin prick tests (SPT) and allergen specific immunoglobulin (lg)E antibody measurements were performed in 676 and 524 patients, respectively. RESULTS The Artemisia species pollen season grew longer due to a clear advance in the starting day and only a slightly earlier end point; the peak day also came slightly earlier. Rainfall in the first fortnight of July highly influenced pollen season severity. Temperature was directly correlated with daily Artemisia species pollen levels; relative humidity was inversely correlated. Twelve percent of patients had a positive SPT reaction to Artemisia species. Their symptoms were rhinitis and conjunctivitis (15%), atopic dermatitis (15%), chronic urticaria (14.3%), bronchial asthma (2.4%), and facial and disseminated dermatitis (1.3%). Elevated specific IgE concentrations were detected in the sera of 10.1% of patients. CONCLUSIONS Artemisia species pollen is an important cause of pollinosis in western Poland. Pollen season intensity is highly influenced by rainfall in the previous weeks. Trends towards earlier season starts and longer duration, possibly caused by climate change, may have an impact on the allergic population.
Maintenance Treatment with Opium Tincture: A Preliminary Qualitative Study of the Factors Related to Treatment entry

Abstract Background The current preliminary study aimed to explore the reasons that a group of opiate-dependent patients reported for entry into opium tincture treatment (OTT). Methods Through examinations of 52 qualitative focus group interviews with patients from six OTT centers and 10 health providers (in key informant interviews) in Tehran, this study highlights the factors that participants reported as the reasons associated with entry into OTT. Quantitative data including demographic data and details of drug use were analyzed by using SPSS.v. 18.0. Qualitative data was analyzed by using Atlas-ti software. Results 86.5% of patients were male and 13.5% were female. The median age of patients was 39 yr. The most frequently reasons associated with entry into OTT included methadone misconceptions including dissatisfaction with taking methadone as a chemical medication, methadone dependence, and long duration of MMT. The other reasons included the recommendation of other people in treatment and OT-related characteristics and expectations including the herbal compound of OT, treating opiate craving and withdrawal symptoms, and improving general health. Conclusion The study findings preliminarily showed the reasons associated with entry into OTT in a sample of treatment seekers. Longitudinal studies with more representative samples and follow-up stages are required to evaluate the clinical effectiveness of OTT as a maintenance treatment in comparison with methadone and buprenorphine. Patient-centered program and policy implications are discussed.
Growth of Escherichia coli O157 in poorly fermented laboratory silage: a possible environmental dimension in the epidemiology of E. coli O157

D.R. FENLON and J. WILSON.2000. Laboratory silages, inoculated with either c. 1000 cfu g−1, an atoxigenic Escherichia coli O157 or a toxigenic E. coli O157 isolate, were made in plastic bags which permitted limited aerobic spoilage. Replicate bags of each treatment were opened at weekly intervals after incubation at 20 °C. In all silages the fermentation was slow and aerobic spoilage with visible moulding ocurred at the tie ends after 7 d. In all the aerobically spoiled silages Enterobacteriaceae reached over 107 cfu g−1 within 1 week. The E. coli in control silages increased from barely detectable levels to 104 cfu g−1 within 13 d; over the same period both strains of E. coli O157 increased from 103 to 107 cfu g−1. The increases in the poorly fermented interior of the silage bags were initially similar but declined slightly as the pH fell. It is suggested that faecal contamination of grass followed by poor silage management may be a factor in the persistence of E. coli O157 carriage in ruminants.
Performance and power comparison of Thread Level Speculation in SMT and CMP architectures

As technology advances, microprocessors that support multiple threads of execution on a single chip are becoming increasingly common. Improving the performance of general purpose applications by extracting parallel threads is extremely difficult, due to the complex control flow and ambiguous data dependences that are inherent to these applications. Thread-Level Speculation (TLS) enables speculative parallel execution of potentially dependent threads, and ensures correct execution by providing hardware support to detect data dependence violations and to recover from speculation failures. TLS can be supported on a variety of architectures, among them are Chip MultiProcessors (CMP) and Simultaneous MultiThreading (SMT). While there have been numerous papers comparing the performance and power efficiency of SMT and CMP processors under various workloads, relatively little has been done to compare them under the context of TLS. While CMPs utilize smaller and more powerefficient cores, resource sharing and constructive interference between speculative and non-speculative threads can potentially make SMT more power efficient. Thus, this paper aims to fill this void by extending a CMP and a SMT processor to support TLS, and evaluating the performance and power efficiency of the resulting systems with speculative parallel threads extracted for the SPEC2000 benchmark suite. Both SMT and CMP processors have a large variety of configurations, we choose to conduct our study on two architectures with equal die area and the same clock frequency. Our results show that a SMT processor that supports four speculative threads outperforms a CMP processor that supports the same
Association of Electrocardiographically Determined Left Ventricular Mass With Incident Diabetes, 1985–1986 to 2010–2011

OBJECTIVE Electrocardiographic indices reflecting left ventricular hypertrophy are associated with incident diabetes in clinical populations at risk for coronary heart disease. We tested whether electrocardiographically determined left ventricular mass was positively associated with incident diabetes in a population sample. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults (CARDIA) study participants (n = 4,739) were followed from 1985–1986 to 2010–2011 for incident diabetes. Validated sex- and race-specific formulas were applied to standard electrocardiograms to determine left ventricular mass. RESULTS Over 25 years, 444 participants developed diabetes (9.4%). After adjustment for demographic, behavioral, and clinical covariates, participants in the highest quartile of left ventricular mass index (LVMI) were twice as likely to develop diabetes than participants in the lower three quartiles (hazard ratio 2.61 [95% CI 2.16–3.17]). Neither Cornell voltage nor Cornell voltage product was associated with incident diabetes in fully adjusted models. CONCLUSIONS Electrocardiographically determined LVMI may be a useful noninvasive marker for identifying adults at risk for diabetes.
PUFs in Security Protocols: Attack Models and Security Evaluations

In recent years, PUF-based schemes have not only been suggested for the basic security tasks of tamper sensitive key storage or system identification, but also for more complex cryptographic protocols like oblivious transfer (OT), bit commitment (BC), or key exchange (KE). In these works, so-called "Strong PUFs" are regarded as a new, fundamental cryptographic primitive of their own, comparable to the bounded storage model, quantum cryptography, or noisebased cryptography. This paper continues this line of research, investigating the correct adversarial attack model and the actual security of such protocols. In its first part, we define and compare different attack models. They reach from a clean, first setting termed the "stand-alone, good PUF model" to stronger scenarios like the "bad PUF model" and the "PUF re-use model". We argue why these attack models are realistic, and that existing protocols would be faced with them if used in practice. In the second part, we execute exemplary security analyses of existing schemes in the new attack models. The evaluated protocols include recent schemes from Brzuska et al. published at Crypto 2011 [1] and from Ostrovsky et al. [18]. While a number of protocols are certainly secure in their own, original attack models, the security of none of the considered protocols for OT, BC, or KE is maintained in all of the new, realistic scenarios. One consequence of our work is that the design of advanced cryptographic PUF protocols needs to be strongly reconsidered. Furthermore, it suggests that Strong PUFs require additional hardware properties in order to be broadly usable in such protocols: Firstly, they should ideally be "erasable", meaning that single PUF-responses can be erased without affecting other responses. If the area efficient implementation of this feature turns out to be difficult, new forms of Controlled PUFs [8] (such as Logically Erasable and Logically Reconfigurable PUFs [13]) may suffice in certain applications. Secondly, PUFs should be "certifiable", meaning that one can verify that the PUF has been produced faithfully and has not been manipulated in any way afterwards. The combined implementation of these features represents a pressing and challenging problem, which we pose to the PUF hardware community in this work.
A preliminary study to develop an intervention to facilitate communication between couples in advanced cancer

Abstract Objective: Psychosocial interventions directed to couples where one has advanced cancer can reduce distress, enhance communication, and provide an opportunity for relational growth. The present study aimed to develop an intervention to facilitate communication about living with advanced cancer using the Patient Dignity Inventory (PDI) as the focus of a clinical interview with couples toward the end of life. Method: Couples were recruited from oncology and palliative care services at a Sydney hospital. After the PDI was developed and manualized as an intervention for couples, the PDI–Couple Interview (PDI–CI) was delivered by a clinical psychologist and comprised the following: (1) the patient completed the PDI; (2) the patient's identified partner completed the PDI about how they thought the patient was feeling; and (3) the clinician reviewed the results with the couple, summarizing areas of concurrence and discordance and facilitating discussion. Results: Some 34 couples were referred, of which 12 consented, 9 of whom completed the clinical interview. Reported benefits included enabling couples to express their concerns together, identifying differences in understanding, and giving “permission to speak” with each other. The focus of the interview around the PDI provided a structure that was particularly acceptable for men. Most couples confirmed that they were “on the same page,” and where differences were identified, it provided a forum for discussion and a mutual understanding of the challenges in managing advanced cancer within a supportive context. Significance of Results: Participant couples' experiences of the PDI–CI provide valuable insight into the benefits of this intervention. This preliminary study indicates that the intervention is a relatively simple means of enhancing closer communication and connection between couples where one has advanced cancer and may be an important adjunct in helping prepare couples for the challenges inherent toward the end of life. Further investigation of feasibility with a larger sample is recommended.