Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Elevator and Escalator Classification for Precise Indoor Localization

This paper presents a new finite state machine based elevator and escalator classification for pedestrians with foot mounted MEMS sensors. Generally, stance phase detectors are used to reduce the position error drift by applying Zero-Velocity-Updates (ZUPTs) in the navigation filter. However, if the person rides an elevator or escalator ZUPTs should not be processed during the stance phases of the foot. A novel elevator and escalator classifier separating the motion of the moving platform in different sub-states is introduced. Unique is the consideration of foot movement, so that the person can walk during the ride with an elevator or escalator. In addition, powerful motion constraints differing for the various platforms are presented which enable accurate positioning performance. Horizontal ZUPTs and delta ZUPTs are introduced for elevator rides and absolute velocity measurements based on an escalator velocity model are used to limit the position error growth during escalator movement. We evaluated the presented algorithms with recorded sensor data and achieved an average return position error of 0.72% in the vertical axis and an average error of 0.58% in the horizontal plane of the total walked distance of 1162.09m.
Pure-Exploration for Infinite-Armed Bandits with General Arm Reservoirs

This paper considers a multi-armed bandit game where the number of arms is much larger than the maximum budget and is effectively infinite. We characterize necessary and sufficient conditions on the total budget for an algorithm to return an {\epsilon}-good arm with probability at least 1 - {\delta}. In such situations, the sample complexity depends on {\epsilon}, {\delta} and the so-called reservoir distribution {\nu} from which the means of the arms are drawn iid. While a substantial literature has developed around analyzing specific cases of {\nu} such as the beta distribution, our analysis makes no assumption about the form of {\nu}. Our algorithm is based on successive halving with the surprising exception that arms start to be discarded after just a single pull, requiring an analysis that goes beyond concentration alone. The provable correctness of this algorithm also provides an explanation for the empirical observation that the most aggressive bracket of the Hyperband algorithm of Li et al. (2017) for hyperparameter tuning is almost always best.
Prostaglandin E1 plus methylcobalamin combination therapy versus prostaglandin E1 monotherapy for patients with diabetic peripheral neuropathy

Background: Prostaglandin E1 (P) or methylcobalamin (M) treatment has been suggested as a therapeutic approach for diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN) in many clinical trial reports. However, the combined effects of 2 drugs still remain dubious. Objective: The aim of this report was to evaluate the efficacy of M plus P (M + P) for the treatment of DPN compared with that of P monotherapy, in order to provide a reference resource for rational drug use. Methods: Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of M + P for DPN published up to September 2017 were searched. Risk ratio (RR), mean difference (MD), and 95% confidence interval (CI) were calculated and heterogeneity was assessed with the I2 test. Subgroup and sensitivity analyses were also performed. The outcomes measured were as follows: the clinical efficacy, median motor nerve conduction velocities (MNCV), median sensory nerve conduction velocity (SNCV), peroneal MNCV, peroneal SNCV, and adverse effects. Results: Sixteen RCTs with 1136 participants were included. Clinical efficacy of M + P combination therapy was significantly better than P monotherapy (fifteen trials; RR 1.25, 95% CI 1.18–1.32, P < .00001, I2 = 27%). Compared with P monotherapy, the pooled effects of M + P combination therapy on nerve conduction velocity were (MD 6.29, 95% CI 4.63–7.94, P < .00001, I2 = 90%) for median MNCV, (MD 5.68, 95% CI 3.53–7.83, P < .00001, I2 = 94%) for median SNCV, (MD 5.36, 95% CI 3.86–6.87, P < .00001, I2 = 92%) for peroneal MNCV, (MD 4.62, 95% CI 3.48–5.75, P < .00001, I2 = 86%) for peroneal SNCV. There were no serious adverse events associated with drug intervention. Conclusions: M + P combination therapy was superior to P monotherapy for improvement of neuropathic symptoms and NCVs in DPN patients. Moreover, no serious adverse events occur in combination therapy.
Cooperative Communication for Cognitive Satellite Networks

A cooperative cognitive radio for satellite networks is considered, in which the primary network is a satellite network and the secondary network is a cellular network. Due to the lack of multipath in a satellite environment, the channel matrices of the satellite network are assumed to be rank-deficient, which implies that the capacity cannot be increased in proportion to the number of antennas. To overcome the rank deficiency, we propose a novel cooperative transmission strategy where the base station or mobile users in the cellular network both help the communication of the satellite network and transmit and receive their own streams. Not only does the secondary network carefully adjust the number of transmitted streams to avoid causing interference to the primary network beyond a certain threshold; it also provides alternative signal paths for the primary network, thereby effectively increasing the channel ranks of the primary network. We obtain both the achievable sum degrees of freedom (DoFs) and the sum rate under the proposed scheme, and we also derive upper bounds on the sum DoF. Using the analytical and numerical analysis, we show that our scheme significantly improves the overall system throughput compared with the satellite network alone, without cognitive access.
Ixekizumab for treatment of moderate to severe plaque psoriasis: real world clinical experience.

BACKGROUND Data concerning clinical experience in real world setting with ixekizumab for psoriasis are still exiguous and aim of this report is to provide our experience in the use of ixekizumab in out-patient setting. METHODS Fifteen Caucasian individuals (10 male, 5 females; mean age 58.1; range 30-75 years) affected by moderate to severe plaque psoriasis (PASI≥10 e/o DLQI≥10 e/O BSA≥10) were treated with Ixekizumab, following dosing regimen of technical data sheet and clinically evaluated both after 4 weeks (T4) and 12 weeks (T12) after. At baseline median PASI was 16.3 (range 10 -30, SD 6.0). The median BSA was 21.3 (10 - 35, SD 7.0), the median PGA was 3.4 (2 - 6, SD 1.2), the median DLQI was 18.6 (14 - 25, SD 3.6), the median m-NAPSI was 42.0 (30-56, SD 13.11). The median absolute value of PASI, BSA, PGA, DLQI and m-NAPSI showed a statistically significant decrease (p<0.05) already after 4 weeks of treatment, to testify tratment effectiveness. RESULTS At T4, 93.3% of the patients reached PASI 50, 6.9% reached PASI75; at T12 100% ofthe patients reached PASI50, 80% reached PASI75, 13% reached PASI 90 and 6.9% reached PASI 100. One-third of observed patients reached MDA after 12 weeks of treatment. Injection site reactions were the only side effects occurring during the first 12 weeks of treatment. CONCLUSIONS Our preliminary results seem to confirm the efficacy and safety profile provided through the UNCOVER pivotal trials (UNCOVER 1-3) although further larger observational studies are needed.
Influence of Partial Discharge on Dissipation Factor Measurement at Very Low Frequency

For diagnostic assessment of electrical insulation in high voltage power equipment, partial discharge (PD) and tanδ (DDF) measurements are the most popular methods. In this paper, an experimental study to investigate the influence of partial discharge on DDF measurement is presented. Laboratory measurements were carried out on a service-aged 11-kV XLPE cable which had insulation defect. Sinusoidal voltage was applied at very low frequency (0.1 Hz) and at power frequency (50 Hz). Measurement results reveal that diagnostic characteristics such as discharge magnitude and repetition rate are strongly dependent on the excitation frequency and have a considerable influence on the tan-delta measurement.
A Low-Loss Split-Carrier Transmitter Architecture for Intra-Datacentre Communications

A split-carrier transmitter is proposed to increase the loss budget for intra-datacentre links by reducing modulator insertion loss. Transmission of 28 GBd subcarrier modulated 16-QAM (112 Gb/s) over 2 km SSMF is shown to be possible with an optimised modulator loss of <4.4 dB.
Asymptotic Stabilization of Nonholonomic Robots Leveraging Singularity

Due to the nonholonomic constraints as well as the constraints on torque and power resources, it is challenging to design a controller to asymptotically stabilize a nonholonomic robot at a predefined pose. In this paper, a switched controller is introduced for the asymptotic stabilization of nonholonomic robots using singularity, which is deemed undesirable due to loss of controllability. The proposed controller is inspired by a new insight on the singularity set of the nonholonomic robot, i.e., the singularity set includes a subset that can be asymptotically stabilized. The proposed controller is applicable to chained form systems that make an important class of drift-less nonholonomic systems, especially for those robots with a differential-drive mechanism. Considering its simplicity and efficiency, our method has the potential to be used in practice.
Ih contributes to increased motoneuron excitability in restless legs syndrome

Restless legs patients complain about sensory and motor symptoms leading to sleep disturbances. Symptoms include painful sensations, an urge to move and involuntary leg movements. The responsible mechanisms of restless legs syndrome are still not known, although current studies indicate an increased neuronal network excitability. Reflex studies indicate the involvement of spinal structures. Peripheral mechanisms have not been investigated so far. In the present study, we provide evidence of increased hyperpolarization‐activated cyclic nucleotide‐gated (HCN) channel‐mediated inward rectification in motor axons. The excitability of sensory axons was not changed. We conclude that, in restless legs syndrome, an increased HCN current in motoneurons may play a pathophysiological role, such that these channels could represent a valuable target for pharmaceutical intervention.
Genetic variant at coronary artery disease and ischemic stroke locus 1p32.2 regulates endothelial responses to hemodynamics

Significance Biomechanical stimuli control major cellular functions and play critical roles in human diseases. Although studies have implicated genetic variation in regulating key biological functions, whether human genetic variants participate in the processes by which cells sense and respond to biomechanical cues remains unclear. This study provides a line of evidence supporting an underappreciated role of genetic predisposition in cellular mechanotransduction. Using genetics approaches and genome editing, our data demonstrate that rs17114036, a common noncoding polymorphism implicated in coronary artery disease and ischemic stroke by genome-wide association studies, dynamically regulates endothelial responses to atherosclerosis-related blood flow (hemodynamics) via a noncoding DNA region important for transcription activation (enhancer). These results provide molecular insights linking disease-associated genetic variants to cellular mechanobiology. Biomechanical cues dynamically control major cellular processes, but whether genetic variants actively participate in mechanosensing mechanisms remains unexplored. Vascular homeostasis is tightly regulated by hemodynamics. Exposure to disturbed blood flow at arterial sites of branching and bifurcation causes constitutive activation of vascular endothelium contributing to atherosclerosis, the major cause of coronary artery disease (CAD) and ischemic stroke (IS). Conversely, unidirectional flow promotes quiescent endothelium. Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have identified chromosome 1p32.2 as strongly associated with CAD/IS; however, the causal mechanism related to this locus remains unknown. Using statistical analyses, assay of transposase accessible chromatin with whole-genome sequencing (ATAC-seq), H3K27ac/H3K4me2 ChIP with whole-genome sequencing (ChIP-seq), and CRISPR interference in human aortic endothelial cells (HAECs), our results demonstrate that rs17114036, a common noncoding polymorphism at 1p32.2, is located in an endothelial enhancer dynamically regulated by hemodynamics. CRISPR-Cas9–based genome editing shows that rs17114036-containing region promotes endothelial quiescence under unidirectional shear stress by regulating phospholipid phosphatase 3 (PLPP3). Chromatin accessibility quantitative trait locus (caQTL) mapping using HAECs from 56 donors, allelic imbalance assay from 7 donors, and luciferase assays demonstrate that CAD/IS-protective allele at rs17114036 in PLPP3 intron 5 confers increased endothelial enhancer activity. ChIP-PCR and luciferase assays show that CAD/IS-protective allele at rs17114036 creates a binding site for transcription factor Krüppel-like factor 2 (KLF2), which increases the enhancer activity under unidirectional flow. These results demonstrate that a human SNP contributes to critical endothelial mechanotransduction mechanisms and suggest that human haplotypes and related cis-regulatory elements provide a previously unappreciated layer of regulatory control in cellular mechanosensing mechanisms.
Streptolysin O derived from Streptococcus pyogenes inhibits RANKL-induced osteoclastogenesis through the NF-κB signaling pathway

Streptococcus pyogenes (GAS) is a clinically significant bacterial strain that causes bacterial arthritis, osteomyelitis and implant infections. Infection complications can lead to serious bone destruction. Osteoclasts, the only type of cell with bone resorption function, participate in this process. Streptolysin O (SLO) is produced by almost all clinical Streptococcus pyogenes isolates. However, the role of SLO in bone infection caused by GAS had not been previously examined. The current study was performed to define the effects of SLO on receptor activator of NF-κB ligand-stimulated osteoclast differentiation in vitro. Results demonstrated that SLO decreased the phosphorylation of p65 and NF-κB inhibitor α, suppressed c-FOS and nuclear factor of activated T-cells cytoplasmic 1, and downregulated the expression of osteoclast marker genes. SLO also induced apoptosis of mature osteoclasts. The results suggested that SLO blocked osteoclast activation during GAS infection. These findings may prove useful in the development of novel strategies for treating GAS-associated bone infectious diseases.
Joint Slot Filling and Intent Detection with Gazetteers Features

Two major tasks in spoken language understanding (SLU) are intent detection and slot filling. To address these two tasks, in this work, we proposed to employ Conditonal Random Filed(CRFs) with gazetteers features for the slot filling problem and use Naïve Bayes model with N-gram feature for intent detection based on a new shared task dataset released in CCKS[5] . The experiments shows that CRFs with gazetteers features obtains 90.8% F1 score outperforms some deep learning methods. The joint result of slot filling and intent detection help us archive the ranks 1 in the Preliminary round.
The association of auditory integration training in children with autism spectrum disorders among Chinese: a meta-analysis

Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) have reported an inconsistent relationship about the auditory integration training (AIT) in children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) among Chinese. The current study was to investigate the efficacy of AIT for children with ASD compared with those in control group by using meta-analysis. Relevant trials published were identified by an electronic search of PubMed, CENTRAL, EMBASE, WanFang, CNKI, and SinoMed databases up to December 31, 2017. Outcome of interest included childhood autism rating scale (CARS), autism behavior checklist (ABC), intelligence quotient (IQ), and autism treatment evaluation checklist (ATEC). Standardized mean difference (SMD) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) was calculated using a random-effect model. Thirteen RCTs with 976 children with ASD were included for analysis. The pooled SMD showed that children with ASD had significantly lower ABC scores [summary SMD = −0.58, 95%CI = −0.79 to −0.38] and ATEC scores [summary SMD = −0.75, 95%CI = −1.05 to −0.45] in AIT group compared with that in control group. The analysis of pooled statistics put forward AIT could increase the IQ score when compared with that in control group [summary SMD = 0.59, 95%CI = 0.41–0.77]. A negative association was found about CARS scores between AIT group and control group. No publication bias was found and no single study had essential effect on the pooled results. In conclusions, AIT can reduce the score of ABC and ATEC and can increase the IQ score among children with ASD in Chinese. Therefore, it is recommended for Chinese children with ASD to receive AIT.
IL‐33 guides osteogenesis and increases proliferation and pluripotency marker expression in dental stem cells

Soluble IL‐33 (interleukin (IL)‐1‐like cytokine) acts as endogenous alarm signal (alarmin). Since alarmins, besides activating immune system, act to restore tissue homeostasis, we investigated whether IL‐33 exerts beneficial effects on oral stem cell pull.
Scenario Generation for Wind Power Using Improved Generative Adversarial Networks

Wind power scenarios have a significant impact on stochastic optimization problems for power systems in which wind power is a significant component. Generative adversarial networks (GANs) are a powerful class of generative models, and can generate realistic scenarios for renewable power sources without the need for any modeling assumptions. However, the performance of GANs in generating scenarios can further be improved by modifying the way in which a Lipschitz constraint on discriminator network is imposed. Another critical problem of applying deep neural networks is overfitting, a phenomenon especially prone to appear on small training sets. In this paper, we propose an improved GAN for the generation of wind power scenarios. To improve the training speed, we use a gradient penalty term to enforce the Lipschitz constraint based on the output and input of the discriminator network. To improve the scenario quality, we further use a consistency term in the training procedure. Besides, the overfitting problem can be effectively alleviated by the enforced Lipschitz continuity. The proposed method is applied to actual time series data from the NREL wind integration data set. The experimental results demonstrate that our method outperforms the existing methods.
Enterprise Architecture Planning in the Context of Industry 4.0 Transformations

Industry 4.0 has become an increasing driver of change in the manufacturing industry. However, companies are struggling with the often risky and expensive IT transformation projects that are needed to reach full automation of the sales, production and logistics cycle. We observed a lack of research on the practice of modeling and planning IT transformations towards Industry 4.0. To form the basis of research in this area, we conducted a series of expert interviews on the topic of enterprise architecture transformation planning in the context of Industry 4.0. As a result, we identified several pressing challenges that need to be addressed by organizations to successfully model, plan, and execute such IT transformations. This paper contributes to theory by identifying problems and potential design artifacts that are able to mitigate these problems.
Comprehensive genotyping of the C9orf72 hexanucleotide repeat region in 2095 ALS samples from the NINDS collection using a two-mode, long-read PCR assay

Abstract Objective: Expansion of the G4C2 repeat tract in the C9orf72 gene is linked to frontotemporal dementia (FTD) and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Here, we provide comprehensive genotyping of the C9orf72 repeat region for the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) ALS collection (n = 2095), using a novel bimodal PCR assay capable of amplifying nearly 100% GC-rich sequences. Methods: A single-tube 3-primer PCR assay mode, resolved using capillary electrophoresis, was used for sizing up to 145 repeats with single-repeat accuracy, for detecting expansions irrespective of their overall size, and for flagging confounding 3′ sequence variations (SVs). A modified two-primer PCR mode, resolved via agarose gel electrophoresis, provided further size information for hyper-expanded samples (>145 repeats) up to ∼5.8 kb amplicons (∼950 G4C2 repeats). Results: Within the evaluated cohort, 177 (8.4%) samples were expanded, with 175 (99%) samples being hyper-expanded. 3′-SVs were identified in 64 (3.1%) samples, and were most common in expanded alleles. Genotypes of all 606 (29%) homozygous samples were confirmed using an orthogonal PCR assay. Conclusion: This study and PCR method may improve and standardize molecular characterization of the C9orf72 locus, and have the potential to inform phenotype–genotype correlations and therapeutic development in ALS/FTD.
The relation of passive smoking with cervical cancer

Background: Published studies about passive smoking and cervical cancer have found inconsistent results. Hence, the present meta-analysis was performed to assess this association. Methods: A systematical search was performed to identify eligible cohort and case–control studies in PubMed, Scopus, Elsevier ScienceDirect, and Web of Science databases (up to March, 2018). The quality of included studies was assessed by the Newcastle–Ottawa quality scale (NOS). The random effects model (REM) was used to calculate the pooled odds ratio (ORs). Subgroup and sensitivity analyses were performed. Publication bias was assessed by funnel plot, using Begg's test and Egger's test. Results: Around 14 eligible studies were included for analysis, which included a total of 384,995 participants. The pooled ORs of passive smoking with cervical cancer risk was 1.70 (95% CI: 1.40–2.07, I2 = 64.3%). Subgroups stratified by continent, study design, quality score, and cervical cancer types/phases suggested that the result was robust. For instance, the pooled ORs for the cohort and case–control studies was 1.37 (95% CI: 1.16–1.62, I2 = 0%) and 2.09 (95% CI: 1.52–2.89, I2 = 76.6%), respectively. The pooled ORs ranged from 1.61 (95%CI: 1.34–1.92) to 1.77 (95%CI: 1.44–2.16) after one study was removed each time in the sensitivity analyses, indicating that the result was stable. Publication bias was detected by funnel plot and Egger's tests. The recalculated ORs were 1.33 (95% CI: 1.21–1.47). Conclusions: This meta-analysis provides evidence that passive smoking is associated with an increased risk of cervical cancer.
Long-term effects of a memory group intervention reported by older adults

ABSTRACT The aim of this study was to examine older adults’ experiences of change following a group memory intervention, the La Trobe and Caulfield Hospital (LaTCH) Memory Group programme. Semi-structured qualitative interviews were conducted with 30 individuals. Participants were healthy older adults and older adults with amnestic mild cognitive impairment (MCI) who had participated in the memory group five years previously. Transcripts were analysed for emergent themes in a workshop, using the Most Significant Change technique. The focus group derived four major themes relating to participants’ experiences of change. Particularly noteworthy were themes describing a process of acceptance and normalising of memory difficulties in older age, as well as enhancement of coping and self-efficacy. The results highlight the importance of group support for older adults with and without objective memory impairment. Memory groups may use the group format to full advantage by (a) enhancing participants’ experiences of universality to alleviate distress and promote coping, and (b) developing group norms to promote positive ageing, encompassing enhanced acceptance and self-efficacy.