Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Application of spiking neural networks and the bees algorithm to control chart pattern recognition

Statistical process control (SPC) is a method for improving the quality of products. Control charting plays a most important role in SPC. SPC control charts arc used for monitoring and detecting unnatural process behaviour. Unnatural patterns in control charts indicate unnatural causes for variations. Control chart pattern recognition is therefore important in SPC. Past research shows that although certain types of charts, such as the CUSUM chart, might have powerful detection ability, they lack robustness and do not function automatically. In recent years, neural network techniques have been applied to automatic pattern recognition. Spiking Neural Networks (SNNs) belong to the third generation of artificial neural networks, with spiking neurons as processing elements. In SNNs, time is an important feature for information representation and processing. This thesis proposes the application of SNN techniques to control chart pattern recognition. It is designed to present an analysis of the existing learning algorithms of SNN for pattern recognition and to explain how and why spiking neurons have more computational power in comparison to the previous generation of neural networks. This thesis focuses on the architecture and the learning procedure of the network. Four new learning algorithms arc presented with their specific architecture: Spiking Learning Vector Quantisation (S-LVQ), Enhanced-Spiking Learning Vector Quantisation (NS-LVQ), S-LVQ with Bees and NS-LVQ with Bees. The latter two algorithms employ a new intelligent swarm-based optimisation called the Bees Algorithm to optimise the LVQ pattern recognition networks. Overall, the aim of the research is to develop a simple architecture for the proposed network as well as to develop a network that is efficient for application to control chart pattern recognition. Experiments show that the proposed architecture and the learning procedure give high pattern recognition accuracies.
Fatores Sociodemográficos e Condições de Saúde Bucal em Droga-Dependentes

Objeti vo: Identi fi car clinicamente e por meio de questi onario anamnesico, as condicoes de saude bucal em individuos, causadas pelo uso de drogas e suas relacoes com fatores sociodemografi cos. Metodo: O estudo foi do ti po descriti vo transversal, com abordagem pelo metodo induti vo, sendo a amostra composta de 70 pacientes que buscaram atendimento no CAPS-ad (Centro de atencao psicossocial – alcool e outras drogas). Os dados foram coletados de forma sistemati ca por uma unica examinadora previamente calibrada, atraves de exame clinico e aplicacao de formulario especifi co para identi fi cacao e classifi cacao de provaveis alteracoes. Resultados: Os resultados encontrados mostraram que a idade media dos pacientes pesquisados foi de 40,44 anos; o genero masculino (90%) foi predominante na amostra; mais da metade dos pacientes eram da raca branca (57,1); o nivel de escolaridade encontrado nos mesmos e baixo; as drogas mais consumidas pelos mesmos foram respecti vamente o alcool (68,6%), maconha(17,1%), cocaina(7,1%), crack (4,3%) e farmacos psicotropicos (2,8%); a maioria dos dependentes apresentou saude bucal defi ciente; eram dependentes quimicos ha mais de cinco anos; a defi ciencia na saude bucal pode estar associada ao descaso com a higiene corporal provocado pelo uso abusivo de drogas. Observou-se ainda que quanto maior o periodo de dependencia mais precaria a saude bucal do usuario (p= 0,002) e que a precariedade da saude bucal dos mesmos, esta relacionada aos seus habitos de higiene bucal (p=0,029). Conclusao: Observou-se a necessidade da insercao do profi ssional de odontologia nos projetos de recuperacao oferecidos a estes pacientes, para a realizacao de programas de promocao e de recuperacao da saude bucal melhorando assim, a qualidade de vida desses pacientes. 1
From negative factor to a critical role in virus pathogenesis: the changing fortunes of Nef.

Conclusion Much progress has been made since the identification of Nef (or 3′ orf as it was then known) as a protein product of HIV-1 in 1985 (Allan et al., 1985). As I have discussed in this review, a decade of studies has shown that Nef has a number of clearly defined in vitro biological functions and a critical role in virus pathogenesis in vivo. There are several tasks to be undertaken in the foreseeable future. Firstly, the biochemical mechanisms of Nef function in vitro must be accurately defined, hopefully leading to the development of chemotherapeutic antiviral agents. Implicit in this analysis must be the investigation of the influence of Nef on virus replication in cell types other than T cells that are known to be infected by HIV, e.g. macrophages and glial cells. It is conceivable that the biochemistry of Nef function in these cell types may be distinct from that in T cells. With regard to macrophages it is pertinent that Nef apparently interacts with a macrophage-specific tyrosine kinase, Hck, with high affinity (Saksela et al., 1995). Secondly, the relative contribution of each of the in vitro functions to the role of Nef in vivo must be identified. Intuitively, it is to be expected that both CD4 down-modulation and the enhancement of virus infectivity will be important for pathogenesis of HIV infection. However, formal proof of this must be obtained. It will also be important to ascertain whether these in vitro functions are truly independent. Although both CD4 down-modulation and enhancement of virus infectivity can occur independently under in vitro conditions, it cannot be ruled out that they are linked in some way in vivo. They may be manifestations of an underlying biochemical mechanism, as yet unidentified. The most obvious grey area concerning Nef function is the effect of Nef on signal transduction pathways. This aspect of Nef embraces the most controversy and disagreement and clear interpretation of the available data is impossible. Above all, the priority here must be to demonstrate that any effects of Nef observed in vitro are relevant to virus replication and not merely artifacts of expression of a heterologous protein. That is the real challenge for the future.
The association of HIV/AIDS treatment side effects with health status, work productivity, and resource use

Abstract Due to stable incidence and improved survival rates, there are an increasing number of patients living with HIV/AIDS in the USA. Although highly effective, current antiretroviral therapies are associated with a variety of side effects. The role side effects play on health outcomes has not been fully examined. The current study assessed the association of medication side effects with (1) self-assessed health status; (2) work productivity and activity impairment; and (3) healthcare resource utilization. Data were from a cross-sectional patient-reported survey fielded in the USA using a dual methodology of Internet and paper questionnaires. A total of 953 patients living with HIV/AIDS who were currently taking a medication for their condition were included in the analyses. The most frequent side effects reported by patients were fatigue (70.72%), diarrhea (62.96%), insomnia (58.97%), dizziness (52.78%), neuropathy (52.68%), joint pain (52.36%), nausea (51.63%), and abdominal pain (50.37%). The presence of each side effect was associated with reduced self-assessed health status, increased productivity loss, increased activity impairment, and increased healthcare resource use. Controlling for CD4 cell counts in regression modeling did little to diminish the impact of side effects. Although not all side effects were associated with all outcomes, every side effect was associated with worse health status, some measure of increased work productivity loss, and/or some measure of increased healthcare resource use. Patients are living longer with HIV and, therefore, spending a greater length of time on treatment. The results of the current study suggest that many of these patients are experiencing a wide array of side effects from these therapies. These side effects have demonstrated a profound association with self-assessed health, work productivity, and healthcare resource use. Improved management of these side effects or development of treatments with a better side effect profile may have a substantial humanistic and economic benefit.
Certificate-aware encrypted traffic classification using Second-Order Markov Chain

With the prosperity of network applications, traffic classification serves as a crucial role in network management and malicious attack detection. The widely used encryption transmission protocols, such as the Secure Socket Layer/Transport Layer Security (SSL/TLS) protocols, leads to the failure of traditional payload-based classification methods. Existing methods for encrypted traffic classification suffer from low accuracy. In this paper, we propose a certificate-aware encrypted traffic classification method based on the Second-Order Markov Chain. We start by exploring reasons why existing methods not perform well, and make a novel observation that certificate packet length in SSL/TLS sessions contributes to application discrimination. To increase the diversity of application fingerprints, we develop a new model by incorporating the certificate packet length clustering into the Second-Order homogeneous Markov chains. Extensive evaluation results show that the proposed method lead to a 30% improvement on average compared with the state-of-the-art method, in terms of classification accuracy.
Calcium and iron absorption: mechanism of action and nutritional importance.

We investigated the inhibitory effect of calcium on iron absorption in 57 human subjects. Three studies suggested that the effect is not located in the gastrointestinal tract. The presence of phytate in a meal and formation of calcium-iron-phytate complexes is not a prerequisite for the inhibition. The relative increase in iron absorption by ascorbic acid was the same in meals with and without calcium, suggesting that calcium did not influence the balance between enhancing and inhibiting ligands in the gastrointestinal lumen. No inhibiting effect on iron absorption was seen when adding 3 mg calcium to 0.01 mg iron (molar ratio Ca/Fe = 420). Previous studies showing a marked inhibition by calcium had a lower molar ratio, but greater amounts of calcium were given. This suggests that a minimal concentration of calcium is needed to achieve an effect. The present results indirectly support our original hypothesis that the inhibitory effect of calcium on iron absorption is situated within the intestinal mucosal cells. The practical nutritional implications of the inhibitory effect of calcium are considerable since addition of milk, milkshake or cheese to common meals such as pizza or hamburger meals reduced iron absorption by 50-60%. It is recommended to reduce the intake of dairy products with the main meals providing most of the dietary iron, especially for those having the highest iron requirements i.e. children, teenagers and women at childbearing age.
Confidence-rich grid mapping

Representing the environment is a fundamental task in enabling robots to act autonomously in unknown environments. In this work, we present confidence-rich mapping (CRM), a new algorithm for spatial grid-based mapping of the 3D environment. CRM augments the occupancy level at each voxel by its confidence value. By explicitly storing and evolving confidence values using the CRM filter, CRM extends traditional grid mapping in three ways: first, it partially maintains the probabilistic dependence among voxels; second, it relaxes the need for hand-engineering an inverse sensor model and proposes the concept of sensor cause model that can be derived in a principled manner from the forward sensor model; third, and most importantly, it provides consistent confidence values over the occupancy estimation that can be reliably used in collision risk evaluation and motion planning. CRM runs online and enables mapping environments where voxels might be partially occupied. We demonstrate the performance of the method on various datasets and environments in simulation and on physical systems. We show in real-world experiments that, in addition to achieving maps that are more accurate than traditional methods, the proposed filtering scheme demonstrates a much higher level of consistency between its error and the reported confidence, hence, enabling a more reliable collision risk evaluation for motion planning.
Some economic aspects of the Orkneys in the Viking period

In the course of the 9th century areas in Western Europe were conquered by the Vikings. The Isles of Orkney were settled by Norwegians and became a stronghold. Some possible economic characteristics of Orkney have been considered in an attempt to gain insight into how the local resources might have: been exploited and into the contact between Norway‐Orkney and The British Isles.
Religiousness in times of job insecurity: job demand or resource?

Purpose – Departing from the job demands resources model, the purpose of this paper is to investigate whether religion, defined as strength of religious faith, can be viewed as resource or as demand. More specifically, the authors addressed the question as to how job insecurity and religion interact in predicting burnout and change-oriented behavior. Design/methodology/approach – The authors conducted moderated structural equation modeling on survey data from a sample of 238 employees confronted with organizational change. Findings – Results were largely consistent with the “religion as a demand” hypothesis: religion exacerbated rather than buffered the negative effects of job insecurity, so that the adverse impact of job insecurity was stronger for highly religious employees than for employees with low levels of religiousness. Religious employees appear to experience more strain when faced with the possibility of job loss. Originality/value – The results of this study challenge and extend existing knowledge on the role of religion in coping with life stressors. The dominant view has been that religion is beneficial in coping with major stressors. The results of this study, however, suggest otherwise: religion had an exacerbating rather than a buffering effect on the relationship between job insecurity and outcomes.
Stochastic Maximum Likelihood Optimization via Hypernetworks

This work explores maximum likelihood optimization of neural networks through hypernetworks. A hypernetwork initializes the weights of another network, which in turn can be employed for typical functional tasks such as regression and classification. We optimize hypernetworks to directly maximize the conditional likelihood of target variables given input. Using this approach we obtain competitive empirical results on regression and classification benchmarks.
Psychosocial Factors lead to Delinquency Itention on Online Peer-to-Peer Lending Platform: a Survey Evidence

In recent years, online P2P lending grows remarkably. Past studies mainly used direct second-hand data from P2P platforms to conclude many factors are related to people's delinquency and default behaviours, lacking further exploration on how people's social and psychological status could impact their behaviour during the borrowing and repayment process. On foundation of general strain theory (GST) and the model of frame selection (MFS), we used survey method and collected data from more than 700 Chinese subjects. A two-stage structural equation model was proposed. In the first stage, we investigated how people's psychosocial factors (e.g. economic capacity, sense of fairness and sociability etc.) could shape their individual feelings and attitudes in social context (e.g. life satisfaction and self-esteem) as well as morality. In the second stage, we tested the relationship between life satisfaction, self-esteem, moral norm and people's delinquency intention on P2P lending platform. The empirical results suggest that higher psychosocial status will be conductive to better individual feelings of life satisfaction and self-esteem. Moreover, better psychosocial factors will mostly lead to a higher moral norm of people. Therefore, these favourable feelings and morality further contribute to less delinquency intention on P2P lending platform. Our research has both academic and practical implications.
Rapid and Effective Speciation Analysis of Arsenic Compounds in Human Urine using Anion‐Exchange Columns in HPLC‐ICP‐MS

Received Jan 29, 2009; Accepted May 14, 2009Published online in J-STAGE Jun 18, 2009Correspondence to: Y. Suzuki, Research Center for OccupationalPoisoning, Tokyo Rosai Hospital, Japan Labour Health and WelfareOrganization, 4–13–21 Ohmori-minami, Ohta-ku, Tokyo 143-0013,Japan (e-mail: suzy@tokyoh.rofuku.go.jp)
Thirty-five Day Fluoxetine Treatment Limits Sensory-Motor Deficit and Biochemical Disorders in a Rat Model of Decompression Sickness

According to the OECD statistical base for 2014, anti-depressants will, on average, be distributed at a rate of 62 daily doses per 1,000 inhabitants for the 25 countries surveyed (Health at a glance: Europe 2014; OECD Health Statistics; World Health Organization and OECD Health Statistics, 2014). Divers must be concerned. On another hand, divers are potentially exposed to decompression sickness including coagulation inflammation and ischemia, which can result in neurological lesions or even death. The purpose of this study is to assess whether chronic treatment with anti-depressants may represent a contraindication to the practice of an at-risk activity, such as, scuba diving, or even presents a benefit by attenuating the severity of the symptoms. We study for the first time the effect of a 35-day fluoxetine treatment (20 mg/kg) on the occurrence of decompression sickness in laboratory rats (n = 79). Following exposure to the hazardous protocol, there is a significant correlation between the type of treatment and the clinical status of the rats in favor of a better clinical prognosis for the rats treated with fluoxetine with a significantly higher number of No DCS status and a lower number of Severe DCS status in the Flux, compared to Controls. The treatment modifies the rat performances both significantly and favorably during the physical and behavioral tests, just like their biological and biochemical constants. After decompression, rats under treatment display lower sensory-motor deficit and lowers biochemical disorders. From a biological point of view, we conclude fluoxetine should not be seen as a contraindication for diving on the basis of anticipated increased physiological risk.
Studies on Attachment and Ingestion Phases of Phagocytosis of Mycoplasma pulmonis by Mouse Peritoneal Macrophages 1

Summary Studies have been made on factors which influence attachment of Mycoplasma pulmonis to the surface of mouse macrophages in vitro, and on factors which determine whether or not the attached microorganisms are ingested. Attachment of mycoplasmas exhibited few specific requirements. Attachment occurred in media containing no broth, serum, or divalent cations, and it was not blocked by proteolytic enzymes, neuraminidase, lysozyme or by exposure of the mycoplasmas to glutaraldehyde, to heat, or to repeated freezing and thawing. Only glutaraldehyde fixation of both the macrophages and the mycoplasmas, or use of a nonionic sucrose medium prevented attachment. In enriched tissue culture medium, the attached mycoplasmas resisted ingestion by the macrophages. This resistance was lost if the mycoplasmas were damaged or killed in various ways. Mycoplasmas treated with proteolytic enzymes under conditions not lethal for the organisms became susceptible to ingestion by macrophages, suggesting the presence of an antiphagocytic surface protein. Mycoplasmas were also rendered susceptible to ingestion on exposure to nonlethal concentrations of antimycoplasma IgG antibody; F(ab′)2 fragments did not promote engulfment, suggesting that the Fe portion of the antibody molecule was important in the ingestion process, probably by reacting with Fc receptor sites on the macrophage.
Metacontrast, target recovery, and the magno- and parvocellular systems: A perspective

In metacontrast a masking stimulus reduces the visibility of an adjacent target stimulus. This effect has been interpreted in terms of magno-/parvocellular interactions. It has also been found that a second masking stimulus, which precedes the primary mask by about 90 ms reduces the masking effect. This reduction, which is termed “target recovery,” has been hypothesized to reflect parvocellular inhibition of the magnocellular system. However, this is problematic because the time course of this effect is much larger than would be expected from magno-/parvocellular interactions. For this and other reasons, it is difficult to understand metacontrast in terms of magno- and parvocellular mechanisms.
Interactions of C4 Subtype Metabolic Activities and Transport in Maize Are Revealed through the Characterization of DCT2 Mutants[OPEN]

C4 photosynthesis includes a complex set of pathways that were analyzed with genetic mutants through molecular and biochemical experiments in maize. C4 photosynthesis in grasses requires the coordinated movement of metabolites through two specialized leaf cell types, mesophyll (M) and bundle sheath (BS), to concentrate CO2 around Rubisco. Despite the importance of transporters in this process, few have been identified or rigorously characterized. In maize (Zea mays), DCT2 has been proposed to function as a plastid-localized malate transporter and is preferentially expressed in BS cells. Here, we characterized the role of DCT2 in maize leaves using Activator-tagged mutant alleles. Our results indicate that DCT2 enables the transport of malate into the BS chloroplast. Isotopic labeling experiments show that the loss of DCT2 results in markedly different metabolic network operation and dramatically reduced biomass production. In the absence of a functioning malate shuttle, dct2 lines survive through the enhanced use of the phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase carbon shuttle pathway that in wild-type maize accounts for ∼25% of the photosynthetic activity. The results emphasize the importance of malate transport during C4 photosynthesis, define the role of a primary malate transporter in BS cells, and support a model for carbon exchange between BS and M cells in maize.
Uptake of adenosine 5'-monophosphate by Escherichia coli

Adenosine 5'-monophosphate is dephosphorylated before its uptake by cells of Escherichia coli. This is demonstrated by using a radioactive double-labeled culture, and with a 5'-nucleotidase-deficient, mutant strain. The adenosine formed is further phosphorolyzed to adenine as a prerequisite for its uptake and incorporation. The cellular localization of the enzymes involved in the catabolism of adenosine 5'-monophosphate is discussed.