Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Enhancing Student Competencies Through Digital Video Production: A Project-based Learning Framework

Purpose: This study purposes to get a demonstration of students’ competencies enhancement through a production of digital video project as a consequence the application of technology through project-based learning (PBL) framework. Thus, PBL is a key to support students to be more competitive in an external environment. Design/Methodology/Approach: The respondents were given 4 weeks to plan and organized the video project. Likert-type questionnaire is developed to identify students’ viewpoint on the PBL method in enhancing student competencies. The data were collected through questionnaire from 63 respondents. Findings: There is a positive significant result in terms of student competencies through PBL framework which provides appropriate structure in determining the level of student competencies. Implications/Originality/Value: Students able to produce an educational based video on the topic they are learning. By integrating technology in Malaysia Education Curriculum through PBL, student competencies, which consist of communication, collaboration, creation and critical thinking was enhanced. PBL framework provides appropriate structure for determining the level of student competencies. This paper gives a framework which serves as a reference to facilitate the relevant policy- making in the secondary school education trend. This study adds to the comprehension on how PBL should be implemented in the classrooms to encourage students in to pursuing STEAM majors at the higher level.
Role of α5β1 and αvβ3 Integrins on Smooth Muscle Cell Spreading and Migration in Fibrin Gels

Summary Fibrin is found at sites of vascular injury and is one of the major matrix ligands for β3 integrins. Blocking the β3 integrin on smooth muscle cell is hypothesized as a potential target to prevent restenosis because it could inhibit cell attachment and migration into fibrin provisional matrix. Human aortic smooth muscle cells (HNB18E6E7) spread stably in plasma gels within 24 h. Cell spreading was dramatically blocked by simultaneous use of α5β1 and αvβ3 integrin antibodies (P <0.0001), however, blocking of either integrin alone failed to inhibit spreading. GPenGRGDSPCA, which has been considered a specific αvβ3 antagonist, inhibited spreading at 500 µM, suggesting that the peptide blocked both α5β1 and αvβ3. Similarly, invasive migration into fibrin gels was blocked by simultaneous use of both α5β1 and αvβ3 antibodies, however, blocking of either integrin alone failed to effect cell migration. Another migration assay using transwell indicated similar results. In conclusion, both α5β1 and αvβ3 integrins are responsible for smooth muscle cell spreading and migration into fibrin gels. These data suggest that blocking β3 integrin alone would not affect smooth muscle cell interaction with fibrin.
Surgery and multimodality therapy for mesothelioma: E01-03

Radiotherapy has become a major therapeutic option in thoracic oncology. The large accessibility of three-dimensional conformal techniques has allowed dose escalation and concurrent combination with chemotherapy to occur with acceptable toxicities. Efficacy and feasibility of conformal radiotherapy may be improved by a better definition of the tumor volumes and a finest focalisation of the ballistics. In this way, several issues are currently available, such as optimizing fractionation schemes and increasing total doses delivered to the tumor. New radiotherapy techniques have been evaluated in prospective studies, including respiratory gating, intensity modulation, which may allow even superior dose escalation and reduce normal tissues post-radiation complications. In terms of technology, stereotaxic radiotherapy and protontherapy, are so far available in a few centers, and represent a formidable hope for improved results, especially for early stage lung tumors, with preliminary very encouraging results, jeopardizing the use of surgery in certain circumstances. These present and future developments make radiotherapy one of the most promising therapeutics in thoracic oncology, and will be presented during the session. MTP15-01 Treatment of Elderly & Poor Performance Patients, Wed, Sept 5, 07:00 08:00 Treatment of elderly and poor performance status patients
Procedural generation of pencil drawings

: The aim of the thesis is to implement a procedural method which transfers a natural image into a pencil drawing-like style. Our project is written in C++. It uses libraries like OpenCV for image processing and Eigen for linear algebra computations. Since neural networks are frequently questioned, as to whether or not they are better than procedural methods for artistic style reproduction, this work presents also a detailed comparison of both of these approaches. We have re-implemented a selected method for procedural generation of pencil drawing style, bringing several modifications. We compare results of the method with a recently released code for neural network-based drawing generation. The result of this subjective comparison indicates that neural networks maybe be better suited for the generation of pencil-like hatching texture to reproduce shading. On the other hand, the procedurally generated outlined produced by the implemented approach provide more natural renderings.
A New Evaluation Criterion for Allocation Mechanisms with Application to Vehicle License Allocations in China

In this paper, we propose an equality measure for allocation mechanisms with budget constraints to describe the difference in object obtaining opportunities among buyers with different budget ranks. We evaluate allocation mechanisms not only from the perspective of efficiency and revenue, but also with the criterion of equality. As an application of this new evaluation criterion -- the equality measure, we study the vehicle license allocation problem in China, introduce a class of hybrid auction-lottery mechanisms, and evaluate China's vehicle license allocation in a unified framework from the criteria of efficiency, equality, and revenue.
End to End Person Re-Identification Based on Attention Mechanism

This paper treats person re-identification (re-id) as a sequential model, guide person re-id with person detection, combines recurrent neural network (RNN) with attention mechanism, and proposed an end to end person re-id method for surveillance scenarios. The feature of target person is firstly extracted using ResNet, and then the feature is added to the long short-term memory (LSTM) network to guide the attention model for the region of interest in the surveillance image. Finally, combined with the information observed from the image multiple times, the most similar candidate person in the image is deduced, and the feature distance is calculated and ranked for person re-id. This paper strengthens the relationship between person detection and person re-id, and reduces the error between models. Because the number of candidate person matched with target person is reduced, this method can process person re-id task with less calculation and time. This paper also verified the effectiveness of the proposed method by experiments comparing a variety of person detection and re-id methods on several person re-id datasets.
Synergistic Effect in Combination of Danshen (Salvia miltiorrhiza) Extracts with Antibiotics against Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus

Danshen (Salvia miltiorrhiza Bunge) is a traditional Korean medicine that is commonly used for the treatment of inflammatory diseases such as edema, arthritis, hepatitis, and endangitis. The several extracts of danshen were tested for antimicrobial activity against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) isolated in clinic by broth microdilution method, the checkerboard, and time-kill methods to evaluate the synergistic effects of the combination of the extracts with antibiotics. The chloroform (CHCl₃) and n-hexane (HEX) extracts [minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC), 0.0078-0.3125 ㎍/㎖; minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC), 0.019-0.625 ㎍/㎖] were found to have strong antibacterial activity against MRSA. Additionally, when the CHCl₃ and HEX extracts were co-administered with ampicillin or oxacillin, a synergistic effect against MRSA was observed. Furthermore, a time-kill study evaluating the effects of the extracts against MRSA indicated that treatment with the CHCl₃ extract in combination with ampicillin or oxacillin produced rapid bactericidal activity. These results suggest that danshen extracts may have potently antimicrobial activity and thus, it can be a suitable phytotherapeutic agent for treating MRSA infections.
Survey of the Impact of Using Text Messaging Educational Method on Breast Self Examination in Female Students of None-medical Fields In 2013

Purpose: Short text messaging is the easiest and cheapest way to promote knowledge level in the society which provides easy access to an extent layer of audience and a two way connection between users and educational sources in a short time and in any place. Present study has been done with the purpose of evaluating the impact of using text messages as an educational tool on breast self examination education in female students of none-medical fields in 2013. Method: in a clinical trial 54 female students from Tarbiat Modarres dormitories were selected by accidental sampling and then were educated about breast cancer, its control ways and breast self examination by 28 educational text messages at 9 AM every day for 1 moth. Data collection tool was a questionnaire designed by the researcher which was used as a pre-test and then 3 months after education as a post test and the quality of doing breast self examination was evaluated by an operational test and check list. Data analysis was done with SPSS 20 software and a parametric statistical test (paired T-test) in a significant level of p<0.05. Findings: There is a significant difference in knowledge, attitude and performance points (KAP) about breast self examination before and after educational text messaging intervention (p = 0.001). Text messaging with 47.2% was selected as the first priority by the samples. Results: text messaging educational method is effective in promotion of breast cancer preventive behaviors. The amount of KAP in female students about breast self examination was effectively elevated after text message education. We suggest use of this educational method in health education programs especially in breast cancer controlling for maintaining women's health and hygiene.
Modelling and Analysis of Web Applications in Tamarin

In this thesis, we present a generic framework for modelling key elements of the Web infrastructure. We implement the framework using the security protocol verification tool Tamarin. We describe some of the security challenges the Web faces today and show how some of the most common attacks can be modelled using the framework. The framework can also be used to model concrete Web applications and protocols which we demonstrate using the example of the authentication protocol OpenID Connect. In addition, we explain the general usage of the Tamarin prover and give insight into its inner working.
Teachers\' Negative Attitudes towards Interactive Whiteboard Use: Needs and Problems

Recently, along with the development of new software and hardware, Interactive Whiteboards (IWBs) have become a widely used technology at every level of education. In general, earlier studies reveal that IWBs facilitate students’ learning in fast, effective, and enjoyable ways. Rather than the examination of contributions and advantages of IWBs, this study aims to uncover negative aspects that teachers perceive or face while using IWBs to teach in their courses. In total, 140 primary school teachers of various subjects (e.g., math, science, language, etc.) responded to a questionnaire based on the negative aspects of IWBs. In addition, teachers were asked, through open-ended questions, to write the problems and shortcomings of IWBs. Results showed that teachers avoided use of IWBs during their lectures. Results also indicated that teachers experienced a lack of technical skills, pedagogical knowledge, and lack of materials regarding the effective use of IWB.
Randomized structure-adaptive optimization

This thesis advances the state-of-the-art of randomized optimization algorithms, to efficiently solve the large-scale composite optimization problems which appear increasingly more frequent in modern statistical machine learning and signal processing applications in this big-data era. It contributes from a special point of view, that the low-dimensional structure of the composite optimization problem’s solution (such as sparsity, group-sparsity, piece-wise smoothness, or low-rank structure, etc), can be actively exploited by some purposefully tailored optimization algorithms to achieve even faster convergence rates – namely, the structure-adaptive algorithms. Driven by this motivation, several randomized optimization algorithms are designed and analyzed in this thesis. The proposed methods are provably equipped with the desirable structure-adaptive property, including the sketched gradient descent algorithms, the structure-adaptive variants of accelerated stochastic variance-reduced gradient descent and randomized coordinate descent algorithms. The thesis provides successful and inspiring paradigms for the algorithmic design of randomized structure-adaptive methods, confirming that the lowdimensional structure is indeed a promising “hidden treasure” to be exploited for accelerating large-scale optimization.
Brief Communication Effect of trifluoperazine on carrageenan-induced acute inflammation in intact and adrenalectomized rats

The aim of present study was to investigate the effect of trifluoperazine (TFP) on carrageenan- induced rat's paw edema in intact and adrenalectomized (ADX). TFP (0.2 and 8 mg/kg) were given intraperitoneally just before the intraplantar injection of 0.1 ml of 0.5% carrageenan solution. After four hours, paw edema was assessed by calculating the paw volume changes and extravasations of Evans blue dye as inflammatory indicators. In both ADX and control groups, administration of TFP reduced inflammatory parameters (paw volume and tissue content of Evans blue dye) in inflamed paw. Our findings suggest that TFP can effectively reduce carrageenan-induced paw edema in both ADX and control rats. Therefore, anti- inflammatory effect of these drugs does not need the adrenal gland activity.
HIV/AIDS in Northeastern Nigeria: A review

The HIV/AIDS situation in Nigeria has undergone a lot of transformation following a long period that was plagued by superstition and denial. The HIV Sero Prevalence Sentinel Surveys were conducted among the antenatal clinic (ANC) attendees in Nigeria being considered to be a homogenous community of persons with steady sexual partners. Included in the survey were pregnant women aged between 15 to 49 years of age from rural and urban areas across all the 36 states of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). The clinic attendance pattern at enrollment from one of the HIV/AIDS care clinics in the zone was also added, to highlight the burden of the problem. The recent survey revealed that the National prevalence of HIV stands at 4.1%, although there are centers that recorded prevalence rates far greater than the national average in many zones of the country. We later discussed the epidemiology of the disease in the northeast region with some peculiarities that encourage the spread of HIV/AIDS, especially related to this part of Nigeria.
The long-term effect of a preventive programme on caries, periodontal disease and tooth mortality in individuals with Down syndrome

Introduction: Individuals with Down syndrome (DS) have an increased prevalence of periodontal disease compared with otherwise normal, age-matched control groups and other intellectually disabled patients of similar age distribution. Caries prevalence tends to be lower in this population. Aim and objectives: To determine the long-term effect of periodic plaque control, on the progression of periodontal diseases and tooth mortality in patients with DS. Material and Methods: 25 adolescents and adults with DS (12 females/13 males, mean age 35.6 ± 8.6 years) were chosen to participate in the study from all patients with a disability, who had been treated for dental problems in a private dental practice in Borken, Germany. Standard indices to assess dental caries (DMFT), periodontal disease (PSR; bone loss; age ratio; tooth loss) were applied. Routine dental care and preventive care were performed over at least ten years. Results: Patient Group I consisted of 10 patients aged ≤ 15 years; Group II 15 patients aged ≥ 16 years, on first attend ance. The overall mean DMFT score of all surveyed patients with Down syndrome was 13.4. For Group I and Group II, the mean DMFT scores were 8 and 17, respectively. Across all sites, 49.3% exhibited calculus and bleeding on probing. Shallow pockets and deep pocketing could be identified in 37.5% and 13.2% of all sites, respectively; 58.3% of all patients had slight bone loss in relation to age and 25% of all patients exhibited advanced bone loss. During the observation period an average of 2.5 teeth were lost in all patients, 0.5 in Group I and 3.8 in Group II. Conclusions: The results indicate that well-performed preventive procedures can prevent the progression of periodontal destruction in patients with DS. Only a few sites exhibited signs of advanced attachment loss and only few teeth were lost over the years of maintenance
Conditional Dilated Attention Tracking Model - C-DATM

Highlander, Tyler Clayton . Ph.D., Department of Computer Science and Engineering, Wright State University, 2019. Conditional Dilated Attention Tracking Model C-DATM. Current commercial tracking systems do not process images fast enough to perform target-tracking in realtime. State-of-the-art methods use entire scenes to locate objects frame-by-frame and are commonly computationally expensive because they use image convolutions. Alternatively, attention mechanisms track more efficiently by mimicking human optical cognitive interaction to only process small portions of an image. Thus, in this work we use an attention-based approach to create a model called C-DATM (Conditional Dilated Attention tracking Model) that learns to compare target features in a sequence of imageframes using dilated convolutions. The C-DATM is tested using the Modified National Institute of Standards and Technology handwritten digits. We also compare the results achieved by C-DATM to the results achieved by other attention-based networks like Deep Recurrent Attentive Writer and Recurrent Attention Tracking Model that appear in the literature. C-DATM builds on previous attention principles to achieve generic, efficient, and recurrent-less object tracking. The GOTURN(General Object Tracking using Regression Networks) model which won the VOT 2014 dataset challenge contains similar operating principles to C-DATM and is used as an exemplar to explore the advantages and disadvantages C-DATM. The results of this comparison demonstrate that C-DATM has a number of significant advantage over GOTURN including faster processing of image sequences and the ability to generalize to tracking new targets without retraining the system.
On Some k-scoring Rules for Committee Elections: Agreement and Condorcet Principle

Given a collection of individual preferences on a set of candidates and a desired number of winners, a multi-winner voting rule outputs groups of winners, which we call committees. In this paper, we consider five multi-winner voting rules widely studied in the literature of social choice theory: the k-Plurality rule, the k-Borda rule, the k-Negative Plurality rule, the Bloc rule, and the Chamberlin-Courant rule. The objective of this paper is to provide a comparison of these multi-winner voting rules according to many principles by taking into account a probabilistic approach using the well-known Impartial Anonymous Culture (IAC) assumption. We first evaluate the probability that each pair of the considered voting rules selects the same unique committee in order to identify which multi-winner rules are the most likely to agree for a given number of candidates and a fixed target size of the committee. In this matter, our results show that the Chamberlin-Courant rule and the k-Plurality rule on one side, and the k-Borda rule and the Bloc rule on the other side, are the pairs of rules that most agree in comparison to other pairs. Furthermore, we evaluate the probability of every multi-winner voting rule selecting the Condorcet committee a la Gehrlein when it exists. The Condorcet committee a la Gehrlein is a fixed-size committee such that every member defeats every non-member in pairwise comparisons. In addition, we compare the considered multi-winner voting rules according to their ability (susceptibility) to select a committee containing the Condorcet winner (loser) when one exists. Here, our results tell us that in general, the k-Borda rule has the highest performance amongst all the considered voting rules. Finally, we highlight that this paper is one of the very rare contributions in the literature giving exact results under the Impartial Anonymous Culture (IAC) condition for the case of four candidates.