Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Localized Plasmonic Properties of Subwavelength Geometries Resonating at Terahertz Frequencies

A review of localized plasmonic properties of 2-D terahertz (THz) metallic geometries is presented. The high electric conductivity of metals in the THz regime enables fascinating plasmonic behaviors observed in metallic structures of subwavelength dimensions. Strong electric field enhancement was demonstrated in arrays of various subwavelength metallic particles including patches, rings, and ring-patch coaxials. We also show that periodic arrays of integrated coaxials comprised of patches and subwavelength holes not only resulted in a factor-of-eight increase in normalized transmittance compared to that of the hole-only counterpart, but also tailored polarization dependent transmission discrepancy encountered in arrays of rectangular holes. The localized plasmonic properties and the resulted electric field enhancement will find fascinating applications in THz sensing, spectroscopy, and integrated components.
Loss of Genetic Variation in Hatchery Produced Haliotis Asinina Using AFLP and Allozyme Markers

The genetic diversity and differentiation between wild and hatchery Haliotis asinina populations were tested by allozyme and AFLP techniques. The results from allozyme technique showed that there was a decline in mean number of alleles per locus, percentage of polymorphic loci and observed heterozygosity and a change in allele frequency in three loci, SDH-1, AAT-1 and EST-1. Allelic richness, percentage of polymorphic loci and observed heterozygosities ranged from 1.4 (0.2) to 1.2 (0.1), from 30 to 20, from 0.150 (0.104) to 0.140 (0.103) within both wild and hatchery H.asinina populations, respectively. Compared to wild population, the hatchery population from AFLP technique also showed that there was a reduction in effective number of allele, gene diversity, shannon's information index and percentage of polymorphic loci, they ranged from 1.5215 to 1.4675, from 0.2932 to 0.2609, from 0.4252 to 0.3778 and from 69.93 to 62.09, respectively. But low level of differentiation was found between wild and hatchery H.asinina populations. It is inferred that it is small effective population size inbreeding that results in loss of genetic variation in the hatchery H.asinina seed.
Efficient Lossy Compression for Compressive Sensing Acquisition of Images in Compressive Sensing Imaging Systems

Compressive Sensing Imaging (CSI) is a new framework for image acquisition, which enables the simultaneous acquisition and compression of a scene. Since the characteristics of Compressive Sensing (CS) acquisition are very different from traditional image acquisition, the general image compression solution may not work well. In this paper, we propose an efficient lossy compression solution for CS acquisition of images by considering the distinctive features of the CSI. First, we design an adaptive compressive sensing acquisition method for images according to the sampling rate, which could achieve better CS reconstruction quality for the acquired image. Second, we develop a universal quantization for the obtained CS measurements from CS acquisition without knowing any a priori information about the captured image. Finally, we apply these two methods in the CSI system for efficient lossy compression of CS acquisition. Simulation results demonstrate that the proposed solution improves the rate-distortion performance by 0.4∼2 dB comparing with current state-of-the-art, while maintaining a low computational complexity.
Low Delay Audio Streaming for a 3 D Audio Recording System

This paper presents a prototype of a 3D audio recording system named AudioSense which uses Wireless Acoustic Sensors to capture spatial audio. The sound is recorded in real-time by microphones embedded in each sensor device and streamed to a Processing Unit for 3D audio compression. One of the key problems in systems which stream audio data is end-to-end latency. This paper is focused on analyzing a set of chosen parameters of the Opus codec in order to obtain the minimal delay. Experimental results on the prototype system have shown that it is possible to achieve below 10ms of end-toend audio delay with the use of the Opus codec.
Towards a system theoretic approach to wireless network capacity in finite time and space

In asymptotic regimes, both in time and space (network size), the derivation of network capacity results is grossly simplified by brushing aside queueing behavior in nonJackson networks. This simplifying double-limit model, however, lends itself to conservative numerical results in finite regimes. To properly account for queueing behavior beyond a simple calculus based on average rates, we advocate a system theoretic methodology for the capacity problem in finite time and space regimes. This methodology also accounts for spatial correlations arising in networks with CSMA/CA scheduling and it delivers rigorous closed-form capacity results in terms of probability distributions. Unlike numerous existing asymptotic results, subject to anecdotal practical concerns, our transient results can be used in practical settings, e.g., to compute the time scales at which multi-hop routing is more advantageous than single-hop routing.
Spliced isoforms of LIM‐domain‐binding protein (CLIM/NLI/Ldb) lacking LIM interaction domain

LIM‐domain‐binding proteins (CLIM/NLI/Ldb) are involved in a variety of developmental processes by assembling into functional complexes with the LIM homeodomain transcription factors (LIM‐HD) and LIM‐only proteins (LMO) through the LIM‐interaction domain (LID). The LID of Ldb is located in the carboxy‐terminal region, and encoded by the last exon (exon 11) of Ldb genes. It has been known that the mammalian CLIM1/Ldb2 gene has a splice isoform, named CLIM1b, lacking LID. Little is known about the nature of CLIM1b, and this type of alternative splicing is very well conserved among mammals and chicken but not in Xenopus and teleost fish. Here, we demonstrate that other Ldb genes also have splice isoforms lacking LID: Ldb4b in teleost fish; and Ldb1b in tetrapods (mammals, chicken, and Xenopus). All these alternative splicing occur in intron 10 and exon 11, but the splicing patterns are different among the isoforms. The nature of zebrafish Ldb4b is examined by expression of the protein in E. coli and mammalian culture cells. Ldb4b localized in the nucleus when expressed in mammalian culture cells. Ldb4b did not bind Lhx3 directly. However, Ldb4b bound Ldb4a, the splice isoform of Ldb4 containing LID, and LMO4 via Ldb4a. These findings suggest that splice isoforms of Ldb lacking LID are potential regulator of Ldb function.
Contribution of polymorphisms in the apolipoprotein AI-CIII-AIV cluster to hyperlipidaemia in patients with gout

Background: Studies have shown that hyperuricaemia is independently related to the insulin resistance syndrome and that polymorphisms of the apolipoprotein AI-CIII-AIV cluster are also related to insulin resistance. Objective: To study the prevalence of polymorphisms of the apolipoprotein AI-CIII-AIV cluster in persons with gout and to determine whether these polymorphisms contribute to the pathophysiology of gout or to altered lipid concentrations. Methods: Plasma cholesterol, triglycerides, uric acid, VLDL, LDL, IDL, and HDL triglycerides, cholesterol, and the renal excretion of uric acid were measured in 68 patients with gout with gout and 165 healthy subjects. Polymorphisms were studied by amplification and RFLP in all subjects, using XmnI and MspI in the apolipoprotein AI gene and SstI in the apolipoprotein CIII gene. Results: The A allele at position −75 bp in the apolipoprotein AI gene was more common in patients with gout than in controls (p = 0.01). Levels of cholesterol, triglycerides, uric acid, basal glycaemia, and HDL cholesterol were higher in the patients (p<0.001). In the patients there was also an interaction between mutations at the two polymorphic loci studied in the apolipoprotein AI gene (p = 0.04). An absence of the mutation at position −75 bp of the apolipoprotein AI gene resulted in increased plasma triglyceride levels. Conclusions: Gouty patients have an altered allelic distribution in the apolipoprotein AI-CIII-AIV cluster, which could lead to changes in levels of lipoproteins. This is not caused by a single mutation but rather by a combination of different mutations.
Stein Variational Gradient Descent as Gradient Flow

Stein variational gradient descent (SVGD) is a deterministic sampling algorithm that iteratively transports a set of particles to approximate given distributions, based on an efficient gradient-based update that guarantees to optimally decrease the KL divergence within a function space. This paper develops the first theoretical analysis on SVGD, discussing its weak convergence properties and showing that its asymptotic behavior is captured by a gradient flow of the KL divergence functional under a new metric structure induced by Stein operator. We also provide a number of results on Stein operator and Stein's identity using the notion of weak derivative, including a new proof of the distinguishability of Stein discrepancy under weak conditions.
Orientation Estimation Using a Quaternion-Based Indirect Kalman Filter With Adaptive Estimation of External Acceleration

This paper is concerned with orientation estimation using inertial and magnetic sensors. A quaternion-based indirect Kalman filter structure is used. The magnetic sensor output is only used for yaw angle estimation using two-step measurement updates. External acceleration is estimated from the residual of the filter and compensated by increasing the measurement noise covariance. Using the direction information of external information, the proposed method prevents unnecessarily increasing the measurement noise covariance corresponding to the accelerometer output, which is not affected by external acceleration. Through numerical examples, the proposed method is verified.
Mutation of the DRY Motif Reveals Different Structural Requirements for the CC Chemokine Receptor 5-Mediated Signaling and Receptor Endocytosis

CC chemokine receptor 5 (CCR5) is a G protein-coupled receptor that governs migration of leukocytes and serves as a coreceptor for the R5 tropic strains of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). CCR5-mediated signaling in response to CC chemokines relies on G protein activation. Desensitization, which rapidly turns off G protein-dependent signaling, involves phosphorylation of CCR5 that promotes interaction of the receptor with β-arrestins for endocytosis. Whether coupling to G proteins, desensitization, and endocytosis of CCR5 require the same structural determinants remains a matter of investigation. Here, we show that CCR5 displayed agonist-independent coupling to G proteins. This constitutive activity of the receptor was abrogated by TAK779 (N,N-dimethyl-N-[4-[[[2-(4-methylphenyl)-6,7-dihydro-5H-benzocyclohepten-8-yl]carbonyl]amino]benzyl]tetrahydro-2H-pyran-4-aminium chloride), a nonpeptidic CCR5 ligand that inhibits HIV infection and was found to depend on the integrity of the Asp-Arg-Tyr (DRY) motif. Changing Arg-126 by the neutral residue Asn (R126N-CCR5 mutant) abolished CCR5-mediated activation of G proteins, either constitutively or in response to agonists. In contrast, R126N-CCR5 not only retained agonist-promoted phosphorylation and β-arrestin-dependent endocytosis but also displayed a higher basal phosphorylation than wild-type CCR5. Expression of β-arrestin in R126N-CCR5-expressing cells resulted in receptor down-regulation, thereby suggesting that R126N-CCR5 spontaneously interacts with β-arrestins. However, although expression of β-arrestin favored wild-type CCR5-mediated chemotaxis, it failed to promote migration of cells expressing R126N-CCR5. Overall, these data indicate that structural requirements for CCR5-mediated activation of G proteins, albeit not involved in receptor desensitization and internalization, are needed for β-arrestin-mediated chemotaxis. These results have implications for how distinct biological responses of CCR5 might rely on a different set of receptor conformations.
Prostate Epithelial Cells Induces Malignant Transformation of Nontumorigenic Rat β Loss of Responsiveness to Transforming Growth Factor Updated

Transforming growth factor (TGF)bs are multifunctional growth factors, the properties of which include the potent inhibition of epithelial cell growth. Expression patterns of TGF-bs and TGF-b receptors in the normal prostate indicate that these growth regulators play key roles in prostatic development and proliferative homeostasis. Importantly, TGFb receptor levels are frequently diminished in malignant human prostate tissue. To test the hypothesis that loss of TGFb responsiveness is causally involved in the tumorigenic process, we have used retroviral transduction to introduce a dominant-negative mutant type II TGF-b receptor (DNR) into the premalignant rat prostatic epithelial cell line, NRP-152. Highlevel expression of the DNR abolished the ability of TGFb to inhibit cell growth, to promote cell differentiation, and to induce apoptosis, and it partially blocked the induction of extracellular matrix gene expression. When injected into nude mice, NRP-152-DNR cells formed carcinomas at 13 of 34 sites, compared with 0 of 30 sites for parental and control cells (P 5 0.0001). We conclude that the type II TGFb receptor is an important tumor suppressor in the prostate, and furthermore, that loss of TGF-b responsiveness can contribute early in the tumorigenic process by causing the malignant transformation of preneoplastic cells.
Do cover crops give short term benefits for soil health

Cover crop use in the UK is increasing with establishment often before spring cereal crops. Therefore trials were implemented to assess two different cover crop mixtures for i) their ability to remediate soil compaction, ii) aid water management and iii) increase earthworm numbers. Two cover crop mixtures; frost sensitive (black oats, oil radish and mustard) and winter hardy (forage rye, oil radish and berseem clover) were compared to control plots. This replicated trial was based at G’s Growers on an organomineral soil with a cover crop sown between wheat harvested in August 2016 and maize sown in May 2017. The results suggest that in the short term there are small differences in soil physical characteristics. Notably at a depth of 10–20 cm there is a reduction in soil strength as measured by the penetrologger and shear vane following the frost sensitive cover crop mix. Juvenile earthworm population was significantly greater in the control treatment compared to the frost sensitive cover crop treatment. In May 2017 maize was established across all plots.
A Feasible Path Selection QoS Routing Algorithm with two Constraints in Packet Switched Networks

(cid:3) Abstract— Over the past several years, there has been a considerable amount of research within the field of Quality of Service (QoS) support for distributed multimedia systems. One of the key issues in providing end-to-end QoS guarantees in packet networks is determining a feasible path that satisfies a number of QoS constraints. The problem of finding a feasible path is NP-Complete if number of constraints is more than two and cannot be exactly solved in polynomial time. We proposed Feasible Path Selection Algorithm (FPSA) that addresses issues with pertain to finding a feasible path subject to delay and cost constraints and it offers higher success rate in finding feasible paths.
Zastosowanie diagramu Woronoja w badaniu przestrzennych wzorców rozmieszczenia i dostępności sklepów dyskontowych = Application of the Voronoi Diagram in analysing of spatial patterns to the distribution of discount stores and access to them

Zarys treści. Celem artykułu jest przedstawienie możliwości wykorzystania diagramu Woronoja w badaniach przestrzennych aspektów dostępności placówek handlowych. Założony cel zrealizowano na przykładzie analizy rozmieszczenia i dostępności przestrzennej dyskontów sieci Biedronka, działających w Poznaniu. W badaniach statystycznych zastosowano metody wskaźnikowe charakteryzujące poziom dostępności oraz miary autokorelacji przestrzennej pozwalające zidentyfikować wzorce przestrzenne rozkładu badanych cech. W świetle uzyskanych wyników stwierdzono, że pomimo znacznej liczby sklepów dyskontowych Biedronka zlokalizowanych głównie w miejscach największej koncentracji ludności, dostępność tych placówek na terenie miasta Poznania była zróżnicowana przestrzennie. Praca wypełnia pewną lukę w polskiej literaturze w stosunku do bogatej w tym względzie literatury zagranicznej. Słowa kluczowe: diagram Woronoja, dostępność przestrzenna, autokorelacja przestrzenna, reżimy przestrzenne, Poznań, dyskonty Biedronka.
Quantitative dot blot analysis (QDB), a versatile high throughput immunoblot method

Lacking access to an affordable method of high throughput immunoblot analysis for daily use remains a big challenge for scientists worldwide. We proposed here Quantitative Dot Blot analysis (QDB) to meet this demand. With the defined linear range, QDB analysis fundamentally transforms traditional immunoblot method into a true quantitative assay. Its convenience in analyzing large number of samples also enables bench scientists to examine protein expression levels from multiple parameters. In addition, the small amount of sample lysates needed for analysis means significant saving in research sources and efforts. This method was evaluated at both cellular and tissue levels with unexpected observations otherwise would be hard to achieve using conventional immunoblot methods like Western blot analysis. Using QDB technique, we were able to observed an age-dependent significant alteration of CAPG protein expression level in TRAMP mice. We believe that the adoption of QDB analysis would have immediate impact on biological and biomedical research to provide much needed high-throughput information at protein level in this “Big Data” era.
Memetic-CLA-PSO: A Hybrid Model for Optimization

In this paper a hybrid model which is a combination of Memetic algorithm, cellular learning automata (CLA) and PSO is proposed. The proposed algorithm in addition to maintaining diversity; largely reduces the probability of getting trap in local optima. Experimental results on eight optimization problems show the superiority of the proposed algorithm.
Music models for music-speech separation

We consider the task of speech recognition with loud music background interference. We use model-based music-speech separation and train GMM models for music on the audio prior to speech. We show over 8% relative improvement in WER at 10 dB SNR for a real world Voice Search ASR system. We investigate the relationship between ASR accuracy and the amount of music background used as prologue and the the size of music models. Our study shows that performance peaks when using a music prologue of around 6 seconds to train the music model. We hypothesize that this is due to the dynamic nature of music and the structure of popular music. Adding more history beyond a certain point does not improve results. Additionally, we show moderately sized 8-component music GMM models suffice to model this amount of music prologue.
Integrated Spoofing Countermeasures and Automatic Speaker Verification: An Evaluation on ASVspoof 2015

It is well known that automatic speaker verification (ASV) systems can be vulnerable to spoofing. The community has responded to the threat by developing dedicated countermeasures aimed at detecting spoofing attacks. Progress in this area has accelerated over recent years, partly as a result of the first standard evaluation, ASVspoof 2015, which focused on spoofing detection in isolation from ASV. This paper investigates the integration of state-of-the-art spoofing countermeasures in combination with ASV. Two general strategies to countermeasure integration are reported: cascaded and parallel. The paper reports the first comparative evaluation of each approach performed with the ASVspoof 2015 corpus. Results indicate that, even in the case of varying spoofing attack algorithms, ASV performance remains robust when protected with a diverse set of integrated countermeasures.
Generalized MPU Implicits Using Belief Propagation

In this paper, we present a new algorithm to reconstruct 3D surfaces from an unorganized point cloud based on generalizing the MPU implicit algorithm through introducing a powerful orientation inference scheme via Belief Propagation. Instead of using orientation information like surface normals, local data distribution analysis is performed to identify the local surface property so as to guide the selection of local fitting models. We formulate the determination of the globally consistent orientation as a graph optimization problem. Local belief networks are constructed by treating the local shape functions as their nodes. The consistency of adjacent nodes linked by an edge is checked by evaluating the functions and an energy is thus defined. By minimizing the total energy over the graph, we can obtain an optimal assignment of labels indicating the orientation of each local shape function. The local inference result is propagated over the model in a front-propagation fashion to obtain the global solution. We demonstrate the performance of the proposed algorithm by showing experimental results on some real-world 3D data sets.
Robust and Accurate Shape Model Matching Using Random Forest Regression-Voting

A widely used approach for locating points on deformable objects in images is to generate feature response images for each point, and then to fit a shape model to these response images. We demonstrate that Random Forest regression-voting can be used to generate high quality response images quickly. Rather than using a generative or a discriminative model to evaluate each pixel, a regressor is used to cast votes for the optimal position of each point. We show that this leads to fast and accurate shape model matching when applied in the Constrained Local Model framework. We evaluate the technique in detail, and compare it with a range of commonly used alternatives across application areas: the annotation of the joints of the hands in radiographs and the detection of feature points in facial images. We show that our approach outperforms alternative techniques, achieving what we believe to be the most accurate results yet published for hand joint annotation and state-of-the-art performance for facial feature point detection.
The Cost of Achieving the Best Portfolio in Hindsight

For a market with m assets consider the minimum, over all possible sequences of asset prices through time n, of the ratio of the final wealth of a nonanticipating investment strategy to the wealth obtained by the best constant rebalanced portfolio computed in hindsight for that price sequence. We show that the maximum value of this ratio over all nonanticipating investment strategies is Vn[Σ2-nH(n1/n,.,nm/n)(n1! .nm! ))] -1 where H(.) is the Shannon entropy, and we specify a strategy achieving it. The optimal ratio Vn is shown to decrease only polynomially in n, indicating that the rate of return of the optimal strategy converges uniformly to that of the best constant rebalanced portfolio determined with full hindsight. We also relate this result to the pricing of a new derivative security which might be called the hindsight allocation option.