Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Enhancing AI-Based Game Playing Using Adaptive Data Structures

The design and analysis of strategies for playing strategic board games, is a core area of Artificial Intelligence (AI) that has been studied extensively since the inception of the field. However, while two-player board games are very well known, comparatively little research has been done on Multi-Player games, where the number of self-interested, competing players is greater than two. Furthermore, known strategies for multi-player games have difficulties performing on a level of sophistication comparable to their two-player counterparts. The premise of this thesis is the hypothesis that game playing in general, and the problem of multi-player games in particular, can benefit from efficient ranking mechanisms, for moves, board positions, or even players, in the multi-player scenario. The research done in this work confirms the hypothesis. Indeed, we have discovered that this information can be applied to improve game tree pruning, and within other possibilities. In this thesis, we observe that the formerly-unrelated field of Adaptive Data Structures (ADSs), which provide mechanisms by which a data structure can reorganize itself internally in response to queries, can provide a natural ranking mechanism. The primary motivation of this thesis is to demonstrate that the low-cost ADS-based data structures can provide this ranking mechanism to game playing engines, and furthermore generate statistically significant improvements to their efficiency. In this work, we will conclusively prove that ADS-based techniques are able to enhance existing multi-player game playing strategies, and perform competitively with state-of-the-art two-player techniques, as well. We demonstrate, through two general-use, domain independent move ordering heuristics, the Threat-ADS heuristic for multi-player games, and the History-ADS heuristic for both two-player and multi-player games, that ADSs are, indeed, capable of achieving this improvement. We present an examination of their performance in a very wide range of game models and configurations. We thus conclusively demonstrate that ADSs are able to achieve strong performance, in game playing engines, in the vast majority of cases. Our work in this thesis provides not only these domain-independent, formal move ordering heuristics, but furthermore serves as a strong example for future investigation into combinations between the fields of ADSs and game playing.
Exploring What It Is Like to Be an Undocumented Alien in Seek of Healthcare

Part of the Community Health and Preventive Medicine Commons, Family Practice Nursing Commons, Health Policy Commons, Maternal, Child Health and Neonatal Nursing Commons, Other Nursing Commons, Other Public Affairs, Public Policy and Public Administration Commons, Other Public Health Commons, Pediatric Nursing Commons, Public Health and Community Nursing Commons, and the Public Health Education and Promotion Commons Find similar works at: https://stars.library.ucf.edu/honorstheses University of Central Florida Libraries http://library.ucf.edu
Rule-based Information Extraction: Advantages, Limitations, and Perspectives

: With the clear advantages and capabilities of neural networks and machine learning in general, rule-based approaches and their usage and potential for information extraction (IE) are hardly addressed by academic research. This is counter-intuitive since recent studies have shown that a majority of large vendors of information extraction software, including IBM, SAP, and Microsoft, are using this technology predominantly within their offered products and services. This paper summarizes the advantages and limitations of rule-based IE and discusses its role for legal information retrieval. In addition, several different perspectives for academic research and industrial usage are illustrated.
Auditory effects of noise pollution: Current research and future trends

Noise pollution is increasingly being recognized as a major health problem in India. An increased incidence of noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL) has been observed in recent years. Several advances have taken place in the understanding of the molecular basis of NIHL. This can help in evolving preventive and treatment strategies. Research in genetics is progressing at a rapid pace, and several genes linked to NIHL have been identified. In the future, gene therapy may be available as a management modality. This paper will focus on the current research and future trends on the auditory effects of noise pollution.
The Education for All – Fast Track Initiative

The Education for All Fast Track Initiative (FTI) is a global partnership to help low income countries to achieve the education Millennium Development Goal (MDG) of ensuring that every child receives a good quality primary education. The FTI is supported by over 30 bilateral and multilateral donor agencies and has provided support to over 60 countries around the world, including many from the Commonwealth. Table 1 lists the countries which have already become full FTI partners or are expected to join over the next two years.
Pathological and Molecular Investigations on Foot and Mouth Virus Outbreaks Among Cattle Herds in Dakahlia Governorate, Egypt

The present study represents an extensive field survey of the pathological affections caused by local Food and Mouth Disease (FMD) virus throughout Dakahlia governorate, North Egypt. The study included 670 cattle belonging to local and Frisian breeds. The age of the examined animals ranged from ten days to four years and they were of both sexes. The morbidity rates among the investigated cattle herds of either Frisian or native origin were 100% and 5% respectively. We observed early mortality in infected calves aging ten days old and older calves. This was concurrently associated with lesions of severe myocarditis which appeared to be responsible for the death. On the other hand, adult cattle showed vesicular lesions, erosions and ulcers on the mucous membrane of the mouth and skin on the feet and udder. In addition, fever, anorexia, and pstyalism were observed. Histopathological examination of both young calves and adult cattle revealed multitude of inflammatory and necrotic lesions in the myocardium, liver, lung, intestine and udder. Molecular examination and gene sequencing revealed the presence of RNA belonging to FMD virus ‘type A’ in the affected tissues. The nucleotide sequence of the isolated virus strain was submitted to the gene bank (accession number: BankIt1911105FMD/A/EGY/Dakahlia/ KX083565). In conclusion, the study emphasized the importance of FMD as a viral disease induced relatively high mortality and morbidity especially in young calves and gives an account on the associated pathological lesions.
Local assembly and pre-mRNA splicing analyses by high-throughput sequencing data

Next generation sequencing (NGS) approaches have become one of the most widely used tools in biotechnology. With high throughput sequencing, people can analyze nonmodel species at an unprecedented high resolution. NGS provides fast, deep and cheap sequencing solutions, and it has been used to answer various biological questions. In this thesis, I have developed a set of tools and used them to study several interesting research topics. First, de novo whole-genome assembly is still a very challenging technical task. For eukaryotic genomes, de novo assembly typically requires computational resources with very large memory and fast processors. Instead of trying to assemble the whole genome as done in previous approaches, I focus on efficiently reconstructing the genomic regions related to the homologous protein or cDNA sequences. I have developed SRAssembler, a local assembly program using the iterative chromosome walking strategy to assemble the loci of interest directly. Second, I used high-throughput RNA sequencing (refered to as RNA-Seq) data to analyze different intron splicing models and their relative frequency of occurrence. The first mechanism I explored is the recursive splicing patterns in large introns. I have implemented a pipeline called RSSFinder, which can search for recursive sites confirmed by RNA-Seq data. My study suggests the prevalence of recursive splicing in different species. These predicted recursive sites can also be used to investigate certain diseases associated with abnormal splicing of transcripts. In addition, I have demonstrated the use of RNA-Seq data to decipher the detailed mechanisms involved in splicing and their relationship with transcription. Here I proposed mathematical models to estimate the distribution of mRNA splicing intermediates. I
Exploring and exemplifying pre-service teachers' computational thinking in the context of technology integration

ion Pre-service teachers’ lesson plan or interview data related to applying abstraction to develop models or define main ideas. Students summarized the main idea of a story and represented the main idea by creating a Scratch animation. (PST 32, T1) Data Pre-service teachers’ lesson plan or interview data related to accessing, evaluating, analyzing and representing data using words, images or models. Students evaluated and represented data through an online research project. (PST 3, T3) Automation Pre-service teachers’ lesson plan or interview data related to using digital tools to automate solutions. Students created a Metric Converter using Scratch (PST 10, T3).
Misinformation and Optimal Time to Detect

We study a continuous-time reputation game in which an informed player bene ts from persistent private information while an uninformed player suffers from it. Observing noisy signals of the informed player's actions, the uninformed player chooses when to reveal the informed player's private information, but revelation is costly. We characterize the sequential equilibrium in Markov strategies, provide comparative statistics of equilibrium, and study the probability that the uninformed player reveals the informed player's private information. In addition, we contrast our model with Kyletype models in terms of informativeness of signals and analyze the extended model in which observation is costly.
Prospective study of thoracoscopy in empyema patients

Background: Empyema thoracis is a serious problem from centuries, still causes significant morbidity and mortality if not diagnosed in early stages. The present study was conducted with the aim to evaluate the role of video assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) in its management.Methods: This prospective study was done on 15 patients in the department of General Surgery, Govt. Medical College and Sir Thakhatsinhji Hospital Bhavnagar, from August 2011 to August 2012. The demographic data, clinical presentation, etiology, and management were recorded and analyzed.Results: None of the patients were observed with bronchopleural fistula. Majority of the patients were affected in the age group of 1-14 years (53%). Empyema was seen on left side of the lungs (73%). Etilogy of empyema was tuberculosis in 66% of the patients. Chest pain and breathlessness was seen in all in the patients (100%). No mortality was noticed in the study. The mean postoperative hospital stay was 5 days.Conclusions: Present study shows that VATS is feasible, safe and it is an efficient procedure with decrease hospital stay and minimal complications in the management of empyema thoracis in all age groups.
Capacidade de dispersao de "Trichogramma pretiosum" Riley (Hymenoptera: Trichogrammatidae) em pomar adulto de Macieira

espanolEl uso de los agentes biologicos del control, en cultivos frutales, requiere estudios aplicados. Asi pues, la capacidad de dispersion de Trichogramma pretiosum Riley, 1879 (Hymenoptera: Trichogrammatidae) cepa bonagota sobre huevos del tortricidio Bonagota salubricola (Meyrick, 1937) (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) fue estudiado en un manzano adulto en Fraiburgo, SC, Brasil (27°02' S y 50°55' W). El porcentaje medio de parasitismo de huevos de B. salubricola por T. pretiosum disminuyo con el aumento de la distancia del punto de suelta, 17.14% a 1m, 6,9% a 4,5 m y 4.01% a 10m. La distancia media de dispersion de T. pretiosum fue 6.73 m y la correspondiente area fue de 61.07 m2. Los resultados obtenidos indican que la suelta del parasitoide debe realizarse en 160 puntos/ha para alcanzar una distribucion uniforme de parasitismo sobre los huevos de B. salubricola. EnglishThe use of biological control agents, in orchard, requires studies. So, the dispersion capacity of Trichogramma pretiosum Riley, 1879 (Hymenoptera: Trichogrammatidae) strain bonagota in relation to Bonagota salubricola (Meyrick, 1937) (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) eggs, was studied in adult apple orchard in Fraiburgo, SC, Brazil (27°02' S & 50°55' W). Egg parasitism of B. salubricola for T. pretiosum decreased with the distance increase of the distance of the release point, being observed 17.14% (1m) to 4.01% (10m). The dispersion capacity of T. pretiosum attained 6,73 m. The dispersion area was 61,07 m2. The results obtained indicate that release of the parasitoids aiming at uniformity of distribution for control B. salubricola should be made at 160 points/ha. portuguesA utilizacao, em pomares, de agentes de controle biologico requer estudos aplicados. Assim, a capacidade de dispersao de Trichogramma pretiosum Riley, 1879 (Hymenoptera: Trichogrammatidae) linhagem bonagota em ovos de Bonagota salubricola (Meyrick, 1937) (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) foi estudada em pomar (1,5 x 4,5) comercial adulto de macieira em Fraiburgo, SC, Brasil (27°02' S & 50°55' W). O percentual medio de parasitismo de ovos de B. salubricola por T. pretiosum, decresceu com o aumento da distância do ponto de liberacao, sendo observados 17,1% a 1 m e 4,0% a 10 m. A dispersao de T. pretiosum foi de 6,73 m o que corresponde a uma area de dispersao de 61,07 m2. A liberacao dos parasitoides visando uniformidade de distribuicao e controle de B. salubricola deve ser feita em 160 pontos por hectare em plantas adultas.
ECG Analysis and Detection of Arrhythmia using MATLAB

This paper has been inspired by the need to find an efficient method for ECG Signal Analysis which is simple and has good accuracy and less computation time. For analysis the ECG signals from MIT database are used. The initial task for efficient analysis is the removal of noise and detection of QRS peaks. It actually involves the extraction of the QRS component by rejecting the background noise. This task is done using Pen Tompkins algorithm. The second task involve calculation of heart rate, detection of tachycardia, bradycardia, asystole and second degree AV block from detected QRS peaks using MATLAB. The results show that from detected QRS peaks, arrhythmias which are based on increase or decrease in the number of QRS peak, absence of QRS peak can be diagnosed.
Pilot Sequence Design for Mitigating Pilot Contamination With Reduced RF Chains

Massive multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) communication is a promising technology for increasing spectral efficiency in wireless networks. Two of the main challenges massive MIMO systems face are degraded channel estimation accuracy due to pilot contamination and increase in computational load and hardware complexity due to the massive number of antennas. In this paper, we focus on the problem of channel estimation in massive MIMO systems, while addressing these two challenges: We jointly design the pilot sequences to mitigate the effect of pilot contamination and propose an analog combiner which maps the high number of sensors to a low number of RF chains, thus reducing the computational and hardware cost. We consider a statistical model in which the channel covariance obeys a Kronecker structure, and treat two special cases, corresponding to fully- and partially-separable correlations. We prove that under these models, the analog combiner design can be performed independently of the pilot sequences. Given the resulting combiner, we derive a closed-form expression for the optimal pilot sequences in the fully-separable case and suggest a greedy sum of ratio traces maximization (GSRTM) method for designing sub-optimal pilots in the partially-separable scenario. We demonstrate via simulations that our pilot design framework achieves lower mean squared error than the common pilot allocation framework previously considered for pilot contamination mitigation.
Biological control of emerald ash borer in North America: current progress and potential for success

The emerald ash borer (EAB) (Agrilus planipennis), a buprestid native to north-east Asia, was first discovered in North America near Detroit in 2002. EAB has since spread to at least 15 U.S. States and two Canadian provinces, threatening the existence of native ash trees (Fraxinus spp.). A classical biocontrol program was initiated by the USDA Forest Service and APHIS immediately following the discovery of EAB, and led to introduction of three species of hymen-opteran parasitoids in 2007: Spathius agrili (Braconidae), Tetrastichus planipennisi (Eupelmidae), and Oobius agrili (Encyrtidae).
Simultaneous Association and Localization for Multi-Camera Multi-Target Tracking

In this dissertation, we propose two approaches for three-dimensional (3D) localizing and tracking of multiple targets by using images from multiple cameras with overlapping views. The main challenge is to solve the 3D position estimation problem and the trajectory assignment problem simultaneously. However, most of the existing methods solve these problems independently. Unlike single camera multi-target tracking, it is much more complicated to solve both problems because the relationship between cameras is also taken into consideration in multi-camera. To tackle this challenge, we present two approaches: mixed multidimensional assignment approach and variational inference approach. In the mixed multidimensional assignment approach, we formulate the data association and 3D trajectory estimation problem as the mixed optimization problem with discrete and continuous variables and suggest an alternative optimization scheme which jointly solves the two coupled problems. To handle a large solution space, we develop an efficient optimization scheme that alternates between two coupled problems with a reasonable computational load. In this optimization formulation, we design a new cost function that describes 3D physical properties of each target. In the variational inference approach, we establish a maximum a posteriori (MAP) problem over trajectory assignments and 3D positions for given detections from multiple cameras. To find a solution, we develop an expectation-maximization scheme, where the probability distributions are designed by following the Boltzmann distribution of seven terms induced from multi-camera tracking settings. keywords: 3D localization and tracking, multiple cameras, multiple target tracking, multidimensional assignment, variational inference, 3D trajectory estimation student number: 2012-30211
An Optimized Motion Strategy for the Legless Capsubot Using Non-Linear Optimization

Capsubots are miniaturized wireless capsule robots that have been recently proposed for diagnostic purposes in endoscopy. Since the capsubot needs to be swallowed by the patient, the size of the body of the capsubot is of essential importance. The size of the body is partly limited by the size of the battery, which in turn depends on the power consumption of the capsule. In this paper, a strategy is proposed that optimizes the motion of a legless capsubot and allows a large reduction in the power consumption compared to those in the literature. As a result, the size of the capsubot can potentially be reduced to a much smaller size which can be clinically more feasible. Three di? erent pro? les are de? ned and compared for a motion strategy and the step-time and force in each pro? le are optimized. Standard non-linear optimization methods are used to ? nd the optimal motion details. Finally simulations are performed to compare the three pro? les with the previously proposed motion strategies in the literature.
Seroprevalence of avian influenza in layers of heavily populated areas in Toba Tek Singh and adjoining localities.

A survey based on collection of serum samples for the determination of prevalence of avian influenza (AI) in non-vaccinated layer flocks was carried out in an area of Punjab having complaints similar to those represented by AI. Paired serum sampling was done from 14 non-vaccinated flocks against any subtype of AI virus (AIV). A total of 204 serum samples were collected (148 soon after exhibiting signs and symptoms and 56 after three weeks interval from positive farms for AIV antibodies) from 14 commercial layer farms. Haemagglutination Inhibition (HI) test was performed for the determination of serum antibodies against AIV. The results showed that out of 14 sampled farms, three farms had antibodies against only H7 subtype, two farms had antibodies against H9 and two farms showed antibodies against both subtypes, H7 and H9, while remaining 7 farms were negative for antibodies to AI. Furthermore, out of these positive farms only one farm was found seroconverted for H7 subtype.
Raudonuju dobilu veisliu genetines ivairoves ivertinimas ISSR metodu

Lithuanian Institute of Agriculture, Instituto 1, LT-58344 Akademija, Kėdainiai distr. , Lithuania E-mail: vanda@lzi.lt, giedre@lzi.lt Studies on DNA polymorphism are of great relevance in plant breeding since they give a deeper insight into genetic diversity. DNA profiles of individual plants of red clover varieties produced using the simple-sequence repeat primers UBC825, UBC827, UBC857, 77H, 78H, 104H and GO4 were assessed in this work. In the DNA profiles, in total 39–43 fragments were amplified, of which 52.5–60.4% were polymorphic. The highest number of fragments was amplified by the UBC827 primer, moreover, these fragments were found to be most polymorphic (90.5%). Slightly fewer polymorphic fragments were generated by the primers 77H and 78H. The primers 104H and GO4, when used in PCR, produced in the DNA profiles only one fragment each, which was identical for all individuals. Comparison of the varieties revealed the lowest number of fragments in the individuals of the variety ‘Vyliai’ (39), of which 57.4% were polymorphic. In the DNA profiles of the individuals of the varieties ‘Liepsna’ and ‘Arimaičiai’ 43 fragments were identified. Research on the intravarietal genetic diversity suggests that plants of the variety ‘Lieps na’ are characterised by the greatest polymorphism (0.313), while ‘Arimaičiai’ has been found to be the most homogeneous variety (0.241). The genetic distance between the varieties varied from 0.010 to 0.458. According to Nei’s coefficient value, the greatest genetic distance was noted between the varieties ‘Vyliai’ and ‘Arimaičiai’ (0.177) and between ‘Liepsna’ and ‘Arimaičiai’ (0.181). Variety-specific DNA fragments were identified in some red clover varieties. Amplification done with the primer 78H pro duced a fragment of 1400 bp which is variety-specific to ‘Arimaičiai’. The 800 bp fragment, ge ne rated by the UBC857 primer, was specific to individuals of the varieties ‘Liepsna’ and ‘Vyliai’.