Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Recognizing Textual Entailment Using Probabilistic Inference

Recognizing Text Entailment (RTE) plays an important role in NLP applications including question answering, information retrieval, etc. In recent work, some research explore “deep” expressions such as discourse commitments or strict logic for representing the text. However, these expressions suffer from the limitation of inference inconvenience or translation loss. To overcome the limitations, in this paper, we propose to use the predicate-argument structures to represent the discourse commitments extracted from text. At the same time, with the help of the YAGO knowledge, we borrow the distant supervision technique to mine the implicit facts from the text. We also construct a probabilistic network for all the facts and conduct inference to judge the confidence of each fact for RTE. The experimental results show that our proposed method achieves a competitive result compared to the previous work.
Performance of Carbon Nanotube/Polysulfone (CNT/Psf) Composite Membranes during Oil–Water Mixture Separation: Effect of CNT Dispersion Method

Effect of the dispersion method employed during the synthesis of carbon nanotube (CNT)/polysulfone-infused composite membranes on the quality and separation performance of the membranes during oil–water mixture separation is demonstrated. Carbon nanotube/polysulfone composite membranes containing 5% CNT and pure polysulfone membrane (with 0% CNT) were synthesized using phase inversion. Three CNT dispersion methods referred to as Method 1 (M1), Method 2 (M2), and Method 3 (M3) were used to disperse the CNTs. Morphology and surface property of the synthesized membranes were checked with scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, respectively. Separation performance of the membranes was evaluated by applying the membrane to the separation of oil–water emulsion using a cross-flow filtration setup. The functional groups obtained from the FTIR spectra for the membranes and the CNTs included carboxylic acid groups (O–H) and carbonyl group (C=O) which are responsible for the hydrophilic properties of the membranes. The contact angles for the membranes obtained from Method 1, Method 2, and Method 3 were 76.6° ± 5.0°, 77.9° ± 1.3°, and 77.3° ± 4.5°, respectively, and 88.1° ± 2.1° was obtained for the pure polysulfone membrane. The oil rejection (OR) for the synthesized composite membranes from Method 1, Method 2, and Method 3 were 48.71%, 65.86%, and 99.88%, respectively, indicating that Method 3 resulted in membrane of the best quality and separation performance.
Joint Initialization and Tracking of Multiple Moving Objects Using Doppler Information

In this correspondence, a new multi-target tracking (MTT) algorithm based on the probability hypothesis density (PHD) filtering framework is designed in order to improve tracking performance via the proposal of two contributions. First, unlike typical existing systems, Doppler information is additionally employed to enhance the clutter rejection capability. Specifically, position and Doppler measurements are iteratively incorporated in a two-step process based on a Gaussian mixture PHD (GMPHD) filter. Second, a concrete initialization process is proposed in the birth intensity design of the GMPHD. The initialization process from consecutive measurements leads to a reliable birth intensity that improves track management performance. Both contributions are subsequently evaluated through MTT simulations, the results of which verify that the proposed algorithm is viable.
3D Surface Profilometry Using Phase Shifting of De Bruijn Pattern

A novel structured light method for color 3D surface profilometry is proposed. The proposed method does not require color calibration of a camera-projector pair and may be used for reconstruction of both dynamic and static scenes. The method uses a structured light pattern that is a combination of a De Bruijn color sequence and of a sinusoidal fringe. For dynamic scenes a Hessian ridge detector and a Gaussian mixture model are combined to extract stripe centers and to identify color. Stripes are then uniquely identified using dynamic programming based on the Smith-Waterman algorithm and a De Bruijn window property. For static scenes phase-shifting and De Bruijn window property are combined to obtain a high accuracy reconstruction. We have tested the proposed method on multiple objects with challenging surfaces and different albedos that demonstrate usability and robustness of the method.
Towards stronger guarantees : Safer iterators

Iterators are a fundamental part of the STL. They are the link between generic algorithms and containers such that it is possible for the generic algorithms to traverse and access the elements in the container in a homogeneous way. The iterator validity property ensures that iterators are kept valid at any time except when the element is deleted. Modifications of the container should not affect the already existing iterators. This property is a part of the stronger guarantees criteria for the CPH STL, which means any container should provide this property, which is not trivial to obtain for containers which are based on arrays. In this paper we will provide an implementation which provides iterator validity for a dynamic array, and we will study data structures for obtaining snapshot iterators and persistence.
A multi-touch three dimensional touch-sensitive tablet

A prototype touch-sensitive tablet is presented. The tablet's main innovation is that it is capable of sensing more than one point of contact at a time. In addition to being able to provide position coordinates, the tablet also gives a measure of degree of contact, independently for each point of contact. In order to enable multi-touch sensing, the tablet surface is divided into a grid of discrete points. The points are scanned using a recursive area subdivision algorithm. In order to minimize the resolution lost due to the discrete nature of the grid, a novel interpolation scheme has been developed. Finally, the paper briefly discusses how multi-touch sensing, interpolation, and degree of contact sensing can be combined to expand our vocabulary in human-computer interaction.
Eurographics/siggraph Symposium on Computer Animation (2003) Handrix: Animating the Human Hand

The human hand is a complex organ capable of both gross grasp and fine motor skills. Despite many successful high-level skeletal control techniques, animating realistic hand motion remains tedious and challenging. This paper presents research motivated by the complex finger positioning required to play musical instruments, such as the guitar. We first describe a data driven algorithm to add sympathetic finger motion to arbitrarily animated hands. We then present a procedural algorithm to generate the motion of the fretting hand playing a given musical passage on a guitar. The work here is aimed as a tool for music education and analysis. The contributions of this paper are a general architecture for the skeletal control of interdependent articulations performing multiple concurrent reaching tasks, and a procedural tool for musicians and animators that captures the motion complexity of guitar fingering.
ABOUT THE SCREENING PROPERTIES OF TECTONIC FAULTS

Результати експериментальних досліджень, проведених іноземними фахівцями, свідчать, що найбільш перетерті частини «зон тектонічних порушень» характеризуються проникністю від 10-19 до майже 10-21 м2. Це відповідає покришкам груп С, В і А з середньою, високою і дуже високою екрануючою здатністю. Виконаний авторами аналіз екранування покладів вуглеводнів на прикладі родовищ центральної частини Північного борту Дніпровсько-Донецької западини підтверджує, що «зона тектонічного порушення» за своїми ємнісно-фільтраційними властивостями (проникність) може екранувати поклади вуглеводнів. При цьому не має значення просторове співвідношення по площині порушення проникних і непроникних порід екранованого й екрануючого блоків. Ключові слова: порушення, вуглеводні, екран, проникність, поклад, тектоніт, мілоніт, тектонічно екранована пастка.
Taq1B CETP Polymorphism and Cardiovascular Risk in an Endogamous Pop-ulation of Diabetic Men: A Study in Santa Rosa Del Conlara, San Luis, Argentina

Objectives: Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) patients are at increased risk of cardiovascular dis- eases (CVDs). Several polymorphisms in the cholesterol ester transfer protein (CETP) gene have been reported. The aim of this study was to determine the distribution and effect of the Taq1B polymorphism in the CETP gene on clinical and biochemical indicators of CVD risk in a population of endogamous-T2DM men. Methods: 102 men (57.5 ± 9.3 years old) inhabitants of Santa Rosa del Conlara, San Luis, Argentina, were recruited and assigned into two groups (22 control and 80 T2DM). Further, these two groups were subdivided according to their Taq1B CETP gene genotypes (i.e., B1B1, B1B2 and B2B2). Clinical and fasting-plasma biochemical indicators of CVD risk were measured and their association with the B1 allele was determined. Results: Compared to control, T2DM men had more central obesity, hypertension, atherogenic index, insulin resistance and poorly controlled diabetes. Compared to T2DM men having the B2 allele, those T2DM men having the B1 allele have increased risk of CVD as assessed by systolic blood pressure (156 ± 16.0 vs 135.8 ± 19.2, p = 0.015), atherogenic index (6.15 ± 1.3 vs 4.4 ± 0.7, p = 0.0008), HDL-c levels (38.9 ± 5.3 vs 64.4 ± 8.2, p < 0.0001) and insulin resistance (HOMA-IR, 5.78 ± 3.0 vs 2.4 ± 0.78, p = 0.004). Interestingly, only body mass index (r = −0.559, p = 0.01) and HDL-c concentration (r = −0.492, p = 0.02) negatively correlated with CVD risk in the endogamous population of B1B1 and B1B2 T2DM men. Conclusion: The B1 allele of the CETP gene predicts cardiovascular complications in an * Corresponding author.
Availability of healthy foods and dietary patterns: the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis.

BACKGROUND Inadequate availability of healthy foods may be a barrier to achieving recommended diets. OBJECTIVE The objective was to study the association between the directly measured availability of healthy foods and diet quality. DESIGN We conducted a cross-sectional study of 759 participants from the Baltimore site of the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis. Diet was characterized by using a food-frequency questionnaire and summarized by using 2 empirically derived dietary patterns reflecting low- and high-quality diets. For each participant, the availability of healthy foods was directly assessed by using 3 measures: in all food stores within their census tract, in their closest food store, and in all food stores within 1 mile (1.6 km) of their residence. RESULTS Twenty-four percent of the black participants lived in neighborhoods with a low availability of healthy food compared with 5% of white participants (P < 0.01). After adjustment for age, sex, income, and education, a lower availability of healthy foods in the tract of residence or in the closest store was associated with higher scores on the low-quality dietary pattern (P < 0.05). Less consistent associations were observed for the high-quality dietary pattern. CONCLUSIONS Healthy foods were less available for black participants. Low availability of healthy foods was associated with a lower-quality diet. The extent to which improvements in the availability of healthy foods results in higher-quality diets deserves further investigation.
Cloning and nucleotide sequence of the Bacillus subtilis ansR gene, which encodes a repressor of the ans operon coding for L-asparaginase and L-aspartase

Previous work has shown that expression of the Bacillus subtilis ans operon which codes for L-asparaginase and L-aspartase, is both increased and made insensitive to repression by NH4+ by the aspH1 mutation. In current work, the gene in which the aspH1 mutation resides has been identified and sequenced; this gene, termed ansR, is immediately upstream of, but transcribed in the opposite direction from, the ans operon. The promoter region of ansR contains -10 and -35 sequences similar to those recognized by RNA polymerase containing the major vegetative-cell sigma factor sigma A, and ansR appears to be monocistronic. The ansR gene codes for a 116-residue protein, but the aspH1 mutant allele has an additional guanine residue at codon 55, resulting in generation of a truncated polypeptide of only 58 residues. Insertional inactivation of ansR resulted in a phenotype identical to that of the aspH1 mutant. The predicted amino acid sequence of the ansR gene product (AnsR) was homologous to that of the repressor of B. subtilis prophage PBSX, and a helix-turn-helix motif, characteristic of many DNA-binding proteins, was present in the AnsR amino-terminal region. These results suggest that ansR codes for a repressor of the ans operon.
Dungeons & swimmers: designing an interactive exergame for swimming

We propose Dungeons & Swimmers, an interactive audio- and motion-based exergame for swimming. As the first of its kind, we explore its design considerations and opportunities stemming from swimming. We gamify the four different stroke types with an auditory feedback. For minimal interference, we develop a single sensor-based wearable prototype detecting the strokes and stroke types in real time. We conduct a pilot deployment to study initial user experiences.
An optimal entropy coding scheme for efficient implementation of pulse shaping FIR filters in digital receivers

The most computationally intensive part of wide-band receivers is the IF processing block. Digital filtering is the main task in IF processing. Infinite precision filters require complicated digital circuits due to coefficient multiplication. This paper presents an efficient method to implement pulse shaping filters for a dual-mode GSM/W-CDMA receiver. We use an arithmetic scheme, known as pseudo floating-point (PFP) representation to encode the filter coefficients. By employing a span reduction technique, we show that the filters can be coded using an optimal entropy scheme employing PFP which requires only considerably fewer bits than conventional 24-bit and 16-bit fixed-point filters. Simulation results show that the magnitude responses of the filters coded in PFP meet the attenuation requirements of GSM/W-CDMA specifications.
Variational principles for Lie-Poisson and Hamilton-Poincaré equations

As is well-known, there is a variational principle for the Euler–Poincare equations on a Lie algebra g of a Lie group G obtained by reducing Hamilton’s principle on G by the action of G by, say, left multiplication. The purpose of this paper is to give a variational principle for the Lie–Poisson equations on g*, the dual of g, and also to generalize this construction. The more general situation is that in which the original configuration space is not a Lie group, but rather a configuration manifold Q on which a Lie group G acts freely and properly, so that Q → Q/G becomes a principal bundle. Starting with a Lagrangian system on TQ invariant under the tangent lifted action of G, the reduced equations on (TQ)/G, appropriately identified, are the Lagrange–Poincare equations. Similarly, if we start with a Hamiltonian system on T*Q, invariant under the cotangent lifted action of G, the resulting reduced equations on (T*Q)/G are called the Hamilton–Poincare equations. Amongst our new results, we derive a variational structure for the Hamilton–Poincare equations, give a formula for the Poisson structure on these reduced spaces that simplifies previous formulas of Montgomery, and give a new representation for the symplectic structure on the associated symplectic leaves. We illustrate the formalism with a simple, but interesting example, that of a rigid body with internal rotors.
Mother–Infant Interactions in Early Head Start: A Person-Oriented Within-Ethnic Group Approach

SYNOPSIS Objective . This article identifies patterns of mothering in low-income families from three ethnic groups and explores whether those patterns yield similar associations with child outcomes. Design . A person-centered within-group approach was used to examine observed patterns of mothering among European American (n = 740), African American (n = 604), and Mexican American (n = 322) low-income mothers and their 1-year-olds who were participating in the Early Head Start Research and Evaluation Project. Cluster analytic techniques were employed using four dimensions of mothering coded from videotapes: supportiveness, directiveness/intrusiveness, negative regard, and detachment. Results . Three similar mothering patterns were seen within each ethnic group: Supportive (48%–52%), Directive (29%–30%), and Detached (14%–19%). Although the patterns of mothering were similar, mean scores on discrete mothering behaviors differed across ethnic groups. A fourth pattern—Harsh—was found among European American and African American mothers and was characterized by high levels of negativity (5%–7%). Associations between mothering patterns and three child outcomes at ages 2 and 3 years (cognitive test score, emotional regulation, and engagement of mother) validated cluster solutions and revealed some variation in prediction across ethnic groups. However, Supportive mothering was optimal in all three ethnic groups. Conclusions . Within-group analyses permitted identification of ethnically meaningful mothering patterns. Across the ethnic groups, within-group structures of mothering were similar with comparable predictive power for child outcomes despite group differences in the magnitudes of mean scores for constructs such as supportiveness and directiveness.
Antenatal and Postnatal Growth and 5-Year Cognitive Outcome in Very Preterm Infants

OBJECTIVES: To study how antenatal growth affects cognitive outcome in very preterm infants and to determine whether there is an association between growth in any particular time period between birth and 5 years of age and cognitive outcome. Small for gestational age (SGA) and non-SGA infants were analyzed separately, because antenatal growth may affect postnatal growth. METHODS: Very low birth weight (<1501 g) infants born between 2001 and 2006 and infants born at <32 gestational weeks between 2004 and 2006 who were treated at Turku University Hospital (n = 181) were followed. Weight, length, and head circumference (HC) of the infants were measured at 9 time points between birth and 5 years. The growth was determined as a z score change between measurement points. Cognitive development was assessed at 5 years of age with the Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scales of Intelligence–Revised. The association between growth and full-scale IQ (FSIQ) was studied. RESULTS: Growth in length and height was not associated with 5-year cognitive outcome. However, weight (r = 0.18, P = .04) and HC growth (r = 0.25, P = .01) between birth and 2 years of corrected age correlated to FSIQ in non-SGA children. In SGA children, HC growth (r = 0.33, P = .03) around term age correlated to FSIQ. CONCLUSIONS: Cognitive outcome was similar in SGA and non-SGA very preterm infants. Growth affected cognition positively in both subgroups, but the critical time period was different.
Frataxin deficiency increases cyclooxygenase 2 and prostaglandins in cell and animal models of Friedreich's ataxia

An inherited deficiency of the mitochondrial protein frataxin causes Friedreich's ataxia (FRDA); the mechanism by which this deficiency triggers neuro- and cardio-degeneration is unclear. Microarrays of neural tissue of animal models of the disease showed decreases in antioxidant genes, and increases in inflammatory genes. Cyclooxygenase (COX)-derived oxylipins are important mediators of inflammation. We measured oxylipin levels using tandem mass spectrometry and ELISAs in multiple cell and animal models of FRDA. Mass spectrometry revealed increases in concentrations of prostaglandins, thromboxane B2, 15-HETE and 11-HETE in cerebellar samples of knockin knockout mice. One possible explanation for the elevated oxylipins is that frataxin deficiency results in increased COX activity. While constitutive COX1 was unchanged, inducible COX2 expression was elevated over 1.35-fold (P < 0.05) in two Friedreich's mouse models and Friedreich's lymphocytes. Consistent with higher COX2 expression, its activity was also increased by 58% over controls. COX2 expression is driven by multiple transcription factors, including activator protein 1 and cAMP response element-binding protein, both of which were elevated over 1.52-fold in cerebella. Taken together, the results support the hypothesis that reduced expression of frataxin leads to elevation of COX2-mediated oxylipin synthesis stimulated by increases in transcription factors that respond to increased reactive oxygen species. These findings support a neuroinflammatory mechanism in FRDA, which has both pathomechanistic and therapeutic implications.
Monolayer Detection of Biochemical Agents Using Etched-Core Fiber Bragg Grating Sensors

It is demonstrated that the etched-core fiber Bragg grating sensor can be used to detect down to a monolayer of biological and chemical agents immobilized on the surface of the fiber. Theoretical models based on calculating the effective index of the surrounding medium in the presence of immobilized layer(s) were developed and confirmed experimentally by immobilizing a monolayer of 3-aminopropyl-monoethoxydimethyl-silane (APMDS) and polymers of 3-aminopropyl-triethoxysilane (APTES) on the surface of the fiber. The immobilization of APMDS and APTES is confirmed by carrying out hybridization of DNA. We also demonstrate that the sensor can be used to understand and optimize biological and chemical processes.
MicroRNA-125a-5p partly regulates the inflammatory response, lipid uptake, and ORP9 expression in oxLDL-stimulated monocyte/macrophages.

AIMS The inflammatory responses of monocytes/macrophages and the stimulation of lipid uptake into these cells by oxidized low density lipoprotein (oxLDL) are critical to the initiation and development of atherosclerosis. Increasing evidence has demonstrated that many microRNAs play important roles in the cell proliferation, apoptosis, and differentiation that accompany inflammatory responses. However, whether microRNAs are associated with monocyte/macrophage inflammatory responses or oxLDL stimulation is not yet known. The aim of the present study is to investigate microRNAs in monocytes/macrophages and their potential role in oxLDL-stimulation of lipid uptake and other atherosclerotic responses. METHODS AND RESULTS Microarrays were used to analyse the global expression of microRNAs in oxLDL-stimulated human primary peripheral blood monocytes. Expression profiles of the microRNAs were verified using TaqMan real-time PCR. Five microRNAs (microRNA-125a-5p, microRNA-9, microRNA-146a, microRNA-146b-5p, and microRNA-155) were aberrantly expressed after oxLDL treatment of human primary monocytes. Bioinformatics analysis suggested that microRNA-125a-5p is related to a protein similar to ORP9 (oxysterol binding protein-like 9) and this was confirmed by a luciferase reporter assay. MicroRNA-125a-5p was found to mediate lipid uptake and to decrease the secretion of some inflammatory cytokines (interleukin-2, interleukin-6, tumour necrosis factor-alpha, transforming growth factor-beta) in oxLDL-stimulated monocyte-derived macrophages. CONCLUSION MicroRNA-125a-5p may partly provide post-transcriptional regulation of the proinflammatory response, lipid uptake, and expression of ORP9 in oxLDL-stimulated monocyte/macrophages.