Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Towards an Efficient Service Level Agreement Assessment

On-line end-to-end Service Level Agreement (SLA) monitoring is of key importance nowadays. For this purpose, past recent researches focused on measuring (when possible) or estimating (most of the times) network QoS or performance parameters. Up to now, attempts to provide accurate techniques for estimating such parameters have failed. In addition, live reporting of the estimated network status requires a huge amount of resources, and lead to unscalable systems. The originality of the contribution presented in this paper, relies on the statement that the accurate estimation of network QoS parameters is absolutely not required in most cases: specifically it is sufficient to be aware of service disruptions, i.e. when the QoS provided by the network collapses. For this purpose, we propose an algorithm for disruption detection of network services. The proposed solution is based on the use of the well-known Kullback-Leibler Divergence algorithm. More specifically, we work on simple to measure time series, i.e. received inter-packet arrival times. In addition of efficiently detecting network QoS disruptions, the algorithm, also drastically reduces the required resources, and the overhead produced by the traffic collection for scalable SLA monitoring systems. The validity of the proposal is verified both in terms of accuracy and consumed resources in a real testbed, using different traffic profiles.
Testing of observation operators designed to estimate profile soil moisture from surface measurements

The accurate estimation of profile soil moisture is usually difficult due to the associated costs, strong spatiotemporal variability, and nonlinear relationship between surface and profile moisture. Here, we used data sets from the Soil and Climate Analysis Network to test how reliably observation operators developed based on the cumulative distribution function matching method can predict profile soil moisture from surface measurements. We first analysed how temporal resolution (hourly, daily, and weekly) and data length (half year, 1 year, 2 years, and 4 years) affected the performance of observation operators. The results showed that temporal resolution had a negligible influence on the performance of observation operators. However, a leave‐one‐year‐out cross‐validation showed that data length affected the performance of observation operators; a 2‐year interval was identified as the most suitable duration due to its low uncertainty in prediction accuracy. The robustness of the observation operators was then tested in three primary climates (humid continental, humid subtropical, and semiarid) of the continental United States, with the exponential filter employed as an independent method. The results indicated that observation operators reliably predicted profile soil moisture for most of the tested stations and performed almost equally well as the exponential filter method. The presented results verified the feasibility of using the cumulative distribution function matching method to predict profile soil moisture from surface measurements.
A tight bound for exhaustive key search attacks against Message Authentication Codes

A Message Authentication Code (MAC) is a function that takes a message and a key as parameters and outputs an authentication of the message. MAC are used to guarantee the legitimacy of messages exchanged through a network, since generating a correct authentication requires the knowledge of the key defined secretly by trusted parties. However, an attacker with access to a sufficiently large number of message/authentication pairs may use a brute force algorithm to infer the secret key: from a set containing initially all possible key candidates, subsequently remove those that yield an incorrect authentication, proceeding this way for each intercepted message/authentication pair until a single key remains. In this paper, we determine an exact formula for the expected number of message/authentication pairs that must be used before such form of attack is successful, along with an asymptotical bound that is both simple and tight. We conclude by illustrating a modern application where this bound comes in handy, namely the estimation of security levels in reflection-based verification of software integrity.
Parameterized Complexity and Biopolymer Sequence Comparison

The paper surveys parameterized algorithms and complexities for computational tasks on biopolymer sequences, including the problems of longest common subsequence, shortest common supersequence, pairwise sequence alignment, multiple sequencing alignment, structure–sequence alignment and structure–structure alignment. Algorithm techniques, built on the structural-unit level as well as on the residue level, are discussed.
Rupture in the 4 May 2018 MW 6.9 Earthquake Seaward of the Kilauea East Rift Zone Fissure Eruption in Hawaii

The 4 May 2018, MW 6.9 thrust‐faulting earthquake occurred a day after the first fissure eruption in Leilani Estates along the East Rift Zone of Kilauea, Hawaii, relatively early in the 2018 eruptive sequence. The earthquake's location and geodetic deformation pattern are similar to those of the larger 1975 Kalapana earthquake (MW 7.7), which is thought to have occurred on the décollement between the island volcanics and the former Pacific seafloor. The 2018 event has a shallow‐dipping thrust plane and shallow epicenter located just offshore. A finite‐fault kinematic slip model is determined by inversion of teleseismic body waves, strong‐ground motion recordings, and coseismic Global Positioning System offsets along the southeastern coast of Hawaii. Inversions indicate a preferred dip of 7°, slip of up to 3.0 m near 5‐km deep offshore of the coast, and low average rupture speed of ~1 km/s. These are consistent with rupture of a weak décollement.
Single- and cross- database benchmarks for gender classification under unconstrained settings

Gender classification is one of the most important tasks in automated face analysis, and has attracted the interest of researchers for years. Up to now, most gender classification approaches have been tested using single-database experiments, and on quite controlled datasets such as the FERET database, which are not representative of real world settings. However, a recent trend towards more realistic benchmarks has emerged within the face analysis community, leading to the appearance of databases and protocols such as the Labeled Faces in the Wild (LFW) database, and the so-called Gallagher's database, which comprises images collected from Flickr.
Insulin Facilitates the Recovery of Myocardial Contractility and Conduction during Cardiac Compression in Rabbits with Bupivacaine-Induced Cardiovascular Collapse

Bupivacaine inhibits cardiac conduction and contractility. Insulin enhances cardiac repolarization and myocardial contractility. We hypothesizes that insulin therapy would be effective in resuscitating bupivacaine-induced cardiac toxicity in rabbits. Twelve rabbits were tracheally intubated and midline sternotomy was performed under general anesthesia. Cardiovascular collapse (CVC) was induced by an IV bolus injection of bupivacaine 10 mg/kg. The rabbits were treated with either saline (control) or insulin injection, administered as a 2 U/kg bolus. Internal cardiac massage was performed until the return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC) and the time to the return of sinus rhythm (ROSR) was also noted in both groups. Arterial blood pressure, and electrocardiography were continuously monitored for 30 min and plasma bupivacaine concentrations at every 5 min. The ROSC, ROSR and normalization of QRS duration were attained faster in the insulin-treated group than in the control group. At the ROSC, there was a significant difference in bupivacaine concentration between two groups. Insulin facilitates the return of myocardial contractility and conduction from bupivacaine-induced CVC in rabbits. However, recovery of cardiac conduction is dependent mainly on the change of plasma bupivacaine concentrations.
A Tableau Algorithm for EFSHOIN Ontologies

The fuzzy ontologies play a key role in the semantic Web. The description logic SHOIN, the logical foundation of Web ontology language OWL, becomes less suitable to describe them. To represent fuzzy ontologies, this paper presents the extended fuzzy description logic EFSHOIN, shows the representation and reasoning capabilities of EFSHOIN, and proposes a tableau algorithm for the consistency of EFSHOIN. This algorithm can be considered as a logical approach to achieve reasoning within the fuzzy ontologies.
BordaRank: A ranking aggregation based approach to collaborative filtering

Recommender systems are widely used in today's online applications. Traditional rating-oriented methods predict user ratings on items, but they fail to capture user preference among different items. This paper regards recommendation problem as a ranking task and proposes a new ranking-oriented collaborative filtering framework based on ranking aggregation methods. In this framework, recommendation lists are generated according to item rankings given by users who are similar to the target user. Then, a two-step method called BordaRank is proposed to further explain the framework. The method first uses item collaborative filtering to predict unknown ratings and then uses Borda count method to aggregate item rankings of neighbors. Finally, BordaRank is modified as a pure ranking-oriented method, which could be directly applied on the sparse rating matrix without rating prediction as an intermediate step. The methods are evaluated on real world movie rating data. Experimental results show that BordaRank improves the precision and recall of original rating-oriented methods and modified BordaRank also outperforms traditional methods.
Data Representation and Compression Using Linear-Programming Approximations

We propose `Dracula', a new framework for unsupervised feature selection from sequential data such as text. Dracula learns a dictionary of $n$-grams that efficiently compresses a given corpus and recursively compresses its own dictionary; in effect, Dracula is a `deep' extension of Compressive Feature Learning. It requires solving a binary linear program that may be relaxed to a linear program. Both problems exhibit considerable structure, their solution paths are well behaved, and we identify parameters which control the depth and diversity of the dictionary. We also discuss how to derive features from the compressed documents and show that while certain unregularized linear models are invariant to the structure of the compressed dictionary, this structure may be used to regularize learning. Experiments are presented that demonstrate the efficacy of Dracula's features.
Generating pictorial-based representation of mental images for video monitoring

Multi-camera systems have been widely used in many video surveillance applications. When an event happens and is monitored across multiple cameras, it is easy for an expert to generate the corresponding spatial representation to comprehend the series of event. However, it is not trivial for users new to the environment. With support from psychological evidences, we propose an approach to mimic generating pictorial-based representation of mental images when a target is moving across the views of cameras. First we conduct a ball-rolling experiment to compare this approach with others. The empirical results demonstrate that the performance of users with this approach is significantly better than others. We suggest that it is because this approach is better for users to preserve spatial representation of the environment while transiting views between cameras. Then we propose a framework to realize this approach. The demonstrations in different situations indicate the validity of such framework.
An unnoticed strong connection between algebraic-based and protograph-based LDPC codes, Part I: Binary case and interpretation

This paper unveils a strong connection between two major constructions of LDPC codes, namely the algebraic-based and the protograph-based constructions. It is shown that, from a graph-theoretic point of view, an algebraic LDPC code whose parity-check matrix is an array of submatrices of the same size over a finite field is a protograph LDPC code. Conversely, from a matrix-theoretic point of view, since the parity-check matrix of a protograph code can be arranged as an array of submatrices of the same size over a finite field and its base graph (or base matrix) can be constructed algebraically, a protograph LDPC code is an algebraic LDPC code. These two major approaches have their advantages and disadvantages in code construction. Unification of these two approaches may lead to better designs and constructions of LDPC codes to achieve good overall performance in terms of error performance in waterfall region, error-floor location and rate of decoding convergence. This paper is the first part of a series of two parts, Part-I and Part-II. Part-I investigates only the binary LDPC codes constructed by the superposition and the protograph-based methods. Part-II explores nonbinary LDPC codes from both superposition and protograph points of view. Also included in Part II are specific superposition constructions of both binary and nonbinary quasi-cyclic LDPC codes.
The Mussel Shell Powder as Natural Preservation for Swordfish by Using Smearing Method

Processing fish in order to be more lasting and be able to be still consumed by the people was needed good preservation. Fish could be lasting if the bacterial decomposition in the fish could be prevented. All this time, the people only used the waste of mussel shells for animal feed. Moreover, the mussel shells were not only used as animal feed, but also as additional material for concrete compound and natural preservation. Therefore, this research aimed at analyzing the use of mussel shells as natural preservation for swordfish. This research was experimental research with static group comparison design that aimed at knowing the use of mussel shell powder as natural preservation for swordfish. Organoleptic test conducted to the fresh fish, which included eyes, gill, mucus, meat, and smell. Time interaction and the concentration of mussel shell powder which was smeared on the swordfish gave significant influenced toward the number of total germ rate with determination coefficient (R2) was 99.8%. Besides, there was a difference of preservation of swordfish among 3:1 was the fish could be preserved until in 24 hours and the fish was able to be consumed and still in fresh condition with organoleptic value in average of 7.00, meanwhile, the fishes which were in the comparison between 1:1 and 2:1 were in rather spoiled condition. Furthermore, there was no significant difference of germ rate in swordfish after being smeared by mussel shell powder among 1:1, 2:1, and 3:1 in 12 hours, 24 hours,and 30 hours, in which the germ rate qualified the qualification. However, there was a significant difference when it was in 36 hours but the germ rate still did not qualify the qualification. Keywords: Swordfish, Mussel shell, Germ rate
Multisensor Microwave Sensitivity to Freeze/Thaw Dynamics Across a Complex Boreal Landscape

The annual freeze/thaw (FT) cycle determines the potential growing season in boreal landscapes and is a major factor determining ecosystem productivity and associated exchange of trace gases (CO2, H2O) with the atmosphere. Accurate characterization of these processes can improve regional assessment of seasonal carbon dynamics and climate feedbacks. FT process variations are spatially and temporally complex due to topography, snow depth and wetness, land cover, or local climatic conditions. In this paper, we perform a landscape analysis of multifrequency and multitemporal satellite microwave remote sensing measurements at L-band (JERS-1), C-band (ERS), and Ku-band (QuikSCAT) for characterizing FT dynamics. We first analyze backscatter sensitivity of the three frequencies to FT conditions over selected Alaska temperature sites. We then apply an FT classifier over two study areas (wetland complex and moderate topography) and examine differences in FT timing according to vegetation, elevation, and north/south facing slope. Results show that L-, C-, and Ku-band backscatter are sensitive to landscape FT state transitions, with higher backscatter for nonfrozen than frozen conditions at C- and L-bands but the opposite response at Ku-band. We applied a change detection algorithm to the C-band and L-band data over both study areas and analyzed the FT classifications with land cover information. These results resolve characteristic patterns of earlier spring thawing for south facing slopes, lower elevations, and coniferous vegetation. Our results also inform similar FT algorithm development for the NASA Soil Moisture Active Passive mission by documenting L-band FT sensitivity and heterogeneity over a boreal landscape.
Molecular biomarkers of phospholipidosis in rat blood and heart after amiodarone treatment

Phospholipidosis (PLD) is characterized by an intracellular accumulation of phospholipids in lysosomes and concurrent development of concentric lamellar bodies. It is induced in humans and in animals by drugs with a cationic amphiphilic structure. The purpose of the present study was to identify a set of molecular biomarkers of PLD in rat blood and heart, hypothetically applicable in preclinical screens within the drug development process. A toxicological study was set up in rats orally treated up to 11 days with 300 mg kg–1 per day–1 amiodarone (AMD). Light and transmission electron microscopy investigations were performed to confirm the presence of lamellar bodies indicative of phospholipid accumulation. The effects of AMD upon the transcriptome of these tissues were estimated using DNA microarray technology. Microarray data analysis showed that a total of 545 and 8218 genes were modulated by AMD treatment in heart and blood, respectively. Some genes implicated in the phospholipid accumulation in cells, such as phospholipase A2, showed similar alterations of gene expression. After transcriptome criteria of analysis and target selection, including also the involvement in the onset of PLD, 7 genes (Pla2g2a, Pla2g7, Gal, Il1b, Cebpb, Fcgr2b, Acer 2) were selected as candidate biomarkers of PLD in heart and blood tissues, and their potential usefulness as a sensitive screening test was screened and confirmed by quantitative Real‐Time PCR analysis. Collectively, these data underscore the importance of transcriptional profiling in drug discovery and development, and suggest blood as a surrogate tissue for possible phospholipid accumulation in cardiomyocytes. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Ramsey-Based Inclusion Checking for Visibly Pushdown Automata

Checking whether one formal language is included in another is important in many verification tasks. In this article, we provide solutions for checking the inclusion of languages given by visibly pushdown automata over both finite and infinite words. Visibly pushdown automata are a richer automaton model than the classical finite-state automata, which allows one, for example, to reason about the nesting of procedure calls in the executions of recursive imperative programs. The presented solutions do not rely on explicit automaton constructions for determinization and complementation. Instead, they are more direct and generalize the so-called Ramsey-based inclusion-checking algorithms, which apply to classical finite-state automata and proved to be effective there to visibly pushdown automata. We also experimentally evaluate these algorithms, demonstrating the virtues of avoiding explicit determinization and complementation constructions.
Microcomputed Tomography Provides High Accuracy Congenital Heart Disease Diagnosis in Neonatal and Fetal Mice

Background—Mice are well suited for modeling human congenital heart disease (CHD), given their 4-chamber cardiac anatomy. However, mice with CHD invariably die prenatally/neonatally, causing CHD phenotypes to be missed. Therefore, we investigated the efficacy of noninvasive microcomputed tomography (micro-CT) to screen for CHD in stillborn/fetal mice. These studies were performed using chemically mutagenized mice expected to be enriched for birth defects, including CHD. Methods and Results—Stillborn/fetal mice obtained from the breeding of N-ethyl-N-nitrosourea mutagenized mice were formalin-fixed and stained with iodine, then micro-CT scanned. Those diagnosed with CHD and some CHD-negative pups were necropsied. A subset of these were further analyzed by histopathology to confirm the CHD/no-CHD diagnosis. Micro-CT scanning of 2105 fetal/newborn mice revealed an abundance of ventricular septal defects (n=307). Overall, we observed an accuracy of 89.8% for ventricular septal defect diagnosis. Outflow tract anomalies identified by micro-CT included double outlet right ventricle (n=36), transposition of the great arteries (n=14), and persistent truncus arteriosus (n=3). These were diagnosed with a 97.4% accuracy. Aortic arch anomalies also were readily detected with an overall 99.6% accuracy. This included right aortic arch (n=28) and coarctation/interrupted aortic arch (n=12). Also detected by micro-CT were atrioventricular septal defects (n=22), tricuspid hypoplasia/atresia (n=13), and coronary artery fistulas (n=16). They yielded accuracies of 98.9%, 100%, and 97.8%, respectively. Conclusions—Contrast enhanced micro-CT imaging in neonatal/fetal mice can reliably detect a wide spectrum of CHD. We conclude that micro-CT imaging can be used for routine rapid assessments of structural heart defects in fetal/newborn mice.
Safe Charging for wireless power transfer

As battery-powered mobile devices become more popular and energy hungry, wireless power transfer technology receives intensive interests, as it allows the power to be transferred from a charger to ambient devices wirelessly. The existing studies mainly focus on the power transfer efficiency but overlook the health impairments caused by RF exposure. In this paper, we study the Safe Charging Problem (SCP) of scheduling power chargers so that more energy can be received while no location in the field has electromagnetic radiation (EMR) exceeding a given threshold Rt. We prove that SCP is NP-hard and propose a solution which provably outperforms the optimal solution to SCP with a relaxed EMR threshold (1 - ε)Rt. Testbed results based on 8 Powercast TX91501 chargers validate our results. Extensive simulation results show that the gap between our solution and the optimal one is only 6.7% when ε = 0.1, while a naive greedy algorithm is 34.6% below our solution.
Electrothermal Investigation on Vertically Aligned Single-Walled Carbon Nanotube Contacted Phase-Change Memory Array for 3-D ICs

Electrothermal investigation on vertically aligned single-walled carbon nanotube (SWCNT) contacted phase-change memory (PCM) array is performed using the 3-D time-domain finite-element method. The in-house-developed algorithm is verified by comparing the simulated results with the experimental ones published by others. Thermal coupling between adjacent cells, which may cause current leakage and reliability degradation, is characterized for PCMs with different geometrical parameters, which could be caused by fabrication variation. It is shown that spacing variation between adjacent PCM cells draws a slight effect on their thermal coupling. However, thermal boundary resistance of the phase-change material-oxide interface and SWCNT diameter affect temperature rise and thermal coupling significantly. On the other hand, it is indicated that the SWCNT contacted PCM has microampere-scale programming current and nanosecond-scale thermal response time, which make it vulnerable to electrostatic discharge (ESD). Electrothermal responses to ESD are captured and compared, which show that unintentional ESD can change the state of PCM and result in error programming.