Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Deep Gaussian Processes with Decoupled Inducing Inputs

Deep Gaussian Processes (DGP) are hierarchical generalizations of Gaussian Processes (GP) that have proven to work effectively on a multiple supervised regression tasks. They combine the well calibrated uncertainty estimates of GPs with the great flexibility of multilayer models. In DGPs, given the inputs, the outputs of the layers are Gaussian distributions parameterized by their means and covariances. These layers are realized as Sparse GPs where the training data is approximated using a small set of pseudo points. In this work, we show that the computational cost of DGPs can be reduced with no loss in performance by using a separate, smaller set of pseudo points when calculating the layerwise variance while using a larger set of pseudo points when calculating the layerwise mean. This enabled us to train larger models that have lower cost and better predictive performance.
Modeling data with zero inflation and overdispersion using GAMLSSs

Count data with high frequencies of zeros are found in many areas, specially in biology. Statistical models to analyze such data started to be developed in the 80s and are still a topic of active research. Such models usually assume a response distribution that belongs to the exponential family of distributions and the analysis is performed under the generalized linear models framework. However, the generalized additive models for location, scale and shape (GAMLSSs) represent a more general class of univariate models that can also be used to model zero inflated data. In this paper, the analysis of a data set with excess of zeros and overdispersion is described using GAMLSSs. Specific GAMLSSs' tools were used in the analysis, which enhanced model comparison and eased the interpretation of results.
A general framework for multivariate functional principal component analysis of amplitude and phase variation

Functional data typically contain amplitude and phase variation. In many data situations, phase variation is treated as a nuisance effect and is removed during preprocessing, although it may contain valuable information. In this note, we focus on joint principal component analysis (PCA) of amplitude and phase variation. As the space of warping functions has a complex geometric structure, one key element of the analysis is transforming the warping functions to L2(T) . We present different transformation approaches and show how they fit into a general class of transformations. This allows us to compare their strengths and limitations. In the context of PCA, our results offer arguments in favour of the centred log‐ratio transformation. We further embed two existing approaches from the literature for joint PCA of amplitude and phase variation into the framework of multivariate functional PCA, where we study the properties of the estimators based on an appropriate metric. The approach is illustrated through an application from seismology.
Removing the influence of group variables in high‐dimensional predictive modelling

In many application areas, predictive models are used to support or make important decisions. There is increasing awareness that these models may contain spurious or otherwise undesirable correlations. Such correlations may arise from a variety of sources, including batch effects, systematic measurement errors or sampling bias. Without explicit adjustment, machine learning algorithms trained using these data can produce out‐of‐sample predictions which propagate these undesirable correlations. We propose a method to pre‐process the training data, producing an adjusted dataset that is statistically independent of the nuisance variables with minimum information loss. We develop a conceptually simple approach for creating an adjusted dataset in high‐dimensional settings based on a constrained form of matrix decomposition. The resulting dataset can then be used in any predictive algorithm with the guarantee that predictions will be statistically independent of the nuisance variables. We develop a scalable algorithm for implementing the method, along with theory support in the form of independence guarantees and optimality. The method is illustrated on some simulation examples and applied to two case studies: removing machine‐specific correlations from brain scan data, and removing ethnicity information from a dataset used to predict recidivism. That the motivation for removing undesirable correlations is quite different in the two applications illustrates the broad applicability of our approach.
Probing the Protosolar Disk Using Dust Filtering at Gaps in the Early Solar System

Jupiter and Saturn formed early, before the gas disk dispersed. The presence of gap-opening planets affects the dynamics of the gas and embedded solids and halts the inward drift of grains above a certain size. A drift barrier can explain the absence of calcium–aluminum-rich inclusions (CAIs) in chondrites originating from parent bodies that accreted in the inner solar system. Employing an interdisciplinary approach, we use a μ-X-ray-fluorescence scanner to search for large CAIs and a scanning electron microscope to search for small CAIs in the ordinary chondrite NWA 5697. We carry out long-term, two-dimensional simulations including gas, dust, and planets to characterize the transport of grains within the viscous α-disk framework exploring the scenarios of a stand-alone Jupiter, Jupiter and Saturn in situ, or Jupiter and Saturn in a 3:2 resonance. In each case, we find a critical grain size above which drift is halted as a function of the physical conditions in the disk. From the laboratory search we find four CAIs with a largest size of ≈200 μm. Combining models and data, we provide an estimate for the upper limit of the α-viscosity and the surface density at the location of Jupiter, using reasonable assumptions about the stellar accretion rate during inward transport of CAIs, and assuming angular momentum transport to happen exclusively through viscous effects. Moreover, we find that the compound gap structure in the presence of Saturn in a 3:2 resonance favors inward transport of grains larger than CAIs currently detected in ordinary chondrites.
A study on the characteristics of douyin short videos and implications for edge caching

Douyin, internationally known as TikTok, has become one of the most successful short-video platforms. To maintain its popularity, Douyin has to provide better Quality of Experience (QoE) to its growing user base. Understanding the characteristics of Douyin videos is thus critical to its service improvement and system design. In this paper, we present an initial study on the fundamental characteristics of Douyin videos based on a dataset of over 260 thousand short videos collected across three months. The characteristics of Douyin videos are found to be significantly different from traditional online videos, ranging from video bitrate, size, to popularity. In particular, the distributions of the bitrate and size of videos follow Weibull distribution. We further observe that the most popular Douyin videos follow Zifp's law on video popularity, but rest of the videos do not. We also investigate the correlation between popularity metrics used for Douyin videos. It is found that the correlation between the number of views and the number of likes are strong, while other correlations are relatively low. Finally, by using a case study, we demonstrate that the above findings can provide important guidance on designing an efficient edge caching system.
Deep Plug-And-Play Super-Resolution for Arbitrary Blur Kernels

While deep neural networks (DNN) based single image super-resolution (SISR) methods are rapidly gaining popularity, they are mainly designed for the widely-used bicubic degradation, and there still remains the fundamental challenge for them to super-resolve low-resolution (LR) image with arbitrary blur kernels. In the meanwhile, plug-and-play image restoration has been recognized with high flexibility due to its modular structure for easy plug-in of denoiser priors. In this paper, we propose a principled formulation and framework by extending bicubic degradation based deep SISR with the help of plug-and-play framework to handle LR images with arbitrary blur kernels. Specifically, we design a new SISR degradation model so as to take advantage of existing blind deblurring methods for blur kernel estimation. To optimize the new degradation induced energy function, we then derive a plug-and-play algorithm via variable splitting technique, which allows us to plug any super-resolver prior rather than the denoiser prior as a modular part. Quantitative and qualitative evaluations on synthetic and real LR images demonstrate that the proposed deep plug-and-play super-resolution framework is flexible and effective to deal with blurry LR images.
Implementation of endoscopic submucosal dissection for early upper gastrointestinal tract cancer after primary experience in colorectal endoscopic submucosal dissection *

Abstract Background Current guidelines recommend endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) as a treatment option for early cancers of the upper gastrointestinal tract with absent or minimal risk of lymph node metastasis. However, due to the low prevalence of these entities, it is difficult to achieve a competence level for ESD of upper gastrointestinal tract cancers in the Western World. Here, we present single-center data on the implementation of upper gastrointestinal ESD after previous experience with 89 colorectal ESD cases. Methods Retrospective case series of 39 consecutive patients with early cancers of the esophagus (n = 13) or cardia and stomach (n = 26) treated with ESD over a 4-year period. Results ESD was technically feasible in all cases with en bloc, R0, and curative resection rates of 100 %, 76.9 %, and 71.8 %, respectively, and a mean procedure time of 100 minutes (30 – 360 minutes). After an initial 20 procedures, the R0 and curative resection rates increased from 65.0 % to 89.5 %, and from 60.0 % to 84.2 %, respectively. Complications were observed in four patients (10.3 %): three perforations, one case of delayed bleeding, and one esophageal stricture. No case required emergency surgery; the 30-day mortality rate was 0 %. Conclusion In this modest case series from Europe, we observed an effectiveness and complication rate for ESD for early esophageal and gastric cancer that are comparable to other series from Europe but also to more abundant data from Asia. The results indicate that even small numbers of upper gastrointestinal cancers can be managed adequately in centers with expertise in colorectal ESD.
Effect of Interaction between Early Menarche and Genetic Polymorphisms on Triglyceride

Early menarche has been associated with increased risk of metabolic syndrome. Therefore, investigating the association of each component of metabolic syndrome with age at menarche, and interactions between them, might lead to a better understanding of metabolic syndrome pathogenesis. In this study, we evaluated age at menarche for risk of metabolic syndrome and associations with its components. As a result, the risk of MetS incidence was significantly increased only at ≤12 years of age at menarche (OR = 1.91, P < 0.05). Women with early menarche (≤12 years) had significantly higher levels of triglycerides (β coefficient = 37.83, P = 0.02). In addition, hypertriglyceridemia was significantly increased at early menarche with 1.99 (95% CI: 1.16–3.41, P < 0.01). With GWAS-based pathway analysis, we found the type 2 diabetes mellitus, stress-activated protein kinase signaling, and Jun amino-terminal kinase cascade pathways (all nominal P < 0.001, all FDR < 0.05) to be significantly involved with early menarche on triglyceride levels. These findings may help us understand the role of early menarche on triglyceride and interaction between gene and early menarche on triglyceride for the development of metabolic syndrome.
Improvement of Disease Management and Cost Effectiveness in Chinese Patients with Ankylosing Spondylitis Using a Smart-Phone Management System: A Prospective Cohort Study

Objectives Ankylosing spondylitis (AS) is a chronic disease that decreases mobility, function, and quality of life. This study introduced the “Smart-phone SpondyloArthritis Management System” (SpAMS), an interactive mobile health (mHealth) tool designed for AS/spondyloarthritis (SpA) disease management and used SpAMS data to evaluate clinical characteristics of Chinese patients with AS. Methods SpAMS integrates patient's and physician's portals in a smart phone application. The Chinese Ankylosing Spondylitis Prospective Imaging Cohort was launched using SpAMS in April 2016. Patient self-assessments were completed online at baseline and at every subsequent clinic visit. Physician-reported assessments and treatments were recorded by rheumatologists during each visit. Results In total, 1201 patients with AS [mean (SD) age, 30.6 (8.7) years; male, 82.6%] were recruited. Mean (SD) disease duration was 8.4 (6.1) years. Past or current symptoms of acute anterior uveitis (AAU), psoriasis, and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) were observed in 21.0%, 3.7%, and 9.4% of patients, respectively. AAU and IBD occurred significantly more in patients with symptom duration > 10 years. The most commonly used medications at baseline were nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (98.2%). Patients using tumour necrosis factor inhibitors accounted for 20.8%, and 66.4% of patients used conventional synthetic disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs. At baseline, 57.2% of patients had inactive disease (ID)/low disease activity (LDA); this rate significantly improved to 79.2% after a mean follow-up of 13.3 (5.9) months. Compared with relapsed patients, new achievers of ID/LDA underwent more online patient assessments (P < .001). Problems solved in SpAMS caused 29.1% of clinic visits to a tertiary hospital unnecessary. SpAMS saved an average of 5.3 hours and 327.4 RMB per person on traffic expenses; these expenses equalled 16% of the Chinese monthly disposable personal income. Conclusions SpAMS is a time- and cost-saving disease management tool that can help patients with AS perform self-management and provide valuable data to clinicians.
Clinical feasibility of endoscopic submucosal dissection with minimum lateral margin of superficial esophageal squamous cell carcinoma

Abstract Background Esophageal stricture following endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) for superficial esophageal squamous cell cancer (SESCC) has been associated with wide mucosal defects greater than three-quarters of the luminal circumference. Some patients developed dysphagia and required repeated endoscopic balloon dilation even after steroid therapy. As iodine staining clearly visualized the margin of SESCC, we made a longitudinal mucosal incision close to the margin of the lesion to avoid a mucosal defect involving over three-quarters of the luminal circumference for large lesions. This retrospective study aimed to clarify the clinical feasibility of ESD with minimum lateral margin of SESCC. Patients and methods Between 2005 and 2013, 94 patients with 94 initial SESCCs had lesions greater than half of the luminal circumference. Of those, 70 patients with 70 SESCCs had achieved endoscopic clearance for the initial SESCC. In this study, endoscopic clearance was defined as en bloc resection of SESCC histologically confined to the mucosa without lymphovascular invasion and with a free deep margin regardless of the lateral margin. This study evaluated the short- and long-term outcomes in patients undergoing endoscopic clearance. Results In total, 61.4 % (43/70) of the patients had mucosal defects involving over three-quarters of the luminal circumference and 38.5 % (27/70) had a positive or indeterminate lateral margin. However, there was no local or nodal recurrence during the median follow-up period of 3.8 years; the 3-year overall survival rate was 98.5 % and the 3-year disease-free survival rate was 100 %. Conclusion Using our institutions’ strategy, ESD for SESCCs with minimum lateral margins was oncologically acceptable; this approach could reduce the known risk factor of post-ESD stricture.
Studies on the Production of All-Female Populations of Olive Flounder, Paralichthys olivaceus I . Induction of Gynogenetic Diploid and Its Growth

Gynogenetic diploid of olive flounder, Paralichthys olivaceus were induced by cold shock to fertilized eggs with red sea bream, Paragus major sperm that had been genetically inactivated with 4,800 ergs/ ultraviolet (UV) rays. Cold shock to the eggs at for 45 minutes proved to be optimum condition to retain the second polar body. At this treatment, hatching rates of normal fry obtained were more than . No different growth rates were observed up to 200 days after hatching between control and gynogenetic diploid offsprings. However, body weights of gynogenetic diploids were significantly heavier than that of control 300 days after hatching (p> 0.05). A proportion of female in gynogenetic diploid was significantly higher than that in the control (p
Comparative Study of Nutrient Composition and Retention of Raw and Cooked Imported and Local Rice (Oryza sativa) Varieties

Background: Cereals and grains constitute major sources of nutrients worldwide. Rice is a major staple in many household in Nigeria. However majority of people prefer Adepoju BJAST, 1-9, Results and Discussion: An 100 g portion of raw rice samples contained between 10.97-11.36 g moisture, 6.98-8.28 g protein, 0.84-1.24 g crude fibre, 0.94-1.19 g ash, 77.51-79.46 g carbohydrates, 17.81-19.31 g amylose, 5.57-9.69 mg sodium, 113.07-118.75 mg potassium, 4.54-7.34 mg iron, 221.4-238.75 µg folate, and yielded 366.75 - 371.50 kcalories of energy. Ofada rice was highest in all the macro and micronutrients, followed by Abakaliki rice and imported rice, which was highest in gross energy. Cooking resulted in significant reduction in all the nutrients studied (p<0.05), but the reduction was less pronounced in the two local rice samples. Conclusion and Recommendation: The local varieties of rice were nutritious and compared favourably well with the imported rice. Cooking caused significant reduction in the level of antinutrients in the samples. Consumption of local rice varieties is recommended as means of promoting dietary diversity.
Quantitative genetics and genotype by environment interactions for flowering time and floral morphology in Ipomopsis longiflora subsp. australis (Polemoniaceae)

Flowering phenology and floral morphology are both directly tied to overall reproductive success of flowering plants. The match between pollinator abundance and timing of flowering can greatly affect plant fitness, and flower shape and size affect attractiveness of plants to pollinators. I measured quantitative genetic parameters for flowering time (date of first flower) and floral morphology in a polycarpic desert annual, Ipomopsis longiflora subsp. australis to determine the potential for these traits to respond to selection. Significant heritabilities and coefficients of genetic variation (CV A ) were found for flowering phenology and most of the floral traits measured, indicating these traits can likely respond to natural selection in natural populations. Although significant genetic correlations were calculated between many of the floral characters to assess possible constraints on floral evolution, none were detected between flowering time and floral morphology. Flowering time did have a significant genotype-by-environment interaction (GxE) in response to greenhouse and field growing conditions, indicating that there is
Expression of Wip1 in non small cell lung cancer tissue and cells

AIM: To detect the expression level of wip1 in lung cancer tissue and three lung cancer cell lines,and to explore the relations between the expression level of Wip1 in lung cancer and various clinical and pathological features.METHODS: Real-time PCR was employed to detect the expression of Wip1 mRNA in 44 specimens of non small cell lung cancer tissues and normal tissues.The relations between the expression of Wip1 mRNA and various clinical and pathological features were analyzed.Real-time PCR was also employed to detect the expression of Wip1 mRNA in A549,NCI-1299,NCI-H460 and HBE for relative quantitative analysis.RESULTS: In the 44 specimens,the expressions of Wip1 mRNA in both cancer tissues and normal lung tissues were positive.Wip1 gene was over-expressed in 17 specimens in 44 non small cell lung cancer specimens.The rate was 38.6%. The relative level of Wip1 mRNA in NSCLC tissues was significantly higher than that in normal lung tissues(ratio=2.1644±1.3940,P0.01). The expression of Wip1 mRNA was also correlated with pathological grading(P0.05). The relative level of Wip1 mRNA in three kinds of lung cancer cells was significantly higher than that in HBE cells.The difference was statistically significant(P0.05). CONCLUSION: The Wip1 mRNA is over-expressed in non small cell lung cancer,indicating that Wip1 is related to the tumorigenesis and may become the new target of non small cell lung cancer gene therapy.The expression of Wip1 mRNA is related to tumor cell differentiation and may use for the molecular biological reference index to estimate the malignant degree of cancer.
Exogenous salicylic acid alleviates cold damage by regulating antioxidative system in two barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) cultivars

ABSTRACT In this work, the time-dependent effect of exogenous salicylic acid (SA) applied before cold stress was investigated on the regulation of antioxidative respond mechanisms in two barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) cultivars (Akhisar and Tokak) differed in cold tolerance. SA (0.1 mM) was applied to 7-days old barley seedlings growing under control conditions (20/18°C). After this application, the seedlings were transferred to cold conditions (7/5°C) at different times (7, 14, 21 and 28 days) for 3 days. Then, the contents of malondialdehyde (MDA), hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) and the activities of antioxidant enzymes such as superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT) and peroxidase (POX) were determined in the leaves (control, cold and SA + cold) from the seedlings harvested at 10, 17, 24 and 31 days. Moreover, the effect of cold stress was evaluated on the endogenous SA level at the both cultivars by comparing to control plants. The MDA content increased in the cold treatment while it decreased in the SA treatment at all the days studied at the both cultivars. The SA + cold treatment could have a variable effect on H2O2 content at the tolerant barley (Tokak) while decreased its content at the sensitive cultivar (Akhisar). The SA + cold treatment could increase the activities of POX and SOD at both cultivars, but it increased the CAT activity at the tolerant cultivar while decreased at the sensitive cultivar. In addition, the content of endogenous SA was decreased by cold stress at all the days studied at the barley cultivars as compared to control plants. The results show that the SA treatment could be effective on the regulation of the parameters studied at cold conditions until 31 days after SA application, and the importance of exogenous SA treatment before cold stress. It was concluded that exogenous and endogenous SA could play an ameliorating role on cold tolerance by regulating reactive oxygen species and the activities of antioxidative enzymes in both cold-sensitive and cold-tolerant cultivars of barley.