Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Gradual Learning and Convergence

GRADUAL LEARNING AND CONVERGENCE Joe Pater University of Amherst, Massachusetts Dayal, Veneeta. 1995. Quantification in correlatives. In Quantification in natural language, ed. by Emmon Bach, Eloise Jelinek, Angelika Kratzer, and Barbara Partee, 179–205. Dordrecht: Kluwer. Dayal, Veneeta. 1996. Locality in wh quantification. Dordrecht: Kluwer. Heim, Irene. 1983. On the projection problem for presuppositions. In West Coast Conference on Formal Linguistics (WCCFL) 2, ed. by Michael Barlow, Daniel Flickinger, and Michael Wescoat, 114–126. Stanford, CA: Stanford University, Stanford Linguistics Association. Heim, Irene, and Angelika Kratzer. 1998. Semantics in generative grammar. Oxford: Blackwell. Jacobson, Pauline. 1995. On the quantificational force of English free relatives. In Quantification in natural language, ed. by Emmon Bach, Eloise Jelinek, Angelika Kratzer, and Barbara Partee, 451–486. Dordrecht: Kluwer. Krifka, Manfred. 1986. Nominalreferenz und Zeitkonstitution: Zur Semantik von Massentermen, Pluraltermen und Aspektklassen. Doctoral dissertation, Universität München. Partee, Barbara. 1987. Noun phrase interpretation and type-shifting principles. In Studies in Discourse Representation Theory and the theory of generalized quantifiers, ed. by Jeroen Groenendijk, Dick de Jongh, and Martin Stokhof, 115–143. Dordrecht: Foris. Sharvy, Richard. 1980. A more general theory of definite descriptions. Philosophical Review 89:607–624.
Adaptive Tracking of Overlapping Vehicles Via Markov Chain Monte Carlo with CUSUM Path Plot Algorithm

Vehicle detection and tracking is essential in traffic surveillance and traffic flow optimization. However, occlusion or overlapped vehicle tracking is difficult and remain a challenging research topic in image processing. In this paper, a conventional Markov Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) is enhanced via Cumulative Sum (CUSUM) path plot in order to track vehicles in overlapping situation. By calculating the hairiness of CUSUM path plot, MCMC can be diagnosed as converged based on its sampling outputs. Varying sample size of MCMC provides enhancement to the tracking performance and capability of overcoming the limitation of conventional fix sample size algorithm. In addition, implementation of m-th order prior probability distribution and fusion of color and edge distance likelihood have further improved the tracking accuracy. MCMC with fixed sample size and CUSUM path plot are implemented and their corresponding performances are analyzed. Experimental results show that MCMC with CUSUM path plot has better performance where it is able to track the overlapped vehicle accurately with lesser processing time.
Outliers-Robust CFAR Detector of Gaussian Clutter Based on the Truncated-Maximum-Likelihood- Estimator in SAR Imagery

This paper proposes an outliers-robust constant false-alarm rate (OR-CFAR) detector of Gaussian clutter based on the truncated-maximum-likelihood estimator (TMLE) in SAR imagery. The proposed method aims at elevating the detection performance in multiple-target environment, where the sea clutter samples are often contaminated by the interfering target pixels, the azimuth ambiguities, and the breakwater. As a consequence, the parameters used for statistical modeling are over-estimated, resulting in a degradation of the CFAR detection rate. Inspired by the traditional two-parameter CFAR (TP-CFAR) detector of Gaussian clutter, OR-CFAR designs an adaptive threshold-based clutter truncation method to eliminate the high-intensity outliers from the clutter samples in the local reference window, and the probability density function (PDF) of the sea clutter can be accurately modeled through the newly raised TMLE. Furthermore, the optimal truncation depth used for clutter truncation and PDF modeling is evaluated and selected properly to get the best detection results. The OR-CFAR greatly enhances the CFAR detection rate in multiple-target environment, and it is computationally simple and efficient, which has a great application value. The Chinese Gaofen-3 SAR data are used for experiments to show the better detection performance of OR-CFAR.
Framing and Securitization in JOS Ethnic Conflicts

Conflict is a reality of social life and it exists at all levels of the society. It is evident in the individual level and cuts across other levels up to the global level. It has remained the truly constant phenomenon in all spheres of life. Intrapersonal and interpersonal conflicts are equally important and are capable of far-reaching consequences. Despite the limited number of people involved in these forms of conflicts, the ripple effects of conflicts enable them to seep into other spectra thereby becoming cataclysmic. As such, conflict at any level should not be underestimated or handled with kid gloves. The carnage and intensity of protracted intragroup or intergroup conflicts are usually higher when compared with intrapersonal and interpersonal conflicts. The number of people involved in a conflict may be a direct or indirect influence on the course of the conflict. Diverse opinions and frames are formed by members of the conflicting parties. Thus, ‘the more the people, the more the frames’ becomes applicable, though not as an exact representation but of expectation in any conflict.
Proving transaction and system-level properties of untimed SystemC TLM designs

Electronic System Level (ESL) design manages the enormous complexity of todays systems by using abstract models. In this context Transaction Level Modeling (TLM) is state-of-the-art for describing complex communication without all the details. As ESL language, SystemC has become the de facto standard. Since the SystemC TLM models are used for early software development and as reference for hardware implementation their correct functional behavior is crucial. Admittedly, the best possible verification quality can be achieved with formal approaches. However, formal verification of TLM models is a hard task. Existing methods basically consider local properties or have extremely high run-time. In contrast, the approach proposed in this paper can verify “true” TLM properties, i.e. major TLM behavior like for instance the effect of a transaction and that the transaction is only started after a certain event can be proven. Our approach works as follows: After a fully automatic SystemC-to-C transformation, the TLM property is mapped to monitoring logic using C assertions and finite state machines. To detect a violation of the property the approach uses a BMC-based formulation over the outermost loop of the SystemC scheduler. In addition, we improve this verification method significantly by employing induction on the C model forming a complete and efficient approach. As shown by experiments state-of-the-art proof techniques allow proving important non-trivial behavior of SystemC TLM designs.
Enhancing link prediction in Twitter using semantic user attributes

Studying social networks and the ties connecting people in those networks has attracted many researchers. Social networks like Facebook, Twitter and Flickr require efficient and accurate methods to recommend friends to their users in the network. Several algorithms have been developed to recommend friends or predict likelihood of future links. Link Prediction algorithms utilize local features of the network in the neighborhood of the two nodes in question, or use global features like path structure of the whole network. New algorithms tend to combine both in order to achieve the best results such as FriendTNS that takes into account the degrees of the nodes, and the direct links between them. This paper extends FriendTNS such that it takes the strength of the tie between two users into account. The strength of the tie is represented by the interaction that takes place between two users. In order to evaluate the correctness of the proposed model, it has been applied on a real dataset of 2.974k users on the Twitter social network. The proposed model considers different features of users to represent their connective and social relationships. Experiments shows that the proposed model outperforms traditional algorithms when applied individually.
Rapid prototyping of outdoor games for children in an iterative design process

This paper reflects on the design process of games that are played by multiple players, involving high pace activity and embodied interaction. More specifically it argues that user testing with low fidelity prototypes, which is recommended in mainstream literature on methodology in the fields of human computer interaction and game design, is not appropriate when designing these kind of games. Designers should instead, as early as possible in the design process, experiment with technology and expose working prototypes to play test with children. A case study, in which we designed several games and tested in three iterations, is also presented. The games were designed for and tested with RaPIDO, a specially designed platform for prototyping mobile and interactive technology. Finally, we argue that our hypothesis regarding technology-rich prototyping is confirmed, since the feedback from the children concerned the realized interaction, and aspects of play and social interaction were experienced in real context, instead of an imagined way as a mock-up would have allowed.
Investigation of Architect and Non-Architect Participants Perceptual Evaluations on Different Period Mosque Facades

In architecture, perception based studies about building facades have become more popular. In recent studies, mostly residential buildings and business center type of buildings had been selected as target buildings. The lack of study of the perception of the facades of religious structures has created the basic motivation for this work. In the current study, the facade features of (Seljuk period, Ottoman period and Republic period) some important mosques from different periods were evaluated according to the adjective pairs of complexity, preference and impressiveness variables. Also, whether or not the general views of the mosques represent Islamic religion and their level of arousing curiosity were questioned. For this purpose, in the study, a total of 16 mosques were used. The results obtained from the participants as architect and non-architect are given. It is seen that the participant architects show a statistically more negative approach compared to those who are non-architects in the perceptual evaluations of the facades of the mosques for complexity variable. On the other hand, there was no statistically significant difference between the participants' evaluations of preference and impressiveness variables (at p <0.05 level).
Generic algorithm based voltage Islands-Aware Multiple Voltage Assignment

Power consumption has become one of most serious challenges for SoC design. Among the various methods, Multiple Supply Voltage (MSV) is an effective method for power reduction. In this paper, Genetic Algorithm (GA) is used to optimize the Voltage Islands-Aware Multiple Voltage Assignment (VIAMVA). A cost function is developed to take the overhead of level shifters and the complexity of power network into account. The proposed algorithm is tested on six GSRC benchmarks. Experimental results show that the proposed method can save power consumption up to 47.60% with voltage island generation.
The Novel Application of Optimization and Charge Blended Energy Management Control for Component Downsizing within a Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle

The adoption of Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicles (PHEVs) is widely seen as an interim solution for the decarbonization of the transport sector. Within a PHEV, determining the required energy storage capacity of the battery remains one of the primary concerns for vehicle manufacturers and system integrators. This fact is particularly pertinent since the battery constitutes the largest contributor to vehicle mass. Furthermore, the financial cost associated with the procurement, design and integration of battery systems is often cited as one of the main barriers to vehicle commercialization. The ability to integrate the optimization of the energy management control system with the sizing of key PHEV powertrain components presents a significant area of research. Contained within this paper is an optimization study in which a charge blended strategy is used to facilitate the downsizing of the electrical machine, the internal combustion engine and the high voltage battery. An improved Equivalent Consumption Method has been used to manage the optimal power split within the powertrain as the PHEV traverses a range of different drivecycles. For a target CO2 value and drivecycle, results show that this approach can yield significant downsizing opportunities, with cost reductions on the order of 2%–9% being realizable.
Integration of Change and Evolution in the Lifecycle of SMEs Information Systems

Today’s software enterprise systems continue to suffer from symptoms like aging and the lack of evolution capabilities. One of the major reasons for this problem is that the future maintenance and evolutions are undervalued during traditional software systems implementation. The best way to overcome the problem of software aging and the misalignment with business is by placing the change in the center of software system lifecycle. This thesis proposal presents the main activities required to create a method allowing the integration of change in the lifecycle of SMEs information systems (IS). By following a design science approach in IS, this study will explore the main challenges faced by small and medium enterprises (SMEs) regarding the evolutions of their IS, and the benefits of an agile approach to integrate change throughout the IS lifecycle.
Lee Filter for Multiscale Image Denoising

In recent years, denoising in wavelet domain has become an important research field and some nice methods were presented. In this paper, by extending the Lee filter to wavelet transform domain, the Haar wavelet, and the double Haar wavelet are obtained. Also, a structure called moving window-based pyramid is presented. Example shows that the proposed structure is effective for multiscale image denoising
When GRB afterglows get softer, hard components come into play

Aims. We aim to investigate the ability of simple spectral models to describe the GRB early afterglow emission. Methods. We performed a time resolved spectral analysis of a bright GRB sample detected by the Swift Burst Alert Telescope and promptly observed by the Swift X‐ray Telescope,with spectroscopically measured redshift in the period April 2005 ‐ January 2007. The sample consists of 22 GRBs and a total of 214 spectra. We restricted our analysis to the softest spectra sub‐sample whi ch consists of 13 spectra with photon index > 3. Results. In this sample we found that four spectra, belonging to GRB060502A, GRB060729, GRB060904B, GRB061110A prompt‐ afterglow transition phase, cannot be modeled neither by a single power law nor by the Band model. Instead we find that the d ata present high energy (> 3 keV, in the observer frame) excesses with respect to these models. We estimated the joint statistical significance of these excesses at the level of 4.3 �. In all four cases, the deviations can be modeled well by adding either a second power law or a blackbody component to the usual synchrotron power law spectrum. The additional power law would be explained by the emerging of the afterglow, while the blackbody could be interpreted as the photospheric emission from X‐ray flares or as t he shock breakout emission. In one case these models leave a 2.2� excess which can be fit by a Gaussian line at the energy the high ly ionized Nickel recombination. Conclusions. Although the data do not allow an unequivocal interpretation, the importance of this analysis consists in the fact that w e show that a simple power law model or a Band model are insuffi cient to describe the X-ray spectra of a small homogeneous sample of GRBs at the end of their prompt phase.
Using the Object Oriented Paradigm to Model Context in Computer Go

In this paper, we investigate the use of contextual knowledge in order to simplify knowledge representation in very complex domains and systems. In the case of a complex domain like the game of Go, we show that there are several types of context. We give some examples of temporal, goal, spatial and global contexts. We describe how Go playing programs represent and use these contexts in the ObjectOriented Paradigm (OOP). We introduce three examples of OOP mechanisms that enable us to deal with contexts: a general class with specialized classes, a master slot of a class and slave slots, a list of goals that depend on each other. We believe that these OOP mechanisms are useful to represent context in other complex domains.
Locus Coeruleus Stimulation Recruits a Broad Cortical Neuronal Network and Increases Cortical Perfusion

The locus coeruleus (LC), the main source of brain noradrenalin (NA), modulates cortical activity, cerebral blood flow (CBF), glucose metabolism, and blood–brain barrier permeability. However, the role of the LC–NA system in the regulation of cortical CBF has remained elusive. This rat study shows that similar proportions (∼20%) of cortical pyramidal cells and GABA interneurons are contacted by LC–NA afferents on their cell soma or proximal dendrites. LC stimulation induced ipsilateral activation (c-Fos upregulation) of pyramidal cells and of a larger proportion (>36%) of interneurons that colocalize parvalbumin, somatostatin, or nitric oxide synthase compared with pyramidal cells expressing cyclooxygenase-2 (22%, p < 0.05) or vasoactive intestinal polypeptide-containing interneurons (16%, p < 0.01). Concurrently, LC stimulation elicited larger ipsilateral compared with contralateral increases in cortical CBF (52 vs 31%, p < 0.01). These CBF responses were almost abolished (−70%, p < 0.001) by cortical NA denervation with DSP-4 [N-(2-chloroethyl)-N-ethyl-2-bromobenzylamine hydrochloride] and were significantly reduced by α- and β-adrenoceptor antagonists (−40%, p < 0.001 and −30%, p < 0.05, respectively). Blockade of glutamatergic or GABAergic neurotransmission with NMDA or GABAA receptor antagonists potently reduced the LC-induced hyperemic response (−56%, p < 0.001 or −47%, p < 0.05). Moreover, inhibition of astroglial metabolism (−35%, p < 0.01), vasoactive epoxyeicosatrienoic acids (EETs; −60%, p < 0.001) synthesis, large-conductance, calcium-operated (BK, −52%, p < 0.05), and inward-rectifier (Kir, −40%, p < 0.05) K+ channels primarily impaired the hyperemic response. The data demonstrate that LC stimulation recruits a broad network of cortical excitatory and inhibitory neurons resulting in increased cortical activity and that K+ fluxes and EET signaling mediate a large part of the hemodynamic response.
Exploiting the preferred domain of FDD massive MIMO systems with uniform planar arrays

Massive multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) systems hold the potential to be an enabling technology for 5G cellular. Uniform planar array (UPA) antenna structures are a focus of much commercial discussion because of their ability to enable a large number of antennas in a relatively small area. With UPA antenna structures, the base station can control the beam direction in both the horizontal and vertical domains simultaneously. However, channel conditions may dictate that one dimension requires higher channel state information (CSI) accuracy than the other. We propose the use of an additional one bit of feedback information sent from the user to the base station to indicate the preferred domain on top of the feedback overhead of CSI quantization in frequency division duplexing (FDD) massive MIMO systems. Combined with variable-rate CSI quantization schemes, the numerical studies show that the additional one bit of feedback can increase the quality of CSI significantly for UPA antenna structures.
Information theoretic capacity analysis of single-walled carbon nanotube bundle VLSI interconnects

Conventional approach of copper interconnects has become a major bottleneck for VLSI system performance due to larger delay and increased susceptibility to noise in deep sub-micrometer (DSM) technology. Bundles of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNT) have been proposed as a possible replacement for copper interconnect due to their outstanding conductivity and current-carrying capabilities. This paper presents the signal and data carrying capacity of SWCNT interconnects from information theoretic point of view. Results show SWCNT bundle data bus provides better data handling capacity compared to an 8-bit-wide 0.1-µm Cu interconnect technology for long (global and intermediate levels) interconnects. It also shows that maximum data transfer rate for SWCNT bundle data bus occurs at around 60 GHz for intermediate and global level interconnects which clearly makes it suitable for future high-speed on-chip interconnect applications.
Health among humorists: Susceptibility to contagious diseases among improvisational artists

Abstract There is a widely held belief that humor contributes to better health, but the research on this topic yields mixed results. To assess the relationship between humor and health, we compared the susceptibility to various infectious diseases of 511 comedy performers (amateur improvisational artists) and a control group of 795 non-performers that were matched to the comedy performers sample in age and sex. Subjects reported the number of episodes and the total days they had had various infectious diseases. Contrary to the prevailing sentiment that humor boosts health, results showed that the comedy performer group reported more frequent contagious diseases and more days having these infections diseases, compared to the control group. Improv artists had significantly more infections and reported more days infected than the control group on respiratory infections, head colds, stomach or intestinal flu, skin infections, and autoimmune diseases. The control group had significantly more bladder infections with non-significant difference on days infected. Results held after controlling for BMI, age, number of antibiotics used and neuroticism. We found no evidence that humor positively contributes to health, and a career in a humor-related profession may be detrimental to one’s health. Our research highlights the complex relationship between humor and health outcomes.
A DSGE-Based Assessment of Nonlinear Loan-to-Value Policies: Evidence from Hong Kong

In the wake of the 2008-2009 global financial crisis, the macroeconomic discussion has returned to the topic of proactive macroprudential policies. One proactive approach, the use of loan-to-value (LTV) policies to curb booming property markets, has long been used by Hong Kong's monetary authorities to actively manage and mitigate the potential fallout from housing price bubbles. Here, we analyse the merits of this countercyclical macroprudential policy in a New Keynesian DSGE model. We conclude that nonlinear LTV policy rules implemented in reaction to episodes of high property price inflation can limit transmission of housing price cycle effects to the real economy. Keywords: Macroprudential policy, DSGE model, loan-to-value ratio, Hong Kong. JEL classification: C63, E21, E32, E69, F41.
Deriving vocal tract shapes from electromagnetic articulograph data via geometric adaptation and matching

In this paper, we present our efforts towards deriving vocal tract shapes from ElectroMagnetic Articulograph data (EMA) via geometric adaptation and matching. We describe a novel approach for adapting Maeda’s geometric model of the vocal tract to one speaker in the MOCHA database. We show how we can rely solely on the EMA data for adaptation. We present our search technique for the vocal tract shapes that best fit the given EMA data. We then describe our approach of synthesizing speech from these shapes. Results on Mel-cepstral distortion reflect improvement in synthesis over the approach we used before without adaptation.