Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Investigating the Host-Range of the Rust Fungus Puccinia psidii sensu lato across Tribes of the Family Myrtaceae Present in Australia

The exotic rust fungus Puccinia psidii sensu lato was first detected in Australia in April 2010. This study aimed to determine the host-range potential of this accession of the rust by testing its pathogenicity on plants of 122 taxa, representative of the 15 tribes of the subfamily Myrtoideae in the family Myrtaceae. Each taxon was tested in two separate trials (unless indicated otherwise) that comprised up to five replicates per taxon and six replicates of a positive control (Syzygium jambos). No visible symptoms were observed on the following four taxa in either trial: Eucalyptus grandis×camaldulensis, E. moluccana, Lophostemon confertus and Sannantha angusta. Only small chlorotic or necrotic flecks without any uredinia (rust fruiting bodies) were observed on inoculated leaves of seven other taxa (Acca sellowiana, Corymbia calophylla ‘Rosea’, Lophostemon suaveolens, Psidium cattleyanum, P. guajava ‘Hawaiian’ and ‘Indian’, Syzygium unipunctatum). Fully-developed uredinia were observed on all replicates across both trials of 28 taxa from 8 tribes belonging to the following 17 genera: Agonis, Austromyrtus, Beaufortia, Callistemon, Calothamnus, Chamelaucium, Darwinia, Eucalyptus, Gossia, Kunzea, Leptospermum, Melaleuca, Metrosideros, Syzygium, Thryptomene, Tristania, Verticordia. In contrast, the remaining 83 taxa inoculated, including the majority of Corymbia and Eucalyptus species, developed a broad range of symptoms, often across the full spectrum, from fully-developed uredinia to no visible symptoms. These results were encouraging as they indicate that some levels of genetic resistance to the rust possibly exist in these taxa. Overall, our results indicated no apparent association between the presence or absence of disease symptoms and the phylogenetic relatedness of taxa. It is most likely that the majority of the thousands of Myrtaceae species found in Australia have the potential to become infected to some degree by the rust, although this wide host range may not be fully realized in the field.
Viper: A Quasi-Real-Time Virtual-Environment Application

When creating a virtual-environment (VE) application, there is often a conflict between the complexity of the virtual environment and the update rate of the system. Typically, more complex environments are more useful and interesting, but may require more rendering work than the graphics system can perform at interactive rates. The viper application gives improved performance in a VE visualization application by allowing the user to trade off image quality for interactive performance. The user can specify a given update rate and viper will attempt to match that rate by simplifying the scene. The user can specify that he wants a full-complexity image (with a correspondingly slower update rate) at any time. 1 . Introduction Virtual-environments systems often use head-mounted displays (HMDs) in order to either immerse the user in a virtual world or superimpose virtual objects into the real environment. In both cases, the system needs to respond almost instantaneously to user movements, or the illusion will be degraded. The delay between the user's movement (e.g., a head rotation) and the update of the image on the HMD is known as latency or lag, and it has been shown to have detrimental effects on operator performance in numerous studies. For complicated scenes or objects, image generation is often the largest contributor to the system latency. If the virtual objects contain tens of thousands of polygons, the graphics engine is often incapable of rendering stereo images at interactive rates. Viper is a VE application that allows the user to move around complex models in real time by simplifying the scene until the requested update rate is met or until the user demands a full-complexity view. The premise is that for some types of visualization (as opposed to simulation), much of the user's time in the virtual environment is spent getting into position in order to examine some virtual object or objects, and during this navigation time, full-complexity models are not necessary. Thus, the application may be able to reduce the complexity of the virtual objects in order to give good response while the user is moving, and then, once in position, the user can specify (via a button press or command) that the system should use the full-complexity, slower version of the model.
Working together or separately? The role of identity and cultural self-construal in well-being among Japanese youth

Young people develop a sense of personal identity during the transition to adulthood, a time when individuals choose and adhere to a specific set of goals, values, and beliefs. In addition, in many contemporary Asian societies, youth are expected to acquire and balance traditional and Western cultural views of the self — that is, independent and interdependent self-construal. To understand the relationships between the personal and cultural facets of the transition to adulthood, this study examined (a) associations between personal identity and well-being and (b) the possible moderating role of cultural self-construal (independence and interdependence) in this link. These hypotheses were tested in a sample of 520 Japanese university students (52.6% female). The results indicated that personal identity predicted each dimension of well-being, suggesting that the importance of personal identity in promoting youth's well-being can be understood as a universal phenomenon. Moreover, because the moderating role of self-construal in the links between identity and well-being was found to be limited, personal identity can be viewed as operating separately from self-construal in well-being to a large extent. Implications and suggestions for future research are discussed.
WEEKLY DEVELOPMENT OF FUNCTIONAL QUADRICEPS STRENGTH PARAMETERS DURING HIGH-INTENSITY RESISTANCE TRAINING

The time course of muscular adaptation is unclear, especially for strength parameters measured by interpolated twitch technique, such as peak twitch torque, voluntary activation level and rate of toque development. Two male subjects participated in a longitudinal study over 11 weeks, with one pre-measurement, eight weeks of training and two weeks of detraining (rest). Resting twitch parameters decreased for both participants and only recovered to baseline level and above in the detraining phase. Voluntary quadricsps strength increased with training, with increasing activation level. The study shows the complexity of adaptation to intense strength training, being influenced by fatigue and individual factors and showing the need for a careful consideration of resistance training intensity in athletes prior to competition or scientific settings.
Robotic body extension based on Hot Melt Adhesives

The capability of extending body structures is one of the most significant challenges in the robotics research and it has been partially explored in self-reconfigurable robotics. By using such a capability, a robot is able to adaptively change its structure from, for example, a wheel like body shape to a legged one to deal with complexity in the environment. Despite their expectations, the existing mechanisms for extending body structures are still highly complex and the flexibility in self-reconfiguration is still very limited. In order to account for the problems, this paper investigates a novel approach to robotic body extension by employing an unconventional material called Hot Melt Adhesives (HMAs). Because of its thermo-plastic and thermo-adhesive characteristics, this material can be used for additive fabrication based on a simple robotic manipulator while the established structures can be integrated into the robot's own body to accomplish a task which could not have been achieved otherwise. This paper first investigates the HMA material properties and its handling techniques, then evaluates performances of the proposed robotic body extension approach through a case study of a “water scooping” task.
Fusion of magnitude and phase-based features for objective evaluation of TTS voice

This paper analyzes the distance-based objective measures for evaluation of Text-to-Speech (TTS) systems (which is generally used objective measures). In this paper, we discuss some aspects of evaluation of speech quality of synthesized speech. Some of the limitations and issues of subjective evaluation are discussed and importance of objective measures is presented. Traditional objective measure using Dynamic Time Warping (DTW) distance is used in this work. We have used magnitude and phase-based features as well as auditory features to check effectiveness of objective measures for predicting quality of TTS voice. In particular, Mel Frequency Cepstral Coefficients (MFCC) features and phase-based Modified Group Delay-based Cepstral Coefficients (MGDCC) alone have no good correlation with subjective scores. However, feature-level fusion of MFCC and MGDCC gives better correlation than all other feature sets. With this fusion, we obtained value of correlation coefficient, -0.3 and -0.32 for Blizzard Challenge databases 2010 and 2011, respectively. The results also show significance of phase-based features for objective measures when used along with magnitude-based features. The experimental results show that distance-based measures still do not work well with Blizzard Challenge databases and need more general objective measures for measuring quality of TTS voice.
A hybrid evaluation metric for optimizing classifier

The accuracy metric has been widely used for discriminating and selecting an optimal solution in constructing an optimized classifier. However, the use of accuracy metric leads the searching process to the sub-optimal solutions due to its limited capability of discriminating values. In this study, we propose a hybrid evaluation metric, which combines the accuracy metric with the precision and recall metrics. We call this new performance metric as Optimized Accuracy with Recall-Precision (OARP). This paper demonstrates that the OARP metric is more discriminating than the accuracy metric using two counter-examples. To verify this advantage, we conduct an empirical verification using a statistical discriminative analysis to prove that the OARP is statistically more discriminating than the accuracy metric. We also empirically demonstrate that a naive stochastic classification algorithm trained with the OARP metric is able to obtain better predictive results than the one trained with the conventional accuracy metric. The experiments have proved that the OARP metric is a better evaluator and optimizer in the constructing of optimized classifier.
DSPSR: Digital Signal Processing Software for Pulsar Astronomy

Abstract dspsr is a high-performance, open-source, object-oriented, digital signal processing software library and application suite for use in radio pulsar astronomy. Written primarily in C++, the library implements an extensive range of modular algorithms that can optionally exploit both multiple-core processors and general-purpose graphics processing units. After over a decade of research and development, dspsr is now stable and in widespread use in the community. This paper presents a detailed description of its functionality, justification of major design decisions, analysis of phase-coherent dispersion removal algorithms, and demonstration of performance on some contemporary microprocessor architectures.
An analytical comparison of three spatio-temporal regularization methods for dynamic linear inverse problems in a common statistical framework

Dynamic inverse problems, which occur in medical imaging and other fields, are inverse problems in which the quantities to be reconstructed vary in time, although they are related to the measurements through spatial operators only. Traditional methods solve these problems by frame-by-frame reconstruction, then extract temporal behaviour of the objects or regions of interest through curve fitting and other image-based processing. These approaches solve the inverse problem while exploiting only the spatial relationship between the object and the measurement data at each time instant, without using any temporal dynamics of the underlying process, and thus are not optimal unless the solution is temporally uncorrelated. If the spatial operators are linear, and if one, by contrast, solves the whole spatio-temporal process jointly, it falls into the category of general linear least-squares problems. Such approaches are generally difficult, both due to the challenge of modelling the temporal dynamics appropriately as well as to the high dimensionality of the associated large linear system. Several recent reports have approached this problem in different ways, making different prior assumptions on the spatial and temporal behaviour. In this paper we discuss three such approaches, which have been introduced from different points of view, in a common statistical regularization framework, and illuminate their relationships. The three methods are a state-space model, the separability condition and a multiple constraints model. The key result is that there is a clear relationship among the three methods; specifically, the inverse of the spatio-temporal autocovariance matrix has a block tri-diagonal form, a Kronecker product form or a Kronecker sum form, respectively. Some simple simulation examples are presented to illustrate the theoretical analysis.
Learning the Mapping Rules for Sentiment Analysis

There is an increasing popularity of people posting their feelings on microblogging such as Twitter. Sentiment analysis on the tweets allows organizations to monitor public' feelings towards a product or brand. In this paper, we model sentiment analysis problem as a multi-classification approach that utilizes various feature types, including predicate-argument relation, hashtag, mention and emotion in the tweets. We describe a Content-Structure Correspondence (CSC) model that is able to represent diverse feature types in a tweet. We present a conceptual hierarchy to express the characteristics of a tweet. A multi-classification approach is used to map tweet content to the conceptual hierarchy. The mapping patterns are learned to identify the sentiment of a tweet.
Earth ’ s magnetosphere and ionosphere

The Earth’s magnetic field creates a cavity in interplanetary space, called the magnetosphere. Physical processes in this region of space determine how mass and energy from the solar wind reach the ionosphere, the partially ionized upper atmosphere. Magnetosphere and ionosphere are strongly coupled. Together, they modulate the impacts of solar activity on man and technology. This paper presents a brief overview of the magnetosphere-ionosphere system under quiet conditions, followed by a summary of the most important dynamic effects during disturbed conditions.
Design of the Building Envelope: A Novel Multi-Objective Approach for the Optimization of Energy Performance and Thermal Comfort

According to the increasing worldwide attention to energy and the environmental performance of the building sector, building energy demand should be minimized by considering all energy uses. In this regard, the development of building components characterized by proper values of thermal transmittance, thermal capacity, and radiative properties is a key strategy to reduce the annual energy need for the microclimatic control. However, the design of the thermal characteristics of the building envelope is an arduous task, especially in temperate climates where the energy demands for space heating and cooling are balanced. This study presents a novel methodology for optimizing the thermo-physical properties of the building envelope and its coatings, in terms of thermal resistance, capacity, and radiative characteristics of exposed surfaces. A multi-objective approach is adopted in order to optimize energy performance and thermal comfort. The optimization problem is solved by means of a Genetic Algorithm implemented in MATLAB ® , which is coupled with EnergyPlus for performing dynamic energy simulations. For demonstration, the methodology is applied to a residential building for two different Mediterranean climates: Naples and Istanbul. The results show that for Naples, because of the higher incidence of cooling demand, cool external coatings imply significant energy savings, whereas the insulation of walls should be high but not excessive (no more than 13–14 cm). The importance of high-reflective coating is clear also in colder Mediterranean climates, like Istanbul, although the optimal thicknesses of thermal insulation are higher (around 16–18 cm). In both climates, the thermal envelope should have a significant mass, obtainable by adopting dense and/or thick masonry layers. Globally, a careful design of the thermal envelope is always necessary in order to achieve high-efficiency buildings.
A Theory of Resonance

The metaphor of resonance often describes the fit between a message and an audience’s worldviews. Yet scholars have largely ignored the cognitive processes audiences use to interpret messages and interactions that determine why certain messages and other cultural objects appeal to some but not others. Drawing on pragmatism, we argue that resonance occurs as cultural objects help people puzzle through practical challenges they face or construct. We discuss how cognitive distance and the process of emotional reasoning shape the likelihood of cultural resonance. We argue resonance is an emergent process structured by interactions between individuals that shape each other’s interpretation of cultural objects, diffuse objects through interactional circuits, and create opportunities for resonance among people facing similarly shaped problems. Our approach thus identifies new processes at micro, meso, and macro levels of analysis that shape resonance and describes the pathways that might allow resonance to crystallize into broader mobilization and social change.
One World, Just a Dream? Effects of the Beijing Olympic icon on perceived differences between Eastern and Western culture

The Beijing Olympic Games, aspiring towards ‘One World, One Dream’, were intended to elicit feelings of international unity. As such, once reminded of the Beijing Games, people should perceive fewer differences between cultures. Alternatively, given its competitive nature, the Beijing Games may lead people to contrast cultures and see heightened intergroup differences. Findings supported the latter process. After being primed with the Beijing Olympic icon, Chinese and American participants high in nationalism and patriotism perceived greater differences between Chinese and American cultures, compared to those low in nationalism and patriotism. Among Chinese participants who believe society is malleable, exposure to the icon increased perceived cultural differences, compared with those unexposed to the icon. Chinese participants who believe society is fixed saw similarly high levels of differentiation between the cultures, whether or not they were exposed to the icon. Implications for Sino-American relations and globalization are discussed.
Hop-by-HopWorm Propagation with Carryover Epidemic Model in Mobile Sensor Networks

In the internet, a worm is usually propagated in a random multi-hop contact manner. However, the attacker will not likely select this random multi-hop propagation approach in a mobile sensor network. This is because multi-hop worm route paths to random vulnerable targets can be often breached due to node mobility, leading to failure of fast worm spread under this strategy. Therefore, an appropriate propagation strategy is needed for mobile sensor worms. To meet this need, we discuss a hop-by-hop worm propagation model in mobile sensor networks. In a hop-by-hop worm propagation model, benign nodes are infected by worm in neighbor-to-neighbor spread manner. Since worm infection occurs in hop-by-hop contact, it is not substantially affected by a route breach incurred by node mobility. We also propose the carryover epidemic model to deal with the worm infection quota deficiency that might occur when employing an epidemic model in a mobile sensor network. We analyze worm infection capability under the carryover epidemic model. Moreover, we simulate hop-by-hop worm propagation with carryover epidemic model by using an ns-2 simulator. The simulation results demonstrate that infection quota carryovers are seldom observed where a node’s maximum speed is no less than 20 m/s.
Reliability and Validity Testing of Modified Structured Wellness Questionnaire for Monitoring the Wellness Perception of University Students

Wellness on a general scale is a major global concern as it is perpendicular to achieving monumental success in a drive towards global health challenges. The health status and wellbeing of university students should be major concern as they constitute young adolescent population and are prone to risky lifestyle. The objective of this study is to carry out exploratory factor analysis of modified structured wellness questionnaire used by university students in pursuit of healthy living. The study explored the orientation, health perspective and practices of the university students to assess the factor loading of the modified structures questionnaire for extraction, reduction and compression into variables. A 20-item questionnaire was administered to 1030 students from four different colleges of Afe Babalola University. Analyses were performed using SPSS. Principal axis component was conducted on the data and Cronbach Alpha was used to test the internal consistency of the data. The results of factor analysis showed five factors and eliminate five items that loaded below the cut-off points. The factors were drug and alcohol pattern; health belief and finance; self-expression and social integration; exercise, sleep and food; strength of social circle. Keywords: Principal axis factoring; Wellness; Healthy living
ADDRESSING THE OPERATIONAL CHALLENGES IN THE MANUFACTURE OF ADVANCED MATERIALS AND PERFORMANCE PRODUCTS

The challenges of supplying advanced materials and performance products are very different from those associated with commodity chemicals. Yet these challenges are well addressed by enterprisewide optimization techniques. This paper discusses the nature of advanced materials and some challenges and solutions related to product design, production scheduling, process reliability, and logistics. Ongoing research in the use of multi-agent systems for batch process management is also reviewed.