Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Distributed Cooperative Routing for UWB Ad-Hoc Networks

This conference paper proposes and investigates a new distributed cooperative routing strategy that can be adopted to forward data in the ultra wide band (UWB) ad-hoc network via a multi-hop route with the best instantaneous quality. The strategy combines the physical (PHY) and medium-access-control (MAC) layer mechanisms to select the best route from available ones in a cooperative and distributed way. Using an example of the parallel two-hop relay network where data from a source node can be forwarded by several possible relays to the destination node, we study two related issues: First, we devise a new estimation algorithm for the UWB link received signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) that is used to determine the UWB link quality. The estimation algorithm is unbiased with estimation errors significantly lower than the reported algorithms in literature. Second, we propose a new distributed cooperative routing scheme. Each relay node uses an enhanced carrier sensing with deterministically mapped backoff period as the MAC protocol. The back-off period is chosen by each relay such that the higher the quality of the associated source-relay-destination route, the shorter the back-off time. Simulation results show that even without any feedback about the relay- destination link quality from the destination node to relays and using only its statistical information, the proposed scheme still has up to 3 dB improvement in performance as compared to the random routing. When having 1-bit such feedback, the proposed scheme can achieve full diversity and the overall performance is only 2 dB away from that with full-precision feedback.
A New Approach to Indexing in High-Dimensional Space

SVI is a promising new scheme for indexing high-dimensional points and vectors for use in vector retrieval and for (cid:12)nding the k-nearest neighbours. SVI performs an approximate search; that is, it trades o(cid:11) the completeness of the search for speed. The indexing scheme is built around a rule that was found by applying data mining techniques to sets of random vectors. This approach could well lead to further improvements in the indexing scheme.
Scoliosis Correction Objectives in Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis

Background: A recent study revealed large variability among a group of 32 spine surgeons in the preoperative instrumentation strategies for the same 5 adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS) patients. The surgical plans were determined to be surgeon and curve-type dependent. It is hypothesized that this variability may be attributed to different objectives for correction. This study is presented to document and analyze 3-dimensional (3-D) surgical correction goals for AIS as determined by a sample of experienced spine surgeons. Methods: Fifty surgeons from the Spinal Deformity Study Group were surveyed and asked to rank 20 parameters of scoliosis correction and to provide weights for correction in the coronal, sagittal, and transverse planes and for mobility (number of unfused vertebrae) according to their importance for an optimal 3-D correction. Responders were also asked to complete a more detailed survey where the correction objectives were assessed for each of the 6 Lenke curve types. Importance and variability of the correction parameters were evaluated using median (M) and interquartile range (IQR) of the rank (1-20). Intraobserver reliability was assessed by means of intraclass correlation coefficients. Results: Twenty-five surgeons completed the first questionnaire. There was overall agreement that sagittal (M, 1; IQR, 1) and coronal (M, 2; IQR, 0.5) balance were the most important parameters for an optimal correction. Apical vertebral rotation was the least important. All other parameters were highly variable. The Cobb angles were moderately important, with ranks between 8 and 11 (IQR, 3-5.75). Lumbar lordosis (M, 6.5; IQR, 6.5) had a better rank and consensus than thoracic kyphosis (M, 13; IQR, 10). Results for individual parameters were in agreement with the weights given for an optimal 3-D correction in the coronal (36%) and sagittal (34%) planes. A subgroup of 10 surgeons completed the second survey. Mobility was more important for Lenke curve types 3 to 6 than for types 1 and 2 (P < 0.032). The coronal plane was more important for curve types 2 and 4 than for the other types (P < 0.032). The intraobserver reliability for determining the different parameters of scoliosis correction was poor to moderate. Conclusions: There is a large variability in scoliosis correction objectives. The variability is both surgeon and curve-type dependent. The variability in instrumentation goals may explain the documented variability of spine instrumentation strategies among surgeons. Aside from achieving sagittal and coronal balance, the goals of surgical correction in AIS remain to be further determined and agreed upon by a consensus of spine deformity surgeons. Level of Evidence: Level V.
Strapdown navigation using geometric algebra: Modeling and error analysis

A strapdown inertial navigation system (SDINS) model and two comparable error models are developed using geometric algebra (GA). GA is a powerful representational and computational system for geometry. Rigid body motions can be represented by versor products in GA framework. Therefore, the navigation equation can be recast using GA. It turns out that the principle of strapdown navigation can be expressed in three continuous motor kinematic equations, which share a unitary form. Two error models, i.e. the additive and multiplicative GA error models, are developed. The SDINS and error models presented in this paper are supposed to benefit the prospective integrated navigation filter in terms of GA.
L'Échelle des Orientations Générales à la Causalité: Validation canadienne française du General Causality Orientations Scale.

Although for many years self-determination and intrinsic motivation were studied from an experimental perspective, only recently have they been considered from a personality perspective. A psychometric scale that has been shown to be important in that regard is the General Causality Orientations Scale (GCOS) (Deci & Ryan, 1985b), which was based on Deci and Ryan's (1985a) self-determination theory. There are three rather stable orientations toward the initiation and regulation of behaviour — the autonomy, the control, and the impersonal orientations. The autonomy orientation describes the extent to which people initiate and regulate their behaviour through choice and self-determined goals; the control orientation describes the extent to which people's behaviour is initiated or regulated by controlling inputs; and the impersonal orientation characterizes the extent to which people tend to be nonintentional because they believe they are ineffective in reliably attaining desired outcomes. The GCOS measures the extent to which people are oriented in each of these three ways. Deci and Ryan (1985b) have shown that the scale possesses reliability and validity. The purpose of this study was to 14 VALLERAND, LACOUTURE, BLAIS & DECI validate a French version of the GCOS. The French version was obtained through back-translation and committee procedures (Brislin, Lonner, & Thomdike, 1973), and then psychometric properties and construct validity of the scale were assessed by attempting to reproduce some of the findings reported by Deci and Ryan (1985b) in their validation study. In general, results obtained with the French version of the GCOS were similar to those obtained with the English version and represent an important first step toward the cultural equivalence of the French-Canadian version of the instrument.
Emotional Health and Positive Versus Negative Social Exchanges: A Daily Diary Analysis

Older adults' daily lives entail a mix of positive and negative interpersonal encounters, and these encounters have the potential to affect their emotional well-being. This study examined the links between positive versus negative social exchanges and well-being, using daily diary data collected at 2 points in time from a sample of community-residing older adults (N = 129). Negative exchanges occurred less often but were related more consistently to daily mood than were positive exchanges. These day-to-day exchanges also predicted less transient dimensions of emotional health, with positive and negative exchanges exhibiting distinctive associations with loneliness and depression. Positive exchanges also appeared to influence emotional health by offsetting the adverse effects of negative exchanges. An increase in day-to-day negative exchanges over a 1-year period was associated with an increase in depression. Implications for alternative models of the effects of positive versus negative social exchanges are discussed.
Why Game (Culture) Studies Now?

Games are an extremely valuable context for the study of cognition as inter(action) in the social and material world. They provide a representational trace of both individual and collective activity and how it changes over time, enabling the researcher to unpack the bidirectional influence of self and society. As both designed object and emergent culture, g/Games (a) consist of overlapping well-defined problems enveloped in ill-defined problems that render their solutions meaningful; (b) function as naturally occurring, selfsustaining, indigenous versions of online learning communities; and (c) simultaneously function as both culture and cultural object—as microcosms for studying the emergence, maintenance, transformation, and even collapse of online affinity groups and as talkaboutable objects that function as tokens in public conversations of broader societal issues within contemporary offline society. In this article, the author unpacks each of these claims in the context of the massively multiplayer online games.
Collective Complexity out of Individual Simplicity

The concept of Swarm Intelligence (SI) was first introduced by Gerardo Beni, Suzanne Hackwood, and Jing Wang in 1989 when they were investigating the properties of simulated, self-organizing agents in the framework of cellular robotic systems [1]. Eric Bonabeau, Marco Dorigo, and Guy Theraulaz extend the restrictive context of this early work to include “any attempt to design algorithms or distributed problem-solving devices inspired by the collective behavior of social insect colonies,” such as ants, termites, bees, wasps, “and other animal societies. ” The abilities of such systems appear to transcend the abilities of the constituent individuals. In most biological cases studied so far, robust and capable high-level group behavior has been found to be mediated by nothing more than a small set of simple low-level interactions between individuals, and between individuals and the environment. The SI approach, therefore, emphasizes parallelism, distributedness, and exploitation of direct (agent-to-agent) or indirect (via the environment) local interactions among relatively simple agents.
Cytosolic Phospholipase A2α Blockade Abrogates Disease during the Tissue-Damage Effector Phase of Experimental Autoimmune Encephalomyelitis by Its Action on APCs

Cytosolic phospholipase A2α (cPLA2α) is the rate-limiting enzyme for release of arachidonic acid, which is converted primarily to PGs via the cyclooxygenase 1 and 2 pathways and to leukotrienes via the 5-lipoxygenase pathway. We used adoptive transfer and relapsing–remitting forms of experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE), an animal model of multiple sclerosis, in two different strains of mice (SJL or C57BL/6) to demonstrate that blockade of cPLA2α with a highly specific small-molecule inhibitor during the tissue-damage effector phase abrogates the clinical manifestation of disease. Using the adoptive transfer model in SJL mice, we demonstrated that the blockade of cPLA2α during the effector phase of disease was more efficacious in ameliorating the disease pathogenesis than the blockade of each of the downstream enzymes, cyclooxygenase-1/2 and 5-lipooxygenase. Similarly, blockade of cPLA2α was highly efficacious in ameliorating disease pathogenesis during the effector phase of EAE in the adoptive transfer model of EAE in C57BL/6 mice. Investigation of the mechanism of action indicates that cPLA2α inhibitors act on APCs to diminish their ability to induce Ag-specific effector T cell proliferation and proinflammatory cytokine production. Furthermore, cPLA2α inhibitors may prevent activation of CNS-resident microglia and may increase oligodendrocyte survival. Finally, in a relapsing–remitting model of EAE in SJL mice, therapeutic administration of a cPLA2α inhibitor, starting from the peak of disease or during remission, completely protected the mice from subsequent relapses.
Epithelial and Mesenchymal Cell Biology Epithelial-Stromal Interaction 1 ( EPSTI 1 ) Substitutes for Peritumoral Fibroblasts in the Tumor Microenvironment

From the Departments of Cellular and Molecular Medicine,* Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen N, Denmark; the Department of Pathology, State University Hospital, Rigshospitalet, Copenhagen, Denmark; the Department of Genetics, Institute for Cancer Research, Norwegian Radium Hospital, Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway; and Cell and Developmental Biology, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
Implementation of a strategic group map and balanced scorecard in a university setting

A balanced scorecard reports those performance indicators that have been derived from the institution's mission and stakeholder analysis and are aligned across all functions in the organisation. A comprehensive review of the literature reveals that most universities do not use a strategic map to show the causal linkages among the performance indicators. Drawing from the emerging performance excellence paradigm and research in strategic management, a strategic group map and implementation model are proposed from which a balanced scorecard is developed for higher education. Based on the application of these tools, the university achieved its first significant improvement in strategic indicators in over five years.
Simulation and Evaluation of a Network on Chip Architecture Using Ns-2

-A new chip design paradigm called Network on Chip (NOC) offers a promis architectural choice for future systems on chips. NOC architectures offer a packet swit communication among functional cores on the chip. NOC architectures also apply con from computer networks and organize on-chip communication among cores in layers si to OSI reference model. We constructed a protomodel using a public domain network sim ns-2 and evaluated design options for a specific NOC architecture which has a dimensional mesh of switches. In particular, we analysed the series of simulation results the relationship between buffer size in switch, communication load, packet delay and p drop probability. All the results are useful for design of an appropriate switch for the NO
Integrating Agent-based Human Behavior Simulation With Building Information Modeling for Building Design

—Human behavior needs to be considered when designing buildings and infrastructures. In recent decades, building information modeling (BIM) has been increasingly adopted as a computer aided design methodology for architectural design, engineering design simulation and evaluation, and 4D constructability analysis. BIM models can be used to conduct engineering analyses while human behavior simulation using BIM models is still lacking. The research objective of this study is to connect BIM software with the human behavior simulation engine utilizing object-oriented computer programming language. A behavioral modeling engine is also developed in this study upon the agent-based modeling (ABM) approach. Finally, this paper presents a demonstrative example of four scenarios and the result proves that implementation of the occupant simulation help improve building design.
The Rorschach Performance Assessment System (R-PAS) in Child Custody Evaluations

Although the Rorschach is widely used in child custody evaluations, its contributions are often underestimated. As an evidence-supported, performance-based method, it adds incremental validity to self-report findings. It yields insights about perceptual and coping styles, reality testing and logical thinking, emotional regulation and sensitivity, and relational schemas. Some evaluators hesitate to use the Rorschach due to concerns about reliability and validity, admissibility, and courtroom presentation. R-PAS, a relatively new Rorschach system, shows particular promise in addressing such concerns. It selects and organizes variables according to their degree of empirical support and clinical meaningfulness, uses internationally relevant, nonpathologizing reference data, uses contemporary psychometric statistical methods, and presents results in a format that is easy for a court to understand.
Scalable architecture for online prioritisation of cyber threats

Detecting advanced attacks is increasingly complex and no single solution can work. Defenders can leverage logs and alarms produced by network and security devices, but big data analytics solutions are necessary to transform huge volumes of raw data into useful information. Existing anomaly detection frameworks either work offline or aim to mark a host as compromised, with high risk of false alarms. We propose a novel online approach that monitors the behaviour of each internal host, detects suspicious activities possibly related to advanced attacks, and correlates these anomaly indicators to produce a list of the most likely compromised hosts. Due to the huge number of devices and traffic logs, we make scalability one of our top priorities. Therefore, most computations are independent of the number of hosts and can be naively parallelised. A large set of experiments demonstrates that our proposal can pave the way to novel forms of detection of advanced malware.
Conservation of Length: An Invariant--A Study and a Follow-up.

procedure occurs, at least in some contexts, may not be as critical as one might initially think. Perhaps for above average middle school students, skill and understanding can be acquired without undue concern over the sequence. It may be that any differential effect that can be attributed to the sequencing of skill and understanding is minute compared with other classroom complexities. Of course, one can argue that the sequence does make a substantial difference, but this study was insensitive to those potential differences. But does the detection of such differences rely on a study with such a high degree of "cleanliness" that the complexities present in today's classrooms are belied? That is a difficult question to answer. But our investigation, which involved many complexities of classroom teaching, suggests that the sequence of skill and understanding makes little difference in influencing the mathematics achievement of above average middle school students.
Reconfiguring Arrays with Faults Part I: Worst-Case Faults

In this paper we study the ability of array-based networks to tolerate worst-case faults. We show that an $N \times N$ two-dimensional array can sustain $N^{1-\epsilon}$ worst-case faults, for any fixed $\epsilon > 0$, and still emulate $T$ steps of a fully functioning $N \times N$ array in $O(T+N)$ steps, i.e., with only constant slowdown. Previously, it was known only that an array could tolerate a constant number of faults with constant slowdown. We also show that if faulty nodes are allowed to communicate, but not compute, then an $N$-node one-dimensional array can tolerate $\log^k N$ worst-case faults, for any constant $k > 0$, and still emulate a fault-free array with constant slowdown, and this bound is tight.
A New Finsler Minimal Path Model with Curvature Penalization for Image Segmentation and Closed Contour Detection

In this paper, we propose a new curvature penalized minimal path model for image segmentation via closed contour detection based on the weighted Euler elastica curves, firstly introduced to the field of computer vision in [22]. Our image segmentation method extracts a collection of curvature penalized minimal geodesics, concatenated to form a closed contour, by connecting a set of user-specified points. Globally optimal minimal paths can be computed by solving an Eikonal equation. This first order PDE is traditionally regarded as unable to penalize curvature, which is related to the path acceleration in active contour models. We introduce here a new approach that enables finding a global minimum of the geodesic energy including a curvature term. We achieve this through the use of a novel Finsler metric adding to the image domain the orientation as an extra space dimension. This metric is non-Riemannian and asymmetric, defined on an orientation lifted space, incorporating the curvature penalty in the geodesic energy. Experiments show that the proposed Finsler minimal path model indeed outperforms state-of-the-art minimal path models in both synthetic and real images.
Social Class and Schizophrenia: A Critical Review and a Reformulation

My intent in this essay is to review a rather large and all-too-inexact body of research on the relationship of social class to schizophrenia and to explore its implications for etiology. Instead of reviewing the studies one by one, I shall address general issues and bring in whatever studies are most relevant. It hardly need be stressed that my way of selecting these issues and evaluating the studies represents only one person's view of the field and would not necessarily be agreed to by others. Before I get to the main issues, I should like to make four prefatory comments: (1) When I speak of schizophrenia, I shall generally be using that term in the broad sense in which it is usually employed in the United States, rather than in the more limited sense used in much of Europe. I follow American rather than European usage, not because I think
A Cross-Cultural Validation of the Learning-Related Boredom Scale (LRBS) With Canadian and Chinese College Students

This study evaluated the psychometric properties of the Learning-Related Boredom Scale (LRBS) from the Academic Emotions Questionnaire (AEQ; Pekrun, Goetz, & Perry, 2005; Pekrun, Goetz, Titz, & Perry, 2002) in a sample of 405 university students from Canada and China. Multigroup confirmatory factor analysis was used to test the factor structure and measurement invariance of the LRBS across cultural settings, after which the relationships between the LRBS, boredom frequency in class, intrinsic motivation, and self-efficacy for self-regulated learning (SESRL) were examined. Results showed evidence of reliability and measurement invariance of the LRBS, and the relationships between the LRBS, boredom frequency, and SESRL were similar across settings. The study thus provided evidence that learning-related boredom is a valid construct across culturally diverse school settings and supported the use of the LRBS in both Canadian and Chinese student populations.
Ca2+ INFLUX INDUCED BY PHOTODYNAMIC ACTION IN HUMAN CEREBRAL GLIOMA (U‐87 MG) CELLS: POSSIBLE INVOLVEMENT OF A CALCIUM CHANNEL

Abstract The plasma membrane has been implicated as a critical target of photodynamic action on cells. We have observed that the photosensitization of human cerebral glioma (U‐87 MG) cells by hematoporphyrin derivative (HpD) causes a large increase in intracellular calcium [Ca2+]. This increase in [Ca2+]i was solely due to the influx of extracellular Ca2+ through the plasma membrane and showed a dependence on HpD concentration, light dose and concentration of calcium in the extracellular medium. The magnitude of the Ca2+ influx decreased with increasing postirradiation time, which suggests that the cell membrane partially recovers from the photodynamic injury. The photoinduced Ca2+ influx was inhibited by the Ca2+ channel blocker diltiazem and the reducing agent dithioerythritol. These findings are discussed in terms of possible activation of a Ca2+ channel as a result of photosensitization.