Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Sex specific event-related potential (ERP) correlates of depression in schizophrenia.

BACKGROUND Depressive symptoms in schizophrenia are common, more so in women, but associated neurobiological mechanisms are poorly understood. The current study investigated sex differences in the relationship between depression and brain function, as measured using event-related potentials (ERPs), in people with schizophrenia. SUBJECTS AND METHODS Fourteen men and 14 women with schizophrenia, matched on age of illness onset and illness duration, were assessed for depression using the Calgary Depression Scale. ERP amplitudes were measured during an auditory oddball task in response to target (P3b, anterior N100) and novel (P3a, posterior N100) stimuli. RESULTS Depression was significantly positively associated with early perceptual processing in response to novels in men (parietal N100 amplitude), and with a later processing stage (parietal P3b) in women. No association was found for anterior P3a. CONCLUSIONS Results suggest that temporally distinct pathophysiological mechanisms are involved in depression in men compared to women, at least in the context of schizophrenia.
Do Mature Business Processes Lead to Improved Performance? - A Review of Literature for Empirical Evidence

There is a considerable number of maturity models proposed for business processes or BPM, but their exact contribution or impact on business performance is unclear. In order to better understand the state of the research on the relation between the use of business process maturity models (BPMMs) and business performance and to identify opportunities for future research, we conducted a systematic literature review. We searched the studies between the years 1990 and 2014 in established digital libraries. Out of 2899 studies retrieved initially, we selected 62 studies to provide a list of BPMMs referenced in the academic literature and 7 studies within this set to thoroughly review the evidence provided for the relation between higher maturity leading to higher business performance. We found that while several BPMMs were proposed in the last decade, the number of empirical studies that reveal the effect of using these maturity models on a firm’s performance is scarce - even for the most referenced BPMMs. We propose that future research should be directed towards empirical studies in the form of longitudinal case studies and surveys to better demonstrate the validity and usefulness of BPMMs and thereby foster a wider adoption of these models in practice
Prolonging Network Lifetime and Data Accumulation in Heterogeneous Sensor Networks

Research on Wireless Sensor Networks has often assumed homogeneous nodes. In reality, homogeneous nodes have different capabilities like different levels of initial energy and drain rate. This leads to the research on heterogeneous networks where two or more types of nodes are considered within the network and the more powerful sensor nodes act as cluster heads. In this paper, we have analyzed a heterogeneous network with three types of nodes having different initial energy levels. A single hop clustering topology has been assumed and analyzed the network performance in terms of lifetime. Simulation results show that the network lifetime is much better in proposed protocol than the existing protocols.
Pressure Monitoring of Intraneural an Perineural Injections Into the Median, Radial, and Ulnar Nerves; Lessons From a Cadaveric Study

Background: Nerve damage after regional anesthesia has been of great concern to anesthetists. Various modalities have been suggested to recognize and prevent its incidence. An understudied area is the measurement of intraneural pressure during peripheral nerve blockade. Previous investigations have produced contradicting results with only one study being conducted on human cadavers. Objectives: The purpose of this investigation was to systematically record intraneural and perineural injection pressures on the median, ulnar, and radial nerves exclusively as a primary outcome. Materials and Methods: Ultrasonography-guided injections of 1 mL of 0.9% NaCl over ten seconds were performed on phenol glycerine embalmed cadaveric median, ulnar, and radial nerves. A total of 60 injections were performed, 30 intraneural and 30 perineural injections. The injections pressure was measured using a controlled disc stimulation device. Anatomic dissection was used to confirm needle placement. Results: Intraneural needle placement produced significantly greater pressures than perineural injections did. The mean generated pressures in median, radial, and ulnar nerves were respectively 29.4 ± 9.3, 27.3 ± 8.5, and 17.9 ± 7.0 pound per square inch (psi) (1 psi = 51.7 mmHg) for the intraneural injections and respectively 7.2 ± 2.5, 8.3 ± 2.5, and 6.7 ± 1.8 psi for perineural injections. Additionally the intraneural injection pressures of the ulnar nerve were lower than those of the median and radial nerves. Conclusions: Obtained results demonstrate significant differences between intraneural and perineural injection pressures in the median, ulnar, and radial nerves. Intraneural injection pressures show low specificity but high sensitivity suggesting that pressure monitoring might be a valuable tool in improving the safety and efficacy of peripheral nerve blockade in regional anesthesia. Peripheral nerves “pressure mapping” hypothetically might show difference amongst various nerves depending on anatomic location, histologic structure, and ultrasonographic appearance.
A New Preemption Strategy with Re-routing Control for MPLS Networks

In this paper, we study the effects of preemption and re-routing on the performance of multi protocol label switching (MPLS) networks. MPLS with traffic engineering supports diversified quality of service (QoS) requirements and allows the setting up of explicit path through networks. Usually, traffic engineering is used to achieve load balancing where longer path may be used to route a connection to prevent part of the network from over-utilized. However, since a longer path needs more resources, this may increase the loss probability of a network. This is especially true if the connection routed is of high priority which cannot be preempted by future connections. We suggest that a high priority connection should always be routed on the shortest path to minimize the consumption of network resources. Preemption may be triggered to acquire the resources needed from the existing lower priority connections. The connections to be preempted can be re-routed to avoid the interruption of service. We introduce a new strategy to preempt the existing connections and control the re-routing process to avoid the explosion of re-routing process for a single preemption event. Finally, the simulation results show that the new strategy can limit the extent of re-routing process and improve the network performance significantly
When Common Birds Became Rare: Historical Records Shed Light on Long-Term Responses of Bird Communities to Global Change in the Largest Wetland of France

Many species have suffered large population declines due to the anthropogenic influence on ecosystems. Understanding historical population trends is essential for informing best efforts to preserve species. We propose a new method to reconstruct the past structure of a regional species pool, based on historical naturalist literature. Qualitative information collected from annotated checklists and reports can be relevant to identify major long-term community changes. We reviewed ornithological literature on the Camargue, the largest wetland in France. We reconstructed the entire breeding bird community from 1830 to 2009 and translated historical data into semi-quantitative data. This data permitted a calculation of a Community Commonness Index to measure the average level of abundance of species in a community. The Community Specialization and Community Temperature Indices were used to evaluate the potential long-term impact of land-use and climate changes on the composition of the regional bird species pool. We found a decrease in average abundance and specialization between 1950 and 1989, suggesting that changes in land-use negatively impacted the structure and composition of the local bird community by reducing species abundance and removing habitat-specialists (e.g. Southern Grey Shrike, Greater Short-toed Lark). These results are likely to be linked with a major loss of natural habitats in the Camargue between 1942 and 1984 when natural areas and traditional farmland were converted into intensive cultivated lands. We also found fluctuations among species with high versus low temperature preference. However, long-term effects of climate change on the bird community might be blurred by the impact of land-use changes. Overall, our results contrast with those obtained from well-monitored colonial waterbirds showing long-term increases. Our results plead for a more regular use of historical naturalist data when examining long-term changes in species communities as they allow the establishment of an older temporal point of reference and consideration of species not covered by traditional monitoring schemes.
On the Direct Detectability of the Cosmic Dark Ages: 21 Centimeter Emission from Minihalos

In the standard cold dark matter (CDM) theory of structure formation, virialized minihalos (with Tvir ≲ 104 K) form in abundance at high redshift (z > 6), during the cosmic "dark ages. " The hydrogen in these minihalos, the first nonlinear baryonic structures to form in the universe, is mostly neutral and sufficiently hot and dense to emit strongly at the 21 cm line. We calculate the emission from individual minihalos and the radiation background contributed by their combined effect. Minihalos create a "21 cm forest" of emission lines. We predict that the angular fluctuations in this 21 cm background should be detectable with the planned Low Frequency Array (LOFAR) and Square Kilometer Array (SKA), thus providing a direct probe of structure formation during the dark ages. Such a detection will serve to confirm the basic CDM paradigm while constraining the shape of the power spectrum of primordial density fluctuations down to much smaller scales than have previously been constrained, the onset and duration of the reionization epoch, and the conditions that led to the first stars and quasars. We present results here for the currently favored, flat ΛCDM model, for different tilts of the primordial power spectrum.
Multipath RPL protocols for greenhouse environment monitoring system based on Internet of Things

At present, domestic Greenhouse environmental monitoring in general is still stuck in the simple model of human surveillance of engine room temperature, humidity, electricity and water spray. A Wireless Sensor Network (WSN) consisting of small-size wireless sensor nodes equipped with radio and one or several sensors, is an attractive and cost-efficient option to build the required measurement system. Towards realizing the broader vision of Internet of Things (IoT) over WSN, various standards & protocols are emerging providing end-to-end internet connectivity between the resource constrained devices (IEEE 802.15.4 LoWPAN and IETF 6LoWPAN). In this context, the use of IoT technologies over WSN in design a Greenhouse environment monitoring system will make the high quality monitoring and alarm associated with different web-based services. In this paper, we analyze different Greenhouse models in Vietnam and the requirement of monitoring parameters of these models. In addition, we propose to use single-path and multipath routing protocols of IoT for improving the monitoring performance. We develop extensive simulations on OMNET++ and simulation results show that the deployment of multipath solutions of IoT will help to improve the monitoring performance compared to IoT traditional single-path routing solution.
University of Huddersfield Repository Hydrophilic Matrices for Oral Control Drug Delivery

: Oral controlled drug delivery has gathered tremendous attention over the years due to its many advantages over conventional dosage forms. Polymer-based matrices have become an integral part of the pharmaceutical industry. Hydrophilic matrices are capable of controlling the release of drug over an extended period of time. Hydrophilic polymers, especially the hydrophilic derivatives of cellulose ethers, are frequently used for these applications. Therefore, the objective of this review is to discuss the scientific and physicochemical aspects of these polymeric systems that can affect the drug release from such formulations.
Modeling prior shape and appearance knowledge in watershed segmentation

Watershed transform is widely used in image segmentation. However, its shortcomings such as over-segmentation and sensitivity to noise often make it unsuitable as an automatic tool for segmenting medical images. Utilizing prior shape knowledge has been demonstrated to improve robustness of medical image segmentation algorithms. In this paper, we propose a novel method for incorporating prior shape and appearance knowledge into watershed segmentation. Our method is based on iteratively aligning a shape-histogram with the result of an improved k-means clustering algorithm. No human interaction is needed in the whole process. We demonstrate the robustness of our method through segmenting the corpora callosa from a set of 51 brain magnetic resonance (MR) images. Numerical validation of the results is provided.
Integrating hybrid diagnostic reasoning in plan execution monitoring for cognitive factories with multiple robots

For reliable and fault tolerant operation of cognitive factories, we introduce an algorithm to monitor plan executions. According to this algorithm, when some changes or discrepancies are detected, appropriate decisions are given based on the causes of these changes or discrepancies. To identify these causes (e.g., broken robots or robot components), we introduce a novel diagnostic reasoning method which synergistically integrates hypothetical reasoning, geometric reasoning, and learning from earlier experiences. Based on these causes, if necessary, new hybrid plans (task plans integrated with feasibility checks) are computed to reach the manufacturing goals by allowing repairs of robots/components. The results of our experiments over reasonably-sized cognitive factory scenarios show the usefulness of (i) diagnostic reasoning for execution monitoring, (ii) allowing repair actions during replanning, and (iii) learning from experiences. We provide a video of dynamic simulation of our execution monitoring algorithm with Kuka youBots and a Nao humanoid robot as the supplementary material.
Knowledge management application system implementation in global energy company: Opentext 9.7.1 livelink global exploitation

Knowledge management is receiving attention all over the world. Knowledge management has affected organizational performance at different levels of management as it is widely accepted as strategic resource in companies. Some companies even cite Knowledge excellence as a key competitive discriminator. In a global energy company that has several business unit across countries, the way knowledge is shared within the organization is essential and central to the success of organizations. An application of Knowledge Management system is needed in order to facilitate these knowledge processes, therefore supporting the business processes. Livelink global exploitation project is a knowledge initiative program in global energy company to converge knowledge acquisition, knowledge storage and knowledge dissemination process under one single knowledge management application system, utilize opentext 9.7. 1 livelink electronic content management system. Knowledge and the knowledge applications are the essence of organizations for achieving competing advantage and defined as a new strategic approach to innovation across business unit.
Application of the Teaching-Family Model for Japanese Maltreated Children in a Residential Treatment Setting

Objective: The aim of the present study was to evaluate outcomes of the Teaching-Family Model (TFM) as an intervention for maltreated children who exhibit noncompliance and problematic behavior, in a Japanese residential treatment setting. Methods: The effect of the TFM on 44 children (mean age, 13.6 years; age range, 6–18 years) was assessed using the count data for noncompliance, evaluated by the direct care staff, and problematic behaviors, assessed by the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL). Data were collected at three time points (at the implementation of the TFM and at 6 months and 1 year after implementation) and compared to assess changes. Results: At 1 year after the TFM, a significant decrease in noncompliance (noncompliance with the rules: F [2, 78] = 4.41, p = .015; noncompliance with following the instructions: df = 2, χ² = 6.31, p = .043) was seen. Significant decreases were also seen in CBCL T-scores at both 6 months and 1 year after the TFM (total problems: F [2, 86] = 361.20, p 〈 .001; internalizing problems: F [2, 86] = 287.26, p 〈 .001; externalizing problems: F [2, 86] = 193.44, p 〈 .001). Conclusion: These results suggest that the use of a TFM may promote positive changes in problematic behavior displayed by maltreated children in Japanese residential treatment settings.
Biculturalism and segregated schooling in Hong Kong

ABSTRACT The literature on acculturation illustrates that a bulk of non-dominant ethnocultural minorities consider themselves bicultural, involving both dominant and ethnic cultures. Yet, little is known about how bicultural individuals perceive and construct dual cultures, and how their two cultural identities are played out in daily interactions. While these issues are under-researched, they are vital to policy and practice initiation towards ethnocultural minorities’ integration and upward mobility as well as for the receiving society’s social cohesion and economic competitiveness. To this end, this study used the concept of bicultural identity integration and tapped into the processes of biculturalism among 16 secondary school students coming from South and Southeast-Asian groups in Hong Kong. Semi-structured interviews were conducted to unearth the internal construct of bicultural identity and the trajectories of adapting to dual cultural influences across space. The participants’ accounts displayed a high level of cultural harmony yet low blendedness in choosing to separate affiliations into cultural domains. This internal complexity reflects the contradictory juxtaposing of ‘cultural diversity’ in the host society and its segregated schooling for minority student population.
On designing open-ended interpretations for collaborative design exploration

User-centred design is a widely acknowledged practice. Much attention has been paid to the methods, tools and processes on how to conduct design research and field studies with and about ‘users’ and existing or possible ‘contexts of use’. The underlying driver is that the design team will be better at designing if they have an empathic understanding of the people to design with and for. Currently, more effort is invested in engaging various stakeholders in collaborative design activities that nurture an attitude of human-centredness as a strategy. Empathic design approaches are essential in such strategies as they value subjective and experiential perspectives in design. The objective of this paper is to illustrate and discuss different kinds of formats that can be used to work with representations of field research findings and insights in ways that can be open-ended. Being open-ended means that they can allow and inspire new individual interpretations for various participants in the collaborative design processes, which include users, designers and other stakeholders. What is argued for here is the value of incompleteness of field study outcomes as it invites sense-making through making new interpretations which lead to empathic understanding and engagement. Rather than communicating the final results, design in supporting collaboration is applied in a process of exploring what it is that will create value for specific people.
Experience based configuration

This paper aims at presenting a way to integrate Case Based Reasoning and Constraint Satisfaction techniques in order to guide a configuration process according to past experiments. We suggest a methodology in three steps: first find relevant cases in the past experiments case base, then determine a relevant domain to adapt the selected solution to the new problem, and at last use constraint propagation in order to guide the adaptation. We illustrate our proposal on an example in the field of machining operation configuration.
Quantitative Nature of Social Vulnerability and Autism: An Important Paradigm Shift in the DSM-5 for Autism Spectrum Disorder

In the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th edition (DSM-IV), autistic characteristics in social interaction and communication are described as qualitative impairments. However, the difference between autistics and nonautistics in the draft of the 5th edition (DSM-5 draft) is quantitative rather than qualitative. The word “qualitative” is deleted in the draft text, and it is specified that the relation between social demands and individual limited capacities is critical for symptom manifestation (criterion C). Because the proposed levels of support requirement in the draft are mere observable outcomes of social vulnerability, the boundary between level 1 and nonautistic condition is determined by the relation between social demands and individual capacities. In addition to the introduction of the single category (autism spectrum disorder (ASD)) to cover the entire case spectrum, the DSM-5 draft is clearly based on a conviction that ASD is indistinguishable from the normal behavioral range. This concise review provides an explanation for this implicit paradigm shift from qualitative to quantitative. Importantly, the conditional role of social demands for symptom manifestation in the draft can be plausibly interpreted using a unique liability-probability model.
Decentralized time-varying formation control for multi-robot systems

In this paper, a distributed controller–observer schema for tracking control of the centroid and of the relative formation of a multi-robot system with first-order dynamics is presented. Each robot of the team uses a distributed observer to estimate the overall system state and a motion control strategy for tracking control of time-varying centroid and formation. Proof of the overall convergence of the controller–observer schema for different kinds of connection topologies, as well as for the cases of unsaturated and saturated control inputs is presented. In particular, the solution is proven to work in the case of strongly connected non-switching topologies and in the case of balanced strongly connected switching topologies. In order to complete the work, the approach is validated by experimental tests with a team of five wheeled mobile robots.
EVALUATION OF UTTERANCES BASED ON CAUSAL KNOWLEDGE RETRIEVED FROM BLOGS

In this paper, we describe the effectiveness of utterance generation using causal knowledge for a dialogue system. Recently, there has been a variety of research on non-taskoriented dialogue systems; however, an effective approach has not yet been developed. One of the most important reasons for this is that non-task-oriented dialogue systems lack common sense knowledge, which is not in their databases. As the first step towards solving this problem, we concentrated on causal knowledge containing reasons and effects, which can provide unwritten meanings for utterance understanding and generating modules. In this paper we investigated how an utterance generated with knowledge related to user input can improve an existing conversational system. Experiment results show that utterance generation using causal knowledge can improve a conversational system.