Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Latency of opportunistic forwarding in finite regular wireless networks

In opportunistic forwarding, a node randomly relays packets to one of its neighbors based on local information, without the knowledge of global topology. Each intermediate node continues this process until the packet arrives at its destination. This is particularly attractive in certain types of wireless ad hoc and sensor networks where obtaining accurate knowledge of global topology may be infeasible. However, opportunistic forwarding is hampered by the difficulty to control its performance, particularly, the end-to-end latency. This paper presents new analytical results that shed light on the latency of "random walk", the simplest type of opportunistic forwarding, for several useful regular network topologies, such as r-nearest cycle that can model variable wireless transmission distance in one dimensional scenario, and a 2D regular torus-type graph that can approximate grid-like deployments. We give new exact and approximation formulas for the maximum expected hitting time of random walk on such topologies.
Directable, high-resolution simulation of fire on the GPU

The simulation of believable, photorealistic fire is difficult because fire is highly detailed, fast-moving, and turbulent. Traditional gridbased simulation models require large grids and long simulation times to capture even the coarsest levels of detail. In this paper, we propose a novel combination of coarse particle grid simulation with very fine, view-oriented refinement simulations performed on a GPU. We also propose a simple, GPU-based volume rendering scheme. The resulting images of fire produced by the proposed techniques are extremely detailed and can be integrated seamlessly into film-resolution images. Our refinement technique takes advantage of perceptive limitations and likely viewing behavior to split the refinement stage into separable, parallel tasks. Multiple independent GPUs are employed to rapidly refine final simulations for rendering, allowing for rapid artist turnaround time and very high resolutions. Directability is achieved by allowing virtually any user-defined particle behavior as an input to the initial coarse simulation. The physical criteria enforced by the coarse stage are minimal and could be easily implemented using any of the wide variety of commercially available fluid simulation tools. The GPU techniques utilized by our refinement stage are simple and widely available on even consumer-grade GPUs, lowering the overall implementation cost of the proposed system.
Workload management through glanceable feedback: The role of heart rate variability

The active monitoring of workload levels has been found to significantly reduce work-related stress. Heart rate and heart rate variability (HRV) measurements via photoplethysmography (PPG) sensors have shown a strong potential to accurately describe daily workload levels. However, due its complexity, HRV is commonly misunderstood and the associated measurements are rarely incorporated for workload monitoring in novel technological devices such as smartwatches and activity trackers. In this paper we explore the potential of consumer-grade smartwatches, equipped with PPG sensors, to assist in the active monitoring of workload during work hours. We develop a prototype that employs the SDNN index, a powerful HRV marker for cardiac resilience to differentiate between high and low workload levels along the work day, and presents feedback in glanceable form, by highlighting workload levels and physical activity over the past hour in 5-minutes blocks at the periphery of the smartwatch. A field study with 9 participants and 3 variations of our prototype attempts to quantify the impact of the HRV feedback over subjective and objective workload as well as users' engagement with the smartwatch. Results showed workload levels as inferred from the PPG sensor to positively correlate with self-reported workload and HRV feedback to result to lower levels of workload as compared to a conventional activity tracker. Moreover, users engaged more frequently with the smartwatch when HRV feedback was presented, than when only physical activity feedback was provided. The results suggest that HRV as inferred from PPG sensors in wearables can effectively be used to monitor workload levels during work hours.
Synchronous byzantine agreement with nearly a cubic number of communication bits: synchronous byzantine agreement with nearly a cubic number of communication bits

This paper studies the problem of Byzantine consensus in a synchronous message-passing system of n processes. The first deterministic algorithm, and also the simplest in its principles, was the Exponential Information Gathering protocol (EIG) proposed by Pease, Shostak and Lamport in [19]. The algorithm requires processes to send exponentially long messages. Many follow-up works reduced the cost of the algorithm. However, they had to either lower the maximum number of faulty processes t from the optimal range t < n/3 to some smaller range of t [4, 11, 18], or increase the maximum worst-case number of rounds needed for termination (the lower bound being t + 1) [3, 9, 20]. Garay and Moses [13] were the first and only who solved the problem by using a polynomial number of communication bits, for the whole optimal range t < n/3 of the number of Byzantine processes and within the optimal number (t+1) of communication rounds. Their solution, though very complex and sophisticated, requires processes to send O(n9) bits in total. In this work, we present much simpler solution that also holds for the whole optimal range t < n/3 and the optimal number t + 1 of communication rounds, and at the same time lowers the number of exchanged communication bits to O(n3 log n). For achieving such an improvement, processes no more exchange relayed proposed values, but information on suspicions "who suspects who", the size of which is quadratic in n in the worst case.
A Cost Analysis Of Carbon Dioxide Emission Reduction Strategies For New Plants In Michigan ' s Electric Power Sector

This thesis attempts to find the least-cost strategy to reduce CO2 emission by replacing coal by other energy sources for electricity generation in the context of the proposed EPA’s regulation on CO2 emissions from existing coal-fired power plants. An ARIMA model is built to forecast coal consumption for electricity generation and its CO2 emissions in Michigan from 2016 to 2020. CO2 emission reduction costs are calculated under three emission reduction scenariosreduction to 17%, 30% and 50% below the 2005 emission level. The impacts of Production Tax Credit (PTC) and the intermittency of renewable energy are also discussed. The results indicate that in most cases natural gas will be the best alternative to coal for electricity generation to realize CO2 reduction goals; if the PTC for wind power will continue after 2015, a natural gas and wind combination approach could be the best strategy based on the least-cost criterion.
An evolutionary approach to evaluate the quality of software systems

Modern software applications are characterized as large, complex, and component-based systems. These applications can be viewed as modeling solutions that are created to cope with daily living in both the public and the private organizations, as well as in every business enterprise. A model solution is subject to evolutionary improvement; the more the improvement, the better the quality of software. An improvement can be carried out by means of defect prediction at the component level of the software systems. This paper discusses an evolutionary computing approach to model defects in complex adaptive software systems based on mathematical elements, graphs, sets, and rough sets, in addition to domain specific rules that are necessary for defect collections and defect analyses. This approach is applied to the evaluation of software quality, and it is fundamental for automation of such an evaluation tool.
Image fusion method considering region&texture feature

In this paper, a new multi-scale scheme for image fusion is presented using texture and edge information. The original images are decomposed into texture and edge maps by pyramid structures. The coefficients corresponding to the filtered texture and edge maps are solved by the singular value decomposition and the linear relationship between Gauss filter and Laws texture extract filter. The decomposed images are represented using the texture and edge features in each scale, and fused using fuzzy region based strategy. To evaluate the fusion results, an objective image fusion performance metrics are used. The experiment results demonstrate by several real image data that the proposed scheme can achieve better fusion performance than the traditional pyramid decomposition methods.
On Restricting Rigidity

In this note I revive a lingering (albeit dormant) account of rigid designation from the pages of Mind with the aim of laying it to rest. Why let a sleeping dog lie when you can put it down? Andre Gallois (1986) has proposed an account of rigid designators that allegedly squares with Saul Kripke's (1980) characterisation of them as terms which designate the same object in all possible worlds, but on which, contra Kripke, identity sentences involving rigid designators may be merely contingently true. This suits Gallois, as he finds the notion of contingent identity coherent. Thus, the thrust of Gallois' thesis is that his account of rigidity is preferable to Kripke's because his accommodates a coherent metaphysical viewpoint, whereas Kripke's doesn't. Gallois has thwarted one unconvincing challenge (see Carter 1987; Gallois 1988) and his account, as yet, remains untainted. But not for long, I hope. ' Let us assume, for the sake of argument, that the notion of contingent identity is coherent, that, in other words, it makes-or can make-sense to say that certain (possible) objects are identical in one world but distinct in another. What I shall argue here is that Gallois' account of rigidity would prevent us from expressing the contingent non-identity of objects; if so, this is a significant failing of the account, for, as will emerge, clearly Gallois is committed to the contingency of non-identity. Here's a brief outline of Gallois' position. He revives a familiar scenario involving the identity of ships. We are asked to consider a world W in which a ship designated "Mary" undergoes gradual plank replacement so that what eventually emerges is a ship made from a collection of planks, Cl, that has no members in common with the original collection of planks, C, that made up Mary. The resulting ship is christened "Alice" in W. We are then asked to consider a possible world WI which contains two ships: Mary,, made up of planks from C (arranged in the same way as when they constituted Mary in W) and Alice,, made up of planks from C1 (arranged in the same way as when they constituted Alice in W). Now, Gallois says:
Different Isoforms of HPV-16 E7 Protein are Present in Cytoplasm and Nucleus

The E7 protein of high risk HPV types has been found with different molecular weights, mainly because of phosphorylation, an event that changes protein charge and mobility in SDS-PAGE. Distribution of E7 protein in the cellular compartments has also been subject of debate as some groups report the protein in nucleus and others in cytoplasm. The different subcellular distribution and molecular weights reported for the E7 protein suggest the presence of isoforms. We examined this possibility by using several antibodies that recognize different epitopes on the HPV-16 E7 protein. We showed that E7 is processed in 3 isoforms with different molecular weights and isoelectric points (IEP), and described as E7a1 (17.5 kDa, IEP 4.68), E7a (17 kDa, IEP 6.18) and E7b (16 kDa, IEP 6.96). The immunofluorescense results also showed that E7 is distributed into different compartments (ER, Golgi and nucleus), which suggest the presence of other posttranslational modifications, besides phosphorylation.
Combining configuration and recommendation to define an interactive product line configuration approach

This paper is interested in e-commerce for complex configurable products/systems. In e-commerce, satisfying the customer needs is a vital concern. One particular way to achieve this is to offer customers a panel of options among which they can select their preferred ones. While solution exists, they are not adapted for highly complex configurable systems such as product lines. This paper proposes an approach that combines two complementary forms of guidance: configuration and recommendation, to help customers define their own products out of a product line specification. The proposed approach, called interactive configuration supports the combination by organizing the configuration process in a series of partial configurations where decisions are made by the recommendation.
Image recognition using maximal cliques of interest points

This paper describes a method for extracting interest points in images and using interrelated groups or cliques to recognize structure common to pairs of images. Feature measurements are commonly selected intuitively and work well on data that are thoroughly understood. This approach avoids the use of global features and relies upon candidate interest points and their relationships with each other. The method is applied to photos of movies posters and the results are compared with those achieved with SIFT key points.
Sensitivity Analysis of the Output Signal of VLSI Inverter-Interconnect-Inverter System to Selected Parameters

Abstract Interconnect parameters play an important role in signal propagation in VLSI systems. In this paper, we present the sensitivity analysis to parameters of typical on-chip interconnects for ramp response. The sensitivity to parameters for the threshold crossing time is also shown here. Computation of the output response of the interconnect, and the threshold crossing time formulas based on the multiple scales method are presented.
THE SPECTRAL TYPES OF WHITE DWARFS IN MESSIER 4

We present the spectra of 24 white dwarfs in the direction of the globular cluster Messier 4 obtained with the Keck/LRIS and Gemini/GMOS spectrographs. Determining the spectral types of the stars in this sample, we find 24 type DA and 0 type DB (i.e., atmospheres dominated by hydrogen and helium, respectively). Assuming the ratio of DA/DB observed in the field with effective temperature between 15,000–25,000 K, i.e., 4.2:1, holds for the cluster environment, the chance of finding no DBs in our sample simply due to statistical fluctuations is only 6 × 10−3. The spectral types of the ∼100 white dwarfs previously identified in open clusters indicate that DB formation is strongly suppressed in that environment. Furthermore, all the ∼10 white dwarfs previously identified in other globular clusters are exclusively type DA. In the context of these two facts, this finding suggests that DB formation is suppressed in the cluster environment in general. Though no satisfactory explanation for this phenomenon exists, we discuss several possibilities.
Imbalance in Fatty-Acid-Chain Length of Gangliosides Triggers Alzheimer Amyloid Deposition in the Precuneus

Amyloid deposition, a crucial event of Alzheimer’s disease (AD), emerges in distinct brain regions. A key question is what triggers the assembly of the monomeric amyloid ß-protein (Aß) into fibrils in the regions. On the basis of our previous findings that gangliosides facilitate the initiation of Aß assembly at presynaptic neuritic terminals, we investigated how lipids, including gangliosides, cholesterol and sphingomyelin, extracted from synaptic plasma membranes (SPMs) isolated from autopsy brains were involved in the Aß assembly. We focused on two regions of the cerebral cortex; precuneus and calcarine cortex, one of the most vulnerable and one of the most resistant regions to amyloid deposition, respectively. Here, we show that lipids extracted from SPMs isolated from the amyloid-bearing precuneus, but neither the amyloid-free precuneus nor the calcarine cortex, markedly accelerate the Aß assembly in vitro. Through liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry of the lipids, we identified an increase in the ratio of the level of GD1b-ganglioside containing C20:0 fatty acid to that containing C18:0 as a cause of the enhanced Aß assembly in the precuneus. Our results suggest that the local glycolipid environment play a critical role in the initiation of Alzheimer amyloid deposition.
Video Vectorization via Tetrahedral Remeshing

We present a video vectorization method that generates a video in vector representation from an input video in raster representation. A vector-based video representation offers the benefits of vector graphics, such as compactness and scalability. The vector video we generate is represented by a simplified tetrahedral control mesh over the spatial-temporal video volume, with color attributes defined at the mesh vertices. We present novel techniques for simplification and subdivision of a tetrahedral mesh to achieve high simplification ratio while preserving features and ensuring color fidelity. From an input raster video, our method is capable of generating a compact video in vector representation that allows a faithful reconstruction with low reconstruction errors.
Characterization of LIL behavior in Banach space

In a recent paper by the authors a general result characterizing two-sided LIL behavior for real valued random variables has been established. In this paper, we look at the corresponding problem in the Banach space setting. We show that there are analogous results in this more general setting. In particularly, we provide a necessary and sufficient condition for LIL behavior with respect to sequences of the form p nh(n), where h is from a suitable subclass of the positive, nondecreasing slowly varying functions. To prove these results we have to use a different method. One of our main tools is an improved Fuk-Nagaev type inequality in Banach space which should be of independent interest.
The Study and Implementation of Natural User Interface using Kinect

In this paper Natural user interface (NUI), its adaptations, and its implementations are presented. NUI is a humanmachine interface which has evolved from the way humans interact with each other and their surrounding environment. Gesture, color, speech recognition are used in NUI to identify the user and his actions, which can subsequently be interpreted to perform the relevant task. The task can be any of the various applications of NUI such as control of heavy machinery, robot, computer, etc. During the study it was found that the best way to approach the design of NUI is using a depth capturing system, an image capturing system and an audio capturing system. During the study a combination of the three systems was found to be the best solution and is found in form of a commercial sensor called the Microsoft Kinect sensor. The sensor is also advantageous as it provides access to raw digital data streams and is equipped with a configurable audio digital signal processor (DSP). The control of machines requires a communication interface between the controlling unit and the machine. The TI MSP430 Launchpad toolkit is used for this purpose. The toolkit is economically optimal, as it includes a programmer, on board USB, two MSP430 microcontrollers and a free integrated development environment (IDE). The main aim of this work is to develop, test and demonstrate a robot platform that works on gesture based, color based and speech based NUI. The paper comprises of the study on basic user interface primarily focusing on NUI. The approach to find suitable sensors, their libraries, actuator interface, communication interface and their implementation is presented. Finally the result of the testing of the developed robot platform is demonstrated in this work.
IFN-γ–Producing CD4+ T Cells Promote Experimental Cerebral Malaria by Modulating CD8+ T Cell Accumulation within the Brain

It is well established that IFN-γ is required for the development of experimental cerebral malaria (ECM) during Plasmodium berghei ANKA infection of C57BL/6 mice. However, the temporal and tissue-specific cellular sources of IFN-γ during P. berghei ANKA infection have not been investigated, and it is not known whether IFN-γ production by a single cell type in isolation can induce cerebral pathology. In this study, using IFN-γ reporter mice, we show that NK cells dominate the IFN-γ response during the early stages of infection in the brain, but not in the spleen, before being replaced by CD4+ and CD8+ T cells. Importantly, we demonstrate that IFN-γ–producing CD4+ T cells, but not innate or CD8+ T cells, can promote the development of ECM in normally resistant IFN-γ−/− mice infected with P. berghei ANKA. Adoptively transferred wild-type CD4+ T cells accumulate within the spleen, lung, and brain of IFN-γ−/− mice and induce ECM through active IFN-γ secretion, which increases the accumulation of endogenous IFN-γ−/− CD8+ T cells within the brain. Depletion of endogenous IFN-γ−/− CD8+ T cells abrogates the ability of wild-type CD4+ T cells to promote ECM. Finally, we show that IFN-γ production, specifically by CD4+ T cells, is sufficient to induce expression of CXCL9 and CXCL10 within the brain, providing a mechanistic basis for the enhanced CD8+ T cell accumulation. To our knowledge, these observations demonstrate, for the first time, the importance of and pathways by which IFN-γ–producing CD4+ T cells promote the development of ECM during P. berghei ANKA infection.
INCANT: Une comparaison de deux modèles thérapeutiques formalisés

La recherche europeenne INCANT (INternational CAnnabis Need of Treatment) est un essai clinique controle, randomise et longitudinal qui vise a evaluer l'interet d'une therapie specifique, la Therapie familiale multidimensionnelle (Multidimensional family therapy - MDFT) dans la prise en charge des adolescents abuseurs ou dependants du cannabis. Ce modele therapeutique a ainsi ete compare a la prise en charge habituellement pratiquee dans les pays qui participent a la recherche (France, Pays-Bas, Suisse, Belgique, Allemagne), qui est ici appelee le TAU (Treatment as usual). La necessite de definir ce dernier, pour permettre la comparaison, a amene la France a proposer un protocole original. Face a l'heterogeneite des pratiques cliniques qui correspond a la realite du TAU francais, une autre branche comparative a ete creee, le TAU explicite (TAUe), c'est-a-dire la formalisation a priori du TAU. Ces deux modeles therapeutiques semblent interessants a decrire afin de mieux percevoir la difference de leurs methodes, de leurs applications sur le terrain et de leurs indications.
Using Mussel-Inspired Self-Organization and Account Proxies to Obfuscate Workload Ownership and Placement in Clouds

Recent research has provided evidence indicating how a malicious user could perform coresidence profiling and public-to-private IP mapping to target and exploit customers which share physical resources. The attacks rely on two steps: resource placement on the target's physical machine and extraction. Our proposed solution, in part inspired by mussel self-organization, relies on user account and workload clustering to mitigate coresidence profiling. Users with similar preferences and workload characteristics are mapped to the same cluster. To obfuscate the public-to-private IP map, each cluster is managed and accessed by an account proxy. Each proxy uses one public IP address, which is shared by all clustered users when accessing their instances, and maintains the mapping to private IP addresses. We describe a set of capabilities and attack paths an attacker needs to execute for targeted coresidence, and present arguments to show how our approach disrupts the critical steps in the attack path for most cases. We then perform a risk assessment to determine the likelihood an individual user will be victimized, given that a successful nondirected exploit has occurred. Our results suggest that while possible, this event is highly unlikely.