Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Kalman filter-trained recurrent neural equalizers for time-varying channels

Recurrent neural networks (RNNs) have been successfully applied to communications channel equalization because of their modeling capability for nonlinear dynamic systems. Major problems of gradient-descent learning techniques commonly employed to train RNNs are slow convergence rates and long training sequences required for satisfactory performance. This paper presents decision-feedback equalizers using an RNN trained with Kalman filtering algorithms. The main features of the proposed recurrent neural equalizers, using the extended Kalman filter (EKF) and unscented Kalman filter (UKF), are fast convergence and good performance using relatively short training symbols. Experimental results for various time-varying channels are presented to evaluate the performance of the proposed approaches over a conventional recurrent neural equalizer.
Evaluating equipment reliability function and mean residual life based on proportional hazard model and semi-Markov process

Based on Monte Carlo technique, a novel method is proposed to evaluate the reliability function (RF) and the mean residual life (MRL) of a power system component suffering from degradation. It is assumed that both the age and the health condition can affect failure rate. The Cox's proportional hazard model (PHM) is used to customize the hazard rate of component with both age and health information. PHM consists of two parts: baseline function and link function. The baseline function represents the aging process and the link function represents the influence of covariant, such as the health condition. The health condition is divided into n-stages which confirms to a semi-Markov process. Based on the Monte Carlo technique, an algorithm is developed to find out the RF and MRL of a new or aging piece of equipment. We calculate the RF and MRL in the two cases respectively: (1) a new component and (2) an aging component survived until t0. The case study shows that the proposed method can reflect the influence of both age and health condition on RF and MRL reasonably.
Vision‐based Simultaneous Localization and Mapping in Changing Outdoor Environments

For robots operating in outdoor environments, a number of factors, including weather, time of day, rough terrain, high speeds, and hardware limitations, make performing vision‐based simultaneous localization and mapping with current techniques infeasible due to factors such as image blur and/or underexposure, especially on smaller platforms and low‐cost hardware. In this paper, we present novel visual place‐recognition and odometry techniques that address the challenges posed by low lighting, perceptual change, and low‐cost cameras. Our primary contribution is a novel two‐step algorithm that combines fast low‐resolution whole image matching with a higher‐resolution patch‐verification step, as well as image saliency methods that simultaneously improve performance and decrease computing time. The algorithms are demonstrated using consumer cameras mounted on a small vehicle in a mixed urban and vegetated environment and a car traversing highway and suburban streets, at different times of day and night and in various weather conditions. The algorithms achieve reliable mapping over the course of a day, both when incrementally incorporating new visual scenes from different times of day into an existing map, and when using a static map comprising visual scenes captured at only one point in time. Using the two‐step place‐recognition process, we demonstrate for the first time single‐image, error‐free place recognition at recall rates above 50% across a day‐night dataset without prior training or utilization of image sequences. This place‐recognition performance enables topologically correct mapping across day‐night cycles.
Electron paramagnetic resonance line shifts and line shape changes due to spin exchange of nitroxide free radicals in liquids. 7. Singly charged surfactant nitroxide.

EPR spectra of aqueous solutions of the singly charged surfactant nitroxide 4-[N,N-dimethyl-N-(ndodecyl) ammonium]-2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidinyl-N-oxy bromide-d16 (DCAT12) are studied as functions of the molar concentration, c = 0.1-8 mM, and the temperature from 273 to 353 K. This concentration range is below the critical micelle concentration, cmc, at which DCAT12 forms micelles. Spin-spin broadening of the EPR lines averaged over the three lines is separated into contributions due to spin exchange, , and dipolar, , interactions yielding values of the fractional broadening by spin exchange, Omega(T), that vary from near unity at 353 K to approximately 50% at 273 K. This compares with a variation from unity to approximately 77% for a neutral spin probe perdeuterated 2,2,6,6-tetramethyl-4-oxopiperidine-1-oxyl (PDT) over the same range. Unlike PDT and the Stokes-Einstein prediction, the broadening constant by spin exchange, d/dc, is not linear with T/eta, where eta is the shear viscosity, instead following a quadratic dependence. Nevertheless, d/dc is remarkably close to a hydrodynamic prediction using the Stokes-Einstein equation modified to take the spin probe charge into account. Compared with PDT, values of d/dc are decreased and d/dc increased at all temperatures, while the values of the re-encounter rate, tau(RE)(-1), deduced from line shifts, are reduced. Interestingly, values of d/dc, Omega(T), and tau(RE)(-1) are comparable for PDT and DCAT12 when compared at the same rotational diffusion rates.
Evaluation of the kinetics and mechanism of action of anti‐integration host factor‐mediated disruption of bacterial biofilms

The extracellular polymeric substance produced by many human pathogens during biofilm formation often contains extracellular DNA (eDNA). Strands of bacterial eDNA within the biofilm matrix can occur in a lattice‐like network wherein a member of the DNABII family of DNA‐binding proteins is positioned at the vertex of each crossed strand. To date, treatment of all biofilms tested with antibodies directed against one DNABII protein, Integration Host Factor (IHF), results in significant disruption. Here, using non‐typeable Haemophilus influenzae as a model organism, we report that this effect was rapid, IHF‐specific and mediated by binding of transiently dissociated IHF by anti‐IHF even when physically separated from the biofilm by a nucleopore membrane. Further, biofilm disruption fostered killing of resident bacteria by previously ineffective antibiotics. We propose the mechanism of action to be the sequestration of IHF upon dissociation from the biofilm eDNA, forcing an equilibrium shift and ultimately, collapse of the biofilm. Further, antibodies against a peptide positioned at the DNA‐binding tips of IHF were as effective as antibodies directed against the native protein. As incorporating eDNA and associated DNABII proteins is a common strategy for biofilms formed by multiple human pathogens, this novel therapeutic approach is likely to have broad utility.
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The recent shift in computer system design to multi-core technology requires that the developer leverage explicit parallel programming techniques in order to utilize available performance. Nevertheless, developing the requisite parallel applications remains a prohibitively-difficult undertaking, particularly for the general programmer. To mitigate many of the challenges in creating concurrent software, this paper introduces a new parallel programming methodology that leverages feature-oriented programming (FOP) to logically decompose a product line architecture (PLA) into concurrent execution units. In addition, our efficient implementation of this methodology, that we call concurrent mixin layers, uses a layered architecture to facilitate the development of parallel applications. To validate our methodology and accompanying implementation, we present a case study of a product line of multimedia applications deployed within a typical multi-core environment. Our performance results demonstrate that a product line can be effectively transformed into parallel applications capable of utilizing multiple cores, thus improving performance. Furthermore, concurrent mixin layers significantly reduces the complexity of parallel programming by eliminating the need for the programmer to introduce explicit low-level concurrency control. Our initial experience gives us reason to believe that concurrent mixin layers is a promising technique for taming parallelism in multi-core environments.
Evaluation of N Îµ-(carboxymethyl)lysine and lipid peroxidation in multiethnic Malaysian subjects with type 2 diabetes mellitus

e-(carboxymethyl)lysine (CML), is formed during reaction of glucose with protein under oxidative conditions. The aim of the study was to evaluate the levels of the most common glycoxidation product; N e -(carboxymethyl)lysine (CML) and the most advanced lipoxidation product, malondialdehyde (MDA) in type 2 diabetic Malay, Indian, and Chinese ethnic groups in the Malaysian population. Studies were performed on age-matched Malay, Indian, and Chinese subjects with type 2 diabetes mellitus. Different biochemical parameters including serum levels of CML, MDA, lipid profile, glucose, and hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) were measured by standard methods. The relationships between circulating CML and lipids, HbA1c, and MDA, were examined. Correlation studies between CML, lipids, HbA1c, and lipid peroxidation were performed. CML and MDA levels were significantly higher in Malay subjects than in Indian or Chinese patients (p <0.005). A significant difference was also observed in the levels of serum total cholesterol and LDL-cholesterol (p <0.05) between the groups in the study. A positive correlation was observed between serum levels of CML and MDA in Malay diabetic patients, but no such correlation was seen in either the Chinese or Indian populations. The results of this study demonstrate that ethnicity affects CML and MDA circulating levels in Malaysian subjects with type 2 diabetes mellitus.
Characterization and Relatedness of Marine Vibrios Pathogenic to Fish: Deoxyribonucleic Acid Homology and Base Composition

Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) isolated from several pathogenic marine vibrios was utilized in studies of base composition and nucleotide sequence relationships. Patterns of relatedness inferred from DNA criteria were found to correlate closely with those inferred from morphological, physiological, and serological analysis of the same organisms. The utility of the phenotypic and genotypic approaches to the determination of relatedness is discussed.
Molecular Markers and Genetic Diversity in Neotropical Felids

Felines are important representatives of the Class Mammalia and the 38 existing species of felids occur naturally in almost all areas of the world except in some insular regions as Australia, New Guinea and New Zealand, Japan, Madagascar, Oceania, Andes and some Caribbean islands (Nowak, 1999; Johnson et al., 2006). The Neotropical region (covers the southern part of North America, Central America and South America) is occupied by 10 recognized cat species that are divided into three clades evolutionarily distinct, which have been distinguished using a variety of molecular genetic techniques. The first clade, ocelote lineage [Leopardus pardalis (Linnaeus, 1758)] that comprises all the species of the genus Leopardus. The second clade, puma lineage [Puma concolor (Linnaeus, 1771)] that comprises the two species of the genus Puma. The third clade, Panthera lineage is represented in this region by jaguar [Panthera onca (Linnaeus, 1758)] (Johnson et al., 2006). There are eight of these species in Brazil: Leopardus pardalis (ocelot), Leopardus wiedii (margay), Leopardus tigrinus (oncilla), Leopardus geoffroyi (Geoffrey’s cat), Leopardus colocolo (colocolo), Puma yagouaroundi (jaguarundi), Puma concolor (cougar) and Panthera onca (jaguar) (Oliveira, 1994). The Oreailurus jacobita (andean mountain cat) and Lynchailurus colocolo (pampas cat) are the other species of ocelot lineage that occur in other South American regions.
Castellaniella hirudinis sp. nov., isolated from the skin of Hirudo verbana.

A Gram-staining-negative, rod-shaped, non-spore-forming bacterium, designated strain E103(T), was isolated from the skin of the medical leech Hirudo verbana. 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis showed that the isolate was closely related to species of the genus Castellaniella. Castellaniella ginsengisoli DCY36(T) was shown to be the most closely related (98.4 % 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity), followed by Castellaniella denitrificans NKNTAU(T) and Castellaniella daejeonensis MJ06(T) (both 97.8 %), then Castellaniella caeni Ho-11(T) (97.5 %). Chemotaxonomic data (major ubiquinone, Q-8; major polar lipids, phosphatidylethanolamine, phosphatidylglycerol and phosphatidylserine; predominant polyamine, putrescine with a moderate amount of 2-hydroxyputrescine; and major fatty acids, C(17 : 0) cyclo, C(16 : 0) and summed feature 4 comprising C(16 : 1)ω7c and/or iso-C(15 : 0) 2-OH) supported the affiliation of the isolate to the genus Castellaniella. DNA-DNA hybridization values with the type strains of all species of the genus Castellaniella were 23 % (reciprocal, 18 %) with C. ginsengisoli KCTC 22398(T), 20 % (26 %) with C. daejeonensis KCTC 22454(T), 11 % (58 %) with C. denitrificans DSM 11046(T) and 13 % (12 %) with C. caeni KCTC 12197(T)(.) Phenotypic differentiation of strain E103(T) from its closest neighbours was possible. Strain E103(T) therefore represents a novel species of the genus Castellaniella, for which the name Castellaniella hirudinis sp. nov. is proposed, with the type strain E103(T) ( = CCUG 62394(T) = LMG 26910(T)).
Sandwich-Apriori: A combine approach of Apriori and Reverse-Apriori

The problem of generating large frequent itemset for the generation of association rules in the transactional database is considered. Previous work in this field already proposes many algorithms like Apriori, FP-growth, and their variations. Reverse-Apriori which is also a variation of Apriori for finding large frequent itemset in reverse manner, it has its own advantages and limitations like Apriori. This paper proposes a new approach called Sandwich-Apriori which is a combination of both Apriori and Reverse-Apriori. This Approach reduces number of scans and number of candidates generated as compared to Apriori and Reverse-Apriori. The worst case number of scans of the proposed algorithm is half of the Apriori. This approach gets pros of both algorithms with a new pruning technique to reduce the number of scans and candidates generated.
GMCSF‐armed vaccinia virus induces an antitumor immune response

Oncolytic Western Reserve strain vaccinia virus selective for epidermal growth factor receptor pathway mutations and tumor‐associated hypermetabolism was armed with human granulocyte‐macrophage colony‐stimulating factor (GMCSF) and a tdTomato fluorophore. As the assessment of immunological responses to human transgenes is challenging in the most commonly used animal models, we used immunocompetent Syrian golden hamsters, known to be sensitive to human GMCSF and semipermissive to vaccinia virus. Efficacy was initially tested in vitro on various human and hamster cell lines and oncolytic potency of transgene‐carrying viruses was similar to unarmed virus. The hGMCSF‐encoding virus was able to completely eradicate subcutaneous pancreatic tumors in hamsters, and to fully protect the animals from subsequent rechallenge with the same tumor. Induction of specific antitumor immunity was also shown by ex vivo co‐culture experiments with hamster splenocytes. In addition, histological examination revealed increased infiltration of neutrophils and macrophages in GMCSF‐virus‐treated tumors. These findings help clarify the mechanism of action of GMCSF‐armed vaccinia viruses undergoing clinical trials.
Numerical valuation of options by DG method: A study of boundary condition formulation

Option valuation is obviously the most efficient when done analytically. However, in many cases, including most types of exotic options no closed form of the pricing formula exists. In such cases, some numerical approximation is inevitable. In our recent research we focused on discontinuous Galerkin method to numerical solution of partial differential equations. Obviously, the flexibility in terms of model assumptions and/or additional conditions often brings high time costs so that it can be useful to reduce the space on which the computation is executed in order to keep both the computation time and calculation error at acceptable levels. In this paper we study the impact of various definitions of boundary condition, in particular the Dirichlet, Neumann and transparent one. Similarly to our previous results, we use real data of DAX index options to show the differences among various specifications.
Increased Accuracy of Distribution Based Missing Value Imputation

**Objective:** Missing values within variables prevents data analysis on many levels including both univariate and multivariate analysis. This research presents distribution based missing value imputation, where the distribution of nonmissing values is simulated to create a set of values that are then randomly inserted into to the missing values in the actual data. **Methods:** Distribution imputation was compared to mean imputation in 12 different simulation conditions based on four sample sizes (50, 100, 150, 200) and three different missing value percentages for each of the sample sizes (10 percent, 20 percent, and 30 percent). Each simulation created 1,000 test datasets within each condition for a total of 12,000 simulated datasets. **Results:** Mean based imputation was biased and less accurate than distribution based imputation (DBI) in all 12 simulations combinations. DBI was more accurate in matching the number of rejected hypotheses as compared to the gold standard. Comparing the calculated p-values for bias where an unbiased estimator would demonstrate a 50/50 split being greater than and less than the gold standard, DBI was closer to the gold standard with at 48.7/51.3 split as compared to the 25.8/74.2 split of mean based imputation. **Conclusions:** Distribution imputation was found to be more accurate and unbiased as compared to mean based imputation methods. As a result, when studies are small and do not contain a large number of variables or even in situations where more elaborate imputation methods cannot be done, DBI is an accurate and unbiased method.
Annular Apertures in Metallic Screens as Extraordinary Transmission and Frequency Selective Surface Structures

A 2-D periodic array of annular apertures (or ring slots) is studied using an accurate circuit model. The model accounts for distributed and dynamic effects associated with the excitation of high-order modes operating above or below cutoff but not far from their cutoff frequencies. This paper allows to ascertain the substantial differences of the underlying physics when this structure operates as a classical frequency selective surface or in the extraordinary-transmission (ET) regime. A discussion of two different designs working at each regime is provided by means of the equivalent circuit approach (ECA), full wave simulation results, and experimental characterization. The agreement between the equivalent circuit calculation applied here and the simulation and experimental results is very good in all the considered cases. This validates the ECA as an efficient minimal-order model and a low computational-cost design tool for frequency selective surfaces and ET-based devices. Additional scenarios such as oblique incidence and parametric studies of the structural geometry are also considered.
Events in the endoplasmic reticulum abrogate the temperature sensitivity of Sindbis virus mutant ts23

Temperature-sensitive mutations in proteins produced at or heated to a nonpermissive temperature render the proteins defective in some aspect of their maturation into functional entities. The characterization of temperature-sensitive mutations in model proteins, such as virus membrane proteins, has allowed the elucidation of critical events in the maturation of virus membranes as well as in the intracellular folding, processing, and transport of membrane proteins in general. We have used a transport-defective, temperature-sensitive mutant of Sindbis virus, ts23, which has two amino acid changes in the envelope protein E1, to further examine requirements placed upon the glycoproteins for their export to the plasma membrane. Pulse-chase experiments in which we utilized the transport inhibitors monensin and brefeldin A allowed us to synthesize and assemble the glycoproteins of ts23 into export-competent heterodimers at the permissive temperature while concurrently blocking their export to the cell surface. After removal of the inhibitors and a shift to the nonpermissive temperature, we assayed for protein transport, cell-cell fusion, and infectious-particle production. Taken together, the data show that the irreversible loss of the temperature-sensitive phenotype of ts23 can be correlated with the folding of E1 and the formation of export-competent PE2-E1 heterodimers in the endoplasmic reticulum. Furthermore, we have found that E1 pairs with PE2 to form the heterodimer prior to the completion of E1 folding.
Insulin resistance in patients with depression and its changes during the clinical course of depression: minimal model analysis.

A high proportion of patients with depression develop glucose intolerance accompanied by hyperinsulinemia, suggestive of reduced insulin sensitivity (insulin resistance). The aim of this study was to evaluate insulin sensitivity in patients with depression and its changes during the clinical course of depression. Twenty nondiabetic patients with depression (13 males and 7 females aged 44+/-14 years; body mass index [BMI] 23.2+/-2.8 kg/m2) were prospectively studied by the frequently sampled intravenous glucose tolerance test (FSIGT) and the oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) before and after treatment of depression, and an age-, sex-, and BMI-matched control group (n = 13) was examined once by the FSIGT. Metabolic indices measuring glucose effectiveness at basal insulin (SG) and insulin sensitivity (SI) were derived from minimal model analysis. Each patient was treated by cyclic antidepressants with an 1,800 to 2,200 kcal/d food intake and underwent no exercise therapy. SI was significantly lower in patients before treatment versus control subjects (6.0+/-2.5 v 13.8+/-8.6 x 10(-5) min(-1) x mol(-1) x L, P < . 01). After treatment of depression, a significant increase in SI (10.7+/-7.5 x 10(-5) min(-1) x mol(-1) x 1, P <t.01) was observed without changes in the BMI, fasting blood glucose, and SG. This was associated with a decrease in the insulin response during the OGTT and FSIGT. We conclude that patients with depression have impaired insulin sensitivity and resultant hyperinsulinemia and that these abnormalities can be resolved after recovery from depression.