Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
VLBI observations of four radio quasars at z > 4: blazars or not?

Blazars are active galactic nuclei (AGN) whose relativistic jets point nearly to the line of sight. Their compact radio structure can be imaged with very long baseline interferometry (VLBI) on parsec scales. Blazars at extremely high redshifts provide a unique insight into the AGN phenomena in the early Universe. We observed four radio sources at redshift z > 4 with the European VLBI Network (EVN) at 1.7 and 5 GHz. These objects were previously classified as blazar candidates based on X-ray observations. One of them, J2134–0419 is firmly confirmed as a blazar with our VLBI observations, due to its relativistically beamed radio emission. Its radio jet extended to ∼10 milli-arcsec scale makes this source a promising target for follow-up VLBI observations to reveal any apparent proper motion. Another target, J0839+5112 shows a compact radio structure typical of quasars. There is evidence for flux density variability and its radio “core” has a flat spectrum. However, the EVN data suggest that its emission is not Doppler-boosted. The remaining two blazar candidates (J1420+1205 and J2220+0025) show radio properties totally unexpected from radio AGN with small-inclination jet. Their emission extends to arcsec scales and the Doppler factors of the central components are well below 1. Their structures resemble that of double-lobed radio AGN with large inclination to the line of sight. This is in contrast with the blazar-type modeling of their multi-band spectral energy distributions. Our work underlines the importance of high-resolution VLBI imaging in confirming the blazar nature of high-redshift radio sources.
The duality principle in the theory of development generalized A-M knapsack cryptosystems

We propose a method that extends the class of non-standard knapsack cryptosystem based on the principle of duality and provide a mechanism for such expansion on the example of super generalized additive knapsack problem. The generalized A-M knapsack is studied for the first time. The information protection system, based on the knapsack, can be developed both for additive and multiplicative knapsack. The necessary conditions under which a generalized A-M knapsack is dense and injective over Galois field GF(p) are established.
Aspect-Aware Latent Factor Model: Rating Prediction with Ratings and Reviews

Although latent factor models (e.g., matrix factorization) achieve good accuracy in rating prediction, they suffer from several problems including cold-start, non-transparency, and suboptimal recommendation for local users or items. In this paper, we employ textual review information with ratings to tackle these limitations. Firstly, we apply a proposed aspect-aware topic model (ATM) on the review text to model user preferences and item features from different aspects, and estimate the aspect importance of a user towards an item. The aspect importance is then integrated into a novel aspect-aware latent factor model (ALFM), which learns user's and item's latent factors based on ratings. In particular, ALFM introduces a weighted matrix to associate those latent factors with the same set of aspects discovered by ATM, such that the latent factors could be used to estimate aspect ratings. Finally, the overall rating is computed via a linear combination of the aspect ratings, which are weighted by the corresponding aspect importance. To this end, our model could alleviate the data sparsity problem and gain good interpretability for recommendation. Besides, an aspect rating is weighted by an aspect importance, which is dependent on the targeted user's preferences and targeted item's features. Therefore, it is expected that the proposed method can model a user's preferences on an item more accurately for each user-item pair locally. Comprehensive experimental studies have been conducted on 19 datasets from Amazon and Yelp 2017 Challenge dataset. Results show that our method achieves significant improvement compared with strong baseline methods, especially for users with only few ratings. Moreover, our model could interpret the recommendation results in depth.
Temporal corelation based hierarchical quantization parameter determination for HEVC video coding

The quantization parameter (QP) value and Lagrangian multiplier (λ) are the key factors for an encoder to achieve the trade-off between visual quality and bit-rate in next generation multimedia communications. In this work, we propose a novel temporal redundancy ratio (TRR) model to determinate hierarchical QPs. Taking the temporal redundancy information, intensity and fluctuation into consideration, the TRR model is constructed as the ratio of mean and variance from the temporal redundancy, and then used to allocate a proper QP value for an individual picture to achieve bit-rate saving and improve the visual quality. We implement the TRR model based QP determination scheme into the reference software HM16.7. Under the common test condition (CTC), simulation results show that the proposed TRR model obtains 1.28% and 1.52% BD-Rate gain over HM16.7 for Low-Delay and Random-Access in 8-bit video coding respectively. Meanwhile, more BD-Rate gains are obtained in 10-bit coding and the screen coding class.
Review on pharmacological activities of Cinnamomum iners Reinw. ex Blume

This review describes the morphological, phytochemical and pharmacological properties of Cinnamomum iners Reinw. ex Blume (Lauraceae). The plant grows wild in the lowland of Malaysia, India, Myanmar, Indonesia, Thailand, Singapore, Brunei and Philippines. This plant is commonly used for its carminative, analgesic and antipyretic properties, for postpartum treatment, rheumatism and digestive ailments. This article enumerates an overview of phytochemical and pharmacological aspects that is useful to researchers for further exploration necessary for the development of this potential herb.
Demo: MeshSim: A Wireless Ad-Hoc Network Development Platform

MeshSim is a platform for developing wireless ad-hoc network communication protocols. It supports two operation modes: Firstly, simulated mode, in which all nodes of the network run as processes in a given machine with arbitrary configuration parameters. Secondly, device mode, in which the code is deployed to individual devices with their own radios. The main feature of MeshSim is that the code that runs in simulated mode is the same code that runs on device mode. This is achieved via network interface abstraction. It allows the design, development and test of ad-hoc network protocols while isolating external variables (simulated mode), that can be later deployed and tested on real devices (device mode).
The RNA polymerase activity of SARS-coronavirus nsp12 is primer dependent

An RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp) is the central catalytic subunit of the RNA-synthesizing machinery of all positive-strand RNA viruses. Usually, RdRp domains are readily identifiable by comparative sequence analysis, but biochemical confirmation and characterization can be hampered by intrinsic protein properties and technical complications. It is presumed that replication and transcription of the ∼30-kb severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) coronavirus (SARS-CoV) RNA genome are catalyzed by an RdRp domain in the C-terminal part of nonstructural protein 12 (nsp12), one of 16 replicase subunits. However, thus far full-length nsp12 has proven refractory to expression in bacterial systems, which has hindered both the biochemical characterization of coronavirus RNA synthesis and RdRp-targeted antiviral drug design. Here, we describe a combined strategy involving bacterial expression of an nsp12 fusion protein and its in vivo cleavage to generate and purify stable SARS-CoV nsp12 (106 kDa) with a natural N-terminus and C-terminal hexahistidine tag. This recombinant protein possesses robust in vitro RdRp activity, as well as a significant DNA-dependent activity that may facilitate future inhibitor studies. The SARS-CoV nsp12 is primer dependent on both homo- and heteropolymeric templates, supporting the likeliness of a close enzymatic collaboration with the intriguing RNA primase activity that was recently proposed for coronavirus nsp8.
Construction and structure studies of DNA-bipyridine complexes as versatile scaffolds for site-specific incorporation of metal ions into DNA

The facile construction of metal–DNA complexes using ‘Click’ reactions is reported here. A series of 2′-propargyl-modified DNA oligonucleotides were initially synthesized as structure scaffolds and were then modified through ‘Click’ reaction to incorporate a bipyridine ligand equipped with an azido group. These metal chelating ligands can be placed in the DNA context in site-specific fashion to provide versatile templates for binding various metal ions, which are exchangeable using a simple EDTA washing-and-filtration step. The constructed metal–DNA complexes were found to be thermally stable. Their structures were explored by solving a crystal structure of a propargyl-modified DNA duplex and installing the bipyridine ligands by molecular modeling and simulation. These metal–DNA complexes could have wide applications as novel organometallic catalysts, artificial ribonucleases, and potential metal delivery systems.
Gland segmentation guided by glandular structures: A level set framework with two levels

Pathologic diagnosis is the gold standard of clinical diagnosis. The identification and segmentation of histological structures are the prerequisites to disease diagnosis. In clinic, doctors often suffer from time consuming and the disagreements from different doctors about observation results. Hence, an automatic precise segmentation method is important for auxiliary diagnosis. We propose a level set framework using 0, k level set representing the boundary of lumen regions and epithelial layers for gland segmentation. The validation has been performed on clinical data of West China Hospital, Sichuan University. The experiment results show that our method has a better performance and is robust to the shape variety of endometrial glands.
Hospital and Nursing Home Use From 2002 to 2008 Among US Older Adults With Cognitive Impairment, Not Dementia in 2002

Little is known about health care use in the cognitive impairment, not dementia (CIND) subpopulation. Using a cohort of 7130 persons aged 71 years or over from the Health and Retirement Survey, we compared mean and total health care use from 2002 to 2008 for those with no cognitive impairment, CIND, or dementia in 2002. Cognitive status was determined using a validated method based on self or proxy interview measures. Health care use was also based on self or proxy reports. On the basis of the Health and Retirement Survey, the CIND subpopulation in 2002 was 5.3 million or 23% of the total population 71 years of age or over. Mean hospital nights was similar and mean nursing home nights was less in persons with CIND compared with persons with dementia. The CIND subpopulation, however, had more total hospital and nursing home nights—71,000 total hospital nights and 223,000 total nursing home nights versus 32,000 hospital nights and 138,000 nursing home nights in the dementia subpopulation. A relatively large population and high health care use result in a large health care impact of the CIND subpopulation.
Dolphin Sounds-Inspired Covert Underwater Acoustic Communication and Micro-Modem

A novel portable underwater acoustic modem is proposed in this paper for covert communication between divers or underwater unmanned vehicles (UUVs) and divers at a short distance. For the first time, real dolphin calls are used in the modem to realize biologically inspired Covert Underwater Acoustic Communication (CUAC). A variety of dolphin whistles and clicks stored in an SD card inside the modem helps to realize different biomimetic CUAC algorithms based on the specified covert scenario. In this paper, the information is conveyed during the time interval between dolphin clicks. TMS320C6748 and TLV320AIC3106 are the core processors used in our unique modem for fast digital processing and interconnection with other terminals or sensors. Simulation results show that the bit error rate (BER) of the CUAC algorithm is less than 10−5 when the signal to noise ratio is over ‒5 dB. The modem was tested in an underwater pool, and a data rate of 27.1 bits per second at a distance of 10 m was achieved.
Factors affecting successful localization of the central sulcus using the somatosensory evoked potential phase reversal technique.

BACKGROUND Perirolandic surgery is associated with an increased risk of postoperative neurological deficit that can be reduced by accurate recognition of the location of sensorimotor cortex. The median somatosensory evoked potential (MSSEP) phase reversal technique (PRT) reliably identifies the central sulcus (CS) intraoperatively, but does require additional surgical time. Awareness of factors that lengthen the time required for MSSEP PRT has important implications for surgical planning. OBJECTIVE To identify factors that affect the time required for CS localization via MSSEP PRT. METHODS Multivariate Cox regression analysis, applied in 100 consecutive cases of perirolandic surgery at a single institution from 2005 to 2010, during which CS localization was attempted via a standardized MSSEP PRT. RESULTS The CS was reliably identified in 77 cases. The mean time to identification was 5 minutes (SD = 5; range, 1-20 minutes). Lesion location either very close to the CS (within the postcentral gyrus) or at an intermediate distance (with edema extending very close to the CS) independently decreased the rate at which the CS was identified by 73% (hazard ratio: 0.27, P < .001) and 55% (hazard ratio: 0.45, P = .007), respectively. Highly destructive pathology reduced this rate by 42% (hazard ratio: 0.58, P = .03), after adjusting for other important factors. Epidural recording, age, and the presence of a burst suppression pattern on the electroencephalogram had no effect. CONCLUSION MSSEP PRT is an effective method for CS identification and only marginally lengthens the operative time. However, difficulty in CS localization can be expected in the presence of postcentral gyrus lesions, edema distorting perirolandic anatomy, and with highly destructive pathology.
Design and implementation of multimedia file transfer System using fountain codes technology on Android

Mobile communication devices have stepped into the field of multi-function and intelligent, and files in smart phones need to be transferred rapidly in many fields. However, the traditional TCP-based transmission schemes waste a lot of time when sending files over network with high latencies or high loss rates. This paper presents a multimedia file transfer system on Android platform that utilize the fountain codes technology. We compare the upload performance of the system that used Fountain Codes Technology to FTP client in many environment. The test in practical applications has been done and we found that FTP client was very prone to stalling when propagation is poor, in the same propagation environment, the multimedia file transfer system tended to make use the available bandwidth and complete the file transfer but with a reduced file transfer time.
In-situ picosecond time-resolved probing of magnetization dynamics in polycrystalline ferromagnetic thin films

Magnetization dynamics in polycrystalline Permalloy thin lms were studied in-situ using a time-resolved magneto-optic Kerr e¤ect microscope (TR-MOKE). The lms, in thicknesses from 9 to 22 nm, were thermally evaporated in a high-vacuum (<10 8 mbar) environment. Two important dynamic parameters of the magnetization, the precessional frequency and e¤ective damping constant eff , are obtained from the picosecond timeresolved evolution of the magnetization after a magnetic eld pulse excitation. For all lm thicknesses investigated, the magnetization carried out precessional motion at a frequency of ~2 GHz. The e¤ective damping constant eff is extracted from the precessional decay time . The decay time is obtained by tting the experimental time trace of the magnetization to a damped sine function of the form M(t)=Mo e t= sin(! t ), where ! is the angular frequency of the precession mode and is the initial phase of the precession. For the thinnest lm investigated, eff reaches the value of 0.32, considerably higher than any previously reported values. The physical origin of the increased magnetic damping is discussed in terms of the surface roughness induced extrinsic damping in magnetic thin lms, but the experimentally found thickness-dependence of eff , however, does not agree with the prediction. The discrepancy is attributed to the percolation of Permalloy islands into connected clusters occurring at the thickness of ~18 nm.
FEDERAL RESERVE BANK o f ATLANTA WORKING PAPER SERIES Labor Market Polarization and International Macroeconomic Dynamics

During the last thirty years, labor markets in advanced economies were characterized by their remarkable polarization. As job opportunities in middle-skill occupations disappeared, employment opportunities concentrated in the highestand lowest-wage occupations. I develop a two-country stochastic growth model that incorporates trade in tasks, rather than in goods, and reveal that this setup can replicate the observed polarization in the United States. This polarization was not a steady process: the relative employment share of each skill group fluctuated significantly over short-to-medium horizons. I show that the domestic and international aggregate shocks estimated within this framework can rationalize such employment dynamics while providing a good fit to the macroeconomic data. The model is estimated with employment data for different skills groups and trade-weighted macroeconomic indicators. JEL classification: F16, F41
Using Carnot for enterprise information integration

The Carnot Project, which addresses the problem of logically unifying physically distributed, enterprise-wide, heterogeneous information is discussed. Specifically, Carnot will provide a user with the means to navigate information efficiently and transparently, to update that information consistently, and to write applications easily for large, heterogeneous, distributed information systems. The Carnot architecture and the Carnot tools for building applications are described. <<ETX>>
Direct determination of monolayer MoS2 and WSe2 exciton binding energies on insulating and metallic substrates

Understanding the excitonic nature of excited states in two-dimensional (2D) transition-metal dichalcogenides (TMDCs) is of key importance to make use of their optical and charge transport properties in optoelectronic applications. We contribute to this by the direct experimental determination of the exciton binding energy (Eb,exc) of monolayer MoS2 and WSe2 on two fundamentally different substrates, i.e. the insulator sapphire and the metal gold. By combining angle-resolved direct and inverse photoelectron spectroscopy we measure the electronic band gap (Eg), and by reflectance measurements the optical excitonic band gap (Eexc). The difference of these two energies is Eb,exc. The values of Eg and Eb,exc are 2.11 eV and 240 meV for MoS2 on sapphire, and 1.89 eV and 240 meV for WSe2 on sapphire. On Au Eb,exc is decreased to 90 meV and 140 meV for MoS2 and WSe2, respectively. The significant Eb,exc reduction is primarily due to a reduction of Eg resulting from enhanced screening by the metal, while Eexc is barely decreased for the metal support. Energy level diagrams determined at the K-point of the 2D TMDCs Brillouin zone show that MoS2 has more p-type character on Au as compared to sapphire, while WSe2 appears close to intrinsic on both. These results demonstrate that the impact of the dielectric environment of 2D TMDCs is more pronounced for individual charge carriers than for a correlated electron–hole pair, i.e. the exciton. A proper dielectric surrounding design for such 2D semiconductors can therefore be used to facilitate superior optoelectronic device function.
CAMO: A novel cache management organization for GPGPUs

GPGPUs are now commonly used as co-processors of CPUs for the computation of data parallel and throughputintensive algorithms. However, memory available in GPGPUs is limited for many applications of interest; there is a continuous demand for increased memory of such applications. Several techniques like multi-steaming or pinned memory are frequently employed to mitigate these issues to some extent. However, these techniques either suffer from latency overhead or increase programming complexity. GPUdmm uses GPU DRAM as a cache of CPU; key problems in this design are inefficient memory access data-path and tag access overhead. In this context, we present CAMO, a novel cache memory organization for GPGPUs which addresses the limitations of pinned memory technique and GPUdmm. First, it uses GPU DRAM as a victim cache of LLC that improves the performance by delivering data faster to the SMs. Second, it uses ATCache, a CPU based DRAM cache tag management technique. ATCache reduces the number of DRAM cache accesses. We implement CAMO within the GPGPU-Sim framework and show that its average performance — when compared with pinned memory — increases by a factor of 1.87x and the peak performance growth being 4.67x. In addition, CAMO outperforms GPUdmm on an average by a factor of 15.9% and maximum speedup by a factor of 80%.
Evaluation of autophagy induction on HEV 239 vaccine immune response in a mouse model

Hepatitis E virus (HEV) infection remains a serious threat to life and productivity in developing world. Vaccine seems to be an effective, safe, and affordable approach to address HEV disease burden. The HEV genome consists of three open reading frames (ORFs). Of these, ORF2 encodes a single structural protein (pORF2) for the HEV capsid which has been studied extensively as vaccine candidates. Recently, it has been recognized that autophagy plays an important role in innate and adaptive immunity defense against intracellular pathogens. This mechanism could therefore promote a protective immune response by inducing CD4+ and CD8+ T cells. In this study, HEV 239 and Beclin1 proteins were expressed in prokaryotic host cell [Escherichia coli (BL21)]. HEV 239 protein with different formulations (+Alum, +Beclin1, and +Alum‐Beclin1) were used as candidate vaccines and administrated subcutaneously in BALB/c mice on 0, 14, and 28 days. Finally, elicited cellular and humoral immunity were evaluated. Taken together, although our results indicated that mice immunized with HEV 239 protein formulated with Alum, Beclin1, and Alum + Beclin1 displayed humoral and cellular response that was not significant in comparison with each other (P > 0.05); whereas they were significant while compared with control groups (P < 0.05). A comprehensive understanding of the intricate interplay between autophagy and immune response remains to be unraveled. Further study will clear the detailed impact of autophagy manipulation to enhance vaccine efficacy and boost the immune responses against the disease. © 2018 IUBMB Life, 70(3):207–214, 2018
Filling the gaps: Reducing the complexity of networks for multi-attribute image aesthetic prediction

Computational aesthetics have seen much progress in recent years with the increasing popularity of deep learning methods. In this paper, we present two approaches that leverage on the benefits of using Global Average Pooling (GAP) to reduce the complexity of deep convolutional neural networks. The first model fine-tunes a standard CNN with a newly introduced GAP layer. The second approach extracts global and local CNN codes by reducing the dimensionality of convolution layers with individual GAP operations. We also extend these approaches to a multi-attribute network which uses a style network to regularize the aesthetic network. Experiments demonstrate the capability of attaining comparable accuracy results while reducing training complexity substantially.