Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Tangential-projection algorithm for manifold representation in unidenti 4 able model updating problems Lambros

The problem of updating a structural model and its associated uncertainties by utilizing structural response data is addressed. In an identi4able case, the posterior probability density function (PDF) of the uncertain model parameters for given measured data can be approximated by a weighted sum of Gaussian distributions centered at a number of discrete optimal values of the parameters at which some positive measure-of-4t function is minimized. The present paper focuses on the problem of model updating in the general unidenti4able case for which certain simplifying assumptions available for identi4able cases are not valid. In this case, the PDF is distributed in the neighbourhood of an extended and usually highly complex manifold of the parameter space that cannot be calculated explicitly. The computational di>culties associated with calculating the highly complex posterior PDF are discussed and a new adaptive algorithm, referred to as the tangential-projection (TP) algorithm, allowing for an e>cient approximate representation of the above manifold and the posterior PDF is presented. Using this approximation, expressions for calculating the uncertain predictive response are established. A numerical example involving noisy data is presented to demonstrate the proposed method. Copyright ? 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Probability routing algorithm for mobile ad hoc networks' resources management

This paper introduces a resource management application of a probabilistic-based ant routing algorithm for mobile ad hoc networks (ARAMA) that is inspired from the ant's life . Mobile ad hoc networks (MANETs) are highly dynamic, self-configured and self-built networks. The goal of this paper is to present ARAMA ability to manage MANET's resources by achieving fair network resources distribution, while considering the dynamic characteristics of MANETs and the need for low control overheads. This paper provides a description for the algorithm. In this algorithm, the nodes' (node's energy, processing power, .) and links' (bandwidth, .) parameters are measured and collected in the nodes' indices. A path index is used to measure the path total resources and serves to minimize the forward control packet (ant) size. The concepts of negative backward ant destination trail are introduced to enhance the performance of the algorithm. The simulation results show the potential of ARAMA to achieve fair energy usage across the network nodes as an example of the network resource management. More, the results show the general ability of the algorithm to solve MANET's routing problem.
Blood pressure surge on rising

Objectives Since cardiovascular complications tend to occur more often in the morning, it is tempting to link this to the surge in blood pressure (BP) on rising. Our objective was to measure BP and heart rate (HR) on rising and compare values with those recorded immediately beforehand and seek variables related to marked changes in the two parameters in a cohort of initially untreated hypertensives. Methods The 24-h ambulatory BP measurement along with an accurate measurement of the BP on rising (either manually or automatically from the device coupled with a position sensor) was obtained in untreated hypertensives. Left ventricular mass was measured with echocardiography at baseline. Patients were then treated and followed by their general physician and news was obtained at regular intervals. Results A total of 507 patients with adequate recordings were included. Rising led to a mean increase of 14 mmHg in systolic blood pressure (SBP) and a 13 beats per minute (bpm) increase in HR. This elevation in BP on rising in the morning differed from the alteration in BP on normal changes in position. It was associated with left ventricular hypertrophy at baseline and an increased risk of future cardiovascular complications. Conclusions Our study confirms the surge in BP on rising in the morning. This elevation in BP is accompanied by an acceleration in cardiac rhythm with no significant correlation between the two parameters. The increase in BP on rising was linked with the overall variability in BP, but was independent of the mean BP over 24 h. It was associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular complications independently of age and average 24-h SBP.
Pancreatic Islet Basement Membrane Loss and Remodeling after Mouse Islet Isolation and Transplantation: Impact for Allograft Rejection

The isolation of islets by collagenase digestion can cause damage and impact the efficiency of islet engraftment and function. In this study, we assessed the basement membranes (BMs) of mouse pancreatic islets as a molecular biomarker for islet integrity, damage after isolation, and islet repair in vitro as well as in the absence or presence of an immune response after transplantation. Immunofluorescence staining of BM matrix proteins and the endothelial cell marker platelet endothelial cell adhesion molecule-1 (PECAM-1) was performed on pancreatic islets in situ, isolated islets, islets cultured for 4 days, and islet grafts at 3–10 days posttransplantation. Flow cytometry was used to investigate the expression of BM matrix proteins in isolated islet β-cells. The islet BM, consisting of collagen type IV and components of Engelbreth–Holm–Swarm (EHS) tumor laminin 111, laminin α2, nidogen-2, and perlecan in pancreatic islets in situ, was completely lost during islet isolation. It was not reestablished during culture for 4 days. Peri- and intraislet BM restoration was identified after islet isotransplantation and coincided with the migration pattern of PECAM-1+ vascular endothelial cells (VECs). After islet allotransplantation, the restoration of VEC-derived peri-islet BMs was initiated but did not lead to the formation of the intraislet vasculature. Instead, an abnormally enlarged peri-islet vasculature developed, coinciding with islet allograft rejection. The islet BM is a sensitive biomarker of islet damage resulting from enzymatic isolation and of islet repair after transplantation. After transplantation, remodeling of both peri- and intraislet BMs restores β-cell–matrix attachment, a recognized requirement for β-cell survival, for isografts but not for allografts. Preventing isolation-induced islet BM damage would be expected to preserve the intrinsic barrier function of islet BMs, thereby influencing both the effector mechanisms required for allograft rejection and the antirejection strategies needed for allograft survival.
Novel Genetic Determinants of Low-Level Aminoglycoside Resistance in Pseudomonas aeruginosa

ABSTRACT Pseudomonas aeruginosa strains isolated from patients with persistent lung infections and cystic fibrosis have been found to gradually develop aminoglycoside resistance over time. The aim of this study was to identify potential contributors to low-level aminoglycoside resistance, which may cause such graduated increases in resistance. The Harvard P. aeruginosa PA14 nonredundant library, consisting of approximately 5,800 mutants, was screened for twofold or greater increases in tobramycin resistance. Mutants carrying mutations in a total of 135 unique genes were identified and confirmed to have reduced susceptibility to tobramycin. Many of these genes were involved predominantly in energy metabolism; however, most of these mutants did not exhibit growth defects under the conditions tested, although some exhibited the small-colony phenotype and/or defects in growth under anaerobic conditions. Lipopolysaccharide mutants were also identified, and it was found that tobramycin had a reduced ability to permeabilize the outer membranes of these mutants. The results of this study emphasize the complexity of the interactions that tobramycin may have within the bacterial cell and introduce a large number of novel genes which may play a role in tobramycin resistance.
Comparing Multiple Rna Secondary Structures Using Tree Comparisons. a System for Approximate Tree Matching. Ieee Trans. on Knowledge and Data Engineering, in Press. 29 7 Conclusion Extracting Semantic Hierarchies from a Large On- Line Dictionary. I N

Approximate tree matching in the presence of variable length don't cares. Fast serial and parallel algorithms for approximate tree matching with VLDC's. Reference manual for ATBE: A tool for approximate tree matching. Many application domains make use of trees. Whenever an application needs to compare trees, it is natural to ask about approximate matching. Variable length don't cares extend the power of approximate matching by allowing a query to suppress certain details about a tree. We presented two diierent deenitions for VLDC's that are natural generalizations of VLDC's in strings, and formulated the problems of approximate tree matching with the VLDC's. We t h e n i n troduced a new suux forest distance measure for solving the problems. Our algorithms diier in the particular semantics they give to the VLDC's, but share the same time complexity. In 26,27], we presented a parallel version of the algorithms. In our toolkit 23,24], we h a ve found that these algorithms work very well in practice too. In fact, the toolkit also generates a best mapping having the distance between the pattern and the data trees, still preserving the time complexity. 8 Acknowledgements The authors wish to thank members of the lexical systems project at IBM T. J. for helpful discussions concerning this work. We also thank the anonymous referees, whose excellent comments helped to improve the paper. 28 2. when P s] 2 i-path of P , Dt] 2 j-path of D, a n d P s] is not a VLDC symbol, lines 18, 26 in the procedure treedist(ii j) (cf. Lemmas 4.3, 4.7) and line 13 in the procedure treedist cut(ii j) (cf.
Pyruvate relieves the necessity of high induction levels of catalase and enables Campylobacter jejuni to grow under fully aerobic conditions

Aims: Several cases of campylobacteriosis reported worldwide seemingly conflict with the strict growth requirements and sensitivity to environmental stress of Campylobacter jejuni. In this study, the need for a micro‐aerobic environment [dissolved oxygen tension (DOT): 0·1–90%; 100% air saturation)] and the adaptive responses to oxygen stress were studied.
Attack-tolerant localization via iterative verification of locations in sensor networks

In sensor networks, secure localization—determining sensors' locations in a hostile, untrusted environment—is a challenging, but very important, problem that has not yet been addressed effectively. This paper presents an attack-tolerant localization protocol, called Verification for Iterative Localization (VeIL), under which sensors cooperatively safeguard the localization service. By exploiting the high spatiotemporal correlation existing between adjacent nodes, VeIL realizes (a) adaptive management of a profile for normal localization behavior, and (b) distributed detection of false locations advertised by attackers by comparing them against the profile of normal behavior. Our analysis and simulation results show that VeIL achieves high-level tolerance to many critical attacks, and is computationally feasible on resource-limited sensors.
Improvising a market, making a model: social housing policy in Chile

Abstract This paper explores processes of market creation in Chile, firstly, in the 1980s as a market for social housing was initially introduced and, 30 years later, as existing market arrangements were adapted to organize housing reconstruction after the 2010 earthquake. Looking in detail at these two cases, this paper describes a type of relationship between economics and economic processes which deviates significantly from the currently widely discussed performativity of economics. Instead, a process of economic improvisation is identified that involves the composition of market arrangements without a pre-existing economic theory or model of the economic processes at stake. Improvisation, as this paper shows, is a key under-theorized element of neoliberal transformation processes in Chile and elsewhere, and crucial to understanding neoliberal action in critical moments. The paper also proposes distinguishing different modes of economic improvisation and how these become economic models.
Late Victorian holocausts : El Niño famines and the making of the Third World

"Late Victorian Holocausts" focuses on three zones of drought and subsequent famine: India, Northern China and North-Eastern Brazil. All of these countries were effected by the same global climatic factors that caused massive crop failures, and all experienced brutal famines that decimated the populations. The effects of drought were magnified in each case because of singularly destructive policies promulgated by different ruling elites. The author, Mike Davis, argues that the seeds of underdevelopment in what later became known as "The Third World" were sown in this era of high imperialism, as the price for Capitalist modernization was paid in the currency of millions of peasants' lives.
Metabolic and Regulatory Rearrangements Underlying Efficient d-Xylose Utilization in Engineered Pseudomonas putida S12*

Background: Metabolic changes associated with an improved d-xylose utilization phenotype were unknown. Results: Metabolic and regulatory changes of the primary carbon metabolism are responsible for improved d-xylose utilization. Conclusion: Valuable insight into system-wide rearrangements establishing efficient catabolism of non-natural carbon sources was obtained. Significance: Multiple targets to rationally engineer and efficiently utilize non-natural carbon sources in industrial microorganisms were identified. Previously, an efficient d-xylose utilizing Pseudomonas putida S12 strain was obtained by introducing the d-xylose isomerase pathway from Escherichia coli, followed by evolutionary selection. In the present study, systemic changes associated with the evolved phenotype were identified by transcriptomics, enzyme activity analysis, and inverse engineering. A key element in improving the initially poor d-xylose utilization was the redistribution of 6-phospho-d-gluconate (6-PG) between the Entner-Doudoroff pathway and the oxidative pentose phosphate (PP) pathway. This redistribution increased the availability of 6-PG for oxidative decarboxylation to d-ribose-5-phosphate, which is essential for the utilization of d-xylose via the nonoxidative PP pathway. The metabolic redistribution of 6-PG was procured by modified HexR regulation, which in addition appeared to control periplasmic sugar oxidation. Because the absence of periplasmic d-xylonate formation was previously demonstrated to be essential for achieving a high biomass yield on d-xylose, the aberrant HexR control appeared to underlie both the improved growth rate and biomass yield of the evolved d-xylose utilizing P. putida strain. The increased oxidative PP pathway activity furthermore resulted in an elevated NADH/NAD+ ratio that caused the metabolic flux to be redirected from the TCA cycle to the glyoxylate shunt, which was also activated transcriptionally. Clearly, these findings may serve as an important case in point to engineer and improve the utilization of non-natural carbon sources in a wide range of industrial microorganisms.
Reinforcement Learning with Human Teachers: Understanding How People Want to Teach Robots

While reinforcement learning (RL) is not traditionally designed for interactive supervisory input from a human teacher, several works in both robot and software agents have adapted it for human input by letting a human trainer control the reward signal. In this work, we experimentally examine the assumption underlying these works, namely that the human-given reward is compatible with the traditional RL reward signal. We describe an experimental platform with a simulated RL robot and present an analysis of real-time human teaching behavior found in a study in which untrained subjects taught the robot to perform a new task. We report three main observations on how people administer feedback when teaching a robot a task through reinforcement learning: (a) they use the reward channel not only for feedback, but also for future-directed guidance; (b) they have a positive bias to their feedback -possibly using the signal as a motivational channel; and (c) they change their behavior as they develop a mental model of the robotic learner. In conclusion, we discuss future extensions to RL to accommodate these lessons
Using dual approximation algorithms for scheduling problems: Theoretical and practical results

The problem of scheduling a set of n jobs on m identical machines so as to minimize the makespan time is perhaps the most well-studied problem in the theory of approximation algorithms for NP-hard optimization problems. In this paper we present the strongest possible type of result for this problem, a polynomial approximation scheme. More precisely, for each ε, we give an algorithm that runs in time O((n/ε)1/ε2) and has relative error at most ε. For algorithms that are polynomial in n and m, the strongest previously-known result was that the MULTIFIT algorithm delivers a solution with no worse than 20% relative error. In addition, we present a refinement of our scheme in the case where the performance guarantee is equal to that of MUL-TIFIT, that yields an algorithm that is both more efficient and easier to analyze than MULTIFIT. In this case, in order to guarantee a maximum relative error of 1/5+2-k, the algorithm runs in O(n(k+logn)) time. The scheme is based on a new approach to constructing approximation algorithms, which we call dual approximation algorithms, where the aim is find superoptimal, but infeasible solutions, and the performance is measured by the degree of infeasibility allowed. This notion should find wide applicability in its own right, and should be considered for any optimization problem where traditional approximation algorithms have been particularly elusive.
Amniotic fluid clusterin in pregnancies complicated by the preterm prelabor rupture of membranes

Abstract Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate clusterin concentrations in amniotic fluid in pregnancies complicated by preterm prelabor rupture of membranes (PPROM) with respect to the presence of the microbial invasion of the amniotic cavity (MIAC), intra-amniotic inflammation (IAI) and microbial-associated IAI. Methods: One hundred thirty-six women with singleton pregnancies complicated by PPROM were included in this study. Amniotic fluid samples were obtained by transabdominal amniocentesis. Amniotic fluid clusterin concentrations were assessed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. MIAC was determined by a non-cultivation approach. IAI was defined as an amniotic fluid bedside interleukin-6 concentration ≥745 pg/mL. Microbial-associated IAI was characterized as the presence of both MIAC and IAI. Result: Women with MIAC, IAI and microbial-associated IAI had lower amniotic fluid clusterin concentrations than women without these complications (with MIAC: median 1314 ng/mL versus without MIAC: median 1633 ng/mL, p = 0.003; with IAI: median 1281 ng/mL versus without IAI: median 1575 ng/mL, p = 0.04; with microbial associated-IAI: median 1220 ng/mL versus without microbial-associated IAI: median 1575 pg/mL; p = 0.008). A week negative correlation between amniotic fluid clusterin concentrations and gestational age at sampling was revealed (rho= −0.30; p = 0.0005). Conclusions: The presence of MIAC, IAI and microbial-associated IAI was characterized by lower amniotic fluid clusterin concentrations in pregnancies complicated by PPROM.
What was multiculturalism

This paper re-thinks the current imperative to theorize the (white) nation-state as a ‘multination,’ one in which the grand narrative of a nation’s founding communities (and the presumption of assimilation upon which the grand narrative was always based) gives way to a multiply centred narrative attuned to questions of unequal power relations, racism, exploitation and so on. Multiculturalism as a theory has arisen out of this shift and presents itself not as an explanatory model of a given situation but as a problematic in need of continuous theorization. The paper argues that multiculturalism remains a thing of the past, a way in which the project of the Enlightenment and matters of justice may be rethought (but not radically altered) so as to accommodate the ‘alien’ within. And it is for this reason – because of its pastness – that it requires constant critique and re-evaluation, the need to specify the real, material conditions of racism and their relation to capital at every point.
Information Structures for Feedback Capacity of Channels with Memory and Transmission Cost: Stochastic Optimal Control & Variational Equalities-Part I

The Finite Transmission Feedback Information (FTFI) capacity is characterized for any class of channel conditional distributions $\big\{{\bf P}_{B_i|B^{i-1}, A_i} :i=0, 1, \ldots, n\big\}$ and $\big\{ {\bf P}_{B_i|B_{i-M}^{i-1}, A_i} :i=0, 1, \ldots, n\big\}$, where $M$ is the memory of the channel, $B^n {\stackrel{\triangle}{=}} \{B_j: j=\ldots, 0,1, \ldots, n\}$ are the channel outputs and $A^n{\stackrel{\triangle}{=}} \{A_j: j=\ldots, 0,1, \ldots, n\}$ are the channel inputs. The characterizations of FTFI capacity, are obtained by first identifying the information structures of the optimal channel input conditional distributions ${\cal P}_{[0,n]} {\stackrel{\triangle}{=}} \big\{ {\bf P}_{A_i|A^{i-1}, B^{i-1}}: i=0, \ldots, n\big\}$, which maximize directed information. The main theorem states, for any channel with memory $M$, the optimal channel input conditional distributions occur in the subset satisfying conditional independence $\stackrel{\circ}{\cal P}_{[0,n]}{\stackrel{\triangle}{=}} \big\{ {\bf P}_{A_i|A^{i-1}, B^{i-1}}= {\bf P}_{A_i|B_{i-M}^{i-1}}: i=1, \ldots, n\big\}$, and the characterization of FTFI capacity is given by $C_{A^n \rightarrow B^n}^{FB, M} {\stackrel{\triangle}{=}} \sup_{ \stackrel{\circ}{\cal P}_{[0,n]} } \sum_{i=0}^n I(A_i; B_i|B_{i-M}^{i-1}) $. The methodology utilizes stochastic optimal control theory and a variational equality of directed information, to derive upper bounds on $I(A^n \rightarrow B^n)$, which are achievable over specific subsets of channel input conditional distributions ${\cal P}_{[0,n]}$, which are characterized by conditional independence. For any of the above classes of channel distributions and transmission cost functions, a direct analogy, in terms of conditional independence, of the characterizations of FTFI capacity and Shannon's capacity formulae of Memoryless Channels is identified.
Near-infrared photoactivatable control of Ca2+ signaling and optogenetic immunomodulation

The application of current channelrhodopsin-based optogenetic tools is limited by the lack of strict ion selectivity and the inability to extend the spectra sensitivity into the near-infrared (NIR) tissue transmissible range. Here we present an NIR-stimulable optogenetic platform (termed 'Opto-CRAC') that selectively and remotely controls Ca2+ oscillations and Ca2+-responsive gene expression to regulate the function of non-excitable cells, including T lymphocytes, macrophages and dendritic cells. When coupled to upconversion nanoparticles, the optogenetic operation window is shifted from the visible range to NIR wavelengths to enable wireless photoactivation of Ca2+-dependent signaling and optogenetic modulation of immunoinflammatory responses. In a mouse model of melanoma by using ovalbumin as surrogate tumor antigen, Opto-CRAC has been shown to act as a genetically-encoded 'photoactivatable adjuvant' to improve antigen-specific immune responses to specifically destruct tumor cells. Our study represents a solid step forward towards the goal of achieving remote and wireless control of Ca2+-modulated activities with tailored function. DOI: http://dx.doi. org/10.7554/eLife.10024. 001