Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Approximate Asymmetric Search for Binary Embedding Codes

In this article, we propose a method of approximate asymmetric nearest-neighbor search for binary embedding codes. The asymmetric distance takes advantage of less information loss at the query side. However, calculating asymmetric distances through exhaustive search is prohibitive in a large-scale dataset. We present a novel method, called multi-index voting, that integrates the multi-index hashing technique with a voting mechanism to select appropriate candidates and calculate their asymmetric distances. We show that the candidate selection scheme can be formulated as the tail of the binomial distribution function. In addition, a binary feature selection method based on minimal quantization error is proposed to address the memory insufficiency issue and improve the search accuracy. Substantial experimental evaluations were made to demonstrate that the proposed method can yield an approximate accuracy to the exhaustive search method while significantly accelerating the runtime. For example, one result shows that in a dataset of one billion 256-bit binary codes, examining only 0.5% of the dataset, can reach 95--99% close accuracy to the exhaustive search method and accelerate the search by 73--128 times. It also demonstrates an excellent tradeoff between the search accuracy and time efficiency compared to the state-of-the-art nearest-neighbor search methods. Moreover, the proposed feature selection method shows its effectiveness and improves the accuracy up to 8.35% compared with other feature selection methods.
Mycobacterium celatum Pulmonary Infection in the Immunocompetent: Case Report and Review

Mycobacterium celatum has been shown to cause disease in immunocompromised patients. We report a case of serious pulmonary infection caused by M. celatum in an apparently immunocompetent patient and review the characteristics of two other reported cases. Clinical and radiologic symptoms and signs included cough, malaise, and weight loss associated with cavitary lesions and pulmonary infiltrates. Although M. celatum is easy to detect in clinical specimens by liquid and solid media, it may be misidentified as a member of the M. tuberculosis complex or as M. xenopi. M. celatum pulmonary infection appears to respond to antimycobacterial chemotherapy, particularly with clarithromycin.
Towards computationally efficient planning of dynamic multi-contact locomotion

This paper considers the problem of numerically efficient planning for legged robot locomotion, aiming towards reactive multi-contact planning as a reliability feature. We propose to decompose the problem into two parts: an extremely low dimensional kinematic search, which only adjusts a geometric path through space; and a dynamic optimization, which we focus on in this paper. This dynamic optimization also includes the selection of foot steps and hand-holds-in the special case of instantaneous foot re-location. This case is interesting because (1) it is a limiting behavior for algorithms with a foot switching cost, (2) it may have merit as a heuristic to guide search, and (3) it could act as a building block towards algorithms which do consider foot transition cost. The algorithm bears similarity both to phase space locomotion planning techniques for bipedal walking and the minimum time trajectory scaling problem for robot arms. A fundamental aspect of the algorithm's efficiency is its use of linear programming with reuse of the active set of inequality constraints. Simulation results in a simplified setting are used to demonstrate the planning of agile locomotion behaviors.
On the simulation of NBTI-Induced performance degradation considering arbitrary temperature and voltage variations

With aggressive CMOS technology scaling, Negative Bias Temperature Instability (NBTI) has emerged as one of the major system lifetime reliability threats, which gradually increases PMOS transistor threshold voltage and hence results in increased circuit delay. NBTI-induced performance degradation depends heavily on time-varying parameters such as temperature, duty cycle and supply voltage. Previous analytical models for NBTI effects, however, cannot cover all these parameters, causing overly optimistic or overly pessimistic analysis. In this work, we propose a comprehensive NBTI analytical model that explicitly takes supply voltage, duty cycle and temperature variations into consideration. The accuracy of the proposed model is validated against cycle-accurate simulation for NBTI effects. In addition, based on the proposed model, we present an efficient simulation framework for system lifetime prediction by running representative workloads only. Experimental results demonstrate the efficacy and efficiency of the proposed solution.
On Parallelizing the CryptMT Stream Cipher

Fast stream ciphers are used extensively for encrypted data transmission in mobile networks and over multi- gigabit links. CryptMT, a recently proposed stream cipher, is one of the final candidates for standardization by the European Union's eSTREAM project. Cryptanalysis of CryptMT has discovered no feasible attacks thus far. We present a scalable technique for parallelizing CryptMT and present an area-efficient hardware implementation on a field- programmable gate array (FPGA). On the Xilinx Virtex-2 Pro FPGA, a 2x parallelization delivers throughputs of up to 16 Gbits/s while using minimal logic resources (1,782 slices). This is highly area-efficient compared to implementations of ciphers such as AES. Possibilities for higher degrees of parallelization are also discussed.
Analysis of session key negotiation & distribution protocols in Wireless Sensor Networks

Key negotiating and distribution protocols like SPINS, SNAKE, BROSK and SEKEN ensure secured communication between two communicating sensor nodes. Wireless Sensor Networks are resource constrained in terms of memory, processing and battery resources and hence there is a strong need to analyze these protocols for their energy efficiency in order to make an optimal selection. This paper evaluates SPINS, SNAKE, BROSK and SEKEN for their energy requirements in terms of battery power.
Atrophy Reversal and Cardiocyte Redifferentiation in Reloaded Cat Myocardium

We have recently described rapid cardiac atrophy in response to decreased load. The present study was designed to determine whether this atrophy is solely a degenerative response of damaged myocardium or is, instead, an adaptive response of viable myocardium. A discrete portion of cat myocardium was unloaded by severing the chordae tendinae of a single right ventricular papillary muscle. One week later, the muscle was reloaded by attachment of its apex to the ventricular free wall. This allowed the load to be removed and restored without altering the blood supply, innervation, or frequency of contraction of the tissue. In myocardium unloaded for 1 week, the cardiocyte cross-sectional area and the volume densities of mitochondria and myofibrils decreased significantly. Large areas of cytoplasm were devoid of organelles, and the few remaining myofilaments were oriented in a variety of directions rather than longitudinally within the cell. Upon reloading for 1 week, the cardiocyte cross-sectional area, volume density of mitochondria, and ultrastructural organization all returned to normal. The volume density of the myofibrils increased toward control, and they reoriented with respect to the long axis of the cardiocyte. The contractile function of the papillary muscles, which was depressed as early as 1 day after unloading and almost absent at times later than 3 days after unloading, returned to normal after 2 weeks of reloading. This study demonstrates that adult mammalian myocardium responds to unloading with a marked loss of cellular differentiation, organization, and function which is fully reversible with reloading. This plasticity in response to load may well be the basic mechanism responsible for the development and maintenance of normal cardiac structure and function.
Robotics and Autonomous Systems Trajectory tracking control for navigation of the inverse pendulum type self-contained mobile robot

In this paper, we di,;cuss the trajectory control for a wheeled inverse pendulum type mobile robot. The robot has two independent driving wheels on the same axle, and a gyro type sensor to measure the inclination angular velocity of the body and rotary encoders to measure wheel rotation. The purpose of this work is to make a robot autonomously navigate in a plane while keeping its own balance. The control algorithm consists of three parts: balance and velocity control, steering control and straight line tracking control. We designed and implemented a vehicle command system for such robot to control using the proposed algorithm. Experiments of the navigation in a real indoor environment have been performed using our experimental robot "Yamabico Kurara".
Printing angle sensors for foldable robots

Self-folding is a promising technique for assembling robots from flat sheets. However, existing implementations do not include reliable methods for sensing the folding angle, making feedback control impossible. In this paper, we present novel angle sensors for foldable robots and machines. They are inkjet printed and fully integrated into robots' laminate. This additional sensor layer tracks the angle motion of robot hinges, to better guide robot assembling by folding and to perform more complicated tasks that requires feedback control, making folded robots more capable in real world applications. We introduce the fabrication process, property assessments, and demonstrate sensor performance by measuring folding angles of a cube and controlling folds on a gripper.
Differential approximation of NP-hard problems with equal size feasible solutions

In this paper, we focus on some specific optimization problems from graph theory, those for which all feasible solutions have an equal size that depends on the instance size. Once having provided a formal definition of this class of problems, we try to extract some of its basic properties; most of these are deduced from the equivalence, under differential approximation, between two versions of a problem $\pi$ which only differ on a linear transformation of their objective functions. This is notably the case of maximization and minimization versions of $\pi$, as well as general minimization and minimization with triangular inequality versions of $\pi$. Then, we prove that some well known problems do belong to this class, such as special cases of both spanning tree and vehicles routing problems. In particular, we study the strict rural postman problem (called SRPP) and show that both the maximization and the minimization versions can be approximately solved, in polynomial time, within a differential ratio bounded above by 1/2. From these results, we derive new bounds for standard ratio when restricting edge weights to the interval [a,ta] (the SRPP[t] problem): we respectively provide a 2/(t+1)- and a (t+1)/2t-standard approximation for the minimization and the maximization versions.
Point-of-Care Urine Tests for Smoking Status and Isoniazid Treatment Monitoring in Adult Patients

Background Poor adherence to isoniazid (INH) preventive therapy (IPT) is an impediment to effective control of latent tuberculosis (TB) infection. TB patients who smoke are at higher risk of latent TB infection, active disease, and TB mortality, and may have lower adherence to their TB medications. The objective of our study was to validate IsoScreen and SmokeScreen (GFC Diagnostics, UK), two point-of-care tests for monitoring INH intake and determining smoking status. The tests could be used together in the same individual to help identify patients with a high-risk profile and provide a tailored treatment plan that includes medication management, adherence interventions, and smoking cessation programs. Methodology/Principal Findings 200 adult outpatients attending the TB and/or the smoking cessation clinic were recruited at the Montreal Chest Institute. Sensitivity and specificity were measured for each test against the corresponding composite reference standard. Test reliability was measured using kappa statistic for intra-rater and inter-rater agreement. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression models were used to explore possible covariates that might be related to false-positive and false-negative test results. IsoScreen had a sensitivity of 93.2% (95% confidence interval [CI] 80.3, 98.2) and specificity of 98.7% (94.8, 99.8). IsoScreen had intra-rater agreement (kappa) of 0.75 (0.48, 0.94) and inter-rater agreement of 0.61 (0.27, 0.90). SmokeScreen had a sensitivity of 69.2% (56.4, 79.8), specificity of 81.6% (73.0, 88.0), intra-rater agreement of 0.77 (0.56, 0.94), and inter-rater agreement of 0.66 (0.42, 0.88). False-positive SmokeScreen tests were strongly associated with INH treatment. Conclusions IsoScreen had high validity and reliability, whereas SmokeScreen had modest validity and reliability. SmokeScreen tests did not perform well in a population receiving INH due to the association between INH treatment and false-positive SmokeScreen test results. Development of the next generation SmokeScreen assay should account for this potential interference.
Light supersymmetric axion in an anomalous Abelian extension of the standard model

We present a supersymmetric extension of the standard model (USSM-A) with an anomalous U(1) and Stueckelberg axions for anomaly cancellation, generalizing similar nonsupersymmetric constructions. The model, built by a bottom-up approach, is expected to capture the low-energy supersymmetric description of axionic symmetries in theories with gauged anomalous Abelian interactions, previously explored in the nonsupersymmetric case for scenarios with intersecting branes. The choice of a USSM-like superpotential, with one extra singlet superfield and an extra Abelian symmetry, allows a physical axionlike particle in the spectrum. We describe some general features of this construction and, in particular, the modification of the dark-matter sector which involves both the axion and several neutralinos with an axino component. The axion is expected to be very light in the absence of phases in the superpotential but could acquire a mass which can also be in the few GeV range or larger. In particular, the gauging of the anomalous symmetry allows independent mass/coupling interaction to the gauge fields of this particle, a feature which is absent in traditional (invisible) axion models. We comment on the general implications of our study for the signature of moduli from string theory due to the presence of these anomalous symmetries.
An Unified Multiscale Framework for Planar, Surface, and Curve Skeletonization

Computing skeletons of 2D shapes, and medial surface and curve skeletons of 3D shapes, is a challenging task. In particular, there is no unified framework that detects all types of skeletons using a single model, and also produces a multiscale representation which allows to progressively simplify, or regularize, all skeleton types. In this paper, we present such a framework. We model skeleton detection and regularization by a conservative mass transport process from a shape's boundary to its surface skeleton, next to its curve skeleton, and finally to the shape center. The resulting density field can be thresholded to obtain a multiscale representation of progressively simplified surface, or curve, skeletons. We detail a numerical implementation of our framework which is demonstrably stable and has high computational efficiency. We demonstrate our framework on several complex 2D and 3D shapes.
Kidney-targeted Birt-Hogg-Dube gene inactivation in a mouse model: Erk1/2 and Akt-mTOR activation, cell hyperproliferation, and polycystic kidneys.

BACKGROUND Patients with Birt-Hogg-Dubé (BHD) syndrome harbor germline mutations in the BHD tumor suppressor gene that are associated with an increased risk for kidney cancer. BHD encodes folliculin, a protein that may interact with the energy- and nutrient-sensing 5'-AMP-activated protein kinase-mammalian target of rapamycin (AMPK-mTOR) signaling pathways. METHODS We used recombineering methods to generate mice with a conditional BHD allele and introduced the cadherin 16 (KSP)-Cre transgene to target BHD inactivation to the kidney. Kidney cell proliferation was measured by BrdU incorporation and phospho-histone H3 staining. Kidney weight data were analyzed with Wilcoxon's rank-sum, Student's t, and Welch's t tests. Hematoxylin and eosin staining and immunoblot analysis and immunohistochemistry of cell cycle and signaling proteins were performed on mouse kidney cells and tissues. BHD knockout mice and kidney cells isolated from BHD knockout and control mice were treated with the mTOR inhibitor rapamycin. Mouse survival was evaluated by Kaplan-Meier analyses. All statistical tests were two-sided. RESULTS BHD knockout mice developed enlarged polycystic kidneys and died from renal failure by 3 weeks of age. Targeted BHD knockout led to the activation of Raf-extracellular signal-regulated protein kinase (Erk)1/2 and Akt-mTOR pathways in the kidneys and increased expression of cell cycle proteins and cell proliferation. Rapamycin-treated BHD knockout mice had smaller kidneys than buffer-treated BHD knockout mice had (n = 4-6 mice per group, relative kidney/body weight ratios, mean = 4.64% vs 12.2%, difference = 7.6%, 95% confidence interval = 5.2% to 10.0%; P < .001) and longer median survival time (n = 4-5 mice per group, 41.5 vs 23 days; P = .0065 ). CONCLUSIONS Homozygous loss of BHD may initiate renal tumorigenesis in the mouse. The conditional BHD knockout mouse may be a useful research model for dissecting multistep kidney carcinogenesis, and rapamycin may be considered as a potential treatment for Birt-Hogg-Dubé syndrome.
Driver Model Based Automated Driving of Long Vehicle Combinations in Emulated Highway Traffic

This paper proposes a framework for automated highway driving of an A-double long vehicle combination. The included driving manoeuvres are maintain lane, lane change to right and left, abort lane change to right and left, and emergency brake. A combined longitudinal and lateral driver model is used for the generation of longitudinal acceleration and steering requests. The behaviour of the driver model, both regarding heuristics and safety thresholds, is inspired by human cognition and optical flow theory. Traffic situation predictions of feasible lane changes are calculated using the driver model in combination with prediction models of the subject and surrounding vehicles. The traffic situation predictions are used for the evaluation of constraints related to vehicle dynamics, road boundaries and distance to surrounding objects. When the framework is started, the subject vehicle is initiated in the maintain lane state respecting the road speed limit and the distance to surrounding objects. A lane change manoeuvre is performed on request from the driver when the corresponding traffic situation prediction and control request become feasible. The framework has been implemented in a simulation environment including a high-fidelity vehicle plant model and models of surrounding vehicles. Simulations show that the framework gives anticipated results when initial conditions are varied. Results are shown for maintain lane and lane change manoeuvres at constant longitudinal velocity, varying from 20-80 km/h and lane changes combined with retardation including leading vehicle braking from different initial velocities ranging from 30-80 km/h.
Integrated multimedia understanding for sensor and actor networks based on mental image directed semantic theory

The distributed intelligent robot network (DIRN) is proposed as one kind of wireless sensor and actor network (WSAN) consisting of one brain node and numerous sensor and actuator nodes with human-friendly interfaces. In order to realize well-coordinated DIRNs, it is very important to develop a systematically computable knowledge representation language as well as efficient networking technologies. As a candidate for this purpose, the multimedia description language L/sub md/ was evaluated by applying it to simulation of DIRN-world interaction.
Employee Empowerment with Computer Based Learning: An Empirical Investigation

Enterprises are confronted with frequent changes in their business environment which require quick responses. Thereby, highly skilled and flexi- ble employees play a major role since they are able to respond promptly. To en- hance competencies and flexibility, the concept of employee empowerment has been proposed. In this respect, the workforce is given an increased level of au- tonomy and offered support during their decision-making processes. It is evi- dent that technology can contribute within this context. However, the role of computer based learning with regard to the support of decision-making activi- ties and the acquisition of competencies, especially in combination with in- creased employee autonomy, has been neglected until now. On the basis of an empirical case study, we find that the usage of computer based learning within employee empowerment initiatives fosters the acquisition of competencies and increases employee flexibility. Additionally, enhanced employee autonomy is found to have a positive moderating effect on both relationships.
Design and analysis of bi-directional pumping silicon Raman laser

In this paper, a novel design of bi-directional pumping scheme is proposed and analyzed for the first time in an attempt to verify its validity as a mean for loss reduction and gain enhancement in Raman silicon laser. FCA loss is identified as the key loss contributor in silicon Raman process which is highly dependent on peak input pump power level, from the simulation results to account for various loss mechanisms in on-off gain simulation. To solve the problem of high threshold and low gain obtained in Raman silicon laser, bi-directional pumping scheme is proposed to have the effects of loss reduction by peak power limitation and Raman gain enhancement through average power increment. This is also substantiated by simulation of average and instantaneous pump power level along the silicon waveguide length. With bi-directional pumping, Raman silicon laser could improve in its threshold power and gain/slope efficiency to enable it better application credibility.
Comparative analysis of partnership behaviors in the National Park Service

The partnership phenomenon has received considerable attention as an alternative management strategy for public agencies. The growing use of partnerships has created a need to understand key elements of partnership success and failure, how partnerships address park and recreation management paradoxes, and guidelines for best practices (Mowen & Kerstetter, 2006). National Park Service (NPS) employees participated in a Internet survey (n=5,398) examining partnership attitudes and behaviors. Analysis revealed that the majority of NPS employees are currently engaged in partnerships (60 percent) and reported that their past experience was rewarding and productive (60 percent).
Optimal Nonlinear Estimation for Localization of Wireless Sensor Networks

This paper deals with the problem of sensor localization when the localization error is nonlinearly propagated over the sensor network as occurs in Radio Interferometric Positioning System (RIPS). A noise model that takes the location uncertainties of anchor nodes into account in the node localization process has been derived based on a generic nonlinear measurement model that encapsulates the use of many popular node localization techniques. These include circular, parabolic and hyperbolic methods. This development enables the use of a distributed stochastic estimation method for node localization of wireless sensor networks with nonlinear measurements in the presence of anchor node uncertainties. The effectiveness of the derived equivalent noise model is demonstrated via a simulated progressive localization of a mote network using the RIPS measurements.