Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Keystroke Dynamics Authentication: A Survey of Free-text Methods

Current computer systems depend greatly on authentication methods in order to provide sufficient protection to the data handled by these systems. Rather than using the common username and password scheme which suffers from many security and usability limitations, we investigate in this paper the use of keystroke dynamics as a more useable authentication alternative. We focus on the research done on free-text keystroke systems and its ability to provide continual identity verification during the whole time that the user is using the system.
Cyclin G is involved in meiotic recombination repair in Drosophila melanogaster

Summary Cyclin G (CycG) belongs to the atypical cyclins, which have diverse cellular functions. The two mammalian CycG genes, CycG1 and CycG2, regulate the cell cycle in response to cell stress. Detailed analyses of the role of the single Drosophila cycG gene have been hampered by the lack of a mutant. We generated a null mutant in the Drosophila cycG gene that is female sterile and produces ventralised eggs. This phenotype is typical of the downregulation of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) signalling during oogenesis. Ventralised eggs are also observed in mutants (for example, mutants of the spindle class) that are defective in meiotic DNA double-strand break repair. Double-strand breaks (DSBs) induce a meiotic checkpoint by activating Mei-41 kinase (the Drosophila ATR homologue), thereby indirectly causing dorsoventral patterning defects. We provide evidence for the role of CycG in meiotic checkpoint control. The increased incidence of DSBs in cycG mutant germaria may reflect inefficient DSB repair. Therefore, the downregulation of Mei-W68 (an endonuclease that induces meiotic DSBs), Mei-41, or Drosophila melanogaster Chk2 (a downstream kinase that initiates the meiotic checkpoint) rescues the cycG mutant eggshell phenotype. In vivo, CycG associates with Rad9 and BRCA2. These two proteins are components of the 9-1-1 complex, which is involved in sensing DSBs and in activating meiotic checkpoint control. Therefore, we propose that CycG has a role in an early step of meiotic recombination repair, thereby affecting EGFR-mediated patterning processes during oogenesis.
A Novel Physical Sensing Principle for Liquid Characterization Using Paper-Based Hygro-Mechanical Systems (PB-HMS)

In recent years paper-based microfluidic systems have emerged as versatile tools for developing sensors in different areas. In this work; we report a novel physical sensing principle for the characterization of liquids using a paper-based hygro-mechanical system (PB-HMS). The PB-HMS is formed by the interaction of liquid droplets and paper-based mini-structures such as cantilever beams. The proposed principle takes advantage of the hygroscopic properties of paper to produce hygro-mechanical motion. The dynamic response of the PB-HMS reveals information about the tested liquid that can be applied to characterize certain properties of liquids. A suggested method to characterize liquids by means of the proposed principle is introduced. The experimental results show the feasibility of such a method. It is expected that the proposed principle may be applied to sense properties of liquids in different applications where both disposability and portability are of extreme importance.
Conservative Dynamic Energy Management for Real-Time Dataflow Applications Mapped on Multiple Processors

Voltage-frequency scaling (VFS) trades a linear processor slowdown for a potentially quadratic reduction in energy consumption. Complex dependencies may exist between different tasks of an application. The impact of VFS on the end- to-end application performance is difficult to predict, especially when these tasks are mapped on multiple processors that are scaled independently. This is a problem for real-time (RT) applications that require guaranteed end-to-end performance. In this paper we first classify the slack existing in RT applications consisting of multiple dependent tasks mapped on multiple processors independently using VFS, resulting in static, work, and share slack. Then we concentrate on work and share slack as they can only be detected at run time, thus their conservative use is challenging. We propose SlackOS, a dynamic, dependency-aware, task scheduling that conserva- tively scales the voltage and frequency of each processor, to respect RT deadlines. When applied to a H.264 application, our method delivers 22% to 33% energy reduction, compared to dynamic RT scheduling that is not energy aware.
HER1-Targeted 86Y-Panitumumab Possesses Superior Targeting Characteristics than 86Y-Cetuximab for PET Imaging of Human Malignant Mesothelioma Tumors Xenografts

Malignant mesothelioma (MM), a rare form of cancer is often associated with previous exposure to fibrous minerals, such as asbestos. Asbestos exposure increases HER1-activity and expression in pre-clinical models. Additionally, HER1 over-expression is observed in the majority of MM cases. In this study, the utility of HER1-targeted chimeric IgG1, cetuximab, and a human IgG2, panitumumab, radiolabeled with 86Y, were evaluated for PET imaging to detect MM non-invasively in vivo, and to select an antibody candidate for radioimmunotherapy (RIT). Methods Radioimmunoconjugates (RICs) of cetuximab and panitumumab were prepared by conjugation with CHX-A’’-DTPA followed by radiolabeling with 86Y. The HER1 expression of NCI-H226, NCI-H2052, NCI-H2452 and MSTO-211H human mesothelioma cells was characterized by flow cytometry. In vivo biodistribution, pharmacokinetic analysis, and PET imaging were performed in tumor bearing athymic mice. Results In vivo studies demonstrated high HER1 tumor uptake of both RICs. Significant reduction in tumor uptake was observed in mice co-injected with excess mAb (0.1 mg), demonstrating that uptake in the tumor was receptor specific. Significant differences were observed in the in vivo characteristics of the RICs. The blood clearance T½α of 86Y-cetuximab (0.9–1.1 h) was faster than 86Y-panitumumab (2.6–3.1 h). Also, the tumor area under the curve (AUC) to liver AUC ratios of 86Y-panitumumab were 1.5 to 2.5 times greater than 86Y-cetuximab as observed by the differences in PET tumor to background ratios, which could be critical when imaging orthotopic tumors and concerns regarding radiation doses to normal organs such as the liver. Conclusion This study demonstrates the more favorable HER1-targeting characteristics of 86Y-panitumumab than 86Y-cetuximab for non-invasive assessment of the HER1 status of MM by PET imaging. Due to lower liver uptake, panitumumab based immunoconjugates may fare better in therapy than corresponding cetuximab based immunoconjugates.
L2 Learners’ Emotion Production in Video Dubbing Practices

Video dubbing is a new type of language learning practice. Because of the fun it brings into learning, video dubbing mobile applications have become quite popular. During video dubbing, learners not only mimic characters’ pronunciations but also other voicing characteristics, e.g., emotions. In this study, we collected a corpus from Liulishuo English learning App’s video dubbing practices and investigated three research questions. We find that L2 learners do try to mimic emotions via their voices, and human raters tend to focus more on the emotion production aspect when evaluating dubbing performance. Furthermore, we develop state-of-the-art speech emotion recognition technology and show it can be used for evaluating emotion production automatically.
Comment: Strengthening Empirical Evaluation of Causal Inference Methods

This is a contribution to the discussion of the paper by Dorie et al. (Statist. Sci. 34 (2019) 43–68), which reports the lessons learned from 2016 Atlantic Causal Inference Conference Competition. My comments strongly support the authors’ focus on empirical evaluation, using examples and experience from machine learning research, particularly focusing on the problem of algorithmic complexity. I argue that even broader and deeper empirical evaluation should be undertaken by the researchers who study causal inference. Finally, I highlight a few key conclusions that suggest where future research should focus.
A Feature Based Approach for Medical Databases

Medical data mining is an emerging field employed to discover hidden knowledge within the large datasets for early medical diagnosis of disease. Usually, large databases comprise of numerous features which may have missing values, noise and outliers. However, such features can mislead to future medical diagnosis. Moreover to deal with irrelevant and redundant features among large databases, proper pre processing data techniques needs be applied. In, past studies data mining technique such as feature selection is efficiently applied to deal with irrelevant, noisy and redundant features. This paper explains application of data mining techniques using feature selection for pancreatic cancer patients to conduct machine learning studies on collected patient records. We have evaluated different feature selection techniques such as Correlation-Based Filter Method (CFS) and Wrapper Subset Evaluation using Naive Bayes and J48 (an implementation of C4.5) classifier on medical databases to analyze varied data mining algorithms which can effectively classify medical data for future medical diagnosis. Further, experimental techniques have been used to measure the effectiveness and efficiency of feature selection algorithms. The experimental analysis conducted has proven beneficiary to determine machine learning methods for effective analysis of pancreatic cancer diagnosis.
The effects of dobutamine on microcirculatory alterations in patients with septic shock are independent of its systemic effects*

Objective:To evaluate the effects of dobutamine on microcirculatory blood flow alterations in patients with septic shock. Design:Prospective, open-label study. Setting:A 31-bed, medico-surgical intensive care unit of a university hospital. Patients:Twenty-two patients with septic shock. Interventions:Intravenous administration of dobutamine (5 &mgr;g/kg·min) for 2 hrs (n = 22) followed by the addition of 10−2 M acetylcholine (topically applied, n = 10). Measurements and Main Results:Complete hemodynamic measurements were obtained before and after dobutamine administration. In addition, the sublingual microcirculation was investigated with an orthogonal polarization spectral imaging technique before and after dobutamine administration and after topical application of acetylcholine. Dobutamine significantly improved capillary perfusion (from 48 ± 15 to 67 ± 11%, p = .001), but with large individual variation, whereas capillary density remained stable. The addition of topical acetylcholine completely restored capillary perfusion (98 ± 1%, p = .001) and capillary density. The changes in capillary perfusion during dobutamine administration were not related to changes in cardiac index (p = .45) or arterial pressure (p = .29). Interestingly, the decrease in lactate levels was proportional to the improvement in capillary perfusion (y = 0.07 − 0.02x, r2 = .46, p = .005) but not to changes in cardiac index (p = .55). Conclusions:The administration of 5 &mgr;g/kg·min dobutamine can improve but not restore capillary perfusion in patients with septic shock. These changes are independent of changes in systemic hemodynamic variables.
Evaluation of Islanded Grid Operation Tests and Dynamic Modelling

To investigate the electrical conditions during grid restoration after a blackout network operators are dependent on accurate and reliable simulation models. This paper describes the setup of a dynamic simulation model including nonlinearities of the mechanical governor systems based on high resolution measurements of islanded grid operation tests. The model is used to detect a root cause for low frequency oscillations which occurred during tests. Further a minimal generator configuration is developed to provide a stable grid restoration. The effect of integrating recently built power plants in the grid restoration plan is also investigated.
Lactic acid mediates the effects of physical exercise on learning and memory through SIRT1-dependent activation of hippocampal BDNF. (c2018)

Exercise promotes learning and memory formation. These effects are dependent in part on increases in hippocampal BDNF, a growth factor associated with cognitive improvement and the alleviation of depression symptoms. Identifying molecules that are produced during exercise and that mediate induction of Bdnf gene expression in the hippocampus will allow us to harness the therapeutic potential of exercise. Here, we report that an endogenous molecule produced during exercise induces the Mus musculus Bdnf gene and promotes learning and memory formation. The metabolite lactate, which is increased during exercise, induces Bdnf expression and TRKB signaling in the hippocampus. Indeed, we find that lactate-dependent increases in hippocampal BDNF are associated with improved spatial learning and memory retention. The action of lactate is dependent on the activation of the Sirtuin1 deacetylase. SIRT1 increases the levels of the transcriptional coactivator PGC1a and the secreted molecule FNDC5, previously shown to mediate Bdnf expression. These results reveal an endogenous mechanism to explain how physical exercise leads to the induction of BDNF, and identify lactate as a potential endogenous molecule that may have therapeutic value for central nervous system diseases in which BDNF signaling is disrupted.
Robust Path Diversity for Network Quality of Service in Cyber-Physical Systems

The reliability of control in cyber-physical systems (CPSs) heavily depends on the network-induced delay. The problem of obtaining a maximum allowable delay bound has been widely studied in the networked control systems (NCS) area. Once the delay bound is derived, the remaining question is how to make a network satisfy the bound. In this paper, we propose a robust path selection algorithm, which exploits multipath diversity for providing robust network performance against intrinsic randomness in delay. Our path selection algorithm gives the required paths for any given robustness level parameterized by the reliability violation probability. Based on extensive experimental results with our testbed, we empirically show that the proposed scheme can provide the required network quality of service (QoS) for system robustness.
Applying Manifold Learning to Plotting Approximate Contour Trees

A contour tree is a powerful tool for delineating the topological evolution of isosurfaces of a single-valued function, and thus has been frequently used as a means of extracting features from volumes and their time-varying behaviors. Several sophisticated algorithms have been proposed for constructing contour trees while they often complicate the software implementation especially for higher-dimensional cases such as time-varying volumes. This paper presents a simple yet effective approach to plotting in 3D space, approximate contour trees from a set of scattered samples embedded in the high-dimensional space. Our main idea is to take advantage of manifold learning so that we can elongate the distribution of high-dimensional data samples to embed it into a low-dimensional space while respecting its local proximity of sample points. The contribution of this paper lies in the introduction of new distance metrics to manifold learning, which allows us to reformulate existing algorithms as a variant of currently available dimensionality reduction scheme. Efficient reduction of data sizes together with segmentation capability is also developed to equip our approach with a coarse-to-fine analysis even for large-scale datasets. Examples are provided to demonstrate that our proposed scheme can successfully traverse the features of volumes and their temporal behaviors through the constructed contour trees.
Enhanced Production of Bioactive Isoprenoid Compounds from Cell Suspension Cultures of Artemisia annua L. Using β-Cyclodextrins

Plant cell cultures as valuable tools for the production of specific metabolites can be greatly improved by the application of elicitors including cyclodextrins (CDs) for enhancing the yields of the desired plant compounds. Here the effects of 2,6-dimethyl-β-cyclodextrins (DIMEB) on the production of carotenoids and quinones from Artemisia annua L. cell suspension cultures were investigated. The addition of 50 mM DIMEB induced an early increase of intracellular carotenoid and quinone contents, which could be observed to a higher extent for lutein (10-fold), Q9 (3-fold) and Q10 (2.5-fold). Real Time PCR analysis revealed that the expression of 1-deoxy-d-xylulose-5-phosphate reductoisomerase (DXR) gene in DIMEB treated cell cultures after three days was 2.5-fold higher than in untreated samples, thus suggesting that the DIMEB induced increase of carotenoids and quinones could be due to the induction of the plastidial isoprenoid biosynthetic route. In addition, the DIMEB treatment induced an enhanced release of carotenoids and quinones into the culture medium of A. annua cell suspension cultures possibly due to the ability of CDs to form inclusion complexes with hydrophobic molecules.
Intratympanic Dexamethasone to Prevent Cisplatin Ototoxicity

Objective. To determine whether intratympanic administration of dexamethasone reduces ototoxicity from systemic cisplatin. Study Design. Prospective animal study. Setting. Cisplatin chemotherapy induces ototoxicity manifesting as irreversible, sensorineural hearing loss. This is due to damage to the inner ear structures by free radicals. Steroidal anti-inflammatories have been shown to reduce the formation of free radicals and protect hearing in animal models. Subjects and Methods. Pure tone auditory brainstem responses were obtained in 58 female albino guinea pigs before and 3 days after intraperitoneal (IP) cisplatin chemotherapy. Auditory brainstem responses were also taken up to 1 month after a low dose of cisplatin. Part I consisted of a dosing study to determine the optimal ototoxic dose of cisplatin. In part II, auditory brainstem response thresholds were compared after bilateral intratympanic dexamethasone doses to act as controls. For part III, the otoprotection of dexamethasone against cisplatin was tested in separate bilateral and unilateral studies. Results. IP injection of 12 mg/kg of cisplatin induced significant hearing loss (57.2 ± 4.4 dB, P < .01) with 0% mortality. Ears treated with intratympanic dexamethasone alone showed no significant threshold changes. Ears that received IP cisplatin and intratympanic dexamethasone showed reduced threshold shifts at 8 kHz when the greatest concentration of dexamethasone was administered. Conclusion. Modest intratympanic dexamethasone otoprotection of the guinea pig ear was greatest at the highest concentration tested and occurred in a frequency-dependent manner. Intratympanic dexamethasone presents as a safe, simple, and effective treatment modality to minimize cisplatin ototoxicity without interfering with the chemotherapeutic effects of cisplatin.
A nomogram to select the optimal treadmill ramp protocol in subjects with high exercise capacity: validation and comparison with the Bruce protocol.

PURPOSE Guidelines suggest that individualized ramp protocols with treadmill times targeted between 8 and 12 minutes are most suitable to estimate exercise capacity. However, previous methods to determine individualized ramp rates and comparisons between ramp and standardized protocols have been limited to clinically referred populations. METHODS Forty-three healthy volunteers [median (interquartile range), age 36 (30-41) years; 10 women] performed an individualized ramp and a Bruce treadmill exercise protocol in random order. The Veterans Specific Activity Questionnaire [VSAQ, resulting in metabolic equivalents (METs)VSAQ] combined with a modified variant of the VSAQ nomogram (resulting in METs(NOMOGRAM)) was used to individualize the ramp protocol. Exercise capacity estimated from speed and grade of the treadmill (METs(ESTIMATED)) and that derived from directly measured peak oxygen uptake (VO2) [METs(MEASURED)] were compared with the pretest estimates of exercise capacity. RESULTS Median values for METs(VSAQ), METs(NOMOGRAM), METs(ESTIMATED), and METs(MEASURED) for the ramp protocol were 12.0 (10-12), 15.0 (14-16.5), 16.7 (15.9-17.8), and 15.2 (13.5-16.7), respectively. For the ramp protocol, all 43 participants achieved a treadmill time between 8 and 12 minutes, whereas with the Bruce protocol only 6 (14%) participants fell within this range (P < .0001). Peak VO2 [ramp: 53.1 (47.4-58.3) versus Bruce: 53.5 (48.7-58.3) mL/kg/min; P = . 008] was slightly lower using the ramp protocol. CONCLUSIONS The modified variant of the VSAQ nomogram is a useful tool to estimate an individual's exercise capacity and to select a treadmill ramp protocol to yield the recommended exercise duration for moderately to highly fit, healthy individuals. The individualized ramp and the Bruce protocols are similar with regard to directly measured peak VO2 achieved.
Estimation of Vehicle Yaw Rate and Side Slip Angle using Moving Horizon Strategy

The accurate measurements of vehicle yaw rate and side slip angle are vital for vehicle dynamics control. Generally vehicle yaw rate is measured by gyro that will cost too much to be used commercially as an on-vehicle sensor. A moving horizon estimation (MHE) approach to vehicle yaw rate and side slip angle estimation is presented in this paper. The proposed method is an optimal strategy that explicitly allows for inequality constraints in vehicle dynamics. The simulation results show that the accurate estimate of the vehicle yaw rate and side slip angle can be obtained under corrupted sensor noise. Additional, the MHE strategy proposed here can handle the constraints effectively and avoid the fallacious estimate results
Coxiella burnetii in Bulk Tank Milk Samples, United States

Dairy cattle are a primary reservoir of Coxiella burnetii, which causes Q fever. However, no recent nationwide studies have assessed the prevalence and risks of Q fever in dairy cattle. We report ≥94% prevalence in samples of bulk tank milk from U.S. dairy herds tested during the past 3 years.
Accurate Characterization of the Variability in Power Consumption in Modern Mobile Processors

The variability in performance and power consumption is slated to grow further with continued scaling of process technologies. While this variability has been studied and modeled before, there is lack of empirical data on its extent, as well as the factors affecting it, especially for modern general purpose microprocessors. Using detailed power measurements we show that the part to part variability for modern processors utilizing the Nehalem microarchitecture is indeed significant. We chose six Core i5-540M laptop processors marketed in the same frequency bins - thus presumed to be identical - and characterized their power consumption for a variety of representative single-threaded and multithreaded application workloads. Our data shows processor power variation ranging from 7%-17% across different applications and configuration options such as Hyper-Threading and Turbo Boost. We present our hypotheses on the underlying causes of this observed power variation and discuss its potential implications.