Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Comparative analysis of breast cancer detection in mammograms and thermograms

Abstract In this paper, we present a system based on feature extraction techniques for detecting abnormal patterns in digital mammograms and thermograms. A comparative study of texture-analysis methods is performed for three image groups: mammograms from the Mammographic Image Analysis Society mammographic database; digital mammograms from the local database; and thermography images of the breast. Also, we present a procedure for the automatic separation of the breast region from the mammograms. Computed features based on gray-level co-occurrence matrices are used to evaluate the effectiveness of textural information possessed by mass regions. A total of 20 texture features are extracted from the region of interest. The ability of feature set in differentiating abnormal from normal tissue is investigated using a support vector machine classifier, Naive Bayes classifier and K-Nearest Neighbor classifier. To evaluate the classification performance, five-fold cross-validation method and receiver operating characteristic analysis was performed.
Using Sub Skills to Model and Estimate Final Skill Level

Skill level estimation is very important since it allows an instructor, a human or an artificial instructor through an intelligent tutoring system, to predict the level of a student and adjust the learning materials accordingly. In this paper, a new approach based on 1-NN (First Nearest Neighbor) is introduced to determine the skill level of a student based on the pattern of skill levels learned over time in the same course. The data over several years are used to determine four clusters of expert, good, average and bad skill level. The advantage of the proposed approach is in its capability to adjust the levels over time based on the new data received each year. Furthermore, it can estimate the skill level after a few homework or project assignments. Consequently it can help an instructor to better conduct its class. The proposed approach has been implemented and tested on an introductory computer programming course and the results prove the validity of the approach.
Mathematical Modelling of the Effects of Mitotic Inhibitors on Avascular Tumour Growth

In this paper we build on the mathematical model of Ward and King (1998) to study the effects of high molecular mass mitotic inhibitors released at cell death. The model assumes a continuum of living cells which, depending on the concentration of a generic nutrient, generate movement (described by a velocity field) due to the changes in volumes caused by cell birth and death. The necrotic material is assumed to consist of two diffusible materials: I) basic cellular material which is used by living cells as raw material for mitosis; 2) a generic non-utilisable material which may inhibit mitosis. Numerical solutions of the resulting system of partial differential equations show all the main features of tumour growth and heterogeneity. Material 2) is found to act in an inhibitive fashion in two ways: i) directly, by reducing the mitotic rate and ii) indirectly, by occupying space, thereby reducing the availability of the basic cellular material. For large time the solutions to the model tend either to a steady-state, reflecting growth saturation, or to a travelling wave, indicating continual linear growth. The steady-state and travelling wave limits of the model are derived and studied, the regions of existence of these two types of long-time solution being explored in parameter space using numerical methods.
A method of measuring two phase flow based on segmented capacitance electrodes

A kind of measurement called “step” measurement method based on segmented capacitance electrodes is proposed in this paper. The “step” measurement method is implemented through increasing and reducing the width by increasingly involving more the capacitance electrodes towards different axis directions. By this kind of measurement, the information of the flow both locally and globally can be acquired. The capacitance electrode model and the measurement method are presented in details. Based the simulations using finite element method, the relative capacitance differences are calculated. The gas-liquid cross-sectional phase distribution (annular flow, stratified flow, bubble flow) are identified. Besides, the relation between the mean relative capacitance differences and the level of the water of stratified flow is nearly linear. The “step” measurement data contains a lot of information of the flow, and further work will focus on the feature extraction method of “step” measurement data.
Tree-Based Data Aggregation Approach in Periodic Sensor Networks Using Correlation Matrix and Polynomial Regression

Sensor networks are a collection of sensor nodes that co-operatively transmit sensed data to a base station. One of the well-known characteristics of Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) is its limited resources. Energy consumption of the network's nodes is considered one of the major challenges faced by researchers nowadays. On the other hand, data aggregation helps in reducing the redundant data transferred through the WSNs. This fact implies that aggregation of data is considered a very crucial technique for reducing the energy consumption across the WSN. Local aggregation and Prefix filtering are two methods used in which they utilize a tree based bi-level periodic data aggregation approach implemented on the source node and on the aggregator levels. In this paper an efficient model for multivariate data reduction is proposed based on periodic data aggregation on two sensor levels, in addition to polynomial regression functions. The performance of the model was evaluated using SensorScope network which is deployed at the Grand-St-Bernard located between Switzerland and Italy. The results show the advantages of the proposed model as it allows 84% reduction rate and 93% approximation accuracy after reduction. The simulations were done using the R software.
PARD3 induces TAZ activation and cell growth by promoting LATS1 and PP1 interaction

The Hippo pathway plays a major role in organ size control, and its dysregulation contributes to tumorigenesis. The major downstream effectors of the Hippo pathway are the YAP/TAZ transcription co‐activators, which are phosphorylated and inhibited by the Hippo pathway kinase LATS1/2. Here, we report a novel mechanism of TAZ regulation by the tight junction protein PARD3. PARD3 promotes the interaction between PP1A and LATS1 to induce LATS1 dephosphorylation and inactivation, therefore leading to dephosphorylation and activation of TAZ. The cytoplasmic, but not the tight junction complex associated, PARD3 is responsible for TAZ regulation. Our study indicates a potential molecular basis for cell growth‐promoting function of PARD3 by modulating the Hippo pathway signaling in response to cell contact and cell polarity signals.
Lightweight Privacy-Preserving Averaging for the Internet of Things

The number of connected devices is growing continuously, and so is their presence into our everyday lives. From GPS-enabled fitness trackers, to smart fridges that tell us what we need to buy at the grocery store, connected devices---things---have the potential to collect and make available significant amounts of information. On the one hand, this information may provide useful services to users, and constitute a statistical gold mine. On the other, its availability poses serious privacy threats for users. In this paper we propose a novel protocol that makes it possible to aggregate personal information collected by smart devices in the form of an average, while preventing attackers from learning the details of the non-aggregated data.
Macrophage SR-BI regulates LPS-induced pro-inflammatory signaling in mice and isolated macrophages

Scavenger receptor BI (SR-BI), an HDL receptor, plays a key role in reverse cholesterol transport. In mice, disruption of SR-BI results in hypersensitivity to lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and bacteria-induced septic shock due to adrenal insufficiency and abnormal hepatic pathogen clearance. In this study, we identify an anti-inflammatory role of macrophage SR-BI. Using bone marrow transplantation, we report an enhanced pro-inflammatory response to LPS in wild-type (WT) mice receiving SR-BI-null compared with WT bone marrow cells and a reduced response in SR-BI-null mice receiving WT compared with SR-BI-null cells. Although significant, SR-BI deficiency limited to bone marrow-derived cells promoted a relatively modest enhancement of the inflammatory response to LPS in mice compared with the effect of whole-body SR-BI deletion. Consistent with earlier findings, SR-BI-null primary macrophages exhibited a greater inflammatory cytokine response to LPS than control macro phages. In addition, we showed that overexpression of SR-BI in J774 macrophages attenuated the inflammatory response to LPS. The LPS-induced cytokine expression in both WT and SR-BI-null macrophages was dependent not only on NFκB as previously reported but also on JNK and P38 cell signaling pathways. The increased inflammatory signaling in SR-BI-null cells was not related to alterations in cellular cholesterol content. We conclude that SR-BI plays an important function in regulating the macrophage inflammatory response to LPS.
An optimized service selection model based on dynamic trust

A cloud service selection model of the cloud service management system was proposed based on dynamic trustworthiness in order to select a trusted service which satisfies user's request from a lot of services with similar or same functions. A service selection algorithm was proposed in order to select the closest classification for the user's requester. A trust evaluation mechanism was introduced, combined with direct trust and domain recommended trust. Then a service resource was selected among the requester's classification, which is trusted. When the transaction was completed, the service satisfaction was evaluated and the trust degree was updated. Simulation results show that the model can improve the service requesters' satisfaction and has certain resilience to intentional noncooperation.
Applying Pragmatics Principles for Interaction with Visual Analytics

Interactive visual data analysis is most productive when users can focus on answering the questions they have about their data, rather than focusing on how to operate the interface to the analysis tool. One viable approach to engaging users in interactive conversations with their data is a natural language interface to visualizations. These interfaces have the potential to be both more expressive and more accessible than other interaction paradigms. We explore how principles from language pragmatics can be applied to the flow of visual analytical conversations, using natural language as an input modality. We evaluate the effectiveness of pragmatics support in our system Evizeon, and present design considerations for conversation interfaces to visual analytics tools.
Time-inconsistent mean-field stochastic linear-quadratic optimal control

This paper is concerned with a kind of time-consistent solution of the time-inconsistent mean-field stochastic linear-quadratic optimal control. Different from standard stochastic linear-quadratic problems, both the system matrices and the weighting matrices are dependent on initial time, and the conditional expectations of the control and state enter quadratically into the cost functional. Such features will ruin the Bellman optimality principle and result in the time-inconsistency of the optimal control. Due to the dynamical nature of control problems, a kind of open-loop time-consistent equilibrium control is thoroughly investigated in this paper. It is shown that the existence of an open-loop time-consistent equilibrium control for a fixed initial pair is equivalent to the solvability of a set of forward-backward stochastic difference equations with stationary conditions and convexity conditions. By decoupling the forward-backward stochastic difference equations, the existence of the open-loop equilibrium control for all the initial pairs is shown to be equivalent to the solvability of a set of coupled constraint generalized difference Riccati equations and a set of coupled constraint linear difference equations.
Bridging the gap between spatial and mnemonic views of the hippocampal formation

While it has long been recognized that medial temporal lobe structures are important for memory formation, studies in rodents have also identified exquisite spatial representations in these regions in the form of place cells in the hippocampus and grid cells in the entorhinal cortex. Spatial representations entail neural activity that is observed when the rat is in a given physical location, and these representations are thought to form the basis of navigation via path integration. Recent studies in nonhuman primates have suggested that similar kinds of spatial representations can be identified, even in the absence of physical movement through an environment. Here, I will highlight some recent work that addresses similarities and differences between spatial responses as identified in rodents and primates. I will also discuss areas of opportunity for future research to further our understanding of the function of the hippocampal formation. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Response Inhibition Moderates the Association between Drug Use and Risky Sexual Behavior

Background: HIV infection is problematic among all drug users, not only injection drug users. Drug users are at risk for contracting HIV by engaging in risky sexual behaviors. Objective: The present study sought to determine whether inhibitory processes moderate the relationship between problematic drug use and HIV-risk behaviors (unprotected sex and multiple sex partners). Methods: One hundred ninety-six drug offenders enrolled in drug education programs were administered a battery of computer-based assessments. Measures included a cued go/no-go assessment of inhibitory processes, the Drug Abuse Screening Test (DAST) assessment of problematic drug use, and self-report assessment of condom use and multiple sex partners. Results: Findings revealed that response inhibition assessed by the proportion of false alarms on the cued go/no-go moderated the relationship between problematic drug use and an important measure of HIV risk (condom nonuse) among drug offenders. However, response inhibition did not moderate the relationship between problematic drug use and another measure of HIV risk: multiple sex partners. Conclusions: Among this sample of drug offenders, we have found a relationship between problematic drug use and condom nonuse, which is exacerbated by poor control of inhibition. These findings have implications for the development of HIV intervention components among high-risk populations.
Impact of switching to new spirometric reference equations on severity staging of airflow obstruction in COPD: a cross-sectional observational study in primary care

Background: Severity of airflow obstruction in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is based on forced expiratory volume in one second expressed as percentage predicted (FEV1%predicted) derived from reference equations for spirometry results. Aims: To establish how switching to new spirometric reference equations would affect severity staging of airflow obstruction in the Dutch primary care COPD patient population. Methods: Spirometry tests of 3,370 adults aged ≥40 years with obstruction (postbronchodilator FEV1/forced vital capacity (FVC) <0.70) were analysed. The presence and severity of obstruction were defined using Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease (GOLD) criteria. Postbronchodilator FEV1%predicted was calculated using three reference equations: corrected European Community of Steel and Coal (ECSC) (currently recommended in Dutch primary care), Swanney et al., and Global Lung Initiative (GLI). Discordances between severity classifications based on these equations were analysed. Results: We studied 1,297 (38.5%) females and 2,073 males. Application of contemporary reference equations (i.e. Swanney and GLI) changed the GOLD severity stages obtained with the ECSC equations, mostly into milder stages. Severity of airflow obstruction was staged differently in 14.0% and 6.3%, respectively, when the Swanney et al. and GLI reference equations were applied. Conclusions: Compared with the (corrected) ECSC equations, switching to more contemporary reference equations would result in lower FEV1 predicted values and affect interpretation of spirometry by reclassifying 6–14% of primary care COPD patients into different (mostly milder) severity stages. If and how this will affect GPs' treatment choices in individual patients with COPD requires further investigation.
Separation of catechin epimers by complexation using ion mobility mass spectrometry.

Ion mobility coupled with mass spectrometry provides a fast and repeatable method to separate catechin epimers by previous complexation with selected chiral modifiers and transition metals. Several combinations with chiral ligands such as D- and L-amino acids and/or additional metal cations, chiral crown ethers, tartaric acid and heptakis(2,6-di-O-methyl)-β-cyclodextrin were screened for their ability to affect the separation efficiency. The clusters having the form of [2M + D-amino acid + Cu(2+) - 3H](-) (M stands for (-)-epicatechin or (+)-catechin) showed improvement in stereodifferentiation between two epimeric catechins in comparison to the analysis of pure epimers, where no separation was observed or the separation was hampered by the formation of mixed dimer complexes. Among various examined D-amino acids only those possessing hydrophobic side chains induced the improvement of separation efficiency. The best peak-to-peak resolution (Rp-p) was determined to be 0.71 for [2M + D-Leucine + Cu(2+) - 3H](-) clusters.
Adaptive reconstruction of phased array MR imagery

An adaptive implementation of the spatial matched filter and its application to the reconstruction of phased array MR imagery is described. Locally relevant array correlation statistics for the NMR signal and noise processes are derived directly from the set of complex individual coil images, in the form of sample correlation matrices. Eigen‐analysis yields an optimal filter vector for the estimated signal and noise array correlation statistics. The technique enables near‐optimal reconstruction of multicoil MR imagery without a‐priori knowledge of the individual coil field maps or noise correlation structure. Experimental results indicate SNR performance approaching that of the optimal matched filter. Compared to the sum‐of‐squares technique, the RMS noise level in dark image regions is reduced by as much as $ \sqrt{N}, $ where N is the number of coils in the array. The technique is also effective in suppressing localized motion and flow artifacts. Magn Reson Med 43:682–690, 2000. © 2000 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Alginate as a displacer for protein displacement chromatography

Alginate use in displacement chromatography as a displacer has been studied. The experiments showed that untreated alginate is the basis of potential displacer for displacement chromatography, but needs to be cleaved into smaller chains. Alginate treated with ultrasound, which cleaves alginate into shorter polysaccharide chains, gave better displacement than untreated alginate, while alginate subjected to limited acid hydrolysis gave the best results in displacement chromatography. It was found that the mixture of ovalbumin and β‐lactoglobulin separated well, and several components of ovalbumin were also separated and purified when alginate hydrolysate was used as a displacer. β‐Lactoglobulins A and B, which have the same molecular weight and differ in isoelectric point by only 0.1 pH units, were displaced from Q‐Sepharose by alginate hydrolysate.
Construction of methylation linkage map based on MSAP and SSR markers in Sorghum bicolor (L.)

Sorghum [Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench] is one of the most important crops in the semiarid regions of the world. A methylation genetic linkage map of sorghum was constructed using a F2 population derived from a cross of B2V4 × 1383‐2 based on methylation‐sensitive amplified polymorphism (MSAP) and simple sequence repeats (SSR) markers. The map including 11 linkage groups was constructed with 151 loci covering 483.6 cM, 122 of them were MSAP markers, of which 89 loci were produced from EcoRI/MspI enzyme digestion, and 33 loci were produced from EcoRI/HpaII enzyme digestion. The average and maximal distances between adjacent two individual markers were 3.2 and 22.7 cM, respectively. Twenty‐nine previously mapped SSR markers in sorghum were used as anchors, most of the SSR markers in this map ordered collinearly to the published sorghum genetic map, and the distances of common markers intervals similarly. The mapping results also showed that no methylation marker was found on the chromosome SBI‐08; methylation markers from both EcoRI/MspI and EcoRI/HpaII enzyme digestions were detected on SBI‐02‐a and SBI‐05; methylation markers from only EcoRI/HpaII enzyme digestion were detected on SBI‐02‐b; and methylation markers from only EcoRI/MspI enzyme digestion were detected on the other seven chromosomes. High‐density methylation regions were revealed near Xtxp 296 on SBI‐02‐a, Xtxp 69 on SBI‐03, and Xtxp 160 on SBI‐07. Importantly, MSAP method was first used in the construction of a genetic linkage map. MSAP can be used efficiently to detect DNA methylation polymorphisms, and it is also an efficient technique in constructing genetic linkage map. Furthermore, by finding the methylation sites linking with elite genes, cloning target genes may be facilitated. It is also possible to further study epigenetic phenomena of organisms and explain the mechanism of target gene silencing in genetic transformation by analyzing the regions of high‐density methylation sites. © 2009 IUBMB IUBMB Life, 61(6): 663–669, 2009
The klattalk text-to-speech conversion system

A real time text-to-speech conversion system has been developed. Input is ordinary English spelling and/or simple numerical and algebraic expressions. Dynamic selection between a male or female output voice is under user control. The system executes a set of about 500 letter-to-sound rules to guess at the pronunciation of words that do not match a carefully selected exceptions dictionary of about 1500 words. A very simple syntactic analyzer determines probable locations of phrase and clause boundaries in order to improve the naturalness and intelligibility of input sentences. The resulting phonemic representation is converted to speech by a synthesis-by-rule program and formant synthesizer. The rule program differs from others of this type in having an extensive set of segment duration rules and many detailed rules for the synthesis of consonant-vowel transitions.