Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The interaction of northern wind flow with the complex topography of Crete Island – Part 1: Observational study

Abstract. During the summer months, when northerly winds are blowing over the Aegean Sea the island of Crete modifies significantly the regional airflow as well as the pressure and temperature fields due to its complex topography. One of the major topographical elements of Crete Island is the major gap which is located between the two highest mountains Lefka Ori and Idi. On 24–25 August 2007 strong northerly winds, with gusts up to 25 m s−1, occurred at the exit of the major gap. In order to investigate the dynamics as well as the role of this elevated and sloping gap on the airflow modification, the event was simulated down to 1 km horizontal resolution using the non-hydrostatic model MM5. The model simulations show that the localized intensification of the flow downstream of the major gap is related to the channeling of the flow through the gap. The strongest winds are observed at the gap exit region, implying that the main cause of the strong winds is the pressure different between the gap entrance and exit, when the relatively cooler maritime air approached the island and dammed up the high mountains. Finally, sensitivity experiments with modified topography further supported the important role of the topography of the elevated gap, which reveals that the strong winds have aspects of both gap and downslope contributions over the gap exit.
Polarization-Engineered III-Nitride Heterojunction Tunnel Field-Effect Transistors

The concept and simulated device characteristics of tunneling field-effect transistors (TFETs) based on III-nitride heterojunctions are presented for the first time. Through polarization engineering, interband tunneling can become significant in III-nitride heterojunctions, leading to the potential for a viable TFET technology. Two prototype device designs, inline and sidewall-gated TFETs, are discussed. Polarization-assisted p-type doping is used in the source region to mitigate the effect of the deep Mg acceptor level in p-type GaN. Simulations indicate that TFETs based on III-nitride heterojunctions can be expected to achieve ON/OFF ratios of 106 or more, with switching slopes well below 60 mV/decade, ON-current densities approaching 100 μA/μm, and energy delay products as low as 67 aJ-ps/μm.
Rapid selection of hard-to-access targets by thumb on mobile touch-screens

Current touch-based UIs commonly employ regions near the corners and/or edges of the display to accommodate essential functions. As the screen size of mobile phones is ever increasing, such regions become relatively distant from the thumb and hard to reach for single-handed use. In this paper, we present two techniques: CornerSpace and BezelSpace, designed to accommodate quick access to screen targets outside the thumb's normal interactive range. Our techniques automatically determine the thumb's physical comfort zone and only require minimal thumb movement to reach distant targets on the edge of the screen. A controlled experiment shows that BezelSpace is significantly faster and more accurate. Moreover, both techniques are application-independent, and instantly accommodate either hand, left or right.
Multiple Antennas Secure Transmission Under Pilot Spoofing and Jamming Attack

Transmitter-side channel state information of the legitimate destination plays a critical role in physical layer secure transmissions. However, channel training procedure is vulnerable to the pilot spoofing attack (PSA) or pilot jamming attack (PJA) by an active eavesdropper (Eve), which inevitably results in severe private information leakage. In this paper, we propose a random channel training (RCT)-based secure downlink transmission framework for a time division duplex multiple antennas base station. In the proposed RCT scheme, multiple orthogonal pilot sequences (PSs) are simultaneously allocated to the legitimate user (LU), and the LU randomly selects one PS from the assigned PS set to transmit. Under either the PSA or PJA, we provide the detailed steps for the BS to identify the PS transmitted by the LU, and to simultaneously estimate channels of the LU and Eve. The probability that the BS makes an incorrect decision on the PS of the LU is analytically investigated. Finally, closed-form secure beamforming vectors are designed and optimized to enhance the secrecy rates during the downlink transmissions. Numerical results show that the secrecy performance is greatly improved compared to the conventional channel training scheme wherein only one PS is assigned to the LU.
Determination of the placement of anchor nodes satisfying a required localization accuracy

RSSI (received signal strength indicator)-based localization is advantageous in terms of transceiver hardware complexity, because almost all current wireless standards have the functionality in their protocols. In a localization area, a ¿design¿ problem to determine the placement of anchor nodes satisfying a required localization accuracy has never been addressed, although the accuracy of RSSI method largely depends on it. This paper tackles the design problem in an RSSI localization and proposes a method to solve it. Finally, it confirms the validity of the proposed method by experiment.
Integrated Threat Theory and Intercultural Attitudes

In this study, the integrated threat theory of prejudice was employed to examine Americans’ and Mexicans’ attitudes toward one another. According to the theory, four types of threat (realistic, symbolic, intergroup anxiety, and negative stereotypes) cause prejudice. These threats are thought to be caused in part by the amount and quality of intergroup contact. The results of two path analyses indicated that all four threats were significant predictors of attitudes in one sample or the other. Both the amount and quality of contact affected some types of threats. In particular, the quality of intergroup contact (voluntary, positive, individualized, and equal status) appears to play an important role in both intergroup anxiety and attitudes toward the other group.
Interactive Motion Browse and Synthesis from Unorganized Motion Data Set

The motion capture technique is gathering more and more attention because of its powerful potential for providing life-like motions in computer graphics (CG) animation via sample-based motion creating techniques. Since motion data is multi-dimensional and spatio-temporal data that is difficult to edit as desired, an effective scheme for reusing captured motion sets to create new motion is advantageous. Reusing a motion data set requires effective browsing and extraction techniques that enable the user to look up and capture the relations among the motion contents in the motion data set. We propose a new framework for a motion editing tool by focusing on the connectivity between motions and utilizing it as a filter to extract the desired motion contents from a motion database. The proposed system uses a tree structure for expressing possible connective motion paths in the motion database. The motion connective tree can be a useful user interface to browse and select a motion scenario by exploring the existing motion data sets in the database. Our prototype system demonstrates an easy-to-understand interface to explore and quickly edit a motion data set by selecting icons of the motion tree nodes.
SBL-based data-aided channel estimation for spatially evolving STTC MIMO systems

In this paper, a spatially sparse representation of the multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) channel matrix is considered in terms of the overcomplete spatial signature dictionary comprising of the basis signature matrices which correspond to the various directional cosines at the transmit and receive antenna arrays. Further, the spatial evolution of the MIMO channel matrices is suitably captured by modeling the sparse weight vector corresponding to the significant directional cosines as a first order auto-regressive model. Towards this end, the sparse Bayesian learning (SBL) framework is employed to develop a novel pilot-based channel estimation scheme for space-time trellis coded (STTC) MIMO systems based on a time-varying spatially sparse representation of the MIMO channel. Subsequently, an enhanced data-aided channel estimation scheme is also developed by utilizing the expectation-maximization (EM) framework, which culminates in an optimal Kalman filter and smoother (KFS)-based minimum mean squared error channel estimate in the E-step followed by a modified path metric-based trellis decoder in the M-step. Additionally, the Bayesian Cramér-Rao bounds (BCRBs) corresponding to the proposed SBL-based channel estimation schemes are also developed. Finally, simulation results are presented to illustrate the superior performance of the proposed techniques and validate the analytical bounds.
Dora , a Robot Exploiting Probabilistic Knowledge under Uncertain Sensing for Efficient Object Search

Dora, the robot, is trying to find object in its environment. Instead of just exhaustively searching everywhere, Dora is equipped with probabilistic reasoning, representations, and planning to exploit uncertain common-sense knowledge, such as that cornflakes are usually found in kitchens, while also accounting for the uncertainty of sensing in the real-world. Dora demonstrates how to combine task and observation planning in the presence of uncertainty by autonomously switching between contingent and sequential planning sessions. The demonstration emphasises the benefit of employing a robot with common-sense knowledge and the benefit of the switching planner.
Feedforward Frameworks to Enhance Decoding in Precoded Multiuser MIMO Systems

It is difficult for users in multiuser multiple-input multiple-output (MU-MIMO) systems to obtain co-channel interference (CCI) statistics without user cooperation. We propose a technique through which each user can effectively obtain the statistics of the interference that it experiences in a precoded MU-MIMO system. This allows true maximum-likelihood detection to be performed in place of minimum-distance detection. Also, we propose a low-complexity perturbation codebook decoder that attempts to mitigate the effects of both CCI and AWGN. The effectiveness of this decoder in reaching near-optimal performance is shown through Monte Carlo simulations.
Medium-Voltage Vector Control Induction Motor Drive at Zero Frequency Using Modular Multilevel Converter

Conventional modular multilevel converter (MMC) has severe limitation to operate at low frequency for the application of variable-speed induction motor drive. Fluctuation of submodule (SM) capacitor voltage increases rapidly as the motor speed decreases with rated torque. Finally, it becomes impractical to operate the motor at zero frequency. Recently, MMC-based medium voltage induction motor drive has been proposed to tackle this problem without additional circulating current. However, it does not solve the problem near zero frequency with nonzero motor torque. This paper proposes new method to solve this problem of high peak-to-peak voltage ripple of SM capacitor at all frequencies including zero frequency. Vector control strategy for induction motor is adopted here to have accurate control of torque near zero frequency. First, the problem of low-frequency operation is analyzed. Then, the solution is proposed analytically. The proposed control technique and overall performance of the drive have been verified through experimental results.
Colony‐stimulating factor‐1 (CSF‐1) delivers a proatherogenic signal to human macrophages

M‐CSF/CSF‐1 supports the proliferation and differentiation of monocytes and macrophages. In mice, CSF‐1 also promotes proinflammatory responses in vivo by regulating mature macrophage functions, but little is known about the acute effects of this growth factor on mature human macrophages. Here, we show that in contrast to its effects on mouse bone marrow‐derived macrophages, CSF‐1 did not induce expression of urokinase plasminogen activator mRNA, repress expression of apolipoprotein E mRNA, or prime LPS‐induced TNF and IL‐6 secretion in human monocyte‐derived macrophages (HMDM) from several independent donors. Instead, we show by expression profiling that CSF‐1 modulates the HMDM transcriptome to favor a proatherogenic environment. CSF‐1 induced expression of the proatherogenic chemokines CXCL10/IFN‐inducible protein 10, CCL2, and CCL7 but repressed expression of the antiatherogenic chemokine receptor CXCR4. CSF‐1 also up‐regulated genes encoding enzymes of the cholesterol biosynthetic pathway (HMGCR, MVD, IDI1, FDPS, SQLE, CYP51A1, EBP, NSDHL, DHCR7, and DHCR24), and expression of ABCG1, encoding a cholesterol efflux transporter, was repressed. Consistent with these effects, CSF‐1 increased levels of free cholesterol in HMDM, and the selective CSF‐1R kinase inhibitor GW2580 ablated this response. These data demonstrate that CSF‐1 represents a further link between inflammation and cardiovascular disease and suggest two distinct mechanisms by which CSF‐1, which is known to be present in atherosclerotic lesions, may contribute to plaque progression.
Annotation Tool for Discourse in PDT

We present a tool for annotation of se­ mantic inter­sentential discourse rela­ tions on the tectogrammatical layer of the Prague Dependency Treebank (PDT). We present the way of helping the annotators by several useful features implemented in the annotation tool, such as a possibility to combine surface and deep syntactic representation of sen­ tences during the annotation, a possibili­ ty to define, display and connect arbi­ trary groups of nodes, a clause­based compact depiction of trees, etc. For studying differences among parallel an­ notations, the tool offers a simultaneous depiction of parallel annotations of the data.
The Social Imaginaries of Women's Peace Activism in Northern Uganda

Abstract The metanarrative of global feminism is often constructed as a progressive and emancipatory movement emanating from the West and fostering radical politics elsewhere in the world. Such a view is not only ethnocentric but, critically, it fails to engage with the complex ways in which feminist politics travel and are evinced in specific localities. In this article, I seek to understand how marginalized women in the “Global South” – particularly in Africa – interpret, experience and negotiate feminist ideas to wield political power within the context of their social and moral worlds. I focus on women's organized resistance to violence and armed conflict, known as “women's peace activism. ” Using a case study of a women's peace movement in Uganda mediated by an international feminist organization called Isis Women's International Cross-Cultural Exchange, I conducted in-depth qualitative interviews with a wide range of activists in the organization and in its network in postconflict areas in Northern Uganda. I argue that the feminist peace discourse is most meaningful when its universal values of equity and securing the dignity of women are appropriated and re-signified through the cultural institutions and the collective memory of activists in their local settings.
Clustering and Representing Movements in an Uncertain World

Knowledge discovery in Trajectory Databases (TD) is an emerging field which has recently gained great interest; on the other hand the inherent presence of uncertainty in TD during the mining process has not been taken yet into account. Current approaches group trajectories together by accounting only the degree of their similarity, ignoring at the same time the degree in which they are unrelated and more importantly the hesitancy introduced by the uncertainty. In this paper we study the effect of uncertainty on clustering TD, as well as the representation of the clusters and introduce a three-step approach to deal with this challenge. Firstly, we propose an intuitionistic point vector representation of trajectories that encompasses the underlying uncertainty and we introduce an effective distance metric to cope with uncertainty. At the second step, we devise CenTra, a novel algorithm which tackles the problem of discovering the Centroid Trajectory of a group of movements taking into advantage the local similarity between portions of trajectories. At the final step, we devise CenTR-I-FCM a variant of the Fuzzy C-Means (FCM) clustering algorithm, appropriately modified in the context of Intuitionistic Fuzzy Set (IFS) theory, which embodies CenTra as its update procedure when producing the cluster centroids at each iteration. The experimental evaluation with real world trajectory datasets demonstrates the efficiency and effectiveness of our approach.
Reverse Transcriptase Inhibitors as Potential Colorectal Microbicides

ABSTRACT We investigated whether reverse transcriptase (RT) inhibitors (RTI) can be combined to inhibit human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) infection of colorectal tissue ex vivo as part of a strategy to develop an effective rectal microbicide. The nucleotide RTI (NRTI) PMPA (tenofovir) and two nonnucleoside RTI (NNRTI), UC-781 and TMC120 (dapivirine), were evaluated. Each compound inhibited the replication of the HIV isolates tested in TZM-bl cells, peripheral blood mononuclear cells, and colorectal explants. Dual combinations of the three compounds, either NRTI-NNRTI or NNRTI-NNRTI combinations, were more active than any of the individual compounds in both cellular and tissue models. Combinations were key to inhibiting infection by NRTI- and NNRTI-resistant isolates in all models tested. Moreover, we found that the replication capacities of HIV-1 isolates in colorectal explants were affected by single point mutations in RT that confer resistance to RTI. These data demonstrate that colorectal explants can be used to screen compounds for potential efficacy as part of a combination microbicide and to determine the mucosal fitness of RTI-resistant isolates. These findings may have important implications for the rational design of effective rectal microbicides.
A Department of Motor Vehicles Intervention Yields Moderate Increases in Donor Designation Rates

Context— Nearly all persons (37% of public) who have a joined an organ donor registry in the United States have done so through their Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) office, which is an underused venue for organ donation campaigns. Objective— To evaluate the effectiveness of a statewide DMV-based intervention to increase donor designation rates. Design and Setting— Thirty DMV offices in Florida were randomly assigned to receive usual care (n= 15) or an organ donation intervention (n= 15). Measurement and Primary Outcome— Donor designation rates were assessed at baseline (before the intervention), during the intervention, and at follow-up. Results— When baseline donor designation rate and region were controlled for, the intervention group showed a significantly higher aggregate monthly donor designation rate than the usual care group during the intervention phase of the study (P = .02). Donor designation rates did not differ significantly (P = .13) during the follow-up phase. Lower donor designations rates were significantly associated with DMV service regions with more minorities, less education, and lower income. Conclusion— We conclude that a comprehensive DMV-based intervention focused on staff education and direct interactions with the public could yield modest increases in donor designation rates.
The Effects of an Interlayer Debond on the Flexural Behavior of Three-Layer Beams

Debonds at the interfaces between layers of multilayered systems make the degree of the composite action reduce. As a consequence, the global stiffness of such composites decreases. In order to investigate this reduction, even simplified analytical models are preferable to numerical analyses. This paper analyzes the flexural response of a three-point bending three-layer beam having a debonded portion at the upper interface to investigate the effects of the interlayer debond on the flexural stiffness of the three-layer beam and to examine the feasibility of detecting the presence of possible manufacturing or in-service flaws. A more general model proposed and validated previously by the author was specialized to solve the equilibrium problem considered. A parametric analysis was then performed on varying the model parameters and evaluating the maximum deflection to compare with that for perfectly bonded layers as a measure of the reduction of the flexural stiffness due to the presence of the debond. The numerical results obtained show that the flexural behavior of the sandwich beam under consideration is affected strongly by the length of the debond but only moderately by its position along the interface unless the outer faces are quite stiffer than the core.
Perioperative Risk of Hip Arthroplasty in Patients with Cirrhotic Liver Disease

We retrospectively reviewed the complete medical records of 30 patients with a diagnosis of liver cirrhosis who had undergone hip arthroplasty at three academic institutions between October 1994 and May 2001. There were 26 males and 4 females with a mean age of 60 yr at index operation. Surgical procedures included 17 primary total hip arthroplasties (THA), 8 bipolar hemiarthroplasties, and 5 revision THAs. According to the Child-Pugh scoring system, 19 cirrhotic patients were categorized as class A, 9 as class B, and 2 as class C. Eight (26.7%) of the 30 patients had one or more perioperative complications. Of these, wound infection was the most common, with a rate of 10% (3 of 30 hips). Other perioperative complications included surgical site bleeding, coagulopathy, encephalopathy, gastrointestinal bleeding, pneumonia, and arrhythmia. Death occurred in 2 (6.7%) of the 30 patients; both were Child-Pugh's C cirrhotics. A higher Child-Pugh score (p=0.0001) and a high level of creatinine (p=0.0499) were associated with significantly increased perioperative complications or death. Our findings suggest that surgeons should be vigilant about perioperative complications in patients with advanced cirrhotic liver disease who undergo hip arthroplasty, albeit the mortality rates are relatively low in less severe cirrhotics.
Sampling-Based Real-Time Motion Planning under State Uncertainty for Autonomous Micro-Aerial Vehicles in GPS-Denied Environments

This paper presents a real-time motion planning approach for autonomous vehicles with complex dynamics and state uncertainty. The approach is motivated by the motion planning problem for autonomous vehicles navigating in GPS-denied dynamic environments, which involves non-linear and/or non-holonomic vehicle dynamics, incomplete state estimates, and constraints imposed by uncertain and cluttered environments. To address the above motion planning problem, we propose an extension of the closed-loop rapid belief trees, the closed-loop random belief trees (CL-RBT), which incorporates predictions of the position estimation uncertainty, using a factored form of the covariance provided by the Kalman filter-based estimator. The proposed motion planner operates by incrementally constructing a tree of dynamically feasible trajectories using the closed-loop prediction, while selecting candidate paths with low uncertainty using efficient covariance update and propagation. The algorithm can operate in real-time, continuously providing the controller with feasible paths for execution, enabling the vehicle to account for dynamic and uncertain environments. Simulation results demonstrate that the proposed approach can generate feasible trajectories that reduce the state estimation uncertainty, while handling complex vehicle dynamics and environment constraints.