Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A novel fast motion estimation algorithm based on block-matching

In order to reduce the computational complexity of motion estimation, a new fast and effective algorithm is proposed. This new algorithm is based on the real world image sequence's characteristics of center-biased motion vector distribution. It uses a small diamond search window to replace the small square search window used in the four-step search (FSS) algorithm. Simulation results show that this new algorithm provides competitive performance at faster speed when compared to similar techniques such as four-step search (FSS) and diamond search (DS).
Oil Project Selection by Metrics

The recent fall in oil prices has led to extensive capital rationing, and thereby given rise to a renewed focus on parameters for project selection which supplement net present value. While the financial crisis was creating capital constraints, the oil industry seemed to be paying great attention to the net present value index. The metric most often referred to at present, given the prevailing uncertainty over the direction of future oil prices, seems to be the breakeven price of a project. Management and professionals in the oil and gas sector, as well as industry analysts, appear to be very concerned about which criteria in addition to net present value other companies are applying in their decision-making. Our findings indicate that they can be more relaxed here, since the various supplementary criteria provide very similar rankings. We examine the different investment metrics of a portfolio of oil projects. The analysis of project metrics shows that the overall grouping of projects is the same with the three supplementary metrics. The concentration by the companies on robustness related to oil prices means that particular attention is paid to the breakeven price and cost optimisation. Projects which are optimised and sanctioned may have a very high return with the realisation of an expected price scenario. We introduce a new metric, referred to as the complete net present value index, which improves the traditional net present value index by including operating expenditure and by treating taxes in a consistent manner.
A critical appraisal of six modern classifications of ductal carcinoma in situ of the breast (DCIS): correlation with grade of associated invasive carcinoma

The in‐situ component of 180 cases of screen detected infiltrating duct carcinoma of the breast was classified according to six published classifications for ductal carcinoma in situ based on architecture, necrosis and cytology. All cases were assessed independently by two experienced observers to assess inter‐observer variation. The differentiation of ductal carcinoma in situ as assessed by all the classification systems correlated with the grade of the associated invasive carcinoma (chi‐squared between 50 and 107: P<0.0001). Disagreements were commonest in the assessment of architecture and least common in the assessment of necrosis. For cytonuclear grade most disagreements (62.2%) involved the distinction between low and intermediate as against 33.9% disagreements for intermediate vs. high. Nuclear grade alone and necrosis alone were correlated with the grade of invasive carcinoma associated with the ductal carcinoma in situ and the Nottingham prognostic index of the patient. The Van Nuys classification of ductal carcinoma in situ is commended because it has a low inter‐observer disagreement, is significantly correlated with the grade of the infiltrating carcinoma, uses simple well‐defined criteria (with no requirement for percentage estimations), is applicable to small numbers of ducts and, most importantly, appears to correlate with disease‐free survival.
Genetic segregation analysis of recurrent, early-onset major depression: evidence for single major locus transmission.

Coordinated efforts are now underway to identify susceptibility genes for unipolar major depressive disorder (MDD) and related disorders. These studies have focused on recurrent, early-onset MDD (RE-MDD), thought to be the most familial form of this disorder. The goal of this study was to conduct a complex segregation analysis of recurrent MDD and other major mood disorders aggregating in families identified by probands with RE-MDD. Eighty-one families were identified through probands over the age of 18 who met criteria for recurrent (> or =2 episodes), early-onset (< or =25 years), nonpsychotic, unipolar MDD (RE-MDD) and included 407 first-degree relatives and 835 extended relatives. Psychiatric diagnoses for probands and their family members who provided blood samples were formulated from structured personal interviews, structured family history assessments, and available medical records. The remaining family members who participated and those who were deceased were evaluated through the family history method augmented by available medical records. Best-estimate diagnoses were made during a consensus conference according to established diagnostic criteria. Segregation analyses were performed using the REGD routine in S.A. G.E. release 4.0. The segregation analysis of recurrent MDD supported a sex-independent Mendelian codominant model. Analysis of major mood disorders supported a sex-independent Mendelian dominant model. Interestingly, inclusion of spousal residual correlations provided better fitting models for recurrent MDD but not the broader phenotype of major mood disorders. Unlike unipolar MDD, the lifetime prevalence of bipolar I disorder in this sample of families did not exceed the reported population prevalence [Zubenko et al., 2001]. Our results suggest that a major locus contributes to the expression of recurrent MDD and possibly other major mood disorders within families identified by probands with RE-MDD. Due to the limitations of the segregation analysis model, our results cannot address whether the same major locus is segregating across families in our sample or whether multiple major loci are involved (genetic heterogeneity). The absence of aggregation of bipolar I disorder in these families strongly suggests that while the genetic determinants of unipolar and bipolar disorders may overlap, they are not identical. Our findings illustrate the advantage of employing families identified by probands with RE-MDD in studies designed to detect susceptibility loci for unipolar MDD and related disorders.
Debtor-in-Possession Financing, Loan-to-Loan, and Loan-to-Own

This paper provides new evidence on the roles and strategies adopted by different types of debtor-in-possession (DIP) lenders: “loan-to-loan” (LTL) lenders—prepetition secured bank lenders providing DIP financing, and “loan-to-own” (LTO) lenders—activist investors (i.e., hedge funds or private equity funds) providing DIP financing. We find that LTL is more likely in Chapter 11 firms with better operating performance, when prepetition bank lenders' stakes are at risk, or when they have prior lending relationships with the distressed borrower. In contrast, LTO is more likely in small firms or when prepetition bank lenders' loans are over-collateralized. Finally, we show that much of the governance improvement at the emergence is attributed to LTO lenders. We conclude that creditors of different institutional types adopt distinct strategies to enforce their control rights under Chapter 11 reorganization and to have contrasting effects on the governance outcomes of emerged firms.
Asp f6, an Aspergillus allergen specifically recognized by IgE from patients with allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis, is differentially expressed during germination

Background: Aspergillus fumigatus is a pathogenic mould causing allergic and invasive respiratory diseases. Allergic bronchopulmonary Aspergillosis (ABPA) is a severe pulmonary complication resulting from hypersensitivity to A. fumigatus proteins. Aspergillus allergen Asp f6 is recognized by IgE from ABPA patients, but not from sensitized individuals, a fact that can be used to differentiate between these two groups of allergic patients.
Snake robots in contact with the environment: Influence of the friction on the applied wrench

Snake robots have been researched for locomotion in unstructured environments due to its unique and adaptable gaits, however, they have not been used to interact with the environment in a dexterous manner, for example to grasp or push an object. In this paper, the effect of both the configuration of the snake robot (shape) and the friction between the snake robot and ground on a wrench applied to another object are studied. It is assumed that the snake robot has anisotropic friction with the ground, a property that has been proved to be essential for locomotion. The extreme cases of no friction and ideal unbounded friction can be both studied at the same time, making the model and conclusions very versatile and possible to apply to any coefficient of friction. The model and metrics are tested in a study case.
The E3 Ubiquitin Ligase HOS1 Regulates Arabidopsis Flowering by Mediating CONSTANS Degradation Under Cold Stress*

Background: Intermittent cold stress delays flowering. This results from interaction between the cold and photoperiodic pathways. Results: CO protein is degraded through an HOS1-mediated ubiquitination mechanism during brief cold treatments. Conclusion: CO acts as a molecular hub that integrates photoperiod and cold signals into the flowering genetic pathways. Significance: The CO-HOS1 module is crucial for fine-tuning of photoperiodic flowering under short term temperature fluctuations. The timing of flowering is coordinated by a web of gene regulatory networks that integrates developmental and environmental cues in plants. Light and temperature are two major environmental determinants that regulate flowering time. Although prolonged treatment with low nonfreezing temperatures accelerates flowering by stable repression of FLOWERING LOCUS C (FLC), repeated brief cold treatments delay flowering. Here, we report that intermittent cold treatments trigger the degradation of CONSTANS (CO), a central activator of photoperiodic flowering; daily treatments caused suppression of the floral integrator FLOWERING LOCUS T (FT) and delayed flowering. Cold-induced CO degradation is mediated via a ubiquitin/proteasome pathway that involves the E3 ubiquitin ligase HIGH EXPRESSION OF OSMOTICALLY RESPONSIVE GENE 1 (HOS1). HOS1-mediated CO degradation occurs independently of the well established cold response pathways. It is also independent of the light signaling repressor CONSTITUTIVE PHOTOMORPHOGENIC 1 (COP1) E3 ligase and light wavelengths. CO has been shown to play a key role in photoperiodic flowering. Here, we demonstrated that CO served as a molecular hub, integrating photoperiodic and cold stress signals into the flowering genetic pathways. We propose that the HOS1-CO module contributes to the fine-tuning of photoperiodic flowering under short term temperature fluctuations, which often occur during local weather disturbances.
Comparison of Sensitivity and Specificity of Tilt Protocols with and without Isoproterenol in Children with Unexplained Syncope

Head‐up tilt testing with or without isoproterenol is extensively used in the evaluation of patients with unexplained syncope. However, sensitivity and specificity of tilt protocols with and without isoproterenol have not been clarified in children, due to lack of age matched control subjects. This study was designed to assess and to compare the sensitivity and specificity of tilting alone and tilting in conjunction with isoproterenol. Thirty children with unexplained syncope (group I) and 15 age‐matched control subjects (control group I) underwent successive 60° head‐up tilts for 10 minutes during infusions of 0.02, 0.04, and 0.06 μg/kg/min of isoproterenol, after a baseline tilt to 60° for 25 minutes. Also, 35 children (group II) with unexplained syncope and 15 healthy control subjects (control group II) were evaluated by head‐up tilt to 60° for 45 minutes without an infusion of isoproterenol. In response to tilt protocol with graded isoproterenol, 23 (76.6%) of the patients in group I and 2 of the 25 (13.3%) control subjects developed syncope. Accordingly, the sensitivity of tilt testing with isoproterenol was 76.6%, and its specificity was 86.7%. Tilt testing without isoproterenol was positive in 17 (48.5%) of the patients in group II but in only 1 of the 15 (6.6%) control subjects. Thus, sensitivity and specificity of tilt testing without isoproterenol were 48.5% and 93.4%, respectively. The mean heart rate and systolic blood pressure decreased significantly (P < 0.001) in all tilt positive patients during syncope. In conclusion, the head‐up tilt test is a valuable diagnostic test in the evaluation of children with unexplained syncope, and isoproterenol is likely to increase the sensitivity of the test without decreasing its specificity.
Development of Tetravalent, Bispecific CCR5 Antibodies with Antiviral Activity against CCR5 Monoclonal Antibody-Resistant HIV-1 Strains

ABSTRACT In this study, we describe novel tetravalent, bispecific antibody derivatives that bind two different epitopes on the HIV coreceptor CCR5. The basic protein formats that we applied were derived from Morrison-type bispecific antibodies: whole IgGs to which we connected single-chain antibodies (scFvs) via (Gly4Ser)n sequences at either the C or N terminus of the light chain or heavy chain. By design optimization, including disulfide stabilization of scFvs or introduction of 30-amino-acid linkers, stable molecules could be obtained in amounts that were within the same range as or no less than 4-fold lower than those observed with monoclonal antibodies in transient expression assays. In contrast to monospecific CCR5 antibodies, bispecific antibody derivatives block two alternative docking sites of CCR5-tropic HIV strains on the CCR5 coreceptor. Consequently, these molecules showed 18- to 57-fold increased antiviral activities compared to the parent antibodies. Most importantly, one prototypic tetravalent CCR5 antibody had antiviral activity against virus strains resistant to the single parental antibodies. In summary, physical linkage of two CCR5 antibodies targeting different epitopes on the HIV coreceptor CCR5 resulted in tetravalent, bispecific antibodies with enhanced antiviral potency against wild-type and CCR5 antibody-resistant HIV-1 strains.
Driven to Support: Individual- and County-Level Factors Associated With Public Support for Active Transportation Policies

Purpose: To assess predictors of stated support for policies promoting physically active transportation. Design: Cross-sectional. Setting: US counties selected on county-level physical activity and obesity health status. Participants: Participants completing random-digit dialed telephone survey (n = 906). Measures: Survey measures assessed stated support for 5 policies to promote physically active transportation, access to active transportation facilities, and time spent in a car. County-level estimates included household car dependence and funding for bicycle–pedestrian projects. Analysis: Multivariable generalized linear mixed models using binary distribution and logit link, accounting for clustering within county. Results: Respondents supported policies for accommodating bicyclists and pedestrians through street improvements (89%), school active transportation programs (75%), employer-funded active commuting incentives (67%), and allocation of public funding (68%) and tax support (56%) for building and maintaining public transit. Residents spending >2 h/d (vs <0.7 hours) in cars were more likely to support street (odds ratio [OR]: 1.87; confidence interval [CI]: 1.09-3.22) and public transit (OR: 1.85; CI: 1.24-2.77) improvements. Residents in counties investing >$1.6 million in bicycle and pedestrian improvements expressed greater support for funding (OR: 1.71; CI: 1.04-2.83) and tax increases (OR: 1.73; CI: 1.08-2.75) for transit improvements compared to those with lower prior investments (<$276 100). Conclusion: Support for policies to enable active transportation is higher where relevant investments in active transportation infrastructure are large (>$1.6 M), public transit is nearby, and respondents drive >2 h/d.
An effective filtering method for skyline queries in MANETs

In this paper, we propose an effective filtering method for skyline queries in mobile ad hoc networks (MANETs). Skyline query processing is important since skyline objects show interesting points from a large data set according to multiple criteria. Most skyline researches about wireless ad hoc network focus on optimizing the energy consumption due to the limited resource. But, most existing researches assume that data is uniformly distributed and do not consider data whose distribution is skewed in a specific region. In order to reduce the energy consumption, we propose a new filtering method considering the data distribution. We verify the performance of the proposed method through a comparative experiment with an existing method. The results of the experiment confirm that the proposed method reduces the communication overhead and execution time compared to the existing method.
Behavioral Characterization of Mild Cognitive Impairment

Results from recent investigations of behavioral and genetic outcomes in older people with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) have been inconsistent. These conflicting results may be attributed to between-study differences in the diagnostic systems employed, as well as the use of unreliable neuropsychological measures. We investigated behavioral and genetic outcomes in older people classified as having MCI according to novel criterion that required evidence of cognitive impairment on three consecutive neurological/neuropsychological assessments. One hundred and seventy four healthy older people were evaluated semi-annually for 12 months. Of these, 23 subjects were rated as having MCI on three consecutive assessments and were compared to 23 matched control subjects. Subjects rated as impaired on one or two of the three semi-annual assessments were also identified. MCI and matched control groups were compared on a range of behavioral measures. The prevalence of the Apolipoprotein E4 (ApoE4) allele was determined in all groups, and estimates of anxiety and depressive symptomatology were obtained. Subjective cognitive complaints were also assessed. Many subjects were classified as impaired on one or two assessments, however relatively few (n = 23) recorded consistent cognitive deficits. The most severe impairment observed in MCI subjects was on a test of pattern-location associative learning, however MCI subjects did not have insight into this impairment. The prevalence of the ApoE4 allele was not different between matched control and MCI groups. These results indicate that individuals with MCI can be differentiated from healthy older people and older people with transient cognitive impairments, but that such differentiation requires serial assessment of cognitive function.
Understanding the Changing Equilibrium Real Interest Rates in Asia-Pacific

This paper studies the evolution of the equilibrium real interest rate (ie natural or neutral interest rate) in Asia-Pacific. I take an empirical approach to estimate the rate, simple estimates suggest that except for China, and Thailand since 2005, the natural interest rate may have declined substantially in Asian-Pacific economies since the early or mid-1990s, by over 4 percentage points on average. In many economies the rate has turned negative. The tendency has become more accentuated in the 2000s, especially since the onset of the global financial crisis. Yet simple natural interest rate estimates are unreliable, which vary significantly over time and across the economies. I use frequency-domain techniques to examine the relationship between the long-run component of real interest rate and those of population characteristics, globalisation, and a range of macroeconomic and financial variables (eg credit and asset prices). I estimate spectral and cospectral densities, coherency and the frequency-specific coefficients of correlation and regression proposed by Zhu (2005). the association seems to be broad and strong between the natural interest rate and the low-frequency trend components of demographic and global factors in Asia- Pacific, but weak between the natural interest rate and trends in asset prices, creditto GDP ratio and trend growth in many economies in the region. In most cases, the natural interest rate seems to be correlated with broad measures of long-term financial sector development, and trends in saving rate and investment ratio.
The Impact of the 2008 Global Crisis on Human Development: An Examination of the Human Assets Index

We examine the impact of the 2008 Global Crisis on 142 “Less-Developed” Countries as defined in Closset, Feindouno, and Goujon (2014). We look at the Human Assets Index (i.e. HAI), as well as each of its four components that include two health dimension indicators (i.e. the Undernourishment Index and the Under-five mortality index) and two education dimension indicators (i.e. the Adult Literacy Rate and the Secondary Enrollment Index). First, we look at how the index and each of its components have changed over the 1980-2011 period. We find that there has been a gradual improvement in all of the HAI indicators. Then, to examine the impact of the Global Crisis, we compare the three-year period just before the Global Crisis and the three-year period just after the Global Crisis. Our results show that, for the overall sample, the Global Crisis has not had a significant impact on any of the indicators. However, further examination reveals that the relatively developed countries within the sample have actually improved their HAIs after the crisis. Therefore, we conclude that crises tend to have different effects on a country’s development depending on how developed the country is before the crisis begins.
China’s “One Belt, One Road” Initiative: Context, Focus, Institutions, and Implications

With the launch of “One Belt, One Road” Initiative, China is injecting vitality into the ancient Silk Road. While China is seen to embrace it as the centrepiece of its economic strategy, the new Silk Road Initiative, if well implemented, is expected to bring forth the opportunity of economic prosperity for both China and the countries in the region. Against the backdrop of the complicated and volatile geopolitics in the mega-regions and the voracious needs for gigantic inputs of resources, etc., however, the operationality of the Initiative is in contrast with the grandiose discourse by the Chinese authorities. In particular, where China’s ultimate target is set to shape a new structure for global economic governance, its ability to lead vis-a-vis its targeted partners’ readiness to cooperate, among others, remain to be tested.