Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Effect of C-Terminal Residues of Aβ on Copper Binding Affinity, Structural Conversion and Aggregation

Many properties of Aβ such as toxicity, aggregation and ROS formation are modulated by Cu2+. Previously, the coordination configuration and interaction of Cu2+ with the Aβ N-terminus has been extensively studied. However, the effect of Aβ C-terminal residues on related properties is still unclear. In the present study, several C-terminus-truncated Aβ peptides, including Aβ1-40, Aβ1-35, Aβ1-29, Aβ1-24 and Aβ1-16, were synthesized to characterize the effect of Aβ C-terminal residues on Cu2+ binding affinity, structure, aggregation ability and ROS formation. Results show that the Aβ C-terminal residues have effect on Cu2+ binding affinity, aggregation ability and inhibitory ability of ROS formation. Compared to the key residues responsible for Aβ aggregation and structure in the absence of Cu2+, it is more likely that residues 36–40, rather than residues 17–21 and 30–35, play a key role on the related properties of Aβ in the presence of Cu2+.
Landmark Based Facial Component Reconstruction for Recognition across Pose

Different from previous 3D face modeling approaches that consider the whole facial area, the proposed method reconstructs 3D facial components for handling cross-pose recognition. It has two phases, component reconstruction and component-based recognition. In the reconstruction phase, we first extract four component regions, namely two eyes, nose and mouth, from each gallery face using the pose-invariant landmarks obtained by a modified version of a landmark detection algorithm. A 3D model of each component region is reconstructed using a constrained minimization scheme with a gender and ethnicity oriented 3D model as the reference. In the recognition phase, the pose of a given probe is determined by a set of landmarks which guides the rotation of the reconstructed components so that the reconstructed can be aligned to the probe components. The match is determined by the components instead of the whole faces so that different components can be considered at different poses. Experiments on the PIE and Multi-PIE databases show that the proposed component-based approach does not just outperform its holistic counterpart, but is also competitive to many contemporary methods.
Fast Visualization of Object Contours by Non‐Photorealistic Volume Rendering

In this paper we present a fast visualization technique for volumetric data, which is based on a recent non‐photorealistic rendering technique. Our new approach enables alternative insights into 3D data sets (compared to traditional approaches such as direct volume rendering or iso‐surface rendering). Object contours, which usually are characterized by locally high gradient values, are visualized regardless of their density values. Cumbersome tuning of transfer functions, as usually needed for setting up DVR views is avoided. Instead, a small number of parameters is available to adjust the non‐photorealistic display. Based on the magnitude of local gradient information as well as on the angle between viewing direction and gradient vector, data values are mapped to visual properties (color, opacity), which then are combined to form the rendered image (MIP is proposed as the default compositing stragtegy here). Due to the fast implementation of this alternative rendering approach, it is possible to interactively investigate the 3D data, and quickly learn about internal structures. Several further extensions of our new approach, such as level lines are also presented in this paper.
GASGD: stochastic gradient descent for distributed asynchronous matrix completion via graph partitioning.

Matrix completion latent factors models are known to be an effective method to build recommender systems. Currently, stochastic gradient descent (SGD) is considered one of the best latent factor-based algorithm for matrix completion. In this paper we discuss GASGD, a distributed asynchronous variant of SGD for large-scale matrix completion, that (i) leverages data partitioning schemes based on graph partitioning techniques, (ii) exploits specific characteristics of the input data and (iii) introduces an explicit parameter to tune synchronization frequency among the computing nodes. We empirically show how, thanks to these features, GASGD achieves a fast convergence rate incurring in smaller communication cost with respect to current asynchronous distributed SGD implementations.
Valuation of American options via basis functions

After a brief review of recent developments in the pricing and hedging of American options, this paper modifies the basis function approach to adaptive control and neuro-dynamic programming, and applies it to develop: 1) nonparametric pricing formulas for actively traded American options and 2) simulation-based optimization strategies for complex over-the-counter options, whose optimal stopping problems are prohibitively difficult to solve numerically by standard backward induction algorithms because of the curse of dimensionality. An important issue in this approach is the choice of basis functions, for which some guidelines and their underlying theory are provided.
Heterologously Expressed Wild-type and Mutant Human μ-Opioid Receptors ( hMOR ) Containing the A 118 G Single Nucleotide Polymorphism

The most common single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) of the human μ-opioid receptor (hMOR) gene occurs at position 118 (A118G) and results in substitution of asparagine to aspartate at the N-terminus. The purpose of the present study was to compare the pharmacological profile of several opioid agonists to heterologously expressed hMOR and Ntype Ca channels in sympathetic neurons. cDNA constructs coding for wild-type and mutant hMOR were microinjected in rat superior cervical ganglion neurons and N-type Ca channel modulation was investigated employing the whole-cell variant of the patch clamp technique. Concentration-response relationships were generated with the following selective MOR agonists: DAMGO, morphine, morphine-6-glucuronide (M-6-G) and endomorphin I. The estimated maximal inhibition for the agonists ranged from 52 to 64% for neurons expressing either hMOR subtype. The rank order of potencies for estimated EC50 values (nM) in cells expressing wildtype hMOR was: DAMGO (31) >> morphine (76) ≅ M-6-G (77) ≅ endomorphin I (86). On the other hand, the rank order in mutant-expressing neurons was: DAMGO (14) >> morphine (39) >> endomorphin I (74) ≅ M-6-G (82), with a two-fold leftward shift for both DAMGO and morphine. The DAMGO-mediated Ca current inhibition was abolished by the selective MOR blocker, CTAP, and by pertussis toxin pretreatment of neurons expressing either hMOR subtype. These results suggest that the A118G variant MOR exhibits an altered signal transduction pathway and may help explain the variability of responses to opiates observed with carriers of the mutant allele. Page 2 of 34
Detecting cycles in dynamic graphs in polynomial time

Consider a digraph which has labels on its edges which are <italic>k</italic>-dimensional vectors. In this paper we show it is possible in polynomial time to determine if such a digraph contains a zero cycle, i.e., a cycle whose edge labels sum to the zero vector component-wise. This solves the open problem of finding cycles in dynamic graphs which was posed by Iwano and Steiglitz. Our solution has a time complexity of <italic>&Ogr;</italic>(|<italic>V</italic>| log(|<italic>V</italic>|)<italic>Z</italic>) where <italic>Z</italic> is the complexity of a linear programming problem. For the important cases of two and three dimensions we present <italic>&Ogr;</italic>(<italic>Z</italic>) time algorithms. The linear programming problems we solve have at most 2|<italic>E</italic>| variables and <italic>&Ogr;</italic>(|<italic>E</italic>| + |<italic>V</italic>| + <italic>k</italic>) constraints.
Autophagy Suppresses Tumorigenesis of Hepatitis B Virus-Associated Hepatocellular Carcinoma Through Degradation of MicroRNA-224

In hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), dysregulated expression of microRNA‐224 (miR‐224) and impaired autophagy have been reported separately. However, the relationship between them has not been explored. In this study we determined that autophagy is down‐regulated and inversely correlated with miR‐224 expression in hepatitis B virus (HBV)‐associated HCC patient specimens. These results were confirmed in liver tumors of HBV X gene transgenic mice. Furthermore, miR‐224 was preferentially recruited and degraded during autophagic progression demonstrated by real‐time polymerase chain reaction and miRNA in situ hybridization electron microscopy after extraction of autophagosomes. Our in vitro study demonstrated that miR‐224 played an oncogenic role in hepatoma cell migration and tumor formation through silencing its target gene Smad4. In HCC patients, the expression of low‐Atg5, high‐miR‐224, and low‐Smad4 showed significant correlation with HBV infection and a poor overall survival rate. Autophagy‐mediated miR‐224 degradation and liver tumor suppression were further confirmed by the autophagy inducer amiodarone and miR‐224 antagonist using an orthotopic SD rat model. Conclusion: A noncanonical pathway links autophagy, miR‐224, Smad4, and HBV‐associated HCC. These findings open a new avenue for the treatment of HCC. (Hepatology 2014;59:505–517)
The Efficient SVM Kernel Method for Image Compression and Image Recognition

SVM have met the significant success in numerous real-world applications. The SVM is widely used classifier. Obtaining the best result with SVM requires an understanding of their working and various ways a user an influence their accuracy, so we provide the concept about the SVM algorithm. We introduce a algorithm for performing image compression based on the SVM algorithm. This algorithm is used to form the clustering. We also to use the SVM algorithm for image recognition application.
Beryllium Abundances in Halo Stars from Keck/HIRES Observations

We have determined the abundance of Be in stars with an array of metal abundances in order to enhance our understanding of the chemical evolution of the Galaxy, cosmic-ray theory, and cosmology. Observations of the Be II resonance lines at λ3130 and λ3131 were made at the Keck telescope with the HIRES spectrometer at a resolution of 46,000 and signal-to-noise ratios of 60–110 (per pixel) typically. Our sample includes 22 halo dwarfs and five disk stars (including the Sun). We have taken special care in determining the stellar parameters for these stars in a consistent manner. The Be abundances were found (1) from the measured equivalent width of the relatively unblended Be II line at 3131.065 Å with an analysis that included 11 weak atomic and molecular lines near that wavelength and (2) from spectrum synthesis that included newly derived enhanced O (relative to Fe) in the synthesis calculations. The two methods are in excellent agreement. We find straight-line fits between Be and Fe: log N(Be/H) = 0.96(±0.04)[Fe/H] − 10.59(±0.03) ; and between Be and O: log N(Be/H) = 1.45(±0.04)[O/H] − 10.69(±0.04) . It seems that Be and Fe increase at the same rate during the course of the evolution of the Galaxy. But as O increases by a factor of 100, Be increases more rapidly, by a factor of 800. Traditional models in which energetic cosmic rays interact with ambient CNO nuclei in the interstellar medium to produce Be are consistent with this finding, as long as certain chemical evolution effects (such as mass outflow from the halo) are taken into account. However, models predicting a linear relationship between Be and O, such as those producing Be in the vicinity of Type II supernovae, are less consistent with our result. There is some evidence for an intrinsic spread in Be at a given [Fe/H] or [O/H]. There is currently no evidence of a primordial plateau level of Be down to log N(Be/H) = -13.5.
Qui aide qui, pour quoi ?

Les donnees de l'enquete «Modes de vie», realisee en 1988-1989 par l'INSEE permettent d'analyser l'entraide entre les menages en matiere de production domestique. Les aides recues de la famille en ligne directe sont plus nombreuses que celles qui viennent de menages hors famille et ceci quel que soit le type d'aide. En revanche, pour les aides echangees de facon symetrique, la famille et les autres menages apparaissent en concurrence. En s'appuyant sur l'ecart entre les aides donnees et les aides recues, on montre qu'un comportement d'investissement relationnel est probablement present dans les pratiques d'entraide
An analysis of duplicate on web extracted objects

Today the web has become the largest available source of information. The automatic extraction of structured data from web is a challenging problem that has been widely investigated. However, after the extraction process, the problem of identifying duplicates among the extracted web records must be solved in order to present clean data to the final user. This problem, also known as record linkage or record matching, has been of central interest for the database community; however, only few works have addressed this problem in the web context. In this paper we present web object matching, the problem of identifying duplicates among records extracted from the web. We will show that in the web scenario we need to face all the problems of a classic record linkage setting plus the uncertainty introduced by the web. Indeed the records are the output of an extraction system that, rather than conventional databases or APIs, introduces semantic errors that are not due to a problem in the source. Most of the previous approaches rely on the fact that the records to match contain the correct information and we can use such information to identify duplicates. In this work we overview an approach that performs a validation step before the actual identification of duplicates, in order to check whether the information of the record can be trusted or not. We present an approach that works without any human supervision or training data and that deals with the problem not only in a record-by-record fashion (as other approaches), but also in a source-by-source fashion which allows detecting and possibly correcting systematic errors for an entire source. The only human effort required is the creation of a little knowledge about the domain of interest through a set of ontology constraints and an entity extraction system.
Divide and Conquer in Multi-Agent Planning

In this paper, we suggest an approach to multi-agent planning that contains heuristic elements. Our method makes use of subgoals, and derived sub-plans, to construct a global plan. Agents solve their individual sub-plans, which are then merged into a global plan. The suggested approach may reduce overall planning time and derives a plan that approximates the optimal global plan that would have been derived by a central planner, given those original subgoals. We consider two different scenarios. The first involves a group of agents with a common goal. The second considers how agents can interleave planning and execution when planning towards a common, though dynamic, goal.
Increasing crossover operator efficiency in multiobjective nonlinear systems identification

An elitist multiobjective optimization methodology, based on genetic programming, is suggested in the following, as means of identifying complex nonlinear systems. The structure and parameters of the nonlinear models are selected simultaneously as result of the conjoint usage of customized genetic operators and of a deterministic parameter computation procedure. This symbiosis is configured to efficiently exploit the nonlinear, linear in parameters formalism, a proven universal approximator, according to which the models are generated. In order to protect useful model terms from fragmentation via crossover, the authors have introduced a novel encapsulation mechanism supervised by a fuzzy controller. To meet the specific requirements of systems identification in engineering applications, the optimization procedure considers two evaluation criteria, namely accuracy and parsimony, exploited from an elitist standpoint. The approach also features an original similarity analysis technique, meant to encourage population diversity. The practical efficiency of the proposed identification algorithm was tested in the framework of a real life industrial system.
Comparison of air-driven vs electric torque control motors on canal centering ability by ProTaper NiTi rotary instruments.

AIM Cleaning and shaping is one of the most important phases in root canal therapy. Various rotary NiTi systems minimize accidents and facilitate the shaping process. Todays NiTi files are used with air-driven and electric handpieces. This study compared the canal centering after instrumentation using the ProTaper system using Endo IT, electric torque-control motor, and NSK air-driven handpiece. MATERIALS AND METHODS This ex vivo randomized controlled trial study involved 26 mesial mandibular root canals with 10 to 35° curvature. The roots were randomly divided into 2 groups of 13 canals each. The roots were mounted in an endodontic cube with acrylic resin, sectioned horizontally at 2, 6 and 10 mm from the apex and then reassembled. The canals were instrumented according to the manufacturer's instructions using ProTaper rotary files and electric torque-control motors (group 1) or air-driven handpieces (group 2). Photographs of the cross-sections included shots before and after instrumentation, and image analysis was performed using Photoshop software. The centering ability and canal transportation was also evaluated. Repeated measurement and independent t-test provided statistical analysis of canal transportation. RESULTS The comparison of the rate of transportation toward internal or external walls between the two groups was not statistically significant (p = 0.62). Comparison of the rate of transportation of sections within one group was not significant (p = 0.28). CONCLUSION Use of rotary NiTi file with either electric torquecontrol motor or air-driven handpiece had no effect on canal centering. CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE NiTi rotary instruments can be used with air-driven motors without any considerable changes in root canal anatomy, however it needs the clinician to be expert.
Assistant Principals: Their Readiness as Instructional Leaders

ABSTRACT This article reports findings from a study investigating the capacity of assistant principals to be instructional leaders. Analyses of survey responses yielded four interesting findings: (a) years of experience as a teacher and age had no significance on assistant principals’ perceived readiness as an instructional leader; (b) those completing redesigned programs focused on instructional leadership reported feeling less prepared that those completing programs before the mandated redesign (c) although instructional leadership was a work responsibility, 63% did not know what portion of their performance evaluation assessed that performance; and (d) mentoring for instructional leadership most often occurred through informal meetings with their principal.
DEBUG—an extension to current online debugging techniques

A method for online assembly-language debugging which greatly simplifies several of the bookkeeping tasks characteristically associated with that process has been developed and implemented in a program for the UNIVAC M-460 computer at Air Force Cambridge Research Laboratories. With this program, an online user may insert or delete (in symbolic assembly language) any number of lines at any point of his previously assembled program in core, with the remainder of the program being relocated appropriately.
Property-based integrity monitoring of operating system kernels

As the foundation of the trusted computing base, the operating system kernel is a valuable target for attackers of a computer system seeking maximum control and privilege. Furthermore, because the majority of modern security solutions rely on the correctness of at least some portion of the operating system kernel, skilled attackers who successfully infiltrate kernel memory can remain undetected indefinitely. In this dissertation, we present an approach for detecting attacks against the kernel’s integrity (commonly referred to as “rootkits”). Our approach, which we call property-based integrity monitoring, works by monitoring and analyzing the kernel’s state at runtime. Unlike traditional security solutions, our monitor operates in isolation of, and independently from, the protected operating system and has direct access to the kernel’s runtime state. The basic strategy behind property-based monitoring is to identify a set of properties that are practical to check, yet are effective at detecting the types of changes an attacker might make—both known and yet-to-be-discovered. In this work, we describe a practical and effective property for detecting persistent control-flow modifications in running kernels, called state-based control-flow integrity (SBCFI). Furthermore, to address those data-only attacks that do not violate the kernel’s control-flow, we introduce a high-level policy language system for enforcing semantic integrity constraints in runtime kernel data. To evaluate the feasibility and effectiveness of our system, we have implemented two property-based integrity monitors for the Linux kernel—one using a virtual machine monitor and the other using a PCI-based coprocessor. We demonstrate that property-based monitoring is capable of detecting all publicly-available kernel integrity threats while imposing less than 1% overhead on the protected system. We conclude that property-based kernel integrity monitoring can be both practical and effective.
Disambiguating Music Emotion Using Software Agents

Annotating music poses a cognitive load on listeners and this potentially interferes with the emotions being reported. One solution is to let software agents learn to make the annotator’s task easier and more efficient. Emo is a music annotation prototype that combines inputs from both human and software agents to better study human listening. A compositional theory of musical meaning provides the overall heuristics for the annotation process, with the listener drawing upon different influences such as acoustics, lyrics and cultural metadata to focus on a specific musical mood. Software agents track the way these choices are made from the influences available. A functional theory of human emotion provides the basis for introducing necessary bias into the machine learning agents. Conflicting positive and negative emotions can be separated on the basis of their different function (reward-approach and threat-avoidance) or dysfunction (psychotic). Negative emotions have strong ambiguity and these are the focus of the experiment. The results of mining psychological features of lyrics are promising, recognisable in terms of common sense ideas of emotion and in terms of accuracy. Further ideas for deploying agents in this model of music annotation are presented.