Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Modeling of coverage preserving algorithm using object oriented methodology with UML

Visual sensor network collect visual data, which are rich in information and hence offer tremendous potential for many applications such as automated surveillance and traffic monitoring. Hence it is necessary to design scalable network architecture to support several heterogeneous and independent applications. The angle coverage problem aims to identify a set of sensors that preserve all the angles of view of the object while fulfilling the image resolution requirement. In order to save transmission energy, the number of images to be sent should be minimized. A coverage preserving algorithm will be developed with the help of coverage cost metrics to identify the cluster head from a set of sensors to ensure balanced energy consumption. The Unified Modeling Language (UML) is the most widely known and used notation for object oriented analysis and design. UML diagrams presented in the paper with the help Visual Paradigm, helps to design and implement the coverage problem.
Gene association analysis: a survey of frequent pattern mining from gene expression data

Establishing an association between variables is always of interest in genomic studies. Generation of DNA microarray gene expression data introduces a variety of data analysis issues not encountered in traditional molecular biology or medicine. Frequent pattern mining (FPM) has been applied successfully in business and scientific data for discovering interesting association patterns, and is becoming a promising strategy in microarray gene expression analysis. We review the most relevant FPM strategies, as well as surrounding main issues when devising efficient and practical methods for gene association analysis (GAA). We observed that, so far, scalability achieved by efficient methods does not imply biological soundness of the discovered association patterns, and vice versa. Ideally, GAA should employ a balanced mining model taking into account best practices employed by methods reviewed in this survey. Integrative approaches, in which biological knowledge plays an important role within the mining process, are becoming more reliable.
Political conflict: how social identity processes influence individuals' experience of political violence

The thesis examines how social identity processes influence individuals’ experience of political violence. It argues that individual experience is shaped by the groups the individual belongs to. In particular it examines the importance of social identity to understanding prejudice and conflict. The thesis explores extant experimental research which illustrates the importance of social settings in mediating attitudes and behaviour. This includes empirical evidence of the relationships between social identity and social influence, social identity and social support, and the importance of experience of political violence in shaping social identity. The thesis then outlines a brief history of the conflict in Northern Ireland and reviews extant social identity research specific to Northern Ireland. A qualitative methodology was used to extend the literature of quantitative studies carried out within psychology on the conflict in Northern Ireland. In effect, the predominant use of student and random population samples has ignored the broader social context within which participants are located, and has often failed to examine the experiences of those most affected by the conflict. As such the thesis highlights how the positivist scientific method as the sole basis for understanding human behaviour is severely limited. Semi-structured interviews were carried out with 32 individuals, across three studies, from diverse backgrounds, who have lived in Northern Ireland before, during, and after the conflict. The data was analysed using a thematic analysis which offered an accessible and theoretically flexible approach to analysing qualitative data.
DUYGUSAL ÖRGÜTSEL BAĞLILIK GELİŞİMİNDE ALGILANAN ÖRGÜTSEL DESTEK VE ÖRGÜT TEMELLİ ÖZ-SAYGI

Perceived organizational support is the belief that employees form concerning the extent to which the organization values their contributions and cares about their well-being. When employees feel that their organization is ready to reward their efforts and fulfill their socioemotional needs, they reciprocate this favorable treatment with affective commitment. An individual’s self-esteem, formed around work and organizational experiences, is expected to influence such an organization-employee exchange. The main goal of this study is to investigate the relationship between perceived organizational support and affective organizational commitment as well as the moderating role of organization-based self-esteem in this relationship. Participants of the research were 205 doctors and nurses from one public and three private hospitals in Bursa. The short version of Survey of Perceived Organizational Support (Eisenberger et al., 1997), Organization-Based Self-Esteem Scale (Pierce et al., 1989) and Affective Commitment Scale (Meyer, Allen & Smith, 1993) were used for measurement. The study provides evidence that perceived organizational support has a significant positive effect on affective commitment. Organization-based self-esteem was also found to have a positive impact on affective commitment, although its expected moderator role was not supported.
What word-level knowledge can adult learners acquire after minimal exposure to a new language?

Abstract Discussions about the adult L2 learning capacity often take as their starting point stages where considerable L2 knowledge has already been accumulated. This paper probes the absolute earliest stages of learning and investigates what lexical knowledge adult learners can extract from complex, continuous speech in an unknown language after minimal exposure and without any help. Dutch participants were exposed to naturalistic but controlled audiovisual input in Mandarin Chinese, in which item frequency and gestural highlighting were manipulated. The results from a word recognition task showed that adults are able to draw on frequency to recognize disyllabic words appearing only eight times in continuous speech. The findings from a sound-to-picture matching task revealed that the mapping of meaning to word form requires a combination of cues: disyllabic words accompanied by a gesture were correctly assigned meaning after eight encounters. Overall, the study suggests that the adult learning mechanism is a considerably more powerful than typically assumed in the SLA literature drawing on frequency, gestural cues and syllable structure. Even in the absence of pre-existing knowledge about cognates and sound system to bootstrap and boost learning, it deals efficiently with very little, very complex input.
Empirical Analysis of Solution Guided Multi-Point Constructive Search

Empirical Analysis of Solution Guided Multi-Point Constructive Search Ivan Heckman Master of Science Graduate Department of Computer Science University of Toronto 2007 Solution Guided Multi-Point Constructive Search (SGMPCS) is a constructive search technique inspired by local search algorithms that guide search from multiple viewpoints. SGMPCS consists of a series of resource-limited backtracking searches: each starting from an empty solution or guided by one of a set of high quality, elite solutions encountered earlier. The thesis of this dissertation is that SGMPCS works, in part, because of two factors: the benefit of revisiting the areas near good solutions, and through the exploitation of heavy-tails. We provide a detailed analysis of the various parameters of SGMPCS on a variety of constraint satisfaction problems. We show evidence of heavy-tailed distributions for only the sets of problems where SGMPCS performs well. We show how performance is correlated with how well the evaluation of guiding solutions predicts actual distance to a solution. Finally, we explore various static cost models of SGMPCS performance.
Continuous kinematic control with terminal attractors for handling task transitions of redundant robots

This paper proposes a general scheme based on terminal attractors to parametrize operational tasks with respect to time in continuous kinematic controllers. Commonly, a pseudo-inverse operator is applied to solve operational tasks. However, it is known that discontinuities in the control signals appear as a by-product of task transitions during motion execution. In particular, these transitions involve the insertion, removal and swapping of tasks. Recently, some methods have been reported that overcome such discontinuities in the control signals. In this work, we provide time parametrization capabilities to these continuous kinematic controllers in order to handle the time axis of operational tasks at will. Then, we show that the proposed scheme can be naturally extended for the case of prioritized kinematic tasks while preserving continuity under task transitions. Our scheme is validated in a real experiment with a NAO humanoid robot.
Clustering semantics for hypermedia presentation

Semantic annotations of media repositories make relationships among the stored media and relevant concepts explicit. However, these relationships and the media they join are not directly presentable as hypermedia. Previous work shows how clustering over the annotations in the repositories can determine hypermedia presentation structure. Here we explore the application of different clustering techniques to generating hypermedia interfaces to media archives. This paper also describes the effect of each type of clustering on the end user's experience. We then generalize and unify these techniques with the use of proximity measures in further improving generated presentation structure
Coauthorship and Citation Networks for Statisticians

We have collected and cleaned two network data sets: Coauthorship and Citation networks for statisticians. The data sets are based on all research papers published in four of the top journals in statistics from $2003$ to the first half of $2012$. We analyze the data sets from many different perspectives, focusing on (a) centrality, (b) community structures, and (c) productivity, patterns and trends. For (a), we have identified the most prolific/collaborative/highly cited authors. We have also identified a handful of "hot" papers, suggesting "Variable Selection" as one of the "hot" areas. For (b), we have identified about $15$ meaningful communities or research groups, including large-size ones such as "Spatial Statistics", "Large-Scale Multiple Testing", "Variable Selection" as well as small-size ones such as "Dimensional Reduction", "Objective Bayes", "Quantile Regression", and "Theoretical Machine Learning". For (c), we find that over the 10-year period, both the average number of papers per author and the fraction of self citations have been decreasing, but the proportion of distant citations has been increasing. These suggest that the statistics community has become increasingly more collaborative, competitive, and globalized. Our findings shed light on research habits, trends, and topological patterns of statisticians. The data sets provide a fertile ground for future researches on or related to social networks of statisticians.
A Binary Space-Time Code for Additional Diversity Gains

In this paper, we introduce a bit-interleaved binary space-time code (B-STC) for a coded multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) system to obtain an additional diversity gain over the full-rate spatial multiplexing (SM) transmission. By applying the B-STC scheme, codeword bits from each stream are transmitted effectively through N_t or (N_t - 1) layers in N_r x N_t MIMO systems. At the receiver, the iterative decoding is performed. The extrinsic information provided by the soft-in/soft-out (SISO) decoder is applied as an improved priori information after the B-STC decoding at the next iteration. Since a priori information can be extracted from multiple layers independently by the B-STC scheme, codeword bits have an improved diversity gain of (N_t - 1). In order to verify the proposed scheme, we derive the asymptotic bit error probability, which can be achieved after convergence of the iterative decoder. Because the proposed B-STC scheme is a binary code for coded MIMO systems, different types of channel codes and various space-time codes can be also concatenated.
Overview of Nucleic Acid Arrays

Nucleic acid array technology refers to the use and fabrication of arrays containing thousands of nucleic acid samples bound to solid substrates such as glass microscope slides or silicon wafers. Because the physical area occupied by each sample is usually 50 to 200 micrometers in diameter, it is possible to assay nucleic acid samples representing entire genomes, ranging in size from 3,000 to 32,000 genes, on a single slide. Microarrays are useful for analyzing gene expression patterns, genotyping and genetic mapping, comparative genomic hybridization, polysome analysis, and DNA‐protein interactions. This overview describes the technology and applications, and provides valuable web site listings for obtaining additional information.
Seasonal flux in Australia's population geography: linking space and time

Seasonality is integral to many forms of temporary population mobility. To date, however, most research has focused on tourist movements and has been primarily concerned with its impacts on destinations. Less attention has been given to tracing its effects on the localities from which tourists are drawn or to understanding the spatial dynamics that underpin this periodic flux in population. The fact that tourism accounts for a minority of all temporary movements also supports the case for a broader analytical perspective. We aim to redress this neglect by examining seasonal variation in various forms of temporary movement across 77 regions of Australia over the decade 2000-2010, focusing on both origins and destinations. Coupling seasonal factors with cluster analysis and fixed effects models, we show that seasonal mobility across the Australian settlement system is highly structured with spatio-temporal variations reflecting the interplay of climatic variability with institutional constraints and the functional characteristics of regions. Copyright (c) 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Utility of mass spectrometry for the diagnosis of the unstable coronary plaque

Mass spectrometry is a powerful technique that is used to identify unknown compounds, to quantify known materials, and to elucidate the structure and chemical properties of molecules. Recent advances in the accuracy and speed of the technology have allowed data acquisition for the global analysis of lipids from complex samples such as blood plasma or serum. Here, mass spectrometry as a tool is described, its limitations explained and its application to biomarker discovery in coronary artery disease is considered. In particular an application of mass spectrometry for the discovery of lipid biomarkers that may indicate plaque morphology that could lead to myocardial infarction is elucidated.
Damage‐associated molecular patterns stimulate interleukin‐33 expression in nasal polyp epithelial cells

Chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyps (CRSwNP) is a disorder characterized by eosinophilic inflammation and local T‐helper 2 (Th2) cytokine production. Innate lymphoid cells that elaborate Th2 cytokines have recently been characterized within nasal polyps. These cells can be activated by the epithelial cell‐derived cytokine interleukin‐33 (IL‐33). The objective of this study is to determine whether 2 molecules associated with tissue damage (high mobility group box‐1 [HMGB‐1] and adenosine triphosphate [ATP]) elicit expression of IL‐33 in sinonasal epithelial cells (SNECs) derived from recalcitrant CRSwNP patients.
Differential Effects of Lower Body Negative Pressure and Upright Tilt on Splanchnic Blood Volume

Upright posture and lower body negative pressure (LBNP) both induce reductions in central blood volume. However, regional circulatory responses to postural changes and LBNP may differ. Therefore, we studied regional blood flow and blood volume changes in 10 healthy subjects undergoing graded lower-body negative pressure (-10 to -50 mmHg) and 8 subjects undergoing incremental head-up tilt (HUT; 20 degrees , 40 degrees , and 70 degrees ) on separate days. We continuously measured blood pressure (BP), heart rate, and regional blood volumes and blood flows in the thoracic, splanchnic, pelvic, and leg segments by impedance plethysmography and calculated regional arterial resistances. Neither LBNP nor HUT altered systolic BP, whereas pulse pressure decreased significantly. Blood flow decreased in all segments, whereas peripheral resistances uniformly and significantly increased with both HUT and LBNP. Thoracic volume decreased while pelvic and leg volumes increased with HUT and LBNP. However, splanchnic volume changes were directionally opposite with stepwise decreases in splanchnic volume with LBNP and stepwise increases in splanchnic volume during HUT. Splanchnic emptying in LBNP models regional vascular changes during hemorrhage. Splanchnic filling may limit the ability of the splanchnic bed to respond to thoracic hypovolemia during upright posture.
IPOs as Lotteries: Skewness Preference and First-Day Returns

We find that IPOs with high expected skewness experience significantly greater first-day returns. The skewness effect is stronger during periods of high investor sentiment and is related to differences in skewness across industries as well as time-series variation in the level of skewness in the market. IPOs with high expected skewness earn more negative abnormal returns in the following one to five years. High expected skewness is also associated with a higher fraction of small-sized trades on the first day of trading, which is consistent with a greater shift in holdings from institutions to individuals. The results suggest that first-day IPO returns are related to a preference for skewness.
Transgenic Plants as Low-Cost Platform for Chemotherapeutic Drugs Screening

In this work we explored the possibility of using genetically modified Arabidopsis thaliana plants as a rapid and low-cost screening tool for evaluating human anticancer drugs action and efficacy. Here, four different inhibitors with a validated anticancer effect in humans and distinct mechanism of action were screened in the plant model for their ability to interfere with the cytoskeletal and endomembrane networks. We used plants expressing a green fluorescent protein (GFP) tagged microtubule-protein (TUA6-GFP), and three soluble GFPs differently sorted to reside in the endoplasmic reticulum (GFPKDEL) or to accumulate in the vacuole through a COPII dependent (AleuGFP) or independent (GFPChi) mechanism. Our results demonstrated that drugs tested alone or in combination differentially influenced the monitored cellular processes including cytoskeletal organization and endomembrane trafficking. In conclusion, we demonstrated that A. thaliana plants are sensitive to the action of human chemotherapeutics and can be used for preliminary screening of drugs efficacy. The cost-effective subcellular imaging in plant cell may contribute to better clarify drugs subcellular targets and their anticancer effects.
The Impact of Learning Demands, Work-Related Resources, and Job Stressors on Creative Performance and Health

We propose an integrated model of learning demands, work-related resources, and job stressors that incorporates core assumptions of work design in predicting processes of learning and performance as well as health impairment. The model was tested in a heterogeneous sample of 830 employees using structural equation modeling. Empirical results largely support theoretical assumptions. Learning demands and work-related resources were positively related to intrinsic motivation and creative performance. Job stressors and low work-related resources were predictive for health impairment. The suggested tripartite taxonomy reconciles inconsistent research findings on the impact of work characteristics. The model provides practical guidance for work analysis and design by clarifying relationships between established work characteristics, job performance, and worker health.
Utilizing verification and validation certificates to estimate software defect density

In industry, information on defect density of a product tends to become available too late in the software development process to affordably guide corrective actions. Our research objective is to build a parametric model which utilizes a persistent record of the validation and verification (V&V) practices used with a program to estimate the defect density of that program. The persistent record of the V&V practices are recorded as certificates which are automatically recorded and maintained with the code.PhD Advisor: Dr. Laurie Williams, williams@csc.ncsu. edu
Major Mystery Makes Dangerous Leap Forward

Organizational learning (OL): isn’t it a wonderful mystery? Some of us spend the best years of our lives puzzling over it. Life is full of compelling mysteries and we have been drawn to this one. Some of the great mysteries of life are posed by an unforgettable image—a sunset, the new spring blossoms, a pendulum swinging, the gears of a clockwork engine, a gothic cathedral, a newborn . But we who struggle to understand the mystery of OL have no clear image or evidence of the miracle that poses the mystery. What is OL? How would we recognize it when we found it? Our task is more like the search for dark matter or antigravity than the search for Paleolithic remains or some villain on the most wanted list. At least they know what they are looking for. But who knows what OL looks like? In this context it seems to me a good cause for celebration that this article has discovered, described, and labeled nine different examples of our mysterious subject matter. Within the extended case study of the New York City Police Department (NYPD) in Silverman’s (2001) monograph can be found data on (what I claim to be) nine distinct versions of OL (see Examples 1 through 9 in table 3). Nine examples of OL:
ODYSSEY FH I and FH II: 78 week results with alirocumab treatment in 735 patients with heterozygous familial hypercholesterolaemia

Aims To assess long-term (78 weeks) alirocumab treatment in patients with heterozygous familial hypercholesterolaemia (HeFH) and inadequate LDL-C control on maximally tolerated lipid-lowering therapy (LLT). Methods and results In two randomized, double-blind studies (ODYSSEY FH I, n = 486; FH II, n = 249), patients were randomized 2 : 1 to alirocumab 75 mg or placebo every 2 weeks (Q2W). Alirocumab dose was increased at Week 12 to 150 mg Q2W if Week 8 LDL-C was ≥1.8 mmol/L (70 mg/dL). Primary endpoint (both studies) was percentage change in calculated LDL-C from baseline to Week 24. Mean LDL-C levels decreased from 3.7 mmol/L (144.7 mg/dL) at baseline to 1.8 mmol/L (71.3 mg/dL; −57.9% vs. placebo) at Week 24 in patients randomized to alirocumab in FH I and from 3.5 mmol/L (134.6 mg/dL) to 1.8 mmol/L (67.7 mg/dL; −51.4% vs. placebo) in FH II (P < 0.0001). These reductions were maintained through Week 78. LDL-C <1.8 mmol/L (regardless of cardiovascular risk) was achieved at Week 24 by 59.8 and 68.2% of alirocumab-treated patients in FH I and FH II, respectively. Adverse events resulted in discontinuation in 3.4% of alirocumab-treated patients in FH I (vs. 6.1% placebo) and 3.6% (vs. 1.2%) in FH II. Rate of injection site reactions in alirocumab-treated patients was 12.4% in FH I and 11.4% in FH II (vs. 11.0 and 7.4% with placebo). Conclusion In patients with HeFH and inadequate LDL-C control at baseline despite maximally tolerated statin ± other LLT, alirocumab treatment resulted in significant LDL-C lowering and greater achievement of LDL-C target levels and was well tolerated. Clinical trial registration Cinicaltrials.gov (identifiers: NCT01623115; NCT01709500).