Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
AGE CLASSIFICATIONS BASED ON SECOND ORDER IMAGE COMPRESSED AND FUZZY REDUCED GREY LEVEL (SICFRG) MODEL

One of the most fundamental issues in image classification and recognition are how to characterize images using derived features. Many texture classification and recognition problems in the literature usually require the computation on entire image set and with large range of gray level values in order to achieve efficient and precise classification and recognition. This leads to lot of complexity in evaluating feature parameters. To address this, the present paper derives a Second Order image Compressed and Fuzzy Reduced Grey level (SICFRG) model, which reduces the image dimension and grey level range without any loss of significant feature information. The present paper derives GLCM features on the proposed SICFRG model for efficient age classification that classifies facial image into a five groups. The SICFRG image mode of age classification is derived in three stages. In the first stage the 5 x 5 matrix is compressed into a 2 x 2 second order sub matrix without loosing any significant attributes, primitives, and any other local properties. In stage 2 Fuzzy logic is applied tPo reduce the Gray level range of compressed model of the image. In stage 3 GLCM is derived on SICFRG model of the image. The experimental evidence on FG-NET and Google aging database clearly indicates the high classification rate of the proposed method over the other methods.
The Method of Evaluation Artery Diameter from Ultrasound Video

The cardiovascular system has become the most important subject of clinical research, particularly measurement of arterial blood flow. Therefore correct determination of arterial diameter is crucial. We propose a novel, semi-automatic method for artery lumen detection. The method is based on Gaussian probability function. Usability of our proposed method was assessed by analyzing ultrasound B-mode CFA video sequences acquired from eleven healthy volunteers. The correlation coefficient between the manual and semi-automatic measurement of arterial diameter was 0.996. Our proposed method for detecting artery boundary is novel and accurate enough for the measurement of artery diameter. Keywords—Ultrasound, boundary detection, artery diameter, curve fitting.
Spatial Coherence Profiles of Ictal High-Frequency Oscillations Correspond to Those of Interictal Low-Frequency Oscillations in the ECoG of Epileptic Patients

Goal: We have previously demonstrated that the coherence of high-frequency oscillations (HFOs; 80-300 Hz) increased during extratemporal lobe seizures in a consistent and spatially focused electrode cluster. In this study, we have investigated the relationship between cohered HFO intracranial EEG (iEEG) activity with that of slower low-frequency oscillations (LFOs; <;80 Hz). Methods: We applied wavelet phase coherence analysis to the iEEGs of patients with intractable extratemporal lobe epilepsy (ETLE). Results: It was observed that areas on the implanted patient subdural grids, which exhibited strong ictal HFO coherence were similar to tissue regions displaying strong interictal LFO coherence in the 5-12 Hz frequency range, relative to all other electrodes. A positive surgical outcome was correlated with having the clinically marked seizure onset zone(s) in close proximity to HFO/LFO coherence highlighted regions of interest (ROIs). Conclusion: Recent studies have suggested that LFOs (in the 8-12 Hz frequency range) play an important role in controlling cortical excitability, by exerting an inhibitory effect on cortical processing, and that the presence of strong theta activity (4-8 Hz) in awake adults is suggestive of abnormal and/or pathological activity. We speculate that the overlapping spatial regions exhibiting increased coherence in both ictal HFOs and interictal LFOs identified local abnormalities that underlie epileptogenic networks. Significance: Whereas it is worthwhile to note that the small patient group (n = 7) studied here, somewhat limits the clinical significance of our study, the results presented here suggest targeting HFO activity in the 80-300 Hz frequency range and/or interictal LFO activity in the 5-12 Hz frequency range, when defining seizure-related ROIs in the iEEGs of patients with ETLE.
Situation Entity Annotation

This paper presents an annotation scheme for a new semantic annotation task with relevance for analysis and computation at both the clause level and the discourse level. More specifically, we label the finite clauses of texts with the type of situation entity (e.g., eventualities, statements about kinds, or statements of belief) they introduce to the discourse, following and extending work by Smith (2003). We take a feature-driven approach to annotation, with the result that each clause is also annotated with fundamental aspectual class, whether the main NP referent is specific or generic, and whether the situation evoked is episodic or habitual. This annotation is performed (so far) on three sections of the MASC corpus, with each clause labeled by at least two annotators. In this paper we present the annotation scheme, statistics of the corpus in its current version, and analyses of both inter-annotator agreement and intra-annotator consistency.
Characterization of the Standard and Recommended CODIS Markers *

As U.S. courts grapple with constitutional challenges to DNA identification applications, judges are resting legal decisions on the fingerprint analogy, questioning whether the information from a DNA profile could, in light of scientific advances, reveal biomedically relevant information. While CODIS loci were selected largely because they lack phenotypic associations, how this criterion was assessed is unclear. To clarify their phenotypic relevance, we describe the standard and recommended CODIS markers within the context of what is known currently about the genome. We characterize the genomic regions and phenotypic associations of the 24 standard and suggested CODIS markers. None of the markers are within exons, although 12 are intragenic. No CODIS genotypes are associated with known phenotypes. This study provides clarification of the genomic significance of the key identification markers and supports—independent of the forensic scientific community—that the CODIS profiles provide identification but not sensitive or biomedically relevant information.
The influence of sample plot size on evaluations with Ellenberg indicator values

The effect of plot size was tested on heterogeneous and homogeneous data sets that were obtained by sampling grassland and forest vegetation on plots differing in size. Mean EIV for relevés revealed no differences among data sets from various plot sizes or between homogeneous and heterogeneous data sets. This is probably due to a similar indicator value for species newly occurring in plots with increasing plot size. Using EIV is thus a robust method even for data sets associated with wide range of plot sizes.
Statistics of giant radio haloes from electron reacceleration models

The most important evidence of non-thermal phenomena in galaxy clusters comes from giant radio haloes (GRHs), spectacular synchrotron radio sources extended over ≥Mpc scales, detected in the central regions of a growing number of massive galaxy clusters. A promising possibility to explain these sources is given by in situ stochastic reacceleration of relativistic electrons by turbulence generated in the cluster volume during merger events. Cassano and Brunetti have recently shown that the expected fraction of clusters with radio haloes and the increase of such a fraction with cluster mass can be reconciled with present observations provided that a fraction of 20-30 per cent of the turbulence in clusters is in the form of compressible modes. In this work, we extend the above-mentioned analysis by including a scaling of the magnetic field strength with cluster mass. We show that, in the framework of the reacceleration model, the observed correlations between the synchrotron radio power of a sample of 17 GRHs and the X-ray properties of the hosting clusters are consistent with, and actually predicted by a magnetic field dependence on the virial mass of the form B α M b v , with b? 0.5 and typical μG strengths of the average B intensity. The occurrence of GRHs as a function of both cluster mass and redshift is obtained: the evolution of such a probability depends on the interplay between synchrotron and inverse Compton losses in the emitting volume, and it is maximized in clusters for which the two losses are comparable. The most relevant findings are that the predicted luminosity functions of GRHs are peaked around a power P 1.4GHz ∼ 10 24 W Hz -1 , and severely cut off at low radio powers due to the decrease of the electron reacceleration in smaller galaxy clusters, and that the occurrence of GRHs at 1.4 GHz beyond a redshift z ∼ 0.7 appears to be negligible. As a related check, we also show that the predicted integral radio source counts within a limited volume (z ≤ 0.2) are consistent with present observational constraints. Extending the source counts beyond z = 0.2, we estimate that the total number of GRHs to be discovered at ∼ mJy radio fluxes could be ∼ 100 at 1.4 GHz. Finally, the occurrence of GRHs and their number counts at 150 MHz are estimated in view of the forthcoming operation of low-frequency observatories (LOFAR, LWA) and compared with those at higher radio frequencies.
Solving the Mystery of Consistent Negative/Low Net Promoter Score (NPS) in Cross-Cultural Marketing Research

This paper has identified some theoretical reasons and empirical evidence for negative scores that occur in Japan and Korea or unstable NPS scores that can be experienced. A psychological analysis of NPS results sheds light on the validity of the negative NPS scores that are often found in Japan and Korea. Usually customer experience surveys utilize a “single stimulus” such as the “company” or the “company’s products / services. ” However, in the case of the “recommendation to friend” question of the NPS system there are two stimuli namely the “company product/service” and the influence of “friends. ” Hence, the survey outcomes from this question can be very different when compared with other single stimulus questions such as “overall satisfaction” or “repurchase. ” Japanese and Korean people may have a positive attitude towards the company but they will provide low NPS scores because they are reflecting that they would not run the risk of ruining their relationships with their friends by making a recommendation. As a result, in the NPS system these people will be labeled as “detractors” when in fact they are “ambivalent customers. ” Using several Japanese and Korean based marketing research industry examples and case studies, different strategies are proposed to address the issue of negative scores in the NPS system in Japan and Korea. The Customers Psyche appears to be the key determinant factors for both types of behavioural items (items with a single stimulus as well as items with two stimuli).
Exact Recovery with Symmetries for Procrustes Matching

The Procrustes matching (PM) problem is the problem of finding the optimal rigid motion and labeling of two point sets so that they are as close as possible. Both rigid and non-rigid shape matching problems can be formulated as PM problems. Recently [Maron et al.] presented a novel convex semi-definite programming relaxation (PM-SDP) for PM which achieves state of the art results on common shape matching benchmarks. In this paper we analyze the successfulness of PM-SDP in solving PM problems without noise (Exact PM problems). We begin by showing Exact PM to be computationally equivalent to the graph isomorphism problem. We demonstrate some natural theoretical properties of the relaxation, and use these properties together with the moment interpretation of [Lasserre] to show that for exact PM problems and for (generic) input shapes which are asymmetric or bilaterally symmetric, the relaxation returns a correct solution of PM. For symmetric shapes, PM has multiple solutions. The non-convex set of optimal solutions of PM is strictly contained in the convex set of optimal solutions of PM-SDP, so that `most' solutions of PM-SDP will not be solutions of PM. We deal with this by showing the solution set of PM to be the extreme points of the solution set of PM-SDP, and suggesting a random algorithm which returns a solution of PM with probability one, and returns all solutions of PM with equal probability. We also show these results can be extended to the almost-exact case. To the best of our knowledge, our work is the first to achieve exact recovery in the presence of multiple solutions.
Exploring the Depths of Recurrent Neural Networks with Stochastic Residual Learning

Recent advancements in feed-forward convolutional neural network architecture have unlocked the ability to effectively use ultra-deep neural networks with hundreds of layers. However, with a couple exceptions, these advancements have mostly been confined to the world of feed-forward convolutional neural networks for image recognition, and NLP tasks requiring recurrent networks have largely been left behind. In this paper, we apply two recent innovations in ultra-deep convolutional networks, ResNets and stochastic depth, to RNNs used for sentiment classification. We also add a new innovation, stochastic timesteps, which is similar to stochastic depth but over horizontal timesteps rather than vertical layers. We achieve classification accuracies on the five class, fine-grained Stanford Sentiment Treebank that are very close to state of the art, without using the parse tree information utilized by current SOTA methods. We believe that these results bode well for the potential of ultra-deep networks in recurrent and NLP settings in addition to their existing uses in feed-forward and computer vision ones.
The Creation of Sentencing Decisions

Judicial sentencing decision research most often examines the legal, defendant, and judicial characteristics that predict incarceration and sentence length decisions. Often ignored are the social worlds of the courtroom and judge in how these relate to sentencing decision processes and outcomes. The general framework of symbolic interactionism, through the theories of expectation states and situated identity, provides a foundation to understand the social processes of sentencing. A self-report survey administered to Wisconsin Circuit Court judges (n = 74) gathered information about these social processes that might be used to predict sentencing patterns. The results strengthen the position that judges’ decisions are not outside of social pressures, and judges develop sentencing decisions that align with the viewpoints of others as well as interpretations of the legal code.
Informing Understanding of Young Students’ Writing Challenges and Opportunities

Conducting focus groups with target audiences to assess user needs is a critical step in the process of designing and developing a web-based writing environment. This descriptive study examined focus group data gathered to address two questions: First, do data from focus groups affirm and expand our understanding of writing and writing development among middle school students? And second, do data from focus groups provide information helpful to the use of digital technology for enhancing writing instruction, production, and engagement? Analysis of students’ writing experiences across grade levels revealed that sixth graders placed more emphasis on procedural knowledge such as format, editing, and timelines, whereas seventh and eighth graders placed more emphasis on substantive processes such as plan, draft, and revise. Students’ writing experiences also showed a disconnect between writing behaviors they engaged in on their own (texting, social media, and email) and writings they learned in school. Future research and instructional practice implications are discussed, including providing ongoing supports when writing and use of digital technology to enhance instruction and engagement.
Granulocyte-Macrophage Colony-Stimulating Factor Prevents Diabetes Development in NOD Mice by Inducing Tolerogenic Dendritic Cells that Sustain the Suppressive Function of CD4+CD25+ Regulatory T Cells1

Autoimmune diabetes results from a breakdown of self-tolerance that leads to T cell-mediated β-cell destruction. Abnormal maturation and other defects of dendritic cells (DCs) have been associated with the development of diabetes. Evidence is accumulating that self-tolerance can be restored and maintained by semimature DCs induced by GM-CSF. We have investigated whether GM-CSF is a valuable strategy to induce semimature DCs, thereby restoring and sustaining tolerance in NOD mice. We found that treatment of prediabetic NOD mice with GM-CSF provided protection against diabetes. The protection was associated with a marked increase in the number of tolerogenic immature splenic DCs and in the number of Foxp3+CD4+CD25+ regulatory T cells (Tregs). Activated DCs from GM-CSF-protected mice expressed lower levels of MHC class II and CD80/CD86 molecules, produced more IL-10 and were less effective in stimulating diabetogenic CD8+ T cells than DCs of PBS-treated NOD mice. Adoptive transfer experiments showed that splenocytes of GM-CSF-protected mice did not transfer diabetes into NOD.SCID recipients. Depletion of CD11c+ DCs before transfer released diabetogenic T cells from the suppressive effect of CD4+CD25+ Tregs, thereby promoting the development of diabetes. These results indicated that semimature DCs were required for the sustained suppressive function of CD4+CD25+ Tregs that were responsible for maintaining tolerance of diabetogenic T cells in NOD mice.
A fast HDL model for full-custom FPGA verification

Verification occupies an important role in design of full-custom Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA). In general, a full-custom FPGA is manually designed in the transistor level. However, it is normally too slow for conventional Electronic Design Automation (EDA) software to run the full-chip transistor-level simulation and verification efficiently. In order to solve this problem, we propose a methodology to build a fast Hardware Description Language (HDL) model for FPGA, which can then be simulated by EDA tools in the multi-core mode efficiently and conveniently. We build an automatic platform based on the methodology to generate the HDL model and a verification platform to realize a fast and convenient functional verification for a full-custom FPGA. As an experiment, an internally developed twenty-million-transistor FDP FPGA [1] is used to verify the efficiency of the platforms. In our experiment, it takes 3.65h to verify the model of the internally developed twenty-million-transistor FPGA with 32-core simulation.
A novel optical integrate and dump receiver for clocking signals

A novel integrate and dump receiver for clock signals is presented. The integrate and dump topology is known to be power efficient, but depends on a external clock signal. Here, we introduce a topology that auto generates the dump signal and hence can be used as a clock receiver. The proposed architecture is of special interest for clock channels as it accepts short pulses, instead of a 50 % duty cycle clock, as input signal. This allows big power savings by using pulsed lasers for clock generation in place of continuous wave lasers and optical modulators. The proposed receiver includes inherent duty cycle control and outputs, independent of the input, a 50 % duty cycle clock signal. Finally, the proposed topology is compared to classical approaches and is found to be the most power efficient solution in terms of overall optical link power consumption.
Empowering adolescent girls in developing countries: The potential role of education

This article proposes a conceptual framework for how education can promote adolescent girls’ empowerment and, by mapping the field, highlights promising examples of empowering education programs. We conclude by identifying both research and programmatic opportunities for the future that will harness the expertise of a range of specialists from the interdisciplinary fields of gender studies and adolescent development in collaboration with experts from the fields of education, health, and labor.
Multimodal Stimulation of Colorado Potato Beetle Reveals Modulation of Pheromone Response by Yellow Light

Orientation of insects to host plants and conspecifics is the result of detection and integration of chemical and physical cues present in the environment. Sensory organs have evolved to be sensitive to important signals, providing neural input for higher order multimodal processing and behavioral output. Here we report experiments to determine decisions made by Colorado potato beetle (CPB), Leptinotarsa decemlineata, in response to isolated stimuli and multimodal combinations of signals on a locomotion compensator. Our results show that in complete darkness and in the absence of other stimuli, pheromonal stimulation increases attraction behavior of CPB as measured in oriented displacement and walking speed. However, orientation to the pheromone is abolished when presented with the alternative stimulation of a low intensity yellow light in a dark environment. The ability of the pheromone to stimulate these diurnal beetles in the dark in the absence of other stimuli is an unexpected but interesting observation. The predominance of the phototactic response over that to pheromone when low intensity lights were offered as choices seems to confirm the diurnal nature of the insect. The biological significance of the response to pheromone in the dark is unclear. The phototactic response will play a key role in elucidating multimodal stimulation in the host-finding process of CPB, and perhaps other insects. Such information might be exploited in the design of applications to attract and trap CPB for survey or control purposes and other insect pests using similar orientation mechanisms.
Improving Leadership Skills in Physicians: A 6‐Month Retrospective Study

The complex medical environment of today calls for physicians to have an array of leadership skills in addition to a thorough knowledge of their specific practice areas. The American College of Obstetrics and Gynecologists (ACOG) Robert C. Cefalo National Leadership Institute is a 3.5-day intensive leadership development course targeted to physician leaders. A group of 37 physicians completed the ACOG National Leadership Institute in spring of 2013. At course completion and 6-month postcourse, participants were asked to complete a retrospective pre- and posttest of perceived skill levels in 10 targeted competency areas. Course completion and 6-month postcourse scores indicated statistically significant improvements in scores on all 10 competency areas, which was supported by a Wilcoxon signed-rank test of median score difference. Qualitative data gathered at the 6-month postcourse survey provide examples of how participants had applied their skills. The data presented in the current study suggested that intensive, “short-burst,” experiential leadership training is an effective approach for leadership skills development in physicians.