Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
On multi-trial Forney-Kovalev decoding of concatenated codes

A concatenated code $\mathcal{C} $ based on an inner code with Hamming distance $d^i$ and an outer code with Hamming distance $d^o$ is considered. An outer decoder that corrects $\varepsilon$ errors and $\theta$ erasures with high probability if $\lambda \varepsilon + \theta \le d^o - 1,$ where a real number $1<\lambda\le 2$ is the trade-off rate between errors and erasures for this decoder is used. In particular, an outer $l$-punctured RS code, i.e., a code over the field $\mathbb{F}_{q^{l }}$ of length $n^{o} < q$ with locators taken from the sub-field $\mathbb{F}_{q}$, where $l\in \{1,2,\ldots\}$ is considered. In this case, the trade-off is given by $\lambda=1+1/l$. An $m$-trial decoder, where after inner decoding, in each trial we erase an incremental number of symbols and decode using the outer decoder is proposed. The optimal erasing strategy and the error correcting radii of both fixed and adaptive erasing decoders are given. Our approach extends results of Forney and Kovalev (obtained for $\lambda=2$) to the whole given range of $\lambda$. For the fixed erasing strategy the error correcting radius approaches $\rho_F\approx\frac{d^i d^o}{2}(1-\frac{l^{-m}}{2})$ for large $d^o$. For the adaptive erasing strategy, the error correcting radius $\rho_A\approx\frac{d^i d^o}{2}(1-l^{-2m})$ quickly approaches $d^i d^o/2$ if $l$ or $m$ grows. The minimum number of trials required to reach an error correcting radius $d^i d^o/2$ is $m_A=\frac{1}{2}\left(\log_ld+1\right)$. This means that $2$ or $3$ trials are sufficient in many practical cases if $l>1$.
Hand Rehabilitation Robotics on Poststroke Motor Recovery

The recovery of hand function is one of the most challenging topics in stroke rehabilitation. Although the robot-assisted therapy has got some good results in the latest decades, the development of hand rehabilitation robotics is left behind. Existing reviews of hand rehabilitation robotics focus either on the mechanical design on designers' view or on the training paradigms on the clinicians' view, while these two parts are interconnected and both important for designers and clinicians. In this review, we explore the current literature surrounding hand rehabilitation robots, to help designers make better choices among varied components and thus promoting the application of hand rehabilitation robots. An overview of hand rehabilitation robotics is provided in this paper firstly, to give a general view of the relationship between subjects, rehabilitation theories, hand rehabilitation robots, and its evaluation. Secondly, the state of the art hand rehabilitation robotics is introduced in detail according to the classification of the hardware system and the training paradigm. As a result, the discussion gives available arguments behind the classification and comprehensive overview of hand rehabilitation robotics.
Notch‐1 signaling is lost in prostate adenocarcinoma and promotes PTEN gene expression

Prostate tumorigenesis is associated with loss of PTEN gene expression. We and others have recently reported that PTEN is regulated by Notch‐1 signaling. Herein, we tested the hypothesis that alterations of the Notch‐1 signaling pathway are present in human prostate adenocarcinoma and that Notch‐1 signaling regulates PTEN gene expression in prostate cells. Prostate adenocarcinoma cases were examined by immunohistochemistry for ligand cleaved (activated) Notch‐1 protein. Tumor foci exhibited little cleaved Notch‐1 protein, but expression was observed in benign tissue. Both tumor and benign tissue expressed total (uncleaved) Notch‐1. Reduced Hey‐1 expression was seen in tumor foci but not in benign tissue, confirming loss of Notch‐1 signaling in prostate adenocarcinoma. Retroviral expression of constitutively active Notch‐1 in human prostate tumor cell lines resulted in increased PTEN gene expression. Incubation of prostate cell lines with the Notch‐1 ligand, Delta, resulted in increased PTEN expression indicating that endogenous Notch‐1 regulates PTEN gene expression. Chromatin immunoprecipitation demonstrated that CBF‐1 was bound to the PTEN promoter. These data collectively indicate that defects in Notch‐1 signaling may play a role in human prostate tumor formation in part via a mechanism that involves regulation of the PTEN tumor suppressor gene. J. Cell. Biochem. 107: 992–1001, 2009. © 2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Intimate Partner Violence and Suicidality in Low-Income African American Women

This study used quantitative and qualitative methods to examine psychological factors that influence links between intimate partner violence (IPV) and suicidality in a sample of low-income African American women. Quantitative results demonstrated greater general coping, more efficacious behavioral strategies in response to IPV, more effective use of resources, greater use of social support, and less substance use among women who did not attempt suicide compared with those who did. Qualitative findings showed that suicide attempters showed less adaptive coping strategies aimed at accommodating the abuser, whereas nonattempters were more focused on strategies that supported leaving the relationship and/or avoiding further harm.
Framework for Infectious Disease Analysis: A comprehensive and integrative multi-modeling approach to disease prediction and management

The impact of infectious disease on human populations is a function of many factors including environmental conditions, vector dynamics, transmission mechanics, social and cultural behaviors, and public policy. A comprehensive framework for disease management must fully connect the complete disease lifecycle, including emergence from reservoir populations, zoonotic vector transmission, and impact on human societies. The Framework for Infectious Disease Analysis is a software environment and conceptual architecture for data integration, situational awareness, visualization, prediction, and intervention assessment. Framework for Infectious Disease Analysis automatically collects biosurveillance data using natural language processing, integrates structured and unstructured data from multiple sources, applies advanced machine learning, and uses multi-modeling for analyzing disease dynamics and testing interventions in complex, heterogeneous populations. In the illustrative case studies, natural language processing from social media, news feeds, and websites was used for information extraction, biosurveillance, and situation awareness. Classification machine learning algorithms (support vector machines, random forests, and boosting) were used for disease predictions.
Energy efficient techniques using FFT for deep convolutional neural networks

Deep convolutional neural networks (CNNs) has been developed for a wide range of applications such as image recognition, nature language processing, etc. However, the deployment of deep CNNs in home and mobile devices remains challenging due to substantial requirements for computing resources and energy needed for the computation of high-dimensional convolutions. In this paper, we propose a novel approach designed to minimize energy consumption in the computation of convolutions in deep CNNs. The proposed solution includes (i) an optimal selection method for Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) configuration associated with splitting input feature maps, (ii) a reconfigurable hardware architecture for computing high-dimensional convolutions based on 2D-FFT, and (iii) an optimal pipeline data movement scheduling. The FFT size selecting method enables us to determine the optimal length of the split input for the lowest energy consumption. The hardware architecture contains a processing engine (PE) array, whose PEs are connected to form parallel flexible-length Radix-2 single-delay feedback lines, enabling the computation of variable-size 2D-FFT. The pipeline data movement scheduling optimizes the transition between row-wise FFT and column-wise FFT in a 2D-FFT process and minimizes the required data access for the element-wise accumulation across input channels. Using simulations, we demonstrated that the proposed framework improves the energy consumption by 89.7% in the inference case.
Assessing linkage of monoamine oxidase B in a genome‐wide scan using a univariate variance components approach

We report results when one alcoholism related quantitative trait, monoamine oxidase B (MAOB), is analyzed by the variance components approach for linkage [Amos, 1994; Amos et al., 1996] using the Collaborative Study on the Genetics of Alcoholism data set provided for the Genetic Analysis Workshop 11. We used two different covariate models, one with age at interview, sex, ethnicity, and smoking status and the other with age at interview, sex, and ethnicity. The univariate analysis showed 24 markers on four different chromosomes (1, 4, 9, and 12) to have evidence for linkage with the quantitative trait (single‐point and multipoint linkage). However, when outliers for MAOB were removed, the significant evidence for linkage disappeared.
Metaheuristic optimization approach to mobile robot path planning

This paper presents a metaheuristic optimization-based approach to mobile robot path planning problem. A comparative study between trajectory-based metaheuristic optimization and population-based metaheuristic optimization is conducted. Breadth-first deterministic search is used to find the optimal solution (ground truth) that is compared to the paths generated by tabu search, simulated annealing and genetic algorithm. The experimental study shows that simulated annealing outperforms the other algorithms in terms of computational time while tabu search gives the shortest path.
Improving pseudo relevance feedback based query expansion using genetic fuzzy approach and semantic similarity notion

Pseudo relevance feedback-based query expansion is a popular automatic query expansion technique. However, a survey of work done in the area shows that it has a mixed chance of success. This paper captures the limitations of pseudo relevance feedback (PRF)-based query expansion and proposes a method of enhancing its performance by hybridizing corpus-based information, with a genetic fuzzy approach and semantic similarity notion. First the paper suggests use of a genetic fuzzy approach to select an optimal combination of query terms from a pool of terms obtained using PRF-based query expansion. The query terms obtained are further ranked on the basis of semantic similarity with original query terms. The experiments were performed on CISI collection, a benchmark dataset for information retrieval. It was found that the results were better in both terms of recall and precision. The main observation is that the hybridization of various techniques of query expansion in an intelligent way allows us to incorporate the good features of all of them. As this is a preliminary attempt in this direction, there is a large scope for enhancing these techniques.
Modelling Inflation in China - A Regional Perspective

We model provincial inflation in China during the reform period. In particular, we are interested in the ability of the hybrid New Keynesian Phillips Curve (NKPC) to capture the inflation process at the provincial level. The study highlights differences in inflation formation and shows that the NKPC provides a reasonable description of the inflation process only for the coastal provinces. A probit analysis suggests that the forward-looking inflation component and the output gap are important inflation drivers in provinces that have advanced most in marketisation of the economy and have most likely experienced excess demand pressures. These results have implications for the relative effectiveness of monetary policy across the Chinese provinces.
Collaborative diversity enhancements for wireless communications

The use of the spatial dimension is known to greatly increase the reliability of quasi-static (non-ergodic) wireless channels. In this paper we demonstrate that most of this gain can also he achieved through collaborative communications with single-antenna/multiple-antenna nodes when there is one receiving agent. In particular, for the single antenna case, we consider communication to take place between clusters of nearby nodes. We show the existence of collaborative codes for communications for which the intra-cluster negotiation penalty is in principle small and almost all the diversity gain of traditional space-time codes may be realized. For example, for single transmitter/receiver nodes with two collaborators that have as little as 10 dB path loss advantage over the receiver, the penalty for collaboration over traditional space-time systems is negligible.
An investigation of allergy in byssinosis: sensitization to cotton, hemp, flax and jute antigens

Popa, V. , Gavrilescu, N. , Preda, N. , Teculescu, D. , Plecias, M. , and Cîrstea, M. (1969). Brit. J. industr. Med.,26, 101-108. An investigation of allergy in byssinosis: sensitization to cotton, hemp, flax, and jute antigens. The authors investigated allergy to cotton, hemp, flax, and jute in 41 subjects with byssinosis. In contrast with immediate skin reactions, which were seldom observed, delayed reactions were nearly always present. The incidence of positive skin tests in byssinosis was similar to that observed in all textile workers. Inhalation tests with textile allergens were negative in all but four subjects who also had a concomitant bronchial asthma. Fifteen out of 31 subjects with byssinosis had positive inhalation tests to acetylcholine but only one of the 13 tested had a positive response to the inhalation of textile macerate. Haemagglutinating antibodies to low titres could be observed in byssinosis as well as in chronic bronchitis, in bronchial asthma, and in the general population. The significance of various types of antibodies existing in byssinosis is further discussed. The authors stress the need to standardize textile allergens.
CARB-9, a Carbenicillinase Encoded in the VCR Region of Vibrio cholerae Non-O1, Non-O139 Belongs to a Family of Cassette-Encoded β-Lactamases

ABSTRACT The gene blaCARB-9 was located in the Vibrio cholerae super-integron, but in a different location relative to blaCARB-7. CARB-9 (pI 5.2) conferred β-lactam MICs four to eight times lower than those conferred by CARB-7, differing at Ambler's positions V97I, L124F, and T228K. Comparison of the genetic environments of all reported blaCARB genes indicated that the CARB enzymes constitute a family of cassette-encoded β-lactamases.
Therapeutic Trial of Fluoroscopic Interlaminar Epidural Steroid Injection for Axial Low Back Pain: Effectiveness and Outcome Predictors

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: An ESI for managing LBP is one of the most commonly performed interventions. The purpose of this observational study was to assess the effect of a therapeutic trial of a fluoroscopic interlaminar ESI for axial LBP and to analyze the outcome predictors. MATERIALS AND METHODS: All patients who received an interlaminar ESI for axial LBP at our facility in 2007 and 2008 were included. Initial short-term follow-up was done at <1 month after ESI. ESI was considered effective if patients had a reduction of >50% in their pain scores. In July 2009, telephone interviews were conducted by using formatted questions including the NASS patient-satisfaction index. The symptom-free interval was computed by the Kaplan-Meier method. Outcome predictors such as age, sex, duration of LBP, and MR imaging findings were statistically analyzed by the Mann-Whitney U and the Fisher exact tests. RESULTS: Eighty-one patients (male/female = 16:65; mean age, 49.9 years; range, 17–77 years) were included in the study. The interlaminar ESI was effective in 63 of the 81 patients (77.8%) at initial short-term follow-up. For the 63 patients in whom ESI was effective, the median symptom-free interval was 154 days (95% CI, 96–212 days). Among 68 patients for whom telephone interviews were possible, 44 patients (64.7%) replied positively to the NASS patient satisfaction index (NASS patient-satisfaction index, 1 or 2). There were no significant outcome predictors. CONCLUSIONS: The therapeutic trial of a fluoroscopic interlaminar ESI was effective for axial LBP without significant outcome predictors.
Revue de la littérature sur le niveau de preuve de l’allaitement maternel versus artificiel sur le développement staturo-pondéral du nourrisson

Introduction : Une alimentation adaptee dans les premiers mois de vie favorise la croissance et le developpement moteur et cognitif du nourrisson. L’allaitement maternel montre un benefice sur le developpement des enfants. Le niveau de preuve de cette affirmation est mal connu. L’objectif de cette etude etait la realisation d’une revue de la litterature sur le niveau de preuve de l’allaitement maternel exclusif versus allaitement artificiel exclusif sur le developpement staturo-ponderal du nourrisson. Methode : Il s’agissait d’une revue systematique realisee selon les recommandations du guide PRISMA. L’equation de recherche associant les termes MeSH "Breast Feeding" et "Child Development" a ete utilisee pour le recensement des articles sur la base Pubmed. Apres selection des resumes selon les criteres d’inclusion, les versions integrales des articles eligibles ont ete lues et analysees. Les articles references dans les bibliographies de ces etudes ont ete rajoutes a l’analyse. Les etudes inclues dans la revue ont ete reparties selon leur type, leur niveau de preuve sur la base des criteres de la HAS, et leurs resultats. Resultats : 845 articles ont ete references (730 sur Pubmed, 115 retrouves dans les bibliographies des articles selectionnes). 91 ont ete juges eligibles. 13 articles ont ete finalement inclus dans la revue de la litterature : 1 essai clinique randomise, 10 etudes de cohorte, 2 etudes transversales. Toutes les etudes etaient de niveau de preuve 4. Les effets etaient heterogenes concernant les variables anthropometriques utilisees et les resultats obtenus. Beaucoup d’etudes n’ont pas retrouve de difference statistiquement significative au niveau du poids, de la taille, du perimetre crânien et du rapport poids-taille. Conclusion : Cette revue a mis en evidence un manque de qualite des etudes, en partie due a l’absence de randomisation, ainsi qu’une diversite des resultats. Elle ne permet pas de conclure a une difference de croissance staturo-ponderale entre les nourrissons exclusivement allaites et ceux exclusivement nourris aux preparations pour nourrisson.
Automated Comparative Proteomics Based on Multiplex Tandem Mass Spectrometry and Stable Isotope Labeling *

Comparative proteomic approaches using isotopic labeling and MS have become increasingly popular. Conventionally quantification is based on MS or extracted ion chromatogram (XIC) signals of differentially labeled peptides. However, in these MS-based experiments, the accuracy and dynamic range of quantification are limited by the high noise levels of MS/XIC data. Here we report a quantitative strategy based on multiplex (derived from multiple precursor ions) MS/MS data. One set of proteins was metabolically labeled with [13C6]lysine and [15N4]arginine; the other set was unlabeled. For peptide analysis after tryptic digestion of the labeled proteins, a wide precursor window was used to include both the light and heavy versions of each peptide for fragmentation. The multiplex MS/MS data were used for both protein identification and quantification. The use of the wide precursor window increased sensitivity, and the y ion pairs in the multiplex MS/MS spectra from peptides containing labeled and unlabeled lysine or arginine offered more information for, and thus the potential for improving, protein identification. Protein ratios were obtained by comparing intensities of y ions derived from the light and heavy peptides. Our results indicated that this method offers several advantages over the conventional XIC-based approach, including increased sensitivity for protein identification and more accurate quantification with more than a 10-fold increase in dynamic range. In addition, the quantification calculation process was fast, fully automated, and independent of instrument and data type. This method was further validated by quantitative analysis of signaling proteins in the EphB2 pathway in NG108 cells.
Représentation des expressions calendaires dans les textes : vers une application à la lecture assistée de biographies [Representation of calendar expressions in texts: towards an application to assisted reading of biographies]

Cet article aborde le probleme de la representation formelle des expressions calendaires et en presente une analyse fonctionnelle, fondee sur la representation categorique des ordinaux. Il expose ensuite un projet d'aide a la lecture d'un texte biographique long selon une navigation temporelle.
DNA amplification to enhance detection of genetically engineered bacteria in environmental samples

The polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was performed to amplify a 1.0-kilobase (kb) probe-specific region of DNA from the herbicide-degrading bacterium Pseudomonas cepacia AC1100 in order to increase the sensitivity of detecting the organism by dot-blot analysis. The 1.0-kb region was an integral portion of a larger 1.3-kb repeat sequence which is present as 15 to 20 copies on the P. cepacia AC1100 genome. PCR was performed by melting the target DNA, annealing 24-base oligonucleotide primers to unique sequences flanking the 1.0-kb region, and performing extension reactions with DNA polymerase. After extension, the DNA was again melted, and the procedure was repeated for a total of 25 to 30 cycles. After amplification the reaction mixture was transferred to nylon filters and hybridized against radiolabeled 1.0-kb fragment probe DNA. Amplified target DNA was detectable in samples initially containing as little as 0.3 pg of target. The addition of 20 micrograms of nonspecific DNA isolated from sediment samples did not hinder amplification or detection of the target DNA. The detection of 0.3 pg of target DNA was at least a 10(3)-fold increase in the sensitivity of detecting gene sequences compared with dot-blot analysis of nonamplified samples. PCR performed after bacterial DNA was isolated from sediment samples permitted the detection of as few as 100 cells of P. cepacia AC1100 per 100 g of sediment sample against a background of 10(11) diverse nontarget organisms; that is, P. cepacia AC1100 was positively detected at a concentration of 1 cell per g of sediment. This represented a 10(3)-fold increase in sensitivity compared with nonamplified samples.
Bronchopneumonia associated with Mannheimia granulomatis infection in a Belgian hare (Lepus europaeus)

Mannheimia granulomatis was first isolated from pneumonic European hares in the 1980s and has since been reported sporadically in pneumonic Swedish roe deer and Australian cattle. Although the pneumonic lesions caused by M. haemolytica in livestock have been extensively studied and reported, little is published with regard to the pneumonic lesions associated with M. granulomatis infection in any species. We describe the histopathology of purulent bronchopneumonia associated with M. granulomatis in a Belgian hare (Lepus europaeus) resident in British Columbia, Canada, and compare the lesions with those caused by M. haemolytica in livestock.
Fast Encapsulating Domain Decomposition scheme for the analysis of 2D large arbitrarily shaped open-ended cavities

We introduce the fast Encapsulating Domain Decomposition (EDD) scheme for the analysis of radar returns from arbitrarily shaped, elongated open-ended cavities. The scheme is demonstrated here for the 2D-TM case only. The EDD is a hybrid spatial-spectral domain decomposition scheme where the cavity is decomposed into segments along its axis, and the fields on the coupling cross-sections between segments are represented spectrally while those on the cavity¿s walls are represented spatially. This reduces the computational complexity per segment from O(N3) to O(MN2), where N is the number of cross-sectional unknowns and M is the number of wall unknowns per segment, satisfying M<<N, since we construct the segmentation step to be small compared with the cross section.