Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Distilled Collections from Textual Image Queries

We present a distillation algorithm which operates on a large, unstructured, and noisy collection of internet images returned from an online object query. We introduce the notion of a distilled set, which is a clean, coherent, and structured subset of inlier images. In addition, the object of interest is properly segmented out throughout the distilled set. Our approach is unsupervised, built on a novel clustering scheme, and solves the distillation and object segmentation problems simultaneously. In essence, instead of distilling the collection of images, we distill a collection of loosely cutout foreground “shapes”, which may or may not contain the queried object. Our key observation, which motivated our clustering scheme, is that outlier shapes are expected to be random in nature, whereas, inlier shapes, which do tightly enclose the object of interest, tend to be well supported by similar shapes captured in similar views. We analyze the commonalities among candidate foreground segments, without aiming to analyze their semantics, but simply by clustering similar shapes and considering only the most significant clusters representing non‐trivial shapes. We show that when tuned conservatively, our distillation algorithm is able to extract a near perfect subset of true inliers. Furthermore, we show that our technique scales well in the sense that the precision rate remains high, as the collection grows. We demonstrate the utility of our distillation results with a number of interesting graphics applications.
Ice formation in unsaturated frozen soils

This paper presents a procedure for determining unfrozen water saturation in a partially saturated frozen soil (clayey silt) using bulk electrical conductivity (EC) measurements. A modification of Archie’s law is proposed to describe the relationship between soil bulk EC, temperature, porosity and degree of unfrozen water saturation. Compacted samples have been prepared at a dry density around 1.90 Mg/m3 and at different degrees of saturation. Samples have been then subjected to freezing paths up to -15 °C. Measurements of bulk EC along the temperature decrease and freezing paths have been used to calibrate parameters associated with the proposed model. These calibrated models allow determining the amount of ice content for a given state of the partially saturated soil (porosity, initial degree of water saturation and temperature). The soil freezing retention curve has been also estimated by combining the Clausius-Clapeyron equation with water retention data on drying. A good agreement has been observed between the estimation based on EC measurements and results from water retention data, which validates the proposed procedure. 2 MATERIALS AND METHODS
Workplace bullying and subsequent health problems.

BACKGROUND Cross-sectional studies demonstrate that exposure to bullying in the workplace is positively correlated with self-reported health problems. However, these studies do not provide a basis to draw conclusions on the extent to which bullying leads to increased health problems or whether health problems increase the risk of being bullied. To provide better indications of a causal relationship, knowledge from prospective studies on the association between bullying in the workplace and health outcomes is therefore summarised. MATERIAL AND METHOD We conducted a systematic literature review of original articles from central literature databases on longitudinal associations between bullying in the workplace and health. Average associations between bullying and health outcomes are calculated using meta-analysis. RESULTS A consistent finding across the studies is that exposure to bullying is significantly positively related to mental health problems (OR =1.68; 95% KI 1.35-2.09) and somatic symptoms (OR = 1.77; 95% KI 1.41-2.22) over time. Mental health problems are also associated with subsequent exposure to bullying (OR = 1.74; 95% KI 1.44-2.12). INTERPRETATION Bullying is positively related to mental health problems and somatic symptoms. The association between mental health problems and subsequent bullying indicates a self-reinforcing process between mental health and bullying. The methodological quality of the studies that were conducted is relatively sound. However, based on the existing knowledge base there are no grounds for conclusions regarding an unambiguous causal relationship between bullying and health.
Antioxidant and Antimicrobial Properties of the Essential Oil and Extracts of Zanthoxylum alatum Grown in North-Western Himalaya

The essential oil obtained from the fresh leaves of Zanthoxylum alatum was analysed by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS). Fourteen components were identified, and linalool (30.58%), 2-decanone (20.85%), β-fenchol (9.43%), 2-tridecanone (8.86%), β-phellandrene (5.99%), Sabinene (4.82%), and α-pinene (4.11%) were the main components. The EO and methanolic extract of Z. alatum exhibited potent antifungal activity against Alternaria alternata, Alternaria brassicae, and Curvularia lunata. The EO also showed significant antibacterial activity against Bacillus subtilis, Micrococcus luteus, Staphylococcus aureus, and Escherichia coli. Further, antimicrobial constituents of the EO were isolated by bioautography and preparative thin layer chromatography (PTLC) and identified as β-fenchol and linalool using GC/MS analysis. In addition to this, the free radical scavenging activity and antioxidant potential of EO and methanolic extract/fractions of Z. alatum were also investigated using in vitro assays including scavenging ability against DPPH•, reducing power and chelating ability on Fe2+ ions. Our results demonstrate that Z. alatum could be used as a resource of antioxidant and antimicrobial compounds which may find applications in food and pesticide industries.
Efficient Semantic Inference over Language Expressions

According to the traditional formal semantics approach, inference is conducted at the logical level. Texts are first translated into some logical form and then new propositions are inferred from interpreted texts by a logical theorem prover. However, text understanding systems usually employ shallower lexical and lexical-syntactic representations, sometimes augmented with partial semantic annotations like word senses, named-entity classes and semantic roles. While practical semantic inference is mostly performed over linguistic rather than logical representations, such practices are typically partial and quite ad-hoc, and lack a clear formalism that specifies how inference knowledge should be represented and applied.
Retarding aging-Healthy aging

dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) and DHEA sulfate (DHEASS) (adrenopause). Hence, there have been several reports of hormone replacement therapy (HRT) to delay or prevent some of the consequences of aging. However, HRT is not without sideeffects. We should use “aging” synonymously with “senescence” rather than merely to describe the actual age of the person.2 The desire for ageless bodies covers the pursuit not only of longer lives, but also of lives that remain active longer. It involves not only to add years to life but also to add life to years. For life extension, one may consider three broad approaches. 1. Efforts to cut down infant mortality and other causes of death due to infections in young people so that people live to old age. Developed countries have achieved this goal. 2. Efforts to further prolong the lives of elderly persons by reducing the incidence and severity of diseases during middle age.
A multi-resolution admissible solution approach for diffuse optical tomography

We address the use of diffuse light to characterize the space-varying absorption coefficient in tissue, posed as an inverse problem, ill-posed due to the physics and limitations on source-detector location. Accurate reliable solutions require a priori constraints. We extend our previously utilized admissible solution approach, with convex constraint functions defining admissibility conditions, by using the deep-cut ellipsoid algorithm, iteratively choosing the most important constraint value, and introducing a multi-resolution grid method to decrease the computational burden. Simulations in representative 2-D scenarios indicate that we successfully reconstruct relatively deep anomalies while reducing the computational time more than 95%.
Making an IMPACT: Designing and Testing a Novel Attentional Training Game to Reduce Social Anxiety

Development of novel candidate interventions to treat anxiety disorders is an important research priority, given the burden of these disorders, barriers to treatment access, and the promising but limited success of current approaches, including attentional bias modification treatment. I created a novel training game paradigm, Intrinsically-Motivating Playable Attentional Control Training (IMPACT), with several potential ways that its design could increase the strength of attentional change and commensurate clinical benefits beyond existing training methods. In a large online experiment, I randomized participants among three alternative IMPACT training conditions. All involved the same smiling and disgust faces falling down on the screen, and players tapped faces to score points and prevent them from reaching the bottom. In IMPACT-Positive, players tapped smiling faces only, ignoring disgust faces. In IMPACT-Threat, players tapped disgust faces, ignoring smiling faces. In IMPACT-Undirected, players tapped all faces without regard to expression. After training, participants completed flanker tasks, reaction-time measures of general and emotional attentional control and attentional bias toward threat versus neutral stimuli. Participants also confronted an anxiety-provoking stressor and rated their state anxiety before IMPACT, after IMPACT, and after the stressor. I tested hypotheses regarding differential effects of the training variants on attentional measures and anxiety reactivity, finding that training did not cause group differences in measures of general or emotional attentional control, but they did lead to differences in attentional bias. The anxiety-provoking stressor induced a rapid rise in anxiety, but no differences emerged among the training conditions.
Community factors shaping HIV-related stigma among young people in three African countries

Abstract Despite the high prevalence of HIV/AIDS that exists in many sub-Saharan African countries, very little is known of the prevalence and context of HIV-related stigma in these settings. This paper seeks to understand the community-level factors associated with HIV-related stigma among young people in three culturally contrasting African countries: Burkina Faso, Ghana and Zambia. Using nationally representative data on young people (15–24) from Burkina Faso, Ghana and Zambia, the analysis examines the economic, demographic and behavioral dimensions of community environments that shape HIV-related stigma among young people. The results demonstrate a clear influence of the community environment on shaping HIV-related stigma among young people. The elements of the community that were significantly associated with HIV-related stigma were the economic and behavioral aspects of the community environment, and there was no evidence of relationships between demographic patterns and HIV-related stigma. Behavioral change interventions must address HIV-related stigma in order to encourage behavior change, and must take into account the social, economic and cultural environments in which young people exist.
Query routing in the TerraDir distributed directory

We present the design and evaluation of the query-routing protocol of the TerraDir distributed directory. TerraDir is a wide-area distributed directory designed for hierarchical namespaces, and provides a lookup service for mapping keys to objects. We introduce distributed lookup and caching algorithms that leverage the underlying data hierarchy. Our algorithms provide efficient lookups while avoiding the load imbalances often associated with hierarchical systems. The TerraDir load balancing scheme also incorporates a node replication algorithm that provides configurable failure resilience with provably low overheads.
Assessing Routing Strategies for Cognitive Radio Sensor Networks

Interest in the cognitive radio sensor network (CRSN) paradigm has gradually grown among researchers. This concept seeks to fuse the benefits of dynamic spectrum access into the sensor network, making it a potential player in the next generation (NextGen) network, which is characterized by ubiquity. Notwithstanding its massive potential, little research activity has been dedicated to the network layer. By contrast, we find recent research trends focusing on the physical layer, the link layer and the transport layers. The fact that the cross-layer approach is imperative, due to the resource-constrained nature of CRSNs, can make the design of unique solutions non-trivial in this respect. This paper seeks to explore possible design opportunities with wireless sensor networks (WSNs), cognitive radio ad-hoc networks (CRAHNs) and cross-layer considerations for implementing viable CRSN routing solutions. Additionally, a detailed performance evaluation of WSN routing strategies in a cognitive radio environment is performed to expose research gaps. With this work, we intend to lay a foundation for developing CRSN routing solutions and to establish a basis for future work in this area.
T, B, and NKT Cells in Systemic Inflammation in Obstructive Sleep Apnoea

Background. Obstructive sleep apnoea syndrome (OSAS) brings risk of serious complications. The study objective was to assess elements of the cellular immune response in the course of OSAS. Methods. Peripheral blood (PB) lymphocytes: T, B, NK, NKT-like, Th, Tc, and HLA DR+ T cells were evaluated by flow cytometry of 48 OSA patients; the concentration of adiponectin, interleukin 1β, and TNFα was measured by ELISA method. The OSA complication score was developed and used for statistical analysis. Results. The proportion of B cells and Th/Tc ratio were significantly lower in the BP of OSA patients when compared with control subjects (median 7.9 versus 10.9%, 0.9 versus 1.5, p < 0.05). The proportion of Tc, NK, NKT-like, and HLADR positive T cells were elevated in OSA patients when compared with healthy subjects (36.4 versus 26.8, 15.5 versus 8.5, 5.7 versus 3.0, and 8.4 versus 4.5%, p < 0.05, resp.) and were more pronounced in patients with metabolic syndrome. The grade of OSA complication score correlated with systemic inflammation markers and the proportion of B cells. The value of adiponectin/BMI ratio correlated significantly with SpO2 (r = 0.31, p < 0.05), CRP (r = −0.35, p < 0.05), TNFα concentration (r = −0.36, p < 0.05), and proportion of B cells (r = 0.32, p < 0.05). Conclusion. Lymphocytes B, Tc, NK, NKT-like, and adiponectin are involved in systemic immune response in OSA patients possibly predisposing them to cardiovascular and metabolic complications.
Molecular field-free alignment driven by femtosecond laser field

The field-free alignment behaviors of some molecules driven by the femtosecond laser pulses are theoretically investigated. We detailedly discuss the temporal evolution of the molecular rotational wave-packet under different laser intensities, different laser pulse durations and different molecular rotational temperatures. The results show that the degree of the molecular alignment depends not only on the laser intensity and the laser pulse duration, but also on the molecular rotational temperature. Finally, we demonstrate the feasible approaches to enhance the molecular alignment degree for practical application.
Lymphocyte Populations in Tuberculous Pleural Effusions

Different systemic and local responses to mycobacterial antigens suggest an active compartmentalization of responsive lymphocytes to tubercular antigens. This fact, observed in pleuritic processes, raises doubts about the accuracy of information obtained in the study of cells taken solely from peripheral blood. For this reason we decided to study the concept of compartmentalization in 140 patients suffering from pleural effusions. Patients were classified into six groups according to the aetiology of the effusion: group I, tuberculous, n = 23; group II, paraneoplastic, n = 41; group III, metapneumonic empyematous, n = 5; group IV, transudate, n = 38; group V, miscellaneous exudate, n = 19; group VI, unknown aetiology, n = 14. In each group we studied the lymphocyte population by using flow cytometry with doubly fluorescent monoclonal antibodies: B [expressing human lymphocyte antigen (HLA)-DR on the surface], T (CD3 +), CD4 + and CD8 +, and the subpopulation of activated T lymphocytes (together expressing CD3 and HLA-DR on the surface) (CD3 + DR +). The study of these subpopulations in peripheral blood did not yield valuable results, but the CD3 + DR + population in pleural fluid demonstrated a diagnostic efficiency of 84% [positive predictive value (PPV) 51%, negative predictive value (NPV) 96%] at a cut-off value of 80.4 cells/mm3. The CD3 + DR + pleural fluid/peripheral blood ratio demonstrated an efficiency of 83% (PPV 50%, NPV 96%), and showed a statistically significant difference (P < 0·02) with regard to all the diagnostic groups, with the exception of the paraneoplastic effusions. The lymphocytic subpopulations study confirms the concept of compartmentalization in tuberculous pleuritis, as shown by the greater number of activated T lymphocytes present in pleural fluid in comparison with peripheral blood in tuberculous pleuritis, a 98% efficiency of adenosine deaminase (ADA) determination in pleural fluid versus a 50% value in peripheral blood, predominance of helper cells (CD4 +) in pleural fluid and suppressor cells (CD8 +) in peripheral blood, a greater CD4 + /CD8 + ratio in pleural fluid than in peripheral blood, and a significant correlation of ADA-CD3 + DR + in pleural fluid, which does not occur in peripheral blood.
Molecular Mechanisms of Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor (egfr) Activation and Response to Gefitinib and Other Egfr-targeting Drugs Ccr Focus

The epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) family of receptor tyrosine kinases, including EGFR, HER2/erbB2, and HER3/erbB3, is an attractive target for antitumor strategies. Aberrant EGFR signaling is correlated with progression of various malignancies, and somatic tyrosine kinase domain mutations in the EGFR gene have been discovered in patients with non ^ small cell lung cancer responding to EGFR-targeting small molecular agents, such as gefitinib and erlotinib. EGFR overexpression is thought to be the principal mechanism of activation in various malignant tumors. Moreover, an increased EGFR copy number is associated with improved survival in non ^ small cell lung cancer patients, suggesting that increased expression of mutant and/or wild-type EGFR molecules could be molecular determinants of responses to gefitinib. However, as EGFR mutations and/or gene gains are not observed in all patients who respond partially to treatment, alternative mechanisms might confer sensitivity to EGFR-targeting agents. Preclinical studies showed that sensitivity to EGFR tyrosine kinase inhibitors depends on how closely cell survival and growth signalings are coupled with EGFR, and also with HER2 and HER3, in each cancer. This review also describes a possible association between EGFR phosphorylation and drug sensitivity in cancer cells, as well as discussing the antiangiogenic effect of gefitinib in association with EGFR activation and phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase/Akt activation in vascular en-dothelial cells. The epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) is a member of the erbB family of receptor tyrosine kinase proteins, which also includes HER2/neu (erbB2), HER3 (erbB3), and HER4 (erbB4). These receptors are composed of an extracellular ligand-binding domain, a transmembrane lipophilic domain, and an intracellu-lar tyrosine kinase domain and, with the exception of HER2, all bind to receptor-specific ligands (Fig. 1A and B). Phosphor-ylation of the tyrosine kinase domain followed by homodime-rization or heterodimerization between different receptors of the same family leads to protein activation (1). Receptor dimerization is promoted by ligand binding, high receptor density from overexpression, and mutations in the kinase domain. Protein activation on the cell surface of cancer cells is believed to promote signaling cascades, cell growth, differentiation, cell survival (apoptosis), drug and radiation sensitivity, cell cycle progression, and angiogenesis (Fig. 1A). For cancer cells, various mechanisms of EGFR activation are now shown: overexpression of ligands and receptors, EGFR gene gain, and activating mutations. Under physiologic conditions, specific soluble ligands bind to the extracellular domains of EGFR, HER3, and HER4, but no ligand has been identified for HER2 (Fig. 1A). Of these ligands, …
How Synaptic Release Probability Shapes Neuronal Transmission: Information-Theoretic Analysis in a Cerebellar Granule Cell

A nerve cell receives multiple inputs from upstream neurons by way of its synapses. Neuron processing functions are thus influenced by changes in the biophysical properties of the synapse, such as long-term potentiation (LTP) or depression (LTD). This observation has opened new perspectives on the biophysical basis of learning and memory, but its quantitative impact on the information transmission of a neuron remains partially elucidated. One major obstacle is the high dimensionality of the neuronal input-output space, which makes it unfeasible to perform a thorough computational analysis of a neuron with multiple synaptic inputs. In this work, information theory was employed to characterize the information transmission of a cerebellar granule cell over a region of its excitatory input space following synaptic changes. Granule cells have a small dendritic tree (on average, they receive only four mossy fiber afferents), which greatly bounds the input combinatorial space, reducing the complexity of information-theoretic calculations. Numerical simulations and LTP experiments quantified how changes in neurotransmitter release probability (p) modulated information transmission of a cerebellar granule cell. Numerical simulations showed that p shaped the neurotransmission landscape in unexpected ways. As p increased, the optimality of the information transmission of most stimuli did not increase strictly monotonically; instead it reached a plateau at intermediate p levels. Furthermore, our results showed that the spatiotemporal characteristics of the inputs determine the effect of p on neurotransmission, thus permitting the selection of distinctive preferred stimuli for different p values. These selective mechanisms may have important consequences on the encoding of cerebellar mossy fiber inputs and the plasticity and computation at the next circuit stage, including the parallel fiberPurkinje cell synapses.