Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
QCRI Machine Translation Systems for IWSLT 16

This paper describes QCRI's machine translation systems for the IWSLT 2016 evaluation campaign. We participated in the Arabic->English and English->Arabic tracks. We built both Phrase-based and Neural machine translation models, in an effort to probe whether the newly emerged NMT framework surpasses the traditional phrase-based systems in Arabic-English language pairs. We trained a very strong phrase-based system including, a big language model, the Operation Sequence Model, Neural Network Joint Model and Class-based models along with different domain adaptation techniques such as MML filtering, mixture modeling and using fine tuning over NNJM model. However, a Neural MT system, trained by stacking data from different genres through fine-tuning, and applying ensemble over 8 models, beat our very strong phrase-based system by a significant 2 BLEU points margin in Arabic->English direction. We did not obtain similar gains in the other direction but were still able to outperform the phrase-based system. We also applied system combination on phrase-based and NMT outputs.
Analog Front End Low Noise Amplifier in 0.18-µm CMOS for Ultrasound Imaging Applications

We present the design of Analog front end (AFE) low noise pre-amplifier implemented in a high voltage 0.18-μm CMOS technology for a three dimensional ultrasound bio microscope (3D UBM) application. The fabricated chip has 4X16 pre-amplifiers implemented to interface a 2-D array of high frequency capacitive micro-machined ultrasound transducers (CMUT). Core AFE cell consists of a high-voltage pulser in the transmit path, and a low-noise transimpedance amplifier in the receive path. Proposed system offers a high image resolution by the use of high frequency CMUTs with associated high performance imaging electronics integrated together. Performance requirements and the design methods of the high bandwidth transimpedance amplifier are described in the paper. A single cell of transimpedance (TIA) amplifier and the bias circuit occupies a silicon area of 250X380 μm and the full chip occupies a total silicon area of 10x6.8mm2. Keywords—Ultrasound, analog front end, medical imaging, beam forming, biomicroscope, transimpedance gain.
A Robustly Stable PI Controller For The Doubly-Fed Induction Machine

In this paper we propose a new control scheme for the doubly-fed induction machine (DFIM) that offers significant advantages, and is considerably simpler, than the classical vector control method. In contrast with the latter, where the DFIM is represented in a stator flux-oriented frame, we propose here a model with orientation of the stator voltage. This allows for an easy decomposition of the active and reactive powers on the stator side and their regulation - acting on the rotor voltage - via stator current control. Our main contribution is the proof that a linear PI control around the stator currents ensures global stability for a feedback linearized DFIM, provided the gains are suitably selected. The feedback linearization stage requires only measurement of the rotor and stator currents, hence is easily implementable. Finally, an outer loop control for the mechanical speed is introduced. The complete control system is tested both in simulations and experiments, showing good transient performance and robustness properties
Characterizing WLAN Medium Utilization for Radio Environment Maps

This paper explores the possibility to use the medium utilization as a metric to be included in Radio Environment Maps (REMs) of WLAN networks. The main objective is to build REMs that go beyond the spectrum use and that can be used to improve deployment and operation of WLANs. Specifically, the paper focuses on, first, exploring the possibility to approximate wireless channel utilization as a spatial random field. Second, the paper proposes an approach to obtain distributed measurements of medium utilization and spatial characterizations of to build utilization maps. And, third, the paper studies the performance of regular spatial interpolation techniques when used to build utilization maps. We have used a WLAN network testbed to support the study for which we obtain and analyze practical maps. Our experimental results show that medium utilization of any location of the area under study can be estimated with average errors of 10\% by only using a limited number of measurement points.
Biomechanical Approach to Open-Loop Bipedal Running with a Musculoskeletal Athlete Robot

In this study, a musculoskeletal robot is used as a tool to investigate how animals control their complex body. Sprinting is a challenging task that requires maximizing the potential resources of a musculoskeletal structure. Our approach to robotic sprinting is the Athlete Robot — a musculoskeletal robot with elastic blade feet controlled by feedforward motor command. We use a catapult launcher to provide a stable start to a sprint, and then examine the relation between the initial velocity imparted by the launcher and the change in orientation of the robot. We also investigate the influence of the change in elasticity of the blade foot. The results show that acceleration causes anterior inclination after the first step. The elasticity of the foot dominates the duration of the support phase. The musculoskeletal system of the Athlete Robot is modified to suit catapulted running. Based on the results from real robot experiments, we can provide a consistent propelling force using the catapult launcher. We demonstrate the Athlete Robot running for five steps after a catapult launch, using only feedforward command.
Multi-mode Harmonic Transform Excitation LPC Coding for Speech and Music

A multi-mode harmonic transform coding (MMHTC) for speech and music signals is proposed. Its structure is organized as a linear prediction model with an input of harmonic and transform-based excitation. The proposed coder also utilizes harmonic prediction and an improved quantizer of excitation signal. To efficiently quantize the excitation of music signals, the modulated lapped transform (MLT) is introduced. In other words, the coder combines both the time domain (linear prediction) and the frequency domain technique to achieve the best perceptual quality. The proposed coder showed better speech quality than that of the 8kbps QCELP coder at a bit-rate of 4kbps.
Assessment of sun reactive skin type with multiple correspondence analysis, hierarchical and tree‐structured classification methods

The sun reactive skin type classification is based on sunburn susceptibility, tanning ability and phenotypic information. As subjects rarely match all features of a given skin type, the attribution to a class is partially subjective. The aims of the study, were to analyse the contribution of each characteristic to the classification made by the expert, and to establish a classification based on a statistical approach conducted on 212 women living in the Ile‐de‐France area. Multiple regression was used to construct a formula for each phototype. The coefficients obtained demonstrated that the importance of each characteristic was extremely variable from one phototype to another, suggesting that the phototype determination could be facilitated by adding a weight for every characteristic in the decision. Then, multiple correspondence analysis and clustering analysis methods showed that one phototype could be divided into two more homogenous classes.
In vitro models of T cell development.

A number of in vitro systems are currently being used to study both thymocyte development and thymic stromal cell function. However, the usefulness of dispersed culture systems is limited since they often involve disruption of interactions within the normal three-dimensional architecture of the thymus in vivo which are critical for normal development to proceed. In contrast, Fetal Thymus Organ Culture (FTOC) provides an experimental system where such interactions are maintained, thereby allowing in vitro access to key aspects of thymocyte development. More recently, Reaggregate Thymus Organ Cultures (RTOCs) have allowed detailed analysis of thymic stromal cell function, while retroviral transfection of thymocyte subsets under FTOC conditions provides a rapid means to investigate thymocyte development at the molecular level. Current use of the FTOC approach is summarised here, and where appropriate is compared to the use of dispersed culture systems.
Culture and the behavioural manifestations of traits: an application of the Act Frequency Approach

The behavioural manifestations of Big Five traits were compared across cultures using the Act Frequency Approach. American (n = 176) and Filipino (n = 195) students completed a Big Five measure and act frequency ratings for behaviours performed during the past month. Acts for specific traits cohered to an equivalent degree across cultures. In both cultures, the structure of act composites resembled the Big Five and the strength of trait‐behaviour relationships was very similar. Many acts were multidimensional and analyses revealed cultural commonalities and differences in the relevance and prevalence of acts for the Big Five traits. The results were more consistent with trait than cultural psychology perspectives, because traits predicted behaviour equally well, on average, in the two cultures. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Identification of ARA70 as a Ligand-enhanced Coactivator for the Peroxisome Proliferator-activated Receptor γ*

In an effort to understand transcriptional regulation by the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ (PPARγ), we have investigated its potential interaction with coregulators and have identified ARA70 as a ligand-enhanced coactivator. ARA70 was initially described as a coactivator for the androgen receptor (AR) and is expressed in a range of tissues including adipose tissue (Yeh, S., and Chang, C. (1996) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U. S. A. 93, 5517–5521). Here we show that ARA70 and PPARγ specifically interact by coimmunoprecipitation and in a mammalian two-hybrid assay. PPARγ and ARA70 interact in the absence of the PPARγ ligand 15-deoxy-Δ12,14-prostaglandin J2, although the addition of exogenous ligand enhances this interaction. Similarly, in transient transfection of DU145 cells, cotransfection of PPARγ and ARA70 induces transcription from reporter constructs driven by either three copies of an isolated PPAR response element or the natural promoter of the adipocyte fatty acid-binding protein 2 in the absence of exogenous 15-deoxy-Δ12,14-prostaglandin J2. However, this PPARγ-ARA70 transactivation is enhanced by the addition of ligand. Thus, ARA70 can function as a ligand-enhanced coactivator of PPARγ. Finally, we show that AR can squelch PPARγ-ARA70 transactivation, which suggests that cross-talk may occur between PPARγ- and AR-mediated responses in adipocytes.
Construction of Japanese semantically compatible words resource

We have constructed a Japanese semantically compatible resource and attached it to a dictionary used in our language analyzer, which segments text into words. We expect that semantically compatible words solve the data sparseness problem of corpus-based Natural Language Processing. By grouping compatible words together, the amount of words to process can be much reduced. In this study, we define hyponymy-and-hypernymy relation groups and synonym groups as semantically compatible words. The semantically compatible resource contains 343 concepts as hyponymy-and-hypernymy relation groups and 21,784 concepts as synonymy groups. We can obtain semantically compatible words from a Japanese word analyzer, SNOWMAN. The constructed resource will be available to the public.
A NEW APPROACH TO REPRESENT ROTATED HAAR-LIKE FEATURES FOR OBJECTS DETECTION 1

In this paper, we propose a new approach to detect rotated object at distinct angles using the Viola-Jones detector. Our method is based on two main steps: in the first step, we determine the rotated Haar-like feature by any angle (45°, 26.5°, 63.5° and others), this allowed us to obtain a very large number of Haarlike features for use them during the boosting stage. The normal Integral Image is very easy to be calculated, but for rotated Haar-like feature, their computation is practically very hard. For this reason, in second step, we propose a function to calculate an approximate value of rotated Integral Image at a generic angle. To concretize our method, we test our algorithm on two databases (Umist and CMU-PIE), containing a set of faces attributed to many variations in scale, location, orientation (in-plane rotation), pose (out-of-plane rotation), facial expression, lighting conditions, occlusions, etc.
The bad apple spoils the bunch: how a disagreeable person damages team performance and what can be done about it

Teams are being used more in organizations to do important work. However, both positive and negative effects come with the increased use of teams. One problem is the “bad apple” effect where a highly disagreeable team mate, for example, damages team performance. This research aims to study how this person damages team performance and what can be done to minimize the negative impact. I propose that a disagreeable teammate negatively impacts team affective states which in turn give rise to defensive behaviors among teammates. These defensive behaviors impact team processes which in turn impact the team’s performance. In addition, I propose that team interdependence moderates the impact of disagreeableness on teammate affective reactions such that teammates in less interdependent contexts will react less negatively to the “bad apple. ” I designed a 2x2 lab experiment with a confederate, or trained research participant, to test these hypotheses. I manipulated disagreeableness through the behaviors of the confederate and I manipulated interdependence through the information, goals, and rewards of the teams. Results support all the hypothesized relationships. Of note, I found that interdependence interacted with disagreeableness to predict team affective reactions as measured by salivary cortisol – a well established biomarker for affective reactions. I also found support for a mediating model using team core affect or affective culture mediating the impact of disagreeableness on team process. Finally, I found support for a mediated moderation model demonstrating that the moderation of interdependence and disagreeableness on team process was mediated by team cortisol. However, the impact on process was in the opposite direction than expected. Namely,
Performance enhancement of circular polarization reconfigurable monopole antenna using metasurface

A circular polarization-reconfigurable (CPR) monopole antenna for Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) applications is proposed. The CPR antenna consists of two meandered monopoles denoted as MP1 and MP2, a switchable feeding network, and a metasurface (MS) using dual-cap mushroom-like unit cells. The two monopoles have tapered shapes for better matching and wider impedance bandwidth. The switchable feeding network is composed of a double-pole double-throw (DPDT) switch and a 90°-phase shifter implemented using a λg/4-microstrip line. The DC control voltages to the DPDT switch determine if the two signals fed to MP1 and MP2 have a phase difference of 90° or -90°, hence generating a RHCP or LHCP signal, respectively. The MS consists of eight dual-cap mushroom-like unit cells and is placed at a distance of hr=0.09 λ0 from the source antenna. Simulation results show that, the MS can increase the boresight gain and the operating bandwidth from 0.4 to 6.6 dBi, and 1.46-1.79 GHz to 1.42-1.88 GHz, respectively.
The Wisconsin Epidemiologic Study of Diabetic Retinopathy: XVI. The Relationship of C-Peptide to the Incidence and Progression of Diabetic Retinopathy

The relationship between plasma C-peptide and the 6-year incidence and progression of diabetic retinopathy was examined in a population-based study in Wisconsin. Individuals with younger-onset (n = 548) and older-onset (n = 459) diabetes were included. C-peptide was measured by radioimmunoassay with Heeling's M1230 antiserum. Retinopathy was determined from stereoscopic fundus photographs. Younger- and older-onset insulinusing individuals with undetectable or low plasma Cpeptide (<0.3 nmol/L) at baseline had the highest incidence and rates of progression of retinopathy, whereas older-onset individuals with C-peptides >0.3 nmol/1 had the lowest incidence and rates of progression of retinopathy. However, within each group (youngeronset using insulin, older-onset using insulin, and olderonset not using insulin), after we controlled for other characteristics associated with retinopathy, there was no relationship between higher levels of C-peptide at baseline and lower 6-year incidence or progression of retinopathy. These data suggest that glycemic control, and not C-peptide, is related to the incidence and progression of diabetic retinopathy.
Effects of metaphyseal bone tumor removal with preservation of the epiphysis and knee arthroplasty

In this study, the effects of surgical removal of malignant metaphyseal bone tumors with epiphysis preservation and knee arthroplasty were analyzed. A total of 15 patients with malignant metaphyseal bone tumors were investigated. Six of these patients underwent epiphyseal preservation surgery with preoperative physeal distraction, termed the physeal distraction (PD) group. Nine patients underwent resection of the knee joint, combined with metal prosthesis transfer, termed the knee arthroplasty (KA) group. Tumor control, limb length discrepancy, range of movement (ROM) of the knee and functional outcome of lower limb [Musculoskeletal Tumor Society (MSTS) score and the Toronto extremity salvage score (TESS)] were assessed for these two groups. All 15 patients were followed-up after the surgery. One patient in the PD group was found to have lung tumor metastasis; however, no local tumor recurrence was found. In the KA group, local tumor recurrence was found in one patient, and lung metastases were observed in two cases postoperatively. The limb length discrepancy in patients of the PD group was 2.58±0.27 cm, which was significantly less compared with that in patients in the KA group (4.01±0.13 cm; P<0.05). In addition, the lower limb knee ROM in patients in the PD group was 127.70±14.63°, which was increased compared to that in patients in the KA group (105.70±15.48°; P<0.05). The mean MSTS score was 86.67% with a mean TESS of 82.33% in patients from the PD group, which showed no significant difference compared with the respective scores for patients in the KA group (P>0.05). Therefore, epiphyseal sparing limb-saving surgeries should be considered for the treatment of malignant metaphyseal bone tumors in children, when certain indications are satisfied.
Prognostic factors for mortality with fungal blood stream infections in patients with hematological and non-hematological malignancies

Abstract Background: This single center retrospective analysis was undertaken to identify the incidence, clinical impact, and prognostic factors for mortality associated with fungal blood stream infections (BSI) in cancer patients. Materials and Methods: One hundred and twenty four patients had 169 episodes of fungal BSI. Incidence has not changed over a 10 year period but non albicans candida species are the predominant fungal isolates. Mortality with fungal BSI was significantly higher than that with other microbial agents. Risk of mortality was associated with renal dysfunction and Candida albicans as the isolate. Type of chemotherapy, patient characteristics, and neutrophil count did not influence the mortality following fungal BSI. Conclusion: Fungal BSI is rare and the incidence has not changed in this hospital. Mortality associated with fungal BSI is high. Risk score at the time of developing fungal BSI has prognostic potential to identify patients with higher risk of mortality associated with fungal BSI.
Non-intrusive quality assessment for enhanced speech signals based on spectro-temporal features

We propose to learn a non-intrusive quality assessment metric for enhanced speech signals. High-dimension spectro-temporal features are extracted by the Gabor filter bank for speech signals. To reduce the high-dimension features, we use PCA (Principal Component Analysis) to process these features. After obtaining the feature vector from audio signals, Support Vector Regression (SVR) is used to learn the metric for quality evaluation of enhanced speech signals. Experimental results on NOIZEUS dataset demonstrate that proposed non-intrusive quality assessment metric by using spectro-temporal features can obtain better performance for enhanced speech signals.
Generalisability of vaccine effectiveness estimates: an analysis of cases included in a postlicensure evaluation of 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine in the USA

Objectives External validity, or generalisability, is the measure of how well results from a study pertain to individuals in the target population. We assessed generalisability, with respect to socioeconomic status, of estimates from a matched case–control study of 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine effectiveness for the prevention of invasive pneumococcal disease in children in the USA. Design Matched case–control study. Setting Thirteen active surveillance sites for invasive pneumococcal disease in the USA. Participants Cases were identified from active surveillance and controls were age and zip code matched. Outcome measures Socioeconomic status was assessed at the individual level via parent interview (for enrolled individuals only) and birth certificate data (for both enrolled and unenrolled individuals) and at the neighbourhood level by geocoding to the census tract (for both enrolled and unenrolled individuals). Prediction models were used to determine if socioeconomic status was associated with enrolment. Results We enrolled 54.6% of 1211 eligible cases and found a trend toward enrolled cases being more affluent than unenrolled cases. Enrolled cases were slightly more likely to have private insurance at birth (p=0.08) and have mothers with at least some college education (p<0.01). Enrolled cases also tended to come from more affluent census tracts. Despite these differences, our best predictive model for enrolment yielded a concordance statistic of only 0.703, indicating mediocre predictive value. Variables retained in the final model were assessed for effect measure modification, and none were found to be significant modifiers of vaccine effectiveness. Conclusions We conclude that although enrolled cases are somewhat more affluent than unenrolled cases, our estimates are externally valid with respect to socioeconomic status. Our analysis provides evidence that this study design can yield valid estimates and the assessing generalisability of observational data is feasible, even when unenrolled individuals cannot be contacted.
Extraction of Cross Language Term Correspondences

This paper describes a method for extracting translations of terms across languages, using parallel corpora. The extracted term correspondences are such that they are useful when performing query expansion for cross language information retrieval, or for bilingual lexicon extraction. The method makes use of the mutual information measure and allows for mapping between single word- to multi-word terms and vice versa. The method is scalable (accommodates addition or removal of data) and produces high quality results, while keeping the computational costs low enough for allowing on-the-fly translations in e.g., cross language information retrieval systems. The work was carried out in collaboration with Intrafind Software AG (Munich, Germany).