Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Eye detection to assist drowsy drivers

This paper proposes a new approach to detect the eyes opening state for the purpose of alarming drowsy drivers on highroads. The input image frame is processed in successive steps using a combination of algorithms, namely wavelets transform, edge detection and YCbCr transform. The algorithm performs well, regardless the size of the image and is immune to distracting noises, high luminance, and background lighting. The proposed algorithm was able to attain an average eye detection accuracy of 80% when tested on different data bases and different conditions.
μNav: Navigation without Localization

This paper presents a novel navigation approach which, with minimal requirements in terms of on-board sensory, memory, and computational power, exhibits way-finding behaviors in very complex environments. The algorithm does not require any internal spatial representation, nor self-localization abilities: however, since it relies on heuristics to find a path to the goal, completeness is not guaranteed. The paper shows that this is the price to pay for augmenting the robustness of the system in presence of incomplete information and measurement noise
Ice‐associated phytoplankton blooms in the southeastern Bering Sea

Ice‐associated phytoplankton blooms in the southeastern Bering Sea can critically impact the food web structure, from lower tropic level production to marine fisheries. By coupling pelagic and sea ice algal components, our 1‐D ecosystem model successfully reproduced the observed ice‐associated blooms in 1997 and 1999 at the NOAA/PMEL mooring M2. The model results suggest that the ice‐associated blooms were seeded by sea ice algae released from melting sea ice. For an ice‐associated bloom to grow and reach the typical magnitude of phytoplankton bloom in the region, ice melting‐resulted low‐salinity stratification must not be followed by a strong mixing event that would destroy the stratification. The ice‐associated blooms had little impacts on the annual primary production, but had significant impacts in terms of shifting phytoplankton species, and the timing and magnitude of the bloom. These changes, superimposed on a gradual ecosystem shift attributed to global warming, can dramatically alter the Bering Sea ecosystem.
The Invasive Network on Chip - A Multi-Objective Many-Core Communication Infrastructure

— Invasive computing is a novel paradigm for massively parallel computing systems. The core objective of invasive computing is to support resource-aware programming through all layers of a system. An invasive application has the ability to explore and dynamically spawn its computation to neighboring processors, taking into account the status of the underlying architecture. The applications can exclusively request the reser-vation of hardware resources in a phase named invasion . The Invasive Networks on Chip ( i -NoC) supports this paradigm by enabling the invasion of communication resources according to the requirements of applications. The monitoring infrastructure of the i -NoC is used by the software layers of the system to determine the location and availability of the resources that are invaded. Thiswork gives an overview on the i -NoC hardware which is required to support invasive computing from the communication perspective. It introduces the i -NoC as a scalable, multi-objective many-core communication infrastructure and presents a concept that takes communication monitoring information into account for the invasion of communication resources. The presented results show how invasion of communication resources can help to improve the performance of a parallel application and reduce its communication energy footprint. Synthesis results investigate the implementation costs of the monitoring infrastructure introduced to take proper invasion decisions.
Track seek control for hard disk dual-stage servo systems

A new decoupled track-seeking controller for a dual-stage servo system of a magnetic disk drive has been developed. The controller is applied to the dual-stage system with a push-pull piezoelectric (PZT) micro-actuator and enables high-speed one-track seeking and short-span track seeking. A one-track seeking controller was designed in three steps: (1) a voice coil motor (VCM) feedforward controller was designed to prevent overshoot in response of VCM actuator; (2) a feedforward loop from the VCM reference signal to the PZT actuator was designed in order to decouple the dual-stage actuator system; (3) a feedforward controller for the PZT actuator was designed such that an output PES (position error signal) only follows a PES reference signal. In the design of the short-span seeking controller, the PZT actuator's stroke limit was considered. Simulations and experiments show that the proposed dual-stage track-seeking controller performs better than the conventional single VCM servo.
1 Massively parallel whole-organism lineage tracing using CRISPR / Cas 9 induced genetic scars

A key goal of developmental biology is to understand how a single cell transforms into a full-grown organism consisting of many cells. Although impressive progress has been made in lineage tracing using imaging approaches, analysis of vertebrate lineage trees has mostly been limited to relatively small subsets of cells. Here we present scartrace, a strategy for massively parallel whole-organism lineage tracing based on Cas9 induced genetic scars in the zebrafish.
Migration and Industrialization in Germany, 1815-1977

The rapid expansion of historical demography as a discipline has meant a growing number of studies of past migration (excellent examples are Tugault, 1973; Chatelain, 1976; Piore, 1979), although migration still receives considerably less attention than does fertility or mortality. The study of industrializing cities during the nineteenth century has focused interest on those patterns of migration that caused rapid urban population growth (Anderson, 1971; Anderson, 1980; Crew, 1979; Thernstrom, 1970). Most of these recent studies of internal migration are based on localized information over relatively short periods of time. They provide us with demographic data of unprecedented precision, but the local nature of such studies accentuates their dependence on currently accepted generalizations as guides in the search for and interpretation of evidence.
Molecular Cloning of Mouse Type 2 and Type 3 Inositol 1,4,5-Trisphosphate Receptors and Identification of a Novel Type 2 Receptor Splice Variant*

We isolated cDNAs encoding type 2 and type 3 inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate (IP3) receptors (IP3R2 and IP3R3, respectively) from mouse lung and found a novel alternative splicing segment, SIm2, at 176–208 of IP3R2. The long form (IP3R2 SIm2+) was dominant, but the short form (IP3R2 SIm2–) was detected in all tissues examined. IP3R2 SIm2– has neither IP3 binding activity nor Ca2+ releasing activity. In addition to its reticular distribution, IP3R2 SIm2+ is present in the form of clusters in the endoplasmic reticulum of resting COS-7 cells, and after ATP or Ca2+ ionophore stimulation, most of the IP3R2 SIm2+ is in clusters. IP3R3 is localized uniformly on the endoplasmic reticulum of resting cells and forms clusters after ATP or Ca2+ ionophore stimulation. IP3R2 SIm2– does not form clusters in either resting or stimulated cells. IP3 binding-deficient site-directed mutants of IP3R2 SIm2+ and IP3R3 fail to form clusters, indicating that IP3 binding is involved in the cluster formation by these isoforms. Coexpression of IP3R2 SIm2– prevents stimulus-induced IP3R clustering, suggesting that IP3R2 SIm2– functions as a negative coordinator of stimulus-induced IP3R clustering. Expression of IP3R2 SIm2– in CHO-K1 cells significantly reduced ATP-induced Ca2+ entry, but not Ca2+ release, suggesting that the novel splice variant of IP3R2 specifically influences the dynamics of the sustained phase of Ca2+ signals.
Treating inertia in passive microbead rheology.

The dynamic modulus G(*) of a viscoelastic medium is often measured by following the trajectory of a small bead subject to Brownian motion in a method called "passive microbead rheology. " This equivalence between the positional autocorrelation function of the tracer bead and G(*) is assumed via the generalized Stokes-Einstein relation (GSER). However, inertia of both bead and medium are neglected in the GSER so that the analysis based on the GSER is not valid at high frequency where inertia is important. In this paper we show how to treat both contributions to inertia properly in one-bead passive microrheological analysis. A Maxwell fluid is studied as the simplest example of a viscoelastic fluid to resolve some apparent paradoxes of eliminating inertia. In the original GSER, the mean-square displacement (MSD) of the tracer bead does not satisfy the correct initial condition. If bead inertia is considered, the proper initial condition is realized, thereby indicating an importance of including inertia, but the MSD oscillates at a time regime smaller than the relaxation time of the fluid. This behavior is rather different from the original result of the GSER and what is observed. What is more, the discrepancy from the GSER result becomes worse with decreasing bead mass, and there is an anomalous gap between the MSD derived by naïvely taking the zero-mass limit in the equation of motion and the MSD for finite bead mass as indicated by McKinley et al. [J. Rheol. 53, 1487 (2009)]. In this paper we show what is necessary to take the zero-mass limit of the bead safely and correctly without causing either the inertial oscillation or the anomalous gap, while obtaining the proper initial condition. The presence of a very small purely viscous element can be used to eliminate bead inertia safely once included in the GSER. We also show that if the medium contains relaxation times outside the window where the single-mode Maxwell behavior is observed, the oscillation can be attenuated inside the window. This attenuation is realized even in the absence of a purely viscous element. Finally, fluid inertia also affects the bead autocorrelation through the Basset force and the fluid dragged around with the bead. We show that the Basset force plays the same role as the purely viscous element in high-frequency regime, and the oscillation of MSD is suppressed if fluid density and bead density are comparable.
Firing Rate of Nucleus Accumbens Neurons Is Dopamine-Dependent and Reflects the Timing of Cocaine-Seeking Behavior in Rats on a Progressive Ratio Schedule of Reinforcement

The progressive ratio (PR) schedule of reinforcement is used to determine the reinforcing properties of rewards such as drugs of abuse. In this schedule, the animal is required to press a lever a progressively increasing number of times to receive a reward; the highest ratio obtained before the animal ceases responding is termed “breakpoint. ” We recorded neuronal spike activity from cells in the nucleus accumbens (NAc) of rats responding on a PR schedule for cocaine reinforcement. A common subtype of NAc cells demonstrated firing rates that varied according to the time between cocaine deliveries. The firing rate was inversely related to the NAc cocaine level predicted by a pharmacokinetic model. At higher response-to-reward ratios, inter-reward intervals were increased, resulting in a decrease in modeled cocaine level and a concomitant increase in firing rate over the session. The final increase in firing rate above a threshold value suggests a neural correlate of breakpoint. The effects of preadministration of dopamine D1 or D2 antagonists on the animals' behavior were similar in that both reduced breakpoint; however, each antagonist had markedly different effects on NAc cell firing. The D1 antagonist SCH23390 reduced firing rates, even at low cocaine levels, whereas the D2 antagonist eticlopride induced a rightward shift in the dose dependence of NAc cell firing relative to modeled cocaine level. Our results suggest that the firing of NAc cells reflects changes in cocaine levels and thereby contributes to the temporal spacing of self-administration and to the cessation of responding at breakpoint.
The interleukin 1beta-converting enzyme, caspase 1, is activated during Shigella flexneri-induced apoptosis in human monocyte-derived macrophages

Shigella, the etiological agent of bacillary dysentery, rapidly kills human monocyte-derived macrophages in vitro. Wild-type Shigella flexneri, but not a nonvirulent derivative, induced human macrophage apoptosis as determined by morphology and terminal deoxynucleotidyltransferase-mediated dUTP-biotin nick end labeling (TUNEL). Shigella-mediated macrophage cell death was blocked by the peptide inhibitors of caspases, acetyl-Tyr-Val-Ala-Asp-aldehyde (acetyl-YVAD-CHO) and acetyl-Tyr-Val-Ala-Asp-chloromethylketone (acetyl-YVAD-CMK). Protection from apoptosis by YVAD was observed in monocytes matured in the presence or absence of colony-stimulating factors (CSF) like macrophage-CSF or granulocyte-macrophage-CSF. Furthermore, lipopolysaccharide (LPS) or gamma interferon (IFN-gamma) rendered human macrophages partially resistant to Shigella cytotoxicity. Macrophages stimulated with either LPS or IFN-gamma were also protected by YVAD from Shigella-induced cell death. During Shigella infections of human macrophages, interleukin-1beta (IL-1beta) was cleaved to the mature form. IL-1beta maturation was severely retarded by YVAD, indicating that IL-1beta-converting enzyme (ICE; caspase 1) is activated in Shigella-induced apoptosis. The finding that Shigella induces apoptosis in human macrophages by activating ICE supports the hypothesis that the acute inflammation characteristic of shigellosis is initially triggered by apoptotic macrophages which release mature IL-1beta during programmed cell death.
The E3 Ubiquitin Ligase Triad3A Negatively Regulates the RIG-I/MAVS Signaling Pathway by Targeting TRAF3 for Degradation

The primary role of the innate immune response is to limit the spread of infectious pathogens, with activation of Toll-like receptor (TLR) and RIG-like receptor (RLR) pathways resulting in a pro-inflammatory response required to combat infection. Limiting the activation of these signaling pathways is likewise essential to prevent tissue injury in the host. Triad3A is an E3 ubiquitin ligase that interacts with several components of TLR signaling and modulates TLR activity. In the present study, we demonstrate that Triad3A negatively regulates the RIG-I RNA sensing pathway through Lys48-linked, ubiquitin-mediated degradation of the tumor necrosis factor receptor-associated factor 3 (TRAF3) adapter. Triad3A was induced following dsRNA exposure or virus infection and decreased TRAF3 levels in a dose-dependent manner; moreover, Triad3A expression blocked IRF-3 activation by Ser-396 phosphorylation and inhibited the expression of type 1 interferon and antiviral genes. Lys48-linked ubiquitination of TRAF3 by Triad3A increased TRAF3 turnover, whereas reduction of Triad3A expression by stable shRNA expression correlated with an increase in TRAF3 protein expression and enhancement of the antiviral response following VSV or Sendai virus infection. Triad3A and TRAF3 physically interacted together, and TRAF3 residues Y440 and Q442—previously shown to be important for association with the MAVS adapter—were also critical for Triad3A. Point mutation of the TRAF-Interacting-Motif (TIM) of Triad3A abrogated its ability to interact with TRAF3 and modulate RIG-I signaling. TRAF3 appears to undergo sequential ubiquitin “immuno-editing” following virus infection that is crucial for regulation of RIG-I-dependent signaling to the antiviral response. Thus, Triad3A represents a versatile E3 ubiquitin ligase that negatively regulates RIG-like receptor signaling by targeting TRAF3 for degradation following RNA virus infection.
The Burnout Process Model from the Occurrence through Intention to Quit among Nurses

本研究は，病棟看護師（N=242）のバーンアウト生起から離職願望に至るプロセスモデルの検討を，Amos 5. 0により共分散構造分析で行った．調査は，自尊感情尺度，絶望感尺度，バーンアウト尺度（Maslach Burnout Inventory: MBI），離職願望尺度の4尺度からなる質問紙を用いた．5つの構成概念（自尊感情，絶望感，情緒的消耗感，脱人格化，離職願望）から構成されるモデルの適合度指標はいずれも十分に高かった．看護師のバーンアウトは，自尊感情の低下と看護職に対する絶望感の高まりにより，情緒的消耗感と脱人格化という形で生起した．さらに，脱人格化の進行により看護師の離職願望が高まることが示唆された．
On blind frequency-offset synchronization for OFDM communications

We address the problem of carrier frequency offset (CFO) synchronization in Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) communications systems in the context of frequency-selective fading channels. We consider the case where the transmitted symbols are drawn from Phase-Shift-Keying (PSK) constellations. We propose and compare two algorithms to blindly estimate the CFO. The first method exploits the constant modulus of the PSK constellations. The second method exploits the finite alphabet property of these constellations. For both methods, using adequate parameterization, the estimation of the CFO is decoupled from the estimation of the other signal parameters. The first method is shown to outperform the second technique.
Consistency of Risk Preference Measures and the Role of Ambiguity: An Artefactual Field Experiment from China

A variety of measures have been developed to elicit individual risk preferences. How these measures perform in the field, in particular in developing countries with non-student subjects, is still an open question. We implement an artefactual field experiment using a large sample of Chinese farmers to investigate (i) whether subjects behave in a consistent manner across incentivized experimental risk measures, (ii) whether non-incentivized survey measures can elicit actual risk preferences, and (iii) possible explanations for risk preference inconsistency across measures. We find that inconsistent risk preferences across survey and experimental measures may be explained by ambiguity preferences. In the survey, subjects seem to mix risk and ambiguity preferences.
Morphological inversion of complex diffusion

Epidemics, neural cascades, power failures, and many other phenomena can be described by a diffusion process on a network. To identify the causal origins of a spread, it is often necessary to identify the triggering initial node. Here, we define a new morphological operator and use it to detect the origin of a diffusive front, given the final state of a complex network. Our method performs better than algorithms based on distance (closeness) and Jordan centrality. More importantly, our method is applicable regardless of the specifics of the forward model, and therefore can be applied to a wide range of systems such as identifying the patient zero in an epidemic, pinpointing the neuron that triggers a cascade, identifying the original malfunction that causes a catastrophic infrastructure failure, and inferring the ancestral species from which a heterogeneous population evolves.
Mining Retail Data for Targeting Customers with Headroom

Recommender systems have recently gained a lot of attention both in industry and academia. In this paper, we focus on the applications and utility of recommender systems for brick-and-mortar retailers. We present a case study of a project that we completed for a large retail chain whose goal was to mine the transaction data to understand shopping behavior and target customers who exhibit headroom the unmet spending potential of a shopper in a given retailer. There are two aspects to the problem identifying the shoppers with headroom and product categories where they can spend more, and estimating shoppers’ unrealized spending potential in product categories that they haven’t bought. Data from every transaction from over 350 stores of a large retail chain gathered over a period of 16 months was provided to us. Data was restricted to transactions of regular shoppers who used a “loyalty card” that could track them across multiple purchases. We employed the technique of Singular Value Decomposition (SVD) for analysis. SVD is fundamental to many data modeling and data mining algorithms. SVD factorizes an M×N matrix X into two orthogonal matrices U, V and a diagonal matrix S = diag(s) such that USV = X and U XV = S. A thin-SVD USV is the optimal rank-k approximation of X in the least-squares sense where only the k largest singular values and corresponding singular vectors are retained in S, U, V. Several well-known recommender systems are based on SVD (e.g. [1, 2]). Let the matrix X represent a matrix of consumer spends over a given period, where columns represent different shoppers and rows represent different product categories. The subspace spanned by the columns of U in a thin-SVD can be interpreted as the k most important types of “shopping profiles” and a location can be computed for each shopper in this shopping profile space. The relationship between xn, the n-th column of X representing the spends of the n-th shopper, and his/her location pn in the shopping profile space is given by pn = U ′T xn. This vector pn, equal to the n-th row of the matrix V S, underlies all SVD-based recommender systems. The idea is to estimate pn and thus obtain imputed values for missing data in xn. Because of the large size of the data set and unsuitability of traditional SVD algorithms for large data sets, we used the iterative incremental SVD implementation (IISVD) of Brand [1] which can handle large data sets with missing values. All variables in the data-set such as total spends, total number of shopping trips, and number of items bought showed strong log-normality, making SVD an
HDenDist: Nonlinear Hierarchical Clustering Based on Density and Min-distance

Hierarchical clustering has received a great amount of attention due to the capability of capturing hierarchical cluster structure in an unsupervised way. Despite great success, most of the existing hierarchical clustering algorithms have some drawbacks: (1) difficulty in selecting clusters to merge or split, (2) inefficient and inaccurate cluster validation, (3) limitation to only linearly separable clusters. To address the above issues, this paper proposes a new nonlinear hierarchical clustering method termed HDenDist. The proposed method is based on two observations/designs associated with density and min-distance. One is that cluster centers have a higher density and are surrounded by data points of lower density, and the distance between cluster centers is relatively long, the other is that we design a min-distance between nodes, which can be used to determine how to divide the nodes in the hierarchical tree into two sub-cluster nodes. Some dividing and ruling tricks are designed that can further reduce the sensitivity to parameters. What's more, the density and distance are combined to determine when to terminate the split of the cluster nodes. In experimental studies, the proposed method has shown promising results on real datasets.