Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Learning to detect salient curves of cartoon images based on composition rules

As a basic operation, image saliency detection has been widely used in various applications. Many approaches have been proposed to detect salient regions. In this study, we learn to detect salient curves of cartoon images based on composition rules. We formulate the detection problem as a binary labeling task where we separate salient curves from the whole curve structures extracted from the cartoon image. We choose a set of curve features related to composition rules, such as the positional relationship between curves and the center, the diagonals, the symmetries or the thirds of the image. We evaluate their effects on salient curve detection by the information gain ranking filter and find that these features play an important role in images respectively with different composition rules. We also use the random forest classifier to build models and use these models to detect salient curves for new images, and it has a satisfactory result.
POLITICS: Automated Ideological Reasoning

POLITICS is a system of computer programs which simulates humans in comprehending and responding to world events from a given political or ideological perspective. The primary theoretical motivations were: (1) the implementation of a functional system which applies the knowledge structures of Schank and Abelson (1977) to the domain of simulating political belief systems; (2) the development of a tentative theory of intentional goal conflicts and counterplanning. Secondary goals of the POLITICS project include developing a representation for belief systems, investigating cognitive processes such as goal-directed inferencing, and the integration of several types of knowledge representations into a functional system.
Estimate Method Calls in Android Apps

In this paper, we focus on the definition of estimators to predict method calls in Android apps. Estimation models are based on information from requirements specification documents (e.g., number of actors, number of use cases, and number of classes in the conceptual model). We have used a dataset containing information on 23 Android apps. After performing data-cleaning, we applied linear regression to build estimation models on 21 data points. Results suggest that measures gathered from requirements specification documents can be considered good predictors to estimate the number of internal calls (i.e., methods invoking other methods present in the app) and external calls (i.e., invocations to API) as well as their sum.
Invariance levels across language versions of the PISA 2009 reading comprehension tests in Spain.

BACKGROUND The PISA project provides the basis for studying curriculum design and for comparing factors associated with school effectiveness. These studies are only valid if the different language versions are equivalent to each other. In Spain, the application of PISA in autonomous regions with their own languages means that equivalency must also be extended to the Spanish, Galician, Catalan and Basque versions of the test. The aim of this work was to analyse the equivalence among the four language versions of the Reading Comprehension Test (PISA 2009). METHOD After defining the testlet as the unit of analysis, equivalence among the language versions was analysed using two invariance testing procedures: multiple-group mean and covariance structure analyses for ordinal data and ordinal logistic regression. RESULTS The procedures yielded concordant results supporting metric equivalence across all four language versions: Spanish, Basque, Galician and Catalan. CONCLUSIONS The equivalence supports the estimated reading literacy score comparability among the language versions used in Spain.
A Robust Method for Semi-Automatic Extraction of Road Centerlines Using a Piecewise Parabolic Model and Least Square Template Matching

This article reports on a study that used a semi-automatic road extraction method based on a piecewise parabola model with 0-order continuity. The piecewise parabola model is constructed by seed points coarsely placed by a human operator. In this situation, road extraction actually becomes a physical problem of solving of each piece of parabola with only two or three unknown parameters by using image constraints. The authors used a least square template matching to solve the parabola parameters. The template is deformable and based on the automatic detection of dual road edges. In addition, a method of flexible observation weight evaluation has also been developed in this matching method. The results of tests on various image sets show that the method is able to extract road centerlines robustly and efficiently, including centerlines with sharp turns. In addition, this method offers much higher efficiency compared to the manual digitizing process. The authors conclude with a discussion of semiautomatic road extraction and future work for improving the reliability and extending the availability of these methods.
Site-to-site genetic correlations and their implications on breeding zone size and optimum number of progeny test sites for Coastal Douglas-fir.

Type B genetic correlations were used to examine the relation among geographic differences between sites and their site-to-site genetic (Type B) correlations. Examination of six local breeding zones in Oregon indicated that breeding zones were, for the most part, not too large because few environmental variables were correlated with Type B genetic correlations. The data also were used to examine expected gains from using combinations of sites in selection indices. Even though additional sites always increased the expected genetic gain, the marginal increase was only minimal if 3 or 4 sites were already in the index. The trend was consistent over all 6 breeding zones.
Low Cost Interactive Stereoscopic Full Color Direct Volume Visualization of the Visible Human Dataset for Virtual Reality Medical Applications

Only recently, advanced direct volume visualization techniques have been widely used due to the availability of low cost hardware accelerators; such techniques have a great potential of use for many applications of the virtual reality in medicine. We proposed and implemented a low cost system for interactive and stereoscopic 3D visualization of the full color visible human dataset. Potential use of the proposed system includes anatomical atlases and surgical simulators. A prototype of the proposed system is rendering full color volumes with 256x152x180 in real time (15-20Hz) with stereoscopy.
TÉCNICAS AVANZADAS PARA EL RAZONAMIENTO AUTOMÁTICO SOBRE MODELOS DE

Software Product Line (SPL) Engineering has proved to be an effective method for software production. However, in the SPL community it is well recognized that variability in SPLs is increasing by the thousands. Hence, an automatic support is needed to deal with variability in SPL. Most of the current proposals for automatic reasoning on SPL are not devised to cope with extra– functional features. In this paper we introduce a proposal to model and reason on an SPL using constraint programming. We take into account functional and extra–functional features, improve current proposals and present a running, yet feasible implementation.
Distinction of The Authors of Texts Using Multilayered Feedforward Neural Networks

This paper proposes a means of using a multilayered feedforward neural network to identify the author of a text. The network has to be trained where multilayer feedforward neural network as a powerful scheme for learning complex input-output mapping have been used in learning of the average number of words and average characters of words in a paragraphs of an author. The resulting training information we get will be used to identify the texts written by authors. The computational complexity is solved by dividing it into a number of computationally simple tasks where the input space is divided into a set of subspaces and then combining the solutions to those tasks. By this, we have been able to successfully distinguish the books authored by Leo Tolstoy, from the ones authored by George Orwell and Boris Pasternak.
The Number of Spanning Trees in Generalized Complete Multipartite Graphs of Fan-Type

Let Kk,n be a complete k-partite graph of order n and let K k,n be a generalized complete k-partite graph of order n spanned by the fan set F = {Fn1 , Fn2 , · · · , Fnk}, where n = {n1, n2, · · · , nk} and n = n1 + n2 + · · ·+ nk for 1 6 k 6 n. In this paper, we get the number of spanning trees in Kk,n to be t(Kk,n) = n k−2 k ∏ i=1 (n− ni)i. and the number of spanning trees in K k,n to be t(K k,n) = n 2k−2 k ∏ i=1 αi i − β ni−1 i αi − βi where αi = (di + √ di − 4)/2 and βi = (di − √ di − 4)/2,di = n − ni + 3. In particular, K1,n = K c n with t(K1,n) = 0, Kn,n = Kn with t(Kn,n) = n n−2 which is just the Cayley’s formula and K 1,n = Fn with t(K F 1,n) = (α n−1 − β)/ √ 5 where α = (3 + √ 5)/2 and β = (3− √ 5)/2 which is just the formula given by Z.R. Bogdanowicz in 2008.
Comparative Proteomics Analysis of Two Strains of Neisseria meningitidis Serogroup B and Neisseria lactamica

Background: Antigenic similarities between Neisseria lactamica as a commensal species and N. meningitidis serogroup B (NmB) as an important cause of meningitis infection have been considered for the development of an effective vaccine based on their common proteins to prevent life-threatening bacterial meningitis. Objectives: The main aims of this study were to determine whole proteome profiles of N. lactamica strains and to compare them with whole proteome profile of a reference strain of NmB for identification of some of common proteins between the two species. Materials and Methods: We compared the whole proteomic profiles of N. lactamica strains and a reference strain of NmB. Lysates from bacterial strains were resolved by two-dimensional gel electrophoresis (2-DE), followed by Coomassie Brilliant blue staining. Some of the protein spots were excised from the gel and subjected to matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization-tandem time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF/TOF MS) analysis. Results: The analysis of Coomassie-stained gels using ImageMaster 2D Platinum software identified approximately 800 reproducible protein spots in the range of pI 4.5 - 9.5 and Mr of 8 - 100 kDa for each 2-DE gel of the studied bacterial strains. By comparing proteome maps of 2-DE gels, more than 200 common protein spots were recognized between the two species. Forty-eight common protein spots between the studied bacterial strains were identified by MALDI-TOF/TOF-MS. The results indicated that among the protein spots identified by MOLDI-TOF/TOF mass spectrometry, the groups of proteins included cell surface, energy metabolism, amino acid transport and metabolism, coenzyme metabolism, defense, multifunctional cellular processes, DNA, RNA and protein synthesis, ribosomal structure, regulatory functions, replication, transcription, translation, unknown and hypothetical proteins with unknown function. We found that N. lactamica strains have a proteome profile somewhat similar to each other and slightly different with NmB. Conclusions: These results show the usefulness of proteome analysis in successful identification of the common proteins between N. lactamica strains and NmB. This proteomics analysis is the starting point in the path of knowledge development about whole proteome profiles of N. lactamica strains.
Automated Motion Correction for In Vivo Optical Projection Tomography

In in vivo optical projection tomography (OPT), object motion will significantly reduce the quality and resolution of the reconstructed image. Based on the well-known Helgason-Ludwig consistency condition (HLCC), we propose a novel method for motion correction in OPT under parallel beam illumination. The method estimates object motion from projection data directly and does not require any other additional information, which results in a straightforward implementation. We decompose object movement into translation and rotation, and discuss how to correct for both translation and general motion simultaneously. Since finding the center of rotation accurately is critical in OPT, we also point out that the system's geometrical offset can be considered as object translation and therefore also calibrated through the translation estimation method. In order to verify the algorithm effectiveness, both simulated and in vivo OPT experiments are performed. Our results demonstrate that the proposed approach is capable of decreasing movement artifacts significantly thus providing high quality reconstructed images in the presence of object motion.
Comparing generic parameter controllers for EAs

Parameter controllers for Evolutionary Algorithms (EAs) deal with adjusting parameter values during an evolutionary run. Many ad hoc approaches have been presented for parameter control, but few generic parameter controllers exist and, additionally, no comparisons or in depth analyses of these generic controllers are available in literature. This paper presents an extensive comparison of such generic parameter control methods, including a number of novel controllers based on reinforcement learning which are introduced here. We conducted experiments with different EAs and test problems in an one-off setting, i.e. relatively long runs with controllers used out-of-the-box with no tailoring to the problem at hand. Results reveal several interesting insights regarding the effectiveness of parameter control, the niche applications/EAs, the effect of continuous treatment of parameters and the influence of noise and randomness on control.
Differential Longitudinal Changes in Cortical Thickness, Surface Area and Volume across the Adult Life Span: Regions of Accelerating and Decelerating Change

Human cortical thickness and surface area are genetically independent, emerge through different neurobiological events during development, and are sensitive to different clinical conditions. However, the relationship between changes in the two over time is unknown. Additionally, longitudinal studies have almost invariably been restricted to older adults, precluding the delineation of adult life span trajectories of change in cortical structure. In this longitudinal study, we investigated changes in cortical thickness, surface area, and volume after an average interval of 3.6 years in 207 well screened healthy adults aged 23–87 years. We hypothesized that the relationships among metrics are dynamic across the life span, that the primary contributor to cortical volume reductions in aging is cortical thinning, and that magnitude of change varies with age and region. Changes over time were seen in cortical area (mean annual percentage change [APC], −0.19), thickness (APC, −0.35), and volume (APC, −0.51) in most regions. Volume changes were primarily explained by changes in thickness rather than area. A negative relationship between change in thickness and surface area was found across several regions, where more thinning was associated with less decrease in area, and vice versa. Accelerating changes with increasing age was seen in temporal and occipital cortices. In contrast, decelerating changes were seen in prefrontal and anterior cingulate cortices. In conclusion, a dynamic relationship between cortical thickness and surface area changes exists throughout the adult life span. The mixture of accelerating and decelerating changes further demonstrates the importance of studying these metrics across the entire adult life span.
A Survey of Game Theory in Wireless Networking Design

Game theory is a discipline aimed at modeling situations in which decision makers have mutual, possibly conflicting interests. Although originally developed in the field of economics, it has also been applied to wireless networking design in the past several years. Some of the competitive environment in wireless networks lends itself naturally to a game theoretic formulation. In this paper, we survey the recent literature on theoretical analysis of wireless networks, especially in the perspecti ve of power control, medium access control, routing and packet forwarding. Several game formulation methods are investigated and the existence and uniqueness of Nash equilibrium point of these games are carefully examined.
A Low-Energy Set-Associative I-Cache Design with Last Accessed Way Based Replacement and Predicting Access Policy

Predicting access is known as an approach to reduce the set-associative I-cache's energy consumption. This paper proposes a LAW (Last Accessed Way) based low-energy I-cache, taking both the replacement and predicting access policy into account. By replacing and accessing instructions speculatively following the last accessed way, the PHR (predict-hit-rate) is significantly improved. Simulator results show that compared with the conventional LRU (Least Recently Used) replacement based set-associative I-cache, such a 16KB, 4-way and 32B-line-size I-cache can reduce about 47%~57% energy consumption, with only 2.63% performance overhead. In contrast with the way-prediction cache, the proposed I-cache could improve nearly 5.32% performance overhead and 5.95% energy consumption at little cost of hardware.
Quantiser design for AWGN and Rayleigh fading BPSK channels with soft output decoding

A new method of combined source-channel coding for the scalar quantisation of a discrete memoryless source is presented that takes advantage of the channel soft output values produced by the demodulator. The case of transmitting a memoryless Gaussian source using binary phase shift keying (BPSK) modulation over over an additive white Gaussian noise (AWGN) channel with and without Rayleigh fading is studied. Numerical results using some closed form expressions are presented, showing up to 1 dB improvement in the end-to-end distortion with respect to a traditional channel optimised scalar quantiser.
The contribution of excitatory amino acids to central sensitization and persistent nociception after formalin-induced tissue injury

The contribution of excitatory amino acids (EAAs) to the development of central sensitization and persistent nociception in response to tissue injury in rats was examined following the subcutaneous injection of formalin into the hindpaw. Formalin-induced nociceptive behaviors were enhanced by intrathecal pretreatment with the EAAs L-glutamate and L- aspartate. An enhancement of the formalin nociceptive response was also produced by intrathecal pretreatment with the receptor-selective EAA agonists NMDA and trans-(+/- )-1-amino-1,3-cyclopentane dicarboxylic acid (ACPD), but not (R,S)-alpha-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methylisozazole-4- propionic acid hydrobromide (AMPA). The effect of NMDA was enhanced by a combined administration with AMPA or APCD. Formalin nociceptive responses were dose-dependently reduced by intrathecal pretreatment with the NMDA receptor antagonists 2-amino-5-phosphonovaleric acid (APV) and (+)-MK-801 hydrogen maleate, but not the selective AMPA antagonist 6-cyano-7-nitroquinoxaline-2,3-dione or the selective metabotropic EAA receptor antagonist 2-amino-3-phosphonopropionic acid. The results suggest that EAAs acting at the NMDA receptor contribute to central sensitization and persistent nociception following subcutaneous formalin injection.
A Near-Infrared Study of the Highly-Obscured Active Star-Forming Region W51B

We present wide-field -band photometric observations of the three compact H II regions G48.9-0.3, G49.0-0.3, and G49.2-0.3 in the active star-forming region W51B. The star clusters inside the three compact H II regions show the excess number of stars in the histograms compared with reference fields. While the mean color excess ratio of the three compact H II regions are similar to , the visual extinctions toward them are somewhat different: mag for G48.9-0.3 and G49.0-0.3; mag for G49.2-0.3. Based on their sizes and brightnesses, we suggest that the age of each compact H II region is . The inferred total stellar mass, , of W51B makes it one of the most active star forming regions in the Galaxy with the star formation efficiency of .
Draft Genome Sequence of the Cellulolytic Strain Clostridium sp. Bc-iso-3 Isolated from an Industrial-Scale Anaerobic Digester

ABSTRACT Clostridium sp. Bc-iso-3 is a cellulolytic strain isolated from a Swedish industrial-scale biogas digester. Here, we present the draft genome sequence of this strain, which consists of four contigs with a total length of 4,327,139 bp and an average coverage of 312.97×.
Expression Profiling of Differentiating Eosinophils in Bone Marrow Cultures Predicts Functional Links between MicroRNAs and Their Target mRNAs

Background MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small non-coding RNAs that regulate complex transcriptional networks underpin immune responses. However, little is known about the specific miRNA networks that control differentiation of specific leukocyte subsets. In this study, we profiled miRNA expression during differentiation of eosinophils from bone marrow (BM) progenitors (bmEos), and correlated expression with potential mRNA targets involved in crucial regulatory functions. Profiling was performed on whole BM cultures to document the dynamic changes in miRNA expression in the BM microenvironment over the differentiation period. miRNA for network analysis were identified in BM cultures enriched in differentiating eosinophils, and chosen for their potential ability to target mRNA of factors that are known to play critical roles in eosinophil differentiation pathways or cell identify. Methodology/Principal Findings We identified 68 miRNAs with expression patterns that were up- or down- regulated 5-fold or more during bmEos differentiation. By employing TargetScan and MeSH databases, we identified 348 transcripts involved in 30 canonical pathways as potentially regulated by these miRNAs. Furthermore, by applying miRanda and Ingenuity Pathways Analysis (IPA), we identified 13 specific miRNAs that are temporally associated with the expression of IL-5Rα and CCR3 and 14 miRNAs associated with the transcription factors GATA-1/2, PU.1 and C/EBPε. We have also identified 17 miRNAs that may regulate the expression of TLRs 4 and 13 during eosinophil differentiation, although we could identify no miRNAs targeting the prominent secretory effector, eosinophil major basic protein. Conclusions/Significance This is the first study to map changes in miRNA expression in whole BM cultures during the differentiation of eosinophils, and to predict functional links between miRNAs and their target mRNAs for the regulation of eosinophilopoiesis. Our findings provide an important resource that will promote the platform for further understanding of the role of these non-coding RNAs in the regulation of eosinophil differentiation and function.