Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Real-time Vision-based Hand Gesture Recognition Using Sift Features

This paper introduces a new algorithm based on machine vision for the recognition of hand gesture. In step 1, the Microsoft Kinect sensor is used to capture color images and depth. User’s hand detected by eliminating the background and rescaling image. In the next step, “Scale-invariant feature transform (SIFT)” algorithm is used for the feature extraction. The extracted feature vectors are built in vocabulary tree with K-means clustering. Finally, Hand gesture is recognized by a recognition high-level method called stochastic context-free grammar (SCFG). SCFG is used for syntactic structure analysis that is based on hand gesture recognition, that is combined postures can be analyzed and recognized by a set of production rules. SCFG is most effective in disambiguate. By this approach, we are able to recognize various gestures in 30 frames per seconds (fps) and with more than 90 % accuracy. DOI: http://dx.doi. org/10.11591/telkomnika.v15i1. 8091
Inhibition of Inducible Heat Shock Protein-70 (Hsp72) Enhances Bortezomib-Induced Cell Death in Human Bladder Cancer Cells

The proteasome inhibitor bortezomib (Velcade) is a promising new agent for bladder cancer therapy, but inducible cytoprotective mechanisms may limit its potential efficacy. We used whole genome mRNA expression profiling to study the effects of bortezomib on stress-induced gene expression in a panel of human bladder cancer cell lines. Bortezomib induced strong upregulation of the inducible HSP70 isoforms HSPA1A and HSPA1B isoforms of Hsp72 in 253J B-V and SW780 (HSPA1Ahigh) cells, but only induced the HSPA1B isoform in UM-UC10 and UM-UC13 (HSPA1Alow) cells. Bortezomib stimulated the binding of heat shock factor-1 (HSF1) to the HSPA1A promoter in 253JB-V but not in UM-UC13 cells. Methylation-specific PCR revealed that the HSPA1A promoter was methylated in the HSPA1Alow cell lines (UM-UC10 and UM-UC13), and exposure to the chromatin demethylating agent 5-aza-2′-deoxycytidine restored HSPA1A expression. Overexpression of Hsp72 promoted bortezomib resistance in the UM-UC10 and UM-UC13 cells, whereas transient knockdown of HSPA1B further sensitized these cells to bortezomib, and exposure to the chemical HSF1 inhibitor KNK-437 promoted bortezomib sensitivity in the 253J B-V cells. Finally, shRNA-mediated stable knockdown of Hsp72 in 253J B–V promoted sensitivity to bortezomib in vitro and in tumor xenografts in vivo. Together, our results provide proof-of-concept for using Hsp72 inhibitors to promote bortezomib sensitivity in bladder cancers and suggest that selective targeting of HSPA1B could produce synthetic lethality in tumors that display HSPA1A promoter methylation.
Quality of Life in Psoriatic Patients: A Study Using the Short Form-36

Background: Quality of life (QOL) is increasingly recognized as an important outcome measure in dermatology. Psoriasis has a great impact on QOL of patients, and has a strong effect on social relations, psychological status, and daily activities. This study describe and compare the impact of different grades of severity of psoriasis on QOL of patients in north of Iran. Methods: This cross-sectional study was performed on 55 patients diagnosed with psoriasis and 55 healthy controls. The patients were selected by consecutive sampling from April to December 2006. The controls were recruited by simple random sampling among patient escorts. After obtaining written informed consent, all the members were included into the study. The Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI) standard questionnaire was used to determine the severity of the disease. In addition, the short-form-36 questionnaire, which is validated for use in Iran, was employed. The gathered data were analyzed using the Stata (V 8.0, SE) (Copyright 1984-2003, Stata Corporation, 4905 Lakeway Drive Special Edition, College Station, Texas 77845 USA) and analyses of covariance (ANCOVA) test. Results: Overall, The mean PASI scores was 5.4 ± 6.7, total QOL scores had a significant difference between patients and controls (61.1 ± 17.0 vs. 71.9 ± 22.4) (P < 0.05), especially in three domains: Role-physical (58.5 ± 23.3 vs. 70.8 ± 26.2), general health (43.8 ± 21.6 vs. 61.5 ± 27.3), and social functioning (62.7 ± 26.7 vs. 79.5 ± 27.5) (P < 0.01). Physical activities were affected in >50% of the cases. This figure significantly increased with the increasing severity of psoriasis. In addition, social relationships were disrupted in more than half of the patients, but with no significant difference between different grades of severity (P > 0.05). There is no significant difference between adjusted score of multiple domains of QOL in psoriatic patients according to PASI levels (ANCOVA, P > 0.05). Conclusions: The physicians’ awareness of the importance of patients’ QOL in both physical and emotional aspects could improve and enhance the psychological evaluation of the psoriatic patient, which will promote his/her positive outcome. And, PASI score can’t to predict the QOL really.
Remembering emotional events: the fate of detailed information

Abstract Previous research has shown that people remember details from emotional events differently than details from neutral events. However, past research suffers from inadequate equating of the details tested in the emotional and neutral events. In the current five experiments, involving a total of 397 subjects, we equated the to-be-remembered detail information. Subjects in these experiments were presented with a thematic series of slides in which the content of one critical slide in the middle of the series varied. When the critical slide was emotional (a woman injured near a bicycle), compared to neutral in nature (a woman riding a bicycle), subjects were better able to remember a central detail but less able to remember a peripheral detail. To determine whether the emotional event led to different performance simply because it was unusual, we included a third condition, in which subjects saw an “unusual” version of the event (a woman carrying a bicycle on her shoulder). Subjects in the unusual cond.
System level design with SPADE: an M-JPEG case study

Presents and evaluates the SPADE (System level Performance Analysis and Design space Exploration) methodology through an illustrative case study. SPADE is a method and tool for architecture exploration of heterogeneous signal processing systems. In this case study we start from an M-JPEG application and use SPADE to evaluate alternative multiprocessor architectures for implementing this application. SPADE follows the Y-chart paradigm for system level design; application and architecture are modeled separately and mapped onto each other in an explicit design step. SPADE permits architectures to be modeled at an abstract level using a library of generic building blocks, thereby reducing the cost of model construction and simulation. The case study shows that SPADE supports efficient exploration of candidate architectures; models can be easily constructed, modified and simulated in order to quickly evaluate alternative system implementations.
Sensor Positioning for Activity Recognition Using Wearable Accelerometers

Activities of daily living are important for assessing changes in physical and behavioral profiles of the general population over time, particularly for the elderly and patients with chronic diseases. Although accelerometers have been used widely in wearable devices for activity classification, the positioning of the sensors and the selection of relevant features for different activity groups still pose significant research challenges. This paper investigates wearable sensor placement at different body positions and aims to provide a systematic framework that can answer the following questions: 1) What is the ideal sensor location for a given group of activities? and 2) Of the different time-frequency features that can be extracted from wearable accelerometers, which ones are the most relevant for discriminating different activity types?
Set-based classification for person re-identification utilizing mutual-information

Identifying individuals in multi-view camera network, known as person re-identification, becomes an emerging topic for video surveillance. In this paper, we address person re-identification as a set-based classification problem and introduce mutual-information to fully utilize gallery information. Firstly, we define a set-based structure that contains pairwise features between query image and gallery images. Then these features are fed into a set-class model, which exploits the relationship between set and class label (person identity) using mutual-information. Finally, we estimate and rank the mutual-information scores, and the corresponding label of the highest score is assigned to the query image. Our method has gained a superior performance compared with the state-of-the-art in the benchmark datasets i-LIDS and ETHZ.
Improved Analysis for Subspace Pursuit Algorithm in Terms of Restricted Isometry Constant

In the context of compressed sensing (CS), subspace pursuit (SP) is an important iterative greedy recovery algorithm which could reduce the recovery complexity greatly comparing with l1-minimization. Restricted isometry property (RIP) and restricted isometry constant (RIC) of measurement matrices which ensure the convergence of iterative algorithms play key roles for the guarantee of successful reconstructions. In this letter, we show that for the s-sparse recovery, the RIC is enlarged to for SP, which improves the known results significantly. The proposed result also applies to almost sparse signals and corrupted measurements.
p38 Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinase Activates eNOS in Endothelial Cells by an Estrogen Receptor α-Dependent Pathway in Response to Black Tea Polyphenols

Black tea has been shown to improve endothelial function in patients with coronary artery disease and recent data indicate the polyphenol fraction of black tea enhances endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) activity through p38 MAP kinase (p38 MAPK) activation. Because the mechanisms for this phenomenon are not yet clear, we sought to elucidate the signaling events in response to black tea polyphenols. Bovine aortic endothelial cells (BAECs) exposed to black tea polyphenols demonstrated eNOS activation that was inhibited by the estrogen receptor (ER) antagonist ICI 182,780, and siRNA-mediated silencing of ER expression. Consistent with this observation, black tea polyphenols induced time-dependent phosphorylation of ERα on Ser-118 that was inhibited by ICI 182,780. Phosphorylation of ERα on Ser-118 was due to p38 MAP kinase (p38 MAPK) as, it was inhibited by SB203580 and overexpression of dominant-negative p38α MAPK. Conversely, constitutively active MKK6 induced p38 MAPK activation that recapitulated the effects of polyphenols by inducing ERα phosphorylation and downstream activation of Akt, and eNOS. The key role of ERα Ser-118 phosphorylation was confirmed in eNOS-transfected COS-7 cells, as polyphenol-induced eNOS activation required cotransfection with ERα subject to phosphorylation at Ser-118. This residue appeared critical for functional association of ERα with p38 MAPK as ERα with Ser-118 mutated to alanine could not form a complex with p38 MAPK. These findings suggest p38 MAP kinase-mediated eNOS activation requires ERα and these data uncover a new mechanism of ERα activation that has broad implications for NO bioactivity and endothelial cell phenotype.
A low complexity SNR estimator for QPSK modulation in AWGN channel

A low complexity non-data-aided (NDA) signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) estimator is proposed for quadrature phase shift keying (QPSK) signals in complex additive white Gaussian noise (AWGN) channel. The novel SNR estimator utilizes the constant amplitude characteristics of the in-phase and quadrature components of QPSK modulation to evaluate the signal power and the noise power separately. The estimation mean and normalized mean square error (NMSE) of the proposed SNR estimator are investigated by Monte Carlo simulations. Results demonstrate that, compared with M2M4 algorithm and Ijaz's method, the proposed estimator saves about 80% and 50% multiplications, respectively. Furthermore, the proposed method performs better than other NDA SNR estimators at the same computational complexity.
Antiproliferative effects induced by guanine-based purines require hypoxanthine-guanine phosphoribosyltransferase activity

Abstract Guanine (GUA), guanosine and GMP exert a marked growth inhibition on the U87 glioma cell line that is not seen with other tested nucleotides, nucleosides and nucleobases. This effect could be replicated in several different human tumoral cell lines. Guanine shows a higher potency than guanosine or GMP, and co-treatments with adenosine or adenine are able to antagonize or revert the antiproliferative effect of guanine. The loss of the guanine effect in a cell line bearing a mutated inactive hypoxanthine-guanine phosphoribosyltransferase (HGPRT), and the decreased potency of GUA in U87 cells silenced for HGPRT transcripts, demonstrates the central role of the intracellular metabolism of GUA for growth-inhibitory effects. Considering the potential application of growth-inhibitory substances in anticancer therapy, knowledge of the molecular mechanism underlying GUA-induced effects encourages studies aimed at defining possible tumoral targets for experimental therapies.
Antigen-mediated T cell expansion regulated by parallel pathways of death

T cells enigmatically require caspase-8, an inducer of apoptosis, for antigen-driven expansion and effective antiviral responses, and yet the pathways responsible for this effect have been elusive. A defect in caspase-8 expression does not affect progression through the cell cycle but causes an abnormally high rate of cell death that is distinct from apoptosis and does not involve a loss of NFκB activation. Instead, antigen or mitogen activated Casp8-deficient T cells exhibit an alternative type of cell death similar to programmed necrosis that depends on receptor interacting protein (Ripk1). The selective genetic ablation of caspase-8, NFκB, and Ripk1, reveals two forms of cell death that can regulate virus-specific T cell expansion.
Reliability and validity of a new French-language triage algorithm: the ELISA scale

Objective Overcrowding in emergency departments (ED) leads to reductions in quality of care. Consequently, several different triage tools have been developed to prioritise patient intake. Differences in emergency medical services in different countries have limited the generalisation of pre-existing triage systems; for this reason, specific algorithms corresponding to local characteristics are needed. Accordingly, we developed a specific French-language triage system named Echelle Liégeoise d'Index de Sévérité à l'Admission (ELISA). This study tested its validity and efficiency. Methods ELISA is a five-category nursing triage algorithm. Intrarater agreement was tested by comparing triage levels attributed to the same clinical scenarios at two different times. Interrater agreement was investigated by comparing triage categories attributed to clinical cases by different triage nurses. Finally, validity was estimated by studying the correlations between the triage ranking assigned by the nurse and actual resource consumption and patient outcome. Results The distribution of the difference between nurse classification at the two times was statistically unrelated to which nurse carried out the evaluation. Regarding interrater agreement, assigned classifications were compared to the reference assignment. Cohen's κ coefficient revealed an almost perfect agreement between classification by nurses and the reference. Finally, statistical analysis revealed a strong relation between ELISA and the overall need for supplementary clinical testing. Outcomes were also significantly correlated with ELISA. Conclusions The need for a specific, French-language triage tool in our ED led us to develop a new triage scale. This study demonstrates that the scale is a valid triage tool with high interrater and intrarater agreement and considerable efficiency.
Magnet-Based Around Device Interaction for Playful Music Composition and Gaming

Around Device Interaction ADI has expanded the interaction space on mobile devices to allow 3D gesture interaction around the device. In this paper, the authors look specifically at magnet-based ADI and its applied use in a playful, music-related context. Using three musical applications developed under the magnet-based ADI paradigm Air Disc-Jockey, Air Guitar, Air GuitaRhythm, the authors investigate whether the magnet-based ADI paradigm can be effectively used to support playful music composition and gaming on mobile devices. Based on results from a controlled user study usability and user experience questionnaire responses, users' direct feedback, and video observations, the authors 1 showed how magnet-based ADI can be effectively used to create natural, playful and creative mobile music interactions amongst both musically-trained and non-musically trained users and 2 distilled magnet-based ADI design considerations to optimize playful and creative music interactions in today's smartphones.
Exogenous interleukin 2 recruits in vitro lymphokine-activated killer activity by in vivo activated lymphocytes.

Cryopreserved and thawed lymphocytes can be used instead of fresh lymphocytes to avoid test-to-test variability in studies of fluctuations of natural killer (NK) and lymphokine-activated killer (LAK) activities as a function of time. We investigated the effects of 1-h versus 18-h resting of lymphocytes on their lytic activities, because the process of cryopreservation and thawing decreases NK and LAK activities. Lymphocytes from renal cell cancer patients receiving adoptive immunotherapy were studied. An 18-h versus 1-h resting period led to a significant increase in NK activity but had no significant effect on LAK activity. The presence of 1200 IU/ml interleukin 2 (IL-2) in the medium 1 h prior to and during the cytotoxicity (CTX) assay increased in vivo and in vitro IL-2-induced LAK activities. This phenomenon has been interpreted as IL-2 dependency of effector lymphocytes (J.A. Hank, P.C. Kohler, G. Weil-Hillman, N. Rosenthal, K. H. Moore, B. Storer, D. Minkoff, J. Bradshaw, R. Bechhofer, and P. M. Sondel. Cancer Res., 48: 1965-1971, 1988). We performed kinetic studies to assess the role of effector lymphocyte recruitment in these experiments. LAK activity was tested in the presence or absence of IL-2 during preincubations and CTX assays varying between 0 and 120 min. These kinetic studies showed that effector lymphocyte recruitment indeed contributed to the increased level of LAK activity when IL-2 was added to the CTX assay. A minimal incubation period of 30 min was required to detect recruitment of lymphocytes. Effector lymphocytes could be recruited for periods varying between 90 and greater than 240 min, depending on the lymphocyte donor. We conclude that: (a) in vitro, IL-2-mediated recruitment of lymphocytes due to presence of IL-2 in the CTX assay may lead to an overestimate of the actual LAK activity; and (b) in vivo, prolonged IL-2 infusion after the administration of activated lymphocytes seems warranted in order to recruit maximal levels of effector lymphocytes with LAK activity.
A Novel Decorin Gene Mutation in Congenital Hereditary Stromal Dystrophy: A Korean Family

A 43-year-old man developed decreased vision in the right eye that had persisted for seven years. Under slit lamp examination, corneal clouding was noted with normal endothelium and ocular structure. From the clinical evidence, we suspected that the patient had congenital hereditary stromal dystrophy (CHSD). He and his family underwent a genetic analysis. Penetrating keratoplasty was conducted, and the corneal button was investigated for histopathologic confirmation via both light and electron microscopy. The histopathologic results revealed mildly loosened stromal structures, which exhibited an almost normal arrangement and differed slightly from the previous findings of CHSD cases. With regard to the genetic aspects, the patient and his mother harbored a novel point mutation of the decorin gene. This genetic mutation is also distinct from previously described deletion mutations of the decorin gene. This case involved delayed penetration of mild clinical symptoms with the histological feature of a loosened fiber arrangement in the corneal stroma. We concluded that this condition was a mild form of CHSD. However, from another perspective, this case could be considered as "decorin gene-associated corneal dystrophy," which is distinct from CHSD. Further evaluation will be required for appropriate clinical, histopathologic and genetic approaches for such cases.
The Beauty and the Beast Algorithm: Quasi-Linear Incremental Tests of Entailment and Disentailment over Trees

We consider the problem of the simultaneous tests of matching and non-unifiability (logically: entailment and disentailment over trees) where the input consists of one fixed term (one fixed constraint) and an incrementally growing set of variable bindings (the constraint store). These tests are used in logic programming systems with suspensions, e.g. for proving guards as in LIFE, AKL and Oz. A weaker version of the problem tests entailment only, which is sufficient for solving inequations as in Prolog-II and CLP(Rat). The on-line complexity of previous algorithms for either version of the problem is at least quadratic. We present an on-line algorithm which is quasi-linear.
A knowledge-based approach to automated simulation model adaptation

Simulation has become a widely accepted technology for analyzing or planning systems in various domains. In production logistics, for instance, many companies use simulation to evaluate scenarios before actually the construction or modifications of the production hall or processes are performed in order to get insights about the performance of planned configurations. In this paper, we propose an approach to knowledge-based adaptation of simulation models. The vision of this work is to go one step beyond parameter optimization, namely to provide means for automated structural changes in simulation models, and thus for the generation of simulation model variants. For a first evaluation of our approach, we introduce a system consisting of a simulation control as well as a model adaptation module with a set of adaptation operations. Our implementation is coupled to the simulation system Plant Simulation in order to perform simulation runs. For illustration we apply our system to a test scenario and present first results.
Enhancing Personal Outcomes: Organizational Strategies, Guidelines, and Examples

Education and rehabilitation programs in the field of intellectual disabilities are developing specific strategies related to demonstrated personal outcomes, quality of life (QOL)-related services and supports, evidence-based practices, and quality improve- ment. The purpose of this article is to summarize key aspects of these strategies within a two-component framework: the concept of QOL and systems thinking. Based on our collective experiences and published literature, four specific strategies are presented and discussed: mental models, assessment, service delivery practices, and quality improvement (QI). Essential guidelines for the successful implementation of these strategies are then presented, along with an exemplary application of each strategy. Each example shows the significant role of the consumer, the organization, and the larger system in organizational change, QI, and the enhancement of personal outcomes.