Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Leader–Follower Flocking of Multiple Robotic Fish

In this paper, we study cohesive flocking and formation flocking of multiple robotic fish swimming in the water surface under the guidance of only one leader with zero-value external input. Combining consensus algorithms and attraction/repulsion functions, a distributed flocking algorithm is proposed for the robotic fish system to execute the cohesive flocking task. According to the LaSalle-Krasovskii invariance principle, the proposed algorithm enables followers to asymptotically track the leader's velocity and approach the equilibrium distances with their neighbors, provided that the initial interaction network of the system is a leader-follower connected graph. Furthermore, by adding the information of a desired formation topology to the potential function term, the proposed algorithm can be extended to solve arbitrarily shaped formation flocking problem of multiple robotic fish. The experimental results demonstrate that the proposed approaches are effective for three robotic fish. Finally, several simulation examples are given to verify the functionality of the proposed approaches for a larger system with ten agents.
SIRT Inhibitors Induce Cell Death and p53 Acetylation through Targeting Both SIRT1 and SIRT2

SIRT proteins play an important role in the survival and drug resistance of tumor cells, especially during chemotherapy. In this study, we investigated the potency, specificity, and cellular targets of three SIRT inhibitors, Sirtinol, Salermide, and EX527. Cell proliferative and cell cycle analyses showed that Sirtinol and Salermide, but not EX527, were effective in inducing cell death at concentrations of 50 μmol/L or over in MCF-7 cells. Instead, EX527 caused cell cycle arrest at G1 at comparable concentrations. In vitro SIRT assays using a p53 peptide substrate showed that all three compounds are potent SIRT1/2 inhibitors, with EX527 having the highest inhibitory activity for SIRT1. Computational docking analysis showed that Sirtinol and Salermide have high degrees of selectivity for SIRT1/2, whereas EX527 has high specificity for SIRT1 but not SIRT2. Consistently, Sirtinol and Salermide, but not EX527, treatment resulted in the in vivo acetylation of the SIRT1/2 target p53 and SIRT2 target tubulin in MCF-7 cells, suggesting that EX527 is ineffective in inhibiting SIRT2 and that p53 mediates the cytotoxic function of Sirtinol and Salermide. Studies using breast carcinoma cell lines and p53-deficient mouse fibroblasts confirmed that p53 is essential for the Sirtinol and Salermide-induced apoptosis. Further, we showed using small interfering RNA that silencing both SIRTs, but not SIRT1 and SIRT2 individually, can induce cell death in MCF-7 cells. Together, our results identify the specificity and cellular targets of these novel inhibitors and suggest that SIRT inhibitors require combined targeting of both SIRT1 and SIRT2 to induce p53 acetylation and cell death. Mol Cancer Ther; 9(4); 844–55. ©2010 AACR.
Effect of administration timing of postchemotherapy granulocyte colony-stimulating factor on host-immune cell recovery and CD8+ T-cell response

Abstract Granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF), a hematopoietic growth factor, is a standard supportive therapy given during cancer treatment. It induces acceleration in neutrophil recovery through stimulation of mobilization of hematopoietic progenitors. Given that the latter is also induced by chemotherapy itself, the timing of administration of G-CSF postchemotherapy might impact the resultant overall effects. The present study aimed to determine the optimal timing of G-CSF postchemotherapy to exert its optimal effects on the immune cell recovery and its impact on antigen-specific CD8+ T-cell response. B6 mice were treated once with cyclophosphamide (4 mg/mouse; CTX) and then daily with G-CSF (5 g/mouse) from Days 1–5, 2–5 or 5–9 post-CTX treatment. The total numbers of various immune cell types were analyzed on Days 7, 9 and 12 post-CTX treatment. To evaluate effects on CD8+ T-cell response, a pmel-1 transgenic mouse model was used in combination with prime boost peptide vaccination therapy. The total number of white blood cells (WBC), neutrophils, monocytes, lymphocytes, granulocytes and dendritic cells (DC) were significantly increased after G-CSF treatment in particular when G-CSF was administered from Days 2–5 post-CTX treatment. Application of this timing of G-CSF and CTX treatment after adoptive transfer of T-cells followed by prime-boost vaccination with antigenic peptide did not block the expansion of the donor pmel-1 CD8+ T-cells. In conclusion, adjusting the timing of treatment with G-CSF postchemotherapy can optimize its promoting effects on recovery of myeloid cells without altering the associated antigen-specific immunity.
Contribution à la gestion des systèmes de stockage, une approche verticale : de l'architecture à l'applicatif

HAL is a multi-disciplinary open access archive for the deposit and dissemination of scientific research documents, whether they are published or not. The documents may come from teaching and research institutions in France or abroad, or from public or private research centers. L’archive ouverte pluridisciplinaire HAL, est destinée au dépôt et à la diffusion de documents scientifiques de niveau recherche, publiés ou non, émanant des établissements d’enseignement et de recherche français ou étrangers, des laboratoires publics ou privés. Contribution à la gestion des systèmes de stockage, une approche verticale : de l’architecture à l’applicatif Jalil Boukhobza
Persuasive Technology Contributions Toward Enhance Information Security Awareness in an Organization

Persuasion is part and parcel of human interaction. The human persuaders in society have been always exit, masters of rhetoric skilled of changing our minds, or at least our behaviors. Leaders, mothers, salesmen, and teachers are clear examples of persuaders. Persuaders often turn to technology and digital media to amplify their persuasive ends. Besides, our lives and how we lead them influenced by technologies and digital media, but for the most part, their effects on our attitudes and behaviors have been incidental, even accidental. Although, nowadays, the use of computers to sell products and services considered as the most frequent application of persuasive technology. In this short paper, based on an extensive review of literatures, we aim to give a brief introduction to persuasive technology, and how it can play a role and contribute to enhance and deliver the best practice of IT. Some challenges of persuasive technology have been discussed. At the end, some recommendations and steps should be taken place to empower IT professional practices have been listed.
Vertically Stacked Silicon Nanowire Transistors Fabricated by Inductive Plasma Etching and Stress-Limited Oxidation

A simple top-down method for realizing an array of vertically stacked nanowires is presented. The process utilizes the nonuniformity in inductively coupled plasma (ICP) etching to form a scallop pattern at the sidewall of a tall silicon ridge that is further trimmed to form stacked nanowires by stress-limited oxidation. The process has been demonstrated to be controllable and repeatable, starting with bulk silicon wafers. Vertically stacked gate-all-around MOSFETs have been fabricated, which show excellent performance with a nearly ideal subthreshold slope of 62 mV/dec, a low leakage current, and a high I on/I off ratio of ~ 108.
Transcript Expression Data from Human Islets Links Regulatory Signals from Genome-Wide Association Studies for Type 2 Diabetes and Glycemic Traits to Their Downstream Effectors

The intersection of genome-wide association analyses with physiological and functional data indicates that variants regulating islet gene transcription influence type 2 diabetes (T2D) predisposition and glucose homeostasis. However, the specific genes through which these regulatory variants act remain poorly characterized. We generated expression quantitative trait locus (eQTL) data in 118 human islet samples using RNA-sequencing and high-density genotyping. We identified fourteen loci at which cis-exon-eQTL signals overlapped active islet chromatin signatures and were coincident with established T2D and/or glycemic trait associations. ‎At some, these data provide an experimental link between GWAS signals and biological candidates, such as DGKB and ADCY5. At others, the cis-signals implicate genes with no prior connection to islet biology, including WARS and ZMIZ1. At the ZMIZ1 locus, we show that perturbation of ZMIZ1 expression in human islets and beta-cells influences exocytosis and insulin secretion, highlighting a novel role for ZMIZ1 in the maintenance of glucose homeostasis. Together, these findings provide a significant advance in the mechanistic insights of T2D and glycemic trait association loci.
Enhanced Induction of SARS-CoV Nucleocapsid Protein-Specific Immune Response Using DNA Vaccination followed by Adenovirus Boosting in BALB/c Mice

Objective: To investigate immunogenicity in the induction of humoral and cellular immune responses to genetic vaccines of the recombinant severe acute respiratory syndrome-associated coronavirus (SARS-CoV)-N gene expressing the same protein plasmid, pcDNA3.1-N, and replication-defective adenoviral vector, rAd-N, in a pcDNA3.1-N prime-rAd-N boost regimen and the reverse sequence in a rAd-N prime-pcDNA3.1-N boost regimen. Method: After the mice had been immunized intramuscularly and/or intraperitoneally with pcDNA3.1-N and rAd-N in prime-triple boost immunization, humoral and cellular immune responses were detected. Results: After detection, different levels of anti-N humoral and cellular responses are shown compared to controls. The humoral immune response was induced more effectively by the DNA priming and recombinant adenovirus boosting regimen and the reverse sequence of heterogeneous combinations. There is a significant difference between heterogeneous and homologous vaccinations. However, the cytotoxic T lymphocyte (CTL) response was not significantly altered by the different prime-boost immunizations or the recombinant adenovirus of pcDNA3.1-N prime-rAd-N boost regimen alone, but lymphoproliferation and interferon-γ (IFN-γ) secretion were all enhanced by heterologous combination immunizations compared to homologous combinations. For the reverse sequence immunization regimen, lymphoproliferation, IFN-γ and CTL responses were all significantly weaker compared with pcDNA3.1-N prime-rAd-N boost regimen. Conclusion: Taken together, of all the combinations, the prime-triple boost immunization of pcDNA3.1-N/pcDNA3.1-N/pcDNA3.1-N/rAd-N can effectively induce SARS-CoV-N-specific and strong humoral and cellular immune responses in mice. The present results suggest that DNA immunization followed by recombinant adenovirus boosting could be used as a potential SARS-CoV vaccine in the induction of an enhanced humoral and cellular immune response.
Demineralized dentin matrix combined with recombinant human bone morphogenetic protein-2 in rabbit calvarial defects

Objectives The aim of this study was to compare the osteogenic effects of demineralized dentin matrix (DDM) combined with recombinant human bone morphogenetic protein-2 (rhBMP-2) in rabbit calvarial defects with DDM and anorganic bovine bone (ABB) combined with rhBMP-2. Materials and Methods Four round defects with 8-mm diameters were created in each rabbit calvaria. Each defect was treated with one of the following: 1) DDM, 2) ABB/rhBMP-2, or 3) DDM/rhBMP-2. The rhBMP-2 was combined with DDM and ABB according to a stepwise dry and dip lyophilizing protocol. Histological and microcomputed tomography (µCT) analyses were performed to measure the amount of bone formation and bone volume after 2- and 8-week healing intervals. Results Upon histological observation at two weeks, the DDM and ABB/rhBMP-2 groups showed osteoconductive bone formation, while the DDM/rhBMP-2 group showed osteoconductive and osteoinductive bone formation. New bone formation was higher in DDM/rhBMP-2, DDM and ABB decreasing order. The amounts of bone formation were very similar at two weeks; however, at eight weeks, the DDM/rhBMP-2 group showed a two-fold greater amount of bone formation compared to the DDM and ABB/rhBMP-2 groups. The µCT analysis showed markedly increased bone volume in the DDM/rhBMP-2 group at eight weeks compared with that of the DDM group. Notably, there was a slight decrease in bone volume in the ABB/rhBMP-2 group at eight weeks. There were no significant differences among the DDM, ABB/rhBMP-2, and DDM/rhBMP-2 groups at two or eight weeks. Conclusion Within the limitations of this study, DDM appears to be a suitable carrier for rhBMP-2 in orthotopic sites.
Too much or too little? A study of the impact of career complexity on executive adaptability

Purpose – In today's turbulent business environment leaders must be able to adapt to rapidly changing circumstances. For this research the authors aim to focus on the issue of adaptability defined as the ability to work effectively within a variety of changing situations, and with various individuals or groups. They also aimed to examine how variables of career complexity affect development of adaptability. Design/methodology/approach – The authors draw on a unique database containing the career histories of 52 senior executives in a major global corporation. They use the term career complexity to represent the degree of variety in these individuals' career experiences, and they test the degree to which career complexity contributes to the development of adaptability later in their careers. Findings – Findings from this study shed light on the relationship between specific career experiences and executive adaptability. Executives who had the experience to serve in an executive assistant role developed hig.
ROLE OF IMMUNOTHERAPY (IVIG) IN THE TREATMENT OF NEONATAL SEPSIS

22 Objectives This study sought to evaluate the effect of intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) in neonatal sepsis in preterm babies. Methods This clinical trial was done at the NICU of Imam Reza Hospital in Mashhad (Iran) from September 2006 to September 2007. We used a dosage regimen of 1g/kg/day. In this study we had 50 patients with documented sepsis; 25 of them received antibiotics (controls) and 25 of them received antibiotic and IVIG as adjuvant therapy. Finally we compared the outcomes of both groups. Results In this study all septic newborns had positive blood cultures. The most common cause of sepsis in our study was klebsiella (56% of control and 36% of case groups). In both groups we found 62% early onset sepsis. There was no statistically significant difference between mortality rate in two groups (52% VS 48% of case and control, P>0.05). Conclusion This study did not find any significant decrease in mortality rate with IVIG therapy in neonatal sepsis.
3D model representation using adaptive volumetric extended Gaussian image

One of the most challenging issues in object based 3D model retrieval research is how to extract efficient feature vector from the original model with translation, scaling and rotation independence. Spherical harmonic transform based methods can maintain the property of rotation independence. But there is a pre-requisite for performing spherical harmonic transform: the surface sphere should be uniformly sampled. However, spherical harmonic transform based methods divide the spherical surface by sampling the latitude and longitude direction uniformly which causes singularities in the two poles. In other words, the poles are over-sampled while the equator parts are under-sampled. In this paper, we introduce an improvement approach to fix this problem through incorporating a variant principal component analysis into the Volumetric Extended Gaussian Image (VEGI) shape representation proposed by J. Zhang et al. We evaluate this adaptive VEGI shape representation on the Princeton Shape Benchmark database and a public online 3D model retrieval system we developed. The experimental results show that our proposed retrieval approach enhance the VEGI method.
Protein Kinase Cα (PKCα) Is Resistant to Long Term Desensitization/Down-regulation by Prolonged Diacylglycerol Stimulation*

Sustained activation of PKCα is required for long term physiological responses, such as growth arrest and differentiation. However, studies with pharmacological agonists (e.g. phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA)) indicate that prolonged stimulation leads to PKCα desensitization via dephosphorylation and/or degradation. The current study analyzed effects of chronic stimulation with the physiological agonist diacylglycerol. Repeated addition of 1,2-dioctanoyl-sn-glycerol (DiC8) resulted in sustained plasma membrane association of PKCα in a pattern comparable with that induced by PMA. However, although PMA potently down-regulated PKCα, prolonged activation by DiC8 failed to engage known desensitization mechanisms, with the enzyme remaining membrane-associated and able to support sustained downstream signaling. DiC8-activated PKCα did not undergo dephosphorylation, ubiquitination, or internalization, early events in PKCα desensitization. Although DiC8 efficiently down-regulated novel PKCs PKCδ and PKCϵ, differences in Ca2+ sensitivity and diacylglycerol affinity were excluded as mediators of the selective resistance of PKCα. Roles for Hsp/Hsc70 and Hsp90 were also excluded. PMA, but not DiC8, targeted PKCα to detergent-resistant membranes, and disruption of these domains with cholesterol-binding agents demonstrated a role for differential membrane compartmentalization in selective agonist-induced degradation. Chronic DiC8 treatment failed to desensitize PKCα in several cell types and did not affect PKCβI; thus, conventional PKCs appear generally insensitive to desensitization by sustained diacylglycerol stimulation. Consistent with this conclusion, prolonged (several-day) membrane association/activation of PKCα is seen in self-renewing epithelium of the intestine, cervix, and skin. PKCα deficiency affects gene expression, differentiation, and tumorigenesis in these tissues, highlighting the importance of mechanisms that protect PKCα from desensitization in vivo.
An algorithm for optimal closed-path generation over arbitrary surfaces using uncalibrated vision

This paper presents aspects related to the generation and tracking of closed trajectories over an arbitrary surface of unknown geometry. Such a capacity is required in some of the most important industrial robotic tasks, like the cutting or welding of commercial plates. Previous work has shown how a calibration-free, vision-based method can be combined with an optimal geodesic-mapping approach, in order to generate an optimal trajectory that traces a previously defined path, stored as a CAD model, over an arbitrary, curved surface. The application of this technique in the case of non-developable surfaces did not achieve closure when a closed-trajectory was attempted. This paper presents a methodology for successfully achieving closure of a given closed-path, when this is traced over a non-developable surface. The proposed technique was tested using an industrial robot and a vision-based system that included structured lighting for image-analysis simplification. The results of these experiments are reported herein.
Trends in Research Design and Data Analytic Strategies in Organizational Research

We coded all articles that were published in the Journal of Applied Psychology in the 1975-1993 period (N = 1,929) in terms of the type research design used in studies (e.g., experimental, nonexperimental), and the major strategies used in analyzing the data of the studies (e.g., analysis of variance, multiple correlation/regression, covariance structure analysis) and computed annual frequencies of use of the research designs and the data analysis strategies. These frequencies were used to compute yearly percentage use indices (PUIs) for each of the designs and data analytic strategies. Results showed that over the period considered: (I) there were fairly minor fluctuations in the PUIs for experimental and nonexperimental designs; (2) the PUI for covariance structure analysis procedures (e.g., LISREL, EQS) was very low during the 1975-1984 period but has increased dramatically thereafter; (3) the PUIs for multiple regression and several other multivariate data analytic strategies have increased somewhat over time; and (4) the PUIs for data analytic procedures that involve tests of mean differences have fluctuated over time, but there is a slight decrease in the use of ANOVA. Implications of these trends are considered.
Ca intercalated bilayer graphene as a thinnest limit of superconducting C6Ca

Success in isolating a 2D graphene sheet from bulky graphite has triggered intensive studies of its physical properties as well as its application in devices. Graphite intercalation compounds (GICs) have provided a platform of exotic quantum phenomena such as superconductivity, but it is unclear whether such intercalation is feasible in the thinnest 2D limit (i.e., bilayer graphene). Here we report a unique experimental realization of 2D GIC, by fabricating calcium-intercalated bilayer graphene C6CaC6 on silicon carbide. We have investigated the structure and electronic states by scanning tunneling microscopy and angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy. We observed a free-electron–like interlayer band at the Brillouin-zone center, which is thought to be responsible for the superconductivity in 3D GICs, in addition to a large π* Fermi surface at the zone boundary. The present success in fabricating Ca-intercalated bilayer graphene would open a promising route to search for other 2D superconductors as well as to explore its application in devices.
Improving Lemmatization of Non-Standard Languages with Joint Learning

Lemmatization of standard languages is concerned with (i) abstracting over morphological differences and (ii) resolving token-lemma ambiguities of inflected words in order to map them to a dictionary headword. In the present paper we aim to improve lemmatization performance on a set of non-standard historical languages in which the difficulty is increased by an additional aspect (iii): spelling variation due to lacking orthographic standards. We approach lemmatization as a string-transduction task with an Encoder-Decoder architecture which we enrich with sentence information using a hierarchical sentence encoder. We show significant improvements over the state-of-the-art by fine-tuning the sentence encodings to jointly optimize a bidirectional language model loss. Crucially, our architecture does not require POS or morphological annotations, which are not always available for historical corpora. Additionally, we also test the proposed model on a set of typologically diverse standard languages showing results on par or better than a model without fine-tuned sentence representations and previous state-of-the-art systems. Finally, to encourage future work on processing of non-standard varieties, we release the dataset of non-standard languages underlying the present study, which is based on openly accessible sources.