Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Novel, High-Speed 16-Digit BCD Adders Conforming to IEEE 754r Format

In view of increasing prominence of commercial, financial and Internet-based applications that process data in decimal format, there is a renewed interest in providing hardware support to handle decimal data. In this paper, a new architecture for efficient 1-digit decimal addition of binary coded decimal (BCD) operands, which is the core of high speed multi-operand adders and floating decimal-point arithmetic, is proposed. Based on this 1-digit BCD adder, novel architectures for higher order (n-digit) BCD adders such as ripple carry adder and carry look-ahead adder are derived. The proposed circuits are compared (both qualitatively as well as quantitatively) with the existing circuits in literature and are shown to perform better. Simulation results show that the proposed 1-digit BCD adder achieves an improvement of 40% in delay. The 16-digit BCD look-ahead adder using prefix logic is shown to perform at least 80% faster than the existing ripple carry one.
New Insights into the Developing Rabbit Brain Using Diffusion Tensor Tractography and Generalized q-Sampling MRI

The use of modern neuroimaging methods to characterize the complex anatomy of brain development at different stages reveals an enormous wealth of information in understanding this highly ordered process and provides clues to detect neurological and neurobehavioral disorders that have their origin in early structural and functional cerebral maturation. Non-invasive diffusion tensor magnetic resonance imaging (DTI) is able to distinguish cerebral microscopic structures, especially in the white matter regions. However, DTI is unable to resolve the complicated neural structure, i.e., the fiber crossing that is frequently observed during the maturation process. To overcome this limitation, several methods have been proposed. One such method, generalized q-sampling imaging (GQI), can be applied to a variety of datasets, including the single shell, multi-shell or grid sampling schemes that are believed to be able to resolve the complicated crossing fibers. Rabbits have been widely used for neurodevelopment research because they exhibit human-like timing of perinatal brain white matter maturation. Here, we present a longitudinal study using both DTI and GQI to demonstrate the changes in cerebral maturation of in vivo developing rabbit brains over a period of 40 weeks. Fractional anisotropy (FA) of DTI and generalized fractional anisotropy (GFA) of GQI indices demonstrated that the white matter anisotropy increased with age, with GFA exhibiting an increase in the hippocampus as well. Normalized quantitative anisotropy (NQA) of GQI also revealed an increase in the hippocampus, allowing us to observe the changes in gray matter as well. Regional and whole brain DTI tractography also demonstrated refinement in fiber pathway architecture with maturation. We concluded that DTI and GQI results were able to characterize the white matter anisotropy changes, whereas GQI provided further information about the gray matter hippocampus area. This developing rabbit brain DTI and GQI database could also be used for educational purposes and neuroscience investigations.
Removing sources from higher-rank graphs

For a higher-rank graph $\Lambda$ with sources we detail a construction that creates a higher-rank graph $\bar{\Lambda}$ that does not have sources and contains $\Lambda$ as a subgraph. Furthermore, when $\Lambda$ is row-finite, the Cuntz-Krieger algebra of $\Lambda$ is a full corner of $C^*(\bar{\Lambda})$, the Cuntz-Krieger algebra of $\bar{\Lambda}$.
Simulation of Ships' Routing System

This paper describes a well-designed and calibrated simulation model to solve the design of Ships’ routeing system which provide useful insights about complex maritime transportation routes. Real data from shanghai port Vessel Traffic Services Center (VTS) are used as input for evaluating four traffic policies. The simulation model mainly focuses on the transit traffic in the channel. This study provides a platform to analyze the effects of factors such as Rules and Regulations, number of tugboats and pilots, vessel type, traffic density and meteorological conditions on the maritime traffic in the channels. The model provides quantitative information and helps administrators in decision making to achieve desired safety level and improve the efficiency of vessel traffic in ports and waterways in shanghai.
Deterministic approximation of the cover time ( Preliminary version )

The cover time is the expected time it takes a simple random walk to cover all vertices of a graph. It arises in numerous questions related to the behaviour of random walks on graphs. Despite the fact that it can be approximated with arbitrary precision by a simple polynomial time Monte-Carlo algorithm which simulates the random walk, it is not known whether the cover time of a graph can be computed in determin-istic PTIME. In the present paper we establish a deterministic polynomial time algorithm that for any graph and any starting vertex approximates the cover time within polylogarithmic factors. More generally, our algorithm approximates the cover time for arbitrary reversible Markov chains.
Real-Timely Detecting License Plate under Various Conditions

This paper proposes a learning-based algorithm for real-time license plate detection. Two kinds of features, statistical gradient features and Haar-like features, are used in the algorithm. Firstly, two statistical features are extracted from vertical gradient images. Classifiers based on these two features are constructed through simple learning procedures respectively. Using these classifiers, more than 80% of background area can be excluded from further training or testing. Then the AdaBoost learning procedure is used to build up the other classifiers based on selected Haar-like features. Combining the classifiers using the statistical features and the Haar-like features, we obtain a cascade classifier which can real-timely detect license plates from various complex backgrounds. In the experiments, high detection rate and low positive false rate are achieved when the algorithm is used to detect license plates from images taken in various complex environments.
The Role of Contingency and Ostensive Cues on Infants' Cognitively Demanding Word-Object Learning

Older infants are good referential learners. That is, at around 14-months of age, they begin to learn the verbal labels of objects and events around them. However, referential learning can be made more challenging by increasing the lexical similarity between labels. The primary goal of this study was to examine whether an adult speaker’s ostensive cues and eye gaze-object contingency could augment referential learning in 14-month-old infants under difficult conditions (i.e., minimal pair labels). In Experiment 1, infants were familiarized and tested on two word-object associations with minimal pairs (e.g., “bin” and “din”), presented on an eyetracker. Importantly, each session began when infants made eye contact with a female speaker on the screen, and she continually looked at and verbally referenced each object in an infantdirected style. On test trials when the familiar object+label was switched, infants significantly increased their visual scanning of the speaker’s mouth compared to control trials. In Experiment 2, the same procedure was followed with a new group of 14-month-olds, except that the speaker now looked in the opposite direction from the objects on the screen, but continued to label them with minimal pairs in an infant-directed style. In contrast to the results of Experiment 1, infants in this latter experiment did not differentially attend to any area of her face during the switch trials. This pattern of results shows that the ostensive nature of a social partner augments infants’ referential learning under cognitive challenge, but it is the contingent nature of the speaker’s regard to what is being labeled that is a necessary factor in promoting learning.
Statistical Grouping for Segmenting Symbols Parts from Line Drawings, with Application to Symbol Spotting

In this work, we describe the use of statistical grouping for partitioning line drawings into shapes, those shapes represent meaningful parts of the symbols that constitute the line drawings. This grouping method converts a complete line drawing into a set of isolated shapes. This conversion has two effects: (1) making isolated recognition methods applicable for spotting symbols in context, (2) identifying potential regions of interest for symbol spotting methods, hence making them perform faster and more accurately. Our grouping is based on finding salient convex groups of geometric primitives, followed by combining certain found convex groups together. Additionally, we show how such grouping can be used for symbol spotting. When applied on a dataset of architectural line drawings the grouping method achieved above 98.8% recall and 97.3% precision for finding symbols parts. Using the grouping information, the spotting method achieved 99.3% recall and 99.9% precision. Compared to the performance of the same method without grouping information, an overall speed-up factor of 3.2 is achieved with the same -- or better -- recall and precision values.
On the Origins of the . 05 Level of Statistical Significance

Examination of the literature in statistics and probability that predates Fisher's Statistical Methods for Research Workers indicates that although Fisher is responsible for the first formal statement of the . 05 criterion for statistical significance, the concept goes back much further. The move toward conventional levels for the rejection of the hypothesis of chance dates from the turn of the century. Early statements about statistical significance were given in terms of the probable error. These earlier conventions were adopted and
Meta-Analysis for Genome-Wide Association Study Identifies Multiple Variants at the BIN1 Locus Associated with Late-Onset Alzheimer's Disease

Recent GWAS studies focused on uncovering novel genetic loci related to AD have revealed associations with variants near CLU, CR1, PICALM and BIN1. In this study, we conducted a genome-wide association study in an independent set of 1034 cases and 1186 controls using the Illumina genotyping platforms. By coupling our data with available GWAS datasets from the ADNI and GenADA, we replicated the original associations in both PICALM (rs3851179) and CR1 (rs3818361). The PICALM variant seems to be non-significant after we adjusted for APOE e4 status. We further tested our top markers in 751 independent cases and 751 matched controls. Besides the markers close to the APOE locus, a marker (rs12989701) upstream of BIN1 locus was replicated and the combined analysis reached genome-wide significance level (p = 5E-08). We combined our data with the published Harold et al. study and meta-analysis with all available 6521 cases and 10360 controls at the BIN1 locus revealed two significant variants (rs12989701, p = 1.32E-10 and rs744373, p = 3.16E-10) in limited linkage disequilibrium (r2 = 0.05) with each other. The independent contribution of both SNPs was supported by haplotype conditional analysis. We also conducted multivariate analysis in canonical pathways and identified a consistent signal in the downstream pathways targeted by Gleevec (P = 0.004 in Pfizer; P = 0.028 in ADNI and P = 0.04 in GenADA). We further tested variants in CLU, PICALM, BIN1 and CR1 for association with disease progression in 597 AD patients where longitudinal cognitive measures are sufficient. Both the PICALM and CLU variants showed nominal significant association with cognitive decline as measured by change in Clinical Dementia Rating-sum of boxes (CDR-SB) score from the baseline but did not pass multiple-test correction. Future experiments will help us better understand potential roles of these genetic loci in AD pathology.
Formation of Micro- and Nanostructures on the Nanotitanium Surface by Chemical Etching and Deposition of Titania Films by Atomic Layer Deposition (ALD)

In this study, an integrated approach was used for the preparation of a nanotitanium-based bioactive material. The integrated approach included three methods: severe plastic deformation (SPD), chemical etching and atomic layer deposition (ALD). For the first time, it was experimentally shown that the nature of the etching medium (acidic or basic Piranha solutions) and the etching time have a significant qualitative impact on the nanotitanium surface structure both at the nano- and microscale. The etched samples were coated with crystalline biocompatible TiO2 films with a thickness of 20 nm by Atomic Layer Deposition (ALD). Comparative study of the adhesive and spreading properties of human osteoblasts MG-63 has demonstrated that presence of nano- and microscale structures and crystalline titanium oxide on the surface of nanotitanium improve bioactive properties of the material.
Flexible Working and Equal Opportunities in the United Kingdom: A Case Study from Retail

Flexible working has been widely advocated as a social panacea, capable of resolving unemployment, maintaining economic competitiveness, and enhancing equal opportunities between women and men. Flexibility has neutral or even positive connotations for both employers and employees. These meanings are differentiated, and empirically explored, by reference to the British component of a qualitative, comparative six-country European study of flexible working in the retail sector. Specific attention is paid to the determination of flexibility; for example whether it is employer led, employee chosen, or a complementary combination, and whether flexible working facilitates equal opportunities, both within the workplace and in the wider sense of promoting long-lasting changes in parental roles and responsibilities as specified under the European Union's mainstreaming initiative. It is concluded that the introduction of flexible working has opened up a whole range of possibilities for differential engagement in the workplace. However, these arrangements need to apply to all levels of the occupational hierarchy and similar arrangements need to be introduced in relation to caring if the officially stated objectives for greater equality of opportunity are to be realised. To bring about gender equity it is necessary to consider social reproduction as a whole and modify the division of labour between women and men within, and between, paid and unpaid work.
The TASK-1 Two-Pore Domain K+ Channel Is a Molecular Substrate for Neuronal Effects of Inhalation Anesthetics

Despite widespread use of volatile general anesthetics for well over a century, the mechanisms by which they alter specific CNS functions remain unclear. Here, we present evidence implicating the two-pore domain, pH-sensitive TASK-1 channel as a target for specific, clinically important anesthetic effects in mammalian neurons. In rat somatic motoneurons and locus coeruleus cells, two populations of neurons that express TASK-1 mRNA, inhalation anesthetics activated a neuronal K+ conductance, causing membrane hyperpolarization and suppressing action potential discharge. These membrane effects occurred at clinically relevant anesthetic levels, with precisely the steep concentration dependence expected for anesthetic effects of these compounds. The native neuronal K+ current displayed voltage- and time-dependent properties that were identical to those mediated by the open-rectifier TASK-1 channel. Moreover, the neuronal K+ channel and heterologously expressed TASK-1 were similarly modulated by extracellular pH. The decreased cellular excitability associated with TASK-1 activation in these cell groups probably accounts for specific CNS effects of anesthetics: in motoneurons, it likely contributes to anesthetic-induced immobilization, whereas in the locus coeruleus, it may support analgesic and hypnotic actions attributed to inhibition of those neurons.
Theoretical Analysis of Power Saving for Cognitive Radio Systems with Arbitrary Input Distributions

In this paper, an optimal power allocation scheme is derived in cognitive radio systems under the condition of finite symbol alphabet input as used in practical communication systems. The proposed scheme is shown to save transmit power compared to its conventional counterpart, which assumes Gaussian inputs. Numerical results reveal that, for distances between the SU transmitter and the PU receiver ranging between 50m to 100m, the transmit power saving with the proposed algorithm is in the range of 13− 90% depending on the modulation scheme (i.e., M-QAM) used. Furthermore, a theoretical framework is established in this paper for the derivation of the average optimal power allocation and estimation of power saving. Our theoretical analysis is later verified by simulations and proved to be accurate.
Positional firing properties of perirhinal cortex neurons

NEURONAL activity in the perirhinal cortex was recorded while rats performed a spatial task on a four arm radial maze. The maze was defined by proximal multisensory cues on the arm surfaces and distal complex visual cues at the surround. During each recording session, rats were run in three conditions: baseline, a condition in which proximal and distal cues were manipulated, and a second baseline. Compared with the activity of hippocampal neurons in the same paradigm, a much smaller proportion of perirhinal neurons exhibited spatial selectivity and perirhinal place fields were larger than hippocampal place fields. Although perirhinal place fields exhibited a high degree of spatial tuning and reliability within a condition, they were not stable across conditions.
Abstracting People's Trajectories for Social Robots to Proactively Approach Customers

For a robot providing services to people in a public space such as a shopping mall, it is important to distinguish potential customers, such as window shoppers, from other people, such as busy commuters. In this paper, we present a series of abstraction techniques for people's trajectories and a service framework for using these techniques in a social robot, which enables a designer to make the robot proactively approach customers by only providing information about target local behavior. We placed a ubiquitous sensor network consisting of six laser range finders in a shopping arcade. The system tracks people's positions as well as their local behaviors, such as fast walking, idle walking, wandering, or stopping. We accumulated people's trajectories for a week, applying a clustering technique to the accumulated trajectories to extract information about the use of space and people's typical global behaviors. This information enables the robot to target its services to people who are walking idly or stopping. The robot anticipates both the areas in which people are likely to perform these behaviors as well as the probable local behaviors of individuals a few seconds in the future. In a field experiment, we demonstrate that this service framework enables the robot to serve people efficiently.
Screening for PTSD in motor vehicle accident survivors using the PSS-SR and IES.

The current study compares the total scores of two potential posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) screening tools, the Impact of Event Scale (IES) and the PTSD Symptom Scale, Self-Report (PSS-SR), to the Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale (CAPS) in a large sample of motor vehicle accident (MVA) survivors (N = 229, of whom 43% met criteria for PTSD). For the IES using a cutoff score of 27, sensitivity was . 91, specificity was . 72, and overall correct classification was . 80. For the PSS-SR using a cutoff score of 14, sensitivity was . 91, specificity was . 62, and overall correct classification was . 74. Compared to those in studies of other trauma populations, the identified IES cutoff score is somewhat lower for this population of MVA survivors and the identified PSS-SR cutoff score is consistent with previous findings. These data support the use of the IES and the PSS-SR as PTSD screening tools in MVA samples.
Isomorphism in Digital Elevation Models and Its Implication to Interpolation Functions

Terrain is an ordered surface where locations relate to each other through their elevations. Preservation of this topographic orderliness by an interpolation method so that “if point A is higher than point B in the terrain, the interpolated elevation of A remains higher” is important to assure the practical value of the resultant DEM. Based on the concepts in group theory, this paper points out that a DEM must be isomorphic to terrain surface in order to preserve the topographic orderliness. Such a DEM, if generated through interpolation, can only be obtained if the interpolation function is an isomorphism. Two necessary conditions for isomorphism are identified: a one-to-one relationship between the topographic surface and the surface corresponding to the interpolation function, and the feasibility to configure the topographic surface into monotonic patches during interpolation. The isomorphism of three widely used interpolation methods is examined. It is found that linear interpolation in 1D and TIN are both isomorphisms, meaning that a DEM interpolated by either method can preserve the topographic orderliness. In contrast, bilinear interpolation is not an isomorphism. Considering the practical challenges in assuring the necessary conditions of isomorphism in each method, linear interpolation in 1D is recommended as the optimal method to interpolate a DEM.
High working memory capacity predicts negative gaze but high self-esteem predicts positive gaze following ego threat

By JOSEPH S. WEAVER This study investigated the role of working memory capacity (WMC) in successful emotion regulation via visual attention deployment in a healthy, undergraduate population. The 43 participants were Introductory Psychology students at Case Western Reserve University. In the first session, data were collected on trait-level variables such as working memory capacity (WMC), behavioral inhibition and behavioral activation (BIS/BAS), trait self-esteem, intelligence, and trait positive and negative affect. Participants also viewed pairs of positive and negative emotional images while their gaze was tracked. During the second session, one week later, participants completed state measures of positive and negative affect and self-esteem before and after a bogus personality inventory. After the personality inventory, half of the participants received an ego-threat before viewing the emotional image pairs. Participants with high WMC tended to look longer at negative images than those with low WMC, following threat, whereas those with higher trait self-esteem looked longer at positive image. Higher crystallized predicted larger increases in negative affect, following threat. Greater BIS predicted larger decreases in positive affect, following threat.
A new framework for automatic 3D scene construction from text description

Generating 3D virtual scene plays an essential role in computer graphics and animation. However, manual 3D scene construction is time-consuming and requires enormous efforts from professionals. Recently, more and more researchers shift their interests into the field of automatic scene generation. Although it hardly yields results as good as manual construction, automatic scene generation largely speeds up the process of creating a virtual scene. In this paper, we propose a new framework capable of constructing 3D scene from text description directly, in which knowledge-based technology is adopted to represent the common sense of the real world. The framework extracts spatial relationships of objects described by texts and translates them into XML file with predefined grammar. A spatial reasoning algorithm is engaged next to decide the object layout in the scene. Several critical issues are taken into consideration in the spatial reasoning process for the purpose of dealing with more complex scenes and pursuing better visual effects. The final results are visualized by Autodesk Maya. Some examples are shown to evaluate the framework and the result verifies that our framework is highly efficient in 3D scene construction.