Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Interactive RayTracing of Dynamic Scenes

Raytracing of dynamic scenes requires not only fast ray traversal, but also fast update of acceleration structures. Fast ray traversal is usually achieved through traversing several rays at once in a packet. Update of acceleration structure can be done by gradually refitting the structure or by rebuilding it from the scratch every frame. The latter approach puts no requirements on amount or behavior of objects in the scene. In this paper we will describe a raytracing system that combines fast packet traversal with Bounding Volume Hierarchy rebuilt from scratch using approximated Surface Area Heuristic. Vertex culling uses transient frustum in each leaf to quickly eliminate potential intersections with triangles lying strictly outside the frustum. This benefits from large leaves and allows shallow acceleration structure that can be built exceptionally fast with no impact on performance. We will show that combination of these two methods does provide interactive rates even on today’s desktop computers. We will also demonstrate the interactive capabilities on fast relighting of scenes with moving point lights.
Impact of channel and source variations on the energy efficiency under QoS constraints

Energy efficiency in wireless fading channels is studied in the presence of statistical quality of service (QoS) constraints. Energy per bit is employed as the performance metric. Minimum energy per bit and wideband slope expressions are determined to quantify the energy efficiency in the low signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) regime. In particular, the impact of channel and source variations is investigated. A block-fading model in which fading coefficients are arbitrarily correlated in one block before assuming independent realizations in the next one, is considered. Initially, the effect of fading correlation on energy efficiency is analyzed. It is shown that while minimum energy per bit does not depend on the fading correlation, wideband slope decreases as positive correlation increases, resulting in increased energy requirements at low but nonzero SNR levels. Subsequently, an ON-OFF source arrival model is considered. It is shown that while the minimum energy per bit does not get affected by source variations, wideband slope diminishes with increasing source burstiness. (”THIS PAPER IS ELIGIBLE FOR THE STUDENT PAPER AWARD”).
A mathematical model, heuristic, and simulation study for a basic data staging problem in a heterogeneous networking environment

Data staging is an important data management problem for a distributed heterogeneous networking environment, where each data storage location and intermediate node may have specific data available, storage limitations, and communication links. Sites in the network request data items and each item is associated with a specific deadline and priority. It is assumed that not all requests can be satisfied by their deadline. The work concentrates on solving a basic version of the data staging problem in which all parameter values for the communication system and the data request information represent the best known information collected so far and stay fixed throughout the scheduling process. A mathematical model for the basic data staging problem is introduced. Then, a multiple-source shortest-path algorithm based heuristic for finding a suboptimal schedule of the communication steps for data staging is presented. A simulation study is provided, which evaluates the performance of the proposed heuristic. The results show the advantages of the proposed heuristic over two random based scheduling techniques. This research, based on the simplified static model, serves as a necessary step toward solving the more realistic and complicated version of the data staging problem involving dynamic scheduling, fault tolerance, and determining where to stage data.
Multi–predator Effects Produced by Functionally Distinct Species Vary with Prey Density

Abstract Determining when multiple predator species provide better pest suppression than single species is a key step towards developing ecologically—informed biological control strategies. Theory and experiments predict that resource partitioning among functionally different predator species can strengthen prey suppression, because as a group they can access more prey types than functionally redundant predators. However, this prediction assumes that competition limits predation by functionally similar predators. Differences in prey density can alter the strength of competition, suggesting that prey abundance may modulate the effect of combining functionally diverse species. The experiment documented here examined the potential for functional differences among predator species to promote suppression of an insect pest, the Colorado potato beetle, Leptinotarsa decemlineata (Say) (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae), at different prey densities. Predation was compared at two prey densities between microcosms that contained one predator species or two functionally distinct species: the lady beetle, Coleomegilla maculata De Geer (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) that kills early L. decemlineata instars, and the soldier bug, Podisus maculiventris Say (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae) that kills late instars. The data show that combining these predators increased predation only when prey densities were low. This suggests that multiple predator species may only provide greater biological control than single species in systems where prey is limiting.
Disodium Cromoglycate Reverses Colonic Visceral Hypersensitivity and Influences Colonic Ion Transport in a Stress-Sensitive Rat Strain

The interface between psychiatry and stress-related gastrointestinal disorders (GI), such as irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), is well established, with anxiety and depression the most frequently occurring comorbid conditions. Moreover, stress-sensitive Wistar Kyoto (WKY) rats, which display anxiety- and depressive-like behaviors, exhibit GI disturbances akin to those observed in stress-related GI disorders. Additionally, there is mounting preclinical and clinical evidence implicating mast cells as significant contributors to the development of abdominal visceral pain in IBS. In this study we examined the effects of the rat connective tissue mast cell (CTMC) stabiliser, disodium cromoglycate (DSCG) on visceral hypersensitivity and colonic ion transport, and examined both colonic and peritoneal mast cells from stress-sensitive WKY rats. DSCG significantly decreased abdominal pain behaviors induced by colorectal distension in WKY animals independent of a reduction in colonic rat mast cell mediator release. We further demonstrated that mast cell-stimulated colonic ion transport was sensitive to inhibition by the mast cell stabiliser DSCG, an effect only observed in stress-sensitive rats. Moreover, CTMC-like mast cells were significantly increased in the colonic submucosa of WKY animals, and we observed a significant increase in the proportion of intermediate, or immature, peritoneal mast cells relative to control animals. Collectively our data further support a role for mast cells in the pathogenesis of stress-related GI disorders.
Cultural Immersion: Developing a Community of Practice of Teachers and Aboriginal Community Members

A lack of teacher awareness of the cultural and historical background of Aboriginal students has long been recognised as a major causative factor in the failure of Australian schools to fully engage Aboriginal students and deliver equitable educational outcomes for them. Using Wenger's communities of practice framework, this paper analyses the effectiveness of the Connecting to Country (CTC) program in addressing this issue in New South Wales (NSW) schools whereby Aboriginal community members design and deliver professional learning for teachers. Qualitative and quantitative data from 14 case studies suggest that the CTC program has had a dramatic impact on the attitudes of teachers to Aboriginal students, on their ability to establish relationships with the local Aboriginal community and on their willingness to adapt curriculum and pedagogy to better meet the needs of their students. As Aboriginal community members and teachers developed communities of practice, new approaches to Aboriginal student pedagogies were imagined through a sense of joint enterprise, mutuality and shared repertoire, empowering all participants in the CTC journey. Implications from this research highlight the importance of teacher professional learning delivered by Aboriginal people, Aboriginal community engagement in local schools and addressing deficit discourses about Aboriginal students and their families.
Redundancy between Cysteine Cathepsins in Murine Experimental Autoimmune Encephalomyelitis

The cysteine cathepsins B, S, and L are functionally linked to antigen processing, and hence to autoimmune disorders such as multiple sclerosis. Stemming from several studies that demonstrate that mice can be protected from experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) through the pharmacologic inhibition of cysteine cathepsins, it has been suggested that targeting these enzymes in multiple sclerosis may be of therapeutic benefit. Utilizing mice deficient in cysteine cathepsins both individually and in combination, we found that the myelin-associated antigen myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein (MOG) was efficiently processed and presented by macrophages to CD4+ T cells in the individual absence of cathepsin B, S or L. Similarly, mice deficient in cathepsin B or S were susceptible to MOG-induced EAE and displayed clinical progression and immune infiltration into the CNS, similar to their wild-type counterparts. Owing to a previously described CD4+ T cell deficiency in mice deficient in cathepsin L, such mice were protected from EAE. When multiple cysteine cathepsins were simultaneously inhibited via genetic deletion of both cathepsins B and S, or by a cathepsin inhibitor (LHVS), MHC-II surface expression, MOG antigen presentation and EAE were attenuated or prevented. This study demonstrates the functional redundancy between cathepsin B, S and L in EAE, and suggests that the inhibition of multiple cysteine cathepsins may be needed to modulate autoimmune disorders such as multiple sclerosis.
Using tag-match comparators for detecting soft errors

Soft errors caused by high energy particle strikes are becoming an increasingly important problem in microprocessor design. With increasing transistor density and die sizes, soft errors are expected to be a larger problem in the near future. Recovering from these unexpected faults may be possible by reexecuting some part of the program only if the error can be detected. Therefore it is important to come up with new techniques to detect soft errors and increase the number of errors that are detected. Modern microprocessors employ out-of-order execution and dynamic scheduling logic. Comparator circuits, which are used to keep track of data dependencies, are usually idle. In this paper, we propose various schemes to exploit on-chip comparators to detect transient faults. Our results show that around 50% of the errors on the wakeup logic can be detected with minimal hardware overhead by using the proposed techniques.
UNCOMMON CAUSES OF STATUS EPILEPTICUS: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW

Uncommon causes These were easily categorised into 5 specific aetiological categories: immunological disorders, mitochondrial disorders, infectious diseases, genetic disorders and drugs/toxins. A sixth category of ‘other causes’ has also been included. Knowledge of these causes is important for clinical management and treatment, and also for a better understanding of the pathophysiology of status epilepticus. © 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
PeerStudio: Rapid Peer Feedback Emphasizes Revision and Improves Performance

Rapid feedback is a core component of mastery learning, but feedback on open-ended work requires days or weeks in most classes today. This paper introduces PeerStudio, an assessment platform that leverages the large number of students' peers in online classes to enable rapid feedback on in-progress work. Students submit their draft, give rubric-based feedback on two peers' drafts, and then receive peer feedback. Students can integrate the feedback and repeat this process as often as they desire. In MOOC deployments, the median student received feedback in just twenty minutes. Rapid feedback on in-progress work improves course outcomes: in a controlled experiment, students' final grades improved when feedback was delivered quickly, but not if delayed by 24 hours. More than 3,600 students have used PeerStudio in eight classes, both massive and in-person. This research demonstrates how large classes can leverage their scale to encourage mastery through rapid feedback and revision.
Blind separation of disjoint orthogonal signals: demixing N sources from 2 mixtures

We present a novel method for blind separation of any number of sources using only two mixtures. The method applies when sources are (W-)disjoint orthogonal, that is, when the supports of the (windowed) Fourier transform of any two signals in the mixture are disjoint sets. We show that, for anechoic mixtures of attenuated and delayed sources, the method allows one to estimate the mixing parameters by clustering ratios of the time-frequency representations of the mixtures. The estimates of the mixing parameters are then used to partition the time-frequency representation of one mixture to recover the original sources. The technique is valid even in the case when the number of sources is larger than the number of mixtures. The general results are verified on both speech and wireless signals.
Abstract T P165: Prospective Screening of Family Members With Moyamoya Disease Patients

Background: Genetic factor plays an important role in the pathogenesis of moyamoya disease (MMD). Previous studies concentrated on the familial patients. In this study, we focus on the family members of sporadic MMD patients, and aim to gain a clearer understanding of the role that genetic factor plays in MMD. Methods: The immediate family members of MMD patients were initially screened by Transcranial Doppler Sonography (TCD) and the positive cases were verified by Magnetic Resonance Angiography (MRA). A total of 285 immediate family members of 245 sporadic MMD patients (2011.07-2013.03) were screened. Results: 33 cases were confirmed positive at 11.6% detection rate. 21 cases (from 20 index MMD patients) was validated by MRA. As a result, the proportion of familial MMD patients in our hospital increased from 7% (38/527) to 15% (79/527) in this period. For the main segments of the circle of Willis, which include the anterior cerebral arteries (ACA), middle cerebral arteries (MCA) and posterior cerebral arteries (PCA), the accordant rate between TCD and MRA was 95% (91/96). Kappa values for ACA, MCA and PCA were 0.91, 0.72 and 0.47 respectively. The familial cases confirmed by our screening showed a significant higher percentage of asymptomatic patients (57%) comparing to the 9% from the 38 familial MMD patients who had a clear family history before. Conclusions: Familial MMD patients may account for a higher percentage among all cases than previously thought. Some of the family member of MMD patients may also have MMD but present with asymptomatic. A routine screening should be implemented for all family members of MMD patients to improve the detection rate for this part of patient base. TCD has a high diagnostic agreement with MRA for MMD. By contrast, TCD may be a preferred choice for screening, because it’s inexpensive and safe.
Effect of elevated levels of ornithine decarboxylase on cell cycle progression in skin.

By crossing TG.AC v-Ha-ras and K6/ODC transgenic mice, we found previously that an activated ras and follicular ornithine decarboxylase (ODC) overexpression cooperate to generate spontaneous tumors in the skin. Cellular proliferation was dramatically increased in the K6/ODC transgenic skin, as evidenced by elevated proliferating cell nuclear antigen and Ki67 expression compared with nontransgenic littermates. Keratinocytes isolated from transgenic skin also displayed increased clonal growth. Paradoxically, expression of the growth inhibition-associated proteins p53, p21Waf1, p27Klp1, and Bax was increased with ODC overexpression in the skin. ODC overexpression did not affect cyclin D/cyclin-dependent kinase 4 (Cdk4)-dependent phosphorylation of retinoblastoma protein but stimulated cyclin E/Cdk2 and cyclin A/Cdk2-associated kinase activity, with minimal effect on the levels of these proteins. Thus, ODC/polyamine-induced activation of cyclin E/Cdk2 and cyclin A/Cdk2-associated kinase activity may cooperate with the ras induction of cyclin D/Cdk4/6-associated retinoblastoma protein phosphorylation to not only stimulate proliferation but ultimately contribute to tumor development.
Influence of DOTA Chelators on Radiochemical Purity and Biodistribution of 177Lu- and 90Y-Rituximab in Xenografted Mice

This work presents a comparative biological evaluation of 90Y- and 177Lu- labelled DOTA-SCN and DOTA-NHS conjugated to Rituximab in tumour-bearing mice. Two DOTA derivatives, p-SCN-Bn-DOTA and DOTA-NHS-ester were conjugated to Rituximab and then freeze-dried kit formulations were prepared, as previously described (1). Tissue distribution was investigated in tumour-bearing (Raji s.c.) male Rj: NMRI-Foxn1nu/Foxn1nu mice at different time points after administration of 177Lu-DOTA-Rituximab or 90Y-DOTA-Rituximab (6 MBq/10 μg per mouse). In addition, tumour images were acquired with a PhotonIMAGERTM after injection of 90Y-DOTA (SCN)-Rituximab. All radioimmunoconjugates were obtained with high radiolabelling yield (RCP > 98%) and specific activity of ca. 0.6 GBq/mg. The conjugates were stable in human serum and in 0.9% NaCl; however, progressive aggregation was observed with time, in particular for DOTA -(SCN) conjugates. Both 177Lu- and 90Y-DOTA -(SCN)-Rituximab revealed slow blood clearance. The maximum tumour uptake was found 72 h after injection of 177Lu-DOTA -(SCN)-Rituximab (9.3 ID/g). A high radioactivity uptake was observed in liver and spleen, confirming the hepatobiliary excretion route. The results obtained by the radioactive optical imaging harmonize with those from the biodistribution study.
CristalView - The visualization of a Cristal A visualization of multiple overlapping hierarchical classification structures

At Statistics Netherlands (SN), the Dutch national statistics institute, statistical classifications are modeled using a complex structure of multiple overlapping hierarchical data structures in an abstract model called Cristal. The basic structure of this model is an hierarchical directed acyclic graph (DAG) that models the partwhole relations between the entities in statistical classifications, extended with another DAG structure that models the element-set relations between the entities in the classifications. In this thesis we provide a novel visualization technique composed of the treemap visualization technique and the Venn-diagram technique in combination with a force-directed layout algorithm in order to visualize the complex classification structures in a Cristal. Important aspects of the visualization are the combination of a hierarchical structure and a graph structure, as well as the usage of various perceptual cues that take advantage of the human visual perception system. Additionally, we have created a visualization tool that implements the proposed visualization technique. To test the functionality and usability of the visualization method, we have conducted a user experiment with a number of participants.
Study on construction of wireless 2-hop transmission simulator by H8 microcomputer board

Various techniques have been studied in order to realize high-speed wireless network. Many wireless transmission technologies are usually validated by theoretical analysis or computer simulations assuming ideal conditions. However, actual wireless transmission performance may be degraded by the error caused by hardware limitation. Therefore, it is necessary to validate these techniques by hardware simulations for practical use. Furthermore, the visualization of the waveform by an oscilloscope or a spectrum analyzer is helpful for promotion of research. Cognitive radio system which can change the modulation scheme, i.e. adaptively by rewriting the software, has attracted attention. There is a great demand for general purpose software defined wireless transmitter and receiver. Such wireless transmitter and receiver can be realized using signal generator and vector signal analyzer which are commercial products. However, these equipments are most of the time expensive. There exist also inexpensive devices like H8 microcomputer board. This can be programmed using C language. However, because of the limitation of H8 microcomputer board hardware performance, high-end functions are not available and the size of variable is limited. In this paper, we build a 2-hop wireless transmission simulator by using a single H8 board microcomputer. The signals are visualized by an oscilloscope. The bit error rate performance is evaluated and the results well agree with the theoretical values.
Flow Graph Designer: A Tool for Designing and Analyzing Intel® Threading Building Blocks Flow Graphs

Flow Graph Designer is a visualization tool that supports the analysis and design of parallel applications that use the Intel® Threading Building Blocks (Intel® TBB) flow graph interface. The flow graph interface allows developers to express the dependency, streaming and data flow graphs present in many domains such as media, gaming, finance, high performance computing and healthcare. Because the flow graph interface introduced a style of programming that is different than loop- and task-parallel approaches, there is a need for new tool support. This paper presents Flow Graph Designer, an experimental graphical tool developed to make the flow graph interface easier to adopt, use, debug and tune. This paper provides a brief introduction to the Intel TBB flow graph interface and an overview of the key features provided by the Flow Graph Designer. Three examples are then presented that demonstrate the utility of this tool for important usage scenarios encountered while designing and analyzing flow graph applications.
Interactive Visual Exploration of Service Level Objectives

Service Level Objectives (SLOs) describe the desired behavior of a service. They present agreed-upon target behaviors (e.g. capacity, performance, availability, cost) that the clients of a service can expect, and that the service provider can manage against. Both clients and service providers need a way to monitor how a service is doing against its SLOs, and display the result of that monitoring in an intuitive fashion. This paper describes a tool that provides interactive visual exploration for services; makes it easy to navigate around the multi-dimensional space of services, their instances, users, and metrics; and is driven by the machinereadable description of the SLO itself, so that changes can be propagated automatically. The contributions of the paper include a description of the requirements and implementation of our system; the techniques used to display aspects of — and navigate around — the multi-dimensional space; and how the SLOs are used to automate the display of service-specific information.