Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Design of decoupled repetitive control for MIMO systems

This paper introduces the design of decoupled repetitive control (RC) for multi-inputs multi-outputs (MIMO) system. The design is started by decoupling the MIMO system into separate single-input single-output (SISO) models. Then, a set of low order and causal RC compensator is designed for each single-input single-output (SISO) model obtained from decou-pling. The compensators that ensure the RC stability condition, are obtained by solving optimization problems. Simulation results are given to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed design.
Energy efficiency maximization for heterogeneous networks: A joint linear precoder design and small-cell switching-off approach

In this paper, we consider a multiuser multiple-input multipleoutput (MU-MIMO) heterogeneous network (HetNet) in which a macro base station (MBS) and multiple small-cells (SCs) coexist to serve multiple user terminals. We propose a joint linear precoder design problem to maximize the energy efficiency of the considered network. To tackle the cross-tier interference in the HetNets, we exploit zero-forcing precoding where the interference at the users is cancelled out by block diagonalization scheme. A novel group sparsity promoted as group Lasso is proposed using the weighted norm minimization, where the group sparsity pattern indicates those SCs that can be switched off and non-associated users. Simulation results show that the proposed algorithm outperforms many existing algorithms in terms of the total energy efficiency in the HetNets.
Thio Derivatives of 2(5H)-Furanone as Inhibitors against Bacillus subtilis Biofilms

Gram-positive bacteria cause a wide spectrum of infectious diseases, including nosocomial infections. While in the biofilm, bacteria exhibit increased resistance to antibiotics and the human immune system, causing difficulties in treatment. Thus, the development of biofilm formation inhibitors is a great challenge in pharmacology. The gram-positive bacterium Bacillus subtilis is widely used as a model organism for studying biofilm formation. Here, we report on the effect of new synthesized 2(5H)-furanones on the biofilm formation by B.subtilis cells. Among 57 compounds tested, sulfur-containing derivatives of 2(5H)-furanone (F12, F15, and F94) repressed biofilm formation at a concentration of 10 μg/ml. Derivatives F12 and F94 were found to inhibit the biosynthesis of GFP from the promoter of the eps operon encoding genes of the biofilm exopolysaccharide synthesis (EPS). Using the differential fluorescence staining of alive/dead cells, we demonstrated an increased bacterial sensitivity to antibiotics (kanamycin and chloramphenicol) in the presence of F12, F15, and F94, with F12 being the most efficient one. The derivative F15 was capable of disrupting an already formed biofilm and thereby increasing the efficiency of antibiotics.
How to select hashing bits? A direct measurement approach

Hashing, which encodes data points into binary codes, has become a popular approach for approximate nearest neighbor searching tasks because of its storage and retrieval efficiency. Given a pool of bits, we propose to select a set of bits according to a quality measurement directly related to the large scale approximate nearest neighbor searching problem. An alternating greedy optimization method is proposed to find a locally optimal solution. The experimental results show this optimization method is efficient and effective.
Mirror symmetry, Langlands duality, and commuting elements of Lie groups

Abstract. By normalizing a component of the space of commuting pairs of elements ina reductive Lie group G, and the corresponding space for the Langlands dual group,we construct pairs of hyperk¨ahler orbifolds which satisfy the conditions to be mirrorpartners in the sense of Strominger-Yau-Zaslow. The same holds true for commutingquadruples in a compact Lie group. The Hodge numbers of the mirror partners, ormore precisely their orbifold E-polynomials, are shown to agree, as predicted by mirrorsymmetry. These polynomials are explicitly calculated when G is a quotient of SL(n). Mirror symmetry made its ﬁrst appearance in 1990 as an equivalence between two linearsigma-models in superstring theory [10, 21]. The targets were Calabi-Yau 3-folds, so mirrorsymmetry predicted that these should come in pairs, M and Mˆ , satisfying h p,q (M) =H p,3−q (Mˆ). Although many examples were known, the physics did not immediately provide anygeneral construction of a mathematical nature for the mirror. Since then, however, twomathematical constructions have emerged: that of Batyrev [1] and Batyrev-Borisov [2],generalizing the original idea of Greene-Plesser [21], and that of Strominger-Yau-Zaslow [46]with which this paper is concerned.Ofthe two, Batyrev’s construction has theadvantageofbeing precise, andmoreamenableto explicit calculations. One can prove, for example, that the Hodge numbers of the Batyrevmirror satisfy the desired relationship. On the other hand, it is deeply rooted in toricgeometry. This has led skeptics to suggest that mirror symmetry is an intrinsically toricphenomenon, despite work [3, 40] extending Batyrev’s point of view some ways beyond thetoric setting.The construction proposed by Strominger-Yau-Zaslow in 1996 has quite a diﬀerent ﬂavor. It is directly inspired by a physical duality, the so-called T-duality between sigma-modelswhose targets are dual tori. Remarkably, although it is supposed to transform one projectivevariety into another, the construction is not algebraic, or even K¨ahler, in nature. Rather, itis symplectic: one must ﬁnd a foliation of M by special Lagrangian tori, and replace eachtorus with its dual.This bold idea has already led to some interesting work on the existence of families ofLagrangiantoriin Calabi-Yau3-folds [22, 23,41], which isessentially aproblem in symplectictopology. But it is not yet suﬃciently advanced that the mirror can be constructed in anyprecise sense, nor any of its invariants computed beyond the Euler characteristic. It is noteven known how to construct families of tori which are special Lagrangian (as opposed tojust Lagrangian). And the further questions of what complex structure to place on the dualfamily, and how to deal with singular ﬁbers, remain mysterious.
Learning the Graph of Relations Among Multiple Tasks

We propose multitask Laplacian learning, a new method for jointly learning clusters of closely related tasks. Unlike standard multitask methodologies, the graph of relations among the tasks is not assumed to be known a priori, but is learned by the multitask Laplacian algorithm. The algorithm builds on kernel based methods and exploits an optimization approach for learning a continuously parameterized kernel. It involves solving a semidefinite program of a particu- lar type, for which we develop an algorithm based on Douglas-Rachford split- ting methods. Multitask Laplacian learning can find application in many cases in which tasks are related with each other to varying degrees, some strongly, oth- ers weakly. Our experiments highlight such cases in which multitask Laplacian learning outperforms independent learning of tasks and state of the art multitask learning methods. In addition, they demonstrate that our algorithm partitions the tasks into clusters each of which contains well correlated tasks.
The measurement of intermodulation products on passive components and transmission lines

Multiple frequency carrier systems require components and transmission cables and connectors with low passive intermodulation products between the frequency channels. With the implementation of cellular private radio networks, the market and the usage of components with extreme low passive intermodulation products characteristics, has been a dramatic growth in the volume and tightened specifications. The measurement of the PIM and the verification of those measurements has created a major task for the manufactures of components, cables and connectors. This paper gives a momentary status report on the measurement activities in the industry and the work of the IEC 46 TC standardisation group.
IBC-EI: An Instruction Based Compression method with Encryption and Integrity Checking

Code Compression has been shown to be efficient in minimizing the memory requirements for embedded systems as well as in power consumption reduction and performance improvement. In this paper we devise a code compression method, the IBC-EI (Instruction Based Compression with Encryption and Integrity checking), tailored to provide integrity checking and encryption to secure processor-memory transaction. The principle is to keep the ciphered code compressed in the memory, thus reducing the memory footprint and providing more information per memory access. The results for the Leon Processor and a set of Mediabench and MiBench benchmarks show that the overhead introduced by the code encryption and integrity checking scheme is almost completely eliminated by the compression mechanism.
Efficient parallel image clustering and search on a heterogeneous platform

We present a parallel image clustering and search framework for large scale datasets that does not require image annotation, segmentation or registration. This work addresses the image search problem while avoiding the need for user-specified or auto-generated metadata. Instead we rely on image data alone to avoid the ambiguity inherent in user-provided information. We propose a parallel algorithm exploiting heterogeneous hardware resources to generate global descriptors for the set of input images. Given a group of query images we derive the global descriptors in parallel. Secondly, we propose to build a customisable search tree of the image database by performing a hierarchical K-means (H-Kmeans) clustering of the corresponding descriptors. Lastly, we design a novel parallel vBFS algorithm to search through the H-Kmeans tree and locate the set of closest matches for query image descriptors. To validate our design we analyse the search performance and energy efficiency under a range of hardware clock frequencies and in comparison with alternative approaches. The result of our analysis shows that the framework greatly increases the search efficiency and thereby reduces the energy consumption per query.
Formal Specification and Verification of Safety-Critical Software

This thesis is about formal specification and formal verification of software and consists of three different parts. In the first two parts, the formal specification language OCL is treated in two different contexts. The third part describes a technique for analysing the consequences of hardware faults as part of formal software verification. The first part describes the development of OCL specifications for all classes and interfaces in JAVA CARD API 2.2, a set of library classes/interfaces used when programming JAVA CARD programs. The primary purpose of the specifications is to support formal verification of JAVA CARD programs in the KeY tool, but the formal documentation itself can also be useful for programmers using the API. The second part of the thesis considers different aspects of simplifying OCL specifications that have been automatically generated. One specific context is examined: a CASE tool equipped with a design pattern instantiation mechanism that, besides generating UML diagrams, also generates OCL constraints. These constraints capture certain properties of the design pattern. OCL constraints that are automatically generated from generic patterns tend to contain redundancies. These redundancies reduce their readability and they therefore need to be simplified. An approach for OCL simplification based on rewriting is presented. The third part describes a technique for formal verification of software where the ability to analyse hardware faults has been introduced. An approach for formal software verification based on symbolic program execution is extended so that hardware faults can be represented in a symbolic way. These simulated hardware faults can be introduced during symbolic execution, and it then becomes possible to calculate the exact consequences of certain hardware faults or prove that a program tolerates these faults.
Content familiarity, task repetition and Chinese EFL learners’ engagement in second language use

Previous research has considered the effects of content familiarity and task repetition on second language (L2) performance, but few studies have looked at the effect of these factors on learners’ engagement in task performance. This study explores the influence of content familiarity and task repetition on English as a foreign language (EFL) learners’ engagement in oral performance. Sixty EFL learners performed four narrative tasks with two familiar and two unfamiliar topics. They also repeated the same tasks to the same audience. Their oral production was analysed with various measures of behavioural and cognitive engagement. Stimulated recalls were collected from twenty-one participants to capture their emotional engagement. The participants were behaviourally and cognitively more engaged in tasks with familiar topics as well as having a more positive affective response to them. Repeating the tasks, however, negatively influenced behavioural and cognitive engagement, although the participants felt more relaxed and confident. In addition, the participants were more motivated to repeat unfamiliar topics, although they demonstrated more noticeable declines in their frequency of self-repair (an indicator of cognitive engagement) for these topics. These results provided empirical evidence for the relationship between task design and implementation factors and L2 task engagement. Teachers might base repetition decisions partially on learners’ familiarity with the topic.
Mobility Support for Diffusion-based Ad-Hoc Sensor Networks

In this work we investigate the application of four simple enhancements to directed diffusion to support mobile users. The first is a small change to diffusion which restarts path discovery when a node moves. The second is a simple handoff scheme similar to those used in cellular networks. The third introduces special proxy nodes as path anchors, and the fourth scheme provides hints to the diffusion layer to pre-create routes in an anticipated direction of motion. We compared the behavior of the various schemes for a mobile user tracking an object in a sensor network under four mobility scenarios. Our simulation results show that a combination of these simple enhancements to diffusion permit sink speeds of up 7 meters per second without generating excessive overhead. Increasing the transmit power was also an effective method of reducing the impact of mobility. Finally, we found that random motion is the most difficult mobility scenario, so approaches shown to work under random motion should also work well under more realistic mobility conditions.
Gaps ++ : an Internet-based Petri Net Modeling and Simulation Architecture

GAPS ++ is an open, Internet-based software architecture for modeling and simulating dynamic system behavior using high-level Petri nets. It is designed as a collection of collaborating software components and is based on distributed object technology. GAPS ++ facilitates a exible combination of independent modeling, analysis and simulation tools located on diierent computers on the Internet. Every GAPS ++ component has a built-in HTTP server. This makes it possible to inspect its current state with a conventional WWW browser at every moment.A directory service helps to locate instances of a required component type and provides the necessary contact information. GAPS ++ components may be added or removed without aaecting the operation of the system as a whole. As an example for a complex GAPS ++ component, a distributed Petri net editor is presented.
Dependency criteria on regulated inputs for buffer overflow approximation

The estimation of resource usage in network nodes is a basic issue from the point of QoS (quality of service) provisioning. The estimation of the buffer overflow is considered in network elements represented by a service curve property. Existing results (Vojnovic, M. and Le Boudec, J.-Y., IEEE Trans. Commun., 2002; Gulya/spl acute/s, A. et al., IEEE GLOBECOM, 2004), define bounds on buffer overflow for such elements, multiplexing homogeneous and heterogeneous independent regulated inputs. The requirement of independence for the inputs can be reduced by setting up new bounds for the homogeneous case, using a bounding technique which relies only on the limited independence among the inputs (Siegel, A. et al., ACM-SIAM Symp. Discrete Algms, 1993). Beside the presentation of the new bounds, it is shown that they improve existing ones in all cases, and an investigation is given about the independence properties which are required from the input flows.
Native Double Precision LINPACK Implementation on a Hybrid Reconfigurable CPU

Applications requiring double precision (DP) arithmetic executed on embedded CPUs without native DP support suffer from prohibitively low performance and power efficiency. Hybrid reconfigurable CPUs, allowing for reconfiguration of the instruction set at runtime, appear as a viable computing platform for applications requiring instructions not supported by existing fixed architectures. Our experiments on a Stretch S6 as prototypical platform show that limited reconfigurable resources on such architectures are sufficient for providing native support of DP arithmetic. Our design using a DP fused multiply-accumulate (FMA) extension instruction achieves a peak performance of 200~MFlop/s and a sustained performance of 22.7~MFlop/s at a clock frequency of 100~MHz. It outperforms LINPACK using software-emulated DP floating-point arithmetic on the S6 by a factor of 5.7 while achieving slightly higher numerical accuracy. In single precision, multiple floating-point operators can be implemented in parallel on the S6.
Numerical Solution of a parabolic system with blowup of the solution

In this paper, the author proposes a numerical method to solve a parabolic system of two quasilinear equations of nonlinear heat conduction with sources. The solution of this system may blow up in finite time. It is proved that the numerical solution also may blow up in finite time and an estimate of this time is obtained. The convergence of the scheme is obtained for particular values of the parameters.
Intelligent integration of information : design and implementation of a web wrapper

This thesis describes the design and the implementation of a wrapper engine to query semi-structured remote data sources for the Context Interchange group. Research is focused on the continued development of the query execution engine, and the design and implementation of a planner to structure and optimize user queries. Major problems dealt with include the automatic extraction of data, manipulation of information using relational operations, search for plans to order sub-query executions, circumvention of network delays, and composition of results to be returned to the receiver of the mediated query. Co-Thesis Supervisor: Stuart Madnick John Norris Maguire Professor of Information Technology Sloan School of Management Co-Thesis Supervisor: Michael Siegel Principal Research Scientist Sloan School of Management
Efficient Generation of Germ Line Transmitting Chimeras from C57BL/6N ES Cells by Aggregation with Outbred Host Embryos

Genetically modified mouse strains derived from embryonic stem (ES) cells have become essential tools for functional genomics and biomedical research. Large scale mutagenesis projects are producing libraries of mutant C57BL/6 (B6) ES cells to enable the functional annotation of every gene of the mouse genome. To realize the utility of these resources, efficient and accessible methods of generating mutant mice from these ES cells are necessary. Here, we describe a combination of ICR morula aggregation and a chemically-defined culture medium with widely available and accessible components for the high efficiency generation of germline transmitting chimeras from C57BL/6N ES cells. Together these methods will ease the access of the broader biomedical research community to the publicly available B6 ES cell resources.
Determination of Nutrient Contents and In vitro Gas Production Values of Some Legume Forages Grown in the Harran Plain Saline Soils

The aim of this study was to determine the nutritive value of some legume species in salt-affected soils of South-East Anatolian region using chemical composition and in vitro gas production kinetics. In this study, Lotus corniculatus, Trifolium alexandrinum, Medicago sativa were sown and tested in four different locations. A 3 by 4 factorial design with 3 legume species and 4 salt levels (non salty electrical conductivity (EC)<4 dS/m; low salt: 4 dS/m>EC<8 dS/m, medium saline: 8 dS/m>EC<16 dS/m and high salt: 16 dS/m>EC) was used in the study. Results indicated that salinity and plants had no significant effect on ash and ether extract. Dry matter (DM), acid detergent fiber, digestible dry matter, dry matter intake (DMI) were affected by plant, salinity and plant×salinity interaction. On the other hand neutral detergent fiber, relative feed value (RFV), and DMI were affected by salinity and plant×salinity interaction. Mineral contents were affected by plant species, salinity and salinity×plants interactions. In vitro gas production, their kinetics and estimated parameters such as were not affected by salinity whereas the gas production up to 48 h, organic matter digestibility, metabolizable energy (ME), and net energy lactation (NEL) were affected by plant and plant×salt interaction. Generally RFVs of all species ranged from 120 to 210 and were quite satisfactory in salty conditions. Current results show that the feed value of Medicago sativa is higher compared to Lotus corniculatus and Trifolium alexandrinum.
Defect prediction over software life cycle in automotive domain state of the art and road map for future

Software today provides an important and vital role in providing the functionality and user experience in automotive domain. With ever increasing size and complexity of software together with high demands on quality and dependability, managing software development process effectively is an important challenge. Methods of software defect predictions provide useful information for optimal resource allocation and release planning; they also help track and model software and system reliability. In this paper we present an overview of defect prediction methods and their applicability in different software lifecycle phases in the automotive domain. Based on the overview and current trends we identify that close monitoring of in-service performance of software based systems will provide useful feedback to software development teams and allow them to develop more robust and user friendly systems.
The Initial Mass Function of Low-Mass Stars and Brown Dwarfs in Taurus

By combining deep optical imaging and infrared spectroscopy with data from the Two-Micron All-Sky Survey (2MASS) and from previous studies (e.g., Briceño et al.), I have measured the initial mass function (IMF) for a reddening-limited sample in four fields in the Taurus star-forming region. This IMF is representative of the young populations within these fields for masses above 0.02 M☉. Relative to the similarly derived IMF for the Trapezium Cluster (Luhman et al.), the IMF for Taurus exhibits a modest deficit of stars above 1 solar mass (i.e., steeper slope), the same turnover mass (~0.8 M☉), and a significant deficit of brown dwarfs. If the IMF in Taurus were the same as that in the Trapezium, 12.8 ± 1.8 brown dwarfs (>0.02 M☉) are expected in these Taurus fields where only one brown dwarf candidate is found. These results are used to test theories of the IMF.