Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Real-time path planning for a robot arm in changing environments

We present a practical strategy for real-time path planning for articulated robot arms in changing environments by integrating PRM for Changing Environments with 3D sensor data. Our implementation on Care-O-Bot 3 identifies bottlenecks in the algorithm and introduces new methods that solve the overall task of detecting obstacles and planning a path around them in under 100 ms. A fast planner is necessary to enable the robot to react to quickly changing human environments. We have tested our implementation in real-world experiments where a human subject enters the manipulation area, is detected and safely avoided by the robot. This capability is critical for future applications in automation and service robotics where humans will work closely with robots to jointly perform tasks.
Reproduction and application of stylistic means in non-photorealistic computer graphics

Non-photorealistic rendering (NPR) has been receiving an increasing attention within the last 15 years. In contrast to photorealistic computer graphics, which is bound by a physically correct simulation of light transport and material properties, NPR encompass a rich tool set enabling expressive and personal interpretation by individual rendering styles, and is thereby able to communicate information in a focused and efficient way. Therefore, visual perception, aesthetic requirements, or traditional artwork can be the driving force in non-photorealistic rendering. This dissertation thesis explores different aspects of a NPR pipeline designed for computer generated watercolor illustrations. The digital reproduction of such a complex painting style requires a holistic consideration of the painting process including the emulation of the painting medium as well as creative aspects such as extracting essential features, placing accents, or exploiting color contrast. We see our contribution in the improved visual aesthetic and believability of computer generated watercolor renderings won by combining universal principles derived from traditional art work with effective techniques for emulating the tools and the medium. We contribute to the following topics: First, we formulate two approaches for the reproduction of the visual attributes of watercolor. In contrast to physicallybased approaches usually applied in canvas simulations, we concentrate on empirical approaches that allow to process 2d and 3d input data efficiently. Second, we reproduce and apply stylistic means within the painting process to transfer universal principles from traditional art work to computer generated art work in order to improve the visual aesthetic and believability of the watercolor renderings. Finally, we present collaborations that applied the findings of this thesis in film and graphics industry. A first project aims at the integration of a watercolor style into 3d animation pipelines. A second project was initiated with the goal for a simple, one-click solution producing convincing watercolor illustrations from complex 3d cad data.
Fatty Liver, Insulin Resistance, and Features of Metabolic Syndrome

OBJECTIVE Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) coexists with insulin resistance (IR), but it is uncertain whether NAFLD and IR contribute independently to atherosclerosis. We tested whether fatty liver, IR, and metabolic syndrome (MetS) features (waist, glucose, triglyceride, HDL cholesterol [HDL-C], and blood pressure) were associated with a marker of atherosclerosis (coronary artery calcium [CAC] score >0), independently of cardiovascular risk factors and cardiovascular disease (CVD). RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS Data were analyzed from a South Korean occupational cohort of 10,153 people who all received ultrasound measurements of fatty liver and a cardiac computed tomography CAC score. IR was defined by homeostasis model assessment of IR (HOMA-IR) ≥75th percentile. Odds ratios (ORs) (95% CIs) for the presence of a CAC score >0 were estimated using logistic regression. RESULTS There were 915 people with a CAC score >0. MetS features were increased (glucose, blood pressure, triglyceride, and waist) or decreased (HDL-C) among people with a CAC score >0 (all comparisons against CAC score ≤0; P < 0.0001). Of subjects with a CAC score >0, 55% had fatty liver and 33.7% were insulin resistant. Fatty liver (OR 1.21 [95% CI 1.01–1.45]; P = 0.04) and HOMA-IR (1.10 [1.02–1.18]; P = 0.02) were associated with CAC score >0, independently of all MetS features, conventional cardiovascular risk factors, and prior evidence of CVD. The presence of IR and fatty liver combined was associated with CAC score >0 (1.53 [1.20–1.95]; P = 0.001). CONCLUSIONS Fatty liver and HOMA-IR are both associated with a CAC score >0 (independently of each other), features of MetS, conventional cardiovascular risk factors, and existing CVD.
Reuse with PROTÉGÉ -II: Adapting Problem-Solving Methods with Mapping Relations

This paper describes the PROTEGE -II architecture for the construction of knowledge-based systems from reusable components: problem-solving methods and knowledge bases. We argue that these components are easier to reuse when their terminologies are described as formal ontologies. We define declarative mapping relations that we use to connect pre-existing methods to new domains and knowledge bases. With PROTEGE -II and a set of mapping relations, we are able to reuse the same problem-solving method with two disparate tasks: (1) configuring the parts of an elevator system and (2) identifying plausible configurations of helices in a ribosome molecular strand.
Fitness instructor behaviour: triangulation of participant perceptions, instructor self-perception and observed behaviour

El presente estudio tiene como objetivo relacionar la conducta pedagogica observada, la auto-percepcion de los instructores de Fitness asi como la percepcion de los practicantes sobre dicha conducta con el fin de verificar si estos siguen una misma direccion. Se ha aplicado la metodologia observacional sistematizada para analizar sesiones de grupo de Fitness de 62 instructores mediante el sistema de observacion SOCIF. Los instructores y 442 practicantes de dichas sesiones respondieron un cuestionario sobre los comportamientos pedagogicos de los instructores, con relacion a la auto- percepcion y la percepcion respectivamente. Los resultados de las asociaciones realizadas han corroborado las constataciones de diversos autores (Che- lladurai y Riemer, 1998; De Marco Jr. y Mancini, 1997; Gutierrez, Perez y Lopez, 2011; Hanke, 1993; Smith, Smoll y Curtis, 1978, 1979; Tjeerdsma, 1997; Wandzilak, Ansorge y Potter, 1988), pues solo en parte de los comportamientos pedagogicos la percepcion de los practicantes, la auto-percepcion de los instructores y la conducta observada tienen una asociacion significativa positiva, siguiendo una misma direccion. Se verifico un mayor numero de asociaciones significativas positivas entre la conducta observada y la auto-percepcion de los instructores que entre la conducta observada y la per- cepcion de los practicantes, siendo el numero de asociaciones significativas positivas entre la auto-percepcion de los instructores y la percepcion de los practicantes aun mas inferior.
Heteroskedasticity and Spatiotemporal Dependence Robust Inference for Linear Panel Models with Fixed Effects

This paper studies robust inference for linear panel models with fixed effects in the presence of heteroskedasticity and spatiotemporal dependence of unknown forms. We propose a bivariate kernel covariance estimator that nests existing estimators as special cases. Our estimator improves upon existing estimators in terms of robustness, efficiency, and adaptiveness. For distributional approximations, we considered two types of asymptotics: the increasing-smoothing asymptotics and the fixed-smoothing asymptotics. Under the former asymptotics, the Wald statistic based on our covariance estimator converges to a chi-square distribution. Under the latter asymptotics, the Wald statistic is asymptotically equivalent to a distribution that can be well approximated by an F distribution. Simulation results show that our proposed testing procedure works well in finite samples.
Title : 1 A Novel Instrumented Multi-Peg Running Wheel System , Step-Wheel , for 2 Monitoring and Controlling Complex Sequential Stepping in Mice

1 A Novel Instrumented Multi-Peg Running Wheel System, Step-Wheel, for 2 Monitoring and Controlling Complex Sequential Stepping in Mice 3 4 Authors: 5 Takashi Kitsukawa, Masatoshi Nagata, Dai Yanagihara, Ryohei Tomioka, 6 Hideko Utsumi, Yasuo Kubota, Takeshi Yagi, Ann M. Graybiel, Tetsuo 7 Yamamori 8 9 Affiliation: 10 Graduate School of Frontier Biosciences, Osaka University, Suita, Japan 11 Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan 12 National Institute for Basic Biology, Okazaki, Aichi, Japan 13 Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences and the McGovern Institute for Brain 14 Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 15 16 Running head: 17 Articles in PresS. J Neurophysiol (April 27, 2011). doi:10.1152/jn.00139. 2011
Planning and control of virtual corporations in the service industry: the prototype VICOPLAN

Virtual corporations as well as traditional companies need a planning and control system in order to guarantee the organization's competitiveness in markets. This paper outlines the design of VICOPLAN (VIrtual COrporation PLANning and control system), a prototype of a planning and control system for virtual corporations in the service industry. VICOPLAN consists of three modules to support the management of virtual corporations. These modules allow the offering and allocation of sub-orders within the pool of partner companies of a virtual corporation. Furthermore, with VICOPLAN, orders may be calculated and costs may be controlled during the execution of the orders. VICOPLAN also offers multiple analysis methods, including the analysis of the behaviour of the partner companies, the allocation of sub-orders, as well as the goals of the partner companies. Finally, the implementation and testing of VICOPLAN is described briefly. An outlook on the "next generation" of VICOPLAN is also given.
Task Scheduling Based on PSO Algorithm in Computational Grid

Task scheduling is a key problem concerned in computational grid. In this paper, a heuristic approach based on particle swarm optimization is adopted to solving scheduling problem in grid environment. Each particle is represented a possible solution, and the position vector is transformed from the continuous variable to the discrete variable. This approach aims to generate an optimal schedule so as to get the minimum makespan and maximum resource utilization while completing the tasks. The results of simulated experiments show that the particle swarm optimization algorithm is able to get the better schedule than genetic algorithm
Effects of Geographically Varying Selection on Nucleotide Diversity and Linkage Disequilibrium : Insights from Deer Mouse Globin Genes

An important goal of population genetics is to elucidate the effects of natural selection on patterns of DNA sequence variation. Here we report results of a study to assess the joint effects of selection, recombination, and gene flow in shaping patterns of nucleotide variation at genes involved in local adaptation. We first describe a new summary statistic, Zg, that measures the between-sample component of linkage disequilibrium (LD). We then report results of a multilocus survey of nucleotide diversity and LD between highand low-altitude populations of deer mice, Peromyscus maniculatus. The multilocus survey included two closely-linked α-globin genes, HBA-T1 and HBA-T2, that underlie adaptation to different elevational zones. The primary goals were to assess whether the α-globin genes exhibit the hallmarks of spatially varying selection that are predicted by theory (i.e., sharply defined peaks in the between-population components of nucleotide diversity and LD) and to assess whether peaks in diversity and LD may be useful for identifying specific sites that distinguish selectively maintained alleles. Consistent with theoretical expectations, HBA-T1 and HBA-T2 were characterized by highly elevated levels of diversity between populations and between allele classes. Simulation and empirical results indicate that sliding window analyses of Zg between allele classes may provide an effective means of pinpointing causal substitutions.
Object identity set algebra for object-oriented database systems

Object identity set algebra is presented in the paper. The algebra is efficient to express queries to objects and gains support from underlying relational algebra and formal language theories. The algebra lies on top of relational algebra in the structure of layered mathematical models guiding object-oriented database systems. Object identity set algebra is defined precisely to apply mathematical set functions for querying objects in database systems.
TNF in combination with GM‐CSF enhances the differentiation of neonatal cord blood stem cells into dendritic cells and macrophages

We describe dendritic cell progenitors within the CD34+ stem cell compartment in neonatal cord blood and identify growth factors contributing to their differentiation. Granulocyte‐macrophage colony‐stimulating factor (GM‐CSF), although mainly promoting the growth and differentiation of monocyte‐macrophages (mono‐mφs), also induced the differentiation of cells with the distinctiv morphological features of dendritic cells (DCs). Tumo necrosis factor (TNF) in combination with GM‐CSF promoted further growth of both cell types but most notably increased the DC content. In situ analysis revealed that the cells exhibiting DC morphology were positive for class II major histocompatibility complex antigens but were CD14 negative, did not exhibit nonspecific esterase activity, and were nonphagocytic. Moreover, the mixed leukocyte reaction stimulatory capacity of cultures with the higher DC content was greater. TNF, interleukin‐1 (IL‐1), IL‐6, or platelet‐derived growth factor (PDGF) was inactive in promoting stem cell proliferation or DC morphology. IL‐1 or PDGF synergized with GM‐CSF to increase mono‐mφ–associated cell proliferation but did not increase the DC content. The development of a common DC‐monocyte precursor was suggested by the presence of colony‐forming unit–like clusters containing mono‐mφ8 and DCs and one sharp proliferative peak. The loss of DC morphology after 21 days, coupled with increases in mono‐mφ–associated markers and a constant number of viable cells, further suggests that DC morphology may fluctuate in culture or is a transient feature acquired by certain cells of the mono‐mφ lineage.
International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems A New Cartesian Controller for Robot Manipulators

The main objective of this paper is to propose a new controller for robot manipulators on Cartesian Coordinates with formal confirmation of stability, to verify its performance comparing it with the Cartesian PD Controller. In this paper we describe an experimental Cartesian robot for research and development of robot control algorithms. This system allows the development and easy test of Cartesian Control strategies on three degrees of freedom. The functionality of this system is explained via real-time experimental results of a new position Cartesian Control algorithm with global asymptotic stability of the closed-loop system.
Spinal Motion and Muscle Activity during Active Trunk Movements – Comparing Sheep and Humans Adopting Upright and Quadrupedal Postures

Sheep are used as models for the human spine, yet comparative in vivo data necessary for validation is limited. The purpose of this study was therefore to compare spinal motion and trunk muscle activity during active trunk movements in sheep and humans. Three-dimensional kinematic data as well as surface electromyography (sEMG) of spinal flexion and extension was compared in twenty-four humans in upright (UR) and 4-point kneeling (KN) postures and in 17 Austrian mountain sheep. Kinematic markers were attached over the sacrum, posterior iliac spines, and spinous and transverse processes of T5, T8, T11, L2 and L5 in humans and over the sacrum, tuber sacrale, T5, T8, T12, L3 and L7 in sheep. The activity of erector spinae (ES), rectus abdominis (RA), obliquus externus (OE), and obliquus internus (OI) were collected. Maximum sEMG (MOE) was identified for each muscle and trial, and reported as a percentage (MOE%) of the overall maximally observed sEMG from all trials. Spinal range of motion was significantly smaller in sheep compared to humans (UR / KN) during flexion (sheep: 6–11°; humans 12–34°) and extension (sheep: 4°; humans: 11–17°). During extension, MOE% of ES was greater in sheep (median: 77.37%) than UR humans (24.89%), and MOE% of OE and OI was greater in sheep (OE 76.20%; OI 67.31%) than KN humans (OE 21.45%; OI 19.34%), while MOE% of RA was lower in sheep (21.71%) than UR humans (82.69%). During flexion, MOE% of RA was greater in sheep (83.09%) than humans (KN 47.42%; UR 41.38%), and MOE% of ES in sheep (45.73%) was greater than KN humans (14.45%), but smaller than UR humans (72.36%). The differences in human and sheep spinal motion and muscle activity suggest that caution is warranted when ovine data are used to infer human spine biomechanics.
Identification of Regions Critically Affecting Kinetics and Allosteric Regulation of the Escherichia coli ADP-Glucose Pyrophosphorylase by Modeling and Pentapeptide-Scanning Mutagenesis

ABSTRACT ADP-glucose pyrophosphorylase (ADP-Glc PPase) is the enzyme responsible for the regulation of bacterial glycogen synthesis. To perform a structure-function relationship study of the Escherichia coli ADP-Glc PPase enzyme, we studied the effects of pentapeptide insertions at different positions in the enzyme and analyzed the results with a homology model. We randomly inserted 15 bp in a plasmid with the ADP-Glc PPase gene. We obtained 140 modified plasmids with single insertions of which 21 were in the coding region of the enzyme. Fourteen of them generated insertions of five amino acids, whereas the other seven created a stop codon and produced truncations. Correlation of ADP-Glc PPase activity to these modifications validated the enzyme model. Six of the insertions and one truncation produced enzymes with sufficient activity for the E. coli cells to synthesize glycogen and stain in the presence of iodine vapor. These were in regions away from the substrate site, whereas the mutants that did not stain had alterations in critical areas of the protein. The enzyme with a pentapeptide insertion between Leu102 and Pro103 was catalytically competent but insensitive to activation. We postulate this region as critical for the allosteric regulation of the enzyme, participating in the communication between the catalytic and regulatory domains.
Towards an EOG-based eye tracker for computer control

The authors are developing an eye tracking system for use with personal computers. The system is intended to provide a pointing device that could be useful to some people with physical disabilities.The basis for this system is the use of Bio-Electrical signals from the user's body. In particular the authors are investigating the use of the Electrooculogram and Visual Evoked Potentials. This paper describes an experiment to compare two algorithms for processing the signals and generate an effective output control.
Supplemental oxygen prevents exercise-induced oxidative stress in muscle-wasted patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

RATIONALE Although oxygen therapy is of clear benefit in patients with severe chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), recent studies have shown that short-term supplementary oxygen may increase oxidative stress and inflammation within the airways. OBJECTIVE We investigated whether systemic inflammation and oxidative stress at rest and during exercise in patients with COPD are influenced by supplemental oxygen. METHODS Nine normoxemic, muscle-wasted patients with moderate to very severe COPD were studied. Plasma markers of systemic inflammation (leukocyte counts, interleukin 6 [IL-6]) and oxidative stress (lipid peroxidation, protein oxidation, antioxidant capacity) were measured after treatment with either supplemental oxygen (nasal, 4 L . min(-1)) or compressed air, both at rest (1 h treatment) and after submaximal exercise (40 W, constant work rate). In addition, free-radical production by neutrophils and ATP-degradation products were determined before and after exercise. RESULTS Short-term oxygen breathing at rest did not influence systemic low-grade inflammation and oxidative stress. The IL-6 response to exercise was attenuated during cycling with supplemental oxygen. Exercise-induced lipid and protein oxidation were prevented by treatment with supplemental oxygen. This was associated with both decreased free-radical production by neutrophils and reduced formation of (hypo)xanthine and uric acid. CONCLUSION Short-term supplementary oxygen does not affect basal systemic inflammation and oxidative stress but prevents exercise-induced oxidative stress in normoxemic, muscle-wasted patients with COPD, and attenuates plasma IL-6 response. Inhibition of neutrophil activation and ATP degradation appears to be involved in this effect.
Unsupervised Free-Text Processing and Structuring in Digital Archives

Automatic information extraction from unstructured sources is known to be a challenging task. It involves a number of sequential stages that transforms initial raw data to the source of knowledge in some field. In this paper we concentrate on the problem of the unsupervised free-text processing and structuring – 1 level of information extraction in the information pyramid we further introduce in this paper. We propose a novel approach that allows accurate text manipulation in order to detect coarse-grain structural skeleton within scientific digital archives. In contrast to other research initiatives in this area our approach relies on the information present in the processing text, does not depend on any external information sources (databases, dictionaries, semantic networks, etc) and is truly language-independent. Finally we discuss the evaluation methodology for the results obtained using our method and propose further research directions in the field.
Individual Learner Differences In Web-based Learning Environments: From Cognitive, Affective and Social-cultural Perspectives

Throughout the paper, the issues of individual differences in web-based learning, also known as online instruction, online training or distance education were examined and implications for designing distance education were discussed. Although the main purpose was to identify differences in learners’ characteristics such as cognitive, affective, physiological and social factors that affect learning in a web-enhanced environment, the questions of how the web could be used to reinforce learning, what kinds of development ideas, theories and models are currently being used to design and deliver online instruction, and finally what evidence for the effectiveness of using World Wide Web (WWW) for learning and instruction has been reported, were also analyzed to extend theoretical and epistemogical understanding of web-based learning.