Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Adaptive selection of Anchors in the Extended Kalman Filter tracking algorithm

In many localization systems, the Mobile Node (MN) takes distance measurements with reference nodes called Anchors (ANs) in order to estimate its position. In general, the MN can obtain a better estimation when it takes measurements with multiple ANs. Unfortunately, this can lead to consume more energy and generate more traffic in the network. In this paper, we present an adaptive mechanism for the localization algorithm Extended Kalman Filter. Here, the MN decides the number of ANs to use according to measurable error indicators, which can be used to have an idea about the MN's position error. In this way, if the error indicator suggests that the position error was high in previous periods, then our Selective Extended Kalman Filter (S-EKF) will take measurements with more ANs in the next periods to improve the position accuracy.
SME access to credit in Guatemala and Nicaragua: challenging conventional wisdom with new evidence

This paper develops a conceptual framework and offers new statistical evidence on the access to credit by micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in Guatemala and Nicaragua. To this end, and after reviewing the existing literature on the topic, it produces new empirical evidence drawn from the official Household Survey and the World Bank’s Investment Climate Survey, conducted in both countries in 2006. The core contribution of the paper lies in the critical revision of three pieces of common knowledge, namely: (1) A large fraction of MSMEs has an excess demand for credit; (2) In the presence of credit market failures, governments must and actually do assist MSMEs in gaining access to loan facilities; and (3) Alternative credit instruments, such as leasing, factoring, microcredit, and third-party guarantee schemes, can be a suitable and massive solution for the lack of financing. Our analysis refutes to a large extent these assertions and advances some basic policy prescriptions that should help improve the resource allocation and impact of specific MSME financial programs.
IOT-based drone for improvement of crop quality in agricultural field

Unmanned Aerial Vehicles are becoming more and more popular to meet the demands of increased population and agriculture. Drones equipped with appropriate cameras, sensors and integrating modules will help in achieving easy, efficient, precision agriculture. The proposed solutions related to these drones, if integrated with various Machine Learning and Internet of Things concepts, can help in increasing the scope of further improvement. In this paper, the related work in this field has been highlighted along with proposed solutions that can be integrated into the drone using Raspberry Pi 3 B module.
A second polymorph of 2,4,6-tris(3,5-dimethyl-1H-pyrazol-1-yl)-1,3,5-triazine

The molecule of the title compound, C18H21N9, is nearly planar, with the three pyrazole rings aligned at 2.40 (5), 9.27 (5) and 9.71 (5)° with respect to the triazine ring. The triazine ring is planar (r.m.s. deviation = 0.005 Å), the distortion from a hexagonal arrangement arising from the angles at the N [112.4 (1)–113.1 (1)°] and C [127.1 (1)–127.6 (1)°] atoms deviating from 120°. The crystal studied was an inversion twin.
Coexistence of Multifarious Exact Nonlinear Wave Solutions for Generalized B-equation

In this paper, we consider the generalized b-equation ut - uxxt + (b + 1)u2ux = buxuxx + uxxx. For a given constant wave speed, we investigate the coexistence of multifarious exact nonlinear wave solutions including smooth solitary wave solution, peakon wave solution, smooth periodic wave solution, single singular wave solution and periodic singular wave solution. Not only is the coexistence shown, but the concrete expressions are given via phase analysis and special integrals. From our work, it can be seen that the types of exact nonlinear wave solutions of the generalized b-equation are more than that of the b-equation. Many previous results are turned to our special cases. Also, some conjectures and questions are presented.
Memory capacity aware non-blocking data transfer on GPGPU

The massive data demand of GPGPUs requires expensive memory modules, such as GDDR, to support high data bandwidth. The high cost poses constraints on the total memory capacity available to GPGPU s, and the data need to be transferred between the host CPUs and GPGPUs. However, the long latency of data transfers has resulted in significant performance overhead. To alleviate this issue, the modem GPGPUs have implemented the non-blocking data transfer allowing a GPGPU to perform computing while the data is being transmitted. This paper proposes a capacity aware scheduling algorithm that exploits the non-blocking data transfer in modern GPGPUs. By effectively taking the advantage of non-blocking transfers, experiment results demonstrate an average of 24.01 % performance improvement when compared to existing approaches that only consider memory capacity.
‘Transient’ genetic suppression facilitates generation of hexose transporter null mutants in Leishmania mexicana

The genome of Leishmania mexicana encompasses a cluster of three glucose transporter genes designated LmxGT1, LmxGT2 and LmxGT3. Functional and genetic studies of a cluster null mutant (Δlmxgt1‐3) have dissected the roles of these proteins in Leishmania metabolism and virulence. However, null mutants were recovered at very low frequency, and comparative genome hybridizations revealed that Δlmxgt1‐3 mutants contained a linear extrachromosomal 40 kb amplification of a region on chromosome 29 not amplified in wild type parasites. These data suggested a model where this 29‐40k amplicon encoded a second site suppressor contributing to parasite survival in the absence of GT1‐3 function. To test this, we quantified the frequency of recovery of knockouts in the presence of individual overexpressed open reading frames covering the 29‐40k amplicon. The data mapped the suppressor activity to PIFTC3, encoding a component of the intraflagellar transport pathway. We discuss possible models by which PIFTC3 might act to facilitate loss of GTs specifically. Surprisingly, by plasmid segregation we showed that continued PIFTC3 overexpression was not required for Δlmxgt1‐3 viability. These studies provide the first evidence that genetic suppression can occur by providing critical biological functions transiently. This novel form of genetic suppression may extend to other genes, pathways and organisms.
Strategic Behavior in Standard-Setting Organizations

This paper seeks to better understand the competitive behavior of firms in standard-setting organizations by examining two case studies. We examine the development of mobile Internet standards by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE); and the development of DSL standards. The case studies highlight that standard-setting bodies play critical roles in these industries. Because innovations are typically not promulgated by a single firm, but rather draw together technologies developed in multiple firms, the coordination role played by these organizations is critical. And certainly in some cases, particularly where parties commit in advance to a formal process (such as the xDSL one), the standardization process can lead to a dispassionate selection of a superior technology as a standard. But as the IEEE 802.11 case suggests, the situation is often more complex. For in many cases, the selection of a technological standard has very substantial economic implications for the firms participating in the process. As a result, the standardization process can become side-tracked as warring factions seek to promote their own agenda. The process can be very much delayed as a result. Rules of standard-setting bodies that were originally intended to insure a fair process can be manipulated by firms to promote their own agenda or even to delay the project indefinitely. As a result, firms may be tempted to by-pass formal standards development organizations, and instead reach a private agreement with like-minded peers.
INTEGRATED SPECTRAL AND SPATIAL INFORMATION FOR IMAGE CLASSIFICATION BASED ON SUPPORT VECTOR MACHINE

In this study, we present spatial information of Principal Component Analysis (PCA) image for 2-D discrete wavelet transform (DWT). The spatial information images were generated by making morphological process on individual wavelet sub-band. The procedure of morphology includes Opening and Closing processing. These feature vectors combined with original spectral image are first used for training and later for testing the SVM, decision tree, and maximum likelihood classifier. In this paper, the proposed approach provides improvements in terms of classification accuracy when compared with maximum likelihood classification methodologies. In the most of case, the SVM method gave the highest correct classification rate within these three methodologies. Decision tree and SVM have their superiority respectively.
Detección de Expresiones Temporales TimeML en Catalán mediante Roles Semánticos y Redes Semánticas

Nowadays, representation and processing of temporal information in natural language is receiving a great research interest. The main annotation scheme for representing temporal information is TimeML, which has been adopted as standard by a large number of researchers. However, available TimeML resources are very limited, specially in languages other than English. In this work we analyze the usage of semantic networks and semantic roles from a multilingual perspective for the automatic detection of temporal expressions following TimeML specifications. This approach has been evaluated for Catalan obtaining an 83.7% strict Fβ=1, and compared to its results for English and Spanish confirming that it can be successfully applied in different languages.
House Price Risk - Some Risk Management Strategies

As property is the most valuable asset for many home owners, house price risk is relevant to a large number of households. Two factors impacting this risk are the high leverage on the assets and the volatility of housing prices. This paper discusses different strategies for house price risk management in a three-step approach. First, eleven risk management strategies are introduced and discussed, focusing on the relevant literature and industry practice. Second, four basic risk management strategies (risk avoidance, risk retention, direct hedging and indirect hedging) are introduced and compared with respect to their hedging efficiency. Finally, the success probabilities of the remaining seven strategies, all specific direct hedging strategies, are evaluated. The paper finds that there are a large number of risk management strategies that can be employed to manage house price risk. However, not all of them are available in the financial markets. Of these, the paper finds that the direct hedging approaches are the most effective, and of these, index linked home value insurances and reinsurance receive the highest success possibilities in primary and secondary markets, respectively.
Food safety, consumer trust in livestock farmers and purchase likelihood

FOOD SAFETY, CONSUMER TRUST IN LIVESTOCK FARMERS AND PURCHASE LIKELIHOOD Food safety is an important issue facing consumers, the food industry and the government. Since consumers cannot themselves easily assess food safety risks, their perception of food safety is in part a matter of trust in the food chain. This study focuses on livestock farmers and investigates the causal relationship between the factors which determine consumer trust regarding food safety and in turn their purchase likelihood. The main research questions are: 1) What are the key factors which build consumer trust in this context? 2) What are the contributions of these factors to building consumer trust? 3) Is there any relationship between consumer trust and purchase likelihood? By integrating theories developed in several disciplines, six factors, namely: providing information, competence, integrity, benevolence, credibility and reliability were identified to have a strong influence on consumer trust in livestock farmers. An exploratory study in the form of face-to-face interviews was carried out to clarify the main concerns of livestock husbandry practices, and to identify the items to measure the causal factors of consumer trust in livestock farmers regarding food safety. Because the objectives set out in this study could not be achieved by using multiple regression, which could not handle latent variables, the conceptual model was tested with a quota sample of 194 individuals in the form of a Structural Equation Model using LISREL 8.30. It was proved successful in identifying the effects of the causal factors of trust to build consumer trust and in turn to affect purchase likelihood. The factor ‘providing information’ was identified to be a key factor by which trust is built and the features that lead to trust, namely: ‘competence’, ‘integrity’, ‘credibility’, ‘reliability’, and ‘benevolence’ were identified to be factors to build trust in livestock farmers. Representatives of the livestock industry were approached to confirm the relevance of the study and facilitate the interpretation of the findings. Though there is
Cytosolic targeting of hen egg lysozyme gives rise to a short‐lived protein presented by class I but not class II major histocompatibility complex molecules

A way to study the role of intracellular trafficking of an antigen in its presentation to T cells is to target the antigen to various cell compartments of the antigen‐presenting cells (APC) and compare the nature of the complexes associating major histocompatibility complex (MHC) molecules and antigenic peptides, expressed on the cell surface. MHC class I+ and MHC class II+ mouse L fibroblasts secreting hen egg lysozyme (HELs cells) or expressing HEL in their cytosol (HELc cells) were obtained after transfection with HEL cDNA and signal sequence‐deleted HEL cDNA, respectively. HEL was evidenced in both HELs‐and HELc‐transfected cells and the former type of transfectant secreted a large amount of HEL. However, HEL produced in the cytosol exhibited a short half‐life of less than 5 min. HEL‐derived peptides could not be shown biochemically either in HELc‐ nor in HELs‐transfected cells. We then studied the capacity of these cells to present HEL to HEL‐specific class I‐ and class II‐restricted T cells. Both cell types could be recognized by the HEL‐specific MHC class I‐restricted CTL clones. In contrast, MHC class II‐HEL peptide complexes, recognized by HEL‐specific helper T cell hybridomas, could be detected on MHC class II+ HELs‐ but not HELc‐transfected cells. In vivo experiments showed, however, that HELc‐transfected cells could provide host APC with HELc‐derived peptides able to associate with MHC class II molecules. This was inferred from the capacity of MHC class II− HELc‐transfected cells, unable by themselves to elicit any anti‐HEL antibody response, to prime syngeneic and allogeneic mice against HEL. The priming was revealed by the induction of an antibody response after a boost with an amount of HEL unable itself to elicit an antibody response.
Security quality requirements engineering (SQUARE) methodology

Requirements engineering, a vital component in successful project development, often neglects sufficient attention to security concerns. Further, industry lacks a useful model for incorporating security requirements into project development. Studies show that upfront attention to security saves the economy billions of dollars. Industry is thus in need of a model to examine security and quality requirements in the development stages of the production lifecycle.In this paper, we examine a methodology for both eliciting and prioritizing security requirements on a development project within an organization. We present a model developed by the Software Engineering Institute's Networked Systems Survivability (NSS) Program, and then examine two case studies where the model was applied to a client system. The NSS Program continues to develop this useful model, which has proven effective in helping an organization understand its security posture.
Does Company Specific News Effect the US, UK, and Australian Markets within 60 minutes?

The efficient market hypothesis states that an efficient market rapidly incorporates all available information into the price of the asset. It has been well established that no market, particularly the stock market, is truly efficient as there are too many traders with differing strategies, and differing access to and interpretation of information. Despite this there is considerable evidence that the stock market does assimilate new information into prices. There has however been little research into the intraday effect of company specific news. In this paper we investigate the intraday effect of company specific news on the US, UK, and Australian markets. We use a scheme to determine whether the markets react to news by determining the likelihood of certain events occurring, and the likelihood of news occurring within 60 minutes of them, and compare the two. We find that there is strong evidence that these markets do react to news within 60 minutes, and indicate which events are most likely to correlate to news.
A Conceptual Data Model Language for the Molecular Biology Domain

In-silico experiments require molecular biological knowledge to be mapped into a data model. In a previous work, we have elicited a list of requirements to be attended by a conceptual language for the molecular biology domain. In this paper, we present the evolution of this research by introducing a such language that encompasses most of the identified biological domain requirements. The language offers logical constraints expressions that augments the semantics of data and relationships types, as well as monotonic inheritance. Those aspects address the uncertainty and variability of biological knowledge shortening the gap between scientists mental model and traditional conceptual models.
Milk and fat production of crossbred Holstein-Gir cows (Bos taurus taurus-Bos taurus indicus) in the agreste region of the Brazilian state of Pernambuco

The productive performance of four Holstein-Gir genetic groups (1/2H, 1/4H, 5/8H, 5/8Hinter se) and the effects of non-genetic factors on production traits was evaluated using a data set of 7,951 test-day samples collected between January 1980 and December 1999 from the Arcoverde Experimental Station in the Brazilian state of Pernambuco (Empresa Pernambucana de Pesquisa Agropecuaria). The statistical model included the fixed effects of calving year (1980 to 1999) and month (January to December), genetic group of the cow, age at months of calving (33 to 190) and days in milk at each test-day. Random effects were sire, cow and residual with test-days treated as repeated records within each cow within each lactation. For the four genetic groups the milk yield (MY) means were 1/2H = 8.61 kg ± 1.16 kg, 1/4H = 5.34 kg ± 0.46 kg, 5/8H = 7.42 kg ± 0.39 kg and 5/8Hinter se = 5.76 kg ± 0.46 kg; the fat yield (FY) means were 1/2H = 0.375 kg ± 0.052 kg, 1/4H = 0.231 kg ± 0.026 kg, 5/8H = 0.299 kg ± 0.025 kg and 5/8Hinter se = 0.231 kg ± 0.026 kg; and the fat percentage (FP) means were 1/2H = 4.45 kg ± 0.29%, 1/4H = 4.08 kg ± 0.12%, 5/8H = 3.87 kg ± 0.10% and 5/8Hinter se = 3.89 kg ± 0.12%. Phenotypic correlations between tests were MY = 0.97, FY = 0.94 and FP = 0.98. The best productive performance was for the 1/2H group, followed by the 5/8H group. The performance of the synthetic group was substantially below the performance of the 5/8H group.
Methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase gene polymorphisms in black South Africans and the association with preeclampsia

Background. A methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) polymorphism (1317T → C) that occurs commonly in black African individuals prompted this study to establish whether this polymorphism, alone or in association with other MTHFR variants, is associated with preeclampsia in black South African women.
Contracting Medial Surfaces Isotropically for Fast Extraction of Centred Curve Skeletons

Curve skeletons, which are a compact representation for three‐dimensional shapes, must be extracted such that they are high quality, centred and smooth. However, the centredness measurements in existing methods are expensive, lowering the extraction efficiency. Although some methods trade quality for acceleration, their generated low‐quality skeletons are not suitable for applications. In this paper, we present a method to quickly extract centred curve skeletons. It operates by contracting the medial surface isotropically to the locus of the centres of its maximal inscribed spheres, which are spheres that have their centres on the medial surface and cannot be further enlarged while remaining the boundary of their intersections with the medial surface composed of only the points on the sphere surfaces. Thus, the centred curve skeleton can be extracted conveniently. For fast extraction, we develop novel measures to quickly generate the medial surface and contract it layer by layer, with every layer contracted isotropically using spheres of equal radii to account for every part of the medial surface boundary. The experimental results show that we can stably extract curve skeletons with higher centredness and at much higher speeds than existing methods, even for noisy shapes.
Feasibility study of using a Microsoft Kinect for virtual coaching of wheelchair transfer techniques

Abstract The purpose of this study was to test the concurrent validity and test-retest reliability of the Kinect skeleton tracking algorithm for measurement of trunk, shoulder, and elbow joint angle measurement during a wheelchair transfer task. Eight wheelchair users were recruited for this study. Joint positions were recorded simultaneously by the Kinect and Vicon motion capture systems while subjects transferred from their wheelchairs to a level bench. Shoulder, elbow, and trunk angles recorded with the Kinect system followed a similar trajectory as the angles recorded with the Vicon system with correlation coefficients that are larger than 0.71 on both sides (leading arm and trailing arm). The root mean square errors (RMSEs) ranged from 5.18 to 22.46 for the shoulder, elbow, and trunk angles. The 95% limits of agreement (LOA) for the discrepancy between the two systems exceeded the clinical significant level of 5°. For the trunk, shoulder, and elbow angles, the Kinect had very good relative reliability for the measurement of sagittal, frontal and horizontal trunk angles, as indicated by the high intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) values (>0.90). Small standard error of the measure (SEM) values, indicating good absolute reliability, were observed for all joints except for the leading arm’s shoulder joint. Relatively large minimal detectable changes (MDCs) were observed in all joint angles. The Kinect motion tracking has promising performance levels for some upper limb joints. However, more accurate measurement of the joint angles may be required. Therefore, understanding the limitations in precision and accuracy of Kinect is imperative before utilization of Kinect.
What was hot at the ICS meeting 2012

Altaf Mangera,* Rufus Cartwright, Kari A.O. Tikkinen, An-sofie Goessaert, and Christopher R. Chapple Department of Urology, Royal Hallamshire Hospital, Sheffield, UK Department of Epidemiology & Biostatistics, Imperial College London, UK and Department of Urogynaecology, Imperial College London, UK Department of Urology, Helsinki University Central Hospital and University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland and Department of Clinical Epidemiology & Biostatistics, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada Department of Urology, University Hospital Ghent, De Pintelaan, Ghent, Belgium