Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Selfish Grids: Game-Theoretic Modeling and NAS/PSA Benchmark Evaluation

Selfish behaviors of individual machines in a grid can potentially damage the performance of the system as a whole. However, scrutinizing the grid by taking into account the noncooperativeness of machines is a largely unexplored research problem. In this paper, we first present a new hierarchical game-theoretic model of the grid that matches well with the physical administrative structure in real-life situations. We then focus on the impact of selfishness in intrasite job execution mechanisms. Based on our novel utility functions, we analytically derive the Nash equilibrium and optimal strategies for the general case. To study the effects of different strategies, we have also performed extensive simulations by using a well-known practical scheduling algorithm over the NAS (numerical aerodynamic simulation) and the PSA (parameter sweep application) workloads. We have studied the overall job execution performance of the grid system under a wide range of parameters. Specifically, we find that the optimal selfish strategy significantly outperforms the Nash selfish strategy. Our performance evaluation results can serve as a valuable reference for designing appropriate strategies in a practical grid
Multiscale image representation using novel integro-differential equations

Motivated by the hierarchical multiscale image representation of Tadmor et. al., (25), we propose a novel integro-differential equation (IDE) for a multiscale image representation. To this end, one integrates in inverse scale space a succession of refined, recursive 'slices' of the image, which are balanced by a typical curvature term at the finer scale. Although the original moti- vation came from a variational approach, the resulting IDE can be extended using standard techniques from PDE-based image processing. We use filtering, edge preserving and tangential smoothing to yield a family of modified IDE models with applications to image denoising and image deblurring problems. The IDE models depend on a user scaling function which is shown to dictate the BV ∗ properties of the residual error. Numerical experiments demonstrate application of the IDE approach to denoising and deblurring.
VISUALIZATION OF COMPLEX NETWORKS BASED ON DYADIC CURVELET TRANSFORM

A visualization method is proposed for understanding the structure of complex networks based on an extended Curvelet transform named Dyadic Curvelet Transform (DClet). The proposed visualization method comes to answer specific questions about structures of complex networks by mapping data into orthogonal localized events with a directional component via the Cartesian sampling sets of detail coefficients. It behaves in the same matter as human visual system, seeing in terms of segments and distinguishing them by scale and orientation. Compressing the network is another fact. The performance of the proposed method is evaluated by two different networks with structural properties of small world networks with N = 16 vertices, and a globally coupled network with size N = 1024 and 523 776 edges. As the most large scale real networks are not fully connected, it is tested on the telecommunication network of Iran as a real extremely complex network with 92 intercity switching vertices, 706 350 E1 traffic channels and 315 525 transmission channels. It is shown that the proposed method performs as a simulation tool for successfully design of network and establishing the necessary group sizes. It can clue the network designer in on all structural properties that network has.
Analyzing Electronic Book Acceptance: A Compatibility Perspective

The digitization is posing great challenges to the European book industry. While some national markets show a fair diffusion of electronic book (ebook) technology, others are still resisting the digital trend. The lack of differentiated knowledge about the reasons for individual differences in ebook acceptance brings about uncertainties for industry players such as publishers or retailers. Technology adoption literature suggests concepts like the perceived usefulness or ease of use to account for such differences. However, since books as cultural goods may be valued beyond pure functional advantages, research into further drivers of ebook acceptance must be conducted. Our study fills this gap by analyzing how well a person believes that ebooks “fit” him or her as an individual reader. We propose a research model, which aims for explaining individual ebook adoption decisions. Results of an empirical study among 180 participants provide deeper insights into the different drivers of ebook adoption.
DNA translocation activity of the multifunctional replication protein ORF904 from the archaeal plasmid pRN1

The replication protein ORF904 from the plasmid pRN1 is a multifunctional enzyme with ATPase-, primase- and DNA polymerase activity. Sequence analysis suggests the presence of at least two conserved domains: an N-terminal prim/pol domain with primase and DNA polymerase activities and a C-terminal superfamily 3 helicase domain with a strong double-stranded DNA dependant ATPase activity. The exact molecular function of the helicase domain in the process of plasmid replication remains unclear. Potentially this motor protein is involved in duplex remodelling and/or origin opening at the plasmid replication origin. In support of this we found that the monomeric replication protein ORF904 forms a hexameric ring in the presence of DNA. It is able to translocate along single-stranded DNA in 3′–5′ direction as well as on double-stranded DNA. Critical residues important for ATPase activity and DNA translocation activity were identified and are in agreement with a homology model of the helicase domain. In addition we propose that a winged helix DNA-binding domain at the C-terminus of the helicase domain could assist the binding of the replication protein specifically to the replication origin.
Robust H/sub /spl infin// output feedback control for nonlinear systems

In this paper we present a new approach to the solution of the output feedback robust H/sub /spl infin// control problem. We employ the recently developed concept of information state for output feedback dynamic games and obtain necessary and sufficient conditions for the solution to the robust control problem expressed in terms of the information state. The resulting controller is an information state feedback controller and is intrinsically infinite dimensional. Stability results are obtained using the theory of dissipative systems, and our results are expressed in terms of dissipation inequalities. >
"From the Native's Point of View": On the Nature of Anthropological Understanding

At the Annual Meeting in May 1974, the American Academy awarded its first Social Science Prize to Clifford Geertz for his significant contributions to social anthropology. Mr. Geertz has taught at Harvard University, the University of California at Berkeley, and the University of Chicago; in 1970 he became the first Professor of the Social Sciences at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton. Mr. Geertz' research has centered on the changing religious attitudes and habits of life of the Islamic peoples of Morocco and Indonesia; he is the author of Peddlers and Princes: Social Changes and Economic Modernization in Two Indonesian Towns (1963), The Social History of an Indonesian Town (1965), Islam Observed: Religious Developments in Morocco and Indonesia (1968), and a recent collection of essays, The Interpretation of Cultures (1973). In nominating Mr. Geertz for the award, the Academy's Social Science Prize Committee observed, "each of these volumes is an important contribution in its own right; together they form an unrivaled corpus in modern social anthropology and social sciences. "
Splined Speed Control using SpAM (Speed-based Acceleration Maps) for an Autonomous Ground Vehicle

There are many forms of speed control for an autonomous ground vehicle currently in development. Most use a simple PID controller to achieve a speed specified by a higher-level motion planning algorithm. Simple controllers may not provide a desired acceleration profile for a ground vehicle. Also, without extensive tuning the PID controller may cause excessive speed overshoot and oscillation. This paper examines an approach that was designed to allow a greater degree of control while reducing the computing load on the motion planning software. The SpAM+PI (Speed-based Acceleration Map + Proportional Integral controller) algorithm outlined in this paper uses three inputs: current velocity, desired velocity and desired maximum acceleration, to determine throttle and brake commands that will allow the vehicle to achieve its correct speed. Because this algorithm resides on an external controller it does not add to the computational load of the motion planning computer. Also, with only two inputs that are needed only when there is a change in desired speed or maximum desired acceleration, network traffic between the computers can be greatly reduced. The algorithm uses splines to smoothly plan a speed profile from the vehicle’s current speed to its desired speed. It then uses a lookup table to determine the correct pedal position (throttle or brake) using the current vehicle speed and a desired instantaneous acceleration that was determined in the splining step of the algorithm. Once the pedal position is determined a PI controller is used to minimize error in the system. The SpAM+PI approach is a novel approach to the speed control of an autonomous vehicle. This academic experiment is tested using Odin, Team Victor Tango’s entry into the 2007 DARPA Urban Challenge which won 3 place and a $500,000 prize. The evaluation of the algorithm exposed both strengths and weaknesses that guide the next step in the development of a speed control algorithm.
An LLC-based planar wireless power transfer system for multiple devices

Wireless power transfer (WPT) technology has become a popular idea in battery charging for both low- and high-power applications, such as mobile-phones and electric vehicles (EV). For charging portable devices, common ideas apply location sensing and turn on specific coils under the loads. This paper proposes a universal WPT system for multiple electronics devices. The system is based on LLC circuit, with an additional inductor added on the primary LC circuit, making the system less sensitive to load variations while maintaining a reasonable voltage-range. Parallel-connected transmitting coils provide independent charging for each load. A simple yet effective variable-frequency control algorithm is used to provide maximum and balanced charging power to the loads. Simulation results have demonstrated the advantages of the system - optimal operating frequency in a small range, simple control and independent charging for each load. The hardware has been used to show the practicability of the system.
Verbal stress assignment in brazilian portuguese and the prosodic interpretation of segmental sequences

This paper offers a contribution towards the prosodic interpretation of segmental sequences. Focus will be given to consonantal sequences where epenthesis may optionally occur in Brazilian Portuguese, as in o(bs)truir or o(bis)truir "to obstruct". We will show that some consonantal sequences have distinct representations from others, being that the difference in representation has an impact on innovative stress pattern attested in verbal forms. Considering the underlined epenthetic vowels in ( adapit�) and ( adapit�) adapto "(I) adapt" the former example is the traditional form and the later is the innovative form. We will show that sequences of stops - as (pt) for example - represent a sequence of consonantal positions, whereas (ks) sequences represent a single consonantal position associated to two segments. This later case corresponds to a complex consonant and behaves like other complex consonants in the language, such as (kw, gw). An experiment was run in order to investigate the innovative stress pattern in verbal forms in BP. We found that whereas most verbal forms with a sequence of stops display the innovative stress pattern all analyzed verbal forms with a (ks) sequence do not present the innovative stress pattern. We account for this distinct behavior regarding stress by offering support towards the different representation of segmental sequences. Our results contribute towards a better understanding of stress assignment in Brazilian Portuguese, we provide additional information about complex consonants and we also offer support to the claim that epenthetic vowels are present in lexical representations.
Magnetic Equivalent Circuit Modeling of Yokeless Axial Flux Permanent Magnet Machine With Segmented Armature

This paper presents a detailed magnetic equivalent circuit (MEC) to improve the analysis accuracy and reduce computation time in modeling of axial flux permanent magnet machines. In the proposed MEC model, the magnetic saturation, armature reaction, leakage flux, and rotor rotation are considered to calculate the machine's static characteristics. The investigated machine structure and feature are first introduced. Then, the air-gap flux density distribution, back electromotive force waveform, and the average torque are calculated with the proposed method. Finally, the accuracy of the proposed method is verified by the 3-D finite-element method, and good agreements are achieved.
Broadening of QSO Lyα forest absorbers

We investigate the dependence of QSO Lyα absorption features on the temperature of the absorbing gas and on the amplitude of the underlying dark-matter fluctuations. We use high-resolution hydrodynamic simulations in cold dark matter dominated cosmological models. In models with a hotter intergalactic medium (IGM), the increased temperature enhances the pressure gradients between low- and high-density regions and this changes the spatial distribution and the velocity field of the gas. Combined with more thermal broadening, this leads to significantly wider absorption features in hotter models. Cosmological models with little small-scale power also have broader absorption features, because fluctuations on the scale of the Jeans length are still in the linear regime. Consequently, both the amplitude of dark-matter fluctuations on small scales and thermal smoothing affect the flux decrement distribution in a similar way. However, the b-parameter distribution of Voigt profile fits, obtained by deblending the absorption features into a sum of thermally broadened lines, is largely independent of the amount of small-scale power, but does depend strongly on the IGM temperature. The same is true for the two-point function of the flux and for the flux power spectrum on small scales. These three flux statistics are thus sensitive probes of the temperature of the IGM. We compare the values computed for our models and obtained from a HIRES spectrum of the quasar Q1422+231 and conclude that the IGM temperature at z∼3.25 is fairly high, T0≳15 000 K. The flux decrement distribution of the observed spectrum is fitted well by that of a ΛCDM model with that temperature.
Automatic generation of sound synthesis techniques

Digital sound synthesizers, ubiquitous today in sound cards, software and dedicated hardware, use algorithms (Sound Synthesis Techniques, SSTs) capable of generating sounds similar to those of acoustic instruments and even totally novel sounds. The design of SSTs is a very hard problem. It is usually assumed that it requires human ingenuity to design an algorithm suitable for synthesizing a sound with certain characteristics. Many of the SSTs commonly used are the fruit of experimentation and a long refinement processes. A SST is determined by its “functional form” and “internal parameters”. Design of SSTs is usually done by selecting a fixed functional form from a handful of commonly used SSTs, and performing a parameter estimation technique to find a set of internal parameters that will best emulate the target sound. A new approach for automating the design of SSTs is proposed. It uses a set of examples of the desired behavior of the SST in the form of “inputs + target sound”. The approach is capable of suggesting novel functional forms and their internal parameters, suited to follow closely the given examples. Design of a SST is stated as a search problem in the SST space (the space spanned by all the possible valid functional forms and internal parameters, within certain limits to make it practical). This search is done using evolutionary methods; specifically, Genetic Programming (GP). A custom language for representing and manipulating SSTs as topology graphs and expression trees is proposed, as well as the mapping rules between both representations. Fitness functions that use analytical and perceptual distance metrics between the target and produced sounds are discussed. The AGeSS system (Automatic Generation of Sound Synthesizers) developed in the Media Lab is outlined, and some SSTs and their evolution are shown. Thesis Supervisor: Barry L. Vercoe Title: Professor of Media Arts and Sciences Automatic Generation of Sound Synthesis Techniques
Determination of Power-Quality Disturbances Using Teager Energy Operator and Kalman Filter Algorithms

With the development of industry, more large-scale non-linear loads are added to existing power systems and they cause the serious power quality (PQ) problems to the nearby sensitive installations more and more. To protect the important loads and mitigate the impact of PQ disturbances on them, various compensating devices are installed. One of the most important control skills used in the compensating equipment at the load side is how fast they can recognize or detect the discontinuous abnormal PQ events from the normal voltage signal. This paper deals with two estimation methods for the fast detection and tracking of general PQ disturbances: Teager Energy Operator (TEO), which is a non-linear operator and used for a short time energy calculation, and Kalman Filter (KF), which is one of the most universally used estimation techniques. And it is also shown how to apply the TEO and the KF to detect the PQ disturbances such as voltage sag, swell, interruption, harmonics and voltage fluctuation.
Feasibility of 18F-Sodium Fluoride PET/CT for Imaging of Atherosclerotic Plaque

The aim of this study was to examine the prevalence, distribution, and topographic relationship of vascular 18F-sodium fluoride uptake and arterial calcification in major arteries. Methods: Image data obtained from 75 patients undergoing whole-body 18F-sodium fluoride PET/CT were evaluated retrospectively. Arterial radiotracer uptake and calcification were analyzed qualitatively and semiquantitatively. Results: 18F-sodium fluoride uptake was observed at 254 sites in 57 (76%) of the 75 study patients, and calcification was observed at 1,930 sites in 63 (84%) of the patients. Colocalization of radiotracer accumulation and calcification could be observed in 223 areas of uptake (88%). However, only 12% of all arterial calcification sites showed increased radiotracer uptake. Conclusion: Our data indicate the feasibility of 18F-sodium fluoride PET/CT for the imaging of mineral deposition in arterial wall alterations. 18F-sodium fluoride PET/CT may provide relevant information about the morphologic and functional properties of calcified plaque.
A time‐dominated TCP congestion control over heterogeneous networks

The traditional transmission control protocol (TCP) suffers from performance problems such as throughput bias against flows with longer packet roundtrip time (RTT), which leads to burst traffic flows producing high packet loss, long delays, and high delay jitter. This paper proposes a TCP congestion control mechanism, TD‐TCP, that the sender increases the congestion window according to time rather than receipt of acknowledgement. Since this mechanism spaces out data sent into the network, data are not sent in bursts. In addition, the proposed mechanism reduces throughput bias because all flows increase the congestion window at the same rate regardless of their packet RTT. The implementation of the mechanism affects only the protocol stack at the sender; hence, neither the receiver nor the routers need modifications. The mechanism has been implemented in the Linux platform and tested in conjunction with various TCP variants in real environments. The experimental result shows that the proposed mechanism improves transmission performance, especially in networks with congestion and/or high packet loss rates. Experiments in real commercial wireless networks have also been conducted to support the proposed mechanism's practical use. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Shear wave splitting in a young continent‐continent collision: An example from Eastern Turkey

We have determined the shear wave splitting fast polarization direction and delay time using data from the ETSE broadband experiment (Eastern Turkey Seismic Experiment), a deployment of 29 broadband seismic stations across the collision zone of the Arabian, Eurasian, and Anatolian plates. Our results show that the fast polarization directions are relatively uniform and they exhibit primarily NE–SW orientations. No abrupt changes in anisotropy directions are observed across the main tectonic units in the region: the Bitlis Suture (BS) and the North and Eastern Anatolian Fault zones. The fast polarization directions are determined to be sub‐parallel to the Anatolian, Arabian, and Eurasian absolute plate velocities, except for those stations in the northeastern corner of the Anatolian Plateau. Observed delay times range from 0.7 to 2.0 seconds with an average value of 1.0 second; the largest values are within the northern Anatolian Plateau which is underlain by an exceptionally low velocity zone in the uppermost mantle. We interpret shear wave splitting as the vector difference of the Eurasian lithosphere and northeastern or southwestern directed flow of the asthenospheric mantle. Comparisons of the polarization anisotropy with measurements of Pn azimuthal anisotropy suggest vertical anisotropic layering except in those areas which are underlain by partially molten uppermost mantle.
Age at onset and cognitive functioning in schizophrenia

Background Impairments in cognitive functioning are common in schizophrenia, and the degree of impairment may be associated with the individual's age at onset of the disorder. Aims To examine the effect of age at onset on cognitive functioning using the California Verbal Learning Test, sub-tests from the Wechsler Memory Scale – Revised and sub-scales from the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale – Revised among families with schizophrenia. Method The effect of age at onset on cognitive function in 237 people with schizophrenia from a population-based sample was examined using linear mixed effects models with family as the random effect, and age, gender, chronicity of the illness and number of affected first-degree relatives as fixed effects. Results Impairment in verbal learning and memory was associated with earlier disease onset. No association was found for working memory or IQ. Conclusions In patients with early-onset schizophrenia, verbal memory functions in particular should be taken into account in neuropsychological evaluation and efforts at remediation.