Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Interacting with objects in the environment using gaze tracking glasses and speech

This work explores the combination of gaze and speech to interact with objects in the environment. A head-mounted wireless gaze tracker in the form of gaze tracking glasses is used for mobile monitoring of a subject's point of regard on the surrounding environment. In our proposed system, a mobile subject gazes at an object of interest in the environment which opens an interaction window with the object being gazed upon, and a specific interaction command is then given to the object using speech commands. The gaze tracking glasses were made from low-cost hardware consisting of a safety glasses' frame and wireless eye tracking and scene cameras. An open source gaze estimation algorithm is used for eye tracking and user's gaze estimation. The Windows Speech Recognition engine is used for recognition of voice commands. A visual markers recognition library is used to identify objects in the environment through the scene camera. When combining all these elements, the emerging system permits a subject to move freely in an environment, select the object he wants to interact with using gaze (identification) and transmit a control command to it by uttering a speech command (control).
Empirical Findings on the Tax CAPM for the German Capital Market

The study deals with theoretical and empirical aspects of the Tax CAPM. Following the theoretical derivation of the Tax CAPM with respect to the German tax system, an empirical investigation was conducted to test the explanatory power of this new capital market model. Using a sample of 29 DAX companies, an average absolute difference of 8.01 percentage points between the estimated Tax CAPM yields and the actual (net) yields could be determined. Additionally, a regression analysis with the Tax CAPM yield as the independent variable was established on the basis of 116 yield observations. This ex post-evaluation shows that the Tax CAPM yields explain the yields actually realised with a highly significant correlation. The null hypothesis that the slope of the regression line equals one as well as the null hypothesis that the intercept adopts the value of zero could not be rejected. On the basis of our results it can be certified that the Tax CAPM describes the process of yield generation of the German blue chips between 2001 and 2004 sufficiently well if it is equipped with the appropriate values for the required model parameters.
A novel approach to low cost, wide range motion capture system: Validation and application to human behavior analysis

From new hardware arise possibilities to develop novel methods of monitoring human behavior. In this paper we present a low cost system using two RGB-D cameras in a 3m × 8m space. Using developed software, we are able to easily collect, combine, visualize, modify, and analyze data. To validate the system, we measured human behavior in a walking experiment (N = 11). The data obtained from the system showed an accurate measurement and validated our approach for Human Interaction analysis.
Self-Organizing Algorithms for Interference Coordination in Small Cell Networks

This paper discusses novel joint (intracell and intercell) resource allocation algorithms for self-organized interference coordination in multicarrier multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) small cell networks. The proposed algorithms enable interference coordination autonomously, over multiple degrees of freedom, such as base station transmit powers, transmit precoders, and user scheduling weights. A generic <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX"> $\alpha$</tex-math></inline-formula>-fair utility maximization framework is considered to analyze performance-fairness tradeoff and to quantify the gains achievable in interference-limited networks. The proposed scheme involves limited inter-base station signaling in the form of two step (power and precoder) pricing. Based on this decentralized coordination, autonomous power and precoder update decision rules are considered, leading to algorithms with different characteristics in terms of user data rates, signaling load, and convergence speed. Simulation results in a practical setting show that the proposed pricing-based self-organization can achieve up to <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$100\%$</tex-math></inline-formula> improvement in cell-edge data rates when compared to baseline optimization strategies. Furthermore, the convergence of the proposed algorithms is also proved theoretically.
Advances in Optimizing Screw-lype Machines

The aim of this work is to present recent advances in porting the directed covariance matrix adaptation-evolution strategy (DCMA-ES) from the test function environment to a real-world application. DCMA-ES is a CMA-ES variant enhanced by the powerful concept of directed mutation. So far, DCMA-ES has already proven to outperform the classical CMA-ES for several test functions. Hence, the target is now to benefit from the strength of this approach also in real-world scenarios, as for example in optimizing screw-type machines. The paper is organized as follows: first we outline the DCMA-ES and the functioning of the screw-type machine. Then the performance of DCMA-ES on some test functions is presented as motivation for the porting whose current status is discussed. In the final section, conclusions are provided and the future work is sketched.
Chance-Constrained Two-Stage Unit Commitment Under Uncertain Load and Wind Power Output Using Bilinear Benders Decomposition

In this paper, we study unit commitment (UC) problems considering the uncertainty of load and wind power generation. UC problem is formulated as a chance-constrained two-stage stochastic programming problem where the chance constraint is used to restrict the probability of load imbalance. In addition to the conventional mixed integer linear programming formulation using Big-M, we present the bilinear mixed integer formulation of chance constraint, and then derive its linear counterpart using the McCormick linearization method. Then, we develop a bilinear variant of the Benders decomposition method, which is an easy-to-implement algorithm, to solve the resulting large-scale linear counterpart. Our results on typical IEEE systems demonstrate that (i) the bilinear mixed integer programming formulation is stronger than the conventional one and (ii) the proposed Benders decomposition algorithm is generally an order of magnitude faster than using a professional solver to directly compute both linear and bilinear chance-constrained UC models.
Atopic asthma after rhinovirus‐induced wheezing is associated with DNA methylation change in the SMAD3 gene promoter

Children with rhinovirus‐induced severe early wheezing have an increased risk of developing asthma later in life. The exact molecular mechanisms for this association are still mostly unknown. To identify potential changes in the transcriptional and epigenetic regulation in rhinovirus‐associated atopic or nonatopic asthma, we analyzed a cohort of 5‐year‐old children (n = 45) according to the virus etiology of the first severe wheezing episode at the mean age of 13 months and to 5‐year asthma outcome. The development of atopic asthma in children with early rhinovirus‐induced wheezing was associated with DNA methylation changes at several genomic sites in chromosomal regions previously linked to asthma. The strongest changes in atopic asthma were detected in the promoter region of SMAD3 gene at chr 15q22.33 and introns of DDO/METTL24 genes at 6q21. These changes were validated to be present also at the average age of 8 years.
Tensor decomposition and non-local means based spectral CT image denoising.

BACKGROUNDAs one type of the state-of-the-art detectors, photon counting detectors are used in spectral computed tomography (CT) to classify the received photons into several energy channels and generate multichannel projections simultaneously. However, FBP reconstructed images contain severe noise due to the low photon counts in each energy channel.OBJECTIVEA spectral CT image denoising method based on tensor-decomposition and non-local means (TDNLM) is proposed.METHODSIn a CT image, it is widely accepted that there exists self-similarity over the spatial domain. In addition, because a multichannel CT image is obtained from the same object at different energies, images among different channels are highly correlated. Motivated by these two characteristics of the spectral CT images, tensor decomposition and non-local means are employed to recover fine structures in spectral CT images. Moreover, images in all energy channels are added together to form a high signal-to-noise ratio image, which is applied to encourage the signal preservation of the TDNLM. The combination of TD, NLM and the guidance of a high-quality image enhances the low-dose spectral CT, and a parameter selection strategy is designed to achieve the optimal image quality.RESULTSThe effectiveness of the developed algorithm is validated on both numerical simulations and realistic preclinical applications. The root mean square error (RMSE) and the structural similarity (SSIM) are used to quantitatively assess the image quality. The proposed method successfully restored high-quality images (average RMSE=0.0217 cm - 1 and SSIM=0.987) from noisy spectral CT images (average RMSE=0.225 cm - 1 and SSIM=0.633). In addition, RMSE of each decomposed material component is also remarkably reduced. Compared to the state-of-the-art iterative spectral CT reconstruction algorithms, the proposed method achieves comparable performance with dramatically reduced computational cost, resulting in a speedup of >50.CONCLUSIONSThe outstanding denoising performance, the high computational efficiency and the adaptive parameter selection strategy make the proposed method practical for spectral CT applications.
Faster Self-Organizing Fuzzy Neural Network Training and a Hyperparameter Analysis for a Brain–Computer Interface

This paper introduces a number of modifications to the learning algorithm of the self-organizing fuzzy neural network (SOFNN) to improve computational efficiency. It is shown that the modified SOFNN favorably compares to other evolving fuzzy systems in terms of accuracy and structural complexity. An analysis of the SOFNN's effectiveness when applied in an electroencephalogram (EEG)-based brain-computer interface (BCI) involving the neural-time-series-prediction-preprocessing (NTSPP) framework is also presented, where a sensitivity analysis (SA) of the SOFNN hyperparameters was performed using EEG data recorded from three subjects during left/right-motor-imagery-based BCI experiments. The aim of this one-time SA was to eliminate the need to choose subject- and signal-specific hyperparameters for the SOFNN and thus apply the SOFNN in the NTSPP framework as a parameterless self-organizing framework for EEG preprocessing. The results indicate that a general set of NTSPP parameters chosen via the SA provide the best results when tested in a BCI system. Therefore, with this general set of SOFNN parameters and its self-organizing structure, in conjunction with parameterless feature extraction and linear discriminant classification, a fully parameterless BCI that lends itself well to autonomous adaptation is realizable.
Urinary Metabolomic Approach Provides New Insights into Distinct Metabolic Profiles of Glutamine and N-Carbamylglutamate Supplementation in Rats

Glutamine and N-carbamylglutamate can enhance growth performance and health in animals, but the underlying mechanisms are not yet elucidated. This study aimed to investigate the effect of glutamine and N-carbamylglutamate supplementation in rat metabolism. Thirty rats were fed a control, glutamine, or N-carbamylglutamate diet for four weeks. Urine samples were analyzed by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR)-based metabolomics, specifically high-resolution 1H NMR metabolic profiling combined with multivariate data analysis. Glutamine significantly increased the urine levels of acetamide, acetate, citrulline, creatinine, and methymalonate, and decreased the urine levels of ethanol and formate (p < 0.05). Moreover, N-carbamylglutamate significantly increased the urine levels of creatinine, ethanol, indoxyl sulfate, lactate, methymalonate, acetoacetate, m-hydroxyphenylacetate, and sarcosine, and decreased the urine levels of acetamide, acetate, citrulline, creatine, glycine, hippurate, homogentisate, N-acetylglutamate, phenylacetyglycine, acetone, and p-hydroxyphenylacetate (p < 0.05). Results suggested that glutamine and N-carbamylglutamate could modify urinary metabolome related to nitrogen metabolism and gut microbiota metabolism. Moreover, N-carbamylglutamate could alter energy and lipid metabolism. These findings indicate that different arginine precursors may lead to differences in the biofluid profile in rats.
Phase retrieval technology based on multi-angle tilt light modulation

The non-interferometric phase retrieval technique based on the transport-of-intensity equation (TIE) is employed to calculate the missing phase information from the intensity measurement. However, since the limiting effect of the lens aperture is existed in the actual imaging system, a certain effect on the resolution of the recovery phase is under consideration. A phase retrieval technology based on multi-angle tilt light modulation is proposed. Firstly, a spatial light modulator (SLM) is introduced in the original lens-based intensity acquisition system. Then the modulation function is displayed on the SLM to make the parallel illumination into tilted illumination with various incident angles. Lastly, the recorded intensity images are synthesized to compute the phase information. The experimental results show that the proposed method can improve the resolution of recovery phase without compromising the numerical error of the recovery results.
Irregular variable length coding

In this thesis, we introduce Irregular Variable Length Coding (IrVLC) and investigate its applications, characteristics and performance in the context of digital multimedia broadcast telecommunications. During IrVLC encoding, the multimedia signal is represented using a sequence of concatenated binary codewords. These are selected from a codebook, comprising a number of codewords, which, in turn, comprise various numbers of bits. However, during IrVLC encoding, the multimedia signal is decomposed into particular fractions, each of which is represented using a different codebook. This is in contrast to regular Variable Length Coding (VLC), in which the entire multimedia signal is encoded using the same codebook. The application of IrVLCs to joint source and channel coding is investigated in the context of a video transmission scheme. Our novel video codec represents the video signal using tessellations of Variable-Dimension Vector Quantisation (VDVQ) tiles. These are selected from a codebook, comprising a number of tiles having various dimensions. The selected tessellation of VDVQ tiles is signalled using a corresponding sequence of concatenated codewords from a Variable Length Error Correction (VLEC) codebook. This VLEC codebook represents a specific joint source and channel coding case of VLCs, which facilitates both compression and error correction. However, during video encoding, only particular combinations of the VDVQ tiles will perfectly tessellate, owing to their various dimensions. As a result, only particular sub-sets of the VDVQ codebook and, hence, of the VLEC codebook may be employed to convey particular fractions of the video signal. Therefore, our novel video codec can be said to employ IrVLCs. The employment of IrVLCs to facilitate Unequal Error Protection (UEP) is also demonstrated. This may be applied when various fractions of the source signal have different error sensitivities, as is typical in audio, speech, image and video signals, for example. Here, different VLEC codebooks having appropriately selected error correction capabilities may be employed to encode the particular fractions of the source signal. This approach may be expected to yield a higher reconstruction quality than equal protection in cases where the various fractions of the source signal have different error sensitivities. Finally, this thesis investigates the application of IrVLCs to near-capacity operation using EXtrinsic Information Transfer (EXIT) chart analysis. Here, a number of component VLEC codebooks having different inverted EXIT functions are employed to encode particular fractions of the source symbol frame. We show that the composite inverted IrVLC EXIT function may be obtained as a weighted average of the inverted component VLC EXIT functions. Additionally, EXIT chart matching is employed to shape the inverted IrVLC EXIT function to match the EXIT function of a serially concatenated inner channel code, creating a narrow but still open EXIT chart tunnel. In this way, iterative decoding convergence to an infinitesimally low probability of error is facilitated at near-capacity channel SNRs.
Retrospective analysis of the efficacy and safety of neoadjuvant gemcitabine and cisplatin in muscle-invasive bladder cancer

Background Neoadjuvant cisplatin-based combination chemotherapy for muscle-invasive bladder cancer (MIBC) improves overall and disease-free survival. However, there is much debate over the optimal neoadjuvant regimen. Gemcitabine plus cisplatin (GC) has been the neoadjuvant regimen of choice for many institutions for patients with MIBC based on data extrapolated from the metastatic setting. Based on recent data, many institutions are transitioning to variations of methotrexate, vinblastine, doxorubicin, and cisplatin (MVAC) as the neoadjuvant regimen of choice. Objective To assess the effectiveness and safety of neoadjuvant chemotherapy with gemcitabine plus cisplatin in patients with muscle-invasive bladder cancer prior to cystectomy. Methods This is a single-center, retrospective, cohort study at Duke University Hospital (DUH). Patients included had MIBC and received gemcitabine plus cisplatin chemotherapy prior to a cystectomy. The primary endpoint was to assess the pathologic complete response (pCR) rate in MIBC after treatment with gemcitabine and cisplatin. Patients were split into two groups, those who received their chemotherapy at DUH, and those who received their chemotherapy at an outside facility. Results Overall pCR rate for all patients (n = 36) was 14%. The pCR rates for patients in the Duke Chemotherapy Group (n = 17) and in the Community Chemotherapy Group (n = 19) were 24% and 5%, respectively. GC was overall well tolerated in most patients with few adverse events ≥ grade 3. Conclusions This retrospective study demonstrates a consistent pCR rate (24% in Duke Chemotherapy Group) for neoadjuvant GC in MIBC compared with other literature. The overall pCR rate for all patients was 14%.
The mitochondrial genome of Gnathopogon imberbis (Cypriniformes, Cyprinidae)

Abstract In the present study, the complete mitogenome sequence of Gnathopogon imberbis is determined using PCR amplification and DNA sequencing, which contains 13 protein-coding genes, 22 tRNA genes, 2 rRNA genes and a non-coding control region with the total length of 16,598 bp. Except for eight tRNA and ND6 genes, all other mitochondrial genes are encoded on the H-strand. The codon usage followed the typical vertebrate mitochondrial pattern (ATG or GTG for start codon and TAA or TAG for stop codon). The overall nucleotide composition was 30.0% A, 27.0% T, 25.8% C and 17.2% G, with an A + T bias of 57.0%. The complete mitochondrial genome sequence will be useful for phylogenetic analysis and studies of population genetics of G. imberbis.
Integrated CNT sensors in polymer microchannel for gas-flow shear-stress measurement

We have developed CNT sensors for gas-flow shear stress measurement inside a polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) microchannel. An array of sensors is fabricated by using dielectrophoretic (DEP) technique to manipulate bundled single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) across the gold microelectrodes on a PMMA substrate. The sensors are then integrated in a PMMA microchannel, which is fabricated by SU-8 molding/hot-embossing technique. Since the sensors detect gas-flow by thermal transfer principle, we have first examined the I-V characteristics of the sensors and confirmed that self-heating effect occurs when the input voltage is above ~1V. We then performed the flow sensing experiment on the sensors using constant temperature (CT) configuration. The voltage output of the sensors increases with the increasing flow rate in the microchannel. We also found that the power of the sensors has a linear relation with 1/3 power of the shear stress. Moreover, measurements of sensors with different overheat ratios were compared and results showed that sensor is more sensitive to the flow with a higher overheat ratio.
Safety and feasibility of orbital atherectomy for the treatment of calcified coronary lesions

Objective: The ORBIT I trial evaluated the safety and performance of an orbital atherectomy system (OAS) for the treatment of de novo calcified coronary lesions. Background: Severely calcified coronary arteries pose an ongoing treatment challenge. Stent placement in calcified lesions can result in stent under expansion, malapposition, and procedural complications. OAS treatment may change calcified lesion compliance to reduce procedural complications and facilitate stent placement. Methods: The ORBIT I trial, a prospective, nonrandomized study, was conducted in two centers in India. Fifty patients with de novo calcified coronary lesions were enrolled. Patients were treated with the OAS followed by stent placement. Results: The average age of the patients was 57.4 years and 90% were male. Mean lesion length was 13.4 mm. The average number of OAS devices used per patient was 1.3. Device success was 98%, and procedural success was 94%. The cumulative major adverse cardiac event rate was 4% in‐hospital (two non–Q‐wave myocardial infarctions), 6% at 30 days (one additional non–Q‐wave myocardial infarction leading to target lesion revascularization), and 8% at 6 months (one additional event of cardiac death). Angiographic complications were observed in seven patients (six dissections and one perforation). Conclusion: The ORBIT I trial suggests that the OAS may offer an effective method to change compliance of calcified coronary lesions to facilitate optimal stent placement in these difficult to treat patients. A larger trial is required to establish safety and overall effectiveness of the OAS in treating calcified coronary lesions. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Molecular imaging of the prostate: Comparing total sodium concentration quantification in prostate cancer and normal tissue using dedicated 13C and 23Na endorectal coils

There has been recent interest in nonproton MRI including hyperpolarized carbon‐13 (13C) imaging. Prostate cancer has been shown to have a higher tissue sodium concentration (TSC) than normal tissue. Sodium (23Na) and 13C nuclei have a frequency difference of only 1.66 MHz at 3T, potentially enabling 23Na imaging with a 13C‐tuned coil and maximizing the metabolic information obtained from a single study.