Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A Fairness-Focused Spectrum Assignment Algorithm For Elastic Optical Networks

In the past few years, Elastic Optical Networking (EON) emerged as the next generation core network technology, intended to surpass Wavelength-Division Multiplexing (WDM) weaknesses and limitations. WDM is the most successful and widely used technology in the backbone of the optical networks. However, in recent years Internet traffic in the core network has been doubling almost every two years, and predictions indicate that it will continue to exhibit exponential growth due to emerging applications such as high-definition and real-time video communications. To keep pace with the always greater demand for bandwidth, EON relies on Optical Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OOFDM) and advanced modulation technologies which enhance spectral efficiency and flexibility. OOFDM allows the aggregation of multiple sub-carriers to form super-channels, thus changing the paradigm of the network from fixed-size WDM channels to variable-sized EON channels that can reduce spectrum waste up to 60%. EON presents several other benefits such as high spectral and energy efficiency and flexible bandwidth adaptation over time. Despite all benefits, no technology is perfect, and the added EON efficiency and flexibility comes at the price of increased complexity and new problems, such as spectrum fragmentation and service unfairness. A considerable amount of work has been done on both fragmentation and unfairness problems, introducing a broad range of solutions, which raises the following question: "how to compare existent solutions and how to identify which one is better suited for the required scenario? " In this context, it is presented the first contribution of this Doctoral Thesis, ElasticO++, an Elastic Optical Network Simulation Framework for OMNeT++. ElasticO++ is a framework created to enable testing a whole range of routing, modulation, spectrum assignment, defragmentation algorithms, parameters, and topologies. At present, the proposed framework is the first software available capable of working with fragmentation and defragmentation in dynamic network scenarios. The flexibility offered on the proposed tool allows both academia and industry to develop new algorithms and techniques for Elastic Optical Networks. The second contribution of this Doctoral Thesis is the Zone-Based Spectrum Assignment Algorithm. The proposed algorithm is an attempt to solve the unfairness and fragmentation problems, taking advantage of the spectrum management concept. In this Doctoral Thesis, it is presented two versions of the technique: the static version and the dynamic version. The static version is intended to be used in cases where the information regarding the nature of the network traffic is known beforehand, whereas the dynamic version was developed as a solution in cases in which absolutely no information is known.
Improving ROI detection in photoplethysmographic imaging with thermal cameras

Photoplethismographic imaging (PPGi) enables the estimation of heart rate without body contact by analyzing the temporal skin color changes from video recordings. Motion artifacts and atypical facial characteristics cause poor signals and currently limit the applicability of PPGi. We have developed a novel algorithm for locating cheek and forehead region of interests (ROI) with the aim to improve PPGi during challenging situations. The proposed approach is based on the fusion of RGB and far-infrared (FIR) video streams where FIR ROI is used as fall-back when RGB alone fails. We validated and compared the algorithm against the detection based on single sources, using videos from 8 subjects with distinctively different face characteristics. The subject performed three scenarios with incremental motion artifact content (head at rest, intensive head movements, speaking). The results showed that combining the two imaging sources increased the detection rate of cheeks from 75% (RGB) to 92% (RGB+FIR) in the challenging intensive head movement scenario. This work demonstrated that FIR imaging is complementary to simple RGB imaging and when combined, adds robustness to the detection of ROI in PPGi applications.
Development of a dietary supplement database

Abstract: Data describing the composition of dietary supplements are not readily available to the public health community. As a result, intake from dietary supplements is generally not considered in most dietary surveys and, hence, little is known about the significance of supplement intake in relation to total diet or disease risk. To enable a more comprehensive analysis of dietary data, a database of the composition of various dietary supplements has been compiled. Active ingredients of all dietary supplements sold in Australia are included in the Australian Register of Therapeutic Goods (ARTG), maintained by the Therapeutic Goods Administration. Products included in the database were restricted to those vitamin, mineral and other supplements identified in dietary data collected from studies conducted in southeast Queensland and New South Wales (850 supplements). Conversion factors from ingredients compounds to active elements were compiled from standard sources. No account has been made for bioavailability, consistent with current practice for food composition databases. The database can be queried by ARTG identification number, brand, product title, or a variety of other fields. Expected future developments include development of standard formulations for use when supplements are incompletely specified, and expansion of products included for more widespread use
Report of the First Human Case of Lobomycosis in the United States

ABSTRACT We describe the first human case of lobomycosis caused byLacazia loboi in a 42-year-old white male resident of Georgia. The patient had traveled to Venezuela 7 years earlier, where he had planned to rappel down Angel Falls in Canaima. Although he never actually rappelled the falls, he did walk under the falls at least three times, exposing himself to the high water pressures of the falls. He noticed a small pustule with surrounding erythema developing on the skin of his right chest wall. The lesion gradually increased in size and had an appearance of a keloid. For cosmetic reasons, the patient sought medical treatment to remove the lesion. After an uncomplicated excision of the lesion, the patient recovered completely. The excised tissue was fixed in formalin for pathologic examination. Tissue sections stained by hematoxylin and eosin, periodic acid-Schiff stain, and Gomori methenamine silver stain procedures showed numerous histiocytes, multinucleated giant cells, and numerous globose or subglobose, lemon-shaped cells producing multiple blastoconidia connected by narrow tube-like connectors and catenate chains of various lengths characteristic of L. loboi.
Stereo Vision-based Autonomous Vehicle Navigation

Research efforts on the development of autonomous vehicles date back to the 1920s and recent announcements indicate that those cars are close to becoming commercially available. However, the most successful prototypes that are currently being demonstrated rely on an expensive set of sensors. This study investigates the use of an affordable vision system as a planner for the Robocart, an autonomous golf cart prototype developed by the Wireless Innovation Laboratory at WPI. The proposed approach relies on a stereo vision system composed of a pair of Raspberry Pi computers, each one equipped with a Camera Module. They are connected to a server and their clocks are synchronized using the Precision Time Protocol (PTP). The server uses timestamps to obtain a pair of simultaneously captured images. Images are processed to generate a disparity map using stereo matching and points in this map are reprojected to the 3D world as a point cloud. Then, an occupancy grid is built and used as input for an A* graph search that finds a collision-free path for the robot. Due to the non-holonomic constraints of a car-like robot, a Pure Pursuit algorithm is used as the control method to guide the robot along the computed path. The cameras are also used by a Visual Odometry algorithm that tracks points on a sequence of images to estimate the position and orientation of the vehicle. The algorithms were implemented using the C++ language and the open source library OpenCV. Tests in a controlled environment show promising results and the interfaces between the server and the Robocart have been defined, so that the proposed method can be used on the golf cart as soon as the mechanical systems are fully functional.
COMPARING POSTPARTUM DEPRESSION AND MAJOR DEPRESSIVE DISORDER: ISSUES IN ASSESSMENT

Postpartum Depression (PPD) is an important social and health problem for women and their families with an incidence of at least 13%. In comparing the diagnosis, timing, and symptom patterns of PPD and Major Depressive Disorder (MDD), there are distinct differences that may partially explain why PPD is under-diagnosed and under-treated. The purpose of this manuscript is to compare and critique the most common instruments used to assess PPD. The Postpartum Depression Screening Scale developed by C.T. Beck and Gable is recommended for use by mental health providers.
Dynamic Factor Model with Infinite Dimensional Factor Space: Forecasting

Abstract. The paper compares the pseudo real-time forecasting performance of threeDynamic Factor Models: (i) The standard principal-component model, Stock and Watson(2002a), (ii) The model based on generalized principal components, Forni et al. (2005),(iii) The model recently proposed in Forni et al. (2015) and Forni et al. (2016). We employa large monthly dataset of macroeconomic and financial time series for the US economy,which includes the Great Moderation, the Great Recession and the subsequent recovery.Using a rolling window for estimation and prediction, we find that (iii) neatly outperforms(i) and (ii) in the Great Moderation period for both Industrial Production and Inflation,and for Inflation over the full sample. However, (iii) is outperfomed by (i) and (ii) over thefull sample for Industrial Production.
Towards a longitudinal definition of households.

This paper attempts to develop longitudinal definitions of households and families that are useful for observing these units across time and for constructing aggregate characteristics across that time period while not creating serious conflict with cross-sectional constructs of household type and composition. The household definitions used in the Current Population Survey serve as adequate measures for the intended cross-sectional purposes but problems arise when those definitions are used in conjunction with other variables. These problems can be attributed to the discrepancy between the time reference of the social measurement and the cross-sectional survey instrument. 1 solution is to decrease that difference by repeatedly measuring the phenomenon in question during the year. It is from this perspective that the design for the Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP) has developed. The design of this survey is to interview the household every 4 months over a 2.5 year period and to collect in this way monthly data on household composition income labor force participation and other characteristics. There are 4 types of household definitions that have been proposed for use with longitudinal surveys: cross-sectional dynamic cross-sectional/dynamic hybrids and the attribute system. The cross-sectional approach is clearly inappropriate since it ignores the dynamic nature of the data in such surveys. The attribute system that calculates a series of cross-sectional households at some smaller time interval and then ascribes the characteristics of the household to each individual incorporates the dynamic aspects of the data but dodges the issue of developing continuity rules for households. A dynamic definition that recognizes change as inherent in observing households across time and attempts to incorporate that change into the definition is the most desirable alternative. The author presents 3 sets of continuity rules: 1) the first defines change rather than continuity as movement between major types of households; 2) the second is a reciprocal majority rule system; and 3) the third sets out a set of demographic principals to which continuity rules should conform and then develops a continuity rule within that framework. It is also argued that to fully appreciate the household dynamics observed in the SIPP and to portray that activity over a year 2 types of tabulations should be provided 1 using a longitudinal definition and examining how changes in some characteristics result in changes in others and the 2nd examining how household characteristics affect individuals across time. Longitudinal household weighting is also discussed.
Management Roles and Sustainability Information. Exploring Corporate Practice

type="main"> Little empirical research has been conducted on perceptions of the types of sustainability information dealt with by different managers in internal company processes. In this study the roles of different managers are distinguished based on contingency theory and using the categorisation in the sustainability balanced scorecard concept. Expected sustainability information types are identified for these roles and hypotheses are derived and tested about perceptions of the types of sustainability information in different management roles. Interviews identified 116 roles involved with sustainability information in a set of leading German and UK sustainability reporting companies. Results from analysing sustainability information types contingent upon different management roles contribute to the understanding of sustainability accounting systems and practices and how companies can best support different management roles with appropriate sustainability information.
The Aryl Hydrocarbon Receptor Is Important for Proper Seminiferous Tubule Architecture and Sperm Development in Mice1

ABSTRACT The aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AHR) is known for its roles in xenobiotic metabolism and essential physiologic processes such as cell growth, death, and differentiation. AHR is also an important regulator of male reproductive processes. However, no studies have characterized the consequences of loss of AHR in spermatogenesis. We used Ahr knockout (Ahr−/−) mice to assess the effects of loss of AHR on the architecture and gene expression of the seminiferous epithelium and functional sperm outcomes. The histopathological defects of the Ahr−/−seminiferous epithelium included vacuoles, multinucleated giant cells, hypocellularity with widened intercellular spaces, apical sloughing, and an excess number of retained elongated spermatids. Quantitative real-time PCR revealed significant down-regulation of Testin and Magea4, indicating Sertoli cell and spermatogenic dysregulation. Moreover, the reduced expression of Hspa2, Prm1, and Prm2 as well as decreased expression of Nrf2, Sod2, and Ucp2 suggested poorly remodeled germ cells with increased vulnerability to oxidative stress. In wild-type sperm, AHR protein was localized to the acrosome and the principal piece of the mature sperm flagellum. The in vitro fertilization rate was significantly lower with Ahr−/− sperm as compared to wild-type sperm, and there were morphologic abnormalities of the Ahr−/− sperm head and tail. Taken together, our data indicate that AHR plays an important role in normal sperm development.
The Potential of High‐throughput Metagenomic Sequencing of Aquatic Bacterial Communities to Estimate the Postmortem Submersion Interval

Human remains can be discovered in freshwater or marine ecosystems, circumstances where insects and other invertebrates have infrequently been used for understanding the time of postmortem submersion. In this study, the identification and succession of epinecrotic bacterial communities on vertebrate remains were described during decomposition in a temperate headwater stream during two seasons (summer and winter). Bacterial communities were characterized with 454 pyrosequencing and analyzed at phyletic and generic taxonomic resolutions. There was a significant increase in genera richness over decomposition during both seasons. Additionally, multivariate statistical modeling revealed significant differences in bacterial communities between seasons at both taxonomic resolutions and siginificant genera differences among sampling days within each season, suggesting a succession of these communities. These data are the first to describe aquatic bacterial succession using high‐throughput metagenomic sequencing on vertebrate remains submerged in a freshwater habitat, and provide initial evidence for their potential use in forensic investigations.
Glycine Induces Bidirectional Modifications in N-Methyl-d-aspartate Receptor-mediated Synaptic Responses in Hippocampal CA1 Neurons*

Background: NMDA receptor plays roles central to various brain functions. Results: Glycine, an amino acid widely presents in the brain, induces bidirectional modifications in NMDA receptor-mediated responses. Conclusion: Trafficking of NMDA receptors at postsynaptic sites may underlie bidirectional modifications in NMDA receptor responses. Significance: Revealing the molecular mechanism by which glycine dictates direction of persistent modifications in NMDA receptor function. Glycine can persistently potentiate or depress AMPA responses through differential actions on two binding sites: NMDA and glycine receptors. Whether glycine can induce long-lasting modifications in NMDA responses, however, remains unknown. Here, we report that glycine induces long-term potentiation (LTP) or long-term depression (LTD) of NMDA responses (Gly-LTPNMDA or Gly-LTDNMDA) in a dose-dependent manner in hippocampal CA1 neurons. These modifications of NMDA responses depend on NMDAR activation. In addition, the induction of Gly-LTPNMDA requires binding of glycine with NMDARs, whereas Gly-LTDNMDA requires that glycine bind with both sites on NMDARs and GlyRs. Moreover, activity-dependent exocytosis and endocytosis of postsynaptic NMDARs underlie glycine-induced bidirectional modification of NMDA excitatory postsynaptic currents. Thus, we conclude that glycine at different levels induces bidirectional plasticity of NMDA responses through differentially regulating NMDA receptor trafficking. Our present findings reveal important functions of the two glycine binding sites in gating the direction of synaptic plasticity in NMDA responses.
Recent advances in MEMS sensor technology—thermo-fluid and electro-magnetic devices

This is the final part of a three-part series on micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS) sensor technology. In the first part, a general introduction to MEMS sensing was given including the underlying principles [1]. Biomedical MEMS sensors were described and the principles of bio-sensing in a typical set of biologically inspired sensors were presented. The second part discussed mechanical sensors and their applications [2]. Some important issues of MEMS sensors were addressed, including the need to compensate for environmental effects, the Casimir effect, harvesting of energy for self-powered sensors, and the subject of sensor selection.
Fabrication of broadband antireflection structures on glass substrates by Reactive Ion Etching for application on homogenizers in CPV systems

Concentrator Photovoltaic (CPV) systems are a potential candidate to achieve low cost solar energy [1]. In these systems the efficiency of the solar cell increases with concentration and the amount of semiconductor material required is lower. CPV systems use Fresnel lenses to focus the light into homogenizers, which uniformizes the flux distribution incident to the subjacent solar cell and does other optical corrections. A disadvantage of these optical elements is that they create three optical interfaces that reflect the incident light and together account for about 12% of losses. To achieve higher efficiency in CPV systems, these losses need to be addressed. In this paper we report on the fabrication of antireflection structures on glass substrates by Reactive Ion Etching (RIE) that could be applied to the curved surface of the latest generation homogenizers [2].
Changes in the postsynaptic density with long‐term potentiation in the dentate gyrus

The present study documents alterations in the size of the postsynaptic density (PSD) of synapses formed by entorhinal afferents with granule cell dendritic spines with long‐term potentiation (LTP). These changes appear early and persist for at least 60 minutes after LTP‐inducing conditioning stimulation.
Pseudo Steady‐State Free Precession for MR‐Fingerprinting

This article discusses the signal behavior in the case the flip angle in steady‐state free precession sequences is continuously varied as suggested for MR‐fingerprinting sequences. Flip angle variations prevent the establishment of a steady state and introduce instabilities regarding to magnetic field inhomogeneities and intravoxel dephasing. We show how a pseudo steady state can be achieved, which restores the spin echo nature of steady‐state free precession.
An hybrid FDTD and ADI-FDTD technique for coupled Maxwell's and Schrodinger's equations

We are entering into the era of nanotechnology and the size of devices is reaching the scale of few nano-meters. A number of new research areas such as nano-photonics, plasmonics and nano-electronics have attracted special attention. It is being projected that these areas will facilitate to tackle the challenges of device miniaturization and high speed data transfer. As long as the size of a device is not very small, in other words there is no need to consider quantum effects; the conventional Maxwell's equations are commonly used. However, when the size of devices reaches a few nano-meters, quantum effects become important and can not be neglected. For quantum analysis, the Schrodinger's equation is commonly evaluated and the solution of this equation provides the quantum characteristics of a system. Therefore, we should use coupled Maxwell's and Schrodinger's equations for devices where both aspects are needed. For simulation many numerical methods have been developed, such as FDTD [1], ADI-FDTD [2] etc. For example, finite difference time domain (FDTD) method is applied to these coupled equations to measure the tunneling current through a potential barrier in [3]. In [4], transmission line matrix approach is used to simulate the coupled equations and is applied to analyze the carbon nano-tube. This coupled approach is also applied to plasmonics structures in [5].
The Implications of Liquidity Expansion in China for the Us Dollar

he value of the US dollar is of major importance to the world economy. Global liquidity has grown sharply in recent years with growing importance of China's money supply to global liquidity. We develop out-of-sample forecasts of the US dollar exchange rate value using US and non-US global data on inflation, output, interest rates, and liquidity on the US, China and non-US/non-China liquidity. Monetary model forecasts significantly outperform a random walk forecast in terms of MSFE at horizons over 12 to 30 months ahead. A monetary model with sticky prices performs best. Rolling sample analysis indicates changes over time in the influence of variables in forecasting the US dollar. China's liquidity has a distinct, significant and changing influence on the US dollar exchange rate. Post global financial crisis, increases in the growth rate in China's M2 forecast a significantly higher value for the US dollar 12 months and 18 months ahead and significantly lower values for the US dollar 24 and 30 months ahead.