Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Workshop on software quality

In the recent years, software products have increased in size and complexity, becoming a critical and strategic asset in the organizations' business. In this scenario it is a challenge to obtain software products of quality under the time and resources constraints established in projects. Standards, methodologies and techniques to promote software quality assurance have been continually proposed by the researchers and used by software engineers in the industry. The Workshop on Software Quality (WoSQ) aims at bringing together academic, industrial and commercial communities interested in software quality topics to discuss the different technologies being defined and used in the software quality area.
Plasma Copeptin and Renal Outcomes in Patients With Type 2 Diabetes and Albuminuria

OBJECTIVE Plasma copeptin, a surrogate for vasopressin, was associated with albuminuria in population-based studies. These associations are consistent with the effect of vasopressin on albuminuria observed in humans and rodents. The objective of this study was to determine whether plasma copeptin is an independent marker of risk of renal events in people with type 2 diabetes and albuminuria. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS We studied 3,101 participants of the DIABHYCAR trial (6-year follow-up) with type 2 diabetes and albuminuria. A renal event was defined as doubling of serum creatinine or development of end-stage renal disease. RESULTS During follow-up, 86 renal events occurred in 76 subjects (2.45%). Incidences by tertiles of baseline plasma copeptin were 1.06% (T1), 1.45% (T2), and 4.84% (T3). They were 2.43% (T1), 5.11% (T2), and 11.81% (T3) for the subset of subjects with macroalbuminuria at baseline (n = 729). Hazard ratio for plasma copeptin tertiles as a risk for renal events was 4.79 (95% CI, 2.48–9.24; P < 0.0001; for T3 vs. T1). In a stepwise regression analysis, urinary albumin excretion and plasma copeptin remained positively associated and HDL cholesterol and estimated glomerular filtration rate were inversely associated with the incidence of renal events. These independent predictors explained ∼18% of the variance of the outcome. The yearly variations of estimated glomerular filtration rate by copeptin tertiles were −1.43 ± 0.51 (T1), −2.29 ± 0.49 (T2), and −3.52 ± 0.44 mL/min/1.73 m2 per year (T3) (P = 0.005) in subjects with macroalbuminuria. CONCLUSIONS Plasma copeptin may help to identify subjects with diabetic chronic kidney disease who are at high risk for renal function decline.
I-CoPES: fast instruction code placement for embedded systems to improve performance and energy efficiency

The ratio of cache hits to cache misses in a computer system is, to a large extent, responsible for its characteristics such as energy consumption and performance. In recent years energy efficiency has become one of the dominating design constraints, due to the rapid growth in market share for mobile computing/communication/internet devices. We present a novel fast constructive technique that relocates the instruction code in such a manner into the main memory that the cache is utilized more efficiently. The technique is applied as a re-processing step, i.e. before the code is executed. it is applicable for embedded systems where the number and characteristics of tasks running on the system are known a priori. The technique does not impose any computational overhead to the system. As a result of applying our technique to a variety of real-world applications we measured (through simulation) that the number of cache misses drops significantly. Further, this reduces the energy consumption of a whole system (CPU, caches, buses, main memory) by up to 65% at an only slightly increased memory size of 13% on average.
The Xanthomonas campestris pv. vesicatoria Type-3 Effector XopB Inhibits Plant Defence Responses by Interfering with ROS Production

The bacterial pathogen Xanthomonas campestris pv. vesicatoria 85–10 (Xcv) translocates about 30 type-3 effector proteins (T3Es) into pepper plants (Capsicum annuum) to suppress plant immune responses. Among them is XopB which interferes with PTI, ETI and sugar-mediated defence responses, but the underlying molecular mechanisms and direct targets are unknown so far. Here, we examined the XopB-mediated suppression of plant defence responses in more detail. Infection of susceptible pepper plants with Xcv lacking xopB resulted in delayed symptom development compared to Xcv wild type infection concomitant with an increased formation of salicylic acid (SA) and expression of pathogenesis-related (PR) genes. Expression of xopB in Arabidopsis thaliana promoted the growth of the virulent Pseudomonas syringae pv. tomato (Pst) DC3000 strain. This was paralleled by a decreased SA-pool and a lower induction of SA-dependent PR gene expression. The expression pattern of early flg22-responsive marker genes indicated that MAPK signalling was not altered in the presence of XopB. However, XopB inhibited the flg22-triggered burst of reactive oxygen species (ROS). Consequently, the transcript accumulation of AtOXI1, a ROS-dependent marker gene, was reduced in xopB-expressing Arabidopsis plants as well as callose deposition. The lower ROS production correlated with a low level of basal and flg22-triggered expression of apoplastic peroxidases and the NADPH oxidase RBOHD. Conversely, deletion of xopB in Xcv caused a higher production of ROS in leaves of susceptible pepper plants. Together our results demonstrate that XopB modulates ROS responses and might thereby compromise plant defence.
Enhancing Data Integrity in Public Clouds

-A Cloud is a collection of terminals and servers that are publicly accessible via the internet. One of the primary use of cloud computing is data storage. In Cloud computing data are stored in encrypted form to ensure confidentiality. For more confidentiality two layer encryption approaches is implemented. The third party auditor will audit the data files and stored in cloud environment. There is chance to third party auditor will change the data. My proposed system has the notification method. If Third party auditor attempts to modify the data, the application will sends notification to the corresponding data owner. The third party auditor has rights to audit the data only. Until the user verifies the notification, the modification is not committed to the database.
Agent-enabled anomaly detection in resource constrained wireless sensor networks

The state-of-the-art network anomaly detection systems are often unable to correctly verify source of anomalies; they have occurred in situ or in transit. To address this issue, this study proposes an agent-enabled anomaly detection system in which mobile agents perform in situ verification of sensor nodes to verify source of anomalies. Moreover, mobile agent cannot be freely transmitted over the network, as transmission is several hundred times expensive operation as compare to processing. We optimize agent transmission through 2-sigma method. The formal behavior analysis of 2-sigma method is performed using Petri net theory to analyze its correctness. In future work, we aim to exploit cross-layer (XL) interaction to efficiently transmit mobile agents.
Space-time block coded amplify-and-forward cooperative relay without channel state information at relay station

In this paper, we propose a space-time block coded (STBC) amplify-and-forward cooperative (STBC-Co-AF) relay which requires no knowledge of CSI at relay station (RS). In STBC-Co-AF relay, the source node transmits 2-block signal to both RS and the destination node in the first time slot and then, RS transmits amplified STBC-coded signal to the destination node in the second time slot. The destination node performs a series of frequency-domain equalization (FDE), diversity combining, and STBC decoding by viewing the concatenation of the channels between the source node-RS link and between the RS-destination node link as an equivalent channel. We evaluate, by computer simulation, the average bit error rate (BER) performance when using STBC-Co-AF relay and show that the STBC-Co-AF relay can achieves the BER performance superior to Co-AF relay.
Bandwidth Efficient and Rate-Matched Low-Density Parity-Check Coded Modulation

A new coded modulation scheme is proposed. At the transmitter, the concatenation of a distribution matcher and a systematic binary encoder performs probabilistic signal shaping and channel coding. At the receiver, the output of a bitwise demapper is fed to a binary decoder. No iterative demapping is performed. Rate adaption is achieved by adjusting the input distribution and the transmission power. The scheme is applied to bipolar amplitudeshift keying (ASK) constellations with equidistant signal points and it is directly applicable to two-dimensional quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM). The scheme is implemented by using the DVB-S2 low-density parity-check (LDPC) codes. At a frame error rate of 10-3, the new scheme operates within less than 1.1 dB of the AWGN capacity 1/2 log2(1 + SNR) at any spectral efficiency between 1 and 5 bits/s/Hz by using only 5 modes, i.e., 4-ASK with code rate 2/3, 8-ASK with 3/4, 16-ASK and 32-ASK with 5/6, and 64-ASK with 9/10.
The Hybrid Histidine Kinase LadS Forms a Multicomponent Signal Transduction System with the GacS/GacA Two-Component System in Pseudomonas aeruginosa

In response to environmental changes, Pseudomonas aeruginosa is able to switch from a planktonic (free swimming) to a sessile (biofilm) lifestyle. The two-component system (TCS) GacS/GacA activates the production of two small non-coding RNAs, RsmY and RsmZ, but four histidine kinases (HKs), RetS, GacS, LadS and PA1611, are instrumental in this process. RetS hybrid HK blocks GacS unorthodox HK autophosphorylation through the formation of a heterodimer. PA1611 hybrid HK, which is structurally related to GacS, interacts with RetS in P. aeruginosa in a very similar manner to GacS. LadS hybrid HK phenotypically antagonizes the function of RetS by a mechanism that has never been investigated. The four sensors are found in most Pseudomonas species but their characteristics and mode of signaling may differ from one species to another. Here, we demonstrated in P. aeruginosa that LadS controls both rsmY and rsmZ gene expression and that this regulation occurs through the GacS/GacA TCS. We additionally evidenced that in contrast to RetS, LadS signals through GacS/GacA without forming heterodimers, either with GacS or with RetS. Instead, we demonstrated that LadS is involved in a genuine phosphorelay, which requires both transmitter and receiver LadS domains. LadS signaling ultimately requires the alternative histidine-phosphotransfer domain of GacS, which is here used as an Hpt relay by the hybrid kinase. LadS HK thus forms, with the GacS/GacA TCS, a multicomponent signal transduction system with an original phosphorelay cascade, i.e. H1LadS→D1LadS→H2GacS→D2GacA. This highlights an original strategy in which a unique output, i.e. the modulation of sRNA levels, is controlled by a complex multi-sensing network to fine-tune an adapted biofilm and virulence response.
Adaptive compressed sensing based randomized step frequency radar with a weighted PSO

In this paper, a novel randomized step frequency radar that combined the adaptive waveform design and the off-grid point effect simultaneously in the scheme of weighted Particle Swarm Optimization(PSO) is proposed, and the range and velocity joint estimating are recovered by exploiting sparseness of the targets and by invoking compressed sensing (CS) theory. In this new mechanism, each of the dictionary matrix element was first extended by adopting Taylor expansion to an arbitrary precise off-grid point, instead of only the points in a discrete form. Then by adding the new generated information into the dictionary matrix adaptively, an updated time-varying new dictionary matrix is yielded. Finally, in order to overcome the local minima in the traditional CS theory, a weighted PSO dynamic optimal method is adopted, where the convergence speed is increased due to the weighted factor introduced in the PSO. It is not necessary to know exactly the target parameters when using our approach, instead, coarse coding bounds of target parameters are enough for the algorithm, which can be done once and for all off-line, and it is only necessary to specify the initial scopes of the velocity and the range of the target. The proposed weighted PSO based waveform design approach has the potential to achieve much higher estimation accuracy, a faster convergence speed and robustness against unpredictable perturbations for range, a high precision in randomized step frequency radar.
Preschoolers’ and first graders’ reasons for liking or avoiding school

ABSTRACT This qualitative study examined 287 Turkish children's school experiences and sought to connect such experiences to their overall feelings about school. A semi-structured interview protocol derived from Ladd, Kochenderfer, and Coleman’s [1996. “Friendship Quality as a Predictor of Children’s Early School Adjustment. ” Child Development 67 (3): 1103–1118] School Liking and Avoidance Questionnaire was used to collect data from the participants, who comprised 141 preschoolers and 146 first graders. Most members of both groups stated that school was fun, that they were happy when they were there, and that they felt happy about going to school in the morning. Most preschoolers and first graders also said that school did not make them feel like crying, and that they did not wish they could stay home from school or go somewhere else. However, slightly more than half the respondents stated that they felt happier when it was time to go home from school. Preschoolers tended to emphasise positive features of school such as toys, whereas first graders were more likely to talk about learning new things, and their in-school friendships.
Inspiring awe in consumers: Relevance, triggers, and consequences

Six methodologically diverse studies addressed three fundamental questions about awe in consumers. First, to what extent is awe a relevant emotion in consumer experiences of products? A pilot study examined contents of tweets containing “awe” and showed that it was frequently used in people’s voluntary expressions. Study 1 showed that products could elicit awe among a significant portion of consumers. Second, what kind of product triggers awe in consumers? Study 2 determined that descriptions of aweinspiring products typically featured four dimensions: timelessness, accommodation, beauty, and vastness. Studies 3 and 4 showed that only timelessness and accommodation could differentiate awe from admiration (Study 3) and love (Study 4) whereas beauty and vastness were not as important. The third question relates to the consequences produced by awe-inspiring products. Study 3 showed that awe comprised a blend of positive and negative emotions. Studies 3 to 5 showed that awe not only made products more memorable but also enhanced consumers’ intentions to spread positive word-of-mouth publicity and to purchase the product. These findings shed light on the folk understanding and expression of this emotion and establish key landmarks in the hitherto uncharted consumer research domain of awe.
The Optimal Solution of a Non-Convex State-Dependent LQR Problem and Its Applications

This paper studies a Non-convex State-dependent Linear Quadratic Regulator (NSLQR) problem, in which the control penalty weighting matrix in the performance index is state-dependent. A necessary and sufficient condition for the optimal solution is established with a rigorous proof by Euler-Lagrange Equation. It is found that the optimal solution of the NSLQR problem can be obtained by solving a Pseudo-Differential-Riccati-Equation (PDRE) simultaneously with the closed-loop system equation. A Comparison Theorem for the PDRE is given to facilitate solution methods for the PDRE. A linear time-variant system is employed as an example in simulation to verify the proposed optimal solution. As a non-trivial application, a goal pursuit process in psychology is modeled as a NSLQR problem and two typical goal pursuit behaviors found in human and animals are reproduced using different control weighting . It is found that these two behaviors save control energy and cause less stress over Conventional Control Behavior typified by the LQR control with a constant control weighting , in situations where only the goal discrepancy at the terminal time is of concern, such as in Marathon races and target hitting missions.
A Wearable Sensor Module With a Neural-Network-Based Activity Classification Algorithm for Daily Energy Expenditure Estimation

This paper presents a wearable module and neural-network-based activity classification algorithm for energy expenditure estimation. The purpose of our design is first to categorize physical activities with similar intensity levels, and then to construct energy expenditure regression (EER) models using neural networks in order to optimize the estimation performance. The classification of physical activities for EER model construction is based on the acceleration and ECG signal data collected by wearable sensor modules developed by our research lab. The proposed algorithm consists of procedures for data collection, data preprocessing, activity classification, feature selection, and construction of EER models using neural networks. In order to reduce the computational load and achieve satisfactory estimation performance, we employed sequential forward and backward search strategies for feature selection. Two representative neural networks, a radial basis function network (RBFN) and a generalized regression neural network (GRNN), were employed as EER models for performance comparisons. Our experimental results have successfully validated the effectiveness of our wearable sensor module and its neural-network-based activity classification algorithm for energy expenditure estimation. In addition, our results demonstrate the superior performance of GRNN as compared to RBFN.
THE PAPR REDUCTION IN ORTHOGONAL FREQUENCY DIVISION MULTIPLEXING USING NEW SLM

— OFDM (Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing) is a new raised modulation technique. Due to its more advantages in multipath fading channel e.g. vigorous against ISI, ICI and other advantages like best quality of service for various users, efficient usage of bandwidth it is recommended to be the modulation technique for 4G networks But along with all its advantages there are some disadvantages of Ofdm system is its high PAPR (Peak to Average Power Ratio) at the transmitter end and BER (Bit Error Rate) at the receiving end. Since OFDM is use only in the downlink networks of 4G. The present paper presents different PAPR reduction techniques and concludes an overall comparison of these Techniques. The present research paper proposed new selected mapping technique (SLM) by using the complex signal separated into real and imaginary parts, then select minimum PAPR signal of real and imaginary part and then minimum signals are combine. The proposed method is most efficient technique for PAPR reduction and enhance the performance in terms of BER, efficiency, less bandwidth requirement and complexity.
Optimal switching control of an absorber ocean wave energy device

This paper concerns the preliminary study of a point absorber ocean wave energy converter. A simple floating double-link device oscillates under the wave effect and the power take-off system is a system, which acts like a friction torque. The control consists in locking/unlocking the link, which is connected to the power take-off system. The response of the system to the waves is enhanced and therefore the production of energy is raising. This type of control represents switching between two structures of the system. Optimal switching control consists in determination of optimal sequence of switching times (lock/unlock). Constrained parametric optimization is used to get optimal sequence, considering state jumps, which appear at the instants of locking the movement. Then, comparisons of power absorption are presented with and without control in regular ocean waves.
CELI Participation at ImageCLEF 2006: Comparison with the Ad-hoc Track

In this paper we discuss the CELI’s first year of activity at CLEF in the context of Cross Language Image Retrieval Track (ImageCLEF). The proposed system is an upgrade of CELI’s cross language delegated search system (www.elois.biz). The system is meant to perform CLIR on the web by using Google and Yahoo indexes. Therefore the goal is to provide reasonable translations of queries with no direct access to the corpus. This, in turn, means absence of tuning procedure for the system and impossibility to impose restrictions in terms of domain, style, etc. Our approach is based on bilingual dictionaries and the main research effort was devoted to filter out the noise introduced by translation ambiguities. We experimented a disambiguation strategy based on Latent Semantic Analysis which allow us to compute the degree of semantic coherence of possible translation candidates. We also tested some query expansion methods in order to “balance” the fact that the system does not perform any kind of visual retrieval. Being the system basically the same, we are in a good position to compare results in the Image track with the one in the Ad-hoc track. Surprisingly it emerges that, contrary to what happened in the Ad-hoc exercise, expansion strategies improve results in image retrieval tasks.
Stay away or stay together? Social contagion, common identity, and bystanders’ interventions in homophobic bullying episodes

Two studies explored the link between social contagion concerns and assertive bystanders’ behavioral intentions in homophobic bullying episodes. Study 1 (N = 216) examined if adolescents’ social contagion concerns (i.e., fear of being misclassified as gay/lesbian) relate to decreased behavioral intentions to help victims of bullying, by increasing negative attitudes towards lesbians and gay men. Study 2 (N = 230) further explored if inclusive identity representations (i.e., one-group or dual-identity) were related to decreased concerns of social contagion, thereby increasing adolescents’ assertive behavioral intentions. Results (partially) confirmed both expected mediations: social contagion concerns were associated with decreased assertive behavioral intentions via increased negative attitudes towards lesbians and gay men (Study 1); one-group representations, but not dual-identity representations, were associated with more assertive behavioral intentions via decreased social contagion concerns (Study 2). These findings extended previous studies illustrating the underlying mechanisms through which social contagion concerns and common identity affect assertive bystanders’ behavioral intentions.
Extended Cox , Ingersoll & Ross Model

The study is dedicated to the easiest construction of the extended Cox, Ingersoll & Ross model for term structure of interest rate, and to the easiest way of pricing general interest rate derivatives within this model. To price bonds, we calculate the Laplace transform of functionals of the “elementary process”, which is squared Bessel process. This approach, which strongly takes advantage of martingales and the Girsanov’s theorem, allows for the presentation of results in a “user friendly” form. Furthermore, we propose and apply an elementary method for the calibration of the one factor ECIR model using the history of the bonds prices.