Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The More, the Merrier: the Blessing of Dimensionality for Learning Large Gaussian Mixtures

In this paper we show that very large mixtures of Gaussians are efficiently learnable in high dimension. More precisely, we prove that a mixture with known identical covariance matrices whose number of components is a polynomial of any fixed degree in the dimension n is polynomially learnable as long as a certain non-degeneracy condition on the means is satisfied. It turns out that this condition is generic in the sense of smoothed complexity, as soon as the dimensionality of the space is high enough. Moreover, we prove that no such condition can possibly exist in low dimension and the problem of learning the parameters is generically hard. In contrast, much of the existing work on Gaussian Mixtures relies on low-dimensional projections and thus hits an artificial barrier. Our main result on mixture recovery relies on a new "Poissonization"-based technique, which transforms a mixture of Gaussians to a linear map of a product distribution. The problem of learning this map can be efficiently solved using some recent results on tensor decompositions and Independent Component Analysis (ICA), thus giving an algorithm for recovering the mixture. In addition, we combine our low-dimensional hardness results for Gaussian mixtures with Poissonization to show how to embed difficult instances of low-dimensional Gaussian mixtures into the ICA setting, thus establishing exponential information-theoretic lower bounds for underdetermined ICA in low dimension. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first such result in the literature. In addition to contributing to the problem of Gaussian mixture learning, we believe that this work is among the first steps toward better understanding the rare phenomenon of the "blessing of dimensionality" in the computational aspects of statistical inference.
Effects of Familiarity on Spatial Frequency Thresholds for Face Matching

We examined whether familiarity with a face influences the spatial frequencies (SFs) required for face matching. Using the psychophysical method of constant stimuli and a 3AFC simultaneous matching paradigm, we obtained SF thresholds for familiar- and unfamiliar-face matching from fourteen observers, of which four were personally familiar with a subset of the faces while the remainder served as controls. SF thresholds from the lower extreme of the spectrum were approximately one octave lower for familiar than for unfamiliar faces, while SF thresholds from the upper extreme of the spectrum were approximately a third of an octave higher. These results highlight a quantitative difference between processing familiar and unfamiliar faces.
Adult Social Attachment Disturbance Is Related to Childhood Maltreatment and Current Symptoms in Borderline Personality Disorder

We characterized borderline personality disorder (BPD) along two fundamental dimensions of adult social attachment and evaluated attachment associations with childhood maltreatment and current symptoms using self-report measures in 40 outpatients with DSM-IV BPD. The BPD group had significantly greater dimensional attachment impairment and rate of fearful attachment type compared with a healthy control group. Among BPD subjects, dimensional attachment-anxiety was specifically associated with sexual abuse, whereas attachment-avoidance was associated with all five maltreatment types. The two attachment dimensions showed divergent associations with current interpersonal problems, impulsivity subtypes and mood symptoms. We conclude that (1) BPD is characterized by adult attachment disturbance; (2) these attachment problems are strongly related to childhood maltreatment, and to current interpersonal problems and clinical symptoms that are considered core features of BPD; and (3) the diverse problems of BPD patients may arise from two basic mechanisms, each tied to a different type of attachment disturbance, developmental history, and clinical outcome.
Preserving gaze direction in teleconferencing using a camera array and a spherical display

The movement of human gaze is very important in face to face conversation. Some of the quality of that movement is lost in videoconferencing because the participants look at a single planar image of the remote person. We use an array of cameras to capture a remote user, and then display video of that person on a spherical display. We compare the spherical display to a face to face setting and a planar display. We demonstrate the effectiveness of the camera array and spherical display system in that it allows observers to accurately judge where the remote user is placing their gaze.
Evidence for the localization of the Arabidopsis cytokinin receptors AHK3 and AHK4 in the endoplasmic reticulum

Cytokinins are hormones that are involved in various processes of plant growth and development. The model of cytokinin signalling starts with hormone perception through membrane-localized histidine kinase receptors. Although the biochemical properties and functions of these receptors have been extensively studied, there is no solid proof of their subcellular localization. Here, cell biological and biochemical evidence for the localization of functional fluorophor-tagged fusions of Arabidopsis histidine kinase 3 (AHK3) and 4 (AHK4), members of the cytokinin receptor family, in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) is provided. Furthermore, membrane-bound AHK3 interacts with AHK4 in vivo. The ER localization and putative function of cytokinin receptors from the ER have major impacts on the concept of cytokinin perception and signalling, and hormonal cross-talk in plants.
Persistence of Streptococcus mutans in Stationary-Phase Batch Cultures and Biofilms

ABSTRACT Streptococcus mutans is a member of oral plaque biofilms and is considered the major etiological agent of dental caries. We have characterized the survival of S. mutans strain UA159 in both batch cultures and biofilms. Bacteria grown in batch cultures in a chemically defined medium, FMC, containing an excess of glucose or sucrose caused the pH to decrease to 4.0 at the entry into stationary phase, and they survived for about 3 days. Survival was extended up to 11 days when the medium contained a limiting concentration of glucose or sucrose that was depleted by the time the bacteria reached stationary phase. Sugar-limited cultures maintained a pH of 7.0 throughout stationary phase. Their survival was shortened to 3 days by the addition of exogenous lactic acid at the entry into stationary phase. Sugar starvation did not lead to comparable survival in biofilms. Although the pH remained at 7.0, bacteria could no longer be cultured from biofilms 4 days after the imposition of glucose or sucrose starvation; BacLight staining results did not agree with survival results based on culturability. In both batch cultures and biofilms, survival could be extended by the addition of 0.5% mucin to the medium. Batch survival increased to an average of 26 (±8) days, and an average of 2.7 × 105 CFU per chamber were still present in biofilms that were starved of sucrose for 12 days.
The formulation of argument structure in SLI: an eye-movement study

This study investigated the formulation of verb argument structure in Catalan- and Spanish-speaking children with specific language impairment (SLI) and typically developing age-matched controls. We compared how language production can be guided by conceptual factors, such as the organization of the entities participating in an event and knowledge regarding argument structure. Eleven children with SLI (aged 3;8 to 6;6) and eleven control children participated in an eye-tracking experiment in which participants had to describe events with different argument structure in the presence of visual scenes. Picture descriptions, latency time and eye movements were recorded and analyzed. The picture description results showed that the percentage of responses in which children with SLI substituted a non-target verb for the target verb was significantly different from that for the control group. Children with SLI made more omissions of obligatory arguments, especially of themes, as the verb argument complexity increased. Moreover, when the number of arguments of the verb increased, the children took more time to begin their descriptions, but no differences between groups were found. For verb type latency, all children were significantly faster to start describing one-argument events than two- and three-argument events. No differences in latency time were found between two- and three-argument events. There were no significant differences between the groups. Eye-movement showed that children with SLI looked less at the event zone than the age-matched controls during the first two seconds. These differences between the groups were significant for three-argument verbs, and only marginally significant for one- and two-argument verbs. Children with SLI also spent significantly less time looking at the theme zones than their age-matched controls. We suggest that both processing limitations and deficits in the semantic representation of verbs may play a role in these difficulties.
What's Eliza doing in the Chinese room? Incoherent hyperdocuments—and how to avoid them

A signal consisting of square pulses is applied to an FSK transmitter and is transformed into a control signal consisting of substantially symmetrical trapezoidal pulses. This control signal is applied on the one hand to a gyrator oscillator modulator to generate an FSK signal and on the other hand to a conversion device which converts the control signal into a direct voltage signal the direct voltage value of which shows a positive pulsatory variation each time during the occurrence of the edges of the trapezoidal pulses of the control signal. Said direct voltage signal is used to subsequently modulate the FSK signal in an amplitude modulator. The amplitude-modulator FSK signal may now be applied directly as a modulation signal to a carrier modulator without the intermediary of a band-pass filter.
E2A-PBX1 Interacts Directly with the KIX Domain of CBP/p300 in the Induction of Proliferation in Primary Hematopoietic Cells*

The E2A gene encodes DNA-binding transcription factors, called E12 and E47, involved in cell specification and maturation. E2A is also involved in a chromosomal translocation that leads to the expression of an oncogenic transcription factor called E2A-PBX1 in cases of acute leukemia. In the work described here, we elucidate the interaction between E2A-PBX1 and transcriptional co-activators. We confirm that the E2A portion can interact with CBP and PCAF and map required elements on E2A and CBP. On CBP, the interaction involves the KIX domain, a well characterized domain that mediates interactions with several other oncogenic transcription factors. On E2A, the interaction with CBP requires conserved α-helical domains that reside within activation domains 1 and 2 (AD1 and AD2, respectively). Using purified, recombinant proteins, we show that the E2A-CBP interaction is direct. Notwithstanding the previously demonstrated ability of AD1 and AD2 to function independently, some of our findings suggest functional cooperativity between these two domains. Finally, we show that the CBP/p300-interactive helical domains of E2A are important in the induction of proliferation in cultured primary bone marrow cells retrovirally transduced with E2A-PBX1. Our findings suggest that some aspects of E2A-PBX1 oncogenesis involve a direct interaction with the KIX domain of CBP/p300.
Targeted integration of genes in Xenopus tropicalis

With the successful establishment of both targeted gene disruption and integration methods in the true diploid frog Xenopus tropicalis, this excellent vertebrate genetic model now is making a unique contribution to modelling human diseases. Here, we summarize our efforts on establishing homologous recombination‐mediated targeted integration in Xenopus tropicalis, the usefulness, and limitation of targeted integration via the homology‐independent strategy, and future directions on how to further improve targeted gene integration in Xenopus tropicalis.
Mild cognitive impairment is associated with selected functional markers: integrating concurrent, longitudinal, and stability effects.

OBJECTIVE We examined functional performance on multiple indicators for two cognitive status groups: (a) not impaired controls (NIC) and (b) mild cognitive impairment (MCI). We identified functional markers associated with differences, changes, and stability in cognitive status. METHOD In the Victoria Longitudinal Study (VLS) we examined cognitive status group effects in (a) cross-sectional functional performance, (b) longitudinal stability, (c) longitudinal functional performance change, and (d) functional marker prediction of later cognitive status. We assembled markers from five continuous clusters of MCI-related functional factors: biological vitality, activity lifestyle, psychosocial affect, subjective health, and global cognition. We used a cross-sectional sample and a two-wave longitudinal sample, stratified by age (mid-old, old-old) and cognitive status (MCI, NIC). RESULTS First, cross-sectional results showed that eight markers differentiated MCI and NIC adults, with the latter performing uniformly better. The groups differed on diastolic blood pressure, body mass index, positive and negative affect, MMSE, and the lifestyle indicators of self-maintenance, travel, and novel cognitive activities. Second, Wave 1 to Wave 2 stabilities in cognitive status classification were high. Third, several markers differentiated the stable (NIC-to-NIC, MCI-to-MCI) from the unstable (NIC-to-MCI, MCI-to-NIC) cognitive status groups. Fourth, five relevant markers for identifying older adults at risk for cognitive status changes were: diastolic blood pressure, self-maintenance activities, novel cognitive activities, positive affect, and global cognitive status. CONCLUSION Selected risk and protective factors differentiate persons classified with MCI from those not currently cognitively impaired, both cross-sectionally and longitudinally.
How quickly can we approach channel capacity?

Recent progress in code design has made it crucial to understand how quickly communication systems can approach their limits. To address this issue for the channel capacity C, we define the nonasymptotic capacity C/sub NA/(n, /spl epsi/) as the maximal rate of codebooks that achieve a probability /spl epsi/ of codeword error while using codewords of length n. We prove for the binary symmetric channel that C/sub NA/(n,/spl epsi/)=C-K(/spl epsi/)//spl radic/n+o(1//spl radic/n), where K(/spl epsi/) is available in closed form. We also describe similar results for the Gaussian channel. These results may lead to more efficient resource usage in practical communication systems.
The mating‐type locus B alpha 1 of Schizophyllum commune contains a pheromone receptor gene and putative pheromone genes.

Analysis of the multispecific B alpha mating‐type locus of Schizophyllum commune provided evidence that pheromones and pheromone receptors govern recognition of self versus non‐self and sexual development in this homobasidiomycetous fungus. Four subclones of an 8.2 kb genomic fragment carrying B alpha 1 specificity induced B‐regulated sexual morphogenesis when introduced into a strain with one of the eight compatible B alpha specificities that are known to exist in nature. One of these clones, which activated all other B alpha specificities, contains a gene termed bar1. The predicted protein product of bar1, as well as that of bar2, a homologous gene isolated from a B alpha 2 strain, has significant homology to known fungal pheromone receptor proteins in the rhodopsin‐like superfamily of G protein‐linked receptors. The other three active B alpha 1 clones were subcloned further to identify the minimal active element in each clone. Every active subclone contains a putative pheromone gene ending in a signal for possible isoprenylation. A message of approximately 600 bp was observed for one of these genes, bap1(1). This paper presents the first evidence for a system of multiple pheromones and pheromone receptors as a basis for multispecific mating types in a fungus.
Automatic Speech Attribute Transcription (ASAT) - The Front End Processor

In this paper we discuss the design and implementation of the ASAT front end processing system, whose goal is to convert the speech waveform into a range of measurements and parameters which are then combined to form probabilistic attributes. The ASAT front end processing module utilizes a range of spectral and temporal speech parameters as input to a set of neural network classifiers to create sets of attribute probability lattices, based on either single frames or blocks of frames (segments). We test this architecture by using the 14 Sound Patterns of English (SPE) features as speech attributes. Without balancing the training data, the detection accuracies of 4 of the SPE features are above 90%, 2 features obtain between 80% and 90% detection accuracy, and 8 features have detection accuracies below 80%. With a novel method of balancing the feature training data, the performance of the neural networks improved significantly, with 6 features having detection accuracies above 90% and the remaining 8 features with detection accuracy above 80%
Sleep and cognitive problems in patients with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder

Objectives Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is characterized by inattentive and impulsive behavior. Many ADHD patients reportedly have cognitive dysfunction and sleep problems, including longer sleep latency, lower sleep efficiency, and shorter total sleep time. The purpose of this study was to examine neurocognitive functions and nocturnal sleep parameters in patients with ADHD, using a cognitive function test and actigraphy. Methods Subjects included 37 male patients with ADHD and 32 controls (7–12 years of age). For each participant, we determined intelligence quotient (IQ) and administered the Matching Familiar Figures Test (MFFT) and 72-hour actigraphy. The relationships between sleep parameters and cognitive functions were assessed. Results ADHD patients significantly differed from controls in several cognitive functions and sleep variables. In the MFFT, response error rate (P<0.001) and error counts (P=0.003) were significantly increased in ADHD patients compared with control children. MFFT response latency was significantly shorter in ADHD patients than in controls (P<0.001). In addition, sleep latency (P=0.01), wake after sleep onset (WASO) (P<0.001), and fragmentation index (P<0.001) were evaluated by actigraphy and found to be significantly increased in patients with ADHD compared with controls. However, no significant differences in total sleep time or sleep efficiency were observed. WASO and response error rates were positively correlated in patients with ADHD (rho =0.52, P=0.012). Furthermore, fragmentation index sleep variables were significantly positively correlated with response error (rho =0.44, P=0.008) and response latency rates (rho =0.4, P=0.018) in the MFFT. Reaction error rate was significantly associated with the fragmentation index (beta =0.94, P=0.024). Conclusion Patients with ADHD had more sleep problems, including significantly increased sleep latency, WASO, and fragmentation index, and poorer cognitive function, compared with controls. Some of these sleep problems, including WASO and the fragmentation index, were positively correlated with impulsivity, illustrated by the cognitive function tests in patients with ADHD. However, further studies with large sample sizes and the addition of polysomnography and determination of ADHD subtypes should be performed to confirm our results regarding sleep and cognitive problems in patients with ADHD.
Coarse grain computation-communication overlap for efficient application-level checkpointing for GPUs

Graphics Processing Units (GPUs) are increasingly used to solve non-graphical scientific problems. However, it has been shown that the reliability of the GPUs is a concern because of the occurrence of the soft and hard errors. The checkpoint/restart is the most commonly used technique to achieve fault tolerance in the presence of failures. This work present an application-level checkpoint scheme for systems composed of GPUs. Our scheme exploits the benefits of the divide-and-conquer technique and of the communication-computation overlapping to improve the execution time and checkpoint overhead. By dividing the problem and checkpointing in n subprocesses, we show that our scheme improves the checkpoint overhead by a factor of n. We also show that dividing the problem with finer granularity is not beneficial.
An Analysis of Structured Data on the Web

In this paper, we analyze the nature and distribution of structured data on the Web. Web-scale information extraction, or the problem of creating structured tables using extraction from the entire web, is gathering lots of research interest. We perform a study to understand and quantify the value of Web-scale extraction, and how structured information is distributed amongst top aggregator websites and tail sites for various interesting domains. We believe this is the first study of its kind, and gives us new insights for information extraction over the Web.
Implementation of universal digital architecture using 3D-NoC for mobile terminal

The need to integrate multiple wireless communication protocols into a single low-cost flexible hardware platform is prompted by the increasing number of emerging communication protocols and applications in modern embedded systems. So the current challenge is to design of new digital architectures, in addition to its ability to take over of many functions. In this paper we have identified similarities between the despreader units in Rake receiver and the processor element in FFT-SDF (Fast Fourier Transform- Single path Delay Feedback) to propose a generic architecture shared between the two algorithms widely used. This Smart architecture is interconnected with similar modules by a 3D Network-on-Chip for implementation of Rake receiver (used in WCDMA system) and FFT receiver (in OFDM system). We present in this paper a 3D-NoC with half layer-layer connection, this architecture uses a modified XYZ routing algorithm. The proposed architectures are coded using VHDL onto a Virtex 5 Field-Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) device and results are compared with similar works. The implementation demonstrates that the proposed architectures can deliver a high reduction of the FPGA logic requirements with high maximum frequency.
La psychologie du travail

Cette presentation rappelle d'abord brievement quelques elements essentiels de l'histoire de Lahy, propres a eclairer les textes cites. Elle commente ensuite les themes retenus comme caracteristiques de la discipline. Elle montre l'actualite qu'ils ont gardee et la maniere dont leur traitement a evolue. Ont ete ainsi examines : l'evolution du champ de la psychologie du travail, les rapports entre psychologie theorique et psychologie appliquee, la recherche en laboratoire et sur le terrain, l'analyse psychologique du travail, l'organisation du champ de la discipline, enfin l'emergence de problemes epistemologiques. La conclusion degage quelques traits generaux de l'evolution de la discipline et souligne la valeur exemplaire que conservent encore certains aspects de la demarche de Lahy.