Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
CELEBRATING 50 YEARS OF THE APPLIED PROBABILITY TRUST

We review and extend the class of hypergeometric Lévy processes explored in Kuznetsov and Pardo (2013) with a view to computing fluctuation identities related to stable processes. We give the Wiener–Hopf factorisation of a process in the extended class, characterise its exponential functional, and give three concrete examples arising from transformations of stable processes.
Microstructures and magnetic properties of Co-Zr system alloys

The microstructures and magnetic properties of Co 90-x Zr 10+x (x = 0-20) alloy ingots and those melt-spun ribbons were examined in order to clarify the phase and microstructure of the Co-Zr system alloys. The Co 90 Zr 10 alloy ingot and melt-spun ribbon consisted of Co, Co 23 Zr 6 , and Co 11 Zr 2 phases. Although the Co 80 Zr 20 alloy ingot consisted of Co, Co 23 Zr 6 , and Co 11 Zr 2 phases as was the case for the Co 90 Zr 10 alloy ingot, those melt-spun ribbon consisted of metastable Co 5 Zr phase together with Co and Co 23 Zr 6 phases. The Co 70 Zr 30 alloy ingot and melt-spun ribbon consisted of Co 2 Zr phase. Among the alloy ingots and those melt-spun ribbons, only the Co 80 Zr 20 melt-spun ribbon with the metastable Co 5 Zr phase exhibited a high coercivity. This study confirmed that the hard magnetic phase was not the Co 11 Zr 2 phase but the metastable Co 5 Zr phase.
Change detection in unregistered optical satellite images using combinatorial clustering method

In this paper, we propose a new change detection method for unregistered multitemporal satellite images. This method is able to obtain the changed information by using the combinatorial clustering method. To obtain the change detection map, firstly, the method of oversegmentation is employed for the input images to reduce the computational cost. Secondly, we apply the combinatorial clustering method, which integrates the methods of bottom-up unsupervised clustering and the top-down discriminative clustering, to obtain the segmentation score for the result of over segmentation. Finally, the change detection map is obtained by thresholding the score. Experimental evaluation on the multitemporal satellite images demonstrates that the proposed method has good performance on the unregistered images.
Separating Subsurface Scattering from Photometric Image

While subsurface scattering is common in many real objects, almost all separation algorithms focus on extracting specular and diffuse components from real images. In this paper, we present a model-less approach derived from the bi-directional surface scattering reflectance distribution function (BSSRDF). In our approach, we show that an illumination image is composed by the Lambertian diffuse and subsurface scattering images. By converting the separation problem into one of two-layer separation in the illumination domain, a Bayesian framework is used to solve the optimization problem which incorporates spatial and illumination constraints, the latter of which are captured as a set of diffuse priors. We present the detailed mathematical formulation and experimental results
Codesign of Embedded Systems: Status and Trends

Ever increasing embedded system design complexity combined with a very tight time-to-market window has revolutionized the embedded-system design process. The concurrent design of hardware and software has displaced traditional sequential design. Further, hardware and software design now begins before the system architecture (or even the specification) is finalised. System architects, customers, and marketing departments develop requirement definitions and system specifications together. System architects define a system architecture consisting of cooperating system functions that form the basis of concurrent hardware and software design. Interface design requires the participation of both hardware and software developers. The next step integrates and tests hardware and software-this phase consists of many individual steps. Reusing components taken from previous designs or acquired from outside the design group is a main design goal to improve productivity and reduce design risk. It is argued that new methodologies and AD tools support an integrated hardware software codesign process.
Preserving Link Privacy in Social Network Based Systems

A growing body of research leverages social network based trust relationships to improve the functionality of the system. However, these systems expose users' trust relationships, which is considered sensitive information in today's society, to an adversary. In this work, we make the following contributions. First, we propose an algorithm that perturbs the structure of a social graph in order to provide link privacy, at the cost of slight reduction in the utility of the social graph. Second we define general metrics for characterizing the utility and privacy of perturbed graphs. Third, we evaluate the utility and privacy of our proposed algorithm using real world social graphs. Finally, we demonstrate the applicability of our perturbation algorithm on a broad range of secure systems, including Sybil defenses and secure routing.
A particle swarm optimization under fuzzy logic controller to solve a scheduling problem

In the hybrid flow shop problems, two decisions are taken at once: determine the allocation of jobs to the parallel machines as well as the sequence of the jobs assigned to each machine. In the addressed paper, we consider a hybrid flow shops problem under particular conditions. Indeed, we assume that the assignment of the jobs on the machines is known at advance and some jobs can not pass by certain stages. The objective function is to minimize the total tardiness. We proposed in previous works an exact resolution based on the mixed integer linear programming method solved by Cplex solver. We propose in this paper two metaheuristic methods such as a genetic algorithm and a particle swarm algorithm. Those are under fuzzy logic-controller. The obtained results are very interesting.
Surface-controlled mechanical properties of bulk nanoporous gold

This study highlights a smart hybrid material based on nanoporous gold in an aqueous electrolyte whose stiffness and strength are reversibly tuned by external stimuli. The tunability of these effective mechanical properties is realized via application of electric potentials to the large gold-electrolyte interface of the material, and consequent control of the surface state through electrical polarization and adsorption. The experiments are implemented in situ under environmental control in a dynamic mechanical analyzer and a mechanical testing device. Novel and interesting findings in the mechanics of the nanoporous metal have been revealed. First, the effective elastic modulus varies reversibly with the electrode potential by up to 10%. It is found that adsorption of oxygen species as well as a simple excess of electrons on the surface increase the stiffness while oxygen desorption/electron depletion enhance the compliance. Since the electrochemical modification affects the material exclusively at its surface, the changes in the effective elastic response unambiguously testify to the surface excess elasticity phenomena in nanomaterials. Second, in situ compression tests in electrolyte suggest a similar effect of the electrode potential on the flow stress, where the relative variation reached up to 100%. The implications of microstructural size and electrochemical environment on these aspects of the material’s mechanical behavior is analyzed and discussed. The observations point towards surface tension as the most relevant parameter in controlling the plasticity of nanoporous gold.
Comparison of density measurement techniques for additive manufactured metallic parts

Purpose – In the optimisation of processing parameters for additive manufactured parts using, e.g. selective laser melting (SLM) or electron beam melting, the measurement of the part densities is essential and of high interest. However, there is no common standard. Different institutes and system providers are using their own principles and guidelines. This study investigates the accuracies of the three measurement principles: Archimedes method, microscopic analysis of cross sections and X‐ray scanning.Design/methodology/approach – A total of 15 test samples on five density levels (densities between 90 and 99.5 per cent) were produced using the SLM process. The samples are analysed regarding the accuracy of the measurement principles and their reproducibility taking into account influencing parameters like the buoyancy of a sample in air (Archimedes method) or different magnifications of a cross section.Findings – The Archimedes method shows a very high accuracy (±0.08 per cent for high densities) and rep.
R Measuring the Competence of Healthcare Providers

Competence encompasses knowledge, skills, abilities, and traits. It is gained in the healthcare professions through pre-service education, in-service training, and work experience. Competence is a major determinant of provider performance as represented by conformance with various clinical, non-clinical, and interpersonal standards. Measuring competence is essential for determining the ability and readiness of health workers to provide quality services. Although competence is a precursor to doing the job right, measuring performance periodically is also crucial to determine whether providers are using their competence on the job. A provider can have the knowledge and skill, but use it poorly because of individual factors (abilities, traits, goals, values, inertia, etc.) or external factors (unavailability of drugs, equipment, organizational support, etc.).
Interleukin‐6 biology is coordinated by membrane‐bound and soluble receptors: role in inflammation and cancer

Cytokine receptors, which exist in membrane‐bound and soluble forms, bind their ligands with comparable affinity. Although most soluble receptors are antagonists and compete with their membrane‐associated counterparts for the ligands, certain soluble receptors are agonists. In these cases, complexes of ligand and soluble receptor bind on target cells to second receptor subunits and initiate intracellular signaling. The soluble receptors of the interleukin (IL)‐6 family of cytokines (sIL‐6R, sIL‐11R, soluble ciliary neurotrophic factor receptor) are agonists capable of transmitting signals through interaction with the universal signal‐transducing receptor for all IL‐6 family cytokines, gp130. In vivo, the IL‐6/sIL‐6R complex stimulates several types of cells, which are unresponsive to IL‐6 alone, as they do not express the membrane IL‐6R. We have named this process trans‐signaling. The generation of soluble cytokine receptors occurs via two distinct mechanisms—limited proteolysis and translation—from differentially spliced mRNA. We have demonstrated that a soluble form of the IL‐6 family signaling receptor subunit gp130, which is generated by differential splicing, is the natural inhibitor of IL‐6 trans‐signaling responses. We have shown that in many chronic inflammatory diseases, including chronic inflammatory bowel disease, peritonitis, rheumatoid arthritis, asthma, as well as colon cancer, IL‐6 trans‐signaling is critically involved in the maintenance of a disease state, by promoting transition from acute to chronic inflammation. Moreover, in all these models, the course of the disease can be disrupted by specifically interfering with IL‐6 trans‐signaling using the soluble gp130 protein. The pathophysiological mechanisms by which the IL‐6/sIL‐6R complex regulates the inflammatory state are discussed.
Harnessing Context Sensing to Develop a Mobile Intervention for Depression

Background Mobile phone sensors can be used to develop context-aware systems that automatically detect when patients require assistance. Mobile phones can also provide ecological momentary interventions that deliver tailored assistance during problematic situations. However, such approaches have not yet been used to treat major depressive disorder. Objective The purpose of this study was to investigate the technical feasibility, functional reliability, and patient satisfaction with Mobilyze! , a mobile phone- and Internet-based intervention including ecological momentary intervention and context sensing. Methods We developed a mobile phone application and supporting architecture, in which machine learning models (ie, learners) predicted patients’ mood, emotions, cognitive/motivational states, activities, environmental context, and social context based on at least 38 concurrent phone sensor values (eg, global positioning system, ambient light, recent calls). The website included feedback graphs illustrating correlations between patients’ self-reported states, as well as didactics and tools teaching patients behavioral activation concepts. Brief telephone calls and emails with a clinician were used to promote adherence. We enrolled 8 adults with major depressive disorder in a single-arm pilot study to receive Mobilyze! and complete clinical assessments for 8 weeks. Results Promising accuracy rates (60% to 91%) were achieved by learners predicting categorical contextual states (eg, location). For states rated on scales (eg, mood), predictive capability was poor. Participants were satisfied with the phone application and improved significantly on self-reported depressive symptoms (betaweek = –.82, P < .001, per-protocol Cohen d = 3.43) and interview measures of depressive symptoms (betaweek = –.81, P < .001, per-protocol Cohen d = 3.55). Participants also became less likely to meet criteria for major depressive disorder diagnosis (bweek = –.65, P = .03, per-protocol remission rate = 85.71%). Comorbid anxiety symptoms also decreased (betaweek = –.71, P < .001, per-protocol Cohen d = 2.58). Conclusions Mobilyze! is a scalable, feasible intervention with preliminary evidence of efficacy. To our knowledge, it is the first ecological momentary intervention for unipolar depression, as well as one of the first attempts to use context sensing to identify mental health-related states. Several lessons learned regarding technical functionality, data mining, and software development process are discussed. Trial Registration Clinicaltrials.gov NCT01107041; http://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT01107041 (Archived by WebCite at http://www.webcitation.org/60CVjPH0n)
Why Information Systems Project Postmortems Fail: An Attribution Perspective Based on a Case Study Analysis

Information system project failure is a costly and common problem despite advances in development tools and technologies. In this paper, we argue that one reason for this is the failure of project postmortems to generate constructive lessons learned from previous projects for organizations to use to improve their development practices. Over time, these ineffective practices would persist in organizations which in turn eventually might become resistant to change. Worse, organizations may even learn to fail. The attribution literature provides a promising theoretical base for explaining why project postmortems fail. A case study of a project postmortem undertaken for an abandoned e-procurement system project is discussed and analyzed. The results suggested that attribution errors were influenced by conditions such as presence of self-appointed mindsets, a general persistence of a negative belief, memory decay and selective recall of project events. The research and practical implications of these findings are discussed along with prescriptions for how to minimize the problem of attribution errors during project postmortems.
Materials for Plain Bearings

AbstractA bearing is interposed between two surfaces in relative motion to minimize the wear by one surface of the other and/or to reduce the friction between them. A plain bearing is made of, or is lined with, a material that achieves this object under conditions of sliding contact between it and one or other (or both) of the surfaces. This review is concerned with the materials of such sliding contact bearings only and does not cover the steel of rolling element bearings, which have their own peculiar property requirements.
NETWORK-BASED INTRUSION DETECTION USING NEURAL NETWORKS

With the growth of computer networking, electronic commerce, and web services, security of networking systems has become very important. Many companies now rely on web services as a major source of revenue. Computer hacking poses significant problems to these companies, as distributed attacks can render their cyber-storefront inoperable for long periods of time. This happens so often, that an entire area of research, called Intrusion Detection, is devoted to detecting this activity. We show that evidence of many of these attacks can be found by a careful analysis of network data. We also illustrate that neural networks can efficiently detect this activity. We test our systems against denial of service attacks, distributed denial of service attacks, and portscans. In this work, we explore network based intrusion detection using classifying, self-organizing maps for data clustering and MLP neural networks for detection.
The SOD Gene Family in Tomato: Identification, Phylogenetic Relationships, and Expression Patterns

Superoxide dismutases (SODs) are critical antioxidant enzymes that protect organisms from reactive oxygen species (ROS) caused by adverse conditions, and have been widely found in the cytoplasm, chloroplasts, and mitochondria of eukaryotic and prokaryotic cells. Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) is an important economic crop and is cultivated worldwide. However, abiotic and biotic stresses severely hinder growth and development of the plant, which affects the production and quality of the crop. To reveal the potential roles of SOD genes under various stresses, we performed a systematic analysis of the tomato SOD gene family and analyzed the expression patterns of SlSOD genes in response to abiotic stresses at the whole-genome level. The characteristics of the SlSOD gene family were determined by analyzing gene structure, conserved motifs, chromosomal distribution, phylogenetic relationships, and expression patterns. We determined that there are at least nine SOD genes in tomato, including four Cu/ZnSODs, three FeSODs, and one MnSOD, and they are unevenly distributed on 12 chromosomes. Phylogenetic analyses of SOD genes from tomato and other plant species were separated into two groups with a high bootstrap value, indicating that these SOD genes were present before the monocot-dicot split. Additionally, many cis-elements that respond to different stresses were found in the promoters of nine SlSOD genes. Gene expression analysis based on RNA-seq data showed that most genes were expressed in all tested tissues, with the exception of SlSOD6 and SlSOD8, which were only expressed in young fruits. Microarray data analysis showed that most members of the SlSOD gene family were altered under salt- and drought-stress conditions. This genome-wide analysis of SlSOD genes helps to clarify the function of SlSOD genes under different stress conditions and provides information to aid in further understanding the evolutionary relationships of SOD genes in plants.
Fine structure of the ventral disk apparatus and the mechanism of attachment in the flagellate Giardia muris.

The topography of the Giardia trophozoite is dominated by the large domed sucking disk of the ventral surface. Attached to the host duodenal epithelium, the rim of this disk penetrates the enteric surface coat and interdigitates with microvilli of the epithelial cells, approaching to within 20 nm of the host surface membrane. Distortion of the host brush border within the disk suggests an applied suction force. A mechanical explanation of disk action is sought in a detailed description of the fine structure of components of the ventral surface - but is found to be untenable. The disk is supported by a platform of modified 25-nm microtubules, linked to the ventral membrane by side arms and bearing heavily cross-linked vertical dense ribbons. It is argued that such is the architecture of rigidity rather than relative movement. Around the disk a mobile cytoplasmic flange is supported by 2 lateral plates of periodic substructure. The flange has no clear mechanical role in attachment; a likely evolutionary origin from a component of the anterior axonemal axis is suggested. The cavity of the ventral disk leads posteriorly through a portal into the ventrocaudal groove: a shallow depression that houses the ventral flagella. Observation of isolated living trophozoites suggests that attachment depends on the continuing activity of the ventral flagella, which normally beat synchronously in a sinusoidal waveform. Electron micrographs confirm that this waveform is maintained in situ on the host epithelium. Of the 4 pairs of flagella, the ultrastructure of the ventral flagella is notable for additional components in the flagellar shaft, including an intraflagellar dense rod linked to 3 axonemal doublets by fine connectives. From a consideration of analogous macroscopic systems, a preliminary hydrodynamic analysis is advanced in which the suction force of attachment follows from the pattern of fluid flow induced by the beating ventral flagella. The significance of the conclusion that cytoplasmic microtubules (or structures derived from them) apparently maintain cell shape in the face of an applied external force is discussed.
Ultrasound Guidance for Central Venous Access by Emergency Physicians in Colorado

Introduction To survey emergency physicians (EP) regarding the frequency of use of ultrasound guidance for placement of central venous catheters (UGCVC) and to assess their perceptions regarding the technique and barriers to its implementation. Methods A 25-question Web-based survey was e-mailed to all members of the Colorado chapter of the American College of Emergency Physicians with a listed e-mail address. A total of 3 reminders were sent to nonresponders. Results Responses were received from 116 out of 330 invitations. Ninety-seven percent (n = 112) of respondents indicated they have an ultrasound machine available in their emergency department, and 78% indicated they use UGCVC. Seventy-seven percent (n = 90) agreed with the statement, “Ultrasound guidance is the preferred method for central venous catheter placement in the emergency department. ” However, 23% of respondents stated they have received no specific training in UGCVC. Twenty-six percent (n = 28) of respondents stated they felt “uncomfortable” or “very uncomfortable” with UGCVC, and 47% cite lack of training in UGCVC as a barrier to performing the technique. Conclusion Although the majority of surveyed EPs feel UGCVC is a valuable technique and do perform it, a significant percentage reported receiving no training in the procedure and also reported being uncomfortable performing it. Nearly half of those surveyed cited lack of training as a barrier to more widespread implementation of UGCVC. This suggests that there continues to be a need for education and training of EPs in UGCVC.