Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Design of an Automation Framework for a Novel Data-Flow Processor Architecture

Improved process technology has resulted in the integration of computing elements into multiple application areas. General purpose micro-controllers are designed to assist in this integration through a flexible design. The application areas, however, are so diverse in nature that the general purpose micro-controllers may not provide a suitable abstraction for all classes of applications. There is a need for specially designed architectures in application areas where the general purpose micro-controllers suffer from inefficiencies. This thesis focuses on the design of a processor architecture that provides a suitable design abstraction for a class of periodic, event-driven embedded applications such as sensor-monitoring systems. The design principles of the processor architecture are focused on the target application requirements, which are identified as event-driven nature with concurrent task execution and deterministic timing behavior. Additionally, to reduce the design complexity of applications on this novel architecture, an automation framework has been implemented. This thesis presents the design of the processor architecture and the automation framework explaining the suitability of the designed architecture for the target applications. The energy use of the novel architecture is compared with that of PIC12F675 micro-controller to demonstrate the energy-efficiency of the designed architecture. This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant No. CNS-0834490. I dedicate this thesis to my parents Dr.Lakshmanan Chockalingam and Mrs.Vijaya Lakshmanan.
Impact of mutual health organizations: evidence from West Africa

Mutual health organizations (MHOs) are voluntary membership organizations providing health insurance services to their members. MHOs aim to increase access to health care by reducing out-of-pocket payments faced by households. We used multiple regression analysis of household survey data from Ghana, Mali and Senegal to investigate the determinants of enrolment in MHOs, and the impact of MHO membership on use of health care services and on out-of-pocket health care expenditures for outpatient care and hospitalization. We found strong evidence that households headed by women are more likely to enrol in MHOs than households headed by men. Education of the household head is positively associated with MHO enrolment. The evidence on the association between household economic status and MHO enrolment indicates that individuals from the richest quintiles are more likely to be enrolled than anyone else. We did not find evidence that individuals from the poorest quintiles tend to be excluded from MHOs. MHO members are more likely to seek formal health care in Ghana and Mali, although this result was not confirmed in Senegal. While our evidence on whether MHO membership is associated with higher probability of hospitalization is inconclusive, we find that MHO membership offers protection against the potentially catastrophic expenditures related to hospitalization. However, MHO membership does not appear to have a significant effect on out-of-pocket expenditures for curative outpatient care.
Saccharomyces cerevisiae Pex3p and Pex19p are required for proper localization and stability of peroxisomal membrane proteins

The mechanisms by which peroxisomal membrane proteins (PMPs) are targeted to and inserted into membranes are unknown, as are the required components. We show that among a collection of 16 Saccharomyces cerevisiae peroxisome biogenesis (pex) mutants, two mutants, pex3Δ and pex19Δ, completely lack detectable peroxisomal membrane structures and mislocalize their PMPs to the cytosol where they are rapidly degraded. The other pexΔ mutants contain membrane structures that are properly inherited during vegetative growth and that house multiple PMPs. Even Pex15p requires Pex3p and Pex19p for localization to peroxisomal membranes. This PMP was previously hypothesized to travel via the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) to peroxisomes. We provide evidence that ER‐accumulated Pex15p is not a sorting intermediate on its way to peroxisomes. Our results show that Pex3p and Pex19p are required for the proper localization of all PMPs tested, including Pex15p, whereas the other Pex proteins might only be required for targeting/import of matrix proteins.
Hunting Bugs Inside Web Applications ★

In recent years, focus of business world has been moved towards the Internet. Web applications provide a generous interface nonstop thus offering to malicious users a wide spectrum of possible attacks. Consequently, the security of web applications has become a crucial issue. The state-of-the-art tools for bug discovery in languages used for web application development, such as PHP, suffer from a relatively high falsepositive rate and low coverage of real errors; this is caused mainly by the dynamic nature of such languages and path-insensivity of the tools. In this paper, we will demonstrate weaknesses of the tools and describe our novel approach addressing these issues. It combines path-sensitive static analysis, concrete and symbolic execution, literal analysis, taint analysis and type analysis to handle the dynamism of PHP. We show how our technique handles some of the situations where other tools fail
Efficient switching supports of distributed .NET Remoting with network processors

Distributed object-oriented environments have become important platforms for parallel and distributed service frameworks. Among distributed object-oriented software, . NET Remoting provides a language layer of abstractions for performing parallel and distributed computing in . NET environments. In this paper, we present our methodologies in supporting . NET Remoting over meta-clustered environments. We take the advantage of the programmability of network processors to develop the content-based switch for distributing workloads generated from remote invocations in . NET. Our scheduling mechanisms include stateful supports for . NET Remoting services. In addition, we also propose scheduling policy to incorporate workflow models as the models are now incorporated in many of tools of grid architectures. Experiments done at clusters with IXP 1200 network processors show that our scheme can significantly enhance the system throughput (up to 55%) compared to NLB method when the traffic is heavy. Our schemes are effective in supporting the switching of . NET Remoting computations over meta-cluster environments.
Improving robustness of gene ranking by resampling and permutation based score correction and normalization

Feature ranking, which ranks features via their individual importance, is one of the frequently used feature selection techniques. Traditional feature ranking criteria are apt to produce inconsistent ranking results even with light perturbations in training samples when applied to high dimensional and small-sized gene expression data. A widely used strategy for solving the inconsistencies is the multi-criterion combination. But one problem encountered in combining multiple criteria is the score normalization. In this paper, problems in existing methods are first analyzed, and a new gene importance transformation algorithm is then proposed. Experimental studies on three popular gene expression datasets show that the multi-criterion combination based on the proposed score correction and normalization produces gene rankings with improved robustness.
Psychosocial Implications of Foreign Accent Syndrome: Two Case Examples

Research on foreign accent syndrome (FAS), a rare form of speech disorder that typically follows some form of neurological insult, has concentrated almost exclusively on its neurogenic origins and motoric features, to the virtual neglect of its psychosocial implications for the patients who experience it. In this article we draw on the concepts and methods of personal construct theory to analyze two cases of FAS, demonstrating the significant and sometimes sweeping reconstruction of these persons’ sense of identity in the social world.
Prediction of Performance Loss due to Phase Noise in the Digital Satellite Communication System

Based on the alternating series expansion of error probability function due to phase noise in PSK systems, the performance evaluation for Tikhonov and Gaussian probability distribution function was performed in this paper. In satellite link with a proper performance loss due to phase noise, the dependencies of errror performance for Tikhonov and Gaussian function were analyzed via loss evaluation. By the related-definition for the phase noise spectral density and the modulation index for frequency modulation signal, the phase noise with 1/f characteristic was generated. Using the generated phase noise as the input signal for digital satellite communication receiver, the performance loss due to the phase noise was measured and evaluated with the analyzed performance characteristics.
Clustering Complex Multimedia Objects using an Ensemble Approach

A complex multimedia object is an information unit composed by multiple media types like text, images, audio and video. Applications related with huge sets of such objects exceed the human capacity to synthesize useful information. The search for similarities and dissimilarities among objects is a task that has been done through clustering analysis, which tries to find groups in unlabeled data sets. Such analysis applied to complex multimedia object sets has a special restriction. The method must analyze the multiple media types present in the objects. This paper proposes a clustering ensemble that jointly assesses several media types present in this kind of objects. The proposed ensemble was applied to cluster webpages, constructing a text and image clustering prototypes. The Hubert’s statistic was used to evaluate the ensemble performance, showing that the proposed method creates clustering structures more similar to the real classification than a joint-feature vector.
Metro Maps of Plant Disease Dynamics—Automated Mining of Differences Using Hyperspectral Images

Understanding the response dynamics of plants to biotic stress is essential to improve management practices and breeding strategies of crops and thus to proceed towards a more sustainable agriculture in the coming decades. In this context, hyperspectral imaging offers a particularly promising approach since it provides non-destructive measurements of plants correlated with internal structure and biochemical compounds. In this paper, we present a cascade of data mining techniques for fast and reliable data-driven sketching of complex hyperspectral dynamics in plant science and plant phenotyping. To achieve this, we build on top of a recent linear time matrix factorization technique, called Simplex Volume Maximization, in order to automatically discover archetypal hyperspectral signatures that are characteristic for particular diseases. The methods were applied on a data set of barley leaves (Hordeum vulgare) diseased with foliar plant pathogens Pyrenophora teres, Puccinia hordei and Blumeria graminis hordei. Towards more intuitive visualizations of plant disease dynamics, we use the archetypal signatures to create structured summaries that are inspired by metro maps, i.e. schematic diagrams of public transport networks. Metro maps of plant disease dynamics produced on several real-world data sets conform to plant physiological knowledge and explicitly illustrate the interaction between diseases and plants. Most importantly, they provide an abstract and interpretable view on plant disease progression.
Candidate reference measurement procedures for serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 and 25-hydroxyvitamin D2 by using isotope-dilution liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry.

BACKGROUND 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] assays are characterized by poor between-assay comparability. This result emphasizes the need for reference measurement procedures (RMPs) to establish calibration traceability and assist in method validation. We aimed at developing candidate RMPs on the basis of isotope- dilution liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (ID-LC-MS/MS) for separate quantification of serum 25(OH)D2 and 25(OH)D3. METHODS Hexa-deuterated 25(OH)D3/D2 was added to serum. This mixture was extracted with n-hexane and fractionated on Sephadex LH-20 before 2-dimensional LC-MS/MS. In the first dimension, both procedures used a C4 column; however, in the second dimension, the 25(OH)D2 procedure used a C18 and the 25(OH)D3 procedure used a Zorbax SB-CN column. Calibration was traceable to the NIST Standard Reference Material (SRM) 2972. Validation comprised assessment of interference and limit of quantification/detection. Imprecision and trueness were validated by analysis of the SRM 972 against specifications (CV<5% and bias<1.7%). The expanded uncertainty for quadruplicate measurements was estimated. RESULTS Testing of potentially interfering substances was negative. Interference by 3-epi-25(OH)D3 was resolved by sufficient chromatographic resolution. The limits of quantification/detection were 1.1 nmol/L and 0.09 pmol/L for 25(OH)D3 and 1.2 nmol/L and 0.05 pmol/L for 25(OH)D(2). Mean total CVs and differences from the SRM 972 target (±1-sided 95% CI) were 2.1% and 1.1%±1.5% [25(OH)D3] and 3% and 1.3%±0.6% [25(OH)D2], respectively. The respective expanded uncertainties were 3.4% and 3.9%. CONCLUSIONS From the validation data, we conclude that we achieved our objective of 2 state-of-the-art candidate RMPs for serum 25(OH)D3 and 25(OH)D2.
A BOILED‐Egg To Predict Gastrointestinal Absorption and Brain Penetration of Small Molecules

Apart from efficacy and toxicity, many drug development failures are imputable to poor pharmacokinetics and bioavailability. Gastrointestinal absorption and brain access are two pharmacokinetic behaviors crucial to estimate at various stages of the drug discovery processes. To this end, the Brain Or IntestinaL EstimateD permeation method (BOILED‐Egg) is proposed as an accurate predictive model that works by computing the lipophilicity and polarity of small molecules. Concomitant predictions for both brain and intestinal permeation are obtained from the same two physicochemical descriptors and straightforwardly translated into molecular design, owing to the speed, accuracy, conceptual simplicity and clear graphical output of the model. The BOILED‐Egg can be applied in a variety of settings, from the filtering of chemical libraries at the early steps of drug discovery, to the evaluation of drug candidates for development.
Ideologies and the New International Economic Order: reflections on some recent literature

mally dated from the Algiers conference of the Non-Aligned countries in 1973 and which has been pursued with the backing of these countries in the United Nations and other international instances, has precipitated a reconsideration of the structure and processes of world political economy among all the principal interests. This has resulted in a large and growing literature that to date, if it has not entirely clarified the problems and issues besetting the world political economy, has at least made it possible to identify certain salient currents of thought about them, each setting forth a mode of analysis and a strategy of action. This review article attempts to survey some of this literature. I take my stand not in some conception of objective science from which to allocate merits and demerits to particular authors, but rather as an observer of the confrontations of ideas, considering the role of ideas in relation to the positions of conflicting forces. The survey cannot claim to be comprehensive, though it does aim to be representative of different perspectives. A list of the books and documents covered is appended at the end, and references will be made by principal author and page number in the body of the text. Ideological analysis is, of course, a critic's weapon and one most effectively used against the prevailing orthodoxies which, when stripped of their putative universality, become seen as special pleading for historically transient but presently entrenched interests. Social science is never neutral. It is,
BER ANALYSIS OF MULTI -CODE MULTI -CARRIER CDMA SYSTEMS IN MULTIPATH FADING CHANNEL

This paper proposes a Multi-Code Multi-Carrier Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) scheme for next generation wireless communication systems. This system retains the advantages of Multi-Carrier CDMA in combating multipath and rejecting interference, and provides variable and adaptive data rates through the use of Multi-Code scheme. The rate adaptation algorithm proposed computes the user data rate as a function of the instantaneous channel condition and application dependent data rates. Exploiting the channel information improves the effective data rate and overall capacity of the system. The performance improvement of the proposed system to the Multi-Code CDMA system is shown through simulations. Walsh-Hadamard, Gold and Kasami codes are explored as possible choices for the multiple codes in the system.
International Journal of Innovative Research in Computer and Communication Engineering a Survey on Time Series Data Mining

To provide an overview this paper surveys and summarizes previous works done in the clustering, classification andsegmentation of time series data in various application domains. The basics of time series mining are presented, including measures to determine similarity/dissimilarity between two time series being compared, general purpose data mining algorithms commonly used in time series data mining, the criteria for evaluating the performance of the mining results and we hope that this review will serve as a stepping stone to researchers in advancing this area of research.
Exploiting vibration-based spectral signatures for automatic target recognition

Feature extraction algorithms for vehicle classification techniques represent a large branch of Automatic Target Recognition (ATR) efforts. Traditionally, vehicle ATR techniques have assumed time series vibration data collected from multiple accelerometers are a function of direct path, engine driven signal energy. If data, however, is highly dependent on measurement location these pre-established feature extraction algorithms are ineffective. In this paper, we examine the consequences of analyzing vibration data potentially contingent upon transfer path effects by exploring the sensitivity of sensor location. We summarize our analysis of spectral signatures from each accelerometer and investigate similarities within the data.
Understanding Pollution Dynamics in P2P File Sharing

Pollution in P2P file sharing occurs when a large number of decoy files are injected into the P2P system. Since peers “serve” each other in the P2P file sharing system, it is obvious that pollution dynamics are closely related to user behavior. Therefore, we first conduct a human subject study to investigate user behavior. We identify the factors that are key to model user behavior, e.g., cooperativeness and awareness of pollution. Our results show that users are quite insensitive to pollution, and their behavior exhibits a bimodal distribution of the time interval between download and the quality checking of that download. We then propose a mathematical model to assess the impact of pollution on file popularity evolution. From our analysis we find that user “awareness” of pollution is a key factor in pollution dynamics. Finally, we study the impact of pollution on P2P traffic loads and show that in the worst case, pollution can quadruple the loads.
Design, synthesis and pharmacological evaluation of cyclic mimetics of the insulin‐like peptide 3 (INSL3) B‐chain

Insulin‐like peptide 3 (INSL3) is a peptide hormone belonging to the relaxin‐insulin superfamily of peptides that plays important roles in testes descent, oocyte maturation and the control of male germ cell apoptosis. These actions are mediated via a specific G‐protein coupled receptor, LGR8. Previous structure–activity studies have shown that the key binding site of INSL3 is situated within its B‐chain. Recent studies in our laboratory have led to the identification of a cyclic peptide mimetic 2 of the INSL3 B‐chain, which we have shown to compete with the binding of [33P]‐relaxin to LGR8 expressed in HEK293T cells, and to inhibit cAMP‐mediated signaling in these cells, i.e. it is an antagonist of INSL3. In order to further define the structure–activity relationships of cyclic analogues of the INSL3 B‐chain, we used a structure‐based approach to design a series of cyclic, disulfide‐constrained INSL3 B‐chain mimetics. To do this, we first created a model of the 3D structure of INSL3 using the crystal structure of human relaxin as a template. This model of INSL3 was then used as a template to design a series of disulfide‐constrained mimetics of the INSL3 B‐chain. The peptides were synthesized by solid‐phase peptide synthesis using pseudoproline dipeptides to improve the synthesis outcome. Of the seven prepared INSL3 B‐chain mimetics, three compounds were found to have partial displacement activity, while four were able to completely displace [33P]‐relaxin from LGR8, including compounds that were markedly shorter than compound 2. The best of these, mimetic 6, showed significantly greater affinity for LGR8 than compound 2, but still displayed around 1000‐fold less affinity for LGR8 than native INSL3. Analysis of selected mimetics for their α‐helical content using circular dichroism (CD) spectroscopy revealed that, generally, the mimetics showed less than expected helicity. The inability of the compounds to display true native INSL3 structure is likely contributing to their reduced receptor binding affinity. We are currently examining alternative INSL3 B‐chain mimetics that might better present key receptor binding residues in the native INSL3‐like conformation. Copyright © 2006 European Peptide Society and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
The generalised Lomb-Scargle periodogram. A new formalism for the floating-mean and Keplerian periodograms

The Lomb-Scargle periodogram is a common tool in the frequency analysis of unequally spaced data equivalent to least-squares fitting of sine waves. We give an analytic solution for the generalisation to a full sine wave fit, including an offset and weights (χ 2 fitting). Compared to the Lomb-Scargle periodogram, the generalisation is superior as it provides more accurate frequencies, is less susceptible to aliasing, and gives a much better determination of the spectral intensity. Only a few modifications are required for the computation and the computational effort is similar. Our approach brings together several related methods that can be found in the literature, viz. the date-compensated discrete Fourier transform, the floating-mean periodogram, and the “spectral significance” estimator used in the SigSpec program, for which we point out some equivalences. Furthermore, we present an algorithm that implements this generalisation for the evaluation of the Keplerian periodogram that searches for the period of the best-fitting Keplerian orbit to radial velocity data. The systematic and non-random algorithm is capable of detecting eccentric orbits, which is demonstrated by two examples and can be a useful tool in searches for the orbital periods of exoplanets.