Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Actin Filaments Mediate Mechanical Gating during Osmosensory Transduction in Rat Supraoptic Nucleus Neurons

Osmosensory transduction is a bidirectional process displayed by neurons involved in the control of thirst and antidiuretic hormone release, and is therefore crucial for body fluid homeostasis. Although this mechanism is known to involve the activation of nonselective cation channels during hypertonicity-evoked shrinking, and the inhibition of these channels during hypotonicity-evoked swelling, the basis for this regulation is unknown. Here, we investigated this process using whole-cell patch-clamp recordings from neurons acutely isolated from the supraoptic nucleus of adult rats. The mechanosensitivity index, defined as the ratio of conductance change to normalized volume change, was quantitatively equivalent whether cell volume was increased or decreased by changes in extracellular fluid osmolality, or by changes in pipette pressure. Moreover, responses induced by hyperosmotic or hypo-osmotic media could be reversed by increasing or decreasing pipette pressure, respectively. The mechanosensitivity index was significantly reduced in neurons treated with cytochalasin-D, a compound that promotes the depolymerization of actin filaments. Conversely, cells treated with jasplakinolide, a compound that promotes actin polymerization, showed a significant increase in mechanosensitivity index. Finally, the depolarizing and excitatory effects of hypertonic stimuli were significantly enhanced by jasplakinolide and reduced by cytochalasin-D. We conclude that osmosensory transduction in these neurons is a reversible mechanical process that depends on an intact actin cytoskeleton, and the sensitivity of the transducer appears to vary in proportion with the density of actin filaments.
Decreasingly naive Bayes: Aggregating n-dependence estimators

Averaged n-Dependence Estimators (AnDE) is an approach to probabilistic classification learning that learns without search. It utilizes a single parameter that transforms the approach between a low-variance high-bias learner (Naive Bayes) and a high-variance low-bias learner with Bayes optimal asymptotic error. It extends the underlying strategy of Averaged One-Dependence Estimators (AODE), which relaxes the Naive Bayes independence assumption while retaining many of Naive Bayes’ desirable computational and theoretical properties. AnDE further relaxes the independence assumption by generalizing AODE to higher-levels of dependence. Extensive experimental evaluation shows that the bias-variance trade-off for Averaged 2-Dependence Estimators results in strong predictive accuracy over a wide range of data sets. It has training time linear with respect to the number of examples, supports incremental learning, handles directly missing values, and is robust in the face of noise. Beyond the practical utility of its lower-order variants, AnDE is of interest in that it demonstrates that it is possible to create low-bias high-variance generative learners and suggests strategies for developing even more powerful classifiers.
Effective software self-test methodology for processor cores

Software self-testing for embedded processor cores based on their instruction set, is a topic of increasing interest since it provides an excellent test resource partitioning technique for sharing the testing task of complex systems-on-chip (SoC) between slow, inexpensive testers and embedded code stored in memory cores of the SoC. We introduce an efficient methodology for processor cores self-testing which requires knowledge of their instruction set and Register Transfer (RI) level description. Compared with functional testing methodologies proposed in the past, our methodology is more efficient in terms of fault coverage, test code size and test application time. Compared with recent software based structural testing methodologies for processor cores, our methodology is superior in terms of test development effort and has significantly smaller code size and memory requirements, while virtually the same fault coverage is achieved with an order of magnitude smaller test application time.
Vibrational Stark Spectroscopy in Proteins: A Probe and Calibration for Electrostatic Fields

We report the first measurement of the vibrational Stark effect in a protein, providing quantitative information on the sensitivity of a vibrational transition to an applied electric field. This can be used to interpret changes in the vibrational frequency that are often observed when amino acids are changed or when a protein undergoes a structural change in terms of the change in the internal or matrix electric field associated with the perturbation. The vibrational Stark effect has been measured for the vibration of CO bound to the heme iron in myoglobin. The vibrational Stark effect is surprisingly large, giving a Stark tuning rate of (2.4/f) cm-1/(MV/cm), where f is the local field correction; this is nearly 4 times larger than for free CO. It is also found that the change in dipole moment is parallel to the transition moment; that is, the change in dipole moment is in the direction perpendicular to the heme plane. Vibrational Stark effect data are also reported as a function of pH, for various mutant.
Modeling robot discrete movements with state-varying stiffness and damping: A framework for integrated motion generation and impedance control

Successful execution of many robotic tasks requires precise control of robot motion and its interaction with the environment. In robotics these two problems are mainly studied separately in the domain of robot motion generation and interaction control, respectively. Existing approaches rely on two control loops: a motion generator (planner) that provides a reference trajectory in the outer loop, and an active impedance controller that tracks the reference trajectory in the inner loop. Ensuring stability of the closed-loop system for this control architecture is nontrivial. In this paper, we propose a single-loop control architecture that performs motion generation and interaction control at once. We model robot discrete motions with a time-invariant dynamical system, which is expressed as a nonlinear combination of a set of linear spring-damper systems. This formulation represents the nominal motion and the impedance properties with a single set of parameters, simplifying stability analysis of the closed-loop system. We provide sufficient conditions to ensure global asymptotic stability of this system for movements in free-space, and its passivity during persistent contact with a passive environment. We validate our approach in simulation using the 7-DoF KUKA LWR-IV robot.
“Seven Theses”: Notes by a Brazilian Translator in the Twenty-first Century

Rodolfo Stavenhagen’s classic “Seven Erroneous Theses about Latin America” seems not only to have endured but to have gained explanatory power in relation to a variety of topics in Brazil today: the relationship between the middle class (and the elite) and the Southeastern states in the last election, the government’s options vis-à-vis major projects such as Belo Monte, the Workers’ Party advocates’ rhetoric in defense of the growth of the middle class, the disputes over the rights of indigenous peoples, and even the discourse of social movement leaders, co-opted by the Lula administration. Although the fourth thesis appears to have lost its strength, it still substantiates one of the key arguments in the text—that internal colonialism is critical for understanding Latin America. O clássico “Sete teses equivocadas sobre a América Latina,” de Rodolfo Stavenhagen, parece não somente ter resistido ao tempo, mas ter ganho capacidade explicativa em relação a uma variedade de tópicos no Brasil contemporâneo: o relacionamento entre a classe media (e a elite) e os estados do Sudeste na última eleição, as opções do governo vis-à-vis grandes projetos como Belo Monte, a retórica dos defensores do Partido dos Trabalhadores em defesa da ampliação da classe média, as disputas sobre os direitos dos povos indígenas, e até mesmo o discurso de líderes de movimentos sociais, estes últimos sob o controle do governo Lula. Mesmo que a quarta tese pareca ter perdido força, ela ainda corrobora um dos principais argumentos do texto: o colonialismo interno é fundamental para que se entenda a América Latina.
Relay Node Placement in Wireless Sensor Networks

A wireless sensor network consists of many low-cost, low-power sensor nodes, which can perform sensing, simple computation, and transmission of sensed information. Long distance transmission by sensor nodes is not energy efficient since energy consumption is a superlinear function of the transmission distance. One approach to prolonging network lifetime while preserving network connectivity is to deploy a small number of costly, but more powerful, relay nodes whose main task is communication with other sensor or relay nodes. In this paper, we assume that sensor nodes have communication range r>0, while relay nodes have communication range Rgesr, and we study two versions of relay node placement problems. In the first version, we want to deploy the minimum number of relay nodes so that, between each pair of sensor nodes, there is a connecting path consisting of relay and/or sensor nodes. In the second version, we want to deploy the minimum number of relay nodes so that, between each pair of sensor nodes, there is a connecting path consisting solely of relay nodes. We present a polynomial time 7-approximation algorithm for the first problem and a polynomial time (5+epsi)-approximation algorithm for the second problem, where epsi>0 can be any given constant
A novel hardware-efficient cochlea model based on asynchronous cellular automaton

The mammalian cochlea has complicated nonlinear dynamics and exhibits various nonlinear responses to a sound stimulation. In this paper, a novel cochlea model the nonlinear dynamics of which is described by an asynchronous cellular automaton (triggered by multiple clocks) is presented. It is shown that the model can reproduce typical nonlinear responses observed in physiological measurements of a mammalian cochlea. Also, the model is implemented in a field programmable gate array and its operation is validated by laboratory measurements. It is shown that the model consumes much less hardware resources than a conventional representative simplified cochlea model.
Development of an e-diagnostics system based on Web-services

Remote diagnosis systems can improve internet technology by monitoring the equipment status; it increases availability of production and facility equipment, reduces Mean Time to Repair (MTTR), and depletes field service resources and costs. In this paper, we propose a prototype of remote diagnosis system with UML and data mining technique-support vector machine. We adopt UML to model and design the server-client system and provide data mining web services in XML. The preliminary tests show satisfactory results.
LIPH Expression in Skin and Hair Follicles of Normal Coat and Rex Rabbits

Natural mutations in the LIPH gene were shown to be responsible for hair growth defects in humans and for the rex short hair phenotype in rabbits. In this species, we identified a single nucleotide deletion in LIPH (1362delA) introducing a stop codon in the C-terminal region of the protein. We investigated the expression of LIPH between normal coat and rex rabbits during critical fetal stages of hair follicle genesis, in adults and during hair follicle cycles. Transcripts were three times less expressed in both fetal and adult stages of the rex rabbits than in normal rabbits. In addition, the hair growth cycle phases affected the regulation of the transcription level in the normal and mutant phenotypes differently. LIPH mRNA and protein levels were higher in the outer root sheath (ORS) than in the inner root sheath (IRS), with a very weak signal in the IRS of rex rabbits. In vitro transfection shows that the mutant protein has a reduced lipase activity compared to the wild type form. Our results contribute to the characterization of the LIPH mode of action and confirm the crucial role of LIPH in hair production.
Nitrogen metabolism in sheep

1. 15NH4Cl was continuously infused for periods of 120–216 h into the rumens of sheep which were allowed to feed 2 out of every 10min. These treatments achieved steady metabolic states and allowed the assessment of nitrogen conversions by means of tracer methodology. The sheep were given either a barley diet or one of three hay diets. In two trials, the flow of abomasal material was determined using lignin and polyethylene glycol as markers. The amounts of dry matter (DM), gross energy, total N, soluble N, microbial N and microbial DM in abomasal digesta, and the concentration of ammonia in the rumen liquor were measured. The concentrations of 15N in the N of urine, faeces, rumen and abomasal bacteria and protozoa, rumen and abomasal bacterial and protozoal protein, abomasal particulate matter and in rumen ammonia were determined. 2. Comparisons of the steady-state concentrations of 15Nin the microbes with that in rumen ammonia indicated that from 50 to 65% of the bacterial N and from 31 to 55% of the protozoal N were derived from rumen ammonia in vivo. 3. An amount of N equivalent to 60–92% of the daily intake was transformed into ammonia N in the runen. 4. Some 17–54% of the ammonia was absorbed from the rumen, but this was not readily converted into urea. 5. Microbial growth in the rumen resulted in the assimilation of 1.7–2.6 g N/100 g DM fermented. 6. The generation-time of bacterial protein in the rumen was calculated from the rate of in- crease of 15N concentration in this fraction, and values of 38 and 42 h were obtained for sheep given barley and hay diets respectively. 7. The combined results allowed quantitative estimates to be made of the complete metabolism of rumen N, and from these the possibility of fixation of N gas in the rumen was suggested.
Modelling last-minute authoring: does technology add value or encourage tinkering?

To measure the productivity gained from computer-based authoring systems, account must be taken of changes in the way the work is organised. An analysis of economists' authoring work, based on diary studies, suggests that much of this is performed at the last minute, just in time to meet deadlines. Benefits gained from word processing appear to be offset by authors' tendency to tinker with documents up to the last minute.
Microcarrier Culture for Efficient Expansion and Osteogenic Differentiation of Human Fetal Mesenchymal Stem Cells

Abstract Stirred microcarrier (MC) culture has been suggested as the method of choice for supplying large volumes of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) for bone tissue engineering. In this study, we show that in addition to the improvement in cell expansion capacity, MSCs propagated and harvested from MC culture also demonstrate higher osteogenic potency when differentiated in vivo or in vitro in three-dimensional (3D) scaffold cultures as compared with traditional monolayer (MNL) cultures. Cytodex 3 microcarrier-expanded human fetal MSC (hfMSC) cultures (MC-hfMSCs) achieved 12- to 16-fold expansion efficiency (6×105–8×105 cells/mL) compared to 4- to 6-fold (1.2×105–1.8×105 cells/mL) achieved by traditional MNL-expanded hfMSC culture (MNL-hfMSCs; p<0.05). Both MC-hfMSCs and MNL-hfMSCs maintained similar colony-forming capacity, doubling times, and immunophenotype postexpansion. However, when differentiated under in vitro two-dimensional (2D) osteogenic conditions, MC-hfMSCs exhibited a 45-fold reduction in alkaline phosphatase level and a 37.5% decrease in calcium deposition compared with MNL-hfMSCs (p<0.05). Surprisingly, when MC-hfMSCs and MNL-hfMSCs were seeded on 3D macroporous scaffold culture or subcutaneously implanted into nonobese diabetic/severe combined immunodeficient mice, MC-hfMSCs deposited 63.5% (p<0.05) more calcium and formed 47.2% (p<0.05) more bone volume, respectively. These results suggest that the mode of hfMSC growth in the expansion phase affects the osteogenic potential of hfMSCs differently in various differentiation platforms. In conclusion, MC cultures are advantageous over MNL cultures in bone tissue engineering because MC-hfMSCs have improved cell expansion capacity and exhibit higher osteogenic potential than MNL-hfMSCs when seeded in vitro into 3D scaffolds or implanted in vivo.
Handling Sparse Data Sets by Applying Contrast Set Mining in Feature Selection

A data set is sparse if the number of samples in a data set is not sufficient to model the data accurately. Recent research emphasized interest in applying data mining and feature selection techniques to real world problems, many of which are characterized as sparse data sets. The purpose of this research is to define new techniques for feature selection in order to improve classification accuracy and reduce the time required for feature selection on sparse data sets. The extensive comparison with benchmarking feature selection techniques on 64 sparse data sets was conducted. Results have shown superiority of contrast set mining techniques in more than 80% of the analysis on sparse data sets. This paper provides a study on the new methodologies and detected superiority in handling data sparsity.
Prevalence of Sickle Cell Trait in the Southern Suburb of Beirut, Lebanon

Objective The objective of this study was to assess the prevalence, gender differences, and time trends of Sickle Cell Trait in the Southern Suburb of Beirut, Lebanon, as well as to highlight the importance of screening for Sickle Cell Trait carriers in this population. Another objective was to describe a new screening technique for Sickle Cell Trait carriers. Methods This was a retrospective cohort study carried out at a private laboratory in the Southern Suburb of Beirut, Lebanon between 2002 and 2014. The sickling test was carried out for each patient using two methods: the classical “sodium metabisulfite sickling test”, and the new “sickling test method” used in the private lab. As a confirmatory test, hemoglobin electrophoresis was run on a random sample of 223 cases which were found to be positive using the two sickling tests. Results A total of 899 cases were found to be positive for the sickle cell trait out of 184,105 subjects screened during the 12-year period, prevalence = 0.49% (95% CI: 0.46 – 0.52). Among the total sample, females were found to have higher prevalence, where no time trend over the studied period was noted. The haemoglobin electrophoresis method confirmed the results of this new sickling test technique among the random sample of the 223 cases. Conclusion We found that the prevalence of sickle cell trait is lower as compared to other Arab countries, higher in females, with no significant time trend. The sickle cell test was found to be an accurate, simple and cheap test that could be easily added as a requirement for the pre-marital testing to screen for Sickle Cell Trait carriers.
Voting in social networks

A voting system is a set of rules that a community adopts to take collective decisions. In this paper we study voting systems for a particular kind of community: electronically mediated social networks. In particular, we focus on delegative democracy (a.k.a. proxy voting) that has recently received increased interest for its ability to combine the benefits of direct and representative systems, and that seems also perfectly suited for electronically mediated social networks. In such a context, we consider a voting system in which users can only express their preference for one among the people they are explicitly connected with, and this preference can be propagated transitively, using an attenuation factor. We present this system and we study its properties. We also take into consideration the problem of missing votes, which is particularly relevant in online networks, as some recent case shows. Our experiments on real-world networks provide interesting insight into the significance and stability of the results obtained with the suggested voting system.
How to Increase the Likelihood of Successful Transfer to Industry -- Going Beyond the Empirical

The field of Empirical Software Engineering has undergone a much-needed expansion the last decade, and papers of all shapes and sizes are more or less mandated to have an "empirical" part to be published in premiere venues. The positive trend has researchers realizing the benefits, but also the investments needed, inherent to industry collaboration. That is, real practitioners, involved in the development of software intensive product, system, and service development. This paper shortly summarizes lessons learned from over ten years experience of industrial collaboration, and knowledge and technology exchange between applied researchers and industry.
Online Bayesian Multiple Kernel Bipartite Ranking

Bipartite ranking aims to maximize the area under the ROC curve (AUC) of a decision function. To tackle this problem when the data appears sequentially, existing online AUC maximization methods focus on seeking a point estimate of the decision function in a linear or predefined single kernel space, and cannot learn effective kernels automatically from the streaming data. In this paper, we first develop a Bayesian multiple kernel bipartite ranking model, which circumvents the kernel selection problem by estimating a posterior distribution over the model weights. To make our model applicable to streaming data, we then present a kernelized online Bayesian passive-aggressive learning framework by maintaining a variational approximation to the posterior based on data augmentation. Furthermore, to efficiently deal with large-scale data, we design a fixed budget strategy which can effectively control online model complexity. Extensive experimental studies confirm the superiority of our Bayesian multi-kernel approach.
MMSE based noise PSD tracking with low complexity

Most speech enhancement algorithms heavily depend on the noise power spectral density (PSD). Because this quantity is unknown in practice, estimation from the noisy data is necessary. We present a low complexity method for noise PSD estimation. The algorithm is based on a minimum mean-squared error estimator of the noise magnitude-squared DFT coefficients. Compared to minimum statistics based noise tracking, segmental SNR and PESQ are improved for non-stationary noise sources with 1 dB and 0.25 MOS points, respectively. Compared to recently published algorithms, similar good noise tracking performance is obtained, but at a computational complexity that is in the order of a factor 40 lower.
Mutual Fund Performance When Learning the Distribution of Stock-Picking Skill

We contribute to the mutual fund performance literature by allowing the understanding of investors for the cross-sectional distribution of mutual fund skill to be flexibly uncertain. Instead of assuming the universe of mutual fund skill is normally distributed with unknown mean and variance, investors in this paper are completely agnostic about the entire distribution of skill, not just the population mean and variance. Mutual fund returns are then observed and the investors update their posterior understanding of the unknown population distribution of mutual fund skill and the distribution of specific fund performance.
Automated Theorem Proving and Its Prospects Review of Automated Development of Fundamental Mathematical Theories by Art Quaife

In his recent books one of the main pre-occupations of Roger Penrose has been to show (to prove! ) that computers are intrinsically limited, compared to humans, when it comes to the doing of mathematics. Even those who think that such things can be proved may be interested in the empirical question: what mathematics can computers do? Art Quaife's book addresses the aspect of doing mathematics that is reported in mathematical journals: proof of theorems. It shows us the extent to which this high exercise of rationality can currently be automated, and the extent to which it cannot.