Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Decompose-threshold approach to handwriting extraction in degraded historical document images

Historical documents contain important and interesting information. A number of techniques have previously been proposed for thresholding document images. In this paper a new thresholding structure called the decompose-threshold approach is proposed and compared against some existing global and local algorithms. The proposed approach is a local adaptive analysis method, which uses local feature vectors to find the best approach for thresholding a local area. Appropriate algorithm(s) are selected or combined automatically for specific types of document image under investigation. The original image is recursively broken down into sub-regions using quad-trees until an appropriate thresholding method can be applied to each of the sub-region. The algorithm has been evaluated by testing on 10 historical images obtained from the Library of Congress. Evaluation of the performance using 'recall' value demonstrates that the approach outperforms any existing single methods.
MAPS: Mapping Concurrent Dataflow Applications to Heterogeneous MPSoCs

Processor Systems on Chip (MPSoCs) in order to cope with the increasing applications demands and the tight energy budget of portable devices. The complexity of these systems makes them difficult to program, which has caused academia and industry to look for alternative methodologies and models. In the particular case of multimedia and baseband processing, dataflow models are being proposed and appear to be a sensible choice to represent applications. While high-level models, like dataflow, increase programmers' productivity, new, powerful tools are badly required that lower the abstract specification into an efficient implementation. In this paper, a framework is presented that provides support for mapping multiple dataflow applications onto heterogeneous MPSoCs. The framework is aware of design constraints, provides different means for performance estimation and supports a variety of mapping heuristics. The tool is showcased on three applications on a virtual platform containing heterogeneous processing elements. The heuristics for single applications reported a speedup of up to 40% when compared against random walk. The multi-application component helped to find an appropriate scheduling configuration that met real-time constraints when the three applications were running simultaneously.
D-brane stability and monodromy

We review the idea of �-stability for B-type D-branes on a Calabi–Yau manifold. It is shown that the octahedral axiom from the theory of derived categories is an essential ingredient in the study of stability. Various examples in the context of the quintic Calabi–Yau threefold are studied and we plot the lines of marginal stability in several cases. We derive the conjecture of Kontsevich, Horja and Morrison for the derived category version of monodromy around a “conifold” point. Finally, we propose an application of these ideas to the study of supersymmetry breaking.
Novel intra prediction algorithm using residual prediction for low power multimedia codecs

This paper proposes a novel residual prediction algorithm to improve the coding efficiency. It extends the scope of prediction to the residual data. The proposed algorithm is adopted for intra prediction which accounts for a major portion of the bit stream. The simulation results show that the proposed algorithm can reduce the bit-rate by up to 4.34% compared with the JM reference software without any degradation of the peak signal to noise ratio. By incorporating basic hybrid video coding techniques into the encoder, the proposed residual prediction algorithm can significantly improve the coding efficiency.
No Evidence for Threat-Induced Spatial Prioritization of Somatosensory Stimulation during Pain Control Using a Synchrony Judgment Paradigm

Topical research efforts on attention to pain often take a critical look at the modulatory role of top-down factors. For instance, it has been shown that the fearful expectation of pain at a location of the body directs attention towards that body part. In addition, motivated attempts to control this pain were found to modulate this prioritization effect. Such studies have often used a temporal order judgment task, requiring participants to judge the order in which two stimuli are presented by indicating which one they perceived first. As this constitutes a forced-choice response format, such studies may be subject to response bias. The aim of the current study was to address this concern. We used a ternary synchrony judgment paradigm, in which participants judged the order in which two somatosensory stimuli occurred. Critically, participants now also had the option to give a ‘simultaneous’ response when they did not perceive a difference. This way we eliminated the need for guessing, and thus reduced the risk of response bias. One location was threatened with the possibility of pain in half of the trials, as predicted by an auditory cue. Additionally, half of the participants (pain control group) were encouraged to avoid pain stimuli by executing a quick button press. The other half (comparison group) performed a similar action, albeit unrelated to the occurrence of pain. Our data did not support threat-induced spatial prioritization, nor did we find evidence that pain control attempts influenced attention in any way.
A New Platform for Functional Representation , Synthesis , and Verification

Improvements in the structure of a circuit at the logic level can offer significant benefits, but the consequences on the final design parameters are often difficult to predict. The algorithms and tools necessary to more fully evaluate potential optimizations and to iterate between logic synthesis and other components of the design flow are often prohibitively costly, time consuming, and difficult to acquire and integrate, especially for academic researchers. The OpenAccess database provides an industrystandard data model, and the OpenAccess Gear library a set of pre-written tools and algorithms, and the combination of the two offers researchers an attractive platform for the fast development of more complete design flows to incorporate into and further their research. We introduce an extension of this platform into the functional domain. A straightforward but flexible functional representation is defined, a set of tools for logic synthesis, verification, and technology mapping are provided, and an example design flow from RTL Verilog to a structural netlist is outlined.
2011the International Conference on Advanced Power System Automation and Protection Virtual Synchroscope: a Novel Application of Pmu for System Restoration

˖ ˖Power system restoration is well recognized as one of the key technologies to improve the reliability of power systems. Generally, the restoration process is divided into several stages as preparation, system restoration, load restoration, synchronization and inter-connection. Currently, re-closure of breakers is done by field crews with synchroscope. A novel methodology, entitled as " virtual synchroscope " , is proposed in this paper. By utilizing Phasor Measurement Units (PMUs), the proposed methodology compares phasors of voltages at connection points from the two islands with the accurately time-stamped measurements. By adjusting voltage magnitude, frequency, and phase angle in the control center, all the requirements for synchronization are satisfied and the synchronization can be implemented. A case study on a power system is presented to validate the feasibility of the proposed method. It is proved that the proposed method can meet the requirements of all standards and resulting in smooth synchronization.
Evaluation of Portal Hypertensive Enteropathy by Scoring with Capsule Endoscopy: Is Transient Elastography of Clinical Impact?

There is limited data about the mucosal lesions of portal hypertensive enteropathy (PHE) detected by capsule endoscopy, and there is no scoring system to evaluate their severity. Our aim is to create a reliable scoring system for PHE, and to explore the possible usefulness of using transient elastograhy (TE) in that field. We compared the medical records of 31 patients with liver cirrhosis and portal hypertension with 29 control patients. We found that the mucosal lesions compatible with PHE were significantly more common in cirrhotic patients than in control patients (67.7% vs 6.9%, p<0.001). Cirrhotic patients with high TE score (p = 0.018), high Child-Pugh grade, large esophageal varices (EV), portal hypertensive gastropathy, and history of endoscopic variceal injection sclerotherapy or ligation (EIS/EVL) were significantly associated with PHE. Using our scoring system, we found that patients with higher TE score (p = 0.004), high Child-Pugh score (p = 0.011), larger EV (p = 0.006), and prior EIS/EVL (p = 0.006) were significantly associated with higher PHE score. We concluded that using our scoring system might be helpful in grading PHE severity, and TE might be a new non-invasive method for detecting the presence and severity of PHE in cirrhotic patients.
DDRprot: a database of DNA damage response-related proteins

The DNA Damage Response (DDR) signalling network is an essential system that protects the genome’s integrity. The DDRprot database presented here is a resource that integrates manually curated information on the human DDR network and its sub-pathways. For each particular DDR protein, we present detailed information about its function. If involved in post-translational modifications (PTMs) with each other, we depict the position of the modified residue/s in the three-dimensional structures, when resolved structures are available for the proteins. All this information is linked to the original publication from where it was obtained. Phylogenetic information is also shown, including time of emergence and conservation across 47 selected species, family trees and sequence alignments of homologues. The DDRprot database can be queried by different criteria: pathways, species, evolutionary age or involvement in (PTM). Sequence searches using hidden Markov models can be also used. Database URL: http://ddr.cbbio. es.
The Role of Massive Stars in Galactic Chemical Evolution

Abstract I will review the role of massive stars in galactic evolution both from the nucleosynthesis and energetics point of view. In particular, I will highlight some important observational facts explained by means of massive stars in galaxies of different morphological type: the Milky Way, ellipticals and dwarf spheroidals. I will describe first the time-delay model and its interpretation in terms of abundance ratios in galaxies, then I will discuss the importance of mass loss in massive stars to reproduce the data in the Galactic bulge and disk. I will discuss also how massive stars can be important producers of primary nitrogen if rotation in stellar models is taken into account. Concerning elliptical galaxies, I will show that to reproduce the observed [Mg/Fe] versus Mass relation in these galaxies it is necessary to assume a more important role of massive stars in more massive galaxies and that this can be achieved by means of downsizing in star formation. I will discuss how massive stars are responsible in triggering galactic winds both in ellipticals and dwarf spheroidals. These latter systems show a low overabundance of α-elements relative to Fe with respect to Galactic stars of the same [Fe/H]: this is interpreted as due to a slow star formation coupled with very efficient galactic winds. Finally, I will show a comparison between the predicted Type Ib/c rates in galaxies and the observed GRB rate and how we can impose constraints on the mechanism of galaxy formation by studying the GRB rate at high redshift.
Family support and weight-loss strategies among adolescents reporting sustained weight loss

Abstract Objective The current research aims to describe the weight-control strategies and family support for young people reporting sustained weight loss in a large, population-based sample. Design Data were collected as part of Youth'07, a nationally representative survey of the health and well-being of New Zealand youth. Setting New Zealand secondary schools, 2007. Subjects Secondary-school students (n 9107). Results Among young people who attempted weight loss in the previous year, 51 % reported long-term weight loss (lost weight and maintained weight loss for 6 months). Students reporting long-term weight loss were more likely to be male, but did not differ by age, ethnicity, socio-economic deprivation or measured weight status from students who reported temporary/recent weight loss or no weight loss. Students with long-term weight loss also reported healthier weight-control strategies (e.g. exercising, eating fewer fatty foods, eating fewer sweets), high parental support for healthy eating/activity and were less likely to report being teased about their weight by their family and having junk food available at home than students with temporary/recent weight loss or no weight loss. Conclusions Approximately 50 % of young people attempting weight loss reported sustained weight loss. Young people who reported sustained weight loss appeared to have more family support than those who did not achieve this, suggesting the importance for weight-control services and interventions in adolescents of actively engaging the family.
Vehicle detection and tracking with 2D laser range finders

Dynamic environment perception is an important component for unmanned ground vehicle navigation. In this paper, we focus on the vehicle detection and tracking with two low cost 2D laser range finders. Firstly, a foreground segmentation method is proposed based on a combination of the time cue and motion cue. The modified laser beam model is proposed for the tilted 2D laser range finder in the foreground segmentation. Then, the vehicle detection and preliminary tracking is realized by the modified measurement model. Finally, a new precise tracking method is proposed to refine the preliminary tracking results. Qualitative and quantitative experiments are carried out in real dynamic environment, and the result shows that the proposed method can detect and track the vehicle accurately.
A generative approach to product bundling in the e-Commerce domain

The product bundling problem is addressed by a Genetic Algorithm. We propose a generative approach in order to find the bundle of products that best satisfies user preferences and requirements and, at the same time, to guarantee the satisfaction of merchant needs such as the minimization of the dead stocks. The proposed approach succeeds in finding the optimal trade-off between different and conflicting constraints. Experimentation investigates algorithm convergence under several conditions, such as a different number of products in the bundle, increasing number of constraints, and different user requirements.
Pacific-wide simplified syndromic surveillance for early warning of outbreaks

The International Health Regulations require timely detection and response to outbreaks. Many attempts to set up an outbreak early warning system in Pacific island countries and territories (PICTs) have failed. Most were modelled on systems from large countries; large amounts of data often overwhelmed small public health teams. Many conditions required overseas laboratory confirmation, further reducing timeliness and completeness. To improve timeliness and reduce the data burden, simplified surveillance was proposed, with case definitions based on clinical signs and symptoms without the need for laboratory confirmation or information on symptoms, location, sex and age. After trials in three PICTs, this system was implemented throughout the Pacific. Enthusiastic adoption by public health staff resulted in 20 of 22 PICTs reporting weekly to the World Health Organization within 12 months of starting to use the system. In the first year, the system has detected many infectious disease outbreaks and facilitated timely implementation of control measures. For several Pacific countries and territories, this is the first functional and timely infectious disease surveillance system. When outbreak detection is the principal objective, simplification of surveillance should be a priority in countries with a limited public health system capacity.
Factorized Tree-level Scattering in AdS(4) x CP**3

AdS4/CFT3 duality relating IIA string theory on AdS4 × 3 to = 6 superconformal Chern-Simons theory provides an arena for studying aspects of integrability in a new potentially exactly solvable system. In this paper we explore the tree-level worldsheet scattering for strings on AdS4 × 3. We compute all bosonic four-, five- and six-point amplitudes in the gauge-fixed action and demonstrate the absence of particle production.
Memory management for self-adjusting computation

The cost of reclaiming space with traversal-based garbage collection is inversely proportional to the amount of free memory, i.e., O(1/(1-f)), where f is the fraction of memory that is live. Consequently, the cost of garbage collection can be very high when the size of the live data remains large relative to the available free space. Intuitively, this is because allocating a small amount of memory space will require the garbage collector to traverse a significant fraction of the memory only to discover little garbage. This is unfortunate because in some application domains the size of the memory-resident data can be generally high. This can cause high GC overheads, especially when generational assumptions do not hold. One such application domain is self-adjusting computation, where computations use memory-resident execution traces in order to respond to changes to their state (e.g., inputs) efficiently. This paper proposes memory-management techniques for self-adjusting computation that remain efficient even when the size of the live data is large. More precisely, the proposed techniques guarantee O(1) amortized cost for each reclaimed memory object. We propose a set of primitives for self-adjusting computation that support the proposed memory management techniques. The primitives provide an operation for allocating memory; we reclaim unused memory automatically. We implement a library for supporting the primitives in the C language and perform an experimental evaluation. Our experiments show that the approach can be implemented with reasonably small constant-factor overheads and that the programs written using the library behave optimally. Compared to previous implementations, we measure up to an order of magnitude improvement in performance and up to a 75% reduction in space usage.
Designing a Shading System

This thesis focuses on the interaction between light sources and materials which is often called shading. It describes the design of the shading system implemented for the second version of the Turtle renderer that supports the flexibility and power of the Maya rendering packages shaders. It discusses different approaches to shading, how rendering of passes can be incorporated, multi threading issues and problems with secondary rays in shading systems.
Bacteriophage SPP1 DNA replication strategies promote viral and disable host replication in vitro

Complex viruses that encode their own initiation proteins and subvert the host’s elongation apparatus have provided valuable insights into DNA replication. Using purified bacteriophage SPP1 and Bacillus subtilis proteins, we have reconstituted a rolling circle replication system that recapitulates genetically defined protein requirements. Eleven proteins are required: phage-encoded helicase (G40P), helicase loader (G39P), origin binding protein (G38P) and G36P single-stranded DNA-binding protein (SSB); and host-encoded PolC and DnaE polymerases, processivity factor (β2), clamp loader (τ-δ-δ′) and primase (DnaG). This study revealed a new role for the SPP1 origin binding protein. In the presence of SSB, it is required for initiation on replication forks that lack origin sequences, mimicking the activity of the PriA replication restart protein in bacteria. The SPP1 replisome is supported by both host and viral SSBs, but phage SSB is unable to support B. subtilis replication, likely owing to its inability to stimulate the PolC holoenzyme in the B. subtilis context. Moreover, phage SSB inhibits host replication, defining a new mechanism by which bacterial replication could be regulated by a viral factor.
EPAC and PKA allow cAMP dual control over DNA-PK nuclear translocation

We identify a compartmentalized signaling system that identifies a functional role for the GTP exchange factor, exchange protein activated by cAMP (EPAC) coupled to Rap2 in the nucleus. In this system, cAMP regulates the nuclear/cytoplasmic trafficking of DNA-dependent protein kinase (DNA-PK), a critical kinase that acts to repair double-stranded breaks (DSBs) in damaged DNA and to phosphorylate the cell survival kinase, PKB/Akt. Intersecting regulatory inputs for cAMP employ EPAC to transduce positive effects, namely the Rap2-dependent nuclear exit and activation of DNA-PK, whereas protein kinase A (PKA) provides the negative input by antagonizing these actions. We identify this as a compartmentalized regulatory system where modulation of cAMP input into the stimulatory, EPAC and inhibitory, PKA intersecting arms is provided by spatially discrete, cAMP degradation systems. The distribution of DNA-PK between nuclear and cytoplasmic compartments can thus potentially be influenced by relative inputs of cAMP signaling through the EPAC and PKA pathways. Through this signaling system EPAC activation can thereby impact on the Ser-473 phosphorylation status of PKB/Akt and the repair of etoposide-induced DSBs.
Multi-Objective Rule Mining Using Simulated Annealing Algorithm

Association rule mining process can be visualized as a multi-objective problem rather than as a single objective one. Measures like support, confidence and other interestingness criteria which are used for evaluating a rule, can be thought of as different objectives of association rule mining problem. Support count is the number of records, which satisfies all the conditions that exist in the rule. This objective represents the accuracy of the rules extracted from the database. Confidence represents the proportion of records for which the prediction of the rule (or model in the case of a complete classification) is correct, and it is one of the most widely quoted measures of quality, especially in the context of complete classification. Interestingness measures how much interesting the rule is. Using these three measures as the objectives of rule mining problem, this article uses a Simulated Annealing algorithm to extract some useful and interesting rules from any type databases. The experimental results show that the algorithm may be suitable for large datasets.
Conceiving a new sequence kernel and applying it to SVM speaker verification

In this paper, we propose a new approach for sequence classiﬁ-cation which is based on the framework of Reproducing Kernel Hilbert Spaces (RKHS). We introduce the theoretical material which leads to the formulation of an original sequence kernel, that we implement in a SVM scheme. Experiments are carried out on a speaker veriﬁcation task using NIST SRE data. They show that our new sequence kernel signiﬁcantly outperforms the generative approach with Gaussian Mixture Models (GMM). They also show that it generally outperforms the powerful Generalized Linear Discriminant Sequence (GLDS) kernel, while offering more efﬁciency and ﬂexibility (than GLDS).