Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A human benchmark for automatic speaker recognition

Automatic Speaker Recognition has a potential to be used in Forensic Speaker Comparison. For the latter, forensic scientists agree that presentation of the comparison to court should be in terms of a calibrated likelihood ratio. In recent years the field of automatic speaker recognition has made significant progress in the analysis, evaluation and calibration of likelihood ratios. In this paper we investigate if speaker comparison by humans can be carried out using the same framework. For this, we use the US National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Speaker Recognition Evaluation 2010 material to measure the performance and calibrate the speaker comparison opinions of human subjects. Because empirical calibration needs a large collection of trials and a human judgment takes a substantial effort, the analysis is carried out for a collection of 40 subjects. From NIST SRE 2010 a subset of 1280 speaker comparison trials are selected. The selection is made using the scores from a state-of-the-art speaker recognition system, such that 1) the trials are representative of the overall performance, in terms of difficulty of the comparisons for the automatic system, and 2) they can be analyzed in three distinct classes ‘hard,’ ‘representative’ and ‘easy. ’ Results show that this classification extends to the performance of the human collective, with an Equal Error Rate of 45 %, 25 % and 13 % respectively. Further, the overall human results can be calibrated using ROC convex hull analysis to show a nice linear relation between the 10-level similarity response and a log-likelihood-ratio scale.
Safe learning of regions of attraction for uncertain, nonlinear systems with Gaussian processes

Control theory can provide useful insights into the properties of controlled, dynamic systems. One important property of nonlinear systems is the region of attraction (ROA), a safe subset of the state space in which a given controller renders an equilibrium point asymptotically stable. The ROA is typically estimated based on a model of the system. However, since models are only an approximation of the real world, the resulting estimated safe region can contain states outside the ROA of the real system. This is not acceptable in safety-critical applications. In this paper, we consider an approach that learns the ROA from experiments on a real system, without ever leaving the true ROA and, thus, without risking safety-critical failures. Based on regularity assumptions on the model errors in terms of a Gaussian process prior, we use an underlying Lyapunov function in order to determine a region in which an equilibrium point is asymptotically stable with high probability. Moreover, we provide an algorithm to actively and safely explore the state space in order to expand the ROA estimate. We demonstrate the effectiveness of this method in simulation.
Plasma apolipoprotein AV levels in mice are positively associated with plasma triglyceride levels Published, JLR Papers in Press, January 13, 2009.

Apolipoprotein AV (apoAV) overexpression causes a decrease in plasma triglyceride (TG) levels, while deficiency of apoAV causes hypertriglyceridemia in both men and mice. However, contrary to what would be expected, plasma apoAV and TG levels in humans are positively correlated. To address this apparent paradox, we determined plasma apoAV levels in various mouse models with median TG levels ranging from 30 mg/dl in wild-type mice to 2089 mg/dl in glycosylphosphatidylinositol-anchored HDL binding protein 1-deficient mice. The data show that apoAV and TG levels are positively correlated in mice (r = +0.798, P < 0.001). In addition, we show that LPL gene transfer caused a simultaneous decrease in TG and apoAV in LPL-deficient mice. The combined data suggest that apoAV levels follow TG levels due to an intimate link between the apoAV molecule and TG-rich lipoproteins, comprising both secretion and removal of these lipoproteins. Taken together, the data suggest that higher plasma apoAV levels reflect an increased demand for plasma TG hydrolysis under normal physiological conditions.
Layout design of metal-insulator-metal capacitor array for reducing parasitic influences

In this paper, a layout design of an accurate Metal-insulator-Metal (MIM) capacitor array for reducing parasitic influences is presented. Parasitic capacitance due to interconnecting wires is well-matched. Parasitic resistance can be reduced for less routing track used. Post layout simulation results show that percentage errors of capacitor ratios are generally 0.02% A 16-bit analog-to-digital converter (ADC) including MIM capacitor arrays shows 81dB of SFDR without capacitor mismatch calibration.
Linear versus non-linear analysis of relevant scatterers in high resolution SAR images

With the increase of synthetic aperture radar (SAR) sensor resolution, SAR images could include a large variety of interesting real man-made structures. Therefore, a more detailed analysis and a finer description of SAR images of urban areas are needed for a better understanding of the scene. Nevertheless, recognizing scenes using high resolution SAR images requires the capability to identify relevant signal signatures (called also descriptors), depending on variable image acquisition geometry, arbitrary objects poses and configurations. Among feature extraction methods, we propose to use principal components analysis (PCA) and/or independent components analysis (ICA), in order to exploit deeper the nature of SAR signatures. In this paper, both a description of our work and a presentation of our preliminary classification performance results will be provided.
Rational and Convergent Learning in Stochastic Games

This paper investigates the problem of policy learning in multiagent environments using the stochastic game framework, which we briefly overview. We introduce two properties as desirable for a learning agent when in the presence of other learning agents, namely rationality and convergence. We examine existing reinforcement learning algorithms according to these two properties and notice that they fail to simultaneously meet both criteria. We then contribute a new learning algorithm, WoLF policy hillclimbing, that is based on a simple principle: “learn quickly while losing, slowly while winning. ” The algorithm is proven to be rational and we present empirical results for a number of stochastic games showing the algorithm converges.
Media Consumption in Malaysia: A Hermeneutics of Human Behaviour

Introduction: Why Our (Re)Turn to Hermeneutics? Understanding as Ubiquitous Practice Part I Global Theory: the Practices Perspective on People 1. Audiences Entering Mall and Media: Visitors Projecting Everyday Practices 2. Participatory Practices in Promotional Places: Consumers from Heidegger to Henry Jenkins 3. Video Blogging and Branding on YouTube: Interpreting Ready-to-Hand Understanding Part II A Practices Perspective on Malaysian Consumers 4. Consumers Constructing Marketing Meaning: Generic Practices in Participatory Online Media 5. Consuming Sites: Malaysians Visiting Social Media: Ready-to-Hand Repertoires Presented as Practices 6. Visitors Engaging in Mall Practices: Minimally Monitored Managing Meaning Conclusion: Phenomenology's Practices Theory: New Hermeneutics/ Old Heidegger?
Toward a Dancing Robot With Listening Capability: Keypose-Based Integration of Lower-, Middle-, and Upper-Body Motions for Varying Music Tempos

This paper presents the development toward a dancing robot that can listen to and dance along with musical performances. One of the key components of this robot is the ability to modify its dance motions with varying tempos, without exceeding motor limitations, in the same way that human dancers modify their motions. In this paper, we first observe human performances with varying musical tempos of the same musical piece, and then analyze human modification strategies. The analysis is conducted in terms of three body components: lower, middle, and upper bodies. We assume that these body components have different purposes and different modification strategies, respectively, for the performance of a dance. For all of the motions of these three components, we have found that certain fixed postures, which we call keyposes, tend to be preserved. Thus, this paper presents a method to create motions for robots at a certain music tempo, from human motion at an original music tempo, by using these keyposes. We have implemented these algorithms as an automatic process and validated their effectiveness by using a physical humanoid robot HRP-2. This robot succeeded in performing the Aizu-bandaisan dance, one of the Japanese traditional folk dances, 1.2 and 1.5 times faster than the tempo originally learned, while maintaining its physical constraints. Although we are not achieving a dancing robot which autonomously interacts with varying music tempos, we think that our method has a vital role in the dancing-to-music capability.
Healing of Bone Defects by Guided Tissue Regeneration

In this study we describe a principle for the accomplishment of bone regeneration based on the hypothesis that different cellular components in the tissue have varying rates of migration into a wound area during healing. By a mechanical hindrance, using a membrane technique, fibroblasts and other soft connective-tissue cells are prevented from entering the bone defect so that the presumably slower-migrating cells with osteogenic potential are allowed to repopulate the defect. Defects of standard size were created bilaterally through the man-dibular angles of rats. On one side of the jaw the defect was covered with Teflon membranes, whereas the defect on the other side served as control. Histologic analysis after healing demonstrated that on the test (membrane) side, half the number of animals showed complete bone healing after 3 weeks and all animals showed complete healing after 6 weeks. Little or no sign of healing was evident on the control side even after an observation period of 22 weeks.
Sustainable Control of Water-Related Infectious Diseases: A Review and Proposal for Interdisciplinary Health-Based Systems Research

Objective Even when initially successful, many interventions aimed at reducing the toll of water-related infectious disease have not been sustainable over longer periods of time. Here we review historical practices in water-related infectious disease research and propose an interdisciplinary public health oriented systems approach to research and intervention design. Data sources On the basis of the literature and the authors’ experiences, we summarize contributions from key disciplines and identify common problems and trends. Practices in developing countries, where the disease burden is the most severe, are emphasized. Data extraction We define waterborne and water-associated vectorborne diseases and identify disciplinary themes and conceptual needs by drawing from ecologic, anthropologic, engineering, political/economic, and public health fields. A case study examines one of the classes of water-related infectious disease. Data synthesis The limited success in designing sustainable interventions is attributable to factors that include the complexity and interactions among the social, ecologic, engineering, political/economic, and public health domains; incomplete data; a lack of relevant indicators; and most important, an inadequate understanding of the proximal and distal factors that cause water-related infectious disease. Fundamental change is needed for research on water-related infectious diseases, and we advocate a systems approach framework using an ongoing evidence-based health outcomes focus with an extended time horizon. The examples and case study in the review show many opportunities for interdisciplinary collaborations, data fusion techniques, and other advances. Conclusions The proposed framework will facilitate research by addressing the complexity and divergent scales of problems and by engaging scientists in the disciplines needed to tackle these difficult problems. Such research can enhance the prevention and control of water-related infectious diseases in a manner that is sustainable and focused on public health outcomes.
A New Generalized Pythagorean Fuzzy Information Aggregation Using Einstein Operations and Its Application to Decision Making

The objective of this article is to extend and present an idea related to weighted aggregated operators from fuzzy to Pythagorean fuzzy sets (PFSs). The main feature of the PFS is to relax the condition that the sum of the degree of membership functions is less than one with the square sum of the degree of membership functions is less than one. Under these environments, aggregator operators, namely, Pythagorean fuzzy Einstein weighted averaging (PFEWA), Pythagorean fuzzy Einstein ordered weighted averaging (PFEOWA), generalized Pythagorean fuzzy Einstein weighted averaging (GPFEWA), and generalized Pythagorean fuzzy Einstein ordered weighted averaging (GPFEOWA), are proposed in this article. Some desirable properties corresponding to it have also been investigated. Furthermore, these operators are applied to decision‐making problems in which experts provide their preferences in the Pythagorean fuzzy environment to show the validity, practicality, and effectiveness of the new approach. Finally, a systematic comparison between the existing work and the proposed work has been given.
Evaluating information contributions of bottom-up and top-down processes

This paper presents a method to quantitatively evaluate information contributions of individual bottom-up and top-down computing processes in object recognition. Our objective is to start a discovery on how to schedule bottom-up and top-down processes. (1) We identify two bottom-up processes and one top-down process in hierarchical models, termed α, β and γ channels respectively ; (2) We formulate the three channels under an unified Bayesian framework; (3) We use a blocking control strategy to isolate the three channels to separately train them and individually measure their information contributions in typical recognition tasks; (4) Based on the evaluated results, we integrate the three channels to detect objects with performance improvements obtained. Our experiments are performed in both low-middle level tasks, such as detecting edges/bars and junctions, and high level tasks, such as detecting human faces and cars, together with a group of human study designed to compare computer and human perception.
Common variants on chromosome 2 and risk of primary open-angle glaucoma in the Afro-Caribbean population of Barbados

Primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG) is the second leading cause of blindness worldwide. Although a number of genetic loci have shown association or genetic linkage to monogenic forms of POAG, the identified genes and loci do not appear to have a major role in the common POAG phenotype. We seek to identify genetic loci that appear to be major risk factors for POAG in the Afro-Caribbean population of Barbados, West Indies. We performed linkage analyses in 146 multiplex families ascertained through the Barbados Family Study of Glaucoma (BFSG) and identified a strong linkage signal on chromosome 2p (logarithm of odds score = 6.64 at θ = 0 with marker D2S2156). We subsequently performed case-control analyses using unrelated affected individuals and unaffected controls. A set of SNPs on chromosome 2p was evaluated in two independent groups of BFSG participants, a discovery group (130 POAG cases, 65 controls) and a replication group (122 POAG cases, 65 controls), and a strong association was identified with POAG and rs12994401 in both groups (P < 3.34 E−09 and P < 1.21E−12, respectively). The associated SNPs form a common disease haplotype. In summary, we have identified a locus with a major impact on susceptibility to the common POAG phenotype in an Afro-Caribbean population in Barbados. Our approach illustrates the merit of using an isolated population enriched with common disease variants as an efficient method to identify genetic underpinning of POAG.
Statins, antidiabetic medications and liver histology in patients with diabetes with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease

Background Type-2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is a risk factor for progressive non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). Drugs commonly prescribed in patients with T2DM may affect liver histology by interfering with lipid metabolism and insulin resistance/secretion. Aim We studied if statins or antidiabetic agents were associated with non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) and significant fibrosis (SF). Methods We performed a cross-sectional study of 346 diabetics with biopsy-proven NAFLD. T2DM was defined as fasting glucose ≥7 mmol/L or glycated haemoglobin ≥6.5% and/or use of antidiabetics. NASH was defined according to the FLIP algorithm and SF as F2–4 Kleiner's stages. Results 84% of patients were on antidiabetic therapy and 45% on statins. NASH and SF were present in 57% and 48% of patients. Statin-treated patients were older, more frequently male and with poorer glycaemic control despite more frequent antidiabetic therapy than those without statins; however, the prevalence of NASH (57%vs56%, p=0.868) and SF (48%vs48%, p=0.943) was not different between statin users and non-users. NASH was more common in patients on metformin or insulin than in those not treated with these drugs (60%vs47%, p=0.026; 68%vs53%, p=0.017). SF was more common in those treated with sulfonylureas (57%vs44%, p=0.030). Multivariate analyses confirmed that use of statins was independently and negatively associated with both NASH (OR (95% CI) 0.57 (0.32 to 1.01), p=0.055) and SF (OR (95% CI) 0.47 (0.26 to 0.84), p=0.011). Moreover, we found independent associations between insulin use and NASH (OR (95% CI) 2.24 (1.11 to 4.54), p=0.025) and sulfonylureas use and SF (OR (95% CI) 2.04 (1.11 to 3.74), p=0.022). Conclusions Several medications used in patients with diabetes are differently associated with NAFLD histology. Statin use is negatively associated, while insulin and sulfonylureas are positively associated with NASH and SF. A wider use of statins may be warranted in this high-risk population.
Contextual Entropy and Text Categorization

In this paper we describe a new approach to text categorization, our focus is in the amount of information (the entropy) in the text. The entropy is computed with the empirical distribution of words in the text. We provide the system with a manually segmented collection of documents in different categories. For each category a separate empirical distribution of words is computed, we use this empirical distribution for categorization purposes. If we compute the entropy of the test document for each empirical distribution the correct category shows as a maximum. For example, if we compute the entropy of a sports document using the politics or the sports empirical word distributions then the computed entropy is higher in sports than in politics. Our text categorization approach is simple, easy to code and needs no training time (aside from histogram computations). The classification time is linear on the size of the document and the number of document categories. We support our claims with extensive experimentation
Cerebral Microvascular Responses to Hypercholesterolemia: Roles of NADPH Oxidase and P-Selectin

Abstract— Although hypercholesterolemia is widely accepted as a major risk factor for coronary artery and peripheral vascular diseases, its role in the pathogenesis of stroke is controversial. The objectives of this study were to determine how hypercholesterolemia affects the cerebral microcirculation under resting conditions and after ischemia-reperfusion (I/R). Platelet- and leukocyte-endothelial cell interactions and oxidant production (using the oxidant-sensitive fluorochrome dihydrorhodamine-123) were monitored by intravital videomicroscopy in the cerebral microvasculature of mice placed on either a normal (ND) or cholesterol-enriched diet (HCD). Platelets labeled with carboxyfluorescein diacetate succinimidyl ester (CFDASE) and leukocytes labeled with rhodamine 6G were seen to roll and firmly adhere, with a corresponding increase in oxidant production, in venules of mice on HCD, but not ND. Immunoneutralization of P-selectin attenuated the platelet- and leukocyte-endothelial cell interactions and the enhanced oxidant production associated with HCD. A GPIIb/IIIa blocking antibody did not alter the blood cell-vessel wall interactions to HCD. Mice deficient in the NADPH oxidase subunit gp91phox exhibited significantly blunted platelet and leukocyte recruitment responses to HCD. Focal I/R also elicited inflammatory and prothrombogenic responses in cerebral venules and these were exaggerated in mice on HCD. These results implicate an oxidant-dependent, P-selectin–mediated mechanism in the blood cell-vessel wall interactions induced by hypercholesterolemia in the brain and demonstrate that the deleterious effects of I/R on the brain are exacerbated by this cardiovascular risk factor.
Cross-packing lattices for the Rician fading channel

We introduce cross-packing lattices for Rician fading channels, motivated by a geometric interpretation stemming from the pairwise error probability analysis. We approximate the star bodies arising from the pairwise error probability analysis with n-dimensional crosses of radius t, consisting of 2nt + 1 unit cubes, for some positive integer t. We give a construction for a family of cross-packing lattices for all dimensions and any minimum cross distance 2t + 1. We show by simulations how our new cross-packing lattices perform compared to other known lattices over the Rician fading channel, for different values of the Rician K-factor.
Communicating with One Another: Toward a Psychology of Spontaneous Spoken Discourse

PART I: A CRITIQUE OF MAINSTREAM PSYCHOLINGUISTICS. 1. The Problematic. 2. Empirical Methods. 3. Fluency and Hesitation. 4. The Written. PART II: FOUNDATIONS FOR RESEARCH ON SPONTANEOUS SPOKEN DISCOURSE. 5. Rhetoric. 6. Intentionality. 7. From Monologism to Dialogicality. 8. Listening. PART III: EMPIRICAL RESEARCH ON SPONTANEOUS SPOKEN DISCOURSE. 9. Punctuation. 10. Transcription. 11. Pauses. 12. Prosody. 13. Fillers. 14. Interjections. 15. Referring. 16. Turn-taking. 17. Laughter. 18. Applause and Other Audience Reactions. PART IV: TOWARD A THEORY OF SPONTANEOUS SPOKEN DISCOURSE. 19. Intersubjectivity. 20. Perspectivity. 21. Open-endedness. 22. Verbal Integrity. 23. Spontaneous Spoken Discourse. 24. Communicating in Print about Communicating Orally.
CHARACTERIZATION OF A FUNCTIONAL VANADIUM‐DEPENDENT BROMOPEROXIDASE IN THE MARINE CYANOBACTERIUM SYNECHOCOCCUS SP. CC9311 1

Vanadium‐dependent bromoperoxidases (VBPOs) are characterized by the ability to oxidize halides using hydrogen peroxide. These enzymes are well‐studied in eukaryotic macroalgae and are known to produce a variety of brominated secondary metabolites. Though genes have been annotated as VBPO in multiple prokaryotic genomes, they remain uncharacterized. The genome of the coastal marine cyanobacterium Synechococcus sp. CC9311 encodes a predicted VBPO (YP_731869.1, sync_2681), and in this study, we show that protein extracts from axenic cultures of Synechococcus possess bromoperoxidase activity, oxidizing bromide and iodide, but not chloride. In‐gel activity assays of Synechococcus proteins separated using PAGE reveal a single band having VBPO activity. When sequenced via liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry/mass spectrometry (LC/MS/MS), peptides from the band aligned to the VBPO sequence predicted by the open reading frame (ORF) sync_2681. We show that a VBPO gene is present in a closely related strain, Synechococcus sp. WH8020, but not other clade I Synechococcus strains, consistent with recent horizontal transfer of the gene into Synechococcus. Diverse cyanobacterial‐like VBPO genes were detected in a pelagic environment off the California coast using PCR. Investigation of functional VBPOs in unicellular cyanobacteria may lead to discovery of novel halogenated molecules and a better understanding of these organisms’ chemical ecology and physiology.