Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Dual-component model of respiratory motion based on the periodic autoregressive moving average (periodic ARMA) method

A new approach to the problem of modelling and predicting respiration motion has been implemented. This is a dual-component model, which describes the respiration motion as a non-periodic time series superimposed onto a periodic waveform. A periodic autoregressive moving average algorithm has been used to define a mathematical model of the periodic and non-periodic components of the respiration motion. The periodic components of the motion were found by projecting multiple inhale–exhale cycles onto a common subspace. The component of the respiration signal that is left after removing this periodicity is a partially autocorrelated time series and was modelled as an autoregressive moving average (ARMA) process. The accuracy of the periodic ARMA model with respect to fluctuation in amplitude and variation in length of cycles has been assessed. A respiration phantom was developed to simulate the inter-cycle variations seen in free-breathing and coached respiration patterns. At ±14% variability in cycle length and maximum amplitude of motion, the prediction errors were 4.8% of the total motion extent for a 0.5 s ahead prediction, and 9.4% at 1.0 s lag. The prediction errors increased to 11.6% at 0.5 s and 21.6% at 1.0 s when the respiration pattern had ±34% variations in both these parameters. Our results have shown that the accuracy of the periodic ARMA model is more strongly dependent on the variations in cycle length than the amplitude of the respiration cycles.
Cytogenetic analysis of obsessive‐compulsive disorder (OCD): Identification of a FRAXE fragile site

Obsessive‐compulsive disorder (OCD) is a chronic psychiatric disease characterized by recurrent obsessions, compulsions, or both. The prevalence rate of OCD is 2.1% in the general population. Here we report cytogenetic analysis of 26 patients affected with OCD. In one male patient (OCD‐K33), we identified a fragile X chromosome by cytogenetic analysis with 21% of cells demonstrating a fragile site at Xq27‐q28. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and Southern blot analysis demonstrated that the molecular basis of the OCD‐K33 fragile X chromosome was expansion of the CCG repeat at FRAXE. The number of the expanded repeats was estimated to be more than 300 copies, qualifying it as a full FRAXE mutation. Further analysis of the family members of OCD‐K33 revealed another member with a full FRAXE mutation (630–1,200 copies of the CCG repeat), who had the clinical phenotype of speech impairment, and two other members with normal phenotypes and no FRAXE expansion. The two FRAXE expansions lead to complete methylation at the CCG repeat. The co‐segregation of the full FRAXE mutation with apparent neurologic disorders in the same family provides further support to the notion that FRAXE is a genetic neurologic condition. Our findings expand the spectrum of clinical phenotypes associated with FRAXE mutations. © 2003 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Integral fluctuation theorem for the housekeeping heat

The housekeeping heat Qhk is the dissipated heat necessary to maintain the violation of detailed balance in nonequilibrium steady states. By analysing the evolution of its probability distribution, we prove an integral fluctuation theorem exp[−βQhk] = 1 valid for arbitrary-driven transitions between steady states. We discuss Gaussian limiting cases and the difference between the new theorem and both the Hatano–Sasa and the Jarzynski relation.
Product Quality in a Distribution Channel With Inventory Risk

In many industries, product design and manufacturing lead-times are sufficiently long that both the quality level of a product and the amount of inventory produced must be determined well before a firm knows what the actual demand will be. On the other hand, price is typically adjusted dynamically in response to observed demand. In this paper, we conduct a generalized theoretical analysis of such a setting. We first consider a centralized channel and characterize the optimal decisions by establishing relationships that must hold between the elasticity of cost of quality and the elasticity of revenue, show that quality and inventory are substitutes, and more- over show that quality rather than inventory can be a primary lever to mitigate the impact of demand uncertainty. Next, we consider a decentralized channel, in which a manufacturer deter- mines quality and contractual terms, while a retailer determines inventory and retail price. We find that the channel is not coordinated under the optimal wholesale price contract and, counter to standard intuition, product quality can be higher compared to a centralized channel because a simple wholesale price contract shields the manufacturer from inventory risk. We then examine two more sophisticated contracts: quantity discounts and buyback contracts. For the former, we derive the optimal quantity discount schedule, show that it can coordinate the channel even in the presence of joint decisions on quality, inventory and responsive pricing, and determine how it varies as the product and market characteristics change. For the latter, we show that buyback contracts can coordinate the channel only if the manufacturer can specify retail price ceilings that depend on the realized demand outcome, which is an unrealistic contracting instrument. We thus conclude that the contracts that are more likely to be implemented in practice in settings similar to our own are wholesale price contracts (because of their simplicity) and quantity discount con- tracts (because they offer a robust and implementable mechanism to coordinate the channel, with moderate complexity); this is consistent with observations from industry.
Real-Time Visual Tracking of Complex Structures

Presents a framework for three-dimensional model-based tracking. Graphical rendering technology is combined with constrained active contour tracking to create a robust wire-frame tracking system. It operates in real time at video frame rate (25 Hz) on standard hardware. It is based on an internal CAD model of the object to be tracked which is rendered using a binary space partition tree to perform hidden line removal. A Lie group formalism is used to cast the motion computation problem into simple geometric terms so that tracking becomes a simple optimization problem solved by means of iterative reweighted least squares. A visual servoing system constructed using this framework is presented together with results showing the accuracy of the tracker. The paper then describes how this tracking system has been extended to provide a general framework for tracking in complex configurations. The adjoint representation of the group is used to transform measurements into common coordinate frames. The constraints are then imposed by means of Lagrange multipliers. Results from a number of experiments performed using this framework are presented and discussed.
New Stoma Patients' Experiences During Post - Operative Nursing Care

The purpose of this study was to find out the essential concerns for stoma patients and the core information that patient are eager to know concerning stoma care. The aim of this study was to provide information that can help improve stoma patient’s’ education resulting in a better psychological support in the post – operative stage. Not all, another aim was to find out the most useful method in patients’ education process concerning stoma care. Qualitative method was used to implement this study. The research was conducted in the Peking Union Medical College Hospital, Beijing China. Open ended questions were used in one-to-one interviews for collecting data. Four males and one female whose ages range between 48 and 68, and had newly formed stoma were selected for the interviewees. When choosing the samples, the type of ostomy performance was not restricted. The interviews were done between August and September 2011. The average interviewing time was 70 minutes. The inductive content analysis is used to analysis the data. The results of this study revealed that the new stoma patients’ concerns in post – operative rehabilitation includes occupational interruption that can lead to economic pressure, fear for social discrimination that is caused by lack of social support, fear for stoma appearance, and worries for daily life. They are eager to get information about nutrition intake and basic stoma anatomy knowledge. Furthermore, the study found out that the pre-operative education has significant effects for the stoma patients’ rehabilitation. Concerning the educational methods, the respondents mentioned that both individual education and group counseling have their strengths and weaknesses. For the psychological support, family and friends’ support has been mentioned as the most important part that can release stoma patients’ anxiety, followed by support from other stoma patients.
Learning To Use Memory

This thesis is a comprehensive empirical exploration of using reinforcement learning to learn to use simple forms of working memory. Learning to use memory involves learning how to behave in the environment while simultaneously learning when to select internal actions that control how knowledge persists in memory and learning how to use that information stored in memory to make decisions. We focus on two different models of memory: bit memory and gated memory. Bit memory is inspired by prior reinforcement learning literature and stores abstract values, which an agent can learn to associate with task history. Gated memory is inspired by human working memory and stores perceptually grounded symbols. Our goal is to determine computational bounds on the tractability of learning to use these memories. We conduct a comprehensive empirical exploration of the dynamics of learning to use memory models by modifying a simple partially observable task, TMaze, along specific dimensions: length of temporal delay, number of dependent decisions, number of distinct symbols, quantity of concurrent knowledge, and availability of second-order knowledge. We find that learning to use gated memory is significantly more tractable than learning to use bit memory because it stores perceptually grounded symbols in memory. We further find that learning performance scales more favorably along temporal delay, distinct symbols, and concurrent knowledge when learning to use gated memory than along other dimensions. We also identify situations in which agents fail to learn to use gated memory optimally which involve repeated identical observations which result in no unambiguous trajectories through the underlying task and memory state space.
Single‐vehicle scheduling problems with release and service times on a line

We consider the following vehicle scheduling problem. There are some customers on a line that will be served by a single vehicle. Each customer is associated with a release time and a service time. The objective is to schedule the vehicle to minimize the makespan. For the tour version, where the makespan means the time when the vehicle has served all customers and returned back to its initial location, we present a 3/2‐approximation algorithm. For the path version, where the makespan is defined as the time by which the last customer has been served completely, we present a 5/3‐approximation algorithm. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. NETWORKS, Vol. 57(2), 128–134 2011
TASA: Toolchain-Agnostic Static Software randomisation for critical real-time systems

Measurement-Based Probabilistic Timing Analysis (MBPTA) derives WCET estimates for tasks running on processors comprising high-performance features such as caches. MBPTA's correct application requires the system to exhibit certain timing properties, which can be achieved by injecting randomisation in the timing behaviour of the task under analysis. However, existing software-randomisation techniques require costly modifications in the industrial production toolchain (compiler, linker, runtime or hardware) in terms of development and certification. In this paper we present TASA, a new software randomisation tool that relies on source-code transformations of the application (i) requiring no changes in existing toolchains, which heavily reduces tool qualification and implementation costs; and (ii) achieving competitive WCET estimates that we assess on a gcc- and a llvm-based compilation toolchain on a real board.
Efflux Pump, the Masked Side of ß-Lactam Resistance in Klebsiella pneumoniae Clinical Isolates

Background β-lactamase production and porin decrease are the well-recognized mechanisms of acquired ß-lactam resistance in Klebsiella pneumoniae isolates. However, such mechanisms proved to be absent in K. pneumoniae isolates that are non susceptible to cefoxitin (FOX) and succeptible to amoxicillin+clavulanic acid in our hospital. Assessing the role of efflux pumps in this β-lactam phenotype was the aim of this study. Methodology/Findings MICs of 9 β-lactams, including cloxacillin (CLX), and other antibiotic families were tested alone and with an efflux pump inhibitor (EPI), then with both CLX (subinhibitory concentrations) and EPI against 11 unique bacteremia K. pneumoniae isolates displaying the unusual phenotype, and 2 ATCC strains. CLX and EPI-dose dependent effects were studied on 4 representatives strains. CLX MICs significantly decreased when tested with EPI. A similar phenomenon was observed with piperacillin+tazobactam whereas MICs of the other β-lactams significantly decreased only in the presence of both EPI and CLX. Thus, FOX MICs decreased 128 fold in the K. pneumoniae isolates but also16 fold in ATCC strain. Restoration of FOX activity was CLX dose-dependent suggesting a competitive relationship between CLX and the other β-lactams with regard to their efflux. For chloramphenicol, erythromycin and nalidixic acid whose resistance was also due to efflux, adding CLX to EPI did not increase their activity suggesting differences between the efflux process of these molecules and that of β-lactams. Conclusion This is the first study demonstrating that efflux mechanism plays a key role in the β-lactam susceptibility of clinical isolates of K. pneumoniae. Such data clearly evidence that the involvement of efflux pumps in ß-lactam resistance is specially underestimated in clinical isolates.
Algebraic Line Search for Bundle Adjustment

Bundle Adjustment is based on nonlinear least squares minimization techniques, such as Levenberg-Marquardt and Gauss-Newton. It iteratively computes local parameter increments. Line Search techniques aim at providing an efficient magnitude for these increments, called the step length. In this paper, a new ad hoc Line Search technique for solving bundle adjustment is proposed. The main idea is to determine an efficient step length using an approximation of the cost function based on an algebraic distance. We use the Wolfe conditions to show that our Line Search preserves the convergence properties of the original algorithm. Our method is compared to different nonlinear optimization algorithms and Line Search techniques under several conditions, on real and synthetic data. The method improves the minimization process, decreasing the reprojection error significantly faster than the other techniques.
Face recognition based on polar frequency features

A novel biologically motivated face-recognition algorithm based on polar frequency is presented. Polar frequency descriptors are extracted from face images by Fourier--Bessel transform (FBT). Next, the Euclidean distance between all images is computed and each image is now represented by its dissimilarity to the other images. A pseudo-Fisher linear discriminant was built on this dissimilarity space. The performance of discrete Fourier transform (DFT) descriptors and a combination of both feature types was also evaluated. The algorithms were tested on a 40- and 1196-subjects face database (ORL and FERET, respectively). With five images per subject in the training and test datasets, error rate on the ORL database was 3.8, 1.25, and 0.2% for the FBT, DFT, and the combined classifier, respectively, as compared to 2.6% achieved by the best previous algorithm. The most informative polar frequency features were concentrated at low-to-medium angular frequencies coupled to low radial frequencies. On the FERET database, where an affine normalization preprocessing was applied, the FBT algorithm outperformed only the PCA in a rank recognition test. However, it achieved performance comparable to state-of-the-art methods when evaluated by verification tests. These results indicate the high informative value of the polar frequency content of face images in relation to recognition and verification tasks and that the Cartesian frequency content can complement information about the subjects' identity, but possibly only when the images are not prenormalized. Possible implications for human face recognition are discussed.
Effects of Intraventricular Locus Coeruleus Transplants on Seizure Severity in Genetically Epilepsy-Prone Rats Following Depletion of Brain Norepinephrine

Audiogenic seizures (AGS) in genetically epilepsy-prone rats (GEPR) of the moderateseizure substrain (GEPR-3s) were investigated to determine whether norepinephrine (NE) depletion induced by 6-hydroxydopalnine (6-OHDA) microinfusion into the locus coeruleus (LC) could alter the efficacy of intraventricular NE tissue grafts in promoting reductions in seizure severity in AGS. GEPR-3s were stereotaxically infused with 6-OHDA (4μg/side/rat), or vehicle into the region of the LC. Following 6-OHDA treatment all animals were subjected to 3 AGS tests. GEPR-3s seizure severities were increased in 39.5% of the animals after microinfusion of 6-OHDA into the region of the LC. Following the third AGS test, each rat was stereotaxicaily implanted with 17 gestational day rat fetal tissue obtained from the dorsal pons and containing the primordia of the LC or with tissue obtained from the neocortex or were sham-grafted. Subsequent to grafting, rats were subjected to 3 additional AGS tests. 53% (10/19) of 6-OHDA treated GEPRs showed a significant reduction in seizure severity following transplantation of fetal LC tissue. In contrast, only 20% (1/5) of GEPRs infused with saline rather than 6-OHDA showed, a reduction of seizure severity following fetal LC transplantation. NE content in the cortex and pons/medulla was decreased by 78% and 46% respectively following 6-OHDA microinfusion into the LC. Prominent grafts with numerous TH positive neurons and neurites were present within the third ventricle of grafted animals, while cortex grafts contained no TH immunostained structures. These findings suggest that the efficacy of fetal LC tissue to promote reductions in seizure severity in GEPRs is increased following depletion of central NE by microinfusion of 6-OHDA.
A parallel Hamiltonian eigensolver for passivity characterization and enforcement of large interconnect macromodels

The passivity characterization and enforcement of linear interconnect macromodels has received much attention in the recent literature. It is now widely recognized that the Hamiltonian eigensolution is a very reliable technique for such characterization. However, most available algorithms for the determination of the required Hamiltonian eigenvalues still require excessive comoputational resources for large-size macromodels with thousands of states. This work intends to break this complexity by introducing the first parallel implementation of a specialized Hamiltonian eigensolver, designed and optimized for shared memory multicore architectures. Our starting point is a multi-shift restarted and deflated Arnoldi process. Excellent parallel efficiency is obtained by running different Arnoldi iterations concurrently on different threads. The numerical results show that macromodels with several thousands states are characterized in few seconds on a 16-core machine, with close to ideal speedup factors.
NTHU-Route 2.0: A fast and stable global router

We present in this paper a fast and stable global router called NTHU-Route 2.0 that improves the solution quality and runtime of a state-of-the-art router, NTHU-Route, by the following enhancements: (1) a new history based cost function, (2) new ordering methods for congested region identification and rip-up and reroute, and (3) two implementation techniques. The experimental results show that NTHU-Router 2.0 solves all ISPD98 benchmarks with very good quality. Moreover, it routes 7 of 8 ISPD07 benchmarks without any overflow. In particular, for one of the ISPD07 benchmarks which are thought to be difficult cases previously, NTHU-Route 2.0 can completely eliminate its total overflow. NTHU-Route 2.0 also successfully solves 12 of 16 ISPD08 benchmarks without causing any overflow.
Teaching This Class Drives Me Nuts! - Examining the Person and Context Specificity of Teacher Emotions

Teachers’ emotions are critically important for the quality of classroom instruction, and they are key components of teachers’ psychological well-being. Past research has focused on individual differences between teachers, whereas within-teacher variation across contexts has rarely been considered. As such, the present research addresses the long-standing yet unresolved person-situation debate pertaining to the emotional experiences of teachers. In two diary studies (N = 135, 70% female, and N = 85, 28% female), we examined the role of person, academic subject, and group of students for teacher emotions; focusing on three of the most salient emotions found in teachers: enjoyment, anger, and anxiety. Findings from multi-level analysis confirmed the person specificity of enjoyment, anger, and, in particular, anxiety. In addition, underscoring the existence of within-teacher variability, findings supported that teachers’ emotions considerably varied depending on the subject and group of students taught, particularly so for enjoyment and anger. Implications of the person and context specificity of teacher emotions are discussed in relation to assessments and intervention programs aiming to improve teachers’ emotional lives in the classroom.
SpL201: A conditionally immortalized Schwann cell precursor line that generates myelin

Dramatic progress has been made over recent years toward the elucidation of the mechanisms regulating lineage determination and cell survival in the developing peripheral nervous system. However, our understanding of Schwann cell development is limited. This is partly due to the difficulties in culturing primary Schwann cell precursor cells, the earliest developmental stage of the Schwann cell lineage defined to date. Both the inability to maintain cultured Schwann cell precursor cells in an undifferentiated state and the technical difficulties involved in their isolation have hampered progress. We have conditionally immortalized rat Schwann cell precursor cells using a retrovirally encoded EGFR/neu fusion protein to circumvent these problems and to generate a source of homogeneous cells. The resulting SpL201 cell line expresses p75 and nestin, two proteins expressed by neural crest‐derived cells, as well as peripheral myelin protein 22, protein zero, and Oct‐6 as markers of the Schwann cell lineage. When cultured in EGF‐containing medium, the SpL201 cells proliferate and maintain an undifferentiated, Schwann cell precursor cell‐like state. The cell line is dependent on EGF for survival but can differentiate into early Schwann cell‐like cells in response to exogenous factors. Like primary rat Schwann cells, SpL201 cells upregulate Oct‐6 and myelin gene expression in response to forskolin treatment. Furthermore, the SpL201 cell line can form myelin in the presence of axons in vitro and is capable of extensively remyelinating a CNS white matter lesion in vivo. Thus, this cell line provides a valuable and unique tool to study the Schwann cell lineage, including differentiation from the Schwann cell precursor cell stage through to myelination. GLIA 36:31–47, 2001. © 2001 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.