Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Blind extraction of a dominant source from mixtures of many sources using ICA and time-frequency masking

The paper presents a method for enhancing a target source of interest and suppressing other interference sources. The target source is assumed to be close to sensors, to have dominant power at these sensors, and to have non-Gaussianity. The enhancement is performed blindly, i.e., without knowing the total number of sources or information about each source, such as position and active time. We consider a general case where the number of sources is larger than the number of sensors. We employ a two-stage process where independent component analysis (ICA) is first employed in each frequency bin and time-frequency masking is then used to improve the performance further. We propose a new sophisticated method for selecting the target source frequency components, and also a new criterion for specifying time-frequency masks. Experimental results for simulated cocktail party situations in a room (reverberation time was 130 ms) are presented to show the effectiveness and characteristics of the proposed method.
Subjective Trust Evaluation Model Based on Fuzzy Reasoning

In this paper, taking subjective trust as the background in the open network system, the subjective trust is analyzed. It shows the subjective trust has the subjectivity, uncertainty and randomness etc., which shows fuzziness. Based on the fuzzy reasoning theory, the subjective trust evaluation model based on fuzzy reasoning is studied and proposed by the aid of local information and the associated analysis and confirmation of this model is discussed in this paper. In this paper, we concentrate on studying the rules and reasoning procedures of this subjective trust evaluation model, the evaluation of subjective trust is solved finally. Through simulation, the feasibility and the rationality of this subjective trust evaluation model are further confirmed. At the same time, this model proposed in this paper enlightens also a new way for this subjective trust evaluation model of current complex network system.
Research design for evaluation of finger input properties on multi-touch screen

Interactive tabletop display provides a collaborative workspace to users around a table. Users sit in front of each other and they perform direct and collaborative multi-touch interaction simultaneously. Users access the interactive elements using their bare fingers. The finger works as a pointer device, and it has direct relation with the size, shape, and configuration of the interactive elements on sensitive displays. It is found that there is lack of precise selection of small size interactive elements owing to users' fat fingers. In this regard, it is aimed to propose a research design to evaluate the finger input properties in the context of imprecise selection. However, proposed research design consists of various phases that help to carry out the different research activities to evaluate finger input properties accordingly. It assists in investigating the factors that may cause the imprecise selection in the direct multi-touch input.
The baryon density at z = 0.9-1.9. Tracing the warm-hot intergalactic medium with broad Lyman α absorption

Aims. We present an analysis of the Lyman a forests of five quasar spectra in the near UV. Properties of the intergalactic medium (IGM) at an intermediate redshift interval (0.9 ≤ z ≤1.9) are studied. The amount of baryons in the diffuse photoionised IGM and the warm-hot intergalactic medium (WHIM) are traced to get constraints on the redshift evolution of the different phases of the intergalactic gas. Methods. The baryon density of the diffuse IGM is determined with photoionisation calculations under the assumption of local hydrostatic equilibrium. We assume that the gas is ionised by a metagalactic background radiation with a Haardt & Madau (2001, Clusters of Galaxies and the High Redshift Universe Observed in X-rays) spectrum. The WHIM is traced with broad Lyman α (BLA) absorption. The properties of a number of BLA detections are studied. Under the assumption of collisional ionisation equilibrium a lower limit to the baryon density could be estimated. Results. It is found that the diffuse photoionised IGM contains at least ∼25% of the total baryonic matter at redshifts 1 ≤ z ≤ 2. For the WHIM a lower limit of ∼2.4% could be determined. Furthermore, the data indicates that the intergalactic gas is in a state of evolution at z ∼ 1.5. We confirm that a considerable part of the WHIM is created between z = and z = 2.
Mapping kernels for trees

We propose a comprehensive survey of tree kernels through the lens of the mapping kernels framework. We argue that most existing tree kernels, as well as many more that are presented for the first time in this paper, fall into a typology of kernels whose seemingly intricate computation can be efficiently factorized to yield polynomial time algorithms. Despite this fact, we argue that a naive implementation of such kernels remains prohibitively expensive to compute. We propose an approach whereby some computations for smaller trees are cached, which speeds up considerably the computation of all these tree kernels. We provide experimental evidence of this fact as well as preliminary results on the performance of these kernels.
Interfacial Sliding and Buckling of Monolayer Graphene on a Stretchable Substrate

The nonlinear mechanical response of monolayer graphene on polyethylene terephthalate (PET) is characterised using in‐situ Raman spectroscopy and atomic force microscopy. While interfacial stress transfer leads to tension in graphene as the PET substrate is stretched, retraction of the substrate during unloading imposes compression in the graphene. Two interfacial failure mechanisms, shear sliding under tension and buckling under compression, are identified. Using a nonlinear shear‐lag model, the interfacial shear strength is found to range between 0.46 and 0.69 MPa. The critical strain for onset of interfacial sliding is ∼0.3%, while the maximum strain that can be transferred to graphene ranges from 1.2% to 1.6% depending on the interfacial shear strength and graphene size. Beyond a critical compressive strain of around −0.7%, buckling ridges are observed after unloading. The results from this work provide valuable insight and design guidelines for a broad spectrum of applications of graphene and other 2D nanomaterials, such as flexible and stretchable electronics, strain sensing, and nanocomposites.
SHOCKS AND INSTITUTIONS IN A JOB MATCHING MODEL

A . This paper explains the divergent behavior of European and US unemployment rates using a job market matching model of the labor market with an interaction between shocks and institutions. It shows that a reduction in TFP growth rates, an increase in real interest rates, and an increase in tax rates leads to a permanent increase in unemployment rates when the replacement rates or initial tax rates are high, while no increase in unemployment occurs when institutions are “employment friendly. ” The paper also shows that an increase in turbulence, modelled as an increased probability of skill loss, is not a robust explanation for the European unemployment puzzle in the context of a matching model with both endogenous job creation and job destruction.
Elliptic Trajectory Generation for Galloping Quadruped Robots

Despite the fact that a running legged robot can be simply modeled by a spring loaded inverted pendulum and that the trajectory of its center of gravity is approximated as a ball on the rebound, the motions of its swinging leg and supporting leg are very important to run stably. In many previous works, trajectories of legs could easily deviate from their workspace of legs and thus make the robots unstable. In this paper, for stability in running, we propose a method to generate trajectories of legs based on an ellipse and to modify joint angles and angular velocities of the legs during touchdowns and take-offs depending on the running speed. To evaluate the performance and the effectiveness of this method, a series of computer simulation of a galloping 4-legged robot in the sagittal plane are performed. Their results show that the proposed method is effective in generating stable galloping locomotion.
Automatic argumentative analysis for interaction mining

Interaction mining is about discovering and extracting insightful information from digital conversations, namely those human–human information exchanges mediated by digital network technology. We present in this article a computational model of natural arguments and its implementation for the automatic argumentative analysis of digital conversations, which allows us to produce relevant information to build interaction business analytics applications overcoming the limitations of standard text mining and information retrieval technology. Applications include advanced visualisations and abstractive summaries.
Phylogenetic analysis of substrate-binding subunits in an osmoprotectant system.

Substrate-binding subunits are important components of the solute importation system, known as the osmoprotectant system, which consists of a membrane protein belonging to the ABC superfamily. These molecules recognize specific substrates that have different physiological roles in prokaryotes, i.e., roles that contribute to the survival of these organisms in environments with high concentrations of salt. Using the MEGA software, this study performed a phylogenetic analysis of 431 nucleotide sequences of these subunits, orthologous to each other, collected from the http://www.genome. jp/kegg/ database. This analysis allowed phylogenetic trees to be generated, clearly demonstrating that there was horizontal transfer of some genes through sharing by different organisms. Furthermore, two probable ancestral sequences were generated that showed homology with permeases that transport choline, glycine betaine, and carnitine, which are trimethylamines currently present in various prokaryotes. Therefore, this system probably arose in prokaryotic organisms with the basic function of capturing nutrients, and by performing this basal function and being shared with other organisms, it was fixed in the genome. However, because of prokaryote habitat diversification, this system contributed decisively to the adaptation of these organisms to different environments, especially environments that had a high salt concentration, thus acting as an osmoprotection system, which is how they are currently categorized.
Joint Wyner-Ziv / Dirty-Paper Coding by Analog Modulo-Lattice Modulation †

In this work we show how source coding with decoder side-info rmation (Wyner-Ziv problem) and channel coding with encoder side-infotmation (Gel’fand-P insker problem) can be merged into a single joint source/channel scheme in the quadratic Gaussian case (where the channel is known as the dirty paper channel). This scheme achieves the optimal performance RWZ(D) = CDPC without using any informationbearing code, thus saving the complexity of channel decodin g and quantization, and remaining with the task of shaping only. Furthermore, the scheme is robust to un known signal to noise ratio (SNR) at the encoder, and for high SNR it provides full robustness, i.e. i t approachesR(D) = C using an SNRindependent encoder. keywords: joint source/channel coding, analog transmission, WynerZiv problem, writing on dirty paper, modulo lattice modulation, MMSE estimation, unknow SNR, broadcast channel
Analysis of Tourists Attending a Culinary Event: Motivations, Satisfaction, and Behavioral Outcomes

I am submitting herewith a dissertation written by Sylvia Smith entitled “Analysis of Tourists Attending a Culinary Event: Motivations, Satisfaction, and Behavioral Outcomes. ” I have examined the final electronic copy of this dissertation for form and content and recommend that it be accepted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, with a major in Human Ecology.
Commodity Asian Options: A Closed-Form Formula

We compute an analytical expression for the moment generating function of the joint random vector consisting of a spot price and its discretely monitored average for a large class of square-root price dynamics. This result, combined with the Fourier transform pricing method proposed by Carr and Madan (1999) [Carr, P., Madan D. , 1999. Option valuation using the fast Fourier transform. Journal of Computational Finance 2(4), Summer, 61-73] allows us to derive a closed-form formula for the fair value of discretely-monitored Asian-style options. Our analysis encompasses the case of commodity price dynamics displaying mean reversion and jointly fitting a quoted futures curve and the seasonal structure of spot price volatility. Four tests are conducted to assess the relative performance of the pricing procedure stemming from our formulae. Empirical results based on natural gas data from NYMEX and corn data from CBOT show a remarkable improvement over the main alternative techniques developed for pricing Asian-style options within the market standard framework of geometric Brownian motion.
RFID Equipped Forklift Trucks

Forklift trucks are a basic element in material handling and will help to control the flow of goods in the future. This paper outlines how forklift trucks with integrated RFID hardware can be deployed in warehouse IT systems. Forklift trucks will be able to communicate with management assistant systems by means of RFID and WLAN. Goods carriers like pallets and pallet cages are equipped with RFID transponders. Information about handling and processing can be locally stored on the goods carriers. A method for the measurement of the stability of communication with components integrated in forklift trucks is presented. Components, which are specifically developed for this new system architecture, are described. Economic advantages are investigated, too.
Meta-Analysis of the Relationship between NM23 Expression to Gastric Cancer Risk and Clinical Features

The prognostic value of reduced NM23 expression for gastric cancer (GC) patients is still contradictory. Thus, we conducted a meta-analysis to quantitatively evaluate the association of NM23 expression with GC risk and clinical features by analyzing 27 publications. The result of our meta-analysis indicated that NM23 expression is markedly reduced in gastric cancer tissues (OR = 3.15; 95% CI = 1.97–5.03; P < 0.001). Furthermore, NM23 expression was negatively correlated with N stage, TNM stage, and histological grade. However, NM23 expression was not correlated with T stage, lymphatic invasion, vascular invasion, and 5-year overall survival rate. In conclusion, reduced NM23 expression correlated with gastric cancer risk, but its association with GC clinical features remains inconclusive. Therefore, large-scale and well-designed studies, which use uniform antibody and criterion of NM23 positive expression, are required to further validate the role of the NM23 in predicting GC progression.
Effects of drug price reduction and prescribing restrictions on expenditures and utilisation of antihypertensive drugs in Korea

Objectives To evaluate the quantitative effects of the drug price reduction on pharmaceutical expenditures and the new guidelines to restrict prescribing on drug utilisation for antihypertensive drugs. Design We used an interrupted time series design with the National patient sample data of Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service in South Korea. Methods 54 295 participants who were with primary hypertension from the National patient sample data of Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service were included. The study period was from March 2011 to December 2013. The dependent variables were antihypertensive drug costs, antihypertensive drug cost per prescribing day, daily drug utilisation, average number of drugs per month, percentage of original drugs per prescription, drug overutilisation and prohibited combinations. Segmented regression analysis was used. Results The drug price reduction reduced expenditure (US$−1.51, −10.2%), and the new guidelines reduced expenditures even more (US$−2.13; −16.2%). These policies saved US$4.22 (28%) of antihypertensive drug costs per patient in December 2013 compared to March 2012. Drug price reduction policy was introduced in April 2012. We established the policy effect by comparing it before (March 2012) with after(21 months later-December 2012). The effects of the guidelines decreased expenditures, daily drug utilisation and the average number of drugs per month more than did the drug price reduction. Conclusions Both policies saved money. The guidelines were more effective over time and had fewer side effects such as increasing daily drug utilisation and number of drugs than the effects of drug price reduction.
Effect of Parental Migration Background on Childhood Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Body Mass Index

Background. Poor nutrition, lack of physical activity, and obesity in children have important public health implications but, to date, their effects have not been studied in the growing population of children in Sweden with immigrant parents. Methods. We estimated the association between parental migration background and nutrition, physical activity, and weight in 8-year-old children born in Stockholm between 1994 and 1996 of immigrants and Swedish parents (n = 2589). Data were collected through clinical examination and questionnaires filled out by parents. Odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs) were calculated using multivariable logistic regression. Results. Children of immigrants complied more closely with Nordic Nutrition Recommendations compared with those of Swedes (OR = 1.35, 95% CI 1.11–1.64). They had higher intake of dietary fibre, vitamins C, B6, and E, folic acid, and polyunsaturated fatty acids (omega-3 and omega-6) reflecting higher consumption of foods of plant origin, but lower intake of vitamins A and D, calcium, and iron reflecting lower consumption of dairy products. Children of immigrants had higher intake of sucrose reflecting higher consumption of sugar and sweets. Furthermore, these children had a higher risk of having low physical activity (OR = 1.31, 95% CI 1.06–1.62) and being overweight (OR = 1.33, 95% CI 1.06–1.65) compared with children of Swedish parents. The odds of having low physical activity and being overweight were even higher in children whose parents were both immigrants. A low level of parental education was associated with increased risk of low physical activity regardless of immigration background. Conclusions. Culturally appropriate tools to capture the diverse range of ethnic foods and other lifestyle habits are needed. Healthcare professionals should be aware of the low levels of physical activity, increased weight, and lack of consumption of some important vitamins among children of immigrants.
Panoramic mosaic system for mobile devices

This paper deals with a panoramic mosaic system for mobile devices. The proposed system is optimized for mobile devices by integer-programmable algorithms and auto-shot user interface. The proposed system consists of auto-shot interface, transform onto cylindrical surface, color compensation, local alignment, image stitching, and blending. The auto-shot interface senses user's camera motion and takes pictures when the camera motion is matched to the predefined motion model. The captured images are projected onto a cylindrical mosaic surface by modified projection equation. Exposure difference is removed by color compensation, where the luminance differences between images are adjusted and color saturation is eliminated. The projected images are locally aligned by fast hierarchical hexagonal search technique. Then, the optimal boundary of overlapped images are determined using dynamic programming and synthesized seamlessly. According to the experiments using mobile devices, the proposed system shows good performance compared with other PC-based mosaic algorithms.
Hot topic extraction based on frequency, position, scattering and topical weight for time sliced news documents

Internet based news documents are the basic information transmission media. In such a case detecting hot topics and tracking the event development is most important. However, it is almost impossible to view all the generated topics, due to its large amount of size. Therefore it is necessary to rank the topics. The topic ranking should be done on the importance basis. But this importance is determined by how frequently a topic appears and this importance varies in different time slots. For extracting hot topics, most of the text mining approaches with vector space model need to determine the weighting of the feature terms. Existing traditional algorithms can't achieve high accuracy for retrieving hot terms, because they have not considered position, scattering and topicality. This paper presents an innovative and effective hot term extraction by considering position, scattering and topicality of terms along with frequency.
An Architecture Using a Finite Difference Method to Calculate Realistic Sound Equalization in Games

Most games and other interactive virtual environments focus on rendering natural phenomena in the most believable manner by using accurate visuals and physics. However, not much effort has been put into accounting for the physics of sound. The simulation of the real behavior of sound through an environment, when considering the speed of sound, reflection, and absorption, is computationally expensive and is usually left aside. In this work, an algorithm that calculates sound wave propagation using a finite difference method is used and extended to present a novel approach to sound rendering. This approach reaches the objective more quickly, and the sound generated has no perceptible loss of accuracy. The approach is designed to be implemented in GPU architectures and eventually enable real-time results.
Multiuser power allocation for OFDM-based cognitive radio network

An adaptive subcarriers nulling power allocation algorithm for OFDM-based cognitive radio (CR) network was proposed to maximize the total capacity of CR users, with constraints on sum transmit power and the interference introduced to individual primary user on its allocated frequency band. The proposed algorithm considering both CR users' channel states and the interference to primary users (PUs) made an excellent balance between system capacity and interference reduction. Compared to the optimal power allocation algorithm, its computational complexity is significantly reduced. The simulation results show that the proposed algorithm achieves higher capacity than non-nulling power allocation algorithm. We also investigate the effect of the number of nulling subcarriers on system performance.
Modeling market data and technical indicators with Fuzzy Logic to develop a trading algorithm for an individual stock in the Philippines

Historical market data that contains a stock's closing price, volume and technical indicators with corresponding trading signals (buy, sell and hold) is one which we cannot write down a formal mathematical model. Fuzzy Logic enables us to work with such systems that we understand in a qualitative way. This paper proposes the use of Fuzzy Logic to develop a trading algorithm that will provide trading signals for an individual stock in the Philippines using Technical Indicators.
Analogy Based Valuation of Currency Options

The two most intriguing anomalies in currency markets are: 1) the implied volatility smile in currency options, and 2) the forward discount bias in currency exchange rates. I show that if currency options are valued in analogy with the underlying currency and beliefs are heterogeneous, then the forward discount bias causes the smile. The analogy based currency option pricing formula is put forward, which converges to Garman-Kohlhagen formula if there is no forward discount bias. In the presence of the forward discount bias, an increase in belief dispersion increases the slope as well as the curvature of the smile.