Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Sybil Detection in Online Social Networks (OSNs)

Peer to peer and distributed systems are generally susceptible to sybil attacks. Online social networks (OSNs), due to their fat user base and open access nature are also prone to such attacks. Current state-of-art algorithms for sybil attack detection make use of the inherent social graph created among registered users of OSN service. They rely on the inherent trust relationship among these users. No effort is made to combine other characteristic behavior of sybil users with properties of social graph of OSNs to improve detection accuracy of sybil attacks. Sybil identities are also used as gateways for spreading spam content in OSNs. The proposed approach exploits this behavior of sybil users to improve detection accuracy of existing sybil detection algorithms. In the proposed approach, content generated/published by each user is used along with the topological properties of the social graph of registered users. A machine learning model is used for assigning a fractional value called "trust value" which denotes the amount of legitimate content generated by the user. A modification to sybil detection algorithm is proposed which makes use of the trust value of each user to improve the accuracy of detecting a sybil identity. Real dataset from Facebook is crawled and used for analysis and experiments. Analytical results show the superiority of proposed solution. Results are compared with SybilGuard and SybilShield which shows ~14% decrease in false positive rates with very minimal effect on acceptance rate or false negative rate of the sybil detection algorithms. Also, the proposed modification does not affect the performance of existing sybil detection algorithms and can be implemented in a distributed manner.
Manga-specific features and latent style model for manga style analysis

A latent style model describing manga styles based on the proposed manga-specific features is constructed to facilitate novel style-based applications. Two manga-specific features, i.e., screentone features showing texture and shade, and panel features showing panel arrangement, are firstly proposed to describe manga pages. Based on the latent Dirichlet allocation technique, we discover latent style elements embedded in manga documents, which are described by visual words derived from manga-specific features. Distributions of style elements are then used to measure similarity between manga documents, and facilitate the development ofvarious style-based applications. Experimental results show that the features and models especially designed for describing manga styles yield promising performance and could bring many potential extensions.
Mutual Exclusivity Analysis of Genetic and Epigenetic Drivers in Melanoma Identifies a Link Between p14ARF and RARβ Signaling

Melanoma genomes contain thousands of alterations including: mutations, copy number alterations, structural aberrations, and methylation changes. The bulk of this variation is stochastic and functionally neutral, with only a small minority representing “drivers” that contribute to the genesis and maintenance of tumors. Drivers are often directly or inversely correlated across tumors, reflecting the molecular and regulatory signaling pathways in which they operate. Here, a profile of genetic and epigenetic drivers in 110 human melanoma cell lines was generated and searched for non-random distribution patterns. Statistically significant mutual exclusivity was revealed among components of each of the p16INK4A-CDK4-RB, RAS-RAF-MEK-ERK and PI3K-AKT signaling pathways. In addition, an inverse correlation was observed between promoter hypermethylation of retinoic acid receptor β (RARB) and CDKN2A alterations affecting p14ARF (P < 0.0001), suggesting a functional link between RARβ signaling and the melanoma-suppressive activities of p14ARF. Mechanistically, all-trans retinoic acid (ATRA) treatment increased the expression of p14ARF in primary human melanocytes and the steady-state levels of p14ARF in these cells were shown to be regulated via RARβ. Furthermore, the ability of ATRA to induce senescence is reduced in p14ARF-depleted melanocytes, and we provide proof-of-concept that ATRA can induce irreversible growth arrest in melanoma cells with an intact RARβ-p14ARF signaling axis, independent of p16INK4A and p53 status. Implications: These data highlight the power of mutual exclusivity analysis of cancer drivers to unravel molecular pathways and establish a previously unrecognized cross-talk between RARβ and p14ARF with potential implications for melanoma treatment. Mol Cancer Res; 11(10); 1166–78. ©2013 AACR.
Context-aware scene recommendation for travel photography

Taking photograph is always a fun part in a trip. It is common that we would like to take different views or scenes in a sightseeing spot. However, due to limited time, we always have missed some nice or popular scenes. This paper proposes a photo-taking application which reminds users with attractive scenes based on the location, photos recently taken, and photos contributed on the Internet. With an analysis of the photos on cloud-based album or social media, we combine the current context of user to recommend other nearby scenes that the user had missed to include in his/her collection. To evaluate our concept, we had tried to implement a prototype system with the use of geographical tags and scene recognition techniques to find out the similarities between photos. This helps us to filter candidate images for suggestion and rank them according to their physical closeness and the estimated popularity.
Product Differentiation and Market Segmentation of Information Goods

Large sunk costs of development, negligible costs of reproduction and distribution and substantial economies of scale make information goods distinct from physical goods. Consequently,how to take advantage of the specific characteristics of information goods is an important managerial problem. Price discrimination and product differentiation are common ways this issue has been addressed. In previous literature, vertical differentiation and related pricing strategies have been researched in contexts such as nonlinear utility functions,network externalities, competition and anti-piracy. Little attention has been paid to the relationship between market segmentation and product differentiation. In this paper, we emphasize the interaction of market segmentation and product differentiation as we believe that any product differentiation must be based on existing market segmentation. In our model, we treat vertical differentiation as a special case of horizontal differentiation, and we model the interaction between different market segments showing the differences in product differentiation strategies when moving from horizontal to vertical differentiation. We find that it is always sub-optimal to differentiate information goods if the market is not fully differentiated or if characteristics of the information goods are not specifically designed for certain market segments. We divide characteristics of information goods into four categories according to the ease of differentiation and design guidelines for firms to differentiate their goods based on these characteristics. We further provide guidance on whether to merge one or several versions when costs for versioning information goods are significant.
Atrial Fibrillation detection on electrocardiogram

The rapid and the irregularity of the electrical activity that characterizes Atrial Fibrillation produce an increase in both variability and complexity of RR intervals series. Based on these two characteristics, we have developed a method combining two nonlinear statistical techniques in order to detect the presence of Atrial Fibrillation. These two nonlinear statistical methods are: Poincare plot which quantifies the variability of RR intervals series and the sample entropy which characterizes the complexity of RR intervals series. We used the MIT-BIH Atrial Fibrillation database to train the algorithm to seek for thresholds and segment length and then we tested it on the MIT-BIH Arrhythmia database. Using these parameters determined by Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curves, we achieved Se=99.65% and Sp=99.33% for the MIT-BIH Atrial Fibrillation database and we obtained Se=97.91% and Sp=92.72% for the MIT-BIH Arrhythmia database. The proposed method is compared to “Dash's” detection one. For the Dash's method, its sensitivity and specificity are less important than ours (Se=98.53% and Sp=95.81% for the MIT-BIH Atrial Fibrillation database. For the MIT-BIH Arrhythmia database, Se=97.43% and Sp=89.86%).
Mice Null for Calsequestrin 1 Exhibit Deficits in Functional Performance and Sarcoplasmic Reticulum Calcium Handling

In skeletal muscle, the release of calcium (Ca2+) by ryanodine sensitive sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) Ca2+ release channels (i.e., ryanodine receptors; RyR1s) is the primary determinant of contractile filament activation. Much attention has been focused on calsequestrin (CASQ1) and its role in SR Ca2+ buffering as well as its potential for modulating RyR1, the L-type Ca2+ channel (dihydropyridine receptor, DHPR) and other sarcolemmal channels through sensing luminal [Ca2+]. The genetic ablation of CASQ1 expression results in significant alterations in SR Ca2+ content and SR Ca2+ release especially during prolonged activation. While these findings predict a significant loss-of-function phenotype in vivo, little information on functional status of CASQ1 null mice is available. We examined fast muscle in vivo and in vitro and identified significant deficits in functional performance that indicate an inability to sustain contractile activation. In single CASQ1 null skeletal myofibers we demonstrate a decrease in voltage dependent RyR Ca2+ release with single action potentials and a collapse of the Ca2+ release with repetitive trains. Under voltage clamp, SR Ca2+ release flux and total SR Ca2+ release are significantly reduced in CASQ1 null myofibers. The decrease in peak Ca2+ release flux appears to be solely due to elimination of the slowly decaying component of SR Ca2+ release, whereas the rapidly decaying component of SR Ca2+ release is not altered in either amplitude or time course in CASQ1 null fibers. Finally, intra-SR [Ca2+] during ligand and voltage activation of RyR1 revealed a significant decrease in the SR[Ca2+]free in intact CASQ1 null fibers and a increase in the release and uptake kinetics consistent with a depletion of intra-SR Ca2+ buffering capacity. Taken together we have revealed that the genetic ablation of CASQ1 expression results in significant functional deficits consistent with a decrease in the slowly decaying component of SR Ca2+ release.
SIMULATING WAVES IN THE UPPER SOLAR ATMOSPHERE WITH SURYA: A WELL-BALANCED HIGH-ORDER FINITE-VOLUME CODE

We consider the propagation of waves in a stratified non-isothermal magnetic atmosphere. The situation of interest corresponds to waves in the outer solar (chromosphere and corona) and other stellar atmospheres. The waves are simulated by using a high-resolution, well-balanced finite-volume-based massively parallel code named SURYA. Numerical experiments in both two and three space dimensions involving realistic temperature distributions, driving forces, and magnetic field configurations are described. Diverse phenomena such as mode conversion, wave acceleration at the transition layer, and driving-dependent wave dynamics are observed. We obtain evidence for the presence of coronal Alfvén waves in some three-dimensional configurations. Although some of the incident wave energy is transmitted into the corona, a large proportion of it is accumulated in the chromosphere, providing a possible mechanism for chromospheric heating.
The Swedish Exercise Self-Efficacy Scale (ESES-S): reliability and validity in a rheumatoid arthritis population

Abstract Purpose: The aim of the present study was to investigate aspects of reliability and validity of the Exercise Self-Efficacy Scale (ESES-S) in a rheumatoid arthritis (RA) population. Methods: A total of 244 people with RA participating in a physical activity stkudy were included. The six-item ESES-S, exploring confidence in performing exercise, was assessed for test–retest reliability over 4–6 months, and for internal consistency. Construct validity investigated correlation with similar and other constructs. Results: An intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) of 0.59 (95% CI 0.37–0.73) was found for 84 participants with stable health perceptions between measurement occasions. Cronbach’s alpha coefficients of 0.87 and 0.89 were found at the first and second measurements. Corrected item-total correlation single ESES-S items ranged between 0.53 and 0.73. Construct convergent validity for the ESES-S was partly confirmed by correlations with health-enhancing physical activity and outcome expectations respectively (Pearson’s r = 0.18, p < 0.01). Construct divergent validity was confirmed by the absence of correlations with age or gender. No floor or ceiling effects were found for ESES-S. Conclusions: The results indicate that the ESES-S has moderate test–retest reliability and respectable internal consistency in people with RA. Construct validity was partially supported in the present sample. Further research on construct validity of the ESES-S is recommended. Implications for Rehabilitation Physical exercise is crucial for management of symptoms and co-morbidity in rheumatoid arthritis. Self-efficacy for exercise is important to address in rehabilitation as it regulates exercise motivation and behavior. Measurement properties of self-efficacy scales need to be assessed in specific populations and different languages.
Research on servo tracking performance of flight simulator

Because the flight simulator works in different environment for simulating various flight attitudes, the different control algorithm is used for improving the dynamic and static performance. The neural network has good self-learning and self-adaptive, and PID has good robustness, so the adaptive controller based on neural network and PID is used to overcome the coupling inertia and imbalance torque when simulator worked in high speed or large range. And the friction compensation based model reference adaptive control is adopted in low speed status. It has good stability and precision because of using the Stribeck model and Lyapunov stability theory. In order to prove the effectiveness of this controller, experiments have been done.
Scalable and fast approximate excess rate detection

An important requirement in high speed network monitoring is the fast and scalable identification of heavy-hitters, traffic flows whose generation rate exceeds some pre-established peak or mean rate conditions. This problem has been addressed in the past through the design of approximate counters, derived from counting Bloom filters, capable of performing this task without the need to keep per-flow state. This paper presents an enhancement to the primitive operation used in this approach. We demonstrate an approximate excess rate detector, which exhibits faster operation and significant memory savings. Our construction can detect both flows which exceed a given average long term transmission rate as well as burst patterns exceeding a predetermined configuration threshold. We show that there exists a tight relationship between the configuration parameter of an approximate excess rate detector and that of a token bucket. We further provide dimensioning guidelines highlighting the detector's relationship with the aggregate traffic rate and the number of hitters.
Factors Influencing Perceived Benefits Derived from Internet Use for Travel Planning: A Technology Use Model

The Internet has been widely adopted by travelers in the US for the purpose of planning and booking travel. Thus, the question is no longer if individuals use the Internet but how their current use influences benefits derived from using the technology for travel planning. While technology adoption has been extensively studied within the context of the technology acceptance model paradigm, no theoretical model has been proposed to guide technology use studies. This paper proposes the Technology Use Model (TUM) as a theoretical framework to guide the study of continuing technology use. The model proposes that use skills, extent of use and type of use influence benefits derived from use. A survey of US Internet users was conducted to test the model. The findings show that use skills, extent of use and more sophisticated use are significantly related to greater benefits derived from use.
OntoHop: An information filtering agent using hopfield nets and ontologies

The size of the Web and its dynamic nature in addition to the fact that stored documents are written in natural language, and therefore intended to be read by people and not to be processed by computers, present major challenges to build automatic personalized information filtering systems. This article presents the architecture of an information filtering agent based on an implementation of a Hopfield neural network (HNN). Network nodes (neurons) represent relevant terms in the domain of interest and neuronal links represent asymmetric probabilities of term co-occurrences in the domain, or the relevance weight between a pair of terms. Relevant terms are automatically derived from a corpus related to the domain of interest using automatic indexing and an ontology. Co-occurrence probabilities are computed by a cluster function that produces asymmetric links between terms. At the moment of document filtering, input neurons are activated on the basis of the presence of terms in the document that are identical or semantically similar to the terms stored in the net. The semantic similarity between terms is calculated using a hierarchical ontology that describes concepts that exist in the domain of interest. Experiments conducted to evaluate the precision and recall of the agent with and without the use of ontologies show that ontology use tends to favor recall over precision. The degree to which this bias occurs can be adjusted by setting the minimum level of similarity required to consider a document and a network term similar.
National de la lS 292 : a novel insertion element from A grobacterium

A new insertion sequence, 15292, located in the 6b gene of a nopaline-type Agrobacterium strain (X88-292) isolated from poplar was identified and sequenced. IS292 is 2494 bp long, has 21 bp inverted terminal repeats with two mismatches, and generates 10 bp direct repeats upon integration. No sequence similarity was found between IS292 and other insertion elements associated with Agrobacterium, but it shows strong similarity with lSRI7 from Rhizobium leguminosamm bv. viciae. The occurrence of IS292-like sequences in various Agrobacterium isolates, especially different Agrobacterium strains isolated from the same biotope, was demonstrated by DNA hybridization.
Recognizing Continuous Social Engagement Level in Dyadic Conversation by Using Turn-taking and Speech Emotion Patterns

Recognizing social interests plays an important role of aiding human-computer interaction and human collaborative works. The recognition of social interest could be of great help to determine the smoothness of the interaction, which could be an indicator for group work performance and relationship. From socio-psychological theories, social engagement is the observable form of inner social interest, and represented as patterns of turn-taking and speech emotion during a face-to-face conversation. With these two kinds of features, a multi-layer learning structure is proposed to model the continuous trend of engagement. The level of engagement is classified into “high” and “low” two levels according to human-annotated score. In the result of assessing two-level engagemet, the highest accuracy of our model can reach 79.1%.
Securi CAD by Foreseeti: A CAD Tool for Enterprise Cyber Security Management

This paper presents a CAD tool for enterprise cyber security management called securi CAD. It is a software developed during ten years of research at KTH Royal Institute of Technology, and it is now being commercialized by foreseeti (a KTH spin-off company). The idea of the tool is similar to CAD tools used when engineers design and test cars, buildings, etc. Specifically, the securi CAD user first models the IT environment, an existing one or one under development, and then securi CAD, using attack graphs, calculates and highlights potential weaknesses and avenues of attacks. The main benefits with securi CAD are, 1) built in security expertise, 2) visualization, 3) holistic security assessments, and 4) scenario comparison (decision-making) capabilities.
Multi-level Crypto Disk : Secondary Storage with Improved Performance vs Security Trade-offs

Hard disk drives are becoming increasingly vulnerable to security attacks as they are now accessed remotely, attached to mobile devices or used in other previously unanticipated operating environments. Protecting data while at rest has emerged as a chief concern for storage vendors who have introduced secure disks in the market. These devices are capable of encrypting data on the fly before recording on the media. In this work, we show the inadequacies of current single level encryption hard disk drives in exploiting performance vs security trade-offs and propose secure disks with multiple crypto levels. We focus on modeling such devices and propose stochastically optimal policies to dynamically select crypto levels for disk data in order to maximize a notion of security that we call ”goodness of Security” while adhering to performance bounds. Simulation studies using synthetic and real disk traces show that our proposed policies achieve better levels of security than the best current practices without violating the performance bounds.
Adaptations to the Whole of Government Approach by the United States Department of State

Abstract : This study examines adaptations made by State, on adherence to directives requiring coordination with other USG departments and agencies, to effectively respond to current and future national security threats. Without the staff, tools, and training necessary to perform the required tasks, State is unable to fulfill wholly its role, as stipulated in Presidential Directives. Considering the global landscape, there is no way State can successfully perform some of the critical tasks stipulated in the Presidential Directives related to the "Whole of Government" approach, without extensively increased resources to fill capability gaps.