Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Angiomotin promotes renal epithelial and carcinoma cell proliferation by retaining the nuclear YAP

Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) is one of the common tumors in the urinary system without effective therapies. Angiomotin (Amot) can interact with Yes-associated protein (YAP) to either stimulate or inhibit YAP activity, playing a potential role in cell proliferation. However, the role of Amot in regulating the proliferation of renal epithelial and RCC cells is unknown. Here, we show that Amot is expressed predominantly in the nucleus of RCC cells and tissues, and in the cytoplasm and nucleus of renal epithelial cells and paracancerous tissues. Furthermore, Amot silencing inhibited proliferation of HK-2 and 786-O cells while Amot upregulation promoted proliferation of ACHN cells. Interestingly, the location of Amot and YAP in RCC clinical samples and cells was similar. Amot interacted with YAP in HK-2 and 786-O cells, particularly in the nucleus. Moreover, Amot silencing mitigated the levels of nuclear YAP in HK-2 and 786-O cells and reduced YAP-related CTGF and Cyr61 expression in 786-O cells. Amot upregulation slightly increased the nuclear YAP and YAP-related gene expression in ACHN cells. Finally, enhanced YAP expression restored proliferation of Amot-silencing 786-O cells. Together, these data indicate that Amot is crucial for the maintenance of nuclear YAP to promote renal epithelial and RCC proliferation.
GPU memory model overview

Read/write to registers • • Read/write to local (stack) memory Read/write to local (stack) memory • • Read/write to global (heap) memory Read/write to global (heap) memory • • Read/write to disk • • Much more restricted memory access Much more restricted memory access • • GPU Kernels GPU Kernels • • Read/write to registers Read/write to registers • • No local stack memory No local stack memory • • No disk access No disk access • • Read Read-only global memory access only global memory access v = v = a[i a[i]; ]; • • Write to global memory at end of pass Write to global memory at end of pass – – Pre Pre-computed memory addresses (no scatter) computed memory addresses (no scatter) i = i = foo(a foo(a);); a[i a[i] = ] = bar(b bar(b);); – – Write location set by fragment position Write location set by fragment position a[fragPos a[fragPos] = ] = bar(b bar(b););
Budget-Driven Resource Provisioning and Scheduling of Scientific Workflow in IaaS Clouds with Fine-Grained Billing Periods

With the advent of cloud computing and the availability of data collected from increasingly powerful scientific instruments, workflows have become a prevailing mean to achieve significant scientific advances at an increased pace. Scheduling algorithms are crucial in enabling the efficient automation of these large-scale workflows and a considerable effort has been made to develop novel heuristics tailored for the cloud resource model. The majority of these algorithms focus on coarse-grained billing periods that are much larger than the average execution time of individual tasks. Instead, our work focuses on emerging finer-grained pricing schemes (e.g. per-minute billing) that provide users with more flexibility and the ability to reduce the inherent wastage that results from coarser-grained ones. We propose a scheduling algorithm whose objective is to optimise a workflow’s execution time under a budget constraint; Quality of Service requirement that has been overlooked in favour of optimising cost under a deadline constraint. Our proposal addresses fundamental challenges of clouds such as resource elasticity, abundance, and heterogeneity, as well as resource performance variation and virtual machine start-up latency. The simulation results demonstrate our algorithm’s responsiveness to environmental uncertainties and its ability to generate high-quality schedules that comply with the budget constraint while achieving faster execution times when compared to state-ofthe-art algorithms. CCS Concepts: rComputing methodologies→ Distributed algorithms;
Real-time 3D Reconstruction on Construction Site using Visual SLAM and UAV

3D reconstruction can be used as a platform to monitor the performance of activities on construction site, such as construction progress monitoring, structure inspection and post-disaster rescue. Comparing to other sensors, RGB image has the advantages of low-cost, texture rich and easy to implement that has been used as the primary method for 3D reconstruction in construction industry. However, the image-based 3D reconstruction always requires extended time to acquire and/or to process the image data, which limits its application on time critical projects. Recent progress in Visual Simultaneous Localization and Mapping (SLAM) make it possible to reconstruct a 3D map of construction site in real-time. Integrated with Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV), the obstacles areas that are inaccessible for the ground equipment can also be sensed. Despite these advantages of visual SLAM and UAV, until now, such technique has not been fully investigated on construction site. Therefore, the objective of this research is to present a pilot study of using visual SLAM and UAV for real-time construction site reconstruction. The system architecture and the experimental setup are introduced, and the preliminary results and the potential applications using Visual SLAM and UAV on construction site are discussed.
Protein D of Haemophilus influenzae is not a universal immunoglobulin D-binding protein

Haemophilus influenzae type b and nontypeable H. influenzae have been reported to bind human immunoglobulin D (IgD). IgD myeloma sera from five patients were tested for the ability of IgD to bind to H. influenzae. Serotype b strains bound human IgD in four of the five sera tested. IgD in the fifth serum bound strongly to type b strain MinnA but poorly to other type b strains. Additionally, IgD binding was not observed when nontypeable strains were tested. The gene for protein D, the putative IgD-binding protein, was cloned from the IgD-binding H. influenzae type b strain MinnA and expressed in Escherichia coli. IgD binding to E. coli expressing protein D was not demonstrable. Recombinant protein D was purified, and antisera were generated in rabbits. Using these rabbit sera, we detected protein D in nontypeable as well as serotype b strains by Western blotting (immunoblotting). In contrast, IgD myeloma protein 4490, which was previously reported to bind to protein D by Ruan and coworkers (M. Ruan, M. Akkoyunlu, A. Grubb, and A. Forsgren, J. Immunol. 145:3379-3384), bound strongly to both type b and nontypeable H. influenzae as well as to E. coli expressing protein D. Thus, IgD binding is a general property of H. influenzae type b strains but not a general property of nontypeable strains, although both type b and nontypeable strains produce protein D. With the exception of IgD myeloma protein 4490 binding, we have no evidence for a role of protein D in IgD binding to H. influenzae.
Fast allocation and deallocation of memory based on object lifetimes

Dynamic storage‐management algorithms are based either on object sizes or object lifetimes. Stack allocation, which is based on object lifetimes, is the most efficient algorithm, but severely restricts object lifetimes and creation times. Other algorithms based on object sizes, such as first fit and related algorithms, permit arbitrary lifetimes but cost more. More efficient variations capitalize on application‐specific characteristics. Quick fit, for example, is more efficient when there are only a few object sizes. This paper describes a simple algorithm that is very efficient when there are few object lifetimes. In terms of instructions executed per byte allocated, the algorithm is almost half the cost of quick fit and less than twice the cost of stack allocation. Space for all objects with the same lifetime is allocated from a list of large arenas, and the entire list is deallocated at once. An implementation in ANSI C is included.
Optimization of an experimental hybrid microgrid operation: Reliability and economic issues

In this paper a hybrid microgrid system, composed of RES (Renewable Energy System) and CHP (Combined Heat and Power) systems together with a battery based storage system is presented. The microgrid is accompanied by a centralized energy management system (CEMS) in order to optimize the microgrid operation both in grid-connected and in stand-alone modes. In grid-connected mode the optimization of the economic exploitation of the microgrid is privileged by applying optimization techniques. In stand-alone mode, management functions are applied to improve the reliability of the facility by means of islanding operation capability. The optimization analysis has been carried out in simulation while the reliability improvement of the microgrid operation has been analyzed in simulation and proven experimentally.
The Self Not Taken: How Alternative Selves Develop and How They Influence Our Professional Lives

This article introduces the construct of alternative selves—self-redefining counterfactuals that are part of the self-concept. This construct adds the parallel time line of what could have been to the temporal framework underlying theories of the self. I discuss how alternative selves develop and how they influence people's professional lives, and I outline the implications of this construct for research on the self-concept, life stories, and counterfactual thinking.
Nickase-dependent isothermal DNA amplification

We developed a nicking endonuclease dependent DNA amplification (NDA), using Nt.BstNBI to catalyze single-stranded nick on double-stranded DNA, and Bst DNA polymerase to make extension while sealing the nick and displacing the downstream strand. The displaced single-stranded DNA thereby serves as template for primers hybridization and extension, resulting in exponential synthesis of target DNA under isothermal condition. Over 105 folds target DNA amplification can be achieved in 30 minutes, generating DNA product suitable for both diagnosis and DNA cloning. This NDA strategy does not require thermal cycling or prerequisite nucleotides modification, making it suitable for application in the field and at the point-of-care.
Volume Image Registration by Cross-Entropy Optimization

Cross-entropy (CE), an information-theoretic measure, quantifies the difference between two probability density functions. This measure is applied to volume image registration. When a good prior estimation of the joint distribution of the voxel values of two images in registration is available, the CE can be minimized to find an optimal registration. If such a prior estimation is not available, one seeks the registration which gives a joint distribution different from unlikely ones as much as possible, i.e., the CE is maximized to find an optimal registration. When the unlikely distribution is a uniform one, CE maximization reduces to joint entropy minimization; when the unlikely distribution is proportional to one of the marginal distributions, it reduces to conditional entropy minimization; when the unlikely distribution is the product of two marginal distributions, it degenerates to mutual-information maximization. These different CEs are added together and are used as criteria for image registration. The accuracy and robustness of this new approach are tested and compared using a likely joint distribution and various unlikely joint distributions and their combinations.
Author's Personal Copy Future Generation Computer Systems Random Local Region Descriptor (rlrd): a New Method for Fixed-length Feature Representation of Fingerprint Image and Its Application to Template Protection

In most cases authors are permitted to post their version of the article (e.g. in Word or Tex form) to their personal website or institutional repository. Authors requiring further information regarding Elsevier's archiving and manuscript policies are encouraged to visit: a b s t r a c t Minutia based features are the most widely used features in fingerprint recognition. However, the minutiae based fingerprint matching algorithms have some drawbacks that limit their applications in template protection. Because the minutia sets are unordered, it is difficult to determine the correspondence between two minutia sets and cannot be used in some known template protection schemes directly (e.g., fuzzy commitment, wrap around). In this paper, we propose a new fixed-length feature representation: random local region descriptor (RLRD) feature. The RLRD feature is extracted by randomly and uniformly selecting a set of points, where the order of points is determined by a random seed. For each point, a real fixed-length feature vector is extracted based on Tico's sampling structure. The real RLRD feature vector can be further transformed into a bit vector for secure sketches working in the Hamming space. The experimental results on FVC2002 DB1 and DB2 show the advantages of the RLRD feature over some other fixed-length fingerprint feature vectors in terms of equal error rate (EER), genuine accept rate (GAR) and false accept rate (FAR). Fingerprint is a widely used biometric modality for its high distinctiveness and performance. Minutia features, including ridge ending and ridge bifurcation, are the most commonly used features in the literature for fingerprint recognition [1]. These features are stable and stay unchanged over an individual's lifetime. The minutia based fingerprint matcher can achieve high recognition performances [2–4]. However, the minutia based fingerprint matchers have some drawbacks which limit their applications in template protection. For example, fuzzy commitment [5] is a well-known template protection scheme which has been applied to many biometrics [6–8]. However, fuzzy commitment and its invariants [9,10] need the input feature representation to be a fixed-length feature vector. Some fixed-length feature extraction methods are presented in the literature and can be roughly divided into two categories: (1) extract fixed-length feature from textual information, also known as the image based fingerprint representation; and (2) extract fixed-length feature by transforming minutia features. Jain, et al., [11] proposed to extract a fixed-length feature vector from the core area, where the region of interest (ROI) was tessellated into …
Mobile devices and intelligent agents — towards a new generation of applications and services

If mobile computing is to become the pre-dominant computer usage paradigm in the coming years as is widely anticipated, a substantial increase in the demand for mobile computing applications and services will arise. How best to engineer such applications remains an open question and is naturally the focus of much research. In this article, we propose the use of intelligent agents as the constituent entities around which such applications and services can be conceptualised and realised. We describe the design and implementation of Gulliver s Genie, an archetypal ubiquitous computing application that commissions a collaborative embedded agents approach. 2004 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Teleprogramming: Overcoming Communication Delays in Remote Manipulation (Dissertation Proposal)

Modern industrial processes (nuclear, chemical industry), public service needs (firefighting, rescuing), and research interests (undersea, outer space exploration) have established a clear need to perform work remotely. Whereas a purely autonomous manipulative capability would solve the problem, its realization is beyond the state of the art in robotics [Stark et al.,1988]. Some of the problems plaguing the development of autonomous systems are: a) anticipation, detection, and correction of the multitude of possible error conditions arising during task execution, b) development of general strategy planning techniques transcending any particular limited task domain, c) providing the robot system with real-time adaptive behavior to accommodate changes in the remote environment, d) allowing for on-line learning and performance improvement through "experience", etc. The classical approach to tackle some of these problems has been to introduce problem solvers and expert systems as part of the remote robot workcell control system. However, such systems tend to be limited in scope (to remain intellectually and implementationally manageable), too slow to be useful in real-time robot task execution, and generally fail to adequately represent and model the complexities of the real world environment. These problems become particularly severe when only partial information about the remote environment is available. Comments University of Pennsylvania Department of Computer and Information Science Technical Report No. MSCIS-90-35. This technical report is available at ScholarlyCommons: https://repository.upenn. edu/cis_reports/550 Teleprogramming: Overcoming Communication Delays In Remote Manipulation MS-CIS-90-35 GRASP-LAB 217
Experience of laparoscopic cholecystectomy during a steep learning curve at a university hospital.

BACKGROUND Cholelithiasis is the most common disease of alimentary tract affecting the adult population globally and our country in particular is no exception to it as a cause of hospitalization. Surgical removal of gall bladder is the main stay of symptomatic cholelithiasis ensuring a permanent cure. The minimally invasive technique of laparoscopic cholecystectomy has gained wide acceptance as a Gold Standard treatment ever since its introduction. The purpose of this prospective observational study was to document our experience of laparoscopic Cholecystectomy during a learning curve in a single unit of a university hospital and compare it with other available data in the literature. METHODS Total 94 patients underwent laparoscopic cholecystectomy during the learning curve from Jan 2009 to Dec 2010 in the Department of Surgery Liaquat University Hospital Jamshoro. RESULTS Mean age was 42 years with females (88.29%) preponderance. Majority of the cases were operated by consultants (85.10%) within 25-60 minutes. Postoperative hospital stay was 3 days with return to work in 7 days. Only 6 (6.38%) cases were converted to open technique. Intra-peritoneal drains and Foley's catheter were kept in selected cases only. Eleven patients (11.70%) had intra-operative complications including complete transaction of CBD in only one (1.06%) male patient. Five patients (5.31%) had postoperative complications with two patients having iatrogenic duodenal injury which was not identified during surgery and pseudo cyst pancreas. Four patients (4.25%) died due to multiple organ failure. CONCLUSION We conclude that Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy is a gold standard procedure and should be learned on virtual simulated models before starting this procedure on human patients.
Role of lipooligosaccharides in experimental dermal lesions caused by Haemophilus ducreyi

The mouse and rabbit intradermal injection models have been used to define factors that may be important in Haemophilus ducreyi pathogenesis. We used H. ducreyi strains with diverse geographic origins and phenotypic characteristics to evaluate the experimental models. Injection of live and heat-killed bacteria caused skin abscesses in both models. Semiquantitative cultures of skin injected with live bacteria showed that H. ducreyi failed to replicate in animal tissue. These data suggested that the experimental lesions were caused by a heat-stable substance such as lipooligosaccharide (LOS). In mice, injection of H. ducreyi and Haemophilus influenzae LOS and Escherichia coli lipopolysaccharide caused mild to moderate inflammation. In rabbits, injection of H. ducreyi LOS caused intradermal abscesses that were histologically similar to those caused by live and heat-killed bacteria. H. ducreyi and Neisseria gonorrhoeae LOS caused significantly larger lesions than equivalent amounts of H. influenzae LOS and E. coli lipopolysaccharide in the rabbit model. We conclude that the intradermal injection models are not valid models to study the growth of H. ducreyi in vivo. However, these data indicate that H. ducreyi LOS may play an important role in the pathogenesis of chancroid and that the rabbit model should be useful in studying H. ducreyi LOS toxicity at the cellular level.
High Performance GaN High Electron Mobility Transistors on Low Resistivity Silicon for  $X$ -Band Applications

This letter reports the RF performance of a 0.3-μm gate length AlGaN/AlN/GaN HEMT realized on a 150-mm diameter low-resistivity (LR) (σ <; 10 Ω · cm) silicon substrate. Short circuit current gain (f<sub>T</sub>) and maximum frequency of oscillation (f<sub>MAX</sub>) of 55 and 121 GHz, respectively, were obtained. To our knowledge, these are the highest f<sub>T</sub>/f<sub>MAX</sub> values reported to date for GaN HEMTs on LR silicon substrates.
New Seismic Data on the State of the Deep Lunar Interior

Direct shear-wave arrivals from seismtic events originating on the far side of the moon are not observed at some of the stations of the Apollo seismic network. These data suggest that the material in the lunar interior at a depth of 1000 to 1100 kilometers is more dissipative for seismic shear waves than the lithosphere above, and possibly exists in a partially molten state akin to the earth's asthenosphere.
The Research of an Improved Algorithm for Active Queue Management with BP

Active Queue Management (AQM) acts as an enhanced mechanism for end-to-end congestion controlling. It can improve the queue length and usability of data links by the method of drop the packets among nodes in the network. In this paper, we describe the background and design indicator for the AQM. We will discuss the current research status for AQM. Then we will focus on some classical AQM algorithm for AQM, such as RED, ARED, BLUE and RLGD. Finally, we will present a new AQM algorithm framework based on modern artificial intelligent knowledge.
An approximation for normal vectors of deformable models

A physically-based deformable model proposed by Terzopoulous et al. is governed by the Lagrange's form, that establishes the relation between the dynamics of deformable models under the influence of applied forces. The net instantaneous potential energy of deformation is derived on the basis of the geometric properties, namely the first and second fundamental forms. For simplicity, the normal vector at each sample point is approximated by the second derivative. We present another approximation for the normal vector which offers better visual simulation. Some comparisons are given.