Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Colyseus: A Distributed Architecture for Online Multiplayer Games

This paper presents the design, implementation, and evaluation of Colyseus, a distributed architecture for interactive multiplayer games. Colyseus takes advantage of a game's tolerance for weakly consistent state and predictable workload to meet the tight latency constraints of game-play and maintain scalable communication costs. In addition, it provides a rich distributed query interface and effective prefetching subsystem to help locate and replicate objects before they are accessed at a node. We have implemented Colyseus and modified Quake II, a popular first person shooter game, to use it. Our measurements of Quake II and our own Colyseus-based game with hundreds of players shows that Colyseus effectively distributes game traffic across the participating nodes, allowing Colyseus to support low-latency game-play for an order of magnitude more players than existing single server designs, with similar per-node bandwidth costs.
Synthesizing Deep Neural Network Architectures using Biological Synaptic Strength Distributions

In this work, we perform an exploratory study on synthesizing deep neural networks using biological synaptic strength distributions, and the potential influence of different distributions on modelling performance particularly for the scenario associated with small data sets. Surprisingly, a CNN with convolutional layer synaptic strengths drawn from biologically-inspired distributions such as log-normal or correlated center-surround distributions performed relatively well suggesting a possibility for designing deep neural network architectures that do not require many data samples to learn, and can sidestep current training procedures while maintaining or boosting modelling performance.
Fluoroquinolone-Resistant Streptococcus pneumoniae in Spain: Activities of Garenoxacin against Clinical Isolates Including Strains with Altered Topoisomerases

ABSTRACT The activity of garenoxacin was assessed against 412 Streptococcus pneumoniae isolates (49.3% from the adult population). Overall penicillin, erythromycin, and ciprofloxacin (MIC, ≥4 μg/ml) resistance was 51.7, 35.4, and 1.5%, respectively. For all isolates, the garenoxacin MIC was ≤1 μg/ml. Amino acid replacements in GryA (Ser81→Phe or Tyr), ParC (Ser79→Phe or Tyr; Asp83→Gly; Lys137→Asn), and ParE (Ile460→Val; Asp435→Asn), alone or in combination, were ascribed to the reduced garenoxacin susceptibility (MIC range, 0.5 to 1 μg/ml) found in four isolates. The low impact of these mutations on garenoxacin activity envisages the possible coverage of S. pneumoniae populations resistant to preexisting quinolones.
Invariants Extraction Method Applied in an Omni-language Old Document Navigating System

We are currently working on the concept of an omni script and interactive word retrieval system for ancient document collection navigation, based on query composition for non-expert users. To make the query, the user selects and composes writing pieces, which are invariants automatically extracted from the old document collection. In order to extract invariants from documents, strokes must be first extracted and clustered. Stroke extraction raises two main difficulties: detecting the ambiguous zones so as to extract primary strokes (writing pieces which do not contain any ambiguous zone) and grouping the primary strokes so as to form invariants. In this paper, we present existing methods for ambiguity zones detection and compare these methods on documents of different languages and periods to find out which one is more adapted in our context. Once ambiguous zones have been extracted, some neighboring primary strokes are grouped so as to obtain strokes and our clustering algorithm is applied over these strokes to find their representatives, i.e. the invariants. These invariants can further be used by the user to compose his/her query and to retrieve words from the document collection.
Dynamic multi-priority control in redundant robotic systems1

SUMMARY This paper presents a dynamic-level control algorithm to meet simultaneously multiple desired tasks based on allocated priorities for redundant robotic systems. It is shown that this algorithm can be treated as a general framework to achieve control over the whole body of the robot. The control law is an extension of the well-known acceleration-based control to the redundant robots, and considers also possible interactions with the environment occurring at any point of the robot body. The stability of this algorithm is shown and some of the previously developed results are formulated using this approach. To handle the interaction on robot body, null space impedance control is developed within the multi-priority framework. The effectiveness of the proposed approaches is evaluated by means of computer simulation.
Effects of Cooperation Policy and Network Topology on Performance of In-Network Caching

In-network caching is a key component in information-centric networking. In this paper we show that there is a tradeoff between two common caching metrics, byte hit rate and footprint reduction, and show that a cooperation policy can adjust this tradeoff. We model the cooperation policy with only two parameters - search radius r and number of copies in the network K. These two parameters represent the range of cooperation and tolerance of duplicates. We show how cooperation policy impacts content distribution, and further illustrate the relation between content popularity and topological properties. Our work leads many implications on how to take advantage of topological properties in in-network caching strategy design.
Oxygen 1s x-ray-absorption edges of transition-metal oxides.

On a mesure les limites d'absorption des rayons X de l'oxygene 1s d'une serie d'oxydes de metaux de transition 3d. Les structures a la limite naissent du melange covalent des etats du metal et de l'oxygene, ce qui introduit le caractere p de l'oxygene dans les etats inoccupes du caractere metallique principal. Les donnees sont analysees en termes de champ de coordinat et de decomposition d'echange
New results on Control by Interconnection and Energy-Balancing Passivity-Based Control of port-hamiltonian systems

In this paper we present some new results on two energy-shaping controllers for port-Hamiltonian (pH) systems: Control by Interconnection (CbI) and Energy-Balancing Passivity-Based Control (EB-PBC). The work is motivated by two recent developments, first, the identification of a novel class of passive outputs for pH systems. Second, the observation that allowing the energy function of the controller used in CbI to depend on the state of the system to be controlled also generates new passive outputs. As shown here, using these passive outputs gives additional degrees of freedom for the design of CbI and EB-PBC to make both techniques more widely applicable. Another contribution of the paper is to provide an unified framework for the design of the various forms of CbI and EB-PBC reported in the literature, objective that is achieved viewing EB-PBC as a particular instance of CbI with regulated sources.
The MSLT: More objections than benefits as a diagnostic gold standard?

1027 Editorial—Mayer and Lammers In this issue of SLEEP, Goldbart and colleagues take a close look at the validity of the results concerning REM latency (RL) and mean sleep latency (MSL) from repeated nocturnal polysomnographies (NPSG) and multiple sleep latency tests (MSLTs) performed in subjects of the Wisconsin Sleep Cohort Study.1 Since the year 2000, NPSGs and MSLTs in this large cohort study have been performed every four years. In 2006, Mignot et al. reported on the prevalence and correlates of SOREMPs in 289 males and 267 females. They found multiple SOREMPs in 13.1% of males and 5.6% of females. MSL ≤ 8 min and ≥ 2 SOREMPs were observed in 5.9% males and 1.1% females, all without cataplexy. SOREMPs were not related to age, body mass index, depression or apneic events during sleep, but they were associated with shift work, short sleep, and decreased mean lowest oxygen saturation in males. From these data, the authors concluded the existence of a high prevalence of narcolepsy without cataplexy, and a large number of false positives for the MSLT.2 In contrast to the study by Mignot et al.,2 the report by Goldbart in this issue of SLEEP evaluated the stability over time of positive MSLT and SOREMP in NPSG as indicators for narcolepsy in a much larger population sample of 1,518 subjects. The recruitment for the repeat MSLT has a certain bias, as subjects having more than 1 SOREMP were more likely to be included. Cataplexy was scored if it occurred at least once per month when laughing, or telling or hearing a joke. The prevalence of multiple SOREMPs was 7%, while the prevalence of MSL < 8 min on the MSLT was 22%, and the prevalence of the combination of the two was 3.4%. 1 Consistent with the earlier study by Mignot,2 the percentages found by Goldbart were higher in males than in females. Shift work had a major impact on the results, whereas sleep deprivation only had influence on sleep latencies, not on SOREMPs. Goldbart found that 0.9% of subjects were identified as having cataplexy. Three subjects were concluded to suffer from narcolepsy without cataplexy based on stable complaints and stable MSLT results, and one subject was thought to have narcolepsy with cataplexy. Goldbart found that the stability of repeated MSLT results after 4 years, as assessed by κ statistics, was extremely low, even after ruling out confounders. This finding is very disappointing, as the MSLT is considered as one of the most EDITORIAL
An Ontology for a National CyberSecurity Culture Environment

The modern-day use of cyberspace has created a world that is increasingly relying on online services to operate. Nevertheless, cyberspace has a ‘dark side’; as there are many risks associated it. This ‘dark side’ has called for safety and security measures to be implemented through cyber security. As such, cultivating a supportive culture is perceived to be an important contributing factor to cyber security. For this reason, many nations aspire to cultivate a culture of cyber security amongst all the users of cyberspace. However, what is lacking currently is a well-defined and delineated definition of the cyber-security culture domain. To define this domain, this paper proposes a national cyber-security culture ontology.
Students with Emotional and Behavior Disorders: An Introduction for Teachers and Other Helping Professionals

1. Context of Emotional and Behavior Disorders of Students. 2. Historical Framework. 3. Assessment and Classification. 4. Patterns of Emotional and Behavior Disorders. 5. Extreme Emotional and Behavior Disorders. 6. Biological and Psychosocial Influences. 7. Psychodynamic Theory and Intervention. 8. Behavioral Theory and Intervention. 9. Cognitive Theory and Intervention. 10. Sociological, Ecological, and Values-Based/Spiritual Theory and Intervention. 11. Intervention in the Education System. 12. Intervention in Other Systems. Name Index. Subject Index.
Statistical segmentation of multidimensional brain datasets

This paper presents an automatic segmentation procedure for MRI neuroimages that overcomes part of the problems involved in multidimensional clustering techniques like partial volume effects (PVE), processing speed and difficulty of incorporating a priori knowledge. The method is a three-stage procedure: 1) Exclusion of background and skull voxels using threshold-based region growing techniques with fully automated seed selection. 2) Expectation Maximization algorithms are used to estimate the probability density function (PDF) of the remaining pixels, which are assumed to be mixtures of gaussians. These pixels can then be classified into cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), white matter and grey matter. Using this procedure, our method takes advantage of using the full covariance matrix (instead of the diagonal) for the joint PDF estimation. On the other hand, logistic discrimination techniques are more robust against violation of multi-gaussian assumptions. 3) A priori knowledge is added using Markov Random Field techniques. The algorithm has been tested with a dataset of 30 brain MRI studies (co-registered T1 and T2 MRI). Our method was compared with clustering techniques and with template-based statistical segmentation, using manual segmentation as a gold-standard. Our results were more robust and closer to the gold-standard.
Determining the moderating impact of lecturer support on the relationship between students' absorptive capacity, motivation and knowledge transfer

The objective of this study is to examine the moderating impact of lecturer support on the relationship between students’ absorptive capacity and motivation, and knowledge transfer effectiveness involving academic underprepared students in community colleges. A total of 387 self-administered questionnaires were distributed to these students. The findings suggested that the independent variables have significant relationships with the dependent variable. However, lecturer support showed no statistically significant moderating impact on each of the relationship involving students’ absorptive capacity and motivation. This study has provided insights into improving knowledge transfer effectiveness, one of it being the importance of right intervention. Finally, the implications of the findings on both theory and current practices are also discussed.
Who's in and who's out? Studying the effects of communication management on social cohesion

Purpose – This paper aims at providing a theoretical perspective to study the effects of the communication management/public relations of organizations on the social cohesion of individuals, groups and societies.Design/methodology/approach – The possible connections between communication management and social cohesion, social integration and diversity are explored by looking at the concept of social capital. After discussing aspects of the hypothesis of decreasing social capital and of the hypothesis of increasing contingency of Western societies, questions are raised about the societal role of communication management as a profession that is usually described as being concerned with building relations. To study questions like these empirically, the actor network theory (ANT) is suggested as an analytical perspective and a methodological approach to elaborate the position of reflective communication management.Findings – ANT or the sociology of associations seems a suitable theoretical perspective for stu.
Children with Motor Impairments Play a Kinect Learning Game: First Findings from a Pilot Case in an Authentic Classroom Environment

This paper presents the first very positive findings from an empirical study about the effectiveness of the use of a Kinect learning game for children with gross motor skills problems and motor impairments. This game follows the principles of a newly presented approach, called Kinems, which advocates that special educators and therapists should use learning games that via embodied touchless interaction – thanks to the Microsoft Kinect camera- children with dyspraxia and other related disorders such as autism, Asperger’s Syndrome, and Attention Deficit Disorder, can improve related skills. Several Kinems games have been proposed (http://www.kinems.com). These games are innovative and are played with hand and body gestures. Kinems suggests that games should be highly configurable so that a teacher can modify the settings (e.g. difficult level, time settings, etc.) for the individual needs of each child. Also, a teacher should have access to kinetic and learning analytics of the child’s interaction progress and achievements should be safely stored and vividly presented.
State of the Ethics in Visual Anthropology

Rooted in anthropologists’ long-standing roles as producers, users, and disseminators of images, this brief article takes the pulse of ethical considerations related to visual media in the discipline. Reflecting on the intent, content, and implications of the Society for Visual Anthropology–sponsored visual ethics discussion sessions at the 2007–9 American Anthropological Association meetings, we seek here to situate these events in the context of recent disciplinary engagements with image-based responsibilities and to assess their relationship to comparable endeavors in allied fields. Our considerations come together in a discussion of why, how, and to whom visual ethics matter. Ultimately, we put forward a series of tentative proposals for the Society for Visual Anthropology’s future navigation of these issues. [Key words: anthropological responsibility, imagery, visual data, visual ethics, visual media]
APOE-dependent phenotypes in subjects with mild cognitive impairment converting to Alzheimer's disease.

BACKGROUND The E4 isoform of the APOE genotype is the most significant genetic risk factor for sporadic Alzheimer's disease (AD) and has recently been found to modulate disease expression in patients with AD. OBJECTIVE To investigate APOE-dependent cognitive and structural phenotypes in subjects with mild cognitive impairment who converted to AD within the following three years. METHODS Subjects converting to AD (n = 63) were compared to a control group with stable mild cognitive impairment (n = 131). Clinical, neuropsychological, and MRI data were obtained by the German Dementia Competence Network. Subgroups of converting and stable APOE E4 carriers and non-carriers were investigated longitudinally with MRI to examine structural correlates of conversion. Voxel-based morphometry was applied to investigate gray matter distribution. RESULTS At baseline, executive performance correlated with global and bilateral prefrontal gray matter volume and predicted conversion only among non-carriers. Converting carriers and non-carriers presented distinct patterns of brain atrophy on longitudinal analysis, in line with a dissociation between more pronounced occipital atrophy in carriers and more frontoparietal volume loss in non-carriers at follow-up. CONCLUSIONS The current findings suggest that in APOE E4 non-carriers with AD, executive dysfunction is closely linked to frontal gray matter atrophy and predictive of progression to dementia. The results are consistent with APOE genotype-dependent profiles of structural damage and cognitive decline in patients with imminent conversion to AD.
Aggregate Clearance of α-Synuclein in Saccharomyces cerevisiae Depends More on Autophagosome and Vacuole Function Than on the Proteasome*

Background: The hallmark of Parkinson disease is α-synuclein aggregation, whose cytotoxic effects are reproducible in yeast. Results: α-Synuclein aggregate clearance is impaired by vacuolar protease inhibitor PMSF but not by proteasome inhibitor MG132. Conclusion: Yeast recovers from α-synuclein-induced toxicity by clearing aggregates via autophagy and vacuolar pathways. Significance: The data provide insight into the mechanisms used by yeast cells to clear toxic aggregated proteins. Parkinson disease is the second most common neurodegenerative disease. The molecular hallmark is the accumulation of proteinaceous inclusions termed Lewy bodies containing misfolded and aggregated α-synuclein. The molecular mechanism of clearance of α-synuclein aggregates was addressed using the bakers' yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae as the model. Overexpression of wild type α-synuclein or the genetic variant A53T integrated into one genomic locus resulted in a gene copy-dependent manner in cytoplasmic proteinaceous inclusions reminiscent of the pathogenesis of the disease. In contrast, overexpression of the genetic variant A30P resulted only in transient aggregation, whereas the designer mutant A30P/A36P/A76P neither caused aggregation nor impaired yeast growth. The α-synuclein accumulation can be cleared after promoter shut-off by a combination of autophagy and vacuolar protein degradation. Whereas the proteasomal inhibitor MG-132 did not significantly inhibit aggregate clearance, treatment with phenylmethylsulfonyl fluoride, an inhibitor of vacuolar proteases, resulted in significant reduction in clearance. Consistently, a cim3-1 yeast mutant restricted in the 19 S proteasome regulatory subunit was unaffected in clearance, whereas an Δatg1 yeast mutant deficient in autophagy showed a delayed aggregate clearance response. A cim3-1Δatg1 double mutant was still able to clear aggregates, suggesting additional cellular mechanisms for α-synuclein clearance. Our data provide insight into the mechanisms yeast cells use for clearing different species of α-synuclein and demonstrate a higher contribution of the autophagy/vacuole than the proteasome system. This contributes to the understanding of how cells can cope with toxic and/or aggregated proteins and may ultimately enable the development of novel strategies for therapeutic intervention.
Molecular architecture of the ATP‐dependent CodWX protease having an N‐terminal serine active site

CodWX in Bacillus subtilis is an ATP‐dependent, N‐terminal serine protease, consisting of CodW peptidase and CodX ATPase. Here we show that CodWX is an alkaline protease and has a distinct molecular architecture. ATP hydrolysis is required for the formation of the CodWX complex and thus for its proteolytic function. Remarkably, CodX has a ‘spool‐like’ structure that is formed by interaction of the intermediate domains of two hexameric or heptameric rings. In the CodWX complex, CodW consisting of two stacked hexameric rings (WW) binds to either or both ends of a CodX double ring (XX), forming asymmetric (WWXX) or symmetric cylindrical particles (WWXXWW). CodWX can also form an elongated particle, in which an additional CodX double ring is bound to the symmetric particle (WWXXWWXX). In addition, CodWX is capable of degrading EzrA, an inhibitor of FtsZ ring formation, implicating it in the regulation of cell division. Thus, CodWX appears to constitute a new type of protease that is distinct from other ATP‐dependent proteases in its structure and proteolytic mechanism.
Children for Social Justice

It is often assumed that children lack the developed capacity to understand complicated political issues (for example, Arendt, 1959; Pearce, 2011; and Warmington, 2012a, 2012b). This assumption is contested through a review of the literature examining adult conceptions the child, and children’s rights to political participation, citizenship, and direct representation (Steffler, 2009; Wall & Dar, 2011; Wyness, Harrison, & Buchanan, 2004). A variety of historical and contemporary examples of children engaging in social justice campaigns and movements are provided (Elshtain, 1996; Milstein, 2010; Smith, 2012; Traubman, 2005; Bergmar, 2010). A potential means for supporting children in social justice engagement is explored through social justice education (Dover, 2009; Kelly & Brooks, 2009).
Event Processing in Action

Unlike traditional information systems which work by issuing requests and waiting for responses, event-driven systems are designed to process events as they occur, allowing the system to observe, react dynamically, and issue personalized data depending on the recipient and situation. Event Processing in Action introduces the major concepts of event-driven architectures and shows how to use, design, and build event processing systems and applications. Written for working software architects and developers, the book looks at practical examples and provides an in-depth explanation of their architecture and implementation. Since patterns connect the events that occur in any system, the book also presents common event-driven patterns and explains how to detect and implement them. Throughout the book, readers follow a comprehensive use case that incorporates all event processing programming styles in practice today.