Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Analytic probability distributions for snow‐dominated streamflow

We propose a novel analytical description of the streamflow probability distribution functions (pdfs) in Alpine catchments characterized by pronounced, snow‐dominated winter low flows. Knowledge about such hydrological regimes is crucial for water resources management in mountain environments and the related wide range of socio‐economic, environmental and ecological services. We use a stochastic framework, generalizing that employed by Botter et al. (2007b), to link precipitation (rain and snow) and streamflow dynamics. The effect of snow dynamics on the flow regime is specifically included by incorporating the temporary disconnection of high‐elevation areas that experience freezing conditions over the entire winter season, and the delay produced on streamflow formation by the temporary accumulation (and later melting) of snow at lower elevations. The novel analytical model employs four parameters that can be directly estimated from observed discharge, precipitation and air temperatures, and one calibration parameter (the elevation threshold z* delimiting catchment areas with a permanent seasonal snow cover that is nonresponsive during winter owing to snow accumulation without melt). We test the developed model for 14 catchments with contrasting hydroclimatic conditions, located in the Swiss and the Italian Alps. Overall, the proposed analytic model reproduces the observed streamflow pdfs remarkably well. Exceptions exist, though, and the possible origin of deviations between observed and modeled pdfs are discussed. We suggest that our approach marks a progress toward the general statistical characterization of catchment streamflow variability.
Quantifying the supply-side benefits from forward contracting in wholesale electricity markets

The assumption of expected profit-maximizing bidding behavior in a multi-unit, multi-period auction with step-function supply curves is used to estimate cost functions for electricity generation units and derive tests of expected profit-maximizing behavior. Applying these techniques to data from the National Electricity Market in Australia reveals statistically significant evidence of output-dependent marginal costs within and across half-hours of the day, but no evidence against the hypothesis of expected profit-maximizing behavior. These cost function estimates quantify the economic significance of output-varying costs and how forward financial contract obligations impact the amount of these costs the generation unit owner incurs. This supplier's existing obligations imply average daily production costs that are 8% lower than the profit-maximizing pattern of output with no forward contract obligations. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Improving energy efficiency of asymmetric chip multithreaded multiprocessors through reduced OS noise scheduling

The performance of the emerging chip multithreaded symmetric multiprocessors (SMPs) is of great importance to the high performance computing community. However, the growing power consumption of such systems is of increasing concern, and techniques that can be used to increase the overall system power efficiency while sustaining the performance are very desirable. Operating system (OS) noise can have a dramatic effect on the system performance. Effectively handling the smaller OS tasks while simultaneously preserving application thread synchronicity leads to gains in the overall system efficiency. Recently, under a fixed power budget, asymmetric multiprocessors (AMP) have been proposed to improve the performance of multithreaded applications. An AMP in this context is a multiprocessor system in which its processors are not operating at the same frequency. This paper proposes two simple scheduling methods that reduce the impact of OS noise, while simultaneously taking advantage of an opportunity to increase the overall machine energy efficiency on AMP servers. Prototyping AMPs on a commercial 2‐way dual‐core Hyper‐Threaded (HT) Intel Xeon SMP server, using real power measurements across six SPEC OpenMP applications, indicates that the first proposed scheduler performs better on average for HT‐enabled systems, whereas the second scheduler is superior on average for HT‐disabled systems. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
On the Eigenvalue-Based Spectrum Sensing and Secondary User Throughput

In this paper, we study the tradeoff between sensing time and achievable throughput of the secondary user that employs robust eigenvalue-based spectrum sensing techniques in the presence of noise uncertainty. First, we study exact distributions of the test statistics for two types of robust eigenvalue-based sensing techniques, namely, the blind generalized likelihood ratio test (B-GLRT) detection and energy with minimum eigenvalue (EME) detection. The developed threshold setting is more accurate than benchmark methods in achieving a target constant false alarm rate (CFAR). Second, prior to the throughput analysis, the necessary asymptotic detection and false alarm probabilities under noise uncertainty are formulated for eigenvalue-based detectors such as maximum eigenvalue detection (MED) and maximum-minimum eigenvalue (MME) detection. Finally, the throughput is maximized using eigenvalue-based spectrum sensing techniques which are B-GLRT, EME, MME, and MED detectors. The results are compared with the commonly used energy detector (ED). An improved achievable throughput is obtained under low-signal-to-noise-ratio (SNR) regime by incorporating the robust eigenvalue-based techniques, which are insusceptible to noise uncertainty.
Indoor Localization Utilizing Tracking Scanners and Motion Sensors

In this paper, we propose a new method of highly-accurate mobile phone tracking using infrastructure-based laser-tracking sensors called laser-range scanners (LRS) and pedestrian DR (PDR) on the mobile phones. Each mobile phone continuously obtains readings from accelerometers and gyro sensors to detect moving distance and direction change (PDR information), while the phone user is accurately tracked anonymously by LRS from the infrastructure. Such PDR information, which forms a partial, relative trajectory in each time window, is sent to the infrastructure, and our system finds the best matched one in the set of anonymous (but accurate) laser-based trajectories with absolute coordinates. Then the matched trajectory is given to the identified mobile phone user so that he/she can utilize it as his/her accurate trajectory on the phone. PDR itself is likely to accumulate errors but by the support of LRS, such errors are eliminated in the laser-enabled region (e.g. A circle with a 30m radius by a single LRS). Even in the rest of the region, PDR may continue self-tracking, and such mutual complement works fine for phone tracking in the whole space. We have deployed 6 laser-range scanners and our PDR app on Android smartphones and conducted experiments. As a result, in almost all the cases the method could identify mobile phone users in laser-based trajectories.
Towards a Formal Pragmatics of Discourse

Could we enrich speech-act theory to deal with discourse? Wittgenstein and Searle pointed out difficulties. Most conversations lack a conversational purpose, they require collective intentionality, their background is indefinitely open, irrelevant and infelicitous utterances do not prevent conversations to continue, etc. Like Wittgenstein and Searle I am sceptic about the possibility of a general theory of all kinds of language-games. In my view, the single primary purpose of discourse pragmatics is to analyse the structure and dynamics of language-games whose type is provided with an internal conversational goal. Such games are indispensable to any kind of discourse. They have a descriptive, deliberative, declaratory or expressive conversational goal corresponding to a possible direction of fit between words and things. Logic can analyse felicity-conditions of such language-games because they are conducted according to systems of constitutive rules. Speakers often speak non-literally or non-seriously. The real units of conversation are therefore attempted illocutions whether literal, serious or not. I will show how to construct speaker-meaning from sentence-meaning, conversational background and conversational maxims. I agree with Montague that we need the resources of formalisms (proof, model- and game-theories) and of mathematical and philosophical logic in pragmatics. I will explain how to further develop propositional and illocutionary logics, the logic of attitudes and of action in order to characterize our ability to converse. I will also compare my approach to others (Austin, Belnap, Grice, Montague, Searle, Sperber and Wilson, Kamp, Wittgenstein) as regards hypotheses, methodology and other issues.
Do Individual Differences and Aging Effects in the Estimation of Geographical Slant Reflect Cognitive or Perceptual Effects?

Several individual differences including age have been suggested to affect the perception of slant. A cross-sectional study of outdoor hill estimation (N = 106) was analyzed using individual difference measures of age, experiential knowledge, fitness, personality traits, and sex. Of particular note, it was found that for participants who reported any experiential knowledge about slant, estimates decreased (i.e., became more accurate) as conscientiousness increased, suggesting that more conscientious individuals were more deliberate about taking their experiential knowledge (rather than perception) into account. Effects of fitness were limited to those without experiential knowledge, suggesting that they, too, may be cognitive rather than perceptual. The observed effects of age, which tended to produce lower, more accurate estimates of hill slant, provide more evidence that older adults do not see hills as steeper. The main effect of age was to lower slant estimates; such effects may be due to implicit experiential knowledge acquired over a lifetime. The results indicate the impact of cognitive, rather than perceptual factors on individual differences in slant estimation.
OBLIQUE PROJECTION METHODS FOR LINEAR SYSTEMS WITH MULTIPLE RIGHT-HAND SIDES

In the present paper, we describe new Lanczos-based methods for solving nonsymmetric linear systems of equations with multiple right-hand sides. These methods are based on global oblique projections of the initial residual onto a matrix Krylov subspace. We rst derive the global Lanczos process to construct biorthonormal bases and we give some of its properties. Then we introduce new methods such as the global BCG and the global BiCGSTAB algorithms. Look-ahead versions of these algorithms are also given. Finally numerical examples will be given.
Improving Human Pose Recognition Accuracy using CRF Modeling

Interest in robotics in the domain of manufacturing industry has shown an outstanding growth recently in scenarios where human beings and robots are present simultaneously. Humans and robots often share the same workspace and this poses a lot of threats to the human safety issues [1] e.g. in manufacturing industry, in automobile industry where automobile components are integrated, in medical industry where minimally-invasive-surgery is facilitated and so on. In the proposed approach, segmentation is defined as a classification task and is used for pixelwise object class labeling of human body-parts. Depth measurements from a KINECT RGB-D ceiling sensor are obtained in order to do the pixelwise object class labeling. The ultimate intended use is in the safe human-robot collaboration (SHRC) and interaction (SHRI) domains for challenging domestic and industrial environments. Within this scope, a pairwise conditional random field (CRF) approach is used for labeling. CRF is formulated in terms of an energy minimization (EM) problem while an efficient random decision forest (RDF) is used for classification. In [4], we show how an RDF classifier is used for pixelwise classification of human body-parts using deph data. We found that there exists misclassification of labels assigned to each pixel and that should be minimized for feasible and practical human-robot cooperation. This work builds on top of our previous work Dittrich et al. [4] in order to improve recognizing human body-parts.
Revisiting the health effects of psychological stress—its influence on susceptibility to ionizing radiation: a mini-review

Both psychological stress (PS) and ionizing radiation (IR) cause varied detrimental effects on humans. There has been no direct evidence so far showing PS alone could cause cancer; however, long-lasting PS may affect our overall health and ability to cope with cancer. Due to their living conditions and occupations, some people may encounter concurrent exposure to both PS and IR to a high extent. In addition to possible health effects resulting directly from exposure to IR on these people, fear of IR exposure is also a cause of PS. The question of whether PS would influence susceptibility to IR, radiocarcinogenesis in particular, is of great concern by both the academic world and the public. Recently, investigations using animal PS models demonstrated that PS could modulate susceptibility to IR, causing increased susceptibility to radiocarcinogenesis in Trp53-heterozygous mice, hematological toxicity in peripheral blood and elevated chromosome aberration (dicentrics) frequency in splenocytes of Trp53–wild-type mice. To actively reduce health risk from exposure to IR, further studies are needed to cumulate more evidence and provide insights into the mechanisms underlying the alterations in susceptibility due to PS modulation. This mini-review gives a general overview of the significance of PS effects on humans and experimental animals, with a special focus on summarizing the latest weight-of-evidence approaches to radiobiological studies on PS-induced alterations in susceptibility in experimental animal models. The susceptibility being investigated is mainly in the context of the impact of the modulatory effect of PS on radiocarcinogenesis; we seek to improve understanding of the combined effects of exposure to both PS and IR in order to facilitate, via active intervention, strategies for radiation risk reduction.
Conformational transitions in DNA polymerase I revealed by single-molecule FRET

The remarkable fidelity of most DNA polymerases depends on a series of early steps in the reaction pathway which allow the selection of the correct nucleotide substrate, while excluding all incorrect ones, before the enzyme is committed to the chemical step of nucleotide incorporation. The conformational transitions that are involved in these early steps are detectable with a variety of fluorescence assays and include the fingers-closing transition that has been characterized in structural studies. Using DNA polymerase I (Klenow fragment) labeled with both donor and acceptor fluorophores, we have employed single-molecule fluorescence resonance energy transfer to study the polymerase conformational transitions that precede nucleotide addition. Our experiments clearly distinguish the open and closed conformations that predominate in Pol-DNA and Pol-DNA-dNTP complexes, respectively. By contrast, the unliganded polymerase shows a broad distribution of FRET values, indicating a high degree of conformational flexibility in the protein in the absence of its substrates; such flexibility was not anticipated on the basis of the available crystallographic structures. Real-time observation of conformational dynamics showed that most of the unliganded polymerase molecules sample the open and closed conformations in the millisecond timescale. Ternary complexes formed in the presence of mismatched dNTPs or complementary ribonucleotides show unique FRET species, which we suggest are relevant to kinetic checkpoints that discriminate against these incorrect substrates.
Free Choice and Voluntary Action

A preliminary to any valid theory of voluntary action is a conceptual framework that permits it to be tested empirically. Where deficits in the conceptual framework make this impossible, the empirical data become uninterpretable. Here I show that " free choice " and " conflict " tasks exhibit such deficits, casting doubt on the testability of any theory that depends on them. I suggest that a revaluation of the tasks used to study voluntary action is necessary. Few problems in neuroscience are as challenging as the biological nature of free will. For to say that an action is freely chosen is to say that no-one but oneself is its author: To give an explanation of the former would therefore seem to require an explanation of the latter. And if the nature of indexicals, the domain to which questions of self-ascription belong, is hard enough for a philosopher to make sense of, it is doubly so for the scientist, who not only has to get the conceptualization right but also has to find a felicitous way of building an empirical edifice on it. Here I do not wish to examine the deeper conceptual difficulties, which is not to suggest that a scientist can afford to ignore such matters. The distinction between sense and nonsense —the business of philosophy—naturally precedes the distinction between truth and falsehood, the business of science. Something that makes sense can be true or false, something that makes no sense can be neither. But the conceptual constraints on empirical discovery are matters best addressed by philosophers, not scientists. A constraint that is within the competence of a scientist, however, is what can and cannot be tested by experiment. Indeed, it would seem the duty of every scientist is to establish the boundaries of the empirical space he needs to explore, and to determine his capacity to reach them. If large parts of the space are inaccessible for one reason or another, the picture he will obtain will inevitably be incomplete. How incomplete he may never know, for he may also have no knowledge of how much is obscured. It may be that what is missing is precisely the critical part without which a synoptic view is impossible.
SERVICE ORIENTED ONTOLOGY BASED DATA FEDERATION FOR HETEROGENEOUS DATA SOURCES

Data integration is inevitable in current distributed heterogeneous database environment. The existing data integration system uses data federation to integrate the distributed data without duplicating the data sources or creating a new integrated data store for analysis and decision support. The contemporary data federation techniques convert the data sources to XML dataset and integrate the data. These systems do not resolve all conflicts efficiently. This paper proposes a layered Service Oriented Ontology based Data federation Architecture [SOOD] and hybrid ontology based data federation methodology over the SOOD architecture. This converts the metadata of data sources into OWL description for constructing global ontology using Local as View [LAV] approach for data federation. In the proposed method global ontology construction process uses the OWL description to resolve all schema level heterogeneities of data sources and guarantees quality data federation. The heterogeneities are classified in to two (schematic and data) and are resolved at two different stages of proposed ontology based data federation methodology. The storage infrastructure of SOOD architecture aids to store and fetch the results swiftly. Experimental results shows that the proposed methodology is relatively efficient than the conventional hybrid ontology based data federation methodology in recall and other quality parameters like response time and reusability. It is observed that the recall of SOOD system is increased by 10% and response time is reduced by 20% than the conventional hybrid ontology system.
Gain and Loss of Phototrophic Genes Revealed by Comparison of Two Citromicrobium Bacterial Genomes

Proteobacteria are thought to have diverged from a phototrophic ancestor, according to the scattered distribution of phototrophy throughout the proteobacterial clade, and so the occurrence of numerous closely related phototrophic and chemotrophic microorganisms may be the result of the loss of genes for phototrophy. A widespread form of bacterial phototrophy is based on the photochemical reaction center, encoded by puf and puh operons that typically are in a ‘photosynthesis gene cluster’ (abbreviated as the PGC) with pigment biosynthesis genes. Comparison of two closely related Citromicrobial genomes (98.1% sequence identity of complete 16S rRNA genes), Citromicrobium sp. JL354, which contains two copies of reaction center genes, and Citromicrobium strain JLT1363, which is chemotrophic, revealed evidence for the loss of phototrophic genes. However, evidence of horizontal gene transfer was found in these two bacterial genomes. An incomplete PGC (pufLMC-puhCBA) in strain JL354 was located within an integrating conjugative element, which indicates a potential mechanism for the horizontal transfer of genes for phototrophy.
Reliability of Visual Assessment of Non-Contrast CT, CT Angiography Source Images and CT Perfusion in Patients with Suspected Ischemic Stroke

Background and Purpose Good reliability of methods to assess the extent of ischemia in acute stroke is important for implementation in clinical practice, especially between observers with varying experience. Our aim was to determine inter- and intra-observer reliability of the 1/3 middle cerebral artery (MCA) rule and the Alberta Stroke Program Early CT Score (ASPECTS) for different CT modalities in patients suspected of acute ischemic stroke. Methods We prospectively included 105 patients with acute neurological deficit due to suspected acute ischemic stroke within 9 hours after symptom onset. All patients underwent non-contrast CT, CT perfusion and CT angiography on admission. All images were evaluated twice for presence of ischemia, ischemia with >1/3 MCA involvement, and ASPECTS. Four observers evaluated twenty scans twice for intra-observer agreement. We used kappa statistics and intraclass correlation coefficient to calculate agreement. Results Inter-observer agreement for the 1/3 MCA rule and ASPECTS was fair to good for non-contrast CT, poor to good for CT angiography source images, but excellent for all CT perfusion maps (cerebral blood volume, mean transit time, and predicted penumbra and infarct maps). Intra-observer agreement for the 1/3 MCA rule and ASPECTS was poor to good for non-contrast CT, fair to moderate for CT angiography source images, and good to excellent for all CT perfusion maps. Conclusion Between observers with a different level of experience, agreement on the radiological diagnosis of cerebral ischemia is much better for CT perfusion than for non-contrast CT and CT angiography source images, and therefore CT perfusion is a very reliable addition to standard stroke imaging.
Comparative Plasmodium gene overexpression reveals distinct perturbation of sporozoite transmission by profilin

The roles of vital genes, such as those of G-actin–binding proteins, in malaria parasites are underexplored. Overexpression of Plasmodium profilin perturbs actin dynamics only in sporozoites. Strict actin regulation is particularly important for malaria transmission. Mapping of phenotypes can be done by comparative Plasmodium gene overexpression.