Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Greek nominal morphology for a classification-based Natural Language Generation system

This paper presents the Noun Morphological component of a Greek Natural Language Generation system which is based on a current system for English called IDAS. First, I describe the methodology that I followed in order to develop the Greek Lexicon and Grammar, using II, IDAS's classification-based knowledge representation system. Then, I show how classification is used in order to tackle the complex morphological system of the Greek noun. In my conclusion, I estimate the feasibility of using classification in order to create Natural Language Generation systems for other languages, on the basis of the existing English resources.
Importance of Promoting Metacognitive Awareness at University

Abstract The aim of this study is to furnish a reliable theoretical overview on metacognitive awareness. This research is carried out to (1) familiarize the researchers with the definition, components and sub-components of metacognitive awareness (2) discuss a brief outline of metacognitive awareness along with its origin and essence from the point of view of its historical development (3) link metacognitive awareness to a number of other constructs, including motivation (4) illustrate the features of self-regulated students and their recruited metacognitive strategies and (5) briefly examine the major challenges in the implementation of metacognitive awareness. In conclusion, this research reveals that the analysis of metacognitive awareness and its components gives rise to a new notion of auto-noetic (self) knowledge of learners through planning, monitoring and reflectively evaluating task performance, and creates higher levels of self-efficacy which provides students with different educational contexts in which they are able to have more self-confidence, get more positive feedback both from an instructor and classmates and cultivate in learners more self-regulatory characteristics that enable them to learn autonomously, be completely equipped with motivation and be welcoming to challenges. The study provides benefits to both learners and educators. Learners can receive guidance on how to foster metacognitive awareness for being more competent learners. Furthermore, it provides meaningful insights for curriculum developers to provide metacognitive awareness-based curricula.
Using Heuristic Algorithms to Effectively Schedule Database Utilities *

Data maintenance is an important administrative task in database management systems (DBMSs). Data maintenance utilities ensure that the data in tables are stored as efficiently as possible so executing the utilities is crucial to preventing applications from suffering major performance degradation. Executing a utility on a table, however, directly interferes with applications’ use of the table so utilities must be scheduled at times of low demand. In this paper, we formalize the database utilities scheduling problem and present an experimental study of heuristic methods to solve the problem. We examine three algorithms Simulated Annealing, Tabu Search and a Genetic Algorithm. Our experimental results support the claim that an automatic scheduling method for database utilities for a DBMS is both feasible and cost-effective. * This research is supported by IBM Canada Ltd., Communications and Information Technology Ontario (CITO) and the National Science and Engineering Research Council (NSERC).
On Discovering Patterns of Coronary Heart Disease via Mixture Modelling and Information Criteria

This paper's purpose is twofold: first it addresses the adequacy of some theoretical information criteria when using finite mixture modelling (unsupervised learning) on discovering patterns in continuous data; second, we aim to apply these models and BIC to discover patterns of coronary heart disease. The results were very good in order to encourage the use, both for mixture models and information criteria BIC use. Nevertheless the widespread application of finite mixture modelling, finite mixture model selection is still an important issue. In order to select among several information criteria, which may support the selection of the correct number of clusters, we conduct a simulation study, in order to determine which information criteria are more appropriate for mixture model selection when considering data sets with only continuous clustering base variables. As a result, the criterion BIC shows a better performance, that is, it indicates the correct number of the simulated cluster structures more often, when referring to mixtures of continuous clustering base variables. When applied to discover patterns of coronary heart disease, it performs well, discovering the known pattern of data.
Systematicity and the Lexicon in Creative Metaphor

Aptness is an umbrella term that covers a multitude of issues in the interpretation and generation of creative metaphor. In this paper we concentrate on one of these issues --- the notion of lexical systematicity --- and explore its role in ascertaining the coherence of creative metaphor relative to the structure of the target concept being described. We argue that all else being equal, the most apt metaphors are those that resonate most with the way the target concept is literally and metaphorically organized. As such, the lexicon plays a key role in enforcing and recognizing aptness, insofar as this existing organization will already have been lexicalized. We perform our exploration in the context of WordNet, and describe how relational structures can be automatically extracted from this lexical taxonomy to facilitate the interpretation of creative metaphors.
METODY NORMALIZACJI PODOBIEŃSTWA WYZNACZONEGO DLA TERMINÓW ONTOLOGII GENE ONTOLOGY

The article addresses the issue of improvement of the results quality when Gene Ontology (GO) term similarity is calculated. Several GO similarity measures produce results out of the range [0; 1]. Whereas, in order to compare different similarity measures or apply further processing, it is needed to normalise the results to this range. The most popular and well-known method of normalization is the min-max normalization. The article introduces seven normalization functions of different characteristics that can improve the results of the analysis. The comparison of the analysed methods on three different gene datasets and their evaluation is presented in this paper.
Recent advances in PEG–PLA block copolymer nanoparticles

Due to their small particle size and large and modifiable surface, nanoparticles have unique advantages compared with other drug carriers. As a research focus in recent years, polyethylene glycol–polylactic acid (PEG–PLA) block copolymer and its end-group derivative nanoparticles can enhance the drug loading of hydrophobic drugs, reduce the burst effect, avoid being engulfed by phagocytes, increase the circulation time of drugs in blood, and improve bioavailability. Additionally, due to their smaller particle size and modified surface, these nanoparticles can accumulate in inflammation or target locations to enhance drug efficacy and reduce toxicity. Recent advances in PEG–PLA block copolymer nanoparticles, including the synthesis of PEG–PLA and the preparation of PEG–PLA nanoparticles, were introduced in this study, in particular the drug release and modifiable characteristics of PEG–PLA nanoparticles and their application in pharmaceutical preparations.
Alternating environment in the analysis of derived environment effects

In this article it is argued that the so-called derived environment effects can be explained in terms of the alternating environment without reference to the notion of derivation. The notion of the alternating environment refers to the surface sequences of segments across the paradigm, and goes back to Timberlake (1972). In the article, earlier OT approaches are discussed. It is argued that the solution based on the assumption that the stem-particular faithfulness constraints are ranked over general faithfulness constraints, as proposed for example in Pater (1999), cannot be applied to Polish because it is stem consonants that undergo palatalization (and are unfaithful). Another approach, by Lubowicz (1998, 2002) relying on the violation of the local conjunction of the constraint inducing palatalization with Anchor constraint (correspondence of the right-most segment of the stem in the input to the rightmost segment of a syllable in the output) does not cover the whole range of palatalization effects in Polish (as well as in Slovak and Basque). Thus, it is argued that the solution in terms of the alternating environment offers a more general solution to the derived environment effects.
The assessment of the near infrared identification of carbon stars. I. The Local Group galaxies WLM, IC 10 and NGC 6822

Context. The selection of AGB C and M stars from NIR colours has been done in recent years using adjustable criteria that are in needs of standardization if one wants to compare, in a coherent manner, properties of various populations. Aims. We intend to assess the NIR colour technique to identify C and M stars. Methods. We compare the NIR colours of several C stars previously identified from spectroscopy or narrow band techniques in WLM, IC 10 and NGC 6822. Results. We demonstrate that very few M stars have (J − K)0 > 1.4 but a non negligible number of C stars are bluer than this limit. Thus, counts of M and C stars based on such limit do not produce pure samples. Conclusions. C/M ratios determined from NIR colours must be regarded as underestimates mainly because the M numbers include many warm C stars and also K stars if no blue limit is considered.
Reading Skills in Greek as a First Language and in French as a Foreign Language among Primary and Secondary School Children with Specific Reading Disorder

The aim of the present study is to investigate reading skills among primary and secondary school students with good reading skills with those of students with specific reading disorder, in Greek as a first language (L1) and in French as a foreign language (L2). Furthermore, a basic objective of the study is to investigate whether reading skills in Greek could predict reading skills in French both for students with good reading skills and for students with specific reading disorder. The sample of the study consists of one hundred and eight (N=108) students with good reading skills and one hundred and eight (N=108) students with specific reading disorder who are assessed for decoding and fluency in reading, both in Greek and French languages. The results of the study revealed that students with specific reading disorder had lower performance than those with good reading skills, with a statistically significant difference, in all tasks of the French language. Furthermore, it was found that the deficits appeared in a specific task in one language were transferred analogically to the same task in the other language. Finally, there was a statistically significant relation between the tasks in both groups and in both languages.
Diagnostic criteria for congenital long QT syndrome in the era of molecular genetics: do we need a scoring system?

We have read with great satisfaction that Rossenbacker and Priori,1 in their editorial to our article (‘Diagnostic Criteria for congenital long QT syndrome in the era of molecular genetics: do we need a scoring system? ’),2 have provided supportive evidence for our conclusion that presently used diagnostic criteria for inherited long …
Usefulness of the metabolic syndrome criteria as predictors of insulin resistance among obese Korean women

Abstract Objective To investigate the ability of each metabolic syndrome (MetS) criterion, defined by the International Diabetes Federation, to predict insulin resistance (IR). Design A cross-sectional study. IR was defined as homeostasis model assessment of IR (HOMA-IR) ≥3·04. The MetS criteria considered were TAG ≥ 1·69 mmol/l, HDL cholesterol (HDL-C) <1·29 mmol/l, blood pressure (BP) ≥130/85 mmHg and fasting glucose (FG) ≥5·6 mmol/l. Setting Busan, South Korea. Subjects Ninety-six apparently healthy Korean women (mean age 42 (sd 10·6) years) with abdominal obesity (waist circumference (WC) ≥80 cm) were studied. Results Of the ninety-six obese women, 11 % were insulin-resistant and 33 % fulfilled the criteria for IDF-defined MetS. Glucose and TAG were more likely to predict IR than BP and HDL-C when assessed using receiver-operating characteristic curves, multiple regression and multiple logistic regression analyses. Of the variation in HOMA-IR, TAG, FG, WC and age explained 42 %. High FG was independently associated with the presence of IR (OR = 8·6, 95 % CI 1·8, 41·8) even after adjusting for other components of MetS. The positive predictive value and positive likelihood ratio to detect IR were the highest for the FG criterion (33 % and 3·9, respectively), followed by TAG (28 %, 3·0), BP (19 %, 1·8) and HDL-C criteria (18 %, 1·7). The IDF definition of MetS exhibited a positive predictive value of 29 % and a positive likelihood ratio of 3·1. Conclusions Of the MetS criteria, high FG and high TAG seem to be more suitable for identifying obese women with IR than high BP and low HDL-C.
The Development of Emotional Regulation in Pre-Schoolers: The Role of Sociodramatic Play

The present research focuses on the link between emotion regulation in preschoolers and the efficiency of sociodramatic play as a means of developing emotional and social skills appropriate for each developmental stage. In particular, we examined the effects of sociodramatic play on a four-year-old boy named Andreas, who demonstrated signs of limited emotional regulation, such as angry outbursts, inability to control his emotions and inability to cope in emotion-inducing situations. This swift in his behaviour, caused by his mother’s negative control behaviour, was measured through the Emotion Regulation Checklist, the Delay Gratification Task and the Task of Effortful Control. Drawing from a plethora of theorists who support the benefits of sociodramatic play for the development of emotion regulation skills, we designed a three months school based intervention for Andreas and employed the tests beforehand and after the end of the sociodramatic sessions to explore the efficiency of the intervention. Results are discussed in regards to relevant literature.
Scheduling methods for unmanned aerial vehicle based delivery systems

The recent Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) approval of Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) testing will transform our daily lives. Because of the inherent flexibility, ease of use, and low cost to operate; UAV-based delivery systems will become tremendously popular in the near future. In this paper, we address the issue of cyber-physical scheduling of UAV resources in order to achieve an efficient delivery service. Particularly, to reduce the overall delivery time, we develop a weight-based scheduling scheme, which considers the priority and delivery distance of service requests. To maximize the probability of effectively handling service requests with a limited number of UAVs, we first formalize the problem as an optimization problem and then use a dynamic programming approach to solve the problem. Through a simulation study, our data shows that the service delivery delay and the probability of successfully handling UAV services requests can be significantly improved upon in comparison with existing baseline schemes.
Automatic voltage regulator using TLBO algorithm optimized PID controller

This paper deals with design and analysis of AVR using proportional-integral-derivative (PID) controller optimized by Teaching Learning Based Optimization (TLBO) algorithm The optimum gain of the controller for the proposed model is obtained with objective function as Integral Time Absolute Error (ITAE). The performance of the system is found to be better in every aspect in terms of the settling point, rise point & peak overshoot. By changing the different components of AVR (sensor, generator, exciter & amplifier) by ±50 % robustness analysis is performed.
Toxicity Studies of Genetically Modified Plants: A Review of the Published Literature

According to the information reported by the WHO, the genetically modified (GM) products that are currently on the international market have all passed risk assessments conducted by national authorities. These assessments have not indicated any risk to human health. In spite of this clear statement, it is quite amazing to note that the review articles published in international scientific journals during the current decade did not find, or the number was particularly small, references concerning human and animal toxicological/health risks studies on GM foods. In this paper, the scientific information concerning the potential toxicity of GM/transgenic plants using the Medline database is reviewed. Studies about the safety of the potential use of potatoes, corn, soybeans, rice, cucumber, tomatoes, sweet pepper, peas, and canola plants for food and feed were included. The number of references was surprisingly limited. Moreover, most published studies were not performed by the biotechnology companies that produce these products. This review can be concluded raising the following question: where is the scientific evidence showing that GM plants/food are toxicologically safe?
An automatic input protocol recommendation method for tailored switch-to-speech communication aid systems

A switch-to-speech interface can provide a means of interactive communication as a support system for people with disabilities with voluntary movements. Any motion of a part of the body, such as eye movements, can be used for the switch input. The number of possible switch operations varies from person to person, but the bandwidth is generally quite limited. Therefore, efficient input protocols are needed to map the switch operations to pronunciations. Meanwhile, the protocol must be easily learnable so that anyone can use it. To this end, we propose a protocol recommendation method that can accept individual requirements in switch operations. This method suggests a customized protocol for each user of the interface that is both speedy to enter and easy to remember. The two main ideas in the protocol design are utilizing the knowledge about the alphabet table that everyone already knows and improving the input speed and learnability by allowing ambiguity in the switch to pronunciation conversion. The conversion errors due to the ambiguity are offset by an N-gram language model. The performance of the protocols was evaluated through simulations and the measured values obtained from research participants, and the advantage of the proposed method is shown.
A “U-Shaped” Pattern of Immigrants’ Occupational Careers? A Comparative Analysis of Italy, Spain, and France

The international literature hypothesized a “U-shaped” pattern of immigrants’ occupational trajectories from origin to destination countries due to the imperfect transferability of human capital. However, empirical evidence supporting this hypothesis is available only in single-country studies and for “old,” Anglo-Saxon migration countries with deregulated labor markets. This article compares Italy, Spain, and France, providing evidence that the more segmented the labor market, the higher immigrants’ occupational downgrade on arrival, independently from skills transferability and other individual characteristics. Paradoxically, the more segmented the labor market, the more important the acquisition of host-country specific human capital for subsequent upward mobility.
Air Transportation: Irregular Operations and Control

This chapter considers problems related to the management of air traffic and airline operations for the purpose of minimizing the impact and cost of disruptions. The considerable system complexity outlined makes these problems challenging and has motivated a vibrant and innovative body of research. Section 2 provides background that is essential to understanding the fundamental issues and motivating the subsequent material. The authors review the “physics’ and characteristics of airspace system elements and airspace operations in order to explain why capacity constraints are so unpredictable and variable from day to day. Of critical importance are the arrival and departure capacities of airports, which depend on weather, winds, and the number of active runways and their configurations.
Materials and Wireless Microfluidic Systems for Electronics Capable of Chemical Dissolution on Demand

Electronics that are capable of destroying themselves, on demand and in a harmless way, might provide the ultimate form of data security. This paper presents materials and device architectures for triggered destruction of conventional microelectronic systems by means of microfluidic chemical etching of the constituent materials, including silicon, silicon dioxide, and metals (e.g., aluminum). Demonstrations in an array of home‐built metal‐oxide‐semiconductor field‐effect transistors that exploit ultrathin sheets of monocrystalline silicon and in radio‐frequency identification devices illustrate the utility of the approaches.
An end user oriented platform for scientific visualization

In our discussions with end users about today's visualization environments, we were led to consider new concepts for the setting up of a platform which should be better suited to their real needs. In this paper, a hierarchy of visualization objects is presented. They will be the main elements of a new platform which should be both intuitive and extensible.
A TV Prior for High-Quality Local Multi-view Stereo Reconstruction

Local fusion of disparity maps allows fast parallel 3D modeling of large scenes that do not fit into main memory. While existing methods assume a constant disparity uncertainty, disparity errors typically vary spatially from tenths of pixels to several pixels. In this paper we propose a method that employs a set of Gaussians for different disparity classes, instead of a single error model with only one variance. The set of Gaussians is learned from the difference between generated disparity maps and ground-truth disparities. Pixels are assigned particular disparity classes based on a Total Variation (TV) feature measuring the local oscillation behavior of the 2D disparity map. This feature captures uncertainty caused for instance by lack of texture or fronto-parallel bias of the stereo method. Experimental results on several datasets in varying configurations demonstrate that our method yields improved performance both qualitatively and quantitatively.
Pervasive Computing for the 99

A key limiting factor for the pervasive community has been the difficulty developing and deploying general purpose systems. Such systems should make application development easy, support a wide range of devices and sensors, and allow users to share these resources. Designing a multi-user middleware system that allows novice users to add arbitrary hardware and software raises several challenges, such as resolution between conflicting and stale data, managing data dependencies as software and hardware is changed, and tradeoffs between complexity and expressiveness in the API of such a system. We will discuss the feature set that could solve these problem, and test these features through a software implementation. We then evaluate the system after a year long deployment supporting smart office applications.