Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Mathematik in den Naturwissenschaften Leipzig Regular Connections among Generalized Connections

The properties of the space A of regular connections as a subset of the space A of generalized connections in the Ashtekar framework are studied. For every choice of compact structure group and smoothness category for the paths it is determined whether A is dense in A or not. Moreover, it is proven that A has Ashtekar-Lewandowski measure zero for every nontrivial structure group and every smoothness category. The analogous results hold for gauge orbits instead of connections.
N ov 2 01 6 A small deviation inequality for convex functions

Let Z be an n-dimensional Gaussian vector and let f : R → R be a convex function. We prove that: P ( f (Z) ≤ E f (Z) − t √ Var f (Z) ) ≤ exp(−ct), for all t > 1 where c > 0 is an absolute constant. As an application we derive refinements of the Johnson-Lindenstrauss flattening lemma and the random version of Dvoretzky’s theorem.
Stabilization for Live Collaborative Video Augmentations

We present a method for stabilizing live video from a moving camera for the purpose of a tele-meeting, in which a participant with an AR view onto a shared canvas collaborates with a remote user. The AR view is established without markers and using no other tracking equipment than a head-worn camera. The remote user is allowed to directly annotate the local user’s view in real time on a desktop or tablet PC. The planar homographies between the reference frame and the other following frames are maintained. In effect, both the local and remote participants can annotate the physical meeting space, the local AR user through physical interaction, the remote user through our stabilized video. When tracking is lost, the remote user can still continue annotating on a frozen video frame. We tested several small demo applications with this new form of transient AR collaboration that can be established easily, on a per need basis, and without complicated equipment or calibration requirements.
Mixture-design approach to retention prediction using the solvation parameter model and ternary solvent systems in reversed-phase liquid chromatography

A new approach for the prediction of retention in reversed-phase liquid chromatography using ternary mobile phase compositions is presented. The solvation parameter model is used to generate system constants characteristic of the capability of the chromatographic system for defined solvent–solvent and solute–solvent interactions. A mixture-design approach is then used to construct system surfaces for each system constant over all mobile phase compositions. These surfaces are smooth and devoid of irregular features. Models derived from these surfaces allowed us to predict the retention of a varied group of 36 solutes on a porous polymer sorbent, PLRP-S 300, at a methanol–acetonitrile–water composition not included in the data used to construct the system surfaces. The accuracy of the predicted retention factors was similar to that obtained by fitting the solvation parameter model to the same experimental data.
Implementations of the LMT heuristic for minimum weight triangulation

No polynomial-time algorithm is kno-ivn to compute t,he minimum weight triangulation (MWT) of a finite planar point set. In this paper xve present efficient implementat,ions of the LMT-skeleton heurist’ic, xvhich identifies edges that must be, and cannot be, in an MWT. For uniformly distributed points, v:e can compute the esact MWT of tens of thousands of points in minutes. These results are obtained by improving the asymptot,ic time and memory usage of the LMTskeleton heurist.ic and of filters that identify initial candidate edges, and also by bucketing and further t,uning for evenly distributed points. Further details and an implementation as a macro for the IPE dran;ng prog7cam are available on the web: http://www.cs. ubc.ca/spider/snoeyink/mwt.
Flash analog -to -digital converter design based on statistical post-silicon calibration

iii Acknowledgements I would like to thank the following people for their contributions to this work. a constant source of support throughout my time at Carnegie Mellon. This work would not have been possible without him. He was responsible for much of the digital circuit design and layout for the test chips and gathered the statistical data from the first comparator test chips.
VASIR: An Open-Source Research Platform for Advanced Iris Recognition Technologies

The performance of iris recognition systems is frequently affected by input image quality, which in turn is vulnerable to less-than-optimal conditions due to illuminations, environments, and subject characteristics (e.g., distance, movement, face/body visibility, blinking, etc.). VASIR (Video-based Automatic System for Iris Recognition) is a state-of-the-art NIST-developed iris recognition software platform designed to systematically address these vulnerabilities. We developed VASIR as a research tool that will not only provide a reference (to assess the relative performance of alternative algorithms) for the biometrics community, but will also advance (via this new emerging iris recognition paradigm) NIST’s measurement mission. VASIR is designed to accommodate both ideal (e.g., classical still images) and less-than-ideal images (e.g., face-visible videos). VASIR has three primary modules: 1) Image Acquisition 2) Video Processing, and 3) Iris Recognition. Each module consists of several sub-components that have been optimized by use of rigorous orthogonal experiment design and analysis techniques. We evaluated VASIR performance using the MBGC (Multiple Biometric Grand Challenge) NIR (Near-Infrared) face-visible video dataset and the ICE (Iris Challenge Evaluation) 2005 still-based dataset. The results showed that even though VASIR was primarily developed and optimized for the less-constrained video case, it still achieved high verification rates for the traditional still-image case. For this reason, VASIR may be used as an effective baseline for the biometrics community to evaluate their algorithm performance, and thus serves as a valuable research platform.
Activation of cytokine genes in T cells during primary and secondary murine influenza pneumonia

The patterns of cytokine mRNA expression in mice with primary or secondary influenza pneumonia have been assessed by in situ hybridization analysis of cells from both the mediastinal lymph node (MLN) and the virus-infected lung. Evidence of substantial transcriptional activity was found in all lymphocyte subsets recovered from both anatomical sites. The kinetics of cytokine mRNA expression after primary infection with an H3N2 virus were in accord with the idea that the initial response occurs in regional lymphoid tissue, with the effector T cells later moving to the lung. This temporal separation was much less apparent for the more rapid secondary response resulting from challenge of H3N2-primed mice with an H1N1 virus. Among the T cell receptor alpha/beta+ subsets, transcripts for interferon (IFN) gamma and tumor necrosis factor beta were most commonly found in the CD8+ population whereas mRNA for interleukin (IL) 4 and IL-10 was much more prevalent in CD4+ T cells. The gamma/delta T cells expressed mRNA for all cytokines tested, with IL-2, IL-4, and IFN-gamma predominating among those recovered from the inflammatory exudate. At particular time points, especially early in the MLN and late in the infected lung, the frequency of mRNA+ lymphocytes was much higher than would be expected from current understanding of the prevalence of virus-specific precursors and effectors. If this response is typical, induction of cytokine gene expression for T cells that are not responding directly to the invading pathogen may be a prominent feature of acute virus infections.
Fast bias field correction for 9.4 tesla magnetic resonance imaging

In this paper the problem of intensity inhomogeneity at high magnetic field on magnetic resonance images is addressed. Specifically, rat brain images at 9.4T acquired with a surface coil are bias corrected. We propose a low-pass frequency model that takes into account not only background-object contours but also other important contours inside the image. Two pre-processing filters are proposed: first, to create a volume of interest without contours, and second, to extrapolate the image values of such masked area to the whole image. Results are assessed quantitatively and visually in comparison to standard low pass filter approach, and they show as expected better accuracy in enhancing image intensity.
Effectiveness of the Mediterranean diet in the elderly

The Mediterranean diet is known to be one of the healthiest dietary patterns in the world due to its relation with a low morbidity and mortality for some chronic diseases. The purpose of this study was to review literature regarding the relationship between Mediterranean diet and healthy aging. A MEDLINE search was conducted looking for literature regarding the relationship between Mediterranean diet and cardiovascular disease (or risk factors for cardiovascular disease), cancer, mental health and longevity and quality of life in the elderly population (65 years or older). A selection of 36 articles met the criteria of selection. Twenty of the studies were about Mediterranean diets and cardiovascular disease, 2 about Mediterranean diets and cancer, 3 about Mediterranean diets and mental health and 11 about longevity (overall survival) or mental health. The results showed that Mediterranean diets had benefits on risks factors for cardiovascular disease such as lipoprotein levels, endothelium vasodilatation, insulin resistance, the prevalence of the metabolic syndrome, antioxidant capacity, the incidence of acute myocardial infarction, and cardiovascular mortality. Some positive associations with quality of life and inverse associations with the risk of certain cancers and with overall mortality were also reported.
Study of Conserved Domain across Divergent Phylogenetic Lineages ofLong Neurotoxin from Genus Naja (Elapidae Family)

Naja are a toxic genus of Elapids family in the old world. Long neurotoxins are mixtures of peptides, enzymes that interfere with the normal function of the nervous system and potently block α7 homo-oligomeric neuronal AChRs causing paralysis. The aim of the present study is to identify the origin of long neurotoxin, multiple sequences analysis for prediction of structure and function of neurotoxin and observing the conserved pattern of amino acid residues and to construct the phylogenetic tree for organizing evolutionary history of Naja genus from Elapidae family.
Pressure Drop of Fully-Developed, Laminar Flow in Microchannels of Arbitrary Cross-Section

Pressure drop of fully developed, laminar, incompressible flow in smooth mini and microchannels of arbitrary cross-section is investigated. A compact approximate model is proposed that predicts the pressure drop for a wide variety of shapes. The model is only a function of geometrical parameters of the cross-section, i.e., area, perimeter, and polar moment of inertia. The proposed model is compared with analytical and numerical solutions for several shapes. Also, the comparison of the model with experimental data, collected by several researchers, shows good agreement.
Non-linear filtering with state dependant transition probabilities: A threshold (size effect) SV model

This paper considers the size effect, where volatility dynamics are dependant upon the current level of volatility within an stochastic volatility framework. A non-linear filtering algorithm is proposed where the dynamics of the latent variable is conditioned on its current level. This allows for the estimation of a stochastic volatility model where dynamics are dependant on the level of volatility. Empirical results suggest that volatility dynamics are in fact influenced by the level of prevailing volatility. When volatility is relatively low (high), volatility is extremely (not) persistent with little (a great deal of) noise.
An effective online scheme for detecting Android malware

The growing popularity of Android-based smart-phones have led to the rise of Android based malware. In particular, profit-motivated malware is becoming increasingly popular in Android malware distribution. These malware typically profit by sending premium-rate SMS messages and/or make premium-rate phone calls from infected devices without user consent. In this paper, we investigate the telephony framework of the Android operating system and propose a novel process user-identification (UID) based online detection scheme. Our scheme can effectively detect premium-rate and background SMS messages as well as premium-rate phone calls initiated by malware. We implemented our detection system on a Samsung Google Nexus 4 running Android Jelly Bean and tested the effectiveness of detecting real malware from Android markets. The experimental results show that our scheme is efficient and effective in detecting background messages and premium-rate messages and phone calls. Our scheme can detect and block all the background and premium-rate SMS messages and phone calls initiated by popular malware.
PAPR reduction in Wavelet based SC-FDMA using PTS scheme for LTE uplink transmission

Single Carrier Frequency Division Multiple Access (SCFDMA) has become a promising technique for Long Term Evolution (LTE) uplink transmission. SCFDMA is often referred as Discrete Fourier Transform (DFT) spread Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDMA). The reason for using SC-FDMA for uplink transmissions is its lower Peak to Average Power Ratio (PAPR) performance. Lower PAPR makes the system power efficient, increases coverage area and allows use of small size terminal. Partial Transmit Sequence (PTS) is scheme used for reducing PAPR in different technologies. Analysis has been done using PTS scheme in OFDMA. In this paper, Wavelet based SCFDMA is proposed for analyzing Peak to Average PAPR performance using PTS scheme. Then Analysis is carried out by using different wavelets and different number of carriers. This analysis will show that the further PAPR reduction takes place in wavelet based SCFDMA using PTS scheme. Thus wavelet based SCFDMA gives better PAPR performance instead of DFT based SCFDMA.
The Effects of Drama Education on Student Self-Concept in Senior Secondary Education

The Effects of Drama Education on Student Self-Concept in Senior Secondary EducationW.B.A.Vitharana Department of Languages, Cultural Studies and Performing ArtsUniversity of Sri JayewardenepuraNugegoda, Sri LankaWijayasri@sjp.ac. lkAbstractThere is a significant amount of attention given to student self-concept in education today. It is known that low confidence can lead to a variety of issues such as intellectual underachievement, academic overachievement, drug addiction and aggressive behavior. Also, comprehensive educational reform movements such as multiculturalism and cooperative learning can to a certain extent improve student self-concept. The theoretical foundations of this study are linked to the theoretical work in cognitive development, psychomotor development and movement, self-concept, and perceived wellness. The key theorists include Jean Piaget, Moshe Feldenkrais, Rudolf Laban, and Albert Bandura. Drama is a performance which comes from a balanced body of facts and can successfully lead to lifelong value. The achievement comes from presentation, participation and the creation of drama. Thus drama education is a major contribution to a person? s well-being when it comes to the mind-body interaction; benefiting the individual emotionally, cognitively, and physically. This study explores the effectiveness of formalized drama education and training on student performance, particularly regarding the overall perceived wellness and self-concept of drama students in grade eleven. Drama, as an art form and formal guidance method, is an important resource that can give out a link to cognitive development, emotional growth and psychological health in adolescents, which is also associated with the academic performance of students. This study focuses on documenting the relationship between drama and its influences on the variables by comparing students who are both involved and not involved in drama programs. A significant difference is found between drama and non-drama for perceived wellness, self-concept, and cumulative marks. The evidence supports constructive contact on academic performance, but there is a need for involvement that addresses recovered views of wellness and self-concept among the drama population. Key Words -self-concept, drama education, cognitive, psychomotor, emotional, psychological, adolescence
Ambient Systems , Networks and Technologies ( ANT-2014 ) An Elliptic Curve-based Mutual Authentication Scheme for RFID Implant Systems

In this paper, a secure mutual authentication scheme for an RFID implant system is developed. An insecure communication channel between a tag and a reader makes the RFID implant system vulnerable to attacks and endangers the user’s safety and privacy. The proposed scheme relies on elliptic curve cryptography and the D-Quark lightweight hash design. Compared to the available public-key cryptosystems, elliptic curve-based cryptosystems are the best choice due to their small key sizes as well as their efficiency in computations. The D-Quark lightweight hash design is tailored for resource constrained pervasive devices, cost, and performance. The security analysis of the proposed authentication scheme revealed that it is secure against the relevant threat models and provides a higher security level than related work found in the literature. The computational performance comparison shows that our work has 48% less communication overhead compared to existing similar schemes. It also requires 24% less total memory than the other approaches. The required computational time of our scheme is generally similar to other existing schemes. Hence, the presented scheme is a well-suited choice for providing security for the resource-constrained RFID implant systems. c © 2014 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. Selection and peer-review under responsibility of Elhadi M. Shakshuki.
Coordinating Structural and Functional Synapse Development: Postsynaptic p21-Activated Kinase Independently Specifies Glutamate Receptor Abundance and Postsynaptic Morphology

Here, we show that postsynaptic p21-activated kinase (Pak) signaling diverges into two genetically separable pathways at the Drosophila neuromuscular junction. One pathway controls glutamate receptor abundance. Pak signaling within this pathway is specified by a required interaction with the adaptor protein Dreadlocks (Dock). We demonstrate that Dock is localized to the synapse via an Src homology 2-mediated protein interaction. Dock is not necessary for Pak localization but is necessary to restrict Pak signaling to control glutamate receptor abundance. A second genetically separable function of Pak kinase signaling controls muscle membrane specialization through the regulation of synaptic Discs-large. In this pathway, Dock is dispensable. We present a model in which divergent Pak signaling is able to coordinate two different features of postsynaptic maturation, receptor abundance, and muscle membrane specialization.
. Soft source decoding with applications

Motivated by previous results in joint source-channel coding and decoding, we consider the problem of decoding of variable-length codes using soft channel values. We present results of decoding of selected codes using the maximum a posteriori (MAP) decoder and the sequential decoder, and show the performance gains over decoding using hard decisions alone. The objective behind this work is to provide motivation for decoding of data compressed by standard source coding schemes, that is, to view the compressed bitstreams as being the output of variable-length coders and to make use of the redundancy in the bitstreams to assist in decoding. In order to illustrate the performance achievable by soft decoding, we provide results for decoding of MPEG-4 reversible variable-length codes as well as for decoding of MPEG-4 overhead information, under the assumption that this information is transmitted without channel coding over an additive white Gaussian noise channel. Finally, we present a method of unequal error protection for an MPEG-4 bitstream using the MAP and sequential source decoders, and show results comparable to those achievable by serial application of source and channel coding.
3DMatch: Learning the Matching of Local 3D Geometry in Range Scans

Establishing correspondences between 3D geometries is essential to a large variety of graphics and vision applications, including 3D reconstruction, localization, and shape matching. Despite significant progress, geometric matching on real-world 3D data is still a challenging task due to the noisy, low-resolution, and incomplete nature of scanning data. These difficulties limit the performance of current state-of-art methods which are typically based on histograms over geometric properties. In this paper, we introduce 3DMatch, a data-driven local feature learner that jointly learns a geometric feature representation and an associated metric function from a large collection of real-world scanning data. We represent 3D geometry using accumulated distance fields around key-point locations. This representation is suited to handle noisy and partial scanning data, and concurrently supports deep learning with convolutional neural networks directly in 3D. To train the networks, we propose a way to automatically generate correspondence labels for deep learning by leveraging existing RGB-D reconstruction algorithms. In our results, we demonstrate that we are able to outperform state-of-the-art approaches by a significant margin. In addition, we show the robustness of our descriptor in a purely geometric sparse bundle adjustment pipeline for 3D reconstruction.
Efficient risk analysis for Android applications

The increasing growth of Android phones, due to its openness and popularity also calls for the increase in attacks. A very keen and intellectual study proves that Android users can easily be hacked with the existing single time permission approval system. Once approved, an application can access all the resources requested as permissions, at any time according to the code integrated into it. The permissions shown at installation time totally depends on the user's privacy preference. An application rated riskier by a particular privacy rating software may not be riskier in the eyes of a user who is already decided to install this application. So in order to provide a clear cut idea about how an application will harm him or what are the risks involved in an application compared to the other top rated clean applications in the same category, we propose a security system, which involves a combination of static and dynamic risk analysis of Android applications. The proposed system allows its users to install a riskier application rated by static analyzer, and review it with a help of dynamic analyzer, which monitors application activity handling permissions.
The Development of Multimedia Hypermedia Applications as Evolutionary, Prototyping-Based Requirements Engineering

It is hypothesized (1) that the problem in building multimedia hypermedia applications is that of understanding what is needed, i.e., of understanding the requirements and (2) that the development of multimedia hypermedia is essentially the engineering of requirements for one particular class of highly dynamic software-based computing systems. Moreover, because of the stability of the libraries for multimedia and hypermedia systems, the development of a prototype for validation of multimedia hypermedia requirements yields a system which is essentially of production quality. The hypothesis is supported by comparing properties of multimedia hypermedia and software systems and development in general and comparing the Hiper Autor method for multimedia hypermedia development with the spiral model for software development. Rigorous testing of the hypothesis is left for future work.