Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Integrated Validation System for the Simulation of Diverse Sensors in WSNs

In wireless sensor networks (WSNs), sensors use different types of information, such as temperatures, humidity, magnetic fields, and sound; their communication distances and battery sizes and capacities may be different. Differences in communication distances and battery capacities when the same communication method is used affect the life of the entire sensor network topology. Tests for the maximum life of the sensor network topology require many sensor nodes and huge proportional costs. In addition, experiments to verify new ideas for WSNs as alternatives to existing methods also require large expenditures. Since experiments with the arrangement of actual sensors are expensive, such experiments are conducted using simulators so that solutions for protocol design and verification can be compared through software. Existing simulators are tailored to certain sensor characteristics, so that only quite limited results can be obtained through the implementation of simulated operations, simulations of sensor arrangements, and the comparison of limited information transmission routing functions provided by simulators. This paper proposes diverse sensor definable simulators (DSDs) for the performance of experiments on diverse sensors with different communication distances in WSN environments where Geography Markup Language (GML) based coordinates are utilized.
Spectral and magnetic properties of alpha- and gamma-Ce from dynamical mean-field theory and local density approximation.

: We present excitation spectra for Ce metal obtained with an ab initio scheme combining local density approximation and dynamical mean-field theory including itinerant spd and correlated f states. The local interactions among the f electrons lead to typical many-body resonances in the f density of states (DOS), such as lower and upper Hubbard bands and the Kondo resonance. The spd DOS show weak renormalization effects due to hybridization. We observe different Kondo temperatures for alpha- and gamma-Ce due to strong volume dependence of the effective hybridization strength for the localized f electrons. Finally we compare our results with a variety of experimental data.
Constrained Consensus in Unbalanced Networks With Communication Delays

In this note, a constrained consensus problem is studied for multi-agent systems in unbalanced networks in the presence of communication delays. Here each agent needs to lie in a closed convex constraint set while reaching a consensus. The communication graphs are directed, dynamically changing, and not necessarily balanced and only the union of the graphs is assumed to be strongly connected among each time interval of a certain bounded length. The analysis is performed based on an undelayed equivalent system that is composed of a linear main body and an error auxiliary. To tackle the loss of symmetry caused by unbalanced graphs and communication delays, a novel approach is proposed. The idea is to estimate the distance from each agent to the intersection set of all agents' constraint sets based on the properties of the projection on convex sets so as to show consensus convergence by contradiction. It is shown that the error auxiliary vanishes as time evolves and the linear main body converges to a vector with an exponential rate as a separate system. It is also shown that the communication delays do not affect the consensus stability and constrained consensus is reached even if the communication delays are arbitrarily bounded. Finally, a numerical example is included to illustrate the obtained theoretical results.
State of the Art Language Technologies for Italian: The EVALITA 2014 Perspective

Shared task evaluation campaigns represent a well established form of competitive evaluation, an important opportunity to propose and tackle new challenges for a specific research area and a way to foster the development of benchmarks, tools and resources. The advantages of this approach are evident in any experimental field, including the area of Natural Language Processing. An outlook on state–of–the–art language technologies for Italian can be obtained by reflecting on the results of the recently held workshop “Evaluation of NLP and Speech Tools for Italian”, EVALITA 2014. The motivations underlying individual shared tasks, the level of knowledge and development achieved within each of them, the impact on applications, society and economy at large as well as directions for future research will be discussed from this perspective.
Effects of whole-body gamma-irradiation on lipid peroxidation and anti-oxidant enzymes in the liver of N-nitrosodiethylamine-treated mice

B6C3F1 mice were treated per os with either normal saline or Af-nitrosodiethylamine (NDEA) (0.01, 0.1, 1.0 or 5.0 mg/kg body weight) daily for 21 days. On day 22 nd of the experiment, the animals were whole-body γ-irradiated (10 Gy) and examined at 3.5 days post-radiation exposure. Pretreatment of mice with NDEA at the lowest dosage (0.01 and 0.1 mg/kg) increased thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances (TBARS) and catalase (CAT) activity in the liver. Since the agent at the highest doses (1.0 and 5.0 mg/kg) did not have any effect(s) on TBARS, it was associated with the selective increase of thiol (SH) groups and GSH-linked antioxidant enzyme activities such as glutathione peroxidase (GPX), transferase (GST) and reductase (GR). γ-irradiation decreased TBARS and increased superoxide dismutase (SOD) and GPX activity in NDEAtreated mice. Simultaneously, γ-rays did not have any effect(s) on GST and GR enzymes, and it slightly decreased SH groups and CAT activity. Results of the present study indicate that NDEA can promote lipid peroxidation in mice liver, γ-irradiation of mice at a dose of 10 Gy modifes the activity of hepatic antioxidant enzymes, which in turn can lead to the reduction of NDEA-induced lipid peroxidation and/or prooxidant shift(s). The anti-oxidant enzymes such as SOD and GPX are suggested to be mainly involved in this process(s).
Speaker diarization experiments for Romanian parliamentary speech

The speaker diarization system LIUM was developed for broadcast news data, but in this paper we employed it to evaluate the diarization performance over Romanian audio files of parliamentary speeches with different challenges (interruptions, noise, overlapping of speaker discourses etc.). More than 21 hours of speech belonging to few hundreds of speakers were used to evaluate the automatic process of segments assignation. The obtained results demonstrated that LIUM is proper even for parliamentary speeches with multiple challenges.
Teleoperation of a mobile robot based on eye-gaze tracking

Most telerobotic applications rely on a Human-Robot Interface that requires the operator to continuously monitor the state of the robot through visual feedback while uses manual input devices to send commands to control the navigation of the robot. Although this setup is present in many examples of telerobotic applications, it may not be suitable in situations when it is not possible or desirable to have manual input devices, or when the operator has a motor disability that does not allow the use of that type of input devices. Since the operator already uses his/her eyes in the monitoring task, an interface based on the inputs from their gaze could be used to teleoperate the robot. This paper presents a telerobotic platform that uses a user interface based on eye-gaze tracking that enables a user to control the navigation of a teleoperated mobile robot using only his/her eyes as inputs to the system. Details of the operation of the eye-gaze tracking system and the results of a task-oriented evaluation of the developed system are also included.
Understanding variations in lengths of stay between hospitals for fractured neck of femur patients and the potential consequences of reduced stay targets.

BACKGROUND Economic incentives exist to scrutinize length of stay variations between hospitals. However, the reasons for variations can be complex, and without knowing these the feasibility of shorter stay targets, and their implications for patient outcome, are unclear. METHODS This research compared care received by patients admitted for fractured neck of femur at an inner-city university teaching hospital, an inner-city associated teaching hospital and an associated teaching hospital in an urban setting. Multiple regression and descriptive analysis were used to examine how in-patient acute stay was affected by the severity of cases on admission and the supply of beds beyond the acute setting. Data on patient outcome were mortality up to three months post fracture and functional ability at in-patient discharge and three months post fracture. RESULTS A total of 492 patients were recruited. Patient outcomes at three months were similar at the hospitals. Multiple regression revealed significant differences between the patient stay of the inner-city teaching hospital and the urban associated teaching hospital. A difference in stay of around 14 days was demonstrated, with the urban hospital having the shorter stay. These differences were linked it to having a greater supply of non-acute beds. CONCLUSION Significant differences in patient stay between hospitals can be due to factors beyond the direct control of the acute unit. Economic incentives may mean that purchasers and providers ignore a full analysis of these factors and set length of stay targets which are not feasible in the short term. This could reduce the quality and impair the outcome of patient care.
Mechanisms of unstable angina.

The hallmark of unstable angina is its unpredictability. The symptoms, which occur without provocation, sometimes stabilize or resolve but sometimes progress to myocardial infarction or sudden death. This pattern contrasts with that of stable angina. Early data suggested that transient increases in myocardial oxygen demand might explain episodes of pain that occurred at rest in patients with unstable angina.1 In the late 1970s, however, clinical, electrocardiographic, radionuclide, and myocardial bloodflow studies suggested that episodes of myocardial ischemia and pain at rest were the result of abrupt reductions in coronary blood flow. The emphasis had changed from the demand to the .
Design and optimization of a planar UWB antenna

In this paper, we present our design on a simple, low-profile wideband planar antenna with a pure circular radiator fed by a 50Ω microstrip line. By investigating the feeding position and ground plane dimensions, the antenna is optimized to have a very wide bandwidth that covers the whole FCC-allocated ultra-wideband (UWB) spectrum. Because of the additional patch beneath the radiator, the bandwidth can be further extended towards the lower side of the frequency spectrum. This antenna is finally modified to have a bandwidth from 2 to 12 GHz, which satisfies system requirements for S-DMB, WiBro, WLAN, CMMB and the entire UWB with S11 <; -10dB.
Secondhand Smoke Exposure and Respiratory Symptoms Among Casino, Club, and Office Workers in Victoria, Australia

Objective: To examine the association between smoke-free policies, exposure to secondhand smoke (SHS) at work, and self-reported respiratory and sensory symptoms of workers. Method: Ninety-one nonsmoking workers recruited from three workplaces with varying smoking policies completed a telephone-administered questionnaire and provided saliva samples (before and after usual work shift) for cotinine analysis. Results: Mean before–after shift saliva cotinine per hour worked was significantly higher among club (0.42 ng/mL/hr worked) than casino workers (0.18 ng/mL/hr worked) (P < 0.001), club than office workers (0.03 ng/mL/hr worked) (P < 0.001), and casino than office workers (P < 0.001). Casino and club workers reported similar levels of respiratory morbidity and were more likely to have sore eyes (odds ratio [OR] = 5.5, P < 0.01) and a sore throat (OR = 4.3, P < 0.05) compared with office employees. Conclusion: Air-conditioning interventions reduce, but fail to eliminate, exposure of hospitality workers to SHS. Such exposure is associated with measurable increases in the risk of respiratory symptoms.
Parvovirus initiation factor PIF: a novel human DNA-binding factor which coordinately recognizes two ACGT motifs

A novel human site-specific DNA-binding factor has been partially purified from extracts of HeLa S3 cells. This factor, designated PIF, for parvovirus initiation factor, binds to the minimal origin of DNA replication at the 3' end of the minute virus of mice (MVM) genome and functions as an essential cofactor in the replication initiation process. Here we show that PIF is required for the viral replicator protein NS1 to nick and become covalently attached to a specific site in the origin sequence in a reaction which requires ATP hydrolysis. DNase I and copper ortho-phenanthroline degradation of the PIF-DNA complexes showed that PIF protects a stretch of some 20 nucleotides, covering the entire region in the minimal left-end origin not already known to be occupied by NS1. Methylation and carboxy-ethylation interference analysis identified two ACGT motifs, spaced by five nucleotides, as the sequences responsible for this binding. A series of mutant oligonucleotides was then used as competitive inhibitors in gel mobility shift assays to confirm that PIF recognizes both of these ACGT sequences and to demonstrate that the two motifs comprise a single binding site rather than two separate sites. Competitive inhibition of the origin nicking assay, using the same group of oligonucleotides, confirmed that the same cellular factor is responsible for both mobility shift and nicking activities. UV cross-linking and relative mobility assays suggest that PIF binds DNA as a heterodimer or higher-order multimer with subunits in the 80- to 100-kDa range.
A Study of Data Fusion and Decision Algorithms Based on Cooperative Spectrum Sensing

The cooperative operation can improve the sensing performance of cognitive radio networks and reduce the sensing time. Combining multiple cognitive users’ local detection results and making accurate judgment is essential to improve cooperative gain. According to uploaded information from cognitive users, hard decision based on the combination of large numbers and soft decision based on the confidence (maximum likelihood) combination are discussed. The single-bit hard decision algorithm, soft decision algorithm based on the maximum ratio combination, equal gain combination and selection combination, data fusion and decision algorithm based on evidence theory as well as softened 2bit hard combination and decision algorithm are mainly introduced, and detection performance and complexity are analyzed respectively.
Protect fragile regions in steganography LSB embedding

We checked the problem in LSB matching revisited algorithm, which is an efficient method in steganography. Some sorts of regions in images are not appropriate for applying LSB embedding. We propose a method to make regions selection on images to find suitable area. By counting on each pixel we can decide if it should be protected. The experiment results showed our method can impove the visual imperceptibility and undetectability of the LSB matching method.
Framework for augmented reality in Minimally Invasive laparoscopic surgery

This article presents a framework for fusing preoperative data and intra-operative data for surgery guidance. This framework is employed in the context of Minimally Invasive Surgery (MIS) of the liver. From stereoscopic images a three dimensional point cloud is reconstructed in real-time. This point cloud is then used to register a patient-specific biomechanical model derived from Computed Tomography images onto the laparoscopic view. In this way internal structures such as vessels and tumors can be visualized to help the surgeon during the procedure. This is particularly relevant since abdominal organs undergo large deformations in the course of the surgery, making it difficult for surgeons to correlate the laparoscopic view with the pre-operative images. Our method has the potential to reduce the duration of the operation as the biomechanical model makes it possible to estimate the in-depth position of tumors and vessels at any time of the surgery, which is essential to the surgical decision process. Results show that our method can be successfully applied during laparoscopic procedure without interfering with the surgical work flow.
Apolipoprotein E epsilon4 allele frequency in vascular dementia.

AIM The aim of the study was to investigate whether possession of the epsilon4 allelic form of the apolipoprotein E (APOE) gene increases the risk of developing vascular dementia (VaD). METHODS APOE allele and genotype frequencies were determined by PCR in 89 patients with possible and probable VaD and compared with those in 97 patients with possible and probable Alzheimer's disease (AD) of similar age of disease onset and ethnic background, and with 766 control subjects drawn from the same geographical region. RESULTS The APOE epsilon4 allele frequency in all 97 patients with possible and probable AD was significantly higher (p < 0.001) than that in control subjects. However, the APOE epsilon4 allele frequency in all 89 patients with possible and probable VaD was also significantly higher (p < 0.001) than that in control subjects, but not significantly different from that in AD. The APOE epsilon4 allele frequency was similarly, and still significantly (p < 0.001), increased when only those patients with probable AD or probable VaD were considered. CONCLUSION Possession of APOE epsilon4 allele increases the risk of VaD.
Short- and long-term impact of critical illness on relatives: literature review.

AIM This paper is a report of a literature review undertaken to identify the short- and long-term impact of critical illness on relatives. BACKGROUND Patients in intensive care can experience physical and psychological consequences, and their relatives may also experience such effects. Although it is recognized that relatives have specific needs, it is not clear whether these needs are always met and whether further support is required, particularly after intensive care. DATA SOURCES The following databases were searched for the period 1950-2007: Medline, British Nursing Index and Archive, EMBASE, CINAHL, PsycINFO and EMB Reviews--Cochrane Central Register of Clinical Trials. SEARCH METHODS Search terms focused on adult relatives of critically ill adult patients during and after intensive care. Recurrent topics were categorized to structure the review, i.e. 'relatives needs', 'meeting relatives' needs', 'interventions', 'satisfaction', 'psychological outcomes' and 'coping'. RESULTS Studies have mainly identified relatives' immediate needs using the Critical Care Family Needs Inventory. There are few studies of interventions to meet relatives' needs and the short- and long-term effects of critical illness on relatives. CONCLUSION Despite widespread use of the Critical Care Family Needs Inventory, factors such as local or cultural differences may influence relatives' needs. Relatives may also have unidentified needs, and these needs should be explored. Limited research has been carried out into interventions to meet relatives' needs and the effects of critical illness on their well-being, yet some relatives may experience negative psychological consequences far beyond the acute phase of the illness.
Comparaison d'images binaires reposant sur une mesure locale des dissimilarités.Application à la classification. (Binary image comparison based on a dissimilarity local measure.Application to the classification)

Cette these se situe dans le cadre de la comparaison d'image. Elle est consacree au developpement d'une methode de comparaison locale d'images binaires. En s'appuyant sur un exemple de mesure - la distance de Hausdorff (DH) - une mesure locale (a travers une fenetre) est definie, et ses proprietes en fonction de la taille de la fenetre et de la mesure globale entre les deux images sont prouvees. Cela permet de definir un critere pour fixer une taille de fenetre ajustee a celle de la dissimilarite locale. Cette methode permet de definir une Carte de Dissimilarites Locales (CDL) lorsque la mesure locale est faite sur tous les points de l'image. Elle n'est pas valable uniquement avec la DH, cependant les proprietes de la DH font que le calcul de la CDL dans ce cas est tres rapide. La CDL est a la fois un outil de visualisation des dissimilarites entre deux images et une base pour decider de la similarite des images. Dans cette optique, une premiere etape est la mise en oeuvre d'une analyse multiresolution adaptee aux images binaires reposant sur le filtre de la mediane morphologique qui offre la possibilite de traiter l'information a une resolution adaptee au degre de similarite recherche. La deuxieme etape est l'utilisation de l'information de la CDL concernant les dissimilarites et leur distribution spatiale pour comparer les images. Plusieurs methodes sont testees, et la plus efficace est basee sur les SVM auxquels on fournit en entree les CDL entieres. Les tests realises sur une base d'impressions anciennes numerisees et sur une base de formes montrent l'efficacite de la methode.
Hyperbaric oxygen and photodynamic therapy in the treatment of advanced carcinoma of the cardia and the esophagus

The photochemical reaction of photodynamic therapy (PDT) depends on the presence of molecular oxygen. Because of anoxic regions in tumor tissue and vascular shutdown during PDT, the efficiency is limited. Therefore, the use of hyperbaric oxygen, which increases the oxygen in tumor tissue, as well as the amount of singlet oxygen, may enhance the efficiency of PDT.
An analytical framework design for latent fingerprint reconstruction, enhancement and recognition

Latent fingerprints captured at the crime scene plays significant role as an evidence to capture the criminals. As latent fingerprints are the accidently left skin impressions, so these are found to be with broken ridge composition, overlapped patterns and spoiled minutiae information. There latent fingerprint are of no use until the reconstruction & enhancement of their ridges, quality and minutiae information. Manual reconstruction, enhancement and recognition of latent fingerprints is much expensive, dull and time overriding procedure. So, Researchers are continuously working to design an autonomous latent fingerprint recognition system but facing various challenges like availability of spoiled ridges, less information & background noise, lack of publicly availability of latent fingerprint dataset and non-availability of any specific method for fingerprint matching. In this paper, an analytical framework is presented for the reconstruction, enhancement and recognition of latent fingerprints. Initially hybrid approach of Exemplar Inpainting and Partial Differential Equation is applied for the reconstruction of spoiled ridges. Enhancement is performed to reduce the noise value and final matching is performed using binarisation approach to recognize the criminals. The proposed concept is tested for the dataset of NIST SD-27 database with the evaluation parameters of False Acceptance Rate and Genuine Acceptance Rate.
Magnetoresistance in granular Co-Cu glass-coated microwires

In this paper, we report on a considerable (up to about 18%) magnetoresistance (MR) effect in glass-coated Co-Cu microwires prepared from immiscible elements. Samples of Co/sub 10/Cu/sub 90/ microwires with a metallic nucleus diameter of 3-17 /spl mu/m and total diameter up to 25 /spl mu/m were prepared by the Taylor-Ulitovsky technique. The Co/sub 10/Cu/sub 90/ microwires generally consist of nanocrystals of Co and Cu with average grain size of about 40 nm, although the Co-phase content depends on the microwire geometry (metallic nucleus radius and glass-coating thickness). The magnetic field dependence of MR is completely anhysteretic, showing monotonous decay with the magnetic field.