Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Detection and Avoidance Scheme for DS-UWB System: A Step Towards Cognitive Radio

Cognitive radio (CR) improves spectrum efficiency to satisfy increasing demands on wireless transmission by dynamic spectrum access without interfering with legacy networks. In 2004, IEEE 802.22 Working Group was formed to develop a standard for wireless regional area networks (WRANs) based on CR technology (Hu et al et al., 2007). It is expected to obtain a broadband access to data networks on the vacant TV channels while avoiding harmful interference to licensed TV broadcasting in rural areas within a typical radius of 17km to 30km (Stevenson et al., 2006). Ultra wideband radio (UWB), a promising technology, has found a myriad of exciting applications as well as generating a great deal of controversy, for its extremely broad bandwidth transmission as well as its revolutionary way of overlaying coexistent RF systems could cause interference on them (Lansford, 2004; Parr et al., 2003). Over the years, the co-existence problem of UWB has been all along a hot topic in the academy, industry, and regulatory bodies. After years of public debates, arguments, and comments, two important solutions to the co-existence problem are made—the policy-based power emission mask (FCC, 2002) and the device-centric cognitive radio (Lansford, 2004; Walko, 2005; Haykin, 2005). So far, several cognitive UWB schemes have been proposed, among which are soft-spectrum (Zhang & Kohno, 2003) scheme and detection-and-avoidance (DAA) scheme (Kohno & Takizawa, 2006). Reliably detecting of weak primary signals is an essential functionality for a DAA UWB system as soon as a primary user (PU) comes back into operation on the operating channels. Two types of primary users are defined in a WRAN which are TV services and wireless microphones (WMs). Compared with TV services, it is tougher to detect WM signals for the following two reasons. Firstly, wireless microphones are low power devices and occupy a narrow bandwidth. The transmission power of a WM is as low as 50mW in a 200kHz bandwidth. When the sensor is several hundred meters away from this WM signal, the received signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) may be below -20dB (Zeng & Liang, 2007). Another, they utilize arbitrary unused TV bands and are deployed for a short time such that it is difficult for CR users to obtain much information on WM signals (De & Liang, 2007; Dhillon & Brown, 2008). This chapter will concern two questions. Firstly, how to detect the weak primary signals. Secondly, how to avoid such interference from the primary user and how to coexist with it.
Experimental balance model adjustment based on force-torque sensors

The computational complexity of humanoid robot balance control is reduced by means of 1 applying simplified kinematics and dynamics models. But these simplifications lead to introduce 2 errors that are added to other inherent electro-mechanic inaccuracies of the robotic system. But 3 linear control systems deal with these inaccuracies if they operate around an specific working point 4 but are less precise if not. This work presents a model improvement based on the Linear Inverted 5 Pendulum Model (LIPM) to be applied in a non-linear control system. The aim is to minimize the 6 control error and reduce robot oscillations for multiple working points. The new model, named 7 Adjusted LIPM, is used to plan the robot behavior against changes in the balance status denoted 8 by the Zero Moment Point (ZMP). Thanks to the use of the information of Force-Torque sensors, an 9 experimental procedure has been applied to characterize the inaccuracies and introduce them in the 10 new model The experiments have consisted of balance perturbations similar to push-recovery trials, 11 in which step shaped ZMP variations are produced. The results show that the response of the robot 12 against balance perturbations are more precise and the mechanical oscillations are reduced without 13 comprising the robot dynamics 14
Active Learning from Critiques via Bayesian Inverse Reinforcement Learning

Learning from demonstration algorithms, such as Inverse Reinforcement Learning, aim to provide a natural mechanism for programming robots, but can often require a prohibitive number of demonstrations to capture important subtleties of a task. Rather than requesting additional demonstrations blindly, active learning methods leverage uncertainty to query the user for action labels at states with high expected information gain. However, this approach can still require a large number of labels to adequately reduce uncertainty and may also be unintuitive, as users are not accustomed to determining optimal actions in a single out-of-context state. To address these shortcomings, we propose a novel trajectory-based active Bayesian inverse reinforcement learning algorithm that 1) queries the user for critiques of automatically generated trajectories, rather than asking for demonstrations or action labels, 2) utilizes trajectory segmentation to expedite the critique / labeling process, and 3) predicts the user’s critiques to generate the most highly informative trajectory queries. We evaluated our algorithm in a simulated domain, finding it to compare favorably to prior work and a randomized baseline.
Reliability Evaluation for the Assessment of Wind Energy Penetration in Power Systems

Wind energy is rapidly becoming an important source of electrical generation. Decisions about the viability of using wind energy in combination with conventional energy sources should be determined on their reliability to meet a load demand and the cost of using such a combination. This paper presents a reliability evaluation method that comprises three main aspects: wind data modelling, wind turbine generator power evaluation and a system adequacy assessment. To determine the reliability of a given wind penetration, Monte-Carlo techniques have been used based on random combinations of conditions for hourly wind speed, conventional generation availability and load. Results are presented as probabilistic indices. The method is implemented using a computer program, and a case study of an electrical system representative of a small country or island is presented.
The Aedes aegypti larval transcriptome: a comparative perspective with emphasis on trypsins and the domain structure of peritrophins

The genome sequence of Aedes aegypti was recently reported. A significant amount of Expressed Sequence Tags (ESTs) were sequenced to aid in the gene prediction process. In the present work we describe an integrated analysis of the genomic and EST data, focusing on genes with preferential expression in larvae (LG), adults (AG) and in both stages (SG). A total of 913 genes (5.4% of the transcript complement) are LG, including ion transporters and cuticle proteins that are important for ion homeostasis and defense. From a starting set of 245 genes encoding the trypsin domain, we identified 66 putative LG, AG, and SG trypsins by manual curation. Phylogenetic analyses showed that AG trypsins are divergent from their larval counterparts (LG), grouping with blood‐induced trypsins from Anopheles gambiae and Simulium vittatum. These results support the hypothesis that blood‐feeding arose only once, in the ancestral Culicomorpha. Peritrophins are proteins that interlock chitin fibrils to form the peritrophic membrane (PM) that compartmentalizes the food in the midgut. These proteins are recognized by having chitin‐binding domains with 6 conserved Cys and may also present mucin‐like domains (regions expected to be highly O‐glycosylated). PM may be formed by a ring of cells (type 2, seen in Ae. aegypti larvae and Drosophila melanogaster) or by most midgut cells (type 1, found in Ae. aegypti adult and Tribolium castaneum). LG and D. melanogaster peritrophins have more complex domain structures than AG and T. castaneum peritrophins. Furthermore, mucin‐like domains of peritrophins from T. castaneum (feeding on rough food) are lengthier than those of adult Ae. aegypti (blood‐feeding). This suggests, for the first time, that type 1 and type 2 PM may have variable molecular architectures determined by different peritrophins and/or ancillary proteins, which may be partly modulated by diet.
Intestinal parasites and diarrhoea in a childrens hospitalin Sri Lanka

The study population consisted of 940 children with acute diarrhoea and 260 children admitted for conditions other than diarrhoea. The first sample of stool was examined for bacteria (Sal­ monella spp, Shigella spp, Aeromonas spp, Campylobacter spp, Vibrio cholerae, Vibrio parahaemolyticus and Enteropathogenic E.coli), viruses (rotavirus and adenoviruses) and parasites (En­ tamoeba histolytica, Cryptosporidium spp, Giardia lamblia, Ascaris lumbricoides, Trichuris trichiura, Necator americanus and Enterobius vermicularis) us­ ing standard techniques.
The Application of DNA Self-Assembly Model for Bin Packing Problem

Bin Packing Problem (BPP) is a classical combinatorial optimization problem of graph theory, which has been proved to be NP-complete, and has high computational complexity. DNA self-assembly, a formal model of crystal growth, has been proposed as a mechanism for the bottom-up fabrication of autonomous DNA computing. In this paper, the authors propose a DNA self-assembly model for solving the BPP, this model consists of two units: grouping based on binary method and subtraction system. The great advantage of the model is that the number of DNA tile types used in the model is constant and it can solve any BPP within linear time. This work demonstrates the ability of DNA tiles to solve other NP-complete problems in the future.
Optimum ship pilot plan based on the ED-DPSO algorithm

An optimum ship pilot plan model is proposed by considering the pilot task location, time and the pilot condition. In order to solve the infeasible solution problem, a pseudo travel salesman problem (PTSP) model is presented to describe the model. A novel modified discrete particle swarm optimization algorithm base on the Estimation of Distribution (ED-DPSO) is presented to solve the PTSP model. Simulations were carried and the results show that the PTSP model is very fit for describe the ship pilot plan model. The computation with practical data shows that the model and the solving method are very effective.
Does parenthood increase happiness? Evidence for Poland. Anna Baranowska & Anna Matysiak Does parenthood increase happiness? Evidence for Poland

In the recent decade demographers turned their attention to investigating the effects of children on self-rated happiness or life satisfaction. The underlying idea of this strand of research is to find out whether it pays off to individuals to become parents in terms of their subjective wellbeing, given the costs of having children. This paper follows this line of research and studies the impacts of childbearing on individual-level happiness in Poland; a country which experienced a rapid decline in fertility despite particularly strong attachment of young Poles to family values. To this end, we applied methods for panel data analysis which allowed us to control for endogeneity of subjective well-being and parenthood. Our results reveal a significantly positive effect of the first child on the subjective well-being of mothers. For men, this impact is weaker and most likely temporary since it weakens with an increase in child’s age. Importantly, neither for men nor for women does the positive impact of parenthood rise with an increase in parity. This may explain persistence of low fertility in this country.
Meeting Satisfaction and Job Satisfaction : Theoretical and Conceptual Links

Given the ubiquity, time investment, and theoretical relevance of meetings to work attitudes, this study explored whether organizational science should consider employee satisfaction with meetings as a contemporary, important, and discrete facet of job satisfaction. Using affective events theory, we postulated that meetings are affect-generating events that meaningfully contribute to overall job satisfaction. Two surveys queried working adults: Study 1 used a paper-based survey (n = 201), while Study 2 used an Internet-based survey (n = 785). Satisfaction with meetings was positively related to and signifi cantly predicted overall job satisfaction (p < .05) after controlling for individual difference variables (e.g., participant background variables, negative affect), traditional job satisfaction facets (e.g., work, supervision, pay), and other conceptually relevant constructs (e.g., satisfaction with communication, organizational commitment). Exploratory (Study 1) and confi rmatory (Study 2) factor analyses provided evidence that meeting satisfaction is a distinct facet of job satisfaction. Finally, as hypothesized, the relationship between meeting satisfaction and job satisfaction depends in part upon the number of meetings typically attended. The relationship was stronger (more positive) when meeting demands were higher and weaker when meeting demands were lower. Implications for assessment, leadership development, on-boarding, and high potential initiatives are discussed. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Audio-Visual Speech Recognition Using Convolutive Bottleneck Networks for a Person with Severe Hearing Loss

In this paper, we propose an audio-visual speech recognition system for a person with an articulation disorder resulting from severe hearing loss. In the case of a person with this type of articulation disorder, the speech style is quite different from with the result that of people without hearing loss that a speaker-independent model for unimpaired persons is hardly useful for recognizing it. We investigate in this paper an audio-visual speech recognition system for a person with severe hearing loss in noisy environments, where a robust feature extraction method using a convolutive bottleneck network (CBN) is applied to audio-visual data. We confirmed the effectiveness of this approach through word-recognition experiments in noisy environments, where the CBN-based feature extraction method outperformed the conventional methods.
Pax5-Deficient Mice Exhibit Early Onset Osteopenia with Increased Osteoclast Progenitors1

Pax5 encodes BSAP, a member of the paired box domain transcription factors, whose expression is restricted to B lymphocyte lineage cells. Pax5−/− mice have a developmental arrest of the B cell lineage at the pro-B cell stage. We show here that Pax5−/− mice are severely osteopenic, missing 60% of their bone mass. The osteopenia can be accounted for by a >100% increase in the number of osteoclasts in bone measured histomorphometrically. This is not due to a lack of B cells, because other strains of B cell-deficient mice do not exhibit this phenotype. There was no difference in the number of osteoclasts produced in vitro by wild-type and Pax5−/− bone marrow cells. In contrast, spleen cells from Pax5−/− mice produce as much as five times the number of osteoclasts as control spleen cells. Culture of Pax5−/− spleen cells yields a population of adherent cells that grow spontaneously in culture without added growth factors for >4 wk. These cells have a monocyte phenotype, produce large numbers of osteoclasts when induced in vitro, and therefore are highly enriched in osteoclast precursors. These data demonstrate a previously unsuspected connection between B cell and osteoclast development and a key role for Pax5 in the control of osteoclast development.
PHOTOSYNTHESIS, RESPIRATION AND TRANSPIRATION OF RADIATA PINE

Gas exchange measurements of photosynthesis, respiration, and transpiration of radiata pine (Pinus radiata D. Don) seedlings have been used to study diurnal patterns and responses to temperature, subjection to drought, flooding, and decapitation of the shoot. The diurnal patterns of net photosynthesis and transpiration in a controlled environment showed a rapid initial increase followed by a slower increase to a maximum after about three hr of illumination. This was followed by a gentle decrease, consistent with an increasing leaf water deficit, until the end of the photoperiod. This diurnal pattern exhibited by plants grown in a controlled environment should be taken into account in planning short term experiments. The effects of temperature included an increase in maximum photosynthetic capacity between 11* and 23°C, possibly due to effects on the enzymatic reactions, and a depression at elevated temperatures attributed to disorganisation of the photochemical systems. Repeated cycles of droughting produced expected stomatal responses and less obvious cumulative effects on gas exchange, some of which seemed non-stomatal. Plants which were flooded behaved in most respects as though suffering a water deficit. Gas exchange of the shoots of seedlings severed from their roots suggested that whilst subsequent transpiration was much affected, photosynthesis was only slightly affected.
Acute Infective Endocarditis Caused by Delftia acidovorans, a Rare Pathogen Complicating Intravenous Drug Use

ABSTRACT Gram-negative bacilli causing infective endocarditis (IE) is rare, even in intravenous drug users. This case report underscores several clinically important aspects of Delftia acidovorans IE: the organism's ability to cause rapid destruction of normal native valves and to cause embolic occlusion of large arteries and its resistance to all aminoglycosides.
DISPLACEMENT-BASED MEASUREMENT OF STATIC AND DYNAMIC COEFFICIENTS OF FRICTION

INTRODUCTION Experimental methods are commonly used to identify friction behavior, particularly for manufacturing processes [1-22]. The majority of these friction measurements are made on tribometers, which apply a normal force to a pin that is pressed against a rotating or translating surface. The normal and friction forces are measured and the friction coefficient is calculated. However, misalignment between the force transducer axes and the motion and the applied direction of the normal force are critical factors in establishing the accuracy of the derived coefficients of friction [23]. Current methods used to measure friction behavior and parameterize complex friction models can suffer from high uncertainty, especially for low friction interfaces. Relative uncertainties on the order of two to four parts in 102 of the measured value are typical for low friction interfaces [23]. In contrast, displacement can be measured by laser interferometry with relative uncertainties on the order of a few parts in 107, four to five orders of magnitude better. The research described in this paper will evaluate a fundamentally new method for measuring friction and parameterizing friction models with lower uncertainty than conventional methods. The innovation is the use of high-accuracy displacement and velocity measurements during dynamic motions to characterize the energy dissipation.
Management's blind spot : effects of team performance and teamwork behavior on perceived functional diversity appropriateness

This paper focuses on consequences of team performance. We investigate how team processes and performance affect perceptions of functional diversity appropriateness, i.e., whether team members and managers believe that the right functions are represented. Our survey study, covering 48 sourcing teams from eleven companies, reveals how team members and their managers evaluate the effectiveness of functional diversity, and how these evaluations differ. Moreover, we show that teams with the poorest perceptions of functional diversity appropriateness are not poorly performing teams, but in fact well performing teams. The implications from this study suggest how managers can prevent this situation from occurring.
Discriminative power on mortality of a modified Sequential Organ Failure Assessment score for complete automatic computation in an operative intensive care unit

Objective To evaluate the discriminative power on mortality of a modified Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) score and derived measures (maximum SOFA, total maximum SOFA, and delta SOFA) for complete automatic computation in an operative intensive care unit (ICU). Design Retrospective study. Setting Operative ICU of the Department of Anesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine. Patients Patients admitted to the ICU from April 1, 1999, to March 31, 2000 (n = 524). Data from patients under the age of 18 yrs and patients who stayed <24 hrs were excluded. In the case of patient readmittance, only data from the patient’s last stay was included in the study. Interventions None. Measurements and Main Results The main outcome measure was survival status at ICU discharge. Based on Structured Query Language (SQL) scripts, a modified SOFA score for all patients who stayed in the ICU in 1 yr was calculated for each day in the ICU. Only routine data were used, which were supplied by the patient data management system. Score evaluation was modified in registering unavailable data as being not pathologic and in using a surrogate of the Glasgow Coma Scale. During the first 24 hrs, 459 survivors had an average SOFA score of 4.5 ± 2.1, whereas the 65 deceased patients averaged 7.6 ± 2.9 points. The area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was 0.799 and significantly >0.5 (p < .01). A confidence interval (CI) of 95% covers the area (0.739–0.858). The maximum SOFA presented an area under the ROC of 0.922 (CI: 0.879–0.966), the total maximum SOFA of 0.921 (CI: 0.882–0.960), and the delta SOFA of 0.828 (CI: 0.763–0.893). Conclusion Despite a number of differences between completely automated data sampling of SOFA score values and manual evaluation, the technique used in this study seems to be suitable for prognosis of the mortality rate during a patient’s stay at an operative ICU.
Low-Profile and Dual-polarized Microstrip Antennas

In this paper, two designs of dual-polarized and low-profile microstrip antennas are proposed. In order to enhance the impedance bandwidth, Antenna 1 applies grid-slotted radiating patch to build an additional resonant mode (antiphase TM20 mode), and coupled with basic TM10 mode. It is fed by modified Y-shaped feeding structure to coupling these two modes and for impedance matching. A broadened bandwidth around 39% is achieved for two ports with a low profile of 0.06 λ0. Then, with the purpose of increasing the gain of dual-polarized microstrip antenna, Antenna 2 using cross-shaped patch with slot-loaded structure is presented and discussed. By exciting higherorder TM50 mode, the two loaded slots behave as the inphase TM10 mode, forming a four-element magneticcurrent array. Thus, maximum gain of 12.3 dBi, approximately 4 dB higher than conventional microstrip antenna, is achieved with a low profile of 0.027 λ0. Design concepts of these two antennas can help to expand channel capacity of dual-polarized microstrip antenna in MIMO systems.
IUFRO EKE Working Party Achieves Success with Kenora Conference

Family forest lands represent a vitally important economic, environmental, and social resource in the U.S. A study of family forest owners was conducted in Virginia in 2007 to determine the relationship between attendance at Extension Service educational programs and the adoption of sustainable forest management practices. A mail survey was conducted to 3435 randomly selected forest owners, with a usable response rate of 32%. Participation in educational programs was shown to be significantly related to higher levels of adoption for all seven categories of sustainable forest management practices studied. For example, in the woodland management category, participants in workshops offered through the Virginia Forest Landowner Education Program (VFLEP) adopted one or more specific practices at a rate of 94%, significantly greater than 83% for forest owners who attended other general educational programs, which in turn was significantly higher than the 75% adoption rate for forest owners who did not attend any educational programs. Two key indicators of sustainable forest management are the preparation and use of a forest management plan, and the use of professional technical assistance providers. For both of these categories participants in the VFLEP adopted at significantly higher rates, 41% and 73%, respectively.