Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
On the relation between region and contour representation

Fourier descriptor and geometric moments are respectively the contour and region representations of objects in a binary image. In this paper, the authors reveal the relation between these two representations. The authors first generalize the Fourier descriptor to make it suitable for objects with more complex form. Then it is shown that the two representations are related by a simple linear transformation.
Monte Carlo simulation on microcomputers

Monte Carlo analysis is a practical tech nique for including the effects of uncertainty in a model intended for decision support. It has been infrequently used, however, perhaps because it has been tedious and boring to do. A recently available software add-in to 1-2-3 named @Risk makes Monte Carlo analysis much easier. This paper demonstrates Monte Carlo analysis in spreadsheet simulation in 1-2-3 so that you are better able to judge whether or not you should employ it.
Medical leadership: An important and required competency for medical students

Good medical leadership is the key to building high-quality healthcare. However, in the development of medical careers, the teaching of leadership has traditionally not equaled that of technical and academic competencies. As a result of changes in personal standards, the quality of medical leadership has led to variations between different organizations, as well as occasional catastrophic failure in the standard of care provided for patients. Leaders in the medical profession have called for reform in healthcare in response to challenges in the system and improvements in public health. Furthermore, there has been an increased drive to see leadership education for doctors starting earlier, and continuing throughout their careers so that they can take on more important leadership roles throughout the healthcare system. Being a physician requires not only management and leadership but also the need to transfer competencies to communication and critical thinking. These attributes can be obtained through experience in teamwork under the supervision of teaching staff. Therefore, medical students are expected to develop skills to deal with and resolve conflicts, learn to share leadership, prepare others to help and replace them, take mutual responsibility and discuss their performance.
Folic acid supplementation does not attenuate thermoregulatory or cardiovascular strain of older adults exposed to extreme heat and humidity

What is the central question of this study? Does folic acid supplementation alleviate thermoregulatory and cardiovascular strain of older adults during exposure to extreme heat and humidity? What is the main finding and its importance? Folic acid supplementation for 6 weeks did not affect whole‐limb blood flow/vasodilatation, core and skin temperatures, heart rate, blood pressure and cardiac output. Thus, 6 weeks of folic acid supplementation does not alleviate thermoregulatory or cardiovascular strain of healthy older adults exposed to extreme heat and humidity.
Study of Brain Activation in Small Animals using PET / MR Imaging

Introduction: Combined functional imaging, using information gathered by multiple modalities such as Positron Emission Tomography (PET) and Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) opens new horizons in medical research. In this study we present two novelties, so far not shown in small animal imaging. By sequential PET and MR imaging we were able to study and compare brain activation in animals using [O]H2O PET and BOLD fMRI. In addition we were able to obtain in vivo BOLD data inside a MR compatible small animal PET-Insert [1], allowing future simultaneous PET/MR studies.
Forecasting Retail Sales and Dealer Inventories: A Simulation and Decision Support System

A simulation model for forecasting retail sales and dealer inventories is presented. The model is based on the average time in distribution (ATD), a new statistic calculated from warranty cards returned by customers after purchasing a product. While warranty card returns are highly random both in number and arrival rate, the ATD is a relatively stable indicator rarely used in forecasting. Sales and inventories are generated by fitting their estimated ATDs to warranty cards. A decision support system (DSS), incorporating the simulation model as well as the standard components database, model base, user interface, report and graph facilities is outlined and discussed.
Long‐term nutrient addition increases respiration and nitrous oxide emissions in a New England salt marsh

Abstract Salt marshes may act either as greenhouse gas (GHG) sources or sinks depending on hydrological conditions, vegetation communities, and nutrient availability. In recent decades, eutrophication has emerged as a major driver of change in salt marsh ecosystems. An ongoing fertilization experiment at the Great Sippewissett Marsh (Cape Cod, USA) allows for observation of the results of over four decades of nutrient addition. Here, nutrient enrichment stimulated changes to vegetation communities that, over time, have resulted in increased elevation of the marsh platform. In this study, we measured fluxes of carbon dioxide (CO 2), methane (CH 4) and nitrous oxide (N2O) in dominant vegetation zones along elevation gradients of chronically fertilized (1,572 kg N ha−1 year−1) and unfertilized (12 kg N ha−1 year−1) experimental plots at Great Sippewissett Marsh. Flux measurements were performed using darkened chambers to focus on community respiration and excluded photosynthetic CO 2 uptake. We hypothesized that N‐replete conditions in fertilized plots would result in larger N2O emissions relative to control plots and that higher elevations caused by nutrient enrichment would support increased CO 2 and N2O and decreased CH 4 emissions due to the potential for more oxygen diffusion into sediment. Patterns of GHG emission supported our hypotheses. Fertilized plots were substantially larger sources of N2O and had higher community respiration rates relative to control plots, due to large emissions of these GHGs at higher elevations. While CH 4 emissions displayed a negative relationship with elevation, they were generally small across elevation gradients and nutrient enrichment treatments. Our results demonstrate that at decadal scales, vegetation community shifts and associated elevation changes driven by chronic eutrophication affect GHG emission from salt marshes. Results demonstrate the necessity of long‐term fertilization experiments to understand impacts of eutrophication on ecosystem function and have implications for how chronic eutrophication may impact the role that salt marshes play in sequestering C and N.
Endothelial Mechanotransduction, Redox Signaling and the Regulation of Vascular Inflammatory Pathways

The endothelium that lines the interior of blood vessels is directly exposed to blood flow. The shear stress arising from blood flow is "sensed" by the endothelium and is "transduced" into biochemical signals that eventually control vascular tone and homeostasis. Sensing and transduction of physical forces occur via signaling processes whereby the forces associated with blood flow are "sensed" by a mechanotransduction machinery comprising of several endothelial cell elements. Endothelial "sensing" involves converting the physical cues into cellular signaling events such as altered membrane potential and activation of kinases, which are "transmission" signals that cause oxidant production. Oxidants produced are the "transducers" of the mechanical signals? What is the function of these oxidants/redox signals? Extensive data from various studies indicate that redox signals initiate inflammation signaling pathways which in turn can compromise vascular health. Thus, inflammation, a major response to infection or endotoxins, can also be initiated by the endothelium in response to various flow patterns ranging from aberrant flow to alteration of flow such as cessation or sudden increase in blood flow. Indeed, our work has shown that endothelial mechanotransduction signaling pathways participate in generation of redox signals that affect the oxidant and inflammation status of cells. Our goal in this review article is to summarize the endothelial mechanotransduction pathways that are activated with stop of blood flow and with aberrant flow patterns; in doing so we focus on the complex link between mechanical forces and inflammation on the endothelium. Since this "inflammation susceptible" phenotype is emerging as a trigger for pathologies ranging from atherosclerosis to rejection post-organ transplant, an understanding of the endothelial machinery that triggers these processes is very crucial and timely.
Identifying the Critical Success Factors for Low Customized ERP System Implementations in SMEs

So far the level of ERP system customization has not been taken into account when identifying critical success factors for ERP implementations in small to medium size enterprises (SMEs). This research empirically tests the influence of the level of system customization on success factors by surveying 216 SMEs. We find that motivation system and project team empowerment are more important in low customized ERP implementations. This study is relevant to both theory and practice as it identifies and analyzes factors contributing to a higher success rate in low customized ERP system implementations in SMEs.
Evaluation of encapsulating and microporous nondegradable hydrogel scaffold designs on islet engraftment in rodent models of diabetes

Islet transplantation is a promising therapeutic option for type 1 diabetes mellitus, yet the current delivery into the hepatic portal vasculature is limited by poor engraftment. Biomaterials have been used as a means to promote engraftment and function at extrahepatic sites, with strategies being categorized as encapsulation or microporous scaffolds that can either isolate or integrate islets with the host tissue, respectively. Although these approaches are typically studied separately using distinct material platforms, herein, we developed nondegradable polyethylene glycol (PEG)‐based hydrogels for islet encapsulation or as microporous scaffolds for islet seeding to compare the initial engraftment and function of islets in syngeneic diabetic mice. Normoglycemia was restored with transplantation of islets within either encapsulating or microporous hydrogels containing 700 islet equivalents (IEQ), with transplantation on microporous hydrogels producing lower blood glucose levels at earlier times. A glucose challenge test at 1 month after transplant indicated that encapsulated islets had a delay in glucose‐stimulated insulin secretion, whereas microporous hydrogels restored normoglycemia in times consistent with native pancreata. Encapsulated islets remained isolated from the host tissue, whereas the microporous scaffolds allowed for revascularization of the islets after transplant. Finally, we compared the inflammatory response after transplantation for the two systems and noted that microporous hydrogels had a substantially increased presence of neutrophils. Collectively, these findings suggest that both encapsulation and microporous PEG scaffold designs allow for stable engraftment of syngeneic islets and the ability to restore normoglycemia, yet the architecture influences islet function and responsiveness after transplantation.
Combating Fake News: An Investigation of Information Verification Behaviors on Social Networking Sites

The use of the term ‘fake news’ has recently become widespread; however, research on fake news is limited. This research intends to increase understanding of how users of social networking sites (SNSs) determine if they should confirm the validity of news content. Grounded in research on the epistemology of testimony, we develop and test a research model based on perceptions related to news authors, news sharers, and users to test verification behaviors of users. The findings indicate that social tie variety, perceived cognitive homogeneity, trust in network, fake news awareness, perceived media credibility and intention to share influence an individual’s news verification behavior. We discuss the implications of our findings for SNS designers as well as users. We also integrate the theoretical perspectives of trust and testimony and demonstrate their value for explicating verification behaviors.
A non-linear pattern generator for testing digital VLSI circuitry

A digital pattern generator suggested by the boundary scan structure was examined using Fortran simulation. The scan register is closed to form a circular shift register. Each logic output is exclusive-ored between two boundary scan stages. The resulting circuit is a large, usually non-linear, sequential circuit suitable for built-in self- test. Earlier analysis using an independent input model demonstrated that this circular form will provide a rich collection of input test patterns. Our simulation indicates that typical circuits perform even better as pattern generators than the independent model predicts. Specifically the minimum sequence length necessary to cover all possible combinations of K variables was observed to be half or less than the length obtained from the independent model.
Instantiations of an ERP Implementation Methodology: A Critical Realist Case Study

New or revised implementation methodologies are introduced by Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems vendors to improve the results of ERP systems implementations. In spite of an implementation methodology’s potential and significance for practice, little attention has been paid to this object of study in enterprise systems literature. Moreover, current studies reveal contradictory findings and provide a fragmented understanding. The purpose of this paper is to describe and explain the emergence of an implementation methodology instantiations through the lens of a realist social theory underpinned by critical realism. Our qualitative study provides explanatory insights and a rich description of an implementation methodology instantiations generated over time. This study also provides guidance for practitioners, to anticipate potential implementation methodology instantiations and identify the conditions contributing to their occurrence and change, and contribute to a more coherent view on implementation methodology instantiations as an issue of organisational change.
Spontaneous Self‐Assembly of Perovskite Nanocrystals into Electronically Coupled Supercrystals: Toward Filling the Green Gap

Self‐assembly of nanoscale building blocks into ordered nanoarchitectures has emerged as a simple and powerful approach for tailoring the nanoscale properties and the opportunities of using these properties for the development of novel optoelectronic nanodevices. Here, the one‐pot synthesis of CsPbBr3 perovskite supercrystals (SCs) in a colloidal dispersion by ultrasonication is reported. The growth of the SCs occurs through the spontaneous self‐assembly of individual nanocrystals (NCs), which form in highly concentrated solutions of precursor powders. The SCs retain the high photoluminescence (PL) efficiency of their NC subunits, however also exhibit a redshifted emission wavelength compared to that of the individual nanocubes due to interparticle electronic coupling. This redshift makes the SCs pure green emitters with PL maxima at ≈530–535 nm, while the individual nanocubes emit a cyan‐green color (≈512 nm). The SCs can be used as an emissive layer in the fabrication of pure green light‐emitting devices on rigid or flexible substrates. Moreover, the PL emission color is tunable across the visible range by employing a well‐established halide ion exchange reaction on the obtained CsPbBr3 SCs. These results highlight the promise of perovskite SCs for light emitting applications, while providing insight into their collective optical properties.
Engaging Users to Co-Create - Implications for Service Systems Design by Evaluating an Engagement Platform

Far-reaching digitalization affords significantly more opportunities for engaging actors and mobilizing resources in service systems. By leveraging these capabilities, digitally enabled service systems can facilitate user-generated services. Traditional service engineering approaches provide for such service systems. This paper presents and discusses the evaluation of a field-based design science research project for designing an engagement platform that facilitates the co-creation of user-generated services. This study reports contributions to the design knowledge of such an engagement platform and their consequences for engagement activities. Based on the evaluation, we propose design propositions for such an engagement platform from a sociotechnical perspective.
Time-varying AR speech analysis using robust RLS algorithm with variable forgetting factor

In this paper a new robust recursive method of estimating the linear prediction (LP) parameters of an auto-regressive (AR) speech signal model using weighted least squares (WLS) with variable forgetting factors (VFFs) is described. The proposed robust recursive least squares (RRLS) differs from the conventional recursive least squares (RLS) by the insertion of a suitable chosen nonlinear transformation of the prediction residuals. The RRLS algorithm takes into account the contaminated Gaussian nature of the excitation for voiced speech. In addition, VFF is adapted to a nonstationary speech signal by a generalized likelihood ratio (MGLR) algorithm, which accounts for the nonstationarity of a speech signal. The proposed method has a good adaptability to the nonstationary parts of a speech signal, and gives low bias and low variance at the stationary signal segments.
Implicit regularization and solution uniqueness in over-parameterized matrix sensing

We consider whether algorithmic choices in over-parameterized linear matrix factorization introduce implicit regularization. We focus on noiseless matrix sensing over rank-$r$ positive semi-definite (PSD) matrices in $\mathbb{R}^{n \times n}$, with a sensing mechanism that satisfies restricted isometry properties (RIP). The algorithm we study is \emph{factored gradient descent}, where we model the low-rankness and PSD constraints with the factorization $UU^\top$, for $U \in \mathbb{R}^{n \times r}$. Surprisingly, recent work argues that the choice of $r \leq n$ is not pivotal: even setting $U \in \mathbb{R}^{n \times n}$ is sufficient for factored gradient descent to find the rank-$r$ solution, which suggests that operating over the factors leads to an implicit regularization. In this contribution, we provide a different perspective to the problem of implicit regularization. We show that under certain conditions, the PSD constraint by itself is sufficient to lead to a unique rank-$r$ matrix recovery, without implicit or explicit low-rank regularization. \emph{I.e.}, under assumptions, the set of PSD matrices, that are consistent with the observed data, is a singleton, regardless of the algorithm used.
A multiprocessor system for dynamic system simulation

The basic goal of the project reported in. this paper was to design and implement an experimental multimicroprocessor system dedicated to the real-time parallel simulation of dynamic systems of various degrees of complexity. The implemented multimicroprocessor called RAMS is also used to study the parallelization concepts of dynamic system models. Potential applica tion of RAMS is in the process control area. The RAMS hardware architecture and software concepts, in particular the auto matic synthesis of RAMS application software, are given in some detail. The problems of both task creation and schedul ing in the non-deterministic RAMS environment are addressed. The experimen tal results show the power of RAMS through the parallel simulation of a case study dynamic system.
Introduction to the Minitrack on Data Analytics, Data Mining, and Machine Learning for Social Media

Social media continues to influence the way we work, play, and interact with each other. We are on the other side of a U.S. presidential election with a sitting president who has clearly shown the power of utilizing social media to drive public discourse. Never before has a U.S. president communicated more directly with the public. Our online communities continue to struggle with the conflicting challenge of being free and open, allowing anyone to express their thoughts and ideas, while at the same time working to combat misinformation and deep fakes. We praise social media when it is used as a tool to rally “our side” or confirm our bias while condemning it when it is used by groups we believe are harmful to the public good. In the midst of all of this, social media scholars continue on various paths of sense-making to better understand the impact social media has on society. Finally, we note that this minitrack is broad and inclusive. We welcome papers on techniques and tools to transform unstructured data into information that can be used to better drive theory, while also accepting papers on the impact that social media has on our society.
Evaluating the Role of the Dorsolateral Prefrontal Cortex and Posterior Parietal Cortex in Memory-Guided Attention With Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation

The contents of working memory (WM) can affect the subsequent visual search performance, resulting in either beneficial or cost effects, when the visual search target is included in or spatially dissociated from the memorized contents, respectively. The right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (rDLPFC) and the right posterior parietal cortex (rPPC) have been suggested to be associated with the congruence/incongruence effects of the WM content and the visual search target. Thus, in the present study, we investigated the role of the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and the PPC in controlling the interaction between WM and attention during a visual search, using repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS). Subjects maintained a color in WM while performing a search task. The color cue contained the target (valid), the distractor (invalid) or did not reappear in the search display (neutral). Concurrent stimulation with the search onset showed that relative to rTMS over the vertex, rTMS over rPPC and rDLPFC further decreased the search reaction time, when the memory cue contained the search target. The results suggest that the rDLPFC and the rPPC are critical for controlling WM biases in human visual attention.
An MR-compatible preclinical sonication platform for focused ultrasound therapy and monitoring in animal models

Introduction: MR-guided focused ultrasound (MRgFUS) is an enabling technology for localized blood-brain barrier disruption (BBBD), targeted delivery of pharmaceuticals, and controlled heating of tissues [1]. Clinical translation of novel MRgFUS therapies require extensive testing in animal models, yet the small size of rodents makes execution of focused ultrasound exposures using clinical MRgFUS systems difficult [2]. Also, many clinical systems are integrated with dedicated MR installations, making it difficult for researchers with existing MR facilities to cost-effectively branch into this rapidly evolving field. To perform these experiments at a resolution suitable for small animals, a dedicated preclinical platform that is capable of delivering ultrasound sonications with a targeting accuracy of approximately 1 mm within a clinical MR scanner has been developed [2,3]. An onboard RF power meter and piezoelectric hydrophone enable the monitoring of acoustic emissions during the sonication process, which provides insight into the ultrasound bioeffects occurring in vivo [4]. The objective of this research is to develop a high-precision, MRcompatible, vendor-independent platform for focused-ultrasound therapy and monitoring in animal models, and to evaluate its performance in clinical MR scanners.
MiR-490-3 p modulates the proliferation of vascular smooth muscle cells induced by ox-LDL through targeting PAPPA

MiR-490-3p modulates the proliferation of vascular smooth muscle cells induced by ox-LDL through targeting PAPP-A