Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Forest Inventory and Analysis Database: Database Description and Users Manual Version 4.0 for Phase 2

This document is based on previous documentation of the nationally standardized Forest Inventory and Analysis database (Hansen and others 1992; Woudenberg and Farrenkopf 1995; Miles and others 2001). Documentation of the structure of the Forest Inventory and Analysis database (FIADB) for Phase 2 data, as well as codes and definitions, is provided. Examples for producing population level estimates are also presented. This database provides a consistent framework for storing forest inventory data across all ownerships for the entire United States. These data are available to the public.
“Decreasing Cultural Disparity in Educational ICTs: Tools and Recommendations ”

“Decreasing Cultural Disparity in Educational ICTs: Tools and Recommendations” are presented, based on a compilation and analysis of relevant research, as a resource for instructional planners and designers. Based on these guidelines and the 14 cross cultural dimensions of learning presented in Henderson’s “Multiple Cultural Model” (1996), the author proposes a new evaluation tool to assess the cultural dimensions of existing ICTs.
Creating a Calibrated CFD Model of a Midsize Data Center

Calibrating a CFD model against measured data is the first step to successfully utilizing this technology for change-management and the optimization of an existing data center. To date, there has been very little published on this calibration process; more focus has been placed on the use of CFD at the design stage and the development of modeling techniques and solvers. Further, few studies which feature comprehensive comparisons of CFD-predicted and measured data have been published for real data centers, and many that have, demonstrated only modest agreement at best. This study provides another such comparison — for a 7,400 ft2 (687 m2), 138-rack, raised-floor facility. The goals of the study are to benchmark the level of agreement that can be practically obtained and also to investigate the level of modeling detail required. Additionally, specific practical advice covering both CFD modeling and experimental measurements is provided. A plenum-only CFD model is compared to measured tile airflow rates and a room-model, which uses measured tile flow rates as boundary conditions, is compared to temperatures measured at each rack inlet. The level of agreement is among the best published to date and demonstrates that a CFD model can be adequately calibrated against measured data and is of value for ongoing data center operation.Copyright © 2015 by ASME
A Univariate Modeling of Total Ozone through Artificial Neural Network and Conventional Autoregression

− Complexity of total ozone is well-documented in literature. The present paper has attempted to model total ozone in univariate manner through artificial neural network through an autoregressive approach. The number of predictors has been determined through autocorrelation function and backpropagation learning has been executed on multilayer perceptron. Also, convensional regression has been carried out on the same predictors. The prediction skills have been assessed through various statistics. Keywords— Total ozone, artificial neural network, autoregression
Ieee Transactions on Visualization and Computer Graphics Progressive 3d Reconstruction of Planar-faced Manifold Objects with Drf-based Line Drawing Decomposition

—This paper presents an approach for reconstructing polyhedral objects from single-view line drawings. Our approach separates a complex line drawing representing a manifold object into a series of simpler line drawings, based on the degree of reconstruction freedom (DRF). We then progressively reconstruct a complete 3D model from these simpler line drawings. Our experiments show that our decomposition algorithm is able to handle complex drawings which are challenging for the state of the art. The advantages of the presented progressive 3D reconstruction method over the existing reconstruction methods in terms of both robustness and efficiency are also demonstrated.
Normalization of Digital Mathematics Library Content

Paper discusses the needs for data normalization in a Digital Mathematics Library (DML). Specifically, emphasis is given to canonicalizing formulae encoded in Presentation MathML notation which starts to be available in several DMLs and is used by DML applications. This is a prerequisite for advanced processing – namely math enabled fulltext searching or semantic filtering and automated classification. Different sources of MathML and their specifics are described. Several use cases of possible formulae canonicalization transformations are listed and discussed in detail. Findings are finally concluded and a design of a to-be-developed canonicalization tool is outlined.
Query Processing in Encrypted Cloud Databases

With the increasing popularity of cloud computing, a new model known as Database-asa-service (DAAS) model has emerged in recent years. In this model a service provider provides the database as a service to its clients over internet. One of the biggest problem in DAAS is “How to execute queries efficiently at the cloud resident server while maintaining data security”. In this work we present PhantomDB, which is a new framework for solving this problem. PhantomDB maintains data security by encrypting the data before storing it on the server. Each data item is encrypted under multiple encryption schemes. The Encryption schemes used by PhantomDB are carefully chosen to allow efficient query processing at the server. PhantomDB introduces the concept of Arithmetic Engine and Round Communication, which allow it to support all the standard SQL constructs with the exception of similarity operators. PhantomDB is able to support 16 out of 22 TPCH Benchmark queries. We also present a new hybrid storage model which takes unique features of PhantomDB into consideration while deciding the layout of relational data on disk. It helps in improving the performance of PhantomDB as compared to other current storage models.
A Study of Preprocessing and Segmentation Techniques on Cardiac Medical Images

Segmentation is the process of simplifying and/or changing the representation of an image into something that is more meaningful and easier to analyze. Image segmentation is typically used to locate objects and boundaries in images. Medical image segmentation plays a crucial role in delineation of regions of interest under study. It is essential in almost any medical imaging applications and is an essential step towards automated disease state detection in diagnostic imaging. Myocardial infraction is the leading cause of death throughout the world. Foreseeing and diagnosing of cardiac diseases usually require quantitative evaluation of the ventricle volume, mass, and ejection fraction. Advantages and disadvantages of the current segmentation methodologies are reviewed in perspective
Rating Modules on cnx.org: Using Network Structure as a Feature in Regression

Machine learning methods are applied to features scraped from the website cnx.org to predict page rating. In addition to the explicit features that are scraped from the pages on this website, there is an implicit network in these pages (through internet hyperlinks, key words, authors, etc.). This paper explores the predictive power that is gained by taking advantage of some aspects of this underlying network.
IGF2BP1

The oncofetal RNA-binding protein IGF2BP1 (IGF2 mRNA binding protein 1) controls the cytoplasmic fate of specific target mRNAs including ACTB and CD44. During neural development, IGF2BPs promote neurite protrusion and the migration of neuronal crest cells. In tumor-derived cells, IGF2BP1 enhances the formation of lamellipodia and invadopodia. Accordingly, the de novo synthesis of IGF2BP1 observed in primary malignancies was reported to correlate with increased metastasis and an overall poor prognosis. However, if and how the protein enhances metastasis remains controversial. In recent studies, we reveal that IGF2BP1 promotes the directed migration of tumor-derived cells in vitro by controlling the expression of MAPK4 and PTEN. The IGF2BP1-facilitated inhibition of MAPK4 mRNA translation interferes with MK5-directed phosphorylation of the heat shock protein 27 (HSP27). This limits G-actin sequestering by phosphorylated HSP27, enhances cell adhesion and elevates the velocity of tumor cell migration. Concomitantly, IGF2BP1 promotes the expression of PTEN by interfering with PTEN mRNA turnover. This results in a shift of cellular PtdIns(3,4,5)P3/PtdIns(4,5)P2 ratios and enhances RAC1-dependent cell polarization which finally promotes the directionality of tumor cell migration. These findings identify IGF2BP1 as a potent oncogenic factor that regulates the adhesion, migration and invasiveness of tumor cells by modulating intracellular signaling.
Performance Analysis of Advanced Hybrid Speech Coding Techniques in Time domain, Spectral domain and Perceptual domain

Speech coding is the art of creating a minimally redundant representation of the speech signal that can be efﬁciently transmitted or stored in digital media and decoding the signal with the best possible perceptual Quality. The speech transmission in wireless networks is associated with the reduction of extra information present in signal in such a way to preserve the quality and intelligibility of speech. It is known that the lower the bit rate the lesser the quality of the reconstructed speech however there is a constant quest to achieve a better speech quality at lower bit-rates. This paper presents performance analysis for the quality of advanced hybrid speech coding techniques in Time domain, Spectral domain and perceptual domain. These analyses are implemented on three different algorithms of advanced hybrid speech coding techniques such as CELP, G729 Annex A, G723.1 to assess the quality performance for English female speaker, English male speaker and Arabic female speaker by using Mat lab simulation program. Our evaluation criterion implemented includes the following tests: Signal to Noise Ratio (SNR), Segmental Signal to Noise Ratio (SNRseg), The Log-Likelihood Ratio (LLR), The Weighted Spectral Slope (WSS), Absolute Error, Perceptual Evaluation of Speech Quality (PESQ),NONE">Rating of speech distortion, rating of background noise and the predicted rating of overall quality.
Simultaneous Track and Error Propagation in Continuous Material

In this paper we study several fixed step and adaptive Runge-Kutta methods suitable for transporting track parameters through an inhomogeneous magnetic field. Moreover, we present a new adaptive Runge-Kutta-Nyström method which estimates the local error of the extrapolation without introducing extra stages to the original Runge-Kutta-Nyström method. Furthermore, these methods are compared for propagation accuracy and computing cost efficiency in the simultaneous track and error propagation (STEP) algorithm of the common ATLAS tracking software. The tests show the new adaptive Runge-Kutta-Nyström method to be the most computing cost efficient.
Estimation and ModelLing of Channel Effects in the Development of Digital Hearing Aids

The channel effect of hearing aids, specifying the gain-frequency response, is a nonlinear amplification and will serious affect the speech intelligibility. For hearing aids, the bandpass filters of multichannel are designed in linear or non-linear scale (auditory filters). However, in the subjective hearing tests, the detailed channel effect cannot be modelled by the constraint of hearing characteristics. In this paper, an objective approach was purposed to estimate the channel effect. For each channel, the Bayesian adaptation technology is adopted to model the speech intelligibility. Probabilistic model comparison is used to objectively quantify the speech intelligibility. An agglomerative hierarchical clustering analysis is applied to analysis the bandwidth of multichannel. This study can make benefit for the design of hearing aids.
Dyspnea in Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS): Comparison of Two Prospective Cross-Sectional Studies

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) subjects have many systemic complaints including shortness of breath. Dyspnea was compared in two CFS and control cohorts to characterize pathophysiology. Cohort 1 of 257 CFS and 456 control subjects were compared using the Medical Research Council chronic Dyspnea Scale (MRC Score; range 0-5). Cohort 2 of 106 CFS and 90 controls answered a Dyspnea Severity Score (range 0-20) adapted from the MRC Score. Subsets of both cohorts completed CFS Severity Scores, fatigue, and other questionnaires. A subset had pulmonary function and total lung capacity measurements. Results show MRC Scores were equivalent between sexes in Cohort 1 CFS (1.92 [1.72-2.16]; mean [95% C.I.]) and controls (0.31 [0.23-0.39]; p<0.0001). Receiver-operator curves identified 2 as the threshold for positive MRC Scores in Cohort 1. This indicated 54% of CFS, but only 3% of controls, had significant dyspnea. In Cohort 2, Dyspnea Score threshold of 4 indicated shortness of breath in 67% of CFS and 23% of controls. Cohort 2 Dyspnea Scores were higher for CFS (7.80 [6.60-9.00]) than controls (2.40 [1.60-3.20]; p<0.0001). CFS had significantly worse fatigue and other complaints compared to controls. Pulmonary function was normal in CFS, but Borg scores and sensations of chest pain and dizziness were significantly greater during testing than controls. General linear model of Cohort 2 CFS responses linked Dyspnea with rapid heart rate, chest pain and dizziness. In conclusion, sensory hypersensitivity without airflow limitation contributed to dyspnea in CFS. Correlates of dyspnea in controls were distinct from CFS suggesting different mechanisms.
Developing an Educational Game to Support Cognitive Learning

This paper outlines how an educational game can be used to support the learning of programming within the Computer Science (CS) discipline and reports on the qualitative results of a series of rigorous studies of the use of this game by first-year introductory programming students. Although this paper applies to the CS discipline, computational thinking (CT) as an intrinsic part of the games process is applicable to any discipline. This is because CT combines logical thinking with CS concepts to produce a recipe for solving problems, regardless of where a problem lies. Many studies indicate that learning through educational games appeals widely to students, regardless of their backgrounds (Liu et al, 2011; Papastergiou, 2009). However, though many of these studies demonstrate enthusiasm for educational games and indicate that games can enhance motivation for learning, they offer very few conclusions about what students learn from playing them or whether or not they acquire cognitive abilities thereby (Denner et al, 2012; Connolly et al, 2011).
On Aphasia

OUR present knowledge of aphasic disorders is the product of an evolution which spans millennia. Delineation of these conditions, their differentiation from other types of disorder of speech and language, and ideas about their causation and basic nature developed very gradually. The earliest medical writings (including the Hippocratic Corpus) made reference only to a general 'speech-lessness' or 'loss of voice' which seemingly covered all types of impairment of speech and language, including not only those which today would be called aphasic but also those due to frank paralysis and to disturbed states of conscious-ness, as well as those of psychogenic origin. The beginnings differentiation due tongue the most writers late classical period. a case of traumatic alexia A.D. Galen's assertion that 'word memory' could be lost as a of head injury, further that distinctions between various types of speech and language were this the role of abnormalities of the brain or its ventricles in causing some types of speech disorder was clearly
Assessing Effectiveness Of Interactive Electronics Lab Simulation: Learner’s Perspective

Simulation enables learning by doing and provides opportunity to explore the modeled domain. Interactive simulation allows to present information in more dynamic, compelling and interactive way with engaging environment. This paper discusses the application of interactive simulation supporting the actual laboratory session of basic Electronics lab activities. For this, interactive simulation for one of the basic electronics lab activity was designed, developed with state of art technology ‘Flash MX 2004’ and evaluated for its effectiveness. A particular focus of this investigation is on how the use of interactive simulation influences learners’ approach to learning. Pre test and post test were administrated on the target group, using quasi-experimental research methodology. ‘Total quality’ of developed package was evaluated by administrating a separate questionnaire. The comments and ratings obtained in the learners’ insights provided the basis for the learning impact study. This investigation indicated that the ‘self paced interactive simulation’ provides added value to the learners for the study of fundamental concepts of both theory and lab, able to perform lab experiment prior to an actual laboratory session and reach to the level of proficiency.
S2d2: a framework for scalable and secure optimistic replication

High data availability and scalability beyond a single shared server require data to be replicated and exchanged in a decentralized way. Optimistic replication is the primary technique to achieve these goals; however, current approaches to optimistic replication have fundamental limitations. Version vector based approaches entail complicated management in site addition/deletion and have limited scalability in terms of the number of replica sites. Moreover, version vectors entail significant overhead in maintaining revision histories that are essentially required to deter various attacks on decentralized ordering correctness. Because of the cooperative nature of decentralized dependency tracking mechanisms, a malicious site can easily falsify ordering information, which may cause the shared state to diverge without being detected. This thesis presents S2D2, a framework that provides optimistic replication based on a novel decentralized ordering mechanism, called Summary Hash History (SHH). Being based on a causal history approach with secure summary hashes as version identifiers, SHH supports simple management of site membership changes, scales regardless of the number of sites, and guarantees the correctness of decentralized ordering in a scalable way. SHH uses “two-step reconciliation” to overcome the inherent limitation of the causal history approach, and thus, consumes orders of magnitude lower bandwidth than reconciliation based on version vectors. Interestingly, SHH provides faster convergence than version vector based approaches by recognizing “coincidental equalities,” cases when identical versions are produced independently at different sites. This is of significant value in that SHH can enable distributed replica to converge even in the network partitions or disconnections that mobile computing and wide-area distributed computing have to cope with fundamentally. S2D2 employs an elegant “hash typing” mechanism to enforce correctness in the error-prone usage of hashes and uses an “adaptor architecture” to support the application-specific consistency requirements. Prototype implementations of adaptors, for a peer-to-peer CVS (a concurrent version control system) and a replicated-shared folder, demonstrate that the S2D2 framework is highly suitable for supporting secure optimistic replication among global-scale and pervasive applications.
Gaze beats mouse: A case study

Eye tracking has become cheaper and more robust over the last years. Soon it will be feasible to deploy eye tracking in the mass market. One application area in which an average consumer might bene t from eye tracking is in computer games, where gaze direction can add another dimension of input. Progress in this direction will also be of high relevance to disabled users who lack the dexterity to control the input modalities traditionally used in computer games. Not only could gaming with gaze be enjoyable in itself, but the virtual world of multi-player games might also be one arena where disabled users could meet non-disableds on an equal footing.
Measurement of hemoglobin A(1c): a new twist on the path to harmony.

Evaluation of glycemia is used for the diagnosis and management of patients with diabetes. Glucose and hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) provide complementary information and both are used to assess an individual’s glycemic status. The concentration of glucose in the blood indicates the subject’s glycemia at the time of blood sampling. However, blood glucose concentrations are modified by numerous factors, ranging from food ingestion and exercise to stress and medication (1). By contrast, the concentration of HbA1c in the blood reflects the average glucose over the preceding 8–12 weeks. Thus, HbA1c provides an additional criterion for assessing glucose control that is free of the wide diurnal fluctuations that occur with blood glucose. HbA1c has several additional attributes, which render it valuable in the setting of diabetes. These include, but are not limited to, the following: the subject does not need to be fasting, blood can be sampled any time of the day, the sample is stable, and there is very little biological variability (1). These factors, in conjunction with the documentation that HbA1c predicts the development of microvascular (2,3) and macrovascular (4) complications of diabetes, have led to the widespread adoption of HbA1c as integral to the management of patients with diabetes. Guidelines from several prominent clinical organizations recommend that HbA1c be measured at regular intervals in all patients with diabetes (5,6). The quality of analytical methods for HbA1c initially lagged considerably behind the evidence of its clinical value. Early assays lacked standardization, substantially limiting the use of HbA1c in patient care. Considerable effort was invested to effect standardization, with schemes developed in the 1990s in Japan (7), Sweden (8), and the U.S. (9). All HbA1c results were reported as a percentage of hemoglobin. The subsequent …
With commentary

The pilot study which led to the detection of this case was designed by Professor J Farquhar, Department of Child Life and Health, Edinburgh University, in collaboration with Dr J S Stevenson, Consultant Bacteriologist, Stobhill General Hospital. We thank Mr Robert Kennedy for doing the Guthrie tests, Dr M L McDonald for the Griffiths's test, Mr J De Courcy for the Weschler intelligence quotient, and Miss CM Fleming for advising on the diet.