Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Illicit Substance Use Among Emerging Adults in the Los Angeles House and Ball Community

This study examined the prevalence and correlates of drug use among emerging adult members of the Los Angeles house and ball community. The associations of lifetime and 90-day illicit drug use with sociodemographic and house and ball community factors were assessed using bivariate analyses and logistic regression. Study participants had high rates of illicit substance use when compared to similar populations. Age was related to lifetime illicit substance use (t = 4.66, p < .05). School enrollment was significantly protective against illicit drug use, even after controlling for age, race, and gender (odds ratio = .88, p < .05, 95% confidence interval 0.18 to 0.98). School enrollment may be an important opportunity for prevention efforts related to illicit substance use and subsequent accumulating HIV risk within this community.
Diabetes Transition Care From an Inpatient to Outpatient Setting in a Veteran Population

Purpose The purpose of the study was to evaluate a diabetes transition care program in a population of veterans with diabetes by calculating 30-day readmission rates and assessing glycemic control. Methods Hospitalized patients with poorly controlled diabetes were identified to participate in the diabetes transition care program. The program included follow-up through a postdischarge telephone call by the diabetes educator, with an opportunity for a face-to-face clinic visit. A retrospective before-and-after study design was used. Analysis included calculating the readmission rate and the pre- and postintervention A1C rates to evaluate the intervention. Results Of the 40 participants, 100% completed the intervention. All 40 participants received a postdischarge telephone call as follow-up, with 20% presenting for a face-to-face visit. The 30-day readmission rate for the cohort was 10%, in comparison to 14.3% for patients who did not receive the intervention but were otherwise comparable. For those who had repeat A1C measurements conducted 2 to 8 months after time of enrollment in the program (n = 33), average A1C declined −2.2%, from 11.3% (100 mmol/mol) to 9.1% (76 mmol/mol). Conclusions Diabetes-specific transition of care for those with complex psychiatric, medical, and social needs was feasible, with good outcomes in hospital readmission rates and glycemic control, when executed by an adult nurse practitioner who was the inpatient diabetes educator.
Diffuse visual attention for saliency detection

Abstract. This paper presents a physical perspective to understand visual saliency on the scene and develops an anisotropic heat diffusion based formulation, named visual attention diffusion (VAD), to detect salient regions in natural images. Our idea is based on the assumption that the visual attention can be diffused from a part of the most representative salient elements to other salient regions for a given image. In particular, we first design a corner-points-driven technique to simultaneously identify candidate foreground and background regions on the image. Then both the local object location and the nonlocal background structure can be estimated accordingly. Finally, we design a geometry-driven anisotropic Poisson system with Dirichlet boundary for saliency detection which uses the representative salient elements in the candidate foreground as heat sources and both local and nonlocal priors as guidance. After heat diffusion reaches a stable state, salient regions can be easily detected based on the temperatures (i.e., score value) of the image elements. Experiments show that the proposed system can produce more precise and reliable results compared to state-of-the-art saliency detectors.
Dense point-cloud representation of a scene using monocular vision

Abstract. We present a three-dimensional (3-D) reconstruction system designed to support various autonomous navigation applications. The system presented focuses on the 3-D reconstruction of a scene using only a single moving camera. Utilizing video frames captured at different points in time allows us to determine the depths of a scene. In this way, the system can be used to construct a point-cloud model of its unknown surroundings. We present the step-by-step methodology and analysis used in developing the 3-D reconstruction technique. We present a reconstruction framework that generates a primitive point cloud, which is computed based on feature matching and depth triangulation analysis. To populate the reconstruction, we utilized optical flow features to create an extremely dense representation model. With the third algorithmic modification, we introduce the addition of the preprocessing step of nonlinear single-image super resolution. With this addition, the depth accuracy of the point cloud, which relies on precise disparity measurement, has significantly increased. Our final contribution is an additional postprocessing step designed to filter noise points and mismatched features unveiling the complete dense point-cloud representation (DPR) technique. We measure the success of DPR by evaluating the visual appeal, density, accuracy, and computational expense and compare with two state-of-the-art techniques.
Genre in the field of computer science and computer engineering

Based on a study of nearly 200 international faculty in the field of computer science and computer engineering, roughly 90 written genres in the computing discipline are identified and organized according to five central aims in the profession: generation, procuration, dissemination, evaluation, and regulation. The importance of writing in the field is discussed, and recommendations for further research follow to encourage greater breadth and depth in the identification and study of generic corpora characteristic of specific professional communities. Benefits of such research assist students preparing to enter a profession, working professionals wishing to improve their writing in a profession, and writing specialists who offer training or editorial services for a profession.
Comments on heterotic flux compactifications

In heterotic flux compactification with supersymmetry, three different connections with torsion appear naturally, all in the form ω+aH. Supersymmetry condition carries a = −1, the Dirac operator has a = −1/3, and higher order term in the effective action involves a = 1. With a view toward the gauge sector, we explore the geometry with such torsions. After reviewing the supersymmetry constraints and finding a relation between the scalar curvature and the flux, we derive the squared form of the zero mode equations for gauge fermions. With dH = 0, the operator has a positive potential term, and the mass of the unbroken gauge sector appears formally positive definite. However, this apparent contradiction is avoided by a no-go theorem that the compactification with H≠0 and dH = 0 is necessarily singular, and the formal positivity is invalid. With dH≠0, smooth compactification becomes possible. We show that, at least near smooth supersymmetric solution, the size of H2 should be comparable to that of dH and the consistent truncation of the action has to keep α'R2 term. A warp factor equation of motion is rewritten with α'R2 contribution included precisely, and some limits are considered.
Pilot Test of a Culturally Appropriate Diabetes Prevention Intervention for At-Risk Latina Women

Purpose The purpose of the study was to test the preliminary effectiveness, feasibility, and acceptability of a peer-led, culturally appropriate, Diabetes Prevention Program (DPP)–based lifestyle intervention for Latina women at high-risk for type 2 diabetes (T2DM). Methods Participants (N = 61) were overweight/obese (body mass index [BMI] ≥25) Latina women with no diabetes, at elevated risk either due to midlife age (45-65 years; n = 37) or history of gestational diabetes mellitus (n = 24). The study used a 1-group pretest-posttest design and offered 12 weeks of peer-led education sessions in a community setting. The intervention targeted physical activity and dietary behaviors to facilitate weight reduction and included culturally appropriate content, age-specific health information, and stress/emotion management strategies. Clinical and self-report assessments were conducted at baseline, month 3, and month 6. Results Mean participant age was 47.8 years (SD = 10.8). Most (91.2%) were born in Mexico, and 43.3% had a ninth-grade education or less. At month 6, participants achieved a mean reduction of 4.1% body weight (7 lb [3.2 kg]). Statistically significant improvements were observed for dietary behaviors, stress, and depression symptoms. Attrition was low, 5% (3 women). Focus groups indicated that intervention content increased knowledge, was applicable, highly valued, culturally relevant, and would be recommended to others. Conclusions This culturally tailored DPP adaptation was feasible and acceptable for 2 groups of Latina women at high-risk for T2DM and showed preliminary effectiveness in reducing weight and modifying self-reported dietary behaviors, stress, and depression symptoms. Further research is needed to identify ways to enhance weight loss and diabetes prevention in this at-risk, underserved population.
Model Independent Eigenaxis Maneuvers usingQuaternion

The main contribution of this paper is the derivation of a model independent feedback control law that causes a rigid body to execute a near eigenaxis maneuver. The degree of approximation is a function of the control gains and the initial attitude error. Using passivity techniques, the dependence of the control strategy on velocity information is eliminated. The technique used to derive the control strategy is a novel orthogonal decomposition of the unit quaternion into a component along the direction of the eigenaxis and a component that is orthogonal to that direction.
Direct-Sequence Spread Spectrum in a Shadowed Rician Fading Land-Mobile Satellite Channel

The performance of a direct-sequence spread-spectrum land-mobile satellite transmission system, using binary phase-shift keying (BPSK) modulation, is analysed. The satellite channel is modeled as having Rician fading characteristics. The bit-error probability is evaluated, considering both the envelope and the phase variation. Assuming a Gaussian approximation for the interference, numerical results are obtained for both spread-spectrum and narrowband land-mobile satellite communication systems with BPSK modulation. A comparison of the two systems is made for light, average, and heavy shadowing. >
Routing of multipoint connections

The author addresses the problem of routing connections in a large-scale packet-switched network supporting multipoint communications. He gives a formal definition of several versions of the multipoint problem, including both static and dynamic versions. He looks at the Steiner tree problem as an example of the static problem and considers the experimental performance of two approximation algorithms for this problem. A weighted greedy algorithm is considered for a version of the dynamic problem which allows endpoints to come and go during the life of a connection. One of the static algorithms serves as a reference to measure the performance of the proposed weighted greedy algorithm in a series of experiments. >
Enhancing details in images for performing scene categorization

Abstract. Scene categorization is an important research topic in computer vision. Although various approaches have been proposed to solve this problem, as far as the authors know, there is little work concerning details in scene images. This paper proposes to manipulate details in scene images to improve scene categorization performance. Specifically, a scene image is first partitioned into super-pixels, and these segments are evaluated to see whether their details need to be enhanced or not. Then, image segments are accordingly processed. After that, scale invariant feature transform features are extracted from processed images for image representation and categorization. Extensive experiments are conducted on the 15-class scene dataset and 67-class indoor scene dataset. Experimental results showed that enhancing details in scene images appropriately can effectively improve scene categorization performance. Furthermore, fusing information from details and structures of scene images leads to state-of-the-art results.
Patch-based and multiresolution optimum bilateral filters for denoising images corrupted by Gaussian noise

Abstract. We propose optimal bilateral filtering techniques for Gaussian noise suppression in images. To achieve maximum denoising performance via optimal filter parameter selection, we adopt Stein’s unbiased risk estimate (SURE)—an unbiased estimate of the mean-squared error (MSE). Unlike MSE, SURE is independent of the ground truth and can be used in practical scenarios where the ground truth is unavailable. In our recent work, we derived SURE expressions in the context of the bilateral filter and proposed SURE-optimal bilateral filter (SOBF). We selected the optimal parameters of SOBF using the SURE criterion. To further improve the denoising performance of SOBF, we propose variants of SOBF, namely, SURE-optimal multiresolution bilateral filter (SMBF), which involves optimal bilateral filtering in a wavelet framework, and SURE-optimal patch-based bilateral filter (SPBF), where the bilateral filter parameters are optimized on small image patches. Using SURE guarantees automated parameter selection. The multiresolution and localized denoising in SMBF and SPBF, respectively, yield superior denoising performance when compared with the globally optimal SOBF. Experimental validations and comparisons show that the proposed denoisers perform on par with some state-of-the-art denoising techniques.
Perceptions of Undereaters: A Matter of Perspective?

We assume that people, to convey positive impressions of themselves, use the amounts eaten by others as limits beyond which their eating may be deemed excessive. One should, therefore, prefer eating partners who eat a lot because others' large intake renders one's own eating nonexcessive. Two studies were conducted to test this hypothesis. As predicted, participants liked confederates who ate more than they did better than those who ate less than they did, and they also rated their own intake as more appropriate when it had been exceeded by confederates than they did when it had been undercut by confederates. Noneating observers, instead, did not display a preference for eaters who ate more. Both noneating observers and active participants, however, rated eaters who ate less more positively than eaters who ate more on self-control—related items. We conclude that the nature of the behavior-impression association depends critically on the perspective of the rater.
Finding the Critical Cue: Implementation Intentions to Change One's Diet Work Best When Tailored to Personally Relevant Reasons for Unhealthy Eating

Implementation intentions promote acting on one's good intentions. But does specifying where and when to act also suffice when goals involve complex change that requires not merely initiating a behavior but rather substituting a habit with a new response? In a pilot study and two experiments, the authors investigated the efficacy of implementation intentions to replace unhealthy snacks with healthy snacks by linking different types of cues for unhealthy snacking (if-part) to healthy snacking (then-part). The pilot study identified cues for unhealthy snacking, differentiating between situational (where/when) and motivational (why) cues. Studies 1 and 2 tested the efficacy of implementation intentions that specified either situational or motivational cues in altering snacking habits. Results showed that implementation intentions specifying motivational cues decreased unhealthy snack consumption whereas the classic specification of where and when did not. Extending previous research, for complex behavior change “why” seems more important than “where and when. ”
Face recognition across makeup and plastic surgery from real-world images

Abstract. A study for feature extraction is proposed to handle the problem of facial appearance changes including facial makeup and plastic surgery in face recognition. To extend a face recognition method robust to facial appearance changes, features are individually extracted from facial depth on which facial makeup and plastic surgery have no effect. Then facial depth features are added to facial texture features to perform feature extraction. Accordingly, a three-dimensional (3-D) face is reconstructed from only a single two-dimensional (2-D) frontal image in real-world scenarios. Then the facial depth is extracted from the reconstructed model. Afterward, the dual-tree complex wavelet transform (DT-CWT) is applied to both texture and reconstructed depth images to extract the feature vectors. Finally, the final feature vectors are generated by combining 2-D and 3-D feature vectors, and are then classified by adopting the support vector machine. Promising results have been achieved for makeup-invariant face recognition on two available image databases including YouTube makeup and virtual makeup, and plastic surgery-invariant face recognition on a plastic surgery face database is compared to several state-of-the-art feature extraction methods. Several real-world scenarios are also planned to evaluate the performance of the proposed method on a combination of these three databases with 1102 subjects.
Chroma key without color restrictions based on asynchronous amplitude modulation of background illumination on retroreflective screens

Abstract. A simple technique to avoid color limitations in image capture systems based on chroma key video composition using retroreflective screens and light-emitting diodes (LED) rings is proposed and demonstrated. The combination of an asynchronous temporal modulation onto the background illumination and simple image processing removes the usual restrictions on foreground colors in the scene. The technique removes technical constraints in stage composition, allowing its design to be purely based on artistic grounds. Since it only requires adding a very simple electronic circuit to widely used chroma keying hardware based on retroreflective screens, the technique is easily applicable to TV and filming studios.
Aspects of surface scanning by direct analysis in real time mass spectrometry employing plasma glow visualization.

RATIONALE Visual monitoring of the Direct Analysis in Real Time (DART) gas impact region during sampling was demonstrated via its metastable plasma glow. It is known that adding neon into helium for DART leads to plasma glow, but this effect has not been used in practice and discussed in the literature so far. METHODS A single quadrupole mass spectrometer with a DART SVPA ion source was used for recording of DART mass spectra from different surfaces, using galangin and p-coumaric acid as model analytes. In specific cases, the composition of the mass spectra was clarified using an Orbitrap mass spectrometer. RESULTS Plasma glow visualization made it possible to track the metastable gas distributions during surface scanning. The influence on the composition of the mass spectra was studied for different carrier gases, i.e. pure helium versus a helium-neon mixture, and for the vacuum pumping rate. The spatial resolution was substantially improved via a DART cap with a narrowed internal diameter, but impaired by a decreased sensitivity. Comparably low signal intensities were obtained for analytes on porous layers due to analyte penetration and metastable gas scattering. CONCLUSIONS Visualization through the plasma glow enables the optimal selection of the coordinates for DART-MS analysis and thus it will support scanning and imaging MS on surfaces, including porous planar chromatographic separation materials.
Using Collection Information To Improve Low Level Feature Based Multimedia Retrieval

We propose a statistical representation for media documents called feature terms. This approach normalises feature distributions in a collection and leads to a mixed query/document model for multimedia retrieval. Two related problems are addressed: (1) how to extract discrete feature terms from continuous low level features; (2) how to rank the relevance between documents. TRECVid 2006 video collection and its 24 content-based query topics are employed for evaluation.
Fast screening of analytes for chemical reactions by reactive low-temperature plasma ionization mass spectrometry.

RATIONALE Approaches for analyte screening have been used to aid in the fine-tuning of chemical reactions. Herein, we present a simple and straightforward analyte screening method for chemical reactions via reactive low-temperature plasma ionization mass spectrometry (reactive LTP-MS). METHODS Solution-phase reagents deposited on sample substrates were desorbed into the vapor phase by action of the LTP and by thermal desorption. Treated with LTP, both reagents reacted through a vapor phase ion/molecule reaction to generate the product. Finally, protonated reagents and products were identified by LTP-MS. RESULTS Reaction products from imine formation reaction, Eschweiler-Clarke methylation and the Eberlin reaction were detected via reactive LTP-MS. Products from the imine formation reaction with reagents substituted with different functional groups (26 out of 28 trials) were successfully screened in a time of 30 s each. Besides, two short-lived reactive intermediates of Eschweiler-Clarke methylation were also detected. CONCLUSIONS LTP in this study serves both as an ambient ionization source for analyte identification (including reagents, intermediates and products) and as a means to produce reagent ions to assist gas-phase ion/molecule reactions. The present reactive LTP-MS method enables fast screening for several analytes from several chemical reactions, which possesses good reagent compatibility and the potential to perform high-throughput analyte screening. In addition, with the detection of various reactive intermediates (intermediates I and II of Eschweiler-Clarke methylation), the present method would also contribute to revealing and elucidating reaction mechanisms.
The Mechanism of a Growth Acceleration and the Role of Trade : Micro-Level Evidence from Chile

The current study provides a contingent and bottom-up approach to the ex ensively investigated relationship between trade and growth. It focuses on the s pecific case of rapid episodes of growth in which trade may play a role for static Ricar dian reasons. The case study considered is the Chilean acceleration of 1986; thanks to an extensive dataset of Chilean plants from 1982 to 1993, micro-level evidence of productivity growth is provide d as the main determinant of the growth acceleration. Results confirm that the increase in productivity played an important role, even in the short-run, but trade reforms had a positive impact only on sectors which are both import-competing and export oriented.