Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Anthropocene-Bio-geography need reverse Gearing in India: Beyond Domestication and Farming

The plate boundaries are the limits of the faunal biodiversity. The species can be endemic, converging or invasive. International Union for Conservation of Nature and Zoological Survey of India are the agencies record and make an action plan to preserve extant/extinct and endangered species. India has 2.4% of the landmass of the globe but accommodating about 7-8% of the total species of the world so a rich biodiversity nation. The country lies at the confluence of the Central zone of Africa, Europe and Malaya region, the biota therefore includes African, European, Eurasian and Mediterranean geographical areas, India has a unique assemblage of flora, fauna, avifauna and aquafauna along with some endemic species, that contributes to the richness of the nation. India’s biodiversity population changes are influenced by climate, temperature, altitude, invasive alien species, topography, moisture, CO2, light, nutrients, water quality, ambient air, habitation, and above all the anthropogenic activities for their growth, survival, or reproduction. Present study envisages preparation of an updated bio-geographical status of the species, statistical analysis of the biota those are endangered and threatened and causes for such defaunation and defloration. Though preservation action plans have been enhanced in India through biodiversity reserves yet it is observed that the largely under-explored sector is algae, protists, fungi, microbes. The biodiversity in the marine sector is given less importance for conservation in India
Twin Model G-PLDA for Duration Mismatch Compensation in Text-Independent Speaker Verification

Short duration speaker verification is a challenging problem partly due to utterance duration mismatch. This paper proposes a novel method that modifies the standard Gaussian probabilistic linear discriminant analysis (G-PLDA) to use two separate generative models for i-vectors from long and short utterances which are jointly trained. The proposed twin model G-PLDA employs distinct models for i-vectors corresponding to different durations from the same speaker but shares the same latent variables. Unlike the standard G-PLDA, this twin model G-PLDA takes the differences between utterances of varying durations into account. Hyper-parameter estimation and scoring formulae for the twin model G-PLDA are presented. Experimental results obtained using NIST 2010 data show that the proposed technique leads to relative improvements of 8.5% and 15.6% when tested on utterances of 5 second and 3 second durations respectively.
STRATEGI MITIGASI EMISI GAS METAN PADA BUDIDAYA PADI SAWAH

Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk menyusun strategi pengurangan emisi gas rumah kaca dari aktivitas produksi padi dengan biaya relatif rendah, sebagai usaha mitigasi (pengurangan) perubahan iklim. Metode pengumpulan data yang digunakan adalah dengan menggunakan 1) metode survey, 2) pengamatan di lapangan, 3) metode kuesioner, dan 4) metode partisipasi stakeholder dalam pengambilan keputusan strategik. Alat analisis dan teknik pengolahan data yang digunakan dalam penelitian ini adalah dengan menggunakan metode AHP (Analitical Hierarchy Process) dengan asumsi bahwa emisi gas rumah kaca dari aktivitas produksi padi merupakan permasalahan yang kompleks, strategik, tak berstruktur, dan dinamik dimana data dan informasi statistik dari masalah yang dihadapi sangat sedikit. Kesimpulan dari penelitian ini adalah, dari tiga strategi yang ditetapkan, diperoleh strategi penerapan teknik budidaya menjadi prioritas utama dalam upaya mengurangi emisi gas rumah kaca serta upaya adaptasi dengan perubahan iklim sehingga sasaran program swasembada beras yakni mempertahankan/meningkatkan produksi tetap tercapai. Saran dari penelitian ini adalah: 1) Dalam mempertahankan swasembada beras tetapi mampu menurunkan emisi gas rumah kaca, diperlukan beberapa rekomendasi seperti : manajemen air selektif, menggunakan varitas rendah emisi namun produktivitas tetap tinggi, paket teknologi budidaya ramah lingkungan, mudah diterapkan petani dan diterima konsumen. 2) Perlu penelitan lanjutan untuk mengetahui tingkat pemahaman dan langkah-langkah operasional pejabat teknis instansi terkait dan jajarannya sehingga diseminasi tentang perubahan iklim dapat tersosialisasi dan tertangani dengan baik. 3) Perlu sosialisasi secara massif dan luas kepada petani/kelompok tani terkait tentang dampak, strategi mitigasi dan adaptasi perubahan iklim dalam rangka mempertahankan dan mengembangkan usahatani komoditas pangan khususnya padi yang efisien, ramah lingkungan dan berkelanjutan
Neuropathological changes in brain cortex and hippocampus in a rat model of Alzheimer's disease.

BACKGROUND Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disorder with progressive loss of cognitive abilities and memory loss. The aim of this study was to compare neuropathological changes in hippocampus and brain cortex in a rat model of AD. METHODS Adult male Albino Wistar rats (weighing 250-300 g) were used for behavioral and histopathological studies. The rats were randomly assigned to three groups: control, sham and Beta amyloid (ABeta) injection. For behavioral analysis, Y-maze and shuttle box were used, respectively at 14 and 16 days post-lesion. For histological studies, Nissl, modified Bielschowsky and modified Congo red staining were performed. The lesion was induced by injection of 4 muL of ABeta (1-40) into the hippocampal fissure. RESULTS In the present study, ABeta (1-40) injection into hippocampus could decrease the behavioral indexes and the number of CA1 neurons in hippocampus. ABeta injection CA1 caused ABeta deposition in the hippocampus and less than in cortex. We observed the loss of neurons in the hippocampus and cerebral cortex and certain subcortical regions. Y-maze test and single-trial passive avoidance test showed reduced memory retention in AD group. CONCLUSION We found a significant decreased acquisition of passive avoidance and alternation behavior responses in AD group compared to control and sham group (P<0.0001). Compacted amyloid cores were present in the cerebral cortex, hippocampus and white matter, whereas, scattered amyloid cores were seen in cortex and hippocampus of AD group. Also, reduced neuronal density was indicated in AD group.
Virgin olive oil and coenzyme Q10 protect heart mitochondria from peroxidative damage during aging

The mitochondrial theory of aging suggests that this phenomenon is the consequence of random somatic mutations in mitochondrial DNA, induced by long‐term exposure to free radical attack. There are two potential dietary means of delaying the effects of free radicals on cellular aging, i.e., enrichment of mitochondrial membranes with monounsaturated fatty acids and supplementation with antioxidants. We have performed a preliminary study on male rats, 6 or 12 month old, fed with diets differing in the nature of the fat (virgin olive oil or sunflower oil) and/or with antioxidant supplementation (coenzyme Q10), analysing hydroperoxide and coenzyme Q9 and Q10 in heart mitochondria. Preliminary results allow us to conclude that the CoQ10 dietetic supplementation as well as the enrichment of the cellular membranes with monounsaturated fatty acids, successfully protect mitochondrial membranes from aged rats against the free radical insult.
Auraptene, a major compound of supercritical fluid extract of Phalsak (Citrus hassaku Hort ex Tanaka), induces apoptosis through the suppression of mTOR pathways in human gastric cancer SNU-1 cells

O is a significant risk factor for major diseases-type II diabetes, coronary heart disease, hypertension and certain forms of cancer. The microorganisms in the form of probiotic bacteria can be used as a natural remedy for weight control, preventing obesity, and improving energy metabolism. Some strains of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) have the ability to lower serum cholesterol levels by breaking down bile in the gut, thus inhibiting its re-absorption. Lactobacillus (Lb. sporogenes and Lb. acidophilus NCFB 1748) and Bifidobacterium genus representatives play a critical role in weight regulation as an anti-obesity effect in experimental models and humans. Lactobacillus sporogenes has the ability to lower cholesterol levels by producing a significant reduction in low density lipoprotein (LDL) levels and a small but significant increase in high density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol; and the probiotic bacteria can also be successfully implanted in the intestine. Lactobacillus acidophilus is helpful in reducing serum cholesterol levels by reducing abdominal fat by 4.6%, and subcutaneous fat by 3.3%. The probiotic milk containing Lactobacillus gasseri SBT2055, significant decreases body weight BMI, waist circumference and hips. Researchers engineered a specific strain of Lactobacillus to produce a specific kind of fatty acid, t10, c12 CLA. Mice fed with the probiotic showed significant alterations to their fat tissues. Thus microbes have a tremendous potential and can be used in designing a nutraceutical for obesity and weight control.
Anthropogenic Activities and the Quality of Aquatic Habitat with Reference to Heptachlor in Ethiope River Basin

The influences of man on the quality of aquatic habitat is indispensable, hence the distribution of heptachlor, one of the most sought pesticide in the nascent fragile Niger- Delta environment in the water, bottom sediment and Tilapia mariae in Ethiope River Basin was investigated. Samples were collected monthly from three stations, Amukpe, Igun watershed and Owah-Abe, all along the River during the dry (January-April) and wet seasons (May-August). These stations were chosen because of their close proximity to where the pesticide is regularly use except the control station. The concentration of the pesticide was analyzed using CECIL 1010 model of high performance liquid chromatography. The results revealed a higher concentration of the pesticide in surface water during the dry season, than the wet season while the reverse was the case for the bottom sediment and T. mariae which had higher concentrations during the rainy season. Spatial variations showed that the downstream stations had statistically higher concentrations in all matrices at p < 0.05. The observed concentrations of heptachlor were above the permissible limits set by Nigeria National Environment Standards and Regulation Enforcement Agency for aquatic water bodies (0.3 μg/gdw). Though, fishes and the likes may live freely in water contaminated with heptachlor, for a very long time with no health effects. However, pesticides can easily biomagnified along the trophic level, and the risk to aquatic species become greater when repeated applications occur, resulting in continual exposure to peak concentrations.
Sound localization in unilateral deafness with the Baha or TransEar device.

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the sound localization capabilities of patients with unilateral, profound sensorineural hearing loss who had been treated with either a bone-anchored hearing device (Baha BP100) or a TransEar 380-HF bone-conduction hearing device. STUDY DESIGN Nonrandomized, prospective study. SETTING Tertiary referral private practice. PATIENTS Patients with unilateral, profound sensorineural hearing loss treated with a BP100 (n = 10) or a TransEar (n = 10) device. Patients wore the hearing device for at least 1 month and had normal hearing in the contralateral ear. Ten patients with normal, bilateral hearing were used for control. INTERVENTIONS Sound localization of a 3-second recorded sound with and without a TransEar or Baha device was assessed using an array of 7 speakers at head level separated by approximately 45 degrees. The recorded sounds were that of a barking dog or a police siren. Randomized trials of 4 presentations per speaker were given for each hearing condition. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Sound localization was assessed by the accuracy in response and the generalized laterality of response. RESULTS The mean accuracy of speaker localization was 24% and 26% for the aided condition using the BP100 and TransEar devices, respectively. The mean accuracy of laterality judgment was 59% and 69% for the aided condition using the BP100 and TransEar devices, respectively. These results were only slightly better than chance. There was no statistical difference in localization accuracy or laterality judgment between the BP100 and TransEar groups. CONCLUSION Neither the BP100 nor the TransEar device improved sound localization accuracy or laterality judgment ability in patients with unilateral, profound sensorineural hearing loss compared with performance in the unaided condition.
On the meta-logic of arguments

Argumentation has received steadily increasing attention in the multi-agent systems community over the past decade, with particular interest in the use of argument models from the informal logic community. The formalisation of such argument systems is a necessary step if they are to be successfully deployed, and their properties rigorously understood. However, there is as yet no widely accepted approach to the formalisation of argument systems. In this paper, we take as our starting point the view that arguments and dialogues are inherently meta-logical, and that any proper formalisation of argument must embrace this aspect of their nature. For example, a statement that serves as a justification of an argument is is statement about an argument: the argument for which the justification serves must itself be referred to in the justification. From this starting position, we develop a formalisation of arguments using a hierarchical first-order meta-logic, in which statements in successively higher tiers of the argumentation hierarchy refer to statements further down the hierarchy. This enables us to give a clean formal separation between object-level statements, arguments made about these object level statements, and statements about arguments.
A Social Service Robot in a Shopping Mall: Expectations of the Management, Retailers and Consumers

Consumers often respond positively to social service robots in retail context but less is known about the expectations and success criteria of the management and retailers for such robots. We have introduced a humanoid social robot (Pepper) in a shopping mall and report the results of a mall management workshop, interviews of eight retailers and a consumer customer workshop. The results show that the stakeholders find important that the robot creates warm and fun atmosphere in the mall as well as provides practical help for the customers and workers.
All Your VMs are Disconnected: Attacking Hardware Virtualized Network

Single Root I/O Virtualization (SRIOV) allows one physical device to be used by multiple virtual machines simultaneously without the mediation from the hypervisor. Such technique significantly decreases the overhead of I/O virtualization. But according to our latest findings, in the meantime, it introduces a high-risk security issue that enables an adversary-controlled VM to cut off the connectivity of the host machine, given the limited filtering capabilities provided by the SRIOV devices. As showcase, we demonstrate two attacks against SRIOV NIC by exploiting a vulnerability in the standard network management protocol, OAM. The vulnerability surfaces because SRIOV NICs treat the packets passing through OAM as data-plane packets and allow untrusted VMs to send and receive these packets on behalf of the host. By examining several off-the-shelf SRIOV NICs and switches, we show such attack can easily turn off the network connection within a short period of time. In the end, we propose a defense mechanism which runs on the existing hardware and can be readily deployed.
Unsupervised Variational Bayesian Learning of Nonlinear Models

In this paper we present a framework for using multi-layer perceptron (MLP) networks in nonlinear generative models trained by variational Bayesian learning. The nonlinearity is handled by linearizing it using a Gauss-Hermite quadrature at the hidden neurons. This yields an accurate approximation for cases of large posterior variance. The method can be used to derive nonlinear counterparts for linear algorithms such as factor analysis, independent component/factor analysis and state-space models. This is demonstrated with a nonlinear factor analysis experiment in which even 20 sources can be estimated from a real world speech data set.
Organochlorines, Organophosphate Bioaccumulation and Reproductive Dysfunction in Fish Captured from Polluted River Gomti during Pre-Monsoon

The present investigation was performed to monitor the HCHs (HCH isomers), DDTs (DDT and its metabolites), chlorpyrifos, plasma levels of estradiol-17β (E2) and gonadosomatic index (GSI) between the sampling sites of the non-polluted ponds of Gujartal, Jaunpur (reference site) and the polluted river Gomti (Jaunpur), affecting the reproductive physiology of some edible female catfish during pre-monsoon season. The HCHs, DDTs and chlorpyrifos were measured by gas liquid chromatography (GLC) and hormone by Enzyme- Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA). The results indicated that the presence of HCHs, DDTs and chlorpyrifos was very high in the catfish captured from polluted river as compared from the conspecific fish captured from reference site. The GSI and E2 declined in female catfish of polluted site when compared to same species from reference site. Results have also indicated that catfish contained high bioaccumulation of HCHs, DDTs and chlorpyrifos which was beyond permissible limit as compared to the female catfish of the reference site. In conclusion, the fishes of river Gomti were highly polluted when compared with the fish of reference site as was evident from high levels of tissue bioaccumulation of HCHs, DDTs, chlorpyrifos and decreased levels of plasma E2 inhibiting the reproductive physiology of these species at receptor level. However, the levels exceeded maximum residue limits (MRL) as recommended by Codex, hence it is suggested that the fish containing pesticide residues beyond permissible limit should be avoided for the food purposes.
Lymph Node Detection and Segmentation in Chest Ct Data Using Discriminative Learning and a Spatial Prior

Lymph nodes have high clinical relevance and routinely need to be considered in clinical practice. Automatic detection is, however, challenging due to clutter and low contrast. In this paper, a method is presented that fully automatically detects and segments lymph nodes in 3-D computed tomography images of the chest. Lymph nodes can easily be confused with other structures, it is therefore vital to incorporate as much anatomical prior knowledge as possible in order to achieve a good detection performance. Here, a learned prior of the spatial distribution is used to model this knowledge. Different prior types with increasing complexity are proposed and compared to each other. This is combined with a powerful dis-criminative model that detects lymph nodes from their appearance. It first generates a number of candidates of possible lymph node center positions. Then, a segmentation method is initialized with a detected candidate. The graph cuts method is adapted to the problem of lymph nodes segmentation. We propose a setting that requires only a single positive seed and at the same time solves the small cut problem of graph cuts. Furthermore, we propose a feature set that is extracted from the segmentation. A classifier is trained on this feature set and used to reject false alarms. Cross-validation on 54 CT datasets showed that for a fixed number of four false alarms per volume image, the detection rate is well more than doubled when using the spatial prior. In total, our proposed method detects mediastinal lymph nodes with a true positive rate of 52.0% at the cost of only 3.1 false alarms per volume image and a true positive rate of 60.9% with 6.1 false alarms per volume image, which compares favorably to prior work on mediastinal lymph node detection. Lymph nodes play an important role in clinical practice, especially in the mediastinal area (the region between the lungs). They routinely need to be considered during oncological examinations related to all kinds of cancer (Duwe et al., 2005; de Langen et al., 2006), for instance lung cancer (McLoud et al., 1992), where metas-tases settle in lymph nodes, but also lymphoma, which is a cancer of the lymphatic system itself. Furthermore, they are also relevant in case of inflammation in general (Drake et al., 2009). Cancer causes affected lymph nodes to be enlarged. In order to assess the progress of the disease and to check whether treatment is effective, physicians are …
Data Dissemination supporting collaborative complex event processing: characteristics and open issues

Most distributed applications today receive events, process them and in turn create new events which are sent to other processes. Business intelligence, air traffic control, collaborative security, complex system software management are examples of such applications. In these applications basic events, potentially occurred at different sites, are correlated in order to detect complex event patterns formed by basic events that could have temporal and spatial relationships among them. In this context, a fundamental functionality is the data dissemination that brings events from event producers to event consumers where complex event patterns are detected. In this paper we discuss the characteristics that a Data Dissemination service should have in order to support in the best way the complex event pattern detection functionality. We consider event traffic can reach thousands of events per second coming from different event sources; that is, the data dissemination service has to sustain high throughput. Finally, we present an assessment of a number of technologies that can be used to disseminate data in the earlier mentioned context, discussing scenarios where those technologies can be effectively deployed.
Candidosis: Diagnostic tools in the laboratory

Summary: The diagnosis of deep‐seated candidosis still poses severe problems to the physician. While laboratory tests for a long time have been mainly based on the detection of antibodies to Candida and in particular Candida albicans the detection of Candida antigen in the blood gains more and more interest. When it comes to the evaluation of the various laboratory tests the correlation with autopsy data is most rewarding. The more specimens are analysed for the presence of hints at deep‐seated candidosis in a given hospital setting the least frequent death due to deep‐seated candidosis occurs.
Tackling the Internet Glossary Glut: Automatic Extraction and Evaluation of Genus Phrases

This paper addresses the problem of developing methods to be used in the identification and extraction of meaningful semantic components from large online glossaries. We present two sets of results. First, we report on the algorithm, ParseGloss, which was used to analyze definitions, and extract the main concept, or genus phrase. We ran the system on over 12,000 online glossary entries. Second, we present a method to evaluate our results, using human judgments on a collection of definitions from six different sources. This paper discusses our approach to the evaluation process, since the creation of a standard for evaluation is in itself a contribution to the field. The methods we have developed have required addressing the significant challenges of abstracting a single gold standard from multiple naive, human judgments on a highly subjective task. Once the method for creating the standard was developed, we then established the gold standard data. We report on our performance in running ParseGloss over this controlled collection of definitions. Our first set of results presents precision and recall on system performance. Our second results are presented in terms of techniques for determining agreement between human subjects. Success in the ParseGloss algorithm will contribute to the automatic creation of ontologies.