Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Approximate distance oracles for geometric spanners

Given an arbitrary real constant ϵ > 0, and a geometric graph <i>G</i> in <i>d</i>-dimensional Euclidean space with <i>n</i> points, <i>O</i>(<i>n</i>) edges, and constant dilation, our main result is a data structure that answers (1 + ϵ)-approximate shortest-path-length queries in constant time. The data structure can be constructed in <i>O</i>(<i>n</i> log <i>n</i>) time using <i>O</i>(<i>n</i> log <i>n</i>) space. This represents the first data structure that answers (1 + ϵ)-approximate shortest-path queries in constant time, and hence functions as an approximate distance oracle. The data structure is also applied to several other problems. In particular, we also show that approximate shortest-path queries between vertices in a planar polygonal domain with “rounded” obstacles can be answered in constant time. Other applications include query versions of <i>closest-pair</i> problems, and the efficient computation of the approximate dilations of geometric graphs. Finally, we show how to extend the main result to answer (1 + ϵ)-approximate shortest-path-length queries in constant time for geometric spanner graphs with <i>m</i> = ω(<i>n</i>) edges. The resulting data structure can be constructed in <i>O</i>(<i>m</i> + <i>n</i> log <i>n</i>) time using <i>O</i>(<i>n</i> log <i>n</i>) space.
This item is the archived peer-reviewed author-version of: Multiple access algorithms without feedback using combinatorial designs

A new class of multiple access algorithms for systems without feedback is introduced and analyzed. A ﬁnite population of users is assumed, where each user transmits a packet R times within the next N time slots (and all packets have an equal length of one slot). To improve the performance achieved by randomly selecting these R slots, user codes are invoked such that any two users will only transmit simultaneously in at most one slot, i.e., 2-( N, R, 1) designs. We argue that in most cases, the set of user codes can be generated easily using cyclic designs and provide a method to select T user codes from the set of user codes S N,R in case the user population consists of T < | S N,R | users. We further demonstrate how larger populations, with T > | S N,R | , can still beneﬁt from these user codes in two different manners. Closed formulas that express the success probability of a packet are provided for all population setups. Finally, a comparison with the random selection strategy demonstrates the performance gain realized by the new multiple access algorithms and some engineering rules to optimize the performance are provided.
Biotyping coagulase-negative staphylococci

The biochemical profiles obtained with Staph-Ident (Analytab Products, Plainview, N.Y.) panels were combined with the results of adherence and synergistic hemolysis tests to define biotypes among 1,064 clinical isolates representing eight species of coagulase-negative staphylococci. The 672 isolates of Staphylococcus epidermidis were aligned in 69 of 144 potential biotypes in our scheme because of 18 different biochemical profiles and the eight physiologic subtypes. Isolates of most other species were in fewer biotypes because of more uniform adherence and synergistic hemolysis data, as well as fewer biochemical profiles. Since adherence and synergistic hemolysis may prove to be related to virulence and pathogenicity, biotyping with these test results would help evaluate the reliability of adherence and synergistic hemolysis as possible indices of the clinical significance of some of these organisms. When the antimicrobial susceptibility and plasmid profiles obtained on two clusters of S. epidermidis isolates were compared with the biotyping results, one cluster was not further differentiated by plasmid profiles, but was by antimicrobial profiles; the other cluster with only two biotypes was further divided into five distinct types by plasmid profiles but was not separated at all by antimicrobial profiles.
Institutional Factors in Information Technology Innovation

Innovation in information technology is well established in developed nations; newly industrializing and developing nations have been creating governmental interventions to accelerate IT innovation within their borders. The lack of coherent policy advice for creating government policy for IT innovation signals a shortfall in research understanding of the role of government institutions, and institutions more broadly, in IT innovation. This paper makes three points. First, long-established intellectual perspectives on innovation from neoclassical economics and organization theory are inadequate to explain the dynamics of actual innovative change in the IT domain. A broader view adopted from economic history and the new institutionalism in sociology provides a stronger base for understanding the role of institutions in IT innovation. Second, institutional intervention in IT innovation can be constructed at the intersection of the influence and regulatory powers of institutions and the ideologies of supply-push and demand-pull models of innovation. Examples of such analysis are provided. Third, institutional policy formation regarding IT innovation is facilitated by an understanding of the multifaceted role of institutions in the innovative process, and on the contingencies governing any given institution/innovation mix.
Autonomous Inland Water Monitoring: Design and Application of a Surface Vessel

This article presents a novel autonomous surface vessel (ASV) that was designed and manufactured specifically for the monitoring of water resources, resources that are not only constantly drained but also face the growing threat of mass proliferation (bloom) of noxious cyanobacteria. On one hand, the distribution of these blooms in a given water body requires a surveillance of biological data at high spatial resolution on both vertical and horizontal axes, whereas on the other hand, the understanding of the temporal evolution of the cyanobacteria necessitates repeated sampling at the same location. Therefore, our ASV was designed to combine the ability to take measurements within a range of depths, with its custom-made winch, and accurate localization provided by the global positioning system (GPS), without the need for static installations. This article first describes the ASV conception, and then the results of extended field tests on the waypoint navigation mode are discussed. Finally, the first results of a sampling campaign for monitoring algal blooms in Lake Zurich are presented. This work constitutes advances in the deployment of mobile measurement platforms for environmental monitoring in lacustrine environments. Furthermore, it investigates the application of a single ASV to capture both spatial and temporal dynamics of harmful cyanobacterial blooms in lakes. Combining surface mobility with depth measurements within a single robot allows fast deployments in remote location, which is cost efficient for lake sampling. This reduces the need for fixed installations, which can be impossible in recreational areas. The high-resolution sampling of lakes will contribute to understand and predict the occurrence of harmful cyanobacterial blooms for a better management of water resources.
Comparison of single-particle analysis and electron tomography approaches : an overview

Three-dimensional structure of a wide range of biological specimens can be computed from images collected by transmission electron microscopy. This information integrated with structural data obtained with other techniques (e.g., X-ray crystallography) helps structural biologists to understand the function of macromolecular complexes and organelles within cells. In this paper, we compare two threedimensional transmission electron microscopy techniques that are becoming more and more related (at the image acquisition level as well as the image processing one): electron tomography and single-particle analysis. The first one is currently used to elucidate the three-dimensional structure of cellular components or smaller entire cells, whereas the second one has been traditionally applied to structural studies of macromolecules and macromolecular complexes. Also, we discuss possibilities for their integration with other structural biology techniques for an integrative study of living matter from proteins to whole cells.
Speed of Gravitational Waves from Strongly Lensed Gravitational Waves and Electromagnetic Signals.

We propose a new model-independent measurement strategy for the propagation speed of gravitational waves (GWs) based on strongly lensed GWs and their electromagnetic (EM) counterparts. This can be done in two ways: by comparing arrival times of GWs and their EM counterparts and by comparing the time delays between images seen in GWs and their EM counterparts. The lensed GW-EM event is perhaps the best way to identify an EM counterpart. Conceptually, this method does not rely on any specific theory of massive gravitons or modified gravity. Its differential setting (i.e., measuring the difference between time delays in GW and EM domains) makes it robust against lens modeling details (photons and GWs travel in the same lensing potential) and against internal time delays between GW and EM emission acts. It requires, however, that the theory of gravity is metric and predicts gravitational lensing similar to general relativity. We expect that such a test will become possible in the era of third-generation gravitational-wave detectors, when about 10 lensed GW events would be observed each year. The power of this method is mainly limited by the timing accuracy of the EM counterpart, which for kilonovae is around 10^{4} s. This uncertainty can be suppressed by a factor of ∼10^{10}, if strongly lensed transients of much shorter duration associated with the GW event can be identified. Candidates for such short transients include short γ-ray bursts and fast radio bursts.
Stroma is not a major target in DMBA-mediated tumorigenesis of mouse mammary preneoplasia

Carcinogenesis in the mammary gland is thought to involve carcinogen-induced initiation in mammary epithelial cells. Recent experiments have demonstrated that the mammary stroma can be a target of carcinogenic agents, which results in the stroma positively affecting carcinogenesis. To determine whether the stroma or epithelium is the primary target in chemically induced mouse mammary tumorigenesis, we used transplantation of untreated or 7,12-dimethylbenzanthracene (DMBA)-treated immortalized preneoplastic mammary cells into untreated or DMBA-treated stroma. The results demonstrate that the chemical-carcinogen treated stroma did not enhance mammary tumorigenesis in this model and that carcinogen treatment of the mammary epithelium was essential for tumorigenesis.
Organizational factors, environmental climate, and job satisfaction among police in Slovenia

In this paper we examine the extent to which organizational culture, police enforcement strategies, and occupational role influence the job satisfaction of police officers in Slovenia. More specifically, we ask if these factors shape perceptions of satisfaction among police officers working in different departments and to what extent they differ among various occupational groups within the same organization. These groups include law enforcement officers, police investigators, and state border officers. Using data from a sample of 995 Slovenian police officers, our analyses suggest that officer demographic characteristics alone do little to explain variation in job satisfaction, whereas the introduction of organizational and environmental factors such as opportunities to innovate, perceptions of citizen cooperation, and job challenges vastly improve the models. Similarities and differences between the occupational groups are discussed, along with implications for policy and future research.
Hypnotizability and belief in psi as predictors of precognition.

This study examined whether hypnotizability or belief in psi predicts precognition. The test measured if practice enhances memory recall with the precognitive feature being that the practice occurs after the recall test. Participants low (n = 15) and high (n = 15) in hypnotizability completed the precognition task and a psychometric measure of belief in psi. Age ranged from 19 to 65 years (16 males and 14 females). Highly hypnotizable individuals were expected to perform better than low hypnotizable on the test. We also predicted that individuals who believed more in psi phenomena would perform better on the test. We found no effect of hypnotizability or belief in psi on task performance.
Optical Imaging: Current Applications and Future Directions

Optical techniques, such as bioluminescence and fluorescence, are emerging as powerful new modalities for molecular imaging in disease and therapy. Combining innovative molecular biology and chemistry, researchers have developed optical methods for imaging a variety of cellular and molecular processes in vivo, including protein interactions, protein degradation, and protease activity. Whereas optical imaging has been used primarily for research in small-animal models, there are several areas in which optical molecular imaging will translate to clinical medicine. In this review, we summarize recent advances in optical techniques for molecular imaging and the potential impact for clinical medicine.
The Flipped Classroom in World History.

THE FlippEd Classroom is one in which lectures are presented as homework outside of class in online videos so that class time is reserved for engaging directly with the materials. The first time I employed this pedagogical tool was at Colorado state University-pueblo (CsU-pueblo), a regional public university1 with a high percentage of first-generation college students and a high percentage of students who find college-level work unexpectedly challenging. First-year survey courses in the History department are capped at 40 students. during the spring semester of 2013, when I first implemented the flipped classroom, enrollments were unusually low. in the two sections of World History to 1100, one had 14 students and the other had 22. in the History department at CsU-pueblo, we have the enviable position of teaching World History in three semesters rather than two. The divisions are to 1100 C.E. , 1100 to1800, and 1800 to present. I am responsible for the first of these, HIST 101: World Civilization to 1100 C.E. 2 We do not share a standard text or curriculum for the World History sequence. i employ strayer’s World History with Sources and begin with evolution (thanks to a few skulls from a colleague in anthropology) and the paleolithic age. This is a standard face-to-face course enhanced by Blackboard, where i provide links to online videos and additional primary sources that are not available in the textbook or that i want the students to read at greater length. Blackboard is also used for posting assignments, links to maps, links for optional further reading, and for the students to submit written assignments. Now that i am employing
Network measures for information extraction in evolutionary algorithms

Abstract Problem domain information extraction is a critical issue in many real-world optimization problems. Increasing the repertoire of techniques available in evolutionary algorithms with this purpose is fundamental for extending the applicability of these algorithms. In this paper we introduce a unifying information mining approach for evolutionary algorithms. Our proposal is based on a division of the stages where structural modelling of the variables interactions is applied. Particular topological characteristics induced from different stages of the modelling process are identified. Network theory is used to harvest problem structural information from the learned probabilistic graphical models (PGMs). We show how different statistical measures, previously studied for networks from different domains, can be applied to mine the graphical component of PGMs. We provide evidence that the computed measures can be employed for studying problem difficulty, classifying different problem instances and predict.
miR-874 functions as a tumor suppressor by inhibiting angiogenesis through STAT3/VEGF-A pathway in gastric cancer

MicroRNAs are endogenously expressed, small non-coding RNAs that regulate gene expression by targeting mRNAs for translational repression or degradation. Our previous studies indicated that miR-874 played a suppressive role in gastric cancer (GC) development and progression. However, the role of miR-874 in tumor angiogenesis and the mechanisms underlying its function in GC remained to be clarified. Here, gain- and loss-of-function assays demonstrated that miR-874 inhibited the tumor angiogenesis of GC cells in vitro and in vivo. Through reporter gene and western blot assays, STAT3 was shown to be a direct target of miR-874. Overexpression of STAT3 rescued the loss of tumor angiogenesis caused by miR-874. Conversely, the STAT3-shRNA attenuated the increased tumor angiogenesis caused by the miR-874-inhibitor. Furthermore, the levels of miR-874 were inversely correlated with those of STAT3 protein in GC tissues. Taken together, these findings indicate that down-regulation of miR-874 contributes to tumor angiogenesis through STAT3 in GC, highlighting the potential of miR-874 as a target for human GC therapy.
Sketched menus and iconic gestures, techniques designed in the context of shareable interfaces

Suppose a user is interacting with other persons around a digital tabletop or in front of a digital wall. A user wants to launch a new graphical component or an application in the part of the screen next to him. Traditional methods such as popup menus allow him to first open the application and afterwards let him move, resize and orient the component appropriately. Meanwhile, the component may cover some objects the others users are looking at or interacting with. How to avoid this disruption of other persons' activity? This paper describes menu techniques for adding a new user's interface object on a shared device while preserving mutual awareness of the participants without disturbing them in their interaction. We present Sketched Menu, Abbreviated Sketched Menu and Iconic Gestures. These techniques let a user specify the shape, the size, the location and the orientation of the desired object before its creation. Sketched menus and iconic gestures preserve the mutual awareness. These techniques allow both adaptation of a user to the current context -the actions of the other users and the spatial arrangement of the objects on the tabletop-and the others to be aware of the foreseen action and the related space claim.
Trust Inference in Web-Based Social Networks Using Resistive Networks

By the immense growth of the Web-based social networks (WBSNs), the role of trust in connecting people together through WBSNs is getting more important than ever. In other words, since the probability of malicious behavior in WBSNs is increasing, it is necessary to evaluate the reliability of a person before trying to communicate with. Hence, it is desirable to find out how much a person should trust another one in a network. The approach to answer this question is usually called trust inference. In this paper, we propose a new trust inference algorithm (called RN-trust) based on the resistive networks concept. The algorithm, in addition to being simple, resolves some problems of previously proposed approaches. The analysis of the algorithm demonstrates that RN-trust calculates the trust values more accurately than previous approaches.
Studying virtual worlds as medium for telepresence robots

This paper presents a study on the effects of using virtual worlds as medium for interaction with telepresence robots. The Prototype for Assisted Communication PAC4 is also introduced. This system connects virtual worlds with real robots, allowing virtual world users to access the robot capabilities in a telepresence scenario. A user experiment was conducted to evaluate the effects of PAC4 on the feeling of social presence experienced by virtual world users.
Designing VNT Candidates Robust Against Network Failures

Future-generation networks are expected to be more robust to network failures. However, as each physical link carries multiple lightpaths when a VNT (Virtual Network Topology) is applied on an optical network, even the failure of a single link may tear down many links in the VNT, which can slow down the network or make it unusable. In this paper, we propose an algorithm called MFLDA (Minimum Flow Logical topology Design Algorithm) for designing VNT candidates that can accommodate a wide range of traffic patterns. Moreover, we show that the variant called MFLDA-FO (MFLDA with Failure Optimization) can design VNT candidates that have lower probability of congestion right after the failure of multiple nodes compared to HLDA, which is one of the best performing VNT design algorithms. Furthermore, we show that when these VNT candidates are used as attractors in an attractor selection algorithm, which was modeled on biological systems and proposed as a robust and self-adaptive control for future-generation networks, the average time to recover from difficult failure scenarios is less than the attractors designed by HLDA. Unlike HLDA, our VNT design algorithms and the attractor selection algorithm does not require the traffic matrix and the topology information after failure.
Ultra-Sensitive Molecular MRI of Vascular Cell Adhesion Molecule-1 Reveals a Dynamic Inflammatory Penumbra After Strokes

Background and Purpose— Our aim was to assess the spatiotemporal evolution of the cerebrovascular inflammation occurring after ischemic and hemorrhagic strokes using a recently developed, fast, and ultra-sensitive molecular MRI method. Methods— We first assessed longitudinally the cerebrovascular inflammation triggered by collagenase-induced hemorrhage and by permanent/transient middle cerebral artery occlusion in mice, using MRI after injection of microparticles of iron oxide targeted to vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 (MPIOs-&agr;VCAM-1). Thereafter, we used this method to study the anti-inflammatory effects of celecoxib, atorvastatin, and dipyridamole after stroke. Results— Using multiparametric MRI, we demonstrated that the level and the kinetics of cerebrovascular VCAM-1 expression depend on several parameters, including stroke pathogenesis, the natural history of the disease, and the administration of inflammation-modulating drugs. Interestingly, in transient middle cerebral artery occlusion and intracranial hemorrhage models, VCAM-1 expression was maximal at 24 hours and almost returned to baseline 5 days after stroke onset. In contrast, after permanent middle cerebral artery occlusion, VCAM-1 overexpression was sustained between 24 hours and 5 days, and was particularly significant in the peri-infarct areas. Our results suggest that these perilesional areas expressing VCAM-1 constitute an inflammatory penumbra that is recruited by the ischemic core during the subacute phase. Using MPIOs-&agr;VCAM-1–enhanced imaging, we also provided evidence that celecoxib and atorvastatin (but not dipyridamole) alleviate VCAM-1 overexpression after stroke and prevent formation of the inflammatory penumbra. Conclusions— MPIOs-&agr;VCAM-1–enhanced imaging seems to be promising in the detection of individuals presenting with severe cerebrovascular responses after stroke, which could therefore benefit from anti-inflammatory treatments.