Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Evaluating performance of grammatical error detection to maximize learning effect

This paper proposes a method for evaluating grammatical error detection methods to maximize the learning effect obtained by grammatical error detection. To achieve this, this paper sets out the following two hypotheses --- imperfect, rather than perfect, error detection maximizes learning effect; and precision-oriented error detection is better than a recall-oriented one in terms of learning effect. Experiments reveal that (i) precision-oriented error detection has a learning effect comparable to that of feedback by a human tutor, although the first hypothesis is not supported; (ii) precision-oriented error detection is better than recall-oriented in terms of learning effect; (iii) F-measure is not always the best way of evaluating error detection methods.
Planning texts by constraint satisfaction

A method is described by which a rhetorical-structure tree can be realized by a text structure made up of sections, paragraphs, sentences, vertical lists, and other textual patterns, with discourse connectives added (in the correct positions) to mark rhetorical relations. We show that text-structuring can be formulated as a Constraint Satisfaction Problem, so that all solutions respecting constraints on text-structure formation and structural compatibility can be efficiently generated. Of the many solutions generated by this method, some are stylistically preferable to others; we show how further constraints can be applied in order to select the best versions. Finally, we discuss some extensions such as the generation of indented text structures.
Exploring virtual reality as a validation methodology

Virtual environments can be used as a test bed for validation of human behavior simulation techniques since they place people within a simulated situation from an egocentric perspective. We propose level of presence achieved by a human in a virtual environment (VE) as a metric for virtual crowd behavior. Using experimental evidence from the presence literature and the results of a pilot experiment that we ran, we explore the egocentric features that a crowd simulation model should have in order to achieve high levels of presence.
Advances in microbial amylases.

This review makes a comprehensive survey of microbial amylases, i.e. alpha-amylase, beta-amylase and glucoamylase. Amylases are among the most important enzymes and are of great significance in present-day biotechnology. Although they can be derived from several sources, such as plants, animals and micro-organisms, the enzymes from microbial sources generally meet industrial demands. Microbial amylases could be potentially useful in the pharmaceutical and fine-chemical industries if enzymes with suitable properties could be prepared. With the advent of new frontiers in biotechnology, the spectrum of amylase application has widened in many other fields, such as clinical, medicinal and analytical chemistries, as well as their widespread application in starch saccharification and in the textile, food, brewing and distilling industries. In this review, after a brief description of the sources of amylases, we discuss the molecular biology of amylases, describing structures, cloning, sequences, and protoplast fusion and mutagenesis. This is followed by sections on their production and finally the properties of various amylases.
Cold-activated brown adipose tissue in healthy men.

BACKGROUND Studies in animals indicate that brown adipose tissue is important in the regulation of body weight, and it is possible that individual variation in adaptive thermogenesis can be attributed to variations in the amount or activity of brown adipose tissue. Until recently, the presence of brown adipose tissue was thought to be relevant only in small mammals and infants, with negligible physiologic relevance in adult humans. We performed a systematic examination of the presence, distribution, and activity of brown adipose tissue in lean and obese men during exposure to cold temperature. Brown-adipose-tissue activity was studied in relation to body composition and energy metabolism. METHODS We studied 24 healthy men--10 who were lean (body-mass index [BMI] [the weight in kilograms divided by the square of the height in meters], < 25) and 14 who were overweight or obese (BMI, > or = 25)--under thermoneutral conditions (22 degrees C) and during mild cold exposure (16 degrees C). Putative brown-adipose-tissue activity was determined with the use of integrated (18)F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron-emission tomography and computed tomography. Body composition and energy expenditure were measured with the use of dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry and indirect calorimetry. RESULTS Brown-adipose-tissue activity was observed in 23 of the 24 subjects (96%) during cold exposure but not under thermoneutral conditions. The activity was significantly lower in the overweight or obese subjects than in the lean subjects (P=0.007). BMI and percentage of body fat both had significant negative correlations with brown adipose tissue, whereas resting metabolic rate had a significant positive correlation. CONCLUSIONS The percentage of young men with brown adipose tissue is high, but its activity is reduced in men who are overweight or obese. Brown adipose tissue may be metabolically important in men, and the fact that it is reduced yet present in most overweight or obese subjects may make it a target for the treatment of obesity.
Chronic Ethanol and Withdrawal Differentially Modulate Lateral/Basolateral Amygdala Paracapsular and Local GABAergic Synapses

Withdrawal-related anxiety is cited as a major contributor to relapse in recovering alcoholics. Changes in lateral/basolateral amygdala (BLA) neurotransmission could directly influence anxiety-like behaviors after chronic ethanol exposure and withdrawal. We have shown that these treatments enhance BLA glutamatergic function and neurotransmission. However, the BLA GABAergic system tightly controls the expression of anxiety-like behavior, and additional neuroadaptations in this system are potentially important as well. The intrinsic BLA GABAergic system consists of at least two populations of interneurons: local feed-back interneurons scattered throughout the region and feed-forward interneurons concentrated within groups found in the lateral/paracapsular region of the BLA. In the present study, we found that withdrawal from chronic ethanol robustly decreased presynaptic function at feed-forward GABA synapses but did not alter neurotransmitter release from local interneurons. Differential presynaptic changes at these synapses were complemented by decreased zolpidem sensitivity at feed-forward synapses and decreased midazolam sensitivity at local synapses. Consistent with this, chronic ethanol/withdrawal decreased expression of GABA α1-subunit total protein and increased surface expression of α4-subunit protein. We also found transient increases in GABA-receptor-associated protein levels and persistent increases in γ2-subunit and gephyrin proteins that would suggest alterations in GABAA receptor trafficking that might help regulate changes in α4-subunit localization. These data together suggest that chronic ethanol and withdrawal differentially modulate local and lateral paracapsular cell GABAergic synapses via distinct presynaptic and postsynaptic mechanisms. These findings extend our understanding of the neurobiological mechanisms governing changes in anxiety-like behavior after chronic ethanol exposure and withdrawal.
Nonterminal Separating Macro Grammars

We extend the concept of nonterminal separating (or NTS) context-free grammar to nonterminal separating $m$-macro grammar where the mode of derivation $m$ is equal to "unrestricted". "outside-in' or "inside-out". Then we show some (partial) characterization results for these NTS $m$-macro grammars.
Estimating missed actual positives using independent classifiers

Data mining is increasingly being applied in environments having very high rate of data generation like network intrusion detection [7], where routers generate about 300,000 -- 500,000 connections every minute. In such rare class data domains, the cost of missing a rare-class instance is much higher than that of other classes. However, the high cost for manual labeling of instances, the high rate at which data is collected as well as real-time response constraints do not always allow one to determine the actual classes for the collected unlabeled datasets. In our previous work [9], this problem of missed false negatives was explained in context of two different domains -- "network intrusion detection" and "business opportunity classification". In such cases, an estimate for the number of such missed high-cost, rare instances will aid in the evaluation of the performance of the modeling technique (e.g. classification) used. A capture-recapture method was used for estimating false negatives, using two or more learning methods (i.e. classifiers). This paper focuses on the dependence between the class labels assigned by such learners. We define the conditional independence for classifiers given a class label and show its relation to the conditional independence of the features sets (used by the classifiers) given a class label. The later is a computationally expensive problem and hence, a heuristic algorithm is proposed for obtaining conditionally independent (or less dependent) feature sets for the classifiers. Initial results of this algorithm on synthetic datasets are promising and further research is being pursued.
Correlates of self-rated health in persons aged 85 and over: results from the Canadian Study of Health and Aging.

This report describes self-rated health in 1,239 non-institutionalized Canadians aged 85 years and over who participated in the Canadian Study of Health and Aging. Most (76.8%) rated their health positively (i.e., very or pretty good). Stepwise multiple regression was used to determine the variables that were significantly correlated with self-rated health. A modestly successful model for predicting self-rated health (R2 = 0.27) was developed. Better understanding of the determinants of healthy aging hopefully will lead to effective interventions to improve the quality of life of the very old.
Pharmacists’ Perceptions Regarding Optimization of Antibiotic Prescribing in the Community

Background and Objective: The overuse of antibiotics in the community is a primary cause of antibiotic resistance. Community pharmacists are the most accessible health professionals and so they are in an ideal position to implement interventions to ensure the appropriate use of antibiotics. This study aimed to explore the role of community pharmacists in the optimization of antibiotic prescribing and utilization. Method: Four focus groups were conducted with community pharmacists in Perth, Western Australia. Audio-recorded data were compared with field notes, transcribed, and thematically analyzed. Results: There were twenty-four participants in four focus group sessions. Four main themes were identified: patient perceptions and behaviors, prescribing behaviors, pharmacists’ roles and responsibilities, and health care system interventions in relation to antibiotic utilization. A number of interventions that could be implemented by community pharmacists were identified. In addition to interventions that are currently in place in Australia, forward dispensing, improved interprofessional collaboration, an expansion of current prescribing role, and vaccination capabilities were also suggested. Conclusions: This study indicated that current scope of pharmacists’ roles has room for more intervention strategies aimed at improving antibiotic prescribing and utilization in the community.
Reproductive toxicity of dietary copper to a saltwater cladoceran, Moina monogolica daday

In the present study, the chronic toxicity of dietary copper to Moina monogolica Daday was investigated. Microalgal growth inhibition tests were conducted for 96 h with the green algae Chlorella pyrenoidosa exposed to copper. The 96‐h median effective concentration (95% confidence interval) was 509.12 (388.68–629.56) μg/L. Then, C. pyrenoidosa was exposed for 96 h to a control and to seven dissolved copper concentrations. Cellular copper concentration accumulated in a dose‐dependent manner and was plotted against cell density. These algae were used as food in a 21‐d bioassay with M. monogolica in seawater to which no dissolved copper was added. Brood size was not reduced in the first brood, but significant reductions at all algal‐exposure copper concentrations (44.78–817.17 μg/L) were observed in all subsequent broods, with increasing magnitude in each brood. Neither longevity nor number of broods per female was significantly affected, even at the highest copper exposure, though both endpoints did show a consistent downward trend with increasing copper exposure. Total reproduction, brood size, and net reproductive rate were decreased significantly in all dietary copper exposures (algae exposed to 44.78–817.17 μg/L). In contrast, the intrinsic rate of natural increase was reduced significantly only with algae exposed to greater than 619.27 μg/L, most likely because of the heavy influence of early reproduction on this metric. Because cell density in algal cultures decreased with increasing copper concentrations, it is possible that changes in the nutritional content of the algal diet could have played a role in causing the observed changes in reproduction of M. monogolica.
Isolation and characterization of melanopsin (Opn4) from the Australian marsupial Sminthopsis crassicaudata (fat-tailed dunnart)

Melanopsin confers photosensitivity to a subset of retinal ganglion cells and is responsible for many non-image-forming tasks, like the detection of light for circadian entrainment. Recently, two melanopsin genes, Opn4m and Opn4x, were described in non-mammalian vertebrates. However, only one form, Opn4m, has been described in the mammals, although studies to date have been limited to the placentals and have not included the marsupials. We report here the isolation and characterization of an Opn4 gene from an Australian marsupial, the fat-tailed dunnart (Sminthopsis crassicaudata), and present evidence which suggests that the Opn4x gene was lost before the placental/marsupial split. In situ hybridization shows that the expression of Opn4 in the dunnart eye is restricted to a subset of ganglion cells, a pattern previously reported for rodents and primates. These Opn4-positive cells are randomly distributed across the dunnart retina. We also undertook a comparative analysis with the South American marsupial, the grey short-tailed opossum (Monodelphis domestica), and two placental mammals, mouse and human. This approach reveals that the two marsupials show a higher sequence identity than that seen between rodents and primates, despite separating at approximately the same point in time, some 65–85 Myr ago.
Simulation and experiments of stress migration for Cu/low-k BEoL

Stress migration (SM) or stress-induced voiding experiments were conducted for two back-end-of-line (BEoL) technologies: Cu/FTEOS and Cu/low-k. Experiments have shown the mean time to failure (MTF) depends on inter-layer dielectric (ILD) materials properties, ILD stack and metal line width. Stress migration is worse in Cu/low-k, manifesting as significantly reduced MTF under accelerated testing. Line width also has a more profound effect on stress migration reliability in Cu/low-k than in Cu/FTEOS. Wider lines produce higher failure rates, due to larger stress magnitudes in Cu and larger active diffusion volumes. Stress modeling using finite element analysis (FEA) was performed to quantify the stress fields in the via-chain test structure used for SM reliability testing. In order to account for the effect of process steps on stress evolution, a process-oriented modeling approach was developed. Stress in the metal line is a function of ILD properties, ILD stack and metal line width. The concept of an SM risk index is proposed to assess BEoL stress migration reliability from both stress and energy perspectives. Comparison of the SM risk index for Cu/FTEOS and Cu/low-k shows that the latter is more prone to stress-induced voiding. Stress migration tests verify that MTF values decrease with increasing line width. Modeling results are consistent with experimental findings, while providing more insightful understanding of stress-driven mechanisms in stress migration.
Object-based Neglect Varies with Egocentric Position

Different reference frames have been identified to influence neglect behavior. In particular, neglect has been demonstrated to be related to the contralesional side of the subject's body (egocentric reference frames) as well as to the contralesional side of individual objects irrespective of their position to the patient (object-based reference frame). There has been discussion whether this distinction separates neglect into body- and object-based forms. The present experiment aimed to prove possible interactions between object-based and egocentric aspects in spatial neglect. Neglect patients' eye and head movements were recorded while they explored objects at five egocentric positions along the horizontal dimension of space. The patients showed both egocentric as well as object-based behavior. Most interestingly, data analysis revealed that object-based neglect varied with egocentric position. Although the neglect of the objects' left side was strong at contralesional egocentric positions, it ameliorated at more ipsilesional egocentric positions of the objects. The patients showed steep, ramp-shaped patterns of exploration for objects located on the far contralesional side and a broadening of these patterns as the locations of the objects shifted more to the ipsilesional side. The data fitted well with the saliency curves predicted by a model of space representation, which suggests that visual input is represented in two modes simultaneously: in veridical egocentric coordinates and in within-object coordinates.
A Hybrid Method of Recommending POIs Based on Context and Personal Preference Confidence

It is a valuable study for Location-based Social Network (LBSN) make a moreaccurate Points-of-Interest (POI) recommendation since that can improve users'experiences. There have been many methods of POIs recommendation that consider context, personal preference pattern, and/or matrix factorization. However, the continuouscontexts have not been thoroughly considered in these methods. This paper first proposes a locations splitting method which can handle both continuous and discrete contexts. Moreover, we present a Context-aware Probabilistic Matrix Factorization method (CPMF)that factorizes a frequency matrix of contexts and locations to obtainthe user-location checkin probabilities. We design a Personal Preference Confidence (PPC) toextract a set of reliable POIs with confidence values for every user. Finally, we propose a hybrid recommender which fuses CPMF with PPC to recommend top-n POIs. Experiments on a large-scale real-worldcheckins dataset demonstrate that our recommendation method obtains a well performance and effect.
Autoantigens targeted in systemic lupus erythematosus are clustered in two populations of surface structures on apoptotic keratinocytes

Systemic lupus erythematosus is a multisystem autoimmune disease in which the autoantibody response targets a variety of autoantigens of diverse subcellular location. We show here that these autoantigens are clustered in two distinct populations of blebs at the surface of apoptotic cells. The population of smaller blebs contains fragmented endoplasmic reticulum (ER) and ribosomes, as well as the ribonucleoprotein, Ro. The larger blebs (apoptotic bodies) contain nucleosomal DNA, Ro, La, and the small nuclear ribonucleoproteins. These autoantigen clusters have in common their proximity to the ER and nuclear membranes, sites of increased generation of reactive oxygen species in apoptotic cells. Oxidative modification at these sites may be a mechanism that unites this diverse group of molecules together as autoantigens.
Correctness Criteria for Normalization of Semistructured Data

The rapid increase in semistructured data usage has lead to the development of various database systems for semistructured data. Web services and applications that utilize large amounts of semistructured data require data to remain consistent and be stored efficient. Several normalization algorithms for semistructured database systems have been developed to satisfy these needs. However, these algorithms lack the verification that would ensure that data and constraints among the data are not lost or corrupted during normalization. In this paper, we propose a set of correctness criteria for normalization of semistructured data, which require that functional dependencies are preserved, data is not lost, and spurious data is not created during normalization. We use the Z specification language to provide a precise and declarative definition of our criteria.
Disconnection-resilient IP link-state routing for airborne networks

As evolving operational requirements compel forces to deploy sparsely there is a need to extend tactical network protocols to operate in the Disruption-Tolerant Networking (DTN) regime, in which frequent disconnections are the norm. In airborne networks1, connectivity may be temporarily lost when aircraft use different paths to avoid terrain or other obstacles or to perform assigned tasks. In sensor networks, nodes may become disconnected due to environmental conditions or power management, but the set of proximal nodes may not change much over time, despite the intermittent connections. These scenarios challenge standard link-state approaches, both in terms of the protocol overhead and the ability to maintain awareness of all network nodes. Routing protocols designed for the DTN regime, however, cause extreme packet replication to cover the most general conditions conceivable, making them impractical in realistic scenarios. We propose modifications to a widely used link-state protocol, OSPF, to deal with significantly more disruptions to connectivity while retaining the efficiencies of the shortest path approach. We describe simple changes that enable OSPF to find routes through a stable set of neighbors that are only intermittently available. Our use of OSPF minimizes changes and implementation costs, and takes advantage of reliable, proven methods for network state information delivery. We have implemented DTN-extended OSPF within the quagga IP routing framework. Our simulation tests show that, with our modifications, OSPF maintains a global view of the entire network, including both reachable and unreachable nodes, so that messages can be held and routed to temporarily unavailable nodes. Using simulations as well as real packet traffic over an emulated network, we compare DTN-extended OSPF with standard OSPF, and we show that our methods permit messages to be delivered to remote nodes in cases where standard OSPF would discard most or all packets. We conclude by outlining additional methods to reduce DTN overhead traffic and increase DTN-extended OSPF's reliability.
Modeling Transmission of Tuberculosis with MDR and Undetected Cases

This paper presents a novel mathematical model with multidrug-resistant (MDR) and undetected TB cases. The theoretical analysis indicates that the disease-free equilibrium is globally asymptotically stable if ; otherwise, the system may exist a locally asymptotically stable endemic equilibrium. The model is also used to simulate and predict TB epidemic in Guangdong. The results imply that our model is in agreement with actual data and the undetected rate plays vital role in the TB trend. Our model also implies that TB cannot be eradicated from population if it continues to implement current TB control strategies.