Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Equalizer: A Scalable Parallel Rendering Framework

Continuing improvements in CPU and GPU performances as well as increasing multi-core processor and cluster-based parallelism demand for flexible and scalable parallel rendering solutions that can exploit multipipe hardware accelerated graphics. In fact, to achieve interactive visualization, scalable rendering systems are essential to cope with the rapid growth of data sets. However, parallel rendering systems are non-trivial to develop and often only application specific implementations have been proposed. The task of developing a scalable parallel rendering framework is even more difficult if it should be generic to support various types of data and visualization applications, and at the same time work efficiently on a cluster with distributed graphics cards. In this paper we introduce a novel system called Equalizer, a toolkit for scalable parallel rendering based on OpenGL which provides an application programming interface (API) to develop scalable graphics applications for a wide range of systems ranging from large distributed visualization clusters and multi-processor multipipe graphics systems to single-processor single-pipe desktop machines. We describe the system architecture, the basic API, discuss its advantages over previous approaches, present example configurations and usage scenarios as well as scalability results.
Wavelets as chromatin texture descriptors for the automated identification of neoplastic nuclei

Chromatin distribution reflects the organization of the DNA of a nucleus and contains important cellular diagnostic and prognostic information. Feulgen staining of breast tissue enables the chromatin distribution of the nucleus to be visualized in the form of texture. Describing texture in an objective and quantitative way by means of a set of texture parameters, combined with the study of the relationship of such parameters to the pathobiological cell properties, is useful both for reduction of the subjectivity inherently coupled to visual observation and for more accurate prognosis or diagnosis.
Mathematical Domain Reasoning Tasks in Natural Language Tutorial Dialog on Proofs

We study challenges that are imposed to mathematical domain reasoning in the context of natural language tutorial dialog on mathematical proofs. The focus is on proof step evaluation: (i) How can mathematical domain reasoning support the resolution of ambiguities and underspecified parts in proof steps uttered by a student? (ii) How can mathematical domain reasoning support the evaluation of a proof step with respect to the criteria soundness, granularity, and relevance?
ATP binding cassette transporter ABCA 1 modulates the secretion of apolipoprotein E from human monocyte-derived macrophages

Apolipoprotein E (apoE) produced by macrophages in the arterial wall protects against atherosclerosis, but the regulation of its secretion by these cells is poorly understood. Here we investigated the contribution of the adenosine triphosphate binding cassette transporters ABCA1 and ABC8 to the secretion of apoE from either primary human monocyte-derived macrophages (HMDM) or human THP1 macrophages. During incubations of up to 6 h, apoE secretion from both THP1 macrophages and HMDM was stimulated by 8-Br-cAMP, which activates ABCA1 expression. The putative ABCA1 inhibitor glyburide and antisense oligonucleotides directed against ABCA1 mRNA significantly reduced apoE secretion from THP1 macrophages and HMDM. Antisense oligonucleotides directed against ABC8 mRNA also inhibited apoE secretion, although this inhibition was less pronounced and consistent than in the case of ABCA1. ApoE secretion from HMDM of ABCA1-deficient patients with Tangier disease was also decreased. ApoE mRNA expression was not affected by inhibition of ABCA1 or ABC8 in normal HMDM or the lack of functional ABCA1 in HMDM from Tangier disease patients. Inhibition of ABCA1 in HMDM prevented the occurrence of anti-apoE-immunoreactive granular structures in the plasma membrane. We conclude that ABCA1 and, to a lesser extent, ABC8 both promote secretion of apoE from human macrophages. —von Eckardstein, A. , Langer, C. , Engel, T. , Schaukal, I. , Cignarella, A. , Reinhardt, J., Lorkowski, S. , Li, Z. , Zhou, X. , Cullen, P., Assmann, G. ATP binding cassette transporter ABCA1 modulates the secretion of apolipoprotein E from human monocyte-derived macrophages. FASEB J. 15, 1555–1561 (2001)
LOGIC AND p-RECOGNIZABLE SETS OF INTEGERS

We survey the properties of sets of integers recognizable by automata when they are written in p-ary expansions. We focus on Cobham’s theorem which characterizes the sets recognizable in dierent bases p and on its generalization to N m due to Semenov. We detail the remarkable proof recently given by Muchnik for the theorem of Cobham-Semenov, the original proof being published in Russian.
A New Support Vector Data Description with Fuzzy Constraints

This paper presents a novel approach to eliminate the effect of noisy samples from the learning step of Support Vector Data Description (SVDD) method. SVDD is a popular kernel method which tries to fit a hypersphere around the target object and can obtain more flexible and more accurate data descriptions by using proper kernel functions. Nonetheless, the SVDD could sometimes generate such a loose decision boundary while some noisy samples (outliers) exist in the training set. In order to solve this problem we define fuzzy constraints and two new concepts for each learning sample. Duo to the usage of fuzzy constraints, we called this method Fuzzy Constraints SVDD (FCSVDD). The overall experiments show prominence of our proposed method in comparison with the standard SVDD.
Finite Adaptation and Multistep Moves in the Metropolis-Hastings Algorithm for Variable Selection in Genome-Wide Association Analysis

High-dimensional datasets with large amounts of redundant information are nowadays available for hypothesis-free exploration of scientific questions. A particular case is genome-wide association analysis, where variations in the genome are searched for effects on disease or other traits. Bayesian variable selection has been demonstrated as a possible analysis approach, which can account for the multifactorial nature of the genetic effects in a linear regression model. Yet, the computation presents a challenge and application to large-scale data is not routine. Here, we study aspects of the computation using the Metropolis-Hastings algorithm for the variable selection: finite adaptation of the proposal distributions, multistep moves for changing the inclusion state of multiple variables in a single proposal and multistep move size adaptation. We also experiment with a delayed rejection step for the multistep moves. Results on simulated and real data show increase in the sampling efficiency. We also demonstrate that with application specific proposals, the approach can overcome a specific mixing problem in real data with 3822 individuals and 1,051,811 single nucleotide polymorphisms and uncover a variant pair with synergistic effect on the studied trait. Moreover, we illustrate multimodality in the real dataset related to a restrictive prior distribution on the genetic effect sizes and advocate a more flexible alternative.
Unifying and incorporating functional and non functional requirements in datawarehouse conceptual design

Data warehouse (DW) architectures, which are at the core of many new generation information systems, are designed to provide decision makers and professional analysts with intuitive and performing means to explore and get intelligent data from large heterogeneous databases. However, the data quality is not the only concern; requirements related for example to security, performance and operability are also vital. Most existing approaches for conducting DW projects deal with the functional and nonfunctional requirements in a complete separate way. The lack of a global approach that gather concurrently both aspects from the requirements analysis to the conceptual design causes that many DW projects fail to meet their goals in satisfying users' needs and expectations. This work is the first step towards the development of a single framework that encompass a unified approach that allows us to get design information for the future datawarehouse multidimensional model on the basis of both functional and non-functional requirements. We will present the methods we adopted to achieve this goal and the enhancement we have made by integrating three additional aspects in the requirements analysis workflow, namely organizational, decisional and business process views. We select the telecom industry for our case study to demonstrate the viability of our approach.
Comments on the spectrum of CHL dyons

We address a number of puzzles relating to the proposed formulae for the degeneracies of dyons in orbifold compactifications of the heterotic string to four dimensions with = 4 supersymmetry. The partition function for these dyons is given in terms of Siegel modular forms associated with genus-two Riemann surfaces. We point out a subtlety in demonstrating S-duality invariance of the resulting degeneracies and give a prescription that makes the invariance manifest. We show, using M-theory lift of string webs, that the genus-two contribution captures the degeneracy only if a specific irreducibility criterion is satisfied by the charges. Otherwise, in general there can be additional contributions from higher genus Riemann surfaces. We analyze the negative discriminant states predicted by the formula. We show that even though there are no big black holes in supergravity corresponding to these states, there are multi-centered particle-like configurations with subleading entropy in agreement with the microscopic prediction and our prescription for S-duality invariance. The existence of the states is moduli dependent and we exhibit the curves of marginal stability and comment on its relation to S-duality invariance.
Compact Wideband UHF Patch Antenna on a Reactive Impedance Substrate

The goal of this letter is to design a compact, planar UHF antenna operating over the frequency range 420¿450 MHz. A microstrip patch antenna is selected as the elementary radiating structure because it has a low profile and is simple to fabricate. Compact size and enhanced bandwidth are simultaneously achieved through the use of a reactive impedance surface (RIS) in place of a PEC ground plane. The inherently limited bandwidth of the patch is overcome by incorporating a U-shape resonant slot radiator within the patch area. The design, fabrication, and measurement results are presented. It is shown that a patch with a U-shape slot whose dimensions are only $0.136~lambda times 0.228~lambda$ at the lowest frequency of operation can provide more than 20% bandwidth, covering a frequency range of 410¿485 MHz.
Instance Selection and Instance Weighting for Cross-Domain Sentiment Classification via PU Learning

Due to the explosive growth of the Internet online reviews, we can easily collect a large amount of labeled reviews from different domains. But only some of them are beneficial for training a desired target-domain sentiment classifier. Therefore, it is important for us to identify those samples that are the most relevant to the target domain and use them as training data. To address this problem, a novel approach, based on instance selection and instance weighting via PU learning, is proposed. PU learning is used at first to learn an in-target-domain selector, which assigns an in-target-domain probability to each sample in the training set. For instance selection, the samples with higher in-target-domain probability are used as training data; For instance weighting, the calibrated in-target-domain probabilities are used as sampling weights for training an instance-weighted naive Bayes model, based on the principle of maximum weighted likelihood estimation. The experimental results prove the necessity and effectiveness of the approach, especially when the size of training data is large. It is also proved that the larger the Kullback-Leibler divergence between the training and test data is, the more effective the proposed approach will be.
Chaperonin GroEL Reassembly: An Effect of Protein Ligands and Solvent Composition

Chaperonin GroEL is a complex oligomeric heat shock protein (Hsp60) assisting the correct folding and assembly of other proteins in the cell. An intriguing question is how GroEL folds itself. According to the literature, GroEL reassembly is dependent on chaperonin ligands and solvent composition. Here we demonstrate dependence of GroEL reassembly efficiency on concentrations of the essential factors (Mg2+, ADP, ATP, GroES, ammonium sulfate, NaCl and glycerol). Besides, kinetics of GroEL oligomerization in various conditions was monitored by the light scattering technique and proved to be two-exponential, which suggested accumulation of a certain oligomeric intermediate. This intermediate was resolved as a heptamer by nondenaturing blue electrophoresis of GroEL monomers during their assembly in the presence of both Mg-ATP and co-chaperonin GroES. Presumably, this intermediate heptamer plays a key role in formation of the GroEL tetradecameric particle. The role of co-chaperonin GroES (Hsp10) in GroEL assembly is also discussed.
Dynamics of an Interface Connecting a Stripe Pattern and a Uniform State: amended Newell-Whitehead-Segel equation

The dynamics of an interface connecting a stationary stripe pattern with a homogeneous state is studied. The conventional approach which describes this interface, Newell–Whitehead–Segel amplitude equation, does not account for the rich dynamics exhibited by these interfaces. By amending this amplitude equation with a nonresonate term, we can describe this interface and its dynamics in a unified manner. This model exhibits a rich and complex transversal dynamics at the interface, including front propagations, transversal patterns, locking phenomenon, and transversal localized structures.
Design and analysis of double edge triggered clocked latch for low power VLSI applications

In this paper, implementing for double edge triggered flip flop is introduced. The double edge triggered flip flop is used to reduce number of clocked transistors in the design. The effective method of the double edge triggered paradigm and n-MOS transistor logic of the new proposed implicit pulsed double edge triggered flip-flop (PIPDETFF) is proposed. The power aware technique of the sleep and sleep-bar is used to the clocked latch of the paradigm to present the circuit in idle mode and reduced the power consumption. The power consumption of clocked latch is lower than that of the clocking distribution network. The design can be implemented in DSCH and MICROWIND 3.1 CMOS layout tool. Analysis of the performance parameters shows that performance of PIPDETFF is superior compared to the conventional flip flop. A 10.50% to 54.53% reduction of power can be achieved in proposed implicit pulsed double edge triggered flip-flop (PIPDETFF).
Comparing feature-based and clique-based user models for movie selection

The huge amount of information available in the currently evolving world wide information infrastructure at any one time can easily overwhelm end-users. One way to address the information explosion is to use an “information filtering agent” which can select information according to the interest and/or need of an end-user. However, at present few such information filtering agents exist. In this study, we evaluate the use of feature-based approaches to user modcling with the purpose of creating a filtering agent for the video-on-demand application. We evaluate several feature and clique-based models for 10 voluntary subjects who provided ratings for the movies. Our preliminary results suggest that feature-based selection can be a useful tool to recommend movies according to the taste of the user and can be as effective as a movie rating expert. We compare our feature-based approach with a clique-based approach, which has advantages whcrc information from other users is available.
Blockade of HIV-1 Infection of New World Monkey Cells Occurs Primarily at the Stage of Virus Entry

HIV-1 naturally infects chimpanzees and humans, but does not infect Old World monkeys because of replication blocks that occur after virus entry into the cell. To understand the species-specific restrictions operating on HIV-1 infection, the ability of HIV-1 to infect the cells of New World monkeys was examined. Primary cells derived from common marmosets and squirrel monkeys support every phase of HIV-1 replication with the exception of virus entry. Efficient HIV-1 entry typically requires binding of the viral envelope glycoproteins and host cell receptors, CD4 and either CCR5 or CXCR4 chemokine receptors. HIV-1 did not detectably bind or utilize squirrel monkey CD4 for entry, and marmoset CD4 was also very inefficient compared with human CD4. A marmoset CD4 variant, in which residues 48 and 59 were altered to the amino acids found in human CD4, supported HIV-1 entry efficiently. The CXCR4 molecules of both marmosets and squirrel monkeys supported HIV-1 infection, but the CCR5 proteins of both species were only marginally functional. These results demonstrate that the CD4 and CCR5 proteins of New World monkeys represent the major restriction against HIV-1 replication in these primates. Directed adaptation of the HIV-1 envelope glycoproteins to common marmoset receptors might allow the development of New World monkey models of HIV-1 infection.
Complement-Fixing Islet Cell Antibodies in the Spontaneously Diabetic BB Rat

Fourteen rats of the spontaneously diabetic BB line were bled from the retroorbital sinus approximately every 10 days. Sera taken from an early age up to 20 days after the onset of overt diabetes were assayed for complement-fixing antibodies against antigens of the surface of islet cells (CFA). Dispersed islet cells from normal Wistar rats prelabeled with 3H-leucine were used as targets. Target cells in suspension were incubated with heat-inactivated rat sera and then, after washing, exposed to guinea pig complement. Cytolytic “injury” was measured by the percentage of labeled cellular proteins released into the medium. Sera from sequential bleedings from eight normal Wistar rats and three rats from a nondiabetic BB subline were assayed to establish basal control cytolytic activity. The mean response ± SD obtained with all control sera was 7.7 ± 1.7%. A response exceeding the mean + 3 SD (12.8%) was considered significantly different from the basal value. Thirteen of the fourteen BB rats developed strongly positive sera. The cytolytic activity preceded the onset of overt diabetes. In several rats CFA appeared 4–8 wk preceding diabetes while in other rats CFA appeared 1–2 wk preceding the manifestation of the disease. These results indicate that CFA may contribute to the destruction of pancreatic islets directly or by attracting mononuclear cells.
Prediction of CsrA-regulating small RNAs in bacteria and their experimental verification in Vibrio fischeri

The role of small RNAs as critical components of global regulatory networks has been highlighted by several recent studies. An important class of such small RNAs is represented by CsrB and CsrC of Escherichia coli, which control the activity of the global regulator CsrA. Given the critical role played by CsrA in several bacterial species, an important problem is the identification of CsrA-regulating small RNAs. In this paper, we develop a computer program (CSRNA_FIND) designed to locate potential CsrA-regulating small RNAs in bacteria. Using CSRNA_FIND to search the genomes of bacteria having homologs of CsrA, we identify all the experimentally known CsrA-regulating small RNAs and also make predictions for several novel small RNAs. We have verified experimentally our predictions for two CsrA-regulating small RNAs in Vibrio fischeri. As more genomes are sequenced, CSRNA_FIND can be used to locate the corresponding small RNAs that regulate CsrA homologs. This work thus opens up several avenues of research in understanding the mode of CsrA regulation through small RNAs in bacteria.
UWB Sensor Networks for Position Location and Imaging of Objects and Environments

In this paper we give an overview on autonomous navigation, object detection and imaging by UWB sensor networks. We describe coherent and non-coherent approaches of data fusion for imaging and object localization that rely on different levels of synchronous multistatic and asynchronous sensor cooperation. Detection and identification of time variant object features are discussed.
Cutting Edge: Type I IFN Reverses Human Th2 Commitment and Stability by Suppressing GATA3

T helper 2 cells regulate inflammatory responses to helminth infections while also mediating pathological processes of asthma and allergy. IL-4 promotes Th2 development by inducing the expression of the GATA3 transcription factor, and the Th2 phenotype is stabilized by a GATA3-dependent autoregulatory loop. In this study, we found that type I IFN (IFN-α/β) blocked human Th2 development and inhibited cytokine secretion from committed Th2 cells. This negative regulatory pathway was operative in human but not mouse CD4+ T cells and was selective to type I IFN, as neither IFN-γ nor IL-12 mediated such inhibition. IFN-α/β blocked Th2 cytokine secretion through the inhibition of GATA3 during Th2 development and in fully committed Th2 cells. Ectopic expression of GATA3 via retrovirus did not overcome IFN-α/β–mediated inhibition of Th2 commitment. Thus, we demonstrate a novel role for IFN-α/β in blocking Th2 cells, suggesting its potential as a promising therapy for atopy and asthma.
Effect of a guideline-based multicomponent intervention on use of physical restraints in nursing homes: a randomized controlled trial.

CONTEXT Despite unambiguous legal regulation and evidence for lack of effectiveness and safety, physical restraints are still frequently administered in nursing homes. OBJECTIVE To reduce physical restraint prevalence in nursing homes using a guideline- and theory-based multicomponent intervention. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS Cluster randomized controlled trial of 6 months' duration conducted in 2 German cities between February 2009 and April 2010. Nursing homes were eligible if they had 20% or more residents with physical restraints. Using external concealed randomization, 18 nursing home clusters were included in the intervention group (2283 residents) and 18 in the control group (2166 residents). INTERVENTION The intervention was based on a specifically developed evidence-based guideline and applied the theory of planned behavior. Components were group sessions for all nursing staff; additional training for nominated key nurses; and supportive material for nurses, residents, relatives, and legal guardians. Control group clusters received standard information. MAIN OUTCOMES MEASURES Primary outcome was percentage of residents with physical restraints (bilateral bed rails, belts, fixed tables, and other measures limiting free body movement) at 6 months, assessed through direct unannounced observation by blinded investigators on 3 occasions during 1 day. Secondary outcomes included restraint use at 3 months, falls, fall-related fractures, and psychotropic medication prescriptions. RESULTS All nursing homes completed the study and all residents were included in the analysis. At baseline, 30.6% of control group residents had physical restraints vs 31.5% of intervention group residents. At 6 months, rates were 29.1% vs 22.6%, respectively, a difference of 6.5% (95% CI, 0.6% to 12.4%; cluster-adjusted odds ratio, 0.71; 95% CI, 0.52 to 0.97; P = .03). All physical restraint measures were used less frequently in the intervention group. Rates were stable from 3 to 6 months. There were no statistically significant differences in falls, fall-related fractures, and psychotropic medication prescriptions. CONCLUSION A guideline- and theory-based multicomponent intervention compared with standard information reduced physical restraint use in nursing homes. TRIAL REGISTRATION isrctn.org Identifier: ISRCTN34974819.