Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Dense disparity estimation based on feature matching and IGMRF regularization

In this paper, we propose a new approach for dense disparity estimation in a global energy minimization framework. We combine the feature matching cost defined using the learned hierarchical features of given left and right stereo images, with the pixel-based intensity matching cost to form the data term. The features are learned in an unsupervised way using the deep deconvolutional network. Our regularization term consists of an inhomogeneous Gaussian markov random field (IGMRF) prior that captures the smoothness as well as preserves sharp discontinuities in the disparity map. An iterative two phase algorithm is proposed to minimize the energy function in order to estimate the dense disparity map. In phase one, IGMRF parameters are computed, keeping the disparity map fixed, and in phase two, the disparity map is refined by minimizing the energy function using graph cuts, with other parameters fixed. Experimental results on the Middlebury stereo benchmarks demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed approach.
Daily rhythms of behavioral and hormonal patterns in male dromedary camels housed in boxes

Background Daily rhythmicity has been observed for a number of hormonal and behavioral variables in mammals. It can be entrained by several external factors, such as light-dark cycle and scheduled feeding. In dromedary camels, daily rhythmicity has been documented only for melatonin secretion and body temperature. In this study, the daily rhythmicity of behavioral repertoire, cortisol and testosterone levels was investigated in captive male camels. Methods Six clinically healthy male dromedary camels (Camelus dromedarius) were used. The animals were housed in single boxes for 24 h daily and fed twice a day. Over a period of 48 h, behavioral observations were made and blood samples taken every two hours. The data were analyzed using diurnality index, conisor analysis and PROC mixed procedure. Results The diurnality index for rumination and lying down was close to 0 (respectively, 0.09 and 0.19), while the indices for stereotypy, standing, feeding and walking were close to 1 (respectively, 0.74, 0.84, 0.92 and 0.85). Cosinor analysis revealed daily rhythmicity for all behaviors and for cortisol levels (acrophase at 12:57) but not for testosterone. Rumination and lying down (inactive behaviors) reached a peak during the scotophase, whereas feeding, walking and stereotypy (active behaviors) reached a peak during the photophase around midday. Cortisol level and expression of stereotypies peaked before and after food distribution and were negatively correlated (r = − 0.287, P = 0.005). Testosterone levels and expression of sexual behaviors were stimulated by the visual and olfactory contacts with the females and were positively correlated (r = 0.164, P = 0.040). Testosterone was also negatively correlated with cortisol (r = − 0.297; P = 0.003). Discussion These preliminary results provided new knowledge about the daily rhythm of behaviors in camels housed in boxes, suggesting that camels exhibit diurnal behavior pattern in the maintenance conditions outlined in the study. Daily rhythmicity seemed to be entrained not only by the light-dark cycle but also by scheduled feeding. The rise in stereotypy after food distribution could be due to the persistence of feeding motivation and frustration after the ingestion of food. Therefore, feeding practices should be improved to satisfy the foraging and feeding motivation of these camels. Behavioral and hormonal daily patterns in camels should be taken in consideration to adapt the management system, giving the animals more freedom during the light period and a diet richer in fiber, so as to improve reproductive performance, health and welfare.
Learning Class-relevant Features and Class-irrelevant Features via a Hybrid third-order RBM

Restricted Boltzmann Machines are commonly used in unsupervised learning to extract features from training data. Since these features are learned for regenerating training data a classifier based on them has to be trained. If only a few of the learned features are discriminative other non-discriminative features will distract the classifier during the training process and thus waste computing resources for testing. In this paper, we present a hybrid third-order Restricted Boltzmann Machine in which class-relevant features (for recognizing) and class-irrelevant features (for generating only) are learned simultaneously. As the classification task uses only the class-relevant features, the test itself becomes very fast. We show that classirrelevant features help class-relevant features to focus on the recognition task and introduce useful regularization effects to reduce the norms of class-relevant features. Thus there is no need to use weight-decay for the parameters of this model. Experiments on the MNIST, NORB and Caltech101 Silhouettes datasets show very promising results.
Characterization of Full-Length Genomes of Hepatitis B Virus Quasispecies in Sera of Patients at Different Phases of Infection

ABSTRACT Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection results in different clinical presentation due to different levels of immune response. Our study aimed to characterize HBV full-length genome quasispecies (QS) in patients with different phases of infection to better understand its pathogenesis. Forty treatment-naive HBV-infected patients were enrolled, including 10 cases of acute hepatitis B (AHB), 9 cases of immunotolerant (IT) HBV carriers, 11 cases of chronic hepatitis B (CHB), and 10 cases of acute-on-chronic liver failure (ACLF). The present study was conducted by clone-based sequencing. QS heterogeneity within each open reading frame was calculated. The mutation frequency index (MFI) and amino acid variations within the large HBsAg, HBcAg, and HBxAg regions were analyzed based on the different infection phases. In total, 606 HBV full-length sequences were obtained. HBV QS had higher heterogeneity in ACLF and CHB than that in IT among chronically infected individuals. AHB patients had the lower QS heterogeneity at onset than those with chronic infection. ACLF patients had the highest frequency of mutations in the core promoter and precore region. A triple mutation (A1762T/G1764A/G1896A) was observed more frequently in genotype C than in genotype B. The MFI indicated that specific peptides of the studied regions had more frequent mutations in ACLF. Furthermore, several amino acid variations, known as T- and B-cell epitopes, were potentially associated with the immunoactive phase of infection. More HBV genome mutations and deletions were observed in patients with more severe diseases, particularly in specific regions of the core and preS regions, the clinical significance and mechanism of which need to be further investigated.
The problem of programming communication with changing machines: a proposed solution

BASIC ASSUMPTIONS. One of the fundamental problems facing the computer profession today is the considerable length of time required to develop an effective method of communication with the machine. Moreover, it seems that the ability to communicate easily is no sooner acquired than the language changes, and the problem is renewed, usually at a higher level of complexity. A. Obsolescence of Machines. Experience would indicate that there are few machine users who do not obtain new and different machines every three to five years-a change generally prompted by technical obsolescence rather than by the decaying ability of the machine. In most cases, the appearance of a new machine coincides with the necessity to expand computing capacity. Although the programming cost involved in changing machines is high, the pressure to advance to these new machines has been sufficiently great to justify their acquisition. B. Crowing Sophistication of Machine Languages. So far, each advance in machine design has been accompanied by an increased complexity in the structure of its language, making programming in machine-like language progressively more costly in both dollars and elapsed time. C. Ezisting Compilers. Current compilers alleviate the problem somewhat by translating some particular "easy-to-code" language into a specific machine code. The principal shortcoming in this approach is the considerable lapse of time between the initial conception of the "easy-to-code" language and its general acceptance. This time is of the same order of magnitude as the machine replacement cycle, resulting in the ever-present danger of having a good compiler available for the old machine just after it has been replaced. APPROACH TO A SOLUTION. Let us examine a broad set of specifications which might describe a "system" capable of solving this roblem. • Ideal Specifications. 1. The individual with a problem would describe its method of solution in the language most natural to his way of thinking about the problem. 2. Once his problem has been coded in this language, the solution might be obtained by processing the program with acceptable efficiency on any present or future computer. (Efficiency of operation in a proposed system is equal to the lowest possible total cost, including programming , divided by actual total cost.) 3. A minimum of "system programming" should be required to produce the system initially and to maintain it. Mosti installations should not be required to do any system programming at all. The ideal specifications listed above need some …
Small RNA Profiling in Two Brassica napus Cultivars Identifies MicroRNAs with Oil Production- and Development-Correlated Expression and New Small RNA Classes1[W][OA]

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) and small interfering RNAs are important regulators of plant development and seed formation, yet their population and abundance in the oil crop Brassica napus are still not well understood, especially at different developmental stages and among cultivars with varied seed oil contents. Here, we systematically analyzed the small RNA expression profiles of Brassica napus seeds at early embryonic developmental stages in high-oil-content and low-oil-content B. napus cultivars, both cultured in two environments. A total of 50 conserved miRNAs and 9 new miRNAs were identified, together with some new miRNA targets. Expression analysis revealed some miRNAs with varied expression levels in different seed oil content cultivars or at different embryonic developmental stages. A large number of 23-nucleotide small RNAs with specific nucleotide composition preferences were also identified, which may present new classes of functional small RNAs.
Third-Party Reimbursement for Diabetes Care, Self-Management Education, and Supplies

Diabetes is a chronic disease that affects nearly 26 million Americans (1) and is characterized by serious, costly, and often fatal complications. The total cost of diagnosed diabetes in the U.S. in 2012 was estimated to be $245 billion (2). To prevent or delay costly diabetes complications and to enable people with diabetes to lead healthy, productive lives, appropriate medical care based on current standards of practice, self-management education, and medication and supplies must be available to everyone with diabetes. This article is based on technical reviews titled “Diabetes Self-Management Education” (3) and “National Standards for Diabetes Self-Management Education Programs” (4).
Actin Polymerization Does Not Provide Direct Mechanical Forces for Vesicle Fission during Clathrin-Mediated Endocytosis

Actin polymerization is important for vesicle fission during clathrin-mediated endocytosis (CME), and it has been proposed that actin polymerization may promote vesicle fission during CME by providing direct mechanical forces. However, there is no direct evidence in support of this hypothesis. In the present study, the role of actin polymerization in vesicle fission was tested by analyzing the kinetics of the endocytic tubular membrane neck (the fission-pore) with cell-attached capacitance measurements to detect CME of single vesicles in a millisecond time resolution in mouse chromaffin cells. Inhibition in dynamin GTPase activity increased the fission-pore conductance (Gp), supporting the mechanical role of dynamin GTPase in vesicle fission. However, disruptions in actin polymerization did not alter the fission-pore conductance Gp, thus arguing against the force-generating role of actin polymerization in vesicle fission during CME. Similar to disruptions of actin polymerization, cholesterol depletion results in an increase in the fission-pore duration, indicating a role for cholesterol-dependent membrane reorganization in vesicle fission. Further experiments suggested that actin polymerization and cholesterol might function in vesicle fission during CME in the same pathway. Our results thus support a model in which actin polymerization promotes vesicle fission during CME by inducing cholesterol-dependent membrane reorganization.
Pharmacology of Agents Acting on the Renin-Angiotensin System

The renin-angiotensin system is the most important hormonal system in the control of blood pressure. It can be blocked at several steps in its reaction pathway. Angiotensin-converting enzyme, or kininase II, is responsible for catalysing the formation of vasoconstrictor angiotensin II as well as for the breakdown of the vasodilator bradykinin. With the advent of specific orally active angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors (captopril and enalapril) a practical and effective means of blocking angiotensin formation is now clinically available. ACE inhibitors are effective long-term therapy in patients with essential hypertension. They are particularly useful in the treatment of severe accelerated drug-resistant hypertension and renovascular hypertension, and the agents of choice for afterload reduction in severe congestive cardiac failure. They have several pharmacological advantages, important in anaesthetic practice, over other hypotensive agents. They have no central nervous or autonomic nervous system effects. Thus, patients being treated with ACE inhibitors retain normal sympathetic cardiovascular responses.
From individuals to aggregations: the interplay between behavior and physics.

This paper analyses the processes by which organisms form groups and how social forces interact with environmental variability and transport. For aquatic organisms, the latter is especially important-will sheared or turbulent flows disrupt organism groups? To analyse such problems, we use individual-based models to study the environmental and social forces leading to grouping. The models are then embedded in turbulent flow fields to gain an understanding of the interplay between the forces acting on the individuals and the transport induced by the fluid motion. Instead of disruption of groups, we find that flows often enhance grouping by increasing the encounter rate among groups and thereby promoting merger into larger groups; the effect breaks down for strong flows. We discuss the transformation of individual-based models into continuum models for the density of organisms. A number of subtle difficulties arise in this process; however, we find that a direct comparison between the individual model and the continuum model is quite favorable. Finally, we examine the dynamics of group statistics and give an example of building an equation for the spatial and temporal variations of the group-size distribution from the individual-based simulations. These studies lay the groundwork for incorporating the effects of grouping into models of the large scale distributions of organisms as well as for examining the evolutionary consequences of group formation.
An Investigation of the Social Support Experiences of High-Level Sports Performers

Lack of consensus regarding the nature and conceptual definition of the social support construct has led to a plethora of different forms of measurement of this psychosocial variable, many with psychometric limitations. Beyond the psychometric limitations of some measures, in sport there is also a need for measures to be relevant to the specific experiences of sports performers. In order to gain a greater understanding of the social support experiences of sports people, 10 high-level sports performers were interviewed regarding their experiences of social support. Principles of the grounded theory (Glaser & Strauss, 1967) approach were adopted for analysis of their responses and insights. Four dimensions of support were generated, within each of which were comments relating to sport-specific support and comments relating to support not directly concerning the sport itself. The dimensions were labeled emotional, esteem, informational, and tangible. Example quotes are given to highlight each dimension of su.
Complete Genome Sequence of Caulobacter crescentus Bacteriophage φCbK

ABSTRACT φCbK is a B3 morphotype bacteriophage of the Siphoviridae family that infects Caulobacter crescentus, the preeminent model system for bacterial cell cycle studies. The last 4 decades of research with φCbK as a genetic and cytological tool to study the biology of the host warrant an investigation of the phage genome composition. Herein, we report the complete genome sequence of φCbK and highlight unusual features that emerged from its annotation. The complete genome analysis of the φCbK phage provides new insight into its characteristics and potential interactions with its Caulobacter crescentus host, setting the stage for future functional studies with φCbK.
Reinforcement planning for resource allocation and constraint satisfaction

Planning or scheduling involving resources and constraints is a difficult task. Past research has only had limited success. In this research, job shop scheduling is used to further investigate the problems. Essentially, job shop scheduling is the allocation of different resources to satisfy various shop constraints (or meet the shop needs). In order to understand its underlying problems, a detailed analysis of the scheduling process, within an AI framework, is proposed. This highlights the deficiencies of the current techniques and suggests that it is the limited resources which restrict the satisfaction of constraints, as there are typically conflict situations between constraint satisfaction and resource availability. The central problem in dealing with resource allocation is how to predict what effects the decisions currently being made will have on the following scheduling or how to have a global perspective of the scheduling process. For this purpose, "reinforcement scheduling" is introduced. This method builds a utilization plan (reinforcement plan) as a basis for generating decision making guidelines for constructing the detailed schedule. However, in any situation, there is normally more than one constraint that needs to be considered. If the resource is left as it is (since the resource capacity cannot be changed), there will typically be conflict situations among the constraints themselves. These conflicts also hamper the satisfaction of constraints. To deal with them, a global perspective is still the key, and the reinforcement approach helps, but it is not sufficient. With many constraints to be satisfied in scheduling, we argue it is very ineffective to try to consider all of them in a single process. Therefore, a constraint decomposition approach is suggested. Instead of trying to satisfy all the constraints in a single scheduling process, this approach will consider different constraints in different processes. In each process, the reinforcement technique will play an important role.
Risk Factors for Wound Complications Following Abdominoplasty

Problem Statement: Abdominoplasty has become an increasingly popular procedure. Risk factors affecting wound complications of abdominoplasty are not adequately defined in literature. Identification of these risk factors is crucial for better patient’s selection and counseling. The objectives of this study were to determine wound complication rate following abdominoplasty and to examine the relationship of a set of possible risk factors with the incidence of complications. Approach: We studied 116 patients (107 women and 9 men) who underwent abdominoplasty at Jordan University Hospital, between June 1997 and June 2007. Data were collected from patients’ medical records and analyzed to determine types and rates of surgical wound complications. Fourteen possible risk factors were investigated using logistic regression analysis to evaluate their relationship with the occurrence of wound complications. Risk factors examined were: age, sex, body mass index, parity number, smoking history, history of diabetes mellitus, previous gastroplasty for morbid obesity, previous abdominal surgical scars, type of abdominoplasty, plication of recti, hernia repair, operative time and operative blood loss. Results: A total of 29 patients (two males and 27 females) (25%) had wound complications. The most common complication was seroma. It was encountered in 15 cases (12.9%). Six patients (5.2%) had wound infection. Partial skin necrosis was encountered in four cases (3.4 %). Two patients (1.7%) developed wound dehiscence and two patients (1.7%) had hematoma. The only factors significantly increased the complication rate were: increased body mass index (p = 0.002) and history of smoking (p = 0.004). Conclusions and Recommendations: This study confirms the adverse effect of overweight and cigarette smoking on the incidence of wound complication rate following abdominoplasty. We recommend that overweight patients and smokers undergoing abdominoplasty should be adequately counseled and informed about the increased risks. In addition, prophylactic measures should be properly taken to decrease wound complication rate in these groups of patients.
An exploration of specialist palliative care nurses experiences of providing care to hospice inpatients from minority ethnic groups- implication for religious and spiritual care

The aim of this research study was to gain an understanding of nurses’ experiences of providing care to patients from minority ethnic groups within the specialist palliative care inpatient unit of an Irish hospice. Five nurses working in a hospice inpatient unit with experience in providing care to patients from minority ethnic groups were interviewed using a hermeneutic phenomenological approach. Analysis of the data resulted in the emergence of two distinct constructs, “encountering a landscape of diversity” and “negotiating this landscape”, each one comprising three themes. Findings relating to religion and supporting patients’ religious needs were dominant in four of the six emergent themes—death and dying, acceptance, feeling their way, and being resourceful. The findings presented in this paper highlight the personal and professional challenges facing nurses when providing care in the context of religious diversity. In addition, participants’ descriptions of their endeavours to negotiate the challenges in the context of these differences are identified. By applying these findings in practice, healthcare professionals hold the potential to positively impact the quality-of-life of patients, their families, and their experiences of hospice care in Ireland.