Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
From lexical to functional categories: New foundations for the study of language development

Scholars of language development have long been challenged to understand the development of functional categories. Traditionally, it was assumed that children’s language development initially relies on lexical elements, while functional elements become accessible only at later periods; and that it is lexical growth which bootstraps grammatical development. Over the last decades, however, a growing body of empirical research has come to contradict the traditional view. This new research involves a wide range of methodologies (e.g. discrimination, comprehension, production, neurophysiological) and a variety of languages, and extends the study of functional categories throughout development, beginning in infancy. In this article, the authors review a transformation that has occurred in the field. While lexical categories have long been assumed to be foundational to language acquisition, now functional categories have been revealed to play a foundational role. The article selects highlights of critical evidence emerging from various methods, languages and developmental periods, and articulates leading questions that now confront our field. Evidence suggests that language acquisition in the child, which begins long before first words, includes a continuous acquisition of functional categories. Functional categories provide a skeleton for sentence construction and a foundation for grammatical organization throughout acquisition.
The Dynamic Block Remapping Cache

In this paper we present a new architecture of Level 2 (L2) cache – the Dynamic Block Remapping Cache (DBRC). DBRC mimics important characteristics of virtual memory systems to reduce the impact of L2 in system performance. Similar to virtual memory systems, the DBRC uses a hierarchy of tables to map blocks of L2 cache into blocks of physical memory. It also uses a Block-TLB to speedup accesses to previously performed block translations. We verified that the benefits of full associativity and the consequent possibility of employment of global block replacement algorithms allow hit rates higher than those of equivalent standard caches. We compare DBRC with standard caches in terms of miss rate, energy consumption and impact on the instruction-level parallelism (ILP) of a simulated superscalar processor. Our results show that DBRC outperforms standard caches in terms of miss rate, energy consumption and impact on ILP.
Interaction with Context-Aware Mobile Hand-Held Devices

Interaction with context-aware mobile hand-held devices creates new demands for user interfaces and interaction methods. These devices, which detect the use context in order to adapt the device behavior in appropriate means, provide challenging design tasks in the field of human-computer interaction, when the aspects of mobility, small size and reliability have to be taken into account. The device has to meet user’s demands as well in efficiency and acceptability as with the ethical issues in privacy and control. This paper draws together several aspects requiring a specific concern, and introduces the author’s research plan for the considered topic.
Automated Generalization and Refinement of Code Templates with Ekeko/X

Code templates are an intuitive means to specify source code snippets of interest, such as all instances of a bug, groups of snippets that need to be refactored or transformed, or instances of design patterns. While intuitive, it is not always straightforward to write a template that produces only the desired matches. A template could produce either more snippets than desired, or too few. To assist the users of EKEKO/X, our template-based search and transformation tool for Java, we have extended it with two components: The first is a suite of mutation operators that simplifies the process of modifying templates. The second is a system that can automatically suggest a sequence of mutations to a given template, such that it matches only with a set of desired snippets. In this tool paper, we highlight the key design decisions in implementing these two components of EKEKO/X, and demonstrate their use by walking through an example sequence of mutations suggested by the system.
New Modulation Strategy to Balance the Neutral-Point Voltage for Three-Level Neutral-Clamped Inverter Systems

This paper proposes a new modulation strategy that balances the neutral-point voltage for three-level neutral-clamped inverter systems. The proposed modulation replaces the P-type or N-type small switching states with other switching states that do not affect the neutral-point voltage. The zero and medium switching states are employed to help the neutral-point voltage balancing. This method little bit increases the switching events and output total harmonic distortion. However, this method has a strong balancing ability at all regions. Further, it is very simple to implement in both space vector modulation and carrier-based PWM methods. Simulation and experimental results verify the validity and feasibility of the proposed new modulation strategy.
Assessment method of image super resolution reconstruction based on local similarity

Image quality assessment methods are divided into subjective evaluation methods and objective evaluation methods. Normally, subjective assessment methods are difficult to use in actual applications. As a statistical parameter, peak signal-to-noise ratio (PSNR) is commonly used in objective way about image fidelity, but sometimes it is not consistent with the subjective way. This paper proposed an assessment method of image super resolution reconstruction based on local similarity, which is a special reduce-reference image quality assessment. The experimental results show that this method is easier to implement and accords with the Human Visual System (HVS). Combine with other methods, this method can be used as a reference method in quality assessment of image super resolution reconstruction.
The impacts of cognitive and affective values on tradeshow exhibitor's overall satisfaction and future behaviors

THE IMPACTS OF COGNITIVE AND AFFECTIVE VALUES ON TRADESHOW EXHIBITOR’S OVERALL SATISFACTION AND FUTURE BEHAVIORS Ju Hee Kang Dr. Seyhmus Baloglu, Examination Committee Chair Professor of Hotel Administration University of Nevada, Las Vegas Attracting and retaining customers is a main issue for show management, due to the increasing competitive matter of the exposition industry. Exhibitors are more demanding and more selective of the shows in which they will participate. Thus, understanding what exhibitors want and how they perceive a tradeshow is crucial for show managers to attract and attain their exhibitors. The purpose of this study is to examine the multiple dimensions of perceived value (monetary, social and emotional) on trade show exhibitor satisfaction and future behavior (willingness to pay, word-of-mouth behavior, and loyalty). This study examined perceptions of exhibitors at a hospitality tradeshow in Las Vegas, Nevada. This research investigated which factors in perceived value dimensions are expected to influence exhibitors’ satisfaction and their future behaviors. The estimation of perceived value was conducted through evaluating both cognitive and affective perceived value dimensions. The study examined what a perceived value has a positive relationship with
Emotionally Focused Therapy and Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing: An Integrated Treatment to Heal the Trauma of Infidelity

Despite the prevalence of infidelity and the serious harm it causes relationships, scarce clinical literature exists about how to use trauma-informed approaches to help couples in conjoint therapy. Emotionally focused therapy (EFT) and eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) have been empirically proven in their own right to be effective in the treatment of trauma and couples, respectively, and were utilized conjointly in this article as a means to heal trauma related to infidelity in couple therapy. The combined EFT-EMDR approach consists of using EMDR as an intervention within specific stages of EFT. A case example is presented to illustrate use of the integrated approach. Suggestions from this article may help couple therapists understand the role that trauma plays in maintaining the attachment injury of infidelity and to adequately attend to the traumatic impact of infidelity on both partners.
A Forward Dynamic Modelling Investigation of Cause-and-Effect Relationships in Single Support Phase of Human Walking

Mathematical gait models often fall into one of two categories: simple and complex. There is a large leap in complexity between model types, meaning the effects of individual gait mechanisms get overlooked. This study investigated the cause-and-effect relationships between gait mechanisms and resulting kinematics and kinetics, using a sequence of mathematical models of increasing complexity. The focus was on sagittal plane and single support only. Starting with an inverted pendulum (IP), extended to include a HAT (head-arms-trunk) segment and an actuated hip moment, further complexities were added one-by-one. These were a knee joint, an ankle joint with a static foot, heel rise, and finally a swing leg. The presence of a knee joint and an ankle moment (during foot flat) were shown to largely influence the initial peak in the vertical GRF curve. The second peak in this curve was achieved through a combination of heel rise and the presence of a swing leg. Heel rise was also shown to reduce errors in the horizontal GRF prediction in the second half of single support. The swing leg is important for centre-of-mass (CM) deceleration in late single support. These findings provide evidence for the specific effects of each gait mechanism.
Professional Obsolescence in IT: The Relationships between the Threat of Professional Obsolescence, Coping and Psychological Strain.

Professional obsolescence has been recognized as one of the biggest threats confronting present day IT workers. Despite the imperative to understand the strategies for coping with this professional threat, research on the subject is relatively limited. Moreover, most studies on the subject till date are anecdotal. Clearly, theoretically grounded empirical research on the subject will not only help advance the understanding on professional obsolescence but will also provide actionable directions for IT professionals to work effectively. With this end in view we first draw upon the mediational model of occupational stress to theorize the relationships between the threat of professional obsolescence and problem-focused and emotion-focused coping and their consequent impacts on psychological strain. Next, we test the hypothesized model via survey data collected in two waves from a sample of 738 IT professionals from a large Indian IT company. Results show that the threat of professional obsolescence is positively related to problem-focused coping but not emotion-focused coping. In addition, emotion-focused coping of professional obsolescence is associated with higher levels of psychological strain, but problem-focused coping of professional obsolescence is not significantly associated with psychological strain. We discuss the implications that the results of this study have for theory and practice.
Elderly Patients Achieving Clinical and Radiological Outcomes Comparable with Those of Younger Patients Following Minimally Invasive Transforaminal Lumbar Interbody Fusion

Study Design Retrospective analysis of prospective database. Purpose To compare 2-year clinical and radiological outcomes after minimally invasive transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion (MIS-TLIF) among “middle-age” (50–64.99 years), “young-old” (65–74.99 years), and “old-old” (>75 years) patients. Overview of Literature Owing to higher perioperative morbidity and mortality rates, elderly patients with degenerative lumbar conditions are occasionally denied surgical care, even after conservative treatment failure. MIS-TLIF advantages include reduced blood loss, reduced analgesia requirements, early mobilization, and shorter hospital stays. Methods Between 2007 and 2012, 22 patients (age >75 years) treated with 1-2 level MIS-TLIF were matched with “young-old” and “middle-age” patients (22 each) based on race, body mass index (BMI), diagnosis, spinal level, number of spinal levels operated upon, and bone graft type. Clinical outcomes included the Oswestry disability index (ODI), neurogenic symptom score (NSS), 36-item short form health survey (SF-36), and visual analogue scale (VAS) for back and leg pain. Radiological assessment included plain radiographs and preoperative magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and plain radiographs at 1, 3, 6, and 24 months postoperatively. Fusion grade, loosening, cage migration, and adjacent segment degeneration were assessed. Results The groups had similar fluoroscopy time, operation duration, and postoperative analgesia type used. “Old-old” patients took longer to ambulate (1.6 days) and had longer hospital stays (6 days). All patients showed significant improvement in clinical outcome scores at all time-points compared with the preoperative status. “Middle-age” patients showed better ODI and SF-36 physical function scores than “old-old” patients preoperatively and 2 years post surgery. NSS, VAS (back and leg), and SF-36 mental function scores were similar between groups preoperatively and at every time-point postoperatively. Minimal clinical important differences (63.6%–95.5% at 2 years) were achieved. Grade 1 fusion occurred in a minimum of 80% patients in each group 2 years post surgery. Complication rates were similar. Adjacent segment disease occurred in 2 patients from the “young-old” group, with no significant differences between groups. Conclusions MIS-TLIF showed comparable results in selected “old-old” patients compared with “young-old” and “middle-age” patients without increased complication risks.
Watson: Anticipating and Contextualizing Information Needs

In this paper, we introduce a class of systems called Information Management Assistants (IMAs). IMAs automatically discover related material on behalf of the user by serving as an intermediary between the user and information retrieval systems. IMAs observe users interact with everyday applications and then anticipate their information needs using a model of the task at hand. IMAs then automatically fulfill these needs using the text of the document the user is manipulating and a knowledge of how to form queries to traditional information retrieval systems (e.g., Internet search engines, abstract databases, etc.). IMAs automatically query information systems on behalf of users as well as provide an interface by which the user can pose queries explicitly. Because IMAs are aware of the user’s task, they can augment their explicit query with terms representative of the context of this task. In this way, IMAs provide a framework for bringing implicit task context to bear on servicing explicit information requests, significantly reducing ambiguity. IMAs embody a just-in-time information infrastructure in which information is brought to users as they need it, without requiring explicit requests. In this paper, we present our work on an architecture for this class of system, and our progress implementing Watson, a prototype of such a system. Watson observes users in word processing and Web browsing applications and uses a simple model of the user’s tasks, knowledge of term importance, and an understanding of query generation to find relevant documents and service explicit queries. We close by discussing our experimental evaluations of the system.
Eye tracking for visualization evaluation: Reading values on linear versus radial graphs

An eye tracking methodology can help uncover subtle cognitive processing stages that are otherwise difficult to observe in visualization evaluation studies. Pros and cons of eye tracking methods are discussed here, including common analysis metrics. One example metric is the initial time at which all elements of a visualization that are required to complete a task have been viewed. An illustrative eye tracking study was conducted to compare how radial and linear graphs support value lookup tasks for both one and two data-dimensions. Linear and radial versions of bar, line, area, and scatter graphs were presented to 32 participants, who each completed a counterbalanced series of tasks. Tasks were completed more quickly on linear graphs than on those with a radial layout. Scanpath analysis revealed that a three-stage processing model was supported: (1) find desired data dimension, (2) find its datapoint, and (3) map the datapoint to its value. Mapping a datapoint to its value was slower on radial than linear graphs, probably because eyes need to follow a circular, as opposed to a linear path. Finding a datapoint within a dimension was harder using line and area graphs than bar and scatter graphs, possibly due to visual confusion of the line representing a data series. Although few errors were made, eye tracking was also used here to classify error strategies. As a result of these analyses, guidelines are proposed for the design of radial and linear graphs.
Implementation and evaluation of NIST Biometric Image Software for fingerprint recognition

Fingerprints are rich in details which are in the form of discontinuities in ridges known as minutiae and are unique for each person. This paper describes implementation and evaluation of an existing fingerprint recognition system in MATLAB environment. The selected system is developed by National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) denoted as Biometric Image Software (NBIS). The NBIS source code is written in ANSI C programming language. To be able to evaluate the algorithm in MATLAB a C language MEX-files has been used. The NBIS support both minutiae extraction and minutiae matching functions that have been employed in the evaluation. The implemented system has been tested on a Fingerprint Verification Competition (FVC) database. The results are presented as Receiver Operating Characteristics (ROC) graphs.
Manipulation in Clutter with Whole-Arm Tactile Sensing

We begin this paper by presenting our approach to robot manipulation, which emphasizes the benefits of making contact with the world across the entire manipulator. We assume that low contact forces are benign, and focus on the development of robots that can control their contact forces during goaldirected motion. Inspired by biology, we assume that the robot has low-stiffness actuation at its joints, and tactile sensing across the entire surface of its manipulator. We then describe a novel controller that exploits these assumptions. The controller only requires haptic sensing and does not need an explicit model of the environment prior to contact. It also handles multiple contacts across the surface of the manipulator. The controller uses model predictive control (MPC) with a time horizon of length one, and a linear quasi-static mechanical model that it constructs at each time step. We show that this controller enables both real and simulated robots to reach goal locations in high clutter with low contact forces. Our experiments include tests using a real robot with a novel tactile sensor array on its forearm reaching into simulated foliage and a cinder block. In our experiments, robots made contact across their entire arms while pushing aside movable objects, deforming compliant objects, and perceiving the world.
Shockwaves enhance the osteogenetic gene expression in marrow stromal cells from hips with osteonecrosis.

BACKGROUND This in vitro study investigated the angiogenesis and osteogenesis effects of shockwaves on bone marrow stromal cells (BMSCs) from hips with osteonecrosis. METHODS BMSCs were harvested from the bone marrow cavity of the proximal femur in six patients with osteonecrosis of the femoral head. The specimens were divided into four groups, the control, shockwave, shockwave plus nω-nitro- L-arginine methyl ester (L-NAME) and a nitric oxide (NO) donor (NOC18) groups. The control group received no shockwaves and was used as the baseline. The shockwave group received 250 shockwave impulses at 14 Kv (equivalent to 0.18 mJ/mm2 energy flux density). The shockwave plus LNAME group was pre-treated with L-NAME before receiving shockwaves. The NOC18 group received NOC18 after cell culture for 48 hours. The evaluations included cell proliferation (MTT) assay, alkaline phosphatase, real time reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction analysis of vessel endothelial growth factor (VEGF), bone morphogenic protein (BMP)-2, RUNX2 and osteocalcin mRNA expression and von Kossa stain for mineralized nodules. RESULTS The shockwave group showed significant increases in MTT, VEGF, alkaline phosphatase, BMP2, RUNX2 and osteocalcin mRNA expression and more mature mineralized nodules compared with the control. Pre-treatment with L-NAME significantly reduced the angiogenic and osteogenic effects of extracorporeal shockwave therapy (ESWT) and the results were comparable with the control. Administration of NOC18 significantly enhanced the angiogenesis and osteogenesis effects compared with the control and the results were comparable with the shockwave group. CONCLUSION ESWT significantly enhanced the angiogenic and osteogenic effects of BMSCs mediated through the NO pathway in hips with osteonecrosis. These innovative findings, at least in part, explain some of the mechanism of shockwaves in osteonecrosis of the hip.
1,25-Dihydroxyvitamin D3 injections into rat fetuses : effects on fetal plasma calcium, plasma phosphate and mineral content.

The in vivo effects of 1,25-(OH)2D3 were assessed using fetuses from normal and thyroparathyroidectomized (TPTX) pregnant rats. 21.5-day old decapitated fetuses from TPTX mothers exhibited lowered basal plasma calcium, elevated basal plasma phosphate and an increased percentage of total ash compared to intact littermates. In decapitated fetuses from normal mothers, neither plasma calcium nor plasma phosphate was changed. Subcutaneous injection of 1 micrograms of 1,25-(OH)2D3/kg of body weight to 19.5-day old fetuses (intact or deprived of their parathyroid glands by decapitation) from TPTX mothers induced a marked rise in plasma calcium levels (2.01 and 3.66 mg/dl, respectively) 48 h later. Little change occurred in fetuses from normal mothers (1.06 mg/dl in decapitated and no change in intacts). A decrease in plasma phosphate levels was observed with the same dose in both decapitated and intact fetuses from TPTX mothers (- 1.39 and - 0.65 mg/dl, respectively), while no modification was found in fetuses from normal females. Therefore, the hypersensitivity of fetuses from TPTX mothers to 1,25-(OH)2D3 was unrelated to the development of the fetal hyperparathyroidism secondary to maternal TPTX. The percentage of ash was unchanged in decapitated fetuses from TPTX mothers and was increased in intact littermates after 1,25-(OH)2D3 treatment. However, these values for total ash may represent alterations in bones and/or soft tissues.
An Adaptive Relay Selection Algorithm for Optimizing Diversity and Multiplexing Gains in Wireless Cooperative Networks

According to the number of successful decoded relay nodes with good destination-to-relay and relay-to-destination link qualities, a simple adaptive relay selection algorithm and its corresponding protocol is presented to achieve a good diversity and multiplexing gains. When the antenna number of the destination is less than the number of successful decoded relay nodes, the opportunistic relay selection scheme is utilized for achieving the diversity gain. Otherwise, the multiplexing selection scheme is adopted to achieve the multiplexing gain. We analyze the outage probability performance, and the asymptotic expression in terms of the outage probability for the proposal is derived. The diversity-multiplexing tradeoff (DMT) and ergodic capacity for the proposed algorithm are also evaluated. Compared with the individual opportunistic relay selection scheme and multiplexing selection scheme, the proposed adaptive relay selection algorithm can provide better capacity and lower outage probability.