Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
One-Class Support-Vector Machines for the Classification of Bioacoustic Time Series

Support Vector Machines ( SVM) have become a widespread method in machine learning applications. In this paper we studied the one-class SVMmethod, whose goal is to describe the data from a single class by a set of support vectors. One-class SVMs can be used to construct multiple classifier systems ( MCS) utilising the individual one-class data descriptions together with strategi es to combine the classifier decisions and to resolve classifier conflict situations when a new unseen pattern has to be classified. Here the one-class SVM approach has been applied to a classification problem appearing in bioacoustic monitoring, where the species of a singing insect has to be determined.
The puzzling search for neural correlates of performance

The continuous innovation and refinement of neuroimaging techniques has enabled the quantification of the brain microstructure and functional network development in vivo that were previously not detectable on conventional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). As of now, a number of brain structures and activity fluctuation patterns have been identified as important underlying mechanisms of function and dysfunction. Advanced MRI techniques are particularly appealing for studying disorders in which specific gene anomaly or brain insult has not yet been identified. These techniques are particularly suited to exploring the neural correlates of neurodevelopmental disorders for which the etiology is, in many cases, thought to be the result of complex interactions between multiple gene expressions of small effect and environmental factors. 1 Several neurodevelopmental disorders are known to present in comorbidity, resulting in heterogeneous clinical presentations, which frequently include an assortment of motor, attention, and behavioral difficulties. Despite the increasing interest in studying comorbid neurodevelopmental disorders, the relationship between motor and attention deficits remains poorly understood. There is a high incidence of overlapping symptoms between attention-deficit– hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and developmental coordination disorder (DCD). Years of neuroimaging studies in the ADHD population have shed light on a number of structural brain and activation pattern differences when compared with typically developing peers. Although some of the central nervous system alterations described are part of the known motor pathways and therefore could intuitively explain both the attention and the motor difficulties frequently observed in individuals with ADHD, there is in fact very little concrete evidence on how these neural correlates are specific to motor performance in this population. 2
Asynchronous Capacity per Unit Cost

The capacity per unit cost, or, equivalently, the minimum cost to transmit one bit, is a well-studied quantity under the assumption of full synchrony between the transmitter and the receiver. In many applications, such as sensor networks, transmissions are very bursty, with amounts of bits arriving infrequently at random times. In such scenarios, the cost of acquiring synchronization is significant and one is interested in the fundamental limits on communication without assuming a priori synchronization. In this paper, the minimum cost to transmit B bits of information asynchronously is shown to be equal to (B +H̅) ksync, where ksync is the synchronous minimum cost per bit and H̅ is a measure of timing uncertainty equal to the entropy for most reasonable arrival time distributions. This result holds when the transmitter can stay idle at no cost and is a particular case of a general result which holds for arbitrary cost functions.
H/sub /spl infin// control of three-wheeled electric cart for health care

A three-wheeled electric cart was developed for the elderly and people undergoing rehabilitation. A bilateral master-slave system configuration is employed to control the speed of the cart, and the controller was designed based on H/sub /spl infin// control theory. The main feature of the system is that the load added to the pedals can easily be adjusted with a speed-adjustment program to suit the strength of the driver. Experimental results on a fabricated cart demonstrate the validity and effectiveness of the design methodology.
Volume estimation in a Eucalyptus plantation using multi-source remote sensing and digital terrain data: a case study in Minas Gerais State, Brazil

ABSTRACT In this study, we tested the effectiveness of stand age, multispectral optical imagery obtained from the Landsat 8 Operational Land Imager (OLI), synthetic aperture radar (SAR) data acquired by the Sentinel-1B satellite, and digital terrain attributes extracted from a digital elevation model (DEM), in estimating forest volume in 351 plots in a 1,498 ha Eucalyptus plantation in northern Minas Gerais state, Brazil. A Random Forest (RF) machine learning algorithm was used following the Principal Component Analysis (PCA) of various data combinations, including multispectr al and SAR texture variables and DEM-based geomorphometric derivatives. Using multispectral, SAR or DEM variables alone (i.e. Experiments (ii)–(iv)) did not provide accurate estimates of volume (RMSE (Root Mean Square Error) > 32.00 m3 ha−1) compared to predictions based on age since planting of Eucalyptus stands (Experiment (i)). However, when these datasets were individually combined with stand age (i.e. Experiments (v)–(vii)), the RF models resulted in better volume estimates than those obtained when using the individual multispectral, SAR and DEM datasets (RMSE < 28.00 m3 ha−1). Furthermore, a model that integrated the selected variables of these data with stand age (Experiment (viii)) improved volume estimation significantly (RMSE = 22.33 m3 ha−1). The large and increasing area of Eucalyptus forest plantations in Brazil and elsewhere suggests that this new approach to volume estimation has the potential to support Eucalyptus plantation monitoring and forest management practices.
Major food companies, PES and combating deforestation. Using PES to achieve “zero deforestation” agriculture

Strategies to tackle deforestation are evolving. Under pressure from environmental NGOs and consumers, the major food companies are voluntarily committing to apply the "zero deforestation" principle, especially for their production of the key agricultural commodities (palm oil, cocoa, soy, etc.), which are responsible for around 70% of deforestation throughout the world. This concept is nevertheless ambiguous and difficult to implement. Payments for environmental services (PES) can help to achieve these ambitions. PES geared towards individual investment would be proposed to producers to enable them to modify their practices; these would be financed by zero deforestation companies. In addition, collective PES for forest conservation at the local level would be proposed to communities; these would be partly financed by a broad-based, low-level fee.
Brain Networks Responsible for Sense of Agency: An EEG Study

Background Self-agency (SA) is a person’s feeling that his action was generated by himself. The neural substrates of SA have been investigated in many neuroimaging studies, but the functional connectivity of identified regions has rarely been investigated. The goal of this study is to investigate the neural network related to SA. Methods SA of hand movements was modulated with virtual reality. We examined the cortical network relating to SA modulation with electroencephalography (EEG) power spectrum and phase coherence of alpha, beta, and gamma frequency bands in 16 right-handed, healthy volunteers. Results In the alpha band, significant relative power changes and phase coherence of alpha band were associated with SA modulation. The relative power decrease over the central, bilateral parietal, and right temporal regions (C4, Pz, P3, P4, T6) became larger as participants more effectively controlled the virtual hand movements. The phase coherence of the alpha band within frontal areas (F7-FP2, F7-Fz) was directly related to changes in SA. The functional connectivity was lower as the participants felt that they could control their virtual hand. In the other frequency bands, significant phase coherences were observed in the frontal (or central) to parietal, temporal, and occipital regions during SA modulation (Fz-O1, F3-O1, Cz-O1, C3-T4L in beta band; FP1-T6, FP1-O2, F7-T4L, F8-Cz in gamma band). Conclusions Our study suggests that alpha band activity may be the main neural oscillation of SA, which suggests that the neural network within the anterior frontal area may be important in the generation of SA.
Defending Econometrics: Lessons from Investment Analysis

In this paper various methodological problems in th e use of econometric techniques are explored. In the first section, some basic ideas ab out the path of economic theorising are explored. In the second section, the goals of predi ction and enhancing understanding are presented and the processes of achieving these goal s via inductive versus deductive methods are analysed. The role for econometrics is explored building upon the early debates between Tinbergen and Keynes and later deba tes emerging from the critical realist critiques of econometrics. The ideas are il lustrated with some examples from the literature on fixed asset investment.
Challenges in Experimenting with Botnet Detection Systems

In this paper, we examine the challenges faced when evaluating botnet detection systems. Many of these challenges stem from difficulties in obtaining and sharing diverse sets of real network traces, as well as determining a botnet ground truth in such traces. On the one hand, there are good reasons why network traces should not be shared freely, such as privacy concerns, but on the other hand, the resulting data scarcity complicates quantitative comparisons to other work and conducting independently repeatable experiments. These challenges are similar to those faced by researchers studying large-scale distributed systems only a few years ago, and researchers were able to overcome many of the challenges by collaborating to create a global testbed, namely PlanetLab. We speculate that a similar system for botnet detection research could help overcome the challenges in this domain, and we briefly discuss the associated research directions.
Stochastic Dynamics of Hematopoietic Tumor Stem Cells

Many tumors derive from the transformation of normal stem cells into cancer stem-cells that retain their self-renewal capacity. This modern view of cancer has provided a natural explanation for the striking parallels which exist between these two different types of self-renewing cells. Here we develop a simple mathematical model to investigate the implications of this concept regarding the evolution of tumors in the hematopoietic system. Our results unequivocally demonstrate that stochastic effects related to the finite size of the active stem-cell population have a profound influence on the dynamics of cancer evolution. For input parameters compatible with both the natural history of human cancer and mouse models, our results show how stochastic dynamics alone may lead to both remission in some cases and rapid expansion in others.
Source monitoring and false memories in children: relation to certainty and executive functioning.

We presented children aged 6, 8, and 10 years with a video and then an audio tape about a dog named Mick. Some information was repeated in the two sources and some was unique to one source. We examined: (a) children's hit rate for remembering whether events occurred and their tendency to make false alarms, (b) their memory for the context in which events occurred (source monitoring), (c) their certainty about hits, false alarms, and source, and (d) whether working memory and inhibition were related to hits, false alarms, and source monitoring. The certainty ratings revealed deficits in children's understanding of when they had erred on source questions and of when they had made false alarms. In addition, inhibitory ability accounted for unique variance in the ability to avoid false alarms and in some kinds of source monitoring but not hits. In contrast, working memory tended to correlate with all forms of memory including hits.
The Fanconi Anemia Core Complex Is Dispensable during Somatic Hypermutation and Class Switch Recombination

To generate high affinity antibodies during an immune response, B cells undergo somatic hypermutation (SHM) of their immunoglobulin genes. Error-prone translesion synthesis (TLS) DNA polymerases have been reported to be responsible for all mutations at template A/T and at least a fraction of G/C transversions. In contrast to A/T mutations which depend on PCNA ubiquitination, it remains unclear how G/C transversions are regulated during SHM. Several lines of evidence indicate a mechanistic link between the Fanconi Anemia (FA) pathway and TLS. To investigate the contribution of the FA pathway in SHM we analyzed FancG-deficient B cells. B cells deficient for FancG, an essential member of the FA core complex, were hypersensitive to treatment with cross-linking agents. However, the frequencies and nucleotide exchange spectra of SHM remained comparable between wild-type and FancG-deficient B cells. These data indicate that the FA pathway is not involved in regulating the outcome of SHM in mammals. In addition, the FA pathway appears dispensable for class switch recombination.
A model-based artifact reduction method for the non-invasive estimation of blood oxygen saturation

We present a novel motion-artifact (MA) insensitive method for the estimation of blood oxygen saturation (SpO2), based on a heuristic physical model of the photoplethysmographic(PPG) signal with a multiplicative component representing motion artifact. This new method calculates the ratio of ratios R using the first derivative values of zero-crossing points of PPG signals, which possesses the inherent insensitivity to motion artifact. Four types of motions, as the source of motion artifact, were investigated to test the performance of the new approach. A quantitative comparison between the conventional method and the newly proposed method was undertaken based on the practical experiments. It was found that the new approach had a significant reduction in the estimation error of SpO2, compared with the conventional method
Myeloid-Derived Suppressor Cells as Therapeutic Target in Hematological Malignancies

Myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSC) are a heterogeneous population of immature myeloid cells that accumulate during pathological conditions such as cancer and are associated with a poor clinical outcome. MDSC expansion hampers the host anti-tumor immune response by inhibition of T cell proliferation, cytokine secretion, and recruitment of regulatory T cells. In addition, MDSC exert non-immunological functions including the promotion of angiogenesis, tumor invasion, and metastasis. Recent years, MDSC are considered as a potential target in solid tumors and hematological malignancies to enhance the effects of currently used immune modulating agents. This review focuses on the characteristics, distribution, functions, cell–cell interactions, and targeting of MDSC in hematological malignancies including multiple myeloma, lymphoma, and leukemia.
Time to Finger Point or Fix? An Invitation to Join Ongoing Efforts to Promote Ethical Authorship and Other Good Publication Practices

In this commentary, we present evidence that unethical authorship (eg, guest and ghost authoring) and other publication practices are not restricted to the pharmaceutical industry; they also occur in academia. Such practices are not an industry problem—they are a research problem. To enhance trust in industry-sponsored research, companies have made rapid and far-reaching changes to their publication guidelines, policies, and procedures. Professional medical writers have adopted, and continue to implement, these changes. Although evidence indicates that industry practices are improving, there is certainly more to do, both in industry and academia. We invite readers to join ongoing efforts to promote ethical publication practices.
HAND SEGMENTATION AND TRACKING OF CONTINUOUS HAND POSTURE USING MORPHOLOGICAL PROCESSING

This work reports the design of a continuous hand posture recognition system. Hand tracking and segmentation are the primary steps for any hand gesture recognition system. The aim of this paper is to report a noise resistant and efficient hand segmentation algorithm where a new method for hand segmentation using different hand detection schemes with required morphological processing are utilized. Problems such as skin colour detection, complex background removal and variable lighting condition are found to be efficiently handled with this system. Noise present in the segmented image due to dynamic background can be removed with the help of this technique. The proposed approach is found to be effective for a range of conditions.
Linkage to HIV Care and Antiretroviral Therapy in Cape Town, South Africa

Background Antiretroviral therapy (ART) has been scaled-up rapidly in Africa. Programme reports typically focus on loss to follow-up and mortality among patients receiving ART. However, little is known about linkage and retention in care of individuals prior to starting ART. Methodology Data on adult residents from a periurban community in Cape Town were collected at a primary care clinic and hospital. HIV testing registers, CD4 count results provided by the National Health Laboratory System and ART registers were linked. A random sample (n = 885) was drawn from adults testing HIV positive through antenatal care, sexual transmitted disease and voluntary testing and counseling services between January 2004 and March 2009. All adults (n = 103) testing HIV positive through TB services during the same time period were also included in the study. Linkage to HIV care was defined as attending for a CD4 count measurement within 6 months of HIV diagnosis. Linkage to ART care was defined as initiating ART within 6 months of HIV diagnosis in individuals with a CD4 count ≤200 cells/µl taken within 6 months of HIV diagnosis. Findings Only 62.6% of individuals attended for a CD4 count measurement within 6 months of testing HIV positive. Individuals testing through sexually transmitted infection services had the best (84.1%) and individuals testing on their own initiative (53.5%) the worst linkage to HIV care. One third of individuals with timely CD4 counts were eligible for ART and 66.7% of those were successfully linked to ART care. Linkage to ART care was highest among antenatal care clients. Among individuals not yet eligible for ART only 46.3% had a repeat CD4 count. Linkage to HIV care improved in patients tested in more recent calendar period. Conclusion Linkage to HIV and ART care was low in this poor peri-urban community despite free services available within close proximity. More efforts are needed to link VCT scale-up to subsequent care.
Platelet serotonin concentration and clinical status in alcohol withdrawal syndrome, preliminary results.

INTRODUCTION Alcohol withdrawal syndrome is an important problem for management of alcoholism. It is known that alcohol alters the function of neurotransmitters such as serotonin, but our review found no studies associating serotonin concentration changes with patient clinical status during detoxification. The authors hypothesized that total platelet serotonin concentration should significantly increase during alcohol detoxification. OBJECTIVE Assess possible association between total (endogenous and captured) platelet serotonin concentration and clinical status of patients with alcohol withdrawal syndrome, at beginning and end of detoxification with clomethiazole. METHODS Thirty-one alcohol-dependent patients, diagnosed with alcohol withdrawal syndrome according to DSM-IV and classified in three clinical groups (18-20, 21-22 and 23-26 points) per the Clinical Institute Withdrawal Assessment for Alcohol Scale, were included in a prospective case series from May 2009 through May 2011 at the Hermanos Ameijeiras Clinical-Surgical Teaching Hospital in Cuba. Patients were predominantly male (87%), ranging in age from 22 to 57 years; 40% were white, 40% mestizo and 20% black. All had been hospitalized for detoxification in the hospital's psychiatry service. Blood samples taken were mixed with 1% EDTA and centrifuged for isolating platelets. Serotonin concentrations (endogenous and captured) were measured within 2 hours of blood collection and mean values at treatment days 1 and 12 compared by t test (p <0.05). RESULTS Total serotonin concentration mean values (µg of serotonin per mg of total platelet protein) were statistically different between days 1 and 12 of treatment (1.329±0.916 µg/mg vs. 2.573±1.224 µg/mg; p <0.001). There was a direct association between total serotonin concentration and patient clinical classification both initially and at day 12. At day 1, the 29 patients in the group with 18-20 points had mean serotonin of 1.358±0.0. 94 µg/mg; one patient with 21 points had serotonin of 1.25 µg/mg; and one patient with 24 points had serotonin of 0.740 µg/mg. At day 12, 26 patients had 0-1 points, with mean serotonin 2.688±1.244 µg/mg; and 5 patients had 2-8 points, with mean serotonin 1.244±0.596 µg/mg. No patient had >8 points at day 12. CONCLUSIONS Serotonin is a potential biomarker for initial clinical classification and outcome monitoring and could be useful to psychiatrists working with patients in this area of medical practice and research. Further studies including more patients and variables are necessary to support these preliminary results.
Analysing drivers of vulnerability to flooding: a systems approach

ABSTRACT Vulnerability to disasters is both dynamic and context-specific. Understanding the construction of vulnerability to disasters is important because the survival of communities is threatened. However, many vulnerability drivers are often hidden and remote from the triggering events; as such, they need to be analysed using approaches that unpack the non-linear interactions. A systems-thinking approach to examine the construction of vulnerability to flood disasters in Muzarabani district, Zimbabwe is used. Data was gathered from interviews, workshops, field observations and the 2012 census report. Biophysical vulnerability is driven by interacting factors including proximity to low-lying floodplain, interfluves and cyclonic path; flood recession agriculture; heavy erosion and siltation; and use of poor quality materials. Social vulnerability to flooding is propelled by a bundle of demographic and poor socio-economic conditions of the community that make the smallholder farmers succumb to flood impacts. None of those variables make the community vulnerable on its own. Rather, they are mutually inclusive, with each one reinforcing the other(s). Vulnerability to flooding in Muzarabani is thus not solely a function of changes in the rainfall pattern to which communities respond. Rather, it is a result of multiple interdependent physical and poor socio-economic variables involving non-linear relationships.
Ultrafast Spectroscopy with Photocurrent Detection: Watching Excitonic Optoelectronic Systems at Work

While ultrafast spectroscopy with photocurrent detection was almost unknown before 2012, in the last 3 years, a number of research groups from different fields have independently developed ultrafast electric probe approaches and reported promising pilot studies. Here, we discuss these recent advances and provide our perspective on how photocurrent detection successfully overcomes many limitations of all-optical methods, which makes it a technique of choice when device photophysics is concerned. We also highlight compelling existing problems and research questions and suggest ways for further development, outlining the potential breakthroughs to be expected in the near future using photocurrent ultrafast optical probes.