Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
XML implementation of frame processor

A quantitative study has shown that frame technology [1] supported by Fusion toolset can lead to reduction in time- tomarket (70%) and project costs (84%). Frame technology has been developed to handle large COBOL- based business software product families. We wished to investigate how the principle of frame approach can be applied to support product families in other application domains, in particular to build distributed component- based systems written in Object- Oriented languages. As Fusion is tightly coupled with COBOL, we implemented our own tools based on frame concepts using the XML technology. In our solution, a generic architecture for a product family is a hierarchy of XML documents. Each such document contains a reusable program fragment instrumented for change with XML tags. We use a tool built on top of XML parsing framework JAXP to process documents in order to produce a custom member of a product family. Our solution is cost- effective and extensible. In the paper, we describe our solution, illustrating its use with examples. We intend to make our solution available to public in order to encourage investigation of frame concepts in other application domains, implementation languages and platforms.
Adult respiratory outcomes of extreme preterm birth. A regional cohort study.

RATIONALE Lifetime respiratory function after extremely preterm birth (gestational age≤28 wk or birth weight≤1,000 g) is unknown. OBJECTIVES To compare changes from 18-25 years of age in respiratory health, lung function, and airway responsiveness in young adults born extremely prematurely to that of term-born control subjects. METHODS Comprehensive lung function investigations and interviews were conducted in a population-based sample of 25-year-old subjects born extremely prematurely in western Norway in 1982-1985, and in matched term-born control subjects. Comparison was made to similar data collected at 18 years of age. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS At 25 years of age, 46/51 (90%) eligible subjects born extremely prematurely and 39/46 (85%) control subjects participated. z-Scores for FEV1, forced expiratory flow at 25-75% of vital capacity, and FEV1/FVC were significantly reduced in subjects born extremely prematurely by 1.02, 1.26, and 0.88, respectively, and airway resistance (kPa/L/s) was increased (0.23 versus 0.18). Residual volume to total lung capacity increased with severity of neonatal bronchopulmonary dysplasia. Responsiveness to methacholine (dose-response slope; 3.16 versus 0.85) and bronchial lability index (7.5 versus 4.8%) were increased in subjects born extremely prematurely. Lung function changes from 18 to 25 years and respiratory symptoms were similar in the prematurely born and term-born groups. CONCLUSIONS Lung function in early adult life was in the normal range in the majority of subjects born extremely prematurely, but methacholine responsiveness was more pronounced than in term-born young adults, suggesting a need for ongoing pulmonary monitoring in this population.
An Adaptive Optimization Algorithm Based on Kriging Interpolation with Spherical Model and its Application to Optimal Design of Switched Reluctance Motor

In this paper, an adaptive optimization strategy utilizing Kriging model and genetic algorithm is proposed for the optimal design of electromagnetic devices. The ordinary Kriging assisted by the spherical covariance model is used to construct surrogate models. In order to improve the computational efficiency, the adaptive uniform sampling strategy is applied to generate sampling points in design space. Through several iterations and gradual refinement process, the global optimal point can be found by genetic algorithm. The proposed algorithm is validated by application to the optimal design of a switched reluctance motor, where the stator pole face and shape of pole shoe attached to the lateral face of the rotor pole are optimized to reduce the torque ripple.
A importância do estudo do tracking (estabilidade e previsão) em delineamentos longitudinais: um estudo aplicado à epidemiologia da actividade física e à performance desportivo-motora

The importance of tracking (stability and prediction) in longitunal designs: an applied study to the epidemiology of physical activity and sports performance This study aims at the presentation of the tracking phenomena in epidemiological and motor performance research. The problem of tracking, its essence and importance were presented based on two sets of data. The first one was related to physical activity (i.e., sports practise) of 588 youngsters followed longitudinally for 6 years, starting at the age of 12.7 years and ending at 17.7 years. A quasi-simplex model was used, and showed the high stability of sports practise, as well as the moderate to high tracking. In the second study, information came from the best performance of 12 long jumpers in six consecutive years. This data was analysed according to the concept of canalisation, using the procedures suggested by Cohen, and Foulkes and Davies. Results showed a low stability of performance over time, as well as its non-linear behaviour. In conclusion, three aspects deserved main attention: the first one related to the use of novel approaches to the study of tracking; the second one showed the high stability of sports practise, as well as the moderate to high tracking; the third one evidenced the low canalisation of the performance of the long jumpers due to its low stability.
Child Abuse and Neglect in the UK Today

This report presents new research findings from the NSPCC on child maltreatment in the United Kingdom, looking specifically at the prevalence and impact of severe maltreatment. We found that the rates of child maltreatment reported by young adults aged 18–24 were lower in 2009 than in 1998, suggesting maltreatment may be less prevalent today. However, significant minorities of children and young people in the UK today are experiencing severe maltreatment and this is associated with poorer emotional wellbeing, self-harm, suicidal ideation and delinquent behaviour.
Mutation in TERMINAL FLOWER1 Reverses the Photoperiodic Requirement for Flowering in the Wild Strawberry Fragaria vesca1[W]

Photoperiodic flowering has been extensively studied in the annual short-day and long-day plants rice (Oryza sativa) and Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana), whereas less is known about the control of flowering in perennials. In the perennial wild strawberry, Fragaria vesca (Rosaceae), short-day and perpetual flowering long-day accessions occur. Genetic analyses showed that differences in their flowering responses are caused by a single gene, SEASONAL FLOWERING LOCUS, which may encode the F. vesca homolog of TERMINAL FLOWER1 (FvTFL1). We show through high-resolution mapping and transgenic approaches that FvTFL1 is the basis of this change in flowering behavior and demonstrate that FvTFL1 acts as a photoperiodically regulated repressor. In short-day F. vesca, long photoperiods activate FvTFL1 mRNA expression and short days suppress it, promoting flower induction. These seasonal cycles in FvTFL1 mRNA level confer seasonal cycling of vegetative and reproductive development. Mutations in FvTFL1 prevent long-day suppression of flowering, and the early flowering that then occurs under long days is dependent on the F. vesca homolog of FLOWERING LOCUS T. This photoperiodic response mechanism differs from those described in model annual plants. We suggest that this mechanism controls flowering within the perennial growth cycle in F. vesca and demonstrate that a change in a single gene reverses the photoperiodic requirements for flowering.
Radial Extracorporeal Shock Wave Therapy is Safe and Effective in the Treatment of Chronic Recalcitrant Plantar Fasciitis

Background Radial extracorporeal shock wave therapy is an effective treatment for chronic plantar fasciitis that can be administered to outpatients without anesthesia but has not yet been evaluated in controlled trials. Hypothesis There is no difference in effectiveness between radial extracorporeal shock wave therapy and placebo in the treatment of chronic plantar fasciitis. Study Design Randomized, controlled trial; Level of evidence, 1. Methods Three interventions of radial extracorporeal shock wave therapy (0.16 mJ/mm2; 2000 impulses) compared with placebo were studied in 245 patients with chronic plantar fasciitis. Primary endpoints were changes in visual analog scale composite score from baseline to 12 weeks’ follow-up, overall success rates, and success rates of the single visual analog scale scores (heel pain at first steps in the morning, during daily activities, during standardized pressure force). Secondary endpoints were single changes in visual analog scale scores, success rates, Roles and Maudsley score, SF-36, and patients’ and investigators’ global judgment of effectiveness 12 weeks and 12 months after extracorporeal shock wave therapy. Results Radial extracorporeal shock wave therapy proved significantly superior to placebo with a reduction of the visual analog scale composite score of 72.1% compared with 44.7% (P = .0220), and an overall success rate of 61.0% compared with 42.2% in the placebo group (P = .0020) at 12 weeks. Superiority was even more pronounced at 12 months, and all secondary outcome measures supported radial extracorporeal shock wave therapy to be significantly superior to placebo (P < .025, 1-sided). No relevant side effects were observed. Conclusion Radial extracorporeal shock wave therapy significantly improves pain, function, and quality of life compared with placebo in patients with recalcitrant plantar fasciitis.
PLASMONIC NANOSTRUCTURE ENHANCED GRAPHENE-BASED PHOTODETECTORS

Graphene exhibits electrical and optical properties promising for future applications in ultra-fast photonics [1]. High carrier mobility and Fermi velocity [2, 3] combined with its constant absorption over the visible wavelength range to the near-infrared [4] potentially allow its application for photodetection over a broad wavelength spectrum, operating at high frequencies. However, absorption being 2.3% per monolayer [4], responsivity of these devices is rather low [5, 6]. Here we show that by combining graphene-based photodetectors with metal-nanostructures, plasmonic effects lead to an increased responsivity.
Enhanced speech yielding higher intelligibility for all listeners and environments

The current paper discusses two approaches to enhanced speech in reverberation/noise: machine signal processing and human speech production. We reviewed the speech enhancement techniques, including steady-state suppression and compared the modulation spectra of speech signals before and after processing. We also introduced the Lombard-like effect of speech in reverberation, and compared the characteristics of speech signals, including the modulation spectra between speech signals uttered in quiet and reverberation. We found that the enhanced speech signals have distinct characteristics that yield higher speech intelligibility.
Force and Restraint in Strategic Deterrence: A Game-Theorist's Perspective

Abstract : This monograph is a short nontechnical introduction to the use of game theory in the study of international relations. The focus is on the problem of deterrence against potential adversaries and aggressors. The author, Professor Roger Myerson, uses game models to provide a simple context where we can see more clearly the essential logic of strategic deterrence. We should look to such theoretical analysis for basic insights that may have practical importance in policymaking. The main conclusion is that a great power's use of its military forces may be rendered ineffective or even counterproductive when there are no clear internationally recognizable limits on this use of force. Professor Myerson derives this conclusion from the basic observation that our ability to influence potential rivals depends on a balanced mix of threats and promises. Potential adversaries should believe that aggression will be punished, but such threats will be useless unless they also believe our promises that good behavior will be better rewarded. A reputation for resolve makes threats credible, but a great power also needs a reputation for restraint, to make the promises credible as well. Thus, international restraints on a nation's use of military force may actually increase the effective influence of its military strength. So this monograph may be read as a contribution to our understanding of the vital relationship between diplomacy and military preparedness in defense of national security.
Location Data Analytics for Space Management

Building space accounts for one of the largest operational costs for companies. While space management has traditionally been done based on human observations, technology solutions are increasingly been considered. In this paper, we consider advanced sensing systems that provide location data at a certain spatio-temporal granularity. Location data analytics is then considered to realize two space management applications: (i) space utilization, and (ii) workspace recommendation. Towards this end, location data is processed to determine potential workspaces. The processed historic location data is used to compute defined metrics that characterize space utilization. Filtering of real-time location data is presented to recommend workspaces that may be potentially unoccupied and present to a user. Using datasets from an experimental office testbed, we evaluate the proposed sensing and analytics solution.
New Results on Perceptual Distortion Minimization and Nonlinear Least-Squares Frequency Estimation

In a paper in this journal, a framework was presented wherein a number of practical methods for finding the perceptually most important sinusoids in audio signals could be related using a particular perceptually motivated distortion measure, and it was argued that for Gaussian noise and a large number of samples, these methods should attain the Cramér-Rao lower bound. In this correspondence, we report some new results on this subject. Specifically, we analyze the finite-sample performance of these methods in experiments, and we conclude that for a high number of samples, they perform close to the Cramér-Rao lower bound. However, for a low number of observations, we demonstrate that special care must be taken in designing the perceptually motivated distortion measure if high-resolution estimates are desired. In particular, the smoothness of the frequency response of the perceptual filter that implements the distortion measure is shown to be important.
GMM-based bandwidth extension using sub-band basis spectrum model

This paper describes a novel GMM-based bandwidth extension (BWE) method based on a sub-band basis spectrum model (SBM), in which each dimensional component represents a spe-ciﬁc acoustic space in the frequency domain. The proposed method can achieve the BWE from a speech data with an arbitrary frequency bandwidth while the conventional methods perform the conversion from a ﬁxed narrowband data. In the proposed method, we train a GMM with SBM parameters extracted from wideband spectra in advance. An input signal with a limited frequency band is converted into a wideband signal by estimating high-band SBM components from low-band SBM components of the input signal based on the GMM. The results of some objective and subjective evaluations show that the proposed method extends bandwidth of speech data robustly.
Attracting the community's many eyes: an exploration of user involvement in issue tracking

A community of users who report bugs and request features provides valuable feedback that can be used in product development. We compare the community involvement in issue tracker usage between the open source project Eclipse and the closed source project IBM Jazz to evaluate if publicly accessible issue trackers work as well in closed source projects. We find that IBM Jazz successfully receives user feedback through this channel. We then explore the differences in work item processing in IBM Jazz between team members, project members and externals. We conclude that making public issue trackers available in closed source projects is a useful approach for eliciting feedback from the community, but that work items created by team members are processed differently from work items created by project members and externals.
Amniotic Fluid Cholesteryl Palmitate in Pregnancies Complicated by Diabetes Mellitus

Amniotic fluid cholesteryl palmitate, as measured by thinlayer chromatography, appears to be a very sensitive and specific predictor for the risk of respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) in newborns of normal pregnancies. To assess the effect of diabetes mellitus on fetal pulmonary maturation, we measured cholesteryl palmitate concentration, the lung profile, and total phosphatidylcholine in amniotic fluid obtained from 35 well-controlled diabetic and 39 control pregnancies at term. In women with diabetes, the mean (± SD) third-trimester glycosylated hemoglobin level was 6.96 ± 2.3% (normal 6-8%). Mean cholesteryl palmitate concentration in the diabetic population was 79.12 ± 13.17 /ig/mL, versus 153.71 ± 16.77 /ug/mL in the control group (P<.001). The mean cholesteryl palmitate concentration was also significantly different for gestational diabetics and class B-R gravidas (112.75 ± 26.2 versus 54.45 ± 7.34 Mg/mL; P<.005). Cholesteryl palmitate was decreased despite the presence of a mature lecithin/sphingomyelin ratio and, in most cases, phosphatidylglycerol. These data suggest that even in wellcontrolled diabetic pregnancies, alterations in maternal metabolism may affect either the biosynthesis or degradation of cholesteryl palmitate.
Flash memory built-in self-diagnosis with test mode control

The objective of this paper is to present a cost-effective fault diagnosis methodology for flash memory. Flash memory is enjoying a rapid market growth. The research for flash memory testing is mainly to reduce the test cost and improve the production yield. In this paper, we propose a fault diagnosis flow for flash memory. We also propose a flexible built-in self-diagnosis (BISD) design with enhanced test mode control, which reduces the test time and diagnostic data shift-out cycles by using parallel programming and erasure and employing a parallel shift-out mechanism. The area overhead of our BISD circuit is only about 0.5% for a 256Mb commodity flash memory chip. Experimental results from industrial chips show that the proposed diagnosis methodology has high accuracy in distinguishing the fault type.
Downlink Resource Allocation for LTE-Advanced Networks with Type1 Relay Nodes

Type1 in-band relaying is supported by Long Term Evolution Advanced (LTE-Advanced). Based on the frame structure defined in 3GPP LTE, a down link radio frame is partitioned into access and backhaul sub-frames. In the access sub-frames, the direct link and access link transmissions can take place simultaneously with full frequency reuse. In the backhaul sub-frames, the DeNB (Donor evolved Node B) allocates orthogonal resources for different DeNB->;RN transmission as well as co-scheduled DeNB->;UE transmissions. Macro UE scheduled during the backhaul sub-frames will avoid the interference from RN in downlink, enjoying improved SINR. However, this will decrease the efficiency of radio resource reuse, and potentially reduce cell throughput. In this paper, the performance of relay enhanced networks with partial macro UEs scheduled during the backhaul sub-frames is investigated through system level simulation. A simplified resource allocation algorithm (SRA) which aims to maximize the throughput of worst UEs in relay enhanced networks is proposed to calculate the resource allocation among DeNB->;RN transmission, RN-UE transmissions, as well as DeNB->;UE transmissions in backhaul sub-frames and access sub-frames. Average cell throughput gain and 5%-tile user throughput gain of proposed resource allocation algorithm (SRA) is compared with an exhaustive search algorithm.
Robust multiple target tracking under occlusion using fragmented mean shift and Kalman filter

Object tracking is critical to visual surveillance and activity analysis. The major issue in multiple visual target tracking is occlusion handling. In this paper, we investigate how to improve the robustness of visual tracking method for multiple target tracking with occlusion. Here we propose weighted fragment based mean shift with Kalman filter with the consideration of color features of the target. Discrete wavelet transform is used to detect the target automatically. Inter frame difference of LL-subband is used for detection of the target. Automatic fragments are acquired by calculating the mean and standard deviation of detected target. Here the weighted fragments are derived from the likelihood function of foreground and background of that particular fragment using color histogram. The output of weighted fragmented mean shift is updated with the help of Kalman filter. The Proposed tracking algorithm has been tested on several challenging videos of different situations and compared with mean shift method using Bhattacharyya coefficients and Bhattacharyya distance. Extensive experiments authenticate the robustness and reliability of the proposed method.
On Partially Controlled Multi-Agent Systems

Motivated by the control theoretic distinction between controllable and uncontrollable events, we distinguish between two types of agents within a multi-agent system: controllable agents, which are directly controlled by the system's designer, and uncontrollable agents, which are not under the designer's direct control. We refer to such systems as partially controlled multi-agent systems, and we investigate how one might influence the behavior of the uncontrolled agents through appropriate design of the controlled agents. In particular, we wish to understand which problems are naturally described in these terms, what methods can be applied to influence the uncontrollable agents, the effectiveness of such methods, and whether similar methods work across different domains. Using a game-theoretic framework, this paper studies the design of partially controlled multi-agent systems in two contexts: in one context, the uncontrollable agents are expected utility maximizers, while in the other they are reinforcement learners. We suggest different techniques for controlling agents' behavior in each domain, assess their success, and examine their relationship.
2 . 2 . 4 Bound on the expected length of the SA tour : Lemma

In this thesis, I solve the following problem: Given a rectangular region R in which n (n is large) targets are distributed according to some continuous or piece-wise continuous distribution, find the length of the optimal Stochastic Travelling Salesperson tour of a Dubin vehicle over the n targets and design an algorithm that performs within a constant factor of the optimal expected tour length. We first solve the problem for the case when the distribution of the targets in uniform in R, and then generalize the results to any distribution. To solve the problem, we use an already known lower bound on the expected length of the optimal tour, and we design an algorithm that performs within a constant factor of that lower bound. To create the constant factor algorithm, we first study the dynamic constraints on the Dubin vehicle to create a building block, and then solve an important auxiliary problem in which targets are not allowed to be too close to each other. After creating the algorithm for the uniform distribution scenario, we establish a lower bound for the scenario where the targets are sampled in R according to a continuous or a piece-wise continuous distribution. We finally generalize our algorithm to the non-uniform scenario and prove that it still performs within a constant factor of the lower bound we proved. Thesis Supervisor: Munther A. Dahleh Title: Professor