Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A 94fps view synthesis engine for HD1080p video

This paper presents a low-cost and high-throughput view synthesis engine based the view synthesis reference software (VSRS) algorithm. With the horizontal shift mode, we propose the row-based pipelined architecture to save the memory cost for original camera rotation issue. Owing to row-based method, internal Z-buffers for storing depth data can be reduced, and also the external bandwidth can be reduced. With the 90nm technology process, our view synthesis engine can achieve the throughput of 94.5 frame/sec for the HD1080p input with the gate count of 142.9k and the low memory cost of 54.72Kbytes.
Inhibitory Effect of Tranilast on Transforming Growth Factor-Beta-Induced Protein in Granular Corneal Dystrophy Type 2 Corneal Fibroblasts

Purpose: To investigate the effects of tranilast, an inhibitor of chemical mediators and fibroblast proliferation, on the expression of transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-&bgr;)-induced protein (TGFBIp) in wild-type (WT) and homozygous (HO) granular corneal dystrophy type 2 corneal fibroblasts. Methods: Cell proliferation and cytotoxicity were measured by Cell Counting Kit-8 and lactate dehydrogenase assay. Western blotting and real-time polymerase chain reaction were used to determine changes in the expression of TGFBIp and TGFBI mRNA. We determined the effects of tranilast on phosphorylated Smad2 (pSmad2) and pSmad3, wound-healing, and expression of alpha-smooth muscle actin (&agr;-SMA), type I collagen, and integrins. Results: High concentrations of tranilast decreased proliferation of corneal fibroblasts but did not cause elevation of lactate dehydrogenase, except at 1.0 mM tranilast. TGF-&bgr; increased the expression of TGFBIp and TGFBI mRNA in WT and HO corneal fibroblasts. Cotreatment of corneal fibroblasts with tranilast and TGF-&bgr; reduced the levels of TGFBIp and TGFBI mRNA. In addition, application of tranilast reduced pSmad2 in WT and HO corneal fibroblasts and pSmad3 in HO corneal fibroblasts, both of which were increased initially by TGF-&bgr;. Tranilast delayed wound healing and reduced the expression of &agr;-SMA, type I collagen, and some of integrins in WT and HO corneal fibroblasts. Conclusions: Application of tranilast in WT and HO corneal fibroblasts inhibited the expression of TGFBIp by blocking TGF-&bgr; signaling. Thus, tranilast may be useful in delaying or preventing the recurrence of corneal opacity in TGFBI-linked corneal dystrophies if clinical studies confirm these findings.
One-shot robot programming by demonstration by adapting motion segments

In order to provide robots for a wide range of users, they must be easily programmable. This is addressed by various approaches of programming a robot by demonstration, where the user guides a robot through the task. We propose an approach that adapts a once demonstrated trajectory to a new situation. The system extracts the relevant reference frames using a weighting function. Then, the demonstrated trajectory is segmented with respect to these frames and different frame-dependent strategies for reproduction are applied. The approach is capable of adapting simple point-to-point paths, more complex tasks like pick-and-place operations, and manipulations where objects are used as tools. Additionally, the system extracts the required resources for a task to integrate the approach into a behavior-based system, which manages new programmed behaviors and selects a suitable behavior in a new situations. The approach is computationally efficient and comprehensible for the user. We evaluated the approach qualitatively and quantitatively using cross validation.
The CUGBP2 Splicing Factor Regulates an Ensemble of Branchpoints from Perimeter Binding Sites with Implications for Autoregulation

Alternative pre-mRNA splicing adjusts the transcriptional output of the genome by generating related mRNAs from a single primary transcript, thereby expanding protein diversity. A fundamental unanswered question is how splicing factors achieve specificity in the selection of target substrates despite the recognition of information-poor sequence motifs. The CUGBP2 splicing regulator plays a key role in the brain region-specific silencing of the NI exon of the NMDA R1 receptor. However, the sequence motifs utilized by this factor for specific target exon selection and its role in splicing silencing are not understood. Here, we use chemical modification footprinting to map the contact sites of CUGBP2 to GU-rich motifs closely positioned at the boundaries of the branch sites of the NI exon, and we demonstrate a mechanistic role for this specific arrangement of motifs for the regulation of branchpoint formation. General support for a branch site-perimeter–binding model is indicated by the identification of a group of novel target exons with a similar configuration of motifs that are silenced by CUGBP2. These results reveal an autoregulatory role for CUGBP2 as indicated by its direct interaction with functionally significant RNA motifs surrounding the branch sites upstream of exon 6 of the CUGBP2 transcript itself. The perimeter-binding model explains how CUGBP2 can effectively embrace the branch site region to achieve the specificity needed for the selection of exon targets and the fine-tuning of alternative splicing patterns.
The emerging field of clinical Bioinformatics: Infrastructure, analytical tools, and knowledge bases

The availability of cost effective and fast genome sequencing techniques has paved the way for a personalized medical practice. The new sequencing technology produces huge datasets with different characteristics and the analysis has evolved from a single program to a workflow of tens of analytical steps, starting from the analysis of raw data until generating clinical reports. The mix between big data, analysis workflows, and clinical requirements has shaped the field of clinical bioinformatics. In this paper, we review the basic components of this field, including computational infrastructure, analytical workflows, and knowledge bases for interpretation of results and for reaching clinical decisions.
Low birth weight for gestation and airway function in infancy: exploring the fetal origins hypothesis.

BACKGROUND Poor fetal growth has been associated with impaired airway function in adult life, but evidence linking birth weight and airway function in early childhood is sparse. We examined the hypothesis that low birth weight for gestation is associated with impaired airway function shortly after birth and that this is independent of impaired postnatal somatic growth. METHODS Airway function was measured using the raised volume technique in healthy white infants of low (< or =10th centile) or appropriate (> or =20th centile) birth weight for gestation and was expressed as forced expiratory volume in 0.4 s (FEV0.4), forced vital capacity (FVC), and the maximal expired flow at 25% of forced vital capacity (MEF25). Infant length and weight, maternal height and weight, maternal report of smoking prenatally and postnatally, and parental occupation were recorded. RESULTS Mothers of low birth weight for gestation infants (n=98) were lighter, shorter, and more likely to smoke and have partners in manual occupations. At 6 weeks their infants remained lighter and shorter than those of appropriate birth weight (n=136). FEV0.4, FVC, and MEF25 were reduced in infants of low birth weight for gestation, in those whose mothers smoked in pregnancy, or who were in manual occupations. After adjusting for relevant maternal and infant characteristics, infants in the low birth weight for gestation group experienced a mean reduction of 11 ml in FEV0.4 (95% CI 4 to 18; p=0.002), of 12 ml in FVC (95% CI 4 to 19; p=0.004), and of 28 ml/s in MEF25 (95% CI 7 to 48; p=0.03). CONCLUSIONS Airway function is diminished in early postnatal life as a consequence of a complex causal pathway which includes social disadvantage as indicated by maternal social class, smoking and height, birth weight as a proximal and related consequence of these factors, and genetic predisposition to asthma. Further work is needed to establish the relevance of these findings to subsequent airway growth and development in later infancy and early childhood.
Effect of knee position on quadriceps muscle force steadiness and activation strategies

Introduction: In this study we investigated the effect of knee position on quadriceps force steadiness and activation strategies. Methods: Quadriceps force steadiness was evaluated in 22 volunteers at two knee positions by testing their ability to regulate submaximal force. Muscle activation strategies were studied in both time and frequency domains using surface electromyography. Results: Quadriceps force fluctuations and the associated agonist and antagonist activity were significantly higher at 90° than at 30° of flexion (P < 0.05). The quadriceps median frequency recorded at 30° was significantly higher than at 90° of flexion (P < 0.05). Regression analyses revealed that force steadiness was related to quadriceps activation and median frequency (P < 0.001), but not to hamstring coactivation (P > 0.05). Conclusions: The results indicate that knee position significantly affects quadriceps force steadiness and activation strategies. This finding may have important implications for designing a force control testing protocol and interpreting test results. Muscle Nerve, 2011
An outbreak in 1996 of cyclosporiasis associated with imported raspberries. The Cyclospora Working Group.

BACKGROUND Cyclospora cayetanensis is a parasite that causes gastroenteritis. Until last year most of the documented cases of cyclosporiasis in North America were in overseas travelers. In 1996, a large outbreak of cyclosporiasis occurred in North America. We investigated this outbreak. METHODS Health departments solicited information from clinicians and laboratories on cases of cyclosporiasis, which were then reported to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and to Health Canada. We conducted retrospective cohort studies for the cases associated with events (e.g., luncheons) and attempted to identify the sources of the implicated food. RESULTS A total of 1465 cases of cyclosporiasis were reported by 20 states, the District of Columbia, and 2 provinces. Of these cases, 978 (66.8 percent) were laboratory confirmed and 725 (49.5 percent) were associated with 55 events that were held from May 3 through June 14. Raspberries were definitely served at 50 events and may have been served at 4 events. For 27 of the 41 events for which adequate data were available (65.8 percent), the associations between the consumption of berries (raspberries with or without other berries) and cyclosporiasis were statistically significant (P<0.05). For all 29 events for which there were good data, the raspberries definitely came from Guatemala (21 events, 72.4 percent) or may have come from Guatemala (8 events, 27.6 percent). As few as five Guatemalan farms could have accounted for the 25 events for which the raspberries could be traced to a single exporter per event. The mode of contamination of the raspberries remains unclear. CONCLUSIONS This large outbreak of cyclosporiasis in North America in 1996 was associated with the consumption of Guatemalan raspberries. The outbreak illustrates the need to consider that a local cluster of foodborne illness may be part of a widespread outbreak and to pursue investigations to the source of the implicated vehicle.
Efficient frontier detection for robot exploration

Frontier-based exploration is the most common approach to exploration, a fundamental problem in robotics. In frontier-based exploration, robots explore by repeatedly detecting (and moving towards) frontiers, the segments which separate the known regions from those unknown. A frontier detection sub-process examines map and/or sensor readings to identify frontiers for exploration. However, most frontier detection algorithms process the entire map data. This can be a time-consuming process, which affects the exploration decisions. In this work, we present several novel frontier detection algorithms that do not process the entire map data, and explore them in depth. We begin by investigating algorithms that represent two approaches: Wavefront Frontier Detector (WFD), a graph-search-based algorithm which examines only known areas, and Fast Frontier Detector (FFD), which examines only new laser readings data. We analytically examine the complexity of both algorithms, and discuss their correctness. We then improve by combining elements of both, to create two additional algorithms, called WFD-INC and WFD-IP . We empirically evaluate all algorithms, and show that they are all faster than a state-of-the-art frontier detector implementation (by several orders of magnitude). We additionally contrast them with each other and demonstrate the FFD and WFD-IP are faster than the others by one additional order of magnitude.
A deep feature fusion methodology for breast cancer diagnosis demonstrated on three imaging modality datasets

Background: Deep learning methods for radiomics/computer‐aided diagnosis (CADx) are often prohibited by small datasets, long computation time, and the need for extensive image preprocessing. Aims: We aim to develop a breast CADx methodology that addresses the aforementioned issues by exploiting the efficiency of pre‐trained convolutional neural networks (CNNs) and using pre‐existing handcrafted CADx features. Materials & Methods: We present a methodology that extracts and pools low‐ to mid‐level features using a pretrained CNN and fuses them with handcrafted radiomic features computed using conventional CADx methods. Our methodology is tested on three different clinical imaging modalities (dynamic contrast enhanced‐MRI [690 cases], full‐field digital mammography [245 cases], and ultrasound [1125 cases]). Results: From ROC analysis, our fusion‐based method demonstrates, on all three imaging modalities, statistically significant improvements in terms of AUC as compared to previous breast cancer CADx methods in the task of distinguishing between malignant and benign lesions. (DCE‐MRI [AUC = 0.89 (se = 0.01)], FFDM [AUC = 0.86 (se = 0.01)], and ultrasound [AUC = 0.90 (se = 0.01)]). Discussion/Conclusion: We proposed a novel breast CADx methodology that can be used to more effectively characterize breast lesions in comparison to existing methods. Furthermore, our proposed methodology is computationally efficient and circumvents the need for image preprocessing.
Matrix Metalloproteinase 2 Contributes to Pancreatic Beta Cell Injury Induced by Oxidative Stress

Objective To investigate the role of matrix metalloproteinase 2 (MMP2) in pancreatic beta cell injury induced by oxidative stress. Methods Rat pancreatic beta cell line INS-1 cells were treated with advanced glycation end-products (AGE) to induce intracellular oxidative stress. Intracellular MMP2 expression and activity were determined by quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), Western blotting, and zymography, respectively. MMP2 expression and activity were manipulated by over-expression with recombinant MMP2 plasmids or knockdown with either MMP2 specific siRNA or inhibitors, and effects on apoptosis and insulin-secretion were measured by flow cytometry and ELISA. Results AGE treatment induced intracellular oxidative stress in INS-1 cells, as indicated by elevated ROS levels, apoptotic cell death, and suppressed insulin secretion. This was accompanied by increased MMP2 expression and activity. However, Antioxidant N-acetylcysteine (NAC) treatment inhibited MMP2 expression and activity, and partially reversed cell apoptosis and insulin secretion dysfunction induced by AGE. Forced expression of MMP2 mimicked the effects of AGE treatment while inhibition of MMP2 either by a specific MMP2 inhibitor or MMP2 siRNA protected oxidative stress induced by AGE. Conclusion MMP2 expression and intracellular activity are increased by oxidative stress, contributing to cellular dysfunction and apoptosis in INS-1 cells after AGE challenge.
Vaccination of langur monkeys (Presbytis entellus) against Leishmania donovani with autoclaved L. major plus BCG

The protective potential of killed Leishmania major (ALM) along with BCG was evaluated against L. donovani in Indian langur monkeys in single and triple dose schedules. A delayed protection was observed in monkeys after a single dose schedule of ALM (3 mg)+BCG (3 mg) given intradermally 2 months before intravenous challenge with L. donovani. Triple dose schedule each of 1 mg ALM+1 mg BCG was more effective. The status remained unchanged until the end of the experiment (approximately 8 months). The study indicates that a combination of ALM+BCG may be a good candidate vaccine for exploiting against human Kala-azar.
More than the Sum of Makers: The Complex Dynamics of Diverse Practices at Maker Faire

Human Computer Interaction has developed great interest in the Maker Movement. Previous work has explored it from various perspectives, focusing either on its potentials or issues. As these are however only fragmented portrayals, this paper aims to take a broader perspective and interconnect some of the fragments. We conducted a qualitative study in the context of two Maker Faires to gain a better understanding of the complex dynamics that makers operate in. We captured the voices of different stakeholders and explored how their respective agendas relate to each other. The findings illustrate how the event is co-created at the nexus of different technological, social and economic interests while leaving space for diverse practices. The paper contributes a first focused analysis of Maker Faire, probes it as a site for research and discusses how holistic perspectives on the Maker Movement could create new research opportunities.
City form and well-being: what makes London neighborhoods good places to live?

What is the relationship between urban form and citizens' well-being? In this paper, we propose a quantitative approach to help answer this question, inspired by theories developed within the fields of architecture and population health. The method extracts a rich set of metrics of urban form and well-being from openly accessible datasets. Using linear regression analysis, we identify a model which can explain 30% of the variance of well-being when applied to Greater London, UK. Outcomes of this research can inform the discussion on how to design cities which foster the well-being of their residents.
Can we make some general recommendations regarding immune recovery after hematopoietic reconstitution preceded by ablative therapy?

Abstract: Children undergoing marrow transplantation have compromised immune systems for variable periods of time after transplant. A number of methods have been utilized to assess recovery of the immune system. Four recommendations are made in regards to the testing that should be done, when the testing should be done, when immunizations should be provided and when antibiotic and other infection prophylaxis can be reduced
I'm a Giant: Walking in Large Virtual Environments at High Speed Gains

Advances in tracking technology and wireless headsets enable walking as a means of locomotion in Virtual Reality. When exploring virtual environments larger than room-scale, it is often desirable to increase users' perceived walking speed, for which we investigate three methods. (1) Ground-Level Scaling increases users' avatar size, allowing them to walk farther. (2) Eye-Level Scaling enables users to walk through a World in Miniature, while maintaining a street-level view. (3) Seven-League Boots amplifies users' movements along their walking path. We conduct a study comparing these methods and find that users feel most embodied using Ground-Level Scaling and consequently increase their stride length. Using Seven-League Boots, unlike the other two methods, diminishes positional accuracy at high gains, and users modify their walking behavior to compensate for the lack of control. We conclude with a discussion on each technique's strength and weaknesses and the types of situation they might be appropriate for.
Complete Stability Analysis of Multifunction MMIC Circuits

This paper describes a systematic methodology for complete stability analysis of nonlinear microwave multifunction circuits. The proposed strategy has two different stages: the stability analysis of a nominal steady-state solution and the use of continuation techniques to efficiently determine the unstable operation ranges. The stability analysis is demanding due to the multiple loops contained in the large multifunction circuit. The first step is to check the possible fulfillment of the oscillation startup conditions at different circuit nodes followed by pole-zero identification. Given the complexity of the circuit topology, a systematic technique is necessary for the selection of the observation nodes. This has been applied at both the lumped-element schematic and the layout levels. These stability analyses have been carried out at small-signal (linear) and large-signal (nonlinear) since the multifunction circuit includes a nonlinear mixer. In the case of instability, the origin of the oscillation and its characteristics are analyzed versus the critical circuit parameters through the application of continuation techniques to the steady-state oscillatory solution. Moreover, sensitivity yield analysis and variations of environmental conditions combined with the stability techniques have also been taken into account and integrated into the design cycle. The proposed systematic approach has been successfully applied to determine and correct an oscillation of a multifunction monolithic-microwave integrated-circuit converter. It has also been proven in other multifunction circuits in the same way.
Molecular Aberrance in Papillary Thyroid Microcarcinoma Bearing High Aggressiveness: Identifying a “Tibetan Mastiff Dog” From Puppies

Today the most common differentiated thyroid cancer in many countries is papillary thyroid microcarcinoma (PTMC). Although the majority of PTMCs exhibit an indolent clinical course, a few possess high risk for aggressiveness with tumor invasion, metastasis, and even patient mortality. This imposes significant confusion and often dilemma in the clinical management of PTMC. The present review summarizes the molecular pathogenesis, particularly the major genetic alterations, of PTMC that may have prognostic values in assisting risk stratification of this cancer and identification of the most aggressive cases from the many well‐behaving cases. J. Cell. Biochem. 117: 1491–1496, 2016. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.