Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Design of a Security Protocol for Low-Cost RFID

To solve the security problems in low-cost RFID system, we propose a protocol based on key-chain. Taking full advantage of features that the back-end database can store a lot of keys and the PUF circuit can generate a large number of non-replication keys, the protocol compares challenge/response key pairs obtained from PUF operation in the tag with key stored in the back-end database. And then the protocol achieves mutual authentication with high security.
Crosslingual and Multilingual Construction of Syntax-Based Vector Space Models

Syntax-based distributional models of lexical semantics provide a flexible and linguistically adequate representation of co-occurrence information. However, their construction requires large, accurately parsed corpora, which are unavailable for most languages. In this paper, we develop a number of methods to overcome this obstacle. We describe (a) a crosslingual approach that constructs a syntax-based model for a new language requiring only an English resource and a translation lexicon; and (b) multilingual approaches that combine crosslingual with monolingual information, subject to availability. We evaluate on two lexical semantic benchmarks in German and Croatian. We find that the models exhibit complementary profiles: crosslingual models yield higher accuracies while monolingual models provide better coverage. In addition, we show that simple multilingual models can successfully combine their strengths.
Suzaku Observation of HESS J1825$-$137: Discovery of Largely-Extended X-Rays from PSR J1826$-$1334

We observed the brightest part of HESS J1825-137 with the Suzaku XIS, and found diffuse X-rays extending at least up to 15' (~ 17 pc) from the pulsar PSR J1826-1334. The spectra have no emission line, and are fitted with an absorbed power-law model. The X-rays, therefore, are likely due to synchrotron emission from a pulsar wind nebula. The photon index near at the pulsar (r 8.8 times 10^3 km s^{-1}.
Covalent Defects Restrict Supramolecular Self-Assembly of Homopolypeptides: Case Study of β2-Fibrils of Poly-L-Glutamic Acid

Poly-L-glutamic acid (PLGA) often serves as a model in studies on amyloid fibrils and conformational transitions in proteins, and as a precursor for synthetic biomaterials. Aggregation of PLGA chains and formation of amyloid-like fibrils was shown to continue on higher levels of superstructural self-assembly coinciding with the appearance of so-called β2-sheet conformation manifesting in dramatic redshift of infrared amide I′ band below 1600 cm−1. This spectral hallmark has been attributed to network of bifurcated hydrogen bonds coupling C = O and N-D (N-H) groups of the main chains to glutamate side chains. However, other authors reported that, under essentially identical conditions, PLGA forms the conventional in terms of infrared characteristics β1-sheet structure (exciton-split amide I′ band with peaks at ca. 1616 and 1683 cm−1). Here we attempt to shed light on this discrepancy by studying the effect of increasing concentration of intentionally induced defects in PLGA on the tendency to form β1/β2-type aggregates using infrared spectroscopy. We have employed carbodiimide-mediated covalent modification of Glu side chains with n-butylamine (NBA), as well as electrostatics-driven inclusion of polylysine chains, as two different ways to trigger structural defects in PLGA. Our study depicts a clear correlation between concentration of defects in PLGA and increasing tendency to depart from the β2-structure toward the one less demanding in terms of chemical uniformity of side chains: β1-structure. The varying predisposition to form β1- or β2-type aggregates assessed by infrared absorption was compared with the degree of morphological order observed in electron microscopy images. Our results are discussed in the context of latent covalent defects in homopolypeptides (especially with side chains capable of hydrogen-bonding) that could obscure their actual propensities to adopt different conformations, and limit applications in the field of synthetic biomaterials.
A Proteomic Analysis of Maize Chloroplast Biogenesis1

Proteomics studies to explore global patterns of protein expression in plant and green algal systems have proliferated within the past few years. Although most of these studies have involved mapping of the proteomes of various organs, tissues, cells, or organelles, comparative proteomics experiments have also led to the identification of proteins that change in abundance in various developmental or physiological contexts. Despite the growing use of proteomics in plant studies, questions of reproducibility have not generally been addressed, nor have quantitative methods been widely used, for example, to identify protein expression classes. In this report, we use the de-etiolation (“greening”) of maize (Zea mays) chloroplasts as a model system to explore these questions, and we outline a reproducible protocol to identify changes in the plastid proteome that occur during the greening process using techniques of two-dimensional gel electrophoresis and mass spectrometry. We also evaluate hierarchical and nonhierarchical statistical methods to analyze the patterns of expression of 526 “high-quality,” unique spots on the two-dimensional gels. We conclude that Adaptive Resonance Theory 2—a nonhierarchical, neural clustering technique that has not been previously applied to gene expression data—is a powerful technique for discriminating protein expression classes during greening. Our experiments provide a foundation for the use of proteomics in the design of experiments to address fundamental questions in plant physiology and molecular biology.
Web Privacy Measurement : Scientific principles , engineering platform , and new results Draft – Jun 1 , 2014

The results of web privacy measurement have been very influential in online privacy debates. As a research field, however, web privacy measurement is immature and fragmented, and has not yet acquired an identity as a unified discipline. There are significant scientific and engineering challenges but the solutions tend to be ad-hoc. We identify 32 web privacy measurement studies, cast them as instances of a generic experimental framework, and perform a thorough methodological analysis. We analyze design and implementation alternatives and make recommendations based on considerations of experimental rigor and engineering feasibility. Next, we present a flexible, modular web privacy measurement platform that supports any experiment that fits the framework. It is also highly scalable and avoids many common pitfalls. Finally, as a case study of our methods and infrastructure, we measure the “filter bubble”, i.e., the extent of personalization based on a user’s history, by crawling approximately 300,000 pages across nine news sites and present evidence that this personalization effect has been greatly overstated in the popular press.
Hybrid word-subword decoding for spoken term detection

This paper deals with a hybrid word-subword recognition system for spoken term detection. The decoding is driven by a hybrid recognition network and the decoder directly produces hybrid word-subword lattices. One phone and two multigram models were tested to represent sub-word units. The systems were evaluated in terms of spoken term detection accuracy and the size of index. We concluded that the best subword model for hybrid word-subword recognition is the multigram model trained on the word recognizer vocabulary. We achieved an improvement in word recognition accuracy, and in spoken term detection accuracy when in-vocabulary and out-of-vocabulary terms are searched separately. Spoken term detection accuracy with the full (in-vocabulary and out-of-vocabulary) term set was slightly worse but the required index size was significantly reduced.
Target of Rapamycin (TOR) in Nutrient Signaling and Growth Control

TOR (Target Of Rapamycin) is a highly conserved protein kinase that is important in both fundamental and clinical biology. In fundamental biology, TOR is a nutrient-sensitive, central controller of cell growth and aging. In clinical biology, TOR is implicated in many diseases and is the target of the drug rapamycin used in three different therapeutic areas. The yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae has played a prominent role in both the discovery of TOR and the elucidation of its function. Here we review the TOR signaling network in S. cerevisiae.
Acoustic Echo Cancellation: Dual Architecture Implementation

Problem statement: With the rise in mobile communication, it is becoming more frequent to use a communication device in an enclosed noisy environment, such as a subway or in a lobby. In this setting however, the received microphone is severely degraded by the echo from the speaker and background noise. The audio processing necessary to clarify the desired speech can be broken down into two parts, removal of the acoustic echo and removal of the background noise. Approach: This study proposed an ‘external-switched’ algorithm of a dual architecture implementation for acoustic echo cancellation. Using the orthogonality property of adaptive algorithms to detect convergence, two complete adaptive filters can be run in parallel to take advantage of each filter’s particular configuration. By configuring one filter for fast adaptation and the second for minimizing the steady state error, a system can be designed with the advantages of both without suffering from increased computational cost. Results: A slight performance improvement can be demonstrated with this system; however the greatest advantage is in the reduced filter size and calculation cost. Conclusion: This parallel approach is suitable for systems in which a single approach to acoustic echo cancellation is insufficient. Disadvantages of one algorithm can be mitigated by being able to switch to a more effective algorithm seamlessly.
Manipulation of the Working Memory Performance in Humans using Transcranial Alternating Current Stimulation over the Frontoparietal Network

The working memory (WM) is a key mechanism that ensures complex behavior in humans. It requires the bilateral activation of the fronto-parietal brain network and has been subdivided on the phonological loop, which processes numbers, semantics and auditory-verbal information, with lateralized activation towards the left hemisphere, and the visuo-spatial sketchpad, which mainly operates in the right hemisphere (Baddeley and Hitch 1974; Sauseng et al. 2005; Muller and Knight 2006; Baddeley 2012; Eriksson et al. 2015). This neural system maintains constant long-range communications within itself and with other cognitive systems through neuronal oscillations. This work aimed to show a causal relationship between visuo-spatial WM functions and the mechanism of fronto-parietal oscillatory connectivity – the theta phase coherence. To reach our aim, two experiments were conducted. Our first hypothesis was that the WM network operates by phase connectivity. The results of the electroencephalographic (EEG) experiment demonstrated significant theta coherence during the WM events. Our second hypothesis was that it would be feasible to interfere with the WM through bi-hemispheric transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS) and thus change phase connectivity. To show causal effects of theta coherence, behavioral changes in subjects under fronto-parietal theta-tACS bi-laterally, were analyzed. We found that desynchronization of theta phase relations in the fronto-parietal network led to an impairment in the WM performance. Synchronization of the fronto-parietal network had no significant effect on the group level, but individual analysis revealed a tendency for improvement of the WM for subjects with low baseline performance. These results show that optimally balanced theta coherence in the fronto-parietal network is a prerequisite for the ideal WM functions in humans.
New mathematical foundations for AI and Alife: Are the necessary conditions for animal consciousness sufficient for the design of intelligent machines?

Rodney Brooks' call for 'new mathematics' to revitalize the disciplines of artificial intelligence and artificial life can be answered by adaptation of what Adams has called 'the informational turn in philosophy', aided by the novel perspectives that program gives regarding empirical studies of animal cognition and consciousness. Going backward from the necessary conditions communication theory imposes on animal cognition and consciousness to sufficient conditions for machine design is, however, an extraordinarily difficult engineering task. The most likely use of the first generations of conscious machines will be to model the various forms of psychopathology, since we have little or no understanding of how consciousness is stabilized in humans or other animals.
Low-complexity probability generation algorithm for stochastic decoding of non-binary LDPC codes

Non-binary LDPC codes offer higher performances than their binary counterpart but suffer from highest decoding complexity. A solution to reduce the decoding complexity is the use of stochastic decoding algorithm, but the computational complexity of probability generation in the first step is very high. In this paper, we propose a simple method to fast generate the probability especially in high-order modulation schemes. Simulation results show that the proposed algorithm causes negligible performance degradation with reduction in computational complexity for stochastic decoding of non-binary LDPC codes, which gives some advantages in hardware implementation of the decoders.
A Systematic Review of Smoking Cessation Interventions for Adults in Substance Abuse Treatment or Recovery

Introduction: The aim was to evaluate the effectiveness of smoking cessation interventions for patients with substance use disorders. The secondary aim was to evaluate impact on substance use treatment outcomes. Methods: Randomized controlled trials involving adult smokers, recently or currently receiving inpatient or outpatient treatment for substance use disorders were reviewed. Databases, grey literature, reference lists, and journals were searched for relevant studies between 1990 and August 2014. Two authors extracted data and assessed quality. The primary outcome was biochemically verified continuous abstinence from smoking at 6 or 12 months, secondary outcomes were biochemically verified 7-day point prevalence smoking abstinence (PPA) at 6 or 12 months and substance use outcomes. Heterogeneity between studies precluded pooled analyses of the data. Results: Seventeen of 847 publications were included. Five studies reported significant effects on smoking cessation: (1) nicotine patches improved continuous abstinence at 6 months; (2) nicotine gum improved continuous abstinence at 12 months; (3) counseling, contingency management and relapse prevention improved continuous abstinence at 6 and 12 months; (4) cognitive behavioral therapy, plus nicotine replacement therapy (NRT), improved PPA at 6 months; and (5) a combination of bupropion, NRT, counseling and contingency management improved PPA at 6 months. Two studies showed some evidence of improved substance use outcomes with the remaining eight studies measuring substance use outcomes showing no difference. Conclusions: NRT, behavioral support, and combination approaches appear to increase smoking abstinence in those treated for substance use disorders. Higher quality studies are required to strengthen the evidence base.
Economic Evaluation of Brief Psychodynamic Interpersonal Therapy in Patients with Multisomatoform Disorder

Background A brief psychodynamic interpersonal therapy (PIT) in patients with multisomatoform disorder has been recently shown to improve health-related quality of life. Aims To assess cost-effectiveness of PIT compared to enhanced medical care in patients with multisomatoform disorder. Method An economic evaluation alongside a randomised controlled trial (International Standard Randomised Controlled Trial Number ISRCTN23215121) conducted in 6 German academic outpatient centres was performed. Incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER) was calculated from the statutory health insurance perspective on the basis of quality adjusted life years (QALYs) gained at 12 months. Uncertainty surrounding the cost-effectiveness of PIT was presented by means of a cost-effectiveness acceptability curve. Results Based on the complete-case analysis ICER was 41840 Euro per QALY. The results did not change greatly with the use of multiple imputation (ICER = 44222) and last observation carried forward (LOCF) approach to missing data (ICER = 46663). The probability of PIT being cost-effective exceeded 50% for thresholds of willingness to pay over 35 thousand Euros per QALY. Conclusions Cost-effectiveness of PIT is highly uncertain for thresholds of willingness to pay under 35 thousand Euros per QALY.
Purificação, caracterização estrutural e funcional da lectina do veneno de Bothrops leucurus: Modulação de eventos citotóxicos após a irradiação gamma

Lectins are proteins or glycoproteins of nonimmune origin which specific and reversible binding to carbohydrates resultins in cell clumps. Bothrops leucurus, Family Viperidae snake, represents a serious medical problem for the Northeast region of Brazil. A galactoside-binding lectin (BlL) was purified from the venom of Bothrops leucurus through a combination of affinity chromatography and gel filtration. BlL agglutinate rabbit erythrocytes and human, with a preference for rabbit erythrocytes and is specifically inhibited by galactose, raffinose and lactose, as well as glycoproteins. BlL is an acid protein with a molecular mass of 30 kDa and composed of two subunits of 15 kDa, exhibited dependence on divalent cations, was especially active at pH 4.0 to 7.0 and heat stable up to 70°C. The emission spectra of tryptophan fluorescence showed residue completely buried in its structure. Circular Dichroism BlL was typical of an entire protein β structure. BlL was show to be effective against gram-positive bacteria (Staphylococcus aureus, Enterococcus faecalis e Bacillus subtilis). Antitumor activity of BlL was assessed in relation to their cytotoxic potential in type of tumor (K562, Hep-2 e NCI-H292) and the its hemolytic capacity. BlL showed a significant cytotoxic activity in all tumor cell lines tested and showed no hemolytic activity at maximum concentration tested (2000 μg/mL). Furthermore, it was held in K562 cells, analysis of externalization of phosphatidylserine and mitochondrial membrane potential using fluorescence microscope. BlL treatment induced phosphatidylserine externalization and mitochondrial depolarization, indicating cell death by apoptosis. After gamma irradiation, BlL showed structural changes and its hemagglutinating activity was significantly altered. SDS-PAGE indicated that irradiation caused fragmentation and subsequent aggregation of the lectin. The analysis in reverse-phase chromatography revealed structural fragmentation. Cytotoxic activity in tumor cell lines BlL (K562, Hep-2 e NCI-H292) was abolished after irradiation, indicating that the irradiation of BlL proved an efficient strategy for inactivating their cytotoxic activity. These findings demonstrate that the venom contains a B. leucurus galactoside-binding lectin with promising potential for therapeutic and biotechnological application.
Towards security metrics-supported IP traceback

The threat of DDOS and other cyberattacks has increased during the last decade. In addition to the radical increase in the number of attacks, they are also becoming more sophisticated with the targets ranging from ordinary users to service providers and even critical infrastructure. According to some resources, the sophistication of attacks is increasing faster than the mitigating actions against them. For example determining the location of the attack origin is becoming impossible as cyber attackers employ specific means to evade detection of the attack origin by default, such as using proxy services and source address spoofing. The purpose of this paper is to initiate discussion about effective Internet Protocol traceback mechanisms that are needed to overcome this problem. We propose an approach for traceback that is based on extensive use of security metrics before (proactive) and during (reactive) the attacks.
Cardiovascular MRI in Detection and Measurement of Aortic Atheroma in Stroke/TIA patients

Background Aortic Atheroma (AoA) is an independent risk factor for new and recurrent stroke. AoA ulceration and mobility are associated with an increased risk for brain embolism. Transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) is the gold standard for detection and measurement of AoA in stroke/TIA patients. Cardiovascular MRI (cMRI) could be an alternative, non-invasive imaging modality for stroke/TIA patients. The objective of this study was to assess the accuracy and correlation of AoA detected and measured by cMRI versus TEE in patients with recent stroke/TIA. Methods and results Twenty-two stroke/TIA patients undergoing TEE as a part of their stroke workup consented to a protocol-mandated cMRI performed on a 1.5 T magnet. The protocol included an axial non-breathhold EKG-gated dual-echo spin echo MRI of the thoracic aorta (TR/TE1/TE2=900/29/69) and a contrast-enhanced breathhold 3D gradient-echo image of the thorax (flip/TR/TE=12/4.0/1.71). Maximum plaque thickness, ulceration (≥ 2 mm) and mobility of AoA were assessed in the proximal (ascending and proximal arch) and distal (distal arch and descending) segments of thoracic aorta by a cardiologist to interpret the TEE and a radiologist to interpret the cMRI. There was good correlation between cMRI and TEE in measurement of plaque thickness in the proximal segments (R=0.73, p<0.0001) and the distal segments (R=0.81, p<0.0001) of the aortic arch (AA). cMRI had a high degree of accuracy in detecting measurable AoA (≥ 1 mm) in the proximal segments (sensitivity 90%, specificity 100%), as well as the distal segments (sensitivity 67%, specificity 100%). cMRI also had a high degree of accuracy in detecting significant AoA (≥ 4 mm) in proximal segments (sensitivity 71%, specificity 93%), as well as distal segments (sensitivity 71%, specificity 100%). Conclusion The study showed a high degree of accuracy and correlation of AoA detected and measured by cMRI as compared to TEE in patients with recent stroke/TIA. This technique has limitations in detection of AoA ulceration, and protocols assessing AoA mobility need to be developed.
Adaptive temporal sampling for real-time human action recognition

A new temporal sampling method for human action recognition using depth maps is proposed. The depth map frames are projected onto three orthogonal Cartesian planes respectively and the absolute difference between two successive projected ones is stacked to form the motion energy. Three sub-action frame sequences are selected accordingly, which constructs Adaptive Temporal Sampling (ATS) descriptor, capturing the dynamic features of one action. In order to represent the static features, the Depth Static Map (DSM) is adopted to constitute ATS-DSM descriptor. An l2-regularized collaborative representation classifier is applied. The developed approach is proven to be computationally efficient and the experimental results on the testing dataset outperform the state-of-the-art performance.