Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Can virtual reality predict body part discomfort and performance of people in realistic world for assembling tasks?

This paper presents our work on relationship of evaluation results between virtual environment (VE) and realistic environment (RE) for assembling tasks. Evaluation results consist of subjective results (BPD and RPE) and objective results (posture and physical performance). Same tasks were performed with same experimental configurations and evaluation results were measured in RE and VE respectively. Then these evaluation results were compared. Slight difference of posture between VE and RE was found but not great difference of effect on people according to conventional ergonomics posture assessment method. Correlation of BPD and performance results between VE and RE are found by linear regression method. Moreover, results of BPD, physical performance, and RPE in VE are higher than that in RE with significant difference. Furthermore, these results indicates that subjects feel more discomfort and fatigue in VE than RE because of additional effort required in VE.
Evaluating authoritative sources using social networks: an insight from Wikipedia

– The purpose of this paper is to present an approach to evaluating contributions in collaborative authoring environments, and in particular, Wikis using social network measures. , – A social network model for Wikipedia has been constructed, and metrics of importance such as centrality have been defined. Data has been gathered from articles belonging to the same topic using a web crawler, in order to evaluate the outcome of the social network measures in the articles. , – Finds that the question of the reliability regarding Wikipedia content is a challenging one and as Wikipedia grows, the problem becomes more demanding, especially for topics with controversial views such as politics or history. , – It is believed that the approach presented here could be used to improve the authoritativeness of content found in Wikipedia and similar sources. , – This work tries to develop a network approach to the evaluation of Wiki contributions, and approaches the problem of quality Wikipedia content from a social network point of view.
An Automated System for Measuring Similarity between Software Requirements

Recently, usage of text similarity has increased rapidly to be involved in different areas such as document clustering, information retrieval, short answer grading, text summarization, machine learning and natural language processing. Lexical-based similarity and semantic-based similarity are the two main categories of text similarity. Reusability of software components increases productivity and quality. In this paper, we propose that there is some linkage between text similarity and software reusability. In an organization, whenever a new incoming project is received, similarity test can be done to identify some similar projects and therefore some components to be reused such as design, code and test cases instead of starting building software from scratch. In this paper, we present an interactive system to measure the lexical similarity between a new incoming project and a set of completed projects exist in the repository and therefore identify some components to be reused.
The Role of Rural Producer Organizations for Agricultural Service Provision in Fragile States

This article assesses the extent of external linkages and the provision of agricultural services by rural producer organizations in a post-conflict setting. Using new survey data collected by the International Food Policy Research Institute in three provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, this study finds that various internal and external factors affect the capacity of organizations to interact with external organizations. External linkages, ability to collect financial support from their members, management capacity, and formal governance structures all contribute to explaining relative performance in agricultural service delivery. We also find that exogenous events affect the relative performance of rural producer organizations. Our results suggest that closeness to conflict reduces the capacity of producer organizations to provide agricultural services.
Multiple distance sensors based smart stick for visually impaired people

In this paper, we present a novel low-cost yet durable and accurate smart stick to assist visually impaired people while they walk in indoor/outdoor unstructured environments. There is a large group of people who have difficulties in their daily routine work due to losing their eyesight. Walking with confidence is one of them which may have different challenges in different environments/countries. We have considered Indian context where outdoor environments are often clustered and noisy. Keeping these challenges in mind, a new smart stick is developed which is capable of detecting obstacles of any height in front or slightly sideways of the person. The stick gives a fair idea about the distance and the location of obstacles through vibration in hand and audio in the ear of the person. The wireless connection has been set up using Bluetooth between the earphone and the stick. Different frequencies of the generated vibration and different tracks of the audio alert the person about the distance of the obstacle. Real-time experiments have been conducted in different environments by different people to observe the accuracy of the stick and results are quite encouraging.
GraQL: A Query Language for High-Performance Attributed Graph Databases

Graph databases are becoming a critical tool for the analysis of graph-structured data in the context of multiple scientific and technical domains, including cybersecurity and computational biology. In particular, the storage, analysis and querying of attributed graphs is a very important capability. Attributed graphs contain properties attached to the vertices and edges of the graph structure. Queries over attributed graphs do not only include structural pattern matching, but also conditions over the values of the attributes. In this work, we present GraQL, a query language designed for high-performance attributed graph databases hosted on a high memory capacity cluster. GraQL is designed to be the front-end language for the attributed graph data model for the GEMS database system.
A Structural Equations Modeling of purchasing decision through e-commerce

The purpose of the study is to explore the factors influencing customer buying decision through Intern et shopping. Several factors such as information quali ty, firm’s reputation, perceived ease of payment, s ites design, benefit of online shopping, and trust that influence customer decision to purchase from e-commerce sites were analyzed. Factors such as those mention ed above, which are commonly considered influencing purhasing decision through online shopping in other countries were hypothesized to be true in the case of Indonesia. A random sample comprised of 171 Indonesian people who have been buying goods/services through e-commerce sites at least once, were collec ted via online questionnaires. To test the hypothes is, the data were examined using Structural Equations Modeling (SEM) which is basically a combination of Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA), and linear Regression. The results suggest that information qualit y, perceived ease of payment, benefits of online shopp ing, and trust affect online purchase decision significantly. Close attention need to be placed on these factors to increase online sales. The most significant influence comes from trust. Indonesian people still lack of trust toward online commerce, so it is very important to gain customer trust to increase s ales. E-commerce’s business owners are encouraged to develop sites that can meet the expectation of pote ntial customer, provides ease of payment system, pr ovide detailed and actual information and responsible for customer personal information and transaction reco rds. This paper outlined the key factors influencing onl ine shopping intention in Indonesia and pioneered t he building of an integrated research framework to und erstand how consumers make purchase decision toward online shopping; a relatively new way of shopping i n the country.
Direct Succession CEO Name Start / End Tenure Years Tenure Tenure Midpoint Transition Year Timeline

This paper presents a method for incrementally constructing CEO succession timelines via a cascade of minimally supervised information synthesis components. Results from multiple documents are combined using a CRF fusion method. The system demonstrates that with minimal training on the target domain, the presence of redundant information allows for the synthesis of networks of interrelated facts from text.
The Economic Lives of People with Disabilities in Vietnam

Through a series of focus group discussions conducted in northern and central Vietnam, this study gives voice to the lived economic experience of families with disabilities and how they manage the economic challenges associated with disability. The dynamic of low and unstable income combined with on-going health care and other disability-related costs gives rise to a range of coping mechanisms (borrowing, reducing and foregoing expenditures, drawing upon savings and substituting labour) that helps to maintain living standards in the short-run yet threatens the longer-term welfare of both the individual with disability and their household. Current social protection programs were reported as not accessible to all and while addressing some immediate economic costs of disability, do not successfully meet current needs nor accommodate wider barriers to availing benefits.
HCV Core Residues Critical for Infectivity Are Also Involved in Core-NS5A Complex Formation

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is a major cause of liver disease. The molecular machinery of HCV assembly and particle release remains obscure. A better understanding of the assembly events might reveal new potential antiviral strategies. It was suggested that the nonstructural protein 5A (NS5A), an attractive recent drug target, participates in the production of infectious particles as a result of its interaction with the HCV core protein. However, prior to the present study, the NS5A-binding site in the viral core remained unknown. We found that the D1 domain of core contains the NS5A-binding site with the strongest interacting capacity in the basic P38-K74 cluster. We also demonstrated that the N-terminal basic residues of core at positions 50, 51, 59 and 62 were required for NS5A binding. Analysis of all substitution combinations of R50A, K51A, R59A, and R62A, in the context of the HCVcc system, showed that single, double, triple, and quadruple mutants were fully competent for viral RNA replication, but deficient in secretion of viral particles. Furthermore, we found that the extracellular and intracellular infectivity of all the mutants was abolished, suggesting a defect in the formation of infectious particles. Importantly, we showed that the interaction between the single and quadruple core mutants and NS5A was impaired in cells expressing full-length HCV genome. Interestingly, mutations of the four basic residues of core did not alter the association of core or NS5A with lipid droplets. This study showed for the first time that basic residues in the D1 domain of core that are critical for the formation of infectious extracellular and intracellular particles also play a role in core-NS5A interactions.
Quantifying levels of biological invasion: towards the objective classification of invaded and invasible ecosystems

Biological invasions are a global phenomenon that threatens biodiversity, and few, if any, ecosystems are free from alien species. The outcome of human‐mediated introductions is affected by the invasiveness of species and invasibility of ecosystems, but research has primarily focused on defining, characterizing and identifying invasive species; ecosystem invasibility has received much less attention. A prerequisite for characterizing invasibility is the ability to compare levels of invasion across ecosystems. In this paper, we aim to identify the best way to quantify the level of invasion by nonnative animals and plants by reviewing the advantages and disadvantages of different metrics. We explore how interpretation and choice of these measures can depend on the objective of a study or management intervention. Based on our review, we recommend two invasion indices and illustrate their use by applying them to two case studies. Relative alien species richness and relative alien species abundance indicate the contribution that alien species make to a community. They are easy to measure, can be applied to various taxa, are independent of scale and are comparable across regions and ecosystems, and historical data are often available. The relationship between relative alien richness and abundance can indicate the presence of dominant alien species and the trajectory of invasion over time, and can highlight ecosystems and sites that are heavily invaded or especially susceptible to invasion. Splitting species into functional groups and examining invasion patterns of transformer species may be particularly instructive for gauging effects of alien invasion on ecosystem structure and function. Establishing standard, transparent ways to define and quantify invasion level will facilitate meaningful comparisons among studies, ecosystem types and regions. It is essential for progress in ecology and will help guide ecosystem restoration and management.
Barriers to successful implementation of prevention-of-mother-to-child-transmission (PMTCT) of HIV programmes in Malawi and Nigeria: a critical literature review study

Mother-to-child-transmission (MTCT) of HIV still remains a significant route of new HIV infection in children in Malawi and Nigeria, despite the introduction of Prevention-of-Mother-to-Child-Transmission (PMTCT) of HIV programmes in both countries. A critical literature review, based on the findings from 12 primary research articles, explores the reasons for the inadequacy and failure of PMTCT. Findings show socioeconomic and sociocultural factors as the biggest barriers to the success of PMTCT programmes. Other factors include: limited male involvement, the organization of PMTCT and health workers’ inefficiency. In conclusion, PMTCT programmes will remain inefficient unless these factors are addressed. There is an urgent need to strengthen PMTCT programmes by stakeholders through a collaborative strategic effort to ensure high PMTCT programme uptake in Malawi and Nigeria, in order to eliminate HIV/AIDS in children.
Hand-grasping and finger tapping induced similar functional near-infrared spectroscopy cortical responses

Abstract. Despite promising advantages such as low cost and portability of functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS), it has yet to be widely implemented outside of basic research. Specifically, fNIRS has yet to be proven as a standalone tool within a clinical setting. The objective of this study was to assess hemodynamic concentration changes at the primary and premotor motor cortices as a result of simple whole-hand grasping and sequential finger-opposition (tapping) tasks. These tasks were repeated over 3 days in a randomized manner. Ten healthy young adults (23.8±4.8 years) participated in the study. Quantitatively, no statistically significant differences were discovered between the levels of activation for the two motor tasks (p>0.05). Overall, the signals were consistent across all 3 days. The findings show that both finger-opposition and hand grasping can be used interchangeably in fNIRS for assessment of motor function which would be useful in further advancing techniques for clinical implementation.
Nucleosynthesis from massive stars 50 years after B2FH

We review some important observed properties of massive stars. Then we discuss how mass loss and rotation affect their evolu- tion and help in giving better fits to observational constraints. Conse- quences for nucleosynthesis at different metallicities are discussed. Mass loss appear to be the key feature at high metallicity, while ro- tation is likely dominant at low and very low metallicities. We discuss various indications supporting the view that very metal poor stars had their evolution strongly affected by rotational mixing. Many features, like the origin of primary nitrogen at low metallicity, that of the C-rich extremely metal poor halo stars, of He-rich stars in massive globular clusters, of the O-Na anticorrelation in globular clusters may be related to the existence of a population of very fast rotating metal poor stars that we tentatively call the spinstars. A fraction of these spinstars may also be the progenitors of GRB in very metal poor regions. They may avoid pair instability explosion due to the heavy mass loss under- gone during their early evolutionary phases and be, dependent on their frequency, important sources of ionising photons in the early Universe.
“ Typing ” passwords with voice recognition : How to authenticate to Google Glass

Augmented-reality glasses like Google Glass present a new set of user-interface trade-offs which must be carefully considered in crafting user authentication protocols. First, it lacks a keyboard or touchscreen; second, the most prominent input mechanisms, voice recognition and a swipe sensor, are both easily observable by bystanders and thus are not suitable for password entry. Fortunately, these devices offer a private display that cannot easily be viewed by bystanders, and which helps in constructing secure user authentication. In this position paper we will outline problems and possible solutions for authentication on augmented-reality glasses.
Jury statement

Seventeen projects were selected by our jury from the 68 entries originally submitted. This year's selections continue to " raise the bar " of creative and technological excellence that is the hallmark of Enhanced Realities. While we used the same two-step jury process (screening and finals), each of us on the jury employed our own criteria for grading the submissions. In selecting the jury, the chair astutely combined industry professionals from research, artistic, and production backgrounds , which gave rise to some lively discussions and piercing insights. I evaluated the projects using the following criteria: • The level of innovation • The strength of the idea • The quality of the content and implementation • Audience appeal • Significance and potential influence Level of Innovation Certainly the most common question asked by the jury was: " What is the innovative or groundbreaking technology demonstrated here? " Submissions such as Object-Oriented Displays managed to communicate an impressive level of innovation by using a series of diagrams to describe the technology in detail, indicating what the components were and how they were configured. Another project appeared to be based on the same level of innovative research. The jury was very interested and wanted it to be included in the ranks of the winners, but we had to give it a failing grade because it was so poorly documented. It lacked accompanying images, video, or Web site, so we couldn't reasonably take the risk of including it. Ten percent of the submissions were disqualified because of lack of documentation. There is a saying that computer graphics are the solution to a nonexistent problem. I, however, was completely moved when I came across submissions with strong ideas and real resonance. Stretchable Music with Laser Range Finder is one such project. Participants create music by moving their hands to stretch and distort graphics that in turn control different sounds, rhythms, and patterns. By incorporating an innovative laser hand tracker and superb programming, the effect is seamless, intuitive, and very satisfying. Other ideas were strong partly because they were so " simple. " inTouch, for example, did not demonstrate breakthrough technology. Rather, its strength was its unabashed response to a basic human need for tactile communication between two people separated by distance. I looked for content that was not only engaging and beautiful, but offered something beyond the expected. For example, Media & Mythology uses role-playing …
A Phosphoinositide 3-Kinase/Phospholipase Cgamma1 Pathway Regulates Fibroblast Growth Factor-Induced Capillary Tube Formation

Background The fibroblast growth factors (FGFs) are key regulators of embryonic development, tissue homeostasis and tumour angiogenesis. Binding of FGFs to their receptor(s) results in activation of several intracellular signalling cascades including phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K) and phospholipase C (PLC)γ1. Here we investigated the basic FGF (FGF-2)-mediated activation of these enzymes in human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) and defined their role in FGF-2-dependent cellular functions. Methodology/Principal Findings We show that FGF-2 activates PLCγ1 in HUVECs measured by analysis of total inositol phosphates production upon metabolic labelling of cells and intracellular calcium increase. We further demonstrate that FGF-2 activates PI3K, assessed by analysing accumulation of its lipid product phosphatidylinositol-3,4,5-P3 using TLC and confocal microscopy analysis. PI3K activity is required for FGF-2-induced PLCγ1 activation and the PI3K/PLCγ1 pathway is involved in FGF-2-dependent cell migration, determined using Transwell assay, and in FGF-2-induced capillary tube formation (tubulogenesis assays in vitro). Finally we show that PI3K-dependent PLCγ1 activation regulates FGF-2-mediated phosphorylation of Akt at its residue Ser473, determined by Western blotting analysis. This occurs through protein kinase C (PKC)α activation since dowregulation of PKCα expression using specific siRNA or blockade of its activity using chemical inhibition affects the FGF-2-dependent Ser473 Akt phosphorylation. Furthermore inhibition of PKCα blocks FGF-2-dependent cell migration. Conclusion/Significance These data elucidate the role of PLCγ1 in FGF-2 signalling in HUVECs demonstrating its key role in FGF-2-dependent tubulogenesis. Furthermore these data unveil a novel role for PLCγ1 as a mediator of PI3K-dependent Akt activation and as a novel key regulator of different Akt-dependent processes.
Automatic Characterization of Dynamics and Articulation of Expressive Monophone Recordings

We describe a method to automatically extract a set of features from the audio signal that are related to musical expressivity, more concretely to dynamics and articulation. We define a description scheme based on intra-note segmentation into attack, sustain, release and transition segments, and a subsequent amplitude and pitch contour characterization. Then, we present a series of algorithms to automatically perform intra-note segmentation and extract some features related to expressivity. We evaluate the performance of the methods for intra-note segmentation and feature extraction over a saxophone database of jazz standards and other recordings presenting expressive resources. Finally, we propose some future work and applications.
Usage based Indexing of Web Resources with Natural Language Processing

Due to the huge amount of available information via Internet, the identification of reliable and interesting items becomes more and more difficult and time consuming. This paper is a position paper describing our intended work in the framework of multimedia information retrieval by browsing techniques within web navigation. It relies on a usage-based indexing of resources: we ignore the nature, the content and the structure of resources. We describe a new approach taking advantage of the similarity between statistical modeling of language and document retrieval systems. A syntax of usage is computed that designs a Statistical Grammar of Usage (SGU). A SGU enables resources classification to perform a personalized navigation assistant tool. It relies both on collaborative filtering to compute virtual communities of users and a new distance dependent trigger model. The resulting SGU is a community dependent SGU.