Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Merging Classifiers of Different Classification Approaches

Classification approaches, e.g. Decision trees or Naive Bayesian classifiers, are often tightly coupled to learning strategies, special data structures, the type of information captured, and to how common problems, e.g. Over fitting, are addressed. This prevents a simple combination of classifiers of different classification approaches learned over different data sets. Many different methods of combining classification models have been proposed. However, most of them are based on a combination of the actual result of classification rather then producing a new, possibly more accurate, classifier capturing the combined classification information. In this paper we propose a new general approach to combining different classification models based on a concept of Decision Algebra which provides a unified formalization of classification approaches as higher order decision functions. It defines a general combining operation, referred to as merge operation, abstracting from implementation details of different classifiers. We show that the combination of a series of probably accurate decision functions (regardless of the actual implementation) is even more accurate. This can be exploited, e.g., For distributed learning and for efficient general online learning. We support our results by combining a series of decision graphs and Naive Bayesian classifiers learned from random samples of the data sets. The result shows that on each step the accuracy of the combined classifier increases, with a total accuracy growth of up to 17%.
Cs 598csc: Combinatorial Optimization

Roughly speaking, an optimization problem has the following outline: given an instance of the problem, find the “best” solution among all solutions to the given instance. We will be mostly interested in discrete optimization problems where the instances and the solution set for each instance is from a discrete set. This is in contrast to continuous optimization where the input instance and the solution set for an instance can come from a continuous domain. Some of these distinctions are not as clear-cut as linear programming shows. We assume familiarity with the computational complexity classes P , NP , coNP . In this class we are mainly interested in polynomial time solvable “combinatorial” optimization problems. Combinatorial optimization problems are a subset of discrete optimization problems although there is no formal definition for them. A typical problem in combinatorial optimization has a ground set E of objects and solutions correspond to some subsets of 2E (the power set of E) and a typical goal is to find either a maximum or minimum weight solution for some given weights on E. For example, in the spanning tree problem, the ground set E is the set of edges of a graph G = (V,E) and the solutions are subsets of E that correspond to spanning trees in G. We will be interested in NP optimization problems – NPO problems for short. Formally, a problem Q is a subset of Σ∗, where Σ is a finite alphabet such as binary. Each string I in Q is an instance of Q. For a string x we use |x| to denote its length. We say that Q is an NPO problem if the following hold:
Establishing the role of tyrosine kinase 2 in cancer

Tyrosine kinase 2 (TYK2) is a member of the Janus family of non-receptor tyrosine kinases involved in cytokine signaling. TYK2 deficiency is associated with increased susceptibility to mycobacterial and viral infections, hyper IgE syndrome as well as with allergic asthma. However the precise role of TYK2 in oncogenesis and tumor progression is not clear yet. Tyk2-deficient mice are prone to develop tumors because they lack efficient cytotoxic CD8+ T-cell antitumor responses as a result of deficient Type I interferon signaling. However, as TYK2 functions downstream of growth factor receptors that are often hyperactivated in cancer, inhibiting TYK2 might also have beneficial effects for cancer treatment.
Multistep Monotone Recursive Methods

A powerful new class of monotone recursive methods is described for studying the existence, characterization, and computation of recursive competitive equilibrium in a large class of in…nite horizon economies with capital, production, public policy, behavioral heterogeneity, and incomplete markets. The analysis combines aspects of topology in normal cones, lattice theory, and interval analysis. The methods are multistep in the sense that recursive equilibrium are computed using compositions of …xed point operators. The class of economies studied covers many situations where traditional monotone map methods (e.g, Coleman [19] and related constructions) can not be applied, and includes models such as the model of Bewley [12] and Krusell and Smith [50]. The methods are constructive and combine aspects of topological and lattice theoretic …xed point theory. Discussions of the implications for characterizing the accuracy of of numerical solutions to the class of economies is discussed, and some basic comparative statics results are provided.
Public Perception of Population Health Risks in Canada: Health Hazards and Sources of Information

ABSTRACT A national survey of health risk perception among 1,503 Canadians was conducted in 2004. The current survey follows-up a previous national survey conducted in 1992 and documents changes in risk perception since that time and investigates new risk issues not previously examined. This article presents a description of the ratings of perceived risk of thirty specific hazards to the Canadian population, sources of information about health issues and risk, and confidence in these information sources. Of the specific hazards considered, behavioral risks such as cigarette smoking, obesity, and unprotected sex were seen to present the greatest risk to the health of Canadians. Hazards related to the social environment (e.g., homelessness, street crime, unemployment) were seen as posing moderately high health risks. Medical devices or therapies (e.g., prescription drugs, vaccines, laser eye surgery) tended to rank the lowest in terms of health risk. Women, older respondents, and those with less education reported risks as being higher than men, younger respondents, and those with more education respectively. Large geographical differences in risk perception were also observed. Participants described receiving “a lot” of information from the news media, medical doctors, and the Internet but reported the greatest amount of confidence in medical doctors, university scientists/scientific journals, and health brochures/pamphlets.
Diluted hydrochloric acid generates larger radiofrequency ablation lesions in excised porcine livers.

PURPOSE This study evaluated the influence of continuous infusion of diluted hydrochloric acid during radiofrequency ablation (RFA) on the size of ablated lesions. MATERIALS AND METHODS Experiments were performed in 20 excised porcine livers using three different treatment modalities: (1) normal saline-enhanced RFA (NS-RFA), which was normal saline pumped into ablated tissue during RFA; (2) diluted hydrochloric acid ablation (DHAA), which was 3 mol/L diluted hydrochloric acid (HCl) injected into hepatic tissue without RFA; and (3) HCl-enhanced RFA (HCl-RFA), which was 3 mol/L diluted HCl continuously infused into ablated tissue during RFA. We produced 20 HCl-RFA and NS-RFA lesions, respectively, using a monopolar perfusion electrode connected to a commercially available radiofrequency generator, and 20 DHAA lesions using an 18-gauge Chiba needle. The ablated lesions were evaluated both macroscopically and histologically. Dimensions of lesions were compared among HCl-RFA, NS-RFA, and DHAA. RESULTS The ablated lesions had an elliptical-like shape and were well-demarcated with normal liver tissue. The mean volume, longitudinal diameter, and transverse diameter of NS-RFA lesions were 11.24±0.29 cm(3), 3.4±0.07 cm, and 2.48±0.03 cm, those of HCl-RFA lesions were 58.14±3.05 cm(3), 5.51±0.05 cm, and 4.49±0.11 cm, and those of DHAA lesions were 4.41±0.16 cm(3), 2.43±0.08 cm, and 1.8±0.03 cm, respectively. The mean dimensions of HCl-RFA lesions were the largest among the three types of ablation (P < 0.001). CONCLUSION Under the present experimental conditions, the continuous infusion of diluted HCl during RFA can generate larger ablated lesions than NS-RFA or DHAA in excised porcine livers.
Phronesis and the Knowledge-Action Gap in Moral Psychology and Moral Education: A New Synthesis?

This article has two aims. First, to offer a critical review of the literatures on two well-known single-component solutions to the problem of a gap between moral knowledge and moral action: moral identity and moral emotions. Second, to take seriously the rising interest in Aristotle-inspired virtue ethics and character development within the social sciences: approaches that seem to assume that the development of phronesis (practical wisdom) bridges the gap in question. Since phronesis is a multicomponent construct, the latter part of this article offers an overview of what those different components would be, as a necessary precursor to operationalising them if the phronesis hypothesis were to be subjected to empirical scrutiny. The idea of a neo-Aristotelian multicomponent solution to the “gappiness problem” invites comparisons with another multicomponent candidate, the neo-Kohlbergian four-component model, with which it shares at least surface similarities. Some space is thus devoted to the proposed theoretical uniqueness of a phronesis-based multicomponent model vis-à-vis the neo-Kohlbergian one. Our main conclusion is that – weaknesses in its developmental psychological grounding notwithstanding – operationalising the phronesis model for the purposes of instrument design and empirical inquiry would be a feasible and potentially productive enterprise.
Response to the letter: role of remote ischemic preconditioning against acute mountain sickness during early phase by Sikri and Chawla

We thank Dr. Sikri and Dr. Chawla for their interest in our study. The severity and incidence of AMS were quantified by using the Lake Louise scoring protocol and the AMS-C score of the Environmental Symptom Questionnaire. Subjects were classified as AMS positive with a Lake Louise score ≥5 in combination with an AMS-C score ≥0.70 when headache was present. This approach identifies clinically relevant AMS and increases the specificity in the diagnosis of AMS. Although a Lake Louise score ≥3 points in combination with headache indicates AMS as defined by the Lake Louise Consensus Group (Roach et al. 1993), substantially less than 50% of the mountaineers consider themselves to be sick when fulfilling this criterion score (Bartsch et al. 2004). Applying a Lake Louise score ≥3 points for diagnosing AMS in our study (Berger et al. 2015) increases the incidence from 21% to 57% at 5 h and from 43% to 79% at 18 h in the non-preconditioned control group. In the preconditioned group the incidence would increase from 7% to 29% at 5 h and from 43% to 93% at 18 h, respectively. The differences between the preconditioned and the non-preconditioned group fail statistical significance at both 5 h (P = 0.13) and 18 h (P = 0.3). At 8 h remote ischemic preconditioning had no significant effect on the severity of AMS (Lake Louise score: 3.2 ± 0.6 vs. 4.5 ± 0.6, P = 0.15; AMS-C score: 0.9 ± 0.2 vs. 1.2 ± 0.2, P = 0.14). However, we hesitate to interpret this finding as demonstration for a RIPC-induced biphasic protection. As outlined in the article it is not possible to blind subjects to the application of RIPC. Therefore, we cannot exclude that a placebo effect prevented perception of mild symptoms of AMS in the early hours and caused a delayed onset of AMS after the preconditioning stimulus. Studies lasting longer than 18 h are necessary for testing whether remote preconditioning merely delays the onset of AMS or whether a biphasic pattern with a delayed second protective phase after 24 h as suggested by Bolli (2000) accounts for the observed results.
Multi-buffer manager: Energy-efficient buffer manager for databases on flash memory

Embedded devices such as personal digital assistants (PDAs), pocket PCs, palmtops, and handheld PCs are increasingly using flash memory for the permanent storage of databases. Databases achieve their fast data access speeds by using a memory manager that manages data pages in a memory buffer. The buffer manager uses a page replacement policy to evict pages when the memory buffer is full. An eviction of a dirty page will result in a write to flash memory. Unfortunately, writing to flash memory consumes a lot more energy than reading. Much of the previous work in page replacement policies has focused on reducing the number of page reads rather than writes. One of the few existing works to consider the effects of flash memory's hardware constraints for database design is Lee et. al.'s in-page Logging (IPL) approach [Lee and Moon 2007]. They demonstrated IPL significantly outperforms traditional disk-based databases when running on flash memory. However, they do not consider the energy efficiency of their approach in terms of the behavior of the page replacement policy. This article addresses this issue by presenting the Multi-Buffer Manager, which is customized for flash databases that use a logging-based approach for managing updates such as IPL. Extensive experiments show the page replacement policy used plays a pivotal role in the performance of the flash database system. In particular, our Multi-Buffer Manager can reduce energy consumption by up to 40% compared to the state-of-the-art clean first flash-based buffer replacement policy (CFLRU).
Comparison of artificial neural networks and stochastic models in river discharge forecasting, (Case study: Ghara- Aghaj River, Fars Province, Iran)

This study presents the application and comparison of artificial neural networks (ANN) and Stochastic models to predict the monthly flow discharge of the Ghara –Aghaj River in the southwest of Iran. The models used are, multiple perceptron using back-propagation algorithm (MLP/BP), recurrent neural network (RNN) and autoregressive moving average (ARMA). Artificial neural networks used different inputs including the monthly values of rainfall (mm), air temperature (°C), evaporation (mm), and the output of the model consists of monthly discharge (m3/s) in Band-e-Bahman climatology and hydrometric stations. Different topologies of neural networks were tested with changes in the input layers, nodes and hidden layers. Finally, MLP with two hidden layers and RNN with a hidden layer and one node were selected as the best ANN models. The finally selected ANN models (MLP-RNN) showed some disagreement with the observed values, especially during the peak discharge, but these models showed their ability to forecast low discharge with an acceptable accuracy. The neural networks (MLP-RNN) and ARMA models were validated in terms of correlation coefficients (R), root mean square errors (RMSE) and scatter indexes (SI). The results showed that the MLP (R = 0.92, RMSE = 2.4, SI = 0.56) and RNN (R = 0.9, RMSE = 1.95, SI = 1.25) techniques had better performance than the ARMA (1,13) (R = 0.68, RMSE = 5.37, SI = 1.25( model. Key words: Artificial neural networks (ANN), back-propagation, prediction, autoregressive moving average (ARMA), recurrent neural networks, Mond basin.
Analyzing Sequential Data in Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning

Representations and changes between them play a major role in education (e.g., Hewson, Beeth, & Thorley, 1998), problem solving (e.g., Bauer & Reiser, 1990), cognitive development (e.g., Vosniadou & Brewer, 1992), and the history of science (e.g., Kuhn, 1970). By definition, change of representations is also indispensable for collaborative work since a common understanding or shared knowledge can only be achieved by a partial convergence of the knowledge structures of the collaborating subjects. This articles presents and discusses knowledge tracking (KT), viz., an approach to analyze cognition on the basis of symbolic sequential data. We describe the methodological aspects of KT and delineate the Web-based computer program (knowledge tracking engine, KTE) set up to run KT-analyses (http://www.knowledge-tracking.com/). An empirical study in collaborative learning is taken to exemplify the usage of KT in analysis of computer supported collaboration.
Outdoor intersection detection for autonomous exploration

In this paper we address the problem of detecting road intersections. We present two approaches to solve the problem of intersection detection in an unstructured outdoor setting. The first is a natural extension of the popular VFH* obstacle avoidance algorithm. It detects intersections and tracks, over a period of time, the angles at which gaps in the robot's certainty grid (CG) are first observed. The second approach uses techniques from image processing and computational geometry on the certainty grid image, to extract a skeleton of the navigable region, thus providing the intersections. We show experimental results portraying intersection detection due to both methods and show the results. On the whole, we found that the robot was able to detect all possible intersections.
Sulphasalazine and lung toxicity

Sulphasalazine prescribing is on the increase. Pulmonary toxicity and blood dyscrasias are rare side-effects. Numerous case reports have been published implicating sulphasalazine in pulmonary toxicity. The authors searched the literature for cases of sulphasalazine induced lung toxicity and the 50 cases identified are discussed here. All published case reports/letters referring to sulphasalazine and lung toxicity were studied. The search terms “sulphasalazine” and “sulfasalazine” were combined with the terms “lung”, “pulmonary disease”, “pneumonitis” and “pleuritis” using Medline and PubMed databases. Typical presentation of sulphasalazine-induced lung disease was with new onset dyspnoea and infiltrates on chest radiography. Common symptoms were cough and fever. Crepitations on auscultation and peripheral eosinophilia were noted in half of the cases. Sputum production, allergy history, rash, chest pain and weight loss were inconsistent findings. Pulmonary pathology was variable, the commonest being eosinophilic pneumonia with peripheral eosinophilia and interstitial inflammation with or without fibrosis. Fatal reports were infrequent. Most patients were managed by drug withdrawal with 40% prescribed corticosteroids. In conclusion, sulphasalazine lung disease should be distinguished from interstitial lung disease due to underlying primary disease. Despite the increase in sulphasalazine prescribing, pulmonary toxicity remains rare. The majority of patients with suspected sulphasalazine-induced lung disease improved within weeks of drug withdrawal and the need for corticosteroids is debatable.
Introgressive hybridization in a trophically polymorphic cichlid

Trophically polymorphic species could represent lineages that are rapidly diverging along an ecological axis or could phenotypically mark the collapse of species through introgressive hybridization. We investigated patterns of introgression between the trophically polymorphic cichlid fish Herichthys minckleyi and its relative H. cyanoguttatus using a combination of population genetics and species tree analyses. We first examined the distribution of mitochondrial haplotypes within the alternative H. minckleyi pharyngeal jaw morphotypes that are endemic to the small desert valley of Cuatro Ciénegas. We recovered two clusters of mitochondrial haplotypes. The first contained a number of slightly differentiated cytochrome b (cytb) haplotypes that showed some phylogeographic signal and were present in both jaw morphotypes. The other haplotype was monomorphic, highly differentiated from the other cluster, present in equal frequencies in the morphotypes, and identical to H. cyanoguttatus haplotypes found outside Cuatro Ciénegas. Then, we investigated whether H. minckleyi individuals with the H. cyanoguttatus cytb were more evolutionarily similar to H. cyanoguttatus or other H. minckleyi using a species tree analysis of 84 nuclear loci. Both H. minckleyi pharyngeal morphotypes, regardless of their cytb haplotype, were quite distinct from H. cyanoguttatus. However, hybridization could be blurring subdivision within H. minckleyi as the alternative jaw morphotypes were not genetically distinct from one another. Accounting for introgression from H. cyanoguttatus will be essential to understand the evolution of the trophically polymorphic cichlid H. minckleyi.
Steadiness of Spinal Regions during Single-Leg Standing in Older Adults with and without Chronic Low Back Pain

The aims of this study were to compare the steadiness index of spinal regions during single-leg standing in older adults with and without chronic low back pain (LBP) and to correlate measurements of steadiness index with the performance of clinical balance tests. Thirteen community-dwelling older adults (aged 55 years or above) with chronic LBP and 13 age- and gender-matched asymptomatic volunteers participated in this study. Data collection was conducted in a university research laboratory. Measurements were steadiness index of spinal regions (trunk, thoracic spine, lumbar spine, and pelvis) during single-leg standing including relative holding time (RHT) and relative standstill time (RST), and clinical balance tests (timed up and go test and 5-repetition sit to stand test). The LBP group had a statistically significantly smaller RHT than the control group, regardless of one leg stance on the painful or non-painful sides. The RSTs on the painful side leg in the LBP group were not statistically significantly different from the average RSTs of both legs in the control group; however, the RSTs on the non-painful side leg in the LBP group were statistically significantly smaller than those in the control group for the trunk, thoracic spine, and lumbar spine. No statistically significant intra-group differences were found in the RHTs and RSTs between the painful and non-painful side legs in the LBP group. Measurements of clinical balance tests also showed insignificant weak to moderate correlations with steadiness index. In conclusion, older adults with chronic LBP demonstrated decreased spinal steadiness not only in the symptomatic lumbar spine but also in the other spinal regions within the kinetic chain of the spine. When treating older adults with chronic LBP, clinicians may also need to examine their balance performance and spinal steadiness during balance challenging tests.
Genome-Wide Expression Profiling of Anoxia/Reoxygenation in Rat Cardiomyocytes Uncovers the Role of MitoKATP in Energy Homeostasis

Mitochondrial ATP-sensitive potassium channel (mitoKATP) is a common end effector of many protective stimuli in myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury (MIRI). However, the specific molecular mechanism underlying its myocardial protective effect is not well elucidated. We characterized an anoxia/reoxygenation (A/R) model using freshly isolated adult rat cardiomyocytes. MitoKATP status was interfered with its specific opener diazoxide (DZ) or blocker 5-hydroxydecanote (5-HD). Digital gene expression (DGE) and bioinformatic analysis were deployed. Three energy metabolism related genes (MT-ND6, Idh2, and Acadl) were upregulated when mitoKATP opened. In addition, as many as 20 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were significantly enriched in five energy homeostasis correlated pathways (PPAR, TCA cycle, fatty acid metabolism, and peroxisome). These findings indicated that mitoKATP opening in MIRI resulted in energy mobilization, which was confirmed by measuring ATP content in cardiomyocytes. These causal outcomes could be a molecular mechanism of myocardial protection of mitoKATP and suggested that the mitoKATP opening plays a physiologic role in triggering cardiomyocytes' energy homeostasis during MIRI. Strategies of modulating energy expenditure during myocardial ischemia-reperfusion may be promising approaches to reduce MIRI.