Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Wellness applications -- ui design to support long-term usage motivation

Due to the high penetration rate of mobile phones today, they have the potential to provide accessible and easy-to-use applications that help people manage their health and be physically more active. This paper describes the aim and progress of the author's PhD studies on the user interaction, usability and motivational issues related to mobile wellness applications.
A new eigenvoice approach to speaker adaptation

In this paper, we present two approaches to improve the eigenvoice-based speaker adaptation. First, we present the maximum a posteriori eigen-decomposition (MAPED), where the linear combination coefficients for eigenvector decomposition are estimated according to the MAP criterion. By incorporating the prior decomposition knowledge, here we use a Gaussian distribution, the MAPED is established accordingly. MAPED is able to achieve better performance than maximum likelihood eigen-decomposition (MLED) with few adaptation data. On the other hand, we exploit the adaptation of covariance matrices of the hidden Markov model (HMM) in the eigenvoice framework. Our method is to use the principal component analysis (PCA) to project the speaker-specific HMM parameters onto a smaller orthogonal feature space. Then, we reliably calculate the HMM covariance matrices using the observations in the reduced feature space. The adapted HMM covariance matrices are estimated by transforming the covariance matrices in the reduced feature space to that in the original feature space. The experimental results show that the eigenvoice speaker adaptation using MAPED and incorporating covariance adaptation can improve the performance of the original eigenvoice adaptation in Mandarin speech recognition.
Mouvements sociaux et processus de désinstitutionnalisation: le cas de l'amiante en France

Within the field of strategy, the thesis deals with the role of social movements inthe process of deinstitutionalization through the concept of repertoire of tactics. This research studies how social movement actions lead to the delegitimization of a taken for granted practice. We focus on the dialectic between defensive and disruptive institutional work. Our method is based on a processual case study. Drawing from the asbestos industry in France from 1970’ to 1990’, we study dialectical struggles between social movement and institution. Our study emphasizes the evolution of repertoire of tactics. Persuasive tactics lead to an institutional change and yet the practice is maintained due to the creation of a boundary organization. Only destructives tactics, directed against more opened institutional pillars, can lead to the ban of the practice. We emphasize the role of the regulative dimension in this strategy.
Investigation on Indoor Positioning by Improved RTT-RSS Fusion Ranging Method

With the development of wireless sensor network (WSN) technology, WSN based indoor localization technology has received more and more attention. Wi-Fi based ranging methods has become a current research hotspot in the field of localization due to their low cost and low complexity. However, the use of Wi-Fi based ranging methods is subject to large errors due to noise and multipath effects. To address this challenge, in this paper, the indoor positioning of RTT-RSS fusion is investigated by the improved ranging method. Firstly, the logarithmic attenuation model based on RSSI is improved by quadratic polynomial and the RTT is calibrated by linear model. And then the adaptive weighting method is adopted to fuse the RTT and RSS. Finally, the positions of the target nodes are obtained by the trilateral localization method. In the experimental results, the complex environment of indoor localization is simulated in the corridor and lounge respectively. And the results show that the method proposed in this paper can effectively improve the localization accuracy compared with the traditional method.
A phytography of WALDMEISTER

The architecture of the WALDMEISTER prover for unit equational deduction is based on a strict separation of active and passive facts. After an inspection of the system's proof procedure, the representation of each of the central data structures is outlined, namely indexing for the active facts, compression for the passive facts, successor sets for the hypotheses, and minimal recording of inference steps for the proof object. In order to cope with large search spaces, specialized redundancy criteria are employed, and the empirically gained control knowledge is integrated to ease the use of the system. The paper concludes with a quantitative comparison of the WALDMEISTER versions over the years, and a view of the future prospects.
Is Biased Processing of Strong Attitudes Peripheral? An Extension of the Dual Process Models of Attitude Change

It was suggested that the dual process models of attitude change should be extended to include the biased processing of strong attitudes. The main hypothesis of the extended model is that too much involvement intrinsic in strong attitudes may hinder objective processing, resulting in resistance to change even under strong message. Both attitude change and cognitive response measures in a 3 (attitude strength) x 2 (message quality) factorial design experiment supported the extended model. Only the holders of moderate attitudes showed greater attitude change when given a strong, rather than a weak, message. When given a strong message, holders of strong attitudes showed a boomerang effect by generating relatively greater counter-arguments (implying a central but biased processing with high motivation) in contrast with holders of weak attitudes who generated indifferent appeals and greater change in attitude regardless of the quality of the argument (implying a peripheral processing with low motivation).
New dipole slot antenna design for RFID communications

New design of a dipole antenna with H-shaped slot at two operating bands for Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) is presented. By using an H-shaped slot over a rectangular patch at the middle associated with four T-shaped slot, the proposed antenna has a wide and dual measured return loss bandwidth. Besides, the omnidirectional radiation pattern of the antenna cover the entire frequency range including Ultra High Frequency (UHF, 915MHz) and microwaves (2.45GHz) bands has been obtained. Tuning techniques of the design parameters are proposed, and tag performance in both frequency bands is evaluated numerically an experimentally in detail.
Investigative Psychology: Offender Profiling and the Analysis of Criminal Action

For many years Offender Profiling has caught the popular imagination, being drawn on by law enforcement throughout the world. But until the development of Investigative Psychology ‘profiling’ was based on little more than the informed personal expertise of experienced detectives. Spearheaded by David Canter and his associates throughout the world the new discipline of Investigative Psychology has emerged out of a quarter century of research and involvement in many actual cases. This ground-breaking text book offers for the first time; • A detailed overview of the worldwide research that has been carried out into criminal actions that is relevant to all aspects of police investigations, from the earliest work through to recent studies, including descriptions of previously unpublished internal reports. • A framework for students to explore this exciting terrain, combining o Narrative Theory and o an Action Systems framework, Offering empirically tested models for Offender Profiling. • Guidance for investigations. • An agenda for research in Investigative Psychology The full range of crimes from advance fee fraud to terrorism, including burglary, serial killing, arson, rape, and organised crime are dealt with in this unique book, which is the first to provide a thorough basis for studying all aspects of criminal activities. Important methodologies are described including multi-dimensional scaling and the Radex approach as well as Social Network Analysis. The important area of Geographical Offender Profiling is covered supported by detailed analysis of the underlying psychological processes that make this such a valuable investigative decision support tool. Going far beyond the early activities of drawing profiles of serial killers and rapists Investigative Psychology deals with the full range of investigative activities, including; • Improving the effectiveness of the information collected • Detecting deception • The nature and development of decision support systems. The approach detailed in this book thus provides an exciting new paradigm for a wide range of psychological contributions to all forms of investigation within and outside of law enforcement. Throughout the book is illustrated with actual cases and quotations from offenders. Each chapter has questions for discussion and research, making this a valuable text for undergraduate and postgraduate courses in Applied and Forensic Psychology, Criminology, Socio-Legal Studies and related disciplines.
An Analytic-based Strategy for College Sports Ticket Sales and Management Emergent Research Forum

Sports analytics has gained significant popularity to support athletic organization’s business and field operations such as enhancing talent identification, player recruitment, player development, training priorities, coaching, game tactics, team selection, injury management, fan/customer relationship management, etc. Through a qualitative case study approach, this study examines a regional university’s athletic department’s current status on data collection and analysis to enhance their ticket sales and marketing management. In-depth qualitative interviews are being conducted to better understand the current process and their desired goals in the ticket sales and marketing management area. In future, we intend to extend the study by using quantitative methods on recent five years’ worth of season ticket sales data to provide insights and in that process additional recommendations will be provided to enhance data collection and subsequent analysis.
Long-Term Potentiation of Thalamocortical Transmission in the Adult Visual Cortex In Vivo

It has been suggested that NMDA receptor-dependent synaptic strengthening, like that observed after long-term potentiation (LTP), is a mechanism by which experience modifies responses in the neocortex. We report here that patterned (theta burst) stimulation of the dorsal lateral geniculate nucleus reliably induces LTP of field potentials (FPs) evoked in primary visual cortex (Oc1) of adult rats in vivo. The response enhancement is saturable, long-lasting, and dependent on NMDA receptor activation. To determine the laminar locus of these changes, current source density (CSD) analysis was performed on FP profiles obtained before and after LTP induction. LTP was accompanied by an enhancement of synaptic current sinks located in thalamorecipient (layer IV and deep layer III) and supragranular (layers II/III) cell layers. We also examined immunocytochemical labeling for the immediate early gene zif-268 1 hr after induction of LTP. In concert with the laminar changes observed in CSD analyses, we observed a significant increase in the number of zif-268-immunopositive neurons in layers II–IV that occurred over a wide extent of Oc1. Last, we investigated the functional consequences of LTP induction by monitoring changes in visually evoked potentials. After LTP, we observed that the cortical response to a full-field flash was significantly enhanced and that responses to grating stimuli were increased across a range of spatial frequencies. These findings are consistent with growing evidence that primary sensory cortex remains plastic into adulthood, and they show that the mechanisms of LTP can contribute to this plasticity.
Simulating Insider Cyber-Threat Risks : A Model-Based Case and a Case-Based Model

Dawn M. Cappelli CERT/CC Software Engineering Institute dmc@cert.org Andrew P. Moore CERT/CC Software Engineering Institute apm@cert.org Timothy J. Shimeall CERT/CC Software Engineering Institute, USA, tjs@cert.org David F. Andersen University at Albany State University of New York david.andersen@albany.edu Jose J. Gonzalez Agder University College Norway jose.j.gonzalez@hia.no Robert J. Ellison CERT/CC Software Engineering Institute ellison@sei.cmu. edu Howard F. Lipson CERT/CC Software Engineering Institute hfl@cert.org David Mundie CERT/CC Software Engineering Institute, dmundie@cert.org Jose Maria Sarriegui TECNUN University of Navarra Spain jmsarriegui@tecnun.es Agata Sawicka Agder University College Norway agata.sawicka@hia.no Thomas R. Stewart University at Albany State University of New York t.stewart@albany.edu Jose Manuel Torres TECNUN University of Navarra Spain jmtorres@tecnun.es Elise A. Weaver Worcester Polytechnic Institute eweaver@wpi.edu Johannes Wiik Agder University College Norway johannes.wiik@hia.no
Diffusion‐based magnetic resonance imaging and tractography in epilepsy

Diffusion‐based imaging is an advanced MRI technique that is sensitive to the movement of water molecules, providing additional information on the micro‐structural arrangement of tissue. Qualitative and quantitative analysis of peri, post and interictal diffusion images can aid the localization of seizure foci. Diffusion tensor tractography is an extension of diffusion‐based imaging, and can provide additional information about white matter pathways. Both techniques are able to increase understanding of the effects of epilepsy on the structural organization of the brain, and can be used to optimize presurgical planning of patients with epilepsy. This review focuses on the basis, applications, limitations, and future directions of diffusion imaging in epilepsy.
International Journal of Nanomedicine Dovepress Cytotoxicity and Genotoxicity Caused by Yttrium Oxide Nanoparticles in Hek293 Cells

Background: The increased use of engineered nanoparticles (NPs) has caused new concerns about the potential exposure to biological systems and the potential risk that these materials may pose on human health. Here, we examined the effects of exposure to different concentrations (0–50 µg/mL) and incubation times (10 hours, 24 hours, or 48 hours) of yttrium oxide (Y 2 O 3) NPs on human embryonic kidney (HEK293) cells. Changes in cellular morphology, cell viability, cell membrane integrity, reactive oxygen species levels, mitochondrial membrane potential, cell death (apoptosis and necrosis), and the DNA damage after NP exposure were compared to the effects seen following incubation with paraquat, a known toxicant. Results: The 24-hour inhibitory concentration 50 (IC 50) of Y 2 O 3 NPs (41±5 nm in size) in the HEK293 cells was found to be 108 µg/mL. Incubation with Y 2 O 3 NPs (12.25–50 µg/mL) increased the ratio of Bax/Bcl-2, caspase-3 expression and promoted apoptotic-and necrotic-mediated cell death in both a concentration and a time-dependent manner. Decreases in cell survivability were associated with elevations in cellular reactive oxygen species levels, increased mitochondrial membrane permeability, and evidence of DNA damage, which were consistent with the possibility that mitochondria impairment may play an important role in the cytotoxic response. Conclusion: These data demonstrate that the Y 2 O 3 NP exposure is associated with increased cellular apoptosis and necrosis in cultured HEK293 cells.
Full Controllable Face Detection System Architecture for Robotic Vision

Face detection nowadays is one of the most promising applications of image analysis and processing. One emerging application field is human-robot interaction. For many applications in this field (including face identification and expression recognition) the precision of facial feature detection and the computational burden are both critical issues. This paper presents a completely tunable hybrid method for accurate face localization based on a quick-and-dirty preliminary detection followed by a 3D refinement. Our technique guarantees complete control over the cost/quality ratio and permits to achieve the precision required for interactive applications. We use our approach to design a robotic vision architecture capable of selecting from a set of strategies to obtain the best results.
Managing the Contemporary Multinational : The Role of Headquarters

Contents: Preface 1. Introduction and Overview Ulf Andersson and Ulf Holm PART I: HEADQUARTERS' ROLE AND STRUCTURES OF THE MULTINATIONAL 2. Beyond Heterarchy - Emerging Futures of the Hypermodern MNC Ivo Zander and John A. Mathews 3. The Role of Headquarters in the Global Factory Peter J. Buckley 4. Commander - in - Chief or Absentee Landlord? Key Perspectives on Headquarters in Multinational Corporations Wilhelm Barner-Rasmussen, Rebecca Piekkari, Joanna Scott-Kennel and Catherine Welch 5. Evaluating the Role of Parent HQ in a Contemporary MNC William G. Egelhoff PART II: HEADQUARTERS' MONITORING AND VALUE CREATING ROLE 6. A Critical Assessment of the Business Network Perspective on HQ Control in Multinational Companies Mohammed Yamin and Pervez Ghauri 7. Governance Costs in Headquarter - Subsidiary Relationships Gabriel R.G. Benito and Sverre Tommassen 8. Headquarters Potential Value-Adding by Cherry-Picking Sub-Unit Technology Development Projects Ulf Andersson and Philip Kappen 9. Determinants of HQs' Involvement in Innovation Transfer Francesco Ciabuschi and Oscar Martin 10. Internal versus External Knowledge Sourcing of Subsidiaries and the Impact of Headquarters Control Jens Gammelgaard and Torben Pedersen 11. Managing the Transfer of Externally Embedded Subsidiary Knowledge: The Role of Headquarters Control Mechanisms Christine Holmstrom 12. The Role of National Culture on the Headquarters - Subsidiary Relationship in the Multinational Corporation: The Effect of Power Distance Rian Drogendijk and Ulf Holm PART III: A DIALOGUE ABOUT THE UPPSALA MODEL OF INTERNATIONALIZATION 13. A Dialogue About the Uppsala Model of Internationalization Mats Forsgren and Jan Johanson 14. The Uppsala Model of Internationalization: A Comment Peter J. Buckley
A local motion planner for closed-loop robots

Global motion planners have been proposed for closed-loop robot based on the same paradigm than has been proposed for serial chains: a sparse representation of the configuration space of the robot is constructed as a set of nodes and a motion planning query consists simply in connecting the start and goal points through an appropriate set of nodes (usually minimizing the length of the trajectory). But such motion planner should be complemented by a local motion planner that addresses the following issues: 1) ensure that two successive nodes belong to the same robot kinematic branch (otherwise connecting these nodes will require to disassemble the robot) 2) verify that all poses between nodes satisfy the robot constraints (if possible taking into account the uncertainties in the robot modeling) 3) eventually try to shorten the trajectory length We present such a local motion planner that addresses all three issues and illustrates its use on a Gough parallel robot.
MGFusion:A Large-Scale Realtime 3D Reconstruction Based on Movable Grid

In this letter, to solve the problems of large memory occupation, small reconstruction range and low efficiency of the existing realtime 3D reconstruction algorithms on truncated signed distance function, we improve it based on movable grid. Specifically, we put the point cloud obtained by the depth camera into the grids. Then, the space required to reconstruction is calculated from the coordinates of the grids. Grids will be reconstructed in the GPU. The space that was reconstructed and will not reconstructed recently will convert to the point cloud on condition that the GPU memory is insufficient. To rebuild the area again, we can convert the previous point cloud to a small voxel grid to initialize the memory in the GPU. In this letter, the large-scale 3D reconstruction is solved through the movable grid and the use of explicit memory rationally. For the tasks requiring high precision, the reconstruction can be carried out with a reasonable configuration. It significantly improves the range and efficiency of 3D reconstruction. Source code is available at https://gthub.com/sky3139/MGFusion.
Society of Toxicologic Pathology Position Paper: Organ Weight Recommendations for Toxicology Studies

The evaluation of organ weights in toxicology studies is an integral component in the assessment of pharmaceuticals, chemicals, and medical devices. The Society of Toxicologic Pathology (STP) has created recommendations for weighing organs in GLP general toxicology studies lasting from 7 days to 1 year. The STP recommends that liver, heart, kidneys, brain, testes, and adrenal glands be weighed in all multidose general toxicology studies. Thyroid gland and pituitary gland weights are recommended for all species except mice. Spleen and thymus should be weighed in rodent studies and may be weighed in non-rodent studies. Weighing of reproductive organs is most valuable in sexually mature animals. Variability in age, sexual maturity, and stage of cycle in non-rodents and reproductive senescence in female rodents may complicate or limit interpretation of reproductive organ weights. The STP recommends that testes of all species be weighed in multidose general toxicology studies. Epididymides and prostate should be weighed in rat studies and may be weighed on a case-by-case basis in non-rodent and mouse studies. Weighing of other organs including female reproductive organs should be considered on a case-by-case basis. Organ weights are not recommended for any carcinogenicity studies including the alternative mouse bioassays. Regardless of the study type or organs evaluated, organ weight changes must be evaluated within the context of the compound class, mechanism of action, and the entire data set for that study.
Semi-supervised Discriminant Analyze with Instance-Level Constraints

Traditional linear discriminant analysis (LDA) is a popular dimensionality reduction method which preserve class separability. The method needs the labeled data to train. However in real worlds, the labeled training examples are very few but there are sufficient unlabeled data examples, so some former work (SDA) has made use the unlabeled training examples to do dimensionality reduction. But sometimes, there exits another kind of domain knowledge: the instances level constraints. In this paper, we consider the case when there are some useful instance level constraints. We propose a novel algorithm semi-supervised discriminant analyze with constraints (SDAC) which use three kinds of data: very few labeled data examples, sufficient unlabeled data examples and the instance level constraints. Our algorithm can be viewed as a constraint extension of traditional SDA algorithm. Experiments have been presented for semi-supervised classification tasks and have shown the effectiveness of our algorithm.