Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Validating software metrics: A spectrum of philosophies

Context. Researchers proposing a new metric have the burden of proof to demonstrate to the research community that the metric is acceptable in its intended use. This burden of proof is provided through the multi-faceted, scientific, and objective process of software metrics validation. Over the last 40 years, however, researchers have debated what constitutes a “valid” metric. Aim. The debate over what constitutes a valid metric centers on software metrics validation criteria. The objective of this article is to guide researchers in making sound contributions to the field of software engineering metrics by providing a practical summary of the metrics validation criteria found in the academic literature. Method. We conducted a systematic literature review that began with 2,288 papers and ultimately focused on 20 papers. After extracting 47 unique validation criteria from these 20 papers, we performed a comparative analysis to explore the relationships amongst the criteria. Results. Our 47 validation criteria represent a diverse view of what constitutes a valid metric. We present an analysis of the criteria's categorization, conflicts, common themes, and philosophical motivations behind the validation criteria. Conclusions. Although the 47 validation criteria are not conflict-free, the diversity of motivations and philosophies behind the validation criteria indicates that metrics validation is complex. Researchers proposing new metrics should consider the applicability of the validation criteria in terms of our categorization and analysis. Rather than arbitrarily choosing validation criteria for each metric, researchers should choose criteria that can confirm that the metric is appropriate for its intended use. We conclude that metrics validation criteria provide answers to questions that researchers have about the merits and limitations of a metric.
Retinoic acid-related orphan receptor γ directly regulates neuronal PAS domain protein 2 transcription in vivo

Retinoic acid-related orphan receptors (RORs) and the basic helix-loop-helix-PAS transcription factor Npas2 have been implicated in the control of circadian rhythm. In this study, we demonstrate that RORγ directly regulates Npas2 expression in vivo. Although the rhythmicity of Npas2 mRNA expression was maintained in RORγ(-/-) mice, the peak level of expression was significantly reduced in several tissues, while loss of RORα had little effect. Inversely, overexpression of RORγ in hepatoma Hepa1-6 cells greatly induced the expression of Npas2. RORγ-activated Npas2 transcription directly by binding two ROREs in its proximal promoter. ChIP analysis demonstrated that RORγ was recruited to this promoter in the liver of wild-type mice, but not RORγ-deficient mice. Activation of Npas2 correlated positively with chromatin accessibility and level of H3K9 acetylation. The activation of Npas2 by RORγ was repressed by co-expression with Rev-Erbα or addition of the ROR inverse agonist T0901317. Npas2 expression was also significantly enhanced during brown adipose differentiation and that this induction was greatly suppressed in adipose cells lacking RORγ. Our results indicate that RORγ and Rev-Erbα are part of a feed-back loop that regulates the circadian expression of Npas2 suggesting a regulatory role for these receptors in Npas2-dependent physiological processes.
A Comprehensive Overview of the Applications of Artificial Life

We review the applications of artificial life (ALife), the creation of synthetic life on computers to study, simulate, and understand living systems. The definition and features of ALife are shown by application studies. ALife application fields treated include robot control, robot manufacturing, practical robots, computer graphics, natural phenomenon modeling, entertainment, games, music, economics, Internet, information processing, industrial design, simulation software, electronics, security, data mining, and telecommunications. In order to show the status of ALife application research, this review primarily features a survey of about 180 ALife application articles rather than a selected representation of a few articles. Evolutionary computation is the most popular method for designing such applications, but recently swarm intelligence, artificial immune network, and agent-based modeling have also produced results. Applications were initially restricted to the robotics and computer graphics, but presently, many different applications in engineering areas are of interest.
Prosody in autism spectrum disorders: a critical review.

BACKGROUND Many individuals with autism spectrum disorders present with unusual or odd-sounding prosody. Despite this widely noted observation, prosodic ability in autism spectrum disorders is often perceived as an under-researched area. AIMS This review seeks to establish whether there is a prosodic disorder in autism, what generalizations can be made about its various manifestations and whether these manifestations vary according to the diagnosis. A literature review was carried out to establish what areas of prosody in autism spectrum disorders have been researched to date, what the findings have been and to determine what areas are yet to be researched. MAIN CONTRIBUTION It is shown that prosody in autism spectrum disorders is an under-researched area and that where research has been undertaken, findings often conflict. The findings of these conflicting studies are compared and recommendations are made for areas of future research. CONCLUSIONS Research in this area has covered mostly prosodic expression, although some more recent studies cover comprehension, processing and the relationship of receptive prosodic ability to theory of mind. Findings conflict and methodology varies greatly.
Interobserver Agreement in Detecting Spectral-Domain Optical Coherence Tomography Features of Diabetic Macular Edema

Purpose To evaluate interobserver agreement for the detection of spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (SDOCT) features of diabetic macular edema (DME). Method Cross-sectional study in which 2 retinal specialists evaluated SDOCT scans from eyes receiving treatment for DME. Scans from 50 eyes with DME of 39 patients were graded for features of DME including intra-retinal fluid (IRF), diffuse retinal oedema (DRE), hyper-reflective foci (HRF), subretinal fluid (SRF), macular fluid and vitreomacular traction (VMT). Features were graded as present or absent at zones involving the fovea, 1mm from the fovea and the whole scan of 49 line scans. Analysis was performed using cross-tabulations for percentage concordance and kappa values (κ). Results In the 2950 line scans analysed, there was an increase in percentage concordance for DRE and HRF when moving from a foveal line scan, 1mm zone and then to a whole scan analysis (88% vs 94% vs 96%) and (88% vs 94% vs 94%) respectively with κ ranging from substantial to almost perfect. Percentage concordance for SRF was 96% at all 3 regions analysed, whilst IRF was 96% at fovea and 98% at higher number of line-scans analysed. Concordance for MF was 100% at fovea and 98% at 1mm zone and whole scan with almost perfect and substantial κ respectively. κ agreement was substantial for VMT at all regions analysed. Conclusion We report a high level of interobserver agreement in the detection of SDOCT features of DME. This finding is important as detection of macular fluid is used to guide retreatment with anti-angiogenic agents.
A 2.2 GHz Continuous-Time $\mathrm {\Delta \!\Sigma }$ ADC With −102 dBc THD and 25 MHz Bandwidth

This paper presents a 2.2 GHz continuous-time AΣ ADC that achieves -102 dBc THD and 77 dB SNDR in 25 MHz bandwidth over process, voltage, and temperature (PVT) variations. Measured second-order intermodulation distortion (IM2) and the third-order intermodulation distortion (IM3) are -115 dBc and -114 dBc, respectively. The modulator comprises a 4th-order loop filter with inverter-based single-opamp resonators, a 1-bit quantizer with dither circuitry and ELD compensation and 1-bit feedback DACs that are highly insensitive to process spread and mismatch. The 1-bit DAC incorporates a wideband high precision series-shunt voltage regulator to mitigate dynamic errors associated with DAC switching. The ADC was fabricated in TSMC 65 nm CMOS and the active die area including the regulators is 0.6 mm2. The total power consumption of the 1.2 V supplied modulator core is 41.4 mW.
Asymmetries in the Acquisition of Consonant Clusters in Spanish

Abstract This article considers three children’s acquisition of tauto- and heterosyllabic consonant clusters in Spanish within the framework of Optimality Theory. Each child presents with a unique phonological system with respect to the cluster types. One child, BL4 (female, aged 2;8), reduces tautosyllabic clusters to the least sonorous singleton, but preserves both segments in production of heterosyllabic clusters. A second child, SD1 (female, aged 3;4), preserves both segments of tautosyllabic clusters, but reduces heterosyllabic clusters to the least sonorous singleton. Finally, a third child, SD2 (female, 3;9), reduces both types of clusters, maintaining the least sonorous segment; however, a different pattern is observed with the nasal + voiced stop clusters, which reduce to the most sonorous segment. The inter- and intra-child variation is accounted for by an appeal to general markedness and faithfulness constraints that have been motivated elsewhere in the literature in accounting for syllabic and segmental phenomena in acquisition and beyond.
Privacy preserving based on association rule mining

Privacy has become an important issue in Data Mining. Many methods have been brought out to solve this problem. This paper deals with the problem of association rule mining which preserves the confidentiality of each database. In order to find the association rule, each participant has to share their own data. Thus, much privacy information may be broadcast or been illegal used. These issues can be divided into two categories: data hiding and knowledge hiding. This paper reviews the major method of privacy preserving on each category and choose some of them to complete our system. At the end, an improvement of sensitive rules hiding is proposed to make it more accuracy and security.
Assessment of Reading Proficiency in Urban Education: The Case of Charter Schools in Michigan, United States

The purpose of this qualitative study was to examine the 7th grade reading performance among a random sample of urban public school academies (charter schools) in Wayne County, Michigan, compared with a random sample of traditional urban public schools within the same geographic area. This study was conducted using the fall 2012 Michigan Educational Assessment Program (MEAP) reading test scores, as reported by the Michigan Department of Education. A total of 11 public charter schools were selected and represented 15% of the total public charters in Wayne County that serviced middle school aged children. The 11 randomly selected Traditional Public Schools used for the comparison represented 10% of these traditional public schools that were located within a 5-mile radius of the public charter schools. Contingency tables were constructed (type of school vs. reading proficiency) and the data was analyzed using the nonparametric chisquare test for independence. According to the data, the traditional public schools had a higher percentage of grade 7 students who were proficient readers when compared with the public charter schools (30.7% vs. 18.6%, respectively). The difference, however, was not statistically significant and the null hypothesis was not rejected. These results suggested that the public charter schools were not outperforming traditional public schools in grade 7 reading proficiency.
When 2 is Better Than 1 + 1

Little is known about older spousal dyads’ collaborative problem solving. Although typically collaborating dyads perform worse than nominal dyads in other dyadic cognition tasks, we assumed that older couples might profit from collaboration in a highly demanding problem-solving task requiring the sequential and complementary use of spatial memory and reasoning abilities. In this paper, we examine whether older couples profit from the dyadic situation on a computer-based problem-solving task that can most likely be optimally solved when dyads manage to distribute responsibilities between the spatial memory demands and the reasoning demands of the task. In 50 married couples consisting of N = 100 older individuals (M = 67.3 years, SD = 4.9), we tested the hypothesis that compared to their own individual performance, compared to repeated individual performance of a control group (N = 41, M = 66.0 years, SD = 3.8), and compared to nominal pairs (same 100 participants as in the experimental group), older coupl.
A Targeted Apolipoprotein B-38.9-producing Mutation Causes Fatty Livers in Mice Due to the Reduced Ability of Apolipoprotein B-38.9 to Transport Triglycerides*

Nonphysiological truncations of apolipoprotein (apo) B-100 cause familial hypobetalipoproteinemia (FHBL) in humans and mice. An elucidation of the mechanisms underlying the FHBL phenotypes may provide valuable information on the metabolism of apo B-containing lipoproteins and the structure-function relationship of apo B. To generate a faithful mouse model of human FHBL, a subtle mutation was introduced into the mouse apo B gene by targeting embryonic stem cells using homologous recombination followed by removal of the selection marker gene by Cre-loxP-mediated site-specific recombination. The engineered mice bear a premature stop codon at residue 1767 and a 42-base pair loxP inserted into intron 24 of the apo B gene, thus closely resembling the apo B-38.9-producing mutation in humans. Apo B-38.9 was the sole apo B protein in homozygote (apob 38.9/38.9 ) plasma. In heterozygotes (apob +/ 38.9 ), apo B-100 and apo B-48 were reduced by 75 and 40%, respectively, and apo B-38.9 represented 20% of total circulating apo B. Hepatic apo B-38.9 mRNA levels were reduced by 40%. In culturedapob +/ 38.9 hepatocytes, apo B-100 was produced in trace quantities, and the synthesis rate of apo B-38.9 relative to apo B-48 was reduced by 40%. However, almost equimolar amounts of apo B-38.9 and apo B-48 were secreted into the media. Pulse-chase studies revealed that apo B-38.9 was secreted at a faster rate and more efficiently than apoB-48. Nevertheless, bothapob +/ 38.9 andapob 38.9/38.9 mice had reduced hepatic triglyceride secretion rates and fatty livers. Thus, low mRNA levels or defective secretion of apo B-38.9 may not be responsible for the FHBL phenotypes caused by the apo B-38.9 mutation. Rather, a reduced capacity of apo B-38.9 for triglyceride transport may account for the fatty livers in these mice.
Melatonin reduces infarction volume in a photothrombotic stroke model in the wild‐type but not cyclooxygenase‐1‐gene knockout mice

Abstract: Cyclooxygenase (COX)‐2 plays a harmful role in cerebral ischemic/reperfusion injury, but the role of COX‐1 is uncertain. In the present study, cerebral infarct was induced by photothrombosis. Intraperitoneal injections of melatonin at 15 g/kg or its vehicle were made at 0.5 hr before stroke and 24 and 48 hr after stroke. Cerebral blood flow (CBF) in the penumbra was monitored during stroke using a laser Doppler flowmeter. Sensorimotor behavior was evaluated using the turning in an alley and falling from a pole tests at 1 hr before stroke and 24 and 48 hr after stroke. Infarct volume was determined from the T2‐weighted magnetic resonance images at 72 hr after stroke. During the first 15 min of stroke, CBF decreased in the penumbra in both homozygous COX‐1‐gene knockout and wild‐type mice. Melatonin treatment improved the penumbral CBF in the wild‐type mice. Mild poststroke impairment in sensorimotor behavior was detected by the turning in an alley test in which the COX‐1‐gene knockout mice performed better. Melatonin treatment did not affect the poststroke sensorimotor behavior. The relative infarct volume at 72 hr after stroke was 8.1% and 8.4% in the COX‐1‐gene knockout and wild‐type mice, respectively. Melatonin treatment reduced the relative infarct volume to 6.3% in the latter but not in the former (8.2%). Thus, COX‐1‐gene knockout does not affect the brain's susceptibility to photothrombotic stroke. Melatonin treatment reduces infarct size in the wild‐type mice following photothrombotic stroke partly via maintenance of penumbral CBF in which the COX‐1‐gene may play a role.
Conspecific aggression influences food carrying : studies on a wild population of Rattus norvegicus

Laboratory rats, like many other animal species, transport food. Their behavior is influenced by factors such as food size, the time required to eat, travel distance, travel difficulty, and the availability of cover, etc. Recent versions of optimal foraging theory suggest that species that display such behavioral patterns do so in order to minimize risk to predation while at the same time maximizing food gain. Nevertheless, it is not clear that this explanation applies to rats, nor is it easy to investigate this problem in a laboratory. The results of the present study on urban feral rats show that their food handling behavior is similar to that of domestic rats. The results also suggest that food carrying can serve defensive as well as communicative functions. Aggression around food sources was high. Smaller rats always carried food and some large rats infrequently carried food, suggesting that the food carrying by smaller, subordinate rats may help them avoid conspecific aggression. The rats also vigorously attempted to steal food that was carried home by conspecifics. This result suggests that food carrying can redistribute food resources and inform conspecifics about food availability. The results demonstrate the utility of multilevel behavioral analysis and also demonstrate that for rats, food transport has functions other than predator avoidance, including avoidance of conspecific aggression and communication about food availability. © 1996 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Automatic Fault Detection and Diagnosis for Sensor Based on KPCA

Automatic Fault detection and diagnosis for sensor is necessary, which affects the performance of the control system seriously. The KPCA effectively captures the nonlinear relationship of the process variables, which computes principal component in high-dimensional feature space by means of integral operators and nonlinear kernel functions. The KPCA method was used in diagnosing for four familiar sensor faults. At first it detected fault by Q statistics, at second it identified fault by T2 contribution percent variation. The experiment showed the KPCA method had good performance in fault detection and diagnosis.
Prospects for measurement‐based quantum computing with solid state spins

This article aims to review the developments, both theoretical and experimental, that have in the past decade laid the ground for a new approach to solid state quantum computing. Measurement‐based quantum computing (MBQC) requires neither direct interaction between qubits nor even what would be considered controlled generation of entanglement. Rather it can be achieved using entanglement that is generated probabilistically by the collapse of quantum states upon measurement. Single electronic spins in solids make suitable qubits for such an approach, offering long coherence times and well defined routes to optical measurement. We will review the theoretical basis of MBQC and experimental data for two frontrunner candidate qubits – nitrogen‐vacancy (NV) centres in diamond and semiconductor quantum dots – and discuss the prospects and challenges that lie ahead in realising MBQC in the solid state.
Synaptotagmin 1 Is Necessary for the Ca2+ Dependence of Clathrin-Mediated Endocytosis

The role of Ca2+ in synaptic vesicle endocytosis remains uncertain due to the diversity in various preparations where several forms of endocytosis may contribute variably in different conditions. Although recent studies have demonstrated that Ca2+ is important for clathrin-mediated endocytosis (CME), the mechanistic role of Ca2+ in CME remains to be elucidated. By monitoring CME of single vesicles in mouse chromaffin cells with cell-attached capacitance measurements that offer millisecond time resolution, we demonstrate that the dynamics of vesicle fission during CME is Ca2+ dependent but becomes Ca2+ independent in synaptotagmin 1 (Syt1) knock-out cells. Our results thus suggest that Syt1 is necessary for the Ca2+ dependence of CME.
Debunking American exceptionalism and rescuing liberalism

Culling the Masses seeks to explain the shift in American immigration policy from one based on racial and ethnic selection to a more equitable and colorblind approach. The authors argue that international and foreign policy considerations led to a radical shift in policy after World War II. They succeed in debunking American exceptionalism, but in this critique I argue that more attention should be given to the interaction of international and domestic politics, using a ‘two-level game’ framework. Moreover it is important to highlight the contradictions that are inherent in liberalism as a governing philosophy.
[Comparision of in vitro maturation applied in PCOS and non-PCOS patients undergo stimulated and unstimulated protocols].

OBJECTIVE To compare the laboratory and clinical results between unstimulated in vitro maturation (IVM) and IVM converted from in vitro fertilization (IVF) in polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) and non-PCOS patients. METHODS We divided 591 IVM cycles in the First Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical Univesity from Jan. 2008 to Dec. 2013 into 4 groups: group A1B1, PCOS patients underwent unstimulated IVM protocol, 240 cycles; group A1B2, PCOS patients underwent IVM converted from conventional stimulated IVF protocol, 153 cycles; group A2B1, non-PCOS patients underwent unstimutlated IVM protocol, 103 cycles; group A2B2, non-PCOS patient underwent IVM converted from conventional stimulated IVF protocol, 95 cycles. Multiple linear regression method and binary logistic regression method were used to assess the influence of PCOS and protocols for IVM on laboratory and clinical outcomes. RESULTS The mean number of oocytes retrieved was positively related with PCOS [partial regression coefficient (B) = 3.37, P < 0.01]. The maturation rate of oocytes was positively related with hCG-prime prior to oocyte aspiration (B = 0.05, P = 0.010). High-quality embryo rate was positively related with PCOS and IVM converted from IVF (B = 0.08, P = 0.010; B = 0.09, P = 0.001), as well as implantation rate related with them (B = 0.07, P = 0.010; B = 0.10, P < 0.01). PCOS and IVM converted from IVF improved hCG positive (hCG>10 U/L) rate (OR = 1.636, 95%CI: 1.113-2.204, P < 0.05; OR = 1.861, 95%CI: 1.307-2.649, P < 0.05) and the clinical pregnancy rate (OR = 1.507, 95%CI: 1.041-2.240, P < 0.05; OR = 1.881, 95%CI: 1.312-2.696, P < 0.05). IVM converted from IVF protocol decreased the spontaneous abortion rate (OR = 0.490, 95%CI: 0.245-0.978, P < 0.05). Multiple gestation rate and ectopic pregnancy rate were not affected by PCOS condition and protocol used (P > 0.05). CONCLUSIONS PCOS and IVM converted from IVF protocol improved the high-quality embryo rate, implantation rate, hCG positive rate and clinical pregnancy rate. IVM converted from IVF protocol reduced the spontaneous abortion rate. PCOS patients may be more suitable for the IVM treatment. No matter PCOS or non-PCOS patients, IVM converted from IVF protocol had better pregnancy outcome than that of unstimulated cycle.