Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
GPU optimized computation of stencil based algorithms

The paper describes an optimized GPU based approach for stencil based algorithms. The simulations have been performed for a two dimensional steady state heat conduction problem, which has been solved through the red black point successive over relaxation method. Two kernels have been developed and their performance has been greatly improved through coalesced memory accesses and special shared memory approaches. The approach described in the paper does not only represent a step forward for the steady state heat conduction problem but also for any other algorithm which performs the numerical solution of partial differential equations or which is stencil based. The paper not only describes the various code versions but also the process which has lead to these improvements. Also the optimized GPU code version has been compared with the corresponding CPU version. The testing results show that the GPU algorithm always leads to an improvement. The value of the improvement though greatly depends on the number of grid points on which the computations are performed.
A Lightweight Threat Detection System for Industrial Wireless Sensor Networks

Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) led the way to new forms of communications, which extend today the Internet paradigm to unforeseen boundaries such as eHealth, intelligent building or smart grid, to name a few. The legacy industry, however, is slower to adopt this technology, mainly for security reasons. Self-managed security systems allowing a quicker detection and better resilience to attacks, may counterbalance this reluctance. In this article, we propose a hybrid threat detection system that involves both centralized decision and local, per-cluster, work repartition and that is designed to run on top of industrial wireless sensor networks. Compared with the literature, we prove that this system is suitable for architectures mainly composed of constrained and sleeping devices, for which it achieves a fair level of autonomous security without prohibitively drawing out energy resources.
Semiconductor Optical Amplifiers for Advanced Optical Applications

We present different types of semiconductor optical amplifier, each specifically optimised for a particular optical application. Especially, we focus our attention on which key device parameters are desirable for applications such as in-line optical amplification, or all-optical signal processing. We start from the device design characteristics, focussing on the challenges involved in making leading-edge semiconductor material. We then present a range of SOA's developed at CIP for specific applications, concentrating on the key features of each design. Finally, we, show results from several examples of advanced applications from booster amplification to non linear applications
Population structure and diversity of an invasive pine needle pathogen reflects anthropogenic activity

Dothistroma septosporum is a haploid fungal pathogen that causes a serious needle blight disease of pines, particularly as an invasive alien species on Pinus radiata in the Southern Hemisphere. During the course of the last two decades, the pathogen has also incited unexpected epidemics on native and non-native pine hosts in the Northern Hemisphere. Although the biology and ecology of the pathogen has been well documented, there is a distinct lack of knowledge regarding its movement or genetic diversity in many of the countries where it is found. In this study we determined the global population diversity and structure of 458 isolates of D. septosporum from 14 countries on six continents using microsatellite markers. Populations of the pathogen in the Northern Hemisphere, where pines are native, displayed high genetic diversities and included both mating types. Most of the populations from Europe showed evidence for random mating, little population differentiation and gene flow between countries. Populations in North America (USA) and Asia (Bhutan) were genetically distinct but migration between these continents and Europe was evident. In the Southern Hemisphere, the population structure and diversity of D. septosporum reflected the anthropogenic history of the introduction and establishment of plantation forestry, particularly with Pinus radiata. Three introductory lineages in the Southern Hemisphere were observed. Countries in Africa, that have had the longest history of pine introductions, displayed the greatest diversity in the pathogen population, indicating multiple introductions. More recent introductions have occurred separately in South America and Australasia where the pathogen population is currently reproducing clonally due to the presence of only one mating type.
Ovarian reserve markers in unexplained infertility patients treated with clomiphene citrate during intrauterine insemination

Introduction The aim of this retrospective case control study was to identify predictors of ovarian response and pregnancy outcomes in intrauterine insemination (IUI). Material and methods One hundred women undergoing IUI cycles with clomiphene citrate were enrolled. The number of antral follicles and the total ovarian volume by ultrasound, and the basal levels of follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), estradiol, and inhibin B on cycle day 3 were measured in groups that were divided according to ovarian response. The tests were also evaluated according to ovarian response and pregnancy outcomes. All analyses were performed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences, version 15.0 (SPSS, Chicago, IL, USA). Results The antral follicle count (AFC) was the best single predictor for ovarian response and pregnancy outcomes. The sensitivity and specificity for prediction of ovarian response were 81% and 78% for AFC at an optimum cutoff value of ≤ 13.1. Age was negatively correlated with ovarian volume (r = –0.280, p = 0.021) and AFC (r = –0.358, p = 0.003). Increasing FSH was associated with a reduction in AFC (r = –0.273, p = 0.025). The AFC was significantly correlated with ovarian volume (r = 0.660, p < 0.0001) and FSH (r = –0.273, p = 0.03). Conclusions Our data demonstrate that the AFC provides better prognostic information on the occurrence of ovarian response during clomiphene citrate stimulation for IUI.
Artifact Removal from Biosignal using Fixed Point ICA Algorithm for Pre-processing in Biometric Recognition

Abstract In the modern world of automation, biological signals, especially Electroencephalogram (EEG) and Electrocardiogram (ECG), are gaining wide attention as a source of biometric information. Earlier studies have shown that EEG and ECG show versatility with individuals and every individual has distinct EEG and ECG spectrum. EEG (which can be recorded from the scalp due to the effect of millions of neurons) may contain noise signals such as eye blink, eye movement, muscular movement, line noise, etc. Similarly, ECG may contain artifact like line noise, tremor artifacts, baseline wandering, etc. These noise signals are required to be separated from the EEG and ECG signals to obtain the accurate results. This paper proposes a technique for the removal of eye blink artifact from EEG and ECG signal using fixed point or FastICA algorithm of Independent Component Analysis (ICA). For validation, FastICA algorithm has been applied to synthetic signal prepared by adding random noise to the Electrocardiogram (ECG) signal. FastICA algorithm separates the signal into two independent components, i.e. ECG pure and artifact signal. Similarly, the same algorithm has been applied to remove the artifacts (Electrooculogram or eye blink) from the EEG signal.
Topics in Semantic Representation Topics in Semantic Representation

Accounts of language processing have suggested that it requires retrieving concepts from memory in response to an ongoing stream of information. This can be facilitated by inferring the gist of a sentence, conversation, or document, and using that gist to predict related concepts and disambiguate words. We analyze the abstract computational problem underlying the extraction and use of gist, formulating this problem as a rational statistical inference. This leads us to a novel approach to semantic representation in which word meanings are represented in terms of a set of probabilistic topics. The topic model performs well in predicting word association and the effects of semantic association and ambiguity on a variety of language processing and memory tasks. It also provides a foundation for developing more richly structured statistical models of language, as the generative process assumed in the topic model can easily be extended to incorporate other kinds of semantic and syntactic structure. Many aspects of perception and cognition can be understood by considering the computational problem that is addressed by a particular human capacity Laham for making the TASA corpus available , and Steven Sloman and three anonymous reviewers for comments on the manuscript. A MATLAB toolbox containing code for simulating the various topic models described in this article is available at 2 Cognitive capacities such as memory and categorization can be seen as systems for efficiently making predictions about the properties of an organism's environment (e.g., Anderson, 1990). Solving problems of inference and prediction requires sensitivity to the statistics of the environment. Surprisingly subtle aspects of human vision can be explained in terms of the statistics of natural scenes, and human memory seems to be tuned to the probabilities with which particular events occur in the world (Anderson & Schooler, 1991). Sensitivity to relevant world statistics also seems to guide important classes of of cognitive judgments, such as inductive inferences about the properties of categories (Kemp, Perfors & Tenenbaum, 2004), predictions about the durations or magnitudes of events (Griffiths & Tenen-baum, 2006b), or inferences about hidden common causes from patterns of coincidence (Griffiths & Tenenbaum, 2006a). In this paper, we examine how the statistics of one very important aspect of the environment – natural language – influence human memory. Our approach is motivated by an analysis of some of the computational problems addressed by semantic memory, in the spirit of Marr (1982) and Anderson (1990). Under many accounts …
Cross-Layer Quality Assessment of Scalable Video Services on Mobile Embedded Systems

The recent development of high-speed data transmission over wireless cellular networks has enabled the delivery of multimedia broadcasting services to mobile users. These services involve a range of interactions among different system components, including the wireless channel, the network, and mobile devices, making it crucial for the service provider to verify the model, design, and behavior of a new service before it is deployed. However, previous studies have largely relied on network simulations or scaled experiments, and there has been little work on the sort of unified framework for quality-of-service (QoS) assessment, which considers the interactions between components, that we propose in this paper. Accurate models of the wireless channel, the network, and the data processing that takes place on an embedded system of a mobile client, are integrated within our framework, and allow us to predict several key system metrics and the quality of the video stream as it is perceived by users. Furthermore, different models of system components can be easily plugged in to extend this framework. As an example application, we analyze the performance of the process of decoding scalable videos on ARM-based mobile embedded systems in CDMA2000 wireless cellular networks.
Involvement of Salmonella Pathogenicity Island 2 in the Up-Regulation of Interleukin-10 Expression in Macrophages: Role of Protein Kinase A Signal Pathway

ABSTRACT Salmonellae are facultative intracellular bacteria capable of surviving within macrophages. Salmonella pathogenicity island 2 (SPI-2) is required for growth within macrophages and for virulence in mice. In this study, we show the involvement of SPI-2 in a signal transduction pathway that induces cytokine expression in Salmonella-infected macrophages. High levels of interleukin-10 (IL-10) mRNA were induced in macrophages by infection with wild-type salmonellae compared to a strain carrying a mutation in the spiC gene, which is encoded within SPI-2. The two strains had the same effect on the expression of proinflammatory cytokines such as IL-1α, IL-6, and tumor necrosis factor alpha. IL-10 expression was dose dependently blocked by treatment of infected macrophages with the protein kinase A (PKA) inhibitor H-89, while IL-10 expression was increased by the PKA activator dibutyryl cyclic AMP. Cyclic AMP-dependent PKA activity was higher in macrophages infected with wild-type salmonellae compared to the spiC mutant, and Ser132 phosphorylation of cyclic AMP response element-binding protein (CREB), which is an important mediator of PKA activation, correlated with the levels of PKA activity. Taken together, these results indicate that salmonellae cause an SPI-2-dependent increase in PKA activity that leads to CREB phosphorylation, resulting in up-regulation of IL-10 expression in Salmonella-infected macrophages. Suppression of IL-10 expression by an antisense oligonucleotide did not affect the growth of wild-type salmonellae within macrophages, whereas growth was dose dependently inhibited by H-89, suggesting that the PKA signaling pathway plays a significant role in intramacrophage Salmonella survival.
Recognition of Space-Time Gestures using a Distributed Representation

This paper presents a method for learning, tracking, and recognizing human gestures using a view-based approach to model both object and behavior. Object views are represented using sets of view models, rather than single templates. Stereotypical space-time patterns, i.e. gestures, are then matched to stored gesture patterns using dynamic time warping. Real-time performance is achieved by using special-purpose correlation hardware and view prediction to prune as much of the search space as possible. Both view models and view predictions are learned from examples. We present results showing tracking and recognition of human hand gestures at over 10Hz.
Troubles cognitifs et émotionnels dans la maladie de Huntington : Etude chez les patients symptomatiques et présymptomatiques et chez des rats transgéniques, modèles de la maladie de Huntington.

La maladie de Huntington (MH) est une maladie neurodegenerative, autosomique, dominante. La MH se manifeste par des troubles moteurs, cognitifs, psychiatriques et/ou comportementaux. Les troubles cognitifs sont probablement parmi les mieux documentes dans la MH, perturbant la flexibilite, l’inhibition, la planification et la prise de decision. Des desordres des aptitudes en cognition sociale ont aussi ete rapportes chez ces patients, dont en particulier des troubles de la reconnaissance des expressions faciales emotionnelles et de theorie de l’esprit (ToM). Les fonctions emotionnelles et leurs regulations sont actuellement peu caracterisees, tant chez les patients que chez les modeles animaux de la MH.Chez le modele de rats transgeniques (tgHD rats), des perturbations des reponses emotionnelles et hedoniques ont ete caracterisees a un âge precoce.L’objectif de cette these etait de mieux caracteriser les deficits emotionnels et leur impact sur les fonctions executives en etudiant (1) differentes tâches cognitives chez des patients MH et chez des modeles animaux de la MH (rats TgHD et rats BACHD) a differents stades de la maladie ; (2) en analysant l’impact d’etats emotionnels induits (peur et plaisir) sur la prise de decision chez les patients MH (symptomatiques) et chez les rats BACHD a des âges differents.
The Travel Behaviour of Chinese International Students in Higher Education in Norway

Understanding tourist behaviour is one of the fundamental aspects of tourism industry and business operators. For tourism organisations, “such types of knowledge will provide tourism organisations with invaluable market intelligence which can be reflected in the organisation’s marketing strategy” (Cohen et al., 2014, p. 898). Within tourism consumer behaviour research, many segments remain largely under-researched (Cohen et al., 2014). One of these segments is international students. The number of international students in Norway has tripled in the recent years. Many are attracted by Norway as a country of study due to its free education system as well as its image as a modern and safe country with great nature. An increasing number of studies on internationals’ students travel behaviour have certainly provided additional knowledge about such segment. However, there are currently no known studies on international students and their travel behaviour in Norway. This study is the first known study focusing on the travel behaviour of international students in Norway. Specifically, Chinese international students were chosen for this study due to the growing and increasing market of Chinese tourists in Norway. Therefore, understanding their travel behaviour is important in order to provide tourism products and attractions, which can satisfy their needs. Additionally, it can also be argued that studies of Chinese international students are able to provide insights into the needs and preferences of the emerging conventional Chinese tourist market (Hughes, Wang, & Shu, 2015), even though they are considered as two markets. The overall aim of this research is “to explore the travel behaviour of Chinese international students in Norway as means to understand their needs and travel related preferences”. A qualitative methodology approach was employed and semi-structured interviews served as the
Massive MIMO channel estimation based on block iterative support detection

Massive MIMO has become a promising key technology for future 5G wireless communications to increase the channel capacity and link reliability. However, with greatly increased number of transmit antennas at the base station (BS) in massive MIMO systems, the pilot overhead for accurate acquisition of channel state information (CSI) will be prohibitively high. To address this issue, we propose a block iterative support detection (block-ISD) based algorithm for channel estimation to reduce the pilot overhead. The proposed block-ISD algorithm fully exploits the block sparsity inherent in the block-sparse equivalent channel impulse response (CIR) generated by considering the spatial correlations of MIMO channels. Furthermore, unlike conventional greedy compressive sensing (CS) algorithms that rely on prior knowledge of the channel sparsity level, block-ISD relaxes this demanding requirement and is thus more practically appealing. Simulation results demonstrate that block-ISD yields better normalized mean square error (NMSE) performance than classical CS algorithms, and achieve a reduction of 87.5% pilot overhead than conventional channel estimation techniques.
Strain differences in the development of hypertension and glomerular lesions induced by deoxycorticosterone acetate salt in mice.

BACKGROUND The genetic background may exert important modifying effects on the course and severity of experimental kidney diseases in mice. We investigated its influence on the development of hypertension and renal injury following treatment with deoxycorticosterone acetate (DOCA) salt in several mouse strains. METHODS Four mouse strains were used for comparison: 129/Sv, C57BL/6 and F1 and F2 intercrosses of 129/Sv x C57BL/6. Male mice were uninephrectomized and DOCA hypertension was induced for 6 weeks. DOCA animals and controls received 1% NaCl for drinking. Renal damage was evaluated following measurements of blood pressure, urine albumin and renal matrix expansion. RESULTS DOCA-induced blood pressure increase, glomerulosclerosis, interstitial fibrosis and albuminuria were markedly higher in 129/Sv than in C57BL/6 mice. F1 and F2 intercrosses displayed intermediate blood pressure, glomerular and interstitial fibrosis comparable to C57BL/6 but albuminuria as high as 129/Sv mice. CONCLUSIONS 129/Sv mice are more susceptible to the development of DOCA-induced high blood pressure and renal damage than C57BL/6 mice. Intercrosses of both strains show a complex and non-uniform segregation of the susceptibility to DOCA-salt hypertension and nephrosclerosis.
Multiple People Detection from a Mobile Robot using Double Layered Laser Range Finders

This work presents our method for people detec- tion on the surroundings of a mobile robot by using two layers of multiple LRFs, allowing to simultaneously detect two set of different features for every person: chest and legs areas. A person model is created according to the association of these features and a volume representation allows to estimate the current person position. We present experimental results of multiple people detection in an indoor environment. The main problem of our research the development of a mobile robot acting as member of a group of people, simple but accurate people detection and tracking is an important requirement.
The Effect of English Learning in Elementary School on Students' English Language Development in Junior High School

This study was an investigation of the effect of English as a Foreign Language at Elementary Schools (EFLES) in Japan on students’ later English language learning in junior high school. The participants were a total of 2,000 public junior high school students in grades 7, 8, and 9 (about 220-260 students in each grade for a three-year research period). The participants received from 10-90 hours of EFLES in grades 5 and 6 of local public elementary schools. The amount of EFLES implementation basically increased every year. The research question was: To what degree does EFLES affect the students’ future English skill development in vocabulary and grammar, reading, and listening measured by standardized tests administered respectively in grades 7, 8, and 9? The positive effect of EFLES was observed in the grade 7 students who had received 90 hours of EFLES classes since grade 4. An advantage was shown in higher English test scores for vocabulary and grammar, reading, and listening, though it did not reach a statistically significant level. In speaking tests conducted in grade 8, students’ scores improved each year to a statistically significant level with large effect sizes (d = 1.23, d = .80 for story-telling test).
Knowledge Network Analysis within Organizations Based on SNA

Knowledge flow within organizations is presented as a network structure, which is closely related with the social attribute of knowledge transfer and diffusion within organizations. Accordingly, from a social network analysis (the "SNA") perspective, this article illustrates several issues concerning knowledge networks within organizations, including knowledge connection and strength analysis of nodes, and identification of knowledge clique and key knowledge nodes.