Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Bounds of the matrix eigenvalues and its exponential by Lyapunov equation

Bounds of the matrix eigenvalues and its exponential by Lyapunov equation Institute of Mathematics of the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic provides access to digitized documents strictly for personal use. Each copy of any part of this document must contain these Terms of use. This paper has been digitized, optimized for electronic delivery and stamped with digital signature within the project DML-CZ: The Czech Digital Mathematics Library
Inhaled glucocorticoids versus leukotriene receptor antagonists as single agent asthma treatment: systematic review of current evidence

Abstract Objective: To compare the safety and efficacy of anti-leukotrienes and inhaled glucocorticoids as monotherapy in people with asthma. Design: Systematic review of randomised controlled trials comparing anti-leukotrienes with inhaled glucocorticoids for 28 days or more in children and adults. Main outcome measure: Rate of exacerbations that required treatment with systemic glucocorticoids. Results: 13 trials (12 in adults, one in children) met the inclusion criteria; all were in people with mild and moderate asthma. Leukotriene receptor antagonists were compared with inhaled glucocorticoids at a daily dose equivalent to 400–450 μg beclometasone dipropionate. Patients treated with leukotriene receptor antagonists were 60% more likely to suffer an exacerbation requiring systemic glucocorticoids (relative risk 1.6, 95% confidence interval 1.2 to 2.2; number needed to treat 27, 13 to 81). A 130 ml greater improvement (80 ml to 170 ml) in forced expiratory volume in one second and a 19 l/min greater increase (14 l to 24 l) in morning peak expiratory flow rate were noted in favour of inhaled glucocorticoids. Differences in favour of inhaled glucocorticoids were also observed for nocturnal awakenings, use of rescue β2 agonists, and days without symptoms. Risk of side effects was no different between groups, but leukotriene receptor antagonists were associated a 2.5-fold increase risk of withdrawals due to poor asthma control (relative risk 2.5, 1.8 to 3.5). Conclusions: Inhaled glucocorticoids doses equivalent to 400 μg/day beclometasone are more effective than leukotriene receptor antagonists in the treatment of adults with mild or moderate asthma. There is insufficient evidence to conclude on the efficacy of anti-leukotrienes in children. What is already known on this topic In 2000 a Cochrane systematic review tentatively concluded that control of asthma was better in patients treated with inhaled glucocorticoids as single agents than with anti-leukotrienes The 2002 Global Initiative for Asthma guidelines still classify the role of anti-leukotrienes as “under investigation” What this study adds Anti-leukotrienes as single agent are less effective than low doses of inhaled glucocorticoids for patients with mild and moderate persistent asthma
The Discipline and Practice of Qualitative Research

The global community of qualitative researchers is midway between two extremes, searching for a new middle, moving in several different directions at the same time. Mixed methodologies and calls for scientifically based research, on the one side, renewed calls for social justice inquiry from the critical social science tradition on the other. In the methodological struggles of the 1970s and 1980s, the very existence of qualitative research was at issue. In the new paradigm war, “every overtly social justice-oriented approach to research . is threatened with de-legitimization by the government-sanctioned, exclusivist assertion of positivism . as the ‘gold standard’ of educational research” (Wright, 2006, pp. 799–800). The evidence-based research movement, with its fixed standards and guidelines for conducting and evaluating qualitative inquiry, sought total domination: one shoe fits all (Cannella & Lincoln, Chapter 5, this volume; Lincoln, 2010). The heart of the matter turns on issues surrounding the politics and ethics of evidence and the value of qualitative work in addressing matters of equity and social justice (Torrance, Chapter 34, this volume). In this introductory chapter, we define the field of qualitative research, then navigate, chart, and review the history of qualitative research in the human disciplines. This will allow us to locate this handbook and its contents within their historical moments. (These historical moments are somewhat artificial; they are socially constructed, quasi-historical, and overlapping conventions. Nevertheless, they permit a “performance” of developing ideas. They also facilitate an increasing sensitivity to and sophistication about the pitfalls and promises of ethnography and qualitative research.) A conceptual framework for reading the qualitative research act as a multicultural, gendered process is presented. We then provide a brief introduction to the chapters, concluding with a brief discussion of qualitative research. We will also discuss the threats to qualitative human-subject research from the methodological conservatism movement, which was noted in our Preface. As indicated there, we use the metaphor of the bridge to structure what follows. This volume provides a bridge between historical moments, politics, the decolonization project, research methods, paradigms, and communities of interpretive scholars.
A matrix-based tracing approach and analysis of software requirements changement

In software development, the requirements changement is inevitable. First, according to the ripple effect, scenario, use cases, objects and components are related according to their contribution rate together with the matrix. Secondly, according to the value of the size of the matrix determine the impact of cost of the change. Third, according to the interface matrix delineated the extent of change and get the area of change
DATA SYNCHRONIZATION STRATEGIES FOR MULTI-SENSOR FUSION

Advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) have increasing demand for several sensor systems. Fusing multi-sensor data enlarges the field of view and increases the certainty and precision of the estimates. A crucial part of a fusion system is the data association, which requires data synchronization. The major synchronization strategies for data fusion are discussed and contrasted with respect to their usability in ADAS.
The Role of Social Self-Efficacy on Physical Activity: A Cross-Cultural Comparision.

The purpose of this cross-cultural study exposes stages of change for exercise behavior (SCEB) in relation to perceived social self-efficacy (PSSE) between Turkey and England sport sciences students. The study group of the research consists of 168 (66 women and 102 men) students from Turkey and 217 (112 women and 105 men) students from England who completed a questionnaire package that included SCEB scale and The PSSE Scale. Descriptive statistics, t test, ANOVA, Chi-Square test were used as a statistical analysis. Results showed that the effect of PSSE on SCEB was significant between two counties and sport science students in Turkey have more PSSE than sport science students in England. Furthermore, it was found significant differences for the SCEB between Turkey and England and that sport science students living in England are significantly more physically active than sport science students living in Turkey. This result could explain that England has more sport neighborhood and facilities than Turkey.
Automatic Genre Classification of Musical Signals

We present a strategy to perform automatic genre classification of musical signals. The technique divides the signals into 21.3 milliseconds frames, from which 4 features are extracted. The values of each feature are treated over 1-second analysis segments. Some statistical results of the features along each analysis segment are used to determine a vector of summary features that characterizes the respective segment. Next, a classification procedure uses those vectors to differentiate between genres. The classification procedure has two main characteristics: (1) a very wide and deep taxonomy, which allows a very meticulous comparison between different genres, and (2) a wide pairwise comparison of genres, which allows emphasizing the differences between each pair of genres. The procedure points out the genre that best fits the characteristics of each segment. The final classification of the signal is given by the genre that appears more times along all signal segments. The approach has shown very good accuracy even for the lowest layers of the hierarchical structure.
Relationship between oxygen consumption kinetics and BODE Index in COPD patients

Background and objective Patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) present with reduced exercise capacity due to impaired oxygen consumption (VO2), caused primarily by pulmonary dysfunction and deleterious peripheral adaptations. Assuming that COPD patients present with slower VO2 and heart rate (HR) on-kinetics, we hypothesized that this finding is related to disease severity as measured by the BODE Index. In this context, the present study intends to evaluate the relationship between VO2 uptake on-kinetics during high-intensity exercise and the BODE Index in patients with COPD. Methods Twenty males with moderate-to-severe stable COPD and 13 healthy control subjects matched by age and sex were evaluated. COPD patients were screened by the BODE Index and then underwent an incremental cardiopulmonary exercise test and a constant speed treadmill session at 70% of maximal intensity for 6 minutes. The onset of the exercise (first 360 seconds) response for O2 uptake and HR was modeled according to a monoexponential fit. Results Oxygen consumption and HR on-kinetics were slower in the COPD group compared with controls. Additionally, VO2 on-kinetic parameters revealed a strong positive correlation (r = 0.77, P < 0.05) with BODE scores and a moderate negative correlation with walking distance (r = −0.45, P < 0.05). Conclusion Our data show that moderate-to-severe COPD is related to impaired oxygen delivery and utilization during the onset of intense exercise.
Tracheotomy in pediatric patients: a national perspective.

BACKGROUND During the past 50 years, changes in the epidemiology of infectious diseases and the capabilities of medical technology have altered the indications for, and implications of, tracheotomy in children. Given the complexity of health care that these patients subsequently require, monitoring the performance of this procedure and patient outcomes across the diverse US health care system is warranted. OBJECTIVES To characterize children who received tracheotomies in 1997 and to determine whether disposition and mortality vary by region or health care system attributes. DESIGN A nationally representative retrospective cohort drawn from an 80% sample of administrative hospital discharge records from all pediatric admissions in 22 states during 1997. PARTICIPANTS Patients aged 0 to 18 years who underwent tracheotomy. METHODS The sampling scheme of the discharge records enabled the calculation of regional and national estimates and of age-stratified population-based rates of tracheotomies. Weighted descriptive statistical and Poisson analyses were performed. RESULTS The 2065 tracheotomy procedures recorded in the Kids' Inpatient Database yielded a national estimate of 4861 tracheotomies performed in 1997. The mean length of hospital stay was 50 days, with a mean total facilities charge exceeding $200,000. The rate of tracheotomy was highest among infants and varied significantly across regions of the United States. Adjusting for other patient and health care system attributes, patients who received their tracheotomy in a children's hospital had half the risk of dying during the admission compared with patients who were cared for in a non-children's hospital. Hospitals that performed more pediatric tracheotomies had significantly lower mortality rates than hospitals with lesser case volume. Among patients who survived to discharge, those cared for in the Northeast were discharged to long-term care facilities at twice the rate of patients in the West. Children cared for in children's hospitals or in teaching hospitals were significantly less likely to be discharged to a long-term care facility. CONCLUSIONS Pediatric tracheotomy is associated with significant variation in rates and outcomes across the United States and across different hospital types. Further research to clarify the reasons for these associations is warranted.
Reaching and Grasping in Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Review of Recent Literature

Impairments in motor functioning, which, until recently, have rarely been a primary focus in autism spectrum disorder (ASD) research, may play a key role in the early expression of biological vulnerability and be associated with key social-communication deficits. This review summarizes current knowledge of motor behavior in ASD, focusing specifically on reaching and grasping. Convergent data across the lifespan indicate that impairments to reaching and grasping emerge early in life, affect the planning and execution of motor programs, and may be impacted by additional impairments to sensory control of motor behavior. The relationship between motor impairments and diagnostic outcomes will be discussed.
Improved automatic number plate recognition system

One of the main applications of pattern recognition is the use of video or imaging cameras in order to detect and recognize the vehicle license plate numbers. This is important mainly for access, traffic surveillance and law enforcement. Several systems are implemented and working in situ with more or less precision. These systems are based on the use of a feature set extracted from the best video sequences and further recognized using a classifier. In this paper we present a new system based on multiple features and classifiers, The classification results are further used as inputs for a decision fusion. The classification results are proven to be significantly better that each of the method considered individually. The individual classifiers as well as the decision fusion are tested on a large real image database.
Strategic Planning and Strategic Management : What are they and how are they different ?

This quotation sums up why today’s public sector decision-makers must plan and manage strategically. In the developing world as much as the industrialized nations, the increasingly rapid nature of change as well as a greater openness in the political and economic environments requires a different set of perspectives from that needed during more stable times. When a certain degree of equilibrium existed in the LDCs (as during the 1960s and 70s, with constant positive economic growth, low debt, manageable budgets, and relative political stability), managers could concentrate almost exclusively on the internal dimensions of their organizations and assume a constancy in the external environment. Forward calculations were simple, inputs were predictable, and planning was mostly an arithmetic exercise. Now, systems are much more open, LDCs are characterized by increasingly unstable
Human influence of robotic swarms with bandwidth and localization issues

Swarm robots use simple local rules to create complex emergent behaviors. The simplicity of the local rules allows for large numbers of low-cost robots in deployment, but the same simplicity creates difficulties when deploying in many applicable environments. These complex missions sometimes require human operators to influence the swarms towards achieving the mission goals. Human swarm interaction (HSI) is a young field with few user studies exploring operator behavior. These studies all assume perfect information between the operator and the swarm, which is unrealistic in many applicable scenarios. Indoor search and rescue or underwater exploration may present environments where radio limitations restrict the bandwidth of the robots. This study explores this bandwidth restriction in a user study. Three levels of bandwidth are explored to determine what amount of information is necessary to accomplish a swarm foraging task. The lowest bandwidth condition performs poorly, but the medium and high bandwidth condition both perform well. The medium bandwidth condition does so by aggregating useful swarm information to compress the state information. Further, the study shows operators preferences that should have hindered task performance, but operator adaptation allowed for error correction.
Electroporation-mediated somatic transgenesis for rapid functional analysis in insects

Transgenesis is a powerful technique for determining gene function; however, it is time-consuming. It is virtually impossible to carry out in non-model insects in which egg manipulation and screening are difficult. We have established a rapid genetic functional analysis system for non-model insects using a low-cost electroporator (costing under US$200) designed for somatic transformation with the piggyBac transposon. Using this system, we successfully generated somatic transgenic cell clones in various target tissues (e.g. olfactory neurons, wing epidermis, larval epidermis, muscle, fat body and trachea) of the silkworm Bombyx mori during development. We also induced stable and transient RNA interference (RNAi) using short hairpin RNA (shRNA)-mediating DNA vectors and direct transfer of small interfering RNAs (siRNAs), respectively. We found that these electroporation-mediated approaches could also be applied to the swallowtail butterfly Papilio xuthus and the red flour beetle Tribolium castaneum. Thus, this method could be a powerful genetic tool for elucidating various developmental phenomena in non-model insects.
3D dynamic gesture recognition based on improved HMMs with entropy

Nowadays gesture recognition is a hot topic in the field of human-computer interaction (HCI). HCI develop very fast, and also brings surprise to us constantly. In this paper, we propose a novel approach based on improved HMMs with entropy to recognize the 3D gesture. In our method, there are two steps to recognize a gesture: 1. detect the key nodes of body with extracting the skeleton point. A low-pass filter is utilized to smooth trajectory later. 2. We use improved Hidden Markov Models (HMMs) algorithm which has a virtual start node and a virtual end node with another layer for gesture recognition. In order to decide when to start meaning gesture and when to end non-meaning gesture, we use entropy which can enlarge the searching space to avoid over-fitting and local minimum. Experimental results will demonstrate the performance of proposed approach.
Values at Work: The Impact of Personal Values in Organisations

This paper reviews and integrates past research on personal values in work organisations, seeking to portray the role personal values play in shaping the choices and behaviour of individuals in work settings. We start by addressing the role of values in the occupational choice people make. We then review research on the relationships of personal values to a variety of behaviours at work. We continue with discussing the multiple paths through which managers’ values affect organisations and their members. In the last section, we address the interplay between organisational levels, and discuss the congruency between personal and organisational values and its implications for organisations and their employees. Together, the research reviewed indicates how the broadness and stability of values make them an important predictor of behaviour at various levels of the organisation. We end by discussing directions for future research on values in organisations.
An efficiency-enhanced CMOS voltage regulator module for bio-electronic implants

Over the decades electronic implants have been widely used in several bio-related domains, such as real-time condition monitoring and neural prosthesis. To maintain long-term usability for a minimally invasive implant, the efficiency on the power recovery circuitry should be maximized. In this paper, a CMOS voltage regulator module in which several novel techniques have been incorporated is presented. In addition to these techniques, we also discuss how the reliability and stability can be improved. The whole design has been implemented in a 0.18-mum CMOS process. Results are presented.
The integration of facial and auditory affect: An emotional McGurk effect?

The Integration of Facial and Auditory Affect: An Emotional McGurk Effect? by Teri J. Forrest Dn Daniel N. Allen, Examination Committee Chair Assistant Professor o f Psychology University o f Nevada, Las Vegas Research investigating human emotion processing has typically studied either auditory (vocal) or visual (facial) information in isolation. However, speech perception literature supports integration of auditory and visual phonetic information by way of the McGurk effect. This study hypothesized an emotional McGurk effect (I.e., integration o f auditory and visual emotional information). To evaluate this hypothesis, emotionally incongruent auditory-visual stimuli (e.g., a joyful voice with a sad face) were developed on a sample o f 120 participants. These stimuli were then presented to 30 additional participants who categorized them according to one o f eight common emotions. Results indicated significant (p < .001) Condition by Emotion interaction effects, suggesting that emotional information from auditory and visual sources is integrated during the perception of auditory emotion. This integration appears to occur in a predictable manner. To understand emotion perception, future studies will need to consider the interaction of auditory and visual emotional information.
Las TIC en la gestión de los procesos educativos

La presente investigacion tiene como finalidad, dar a conocer la evolucion e integracion activa de las TIC en la gestion de los actuales procesos educativos en la Unidad Educativadel Milenio “Jatun Kuraka” de Ecuador, analizadas desde una vision administrativa, didactica y pedagogica. Los instrumentos utilizados en esta investigacion fueron las encuestas y entrevistas, aplicadas a profesores y directivos, respectivamente, combinando asi metodos cualitativos y cuantitativos. Entre los resultados se destaca que laimplementacion de las TIC en el sistema educativo a traves de politicas nacionales, no han calado en las aulas de esta institucion, el 47,5% de docentes senala que nunca seelaboro un reglamento interno que respalde la gestion de las TIC. Esto ha generado un desequilibrio en la distribucion y uso de las herramientas, debido a que casi todo el personal docente todavia considera al computador (92,5%) y al proyector (67,5%) como las tecnologias mas eficientes para crear, procesar, presentar, transmitir y compartir informacion con sus estudiantes, dejando de lado otras herramientas y metodologias que potencian el proceso de ensenanza-aprendizaje.
Low Power MAC Protocols for Infrastructure Wireless Sensor Networks

This paper addresses low power MAC protocols for the downlink of infrastructure wireless sensor networks. We are interested in the trade-off between power consumption and transmission delay, focusing on low traffic. We describe WiseMAC (Wireless Sensor MAC), a new protocol for the downlink of infrastructure wireless sensor networks. Another original contribution is the analysis of the performance of PTIP (Periodic Terminal Initiated Polling). Here, polling is used in the reversed direction as compared to common polling protocols. WiseMAC and PTIP are compared with PSM, the power save protocol used in both the IEEE 802.11 and IEEE 802.15. 4 ZigBee standards. Analytical expressions are given for the power consumption and the transmission delay for each protocol, as a function of the wake-up period. It is shown that WiseMAC provides, for the same delay, a significantly lower power consumption than PSM. Although less energy efficient than WiseMAC and PSM, it is shown that PTIP can, thanks to its implementation simplicity, become attractive for applications tolerating large transmission delays.