Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Pangea: An Eager Database Replication Middleware guaranteeing Snapshot Isolation without Modification of Database Servers

Recently, several middleware-based approaches have been proposed. If we implement all functionalities of database replication only in a middleware layer, we can avoid the high cost of modifying existing database servers or scratch-building. However, it is a big challenge to propose middleware which can enhance performance and scalability without modification of database servers because the restriction may cause extra overhead. Unfortunately, many existing middleware-based approaches suffer from several shortcomings, i.e., some cause a hidden deadlock, some provide only table-level locking, some rely on total order communication tools, and others need to modify existing database servers. In this paper, we propose Pangea, a new eager database replication middleware guaranteeing snapshot isolation that solves the drawbacks of existing middleware by exploiting the property of the first updater wins rule. We have implemented the prototype of Pangea on top of PostgreSQL servers without modification. An advantage of Pangea is that it uses less than 2000 lines of C code. Our experimental results with the TPC-W benchmark reveal that, compared to an existing middleware guaranteeing snapshot isolation without modification of database servers, Pangea provides better performance in terms of throughput and scalability.
Semantic issues in Land Use and Land Cover Studies – Foundations , Application and Future Directions

After decades of accomplishments and faced with new technological and scientific insights, the field of land use and land cover (LULC) is seemingly at a crossroads for effective and open uses of data. The use of categorical LULC data in computer-based land analysis poses a significant challenge because it usually leads to a binary treatment of the information in subsequent analysis. Still, LULC data offers a rich and generic resource and it is often used for purposes other than just finding out what the land cover is at a location; examples include climate modeling, monitoring of biodiversity, and simulation of urban expansion. As a result, the objectives for LULC semantics have moved from those of increasingly accurate technological representations of spatially explicit change to the representation of integrated roles LULC play within a broader environmental context. Many of these uses call for deeper understanding of the categories in order for the data to be re-purposed. As more and more land cover data sets have been developed there is also an increased recognition that variation in nomenclature and class definitions poses significant hurdles to effective and synergistic use of LULC resources.
Thymic hyperplasia after chemotherapy in adults with mature B cell lymphoma and its influence on thymic output and CD4+ T cells repopulation

ABSTRACT To investigate the thymic regenerative potential in adults accepting chemotherapy for lymphoma. The dynamics of thymic activity in 54 adults from baseline to 12 mo post-chemotherapy was analyzed by assessing thymic structural changes with serial computed tomography (CT) scans, and correlating these with measurements of thymic output by concurrent analysis of single-joint (sj) T-cell receptor excision circles (sjTREC) and CD31+ recent thymic emigrants (RTE) in peripheral blood. Furthermore, the consequence of thymic renewal on peripheral CD4+ T cell recovery after chemotherapy was evaluated. Time-dependent changes of thymic size and thymic output assessed by both sjTREC levels and CD31+ RTE counts in peripheral blood were observed during and after chemotherapy. Enlargement of thymus over baseline following chemotherapy regarded as rebound thymic hyperplasia (TH) was identified in 20 patients aged 18−53 y (median 33 y). By general linear models repeated measure analysis, it was found that, patients with TH (n = 20) had a faster recovery of sjTREC levels and CD31+ RTE counts after chemotherapy than patients with comparable age, gender, diagnosis, disease stage, thymic volume and output function at baseline but without TH (n = 18) (p = 0.035, 0.047); besides, patients with TH had a faster repopulation of both naïve CD4+ T cell and natural regulatory CD4+ T cell subsets than those without TH (p = 0.042, 0.038). These data suggested that adult thymus retains the capacity of regeneration after chemotherapy, especially in young adults. The presence of TH could contribute to the renewal of thymopoiesis and the replenishment of peripheral CD4+ T cell pool following chemotherapy in adults.
Load forecasting based on kernel-based orthogonal projections to latent structures

The Kernel-based orthogonal projections to latent structures (K-OPLS) model is a recent novel data analysis method for both regression and classification. Compared with the classical orthogonal projections to latent structures (OPLS), it utilizes the kernel Gram matrix as a replacement of descriptor matrix to use the partial least squares (PLS) model. This enables it can effectively improve predictive performance, considerably in such situations where strong non-linear relationships between descriptor and response variables while retaining the OPLS model framework. In this paper, we first introduce the K-OPLS model. And then, a load forecasting model based on K-OPLS is proposed.
Exploring the potential of life‐history key innovation: brook breeding in the radiation of the Malagasy treefrog genus Boophis

The treefrog genus Boophis is one of the most species‐rich endemic amphibian groups of Madagascar. It consists of species specialized to breeding in brooks (48 species) and ponds (10 species). We reconstructed the phylogeny of Boophis using 16S ribosomal DNA sequences (558 bp) from 27 species. Brook‐breeders were monophyletic and probably derived from an ancestral pond‐breeding lineage. Pond‐breeders were paraphyletic. The disparity in diversification among pond‐breeders and brook‐breeders was notable among endemic Malagasy frogs, although it was not significant when considering Boophis alone. Sibling species which have different advertisement calls but are virtually indistinguishable by morphology were common among brook‐breeders; genetic divergence between these species was high (modal 8% total pairwise divergence). Substitution rates in brook‐breeding species were significantly higher than in pond‐breeders. Speciation of pond‐breeders may be hindered by their usually more synchronous reproduction and a higher vagility which enhances gene flow, while a higher potential of spatial segregation and speciation may exist along brooks.
Trials of a Coherent UDWDM PON Over Field-Deployed Fiber: Real-Time LTE Backhauling, Legacy and 100G Coexistence

Transmission capabilities of a coherent real-time UDWDM PON over deployed fibers in two testbeds (Berlin and Darmstadt, Germany) are demonstrated. Extensive coexistence tests including LTE backhauling and GPON, RF-Video, 100G and OTDR were performed. A silicon photonics-integrated CMOS laser was used for parts of the trial.
How Magnets Attract and Repel

K6015, a South Korean firm seeking to commercialize its magnet technology in the US market, entered a technology commercialization training program structured as a competition. Through this program, K6015 (and others in the program) used several genres to progressively interest different sets of stakeholders. To understand how K6015 applied these genres, we analyze this case study in terms of interessement, a concept from actor-network theory, and standing sets of transformations, a related concept from workplace writing studies in which enacting a set of genres entails a controlled, progressive transformation of arguments. We examine the entire competition process, using K6015 and three other competitors to illustrate this process and to examine rhetorical transformations responding to different criteria. In enacting these standing sets of transformations, K6015 and other competitors transformed their innovations into commercialized technologies–and transformed themselves from innovators into entrepreneurs. Finally, we discuss implications for understanding entrepreneurship rhetorically.
Ytringsfrihet, demokratiteori og demokratiet som uferdig prosjekt

Grunnlovens paragraf 100 om ytrings- og informasjonsfrihet ble revidert i 2004. Ytringsfriheten fikk en prinsipiell demokratiteoretisk begrunnelse, og det ble lagt vekt pa statlig tilrettelegging for apen og opplyst meningsdannelse. Denne artikkelen gir forst et overblikk over de demokratiteoretiske prinsipper den nye grunnlovs­paragrafen skal fremme. I andre del dokumenteres det at arbeider av en av samtid­ens ledende sosiologer og sosialfilosofer (Habermas) hadde vesentlig betydning for den reviderte forstaelsen av ytringsfrihetens begrun­nelse og funksjoner i grunnloven til et av verdens eldste og mest stabile demokratier. I tredje del droftes sporsmalet om hva slags teori om demokrati som ble tydeliggjort og forsterket i Grunnloven. Det er demo­kra­tiets diskursive (deliberative) aspekt, ytringsfriheten – styring basert pa apne og opplyste offentlige diskusjoner (diskurs) – som fremheves som overordnet element i samspillet med individuelle rettigheter og flertallsstyre. I siste del rettes blikket normativt mot noen av de utfordringer diskursiv demokrati­teori stiller samfunn og samfunnsforsk­ning overfor. Demokratiet er et historisk prosjekt som fortsatt kan og bor videre­utvikles, pa forskjellige nivaer (lokalt, nasjonalt, internasjonalt) og omrader (politikk, okonomi, sivilsamfunn).
Edge Detection System of Chinese Wines' Micrograph

The edge detection of the images is so important for image processing. There are different methods for improving edge detection. In the present work, a neural networks based system for edge extraction of Chinese wines’ micrographs is presented. Back Propagation Neural Network (BPNN) with an improved activation function employing four adjustable parameters is used. Multi-scale mathematical morphological edge detector is a teacher of the neural network. A bank of Gabor filters at different scales and orientations is used, and the resultant Gabor ¿ltering outputs are employed as the inputs of BPNN.
Design strategy for optimizing power consumption of sensor node with Min(N,T) policy M/G/1 queuing models

Energy saving is an important issue in wireless sensor networks for majority of sensor nodes equipped with non‐rechargeable batteries. To prolong the lifetime of sensor nodes, most research works have focused on how to tune the duty cycling schemes among nodes to save the communication cost using multifarious wake‐up strategies. To this aim, we propose a novel design strategy for mitigating the average power consumption of sensor node using the Min(N,T) policy M/G/1 queuing theory. The basic point of our approach is that Min(N,T) dyadic policy would mitigate the total average times of medium contention by having both a counter (N) and a timer (T) for the control of triggering on a radio server to transmit queued packets, and then the power consumption of communication can be alleviated. A comprehensive mathematical analysis on the optimal control parameters had been made. Much data analysis and simulations had been conducted to validate the proposed model. In this article, we show how the improvement level on power consumption can be achieved through analytical and simulation results. With little or no extra management cost, the proposed add‐on power‐saving technique can provide a design strategy to optimize relevant system parameters including power consumption and latency delay. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Screening for Glycosylphosphatidylinositol-Modified Cell Wall Proteins in Pichia pastoris and Their Recombinant Expression on the Cell Surface

ABSTRACT Glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI)-anchored glycoproteins have various intrinsic functions in yeasts and different uses in vitro. In the present study, the genome of Pichia pastoris GS115 was screened for potential GPI-modified cell wall proteins. Fifty putative GPI-anchored proteins were selected on the basis of (i) the presence of a C-terminal GPI attachment signal sequence, (ii) the presence of an N-terminal signal sequence for secretion, and (iii) the absence of transmembrane domains in mature protein. The predicted GPI-anchored proteins were fused to an alpha-factor secretion signal as a substitute for their own N-terminal signal peptides and tagged with the chimeric reporters FLAG tag and mature Candida antarctica lipase B (CALB). The expression of fusion proteins on the cell surface of P. pastoris GS115 was determined by whole-cell flow cytometry and immunoblotting analysis of the cell wall extracts obtained by β-1,3-glucanase digestion. CALB displayed on the cell surface of P. pastoris GS115 with the predicted GPI-anchored proteins was examined on the basis of potential hydrolysis of p-nitrophenyl butyrate. Finally, 13 proteins were confirmed to be GPI-modified cell wall proteins in P. pastoris GS115, which can be used to display heterologous proteins on the yeast cell surface.
Complementary and contrasting roles of NK cells and T cells in pediatric umbilical cord blood transplantation

UCBT has been used for almost 25 years to treat a variety of malignant and nonmalignant childhood diseases. The biological properties of NK cells and T cells and their implication in engraftment, immune reconstitution, OIs, leukemic relapse, and GvHD have been explored in the context of UCBT. These studies have established that lymphocytes have a major impact on the outcome of UCBT and that NK cells and T cells play complementary and contrasting roles in immune reconstitution and the GvL effect. Therefore, novel strategies to improve the outcome of UCBT recipients, including immunotherapeutic regimens, should be based on key immunologic features of UCB T lymphocytes and NK cells.
Typeless programming in Java 5.0

With the introduction of Java 5.0 [9] the type system has been extended by parameterized types, type variables, type terms, and wildcards. As a result very complex types can arise. The termVector<Vector<AbstractList<Integer>>>is for example a correct type in Java 5.0. Considering all that, it is often rather difficult for a programmer to recognize whether such a complex type is the correct one for a given method or not. Furthermore there are methods whose principle types would be intersection types. But intersection types are not implemented in Java 5.0. This means that Java 5.0 methods often don't have the principle type which is contradictive to the OOP-Principle of writing re-usable code.This has caused us to develop a Java 5.0 type inference system which assists the programmer by calculating types automatically. This type inference system allows us, to declare method parameters and local variables without type annotations. The type inference algorithm calculates the appropriate and principle types.We implement the algorithm in Java using the observer design pattern.
Total Factor Productivity in Japanese Information Service Industries : Firm-Level Analysis

We examine factors determining productivity of firms’ information service activities, using most comprehensive data of information service industries in Japan. We focus on the degree of modularization and resulting outsourcing, economies/diseconomies of scale in software development, and firms’ organizational changes. Outsourcing has persistent negative effects on total factor productivity, suggesting not only productivity-enhancing modularization is not fully utilized but also productivity-hindering remnants of traditional main-contractor-subcontractor relations still prevail in information service industries. We also find diseconomies of scale in software development, suggesting less efficient communication among development team members. Finally, we find a substantial cost on firms’ organizational changes on productivity.
Chromatin Turn Ons and Turn Offs of Ribosomal RNA Genes

Eukaryotes have hundreds (sometimes thousands) of ribosomal RNA (rRNA) genes whose transcription by RNA polymerase I helps establish the proliferative ability of cells by dictating the pace of ribosome production and protein synthesis. Interestingly, only a subset of the total rRNA gene pool is active at any one time, making rRNA genes attractive for understanding the dynamic balance between gene silencing and activation. However, the fact that rRNA genes are essentially identical in sequence in a pure species has been an obstacle to telling apart the active and inactive genes. Nature has provided one solution to this conundrum in the form of the epigenetic phenomenon, nucleolar dominance: the transcriptional silencing of one parental set of rRNA genes in a genetic hybrid. Parental genes in hybrids typically differ in sequence as well as expression, allowing a definition of the chromatin modifications of rRNA genes in the on and off states in vivo. By exploiting nucleolar dominance in plants, we recently showed that concerted changes in DNA methylation and histone methylation comprise an epigenetic switch that turns rRNA genes on and off. Independent studies using mouse and human cells have led to similar conclusions, implicating chromatin modifications as important components of the regulatory networks that control the effective dosage of active rRNA genes.
Effect of Ocimum basilicum extract on cadmium-induced testicular histomorphometric and immunohistochemical alterations in albino rats

The present study examined the efficacy of Ocimum basilicum (basil) extract, a natural herb, with antioxidant properties, against testicular toxicity induced by cadmium (Cd), which is one of the most important toxic heavy metals. The intoxicated rats showed significant alterations in the testicular tissue including decreased seminiferous epithelium height and changes in the arrangement of spermatogenic layers. Hypospermatogensis with cytoplasmic vacuolization and pyknotic nuclei were observed. Intertubular hemorrahage and absence of spermatozoa were noted. Decreased cell proliferation was reflected by a decrease in Ki-67 expression, whereas the increase in apoptotic rate was associated with a decrease in the Bcl/Bax ratio. Concomitant treatment with aqueous basil extract led to an improvement in histological, morphometrical and immunohistochemical changes induced by Cd. The beneficial effects of basil extract could be attributed to its antioxidant properties.
The concept of the stimulus in psychology.

r seems to me that there is a weak link in the :hain of reasoning by which we explain experimce and behavior, namely, our concept of the stimulus. The aim of this paper is to find out what psychologists mean by the term stimulus, with the hope of deciding what they ought to mean by it. After a short look at the history of the term, I will try to uncover the sources of confusion in modern usage. In the end, perhaps, the concept will be clarified. If not, certain contradictions will have been brought to light. The experimental study of the stimulus began in the eighteenth century, so far as I can tell, with an investigation of the curious things that could be done to make a frog's leg twitch. The experimenters discovered what is now called the nerve-muscle preparation. Galvani and later Volta gave their names to electricity as well as to physiology by their experiments. In the early nineteenth century Johannes Miiller applied these discoveries to the philosophers' problem of the human senses, the gates of knowledge. The nerves of sense, he pointed out, can be excited by a variety of unnatural agencies such as electrical current. Since the mind is acquainted only with the qualities specific to the sensory nerves, not with the stimuli, how it gets knowledge of the material world became more puzzling than ever. Later in the century, Sherrington was to emphasize the extent to which receptors are naturally protected against such irrelevant stimuli by the structural specialization of sense organs. But meanwhile it had been discovered that the skin would yield sensations only at certain discrete points. Here was a fresh puzzle. The separate receptor cells of all the sense organs came to be seen under the microscope, and the punctate character of the sensory process seemed to be established. During all this time, the physical scientists were discovering the laws of energy and triumphantly measuring it in its various forms, electricity, momentum, light, heat, sound, and the results of chemical reaction. It became possible to measure certain
A genetic tool kit for cellular and behavioral analyses of insect sugar receptors

Arthropods employ a large family of up to 100 putative taste or gustatory receptors (Grs) for the recognition of a wide range of non-volatile chemicals. In Drosophila melanogaster, a small subfamily of 8 Gr genes is thought to mediate the detection of sugars, the fly's major nutritional source. However, the specific roles for most sugar Gr genes are not known. Here, we report the generation of a series of mutant sugar Gr knock-in alleles and several composite sugar Gr mutant strains, including a sugar blind strain, which will facilitate the characterization of this gene family. Using Ca2+ imaging experiments, we show that most gustatory receptor neurons (GRNs) of sugar blind flies (lacking all 8 sugar Gr genes) fail to respond to any sugar tested. Moreover, expression of single sugar Gr genes in most sweet GRNs of sugar-blind flies does not restore sugar responses. However, when pair-wise combinations of sugar Gr genes are introduced to sweet GRNs, responses to select sugars are restored. We also examined the cellular phenotype of flies homozygous mutant for Gr64a, a Gr gene previously reported to be a major contributor for the detection of many sugars. In contrast to these claims, we find that sweet GRNs of Gr64a homozygous mutant flies show normal responses to most sugars, and only modestly reduced responses to maltose and maltotriose. Thus, the precisely engineered genetic mutations of single Gr genes and construction of a sugar-blind strain provide powerful analytical tools for examining the roles of Drosophila and other insect sugar Gr genes in sweet taste.
Plasma Homocysteine and Oxidative Stress in Cardiovascular Disease

Hyperhomocysteinemia (Hhcy) has been associated with pathological and stressfull conditions and is a risk factor for cardiovascular disease (CVD). The aim of this study was to evaluate the correlation between plasma homocysteine (hcy) and lipid peroxidation in patient with CVD. This study was carried out on 40 patients with CVD as well as 15 healthy volunteers of comparable age and gender as control group. The patients were divided into 2 groups as follows: group I, included 20 patients with acute myocardial infarction and group II, included 20 patients with atherosclerotic coronary artery disease with no evidence of previous myocardial infarction . Plasma hcy, nitric oxide (NO) and malondialdhyde (MDA) [as index of lipid peroxidation] were measured in all groups. In addition serum total-cholesterol, HDL, LDL and triglycerides were evaluated. Results obtained showed that, there was a significant elevation in the levels of plasma hcy, NO and MDA in groups I and II as compared to control group. There was a strong positive correlation between plasma hcy and MDA (r = 0.59, p < 0.001). Also NO was positively correlated with both hcy (r = 0.49, p < 0.001) and MDA (r = 0.51, p < 0.001) . Serum total cholesterol, LDL, and triglycerids were also significantly elevated while serum HDL was significantly decreased in groups I and II as compared to control group. It can be concluded that, hyperhomocysteinemia is a possible factor in free radical generation and therefore cardiovascular diseases.