Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Optimal memory controller placement for chip multiprocessor

In this paper, we analyze and compare different placements of memory controllers for Chip Multiprocessors (CMPs). As the number of cores increases, Network-on-Chip (NoC) based architectures are proposed as a promising interconnect technique for CMP. The memory bandwidth between on-chip components and off-chip memory has become a critical problem. The integration of more memory controllers on chip is one feasible way to solve this problem. However, the physical location of memory controllers in a mesh-based NoC have a significant impact on system performance. We investigate the placement of multiple memory controllers in an 8×8 NoC. Several metrics have been analyzed. An optimal memory controller placement is found and evaluated. We propose a generic "divide and conquer" method for solving the placement of memory controllers in large NoCs. By using applications selected from SPLASH-2, PARSEC, TPC and SPEC as benchmarks, it is shown that the average network latency, average link utilization and performance power product in our optimal placement are reduced by 7.63%, 10.44% and 13.94% compared with the conventional two-sides placement, respectively. This paper gives a solid theoretical foundation to future CMP design.
Early Markers of Glycaemic Control in Children with Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus

Background Type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) may lead to severe long-term health consequences. In a longitudinal study, we aimed to identify factors present at diagnosis and 6 months later that were associated with glycosylated haemoglobin (HbA1c) levels at 24 months after T1DM diagnosis, so that diabetic children at risk of poor glycaemic control may be identified. Methods 229 children <15 years of age diagnosed with T1DM in the Auckland region were studied. Data collected at diagnosis were: age, sex, weight, height, ethnicity, family living arrangement, socio-economic status (SES), T1DM antibody titre, venous pH and bicarbonate. At 6 and 24 months after diagnosis we collected data on weight, height, HbA1c level, and insulin dose. Results Factors at diagnosis that were associated with higher HbA1c levels at 6 months: female sex (p<0.05), lower SES (p<0.01), non-European ethnicity (p<0.01) and younger age (p<0.05). At 24 months, higher HbA1c was associated with lower SES (p<0.001), Pacific Island ethnicity (p<0.001), not living with both biological parents (p<0.05), and greater BMI SDS (p<0.05). A regression equation to predict HbA1c at 24 months was consequently developed. Conclusions Deterioration in glycaemic control shortly after diagnosis in diabetic children is particularly marked in Pacific Island children and in those not living with both biological parents. Clinicians need to be aware of factors associated with poor glycaemic control beyond the remission phase, so that more effective measures can be implemented shortly after diagnosis to prevent deterioration in diabetes control.
Laboratory investigation on the effects of flushes on cohesive sediment beds

Hydraulic flushing gates have recently been successfully adopted for the removal of sewer sediments. A large number of researches are aimed at the evaluation of the performances of these devices in the case of granular sediment deposits, but little information exists about the effectiveness of flushes on cohesive sediments as yet in literature. The current paper reports the results of an experimental investigation on the erosive performances of flushing waves on cohesive sediment beds. Experiments were performed in a laboratory flume adopting two flushing hydraulic conditions and comparing the erosive effects on cohesive and granular sediment beds. Different behaviours of cohesive sediments were observed during flushing operations: in particular, erosive effects in cohesive sediment beds were observed to be smaller than in granular sediments during initial flushes whereas erosion in cohesive sediments proved to be higher during subsequent flushes.
A UWB bandpass filter using interdigital and periodic UC-PBG structures

The conventional microstrip bandpass filter has very narrow passband, and its performance is not excellently good. This paper presents a novel ultra-wideband (UWB) filter with good performance by using periodic uniplanar compact photonic bandgap (UC-PBG) cells and multi-interdigital structures. This novel filter owns a passband of 5.6GHz (1.2-6.8GHz) whose fractional bandwidth is 140%. The simulation results and measurement data verified the proposed UWB filter. In addition, the proposed UWB filter only occupies one and a half wavelength in length or 24.2 mm.
Duration of Maternal Stress and Depression: Predictors of Newborn Admission to Neonatal Intensive Care Unit and Postpartum Depression

BackgroundMaternal psychosocial factors contribute to adverse pregnancy outcome, but very few studies have assessed associations of duration and experiences of stress, depression, and intimate partner violence (IPV) with maternal and newborn outcomes. ObjectivesIt was hypothesized that duration and level of maternal stress, depression, and IPV would predict increased risk of adverse maternal/newborn outcomes. MethodsA secondary data analysis of a population-based data set collected by the Utah Department of Health Pregnancy Risk Assessment and Monitoring System and birth certificates for 4682 live births was conducted, reflecting a total population size of 143,373 live births in 2009–2011. Exposures of interest were experiences and duration of maternal stress, depression, and IPV before and during pregnancy. Outcomes were gestational age, birth weight, newborn admission to the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), and postpartum depression (PPD) symptoms and diagnosis. ResultsAfter controlling for maternal demographics, body mass index, and smoking, women with greater duration of depression before and during pregnancy showed an increase in admission of their newborn to NICU (adjusted odds ratios [aORs] = 1.66–2.48, p < .001), PPD symptoms (aORs = 3.94–9.13, p < .001), and diagnosis of PPD (aORs = 7.72–59.60, p < .001). More kinds of experiences of maternal stress were associated with higher odds of PPD symptoms (aORs = 1.34–5.51, p < .001), but not PPD diagnosis or NICU admissions. DiscussionLonger lasting maternal depression and stress are associated with poorer outcomes for mothers and newborns. Future prospective studies should evaluate the usefulness of preconception and continuous prenatal risk identification of maternal depression and stress. This would facilitate timely psychosocial interventions as an approach to improving maternal/newborn outcomes for these higher risk women.
Folded teeth in temnospondyls―a preliminary study

Temnospondyl amphibians have numerous teeth which are typically internally convoluted. In this paper we look for derived features of the distribution of both cranial and mandibular teeth and also examine the extent of their convolution. We show that some features of the distribution and convolution are family linked. Overall, the degree of complexity as shown by the number of infolds and infold bends, increases with the size of the dental element. Bending of infolds appears to be more frequent within the superfamily Capitosauroidea, while among the trematosaurian group of temnospondyls bending is less pronounced, with two families, the Plagiosauridae and Rhytidosteidae, showing no bends in marginal teeth and only minimal bending in the largest rhytidosteid tusks.
Phospholipase A2 Group III and Group X Have Opposing Associations with Prognosis in Colorectal Cancer.

BACKGROUND Although secretory phospholipase A2 (sPLA2) has been shown to be involved in various biological processes, its specific roles in sub-types of cancer development remain to be elucidated. MATERIALS AND METHODS We examined the expression of sPLA2 group III (GIII) in 142 patients with colorectal cancer using immunohistochemistry, and its correlation with clinicopathological features and outcomes. In addition, we examined the co-expression of sPLA2GIII and sPLA2GX using serial tissue sections to clarify the roles of both proteins in colorectal carcinogenesis. RESULTS In 66 cases, diffuse staining of sPLA2GIII was seen; this was defined as the group with high expression. High expression was associated with a significantly higher rate of lymph node metastasis (p=0.02) and poorer survival (p=0.03) compared with low expression. Patients with low sPLA2GIII and high sPLA2GX expression had a significantly higher survival rate than those with high sPLA2GIII and low sPLA2GX expression (p=0.038). CONCLUSION sPLA2GIII expression may be used as a risk factor for lymph node metastasis and a prognostic marker in colorectal cancer. In addition, sPLA2GIII and sPLA2GX may play opposing roles in colorectal carcinogenesis.
Insulin receptor substrate influences female caste development in honeybees

The insulin/insulin-like signalling (IIS) network is conserved among animals and is central to growth and development. In eusocial honeybees (Apis mellifera), IIS is hypothesized to shape female caste fate. We tested this hypothesis via RNA interference (RNAi) knockdown of the insulin receptor substrate (IRS) homologue, a key adaptor protein in IIS. Female larvae naturally develop into queens (reproductives) or workers (helpers) after being fed rich versus limited diets, respectively. Feeding larvae a rich diet mixed with dsRNA (double stranded RNA) targeting irs gene transcript decreased irs mRNA abundance and caused development of worker morphology. Controls receiving rich larval diet and control dsRNA developed queen morphology. Whole-body mass spectrometry profiling of larvae collected 72, 96 and 120 h after dsRNA treatments revealed proteomic differences between irs gene knockdowns and controls, including levels of hexamerin 110, a storage protein connected to natural caste differences.
Eocene sedimentation and volcanism in the Fig Lake Graben, southwestern British Columbia

The Fig Lake Graben is a narrow, complex Eocene basin that developed along part of the Coldwater fault system in southwestern British Columbia. Its origin as a pull-apart basin is probably related to dextral wrench faulting along the Fraser Fault and low-angle normal faulting of the Okanagan shear zone. Within the graben are Kamloops Group volcanic and sedimentary rocks, the thickness of which implies that one fault block has been downthrown at least 4.5 km. Geochemical interpretation of previously published analyses of Kamloops Group volcanic rocks indicates that magma production was genetically related to both extension and subduction.
Outlier Correction for Local Distance Measures in Example Based Speech Recognition

Example based speech recognition is critically dependent on the quality of the acoustic distance measure between input and reference vectors. In the past, the commonly used Euclidean distance has been refined to take into account the covariance of the different sounds, resulting in a class dependent distance measure. However, using the same measure for the whole class is still too crude: vectors in the tails of the distribution (outliers) are unduly considered equally representative of the class as those in the centre. In this paper, we derive two techniques inspired by non-parametric density estimation that explicitly adjust the distance measure based on the position of the reference vector in its class. Experiments on three low-level acoustic tasks show that "data sharpening" results in a substantial improvement, while "adaptive kernels" have minimal effect.
Efficient softmax approximation for GPUs

We propose an approximate strategy to efficiently train neural network based language models over very large vocabularies. Our approach, called adaptive softmax, circumvents the linear dependency on the vocabulary size by exploiting the unbalanced word distribution to form clusters that explicitly minimize the expectation of computational complexity. Our approach further reduces the computational cost by exploiting the specificities of modern architectures and matrix-matrix vector operations, making it particularly suited for graphical processing units. Our experiments carried out on standard benchmarks, such as EuroParl and One Billion Word, show that our approach brings a large gain in efficiency over standard approximations while achieving an accuracy close to that of the full softmax.
Misinterpretations of the “Cone of Uncertainty” in Florida during the 2004 Hurricane Season

This article reviews the evolution, communication, and differing interpretations of the National Hurricane Center's “cone of uncertainty” hurricane forecast graphic. It concludes with a discussion of this graphic from the perspective of risk communication theory. The 2004 hurricane season, in which five named storms struck Florida, demonstrated that hurricane forecast graphics, despite admirable attempts by the forecast community to make user-friendly products, are still subject to misinterpretation by many members of the public. This exploratory analysis draws upon interviews with key government officials and media figures, archival research of Florida newspapers, analysis of 962 public comments on the National Hurricane Center's cone of uncertainty graphic, a separate multiagency study of2004 hurricane behavior, and relevant risk communication literature, to identify several characteristics of this graphic that likely contribute to public misinterpretation. Forecast providers should consider more formal.
Mechanisms of Dendritic Elaboration of Sensory Neurons in Drosophila: Insights from In Vivo Time Lapse

In vivo time-lapse multiphoton microscopy was used to analyze the remodeling of the dendritic arborizing (da) sensory neuron known as dorsal dendritic arborizing neuron E (ddaE) during metamorphosis. After its larval processes have been removed, the cell body of ddaE repositions itself on the body wall between 25 and 40 hr after puparium formation (APF) and begins its adult outgrowth at 40 hr APF. The scaffold of the arbor is laid down between 40 and 54 hr APF, when growth is characterized by high filopodial activity at both terminal and interstitial positions and by branch retraction along with branch establishment. Later in development, filopodial activity remains high but is confined to terminal branches, and branch retraction is no longer seen. Treatment with the insect hormone juvenile hormone (JH), a key regulator of metamorphosis, alters the shape and complexity of the adult dendritic tree in a time-dependent manner. Early treatments with juvenile hormone mimic (JHm) appear to repress extension programs and maintain retraction programs. With later JHm treatments, extension programs appear normal, but retraction programs are maintained beyond their normal time. The JH treatments show the importance of retraction programs in establishing the overall arbor shape.
Evidence for a relationship between spring snow cover in North America and summer rainfall in New Mexico

Two possible mechanisms for interannual modulation of precipitation anomalies in the Southwest U.S. are examined. The association between El Niño/Southern Oscillation (ENSO) fluctuations and New Mexico precipitation anomalies is found to vary with season: positive Pacific Ocean surface temperature anomalies are associated with positive winter‐spring precipitation anomalies in New Mexico but negative summer anomalies. We propose that the spring snow extent across the west‐central U.S. acts to enhance or suppress the subsequent summer monsoon circulation affecting the American Southwest, such that excessive snow leads to deficient summer rain, and deficient snow leads to abundant rain. This mechanism is consistent with the observed seasonal variation in the ENSO—precipitation relationship.
Traumatic Brain Injury Alters Methionine Metabolism: Implications for Pathophysiology

Methionine is an essential proteinogenic amino acid that is obtained from the diet. In addition to its requirement for protein biosynthesis, methionine is metabolized to generate metabolites that play key roles in a number of cellular functions. Metabolism of methionine via the transmethylation pathway generates S-adenosylmethionine (SAM) that serves as the principal methyl (−CH3) donor for DNA and histone methyltransferases (MTs) to regulate epigenetic changes in gene expression. SAM is also required for methylation of other cellular proteins that serve various functions and phosphatidylcholine synthesis that participate in cellular signaling. Under conditions of oxidative stress, homocysteine (which is derived from SAM) enters the transsulfuration pathway to generate glutathione, an important cytoprotective molecule against oxidative damage. As both experimental and clinical studies have shown that traumatic brain injury (TBI) alters DNA and histone methylation and causes oxidative stress, we examined if TBI alters the plasma levels of methionine and its metabolites in human patients. Blood samples were collected from healthy volunteers (HV; n = 20) and patients with mild TBI (mTBI; GCS > 12; n = 20) or severe TBI (sTBI; GCS < 8; n = 20) within the first 24 h of injury. The levels of methionine and its metabolites in the plasma samples were analyzed by either liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry or gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS or GC-MS). sTBI decreased the levels of methionine, SAM, betaine and 2-methylglycine as compared to HV, indicating a decrease in metabolism through the transmethylation cycle. In addition, precursors for the generation of glutathione, cysteine and glycine were also found to be decreased as were intermediate metabolites of the gamma-glutamyl cycle (gamma-glutamyl amino acids and 5-oxoproline). mTBI also decreased the levels of methionine, α-ketobutyrate, 2 hydroxybutyrate and glycine, albeit to lesser degrees than detected in the sTBI group. Taken together, these results suggest that decreased levels of methionine and its metabolic products are likely to alter cellular function in multiple organs at a systems level.
Online Agent Supervision in the Situation Calculus

Agent supervision is a form of control / customization where a supervisor restricts the behavior of an agent to enforce certain requirements, while leaving the agent as much autonomy as possible. In this work, we investigate supervision of an agent that may acquire new knowledge about her environment during execution, for example, by sensing. Thus we consider an agent's online executions, where, as she executes the program, at each time point she must make decisions on what to do next based on what her current knowledge is. This is done in a setting based on the situation calculus and a variant of the ConGolog programming language. The main results of this paper are (i) a formalization of the online maximally permissive supervisor, (ii) a sound and complete technique for execution of the agent as constrained by such a supervisor, and (iii) a new type of lookahead search construct that ensures nonblockingness over such online executions.
Primal-Dual Subgradient Method for Huge-Scale Linear Conic Problems

In this paper, we develop a primal-dual subgradient method for solving huge-scale linear conic optimization problems. Our main assumption is that the primal cone is formed as a direct product of many small-dimensional convex cones and that the matrix $A$ of the corresponding linear operator is uniformly sparse. In this case, our method can approximate the primal-dual optimal solution with accuracy $\epsilon$ in $O\big({1 \over \epsilon^2}\big)$ iterations. At the same time, the complexity of each iteration of this scheme does not exceed $O(r q \log_2 n)$ operations, where $r$ and $q$ are the maximal numbers of nonzero elements in the rows and columns of matrix $A$, and $n$ is the number of variables.
Deep convection in the World Ocean

A brief discussion of, and a little speculation about, the relevance of the polar regions on climate is given. The main body of the paper gives a survey of the known deep convection areas of the world ocean. There are two distinct types of convection. The first is the classic sinking occurring on continental shelf slope systems, as typified by various locations around the Antarctic coast. The freezing of sea ice, and resulting brine ejection, creates dense salty water on the shelf which descends the slope under a balance of Coriolis, gravity, and frictional forces, entraining the surrounding warm deep water as it goes. The second process is the more recently observed open-ocean convection, occurring in locations such as the Mediterranean, the Labrador Sea, and two locations in the Weddell gyre, and is hypothesized to occur in the Greenland Sea. Open-ocean convection has many overall similarities in all these areas: it occurs in narrow (20–50 km) areas; it forms about 10 m³ s−l of deep water; it occurs only in regions of cyclonic mean circulation; more than one water mass in the mean circulation is involved; a preconditioning seems to be required; some surface forcing (cooling or sea ice formation) is necessary; a violent breakup of the water mass frequently occurs on time scales of 2 weeks.
GENESIS Project - Paving the Way towards a Single Information Space for the Environment in Europe

GENESIS (GENeric European Sustainable Information Space for Environment), initiated in 2008 EU R and D large Integrated Project which gathers 30 public and private research partners (http://genesis-fp7.eu/) responds to the objectives of Lisbon Agenda and in particular to the objective of improvement of the environmental management through a Single Information Space for Environment (SISE) by proposing a strategic integrated approach leading to a reference European solution and by demonstrating the efficiency of the solution through thematic pilots dealing with the environment management and its impact on health. Using examples of one of GENESIS pilot sites, the artificial lake Villerest created in 1983 on the upper part of the Loire River in the central France, and its serious environmental and health affecting problem of a recurrent proliferation of the toxic cyanobacteria, Microcystis aeruginosa, the paper presents the advantages of GENESIS based workflow. In addition to the GENESIS Service oriented Architecture (SoAP) Villerest site data specific processing chain requires : - several campaigns of multispatial water quality sampling based on the use of a spectrofluorimetric probe and on the counting of cyanobacteria cells; - analyses of satellite imagery to determine the spatial distribution of the biomass of cyanobacteria in the reservoir; - simulation of the cyanobacteria colonies proliferation and displacement using AQUATOX and TELEMAC 2D/3D modelling systems.