Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Constraints for Non Predefined Data Types

This paper presents an object oriented library based on programming with constraints. In particular, the constraints of this library are applied to common data structures such as queues, stacks, lists, trees, sets, bags, tables, matrices etc. The choice of these data structures is natural since several applications can be expressed with these. The constraints are organised in a hierarchy of classes and are predefined. Constraints may be generic or specific (i.e. related to a particular structure). Users may express their constraints by using or combining existing predefined constraints. Constraints which are specific to an application may be inserted by extending the library with appropriate classes.
An Explicit Form of the Equation of Motion of the Interface in Bicontinuous Phases

The explicit form of the interface equation of motion derived assuming a minimal surface is extended to general bicontinuous interfaces that appear in the diffusion limited stage of the phase separation process of binary mixtures. The derivation is based on a formal solution of the equivalent simple layer for the Dirichlet problem of the Laplace equation with an arbitrary boundary surface. It is shown that the assumption of a minimal surface used in the previous linear theory is not necessary, but its bicontinuous nature is the essential condition required for us to rederive the explicit form of the simple layer. The de- rived curvature flow equation has a phenomenological cut-off length, i.e., an `electro-static' screening length. That is re- lated to the well-known scaling length characterizing the spatial pattern size of a homogeneously growing bicontinuous phase. The corresponding equation of the level function in this scheme is given in a one-parameter form also.
Interpreting the temporal aspects of language

Understanding temporal information in natural language text is fundamental for deep language understanding, and key to many advanced natural language processing (NLP) applications, such as question answering, information extraction, document summarization and dialog systems. These techniques can be applied in news, medical, history and other domains. In this dissertation, we first present our hybrid system to automatically extract temporal information from raw text by extracting events, temporal expressions and identifying temporal relations between entities. Our system had a competitive performance in the temporal evaluation shared task - TempEval 2010. Then we present a metric that we developed for the evaluation of temporal annotation. Our metric has been adopted by the premier temporal evaluation shared task, TempEval 2013, to evaluate participating systems. We also present a question-answering (QA) system that can answer temporal questions with temporal reasoning. Our developed QA system can be used to evaluate temporal information understanding capability. Finally, we describe our contributions in improving the existing temporal resources.
IMAGERY IN DAGAABA RIDDLES

A THESIS IN THE DEPARTMENT OF GHANAIAN LANGUAGES EDUCATION, FACULTY OF LANGUAGES, SUBMITTED TO THE SCHOOL OF GRADUATE STUDIES, UNIVERSITY OF EDUCATION, WINNEBA IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE AWARD OF MASTER OF PHILOSOPHY IN GHANAIAN LANGUAGE STUDIES (DAGAARE) DEGREE.
Offshore Software Development: Is the Benefit Worth the Risk?

The offshore information services market is estimated to be valued at $30 billion to $40 billion, with a large portion of that being in the software development area. Much of the justification for going offshore for software development services is purported to be a demand for skills that exceeds the current supply. While there is evidence of this, the current literature cites the primary motivation as cost reduction. Recent reports of U.S. companies outsourcing software development to offshore companies, while simultaneously laying off U.S. workers, appear to add credence to this assertion. This papers looks at the benefits versus the risk of foreign outsourcing for software development, and develops a set of critical success factors, which lead to a series of recommendations for companies considering foreign outsourcing.
A new combined motor and cognitive strategy training intervention for stroke: Stakeholder perceptions

Introduction Hemiparesis affects about half of persons with chronic stroke and frequently leads to decreased participation in meaningful daily life activities. The purpose of this investigation was to evaluate the perceived acceptability and practicality feasibility of a complex intervention for addressing motor impairment and activity limitations post stroke. The newly developed intervention, Metacognitive Virtual Reality (MetacogVR), combines virtual reality technology to improve motor impairments with task-based, cognitive strategy training for meaningful transfer of skills. Method Three separate focus groups were held with stakeholders including persons with stroke (n = 5), caregivers (n = 5), and occupational therapists (n = 5). Focus groups were audio recorded and transcribed. Data were analyzed using inductive content analysis. Results Themes revealed stakeholder perceptions of the intervention as a cost-efficient and transportable intervention. The time commitment of the intervention was acknowledged as intense, but necessary for optimal improvements. Findings also included perceptions of the intervention as highly motivating and client-centered. Essential elements of guided discovery, cognitive strategies, and high repetitions were seen as facilitators of the intervention. Conclusion Results indicate MetacogVR has positively perceived acceptability and practicality feasibility. Findings warrant further feasibility testing of MetacogVR prior to efficacy testing.
The strong energy condition and the S-brane singularity problem

Recently it has been argued that, because tachyonic matter satisfies the Strong Energy Condition (SEC), there is little hope of avoiding the singularities which plague S-Brane spacetimes. Meanwhile, however, Townsend and Wohlfarth have suggested an ingenious way of circumventing the SEC in such situations, and other suggestions for actually violating it in the S-Brane context have recently been proposed. Of course, the natural context for discussions of (effective or actual) violations of the SEC is the theory of asymptotically deSitter spacetimes, which tend to be less singular than ordinary FRW spacetimes. However, while violating or circumventing the SEC is necessary if singularities are to be avoided, it is not at all clear that it is sufficient. That is, we can ask: would an asymptotically deSitter S-brane spacetime be non-singular? We show that this is difficult to achieve; this result is in the spirit of the recently proved ``S-brane singularity theorem". Essentially our results suggest that circumventing or violating the SEC may not suffice to solve the S-Brane singularity problem, though we do propose two ways of avoiding this conclusion.
Empirical model of clinical learning environment and mentoring of culturally and linguistically diverse nursing students.

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES This study aimed to develop and test an empirical model of clinical learning environment and mentoring of culturally and linguistically diverse nursing students. BACKGROUND Clinical learning is an essential part of nursing education; nursing students are required to master clinical competences and build a professional identity during their education. The global mobility of nurses requires high proficiency in cultural adaptability as well as the successful integration of cultural diversity into the healthcare system on a national level. DESIGN The research design was a quantitative cross-sectional study. STROBE statement was used to enhance the quality and transparency of research. METHODS Data were collected from eight universities during the 2015-2016. The analysis included data from 187 participants, collected using the CLES + T and CALDs scales. Instrument validity was tested with Confirmatory Factor Analysis, while the hypotheses were tested with a Structural Equation Model (SEM). RESULTS Pedagogical atmosphere was shown to be positively related to cultural diversity (0.66), orientation into the clinical placement (0.54) and the role of the student (0.25), and all of these relationships were statistically significant. These dimensions - with the exception of the role of the student - also showed a significantly positive influence on the mentoring relationship (respectively 0.32, 0.71, 0.18). Fit indexes demonstrate an adequate model's fit. CONCLUSIONS The model needs to be further piloted and tested in organizational structures of clinical practice of culturally and linguistically diverse nursing students. The dimensions that explain mentoring in clinical learning needed to be further addressed in a theoretically-consistent and empirically-driven approach, according to these findings. RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE In our study we found that environmental and relational aspects are the most important for building an effective clinical learning environment. Universities and health care organizations can jointly leverage the model to foster clinical learning environments in clinical practice.
The effects of visual information about self-movement on grasp forces when receiving objects in an augmented environment

This work explored how the presence of visual information about self-movement affected grasp forces when receiving an object from a partner. Twelve subjects either reached to grasp or grasped without reaching objects that were passed by a partner or rested on a table surface. Visual feedback about self-movement was available for half the trials and was removed for the other half. Results indicated that a graphic representation of self-movement significantly decreased transfer time when objects were passed between subjects. Results also indicated decreased time to peak grip force and peak grip force rate by the receiver with this visual feedback. These results suggest that grip force production on objects acquired from another person benefit from a crude graphical representation of the finger pads. Furthermore, these results suggest that sources of sensory feedback cannot be studied in isolation. Instead we must consider how feedback modalities are integrated for successful interaction. Implications for the design of virtual environments and integrated feedback devices are discussed.
Membranous bronchioles and connective tissue network of normal and emphysematous lungs.

Three-dimensional reconstructions of the septal system of normal human lungs revealed that airways course within the interlobular septa, i.e., between the two blades formed by the peripheral boundaries of adjacent lobuli of whatever order, and enter the supplied pulmonary unit at its side. This is not in keeping with the classic view of a peripheral airway in the center of a lung unit and submitted to radial traction by attached alveolar septa. The basic design of the lung fibrous scaffold appears to be in conformity with the laws of fractal geometry. Similar reconstructions in centrilobular emphysema disclosed tortuosities of both intra-acinar and interlobular septa, with consequent distortions of the corresponding intraseptal bronchioles and collapse of lung units of different sizes. It is suggested that in centrilobular emphysema competition for space, besides intrinsic airways narrowing because of inflammation and loss of elastic recoil, is a cause of flow limitation.
What Can Faculty Members and Programs Do to Improve Students' Learning?

Purpose. To understand what faculty members can do to improve students' learning, we explored (1) program and course characteristics important to students, (2) choices within courses students feel are important, and (3) students' perceptions of learning online. Background. Web delivery alters interactions among students and faculty, thereby changing the learning environment. Methods. Master of Nursing students currently enrolled in one graduate program were invited to participate in a web-based survey. Findings. The students valued (1) frequent feedback and interaction with the instructor, (2) organized, structured, and current content, (3) flexibility in deadlines and participation, (4) seamless navigation and technical support, and (5) choices in assignments. Students perceived their learning in online courses as less than if they had taken the course on campus. Conclusions. Professors can address some of the items identified by students as important, such as being flexible with due dates and expectations for participation in online discussion.
A fast algorithm for locating and correcting simple design errors in VLSI digital circuits

With the increase in the complexity of VLSI circuit design and the corresponding increase in the number of logic gates on a chip, logic design errors can frequently occur. In this paper we present an efficient approach to Design Error Detection and Correction when a small number of modifications can rectify the design. Our method is based on test vector simulation and Boolean function manipulation techniques. The proposed approach guarantees to return a solution, if such a solution exists in our modification model, in a short computational time. Experimental results show the robustness of our approach.
Identifying User Behavior from Residual Data in Cloud-based Synchronized Apps

As the distinction between personal and organizational device usage continues to blur, the combination of applications that interact increases the need to investigate potential security issues. Although security and forensic researchers have been able to recover a variety of artifacts, empirical research has not examined a suite of application artifacts from the perspective of high-level pattern identification. This research presents a preliminary investigation into the idea that residual artifacts generated by cloud-based synchronized applications can be used to identify broad user behavior patterns. To accomplish this, the researchers conducted a single-case, pretest-posttest, quasi experiment using a smartphone device and a suite of Google mobile applications. The contribution of this paper is two-fold. First, it provides a proof of concept of the extent to which residual data from cloud-based synchronized applications can be used to broadly identify user behavior patterns from device data patterns. Second, it highlights the need for security controls to prevent and manage information flow between BYOD mobile devices and cloud synchronization services. Keywords: Residual Data, Cloud, Apps, Digital Forensics, BYOD
The Propagation of Light Pollution in Diffusely Urbanised Areas

The knowledge of the contribution $b_d(d)$ to the artificial sky luminance in a given point of the sky of a site produced by the sources beyond a given distance $d$ from it is important to understand the behaviour of light pollution in diffusely urbanized areas and to estimate which fraction of the artificial luminance would be regulated by norms or laws limiting the light wasted upward within protection areas of given radii. I studied the behaviour of $b_d(d)$ constructing a model for the propagation of the light pollution based on the modelling technique introduced by Garstang which allows to calculate the contribution to the artificial luminance in a given point of the sky of a site of given altitude above sea level, produced by a source of given emission and geographic position. I obtained $b_d(d)$ integrating the contribution to the artificial luminance from every source situated at a distance greater than $d$. I also presented an analitical expression for $b_d(d)$ depending mainly from one parameter, a core radius, well reproducing model's results. In this paper I present the results for $b_d(d)$ at some Italian Astronomical Observatories. In a diffusely urbanised territory the artificial sky luminance produced by sources located at large distances from the site is not negligible due at the additive character of light pollution and its propagation at large distances. Only when the core radius is small, e.g. for sites in the inner outskirts of a city, the sky luminance from sources beyond few kilometers is negligible. The radii of protection zones around Observatories needs to be large in order that prescriptions limiting upward light be really effective.
Performance Appraisal Model for Human Resource based on Fuzzy Evaluation Method

Abstract Scientific human resources management plays an important role in business activities of enterprises, which enables enterprise employees comprehensive understanding of the situation and their staff composition, help enterprises to establish and improve the incentive and restraint mechanisms, rational and effective allocation of human resources,improve management level and overall competitiveness. This paper studies the current status of human resource management, Compares the different theories and methods of human resources management, and considers the dynamic fuzzy point of the human resources management; lead the dynamic fuzzy logic theory into human resources management for study.
The effect of particle noise in N-body simulations of gravitational lensing

High resolution dark matter only simulations provide a realistic and fully general means to study the theoretical predictions of cosmological structure formation models for gravitational lensing. Due to the finite number of particles, the density field only becomes smooth on scales beyond a few times the local mean interparticle separation. This introduces noise on the gravitational lensing properties such as the surface mass density, the deflection angles and the magnification. At some small-scale mass limit, the noise due to the discreteness of the N-body simulation becomes comparable to the effects of physical substructures. We present analytic expressions to quantify the Poisson noise and study its scaling with the particle number of the simulation and the Lagrangian smoothing size. We use the Phoenix set of simulations, currently the largest available dark matter simulations of clusters to study the effect of limited numerical resolution and the gravitational strong lensing effects of substructure. We quantify the smallest resolved substructure, in the sense that the effect of the substructure on any strong lensing property is significant compared to the noise, and we find that the result is roughly independent of the strong lensing property. A simple scaling relates the smallest resolved substructures in a simulation with the resolution of the N-body simulation.
NONLINEAR MODEL PREDICTIVE CONTROL OF ROBOTS, CRANES AND VEHICLES

Abstract The main goal of the paper is to show that nonlinear model based predictive control is an effective alternative method for controlling uncertain nonlinear underactuated systems satisfying real time expectations where uncertainty is caused by friction and disturbance. The paper presents control algorithms for a two degree of freedom robot and for two underactuated systems, the small size model of a planar crane and a weeled mobile robot, which are based on nonlinear model predictive control. The continuous time dynamic model has been discretized and the finite dimensional optimization problem is solved by conjugate gradient technique in every horizon. Extended Kalman filter is used for state and disturbance estimation. For the crane the initial approximation of the control sequence within the actual horizon is determined by using the flatness properties. For development purposes a multiprocessor system has been elaborated where the control algorithm is running under QNX real-time operating system. The paper also presents experimental results that demonstrate the applicability of the proposed algorithms under real time conditions.
Comparison of dexmedetomidine and remifentanil for attenuation of hemodynamic responses to laryngoscopy and tracheal intubation

Background This study was designed to compare the effect of dexmedetomidine and remifentanil used in anesthetic induction on hemodynamic change after direct laryngoscopy and tracheal intubation. Methods A total of 90 ASA class 1 or 2 patients were randomly assigned to one of 3 groups to receive one of the following treatments in a double-blind manner: normal saline (Group C, n = 30), dexmedetomidine 1 µg/kg (Group D, n = 30), remifentanil 1 µg/kg (Group R, n= 30). Anesthesia was induced with propofol 2 mg/kg and rocuronium 0.6 mg/kg and maintained with 2 vol% sevoflurane and 50% nitrous oxide in oxygen. In group D, dexmedetomidine 1 µg/kg was infused for 10 min before tracheal intubation. Patients in group R was received 1 µg/kg of remifentanil 1 minute before tracheal intubation. The systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure and heart rate were recorded from entrance to operation room to 5 min after tracheal intubation. Results The percent increase in systolic and diastolic blood pressure due to tracheal intubation in group D and R were significantly lower than that of group C (P < 0.05). The heart rate 1 min after tracheal intubation was lower in groups R and D than in the group C (P < 0.05). Conclusions In healthy normotensive patients, the use of dexmedetomidine during anesthetic induction suppressed a decrease in blood pressure due to anesthetic induction and blunted the hemodynamic responses to endotracheal intubation.
Characterization of a Subset of the Basic-Helix-Loop-Helix-PAS Superfamily That Interacts with Components of the Dioxin Signaling Pathway*

In an effort to better understand the mechanism of toxicity of 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin, we employed an iterative search of human expressed sequence tags to identify novel basic-helix-loop-helix-PAS (bHLH-PAS) proteins that interact with either the Ah receptor (AHR) or the Ah receptor nuclear translocator (ARNT). We characterized five new “embers f the AS superfamily,” or MOPs 1-5, that are similar in size and structural organization to the AHR and ARNT. MOPs 1-4 have N-terminal bHLH and PAS domains and C-terminal variable regions. MOP5 contained the characteristic PAS domain and a variable C terminus; it is possible that the cDNA contains a bHLH domain, but the entire open reading frame has yet to be completed. Coimmunoprecipitation studies, yeast two-hybrid analysis, and transient transfection experiments demonstrated that MOP1 and MOP2 dimerize with ARNT and that these complexes are transcriptionally active at defined DNA enhancer sequences in vivo. MOP3 was found to associate with the AHR in vitro but not in vivo. This observation, coupled with the fact that MOP3 formed tighter associations with the 90-kDa heat shock protein than the human AHR, suggests that MOP3 may be a conditionally active bHLH-PAS protein that requires activation by an unknown ligand. The expression profiles of the AHR, MOP1, and MOP2 mRNAs, coupled with the observation that they all share ARNT as a common dimeric partner, suggests that the cellular pathways mediated by MOP1 and MOP2 may influence or respond to the dioxin signaling pathway.