Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Chromax, the other side of the spectral delay between signal processing and composition

Spectral delays have been used for a long time as a way to colour and shape spectral characteristics of sound. Most of available software is controlled by drawing an envelope on a window that represents spectral bins, and by setting a max- imum delay time. Despite its comfort, such a simplistic approach does not imply any methods for allowing symbolic manipulations on spectral data that are often required by composers and sound designers. Chromax proposes an alternative dynamic parameterization of spectral delays, allowing fine and complex compositional manipulations. It implements a bin-synchronous spectral processing using the new Gen~ technology available in Max6, and provides algorithms to dynamically specify a filter, a delay and a feedback level for each bin of a processed sound.
Release of Glycoprotein (GP1) from the Tegumental Surface of Taenia solium by Phospholipase C from Clostridium perfringens Suggests a Novel Protein-Anchor to Membranes

In order to explore how molecules are linked to the membrane surface in larval Taenia solium, whole cysticerci were incubated in the presence of phospholipase C from Clostridium perfringens (PLC). Released material was collected and analyzed in polyacrylamide gels with sodium dodecyl sulfate. Two major bands with apparent molecular weights of 180 and 43 kDa were observed. Western blot of released material and localization assays in cysticerci tissue sections using antibodies against five known surface glycoproteins of T. solium cysticerci indicated that only one, previously called GP1, was released. Similar localization studies using the lectins wheat-germ-agglutinin and Concanavalin A showed that N-acetyl-D-glucosamine, N-acetylneuraminic, sialic acid, αmethyl-D-mannoside, D-manose/glucose, and N-acetyl-D-glucosamine residues are abundantly present on the surface. On the other hand, we find that treatment with PLC releases molecules from the surface; they do not reveal Cross Reacting Determinant (CRD), suggesting a novel anchor to the membrane for the glycoprotein GP1.
The role of action in perceiving and comparing functional relations

There is growing evidence that even the most abstract capacities of human cognition are not entirely amodal and disembodied. The present study presents two empirical studies which aim to demonstrate that relational reasoning is grounded in our sensory-motor experience. Experiment 1 shows that the affordances of tool-like objects have an effect on comparing functional relations. Experiment 2 makes sure that this finding can not be explained by an automatic activation of motor systems. The results are interpreted as evidence that at least certain functional relations are perceived by simulating interactions with the environment. It is also asserted that the process of comparing such relations is constrained by the properties of the human body such as hand-dominance.
Does Sequentiality Impede Convergence

Inspired by the conjecture that the necessity of trading through money in monetarised economies might hinder convergence to competitive equilibrium, and hence, for example, cause unemployment, we experimentally investigate behaviour in sequential markets. In order to evaluate the properties of these markets, we compare their behaviour to behaviour in simultaneous markets, where money does not intervene. As the trading mechanism might be a compounding factor, we investigate two kinds of mechanism: the double auction, where bids, asks and trades take place in continuous time throughout a trading period; and the clearing house, where bids and asks are placed once in a trading period, and which are then cleared by an aggregating device. We thus have four treatments, the pairwise combinations of simultaneous/sequential with double auction/clearing house. We find that: convergence is faster under simultaneous trading, implying that the necessity of using money to facilitate trade hinders convergence; that sequential trading is noisier than simultaneous trading; and that the volume of trade and realised surpluses are higher with the double auction than the clearing house. We suspect that the double auction, although on the surface more complicated for subjects to understand, enables them better to realise their desired trades. We also confirm the conjecture that inspired these experiments: that the necessity to use money in trading hinders convergence to competitive equilibrium, lowers realised trades and surpluses, and hence may cause unemployment.
Impressionism, expressionism, surrealism: Automated recognition of painters and schools of art

We describe a method for automated recognition of painters and schools of art based on their signature styles and studied the computer-based perception of visual art. Paintings of nine artists, representing three different schools of art—impressionism, surrealism and abstract expressionism—were analyzed using a large set of image features and image transforms. The computed image descriptors were assessed using Fisher scores, and the most informative features were used for the classification and similarity measurements of paintings, painters, and schools of art. Experimental results show that the classification accuracy when classifying paintings into nine painter classes is 77%, and the accuracy of associating a given painting with its school of art is 91%. An interesting feature of the proposed method is its ability to automatically associate different artists that share the same school of art in an unsupervised fashion. The source code used for the image classification and image similarity described in this article is available for free download.
Search Framework for Mining Classi cation

Classiication{rule{learning task is presented as a search process of nding a classiication{ decision tree that meets users' preferences and requirements. Users can control the eeciency of the mining process and the quality of the nal decision tree through the search parameters. This search framework allows users to easily adapt to diierent domains and diierent sets of data by modifying diierent search parameters. The mining process starts with a speciic set of values for the search parameters and the process can be repeated with diierent search parameters values until a satisfactory result is obtained. This framework also allows the development of new algorithms. A set of search parameters that is frequently and successfully used can deene a new algorithm. We present two new algorithms developed in this search framework and compare them to well{known algorithms. BF uses best{{rst ordering to expand the frontier nodes of the decision trees, instead of the conventional depth{{rst or breadth{{rst criteria. CDP+ dynamically adjusts the depth pruning criteria for a node. Experimental results show that BF has a new capability to guide the construction of decision trees based on the overall error{rate criteria. In addition, CDP+ often outperforms several decision{tree learning algorithms in error rate and number of nodes generated. the content of which does not necessarily reeect the position or the policy of the government, and no oocial endorsement should be inferred.
Comparison of the safety and immunogenicity of 2 respiratory syncytial virus (rsv) vaccines--nonadjuvanted vaccine or vaccine adjuvanted with alum--given concomitantly with influenza vaccine to high-risk elderly individuals.

BACKGROUND Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) has been recognized recently as an important adult pathogen. METHODS This randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study was designed to compare humoral responses to licensed trivalent influenza vaccine given concomitantly with 1 of 2 RSV vaccine formulations in persons > or =65 years old with cardiopulmonary disease. Hemagglutinin-inhibition assays and neutralization assays were used to measure levels of antibody to influenza and RSV, respectively. Subjects with respiratory illnesses during subsequent winters were tested for RSV and influenza by reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction and serologic analysis. RESULTS Neither RSV vaccine formulation had an effect on the humoral response to influenza vaccination, and both RSV vaccines were well tolerated by 1169 participants. The immunogenicity of the nonadjuvanted vaccine was judged superior on the basis of mean postvaccination neutralizing antibody titers (12.5 vs. 12.1) and the percentage of subjects for whom > or =4-fold increases in neutralizing titer were observed when acute-phase and convalescent-phase serum samples were compared (168 [44%] of 383 vs. 129 [33%] of 400). In year 1, the percentage of illnesses due to RSV was 7% (36 of 492 illnesses) and that due to influenza was 8% (40 of 492), compared with 6% (11 of 189) due to RSV and 11% (20 of 189) due to influenza in year 2. The incidence of RSV infection was not significantly different in the RSV vaccine and placebo groups. CONCLUSIONS Although the safety and immunogenicity data of these RSV vaccines are encouraging, low rates of infection make it challenging to design efficacy trials.
How elderly users of a socially interactive robot experience adaptiveness, adaptability and user control

Older adults prefer an assistive technology that can be adaptive to their needs. However, as an assistive social robot that is autonomous has the possibility of being pro-actively adaptive this could cause feelings of anxiety. Analyzing the results of a study with video's that feature an assistive social robot in alternate conditions we found that although older adults prefer a robot to be adaptive rather than adaptable, they still want to maintain a sense of user control.
Inclusive Growth toward a Harmonious Society in the People’s Republic of China: Policy Implications

This paper examines the policy implications of adopting a development strategy anchored on inclusive growth for the People’s Republic of China (PRC). In response to rising inequality, more and more developing Asian countries are embracing inclusive growth, with its focus on creating economic opportunities and ensuring equal access to them, as the goal of development policy. Inclusive growth provides an effective means to create a harmonious society in the PRC. The paper argues that an inclusive growth strategy for the PRC requires continued reforms to keep growth high and sustainable, carefully designed redistributive policy to promote equal access to opportunities, and good governance and strong institutions to ensure economic and social justice and an even playing field.
Information security management: a new paradigm

Information security management needs a paradigm shift in order to successfully protect information assets. Organisations must change to the holistic management of information security, requiring a well-established Information Security Management System (ISMS). An ISMS addresses all aspects in an organisation that deals with creating and maintaining a secure information environment. Organisational management and their staff to manage information security cost-effectively can use the ISMS. It can also help with the assessment of the trustworthiness of an organisation's information security arrangements by other organisations. An intelligent mix of aspects such as policies, standards, guidelines, codes-of-practice, technology, human issues, legal and ethical issues constitute an ISMS. Ideally organisations should opt for a combination of these different aspects in establishing an ISMS. The initial combination of all the aspects might by a bridge too far when embarking on the establishment of an ISMS, forcing organisations to take a 'phased' approach. One approach can be to implement the controls as contained in a standard such as ISO17799. In this case information security is driven from a management process point of view and referred to as 'process security'. Another approach that also complement or add to process security, is to use certified products in the IT infrastructure environment when possible. The approach here focuses on technical issues and is referred to as 'product security'.
Crystal Structure and Pharmacological Characterization of a Novel N-Methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) Receptor Antagonist at the GluN1 Glycine Binding Site*

Background: The glycine-binding GluN1 and GluN3 subunits of NMDA receptors have distinctive selectivity profiles. Results: TK40 binds to the GluN1 orthosteric binding site and competitively reduces the potency of glycine. Conclusion: TK40 is a novel glycine site antagonist with selectivity for the GluN1 subunit compared with GluN3. Significance: The imino acetamido moiety acts as an α-amino acid bioisostere, as predicted by virtual screening. NMDA receptors are ligand-gated ion channels that mediate excitatory neurotransmission in the brain. They are tetrameric complexes composed of glycine-binding GluN1 and GluN3 subunits together with glutamate-binding GluN2 subunits. Subunit-selective antagonists that discriminate between the glycine sites of GluN1 and GluN3 subunits would be valuable pharmacological tools for studies on the function and physiological roles of NMDA receptor subtypes. In a virtual screening for antagonists that exploit differences in the orthosteric binding site of GluN1 and GluN3 subunits, we identified a novel glycine site antagonist, 1-thioxo-1,2-dihydro-[1,2,4]triazolo[4,3-a]quinoxalin-4(5H)-one (TK40). Here, we show by Schild analysis that TK40 is a potent competitive antagonist with Kb values of 21–63 nm at the GluN1 glycine-binding site of the four recombinant GluN1/N2A-D receptors. In addition, TK40 displayed >100-fold selectivity for GluN1/N2 NMDA receptors over GluN3A- and GluN3B-containing NMDA receptors and no appreciable effects at AMPA receptors. Binding experiments on rat brain membranes and the purified GluN1 ligand-binding domain using glycine site GluN1 radioligands further confirmed the competitive interaction and high potency. To delineate the binding mechanism, we have solved the crystal structure of the GluN1 ligand-binding domain in complex with TK40 and show that TK40 binds to the orthosteric binding site of the GluN1 subunit with a binding mode that was also predicted by virtual screening. Furthermore, the structure reveals that the imino acetamido group of TK40 acts as an α-amino acid bioisostere, which could be of importance in bioisosteric replacement strategies for future ligand design.
Co-reflection: user involvement for highly dynamic design processes

User involvement in systems, products and related services design has increased considerably in relevance. The way user involvement actually progresses depends on how the users are situated in relation to the design process. Their influence may extend from the results of the design project to planning and managing the course of the design project. Sequential techniques developed for the rational problem solving or reflective process have a limited application in highly dynamic design processes. More precisely, in sequential design processes validation steers reflection into a single direction. For this reason, a methodological approach not based on the sequential (hypothetical-deductive) paradigm but on the dialectical inquiry (inductive paradigm) between designers and users is considered. The versatile and holistic nature of this co-reflective process makes it suitable for dynamic and unstructured design processes based on different streams of reflection.
Propeller-driven Outflows and Disk Oscillations

We report the discovery of propeller-driven outflows in axisymmetric magnetohydrodynamic simulations of disk accretion to rapidly rotating magnetized stars. Matter outflows in a wide cone and is centrifugally ejected from the inner regions of the disk. Closer to the axis there is a strong, collimated, magnetically dominated outflow of energy and angular momentum carried by the open magnetic field lines from the star. The "efficiency" of the propeller may be very high in the respect that most of the incoming disk matter is expelled from the system in winds. The star spins down rapidly due to the magnetic interaction with the disk through closed field lines and with the corona through open field lines. Diffusive and viscous interaction between the magnetosphere and the disk are important: no outflows were observed for very small values of the diffusivity and viscosity. These simulation results are applicable to the early stages of evolution of classical T Tauri stars (CTTSs) and to different stages of evolution of cataclysmic variables and neutron stars in binary systems. As an example, we show that young rapidly rotating magnetized CTTSs spin down to their present slow rotation in less than 106 yr.
Online parameter optimization for elastic data stream processing

Elastic scaling allows data stream processing systems to dynamically scale in and out to react to workload changes. As a consequence, unexpected load peaks can be handled and the extent of the overprovisioning can be reduced. However, the strategies used for elastic scaling of such systems need to be tuned manually by the user. This is an error prone and cumbersome task, because it requires a detailed knowledge of the underlying system and workload characteristics. In addition, the resulting quality of service for a specific scaling strategy is unknown a priori and can be measured only during runtime. In this paper we present an elastic scaling data stream processing prototype, which allows to trade off monetary cost against the offered quality of service. To that end, we use an online parameter optimization, which minimizes the monetary cost for the user. Using our prototype a user is able to specify the expected quality of service as an input to the optimization, which automatically detects significant changes of the workload pattern and adjusts the elastic scaling strategy based on the current workload characteristics. Our prototype is able to reduce the costs for three real-world use cases by 19% compared to a naive parameter setting and by 10% compared to a manually tuned system. In contrast to state of the art solutions, our system provides a stable and good trade-off between monetary cost and quality of service.
Web cache replacement policies: properties, limitations and implications

With the dramatic growth of the WWW, several caching policies were proposed in order to improve Web cache system performance. However, the study of caching policies has experimented a strong diminishing in the last few years. In this work we investigate whether new caching policies could improve a cache system performance. Moreover, by analyzing traces of real Web proxies located in different places of the Web, we evaluate the main factors that cause periods of poor performance in caching systems. Our results can be used to guide the design of new cache replacement policies for the WWW.
Feature synchrony-asynchrony and rate of change in visual search

ABSTRACT Attention is known to be sensitive to the temporal structure of scenes. We initially tested whether feature synchrony, an attribute with potential special status because of its association with objecthood, is something which draws attention. Search items were surrounded by colours which periodically changed either in synchrony or out-of synchrony with periodic changes in their shape. Search for a target was notably faster when the target location contained a unique synchronous feature change amongst asynchronous changes. However, the reverse situation produced no search advantage. A second experiment showed that this effect of unique synchrony was actually a consequence of the lower rate of perceived flicker in the synchronous compared to the asynchronous items, not the synchrony itself. In our displays it seems that attention is drawn towards a location which has a relatively low rate of change. Overall, the pattern of results suggested the attentional bias we find is for relative temporal stability. Results stand in contrast to other work which has found high and low flicker rates to both draw attention equally [Cass, J., Van der Burg, E. , & Alais, D. (2011). Finding flicker: Critical differences in temporal frequency capture attention. Frontiers in Psychology, 2, 320]. Further work needs to determine the exact conditions under which this bias is and is not found when searching in complex dynamically-changing displays.
Technical evaluation of GLOSA systems and results from the field

The goal of Green Light Optimal Speed Advisory (GLOSA) systems is to lower CO2 emissions and to avoid unnecessary stopping in intersection approach scenarios by giving speed advices to drivers based on current and future traffic light signal phase timings. These systems have been widely evaluated by means of simulation and, while most research focuses on the impact assessment of GLOSA along with environmental influences, minor attention was drawn to the holistic technical evaluation of included sub-modules and implementations. In this paper we address this problem with a novel and holistic concept for the technical evaluation of IEEE 802.11p based GLOSA systems. We introduce metrics to cover the whole spectrum of GLOSA operations and identify important factors that are usually not considered in simulations, yet, strongly influencing the results. We demonstrate how this concept is used to evaluate the real-world GLOSA system tested in the European Commission co-funded field trial DRIVE C2X. Results derived from Field Operational Test (FOT) data show that our metrics are well-suited to assess the performance of the GLOSA system, but also to identify sources of potential problems or bottlenecks. Based on our findings, we argue that most simulation studies are too optimistic and that further considerations are required to deploy real-world GLOSA systems.
Broadcasting correlated Gaussian sources with bandwidth expansion

We study hybrid digital-analog (HDA) joint source-channel coding schemes for the transmission of a bivariate Gaussian source S = (S1, S2) across a power-limited two-user Gaussian broadcast channel. User i (i = 1, 2) observes the transmitted signal corrupted by Gaussian noise with power ¿i 2 and wants to estimate the ith component of the source, Si. We consider HDA coding schemes with bandwidth expansion and analyze the region of (squared-error) distortion pairs that are simultaneously achievable. We first adapt an HDA scheme proposed by Reznic, Feder and Zamir in for broadcasting a single common source and use it to provide an achievable distortion region for broadcasting correlated sources. We also consider a three-layered coding scheme, which we refer to by the HWZ scheme, and which consists of an analog layer and two layers each consisting of a Wyner-Ziv coder followed by a channel coder. We also examine numerical examples which indicate that the HWZ scheme performs similarly to the adapted Reznic-Feder-Zamir scheme. For comparison, we adapt the outer bound for the set of all achievable distortion pairs in broadcasting correlated Gaussian sources with matched source-channel bandwidth to the bandwidth expansion case.
An Intrablog-Based Informal Communication Encouraging System that Seamlessly Links On-Line Communications to Off-Line Ones

In this paper, we propose an intrablog-based informal communication encouraging system named “Attractiblog. ” It has been pointed out that daily informal communications at a shared public space play very important role in information sharing in an organization. However, in most cases, the communications are often mere chats. To make the communications more informative, it is necessary to feed some common and beneficial topics there. Attractiblog is a system that extracts some articles posted in an intrablog considering who are in the shared space, and show them on a large-sized display that is located in the space. Thus, Attractiblog attempts to seamlessly link on-line communications to off-line communications. We conducted user studies and confirmed that Attractiblog can achieve a natural correspondence between topics in face-to-face informal communications and issues related to the activities of an organization as given in its intrablog.