Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Computer Aided Detection of Breast Density and Mass, and Visualization of Other Breast Anatomical Regions on Mammograms Using Graph Cuts

Breast cancer mostly arises from the glandular (dense) region of the breast. Consequently, breast density has been found to be a strong indicator for breast cancer risk. Therefore, there is a need to develop a system which can segment or classify dense breast areas. In a dense breast, the sensitivity of mammography for the early detection of breast cancer is reduced. It is difficult to detect a mass in a breast that is dense. Therefore, a computerized method to separate the existence of a mass from the glandular tissues becomes an important task. Moreover, if the segmentation results provide more precise demarcation enabling the visualization of the breast anatomical regions, it could also assist in the detection of architectural distortion or asymmetry. This study attempts to segment the dense areas of the breast and the existence of a mass and to visualize other breast regions (skin-air interface, uncompressed fat, compressed fat, and glandular) in a system. The graph cuts (GC) segmentation technique is proposed. Multiselection of seed labels has been chosen to provide the hard constraint for segmentation of the different parts. The results are promising. A strong correlation (r = 0.93) was observed between the segmented dense breast areas detected and radiological ground truth.
Scalability Studies on Selective Mutation Testing

Mutation testing is a test method which is designed to evaluate a test suite's quality. Due to the expensive cost of mutation testing, selective mutation testing was first proposed in 1991 by Mathur, in which a subset of mutants are selected aiming to achieve the same effectiveness as the whole set of mutants in evaluating the quality of test suites. Though selective mutation testing has been widely investigated in recent years, many people still doubt if it can suit well for large programs. Realizing that none of the existing work has systematically studied the scalability of selective mutation testing, I plan to work on the scalability of selective mutation testing through several studies.
Risk and Return in the Design of Environmental Policy

I examine risk/return trade-offs for environmental investments and their implications for policy choice. Consider a policy to reduce carbon emissions. To what extent should the policy objective be a reduction in the expected temperature increase versus a reduction in risk? Using a simple model of a stock externality that evolves stochastically, I examine the “willingness to pay” (WTP) for alternative policies that would reduce expected damages versus the variance of those damages. I compute “iso-WTP” curves (social indifference curves) for combinations of risk and expected return as policy objectives. Given cost estimates for reducing risk and increasing expected returns, one can compute the optimal risk-return mix for a policy, and the policy’s social surplus. I illustrate these results by calibrating the model to data for global warming.
Aging is an Important Cause for a Lack of Understanding of the Main Risk Factor in Cardiac Rehabilitation Patients

Background: Age, one of the key biomarkers among the nonclinical parameters of cardiovascular diseases (CVDs), has the greatest effect on the development and progression of CVDs. Objectives: The current study was done to evaluate the effect of age on cardiac rehabilitation (CR) patients’ attitudes regarding the main cause of their condition. Patients and Methods: The administrative data of this cross-sectional study were obtained from the database of the CR department of a hospital in Iran. The demographic and clinical information of 901 patients was obtained from January 2004 and January 2012 using compiled forms of this database and the structured clinical interview for Axis I Disorders (SCID-I). Univariate analysis of variance and Bonferroni post-hoc analysis were used for the data analysis. Results: After adjusting for gender, it was revealed that significant age differences existed between patients who perceived no specific risk factors (62.43 years) and those who viewed biological (55.0), physiological (57.31), behavioral (57.85), and psychological (57.25) risk factors as the main cause of their condition (P < 0.05). The age differences between those who had no perceived risk factors (62.43) was significantly different from patients perceiving biological (55.0) and environmental (62.03) factors to be the main cause (P < 0.05). Conclusions: Although older patients need more self-care and the quality of this self-care originates from their attitude toward CVD risk factors, their lack of awareness about the main risk factor of their condition is a major challenge for secondary prevention measures. In addition, younger patients’ significant emphasis on biological risk factors as uncorrectable factors can reduce their sense of responsibility toward attempting to control correctable risk factors. Correcting these patients’ attitudes regarding CVD risk factors can result in better responsibility feeling by the patients and can improve treatment outcomes.
Zero-error subspaces of quantum channels

This work deals with zero-error subspaces of quantum channels and their intimate connection with quantum and classical codes. We give operator algebraic characterizations of such subspaces and give some upper and lower bounds on their maximum dimension. Classical and quantum codes and (quantum) noiseless subsystems may be considered as special cases of zero-error subspaces. We explore several consequences of this fact.
On the origin of soft X-rays in obscured AGN: answers from high-resolution spectroscopy with XMM–Newton

We present results of a high-resolution soft X-ray (0.2–2 keV) spectroscopic study of a sample of 69 nearby obscured active galactic nuclei (AGNs) observed with the reflection grating spectrometer (RGS) onboard XMM–Newton. This is the largest sample ever studied with this technique so far. The main conclusions of our study can be summarized as follows: (i) narrow radiative recombination continua are detected in about 36 per cent of the objects in our sample (in 26 per cent their intrinsic width is ≤10 eV); (ii) higher order transitions are generally enhanced with respect to pure photoionization, indicating that resonant scattering plays an important role in the ionization/excitation balance. These results support the scenario, whereby the active nucleus is responsible for the X-ray ‘soft excess’ almost ubiquitously observed in nearby obscured AGNs via photoionization of circumnuclear gas. They confirm on a statistical basis the conclusions drawn from the detailed study of the brightest spectra in the sample. Furthermore, we propose a criterion to statistically discriminate between AGN-photoionized sources and starburst galaxies, based on intensity of the forbidden component of the O vii Heα triplet (once normalized to the O viii Lyα) coupled with the integrated luminosity in He- and H-like oxygen lines.
A critical reflection on how sensory stories facilitate high quality teaching and learning for children with profound and multiple learning disabilities (PMLD)

This practitioner research paper is an investigation into the use of Sensory Stories in a class with children with PMLD and whether it constitutes as 'High Quality Teaching and Learning' with this cohort. The results suggest that the use of Sensory stories did indeed help students to reach their targets. This success may be partially or greatly due to the use of 'intensive interaction' in conjunction with the sensory stories and signposts further research into the two.
Predicting the performance of multi-agent based simulation with Ethernet switched clusters

Predicting exactly the performance for distributed simulation of multi-agent based systems has considerable significance. Some investigations were realized but they usually omitted issue of communication costs between computational nodes. In this paper, we address to the communication cost models and present a model for evaluating the performance of multi-agent based simulation on Ethernet switch based networks of workstations. We validate our model by an application benchmark on random Boolean network. The experimental results demonstrate that our model performs well when the conflicts among agents are negligible.
A new approach to synthesis of static power converters

A new approach to synthesis of static power converters is proposed in this paper. This new synthesis technique is based on combinational form of two-port networks. By using this synthesis technique we can utilize the advantage properties of existing static power converters to generate new static converters which meet our defined output characteristic. A new dc-dc converter which has a very high ratio between its output and input voltages is derived by using this technique. Several experimental results are included to show the basic characteristics of the proposed converter.
Renal ischemia/reperfusion injury; from pathophysiology to treatment

Ischemia/reperfusion injury (IRI) is caused by a sudden temporary impairment of the blood flow to the particular organ. IRI usually is associated with a robust inflammatory and oxidative stress response to hypoxia and reperfusion which disturbs the organ function. Renal IR induced acute kidney injury (AKI) contributes to high morbidity and mortality rate in a wide range of injuries. Although the pathophysiology of IRI is not completely understood, several important mechanisms resulting in kidney failure have been mentioned. In ischemic kidney and subsequent of re-oxygenation, generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) at reperfusion phase initiates a cascade of deleterious cellular responses leading to inflammation, cell death, and acute kidney failure. Better understanding of the cellular pathophysiological mechanisms underlying kidney injury will hopefully result in the design of more targeted therapies to prevent and treatment the injury. In this review, we summarize some important potential mechanisms and therapeutic approaches in renal IRI.
Task Assignment with Dynamic Perception and Constrained Tasks in a Multi-Robot System

In this paper we present an asynchronous distributed mechanism for allocating tasks in a team of robots. Tasks to be allocated are dynamically perceived from the environment and can be tied by execution constraints. Conflicts among team mates arise when an uncontrolled number of robots execute the same task, resulting in waste of effort and spatial conflicts. The critical aspect of task allocation in Multi Robot Systems is related to conflicts generated by limited and noisy perception capabilities of real robots. This requires significant extensions to the task allocation techniques developed for software agents. The proposed approach is able to successfully allocate roles to robots avoiding conflicts among team mates and maintaining low communication overhead. We implemented our method on AIBO robots and performed quantitative analysis in a simulated environment.
MANUFACTURING TRANSNATIONAL CORPORATION

This paper is concerned with the development of information and communication technology (ICT) since the 1970s and its effect on the manufacturing transnational corporation (MTNC) in four key areas: management control, design, manufacturing process, and the office. Management control is examined in two areas: the coordination and monitoring of functions. ICT assists in both the improvement of policy decisions and in added flexibility and negotiating power. The design area relates the usage of CAD/CAM to the collaboration on design work. The manufacturing process reviews the introduction of Numerical Control (NC) machines, robotics, flexible manufacturing systems (FMS), and ComputerIntegrated Manufacturing (CIM) thereby leading to the unmanned factory using an FMS linked with the electronic office and other information systems. The effects of ICT on the office environment, considered the area most affected, include personnel losses and the introduction of the knowledge worker. The conclusion is that the primary effects of electronic-based technology in the factory and office are associated with rationalization and efficiency rather than expansion.
Academic Self - Efficacy, Heteronomous and Autonomous Evaluation of Academic Achievement of Adolescents

In the research we focused on an analysis of relationship between academic self-efficacy (ASE), heteronomous (AAH) and autonomous evaluation (AAA) of academic achievement of adolescents. We also analyse the intersexual differences in ASE, AAH and AAA in adolescents. The sample consisted of 107 adolescents (57 girls, 50 boys). We used Morgan-Jinks Student Efficacy Scale. We measured academic achievement by GPA. Autonomous evaluation of academic achievement was measured by perceived self-evaluation of academic achievement (expressed by a self-perceived quality level of knowledge and skill in 3 study subjects - Mathematics, Slovak language, English language and in all study subjects). Among adolescent boys and girls we noted significant differences in GPA (t=2.608, p=.010), the girls GPA was better than boys GPA. In the AAA we determined no evidenced significant intersexual differences (t=.724, p=.471), and in the ASE of adolescents there were no evidenced significant intersexual differences either (t=.019, p=.985). We identified a significant relationship between ASE and GPA (r =.269**, p =.005) and between ASE and AAA (r =.385**, p =.000). Analysing the relationship of autonomous evaluation of success in Mathematics, Slovak language and English language (as study subjects) we have come to the identical finding - there was a significant relationship with ASE of adolescents. We found out that GPA as an indicator of AAH strongly correlates with AAA of adolescent (r =.700**, p =.000). © 2016 Published by Future Academy www.FutureAcademy. org.uk
Influence of latent Toxoplasma infection on human personality, physiology and morphology: pros and cons of the Toxoplasma–human model in studying the manipulation hypothesis

Summary The parasitic protozoan Toxoplasma gondii infects about one-third of the population of developed countries. The life-long presence of dormant stages of this parasite in the brain and muscular tissues of infected humans is usually considered asymptomatic from the clinical point of view. In the past 20 years, research performed mostly on military personnel, university students, pregnant women and blood donors has shown that this ‘asymptomatic’ disease has a large influence on various aspects of human life. Toxoplasma-infected subjects differ from uninfected controls in the personality profile estimated with two versions of Cattell’s 16PF, Cloninger’s TCI and Big Five questionnaires. Most of these differences increase with the length of time since the onset of infection, suggesting that Toxoplasma influences human personality rather than human personality influencing the probability of infection. Toxoplasmosis increases the reaction time of infected subjects, which can explain the increased probability of traffic accidents in infected subjects reported in three retrospective and one very large prospective case-control study. Latent toxoplasmosis is associated with immunosuppression, which might explain the increased probability of giving birth to a boy in Toxoplasma-infected women and also the extremely high prevalence of toxoplasmosis in mothers of children with Down syndrome. Toxoplasma-infected male students are about 3 cm taller than Toxoplasma-free subjects and their faces are rated by women as more masculine and dominant. These differences may be caused by an increased concentration of testosterone. Toxoplasma also appears to be involved in the initiation of more severe forms of schizophrenia. At least 40 studies confirmed an increased prevalence of toxoplasmosis among schizophrenic patients. Toxoplasma-infected schizophrenic patients differ from Toxoplasma-free schizophrenic patients by brain anatomy and by a higher intensity of the positive symptoms of the disease. Finally, five independent studies performed in blood donors, pregnant women and military personnel showed that RhD blood group positivity, especially in RhD heterozygotes, protects infected subjects against various effects of latent toxoplasmosis, such as the prolongation of reaction times, an increased risk of traffic accidents and excessive pregnancy weight gain. The modern human is not a natural host of Toxoplasma. Therefore, it can only be speculated which of the observed effects of latent toxoplasmosis are the result of the manipulation activity of the Toxoplasma aimed to increase the probability of its transmission from a natural intermediate to the definitive host by predation, and which are just side effects of chronic infection.
Distribution Approximation : An In-Place Developmental Algorithm for Sensory Cortices and A Hypothesis

Orientation selective cells in V1 are well known, but the underlying computational principles that guide their emergence (i.e., development) are still illusive. The result reported here is based on high-dimensional probability distribution using a network structure. We introduce a concept called lobe component. Each lobe component represents a high concentration of probability density of the high-dimensional sensory inputs. A developmental algorithm for sensory network has been designed and tested based on the concept of lobe components. Our simulation result of network development revealed that many lobe component cells developed by the algorithm from natural images are orientational selective cells similar to those found in V1. Therefore, we make a hypothesis that orientation selection is only a natural consequence of cortical development but probability density estimation by neurons is a fundamental principle of cortical development. If this hypothesis is true, the principle of neuronal probability approximation may have deep implications to the development and self-organization of other sensory cortices (e.g., auditory and somatosensory cortices) and higher cortices. The proposed developmental algorithm is not meant to be biologically verified but is biological plausible. It is based on two well-known computational neural mechanisms, Hebbian learning and lateral inhibition. It is an in-place developmental algorithm in which every cell is both a signal processor and the developer of the cortex. There is no need for a separate network to deal with the development (and learning). The algorithm is purely incremental in the sense that there is no need for extra storage for information other than that can be stored and incrementally computed by the processing network itself. To clarify technically, four types of algorithms have been considered with progressively more restrictive conditions: batch (Type-1), block-incremental (Type-2), incremental (Type-3) and covariance-free incremental (Type-4). The proposed Candid Covariance-free Incremental (CCI) Lobe Component Analysis (LCA) algorithm seems the first Type-4 algorithm for independent component analysis (ICA). The preliminary simulation studies showed that it outperformed, in convergence rate and computation time, some well-known state-of-the-art ICA algorithms in Type-3 through Type 1 for high-dimensional data streams. The proposed LCA algorithm also has a simple structure, with the lowest possible space and time complexities.
Radar sensors and sensor platform used for pedestrian protection in the EC-funded project SAVE-U

The automotive industry and sensor suppliers have responded to the European Commission's request to reduce the road fatalities by 50% until 2010 and they are developing advanced systems for road safety. Short range radar (SRR) sensors in the 24 GHz domain allow coverage of the surroundings of the vehicle, complementing the existing 77 GHz radars used for adaptive cruise control (ACC) systems since 1999. This paper deals with a special variant of pre-crash systems, namely: "pre-crash for vulnerable road users protection". The target is the protection and collision mitigation of pedestrians and bicyclists versus a vehicle. To achieve trigger information for automatic protection systems (like automatic braking or other reversible systems) as well as warning information for drivers, a high performance sensor platform is necessary. This paper presents approaches from the EC-funded project SAVE-U (sensors and system architecture for vulnerable road users protection) of the fifth framework program of the European Commission. The sensor platform consists of short range radar sensors, cameras in the visible and infrared domain. The focus is located on a high- and low-level- data fusion architecture to fulfill the strong requirements. The intension of this paper is mainly to describe the 24 GHz short range radar sensor development for the detection capability of pedestrians in ranges up to 30 m and the sensor fusion technique.
Institute for Mathematical Physics Differential Equations and Conformal Structures Differential Equations and Conformal Structures

We provide five examples of conformal geometries which are naturally associated with ordinary differential equations (ODEs). The first example describes a one-to-one correspondence between the Wuenschmann class of 3rd order ODEs considered modulo contact transformations of variables and (local) 3-dimensional conformal Lorentzian geometries. The second example shows that every point equivalent class of 3rd order ODEs satisfying the Wuenschmann and the Cartan conditions define a 3-dimensional Lorentzian Einstein-Weyl geometry. The third example associates to each point equivalence class of 3rd order ODEs a 6-dimensional conformal geometry of neutral signature. The fourth example exhibits the one-to-one correspondence between point equivalent classes of 2nd order ODEs and 4-dimensional conformal Fefferman-like metrics of neutral signature. The fifth example shows the correspondence between undetermined ODEs of the Monge type and conformal geometries of signature (3, 2). The Cartan normal con-formal connection for these geometries is reducible to the Cartan connection with values of the Lie algebra of the noncompact form of the exceptional group G2. All the examples are deeply rooted in Elie Cartan's works on exterior differential systems.