Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Spatial relationship-assisted classification from high-resolution remote sensing imagery

Spatial information remains to be an important topic in geographic information system and in remote sensing fields, and spatial relationships have been increasingly incorporated into the image classification processes. Previous studies have employed multiple occurrences of spatial features (shape, texture, etc.,) to improve classification results. However, less attention has been focused on using higher-level spatial relationships for image classification. In this study, two novel spatial relationships, namely, maximum spatial adjacency (MSA) and directional spatial adjacency (DSA), were proposed to assist in image classification. The proposed methods were implemented to extract buildings, beach, and emergent vegetation land-cover classes according to their spatial relationships with their corresponding reference classes. The promising results obtained from this study suggest that the proposed MSA and DSA spatial relationships can be valuable information in defining rule sets for a more reasonable and accurate classification.
Constructions of rank modulation codes

Rank modulation is a way of encoding information to correct errors in flash memory devices as well as impulse noise in transmission lines. Modeling rank modulation involves construction of packings of the space of permutations equipped with the Kendall tau distance. We present several general constructions of codes in permutations that cover a broad range of code parameters. In particular, we show that a code that corrects Hamming errors can be used to construct a code for correcting Kendall errors. For instance, from BCH codes we obtain codes correcting t Kendall errors in n memory cells that support the order of n! / logt n! messages, for any t = 1, 2, ‥‥ We also construct families of codes that correct a number of errors that grows with n at varying rates, from Θ(n) to Θ(n2).
Nesting Biology and Fungiculture of the Fungus-Growing Ant, Mycetagroicus cerradensis: New Light on the Origin of Higher Attine Agriculture

Abstract The genus Mycetagroicus is perhaps the least known of all fungus-growing ant genera, having been first described in 2001 from museum specimens. A recent molecular phylogenetic analysis of the fungus-growing ants demonstrated that Mycetagroicus is the sister to all higher attine ants (Trachymyrmex, Sericomyrmex, Acromyrmex, Pseudoatta, and Atta), making it of extreme importance for understanding the transition between lower and higher attine agriculture. Four nests of Mycetagroicus cerradensis near Uberlândia, Minas Gerais, Brazil were excavated, and fungus chambers for one were located at a depth of 3.5 meters. Based on its lack of gongylidia (hyphal-tip swellings typical of higher attine cultivars), and a phylogenetic analysis of the ITS rDNA gene region, M. cerradensis cultivates a lower attine fungus in Clade 2 of lower attine (G3) fungi. This finding refines a previous estimate for the origin of higher attine agriculture, an event that can now be dated at approximately 21–25 mya in the ancestor of extant species of Trachymyrmex and Sericomyrmex.
A Protocol for Secure Public Instant Messaging (Extended Version)

Although Instant Messaging (IM) services are now relatively long-standing and very popular as an instant way of communication over the Internet, they have received little attention from the security research community. Despite important dierences distinguishing IM from other Internet applications, very few protocols have been designed to address the unique security issues of IM. In light of threats to existing IM net- works, we present the Instant Messaging Key Exchange (IMKE) protocol as a step towards secure IM. A discussion of IM threat model assump- tions and an analysis of IMKE relative to these using BAN-like logic is also provided. Based on our implementation of IMKE using the Jab- ber protocol, we provide insights on how IMKE may be integrated with popular IM protocols.
Delivery of iPS‐NPCs to the Stroke Cavity within a Hyaluronic Acid Matrix Promotes the Differentiation of Transplanted Cells

Stroke is the leading cause of adult disability with ≈80% being ischemic. Stem cell transplantation has been shown to improve functional recovery. However, the overall survival and differentiation of these cells is still low. The infarct cavity is an ideal location for transplantation as it is directly adjacent to the highly plastic peri‐infarct region. Direct transplantation of cells near the infarct cavity has resulted in low cell viability. Here, neural progenitor cells derived from induce pluripotent stem cells (iPS‐NPC) are delivered to the infarct cavity of stroked mice encapsulated in a hyaluronic acid hydrogel matrix to protect the cells. To improve the overall viability of transplanted cells, each step of the transplantation process is optimized. Hydrogel mechanics and cell injection parameters are investigated to determine their effects on the inflammatory response of the brain and cell viability, respectively. Using parameters that balanced the desire to keep surgery invasiveness minimal and cell viability high, iPS‐NPCs are transplanted to the stroke cavity of mice encapsulated in buffer or the hydrogel. While the hydrogel does not promote stem cell survival one week post‐transplantation, it does promote differentiation of the neural progenitor cells to neuroblasts.
Effect of varying deposition and substrate temperature on sublimated CdTe thin-film photovoltaics

A standardized process used for fabrication of CdTe solar cells was varied by increasing the substrate temperature during CdTe layer nucleation from approximately 460°C to 610°C and by increasing the CdTe sublimation vapor source temperature. Higher substrate temperatures increase device efficiency, but cause significant CdS re-sublimation. This effect was eliminated by using a Mg1-xZnxO window layer that also has higher transparency. Elevated CdTe source temperatures were found to increase contamination in the deposition system but did not further improve device efficiency. The improvement using high substrate temperatures is attributed to larger CdTe grains and better crystalline quality. TEM cross section analysis, X-ray diffraction measurements and device results are presented.
Inference with an Incomplete Model of English Auctions

While English auctions are the most common in practice, their rules typically lack sufficient structure to yield a tractable theoretical model without significant abstractions. Rather than relying on one stylized model to provide an exact interpretation of the data, we explore an incomplete model based on two simple assumptions: bidders neither bid more than their valuations nor let an opponent win at a price they would be willing to beat. Focusing on the symmetric independent private values paradigm, we show that this limited structure enables construction of informative bounds on the distribution function characterizing bidder demand, on the optimal reserve price, and on the effects of observable covariates on bidder valuations. If the standard theoretical model happens to be the true model, our bounds collapse to the true features of interest. In contrast, when the true data‐generating process deviates in seemingly small ways from that implied by equilibrium in the standard theoretical model, existing methods can yield misleading results that need not even lie within our bounds. We report results from Monte Carlo experiments illustrating the performance of our approach and comparing it to others. We apply our approach to U.S. Forest Service timber auctions to evaluate reserve price policy.
Regulation of Tumor Necrosis Factor Receptors on Phagocytes

Tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α is a cytokine secreted by monocytes, macrophages, T cells, natural killer cells, mast cells, and neutrophils (PMN) in response to stimulation in vitro with lipopolysaccharide (LPS), viruses, antigens, and during infection, allograft rejection or injury (1–4). Named for its ability to induce hemorrhagic necrosis of tumors (1), TNFα is also implicated as an important mediator of inflammation, septic shock, and cachexia (2). TNFβ or lymphotoxin is a lymphocyte-derived homolog of TNFα that shows many of the same properties (2). TNFα exerts its cytotoxic and immunologic activities by interacting with specific cell surface receptors (TNF-R) that it shares with TNFβ. The receptors exist on a variety of normal and malignant cells, reflecting a wide spectrum of targets for these two cytokines. Modulation of TNF-R expression is an important means of regulating TNFα responses. Most TNF-R regulation studies were carried out with transformed cell lines. TNF-R on these cells are reported to be up-regulated by Type I and Type II interferons (5–10), interleukin 2 (11), and activators of protein kinase A (12), or down-regulated by interleukin 1 (13), activators of protein kinase C (12–16), cycloheximide (17), and both up- or down-regulated by the homologous ligand, TNFα (17–19). Few studies address the regulation of TNF-R in primary phagocytes, even though macrophages and neutrophils are important targets for TNFα during inflammation. TNFα induces macrophage activation by itself or in combination with γ-interferon (IFNΓ). Macrophages respond to TNFα by demonstrating an increased ability to release toxic molecules, i.e., hydrogen peroxide (20–22) and nitric oxide (22), and to kill tumor cells (23, 24). TNFα is also a powerful PMN activator, promoting adherence to biological surfaces (25), stimulating phagocytosis (26, 27), respiratory burst activity (28), degranulation (27, 29), and antibody-dependent cytotoxicity (26).
Regulation of Sulfate Uptake and Expression of Sulfate Transporter Genes in Brassica oleracea as Affected by Atmospheric H2S and Pedospheric Sulfate Nutrition1

Demand-driven signaling will contribute to regulation of sulfur acquisition and distribution within the plant. To investigate the regulatory mechanisms pedospheric sulfate and atmospheric H2S supply were manipulated in Brassica oleracea. Sulfate deprivation of B. oleracea seedlings induced a rapid increase of the sulfate uptake capacity by the roots, accompanied by an increased expression of genes encoding specific sulfate transporters in roots and other plant parts. More prolonged sulfate deprivation resulted in an altered shoot-root partitioning of biomass in favor of the root. B. oleracea was able to utilize atmospheric H2S as S-source; however, root proliferation and increased sulfate transporter expression occurred as in S-deficient plants. It was evident that in B. oleracea there was a poor shoot to root signaling for the regulation of sulfate uptake and expression of the sulfate transporters. cDNAs corresponding to 12 different sulfate transporter genes representing the complete gene family were isolated from Brassica napus and B. oleracea species. The sequence analysis classified the Brassica sulfate transporter genes into four different groups. The expression of the different sulfate transporters showed a complex pattern of tissue specificity and regulation by sulfur nutritional status. The sulfate transporter genes of Groups 1, 2, and 4 were induced or up-regulated under sulfate deprivation, although the expression of Group 3 sulfate transporters was not affected by the sulfate status. The significance of sulfate, thiols, and O-acetylserine as possible signal compounds in the regulation of the sulfate uptake and expression of the transporter genes is evaluated.
Knowledge Base Refinement Using Limited Amount of Efforts from Experts

Knowledge bases are essential for supporting decision making during intelligent information processing. Automatic construction of knowledge bases becomes infeasible without labeled data, a complete table of data records including answers to queries. Preparing such information requires huge efforts from experts. The authors propose a new knowledge base refinement framework based on pattern mining and active learning using an existing available knowledge base constructed from a different domain (source domain) solving the same task as well as some data collected from the target domain. The knowledge base investigated in this paper is represented by a model known as Markov Logic Networks. The authors' proposed method first analyzes the unlabeled target domain data and actively asks the expert to provide labels (or answers) a very small amount of automatically selected queries. The idea is to identify the target domain queries whose underlying relations are not sufficiently described by the existing source domain knowledge base. Potential relational patterns are discovered and new logic relations are constructed for the target domain by exploiting the limited amount of labeled target domain data and the unlabeled target domain data. The authors have conducted extensive experiments by applying our approach to two different text mining applications, namely, pronoun resolution and segmentation of citation records, demonstrating consistent improvements.
Transformational Leadership and Followers’ Objective Performance Over Time: Insights From German Basketball

The purpose of this present study is to gauge the usefulness of head coaches’ transformational leadership in predicting followers’ individual, objectively measured performance development over time. The sample encompassed data on 22 coaches and 200 players from German professional basketball. Each player's performance was captured for approximately 20 subsequent games resulting in a sample of 3,905 measurement points. Our analyses revealed significant effects from transformational leadership facets of Articulating a Vision, Fostering the Acceptance of Group Goals, and Providing Individualized Consideration on the development of players’ performance over time.
The relationship between maternal child-feeding practices and overweight in Hmong preschool children.

OBJECTIVE Maternal child-feeding practices have been linked to overweight in several studies. Overweight is a prevalent condition in Hmong preschool children in the United States, therefore, the purpose of this study was to determine whether maternal child-feeding attitudes and practices were associated with overweight in Hmong preschool children. DESIGN The Child-Feeding Questionnaire (CFQ) was revised and administered to Hmong mothers with normal-weight and overweight children. SETTING Women, Infant, and Children Supplemental Food Program (WIC) clinics and community centers in the Minneapolis-St. Paul metropolitan area. PARTICIPANTS Hmong mothers of normal-weight (n=45) and overweight (n=35) children. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Relationships between maternal perceptions of child's weight, practices in child feeding, including monitoring, restriction, and pressure to eat, and overweight status in children. RESULTS No association was found between maternal attitudes and practices in child feeding and body mass index (BMI) of the child except for mother's perception of her child's weight. Mother's perception of her child's weight was also associated with maternal restriction of certain foods. Mother's education and children's weight status were weakly positively associated. Mothers with more education tended to be younger and to work outside the home. CONCLUSION The lack of a relationship between maternal child-feeding practices and children's weight status may be due to factors such as mother's education, role of other caregivers, and cultural factors.
A Role for DNA Polymerase μ in the Emerging DJH Rearrangements of the Postgastrulation Mouse Embryo

ABSTRACT The molecular complexes involved in the nonhomologous end-joining process that resolves recombination-activating gene (RAG)-induced double-strand breaks and results in V(D)J gene rearrangements vary during mammalian ontogeny. In the mouse, the first immunoglobulin gene rearrangements emerge during midgestation periods, but their repertoires have not been analyzed in detail. We decided to study the postgastrulation DJH joints and compare them with those present in later life. The embryo DJH joints differed from those observed in perinatal life by the presence of short stretches of nontemplated (N) nucleotides. Whereas most adult N nucleotides are introduced by terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase (TdT), the embryo N nucleotides were due to the activity of the homologous DNA polymerase μ (Polμ), which was widely expressed in the early ontogeny, as shown by analysis of Polμ−/− embryos. Based on its DNA-dependent polymerization ability, which TdT lacks, Polμ also filled in small sequence gaps at the coding ends and contributed to the ligation of highly processed ends, frequently found in the embryo, by pairing to internal microhomology sites. These findings show that Polμ participates in the repair of early-embryo, RAG-induced double-strand breaks and subsequently may contribute to preserve the genomic stability and cellular homeostasis of lymphohematopoietic precursors during development.
Understanding the Experience of Living with Spinal Muscular Atrophy: A Qualitative Description

&NA; Spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) is an autosomal recessive motor neuron disease caused by the progressive degeneration of motor neurons in the spinal cord. The disorder causes weakness and wasting of voluntary muscles. The purpose of this study was to describe the experience of living with SMA. Strategies used to manage symptoms and progression were also identified. Through e‐mail communication, 11 participants were asked to respond to 5 questions about experiences with parents, family, friends, school, and healthcare providers, as well as provide demographic information. Participants were asked to describe their illness and the strategies used to optimize management. Data were analyzed in an ongoing manner through a constant comparative method. The experience of living with SMA was described as challenging and constantly changing. Four major themes were generated that described the experience of living with SMA: establishing strong relationships, normalizing and mainstreaming in society, using an innovative approach to symptom management, and maintaining optimism. Participants described both physical and emotional strategies for symptom management.
DATOS PRELIMINARES: VALIDACIÓN DEL CUESTIONARIO POR QUÉ PREOCUPARSE

En este articulo presentamos los resultados de validacion de la adaptacion al espanol del cuestionario Wy Worry? (Por que preocuparse? , ? PP? ), que evalua una variable de proceso relacionada con la sobrestimacion de las consecuencias tanto positivas como negativas de la preocupacion excesiva e incontrolable, caracteristicas del Trastorno de Ansiedad Generalizada (TAG). A una muestra de 833 personas de la isla de Tenerife a las cuales se les administro dicho cuestionario con otras medidas psicologicas. El analisis factorial exploratorio y confirmatorio, avalan una estructura de dos factores, que explican el 41,34% de la varianza total. Los datos se discuten atendiendo a la contribucion central de la intolerancia hacia la incertidumbre, y otras variables de proceso. Palabras clave Metacogniciones Procesos Ansiedad Preocupacion. ABSTRACT PRELIMINARY DATA: VALIDATION OF THE QUESTIONNAIRE WHY WORRY In this paper the validated results of the adaptation to the Spanish of the questionnaire Why Worry? were presented. This questionnaire evaluates a process variable related to the overestimation of the positive and negative consequences of the excessive and uncontrollable worry characteristics of Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD). A sample of 833 participants from Tenerife in the Canary Islands completed this questionnaire among other psychological measures. The exploratory and confirmatory factorial analyses gave a bifactorial structure that explained 41.34% of the total variance. Key words Metacognitions Anxiety Worry
Arabidopsis NRP1 and NRP2 Encode Histone Chaperones and Are Required for Maintaining Postembryonic Root Growth[W]

NUCLEOSOME ASSEMBLY PROTEIN1 (NAP1) is conserved from yeast to human and was proposed to act as a histone chaperone. While budding yeast contains a single NAP1 gene, multicellular organisms, including plants and animals, contain several NAP1 and NAP1-RELATED PROTEIN (NRP) genes. However, the biological role of these genes has been largely unexamined. Here, we show that, in Arabidopsis thaliana, simultaneous knockout of the two NRP genes, NRP1 and NRP2, impaired postembryonic root growth. In the nrp1-1 nrp2-1 double mutant, arrest of cell cycle progression at G2/M and disordered cellular organization occurred in root tips. The mutant seedlings exhibit perturbed expression of ∼100 genes, including some genes involved in root proliferation and patterning. The mutant plants are highly sensitive to genotoxic stress and show increased levels of DNA damage and the release of transcriptional gene silencing. NRP1 and NRP2 are localized in the nucleus and can form homomeric and heteromeric protein complexes. Both proteins specifically bind histones H2A and H2B and associate with chromatin in vivo. We propose that NRP1 and NRP2 act as H2A/H2B chaperones in the maintenance of dynamic chromatin in epigenetic inheritance.
Lipoproteins of Bacterial Pathogens

ABSTRACT Bacterial lipoproteins are a set of membrane proteins with many different functions. Due to this broad-ranging functionality, these proteins have a considerable significance in many phenomena, from cellular physiology through cell division and virulence. Here we give a general overview of lipoprotein biogenesis and highlight examples of the roles of lipoproteins in bacterial disease caused by a selection of medically relevant Gram-negative and Gram-positive pathogens: Mycobacterium tuberculosis, Streptococcus pneumoniae, Borrelia burgdorferi, and Neisseria meningitidis. Lipoproteins have been shown to play key roles in adhesion to host cells, modulation of inflammatory processes, and translocation of virulence factors into host cells. As such, a number of lipoproteins have been shown to be potential vaccines. This review provides a summary of some of the reported roles of lipoproteins and of how this knowledge has been exploited in some cases for the generation of novel countermeasures to bacterial diseases.
Internet Topology Research Redux

Internet topology research is concerned with the study of the various types of connectivity structures that are enabled by the layered architecture of the Internet. More than a decade of Internet topology research has produced a number of high-profile "discoveries" that continue to fascinate the scientific community, even though (or, especially because) they have been simultaneously touted by different segments of that community as either seminal, controversial, seriously flawed, or simply wrong. Among these highly-popularized discoveries are the observed power-law relationships of the Internet topology, the network’s scale-free nature, and its extreme vulnerability to attacks that target the highly-connected nodes in its core (i.e., the Achilles’ heel of the Internet). The purpose of this chapter is to bring order to the current state of Internet topology research and separate “the wheat from the chaff”. In particular, by relying on carefully vetted data and readily available domain knowledge, we re-examine the reported discoveries and expose them to higher standards with respect to statistical inference and model validation. In the process, we reveal the superficial nature of many of these discoveries and provide alternative solutions that reflect networking reality and do not collapse under scrutiny with high-quality data or when examined in detail by domain experts.