Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
To Continue or Discontinue the Project, That is the Question

Information systems and technology (IS/IT) projects are perceived as ventures that are prone to failure. An evaluation as part of IS/IT governance and control is highly important for stakeholders, to lessen the risk and the failure of such projects. However, decision-makers often encounter difficulties when evaluating and making decisions regarding the continuation of their projects. This study examines equivocal situations and the antecedents of dilemmas in project evaluations. A theoretically grounded research model postulates the influence of Content, Context, and Process of evaluation on the prevailing equivocal situations. The model, which is tested using PLS analysis, shows the impacts of the Challenges of project management, the Lack of standards, and the Sophistication of Technology on the extent of equivocal situations. This study is based on a survey of 111 projects and offers early empirical evidence attesting to the importance of well-defined project charters and senior management control in IS/IT governance.
The role of semantics in games and simulations

Powerful graphics hardware is enabling strong improvements in both the appearance and the complexity of virtual worlds for games and simulations. However, current practices in the design and development of virtual worlds mostly resemble high-tech variants of traditional handcrafts, resulting in increasingly unbearable design costs. In this article we state that an essential key to overcoming these problems lies in the enrichment of object models with several kinds of semantic data. We discuss numerous and promising uses for semantic information in virtual worlds, and show, for many of them, how previous results of recent research can be successfully applied. We also identify the fundamental challenges in this new cross-disciplinary area, and point out a number of open issues lying ahead, including the need for (i) a suitable way of specifying semantic data, providing a powerful vocabulary that is useful and usable for all disciplines involved in game design and development; (ii) a seamless integration of semantic data integrated with procedural generation techniques, in order to provide designers with a new and powerful generation of tools; and (iii) a consistency maintenance among evolving objects in a changeable environment, for which powerful constraint-solving methods will be instrumental. We conclude that, as the expectancy for future games and simulations steadily shifts from improved graphics and appearance towards improved character behavior, plausible realism and coherent gameplay, embedding the game world and its objects with richer semantics is going to play a crucial role. We can therefore expect that, in the near future, increasing research efforts and influential results will be emerging in this new exciting area.
Robust Seed Localization and Growing with Deep Convolutional Features for Scene Text Detection

Text detection in natural scene images is an open and challenging problem due to the significant variations of the appearance of the text itself and its interaction with the context. In this paper, we present a novel text detection method based on robust localization and adaptive growing of seed text components. The method consists of two main ingredients. First, convolutional neural network is exploited to localize seed candidate characters from the maximally stable extremal regions of the image with learned discriminative deep convolutional features. Next, an iterative and adaptive growing algorithm is employed to grow from seed characters to search for other degraded text components in same text line based on their conformity to the seed, and an associative quality is learned to measure the conformity combining both the geometric and appearance constraints between two neighbouring text components. The effectiveness of the proposed method is demonstrated by the state-of-the-art results achieved on the public datasets.
Hemodynamic Changes during a Deep Inspiration Maneuver Predict Fluid Responsiveness in Spontaneously Breathing Patients

Objective. We hypothesized that the hemodynamic response to a deep inspiration maneuver (DIM) indicates fluid responsiveness in spontaneously breathing (SB) patients. Design. Prospective study. Setting. ICU of a general hospital. Patients. Consecutive nonintubated patients without mechanical ventilation, considered for volume expansion (VE). Intervention. We assessed hemodynamic status at baseline and after VE. Measurements and Main Results. We measured radial pulse pressure (PP) using an arterial catheter and peak velocity of femoral artery flow (VF) using continuous Doppler. Changes in PP and VF induced by a DIM (ΔPPdim and ΔVFdim) were calculated in 23 patients. ΔPPdim and ΔVFdim ≥12% predicted responders to VE with sensitivity of 90% and specificity of 100%. Conclusions. In a restricted population of SB patients with severe sepsis or acute pancreatitis, ΔPPdim and ΔVFdim are accurate indices for predicting fluid responsiveness. These results should be confirmed in a larger population before validating their use in current practice.
A Novel Particle Swarm Optimization Algorithm Based on Fuzzy Velocity Updating for Multi-objective Optimization

A novel particle swarm optimization algorithm for multi-objective optimization (MOO) based on fuzzy velocity updating strategy is developed and implemented in this paper. The proposed algorithm incorporates fuzzy velocity updating strategy, which can characterize to some extent the uncertainty on the true optimality of the global best position, into particle swarm optimization (PSO) so as to avoid the premature convergence and to maintain the swarm diversity. In addition, a crowding distance computation operator for promoting solution diversity and an efficient mutation operator for searching feasible non-dominated solutions are adopted. The proposed algorithm is tested on various benchmark problems taken from the literature and evaluated with standard performance metrics by comparison with NSGA-II. It is found that the proposed algorithm does not have any difficulties in achieving well-spread Pareto optimal solutions with good convergence to true Pareto optimal front.
Identification of Linkage between Strategic Group and Performance of Indian Commercial Banks: A Combined Approach Using DEA and Co-Plot

This paper explores the linkage between strategic grouping and performance of the Indian banking sector. Strategic grouping and performance were identified using published financial information for all public sector banks. Grouping of Indian public sector banks following comparable financial strategy – with similar asset quality, operational efficiency and profitability was operationalized using the graphical display method of Co-plot.From their position in the two dimensional conceptual map, banks with identical financial performance formed strategic groups with significant positive linkage between better groups and their superior financial performance, which showed their inherent homogeneity in business policy decisions. Relative performance of the banks in terms of their efficiency in converting the resources to financial outputs was obtained using data envelopment analysis technique. The measures for potential financial improvements were obtained from the output slacks calculated. Efficient banks were found to be more profitable and their grouping as observed in the efficiency-profitability matrix was found to be identical to the strategic groups obtained using financial ratios.This paper offers a framework to commercial banks to make informed policy decisions about their competitive positioning in the target market, develop long-term strategic focus and identify a benchmark for improving their performance.
Gene transfer in ovarian cancer cells: a comparison between retroviral and lentiviral vectors.

Local gene therapy could be a therapeutic option for ovarian carcinoma, a life-threatening malignancy, because of disease containment within the peritoneal cavity in most patients. Lentiviral vectors, which are potentially capable of stable transgene expression, may be useful to vehicle therapeutic molecules requiring long-term production in these tumors. To investigate this concept, we used lentiviral vectors to deliver the enhanced green fluorescent protein (EGFP) gene to ovarian cancer cells. Their efficiency of gene transfer was compared with that of a retroviral vector carrying the same envelope. In vitro, both vectors infected ovarian cancer cells with comparable efficiency under standard culture conditions; however, the lentiviral vector was much more efficient in transducing growth-arrested cells when compared with the retroviral vector. Gene transfer was fully neutralized by an anti-VSV-G antibody, and in vitro stability was similar. In vivo, the lentiviral vector delivered the transgene 10-fold more efficiently to ovarian cancer cells growing i.p. in SCID mice, as evaluated by real-time PCR analysis of the tumors. Confocal microscopy analysis of tumor sections showed a dramatic difference at the level of transgene expression, because abundant EGFP(+) cells were detected only in mice receiving the lentiviral vector. Quantitative analysis by flow cytometry confirmed this and indicated 0.05 and 5.6% EGFP(+) tumor cells after administration of the retroviral and lentiviral vector, respectively. Injection of ex vivo transduced tumor cells, sorted for EGFP expression, indicated that the lentiviral vector was considerably more resistant to in vivo silencing in comparison with the retroviral vector. Finally, multiple administrations of a murine IFN-alpha(1)-lentiviral vector to ovarian carcinoma-bearing mice significantly prolonged the animals' survival, indicating the therapeutic efficacy of this approach. These findings indicate that lentiviral vectors deserve attention in the design of future gene therapy approaches to ovarian cancer aimed at achieving long-term expression of therapeutic genes.
Behavioral Characterization of a Knock-in Mouse Model of Huntington's Disease

Huntington’s disease (HD) is a progressive, fatal neurodegenerative disease caused by an inherited CAG expansion on the Huntingtin (HTT) gene resulting in cognitive, affective, and motor related symptoms. Although clinical diagnosis depends on the presence of Huntington’s chorea, a movement disorder consisting of irregular movements, cognitive symptoms appear 1015 years prior during the pre-manifest stage of the disease and are more debilitating to patients. One of the most important advances in HD research has been the generation of mouse models that recapitulate the features of human HD, allowing researchers to identify the pathogenic mechanisms associated with the disease and test the potential therapeutic treatments. Unfortunately, many treatments that have been successful in mouse models have failed to translate to humans when tested in pre-clinical trials. This is partly because experimenters have largely focused on improving late-stage features of HD such as cell death and motor dysfunction, and utilized transgenic mouse that are severely impaired but poorly reproduce the pathogenic processes that underlie the disease. In contrast, knock-in (KI) mouse models are genetically faithful to the human condition but remain underutilized in pre-clinical research due to their slower progression and subtle overt phenotype. This thesis characterized the behavioral deficits associated with the Htt Q111/+ KI mouse model of HD and discovered novel cognitive phenotypes that are characteristic of the pre-manifest stage of the disease. At nine months of age, Htt Q111/+ mice display improved procedural memory on the two-cue MWM, hypoactivity, reduced velocity, and increased anxiety during open field exploration, and intact spatial LTM with a reduction in the total number of investigations toward both objects during an object location task. Together, these tasks provide a number of robust behavioral phenotypes for use in pre-clinical research conducted in the Htt Q111/+ mouse model of HD in the future.
Contrast sensitivity and the detection of moving patterns and features

Theories based on optimal sampling by the retina have been widely applied to visual ecology at the level of the optics of the eye, supported by visual behaviour. This leads to speculation about the additional processing that must lie in between—in the brain itself. But fewer studies have adopted a quantitative approach to evaluating the detectability of specific features in these neural pathways. We briefly review this approach with a focus on contrast sensitivity of two parallel pathways for motion processing in insects, one used for analysis of wide-field optic flow, the other for detection of small features. We further use a combination of optical modelling of image blur and physiological recording from both photoreceptors and higher-order small target motion detector neurons sensitive to small targets to show that such neurons operate right at the limits imposed by the optics of the eye and the noise level of single photoreceptors. Despite this, and the limitation of only being able to use information from adjacent receptors to detect target motion, they achieve a contrast sensitivity that rivals that of wide-field motion sensitive pathways in either insects or vertebrates—among the highest in absolute terms seen in any animal.
Scheduling and optimal voltage selection for low power multi-voltage DSP datapaths

We present an algorithm called MOVER (Multiple Operating Voltage Energy Reduction) to minimize datapath energy dissipation through use of multiple supply voltages. In a single voltage design, the critical path length, clock period, and number of control steps limit minimization of voltage and power. Multiple supply voltages permit localized voltage reductions to take up remaining schedule slack. MOVER initially finds one minimum voltage for an entire datapath. It then determines a second voltage for operations where there is still schedule slack. New voltages can be introduced and minimized until no schedule slack remains. MOVER was exercised for a variety of DSP datapath examples. Energy savings of up to 50% were observed when comparing dual to single voltage results. The benefit of going from two to three voltages never exceeded 15%. Circuit resource requirements for multiple voltages varied greatly. In some cases requirements changed very little with respect to number of voltages, but area penalties up to 150% were observed. Implications for IC layout are discussed.
Planets Rapidly Create Holes in Young Circumstellar Disks

Recent spectral observations by the Spitzer Space Telescope reveal that some disks around young (~a few times 106 yr old) stars have remarkably sharp transitions to a low-density inner region in which much of the material has been cleared away. It has been recognized that the most plausible mechanism for the sharp transition at a specific radius is the gravitational influence of a massive planet. This raises the question of whether the planet can also account for the hole extending all the way to the star. Using high-resolution numerical simulations, we show that Jupiter-mass planets drive spiral waves that create holes on timescales ~10 times shorter than viscous or planet migration times. We find that the theory of spiral wave-driven accretion in viscous flows by Takeuchi et al. can be used to provide a consistent interpretation of the simulations. In addition, although the hole surface densities are low, they are finite, allowing mass accretion toward the star. Our results therefore imply that massive planets can form extended, sharply bounded spectral holes that can still accommodate substantial mass accretion rates. The results also imply that holes are more likely than gaps for Jupiter-mass planets around solar-mass stars.
Clinical and therapeutic aspects of childhood narcolepsy-cataplexy: a retrospective study of 51 children.

STUDY OBJECTIVE to report on symptoms and therapies used in childhood narcolepsy-cataplexy. DESIGN, PATIENTS, AND SETTING retrospective series of 51 children who completed the Stanford Sleep Inventory. HLA-DQB1*0602 typing (all tested, and 100% positive), polysomnography or Multiple Sleep Latency Test (76%), and cerebrospinal fluid hypocretin-1 measurements (26%, all with low levels) were also conducted. Prospective data on medication response was collected in 78% using a specially designed questionnaire. MEASUREMENTS AND RESULTS patients were separated into children with onset of narcolepsy prior to (53%), around (29%), and after (18%) puberty. None of the children had secondary narcolepsy. Clinical features were similar across puberty groups, except for sleep paralysis, which increased in frequency with age. Common features included excessive weight gain (84% ≥ 4 kg within 6 months of onset of narcolepsy) and earlier puberty (when compared with family members), notably in subjects who gained the most weight. Streptococcus-positive throat infections were reported in 20% of cases within 6 months of onset of narcolepsy. Polysomnographic features were similar across groups, but 3 prepubertal children did not meet Multiple Sleep Latency Test diagnostic criteria. Regarding treatment, the most used and continued medications were modafinil (84% continued), sodium oxybate (79%), and venlafaxine (68%). Drugs such as methylphenidate, tricyclic antidepressants, or selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors were often tried but rarely continued. Modafinil was reported to be effective for treating sleepiness, venlafaxine for cataplexy, and sodium oxybate for all symptoms, across all puberty groups. At the conclusion of the study, half of children with prepubertal onset of narcolepsy were treated "off label" with sodium oxybate alone or with the addition of one other compound. In older children, however, most patients needed more than 2 drugs. CONCLUSION this study reports on the clinical features of childhood narcolepsy and documents the safe use of treatments commonly used in adults in young children.
Characterization of white matter fiber bundles with T  2* relaxometry and diffusion tensor imaging

In this study, diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) and T 2* multiecho relaxometry were combined in 30 healthy subjects at 3T, with the aim of characterizing the spatial distribution of relaxation rates in white matter (WM). Region of interest (ROI) analysis was performed in 23 different fiber tracts automatically defined in standard space. Spearman rank analysis was performed on regional values of T 2* , fractional anisotropy (FA), and radial diffusivity (RD). A strong relationship was observed between the location and direction of fiber bundles and relaxation rates, and adjacent fiber bundles with similar orientation showed very different relaxation rates. Moreover, while relaxation rates varied largely between different fiber tracts, variation of the same parameter within the same anatomical fiber bundle across individuals was remarkably limited. The rich variability of relaxation rates in WM and their complex relationship with DTI data suggested that the two techniques might be sensitive to complementary characteristics of myelin structure. This has tremendous potential to allow for a more detailed understanding of brain development and pathology, in particular in the context of age‐related cognitive decline. Magn Reson Med, 2009. © 2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Battery-efficient task execution on reconfigurable computing platforms with multiple processing units

This paper presents a battery-efficient task execution methodology on reconfigurable computing (RC) Platforms which have multiple processing units. These processing units can be on-chip in the form of soft-processors, embedded processors or "Reconfigurable Tiles" where the reconfigurable area of an field programmable gate array (FPGA) is divided into fixed reconfigurable slots. Processing units can also be off-chip in the form of individual FPGAs and voltage-scalable processors. An application is modeled in the form of a precedence task graph. We assume that for each task in the task graph several different design-points are available which correspond to different voltage-frequency combinations for processors and different hardware implementations for FPGAs and "Reconfigurable Tiles". It is assumed that performance and total power consumption estimates for each design-point are available for any given implementation, including the peripheral components such as memory and display power usage. First we present an iterative heuristic algorithm for a single processing unit, which finds a sequence of tasks along with an appropriate design-point for each task, such that a deadline is met and the amount of battery energy used is as small as possible. Next, we extend this algorithm to multiple processing units in an RC platform. We used several real-world benchmarks to test the effectiveness of this methodology. Each benchmark was executed on one, two, three and four processing units and its power utilization was characterized by implementing it on a portable RC Platform called iPACE-VI. We present the results which show that choosing an appropriate execution mode is crucial for battery-efficient execution. We also show that parallel execution on multiple-processing units can actually be more battery-efficient than sequential execution on a single processing unit under certain circumstances.
Uncoupling protein-2 mRNA expression in mice subjected to intermittent hypoxia

Objective: To investigate the effect of intermittent hypoxia-a model of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA)-on pancreatic expression of uncoupling protein-2 (UCP2), as well as on glycemic and lipid profiles, in C57BL mice. Methods: For 8 h/day over a 35-day period, male C57BL mice were exposed to intermittent hypoxia (hypoxia group) or to a sham procedure (normoxia group). The intermittent hypoxia condition involved exposing mice to an atmosphere of 92% N and 8% CO2 for 30 s, progressively reducing the fraction of inspired oxygen to 8 ± 1%, after which they were exposed to room air for 30 s and the cycle was repeated (480 cycles over the 8-h experimental period). Pancreases were dissected to isolate the islets. Real-time PCR was performed with TaqMan assays. Results: Expression of UCP2 mRNA in pancreatic islets was 20% higher in the normoxia group than in the hypoxia group (p = 0.11). Fasting serum insulin was higher in the hypoxia group than in the normoxia group (p = 0.01). The homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance indicated that, in comparison with the control mice, the mice exposed to intermittent hypoxia showed 15% lower insulin resistance (p = 0.09) and 21% higher pancreatic β-cell function (p = 0.01). Immunohistochemical staining of the islets showed no significant differences between the two groups in terms of the area or intensity of α- and β-cell staining for insulin and glucagon. Conclusions: To our knowledge, this is the first report of the effect of intermittent hypoxia on UCP2 expression. Our findings suggest that UCP2 regulates insulin production in OSA. Further study of the role that UCP2 plays in the glycemic control of OSA patients is warranted.
Mining Normal and Abnormal Class-Association Rules

An efficient classification model has mostly classification rules with high confidence and large support. However, such a model may fail in real applications, because there exist objects or events that are very important, but rare and difficult to predict. In this work, we consider classification rules that are relatively abnormal, with respect to those rules that have high confidence and large support. We present a method for computing both normal and abnormal classification models in one phase and show the important complementary role of abnormal models with respect to normal models in classification through experimentation on UCI datasets.