Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Qualitative Approach to Designing a Class of Geometries

We consider the problem of creative geometric design: i.e. creating a shape that can represent a class of geometries, either by varying parameters associated with the boundary data, or by changing aspects of the shape itself. The model of shape we use is based on subdividing the dis-cretizations in qualitative spatial reasoning, called Qualitative Subdivision Algebra, resulting in a nal resolution that can be reened over the course of the design process. By changing the model of shape, the design can be made to fullll diierent levels of functional demand. It is said that 80% of the design value is locked up in the initial design shape or template. Qualitative models for design rarely address spatial aspects in suucient detail, and when they do, they rely on quantitative substrate to construct and work with that data. Today's CAD systems suuer from the weakness that a) they cannot model the abstract geometries that convey conceptual designs, and b) they do not have a mechanism for modeling the constraints that lead eventually to the nal design. The former makes it impossible to perform conceptual design, and the latter makes it diicult to edit the design later, when the basic functional constraints typically have to be regenerated. In this work we present a method for 1. modeling the conceptual uncertainties using a Hybrid Qualitative Spatial Model, and providing visual feedback during the stage when the geometry is not well-deened. 2. obtaining a parametrization for the design template 3. instantiating the parameters with a set of values for fulllling speciic level of functionality. Thus, this is a vertically integrated work, starting from the ambiguous geometries that need to be modeled at the design phase, and ending with a fully instantiated design model. The design constraints are stored in a Parameter Constraint Digraph, which provides valuable information for any editing that may take place subsequently. We use the design of a crankshaft to highlight the basic ideas behind the method, and show how 1 diiering initial templates lead to diierent popular crankshafts used in India today.
Corticotropin-Releasing Hormone Drives Anandamide Hydrolysis in the Amygdala to Promote Anxiety

Corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) is a central integrator in the brain of endocrine and behavioral stress responses, whereas activation of the endocannabinoid CB1 receptor suppresses these responses. Although these systems regulate overlapping functions, few studies have investigated whether these systems interact. Here we demonstrate a novel mechanism of CRH-induced anxiety that relies on modulation of endocannabinoids. Specifically, we found that CRH, through activation of the CRH receptor type 1 (CRHR1), evokes a rapid induction of the enzyme fatty acid amide hydrolase (FAAH), which causes a reduction in the endocannabinoid anandamide (AEA), within the amygdala. Similarly, the ability of acute stress to modulate amygdala FAAH and AEA in both rats and mice is also mediated through CRHR1 activation. This interaction occurs specifically in amygdala pyramidal neurons and represents a novel mechanism of endocannabinoid–CRH interactions in regulating amygdala output. Functionally, we found that CRH signaling in the amygdala promotes an anxious phenotype that is prevented by FAAH inhibition. Together, this work suggests that rapid reductions in amygdala AEA signaling following stress may prime the amygdala and facilitate the generation of downstream stress-linked behaviors. Given that endocannabinoid signaling is thought to exert “tonic” regulation on stress and anxiety responses, these data suggest that CRH signaling coordinates a disruption of tonic AEA activity to promote a state of anxiety, which in turn may represent an endogenous mechanism by which stress enhances anxiety. These data suggest that FAAH inhibitors may represent a novel class of anxiolytics that specifically target stress-induced anxiety.
Rapid Synaptic Remodeling by Protein Kinase C: Reciprocal Translocation of NMDA Receptors and Calcium/Calmodulin-Dependent Kinase II

In contrast to the rapid regulation of AMPA receptors, previous evidence has supported the idea that the synaptic density of NMDA-type glutamate receptors is fairly static, modulated only over a long time scale in a homeostatic manner. We report here that selective activation of protein kinase C (PKC) with phorbol esters induces a rapid dispersal of NMDA receptors from synaptic to extrasynaptic plasma membrane in cultured rat hippocampal neurons. PKC activation induced a simultaneous translocation of calcium/calmodulin-dependent kinase II (CaMKII) to synapses but no change in spine number, presynaptic terminal number, or the distribution of AMPA receptors or the synaptic scaffolding protein PSD-95. PKC-induced accumulation of CaMKII was dependent on filamentous actin, whereas dispersal of NMDA receptors occurred by a different mechanism independent of actin or CaMKII. Consistent with the decrease in synaptic density of NMDA receptors, phorbol ester pretreatment reduced excitotoxicity. These results reveal a surprisingly dynamic nature to the molecular composition and functional properties of glutamatergic postsynaptic specializations.
A Homogeneous Framework for Visual Recognition

A homogeneous paradigm for evidence integration is presented, and a vision system to recognize 3D objects is demonstrated using this paradigm. A new concept called generalizedfeatures supports a highly modular architecture, and allows a uniform treatment of features at all levels of recognition - from simple partial features to complex feature assemblies and 3D objects. Layered, concurrent parameter transforms vote for feature hypotheses on the basis of image data and previously reconstructed features. Additional transforms identify supporting or conflicting relationships between hypotheses. The entire reconstruction and indexing process occurs within recognition networks, which collect votes, fuse evidence from various sources and insure global consistency. The overall approach allows the system to completely avoid the common weak point of explicit, low-level scene segmentation. Features reconstructed by the vision system include surface regions and 3D surface intersection curves. Experimental results, including noise sensitivity, for real data from a laser range finder are presented.
Towards holistic multi-tenant monitoring for virtual data centers

Cloud computing becomes increasingly prevalent for outsourcing IT functions. The basic feature of offering virtual data center slices to customers has been in use for some time now. So far, customers only get the raw resources, with only little insight and control of their resources. But to let customers build reliable services on top of the rented infrastructure, they need adequate monitoring and control capabilities. In the future, we expect operators to offer such functions to their customers. In this paper, we introduce our approach towards offering a holistic monitoring system to data center customers. It offers generic monitoring information propagation and storage covering various types of resources (network, servers, and applications), all kinds of monitoring information, and all tenants. As virtualized data centers are usually large and multi-tenant, our solution is built with these properties in mind.
Unconstrained Derivative-Free Optimization by Successive Approximation 1

We present an algorithmic framework for unconstrained derivative-free optimization based on dividing the search space in regions (partitions). Every partition is assigned a representative point. The representative points form a grid. A piece-wise constant approximation to the function subject to optimization is constructed using a partitioning and its corresponding grid. The convergence of the framework to a stationary point of a continuously differentiable function is guaranteed under mild assumptions. The proposed framework is appropriate for upgrading heuristics that lack mathematical analysis into algorithms that guarantee convergence to a local minimizer. A convergent variant of the Nelder-Mead algorithm that conforms to the given framework is constructed. The algorithm is compared to two previously published convergent variants of the NM algorithm. The comparison is conducted on the Moré-Garbow-Hillstrom set of test problems and on four variably dimensional functions with dimension up to 100. The results of the comparison show that the proposed algorithm outperforms both previously published algorithms.
PENGARUH FAKTOR PERSONALITI TERHADAP TINGKAH LAKU BULI DALAM KALANGAN JURURAWAT (INFLUENCE OF PERSONALITY FACTORS TOWARDS BULLYING BEHAVIOR AMONG NURSES)

Workplace bullying has been recognized as a serious issue that may affect psychological stress symptoms of employees and jeopardize organization’s productivity especially in the healthcare sector. This study aims to identify the influence of personality traits on workplace bullying among registered nurses in a public hospital. A total of 340 registered nurses were involved in this study using stratified random sampling . Two sets of questionnaires were used in this study, namely International Personality Item Pool (IPIP) for measuring personality and instrument of Negative Acts Questionnaire-Revised (NAQ-R) for measuring workplace bullying. The data obtained were analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 23. The multiple linear regression analysis indicates that only personality trait of conscientiousness negatively affects work-related bullying, person-related bullying, and physically intimidating bullying. This finding clarifies that low conscientiousness requires more attention from organizations in order to reduce bullying at work. Therefore, this factor may serve as a predictor to evaluate the suitability of future nurses in personnel decision making.
Wastewater use in agriculture: Review of impacts and methodological issues in valuing impacts

van der Hoek. 2002. Wastewater use in agriculture: Review of impacts and methodological issues in valuing impacts. (With an extended list of bibliographical references). Working Paper 37. Colombo, Sri Lanka: International Water Management Institute. / wastewater / water management / water quality / groundwater recharge / water reuse / cost benefit analysis / agricultural production / domestic water / water pollution / public health / economic aspects / ecology / developing countries / China / India / Mexico / Pakistan / IWMI receives its principal funding from 58 governments, private foundations, and international and regional organizations known as the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR).
Intersections of Fandom in the Age of Interactive Media

This study focuses on comparing the uses sought and gratifications obtained when consuming media related to eSports and traditional sports; in doing so, relevant areas of overlap and distinction are ascertained. In all, more than 1,300 American eSports participants were queried as to their interest in both eSports and traditional sports fan/followership. Results revealed that eSports participants sought out media for both eSports and traditional sports for similar motivations, specifically social sport, fanship, and Schwabism. However, it is the magnitude of the motives that truly set eSports fans apart, with participants showing far more dedication and desire to engage with eSport content than in any other realm of the traditional sporting arena.
Histone and TK0471/TrmBL2 form a novel heterogeneous genome architecture in the hyperthermophilic archaeon Thermococcus kodakarensis

This study demonstrates that the chromosome of the hyperthermophilic archaeon Thermococcus kodakarensis is organized into a heterogeneous structure created with histone and a novel protein TK0471/TrmBL2. TK0471/TrmBL2 plays dual roles as a chromosomal protein and as a global transcriptional repressor, and it is conserved in some archaeal and bacterial species.
Simulation of Multipath Impulse Response for Indoor Wireless Optical Channels

A recursive method for evaluating the impulse response of an indoor free-space optical channel with Lambertian reflectors is presented. The method, which accounts for multiple reflections of any order, enables accurate analysis of the effects of multipath dispersion on high-speed indoor optical communication systems. A simple algorithm for computer implementation of the technique and computer simulation results for both line-of-sight and diffuse transmitter configurations are also presented. In both cases, it is shown that reflections of multiple order are a significant source of intersymbol interference. Experimental measurements of optical multipath, which help verify the accuracy of the simulations, are discussed. >
A Two-Layer Learning Architecture for Multi-Class Protein Folds Classification

Classification of protein folds plays a very important role in the protein structure discovery process, especially when traditional sequence alignment methods fail to yield convincing structural homologies. In this chapter, we have developed a two-layer learning architecture, named TLLA, for multi-class protein folds classification. In the first layer, OET-KNN (Optimized Evidence-Theoretic K Nearest Neighbors) is used as the component classifier to find the most probable K-folds of the query protein. In the second layer, we use support vector machine (SVM) to build the multi-class classifier just on the K-folds, generated in the first layer, rather than on all the 27 folds. For multi-feature combination, ensemble strategy based on voting is selected to give the final classification result. The standard percentage accuracy of our method at ~63% is achieved on the independent testing dataset, where most of the proteins have <25% sequence identity with those in the training dataset. The experimental evaluation based on a widely used benchmark dataset has shown that our approach outperforms the competing methods, implying our approach might become a useful vehicle in the literature. DOI: 10.4018/978-1-4666-3604-0.ch041
Revealing the relationship network behind link spam

Accessing the large volume of information that is available on the Web is more important than ever before. Search engines are the primary means to help users find the content they need. To suggest the most closely related and the most popular Web pages for a user's query, search engines assign a ranking to each Web page, which typically increases with the number and ranking of other Web sites that link to this page. However, link spammers have developed several techniques to exploit this algorithm and improve the ranking of their Web pages. These techniques are commonly based on underground forums for collaborative link exchange; building a relationship network among spammers to favor their Web pages in search engine results. In this study, we provide a systematic analysis of the spam link exchange performed through 15 Search Engine Optimization (SEO) forums. We design a system, which is able to capture the activity of link spammers in SEO forums, identify spam link exchange, and visualize the link spam ecosystem. The outcomes of this study shed light on a different aspect of link spamming that is the collaboration among spammers.
Identification of an upstream regulatory pathway controlling actin-mediated apoptosis in yeast

The build up of reactive oxygen species (ROS) is known to contribute to a reduction in the lifespan of a cell and to their degeneration in diseases such as Alzheimer's and tissue ischaemia. It is therefore important to elucidate pathways that regulate cellular oxidative stress. We have previously shown that actin dynamics can affect the oxidative-stress burden on a yeast cell and thereby its potential lifespan. To elucidate further the connection between actin dynamics and oxidative stress, we sought to identify regulators of this process. The actin regulatory proteins Sla1p and End3p are important in maintaining a rapid turnover of F-actin in cortical patches. We show that cells expressing a mutated form of Sla1p or lacking End3p display markers of apoptosis such as depolarized mitochondrial membranes and elevated levels of reactive oxygen species. Overexpression of the ubiquitin ligase RSP5 can alleviate the oxidative-stress phenotype observed in cells lacking End3p by targeting Sla1p to the cortex and restoring actin remodelling capability. We also demonstrate that overexpression of PDE2, a negative regulator of the Ras/cAMP pathway rescues actin dynamics, reduces oxidative stress sensitivity and restores viability in Δend3 cells. Our data suggest, for the first time, that a physiological link exists between actin regulation and cAMP signalling that regulates apoptosis in yeast.
Strategy Switching in the Stabilization of Unstable Dynamics

In order to understand mechanisms of strategy switching in the stabilization of unstable dynamics, this work investigates how human subjects learn to become skilled users of an underactuated bimanual tool in an unstable environment. The tool, which consists of a mass and two hand-held non-linear springs, is affected by a saddle-like force-field. The non-linearity of the springs allows the users to determine size and orientation of the tool stiffness ellipse, by using different patterns of bimanual coordination: minimal stiffness occurs when the two spring terminals are aligned and stiffness size grows by stretching them apart. Tool parameters were set such that minimal stiffness is insufficient to provide stable equilibrium whereas asymptotic stability can be achieved with sufficient stretching, although at the expense of greater effort. As a consequence, tool users have two possible strategies for stabilizing the mass in different regions of the workspace: 1) high stiffness feedforward strategy, aiming at asymptotic stability and 2) low stiffness positional feedback strategy aiming at bounded stability. The tool was simulated by a bimanual haptic robot with direct torque control of the motors. In a previous study we analyzed the behavior of naïve users and we found that they spontaneously clustered into two groups of approximately equal size. In this study we trained subjects to become expert users of both strategies in a discrete reaching task. Then we tested generalization capabilities and mechanism of strategy-switching by means of stabilization tasks which consist of tracking moving targets in the workspace. The uniqueness of the experimental setup is that it addresses the general problem of strategy-switching in an unstable environment, suggesting that complex behaviors cannot be explained in terms of a global optimization criterion but rather require the ability to switch between different sub-optimal mechanisms.
Goal and scenario driven product line development

Product line development has proven a successful approach to achieve strategic and large-grained reuse and hence time-to-market and productivity. A key to successful software product lines is to identify and analyze the right functionality for reusable implementation, and thus perform detailed requirements analysis for product lines to exploit commonality and variability (C&V) within a family of related systems. In this paper, we describe the goal and scenario driven approach for developing software product lines, which elicits product line requirements and analyzes C&V in products of a product line, as well as supports developing a particular product in the product line. We also discuss our ultimate goal that is to develop a dynamic software product line, which can produce new products at runtime by dynamic reconfiguration of the product line based on goals and scenarios.
Safety and Efficacy of Adding Fixed-Combination Brinzolamide/Timolol Maleate to Prostaglandin Therapy for Treatment of Ocular Hypertension or Glaucoma

Purpose. To evaluate the safety and efficacy of adding brinzolamide 1%/timolol maleate 0.5% fixed combination (BTFC) to a prostaglandin analog (PGA). Methods. This was a 12-week, open-label, single-arm study of patients with open-angle glaucoma or ocular hypertension with intraocular pressure (IOP) not sufficiently controlled after ≥4 weeks of PGA monotherapy. The primary outcome was mean IOP change from baseline at week 12. Other outcomes included IOP change from baseline at week 4, percentage of patients achieving IOP ≤18 mmHg at week 12, and patient experience survey responses at week 12. Results. Forty-seven patients were enrolled and received treatment. The most commonly used PGAs were latanoprost (47%) and travoprost (32%). Mean ± SD IOP was decreased at week 12 (17.2 ± 4.1 mmHg) compared with baseline (23.1 ± 3.0 mmHg; P < 0.001, paired t-test); IOP at week 4 was 17.2 ± 3.3 mmHg. At week 12, 70% of patients achieved IOP ≤18 mmHg. Patient-reported symptoms (e.g., pain and redness) were mostly unchanged from baseline. Twenty-eight adverse events (AEs) were reported; the most frequently reported AE was headache (3 events in 2 patients). Conclusion. Adjunctive BTFC + PGA therapy was effective and well tolerated. IOP decreased by 6 mmHg at weeks 4 and 12.
Diagnostic and Prognostic Values of Noninvasive Predictors of Portal Hypertension in Patients with Alcoholic Cirrhosis

Portal hypertension is a direct consequence of hepatic fibrosis, and several hepatic fibrosis markers have been evaluated as a noninvasive alternative to the detection of portal hypertension and esophageal varices. In the present study, we compared the diagnostic and prognostic values of the noninvasive fibrosis markers in patients with alcoholic cirrhosis. A total of 219 consecutive alcoholic cirrhosis patients were included. Biochemical scores and liver stiffness (LS) were compared with hepatic venous pressure gradient (HVPG). For the detection of clinically significant portal hypertension (CSPH; HVPG≥10 mmHg) in compensated patients, LS and LS–spleen diameter to platelet ratio score (LSPS) showed significantly better performance with area under the curves (AUCs) of 0.85 and 0.82, respectively, than aspartate aminotransferase-to-platelet ratio index, FIB-4, Forns’ index, Lok index, (platelet count)2/[monocyte fraction (%) × segmented neutrophil fraction (%)], and platelet count-to-spleen diameter ratio (all P<0.001). However, for the detection of high-risk varices, none of the non-invasive tests showed reliable performance (AUCs of all investigated tests < 0.70). During a median follow-up period of 42.6 months, 46 patients with decompensated cirrhosis died. Lok index (hazard ratio [HR], 1.13; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.05–1.22; P = 0.001) and FIB-4 (HR, 1.06; 95% CI, 1.01–1.10; P = 0.009) were independently associated with all-cause death in decompensated patients. Among the tested noninvasive markers, only Lok index significantly improved discrimination function of MELD score in predicting overall survival. In conclusion, LS and LSPS most accurately predict CSPH in patients with compensated alcoholic cirrhosis. In the prediction of overall survival in decompensated patients, however, Lok index is an independent prognostic factor and improves the predictive performance of MELD score.