Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Performance improvement of satellite/terrestrial integrated mobile communication system using unmanned aerial vehicle cooperative communications

A satellite/terrestrial integrated mobile communication system (STICS), in which the satellite system and terrestrial system share the same frequency band, enables user terminals to access both systems. The STICS is expected to play an important role as a communication infrastructure in times of natural disasters, and as a means of communication in mountainous and oceanic regions, where a terrestrial station does not exist. However, in STICSs, since both systems use the same frequency band, the communication quality of the satellite link is degraded by the interference from terrestrial communication links. Therefore, to improve the quality of the satellite downlink, we propose a cooperative communication scheme using two timeslots with unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) acting as relay stations. The effectiveness of the scheme is demonstrated by numerical simulations.
Phase I clinical trial of a human idiotypic p53 vaccine in patients with advanced malignancy.

BACKGROUND The purpose of this study was to induce immunity to p53 by using an idiotypic vaccine, composed of a pool of eight peptides derived from the complimentarity determining regions (CDRs) of human anti-p53 antibodies. PATIENTS AND METHODS Subjects with advanced malignancy received up to four, monthly intradermal injections of pooled peptides (500 microg of each) admixed with granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF; 100 microg). In addition, two sheep and two rabbits were also vaccinated with the pooled peptides. RESULTS Fourteen subjects were enrolled into the study and six of these completed the vaccination schedule. The vaccine was well tolerated by all subjects and no major adverse events were attributable to the vaccine. All subjects mounted in vivo delayed type hypersensitivity (DTH) responses to two or more of the individual vaccine peptides. Vaccine-induced antibodies specific for peptides 2, 5 or 8 were detected in four of six subjects, and two of these had vaccine-specific, cell-mediated responses. Increasing titers of p53-specific antibodies were found in one patient. No T-cell response to p53 was observed in any of the subjects. All animals developed humoral immunity to the peptides and one of the sheep developed rising serum titers of anti-p53 antibodies. CONCLUSIONS Vaccination with human antibody CDR regions represents a novel method for inducing human antibodies, which may in turn serve as immunological mimics of p53.
Overview of Weighted Ensemble Simulation: Path-sampling, Steady States, Equilibrium

“Weighted ensemble” (WE) simulation is an enhanced sampling method for non-equilibrium and equilibrium processes that would be impractical to observe using straightforward dynamics simulation. Two key examples are (i) activated processes — i.e., overcoming energy barriers and (ii) binding processes — i.e., sampling rare complexation events. The basic goal of such studies is to get from a known initial state (A in Fig. 1) to a target state B, thereby learning pathways and rates for the process. WE uses a multiple-trajectory strategy in which individual trajectories can spawn multiple daughter trajectories upon reaching new regions of configuration space called bins. The daughters are suitably weighted to ensure statistical rigor. WE simulation can yield rigorous estimates for timescales/processes that are much longer than the simulations themselves.
Aliphatic polyester-grafted starch composites by in situ ring opening polymerization

Catalyzed Ring-Opening Polymerization (ROP) of lactones, such as ε-caprolactone and δ-valerolactone, has been investigated for preparing aliphatic polyester-grafted corn starch compositions. The polymerization has been carried out either in bulk (without solvent) or in 10 wt% granular starch in toluene suspension, after adequate activation of the starch surface amylose/amylopectin hydroxyl groups into aluminum alkoxides. This activation has been done by in situ reaction with triethylaluminum and has proved to be very effective in promoting fast ROP and also covalent grafting of the polyester chains onto the starch surface. Drying of the starch granules constitutes a key-step of the proposed process. The actual fixation of the initiator onto the starch surface has been checked by XPS analysis whereas good adhesion between the two components has been evidenced by SEM observations. Growth of the polyester chains on the starch granules has been followed by the increase of the mean diameter of the 'encapsulated' granules as attested by laser scattering granulometry.
Network optimisation for remote multimedia imaging applications

The paper covers an overview of image compression methods that are commonly used in digital telecommunication systems. A proposal is made how adaptive optimisation schemes can be applied in order to provide an optimal level of service quality. The criterion of optimality is set by a currently available network bandwidth, while providing a user with best possible quality of service. The problem, described in the paper, is how to select optimal image compression and transmission parameters, which employ currently available bandwidth and maintains perceptual degradation at a minimum level. The optimisation is constrained by minimum quality of service requirements.
Fair Resource Allocation for OFDMA Femtocell Networks With Macrocell Protection

We consider the joint subchannel allocation and power control problem for orthogonal frequency-division multiple-access (OFDMA) femtocell networks in this paper. Specifically, we are interested in the fair resource-sharing solution for users in each femtocell that maximizes the total minimum spectral efficiency of all femtocells subject to protection constraints for the prioritized macro users. Toward this end, we present the mathematical formulation for the uplink resource-allocation problem and propose an optimal exhaustive search algorithm. Given the exponential complexity of the optimal algorithm, we develop a distributed and low-complexity algorithm to find an efficient solution for the problem. We prove that the proposed algorithm converges and we analyze its complexity. Then, we extend the proposed algorithm in three different directions, namely, downlink context, resource allocation with rate adaption for femto users, and consideration of a hybrid access strategy where some macro users are allowed to connect with nearby femto base stations (FBSs) to improve the performance of the femto tier. Finally, numerical results are presented to demonstrate the desirable performance of the proposed algorithms.
Modeling user intentions for in-car infotainment systems using Bayesian networks

To support users in operating a computer system with a varying set of functions, it is fundamental to understand their intentions, e.g., within an in-car infotainment system. Although the development of current in-car infotainment systems is already model-based, explicitly gathering and modeling user intentions is currently not supported. However, manually creating software that predicts user intentions is complex, error-prone and expensive. Model-based development can help in overcoming these issues. In this paper, we present an approach for modeling a user's intention based on Bayesian networks. We support developers of in-car infotainment systems by providing means to model possible intentions of users according to the current situation. We further allow modeling of user preferences and show how the modeled intentions may change during run-time as a result of the user's behavior. We demonstrate feasibility of our approach using an industrial example of an intention-aware in-car infotainment system.
Demographic trends in Russian Arctic in the context of sustainable development

During the last decade demographic trends in the Arctic are getting worse from year to year. Current tendencies of the Russian Arctic are depressed economy and instability of demographic situation (depopulation, regressive type of population structure, low rates of population growth, life expectancy at birth and fertility, negative balance of migration) which have caused misbalance in the labor market. This indicates low effectiveness of both state and regional socio-economic policies and threat for sustainable development of Russian Arctic.
Negative energy balance alters global gene expression and immune responses in the uterus of postpartum dairy cows

Most dairy cows suffer uterine microbial contamination postpartum. Persistent endometritis often develops, associated with reduced fertility. We used a model of differential feeding and milking regimes to produce cows in differing negative energy balance status in early lactation (mild or severe, MNEB or SNEB). Blood hematology was assessed preslaughter at 2 wk postpartum. RNA expression in endometrial samples was compared using bovine Affymetrix arrays. Data were mapped using Ingenuity Pathway Analysis. Circulating concentrations of IGF-I remained lower in the SNEB group, whereas blood nonesterified fatty acid and β-hydroxybutyrate concentrations were raised. White blood cell count and lymphocyte number were reduced in SNEB cows. Array analysis of endometrial samples identified 274 differentially expressed probes representing 197 recognized genes between the energy balance groups. The main canonical pathways affected related to immunological and inflammatory disease and connective tissue disorders. Inflammatory response genes with major upregulation in SNEB cows included matrix metalloproteinases, chemokines, cytokines, and calgranulins. Expression of several interferon-inducible genes including ISG20, IFIH1, MX1, and MX2 were also significantly increased in the SNEB cows. These results provide evidence that cows in SNEB were still undergoing an active uterine inflammatory response 2 wk postpartum, whereas MNEB cows had more fully recovered from their energy deficit, with their endometrium reaching a more advanced stage of repair. SNEB may therefore prevent cows from mounting an effective immune response to the microbial challenge experienced after calving, prolonging the time required for uterine recovery and compromising subsequent fertility.
Planck pre-launch status: High Frequency Instrument polarization calibration

The High Frequency Instrument of Planck will map the entire sky in the millimeter and sub-millimeter domain from 100 to 857 GHz with unprecedented sensitivity to polarization (ΔP/Tcmb ∼ 4 × 10 −6 for P either Q or U and Tcmb � 2.7 K) at 100, 143, 217 and 353 GHz. It will lead to major improvements in our understanding of the cosmic microwave background anisotropies and polarized foreground signals. Planck will make high resolution measurements of the E-mode spectrum (up to � ∼ 1500) and will also play a prominent role in the search for the faint imprint of primordial gravitational waves on the CMB polarization. This paper addresses the effects of calibration of both temperature (gain) and polarization (polarization efficiency and detector orientation) on polarization measurements. The specific requirements on the polarization parameters of the instrument are set and we report on their pre-flight measurement on HFI bolometers. We present a semi-analytical method that exactly accounts for the scanning strategy of the instrument as well as the combination of different detectors. We use this method to propagate errors through to the CMB angular power spectra in the particular case of Planck-HFI, and to derive constraints on polarization parameters. We show that in order to limit the systematic error to 10% of the cosmic variance of the E-mode power spectrum, uncertainties in gain, polarization efficiency and detector orientation must be below 0.15%, 0.3% and 1 ◦ respectively. Pre-launch ground measurements reported in this paper already fulfill these requirements.
Taxonomy, biology, and periodontal aspects of Fusobacterium nucleatum

The pathogenic potential of Fusobacterium nucleatum and its significance in the development of periodontal diseases, as well as in infections in other organs, have gained new interest for several reasons. First, this bacterium has the potential to be pathogenic because of its number and frequency in periodontal lesions, its production of tissue irritants, its synergism with other bacteria in mixed infections, and its ability to form aggregates with other suspected pathogens in periodontal disease and thus act as a bridge between early and late colonizers on the tooth surface. Second, of the microbial species that are statistically associated with periodontal disease, F. nucleatum is the most common in clinical infections of other body sites. Third, during the past few years, new techniques have made it possible to obtain more information about F. nucleatum on the genetic level, thereby also gaining better knowledge of the structure and functions of the outer membrane proteins (OMPs). OMPs are of great interest with respect to coaggregation, cell nutrition, and antibiotic susceptibility. This review covers what is known to date about F. nucleatum in general, such as taxonomy and biology, with special emphasis on its pathogenic potential. Its possible relationship to other periodontal bacteria in the development of periodontal diseases and the possible roles played by OMPs are considered.
Evaluasi Kesuksesan Sistem Informasi Erp Di Departemen Akuntansi (Studi Pada Implementasi Sap Modul Financial Accounting Pt Pupuk Kalimantan Timur)

Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk menguji Model Kesuksesan Sistem Informasi DeLone dan McLean terhadap implementasi SAP ECC 6.0 modul Financial Accounting di Departemen Akuntansi PT Pupuk Kalimantan Timur. Objek penelitian ini adalah perusahaan manufaktur PT Pupuk Kalimantan Timur di Kota Bontang. Teknik pengumpulan data yang dilakukan yaitu dengan observasi, wawancara, dan dokumentasi. Hasil analisis Model Kesuksesan Sistem Informasi DeLone dan McLean menpunjukkan bahwa pengimplementasian ERP SAP di PT Pupuk Kalimantan Timur dapat dinyatakan sukses. Hal ini dikarenakan hampir semua komponen dalam enam dimensi pada model ini dipersepsikan positif oleh pengguna sehingga menjadi faktor sukses pengimplementasian SAP ECC 6.0 modul Financial Accounting . Terdapat beberapa persepsi negatif yang sebaiknya diperhatikan oleh tim proyek implementasi ERP di PT Pupuk Kalimantan Timur diantaranya mengenai format atau representasi informasi yang dihasilkan dari sistem, pemahaman user terhadap sistem, kecepatan tanggap pada sistem, inovasi pada sistem, kepuasan pengguna atas sistem, dan kontrol manajemen terhadap sistem. Kata kunci: Model Kesuksesan Sistem Informasi DeLone dan McLean, SAP ECC 6.0, modul Financial Accounting .
Sequential bayesian non-rigid structure from motion

This thesis addresses the problem of recovering simultaneously camera motion and the 3D reconstruction of deformable objects from monocular video. We propose several methods to solve this problem in a sequential fashion, frame-by-frame estimation, as the data arrives. Deformable structures appear constantly in our everyday life, from human non-rigid motion (e.g., a smiling face or performing different expressions) to general objects such as flags, clothes, sails, banners, etc. More speculatively, in the medical field such as a beating heart or a bending abdomen, where the problem is particularly challenging. Our research seeks a physics-based method to perform 3D shape recovery in a wide variety of objects with different types of deformation from inextensibility to extensibility, without having to rely on learning data. In addition, our methods can perform also under realistic real-world assumptions allowing large amounts of missing data and measurement noise, they can run in real time at frame rate and can be used from sparse to dense shapes even for strong deformations. This dissertation presents our contributions in the field of deformable shape and camera motion recovery from a sequence of monocular images. In more detail, we present a novel algorithm where both motion and deformation are ruled by physical dynamic models. An important advantage of this method is that it does not require prior knowledge over material properties since they can be factorized out. We also present a generic estimation framework, eliminating the need of rigid priors, which is normally necessary when physics-based models are used. Finally, we show how the sequential estimation is possible for dense shapes, combining low-rank shape models with temporal and spatial smoothness priors. One of the main advantages of our models is the ability to include physical priors, if they are available. In contrast, we show how to solve the problem when this knowledge fails.
Development and Validation of Insulin-like Growth Factor-1 Score to Assess Hepatic Reserve in Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Background Child-Turcotte-Pugh (CTP) score is the standard tool to assess hepatic reserve in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), and CTP-A is the classic group for active therapy. However, CTP stratification accuracy has been questioned. We hypothesized that plasma insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1) is a valid surrogate for hepatic reserve to replace the subjective parameters in CTP score to improve its prognostic accuracy. Methods We retrospectively tested plasma IGF-1 levels in the training set (n = 310) from MD Anderson Cancer Center. Recursive partitioning identified three optimal IGF-1 ranges that correlated with overall survival (OS): greater than 50ng/mL = 1 point; 26 to 50ng/mL = 2 points; and less than 26ng/mL = 3 points. We modified the CTP score by replacing ascites and encephalopathy grading with plasma IGF-1 value (IGF-CTP) and subjected both scores to log-rank analysis. Harrell’s C-index and U-statistics were used to compare the prognostic performance of both scores in both the training and validation cohorts (n = 155). All statistical tests were two-sided. Results Patients’ stratification was statistically significantly stronger for IGF-CTP than CTP score for the training (P = .003) and the validation cohort (P = .005). Patients reclassified by IGF-CTP relative to their original CTP score were better stratified by their new risk groups. Most important, patients classified as A by CTP but B by IGF-CTP had statistically significantly worse OS than those who remained under class A by IGF-CTP in both cohorts (P = .03 and P < .001, respectively, from Cox regression models). AB patients had a worse OS than AA patients in both the training and validation set (hazard ratio [HR] = 1.45, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.03 to 2.04, P = .03; HR = 2.83, 95% CI = 1.65 to 4.85, P < .001, respectively). Conclusions The IGF-CTP score is simple, blood-based, and cost-effective, stratified HCC better than CTP score, and validated well on two independent cohorts. International validation studies are warranted.
ffi cient Data Structures for Nearest Larger Neighbor I

Given a sequence of n elements from a totally ordered set, and a position in the sequence, the nearest larger neighbor (NLN) query returns the position of the element which is closest to the query position, and is larger than the element at the query position. The problem of finding all nearest larger neighbors has attracted interest due to its applications for parenthesis matching and in computational geometry [1, 2, 3]. We consider a data structure version of this problem, which is to preprocess a given sequence of elements to construct a data structure that can answer NLN queries efficiently. We consider time-space tradeoffs for the problem in both the encoding (where the input is not accessible after the data structure has been created) and indexing model, and consider cases when the input is in a one dimensional array, and also initiate the study of this problem on two-dimensional arrays. c © 2015 Published by Elsevier Ltd.
Virulence-associated genotypes of helicobacter pylori: do they explain the african enigma?

OBJECTIVES:The aim of this study was to compare the distribution of virulence-associated genotypes of Helicobacter pylori in two Colombian populations with contrasting gastric cancer risk but with similar H. pylori infection prevalence.METHODS:Gastric biopsies were taken from 241 subjects from the high gastric cancer risk area of Pasto and from 93 subjects from the low risk area of Tumaco. Four gastric biopsies from each patient were fixed in 10% buffered formalin for histopathologic analysis, and one was frozen immediately in liquid nitrogen and used for genotyping. CagA and vacA genotypes were determined by multiplex polymerase chain reaction and reverse hybridization on a line probe assay.RESULTS:In patients from the population with high risk for gastric cancer, statistically significant higher relative frequencies of cagA positive and vacA s1 and m1 genotypes were found as compared to the population from the low risk area.CONCLUSIONS:Although H. pylori infection has been recognized as a cause of gastric cancer in humans, some large populations with high prevalence of infection have low gastric cancer rates. This so-called “African enigma” so far remains unexplained. Our findings suggest that virulence-associated genes of H. pylori may partially explain the African enigma. Other factors, including human genetic polymorphisms and diet, are also suspected to play a major role. Further investigations are needed to test this hypothesis.
Approximation Algorithms for Data Broadcast in Wireless Networks

Broadcasting is a fundamental operation in wireless networks and plays an important role in the communication protocol design. In multihop wireless networks, however, interference at a node due to simultaneous transmissions from its neighbors makes it nontrivial to design a minimum-latency broadcast algorithm, which is known to be NP-complete. We present a simple 12-approximation algorithm for the one-to-all broadcast problem that improves all previously known guarantees for this problem. We then consider the all-to-all broadcast problem where each node sends its own message to all other nodes. For the all-to-all broadcast problem, we present two algorithms with approximation ratios of 20 and 34, improving the best result available in the literature. Finally, we report experimental evaluation of our algorithms. Our studies indicate that our algorithms perform much better in practice than the worst-case guarantees provided in the theoretical analysis and achieve up to 37 percent performance improvement over existing schemes.
Encouraging witting participation and performance in digital live art

We describe a framework for characterizing people's behavior with Digital Live Art. Our framework considers people's wittingness, technical skill, and interpretive abilities in relation to the performance frame. Three key categories of behavior with respect to the performance frame are proposed: performing, participating, and spectating. We exemplify the use of our framework by characterizing people's interaction with a DLA - iPoi. This DLA is based on the ancient Maori art form of poi and employs a wireless, peer-to-peer exertion interface. The design goal of iPoi is to draw people into the performance frame and support transitions from audience to participant and on to performer. We reflect on iPoi in a public performance and outline its key design features.
Neural Network Implementation in SAS R � Software

The estimation or training methods in the neural network literature are usually some simple form of gradient descent algorithm suitable for implementation in hardware using massively parallel computations. For ordinary computers that are not massively parallel, optimization algorithms such as those in several SAS procedures are usually far more efficient. This talk shows how to fit neural networks using SAS/OR R , SAS/ETS R , and SAS/STAT R software.