Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Optimising area under the ROC curve using gradient descent

This paper introduces RankOpt, a linear binary classifier which optimises the area under the ROC curve (the AUC). Unlike standard binary classifiers, RankOpt adopts the AUC statistic as its objective function, and optimises it directly using gradient descent. The problems with using the AUC statistic as an objective function are that it is non-differentiable, and of complexity O(n2) in the number of data observations. RankOpt uses a differentiable approximation to the AUC which is accurate, and computationally efficient, being of complexity O(n.) This enables the gradient descent to be performed in reasonable time. The performance of RankOpt is compared with a number of other linear binary classifiers, over a number of different classification problems. In almost all cases it is found that the performance of RankOpt is significantly better than the other classifiers tested.
Production of the Long Pentraxin PTX3 in Advanced Atherosclerotic Plaques

Elevated plasma levels of the pentraxin protein family member C-reactive protein (CRP) are associated with increased risk of cardiovascular disease in both healthy and high-risk subjects. The long pentraxin family member, pentraxin 3 (PTX3), was recently described. Like CRP, PTX3 is induced by acute inflammatory stimuli and is increased in the blood of patients with acute myocardial infarction. Unlike CRP, it is expressed in a wide range of cell types, but not in hepatocytes. In this study, we have investigated the expression of PTX3 in atherosclerosis. Immunohistochemical staining of advanced atherosclerotic lesions revealed strong expression of PTX3. In contrast, no PTX3 expression was observed in nonatherosclerotic internal mammary arteries. By staining serial sections with cell type– and PTX3-specific antibodies, we observed that PTX3 was produced principally by macrophages and endothelial cells. Infrequent expression by smooth muscle cells was also observed. Our results suggest that PTX3 may contribute to the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis.
Gene therapy in an era of emerging treatment options for hemophilia B

Factor IX deficiency (hemophilia B) is less common than factor VIII deficiency (hemophilia A), and innovations in therapy for hemophilia B have generally lagged behind those for hemophilia A. Recently, the first sustained correction of the hemophilia bleeding phenotype by clotting factor gene therapy has been described using recombinant adeno‐associated virus (AAV) to deliver factor IX. Despite this success, many individuals with hemophilia B, including children, men with active hepatitis, and individuals who have pre‐existing natural immunity to AAV, are not eligible for the current iteration of hemophilia B gene therapy. In addition, recent advances in recombinant factor IX protein engineering have led some hemophilia treaters to reconsider the urgency of genetic cure. Current clinical and preclinical approaches to advancing AAV‐based and alternative approaches to factor IX gene therapy are considered in the context of current demographics and treatment of the hemophilia B population.
Parallel Implementation of Exact algorithm for Planted ( l , d ) Motif Search

Identifying meaningful patterns known as motif from voluminous amount of biological data is a big challenge. Three versions of motif search problem have been identified in the literature. One of this is planted (l,d) motif problem. Numerous algorithms have been proposed in the literature that addresses that challenge. Many of these algorithm fall under the category of approximation algorithm. In this paper, we present algorithms for planted (l,d) motif problems that always find the correct answer. The algorithm proposed here is parallelization of PMSP Rajsekharan et.al. [3]. Our algorithm is very simple and is based on ideas that are fundamentally different from this one employed in literature. Most of the sequential motif finding algorithms contains lots of repeated, data-independent operations. In this paper, we propose an improvement over the existing exact planted (l, d) motif search algorithm using a bit-vector mapping technique to avoid storing of huge number of l -mers generated by different sequences. We also develop a parallel algorithm for this modified sequential algorithm using both coarse grained and fine grained parallelism. Synthetic data sets from the public domain are used to implement the algorithm, for analyzing the efficiency and accuracy of the proposed solution. We observe that our parallelization method on four SMP cluster systems with each of 2.4GHz Intel Pentium-IV having 4GB RAM running under Red Hat Linux improve the existing sequential programs.
Robot nonverbal behavior improves task performance in difficult collaborations

Nonverbal behaviors increase task efficiency and improve collaboration between people and robots. In this paper, we introduce a model for generating nonverbal behavior and investigate whether the usefulness of nonverbal behaviors changes based on task difficulty. First, we detail a robot behavior model that accounts for top-down and bottom-up features of the scene when deciding when and how to perform deictic references (looking or pointing). Then, we analyze how a robot's deictic nonverbal behavior affects people's performance on a memorization task under differing difficulty levels. We manipulate difficulty in two ways: by adding steps to memorize, and by introducing an interruption. We find that when the task is easy, the robot's nonverbal behavior has little influence over recall and task completion. However, when the task is challenging- because the memorization load is high or because the task is interrupted-a robot's nonverbal behaviors mitigate the negative effects of these challenges, leading to higher recall accuracy and lower completion times. In short, nonverbal behavior may be even more valuable for difficult collaborations than for easy ones.
Motivational interviewing as a behavioral intervention to increase HAART adherence in patients who are HIV-positive: A systematic review of the literature

Abstract As HIV infection rates continue to rise, more and more people are faced with a complex, life-altering highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) regimen. With some researchers reporting as few as 50–70% of patients achieving adherence in the first six months of a HAART regimen, many behavioral interventions to increase HAART adherence have been examined. One such intervention, motivational interviewing (MI), has shown promise in previous studies and reviews as a possible successful intervention. Researchers conducted a review of the literature to identify studies analyzing the effect of a MI intervention on HAART adherence, with the objectives of examining this relationship and identifying gaps in the literature. To draw definitive conclusions about these questions and to maintain high methodological quality in the search, researchers used the Cochrane method for systematic reviews while conducting this review. Five studies were retained for review from the search and all were RCTs. Sample sizes ranged from 141 to 326 patients. Three of the five studies showed a significant increase in adherence rates, two studies reported a significant decrease in viral load, and one study showed an increase in CD4 cell count as a result of the intervention. A lack of a universally accepted definition of adherence and large gaps in the areas of humanistic and economic outcomes in the literature creates challenges in comparing improvements in HAART adherence across studies. Despite these challenges in comparison, MI appears to be a promising intervention to improve HAART adherence in HIV-positive individuals, but further studies of rigorous methodological quality are needed to fully understand the effect of this intervention.
A novel clustering algorithm for efficient energy saving in wireless sensor networks

Energy efficiency operations are essential in extending wireless sensor networks lifetime. Among the energy-saving-based solutions, clustering sensor nodes is an interesting alternative that features a reduction in energy consumption through: (i) aggregating data; (ii) controlling transmission power levels (iii) balancing load; (iv) putting redundant sensor nodes to sleep. This paper introduces a novel clustering algorithm that uses a distributed approach to set up non-overlapping clusters, while performing cluster heads rotation as well as carrying out other energy intensive tasks. Besides the transmission power and the energy level of each node, the proposed clustering algorithm considers nodes number that a cluster head can handle aiming at ideally partitioning the network. In fact, the nodes number constituting the cluster is confined around a pre-defined threshold, facilitating thus the optimal operation of the medium access control (MAC) protocol. Further, intending to reduce the computation and the communications cost as well as the messages exchanged, the proposed algorithm invokes the cluster formation only at the system activation, and delays as long as possible the cluster head turn over
Sleep duration and overweight/obesity in children: review and implications for pediatric nursing.

PURPOSE The purpose of this study was to review evidence from the last 5 years (2006-2011) regarding a relationship between sleep duration and childhood overweight/obesity. CONCLUSIONS Among the 25 studies selected from PubMed and Web of Knowledge databases, all indicated significant associations between short sleep duration and childhood overweight/obesity. Studies explored a range of pediatric populations, methodologies, and potential contributing factors. PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS Childhood sleep duration may be a modifiable risk factor in preventing obesity. In addition to identifying and assessing patients' sleep habits, nurses play important roles as educators regarding the importance of adequate sleep and promoting it in children.
Association Rules: Problems, solutions and new applications

Association rule mining is an important component of data mining. In the last years a great number of algorithms have been proposed with the objective of solving the obstacles presented in the generation of association rules. In this work, we offer a revision of the main drawbacks and proposals of solutions documented in the literature, including our own ones. The work is focused also in the classification function of the association rules, a promising technique which is the subject of recent studies.
Maximum voluntary isometric pinch contraction and force-matching from the fourth to the eighth decades of life

Understanding the effects of age and gender on pinch strength, variability, and accuracy and how one’s hand function changes with age better enables those in the preventative and rehabilitative fields to combat these losses. The present study examined fine motor maximum pinch strength [maximum voluntary isometric contraction (MVIC)] as well as the ability to maintain 5% MVIC accurately and consistently in five decades. One hundred adults in five groups, 20 in each decade of life from 30 to 79 years old, were nonrandomly recruited from the community. A two-way analysis of variance applied to MVIC, and a two-way multivariate analysis of variance applied to the variability (coefficient of variability) and accuracy (root mean square error), plus correlation and regression analyses, were used to determine decade and gender effects on pinch force. The task involved using isometric pinch control of a computer cursor to match a 5% of MVIC force level represented by a horizontal line. MVIC and force-matching steadiness and accuracy across all ages were not significantly different until the eighth decade (P<0.01). Men were stronger (P<0.001) but performed low-level force-matching with greater error (P<0.001) than women. Strength was not correlated with steadiness but was weakly correlated with accuracy (r=0.293, P<0.01), and steadiness and accuracy were strongly correlated (r=0.783, P<0.001). Decade and gender were moderate and strong predictors of accuracy and steadiness, respectively. In conclusion, age and gender differences were evident in pinch-force strength and control.
GABA Expression Dominates Neuronal Lineage Progression in the Embryonic Rat Neocortex and Facilitates Neurite Outgrowth via GABAA Autoreceptor/Cl− Channels

GABA emerges as a trophic signal during rat neocortical development in which it modulates proliferation of neuronal progenitors in the ventricular/subventricular zone (VZ/SVZ) and mediates radial migration of neurons from the VZ/SVZ to the cortical plate/subplate (CP/SP) region. In this study we investigated the role of GABA in the earliest phases of neuronal differentiation in the CP/SP. GABAergic-signaling components emerging during neuronal lineage progression were comprehensively characterized using flow cytometry and immunophenotyping together with physiological indicator dyes. During migration from the VZ/SVZ to the CP/SP, differentiating cortical neurons became predominantly GABAergic, and their dominant GABAA receptor subunit expression pattern changed from α4β1γ1 to α3β3γ2γ3 coincident with an increasing potency of GABA on GABAA receptor-mediated depolarization. GABAA autoreceptor/Cl− channel activity in cultured CP/SP neurons dominated their baseline potential and indirectly their cytosolic Ca2+(Ca2+c) levels via Ca2+ entry through L-type Ca2+channels. Block of this autocrine circuit at the level of GABA synthesis, GABAA receptor activation, intracellular Cl− ion homeostasis, or L-type Ca2+ channels attenuated neurite outgrowth in most GABAergic CP/SP neurons. In the absence of autocrine GABAergic signaling, neuritogenesis could be preserved by depolarizing cells and elevating Ca2+c. These results reveal a morphogenic role for GABA during embryonic neocortical neuron development that involves GABAA autoreceptors and L-type Ca2+ channels.
Les réseaux d'innovation sont-ils toujours ancrés dans les territoires? Le cas de l'alliance Crolles 2

La presente recherche interroge l’inscription spatiale des reseaux d’innovation. Nombreux sont aujourd’hui les travaux qui font le lien entre la realisation d’activites innovantes et la co-localisation des acteurs sur un meme territoire. L’ancrage territorial des membres d’un reseau d’innovation aurait ainsi un impact sur leur capacite a apprendre et a innover collectivement. Selon la lecture que nous en proposons, « l’encastrement inter-organisationnel » des entreprises et « l’encastrement social » des individus, permettant la creation de connaissances, leur diffusion, ainsi que la minimisation des couts associes a ces echanges, seraient facilites par leur « encastrement spatial », a savoir leur proximite geographique. A la lumiere de l’etude exploratoire du cas de l’Alliance Crolles 2, relatif au depart de deux firmes du cluster microelectronique de Grenoble, et de la reconfiguration spatiale des reseaux d’innovation au sein de l’industrie des semi-conducteurs, nous mettons en question cette lecture systematiquement « territorialisee » des processus d’innovation. Nos resultats attestent l’apparition d’une forme alternative d’organisation du processus d’innovation, moins sensible a la proximite spatiale des acteurs et ou l’ancrage territorial devient un processus temporaire et reversible.
Addiction to Rewards

The paper explores the "hidden costs of rewards" in a dynamic principal-agent framework, in which an informed principal selects in each period a reward for an agent. It shows that rewards are often addictive in that once offered, a contingent reward makes the agent expect it whenever a similar task is faced. This expectation develops because rewards bring bad news: a higher reward is more likely to be offered when the task is difficult or the agent is weak. This, in turn, compels the principal to use rewards over and over again. Furthermore, in a long-term principal-agent relationship there is a two-sided ratchet effect: the principal is concerned about creating addiction for the agent, whereas the agent does not want to appear too enthusiastic. On the principal's side, the ratchet effect implies that there are fewer rewards in a long-term principal-agent relationship than in a situation where the agent faces transient principals while implementing a series of similar tasks. On the agent's side, ratcheting conflicts with a desire to work in order to acquire valuable information about the task attractiveness. If doing the task once allows the agent to fully learn its characteristics, addiction may not develop. In contrast, the principal may first promise a bonus when the task is easy, rather than difficult (or the agent is strong) so as to induce the agent to acquire the good news "by doing". Then, bonuses become redundant thereafter.
A Matroid Approach to the Worst Case Allocation of Indivisible Goods

We consider the problem of equitably allocating a set of indivisible goods to n agents so as to maximize the utility of the least happy agent. [Demko and Hill, 1988] showed the existence of an allocation where every agent values his share at least Vn(α), which is a family of nonincreasing functions in a parameter α, defined as the maximum value assigned by an agent to a single good. A deterministic algorithm returning such an allocation in polynomial time was proposed [Markakis and Psomas, 2011]. Interestingly, Vn(α) is tight for some values of α, i.e. it is the best lower bound on the valuation of the least happy agent. However, it is not true for all values of α. We propose a family of functions Wn such that Wn(x) ≥ Vn(x) for all x, and Wn(x) > Vn(x) for values of x where Vn(x) is not tight. The new functions Wn apply on a problem which generalizes the allocation of indivisible goods. It is to find a solution (base) in a matroid which is common to n agents. Our results are constructive, they are achieved by analyzing an extension of the algorithm of Markakis and Psomas.
Extended DCF analysis and real options analysis within Information uncertainty : applications for project valuation and

This paper presents a survey of some results regarding the standard discounted cash flow techniques, the economic value added and real options. Since the standard literature ignores the role of market frictions and the effect of incomplete information, we rely on Merton’s (1987) model of capital market equilibrium with incomplete information to introduce information costs in the pricing of real assets. Using this model instead of the standard CAPM allows a new definition of the weighted average cost of capital and offers some new tools to compute the value of the firm and its assets in the presence of information uncertainty. Using the methodology in Bellalah (2001 a,b) for the pricing of real options, we propose some new results by extending the standard models to account for shadow costs of incomplete information. The extended models can be used for the valuation of R&D projects as well as projects with several stages like joint ventures.
Using Parallel Corpora for Word Sense Disambiguation

This paper presents a method of lexical semantic disambiguation in multilingual corpora and describes the construction of an artificial word-aligned and lexically disambiguated gold-standard corpus from an existing multilingual resource. The suggested approach uses sets of aligned words and phrases across languages as unique semantic tags similar to WordNet synsets that can be used as a part of unsupervised natural language processing and information retrieval tasks. The approach goes beyond one-to-one word alignment, and uses an algorithm for the aggregation of results of pair-wise word alignment when the corpus contains several languages. When applied to the new corpus, this methodology has proven capable of reducing the ambiguity of a polysemous word by one third on average.
What can psychoanalysis tell us about cyberspace?

Today, the media constantly bombard us with requests to choose, addressing us as subjects supposed to know what we really want (which book, clothes, TV program, place of holiday . . .)—“press A, if you want this, press B, if you want that,” or, to quote the motto of the recent “reflective” TV publicity campaign for advertisement itself, “Advertisement—the right to choose. ” However, at a more fundamental level, the new media deprive the subject radically of the knowledge of what he wants: They address a thoroughly malleable subject who has constantly to be told what he wants, i.e., the very evocation of a choice to be made performatively creates the need for the object of choice. One should bear in mind here that the main function of the Master is to tell the subject what he wants—the need for the Master arises in answer to the subject’s confusion, insofar as he does not know what he wants. What, then, happens in the situation of the decline of the Master, when the subject himself is constantly bombarded with the request to give a sign as to what he wants? The exact opposite of what one would expect: It is when there is no one here to tell you what you really want, when all the burden of the choice is on you, that the big Other dominates you completely, and the choice effectively disappears, i.e., is replaced by its mere semblance. One is tempted to paraphrase here Lacan’s wellknown reversal of Dostoyevski (“If there is no God, nothing is permitted at all”): If no forced choice confines the field of free choice, the very freedom of choice disappears.
Global positioning of robot manipulators via PD control plus a class of nonlinear integral actions

Deals with the position control of robot manipulators. Proposed is a simple class of robot regulators consisting of a linear proportional-derivative (PD) feedback plus an integral action of a nonlinear function of position errors. By using Lyapunov's direct method and LaSalle's invariance principle, the authors characterize a class of such nonlinear functions, and they provide explicit conditions on the regulator gains to ensure global asymptotic stability. These regulators offer an attractive alternative to global regulation compared with the well-known partially model-based PD control with gravity compensation and PD control with desired gravity compensation.
Single-agent monoclonal antibody efficacy in bulky non-Hodgkin's lymphoma: results of a phase II trial of rituximab.

PURPOSE A phase II trial was performed to evaluate the safety and efficacy of rituximab, a chimeric anti-CD20 monoclonal antibody, in patients with bulky (> 10-cm lesion) relapsed or refractory low-grade or follicular non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL). PATIENTS AND METHODS Thirty-one patients received intravenous infusions of rituximab 375 mg/m(2) weekly for four doses. All patients had at least one prior therapy (median, three; range, one to 13) and had progressive disease at study entry. Patients were a median of 4 years from diagnosis. RESULTS No patient had treatment discontinued because of an adverse event. No patient developed human antichimeric antibody. The overall response rate in 28 assessable patients was 43% with a median time to progression of 8.1 months (range, 4.5 to 18.6+ months) and median duration of response of 5.9 months (range, 2.8 to 12.1+ months). The average decrease in lesion size in patients who achieved a partial response was 76%, and patients with stable disease had a decrease in average lesion size of 26%. Median serum antibody concentration was higher in responders compared with nonresponders, and a negative correlation was shown between antibody concentration and tumor bulk at baseline. CONCLUSION Rituximab single-agent outpatient therapy is safe and shows significant clinical activity in patients with bulky relapsed or refractory low-grade or follicular B-cell NHL.