Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Mitigating Collisions in Saturated Wireless Network with Receiver Token Ring

Collisions among packets decreases wireless network throughput, especially when traffic load is high. Virtual token ring scheme achieves collision free, however, it may cause channel underutilization without specially designed for spatial reuse. A receiver token ring scheme is proposed in this work, which is specially designed for wireless network. The approach makes use of token ring formed with receivers nearby to lower collisions in saturation condition. A reachablity based spatial reuse is considered when building a ring to achieve scalability. Performance of the proposed scheme was evaluated by simulation.
Robotic Interaction with Deformable Objects under Vision and Tactile Guidance - a Review

This paper overviews the modern concepts adopted by the robotics community during the past decade related to 3D deformable object grasping and manipulation mainly guided by vision and force/tactile sensing. It also examines the new trends on rigid objects manipulation which can be extended to deformable objects. This constitutes a challenging area of research because of the complexity of interactions between the robot manipulator and the deformable object due to its deformation. To this effect, there are many issues to be considered in order to develop a truly autonomous robotic system that can successfully manipulate 3D deformable objects. This investigation concludes by proposing viable solutions for designing an intelligent robotic framework to manipulate 3D deformable objects without any human intervention.
Robust rate adaptation for 802.11 wireless networks

Rate adaptation is a mechanism unspecified by the 802.11 standards, yet critical to the system performance by exploiting the multi-rate capability at the physical layer.I n this paper, we conduct a systematic and experimental study on rate adaptation over 802.11 wireless networks. Our main contributions are two-fold. First, we critique five design guidelines adopted by most existing algorithms. Our study reveals that these seemingly correct guidelines can be misleading in practice, thus incur significant performance penalty in certain scenarios. The fundamental challenge is that rate adaptation must accurately estimate the channel condition despite the presence of various dynamics caused by fading, mobility and hidden terminals. Second, we design and implement a new Robust Rate Adaptation Algorithm (RRAA)that addresses the above challenge. RRAA uses short-term loss ratio to opportunistically guide its rate change decisions, and an adaptive RTS filter to prevent collision losses from triggering rate decrease. Our extensive experiments have shown that RRAA outperforms three well-known rate adaptation solutions (ARF, AARF, and SampleRate) in all tested scenarios, with throughput improvement up to 143%.
Towards Optimal Free-of-Charge Trip Planning in Bike-Sharing Systems

Most bike-sharing service providers offer a free ride for a short time period. In this paper, we study how to find the optimal route that is free of rental cost and minimizes the trip distance from one location to another within a bike-sharing system, in which the utilization of bike stations dynamically changes over time. We use a time-dependent dynamic graph to model the network of bike stations. In the graph, each vertex represents a bike station and is associated with a vertex-usage function. The difficulty of this problem is mainly attributed to the fluctuation of the usage function because a fully utilized station cannot accept returned bikes. Efficiency is another challenge, as we must explore all possible paths between the source and the destination. To address these challenges, we propose techniques to find a solution optimized for efficiency. First, to reduce the search space, we construct a station network graph on top of a road network. Next, we employ a pathstree to identify all the paths with lengths less than the userpreferred maximum detour distance and we select an optimal path toward the destination. We present the design details of our algorithms and we analyze the algorithms' correctness and complexity. To demonstrate the feasibility of our methods, we also report the results from the extensive experiments we conducted.
Expression and significance of CHIP in canine mammary gland tumors

CHIP (Carboxy terminus of Hsc70 Interacting Protein) is an E3 ubiquitin ligase that can induce ubiquitination and degradation of several oncogenic proteins. The expression of CHIP is frequently lower in human breast cancer than in normal breast tissue. However, the expression and role of CHIP in the canine mammary gland tumor (CMGT) remain unclear. We investigated the potential correlation between CHIP expression and mammary gland tumor prognosis in female dogs. CHIP expression was measured in 54 dogs by immunohistochemistry and real-time RT-PCR. CHIP protein expression was significantly correlated with the histopathological diagnosis, outcome of disease and tumor classification. The transcriptional level of CHIP was significantly higher in normal tissues (P=0.001) and benign tumors (P=0.009) than it in malignant tumors. CHIP protein expression was significantly correlated with the transcriptional level of CHIP (P=0.0102). The log-rank test survival curves indicated that patients with low expression of CHIP had shorter overall periods of survival than those with higher CHIP protein expression (P=0.050). Our data suggest that CHIP may play an important role in the formation and development of CMGTs and serve as a valuable prognostic marker and potential target for genetic therapy.
Distracted Driving Among Newly Licensed Teen Drivers March

Acknowledgements We would like to express our appreciation to Jurek Grabowski, Brian Tefft, and two peer reviewers for comments and suggestions on earlier drafts of this final report. We also gratefully acknowledge Rusty Weiss with Drivecam for his assistance and support throughout the project. Founded in 1947, the AAA Foundation in Washington, D.C. is a not-for-profit, publicly supported charitable research and education organization dedicated to saving lives by preventing traffic crashes and reducing injuries when crashes occur. Funding for this report was provided by voluntary contributions from AAA/CAA and their affiliated motor clubs, from individual members, from AAA-affiliated insurance companies, as well as from other organizations or sources. This publication is distributed by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety at no charge, as a public service. It may not be resold or used for commercial purposes without the explicit permission of the Foundation. It may, however, be copied in whole or in part and distributed for free via any medium, provided the AAA Foundation is given appropriate credit as the source of the material. The AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety assumes no liability for the use or misuse of any information, opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations contained in this report. If trade or manufacturer's names are mentioned, it is only because they are considered essential to the object of this report and their mention should not be construed as an endorsement. The AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety does not endorse products or manufacturers. Although distracted driving among teenagers is of great concern to traffic safety professionals and has received considerable media attention in recent years, rigorous research on this issue has been limited. Most of the research to date has concentrated on the risks associated with teen passengers and driver cell phone use. Almost no research has examined the many other potential driving distractions often believed to be common and problematic among teenage drivers. In an ongoing study with the AAA Foundation, we collected a sizeable dataset of video data on teen drivers during the provisional licensing stage of GDL. This in-vehicle data provided a unique opportunity to study distracted driver behaviors and potentially distracting conditions among young, beginning drivers. For the present analysis, we sampled and coded video data with the specific purpose of studying the nature and prevalence of distracted driving among teenagers. The study addressed a number of questions:  Which distracted driver behaviors are most common …
Suppression of Insulin‐Induced Sympathetic Activation and Vasodilation by Dexamethasone in Humans

BackgroundPhysiological hyperinsulinemia in lean human subjects stimulates sympathetic nerve activity and blood flow in skeletal muscle, but the underlying mechanism is unknown. Potential mechanisms include central neural or peripheral actions of insulin. Glucocorticoids may potentially interfere with both such actions and thereby may attenuate sympathoexcitatory and vasodilatory effects of insulin in skeletal muscle. Methods and ResultsTo determine whether insulin-induced sympathetic activation and vasodilation are attenuated by dexamethasone, we measured muscle sympathetic nerve activity and muscle blood flow during euglycemic hyperinsulinemia before and after short-term administration of this pharmacological agent. Insulin concentrations, which normally doubled sympathetic activity and markedly increased blood flow, had no such stimulatory effect after short-term dexamethasone administration. In contrast, responses to two noninsulin sympathetic stimuli, the Valsalva maneuver and immersion of the hand in ice water, and the vasodilatory response to calf vascular occlusion were not altered by dexamethasone. ConclusionThese results demonstrate a dramatic impairment of insulin-induced sympathetic activation and vasodilation by dexamethasone in lean, healthy humans. This study suggests that dexamethasone administration to lean subjects may offer an experimental model to examine underlying mechanisms that regulate the interplay between cardiovascular, sympathetic, and metabolic effects of insulin.
The variability of femoral rotational alignment in total knee arthroplasty.

BACKGROUND Several reference axes are used to establish femoral rotational alignment during total knee arthroplasty, but debate continues with regard to which axis is most accurately and easily identified during surgery. Computer-assisted navigation systems have been developed in an attempt to more accurately and consistently align implants during total knee arthroplasty, but it is unknown if navigation systems can improve the accuracy of femoral rotational alignment as compared with that achieved with more traditional techniques involving mechanical guides. The purposes of the present study were to characterize the variability associated with femoral rotational alignment techniques and to determine whether the use of a computer-assisted surgical navigation system reduced this variability. METHODS Eleven orthopaedic surgeons used five alignment techniques (including one computer-assisted technique and four traditional techniques) to establish femoral rotational alignment axes on ten cadaveric specimens, and the orientation of these axes was recorded with use of a navigation system. These derived axes were compared against a reference transepicondylar axis on each femur that was established after complete dissection of all soft tissues. RESULTS There was no difference between the mean errors of all five techniques (p > 0.11). Only 17% of the knees were rotated <5 degrees from the reference transepicondylar axis, with alignment errors ranging from 13 degrees of internal rotation to 16 degrees of external rotation. There were significant differences among the surgeons with regard to their ability to accurately establish femoral rotational alignment axes (p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS All techniques resulted in highly variable rotational alignment, with no technique being superior. This variability was primarily due to the particular surgeon who was performing the alignment procedure. A navigation system that relies on directly digitizing the femoral epicondyles to establish an alignment axis did not provide a more reliable means of establishing femoral rotational alignment than traditional techniques did.
An Almost Optimal Algorithm for Computing Nonnegative Rank

Here, we give an algorithm for deciding if the nonnegative rank of a matrix $M$ of dimension $m \times n$ is at most $r$ which runs in time $(nm)^{O(r^2)}$. This is the first exact algorithm that runs in time singly exponential in $r$. This algorithm (and earlier algorithms) are built on methods for finding a solution to a system of polynomial inequalities (if one exists). Notably, the best algorithms for this task run in time exponential in the number of variables but polynomial in all of the other parameters (the number of inequalities and the maximum degree). Hence, these algorithms motivate natural algebraic questions whose solution have immediate algorithmic implications: How many variables do we need to represent the decision problem, and does $M$ have nonnegative rank at most $r$? A naive formulation uses $nr + mr$ variables and yields an algorithm that is exponential in $n$ and $m$ even for constant $r$. Arora et al. [Proceedings of STOC, 2012, pp. 145--162] recently reduced the number of variable.
Design of Compact and Multiband Antenna Array using Genetic Algorithm Optimization

A compact size, multiband 2x2 array of circular microstrip antenna has been proposed. The antenna array consists of Genetic Algorithm (GA)- optimized, annular slotted circular microstrip antenna elements using probe feed. The spacing of elements has also been optimized using GA in the two directions. The performance of the antenna array has been studied with different shape parameters. The optimized antenna array exhibits the tri-band characteristics in wireless bands that can be used in WLAN, Wi-MAX, airborne, satellite and radar applications. Its output parameter results have been compared with the previously implemented design results in the corresponding operation bands. It has been shown that by switching the wave excitations in the selected elements, the desired radiation characteristics can be obtained. Also very good circular polarization characteristics have been obtained for the optimized array.
Phrase Structure Composition and Syntactic Dependencies

In Phrase Structure Composition and Syntactic Dependencies, Robert Frank explores an approach to syntactic theory that weds the Tree Adjoining Grammar (TAG) formalism with the minimalist framework. TAG has been extensively studied both for its mathematical properties and for its usefulness in computational linguistics applications. Frank shows that incorporating TAG's formally restrictive operations for structure building considerably simplifies the model of grammatical competence, particularly in the components concerned with syntactic movement and locality. The empirical advantages of the resulting model, illustrated with extensive case studies of subject-raising constructions and wh-questions, point toward a conception of grammar that is sharply limited in its computational power.
Neurodegeneration in multiple sclerosis: novel treatment strategies

In recent years it has become clear that the neuronal compartment already plays an important role early in the pathology of multiple sclerosis (MS). Neuronal injury in the course of chronic neuroinflammation is a key factor in determining long-term disability in patients. Viewing MS as both inflammatory and neurodegenerative has major implications for therapy, with CNS protection and repair needed in addition to controlling inflammation. Here, the authors’ review recently elucidated molecular insights into inflammatory neuronal/axonal pathology in MS and discuss the resulting options regarding neuroprotective and regenerative treatment strategies.
Magnetic Resonance Imaging on Patients with Implanted Cardiac Pacemakers

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has become an essential means of medical imaging in modern clinical diagnosis. Especially for the analysis of soft tissues it is often superior to other imaging techniques like computed tomography (CT) or X-ray. At the same time, the number of patients carrying a cardiac pacemaker or defibrillator is increasing. When these patients get in need for an MRI examination, their implanted medical device prohibits them now from being admitted to it. The reason for this contraindication are potentially dangerous interactions between RF fields occurring during MRI procedures and the leads and housings of the pacemakers. Besides dislocation and device malfunctions, which are both manageable today, the eventual heating of the tip of the leads is still regarded as an unresolved concern. The aim of this work was to analyze and identify the patterns that might induce heating and to develop strategies to counteract or totally avoid them. Two approaches were taken: a computational one with simulations of the occurring electromagnetic field distributions and an experimental one with in-vitro studies using Plexiglas phantoms in real MRI devices. In compliance with previous results in the literature, a significant correlation between the position and length of the implants and the to be expected heating was found. Furthermore the computer simulations confirmed the in-vitro experiments and vice versa. The most important finding of this work is the superiority of open MRI devices in contrast to the conventional bore-hole devices regarding a possible heating. The different orientation of the RF fields present in the open type reduced the induced currents in the pacemaker leads to a level where effects on the surrounding tissue are substantially less probable and hazardous.
Understanding Business Strategies of Networked Value Constellations Using Goal- and Value Modeling

In goal-oriented requirements engineering (GORE), one usually proceeds from a goal analysis to a requirements specification, usually of IT systems. In contrast, we consider the use of GORE for the design of IT-enabled value constellations, which are collections of enterprises that jointly satisfy a consumer need using information technology. The requirements analysis needed to do such a cross-organizational design not only consists of a goal analysis, in which the relevant strategic goals of the participating companies are aligned, but also of a value analysis, in which the commercial sustainability of the constellation is explored. In this paper we investigate the relation between strategic goal- and value modeling. We use theories about business strategy such as those by Porter to identify strategic goals of a value constellation, and operationalize these goals using value models. We show how value modeling allows us to find more detailed goals, and to analyze conflicts among goals
Contact Engineering: Electrode Materials for Highly Efficient and Stable Perovskite Solar Cells

The perovskite solar cells (PSCs) have attracted world-wide attention in both academia and industry. With the deeper understanding of hybrid perovskites materials, decent photovoltaic efficiencies have been witnessed in the corresponding photovoltaic devices. To date, substantial literatures have been published to review the rapid progress in this field, mainly focused on the understanding of materials properties, design of device configuration, and the investigation of their operational principles. In the context of device structure, the electrode is one of the essential components that influences not only the photon conversion efficiency, but also the stability of the resultant solar cells. Moreover, the electrodes take up a substantial amount in the total fabrication cost, which is believed to affect the commercialization process of perovskite photovoltaics significantly. This review briefly summarizes recent advances in the development of electrodes that receive relatively less attentions in the PSCs community. These contributions are believed to be substantially helpful to guide the delicate design of PSC devices, which can potentially expedite the commercialization of perovskite photovoltaics.
Starburst amacrine cells express parvalbumin but not calbindin and calretinin in rabbit retina

Calcium-binding proteins (CBPs) are important components in calcium-mediated cellular signal transduction. Among the many CBPs, at least three EF-hand CBPs, calbindin-D28K (CB), calretinin (CR), and parvalbumin (PV), have been extensively studied in the retina. In the present study, we investigated the expression patterns of these three CBPs in cholinergic starburst amacrine cells (SACs), which are the most important element for direction selectivity in the rabbit retina. Double-label immunocytochemical analysis of vibratome sections and single-cell injection after immunocytochemical analysis on whole mounts were carried out in rabbit retinas. We found that all SACs in the inner nuclear layer and the ganglion cell layer contained PV. However, none of the SACs in the inner nuclear layer or ganglion cell layer contained either CB or CR. These results suggest that PV, but not CR or CB, may act as a calcium-buffering protein in the SACs of the rabbit retina.
Latrogenic traumatic purpura masquerading as vasculitis.

To the Editor. — Palpable purpura suggests a number of disease states including necrotizing vasculitis, drug eruption, purpura fulminans, insect bite, and the progressive pigmented dermatoses. Histologically, an inflammatory infiltrate that is made up of either polymorphonuclear leukocytes or lymphocytes is often seen in a perivascular distribution. The following cases point out a further cause of palpable purpura that should be of particular interest to the hospital-based dermatologist. Report of Cases. —Case 1. — A 76-year-old man was brought to the emergency room complaining of the abrupt onset of left-sided weakness, accompanied by stool and urine incontinence. The patient was admitted. In-hospital physical examination demonstrated an elderly, alert man with mild hypertension and left-sided hemiparesis. In addition, there were multiple, slightly palpable, well-demarcated, grouped, violaceous, nonblanching, 0.5 × 0.5-cm lesions, with a central area of hemorrhage over both lower extremities; they were more frequent on the paretic extremity. The lesions were present over