Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Variational Image Denoising Based on Autocorrelation Whiteness

Variational and PDE-based methods have been widely used over the past two decades for edge-preserving denoising of images. However, in general, these methods fail to preserve textural and other fine scale features but typically remove them in a similar manner as noise. We propose a strategy which fully exploits the prior information available when the noise is known to be white in order to better preserve fine scale features during the denoising process. In particular, based on the assumption that noise is additive and white, we propose a novel fidelity functional to be used in a variational framework in order to enforce whiteness of the residue image. Unlike the classical total variation $L_2$ functional, whose variational analysis yields local differential terms in the resulting Euler--Lagrange equation, our whiteness term exhibits a global first variation, thus transforming the classical Euler--Lagrange PDE into an integro-differential equation which is most conveniently solved using gradient descent t.
Proton, neutron, and gamma degradation of optocouplers

Optocouplers from two different suppliers were subjected to proton, neutron, and gamma irradiations. A simple transistor model was used to compare degradation in current transfer ratio (CTR) from the three types of radiation. The model was used to determine how accurately proton damage can be predicted from separate neutron and gamma exposures.
An Agent-based System for Robotic Musical Performance

paper presents an agent-based architecture for robotic musical instruments that generate polyphonic rhythmic patterns that continuously evolve and develop in a musically "intelligent" manner. Agent-based software offers a new method for real-time composition that allows for complex interactions between individual voices while requiring very little user interaction or supervision. The system described, Kinetic Engine, is an environment in which individual software agents, emulate drummers improvising within a percussion ensemble. Player agents assume roles and personalities within the ensemble, and communicate with one another to create complex rhythmic interactions. In this project, the ensemble is comprised of a 12-armed musical robot, MahaDeviBot, in which each limb has its own software agent controlling what it performs.
Failing Heart of Patients With Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus Can Adapt to Extreme Short-term Increases in Circulating Lipids and Does Not Display Features of Acute Myocardial Lipotoxicity

Background—Circulating lipid levels and myocardial lipid content (MyLC) is increased in type 2 diabetes mellitus. This may cause a state of lipotoxicity that compromises left ventricular function and aggravate heart failure. We investigated the relationship among circulating lipid levels, MyLC, and cardiac function together with the acute cardiac effects of high as opposed to low circulating free fatty acid (FFA) and triglyceride levels in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus and heart failure. Methods and Results—Eighteen patients underwent 8-hour intralipid/heparin-infusion (high FFA) and hyperinsulinemic-euglycemic clamping (low FFA) in a randomized crossover–designed study. We applied magnetic resonance proton spectroscopy to measure MyLC. Cardiac function was assessed by advanced echocardiography, cardiopulmonary exercise, and MRI. MyLC correlated positively with circulating triglyceride (r=0.47; r2=0.22; P=0.003) and FFA (r=0.45; r2=0.20; P=0.001) levels and inversely with left ventricular ejection fraction (r=−0.54; r2=0.29; P=0.004). Circulating FFA concentrations differed between study arms (0.05±0.04 mmol/L [low FFA] versus 1.04±0.27 mmol/L [high FFA]; P<0.001) and MyLC increased from 0.78±0.59% (low FFA) to 1.16±0.73% (high FFA; P<0.01). Resting left ventricular ejection fraction and global strain did not differ between high and low FFA, whereas resting systolic mitral plane velocity (S′max) was highest during high FFA (3.6±0.8 cm/s [low FFA] versus 3.8±0.7 cm/s [high FFA]; P=0.02). Peak exercise capacity and oxygen consumption did not differ between the study arms, and neither did postexercise measurements of left ventricular ejection fraction, global strain, and S′max. Conclusions—Our findings indicate that the failing heart of patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus can adapt to short-term extreme changes in circulating substrates and does not display features of acute myocardial lipotoxicity. Clinical Trial Registration—URL: http://www.clinicaltrials. gov. Unique identifier: NCT01192373.
The development of a measurement and analysis system to accurately determine asphalt concrete properties using the indirect tensile mode

The objectives of this study were: (1) to briefly review existing laboratory testing modes and establish the relevance, adequacy, advantages, and disadvantages of using the indirect tensile mode to obtain properties of asphalt concrete mixtures; (2) to illustrate the serious errors that can be made in determining asphalt concrete properties when these are computed using the conventional vertical and horizontal deformation measurements obtained on the specimen's exterior; (3) to develop a measurement and analysis system to accurately determine asphalt concrete properties using the indirect tensile mode; and (4) to evaluate and compare the accuracy of the proposed measurement and analysis system to that of existing measurement and analysis systems.
Why are we (un)systematic? the (empirical) costs and benefits of learning universal constructions

A theoretical challenge for cognitive science is to explain both the presence and absence of systematicity. One explanation (Phillips & Wilson, 2010) says systematicity derives from universal constructions. We tested this theory with an experiment that required learning cue-target pair maps whose underlying structures were either products (universal construction), or non-products (control). Each series was learned in either ascending or descending order of size: number of unique cue/target elements constituting pairs, which varied from three to six. Only performance on the product series was affected by order: systematicity was obtained universally in the descend group, but only on large sets in the ascend group. The results suggest that learning small maps directly, without reference to the underlying product, may be perceived as more cost-effective, i.e., acquisition of a universal construction, hence systematicity, depends on an empirical cost-benefit tradeoff.
5-hydroxytryptamine(2A) receptors regulate sympathetic nerves constricting the cutaneous vascular bed in rabbits and rats.

Hyperthermia induced by 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) is partially due to sympathetically-mediated cutaneous vasoconstriction that impairs normal heat dissipation. MDMA acts by releasing monoamines, including 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT), but receptor mechanisms underlying MDMA-elicited hyperthermia and cutaneous vasoconstriction are not known. The specific 5-HT2A agonist (+/-)-1-(2,5-dimethoxy-4-iodophenyl)-2-aminopropane (DOI) is a potent hallucinogen that also causes marked hyperthermia, suggesting the possibility that DOI, via stimulation of 5-HT2A receptors, might also cause sympathetically mediated cutaneous vasoconstriction. We tested this hypothesis in conscious unrestrained rabbits and rats. Blood flow was assessed by chronically implanted Doppler ultrasonic flow probes. Body temperature was measured by i.p. telemetric probes. We compared effects of DOI on cutaneous blood flow (ear pinna in rabbits, tail in rats) with effects on mesenteric blood flow and arterial pressure.Hyperthermia induced by DOI (5-100 microgram/kg i.v. in rabbits and 100 microgram/kg s.c. in rats) was preceded and accompanied by markedly reduced blood flow to the cutaneous bed, with no change in flow to the mesenteric bed. In rabbits, DOI (5 microgram/kg i.v.) did not affect arterial pressure or heart rate. DOI (100 microgram/kg i.v.) caused a moderate rise in arterial pressure. In rabbits, the 5-HT2A receptor antagonists ketanserin (0.3 mg/kg i.v.) and AC90179 (0.5 mg/kg i.v.) reversed the ear pinna vasoconstriction induced by DOI (5 microgram/kg i.v.). In rats, ketanserin (3 mg/kg s.c.) reversed tail vasoconstriction and hyperthermia induced by DOI (100 microgram/kg s.c.). In rabbits, the cutaneous vasoconstricting effect of DOI (5 microgram/kg i.v.) was substantially abolished in the ipsilateral ear pinna after interruption of preganglionic sympathetic nerve activity by unilateral section of the cervical sympathetic trunk. Thus hyperthermia evoked by direct stimulation of 5-HT2A receptors is associated with marked sympathetically mediated vasoconstriction, selective for the cutaneous bed. Impairment of the ability to dissipate heat following drug-induced stimulation of 5-HT2A receptors is likely to contribute to hyperthermia induced by MDMA and by hallucinogenic drugs such as LSD.
Molecular Dynamics of Linear and Crosslinked Polyester Urethanes Studied by Dielectric Spectroscopy

The molecular dynamics of crosslinked polyurethanes have been studied by dielectric spectroscopy and compared with the dynamics of linear polyurethanes. Two local relaxations, γ and β, and a primary relaxation, α, were observed for all the samples, appearing in relation with the increase in temperature. The conductivity was studied at temperatures higher than the glass transition temperature and it was found to decrease with the increasing content of crosslinker. The presence of crosslinks strongly influences their dielectric properties, especially in the elastic state. The linear polyurethane exhibits the lowest α-relaxation temperature. For the crosslinked samples, α-relaxation temperature increases with increase in the amount of crosslinkers; β- and γ-relaxations are less affected by chemical crosslinking and their activation energies are in the ranges 40–55 and 34–37 kJ/mol, respectively. For the linear polyurethane, there is an exception in the case of the γ-relaxation, which has a higher activation energy determined by its physical crosslinks. Conductivity analysis reveals a high mobility of charge carriers and low barriers for the transport of the charged particles. Also, the conductivity process is dependent on the segmental mobility of polymers.
Identification of Genes Contributing to the Virulence of Francisella tularensis SCHU S4 in a Mouse Intradermal Infection Model

Background Francisella tularensis is a highly virulent human pathogen. The most virulent strains belong to subspecies tularensis and these strains cause a sometimes fatal disease. Despite an intense recent research effort, there is very limited information available that explains the unique features of subspecies tularensis strains that distinguish them from other F. tularensis strains and that explain their high virulence. Here we report the use of targeted mutagenesis to investigate the roles of various genes or pathways for the virulence of strain SCHU S4, the type strain of subspecies tularensis. Methodology/Principal Findings The virulence of SCHU S4 mutants was assessed by following the outcome of infection after intradermal administration of graded doses of bacteria. By this route, the LD50 of the SCHU S4 strain is one CFU. The virulence of 20 in-frame deletion mutants and 37 transposon mutants was assessed. A majority of the mutants did not show increased prolonged time to death, among them notably ΔpyrB and ΔrecA. Of the remaining, mutations in six unique targets, tolC, rep, FTT0609, FTT1149c, ahpC, and hfq resulted in significantly prolonged time to death and mutations in nine targets, rplA, wbtI, iglB, iglD, purL, purF, ggt, kdtA, and glpX, led to marked attenuation with an LD50 of >103 CFU. In fact, the latter seven mutants showed very marked attenuation with an LD50 of ≥107 CFU. Conclusions/Significance The results demonstrate that the characterization of targeted mutants yielded important information about essential virulence determinants that will help to identify the so far little understood extreme virulence of F. tularensis subspecies tularensis.
An iterative method for multiple stopping: convergence and stability

We present a new iterative procedure for solving the multiple stopping problem in discrete time and discuss the stability of the algorithm. The algorithm produces monotonically increasing approximations of the Snell envelope which coincide with the Snell envelope after finitely many steps. Unlike backward dynamic programming, the algorithm allows us to calculate approximative solutions with only a few nestings of conditional expectations and is, therefore, tailor-made for a plain Monte Carlo implementation.
Influence of clinical application on bioresorbability: Host response

Abstract This chapter begins by reviewing the host response pathways initiated by the implantation of a biomaterial and the mechanisms involved in restoring tissue stability and function. It then discusses both the host factors and material factors influencing the biodegradation of degradable biomaterials. In addition, the key mechanisms of in vivo biodegradation involved in the process of biomaterial elimination from the host are also presented.
Variational surface reconstruction based on Delaunay triangulation and graph cut

A novel method for surface reconstruction from an unorganized point set is presented. An energy functional based on a weighted minimal surface model is proposed for surface reconstruction, which is efficiently minimized by graph cut methods. By solving the minimization problem on the graph dual to a Delaunay‐based tetrahedral mesh, the advantages of explicit and implicit methods for surface reconstruction are well integrated. A triangular surface mesh homeomorphic to the original surface can be extracted directly from the tetrahedral mesh provided a sufficient sampling density exists. Difficult cases involving undersampling, non‐uniformity, noises and topological complexities can be handled effectively as well. Furthermore, for the first time, multi‐phase surface reconstruction is realized based on the graph cut methods. Various examples are included for demonstrating the efficiency and effectiveness of the proposed method. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Using External Security Monitors to Secure BGP

External security monitors (ESMs) are a new network component for securing legacy protocols without requiring modifications to existing hardware, software, or the protocol. An ESM is an additional host that checks each message sent by a legacy host against a safety specification. ESMs use trusted hardware to assure remote principals that the safety specification is being enforced; ESMs use an overlay network to alert each other about invalid behavior and to initiate remedial actions. N-BGP is an ESM for securing the Internet’s Border Gateway Protocol (BGP). When run on commodity hardware, N-BGP is fast enough to monitor a production BGP router. And deploying N-BGP at a random 10% of autonomous systems in the Internet suffices to guarantee security for 80% of Internet routes where both endpoints are monitored by N-BGP.
Intelligent Nanomaterials: Processes, Properties, and Applications

The last three decades have seen extraordinary advances in the generation of new materials based on both fundamental elements and composites, driven by advances in synthetic chemistry and often drawing inspiration from nature. The concept of an intelligent material envisions additional functionality built into the molecular structure, such that a desirable response occurs under defined conditions.Divided into 4 parts: Inorganic Materials; Organic Materials; Composite Materials; and Biomaterials, the 22 chapters cover the latest research and developments in the processing, properties, and applications of intelligent nanomaterials. Included are molecular device materials, biomimetic materials, hybrid-type functionalized polymers-composite materials, information-and energy-transfer materials, as well as environmentally friendly materials.
Trust, Influence and Reputation Management Based on Human Reasoning

Understanding trust, influence and reputation and constructing computational models of these notions are two essential scientific challenges in computer science as well as social sciences. Although scientists in both disciplines have independently conducted research on these topics over the last couple of decades, there is a huge gap between two literatures. This paper therefore illustrates an interdisciplinary work-in-progress on trust, influence and reputation modeling based on human reasoning. Using a survey-based data collection approach, we would like to understand how humans gain/lose trust in their daily life interactions and how behavior/attitudes of humans can be influenced or shaped in various social encounters. The data will be then transformed into mathematical models to be used in technological or software systems.
Some results on sparse matrices

A comparison in the context of sparse matrices is made between the Product Form of the Inverse PFI (a form of Gauss-Jordan elimination) and the Elimination Form of the Inverse EFI (a form of Gaussian elimination). The precise relation of the elements of these two forms of the inverse is given in terms of the nontrivial elements of the three matrices L, U, U-1 associated with the triangular factorization of the coefficient matrix A; i.e., A = L. U, where L is lower triangular and U is unit upper triangular. It is shown that the zero- nonzero structure of the PFI always has more nonzeros than the EFI. It is proved that Gaussian elimination is a minimal algorithm with respect to preserving sparseness if the diagonal elements of the matrix A are nonzero. However, Gaussian elimination is not nec- essarily minimal if A has some zero diagonal elements. The same statements hold for the PFI as well. A probabilistic study of fill-in and computing times for the PFI and EF sparse ma- trix algorithms is presented. This study suggests quantitatively how rapidly sparse matrices fill up for increasing densities, and emphasizes the necessity for reordering to minimize fill-in. I. Introduction. A sparse matrix is a matrix with very few nonzero elements. In many applications, a rough rule seems to be that there are O(N) nonzero entries; typically, say 2 to 10 nonzero entries per row. If the dimension N of the matrix is not large, then there is no compelling reason to treat sparse matrices differently from full matrices. It is when N becomes large and one attempts computations with the sparse matrix that it becomes necessary to take advantage of the zeros. The reason for this is obvious: there is a storage requirement of the order of N2 and arithmetic operations count of the order of N3 for many matrix algorithms using the full matrix. On the other hand, by storing only nonzero quantities and using logical operations to decide when an arithmetic operation is necessary, the storage requirement and arithmetic operations count can be reduced by a factor of N in many instances. Of course, this not only becomes a sizable savings of computer time, but also dictates whether or not some problems can be attempted. Computations with sparse matrices are not new. Iterative techniques for these matrices, especially those related to the solution of partial differential equations have been extensively developed (1). Sparse matrix methods for solving linear equa- tions by direct methods have been used for a long time in linear programming and there is a large body of literature, computational experience, programs, and artfulness, which has been built up in this area (2)-(15). In most linear programming codes, the product form of the inverse (PFI) is the method used to solve linear equations (16)-(19), although there are exceptions (20)-(21). Methods for scaling, pivoting for accuracy and sparseness, structuring data, and handling input-output have been extensively developed (22)-(72). However, there do not seem to exist rigorous results
Epitaxial graphene FETs on sapphire substrate

In this letter, we report the first wafer-scale epitaxial graphene field-effect transistor (FET) grown and fabricated on 2-inch sapphire (0001) substrate by chemical vapor deposition (CVD) without a metal catalyst. The monolayer structure of the epitaxial graphene was confirmed by Raman spectra. Room temperature Hall effect mobility was 1,500 cm2/V·s. The maximum drain source current (Ids) of 0.78 A/mm and peak transconductance of 0.13 S/mm were obtained at Vds = -1 V for the graphene FET with gate length of 100 nm. The cutoff frequency (fT) and maximum oscillation frequency (fmax) reached 24 GHz and 26 GHz after de-embedding, respectively, which are the first epitaxial graphene-on-sapphire FET showing RF performance. Our work proves out the promise of epitaxial graphene on sapphire substrate.
Hidden classical symmetry in quantum spaces at roots of unity : From q-sphere to fuzzy sphere

We study relations between different kinds of non-commutative spheres which have appeared in the context of ADS/CFT correspondences recently, emphasizing the connections between spaces that have manifest quantum group symmetry and spaces that have manifest classical symmetry. In particular we consider the quotient $SU_q(2)/U(1)$ at roots of unity, and find its relations with the fuzzy sphere with manifest classical SU(2) symmetry. Deformation maps between classical and quantum symmetry, the $U_q(SU(2))$ module structure of quantum spheres and the structure of indecomposable representations of $U_q(SU(2))$ at roots of unity conspire in an interesting way to allow the relation between manifestly $U_q(SU(2)$ symmetric spheres and manifestly U(SU(2)) symmetric spheres. The relation suggests that a subset of field theory actions on the q-sphere are equivalent to actions on the fuzzy sphere. The results here are compatible with the proposal that quantum spheres at roots of unity appear as effective geometries which account for finite N effects in the ADS/CFT correspondence.
HDR image watermarking based on bracketing decomposition

The present paper proposes a novel watermarking scheme specifically designed for high dynamic range (HDR) images. The employed embedding strategy is based on a decomposition of the original HDR representation into multiple low dynamic range (LDR) images by means of a bracketing process. After having inserted the selected watermark into each LDR component, the final output is generated by combining the available contributions into a single HDR object. By exploiting some of the well studied properties of digital watermarking for standard LDR images, our approach is able to generate a watermarked HDR image visually equivalent to the original one, while allowing to detect the embedded information in both the marked HDR image and in its LDR counterpart, obtained through tone-mapping operators or by extracting a specific luminance range of interest from it. Several results obtained from an extensive set of experimental tests are reported to testify the effectiveness of the proposed scheme.
Modeling affective responses in intelligent tutoring systems

An important trend in the development of intelligent tutoring systems (ITS) has been that of integrating characteristics proper of human tutoring into their performance, with the aim of providing the student with a more personalized and friendly environment for learning according to his traits and progress. These characteristics may give the student the sensation that there is "someone" behind the program who follows his learning development and cares about him as a human tutor would. One of the most important highlights of personal tutoring is that of recognizing the student's affective state and reacting accordingly by expressing the pedagogical movements in an affectively suitable way. In this paper, a proposal for an affective behavior model to be used in ITS is presented. The aim of this model is to provide students with a suitable response from a pedagogical and affective viewpoint.