Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Cardiovascular MR T2-STIR imaging does not discriminate between intramyocardial haemorrhage and microvascular obstruction during the subacute phase of a reperfused myocardial infarction

Objective Microvascular obstruction (MVO) and intramyocardial haemorrhage (IMH) are known complications of myocardial ischaemia-reperfusion injury. Whereas MVO is an established marker for a poor clinical outcome, the clinical significance of IMH remains less well defined. Cardiovascular MR (CMR) and T2 weighted short tau inversion recovery (T2-STIR) imaging have been used to detect IMH and to explore its clinical importance. IMH is typically identified within the area-at-risk as a hypointense signal core on T2-STIR images. Because MVO will also appear as a hypointense signal core, T2-STIR imaging may not be an optimal method for assessing IMH. In this study, we sought to investigate the ability of T2-STIR to discriminate between MVO with IMH in a porcine myocardial ischaemia-reperfusion model that expressed MVO with and without IMH. Method MVO with and without IMH (defined from both macroscopic evaluation and T1 weighted CMR) was produced in 13 pigs by a 65-min balloon occlusion of the mid left anterior descending artery, followed by reperfusion. Eight days after injury, all pigs underwent CMR imaging and subsequently the hearts were assessed by gross pathology. Results CMR identified MVO in all hearts. CMR and pathology showed that IMH was present in 6 of 13 (46%) infarcts. The sensitivity and specificity of T2-STIR hypointense signal core for identification of IMH was 100% and 29%, respectively. T2-values between hypointense signal core in the pigs with and without IMH were similar (60.4±3 ms vs 63.0±4 ms). Conclusions T2-STIR did not allow identification of IMH in areas with MVO in a porcine model of myocardial ischaemic/reperfusion injury in the subacute phase of a reperfused myocardial infarction.
A semi-naïve Bayesian method incorporating clustering with pair-wise constraints for auto image annotation

We propose a novel approach for auto image annotation. In our approach, we first perform the segmentation of images into regions, followed by clustering of regions, before learning the relationship between concepts and region clusters using the set of training images with pre-assigned concepts. The main focus of this paper is two-fold. First, in the learning stage, we perform clustering of regions into region clusters by incorporating pair-wise constraints which are derived by considering the language model underlying the annotations assigned to training images. Second, in the annotation stage, we employ a semi-naïve Bayes model to compute the posterior probability of concepts given the region clusters. Experiment results show that our proposed system utilizing these two strategies outperforms the state-of-the-art techniques in annotating large image collection.
A Robust Dynamic Solution of the Router Buffer Sizing Problem

The router buffer sizing problem has been identified recently as an important problem in networking research. Contrary to static proposals and rules of thumb recent efforts have been attempting to develop simple practical algorithms for dynamic queue size management, where the problem is defined on a heuristic optimization basis and the objective is to track a volatile optimum point by continuously tuning at runtime the buffer queue size. In this paper we propose a robust extremum control solution to the problem. Furthermore we evaluate the efficiency of the optimization approach, the practical limitations and the problematic issues of the real implementation. The analysis is based on a plethora of data collected from several representative Ns-2 simulation experiments.
Unordered Tree Matching and Tree Pattern Queries in XML Databases

With the growing importance of XML in data exchange, much research has been done in providing flexible query facilities to extract data from structured XML documents. In this paper, we discuss an efficient algorithm for tree mapping problem in XML databases based on unordered tree matching. Given a target tree T and a pattern tree Q, the algorithm can find all the embeddings of Q in T in O(|D||Q|) time, where D is a largest data stream associated with a node of Q. More importantly, the algorithm is index-oriented: with XB-trees constructed over data streams, disk access can be dramatically decreased.
Clinical Relevance of Plasma Prostaglandin F2α Metabolite Concentrations in Patients with Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis

BACKGROUND Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is a devastating lung disease of unknown etiology with few current treatment options. Recently, we determined an important role of prostaglandin F2α (PGF2α) in pulmonary fibrosis by using a bleomycin-induced pulmonary fibrosis model and found an abundance of PGF2α in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid of IPF patients. We investigated the role of PGF2α in human IPF by assessing plasma concentrations of 15-keto-dihydro PGF2α, a stable metabolite of PGF2α. METHODS We measured plasma concentrations of 15-keto-dihydro PGF2α in 91 IPF patients and compared these values with those of controls (n = 25). We further investigated the relationships of plasma 15-keto-dihydro PGF2α concentrations with disease severity and mortality. RESULTS Plasma concentrations of 15-keto-dihydro PGF2α were significantly higher in IPF patients than controls (p<0.001). Plasma concentrations of this metabolite were significantly correlated with forced expiratory volume in 1 second (Rs [correlation coefficient] = -0.34, p = 0.004), forced vital capacity (Rs = -0.33, p = 0.005), diffusing capacity for carbon monoxide (Rs = -0.36, p = 0.003), the composite physiologic index (Rs = 0.40, p = 0.001), 6-minute walk distance (Rs = -0.24, p = 0.04) and end-exercise oxygen saturation (Rs = -0.25, p = 0.04) when patients with emphysema were excluded. Multivariate analysis using stepwise Cox proportional hazards model showed that a higher composite physiologic index (relative risk = 1.049, p = 0.002) and plasma 15-keto-dihydro PGF2α concentrations (relative risk = 1.005, p = 0.002) were independently associated with an increased risk of mortality. CONCLUSIONS We demonstrated significant associations of plasma concentrations of PGF2α metabolites with disease severity and prognosis, which support a potential pathogenic role for PGF2α in human IPF.
A Formal-Numerical Approach for Robust In-Workspace Singularity Detection

Singularity is a major problem for parallel robots as in these configurations the robot cannot be controlled, and there may be infinite forces/torques in its joints, possibly leading to its breakdown. Hence, such a configuration must usually be avoided, and certifying the absence of singularity within a prescribed workspace or on a given trajectory is essential for a practical use of this type of robots. Singularity conditions are usually quite complex, and therefore a purely analytical analysis is difficult. We present here an algorithm that combines formal and numerical calculations for detecting singularity or closeness to a singularity within an arbitrary workspace or trajectory. This algorithm has the very important advantage of being able to deal with any robot mechanical structure and to manage uncertainties in the robot control and in the robot modeling.
Eye gaze cues for coordination in collaborative tasks

Cues about a partner’s focus of attention can be used for distributing effort and coordinating joint attention in a collaborative task. In this paper we develop some theoretical foundations and describe a research agenda for the two-way sharing of eye gaze cues in collaborative interaction. We describe our previous results on the use of gaze cues by interacting partners, both face-to-face (Hanna & Brennan, 2007; Hanna, Brennan, & Savietta, 2011) and remotely with partners seeing one another’s gaze cursors in real time superimposed over a display (Brennan et al., 2008; Neider et al., 2010). We are examining the costs and benefits of partners sharing eye gaze in referential communication, collaborative search, reaching consensus, and goal recognition or “mind reading”.
Do Option-Like Incentives Induce Overvaluation? Evidence from Exerimental Asset Markets

One potential reason for bubbles evolving prior to the financial crisis was excessive risk taking stemming from option-like incentive schemes in financial institutions. By running laboratory asset markets, we investigate the impact of option-like incentives on price formation and trading behavior. We observe (i) that option-like incentives induce significantly higher market prices than linear incentives. We further find that (ii) option-like incentives provoke subjects to behave differently and to take more risk than subjects with linear incentives. We finally show that (iii) trading at inflated prices is rational for subjects with option-like incentives since it increases their expected payout.
Improving Grouped-Entity Resolution Using Quasi-Cliques

The entity resolution (ER) problem, which identifies duplicate entities that refer to the same real world entity, is essential in many applications. In this paper, in particular, we focus on resolving entities that contain a group of related elements in them (e.g., an author entity with a list of citations, a singer entity with song list, or an intermediate result by GROUP BY SQL query). Such entities, named as grouped-entities, frequently occur in many applications. The previous approaches toward grouped-entity resolution often rely on textual similarity, and produce a large number of false positives. As a complementing technique, in this paper, we present our experience of applying a recently proposed graph mining technique, Quasi-Clique, atop conventional ER solutions. Our approach exploits contextual information mined from the group of elements per entity in addition to syntactic similarity. Extensive experiments verify that our proposal improves precision and recall up to 83% when used together with a variety of existing ER solutions, but never worsens them.
qc / 0 40 90 49 v 1 1 2 Se p 20 04 Stability of a vacuum nonsingular black hole

This is the first of series of papers in which we investigate stability of the spherically symmetric space-time with de Sitter center. Geometry, asymptotically Schwarzschild for large r and asymptotically de Sitter as r → 0, describes a vacuum nonsingular black hole for m ≥ mcr and particle-like self-gravitating structure for m < mcr where a critical value mcr depends on the scale of the symmetry restoration to de Sitter group in the origin. In this paper we address the question of stability of a vacuum non-singular black hole with de Sitter center to external perturbations. We specify first two types of geometries with and without changes of topology. Then we derive the general equations for an arbitrary density profile and show that in the whole range of the mass parameter m objects described by geometries with de Sitter center remain stable under axial perturbations. In the case of the polar perturbations we find criteria of stability and study in detail the case of the density profile ρ(r) = ρ0e −r/r 0 rg where ρ0 is the density of de Sitter vacuum at the center, r0 = √
Susceptibility of Streptococcus pneumoniae to Fluoroquinolones in Canada

ABSTRACT Ciprofloxacin, the first fluoroquinolone to be used to treat lower respiratory tract infections (LRTI), demonstrates poor potency against Streptococcus pneumoniae, and its use has been associated with the emergence of resistance. During the last decade, fluoroquinolones with enhanced in vitro activity against S. pneumoniae have replaced ciprofloxacin for the treatment of LRTI. Here, we analyzed the impact of more active fluoroquinolone usage on pneumococci by examining the fluoroquinolone usage, prevalence of fluoroquinolone resistance, and mutations in the genes that encode the major target sites for the fluoroquinolones (gyrA and parC) in pneumococcal isolates collected in Canada-wide surveillance. A total of 26,081 isolates were collected between 1998 and 2009. During this time period, total per capita outpatient use of fluoroquinolones increased from 64 to 96 prescriptions per 1,000 persons per year. The proportion of prescriptions for respiratory tract infection that were for fluoroquinolones increased from 5.9% to 10.7%, but the distribution changed: the proportion of prescriptions for ciprofloxacin decreased from 5.3% to 0.5%, and those for levofloxacin or moxifloxacin increased from 1.5% in 1999 to 5.9% in 2009. The prevalence of ciprofloxacin resistance (MIC ≥ 4 μg/ml), levofloxacin resistance, and moxifloxacin resistance remained unchanged at <2%. Multivariable analyses showed that prevalence of mutations known to be associated with reduced susceptibility to fluoroquinolones did not change during the surveillance period. If fluoroquinolone therapy is required, the preferential use of fluoroquinolones with enhanced pneumococcal activity to treat pneumococcal infections may slow the emergence of resistance in S. pneumoniae.
Ligand-Dependent Oligomerization of Dopamine D2 and Adenosine A2A Receptors in Living Neuronal Cells

Adenosine A2A and dopamine D2 receptors (A2A and D2) associate in homo- and heteromeric complexes in the striatum, providing a structural basis for their mutual antagonism. At the cellular level, the portion of receptors engaging in homo- and heteromers, as well as the effect of persistent receptor activation or antagonism on the cell oligomer repertoire, are largely unknown. We have used bimolecular fluorescence complementation (BiFC) to visualize A2A and D2 oligomerization in the Cath.a differentiated neuronal cell model. Receptor fusions to BiFC fluorescent protein fragments retained their function when expressed alone or in A2A/A2A, D2/D2, and A2A/D2 BiFC pairs. Robust fluorescence complementation reflecting A2A/D2 heteromers was detected at the cell membrane as well as in endosomes. In contrast, weaker BiFC signals, largely confined to intracellular domains, were detected with A2A/dopamine D1 BiFC pairs. Multicolor BiFC was used to simultaneously visualize A2A and D2 homo- and heteromers in living cells and to examine drug-induced changes in receptor oligomers. Prolonged D2 stimulation with quinpirole lead to the internalization of D2/D2 and A2A/D2 oligomers and resulted in decreased A2A/D2 relative to A2A/A2A oligomer formation. Opposing effects were observed in cells treated with D2 antagonists or with the A2A agonist 5′-N-methylcarboxamidoadenosine (MECA). Subsequent radioreceptor binding analysis indicated that the drug-induced changes in oligomer formation were not readily explained by alterations in receptor density. These observations support the hypothesis that long-term drug exposure differentially alters A2A/D2 receptor oligomerization and provide the first demonstration for the use of BiFC to monitor drug-modulated GPCR oligomerization.
Unsupervised Learning of Morphology

This article surveys work on Unsupervised Learning of Morphology. We define Unsupervised Learning of Morphology as the problem of inducing a description (of some kind, even if only morpheme-segmentation) of how orthographic words are built up given only raw text data of a language. We briefly go through the history and motivation of the this problem. Next, over 200 items of work are listed with a brief characterization, and the most important ideas in the field are critically discussed. We summarize the achievements so far and give pointers for future developments.
Examination of Additive Mobility Enhancements for Uniaxial Stress Combined with Biaxially Strained Si, Biaxially Strained SiGe and Ge Channel MOSFETs

Uniaxial and biaxial strain additive mobility enhancements and their physical understandings are experimentally examined by applying mechanical stress to high mobility channel materials. As for nMOSFETs, <110> uniaxial and biaxial tensile strain are partially additive in the electron mobility enhancement due to the conduction band warping and resulting effective mass reduction under shear strain. As for pMOSFETs, it is found that an initial compressive biaxial strain is efficient to boost the impact of the shear strain component in the <110> uniaxial strain on hole mobility, demonstrating the effectiveness in combining uniaxial and biaxial stress for strained SiGe channels. The piezoresistance coefficients for (001) Germanium pMOSFETs are also experimentally evaluated for the first time.
Emergence and Persistence of Macrolide Resistance in Oropharyngeal Flora and Elimination of Nasal Carriage of Staphylococcus aureus after Therapy with Slow-Release Clarithromycin: a Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Study

ABSTRACT To investigate the effect of slow-release (SR) clarithromycin on colonization and the development of resistance in oropharyngeal and nasal flora, a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial was performed with 8 weeks of follow-up. A total of 296 patients with documented coronary artery disease were randomized in the preoperative outpatient clinic to receive a daily dose of SR clarithromycin (500 mg) (CL group) or placebo tablets (PB group) until the day of surgery. Nose and throat swabs were taken before the start of therapy, directly after the end of therapy, and 8 weeks later. The presence of potential pathogenic bacteria was determined, and if they were isolated, MIC testing was performed. Quantitative culture on media with and without macrolides was performed for the indigenous oropharyngeal flora. In addition, analysis of the mechanism of resistance was performed with the macrolide-resistant indigenous flora. Basic patient characteristics were comparable in the two treatment groups. The average number of tablets taken was 15 (standard deviation = 6.4). From the throat swabs, Haemophilus parainfluenzae was isolated and carriage was not affected in either of the treatment groups. Nasal carriage of Staphylococcus aureus, however, was significantly reduced in the CL group (from 35.3 to 4.3%) compared to the PB group (from 32.4 to 30.3%) (P < 0.0001; relative risk [RR], 7.0; 95% confidence interval [CI], 3.1 to 16.0). Resistance to clarithromycin was present significantly more frequently in H. parainfluenzae in the CL group after treatment (P = 0.007; RR, 1.6; 95% CI, 1.1 to 2.3); also, the percentage of patients with resistance to macrolides in the indigenous flora after treatment was significantly higher in the CL group (31 to 69%) (P < 0.0001; RR, 1.9; 95% CI, 1.4 to 2.5). This persisted for at least 8 weeks. This study shows that besides the effective elimination of nasal carriage of S. aureus, treatment with SR clarithromycin for approximately 2 weeks has a marked and sustained effect on the development of resistance in the oropharyngeal flora for at least 8 weeks.
Insights from a systems view: How modelling can inform reform

Participatory modelling is one of several techniques that can help communities to share and test ideas, and to agree on the ‘best bet’ for improving the triple bottom line for individuals and for the community. Two case studies from Africa illustrate how participatory modelling can assist in this way, by informing communities, by providing an objective way to conduct ‘risk-free’ experiments and explore scenarios, and by helping people to gain the confidence needed to make changes. Progress towards a better triple bottom line often depends on having the confidence to take action, and modelling is one of several techniques that can help to build this confidence. The resulting model is not an endpoint, but a disposable ‘stepping stone’ in the developing this confidence. Thus for many models, success means being momentarily inspirational in the search for solutions, rather than being a permanent monument to a static concept.
Copula-based Kernel Dependency Measures

The paper presents a new copula based method for measuring dependence between random variables. Our approach extends the Maximum Mean Discrepancy to the copula of the joint distribution. We prove that this approach has several advantageous properties. Similarly to Shannon mutual information, the proposed dependence measure is invariant to any strictly increasing transformation of the marginal variables. This is important in many applications, for example in feature selection. The estimator is consistent, robust to outliers, and uses rank statistics only. We derive upper bounds on the convergence rate and propose independence tests too. We illustrate the theoretical contributions through a series of experiments in feature selection and low-dimensional embedding of distributions.
Re-claiming citizenship through the arts

Healthcare literature, public discourse, and policy documents continue to represent persons with dementia as “doomed” and “socially dead. ” This tragedy meta-narrative produces and reproduces misunderstandings about dementia and causes stigma, oppression, and discrimination for persons living with dementia. With few opportunities to challenge the dominant discourse, persons with dementia continue to be denied their citizenship rights. Drawing on the concept of narrative citizenship, we describe a community-based, critical arts-based project where persons with dementia, family members, visual and performance artists, and researchers came together to interrogate the tragedy discourse and construct an alternative narrative of dementia using the arts. Our research demonstrates the power of the arts to create transformative spaces in which to challenge dominant assumptions, foster critical reflection, and envision new possibilities for mutual support, caring, and relating. This alternative narrative supports the reclamation of citizenship for persons living with dementia and fosters the relational citizenship of all.
Distributed energy resources and environmental optimization using a memetic algorithm

In recent years the Electrical Utilities has been confronted with several challenges which include amongst others the widespread use of distributed energy resources and a public increase in environmental issues. By optimizing the location of switching devices on the electrical distribution system, an improvement in energy not supplied and in the availability of the distributed energy resources can be obtained thus reducing greenhouse gas emissions. This work proposes the Memetic evolutionary algorithm for the multiobjective optimal placement of the switching devices. A trade-off between the investment in equipment cost (EC), energy not supplied (ENS) and greenhouse gas emissions (GGER) is analyzed, in order to choose the optimal placement of switching devices in distribution electrical networks. The proposed method was tested with a Portuguese real distribution network. The obtained results are presented and discussed.