Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Applicability of ZigBee for real-time networked motor control systems

This paper discusses networked real-time control systems. The common network and ZigBee specific problems are discussed and methods to overcome them are explained. Limitations of ZigBee networks, sources of delay and benefits of broadcast mode over unicast mode for control loop time delay minimization are reviewed. It is explained how play-back buffer, originally used in multimedia play-back, can help to eliminate variance of loop time delay. To cope with achieved constant loop time delay the Smith predictor is used. Performance of control loop utilizing conventional PID controller, Smith predictor and play-back buffer is verified via experiments and proved to be efficient.
Likelihood Inference for Unions of Interacting Discs

Abstract. This is probably the first paper which discusses likelihood inference for a random set using a germ‐grain model, where the individual grains are unobservable, edge effects occur and other complications appear. We consider the case where the grains form a disc process modelled by a marked point process, where the germs are the centres and the marks are the associated radii of the discs. We propose to use a recent parametric class of interacting disc process models, where the minimal sufficient statistic depends on various geometric properties of the random set, and the density is specified with respect to a given marked Poisson model (i.e. a Boolean model). We show how edge effects and other complications can be handled by considering a certain conditional likelihood. Our methodology is illustrated by analysing Peter Diggle's heather data set, where we discuss the results of simulation‐based maximum likelihood inference and the effect of specifying different reference Poisson models.
An Unsupervised Text Mining Method for Relation Extraction from Biomedical Literature

The wealth of interaction information provided in biomedical articles motivated the implementation of text mining approaches to automatically extract biomedical relations. This paper presents an unsupervised method based on pattern clustering and sentence parsing to deal with biomedical relation extraction. Pattern clustering algorithm is based on Polynomial Kernel method, which identifies interaction words from unlabeled data; these interaction words are then used in relation extraction between entity pairs. Dependency parsing and phrase structure parsing are combined for relation extraction. Based on the semi-supervised KNN algorithm, we extend the proposed unsupervised approach to a semi-supervised approach by combining pattern clustering, dependency parsing and phrase structure parsing rules. We evaluated the approaches on two different tasks: (1) Protein–protein interactions extraction, and (2) Gene–suicide association extraction. The evaluation of task (1) on the benchmark dataset (AImed corpus) showed that our proposed unsupervised approach outperformed three supervised methods. The three supervised methods are rule based, SVM based, and Kernel based separately. The proposed semi-supervised approach is superior to the existing semi-supervised methods. The evaluation on gene–suicide association extraction on a smaller dataset from Genetic Association Database and a larger dataset from publicly available PubMed showed that the proposed unsupervised and semi-supervised methods achieved much higher F-scores than co-occurrence based method.
Exploring SME Internet Adoption: Towards a Contingent Model

Internet adoption, in both large and small firms (SMEs), is promoted as a means to improve competitiveness. The European Union and various national governments encourage Internet adoption predicated upon an 'adoption ladder' or stages model. This model only requires that the business starts on the bottom rung of the ladder for upward progression to then begin. There is, however, little research that supports such a stages model. Therefore, this paper questions current thinking that small firms progress through a 'stages of growth' model in their use of the Internet. Twelve SME cases are investigated. Outcomes suggest that the majority only perceive value in email and possibly a marketing website. However, some SMEs see strategic potential and will invest in e-business. The paper suggests that owners' recognition of the business value of the Internet combined with their attitude to business growth are key factors in determining Internet adoption strategies. Thus, SMEs will aim for specific adoption strateg.
Sex Differences in Mathematics and Reading Achievement Are Inversely Related: Within- and Across-Nation Assessment of 10 Years of PISA Data

We analyzed one decade of data collected by the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA), including the mathematics and reading performance of nearly 1.5 million 15 year olds in 75 countries. Across nations, boys scored higher than girls in mathematics, but lower than girls in reading. The sex difference in reading was three times as large as in mathematics. There was considerable variation in the extent of the sex differences between nations. There are countries without a sex difference in mathematics performance, and in some countries girls scored higher than boys. Boys scored lower in reading in all nations in all four PISA assessments (2000, 2003, 2006, 2009). Contrary to several previous studies, we found no evidence that the sex differences were related to nations’ gender equality indicators. Further, paradoxically, sex differences in mathematics were consistently and strongly inversely correlated with sex differences in reading: Countries with a smaller sex difference in mathematics had a larger sex difference in reading and vice versa. We demonstrate that this was not merely a between-nation, but also a within-nation effect. This effect is related to relative changes in these sex differences across the performance continuum: We did not find a sex difference in mathematics among the lowest performing students, but this is where the sex difference in reading was largest. In contrast, the sex difference in mathematics was largest among the higher performing students, and this is where the sex difference in reading was smallest. The implication is that if policy makers decide that changes in these sex differences are desired, different approaches will be needed to achieve this for reading and mathematics. Interventions that focus on high-achieving girls in mathematics and on low achieving boys in reading are likely to yield the strongest educational benefits.
Learning Stochastic Logic Programs

Stochastic Logic Programs (SLPs) have been shown be a generalisation of Hidden Markov Models (HMMs), stochastic context-free grammars, and directed Bayes’ nets. A stochastic logic program consists of a set of labelled clauses p:C where p is in the interval [0,1] and C is a first-order range-restricted efinite clause. This paper summarises the syntax, distributional semantics and proof techniques for SLPs and then discusses how a standard Inductive Logic Programming (ILP) system, Progol, has been modified to support learning of SLPs. The resulting system 1) finds an SLP with uniform probability labels on each definition and near-maximal Bayes posterior probability and then 2) alters the probability labels to further increase the posterior probability. Stage 1) is implemented within CProgol4.5, which differs from previous versions of Progol by allowing user-defined evaluation functions written in Prolog. It is shown that maximising the Bayesian posterior function involves finding SLPs with short derivations of the examples. Search pruning with the Bayesian evaluation function is carried out in the same way as in previous versions of CProgol. The system is demonstrated with worked examples involving the learning of probability distributions over sequences as well as the learning of simple forms of uncertain knowledge.
Multidimensional Political Marketing Mix Model for Developing Countries: An Empirical Investigation

This article offers a 38-item nine dimensional statistically valid structural model of political mix for a developing country. The methodological approach of the study is based on 2357 primary data collected from rural and urban voters in Bangladesh. Results of the paper revealed significant differences in priorities between the two voter groups on political mix items. In one hand, rural voters were found to prefer candidates promoted by celebrities and national leaders, were swayed by public opinion, and even influenced by the sight of large sculptures of party symbols or effigies of the candidates in the campaign trail. On the other hand, urban voters were found to take into account the candidates’ modesty, their powers of articulation, as well as the economic and psychological cost of the candidates’ victory while making the electoral decision. The study recommends utilizing voter information systems to identify and nominate candidates as well as use party chairperson and national icons for word of mouth promotion and concludes by suggesting areas for further research in this field.
Transplant of GABAergic Precursors Restores Hippocampal Inhibitory Function in a Mouse Model of Seizure Susceptibility

Defects in GABAergic function can cause epilepsy. In the last years, cell-based therapies have attempted to correct these defects with disparate success on animal models of epilepsy. Recently, we demonstrated that medial ganglionic eminence (MGE)-derived cells grafted into the neonatal normal brain migrate and differentiate into functional mature GABAergic interneurons. These cells are able to modulate the local level of GABA-mediated synaptic inhibition, which suggests their suitability for cell-based therapies. However, it is unclear whether they can integrate in the host circuitry and rescue the loss of inhibition in pathological conditions. Thus, as proof of principle, we grafted MGE-derived cells into a mouse model of seizure susceptibility caused by specific elimination of GABAergic interneuron subpopulations in the mouse hippocampus after injection of the neurotoxic saporin conjugated to substance P (SSP-Sap). This ablation was associated with significant decrease in inhibitory postsynaptic currents (IPSC) on CA1 pyramidal cells and increased seizure susceptibility induced by pentylenetetrazol (PTZ). Grafting of GFP+ MGE-derived cells in SSP-Sap-treated mice repopulates the hippocampal ablated zone with cells expressing molecular markers of mature interneurons. Interestingly, IPSC kinetics on CA1 pyramidal cells of ablated hippocampus significantly increased after transplantation, reaching levels similar to the normal mice. More importantly, this was associated with reduction in seizure severity and decrease in postseizure mortality induced by PTZ. Our data show that MGE-derived cells fulfill most of the requirements for an appropriate cell-based therapy, and indicate their suitability for neurological conditions where a modulation of synaptic inhibition is needed, such as epilepsy.
Customer Poaching and Brand Switching

Firms sometimes try to "poach" the customers of their competitors by offering them inducements to switch. We analyze duopoly poaching under both short-term and long-term contracts assuming either that each consumer's brand preferences are fixed over time or that preferences are independent over time. With fixed preferences, short-term contracts lead to poaching and socially inefficient switching. The equilibrium with long-term contracts has less switching than when only short-term contracts are feasible, and it involves the sale of both short-term and long-term contracts. With independent preferences, short-term contracts are efficient, but long-term contracts lead to inefficiently little switching.
Network coding based opportunistic routing with intel-flow coding and intra-flow coding

Network Coding has received many attentions because it improves potential network throughput and robustness by the way of combining multiple packets in the routers and reducing the transmissions. There are limit opportunities for traditional best routing algorithms, because the coding opportunities depends on the number of their joint nodes in different flows. This paper proposed a new algorithm, which introduces Intel-coding and Intra-coding to the traditional routing algorithm. Compared with traditional best path routing without coding, BEND and MORE, the proposed algorithm performs better in terms of throughput and coding gain‥
Design of Optimal Wavelet Packet Trees Based on Auditory Perception Criterion

A criterion is proposed to obtain an optimal wavelet packet (WP) tree based on the critical band structure of the human auditory system for time-frequency decomposition of speech and audio signals. The criterion minimizes a perceptual cost function based on Zwicker's model of the critical band structure and allocates an optimal number of terminating nodes at different decomposition depths of the WP tree. The criterion is used to obtain the optimal WP tree and the corresponding critical band ordered wavelet packet basis for some typical sampling frequencies
City Logistics: Challenges and Opportunities

T oday, around 54% of the world’s population lives in urban areas. By 2050, this share is expected to go up signiﬁcantly. As a result, city logistics, which focuses on the efﬁcient and effective transportation of goods in urban areas while taking into account the negative effects on congestion, safety, and environment, is critical to ensuring continued quality of life in cities. We review and discuss a variety of current and anticipated challenges and opportunities of city logistics. We hope this helps shaping an appropriate research agenda and stimulates more researchers to enter this exciting ﬁeld.
FAWNSort : Energy-efficient Sorting of 10 GB

In this document, we describe our submission for the 2010 10GB JouleSort competition. Our system consists of a machine with a low-power server processor and five flash drives, sorting the 10GB dataset in 21.2 seconds (±0.227s) seconds with an average power of 104.9W (±0.8W). This system sorts the 10GB dataset using only 2228 Joules (±12 J), providing 44884 (±248) sorted records per Joule. Our entry for the 10GB competition tried to use the most energy-efficient platform we could find that could hold the dataset in memory to enable a one-pass sort. We decided to use a one-pass sort on this hardware over a two-pass sort on more energy efficient hardware (such as Intel Atombased boards) after experimenting with several energy efficient hardware platforms that were unable to address enough memory to hold the 10GB dataset in memory. The lowpower platforms we tested suffered from either a lack of I/O capability or high, relative fixed power costs, both stemming from design decisions made by hardware vendors rather than being informed by fundamental properties of energy and computing.
Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences Ecology of Hantavirus in a Changing World Ecology of Hantavirus in a Changing World Ecology of Hantavirus in a Changing World Dearing & Dizney Ecology of Hantavirus in a Changing World

Hantavirus is a genus of virus represented by 45 different species and is hosted by small mammals, predominantly rats and mice. Roughly, half of all hantaviruses cause diseases in humans that vary in morbidity from mild to severe. The natural and anthropogenic changes occurring in the environment appear to be impacting the ecology of hantaviruses and their natural hosts as well as the incidence of hantaviral diseases in humans. Although such studies are limited at this time, there is evidence that natural climate cycles such as El Niño as well as anthropogenic climate change enhance hantavirus prevalence when host population dynamics are driven by food availability. Climate appears to have less of an effect on hantavirus when host populations are controlled by predators. Human alteration to the landscape also appears to enhance hantavirus prevalence when the disturbance regime enriches the environment for the host, for example, agriculture. More long-term studies on multiple species of hantavirus are needed to accurately predict the outcome of changing environmental conditions on prevalence in hosts as well as disease incidence in humans. Introduction The rapid and extensive anthropogenic alterations to ecosystems are having profound effects on the distribution and ecology of organisms, including parasitic ones. The goal of this paper is to review how such changes affect or may affect the dynamics of Hantavirus, a genus of virus represented by at least 45 different species distributed worldwide. 1,2 After a brief introduction to the natural history of this system, we review how aspects of climate change and landscape alterations may influence hantavirus. We close with a section on recommendations for scientist and policy makers. Information on epidemiology , human pathology, treatments, and vaccines have recently been reviewed by others and will not be covered extensively here. Natural history of hantaviruses Hantaviruses are negative-sense, single-stranded RNA viruses with a small (<11 kb), tripartite genome. 3 They are pathogens of small mammals, particularly rodents of the family Muridae. Different species (or genotypes) of hantavirus appear to be somewhat host specific. 4 Reassortment of genetic material between species of hantavirus appears to be rare. For example, in some locations, up to three species of hantavirus occur in their respective mammalian host, with no exchange of genetic material among hantavirus species. 5,6 Han-taviruses occur worldwide and are disproportionately represented in temperate regions, 2 although this distribution pattern may be more related to human disease surveillance efforts than actual distribution …
Hypolipidemic Effects of Biopolymers Extracted from Culture Broth, Mycelia, and Fruiting Bodies of Auricularia auricula-judae in Dietary-induced Hyperlipidemic Rats

Hypolipidemic effect of biopolymers extracted from culture broth (CP), mycelia (MP), and fruiting bodies (FP) of Auricularia auricula-judae was investigated in dietary-induced hyperlipidemic rats. The experimental animals were administrated (100 mg/kg body weight) with different biopolymers, daily for 4 weeks. Hypolipidemic effects were achieved in all the experimental groups, however, FP was proved to be the most potent one. The administration of the FP reduced the plasma triglyceride, total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, and atherogenic index by 24.3, 28.5, 36.4, and 40.9%, respectively, while increased the high-density lipoprotein cholesterol level (9.0%), when compared to the saline (control) administered group.
Association between emotional intelligence and illicit drug involvement: A study in adolescents in Tehran, Iran

The study sought to assess if there is an association between emotional intelligence (EI) with illicit drug use in adolescents, and if this link is independent of social and parental variables. In this cross-sectional study, 990 randomly selected adolescents (age 15 - 17) from public high schools in Tehran, Iranian capital, were interviewed in 2006. The independent data consisted of EI (measured by the Bar-On Emotional Quotient Inventory) and also demographic characteristics (age and sex), family-related data (number of siblings and having an intact family), education-related data (attitude towards school and school achievement), parental and environmental data of illicit drug use and the outcome was “a history of illicit drug use amongst adolescents”. Our logistic regression model showed that the correlates of a history of illicit drug use in the adolescents were “the Bar-On Emotional Quotient Inventory score” (P < 0.001) alongside “family history of illicit drug use” (P < 0.001), “witnessing illicit drug use” (P < 0.014), “peer encouragement of illicit drug use” (P = 0.006), “school achievement” (P < 0.001), and “attitude towards school” (P = 0.007). Our results indicated a link between EI and a history of illicit drug use in Iranian adolescents, independent of other social factors. It is advisable that policymakers pay heed to this association in devising preventive measures against illicit drug use amongst adolescents. Key words: Adolescents, Illicit drug use, emotional intelligence, social risk factors.
MEMBRANE SPECIALIZATION AT AN INSECT MYONEURAL JUNCTION

Myoneural junctions were examined in the asynchronous basalar flight muscle of the beetle Pachnoda ephippiata. The outer surface of the postjunctional membrane exhibits an array of prominent projections spaced at ∼200 Å intervals which arise directly from the outer dense lamina of the plasma membrane and extend part way across the junctional cleft. The projections follow irregularities in the contour of the postjunctional membrane precisely and they end abruptly near the edge of the junctional region. No separation can be resolved between the projections and the underlying trilaminar plasma membrane after a variety of preparative methods, and the projections therefore appear to be a component part of the membrane. This specialization, which is distinctly different from that at desmosomes and hemidesmosomes, occurs nowhere else on the surface of the muscle and is interpreted as a mosaic of specialized membrane subunits which probably include the receptor sites for the transmitter.
Misfolded Proteins: From Little Villains to Little Helpers in the Fight Against Cancer

The application of cytostatic drugs targeting the high proliferation rates of cancer cells is currently the most commonly used treatment option in cancer chemotherapy. However, severe side effects and resistance mechanisms may occur as a result of such treatment, possibly limiting the therapeutic efficacy of these agents. In recent years, several therapeutic strategies have been developed that aim at targeting not the genomic integrity and replication machinery of cancer cells but instead their protein homeostasis. During malignant transformation, the cancer cell proteome develops vast aberrations in the expression of mutated proteins, oncoproteins, drug- and apoptosis-resistance proteins, etc. A complex network of protein quality-control mechanisms, including chaperoning by heat shock proteins (HSPs), not only is essential for maintaining the extravagant proteomic lifestyle of cancer cells but also represents an ideal cancer-specific target to be tackled. Furthermore, the high rate of protein synthesis and turnover in certain types of cancer cells can be specifically directed by interfering with the proteasomal and autophagosomal protein recycling and degradation machinery, as evidenced by the clinical application of proteasome inhibitors. Since proteins with loss of their native conformation are prone to unspecific aggregations and have proved to be detrimental to normal cellular function, specific induction of misfolded proteins by HSP inhibitors, proteasome inhibitors, hyperthermia, or inducers of endoplasmic reticulum stress represents a new method of cancer cell killing exploitable for therapeutic purposes. This review describes drugs – approved, repurposed, or under investigation – that can be used to accumulate misfolded proteins in cancer cells, and particularly focuses on the molecular aspects that lead to the cytotoxicity of misfolded proteins in cancer cells.
A mobile robot self-localization approach based on unidirectional vision

This paper presents a self-localization system for mobile robot in large-scale indoor environments. For a structured corridor environment, the vision information is adopted to track the robot pose with a predefined hybrid metric-topological map. A nonlinear unidirectional camera model is developed to project the probabilistic map elements with uncertainty manipulation. Extended Information filters are deployed to estimate the robot pose. The proposed system can perform localization tasks on-the-fly, with the features of efficient map modeling and computational simplicity. Experimental results are provided to demonstrate the performance and effectiveness of the proposed techniques.