Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Discovering Recurrent Events in Multichannel Data Streams Using Unsupervised Methods

Detection of recurrent temporal patterns in digital media is a first step in the next generation data mining for media content. Production videos such as news, sports and movies have a definitive structure that involves short term interaction as well as long term correlation. This structure in video can be captured by models that take into consideration the short term statistics as well as long term recurrence. We investigate the application of probabilistic models that capture this structure. The novel approach is to characterize the short term events in video by models that can account for temporal support in terms of piece-wise stationary signals with transitions. These short term events can then be embedded within another temporal model that accounts for transitions between these event and thus characterizes long term history. This also leads to the detection of recurring events in video using a monolithic model. The proposed approach is an unsupervised algorithm for event detection and it can be used for summarization, similarity based matching and enhanced browsing. With certain extensions similar algorithms can be used for data mining for temporal patterns in other domains such as bio-surveillance, where the multimodal sensor streams may be comprised of traditional and non-traditional data sources.
Beneficial Effects of Rikkunshito, a Japanese Kampo Medicine, on Gastrointestinal Dysfunction and Anorexia in Combination with Western Drug: A Systematic Review

Background. Kampo medicines are traditional herbal medicines which have been approved for medicinal use by the Japanese Ministry of Health and Welfare and are currently being used more and more, often in combination with Western drugs. Thus, the need for investigation of interactions between Kampo medicines and Western drugs is now widely recognized. Aim. To summarize the effects and drug interactions of rikkunshito, a Kampo medicine often prescribed for upper gastrointestinal disorders and anorexia. Methods. Animal and human studies were systematically reviewed to identify published data on rikkunshito. Results describing its effects were abstracted, with an emphasis on drug interactions. Results and Discussion. Rikkunshito ameliorates anorexia induced by anticancer drugs, improves quality of life scores, and can even prolong survival compared with monotherapy. Rikkunshito combined with proton pump inhibitor therapy is shown to be useful in the treatment of PPI-refractory gastroesophageal reflux disease patients and patients with gastrointestinal symptoms after endoscopic submucosal dissection. Rikkunshito reduces antidepressant-induced adverse events and improves quality of life without influencing antidepressant effects. Conclusions. Rikkunshito shows ameliorative effects on adverse reactions induced by various Western drugs and can achieve better results (e.g., anticancer drugs and proton pump inhibitor) without influencing the efficacy and bioavailability of Western drugs.
Towards the Usage of Virtual Reality for Training in Sports

Virtual Reality (VR) is an often-used instrument in many domains, also in sports. Therefore, it can be used for training with skilled athletes. The current short review highlights existing virtual environments (VE) which were used for interventions and shows that most training interventions using VR in sports were conducted with beginners. Thus, training studies with skilled athletes are rare. In the discussion, the present review shows one the one hand open questions concerning training using immersive VR, and one the other hand further possibilities to use such VEs for training in sports
An Ecological Functional Basis for Managing Wood Decay Elements for Wildlife 1

The traditional approach to managing decaying wood for wildlife has been to list species associated with snags, down wood, and other wood decay elements, and then to provide the kinds, sizes, and amounts of wood decay elements presumed necessary to meet their needs. An expanded approach more consistent with the spirit of ecosystem management would also describe those species’ key ecological functions (KEFs). KEFs influence the ecosystem through trophic relations, species interactions, soil aeration, primary cavity and burrow excavation, and dispersal of fungi, lichens, seeds, fruits, plants, and invertebrates. These “functional webs” can be described for wildlife species associated with various wood decay elements (snags, down wood, litter, duff, mistletoe brooms, dead parts of live trees, hollow living trees, natural tree cavities, bark crevices, and live remnant or legacy trees) in Washington and Oregon. Information on species’ KEFs also is part of the DecAID wood decay management advisory model. The challenge is posed for management to think functionally beyond simple species-habitat relations, as to the broader role of wood decay in supporting functional webs.
Enterprise Resource Planning Systems Implementation: Effects on Accounting Information Processing

The use of computerized accounting system has reached remarkable heights in recent years. However this pattern in developing economies does not seem to have attained similar strength. The era of technological sophistication has enabled the use of specialized transactions processing systems. Consequently this study chose to investigate the effects of enterprise resource planning systems on accounting information processing with particular reference to Nigerian. This paper builds upon the "technologies acceptance model" on factors influencing individual's choice of technology when faced with particular tasks. Using a survey approach and applying both descriptive and inferential statistics the study found significant use of enterprise resource planning systems on accounting information processing in Nigeria. This research sets a baseline for academia in bridging the theory and practise gap to continue to support scholars in learning computerized accounting information processing for practise relevance. In addition the use of computerized systems must remain within the ambience of generally accepted accounting principles and procedures to ensure the art continues to present true and fair view of underlying transactions for users of financial reports. This paper is unique in that there are no studies evidencing the use of enterprise resource planning systems in Nigeria. Hence, it is a fundamental point of reference for future research in this area.
The function of the M-line protein obscurin in controlling the symmetry of the sarcomere in the flight muscle of Drosophila

Summary Obscurin (also known as Unc-89 in Drosophila) is a large modular protein in the M-line of Drosophila muscles. Drosophila obscurin is similar to the nematode protein UNC-89. Four isoforms are found in the muscles of adult flies: two in the indirect flight muscle (IFM) and two in other muscles. A fifth isoform is found in the larva. The larger IFM isoform has all the domains that were predicted from the gene sequence. Obscurin is in the M-line throughout development of the embryo, larva and pupa. Using P-element mutant flies and RNAi knockdown flies, we have investigated the effect of decreased obscurin expression on the structure of the sarcomere. Embryos, larvae and pupae developed normally. In the pupa, however, the IFM was affected. Although the Z-disc was normal, the H-zone was misaligned. Adults were unable to fly and the structure of the IFM was irregular: M-lines were missing and H-zones misplaced or absent. Isolated thick filaments were asymmetrical, with bare zones that were shifted away from the middle of the filaments. In the sarcomere, the length and polarity of thin filaments depends on the symmetry of adjacent thick filaments; shifted bare zones resulted in abnormally long or short thin filaments. We conclude that obscurin in the IFM is necessary for the development of a symmetrical sarcomere in Drosophila IFM.
On the Convergence of an Implicitly Restarted Arnoldi Method

We show that Sorensen's 35] implicitly restarted Arnoldi method (including its block extension) is non-stationary simultaneous iteration with an implicit projection step to accelerate convergenceto the invariant subspace of interest. By using the geometric convergencetheory for non-stationarysimultaneousiterationdue to Watkins and Elsner 43], we prove that an implicitlyrestarted Arnoldi method can achieve a super-linear rate of convergence to the dominant invariant subspace of a matrix. Moreover, we show how an IRAM computes a nested sequence of approximations for the partial Schur decomposition associated with the dominant invariant subspace of a matrix.
Growth Accounting for the Euro Area: A Structural Approach

This paper is concerned with the estimation of euro area potential output growth and its decomposition according to the sources of growth. The growth accounting exercise is based on a multivariate structural time series model which combines the decomposition of total output according to the production function approach with price and wage equations that embody Phillips type relationships linking inflation and nominal wage dynamics to the output gap and cyclical unemployment, respectively. Assuming a Cobb-Douglas technology with constant returns to scale, potential output results from the combination of the trend levels of total factor productivity and factor inputs, capital and labour (hours worked), which is decomposed into labour intensity (average hours worked), the employment rate, the participation rate, and population of working age. The nominal variables (prices and wages)play an essential role in defining the trend levels of the components of potential output, as the latter should pose no inflationary pressures on prices and wages. The structural model is further extended to allow for the estimation of potential output growth and the decomposition according to the sources of growth at different horizons (long-run, medium run and short run); in particular, we propose and evaluate a model-based approach to the extraction of the low-pass component of potential output growth at different cutoff frequencies. The approach has two important advantages: the signal extraction filters have an automatic adaptation property at the boundaries of the sample period, so that the real time estimates do not suffer from what is often referred to as the "end-of-sample bias". Secondly, it is possible to assess the uncertainty of potential output growth estimates with different degrees of smoothness.
Synchronization Analysis in Physical Layer Network Coding

Physical-layer Network Coding (PNC) makes use of the additive nature of the electromagnetic (EM) waves to apply network coding arithmetic at the physical layer. With PNC,the destructive effect of interference in wireless networks is eliminated and the capacity of networks can be boosted significantly. This paper addresses a key outstanding issue in PNC: synchronization among transmitting nodes. We first investigate the impact of imperfect synchronization (i.e., finite synchronization errors) in a 3-node network. It is shown that with QPSK modulation, PNC still yields significantly higher capacity than straightforward network coding when there are synchronization errors. Significantly, this remains to be so even in the extreme case when synchronization is not performed at all. Moving beyond a 3-node network, we propose and investigate a synchronization scheme for PNC in a general chain network. At last, numerical simulation verifies that PNC is robust to synchronization errors. In particular, for the mutual information performance, there is about 0.5dB loss without time synchronization and there is at most 2dB loss without phase synchronization.
Análise de folhas de tabaco afetadas por CVC via técnicas de ranqueamento e re-ranqueamento : Analysis of tobacco leaves affected by CVC via ranking and re-ranking techniques

The Citrus Variegated Chlorosis (CVC) affects a significant part of citrus production in Brazil and causes expressive economic loss to agriculture. Usually, it is necessary to know the degree of this disease in the citrus to identify the best and correct treatment. The texture analysis of the leaves of infected plants by means of digital image processing techniques is an important method to analyze the degree of impairment affected by CVC. This paper proposes an approach to analyze tobacco leaves using image ranking, an important technique from the Content-Based Image Retrieval (CBIR) domain. Rankings are computed through two distance functions: Euclidean and Canberra. The images are analyzed by using three texture descriptors: GLCM, LBP and Haralick. With the intention of improving the retrieved results, an unsupervised distance learning algorithm was applied, the RL-Sim (RankedLists-Similarities), which consists in obtaining a new ranking from the one that was initially computed. Experiments were performed using a set of images provided by the Instituto Agronômico de Campinas (IAC). The performance of the methods is compared to the manual image classification, according to the degree of CVC infection. Experiment results demonstrate that the proposed approach achieved eficiency levels from 37,33% to 48,37% according to the Precision metric, which indicates the need of new studies to make sure this approach is totally proper to be used as an assistance to the analysis of infected plant leaves.
A Priori Error Estimates for Three Dimensional Parabolic Optimal Control Problems with Pointwise Control

In this paper we provide an a priori error analysis for parabolic optimal control problems with a pointwise (Dirac-type) control in space on three-dimensional domains. The two-dimensional case was treated in [D. Leykekhman and B. Vexler, SIAM J. Numer. Anal. , 51 (2013), pp. 2797--2821]; however, the three-dimensional case is technically much more involved. To approximate the problem we use standard continuous piecewise linear elements in space and the piecewise constant discontinuous Galerkin method in time. Despite low regularity of the state equation, we establish ${\mathcal O}(\sqrt{k}+h)$ order of convergence rate for the control in the $L^2$ norm. This result improves almost twice the previously known estimate in [W. Gong, M. Hinze, and Z. Zhou, SIAM J. Control Optim. , 52 (2014), pp. 97--119] and in addition does not require any relationship between the time step $k$ and the mesh size $h$. The main technical tools are discrete maximal parabolic regularity results and the best approximation-type estim.
Unstable attractors: existence and robustness in networks of oscillators with delayed pulse coupling

We consider unstable attractors: Milnor attractors A such that, for some neighbourhood U of A, almost all initial conditions leave U. Previous research strongly suggests that unstable attractors exist and even occur robustly (i.e. for open sets of parameter values) in a system modelling biological phenomena, namely in globally coupled oscillators with delayed pulse interactions. In the first part of this paper we give a rigorous definition of unstable attractors for general dynamical systems. We classify unstable attractors into two types, depending on whether or not there is a neighbourhood of the attractor that intersects the basin in a set of positive measure. We give examples of both types of unstable attractor; these examples have non-invertible dynamics that collapse certain open sets onto stable manifolds of saddle orbits. In the second part we give the first rigorous demonstration of existence and robust occurrence of unstable attractors in a network of oscillators with delayed pulse coupling. Although such systems are technically hybrid systems of delay differential equations with discontinuous ‘firing’ events, we show that their dynamics reduces to a finite dimensional hybrid system after a finite time and, hence, we can discuss Milnor attractors for this reduced finite dimensional system. We prove that for an open set of phase resetting functions there are saddle periodic orbits that are unstable attractors.
Empirical exploration achievement of noise removal algorithm based on Trilateral filter for both Gaussian and impulsive noise ambiance

Although the Bilateral filter is one of the most realistic and virtuoso noise removal algorithms, which is often proposed for Gaussian noise in 1998, the Bilateral filter (BF) ineffectively works under the impulsive noise. Consequently, Trilateral filter (which is a modification Bilateral filter) was first proposed by Roman Garnett et al. in 2005 and this filter is based on the hybrid consisting of Bilateral filter and Rank-Ordered Absolute Differences (ROAD) statistic for automatically attenuating or excluding of Gaussian and impulsive noise. Thereby, this research paper empirically explores the efficient influence impact of these four parameters (spatial, radiometric, ROAD and joint impulsivity variance) of the Trilateral filter (TF) when this Trilateral filter (TF) is used for noise removal prospective attitude. In the noise removal exploration, Trilateral filter (TF) is used for five noisy standard images (Girl-Tiffany, Pepper, Baboon, House and Resolution) under five Gaussian noises and five Impulse noise, compared with state-of-the-art algorithms such as Bilateral filter (BF) and median filter. Subsequently, the highest result in the PSNR prospective attitude is nominated. Supplementary, an empirically exploration optimal value of ROAD variance and joint impulsivity variance that yield the highest PSNR is empirically explored for each images and each noise cases.
The Causes and Consequences of Distinctively Black Names

In the 1960's, Blacks and Whites chose relatively similar first names for their children. Over a short period of time in the early 1970's, that pattern changed dramatically with most Blacks (particularly those living in racially isolated neighborhoods) adopting increasingly distinctive names, but a subset of Blacks actually moving toward more assimilating names. The patterns in the data appear most consistent with a model in which the rise of the Black Power movement influenced how Blacks perceived their identities. Among Blacks born in the last two decades, names provide a strong signal of socio-economic status, which was not previously the case. We find, however, no negative causal impact of having a distinctively Black name on life outcomes. Although that result is seemingly in conflict with previous audit studies involving resumes, we argue that the two sets of findings can be reconciled.
Energy-Harvesting Circuits With a High-Efficiency Rectifier and a Low Temperature Coefficient Bandgap Voltage Reference

In this paper, a high-efficiency rectifier and a low temperature coefficient (TC) bandgap voltage reference (BGR) in energy-harvesting circuits are presented. The audio signal generated from smartphone is used to verify the energy-harvesting circuits that are composed of a full-wave low-voltage active rectifier, a low-dropout (LDO) regulator, and a current-mode BGR circuit. An active diode and a proposed AVC are presented to enhance the rectifier efficiency. The rectifier output voltage is regulated by an LDO close to a stable 1.2-V supply voltage in a 0.18-<inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\mu \text{m}$ </tex-math></inline-formula> 1P6M Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company standard complementary metal–oxide–semiconductor (CMOS) process. A curvature-compensation technique is proposed to improve the TC of the BGR, and the best TC of 15.33 ppm/°C between the temperature range of −10 °C and 120 °C is measured. The measured rectifier achieves the maximum power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 87.2% under <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$1.77~V_{\mathrm {pp}}$ </tex-math></inline-formula> ac input signal with 2-<inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\text{k}\Omega $ </tex-math></inline-formula> output load resistance. The measured results demonstrate the better characteristic of the rectifier and BGR than that of previous works using the low-power structure.
Traffic Engineering in next generation multi-layer networks based on the GMPLS paradigm

After a review of the motivating factors that claim for traffic engineering in next generation infrastructures based on Internet Protocol (IP), this paper briefly reviews the main issues relating to MPLS technology and the possibility to realize a unique control plane in a multi-layer network based on the extended version of MPLS: the GMPLS. In particular, the aspects relating to routing and control data flows in the network while guaranteeing the desired levels of QoS are discussed. Then the paper mention the advances in optical network technology that have led to the possibility to realize a real optical network layer in future infrastructure. Some recent developments in the literature on multi-layer traffic engineering is also reported at the end.
Grounding Natural Language References to Unvisited and Hypothetical Locations

While much research exists on resolving spatial natural language references to known locations, little work deals with handling references to unknown locations. In this paper we introduce and evaluate algorithms integrated into a cognitive architecture which allow an agent to learn about its environ-ment while resolving references to both known and unknown locations. We also describe how multiple components in the architecture jointly facilitate these capabilities.
Ursolic Acid Inhibits STAT3 Activation Pathway Leading to Suppression of Proliferation and Chemosensitization of Human Multiple Myeloma Cells

The activation of signal transducers and activators of transcription 3 (STAT3) has been linked with the proliferation of a variety of human cancer cells, including multiple myeloma. Agents that can suppress STAT3 activation have potential for prevention and treatment of cancer. In the present report, we tested an agent, ursolic acid, found in basil, apples, prunes, and cranberries, for its ability to suppress STAT3 activation. We found that ursolic acid, a pentacyclic triterpenoid, inhibited both constitutive and interleukin-6–inducible STAT3 activation in a dose- and time-dependent manner in multiple myeloma cells. The suppression was mediated through the inhibition of activation of upstream kinases c-Src, Janus-activated kinase 1, Janus-activated kinase 2, and extracellular signal–regulated kinase 1/2. Vanadate treatment reversed the ursolic acid–induced down-regulation of STAT3, suggesting the involvement of a tyrosine phosphatase. Indeed, we found that ursolic acid induced the expression of tyrosine phosphatase SHP-1 protein and mRNA. Moreover, knockdown of SHP-1 by small interfering RNA suppressed the induction of SHP-1 and reversed the inhibition of STAT3 activation, thereby indicating the critical role of SHP-1 in the action of this triterpene. Ursolic acid down-regulated the expression of STAT3-regulated gene products such as cyclin D1, Bcl-2, Bcl-xL, survivin, Mcl-1, and vascular endothelial growth factor. Finally, ursolic acid inhibited proliferation and induced apoptosis and the accumulation of cells in G1-G0 phase of cell cycle. This triterpenoid also significantly potentiated the apoptotic effects of thalidomide and bortezomib in multiple myeloma cells. Overall, these results suggest that ursolic acid is a novel blocker of STAT3 activation that may have a potential in prevention and treatment of multiple myeloma and other cancers. (Mol Cancer Res 2007;5(9):943–55)