Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Real-time scheduling for 3D GPU rendering

3D graphical functions in cars enjoy growing popularity. For instance, analog instruments of the instrument cluster are replaced by digital 3D displays as shown by Mercedes-Benz in the F125 prototype car. The trend to use 3D applications expands into two directions: towards more safety-relevant applications such as the speedometer and towards third-party applications, e.g., from an app store. In order to save cost, energy, and installation space, all these applications should share a single GPU. GPU sharing brings up the problem of providing real-time guarantees for rendering content of time-sensitive applications like the speedometer. To solve this problem, we present a real-time GPU scheduling framework which provides strong guarantees for critical applications while still giving as much GPU resources to less important applications as possible, thus ensuring a high GPU utilization. Since current GPUs are not preemptible, we use the estimated execution time of each GPU rendering job to make the scheduling decisions. Our evaluations show that our scheduler guarantees given real-time constraints, while achieving a high GPU utilization of 97%. Moreover, scheduling is performed highly efficient in real-time with less than 10 μs latency.
A simple analytical formula to compute the residual Mutual Information between pairs of data vectors

Summary The Mutual Information of pairs of data vectors, for example sequence alignment positions or gene expression profiles, is a quantitative measure of the interdependence between the data. However, data vectors based on a finite number of samples retain non-zero Mutual Information values even for completely random data, which is referred to as background or residual Mutual Information. Estimates of the residual Mutual Information have so far been obtained through heuristic or numerical approximations. Here we introduce a simple analytical formula for the computation of the residual Mutual Information that yields precise values and does not require the joint probabilities between the vector elements as input. Availability and Implementation A C program arMI is available at http://mathbio.crick.ac.uk/wiki/Software#arMI. Using an input alignment in FASTA format or alternatively an internally created random alignment of specified length and depth, the program computes three types of Mutual information: (i) Shannon’s Mutual Information between all pairs of alignment columns; (ii) the numerical residual Mutual Information by using the same formula on the randomised (shuffled) data; (iii) the analytical residual Mutual Information introduced here. The package depends on the GNU Scientific Library, which is used for vector and matrix operations, factorial expressions and random number generation (Galassi et al., 2009). Reference alignments and result data are included in the program package in the folder ‘tests’. The R environment was used for statistics and plotting (R Core Team, 2014). Contact Jens.Kleinjung@crick.ac.uk Supplementary Material A detailed derivation of the analytical formula is given in the Supplementary Material.
Learning Effects on Sperm Competition and Reproductive Fitness

Learning and other common psychological processes presumably evolved because they contribute to reproductive fitness, but reproductive outcomes are rarely measured in psychology experiments. We examined the effects of Pavlovian conditioning on reproductive fitness in a sperm-competition situation. Typically, two males mating with the same female in immediate succession sire similar numbers of offspring. In a study with domesticated quail (Coturnix japonica), we increased paternity success by presenting a Pavlovian signal that permitted one of two competing males to predict copulatory opportunity. Using microsatellite-based DNA fingerprinting, we found that signaled males sired 72% of the offspring when competing with control males, and this effect was independent of copulation order. In the absence of Pavlovian conditioning, rates of fertilization were not significantly different for two males that copulated with the same female. These findings demonstrate that Pavlovian conditioning contributes to reproductive fitness and suggest that individual past experience can bias genetic transmission and the evolutionary changes that result from sexual competition.
Particle swarm optimization for designing a micro strip patch antenna for Ku band applications

Due to their small size, microstrip patch antennas are widely used in the design of portable wireless communication equipments. Designing a patch antenna with reduced size, for a given band is major area of research these days. Optimization algorithms are widely explored by researchers for calculating the parameters of a patch antenna for a given resonance frequency. In this paper, a microstrip patch antenna has been designed for Ku band. The results have been compared with the earlier published work.
Role of erythrocyte phosphatidylserine in sickle red cell-endothelial adhesion.

Phosphatidlyserine (PS) exposure on the erythrocyte surface endows the cell with the propensity of adhering to vascular endothelium. Because individuals with sickle cell disease (SCD) manifest loss of erythrocyte membrane asymmetry with PS exposure, we have assessed the contribution of this marker to the process of sickle erythrocyte-microendothelial adhesion. Assays for plasma-induced adhesion were conducted on unactivated endothelium, in the absence of immobilized ligands, such that PS was compared to the erythrocyte adhesion receptor CD36. Blocking studies with erythrocytes pretreated with annexin V (to cloak PS) or anti-CD36 or both revealed an inhibitory effect on adhesion of 36% +/- 10% and 23% +/- 8% with blocking of both sites suggestive of an additive effect. We next evaluated 87 blood samples from patients with SCD and grouped them into 4 categories based on adhesion marker (CD36 and PS) levels. Results revealed a striking correlation between erythrocyte PS positivity and adhesion. Analyses of the individual patient data demonstrated a positive correlation between PS and adhesion (R = 0.52, P <.000 001), whereas none was noted between adhesion and CD36 (R = 0.2, P >.07). The effect of PS on adhesion appears to be related to the quantitative differences in erythrocyte markers in SCD, with PS the predominant marker when compared to CD36 both in the total erythrocyte population, and when the adherence-prone erythrocyte, the CD71(+) stress reticulocyte, was evaluated. Our study signals the entrance of an important new contributor to the field of sickle erythrocyte-endothelial adhesion. The implications of erythrocyte PS exposure in relation to the vascular pathology of SCD need to be assessed.
Accurate Energy Modelling for Many-Core Static Schedules

Static schedules can be a preferable alternative for applications with timing requirements and predictable behavior since the processing resources can be more precisely allocated for the given workload. Unused resources are handled by power management systems to either scale down or shut off parts of the chip to save energy. In order to efficiently implement power management, especially in many-core systems, an accurate model is important in order to make the appropriate power management decisions at the right time. For making correct decisions, practical issues such as latency for controlling the power saving techniques should be considered when deriving the system model, especially for fine timing granularity. In this paper we present an accurate energy model for many-core systems which includes switching latency of modern power saving techniques. The model is used when calculating an optimal static schedule for many-core task execution on systems with dynamic frequency levels and sleep state mechanisms. We create the model parameters for an embedded processor, and we validate it in practice with synthetic benchmarks on real hardware.
Factors that influence bone mass of healthy children and adolescents measured by quantitative ultrasound at the hand phalanges: a systematic review☆

Objective: To analyze the main factors that influence bone mass in children and teenagers assessed by quantitative ultrasound (QUS) of the phalanges. Data source: A systematic literature review was performed according to the PRISMA method with searches in databases Pubmed/Medline, SciELO and Bireme for the period 2001-2012, in English and Portuguese languages, using the keywords: children, teenagers, adolescent, ultrasound finger phalanges, quantitative ultrasound of phalanges, phalangeal quantitative ultrasound. Data synthesis: 21 articles were included. Girls had, in QUS, Amplitude Dependent Speed of Sound (AD-SoS) values higher than boys during pubertal development. The values of the parameters of QUS of the phalanges and dual-energy X-ray Absorptiometry (DXA) increased with the increase of the maturational stage. Anthropometric variables such as age, weight, height, body mass index (BMI), lean mass showed positive correlations with the values of QUS of the phalanges. Physical activity has also been shown to be positively associated with increased bone mass. Factors such as ethnicity, genetics, caloric intake and socioeconomic profile have not yet shown a conclusive relationship and need a larger number of studies. Conclusions: QUS of the phalanges is a method used to evaluate the progressive acquisition of bone mass during growth and maturation of individuals in school phase, by monitoring changes that occur with increasing age and pubertal stage. There were mainly positive influences variables of sex, maturity, height, weight and BMI, with similar data when compared to the gold standard method, the DXA.
Integrated Analysis of Research Publications and Patents for Strategic Decision Making

In this extremely competitive era, it has become imperative for organizations to keep themselves informed about the technological advancements and their implications in their domain. It is important that they take advantage of the vast amount of knowledge out there on the web for business and strategy planning. This paper proposes methodologies for analyzing patenting and publishing data jointly to predict how advances in research or technology are likely to affect the future of commercialization across industrial sectors. It proposes predictive methods to identify the technology trends for various sectors and also proposes methods to identify the current "white spaces" or promising research areas with high application potential that are yet to be exploited fully. The results presented in this paper are with respect to the area of Computer Science though the methods are generic.
Finite-State Control of Powered Below-Knee Prosthesis with Ankle and Toe

Abstract Current finite-state control strategies for powered below-knee prosthesis, though effective to the normal gait, can not eliminate the disturbance of abnormal gaits such as slip and stamp. In addition, toe joint is not taken into consideration. This paper presents a finite-state control strategy for a powered below-knee prosthesis with ankle and toe. We first introduce the concerned prosthesis prototype in detail. By dividing the walking gait with toe and joint into more states and setting stricter transition conditions, the gait identification becomes more accurate and gait disturbance such as slip and stamp can be eliminated. Experimental results show that the proposed method improves the accuracy of gait identification. It makes the motion of the prosthesis more natural and provides better bases for control.
Author's Personal Copy Theoretical Computer Science Pnl to Hol: from the Logic of Nominal Sets to the Logic of Higher-order Functions

In most cases authors are permitted to post their version of the article (e.g. in Word or Tex form) to their personal website or institutional repository. Authors requiring further information regarding Elsevier's archiving and manuscript policies are encouraged to visit: Keywords: Permissive-nominal logic Higher-order logic Nominal sets Nominal renaming sets Mathematical foundations of programming a b s t r a c t Permissive-Nominal Logic (PNL) extends first-order predicate logic with term-formers that can bind names in their arguments. It takes a semantics in (permissive-)nominal sets. In PNL, the ∀-quantifier or λ-binder are just term-formers satisfying axioms, and their denotation is functions on nominal atoms-abstraction. Then we have higher-order logic (HOL) and its models in ordinary (i.e. Zer-melo–Fraenkel) sets; the denotation of ∀ or λ is functions on full or partial function spaces. This raises the following question: how are these two models of binding connected? What translation is possible between PNL and HOL, and between nominal sets and functions? We exhibit a translation of PNL into HOL, and from models of PNL to certain models of HOL. It is natural, but also partial: we translate a restricted subsystem of full PNL to HOL. The extra part which does not translate is the symmetry properties of nominal sets with respect to permutations. To use a little nominal jargon: we can translate names and binding, but not their nominal equivariance properties. This seems reasonable since HOL – and ordinary sets – are not equivariant. Thus viewed through this translation, PNL and HOL and their models do different things, but they enjoy non-trivial and rich subsystems which are isomorphic.
How much handwritten text is needed for text-independent writer verification and identification

The performance of off-line text-independent writer verification and identification increases when the documents contain more text. This relation was examined by repeatedly conducting writer verification and identification performance tests while gradually increasing the amount of text on the pages. The experiment was performed on the datasets Firemaker and IAM using four different features. It was also determined what the influence of an unequal amount of text in the documents is. For the best features, it appears that the minimum amount of needed text is about 100 characters.
Prevalence, Risk Factors, and Impact of Undiagnosed Visually Significant Cataract: The Singapore Epidemiology of Eye Diseases Study

Objective To determine the prevalence, risk factors, and impact of undiagnosed visually significant cataract in an Asian population. Methods The Singapore Epidemiology of Eye Diseases is a population-based study where 8,697 adults of Malay, Indian, and Chinese ethnicities aged > 40 years were invited for an eye examination, including lens photograph, to establish cataract diagnosis. Visually significant cataract was defined by Wisconsin Cataract Grading System and a best-corrected visual acuity <20/40 with cataract as the primary cause of vision impairment. Participants were deemed ‘undiagnosed’ if they had visually significant cataract and reported no prior physician diagnosis of cataract. Visual functioning (VF) was assessed with the VF-11 questionnaire validated using Rasch analysis. Results Among the 925 participants with visually significant cataract, 636 (68.8%) were unaware of their cataract status. Age-standardized prevalence varied according to ethnicity, with Malays having higher rates than Chinese and Indians. Factors independently associated with having undiagnosed visually significant cataract were: Malay ethnicity, lower educational attainment, in employment, and without a history of diabetes (all P<0.05). In those with undiagnosed visually significant cataract, half had bilateral visual impairment, which was significantly associated with 24.8% poorer visual functioning compared to those with unilateral visual impairment (P<0.001). Conclusions Two-thirds of Singaporean adults with visually significant cataract were previously undiagnosed. Half of these cases had bilateral visual impairment and substantially reduced quality of life. Public health strategies targeting elderly patients, such as regular screening for visual impairment and timely referral to ophthalmologists in order to prevent progression to bilateral visual impairment when visual function is compromised are warranted.
Delegation in the role graph model

We present a model for delegation that is based on our decentralized administrative role graph model. We use a combination of user/group assignment and user-role assignment to support user to user,permission to user and role to role delegation. A powerful source-dependent revocation algorithm is described. We separate our delegation model into static and dynamic models, then discuss the static model and its operations. We provide detailed partial revocation algorithms. We also give details concerning changes to the role hierarchy, user/group structure and RBAC operations that are affected by delegation.
Early epigenetic changes and DNA damage do not predict clinical response in an overlapping schedule of 5-azacytidine and entinostat in patients with myeloid malignancies.

Sequential administration of DNA methyltransferase (DNMT) inhibitors and histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitors has demonstrated clinical efficacy in patients with hematologic malignancies. However, the mechanism behind their clinical efficacy remains controversial. In this study, the methylation dynamics of 4 TSGs (p15(INK4B), CDH-1, DAPK-1, and SOCS-1) were studied in sequential bone marrow samples from 30 patients with myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) or acute myeloid leukemia (AML) who completed a minimum of 4 cycles of therapy with 5-azacytidine and entinostat. Reversal of promoter methylation after therapy was observed in both clinical responders and nonresponders across all genes. There was no association between clinical response and either baseline methylation or methylation reversal in the bone marrow or purified CD34(+) population, nor was there an association with change in gene expression. Transient global hypomethylation was observed in samples after treatment but was not associated with clinical response. Induction of histone H3/H4 acetylation and the DNA damage-associated variant histone gamma-H2AX was observed in peripheral blood samples across all dose cohorts. In conclusion, methylation reversal of candidate TSGs during cycle 1 of therapy was not predictive of clinical response to combination "epigenetic" therapy. This trial is registered with http://www.clinicaltrials. gov under NCT00101179.
An illustrated comparison of processing methods for MR phase imaging and QSM: combining array coil signals and phase unwrapping

Phase imaging benefits from strong susceptibility effects at very high field and the high signal‐to‐noise ratio (SNR) afforded by multi‐channel coils. Combining the information from coils is not trivial, however, as the phase that originates in local field effects (the source of interesting contrast) is modified by the inhomogeneous sensitivity of each coil. This has historically been addressed by referencing individual coil sensitivities to that of a volume coil, but alternative approaches are required for ultra‐high field systems in which no such coil is available. An additional challenge in phase imaging is that the phase that develops up to the echo time is “wrapped” into a range of 2π radians. Phase wraps need to be removed in order to reveal the underlying phase distribution of interest.
Relaxation schemes for min max generalization in deterministic batch mode reinforcement learning

We study the minmax optimization problem introduced in [6] for computing policies for batch mode reinforcement learning in a deterministic setting. This problem is NP-hard. We focus on the two-stage case for which we provide two relaxation schemes. The first relaxation scheme works by dropping some constraints in order to obtain a problem that is solvable in polynomial time. The second relaxation scheme, based on a Lagrangian relaxation where all constraints are dualized, leads to a conic quadratic programming problem. Both relaxation schemes are shown to provide better results than those given in [6].
A parallel combinatory OFDM system

A parallel combinatory OFDM system (PC-OFDM) is proposed. The proposed system is able to obtain a higher bandwidth efficiency than an ordinary OFDM system. The bit error rate performance is analyzed and simulated. On a Gaussian channel and on known time invariant channels the PC-OFDM system can obtain lower bit error rates than ordinary OFDM. In some cases we can at the same time increase the bandwidth efficiency compared to an ordinary OFDM system. Further, the peak to mean power ratio of the PC-OFDM system is lower than for OFDM, which reduces the problem of designing linear power amplifiers.
Identifying Prototypical Melodies by Extracting Approximate Repeating Pattern from Music Works

The concept of a prototypical melody has been proposed to characterize sets of similar musical segments in a composition. In musicology, the degree of importance associated with a prototypical melody is proportional to the number of musical segments similar to it. In this paper, a novel approach is developed to extract all the prototypical melodies in a musical work. Our approach considers each music segment as a prototypical melody candidate and utilizes edit distance to isolate a set of music segments that are similar to this candidate. To expedite the process, a lower bounding mechanism is used to estimate the number of similar musical segments for each candidate to eliminate impossible options. Furthermore, the approach is extended to facilitate the extraction of all prototypical melodies in a set of musical works. Analysis is carried out on a real data set, and the results indicate significantly improved performance in average response time relative to existing approaches.
Mouse embryonic chimeras: tools for studying mammalian development

Embryonic chimeras of the mouse are well-established tools for studying cell lineage and cell potential. They are also a key part of the analysis of complex phenotypes of mutant mice. By combining embryonic stem cell technology, molecularly tagged mutations and sensitive cell lineage markers, chimeras can provide invaluable insights into the tissue-specific requirement and the mode of action of many mouse genes.
Novel Features of a PIWI-Like Protein Homolog in the Parasitic Protozoan Leishmania

In contrast to nearly all eukaryotes, the Old World Leishmania species L. infantum and L. major lack the bona fide RNAi machinery genes. Interestingly, both Leishmania genomes code for an atypical Argonaute-like protein that possesses a PIWI domain but lacks the PAZ domain found in Argonautes from RNAi proficient organisms. Using sub-cellular fractionation and confocal fluorescence microscopy, we show that unlike other eukaryotes, the PIWI-like protein is mainly localized in the single mitochondrion in Leishmania. To predict PIWI function, we generated a knockout mutant for the PIWI gene in both L. infantum (Lin) and L. major species by double-targeted gene replacement. Depletion of PIWI has no effect on the viability of insect promastigote forms but leads to an important growth defect of the mammalian amastigote lifestage in vitro and significantly delays disease pathology in mice, consistent with a higher expression of the PIWI transcript in amastigotes. Moreover, amastigotes lacking PIWI display a higher sensitivity to apoptosis inducing agents than wild type parasites, suggesting that PIWI may be a sensor for apoptotic stimuli. Furthermore, a whole-genome DNA microarray analysis revealed that loss of LinPIWI in Leishmania amastigotes affects mostly the expression of specific subsets of developmentally regulated genes. Several transcripts encoding surface and membrane-bound proteins were found downregulated in the LinPIWI(−/−) mutant whereas all histone transcripts were upregulated in the null mutant, supporting the possibility that PIWI plays a direct or indirect role in the stability of these transcripts. Although our data suggest that PIWI is not involved in the biogenesis or the stability of small noncoding RNAs, additional studies are required to gain further insights into the role of this protein on RNA regulation and amastigote development in Leishmania.