Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Pharmacogenomics in Early-Phase Oncology Clinical Trials: Is There a Sweet Spot in Phase II?

Many clinical trials of oncology drugs now include at least a consideration of pharmacogenomics, the study of germline or acquired genetic factors governing a drug's response and toxicity. Besides the potential benefit to patients from the consideration of personalized pharmacogenomic information when making treatment decisions, the incentive is clear for oncology drug developers to incorporate pharmacogenomic factors in the drug development process, because pharmacogenomic biomarkers may allow predictive characterization of subpopulations within a disease that may particularly respond or may allow preidentification of patients at highest risk for adverse events. There is, however, a lack of agreement in actual practice about at what point in the oncology clinical drug development process pharmacogenomic studies should be incorporated. In this article, we examine the recent growth of pharmacogenomics in oncology clinical trials, especially in early-phase studies, and examine several critical questions facing the incorporation of pharmacogenomics in early oncologic drug development. We show that phase II clinical trials, in particular, have a favorable track record for showing positive pharmacogenomic signals, worthy of additional follow-up and validation, and that the phase II setting holds significant promise for potentially accelerating and informing future phase III trials. We conclude that phase II trials offer an ideal “sweet spot” for routine incorporation of pharmacogenomic questions in oncology drug development. Clin Cancer Res; 18(10); 2809–16. ©2012 AACR.
Comparison of progenitor mass estimates for the type IIP SN 2012A

We present the one-year long observing campaign of SN 2012A which exploded in the nearby (9.8 Mpc) irregular galaxy NGC 3239. The photometric evolution is that of a normal Type IIP supernova, but the plateau is shorter and the luminosity not as constant as in other supernovae of this type. The absolute maximum magnitude, with M-B = -16.23 +/- 0.16 mag, is close to the average for SN IIP. Thanks also to the strong UV flux in the early phase, SN 2012A reached a peak luminosity of about 2 x 10(42) erg s(-1), which is brighter than those of other SNe with a similar Ni-56 mass. The latter was estimated from the luminosity in the exponential tail of the light curve and found to be M(Ni-56) = 0.011 +/- 0.004 M-circle dot, which is intermediate between standard and faint SN IIP. The spectral evolution of SN 2012A is also typical of SN IIP, from the early spectra dominated by a blue continuum and very broad (similar to 10(4) km s(-1)) Balmer lines, to the late-photospheric spectra characterized by prominent P-Cygni features of metal lines (Fe ii, Sc ii, Ba ii, Ti ii, Ca ii, Na i D). The photospheric velocity is moderately low, similar to 3 x 10(3) km s(-1) at 50 d, for the low optical depth metal lines. The nebular spectrum obtained 394 d after the shock breakout shows the typical features of SNe IIP and the strength of the [O i] doublet suggests a progenitor of intermediate mass, similar to SN 2004et (similar to 15 M-circle dot). A candidate progenitor for SN 2012A has been identified in deep, pre-explosion K-'-band Gemini North Near-InfraRed Imager and Spectrometer images, and found to be consistent with a star with a bolometric magnitude -7.08 +/- 0.36 (log L/L-circle dot = 4.73 +/- 0.14 dex). The magnitude of the recovered progenitor in archival images points towards a moderate-mass 10.5(-2)(+4.5) M-circle dot star as the precursor of SN 2012A. The explosion parameters and progenitor mass were also estimated by means of a hydrodynamical model, fitting the bolometric light curve, the velocity and the temperature evolution. We found a best fit for a kinetic energy of 0.48 foe, an initial radius of 1.8 x 10(13) cm and ejecta mass of 12.5 M-circle dot. Even including the mass for the compact remnant, this appears fully consistent with the direct measurements given above.
SYMPOSIUM REVIEW: Allosteric interactions and the modular nature of the voltage‐ and Ca2+‐activated (BK) channel

The high conductance voltage‐ and Ca2+‐activated K+ channel is one of the most broadly expressed channels in mammals. This channel is named BK for ‘big K’ because of its single‐channel conductance that can be as large as 250 pS in 100 mm symmetrical K+. BK channels increase their activity by membrane depolarization or an increase in cytosolic Ca2+. One of the key features that defines the behaviour of BK channels is that neither Ca2+ nor voltage is strictly necessary for channel activation. This and several other observations led to the idea that both Ca2+ and voltage increase the open probability by an allosteric mechanism. In this type of mechanism, the processes of voltage sensor displacement, Ca2+ binding and pore opening are independent equilibria that interact allosterically with each other. These allosteric interactions in BK channels reside in the structural characteristics of the BK channel in the sense that voltage and Ca2+ sensors and the pore need to be contained in different structures or ‘modules’. Through electrophysiological, mutagenesis, biochemical and fluorescence studies these modules have been identified and, more important, some of the interactions between them have been unveiled. In this review, we have covered the main advances achieved during the last few years in the elucidation of the structure of the BK channel and how this is related with its function as an allosteric protein.
Severe Convection Features in the Amazon Basin: A TRMM-Based 15-Year Evaluation

Rainfall in the Amazon Basin is very heterogeneous, mainly because the area encompassed is quite large. Among the systems responsible for rainfall, some stand out as extreme storm events. This study presents a criterion for identifying potentially severe convection (PSC) in the Amazon region from the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) database, specifically from Precipitation Features (PF)—1998–2012—generated and stored by the University of Utah. The seasonal and spatial distributions are similar to distributions of Mesoscale Convective Systems already cataloged in previous studies based on GOES satellite images. The seasons with the highest number of cases are austral spring, winter, and fall. With the Amazon region divided into six subregions and cases accumulated by quarter (JFM, AMJ, JAS, OND) the south of the Amazon subregion (SA) accounts for the largest number of cases with the OND quarter with higher occurrence and the lowest in AMJ. Different diurnal cycles of PSC are observed across the region with the more western areas, closer to the Andes, favoring nighttime cases, especially in the austral spring and summer. The diurnal cycle of the number of the most extreme cases is more pronounced than the diurnal cycle when a large collection of deep convection cases are included.
Dynamics of Industry and Innovation: Organizations, Networks and Systems Track Trends and Trajectories in Mems-related Technologies: an Analysis on the Basis of Patent Application Data Trends and Trajectories in Mems-related Technologies: an Analysis on the Basis of Patent Application Data

Despite its potential to change products and processes widely across industries, microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) are often overlooked by political and popular attention. In this study it is shown how patent information can be used to analyse the evolution and the present stage of this particular technology. The statistics are obtained from patent documentation databases available at the European Patent Office (EPO). We perform a life cycle analysis as well as a patent citation network analysis of the technology. Due to the interrelatedness and complexity of the MEMS technology the latter performs rather better to map the evolution of the technology. Abstract: Despite its potential to change products and processes widely across industries, microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) are often overlooked by political and popular attention. In this study it is shown how patent information can be used to analyse the evolution and the present stage of this particular technology. The statistics are obtained from patent documentation databases available at the European Patent Office (EPO). We perform a life cycle analysis as well as a patent citation network analysis of the technology. Due to the interrelatedness and complexity of the MEMS technology the latter performs rather better to map the evolution of the technology. The analysis reflects the opinion of the authors, not of their institutions. We thank Bart Verspagen, Alessandro Nuvolari and Dirk Carnitzki for suggestions, comments and discussion. The usual disclaimer applies.
Brain tissue partial pressure of oxygen predicts the outcome of severe traumatic brain injury under mild hypothermia treatment

Objective The aim of this study was to investigate the clinical significance and changes of brain tissue partial pressure of oxygen (PbtO2) in the course of mild hypothermia treatment (MHT) for treating severe traumatic brain injury (sTBI). Methods There were 68 cases with sTBI undergoing MHT. PbtO2, intracranial pressure (ICP), jugular venous oxygen saturation (SjvO2), and cerebral perfusion pressure (CPP) were continuously monitored, and clinical outcomes were evaluated using the Glasgow Outcome Scale score. Results Of 68 patients with sTBI, PbtO2, SjvO2, and CPP were obviously increased, but decreased ICP level was observed throughout the MHT. PbtO2 and ICP were negatively linearly correlated, while there was a positive linear correlation between PbtO2 and SjvO2. Monitoring CPP and SjvO2 was performed under normal circumstances, and a large proportion of patients were detected with low PbtO2. Decreased PbtO2 was also found after MHT. Conclusion Continuous PbtO2 monitoring could be introduced to evaluate the condition of regional cerebral oxygen metabolism, thereby guiding the clinical treatment and predicting the outcome.
Xtorus: An Extended Torus Topology for On-Chip Massive Data Communication

In the context of more massive data to be processed and more processing elements (PEs) to be laid on a single chip or board, the requirements for corresponding interconnection network are becoming even higher. This paper presents a new topology called xtorus, and evaluates it by using both theoretical analysis and experimental simulation method. For theoretical analysis, an algorithm for computing link path diversity and link entropy is given. The analysis shows that, compared with mesh, xmesh, and torus, the proposed topology has better properties in terms of diameter, average latency, throughput, and path diversity. Although some more links are added in xtorus, the number of links is of the same order of magnitude with that of mesh, xmesh, and torus. It also takes advantage of increasing higher levels of VLSI process. Simulations on GEM5 show that xtorus has better scalability, and its average latency is less than that of mesh, xmesh, and torus by significant proportions respectively, especially when larger number of routers are used. Moreover, to different traffic patterns, its performance swing is less than that of mesh. Finally, based on the entropy difference of the links in the topology, a method for heterogeneous link design is presented, which enables designers to trade off between delay, power and area according to concrete integrated circuit design scene.
Utilization of Electric Vehicles and Their Used Batteries for Peak-Load Shifting

The utilization of electric vehicles (EV) and their used batteries in supporting small-scale energy management systems were studied. Both theoretical study and practical demonstration were performed to measure the feasibility of the developed system. Each five EVs and used EV batteries were used along with 20 kW photovoltaic (PV) panels as a renewable energy source. The main objective of the developed system is performing a peak-load shifting by utilizing EVs, used EV batteries and PV panels. The planning of load leveling was performed 24 h ahead for each 30 min period. The studies showed that the application of EVs and used EV batteries in supporting certain small-scale energy management systems is feasible. In addition, some findings during the demonstration test were listed and analyzed for the purpose of further system development and deployment.
Adopting hybrid CDN-P2P in IP-over-WDM networks: An energy-efficiency perspective

Content-based services are gaining tremendous popularity recently with the proliferation of a wide range of contents. Traditionally, hosting and distribution of these ubiquitous contents are accomplished using content distribution networks (CDNs). CDNs distribute contents in multiple hosting locations for load balancing, availability, and easy access. However, scalability and cost of CDNs are becoming major challenges due to the increase of content-based services. To combat these problems, peer-to-peer (P2P) systems are being considered in combination with CDNtocomplement each other in ahybrid system. Research works and practical deployments have shown that hybrid CDN-P2P systems are feasible, inexpensive, and scalable. However, P2P-based content distribution systems are known to consume more system-wide energy than traditional CDNs. Hence, energy efficiency of such a hybrid system must be taken into consideration before wider implementation. In our study, we analyze the energy consumption of a hybrid CDN-P2P system in an IP-over-WDM network and show that, due to its hybrid nature, it is possible to exploit the P2P system to significantly reduce load on the CDN and at the same time constrain-and in some cases reduce - energy consumption. We propose energy-aware as well as energy-unaware content source selection mechanisms to help service providers achieve this win-win situation. Using simulations, we show that, for example, in case of a moderately popular content the server load can be reduced by 30%-40% while reducing the system-wide energy consumption by 10%-20% whencompared with a traditional CDN.
Modelling mental rotation in cognitive robots

Mental rotation concerns the cognitive processes that allow an agent mentally to rotate the image of an object in order to solve a given task, for example to say if two objects with different orientations are the same or different. Here we present a system-level bio-constrained model, developed within a neurorobotics framework, that provides an embodied account of mental rotation processes relying on neural mechanisms involving motor affordance encoding, motor simulation and the anticipation of the sensory consequences of actions (both visual and proprioceptive). This model and methodology are in agreement with the most recent theoretical and empirical research on mental rotation. The model was validated through experiments with a simulated humanoid robot (iCub) engaged in solving a classical mental rotation test. The results of the test show that the robot is able to solve the task and, in agreement with data from psychology experiments, exhibits response times linearly dependent on the angular disparity between the objects. This model represents a novel detailed operational account of the embodied brain mechanisms that may underlie mental rotation.
RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN PARENTING STYLES, TELEVISION VIEWING HABITS AND ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE OF STUDENTS IN GA-EAST MUNICIPALITY, GHANA

This study examined the relationship between parenting styles, television viewing habits, and academic performance of second year students in Ghanaian junior high schools in the Ga-East Municipality. The study was a cross-sectional correlational study using 310 samples drawn from a population of 1700 students. Using a five-point Likert’s scale, Buri's Parental Authority Questionnaire (α =.619) measured parenting style in this study. Students Grade Point Average (GPA) in four subjects (English, Mathematics, Integrated Science and Social Studies) represented academic performance scores, while self-constructed TV viewing instrument (α = .71) was used to gather data on students’ television viewing habit. ANOVA, correlation analysis and multiple regression were used to test four hypotheses. Results indicated that authoritarian and permissive parenting styles correlated negatively with academic performance while authoritative parenting style affected students’ performance positively. The study also discovered that time spent watching TV significantly and negatively influenced academic performance of students. Again, time spent viewing television, did not differ significantly on the basis of age. The study concluded that authoritative parenting style is significant for a better academic grade, and that age is not a factor in regards to TV watching habit of students. Based on the outcome of the study, it was recommended that the Municipal Counsellor should organise career guidance PEOPLE: International Journal of Social Sciences ISSN 2454-5899 Available Online at: http://grdspublishing.org/ 949 programmes for the students to encourage them to be more focused on their studies and also to reduce their TV viewing time. In addition, parents must be encouraged to regulate the TV viewing habits of their children.
Processing Information Security Messages: An Elaboration Likelihood Perspective

The increasing number of security incidents is causing great concern to organizations. Information security awareness programs are an important approach towards educating users to prevent such incidents. However, it is unclear how to effectively design security programs and messages such that they can inform and change user behaviour. The role of individual factors in influencing the processing of security messages is also unclear. This paper attempts to investigate these problems by studying the effects of security message characteristics and recipient factors on users’ attitude towards security, using the information-processing theory of elaboration likelihood. Two models are developed for this study. The first model studies two message characteristics, argument quantity and quality, as determinants of attitude towards security. A 2x2 factorial design experiment will be conducted to investigate the influence of these characteristics on attitude moderated by the elaboration likelihood towards the security message. The second model tests the effect of four recipient factors on elaboration likelihood. The model development, experimental methodology, and data analysis details are described in this research-in-progress paper. The results are expected to inform the design of effective security messages and contribute to research in this area.
Graphical Decision-Theoretic Models on the Web

The principles of decision-analytic decision support, implemented in GeNIe (Graphical Network Interface) and SMILE (Structural Modeling, Inference, and Learning Engine) can be applied in practical decision support systems (DSSs). GeNIe plays the role of a developer's environment and SMILE plays the role of the reasoning engine. A decision support system based on SMILE can be equipped with a dedicated user interface. GeNIe's name and its uncommon capitalization originate from the name Graphical Network Interface, given to the original simple interface to SMILE, the library of functions for graphical probabilistic and decision-theoretic models. GeNIe is an outer shell to SMILE. GeNIe is implemented in Visual C++ and draws heavily on the MFC (Microsoft Foundation Classes). GeNIe runs under one of the most popular computing platforms: Windows operating systems so that this makes it not easily portable. GeNIe is platform dependent and runs only on Windows computers. This is one disadvantage of using GeNIe. This paper presents a development environment for building graphical decision-theoretic models working on the website by using an original engine called “SMILE”. Finally, this paper also presents the prototype for using SMILE on the web.
Local Region Sparse Learning for Image-on-Scalar Regression

Identification of regions of interest (ROI) associated with certain disease has a great impact on public health. Imposing sparsity of pixel values and extracting active regions simultaneously greatly complicate the image analysis. We address these challenges by introducing a novel region-selection penalty in the framework of image-on-scalar regression. Our penalty combines the Smoothly Clipped Absolute Deviation (SCAD) regularization, enforcing sparsity, and the SCAD of total variation (TV) regularization, enforcing spatial contiguity, into one group, which segments contiguous spatial regions against zero-valued background. Efficient algorithm is based on the alternative direction method of multipliers (ADMM) which decomposes the non-convex problem into two iterative optimization problems with explicit solutions. Another virtue of the proposed method is that a divide and conquer learning algorithm is developed, thereby allowing scaling to large images. Several examples are presented and the experimental results are compared with other state-of-the-art approaches.
Crowdsourcing as an Innovation Strategy: A Study on Innovation Platforms in Austria and Switzerland

In this paper we present results from a study on three innovation platforms in Switzerland and Austria. We conducted studies of crowdsourcing platforms run by the Swiss 'Atizo.com', 3M Austria's 'Zukunft-Innovation' and A1 Telekom Austria's 'A1 Innovations' including interviews with the companies and community members. Motives and incentive-systems for crowdsourcing are analysed from the participant's as well as from the company's point of view. Further, the study discusses the risks of crowdsourcing and the importance of intellectual property in an age of rapid idea diffusion and imitation. The examined case studies show overall positive experiences with crowdsourcing and crowd-based idea-contests. However, at the same time the analysed open communities also show a tendency for a closure as we found evidence that over a longer period of time a small group of actors emerges, which provides similar problem solving strategies repeatedly.
Diversity and attack characterization for improved robust watermarking

We consider the use of novel communication tool sets to improve the performance of robust watermarking systems. In particular, we relate the effects of attacks on the watermark to signal interference in a fading environment and employ diversity transmission and channel estimation principles to improve performance. A nonstationary parallel binary symmetric channel (BSC) model of the watermark channel is introduced to more accurately characterize signal tampering and, hence, extract the watermark. Analysis of the system sheds light on novel strategies and domains to embed information to improve the performance of robust data hiding schemes. Simulation and testing verify our theoretical observations.
Mobile Video Transmission Using Scalable Video Coding

The scalable video coding (SVC) standard as an extension of H.264/AVC allows efficient, standard-based temporal, spatial, and quality scalability of video bit streams. Scalability of a video bit stream allows for media bit rate as well as for device capability adaptation. Moreover, adaptation of the bit rate of a video signal is a desirable key feature, if limitation in network resources, mostly characterized by throughput variations, varying delay or transmission errors, need to be considered. Typically, in mobile networks the throughput, delay and errors of a connection (link) depend on the current reception conditions, which are largely influenced by a number of physical factors. In order to cope with the typically varying characteristics of mobile communication channels in unicast, multicast, or broadcast services, different methods for increasing robustness and achieving quality of service are desirable. We will give an overview of SVC and its relation to mobile delivery methods. Furthermore, innovative use cases are introduced which apply SVC in mobile networks.