Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The spinal pathophysiology of spasticity – from a basic science point of view

Spasticity is a term, which was introduced to describe the velocity‐sensitive increased resistance of a limb to manipulation in subjects with lesions of descending motor pathways. This distinguishes spasticity from the changes in passive muscle properties, which are often seen in these patients, but are not velocity‐sensitive. Increased excitability of the stretch reflex is thus a central component of the definition of spasticity. This review describes changes in cellular properties and transmission in a number of spinal reflex pathways, which may explain the increased stretch reflex excitability. The review focuses mainly on results derived from the use of non‐invasive electrophysiological techniques, which have been developed during the past 20–30 years to investigate spinal neuronal networks in human subjects, but work from animal models is also considered. The reflex hyperexcitability develops over several months following the primary lesion and involves adaptation in the spinal neuronal circuitries caudal to the lesion. In animal models, changes in cellular properties (such as ‘plateau potentials’) have been reported, but the relevance of these changes to human spasticity has not been clarified. In humans, numerous studies have suggested that reduction of spinal inhibitory mechanisms (in particular that of disynaptic reciprocal inhibition) is involved. The inter‐subject variability of these mechanisms and the lack of objective quantitative measures of spasticity have impeded disclosure of a clear causal relationship between the alterations in the inhibitory mechanisms and the stretch reflex hyperexcitability. Techniques which make such a quantitative measure possible as well as longitudinal studies where development of reflex excitability and changes in the inhibitory mechanisms are followed over time are in great demand.
On Conflicts and Strategies in QBF

QBF solving techniques can be divided into the DPLL-based and expansion-based. In this paper we look at how these two techniques can be combined while using strategy extraction as a means of interaction between the two. Once propagation derives a conﬂict for one of the players, we analyse the proof of such and devise a strategy for the opponent. Subsequently, this strategy is used to constrain the losing player. The implemented prototype shows feasibility of the approach. A number of avenues for future research can be envisioned. Can strategies be employed in a diﬀerent fashion? Can better strategy be constructed? Do the presented techniques generalize beyond QBF?
In vivo and in vitro analysis of transcriptional activation mediated by the human cytomegalovirus major immediate-early proteins

To define mechanistically how the human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) major immediate-early (IE) proteins induce early-gene transcription, the IE1 72-kDa protein, the IE2 55-kDa protein, and the IE2 86-kDa protein were analyzed for their ability to activate transcription from an HCMV early promoter in vivo and in vitro. In transient-expression assays in U373MG astrocytoma/glioblastoma and HeLa cells, only the IE2 86-kDa protein was able to activate the HCMV early promoter to high levels. In HeLa cells, the IE1 72-kDa protein was able to activate the promoter to a low but detectable level, and the level of promoter activity observed in response to the IE2 86-kDa protein was increased synergistically following cotransfection of the constructs expressing both IE proteins. To examine the interaction of the HCMV IE proteins with the RNA polymerase II transcription machinery, we assayed the ability of Escherichia coli-synthesized proteins to activate the HCMV early promoter in nuclear extracts prepared from U373MG cells, HeLa cells, and Drosophila embryos. The results of the in vitro experiments correlated well with those obtained in vivo. The basal activity of the promoter was minimal in both the HeLa and U373MG extracts but was stimulated 6- to 10-fold by the IE2 86-kDa protein. With a histone H1-deficient extract from Drosophila embryos, the HCMV early promoter was quite active and was stimulated two- to fourfold by the IE2 86-kDa protein. Addition of histone H1 at 1 molecule per 40 to 50 bp of DNA template significantly repressed basal transcription from this promoter. However, the IE2 86-kDa protein, but none of the other IE proteins, was able to counteract the H1-mediated repression and stimulate transcription at least 10- to 20-fold. The promoter specificity of the activation was demonstrated by the inability of the IE2 86-kDa protein to activate the Drosophila Krüppel promoter in either the presence or absence of histone H1. These results suggest that one mechanism of transcription activation by the IE2 86-kDa protein involves antirepression.
Outdoor pedestrian tracking by multiple mobile robots based on SLAM and GPS fusion

This paper presents laser-based pedestrian tracking system in outdoor environments using multiple mobile robots. Each robot detects pedestrians using its own laser scan image by an occupancy-grid-based method and tracks the detected pedestrians via Kalman filtering. When the robots are in close proximity to each other, they exchange pedestrian tracking information through intercommunication, and tracking data are combined using the Covariance Intersection (CI) method. In this cooperative tracking method, the robots constantly identify their own postures with a high degree of accuracy in a common coordinate frame. We apply EKF-SLAM and GPS fusion for robot localization. The experimental results for tracking two pedestrians with two robots validate the proposed method.
Fundamental limits on ex-post enforcement and implications for spectrum rights

The combination of emerging new communication technologies, economic growth, and current limitations on the amount of available dedicated spectrum necessitate sharing spectrum dynamically between incumbent (primary) users and opportunistic (secondary) users. This paper builds upon the seminal “spectrum jails” paradigm — a mathematical model for light-handed ex-post enforcement. Analyzing this as a Stackelberg game, we examine what kinds of rights for primaries and secondaries we can credibly enforce. While the primary cannot possibly be made to trust that secondaries will always be honest, it can trust that it will be protected from too much harmful interference and we show how the enforcer can set the ex-post enforcement parameters to do this no matter which secondary user becomes capable of using the band. Similarly, it is impossible to give a universal guarantee to all secondary users that the primary will never make false reports (“cry wolf”) against them. However, it is possible to show that “compatible” secondary users will trust that the primary user will not make false reports against them when the spectrum opportunity is sufficiently attractive for them to use.
Estrategias de Control Basadas en Eventos Aplicadas a Robots Móviles

Los sistemas de control basados en tiempo continuo y discreto se utilizan de forma masiva para resolver los problemas de navegacion en robots moviles. Estas tecnicas de control gozan de una base teorica solida y de metodologias que facilitan su diseno y sintonia en este tipo de aplicaciones. Por otro lado, en los ultimos anos, las tecnicas de control basadas en eventos estan ganando relevancia y se estan posicionando como una alternativa a los esquemas clasicos por sus ventajas diferenciales respecto al consumo de recursos. En esta tesis, se profundiza en el estudio de las tecnicas de control basadas en eventos y se aplican estos metodos a los algoritmos de navegacion en robotica movil. Los esquemas de control planteados resuelven el problema de navegacion con una precision similar a los metodos clasicos basados en tiempo continuo/discreto. Por otro lado, se definen los criterios que deben cumplir estos nuevos sistemas para garantizar su estabilidad. Como resultado, estas nuevas estructuras obtienen grandes eficiencias en el consumo de recursos, convirtiendose asi, en una alternativa a los esquemas tradicionales. Se hace un analisis exhaustivo de los algoritmos de navegacion mas comunes usados en robotica movil y se define su implementacion en los nuevos esquemas de control planteados. Seguidamente, se desarrollan estos mecanismos de control para robot moviles diferenciales. Gracias a la flexibilidad de las estructuras planteadas, estas soluciones son de aplicacion directa en cualquier otro tipo de robot movil. Se demuestra que el ruido en estos sistemas de control tiene un alto impacto en el consumo de recursos. En este sentido, se plantean mecanismos dinamicos de sintonia que minimizan estos efectos, consiguiendo ademas hacer estos nuevos esquemas mas inmunes a las perturbaciones. Dada la alta dependencia que estos algoritmos tienen con la informacion de posicionamiento, en esta tesis se plantean nuevas metodologias de localizacion para robots moviles en interiores que mejoran de forma considerable los esquemas tradicionales. Por ultimo, a partir de este trabajo se abren nuevas lineas de investigacion. Estas van dirigidas a experimentar estos esquemas de control en vehiculos moviles mas complejos, analizar nuevos tipos de perturbaciones y plantear desarrollos teoricos para analizar la estabilidad de las arquitecturas de control aqui planteadas.
WHO European Childhood Obesity Surveillance Initiative in Serbia: a prevalence of overweight and obesity among 6–9-year-old school children

Abstract Background: The World Health Organization (WHO) European Childhood Obesity Surveillance Initiative (COSI) is a public health program established in order to understand the progress of the obesity epidemic in young populations and gain inter-country comparisons within the European region, yet the data from a number of East European countries, including Serbia, were not available then. Therefore, the main aim of this cross-sectional study was to collect data about the prevalence of overweight and obesity among 6–9-year-old school children in Serbia according to the standardized protocol during the Fourth COSI Implementation Round. Methods: From September 2015 to November 2015, 5102 first- and second-grade primary-school children (age 7.7±0.6 years) were assessed for weight, height, and body mass index (BMI) in 14 Serbian school districts. Results: The prevalence rates of obesity, as calculated using the International Obesity Task Force (IOTF) cut-off points, vary across different age groups, with the lowest obesity rates reported in 7-year-old boys (6.2%), while the highest obesity prevalence rates were observed in 6-year-old boys (9.7%). In addition, being overweight was strongly associated with poor local community development and lower level of urbanization. The overall prevalence of overweight (23.1%, including obesity) and obesity (6.9%) in Serbian primary-school children seem to be comparable to rather high rates previously reported in other countries participating in the COSI program, indicating an obesity epidemic in Serbian children. Conclusions: This surveillance system should be regularly implemented throughout Europe, providing comparable data on rates of overweight/obesity in primary schools that might drive prudent actions to reverse the pandemic trend of childhood obesity.
Real-Time Uncertainty Estimation of Odometric Trajectory as a Function of the Actual Manoeuvres of Autonomous Guided Vehicles

This paper presents the description of a novel uncertainty estimation method employed for the navigation of autonomous guided vehicles. In the proposed algorithm the uncertainty of the odometric navigation system is estimated as a function of the actual manoeuvre being carried out, which is identified by navigation data itself. The result is a recursive method for estimating the evolution of spatial uncertainty which takes into account the unknown systematic effects. The method is explained starting from the measurement models and its parameters as a function of the actual manoeuvres. Experimental verification was carried out using an autonomous vehicle. Compatibility between a reference environment referred system and the uncertainty estimated by the proposed method was achieved 95% of the trials
Reconnaissance de bâtiments et localisation de photographies au moyen d'un descripteur de texture

RESUME. La reconnaissance automatique des bâtiments est une etape essentielle pour la realite augmentee et un outil possible pour la geolocalisation d’une prise de vue. Les recherches dans ce domaine n’utilisent pas la localisation par contenu de l’image. Cet article presente une methodologie pour l’enrichissement d’une base de donnees urbaine SIG grâce a un descripteur de texture de facade calcule sur des images de reference. Cet indicateur est ensuite utilise pour retrouver ce bâtiment dans une nouvelle image et le localiser dans une base de donnees SIG 3D afin d’estimer sa position et son orientation dans le repere de l’appareil photographique qui a pris le cliche. La qualite des resultats obtenus fait l’objet d’une discussion.
The Working Alliance and The Transference Neurosis

The clinical material on which this presentation is based is derived from patients who developed unexpected difficulties in the course of psychoanalytic therapy. Some of these patients had undergone one or more analyses with other analysts; others were patients of mine who returned for further analysis. In this group there were patients who were unable to get beyond the preliminary phases of analysis. Even after several years of analysis they were not really “in analysis. ” Others seemed interminable; there was a marked discrepancy between the copiousness of insight and the paucity of change. The clinical syndromes these cases manifested were heterogeneous in diagnostic category, ego functions, or dynamics of personality. The key to understanding the essential pathology as well as the therapeutic stalemate was in the failure of the patient to develop a reliable working relation with the analyst. In each case the patient was either unable to establish or maintain a durable working alliance with the analyst and the analyst neglected this fact, pursuing instead the analysis of other transference phenomena. This error in technique was observable in psychoanalysts with a wide range of clinical experience and I recognized the same shortcoming in myself when I resumed analysis with patients previously treated.
Calcul du flot optique par assimilation variationnelle de données

Nous proposons de resoudre le probleme classique de l'estimation du mouvement dans une sequence d'images en calculant le flot optique. Pour cela, nous utilisons une approche basee sur l'assimilation variationnelle de donnees qui permet de realiser une integration temporelle du calcul du flot optique : les gradients spatiotemporels constituent les observations et sont assimiles dans un modele de transport du flot optique. Cette approche a deux avantages principaux. D'une part elle permet de definir des modeles d'erreurs qui, in fine, peuvent gerer de facon naturelle les donnees manquantes. D'autre part, le schema numerique incremental sur lequel repose l'assimilation variationnelle de donnees permet de resoudre efficacement les systemes non-lineaires. Or, la contrainte du flot optique n'est pas lineaire dans sa forme non differentiee. Notre methode prend donc en charge l'estimation de grands deplacements.
Successful and unsuccessful users of bilateral amplification: Differences and similarities in binaural performance

Abstract Bilateral amplification seems to be the best solution for bilaterally hearing-impaired persons. Nevertheless, some individuals are unsuccessful with this strategy. The goals of the present study were to develop tests to improve the diagnostic test battery before rehabilitation of hearing-impaired persons with bilateral or unilateral amplification, and to evaluate the tests with normally-hearing subjects and with two groups of hearing-impaired persons. The latter two groups contained 11 successful and 11 unsuccessful users of bilateral amplification respectively. Hearing thresholds, speech recognition in noise, signal analysis ability, binaural abilities, and dichotic tests were used in the investigation. The subjects answered a questionnaire and hearing aid gain curves were measured. The results for the two groups were similar for peripheral hearing functions and binaural performance. The unilateral amplification group showed significantly worse results in speech-in-noise and dichotic tests. Spatial aspects within the questionnaire were correlated to amplification preference. We therefore suggest the inclusion of speech-in-noise, dichotic tests, and questions on spatial orientation into the diagnostic scheme before rehabilitation with hearing aids. Sumario La amplificación bilateral parece ser la mejor solución para las personas con daño auditivo bilateral. Sin embargo, algunos individuos no tienen éxito con esta estrategia. Las metas del presente estudio fueron desarrollar pruebas para mejorar la batería diagnósticas de exámenes antes de la rehabilitación de personas hipoacúsicas con amplificación unilateral o bilateral, y evaluar las pruebas en personas con audición normal, y con dos grupos de personas con daño auditivo. Los últimos dos grupos incluían 11 usuarios exitosos y 11 usuarios no exitosos de amplificación bilateral, respectivamente. Se utilizaron en esta investigación umbrales auditivos, reconocimiento de lenguaje en ruido, capacidad de análisis de la señal, capacidades binaurales y pruebas dicóticas. Los sujetos contestaron un cuestionario y se midieron las curvas de ganancia para auxiliares auditivos. Los resultados para los dos grupos fueron similares para las funciones auditivas periféricas y para el desempeño binaural. El grupo de amplificación unilateral mostró resultados significativamente peores en las pruebas dicóticas y de lenguaje en ruido. Los aspectos espaciales dentro del cuestionario se correlacionaron con las preferencias en la amplificación. Sugerimos, por tanto, la inclusión de pruebas dicóticas, de lenguaje en ruido y preguntas sobre orientación espacial en el esquema diagnóstico antes de la rehabilitación con auxiliares auditivos.
Extract Method Refactoring-Vorschläge automatisch ableiten

Das Extract Method Refactoring ist eine gebräuchliche Art, zu lange Methoden im Code zu kürzen. Bevor aber Tool-Support für das Refactoring genutzt werden kann, müssen Entwickler zunächst geeignete Codezeilen identifizieren – ein zeitintensives und fehleranfälliges Unterfangen. Dieses Paper präsentiert einen Ansatz, der automatisch Vorschläge für Extract Method Refactorings generiert. Dazu werden zunächst alle gültigen Extract Method Refactorings berechnet und anschließend diejenigen vorgeschlagen, die die Komplexität des Codes am meisten verringern. Der Ansatz beruht auf einer Scoring-Funktion, deren Gewichtung durch Learning-to-Rank-Verfahren bestimmt wurde. Wir stellen in diesem Paper auch die wichtigsten Ergebnisse aus den Learning-to-Rank-Verfahren anhand von drei Forschungsfragen vor.
Antiangiogenic Treatment Prevents Adventitial Constrictive Remodeling in Graft Arteriosclerosis

Background. Lumen loss in graft arteriosclerosis is the consequence of the development of a thick neointima and constrictive arterial remodeling. The latter is due to adventitial chronic inflammation and excessive perivascular collagen deposition. We reasoned that blockade of the portal of entry of inflammatory effectors may constitute a strategy to prevent constrictive arterial remodeling. Methods and Results. We found that an anti-angiogenic therapy (ABT-510 nonapeptide), devoid of direct immunomodulatory properties, dramatically reduced adventitial angiogenesis by 66% (P<0.0001) in the rat aortic interposition model of graft arteriosclerosis. The associated decreased entry of inflammatory cells (44%; P<0.00001) resulted in drastic reduction of collagen deposition (57%; P<0.0001) thereby preventing subsequent adventitial constrictive remodeling and reduction of lumen surface area (5.26±0.74 vs. 8.58±2.48 &mgr;m2; Control vs. ABT-510-treated rats; P<0.0001). ABT-510 had no effect on the development of the neointima. Conclusion. This work supports the idea that targeting angiogenesis may act synergistically with conventional immunosuppressive therapy in preventing graft arteriosclerosis, a crucial feature of chronic graft rejection.
Algoritmos de generación de consigna de velocidad angular y ajuste del control de velocidad en aerogeneradores de media potencia

El presente trabajo de tesis esta dirigido a la optimizacion del algoritmo de consigna de velocidad angular del rotor de un aerogenerador de media potencia (100kW). El calculo de los parametros integral y proporcional del controlador PI se realiza mediante la tecnica de programacion de ganancias para seis aproximaciones del modelo de aerogenerador: Metodo I, II, III, IV, V y VI. Se muestran cuatro estrategias de ajuste de la consigna de velocidad angular del rotor: Constante, convencional, aprendizaje por refuerzo (RL) y optimizacion metaheuristica por enjambre de particulas (PSO). Los metodos y las estrategias se evaluan en base a multiples objetivos contrapuestos: maximizar la energia captada del viento, minimizar el error de la velocidad angular, minimizar la aceleracion angular del rotor y minimizar la velocidad angular del pitch. Por un lado, comparando los metodos, los mejores resultados se obtienen con usando los metodos IV, V y VI. Por otro lado, comparando las estrategias, la estrategia RL no mejora significativamente los resultados en comparacion con la estrategia constante y convencional, mientras que la estrategia PSO obtiene los mejores resultados.
Yeast Rev1 protein promotes complex formation of DNA polymerase ζ with Pol32 subunit of DNA polymerase δ

Yeast DNA polymerase (Pol) δ, essential for DNA replication, is comprised of 3 subunits, Pol3, Pol31, and Pol32. Of these, the catalytic subunit Pol3 and the second subunit Pol31 are essential, whereas the Pol32 subunit is not essential for DNA replication. Although Pol32 is an integral component of Polδ, it is also required for translesion synthesis (TLS) by Polζ. To begin to decipher the bases of Pol32 involvement in Polζ-mediated TLS, here we examine whether Pol32 physically interacts with Polζ or its associated proteins and provide evidence for the physical interaction of Pol32 with Rev1. Rev1 plays an indispensable structural role in Polζ-mediated TLS and it binds the Rev3 catalytic subunit of Polζ. Here, we show that although Pol32 does not directly bind Polζ, Pol32 can bind the Rev1–Polζ complex through its interaction with Rev1. We find that Pol32 binding has no stimulatory effect on DNA synthesis either by Rev1 in the Rev1–Pol32 complex or by Polζ in the Polζ–Rev1–Pol32 complex, irrespective of whether proliferating cell nuclear antigen has been loaded onto DNA or not. We discuss evidence for the biological significance of Rev1 binding to Pol32 for Polζ function in TLS and suggest a structural role for Rev1 in modulating the binding of Polζ with Pol32 in Polδ stalled at a lesion site.