Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Research Statement : Machine Learning with Humans in the Loop

Intelligent systems, ranging from internet search engines and online retailers to personal robots and MOOCs, live in a symbiotic relationship with their users or at least they should. On the one hand, users greatly benefit from the services provided by these systems. On the other hand, these systems can greatly benefit from the world knowledge that users communicate through their interactions with the system. These interactions – queries, clicks, votes, purchases, answers, demonstrations, etc. – are one of the key sources of “Big Data”, providing enormous potential for economically and autonomously optimizing these systems and for gaining unprecedented amounts of world knowledge required to solve some of the hardest AI problems. The key challenge in working with data that results from human behavior is that it typically does not fit standard machine learning models. In particular, interactions typically do not provide us with ground truth labels, but are simply the result of decisions made by humans. The core insight behind my research is that we need new machine learning models and algorithms that explicitly account for how humans make decisions, which is influenced by a variety of factors like decision context, expertise, skills, motivations and needs. Armed with this insight, I have developed new learning models and learning algorithms that provide provable performance guarantees for learning from human interaction data. I have also implemented and fielded human-interactive learning systems, such as the text search engine for arxiv.org, that autonomously, robustly, and cost-effectively improve their performance. In this vast research area of learning with humans in the loop, I have so far focused on problems motivated by search, recommendation, and education analytics. This work, and how it opens up new research directions, is discussed in the following. As will be evident from this work, my goal is to study machine learning problems with real-world impact from the combined lenses of machine learning, algorithmic theory, and human interaction. I strive to come up with algorithms, that have theoretical guarantees, which I then implement on real user-facing systems and evaluate via user studies. Going forward technological changes, such as smart homes, are only going to grow and enrich the modes for humans to interact with intelligent systems. By exploiting such advances, I hope to work on and create new disruptive technologies that can fundamentally alter our day-to-day life.
A simulation model for assessing aberration detection methods used in public health surveillance for systems with limited baselines

Public health officials continue to develop and implement new types of ongoing surveillance systems in an attempt to detect aberrations in surveillance data as early as possible. In public health surveillance, aberrations are traditionally defined as an observed value being greater than an expected historical value for that same time period. To account for seasonality, traditional aberration detection methods use three or more years of baseline data across the same time period to calculate the expected historical value. Due to the recent implementation of short‐term bioterrorism surveillance systems, many of the new surveillance systems have limited historical data from which to calculate an expected baseline value.
The SERCA pump as a therapeutic target: Making a “smart bomb” for prostate cancer

Prostate cancer is uniformly fatal once it has spread outside of the prostate gland. Prostate cancers have a remarkably low proliferative rate, which may in part explain their relative unresponsiveness to conventional antiproliferative chemotherapy. New therapies for prostate cancer that activate proliferation independent cell death are therefore needed. The endoplasmic reticulum (ER) has emerged as an organelle that plays a major role in cell signaling pathways, cellular response to stress and cellular activation of apoptosis. In this review, the SERCA pump is identified as an ER protein whose normal function is required by all cells and represents a potential therapeutic target for cancer therapy. Sustained SERCA inhibition by agents such as thapsigargin results in activation of ER-stress response and simultaneous activation of apoptotic pathways within the ER and the mitochondria. Due to the SERCA pump's critical role in normal cellular metabolism, agents like thapsigargin directed toward inhibiting SERCA function would likely produce significant toxicity to normal cells and, therefore, must be selectively targeted to cancer sites. The cytotoxicity of thapsigargin can be attenuated, however by coupling to a targeting peptide to produce an inactive prodrug that is only activated by prostate cancer specific proteases such as the serine protease prostate-specific antigen (PSA). PSA-activated thapsigargin prodrugs have been characterized that are selectively toxic to PSA-producing prostate cancer cells in vitro and in vivo. These prodrugs are currently undergoing preclinical evaluation as potential targeted therapy for prostate cancer.
Anti‐stress Activity of Ocimum sanctum: Possible Effects on Hypothalamic–Pituitary–Adrenal Axis

The present study investigated anti‐stress potential of Ocimum sanctum in chronic variable stress (CVS) paradigm. Further, the possible mechanism of anti‐stress was explored in vitro using cell and cell‐free assays. Rats were administered O. sanctum followed by CVS regimen for a period of 16 days. On days 4, 8, 12, and 16, body weight and immobility time in forced swim test were measured. In addition, the possible inhibitory effect of O. sanctum and ursolic acid on cortisol release and CRHR1 receptor activity were studied in cell‐based assays, while inhibitory effects on 11β‐hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 1 (11β‐HSD1) and catechol‐O‐methyltransferase (COMT) were studied in cell‐free assays. CVS group demonstrated less body weight gain and higher immobility time than O. sanctum administered groups, while oral administration of O. sanctum significantly increased body weight gain and decreased the immobility time. Further, O. sanctum and its constituents inhibited cortisol release and exhibited a significant CRHR1 receptor antagonist activity. Also, they had specific inhibitory activity towards 11β‐HSD1 and COMT activity. Thus, O. sanctum was found to be effective in the management of stress effects, and anti‐stress activity could be due to inhibition of cortisol release, blocking CRHR1 receptor, and inhibiting 11β‐HSD1 and COMT activities. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Chatten als Kommunikationsspiel

Ausgehend vom Rahmenkonzept Goffmans wird ein Spielmodell des Chattens entwickelt, das eine weiter gehende Erklärung der Chatnutzung bietet. Mit Hilfe des Modells lässt sich zeigen, warum Anonymität und Unverbindlichkeit als grundlegende Charakteristika der Chatkommunikation nicht zu einer völligen Missachtung von Gesprächsund Umgangskonventionen führen. Das Spielmodell basiert auf den Grundelementen konventioneller Spiele und wurde in einer empirischen Studie mit einer Kombination von Beobachtung und Lautem Denken konkretisiert. Als Spielhandlungen werden die einzelnen Kommunikate der Chatter betrachtet. Die Darstellung der eigenen Identität zu steuern und die des anderen zu enttarnen, kann als spielimmanentes Ziel begriffen werden. Dabei geht es nicht um das bloße Entlarven des Gesprächspartners, vielmehr ist ein origineller und geistreicher Weg dorthin – über die Spielhandlungen – entscheidend. Dementsprechend entwickeln die Chatter Spielstrategien, um ihre Kommunikationsgeschicklichkeit zu steigern: Aktivität, Schnelligkeit und Originalität machen einen Spieler zum gefragten Gesprächspartner. Beherrscht man diese Strategien nicht oder missachtet man die grundlegenden Umgangsformen, wird man im Chat ignoriert und aus dem Spiel ausgeschlossen – mit der Konsequenz, dass auch das Spielvergnügen beendet ist.
BCL2 expression is a prognostic marker for the activated B-cell-like type of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma.

BACKGROUND The role of BCL2 as a predictor of survival in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) is controversial. DLBCL is heterogeneous, and the expression of BCL2 is variable within the two major subgroups of DLBCL, germinal center B-cell-like (GCB) and activated B-cell-like (ABC) DLBCL, as well as primary mediastinal DLBCL. PATIENTS AND METHODS In this study, we investigated the correlation of BCL2 expression with survival in the two major subgroups of DLBCL, as well as the mechanisms of BCL2 expression. RESULTS There was no significant correlation between BCL2 protein expression and overall survival within the GCB subgroup, but BCL2 expression had a significant adverse effect on overall survival within the ABC subgroup (P = .008). This correlation was also observed at the mRNA level (P < .04). The difference remained significant when the analyses were performed at different cutoff values. The t(14;18) was frequently observed in the GCB subgroup and was highly associated with BCL2 expression. Patients with ABC DLBCL did not exhibit t(14;18) but had a markedly higher frequency of chromosome 18q21 amplification, on which BCL2 resides. Thus, alternative mechanisms such as 18q21 amplification or activation of the nuclear factor-kappa B pathway, as reported previously, seem to be mainly responsible for the upregulation of BCL2 expression in the ABC subgroup. CONCLUSION Treating all DLBCL as a single entity ignores the mechanistic differences in BCL2 upregulation and obscures the prognostic significance of BCL2 expression. Hence, the significance of BCL2 and other biomarkers should be assessed in the context of DLBCL subgroups in future studies.
Physiology and pharmacokinetics of a novel hemoglobin-based oxygen carrier in humans.

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the physiology and pharmacokinetics of a novel hemoglobin-based oxygen carrier of bovine origin. DESIGN Randomized, single-blind, placebo-controlled, dose-escalation study. SETTING The Upjohn Research Clinics (Kalamazoo, MI). SUBJECTS Normal healthy adult men between the ages of 18 and 45 yrs. There were 18 subjects who received active treatment and 23 controls. INTERVENTIONS All subjects had phlebotomy of 15% of blood volume (performed in <15 mins) followed by isovolemic hemodilution (3:1, Ringer's lactate to the volume of whole blood removed) over a 90-min period, and either active drug (polymerized bovine hemoglobin) or a control infusion of lactated Ringer's solution (each infusion given over a total of 4.3 hrs). The subjects randomized to active treatment received a loading dose and a continuous infusion of polymerized bovine hemoglobin for a total dose of 16.5, 24.1, 30.2, 38.0, or 45.0 g. All subjects had an indwelling radial artery catheter (for blood pressure and arterial blood gas measurements), determination of cardiac function (by impedance plethysmography), serial pulmonary function tests (spirometry and diffusion capacity), and metabolic cart measurements. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS Pharmacokinetics of the plasma bovine hemoglobin demonstrated that the elimination of the hemoglobin-based oxygen carrier was a linear, first-order process and that there was no renal excretion. Peak plasma concentrations were between 1 to 2 g/dL and plasma half-life approached 20 hrs at the highest doses given. Diffusion capacity of oxygen was increased up to 20% above baseline in the 38.0 and 45.0 g groups in comparison with controls (approximately 14% below baseline) between 2 and 24 hrs after the infusion (p < .01). Other pulmonary function tests and arterial blood gas measurements were unremarkable. Arterial oxygen content and oxygen delivery tended to be greater in active groups than in controls. CONCLUSIONS The plasma concentrations of bovine hemoglobin were directly proportional to the doses administered. An increase in diffusion capacity paralleled the plasma bovine hemoglobin concentrations. Dosing of the hemoglobin-based oxygen carrier of bovine origin to a target plasma hemoglobin concentration can be achieved using pharmacokinetic principles with measurable effects on oxygen physiology.
REGULATORY ASPECTS OF ENERGY STORAGE IN SWEDEN

This paper highlights the possibilities and limitations of investing in energy storage for use at distribution level under the existing regulatory framework in Sweden. The paper further gives a brief overview of possible applications and ownership models for energy storage in a distribution grid. It was concluded that it is allowed for a network operator to own an energy-storage installation; there are however restrictions in the use of the installation for trade in electricity. A general observation from the study was that there are uncertainties in the interpretation of the laws and regulations due to the complete absence of experience in the use of grid-size energy storage.
Design and Characterization of a 3D Printed Soft Robotic Wrist Sleeve with 2 DoF for Stroke Rehabilitation

Stroke incidence may cause severe upper limb impairment, reducing the quality of life of patients who are unable to carry out daily functional tasks. In recent years, soft robotics has emerged as a promising avenue in providing robot assisted rehabilitation due to its compliant nature which makes it safe for interaction with humans. Task-specific rehabilitative exercises require the mobility of multiple upper limb joints but majority of the soft robotic exoskeletons thus far focuses on rehabilitating the hand. To date, soft robotic wrist exoskeletons are lacking in providing sufficient degree of freedom to the wrist in safe operating conditions. In our work, we present a 3D printed Soft Robotic Wrist Sleeve (SWS) that is capable of providing wrist mobility in two degrees of freedom with sufficient torque and bending to recover at least 70% of a healthy individual's range of motion. We also describe the fabrication process of the fold-based design which may be adopted in other applications.
Retention of the herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) UL37 protein on single-stranded DNA columns requires the HSV-1 ICP8 protein

The UL37 and ICP8 proteins present in herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1)-infected-cell extracts produced at 24 h postinfection coeluted from single-stranded-DNA-cellulose columns. Experiments carried out with the UL37 protein expressed by a vaccinia virus recombinant (V37) revealed that the UL37 protein did not exhibit DNA-binding activity in the absence of other HSV proteins. Analysis of extracts derived from cells coinfected with V37 and an ICP8-expressing vaccinia virus recombinant (V8) and analysis of extracts prepared from cells infected with the HSV-1 ICP8 deletion mutants d21 and n10 revealed that the retention of the UL37 protein on single-stranded DNA columns required a DNA-binding-competent ICP8 protein.
Detection of Filamentous Bulking Problems: Developing an Image Analysis System for Sludge Composition Monitoring

This article describes a fully automatic image analysis procedure for fast and reliable characterization of the activated sludge composition, that is, the floc and filament features. The algorithms developed for each of the analysis steps, that is, segmentation, object recognition, and characterization, are described in detail. Although the application range of the recognition method is a priori expanded by introducing a number of control parameters, the procedure proves to be intrinsically robust as it produces satisfactory results for a fixed set of parameter values for a wide variety of image types.
The Flash Electroretinogram of Burrowing Owl – Athene cunicularia

Background: The burrowing owl (Athene cunicularia) has peculiar visual capacity, presenting conspicuous vision, what can be justified, among other motives, by the presence of cones and rods in the macula and the existence of double cones. The Athene cunicularia presents retinal cell circuit highly organized and complex, with presence of two foveae. Thickening in the ganglion cell layer surrounding the fovea contributes to the change of the refractive index of the retina at this location, thus increasing the sensitivity for detecting motion. The high concentration of photoreceptors in the fovea is the cause of the maximum optical resolution of this region. Results: We conduct a transversal observational study according to the protocol of the International Society for Clinical Electrophysiology of Vision (ISCEV) that aims at evaluating the retinal response of the species after stimulation with white light, both in photopic and scotopic stimuli. The verification of the p-value and t-value, we obtained for the variables, respectively: a-wave amplitude 0.02 and 2.94; b-wave amplitude 0.12 and 1.76; b-wave time culmination 0.07 and 2.12;b-wave latency 0.74 and 0.34. Conclusion: In order to standardize the variables of the electroretinogram of the species, the authors propose to evaluate the electroretinogram components under white light in both stimuli, providing electrophysiological data from the visual stimulation of retinal species, encouraging the Biological Sciences with substrate for future research and clinical evaluations.
Incomplete reporting of men’s fertility in the united states and britain: A research note

We evaluate men;s retrospective fertility histories from the British Household Panel Survey and the U.S. Panel Study of Income Dynamics (PSID). Further, we analyze the PSID men’s panel-updated fertility histories for their possible superiority over retrospective collection. One third to one half of men’s nonmarital births and births within previous marriages are missed in estimates from retrospective histories. Differential survey underrepresentation of previously married men compared with previously married women accounts for a substantial proportion of the deficits in previous-marriage fertility. More recent retrospective histories and panel-updated fertility histories improve reporting completeness, primarily by reducing the proportion of marital births from unions that are no longer intact at the survey date.
Experiments on string matching in memory structures

Various string matching algorithms have been designed and some experimental work on string matching over bounded alphabets has been performed, but string matching over unbounded alphabets has been little investigated. We present here experimental results where symbols are taken among potentially infinite sets such as integers, reals or composed structures. These results show that, in most cases, it is better to decompose each symbol into a sequence of bytes and use algorithms which assume that the alphabet is bounded, and use heuristics on symbols. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Discrete Mode Laser diodes with ultra narrow linewidth emission Ex-facet, free-running ultra-low linewidth (~100 kHz), single mode laser emission is demonstrated using low cost, regrowth-free ridge waveguide Discrete Mode Fabry Pérot laser diode chips. Introduction: Attainment of the minimum achiev

Introduction: Attainment of the minimum achievable laser diode linewidth with the least associated level of device complexity and lowest component cost are critical for realising many single wavelength laser applications in optical communications, sensors and clocks. The free-running linewidth reported for ordinary DFB and DBR laser devices has been so high (~10MHz.) as to prevent their use in many applications while attaining monolithic single mode laser diode emission line-widths well below 1MHz has to date been the subject of ‘hero’ demonstrations with highly complex devices emitting at extremely high powers [1].
Alternative Solutions to Beak trimming in Layer Hens to Reduce Feather pecking and Improve Welfare

Feather pecking (FP) is one of the most significant welfare and economic problems in the egg production industry (Wysocki et al., 2010). For many years the solution to this problem has been beak trimming, which typically involves removing approximately 30% of the upper and lower mandibles with an electrically heated blade (Dennis & Cheng, 2010). However, this practice is now under scrutiny due to growing concerns for animal welfare. The procedure causes acute pain and distress in the bird and there is also evidence to suggest chronic pain due to the formation of neuromas (Cheng, 2006). Furthermore, removing part of the beak mechanically impairs the birds’ ability to express natural behaviours such as foraging. Therefore, it is reasonable to suggest that the practice of beak trimming is simply substituting one welfare issue with another. This essay endeavours to explore the reasons behind FP in layer hens and how these may underpin the potential of alternative solutions to this problem.
Investigation of the structural basis for thermodynamic stabilities of tandem GU wobble pairs: NMR structures of (rGGAGUUCC)2 and (rGGAUGUCC)2.

The symmetric, tandem GU mismatch motifs, and , which only differ in the mismatch order, have an average difference in thermodynamic stability of 2 kcal/mol at 37 degrees C. Thermodynamic studies of duplexes containing these motifs indicate the effect is largely localized to the mismatches and adjacent base pairs. The three-dimensional structures of two representative duplexes, (rGGAGUUCC)2 and (rGGAUGUCC)2, were determined by two-dimensional NMR and a simulated annealing protocol. Local deviations are similar to other intrahelical GU mismatches with little effect on backbone torsion angles and a slight overtwisting between the base pair 5' of the G of the mismatch and the mismatch itself. Comparisons of the resulting stacking patterns along with electrostatic potential maps suggest that interactions between highly negative electrostatic regions between base pairs may play a role in the observed thermodynamic differences.
Using pulse width and waveform modulation to enhance power conversion efficiency under constraint of low input power

This paper presents a novel wireless power transmission (WPT) technique by using pulse width modulation (PWM) and pulse waveform modulation (PWFM). Instead of using continuous wave for WPT, we could enhance the output voltage (Vout) and power conversion efficiency (PCE) of RF-DC rectifier by adjusting duty cycles and waveforms. We could determine the optimal duty cycle and waveforms to achieve the best performance according to the current through the load. Therefore, the PCE can be improved under constraint of low input power for biomedical applications. The WPT system and biomedical WPT system were established to perform wireless biomedical experimental verification. From the measurement, the PCE applying to a LED load can be improved by more than 30% at input power of -6 dBm with PWM WPT, and the PCE can be improved by 2.5 times by using PWFM WPT for biomedical applications.
Architecture multi-coeurs et temps d'exécution au pire cas. (Multicore architectures and worst-case execution time)

Les taches critiques en systemes temps-reel sont soumises a des contraintes temporelles et de correction. La validation d'un tel systeme repose sur l'estimation du comportement temporel au pire cas de ses taches. Le partage de ressources, inherent aux architectures multi-cœurs, entrave le calcul de ces estimations. Le comportement temporel d'une tache depend de ses rivales du fait de l'arbitrage de l'acces aux ressources ou de modifications concurrentes de leur etat. Cette etude vise a l'estimation de la contribution temporelle de la hierarchie memoire au pire temps d'execution de taches critiques. Les methodes existantes, pour caches d'instructions, sont etendues afin de supporter caches de donnees prives et partages, et permettre l'analyse de hierarchies memoires riches. Le court-circuitage de cache est ensuite utilise pour reduire la pression sur les caches partages. Nous proposons a cette fin differentes heuristiques basees sur la capture de la reutilisation de blocs de cache entre differents acces memoire. Notre seconde proposition est la politique de partitionnement Preti qui permet l'allocation d'un espace sans conflits a une tache. Preti favorise aussi les performances de taches non critiques concurrentes aux temps-reel dans les systemes de criticite hybride.