Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Investigating Agile Adaptation for Project Development

Agile methodologies adaptation in software companies is an accepted norm.Rapid application development and efficient deliverables being the premise. The changing business needs, cost effectiveness and timely delivery are catered to by agile methods. Different software development models are in the literature and also are being used by the industry. Few companies have adopted agile, few are gearing up for and few are in transition. We investigated agile presence in a software company.Project management is an evolving art with innovative methods being added up.The aim of this paper is to tease about project management challenges, agile, agile transition in companies and a comparison of conventional software engineering practices with agile process model.This paper takes stock of the current status of quality in software projects and to add on quality process improvement strategies. The results presented here are after a qualitative interview study with one cross function team using streamline development framework in agile development.
RNA-seq: herramienta transcriptómica útil para el estudio de interacciones planta-patógeno

El conocimiento del transcriptoma y su regulacion es fundamental para la interpretacion articulada de los diversos constituyentes moleculares que integran la red de respuesta genica ante un determinado evento inductor, como los que se presentan en interacciones planta-patogeno. La actual tecnologia de secuenciacion ha llevado al desarrollo del RNA-seq como herramienta transcriptomica que permite el secuenciamiento masivo de ADNc o ARN, y hace posible obtener perfiles de expresion genica de las respuestas de defensa, lo cual ofrece grandes posibilidades para profundizar en el entendimiento de los mecanismos que se activan durante las respuestas inmunes en plantas. El RNA-seq ha cambiado la manera de como se estudian los transcriptomas, y ha permitido identificar y cuantificar nuevos y conocidos transcriptos relacionados con defensa vegetal. Aqui se presenta el principio, aplicaciones y ventajas del RNA-seq; ademas se discuten trabajos recientes que revelan la importancia y utilidad de esta herramienta en estudios de interacciones planta patogeno
Ensuring consistency in partially replicated data stores. (Le maintien de la cohérence dans les systèmes de stockage partiellement repliqués)

In the first part, we study consistency in a transactional systems, and focus on reconciling scalability with strong transactional guarantees. We identify four scalability properties, and show that none of the strong consistency criteria ensure all four. We define a new scalable consistency criterion called Non-Monotonic Snapshot Isolation (NMSI), while is the first that is compatible with all four properties. We also present a practical implementation of NMSI, called Jessy, which we compare experimentally against a number of well-known criteria. We also introduce a framework for performing fair comparison among different transactional protocols. Our insight is that a large family of distributed transactional protocols have a common structure, called Deferred Update Replication (DUR). Protocols of the DUR family differ only in behaviors of few generic functions. We present a generic DUR framework, called G-DUR. We implement and compare several transactional protocols using the G-DUR framework.In the second part, we focus on ensuring consistency in non-transactional data stores. We introduce Tuba, a replicated key-value store that dynamically selects replicas in order to maximize the utility delivered to read operations according to a desired consistency defined by the application. In addition, unlike current systems, it automatically reconfigures its set of replicas while respecting application-defined constraints so that it adapts to changes in clients’ locations or request rates. Compared with a system that is statically configured, our evaluation shows that Tuba increases the reads that return strongly consistent data by 63%.
Mobility management in all-IP mobile network

With convergence of the Internet and mobile telecommunications, mobile networks are taking more and more IP-based protocols onboard. Mobile networks are expected to evolve and become IP-based packet data networks with various fuctionalities supported by IP-based protocols. This thesis investigates IP protocols for mobility management an all-IP mobile network. The design principles of mobility management in packet data network are first explored by studying GPRS. It is realised that GPRS is only an emulated IP network and lacks of the flexibility of IP networks. Packet scheduling techniques for enhancing mobility management performance and its implementation in GPRS are also studied. Evolution of GPRS to an all-IP based network, in which IP protocols can be used for mobility management, is subsequently proposed. Mobility management protocols in IP networks can be segregated into inter-domain (or macro) mobility, intra-domain (or micro) mobility and mobile ad hoc networking. Mobile IP is a proposal by the IETF as a solution to support mobility of IP terminal. In addition, SIP has been extended by research community to support terminal mobility. Both Mobile IP and extended SIP are compared for their ability to support mobility. It is found that Mobile IP is more suitable for supporting terminal mobility. However, Mobile IP is not sufficient for supporting intra-domain and high-speed mobility. An optimised solution therefore consists of Mobile IP and a specialised intra-domain mobility scheme. Having identified the characteristics and design principles of various existing inti-a-domain mobility protocols, a novel protocol known as Mobility-Aware Routing Protocol, MARP, is proposed. It is compared to some existing protocols and is proven to be superior in term of better handoff support, flexibility in packet routing and scalability. Mobile ad hoc networks are expected to be integral part of all-IP mobile network. Interworking of ad hoc and infrastructure-backed mobile networks enables extension of wireless networks coverage and provision of Internet access to mobile node with relaying. Key issues related to such a hybrid networking topology, in the context of ad hoc IP routing protocol and mobility management protocol, are identified. Mechanisms that allow interworking of mobility protocols and ad hoc routing protocols are designed. Interworking of both protocols significantly increases capability of ad hoc mobile nodes to interact with fixed network elements, but is at the cost of high control overhead. Effective techniques for reducing control overhead in the hybrid network is subsequently proposed.
Effects of White Noise on Short-Term Memory of Learning Disabled Boys

5 levels of white noise (22 to 72 dB) introduced during the performance of a short-term memory task (repeating 4-digit numbers) did not differentiate scores of 10 normally achieving 9- to 11-yr. -old boys from 10 boys with learning disabilities. For all boys together increasing noise levels decreased performance of younger children relative to that of older Ss.
Pelagic Larval Duration and Dispersal Distance Revisited

I present dispersal distances for 44 species with data on propagule duration (PD) for 40 of these. Data were combined with those in Shanks et al. (2003; Ecol. Appl. 13: S159–S169), providing information on 67 species. PD and dispersal distance are correlated, but with many exceptions. The distribution of dispersal distances was bimodal. Many species with PDs longer than 1 day dispersed less than 1 km, while others dispersed tens to hundreds of kilometers. Organisms with short dispersal distances were pelagic briefly or remained close to the bottom while pelagic. Null models of passively dispersing propagules adequately predict dispersal distance for organisms with short PDs (<1 day), but overestimate dispersal distances for those with longer PDs. These models predict that propagules are transported tens of kilometers offshore; however, many types remain within the coastal boundary layer where currents are slower and more variable, leading to lower than predicted dispersal. At short PDs, dispersal distances estimated from genetic data are similar to observed. At long PDs, genetic data generally overestimate dispersal distance. This discrepancy is probably due to the effect of rare individuals that disperse long distances, thus smoothing genetic differences between populations. Larval behavior and species’ life-history traits can play a critical role in determining dispersal distance.
Noncancer deaths in white adult cancer patients.

BACKGROUND The cancer-specific death rate is a commonly used indicator in the assessment of progress against cancer. However, since the cause of death is often not substantiated and complete medical information is lacking, the validity of cancer-specific mortality rates is being questioned. PURPOSE We investigated the validity of the cancer-specific death rate by examining noncancer deaths of cancer patients in a large patient population. METHODS Data were obtained from the National Cancer Institute's Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) Program on cancer patients diagnosed between 1973 and 1987, with follow-up complete through December 1987. The SEER database consists of 1.2 million records from nine population-based registries covering nine geographic regions of the United States. Rates of noncancer deaths in the U.S. population were obtained from the National Center for Health Statistics. Cancer mortality rates were subtracted from overall mortality rates to obtain noncancer death rates by sex and the 5-year age group for each calendar year. Excluded from the study were patients of races other than White and those diagnosed at age 85 years or more due to absence of noncancer death rate comparisons. Also excluded were cancer cases discovered at autopsy and in persons less than 20 years of age. The statistical analysis employed a log-linear model. RESULTS The ratio of patient-to-general-population noncancer death rates, as calculated by dividing the number of patient noncancer deaths per year by the number found in the matched U.S. population data and referred to as the noncancer relative hazard, is considered significant with values greater than 1 for those with all cancers combined and for the common solid tumors examined. Of the 12 leading causes of death other than cancer in the patient population, the most common causes were circulatory and respiratory failures. The noncancer relative risk of death decreased rapidly after diagnosis and also decreased with the patient's age at diagnosis. It increased slightly with the calendar year of diagnosis. CONCLUSIONS Because more noncancer deaths occurred shortly after diagnosis, it appears that this excess was caused by treatment of the cancer. Generally, cancer-specific death rates underestimate the mortality associated with a diagnosis of cancer. Therefore, because the degree of underestimation changes with time, an examination solely of cancer-caused mortality in assessing progress against the disease is incomplete.
Curriculum-Guided Crowd-Sourcing of Assessments for Primary Schools in a Developing Country

Success of Wikipedia has opened a number of possibilities for crowd sourcing knowledge. However, not all crowd sourcing initiatives are successful. This paper presents a preliminary study to determine if teachers in a developing country are able to create quality multiple-choice questions for primary school students. In addition, an adoption model is developed and evaluated to ascertain if the teachers would actually contribute to such a Wiki. Results are that a reasonable number of teachers are able to formulate quality questions in Science and English and that there is a strong intention to use such a system. However, there is no obvious relationship between the intention to use and an ability to pose good assessments.
Distinct quasiperiodic modes with like symmetry in a rotating fluid.

The study of temporally quasiperiodic fluid flows has focused primarily on their space-time symmetries, with less attention paid to the physical characteristics of the unstable modes. In systems with circular symmetry, such as Couette-Taylor flow in which fluid is confined between concentric rotating cylinders, generically' one finds bifurcations from temporally periodic rotating waves to quasiperiodic modulated waves. Mathematically, the transition is characterized by the change in the symmetry group that leaves the flow invariant. The question of whether there may be physically diff'erent modes that have the same symmetry has not been previously addressed. The existence of qualitatively diAerent modes with the same space-time symmetry is common in fluid dynamics, but is often overlooked in hydrodynamic stability theory. This multiplicity can have important consequences for the dynamics, and possibly the transition to chaos, in this system. In this paper, we demonstrate the existence of two distinct quasiperiodic Couette-Taylor modes, describe their structure, and discuss the implications of their coexistence over a certain parameter range. We begin by using Floquet theory to derive the unique functional form for quasiperiodic solutions to the Navier-Stokes equations. We then present results from numerical simulations illustrating the two quasiperiodic flows and results from the experiments corroborating the numerical observations. We end with a discussion of how these modes may be used to derive from the Navier-Stokes equation a low-dimensional spectral truncation that can be quantitatively compared with full numerical simulations. Linearization of the Navier-Stokes equations around the rotating-wave state gives a Floquet system, linear equations with coefficients that are periodic in p — c~t, where ct is the angular phase speed of the wave. (We nondimensionalize by setting the inner cylinder speed, the gap width, and the density equal to 1.) If we assume that the bifurcation to quasiperiodic flow preserves the axial periodicity, and that axially traveling modes do not occur, the linear Floquet modes will have the form ij m 1 (ttt — c I t ) ikm2(p — c21 )
Capital Control, Debt Financing and Innovative Activity

The present paper first discusses theoretically the different incentives of manager- versus owner-controlled firms for investment into innovative activity. In addition, the role of debt financing is analyzed. Subsequently the results from an empirical study on the determinants of innovative activity measured by patent applications are presented. A sample of German firms covering 2,793 observations is used, and it turns out that companies with widely held capital stock are more active in innovation, i.e. weakly controlled managers show a higher innovation propensity. However, the higher the leverage the more disciplined the managers are.
La NADPH oxydase Nox4, approche topologique, modulation d'activité et impact dans l'arthrose

Nox4 est une source de ROS constitutive et ubiquitaire intervenant dans la signalisation intracellulaire. Une deregulation de son activite a ete associee a l'atherosclerose, la fibrose pulmonaire, le diabete et nous suspectons son role dans l'arthrose. L'arthrose est la resultante de phenomenes mecaniques et biologiques conduisant a la degradation du cartilage et de l'os sous-chondral. Le chondrocyte, synthetisant et liberant des metalloproteases matricielles (MMP), principales effectrices de la proteolyse matricielle, en est l'acteur principal. Dans la lignee de chondrocytes C-20/A4, l'IL-1β induit la synthese de la collagenase MMP-1 de maniere dependante de l'activite de Nox4.Ces donnees suggerent que Nox4 pourrait jouer un role dans la physiopathologie de l'arthrose. De maniere a eclaircir le role de Nox4 dans le chondrocyte mais egalement pour proposer des pistes permettant de moduler cette activite, ce projet a ete decoupe en trois parties etroitement liees.1- Une meilleure connaissance de la topologie de Nox4 permettrait de mieux comprendre son fonctionnement pour mieux apprehender le developpement d'inhibiteurs de son activite. L'etude de la topologie membranaire de Nox4 a ete abordee en preparant des proteines de fusion avec l'ubiquitine marquee a la GFP. Cette methode (ToDUFA) a permis pour la premiere fois de proposer experimentalement une topologie de Nox4 avec 6 passages transmembranaires. 2- L'indentification de nouveaux partenaires modulateurs de l'activite de Nox4 pourrait etre une premiere etape vers le traitement de l'arthrose. L'heme oxygenase (HO-1) est l'enzyme limitante dans le catabolisme de l'heme, molecule indispensable a l'activite catalytique des Nox. Les resultats montrent que HO-1 est capable de reprimer l'activite de Nox4 et suggerent un mecanisme dependant de la liberation de monoxyde de carbone (CO) produit au cours de l'activite de HO-1. Ces resultats soulevent egalement le role de l'heme dans le processus de maturation du complexe Nox4/p22phox. 3- Le role de Nox4 dans la physiopathologie de l'arthrose doit etre valide sur des cultures primaires. Les resultats montrent que Nox4 est la seule Nox exprimee dans les chondrocytes primaires humains. Nox4, stabilisee par une augmentation proteique de p22phox apres stimulation des chondrocytes par IL-1β, conduirait a la synthese des MMP-1, MMP-13 et de l'ADAMTS4. Ces travaux montrent enfin que l'activite de Nox4 est impliquee dans le retrocontrole positif conduisant a la neosynthese de l'IL-1β et a la persistance du catabolisme.En conclusion, les resultats suggerent un role significatif de Nox4/p22phox dans la degenerescence cartilagineuse. Nous decrivons un nouveau mecanisme de regulation de l'activite de Nox4 par HO-1 dans la lignee C-20/A4 et dans les chondrocytes primaires humains, prefigurant d'un role therapeutique potentiel de HO-1. Enfin, le premier modele topologique de Nox4 base sur nos donnees experimentales pourrait constituer une base pour le developpement d'inhibiteurs ou de peptides competiteurs.
Neural-network-based self-tuning PI controller for precise motion control of PMAC motors

In general, proportional plus integral (PI) controllers used in computer numerically controlled machines possess fixed gain. They may perform well under some operating conditions, but not all. To increase the robustness of fixed-gain PI controllers, we propose a new neural-network-based self-tuning PI control system. In this new approach, a well-trained neural network supplies the PI controller with suitable gain according to each operating condition pair (torque, angular velocity, and position error) detected. To demonstrate the advantages of our proposed neural-network-based self-tuning PI control technique, both computer simulations and experiments were executed in this research. During the computer simulation, the direct experiment method was adopted to better model the problem of hysteresis in the AC servo motor. In real experiments, a PC-based controller was used to carry out the control tasks. Results of both computer simulations and experiments show that the newly developed dynamic PI approach outperforms the fixed PI scheme in rise time, precise positioning, and robustness.
A Comparison of Possibility and Probability Approaches for Modelling Poor Knowledge on Measurement Distribution

This paper deals with a fuzzy/possibility representation of measurement uncertainty that often arises in physical domains. The construction of the possibility distribution is based on the stacking up of probability coverage intervals. The paper shows that the specificity of the possibility distribution depends on the nature of the a priori information available about the entity under measurement. In particular the following commonly occurring situations reflecting different amounts of a priori information are considered: only the mode and /or the support of the underlying continuous probability distribution is known; in addition, a shape information such as symmetry and unimodality is known. The associated possibility distributions are compared to the coverage intervals obtained by using the maximum entropy principle.
Methylation of genomes and genes at the invertebrate-vertebrate boundary

Patterns of DNA methylation in animal genomes are known to vary from an apparent absence of modified bases, via methylation of a minor fraction of the genome, to genome-wide methylation. Representative genomes from 10 invertebrate phyla comprise predominantly nonmethylated DNA and (usually but not always) a minor fraction of methylated DNA. In contrast, all 27 vertebrate genomes that have been examined display genome-wide methylation. Our studies of chordate genomes suggest that the transition from fractional to global methylation occurred close to the origin of vertebrates, as amphioxus has a typically invertebrate methylation pattern whereas primitive vertebrates (hagfish and lamprey) have patterns that are typical of vertebrates. Surprisingly, methylation of genes preceded this transition, as many invertebrate genes have turned out to be heavily methylated. Methylation does not preferentially affect genes whose expression is highly regulated, as several housekeeping genes are found in the heavily methylated fraction whereas several genes expressed in a tissue-specific manner are in the nonmethylated fraction.
Variáveis críticas e os processos de atenção no desempenho e aprendizagem do nadar

O principal desafio dos profissionais do Esporte e da Educacao Fisica e o de planejar experiencias de aprendizagem beneficas aos aprendizes. Nesse sentido, tomam decisoes, quanto ao estabelecimento de objetivos, as informacoes (instrucao e feedback) e a organizacao da pratica necessarias para alcanca-las. Estas decisoes devem estar teoricamente orientadas. Em nossa fala iremos abordar estudos da natacao ao nivel comportamental de analise, mais especificamente, relacionados a aprendizagem motora. Neste contexto, dois temas serao tratados: a) as variaveis criticas de consistencia e variabilidade do nadar; e, b) a influencia dos processos de atencao no desempenho e aprendizagem do nadar. A partir dos estudos apresentados serao tecidas orientacoes para a pratica de profissionais do Esporte e da Educacao Fisica no âmbito da natacao.
The Vid Vesicle to Vacuole Trafficking Event Requires Components of the SNARE Membrane Fusion Machinery*

The key gluconeogenic enzyme fructose-1,6-bisphosphatase (FBPase) is targeted to Vid vesicles when glucose-starved cells are replenished with glucose. Vid vesicles then deliver FBPase to the vacuole for degradation. A modified alkaline phosphatase assay was developed to study the trafficking of Vid vesicles to the vacuole. For this assay, FBPase was fused with a truncated form of alkaline phosphatase. Under in vivo conditions, FBPase-Δ60Pho8p was targeted to the vacuole via Vid vesicles, and it exhibited Pep4p- and Vid24p-dependent alkaline phosphatase activation. Vid vesicle-vacuole targeting was reconstituted using Vid vesicles that contained FBPase-Δ60Pho8p. These vesicles were incubated with vacuoles in the presence of cytosol and an ATP-regenerating system. Under in vitro conditions, alkaline phosphatase was also activated in a Pep4p- and Vid24p-dependent manner. The GTPase Ypt7p was identified as an essential component in Vid vesicle-vacuole trafficking. Likewise, a number of v-SNAREs (Ykt6p, Nyv1p, Vti1p) and homotypic fusion vacuole protein sorting complex family members (Vps39p and Vps41p) were required for the proper function of Vid vesicles. In contrast, the t-SNARE Vam3p was a necessary vacuolar component. Vid vesicle-vacuole trafficking exhibits characteristics similar to heterotypic membrane fusion events.