Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
NbOx based memristor as artificial synapse emulating short term plasticity

Memristors can mimic the functions of biological synapse, where it can simultaneously store the synaptic weight and modulate the transmitted signal. Here, we report Nb/Nb2O5/Pt based memristors with bipolar resistive switching, exhibiting synapse like property of gradual and continuously change of conductance with subsequent voltage signals. Mimicking of basic functions of remembering and forgetting processes of biological brain were demonstrated through short term plasticity, spike rate dependent plasticity, paired pulse facilitation and post-titanic potentiation. The device layer interface tuning was shown to affect the device properties shift from digital to analog behaviour. Demonstration of basic synaptic functions in the NbOx based devices makes them suitable for neuromorphic applications.
The Nash Equilibrium With Inertia in Population Games

In the traditional game-theoretic set up, where agents select actions and experience corresponding utilities, a Nash equilibrium is a configuration where no agent can improve their utility by unilaterally switching to a different action. In this article, we introduce the novel notion of inertial Nash equilibrium to account for the fact that in many practical situations switching action does not come for free. Specifically, we consider a population game and introduce the coefficients <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$c_{ij}$</tex-math></inline-formula> describing the cost an agent incurs by switching from action <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$i$</tex-math></inline-formula> to action <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$j$</tex-math></inline-formula>. We define an inertial Nash equilibrium as a distribution over the action space where no agent benefits in switching to a different action, while taking into account the cost of such switch. First, we show that the set of inertial Nash equilibria contains all the Nash equilibria, is in general nonconvex, and can be characterized as a solution to a variational inequality. We then argue that classical algorithms for computing Nash equilibria cannot be used in the presence of switching costs. Finally, we propose a better-response dynamics algorithm and prove its convergence to an inertial Nash equilibrium. We apply our results to study the taxi drivers’ distribution in Hong Kong.
Augmenting learning using symmetry in a biologically-inspired domain

Invariances to translation, rotation and other spatial transformations are a hallmark of the laws of motion, and have widespread use in the natural sciences to reduce the dimensionality of systems of equations. In supervised learning, such as in image classification tasks, rotation, translation and scale invariances are used to augment training datasets. In this work, we use data augmentation in a similar way, exploiting symmetry in the quadruped domain of the DeepMind control suite (Tassa et al. 2018) to add to the trajectories experienced by the actor in the actor-critic algorithm of Abdolmaleki et al. (2018). In a data-limited regime, the agent using a set of experiences augmented through symmetry is able to learn faster. Our approach can be used to inject knowledge of invariances in the domain and task to augment learning in robots, and more generally, to speed up learning in realistic robotics applications.
Approximating the Percolation Centrality through Sampling and Pseudo-dimension

In this work we investigate the problem of percolation centrality, a generalization of betweenness centrality, in a weighted graph $G$ under the light of sample complexity theory. For both betweenness and percolation centrality the computation of the {\it exact} value for a given vertex $v$ is not known to be easier than the computation the same value, all at once, for all $n$ vertices of $G$. In any one of these cases it is an open problem whether these measures can be computed in $\mathcal{O}(n^{3-c})$ time, for any constant $c>0$. In this paper we first present a $\mathcal{O}(m \log^2 n)$ randomized approximation algorithm for the percolation centrality for every vertex of $G$, generalizing techniques developed by \cite{RiondatoUpfal} (this complexity is reduced to $\mathcal{O}((m+n) \log n)$ for unweighted graphs). The estimative obtained by the algorithm is within $\epsilon$ of the exact value with probability $1- \delta$, for {\it fixed} constants $0 < \epsilon,\delta \leq 1$. Additionally, we show that sample complexity theory can be used to distinguish the problem of estimating the percolation centrality of a single vertex, refered as computing $\tilde{p}(v)$, from the problem of estimating the percolation centrality of every vertex of $G$, refered as computing $\tilde{p}(G)$. More precisely, we show that $\tilde{p}(v)$ and $\tilde{p}(G)$ can be estimated respectively in time $\mathcal{O}(m \log n)$ and $\mathcal{O}(m \log^2 n)$. Our results also imply a similar "separation" for percolation estimation in unweighted dense graphs as well as separations for the estimation of betweenness centrality that holds in any combination of the following scenarios: weighted or unweighted for either sparse or dense graphs.
Dániel SZALAI THE FUNCTIONING OF LANDSCAPE ECOLOGY POTENTIALS IN TERRITORIAL COHESION WITH AN OUTLOOK ON THE ROLE OF NATURE CONSERVATION

Hungary’s economically and socially peripheral regions that are nonetheless rich in natural potential and natural capital, appear as well–defined segments of domestic regional development. In these areas, the extent and quality of the natural environment can be defined as dormant capital, which is currently not used sufficiently to sustain local livelihoods either fully or partially. This natural potential represents a value that we must treat in a respectful, sustainable way and use it in a wise, conscious approach (without exploitation) to help preserve the community of a given settlement. Appropriate attitudes and commitment are often present in local civil societies and local NGO’s. These small, motivated communities can, with their untiring perseverance, attract funding sources into the regions, cooperate with local governments, and add their own human capacity so that the natural environment should be regarded valuable at the level of the settlement, and its resources should be used in a careful manner.
A Study on the Relationship between Chinese Proficiency and the Leisure Constraints of Vietnamese Female Immigrants in Taiwan

This study investigated the influence of Chinese proficiency on the leisure constraints experienced by Vietnamese female immigrants in Taiwan when engaging in leisure activities and provided recommendations for improving such a phenomenon. This study could assist Vietnamese female immigrants in Taiwan in achieving better leisure quality. Through statistical analysis, the research results showed that Chinese proficiency has a significant effect on Vietnamese female immigrants’ leisure intrapersonal constraints, interpersonal constraints, and structural constraints. Vietnamese female immigrants with better Chinese proficiency perceive a lower level of leisure constraints than those with poor Chinese proficiency.
A GEOSPATIAL FRAMEWORK TO SUPPORT ECOSYSTEM BASED MANAGEMENT AND MARINE SPATIAL PLANNING FOR THE TRANSBOUNDARY GRENADINE ISLANDS

Marine resources are of vital importance to the people of the transboundary Grenadine Islands, but increasing pressures from tourism development and the non-sustainable use of these resources are making the planning and management increasingly complex. Marine spatial planning and management (MSPM) is a strategic way of improving decision-making and delivering an ecosystem-based management (EBM) approach to managing human activities in the marine environment. Notwithstanding the central role of human agency in the concepts of EBM and MSPM, it is recognised that many times marine management has not been effective in part due to a failure to use all available sources of information and knowledge, particularly the local knowledge of the resources’ users. We propose the application of a participatory GIS approach as a sound basis for practically incorporating EBM within MSPM initiatives. The benefits of using a systemised spatially referenced multi-knowledge participatory GIS (PGIS) database for MSPM includes: (1) effectiveness in data management and the identification of information gaps; (2) the promotion of spatial thinking including increased understanding or spatial relationships; and (3) definition of areas of importance for conservation, human activity and threat. These can provide the basis for a scientifically appropriate and socially acceptable marine space-use plan.
AN ACOUSTIC STUDY OF SOUNDS PRODUCTION OF CHILDREN DURING THE FIRST POSTNATAL YEAR

On the basis of instrumental analysis of Russian infants vocalizations at the first year of life, the dynamics of main vowel-like sounds characteristics were determined. We showed the hierarchical organization of signs, important for description different vowel-like sounds. The quality of sounds articulation defines the possibilities to use the one or other signs for description the infants' sounds. Unclear vocalization can be described on the basis of far multiple of signs. Possibilities to apply the acoustic keys, important for the analysis of vowels adult speech, increase with mastering of children's articulation skills.
Study of SO 2 / water and NO / water / salt systems from 25 to 150 ° C using fused silica capillaries , batch autoclave and Raman microspectrometry

Depending on CO2 capture processes or hydrocarbon sources, fuel gas from boilers can be accompanied with impurities which could be co-injected in a geological storage. These gases, such as SOx, NOx, or oxygen could interact with reservoir fluids and rocks and well materials and could affect the safety of the storage. However, there are currently only few data on the behavior of such gas mixtures, as well as on their chemical reactivity, especially in the presence of water. The purpose of this paper is to develop experimental and analytical protocols in order to acquire new thermodynamic data on SO2 and NO under geological conditions of pressure and temperature using Raman spectrometry. © 2013 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd. Selection and peer-review under responsibility of GHGT.
Green Future : Harnessing Academe , Government and Industry Partnerships for a Sustainable Earth Fabrication of Metal Oxide Sensor for Hydrogen Sulfide Sensing Applications

Metal oxide nanomaterials were synthesized via Horizontal Vapor Phase Crystal Growth deposition. Fabricated crystals were characterized using SEM and EDX spectroscopy and were installed in a circuit complete with mini gas chamber where the target gas at varying quantity was allowed to interact with the sensing surface. The sensitivity of the fabricated prototype was tested to hydrogen sulfide (H2S) gas using voltage analysis. Voltage measurements were made to study the response of the metal oxide crystal to the molecules of Hydrogen Sulfide gas. Results denote that the synthesized Tin Oxide nanomaterial sensor substrate is more sensitive and responsive to H2S gas compared to the Zinc Oxide sensor substrate.
Destination Enhancers Influencing Tourism Demand

The primary objective of this article was to determine the destination enhancers that influence tourism demand. Understanding why people travel, how they go about selecting their holiday destination and why one country is preferred to the other, is vital to the continued success of the tourism industry. The needs and wants of travellers are constantly changing, therefore, it is imperative that tourism businesses excel at developing new products and services which are better suited to the needs of consumers. A quantitative research design was utilised, where a survey was conducted among 400 outbound South African travellers. One set of hypotheses was constructed based on the literature review. Data was analysed using descriptive statistics. Pearson product-moment correlation coefficients were utilised to measure the relationship between destination enhancers influencing tourism demand. Regression analysis was employed to determine which of the hypotheses are supported or rejected based on the findings of the questionnaire. Four statistically significant relationships were found between the destination enhancers (events, natural attractions, political issues and general infrastructure) and tourism demand. The outcomes of the study offer all tourism organisations insight on how to design appropriate marketing strategies for outbound destination marketing, for example, travel agents highlight the political stability of the destination when marketing it to clients, and that they confirm safety and lack of terrorism and labour unrest within some destinations
A pr 2 01 8 CHERN FORMS OF HOLOMORPHIC FINSLER VECTOR BUNDLES AND SOME APPLICATIONS

In this paper, we present two kinds of total Chern forms c(E,G) and C(E,G) as well as a total Segre form s(E,G) of a holomorphic Finsler vector bundle π : (E,G) → M expressed by the Finsler metric G, which answers a question of J. Faran ([10]) to some extent. As some applications, we show that the signed Segre forms (−1)sk(E,G) are positive (k, k)forms on M when G is of positive Kobayashi curvature; we prove, under an extra assumption, that a Finsler-Einstein vector bundle in the sense of Kobayashi is semi-stable; we introduce a new definition of a flat Finsler metric, which is weaker than Aikou’s one ([3]) and prove that a holomorphic vector bundle is Finsler flat in our sense if and only if it is Hermitian flat.
Beyond the Current E-Learning paradigm : Applications of Role Play Simulations ( RPS )-case studies Contact

The paper explores some general pedagogical principles and outlines a pedagogy that takes the next step in redefining the social space of learning enabling educators to leverage the capabilities of the new communicative media as well as enhance and expand current models of E-learning beyond traditional models. This pedagogy is then demonstrated in a number case studies where learning is achieved using Role Play Simulations (RPS). It will be argued that RPS enable diverse learning objectives, from diverse subject domains, and thus constitute a useful pedagogical model of good E-learning.
InBEDE: Integrating Contextual Bandit with TD Learning for Joint Pricing and Dispatch of Ride-Hailing Platforms

For both the traditional street-hailing taxi industry and the recently emerged on-line ride-hailing, it has been a major challenge to improve the ride-hailing marketplace efficiency due to spatio-temporal imbalance between the supply and demand, among other factors. Despite the numerous approaches to improve marketplace efficiency using pricing and dispatch strategies, they usually optimize pricing or dispatch separately. In this paper, we show that these two processes are in fact intrinsically interrelated. Motivated by this observation, we make an attempt to simultaneously optimize pricing and dispatch strategies. However, such a joint optimization is extremely challenging due to the inherent huge scale and lack of a uniform model of the problem. To handle the high complexity brought by the new problem, we propose InBEDE (Integrating contextual Bandit with tEmporal DiffErence learning), a learning framework where pricing strategies are learned via a contextual bandit algorithm, and the dispatch strategies are optimized with the help of temporal difference learning. The two learning components proceed in a mutual bootstrapping manner, in the sense that the policy evaluations of the two components are inter-dependent. Evaluated with real-world datasets of two Chinese cities from Didi Chuxing, an online ride-hailing platform, we show that the market efficiency of the ride-hailing platform can be significantly improved using InBEDE.
Fuzzy Rough Set-Based Sentence Similarity Measure and its Application to Text Summarization

Fuzzy Rough Sets are designed for decision-making with uncertainty, imprecision, and incompleteness in data. We propose to use Fuzzy Rough Sets for the task of sentence similarity-based Text Summarization. Text data inherently possess uncertainty, imprecision, and incompleteness for data representation. Two sentences may be equivalent in their meanings despite having different vector space representation while Fuzzy Rough Sets incorporates the meanings of sentences. Fuzzy Rough Set-based sentence similarity for Text Summarization has not been proposed in literature before the present work. The contribution of the research is two-fold, namely (i) Fuzzy Rough Set-based sentence similarities has been proposed and validated on SICK2014 dataset. (ii) The proposed similarities between the sentences are thereby proposed for Single document Text Summarization and evaluated for DUC2002 dataset. Experimental results confirm the applicability and efficiency of using the proposed models for both sentence similarity computations as well as for summarization.
Dragonblood : Attacking the Dragonfly Handshake of WPA 3 1

The WPA3 certification aims to secure home networks, while EAP-pwd is used by certain enterprise Wi-Fi networks to authenticate users. Both use the Dragonfly handshake to provide forward secrecy and resistance to dictionary attacks. In this paper, we systematically evaluate Dragonfly’s security. First, we audit implementations, and present timing leaks and authentication bypasses in EAP-pwd and WPA3 daemons. We then study Dragonfly’s design and discuss downgrade and denial-of-service attacks. Our next and main results are side-channel attacks against Dragonfly’s password encoding method (e.g. hash-to-curve). We believe that these side-channel leaks are inherent to Dragonfly. For example, after our initial disclosure, patched software was still affected by a novel side-channel leak. The leaked information can be used to brute-force the password. For instance, brute-forcing a dictionary of size 1010 requires less than $1 in Amazon EC2 instances. These results are also of general interest due to ongoing standardization efforts on Dragonfly as a TLS handshake, Password-Authenticated Key Exchanges (PAKEs), and hash-to-curve. Finally, we discuss backwards-compatible defenses, and propose protocol fixes that prevent attacks. Our work resulted in a new draft of the protocols incorporating our proposed design changes.
Application of Phenomics , Genomic Resources and Bioinformatics Tools for Tea Plant Improvement

Tea (Camellia sinensis L. (O) Kuntze) is the most widely consumed health drink. Due to self incompatibility and highly heterozygous nature along with large genome size of about 4.0 Gigabase, the genomic research on tea is not been explored as much as conducted in other annual crops. Nowadays, advances in genome sequencing technologies are revolutionizing the routine research work of plant genetics. This will pave the way for identification of genes responsible for various agronomically important traits, development of improved tea cultivars, tolerant to biotic and a biotic stress. However, Next generation sequencing (NSG) data analysis in tea is an emerging field of tea research. Hence, the use of bio-informatics tools to evaluate and interpret NGS data is a challenge for the researcher. Analysis of this large amount of heterogeneous genomic data requires effective use and application of bioinformatics tools that must include unified functional annotation, structural search and comprehensive analysis and identification of new genes with fully sequenced genomes. This review discusses momentarily about the applications of phenomics, genomics resources and bio-informatics in next generation sequencing data analysis, with an emphasis on those relevant to tea research. Some fundamental issues related to biological sequence analysis, data basis and software tools are also focussed that facilitate an understanding of the biological processes with the goal to serve as an important information platform for genomic studies which will effectively improve the efficiency of breeding programmes in tea.
Macroinvertebrate Densities and Plant Preference as Mechanisms Leading to Changes in Alternative Stable States

Earlier studies have suggested that alternative stable states exist in regards to aquatic plant densities in the presence of invasive rusty crayfish populations. While crayfish density appears to be a factor in causing shifts between stable states of low and high aquatic plant densities, other mechanisms have yet to be identified. Using O. propinquus, a previous invader, this experiment tested two possible mechanisms leading to shifts between these stable states: plant consumption in the presence of various macroinvertebrate densities and the preference of crayfish for either new or old growth plant. The data obtained from this experiment found that there was no significant difference in plant consumption over varying invertebrate densities (p=0.360), and crayfish have no apparent preference for either old or new growth plants (p=0.245). Based on the results, impossible to link either macroinvertebrate densities or new/old growth plant preferences with the alternative stables states observed in plant densities.
Rtp 801 Suppression of Epithelial mTORC 1 Augments Endotoxin-Induced Lung In fl ammation

opyright a 2014 American Society for Inve ublished by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved ttp://dx.doi. org/10.1016/j.ajpath. 2014.06. 002 The mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR) is a central regulator of cellular responses to environmental stress. mTOR (and its primary complex mTORC1) is, therefore, ideally positioned to regulate lung inflammatory responses to an environmental insult, a function directly relevant to disease states such as the acute respiratory distress syndrome. Our previous work in cigarette smokeeinduced emphysema identified a novel protective role of pulmonary mTORC1 signaling. However, studies of the impact of mTORC1 on the development of acute lung injury are conflicting. We hypothesized that Rtp801, an endogenous inhibitor of mTORC1, which is predominantly expressed in alveolar type II epithelial cells, is activated during endotoxin-induced lung injury and functions to suppress anti-inflammatory epithelial mTORC1 responses. We administered intratracheal lipopolysaccharide to wild-type mice and observed a significant increase in lung Rtp801 mRNA. In lipopolysaccharide-treated Rtp801 / mice, epithelial mTORC1 activation significantly increased and was associated with an attenuation of lung inflammation. We reversed the anti-inflammatory phenotype of Rtp801 / mice with the mTORC1 inhibitor, rapamycin, reassuring against mTORC1-independent effects of Rtp801. We confirmed the proinflammatory effects of Rtp801 by generating a transgenic Rtp801 overexpressing mouse, which displayed augmented inflammatory responses to intratracheal endotoxin. These data suggest that epithelial mTORC1 activity plays a protective role against lung injury, and its inhibition by Rtp801 exacerbates alveolar injury caused by endotoxin. (Am J Pathol 2014, 184: 2382e2389; http:// dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ajpath.2014.06.002)
Cell-Cell Contact Formation Governs Ca 2 Signaling by TRPC 4 in the Vascular Endothelium EVIDENCE FOR A REGULATORY TRPC 4-- CATENIN INTERACTION *

Annarita Graziani, Michael Poteser, Wolfgang-Moritz Heupel, Hannes Schleifer, Martin Krenn, Detlev Drenckhahn, Christoph Romanin, Werner Baumgartner , and Klaus Groschner From the Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences-Pharmacology and Toxicology, University of Graz, Universitätsplatz 2, 8010 Graz, Austria, the Institute of Anatomy and Cell Biology, University of Würzburg, Koellikerstrasse 6, 97070 Würzburg, Germany, the Institute of Biophysics, University of Linz, A-4040 Linz, Austria, and the Department of Cellular Neurobionics, Institute of Biology II, RWTH-Aachen University, Kopernikusstrasse 16, 52056 Aachen, Germany