Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Amos-SLAM: An Anti-Dynamics Two-stage SLAM Approach

The traditional Simultaneous Localization And Mapping (SLAM) systems rely on the assumption of a static environment and fail to accurately estimate the system's location when dynamic objects are present in the background. While learning-based dynamic SLAM systems have difficulties in handling unknown moving objects, geometry-based methods have limited success in addressing the residual effects of unidentified dynamic objects on location estimation. To address these issues, we propose an anti-dynamics two-stage SLAM approach. Firstly, the potential motion regions of both prior and non-prior dynamic objects are extracted and pose estimates for dynamic discrimination are quickly obtained using optical flow tracking and model generation methods. Secondly, dynamic points in each frame are removed through dynamic judgment. For non-prior dynamic objects, we present a approach that uses super-pixel extraction and geometric clustering to determine the potential motion regions based on color and geometric information in the image. Evaluations on multiple low and high dynamic sequences in a public RGB-D dataset show that our proposed method outperforms state-of-the-art dynamic SLAM methods.
Quantifying & Modeling Feature Interactions: An Information Decomposition Framework

The recent explosion of interest in multimodal applications has resulted in a wide selection of datasets and methods for representing and integrating information from different signals. Despite these empirical advances, there remain fundamental research questions: how can we quantify the nature of interactions that exist among input features? Subsequently, how can we capture these interactions using suitable data-driven methods? To answer this question, we propose an information-theoretic approach to quantify the degree of redundancy , uniqueness , and synergy across input features, which we term the PID statistics of a multimodal distribution. Using 2 newly proposed estimators that scale to high-dimensional distributions, we demonstrate their usefulness in quantifying the interactions within multimodal datasets, the nature of interactions captured by multimodal models, and principled approaches for model selection. We conduct extensive experiments on both synthetic datasets where the PID statistics are known and on large-scale multimodal benchmarks where PID estimation was previously impossible. Finally, to demonstrate the real-world applicability of our approach, we present three case studies in pathology, mood prediction, and robotic perception where our framework accurately recommends strong multimodal models for each application.
Limit theorems for pseudo sum of discrete distributions

In this article we introduce associative Look-Up Tables. With their help, pseudo sums are correctly determined. The set of limit distributions in a pseudo-summation scheme of i.i. d. random variables is described. Also, two special cases that are similar to the classical sum and maximum operations are considered. In both situations, the set of stable distributions and the set of infinity divisible distributions are fully described. In addition, necessary and sufficient conditions for random variable to belong to the domain of attraction of stable random variable are introduced.
A N EFFICIENT METHOD FOR O UT - OF -D ISTRIBUTION D ETECTION

Detecting out-of-distribution (OOD) data is critical to building reliable machine learning systems in the open world. The previous methods either need to use additional data or use the information of training data. The method of using only the parameter information of the model is relatively poor. We propose an efﬁcient method for OOD detection using only model parameter information. To verify the effectiveness of our method, we conduct experiments on four benchmark datasets. Experimental results demonstrate that our RG outperforms existing state-of-the-art approaches by 4.57% in average AUROC. Meanwhile, our method is easy to implement and does not require additional OOD data or ﬁne-tuning process. We can realize OOD detection in only one forward pass of any pretrained model.
HDR image watermarking using saliency detection and quantization index modulation

High-dynamic range (HDR) images are circulated rapidly over the internet with risks of being exploited for unauthorized usage. To protect these images, some HDR image based watermarking (HDR-IW) methods were put forward. However, they inherited the same problem faced by conventional IW methods for standard dynamic range (SDR) images, where only trade-offs among conflicting requirements are managed instead of simultaneous improvement. In this paper, a novel saliency (eye-catching object) detection based trade-off independent HDR-IW is proposed, to simultaneously improve robustness, imperceptibility and payload. First, the host image goes through our proposed salient object detection model to produce a saliency map, which is, in turn, exploited to segment the foreground and background of the host image. Next, the binary watermark is partitioned into the foregrounds and backgrounds using the same mask and scrambled using a random permutation algorithm. Finally, the watermark segments are embedded into selected bit-plane of the corresponding host segments using quantized indexed modulation. Experimental results suggest that the proposed work outperforms state-of-the-art methods in terms of improving the conflicting requirements.
Developmental strategies underlying gigantism and miniaturization in non-avialan theropod dinosaurs

In amniotes, the predominant developmental strategy underlying body size evolution is thought to be adjustments to the rate of growth rather than its duration. However, most theoretical and experimental studies supporting this axiom focus on pairwise comparisons and/or lack an explicit phylogenetic framework. We present the first large-scale phylogenetic comparative analysis examining developmental strategies underlying the evolution of body size, focusing on non-avialan theropod dinosaurs. We reconstruct ancestral states of growth rate and body mass in a taxonomically rich dataset, finding that contrary to expectations, changes in the rate and duration of growth played nearly equal roles in the evolution of the vast body size disparity present in non-avialan theropods—and perhaps that of amniotes in general. Description How to get big Over evolutionary history, many different taxa have evolved very large body sizes. The general consensus has been that an animal grows to a large size based on an increase in growth rate. However, very few studies have explored this question across many species within a comparative phylogenetic framework. D’Emic et al. looked across a large dataset of non-avialan theropod dinosaurs, which had an array of body sizes. They found evidence supporting changes in growth rate contributing to body size change, but also found that changes in the duration of growth played a large role. —SNV Close dinosaurian relatives of birds evolved gigantic and miniature sizes through changes to the rate and duration of growth.
Evaluating Where and Why Drifters Die

AbstractNOAA ’s Global Drifter Program (GDP) manages a global array of ~1250 active satellite-tracked surface drifting buoys (“drifters”) in collaboration with numerous national and international partners. To better manage the drifter array and to assess the performance of various drifter manufacturers, it is important to discriminate between drifters that cease transmitting because of internal failure and those that cease because of external factors such as running aground or being picked up. An accurate assessment of where drifters run aground would also allow the observations to be used to more accurately simulate the evolution of floating marine debris and to quantify globally which shores are most prone to the deposit of marine debris. While the drifter Data Assembly Center of the GDP provides a metadata file that includes cause of death, the identified cause for most drifters is simply “quit transmitting. ” In this study it is shown that a significant fraction of these drifters likely ran aground or .
Breaking Captcha System with Minimal Exertion through Deep Learning: Real-time Risk Assessment on Indian Government Websites

Captchas are used to prevent computer bots from launching spam attacks and automatically extracting data available in the websites. The government websites mostly contain sensitive data related to citizens and assets of the country, and the vulnerability to its captcha systems raises a major security challenge. The proposed work focuses on the real-time captcha systems used by the government websites of India and identifies the risks level. To effectively analyze its captcha security, we concentrate on the problem from an attacker’s perspective. From the viewpoint of an attacker, building an effective solver to breach the captcha security system from scratch with limited feature engineering knowledge of text and image processing is a challenge. Neural network models are useful in automated feature extraction, and a simple model can be trained with a minimum number of manually annotated real captchas. Along with popular text captchas, government websites of India use text instructions–based captchas. We analyze an effective neural network pipeline for solving text captchas. The text instructions captchas are relatively new, and the work provides novel end-to-end neural network architectures to break different types of text instructions captchas. The proposed models achieve more than 80% accuracy and on a desktop GPU has a maximum inference speed of 1.063 seconds. The study comes up with an ecosystem and procedure to rate the overall risk of a captcha system used on a website. We observe that concerning the importance of available information on these government websites, the effort required to solve the captcha systems by an attacker is alarming.
Tangible Progress: Tools, Techniques, and Impacts of Teaching Web Development to Screen Reader Users

Despite a growing demand for Web Development and adjacent tech skills, there is a lack of accessible skills training for screen reader users. To address this gap, we developed tools and techniques to support screen reader users in learning web development. In this article, we describe our design, implementation, and evaluation of a nine-week web development workshop, designed to introduce screen reader users to HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. We taught the remote workshop using synchronous lectures followed by one-on-one time with Teaching Assistants (TAs) and included a resource-rich website, tactile diagrams, and discussion forum. We evaluated the effectiveness of our tools and the impact of the workshop during, immediately following, and one year after the workshop. At its conclusion, students demonstrated their knowledge of web development basics by creating and publishing their own websites; showed an increase in self-efficacy; and maintained a high level of interest in the subject. Participation also benefited TAs who reported increased confidence in understanding accessibility concepts, increased interest in pursuing work related to accessibility, and plans to apply what they learned. One year after the workshop, both students and TAs reported a lasting impact. Most notably, students had applied their understanding of design concepts, reported that the workshop helped them prepare for career changes or helped them in their current job functions, and that it gave them both the language and confidence to problem-solve web and accessibility issues. TAs felt that the workshop broadened their understanding of blind students’ abilities; especially when provided with accessible materials and tools, it gave them a better understanding of digital accessibility and assistive technologies, and they shared examples of how they continue to apply learnings and advocate for accessibility. Based on these findings, we recommend techniques and tools to support screen reader users’ learning web development, the inclusion of job-focused sub-topics, and suggestions for engaging with post-secondary institutions to pair service learning with tech skills training. We close with recommendations for implementing and adapting the workshop using our open-educational materials to expand the availability and breadth of accessible tech skills training and co-learning experiences for post-secondary students.
Prävention von Schulterverletzungen im Handball

Nicht nur Handballspieler können ein Lied davon singen: Immer wieder ist es die Schulter, die Schmerzen bereitet und zu Spielpausen zwingt. Doch kann man Schulterverletzungen effektiv verhindern? Ein Blick auf die aktuelle Studienlage.
Oblique wave scattering by undulating porous bottom in a two-layer fluid: Fourier transform approach

The problem involving scattering of oblique waves by small undulation on the porous ocean bed in a two-layer fluid is investigated within the framework of linearised theory of water waves where the upper layer is free to the atmosphere. In such a two-layer fluid, there exist waves with two different wave numbers (modes): wave with lower wave number propagates along the free surface whilst that with higher wave number propagates along the interface. When an oblique incident wave of a particular mode encounters the undulating bottom, it gets reflected and transmitted into waves of both modes so that some of the wave energy transferred from one mode to another mode. Perturbation analysis in conjunction with Fourier transform technique is used to derive the first-order corrections of velocity potentials, reflection and transmission coefficients at both modes due to oblique incident waves of both modes. One special type of undulating bottom topography is considered as an example to evaluate the related coefficients in detail. These coefficients are shown in graphical forms to demonstrate the transformation of water wave energy between the two modes. Comparisons between the present results with those in the literature are made for particular cases and the agreements are found to be satisfactory. In addition, energy identity, an important relation in the study of water wave theory, is derived with the help of the Green’s integral theorem.
Mechanism and Biological Explanation

Machines and Biology have been, since antiquity, closely related. From the zoological figures present in astronomical simulacra, through renaissance mechanical imitations of animals, through Decartes' wind pipe nerves, to present day discussions on the computer and the brain, runs a continuous thread. In fact, the very name of mechanism for an attitude of inquiry throughout the history of Biology reveals this at a philosophical level ([4] and [6]). More often than not, mechanism is mentioned in opposition to vitalism, as an assertion of the validity of the objectivity principle in biology: there are no purposes in animal nature; its apparent purposefulness is similar to the purposefulness of machines. Yet, the fact that one picks machines as a set of objects comparable to living systems, deserves a closer look. What in machines makes it possible to establish such a connection?
Giant-chirp oscillator for ultra-large net-normal-dispersion fiber lasers

We report on the experimental observations for giant-chirped dissipative solitons emitted from a passively mode-locked fiber laser, which has ultra-large normal cavity dispersion. Two types of solitons coexist in the same cavity and evolve with different spectrum shapes, one of which is exhibited as a rectangular-spectrum profile and the other is as a bell-spectrum profile. Both are highly chirped due to the positively nonlinear effect together with strong normal dispersion. The maximal time-bandwidth product of solitons reported here can be as large as 236.3, which is far larger than 0.315 for the classical solitons. The dynamic evolution of solitons versus pump power is demonstrated. The experimental results suggest that the nonlinear polarization rotation and the gain filtering effect dominate the pulse-shaping alternately, which lead to the spectrum profile transforming. With further increasing the pump power, the proposed laser emits multiple pulses one by one, and the number of pulses can be up to five at the pump power of ∼ 505 mW.
Estimating 3D displacement vectors from line-of-sight observations with application to MIMO-SAR

Abstract Displacements in typical monitoring applications occur in 3D but having sensors capable of measuring such 3D deformations with areal coverage is rare. One way could be to combine three or more line-of-sight measurements carried out from different locations at the same time and derive 3D displacement vectors. Automotive Multiple-Input-Multiple-Output Synthetic Aperture Radar (MIMO-SAR) systems are of interest for such monitoring applications as they can acquire line-of-sight displacement measurements with areal coverage and are associated with low cost and high flexibility. In this paper, we present a set of algorithms deriving 3D displacement vectors from line-of-sight displacement measurements while applying spatial and temporal least squares adjustments. We evaluated the algorithms on simulated data and tested them on experimentally acquired MIMO-SAR acquisitions. The results showed that especially spatial parametric and non-parametric least squares adjustments worked very well for typical displacements occurring in geomonitoring and structural monitoring (e.g. tilting, bending, oscillating, etc.). The simulations were confirmed by an experiment, where a corner cube was moved step-wise. The results show that acquisitions of off-the-shelf automotive-grade MIMO-SAR systems can be combined to derive 3D displacement vectors with high accuracy.
High performance thin-film flip-chip InGaN–GaN light-emitting diodes

Data are presented on the operation of thin-film flip-chip InGaN∕GaN multiple-quantum-well light-emitting diodes (LEDs). The combination of thin-film LED concept with flip-chip technology is shown to provide surface brightness and flux output advantages over conventional flip-chip and vertical-injection thin-film LEDs. Performance characteristics of blue, white, and green thin-film flip-chip 1×1mm2 LEDs are described. Blue (∼441nm) thin-film flip-chip LEDs are demonstrated with radiance of 191mW∕mm2sr at 1A drive, more than two times brighter than conventional flip-chip LEDs. An encapsulated thin-film flip-chip blue LED lamp is shown to have external quantum efficiency of 38% at forward current of 350mA. A white lamp based on a YAG:Ce phosphor coated device exhibits luminous efficacy of 60lm∕W at 350mA with peak efficiency of 96lm∕W at 20mA and luminance of 38Mcd∕m2 at 1A drive current. Green (∼517nm) devices exhibit luminance of 37Mcd∕m2 at 1A.
An elemental abundance analysis of the mercury manganese star HD 29647

The sharp-lined mercury manganese (HgMn) star HD 29647, which is located behind the outer envelope of the Taurus Molecular Cloud 1, is of interest for both its stellar properties and its utility as a probe of interstellar gas and dust along its line of sight. In this paper we review the properties of the star, summarize its line identifications and present an abundance analysis based on spectrograms obtained at the McDonald Observatory and the Observatoire de Haute-Provence. This star has elemental abundances similar to those of other HgMn stars except that its He/H ratio is closer to solar, possibly indicating a young age, and that it, like HR 7775, is overabundant in selected elements including the rare earths. The stellar radial velocity, unfortunately, closely matches that of the foreground cloud.
Analysis of scattering by conducting objects covered with arbitrarily magnetised plasma using finite element-boundary integral-fast multipole algorithm

The electromagnetic (EM) scattering by conducting objects covered with arbitrarily magnetised plasma is computed using the hybrid vector finite element-boundary integral-fast multipole method (FE-BI-FMM). The relative permittivity tensor of arbitrarily magnetised plasma is described. The FE-BI-FMM formulation for scattering by three-dimensional (3D) conducting objects covered with arbitrarily magnetised plasma is derived in detail. The validity of FE-BI-FMM is verified by comparing numerical results with analytical values. The radar cross-sections (RCS) of conducting objects covered with magnetised plasmas are simulated and the effects of plasma parameters on RCS are analysed. Numerical results indicate that magnetised plasma cover layer is effective on reducing the back scattering if appropriate parameters of plasma are chosen.
The Challenges Before Us: A Response to Noha Sadek’s Paper “Racial Justice in Psychoanalytic Communities”

ABSTRACT This is an attempt to respond to Sadek’s efforts to examine psychoanalytic training institutions’ efforts to diversify its candidate pools while leaving intact their traditional social, economic, and political structures that are foundationally based on a privileging of whiteness and the lack of recognition of the diversity within not-white populations that the institutes wishes to bring into their training environments.
The Interaction of Product Attractiveness and Decision-Making Style on Consumer Purchase Intention: A Cultural Moderation Perspective

Abstract This article examines how product attractiveness in interaction with decision-making style influences purchase intentions. Participants in four different conditions rated their likelihood of buying an experiential product, showing that when using an emotional decision-making style condition, they have higher purchase intentions for the high attractive product than the low attractive product. A reverse effect was found when using a reasoned decision-making style. Moreover, these differences disappeared when included a cultural element, suggesting that collective mental group programming shapes learned ways to act in consumer fields at a higher level, including the decisional way to respond and approach perceived product characteristics. The inclusion of cultural factors with an adequate way to conceive the construct is discussed.
Liquid Metal Patterning and Unique Properties for Next‐Generation Soft Electronics

Room‐temperature liquid metal (LM)‐based electronics is expected to bring advancements in future soft electronics owing to its conductivity, conformability, stretchability, and biocompatibility. However, various difficulties arise when patterning LM because of its rheological features such as fluidity and surface tension. Numerous attempts are made to overcome these difficulties, resulting in various LM‐patterning methods. An appropriate choice of patterning method based on comprehensive understanding is necessary to fully utilize the unique properties. Therefore, the authors aim to provide thorough knowledge about patterning methods and unique properties for LM‐based future soft electronics. First, essential considerations for LM‐patterning are investigated. Then, LM‐patterning methods—serial‐patterning, parallel‐patterning, intermetallic bond‐assisted patterning, and molding/microfluidic injection—are categorized and investigated. Finally, perspectives on LM‐based soft electronics with unique properties are provided. They include outstanding features of LM such as conformability, biocompatibility, permeability, restorability, and recyclability. Also, they include perspectives on future LM‐based soft electronics in various areas such as radio frequency electronics, soft robots, and heterogeneous catalyst. LM‐based soft devices are expected to permeate the daily lives if patterning methods and the aforementioned features are analyzed and utilized.