bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Optical Detection of Dust and Scratches on Photographic Film
Authors: Trumpy Giorgio , Gschwind Rudolf
Published: March 2015

Today’s information society needs efficient and economic solutions for the digital restoration of the photographic heritage. Different methods have been adopted up to now for the automatic detection of dust and scratches; each method has pros and cons, and a limited field of effectiveness. The use of infrared radiation and the spatiotemporal image analysis are among the most effective methods, although they have their limits. The infrared radiation only works for dye-based material, while the spatiotemporal image analysis is not applicable for still images and is limited due to motion in the scene. The present work defines in detail a set of methods for optical dust and scratches detection applicable on any type of transparent photographic material (silver-based as well as dye-based material, still images as well as moving images). The term “optical” refers to the fact that the considered methods seek physical evidence of the presence of foreign bodies or irregularities on the film; this allows avoiding the typical digital artifacts produced by “nonoptical” methods, for which certain elements of the scenes are erroneously obliterated because they resemble dust grains or scratches. “PDD” (Polarized Dark-field Detection) detects the flaws using an image acquired in a polarized dark-field setup; “DCD” (Dual Collimation Detection) takes advantage of the Callier effect to locate the flaws; “
n
-MDD” (Multiple Direction Detection) entails the acquisition of
n
images in dark-field setups with different directions of illumination, and the extraction of the differences between the images through multivariate analysis. A numerical evaluation of the performances of the MDD method with an eightfold acquisition (8-MDD) is carried out by comparing its flaw detection with the flaw detection provided by commercial software based on spatiotemporal image analysis.
Microkernel Architecture and Hardware Abstraction Layer of a Reliable Reconfigurable Real-Time Operating System (R3TOS)
Authors: Iturbe Xabier , Benkrid Khaled , Hong Chuan , Ebrahim Ali , Torrego Raul , Arslan Tughrul
Published: March 2015

This article presents a new solution for easing the development of reconfigurable applications using Field-Programable Gate Arrays (FPGAs). Namely, our Reliable Reconfigurable Real-Time Operating System (R3TOS) provides OS-like support for partially reconfigurable FPGAs. Unlike related works, R3TOS is founded on the basis of resource reusability and computation ephemerality. It makes intensive use of reconfiguration at very fine FPGA granularity, keeping the logic resources used only while performing computation and releasing them as soon as it is completed. To achieve this goal, R3TOS goes beyond the traditional approach of using reconfigurable slots with fixed boundaries interconnected by means of a static communication infrastructure. Instead, R3TOS approaches a static route-free system where nearly everything is reconfigurable. The tasks are concatenated to form a computation chain through which partial results naturally flow, and data are exchanged among remotely located tasks using FPGA’s reconfiguration mechanism or by means of “removable” routing circuits. In this article, we describe the R3TOS microkernel architecture as well as its hardware abstraction services and programming interface. Notably, the article presents a set of novel circuits and mechanisms to overcome the limitations and exploit the opportunities of Xilinx reconfigurable technology in the scope of hardware multitasking and dependability.
SATTA
Authors: Carlo Stefano Di , Gambardella Giulio , Prinetto Paolo , Rolfo Daniele , Trotta Pascal
Published: March 2015

Dependability issues due to nonfunctional properties are emerging as a major cause of faults in modern digital systems. Effective countermeasures have to be developed to properly manage their critical timing effects. This article presents a methodology to avoid transition delay faults in field-programmable gate array (FPGA)-based systems, with low area overhead. The approach is able to exploit temperature information and aging characteristics to minimize the cost in terms of performances degradation and power consumption. The architecture of a hardware manager able to avoid delay faults is presented and analyzed extensively, as well as its integration in the standard implementation design flow.
Conducting Visitor Studies Using Smartphone-Based Location Sensing
Authors: Moussouri Theano , Roussos George
Published: March 2015

Visitor studies explore human experiences within museums, cultural heritage sites, and other informal learning settings to inform decisions. Smartphones offer novel opportunities for extending the depth and breadth of visitor studies while considerably reducing their cost and their demands on specialist human resources. By enabling the collection of significantly higher volumes of data, they also make possible the application of advanced machine-learning and visualization techniques, potentially leading to the discovery of new patterns and behaviors that cannot be captured by simple descriptive statistics. In this article, we present a principled approach to the use of smartphones for visitor studies, in particular proposing a structured methodology and associated methods that enable its effective use in this context. We discuss specific methodological considerations that have to be addressed for effective data collection, preprocessing, and analysis and identify the limitations in the applicability of these tools using family visits to the London Zoo as a case study. We conclude with a discussion of the wider opportunities afforded by the introduction of smartphones and related technologies and outline the steps toward establishing them as a standard tool for visitor studies.
Upgrading Subgroup Triple-Product-Property Triples
Authors: Hedtke Ivo
Published: March 2015

In 2003, Cohn and Umans introduced a group-theoretic approach to fast matrix multiplication. This involves finding large subsets of a group satisfying the Triple Product Property (TPP) as a means to bound the exponent of matrix multiplication. Recently, Hedtke and Murthy discussed several methods to find TPP triples. Because the search space for subset triples is too large, it is only possible to focus on subgroup triples. We present methods to upgrade a given TPP triple to a bigger TPP triple. If no upgrade is possible, we use reduction methods (based on random experiments and heuristics) to create a smaller TPP triple that can be used as input for the upgrade methods. If we apply the upgrade process for subset triples after one step with the upgrade method for subgroup triples for the known maximal subgroup TPP triples in groups of order up to 1,000, we achieve an enlargement of the triple size of 100% in the best case. Further, we test the upgrade process with all examples from the 2003 and 2005 papers from Cohn et al. and are able to increase the triple size by 595% in the best case (in the group D
5
6
).
Silence is Golden
Authors: Pietro Roberto Di , Oligeri Gabriele
Published: March 2015

Jamming techniques require only moderate resources to be deployed, while their effectiveness in disrupting communications is unprecedented. In this article, we introduce several contributions to jamming mitigation. In particular, we introduce a novel adversary model that has both (unlimited) jamming reactive capabilities as well as powerful (but limited) proactive jamming capabilities. Under this adversary model, to the best of our knowledge more powerful than any other adversary model addressed in the literature, the communication bandwidth provided by current anti-jamming solutions drops to zero. We then present Silence is Golden (
SiG
): a novel anti-jamming protocol that, introducing a tunable, asymmetric communication channel, is able to mitigate the adversary capabilities, enabling the parties to communicate. For instance, with
SiG
it is possible to deliver a 128-bits-long message with a probability greater than 99% in 4096 time slots despite the presence of a jammer that jams all on-the-fly communications and 74% of the silent radio spectrum—while competing proposals simply fail. Moreover, when
SiG
is used in a scenario in which the adversary can jam only a subset of all the available frequencies, performance experiences a boost: a 128-bits-long message is delivered within just 17 time slots for an adversary able to jam 90% of the available frequencies. We present a thorough theoretical analysis for the solution, which is supported by extensive simulation results, showing the viability of our proposal.
A Visualizable Evidence-Driven Approach for Authorship Attribution
Authors: Ding Steven H. H. , Fung Benjamin C. M. , Debbabi Mourad
Published: March 2015

The Internet provides an ideal anonymous channel for concealing computer-mediated malicious activities, as the network-based origins of critical electronic textual evidence (e.g., emails, blogs, forum posts, chat logs, etc.) can be easily repudiated. Authorship attribution is the study of identifying the actual author of the given anonymous documents based on the text itself, and for decades, many linguistic stylometry and computational techniques have been extensively studied for this purpose. However, most of the previous research emphasizes promoting the authorship attribution accuracy, and few works have been done for the purpose of constructing and visualizing the evidential traits. In addition, these sophisticated techniques are difficult for cyber investigators or linguistic experts to interpret. In this article, based on the End-to-End Digital Investigation (EEDI) framework, we propose a visualizable evidence-driven approach, namely VEA, which aims at facilitating the work of cyber investigation. Our comprehensive controlled experiment and the stratified experiment on the real-life Enron email dataset demonstrate that our approach can achieve even higher accuracy than traditional methods; meanwhile, its output can be easily visualized and interpreted as evidential traits. In addition to identifying the most plausible author of a given text, our approach also estimates the confidence for the predicted result based on a given identification context and presents visualizable linguistic evidence for each candidate.
An Ontological Approach to Creating an Andean Weaving Knowledge Base
Authors: Brownlow Richard , Capuzzi Stefano , Helmer Sven , Martins Luciana , Normann Immanuel , Poulovassilis Alex
Published: March 2015

Andean textiles are products of one of the richest, oldest and continuous weaving traditions in the world. Understanding the knowledge and practice of textile production as a form of cultural heritage is particularly relevant in the Andean context due to erosion of clothing traditions, reuse of traditional textiles on commodities targeted at the tourism market, and loss of knowledge embedded in textile production. “Weaving Communities of Practice” was a pilot project that aimed to create a knowledge base of Andean weaving designed to contribute to curatorial practice and heritage policy. The research team gathered data on the chain of activities, instruments, resources, peoples, places and knowledge involved in the production of textiles, relating to over 700 textile samples. A major part of the project has been the modelling and representation of the knowledge of domain experts and information about the textile objects themselves in the form of an OWL ontology, and the development of a suite of search facilities to be supported by the ontology. This paper describes the research challenges faced in developing the ontology and search facilities, the methodology adopted, the design and implementation of the system, and the design and outcomes of a user evaluation of the system undertaken with a group of domain experts.
Uncovering “Threshold Concepts” in Web Development: An Instructor Perspective
Authors: Alston Peter , Walsh David , Westhead Gary
Published: March 2015

The field of Web development has evolved and diversified significantly in recent years, and narrowing the gap between the requirements of academia and the demands of industry remains a challenge. Moreover, many faculty members often struggle with knowing “how much” of a particular subject they should teach to their students and at what level. This small-scale, exploratory study seeks to uncover the existence of “threshold concepts” within Web development. Threshold concepts are the fundamental concepts which, once mastered, allow a learner to progress to a deeper understanding of a subject. An online questionnaire was sent out to 24 instructors within UK higher education institutions who teach Web development subjects. Nine participants responded to the questionnaire and interviews were conducted with five to discuss and expand on the responses provided, resulting in the identification of four areas that were perceived as difficult for students to grasp when learning Web development. Analysis of these areas suggests that threshold concepts do exist within the subject and we offer up two candidates for the field of Web development:
basic programming principles and decomposition and abstraction
. Designing a curriculum based on threshold concepts and less on the latest methods, tools, and techniques can go a long way in helping students to become experts in their chosen discipline.
Accelerating Divergent Applications on SIMD Architectures Using Neural Networks
Authors: Grigorian Beayna , Reinman Glenn
Published: March 2015

The purpose of this research is to find a neural-network-based solution to the well-known problem of branch divergence in Single Instruction Multiple Data (SIMD) architectures. Our approach differs from existing techniques that handle branch (or control-flow) divergence, which use costly hardware modifications, low-utilization masking techniques, or static prediction methods. As we examine divergent applications, we characterize the degree of data-dependent control flow seen in each and isolate the code regions (or “kernels”) that cause the most performance degradation due to branch divergence. We then train neural networks (NNs) offline to approximate these kernels and inject the NN computations directly into the applications as substitutes for the kernels they approximate. This essentially translates control flow into nondivergent computation, trading off precision for performance. As our methodology manipulates application source code directly, it is inherently platform agnostic and can be adopted as a general means for accelerating divergent applications on data-parallel architectures. In this article, we present the Neuralizer, an automated software flow for kernel identification, NN training, and NN integration, as well as supplementary user-controlled optimization techniques. Evaluating our approach on a variety of divergent applications run on a Graphics Processing Unit (GPU), we on average achieve performance gains of 13.6 × and energy savings of 14.8 × with 96% accuracy.
Improving Public Transit Accessibility for Blind Riders by Crowdsourcing Bus Stop Landmark Locations with Google Street View: An Extended Analysis
Authors: Hara Kotaro , Azenkot Shiri , Campbell Megan , Bennett Cynthia L. , Le Vicki , Pannella Sean , Moore Robert , Minckler Kelly , Ng Rochelle H. , Froehlich Jon E.
Published: March 2015

Low-vision and blind bus riders often rely on known physical landmarks to help locate and verify bus stop locations (e.g., by searching for an expected shelter, bench, or newspaper bin). However, there are currently few, if any, methods to determine this information
a priori
via computational tools or services. In this article, we introduce and evaluate a new scalable method for collecting bus stop location and landmark descriptions by combining online crowdsourcing and Google Street View (GSV). We conduct and report on three studies: (i) a formative interview study of 18 people with visual impairments to inform the design of our crowdsourcing tool, (ii) a comparative study examining differences between physical bus stop audit data and audits conducted virtually with GSV, and (iii) an online study of 153 crowd workers on Amazon Mechanical Turk to examine the feasibility of crowdsourcing bus stop audits using our custom tool with GSV. Our findings reemphasize the importance of landmarks in nonvisual navigation, demonstrate that GSV is a viable bus stop audit dataset, and show that minimally trained crowd workers can find and identify bus stop landmarks with 82.5% accuracy across 150 bus stop locations (87.3% with simple quality control).
Metrics and Algorithms for Routing Questions to User Communities
Authors: Pal Aditya
Published: March 2015

An online community consists of a group of users who share a common interest, background, or experience, and their collective goal is to contribute toward the welfare of the community members. Several websites allow their users to create and manage niche communities, such as Yahoo! Groups, Facebook Groups, Google+ Circles, and WebMD Forums. These community services also exist within enterprises, such as IBM Connections. Question answering within these communities enables their members to exchange knowledge and information with other community members. However, the onus of finding the right community for question asking lies with an individual user. The overwhelming number of communities necessitates the need for a good question routing strategy so that new questions get routed to an appropriately focused community and thus get resolved in a reasonable time frame.

In this article, we consider the novel problem of routing a question to the right community and propose a framework for selecting and ranking the relevant communities for a question. We propose several novel features for modeling the three main entities of the system: questions, users, and communities. We propose features such as language attributes, inclination to respond, user familiarity, and difficulty of a question; based on these features, we propose similarity metrics between the routed question and the system entities. We introduce a
Cutoff-Aggregation
(
CA
) algorithm that aggregates the entity similarity within a community to compute that community's relevance. We introduce two
k
-nearest-neighbor (
knn
) algorithms that are a natural instantiation of the
CA
algorithm, which are computationally efficient and evaluate several ranking algorithms over the aggregate similarity scores computed by the two
knn
algorithms. We propose clustering techniques to speed up our recommendation framework and show how pipelining can improve the model performance. We demonstrate the effectiveness of our framework on two large real-world datasets.
Challenges with Label Quality for Supervised Learning
Authors: Alonso Omar
Published: March 2015

Organizations that develop and use technologies around information retrieval, machine learning, recommender systems, and natural language processing depend on labels for engineering and experimentation. These labels, usually gathered via human computation, are used in machine-learned models for prediction and evaluation purposes. In such scenarios, collecting high-quality labels is a very important part of the overall process. We elaborate on these challenges and discuss research directions.
Designing Wheelchair-Based Movement Games
Authors: Gerling Kathrin M. , Mandryk Regan L. , Miller Matthew , Kalyn Michael R. , Birk Max , Smeddinck Jan D.
Published: March 2015

People using wheelchairs have access to fewer sports and other physically stimulating leisure activities than nondisabled persons, and often lead sedentary lifestyles that negatively influence their health. While motion-based video games have demonstrated great potential of encouraging physical activity among nondisabled players, the accessibility of motion-based games is limited for persons with mobility disabilities, thus also limiting access to the potential health benefits of playing these games. In our work, we address this issue through the design of wheelchair-accessible motion-based game controls. We present KINECT
Wheels
, a toolkit designed to integrate wheelchair movements into motion-based games. Building on the toolkit, we developed Cupcake Heaven, a wheelchair-based video game designed for older adults using wheelchairs, and we created Wheelchair Revolution, a motion-based dance game that is accessible to both persons using wheelchairs and nondisabled players. Evaluation results show that KINECT
Wheels
can be applied to make motion-based games wheelchair-accessible, and that wheelchair-based games engage broad audiences in physically stimulating play. Through the application of the wheelchair as an enabling technology in games, our work has the potential of encouraging players of all ages to develop a positive relationship with their wheelchair.
Parallel Processing with Promises
Authors: Rathbun Spencer
Published: March 2015

In today’s world, there are many reasons to write concurrent software. The desire to improve performance and increase throughput has led to many different asynchronous techniques. The techniques involved, however, are generally complex and the source of many subtle bugs, especially if they require shared mutable state. If shared state is not required, then these problems can be solved with a better abstraction called promises. These allow programmers to hook asynchronous function calls together, waiting for each to return success or failure before running the next appropriate function in the chain.
Intravenous Administration of Bone Marrow-Derived Mesenchymal Stem Cells Induces a Switch from Classical to Atypical Symptoms in Experimental Autoimmune Encephalomyelitis
Authors: Kurte Mónica , Bravo-Alegría Javiera , Torres Alexander , Carrasco Vania , Ibáñez Cristina , Vega-Letter Ana María , Fernández-O’Ryan Catalina , Irarrázabal Carlos E. , Figueroa Fernando E. , Fuentealba Rodrigo A. , Riedel Claudia , Carrión Flavio
Published: March 2015

Potent immunosuppressive and regenerative properties of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) position them as a novel therapy for autoimmune diseases. This research examines the therapeutic effect of MSCs administration at different disease stages in experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE). Classical and atypical scores of EAE, associated with Th1 and Th17 response, respectively, and also Treg lymphocytes, were evaluated. MSCs administration at the onset (EAE+MSConset) induced an important amelioration of the clinical signs and less lasting effect at the peak of EAE (EAE+MSCpeak). No effect was observed when MSCs were applied after EAE stabilization (EAE+MSClate). Surprisingly, EAE atypical signs were detected in EAE+MSCpeakand EAE+MSClatemice. However, no correlation was found in Th17/Th1 ratio. Interestingly, regardless of time administration, MSCs significantly reduced IL-6 and also T-bet, RORγT, and Foxp3 mRNA levels in brain samples of EAE mice. The downregulation of IL-6 could restore the well-functioning of the blood-brain barrier of EAE mice, correlated with a decreased number of brain infiltrating leukocytes. These results suggest that the inflammatory status is important to be considered for administering MSCs in autoimmune pathologies, leading to a further research to clarify the effect of MSCs for multiple sclerosis.
Recent Developments in Sweat Analysis and Its Applications
Authors: Jadoon Saima , Karim Sabiha , Akram Muhammad Rouf , Kalsoom Khan Abida , Zia Muhammad Abid , Siddiqi Abdul Rauf , Murtaza Ghulam
Published: March 2015

Currently, the clinical use of sweat as biofluid is limited. The collection of sweat and its analysis for determining ethanol, drugs, ions, and metals have been encompassed in this review article to assess the merits of sweat compared to other biofluids, for example, blood or urine. Moreover, sweat comprises various biomarkers of different diseases including cystic fibrosis and diabetes. Additionally, the normalization of sampled volume of sweat is also necessary for getting efficient and useful results.
On Modeling and Analysis of MIMO Wireless Mesh Networks with Triangular Overlay Topology
Authors: Cao Zhanmao , Wu Chase Q. , Zhang Yuanping , Shiva Sajjan G. , Gu Yi
Published: March 2015

Multiple input multiple output (MIMO) wireless mesh networks (WMNs) aim to provide the last-mile broadband wireless access to the Internet. Along with the algorithmic development for WMNs, some fundamental mathematical problems also emerge in various aspects such as routing, scheduling, and channel assignment, all of which require an effective mathematical model and rigorous analysis of network properties. In this paper, we propose to employ Cartesian product of graphs (CPG) as a multichannel modeling approach and explore a set of unique properties of triangular WMNs. In each layer of CPG with a single channel, we design a node coordinate scheme that retains the symmetric property of triangular meshes and develop a function for the assignment of node identity numbers based on their coordinates. We also derive a necessary-sufficient condition for interference-free links and combinatorial formulas to determine the number of the shortest paths for channel realization in triangular WMNs.
Modelling of Cellular Networks with Traffic Overflow
Authors: Głąbowski Mariusz , Hanczewski Sławomir , Stasiak Maciej
Published: March 2015

The paper proposes a new method for modelling multiservice cellular networks with traffic overflow. The proposed method employs a model of Erlang’s Ideal Grading (EIG) with multiservice traffic and differentiated availability. The fundamental advantage of the proposed method, as compared to other relevant methods, is a major simplification in modelling systems with traffic overflow that results from the elimination of the necessity of a determination of the parameters of overflow traffic, that is, the average value and the variance. According to the proposed method, calculations in the overflow system can be reduced to calculations in a system composed of one grading only. The paper presents the method for determining availability in such a grading that models a system with traffic overflow. The results of analytical calculations were compared with the results of simulation experiments. The results of the research study confirm high accuracy of the proposed method.
Evaluation of Cinnamomum osmophloeum Kanehira Extracts on Tyrosinase Suppressor, Wound Repair Promoter, and Antioxidant
Authors: Lee Man-Gang , Kuo Su-Yu , Yen Shih-Yu , Hsu Hsia-Fen , Leung Chung-Hang , Ma Dik-Lung , Wen Zhi-Hong , Wang Hui-Min David
Published: March 2015

Cinnamomum osmophloeum Kanehira belongs to the Lauraceae family of Taiwan’s endemic plants. In this study, C. osmophloeum Kanehira extract has shown inhibition of tyrosinase activity on B16‐F10 cellular system first. Whether extracts inhibited mushroom tyrosinase activity was tested, and a considerable inhibition of mushroom tyrosinase activity by in vitro assays was presented. Animal experiments of C. osmophloeum Kanehira were carried out by observing animal wound repair, and the extracts had greater wound healing power than the vehicle control group (petroleum jelly with 8% DMSO, w/v). In addition, the antioxidant capacity of C. osmophloeum Kanehira extracts in vitro was evaluated. We measured C. osmophloeum Kanehira extract’s free radical scavenging capability, metal chelating, and reduction power, such as biochemical activity analysis. The results showed that a high concentration of C. osmophloeum Kanehira extract had a significant scavenging capability of free radical, a minor effect of chelating ability, and moderate reducing power. Further exploration of the possible physiological mechanisms and the ingredient components of skincare product for skin‐whitening, wound repair, or antioxidative agents are to be done.
The Genetic Predisposition and Its Impact on the Diabetes Mellitus Development in Patients with Alcoholic Chronic Pancreatitis
Authors: Madro Agnieszka , Ciesielka Marzanna , Celinski Krzysztof , Slomka Maria , Czechowska Grazyna , Kurzepa Jacek , Kaszelan-Szczerbinska Beata , Buszewicz Grzegorz , Madro Roman
Published: March 2015

The most common cause of chronic pancreatitis (CP) is alcohol abuse. The aim of the present study was to identify patients with genetic predisposition to CP abusing alcohol. The question posed was whether CP manifests at a younger age and diabetes mellitus develops earlier in individuals with genetic predisposition. The study encompassed 79 patients with alcoholic chronic pancreatitis (ACP) and control group (100 persons). The following mutations were determined: R122H and N29I of PRSS1 and N34S of SPINK1 as well as E366K and E288V of SERPINA 1. No R122H and N291 mutations were observed in the group of ACP patients and in controls. Moreover, there was no E288V mutation. In 79 ACP patients, six SPINK 1 (N34S/wt) mutations were observed. In the control group, one heterozygous SPINK 1N34S gene mutation was found (P=0.0238). Two PiZ mutations were identified in patients with ACP and one analogical mutation in controls. Amongst patients with ACP as well as SPINK1 and PiZ mutations, the onset of disease was observed earlier and developed earlier. The prevalence of SPINK1 mutation is higher in patients with ACP than in healthy populations. This mutation together with the effects of alcohol accelerates the development of ACP and of diabetes mellitus.
Design of Miniaturized Multiband Filters Using Zero Order Resonators for WLAN Applications
Authors: Shafiee Maryam , Chaychi Zadeh Mohammad Amin , Oraizi Homayoon
Published: March 2015

The objective of this paper is to design miniaturized narrow- and dual-band filters for WLAN application using zero order resonators by the method of least squares. The miniaturization of the narrow-band filter is up to 70% and that of the dual-band filter is up to 64% compared to the available models in the literature. Two prototype models of the narrow-band and dual-band filters are fabricated and measured, which verify the proposed structure for the filter and its design by the presented method, using an equivalent circuit model.
A Novel Hybrid Dimension Reduction Technique for Undersized High Dimensional Gene Expression Data Sets Using Information Complexity Criterion for Cancer Classification
Authors: Pamukçu Esra , Bozdogan Hamparsum , Çalık Sinan
Published: March 2015

Gene expression data typically are large, complex, and highly noisy. Their dimension is high with several thousand genes (i.e., features) but with only a limited number of observations (i.e., samples). Although the classical principal component analysis (PCA) method is widely used as a first standard step in dimension reduction and in supervised and unsupervised classification, it suffers from several shortcomings in the case of data sets involving undersized samples, since the sample covariance matrix degenerates and becomes singular. In this paper we address these limitations within the context of probabilistic PCA (PPCA) by introducing and developing a new and novel approach using maximum entropy covariance matrix and its hybridized smoothed covariance estimators. To reduce the dimensionality of the data and to choose the number of probabilistic PCs (PPCs) to be retained, we further introduce and develop celebrated Akaike’s information criterion (AIC), consistent Akaike’s information criterion (CAIC), and the information theoretic measure of complexity (ICOMP) criterion of Bozdogan. Six publicly available undersized benchmark data sets were analyzed to show the utility, flexibility, and versatility of our approach with hybridized smoothed covariance matrix estimators, which do not degenerate to perform the PPCA to reduce the dimension and to carry out supervised classification of cancer groups in high dimensions.
Palliative Care for a Mentally Incompetent End Stage Renal Failure Patient: Why Is It Important?
Authors: Chan Kwok-Ying , Yip Terence , Sham Mau-Kwong , Cheng Benjamin Hon-Wai , Li Cho-Wing , Wong Yim-Chi , Lau Vikki Wai-Kee
Published: March 2015

People with intellectual disabilities are among the most disadvantaged groups in society. Here we report a mentally incompetent end stage renal failure (ESRF) patient with frequent emergency visits who made a significant improvement in symptoms control and reduction in casualty visits after introduction of renal palliative care service. Multidisciplinary approach would be useful in this case.
Current Uses of Poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) in the Dental Field: A Comprehensive Review
Authors: Virlan Maria Justina Roxana , Miricescu Daniela , Totan Alexandra , Greabu Maria , Tanase Cristiana , Sabliov Cristina M. , Caruntu Constantin , Calenic Bogdan
Published: March 2015

Poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) or PLGA is a biodegradable polymer used in a wide range of medical applications. Specifically PLGA materials are also developed for the dental field in the form of scaffolds, films, membranes, microparticles, or nanoparticles. PLGA membranes have been studied with promising results, either alone or combined with other materials in bone healing procedures. PLGA scaffolds have been used to regenerate damaged tissues together with stem cell-based therapy. There is solid evidence that the development of PLGA microparticles and nanoparticles may be beneficial to a wide range of dental fields such as endodontic therapy, dental caries, dental surgery, dental implants, or periodontology. The aim of the current paper was to review the recent advances in PLGA materials and their potential uses in the dental field.
The Role of Eye Movement Driven Attention in Functional Strabismic Amblyopia
Authors: Wang Hao , Crewther Sheila Gillard , Yin Zheng Qin
Published: March 2015

Strabismic amblyopia “blunt vision” is a developmental anomaly that affects binocular vision and results in lowered visual acuity. Strabismus is a term for a misalignment of the visual axes and is usually characterized by impaired ability of the strabismic eye to take up fixation. Such impaired fixation is usually a function of the temporally and spatially impaired binocular eye movements that normally underlie binocular shifts in visual attention. In this review, we discuss how abnormal eye movement function in children with misaligned eyes influences the development of normal binocular visual attention and results in deficits in visual function such as depth perception. We also discuss how eye movement function deficits in adult amblyopia patients can also lead to other abnormalities in visual perception. Finally, we examine how the nonamblyopic eye of an amblyope is also affected in strabismic amblyopia.
Sequential Geometric Approach for Device-Free Localization with Outlier Link Rejection
Authors: Xiao Wendong , Song Biao
Published: March 2015

Device-free localization (DFL) is an emerging technique for estimating the location of the target that does not attach any electronic equipment. Wireless devices are needed to perform as transmitters or receivers. The location of the target is estimated by detecting the changes of the received signal strength (RSS) measurements of the wireless links formed by wireless transmitters and receivers. Due to the uncertainty of the wireless channel, certain links may be polluted seriously, resulting in error detection. In this paper, we propose a novel sequential geometric approach with outlier link rejection (SGOLR) for DFL. It consists of three sequential strategies, including (1) affected link identification by differential RSS detection; (2) outlier link rejection via clustering algorithm by intersection of link (IoL) calculation from the affected links; and (3) density based IoL selection and target location estimation from the remained IoLs. Experimental results show that SGOLR is robust to the fluctuation of the wireless signals with superior localization accuracy compared with the existing Radio Tomographic Imaging (RTI) approach.
Dexamethasone Enhanced Functional Recovery after Sciatic Nerve Crush Injury in Rats
Authors: Feng Xinhong , Yuan Wei
Published: March 2015

Dexamethasone is currently used for the treatment of peripheral nerve injury, but its mechanisms of action are not completely understood. Inflammation/immune response at the site of nerve lesion is known to be an essential trigger of the pathological changes that have a critical impact on nerve repair and regeneration. In this study, we observed the effects of various doses of dexamethasone on the functional recovery after sciatic nerve crush injury in a rat model. Motor functional recovery was monitored by walking track analysis and gastrocnemius muscle mass ratio. The myelinated axon number was counted by morphometric analysis. Rats administered dexamethasone by local intramuscular injection had a higher nerve function index value, increased gastrocnemius muscle mass ratio, reduced Wallerian degeneration severity, and enhanced regenerated myelinated nerve fibers. Immunohistochemical analysis was performed for CD3 expression, which is a marker for T-cell activation, and infiltration in the sciatic nerve. Dexamethasone-injected rats had fewer CD3-positive cells compared to controls. Furthermore, we found increased expression of GAP-43, which is a factor associated with development and plasticity of the nervous system, in rat nerves receiving dexamethasone. These results provide strong evidence that dexamethasone enhances sciatic nerve regeneration and function recovery in a rat model of sciatic nerve injury through immunosuppressive and potential neurotrophic effects.
Oxidative Stress and Immune System in Vitiligo and Thyroid Diseases
Authors: Colucci Roberta , Dragoni Federica , Moretti Silvia
Published: March 2015

Vitiligo is an acquired dermatological disease frequently associated with autoimmune thyroid disorders. Several theories have been proposed so far to unravel the complex vitiligo pathogenesis. Currently, the autocytotoxic and the autoimmune theories are the most accredited hypothesis, since they are sustained by several important clinical and experimental evidences. A growing body of evidences shows that autoimmunity and oxidative stress strictly interact to finally determine melanocyte loss. In this scenario, associated thyroid autoimmunity might play an active and important role in triggering and maintaining the depigmentation process of vitiligo.
Somatostatin Analogs in the Medical Management of Occult Bleeding of the Lower Digestive Tract
Authors: Martin-Grace Julie , Tamagno Gianluca
Published: March 2015

The management of occult bleeding from the lower digestive tract can be very challenging. In cases of identified angiodysplasia, the first line management options can be limited by a number of clinical or anatomical factors and an alternative approach might be required, including the use of medications. Somatostatin analogs have been considered as an effective and well-tolerated alternative management option in a number of cases where the endoscopic therapeutic approach is not practical or is unsuccessful, in patients with coagulopathies or who need concomitant anticoagulation or antiplatelet treatment. Despite the lack of double-blinded randomized placebo-control trials and despite the limitations of the available evidence in the literature, including small sample size, variable dosing, and administration routes, there is a consistent agreement in the literature that somatostatin analogs are a safe, well-tolerated, and effective therapeutic option for managing refractory or occult bleeding from the lower digestive tract, with particular reference to patients with angiodysplasia, where endoscopic or surgical management is either not feasible or unsuccessful and other pharmacological options are not preferred.
Modeling and Forecasting Average Temperature for Weather Derivative Pricing
Authors: Wang Zhiliang , Li Peng , Li Lingyong , Huang Chunyan , Liu Min
Published: March 2015

The main purpose of this paper is to present a feasible model for the daily average temperature on the area of Zhengzhou and apply it to weather derivatives pricing. We start by exploring the background of weather derivatives market and then use the 62 years of daily historical data to apply the mean-reverting Ornstein-Uhlenbeck process to describe the evolution of the temperature. Finally, Monte Carlo simulations are used to price heating degree day (HDD) call option for this city, and the slow convergence of the price of the HDD call can be found through taking 100,000 simulations. The methods of the research will provide a frame work for modeling temperature and pricing weather derivatives in other similar places in China.
Fault Modeling and Testing for Analog Circuits in Complex Space Based on Supply Current and Output Voltage
Authors: Hu Hongzhi , Tian Shulin , Guo Qing
Published: March 2015

This paper deals with the modeling of fault for analog circuits. A two-dimensional (2D) fault model is first proposed based on collaborative analysis of supply current and output voltage. This model is a family of circle loci on the complex plane, and it simplifies greatly the algorithms for test point selection and potential fault simulations, which are primary difficulties in fault diagnosis of analog circuits. Furthermore, in order to reduce the difficulty of fault location, an improved fault model in three-dimensional (3D) complex space is proposed, which achieves a far better fault detection ratio (FDR) against measurement error and parametric tolerance. To address the problem of fault masking in both 2D and 3D fault models, this paper proposes an effective design for testability (DFT) method. By adding redundant bypassing-components in the circuit under test (CUT), this method achieves excellent fault isolation ratio (FIR) in ambiguity group isolation. The efficacy of the proposed model and testing method is validated through experimental results provided in this paper.
Heat Transfer and Flows of Thermal Convection in a Fluid-Saturated Rotating Porous Medium
Authors: Kang Jianhong , Xia Tongqiang , Liu Yingke
Published: March 2015

Thermal convection at the steady state for high Rayleigh number in a rotating porous half space is investigated. Taking into account the effect of rotation, Darcy equation is extended to incorporate the Coriolis force term in a rotating reference frame. The velocity and temperature fields of thermal convection are obtained by using the homotopy analysis method. The influences of Taylor number and Rayleigh number on the Nusselt number, velocity profile, and temperature distribution are discussed in detail. It is found that the Nusselt number decreases rapidly with the increase of Taylor number but tends to have an asymptotic value. Besides, the rotation can give rise to downward flow in contrast with the upward thermal convection.
The Relationship Between Hemodialysis Modality and Insulin Resistance in Non-Diabetic Hemodialysis Patients
Authors: Moon Sung Jin , Lee Jung Eun , Kim Jwa-Kyung , Yoon Soo Young , Kang Shin Wook , Choi Kyu Hun , Ha Sung Kyu , Park Hyeong-Cheon
Published: March 2015

Background: Although various modalities of hemodialysis (HD) are presumed to have different effects on insulin resistance (IR), the relationship between hemodiafiltration (HDF) and IR has not been fully evaluated. Methods: In a cross-sectional study, 82 non-diabetic HD patients were enrolled. The patients were divided into two groups according to the median homeostasis model assessment index (HOMA-IR) value of 1.685. Clinical and biochemical data were compared, and multivariate logistic regression analysis was performed to identify the independent factors associated with higher HOMA-IR. Results: The higher HOMA-IR group had increased body mass index (BMI), decreased HDL cholesterol, and lower beta-2 microglobulin reduction rate (β2-MG RR) compared to the lower HOMA-IR group. HOMA-IR was significantly correlated with β2-MG RR. In addition, HDF patients had lower HOMA-IR levels compared with low flux hemodialysis patients. On multivariate logistic regression analysis, BMI and HDF treatment were independent factors associated with higher and lower HOMA-IR, respectively. Conclusion: This study suggests that HDF treatment may reduce IR in non-diabetic HD patients.
Resection of Borderline Resectable and Locally Advanced Pancreatic Adenocarcinomas after Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy
Authors: Addeo Pietro , Rosso Edoardo , Fuchshuber Pascal , Oussoultzoglou Elie , De Blasi Vito , Simone Gael , Belletier Christine , Dufour Patrick , Bachellier Philippe
Published: March 2015

Objective: To report the outcomes of surgical resection of borderline resectable (BL) and locally advanced (LA) ‘unresectable' pancreatic cancer after neoadjuvant chemotherapy. Methods: A review of a prospectively maintained database for pancreatic resections was undertaken to identify patients undergoing resection for BL and LA pancreatic cancer after neoadjuvant chemotherapy between January 2007 and December 2012. Clinicopathological, surgical and survival outcomes were analyzed. Results: A total of 45 patients with LA (n = 34) or BL cancer (n = 11) underwent surgery after a mean (± SD) of 7 ± 4 preoperative chemotherapy cycles. Ninety-day mortality was 6.7%, and overall morbidity was 33.3%. An R0 resection was achieved in 34 patients, and 4 patients showed a complete pathological response. Overall median postoperative survival was 17 months (21 after the start of neoadjuvant treatment). Overall and disease-free survival was 74.9 and 43.6% at 1 year and 21.2 and 10.3% at 3 years, respectively. In BL cancer patients, the 3-year survival was significantly higher compared to that of LA cancer patients (p = 0.02). Conclusions: Curative intent resection in BL and LA cancer patients after neoadjuvant chemotherapy can be achieved with reasonable mortality and morbidity and an encouraging 3-year survival. After neoadjuvant therapy, resection provides a better overall survival for BL compared to LA cancer patients.
Ask Not What Personalized Medicine Can Do for You - Ask What You Can Do for Personalized Medicine
Authors: Budin-Ljøsne Isabelle , Harris Jennifer R.
Published: March 2015

Background: Personalized medicine (PM) aims to offer tailored health care to individuals on the basis of their genetic profile. This paper explores the types of behaviors and practices that citizens are expected to adopt under PM, examines whether such expectations are realistic, and proposes strategies that could support citizens in the adoption of these behaviors. Methods: Recent reports from national and international medical organizations and funders of PM are reviewed to investigate the types of behaviors and practices that citizens are expected to adopt under PM. These behaviors are examined in light of the current knowledge regarding citizen involvement in health care. Results: Under PM, citizens are expected to be much more educated, proactive, and engaged in their health care than under conventional medical models. Actualizing such behaviors and practices may, however, be difficult or even unattainable for some groups of citizens. Conclusions: Educating citizens in PM, as proposed in the reports, is important but may not suffice for the adoption of new behaviors and practices by a majority of citizens. Approaches taking into consideration the heterogeneity of backgrounds, abilities, and resources among citizens are needed and include modifying reimbursement and pricing mechanisms, diversifying research, and developing low-cost PM programs.