gebhart/patrepeval huggingface dataset:
Semi-supervised clustering using multi-assistant-prototypes to represent each cluster (2015)

The incorporation of semi-supervision in the cluster detection process has proved especially useful when one wants to get a high consistency between the data partitioning and the knowledge the user has about the data domain. In recent years, several strategies for semi-supervised clustering have been proposed. The approaches adopted by these strategies aim at guiding the process of cluster detection by using constraints: to interfere with the allocation of elements to the most appropriate cluster at each iteration of the algorithm; or to modify the objective function employed. This paper proposes a novel approach for incorporating semi-supervision in the well-known k-means algorithm. This semi-supervised clustering method employs constraint information in the definition of multiple assistant representatives for the centroids used at each iteration of k-means. A refinement process is designed to reduce the number of assistant representatives considered for each centroid without losing the clustering quality. The experimental results with eight synthetic datasets show the potential of the proposed approach for dealing with complex data structures composed by clusters of different shapes.
Improving machine translation quality with automatic named entity recognition (2003)

Named entities create serious problems for state-of-the-art commercial machine translation (MT) systems and often cause translation failures beyond the local context, affecting both the overall morphosyntactic well-formedness of sentences and word sense disambiguation in the source text. We report on the results of an experiment in which MT input was processed using output from the named entity recognition module of Sheffield's GATE information extraction (IE) system. The gain in MT quality indicates that specific components of IE technology could boost the performance of current MT systems.
Présentation « Tout sur mon père » (2004)

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3-D Ultrasound-Guided Robotic Needle Steering in Biological Tissue (2014)

Robotic needle steering systems have the potential to greatly improve medical interventions, but they require new methods for medical image guidance. Three-dimensional (3-D) ultrasound is a widely available, low-cost imaging modality that may be used to provide real-time feedback to needle steering robots. Unfortunately, the poor visibility of steerable needles in standard grayscale ultrasound makes automatic segmentation of the needles impractical. A new imaging approach is proposed, in which high-frequency vibration of a steerable needle makes it visible in ultrasound Doppler images. Experiments demonstrate that segmentation from this Doppler data is accurate to within 1-2 mm. An image-guided control algorithm that incorporates the segmentation data as feedback is also described. In experimental tests in ex vivo bovine liver tissue, a robotic needle steering system implementing this control scheme was able to consistently steer a needle tip to a simulated target with an average error of 1.57 mm. Implementation of 3-D ultrasound-guided needle steering in biological tissue represents a significant step toward the clinical application of robotic needle steering.
Neutron and x-ray reflectivity studies of self-assembled heterostructures based on conjugated polymers (1998)

Neutron and x-ray reflectivity studies of modulated heterostructures consisting of alternate layers of conjugated and nonconjugated polymers is described. Such heterostructures are currently being used to fabricate polymer-based light emitting diodes. The heterostructures were prepared by the layer-by-layer self-assembly technique using the precursor of the conjugated polymer, deuterated poly(phenylenevinylene) (D-PPV), and other polyelectrolyte spacers. Heat treatment after the layer assembly converted the pre-D-PPV to a conjugated semiconducting polymer. For the first time in such heterostructures, we were able to observe quasi-Bragg reflections (up to the third order) due to the formation of ordered modulated structures. Both the neutron and the x-ray data were analyzed using the same layer-by-layer model and the same fitting procedure with consistent results. Most importantly, the model and the fitting procedure yield the buried interlayer roughness at the D-PPV/spacer interface. This roughness parameter, of the order of 12±3 Å, was found to be smaller than the thickness of the D-PPV and the spacer layers, suggesting that the length over which interdigitation between neighboring polymer layers occurs is significantly smaller than the spacer layer. We demonstrate that the conversion to conjugated polymer by the heat treatment leads to ∼7% reduction of the repeat unit and the film thickness without significant changes of other structural properties; in fact, the interfacial roughness was somewhat improved. The fabrication of high quality modulated structures with controlled layer thickness and relatively small interfacial roughness may be a first step towards polymer-based multiquantum wells analogous to such devices in inorganic heterostructures.
Shrinkage behavior and mechanical performances of injection molded polypropylene/talc composites (2007)

Abstract In this research, the influences of adding talc mineral particles of 10 μm particle size on the shrinkage and the mechanical properties of injection molded polypropylene (PP)/talc composites were investigated. PP has a crystalline molecular structure and hence it possesses nonisotropic shrinkage along and across the flow directions. Addition of the talc mineral filler to PP induced an isotropic shrinkage in the molded part because of the nonisotropic shape of talc particles. The results of experiments indicated that the maximum flexural strength, maximum impact strength, and isotropic shrinkage were achieved by adding 10, 20, and 30 by weight percent of talc respectively. By incorporating of 10 wt% of talc particles into the PP matrix, the tensile strength was hardly affected but the occurrence of cold drawing phenomena in the tensile test was hindered considerably. The flake‐shape structure of talc filler played an important role in determining the molded part shrinkage and mechanical properties. POLYM. ENG. SCI., 47:2124–2128, 2007. © 2007 Society of Plastics Engineers
Adversarial Robustness through Local Linearization (2019)

Adversarial training is an effective methodology for training deep neural networks that are robust against adversarial, norm-bounded perturbations. However, the computational cost of adversarial training grows prohibitively as the size of the model and number of input dimensions increase. Further, training against less expensive and therefore weaker adversaries produces models that are robust against weak attacks but break down under attacks that are stronger. This is often attributed to the phenomenon of gradient obfuscation; such models have a highly non-linear loss surface in the vicinity of training examples, making it hard for gradient-based attacks to succeed even though adversarial examples still exist. In this work, we introduce a novel regularizer that encourages the loss to behave linearly in the vicinity of the training data, thereby penalizing gradient obfuscation while encouraging robustness. We show via extensive experiments on CIFAR-10 and ImageNet, that models trained with our regularizer avoid gradient obfuscation and can be trained significantly faster than adversarial training. Using this regularizer, we exceed current state of the art and achieve 47% adversarial accuracy for ImageNet with l-infinity adversarial perturbations of radius 4/255 under an untargeted, strong, white-box attack. Additionally, we match state of the art results for CIFAR-10 at 8/255.
Urocortin 2 modulates glucose utilization and insulin sensitivity in skeletal muscle (2006)

Skeletal muscle is the principal tissue responsible for insulin-stimulated glucose disposal and is a major site of peripheral insulin resistance. Urocortin 2 (Ucn 2), a member of the corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) family, and its cognate type 2 CRF receptor (CRFR2) are highly expressed in skeletal muscle. To determine the physiological role of Ucn 2, we generated mice that are deficient in this peptide. Using glucose-tolerance tests (GTTs), insulin-tolerance tests (ITTs), and hyperinsulinemic euglycemic glucose clamp studies, we demonstrated that mice lacking Ucn 2 exhibited increased insulin sensitivity and were protected against fat-induced insulin resistance. Administration of synthetic Ucn 2 to mutant mice before the GTTs and ITTs restored blood glucose to WT levels. Administration of a CRFR2 selective antagonist to WT mice resulted in a GTT profile that mirrored that of Ucn 2-null mice. Body composition measurements of Ucn 2-null mice on a high-fat diet demonstrated decreases in fat and increases in lean tissue compared with WT mice. We propose that null mutant mice display increased glucose uptake in skeletal muscle through the removal of Ucn 2-mediated inhibition of insulin signaling. In keeping with these data, Ucn 2 inhibited insulin-induced Akt and ERK1/2 phosphorylation in cultured skeletal muscle cells and C2C12 myotubes. These data are consistent with the hypothesis that Ucn 2 functions as a local negative regulator of glucose uptake in skeletal muscle and encourage exploration of the possibility that suppression of the Ucn 2/CRFR2 pathway may provide benefits in insulin-resistant states such as type 2 diabetes.
Randomised controlled study of effect of parathyroid hormone on vertebral-bone mass and fracture incidence among postmenopausal women on oestrogen with osteoporosis (1997)

We found that PTH has a pronouned anabolic effect on the central skeleton in patients on hormone-replacement therapy. PTH also increases total-body bone mineral, with no detrimental effects at any skeletal site. The increased vertebral mass was associated with a reduced rate of vertebral fracture, despite increased bone turnover. Bone-mass changes may be consistent with a reduction in all osteoporotic fractures. If confirmed in larger studies, these data have important implications for the treatment of postmenopausal osteoporosis.
Performance Enhancement of Capacitive-Coupling Dual-gate Ion-Sensitive Field-Effect Transistor in Ultra-Thin-Body (2014)

Recently, thin-film transistor based-ISFETs with the dual-gate (DG) structures have been proposed, in order to beat the Nernst response of the standard ISFET, utilizing diverse organic or inorganic materials. The immutable Nernst response can be dramatically transformed to an ultra-sensing margin, with the capacitive-coupling arisen from the DG structure. In order to advance this platform, we here embedded the ultra-thin body (UTB) into the DG ISFET. The UTB of 4.3 nm serves to not only increase its sensitivity, but also to strongly suppress the leakage components, leading to a better stability of the DG ISFET. In addition, we first provide a comprehensive analysis of the body thickness effects especially how the thick body can render the degradation in the device performance, such as sensitivity and stability. The UTB DG ISFET will allow the ISFET-based biosensor platform to continue enhancement into the next decade.
Self-Supervised Learning of Lidar Segmentation for Autonomous Indoor Navigation (2021)

We present a self-supervised learning approach for the semantic segmentation of lidar frames. Our method is used to train a deep point cloud segmentation architecture without any human annotation. The annotation process is automated with the combination of simultaneous localization and mapping (SLAM) and ray-tracing algorithms. By performing multiple navigation sessions in the same environment, we are able to identify permanent structures, such as walls, and disentangle short-term and long-term movable objects, such as people and tables, respectively. New sessions can then be performed using a network trained to predict these semantic labels. We demonstrate the ability of our approach to improve itself over time, from one session to the next. With semantically filtered point clouds, our robot can navigate through more complex scenarios, which, when added to the training pool, help to improve our network predictions. We provide insights into our network predictions and show that our approach can also improve the performances of common localization techniques.
Microfluidic System for Generation of Sinusoidal Glucose Waveforms for Entrainment of Islets of Langerhans (2010)

A microfluidic system was developed to produce sinusoidal waveforms of glucose to entrain oscillations of intracellular [Ca(2+)] in islets of Langerhans. The work described is an improvement to a previously reported device where two pneumatic pumps delivered pulses of glucose and buffer to a mixing channel. The mixing channel acted as a low pass filter to attenuate these pulses to produce the desired final concentration. Improvements to the current device included increasing the average pumping frequency from 0.83 to 3.33 Hz by modifying the on-chip valves to minimize adhesion between the PDMS and glass within the valve. The cutoff frequency of the device was increased from 0.026 to 0.061 Hz for sinusoidal fluorescein waves by shortening the length of the mixing channel to 3.3 cm. The value of the cutoff frequency was chosen between the average pumping frequency and the low frequency (approximately 0.0056 Hz) glucose waves that were needed to entrain the islets of Langerhans. In this way, the pulses from the pumps were attenuated greatly but the low-frequency glucose waves were not. With the use of this microfluidic system, a total flow rate of 1.5 +/- 0.1 microL min(-1) was generated and used to deliver sinusoidal waves of glucose concentration with a median value of 11 mM and amplitude of 1 mM to a chamber that contained an islet of Langerhans loaded with the Ca(2+)-sensitive fluorophore, indo-1. Entrainment of the islets was demonstrated by pacing the rhythm of intracellular [Ca(2+)] oscillations to oscillatory glucose levels produced by the device. The system should be applicable to a wide range of cell types to aid understanding cellular responses to dynamically changing stimuli.
Novel stress-free Keep Out Zone process development for via middle TSV in 20nm planar CMOS technology (2014)

For the first time, a near-Zero Keep Out Zone TSV capability is demonstrated utilizing the Middle Of Line (MoL) layer stack process development and optimization. This is MoL layer stack consisted of a nitride, PMD oxide, and contact protection layer. Careful selection of a high CTE Contact Protection layer to compensate the TSV induced stress in Silicon (Silicon CTE is 2.3ppm/°C) yields the near-Zero Keep Out Zone, confirmed with silicon measurement data.
A TENSIOMETER AND PORE WATER SAMPLER FOR VADOSE ZONE MONITORING (1987)

This report describes a tensiometer designed to be used for soil water sampling. Variations in the design include a solenoid transducer tensiometer for monitoring metric potentials at depths in excess of 10.3 m and instrumentation to automatically re-circulate fluid in the tensiometer. The designs were evaluated to determine whether their response to matric flow was “soil-limited” or “tensiometer-limited,” as defined by Towner (1980). In a dry silt, the response time was soil-limited, but was tensiometer-limited in a wet silt and in a wet and dry sand. The effects of 11 mg/L of O2 dissolved in 236 ml of water and a 2-mm-diameter bubble upon the response time, compared with an ideal fluid, was calculated. Only a dry silt with dissolved oxygen in the tensiometer fluid was found to be soil-limited; a wet silt and a dry and wet sand were tensiometer-limited. The response time was affected more by gas in the tensiometer fluid than by the measurement device (Bourdon gauge or pressure transducer).
Unidirectional Vienna Converter Design Based On Series-Connected Component (2019)

Along with the DC grid distribution issue, the Solid State Transformer (SST) is increasingly emerging in the field of electric power electronics, and the Hybrid SST (HSST) study is also emerging between the current AC-based Grid and future DC grid distribution. At present, several SST and HSST studies have discussed ways to implement the same topology in series to create high DC voltages. These cascade-style topologies not only make it difficult to implement controllers and designing gate drivers but also require a lot of elements, which drives up the overall system's price. Meanwhile, IGBT and MOSFET series connections are actively being studied for high voltage topology, and various techniques are being studied to solve simultaneous turn on/off problems. This paper proposes by altering the PFC circuit used in existing LVs to switch device series-connected base for HSST and SST. In this paper, circuits were constructed using balancing resistance and passive component for voltage balancing of series-connected switches, and validity is verified through proper controller selection and formulas.
Normalizing Inelastic Seismic Response of Structures having Eccentricities in Plan (1990)

The potentially disastrous consequences of “plan eccentricities” on the seismic response of structures is well recognized, but the exact influence of various parameters on the inelastic response of such systems remains unclear. This paper presents the results of an extensive parametric study conducted to investigate the effect of the uncoupled translational frequency ωx, the ratio of uncoupled frequencies Ω, the normalized eccentricity (e/r), and the level of excitation, on the inelastic response of simple structures having eccentricities in plan. A procedure is developed to ensure a logical comparison between the response of the eccentric systems and equivalent single‐degree‐of‐freedom (SDOF) benchmark. This procedure hinges on the definition of an equivalent SDOF system, and on a relationship between the excitation levels of the eccentric and SDOF systems. The findings and observations noted from this parametric study, initially conducted on simple monosymmetric bilinear two‐element single‐story systems, are then shown to be equally applicable for systems with multiple elements, various types of element models, and some simple multistory systems. In consequence of these findings, a simple preliminary design methodology is proposed to estimate ductility demands on simple systems with plan eccentricities, without having to perform detailed inelastic analyses.
A Device for Protecting Moored Spectroradiometers from Biofouling (2000)

A shutter mechanism for reducing the effects of biofouling on bio-optical instruments deployed on oceanographic moorings has been designed, built, and tested. The initial development was carried out on a spectroradiometer. The optics of the spectroradiometer are protected by copper shutters that rotate out of the field of view prior to a measurement and rotate back after the measurement is completed. The shutter system can sense an obstruction and, if one is detected, attempt to rotate in the opposite direction. The controlling software stores the home position in the memory so the shutter can return to cover the optics, irrespective of direction of rotation. The system has been tested in the equatorial Pacific, where it has provided five months of data that are unaffected by biofouling.
Dynamic Time Over Threshold Method (2012)

The time over threshold (TOT) method has several advantages over direct pulse height analysis based on analog to digital converters (ADCs). A key advantage is the simplicity of the conversion circuit which leads to a high level of integration and a low power consumption. The TOT technique is well suited to build multi-channel readout systems for pixelated detectors as described in our previous work that also exploits the Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) method. The main limitation of the TOT technique is that the relation between the input charge to be measured and the width of the encoded pulse is strongly non-linear. Dynamic range limitation is also an issue. To address these aspects, we propose a new time over threshold conversion circuit where the threshold of the comparator is dynamically changed instead of being constant. We call this scheme the “dynamic TOT method”. We show that it improves linearity and dynamic range. It also shortens the duration of measured pulses leading to higher counting rates. We present a short analysis that explains how the ideal linear input charge to TOT transfer function can theoretically be obtained. We describe the results obtained with a test circuit built from discrete components and present several of the spectrums obtained with crystal detectors and a radioactive source. The proposed method can be used for applications like Positron Emission Tomography (PET) that require moderate energy resolution.
Identification of Catalytic and Substrate-binding Site Residues in Bacillus cereus ATCC7064 Oligo-1,6-glucosidase (2001)

Three active site residues (Asp199, Glu255, Asp329) and two substrate-binding site residues (His103, His328) of oligo-1,6-glucosidase (EC 3.2.1.10) from Bacillus cereus ATCC7064 were identified by site-directed mutagenesis. These residues were deduced from the X-ray crystallographic analysis and the comparison of the primary structure of the oligo-1,6-glucosidase with those of Saccharomyces carlsbergensis alpha-glucosidase, Aspergillus oryzae alpha-amylase and pig pancreatic alpha-amylase which act on alpha-1,4-glucosidic linkages. The distances between these putative residues of B. cereus oligo-1,6-glucosidase calculated from the X-ray analysis data closely resemble those of A. oryzae alpha-amylase and pig pancreatic alpha-amylase. A single mutation of Asp199-->Asn, Glu255-->Gln, or Asp329-->Asn resulted in drastic reduction in activity, confirming that three residues are crucial for the reaction process of alpha-1,6-glucosidic bond cleavage. Thus, it is identified that the basic mechanism of oligo-1,6-glucosidase for the hydrolysis of alpha-1,6-glucosidic linkage is essentially the same as those of other amylolytic enzymes belonging to Family 13 (alpha-amylase family). On the other hand, mutations of histidine residues His103 and His328 resulted in pronounced dissimilarity in catalytic function. The mutation His328-->Asn caused the essential loss in activity, while the mutation His103-->Asn yielded a mutant enzyme that retained 59% of the k0/Km of that for the wild-type enzyme. Since mutants of other alpha-amylases acting on alpha-1,4-glucosidic bond linkage lost most of their activity by the site-directed mutagenesis at their equivalent residues to His103 and His328, the retaining of activity by His103-->Asn mutation in B. cereus oligo-1,6-glucosidase revealed the distinguished role of His103 for the hydrolysis of alpha-1,6-glucosidic bond linkage.
Solder Ball Connect (SBC) assemblies under thermal loading: I. Deformation measurement via moiré interferometry, and its interpretation (1993)

Thermal deformations that result from mismatches of coefficients of thermal expansion (CTE) in Solder Ball Connect (SBC) assemblies were investigated. The CTE mismatches of the materials and the components in the package have both macro and micro effects on the strain distributions in the SBC interconnections. The geometry of the SBC joint also has a strong influence on the solder strains in the SBC package. An experimental technique with high sensitivity and resolution, moiré interferometry, was used to obtain whole-field displacements. Thermal strains in SBC packages, especially the strain concentrations in the SBC joints, were then determined from the displacement fields. The experimental results played an important role in failure analysis, structural design optimization, and finite element model verification in the IBM SBC program. The results also show that moiré interferometry is a very powerful and effective tool in experimental studies of electronic packaging.