MIMT: Multi-Illuminant Color Constancy via Multi-Task Learning

The assumption of a uniform light color distribution, which holds true in single light color scenes, is no longer applicable in scenes that have multiple light colors. The spatial variability in multiple light colors causes the color constancy problem to be more challenging and requires the extraction of local surface/light information. Motivated by this, we introduce a multi-task learning method to estimate multiple light colors from a single input image. To have better cues of the local surface/light colors under multiple light color conditions, we design a multi-task learning framework with achromatic-pixel detection and surface-color similarity prediction as our auxiliary tasks. These tasks facilitate the acquisition of local light color information and surface color correlations. Moreover, to ensure that our model maintains the constancy of surface colors regardless of the variations of light colors, we also preserve local surface color features in our model. We demonstrate that our model achieves 47.1% improvement compared to a state-of-the-art multi-illuminant color constancy method on a multi-illuminant dataset (LSMI). While single light colors are not our main focus, our model also maintains a robust performance on the single illuminant dataset (NUS-8) and provides 18.5% improvement on the state-of-the-art single color constancy method.Comment: 10 pages, 6 figure

Model predictive control strategy in waked wind farms for optimal fatigue loads

With the rapid growth of wind power penetration, wind farms (WFs) are required to implement frequency regulation that active power control to track a given power reference. Due to the wake interaction of the wind turbines (WTs), there is more than one solution to distributing power reference among the operating WTs, which can be exploited as an optimization problem for the second goal, such as fatigue load alleviation. In this paper, a closed-loop model predictive controller is developed that minimizes the wind farm tracking errors, the dynamical fatigue load, and and the load equalization. The controller is evaluated in a mediumfidelity model. A 64 WTs simulation case study is used to demonstrate the control performance for different penalty factor settings. The results indicated the WF can alleviate dynamical fatigue load and have no significant impact on power tracking. However, the uneven load distribution in the wind turbine system poses challenges for maintenance. By adding a trade-off between the load equalization and dynamical fatigue load, the load differences between WTs are significantly reduced, while the dynamical fatigue load slightly increases when selecting a proper penalty factor.Comment: Accepted by Electric Power Systems Researc

Comparative evaluation of physicochemical and fermentative responses of three sorghum varieties from dryland and irrigated land and the properties of proteins from distillers’ grains

Three sorghum varieties [waxy sorghum (WS), high protein sorghum (HPS), and normal sorghum (NS)] grown under dryland and irrigated conditions were evaluated with respect to the physicochemical and fermentative properties. The proteins were extracted from wet distillers\u27 grains with solubles (WDGS) and characterized in terms of purity and in vitro digestibility. Starch, crude protein, crude fat, and fiber contents of the sorghums ranged from 64.16 to 68.05 g/100 g, 11.49–13.54 g/100 g, 2.45–2.98 g/100 g, and 1.62–1.80 g/100 g, respectively. For the same variety, the sorghums grown under dryland conditions had higher protein (0.33–0.91 g/100 g) and lower starch contents (0.74–1.72 g/100 g) than those grown under irrigation conditions. The highest ethanol concentration (85.15 g/L) and yield (41.64 mL/100 g sorghum) were obtained from the NS under dryland conditions and HPS under irrigation conditions, respectively. Sorghums from irrigated land displayed 0.56–8.23 mL/100 g sorghum of ethanol yield higher than those from dryland. Protein (40.21–45.13 g/100 g), crude fat (11.54–13.95 g/100 g), and crude fiber (7.13–9.29 g/100 g) contents in dried distillers\u27 grains with solubles (DDGS) were increased approximately four times compared to the raw sorghum flour. The purity and digestibility in terms of the degree of hydrolysis of the proteins isolated from different sorghum sources ranged from 88.82 to 94.22% and 33.35 to 37.29%, respectively. In addition, the effects of sorghum variety, treatment (dryland and irrigated land), and their interaction on the chemical composition of sorghum and DDGS, ethanol concentration and yield, as well as the purity and digestibility of WDGS proteins were elucidated with a set of correlation coefficients among parameters associated with sorghum

Production of distilled spirits using grain sorghum through liquid fermentation

The objectives of this research were to investigate the fermentation performance of US sorghum varieties for the production of distilled spirits as well as their associated coproducts and to study the formation of volatile compounds that are related to the flavor quality of the spirits. Three US sorghum varieties (red, white, and waxy sorghums) and four yeast strains (DADY, Ethanol Red, GR-2, and 71B) were used for distilled spirit production. Both sorghum variety and type of yeast strains had effects on alcohol concentration and alcohol yield. The alcohol concentration varied from 10.26 to 11.34% (v/v) while alcohol yield varied from 80.93 to 90.33%. Using Ethanol Red yeast achieved consistently the highest average alcohol concentration (11.10%, v/v) and yield (87.33%) regardless of variation in sorghum variety. Waxy sorghum demonstrated significantly higher average alcohol concentration (11.20%, v/v) and yield (89.65%) than white sorghum (10.74% for concentration and 84.7% for yield) and red sorghum (10.28% for concentration and 82.27% for yield). Alcohol fermentation also produces other metabolites as byproducts. Glycerol and lactic acid are the two major byproducts found from sorghum spirit fermentation. DADY produced the highest level of glycerol (∼1.4–1.5%, v/v) during fermentation, while GR-2 produced the lowest level of glycerol (0.9–1.1%, v/v). For all conditions, the lactic acid level was less than 1.2% (v/v). Eight volatile compounds were identified in sorghum spirits which mainly relate to fruity, sour, sweet, floral, buttery, and creamy flavors of the spirits

Effect of dry heat, microwave and ultrasonic treatments on physicochemical properties of potato starch with or without pectin

Purpose: To investigate the effects of dry heat, microwave and ultrasonic treatments on the physicochemical properties of potato starch alone or blended with pectin. Methods: The physicochemical properties of potato starch gels prepared using microwave, ultrasonic and dry heat treatments were assessed. Pasting properties, gel strength, thermal properties and crystal texture of the potato starch were determined using Rapid Visco analyzer, texture profile analyzer, differential scanning calorimeter and x-ray diffractometer. Results: Dry heat and ultrasonic treatments significantly increased the peak viscosity of the potato starch, and significantly decreased its setback and pasting temperatures (p < 0.05). Dry heat treatment significantly increased the hardness, while dry heat and ultrasonic treatments significantly improved retrogradation of the potato starch (p < 0.05). Transparency of potato starch paste was significantly increased by the different treatments, except microwave treatment (p < 0.05). Potato starch gels blended with pectin and subjected to any of the treatments exhibited significantly increased hardness, when compared with raw potato starch (p < 0.05). The retrogradation of the potato starch was significantly improved by the different treatments. Dry heat and ultrasonic treatments significantly decreased the syneresis of potato starch with or without pectin (p < 0.05). The three treatments also significantly affected the gelatinization enthalpy of the potato starch with or without pectin, and exerted some effects on the crystallinity of the gels. Conclusion: The results obtained in this study suggest that differences in physicochemical properties of potato starch gels are due mainly to the degree of damage to starch granules caused by different treatments. The addition of pectin to potato starch gel greatly improves its hardness and retrogradation

Effect of genotype on the physicochemical, nutritional, and antioxidant properties of hempseed

Hempseed products has been used as nutraceutical supplements and pharmaceutical products. However, hempseed has been underutilized as a food crop for human consumption. To fill the gap of limited knowledge of the variation of hempseed for food consumption, thirteen hemp varieties were selected to evaluate the effect of genotype on the physicochemical, nutritional, and antioxidant properties of hempseed. The tested hempseed contains 26.48–32.03% crude protein with average of 28.48%, 28.03–33.23% crude oil with average of 29.54%, 28.78–36.55% crude fiber with average of 33.49%, and 5.43%–6.32% ash with average of 5.89. Average test weight of 36.85 lbs/bu was relatively low compared to the standard test weight of 44 lbs/bu. Hempseed oil contained high portions of about 80% unsaturated fatty acids such as linoleic and α-linolenic acid. The DPPH scavenging activities varied greatly (0.37–28.78%) for the hydrolysates from different hempseed varieties. This study provides comprehensive understanding of the nutritional value of hempseed for human food and potential of a new crop in agricultural food system

Clinicopathological significance of SOX4 expression in primary gallbladder carcinoma

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Aim</p> <p>SOX4, as a member of the SRY-related HMG-box (SOX) transcription factor family, has been demonstrated to be involved in tumorigenesis of many human malignancies; however, its role in primary gallbladder carcinoma (PGC) is still largely unknown. The aim of this study was to investigate SOX4 expression in PGC and its prognostic significance.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>From 1997 to 2006, 136 patients underwent resection for PGC. The median follow-up was 12.8 months. Immunostainings for SOX4 were performed on these archival tissues. The correlation of SOX4 expression with clinicopathological features including survival was analyzed.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>SOX4 was expressed in 75.0% (102/136) of PGC but not in the normal epithelium of the gallbladder. In addition, the over-expression of SOX4 was significantly associated with low histologic grade (<it>P </it>= 0.02), low pathologic T stage (<it>P </it>= 0.02), and early clinical stage (<it>P </it>= 0.03). The levels of SOX4 immunostainings in PGC tissues with positive nodal metastasis were also significantly lower than those without (<it>P </it>= 0.01). Moreover, Kaplan-Meier curves showed that SOX4 over-expression was significantly related to better overall (<it>P </it>= 0.008) and disease-free survival (<it>P </it>= 0.01). Furthermore, multivariate analyses showed that SOX4 expression was an independent risk factor for both overall (<it>P </it>= 0.03, hazard ratio, 3.682) and disease-free survival (<it>P </it>= 0.04, hazard ratio, 2.215).</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Our data indicate for the first time that the over-expression of SOX4 in PGC was significantly correlated with favorable clinicopathologic features and was an independent prognostic factor for better overall and disease-free survival in patients. Therefore, SOX4 might be an auxiliary parameter for predicting malignant behavior for PGC.</p> <p>Virtual slides</p> <p>The virtual slide(s) for this article can be found here: <url>http://www.diagnosticpathology.diagnomx.eu/vs/1534825818694957</url>.</p

A Sir2-Like Protein Participates in Mycobacterial NHEJ

In eukaryotic cells, repair of DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs) by the nonhomologous end-joining (NHEJ) pathway is critical for genome stability. In contrast to the complex eukaryotic repair system, bacterial NHEJ apparatus consists of only two proteins, Ku and a multifunctional DNA ligase (LigD), whose functional mechanism has not been fully clarified. We show here for the first time that Sir2 is involved in the mycobacterial NHEJ repair pathway. Here, using tandem affinity purification (TAP) screening, we have identified an NAD-dependent deacetylase in mycobacteria which is a homologue of the eukaryotic Sir2 protein and interacts directly with Ku. Results from an in vitro glutathione S-transferase (GST) pull-down assay suggest that Sir2 interacts directly with LigD. Plasmid-based end-joining assays revealed that the efficiency of DSB repair in a sir2 deletion mutant was reduced 2-fold. Moreover, the Δsir2 strain was about 10-fold more sensitive to ionizing radiation (IR) in the stationary phase than the wild-type. Our results suggest that Sir2 may function closely together with Ku and LigD in the nonhomologous end-joining pathway in mycobacteria

NEW LATE JURASSIC PALEOMAGNETIC RESULTS FROM SHARILYN FORMATION, SOUTHERN MONGOLIA, AMURIA BLOCK, AND THEIR IMPLICATIONS FOR THE TECTONIC EVOLUTION OF THE MONGOL–OKHOTSK SUTURE

The Amuria block occupies the eastern part of the Central Asian Orogenic Belt between the Siberia craton and the North China block (NCB) and bears important information to understand the evolution of the MongolOkhotsk suture and the amalgamation of East Asia. However, the paleomagnetic database of Amuria remains very poor.The Amuria block occupies the eastern part of the Central Asian Orogenic Belt between the Siberia craton and the North China block (NCB) and bears important information to understand the evolution of the MongolOkhotsk suture and the amalgamation of East Asia

Eunomia: Enabling User-specified Fine-Grained Search in Symbolically Executing WebAssembly Binaries

Although existing techniques have proposed automated approaches to alleviate the path explosion problem of symbolic execution, users still need to optimize symbolic execution by applying various searching strategies carefully. As existing approaches mainly support only coarse-grained global searching strategies, they cannot efficiently traverse through complex code structures. In this paper, we propose Eunomia, a symbolic execution technique that allows users to specify local domain knowledge to enable fine-grained search. In Eunomia, we design an expressive DSL, Aes, that lets users precisely pinpoint local searching strategies to different parts of the target program. To further optimize local searching strategies, we design an interval-based algorithm that automatically isolates the context of variables for different local searching strategies, avoiding conflicts between local searching strategies for the same variable. We implement Eunomia as a symbolic execution platform targeting WebAssembly, which enables us to analyze applications written in various languages (like C and Go) but can be compiled into WebAssembly. To the best of our knowledge, Eunomia is the first symbolic execution engine that supports the full features of the WebAssembly runtime. We evaluate Eunomia with a dedicated microbenchmark suite for symbolic execution and six real-world applications. Our evaluation shows that Eunomia accelerates bug detection in real-world applications by up to three orders of magnitude. According to the results of a comprehensive user study, users can significantly improve the efficiency and effectiveness of symbolic execution by writing a simple and intuitive Aes script. Besides verifying six known real-world bugs, Eunomia also detected two new zero-day bugs in a popular open-source project, Collections-C.Comment: Accepted by ACM SIGSOFT International Symposium on Software Testing and Analysis (ISSTA) 202