Online classification for time-domain astronomy

The advent of synoptic sky surveys has spurred the development of techniques for real-time classification of astronomical sources in order to ensure timely follow-up with appropriate instruments. Previous work has focused on algorithm selection or improved light curve representations, and naively convert light curves into structured feature sets without regard for the time span or phase of the light curves. In this paper, we highlight the violation of a fundamental machine learning assumption that occurs when archival light curves with long observational time spans are used to train classifiers that are applied to light curves with fewer observations. We propose two solutions to deal with the mismatch in the time spans of training and test light curves. The first is the use of classifier committees where each classifier is trained on light curves of different observational time spans. Only the committee member whose training set matches the test light curve time span is invoked for classification. The second solution uses hierarchical classifiers that are able to predict source types both individually and by sub-group, so that the user can trade-off an earlier, more robust classification with classification granularity. We test both methods using light curves from the MACHO survey, and demonstrate their usefulness in improving performance over similar methods that naively train on all available archival data.Comment: Astroinformatics workshop, IEEE International Conference on Data Mining 201

Connessioni tra biblioteche e musei: il caso di studio della collaborazione biblioteca-museo all'Hong Kong Maritime Museum

Established in 2005, the Hong Kong Maritime Museum (HKMM) is a relatively new private museum that aims to collect all forms of materials related to the development of boats, ships, maritime exploration and trade, and naval warfare on the South China coast, as well as its adjacent seas.  The Museum not only serves as a unique platform for teaching and learning of the local heritage in Hong Kong, it also contributes greatly to the promotion of community engagement and social connections.  The HKMM is also equipped with its own museum library, and it is called the CSSC (China State Shipbuilding Corporation) Maritime Heritage Resource Centre.  In addition to supporting various research activities carried out by the Museum, this Resource Centre also serves as a central, and yet comprehensive repository for publications, and other archival documents on maritime heritage and history related to Southeastern China. This paper aims to compare the distinctive operational practices, and user needs between museums and libraries.  It also examines the benefits and challenges of museum-library collaborations in the new knowledge-driven society.  This paper features an interview with Kitty But (Librarian, CSSC Maritime Heritage Resource Centre, The Hong Kong Maritime Museum) and Robert Trio (Project Officer for Technology, The Hong Kong Maritime Museum), and in which they discussed their professional experiences in the fields of audience education; the implementation of different new technologies associated with the museum and library services; and various collaborative initiatives carried out between the Museum and the Resource Centre.  Upcoming challenges and opportunities faced by both the Museum and Resource Centre are also discussed in this paper.Istituito nel 2005, l'Hong Kong Maritime Museum (HKMM) è un museo privato che colleziona materiali di vario genere su imbarcazioni, esplorazioni navali e commercio, oltre ai conflitti navali sulla costa meridionale della Cina e nei mari limitrofi. Il Museo serve non solo come punto di partenza per l'insegnamento e l'apprendimento della storia di Hong Kong, ma contribuisce notevolmente alla promozione del coinvolgimento della comunità locale. L'HKMM è dotato di una propria biblioteca, CSSC (Compagnia Cantieristica Statale Cinese) Maritime Heritage Resource Centre. Oltre a dare supporto alle diverse attività di ricerca del Museo, la biblioteca serve come repository centrale di pubblicazioni e altro materiale archivistico relativo al patrimonio conservato presso l'istituzione.Scopo di questo articolo è il confronto delle pratiche operative e dei bisogni degli utenti di musei e biblioteche. Si esaminano inoltre i benefici e le problematicità emergenti dalla collaborazione tra museo e biblioteca nella società dell'informazione. Vengono riportate due interviste, rispettivamente a Kitty But, bibliotecaria presso il CSSC Maritime Heritage Resource Centre, e a Robert Trio, project officer per gli sviluppi tecnologici dell'istituzione, in cui gli intervistati discutono dell'esperienza professionale nell'ambito dell'insegnamento agli utenti, dell'implementazione di nuove tecnologie associate ai servizi di musei e biblioteche, e infine delle iniziative di collaborazione tra museo e biblioteca dell'HKMM

RNA-Seq of Huntington's disease patient myeloid cells reveals innate transcriptional dysregulation associated with proinflammatory pathway activation

Innate immune activation beyond the central nervous system is emerging as a vital component of the pathogenesis of neurodegeneration. Huntington’s disease (HD) is a fatal neurodegenerative disorder caused by a CAG repeat expansion in the huntingtin gene. The systemic innate immune system is thought to act as a modifier of disease progression; however, the molecular mechanisms remain only partially understood. Here we use RNA-sequencing to perform whole transcriptome analysis of primary monocytes from thirty manifest HD patients and thirty-three control subjects, cultured with and without a proinflammatory stimulus. In contrast with previous studies that have required stimulation to elicit phenotypic abnormalities, we demonstrate significant transcriptional differences in HD monocytes in their basal, unstimulated state. This includes previously undetected increased resting expression of genes encoding numerous proinflammatory cytokines, such as IL6. Further pathway analysis revealed widespread resting enrichment of proinflammatory functional gene sets, while upstream regulator analysis coupled with Western blotting suggests that abnormal basal activation of the NFOEB pathway plays a key role in mediating these transcriptional changes. That HD myeloid cells have a proinflammatory phenotype in the absence of stimulation is consistent with a priming effect of mutant huntingtin, whereby basal dysfunction leads to an exaggerated inflammatory response once a stimulus is encountered. These data advance our understanding of mutant huntingtin pathogenesis, establish resting myeloid cells as a key source of HD immune dysfunction, and further demonstrate the importance of systemic immunity in the potential treatment of HD and the wider study of neurodegeneration

Susceptibility to tuberculosis is associated with variants in the ASAP1 gene encoding a regulator of dendritic cell migration

Human genetic factors predispose to tuberculosis (TB). We studied 7.6 million genetic variants in 5,530 people with pulmonary TB and in 5,607 healthy controls. In the combined analysis of these subjects and the follow-up cohort (15,087 TB patients and controls altogether), we found an association between TB and variants located in introns of the ASAP1 gene on chromosome 8q24 (P = 2.6 × 10−11 for rs4733781; P = 1.0 × 10−10 for rs10956514). Dendritic cells (DCs) showed high ASAP1 expression that was reduced after Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection, and rs10956514 was associated with the level of reduction of ASAP1 expression. The ASAP1 protein is involved in actin and membrane remodeling and has been associated with podosomes. The ASAP1-depleted DCs showed impaired matrix degradation and migration. Therefore, genetically determined excessive reduction of ASAP1 expression in M. tuberculosis–infected DCs may lead to their impaired migration, suggesting a potential mechanism of predisposition to TB

A Transcriptomic Signature of the Hypothalamic Response to Fasting and BDNF Deficiency in Prader-Willi Syndrome.

Transcriptional analysis of brain tissue from people with molecularly defined causes of obesity may highlight disease mechanisms and therapeutic targets. We performed RNA sequencing of hypothalamus from individuals with Prader-Willi syndrome (PWS), a genetic obesity syndrome characterized by severe hyperphagia. We found that upregulated genes overlap with the transcriptome of mouse Agrp neurons that signal hunger, while downregulated genes overlap with the expression profile of Pomc neurons activated by feeding. Downregulated genes are expressed mainly in neuronal cells and contribute to neurogenesis, neurotransmitter release, and synaptic plasticity, while upregulated, predominantly microglial genes are involved in inflammatory responses. This transcriptional signature may be mediated by reduced brain-derived neurotrophic factor expression. Additionally, we implicate disruption of alternative splicing as a potential molecular mechanism underlying neuronal dysfunction in PWS. Transcriptomic analysis of the human hypothalamus may identify neural mechanisms involved in energy homeostasis and potential therapeutic targets for weight loss

VAST: An ASKAP Survey for Variables and Slow Transients

The Australian Square Kilometre Array Pathfinder (ASKAP) will give us an unprecedented opportunity to investigate the transient sky at radio wavelengths. In this paper we present VAST, an ASKAP survey for Variables and Slow Transients. VAST will exploit the wide-field survey capabilities of ASKAP to enable the discovery and investigation of variable and transient phenomena from the local to the cosmological, including flare stars, intermittent pulsars, X-ray binaries, magnetars, extreme scattering events, interstellar scintillation, radio supernovae and orphan afterglows of gamma ray bursts. In addition, it will allow us to probe unexplored regions of parameter space where new classes of transient sources may be detected. In this paper we review the known radio transient and variable populations and the current results from blind radio surveys. We outline a comprehensive program based on a multi-tiered survey strategy to characterise the radio transient sky through detection and monitoring of transient and variable sources on the ASKAP imaging timescales of five seconds and greater. We also present an analysis of the expected source populations that we will be able to detect with VAST.Comment: 29 pages, 8 figures. Submitted for publication in Pub. Astron. Soc. Australi

Links between Libraries and Museums: a Case Study of Library-Museum Collaboration at the Hong Kong Maritime Museum

Established in 2005, the Hong Kong Maritime Museum (HKMM) is a relatively new private museum that aims to collect all forms of materials related to the development of boats, ships, maritime exploration and trade, and naval warfare on the South China coast, as well as its adjacent seas. The Museum not only serves as a unique platform for teaching and learning of the local heritage in Hong Kong, it also contributes greatly to the promotion of community engagement and social connections. The HKMM is also equipped with its own museum library, and it is called the CSSC (China State Shipbuilding Corporation) Maritime Heritage Resource Centre. In addition to supporting various research activities carried out by the Museum, this Resource Centre also serves as a central, and yet comprehensive repository for publications, and other archival documents on maritime heritage and history related to Southeastern China. This paper aims to compare the distinctive operational practices, and user needs between museums and libraries. It also examines the benefits and challenges of museum-library collaborations in the new knowledge-driven society. This paper features an interview with Kitty But (Librarian, CSSC Maritime Heritage Resource Centre, The Hong Kong Maritime Museum) and Robert Trio (Project Officer for Technology, The Hong Kong Maritime Museum), and in which they discussed their professional experiences in the fields of audience education; the implementation of different new technologies associated with the museum and library services; and various collaborative initiatives carried out between the Museum and the Resource Centre. Upcoming challenges and opportunities faced by both the Museum and Resource Centre are also discussed in this paper

Different missions, common goals: museum-library collaboration at the Hong Kong Maritime Museum in the service of local and family history and the conservation of documentary heritage in the South China Sea

Established in 2005, the Hong Kong Maritime Museum (HKMM) is a relatively new private museum that aims to collect all forms of materials related to the development of boats, ships, maritime exploration, maritime trade, and naval warfare on the South China coast, as well as in its adjacent seas. The Museum not only serves as a unique platform for the teaching and learning of the local heritage of Hong Kong, it also contributes greatly to the promotion of community engagement and social connections. The HKMM is also equipped with its own museum library, called the ChinaState Shipbuilding Corporation (CSCC) Maritime Heritage Resource Centre. In addition to supporting various research activities carried out by the Museum, this Resource Centre also serves as a central, and yet comprehensive repository for publications and archival documents on maritime heritage and history related to Southeastern China.This paper first discusses the distinctive operational practices and user needs of museums and libraries. It also examines the benefits and challenges of museum-library collaborations in the new knowledge-driven society. This section is in part based on an interview with Kitty But (Librarian, CSSC Maritime Heritage Resource Centre, The Hong Kong Maritime Museum) and Robert Trio (Project Officer for Technology, The Hong Kong Maritime Museum), in which they discuss their professional experiences in the fields of audience education, the implementation of different new technologies associated with the museum and library services, various collaborative initiatives 2 carried out between the Museum and the Resource Centre, and their upcoming challenges and opportunities.The paper then focuses on the plans of the Hong Kong Maritime Museum and its CSCC library to build a central archive preserving the local maritime documentary heritage of the region of the South China Sea. Technical issues and practical difficulties of museum-library collaboration in this local history archival project are explored, as is the possible use of the new archival collection as a research resource for Hong Kong maritime family history