Speech Recognition by Composition of Weighted Finite Automata

We present a general framework based on weighted finite automata and weighted finite-state transducers for describing and implementing speech recognizers. The framework allows us to represent uniformly the information sources and data structures used in recognition, including context-dependent units, pronunciation dictionaries, language models and lattices. Furthermore, general but efficient algorithms can used for combining information sources in actual recognizers and for optimizing their application. In particular, a single composition algorithm is used both to combine in advance information sources such as language models and dictionaries, and to combine acoustic observations and information sources dynamically during recognition.Comment: 24 pages, uses psfig.st

Two leaf beetles new to Florida (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae)

Specimens recently submitted to the first author for identification turned out to represent two species of leaf beetles previously unknown from Florida, one of which is new to the eastern United States and the other new to the continental United States

Valuing Fed Cattle Using Slice Shear Force Measurements

Marketing fed cattle using grid pricing has become a popluar way to sell cattle. One of the most important beef characteristics, according to consumers, is beef tenderness. USDA quality grades are poor predictors of meat tenderness. However, mechanical shear force does objectively measure tenderness. This study illustrates how problematic USDA quality grades are at assessing accurate beef tenderness and proposes and evaluates a tenderness-based valuation system based on slice shear force technology. We show that cattle of all quality grades are substantially over- or under-valued when using a grid realtive to a tenderness-based valuation system.Marketing,

Hazards at Low-Head Dams

ABSTRACT: Low-head dams are small structures that are built for many purposes, the most common being to impound small amounts of water for various uses. At certain flow conditions, a dangerous countercurrent, known as a roller, can form downstream of a low-head dam. This current possesses an upstream directed surface velocity that can effectively trap debris, as well as unsuspecting humans, at the downstream side of the dam. It is this current that is responsible for the deaths of many individuals that have ventured too close to these structures over the years. It is the objective of this study to identify a relationship between easily observable parameters and the roller strength that can be used as a classification system. This will be done primarily through the use of computational fluid dynamics software to simulate various flow conditions. The results of these numerical models will then be compared, and a relationship will be identified. This study is currently underway, and therefore conclusive results are not available at this time. Although, comparison of the numerical results to physical model results have been used to verify that the flow conditions being produced by the software accurately represent the physical flow conditions

PD5: a general purpose library for primer design software

BACKGROUND: Complex PCR applications for large genome-scale projects require fast, reliable and often highly sophisticated primer design software applications. Presently, such applications use pipelining methods to utilise many third party applications and this involves file parsing, interfacing and data conversion, which is slow and prone to error. A fully integrated suite of software tools for primer design would considerably improve the development time, the processing speed, and the reliability of bespoke primer design software applications. RESULTS: The PD5 software library is an open-source collection of classes and utilities, providing a complete collection of software building blocks for primer design and analysis. It is written in object-oriented C(++) with an emphasis on classes suitable for efficient and rapid development of bespoke primer design programs. The modular design of the software library simplifies the development of specific applications and also integration with existing third party software where necessary. We demonstrate several applications created using this software library that have already proved to be effective, but we view the project as a dynamic environment for building primer design software and it is open for future development by the bioinformatics community. Therefore, the PD5 software library is published under the terms of the GNU General Public License, which guarantee access to source-code and allow redistribution and modification. CONCLUSIONS: The PD5 software library is downloadable from Google Code and the accompanying Wiki includes instructions and examples: http://code.google.com/p/primer-desig

Valuing Fed Cattle Using Objective Tenderness Measures

Beef tenderness is critical in consumer satisfaction with beef steak products. Current fed cattle valuation systems do not differentiate carcasses based upon tenderness variation. However, considerable research indicates consumers are willing to pay more for tender relative to tough beef steak. This article develops a tenderness-augmentation to current fed cattle grid pricing systems. Using a large set of actual carcasses, we determine that a tenderness-augmented price grid would reorder fed cattle value by on average nearly $5.00/cwt dressed relative to current valuation methods. Substantial opportunity is present to improve beef tenderness through new price signals to producers.beef quality, meat tenderness, cattle value, cattle price, Agribusiness, Farm Management, Food Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety, Livestock Production/Industries, Q11, Q13, M31,

Interpersonal Synergies

We present the perspective that interpersonal movement coordination results from establishing interpersonal synergies. Interpersonal synergies are higher-order control systems formed by coupling movement system degrees of freedom of two (or more) actors. Characteristic features of synergies identified in studies of intrapersonal coordination – dimensional compression and reciprocal compensation – are revealed in studies of interpersonal coordination that applied the uncontrolled manifold approach and principal component analysis to interpersonal movement tasks. Broader implications of the interpersonal synergy approach for movement science include an expanded notion of mechanism and an emphasis on interaction-dominant dynamics

Increasing FTIR spectromicroscopy speed and resolution through compressive imaging

At the Advanced Light Source at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, we are investigating how to increase both the speed and resolution of synchrotron infrared imaging. Synchrotron infrared beamlines have diffraction-limited spot sizes and high signal to noise, however spectral images must be obtained one point at a time and the spatial resolution is limited by the effects of diffraction. One technique to assist in speeding up spectral image acquisition is described here and uses compressive imaging algorithms. Compressive imaging can potentially attain resolutions higher than allowed by diffraction and/or can acquire spectral images without having to measure every spatial point individually thus increasing the speed of such maps. Here we present and discuss initial tests of compressive imaging techniques performed with ALS Beamline 1.4.3?s Nic-Plan infrared microscope, Beamline 1.4.4 Continuum XL IR microscope, and also with a stand-alone Nicolet Nexus 470 FTIR spectrometer

Potent and Broad Inhibition of HIV-1 by a Peptide from the gp41 Heptad Repeat-2 Domain Conjugated to the CXCR4 Amino Terminus.

HIV-1 entry can be inhibited by soluble peptides from the gp41 heptad repeat-2 (HR2) domain that interfere with formation of the 6-helix bundle during fusion. Inhibition has also been seen when these peptides are conjugated to anchoring molecules and over-expressed on the cell surface. We hypothesized that potent anti-HIV activity could be achieved if a 34 amino acid peptide from HR2 (C34) were brought to the site of virus-cell interactions by conjugation to the amino termini of HIV-1 coreceptors CCR5 or CXCR4. C34-conjugated coreceptors were expressed on the surface of T cell lines and primary CD4 T cells, retained the ability to mediate chemotaxis in response to cognate chemokines, and were highly resistant to HIV-1 utilization for entry. Notably, C34-conjugated CCR5 and CXCR4 each exhibited potent and broad inhibition of HIV-1 isolates from diverse clades irrespective of tropism (i.e., each could inhibit R5, X4 and dual-tropic isolates). This inhibition was highly specific and dependent on positioning of the peptide, as HIV-1 infection was poorly inhibited when C34 was conjugated to the amino terminus of CD4. C34-conjugated coreceptors could also inhibit HIV-1 isolates that were resistant to the soluble HR2 peptide inhibitor, enfuvirtide. When introduced into primary cells, CD4 T cells expressing C34-conjugated coreceptors exhibited physiologic responses to T cell activation while inhibiting diverse HIV-1 isolates, and cells containing C34-conjugated CXCR4 expanded during HIV-1 infection in vitro and in a humanized mouse model. Notably, the C34-conjugated peptide exerted greater HIV-1 inhibition when conjugated to CXCR4 than to CCR5. Thus, antiviral effects of HR2 peptides can be specifically directed to the site of viral entry where they provide potent and broad inhibition of HIV-1. This approach to engineer HIV-1 resistance in functional CD4 T cells may provide a novel cell-based therapeutic for controlling HIV infection in humans