Improving state-of-theart continuous speech recognition systems using the N-best paradigm with neural networks

In an effort to advance the state of the art in continuous speech recognition employing hidden Markov models (HMM), Segmental Neural Nets (SNN) were introduced recently to ameliorate the wellknown limitations of HMMs, namely, the conditional-independence limitation and the relative difficulty with which HMMs can handle segmental features. We describe a hybrid SNN/I-IMM system that combines the speed and performance of our HMM system with the segmental modeling capabilities of SNNs. The integration of the two acoustic modeling techniques is achieved successfully via the N-best rescoring paradigm. The N-best lists are used not only for recognition, but also during training. This discriminative training using N-best is demonstrated to improve performance. When tested on the DARPA Resource Management speaker-independent corpus, the hybrid SNN/HMM system decreases the error by about 20% compared to the state-of-the-art HMM system

On the importance of nonlinear modeling in computer performance prediction

Computers are nonlinear dynamical systems that exhibit complex and sometimes even chaotic behavior. The models used in the computer systems community, however, are linear. This paper is an exploration of that disconnect: when linear models are adequate for predicting computer performance and when they are not. Specifically, we build linear and nonlinear models of the processor load of an Intel i7-based computer as it executes a range of different programs. We then use those models to predict the processor loads forward in time and compare those forecasts to the true continuations of the time seriesComment: Appeared in "Proceedings of the 12th International Symposium on Intelligent Data Analysis

Properties of continuous Fourier extension of the discrete cosine transform and its multidimensional generalization

A versatile method is described for the practical computation of the discrete Fourier transforms (DFT) of a continuous function $g(t)$ given by its values $g_{j}$ at the points of a uniform grid $F_{N}$ generated by conjugacy classes of elements of finite adjoint order $N$ in the fundamental region $F$ of compact semisimple Lie groups. The present implementation of the method is for the groups SU(2), when $F$ is reduced to a one-dimensional segment, and for $SU(2)\times ... \times SU(2)$ in multidimensional cases. This simplest case turns out to result in a transform known as discrete cosine transform (DCT), which is often considered to be simply a specific type of the standard DFT. Here we show that the DCT is very different from the standard DFT when the properties of the continuous extensions of these two discrete transforms from the discrete grid points $t_j; j=0,1, ... N$ to all points $t \in F$ are considered. (A) Unlike the continuous extension of the DFT, the continuous extension of (the inverse) DCT, called CEDCT, closely approximates $g(t)$ between the grid points $t_j$. (B) For increasing $N$, the derivative of CEDCT converges to the derivative of $g(t)$. And (C), for CEDCT the principle of locality is valid. Finally, we use the continuous extension of 2-dimensional DCT to illustrate its potential for interpolation, as well as for the data compression of 2D images.Comment: submitted to JMP on April 3, 2003; still waiting for the referee's Repor

Cognitive Information Processing

Contains reports on six research projects.National Institutes of Health (Grant 5 PO1 GM14940-03)National Institutes of Health (Grant 5 PO1 GM15006-03)Joint Services Electronics Programs (U. S. Army, U. S. Navy, and U.S. Air Force) under Contract DA 28-043-AMC-02536(E)National Institutes of Health (Grant 5 TO1 GM01555-03

Circulating Exosomal microRNAs as Predictive Biomarkers of Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy Response in Breast Cancer

Background: Neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NACT) is an increasingly used approach for treatment of breast cancer. The pathological complete response (pCR) is considered a good predictor of disease-specific survival. This study investigated whether circulating exosomal microRNAs could predict pCR in breast cancer patients treated with NACT. Method: Plasma samples of 20 breast cancer patients treated with NACT were collected prior to and after the first cycle. RNA sequencing was used to determine microRNA profiling. The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) was used to explore the expression patterns and survivability of the candidate miRNAs, and their potential targets based on the expression levels and copy number variation (CNV) data. Results: Three miRNAs before that NACT (miR-30b, miR-328 and miR-423) predicted pCR in all of the analyzed samples. Upregulation of miR-127 correlated with pCR in triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC). After the first NACT dose, pCR was predicted by exo-miR-141, while miR-34a, exo-miR182, and exo-miR-183 predicted non-pCR. A significant correlation between the candidate miRNAs and the overall survival, subtype, and metastasis in breast cancer, suggesting their potential role as predictive biomarkers of pCR. Conclusions: If the miRNAs identified in this study are validated in a large cohort of patients, they might serve as predictive non-invasive liquid biopsy biomarkers for monitoring pCR to NACT in breast cancer

Sex-specific Gene Expression in Flupirtine-Treated Cln3Δex7/8 Mouse Brain

Gene expression is a powerful tool to understand structure-function relationships in the nervous system. This study reports global gene expression changes induced by flupirtine in brain of male and female Cln3Δex7/8 mice, exposing potential flupirtine targets at the molecular level. Gene expression analysis of male and female Cln3Δex7/8 mouse brain was determined following oral administration of flupirtine for 14 weeks, using Mouse Genome 430 2.0 array Chips and an Affymetrix platform. Fifty-six genes in males and 79 in females were differentially expressed in flupirtine- versus vehicle-treated Cln3Δex7/8 mouse brain. Flupirtine altered several pathways in Cln3Δex7/8 mouse brain: apoptosis, the complement cascade, NF-kB, and p38α MAPK signaling pathways. Gene-gene network analysis highlighted networks and processes functionally pertinent to flupirtine treatment. These encompassed neurodegeneration, neuro-inflammation, and implicated neurological disorders such as Alzheimer and Parkinson disease. Flupirtine mediates its action in males and females through distinctive actionable targets in the same pathways. This work consolidates the groundwork for considering flupirtine as a treatment option in human CLN3 disease

Dynamic Knobs for Responsive Power-Aware Computing

We present PowerDial, a system for dynamically adapting application behavior to execute successfully in the face of load and power fluctuations. PowerDial transforms static configuration parameters into dynamic knobs that the PowerDial control system can manipulate to dynamically trade off the accuracy of the computation in return for reductions in the computational resources that the application requires to produce its results. These reductions translate directly into performance improvements and power savings. Our experimental results show that PowerDial can enable our benchmark applications to execute responsively in the face of power caps that would otherwise significantly impair responsiveness. They also show that PowerDial can significantly reduce the number of machines required to service intermittent load spikes, enabling reductions in power and capital costs.National Science Foundation (U.S.). (Grant Number 0937060)United States. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (Grant number FA8750-06-2-0189

Error Resilient Speech Coding Using Sub-band Hilbert Envelopes

Frequency Domain Linear Prediction (FDLP) represents a technique for auto-regressive modelling of Hilbert envelopes of a signal. In this paper, we propose a speech coding technique that uses FDLP in Quadrature Mirror Filter (QMF) sub-bands of short segments of the speech signal (25 ms). Line Spectral Frequency parameters related to au-toregressive models and the spectral components of the residual signals are transmitted. For simulating the effects of lossy transmission channels, bit-packets are dropped randomly. In the objective and subjective quality evaluations, the proposed FDLP speech codec is judged to be more resilient to bit-packet losses compared to the state-of-the-art Adaptive Multi-Rate Wide-Band (AMR-WB) codec at 12 kbps

Exogenous Flupirtine as Potential Treatment for CLN3 Disease

CLN3 disease is a fatal neurodegenerative disorder affecting children. Hallmarks include brain atrophy, accelerated neuronal apoptosis, and ceramide elevation. Treatment regimens are supportive, highlighting the importance of novel, disease-modifying drugs. Flupirtine and its new allyl carbamate derivative (compound 6) confer neuroprotective effects in CLN3-deficient cells. This study lays the groundwork for investigating beneficial effects in Cln3Δex7/8 mice. WT/Cln3Δex7/8 mice received flupirtine/compound 6/vehicle for 14 weeks. Short-term effect of flupirtine or compound 6 was tested using a battery of behavioral testing. For flupirtine, gene expression profiles, astrogliosis, and neuronal cell counts were determined. Flupirtine improved neurobehavioral parameters in open field, pole climbing, and Morris water maze tests in Cln3Δex7/8 mice. Several anti-apoptotic markers and ceramide synthesis/degradation enzymes expression was dysregulated in Cln3Δex7/8 mice. Flupirtine reduced astrogliosis in hippocampus and motor cortex of male and female Cln3Δex7/8 mice. Flupirtine increased neuronal cell counts in male mice. The newly synthesized compound 6 showed promising results in open field and pole climbing. In conclusion, flupirtine improved behavioral, neuropathological and biochemical parameters in Cln3Δex7/8 mice, paving the way for potential therapies for CLN3 disease

Effect of Probiotic “L.Reuteri” Association on the Reduction of Serum Bilirubin in Neonatal Jaundice

Objective: Evaluate the effect of probiotics association in reducing the total bilirubin level in the serum of neonates with jaundice. Methods: 69 neonates with indirect hyperbilirubinemia were divided randomly into two groups: control and treatment. The control group was treated using phototherapy and the treatment group was treated using phototherapy plus L.Reuteri probiotic. Inclusion criteria: all term newborns admitted for phototherapy for unconjugated hyperbilirubinemia. Exclusion criteria: septic or ill newborn, phenobarbital therapy, transfusion and parents ‘refusal to enter the study. Baseline bilirubin level was obtained prior to initiating phototherapy and then daily for an average of 3 days. Results: Before treatment, the level of bilirubin was similar in the two groups (p>0.05). We noted a more significant difference in bilirubin at day 1 (p=0.000), day 2 (=0.000) and day 3 (p=0.000) during treatment in the probiotic group when compared to the control group. We also noticed a more significant decrease in bilirubin between day 1 and day 2 (p=0.000) and between day 2 and day 3 (p=0.000) in the probiotic group when compared to the control group. Conclusion: The decrease of bilirubin in neonates with jaundice is more rapid and more significant in the group receiving probiotics as an adjuvant to phototherapy in case of presence of incompatibility or not