Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Empirical data about women's attitudes towards a hypothetical pediatric biobank

Researchers at the University of Chicago sought institutional review board (IRB) approval to establish both an obstetrical biobank (Chicago Lying‐in Pregnancy Program [CLIPP]) and a pediatric biobank (KidsGene). Before KidsGene was approved, the IRB requested additional ethical review. The research ethics consultation service noted that no empirical data existed about parental attitudes towards this type of project. Postpartum women 18 years or older who delivered at the University of Chicago Hospitals and had live infants on the General Care Nursery service were approached about participating in a survey about the CLIPP biobank and about a hypothetical pediatric biobank. Two hundred thirty‐nine women were consented and completed most or all of the survey. Eighty‐two percent self‐classified as Black and seven percent were Caucasians. Caucasians were the most willing to enroll their children hypothetically into a pediatric biobank with non‐Black minorities being the most uncertain about what they would do. Almost half of the women thought that the research had the main goal of advancing science although a similar number expressed the belief that the research had the main goal of helping their individual child. Women supported use of the samples for a wide array of pediatric conditions. Comprehension of research practices, trust in medical researchers, and a belief that the research findings would be used fairly correlated with enrollment. Our survey found that most women support biobank development for research purposes. Most respondents expressed optimism that the results will yield significant benefits and that the benefits will be distributed fairly. © 2008 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Helping the Gifted

Martin J. Rupe is a Guidance Counselor in School District III, South Stickney, 79th and State Road, P.O. Oak Lawn, Illinois. FROM her academically talented, America has the right to expect leadership in the fields in which they are qualified. Thus, a goal of any educational program for them should be the development of the qualities of positive leadership in a complex world. Publications in the field of education have been sensitive to this challenge and have devoted a portion of their space to discussions of acceleration and enrichment in an attempt to provide the most adequate education for all students. This endeavor
Movements of the Sacroiliac Joints: A Roentgen Stereophotogrammetric Analysis

Twenty-five patients (21 females and 4 males) with sacroiliac joint disorders were studied with roentgen stereophotogrammetry in physiologic positions as well as in the extreme of physiologic positions. There was a constant pattern of motion with different load, especially around the transverse axis. The rotations were small and in mean between extreme position 2.5° (0.8°-3.9°). The translation was, mean, 0.7 mm (0.1-1.6 mm). There was no difference between symptomatic and asymptomatic joints.
The Influence of Cultural Competence on the Interpretations of Territorial Identities in European Capitals of Culture

Abstract The EU’s cultural initiative ‘the European Capital of Culture’ (ECOC) includes high identity political aims. It requires the designated cities to introduce and foster local, regional, and European cultural identities. In addition, the cities have used the designation as an opportunity to promote national cultural identity. Audiences of the ECOC events recognize and interpret different kinds of representations of territorial cultural identities from what the cities have to offer in culture. However, the contents of these interpretations vary drastically in the ECOCs. The article discusses whether the competence of interpreting the representations of territorial cultural identities is related to some social determinants of the audiences. Based on a questionnaire study conducted in recent ECOCs-Pécs (Hungary), Tallinn (Estonia), and Turku (Finland)-the study indicates that, for example, education, source of livelihood, and active cultural participation impact the interpretations of the representations of territorial cultural identities.
Light Predicate Raising *

Following Ross (1967/86) many linguists have assumed that sentence pairs like (1)-(4) are related by a rule of "Heavy NP Shift": (1) a. Mary gave everything that he demanded to John. b. Mary gave to John everything that he demanded. (2) a. Max put all the boxes of home furnishings in his car. b. Max put in his car all the boxes of home furnishings. (3) a. I would consider anyone who leaves his doors unlocked foolish. b. I would consider foolish anyone who leaves his doors unlocked. (4) a. You see large numbers of Dr. Who fans at such conventions. b. You see at such conventions large numbers of Dr. Who fans. In essence, this rule derives the second member of each pair from the first by rightward movement of a phonologically "heavy" noun phrase: (5) a. Mary gave t to John [everything that he demanded]. b. Max put t in his car [all the boxes of home furnishings].
Cross-national Differences in Educational Achievement Inequality

School systems are called not only to instruct and socialize students but also to differentiate among them. Although much research has investigated inequalities in educational outcomes associated with students’ family background and other ascriptive traits, little research has examined cross-national differences in the total amount of differentiation that school systems produce, the total achievement inequality. This article evaluates whether two dimensions of educational systems—variations in opportunities to learn and intensity of schooling—are associated with achievement inequality independent of family background. It draws data from the Programme for International Student Assessment for more than 50 school systems and models the variance in achievement. Findings suggest that decreasing the variability in opportunities to learn—in the form of greater homogeneity in teacher quality and the absence of tracking—within the school system might reduce achievement inequality. More intense schooling is also related to lower achievement inequality to the extent that this intensity is homogeneously distributed within the school system, particularly in the form of a more highly qualified teacher workforce.
Early Energy Deficit in Huntington Disease: Identification of a Plasma Biomarker Traceable during Disease Progression

Huntington disease (HD) is a fatal neurodegenerative disorder, with no effective treatment. The pathogenic mechanisms underlying HD have not been elucidated, but weight loss, associated with chorea and cognitive decline, is a characteristic feature of the disease that is accessible to investigation. We, therefore, performed a multiparametric study exploring body weight and the mechanisms of its loss in 32 presymptomatic carriers and HD patients in the early stages of the disease, compared to 21 controls. We combined this study with a multivariate statistical analysis of plasma components quantified by proton nuclear magnetic resonance (1H NMR) spectroscopy. We report evidence of an early hypermetabolic state in HD. Weight loss was observed in the HD group even in presymptomatic carriers, although their caloric intake was higher than that of controls. Inflammatory processes and primary hormonal dysfunction were excluded. 1H NMR spectroscopy on plasma did, however, distinguish HD patients at different stages of the disease and presymptomatic carriers from controls. This distinction was attributable to low levels of the branched chain amino acids (BCAA), valine, leucine and isoleucine. BCAA levels were correlated with weight loss and, importantly, with disease progression and abnormal triplet repeat expansion size in the HD1 gene. Levels of IGF1, which is regulated by BCAA, were also significantly lower in the HD group. Therefore, early weight loss in HD is associated with a systemic metabolic defect, and BCAA levels may be used as a biomarker, indicative of disease onset and early progression. The decreased plasma levels of BCAA may correspond to a critical need for Krebs cycle energy substrates in the brain that increased metabolism in the periphery is trying to provide.
Effects of performance appraisal politics on job satisfaction and turnover intention

There is evidence that performance ratings are often manipulated for political purposes. The present study examined the effects of employees' perceptions of political motives in performance appraisal on their job satisfaction and intention to quit using survey data from an occupationally heterogeneous sample of white‐collar employees (N=127) from various organizations. Regression analysis results indicated that when employees perceived performance ratings to be manipulated because of raters' personal bias and intent to punish subordinates they expressed reduced job satisfaction that, in turn, led to greater intentions to quit their jobs. Manipulations of ratings for motivational purposes, however, had no effect on job satisfaction and turnover intention.
Learning to become a professional orchestral musician: going beyond skill and technique

Current theories of learning hold dominant assumptions about the type and scope of knowledge and skills taught in formal courses that prepare novices for professional practice at work. In performing arts educational contexts, a common emphasis continues to hone individual performance skills in order to gain technical mastery and to differentiate competitively against others. This paper analyses a case study of an alternative educational programme developed by a major orchestra, which serves to induct young players into becoming professional orchestral musicians. This analysis reveals the multiple kinds of learning that it is claimed can only be gained from context‐sensitive participation in orchestral practice at work. Six distinctive features of this practice‐based learning are discussed and implications drawn for how well the various main theories of workplace learning account for the types of learning identified in the case study. This paper concludes with some observations on what these findings suggest for Vocational Education and Training (VET) in general.
A hospital based study on the prevalence of conjunctivitis due to Chlamydia trachomatis.

BACKGROUND & OBJECTIVES Very few studies have been done in India to determine the prevalence of Chlamydia trachomatis causing conjunctivitis using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) methods. Hence the prevalence of primary conjunctivitis due to C. trachomatis among individuals attending ophthalmic hospitals in Chennai was determined and compared with our earlier results. METHODS A total of 328 conjunctival swabs from 255 (both eyes 73 and one eye 182) patients were investigated by fluorescent antibody test (FAT) on direct smears, culture and PCRs for cryptic plasmid and major outer membrane protein (MOMPI) gene of C. trachomatis. An infant with ophthalmia neonatorum was also included. RESULTS Among these 328 specimens processed, 16 (4.9%) from 12 (4.7%) patients were positive by cryptic plasmid PCR. Among these, 3 from 2 patients were positive by FAT (direct smear), culture and PCR for MOMP 1 gene. Both eyes of the infant with ophthalmia neonatorum were positive by all the methods. The sensitivity of FAT and culture (18.8%) was lower compared to PCR. INTERPRETATION & CONCLUSION A significant decrease in the prevalence of adult chlamydial conjunctivitis has occurred in the 10-year period among patients reporting to the ophthalmic hospitals in Chennai. PCR using cryptic plasmid primers was found to be the most sensitive method to detect C. trachomatis in patients with conjunctivitis.
Allopregnanolone and neurogenesis in the nigrostriatal tract

Reinstalling the neurobiological circuits to effectively change the debilitating course of neurodegenerative diseases is of utmost importance. This reinstallation requires generation of new cells which are able to differentiate into specific types of neurons and modification of the local environment suitable for integration of these new neurons into the neuronal circuits. Allopregnanolone (APα) seems to be involved in both of these processes, and therefore, is a potential neurotrophic agent. Loss of dopamine neurons in the substantia nigra (SN) is one of the main pathological features of Parkinson’s and also in, at least, a subset of Alzheimer’s patients. Therefore, reinstallation of the dopamine neurons in nigrostriatal tract is of unique importance for these neurodegenerative diseases. However, for the neurogenic status and the roles of allopregnanolone in the nigrostriatal tract, the evidence is accumulating and debating. This review summarizes recent studies regarding the neurogenic status in the nigrostriatal tract. Furthermore, special attention is placed on evidence suggesting that reductions in allopregnenalone levels are one of the major pathological features in PD and AD. This evidence has also been confirmed in brains of mice that were lesioned with 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP) or those bearing neurodegenerative mutations. Lastly, we highlight studies showing that allopregnanalone can augment the number of total cells and dopaminergic neurons via peripheral exogenous administration.
MicroRNAs resolve an apparent conflict between annelid systematics and their fossil record

Both the monophyly and inter-relationships of the major annelid groups have remained uncertain, despite intensive research on both morphology and molecular sequences. Morphological cladistic analyses indicate that Annelida is monophyletic and consists of two monophyletic groups, the clitellates and polychaetes, whereas molecular phylogenetic analyses suggest that polychaetes are paraphyletic and that sipunculans are crown-group annelids. Both the monophyly of polychaetes and the placement of sipunculans within annelids are in conflict with the annelid fossil record—the former because Cambrian stem taxa are similar to modern polychaetes in possessing biramous parapodia, suggesting that clitellates are derived from polychaetes; the latter because although fossil sipunculans are known from the Early Cambrian, crown-group annelids do not appear until the latest Cambrian. Here we apply a different data source, the presence versus absence of specific microRNAs—genes that encode approximately 22 nucleotide non-coding regulatory RNAs—to the problem of annelid phylogenetics. We show that annelids are monophyletic with respect to sipunculans, and polychaetes are paraphyletic with respect to the clitellate Lumbricus, conclusions that are consistent with the fossil record. Further, sipunculans resolve as the sister group of the annelids, rooting the annelid tree, and revealing the polarity of the morphological change within this diverse lineage of animals.
Gantacurium and CW002 Do Not Potentiate Muscarinic Receptor-mediated Airway Smooth Muscle Constriction in Guinea Pigs

Background:Neuromuscular blocking agents are an integral component of general anesthesia. In addition to their intended pharmacologic target on skeletal muscle nicotinic receptors, undesirable airway effects (i.e., bronchoconstriction) can result from neuromuscular blocking agents' affinity for airway muscarinic receptors. We questioned whether two new members of a bisquaternary nondepolarizing muscle relaxant family, gantacurium and CW002, demonstrated detrimental effects of airway muscarinic receptors using an in vivo model in guinea pig airways. Methods:Urethane-anesthetized male guinea pigs were ventilated through a tracheostomy with continuous digital recordings of pulmonary inflation pressure and heart rate. The dose for 95% twitch suppression for gantacurium, CW002, cisatracurium, and rapacuronium was defined in the guinea pig. Transient and reproducible changes in pulmonary inflation pressure and heart rate were recorded after vagal nerve stimulation or intravenous injection of acetylcholine before and after pretreatment with cumulatively increasing concentrations of gantacurium, CW002, cisatracurium or a single concentration of rapacuronium. Results:The doses for 95% twitch suppression for gantacurium, CW002, cisatracurium, and rapacuronium were 0.064 ± 0.006, 0.012 ± 0.0006, 0.10 ± 0.003, and 0.31 ± 0.05 mg/kg, respectively. Gantacurium, CW002, and cisatracurium were without effects on baseline pulmonary inflation pressures and were devoid of significant interactions with M2 and M3 muscarinic receptors in vivo. Conclusion:These findings suggest that gantacurium and CW002 are devoid of significant effects at airway muscarinic receptors particularly M3 receptors on bronchial smooth musculature at doses several fold higher than those required for functional muscle paralysis.
Characterization of human MMTV-like (HML) elements similar to a sequence that was highly expressed in a human breast cancer: further definition of the HML-6 group.

Previously, we found a retroviral sequence, HML-6.2BC1, to be expressed at high levels in a multifocal ductal breast cancer from a 41-year-old woman who also developed ovarian carcinoma. The sequence of a human genomic clone (HML-6.28) selected by high-stringency hybridization with HML-6.2BC1 is reported here. It was 99% identical to HML-6.2BC1 and gave the same restriction fragments as total DNA. HML-6.28 is a 4.7-kb provirus with a 5'LTR, truncated in RT. Data from two similar genomic clones and sequences found in GenBank are also reported. Overlaps between them gave a rather complete picture of the HML-6.2BC1-like human endogenous retroviral elements. Work with somatic cell hybrids and FISH localized HML-6.28 to chromosome 6, band p21, close to the MHC region. The causal role of HML-6.28 in breast cancer remains unclear. Nevertheless, the ca. 20 Myr old HML-6 sequences enabled the definition of common and unique features of type A, B, and D (ABD) retroviruses. In Gag, HML-6 has no intervening sequences between matrix and capsid proteins, unlike extant exogenous ABD viruses, possibly an ancestral feature. Alignment of the dUTPase showed it to be present in all ABD viruses, but gave a phylogenetic tree different from trees made from other ABD genes, indicating a distinct phylogeny of dUTPase. A conserved 24-mer sequence in the amino terminus of some ABD envelope genes suggested a conserved function.
Legal Institutions, Sectoral Heterogeneity, and Economic Development

Poor countries have lower PPP-adjusted investment rates and face higher relative prices of investment goods. It has been suggested that this happens either because these countries have a relatively lower TFP in industries producing capital goods or because they are subject to greater investment distortions. This paper provides a micro-foundation for the cross-country dispersion in investment distortions. We first document that firms producing capital goods face a higher level of idiosyncratic risk than their counterparts producing consumption goods. In a model of capital accumulation where the protection of investors' rights is incomplete, this difference in risk induces a wedge between the returns on investment in the two sectors. The wedge is bigger, the poorer the investor protection. In turn, this implies that countries endowed with weaker institutions face higher relative prices of investment goods, invest a lower fraction of their income, and end up being poorer. We find that our mechanism may be quantitatively important. Copyright , Wiley-Blackwell.
Glucose metabolism in pigs expressing human genes under an insulin promoter

Xenotransplantation of porcine islets can reverse diabetes in non‐human primates. The remaining hurdles for clinical application include safe and effective T‐cell‐directed immunosuppression, but protection against the innate immune system and coagulation dysfunction may be more difficult to achieve. Islet‐targeted genetic manipulation of islet‐source pigs represents a powerful tool to protect against graft loss. However, whether these genetic alterations would impair islet function is unknown.
Deep Learning with S-Shaped Rectified Linear Activation Units

Rectified linear activation units are important components for state-of-the-art deep convolutional networks. In this paper, we propose a novel S-shaped rectifiedlinear activation unit (SReLU) to learn both convexand non-convex functions, imitating the multiple function forms given by the two fundamental laws, namely the Webner-Fechner law and the Stevens law, in psychophysics and neural sciences. Specifically, SReLU consists of three piecewise linear functions, which are formulated by four learnable parameters. The SReLU is learned jointly with the training of the whole deep network through back propagation. During the training phase, to initialize SReLU in different layers, we propose a “freezing” method to degenerate SReLU into a predefined leaky rectified linear unit in the initial several training epochs and then adaptively learn the good initial values. SReLU can be universally used in the existing deep networks with negligible additional parameters and computation cost. Experiments with two popular CNN architectures, Network in Network and GoogLeNet on scale-various benchmarks including CIFAR10, CIFAR100, MNIST and ImageNet demonstrate that SReLU achieves remarkable improvement compared to other activation functions.
Concept of Agency in Educational and Career Development

The present study was designed to develop and evaluate prototypical measures of behavioral competence and perceived self-efficacy with respect to a complex domain of behavior summarized as agency in educational and career pursuits. The domain, originally suggested to be important in a previous study of career competencies in professional women (Hackett, Betz, & Doty, 1985), referred to the tendency of the individual to respond proactively to situations representing educational and career opportunities. Subjects, 109 undergraduate students, were administered measures of competence and level and strength of perceived self-efficacy in response to 18 situations with potential to elicit agentic behaviors. Results indicated that, on the average, college students gave only minimally competent responses to the situations presented, although competence varied considerably across situations. Levels of perceived efficacy were relatively high, tint the strength of (or confidence in) efficacy beliefs was relatively weak. Male and female students were similar in both agentic competence and self-efficacy. Implications for further research and for using the concept of agency as a focus of counseling interventions are discussed. Bandura (1977) and others (Bandura & Adams, 1977; Bandura, Adams, & Beyer, 1977) developed a theoretical explanation of therapeutic change in which the concept of perceived self-efficacy plays the central mediational role. The concept of perceived self-efficacy refers to beliefs concerning one's capability of successfully engaging in a target behavior; strong perceived efficacy is postulated to lead to behavioral approach, and weak efficacy to lead to avoidance. Thus, the modification of perceived self-efficacy is thought to strongly