Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Equatorward phytoplankton migration during a cold spell within the Late Cretaceous super-greenhouse

Abstract. Oceanic Anoxic Event 2 (OAE2), a ∼ 600 kyr episode close to the Cenomanian–Turonian boundary (ca. 94 Ma), is characterized by relatively widespread marine anoxia and ranks amongst the warmest intervals of the Phanerozoic. The early stages of OAE2 are, however, marked by an episode of widespread transient cooling and bottom water oxygenation: the Plenus Cold Event. This cold spell has been linked to a decline in atmospheric pCO2, resulting from enhanced global organic carbon burial. To investigate the response of phytoplankton to this marked and rapid climate shift we examined the biogeographical response of dinoflagellates to the Plenus Cold Event. Our study is based on a newly generated geochemical and palynological data set from a high-latitude Northern Hemisphere site, Pratts Landing (western Alberta, Canada). We combine these data with a semi-quantitative global compilation of the stratigraphic distribution of dinoflagellate cyst taxa. The data show that dinoflagellate cysts grouped in the Cyclonephelium compactum–membraniphorum morphological plexus migrated from high to mid-latitudes during the Plenus Cold Event, making it the sole widely found (micro)fossil to mark this cold spell. In addition to earlier reports from regional metazoan migrations during the Plenus Cold Event, our findings illustrate the effect of rapid climate change on the global biogeographical dispersion of phytoplankton.
Resolution Limits of Sparse Coding in High Dimensions

This paper addresses the problem of sparsity pattern detection for unknown k-sparse n-dimensional signals observed through m noisy, random linear measurements. Sparsity pattern recovery arises in a number of settings including statistical model selection, pattern detection, and image acquisition. The main results in this paper are necessary and sufficient conditions for asymptotically-reliable sparsity pattern recovery in terms of the dimensions m, n and k as well as the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) and the minimum-to-average ratio (MAR) of the nonzero entries of the signal. We show that m > 2k log(n - k)/(SNR · MAR) is necessary for any algorithm to succeed, regardless of complexity; this matches a previous sufficient condition for maximum likelihood estimation within a constant factor under certain scalings of k, SNR and MAR with n. We also show a sufficient condition for a computationally-trivial thresholding algorithm that is larger than the previous expression by only a factor of 4(1 + SNR) and larger than the requirement for lasso by only a factor of 4/MAR. This provides insight on the precise value and limitations of convex programming-based algorithms.
Fifth Åland Island conference on von Willebrand disease

The fifth Åland Island meeting on von Willebrand disease (VWD) was held on the Åland Islands, Finland, from 22 to 24 September 2016—90 years after the first case of VWD was diagnosed in a patient from the Åland Islands in 1926. This meeting brought together experts in the field of VWD to share knowledge and expertise on current trends and challenges in VWD. Topics included the storage and release of von Willebrand factor (VWF), epidemiology and diagnostics in VWD, treatment of VWD, angiogenesis and VWF inhibitors.
Serum vitamin D level – the effect on the clinical course of psoriasis

Introduction Psoriasis is a hyperproliferative disorder of the skin, and vitamin D analogs are widely used in its treatment. It is evident that ultraviolet radiation enables vitamin D3 (cholecalciferol) formation in the epidermis, and this product is further converted into the active metabolites 25-hydroxycholecalciferol and 1,25-hydroxycholecalciferol, which exert several important effects on the skin. The disruption in proper functioning of the skin which occurs in psoriasis leads to a loss of capacity for cutaneous synthesis of vitamin D3. In consequence, it activates a vicious circle that impairs homeostasis of the skin and results in a progressive decrease in the level of vitamin D in the whole human body. Aim To estimate the prevalence of vitamin D serum deficiency in patients with psoriasis and analyse the association of vitamin D food intake with clinical features. Material and methods Forty adults with psoriasis and 40 healthy subjects (control group) were recruited. Psoriasis plaques were diagnosed and evaluated by the PASI scale. Collected blood samples enabled measurement of serum vitamin D level by assessment with the immunoenzyme technique. Results The analysis with the Mann-Whitney U test revealed a statistically significant difference in 25-hydroxycholecalciferol level between healthy individuals and patients with psoriasis (p = 0.048). In both groups (control and psoriatic) the level of 25-hydroxycholecalciferol was seriously deficient (< 50 nmol/l). There was also a negative correlation of 25-hydroxycholecalciferol serum level with both PASI (r = –0.43) and the duration of psoriasis (r = –0.53). Conclusions It is necessary to bear in mind that not only the ingestion of food rich in vitamin D is necessary, but also the production of vitamin D with sun exposure. The quantity of 25-hydroxycholecalciferol is very important both in the general population and in patients with psoriasis, because these groups have a distinct metabolism.
Anticardiolipin Antibody Assay: a Methodological Analysis for a better Consensus in Routine Determinations

Summary Despite the widely recognized practical importance of anticardiolipin (aCL) ELISA, the reliability of this test has been recently discussed. In order to investigate this area on European scale, we sent to 30 experienced centers a questionnaire focusing on the diagnostic procedures applied to patients with antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) and on the detailed protocols used to perform aCL. Anticardiolipin ELISA was found to be the most frequently performed test in patients with suspected APS, but significant difference was shown among the various protocols. The cross-laboratory multiple examination of ten serum samples evaluated independently by the 24 centers pointed out the difficulty in getting comparable results. Therefore a “consensus” protocol was derived from the aCL methods giving the best performance. The materials and reagents necessary to perform the “consensus” method, including, as putative standards, one IgG and one IgM monoclonal antibody (HCAL and EY2C9) were distributed to 19 Centers. The results of one IgG and one IgM aCL high positive sera measured in serial dilutions were compared. A progressive decrease in the variability of the values obtained for a given sample appeared evident when all the laboratories used the same standard, in their own in-house ELISA and even more in the “consensus” ELISA. Our data show that aCL ELISA standardization is necessary in order to obtain comparable results in different laboratories.
Effects of stream flow intermittency on riparian vegetation of a semiarid region river (San Pedro River, Arizona)

The San Pedro River in the southwestern United States retains a natural flood regime and has several reaches with perennial stream flow and shallow ground water. However, much of the river flows intermittently. Urbanization‐linked declines in regional ground‐water levels have raised concerns over the future status of the riverine ecosystem in some parts of the river, while restoration‐linked decreases in agricultural ground‐water pumping are expected to increase stream flows in other parts. This study describes the response of the streamside herbaceous vegetation to changes in stream flow permanence. During the early summer dry season, streamside herbaceous cover and species richness declined continuously across spatial gradients of flow permanence, and composition shifted from hydric to mesic species at sites with more intermittent flow. Hydrologic threshold values were evident for one plant functional group: Schoenoplectus acutus, Juncus torreyi, and other hydric riparian plants declined sharply in cover with loss of perennial stream flow. In contrast, cover of mesic riparian perennials (including Cynodon dactylon, an introduced species) increased at sites with intermittent flow. Patterns of hydric and mesic riparian annuals varied by season: in the early summer dry season their cover declined continuously as flow became more intermittent, while in the late summer wet season their cover increased as the flow became more intermittent. Periodic drought at the intermittent sites may increase opportunities for establishment of these annuals during the monsoonal flood season. During the late summer flood season, stream flow was present at most sites, and fewer vegetation traits were correlated with flow permanence; cover and richness were correlated with other environmental factors including site elevation and substrate nitrate level and particle size. Although perennial‐flow and intermittent‐flow sites support different streamside plant communities, all of the plant functional groups are abundant at perennial‐flow sites when viewing the ecosystem at broader spatial and temporal scales: mesic riparian perennials are common in the floodplain zone adjacent to the river channel and late‐summer hydric and mesic annuals are periodically abundant after large floods. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Examining Well-Being in School Context: Weekly Experiences of Pupils and Teachers

†‡ § ‖ ¶ ** The present study investigates the determinants and intercorrelations between teachers’ and pupils’ well-being and motivation in the school context. Based on self-determination theory and job demandsresources theory, we hypothesize that (a) teachers’ weekly self-concordant work motivation promotes teachers’ weekly work-related well-being (i.e. work-related positive affect and work engagement), and (b) that a crossover effect of teachers’ weekly work-related well-being on pupils’ weekly school-related well-being exists, while controlling for trait-level teachers’ antecedents of trait-level teachers’ workrelated well-being: job demands and job resources. A quantitative weekly diary methodology is employed. Participants are primary school pupils and their teachers from six European countries.
Fundamentos, características y eficacia de la Psicoterapia Analítica Funcional

In this work there are exposed the characteristics, the foundations and the behavioral roots that support the Functional Analytical Psychotherapy (FAP) and its recent advances. Their foundations are: (a) the functional analysis of the client’s direct behavior that happens during the session, (b) the shaping and natural contingencies of reinforcement that happen inside the clinical session, and (c) the functional equivalence between the clinical context and the daily life problems. As characteristics, FAP outlines some aims of intervention, referred to as Clinical Relevant Behavior (CRB); and also five therapeutic rules as fundamental guidance for the therapist. The FAP emphasized the client-therapist relationship, and this gives the opportunity to shape and to reinforce the improvements into the in situ clinical session. Their major conceptual contribution is the theory about the formation of Self, doing a refined analysis of the personality problems and its treatment. There are described also the recent studies of efficacy and effectiveness of this therapy with very positive results in different types of disorders. Finally, its integration with other therapies of third generation is discussed, which produces synergy effects in the results.
Pharmacokinetics of Bupivacaine after Continuous Epidural Infusion in Infants with and without Biliary Atresia

BackgroundContinuous epidural infusion of bupivacaine is widely practiced for postoperative pain relief in pediatric patients. However, bupivacaine may induce adverse effects in infants (convulsions or cardiac arrhythmias), likely because of decreased hepatic clearance and serum protein binding capacity. The authors wanted to examine the complex relations between age, &agr;-1 acid glycoprotein (AAG) concentration, and unbound and total bupivacaine serum concentrations in infants receiving bupivacaine epidurally for 2 days. MethodsTwenty-two infants aged 1–7 months (12 with biliary atresia and 10 with another disease) received a continuous epidural infusion of 0.375 mg · kg−1 · h−1 bupivacaine during 2 days (during and after surgery). Unbound and total bupivacaine concentration in serum was measured 0.5, 4, 24, and 48 h after infusion initiation. AAG concentration was measured in serum before and 2 days after surgery. In eight additional infants, the blood/plasma concentration ratio was measured in vitro at whole blood concentrations of 2 and 20 &mgr;g/ml. Bupivacaine concentration was fitted to a one-compartment model to calculate basic pharmacokinetic parameters. ResultsNo adverse effects were observed. AAG increased markedly after surgery, and the increase was correlated to both age and preoperative AAG concentration. Two infants aged 1.8 months had unbound concentrations greater than 0.2 &mgr;g/ml. Clearance of unbound drug significantly increased with age. Because of increased drug binding, clearance of bound drug decreased both with time (from 0.5 to 48 h) and with age. Blood/plasma ratio was 0.77 ± 0.08 and 0.85 ± 0.24 at 2 and 20 &mgr;g/ml, respectively. ConclusionsBecause of a low AAG concentration and a low intrinsic clearance, unbound bupivacaine increased to concentrations greater than 0.2 &mgr;g/ml in two infants younger than 2 months, after 2 days of infusion at a rate of 0.375 mg · kg−1 · h−1. The increase in AAG observed after surgery did not fully buffer this unbound fraction. Similarly, the buffer capacity of erythrocytes did not sufficiently increase at high concentration to compensate the saturation of the AAG system. Thus, we propose the use of a maximum dose of 0.25 mg · kg−1 · h−1 in infants younger than 4 months and a maximum of 0.3 mg · kg−1 · h−1 in infants older than 4 months.
Portable Electrowetting Digital Microfluidics Analysis Platform for Chemiluminescence Sensing

A prototype of low-cost compact digital microfluidics analysis platform controlled by a smartphone was built. Controlled by a DIY-built application (App) with self-calibration, the smartphone was applied not only as the controller that manipulated droplets on an electro-wetting-on-dielectric microfluidic device through our home-made circuits, but also as the reader that quantified chemiluminescence signals through its camera. In order to deal with the non-uniformity of the chemiluminescence images acquired by the smartphone, we proposed a customize image process scheme. The results showed linear responses to H2O2 from 1 to 20 mM in the luminol-HRP-H2O2 chemiluminescence system.
The Laryngeal Specifications of Fricatives

Phonologists have traditionally assumed that the unmarked laryngeal state of fricatives is to be unaspirated ([spread glottis]). However, the data analyzed here, which are drawn from Armenian, Greek, Pali, Sanskrit, Spanish, and Thai, suggest that in their unmarked state voiceless fricatives are in fact [+spread glottis], whereas voiced fricatives are [spread glottis].
Global-Local subadditive ergodic theorems and application to homogenization in elasticity

We establish a global-local ergodic theorem about subadditive processes which seems to be a flexible tool to identify some limit problems in homogenization involving several small parameters. When the subadditive process is parametrized in a separable space, we show that the convergence takes place in the variational sense of the epiconvergence (or r-convergence). Some applications are given in the setting of nonlinear elasticity.
A comparison of EHR technology receptivity and acceptance in a Northwest university psychology training clinician population

This is a preliminary exploration of electronic health record system implementation acceptance in a graduate student clinical psychologist population. A survey was conducted with a small sample (n=15) of student clinicians at a northwestern university preand post-implementation of an EHR system. This survey incorporated measures of a qualitative and quantitative nature. Theoretical constructs explored include technology acceptance, anxiety, self-efficacy, and personality factors that might influence the clinician’s relationship to the EHR system preand postimplementation. Overall, there was an increase in negative attitudes towards EHR post-implementation. Clinicians were more likely to find the EHR system useful and feel confident about their abilities in EHR use if they were older and had more experience with computers and EHR systems. Significant findings are minimal and not generalizable due to the small sample size, but do lend support for previous findings in healthcare research around meaningful use and EHR acceptance.
Complex contention: analyzing power dynamics within Anonymous

Abstract Anonymous is notoriously elusive as the movement takes on radically different guises, constantly mutates, and traverses national borders and ideological divides. Since Anonymous is difficult to grasp with conventional social movement theory, this paper uses insights from complexity theory to analyze the movement’s evolution in general and its dynamics of power in particular. While participants in Anonymous radically reject hierarchy and leadership, dominant groups emerged at various points in the movement’s evolution. This paper aims to explain how such dominant groups emerge and concentrate power and how they subsequently dissolve and lose power. Drawing on ethnographic research as well as secondary sources, it identifies mechanisms of power concentration and diffusion within nominally horizontalist movements.
MODELLING STAKEHOLDER SALIENCE THROUGH CORPORATE SOCIAL REPORTS

Drawing from a longitudinal study of stakeholder salience in the UK and Germany, using data from corporate social reports and relying on the varieties of capitalism theoretical framework, we found that investors and employees came top on UK list while collaborative networks (including suppliers and alliances) and management were top on German list of important stakeholders. This finding suggests that stakeholder salience, to a large extent, reflects dominant characteristics of UK and Germany capitalist systems, respectively and gives further credence to the embedded nature argument of corporate stakeholding practices.
Paleocurrent reconstruction of the deep Pacific inflow during the middle Miocene: Reflections of East Antarctic Ice Sheet growth

[1] Today the deep western boundary current (DWBC) east of New Zealand is the most important route for deep water entering the Pacific Ocean. Large-scale changes in deep water circulation patterns are thought to have been associated with the development of the East Antarctic Ice Sheet (EAIS) close to the main source of bottom water for the DWBC. Here we reconstruct the changing speed of the southwest Pacific DWBC during the middle Miocene from ∼15.5–12.5 Ma, a period of significant global ice accumulation associated with EAIS growth. Sortable silt mean grain sizes from Ocean Drilling Program Site 1123 reveal variability in the speed of the Pacific inflow on the timescale of the 41 kyr orbital obliquity cycle. Similar orbital period flow changes have recently been demonstrated for the Pleistocene epoch. Collectively, these observations suggest that a strong coupling between changes in the speed of the deep Pacific inflow and high-latitude climate forcing may have been a persistent feature of the global thermohaline circulation system for at least the past 15 Myr. Furthermore, long-term changes in flow speed suggest an intensification of the DWBC under an inferred increase in Southern Component Water production. This occurred at the same time as decreasing Tethyan outflow and major EAIS growth between ∼15.5 and 13.5 Ma. These results provide evidence that a major component of the deep thermohaline circulation was associated with the middle Miocene growth of the EAIS and support the view that this time interval represents an important step in the development of the Neogene icehouse climate.
Gender differences in cardiovascular response to dementia caregiving.

PURPOSE This study examined gender differences in cardiovascular responses to laboratory-based stress, as well as in ambulatory hemodynamic (i.e., blood pressure and heart rate) functioning among caregivers of persons with dementia. DESIGN & METHODS Participants were 25 men and 25 women caregivers, matched on age, type of care recipient's dementia, and relationship to the care recipient. After cardiovascular reactivity to a laboratory-based caregiving stressor was assessed, the ambulatory hemodynamic functioning levels of caregivers were measured in caregivers' natural environments. RESULTS Female caregivers displayed greater systolic and diastolic blood pressure reactivity to a laboratory-based stress task (i.e., discussing caregiving difficulties) compared with male caregivers (p < or =.01). In contrast, no gender differences were found for ambulatory hemodynamic functioning when aggregated overall or when in the presence of the care recipient. IMPLICATIONS Laboratory-based findings suggest that female caregivers experience greater blood pressure reactivity to caregiving-related stress than do male caregivers. However, these laboratory-based gender differences may not generalize to differences in hemodynamic functioning in caregivers' daily lives.
Evaluation of Cancer-Associated DNA Copy Number Events in Colorectal (Advanced) Adenomas

About 5% of colorectal adenomas are estimated to progress to colorectal cancer. However, it is important to identify which adenomas actually carry a high risk of progression, because these serve as intermediate endpoints, for example, in screening programs. In clinical practice, adenomas with a size of ≥10 mm, villous component and/or high-grade dysplasia, called advanced adenomas, are considered high risk, although solid evidence for this classification is lacking. Specific DNA copy number changes are associated with adenoma-to-carcinoma progression. We set out to determine the prevalence of cancer-associated events (CAE) in advanced and nonadvanced adenomas. DNA copy number analysis was performed on archival tissues from three independent series of, in total, 297 adenomas (120 nonadvanced and 177 advanced) using multiplex ligation-dependent probe amplification or low-coverage whole-genome DNA sequencing. Alterations in two or more CAEs were considered to mark adenomas as high risk. Two or more CAEs were overall present in 25% (95% CI, 19.0–31.8) of advanced adenomas; 23% (11/48), 36% (12/33), and 23% (22/96) of the advanced adenomas in series 1, 2, and 3, respectively, and 1.7% (1/58) and 4.8% (3/62) of the nonadvanced adenomas, in series 1 and 2, respectively. The majority of advanced adenomas do not show CAEs, indicating that only a subset of these lesions is to be considered high risk. Nonadvanced adenomas have very low prevalence of CAEs, although those with CAEs should be considered high risk as well. Specific DNA copy number alterations may better reflect the true progression risk than the advanced adenoma phenotype. Cancer Prev Res; 11(7); 403–12. ©2018 AACR.