Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Les choix énergétiques dans les trajectoires de vie : modélisations et simulations selon différents scénarios

La thematique de la precarite energetique suscite un interet grandissant de la sphere economique, politique et sociale. Cette these en sciences economiques porte sur la representation et l’analyse des interactions de trois postes fondamentaux dans les depenses contraintes des menages a savoir la sante, le logement, et l’energie afin de faire apparaitre des leviers pertinents pour la mise en place d’action de lutte contre la precarite energetique. Celle-ci propose une analyse theorique et analytique originale, en abordant d’une part ce phenomene en termes d’equite permettant de mettre en exergue l’existence d’inegalites, justifiant ainsi la mise en place de mesures complementaires, voire nouvelles, en faveur d’une plus grande equite entre individus concernant le bien energie. D’autre part, la caracterisation de la dynamique de ce phenomene dispense de precieuses informations sur le type de mesures (i.e., aides au paiement de factures, modes de paiement de facture innovants, aides a la renovation du logement) pouvant etre mises en place pour contrecarrer ce phenomene, et ainsi participer a la poursuite des objectifs d’equite sous-jacents. Ensuite, l’analyse des consequences de la precarite energetique sur d’autres dimensions que celles faisant reference a l’energie (i.e., sante) permet d’interpeller les decideurs politiques sur son aspect multidimensionnel et poreux avec d’autres dimensions de la precarite sociale. Ce phenomene est etre un vecteur concourant a l’aggravation d’autres inegalites (i.e., inegalites de sante), pouvant ainsi compromettre la poursuite de l’objectif d’equite des decideurs publics. Enfin, l’etude de nouveaux moyens de paiement innovants du bien energie (i.e., prepaiement), a moindres couts, permet d’identifier le prepaiement comme un outil pouvant contribuer a l’atteinte des objectifs respectivement d’equite horizontale et verticale.
Lasp-1 Regulates Podosome Function

Eukaryotic cells form a variety of adhesive structures to connect with their environment and to regulate cell motility. In contrast to classical focal adhesions, podosomes, highly dynamic structures of different cell types, are actively engaged in matrix remodelling and degradation. Podosomes are composed of an actin-rich core region surrounded by a ring-like structure containing signalling molecules, motor proteins as well as cytoskeleton-associated proteins. Lasp-1 is a ubiquitously expressed, actin-binding protein that is known to regulate cytoskeleton architecture and cell migration. This multidomain protein is predominantely present at focal adhesions, however, a second pool of Lasp-1 molecules is also found at lamellipodia and vesicle-like microdomains in the cytosol. In this report, we show that Lasp-1 is a novel component and regulator of podosomes. Immunofluorescence studies reveal a localization of Lasp-1 in the podosome ring structure, where it colocalizes with zyxin and vinculin. Life cell imaging experiments demonstrate that Lasp-1 is recruited in early steps of podosome assembly. A siRNA-mediated Lasp-1 knockdown in human macrophages affects podosome dynamics as well as their matrix degradation capacity. In summary, our data indicate that Lasp-1 is a novel component of podosomes and is involved in the regulation of podosomal function.
Interracial Contact Effects on Racial Prejudice among Students at Selective Colleges and Universities

ii Acknowledgements iii Dedication vii List of Figure xii List of Tables xiii Chapter One: Introduction 1 Research Questions 1 Intergroup Contact Theory 2 Racial Prejudice 5 Importance of Research 7 Chapter Two: Interracial Contact and College Students‘ Racial Prejudice 12 Campus Interracial Contact Model 13 Background Factors, College-level Characteristics, and Interracial Contact 16 Personal and Family Characteristics and Interracial Contact 16 Precollege Environments and Interracial Contact 18 Race/Ethnicity and Interracial Contact 19 Race, Gender, and Interracial Contact 22 College-level Characteristics and Interracial Contact 24 Perceptions of the Campus Racial Climate and Interracial Contact 24 Interracial Contact and Racial Prejudice 27 Interracial Friendships and Racial Prejudice 27 Interracial Dating and Racial Prejudice 29
$\hbox{NO}_{\rm x}$ Aftertreatment Using Thermal Desorption and Nitrogen Nonthermal Plasma Reduction

In this paper, the results of two experiments are reported. First, the performances of various types of nonthermal plasma reactors for NOx reduction were compared. It was shown that the surface-discharge reactors have as high NOx reduction capabilities as pulse-powered wire-cylinder reactors. Second, NOx treatment using the surface-discharge reactor with a NO-adsorbent zeolite 13X was performed. Thermal desorption was employed for the regeneration of the zeolite. The NOx of 350 ppm was kept lower than 18 ppm for at least 11 h, whereas it degraded to 75 ppm in the absence of the regeneration. The result suggested the possibility of an aftertreatment system that employed thermal desorption by utilizing the waste heat of diesel engine exhaust and NOx reduction by using a surface-discharge reactor.
Susceptibility to experimental infection of the invertebrate locusts (Schistocerca gregaria) with the apicomplexan parasite Neospora caninum

Neuropathogenesis is a feature of Neospora caninum infection. In order to explore this in the absence of acquired host immunity to the parasite, we have tested infection in locusts (Schistocerca gregaria). We show for the first time that locusts are permissive to intra-hemocoel infection with N. caninum tachyzoites. This was characterized by alteration in body weight, fecal output, hemoparasitemia, and sickness-related behavior. Infected locusts exhibited progressive signs of sickness leading to mortality. Also, N. caninum showed neuropathogenic affinity, induced histological changes in the brain and was able to replicate in the brain of infected locusts. Fatty acid (FA) profiling analysis of the brains by gas chromatography and multi-variate prediction models discriminated with high accuracy (98%) between the FA profiles of the infected and control locusts. DNA microarray gene expression profiling distinguished infected from control S. gregaria brain tissues on the basis of distinct differentially-expressed genes. These data indicate that locusts are permissible to infection with N. caninum and that the parasite retains its tropism for neural tissues in the invertebrate host. Locusts may facilitate preclinical testing of interventional strategies to inhibit the growth of N. caninum tachyzoites. Further studies on how N. caninum brings about changes in locust brain tissue are now warranted.
Synergistic Effect of Vaginal Trauma and Ovariectomy in a Murine Model of Stress Urinary Incontinence: Upregulation of Urethral Nitric Oxide Synthases and Estrogen Receptors

The molecular mechanisms underlying stress urinary incontinence (SUI) are unclear. We aimed to evaluate the molecular alterations in mice urethras following vaginal trauma and ovariectomy (OVX). Twenty-four virgin female mice were equally distributed into four groups: noninstrumented control; vaginal distension (VD) group; OVX group; and VD + OVX group. Changes in leak point pressures (LPPs), genital tract morphology, body weight gain, plasma 17β-estradiol level and expressions of neuronal nitric oxide synthase (nNOS), induced nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), and estrogen receptors (ERs—ERα and ERβ) were analyzed. Three weeks after VD, the four groups differed significantly in genital size and body weight gain. Compared with the control group, the plasma estradiol levels were significantly decreased in the OVX and VD + OVX groups, and LPPs were significantly decreased in all three groups. nNOS, iNOS, and ERα expressions in the urethra were significantly increased in the VD and VD + OVX groups, whereas ERβ expression was significantly increased only in the VD + OVX group. These results show that SUI following vaginal trauma and OVX involves urethral upregulations of nNOS, iNOS, and ERs, suggesting that NO- and ER-mediated signaling might play a role in the synergistic effect of birth trauma and OVX-related SUI pathogenesis.
The diaphanous wedge

Complete solutions for the scattering by a diaphanous wedge, meaning a wedge with identical wavenumbers inside and outside the wedge, are presented. The results are obtained from an integral equation for the fields on the wedge, which is solved by the Mellin and Kantorovich-Lebedev transforms in the static and dynamic cases, respectively. Pertinent formulations of Gegenbauer's addition theorems play an important part in the derivation of the results, which are presented in closed form.
Medical Image Segmentation using Marker Controlled Watershed Transformation

Segmentation refers to the process of partitioning a digital image into multiple segments (sets of pixels, also known as superpixels). The goal of segmentation is to simplify and/or change the representation of an image into something that is more meaningful and easier to analyze. Image segmentation is used to cluster pixels into salient image regions, i.e., regions corresponding to individual surfaces, objects, or natural parts of objects. The watershed transform has interesting properties that make it useful for many different image segmentation applications: it is simple and intuitive, can be parallelized, and always produces a complete division of the image. However, when applied to medical image analysis, it has important drawbacks (oversegmentation, sensitivity to noise). In this paper medical image segmentation using marker controlled watershed segmentation is presented. Objective of this paper is segmenting the medical image using marker controlled watershed segmentation, and comparing the results of directly applying watershed transformation and marker controlled watershed transformation.
The quality of reports of randomised trials in 2000 and 2006: comparative study of articles indexed in PubMed

Objectives To examine the reporting characteristics and methodological details of randomised trials indexed in PubMed in 2000 and 2006 and assess whether the quality of reporting has improved after publication of the Consolidated Standards of Reporting Trials (CONSORT) Statement in 2001. Design Comparison of two cross sectional investigations. Study sample All primary reports of randomised trials indexed in PubMed in December 2000 (n=519) and December 2006 (n=616), including parallel group, crossover, cluster, factorial, and split body study designs. Main outcome measures The proportion of general and methodological items reported, stratified by year and study design. Risk ratios with 95% confidence intervals were calculated to represent changes in reporting between 2000 and 2006. Results The majority of trials were two arm (379/519 (73%) in 2000 v 468/616 (76%) in 2006) parallel group studies (383/519 (74%) v 477/616 (78%)) published in specialty journals (482/519 (93%) v 555/616 (90%)). In both 2000 and 2006, a median of 80 participants were recruited per trial for parallel group trials. The proportion of articles that reported drug trials decreased between 2000 and 2006 (from 393/519 (76%) to 356/616 (58%)), whereas the proportion of surgery trials increased (51/519 (10%) v 128/616 (21%)). There was an increase between 2000 and 2006 in the proportion of trial reports that included details of the primary outcome (risk ratio (RR) 1.18, 95% CI 1.04 to 1.33), sample size calculation (RR 1.66, 95% CI 1.40 to 1.95), and the methods of random sequence generation (RR 1.62, 95% CI 1.32 to 1.97) and allocation concealment (RR 1.40, 95% CI 1.11 to 1.76). There was no difference in the proportion of trials that provided specific details on who was blinded (RR 0.91, 95% CI 0.75 to 1.10). Conclusions Reporting of several important aspects of trial methods improved between 2000 and 2006; however, the quality of reporting remains well below an acceptable level. Without complete and transparent reporting of how a trial was designed and conducted, it is difficult for readers to assess its conduct and validity.
Predictive Value of the Tuberculin Skin Test among Newly Arriving Immigrants

Rationale Screening and treating newly arriving immigrants for latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI) in low-incidence countries could be promising to reduce the tuberculosis incidence among this population. The effectiveness of screening with the tuberculin skin test (TST) is unknown. Objectives To estimate the risk of progression to tuberculosis within two years after entry, stratified by TST result at entry. Methods In a case-base design, we determined the prevalence of TST positives (10 mm and 15 mm) among a representative cohort of immunocompetent immigrants (n = 643) aged ≥18 years who arrived between April 2009 and March 2011 in the Netherlands (base cohort). Immigrants who progressed to tuberculosis within two years after arrival in 2005, 2006 or 2007 were extracted from the Netherlands Tuberculosis Register (case source cohort). The prevalence of TST positives from the base cohort was projected on the case source cohort to estimate the risk of progression to active tuberculosis by using Bayesian analyses to adjust for the sensitivity of the TST and Poisson regression analyses to take into account the random error of the number of extracted cases. Results The prevalence of TST positives was 42% and 23% for a cut-off value of 10 mm and 15 mm, respectively. The overall risk of progression to tuberculosis if TST positive was 238 per 100,000 population (95% CI 151–343) and 295 per 100,000 population (95% CI 161–473) for a cut-off value of ≥10 mm and ≥15 mm, respectively. The corresponding risk for TST negatives was 19 (95% CI 0–59) and 58 (95% CI 25–103). Conclusion The TST has the discriminatory ability to differentiate between individuals at low and high risk of disease.
Effect of nitric oxide deficiency on the pulmonary PTHrP system

Nitric oxide (NO) deficiency is common in pulmonary diseases, but its effect on pulmonary remodelling is still controversial. As pulmonary parathyroid hormone‐related protein (PTHrP) expression is a key regulator of pulmonary fibrosis and development, the effect of chronic NO deficiency on the pulmonary PTHrP system and its relationship with oxidative stress was addressed. NO bioavailability in adult rats was reduced by systemic administration of L‐NAME via tap water. To clarify the role of NO synthase (NOS)‐3‐derived NO on pulmonary expression of PTHrP, NOS‐3‐deficient mice were used. Captopril and hydralazine were used to reduce the hypertensive effect of L‐NAME treatment and to interfere with the pulmonary renin‐angiotensin system (RAS). Quantitative RT‐PCR and immunoblot techniques were used to characterize the expression of key proteins involved in pulmonary remodelling. L‐NAME administration significantly reduced pulmonary NO concentration and caused oxidative stress as characterized by increased pulmonary nitrite concentration and increased expression of NOX2, p47phox and p67phox. Furthermore, L‐NAME induced the pulmonary expression of PTHrP and of its corresponding receptor, PTH‐1R. Expression of PTHrP and PTH‐1R correlated with the expression of two well‐established PTHrP downstream targets, ADRP and PPARγ, suggesting an activation of the pulmonary PTHrP system by NO deficiency. Captopril reduced the expression of PTHrP, profibrotic markers and ornithine decarboxylase, but neither that of PTH‐1R nor that of ADRP and PPARγ. All transcriptional changes were confirmed in NOS‐3‐deficient mice. In conclusion, NOS‐3‐derived NO suppresses pulmonary PTHrP and PTH‐1R expression, thereby modifying pulmonary remodelling.
Scope of Semantic Activation and Innovative Thinking in College Students with ADHD

Adults with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) show high divergent thinking on standardized laboratory measures. This study assessed innovative thinking in adults with ADHD using a realistic task and investigated a possible cognitive mechanism for ADHD-related advantages in innovative thinking. College students with and without ADHD (n = 30 per group) completed a cell-phone feature invention task and word association task. Latent semantic analysis was used to measure semantic distance within cue-associate pairs on the word association task. Compared to non-ADHD peers, students with ADHD scored higher in originality, novelty, and flexibility on the cell phone task, and produced associates of lower semantic relatedness on the word association task. Tests of statistical mediation confirmed that the higher flexibility of the ADHD group was explained by semantic distance within cue-associate pairs on the word association task. Results support the possibility that ADHD is positively associated with specific aspects of innovative thinking, which may in part be attributable to a wide scope of semantic activation.
New Technology Adoption in West Virginia : Implications for Manufacturing Modernization Policies

This paper explores the determinants of new technology adoption using data obtained from a 1993 survey of 299 manufacturing establishments in the state of West Virginia. It examines the use of 20 hardware-based and organizational new manufacturing technologies, aggregate technology use, and plans for future technology use. Multivariate regression analyses indicate that larger, export-oriented, branch plants that manufacture products in long production runs and plants that are located in counties with a sizeable manufacturing sector adopt more new technologies than other types of plants. The results also suggest that there is a role for further government policy in encouraging plant modernization. Although participation in a state technology assistance program is not yet associated with higher levels of aggregate new technology use, it is found to associated with adoption of specific technologies and receptivity to new technology investment. The study’s results also confirm the value of training and suggest that a strategy of targeting smaller and medium-sized plants with services focused on multiple clustered locations may be effective in stimulating new technology use among these manufacturers.
Taylor Rules and Interest Rate Smoothing in the Euro Area

A document processing arrangement transporting checks or like financial documents at a prescribed nominal speed along a track, terminated by sort-pockets, each with an associated diverter plus a guide assembly for guiding and driving a so-diverted document into its pocket, the guide comprising an inject roll to accelerate the document, plus an arm-assembly coupled to rotate with the roll and including an arm for guiding a so-injected document toward its position in the pocket-stack; this roll and arm assembly being arranged to rotate the arm away from its stack each time a document is entering, and also to be spring-driven to return the arm toward its stack.
BAFF Receptor mAb Treatment Ameliorates Development and Progression of Atherosclerosis in Hyperlipidemic ApoE−/− Mice

Aims Option to attenuate atherosclerosis by depleting B2 cells is currently limited to anti-CD20 antibodies which deplete all B-cell subtypes. In the present study we evaluated the capacity of a monoclonal antibody to B cell activating factor-receptor (BAFFR) to selectively deplete atherogenic B2 cells to prevent both development and progression of atherosclerosis in the ApoE−/− mouse. Methods and Results To determine whether the BAFFR antibody prevents atherosclerosis development, we treated ApoE−/− mice with the antibody while feeding them a high fat diet (HFD) for 8 weeks. Mature CD93− CD19+ B2 cells were reduced by treatment, spleen B-cell zones disrupted and spleen CD20 mRNA expression decreased while B1a cells and non-B cells were spared. Atherosclerosis was ameliorated in the hyperlipidemic mice and CD19+ B cells, CD4+ and CD8+ T cells were reduced in atherosclerotic lesions. Expressions of proinflammatory cytokines, IL1β, TNFα, and IFNγ in the lesions were also reduced, while MCP1, MIF and VCAM-1 expressions were unaffected. Plasma immunoglobulins were reduced, but MDA-oxLDL specific antibodies were unaffected. To determine whether anti-BAFFR antibody ameliorates progression of atherosclerosis, we first fed ApoE−/− mice a HFD for 6 weeks, and then instigated anti-BAFFR antibody treatment for a further 6 week-HFD. CD93− CD19+ B2 cells were selectively decreased and atherosclerotic lesions were reduced by this treatment. Conclusion Anti-BAFFR monoclonal antibody selectively depletes mature B2 cells while sparing B1a cells, disrupts spleen B-cell zones and ameliorates atherosclerosis development and progression in hyperlipidemic ApoE−/− mice. Our findings have potential for clinical translation to manage atherosclerosis-based cardiovascular diseases.
Geomechanics and CO 2 Sequestration

I. Sequestration in Coal beds: The objective of this work is to examine the feasibility of CO2 sequestration in sub-bituminous coals of the Powder River Basin of Wyoming. Previous studies in the area that we carried out were related to identification of optimal wellbore completion methods for minimizing the amount of water produced during coal bed methane (CBM) production [Colmenares and Zoback, 2006]. In the work carried out in this study, we extended the data collection and geomechanical analyses previously conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of CO2 sequestration and enhanced CBM production (ECBM). A comprehensive series of reservoir simulations have been carried out that incorporate geostatistical variance of key hydrologic parameters. The results of these studies are summarized below.
Spatial and Temporal Distribution of Culicoides Species in Mainland Portugal (2005–2010). Results of the Portuguese Entomological Surveillance Programme

Bluetongue virus (BTV) is transmitted by Culicoides biting midges and causes an infectious, non-contagious disease of ruminants. It has been rapidly emerging in southern Europe since 1998. In mainland Portugal, strains of BTV belonging to three serotypes have been detected: BTV-10 (1956-1960), BTV-4 (2004-2006 and 2013) and BTV-1 (2007-2012). This paper describes the design, implementation and results of the Entomological Surveillance Programme covering mainland Portugal, between 2005 and 2010, including 5,650 caches. Culicoides imicola Kieffer was mostly found in central and southern regions of Portugal, although it was sporadically detected in northern latitudes. Its peak activity occurred in the autumn and it was active during the winter months in limited areas of the country. Obsoletus group was present at the highest densities in the north although they were found throughout the country in substantial numbers. Culicoides activity occurred all year round but peaked in the spring. A generalized linear mixed model was developed for the analysis of the environmental factors associated with activity of the species of Culicoides suspected vectors of BTV in the country. For C. imicola Kieffer, the most important variables were month, diurnal temperature range (DTR), the number of frost days (FRS) and median monthly temperature (TMP). For the Obsoletus group, the most important factors were month, diurnal temperature range (DTR), and linear and quadratic terms for median monthly temperature (TMP). The results reported can improve our understanding of climatic factors in Culicoides activity influencing their distribution and seasonal pattern.