Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Differential regulation of putative K(+)-ATPase by low-K+ diet and corticosteroids in rat distal colon and kidney.

K+ homeostasis depends on K+ absorption in digestive and renal epithelia. Recently, a cDNA encoding for a putative K(+)-adenosinetriphosphatase (ATPase) alpha-subunit has been characterized. We studied its expression by ribonuclease protection assay and in situ hybridization in the distal colon and the kidney of rats in various physiological states. In the distal colon of control rats, high expression of the colonic putative K(+)-ATPase mRNA was restricted to the surface epithelial cells. A low-K+ diet did not modify this expression, adrenalectomy decreased it, and aldosterone or dexamethasone treatment for 2 days restored normal levels. In the kidney of control rats, levels of K(+)-ATPase mRNA were very low. A low-K+ diet revealed a clear mRNA expression, which is consistent with a recent report [J.A. Kraut, F. Starr, G. Sachs, and M. Reuben. Am. J. Physiol. 268 (Renal Fluid Electrolyte Physiol. 37): F581-F587, 1995]. This expression was restricted to the outer medullary collecting duct, presumably in principal cells. Changes in corticosteroid status did not influence the renal expression. Our results, together with previous studies on K+ absorption and K(+)-ATPase activity, suggest that more than a single molecular form of K(+)-ATPase is likely to be responsible for the regulation of K+ absorption in the colon and distal nephron.
Plasma F2-isoprostanes and coronary artery calcification: the CARDIA Study.

BACKGROUND Oxidation of lipids in lipoproteins and cells may initiate and enhance the early development of cardiovascular disease. METHOD AND RESULTS We assayed F(2)-isoprostanes, oxidation products of arachidonic acid, by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry in a biracial cohort of 2850 young healthy adult men and women. Coronary artery calcification (CAC), a component of coronary artery atherosclerosis, was detectable in 10% of the cohort and appeared to be in its initial stages (Agatston scores <20 in 47% and <100 in 83% of CAC-positive participants). After adjusting for sex, clinical site, age, and race, the presence of any CAC was 24% more likely among those with high vs low concentrations of F(2)-isoprostanes [odds ratio (OR) = 1.24 per 92.2 pmol/L (32.7 ng/L; 1 SD of F(2)-isoprostanes); 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.09-1.41]. The OR was only slightly attenuated [1.18 per 92.2 pmol/L (32.7 ng/L); CI, 1.02-1.38] after further adjustment for body mass index, smoking, serum lipids, C-reactive protein, antioxidant supplementation use, diabetes, and blood pressure. As a continuous variable, the Agatston score increased by 6.9% per 92.2 pmol/L (32.7 ng/L) of F(2)-isoprostane concentration (P <0.01). Whereas CAC prevalence was lower in women than men, mean (SD), F(2)-isoprostanes were higher in women {190 (108.9) pmol/L [67.4 (38.6) ng/L]} than in men {140.4 (55.6) pmol/L [49.8 (19.7) ng/L]}. Nevertheless, F(2)-isoprostanes were associated with an increased risk of CAC in both sexes. CONCLUSION This association between increased concentrations of circulating F(2)-isoprostanes and CAC in young healthy adults supports the hypothesis that oxidative damage is involved in the early development of atherosclerosis.
Gene Doping and the Responsibility of Bioethicists

In this paper we will argue: (1) that scholars, regardless of their normative stand against or for genetic enhancement indeed have a moral/professional obligation to hold on to a realistic and up-to-date conception of genetic enhancement; (2) that there is an unwarranted hype surrounding the issue of genetic enhancement in general, and gene doping in particular; and (3) that this hype is, at least partly, created due to a simplistic and reductionist conception of genetics often adopted by bioethicists.
Prenatal maternal representations: Mothers at psychosocial risk

Le but de cette etude etait d'explorer les differences dans le contexte des representations mentales prenatales entre un groupe a risque (n=84) et un groupe a faible risque (n=296) de femmes enceintes, inscrites dans des centres de maternite dans le sud-ouest de la Finlande. La methode utilisee consistait en differentielles semantiques de l'IRMAG (abrege en anglais, soit l'Entretien de Reprentation Maternelles Durant la Grossesse, en francais). Le groupe a risque fut defini grâce a des questionnaires de depistage concernant la dependance chimique, la depression, les difficultes dans le milieu social et un soutien social peu eleve. Les evaluations de tous les sujets cibles, i.e. l'enfant, soi-meme, le partenaire, soi-meme en tant que mere, sa propre mere en tant que mere, etaient considerablement plus negatives dans ce groupe a risque. Les profils de representation des groupes differaient: les evaluations des partenaires et de sa propre mere en tant que mere etaient surtout plus invariablement et plus fortement negatives chez les meres a risque.
Naturally Occurring Deletion Mutants of the Pig-Specific, Intestinal Crypt Epithelial Cell Protein CLCA4b without Apparent Phenotype

The human CLCA4 (chloride channel regulator, calcium-activated) modulates the intestinal phenotype of cystic fibrosis (CF) patients via an as yet unknown pathway. With the generation of new porcine CF models, species-specific differences between human modifiers of CF and their porcine orthologs are considered critical for the translation of experimental data. Specifically, the porcine ortholog to the human CF modulator gene CLCA4 has recently been shown to be duplicated into two separate genes, CLCA4a and CLCA4b. Here, we characterize the duplication product, CLCA4b, in terms of its genomic structure, tissue and cellular expression patterns as well as its in vitro electrophysiological properties. The CLCA4b gene is a pig-specific duplication product of the CLCA4 ancestor and its protein is exclusively expressed in small and large intestinal crypt epithelial cells, a niche specifically occupied by no other porcine CLCA family member. Surprisingly, a unique deleterious mutation of the CLCA4b gene is spread among modern and ancient breeds in the pig population, but this mutation did not result in an apparent phenotype in homozygously affected animals. Electrophysiologically, neither the products of the wild type nor of the mutated CLCA4b genes were able to evoke a calcium-activated anion conductance, a consensus feature of other CLCA proteins. The apparently pig-specific duplication of the CLCA4 gene with unique expression of the CLCA4b protein variant in intestinal crypt epithelial cells where the porcine CFTR is also present raises the question of whether it may modulate the porcine CF phenotype. Moreover, the naturally occurring null variant of CLCA4b will be valuable for the understanding of CLCA protein function and their relevance in modulating the CF phenotype.
EEG Power Spectral Measurements Comparing Normal and “Thatcherized” Faces

ABSTRACT In this paper we have made a broadband analysis to detect the electroencephalogram (EEG) frequencies that change selectively during the presentation of normal and “thatcherized” faces. Referential recordings to linked ears were obtained in 21 leads in 48 right-handed healthy male volunteers. Increase of delta power (1.75–3.91 Hz) was observed, related to the detection of distortion in faces at bifrontal and left temporoparietal cortex. The other bands had no contribution, when normal and modified faces were compared. These results support our hypothesis that a change in EEG power spectral may be related to discrimination between normal and thatcherized faces.
Scaling Distributed Machine Learning with System and Algorithm Co-design

For a lot of important machine learning problems, due to the rapid growth of data and the ever increasing model complexity, which often manifests itself in the large number of model parameters, no single machine can solve them fast enough. Therefore, distributed optimization and inference is becoming more and more inevitable for solving large scale machine learning problems in both academia and industry. Obtaining an efficient distributed implementation of an algorithm, however, is far from trivial. Both intensive computational workloads and the volume of data communication demand careful design of distributed computation systems and distributed machine learning algorithms. In this thesis, we focus on the co-design of distributed computing systems and distributed optimization algorithms that are specialized for large machine learning problems. We propose two distributed computing frameworks: a parameter server framework which features efficient data communication, and MXNet, a multi-language library aiming to simplify the development of deep neural network algorithms. In less than two years, we have witnessed the wide adoption of the proposed systems. We believe that as we continue to develop these systems, they will enable more people to take advantage of the power of distributed computing to design efficient machine learning applications to solve large-scale computational problems. Leveraging the two computing platforms, we examine a number of distributed optimization problems in machine learning. We present new methods to accelerate the training process, such as data partitioning with better locality properties, communication friendly optimization methods, and more compact statistical models. We implement the new algorithms on the two systems and test on large scale real data sets. We successfully demonstrate that careful co-design of computing systems and learning algorithms can greatly accelerate large scale distributed machine learning.
Asynchronous decentralised event-triggered control of multi-agent systems

In this paper, the consensus problem of first-order multi-agent systems under linear asynchronous decentralised event-triggered control is investigated. Both undirected and directed topologies are considered. In the analysis, the closed-loop multi-agent systems with the event-triggered control are modelled as switched systems. After proposing the decentralised event-triggered consensus protocols, decentralised state-dependent event conditions are derived, which act as switching signals. The consensus analyses are performed based on graph theory and stability results of switched systems. Under the event-triggered control schemes presented, consensus is reached with enlarged sampling periods and no Zeno behaviour. Simulation examples are given to illustrate the effectiveness of the proposed theoretical results.
Boundary S matrix of an open XXZ spin chain with nondiagonal boundary terms

Using a recently proposed solution for an open antiferromagnetic spin-1/2 XXZ quantum spin chain with N (even) spins and two arbitrary boundary parameters at roots of unity, we compute the boundary scattering amplitudes for one-hole states. We also deduce the relations between the lattice boundary parameters appearing in the spin-chain Hamiltonian and the IR (infrared) parameters that appear in the boundary sine-Gordon S matrix.
The Post-Zionist Discourse and Critique of Israel: A Traditional Zionist Perspective

THE AIM OF THIS PAPER is to identify and survey some significant voices in the current post-Zionist critique of Israel among Jews and Israelis, and assess their development and political impact through the present. Based on a conceptual framework offered by Hedva Ben-Israel, a historian of nationalism at the Hebrew University ofJerusalem, this essay will examine selected critical views of Zionism since the early years of the Jewish Yishuv in British Palestine. However, its main contribution will be in exploring the Holocaust as a source of criticism of Zionism in general and of Labor Zionism in particular. I have further expanded on Ben-Israel's paradigm, and added my own explanations of thinkers and other anti-and post-Zionist personalities, and have especially dealt with the political ramifications of their critique. I conclude that their criticism has contributed to eroding the pragmatic, middle-of-the-road, Labor Zionist legacy, while strengthening the Zionist Right. Various schools of thought will be presented, that illustrate historical continuity and dialectical changes. Each contributed its share to the erosion of Labor Zionism and its pragmatic approach to the Arab-Israeli conflict, based as it was on the partition of Western Palestine between Arabs and Jews, and upon the principle of avoiding a Jewish rule over a large number of Arabs. Furthermore, these earlier critiques have been adapted to an analysis of current events and have resulted in misleading revisions of earlier periods of Israel's history. The interpretations included for this discussion are:
Behavioral and neurochemical changes in rats dosed repeatedly with diisopropylfluorophosphate.

Behavioral effects of organophosphates (OPs) typically decrease with repeated exposure, despite persistence of OP-induced inhibition of acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and downregulation of muscarinic acetylcholine (ACh) receptors. To characterize this tolerance phenomenon, rats were trained to perform an appetitive operant task which allowed daily quantification of working memory (accuracy of delayed matching-to-position), reference memory (accuracy of visual discrimination) and motor function (choice response latencies and inter-response times during delay). Daily s.c. injections of 0.2 mg/kg of diisopropylfluorophosphate (DFP) caused no visible cholinergic signs, did not affect body weight or visual discrimination, but progressively impaired matching accuracy and lengthened response latencies and interresponse times. These effects recovered in seven of eight treated rats after termination of DFP treatment. Resumption of daily DFP at 0.1 mg/kg caused smaller impairments of both matching accuracy and response latency. After 21 injections of 0.2 mg/kg/day of DFP, rats were subsensitive to the hypothermia induced by acute oxotremorine (0.2 mg/kg i.p.), as expected after OP-induced downregulation of muscarinic ACh receptors. Evidence for supersensitivity to scopolamine (0.03 and 0.056 mg/kg i.p.) in DFP-treated rats was mixed, with additive effects predominating on both the cognitive and motor aspects of the task. After 18 days of 0.1 mg/kg of DFP, AChE was inhibited 50 to 75% and muscarinic ACh receptor density was reduced 15 to 20% in hippocampus and frontal cortex. Progressive declines in AChE activity in hippocampus and frontal cortex across 15 daily doses with DFP at 0.1 and 0.2 mg/kg were observed in other rats; quinuclidinyl benzilate binding was significantly reduced in hippocampus after 15 doses at both levels of DFP. These results indicate that animals showing a definitive sign of tolerance to OP administration (subsensitivity to a cholinergic agonist) were also functionally impaired on both the mnemonic and motoric demands of a working memory task. The nature of this impairment suggests further that it results from compensatory changes in the central nervous system, e.g., muscarinic receptor downregulation, considered to produce "tolerance" to OPs in exposed animals.
Trajectory tracking control of a car-trailer system

This paper presents the experimental results of the tracking control of a car-trailer system. The proposed scheme involves three steps: 1) generate a path off-line using a path space iterative algorithm; 2) linearize the kinematic model about a trajectory which is constructed using the path; and 3) apply a time-varying linear quadratic regulator to track the trajectory. Experiments presented include parallel parking a car, docking a tractor-trailer vehicle, and parallel parking a double tractor-trailer vehicle.
Researching Critical Literacy: A Critical Study of Analysis of Classroom Discourse

Studying critical literacies includes examining how research practices influence what is learned about classroom activity and the world. This article highlights the processes and practices used in studying 1 classroom conversation. The data, drawn from an elementary school classroom of a Critical Literacy in Action teacher-researcher group member, features 2 girls exploring issues of hairstyle, race, and cultural identity. Data were analyzed using 3 lenses—grounded theory, existing typologies for content analysis, and critical discourse analysis. Findings highlight how the students drew on and used diverse textual resources, sources of knowledge, and critical practices, as well as how participants situated themselves within larger social discourse. These findings were then collectively analyzed to further understand the nuances of using each analytic tool and the implications for this classroom and critical literacy research at large. Our research design, experiences, and findings invite further exploration of the promises, challenges, and complexities of studying classroom practices from critical perspectives.
Guilt in Games

“A clear conscience is a good pillow. ” Why does this old proverb contain an insight? The emotion of guilt holds a key. Psychologists report that “the prototypical cause of guilt would be the infliction of harm, loss, or distress on a relationship partner” (Roy Baumeister, Arlene M. Stillwell, and Todd F. Heatherton 1994, 245; June Price Tangney 1995). Moreover, guilt is unpleasant and may affect behavior to render the associated pangs counterfactual. Baumeister, Stillwell, and Heatherton state, “If people feel guilt for hurting their partners . and for failing to live up to their expectations, they will alter their behavior (to avoid guilt) in ways that seem likely to maintain and strengthen the relationship. ” Avoided guilt is the down of the sound sleeper’s bolster. How can guilt be modeled? How are human interaction and economic outcomes influenced? We offer a formal approach for providing answers. Start with an extensive game form which associates a monetary outcome with each end node. Say that player i lets player j down if as a result of i’s choice of strategy, j gets a lower monetary payoff than j expected to get before play started. Player i’s guilt may depend on how much he lets j down. Player i’s guilt may also depend on how much j believes i believes he lets j down. We develop techniques to analyze equilibria when players are motivated, in part, by a desire to avoid guilt. The intellectual home for our exercise is what has been called psychological game theory. This framework—originally developed by John Geanakoplos, David Pearce, and Ennio Stacchetti (1989) and recently extended by Battigalli and Dufwenberg (2005) (henceforth B&D)—allows players’ utilities to depend on beliefs (about choices, states of nature,
Social worlds as a framework for event and travel careers

Social world theory provides a framework to examine the event and travel-related careers of special-interest tourists. Social worlds can be examined across four dimensions, namely, actors, events, practices, and formal organizations with potential links to travel behavior. Event-travel careers are hypothesized as consisting of evolving motivations, preferences, and patterns of travel— including event and destination choices. To inform this approach, qualitative analysis was undertaken by passive netnography consisting of a systematic analysis of material posted on blogs by food lovers and people engaged in amateur distance running, mountain biking, and ballroom dancing. Observed differences between social worlds are analyzed with reference to competitive versus noncompetitive emphases, solo versus group activity, skill levels, divisibility of the pursuit into subpursuits, the existence of portfolios of related activities that engage participants, and the degree to which commercialization occurs. The article concludes with a set of propositions for guiding future research and theory development.
Public farms: hygiene and zoonotic agents

SUMMARY In three successive years, we visited petting farms (n=132), care farms (n=91), and farmyard campsites (n=84), respectively, and completed a standard questionnaire with the objective of determining the hygienic status of these farms and describing hygiene measures implemented to reduce the risk of transmission of zoonotic agents from the animals to humans. For at least 85% of the farms, the overall impression of hygiene was recorded as good. However, more attention must be paid to: informing visitors on hygiene and handwashing, provision of handwashing facilities, and a footwear cleaning facility. Examination of samples of freshly voided faeces resulted in the detection of Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli O157 and/or Salmonella spp. and/or Campylobacter spp. at almost two-thirds (64·9%) of the petting farms, and around half of the care farms (56·0%) and farmyard campsites (45·2%). These data reinforce the need for control measures for both public and private farms to reduce human exposure to livestock faeces and thus the risk of transmission of zoonotic diseases. Public awareness of the risk associated with handling animals or faecal material should be increased.
Study orientations in different tutoring environments: university language students' first two years

This study investigates the study orientations of students in a two‐year follow‐up in two Finnish universities that had different tutoring systems. Both universities offered tutoring of first‐year students by senior students, but one also offered tutoring by staff members. The study orientations of students were assessed on the basis of their responses to 77 statements covering four domains: learning approaches, conceptions of learning, regulation processes, and general study orientations. Results showed that students tutored by staff (n = 70) were more self‐regulated and put greater emphasis on practical knowledge and cooperation in learning than did students who did not have staff tutoring (n = 55). Differences between the groups suggest that the staff‐tutoring system was positively related to students' study orientations.
An In-Group Advantage in Detecting Intergroup Anxiety

We examined the possibility of an in-group advantage in detecting intergroup anxiety. Specifically, we videotaped White and Black participants while they engaged in same-race or interrace interactions. Then we asked White and Black observers to view these videotapes (unaware of the racial context) and provide their impressions of participants' anxiety. Two results pointed to an in-group advantage in detecting intergroup anxiety. First, only same-race observers perceived a modulation of participants' anxious behavior as a function of racial context. This held true not only for relatively subjective perceptions of global anxiety, but also for perceptions of single, discrete behaviors tied to anxiety. Second, we found that only same-race observers provided descriptions of anxiety that tracked reliably with participants' cortisol changes during the task. These results suggest that White and Black Americans may have difficulty developing a sense of shared emotional experience.
Role of emerging molecular markers in pancreatic cyst fluid

Cystic lesions of the pancreas (CLPs) are increasingly diagnosed due to the growing utilization of cross-sectional imaging modalities. The differentiation between true cysts (epithelial tumors) and nonepithelial lesions (such as pseudocysts) relies on clinical and imaging characteristics, but more reliably obtained by endoscopic ultrasound (EUS) fine-needle aspiration. Due to their malignant potential, some of the true pancreatic cysts require further assessment and periodic follow-up. Therefore, it is important to establish a solid diagnosis at the time of detection of the various types of pancreatic cysts. Due to the limitations of cytology and biochemical markers in accurately classifying cyst pathology, the search for specific molecular markers associated with each type of cyst is ongoing. In this chapter, we will review some of the emerging molecular markers in pancreatic cystic fluid and their potential impact on endosonography and pancreatic cyst management.