Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Motivations of Government-Sponsored Kurdish Students for Pursuing Postgraduate Studies Abroad

This study examines the motivations of government-sponsored Kurdish students to study abroad and the reasons for choosing a particular country as their destination choice. Based on data we collected through an online survey and follow-up interviews, we compare demographic differences to explore the diversity among this cohort. The findings of the study show that motivations for overseas education are mainly related to career advancement and experiencing a good quality education. The study also shows that social agents have less influence on Kurdish students who tend to be older and more independent than most study abroad students.
A Comprehensive Performance Comparison of OFDM/TDM Using MMSE-FDE and Conventional OFDM

Orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) is currently under intense research for broadband wireless transmission due to its robustness against multipath fading. However, OFDM signals have a problem with high peak-to-average power ratio (PAPR) and thus, a power amplifier must be carefully manufactured to have a linear input-output characteristic or to have a large input power backoff. Recently, OFDM combined with time division multiplexing (OFDM/TDM) using minimum mean square error frequency domain equalization (MMSE-FDE) was proposed to improve the bit error rate (BER) performance of conventional OFDM while reducing the PAPR. In this paper, by extensive computer simulation, we present a comprehensive performance comparison between OFDM/TDM using MMSE-FDE and conventional OFDM over a frequency-selective fading channel. We discuss about the trade-off among the transmit peak-power efficiency, the spectrum splatter and the BER performance. Our results show that OFDM/TDM using MMSE-FDE achieves almost the same coded BER performance with a several decibels better peak-power efficiency than conventional OFDM, which is significant reduction of amplifier transmit-power backoff, but with a slight decrease in spectrum efficiency.
Coexisting Cholinergic and Parahippocampal Degeneration: A Key to Memory Loss in Dementia and a Challenge for Transgenic Models?

One century after Alzheimer’s initial report, a variety of animal models of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) are being used to mimic one or more pathological signs viewed as critical for the evolution of cognitive decline in dementia. Among the most common are, (a) traditional lesion models aimed at reproducing the degeneration of one of two key brain regions affected in AD, namely the cholinergic basal forebrain (CBF) and the transentorhinal region, and (b) transgenic mouse models aimed at reproducing AD histopathological hallmarks, namely amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles. These models have provided valuable insights into the development and consequences of the pathology, but they have not consistently reproduced the severity of memory deficits exhibited in AD. The reasons for this lack of correspondence with the severity of expected deficits may include the limited replication of multiple neuropathology in potentially key brain regions. A recent lesion model in the rat found that severe memory impairment was obtained only when the two traditional lesions were combined together (i.e. conjoint CBF and entorhinal cortex lesions), indicative of a dramatic impact on cognitive function when there is coexisting, rather than isolated, damage in these two brain regions. It is proposed that combining AD transgenic mouse models with additional experimental damage to both the CBF and entorhinal regions might provide a unique opportunity to further understand the evolution of the disease and improve treatments of severe cognitive dysfunction in neurodegenerative dementias.
Taking initiative and constructing identity: international graduate student spouses’ adjustment and social integration in a rural university town

Abstract Nearly one quarter of international graduate students in the USA and Canada are accompanied by their spouse, typically highly educated, professional women. Because they are not students, accompanying spouses’ distinctive needs and experiences are often invisible. This article focuses on an overlooked population of adult learners: accompanying spouses who enrol in English as a Second Language (ESL) courses. Qualitative data are used to explore the social integration and adjustment of 13 accompanying spouses who attended an ESL class in State College, Pennsylvania, a rural university town in the USA. Specifically, we examine how accompanying spouses described their social integration and changes in roles and identities, how perceptions of sacrifice for their partner related to their adjustment experiences, how they gained entrée and navigated social spaces in the host community and what they believe enhanced and hindered their adjustment and social integration. Accompanying spouses portrayed themselves as initiators who created meaningful experiences by locating and taking advantage of opportunities and resources, including language and culture classes, to forge new identities and structure their lives. The findings can inform the design, development and dissemination of adult education and support services for accompanying spouses, especially in geographically isolated areas.
Theoretical and Practical Boundaries of Binary Secure Sketches

Fuzzy commitment schemes, introduced as a link between biometrics and cryptography, are a way to handle biometric data matching as an error-correction issue. We focus here on finding the best error-correcting code with respect to a given database of biometric data. We propose a method that models discrepancies between biometric measurements as an erasure and error channel, and we estimate its capacity. We then show that two-dimensional iterative min-sum decoding of properly chosen product codes almost reaches the capacity of this channel. This leads to practical fuzzy commitment schemes that are close to theoretical limits. We test our techniques on public iris and fingerprint databases and validate our findings.
Addressing Reported Pro-Apoptotic Functions of NF-κB: Targeted Inhibition of Canonical NF-κB Enhances the Apoptotic Effects of Doxorubicin

The ability of the transcription factor NF-κB to upregulate anti-apoptotic proteins has been linked to the chemoresistance of solid tumors to standard chemotherapy. In contrast, recent studies have proposed that, in response to doxorubicin, NF-κB can be pro-apoptotic through repression of anti-apoptotic target genes. However, there is little evidence analyzing the outcome of NF-κB inhibition on the cytotoxicity of doxorubicin in studies describing pro-apoptotic NF-κB activity. In this study, we further characterize the activation of NF-κB in response to doxorubicin and evaluate its role in chemotherapy-induced cell death in sarcoma cells where NF-κB is reported to be pro-apoptotic. Doxorubicin treatment in U2OS cells induced canonical NF-κB activity as evidenced by increased nuclear accumulation of phosphorylated p65 at serine 536 and increased DNA–binding activity. Co-treatment with a small molecule IKKβ inhibitor, Compound A, abrogated this response. RT–PCR evaluation of anti-apoptotic gene expression revealed that doxorubicin-induced transcription of cIAP2 was inhibited by Compound A, while doxorubicin-induced repression of other anti-apoptotic genes was unaffected by Compound A or siRNA to p65. Furthermore, the combination of doxorubicin and canonical NF-κB inhibition with Compound A or siRNA to p65 resulted in decreased cell viability measured by trypan blue staining and MTS assay and increased apoptosis measured by cleaved poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase and cleaved caspase 3 when compared to doxorubicin alone. Our results demonstrate that doxorubicin-induced canonical NF-κB activity associated with phosphorylated p65 is anti-apoptotic in its function and that doxorubicin-induced repression of anti-apoptotic genes occurs independent of p65. Therefore, combination therapies incorporating NF-κB inhibitors together with standard chemotherapies remains a viable method to improve the clinical outcomes in patients with advanced stage malignancies.
Ketamine-induced Neuroapoptosis in the Fetal and Neonatal Rhesus Macaque Brain

Background: Exposure of rhesus macaque fetuses for 24 h or neonates for 9 h to ketamine anesthesia causes neuroapoptosis in the developing brain. The current study clarifies the minimum exposure required for and the extent and spatial distribution of ketamine-induced neuroapoptosis in rhesus fetuses and neonates. Method: Ketamine was administered by IV infusion for 5 h to postnatal day 6 rhesus neonates or to pregnant rhesus females at 120 days' gestation (full term = 165 days). Three hours later, fetuses were delivered by cesarean section, and the fetal and neonatal brains were studied for evidence of apoptotic neurodegeneration, as determined by activated caspase-3 staining. Results: Both the fetal (n = 3) and neonatal (n = 4) ketamine-exposed brains had a significant increase in apoptotic profiles compared with drug-naive controls (fetal n = 4; neonatal n = 5). Loss of neurons attributable to ketamine exposure was 2.2 times greater in fetuses than in neonates. The pattern of neurodegeneration in fetuses was different from that in neonates, and all subjects exposed at either age had a pattern characteristic for that age. Conclusion: The developing rhesus macaque brain is sensitive to the apoptogenic action of ketamine at both a fetal and neonatal age, and exposure duration of 5 h is sufficient to induce a significant neuroapoptosis response at either age. The pattern of neurodegeneration induced by ketamine in fetuses was different from that in neonates, and loss of neurons attributable to ketamine exposure was 2.2 times greater in the fetal than neonatal brains.
The Relevance of Interoception in Chronic Tinnitus: Analyzing Interoceptive Sensibility and Accuracy

In order to better understand tinnitus and distress associated with tinnitus, psychological variables such as emotional and cognitive processing are a central element in theoretical models of this debilitating condition. Interoception, that is, the perception of internal processes, may be such a psychological factor relevant to tinnitus. Against this background, 20 participants suffering from chronic tinnitus and 20 matched healthy controls were tested with questionnaires, assessing interoceptive sensibility, and participated in two tasks, assessing interoceptive accuracy: the Schandry task, a heartbeat estimation assignment, and a skin conductance fluctuations perception task assessing the participants' ability to perceive phasic increases in sympathetic activation were used. To test stress reactivity, a construct tightly connected to tinnitus onset, we also included a stress induction. No differences between the groups were found for interoceptive accuracy and sensibility. However, the tinnitus group tended to overestimate the occurrence of phasic activation. Loudness of the tinnitus was associated with reduced interoceptive performance under stress. Our results indicate that interoceptive sensibility and accuracy do not play a significant role in tinnitus. However, tinnitus might be associated with a tendency to overestimate physical changes.
Observation of a cross-section enhancement near mass threshold in e(+)e(-) -> Lambda(Lambda)over-bar

The process e(+)e(-) -> Lambda(Lambda) over bar is studied using data samples at root s = 2.2324, 2.400, 2.800 and 3.080 GeV collected with the BESIII detector operating at the BEPCII collider. The Born cross section is measured at root s = 2.2324 GeV, which is 1.0 MeVabove the Lambda(Lambda) over bar mass threshold, to be 305 +/- 45(-36)(+66) pb, where the first uncertainty is statistical and the second systematic. The cross section near threshold is larger than that expected from theory, which predicts the cross section to vanish at threshold. The Born cross sections at root s = 2.400, 2.800 and 3.080 GeV are measured and found to be consistent with previous experimental results, but with improved precision. Finally, the corresponding effective electromagnetic form factors of Lambda are deduced.
Single channel currents activated by gamma-aminobutyric acid, muscimol, and (-)-pentobarbital in cultured mouse spinal neurons

The patch electrode technique was used to record single channel current pulses in tissue-cultured mouse spinal cord neurons. In agreement with earlier noise studies, channels activated by gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), muscimol, and (-)-pentobarbital were found to have equal unit conductances. The kinetics of channel closing were studied by analyzing the distributions of open state lifetimes. Channels activated by (-)- pentobarbital and muscimol had longer mean open times than channels activated by GABA. As a result, the kinetics of (-)-pentobarbital- and muscimol-activated channels could be studied in greater detail. Most observed open state lifetime distributions were not exponential but contained an excess of short duration events. A sum of two exponential functions gave a much better fit than a single exponential function to most observed open state lifetime distributions. A critical comparison of noise analysis with single channel recording shows that the fast process responsible for the rapid closures would be very difficult to detect in a noise experiment. The channel noise is dominated by the slower process, and as a result, the relaxation time of the slower kinetic component derived from single channel studies is close to the mean open state lifetime derived from noise measurements. The observation of a faster process points toward either an additional population of channels or a scheme for the channel closing transition which is not a simple first order process.
Heterogeneous staining: a tool for studies of how fluorescent dyes affect the physical properties of DNA

The commonly used fluorescent dye YOYO-1 (YOYO) has, using bulk techniques, been demonstrated to stain DNA heterogeneously at substoichiometric concentrations. We here, using nanofluidic channels and fluorescence microscopy, investigate the heterogeneous staining on the single DNA molecule level and demonstrate that the dye distribution is continuous. The equilibration of YOYO on DNA is extremely slow but can be accelerated by increasing the ionic strength and/or the temperature. Furthermore, we demonstrate how to use the heterogeneous staining as a tool for detailed and time-efficient studies of how fluorescent dyes affect the physical properties of DNA. We show that the relative increase in extension of DNA with increasing amount of YOYO bound is higher at low ionic strengths and also extrapolate the extension of native DNA. Our study reveals important information on how YOYO affects the physical properties of DNA, but it also has broader applications. First, it reveals how cationic intercalators, such as potential DNA drugs, affect DNA under strong confinement. Second, the strategy of using heterogeneous staining is of general use for single molecule studies of DNA interacting with proteins or ligands.
Do we need demographic data to forecast plant population dynamics?

Rapid environmental change has generated growing interest in forecasts of future popu lation trajectories. Traditional population models built with detailed demographic obser vations from one study site can address the impacts of environmental change at particular locations, but are difficult to scale up to the landscape and regional scales relevant to man agement decisions. An alternative is to build models using population-level data that are much easier to collect over broad spatial scales than individual-level data. However, it is unknown whether models built using population-level data adequately capture the effects of density-dependence and environmental forcing that are necessary to generate skillful forecasts. Here, we test the consequences of aggregating individual 29 responses when forecasting the population states (percent cover) and trajectories of four perennial grass species in a semi-arid grassland in Montana, USA. We parameterized two population models for each species, one based on individual-level data (survival, growth and recruitment) and one on population-level data (percent cover), and compared their forecasting accuracy and fore cast horizons with and without the inclusion of climate covariates. For both models, we used Bayesian ridge regression to weight the influence of climate covariates for optimal prediction. In the absence of climate effects, we found no significant difference between the forecast accuracy of models based on individual-level data and models based on population-level data. Climate effects were weak, but increased forecast accuracy for two species. Increases in accuracy with climate covariates were similar between model types. In our case study, percent cover models generated forecasts as accurate as those from a demographic model. For the goal of forecasting, models based on aggregated individual level data may offer a practical alternative to data-intensive demographic models. Long time series of percent cover data already exist for many plant species. Modelers should exploit these data to predict the impacts of environmental change.
Joint Optimization of Transmit Power-Time and Bit Energy Efficiency in CDMA Wireless Sensor Networks

In this paper, we address the problem of minimizing energy consumption in a CDMA-based wireless sensor network (WSN). A comprehensive energy consumption model is proposed, which accounts for both the transmit and circuit energies. Energy consumption is minimized by jointly optimizing the transmit power and transmission time for each active node in the network. The problem is formulated as a non-convex optimization. Numerical as well as closed-form approximate solutions are provided. For the numerical solution, we show that the formulation can be transformed into a convex geometric programming (GP), for which fast algorithms, such as interior point method, can be applied. For the closed-form solution, we prove that the joint power/time optimization can be decoupled into two sequential sub-problems: optimization of transmit power with transmission time serving as a parameter, and then optimization of the transmission time. We show that the first sub-problem is a linear program while the second one can be well approximated as a convex programming problem. Taking advantage of these analytical results, we further derive the per-bit energy efficiency. Our results are verified through numerical examples and simulations
Potential role of the formyl peptide receptor‐like 1 (FPRL1) in inflammatory aspects of Alzheimer’s disease

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a progressive, neurodegenerative disease characterized by the presence of multiple senile plaques in the brain tissue, which are also associated with considerable inflammatory infiltrates. Although the precise mechanisms of the pathogenesis of AD remain to be determined, the overproduction and precipitation of a 42 amino acid form of β amyloid (Aβ42) in plaques have implicated Aβ in neurodegeneration and proinflammatory responses seen in the AD brain. Our recent studies revealed that the activation of formyl peptide receptor‐like 1 (FPRL1), a seven‐transmembrane, G‐protein‐coupled receptor, by Aβ42 may be responsible for accumulation and activation of mononuclear phagocytes (monocytes and microglia). We further found that upon binding FPRL1, Aβ42 was rapidly internalized into the cytoplasmic compartment in the form of Aβ42/FPRL1 complexes. Persistent exposure of FPRL1‐expressing cells to Aβ42 resulted in intracellular retention of Aβ42/FPRL1 complexes and the formation of Congo‐red‐positive fibrils in mononuclear phagocytes. Our observations suggest that FPRL1 may not only mediate the proinflammatory activity of Aβ42 but also actively participate in Aβ42 uptake and the resultant fibrillar formation. Therefore, FPRL1 may constitute an additional molecular target for the development of therapeutic agents for AD.
Complexity Analysis of Some Known Graph Coloring Instances

— Graph coloring is an important problem in computer science and many algorithms are known for obtaining reasonably good solutions in polynomial time. One method of comparing different algorithms is to test them on a set of standard graphs where the optimal solution is already known. This investigation analyzes a set of 50 well known graph coloring instances according to a set of complexity measures. These instances come from a variety of sources some representing actual applications of graph coloring (register allocation) and others (mycieleski and leighton graphs) that are theoretically designed to be difficult to solve. The size of the graphs ranged from ranged from a low of 11 variables to a high of 864 variables. The method used to solve the coloring problem was the square of the adjacency (i.e., correlation) matrix. The results show that the most difficult graphs to solve were the leighton and the queen graphs. Complexity measures such as density, mobility, deviation from uniform color class size and number of block diagonal zeros are calculated for each graph. The results showed that the most difficult problems have low mobility (in the range of .2-.5) and relatively little deviation from uniform color class size.
Assessing whether the 2017 Mw 5.4 Pohang earthquake in South Korea was an induced event

Triggering quakes in a geothermal space Enhanced geothermal systems (EGSs) provide a potentially clean and abundant energy source. However, two magnitude-5 earthquakes recently occurred in South Korea during EGS site development. Grigoli et al. and Kim et al. present seismic and geophysical evidence that may implicate the second of these earthquakes, which occurred in Pohang, as an induced event. The combination of data from a local seismometer network, well logs, satellite observations, teleseismic waveform analysis, and stress modeling leads to the assessment that the earthquake was probably or almost certainly anthropogenically induced. The possibility remains that the earthquake occurred coincidentally at the EGS site location, but the aftershock distribution and other lines of evidence are concerning for future development of this geothermal resource. Science, this issue p. 1003, p. 1007 Last year’s Pohang, South Korea, earthquake was potentially an induced earthquake from an enhanced geothermal system. The moment magnitude (Mw) 5.4 Pohang earthquake, the most damaging event in South Korea since instrumental seismic observation began in 1905, occurred beneath the Pohang geothermal power plant in 2017. Geological and geophysical data suggest that the Pohang earthquake was induced by fluid from an enhanced geothermal system (EGS) site, which was injected directly into a near-critically stressed subsurface fault zone. The magnitude of the mainshock makes it the largest known induced earthquake at an EGS site.
Text Generation in a Dynamic Hypertext Environment

This paper describes PEBA-II, a working natural language generation system which interactively describes animals in a taxonomic knowledge base via the production of World Wide Web pages. Our aim is to construct a natural language document generation system with real practical applicability: to this end, the system reconstructs and combines a number of existing ideas in the literature in a novel way, and proposes a solution to the problem of breadth of coverage that is based on a pragmatic approach to knowledge representation and linguistic realisation. The system embodies the following features: • a reconstruction of some of the core ideas in schema–based text generation [McKeown 1985], applied to the generation of hypertext documents; • the principled use of a phrasal lexicon to ease surface generation, in concert with a knowledge base whose elements may correspond to pre–compiled collections of atomic units; • a user model and discourse model that permit interesting variations in the texts produced. We describe each of the above aspects of the existing system in some detail, and point to a number of interesting research directions it opens up.