Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Initial results from Phase 2 of the international urban energy balance model comparison

Urban land surface schemes have been developed to model the distinct features of the urban surface and the associated energy exchange processes. These models have been developed for a range of purposes and make different assumptions related to the inclusion and representation of the relevant processes. Here, the first results of Phase 2 from an international comparison project to evaluate 32 urban land surface schemes are presented. This is the first large‐scale systematic evaluation of these models. In four stages, participants were given increasingly detailed information about an urban site for which urban fluxes were directly observed. At each stage, each group returned their models' calculated surface energy balance fluxes. Wide variations are evident in the performance of the models for individual fluxes. No individual model performs best for all fluxes. Providing additional information about the surface generally results in better performance. However, there is clear evidence that poor choice of parameter values can cause a large drop in performance for models that otherwise perform well. As many models do not perform well across all fluxes, there is need for caution in their application, and users should be aware of the implications for applications and decision making. Copyright © 2010 Royal Meteorological Society
Engineering of osteoinductive grafts by isolation and expansion of ovine bone marrow stromal cells directly on 3D ceramic scaffolds

In this work, we investigated whether osteoinductive constructs can be generated by isolation and expansion of sheep bone marrow stromal cells (BMSC) directly within three‐dimensional (3D) ceramic scaffolds, bypassing the typical phase of monolayer (2D) expansion prior to scaffold loading. Nucleated cells from sheep bone marrow aspirate were seeded into 3D ceramic scaffolds either by static loading or under perfusion flow and maintained in culture for up to 14 days. The resulting constructs were exposed to enzymatic treatment to assess the number and lineage of extracted cells, or implanted subcutaneously in nude mice to test their capacity to induce bone formation. As a control, BMSC expanded in monolayer for 14 days were also seeded into the scaffolds and implanted. BMSC could be isolated and expanded directly in the 3D ceramic scaffolds, although they proliferated slower than in 2D. Upon ectopic implantation, the resulting constructs formed a higher amount of bone tissue than constructs loaded with the same number of 2D‐expanded cells. Constructs cultivated for 14 days generated significantly more bone tissue than those cultured for 3 days. No differences in bone formation were found between samples seeded by static loading or under perfusion. In conclusion, the culture of bone marrow nucleated cells directly on 3D ceramic scaffolds represents a promising approach to expand BMSC and streamline the engineering of osteoinductive grafts. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, inc.
Efficient Computation of PageRank

Efficient Computation of PageRank Taher H. Haveliwala (taherh@db.stanford.edu) Abstract: This paper discusses efficient techniques for computing PageRank, a ranking metric for hypertext documents. We show that PageRank can be computed for very large subgraphs of the web (up to hundreds of millions of nodes) on machines with limited main memory. Running-time measurements on various memory configurations are presented for PageRank computation over the 24-million-page Stanford WebBase archive. We discuss several methods for analyzing the convergence of PageRank based on the induced ordering of the pages. We present convergence results helpful for determining the number of iterations necessary to achieve a useful PageRank assignment, both in the absence and presence of search queries.
Respiratory diseases and pesticide exposure: a case-control study in Lebanon

Study objective: To evaluate the odds of being exposed to pesticides in asthmatic adults. Design: A case-control study was performed in Lebanon. Setting: People were approached when consulting physicians as outpatients. Patients: Asthmatic patients and non-asthmatic controls in several Lebanese hospitals were interviewed. Main results: The study included 407 subjects from 10 medical centres. Any exposure to pesticides was associated to asthma (OR = 2.11 (1.47 to 3.02); p<10−4). Occupational use presented the highest association (OR = 4.98 (1.07 to 23.28); p = 0.02), followed by regional exposure (OR 3.51 (2.11 to 5.85); p<10−4). Results were confirmed by multivariate analysis, particularly for regional exposure (ORa = 2.78; p = 0.02) and house exposure (ORa = 2.17; p = 0.001). Conclusions: Results are comparable to those found in other studies; especially for occupational exposure. Pesticides toxicological effects may explain chronic respiratory symptoms and asthma associations found with all exposure types. Pesticide exposure was associated with asthma in Lebanese adults.
In Vivo Detection of Succinate by Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy as a Hallmark of SDHx Mutations in Paraganglioma

Purpose: Germline mutations in genes encoding mitochondrial succinate dehydrogenase (SDH) are found in patients with paragangliomas, pheochromocytomas, gastrointestinal stromal tumors, and renal cancers. SDH inactivation leads to a massive accumulation of succinate, acting as an oncometabolite and which levels, assessed on surgically resected tissue are a highly specific biomarker of SDHx-mutated tumors. The aim of this study was to address the feasibility of detecting succinate in vivo by magnetic resonance spectroscopy. Experimental Design: A pulsed proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (1H-MRS) sequence was developed, optimized, and applied to image nude mice grafted with Sdhb−/− or wild-type chromaffin cells. The method was then applied to patients with paraganglioma carrying (n = 5) or not (n = 4) an SDHx gene mutation. Following surgery, succinate was measured using gas chromatography/mass spectrometry, and SDH protein expression was assessed by immunohistochemistry in resected tumors. Results: A succinate peak was observed at 2.44 ppm by 1H-MRS in all Sdhb−/−-derived tumors in mice and in all paragangliomas of patients carrying an SDHx gene mutation, but neither in wild-type mouse tumors nor in patients exempt of SDHx mutation. In one patient, 1H-MRS results led to the identification of an unsuspected SDHA gene mutation. In another case, it helped define the pathogenicity of a variant of unknown significance in the SDHB gene. Conclusions: Detection of succinate by 1H-MRS is a highly specific and sensitive hallmark of SDHx mutations. This noninvasive approach is a simple and robust method allowing in vivo detection of the major biomarker of SDHx-mutated tumors. Clin Cancer Res; 22(5); 1120–9. ©2015 AACR.
High-School Students’ Dominant Learning Styles Preferences in Learning English: How are “Good Language Learners” Different from the Ordinary Ones?

Many researchers have investigated different aspects of learning styles. Nevertheless, few studies have considered interactions between the notions of learning styles and “good language learners’” achievement. The present study aimed at exploring dominant learning style preferences by senior high-school students and comparing their preferences with those by “good language learners”. To this goal, the Index of Learning Style (ILS) was administered. A sample consisting of 1307 senior high-school Iranian students (711 males and 596 females was randomly picked up from among a population of 3310 students, who could potentially participate in the study. In terms of the participants’ achievement scores, 343 top students were arbitrarily categorized as “good language learners” and the remaining 964 as “the average language learners”. The results of the (ILS) showed that most of the participants preferred ‘reflective’, ‘sensing’, ‘visual’, and ‘sequential’ learning styles. A two-way ANOVA test revealed that the difference between the participants’ mean scores was due to both their genders and Visual/Verbal and Sequential/Global preferences. Findings about the relationship between learning styles and the participants’ achievement scores indicated that except for the ‘understanding’ dimension, there was no significant relationship between the other three dimensions and the participants’ achievement scores. Moreover, the Chi-square statistic indicated a significant difference between the learning style preferences by senior high-school “good language learners” and those preferred by the average ones.
Patterns and Correlates of Prosocial Behaviour Development

III Resume V Statement of Original Contributions VIII Contributions of Authors X Acknowledgments XII General Introduction 14 Study 1 Prosocial Development from Childhood to Adolescence: A Multi-Informant Perspective with Canadian and Italian Longitudinal Studies 29 Abstract 30 Introduction 31 STUDY 1 34 Methodology 34 Results 36 STUDY 2 37 Methodology 37 Results 38 Discussion 40 Acknowledgements 43 References 44 30 Introduction 31 STUDY 1 34 Methodology 34 Results 36 STUDY 2 37 Methodology 37 Results 38 Discussion 40 Acknowledgements 43 References 44 Connecting Text – Study 1 to Study 2 53 Study 2 Developmental Association of Prosocial Behaviours with Aggression, Anxiety and Depression from Infancy to Pre-Adolescence 54 Abstract 55 Introduction 56 Methodology 60 Results 64 Discussion 67 Acknowledgements 72 References 73 55 Introduction 56 Methodology 60 Results 64 Discussion 67 Acknowledgements 72 References 73 Connecting Text – Study 2 to Study 3 86
Lack of Correlation between embB Mutation and Ethambutol MIC in Mycobacterium tuberculosis Clinical Isolates from China

ABSTRACT Seventy-four Mycobacterium tuberculosis clinical isolates from China were subjected to drug susceptibility testing using ethambutol, isoniazid, rifampin, and ofloxacin. The results revealed that the presence of embB mutations did not correlate with ethambutol resistance but was associated with multiple-drug resistance, especially resistance to both ethambutol and rifampin.
Operational and Financial Hedging : Friend or Foe ?

This paper analyzes three operational hedges that are at the disposal of an airline to determine if operational and financial hedges are complements or substitutes. The operational hedges studied are: fleet composition, fleet fuel efficiency, and whether the fleet is leased. We find that with respect to fleet composition airlines are more likely to use financial derivatives. However, we do not find a statistically significant relation between fleet fuel efficiency or leased fleet and financial hedging. Consistent with prior research, we find the use of financial derivatives increases firm value. However, surprisingly, the use of operational hedges actually decreases the value of the firm.
Circularity-Based I/Q Imbalance Compensation in Wideband Direct-Conversion Receivers

Communication receivers that utilize I/Q downconversion are troubled by amplitude and phase mismatches between the analog I and Q branches. These mismatches are unavoidable in practice and reduce the obtainable image frequency attenuation to the 20-40-dB range in practical receivers. In wideband multichannel receivers, where the overall bandwidths are in the range of several megahertz and the incoming carriers located at each other's mirror frequencies have a high dynamic range, the image attenuation of the analog front-end (FE) alone is clearly insufficient. In this paper, two novel blind low-complexity I/Q imbalance compensation techniques are proposed and analyzed to digitally enhance the analog FE image attenuation in wideband direct-conversion receivers. The proposed algorithms are grounded on the concept of circular or proper complex random signals, and they are, by design, able to handle the often overlooked yet increasingly important case of frequency-dependent I/Q mismatches. The first technique is an iterative one, stemming from adaptive filtering principles, whereas the second one is a moment-estimation-based block method. The performance of the algorithms is evaluated through computer simulations, as well as real-world laboratory signal measurement examples in practical multicarrier receiver cases. Based on the obtained results, the proposed compensation techniques can provide very good compensation performance with low computational resources and are robust in the face of different imbalance levels and dynamics of the received signals, as well as many other crucial practical aspects such as the effects of the communications channel and carrier synchronization.
ECONOMICALLY DISADVANTAGED STUDENTS: A CASE STUDY OF RESILIENT QUALITIES THAT ENCOURAGE ACADEMIC SUCCESS

Stephanie Hawkins. ECONOMICALLY DISADVANTAGED STUDENTS: A CASE STUDY OF RESILIENT QUALITIES THAT ENCOURAGE ACADEMIC SUCCESS. (Under the direction of Dr. Judy Shoemaker) School of Education, September 2010. This case study examined academically successful economically disadvantaged (ED) students from one intact Caucasian family through parents‟, students‟, and teachers‟ perceptions of the reasons for resilience. The problem is that little research exists exploring qualities of academically successful ED Caucasian students. Because being a high school dropout significantly affects students, families, schools, and society, risk factors were explored; protective factors that help students overcome risk factors were also investigated. This study describes why academically successful ED students from one intact Caucasian family in Tennessee thrive despite risk factors working against them. Findings include the importance of Christian faith to the family in the case study and its positive effect on academic achievement. Suggestions for further research are also included.
Epidemiology of Helicobacter pylori Infection

Differences may occur in the mode of transmission of Helicobacter pylori between developed and developing countries: direct human‐to‐human contacts have been suggested as the primary route in the former while the fecal–oral route, also, through contaminated water, in the latter. Data on intrafamilial transmission of H. pylori among children continue to be produced. The importance of low socioeconomic conditions on the acquisition of H. pylori infection has been confirmed in a number of population‐based studies. Due to the improvement of living standards, the prevalence of the infection has fallen dramatically in many countries. It varies from 8.9 to 72.8% among children from developed and developing countries, respectively, the re‐infection rate being also significantly higher in the latter. Conflicting data have been reported on the effect of breastfeeding against H. pylori colonization in infancy as well as on the occupational risk for acquiring H. pylori. This review summarizes recent results from the literature on these topics.
Apoptosis in gastric epithelium induced by helicobacter pylori infection: implications in gastric carcinogenesis

OBJECTIVES: Helicobacter pylori is an identified carcinogen for gastric cancer, however, the underlying mechanisms remain to be defined. In this review, we sought to elucidate the role of apoptosis in gastric carcinogenesis, to determine the influence of H. pylori infection on apoptosis, and finally to provide insights into the mechanisms by which H. pylori may lead to gastric carcinogenesis.METHODS:A broad-based MEDLINE and Current Contents literature search was performed to identify relevant publications between 1966 and March 2000 addressing H. pylori infection, apoptosis, cell proliferation, gastric carcinoma, oncogenes, and tumor suppressor genes, as well as the products of these genes. Abstracts from recent major conferences that provided adequate additional data were also included.RESULTS:Apoptotic cells are rare in the glandular neck region (the generative cell zone) of normal gastric mucosa. With progression of atrophic gastritis, the generative cell zone shifts downward and a relatively large number of apoptotic cells occur. In intestinalized glands, both apoptotic cells and proliferative cells are present in deeper portions of the glands, corresponding to the generative zone. A higher frequency of apoptosis has been observed in gastric dysplasia than in coexisting gastric carcinomas, whereas the number of proliferative cells is significantly higher in gastric carcinoma than in dysplasia. Upregulation of oncogene bcl-2 in premalignant lesions and “downregulation” of the gene after malignant change is probably a common event. Accumulation of p53 protein is first detected in dysplasia, although mutation of the p53 gene may occur in intestinal metaplasia. H. pylori infection induces apoptosis in gastric epithelial cells, which returns to normal after eradication of the infection. Numerous molecules produced by H. pylori including cytotoxin (VacA), lipopolysaccharide, monochloramine, and nitric oxide may directly induce apoptosis. Moreover, H. pylori–stimulated host inflammatory/immune responses lead to release of a large amount of cytokines. Cytokines produced by type 1 T helper cells, such as TNF-α and IFN-γ, markedly potentiate apoptosis. Gastric cell proliferation is significantly higher in patients with H. pylori infection than in normal controls, and eradication of the infection leads to a reduction in cell proliferation. Apoptosis and cell proliferation are also increased in precancerous lesions such as gastric atrophy, intestinal metaplasia, and dysplasia in the presence of H. pylori infection. However, H. pylori–induced apoptosis may no longer be cell cycle–dependent in these lesions because of the occurrence of alterations and mutations of apoptosis-regulating genes, resulting in a loss of balance between apoptosis and cell proliferation.CONCLUSIONS:It is hypothesized that H. pylori–induced apoptosis may play a key role in gastric carcinogenesis by increasing cell proliferation and/or resulting in gastric atrophy.
Effective discriminant function for intrusion detection using SVM

Pinpointing the intrusion from the available huge intrusion data is demanding. Intrusion detection is treated as a data analysis problem. The process of finding accurate intrusion is typical in real world scenarios. For improving accurate identification of intrusions data mining approaches are adopted and proved automatic analysis with improved performance. These techniques enhancing the detection rate of the intrusions which is very effective. Discriminant function is very critical in separating the normal and anomaly behavior accurately. The support vector machine based classification algorithm is used to classify the intrusions accurately by using the discriminant function. The effective discriminant function will be accurately identifies the data into intrusion and anomaly. The evaluation of the discriminant is important in the evaluation of the intrusion detection system. Performance of intrusion detection system depends on the choice of the discriminant function.
The Future of Public Administration

This article addresses the future of public administration as a self-conscious enterprise as well as a field of practice. It discusses four major challenges facing public administration: predatory globalization, institutional failure, poverty of the field, and success of the field, with technology as a fifth challenge, which is not discussed due to space limitation. The article also argues that, ironically, it is these same challenges that can also serve as forces shaping the future of public administration as a theory and practice. A conclusion outlines models suggested by other scholars, and offers new perspectives in favor of the argument advanced here.
The Effects of Frontal- and Sagittal-Plane Plyometrics on Change-of-Direction Speed and Power in Adolescent Female Basketball Players.

UNLABELLED Plyometrics is a popular training modality for basketball players to improve power and change-of-direction speed. Most plyometric training has used sagittal-plane exercises, but improvements in change-of-direction speed have been greater in multi-direction programs. PURPOSE To determine the benefits of a 6-wk frontal-plane plyometric (FPP) training program compared with a 6-wk sagittal-plane plyometric (SPP) training program with regard to power and change-of-direction speed. METHODS Fourteen female varsity high school basketball players participated in the study. Multiple 2 × 2 repeated-measures ANOVAs were used to determine differences for the FPP and SPP groups from preintervention to postintervention on 4 tests of power and 2 tests of change-of-direction speed. RESULTS There was a group main effect for time in all 6 tests. There was a significant group × time interaction effect in 3 of the 6 tests. The SPP improved performance of the countermovement vertical jump more than the FPP, whereas the FPP improved performance of the lateral hop (left) and lateral-shuffle test (left) more than the SPP. The standing long jump, lateral hop (right), and lateral-shuffle test (right) did not show a significant interaction effect. CONCLUSIONS These results suggest that basketball players should incorporate plyometric training in all planes to improve power and change-of-direction speed.
Origins of Political Extremism: Index

Political extremism is one of the most pernicious, destructive, and nihilistic forms of human expression. During the twentieth century, in excess of 100 million people had their lives taken from them as the result of extremist violence. In this wide-ranging book Manus I. Midlarsky suggests that ephemeral gains, together with mortality salience, form basic explanations for the origins of political extremism and constitute a theoretical framework that also explains later mass violence. Midlarsky applies his framework to multiple forms of political extremism, including the rise of Italian, Hungarian and Romanian fascism, Nazism, radical Islamism, and Soviet, Chinese, and Cambodian communism. Other applications include a rampaging military (Japan, Pakistan, Indonesia) and extreme nationalism in Serbia, Croatia, the Ottoman Empire, and Rwanda. Polish antiSemitism after World War II and the rise of separatist violence in Sri Lanka are also examined.
A Rule Based Persons Names Arabic Extraction System

Named Entity Extraction is a very new in Arabic Natural Language processing although it has reached maturity for some other languages such as English and French. In this paper, we describe the development and implementation of a person name named entity recognition system for the Arabic Language. We adopt a rule based approach make used of the output produced by the Buckwalter Arabic Morphological Analyser (BAMA), and we used a set of keywords to guide us to the phrases that probably include person names. We have also compared our system with (PERA) Person Name Entity Recognition for Arabic [9] which is based on a lexicon, in the form of gazetteer name lists, and a grammar, in the form of regular expressions. Our system achieves an F-measure of 89% which is an improvement on the results reported by (PERA).
Association Between Lipid Levels and Major Adverse Cardiovascular Events in Rheumatoid Arthritis Compared to Non–Rheumatoid Arthritis Patients

Lower levels of low‐density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol may be associated with increased cardiovascular (CV) risk in rheumatoid arthritis (RA). This study was undertaken to determine whether the complex relationship between levels of LDL and high‐density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol and CV risk is different in RA patients as compared to non‐RA controls.