Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Weckud Wetch of the Wast: Lexical Adaptation to a Novel Accent

Two experiments investigated the mechanism by which listeners adjust their interpretation of accented speech that is similar to a regional dialect of American English. Only a subset of the vowels of English (the front vowels) were shifted during adaptation, which consisted of listening to a 20-min segment of the "Wizard of Oz. " Compared to a baseline (unadapted) condition, listeners showed significant adaptation to the accented speech, as indexed by increased word judgments on a lexical decision task. Adaptation also generalized to test words that had not been presented in the accented passage but that contained the shifted vowels. A control experiment showed that the adaptation effect was specific to the direction of the shift in the vowel space and not to a general relaxation of the criterion for what constitutes a good exemplar of the accented vowel category. Taken together, these results provide evidence for a context-specific vowel adaptation mechanism that enables a listener to adjust to the dialect of a particular talker.
Categorizing Sugarcane Cultivar Resistance to the Sugarcane Aphid and Yellow Sugarcane Aphid (Hemiptera: Aphididae)

ABSTRACT Sugarcane (Saccharum spp.) in Louisiana is colonized by two aphid species, the sugarcane aphid, Melanaphis sacchari (Zehntner), and the yellow sugarcane aphid, Sipha flava (Forbes) (Hemiptera: Aphididae). The main problem associated with M. sacchari is transmission of sugarcane yellow leaf virus, a casual agent of yellow leaf disease whose absence has been added to certification standards for micropropagated sugarcane in Louisiana. Greenhouse studies were conducted to categorize dominant commercial sugarcane cultivars for their ability to tolerate aphid injury and to express antixenotic or antibiotic effects on both aphid species. Antixenosis tests showed no preference among cultivars by either aphid species. Loss of chlorophyll content in tolerance tests also did not show differences among cultivars for both aphid species. However, antibiosis tests revealed that life history parameters such as the duration of the reproductive period and fecundity of both aphid species were negatively affected on ‘HoCP 91-555’ compared with ‘L 97-128’, Estimation of demographic statistics indicated that both aphid species exhibited a significantly lower intrinsic rate of increase (1.8–2.8-fold) and longer doubling time (1.7–3.1-fold) on HoCP 91-555 relative to L 97–128. From these tests, cultivars in the current study can be ranked from most to the least susceptible as L 97–128 > ‘LCP 85–384’ > ‘HoCP 96–540’ > ‘Ho 95–988’ > HoCP 91–555 for M. sacchari and L 97–128 > LCP 85–384 > HoCP 91–555 for S. flava. Therefore, antibiosis is an important category of resistance in sugarcane to both aphid species, and HoCP 91–555 might provide useful germplasm for developing aphid resistant cultivars.
Optimal Joint Spatial and Temporal Power Adaptation for Space-Time-Coded Systems With Imperfect CSI

In this correspondence, a joint optimization of spatio-temporal (S-T) power allocation to minimize the average bit error rate (BER) subject to an average power constraint is developed for beamforming orthogonal space-time block coded multiantenna systems over flat Rayleigh fading channels in the presence of imperfect channel state information at the transmitter (CSIT). Compared to the spatial-only (S-O) power allocation methods, the optimal S-T strategy reduces BER significantly. It can be used as a benchmark to evaluate the existing suboptimal S-T schemes. A necessary and sufficient condition, which can determine the number of eigenbeams being used for optimal S-T power allocation without computing power allocation, is derived. This result can greatly simplify the power allocation algorithm. Numerical results show that the proposed optimal S-T algorithm has not only the best BER performance, but also the lowest computational complexity in comparison with the existing S-T strategies.
Cloning, sequencing and expression analysis of the NAR promoter activated during hyphal stage of Magnaporthe grisea

The promoter of NAR gene in Magnaporthe grisea was isolated and sequenced. The promoter sequences contained the “TATA” box, the “CAAT” box, and binding sites for fungal regulatory proteins. Programs that predict promoter sequences indicated that promoter sequence lies between locations 430 and 857 of the NAR promoter fragment. GFP expression under the NAR promoter and NAR transcript analysis revealed that this promoter is activated primarily at the mycelial stage in the rice blast fungus and could be used to express native or extrinsic genes in the mycelia of the rice blast fungus.
Sterol regulation of scavenger receptor class B type I in macrophages Published, JLR Papers in Press, February 16, 2004. DOI 10.1194/jlr.M300461-JLR200

Scavenger receptor class B type I (SR-BI) is expressed in macrophages, but its role in sterol trafficking in these cells remains controversial. We examined the effect of sterol loading on SR-BI expression in human monocytes/macrophages, mouse peritoneal macrophages, and a cultured mouse macrophage cell line (J774 cells). Sterol loading using either acetylated LDL or 25-hydroxycholesterol resulted in a time- and concentration-dependent decrease in SR-BI protein and mRNA levels. Treatment of lipid-loaded J774 cells with cyclodextrin or HDL to promote cellular sterol efflux was associated with an increase in SR-BI expression. Studies were performed to determine if the sterol-associated downregulation of SR-BI in macrophages was mediated by either sterol regulatory element binding proteins (SREBPs) or the liver X receptor (LXR). Expression of constitutively active SREBPs failed to alter the expression of a luciferase reporter placed downstream of a 2,556 bp 5′ flanking sequence from the mouse SR-BI gene. Reduction in SR-BI expression was also seen in sterol-loaded peritoneal macrophages from mice expressing no LXRα and LXRβ. We conclude that SR-BI levels in macrophages are responsive to changes in intracellular sterol content and that these sterol-associated changes are not mediated by LXR and are unlikely to be mediated by an SREBP pathway.
Effective negative Kerr non-linear coefficient using highly non-linear fibers: A scalable backward propagation approach

We have numerically evaluated optical backward propagation (OBP) by the conjunction of dispersion compensating fiber (DCF) and a non-linear compensator (NLC) devised by effective negative Kerr non-linear coefficient using two highly non-linear fibers (HNLF) to compensate fiber transmission impairments, i.e. chromatic dispersion (CD) and non-linearities (NL). The OBP module is evaluated for dual-polarization (DP) mary (m=4,16,32,64,256) quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM) in 112 Gbit/s coherent transmission over standard single mode fiber (SMF). We have also proposed a intensity limited optical backward propagation module (IL-OBP) by using a self-phase modulation-based optical limiter with an appropriate pre-chirping to compensate for the intensity fluctuations in the transmission link. Our results depict that in highly non-linear sensitive 256QAM transmission, we have observed a 40% increase in the transmission distance by implementing IL-OBP as compared to conventional OBP.
Optimisation of process parameters in friction stir welding based on residual stress analysis: a feasibility study

Abstract The present paper considers the optimisation of process parameters in friction stir welding (FSW). More specifically, the choices of rotational speed and traverse welding speed have been investigated using genetic algorithms. The welding process is simulated in a transient, two-dimensional sequentially coupled thermomechanical model in ANSYS. This model is then used in an optimisation case where the two objectives are the minimisation of the peak residual stresses and the maximisation of the welding speed. The results indicate that the objectives for the considered case are conflicting, and this is presented as a Pareto optimal front. Moreover, a higher welding speed for a fixed rotational speed results, in general, in slightly higher stress levels in the tension zone, whereas a higher rotational speed for a fixed welding speed yields somewhat lower peak residual stress, however, a wider tension zone, leading to a substantially higher residual tensile force.
PLLA/HA Electrospin Hybrid Nanofiber Scaffolds: Morphology, In Vitro Degradation and Cell Culture Potential

Electrospinning has recently emerged as a potential technique for fabricating biomimetic tissue engineering scaffolds. In this study, Poly (l-lactic acid) (PLLA) /Nano-hydroxyapatite (HA) hybrid nanofibers scaffolds were prepared by electrospinning. The relationship between process parameters and fiber diameter has been investigated. The fiber diameter decreased with decreasing polymer concentration and with increasing electrospinning voltage; After 6 weeks of in vitro degradation, the mass, viscosity-average molecular weight of the nanofibers scaffolds and the pH value of the degradation solution were changed, the fibers lost their surface smoothness and a regular rough topology was generated after 32d of degradation, the degradation rates of PLLA/HA hybrid nanofibers were slower than those of pure PLLA fibers; The biocompatibility of the nanofibers scaffold has also been investigated by culturing cells on the nanofibers scaffold, elementary results showed that the cells adhered and proliferated well on the PLLA/HA hybrid nanofibers scaffolds.
Affectiva-MIT Facial Expression Dataset (AM-FED): Naturalistic and Spontaneous Facial Expressions Collected "In-the-Wild"

Computer classification of facial expressions requires large amounts of data and this data needs to reflect the diversity of conditions seen in real applications. Public datasets help accelerate the progress of research by providing researchers with a benchmark resource. We present a comprehensively labeled dataset of ecologically valid spontaneous facial responses recorded in natural settings over the Internet. To collect the data, online viewers watched one of three intentionally amusing Super Bowl commercials and were simultaneously filmed using their webcam. They answered three self-report questions about their experience. A subset of viewers additionally gave consent for their data to be shared publicly with other researchers. This subset consists of 242 facial videos (168, 359 frames) recorded in real world conditions. The dataset is comprehensively labeled for the following: 1) frame-by-frame labels for the presence of 10 symmetrical FACS action units, 4 asymmetric (unilateral) FACS action units, 2 head movements, smile, general expressiveness, feature tracker fails and gender, 2) the location of 22 automatically detected landmark points, 3) self-report responses of familiarity with, liking of, and desire to watch again for the stimuli videos and 4) baseline performance of detection algorithms on this dataset. This data is available for distribution to researchers online, the EULA can be found at: http://www.affectiva. com/facial-expression-dataset-am-fed/.
Development of an immunoassay for serum caveolin-1: a novel biomarker for prostate cancer.

PURPOSE Caveolin-1 (cav-1), the major protein component of caveolae, plays an important role in multiple signaling pathways, molecular transport, and cellular proliferation and differentiation. The specific functions of cav-1/caveolae are highly cell and context dependent. We have previously shown that cav-1 expression is increased in metastatic human prostate cancer and that cav-1 cellular protein expression is predictive of recurrence of the disease after radical prostatectomy. Recently, we reported that cav-1 is secreted by androgen-insensitive prostate cancer cells, and we detected, by Western blotting, cav-1 in the high-density lipoprotein(3) fraction of serum specimens from patients with prostate cancer. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN Using rabbit polyclonal antibodies with specificity for cav-1, we developed a direct sandwich immunoassay for the determination of cav-1 in serum. A recombinant human cav-1 fusion protein was overexpressed and purified from 293 PE cells and used as a calibrator. RESULTS The assay was highly specific and had a minimum detection limit of 0.017 ng/ml (mean + 3 SD of zero calibrator) and measuring range of up to 200 ng/ml. Intra-assay coefficient of variation was 2.29-6.74% and inter-assay coefficient of variation was 2.81-6.43% over the serum concentration tested 0.04-31.89 ng/ml. The recovery limit of cav-1 by the assay was 89.55-100.28%. The median serum cav-1 level in 102 prostate cancer patients with clinically localized disease (0.463 ng/ml) was significantly higher than 81 healthy control men (0.324 ng/ml; P = 0.0446, Mann-Whitney test) or 107 men with benign prostatic hyperplasia (0.172 ng/ml; P = 0.0317, Mann-Whitney test). CONCLUSIONS Our results indicate that serum cav-1 has the power to differentiate between prostate cancer and benign prostatic hyperplasia patients and the potential to be an important biomarker for prostate cancer. Additional studies to test the potential of serum cav-1 as a diagnostic and/or prognostic marker in prostate cancer are warranted.
Simple Autonomous Chaotic Circuits

Over the last several decades, numerous electronic circuits exhibiting chaos have been proposed. Nonautonomous circuits with as few as two physical components have been developed. However, the operation of such circuits has typically traded physical simplicity for analytic complexity, or vice versa. In this brief, we present two simple autonomous chaotic circuits using only op-amps and linear time-invariant passive components. Each circuit employs one op-amp as a comparator to provide signum nonlinearity. The chaotic behavior is robust, and the circuits offer simple analysis, while minimizing both physical and model component counts.
Orientation, containment and the emergence of symbolic thinking

Orientation is viewed in this paper as an important dimension of containment for the development of thinking. Orientation refers to the particular positioning in space and time of mother and infant so they can find one another and then containment can take place. Bion's container–contained model for the development of thinking is based on the capacity of the mother's mind to function as a ‘home’ for the infant's primitive projections. Containment and orientation are explored in relation to an ancient Greek object called ‘σύμβολον’ [symbolon], which I use here as a metaphor for the early negotiation between mother and infant to achieve a correct matching to each other's orientation. This is then mobilized and re‐enacted between analyst and patient in the psychoanalytic process. Orientation as part of the container–contained model enables us to view the development of thinking from a new perspective with greater integration of cognitive and emotional aspects. The clinical implication of the concept of orientation is explored in relation to the process of engagement/disengagement between analyst and patient and is illustrated by clinical material.
"SHUT UP AND LISTEN": Feminist Health Care with Out-of-the-Mainstream Adolescent Females

Models of women's health care have focused on the needs and issues of adult women and have not included those of adolescent women. This bias is true even for feminist-identified researchers and practitioners. Most health services for young women tend to deal exclusively, or in large measure, with their reproductive health, are planned by adults using an adult health care model and do not approach health care provision from a feminist perspective. In addition, there is a lack of information on the special health needs and issues of out-of-the-mainstream adolescent females such as homeless, immigrant, lesbian/bisexual identified young women. The main purpose of this paper is to describe guiding principals, as well as some of the practical pitfalls and ethical dilemmas in the provision of feminist health care for out-of-the-mainstream adolescent women.
Effects of Partial Ringing and Heating of Trunk on Shoot Growth and Fruit Quality of Peach Trees

Small-sized peach (Prunus persica [L.] Batsch.) trees for commercial fruit production have not been available due to the lack of suitable dwarfing rootstocks that have a wide range of compatibility among cultivars. Effects of partial girdling and trunk heating on the growth, yield, and fruit quality of peach were studied. A 4 cm wide partial ring of bark was removed at a height of 25 cm from the ground leaving a connecting strip of 5 mm. Furthermore, the dc-barked spot was heated at 150℃ for fifteen minutes using an electric heater. The partial girdling was effective in reducing shoot growth and improving fruit quality. The total soluble solids content of fruit in treatment trees was higher than that of control. The heating had little additive effects over partial ringing.
Carbon abundances and 12C/13C from globular cluster giants --

The behaviour of the Δν = 2 CO bands around 2.3 μm was examined by comparing observed and synthetic spectra in stars in globular clusters of different metallicity. Changes in the 1 2 C/ 1 3 C isotopic ratio and the carbon abundances were investigated in stars from 3500-4900 K in the galactic globular clusters M71, M5, M3 and M13, covering the metallicity range from -0.7 to -1.6. We found relatively low carbon abundances that are not affected by the value of oxygen abundance. For most giants, the 1 2 C/ 1 3 C ratios determined are consistent with the equilibrium value for the CN cycle. This suggests complete mixing on the ascent of the red giant branch, in contrast to the substantially higher values predicted across this range of parameters by the current generation of models. We found some evidence for a larger dispersion of 1 2 C/ 1 3 C in giants of M71 of metallicity [μ] = [M/H] = -0.7 in comparison with the giants of M3, M5 and M13, which are more metal deficient. Finally, we show evidence for lower 1 2 C/ 1 3 C in giants of globular clusters with lower metallicities, as predicted by theory.
Visual Question Generation as Dual Task of Visual Question Answering

Visual question answering (VQA) and visual question generation (VQG) are two trending topics in the computer vision, but they are usually explored separately despite their intrinsic complementary relationship. In this paper, we propose an end-to-end unified model, the Invertible Question Answering Network (iQAN), to introduce question generation as a dual task of question answering to improve the VQA performance. With our proposed invertible bilinear fusion module and parameter sharing scheme, our iQAN can accomplish VQA and its dual task VQG simultaneously. By jointly trained on two tasks with our proposed dual regularizes (termed as Dual Training), our model has a better understanding of the interactions among images, questions and answers. After training, iQAN can take either question or answer as input, and output the counterpart. Evaluated on the CLEVR and VQA2 datasets, our iQAN improves the top-1 accuracy of the prior art MUTAN VQA method by 1.33% and 0.88% (absolute increase) respectiely. We also show that our proposed dual training framework can consistently improve model performances of many popular VQA architectures.1
Does prospective memory influence quality of life in community-dwelling older adults?

Older adults commonly experience declines in prospective memory, which describes one’s ability to “remember to remember,” and can adversely affect instrumental activities of daily living and healthcare compliance. However, the extent to which prospective memory failures may influence quality of life in typically aging older adults is not well understood. One-hundred and four community-dwelling older Australians (aged 50 to 82 years) were administered a comprehensive, neuropsychological battery that included the Memory for Intentions Screening Test (MIST), Prospective and Retrospective Memory Questionnaire (PRMQ), Instrumental Activities of Daily Living Questionnaire (IADLQ), and World Health Organization Quality of Life-8 (WHOQOL-8). Multiple regressions controlling for negative affect, medical comorbidities, and other neurocognitive functions revealed an interaction between prospective memory and instrumental activities of daily living in the concurrent prediction of quality of life. Among the 39 older adults who reported multiple problems on the IADLQ, lower performance-based prospective memory (MIST) and higher self-reported prospective memory failures in daily life (PRMQ) were significantly associated with lower quality of life (WHOQOL-8). Conversely, no significant associations were observed between prospective memory and quality of life in the 65 participants without IADL problems. Prospective memory difficulties adversely impact quality of life in community-dwelling older adults who experience problems independently managing their instrumental activities of daily living. These findings extend prior literature showing that prospective memory plays a unique role in the real-world outcomes of older adults and clinical populations and highlight the need to develop effective strategies to enhance prospective memory functioning in these vulnerable groups.
Curing in Thick Composite Laminates: Experiment and Simulation

Thick part ( > 5 cm) temperature profiles were obtained from a one- dimensional experiment. These results are compared with the predictions of a computer simulation containing improved and existing models for extent of reaction, viscosity and other composite properties of the same resin/fiber system. In particular the simulation recovers the thermal behavior of a 5 cm thick, unidirectional Hercules AS-4/3501-6 graphite/epoxy composite laminate. Application of consolidation pressures based on pre dicted viscosities led to dramatic improvement in void content of a real laminate. The sim ulation is used to investigate important processing variables and changes in chemo rheology and temperature in a thick section laminate during cure. The following results are found: imtial extent of reaction is relatively unimportant; consolidation is important; the peak temperature originates near the surface of the laminate and propagates to the center; asymmetric temperature application changes the viscosity and cure profiles; vis cosity never reaches low values simultaneously through the thickness in laminates in ex cess of 10 cm thickness.
The equivalence problem and rigidity for hypersurfaces embedded into hyperquadrics

We consider the class of Levi nondegenerate hypersurfaces M in [inline-graphic xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3. org/1999/xlink" xlink:href="01i" /] that admit a local (CR transversal) embedding, near a point p e M , into a standard nondegenerate hyperquadric in [inline-graphic xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3. org/1999/xlink" xlink:href="02i" /] with codimension k := N - n small compared to the CR dimension n of M . We show that, for hypersurfaces in this class, there is a normal form (which is closely related to the embedding) such that any local equivalence between two hypersurfaces in normal form must be an automorphism of the associated tangent hyperquadric. We also show that if the signature of M and that of the standard hyperquadric in [inline-graphic xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3. org/1999/xlink" xlink:href="03i" /] are the same, then the embedding is rigid in the sense that any other embedding must be the original embedding composed with an automorphism of the quadric.