Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Thermal Preconditioning and Heat-Shock Protein 72 Preserve Synaptic Transmission during Thermal Stress

As with other tissues, exposing the mammalian CNS to nonlethal heat stress (i.e., thermal preconditioning) increases levels of heat-shock proteins (Hsps) such as Hsp70 and enhances the viability of neurons under subsequent stress. Using a medullary slice preparation from a neonatal mouse, including the site of the neural network that generates respiratory rhythm (the pre-Bötzinger complex), we show that thermal preconditioning has an additional fundamental effect, protection of synaptic function. Relative to 30 degrees C baseline, initial thermal stress (40 degrees C) greatly increased the frequency of synaptic currents recorded without pharmacological manipulation by approximately 17-fold (p < 0.01) and of miniature postsynaptic currents (mPSCs) elicited by GABA (20-fold) glutamate (10-fold), and glycine (36-fold). Thermal preconditioning (15 min at 40 degrees C) eliminated the increase in frequency of overall synaptic transmission during acute thermal stress and greatly attenuated the frequency increases of GABAergic, glutamatergic, and glycinergic mPSCs (for each, p < 0.05). Moreover, without thermal preconditioning, incubation of slices in solution containing inducible Hsp70 (Hsp72) mimicked the effect of thermal preconditioning on the stress-induced release of neurotransmitter. That preconditioning and exogenous Hsp72 can affect and preserve normal physiological function has important therapeutic implications.
PerfScope: Practical Online Server Performance Bug Inference in Production Cloud Computing Infrastructures

Performance bugs which manifest in a production cloud computing infrastructure are notoriously difficult to diagnose because of both the difficulty of reproducing those bugs and the lack of debugging information. In this paper, we present PerfScope, a practical online performance bug inference tool to help the developer understand how a performance bug happened during the production run. PerfScope achieves online bug inference to obviate the need for offline bug reproduction. PerfScope does not require application source code or any runtime instrumentation to the production system. PerfScope is application-agnostic, which can support both interpreted and compiled programs running inside a cloud infrastructure. We have implemented PerfScope and tested it using real performance bugs on seven popular open source server systems (Hadoop, HDFS, Cassandra, Tomcat, Apache, Lighttpd, MySQL). The results show that PerfScope can narrow down the search scope of the bug-related functions to a small percentage (0.03-2.3%) and rank the real bug-related functions within top five candidates in the majority of cases. PerfScope only imposes on average 1.8% runtime overhead to the tested server applications.
Effects of Turbidity and Visual vs. Chemical Cues on Anti‐Predator Response in the Endangered Fountain Darter (Etheostoma fonticola)

Altered turbidity resulting from anthropogenic stressors is a global problem. Threatened by climate change, pollution, and increased recreational usage, the streams and rivers of central Texas are no exception. The impacts of turbidity include behavioral effects as turbidity degrades visual information, which can impair an animal's ability to accurately detect and respond to a predator. Here, we tested the impact of simulated turbidity on anti-predator response in the endangered fountain darter, Etheostoma fonticola. We examined the response of E. fonticola to four predator cue treatments (chemical, visual, chemical and visual, and no cues) using a native predator, the green sunfish (Lepomis cyanellus). All cue treatments were tested across two vision levels: clear and impaired, to simulate the visual effects of low turbidity (~30 NTU). Our results indicate that E. fonticola requires a combination of visual and chemical stimuli to respond to a native fish predator. In the absence of one or the other sensory modality, E. fonticola did not show an anti-predator response. Also, anti-predator response to a combination of visual and chemical stimuli was only present at the clear vision level. When vision was impaired owing to simulated turbidity, a combination of visual and chemical stimuli did not produce a significant anti-predator response. These results indicate that blocked or compromised vision hampers anti-predator response in E. fonticola, which may be of concern regarding the future management of this endangered species.
The development and psychometric analysis of Nurse Stressor Scale

Objective To develop a standardized scale for measuring Chinese nurses' stressor.Methods The development of Nurse Stressor Scale(NSS)was based on the framework of CPT by Lazaras combining theories and experience.Firstly,a draft scale was developed based on the open-ended questionnaire with 352 nurses.Then 387 subjects were investigated and a preliminary scale consisting of six factors was developed.Finally the reliability and validity of the scale were examined.Results Six stress factors were identified,including nurses' expectation,family,interpersonal relationship,the nature of nursing work,the contact with patients,the work load,all of which could account for 56.28% of the accumulated variance.The scale has good reliability and validity.Conclusions The NSS is an effective instrument to assess nurses' working stressor in China.
Multi-sensor event detection using shape histograms

Vehicular sensor data consists of multiple time-series arising from a number of sensors. Using such multi-sensor data we would like to detect occurrences of specific events that vehicles encounter, e.g., corresponding to particular maneuvers that a vehicle makes or conditions that it encounters. Events are characterized by similar waveform patterns reappearing within one or more sensors. Further such patterns can be of variable duration. In this paper, we propose a method for detecting such events in time-series data using a novel feature descriptor motivated by similar ideas in image processing. We define the shape histogram: a constant dimension descriptor that nevertheless captures patterns of variable duration. We demonstrate the efficacy of using shape histograms as features to detect events in an SVM-based, multi-sensor, supervised learning scenario, i.e., multiple time-series are used to detect an event. We present results on real-life vehicular sensor data and show that our technique performs better than available pattern detection implementations on our data, and that it can also be used to combine features from multiple sensors resulting in better accuracy than using any single sensor. Since previous work on pattern detection in time-series has been in the single series context, we also present results using our technique on multiple standard time-series datasets and show that it is the most versatile in terms of how it ranks compared to other published results.
Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale–Fourth Edition preliminary normative guidelines for educationally disadvantaged Xhosa-speaking individuals

The aim of this study was to provide preliminary normative guidelines for the use of the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale–Fourth Edition (English administration) for South African Eastern Cape Xhosa-speaking adults (n=31), aged 18–32, with 12years of disadvantaged quality of education. The Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale–Fourth Edition normative indications were compared with those from an equivalent population on the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale–Third Edition. The substitution of Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale–Fourth Edition core subtests with supplemental subtests was also investigated. The Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale–Fourth Edition and Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale–Third Edition findings were broadly equivalent, indicating a lowering of 20–25 intelligence quotient points compared with the US standardisation. The use of supplemental subtests revealed improved outcome on all four Index scores. It is concluded that practitioners can gainfully advance to the use of the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale–Fourth Edition with this educationally disadvantaged African first language population, on the proviso that the extent of lowering relative to the US standardisation is taken into consideration.
Connecting Two (or Less) Dots: Discovering Structure in News Articles

Finding information is becoming a major part of our daily life. Entire sectors, from Web users to scientists and intelligence analysts, are increasingly struggling to keep up with the larger and larger amounts of content published every day. With this much data, it is often easy to miss the big picture. In this article, we investigate methods for automatically connecting the dots---providing a structured, easy way to navigate within a new topic and discover hidden connections. We focus on the news domain: given two news articles, our system automatically finds a coherent chain linking them together. For example, it can recover the chain of events starting with the decline of home prices (January 2007), and ending with the health care debate (2009). We formalize the characteristics of a good chain and provide a fast search-driven algorithm to connect two fixed endpoints. We incorporate user feedback into our framework, allowing the stories to be refined and personalized. We also provide a method to handle partially-specified endpoints, for users who do not know both ends of a story. Finally, we evaluate our algorithm over real news data. Our user studies demonstrate that the objective we propose captures the users’ intuitive notion of coherence, and that our algorithm effectively helps users understand the news.
Functional Genetic Variants of the Catecholamine-Release-Inhibitory Peptide Catestatin in an Indian Population

Background: Catestatin is emerging as a novel regulator of cardiovascular/metabolic functions. Results: We discovered a common amino acid substitution variant of catestatin that caused profound changes in plasma catecholamines, glucose, and lipid levels. Conclusion: Naturally occurring variants of catestatin peptide seem to alter the risk for metabolic syndrome. Significance: These findings provide new insights into the mechanism of metabolic diseases in humans. Catestatin (CST), a chromogranin A (CHGA)-derived peptide, is a potent inhibitor of catecholamine release from adrenal chromaffin cells and postganglionic sympathetic axons. We re-sequenced the CST region of CHGA in an Indian population (n = 1010) and detected two amino acid substitution variants: G364S and G367V. Synthesized CST variant peptides (viz. CST-Ser-364 and CST-Val-367) were significantly less potent than the wild type peptide (CST-WT) to inhibit nicotine-stimulated catecholamine secretion from PC12 cells. Consistently, the rank-order of blockade of nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (nAChR)-stimulated inward current and intracellular Ca2+ rise by these peptides in PC12 cells was: CST-WT > CST-Ser-364 > CST-Val-367. Structural analysis by CD spectroscopy coupled with molecular dynamics simulations revealed the following order of α-helical content: CST-WT > CST-Ser-364 > CST-Val-367; docking of CST peptides onto a major human nAChR subtype and molecular dynamics simulations also predicted the above rank order for their binding affinity with nAChR and the extent of occlusion of the receptor pore, providing a mechanistic basis for differential potencies. The G364S polymorphism was in strong linkage disequilibrium with several common CHGA genetic variations. Interestingly, the Ser-364 allele (detected in ∼15% subjects) was strongly associated with profound reduction (up to ∼2.1-fold) in plasma norepinephrine/epinephrine levels consistent with the diminished nAChR desensitization-blocking effect of CST-Ser-364 as compared with CST-WT. Additionally, the Ser-364 allele showed strong associations with elevated levels of plasma triglyceride and glucose levels. In conclusion, a common CHGA variant in an Indian population influences several biochemical parameters relevant to cardiovascular/metabolic disorders.
Pharmacological Dissociation of Novelty Responses in the Human Brain

Repeated processing of the same information is associated with decreased neuronal responses, termed repetition suppression (RS). Although RS effects (i.e., the difference in activity between novel and repeated stimuli) have been demonstrated within several brain regions, such as the medial temporal lobe, their precise neural mechanisms still remain unclear. Here, we used functional magnetic resonance imaging together with psychopharmacology in 48 healthy human subjects, demonstrating that RS effects within the mesolimbic system are differentially modulated by cholinergic and dopaminergic stimulation. The dopamine precursor levodopa (100 mg) attenuated RS within the hippocampus, parahippocampal cortex, and substantia nigra/ventral tegmental area, and the degree of this reduction correlated with recognition memory performance 24 h later. The acetylcholinesterase inhibitor galantamine (8 mg), in contrast, reversed RS into repetition enhancement, showing no relationship to subsequent recognition memory. This suggests that novelty sensitive neural populations of the mesolimbic system can dynamically shift their responses depending on the balance of cholinergic and dopaminergic neurotransmission, and these shifts can influence memory retention.
Vagus Nerve Stimulation for Treatment-Resistant Depression: Behavioral and Neural Effects on Encoding Negative Material

Objectives: Vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) can improve depression. Cognitive models of depression highlight an over-representation of negative thoughts and memories, with depressed individuals showing memory facilitation for negative material. We hypothesized that the antidepressant action of VNS may emerge through corrective influences on ‘negativity bias’ in memory. We therefore examined the impact of VNS on emotional memory and its underlying brain activity. Methods: We tested a single patient undergoing VNS for treatment-resistant depression (TRD). Stimulation was set at a 30/66-second on/off cycle during three encoding blocks when the patient viewed randomly presented positive, negative, and neutral words. Following each block, VNS was switched off and the patient identified previously seen words from distractors in a subsequent recognition memory task. The patient was scanned using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) during the first encoding block. Results: There was robust recall of negative material viewed during ‘off’ cycles of VNS but subsequent memory of negative words was attenuated during active VNS (‘on’ cycles). VNS did not influence memory for neutral and positive words. With neuroimaging, direct modulatory effects of VNS were observed in dorsomedial, dorsolateral, and orbital regions of the prefrontal cortex. Moreover, during encoding of negative words, compared with positive and neutral words, VNS also modulated activity within orbitofrontal, ventromedial and polar prefrontal cortices, midcingulate cortex, and brain stem. Conclusions: Our observations show that VNS can interfere with memory of negative information, an effect that may contribute to its antidepressant role. Neuroimaging implicated regions including the ventral and medial prefrontal cortex as an underlying neural substrate. fMRI = functional magnetic resonance imaging; SAR = Specific Absorption Ratio; SPM = statistical parametric mapping; TRD = treatment-resistant depression; VNS = vagus nerve stimulation.
DIFFERENTIATED ADMISSION FOR PEER-TO-PEER SYSTEMS: INCENTIVIZING PEERS TO CONTRIBUTE THEIR RESOURCES

A peer-to-peer (P2P) system will starve from resources if every user is a freeloader who only takes resources from the system but never contributes any. It is useful to develop a scheme that can incentivize users to contribute resources such as content, CPU, storage and network bandwidth. This paper describes an admission control system capable of providing differentiated services to users based on their past contributions or reputations. A user desiring a certain level of service will need to make a comparable level of contributions to the P2P system. The admission system uses a distributed eigenvector-based method to compute user reputations, a sampling heuristic to reduce computation and communication costs, and a distributed trust-enhancement scheme to provide system security.
Quantum deconstruction of a 5D SYM and its moduli space

We deconstruct the fifth dimension of the 5D SYM theory with SU(M) gauge symmetry and Chern-Simons level kcs = M and show how the 5D moduli space follows from the non-perturbative analysis of the 4D quiver theory. The 5D coupling h = 1/g25 of the un-broken SU(M) is allowed to take any non-negative values, but it cannot be continued to h< 0 and there are no transitions to other phases of the theory. The alternative UV completions of the same 5D SYM — via M theory on the 3/2M orbifold or via the dual five-brane web in type IIB string theory — have identical moduli spaces: h ≥ 0 only, and no flop transitions. We claim these are intrinsic properties of the SU(M) SYM theory with kcs = M.
Image Retrieval and Classification Using Local Distance Functions

In this paper we introduce and experiment with a framework for learning local perceptual distance functions for visual recognition. We learn a distance function for each training image as a combination of elementary distances between patch-based visual features. We apply these combined local distance functions to the tasks of image retrieval and classification of novel images. On the Caltech 101 object recognition benchmark, we achieve 60.3% mean recognition across classes using 15 training images per class, which is better than the best published performance by Zhang, et al.
Expression of the aquaglyceroporin HC‐9 in a freeze‐tolerant amphibian that accumulates glycerol seasonally

As ambient temperatures fall in the autumn, freeze‐tolerant Cope's gray treefrogs, Dryophytes chrysoscelis (formerly Hyla chrysoscelis), accumulate glycerol as a cryoprotective agent. We hypothesized that these treefrogs express an ortholog of the mammalian aquaglyceroporin AQP9 and that AQP9 expression is upregulated in the cold to facilitate glycerol transport. We sequenced 1790 bp from cloned cDNA that codes for a 315 amino acid protein, HC‐9, containing the predicted six transmembrane spanning domains, two Asn‐Pro‐Ala (NPA) motifs, and five amino acid residues characteristic of aquaglyceroporins. Functional characterization after heterologous expression of HC‐9 cRNA in Xenopus laevis oocytes indicated that HC‐9 facilitates glycerol and water permeability and is partially inhibited by 0.5 mmol/L phloretin or 0.3 mmol/L HgCl2. HC‐9 mRNA (qPCR) and protein (immunoblot) were expressed in most treefrog tissues analyzed (muscle, liver, bladder, stomach, kidney, dorsal skin, and ventral skin) except the protein fraction of red blood cells. Contrary to our prediction, both mRNA and protein expression were either unchanged or downregulated in most tissues in response to cold, freezing, and thawing. A notable exception to that pattern occurred in liver, where protein expression was significantly elevated in frozen (~4‐fold over warm) and thawed (~6‐fold over warm) conditions. Immunofluorescence labeling of HC‐9 protein revealed a signal that appeared to be localized to the plasma membrane of hepatocytes. Our results indicate that gray treefrogs express an AQP9‐like protein that facilitates glycerol permeability. Both the transcriptional and translational levels of HC‐9 change in response to thermal challenges, with a unique increase in liver during freezing and thawing.
Clinical Presentations of 176 Cases of Primary Central Nervous System Lymphoma: A Case Series

Background: Primary central nervous system lymphoma (PCNSL) is a malignant tumor, the incidence of which has been increasing in immune compromised patients during the last two decades. Objectives: This study was conducted to determine the most prevalent clinical presenting symptoms of PCNSL patients. Patients and Methods: In this retrospective descriptive study, all PCNSL patients’ data over a 25-year period (1990–2014) were assessed. PCNSL was confirmed pathologically after stereotactic biopsy in the Neurosurgery Department of Shohadaye Tajrish Hospital, Tehran, Iran. Results: A total of 176 cases of PCNSL were enrolled. There were 107 (60.8%) male patients, with a 1.5:1 male: female ratio. The patients most commonly presented in the sixth decade of their lives, with a mean age of 47 ± 1.5 years. The most common presenting symptoms were hemiparesis (56.2%) and headache (51.7%). The periventricular white matter (51.1%) and basal ganglion (48.9%) were the most common sites of involvement, and they frequently affected the supratentorial area (84.7%). Conclusions: Based on the data from this study, hemiparesis and headache were the most prevalent clinical presenting symptoms of PCNSL. Cognitive impairment and personality changes were also common in these patients.
Connecting People through Content - Promoting Community Identity Cognition through People and Places

Large public screens are proliferating in public spaces. Today, most of them are standalone installations that display advertisements in the form of slides, short movies, or still images. However, it is not hard to imagine that these displays will soon be connected through the Internet, thus creating a global and powerful communication medium capable of providing rich, interactive applications. We believe that such a medium has the potential to foster connections within and between communities in public spaces. In this paper we present a research agenda for interacting places, i.e., public spaces that connect communities through public displays. We then report on our initial work in this space, in particular on using public displays for creating what we call identity cognition - increasing the sense of being connected between community members occupying the same space. We have investigated two options for achieving identity cognition: (a) through content that originates from the environment, and (b) through content that originates from people. Content originating from the environment portrays information about a display's surrounding. For this type of content, identity cognition is usually being achieved implicitly by stimulating the effect of 'triangulation', an effect where particularities of the physical space act as links between people. Content originating from people, on the other hand, explicitly achieves identity cognition by promoting community values through content that expresses the attitudes, beliefs, and ideas of individual community members. We have built and deployed two public display applications that support identity cognition using environmentally-sourced content and people-sourced content, respectively.