Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences Triggering Mechanisms in Microsaccade and Saccade Generation: a Novel Proposal

Saccades are rapid eye movements that change the line of sight between successive points of fixation. Even as we attempt to fixate our gaze precisely, small rapid eye movements called microsaccades interrupt fixation one or two times each second. Although the neural pathway controlling saccade generation is well understood, the specific mechanism for triggering microsaccades is unknown. Here, we review the evidence suggesting that microsaccades and saccades are generated by the same neural pathway. We also discuss current models of how the saccadic system produces microsaccades. Finally, we propose a new mechanism for triggering both microsaccades and saccades, based on a circuit formed by omnipause and long-lead burst neurons and driven by activity in the superior colliculus. Our model differs from previous proposals in that it does not require superior colliculus activity to surpass a particular threshold to trigger microsaccades and saccades. Rather, we propose that the reciprocal inhibition between omnipause and long-lead burst neurons gates each microsaccadic or saccadic event, triggering the eye movement whenever the activity in the long-lead burst neurons overcomes the inhibition from the omnipause neurons. microsaccade and saccade generation: a novel proposal.
Explaining female and male entrepreneurship at the country level

Using Global Entrepreneurship Monitor data for 29 countries this study investigates the (differential) impact of several factors on female and male entrepreneurship at the country level. These factors are derived from three streams of literature, including that on entrepreneurship in general, on female labour force participation and on female entrepreneurship. The paper deals with the methodological aspects of investigating (female) entrepreneurship by distinguishing between two measures of female entrepreneurship: the number of female entrepreneurs and the share of women in the total number of entrepreneurs. The first measure is used to investigate whether variables have an impact on entrepreneurship in general (influencing both the number of female and male entrepreneurs). The second measure is used to investigate whether factors have a differential relative impact on female and male entrepreneurship, i.e. whether they influence the diversity or gender composition of entrepreneurship. Findings indicate that – by and large – female and male entrepreneurial activity rates are influenced by the same factors and in the same direction. However, for some factors (e.g. unemployment, life satisfaction) we find a differential impact on female and male entrepreneurship. The present study also shows that the factors influencing the number of female entrepreneurs may be different from those influencing the share of female entrepreneurs. In this light it is important that governments are aware of what they want to accomplish (i.e. do they want to stimulate the number of female entrepreneurs or the gender composition of entrepreneurship) to be able to select appropriate policy measures.
International Conference on Information Systems ( ICIS ) 2010 MEASURING APPLICATION DOMAIN KNOWLEDGE : RESULTS FROM A PRELIMINARY EXPERIMENT

Conceptual models are used in IS development for capturing and specifying requirements. However, the mere understanding of the syntax or semantics of a modeling language is not the most crucial factor. More relevant is pragmatic knowledge about the application domain. The problem that this paper addresses is how one can verify that a shared understanding of the application domain exists. In our study we show that domain-specific languages are an indicator for separating novices from experts in a given application domain. Novices and experts can be distinguished based on the domain-specific language they use. We demonstrate that these different language communities can be observed empirically by employing latent semantic analysis (LSA) as an instrument and by measuring semantic similarity. The separation of groups using LSA is also possible if the terminology, the application domain, or the expert-layperson-status of the examined group are unknown. Therefore the separation based on domain-specific languages is independent of the domain under consideration or the prior knowledge of the researcher. This provides a useful measurement instrument for studying the role of application domain knowledge in future research.
Theory of Detonation with an Embedded Sonic Locus

A steady planar self-sustained detonation has a sonic surface in the reaction zone that resides behind the lead shock. In this work we address the problem of generalizing sonic conditions for a three-dimensional unsteady self-sustained detonation wave. The conditions are proposed to be the characteristic compatibility conditions on the exceptional surface of the governing hyperbolic system of reactive Euler equations. Two equations are derived that are necessary to determine the motion of both the lead shock and the sonic surface. Detonation with an embedded sonic locus is thus treated as a two-front phenomenon: a reaction zone whose domain of influence is bounded by two surfaces, the lead shock surface and the trailing characteristic surface. The geometry of the two surfaces plays an important role in the underlying dynamics. We also discuss how the sonic conditions of detonation stability theory and detonation shock dynamics can be obtained as special cases of the general sonic conditions.
The Impact of a Blended Learning Approach on Instructor and Learner Satisfaction With Preceptor Education

To further enhance satisfaction and effectiveness, six pediatric hospitals created a blended learning approach to preceptor role preparation. In this blended approach, foundational content was delivered via online learning, allowing the classroom instructors to focus more on experiential learning activities. Both preceptor-learners and classroom instructors were asked to complete an evaluation of their experiences. This article describes the results and implications.
Role of Long-Acting Injectable Second-Generation Antipsychotics in the Treatment of First-Episode Schizophrenia: A Clinical Perspective

Approximately 80% of patients with the first-episode schizophrenia reach symptomatic remission after antipsychotic therapy. However, within two years most of them relapse, mainly due to low levels of insight into the illness and nonadherence to their oral medication. Therefore, although the formal data available is limited, many experts recommend prescribing long-acting injectable second-generation antipsychotics (mostly risperidone or alternatively paliperidone) in the early stages of schizophrenia, particularly in patients who have benefited from the original oral molecule in the past and agree to receive long-term injectable treatment. Early application of long-acting injectable second-generation antipsychotics can significantly reduce the risk of relapse in the future and thus improve not only the social and working potential of patients with schizophrenia but also their quality of life.
Avian Antimicrobial Host Defense Peptides: From Biology to Therapeutic Applications

Host defense peptides (HDPs) are an important first line of defense with antimicrobial and immunomoduatory properties. Because they act on the microbial membranes or host immune cells, HDPs pose a low risk of triggering microbial resistance and therefore, are being actively investigated as a novel class of antimicrobials and vaccine adjuvants. Cathelicidins and β-defensins are two major families of HDPs in avian species. More than a dozen HDPs exist in birds, with the genes in each HDP family clustered in a single chromosomal segment, apparently as a result of gene duplication and diversification. In contrast to their mammalian counterparts that adopt various spatial conformations, mature avian cathelicidins are mostly α-helical. Avian β-defensins, on the other hand, adopt triple-stranded β-sheet structures similar to their mammalian relatives. Besides classical β-defensins, a group of avian-specific β-defensin-related peptides, namely ovodefensins, exist with a different six-cysteine motif. Like their mammalian counterparts, avian cathelicidins and defensins are derived from either myeloid or epithelial origin expressed in a majority of tissues with broad-spectrum antibacterial and immune regulatory activities. Structure-function relationship studies with several avian HDPs have led to identification of the peptide analogs with potential for use as antimicrobials and vaccine adjuvants. Dietary modulation of endogenous HDP synthesis has also emerged as a promising alternative approach to disease control and prevention in chickens.
The ESO-Sculptor Faint Galaxy Redshift Survey: The Photometric Sample

We present the photometric sample of a faint galaxy survey carried out in the southern hemisphere, using CCDs on the 3.60m and NTT-3.5m telescopes at La Silla (ESO). The survey area is a continuous strip of 0.2 deg x 1.53 deg located at high galactic latitude (-83 deg) in the Sculptor constellation. The photometric survey provides total magnitudes in the bands B, V (Johnson) and R (Cousins) to limiting magnitudes of 24.5, 24.0, 23.5 respectively. To these limits, the catalog contains about 9500, 12150, 13000 galaxies in B, V, R bands respectively and is the first large digital multi-colour photometric catalog at this depth. This photometric survey also provides the entry catalog for a fully-sampled redshift survey of ~ 700 galaxies with R < 20.5 (Bellanger et al. 1995). In this paper, we describe the photometric observations and the steps used in the data reduction. The analysis of objects and the star-galaxy separation with a neural network are performed using SExtractor, a new photometric software developed by E. Bertin (1996). The photometric accuracy of the resulting catalog is ~ 0.05 mag for R < 22. The differential galaxy number counts in B, V, R are in good agreement with previously published CCD studies and confirm the evidence for significant evolution at faint magnitudes as compared to a standard non evolving model (by factors 3.6, 2.6, 2.1). The galaxy colour distributions B-R, B-V of our sample show a blueing trend of ~ 0.5 mag between 21 < R < 23.5 in contrast to the V-R colour distribution where no significant evolution is observed.
Turbulence Model Selection for Low Reynolds Number Flows

One of the major flow phenomena associated with low Reynolds number flow is the formation of separation bubbles on an airfoil’s surface. NACA4415 airfoil is commonly used in wind turbines and UAV applications. The stall characteristics are gradual compared to thin airfoils. The primary criterion set for this work is the capture of laminar separation bubble. Flow is simulated for a Reynolds number of 120,000. The numerical analysis carried out shows the advantages and disadvantages of a few turbulence models. The turbulence models tested were: one equation Spallart Allmars (S-A), two equation SST K-ω, three equation Intermittency (γ) SST, k-kl-ω and finally, the four equation transition γ-Reθ SST. However, the variation in flow physics differs between these turbulence models. Procedure to establish the accuracy of the simulation, in accord with previous experimental results, has been discussed in detail.
Adipose Macrophage Infiltration Is Associated With Insulin Resistance and Vascular Endothelial Dysfunction in Obese Subjects

Objective—Experimental studies suggest that adipose inflammation is etiologically linked to obesity-induced systemic disease. Our goal was to characterize the state of inflammation in human fat in relation to vascular function and metabolic parameters in obese individuals. Methods and Results—We collected subcutaneous abdominal fat in 77 obese subjects (BMI ≥30 kg/m2) and quantified adipose macrophage population using targeted immunohistochemistry. Brachial artery vasodilator function was examined using high-resolution vascular ultrasound. In 50 subjects, an inflamed adipose phenotype characterized by tissue macrophage accumulation in crown-like structures was associated with systemic hyperinsulinemia and insulin resistance (HOMA-IR 5.5±4.5 versus 2.6±1.9, P=0.002) and impaired endothelium-dependent flow-mediated vasodilation (8.5±4.4% versus 10.8±3.8%, P<0.05), as compared to subjects with quiescent noninflamed adipose architecture (n=27). Macrophage retention in fat was linked to upregulated tissue CD68 and tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-&agr; mRNA expression in addition to increased plasma hs-CRP. Conclusions—In a cohort of obese subjects, we demonstrate that proinflammatory changes in adipose tissue are associated with systemic arterial dysfunction and insulin resistance. These findings suggest that adipose inflammation may be linked to vascular injury and increased cardiovascular risk in obese subjects.
Cell size and nucleoid organization of engineered Escherichia coli cells with a reduced genome

The minimization of a genome is necessary to identify experimentally the minimal gene set that contains only those genes that are essential and sufficient to sustain a functioning cell. Recent developments in genetic techniques have made it possible to generate bacteria with a markedly reduced genome. We developed a simple system for formation of markerless chromosomal deletions, and constructed and characterized a series of large‐scale chromosomal deletion mutants of Escherichia coli that lack between 2.4 and 29.7% of the parental chromosome. Combining deletion mutations changes cell length and width, and the mutant cells with larger deletions were even longer and wider than the parental cells. The nucleoid organization of the mutants is also changed: the nucleoids occur as multiple small nucleoids and are localized peripherally near the envelope. Inhibition of translation causes them to condense into one or two packed nucleoids, suggesting that the coupling of transcription and translation of membrane proteins peripherally localizes chromosomes. Because these phenotypes are similar to those of spherical cells, those may be a consequence of the morphological change. Based on the nucleoid localization observed with these mutants, we discuss the cellular nucleoid dynamics.
Inhibition of LRRK2 kinase activity leads to dephosphorylation of Ser910/Ser935, disruption of 14-3-3 binding and altered cytoplasmic localization

LRRK2 (leucine-rich repeat protein kinase 2) is mutated in a significant number of Parkinson's disease patients. Since a common mutation that replaces Gly2019 with a serine residue enhances kinase catalytic activity, small-molecule LRRK2 inhibitors might have utility in treating Parkinson's disease. However, the effectiveness of inhibitors is difficult to assess, as no physiological substrates or downstream effectors have been identified that could be exploited to develop a robust cell-based assay. We recently established that LRRK2 bound 14-3-3 protein isoforms via its phosphorylation of Ser910 and Ser935. In the present study we show that treatment of Swiss 3T3 cells or lymphoblastoid cells derived from control or a Parkinson's disease patient harbouring a homozygous LRRK2(G2019S) mutation with two structurally unrelated inhibitors of LRRK2 (H-1152 or sunitinib) induced dephosphorylation of endogenous LRRK2 at Ser910 and Ser935, thereby disrupting 14-3-3 interaction. Our results suggest that H-1152 and sunitinib induce dephosphorylation of Ser910 and Ser935 by inhibiting LRRK2 kinase activity, as these compounds failed to induce significant dephosphorylation of a drug-resistant LRRK2(A2016T) mutant. Moreover, consistent with the finding that non-14-3-3-binding mutants of LRRK2 accumulated within discrete cytoplasmic pools resembling inclusion bodies, we observed that H-1152 causes LRRK2 to accumulate within inclusion bodies. These findings indicate that dephosphorylation of Ser910/Ser935, disruption of 14-3-3 binding and/or monitoring LRRK2 cytoplasmic localization can be used as an assay to assess the relative activity of LRRK2 inhibitors in vivo. These results will aid the elaboration and evaluation of LRRK2 inhibitors. They will also stimulate further research to understand how phosphorylation of Ser910 and Ser935 is controlled by LRRK2, and establish any relationship to development of Parkinson's disease.
Elegance in Game Design

This paper explores notions of elegance and shibui in combinatorial game design, and describes simple computational models for their estimation. Elegance is related to a game's simplicity, clarity, and efficiency, while shibui is a more complex concept from Japanese aesthetics that also incorporates depth. These provide new metrics for quantifying and categorizing games that are largely independent of existing measurements such as tractability and quality. Relevant ideas from Western and Eastern aesthetics are introduced, the meaning of elegance and shibui in combinatorial games is examined, and methods for estimating these values empirically are derived from complexity analyses. Elegance and shibui scores are calculated for a number of example games, for comparison. Preliminary results indicate shibui estimates to be more reliable than elegance estimates.
Surface velocity in three-dimensional granular tumblers

A fundamental characteristic of granular flows is that they are typically restricted to thin layers of rapid surface flow. Thus, a complete understanding of surface flows is key for an accurate representation of the dynamics of the entire flow. Experiments were conducted in three-dimensional tumblers: cylindrical tumblers of various diameters, a double-cone tumbler, and a spherical tumbler, the Froude number for the last two being a function of the local geometry and ranging from $2.6\times10^{-5}$ to $7.5\times10^{-4}$. Surface velocity measurements for 1 mm and 2 mm glass particles were obtained using particle tracking velocimetry. Results indicate that the streamwise surface velocity at the midpoint of the flowing layer is a linear function of local flowing layer length, regardless of tumbler shape, particle size, rotation rate, and fill fraction. In addition, the axial velocity of particles at the free surface is negligible. These results are key for the development of three-dimensional models of granular flows.
Uncertain Sightings and the Extinction of the Ivory‐Billed Woodpecker

Abstract: The extinction of a species can be inferred from a record of its sightings. Existing methods for doing so assume that all sightings in the record are valid. Often, however, there are sightings of uncertain validity. To date, uncertain sightings have been treated in an ad hoc way, either excluding them from the record or including them as if they were certain. We developed a Bayesian method that formally accounts for such uncertain sightings. The method assumes that valid and invalid sightings follow independent Poisson processes and use noninformative prior distributions for the rate of valid sightings and for a measure of the quality of uncertain sightings. We applied the method to a recently published record of sightings of the Ivory‐billed Woodpecker (Campephilus principalis). This record covers the period 1897–2010 and contains 39 sightings classified as certain and 29 classified as uncertain. The Bayes factor in favor of extinction was 4.03, which constitutes substantial support for extinction. The posterior distribution of the time of extinction has 3 main modes in 1944, 1952, and 1988. The method can be applied to sighting records of other purportedly extinct species.
Relationship between the positive temperature coefficient of resistivity and dynamic rheological behavior for carbon black-filled high-density polyethylene

Studies on the relationship between resistivity and dynamic rheological properties of carbon black-filled high-density polyethylene (CB/HDPE) composites were carried out. Change of resistivity p is associated with the dynamic modulus before the positive temperature coefficient/negative temperature coefficient (PTC/NTC) transition temperature. When the temperature approaches the melting point of HDPE, p increases rapidly with a decreasing modulus, corresponding to PTC transition. The resistivity-dynamic viscoelasticity relationship in the PTC region can be divided into two parts in which the changes of p with storage modulus G' and loss modulus G can be described by the scaling laws given by the critical storage modulus and loss modulus G' c and G c ; adjustable parameters p' 1c , P' 2c , P 1c and p 2C ; and nonlinear exponents n and m, respectively. The accordance between the experimental data and the scaling functions of the dimensionless quantities (G'/G' c - 1) and (G/G c - 1) in the PTC transition region suggests that the p jump may be the result of a modulus-induced percolation. G' c and G c increase, but the four scaling resistivitis, p' 1c , p' 2c , p 1c , and p 2c , decrease with increasing CB concentration, implying that the microstructure change of the composites is the determinant factor for the PTC behavior and the resistivity-dynamic modulus relationship. However, p' 2c, and p 2c exhibit no scaling dependence. It is suggested that a threshold concentration exists for the modulus of the composites on the basis of examining the plot of both G' c and G c against CB concentration. The scaling laws G' Φ x and G ∼ Φ y hold for the concentration dependence of the critical modulus when Φ > Φ c and the estimated values of x and y are 1.10 ± 0.10 and 0.89 ± 0.29, respectively. The resistivity-dynamic modulus can shift to form a master curve. The horizontal factors a G . and a G . and the vertical factors a' and a are relevant to the concentration dependence of the dynamic modulus or PTC behavior. It is believed that the former would be involved in changing the mechanical microstructure formed by the complicated interaction of CB particle and polymer segments, and the latter would be involved in the overall changes of conducting a network during the PTC transition region.
Constructing Logical Models of Gene Regulatory Networks by Integrating Transcription Factor-DNA Interactions with Expression Data: An Entropy-Based Approach

Models of gene regulatory networks (GRNs) attempt to explain the complex processes that determine cells' behavior, such as differentiation, metabolism, and the cell cycle. The advent of high-throughput data generation technologies has allowed researchers to fit theoretical models to experimental data on gene-expression profiles. GRNs are often represented using logical models. These models require that real-valued measurements be converted to discrete levels, such as on/off, but the discretization often introduces inconsistencies into the data. Dimitrova et al. posed the problem of efficiently finding a parsimonious resolution of the introduced inconsistencies. We show that reconstruction of a logical GRN that minimizes the errors is NP-complete, so that an efficient exact algorithm for the problem is not likely to exist. We present a probabilistic formulation of the problem that circumvents discretization of expression data. We phrase the problem of error reduction as a minimum entropy problem, develop a heuristic algorithm for it, and evaluate its performance on mouse embryonic stem cell data. The constructed model displays high consistency with prior biological knowledge. Despite the oversimplification of a discrete model, we show that it is superior to raw experimental measurements and demonstrates a highly significant level of identical regulatory logic among co-regulated genes. A software implementing the method is freely available at: http://acgt.cs. tau.ac. il/modent.