Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Legion: Enriching Internet Services with Peer-to-Peer Interactions

Many web applications are built around direct interactions among users, from collaborative applications and social networks to multi-user games. Despite being user-centric, these applications are usually supported by services running on servers that mediate all interactions among clients. When users are in close vicinity of each other, relying on a centralized infrastructure for mediating user interactions leads to unnecessarily high latency while hampering fault-tolerance and scalability. In this paper, we propose to extend user-centric Internet services with peer-to-peer interactions. We have designed a framework named Legion that enables client web applications to securely replicate data from servers, and synchronize these replicas directly among them. Legion allows for client-side modules, that we dub adapters, to leverage existing web platforms for storing data and to assist in Legion operation. Using these adapters, legacy applications accessing directly the web platforms can co-exist with new applications that use our framework, while accessing the same shared objects.Our experimental evaluation shows that, besides supporting direct client interactions, even when disconnected from the servers, Legion provides lower latency for update propagation with decreased network traffic for servers.
INTERACTION OF ESTROGEN AND PROGESTERONE IN CHICK OVIDUCT DEVELOPMENT

Administration of estrogen (E) to immature chicks triggers the cytodifferentiation of tubular gland cells in the magnum portion of the oviduct epithelium; these cells synthesize the major egg-white protein, ovalbumin. Electron microscopy and immunoprecipitation of ovalbumin from oviduct explants labeled with radioactive amino acids in tissue culture were used to follow and measure the degree of tubular gland cell cytodifferentiation. Ovalbumin is undetectable in the unstimulated chick oviduct and in oviducts of chicks treated with progesterone (P) for up to 5 days. Ovalbumin synthesis is first detected 24 hr after E administration, and by 5 days it accounts for 35% of the soluble protein being synthesized. Tubular gland cells begin to synthesize ovalbumin before gland formation which commences after 36 hr of E treatment. When E + P are administered together there is initially a synergistic effect on ovalbumin synthesis, however, after 2 days ovalbumin synthesis slows and by 5 days there is only 1/20th as much ovalbumin per magnum as in the E-treated controls. Whereas the magnum wet weight doubles about every 21 hr with E alone, growth stops after 3 days of E + P treatment. Histological and ultrastructural observations show that the partially differentiated tubular gland cells resulting from E + P treatment never invade the stroma and form definitive glands, as they would with E alone. Instead, these cells appear to transform into other cell types—some with cilia and some with unusual flocculent granules. We present a model of tubular gland cell cytodifferentiation and suggest that a distinct protodifferentiated stage exists. P appears to interfere with the normal transition from the protodifferentiated state to the mature tubular gland cell.
Mutations of the Caenorhabditis elegansBrain-Specific Inorganic Phosphate Transporter eat-4Affect Habituation of the Tap–Withdrawal Response without Affecting the Response Itself

The studies reported here were designed to investigate the role of the mutation eat-4 in the response to tap and in habituation in the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans. InC. elegans eat-4 has been found to affect a number of glutamatergic pathways. It has been hypothesized to positively regulate glutaminase activity and therefore glutamatergic neurotransmission. In the eat-4(ky5) loss-of-function worms, there is presumably insufficient glutamate available for sustained transmission. In the experiments reported here eat-4 worms showed no differences from wild-type in the magnitude of response to a single tap, indicating that the neural circuit underlying the response was intact and functional in the mutant worms. However, wheneat-4 worms were given repeated taps the resulting habituation was different from that seen in wild-type worms:eat-4 worms habituate more rapidly and recover more slowly than wild-type worms at all interstimulus intervals tested. In addition, eat-4 worms do not show dishabituation. The same transgene rescues pharyngeal activity defects and both the habituation and dishabituation deficits seen in theeat-4 worms. Our results suggest that neurotransmitter regulation plays a role in habituation and may play a role in dishabituation.
Evaluation of SNR for AWGN, Rayleigh and Rician Fading Channels Under DPSK Modulation Scheme with Constant BER

With the growing demand in modern communication, it has become necessary to give better and efficient service to users by using better technique. Technique such as Amplitude Shift Keying (ASK), Frequency Shift Keying (FSK), Phase Shift Keying (PSK), Differential Phase shift Keying (DPSK) and Quadrature Amplitude Modulation (QAM) are very important parts of the implementation of modern communications systems in which DPSK is the simplest and most robust of all techniques. In this paper, evaluation of SNR in terms of constant bit error rate is performed on AWGN, Rayleigh and Rician fading channels. Among these channels, Rician is showing better performance as compared to AWGN and Rayleigh.
Relationship between Anaerobic Power and Jumping of Selected Male Volleyball Players of Different Ages

The aim of the present study was to evaluate the anaerobic power of elite male volleyball players, using the Wingate Anaerobic Test to examine the relationship between anaerobic power and jumping performance. Athletes (n = 56) and Nonathletes (n = 53) were divided into three age groups: Adults (18–25 yr.), Juniors (15–16 yr.), and Youth (10–11 yr.). Measurements of height, body mass, vertical jump and Wingate scores indicated higher values for athletes. The specific training effects of anaerobic power were more pronounced at the age of 10–11 years than for Nonathletes. A significant correlation coefficient between peak power and vertical jump was found for Athletes (r = .86) and for the total group (r = .82). These results indicated that vertical jump may predict the maximal anaerobic power and could be used by coaches as a practical and easy-to-apply field screening test for evaluation in volleyball training.
Temporal stress variations along a seismogenic megasplay fault in the subduction zone: An example from the Nobeoka Thrust, southwestern Japan

The Nobeoka Thrust, an ancient megasplay fault in the Shimanto Belt, southwestern Japan, contains fault rocks from the seismogenic zone, providing an accessible analog of active megasplay faults in deep subduction settings. In this study, the paleostress along the Nobeoka Thrust was analyzed using multiple inversion techniques, including k‐means clustering of fault datasets acquired from drillcores that intersected the thrust. The six resultant stress orientation clusters can be divided into two general groups: stress solutions with north–south‐trending σ1 axes, and those with east–west‐trending σ1 axes. These groups are characterized by the temporal changes for the orientations of the σ1 and σ3 principal stress axes that involve alternation between horizontal and vertical. The findings are probably due to a change in stress state before and after earthquakes that occurred on the fault; similar changes have been observed in active tectonic settings, such as the 2011 Tohoku‐Oki earthquake (Japan).
Improved MRI R2* relaxometry of iron‐loaded liver with noise correction

Accurate and reproducible MRI R2* relaxometry for tissue iron quantification is important in managing transfusion‐dependent patients. MRI data are often acquired using array coils and reconstructed by the root‐sum‐square algorithm, and as such, measured signals follow the noncentral chi distribution. In this study, two noise‐corrected models were proposed for the liver R2* quantification: fitting the signal to the first moment and fitting the squared signal to the second moment in the presence of the noncentral chi noise. These two models were compared with the widely implemented offset and truncation models on both simulation and in vivo data. The results demonstrated that the “slow decay component” of the liver R2* was mainly caused by the noise. The offset model considerably overestimated R2* values by incorrectly adding a constant to account for the slow decay component. The truncation model generally produced accurate R2* measurements by only fitting the initial data well above the noise level to remove the major source of errors, but underestimated very high R2* values due to the sequence limit of obtaining very short echo time images. Both the first and second‐moment noise‐corrected models constantly produced accurate and precise R2* measurements by correctly addressing the noise problem. Magn Reson Med 70:1765–1774, 2013. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Intestinal Uptake of Retinol in Suckling Rats: Characteristics and Ontogeny

ABSTRACT: Uptake of retinol in the developing intestine of suckling rats (14–15 day old) and its maturation in adult rats (90 day old) was examined using intestinal everted sacs. Uptake of retinol (0.06 μM) in the jejunum of suckling and adult rats was linear for 5 min incubation and occurred at a rate of 31.20 and 6.98 pmol/g tissue/min, respectively. In both age groups, uptake of retinol (0.06 μM) was significantly higher (p < 0.01) in the jejunum than the ileum. Uptake of retinol was significantly higher (p < 0.01) in suckling rats as compared to adult rats both in the jejunum and the ileum. In both suckling and adult rats, the uptake of retinol in the jejunum was 1) saturable with a Vmax value of 19.78 and 6.24 nmol/g tissue/5 min and an apparent Km value of 16.20 and 8.19 μM, respectively, 2) not affected by metabolic inhibitors, and 3) partially temperature dependent (Q10 = 2.51 and 1.92, respectively). The structural analogues retinal (50 μM) and retinoic acid (50 μM) did not affect the uptake of [3H] retinol (0.06 μM) whereas unlabeled retinol (50 μM) caused significant (p < 0.01) inhibition. No difference in retinol metabolism by intestinal tissue was observed in the two age groups. These results demonstrate that retinol uptake in suckling rats is similar to that of adult rats in being a passive carrier-mediated process. The results also suggest that a decrease in the number and/or activity and an increase in the affinity of the uptake system of retinol occurs with maturation.
Rate-Control Treatment and Mortality in Atrial Fibrillation

Background— Current American and European guidelines emphasize the importance of rate-control treatments in treating atrial fibrillation with a Class I recommendation, although data on the survival benefits of rate control are lacking. The goal of the present study was to investigate whether patients receiving rate-control drugs had a better prognosis compared with those without rate-control treatment. Methods and Results— This study used the National Health Insurance Research Database in Taiwan. There were 43 879, 18 466, and 38 898 patients with atrial fibrillation enrolled in the groups receiving &bgr;-blockers, calcium channel blockers, and digoxin, respectively. The reference group consisted of 168 678 subjects who did not receive any rate-control drug. The clinical end point was all-cause mortality. During a follow-up of 4.9±3.7 years, mortality occurred in 88 263 patients (32.7%). After adjustment for baseline differences, the risk of mortality was lower in patients receiving &bgr;-blockers (adjusted hazard ratio=0.76; 95% confidence interval=0.74–0.78) and calcium channel blockers (adjusted hazard ratio=0.93; 95% confidence interval=0.90–0.96) compared with those who did not receive rate-control medications. On the contrary, the digoxin group had a higher risk of mortality with an adjusted hazard ratio of 1.12 (95% confidence interval=1.10–1.14). The results were observed consistently in subgroup analyses and among the cohorts after propensity matching. Conclusions— In this nationwide atrial fibrillation cohort, the risk of mortality was lower for patients receiving rate-control treatment with &bgr;-blockers or calcium channel blockers, and the use of &bgr;-blockers was associated with the largest risk reduction. Digoxin use was associated with greater mortality. Prospective, randomized trials are necessary to confirm these findings.
Specific versus Nonspecific Brain Activity in a Parametric N-Back Task

In this study functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) was used to examine cerebral activity patterns in relation to increasing mental load of a working memory task. Aim of the experiment was to distinguish nonspecific task-related processes from specific workload processes analytically. Twelve healthy volunteers engaged in a spatial n-back task with four levels. FMRI data were acquired with the 3D-PRESTO pulse sequence. Analysis entailed a two-step multiple regression algorithm, which was specifically designed to measure and separate load-sensitive and load-insensitive activity simultaneously, while preserving the original high spatial resolution of the fMRI signal. Load-sensitive and load-insensitive activity was found in both dorsolateral-prefrontal and parietal cortex, predominantly bilaterally, and in the anterior cingulate. As expected, the left primary sensorimotor cortex showed predominantly load-insensitive activity. Load-sensitive activity reflects specific working memory functions, such as temporary retention and manipulation of information, while load-insensitive activity reflects supportive functions, such as visual orientation, perception, encoding, and response selection and execution. Good performance was correlated with a large area of load-sensitive activity in anterior cingulate, and with a small area of load-insensitive activity in the right parietal cortex. The findings indicate that nonspecific and specific working memory processes colocalize and are represented in multiple frontal and parietal regions. Implication of this analytical strategy for application in research on psychiatric disorders is discussed.
Moving Focus from Weight to Health. What Are the Components Used in Interventions to Improve Cardiovascular Health in Children?

Introduction Obesity in childhood impacts on many areas of the child’s current and future health, including their cardiovascular health. To date many attempts have been made to design interventions to tackle excess childhood weight but with limited success. We aimed to establish the components common to interventions in children that improve cardiovascular health parameters. Methods We searched the following databases: EMBASE 1974-week 3 November 2014, Ovid Medline 1946 Present, and PsychINFO 1967-Present for studies reporting interventions in healthy young people under the age of 18. Included interventions had to contain an education component and have been carried out in a community, school, or clinical setting. Papers had to report on at least one of the pre-specified CVD risk parameters and at least one non-biological outcome from knowledge, attitudes or behaviours. Results We retrieved 2451 papers, from which 12 studies (18 papers) of 3046 participants were included. From the selected papers we identified four component themes; Health Behaviours, Self-Concept, Practical and Cognitive Tools, and Intervention Characteristics. The subcomponents that made up these themes were fairly consistent across the studies analysed although the studies varied in their duration, settings and children with which they were carried out. Nine of the studies were able to bring about positive change in at least one biological and one non-biological aspect of child cardiovascular health. Conclusion The component themes identified here were common to intervention studies that had success in improving parameters of cardiovascular health. We suggest that the focus of childhood health interventions be moved from weight onto cardiovascular health parameters and that future interventions use the lessons learned by their predecessors to incorporate those components that are associated with successful interventions.
Synchronizing chromosome segregation by flux-dependent force equalization at kinetochores

The synchronous movement of chromosomes during anaphase ensures their correct inheritance in every cell division. This reflects the uniformity of spindle forces acting on chromosomes and their simultaneous entry into anaphase. Although anaphase onset is controlled by the spindle assembly checkpoint, it remains unknown how spindle forces are uniformly distributed among different chromosomes. In this paper, we show that tension uniformity at metaphase kinetochores and subsequent anaphase synchrony in Drosophila S2 cells are promoted by spindle microtubule flux. These results can be explained by a mechanical model of the spindle where microtubule poleward translocation events associated with flux reflect relaxation of the kinetochore–microtubule interface, which accounts for the redistribution and convergence of kinetochore tensions in a timescale comparable to typical metaphase duration. As predicted by the model, experimental acceleration of mitosis precludes tension equalization and anaphase synchrony. We propose that flux-dependent equalization of kinetochore tensions ensures a timely and uniform maturation of kinetochore–microtubule interfaces necessary for error-free and coordinated segregation of chromosomes in anaphase.
Minimum risk thresholds for data with heavy noise

In the estimation of data with many zeros (sparse data), such as wavelet coefficients, thresholding is a common technique. This letter investigates the behavior of the minimum risk threshold for large values of the noise standard deviation. It finds that the threshold depends quadratically on the noise standard deviation. The relevance of this result is situated in the context of both Bayesian and universal thresholding.
GTI at SemEval-2016 Task 5: SVM and CRF for Aspect Detection and Unsupervised Aspect-Based Sentiment Analysis

This paper describes in detail the approach carried out by the GTI research group for SemEval 2016 Task 5: Aspect-Based Sentiment Analysis, for the different subtasks proposed, as well as languages and dataset contexts. In particular, we developed a system for category detection based on SVM. Then for the opinion target detection task we developed a system based on CRFs. Both are built for restaurants domain in English and Spanish languages. Finally for aspect-based sentiment analysis we carried out an unsupervised approach based on lexicons and syntactic dependencies, in English language for laptops and restaurants domains.
Naming the Past: Named Entity and Animacy Recognition in 19th Century Swedish Literature

This paper provides a description and evaluation of a generic named-entity recognition (NER) system for Swedish applied to electronic versions of Swedish literary classics from the 19th century. We discuss the challenges posed by these texts and the necessary adaptations introduced into the NER system in order to achieve accurate results, useful both for metadata generation, but also for the enhancement of the searching and browsing capabilities of Litteraturbanken, the Swedish Literature Bank, an ongoing cultural heritage project which aims to digitize significant works of Swedish literature.
Angiotensin II–Mediated Phenotypic Cardiomyocyte Remodeling Leads to Age-Dependent Cardiac Dysfunction and Failure

Chronic elevation of plasma angiotensin II (Ang II) is detrimental to the heart. In addition to its hemodynamic effects, Ang II exerts cardiotrophic actions that contribute to cardiomyocyte remodeling. However, it remains to be clarified whether these direct actions of Ang II are sufficient to cause contractile dysfunction and heart failure in the absence of altered hemodynamic conditions. In this study, we used TG1306/1R (TG) mice that develop Ang II–mediated cardiac hypertrophy in absence of elevated blood pressure to investigate the phenotypic changes in cardiomyocytes during the adaptive response to chronic cardiac-specific endogenous Ang II stimulation. A 94-week longitudinal study demonstrated that TG mice develop dilated cardiomyopathy with aging and exhibit a significant increase in mortality compared with wild-type (WT) mice. Cardiac hypertrophy in TG mice is associated with cardiomyocyte hypertrophy (15 to 20 weeks: length +20%; 35 to 40 weeks: length +10%, width +15%) but not collagen deposition. In vivo analysis of cardiac function revealed age-dependent systolic and diastolic dysfunction in TG mice (≈45% reduction in dP/dtmax and dP/dtmin at 50 to 60 weeks of age compared with WT). Analysis of isolated cardiomyocyte isotonic shortening showed impaired contractility in TG cardiomyocytes (30% to 40% decrease in rates of shortening and lengthening). In TG hearts, chronic Ang II exposure induced downregulation of the sarcoplasmic reticulum calcium pump (SERCA2) and diminution of Ca2+ transients, indicative of an underlying disturbance in calcium homeostasis. In conclusion, chronic Ang II myocardial stimulation without hemodynamic overload is sufficient to produce cardiomyocyte and cardiac dysfunction culminating in heart failure.
Dynamical Adaptation in Photoreceptors

Adaptation is at the heart of sensation and nowhere is it more salient than in early visual processing. Light adaptation in photoreceptors is doubly dynamical: it depends upon the temporal structure of the input and it affects the temporal structure of the response. We introduce a non-linear dynamical adaptation model of photoreceptors. It is simple enough that it can be solved exactly and simulated with ease; analytical and numerical approaches combined provide both intuition on the behavior of dynamical adaptation and quantitative results to be compared with data. Yet the model is rich enough to capture intricate phenomenology. First, we show that it reproduces the known phenomenology of light response and short-term adaptation. Second, we present new recordings and demonstrate that the model reproduces cone response with great precision. Third, we derive a number of predictions on the response of photoreceptors to sophisticated stimuli such as periodic inputs, various forms of flickering inputs, and natural inputs. In particular, we demonstrate that photoreceptors undergo rapid adaptation of response gain and time scale, over ∼ 300 ms—i. e. , over the time scale of the response itself—and we confirm this prediction with data. For natural inputs, this fast adaptation can modulate the response gain more than tenfold and is hence physiologically relevant.
Synchronized phasor measurements of a power system event in eastern Denmark

Two sets of synchronized phasor measurements 200km apart have been performed during a planned outage of a double 400-kV tie-line between Eastern Denmark and Southern Sweden. The interconnection between Eastern Denmark and Southern Sweden is comprised of a double 400-kV line and a double 132-kV line. The outage of the 400-kV tie-line weakened the Eastern Danish power system and excited power oscillations in the interconnected power systems. During this event prototype, phasor measurements units gave the opportunity of real-time monitoring of positive sequence voltage and current phasors using the satellite-based global positioning system. Comparisons between real-time recordings and results from dynamic simulations with Power System Simulator for Engineering are presented. The main features from the simulation analysis are successfully verified by means of the corresponding synchronized phasor measurements.