Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Regularizing Long Short Term Memory with 3D Human-Skeleton Sequences for Action Recognition

This paper argues that large-scale action recognition in video can be greatly improved by providing an additional modality in training data - namely, 3D human-skeleton sequences - aimed at complementing poorly represented or missing features of human actions in the training videos. For recognition, we use Long Short Term Memory (LSTM) grounded via a deep Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) onto the video. Training of LSTM is regularized using the output of another encoder LSTM (eLSTM) grounded on 3D human-skeleton training data. For such regularized training of LSTM, we modify the standard backpropagation through time (BPTT) in order to address the wellknown issues with gradient descent in constraint optimization. Our evaluation on three benchmark datasets - Sports-1M, HMDB-51, and UCF101 - shows accuracy improvements from 1.7% up to 14.8% relative to the state of the art.
Internal Universes in Models of Homotopy Type Theory

We show that universes of fibrations in various models of homotopy type theory have an essentially global character: they cannot be described in the internal language of the presheaf topos from which the model is constructed. We get around this problem by extending the internal language with a modal operator for expressing properties of global elements. In this setting we show how to construct a universe that classifies the Cohen-Coquand-Huber-M\"ortberg (CCHM) notion of fibration from their cubical sets model, starting from the assumption that the interval is tiny - a property that the interval in cubical sets does indeed have. This leads to a completely internal development of models of homotopy type theory within what we call crisp type theory.
Hemichannel-Mediated and pH-Based Feedback from Horizontal Cells to Cones in the Vertebrate Retina

Background Recent studies designed to identify the mechanism by which retinal horizontal cells communicate with cones have implicated two processes. According to one account, horizontal cell hyperpolarization induces an increase in pH within the synaptic cleft that activates the calcium current (Ca2+-current) in cones, enhancing transmitter release. An alternative account suggests that horizontal cell hyperpolarization increases the Ca2+-current to promote transmitter release through a hemichannel-mediated ephaptic mechanism. Methodology/Principal Findings To distinguish between these mechanisms, we interfered with the pH regulating systems in the retina and studied the effects on the feedback responses of cones and horizontal cells. We found that the pH buffers HEPES and Tris partially inhibit feedback responses in cones and horizontal cells and lead to intracellular acidification of neurons. Application of 25 mM acetate, which does not change the extracellular pH buffer capacity, does lead to both intracellular acidification and inhibition of feedback. Because intracellular acidification is known to inhibit hemichannels, the key experiment used to test the pH hypothesis, i.e. increasing the extracellular pH buffer capacity, does not discriminate between a pH-based feedback system and a hemichannel-mediated feedback system. To test the pH hypothesis in a manner independent of artificial pH-buffer systems, we studied the effect of interfering with the endogenous pH buffer, the bicarbonate/carbonic anhydrase system. Inhibition of carbonic anhydrase allowed for large changes in pH in the synaptic cleft of bipolar cell terminals and cone terminals, but the predicted enhancement of the cone feedback responses, according to the pH-hypothesis, was not observed. These experiments thus failed to support a proton mediated feedback mechanism. The alternative hypothesis, the hemichannel-mediated ephaptic feedback mechanism, was therefore studied experimentally, and its feasibility was buttressed by means of a quantitative computer model of the cone/horizontal cell synapse. Conclusion We conclude that the data presented in this paper offers further support for physiologically relevant ephaptic interactions in the retina.
T-bet Is Critical for the Development of Acute Graft-versus-Host Disease through Controlling T Cell Differentiation and Function

T-bet is a master regulator for IFN-γ production and Th1 differentiation. We evaluated the roles of T-bet and IFN-γ in T cell responses in acute graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) and found that T-bet−/− T cells induced significantly less GVHD compared with wild-type or IFN-γ−/− counterparts in both MHC-mismatched and MHC-matched but minor histocompatibility Ag–mismatched models driven by CD4 T cells. T-bet−/−, but not IFN-γ−/−, CD4 T cells had a markedly reduced ability to cause tissue damage in liver and gut. This distinct outcome is reflected by the differential gene expression on donor CD4 T cells deficient for T-bet or IFN-γ. At mRNA and protein levels, we defined several T-bet–dependent molecules that may account for the impaired ability of T-bet−/− T cells to migrate into target organs and to produce Th1-related cytokines. Moreover, these molecules were independent of either endogenous IFN-γ, such as CXCR3 and programmed death-1, or systematic IFN-γ, such as NKG2D, I-Ab, and granzyme B. Although both T-bet−/− and IFN-γ−/− CD4 T cells are prone to differentiate into Th17 cells, polarized Th17 cells deficient for T-bet but not for IFN-γ had a significantly reduced ability to cause GVHD. Finally, T-bet−/− T cells had a compromised graft-versus-leukemia effect, which could be essentially reversed by neutralization of IL-17 in the recipients. We conclude that T-bet is required for Th1 differentiation and migration, as well as for optimal function of Th17 cells. Thus, targeting T-bet or regulating its downstream effectors independent of IFN-γ may be a promising strategy to control GVHD in the clinic.
Fountain-Coding Aided Strategy for Secure Cooperative Transmission in Industrial Wireless Sensor Networks

Cooperative relaying communications is an efficient paradigm for end-to-end data delivery in industrial wireless sensor networks. However, due to the broadcast nature of radio propagation, it is challenging to guarantee the secrecy of cooperative transmissions under eavesdropping attacks. To deal with this issue, a fountain-coding aided relaying scheme is proposed in this paper, for which all the source packets are first encoded with fountain codes (FCs) and then transmitted over the channels. Based on the basic characteristic of FC transmissions, a sufficient number of coded packets have to be successfully received to recover the original data. Therefore, transmission secrecy is guaranteed if the legitimate receiver can accumulate the required number of FC packets before the eavesdropper does. To satisfy this condition, a cooperative jamming method is utilized to worsen the received signal quality at the eavesdropper. By applying the constellation rotation approach, the information-bearing signal and the jamming signal are designed carefully to reduce the negative effect of the jamming procedure on the legitimate receiver. To evaluate how the scheme behaves in wireless fading channels, the authors propose a novel performance metric, i.e., the quality-of-service violating probability (QVP), and derive its closed-form expression. Compared to the commonly used metrics in physical-layer security such as secrecy outage probability, QVP can give a more comprehensive performance evaluation for the system, including the delay, the reliability, and the security level as well. Finally, the theoretical analysis is validated by simulation results.
Cynicism about Organizational Change

A new construct called Cynicism About Organizational Change (CAOC) was proposed and distinguished from related concepts. The measure of CAOC was supported by confirmatory factor analysis and has acceptable internal consistency reliability. Potential antecedents (measured 21 months before the measurement of CAOC) were examined. Little support was found for CAOC having dispositional roots in one’s general negative affectivity. More support was found for CAOC being learned as a result of little previous change, ineffective leadership practices, and lack of participation in decisions. CAOC was negatively correlated with a concurrent measure of organizational change and with the motivation to keep on trying to support change efforts. In addition, CAOC was negatively correlated with factors outside the realm of change: organizational commitment and the number of labor grievances. Finally, CAOC weakened the instrumentality perception of the relationship between performing well and earning more money, while holding the actual pay system constant.
Effect of robot's active touch on people's motivation

This paper presents the effect of a robot's active touch for improving people's motivation. For services in the education and healthcare fields, a robot might be useful for improving the motivation of performing such repetitive and monotonous tasks as exercising or taking medicine. Previous research demonstrated with a robot the effect of user touch on improving its impressions, but they did not clarify whether a robot's touch, especially an active touch, has enough influence on people's motive. We implemented an active touch behavior and experimentally investigated its effect on motivation. In the experiment, a robot requested participants to perform a monotonous task with a robot's active touch, a passive touch, or no touch. The result of experiment showed that an active touch by a robot increased the number of working actions and the amount of working time for the task. This suggests that a robot's active touch can support people to improve their motivation. We believe that a robot's active touch behavior is useful for such robot's services as education and healthcare.
Compassionate mind training for people with high shame and self‐criticism: overview and pilot study of a group therapy approach

Compassionate mind training (CMT) was developed for people with high shame and self-criticism, whose problems tend to be chronic, and who find self-warmth and self-acceptance difficult and/or frightening. This paper offers a short overview of the role of shame and self-criticism in psychological difficulties, the importance of considering different types of affect system (activating versus soothing) and the theory and therapy process of CMT. The paper explores patient acceptability, understanding, abilities to utilize and practice compassion focused processes and the effectiveness of CMT from an uncontrolled trial. Six patients attending a cognitive–behavioural-based day centre for chronic difficulties completed 12 two-hour sessions in compassionate mind training. They were advised that this was part of a research programme to look at the process and effectiveness of CMT and to become active collaborators, advising the researchers on what was helpful and what was not. Results showed significant reductions in depression, anxiety, self-criticism, shame, inferiority and submissive behaviour. There was also a significant increase in the participants' ability to be self-soothing and focus on feelings of warmth and reassurance for the self. Compassionate mind training may be a useful addition for some patients with chronic difficulties, especially those from traumatic backgrounds, who may lack a sense of inner warmth or abilities to be self-soothing. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Orientation difference descriptor for aerial image classification

Texture plays a fundamental role in remote sensing image analysis and texture descriptors based on Gabor filter banks provide a reasonable baseline for aerial image classification. It is known that Gabor wavelet coefficients in different sub- bands are correlated and cross-correlations between Gabor wavelet coefficients at different scales have already been used for image classification. In this paper we propose using cross-correlations between Gabor wavelet coefficients at different orientations as a de- scriptor for aerial image classification. We extend our de- scriptor to color images using new quaternion representation based on symplectic decomposition. On currently the largest publicly available dataset of aerial images we show that the proposed descriptors obtain 85% correct classification rate thus improving state-of-the-art considerably.
Evidence supporting the use of recombinant activated factor VII in congenital bleeding disorders

Background: Recombinant activated factor VII (rFVIIa, NovoSeven®) was introduced in 1996 for the treatment of hemophilic patients with antibodies against coagulation factor VIII or IX. Objective: To review the evidence supporting the use of rFVIIa for the treatment of patients with congenital bleeding disorders. Patients and methods: English-language databases were searched in September 2009 for reports of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) evaluating the ability of rFVIIa to restore hemostasis in patients with congenital bleeding disorders. Results: Eight RCTs involving 256 hemophilic patients with antibodies against coagulation factors, also known as inhibitors, were identified. The evidence supporting the use of rFVIIa in these patients was weak with regard to dose, clinical setting, mode of administration, efficacy, and adverse events, given the limited sample size of each RCT and the heterogeneity of the studies. Conclusion: The authors suggest that rFVIIa therapy in hemophilic patients with inhibitors should be based on the individual’s ability to generate thrombin and form a clot, and not on the patient’s weight alone. Therefore, assays for thrombin generation, such as whole-blood thromboelastography, have the potential to significantly improve the treatment of these patients.
Recovery and Rehabilitation after Intracerebral Hemorrhage

Abstract About half of patients survive intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH), but most are left with significant disability. Rehabilitation after ICH is the mainstay of treatment to reduce impairment, improve independence in activities, and return patients to meaningful participation in the community. The authors discuss the neuroplastic mechanisms underlying recovery in ICH, preclinical and clinical interventional studies to augment recovery, and the rehabilitative and medical management of post-ICH patients.
Risk Factors for Herpes Simplex Virus Type 2 and HIV Among Women at High Risk in Northwestern Tanzania: Preparing for an HSV-2 Intervention Trial

Objectives:To determine prevalence of and risk factors for herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2) and HIV among women being screened for a randomized, controlled trial of HSV suppressive therapy in northwestern Tanzania. Methods:Two thousand seven hundred nineteen female facility workers aged 16 to 35 were interviewed and underwent serological testing for HIV and HSV-2. Factors associated with HSV-2 and HIV in women aged 16 to 24 were examined using logistic regression to estimate odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI). Results:HSV-2 seroprevalence was 80%, and HIV seroprevalence was 30%. Among women aged 16 to 24, both infections were significantly and independently associated with older age, being a bar worker, working at a truck stop, and having more lifetime sexual partners. HSV-2 infection was also associated with lower socioeconomic status, increased alcohol intake, younger age at first sex, inconsistent condom use, and vaginal douching. There was a strong association between the 2 infections after adjustment for other factors (OR = 4.22, 95% CI: 2.6 to 6.9). Conclusions:Female facility workers in northwestern Tanzania are vulnerable to HSV-2 and HIV infections. Programs designed to increase safer sexual behavior and reduce alcohol use could be effective in reducing HSV-2 incidence and, in turn, HIV infection. This is a suitable population for an HSV suppressive therapy trial.
If you aren’t talking about practices, don’t call it a practice-based view: Rejoinder to Bromiley and Rau in Strategic Organization

In this debate about the value of introducing a supposed “practice-based view of strategy,” we respond to Bromiley and Rau’s defense of their approach. Coming from a background of two decades of research on strategy-as-practice, we focus on two major concerns about their initiative. The first is that the very use of the term “practice” would seem to obfuscate more than elucidate, especially given their definition of “practice” which strongly deviates from that already established in the social sciences generally. The second is that, by applying the term “practice” to strategy specifically, it becomes incumbent upon Bromiley and Rau to engage with and build upon the extensive practice-related strategy research that has gone before them.
Pricing information goods: free vs. pay content

We analyze the incentives of a provider of information goods to offer a proportion of his product for free, when consumers are uncertain about the quality of the good. The provider faces the following trade-off. On the one hand, the free version of the product acts as a partially informative signal; the higher the proportion of the product which is offered for free, that is, the higher the size of the free version, the higher the probability that a consumer will discover the true quality of the good. On the other hand, the higher the size of the free version, the lower the willingness to pay for the remaining parts of the product. In a separating equilibrium, a low quality seller offers no free version and sets the perfect information optimal price, whereas a high quality seller offers a free version of his product to signal his quality. In a pooling equilibrium, both low and high quality sellers propose free versions of their products.
The Upright Body Position Increases Translaminar Pressure Gradient in Normotensive and Hypertensive Rats

ABSTRACT Aim: Several lines of evidence suggest that the pathogenesis of glaucoma may depend on an increased translaminar pressure gradient (TPG), the difference between intraocular and intracranial pressure (ICP), rather than on intraocular pressure (IOP) itself. It has also been suggested that high blood pressure might correlate with the incidence of glaucoma; however, the data are contradictory. Here, we studied the effect of arterial blood pressure and changes in body position on TPG in rats. Methods: Experiments were performed on anesthetized 15- to 16-week-old, male, spontaneously hypertensive rats (hypertensive rats, n = 10) and Wistar–Kyoto rats (normotensive rats, n = 10). Continuous recordings of intracranial and IOPs were performed before, during, and after changing the body position from horizontal to vertical. Results: At baseline, hypertensive rats had a significantly higher arterial blood pressure than normotensive rats, while intraocular and intracerebroventricular pressures and TPG did not differ between the groups. Changing the body position from horizontal to vertical produced a significant decrease in ICP, a nonsignificant decrease in IOP, and a significant increase in the TPG. There was no significant difference between normotensive and hypertensive rats in the pattern of changes in intraocular and intracerebroventricular pressures and TPG. Conclusions: Change in the body position from horizontal to vertical, but not hypertension, causes a significant increase in TPG in rats. If further studies confirm that TPG plays a role in the etiology of glaucoma, a vertical position and changes in the body position might be considered as debilitating factors.
Explaining Festival Impacts on a Hosting Community Through Motivations to Attend

Extant literature on social-cultural impacts of festivals traditionally takes into consideration perspectives of the host community while neglecting those of visitors, who often times comprise a high percent of total number of attendees at such expositions. Additionally, motivations of these visitors to attend festivals have rarely been considered in explaining perceived impacts among festival attendees. This study examined the underlying structures of motivations to attend the annual Morden Corn and Apple Festival, Manitoba, Canada among area residents and visitors as well as their perceived sociocultural impacts of the festival on community through a newly developed festival-attending motivation scale and modified Festival Social Impact Attitude Scale (FSIAS). Exploratory factor analysis and multiple regression results suggested that at least one motivation factor ( i.e., social interaction and /or knowledge gain) significantly predicted three of the four modified FSIAS factors.
Reduced gluteal expression of adipogenic and lipogenic genes in Black South African women is associated with obesity-related insulin resistance.

CONTEXT Black South African women are less insulin sensitive than their White counterparts, despite less central and greater peripheral fat deposition. We hypothesized that this paradox may be explained, in part, by differences in the adipogenic capacity of sc adipose tissue (SAT). OBJECTIVE Our objective was to measure adipogenic and lipogenic gene expression in abdominal and gluteal SAT depots and determine their relationships with insulin sensitivity (S(I)) in South African women. PARTICIPANTS AND DESIGN Fourteen normal-weight [body mass index (BMI) <25 kg/m(2)] Black, 13 normal-weight White, 14 obese (BMI >30 kg/m(2)) Black, and 13 obese White premenopausal South African women participated in this cross-sectional study. MAIN OUTCOMES S(I) (frequently sampled i.v. glucose tolerance test) in relation to expression of adipogenic and lipogenic genes in abdominal and gluteal SAT depots. RESULTS With increasing BMI, Black women had less visceral fat (P = 0.03) and more abdominal (P = 0.017) and gynoid (P = 0.041) SAT but had lower S(I) (P < 0.01) than White women. The expression of adipogenic and lipogenic genes was proportionately lower with obesity in Black but not White women in the gluteal and deep SAT depots (P < 0.05 for ethnicity × BMI effect). In Black women only, the expression of these genes correlated positively with S(I) (all P < 0.05), independently of age and fat mass. CONCLUSIONS Obese Black women have reduced SAT expression of adipogenic and lipogenic genes compared with White women, which associates with reduced S(I). These findings suggest that obesity in Black women impairs SAT adipogenesis and storage, potentially leading to insulin resistance and increased risk of type 2 diabetes.