Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Improving the classroom listening skills of children with Down syndrome by using sound-field amplification.

Many children with Down syndrome have fluctuating conductive hearing losses further reducing their speech, language and academic development. It is within the school environment where access to auditory information is crucial that many children with Down syndrome are especially disadvantaged. Conductive hearing impairment which is often fluctuating and undetected reduces the child's ability to extract the important information from the auditory signal. Unfortunately, the design and acoustics of the classroom leads to problems in extracting the speech signal through reduced speech intensity due to the increased distance of the student from the teacher in addition to masking from excessive background noise. One potential solution is the use of sound-field amplification which provides a uniform amplification to the teacher's voice through the use of a microphone and loudspeakers. This investigation examined the efficacy of sound-field amplification for 4 children with Down syndrome. Measures of speech perception were taken with and without the sound-field system and found that the children perceived significantly more speech in all conditions where the sound-field system was used (p < .0001). Importantly, listening performance with the sound-field system was not affected by reducing the signal-to-noise ratio through increasing the level of background noise. In summary, sound-field amplification provides improved access to the speech signal for children with Down syndrome and as a consequence leads to improved classroom success.
De Novo Transcriptome of Brassica juncea Seed Coat and Identification of Genes for the Biosynthesis of Flavonoids

Brassica juncea, a worldwide cultivated crop plant, produces seeds of different colors. Seed pigmentation is due to the deposition in endothelial cells of proanthocyanidins (PAs), end products from a branch of flavonoid biosynthetic pathway. To elucidate the gene regulatory network of seed pigmentation in B. juncea, transcriptomes in seed coat of a yellow-seeded inbred line and its brown-seeded near- isogenic line were sequenced using the next-generation sequencing platform Illumina/Solexa and de novo assembled. Over 116 million high-quality reads were assembled into 69,605 unigenes, of which about 71.5% (49,758 unigenes) were aligned to Nr protein database with a cut-off E-value of 10−5. RPKM analysis showed that the brown-seeded testa up-regulated 802 unigenes and down-regulated 502 unigenes as compared to the yellow-seeded one. Biological pathway analysis revealed the involvement of forty six unigenes in flavonoid biosynthesis. The unigenes encoding dihydroflavonol reductase (DFR), leucoantho-cyanidin dioxygenase (LDOX) and anthocyanidin reductase (ANR) for late flavonoid biosynthesis were not expressed at all or at a very low level in the yellow-seeded testa, which implied that these genes for PAs biosynthesis be associated with seed color of B. juncea, as confirmed by qRT-PCR analysis of these genes. To our knowledge, it is the first time to sequence the transcriptome of seed coat in Brassica juncea. The unigene sequences obtained in this study will not only lay the foundations for insight into the molecular mechanisms underlying seed pigmentation in B.juncea, but also provide the basis for further genomics research on this species or its allies.
Evaluation of the dual-feed rotor spinning unit based on airflow dynamics and blended yarn properties

Abstract In fiber processing on a rotor spinning machine, the fiber orientation gained in pre-processing stages like carding and drawing is mainly lost as the fibers enter the rotor interior for further processing. To improve fiber orientation and facilitate fiber blending, a new dual-feed rotor spinning unit is proposed. We present a comprehensive numerical evaluation of the airflow dynamics in the original and the proposed rotor spinning unit based on finite volume methods. The velocity profiles, pressure distribution, vortices, streamlines, and drag force in the two prototypes are evaluated. Results reveal that the velocity magnitude and pressure in the dual-feed unit adopt an even pattern and the total drag force reduction of up to 60–80% is achieved. Comparison of the yarn quality properties of the two systems showed that the dual-feed spun yarns possess superior quality compared to the conventional yarns.
A new probable stem lineage crustacean with three-dimensionally preserved soft parts from the Herefordshire (Silurian) Lagerstätte, UK

A new arthropod with three-dimensionally preserved soft parts, Tanazios dokeron, is described from the Wenlock Series (Silurian) of Herefordshire, England, UK. Serial grinding, digital photographic and computer rendering techniques yielded ‘virtual fossils’ in the round for study. The body tagmata of T. dokeron comprise a head shield and a long trunk. The head shield bears six pairs of horn-like spines and the head bears five pairs of appendages. The antennule, antenna and mandible are all uniramous, and the mandible includes a gnathobasic coxa. Appendages four and five are biramous and similar to those of the trunk: each comprises a limb base with an endite, an enditic membrane, and two epipodites, plus an endopod and exopod. The hypostome bears a large cone-like projection centrally, and there may be a short labrum. The trunk has some 64 segments and at least 60 appendage pairs. A very small telson has the anus sited ventrally in its posterior part and also bears a caudal furca. Comparative morphological and cladistic analyses of T. dokeron indicate a crustacean affinity, with a probable position in the eucrustacean stem group. As such the epipodites in T. dokeron are the first recorded in a eucrustacean stem taxon. The new species is interpreted as a benthic or nektobenthic scavenger.
Evidence for a Gene-Environment Interaction in Predicting Behavioral Inhibition in Middle Childhood

Gene-environment interactions are presumed to shape human behavior during early development. However, no human research has demonstrated that such interactions lead to stable individual differences in fear responses. We tested this possibility by focusing on a polymorphism in the promoter region of the gene for the serotonin transporter (5-HTT). This polymorphism has been linked to many indices of serotonin activity. Specifically, we tested the hypothesis that an interaction between children's 5-HTT status and maternal reports of social support predicts inhibited behavior with unfamiliar peers in middle childhood. Results were consistent with this hypothesis: Children with the combination of the short 5-HTT allele and low social support had increased risk for behavioral inhibition in middle childhood.
Telomeric NAP1L4 and OSBPL5 of the KCNQ1 Cluster, and the DECORIN Gene Are Not Imprinted in Human Trophoblast Stem Cells

Background Genomic imprinting of the largest known cluster, the Kcnq1/KCNQ1 domain on mChr7/hChr11, displays significant differences between mouse and man. Of the fourteen transcripts in this cluster, imprinting of six is ubiquitous in mice and humans, however, imprinted expression of the other eight transcripts is only found in the mouse placenta. The human orthologues of the latter eight transcripts are biallelically expressed, at least from the first trimester onwards. However, as early development is less divergent between species, placental specific imprinting may be present in very early gestation in both mice and humans. Methodology/Principal Findings Human embryonic stem (hES) cells can be differentiated to embryoid bodies and then to trophoblast stem (EB-TS) cells. Using EB-TS cells as a model of post-implantation invading cytotrophoblast, we analysed allelic expression of two telomeric transcripts whose imprinting is placental specific in the mouse, as well as the ncRNA KCNQ1OT1, whose imprinted expression is ubiquitous in early human and mouse development. KCNQ1OT1 expression was monoallelic in all samples but OSBPL5 and NAP1L4 expression was biallelic in EB-TS cells, as well as undifferentiated hES cells and first trimester human fetal placenta. DCN on hChr12, another gene imprinted in the mouse placenta only, was also biallelically expressed in EB-TS cells. The germline maternal methylation imprint at the KvDMR was maintained in both undifferentiated hES cells and EB-TS cells. Conclusions/Significance The question of placental specific imprinting in the human has not been answered fully. Using a model of human trophoblast very early in gestation we show a lack of imprinting of two telomeric genes in the KCNQ1 region and of DCN, whose imprinted expression is placental specific in mice, providing further evidence to suggest that humans do not exhibit placental specific imprinting. The maintenance of both differential methylation of the KvDMR and monoallelic expression of KCNQ1OT1 indicates that the region is appropriately regulated epigenetically in vitro. Human gestational load is less than in the mouse, resulting in reduced need for maternal resource competition, and therefore maybe also a lack of placental specific imprinting. If genomic imprinting exists to control fetal acquisition of maternal resources driven by the placenta, placenta-specific imprinting may be less important in the human than the mouse.
Black holes and massive remnants.

This paper examines the conundrum faced when one attempts to understand the dynamics of black hole formation and evaporation without abandoning unitary evolution. Previous efforts to resolve this puzzle assume that information escapes in corrections to the Hawking process, that an arbitrarily large amount of information is transmitted by a Planckian energy or contained in a Planck-sized remnant, or that the information is lost to another universe. Each of these possibilities has serious difficulties. This paper considers another alternative: remnants that carry large amounts of information and whose size and mass depend on their information content. The existence of such objects is suggested by attempts to incorporate a Planck-scale cutoff into physics. They would greatly alter the late stages of the evaporation process. The main drawback of this scenario is the apparent noncausal behavior behind the horizon.
Investor Sentiment and the Predictability of Asset Returns: Evidence from China

In contrast to previous studies, we redefine the category of "rationality" from the perspective of investors’ pursuit for wealth maximization. Using the data from Chinese stock market, this paper studies the impact of rational and irrational sentiment on asset returns from short-term to long-run. We find that irrational sentiment has stable positive predictability on the future returns in short term while it is a reverse indicator in the long run. Meanwhile, the rational sentiment accurately forecasts both the future short-term and long-run returns. Our findings indicate that the predictability of investor sentiment on returns is closely related to time interval chosen in research and the level of feedback between investor sentiment and asset prices.
In vitro efficacy of cold atmospheric pressure plasma on S. sanguinis biofilms in comparison of two test models

Dental plaque critically affects the etiology of caries, periodontitis and periimplantitis. The mechanical removal of plaque can only be performed partially due to limited accessibility. Therefore, plaque still represents one of the major therapeutic challenges. Even though antiseptic mouth rinses reduce the extent of biofilm temporarily, plaque removal remains incomplete and continuous usage can even result in side effects. Here we tested argon plasma produced by kinpen09 as one option to inactivate microorganisms and to eliminate plaque. S. sanguinis biofilms cultivated in either the European Biofilm Reactor (EUREBI) or in 24 well plates were treated with argon plasma. In both test systems a homogeneous, good analyzable and stable biofilm was produced on the surface of titan plates within 72 h (>6,9 log10 CFU/ml). Despite the significantly more powerful biofilm production in EUREBI, the difference of 0.4 log10 CFU/ml between EUREBI and the 24 well plates was practically not relevant. For that reason both test models were equally qualified for the analysis of efficacy of cold atmospheric pressure plasma. We demonstrate a significant reduction of the biofilm compared to the control in both test models. After plasma application of 180 s the biofilm produced in EUREBI or in 24 well plates was decreased by 0.6 log10 CFU/ml or 0.5 log10 CFU/ml, respectively. In comparison to recently published studies analyzing the efficacy of kinpen09, S. sanguinis produces a hardly removable biofilm. Future investigations using reduced distances between plasma source and biofilm, various compositions of plasma and alternative plasma sources will contribute to further optimization of the efficacy against S. sanguinis biofilms.
Inclusion of temporal information into features for speech recognition

Conventional methods for incorporating temporal information into speech features apply regression to a series of successive cepstral vectors to generate differential cepstra, or apply a cosine transform to generate cepstral-time matrices. This paper aims to generalise these techniques such that a series of stacked cepstral vectors is multiplied by a temporal transform matrix to produce the final speech feature. This can made to incorporate both static and dynamic speech information. Using this method, the coding of temporal information is not restricted to regression or cosine coefficients-any suitable transform may be used. Results are presented for a variety of transforms, such as Legendre, Karhunen-Loeve, Cosine, Rectangle, where it is shown that the transform based techniques offer higher performance than conventional differential cepstrum.
Road obstacles detection using a self-adaptive stereo vision sensor: a contribution to the ARCOS French project

ARCOS is a French research project for secure driving. It aims at improving road safety and integrates engineering, human and social sciences. This paper presents an algorithm of road obstacles detection and a self-adaptive stereo vision system that have been provided and tested in the framework of the ARCOS project. In order to face with different lighting conditions, a new automatic gain and shutter control of the cameras is proposed. The conclusion of the performance of the whole system are discussed.
Quality Certification and the Economics of Contract Software Development a Study of the Indian Software Industry

A significant amount of software development is being outsourced to countries such as India. Many Indian software firms have applied for and received quality certifications like the ISO9001, and the number of quality certified software firms has steadily increased. Despite its growing popularity among Indian software developers, there is very little systematic evidence on the relationship of ISO certification to organizational performance. Using data on 95 Indian software firms and their US clients, we develop a stylized model of a firm that develops software for others to articulate the different ways in which ISO certification can affect firm profits. We conclude that ISO certification enhances firm growth. The results provide partial support for the proposition that ISO certification also enhances revenue for a given size, suggesting that firms are receiving a higher price per unit of output. In turn, this is consistent with the notion that ISO certification also enhances the quality of output. Our field studies confirm that although most firms see ISO certification as a marketing ploy, some of them do proceed to institute more systematic and better-defined processes for software development.
Clinical efficacy of a combination pneumatic and ultrasonic lithotrite.

PURPOSE A new combination pneumatic/ultrasonic intracorporeal lithotriptor has been developed for percutaneous applications. It combines the stone clearing efficiency of an ultrasonic device with the fragmentation strength of a pneumatic probe into a single handpiece. We present our early clinical experience with this device in a prospective, randomized comparison a combination pneumatic/ultrasound lithotrite and standard ultrasonic lithotripsy. MATERIALS AND METHODS A total of 20 consecutive patients undergoing percutaneous nephrolithotomy for symptomatic calculi were randomized to receive stone fragmentation and removal using a standard ultrasonic device or a new combination pneumatic/ultrasonic unit. Stone location and burden were assessed before the operative procedure. The stone clearance rate in mm.2 per minute was calculated for the 2 devices. Complications and stone-free rates were compared in the 2 groups. RESULTS There were no significant differences in stone location and composition in the 2 groups of patients. Average time required for complete stone clearance was considerably less for the combination device (21.1 versus 43.7 minutes, p = 0.036). The opposite was true for the average rate of stone clearance in mm.2 per minute, in that the standard ultrasonic device could clear 16.8 versus 39.5 mm.2 per minute for the combination unit (p = 0.028). Stone-free and complications rates were slightly superior for the combination device but it was likely attributable to patient factors. CONCLUSIONS The combination pneumatic/ultrasonic lithotrite is capable of disintegrating and extracting stone material at a more rapid rate than standard ultrasonic devices. Moreover, stone-free and complication rates appear to be slightly superior with the combination unit. This new combination pneumatic/ultrasonic device appears to be efficacious and safe for removing large renal calculi.
Proposals for enhanced health risk assessment and stratification in an integrated care scenario

Objectives Population-based health risk assessment and stratification are considered highly relevant for large-scale implementation of integrated care by facilitating services design and case identification. The principal objective of the study was to analyse five health-risk assessment strategies and health indicators used in the five regions participating in the Advancing Care Coordination and Telehealth Deployment (ACT) programme (http://www.act-programme.eu). The second purpose was to elaborate on strategies toward enhanced health risk predictive modelling in the clinical scenario. Settings The five ACT regions: Scotland (UK), Basque Country (ES), Catalonia (ES), Lombardy (I) and Groningen (NL). Participants Responsible teams for regional data management in the five ACT regions. Primary and secondary outcome measures We characterised and compared risk assessment strategies among ACT regions by analysing operational health risk predictive modelling tools for population-based stratification, as well as available health indicators at regional level. The analysis of the risk assessment tool deployed in Catalonia in 2015 (GMAs, Adjusted Morbidity Groups) was used as a basis to propose how population-based analytics could contribute to clinical risk prediction. Results There was consensus on the need for a population health approach to generate health risk predictive modelling. However, this strategy was fully in place only in two ACT regions: Basque Country and Catalonia. We found marked differences among regions in health risk predictive modelling tools and health indicators, and identified key factors constraining their comparability. The research proposes means to overcome current limitations and the use of population-based health risk prediction for enhanced clinical risk assessment. Conclusions The results indicate the need for further efforts to improve both comparability and flexibility of current population-based health risk predictive modelling approaches. Applicability and impact of the proposals for enhanced clinical risk assessment require prospective evaluation.
Genome size and operon content.

Prokaryotic genes are often organized into operons, clusters of genes that are transcribed together. Because all genes in an operon must be transcribed in the same direction, this organization will be reflected in a tendency for nearby genes to have the same orientation. This tendency can be used to estimate the degree to which the genes in a genome are clustered into operons. Application of the technique to Escherichia coli yields results that are similar to estimates based on detailed examination of the genome and empirical knowledge about particular operons. Results for Saccharomyces cerevisiae are consistent with the near absence of polycistronic transcripts in eukaryotes. The method is easily applied to other genomes that have been sequenced and annotated. Analysis of 26 bacterial and archaeal genomes indicates that the degree of clustering varies widely among prokaryotes. Comparison of these genomes shows that those containing more genes tend to have less clustering of genes into operons. This observation may have implications concerning the evolution of operons.
Microcellular Propagation Prediction Model Based on a Geometric Progression Approximation-Process

A new propagation prediction model, suitable for an antenna placed below rooftop level in an urban environment is presented. It is shown that the contribution of various arriving rays at a specific location can be well approximated by a set of geometric progressions. Each progression is associated with a source. Then, estimation is delivered as soon as the leading term and the ratio have been computed. The ratio reflects the significance of secondary ray-paths. It depends on the geometry and the electromagnetic properties of the materials within the "street canyon. " In contrast to typical semi-deterministic approaches, detailed information on the power, the time of arrival and the angle of arrival of all significant components is delivered. Consequently, wideband characterization of the environment is accomplished at short running-time. High accuracy is experimentally verified in a typical urban configuration
Polypoidal choroidal vasculopathy treatment options: A meta‐analysis

Combined treatment with intravitreal anti‐vascular endothelial growth factor (anti‐VEGF) and verteporfin photodynamic therapy (PDT) is widely used for patients with polypoidal choroidal vasculopathy (PCV), although clinical evidence regarding the therapeutic efficacy and safety of such treatment remains lacking.
Micromechanics of crack bridging stress-displacement and fracture energy in steel hooked-end fiber-reinforced cementitious composites

This paper presents a probabilistic micromechanical framework for analyzing crack bridging stress-displacement in short steel hooked-end fiber-reinforced cementitious composites, featuring the fiber length/diameter aspect ratios of 45 and 80, with varying fiber volume fractions and varying snubbing coefficients. The proposed formulation is constructed based on the randomly located, randomly oriented distribution of steel fibers. This random nature accounts for the dominant features of the composite failure mechanisms. The composite fracture energy dissipation may be obtained from the area under the tension-softening curve. The fracture energy dissipations contributed by the fiber interfacial debonding and fiber pullout of both the straight-part and the hooked-end element are systematically investigated. Further, the fiber bridging micromechanical mechanism and the bridging stress-displacement are accommodated. The fracture energy dissipation attributable to the hooked-end element is shown to be smaller than that of the straight element, but still remains significant. Comprehensive comparisons between the constant shear model predictions and experimental data manifest significant improvements when the hooked-end effects are incorporated into the composite fracture energy dissipation analyses. Based on the experimental data and micromechanical predictions, we recommend the range of the fiber volume fraction to be from 0.75% to 1%.