Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The importance of political context: Motives to participate in a protest before and after the labor reform in Spain

The objective of this study is to ascertain how political context and participants’ union membership affect the motivation to participate in a protest. The study compares participants of two demonstrations in Spain on different dates, organized by the same trade unions, with the same objectives (opposition to a new labor law). The design of the study compares political context (demonstrating before or after the labor reform) and union membership (unionist/non-unionist). This provides an excellent frame of analysis as to how these factors affect the variables that motivate participation in a protest: anger, efficacy, identity, satisfaction with democracy and trust in institutions. The results confirm that political context mainly affects the variables identity and efficacy, whereas the union membership factor influences trust in political institutions, identity and satisfaction with democracy. Furthermore, analysis shows how the interaction between political context and union membership affects feelings of anger, trust and satisfaction with democracy.
Quaker Travels, Fellow Traveler?

This article will add an important detail to our knowledge of Wroe Alderson’s life, namely his journey to Russia at the height of the cold war and the subsequent intelligence gathering efforts of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) following Alderson’s return from Russia in 1955. It does this by situating the text (AFSC 1956) that resulted from the journey in its historical context, connecting the trip to Russia with the Quaker value system that motivated the expedition. These values are, in turn, related to the files of the FBI via a brief review of the relevant volumes of FBI files that referred to the American Friends Service Committee (AFSC)—the group that Alderson traveled to Russia with. Using the Quaker publication coauthored by Alderson that details the journey to Russia, this article reconstructs the arguments found in that text. Finally, the author examines why Alderson attracted the attention of the FBI. His characteristic willingness to critique the assertions of a party of Soviet individuals with whom he met, as well as support for Alderson from an unknown Quaker associated with the FBI, would ensure that his credentials as an American patriot were never in danger.
A2T and A2V Aβ peptides exhibit different aggregation kinetics, primary nucleation, morphology, structure, and LTP inhibition

The histopathological hallmark of Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the aggregation and accumulation of the amyloid beta peptide (Aβ) into misfolded oligomers and fibrils. Here we examine the biophysical properties of a protective Aβ variant against AD, A2T, and a causative mutation, A2T, along with the wild type (WT) peptide. The main finding here is that the A2V native monomer is more stable than both A2T and WT, and this manifests itself in different biophysical behaviors: the kinetics of aggregation, the initial monomer conversion to an aggregation prone state (primary nucleation), the abundances of oligomers, and extended conformations. Aggregation reaction modeling of the conversion kinetics from native monomers to fibrils predicts the enhanced stability of the A2V monomer, while ion mobility spectrometry‐mass spectrometry measures this directly confirming earlier predictions. Additionally, unique morphologies of the A2T aggregates are observed using atomic force microscopy, providing a basis for the reduction in long term potentiation inhibition of hippocampal cells for A2T compared with A2V and the wild type (WT) peptide. The stability difference of the A2V monomer and the difference in aggregate morphology for A2T (both compared with WT) are offered as alternate explanations for their pathological effects. Proteins 2016; 84:488–500. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Patterns of Close Relationships and Socioemotional and Academic Adjustment among School–Age Children with Learning Disabilities

This study examined patterns of close relationships among school–age children with learning disabilities (LD) as manifested in their attachment style, their self–perceived loneliness, their sense of coherence, and teacher ratings of their academic functioning. In line with resilience theory, this study also aimed to further explore predictors of positive adjustment for children with LD. The sample comprised 98 children with LD from regular classes in four Israeli public elementary schools, and 98 non–LD children from the same classes. Significant group differences emerged in attachment styles and adjustment. Attachment style significantly correlated with socioemotional adjustment but not with academic functioning. In addition, a subgroup of resilient children emerged among the LD children. Discussion focused on the value of attachment patterns for understanding social and emotional adjustment among school–age children with LD.
More Males Run Relatively Fast in U.S. Road Races: Further Evidence of a Sex Difference in Competitiveness

Deaner (2006) recently showed that among elite U.S. runners, two to four times as many males as females run fast relative to sex-specific world-class standards. Previous questionnaire studies of non-elite runners suggest this phenomenon may reflect a sex difference in motivation to train competitively. If this hypothesis is correct, then the sex difference in performance depth should also hold in non-elite running populations. Here I tested this prediction by analyzing the finishing times at 20 of the largest 5000 m road races and 20 of the largest marathons held in the U.S. in 2003. For both types of races, overall population distributions of relative performance were similar in males and females. However, at the fastest relative performance levels, males were over represented by two to four times. This difference could not be explained by the presence of professional runners or as an artifact of biased world-class standards. This result shows that the sex difference in performance depth occurs generally and thus supports the hypothesis that sex differences in competitiveness partly reflect evolved predispositions.
Five-Factor Model Prototypes for Personality Disorders

The current study examined the prototype-matching technique for using the five-factor model (FFM) of personality to assess personality disorders (PDs) and their correlates. The sample was composed of 69 psychiatric patients, most of whom suffered from affective or anxiety disorders. The participants were predominantly outpatients (78%), Caucasian (94%), and women (58%). NEO Personality Inventory (NEO-PI) data from these patients and informants were available for deriving PD prototype scores. The results supported four conclusions. First, the FFM prototype-matching method is useful for clinical samples. Second, agreement between self-reports and information from significant others (SOs) using this method is good compared to previous results. Third, this agreement varies systematically with the observability of the PD criteria. Fourth, the value of self- and other-reported personality information depends on the rating source of the outcome variables. Other-reported information provides incremental utility in predicting impairment and interpersonal distress rated by clinicians and significant others.
Part-time of what? Job quality and part-time employment in the legal profession in Australia

This article examines the quality of part-time employment for solicitors in private practice in Australia. Although full-time jobs based on long hours are dominant in the legal profession, part-time jobs, primarily taken by women, have attracted attention in recent years. The article seeks to answer fundamental questions about the extent and quality of these jobs, and how well they serve the needs of the increasingly diverse workforce. The article draws on recent surveys and in-depth interviews, as well as Census and other secondary data to describe the features of the part-time workforce and to explore aspects of poor quality such as limited access, inferior job content, stalled career progression and narrow schedules. It suggests that the major barrier to improving the quality of part-time jobs is the dominant model of full-time work in law firms, centred on heavy workloads, high targets of ‘billable hours’ and long working hours.
Effect of phenobarbital on hyperbilirubinemia and glucuronide formation in newborns.

Twenty full-term newborns given phenobarbital 8 mg/kg/day for the first four days of life had significantly lower concentrations of serum indirect bilirubin than a group of 20 control infants by the fourth and fifth day of life. Similarly, ten infants with elevated serum indirect bilirubin levels treated from the fifth to ninth day showed significantly lower values by day 10 than controls. In vivo glucuronidation studies using salicylamide as the substrate showed a more pronounced average increase in the glucuronide fraction between the fifth and tenth day of life in ten infants pretreated with phenobarbital as compared to a group of 14 controls, suggesting that the effect of phenobarbital in reducing serum bilirubin levels is mediated, at least in part, by enhanced glucuronide formation.
Joining the Pillars of Hercules: mtDNA Sequences Show Multidirectional Gene Flow in the Western Mediterranean

Phylogenetic analysis of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) performed in Western Mediterranean populations has shown that both shores share a common set of mtDNA haplogroups already found in Europe and the Middle East. Principal co‐ordinates of genetic distances and principal components analyses based on the haplotype frequencies show that the main genetic difference is attributed to the higher frequency of sub‐Saharan L haplogroups in NW Africa, showing some gene flow across the Sahara desert, with a major impact in the southern populations of NW Africa. The AMOVA demonstrates that SW European populations are highly homogeneous whereas NW African populations display a more heterogeneous genetic pattern, due to an east‐west differentiation as a result of gene flow coming from the East. Despite the shared haplogroups found in both areas, the European V and the NW African U6 haplogroups reveal the traces of the Mediterranean Sea permeability to female migrations, and allowed for determination and quantification of the genetic contribution of both shores to the genetic landscape of the geographic area.
Parent involvement at school entry: A national examination of group differences and achievement

This research examined the scope of parental involvement at school entry and sought to determine what, if any, differences existed between ethnic groups. In addition, the researcher attempted to determine if parental involvement was related to academic achievement at school entry. Participants were the African American and European American parents and children who participated in the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study (ECLS-K; US Department of Education, 2005). Results from this project suggest that ethnic differences in parental involvement are present at school entry. In particular, European American parents were more like to be involved in home-based parental involvement activities such as reading to their children while African American parents were more likely to be involved in school related activities such as volunteering at school. In addition, the analysis suggests that parent involvement was only slightly related to reading achievement at school entry. The study is discussed in terms of its implications for future research towards narrowing the achievement gap.
Policy Compliance in Collaborative Systems

When collaborating agents share sensitive information to achieve a common goal it would be helpful to them to decide whether doing so will lead to an unwanted release of confidential data. These decisions are based on which other agents are involved, what those agents can do in the given context, and the individual confidentiality preferences of each agent. In this paper we consider a model of collaboration in which each agent has an explicit confidentiality policy. We offer three ways to interpret policy compliance (system compliance, plan compliance and weak plan compliance) corresponding to different levels of trust among the agents. We show it is EXPSPACE-complete to determine whether a given system is compliant and whether the agents can collaboratively reach a given common goal. On the other hand, we show it is undecidable to determine whether a given system has either a compliant plan or a weakly compliant plan leading to a common goal. The undecidability results are, in part, a consequence of the flexibility of the model, which allows interpretations of policy compliance that depend on current configurations.
The Rice Paradox: Multiple Origins but Single Domestication in Asian Rice

Abstract The origin of domesticated Asian rice (Oryza sativa) has been a contentious topic, with conflicting evidence for either single or multiple domestication of this key crop species. We examined the evolutionary history of domesticated rice by analyzing de novo assembled genomes from domesticated rice and its wild progenitors. Our results indicate multiple origins, where each domesticated rice subpopulation (japonica, indica, and aus) arose separately from progenitor O. rufipogon and/or O. nivara. Coalescence-based modeling of demographic parameters estimate that the first domesticated rice population to split off from O. rufipogon was O. sativa ssp. japonica, occurring at ∼13.1–24.1 ka, which is an order of magnitude older then the earliest archeological date of domestication. This date is consistent, however, with the expansion of O. rufipogon populations after the Last Glacial Maximum ∼18 ka and archeological evidence for early wild rice management in China. We also show that there is significant gene flow from japonica to both indica (∼17%) and aus (∼15%), which led to the transfer of domestication alleles from early-domesticated japonica to proto-indica and proto-aus populations. Our results provide support for a model in which different rice subspecies had separate origins, but that de novo domestication occurred only once, in O. sativa ssp. japonica, and introgressive hybridization from early japonica to proto-indica and proto-aus led to domesticated indica and aus rice.
Effects of Pre-Exhausting the Biceps Brachii Muscle on the Performance of the Front Lat Pull-Down Exercise Using Different Handgrip Positions

Abstract The aim of the present study was to investigate the effects of pre-exhaustion (PE) of the biceps brachii muscle (BB) on the number of repetitions and the rate of perceived exertion (RPE) in the front lat pull-down (FLPD) using different handgrip positions. Additionally, the effect of sex and its interaction with performance and the RPE were also examined. The participants were 19 healthy subjects: 8 men (age: 27.13±2.85 years; body height: 180.63±6.65 cm; body mass: 82.05±8.92 kg; and body fat: 14.67±6.09%); and 11 women (age: 28.81±3.68 years; body height: 162.91±6.51 cm; body mass 59.63±6.47 kg; and body fat: 24.11±4.33%). The number of repetitions and the RPE in the FLPD exercise with different handgrip positions, with and without PE of the BB, was documented. The following main significant effects were seen: i) PE of the BB decreased the number of repetitions (p<0.001) and increased the RPE (p<0.001); ii) the narrow handgrip width elicited a higher RPE (p<0.001) and iii) women performed fewer repetitions than men in all FLPD exercise variations (p=0.023). Significant interactions were also observed between: i) PE or sex and the RPE (p=0.024); and ii) PE or handgrip width and the number of repetitions (p<0.001). In conclusion, PE of the BB promotes a decreased performance in the FLPD exercise along with a greater RPE, especially when using a narrow handgrip position
A Comparison of Neuroimaging Findings in Childhood Onset Schizophrenia and Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Review of the Literature

Background: Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and childhood onset schizophrenia (COS) are pediatric neurodevelopmental disorders associated with significant morbidity. Both conditions are thought to share an underlying genetic architecture. A comparison of neuroimaging findings across ASD and COS with a focus on altered neurodevelopmental trajectories can shed light on potential clinical biomarkers and may highlight an underlying etiopathogenesis. Methods: A comprehensive review of the medical literature was conducted to summarize neuroimaging data with respect to both conditions in terms of structural imaging (including volumetric analysis, cortical thickness and morphology, and region of interest studies), white matter analysis (include volumetric analysis and diffusion tensor imaging) and functional connectivity. Results: In ASD, a pattern of early brain overgrowth in the first few years of life is followed by dysmaturation in adolescence. Functional analyses have suggested impaired long-range connectivity as well as increased local and/or subcortical connectivity in this condition. In COS, deficits in cerebral volume, cortical thickness, and white matter maturation seem most pronounced in childhood and adolescence, and may level off in adulthood. Deficits in local connectivity, with increased long-range connectivity have been proposed, in keeping with exaggerated cortical thinning. Conclusion: The neuroimaging literature supports a neurodevelopmental origin of both ASD and COS and provides evidence for dynamic changes in both conditions that vary across space and time in the developing brain. Looking forward, imaging studies which capture the early post natal period, which are longitudinal and prospective, and which maximize the signal to noise ratio across heterogeneous conditions will be required to translate research findings into a clinical environment.
Reviewing conceptualisations of community: reflections on a meta-narrative approach

Meta-narrative review developed by Greenhalgh and colleagues is a new interpretive systematic review approach within an expanding portfolio of evidence synthesis methods that focus on context, meaning and process. Informed by Kuhn’s notion of scientific paradigms, the method seeks to develop storylines of how research on a given topic unfolds over time, highlighting key discoveries and insights. This article reports how we drew on the meta-narrative approach in a review that examined the changing and contested nature of ‘community’ as understood across disciplines and research traditions. We discuss the challenges that arose in our review and the strengths and limitations of our approach. We conclude that the meta-narrative approach provides a useful framework for making sense of the multiple and changing conceptualisations of community while accounting for historical context. We recommend that an avenue for further development of the method is to consider Foucault’s sociological approach to tracing knowledge.
CDKN2 explains part of the clinical phenotype in Dutch familial atypical multiple‐mole melanoma (FAMMM) syndrome families

Combined multi-point linkage analysis in seven Dutch families with FAMMM syndrome confirmed the location of a melanoma susceptibility (MLM) gene in the 9p21 area. The occurrence of a shared high-risk haplotype in six of the families strongly suggests a founder effect in the Leiden region. No indication for locus heterogeneity was observed. Recently, the CDKN2 (p16) gene, an important regulator of the cell cycle, was isolated from the 9p21 region. A 19-bp germline deletion in the CDKN2 gene was detected in the high-risk haplotype, suggesting CDKN2 to be identical to MLM. Loss of heterozygosity studies in melanoma and pancreatic carcinoma from gene carriers strongly support the view that CDKN2 is a general tumour suppressor gene predisposing not only to melanoma but also to other malignancies. Interestingly, the occurrence of apparent clinical FAMMM cases with melanoma but without the high-risk deletion haplotype suggests the necessity of additional (naevus) genes to explain the complete FAMMM phenotype.
Social Interactions at the Workplace: Exploring Sickness Absence Behavior *

We investigate whether a worker’s sickness absence is affected by her colleagues’ absences from the workplace. The analysis is based on unique matched employer-employee data for Norwegian schoolteachers for the period 2001 to 2006 with information on different types of absences and multiple teacher and school characteristics. Using different approaches where methodological problems such as the reflection problem and intra-group correlation are mitigated, we look for evidence of social interaction effects. Our results show that the significance of the social interaction effects critically depends on our ability to control for unobserved school characteristics.
Overweight and obesity and motor proficiency of 3- and 4-year old children

Childhood obesity has increased over the last two decades, with increasing concern regarding health and other developmental risks. The aim of this study was to examine the prevalence of overweight and obesity and the differences in gross motor skills between overweight and obese 3- and 4-year old children and their non-obese counterparts in Potchefstroom. Three fundamental motor tasks were qualitatively (the quality of the execution of the skill) and quantitatively (the measurable score given to the performance of the skill, e.g. distance in mm) assessed in 19 overweight and obese participants and 111 non-obese participants in age-matched groups. The prevalence of obesity (15.83%) found in this sample, corresponds with worldwide and national trends in this age group, but is higher than the prevalence found in South Africa. Differences of statistical significance were established with t-tests as well as non-parametric analysis. The results showed no statistical differences in the 3-year old group, while statistical differences were found in favour of the non-obese participants in the 4-year old group with regard to quantitative scores for balancing on one leg and the quantitative and qualitative scores of catching, suggesting that overweight and obese children perform poor in comparison with non-obese children in tasks that require good balancing ability and good perceptual and spatial abilities. The results suggest that the influence of overweight and obesity on gross motor skill development is not significant at 3 years of age, but increases in such measurements that it can impede development at 4 years of age. Keywords: Obesity, Motor competency, Gross motor skills, Pre-school children South African Journal for Research in Sport, Physical Education and Recreation Vol.25(2) 2003: 37-48
Query Localization Techniques for On-Demand Routing Protocols in Ad Hoc Networks

Mobile ad hoc networks are characterized by multi-hop wireless links, absence of any cellular infrastructure, and frequent host mobility. Design of efficient routing protocols in such networks is a challenging issue. A class of routing protocols called on-demand protocols has recently found attention because of their low routing overhead. We propose a technique that can reduce the routing overhead even further. The on-demand protocols depend on query floods to discover routes whenever a new route is needed. Our technique utilizes prior routing histories to localize the query flood to a limited region of the network. Simulation results demonstrate excellent reduction of routing overheads with this mechanism. This also contributes to a reduced level of network congestion and better end-to-end delay performance of data packets.