Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
An Ounce of Prevention: Evaluation of the Fun FRIENDS Program for Kindergarteners in a Rural School

Anxiety disorders are among the most common psychological disorders in childhood with reported rates as high as 41.2% (Cartwright-Hatton, McNicol, & Doubleday, 2006; Cooley, Boyd, & Grados, 2004). A majority of the anxiety intervention programs target children who are 7 years of age and older. Yet, many anxiety disorders develop in the preschool years (APA, 2000). Therefore, it seems desirable to work with young children who display early signs of anxiety to provide them with skills that would protect them from later full-blown psychopathology. Early intervention and prevention programs may be effective ways to modify the developmental trajectory of anxiety disorders. The present research reports findings from an anxiety prevention program for 4-7 year olds. One hundred and ten children from two schools in a rural part of Southwest Virginia participated. Fifty-seven children from one school received a classroom-based prevention program on a weekly basis over 20 weeks. Fifty-three children from a second school served as a control group. The mean age of the sample was 5.11 years. Results suggested that anxiety was positively correlated with emotional symptoms (r = .67, p<.001), peer difficulties (r = .21, p<.05), and total difficulties (r =.29, p<.03) on the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire for all children. Overall, there were significant decreases in anxiety symptoms from pre to follow-up for both groups of children [F (1, 105) = 7.79, p =. 006]. Unexpectedly, anxiety symptoms increased from pre to post for children in the intervention school whereas they decreased for children in the control school. Although these
An Evaluation of the Pedestrian Classification in a Multi-Domain Multi-Modality Setup

The objective of this article is to study the problem of pedestrian classification across different light spectrum domains (visible and far-infrared (FIR)) and modalities (intensity, depth and motion). In recent years, there has been a number of approaches for classifying and detecting pedestrians in both FIR and visible images, but the methods are difficult to compare, because either the datasets are not publicly available or they do not offer a comparison between the two domains. Our two primary contributions are the following: (1) we propose a public dataset, named RIFIR , containing both FIR and visible images collected in an urban environment from a moving vehicle during daytime; and (2) we compare the state-of-the-art features in a multi-modality setup: intensity, depth and flow, in far-infrared over visible domains. The experiments show that features families, intensity self-similarity (ISS), local binary patterns (LBP), local gradient patterns (LGP) and histogram of oriented gradients (HOG), computed from FIR and visible domains are highly complementary, but their relative performance varies across different modalities. In our experiments, the FIR domain has proven superior to the visible one for the task of pedestrian classification, but the overall best results are obtained by a multi-domain multi-modality multi-feature fusion.
Dysmorphic Appearance Concern and Hazardous Alcohol Use in University Students: The Mediating Role of Alcohol Expectancies

Objective A paucity of research has examined the link between body image concerns and alcohol use in university students. Individuals with elevated body image concerns may use alcohol due to the endorsement of expectancies that alcohol will reduce discomfort deriving from appearance concerns. Therefore, the aim of this study was to examine the how the link between body image concerns (i.e., dysmorphic appearance concerns) and hazardous alcohol use may be accounted for by alcohol‐related expectancies. Method Participants were 138 undergraduates (74% male) who completed an online survey that gauged dysmorphic appearance concern, alcohol use, and alcohol‐related expectancies. Results Results not only showed a link between dysmorphic appearance concern and hazardous alcohol use, but that the link between the constructs was partially mediated by positive alcohol expectancies. Moreover, individuals with elevated dysmorphic appearance concern appeared to use alcohol for their perceived sexual facilitation benefits and providing “liquid courage. ” Conclusions Therapies aimed at reducing hazardous alcohol use may benefit from targeting positive alcohol expectancies in young adults with elevated dysmorphic appearance concern.
The Effectiveness of Management‐By‐Walking‐Around: A Randomized Field Study

Management‐by‐walking‐around (MBWA) is a widely adopted technique in hospitals that involves senior managers directly observing frontline work. However, few studies have rigorously examined its impact on organizational outcomes. This study examines an improvement program based on MBWA in which senior managers observe frontline employees, solicit ideas about improvement opportunities, and work with staff to resolve the issues. We randomly selected hospitals to implement the 18‐month‐long, MBWA‐based improvement program; 56 work areas participated. We find that the program, on average, had a negative impact on performance. To explain this surprising finding, we use mixed methods to examine the impact of the work area's problem‐solving approach. Results suggest that prioritizing easy‐to‐solve problems was associated with improved performance. We believe this was because it resulted in greater action‐taking. A different approach was characterized by prioritizing high‐value problems, which was not successful in our study. We also find that assigning to senior managers responsibility for ensuring that identified problems get resolved resulted in better performance. Overall, our study suggests that senior managers' physical presence in their organizations' front lines was not helpful unless it enabled active problem solving.
Federal Reserve Bank of New York Staff Reports Capital Constraints, Counterparty Risk, and Deviations from Covered Interest Rate Parity

This paper presents preliminary findings and is being distributed to economists and other interested readers solely to stimulate discussion and elicit comments. The views expressed in the paper are those of the authors and are not necessarily reflective of views at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York or the Federal Reserve System. Any errors or omissions are the responsibility of the authors.
The Versatility of the Helicobacter pylori Vacuolating Cytotoxin VacA in Signal Transduction and Molecular Crosstalk

By modulating important properties of eukaryotic cells, many bacterial protein toxins highjack host signalling pathways to create a suitable niche for the pathogen to colonize and persist. Helicobacter pylori VacA is paradigm of pore-forming toxins which contributes to the pathogenesis of peptic ulceration. Several cellular receptors have been described for VacA, which exert different effects on epithelial and immune cells. The crystal structure of VacA p55 subunit might be important for elucidating details of receptor interaction and pore formation. Here we discuss the multiple signalling activities of this important toxin and the molecular crosstalk between VacA and other virulence factors.
Broadband array observations of the 300 km seismic discontinuity

Intermittent seismic discontinuities near 250–300 km depth beneath South America and the Pacific basin are detected with high‐resolution seismic array methods that use SS and PP precursors recorded at the High Lava Plains Seismic Experiment and the EarthScope Transportable Array. The transformation of coesite to stishovite in an eclogite‐rich mantle composition produces a seismic discontinuity near 300 km depth; lateral changes in basalt fraction of the upper mantle will thus produce an intermittent seismic discontinuity. The sensitivity of the precursors to intermittent seismic structure is addressed using an axisymmetric finite difference model of wave propagation in the mantle. These numerical experiments find that the precursors are sensitive to structures ≥500 km in lateral extent and that the observations of this discontinuity are plausibly tied to lateral variations in basaltic composition of the upper mantle related to dynamics, such as plumes and subduction.
Preconscious Control of Stereotype Activation Through Chronic Egalitarian Goals

This research shows stereotype activation is controlled by chronic egalitarian goals. In the first 2 studies it was found that the stereotype of women is equally available to individuals with and without chronic goals, and the discriminant validity of the concept of egalitarian goals was established. In the next 2 experiments, differences in stereotype activation as a function of this individual difference were found. In Study 3, participants read attributes following stereotypical primes. Facilitated response times to stereotypical attributes were found for nonchronics but not for chronics. This lack of facilitation occurred at stimulus onset asynchronies (SOAs) where effortful correction processes could not operate, demonstrating preconscious control of stereotype activation due to chronic goals. In Study 4, inhibition of the stereotype was found at an SOA where effortful processes of stereotype suppression could not operate. The data reveal that goals are activated and used preconsciously to prevent stereotype activation, demonstrating both the controllability of stereotype activation and the implicit role of goals in cognitive control.
Fenomenologiczna perspektywa na nauczanie i uczenie się ujmujące całościowe zjawiska. Niedawna reforma programowa w Finlandii

This paper aims to explore the phenomenon-based approach in teaching and learning, through the pedagogical lenses of phenomenology, the philosophy of phenomena. The phenomenon-based approach has informed the new core curriculum for basic education in Finland, which has officially introduced multidisciplinary learning modules as periods of phenomenon-based project studies. In this paper, we discuss how the specific approach is integrated into the curriculum, its theoretical grounding and its connections to constructivism. We also explore its implications for teaching and learning from a phenomenological perspective. The paper concludes that the responsive relation between teaching and learning is essential when our purpose is educational. Students are part of the learning process, but they do not necessarily initiate it; similarly, teachers cannot fully instruct it. Thus, we need to make meaning of the space between teaching and learning, in an effort to reclaim learning for pedagogy.
Memory energy minimization by data compression: algorithms, architectures and implementation

Storing data in compressed form is becoming common practice in high-performance systems, where memory bandwidth constitutes a serious bottleneck to program execution speed. In this paper, we suggest hardware-assisted data compression as a tool for reducing energy consumption of processor-based systems. We propose a novel and efficient architecture for on-the-fly data compression and decompression whose field of operation is the cache-to-memory path. Uncompressed cache lines are compressed before they are written back to main memory, and decompressed when cache refills take place. We explore two classes of table-based compression schemes. The first, based on offline data profiling, is particularly suitable to embedded systems, where predictability of the data set is usually higher than in general-purpose systems. The second solution we introduce is adaptive, that is, it takes decisions on whether data words should be compressed according to the data statistics of the program being executed. We describe in details the architecture of the compression/decompression unit and we provide an insight about its implementation as a hardware (HW) block. We present experimental results concerning memory traffic and energy consumption in the cache-to-memory path of a core-based system running standard benchmark programs. The obtained energy savings range from 8%-39% when profile-driven compression is adopted, and from 7%-26% when the adaptive scheme is used. Performance improvements are also achieved as a by-product, showing the practical applicability of the proposed approach.
Scalable Realistic Rendering with Many‐Light Methods

Recent years have seen increasing attention and significant progress in many‐light rendering, a class of methods for efficient computation of global illumination. The many‐light formulation offers a unified mathematical framework for the problem reducing the full lighting transport simulation to the calculation of the direct illumination from many virtual light sources. These methods are unrivaled in their scalability: they are able to produce plausible images in a fraction of a second but also converge to the full solution over time. In this state‐of‐the‐art report, we give an easy‐to‐follow, introductory tutorial of the many‐light theory; provide a comprehensive, unified survey of the topic with a comparison of the main algorithms; discuss limitations regarding materials and light transport phenomena and present a vision to motivate and guide future research. We will cover both the fundamental concepts as well as improvements, extensions and applications of many‐light rendering.
Substitution of drinking water by fructose solution induces hyperinsulinemia and hyperglycemia in hamsters.

PURPOSE To test the possibility of obtaining a practical and stable model of hyperinsulinemia and hyperglycemia in hamsters, substituting the drinking water by 10% or 20% fructose solutions for a period of 2, 4, or 6 months. METHODS Male hamsters were divided into 3 main groups, further divided in 3 subgroups: Two months: Group Ia control (n = 51) received filtered water, Group Ib (n = 49) received 10% fructose solution instead of water, Group Ic (n=8) received 20% fructose solution instead of water. Four months: Group IIa control (n=8), Group IIb 10% fructose (n = 7), Group IIc 20% fructose (FIIc, n = 7). Six months: Group IIIa control (n = 6), Group IIIb 10% Fructose (n = 6), Group IIIc 20% Fructose (n = 5). All groups were fed with the same laboratory diet. The animals were weighed every 2 weeks during the study period. On the final day of each experiment (61st, 121st, and 181st day after the beginning of the study, respectively), the animals were weighed and anesthetized for blood collection to determine plasma glucose and insulin after at least a 12-h fast. Ten animals of group Ia and 10 of group Ib were evaluated to determine changes in macromolecular permeability induced by ischemia/reperfusion as measured in the cheek pouch microcirculation. RESULTS Compared to controls, the animals that drank the 10% or 20% fructose solution had significantly greater weight gain (P < .001), fasting plasma glucose (P < .001) Reperfusion, after 30 min ischemia, resulted in an immediate but reversible increase in postcapillary leakage (L) of 89.0 +/- 2.0 L/cm(2) (group Ia - controls), and 116.5 +/- 4.8 L/cm(2) (group Ib 10% fructose), P < . 001. These results suggest that chronic administration of either 10% or 20% fructose solutions could be used to experimentally induce a stable hamster model of hyperinsulinemia and hyperglycemia. CONCLUSION The model might facilitate the study of basic mechanisms of hyperglycemia and hyperinsulinemia affecting the microvasculature as demonstrated by the findings regarding ischemia/reperfusion after only 2 months of treatment.
Inheritance of rice cold tolerance at the seedling stage

A tolerância ao frio nos estadios iniciais de desenvolvimento do arroz (Oryza sativa L.) e uma caracteristica altamente desejavel para incorporar em cultivares do Rio Grande do Sul (RS), porem a selecao para esta caracteristica deve ser feita sob condicoes de temperatura controlada, o que limita o numero de linhas que pode ser avaliada. O conhecimento da heranca desta caracteristica e importante para definir estrategias de melhoramento genetico, assim o objetivo do presente trabalho e estudar a base genetica da tolerância ao frio no estadio vegetativo do arroz. Seis genotipos com reacoes contrastantes de tolerância ao frio foram cruzados num esquema dialelico sem os reciprocos. Os genitores e as geracoes F1 e F2 foram cultivados em casa-de-vegetacao ate o estadio V4, quando foram submetidos a 10°C por dez dias e avaliados quanto a sobrevivencia de plantas apos sete dias de recuperacao sob temperatura normal. Os resultados obtidos pela analise dialelica da geracao F1 indicaram significância tanto dos efeitos aditivos quanto nao-aditivos, mas a capacidade geral de combinacao foi mais importante. A avaliacao da geracao F2 revelou uma heranca oligogenica com um ou dois alelos dominantes responsaveis pela tolerância ao frio nos genitores tolerantes e dois genes complementares com alelos recessivos segregando nos cruzamentos envolvendo genotipos sensiveis e intermediarios.
Language recovery in aphasia following implicit structural priming training: a case study

ABSTRACT Background: Individuals with aphasia show difficulty producing sentences as a result of impaired syntactic production. Studies of structural priming in healthy speakers show that long-term learning of syntactic structures can occur via experience-based implicit adaptation in the production system. Structural priming facilitates sentence production in individuals with aphasia; however, it remains unknown if structural priming can be used as a treatment paradigm targeting longer-term language recovery in aphasia. Aims: The current study examined the feasibility and efficacy of implicit structural priming treatment in an individual with agrammatic aphasia. Methods & Procedures: MJ (our participant) received a total of 12 sessions of implicit structural priming training. We measured production of trained and untrained prepositional dative (PD) sentences on daily probes, maintenance of the treatment effects at 4-weeks post-training and training-induced changes in the production of connected speech samples (Cinderella, WAB-R picture description). Outcomes & Results: MJ showed significant improvement in producing both trained and untrained PD sentences over training sessions. Importantly, these effects were maintained at a 4-week follow-up without intervention. Notable improvement was also seen in syntactic complexity of connected speech production such as increased production of lexical verbs and sentences. Conclusions: These findings suggest that it is feasible to use implicit structural priming as a treatment paradigm to target syntactic production in aphasia and that implicit structural priming may result in long-term global language recovery in agrammatic aphasia via experience-based strengthening of connections between linguistic representations.
A Descriptive Analysis of Aggressive Behavior in Classrooms for Children with Emotional and Behavioral Disorders

The present study extends previous research describing classroom interactions of children with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD). Direct observation and sequential analytic techniques were used to (a) identify naturally occurring rates of aggressive behavior for 28 elementary school-aged children identified as EBD; (b) classify naturally occurring antecedents and consequences of these children's aggressive behavior toward teachers, peers, and property; and (c) describe prevalent and predictive sequences of behaviors resulting in aggression. Results indicated low rates of positive social interactions characterized the daily classroom ecology of students displaying aggressive behavior. Implications for the assessment of low rate but problematic behaviors are discussed in regard to current developments in functional assessment techniques and the possible role of setting events in classroom aggression.
Insider trading and future stock returns in firms with concentrated ownership levels

ABSTRACT We investigate the relationship between insider trading and stock returns in firms with concentrated ownership. To this end, we employ data from East Asian countries which span the period January 2003 to May 2012. Consistent with the previous literature, we find a significantly negative relation between the selling activity of insiders and stock returns. However, contrary to studies which focus on highly developed markets, we find that the buying activity of insiders is also inversely related to future stock returns. Our analysis shows that top directors with higher ownership levels drive this result, suggesting that the trading activity of insiders is not always associated with profit-making motives and can be explained by their level of ownership. Furthermore, we demonstrate that a trading strategy which focuses solely on purchases made by top directors with high ownership levels yields negative returns. The paper has important implications for outside investors who mimic the trading activity of insiders with the aim to realise profits.
High acquisition and environmental contamination rates of CC17 ampicillin-resistant Enterococcus faecium in a Dutch hospital.

BACKGROUND Enterococcus faecium has rapidly emerged as a nosocomial pathogen worldwide, and the majority of these isolates belong to clonal complex-17 (CC17). In Europe, CC17 isolates are usually ampicillin-resistant, but most are still vancomycin-sensitive. We aimed to study ampicillin-resistant E. faecium (ARE) epidemiology in our hospital. METHODS In a 3 month study, 210 of 358 admissions (59%) to haematology and gastroenterology/nephrology were screened for rectal ARE colonization on admission (<48 h) and 148 of 210 (70%) also at discharge (<72 h). In a second (3 month) study, environmental swabs from eight predetermined sites were obtained from ARE-colonized haematology patients once weekly. All ARE isolates were genotyped by multiple-locus variable-number tandem repeat analysis (MLVA). RESULTS ARE admission prevalence was 10% and 16% and acquisition rates were 39% and 15% in haematology and gastroenterology/nephrology, respectively. Carriage on admission was associated with previous admission <1 year (OR 5.0, 95% CI 1.8-14.0) and acquisition with beta-lactam (OR 2.7, 95% CI 1.1-6.7) and quinolone use (OR 3.1, 95% CI 1.1-8.2). Five of the 57 (9%) colonized patients developed invasive ARE infections. Genotyping revealed 12 genotypes (all CC17) with two MLVA types responsible for 94% of acquisitions. In 18 of the 19 colonized patients, the environment was contaminated with ARE. Sites most often contaminated were the toilet seat (43%), over-bed table (34%) and television remote control (28%). CONCLUSIONS CC17 ARE epidemiology is characterized by high admission (10% to 16%), acquisition (15% to 39%) and environmental contamination (22%) rates, resulting from cross-transmission, readmission and antibiotic pressure. A multifaceted infection control approach will be needed to curtail further spread.