Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Probing new spin-independent interactions through precision spectroscopy in atoms with few electrons

The very high precision of current measurements and theory predictions of spectral lines in few-electron atoms allows to efficiently probe the existence of exotic forces between electrons, neutrons and protons. We investigate the sensitivity to new spin-independent interactions in transition frequencies (and their isotopic shifts) of hydrogen, helium and some helium-like ions. We find that present data probe new regions of the force-carrier couplings to electrons and neutrons around the MeV mass range. We also find that, below few keV, the sensitivity to the electron coupling in precision spectroscopy of helium and positronium is comparable to that of the anomalous magnetic moment of the electron. Finally, we interpret our results in the dark-photon model where a new gauge boson is kinetically mixed with the photon. There, we show that helium transitions, combined with the anomalous magnetic moment of the electron, provide the strongest indirect bound from laboratory experiments above 100keV.
Notes on "Exact Decoding Probability Under Random Linear Network Coding"

In a recent letter, Trullols-Cruces et al. derived the exact decoding probability Pns(K,N) that a receiver node obtained N linearly independent coded packets among K (K≥ N) received coded packets, when the source node uses a random linear coding scheme over a Galois Field GF(q). They discussed Pns(K,N) both in the case of the source node sending the random linear combination of the original packets, including all-zero combinations, as well as the case of excluding all-zero combinations. However, their derivations are a bit complicated. In this note, we demonstrate simple derivations of the exact decoding probability Pns(K,N) in both cases. Furthermore, we point out that there is a more succinct expression of Pns(K,N) for the latter case.
Predicting dyslexia using prereading skills: the role of sensorimotor and cognitive abilities

Background It is well established that phonological awareness, print knowledge and rapid naming predict later reading difficulties. However, additional auditory, visual and motor difficulties have also been observed in dyslexic children. It is examined to what extent these difficulties can be used to predict later literacy difficulties. Method An unselected sample of 267 children at school entry completed a wide battery of tasks associated with dyslexia. Their reading was tested 2, 3 and 4 years later and poor readers were identified (n = 42). Logistic regression and multiple case study approaches were used to examine the predictive validity of different tasks. Results As expected, print knowledge, verbal short‐term memory, phonological awareness and rapid naming were good predictors of later poor reading. Deficits in visual search and in auditory processing were also present in a large minority of the poor readers. Almost all poor readers showed deficits in at least one area at school entry, but there was no single deficit that characterised the majority of poor readers. Conclusions Results are in line with Pennington's (2006) multiple deficits view of dyslexia. They indicate that the causes of poor reading outcome are multiple, interacting and probabilistic, rather than deterministic.
Reassessing Research: Liberal Arts Colleges and the Social Sciences.

OBSERVERS OF THE LIBERAL ARTS COLLEGES have for Some time noted their leading role in producing the nation's Ph.D.'s. This pattern occurs in the social sciences as well as the humanities and natural sciences. The question of why these institutions should have such remarkable success has not received a great deal of scholarly attention, though the figures naturally provoke speculation about the kind of instruc tion that occurs in the best of these colleges and the experience of their undergraduates.1 The 1998 Higher Education Data Service (HEDS) figures report on the baccalaureate origins of doctorate recipients in the social sciences.2 With data weighted for size of institution, the top ten Ph.D.-producing institutions are, in order: Swarthmore, Thomas Aquinas, Reed, Bryn Mawr, the University of Chicago, Beloit, Shimer, Oberlin, Harvard, and Haverford. There are only six research universities in the top thirty Ph.D. producers? the University of Chicago (5), Harvard (9), Yale (14), Princeton (17), Brandeis (25), and the University of California Santa Cruz (26). 3 One explanation for this phenomenon? which is even more marked in the sciences and for women? may be the high per centage of undergraduates in liberal arts colleges who are involved in original research projects. These' may be individual projects, such as an undergraduate thesis or special project in a course, or, more significantly, they may be engaged as re search assistants to faculty members. This latter opportunity
Non-Asymptotic Analysis of Robust Control from Coarse-Grained Identification

This work explores the trade-off between the number of samples required to accurately build models of dynamical systems and the degradation of performance in various control objectives due to a coarse approximation. In particular, we show that simple models can be easily fit from input/output data and are sufficient for achieving various control objectives. We derive bounds on the number of noisy input/output samples from a stable linear time-invariant system that are sufficient to guarantee that the corresponding finite impulse response approximation is close to the true system in the $\mathcal{H}_\infty$-norm. We demonstrate that these demands are lower than those derived in prior art which aimed to accurately identify dynamical models. We also explore how different physical input constraints, such as power constraints, affect the sample complexity. Finally, we show how our analysis fits within the established framework of robust control, by demonstrating how a controller designed for an approximate system provably meets performance objectives on the true system.
Neighborhood influences and child development: A prospective study of substance abusers' offspring

In this 2-year prospective study, psychopathology and competence among drug abusers' offspring were examined in relation to characteristics of their neighborhoods. The sample consisted of 77 children of cocaine and opioid addicts with a mean age of 12.3 years at baseline and 14.2 years at follow-up. Outcomes examined included psychiatric diagnoses, dimensional symptom indices, and aspects of everyday behavioral competence. Links involving neighborhood variables varied by gender, wherein boys reflected greater deterioration than girls when neighborhoods had high crime rates and high proportions of low-income households. Conversely, girls appeared to benefit more than boys from the presence of professional adults in the community. Overall, neighborhood indicators accounted for more variability in changes in child adjustment over time than did indices of maternal psychopathology. Findings are discussed in terms of developmental changes in the salience of exosystemic and familial forces, and implications for interventions are outlined.
Transcatheter aortic valve implantation: 3-year outcomes of self-expanding CoreValve prosthesis.

AIMS The paucity of evidences about the long-term durability of currently available transcatheter prostheses is one of the main issues of transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI). We sought to assess 3-year clinical and echocardiographic outcomes of patients undergoing TAVI with the third generation CoreValve prosthesis (Medtronic Incorporation, MN, USA). METHODS AND RESULTS From the Italian CoreValve registry, 181 who underwent TAVI from June 2007 to August 2008 and eligible for 3-year follow-up were analysed. All outcomes were defined according to the Valve Academic Research Consortium. All-cause mortality at 1, 2, and 3 years was 23.6, 30.3, and 34.8%, respectively. Cardiovascular death at 1, 2, and 3 years was 11.2, 12.1, and 13.5%, respectively. The actuarial survival free from a composite of death, major stroke, myocardial infarction, and life-threatening bleeding was 69.6% at 1 year, 63.5% at 2 years, and 59.7% at 3 years. Patients with renal insufficiency had a higher mortality at 3-year follow-up (49.0 vs. 29.2%, P = 0.007); moreover, patients experiencing post-procedural major or life-threatening bleeding had a higher rate of mortality already seen at 30 days (21.6 vs. 2.8%; P < 0.001) and this result was sustained at 3-year follow-up (62.2 vs. 27.7%; P < 0.001). Mean pressure gradients decreased from 52.2 ± 18.1 mmHg (pre-TAVI) to 10.3 ± 3.1 mmHg (1-year post-TAVI) (P < 0.001); aortic valve area increased from 0.6 ± 0.2 cm(2) (pre-TAVI) to 1.8 ± 0.4 cm(2) (1-year post-TAVI); these results remained stable over the 3 years of follow-up. Paravalvular leak was observed in the majority of patients. There were no cases of progression to moderate or severe regurgitation. No cases of structural valve deterioration were observed. CONCLUSION This multicentre study demonstrates that TAVI with the 18-Fr CoreValve ReValving System is associated with sustained clinical and functional cardiovascular benefits in high-risk patients with symptomatic aortic stenosis up to 3-year follow-up. Non-cardiac causes accounted for the majority of deaths at follow-up.
Single vs. Multiple Sets of Resistance Exercise for Muscle Hypertrophy: A Meta-Analysis

Krieger, JW. Single vs. multiple sets of resistance exercise for muscle hypertrophy: a meta-analysis. J Strength Cond Res 24(4): 1150-1159, 2010-Previous meta-analyses have compared the effects of single to multiple sets on strength, but analyses on muscle hypertrophy are lacking. The purpose of this study was to use multilevel meta-regression to compare the effects of single and multiple sets per exercise on muscle hypertrophy. The analysis comprised 55 effect sizes (ESs), nested within 19 treatment groups and 8 studies. Multiple sets were associated with a larger ES than a single set (difference = 0.10 ± 0.04; confidence interval [CI]: 0.02, 0.19; p = 0.016). In a dose-response model, there was a trend for 2-3 sets per exercise to be associated with a greater ES than 1 set (difference = 0.09 ± 0.05; CI: −0.02, 0.20; p = 0.09), and a trend for 4-6 sets per exercise to be associated with a greater ES than 1 set (difference = 0.20 ± 0.11; CI: −0.04, 0.43; p = 0.096). Both of these trends were significant when considering permutation test p values (p < 0.01). There was no significant difference between 2-3 sets per exercise and 4-6 sets per exercise (difference = 0.10 ± 0.10; CI: −0.09, 0.30; p = 0.29). There was a tendency for increasing ESs for an increasing number of sets (0.24 for 1 set, 0.34 for 2-3 sets, and 0.44 for 4-6 sets). Sensitivity analysis revealed no highly influential studies that affected the magnitude of the observed differences, but one study did slightly influence the level of significance and CI width. No evidence of publication bias was observed. In conclusion, multiple sets are associated with 40% greater hypertrophy-related ESs than 1 set, in both trained and untrained subjects.
The Design of an XMPP-based Service Integration Scheme

The advances in network-enabled software development raises the demands on the service oriented architecture (SOA). Popular implementations of SOA uses XML-based representations, such as SOAP and WSDL, to enable remote function invocation and service discovery. Our previous experiences show that a sophisticated XML representation is often over-complex for a controlled environment. We also found that the application composition is a high-level operation. Therefore, a proper infrastructure for hosting and delivering various kinds of services is required. We then proposed an XMPP-based solution to overcome these issues. A service is an XMPP client, and focus on how to interact with the other clients, the management of the service can be flexibly arranged through the proposed format of its full JID, and the fundamental security are handled by the XMPP server and the publisher-subscriber pattern.
Examining Synaptotagmin 1 Function in Dense Core Vesicle Exocytosis under Direct Control of Ca2+

We tested the long-standing hypothesis that synaptotagmin 1 is the Ca2+ sensor for fast neurosecretion by analyzing the intracellular Ca2+ dependence of large dense-core vesicle exocytosis in a mouse strain carrying a mutated synaptotagmin C2A domain. The mutation (R233Q) causes a twofold increase in the KD of Ca2+-dependent phospholipid binding to the double C2A-C2B domain of synaptotagmin. Using photolysis of caged calcium and capacitance measurements we found that secretion from mutant cells had lower secretory rates, longer secretory delays, and a higher intracellular Ca2+-threshold for secretion due to a twofold increase in the apparent KD of the Ca2+ sensor for fast exocytosis. Single amperometric fusion events were unchanged. We conclude that Ca2+-dependent phospholipid binding to synaptotagmin 1 mirrors the intracellular Ca2+ dependence of exocytosis.
Risk factors for respiratory syncytial virus associated with acute lower respiratory infection in children under five years: Systematic review and meta–analysis

Background Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is the most common pathogen identified in young children with acute lower respiratory infection (ALRI) as well as an important cause of hospital admission. The high incidence of RSV infection and its potential severe outcome make it important to identify and prioritise children who are at higher risk of developing RSV–associated ALRI. We aimed to identify risk factors for RSV–associated ALRI in young children. Methods We carried out a systematic literature review across 4 databases and obtained unpublished studies from RSV Global Epidemiology Network (RSV GEN) collaborators. Quality of all eligible studies was assessed according to modified GRADE criteria. We conducted meta–analyses to estimate odds ratios with 95% confidence intervals (CI) for individual risk factors. Results We identified 20 studies (3 were unpublished data) with “good quality” that investigated 18 risk factors for RSV–associated ALRI in children younger than five years old. Among them, 8 risk factors were significantly associated with RSV–associated ALRI. The meta–estimates of their odds ratio (ORs) with corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CI) are prematurity 1.96 (95% CI 1.44–2.67), low birth weight 1.91 (95% CI 1.45–2.53), being male 1.23 (95% CI 1.13–1.33), having siblings 1.60 (95% CI 1.32–1.95), maternal smoking 1.36 (95% CI 1.24–1.50), history of atopy 1.47 (95% CI 1.16–1.87), no breastfeeding 2.24 (95% CI 1.56–3.20) and crowding 1.94 (95% CI 1.29–2.93). Although there were insufficient studies available to generate a meta–estimate for HIV, all articles (irrespective of quality scores) reported significant associations between HIV and RSV–associated ALRI. Conclusions This study presents a comprehensive report of the strength of association between various socio–demographic risk factors and RSV–associated ALRI in young children. Some of these amenable risk factors are similar to those that have been identified for (all cause) ALRI and thus, in addition to the future impact of novel RSV vaccines, national action against ALRI risk factors as part of national control programmes can be expected to reduce burden of disease from RSV. Further research which identifies, accesses and analyses additional unpublished RSV data sets could further improve the precision of these estimates.
Using the high level architecture to implement selective-fidelity

For decades, computer simulation professionals have taken numerous routes to improve the performance of their simulation systems. These measures have included, but are not limited to improved data and behavior representations, advanced development architectures, and enhanced graphics technologies. Another remarkable concept used to improve the performance and capabilities has been the use of distributed computing techniques, dubbed distributed simulation. A new and potentially high impacting expansion of distributing simulation involves tying that methodology with that of selective fidelity, a concept that allows a simulation system to modify its own level of fidelity based on what aspects of the simulation are important or interesting to a user or observer. Using multiple simulation systems tied together by a run-time infrastructure (RTI), the software implementation of the high level architecture (HLA), a selective fidelity federation can be implemented by changing ownership of simulation objects between federates, depending on what aspects of the simulation are important. This paper describes the theoretical and implementation details involved with building such a system. Included in this description are explanations of the concepts of fidelity and selective fidelity, a summary of HLA and the RTI, a detailed account of the architecture necessary to implement such a scheme, and a section predicting possible applications for such an idea.
Adversarial Inverse Graphics Networks: Learning 2D-to-3D Lifting and Image-to-Image Translation from Unpaired Supervision

Researchers have developed excellent feed-forward models that learn to map images to desired outputs, such as to the images’ latent factors, or to other images, using supervised learning. Learning such mappings from unlabelled data, or improving upon supervised models by exploiting unlabelled data, remains elusive. We argue that there are two important parts to learning without annotations: (i) matching the predictions to the input observations, and (ii) matching the predictions to known priors. We propose Adversarial Inverse Graphics networks (AIGNs): weakly supervised neural network models that combine feedback from rendering their predictions, with distribution matching between their predictions and a collection of ground-truth factors. We apply AIGNs to 3D human pose estimation and 3D structure and egomotion estimation, and outperform models supervised by only paired annotations. We further apply AIGNs to facial image transformation using super-resolution and inpainting renderers, while deliberately adding biases in the ground-truth datasets. Our model seamlessly incorporates such biases, rendering input faces towards young, old, feminine, masculine or Tom Cruiselike equivalents (depending on the chosen bias), or adding lip and nose augmentations while inpainting concealed lips and noses.
Focal and Ambient Processing of Built Environments: Intellectual and Atmospheric Experiences of Architecture

Neuroscience has well established that human vision divides into the central and peripheral fields of view. Central vision extends from the point of gaze (where we are looking) out to about 5° of visual angle (the width of one’s fist at arm’s length), while peripheral vision is the vast remainder of the visual field. These visual fields project to the parvo and magno ganglion cells, which process distinctly different types of information from the world around us and project that information to the ventral and dorsal visual streams, respectively. Building on the dorsal/ventral stream dichotomy, we can further distinguish between focal processing of central vision, and ambient processing of peripheral vision. Thus, our visual processing of and attention to objects and scenes depends on how and where these stimuli fall on the retina. The built environment is no exception to these dependencies, specifically in terms of how focal object perception and ambient spatial perception create different types of experiences we have with built environments. We argue that these foundational mechanisms of the eye and the visual stream are limiting parameters of architectural experience. We hypothesize that people experience architecture in two basic ways based on these visual limitations; by intellectually assessing architecture consciously through focal object processing and assessing architecture in terms of atmosphere through pre-conscious ambient spatial processing. Furthermore, these separate ways of processing architectural stimuli operate in parallel throughout the visual perceptual system. Thus, a more comprehensive understanding of architecture must take into account that built environments are stimuli that are treated differently by focal and ambient vision, which enable intellectual analysis of architectural experience versus the experience of architectural atmosphere, respectively. We offer this theoretical model to help advance a more precise understanding of the experience of architecture, which can be tested through future experimentation. (298 words)
Metabolic and Pathologic Effects of Nicotine on Gastrointestinal Tract and Pancreas of Rats

We examined in male Sprague-Dawley rats the effects of nicotine at doses of 50 (0.31 mM) and 200 mg/L (1.23 mM) given for a period of 16 weeks on body weight gain, food and fluid intake, plasma CCK, glucose and insulin levels, amylase secretory responses of isolated pancreatic acinar cells to CCK 8 and carbachol, and histopathology (gross and light microscopy) of stomach and pancreas. These parameters were re-examined further in animals treated with nicotine at doses of 200 mg/L (1.23 mM) for 12 weeks and given tap water for an additional 4 weeks to evaluate the effects of nicotine withdrawal. Metabolic data suggest that decreases in body weight gain, food and fluid intake, and plasma levels of glucose and insulin by nicotine are dose dependent. Endocrinological studies showed that the plasma levels of CCK were significantly increased with nicotine but the amylase secretory response of pancreatic acinar cells was inhibited in response to CCK-8 and carbachol. Histopathologic data revealed that treatment of animals with a high dose of nicotine enhanced the appearance of numerous vacuoles in the pancreatic acinar cell cytoplasm. When the pancreatic acinar cell morphology was closely examined, it showed evidence of pyknotic nuclei and fusion of vacuoles. Prominent loss of gastric mucosal surface was found in nicotine-treated animals with gross microscopic evidence of bleeding ulcers. All of the metabolic parameters except body weight gain were reversed upon nicotine withdrawal. In addition, plasma CCK levels and pancreatic enzyme secretion were reversed upon nicotine withdrawal. Histopathologic data showed a partial but not a complete recovery of the pancreatic acinar cell morphology and gastric mucosal surface following 4 weeks of nicotine withdrawal. The data suggest that nicotine ingested chronically alters metabolic, endocrine, and pathologic factors that may be responsible, at least in part, for the development of gastrointestinal ulcers and pancreatitis. These alterations appear to have been substantially prevented by abstinence of nicotine ingestion.
Lack of major olfactory dysfunction in MPTP‐induced parkinsonism

The olfactory function of 6 patients whose parkinsonism was the result of intravenous administration of 1‐methyl‐4‐phenyl‐1,2,3,6‐tetrahydropyridine (MPTP) was compared to that of 12 age‐matched patients with idiopathic Parkinson's disease (PD) and 10 age‐matched normal control subjects. Unlike their PD counterparts, the olfactory test scores of patients with MPTP‐induced parkinsonism, did not differ significantly from those of control subjects. These findings suggest that MPTP induced parkinsonism, unlike idiopathic PD, is unaccompanied, on average, by major alterations in the ability to smell.
Electric Energy Management in the Smart Home: Perspectives on Enabling Technologies and Consumer Behavior

Smart homes hold the potential for increasing energy efficiency, decreasing costs of energy use, decreasing the carbon footprint by including renewable resources, and transforming the role of the occupant. At the crux of the smart home is an efficient electric energy management system that is enabled by emerging technologies in the electricity grid and consumer electronics. This paper presents a discussion of the state of the art in electricity management in smart homes, the various enabling technologies that will accelerate this concept, and topics around consumer behavior with respect to energy usage.