Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Mutualism Promotes Diversity and Stability in a Simple Artificial Ecosystem

This work investigates the effect of ecological interactions between organisms on the evolutionary dynamics of a community. A spatially explicit, individual-based model is presented, in which organisms compete for space and resources. We investigated how introducing the potential for mutualistic relationships (where the presence of one type of organism stimulates the growth of another type, and vice versa) affected the evolutionary dynamics of the system. Without this potential, one or a small number of individual types of organisms dominated the simulated community from the onset. When mutualistic relationships were allowed, many persisting types arose, with new types appearing continually. Furthermore, we investigated how the stability of the community differed when mutualistic relationships were allowed and disallowed. Our results suggest that the existence of mutualistic relationships improved community stability.
Loss of homologous recombination or non-homologous end-joining leads to radial formation following DNA interstrand crosslink damage

High levels of interstrand cross-link damage in mammalian cells cause chromatid breaks and radial formations recognizable by cytogenetic examination. The mechanism of radial formation observed following DNA damage has yet to be determined. Due to recent findings linking homologous recombination and non-homologous end-joining to the action of the Fanconi anemia pathway, we speculated that radials might be the result of defects in either of the pathways of DNA repair. To test this hypothesis, we have investigated the role of homologous recombination proteins RAD51 and RAD52, non-homologous end-joining proteins Ku70 and LIG4, and protein MRE11 in radial formation and cell survival following interstrand crosslink damage with mitomycin C. For the studies we used small inhibitory RNA to deplete the proteins from cells, allowing for evaluation of radial formation and cell survival. In transformed normal human fibroblasts, depletion of these proteins increased interstrand crosslink sensitivity as manifested by decreased cell survival and increased radial formation. These results demonstrate that inactivation of proteins from either of the two separate DNA repair pathways increases cellular sensitivity to interstrand crosslinks, indicating each pathway plays a role in the normal response to interstrand crosslink damage. We can also conclude that homologous recombination or non-homologous end-joining are not required for radial formation, since radials occur with depletion of these pathways.
An assessment of climate feedback processes using satellite observations of clear‐sky OLR

Clear‐sky longwave radiative feedback processes depicted in climate models prepared for the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Fourth Assessment Report (AR4) are investigated using satellite observations of the clear‐sky outgoing longwave radiation (OLR). Estimates of clear‐sky longwave radiative damping are derived from regional, seasonal, and interannual sources of variability. In spite of well‐known biases of tropospheric temperature and humidity in climate models, comparisons indicate that the intermodel range in the rate of clear‐sky radiative damping are small despite large intermodel variability in the mean clear‐sky OLR. Moreover, the model‐simulated rates of radiative damping are consistent with those obtained from satellite observations and are indicative of a strong positive correlation between temperature and water vapor variations over a broad range of spatiotemporal scales.
Designing reliable software

In this paper we examine the quantitative software attributes that are known to be related to software faults and subsequently software failures. The object is to develop design guidelines based on these quantitative attributes that will assist the evaluation of alternatives in the software design process. In order for the several design alternatives to provide meaningful input to the design process, the software system must first be characterized in terms of a series of operational profiles of its projected use.
Does learner strategy training make a difference

This study investigated the effects of strategy training on four key aspects of the learning process, namely student motivation, students' knowledge of strategies, the perceived utility of strategies, and the actual deployment of strategies by students. The study took the form of an experiment in which sixty first-year undergraduate students at the University of Hong Kong were randomly assigned to control and experimental groups. Both groups took part in that same language program. In addition, the experimental groups were systematically trained in fifteen learning strategies. Results of the study indicated significant differences in three of the four areas investigated. The experimental groups significantly outperformed the control groups on motivation, knowledge, and perceived utility. There was no significant difference in the area of deployment. Analysis of results on individual strategies revealed that strategy training was neither uniform nor consistent across all strategies. In the concluding section of the paper, the theoretical and pedagogical implications of the study are set out and discussed.
Wavelet analysis on pressure stimulated currents emitted by marble samples

This paper presents a wavelet based method of analysis of experimentally recorded weak electric signals from marble specimens which have undergone successive abrupt step loadings. Experimental results verify the existence of "memory effects" in rocks, as far as the current emission is concerned, akin to the "Kaiser effect" in acoustic emissions, which accompany rock fracturing. Macroscopic signal processing shows similarities and differences between the currents emitted during successive loading and wavelet analysis can reveal significant differences between the currents of each loading cycle that contain valuable information for the micro and macro cracks in the specimen as well as information for the remaining strength of the material. Wavelets make possible the time localization of the energy of the electric signal emitted by stressed specimens and can serve as method to differentiate between compressed and uncompressed samples, or to determine the deformation level of specimens.
Half-Wave Cycloconverter-Based Photovoltaic Microinverter Topology With Phase-Shift Power Modulation

A grid-connected microinverter with a reduced number of power conversion stages and fewer passive components is proposed. A high-frequency transformer and a series-resonant tank are used to interface the full-bridge inverter to the half-wave cycloconverter. All power switches are switched with zero-voltage switching. Phase-shift power modulation is used to control the output power of the inverter. A steady-state analysis of the proposed topology is presented to determine the average output power of the inverter. Analysis of soft switching of the full-bridge and the half-wave cycloconverter is presented with respect to voltage gain, quality factor, and phase shift of the inverter. Simulation and experimental results are presented to validate the operation of the proposed topology.
Boosting information fusion

Ensemble methods provide a principled framework for building high performance classifiers and representing many types of data. As a result, these methods can be useful for making inferences in many domains such as classification and multi-modal biometrics. We introduce a novel ensemble method for combining multiple representations (or views). The method is a multiple view generalization of AdaBoost. Similar to AdaBoost, base classifiers are independently built from each representation. Unlike AdaBoost, however, all data types share the same sampling distribution as the view whose weighted training error is the smallest among all the views. As a result, the most consistent data type dominates over time, thereby significantly reducing sensitivity to noise. In addition, our proposal is provably better than AdaBoost trained on any single type of data. The proposed method is applied to the problems of facial and gender prediction based on biometric traits as well as of protein classification. Experimental results show that our method outperforms several competing techniques including kernel-based data fusion.
Prevalence and Etiology of Subclinical Mastitis in Small Ruminants of Tigray Regional State, North Ethiopia

A study was conducted at Kafta Humera and Tanqua Abergelle Districts from April to June, 2011 to assess the prevalence of subclinical mastitis in lactating small ruminants and identify bacterial causative agents. A total of 390 lactating animals comprising 255 goats and 135 sheep were randomly selected from population and screened for evidence of subclinical mastitis. The overall prevalence of subclinical mastitis was found to be 18.03% (46/255) and 28.14% (38/135) in goats and sheep, respectively. California mastitis test (CMT) positive milk samples were subjected to bacteriological examination and the following bacteria were isolated; coagulase negative Staphylococcus (44.7%), Staphylococcus aureus (27.7%), Escherchia coli (17.0%) and streptococci (10.63%). Risk factors; species (p = 0.021), study site (p < 0.001), sheep breed (p = 0.018) and goat breed (p = 0.009) showed statistically significant association with the occurrence of subclinical mastitis in small dairy ruminants. However, there was no statistically significant association between risk factors such as Age (p = 0.779), parity (p = 0.201) and stage of lactation (p = 0.952). Therefore, it can be concluded that mastitis is a significant disease in small ruminants that affects their productivity and measures need to be taken to control the disease.
Antioxidant Supplements Block the Response of HDL to Simvastatin-Niacin Therapy in Patients With Coronary Artery Disease and Low HDL

One strategy for treating coronary artery disease (CAD) patients with low HDL cholesterol (HDL-C) is to maximally increase the HDL-C to LDL-C ratio by combining lifestyle changes with niacin (N) plus a statin. Because HDL can prevent LDL oxidation, the low-HDL state also may benefit clinically from supplemental antioxidants. Lipoprotein changes over 12 months were studied in 153 CAD subjects with low HDL-C randomized to take simvastatin and niacin (S-N), antioxidants (vitamins E and C, &bgr;-carotene, and selenium), S-N plus antioxidants (S-N+A), or placebo. Mean baseline plasma cholesterol, triglyceride, LDL-C, and HDL-C levels of the 153 subjects were 196, 207, 127, and 32 mg/dL, respectively. Without S-N, lipid changes were minor. The S-N and S-N+A groups had comparably significant reductions (P ≤0.001) in plasma cholesterol, triglyceride, and LDL-C. However, increases in HDL-C, especially HDL2-C, were consistently higher in the S-N group than in the S-N+A group (25% vs 18% and 42% vs 0%, respectively). With S-N, but not with S-N+A, there was a selective increase in apolipoprotein (apo) A-I (64%) in HDL particles containing apo A-I but not A-II [Lp(A-I)] and their particle size. Thus, in CAD patients with low HDL-C, S-N substantially increased HDL2-C, Lp(A-I), and HDL particle size. These favorable responses were blunted by the antioxidants used owing to a striking selective effect on Lp(A-I). This unexpected adverse interaction between antioxidants and lipid therapy may have important implications for the management of CAD.
An essential role of syntaxin 3 protein for granule exocytosis and secretion of IL‐1α, IL‐1β, IL‐12b, and CCL4 from differentiated HL‐60 cells

Besides their roles in the killing of pathogens, neutrophils have the capacity to package a variety of cytokines into cytoplasmic granules for subsequent release upon inflammatory conditions. Because the rapid secretion of cytokines orchestrates the action of other immune cells at the infection site and thus, can contribute to the development and chronicity of inflammatory diseases, we aimed to determine the intracellular SNARE machinery responsible for the regulation of cytokine secretion and degranulation. From a constructed gene‐expression network, we first selected relevant cytokines for functional validation by the CBA approach. We established a cytokine‐secretion profile for human neutrophils and dHL‐60 cells, underlining their similar ability to secrete a broad variety of cytokines within proinflammatory conditions mimicked by LPS stimulation. Secondly, after screening of SNARE genes by microarray experiments, we selected STX3 for further functional studies. With the use of a siRNA strategy, we show that STX3 is clearly required for the maximal release of IL‐1α, IL‐1β, IL‐12b, and CCL4 without alteration of other cytokine secretion in dHL‐60 cells. In addition, we demonstrate that STX3 is involved in MMP‐9 exocytosis from gelatinase granules, where STX3 is partly localized. Our results suggest that the secretion of IL‐1α, IL‐1β, IL‐12b, and CCL4 occurs during gelatinase degranulation, a process controlled by STX3. In summary, these findings provide first evidence that STX3 has an essential role in trafficking pathways of cytokines in neutrophil granulocytes.
BLAST: the far-infrared/radio correlation in distant galaxies

We investigate the correlation between far-infrared (FIR) and radio luminosities in distant galaxies, a lynchpin of modern astronomy. We use data from the Balloon-borne Large Aperture Submillimetre Telescope (BLAST), Spitzer, the Large Apex BOlometer CamerA (LABOCA), the Very Large Array and the Giant Metre-wave Radio Telescope (GMRT) in the Extended Chandra Deep Field South (ECDFS). For a catalogue of BLAST 250-μm-selected galaxies, we remeasure the 70–870-μm flux densities at the positions of their most likely 24-μm counterparts, which have a median [interquartile] redshift of 0.74 [0.25, 1.57]. From these, we determine the monochromatic flux density ratio, q_(250)(= log_(10) [ S_(250 μm)/S_(1400 MHz)]), and the bolometric equivalent, q_(IR). At z ≈ 0.6 , where our 250-μm filter probes rest-frame 160-μm emission, we find no evolution relative to q_(160) for local galaxies. We also stack the FIR and submm images at the positions of 24-μm- and radio-selected galaxies. The difference between q_(IR) seen for 250-μm- and radio-selected galaxies suggests that star formation provides most of the IR luminosity in ≲100-μJy radio galaxies, but rather less for those in the mJy regime. For the 24-μm sample, the radio spectral index is constant across 0 < z < 3 , but q_(IR) exhibits tentative evidence of a steady decline such that q_(IR) ∝ (1 +z)^(−0.15±0.03) – significant evolution, spanning the epoch of galaxy formation, with major implications for techniques that rely on the FIR/radio correlation. We compare with model predictions and speculate that we may be seeing the increase in radio activity that gives rise to the radio background.
Cigarette Smoking and Chronic Kidney Disease in African Americans in the Jackson Heart Study

Background Controversy exists regarding the association of cigarette smoking and renal dysfunction, particularly among African Americans, who are disproportionately affected by chronic kidney disease; therefore, we evaluated the relationship between cigarette smoking and rapid renal function (RRF) decline in the Jackson Heart Study. Methods and Results Rates of RRF decline were determined among 3648 African American participants enrolled at baseline in the Jackson Heart Study. RRF decline was defined as an absolute decline of estimated glomerular filtration rate of 30% from visit 1 to visit 3. There were 422 current, 659 past, and 2567 never smokers identified at visit 1. After adjustment for age, sex, body mass index, diabetes, hypertension, cholesterol, physical activity, education, alcohol consumption, and prevalent cardiovascular disease, current smokers demonstrated a significantly higher incidence of RRF decline compared with never smokers (incidence rate ratio 1.83, 95% CI 1.31–2.56). Current smokers using 1 to 19 and ≥20 cigarettes daily had an increased incidence of RRF decline (incidence rate ratios of 1.75 [95% CI 1.18–2.59] and 1.97 [95% CI 1.17–3.31], respectively). There was a significant, progressive reduction in estimated glomerular filtration rate from visit 1 to visit 3 in current and past smokers compared with never smokers. Finally, current smokers had a 1.38‐fold increase in C‐reactive protein compared with never smokers, after controlling for covariates. Conclusions In a large African American cohort, current cigarette smoking was independently associated with RRF decline in a dose‐dependent manner. There was also evidence of increased inflammation (C‐reactive protein) in current smokers, suggesting a potential mechanism for these relationships.
Bipolar Affective Disorder and Parkinson's Disease

Little is known about comorbidities of bipolar disorder such as Parkinson's disease. A case history and a literature survey indicate that bipolar disorder is linked with or influences Parkinson's disease and vice versa. Underlying mechanisms are poorly understood, and, more importantly, no treatment options are established in such double diagnoses. The few data in comorbid Parkinson cases seem to point to a rapid cycling pattern of bipolar symptoms. With regard to therapeutic intervention, the literature supports pramipexole for treatment of both Parkinson and depressive symptoms in bipolar depression. Lithium, the mood stabilizer of choice for treating manic states, is problematical for use in Parkinson patients because of its side effects. Valproate might be an alternative, especially for treatment of rapid cycling.
Gendered Speech in Social Context: Perspectives from Town and Gown

Our understanding of issues surrounding gender and language has come a long way since the early 1970s. Awareness of sexist language use has been heightened, and such use challenged, generally successfully. Gender-based boundaries have been broken down in many areas, so that the visibility of women in previously male-dominated domains is far greater than it was twenty-five or thirty years ago. Yet few would suggest that the goal of gender equity has been achieved. This book marks our progress along the road to that objective, and suggests ways of moving ahead. In one sense the essays in this volume, which represent a selection of papers presented at New Zealand’s first-ever Language and Gender Symposium, held at Victoria University of Wellington in late 1999, are a celebration of the developments in language/gender studies over the last twenty-five years. This is particularly so in the first section, (The Gown Perspective), which presents the latest academic research into language/gender. Gender is now being viewed as a social construct rather than an essential sex-determined difference. The deficit model of women’s language behaviour is no longer dominant; women are seen to be driving linguistic innovation, as Anne Pauwels demonstrates in ‘Inclusive language is good business’. Indeed, Margaret A. Maclagan’s analysis of New Zealand English speech data suggests that women, in New Zealand at least, have been leading language change for over a century. Understandably, given the symposium’s venue, this volume is weighted towards research into New Zealand English. To an extent this is a tribute to the vigour and robustness of linguistic research in New Zealand today. However, the book does not focus on New Zealand English alone – British male speech provides the data for an absorbing discussion of men’s narratives, and Australian English is well-represented. Nor is the book restricted to varieties of English. Miriam Meyerhoff includes Malo, a Vanuatu language, in her discussion of apologies, and Andrew J. Barke looks at changes in second-person pronouns in Japanese. Uta Lenk examines the language of German job advertisements, in the process raising interesting
ATTITUDE OF MALE EMPLOYEES TOWARD FEMALE MANAGERS IN SELECTED ORGANIZATIONS IN GHANA

The study examines the views of male employees working under female heads in selected organizations in Ghana. The research is significant because it testifies how male negatively regard female heads despite series of both international and national conferences and platforms that advocate for women to assume managerial positions at the workplace. The study employed a case study and descriptive research design. The sample size was 122 respondents from 17 organizations. A purposive random technique was used to select only male employees who have worked or are still working under female heads. Questionnaires and secondary data were used to collect data. The Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) was used to analyze data which were presented into simple descriptive tables. The study revealed that majority of the male employees (69.5%) preferred to work under male managers and coded managerial positions as masculine position. It is recommended, therefore, that male employees should embrace and integrate female heads in decision making positions, as women now constitute majority of the working population in the world.
Pandemic (H1N1) 2009 Risk for Frontline Health Care Workers

To determine whether frontline health care workers (HCWs) are at greater risk for contracting pandemic (H1N1) 2009 than nonclinical staff, we conducted a study of 231 HCWs and 215 controls. Overall, 79 (17.7%) of 446 had a positive antibody titer by hemagglutination inhibition, with 46 (19.9%) of 231 HCWs and 33 (15.3%) of 215 controls positive (OR 1.37, 95% confidence interval 0.84–2.22). Of 87 participants who provided a second serum sample, 1 showed a 4-fold rise in antibody titer; of 45 patients who had a nose swab sample taken during a respiratory illness, 7 had positive results. Higher numbers of children in a participant’s family and working in an intensive care unit were risk factors for infection; increasing age, working at hospital 2, and wearing gloves were protective factors. This highly exposed group of frontline HCWs was no more likely to contract pandemic (H1N1) 2009 influenza infection than nonclinical staff, which suggests that personal protective measures were adequate in preventing transmission.
Beyond Random Assignment: Credible Inference of Causal Effects in Dynamic Economies

Random assignment is insufficient for measured treatment responses to recover causal effects (comparative statics) in dynamic economies. We characterize analytically bias probabilities and magnitudes. If the policy variable is binary there is attenuation bias. With more than two policy states, treatment responses can undershoot, overshoot, or have incorrect signs. Under permanent random assignment, treatment responses overshoot (have incorrect signs) for realized changes opposite in sign to (small relative to) expected changes. We derive necessary and sufficient conditions, beyond random assignment, for correct inference of causal effects: martingale policy variable. Infinitesimal transition rates are only sufficient absent fixed costs. Stochastic monotonicity is sufficient for correct sign inference. If these conditions are not met, we show how treatment responses can nevertheless be corrected and mapped to causal effects or extrapolated to forecast responses to future policy changes within or across policy generating processes.