Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Population-Level Associations between Preschool Vulnerability and Grade-Four Basic Skills

Background This is a predictive validity study examining the extent to which developmental vulnerability at kindergarten entry (as measured by the Early Development Instrument, EDI) is associated with children's basic skills in 4th grade (as measured by the Foundation Skills Assessment, FSA). Methodology/Principal Findings Relative risk analysis was performed on a large database linking individual-level EDI ratings to the scores the same children obtained on a provincial assessment of academic skills (FSA – Foundation Skills Assessment) four years later. We found that early vulnerability in kindergarten is associated with the basic skills that underlie populations of children's academic achievement in reading, writing and math, indicating that the Early Development Instrument permits to predict achievement-related skills four years in advance. Conclusions/Significance The EDI can be used to predict children's educational trends at the population level and can help select early prevention and intervention programs targeting pre-school populations at minimum cost.
Persistence of immune responses after a single dose of Novartis meningococcal serogroup A, C, W-135 and Y CRM-197 conjugate vaccine (Menveo®) or Menactra® among healthy adolescents

The persistence of human bactericidal activity (hSBA) responses in adolescents was assessed 22 months after vaccination with one dose of Menveo® (MenACWY-CRM; Novartis) or Menactra® (MCV4) (sanofi pasteur). The proportion of subjects with hSBA titers ≥8 was significantly higher among recipients of MenACWY-CRM than MCV4 for serogroups A, W-135 and Y.
Cooperation Behaviour and Innovation Performance in the Nigerian Manufacturing Industry

Analysing the relationship between firms’ openness to external knowledge and their innovation performance is nothing new. What is new is studying how this relationship fares in latecomer economic contexts such as Nigeria, and that is the focus of this paper. Using unique micro-level innovation data, it is shown, as the existing literature suggests, that firms are more likely to innovate when they access external knowledge either through formal or through informal interactions. However, innovative firms that exploit external knowledge do not necessarily enjoy greater innovation benefits than those that do not. Thus, while openness to external knowledge might help firms to become better at innovating, it does not assist them in reaping the benefits derivable from their innovation efforts. Moreover, different innovation types are essentially the same with respect to the effect that network resources have on them. Thus, it makes little sense to engage network partners selectively for certain innovation types at the expense of others.
c-MYC coordinately regulates ribosomal gene chromatin remodeling and Pol I availability during granulocyte differentiation

Loss of c-MYC is required for downregulation of ribosomal RNA (rRNA) gene (rDNA) transcription by RNA Polymerase I (Pol I) during granulocyte differentiation. Here, we demonstrate a robust reduction of Pol I loading onto rDNA that along with a depletion of the MYC target gene upstream binding factor (UBF) and a switch from epigenetically active to silent rDNA accompanies this MYC reduction. We hypothesized that MYC may coordinate these mechanisms via direct regulation of multiple components of the Pol I transcription apparatus. Using gene expression arrays we identified a ‘regulon’ of Pol I factors that are both downregulated during differentiation and reinduced in differentiated granulocytes upon activation of the MYC-ER transgene. This regulon includes the novel c-MYC target genes RRN3 and POLR1B. Although enforced MYC expression during granulocyte differentiation was sufficient to increase the number of active rRNA genes, its activation in terminally differentiated cells did not alter the active to inactive gene ratio despite increased rDNA transcription. Thus, c-MYC dynamically controls rDNA transcription during granulocytic differentiation through the orchestrated transcriptional regulation of core Pol I factors and epigenetic modulation of number of active rRNA genes.
Surface Patterning of Metal Substrates Through Low Power Laser Ablation for Enhanced Adhesive Bonding

The aim of the present work is to study the effect of laser-induced surface patterning on the strength of adhesive joints. Laser ablation was carried out on aluminum alloy (AA6082-T4) and stainless steel (AISI 304) substrates using a pulsed ytterbium fiber laser (LaserPoint YFL 20P). The morphological and elemental modifications induced by the laser ablation were analyzed by means of surface profilometry, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). In addition, surface wettability was analyzed by means of the sessile drop technique. In order to assess the capability of laser ablation to improve mechanical interlocking, cross-sectional areas of the samples taken across the interfacial region were probed under an optical microscope. Finally, mechanical tests were carried out on single-lap shear joints and the fracture surfaces were observed using the SEM. The obtained results showed that low power laser ablation can increase the strength of adhesive joints.
Initiation of somatic embryogenesis from immature zygotic embryos of oocarpa pine (Pinus oocarpa Schiede ex Schlectendal).

The focus of the current project was to establish somatic embryogenesis protocols for the tropical pine species Pinus oocarpa using immature zygotic embryos (ZEs) as explants. Somatic embryogenesis is best supported by mimicking natural seed-embryo developmental conditions, through a tissue culture medium formulation based on the mineral content of the seed nutritive tissue [megagametophyte (MG)]. A novel culture medium (P. oocarpa medium, PO) was tested in combination with different plant growth regulator (PGR) concentrations and compared with standard Pinus taeda media for the initiation of somatic embryogenesis from immature ZEs of P. oocarpa. Immature MGs containing immature ZEs of two mother trees were used with 12 and 8% extrusion rates for mother tree genotypes 3 and 5, respectively. In both mother trees the percentage capture was 2%. Multiplication of two captured cell lines (T5C2S01 and T5C1S12) was improved by lowering the concentrations of PGRs to 2.5 µM each 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid and abscisic acid (ABA) plus 1.0 µM each 6-benzylaminopurine and kinetin. Mature somatic embryos formed on 40 µM ABA, 6% (w/v) maltose, 12% (w/v) PEG 8000 and 0.6% (w/v) Phytagel. While PO medium appeared suboptimal for somatic embryo induction, it did exhibit potential for enhanced culture proliferation and subsequent improved maturation with cell line T5C2S01, where microscopic analysis revealed better embryo morphology on PO medium than on 1250 medium. However, this enhancement was not observed with cell line T5C1S12. Germination was preceded by partial desiccation for a period of 2-3 weeks before transferring the embryos to germination medium. Germination was observed after 7 days under low light, and apical primordia slowly expanded after transfer to ex vitro conditions. To our knowledge, this is the first report on the production of somatic seedlings in P. oocarpa.
Error Analysis of the S-Step Lanczos Method in Finite Precision

Abstract : The s-step Lanczos method is an attractive alternative to the classical Lanczos method as it enables an O(s) reduction in data movement over a fixed number of iterations. This can significantly improve performance on modern computers. In order for s-step methods to be widely adopted, it is important to better understand their error properties. Although the s-step Lanczos method is equivalent to the classical Lanczos method in exact arithmetic, empirical observations demonstrate that it can behave quite differently in finite precision. In the s-step Lanczos method the computed Lanczos vectors can lose orthogonality at a much quicker rate than the classical method a property which seems to worsen with increasing s. In this paper, we present, for the first time, a complete rounding error analysis of the s-step Lanczos method. Our methodology is analogous to Paige's rounding error analysis for the classical Lanczos method. Our analysis gives upper bounds on the loss of normality of and orthogonality between the computed Lanczos vectors, as well as a recurrence for the loss of orthogonality. The derived bounds are very similar to those of Paige for classical Lanczos, but with the addition of an amplification term which depends on the condition number of the Krylov bases computed every s-steps. Our results confirm theoretically what is well-known empirically: the conditioning of the Krylov bases plays a large role in determining finite precision behavior.
Induction of Rhabdomyosarcoma by Embedded Military-Grade Tungsten/Nickel/Cobalt Not by Tungsten/Nickel/Iron in the B6C3F1 Mouse

Continued improvements in the ballistic properties of military munitions have led to metal formulations for which little are known about the long-term health effects. Previously we have shown that a military-grade tungsten alloy comprised of tungsten, nickel, and cobalt, when embedded into the leg muscle of F344 rats to simulate a fragment wound, induces highly aggressive metastatic rhabdomyosarcomas. An important follow-up when assessing a compound’s carcinogenic potential is to test it in a second rodent species. In this study, we assessed the health effects of embedded fragments of 2 military-grade tungsten alloys, tungsten/nickel/cobalt and tungsten/nickel/iron, in the B6C3F1 mouse. Implantation of tungsten/nickel/cobalt pellets into the quadriceps muscle resulted in the formation of a rhabdomyosarcoma around the pellet. Conversely, implantation of tungsten/nickel/iron did not result in tumor formation. Unlike what was seen in the rat model, the tumors induced by the tungsten/nickel/cobalt did not exhibit aggressive growth patterns and did not metastasize.
Phase Transition Behavior and Large Piezoelectricity Near the Morphotropic Phase Boundary of Lead‐Free (Ba0.85Ca0.15)(Zr0.1Ti0.9)O3 Ceramics

The phase transition behavior and piezoelectric properties of (Ba1−xCax)(Zr0.1Ti0.9)O3 and (Ba0.85Ca0.15)(ZryTi1−y)O3 ceramics were investigated in this work to find out the potential factors contributing to large piezoelectricity. It was found that the morphotropic phase boundary (MPB) of (Ba0.85Ca0.15)(Zr0.1Ti0.9)O3 ceramics was closely related to the presence of an intermediate phase (considered as orthorhombic phase in this work) between rhombohedral (R) and tetragonal (T) phases at a narrow region, which could be carefully adjusted by the temperature and contents of Ca and Zr in the composition. In addition, the maximum piezoelectric and electromechanical coupling coefficients (with d33 = 572 pC/N and kp = 0.57) were observed near the MPB region close to T phase side, which might be intimately related to the presence of the intermediate phase. This investigation yielded a new sight to understand the mechanism of enhanced piezoelectricity near the MPB.
The emergence of group cognition

The Group Mind Thesis—understood as the claim that groups as a whole can be the subjects of mental states—was a popular idea in the intellectual landscape of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.2 For many scientists and philosophers of that period, it provided a succinct expression of what they perceived to be two characteristic features of groups: on the one hand, their ability to function as collective agents who can have intentions, make decisions, and pursue their own goals; on the other hand, the idea that groups are emergent wholes which are more than the sum of its members. Combine the two features, and the functional analogies between individual and group behavior strongly suggest adopting an intentional stance towards both. But the group mind thesis fell out of grace with the rise of behaviorism and operationalism—no doubt expedited by the fact that some of its traditional expressions traffi cked freely in unexplained mentalistic and vitalistic idioms that were rightly considered to be at odds with a scientifi cally informed worldview. As Wegner et al. (1985: 254–256) point out in their brief history of the group mind concept, the main problem was that the group mind seemed to lack its own body. Hence it remained unclear where to look for its properties, and how to measure them. One way to summarize the precarious ontological status of group minds is in the form of a theoretical dilemma. If the group mind is nothing over and above the collection of individual minds and the group processes by which they interact, an appeal to group minds appears to be superfl uous. However, if the group mind is something over and above all these things, it appears to imply a collective version of mind-body dualism. This raises the familiar question of how the group mind exercises its causal infl uence on individual group members. Suggested answers included the mediation of a genetic “ectoplasm” (Jung, 1922) or telepathic communication (McDougall, 1920). Neither horn of the dilemma makes the idea of group minds seem very attractive. Despite its historical ballast, the idea that groups can have cognitive properties of their own has recently gained new ascendancy in a wide
Myb promotes centriole amplification and later steps of the multiciliogenesis program

The transcriptional control of primary cilium formation and ciliary motility are beginning to be understood, but little is known about the transcriptional programs that control cilium number and other structural and functional specializations. One of the most intriguing ciliary specializations occurs in multiciliated cells (MCCs), which amplify their centrioles to nucleate hundreds of cilia per cell, instead of the usual monocilium. Here we report that the transcription factor MYB, which promotes S phase and drives cycling of a variety of progenitor cells, is expressed in postmitotic epithelial cells of the mouse airways and ependyma destined to become MCCs. MYB is expressed early in multiciliogenesis, as progenitors exit the cell cycle and amplify their centrioles, then switches off as MCCs mature. Conditional inactivation of Myb in the developing airways blocks or delays centriole amplification and expression of FOXJ1, a transcription factor that controls centriole docking and ciliary motility, and airways fail to become fully ciliated. We provide evidence that MYB acts in a conserved pathway downstream of Notch signaling and multicilin, a protein related to the S-phase regulator geminin, and upstream of FOXJ1. MYB can activate endogenous Foxj1 expression and stimulate a cotransfected Foxj1 reporter in heterologous cells, and it can drive the complete multiciliogenesis program in Xenopus embryonic epidermis. We conclude that MYB has an early, crucial and conserved role in multiciliogenesis, and propose that it promotes a novel S-like phase in which centriole amplification occurs uncoupled from DNA synthesis, and then drives later steps of multiciliogenesis through induction of Foxj1.
Design and fabrication of a shape-morphing soft pneumatic actuator: Soft robotic pad

Silicone-based soft pneumatic actuator (SPA) is one of the key interests in soft robotic research. Currently, most of the SPAs bear a similar one-dimensional rod-like shape, regardless of their design and fabrication. There are few prototypes of SPAs with two-dimensional initial shapes, however, they are basically the linear combination of several one-dimensional SPAs. This paper presents a new class of silicone-based SPA named soft robotic pad (SRP). The SRP is shaped into a soft pad with a single flat air chamber and can generate different kinds of motions according to the internal constraint matrix within the SRP. In this paper, the design and fabrication of our SRPs are elaborated in detail, followed by the preliminary characterization of the different SRP prototypes. Although the current design is not optimized, our SRP prototypes prove the feasibility of the design and fabrication of a 2D shape-morphing SPA. With subsequent optimization, the SRP can work robustly in various real-world applications as strong flat artificial muscles for human joint rehabilitation, or as fins in marine robots.
Middle Ear Response of Muc5ac and Muc5b Mucins to Nontypeable Haemophilus influenzae.

IMPORTANCE Chronic otitis media with effusion is characterized by middle ear secretion of mucin glycoproteins, predominantly MUC5B; MUC5AC, the other secretory mucin studied frequently, has also been identified in the middle ear. Emerging evidence suggests a dichotomous role for these mucins in innate immune responses. We hypothesized that MUC5AC is an acute responder and MUC5B is expressed at later time points, reflecting a chronic situation. OBJECTIVE To determine middle ear regulation of MUC5B and MUC5AC following in vitro bacterial and cytokine exposure. DESIGN, SETTING, AND SAMPLES An in vitro cell-based model of mucin gene regulation was conducted in a basic science laboratory at a tertiary pediatric hospital. The study was conducted from July 1, 2014, to June 30, 2015; data analysis was performed in July 2015. INTERVENTIONS Nontypeable Haemophilus influenzae (NTHi) lysates were generated and used to stimulate mouse middle ear epithelial cells (mMEECs) for 2 hours during 3 weeks. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES Real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction, luciferase assays, Western blot assay, and immunofluorescence techniques were performed to determine Muc5ac and Muc5b expression over time, Cxcl2 chemokine response, and nuclear factor-κB activation. Luciferase reporter assays were performed to evaluate specific promoter responses after NTHi exposure. RESULTS Nontypeable H influenzae lysates (200 μg/mL) drove differential mucin gene activation, with Muc5ac being induced up to 2.04 fold at 24 hours and 2.79 fold at 96 hours (P < .05) and Muc5b being induced only at more long-term points: 1.61 fold at 96 hours, 1.41 fold at 1 week, and 1.53 fold at 3 weeks (P < .05). Although NTHi lysates induced robust, early nuclear factor-κB nuclear translocation with nuclear factor-κB-dependent induction of Cxlc2 expression, the lysates had minimal to no effect on Muc5ac and Muc5b promoter activity. However, in contrast to NTHi lysates, CXCL2 induced significant transcription of both Muc5b and Muc5ac as early as 24 hours. CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE Nontypeable H influenzae lysates activate differential mucin gene activation in mMEECs. Although Muc5ac is an early response mucin gene, Muc5b appears to react as a chronic response mucin.
Tumor necrosis factor‐mediated interactions between inflammatory response and tumor vascular bed

Summary: Solid tumor therapy with chemotherapeutics greatly depends on the efficiency with which drugs are delivered to tumor cells. The typical characteristics of the tumor physiology promote but also appose accumulation of blood‐borne agents. The leaky tumor vasculature allows easy passage of drugs. However, the disorganized vasculature causes heterogeneous blood flow, and together with the often‐elevated interstitial fluid pressure, this state results in poor intratumoral drug levels and failure of treatment. Manipulation of the tumor vasculature could overcome these barriers and promote drug delivery. Targeting the vasculature has several advantages. The endothelial lining is readily accessible and the first to be encountered after systemic injection. Second, endothelial cells tend to be more stable than tumor cells and thus less likely to develop resistance to therapy. Third, targeting the tumor vasculature can have dual effects: (i) manipulation of the vasculature can enhance concomitant chemotherapy, and (ii) subsequent destruction of the vasculature can help to kill the tumor. In particular, tumor necrosis factor α is studied. Its action on solid tumors, both directly through tumor cell killing and destruction of the tumor vasculature and indirectly through manipulation of the tumor physiology, is complex. Understanding the mechanism of TNF and agents with comparable action on solid tumors is an important focus to further develop combination immunotherapy strategies.
Implementing wait-free objects on priority-based systems

Wait-free objects are often implemented through the use of a “helping scheme”, whereby one process “helps” one or more other processes to complete an operation. This paper presents severaf new helping schemes that can be generally applied to efficiently implement a variety of diflerent objects on priority-based uniprocessor and multiprocessor systems. Examples of such systems include lock-free multiprocessor kernels and real-time systems. Our helping schemes reduce overhead by exploiting the way in which processes are scheduled in priority-based systems. We illustrate the use of these schemes by presenting wait-free implementations of linked lists and a multi-word compare-and-swap primitive.
Flexural Behavior of High-Strength Concrete Beams Confined with Stirrups in Pure Bending Zone

The purpose of this study is to establish flexural behavior of high-strength concrete beams confined in the pure bending zone with stirrups. The experiment was carried out on full-scale high-strength reinforced concrete beams, of which the compressive strengths were 40 MPa and 70 MPa. The beams were confined with rectangular closed stirrups. Test results are reviewed in terms of flexural capacity and ductility. The effect of web reinforcement ratio, longitudinal reinforcement ratio and shear span to beam depth ratio on ductility are investigated. The analytic method is based on finite element method using fiber-section model, which is known to define the behavior of reinforced concrete structures well up to the ultimate state and is proven to be valid by the verification with the experimental results above. It is found that confinement of concrete compressive regions with closed stirrups does not affect the flexural strength but results in a significantly increased ductility. Moreover, the ductility tends to increase as the quantity of stirrups increases by reducing the spacing of stirrups.
Influence of Pedaling Cadence and Incremental Protocol on the Estimation of EMGFT

Abstract Duff, TM, Fournier, H, Hopp, OB, Ochshorn, E, Sanders, ES, Stevens, RE, and Malek, MH. Influence of pedaling cadence and incremental protocol on the estimation of EMGFT. J Strength Cond Res 30(8): 2206–2211, 2016—Theoretically, the electromyographic fatigue threshold (EMGFT) is the highest exercise intensity that an individual can exercise at indefinitely without an increase in electromyography (EMG) amplitude. This index is estimated from a single incremental test. There are, however, factors that may influence EMG amplitude such as pedaling cadence or the incremental protocol used. The purposes of this study were to determine whether different pedaling cadences and/or incremental protocols influence the estimation of the EMGFT. Eight healthy college-aged men performed incremental cycle ergometry on three separate visits. The participants exercised using the following combinations of pedaling cadences and incremental protocols in random order: 25 W at 70 RPM; 13 W at 70 RPM; and 25 W at 100 RPM. The EMGFT value was determined from the vastus lateralis muscle of each participant for each of the three conditions. Separate 1-way repeated measures analysis of variances were performed to determine mean differences for various outcome indices. The mean maximal power output for the 13 W at 70 RPM condition was significantly lower than the two other conditions. There were, however, no significant mean differences (F (2,14) = 2.03; p = 0.169) for EMGFT between the three conditions. The findings of this study indicated that different pedaling cadences and incremental protocols did not influence the estimation of the EMGFT.