Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Repetition Suppression in Auditory–Motor Regions to Pitch and Temporal Structure in Music

Music performance requires control of two sequential structures: the ordering of pitches and the temporal intervals between successive pitches. Whether pitch and temporal structures are processed as separate or integrated features remains unclear. A repetition suppression paradigm compared neural and behavioral correlates of mapping pitch sequences and temporal sequences to motor movements in music performance. Fourteen pianists listened to and performed novel melodies on an MR-compatible piano keyboard during fMRI scanning. The pitch or temporal patterns in the melodies either changed or repeated (remained the same) across consecutive trials. We expected decreased neural response to the patterns (pitch or temporal) that repeated across trials relative to patterns that changed. Pitch and temporal accuracy were high, and pitch accuracy improved when either pitch or temporal sequences repeated over trials. Repetition of either pitch or temporal sequences was associated with linear BOLD decrease in frontal–parietal brain regions including dorsal and ventral premotor cortex, pre-SMA, and superior parietal cortex. Pitch sequence repetition (in contrast to temporal sequence repetition) was associated with linear BOLD decrease in the intraparietal sulcus (IPS) while pianists listened to melodies they were about to perform. Decreased BOLD response in IPS also predicted increase in pitch accuracy only when pitch sequences repeated. Thus, behavioral performance and neural response in sensorimotor mapping networks were sensitive to both pitch and temporal structure, suggesting that pitch and temporal structure are largely integrated in auditory–motor transformations. IPS may be involved in transforming pitch sequences into spatial coordinates for accurate piano performance.
Verification Steps and Personal Stories in an Instruction Manual for Seniors: Effects on Confidence, Motivation, and Usability

Research problem: The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of two types of motivational elements-verification steps and personal stories-in an instruction manual for a cell phone targeted at senior users (between 60 and 70 years). Research questions: What are the effects of adding verification steps and personal stories to an instruction manual on: (1) Seniors' confidence in being able to work with a cell phone? (2) Seniors' motivation to work with a cell phone? (3) Seniors' effectiveness and efficiency in performing tasks, and their satisfaction with the cell phone and the instruction manual (usability)? Literature review: To optimize products and services for older users, the literature suggests that two specific motivational elements may be beneficial: (1) verification steps, which provide information at the end of procedures to allow users to check if these procedures were performed correctly. These appear to users as part of conventional procedural information in user instructions and (2) personal stories, which are anecdotes or testimonials that describe how a fictitious user succeeded in completing a procedure. Methodology: We conducted a quantitative experiment in which 59 seniors between 60 and 70 years of age participated. They performed a number of tasks with a cell phone, using a version of the instruction manual with added verification steps, or a version with additional personal stories, or a control version without motivational elements. We measured participants' confidence, their motivation, and usability by asking them to answer several questionnaires and by measuring task performance. Results and conclusions: Results support the use of verification steps or personal stories as motivational elements in user instructions as they can positively affect confidence, motivation, and usability, especially when senior users encounter setbacks.
Eyes Absent, a key repressor of polar cell fate during Drosophila oogenesis

Throughout Drosophila oogenesis, specialized somatic follicle cells perform crucial functions in egg chamber formation and in signaling between somatic and germline cells. In the ovary, at least three types of somatic follicle cells, polar cells, stalk cells and main body epithelial follicle cells, can be distinguished when egg chambers bud from the germarium. Although specification of these three somatic cell types is important for normal oogenesis and subsequent embryogenesis, the molecular basis for establishment of their cell fates is not completely understood. Our studies reveal the gene eyes absent (eya) to be a key repressor of polar cell fate. EYA is a nuclear protein that is normally excluded from polar and stalk cells, and the absence of EYA is sufficient to cause epithelial follicle cells to develop as polar cells. Furthermore, ectopic expression of EYA is capable of suppressing normal polar cell fate and compromising the normal functions of polar cells, such as promotion of border cell migration. Finally, we show that ectopic Hedgehog signaling, which is known to cause ectopic polar cell formation, does so by repressing eya expression in epithelial follicle cells.
A preliminary checklist for software cost management

This paper presents a process framework and a preliminary checklist for software cost management. While most textbooks and research papers on cost estimation look mainly at the "estimation" phase, our framework and checklist includes the phases relevant to estimation: "preparation", "estimation", "application", and "learning". We believe that cost estimation processes and checklists should support these phases to enable high estimation accuracy. The checklist we suggest is based on checklists from a number of sources, e.g., a handbook in forecasting and checklists present in several Norwegian software companies, it needs, however, to be extended through feedback from other researchers and software practitioners. There is also a need for a provision of conditions for meaningful use of the checklist issues and descriptions of the strength and sources of evidence in favor of the checklist issues. The present version of the checklist should therefore be seen as preliminary and we want to get feedback from the conference participants and other readers of this paper for further improvements.
Kinesin crouches to sprint but resists pushing.

Recent optical trap experiments have applied resisting, assisting, and sideways loads to conventional kinesin moving on microtubules at fixed [ATP]. To gain insight into intermediate motions when the motor protein takes its 8.2-nm steps, the velocity and randomness data have been analyzed by using discrete-state stochastic models with a three-dimensional "energy landscape. " The bead size and tether angle play a crucial role. The analysis implies that on binding ATP the motor "crouches," the point of attachment of the tether at the necklinker junction moving downward toward the microtubule by 0.5-0.7 nm, while inching forward by only 0.1-0.2 nm, before completing the step from a transition state by a unitary "sprint" of approximately 7.8 nm. These inferences accord with high-resolution observations that exclude a previously predicted substep of 1.8-2.1 nm. Assisting and leftward loads are opposed in that the perpendicular component of the tension in the tether is enhanced by approximately 2 pN, which reduces the velocity, but sideways lurching is not supported.
Creativity and Early Years Education: A lifewide foundation

Most people accept that early years education should aim to develop children's creativity, but this raises a number of questions: What is creativity? How does it relate to such concepts as imagination, self-expression and intelligence? Why is it valuable? --and in what ways? Can creativity be taught? And, if so, how? And how can it be assessed? In this carefully-weighed, clearly written and scholarly study, Anna Craft answers these and related questions, providing in the process a comprehensive guide to creativity for all those who work with children in the early years.
Confiança do empregado na organização: o impacto dos valores pessoais e organizacionais

O objetivo do presente estudo foi verificar o poder preditivo de valores pessoais e organizacionais em relacao a confianca do empregado na organizacao. Utilizou-se como referencial a teoria dos valores humanos e valores organizacionais que expressam motivacoes semelhantes do individuo e da organizacao. A amostra do estudo foi composta por 781 empregados, vinculados a organizacoes distintas. A coleta de dados foi realizada, utilizando-se as seguintes escalas: Inventario de Perfis de Valores Organizacionais, Inventario de Valores Pessoais e Escala de Confianca do empregado na organizacao. Para analise dos dados utilizou-se estatistica descritiva, analise fatorial e analise de regressao multipla hierarquica.Inicialmente foram realizadas analises fatoriais para verificar a validade de construto dos instrumentos, sendo os resultados obtidos satisfatorios. As variaveis criterio foram confianca nos padroes eticos, reconhecimento financeiro/promocao do crescimento do empregado, solidez economica da organizacao e normas relativas a demissao de empregados. Os resultados indicaram em todos os modelos que valores pessoais explicaram percentual reduzido de variância quando comparados aos valores organizacionais. Os valores pessoais foram preditores significativos somente de confianca na solidez economica da organizacao. No caso das demais variaveis criterio os valores organizacionais significativos foram realizacao/autonomia, bem-estar do empregado, dominio, prestigio, conformidade e preocupacao com a coletividade. Esses resultados indicam que a confianca do empregado na organizacao parece basear-se em uma avaliacao do sistema organizacional. Nesse sentido, os valores organizacionais enquanto uma variavel de natureza macro sistemica poderiam ser percebidos como mais relevantes na explicacao da confianca. Normal 0 21 false false false PT-BR X-NONE X-NONE /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Tabela normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0cm; mso-para-margin-bottom:. 0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";}
In search of homo economicus: Experiments in 15 small-scale societies

al behavior better explained statistically by individuals' attributes such as their sex, age, or relative wealth, or by the attributes of the group to which the individuals belong? Are there cultures that approximate the canonical account of self-regarding behavior? Existing research cannot answer such questions because virtually all subjects have been university students, and while there are cultural differences among student populations throughout the world, these differences are small compared to the range of all social and cultural environments. To address the above questions, we and our collaborators undertook a large cross-cultural study of behavior in ultimatum, public good, and dictator games. Twelve experienced field researchers, working in 12 countries on five continents, recruited subjects from 15 small-scale societies exhibiting a wide variety of economic and cultural conditions. Our sample consists of three foraging societies, six that practice slash-and-burn horticulture
Phylogenetic and biogeographic relationships of eastern Asian and eastern North American disjunct Suillus species (fungi) as inferred from nuclear ribosomal RNA ITS sequences.

Species of Suillus produce fleshy, pored mushrooms. They are important symbiotic (ectomycorrhizal) partners of many coniferous trees. The genus includes several putative eastern Asian and eastern North American disjunct species, i.e., the S. americanus-S. sibiricus and S. decipiens-S. spraguei complexes. Phylogenetic relationships among the groups were determined to further understand the biogeographic pattern. Analyses were based on 40 sequences of the ITS region of the nuclear ribosomal RNA tandem repeats, representing 18 distinct species/populations. Our phylogenetic analyses suggested that: (1) Chinese and United States' (U.S.) S. spraguei plus S. decipiens form a strongly supported monophyletic group, with North American S. decipiens and Chinese S. spraguei being sister taxa; (2) S. americanus, Asian and U.S. S. sibiricus, plus S. umbonatus form a clade supported by a high bootstrap value; and (3) little ITS sequence divergence exists within the latter group compared to the S. decipiens-S. spraguei clade. Phylogenetic patterns revealed by this study imply a close phylogenetic relationship between eastern Asian and eastern North American disjunct population/species of Suillus. These fungi display relatively high host fidelity (at least to the host subgenus level), suggesting potential coevolutionary/comigratory trends.
A multilayer active hybrid-ring using ground-slot coupling technique

A ground-slot coupling technique is applied to design a novel multilayer active hybrid-ring power divider. The prototype consists of three ground slots to couple the signal between circuit layers, and two single-stage HEMT amplifiers to boost the coupled signal. It is tested at C-band with 40% -3dB bandwidth. At 5 GHz center frequency, it has 8 dB small-signal gain and 10 dBm output P1 dB.
Antimicrobial resistance rates in gram-positive bacteria do not drive glycopeptides use

Surveillance data are considered essential to appropriate empiric antibiotic therapy and stewardship. The objective of this study was to determine if a change in the rates of antibiotic resistance impacts antibiotic use in European hospitals. Glycopeptides use was selected to study the correlation between resistance rates and antibiotic use because of the restricted spectrum against resistant gram positive bacteria. PubMed, ECDC databases and national/regional surveillance systems were searched to identify glycopeptides´ consumption in defined daily dose per 1000 inhabitant-days (DID) and rate of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), methicillin-resistant coagulase negative staphylococci (MRCoNS), and vancomycin-resistant enterococci (VRE) in bloodstream infections (BSIs) in European countries between 1997 and 2015. Time trends were studied and associations between DID and BSI resistance rates were tested using multi-level mixed effect models. To account for the gap in the publication and dissemination of the yearly resistance data, a 2-year lag in the resistance rates was applied. Data on glycopeptides´ DID and resistance rates of target microorganisms in blood cultures were identified among 31 countries over a 19-year period. Glycopeptides use significantly increased (p<0·0001) while rates of MRSA BSIs decreased in majority of the countries (p<0·0001) and MRCoNS and VRE BSIs remained stable. Variation in glycopeptides’ DID was not associated with variation in BSIs due to MRSA (p = 0·136) and VRE (p = 0·613). After adjusting for MRCoNS and VRE resistance rates, among 21 countries, 11 (52%) had a concordant and 10 (48%) a discordant trend in yearly glycopeptides´ DID and MRSA BSI rates. No correlation was found between resistance rates and DID data even among 8 countries with more than 5% decrease in MRSA rates over time. (RC -0·009, p = 0·059). Resistance rate of MRSA, MRCoNS, and VRE BSIs does not impact DID of glycopeptides in European hospitals. This finding is key to redefining the role and structure of antimicrobial surveillance and stewardship programmes.
A new Leucoagaricus species of section Piloselli (Agaricales, Agaricaceae) from Spain

The new species Leucoagaricus variicolor is described from a public park in Zaragoza, Spain, based on both morphological and molecular characters. Illustrations of fresh basidiomata in situ and of the main macro- and micromorphological features are added. Leucoagaricus variicolor belongs to section Piloselli and is compared with similar taxa.
The Centaurus Group and the Outer Halo of NGC 5128: Are They Dynamically Connected?

NGC 5128, a giant elliptical galaxy only ∼4 Mpc away, is the dominant member of a galaxy group of over 80 probable members. The Centaurus group provides an excellent sample for a kinematic comparison between the halo of NGC 5128 and its surrounding satellite galaxies. A new study, presented here, shows no kinematic difference in rotation amplitude, rotation axis, or velocity dispersion between the halo of NGC 5128, determined from over ∼340 of its globular clusters, and those of the Centaurus group as a whole. These results suggest NGC 5128 could be behaving in part as the inner component to the galaxy group, and could have begun as a large initial seed galaxy, gradually built up by minor mergers and satellite accretions, consistent with simple cold dark matter models. The masses and mass-to-light ratios in the B band, corrected for projection effects, are determined to be (1.3 ± 0.5) × 1012 M⊙ and 52 ± 22 M⊙ L for NGC 5128 out to a galactocentric radius of 45 kpc and (9.2 ± 3.0) × 1012 M⊙ and 153 ± 50 M⊙ L for the Centaurus group, consistent with previous studies.
Use of Diffusion Tensor MRI to Identify Early Changes in Diabetic Nephropathy

Background/Aims: Currently available clinical indicators of kidney disease lack the sensitivity and/or specificity to identify early-stage diabetic nephropathy (DN). Quantitative diffusion magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), specifically diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), has been used to quantify pathophysiologic changes in other organs but has not been well studied in kidney diseases, including DN. The goal of this pilot study was to examine differences in kidney DTI parameters in diabetic subjects versus healthy controls. Methods: 16 diabetic and 5 healthy control subjects were recruited for this institutional review board-approved/Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act-compliant study. Kidneys were scanned using DTI to generate apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) and fractional anisotropy (FA) data. Mean cortical and medullary ADC and FA values were calculated by selecting multiple regions of interest. Diabetics were stratified by estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) into 2 groups: eGFR ≧60 (n = 10) and eGFR <60 (n = 6) ml/min/1.73 m2. Mean diffusion parameters and eGFRs were compared between these groups of diabetic subjects and healthy controls. Results: Medullary FA, ADC and cortical ADC values were significantly lower in diabetics with eGFR <60 compared to controls. Notably, both mean medullary FA and ADC were significantly lower in diabetics with eGFR ≧60 compared to controls (p = 0.001 and p = 0.042, respectively). For the study subjects in aggregate, medullary FA correlated significantly with eGFR (R = 0.69, p < 0.01); the other diffusion parameters showed no significant correlations. Conclusions: This pilot study suggests that changes in medullary DTI assessments may serve as indicators of early DN. Further studies are needed to determine if these findings could serve as biomarkers to identify diabetics at risk of DN progression.
Differences in the gas sensing properties readout with n and p-type MOX materials

The way in which surface changes are transduced into a variation of an electrical parameter (often electrical resistance) depends on the surface oxidation level, material morphology its semiconductor behaviour, etc. Therefore, if one wants to understand more about the way in which gas-surface interactions affect the gas sensing properties of material, complex phenomenological and spectroscopic investigations are needed. Herein, by simultaneous DC and relative work function investigations we could explain the differences induced by the MOX semiconductor character (n and p-type) to the surface phenomena transduction mechanism.
Instruction using the Picture Exchange Communication System appears to enhance generalization of communication skills among children with autism in comparison to Responsive Education and Prelinguistic Milieu Teaching

This review provides a summary and appraisal commentary on the treatment review by Yoder, P. J., & Lieberman, R. G. (2010). Brief report: Randomized test of the efficacy of Picture Exchange Communication System on highly generalized picture exchange in children with ASD. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 40, 629–632. Source of funding and disclosure of interest: This study was funded by the National Institute for Deafness and Other Communication Disorders grant R01CD03581 and the core grant support to the Vanderbilt University Kennedy Center NICHD grant HD15052. The second author was supported by grant #T32HD07226 from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development to Vanderbilt University. No interests disclosed. The original authors of this research report no conflicts of interest.
Les références curriculaires des enseignants d’éducation physique: influence de l’ancienneté

L’élaboration du curriculum en éducation physique et sportive (EPS) est sous l’influence de multiples variables, dont les effets restent encore en partie méconnus. Des données recueillies par questionnaire auprès de l’ensemble des enseignants et des enseignantes d’EPS du canton de Genève montrent un détachement progressif de ces derniers vis-à-vis des instructions officielles et de certaines références curriculaires potentielles (formation pédagogique/professionnelle, revues professionnelles, Internet). Cette distanciation est discutée au regard des apports de la sociologie du curriculum et de la sociologie des organisations.
Dementia Update 2005

This update reviews selected recent clinical advances in dementia that have been published (online and in print) in peer-reviewed journals through January 2005. It reflects the author’s interests and biases and is far from comprehensive. Alzheimer disease (AD), the most common cause of dementia in older adults, is the main focus of this Update. As AD has become better understood and potential risk factors have been identified, clinical methods now accurately diagnose the disorder and allow initiation of appropriate therapy with approved symptomatic drugs. Truly effective therapies, however, may need to be initiated prior to the onset of symptoms as the cerebral changes of AD likely begin many years before dementia is diagnosed. Considerable interest in putative prodromal states of AD, such as mild cognitive impairment (MCI), has stimulated earlier recognition of the disorder. In addition to AD, other neurodegenerative dementing illnesses, including Dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB), Frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD), and prion disorders, appear to be linked mechanistically by the conversion of normal proteins into insoluble aggregates, forming either cerebral deposits or neuronal inclusions, which in turn prompt neurotoxic biochemical cascades that attempt to recycle or remove the misfolded proteins. Elucidation of the pathophysiology of abnormal protein aggregation may yield targets for potentially disease-modifying therapeutic interventions. To address these and other topics, this update is organized as follows: I. Alzheimer disease A. Epidemiology and risk factors B. Diagnosis and clinical course C. Treatment D. Emerging detection methods: biomarkers and neuroimaging E. Preclinical stages and potential disease-modifying therapies II. Mild cognitive impairment III. Other dementias A. Vascular dementia B. Lewy body disorders C. Frontotemporal lobar degenerations D. Prion disorders