Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Movement Chains at the Interfaces

Abstract We argue that Agree is an asymmetric relation. According to Asymmetric Agree, if x Agrees with y, then the features of y must be properly included in the features of x. If the links of a chain created by movement are related by Agree, this correctly predicts the properties of syntactic movement chains. And if the links of a chain created by movement are subject to the Proper Inclusion Condition, that accounts for the (un)availability of extraction out of a moved XP. The following distinctions interact with Asymmetric Agree: whether movement is A or A-bar, whether or not the constituent extracted out of the moved phrase is selected by the head of that phrase, and whether movement is overt or covert. Syntactic movement is feature-structure preserving, in that the Proper Inclusion Condition applies to sets of features in a particular configuration.
Altered Functional Connectivity of the Default Mode Network in Low-Empathy Subjects

Empathy is the ability to identify with or make a vicariously experience of another person's feelings or thoughts based on memory and/or self-referential mental simulation. The default mode network in particular is related to self-referential empathy. In order to elucidate the possible neural mechanisms underlying empathy, we investigated the functional connectivity of the default mode network in subjects from a general population. Resting state functional magnetic resonance imaging data were acquired from 19 low-empathy subjects and 18 medium-empathy subjects. An independent component analysis was used to identify the default mode network, and differences in functional connectivity strength were compared between the two groups. The low-empathy group showed lower functional connectivity of the medial prefrontal cortex and anterior cingulate cortex (Brodmann areas 9 and 32) within the default mode network, compared to the medium-empathy group. The results of the present study suggest that empathy is related to functional connectivity of the medial prefrontal cortex/anterior cingulate cortex within the default mode network. Functional decreases in connectivity among low-empathy subjects may reflect an impairment of self-referential mental simulation.
Determinants of Quality of Life in Older Adults After Lower Limb Amputation and Rehabilitation in Skilled Nursing Facilities

to 24 years (mean 13.6 years). Twenty-four patients did not complete the follow-up and were excluded from the analysis. Fracture healing interval was 3 to 6 months in 153 fractures (92.73%). Nonunion occurred in 12 fractures (7.27%), and new fixation was implemented with morerigid plating and grafts, with favorable outcome in all cases. Postoperative infection reported in four patients was treated successfully. Cumulative results are reported in Table 1. Two patients developed neurapraxia of the ipsilateral radial nerve after surgical treatment, with nerve functionality restored in a few days without any final functional deficit. Of the 51 patients with preoperative nerve function deficit, two experienced injury to the brachial plexus (no progress noted), whereas the remaining 49 patients experienced radial nerve injury solely. No macroscopic damage of the nerve was observed in 47 patients. A splint for keeping the wrist and fingers in slight extension was suggested postoperatively, and all patients were rehabilitated for a mean of 10 weeks. Full dissection of the radial nerve was observed in one patient, and nerve suturing could not be performed. During the final follow-up, elbow range of motion was very good in 146 patients (153 fractures, 92.7%), whereas an elbow extensor deficit of 10o was recorded in four patients (four fractures, 24.2%). There was no reported motor dysfunction in the ipsilateral shoulder. Nonunion occurred in 12 fractures (7.3%). Thus, results were satisfactory in 146 cases (153 fractures, 92.7%) and unsatisfactory in 12 cases (7.3%). These patients developed mechanical failure of the plate osteosynthesis and fracture pseudarthrosis. The success percentage of functional rehabilitation reaches 92.7% and is similar to the results of other researchers who have used the same technique in patients without osteoporosis. Surgical treatment of humeral shaft fractures based on the principles of stable internal fixation has good results in elderly adults with osteoporosis, but it should be chosen only in cases in which there is absolute indication for surgery.
Idarubicin (4‐demethoxydaunorubicin) as single agent for remission induction of previously untreated acute promyelocytic leukemia: A pilot study of the Italian cooperative group GIMEMA

Abstract: Because of the reported high sensitivity of acute promyelocytic leukemia to daunorubicin, we treated 27 consecutive, newly diagnosed, acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) patients with the new anthracycline idarubicin (IDA) as induction therapy. IDA dosage ranged from 0.25 to 0.30 mg/kg/day and the drug was administered as single agent during a single induction course of 6 days. A total of 22/27 patients (81%) achieved complete remission, 4 (15%) died during induction and 1 patient was resistant to IDA. Extrahematological toxicity was acceptable. A total of 13/22 patients having achieved CR are still alive and in first CR after a median follow‐up of 12 months. As for the treatment ot the coagulopathy present in APL: 17/27 (63%) received tranexamic acid (6 g/daily) in continuous infusion for total of 7 d. None of the patients treated with tranexamic acid experienced thromboembolic complications. In conclusion, this multicentric pilot study confirms the antileukemic potency of IDA and the high sensitivity of APL to anthracycline derivatives.
Multiple elevations of cytosolic-free Ca2+ in human neutrophils: initiation by adherence receptors of the integrin family

Multiple spontaneous transient elevations of cytosolic-free calcium ([Ca2+]i) are observed in single human neutrophils during adherence. The interrelation between adherence and spontaneous [Ca2+]i transients was analyzed by simultaneous monitoring of [Ca2+]i and cell morphology. Fluorescent images of fura 2-loaded neutrophils attached to albumin- coated glass were recorded with a high sensitivity CCD camera while [Ca2+]i was assessed with a dual excitation microfluorimetry. The majority of the initially round cells studied showed changes in shape which started either before or at the same time as the onset of the [Ca2+]i transients. These data suggested that a rise in [Ca2+]i is not a prerequisite for shape change. This conclusion was confirmed by observation of movement and spreading in cells whose [Ca2+]i transients were abolished by chelation of extracellular Ca2+. Instead, our data suggest that spreading or adhesion itself initiates the [Ca2+]i activity. In keeping with this hypothesis, cytochalasin B, which prevents both cell movement and adhesion, completely inhibited generation of [Ca2+]i transients. To determine if the movement alone or adhesion alone is responsible for [Ca2+]i activity, we treated cells with antibodies against the beta chain (CD18, beta 2) or the alpha subunit (CD11b, alpha m) of the dominant leukocyte integrin (CR3). Antibody-treated cells showed normal extension of pseudopods but impaired ability to adhere. Inhibition of adhesion in this way inhibited [Ca2+]i activity. Taken together these results suggest that following sequence of events after contact of neutrophils with surfaces: (a) cell movement and shape change lead to enhanced contact of integrins with the surface; and (b) integrins-mediated adhesion generates multiple [Ca2+]i transients. The [Ca2+]i transients may then control exocytic events associated with movement and may provide a link between adherence and activation or priming of neutrophils to other stimuli.
Self in Time: Imagined Self-Location Influences Neural Activity Related to Mental Time Travel

Conscious awareness of the self as continuous through time is attributed to the human ability to remember the past and to predict the future, a cogitation that has been called “mental time travel” (MTT). MTT allows one to re-experience one's own past by subjectively “locating” the self to a previously experienced place and time, or to pre-experience an event by locating the self into the future. Here, we used a novel behavioral paradigm in combination with evoked potential mapping and electrical neuroimaging, revealing that MTT is composed of two different cognitive processes: absolute MTT, which is the location of the self to different points in time (past, present, or future), and relative MTT, which is the location of one's self with respect to the experienced event (relative past and relative future). These processes recruit a network of brain areas in distinct time periods including the occipitotemporal, temporoparietal, and anteromedial temporal cortices. Our findings suggest that in addition to autobiographical memory processes, the cognitive mechanisms of MTT also involve mental imagery and self-location, and that relative MTT, but not absolute MTT, is more strongly directed to future prediction than to past recollection.
Stage of Chronicity and Cognitive Correlates of Pain-Related Disability

The present research examined the functional relations between the different dimensions of catastrophic thinking and pain-related disability, as a function of stage of chronicity. In the present study, 150 patients with chronic pain were grouped to form 3 different levels of chronicity: Group A (6 months to 2 years, n = 44); Group B (2-4 years, n = 55); and Group C (more than 4 years, n = 51). The 3 subscales of the Pain Catastrophizing Scale (Rumination, Magnification, Helplessness) were used as predictors of disability. Disability was assessed with the Pain Disability Index and pain was assessed with the McGill Pain Questionnaire. For Group A, regression analysis revealed that none of the PCS subscales predicted disability beyond the variance accounted for by sex, age and pain. Rumination was a significant predictor of disability in Group B, and both rumination and helplessness predicted disability in Group C. These findings provide preliminary evidence that stage of chronicity is an important moderator of psychological vulnerability for pain-related disability. Discussion addresses how the impact of pain management programs might be increased by tailoring interventions to specific patient needs.
Fate of patulin in the presence of the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae

Patulin is known to become analytically non-detectable during the production of cider from contaminated apple juice. The fate of [14C]-labelled patulin during the alcoholic fermentation of apple juice was studied. Three commercial cider strains of Saccharomyces cerevisiae degraded patulin during active fermentative growth, but not when growing aerobically. The products of patulin degradation were more polar than patulin itself and remained in the clarified fermented cider. Patulin did not appear to bind to yeast cells or apple juice sediment in these model experiments. HPLC analysis of patulin-spiked fermentations showed the appearance of two major metabolites, one of which corresponded by both TLC and HPLC to E-ascladiol prepared by the chemical reduction of patulin using sodium borohydride. Using a diode array detector, both metabolites had a ⋋max = 271nm, identical to that of ascladiol. Thenmr spectrum of a crude preparation of these metabolites showed signals corresponding to those of the E-ascladiol prepared chemically and a weaker set of signals corresponding to those reported in the literature for Z-ascladiol.
Neuroprotection by GDNF in the ischemic brain

The glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF) was first identified as a survival factor for midbrain dopaminergic neurons, but additional studies provided evidences for a role as a trophic factor for other neurons of the central and peripheral nervous systems. GDNF regulates cellular activity through interaction with glycosyl-phosphatidylinositol-anchored cell surface receptors, GDNF family receptor-α1, which might signal through the transmembrane Ret tyrosine receptors or the neural cell adhesion molecule, to promote cell survival, neurite outgrowth, and synaptogenesis. The neuroprotective effect of exogenous GDNF has been shown in different experimental models of focal and global brain ischemia, by local administration of the trophic factor, using viral vectors carrying the GDNF gene and by transplantation of GDNF-expressing cells. These different strategies and the mechanisms contributing to neuroprotection by GDNF are discussed in this review. Importantly, neuroprotection by GDNF was observed even when administered after the ischemic injury.
Managing Uncertainty in a Formal Standards-Based Industry: A Real Options Perspective on Acquisition Timing

Scholars have theorized that firms can intervene in the creation of formal technology standards to reduce uncertainty and influence the outcome to their advantage. One approach is through early acquisition: Firms can acquire targets with relevant technology prior to standardization. Using real options logic, the authors show how early acquisitions can be considered a growth option under certain circumstances. They find that acquisitions are more likely to occur before the passage of the standard when (a) acquirers lacked relevant technical knowledge, (b) target firms possessed relevant technical knowledge,and (c) acquirers had a prior equity investment in the target firm.
A novel SEPIC-derived PFC pre-regulator without electrolytic capacitor for PWM dimming LED lighting application based on valley fill circuit

High brightness white LED has attracted a lot of attention for its high efficacy, simple to drive, environmentally friendly, long lifespan and small size. The power supply for LED also requires long life while maintaining high efficiency, high power factor and low cost. However, a typical design employs electrolytic capacitor as storage capacitor, which is not only bulky, but also with short lifespan, thus hampering the entire LED lighting system. In this paper, a novel PFC topology is proposed by inserting the valley fill circuit in the SEPIC-derived converter, which can reduce the voltage stress of storage capacitor and output diode to half under the same power factor condition. This valley fill SEPIC-derived PFC topology is then proposed for LED lighting application. By allowing a relatively large voltage ripple allowable in a PFC design and operating in DCM, the proposal is able to eliminate the electrolytic capacitor while maintaining high power factor. The basic operating principle and analysis will be described in detail. A 50-W prototype has been built to verify the proposed approach.
Dropping Out: Another Side of the Story

Dropping out of school is a national problem. Reducing the number of students who do so is a national goal. This study examines the school perspective of a set of families whose children dropped out. Working from audiotape-recorded interviews with 3or more members of 12families, the researchers describe a perspective that included a jaundiced view of education, a hostile view toward schooling, and a history of poor school performance at least two generations old. The families' children grew up fast, early on appropriating behaviors engaged in by older members. When they took these behaviors into school, they ran afoul of rules and regulations. For these families, school was a series of academic failures, conflicts with staff and peers, disciplinary hearings, suspensions, and expulsions. Dropping out was not a problem It was a solution.
Signal and noise in tropical Pacific sea level height analyses

Monthly interannual anomalies of tropical Pacific sea level height from Topex/Poseidon altimetry are compared with simulation and assimilation products from a variety of models, ranging from a simple linear long wave approximation to ocean general circulation models. Major spatial similarities in the error patterns are identified. These include zonally elongated maxima in the northwest and southwest tropical Pacific Ocean, a narrow band of high values near 10 N which is slightly inclined towards the equator from the Central American coast, and low values on the equator and in the southeastern tropical Pacific. These features are also present in the pattern of small-scale variability of sea level height. Spatial and temporal components of this small-scale variability are analyzed for predominant variability types. Monte Carlo experiments identify the areas where high small-scale sea level height variability is wind-driven, caused by a similar pattern of variability in the wind stress. Model products systematically underestimate signal variance in such areas. Variability in other areas is due to the instability of ocean currents. The major component of uncertainty in the gridded satellite altimeter analyses is due to sampling error, for which estimates are developed and verified.
Smoking‐related morbidity and mortality following liver transplantation

Smoking is the world's leading cause of premature mortality responsible for an estimated 5 million deaths each year. Although the negative health implications of cigarette smoking in the nontransplant setting are well recognized, the effect on patient and graft survival post liver transplantation remains unclear. The aim of this study was therefore to assess the influence of smoking on morbidity and mortality following liver transplantation. We performed a retrospective single‐center case‐note study of 136 consecutive patients who underwent elective liver transplantation between January 1, 1996 and December 31, 2000. Patients were defined as active smokers (23%), exsmokers (18%), or life‐long nonsmokers (58%) on the basis of documentation at the time of transplant assessment. Active smoking was associated with increased all‐cause mortality post transplant, with estimated 1‐, 5‐, and 10‐year survival of 94%, 68%, and 54%, respectively, versus 94%, 83%, and 77% for nonsmokers (P = 0.04). A multivariate Cox proportional hazards model identified smoking as an independent predictor of death (hazard ratio 2.23, 95% confidence interval 1.08‐4.61, P = 0.03). Active smokers demonstrated increased cardiovascular‐specific mortality (P = 0.01) and sepsis‐specific mortality (P = 0.02) but not malignancy‐related mortality (P = 0.61) and had graft survival similar to that of nonsmokers (P = 0.88). Exsmokers did not have an increased risk of death (P = 0.134). In conclusion, active smokers at time of assessment have increased mortality post liver transplantation, which is non–graft‐related and appears to be a result of increased cardiovascular‐related and sepsis‐related death. Prospective studies are required to assess the impact of smoking cessation on long‐term outcome. Liver Transpl 14:1159–1164, 2008. © 2008 AASLD.
Association between the Haptoglobin and Heme Oxygenase 1 Genetic Profiles and Soluble CD163 in Susceptibility to and Severity of Human Malaria

ABSTRACT Intravascular hemolysis is a hallmark event in the immunopathology of malaria that results in increased systemic concentrations of free hemoglobin (Hb). The oxidation of Hb by free radicals causes the release of heme, which amplifies inflammation. To circumvent the detrimental effects of free heme, hosts have developed several homeostatic mechanisms, including the enzyme haptoglobin (Hp), which scavenges cell-free Hb, the monocyte receptor CD163, which binds to Hb-Hp complexes, and heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1), which degrades intracellular free heme. We tested the association between these three main components of the host response to hemolysis and susceptibility to malaria in a Brazilian population. The genetic profiles of the HMOX1 and Hp genes and the plasma levels of a serum inflammatory marker, the soluble form of the CD163 receptor (sCD163), were studied in 264 subjects, including 78 individuals with symptomatic malaria, 106 individuals with asymptomatic malaria, and 80 uninfected individuals. We found that long (GT)n repeats in the microsatellite polymorphism region of the HMOX1 gene, the Hp2 allele, and the Hp2.2 genotype were associated with symptomatic malaria. Moreover, increased plasma concentrations of heme, Hp, HO-1, and sCD163 were associated with susceptibility to malaria. The validation of these results could support the development of targeted therapies and aid in reducing the severity of malaria.
Family Socioeconomic Status, Parent Expectations, and a Child's Achievement

This study investigates how a family's socioeconomic status (SES) affects a child's educational achievement and differentiates the direct effects of SES on these experiences from the indirect ones as they are mediated by the school. This distinction is an important one as it is in the latter realm where social policy can have an impact. The data are from a nationally representative sample of children enrolled in kindergarten in the US in the Spring of 2000. The percentage of the parents expecting their child to earn at least a Bachelor's degree rises with family SES. However, the percentage of high-SES parents of low-achieving students expecting their child to earn at least a Bachelor's degree is higher than that for low- and middle-SES parents of high-achieving students. Ordinary least squares regression analyses using a mediation model were used to distinguish direct from indirect effects of the family's SES score on achievement. Unexpectedly, the direct effects are greater than the indirect ones.
Serum resistin is positively correlated with the accumulation of metabolic syndrome factors in type 2 diabetes

Objective Resistin, secreted from adipocytes, causes insulin resistance in rodents. We reported that the G/G genotype of a resistin gene promoter single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) at −420 increases type 2 diabetes (T2DM) susceptibility by enhancing promoter activity. We also showed that serum resistin was positively correlated with G at SNP‐420, the duration of T2DM, and HbA1c in T2DM. The aim of this study was to determine the relation between serum resistin and factors related to the metabolic syndrome (MetS) in T2DM.
Maintaining Positive Attitudes toward Science and Technology in First‐Year Female Undergraduates: Peril and promise

This study investigated attitude changes of 18‐year‐old first‐year college students at a large state‐operated institution in the USA during their initial semester in college. Attitudes of 375 students enrolled in a non‐science first‐year student seminar during the Fall of 2004 were measured, using a new instrument designed to focus on five attitude constructs especially relevant to female engagement with science and technology (S & T). The authors found that students whose seminar included visits with S & T professionals, plus at least four weeks of context‐based S & T content, maintained modestly positive attitudes toward S & T. Students whose seminars included the science content but not the visits from professionals also maintained relatively positive attitudes, except that the females became less accepting of female participation in S & T. Notably, females enrolled in seminars that did not include any of these interventions declined significantly in all five attitudes toward S & T, even though 95% of these students were simultaneously enrolled in required introductory natural science courses. Thus, introducing context‐based science content into the curriculum appears to be helpful in maintaining positive attitudes toward S & T in 18‐year‐old US female college students, while more traditional natural science pedagogy is associated with attitude decline in these students. This result is socially significant because females continue to be under‐represented in several S & T fields at the level of first university degree, in many regions of the world.