Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Eye position encoding in the macaque posterior parietal cortex

In two previous studies, we had demonstrated the influence of eye position on neuronal discharges in the middle temporal area, medial superior temporal area, lateral intraparietal area and area 7A of the awake monkey ( Bremmer et al. 1997a , b). Eye position effects also have been found in visual cortical areas V3A and V6 and even in the premotor cortex and the supplementary eye field. These effects are generally discussed in light of a coordinate transformation of visual signals into a non‐retinocentric frame of reference. Neural network studies dealing with the eye position effect succeeded in constructing such non‐retinocentric representations by using model neurones whose response characteristics resembled those of ‘real’ neurones. However, to our knowledge, response properties of real neurones never acted as input into these neural networks. In the present study, we thus investigated whether, theoretically, eye position could be estimated from the population discharge of the (previously) recorded neurones and, if so, we intended to develop an encoding algorithm for the position of the eyes in the orbit. The optimal linear estimator proved the capability of the ensemble activity for determining correctly eye position. We then developed the so‐called subpopulation encoding of eye position. This algorithm is based on the partition of the ensemble of neurones into two pairs of subpopulations. Eye position is represented by the differences of activity levels within each pair of subpopulations. Considering this result, encoding of the location of an object relative to the head could easily be accomplished by combining eye position information with the intrinsic knowledge about the retinal location of a visual stimulus. Taken together, these results show that throughout the monkey’s visual cortical system information is available which can be used in a fairly simple manner in order to generate a non‐retinocentric representation of visual information.
Study on Certain Biomarkers of Inflammation in Psoriasis Through “OMICS” Platforms

Background: In recent years, research on psoriasis has focused on the identification of biomarkers for the diagnosis, pathogenesis, prognosis, or therapeutic response of the disease. These studies could provide insights into the susceptibility and natural history of psoriasis. The identification of biomarkers related to comorbidities in psoriasis, such as arthritis, cardiovascular disease, and the metabolic syndrome, is of special clinical interest. Materials and Methods: We performed an extensive review on psoriasis biomarkers, including cytokine and growth factors, in the literature published between 1997 and 2013, including cross-references of any retrieved articles. We also included some data from our own studies. Results: This review presents current knowledge of soluble biomarkers in psoriasis, including cytokines, chemokines, proangiogenic mediators, growth factors, antimicrobial proteins, neuropeptides, and oxidative stress markers. Conclusion: In conclusion, a number of studies have been conducted with the aim of establishing soluble biomarkers for psoriasis. Most of the biomarkers that have been studied do not meet the criteria for a clinically useful biomarker. Further work is needed to establish a role for soluble biomarkers in the diagnosis and treatment of psoriasis, with a special focus on biomarkers for psoriasis comorbidities, such as arthritis, cardiovascular disease, and the metabolic syndrome.
The Modernisation Process Through the Perceptions of Work–Family in Spain and Great Britain

ABSTRACT This paper explores the work–family conflict as perceived by working parents in two European countries, Spain and Great Britain (GB). Using data from the International Social Survey Programme, ISSP 2002, we examine the factors that explain the high level of conflict in the two countries, for both men and women. Whereas sex, age and having children at home impact the level of conflict in Spain, education level as a proxy for class is more relevant in the GB. The contrasting perceptions of the work–family conflict in the two countries may be taken as indicators of each country's stage in what has been called the ‘modernization process’. This study seeks to understand the relationship between the level of ‘modernization’ and the perception of a high level of conflict in the attempt to reconcile the work–family conflict, focusing on the process of ‘individualization’ on the one hand and measurement of ‘the perception of the level of conflict by sex’ on the other.11. Individualization: process by which people come to take responsibility for their identity. It consists in transforming human ‘identity’ from a ‘given’ into a ‘task’ – and charging the actors with the responsibility for that task and for the consequences (also the side effects) of their performance (Beck and Beck-Gernsheim 2002). The study argues that the difference between these high levels of conflict is explained by variables that refer to ascribed status in Spain (a pro-traditional model) but to acquired status in GB (a non-interventionist model) indicated by the influence of education level as a variable resulting from a person's effort.
Recruitment and enrollment for Project HeartBeat! Achieving the goals of minority inclusion.

OBJECTIVE The inclusion of women and minorities in health research supported by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) has received increasing attention since the adoption of related guidelines by NIH in 1990. Investigators in population-based and clinical research may need to identify and recruit research participants from community settings in which little is known by investigators of the dynamics and day-to-day needs of the community. This was the case at the start of Project HeartBeat! , an intensive longitudinal study of the development of cardiovascular risk factors against the background of growth and maturation. This paper identifies those elements found essential when recruiting and enrolling minority participants for Project HeartBeat! METHODS No prior experience had existed in the community from which the majority of Black participants were recruited to the Project. Therefore, recruitment methods were based on previous experience of the investigators as well as on the published reports of others. RESULTS Immediate costs were substantially greater than projected, and the recruitment period was two years rather than one-a circumstance with longer-term implications as well. However, with the support of a community-based advisory committee, the school district, and a local recruitment staff, the recruitment goal was obtained. CONCLUSIONS Recruitment and enrollment of minority participants can be especially challenging; however, many of those challenges are common to any target population. Elements that need to be adequately addressed include the researchers' involvement with the community in which the participants live, a tracking system to assess recruitment efforts, flexibility in the methods of recruitment, and adequate resources in time, money and personnel.
How Low-Income Residents Decide Between Emergency and Primary Health Care for Non-Urgent Treatment

Overcrowding in U.S. emergency departments (ED) is a growing national problem that results in delayed or obstructed care and costs taxpayers billions of dollars each year. Studies show that access to a primary health care home reduces ED use, but more research is needed to determine how to best redirect vulnerable populations to primary care. Using data from forum group discussions with residents in a low-income, urban community, this study examined the decision processes residents used to decide whether to seek primary versus emergency care. Although residents exhibited high levels of knowledge about the primary health care resources available to them, they voiced a number of negative attitudes toward the services and identified barriers that discouraged them from taking advantage of these resources. The implications of these findings for campaigns aimed at discouraging non-emergency use of emergency services and promoting primary health care use, and studies of vulnerable populations’ access to primary health care more generally are discussed.
Reliability and Factor Structure of the Chinese Version of the Depression Self-Rating Scale

The Chinese version of the Depression Self-Rating Scale (DSRS) developed by Birleson was administered to 3,786 Chinese early adolescents studying at Grades 5 to 8 in Hong Kong. The DSRS data were found to have adequate internal consistency and item-total correlations. Factor analysis of the scale revealed two components. The findings suggest that the Chinese version of the DSRS possesses acceptable psychometric properties and appears to be a brief and economical instrument to be used for the purposes of research and documenting change. However, the mean for the sample was found to be higher than those obtained in previous studies. Implications for future research are discussed.
Age-Group-Specific Associations between the Severity of Obstructive Sleep Apnea and Relevant Risk Factors in Male and Female Patients

Aim To seek accurate and credible correlation manner between gender, age, and obesity; and the severity of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) in large-scale population. Methods Totals of 1,975 male and 378 female OSA patients were sequentially recruited. Centralized covariant tendencies between age, body mass index (BMI), and waist hip ratio (WHR); and OSA severity, were explored in a gender-specific manner via multiple statistical analyses. The accuracies of observed correlations were further evaluated by adaptive multiple linear regression. Results All of age, BMI, WHR, smoking, drinking, and OSA severity differed between males and females. BMI and WHR were positively and (approximately) linearly associated with OSA severity in both males and females. Restricted cubic spline analysis was more effective than was the Pearson correlation approach in correlating age with AHI, and provided age crossover points allowing further piecewise linear modeling for both males and females. Multiple linear regression showed that increasing age was associated with OSA exacerbation in males aged ≤40 years and in females aged 45–53 years. BMI, WHR, and diabetes were independently associated with OSA severity in males with age-group-specific pattern. In females, only BMI was associated with OSA severity at all ages. Conclusions In male patients, BMI and WHR are prominent risk factors for OSA exacerbation. Age and diabetes are associated with OSA severity in males of particular ages. In females, BMI is also a prominent risk factor for severe OSA, and OSA severity increased with age in the range 45–53 years.
Acknowledging Diversity in Home Literacy Practices: Moving Towards Partnership with Parents

Parent involvement in their children's literacy learning has long been recognized as an important factor in school success. As a result, schools have frequently attempted to build programs that assist parents to support their children's literacy. Unfortunately, many of these initiatives are based on deficit views of learning and fail to acknowledge the diverse background and needs of all children. In this paper the author provides an overview of major initiatives in family literacy, and argues for a fundamental change in the way schools relate to the parents and the community. It is suggested that schools and communities need to develop more effective partnerships that provide the opportunity for parents and teachers to develop a greater sense of shared understanding. The author argues that such initiatives will encourage parents and teachers to enter into dialogue based on a shared commitment to improving children's learning, and that this will lead to positive outcomes for all students.
Randomized Control Trial of a CBT Trauma Recovery Program in Palestinian Schools

The current study aimed to assess the Teaching Recovery Techniques (TRT) trauma recovery program within the context of ongoing violence. Utilizing a randomized controlled trial, 11–14-year-old students in Nablus, Palestine, were allocated by class to intervention or wait-list control conditions. Standardized measures assessed trauma exposure, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), grief, and depression. Program fidelity and participant experiences were measured by adherence questionnaires and focus groups. Analyses involved paired t-tests, ANCOVAs, and thematic analysis. Intervention students reported significant decreases in PTSD, grief, and depression. Findings indicate that the TRT program has the potential to ameliorate children's trauma symptoms during situations of ongoing violence.
Investigations of cellular glucose transport and its regulation under the influence of insulin in human peripheral blood lymphocytes.

INTRODUCTION We investigated the effects of insulin on glucose transport in human peripheral lymphocytes using flow cytometry. We hypothesized that lymphocytes could be used as tools to study insulin action at the cellular level and facilitate the investigation of mechanisms that lead to insulin resistance. MATERIAL AND METHODS Blood was withdrawn from 25 healthy subjects. The expression of glucose transporter (GLUT) isoforms in plasma membrane and the rates of glucose transport were determined with and without insulin (10 to 100 mU/L). Anti-CD3 phycoerythrin monoclonal antibody was used for lymphocyte gating. GLUT1, GLUT3, and GLUT4 isoforms were determined after staining cells with specific monoclonal antibodies to GLUT1, 3, and 4. Glucose transport was monitored with deoxy-D-glucose, 2-[3H(G)] - 185-370 GBq. RESULTS Insulin increased the uptake of deoxy-D-glucose and the expression of GLUT1, GLUT3, and GLUT4 isoforms in the plasma membrane. The optimal effects were always reached at 50 mU/L of insulin with the increase in GLUT1, 3, and 4 expression of 12%, 44%, and 38%, respectively. Mean baseline values of deoxy-D-glucose uptake were 3409 ccpm at 15 min., 6587 ccpm at 30 min., and 12525 ccpm at 60 min. of investigation. The maximal uptake in insulin-stimulated conditions was reached with 50 mU/L of insulin and went up to 12450 ccpm at 15 min., 37482 ccpm at 30 min., and 37916 ccpm at 60 min. of investigation (p < 0.01). CONCLUSIONS Peripheral blood lymphocytes may become an interesting model system to study the effects of insulin on cellular glucose transport. Flow cytometry is suitable for this investigation and may be used as a method to estimate the influence of insulin on GLUTprotein translocation and the dynamics of glucose uptake by lymphocytes.
Combining Labelled and Unlabelled Data: A Case Study on Fisher Kernels and Transductive Inference for Biological Entity Recognition

We address the problem of using partially labelled data, eg large collections were only little data is annotated, for extracting biological entities. Our approach relies on a combination of probabilistic models, which we use to model the generation of entities and their context, and kernel machines, which implement powerful categorisers based on a similarity measure and some labelled data. This combination takes the form of the so-called Fisher kernels which implement a similarity based on an underlying probabilistic model. Such kernels are compared with transductive inference, an alternative approach to combining labelled and unlabelled data, again coupled with Support Vector Machines. Experiments are performed on a database of abstracts extracted from Medline.
Partial representations and phonological selectivity in the comprehension of 13- to 16-month-olds

This study examined constraints on early phases of incidental learning ('fast mapping') of novel word comprehension in twenty 13- to 16-month-old children just beginning to acquire spoken words (10- to 30-word vocabularies). It asked: whether children this young can give evidence of comprehension, as indicated by object looking, after only four novel word exposures; whether frequency of input (4 versus 8 exposures) influenced learning; whether learning was better for novel words composed of sounds IN rather than OUT of the infant's repertoire ('phonological selectivity'); and whether infants also attended to the named object on probe trials partially similar in sounds to the novel word ('partial representation'). Planned comparisons revealed that children 13 to 16 months of age can 'fast map' novel words after only four word exposures and that representation of the word form may be partial. Further, the likelihood that a named object would be identified following a probe systematically diminished as the phonetic similarity to the target stimulus decreased. No effects of selectivity or input frequency were evident.
The role of L-DOPA in plants

Since higher plants regularly release organic compounds into the environment, their decay products are often added to the soil matrix and a few have been reported as agents of plant-plant interactions. These compounds, active against higher plants, typically suppress seed germination, cause injury to root growth and other meristems, and inhibit seedling growth. Mucuna pruriens is an example of a successful cover crop with several highly active secondary chemical agents that are produced by its seeds, leaves and roots. The main phytotoxic compound encountered is the non-protein amino acid L-3,4-dihydroxyphenylalanine (L-DOPA), which is used in treating the symptoms of Parkinson disease. In plants, L-DOPA is a precursor of many alkaloids, catecholamines, and melanin and is released from Mucuna into soils, inhibiting the growth of nearby plant species. This review summarizes knowledge regarding L-DOPA in plants, providing a brief overview about its metabolic actions.
Projective Questioning and Ethnic Discrimination: A Procedure for Measuring Employer Bias

Les AA. presentent une procedure qui permet d'evaluer le caractere discriminatoire des pratiques des employeurs en matiere de recrutement. Ils preconisent une methode qui fait intervenir le questionnement projectif. Ils examinent un certain nombre de donnees collectees en Norvege en 1996 et s'efforcent d'evaluer les probabilites pour les candidats etrangers de trouver un emploi comparativement aux candidats norvegiens
Ability Grouping and Student Friendships

This study examines the effects of membership in the same ability group on student friendships. We argue that assignment to the same instructional group increases opportunities for student interaction, underscores student similarities, and produces new similarities, and that these factors foster friendship. The relationship between grouping and friendship is examined in a longitudinal data set containing information on students in 110 reading groups in 32 classrooms of fourth, fifth, and sixth grades. The results show that the density of best friend choices within ability groups increases over time, the overlap between ability groups and cliques increases over time, and membership in the same ability group has a positive effect on the probability that a student will choose a peer as best friend.
Integrating Science and Language Arts through Technology-based Macrocontexts

This paper describes technology as a tool for creating meaningful experiences for integrating science and language arts using technology-based macrocontexts. Videos, virtual reality, and the Internet and the World Wide Web (WWW) can create macrocontexts for integrating science and language arts. Guidelines for selecting technological resources for integration are presented followed by examples of integrated science and language arts activities. Alternative ways of assessing students' performance in integrated instructional situations are also addressed. By using technology-based macrocontexts to integrate science and language arts, teachers may be able to facilitate meaningful learning and enhance student knowledge and understanding of science and language arts.
Randomized clinical trial of the safety and immunogenicity of the Tdap vaccine in pregnant Mexican women

ABSTRACT Immunization with the tetanus, diphtheria, and pertussis (Tdap) vaccine raises controversies on immunogenicity and possible antibody interference. We performed an experimental, double-blind, parallel group controlled clinical trial to evaluate the safety and immunogenicity of the Tdap vaccine in 204 pregnant women and their children and to determine its interference in antibody production. Pregnant women 18 to 38 y of age with 12 to 24 weeks gestation, a low obstetric risk, and without serious disease were randomly selected. The experimental group received 0.5 mL IM of Tdap and the control group normal saline. Six blood samples were drawn before and after solution application, and from the umbilical cord of the infants and at 2, 4, and 6 months of age. Pertactin and Pertussis toxin antibodies and possible interference of maternal antibodies with the vaccine were determined. In the experimental group, antibodies against Bordetella pertussis pertactin (anti-PRN) (112 E/mL 95% CI 89.9–139.9) and antibodies against pertussis toxin (anti-PT) (24.0 E/mL, 95% CI 18.3–31.4) were elevated in the mother before vaccination. These were higher in the umbilical cord and descended in the infant at 2 months (71.4 (95% CI 56.8–89.7 and 10.9; 95% CI 8.7–13.7, respectively). Anti-PT showed a delay in production. Tdap safety was confirmed with only mild local pain at 24 and 48 hours. Anti-PRN and anti-PT antibodies in the infant descend at 2 months of age. There is a delay in anti-PT in children of immunized mothers. Further studies are needed to elucidate its clinical significance.