Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Catastrophizing, Pain, and Social Adjustment in Scleroderma: Relationships With Educational Level

ObjectivesLow educational attainment is related to numerous adverse health outcomes, and some evidence suggests that psychosocial variables may mediate education's effects. Moreover, the relationship between psychosocial functioning and health-related outcomes may be moderated by educational level, with individuals lower in formal education being more susceptible to the deleterious effects of negative cognitive and affective states. The present study sought to characterize such interrelationships between educational level and pain-related catastrophizing. MethodsWe investigated the association of self-reported educational level with pain and social disability, we evaluated catastrophizing's potential mediating role in those associations, and we also investigated education as a moderator of catastrophizing's effects on pain and social disability in a sample of patients with scleroderma, a frequently painful autoimmune disorder. ResultsFirst, education-related differences in pain report were accounted for by catastrophizing and depression. Second, after controlling for demographic factors, disease severity, and depressive symptoms, education moderated the relationship between catastrophizing, pain affect, and social function. Specifically, catastrophizing was more highly associated with greater reporting of affective pain among those with less formal education. In addition, catastrophizing inversely correlated with social disruption among individuals with less formal education. DiscussionCollectively, study findings support multiple models of interaction between education and pain-related cognitive/affective functioning, though in both mediational and moderational analyses, lower levels of formal education act as a risk factor for adverse pain-related outcomes.
DASHER-an efficient writing system for brain-computer interfaces?

DASHER is a human-computer interface for entering text using continuous or discrete gestures. Through its use of an internal language model, DASHER efficiently converts bits received from the user into text, and has been shown to be a competitive alternative to existing text-entry methods in situations where an ordinary keyboard cannot be used. We propose that DASHER would be well-matched to the low bit-rate, noisy output obtained from brain-computer interfaces (BCIs), and discuss the issues surrounding the use of DASHER with BCI systems.
Characterizing Linkage Disequilibrium in Pig Populations

Knowledge of the extent and range of linkage disequilibrium (LD), defined as non-random association of alleles at two or more loci, in animal populations is extremely valuable in localizing genes affecting quantitative traits, identifying chromosomal regions under selection, studying population history, and characterizing/managing genetic resources and diversity. Two commonly used LD measures, r2 and D', and their permutation based adjustments, were evaluated using genotypes of more than 6,000 pigs from six commercial lines (two terminal sire lines and four maternal lines) at ~4,500 autosomal SNPs (single nucleotide polymorphisms). The results indicated that permutation only partially removed the dependency of D' on allele frequency and that r2 is a considerably more robust LD measure. The maximum r2 was derived as a function of allele frequency. Using the same genotype dataset, the extent of LD in these pig populations was estimated for all possible syntenic SNP pairs using r2 and the ratio of r2 over its theoretical maximum. As expected, the extent of LD highest for SNP pairs was found in tightest linkage and decreased as their map distance increased. The level of LD found in these pig populations appears to be lower than previously implied in several other studies using microsatellite genotype data. For all pairs of SNPs approximately 3 centiMorgan (cM) apart, the average r2 was equal to 0.1. Based on the average population-wise LD found in these six commercial pig lines, we recommend a spacing of 0.1 to 1 cM for a whole genome association study in pig populations.
Responses to Online GSTM 1 Genetic Test Results among Smokers Related to Patients with Lung Cancer : A Pilot Study

Providing smokers with personal genetic test results indicating increased lung cancer risk may increase uptake of effective smoking cessation services. Using the internet may increase reach and enable real-time assessment of how people process genetic risk information away from the clinic setting. We therefore explored smokers’ responses to Web-delivered GSTM1 genetic test results indicating higher or lower lung cancer risk. Participants were smokers (n = 44) biologically related to patients with newly diagnosed lung cancer. Measures were assessed at baseline, before and immediately after receipt of online genetic test results, and at 6-month follow-up. Outcomes included accurate comprehension of results, regret about being tested, cessation-related cognitions (e.g., perceived response efficacy), and uptake of free smoking cessation services (nicotine replacement therapy, printed self-help materials, telephone counseling sessions). Twenty-two ‘‘relative smokers’’ received a GSTM1missing (higher risk) and 22 a GSTM1-present (lower risk) result. All relative smokers with GSTM1-missing results and 55% of those with GSTM1-present results accurately interpreted their results. No relative smokers regretted having taken the test. Relative smokers receiving GSTM1-missing results reported lower confidence that quitting could reduce lung cancer risk (perceived response efficacy) than those receiving GSTM1-present results. There were no other significant between-group differences. Uptake of smoking cessation services was high (e.g., 91% nicotine replacement therapy uptake). Genetic test results may not influence uptake of free smoking cessation services because of ceiling effects. Further research is needed to determine the risks and benefits of Web-based disclosure of genetic test results. (Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2009;18(7):1953–61)
Regularization in oculomotor control

In modelling the development of the oculomotor control system using neural networks, it is important to determine the appropriate cost function on which to train the models. Whilst blur and disparity are fairly obvious error components, choosing the regularization component is less easy. In this paper we explore the consequences of a number of the most reasonable possibilities and investigate the extent to which other factors may dominate their influence.
Combination Treatment With VELCADE and Low-Dose Tissue Plasminogen Activator Provides Potent Neuroprotection in Aged Rats After Embolic Focal Ischemia

Background and Purpose— Treatment with a selective proteasome inhibitor, VELCADE, in combination with tissue plasminogen activator (tPA) extended the therapeutic window to 6 hours in young rats after stroke. However, stroke is a major cause of death and disability in the elderly. The present study investigated the effect of VELCADE in combination with a low-dose tPA on aged rats after embolic stroke. Methods— Male Wistar rats at the age of 18 to 20 months were treated with VELCADE (0.2 mg/kg) alone, a low-dose tPA (5 mg/kg) alone, combination of VELCADE and tPA, or saline 2 hours after embolic middle cerebral artery occlusion. To test the contribution of endothelial nitric oxide synthase to VELCADE-mediated neuroprotection, endothelial nitric oxide synthase knockout and wild-type mice were treated with VELCADE (0.5 mg/kg) 2 hours after embolic stroke. Results— Treatment with VELCADE significantly reduced infarct volume, whereas tPA alone did not reduce infarct volume and aggravated blood–brain barrier disruption in aged rats compared with saline-treated rats. However, the combination treatment significantly enhanced the reduction of infarct volume, which was associated with an increase in endothelial nitric oxide synthase activity compared with saline-treated rats. Additionally, the combination treatment promoted thrombolysis and did not increase the incidence of hemorrhage transformation. VELCADE significantly reduced lesion volume in wild-type mice but failed to significantly reduce lesion volume in endothelial nitric oxide synthase knockout mice. Conclusions— Treatment with VELCADE exerts a neuroprotective effect in aged rats after stroke. The combination of VELCADE with the low-dose tPA further amplifies the neuroprotective effect. Endothelial nitric oxide synthase at least partly contributes to VELCADE-mediated neuroprotection after stroke.
Serotonin-Mediated Synapsin Expression Is Necessary for Long-Term Facilitation of the Aplysia Sensorimotor Synapse

Serotonin (5-HT)-induced long-term facilitation (LTF) of the Aplysia sensorimotor synapse depends on enhanced gene expression and protein synthesis, but identification of the genes whose expression and regulation are necessary for LTF remains incomplete. In this study, we found that one such gene is synapsin, which encodes a synaptic vesicle-associated protein known to regulate short-term synaptic plasticity. Both synapsin mRNA and protein levels were increased by 5-HT. Upregulation of synapsin protein occurred in presynaptic sensory neurons at neurotransmitter release sites. To investigate the molecular mechanisms underlying synapsin regulation, we cloned the promoter region of Aplysia synapsin, and found that the synapsin promoter contained a cAMP response element (CRE), raising the possibility that the transcriptional activator CRE-binding protein 1 (CREB1) mediates 5-HT-induced regulation of synapsin. Indeed, binding of CREB1 to the synapsin promoter was increased following treatment with 5-HT. Furthermore, increased acetylation of histones H3 and H4 and decreased association of histone deacetylase 5 near the CRE site are consistent with transcriptional activation by CREB1. RNA interference (RNAi) targeting synapsin mRNA blocked the 5-HT-induced increase in synapsin protein levels and LTF; in the absence of 5-HT treatment, basal synapsin levels were unaffected. These results indicate that the 5-HT-induced regulation of synapsin levels is necessary for LTF and that this regulation is part of the cascade of synaptic events involved in the consolidation of memory.
Reactive localisation in underwater wireless sensor networks with self-healing

In this paper, we present a novel technique for localising an event of interest in an underwater environment monitored by an underwater sensor network. Instead of proactively localising every single node in the network as all proposed techniques set out to do, we approach localisation from a reactive angle. We reduce the localisation problem to the problem of finding 4-Node Coverage. Whenever a node detects an event, it is reactively localised using the anchor nodes, and the sink is supplied with the necessary information. By limiting the sensing range of the sensor nodes, once we have obtained the location of the node that has detected the event, we have a rough estimation of the location of the event. We show that in terms of energy consumption, this localisation technique far surpasses others.
Faster shortest-path algorithms for planar graphs

We give a linear-time algorithm for single-source shortest paths in planar graphs with nonnegative edge-lengths. Our algorithm also yields a linear-time algorithm for maximum flow in a planar graph with the source and sink on the same face. The previous best algorithms for these problems required $\Omega(n \sqrt{\log n})$ time where $n$ is the number of nodes in the input graph. For the case where negative edge-lengths are allowed, we give an algorithm requiring $O(n^{4/3} \log nL)$ time, where $L$ is the absolute value of the most negative length. Previous algorithms for shortest paths with negative edge-lengths required $\Omega(n^{3/2})$ time. Our shortest-path algorithm yields an $O(n^{4/3} \log n)$-time algorithm for finding a perfect matching in a planar bipartite graph. A similar improvement is obtained for maximum flow in a directed planar graph.
Relation among Measures of Burnout, Job Satisfaction, and Role Dynamics for a Sample of South African Child-Care Social Workers

Burnout and its associations with job satisfaction, role conflict, and role ambiguity were examined among 29 child-care social workers in South Africa. Social workers rated as moderate burnout associated with satisfaction with their jobs (−.48 to −.55) and with role conflict (.41) and role ambiguity (−.41 to −.65).
Beneficial effects of weight loss in overweight patients with chronic proteinuric nephropathies.

BACKGROUND Proteinuria is a recognized complication of obesity, but no study has investigated the effect of weight loss in overweight patients with chronic proteinuric nephropathies of different causes. METHODS We randomly assigned (in a 2:1 ratio) 30 overweight patients (body mass index [BMI] > 27 kg/m(2)) with diabetic and nondiabetic proteinuric nephropathies to either follow a low-calorie normoproteinic diet or maintain their usual dietary intake for 5 months. The primary outcome was change in urinary protein excretion. Secondary outcomes were changes in renal function (serum creatinine level and Cockcroft-Gault creatinine clearance) and lipid profile. RESULTS Patients in the diet group showed a significant decrease in body weight and BMI, whereas patients in the control group showed a significant increase in body weight and BMI (between-group comparison, P < 0.05). Mean weight loss in the diet group was 4.1% +/- 3%, and 14 of 20 patients in this group lost more than 3%. Proteinuria decreased by 31.2% +/- 37% in the diet group (from protein of 2.8 +/- 1.4 to 1.9 +/- 1.4 g/24 h; P < 0.005), whereas it tended to increase in the control group (between-group comparison, P < 0.05). Changes in renal function did not differ significantly between groups, although renal function remained stable in the diet group and showed significant worsening in the control group. Serum triglyceride levels remained stable in the diet group and tended to increase in the control group (between-group comparison, P < 0.05). CONCLUSION Moderate weight loss in overweight patients with chronic proteinuric nephropathies induces a significant decrease in proteinuria. Am J Kidney Dis 41:319-327.
Expression and processing of Plasmodium berghei SERA3 during liver stages

Cysteine proteases mediate liberation of Plasmodium berghei merozoites from infected hepatocytes. In an attempt to identify the responsible parasite proteases, we screened the genome of P. berghei for cysteine protease‐encoding genes. RT‐PCR analyses revealed that transcription of four out of five P. berghei serine repeat antigen (PbSERA) genes was strongly upregulated in late liver stages briefly before the parasitophorous vacuole membrane ruptured to release merozoites into the host cell cytoplasm, suggesting a role of PbSERA proteases in these processes. In order to characterize PbSERA3 processing, we raised an antiserum against a non‐conserved region of the protein and generated a transgenic P. berghei strain expressing a TAP‐tagged PbSERA3 under the control of the endogenous promoter. Immunofluorescence assays revealed that PbSERA3 leaks into the host cell cytoplasm during merozoite development, where it might contribute to host cell death or activate host cell proteases that execute cell death. Importantly, processed PbSERA3 has been detected by Western blot analysis in cell extracts of schizont‐infected cells and merozoite‐infected detached hepatic cells.
Approximating Kinematics for Tracked Mobile Robots

In this paper we propose a kinematic approach for tracked mobile robots in order to improve motion control and pose estimation. Complex dynamics due to slippage and track–soil interactions make it difficult to predict the exact motion of the vehicle on the basis of track velocities. Nevertheless, real-time computations for autonomous navigation require an effective kinematics approximation without introducing dynamics in the loop. The proposed solution is based on the fact that the instantaneous centers of rotation (ICRs) of treads on the motion plane with respect to the vehicle are dynamics-dependent, but they lie within a bounded area. Thus, optimizing constant ICR positions for a particular terrain results in an approximate kinematic model for tracked mobile robots. Two different approaches are presented for off-line estimation of kinematic parameters: (i) simulation of the stationary response of the dynamic model for the whole velocity range of the vehicle; (ii) introduction of an experimental setup so that a genetic algorithm can produce the model from actual sensor readings. These methods have been evaluated for on-line odometric computations and low-level motion control with the Auriga-α mobile robot on a hard-surface flat soil at moderate speeds.
Intrusion detection mechanisms for VoIP applications

VoIP applications are emerging today as an important component in business and communication industry. In this paper, we address the intrusion detection and prevention in VoIP networks and describe how a conceptual solution based on the Bayes inference approach can be used to reinforce the existent security mechanisms. Our approach is based on network monitoring and analyzing of the VoIP-specific traffic. We give a detailed example on attack detection using the SIP signaling protocol.
Comparison of Functional Connectivity Estimated from Concatenated Task-State Data from Block-Design Paradigm with That of Continuous Task

Functional connectivity (FC) analysis with data collected as continuous tasks and activation analysis using data from block-design paradigms are two main methods to investigate the task-induced brain activation. If the concatenated data of task blocks extracted from the block-design paradigm could provide equivalent FC information to that derived from continuous task data, it would shorten the data collection time and simplify experimental procedures, and the already collected data of block-design paradigms could be reanalyzed from the perspective of FC. Despite being used in many studies, such a hypothesis of equivalence has not yet been tested from multiple perspectives. In this study, we collected fMRI blood-oxygen-level-dependent signals from 24 healthy subjects during a continuous task session as well as in block-design task sessions. We compared concatenated task blocks and continuous task data in terms of region of interest- (ROI-) based FC, seed-based FC, and brain network topology during a short motor task. According to our results, the concatenated data was not significantly different from the continuous data in multiple aspects, indicating the potential of using concatenated data to estimate task-state FC in short motor tasks. However, even under appropriate experimental conditions, the interpretation of FC results based on concatenated data should be cautious and take the influence due to inherent information loss during concatenation into account.
Architecture, the backbone of robotic systems

Architectures form the backbone of complete robotic systems. The right choice of architecture can go a long way in facilitating the specification, implementation and validation of robotic systems. Conversely, of course, the wrong choice can make one's life miserable. We present some of the needs of robotic systems, describe some general classes of robot architectures, and discuss how different architectural styles can help in addressing those needs. The paper, like the field itself, is somewhat preliminary, yet it is hoped that it will provide guidance for those who use, or develop, robot architectures.
Development of the School Homework Involvement of Parents (SHIP) scale: preliminary
 validity data

behavioral problems, and parenting style. Assessments were performed asynchronously through the internet. A bifactorial structure of SHIP, comprising “Child Behavior” and “Parental Involvement” was identified. Parents of boys reported more Child Behavior problems, while parents of younger children reported more Parental Involvement. Notably, the SHIP factors do not assess internalizing disorders in parents. Instead, the factors gauge correlated but independent dimensions of general behavior problems and positive monitoring. SHIP reliably measures parental involvement in school homework and holds potential utility in educational and clinical settings.
RevDedup: a reverse deduplication storage system optimized for reads to latest backups

Deduplication is known to effectively eliminate duplicates, yet it introduces fragmentation that degrades read performance. We propose RevDedup, a deduplication system that optimizes reads to the latest backups of virtual machine (VM) images using reverse deduplication. In contrast with conventional deduplication that removes duplicates from new data, RevDedup removes duplicates from old data, thereby shifting fragmentation to old data while keeping the layout of new data as sequential as possible. We evaluate our RevDedup prototype using a 12-week span of real-world VM image snapshots of 160 users. We show that RevDedup achieves high deduplication efficiency, high backup throughput, and high read throughput.
Miniaturized dual mode microwave filter

Dual mode filters have been widely used in wireless communications systems due to their advantageous of being small size, planar and low loss. Most of the dual mode filters are realized based upon dual mode ring or patch resonator such that the two orthogonal resonant modes occur, yielding a dual mode response. However the electrical length needed to establish the resonant condition is still considerably large. These resonators are unacceptable for the design of high performance multi-pole filter. In this paper, a novel stepped impedance dual mode resonator is introduced where a significant size reduction is achieved. In contrast to dual mode ring resonator which has an electrical length of 360°, the filter gives a circuit size reduction of 67% and a very wideband harmonic suppression due to its shorter electrical length of the resonator. Therefore the proposed dual mode resonator is very suitable for high-order filter realization. Theoretical analysis together with experimental prototypes is presented in this paper.
On-line learning and stochastic approximations

The convergence of online learning algorithms is analyzed using the tools of the stochastic approximation theory, and proved under very weak conditions. A general framework for online learning algorithms is first presented. This framework encompasses the most common online learning algorithms in use today, as illustrated by several examples. The stochastic approximation theory then provides general results describing the convergence of all these learning algorithms at once. Revised version, October 15th 2012.