Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Wind-dragged corolla enhances self-pollination: a new mechanism of delayed self-pollination.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS Delayed self-pollination is a mechanism that allows animal-pollinated plants to outcross while ensuring seed production in the absence of pollinators. This study aims to explore a new mechanism of delayed self-pollination facilitated by wind-driven corolla abscission in Incarvillea sinensis var. sinensis. METHODS Floral morphology and development, and the process of delayed self-pollination were surveyed. Experiments dealing with pollinator and wind exclusion, pollination manipulations, and pollinator observations were conducted in the field. KEY RESULTS Delayed self-pollination occurs when the abscising corolla driven by wind drags the adherent epipetalous stamens, thus leading to contact of anthers with stigma in late anthesis. There is no dichogamy and self-incompatibility in this species. The significantly higher proportion of abscised corolla under natural conditions as compared with that in wind-excluding tents indicates the importance of wind in corolla abscission. When pollinators were excluded, corolla abscission significantly increased the number of pollen grains deposited on the stigma and, as a result, the fruit and seed set. Only half of the flowers in plots were visited by pollinators, and the fruit set of emasculated flowers was significantly lower than that of untreated flowers in open pollination. This species has a sensitive stigma, and its two open stigmatic lobes closed soon after being touched by a pollinator, but always reopened if no or only little pollen was deposited. CONCLUSIONS This delayed self-pollination, which involved the movement of floral parts, the active participation of the wind and sensitive stigma, is quite different from that reported previously. This mechanism provides reproductive assurance for this species. The sensitive stigma contributes to ensuring seed production and reducing the interference of selfing with outcrossing. The pollination pattern, which combines actions by bees with indirect participation by wind, is also a new addition to ambophily.
Translation Model Generalization using Probability Averaging for Machine Translation

Previous methods on improving translation quality by employing multiple SMT models usually carry out as a second-pass decision procedure on hypotheses from multiple systems using extra features instead of using features in existing models in more depth. In this paper, we propose translation model generalization (TMG), an approach that updates probability feature values for the translation model being used based on the model itself and a set of auxiliary models, aiming to enhance translation quality in the first-pass decoding. We validate our approach on translation models based on auxiliary models built by two different ways. We also introduce novel probability variance features into the log-linear models for further improvements. We conclude that our approach can be developed independently and integrated into current SMT pipeline directly. We demonstrate BLEU improvements on the NIST Chinese-to-English MT tasks for single-system decodings, a system combination approach and a model combination approach.
SYNTAX Score Reproducibility and Variability Between Interventional Cardiologists, Core Laboratory Technicians, and Quantitative Coronary Measurements

Background— In the Synergy between Percutaneous Coronary Intervention with Taxus and Cardiac Surgery (SYNTAX) trial, the SYNTAX score was useful in risk stratifying patients with complex coronary artery disease. The reproducibility of this score may affect its clinical utility. We therefore assessed SYNTAX score interobserver and intraobserver variability among a group of interventional cardiologists (ICs) and an experienced group of angiographic core laboratory (ACL) technicians. Methods and Results— After basic training from the SYNTAX score website, 3 ICs and 4 ACL technicians, each working independently, assessed the SYNTAX score of 30 multivessel disease angiograms. The ICs then underwent an intensive training session with ACL technicians, after which the SYNTAX score from 50 additional angiograms were assessed independently by both groups. Interobserver Fleiss &kgr; statistic values were determined. A third assessment was performed using quantitative coronary angiography (QCA). The ACL technician interobserver strength of agreement from both periods was substantial or greater (k=0.82; 95% CI [0.72, 1.00] and 0.84 [0.76, 1.00]) and not different than QCA. The IC interobserver agreement was initially estimated to be at least slight (k=0.33 [0.18, 0.44]), improving to substantial or greater after advanced training (k=0.76 [0.64, 1.00]). Despite advanced training, ICs underscored the number of lesions, bifurcations, and small-vessel disease (P<0.001), resulting in a lower score than ACL technicians (mean difference=7.5, P<0.001). Conclusions— Highly reproducible SYNTAX score measurements were quickly achieved by experienced ACL technicians. In contrast, agreement among ICs after the basic tutorial was initially poor but improved considerably after further training with the ACL, although differences still remained in interpretation of several lesion types. These findings have important implications for adoption of SYNTAX score methodology in routine practice and future clinical trials.
Chlamydia muridarum Evades Growth Restriction by the IFN-γ-Inducible Host Resistance Factor Irgb101

Chlamydiae are obligate intracellular bacterial pathogens that exhibit a broad range of host tropism. Differences in host tropism between Chlamydia species have been linked to host variations in IFN-γ-mediated immune responses. In mouse cells, IFN-γ can effectively restrict growth of the human pathogen Chlamydia trachomatis but fails to control growth of the closely related mouse pathogen Chlamydia muridarum. The ability of mouse cells to resist C. trachomatis replication is largely dependent on the induction of a family of IFN-γ-inducible GTPases called immunity-related GTPases or IRGs. In this study we demonstrate that C. muridarum can specifically evade IRG-mediated host resistance. It has previously been suggested that C. muridarum inactivates the IRG protein Irga6 (Iigp1) to dampen the murine immune response. However, we show that Irga6 is dispensable for the control of C. trachomatis replication. Instead, an effective IFN-γ response to C. trachomatis requires the IRG proteins Irgm1 (Lrg47), Irgm3 (Igtp), and Irgb10. Ectopic expression of Irgb10 in the absence of IFN-γ is sufficient to reduce intracellular growth of C. trachomatis but fails to restrict growth of C. muridarum, indicating that C. muridarum can specifically evade Irgb10-driven host responses. Importantly, we find that Irgb10 protein intimately associates with inclusions harboring C. trachomatis but is absent from inclusions formed by C. muridarum. These data suggest that C. muridarum has evolved a mechanism to escape the murine IFN-γ response by restricting access of Irgb10 and possibly other IRG proteins to the inclusion.
Sources of Electrical Brain Activity Most Relevant to Performance of Brain-Computer Interface Based on Motor Imagery

A brain-computer interface (BCI) provides a direct functional interaction between the human brain and the external device. Many kinds of signals (from electromagnetic to metabolic [23, 38, 42]) could be used in BCI. However the most widespread BCI systems are based on EEG recordings. BCI consists of a brain signal acquisition system, data processing software for feature extraction and pattern classification, and a system to transfer commands to an external device and, thus, providing feedback to an operator. The most prevalent BCI systems are based on the discrimination of EEG patterns related to execution of different mental tasks [14, 21, 24]. This approach is justified by the presence of correlation between brain signal features and tasks performed, revealed by basic research [24, 28, 30, 45]. By agreement with the BCI operator each mental task is associated with one of the commands to the external device. Then to produce the commands, the operator switches voluntary between corresponding mental tasks. If BCI is dedicated to control device movements then psychologically convenient mental tasks are motor imaginations. For example, when a patient controls by BCI the movement of a wheelchair its movement to the left can be associated with the imagination of the left arm movement and movement to the right with right arm movement. Another advantage of these mental tasks is that their performance is accompanied by the easily recognizable EEG patterns. Moreover, motor imagination is considered now as an efficient rehabilitation procedure to restore movement after paralysis [4]. Thus, namely the analysis of BCI performance based on motor imagination is the object of the present chapter.
Third-party assurances: the road to trust in online retailing

Consumer trust of Internet vendors is a major factor influencing the success of e-commerce. To enhance consumer trust, many e-retailers are experimenting with various trust-building strategies, including participation in third party assurance programs. The study presents a model describing the relationship between trust and online purchasing, as well as related relationships with antecedents to both trust and purchasing: third-party assurances, individual disposition to trust, perceived risk of purchasing online from a particular Web merchant, and attitude toward a particular Web merchant. Four manipulations of a simulated retail Web site were used to test nine model-derived hypotheses. Data were collected and analyzed from a pilot study of 164 subjects. The initial results lend tentative support to six of the nine hypotheses, but not those postulating relationships between assurance seals and trust in e-retailers.
Foreign language teachers and intercultural competence: an international investigation

Foreword/ Preface 1. Teaching foreign languages in an intercultural world Lies Sercu 2. Objectives of foreign language education and culture teaching time Paloma Castro and Lies Sercu 3. Familiarity and contacts with foreign cultures Phyllis Ryan and Lies Sercu 4. Pupils' culture-and-language learning profile Maria del Carmen Mendez Garcia and Lies Sercu 5. Culture teaching practices Ewa Bandura and Lies Sercu 6. Culture in foreign language teaching materials Leah Davcheva and Lies Sercu 7. Experiential culture learning activities: school trips and exchange projects Chryssa Laskaridou and Lies Sercu 8. Opinions regarding different facets of intercultural competence teaching Lies Sercu 9. The foreign language and intercultural competence teacher Lies Sercu 10. The future of intercultural competence in foreign language education. Recommendations for professional development, educational policy and research Lies SercuAppendix 1: Questionnaire/ Appendix 2: Bonferroni multiple comparison test results
A randomized controlled trial to assess the effects of reimbursing the costs of smoking cessation therapy on sustained abstinence.

AIMS We studied whether reimbursement for smoking cessation treatment (SCT) can increase prolonged abstinence from smoking up to 2 years. SETTING, PARTICIPANTS AND DESIGN: From the general population, we recruited smokers and assigned them randomly to a control group (n = 634) or an intervention group (n = 632). For 6 months, participants in the intervention group could apply for reimbursement and received information regarding the reimbursed SCT. Participants in the control group received no reimbursement or information. MEASUREMENTS In this follow-up study, prolonged abstinence from smoking was defined as reported being abstinent from at least 7 days before the end of reimbursement until the follow-up assessment 6 months or 2 years later. FINDINGS At 6 months after the end of reimbursement, 18 participants in the control group (2.8%) and 35 participants (5.5%) in the intervention group reported sustained abstinence for at least 6 months [odds ratio (OR) = 2.0, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.1-3.6]. Two years after the reimbursement period, 10 participants in the control group (1.6%) and 27 participants in the intervention group (4.3%) still reported sustained abstinence (OR = 4.1, 95% CI 1.7-10.2). The overall effectiveness of SCT increased with reimbursement and was 22% in the intervention group and 8% in the control group after 2 years. CONCLUSIONS Reimbursement may be an effective strategy to increase the prolonged abstinence rate even after 2 years.
UNCERTAINTY OF OUTCOME, PLAYER QUALITY AND ATTENDANCE AT NATIONAL PROVINCIAL CHAMPIONSHIP RUGBY UNION MATCHES: AN EVALUATION IN LIGHT OF THE COMPETITIONS REVIEW

This article investigates the determinants of attendance at New Zealand matches in the First Division of the National Provincial Championship (NPC) in 2000 to 2003. Emphasis is placed on testing the effects on demand of (within-season and match) uncertainty of outcome and player quality. A general-to-specific testing procedure is used to select a set of factors that have a statistically significant effect on attendance, including previous attendance, traditional rivalries, team success and Ranfurly Shield matches. A specific result of interest in light of the Competitions Review's proposal to exclude All Blacks from the NPC is the positive effect on attendance of the presence of All Blacks.
Blocking angiotensin-converting enzyme induces potent regulatory T cells and modulates TH1- and TH17-mediated autoimmunity

The renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system (RAAS) is a major regulator of blood pressure. The octapeptide angiotensin II (AII) is proteolytically processed from the decapeptide AI by angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE), and then acts via angiotensin type 1 and type 2 receptors (AT1R and AT2R). Inhibitors of ACE and antagonists of the AT1R are used in the treatment of hypertension, myocardial infarction, and stroke. We now show that the RAAS also plays a major role in autoimmunity, exemplified by multiple sclerosis (MS) and its animal model, experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE). Using proteomics, we observed that RAAS is up-regulated in brain lesions of MS. AT1R was induced in myelin-specific CD4+ T cells and monocytes during autoimmune neuroinflammation. Blocking AII production with ACE inhibitors or inhibiting AII signaling with AT1R blockers suppressed autoreactive TH1 and TH17 cells and promoted antigen-specific CD4+FoxP3+ regulatory T cells (Treg cells) with inhibition of the canonical NF-κB1 transcription factor complex and activation of the alternative NF-κB2 pathway. Treatment with ACE inhibitors induces abundant CD4+FoxP3+ T cells with sufficient potency to reverse paralytic EAE. Modulation of the RAAS with inexpensive, safe pharmaceuticals used by millions worldwide is an attractive therapeutic strategy for application to human autoimmune diseases.
Sympatric wolf and coyote populations of the western Great Lakes region are reproductively isolated

Interpretation of the genetic composition and taxonomic history of wolves in the western Great Lakes region (WGLR) of the United States has long been debated and has become more important to their conservation given the recent changes in their status under the Endangered Species Act. Currently, the two competing hypotheses on WGLR wolves are that they resulted from hybridization between (i) grey wolves (Canis lupus) and western coyotes (C. latrans) or (ii) between grey wolves and eastern wolves (C. lycaon). We performed a genetic analysis of sympatric wolves and coyotes from the region to assess the degree of reproductive isolation between them and to clarify the taxonomic status of WGLR wolves. Based on data from maternal, paternal and bi‐parental genetic markers, we demonstrate a clear genetic distinction between sympatric wolves and coyotes and conclude that they are reproductively isolated and that wolf–coyote hybridization in the WGLR is uncommon. The data reject the hypothesis that wolves in the WGLR derive from hybridization between grey wolves and western coyotes, and we conclude that the extant WGLR wolf population is derived from hybridization between grey wolves and eastern wolves. Grey‐eastern wolf hybrids (C. lupus × lycaon) comprise a substantial population that extends across Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota and western Ontario. These findings have important implications for the conservation and management of wolves in North America, specifically concerning the overestimation of grey wolf numbers in the United States and the need to address policies for hybrids.
Labyrinthine fistulae: pathobiology and management

Purpose of reviewThis article reviews literature on three manifestations of these pathologic mechanisms: leakage of perilymph from the inner ear into the middle ear, disruption of the bone of the labyrinth caused by cholesteatoma or other manifestations of chronic otitis media, and superior semicircular canal dehiscence syndrome. Recent findingsLabyrinthine fistulae are caused by abnormal communications between the inner ear and surrounding structures. Under normal circumstances, the fluid-filled spaces of the membranous labyrinth are encased in the dense bone of the otic capsule with only two places of increased compliance: the oval window and the round window. Disruption of the labyrinthine bone can lead to areas of increased compliance, with symptoms and signs that can be understood based upon abnormal pressure transmission in the system. Communication between the endolymphatic and perilymphatic spaces of the labyrinth or passage of perilymph from the labyrinth into the middle ear or mastoid can lead to hearing loss and/or vestibular disturbances. SummaryFindings on clinical examination as well as CT imaging of the temporal bone can be useful in making the diagnosis. Management is based upon the specific pathological factors and the impact of the symptoms and signs on the patient.
A Biometric Identity Based Signature Scheme

We describe an identity based signature scheme that uses biometric information to construct the public key. Such a scheme would be beneficial in many repudiation situations for example a legal dispute over whether a contract had been signed or not by a user. A biometric reading provided by the alleged signer would be enough to verify the signature. We make use of fuzzy extractors to generate a key string from a variable biometric measurement. We use this biometric based key string and an elliptic curve point embedding technique to create the public key and corresponding private key. We then make use of a pairing based signature scheme to perform signing and verification with these keys. We discuss security issues of the system and suggest countermeasures to attack. Finally we describe a working biometric signature scheme developed in part by reusing components in an existing Java Identity Based Encryption implementation.
Novel crosstalk between ERK MAPK and p38 MAPK leads to homocysteine‐NMDA receptor‐mediated neuronal cell death

Hyperhomocysteinemia is an independent risk factor for both acute and chronic neurological disorders, but little is known about the underlying mechanisms by which elevated homocysteine can promote neuronal cell death. We recently established a role for NMDA receptor‐mediated activation of extracellular signal‐regulated kinase (ERK)‐MAPK in homocysteine‐induced neuronal cell death. In this study, we examined the involvement of the stress‐induced MAPK, p38 in homocysteine‐induced neuronal cell death, and further explored the relationship between the two MAPKs, ERK and p38, in triggering cell death. Homocysteine‐mediated NMDA receptor stimulation and subsequent Ca2+ influx led to a biphasic activation of p38 MAPK characterized by an initial rapid, but transient activation followed by a delayed and more prolonged response. Selective inhibition of the delayed p38 MAPK activity was sufficient to attenuate homocysteine‐induced neuronal cell death. Using pharmacological and RNAi approaches, we further demonstrated that both the initial and delayed activation of p38 MAPK is downstream of, and dependent on activation of ERK MAPK. Our findings highlight a novel interplay between ERK and p38 MAPK in homocysteine‐NMDA receptor‐induced neuronal cell death.
Trancework: An Introduction to the Practice of Clinical Hypnosis

Part 1: Conceptual Framework. What is Hypnosis, and Can it Help? - A. M. Weitzenhoffer The Myths about Hypnosis, and a Dose of Reality - D. B. Cheek Conceptualising Hypnosis - H. J. Crawford The Brain in Hypnosis - W. Kroger, Contents of Hypnosis - T. X. Barber The Social Psychology of Human Suggestibility - M. H. Erickson Matters of the Mind - K. Thompson Responsiveness to Hypnosis. The Phenomenology of Hypnosis. Conditions of Conducting Hypnosis Sessions - E. R. Hilgard Structured Approaches to Accessing Hypnotic Repsonsiveness. Part 2: Practical Framework. Structuring Suggestions - J. K. Zeig Helpful Hints for Performing Hypnosis. Formal Strategies of Hypnotic Induction. Hypnotic Phenomena: Eliciting and Utilizing Hypnotic Resources - D. Speigel Designing and Delivering Hypnotic Interventions. Hypnotic Parrers Commonly Employed in Psychotherapy. Treatment Dynamics and Sample Hypnosis Session Transcripts for Common Problems. The Case of Vicki: Hypnosis for Coping with Terminal Cancer. When People Respond in Non-ideal Ways - K. Olness Hypnotic Hazards and Ethical Guidelines Appendix A: Hypnosis Organisations for Professionals and Journal Information Appendix B: Supplemental Materials from M. D. Yapko.
Employee preference for performance-related pay: predictors and consequences for organizational citizenship behaviour in a Japanese firm

Research on performance-related pay (PRP) has largely focused on the outcomes of PRP implementation in a Western context. This paper examines the predictors of employee preference for PRP and the consequences for organizational citizenship behaviour (OCB) in Japan where seniority-based pay and teamwork have long been the norm. The sample consists of 155 sales representatives in a large electric appliance manufacturing company that was transitioning from a seniority-based to a PRP-based compensation system. Overall, respondents indicated a preference for PRP over seniority-based pay. The hierarchical regression results indicate that employee preference for PRP is positively and significantly associated with individual competitiveness and occupational commitment, while being negatively and significantly related to organizational commitment and to the age group of employees who joined the labour market prior to the bursting of the economic bubble in Japan. No significant relationship was observed between PRP preference and OCB in the hierarchical regression analysis, although the two are positively and significantly correlated contrary to our expectations. Implications for international human resource management are discussed.