Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Effects of the Variation in Brain Tissue Mechanical Properties on the Intracranial Response of a 6-Year-Old Child

Brain tissue mechanical properties are of importance to investigate child head injury using finite element (FE) method. However, these properties used in child head FE model normally vary in a large range in published literatures because of the insufficient child cadaver experiments. In this work, a head FE model with detailed anatomical structures is developed from the computed tomography (CT) data of a 6-year-old healthy child head. The effects of brain tissue mechanical properties on traumatic brain response are also analyzed by reconstruction of a head impact on engine hood according to Euro-NCAP testing regulation using FE method. The result showed that the variations of brain tissue mechanical parameters in linear viscoelastic constitutive model had different influences on the intracranial response. Furthermore, the opposite trend was obtained in the predicted shear stress and shear strain of brain tissues caused by the variations of mentioned parameters.
NMR solution structure of the human prion protein.

The NMR structures of the recombinant human prion protein, hPrP(23-230), and two C-terminal fragments, hPrP(90-230) and hPrP(121-230), include a globular domain extending from residues 125-228, for which a detailed structure was obtained, and an N-terminal flexibly disordered "tail. " The globular domain contains three alpha-helices comprising the residues 144-154, 173-194, and 200-228 and a short anti-parallel beta-sheet comprising the residues 128-131 and 161-164. Within the globular domain, three polypeptide segments show increased structural disorder: i.e., a loop of residues 167-171, the residues 187-194 at the end of helix 2, and the residues 219-228 in the C-terminal part of helix 3. The local conformational state of the polypeptide segments 187-193 in helix 2 and 219-226 in helix 3 is measurably influenced by the length of the N-terminal tail, with the helical states being most highly populated in hPrP(23-230). When compared with the previously reported structures of the murine and Syrian hamster prion proteins, the length of helix 3 coincides more closely with that in the Syrian hamster protein whereas the disordered loop 167-171 is shared with murine PrP. These species variations of local structure are in a surface area of the cellular form of PrP that has previously been implicated in intermolecular interactions related both to the species barrier for infectious transmission of prion disease and to immune reactions.
Explaining Full and Partial Success in the Acquisition of Second Language Grammatical Properties

Older second language (L2) learners can be successful not only in developing high levels of communicative ability (using the L2 for a range of functions such as persuading, informing, socialising, telling jokes, and so on) but also in acquiring linguistic properties. A study by Ioup, Boustagui, El Tigi, & Moselle (1994) of two native speakers of English who were first exposed to Egyptian Arabic in their early 20s illustrates this well. Samples of their Arabic speech were recorded, mixed with samples of speech from native speakers of Egyptian Arabic, and then the samples were played to a different group of 13 native speakers. The latter were asked to rate the samples for nativeness in Arabic. 8 out of the 13 rated the two English speakers as 'native'. Ioup et al also found that the two L2 speakers were able to recognise different dialects and accents of Arabic. Finally, the two speakers had intuitions about subtle grammatical properties not present in English. For example, wh-questions in Arabic usually involve an in-situ wh-word (Ahmad met who? ). But fronting of the wh-word is possible if it is focussed. In this case a complementizer must appear or the sentence is ungrammatical (Who COMP Ahmad met him? vs *Who Ahmad met him? ). The two L2 speakers showed that they were aware of the properties in question. So even when learning of a second language does not start until someone is in their 20s, it is still possible for them to become a very successful speaker.
Interview with Richard C. Delerins. High-Tech and Food 2.0

Richard C. Delerins, Ph.D., Associate research scholar at the Sorbonne University - CNRS (ISCC) and director of the Food 2.0 LAB, Paris. Q: Your work connects the biological and social dimensions of food. Thus, you have coined the term “nutritive strategies”. How does this concept enable us to establish a dialogue between research fields such as nutrigenomics and anthropology? Richard C. Delerins: Traditionally, studies on the interaction of both nutrients and genes or the physiology of nutri.
The roles of temperature and water vapor at different stages of the polar mesospheric cloud season

[1] Temperature, or alternatively, saturation vapor pressure (PSAT), dominantly controls the polar mesospheric cloud (PMC) seasonal onset and termination, characterized by a strong anticorrelated relationship between the Solar Occultation for Ice Experiment (SOFIE)-observed PMC frequency and PSAT on intraseasonal time scales. SOFIE is highly sensitive to weak clouds and can obtain a nearly full spectrum of PMCs. Both the SOFIE PMC frequency and PSAT indicate a rapid onset and termination of the season. Compared to PSAT, the water vapor partial pressure (PH2O) exhibits only a slight increase from before to after the start of the season. We are able to use the PSAT daily minimum and two averaged PH2O levels taken before and after the solstice, respectively, to estimate the start and end days of the PMC season within 1–2 days uncertainty. SOFIE ice mass density and its relationship to PH2O and PSAT are examined on intraseasonal scales and for two extreme conditions, i.e., strong and weak cloud cases. In the strong cloud case, such as those bright clouds that occur during the core of the season, PH2O far exceeds PSAT and dominantly controls the ice mass density variation, while in the weak cloud case, such as those clouds that occur at the start and end of the season, PH2O and PSAThave comparable magnitudes, vary in concert, and have similar effects on the ice mass density variation. These results suggest that the long-term brightness trends reported by DeLand et al. (2007) are primarily driven by changes in water vapor (H2O), not temperature.
Effects of Multi Strain Probiotics on Egg Production and Quality in Laying Hens Fed Diets Containing Food Waste Product

The objective of the present study was to evaluate the effects of multistrain probiotics (MP) supplementation to diets containing 40% food waste product (FWP) on egg production and quality. Forty wk-old Lohmann Brown were allocated to 4 dietary treatments with 5 replicates and 2 birds/cage in completely randomized design. A basal diet formulated to contain corn, soybean meal and FWP and 3 additional diets were prepared by adding 0.1, 0.2, or 0.4% of MP. During the 3-wk feeding period, the addition of 0.4% MP showed the least egg production (75.4%) compared with 0 (85.5%) or 0.2% (81.4%) MP addition (p<0.05), but the egg production was not different between 0.1 and 0.4% MP addition. The BW changes as well as feed intake were not different among the dietary treatments. The BD supplemented with 0.4% MP showed greatest Haugh units (60.4, p<0.05) compared with other treatments. There was no significant difference in yolk color among the treatments with the exception of dietary group with 0.4% added probiotics in which the least Roche color index (8.4, p<0.05) was observed. In conclusion, the present study indicated that the addition of probiotics to diets containing 40% FWP improved the egg protein quality but did not affect productivity of laying hens.
Effects of Spring Temperatures on the Strength of Selection on Timing of Reproduction in a Long-Distance Migratory Bird

Climate change has differentially affected the timing of seasonal events for interacting trophic levels, and this has often led to increased selection on seasonal timing. Yet, the environmental variables driving this selection have rarely been identified, limiting our ability to predict future ecological impacts of climate change. Using a dataset spanning 31 years from a natural population of pied flycatchers (Ficedula hypoleuca), we show that directional selection on timing of reproduction intensified in the first two decades (1980–2000) but weakened during the last decade (2001–2010). Against expectation, this pattern could not be explained by the temporal variation in the phenological mismatch with food abundance. We therefore explored an alternative hypothesis that selection on timing was affected by conditions individuals experience when arriving in spring at the breeding grounds: arriving early in cold conditions may reduce survival. First, we show that in female recruits, spring arrival date in the first breeding year correlates positively with hatch date; hence, early-hatched individuals experience colder conditions at arrival than late-hatched individuals. Second, we show that when temperatures at arrival in the recruitment year were high, early-hatched young had a higher recruitment probability than when temperatures were low. We interpret this as a potential cost of arriving early in colder years, and climate warming may have reduced this cost. We thus show that higher temperatures in the arrival year of recruits were associated with stronger selection for early reproduction in the years these birds were born. As arrival temperatures in the beginning of the study increased, but recently declined again, directional selection on timing of reproduction showed a nonlinear change. We demonstrate that environmental conditions with a lag of up to two years can alter selection on phenological traits in natural populations, something that has important implications for our understanding of how climate can alter patterns of selection in natural populations.
Leveraging transcript quantification for fast computation of alternative splicing profiles

Alternative splicing plays an essential role in many cellular processes and bears major relevance in the understanding of multiple diseases, including cancer. High-throughput RNA sequencing allows genome-wide analyses of splicing across multiple conditions. However, the increasing number of available datasets represents a major challenge in terms of computation time and storage requirements. We describe SUPPA, a computational tool to calculate relative inclusion values of alternative splicing events, exploiting fast transcript quantification. SUPPA accuracy is comparable and sometimes superior to standard methods using simulated as well as real RNA sequencing data compared to experimentally validated events. We assess the variability in terms of the choice of annotation and provide evidence that using complete transcripts rather than more transcripts per gene provides better estimates. Moreover, SUPPA coupled with de novo transcript reconstruction methods does not achieve accuracies as high as using quantification of known transcripts, but remains comparable to existing methods. Finally, we show that SUPPA is more than 1000 times faster than standard methods. Coupled with fast transcript quantification, SUPPA provides inclusion values at a much higher speed than existing methods without compromising accuracy, thereby facilitating the systematic splicing analysis of large datasets with limited computational resources. The software is implemented in Python 2.7 and is available under the MIT license at https://bitbucket.org/regulatorygenomicsupf/suppa. Contact eduardo.eyras@upf.edu Supplementary Information available at https://bitbucket.org/regulatorygenomicsupf/suppa/downloads/Supplementary_Data. zip
Cardiovascular Reflexes Activity and Their Interaction during Exercise

Cardiac output and arterial blood pressure increase during dynamic exercise notwithstanding the exercise-induced vasodilation due to functional sympatholysis. These cardiovascular adjustments are regulated in part by neural reflexes which operate to guarantee adequate oxygen supply and by-products washout of the exercising muscles. Moreover, they maintain adequate perfusion of the vital organs and prevent excessive increments in blood pressure. In this review, we briefly summarize neural reflexes operating during dynamic exercise with particular emphasis on their interaction.
Identification of a Lysosomal Peptide Transport System Induced during Dendritic Cell Development*

The delivery of protein fragments to major histocompatibility complex (MHC)-loading compartments of professional antigen-presenting cells is essential in the adaptive immune response against pathogens. Apart from the crucial role of the transporter associated with antigen processing (TAP) for peptide loading of MHC class I molecules in the endoplasmic reticulum, TAP-independent translocation pathways have been proposed but not identified so far. Based on its overlapping substrate specificity with TAP, we herein investigated the ABC transporter ABCB9, also named TAP-like (TAPL). Remarkably, TAPL expression is strongly induced during differentiation of monocytes to dendritic cells and to macrophages. TAPL does not, however, restore MHC class I surface expression in TAP-deficient cells, demonstrating that TAPL alone or in combination with single TAP subunits does not form a functional transport complex required for peptide loading of MHC I in the endoplasmic reticulum. In fact, by using quantitative immunofluorescence and subcellular fractionation, TAPL was detected in the lysosomal compartment co-localizing with the lysosome-associated membrane protein LAMP-2. By in vitro assays, we demonstrate a TAPL-specific translocation of peptides into isolated lysosomes, which strictly requires ATP hydrolysis. These results suggest a mechanism by which antigenic peptides have access to the lysosomal compartment in professional antigen-presenting cells.
Aging-Dependent and -Independent Modulation of Associative Learning Behavior by Insulin/Insulin-Like Growth Factor-1 Signal in Caenorhabditis elegans

Mutations in the insulin/IGF-1 neuroendocrine pathway extend lifespan and affect development, metabolism, and other biological processes in Caenorhabditis elegans and in other species. In addition, they may play a role in learning and memory. Investigation of the insulin/IGF-1 pathway may provide clues for the prevention of age-related declines in cognitive functions. Here, we examined the effects of the life-extending (Age) mutations, such as the age-1 (phosphatidylinositol 3-OH kinase) and daf-2 (insulin/IGF-1 receptor) mutations, on associative learning behavior called isothermal tracking. This thermotaxis learning behavior associates paired stimuli, temperature, and food. The age-1 mutation delayed the age-related decline of isothermal tracking, resulting in a 210% extension of the period that ensures it. The effect is dramatic compared with the extension of other physiological health spans. In addition, young adults of various Age mutants (age-1, daf-2, clk-1, and eat-2) showed increased consistency of temperature-food association, which may be caused by a common feature of the mutants, such as the secondary effects of life extension (i.e., enhanced maintenance of neural mechanisms). The age-1 and daf-2 mutants but not the other Age mutants showed an increase in temperature-starvation association through a different mechanism. Increased temperature-food association of the daf-2 mutant was dependent on neuronal Ca2+-sensor ncs-1, which modulates isothermal tracking in the AIY interneuron. Interestingly, mutations in the daf-7 TGFβ gene, which functions in parallel to the insulin/IGF-1 pathway, caused deficits in acquisition of temperature-food and temperature-starvation association. This study highlights roles of the Age mutations in modulation of certain behavioral plasticity.
Nuclear star formation in the hotspot galaxy NGC 2903

We present high-resolution near-infrared imaging obtained using adaptive optics and HST/NICMOS, and ground-based spectroscopy of the hotspot galaxy NGC 2903. Our near-infrared resolution imaging enables us to resolve the infrared hotspots into individual young stellar clusters or groups of these. The spatial distribution of the stellar clusters is not coincident with that of the bright H ii regions, as revealed by the HST/NICMOS Paα image. Overall, the circumnuclear star formation in NGC 2903 shows a ring-like morphology with an approximate diameter of 625 pc. The star formation properties of the stellar clusters and H ii regions have been studied using the photometric and spectroscopic information in conjunction with evolutionary synthesis models. The population of bright stellar clusters shows a very narrow range of ages, 4–7×106 yr after the peak of star formation, or absolute ages 6.5–9.5×106 yr (for the assumed short-duration Gaussian bursts), and luminosities similar to the clusters found in the Antennae interacting galaxy. This population of young stellar clusters accounts for some 7–12 per cent of the total stellar mass in the central 625 pc of NGC 2903. The H ii regions in the ring of star formation have luminosities close to that of the supergiant H ii region 30 Doradus, they are younger than the stellar clusters, and they will probably evolve into bright infrared stellar clusters similar to those observed today. We find that the star formation efficiency in the central regions of NGC 2903 is higher than in normal galaxies, approaching the lower end of infrared luminous galaxies.
Laying Claim to Social Media by Activists: A Cyber-Material Détournement

This article examines current appropriations of social media by activists of the radical left in Greece and Sweden. Previous research has shown that the discourse concerning social media’s empowering potential is embedded in commercial values that contradict the value systems of many activists who engage in struggles against the current economic system. We employ the notion of détournement, which describes how social movements turn something aside from its normal course or purpose. Based on interviews and online ethnographic observations, we seek to understand how and with what consequences social media facilitate and limit collective action. The article enhances our understanding of activists’ social media use by turning our attention to the sociotechnical impact of social media on collective action initiated by leftist groups as well as the relationship between ideological loyalties and the political economy of corporate social media.
Studies of user-generated content: A systematic review

This article presents a review of communication research on user-generated content with a special focus on studies which include a content analysis. The trends of research on this comparatively new and rapidly developing subject are systematically discussed and desiderata are identified. The evaluation is based on a content analysis of pertinent approaches in nine relevant international peer-reviewed journals published from 2004 to 2012. From the results, the article concludes that user-generated content is approached by scholars from a variety of perspectives and offers scope for interdisciplinary cooperation but also notes that several of the challenges posed by the continuously changing nature of the content are not fully met.
The Cerebellum Harbors a Circadian Oscillator Involved in Food Anticipation

The cerebellum participates in motor coordination as well as in numerous cerebral processes, including temporal discrimination. Animals can predict daily timing of food availability, as manifested by food-anticipatory activity under restricted feeding. By studying ex vivo clock gene expression by in situ hybridization and recording in vitro Per1-luciferase bioluminescence, we report that the cerebellum contains a circadian oscillator sensitive to feeding cues (i.e., whose clock gene oscillations are shifted in response to restricted feeding). Food-anticipatory activity was markedly reduced in mice injected intracerebroventricularly with an immunotoxin that depletes Purkinje cells (i.e., OX7-saporin). Mice bearing the hotfoot mutation (i.e., Grid2ho/ho) have impaired cerebellar circuitry and mild ataxic phenotype. Grid2ho/ho mice fed ad libitum showed regular behavioral rhythms and day–night variations of clock gene expression in the hypothalamus and cerebellum. When challenged with restricted feeding, however, Grid2ho/ho mice did not show any food-anticipatory rhythms, nor timed feeding-induced changes in cerebellar clock gene expression. In hypothalamic arcuate and dorsomedial nuclei, however, shifts in Per1 expression in response to restricted feeding were similar in cerebellar mutant and wild-type mice. Furthermore, plasma corticosterone and metabolites before mealtime did not differ between cerebellar mutant and wild-type mice. Together, these data define a role for the cerebellum in the circadian timing network and indicate that the cerebellar oscillator is required for anticipation of mealtime.
Predicting response rates updated

This note updates the first detailed analysis of response burden and response rates reported in Axhausen and Weis (2010). It also updates the rating of stated choice experiments. The analysis of the richer data set shows that the drop in response rate is proportional to the length and complexity of the questionnaire and gives first formulae to predict the response rates.
Quality of child health care and under-five-mortality in Zambia:: A case study of two districts in Luapula Province

This study was intended to investigate the factors associated with the high under-five mortality in one province of Zambia. Specifically the study (a) Identifies predominant traditional cultural beliefs and perceptions concerning main causes of child deaths; (b) assesses quality of health care services; and, (c) determines the causes of death among children under-five years. Multiple data collection instruments were used to collect the necessary information about 360 deaths. Findings indicate that most children died before the second year of life with more than 50% dying before their first birthday. The paper argues that most of the deaths could have been averted had quality health care been provided. Recommendations on how to improve child health care provision are provided.
Carotid or jugular amino acid infusions and food intake in the cockerel

1. Infusions of histidine into the carotid arteries of cockerels receiving a histidine-limiting, imbalanced diet caused an increase in food intake, whereas similar infusions into the jugular veins did not. 2. Infusions of lysine into the carotid arteries or jugular veins of young cockerels receiving a balanced, low-protein diet caused decreases in food intake. There was evidence of a more marked effect of carotid infusion. 3. The mechanisms of food intake regulation by amino acids in mammals are applicable to birds and excesses of single amino acids do seem to affect food intake directly.
Inheritance of synchronization and recovery properties in Avalon/C++

The authors describe their experience adapting inheritance mechanisms to a new application domain, reliable distributed systems. They give an overview of Avalon/C++, a programming language under development that allows programmers to 'customize' the synchronization and fault-tolerance properties of data types by letting them inherit properties such as serializability and crash recovery from a library of basic types. The authors first describe the transaction model used to organize distributed computations and some relevant features of C++, and give an overview of the Avalon/C++ base hierarchy. They then describe in more detail each of the hierarchy's classes and some restrictions on their use that must be obeyed to preserve their semantic intent. An extended example illustrates a directory-type implementation that uses all three of the base classes. Related work is discussed. <<ETX>>