Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Small-Angle X-Ray Scattering for Imaging of Surface Layers on Intact Bacteria in the Native Environment

ABSTRACT Crystalline cell surface layers (S-layers) represent a natural two-dimensional (2D) protein self-assembly system with nanometer-scale periodicity that decorate many prokaryotic cells. Here, we analyze the S-layer on intact bacterial cells of the Gram-positive organism Geobacillus stearothermophilus ATCC 12980 and the Gram-negative organism Aquaspirillum serpens MW5 by small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) and relate it to the structure obtained by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) after platinum/carbon shadowing. By measuring the scattering pattern of X rays obtained from a suspension of bacterial cells, integral information on structural elements such as the thickness and lattice parameters of the S-layers on intact, hydrated cells can be obtained nondestructively. In contrast, TEM of whole mounts is used to analyze the S-layer lattice type and parameters as well as the physical structure in a nonaqueous environment and local information on the structure is delivered. Application of SAXS to S-layer research on intact bacteria is a challenging task, as the scattering volume of the generally thin (3- to 30-nm) bacterial S-layers is low in comparison to the scattering volume of the bacterium itself. For enhancement of the scattering contrast of the S-layer in SAXS measurement, either silicification (treatment with tetraethyl orthosilicate) is used, or the difference between SAXS signals from an S-layer-deficient mutant and the corresponding S-layer-carrying bacterium is used for determination of the scattering signal. The good agreement of the SAXS and TEM data shows that S-layers on the bacterial cell surface are remarkably stable.
Comparing Biases for Minimal Network Construction with Back-Propagation

Rumelhart (1987), has proposed a method for choosing minimal or "simple" representations during learning in Back-propagation networks. This approach can be used to (a) dynamically select the number of hidden units, (b) construct a representation that is appropriate for the problem and (c) thus improve the generalization ability of Back-propagation networks. The method Rumelhart suggests involves adding penalty terms to the usual error function. In this paper we introduce Rumelhart's minimal networks idea and compare two possible biases on the weight search space. These biases are compared in both simple counting problems and a speech recognition problem. In general, the constrained search does seem to minimize the number of hidden units required with an expected increase in local minima.
The Evaluation of Complex Health Policy

The last five years have witnessed the increasing use of evaluated pilot programmes as a way of developing health services policy in the UK. Total purchasing was the first major quasi-market development in the National Health Service to be independently evaluated from the outset. The initiative allowed local, volunteer pilots considerable freedom to implement extensions to existing arrangements for general practitioner budget holding for specialist services in the National Health Service. The experience indicates that future evaluations of similarly complex innovations should give attention to developing explanatory frameworks (i.e. theories), which include consideration of the impact of the context in which interventions are introduced on their potential outcomes. Such an approach should help in ensuring the generalizability of evaluations through theory building and thus increase their relevance for policy development. In addition, evaluations must be designed to be capable of accommodating the needs of changing policy imperatives if they are to have long-term usefulness.
Ante's (1926) law revisited: a systematic review on survival rates and complications of fixed dental prostheses (FDPs) on severely reduced periodontal tissue support.

BACKGROUND In subjects suffering from generalized severe periodontitis, only a few teeth may be treated and used as abutments for fixed dental prostheses (FDPs). OBJECTIVE To systematically review the impact of severely reduced, but healthy periodontal tissue support on the survival rate and complications of FDPs after a mean follow-up time of at least 5 years. SEARCH STRATEGY Publications considered for inclusion were searched in MEDLINE (PubMed) and relevant journals were hand searched. The search was performed in duplicate and was limited to human studies published in the dental literature from 1966 up to and including September 2006. Only publications in English, in peer-reviewed journals, were considered. Abstracts were excluded. SELECTION CRITERIA Prospective and retrospective cohort studies were included. The primary outcome measure included survival rates of FDPs and abutment teeth, whereas biological and technical complications of FDPs and abutment teeth represented secondary outcome measures. DATA ANALYSIS Summary estimates of survival rates and of biological and technical complications were calculated after 5 and 10 years. RESULTS The search provided 860 titles of which six publications were included. A total of 579 FDPs were incorporated and followed up to 25 years. Meta-analysis yielded an estimated FDP survival rate of 96.4% [95% confidence interval (95% CI): 94.6-97.6%] after five and of 92.9% (95% CI: 89.5-95.3%) after 10 years, respectively. After 10 years, the estimated rate of abutment teeth without endodontic complications amounted to 93% (95% CI: 62.6-98.9%). The 10-year estimated rate of caries-free abutment teeth was 98.1% (95% CI: 88.2-99.7%). FDPs without loss of retention were estimated to occur in 95.4% (95% CI: 92.6-97.2%) of cases after 10 years. CONCLUSIONS These results showed that (i) masticatory function could be established and maintained in subjects receiving FDPs on abutment teeth with severely reduced but healthy periodontal tissue support and (ii) FDPs survival rates compared favourably with those of FDPs incorporated in subjects without severely periodontally compromised dentitions.
Research with Children

This article explores seven methodological issues in some detail to illustrate the ways in which aspects of the research process usually considered to be the same for both adults and children can pose particular dilemmas for adult researchers working with children. It argues that research with children is potentially different from research with adults mainly because of adult perceptions of children and children's marginalized position in adult society but least often because children are inherently different. Drawing on classroom-based research carried out in rural Bolivia, the advantages and disadvantages of using five task-based methods (drawings, photographs, PRA [participatory rural appraisal] techniques, diaries and worksheets) are highlighted in order to illustrate how such research techniques often thought to be suitable for use with children can be problematic as well as beneficial.
Long-term genomic and epigenomic dysregulation as a consequence of prenatal alcohol exposure: a model for fetal alcohol spectrum disorders

There is abundant evidence that prenatal alcohol exposure leads to a range of behavioral and cognitive impairments, categorized under the term fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASDs). These disorders are pervasive in Western cultures and represent the most common preventable source of neurodevelopmental disabilities. The genetic and epigenetic etiology of these phenotypes, including those factors that may maintain these phenotypes throughout the lifetime of an affected individual, has become a recent topic of investigation. This review integrates recent data that has progressed our understanding FASD as a continuum of molecular events, beginning with cellular stress response and ending with a long-term “footprint” of epigenetic dysregulation across the genome. It reports on data from multiple ethanol-treatment paradigms in mouse models that identify changes in gene expression that occur with respect to neurodevelopmental timing of exposure and ethanol dose. These studies have identified patterns of genomic alteration that are dependent on the biological processes occurring at the time of ethanol exposure. This review also adds to evidence that epigenetic processes such as DNA methylation, histone modifications, and non-coding RNA regulation may underlie long-term changes to gene expression patterns. These may be initiated by ethanol-induced alterations to DNA and histone methylation, particularly in imprinted regions of the genome, affecting transcription which is further fine-tuned by altered microRNA expression. These processes are likely complex, genome-wide, and interrelated. The proposed model suggests a potential for intervention, given that epigenetic changes are malleable and may be altered by postnatal environment. This review accentuates the value of mouse models in deciphering the molecular etiology of FASD, including those processes that may provide a target for the ammelioration of this common yet entirely preventable disorder.
Longitudinal fibre splitting in muscular dystrophy: a serial cinematographic study

A technique of block surface-staining and serial cinematography was modified to review serial sections of normal and dystrophic muscle from the Bar Harbor 129 Re strain of mice as a preliminary study of fibre splitting in dystrophic muscle. Using this technique, muscle fibres were reconstructed for up to 1·5 mm of their length without difficulty. Split fibres were identified only when the actual separation of fibres was observed. Splitting was seen to be a significant cause of the variations in fibre diameter and was at times responsible for the formation of groups of small atrophic fibres which resembled those seen in denervation atrophy. Complex multiple splitting and recombination of daughter and parent fibres was also observed and reconstructed to scale. These results may have considerable significance for the interpretation of physiological data on both human and murine dystrophic muscle.
Developing a local house price index: the case of Aberdeen, Scotland

The paper reports on the development of a local house price index for the Aberdeen housing market. It highlights the decisions that need to be made in the process of developing such an index and the influence of institutional context on these decisions. The basis of the index is a hedonic model re-estimated quarterly using a rolling window approach. Index values are generated using Laspeyres (base-period) weights and defining a standard property as semi-detached with median structural characteristics. The paper describes the additional information reported to users (alongside the index values) including changes over different periods, price levels and the volume of transactions. Analysis of results support the development of local house price indices and confirm that house price dynamics in the Aberdeen housing market area are distinct from those estimated for broader geographical areas.
Identifying At-Risk Students for Early Reading Intervention: Challenges and Possible Solutions

Accurate identification of at-risk kindergarten and 1st-grade students through early reading screening is an essential element of responsiveness to intervention models of reading instruction. The authors consider predictive validity and classification accuracy of early reading screening assessments with attention to sensitivity and specificity. They review screening strategies of previous kindergarten and 1st-grade intervention studies. They present practical, intervention-based solutions to low classification accuracy, including strategies that may reduce false-positive risk classifications.
Social Change And The Family In Taiwan

Until the 1940s, social life in Taiwan was generally organized through the family—marriages were arranged by parents, for example, and senior males held authority. In the following years, as Taiwan evolved rapidly from an agrarian to an industrialized society, individual decisions became less dependent on the family and more influenced by outside forces. Social Change and the Family in Taiwan provides an in-depth analysis of the complex changes in family relations in a society undergoing revolutionary social and economic transformation. This interdisciplinary study explores the patterns and causes of change in education, work, income, leisure time, marriage, living arrangements, and interactions among extended kin. Theoretical chapters enunciate a theory of family and social change centered on the life course and modes of social organization. Other chapters look at the shift from arranged marriages toward love matches, as well as changes in dating practices, premarital sex, fertility, and divorce. Contributions to the book are made by Jui-Shan Chang, Ming-Cheng Chang, Deborah S. Freedman, Ronald Freedman, Thomas E. Fricke, Albert Hermalin, Mei-Lin Lee, Paul K. C. Liu, Hui-Sheng Lin, Te-Hsiung Sun, Arland Thornton, Maxine Weinstein, and Li-Shou Yang.
The Over-Reliance on Self-Regulation in CSR Policy

The view that CSR performance can be improved most effectively through external pressures is shown to be invalid for most firms. In exploring why this is the case, the authors demonstrate that most small and medium enterprises are not exposed to the same pressures as large firms, and that this undermines many of the assumptions that underpin the externally driven business case (EDBC) for voluntary CSR practices. The analysis does this by looking at the external drivers of one of the components of CSR; namely, the environmental behaviour of firms. This shows that the strength of the EDBC is largely determined by five factors. Importantly, the analysis provides the basis for the claim that and helps to explain why the EDBC for voluntary environmental behaviour is likely to remain a weak form of pressure for many small firms.
On the interdependence of sensing and estimation complexity in sensor networks

Computing the exact maximum likelihood or maximum a posteriori estimate of the environment is computationally expensive in many practical distributed sensing settings. We argue that this computational difficulty can be overcome by increasing the number of sensor measurements. Based on our work on the connection between error correcting codes and sensor networks, we propose a new algorithm, which extends the idea of sequential decoding used to decode convolutional codes to estimation in a sensor network. In a simulated distributed sensing application, this algorithm provides accurate estimates at a modest computational cost given a sufficient number of sensor measurements. Above a certain number of sensor measurements this algorithm exhibits a sharp transition in the number of steps it requires in order to converge, leading to the potentially counter-intuitive observation that the computational burden of estimation can be reduced by taking additional sensor measurements
Clinical Mapping Approach To Diagnose Electrical Rotors and Focal Impulse Sources for Human Atrial Fibrillation

Computational Mapping of Rotors and Focal Impulses in Human AF. Introduction: The perpetuating mechanisms for human atrial fibrillation (AF) remain undefined. Localized rotors and focal beat sources may sustain AF in elegant animal models, but there has been no direct evidence for localized sources in human AF using traditional methods. We developed a clinical computational mapping approach, guided by human atrial tissue physiology, to reveal sources of human AF.
Dysfunction of attentional networks for non-emotional processing in negative affect

It is unclear whether negative affect is associated with the impairment of attentional networks for non-emotional processing. Using the attention network test (ANT), which assesses the efficiency of alerting, orienting, and executive attention, we attempted to clarify which attentional networks were related to negative affect, i.e., anxiety, depression, and social anxiety. Forty-three participants completed the self-report questionnaires and the ANT. Negative affect was negatively correlated with orienting efficiency but not executive attention. Our results indicate that people with negative emotionality have an impaired orienting network for non-emotional stimuli. It is suggested that attentional bias for threatening stimuli in negative affect is due to the original impairment of the orienting network.
A Novel FinFET With High-Speed and Prolonged Retention for Dynamic Memory

A trigate FinFET with a charge trap gate dielectric is demonstrated for high-speed and long retention memory applications. For a capacitor-less dynamic memory cell, a nitride layer is utilized as a charge storage node and it is directly formed on a silicon channel. In addition, novel gate-stacks allow high-speed and write processes under low voltage WITH remarkably endurable operation of up to 1012 cycles. By virtue of the charge trap operation, stored data is maintained for >104 s at 125°C.
Survival and Differentiation of Rat and Human Epidermal Growth Factor-Responsive Precursor Cells Following Grafting into the Lesioned Adult Central Nervous System

Epidermal Growth Factor (EGF)-responsive stem cells isolated from the developing central nervous system (CNS) can be expanded exponentially in culture while retaining the ability to differentiate into neurons and glia. As such, they represent a possible source of tissue for neural transplantation, providing they can survive and mature following grafting into the adult brain. In this study we have shown that purified rat stem cells generated from either the embryonic mesencephalon or the striatum can survive grafting into the striatum of rats with either ibotenic acid or nigrostriatal dopamine lesions. However, transplanted stem cells do not survive as a large mass typical of primary embryonic CNS tissue grafts, but in contrast form thin grafts containing only a small number of surviving cells. There was no extensive migration of transplanted stem cells labeled with either the lac-z gene or bromodeoxyuridine into the host region surrounding the graft, although a small number of labeled cells were seen in the ventral striatum some distance from the site of implantation. Some of these appeared to differentiate into dopamine neurons, particularly when the developing mesencephalon was used as the starting material for generating the stem cells. EGF-responsive stem cells could also be isolated from the mesencephalon of developing human embryos and expanded in culture, but only grew in large numbers when the gestational age of the embryo was greater than 11 weeks. Purified human CNS stem cells were also transplanted into immunosuppressed rats with nigrostriatal lesions and formed thin grafts similar to those seen when using rat stem cells. However, when primary cultures of human mesencephalon were grown with EGF for only 10 days and this mixture of stem cells and primary neural tissue was transplanted into the dopamine-depleted striatum, large well-formed grafts developed. These contained mostly small undifferentiated cells intermixed with a number of well-differentiated TH-positive neurons. These results show that purified populations of rat or human EGF-responsive CNS stem cells do not form large graft masses or migrate extensively into the surrounding host tissues when transplanted into the adult striatum. However, modifications of the growth conditions in vitro may lead to an improvement of their survival in vivo.
Biliary stenting: Indications, choice of stents and results: European Society of Gastrointestinal Endoscopy (ESGE) clinical guideline

This article is part of a combined publication that expresses the current view of the European Society of Gastrointestinal Endoscopy about endoscopic biliary stenting. The present Clinical Guideline describes short-term and long-term results of biliary stenting depending on indications and stent models; it makes recommendations on when, how, and with which stent to perform biliary drainage in most common clinical settings, including in patients with a potentially resectable malignant biliary obstruction and in those who require palliative drainage of common bile duct or hilar strictures. Treatment of benign conditions (strictures related to chronic pancreatitis, liver transplantation, or cholecystectomy, and leaks and failed biliary stone extraction) and management of complications (including stent revision) are also discussed. A two-page executive summary of evidence statements and recommendations is provided. A separate Technology Review describes the models of biliary stents available and the stenting techniques, including advanced techniques such as insertion of multiple plastic stents, drainage of hilar strictures, retrieval of migrated stents and combined stenting in malignant biliary and duodenal obstructions. The target readership for the Clinical Guideline mostly includes digestive endoscopists, gastroenterologists, oncologists, radiologists, internists, and surgeons while the Technology Review should be most useful to endoscopists who perform biliary drainage.
Four Errors ... and a Conspiracy? The effectiveness of schools in Wales

ABSTRACT This paper addresses the issue of using raw‐score indicators to compare the performance of groups of educational establishments. Despite the growth of sophisticated, some might say over‐sophisticated, ways of estimating the value‐added to a performance by an institution such as a school, raw‐score comparisons continue to be made by researchers, journalists and, most frighteningly, by policy‐makers. In Wales, whole programmes of improvement measures and targets have been predicated upon the unproved notion that schools in Wales are under‐performing, that students are ‘schooled to fail’, that the majority of secondary schools in Wales ‐‐ English‐medium comprehensives ‐‐ should be looking to English schools and Welsh‐medium schools for their models of improvement strategies. Similar forms of comparison have more recently been used to suggest that the compulsory learning of Welsh hinders the learning of other modern languages. The substantive purpose of this paper is to argue that all such comparison.
Percutaneous ethanol injection therapy in the treatment of hepatocarcinoma--results obtained from a series of 88 cases.

AIM To assess the efficacy of Percutaneous Ethanol Injection Therapy (PEIT) for the treatment of hepatocarcinoma in a series of Romanian patients, and to compare it with previous studies. MATERIAL AND METHOD We retrospectively evaluated 88 patients with liver cirrhosis (LC) and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) treated by PEIT. Multiple sessions of PEIT were performed to treat a single nodule of 2-10 cm in diameter. The Child-Pugh classification was used for evaluating the severity of LC and the Okuda and Barcelona scores for HCC. The efficacy of PEIT was assessed by CT or MRI one month after the therapy. The patients' survival after PEIT was calculated starting from the first PEIT procedure until the moment of death or the end of study (2000-2005). We analyzed the main factors which influenced the survival of the treated patients. RESULTS The global survival was 38.07+/-3.97 months, longer in patients with Child-Pugh A class, than in Child-Pugh B class (Log Rank 0.04). Patients with HCC less than 3 cm in diameter survived significantly longer than patients with tumors larger than 5 cm (Log Rank 0.007). Also, survival was better in the Barcelona A stage than in the Barcelona B and C stages (Log Rank 0.002) and in patients with alpha-fetoprotein less than 200 ng/l (Log Rank 0.002). CONCLUSION The main factors which influenced the survival of patients treated by PEIT were: the size of the HCC, the Child-Pugh class, the Barcelona stage and the level of alpha-fetoprotein at the time of initiation of therapy.