Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Frication of /k/ and /p/ in Australian English: Inter-and Intra-Speaker Variation

Frication of stops occurs when a phonemic stop is produced with incomplete closure such that it is effectively reduced to a fricative. This is a typical connected speech process in dialects of British English, and has also been observed in Australian English. The present study examines patterns of frication of the voiceless stops /k/ and /p/ in Australian English produced by a group of male speakers from Melbourne. Acoustic analysis of spontaneous speech shows that frication of /k/ and /p/ occurs to a significant extent in Australian English, and that this behaviour also exhibits systematic speakerspecific variation.
Commentary: IL-17 in Chronic Inflammation: From Discovery to Targeting

A recent article titled “IL-17 in chronic inflammation: From discovery to targeting,” by Beringer et al. (2016), greatly reviewed the biology of interleukin-17 (IL-17) family members highlighting the contributions of IL-17 cytokines toward diseases and IL-17-based treatment options. Authors attractively reported how preclinical and clinical studies have provided a solid scientific justification for targeting IL-17 and/or IL-17 receptor (IL-17RA) in human diseases such as inflammatory and autoimmune disorders. Here, I wish to implement the description of the biological properties of IL-17A on the cardiovascular system, the novel underlying mechanisms on platelets aggregation, and thrombus formation, and to report the contribution of IL-17A/IL-17RA axis in the association of autoimmune diseases with cardiovascular risk.
Thin Layers in Electrical Engineering. Example of Shell models in Analysing Eddy-Currents by Boundary and Finite Element Methods

During last years, several numerical formulations have been developed by us to modelize physical problems like: conducting film effects over the surface of insulators (pollution) [1], high frequency eddy-currents [2], earth field effects on the hull of a ship [3]. The physical effects being at stake are completely different, but in each of these examples, they originate from a region thin in regard with the other geometrical dimensions. An efficient numerical approach consists on using a surfacic representation with special boundary conditions expressing the solution inside the thin region. We propose in that paper a didactical approach to thin regions in electromanetics and, as an example, the boundary conditions and surfacic equation for eddy currents flowing inside a thin ferromagnetic shell. The numerical tests are done using the BEM software PH13D, but the results could easily be transposed in a FEM context. The practical applications may concern the computation of losses (shield of electrical machines or transformers) or low frequency electromagnetic perturbations (screen effects, EMC) as well as special domains like optimization of the induction heating of pans (french art culinaire).
UDP identification for high-resolution wireless indoor positioning based on IEEE 802.11ac

This contribution is addressed to the problem of highly resolving the propagation time delays and the relative amplitudes associated with signals in multipath communication channels. The Unitary Matrix Pencil (UMP) algorithm is applied in a new way to estimate these parameters from the measured channel frequency response (CFR) using wideband orthogonal multicarrier signals. The mobile unit (MU) is often in a non-line-of-sight (NLOS) state, and the direct path could be completely blocked due to the harsh nature of indoor environments. There-fore, the estimated time delay of the first path should be identified either as a very weak detected direct path (DDP) or even as an undetected direct path (UDP). Consequently, precise estimation of the channel profile parameters is not enough for high-resolution wireless indoor positioning system. However, it stays representing a key element to identify the UDP condition. In this work, the accurate estimation of channel profile parameters and the proper modeling of DDP and UDP channel profiles will be treated and addressed to the problem of UDP identification. Experimental results using the emerging IEEE 802.11ac standard reveal that the achieved probability of correct identification can be more than 96.6% at the smallest bandwidth.
Gibbsian Dynamics and Invariant Measures for Stochastic Dissipative PDEs

Department of Mathematics and Program in Applied and Computational Mathematics, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey 08544; and School of Mathematical Sciences, Peking University, People’s Republic of China; e-mail: weinan@princeton.edu 2 Program in Applied and Computational Mathematics, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey 08544; e-mail: dliu@princeton.edu Received June 30, 2001; accepted September 29, 2001
Learning Topic Models by Belief Propagation

Latent Dirichlet allocation (LDA) is an important hierarchical Bayesian model for probabilistic topic modeling, which attracts worldwide interest and touches on many important applications in text mining, computer vision and computational biology. This paper represents the collapsed LDA as a factor graph, which enables the classic loopy belief propagation (BP) algorithm for approximate inference and parameter estimation. Although two commonly used approximate inference methods, such as variational Bayes (VB) and collapsed Gibbs sampling (GS), have gained great success in learning LDA, the proposed BP is competitive in both speed and accuracy, as validated by encouraging experimental results on four large-scale document datasets. Furthermore, the BP algorithm has the potential to become a generic scheme for learning variants of LDA-based topic models in the collapsed space. To this end, we show how to learn two typical variants of LDA-based topic models, such as author-topic models (ATM) and relational topic models (RTM), using BP based on the factor graph representations.
Methods – a Case Example of Participant Observation

This paper discusses the role of the researcher as a participant observer and reflective practitioner. The paper aims to assess the benefits and limitations of participant observation, and offer guidance as to how to manage the challenges inherent in this technique. The paper draws on the lead author’s experience as a participant observer when working on her doctoral thesis: ‘Factors Affecting the Viability of Electronic Marketplaces: an Empirical Investigation into International Steel Trading’. It discusses the issues and concerns resulting from participant observation and how these were dealt with in the case example. The empirical research was a longitudinal study tracking the evolution of steel electronic commerce between December 1998 and the present time. The events examined in this study were observed during the lead author’s ten years at a large steel producer/trading house. As a trader and a manager, the lead author was directly involved in the conduct of business. The study represents the contribution of an industry practitioner and, as such, provides a unique insight into a real-world setting.
Finite-sample and asymptotic analysis of generalization ability with an application to penalized regression

In this paper, we study the performance of extremum estimators from the perspective of generalization ability (GA): the ability of a model to predict outcomes in new samples from the same population. By adapting the classical concentration inequalities, we derive upper bounds on the empirical out-of-sample prediction errors as a function of the in-sample errors, in-sample data size, heaviness in the tails of the error distribution, and model complexity. We show that the error bounds may be used for tuning key estimation hyper-parameters, such as the number of folds $K$ in cross-validation. We also show how $K$ affects the bias-variance trade-off for cross-validation. We demonstrate that the $\mathcal{L}_2$-norm difference between penalized and the corresponding un-penalized regression estimates is directly explained by the GA of the estimates and the GA of empirical moment conditions. Lastly, we prove that all penalized regression estimates are $L_2$-consistent for both the $n \geqslant p$ and the $n < p$ cases. Simulations are used to demonstrate key results. Keywords: generalization ability, upper bound of generalization error, penalized regression, cross-validation, bias-variance trade-off, $\mathcal{L}_2$ difference between penalized and unpenalized regression, lasso, high-dimensional data.
Clinical Study of a Polyacid-Modified Resin Composite-Based Fissure Sealant in Young Permanent Molars

Background: Treating caries-susceptible pits and fissures with resin sealants enjoys wide acceptance as a preventive strategy. The aim of this study was to evaluate the one-year clinical performance of a polyacid-modified resin composite material (Dyract) in comparison to a composite resin material (Helioseal F). Methods: Using a half-mouth design, 100 sealants were placed on the sound first permanent molars of 50 children aged between six and 10 years. Half of the teeth (n = 50) were sealed with Dyract and half (n = 50) with Helioseal F. Teeth were evaluated at baseline, 3, 6 and 12 month intervals. The qualities of the restorations were evaluated in accordance with modified U.S. Public Health Service (USPHS) codes and WHO criteria for the presence of dental caries. The data were analyzed accord-ing to the Mann-Whitney test and the spearman correlation. Results: There were no statistical differences between the two examined groups, considering marginal integrity, retention and caries. There also appeared to be no statistical difference between the standards in different ages (six-eight years and eight-ten years) and the two arches (P > 0.05). De-cayed/Missing/Filled Teeth index (DMFT) had convert relation with retention and marginal integrity in both materials. Conclusion: In this study there was no clinical difference between the two sealants. Polyacid Modified Resin Composite (PMRC) materials have low wear resistance compared to resin composite, but the two curing reactions that occur in PMRC materials might have improved their mechanical retention in the long term. Therefore, further study on these characteristics is recommended.
Pausing strategies as means of information processing in spontaneous narratives

This paper investigates the role of pause in the process of information organization in narrative discourse. Following the cognitive research on pausing strategies, the present study assumes that the frequency of pause usage varies as a function of the content of the individual sections in a narrative. The material used for the analysis consisted of a number of spontaneous narratives. The results failed to demonstrate any association between type of information and pausing phenomena, but it revealed the existence of a pattern of varying hesitancy that generally correspond to the different sections in a narrative. This would suggest that pausing in narrative is primarily governed by the cognitive rhythm of speech ([11], [9], [5]).
Is periodontal disease mediated by salivary BAFF in Sjögren's syndrome?

OBJECTIVE To correlate the periodontal status of 15 patients with primary Sjögren's syndrome (SS) with their salivary levels of BAFF. METHODS The periodontal status of 15 patients who fulfilled the criteria for primary SS was compared with that of 15 controls with xerostomia who did not fulfill the criteria for primary SS but had similar symptoms of dry mouth. The level of BAFF was measured in paired samples of saliva and serum using in-house enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays. Periodontitis was assessed by the plaque index, the modified gingival index, the papillary bleeding index, and the periodontal pocket depth. RESULTS Notwithstanding the better oral hygiene practices of the patients with primary SS compared with those of the xerostomia controls and the subsequent reduction of their plaque index scores, complications of periodontitis, such as bleeding, gingival hypertrophy, and periodontal pockets, were not improved. This failure to ameliorate the complications of periodontitis in patients with primary SS was associated with high levels of BAFF in their saliva compared with the levels in xerostomia controls (7.4 +/- 2.1 versus 1.0 +/- 0.4 ng/ml [P < 0.002]). The levels of BAFF in saliva did not correlate with the levels in sera but did correlate with the periodontal pocket depth (P < 0.002). CONCLUSION These findings are similar to the bone resorption observed in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. They suggest that the known effect of B cells in periodontitis would be partly mediated by salivary BAFF in patients with primary SS.
Genome-wide expression profiling of the response to ciclopirox olamine in Candida albicans.

OBJECTIVES The aim of this study was to identify changes in the gene expression profile of Candida albicans upon exposure to the hydroxypyridone anti-infective agent ciclopirox olamine in an effort to better understand its mechanism of action. METHODS C. albicans SC5314 was exposed to either medium alone or ciclopirox olamine at a concentration equivalent to the IC50 (0.24 mg/L) for 3 h. RNA was isolated and gene expression profiles were compared using DNA microarrays. Differential expression of select genes was confirmed by real-time reverse transcription (RT)-PCR. Mutants disrupted for CDR2 and both CDR1 and CDR2, as well as a clinical isolate overexpressing CDR1 and CDR2, were examined for changes in susceptibility to ciclopirox olamine. RESULTS A total of 49 genes were found to be responsive to ciclopirox olamine, including 36 up-regulated genes and 13 down-regulated genes. These included genes involved in small molecule transport (HGT11, HXT5, ENA22, PHO84, CDR4), iron uptake (FRE30, FET34, FTR1, FTR2, SIT1) and cell stress (SOD1, SOD22, CDR1, DDR48). Mutants disrupted for CDR2 and both CDR1 and CDR2, as well as a clinical isolate overexpressing CDR1 and CDR2, showed no change in susceptibility to ciclopirox olamine compared with the respective parent. CONCLUSIONS Consistent with the hypothesis that ciclopirox olamine acts as an iron chelator, it induced changes in expression of many genes involved in iron uptake. Despite induction of the multidrug efflux pump genes CDR1 and, to a lesser extent, CDR2 by ciclopirox olamine, these genes do not affect susceptibility to this agent.
Potential role of stem cells in management of COPD

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a worldwide epidemic affecting over 200 million people and accounting for more than three million deaths annually. The disease is characterized by chronic inflammation of the airways and progressive destruction of lung parenchyma, a process that in most cases is initiated by cigarette smoking. Unfortunately, there are no interventions that have been unequivocally shown to prolong survival in patients with COPD. Regeneration of lung tissue by stem cells from endogenous and exogenous sources is a promising therapeutic strategy. Herein we review the current literature on the characterization of resident stem and progenitor cell niches within the lung, the contribution of mesenchymal stem cells to lung regeneration, and advances in bioengineering of lung tissue.
The lifestyle of naturally occurring CD4+CD25+Foxp3+ regulatory T cells

Summary: Numerous studies over the past 10 years have demonstrated the importance of naturally occurring CD4+CD25+Foxp3+ regulatory T cells (nTregs) in immune regulation. We analyzed the mechanism of action of nTregs in a well‐characterized model of autoimmune gastritis and demonstrated that nTregs act at an early stage of disease progression to inhibit the differentiation of naïve T cells to pathogenic T‐helper 1 effectors. The effects of nTregs in this model are not antigen‐specific but are mediated by activation of the nTregs by ubiquitous self‐peptide major histocompatibility complex class II complexes together with cytokines released by activated effector cells. Studies in vitro confirmed that some nTregs exist in an activated state in vivo and can be activated to exert non‐specific suppressor effector function by stimulation with interleukin‐2 in the absence of engagement of their T‐cell receptor. Natural Tregs can differentiate in vitro to exhibit potent granzyme B‐dependent, partially perforin‐independent cytotoxic cells that are capable of specifically killing antigen‐presenting B cells. Natural Treg‐mediated killing of antigen‐presenting cells may represent one pathway by which they can induce long‐lasting suppression of autoimmune disease.
Parametric Statistical Modeling by Minimum Integrated Square Error

The likelihood function plays a central role in parametric and Bayesian estimation, as well as in nonparametric function estimation via local polynomial modeling. However, integrated square error has enjoyed a long tradition as the goodness-of-fit criterion of choice in nonparametric density estimation. In this article, I investigate the use of integrated square error, or L2 distance, as a theoretical and practical estimation tool for a variety of parametric statistical models. I show that the asymptotic inefficiency of the parameters estimated by minimizing the integrated square error or L2estimation (L2E) criterion versus the maximum likelihood estimator is roughly that of the median versus the mean. I demonstrate by example the well-known result that minimum distance estimators, including L2E, are inherently robust; however, L2E does not require specification of any tuning factors found in robust likelihood algorithms. L2E is particularly appropriate for analyzing massive datasets in which data cleaning is impractical and statistical efficiency is a secondary concern. Setting up the L2E criterion is relatively simple even with some very complex model specifications. Specific problems studied in this article include univariate density estimation, mixture density estimation, multivariate regression estimation, and robust estimation of the mean and covariance. John Tukey had a pivotal role in both nonparametric and robust estimation. This article is dedicated to his memory.
Knowledge and attitudes of tuberculosis management in San Juan de Lurigancho district of Lima, Peru.

BACKGROUND Expansion of the health care workforce in Peru to combat tuberculosis (TB) includes both professional health care providers (HCPs) such as doctors and nurses, and non-professional HCPs such as community health workers (CHWs). We describe the knowledge and attitudes of these HCPs, and identify modifiable barriers to appropriate anti-tuberculosis treatment. METHODOLOGY We surveyed HCPs practicing in 30 clinical settings (hospitals, community health centers, and health posts) in the San Juan de Lurigancho district of Eastern Lima, Peru. Multiple-choice questions were used to assess knowledge of TB. A five-item Likert scale was created to assess attitudes toward the community, patients, and clinics. Linear regression was used to identify predictors of mean knowledge score, and analysis of variance was used to test differences in HCP score. RESULTS Of the 73 HCPs surveyed, 15% were professionals (doctors or nurses). The remaining 85% were health technicians, community health workers (CHWs) or students. The mean knowledge score was 10.0 +/- 1.9 (maximum 14) with professional HCPs scoring higher than other HCPs (11.7 +/- 1.1 vs. 9.7 +/- 1.9), p < . 01). Knowledge gaps included identification of patients at high risk for TB, assessment of treatment outcomes, and consequences of treatment failure. The most commonly cited modifiable barriers were structural, including laboratory facilities and staffing of TB clinics, with 52.1% and 62.5% of HCPs, respectively, citing these as problematic. CONCLUSIONS Efforts to improve knowledge of TB HCPs in Peru should focus on the specific gaps we have identified. Further research is needed to evaluate whether these knowledge gaps correlate with TB control.
PLANET HUNTERS. X. SEARCHING FOR NEARBY NEIGHBORS OF 75 PLANET AND ECLIPSING BINARY CANDIDATES FROM THE K2 KEPLER EXTENDED MISSION

We present high-resolution observations of a sample of 75 K2 targets from Campaigns 1–3 using speckle interferometry on the Southern Astrophysical Research (SOAR) telescope and adaptive optics imaging at the Keck II telescope. The median SOAR I-band and Keck Ks-band detection limits at 1 ″ were Δ m I = 4.4 mag and Δ m K s = 6.1 mag, respectively. This sample includes 37 stars likely to host planets, 32 targets likely to be eclipsing binaries (EBs), and 6 other targets previously labeled as likely planetary false positives. We find nine likely physically bound companion stars within 3 ″ of three candidate transiting exoplanet host stars and six likely EBs. Six of the nine detected companions are new discoveries. One of these new discoveries, EPIC 206061524, is associated with a planet candidate. Among the EB candidates, companions were only found near the shortest period ones ( P < 3 days), which is in line with previous results showing high multiplicity near short-period binary stars. This high-resolution data, including both the detected companions and the limits on potential unseen companions, will be useful in future planet vetting and stellar multiplicity rate studies for planets and binaries.
Androgen Receptor Enhances p27 Degradation in Prostate Cancer Cells through Rapid and Selective TORC2 Activation*

Background: Androgen stimulates prostate cancer cell proliferation and reduction of the p27 cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor. Results: Androgen stimulates TORC2-mediated AKT activation, which in turn increases p27 phosphorylation and proteasomal degradation. Conclusion: Androgen is a physiological stimulator of the TORC2/AKT/p27 growth pathway. Significance: TORC2 may function independently of TORC1 in mediating growth and survival signals. Androgen receptor (AR) plays a central role in prostate cancer (PCa) growth, with androgen deprivation or AR down-regulation causing cell-cycle arrest and accumulation of the p27 cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor. The molecular basis for this AR regulation of cell-cycle progression remains unclear. Here we demonstrate that androgen can rapidly reduce p27 protein in PCa cells by increasing its proteasome-mediated degradation. This rapid androgen-stimulated p27 degradation was mediated by AKT through the phosphorylation of p27 T157. Significantly, androgen increased TORC2-mediated AKT S473 phosphorylation without affecting the PDK1-mediated AKT T308 phosphorylation or TORC1 activity. The TORC2 activation was further supported by enhanced mTOR/RICTOR association and increased phosphorylation of additional TORC2 substrates, SGK1 and PKCα. The androgen-stimulated nuclear translocation of AR was associated with markedly-increased nuclear SIN1, a critical component of TORC2. Finally, the androgen-mediated TORC2/AKT activation targets a subset of AKT substrates including p27 and FOXO1, but not PRAS40. This study reveals a pathway linking AR to a selective activation of TORC2, the subsequent activation of AKT, and phosphorylation of a discrete set of AKT substrates that regulate cellular proliferation and survival. These findings establish that TORC2 can function as a central regulator of growth in response to signals that are distinct from those regulating TORC1, and support efforts to target TORC2 for cancer therapy.