Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Fluorite-related one-dimensional units in natural bismuth oxysulfates: the crystal structures of Bi14O16(SO4)5 and Bi30O33(SO4)9(AsO4)2.

The crystal structures of two new natural Bi oxysulfates with the formula Bi14O16(SO4)5 [labelled new phase I; monoclinic, space group C2, a = 21.658 (4), b = 5.6648 (9), c = 15.092 (3) Å, β = 119.433 (11)° and Z = 2] and Bi30O33(SO4)9(AsO4)2 [labelled new phase II; triclinic, space group P1, a = 5.670 (3), b = 13.9408 (9), c = 22.7908 (18) Å, α = 80.903 (5), β = 82.854 (14), γ = 78.27 (2)° and Z = 1] from the high-temperature fumarole deposit of the La Fossa crater at Vulcano (Aeolian Islands, Italy) are reported. The structures are built up by a combination of fluorite-related Bi-O units and isolated (SO4)(2-) tetrahedra (new phase I) or both (SO4)(2-) and (AsO4)(3-) tetrahedra (new phase II). Owing to the effect of stereoactive lone pairs of Bi(3+), Bi-O units in both the structures can be suitably described in terms of oxo-centered OBi4 tetrahedra. The structure of Bi14O16(SO4)5 is based upon one-dimensional [O16Bi14](10+) ribbons formed by six chains of edge-sharing OBi4 tetrahedra extending along [010]. In the structure of Bi30O33(SO4)9(AsO4)2 the same ribbon type coexists with another one-dimensional ribbon formed by seven chains of edge-sharing OBi4 tetrahedra and with the composition [O17Bi16](14+). Ribbons of the same type are joined by (SO4)(2-) and (AsO4)(3-) tetrahedra along [010] – if a reduced triclinic unit-cell setting is considered – so forming two different (001) slabs which alternate to each other along [001] and are joined by additional (SO4)(2-) tetrahedra. New phase I represents the natural analogues of synthetic Bi14O16(SO4)5, but with an ordered structure model.
A critical appraisal of atomoxetine in the management of ADHD

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a common neurobehavioral disorder beginning in childhood and often continuing into adulthood. A wealth of data shows that ADHD symptoms respond well to pharmacological treatment. Stimulant medications, including amphetamine and methylphenidate, are most commonly used to treat ADHD. However, with the approval of atomoxetine (Strattera®, [ATX]) by the US Food and Drug Administration in late 2002, an effective non-stimulant option became available. The US Food and Drug Administration approved ATX for the treatment of ADHD in children, adolescents, and adults. Although the effect size of ATX is generally lower than that of stimulants, the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Practice Parameter for the treatment of ADHD lists ATX as a first-line treatment option. ATX is widely prescribed and accounted for 6% of the prescriptions of ADHD visits in the US in 2010. Numerous trials have found that ATX improves quality of life and emotional lability in addition to core ADHD symptoms. Although some improvement may be seen in a patient as early as one week after the initiation of treatment, ATX generally takes longer to have a full effect. The median time to response using 25% improvement in ADHD symptoms in pooled trials was 3.7 weeks. Data from these trials indicate that the probability of symptom improvement may continue to increase up to 52 weeks after treatment is initiated. ATX has been shown to be safe and effective in combination with stimulants. It has also been studied systematically in subjects with ADHD and comorbid oppositional defiant disorder, anxiety, depression, and substance use disorders. The mechanism of action of ATX, its efficacy, and adverse events reported in trials is reviewed.
Personality, Metabolic Rate and Aerobic Capacity

Personality traits and cardiorespiratory fitness in older adults are reliable predictors of health and longevity. We examined the association between personality traits and energy expenditure at rest (basal metabolic rate) and during normal and maximal sustained walking. Personality traits and oxygen (VO2) consumption were assessed in 642 participants from the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging. Results indicate that personality traits were mostly unrelated to resting metabolic rate and energy expenditure at normal walking pace. However, those who scored lower on neuroticism (r = −0.12) and higher on extraversion (r = 0.11), openness (r = 0.13), and conscientiousness (r = 0.09) had significantly higher energy expenditure at peak walking pace. In addition to greater aerobic capacity, individuals with a more resilient personality profile walked faster and were more efficient in that they required less energy per meter walked. The associations between personality and energy expenditure were not moderated by age or sex, but were in part explained by the proportion of fat mass. In conclusion, differences in personality may matter the most during more challenging activities that require cardiorespiratory fitness. These findings suggest potential pathways that link personality to health outcomes, such as obesity and longevity.
Fluctuations of pol I and fibrillarin contents of the nucleoli

ABSTRACT Nucleoli are formed on the basis of ribosomal DNA (rDNA) clusters called Nucleolus Organizer Regions (NORs). Each NOR contains multiple genes coding for RNAs of the ribosomal particles. The prominent components of the nucleolar ultrastructure, fibrillar centers (FC) and dense fibrillar components (DFC), together compose FC/DFC units. These units are centers of rDNA transcription by RNA polymerase I (pol I), as well as the early processing events, in which an essential role belongs to fibrillarin. Each FC/DFC unit probably corresponds to a single transcriptionally active gene. In this work, we transfected human-derived cells with GFP-RPA43 (subunit of pol I) and RFP-fibrillarin. Following changes of the fluorescent signals in individual FC/DFC units, we found two kinds of kinetics: 1) the rapid fluctuations with periods of 2–3 min, when the pol I and fibrillarin signals oscillated in anti-phase manner, and the intensities of pol I in the neighboring FC/DFC units did not correlate. 2) fluctuations with periods of 10 to 60 min, in which pol I and fibrillarin signals measured in the same unit did not correlate, but pol I signals in the units belonging to different nucleoli were synchronized. Our data indicate that a complex pulsing activity of transcription as well as early processing is common for ribosomal genes.
√n-consistent parameter estimation for systems of ordinary differential equations : bypassing numerical integration via smoothing

We consider the problem of parameter estimation for a system of ordinary differential equations from noisy observations on a solution of the system. In case the system is nonlinear, as it typically is in practical applications, an analytic solution to it usually does not exist. Consequently, straightforward estimation methods like the ordinary least squares method depend on repetitive use of numerical integration in order to determine the solution of the system for each of the parameter values considered, and to find subsequently the parameter estimate that minimises the objective function. This induces a huge computational load to such estimation methods. We study the consistency of an alternative estimator that is defined as a minimiser of an appropriate distance between a nonparametrically estimated derivative of the solution and the righthand side of the system applied to a nonparametrically estimated solution. This smooth and match estimator (SME) bypasses numerical integration altogether and reduces the amount of computational time drastically compared to ordinary least squares. Moreover, we show that under suitable regularity conditions this smooth and match estimation procedure leads to a √ n-consistent estimator of the parameter of interest.
Analysis of Genes Expression of Spodoptera exigua Larvae upon AcMNPV Infection

Background The impact of Autographa californica multicapsid nucleopolyhedrovirus (AcMNPV) infection on host gene expression in Spodoptera exigua 4th instar larvae was investigated through the use of 454 sequencing-based RNA-seq of cDNA libraries developed from insects challenged with active AcMNPV or heat-inactivated AcMNPV. Methodology/Principal Findings By comparing the two cDNA libraries, we show that 201 host genes are significantly up-regulated and 234 genes are significantly down-regulated by active AcMNPV infection. Down-regulated host genes included genes encoding antimicrobial peptides, namely three gloverin isoforms and an attacin, indicating that the viral infection actively repressed the expression of a portion of the host immune gene repertoire. Another interesting group of down-regulated host genes included genes encoding two juvenile hormone binding proteins and a hexamerin, all of which are involved in juvenile hormone regulation. The expression of these genes was enhanced by the topical application of Juvenile Hormone III (JHIII) in the insects challenged with heat-inactivated AcMNPV. However, infection with the active virus strongly suppresses the expression of these three genes, regardless of the absence or presence of JHIII. Conclusions/Significance Using RNA-seq, we have identified groups of immune-regulated and juvenile hormone-regulated genes that are suppressed by infection with active AcMNPV. This information and further studies on the regulation of host gene expression by AcMNPV will provide the tools needed to enhance the utility of the virus as an effective protein expression system and as an insecticide.
Uremic Toxins Induce ET-1 Release by Human Proximal Tubule Cells, which Regulates Organic Cation Uptake Time-Dependently

In renal failure, the systemic accumulation of uremic waste products is strongly associated with the development of a chronic inflammatory state. Here, the effect of cationic uremic toxins on the release of inflammatory cytokines and endothelin-1 (ET-1) was investigated in conditionally immortalized proximal tubule epithelial cells (ciPTEC). Additionally, we examined the effects of ET-1 on the cellular uptake mediated by organic cation transporters (OCTs). Exposure of ciPTEC to cationic uremic toxins initiated production of the inflammatory cytokines IL-6 (117 ± 3%, p < 0.001), IL-8 (122 ± 3%, p < 0.001), and ET-1 (134 ± 5%, p < 0.001). This was accompanied by a down-regulation of OCT mediated 4-(4-(dimethylamino)styryl)-N-methylpyridinium-iodide (ASP+) uptake in ciPTEC at 30 min (23 ± 4%, p < 0.001), which restored within 60 min of incubation. Exposure to ET-1 for 24 h increased the ASP+ uptake significantly (20 ± 5%, p < 0.001). These effects could be blocked by BQ-788, indicating activation of an ET-B-receptor-mediated signaling pathway. Downstream the receptor, iNOS inhibition by (N(G)‐monomethyl‐l‐arginine) l-NMMA acetate or aminoguanidine, as well as protein kinase C activation, ameliorated the short-term effects. These results indicate that uremia results in the release of cytokines and ET-1 from human proximal tubule cells, in vitro. Furthermore, ET-1 exposure was found to regulate proximal tubular OCT transport activity in a differential, time-dependent, fashion.
Design, fabrication and kinematic modeling of a 3D-motion soft robotic arm

In this paper, we present the design, fabrication and the mathematical model of an entire soft robotic arm with three-dimensional (3D) locomotion. We first describe the design of the soft arm based on 3D printed channels that were spatially distributed at the interface of two different silicone elastomeric materials which enable complex 3D motion of the soft arm. Then we demonstrate the workspace of motion at different air pressure levels, and the ability of the mathematic model to predict the three-dimensional movement in free space. We further demonstrate that modifying the texture of the surface of the soft arm can constrain the radial expansion. Finally, we estimate the workspace, location repeatability of the soft arm via actual tests.
Assessing the Infectivity of Commercial Mycorrhizal Inoculants in Plant Nursery Conditions

Abstract The infectivity of ten commercial mycorrhizal inoculants was examined in nursery conditions. Corn plants were grown in a soil-based medium and in two different soilless substrates, a potting mix prepared with redwood bark, pine sawdust, calcined clay and sand, and the commercial Sunshine #5 mix, mainly composed of Canadian sphagnum peat moss. The percentage of mycorrhizal colonization obtained with the different mycorrhizal inoculants ranged from 0 to 50%. This variation might reflect the presence or absence of viable propagules, the difference in the recommended rates applied as well as the difference in the content and type of infective propagules of each product. However, the infectivity of each mycorrhizal inoculant was also influenced by the growing media. Two products promoted higher values of mycorrhizal colonization in the Sunshine mix, three in the nursery mix and one in the soil-based medium. Mycorrhizal colonization did not enhance plant growth. Only the plants inoculated with the prod.
Social Responsibility Messages and Worker Wage Requirements: Field Experimental Evidence from Online Labor Marketplaces

This paper examines the effects of employer social responsibility on the wages workers demand through randomized field experiments in two online labor marketplaces. Workers were recruited for short-term jobs and I manipulated whether or not they received information about the employer’s social responsibility. I then observed the payment workers were willing to accept for the job. In the first experiment, information about the employer’s social responsibility marginally reduced prospective workers’ wage requirements on average and had a significant effect on the highest performers, who were willing to give up the wage differential they would otherwise demand. In the second, prospective workers submitted 44% lower wage bids for the same job after learning about the employer’s social responsibility. This paper provides causal empirical evidence of a revealed preference for social responsibility in the workplace, and of a greater preference among the highest performers. More broadly, it provides evidence that workers value purpose and meaningfulness at work, and it demonstrates that workers are willing to give up pecuniary benefits for nonpecuniary benefits. It furthermore highlights heterogeneity in worker preferences for nonpecuniary benefits by worker performance type.
Reconsidering the scribbling stage of drawing: a new perspective on toddlers' representational processes

Although the scribbling stage of drawing has been historically regarded as meaningless and transitional, a sort of prelude to the “actual” drawing phase of childhood, recent studies have begun to re-evaluate this important moment of a child's development and find meaning in what was once considered mere motor activity and nothing more. The present study analyzes scribbling in all its subphases and discovers a clear intention behind young children's gestures. From expressing the dynamic qualities of an object and the child's relationship with it, to gradually reducing itself to a simple contour of a content no more “alive” on the paper, but only in the child's own imagination, we trace the evolution of the line as a tool that toddlers use to communicate feelings and intentions to the world that surrounds them. We will provide a selected number of graphical examples that are representative of our theory. These drawings (13 in total) were extracted from a much wider sample derived from our studies on children's graphical-pictorial abilities, conducted on children aged 0–3 years in various Italian nurseries. Our results appear to indicate that scribbling evolves through a series of stages, and that early graphical activity in children is sparked and maintained by their relationship with their caregivers and the desire to communicate with them.
A psychological investigation of autistic spectrum disorders : implications for the concept of Asperger syndrome

Asperger Syndrome was first described in 1944. Because of its similar presentation with autism it was subsumed under autistic spectrum disorders about 35 years later. The present study re-assessed Asperger's original article and identified specific differences between the two conditions leading to the hypothesis that Asperger Syndrome was different from autism. This was examined in four areas: cognitive profiles, cognitive styles, language and motor skills. A test battery of 11 standardised and non-standardised tests was used to examine the hypothesis. Medical consultants classified 50 participants, from 5 to 10 years of age, with autistic features on the basis of both the DSM-IV criteria for autism and Asperger Syndrome and, separately, Gillberg and Gillberg's (1989) criteria. The results showed very low agreement for either with consultants' overall diagnostic impressions, indicating poor validity of these three diagnostic instruments, which consequently did not allow allocation of participants into groups of autism and Asperger Syndrome. The classification was finally based on parental ratings using the Childhood Autism Rating Scale (CARS), which showed a higher agreement with consultants' overall diagnoses. Schopler (1985), one of its authors, recommended that individuals with Asperger Syndrome should be subsumed under "mild autism", and this classification was adopted here. Eighteen nonsymptomatic controls matched on age and sex were tested on the nonstandardised tests. Significant differences between experimental and control groups were found in all four areas. The experimental group displayed a cognitive style characterised by rigid field-independent information processing in the areas of intellectual abilities, perception, language and motor skills. Differences between "mild" and "severe autism" were statistically not significant. This may have been due to mild presentation of autistic features in the whole sample, ambiguity of classification or other reasons. However the profiles of traits and abnormalities in both groups were not as would be anticipated from an all-inclusive concept of autism with varying degrees of severity but were more in accord with Asperger's suggestion that there are qualitative differences between autism and Asperger Syndrome.
Relationships among attachment styles, personality characteristics, and disordered eating.

OBJECTIVE Insecure attachment styles and certain personality characteristics (i.e., high levels of neuroticism) have been associated with eating pathology. However, previous research has not examined these variables simultaneously and has not examined possible mediating relationships between attachment and personality characteristics for disordered eating. Because personality characteristics have emerged as some of the most robust predictors of disordered eating, it was predicted that the link between attachment and disordered eating might be through personality styles. METHOD Participants included 85 female twins and triplets who took part in the Michigan State University Twin Study. Disordered eating, attachment style, and personality characteristics were assessed. Hierarchical linear models were used to examine relationships among the variables. RESULTS Overall, neuroticism, and extraversion to a lesser extent, mediated the relationship between insecure-resistant attachment and disordered eating. Specifically, higher scores on the neuroticism scale predicted more disordered eating and explained the relationship between insecure-resistant attachment and disordered eating. CONCLUSION These results suggest that relationships between attachment style and disordered eating are indirect, in that neuroticism fully mediates associations between insecure-resistant attachment and disordered eating.
Parallel Domain-Decomposition-Based Algorithm of Hybrid FE-BI-MLFMA Method for 3-D Scattering by Large Inhomogeneous Objects

The hybrid method of the finite element-boundary integral-multilevel fast multipole algorithm (FE-BI-MLFMA) has been recognized as one of the most powerful numerical methods for analyzing large inhomogeneous radiation/scattering problems. A domain decomposition algorithm (DDA) of FE-BI-MLFMA is presented in this paper by using the finite element tearing and interconnecting method (FETI). The formulation of DDA-FE-BI-MLFMA is presented and analyzed in detail. The numerical performance of DDA-FE-BI-MLFMA is investigated by numerical experiments from many aspects. It includes the convergence speed versus types of domain decomposition, number of subdomains, types and inhomogeneity of dielectrics involving in solved problems, and the scalability of DDA-FE-BI-MLFMA. The comparison of DDA and previous algorithms of FE-BI-MLMFMA is also carried out. Finally, the capability of DDA-FE-BI-MLFMA is shown for large inhomogeneous problems.
An Investigation of Selected Factors Correlating To Vocational Rehabilitation Outcomes

There was limited information regarding the number of disability related impairments, length of case management, number of counselors who served an individual consumer, and counselor qualifications (including level of education, Certified Rehabilitation Counselor, the length of employment in years, and assignment as a general/specialty caseload) and their impact on vocational rehabilitation outcomes. The purpose of this research was to investigate selected factors (described above) that might be associated with state-federal vocational rehabilitation outcomes. On this basis, there were four research questions developed. The study sample was 171 vocational rehabilitation counselors with Arizona Rehabilitation Services Administration and 215 most significant/significant disabled consumers. These 215 disabled consumers were either closed successful or unsuccessful from March 1, 2002 through February 28, 2003. The dependent variable was the vocational rehabilitation closure. There were two levels (1) successful employment closure in Status 26 and (2) unsuccessful closure, after an Individual Plan for Employment was implemented but not completed, in Status 28. Seven predictor variables were tested at an alpha level of . 05. Each predictor variable was non-significant with an analysis of variance (ANOVA). Future research may help identify additional consumer and counselor factors that have an impact on vocational rehabilitation outcomes.