Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Cooling of the quasi-persistent neutron star X-ray transients KS 1731−260 and MXB 1659−29

We present Chandra and XMM‐Newton X-ray observations that monitor the neutron star cooling of the quasi-persistent neutron star X-ray transients KS 1731−260 and MXB 1659−29 for approximately 4 yr after these sources returned to quiescence from prolonged outbursts. In both sources the outbursts were long enough to significantly heat the neutron star crust out of thermal equilibrium with the core. We analyse the X-ray spectra by fitting absorbed neutron star atmosphere models to the observations. The results of our analysis strengthen the preliminary findings of Wijnands et al. that in both sources the neutron star crust cools down very rapidly suggesting it has a high heat conductivity and that the neutron star core requires enhanced core cooling processes. Importantly, we now detect the flattening of the cooling in both sources as the crust returns to thermal equilibrium with the core. We measure the thermal equilbrium flux and temperature in both sources by fitting a curve that decays exponentially to a constant level. The cooling curves cannot be fit with just a simple exponential decay without the constant offset. We find the constant bolometric flux and effective temperature components to be (9.2 ± 0.9) × 10 −14 erg cm −2 s −1 and 70.0 ± 1.6 eV in KS 1731−260 and (1.7 ± 0.3) × 10 −14 erg cm −2 s −1 and 51.6 ± 1.4 eV in MXB 1659−29. We note that these values are dependent on the assumed distance to the sources and the column density which was tied between the observations due to the low number of photons in the latter observations. However, importantly, the shape of the cooling curves is independent of the distance assumed. In addition, we find that the crust of KS 1731−260 cools faster than that of MXB 1659−29 by a factor of ∼2, likely due to different crustal properties. This is the first time that the cooling of a neutron star crust into thermal equilibrium with the core has been observed in such detail.
Advances in the treatment of posttraumatic stress disorder : cognitive-behavioral perspectives

Current Directions and Challenges in the Treatment of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder / New Developments in Treatment Applications / Efficacy and Outcome Predictors for Three PTSD Treatments: Exposure Therapy, EMDR, and Relaxation Training / Multiple Channel Exposure Therapy of PTSD: Impact of Treatment on Functioning and Resources / Anxiety Sensitivity and its Implications for Understanding and Treating PTSD / A Readiness Change Approach to preventing PTSD Treatment Failure / Virtual Reality Exposure therapy of Combat-Related PTSD: A Case Study Using Psychophysiological Indicators of Outcome / PTSD and the Social Support of the Interpersonal Environment / The Development of Social Cognitive Behaviour Therapy / Combining Cognitive Restructuring and Exposure Therapy: Toward an Optimal Integration / Treating Special Populations and Problems / Military Populations / Effects of Cognitive-Behavioral Treatments for PTSD on Anger / The Challenge of Treating PTSD in the Context of Chronic Pain / PTSD, Dissociation and Treatment / Cognitive-Behavioral Interventions for Children and Adolescents with PTSD / Perspectives on Future Directions / A Glass Half Empty or Half Full? / Where We Are and Directions for Future Research in the Treatment of PTSD
Distribution of Tyrosine Hydroxylase‐Immunoreactive Neurones in the Diencephalon and Mesencephalon of the Coypu (Myocastor coypus)

The aim of the present study was to examine the catecholaminergic neurones located within the midbrain of the coypu, a South American hystricomorph rodent. The neuronal distribution of the catecholaminergic systems and morphological parameters of the immunostained cell bodies and fibres were investigated, using an immunohistochemical method. The brains of five coypu were fixed, immersed in gelatine–glycerol and cut in 40‐μm slices using a freezing microtome. Samples were processed with ultrasound‐based antigen retrieval and stained with labelled antityrosine hydroxylase monoclonal antibody. An image analyser was used to measure the neuronal bodies. The catecholaminergic neurones of the tuberoinfundibular system were mainly observed in the arcuate and periventricular nuclei with their axons projecting towards to the median eminence; they represented 28% of the global population of tyrosine hydroxylase‐immunoreactive cells observed. Significant morphological differences were observed in comparison with the other two studied systems. Fifty per cent of total catecholaminergic neurones were detected in the nigrostriatal system distributed in the reticular and compact substance nigra. Most neuronal bodies had a fusiform aspect. The immunoreactive neurones of the mesolimbic system represented 22% of the total population. They were distributed around the interpeduncular nucleus. Two types of morphologically different catecholaminergic systems of the brain were established: hypothalamic neurones located in the periventricular and arcuate nuclei and mesencephalic neurones located in the substance nigra and interpeduncular nuclei. These systems showed morphological and probably physiological‐pharmacological differences.
Accuracy of foreign dairy bull evaluations in predicting US evaluations for yield

The inclusion of additional data from other countries has been shown to improve the accuracy of dairy bull evaluations (Powell and Norman, 1998; Powell et al., 2000). Even in studies investigating the current quality of Interbull procedures, the value of including additional data from foreign daughters in domestic dairy bull genetic evaluations was supported (Powell and Norman, 2000; Weigel and Powell, 2000). These four studies included mainly U.S. bulls and did not evaluate the accuracy of foreign data alone. In the case of foreign bulls, the earliest information available for breeding decisions in the United States comes from foreign daughters, and they often provide the large majority of data available later. Thus, an investigation of the accuracy of predicting future U.S. evaluations using only foreign data is worthwhile.
Descriptive proteomic analysis shows protein variability between closely related clinical isolates of Mycobacterium tuberculosis

The use of isobaric tags such as iTRAQ allows the relative and absolute quantification of hundreds of proteins in a single experiment for up to eight different samples. More classical techniques such as 2‐DE can offer a complimentary approach for the analysis of complex protein samples. In this study, the proteomes of secreted and cytosolic proteins of genetically closely related strains of Mycobacterium tuberculosis were analyzed. Analysis of 2‐D gels afforded 28 spots with variations in protein abundance between strains. These were identified by MS/MS. Meanwhile, a rigorous statistical analysis of iTRAQ data allowed the identification and quantification of 101 and 137 proteins in the secreted and cytosolic fractions, respectively. Interestingly, several differences in protein levels were observed between the closely related strains BE, C28 and H6. Seven proteins related to cell wall and cell processes were more abundant in BE, while enzymes related to metabolic pathways (GltA2, SucC, Gnd1, Eno) presented lower levels in the BE strain. Proteins involved in iron and sulfur acquisition (BfrB, ViuB, TB15.3 and SseC2) were more abundant in C28 and H6. In general, iTRAQ afforded rapid identification of fine differences between protein levels such as those presented between closely related strains. This provides a platform from which the relevance of these differences can be assessed further using complimentary proteomic and biological modeling methods.
Dependent Hierarchical Normalized Random Measures for Dynamic Topic Modeling

We develop dependent hierarchical normalized random measures and apply them to dynamic topic modeling. The dependency arises via superposition, subsampling and point transition on the underlying Poisson processes of these measures. The measures used include normalised generalised Gamma processes that demonstrate power law properties, unlike Dirichlet processes used previously in dynamic topic modeling. Inference for the model includes adapting a recently developed slice sampler to directly manipulate the underlying Poisson process. Experiments performed on news, blogs, academic and Twitter collections demonstrate the technique gives superior perplexity over a number of previous models.
Contributions of Research on Student Thinking in Physical Education

This paper presents a model of student thinking and behavior that depicts students as active participants in the classroom who affect classroom events as much as they are affected by them. Research evidence suggests students’ entry characteristics and their initial beliefs, attitudes, and values concerning school and physical education are influenced by the students’ social and cultural landscape. These variables shape students’ thoughts about what physical education is or should be, what their roles as students should be, how they should approach the content offered, and what their chances of success might be. Although student attributes and beliefs help shape initial acceptance of and interactions with the content and processes of instruction, there are things teachers can do to enhance the quality of students’ learning. The environment can influence student perceptions by promoting challenge, emphasizing mastery, and offering opportunities to engage in tasks that are meaningful and valued.
Comparison of clinical characteristics and performance of pneumonia severity score and CURB-65 among younger adults, elderly and very old subjects

Background Age-related alterations in the clinical characteristics and performance of severity scoring systems for community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) are unknown. Methods Consecutive patients with CAP presenting to the emergency department were prospectively studied. Patients were classified as younger adults (age 18–64 years), elderly (age 65–84 years) and very old subjects (age ≥85 years). Clinical characteristics, complications, outcomes and validity of the pneumonia severity index (PSI) and CURB-65 categories were compared across these three age categories. Results Analysis involved 348 (35.3%) younger adult patients, 438 (44.3%) elderly patients and 201 (20.0%) very old patients. Compared with younger adults, elderly and very old patients had a higher burden of comorbidities and a higher incidence of CAP-related complications. The 30-day mortality rate was 5.2% in younger adults, 7.1% in elderly patients and 9.5% in very old patients. The area under the ROC curve (AUCs) for PSI were 0.87 (95% CI 0.77 to 0.97), 0.85 (95% CI 0.803 to 0.897) and 0.69 (95% CI 0.597 to 0.787) and the AUCs for CURB-65 were 0.80 (95% CI 0.67 to 0.93), 0.73 (95% CI 0.65 to 0.82) and 0.60 (95% CI 0.47 to 0.73) in the younger adult, elderly and very old patients, respectively. A modified PSI or CURB-65 excluding the age variable increased the AUC in most age categories. There was no significant effect of age on 30-day mortality after adjusting for other PSI or CURB-65 variables. Conclusion Elderly patients with CAP have more atypical clinical manifestations and worse outcomes. The underperformance of the PSI in elderly patients may be due to the inappropriate weight given to the age variable. A modification of the cut-off point for PSI or CURB-65 to define severe pneumonia may improve the score performance in elderly patients.
How Effective Is Early Instruction in Reading? Experimental Evidence.

Opinions differ greatly about the optimal age to begin formal reading instruc tion. The issue becomes especially pertinent in view of the great amount of time many young children now spend in preschools. In the studies reported here, the role of maturational factors in reading acquisition was investigated by way of exposing differently aged children to identical learning experiences. In Study 1, the 12 members of a kibbutz kindergarten class whose ages ranged from 5;2 to 7;0 were taught to decode. Within 4 calendar months the six older children but only one of the six younger ones acquired the rudiments of de coding. In Study 2, the five oldest and five youngest children in three different kindergartens were instructed by well-trained first-grade teachers under con trolled conditions. There were significant differences in achievements among the two age groups. Study 3 was an examination of reading comprehension of first-graders and confirmed the results of the first two studies with regard to reading comprehension. Once again older children significantly outperformed
Is there a difference in activation or in inhibition of cortical auditory centers depending on the ear that is stimulated?

Conclusions.1. With auditory stimuli cortical activation of Brodmann's areas 39 and 40 and inhibition of area 38 is bilateral. Inhibitory and excitatory relays play a role in the auditory pathways. 2. A statistically significant increased activation on the left side in areas 39 and 40, regardless of the stimulated ear, is suggestive that pure tones are preferably processed in the left hemisphere. 3. The significant difference in central inhibition depending on which ear is stimulated is supportive of the idea of a leading ear. Objectives: The objectives were to determine cortical activation/inhibition, ipsi/contralateral in response to monaural stimulation with pure tones, and if the response differs for right/left ear stimulation. Subjects and methods: Tc99m-HMPAO brain perfusion SPECT was done during monaural stimulation with pure tones in 10 volunteers. Ears were tested independently. Results: During auditory stimulation perfusion increased in both hemispheres in Brodmann's areas 39–40 and decreased in area 38,>2 SD above and below the normal mean respectively, in both hemispheres, regardless of which side was stimulated. A significantly more intense response was seen in left versus right in areas 39 and 40. In area 38 there was bilateral inhibition, significantly more intense in response to left than right ear stimulation.
Reassessing Discretionary Fiscal Policy

Recent changes in policy research and in policy-making call for a reassessment of countercyclical fiscal policy. Such a reassessment indicates that countercyclical fiscal policy should focus on automatic stabilizers rather than discretionary actions. Monetary policy has been reacting more systematically to output and inflation; long expansions in the 1980s and 1990s demonstrate policy effectiveness. It is unlikely that discretionary countercyclical fiscal policy could improve things, even with less uncertainty about fiscal impacts. A discretionary countercyclical fiscal policy could make monetary policy making more difficult. Discretionary fiscal policy should focus on long-run issues, such as tax reform and social security reform.
The modern management of upper tract urothelial cancer: surgical treatment

In recent years several investigators reported the results of endoscopic treatment of UUT tumours, initially based on efforts to preserve renal function in patients with single kidneys or bilateral tumours. In this article we review current concepts and oncological outcomes of the surgical management of UUT-TCC considering recent technical developments. Is the standard RNU still necessary? Can organsparing techniques be used safely?
First Result on Arabic Neural Machine Translation

Neural machine translation has become a major alternative to widely used phrase-based statistical machine translation. We notice however that much of research on neural machine translation has focused on European languages despite its language agnostic nature. In this paper, we apply neural machine translation to the task of Arabic translation (Ar En) and compare it against a standard phrase-based translation system. We run extensive comparison using various configurations in preprocessing Arabic script and show that the phrase-based and neural translation systems perform comparably to each other and that proper preprocessing of Arabic script has a similar effect on both of the systems. We however observe that the neural machine translation significantly outperform the phrase-based system on an out-of-domain test set, making it attractive for real-world deployment.
POSTOPERATIVE ANALGESIA INDUCED BY INTRATHECAL NEOSTIGMINE OR BETHANECHOL IN RATS

1 Cholinergic agonists and acetylcholinesterase inhibitors, such as neostigmine, produce a muscarinic receptor‐mediated antinociception in several animal species that depends on activation of spinal cholinergic neurons. However, neostigmine causes antinociception in sheep only in the early, and not late, postoperative period. 2 In the present study, a model of postoperative pain was used to determine the antinociceptive effects of bethanechol (a muscarinic agonist) and neostigmine administered intrathecally 2, 24 or 48 h after a plantar incision in a rat hind paw. Changes in the threshold to punctate mechanical stimuli were evaluated using an automated electronic von Frey apparatus. 3 Mechanical hyperalgesia was obtained following plantar incision, the effect being stronger during the immediate (2 h) than the late post‐surgical period. Bethanechol (15–90 µg/5 µL) or neostigmine (1–3 µg/5 µL) reduced incision‐induced mechanical hyperalgesia, the effects of both drugs being more intense during the immediate (2 h) than the late post‐surgical period. 4 The ED50 for bethanechol injected at 2, 24 and 48 h was 5.6, 51.9 and 82.5 µg/5 µL, respectively. The corresponding ED50 for neostigmine was 1.62, 3.02 and 3.8 µg/5 µL, respectively. 5 The decline in the antinociceptive potency of neostigmine with postoperative time is interpreted as resulting from a reduction in pain‐induced activation of acetylcholine‐releasing descending pathways. However, the similar behaviour of bethanechol in the same model points to an additional mechanism involving intrinsic changes in spinal muscarinic receptors.
The Role of Mcl-1 in S. aureus-Induced Cytoprotection of Infected Macrophages

As a facultative intracellular pathogen, Staphylococcus aureus invades macrophages and then promotes the cytoprotection of infected cells thus stabilizing safe niche for silent persistence. This process occurs through the upregulation of crucial antiapoptotic genes, in particular, myeloid cell leukemia-1 (MCL-1). Here, we investigated the underlying mechanism and signal transduction pathways leading to increased MCL-1 expression in infected macrophages. Live S. aureus not only stimulated de novo synthesis of Mcl-1, but also prolonged the stability of this antiapoptotic protein. Consistent with this, we proved a crucial role of Mcl-1 in S. aureus-induced cytoprotection, since silencing of MCL1 by siRNA profoundly reversed the cytoprotection of infected cells leading to apoptosis. Increased MCL1 expression in infected cells was associated with enhanced NFκB activation and subsequent IL-6 secretion, since the inhibition of both NFκB and IL-6 signalling pathways abrogated Mcl-1 induction and cytoprotection. Finally, we confirmed our observation in vivo in murine model of septic arthritis showing the association between the severity of arthritis and Mcl-1 expression. Therefore, we propose that S. aureus is hijacking the Mcl-1-dependent inhibition of apoptosis to prevent the elimination of infected host cells, thus allowing the intracellular persistence of the pathogen, its dissemination by infected macrophages, and the progression of staphylococci diseases.
A randomised, controlled clinical trial comparing chlorhexidine gel and low-dose fluoride toothpaste to prevent early childhood caries.

OBJECTIVES. This randomised, controlled trial compared the effectiveness of 0.12% chlorhexidine (CHX) gel and 304% fluoride toothpaste to prevent early childhood caries (ECC) in a birth cohort by 24 months. METHODS. The participants were randomised to receive either (i) twice daily toothbrushing with toothpaste and once daily 0.12% CHX gel (n = 110) or (ii) twice daily toothbrushing with toothpaste only (study controls) (n = 89). The primary outcome measured was caries incidence and the secondary outcome was percentage of children with mutans streptococci (MS). All mothers were contacted by telephone at 6, 12, and 18 months. At 24 months, all children were examined at a community dental clinic. RESULTS. At 24 months, the caries prevalence was 5% (3/61) in the CHX and 7% (4/58) in the controls (P = 0.7). There were no differences in percentages of MS-positive children between the CHX and control groups (54%vs 53%). Only 20% applied the CHX gel once daily and 80% less than once daily. CONCLUSIONS. Toothbrushing using 304% fluoride toothpaste with or without the application of chlorhexidine gel (0.12%) reduces ECC from 23% found in the general community to 5-7%. The lack of effect with chlorhexidine is likely to be due to low compliance.
HLTCOE Participation at TAC 2013

The JHU HLTCOE participated in the Entity Linking and Cold Start Knowledge Base tasks in this year’s Text Analysis Conference Knowledge Base Population evaluation. We have previously participated in TAC-KBP evaluations in 2009, 2010, 2011, and 2012. Our primary focus this year was on the Cold Start task; improvements to our existing KELVIN system included consolidating slot values for an entity, removal of suspect intra-document conference chains, streamlined cross-document entity coreference, and application of inference rules to expand the number of asserted facts.
Blueberry Anthocyanins-Enriched Extracts Attenuate Cyclophosphamide-Induced Cardiac Injury

We sought to explore the effect of blueberry anthocyanins-enriched extracts (BAE) on cyclophosphamide (CTX)-induced cardiac injury. The rats were divided randomly into five groups including normal control, CTX 100 mg/kg, BAE 80mg/kg, CTX+BAE 20mg/kg and CTX+BAE 80mg/kg groups. The rats in the three BAE-treated groups were administered BAE for four weeks. Seven days after BAE administration, rats in CTX group and two BAE-treated groups were intraperitoneally injected with a single dose of 100 mg/kg CTX. Cardiac injury was assessed using physiological parameters, Echo, morphological staining, real-time PCR and western blot. In addition, cardiotoxicity indices, inflammatory cytokines expression and oxidative stress markers were also detected. Four weeks 20mg/kg and 80mg/kg dose of BAE treatment following CTX exposure attenuated mean arterial blood pressure, heart rate and activities of heart enzymes, improved cardiac dysfunction, left ventricular hypertrophy and fibrosis. Importantly, BAE also attenuated CTX-induced LV leukocyte infiltration and inflammatory cytokines expression, ameliorated oxidative stress as well as cardiomyocyte apoptosis. In conclusion, BAE attenuated the CTX-induced cardiac injury and the protective mechanisms were related closely to the anti-inflammatory, antioxidant and anti-inflammatory characteristics of BAE.