Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Psychometric Properties of the Social Phobia and Anxiety Inventory for Children (SPAI-C) A Sample of Italian School-Aged Children From the General Population

Reliable and valid self-report questionnaires could be useful as initial screening instruments for social phobia in both clinical settings and general populations. The present study investigates the factor structure and psychometric properties of the Social Phobia and Anxiety Inventory for Children (SPAI-C) in a sample of 228 children from the Italian general population aged 8 to 11. The children were asked to complete the Italian version of the SPAI-C and the Screen for Child Anxiety Related Emotional Disorders (SCARED) questionnaire. Confirmatory factor analyses revealed that social phobia can be conceptualized as a unitary construct consisting of five distinct but interrelated symptom clusters named Assertiveness, General Conversation, Physical/Cognitive Symptoms, Avoidance, and Public Performance. Internal consistency of the SPAI-C total scores and two subscales was good; correlations between SPAI-C total scores and SCARED total scores/subscales ranged from moderate to high (Generalized Anxiety Disord.
Readiness for Learner Autonomy: What do our learners tell us?

In higher education teaching, enhancing learner autonomy has become a key concern for curriculum planners and classroom teachers. The significant body of research about learner autonomy in language learning over the last 20 years (e.g. Holec 1981, 1988; Riley 1985; Dickinson 1987, 1992; Wenden & Rubin 1987; Little, 1991; Dam, 1995; Benson & Voller, 1997) has indicated an on-going search for more understanding of how learner autonomy can be implemented in different contexts. This paper is based on a research study which was conducted in the Hong Kong Polytechnic University in Hong Kong. The study explores learners' attitudes and expectations of language learning, teacher and learner roles, their learning preferences and perceptions of learner autonomy. The paper reports the results and discusses their implication on the development of a learner-centred approach in higher education.
RelTime Rates Collapse to a Strict Clock When Estimating the Timeline of Animal Diversification

Abstract Establishing an accurate timescale for the history of life is crucial to understand evolutionary processes. For this purpose, relaxed molecular clock models implemented in a Bayesian MCMC framework are generally used. However, these methods are time consuming. RelTime, a non-Bayesian method implementing a fast, ad hoc, algorithm for relative dating, was developed to overcome the computational inefficiencies of Bayesian software. RelTime was recently used to investigate the timing of origin of animals, yielding results consistent with early strict clock studies from the 1980s and 1990s, estimating metazoans to have a Mesoproterozoic origin—over a billion years ago. RelTime results are unexpected and disagree with the largest majority of modern, relaxed, Bayesian molecular clock analyses, which suggest animals originated in the Tonian-Cryogenian (less that 850 million years ago). Here, we demonstrate that RelTime-inferred divergence times for the origin of animals are spurious, a consequence of the inability of RelTime to relax the clock along the internal branches of the animal phylogeny. RelTime-inferred divergence times are comparable to strict-clock estimates because they are essentially inferred under a strict clock. Our results warn us of the danger of using ad hoc algorithms making implicit assumptions about rate changes along a tree. Our study roundly rejects a Mesoproterozoic origin of animals; metazoans emerged in the Tonian-Cryogenian, and diversified in the Ediacaran, in the immediate prelude to the routine fossilization of animals in the Cambrian associated with the emergence of readily preserved skeletons.
Odor Memory Stability after Reinnervation of the Olfactory Bulb

The olfactory system, particularly the olfactory epithelium, presents a unique opportunity to study the regenerative capabilities of the brain, because of its ability to recover after damage. In this study, we ablated olfactory sensory neurons with methimazole and followed the anatomical and functional recovery of circuits expressing genetic markers for I7 and M72 receptors (M72-IRES-tau-LacZ and I7-IRES-tau-GFP). Our results show that 45 days after methimazole-induced lesion, axonal projections to the bulb of M72 and I7 populations are largely reestablished. Furthermore, regenerated glomeruli are re-formed within the same areas as those of control, unexposed mice. This anatomical regeneration correlates with functional recovery of a previously learned odorant-discrimination task, dependent on the cognate ligands for M72 and I7. Following regeneration, mice also recover innate responsiveness to TMT and urine. Our findings show that regeneration of neuronal circuits in the olfactory system can be achieved with remarkable precision and underscore the importance of glomerular organization to evoke memory traces stored in the brain.
Use of Event‐Related Potentials to Identify Language and Reading Skills

Research findings from studies using event-related potential measures of phonological processing support the importance of these measures as correlates and predictors of language and reading skills in school-aged children. A research study is reported focusing on preschool-aged children to understand how event-related potential measures of phonological processing relate to oral language and emergent literacy skills. In this study, 33 preschool-aged children (42–54 months) participated in assessments of receptive and expressive language skills from the Preschool Language Scale and assessment of letter identification from the Wide Range Achievement Test. On the basis of previous findings with older children, it was expected that event-related potential responses would discriminate differences in children's skills. The results of both analysis of variance and discriminant function analyses showed that event-related potential responses identify differences in letter naming but not receptive language skills as measured in this study.
Reflection: a necessary but not sufficient condition for professional development

Abstract Few discussions on professional development occur without some reference to the central role that reflection plays in the learning life of the teacher. It is the sine qua non of the ‘teacher‐researcher’, ‘action research’ and ‘reflective practitioner’ movements. During the last 20 years there has been a growing body of literature and practices which has sought to identify different levels of reflection in which involvement is essential, it is claimed, for the maximising of teacher growth. Yet much of this has failed to consider the need for reflection to be accompanied by confrontation if development is to occur, and alongside this, the negative and positive roles that organisational culture may play in the provision for different kinds and levels of reflection and confrontation. Two key issues are addressed in this paper. The first relates to our understanding and use of reflection—an essential part of the learning process; and the second, to the need for partnerships and coalitions within colla.
Multiple Primary Malignancies in Patients with Multiple Early Gastric Cancer

Purpose This study aimed to investigate the correlation between multiple early gastric cancer (MEGC) and multiple primary malignancies during the follow-up of patients with gastrectomy. Materials and Methods The number of primary tumors detected in other organs after gastrectomy for early gastric cancer (EGC) has been increasing because of improved survival and surveillance programs. A total of 3,129 patients underwent radical gastrectomy for treatment of EGC at Samsung Medical Center from January 2000 to December 2005. Of these, 3,057 patients were selected and their medical records were retrospectively analyzed. Results Among the 3,057 patients, 148 (4.8%) had MEGC, 84.5% were male, 57.4% were over 60 years old, 42.6% had a macroscopic type EGC IIb main lesion, and 68.9% had well-differentiated tumors with a significantly high incidence of MEGC. There were no differences between patients with solitary early gastric cancer (SEGC) and those with MEGC with regard to overall survival or recurrence-free survival, but MEGC was an independent risk factor for metachronous primary malignancies in other organs (P=0.004, hazard ratio [HR]=2.444). Conclusions MEGC is not a risk factor for poor prognosis after curative gastrectomy, but it is a risk factor for metachronous primary malignancies in other organs during postoperative follow-up; therefore, careful surveillance is needed.
Factors determining the long-term outcome of surgery for acromegaly.

Seventy-nine patients with acromegaly were investigated before and after transsphenoidal adenomectomy, to determine the immediate and late outcome, the pre-operative features associated with a good result, and the accuracy of post-operative testing in predicting outcome. Pre-operative evaluation included basal growth hormone (GH), GH response to oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT), GH response to thyrotrophin-releasing hormone (TRH), tests of pituitary reserve, and pituitary scanning to assess tumour size. A few weeks after surgery, these tests were repeated. The patients were recalled for late assessment 1-13 years (median 86 months) after the operation. At the immediate postoperative testing, minimum GH after oral glucose was < or = 2 mU/l in 48.7%, < 5 mU/l in 76.3% and < 10 mU/l in 84.2%. Only 12 patients had GH > 10 mU/l. Basal GH was < or = 2 mU/l in 21%, < 5 in 59.2%, < 10 in 73.6% and < 20 in 90.8%. A minimum GH of < or = 2 mU/l during an OGTT was achieved in 67.4% of patients with intrasellar tumours, compared with 27.3% with extrasellar tumours. Basal GH and post-glucose GH correlated with the late outcome. GH response to TRH showed no correlation with outcome. IGF-1, which could not be assessed in detail, correlated with GH but was not a reliable indicator of outcome. Transsphenoidal adenomectomy is thus a very satisfactory treatment for acromegaly. Postoperative levels of basal growth hormone < 5 mU/l and post-glucose GH < or = 2 mU/l can be regarded as a biochemical cure. Postoperative radiotherapy is not required in patients who achieve a good result. The preoperative factors which significantly influenced the final outcome were basal GH, post-glucose minimum GH, tumour size and impaired pituitary reserve.
School culture and values-related change: towards a critically pragmatic conceptualisation

While ‘school culture’ is a topical issue, there is some consensus on a knowledge deficit regarding its subterranean dynamics and influence on change effort. This article describes an exploration of the mediation of a values-related change effort by school culture in Irish post-primary schools from the perspective of a research project which focused on the dynamic interface of change, special educational needs (SEN) and information and communication technology (ICT). The study identified how an inclusion-orientated polycultural entity can be enabled in schools, but also tracked and modeled the contestation and bounding of that phenomenon. The findings point to the inadequacy of the dominant monocultural conceptualisation of school culture, and alternatively construct school culture as a zone of polycultural contestation and ideological settlement. This interpretation suggests the dominance of a naïve reformist discourse on school culture and change, and suggests that an alternative discourse of critical realism be applied. A range of interpretations and recommendations arising from the study are outlined in relation to our understanding of school culture and values-related change.
Formation of homophily in academic performance: Students change their friends rather than performance

Homophily, the tendency of individuals to associate with others who share similar traits, has been identified as a major driving force in the formation and evolution of social ties. In many cases, it is not clear if homophily is the result of a socialization process, where individuals change their traits according to the dominance of that trait in their local social networks, or if it results from a selection process, in which individuals reshape their social networks so that their traits match those in the new environment. Here we demonstrate the detailed temporal formation of strong homophily in academic achievements of high school and university students. We analyze a unique dataset that contains information about the detailed time evolution of a friendship network of 6,000 students across 42 months. Combining the evolving social network data with the time series of the academic performance (GPA) of individual students, we show that academic homophily is a result of selection: students prefer to gradually reorganize their social networks according to their performance levels, rather than adapting their performance to the level of their local group. We find no signs for a pull effect, where a social environment of good performers motivates bad students to improve their performance. We are able to understand the underlying dynamics of grades and networks with a simple model. The lack of a social pull effect in classical educational settings could have important implications for the understanding of the observed persistence of segregation, inequality and social immobility in societies.
Personality distortion in communication through teleoperated robots

Recent research has focused on such physical communication media as teleoperated robots, which provide a feeling of being with people in remote places. Recent invented media resemble cute animals or imaginary creatures that quickly attract attention. However, such appearances could distort tele-communications because they are different from human beings. This paper studies the effect on the speaker's personality that is transmitted through physical media by regarding appearances as a function that transmits the speaker's information. Although communication media's capability to transmit information reportedly influences conversations in many aspects, the effect of appearances remains unclear. To reveal the effect of appearance, we compared three appearances of communication media: stuffed-bear teleoperated robot, human-like teleoperated robot, and video chat. Our results show that communication media whose appearance greatly differs from that of the speaker distorts the personality perceived by interlocutors. This paper suggests that the design of the appearance of physical communication media needs to be carefully selected.
Individualization of a surrounding tissue model in deep brain stimulation

Deep Brain Stimulation is an established therapy that consists of sending mild electrical pulses to the brain via a surgically implanted electrode. It is used to treat the symptoms of neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson's Disease and Essential Tremor. The stimulation effect is however patient-specific and difficult to predict. Further, impedance measurements indicate changes in the medium around the lead over time that are generally challenging to account for. Although mathematical models to characterize the extent of the stimulation have been developed in recent years, it is imperative that the model parameters are realistic enough to produce correct results. This study aims at developing a system identification approach to capture the changes in the medium around the lead by measuring the potential on non-active contacts during stimulation. Due to infeasibility of assigning properties to the medium around the lead in vivo, synthetic data are used for analysis instead. Results suggest that a transfer function with one zero and one pole that corresponds to a circuit composed of two RC contours in cascade is sufficient to describe the measurements in silico. Furthermore, the identified parameters show an injective relation to the properties of the medium. Continuous Least Squares and Laguerre domain identification are utilized for obtaining parameter estimates.
Learning and Teaching Science as Inquiry: A Case Study of Elementary School Teachers' Investigations of Light.

This case study documents an example of inquiry learning and teaching during a summer institute for elementary and middle school teachers. A small group constructed an explanatory model for an intriguing optical phenomenon that they were observing. Research questions included: What physics thinking did the learners express? What aspects of scientific inquiry were evident in what the learners said and did? What questions did the learners ask one another as they worked? How did these learners collaborate in constructing understanding? How did the instructor foster their learning? Data sources included video- and audio- tapes of instruction, copies of the participants' writings and drawings, field notes, interviews, and staff reflections. An interpretative narrative of what three group members said and did presents a detailed account of their learning process. Analyses of their utterances provide evidence of physics thinking, scientific inquiry, questioning, collaborative sense making, and insight into ways to foster inquiry learning. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Sci Ed89:1007–1042, 2005
Covert Orienting in the Split Brain Reveals Hemispheric Specialization for Object-Based Attention

Theories in cognitive science have debated whether visual selective attention is a space-based or object-based process To investigate this issue, we applied a new experimental paradigm that permits the simultaneous measurement of both space-based and object-based attention to a split-brain patient with disconnected cerebral hemispheres The data demonstrate both space-based and object-based components to the allocation of attention, and reveal that the two processes have different neural substrates These findings are related to previous research on split-brain and unilateral parietal patients
Prosecution as a Victim Power Resource: A Note on Empowering Women in Violent Conjugal Relationships

Criminal prosecution of abusive men is described here as a power resource used by battered women to help bring about satisfactory arrangements for managing conjugal violence. This article examines relevant theory on exchange and power processes to explain the conditions of victim empowerment. It then describes cases of women who filed charges against their conjugal partners to show how victims may file, but later drop, charges as a rational power strategy for determining the future course of their relationships. The article concludes with a discussion of the implications of prosecutorial policies that limit battered women's control over criminal justice processes.
Performance of SD Bioline Syphilis 3.0 for the Diagnosis of Sypilis a UPFR in Immunology of CHU-JRA

Syphilis is a sexually transmitted infection (STI) caused by the bacterium Treponema pallidum (T. pallidum), a disease that is becoming widespread. According to the WHO in 2012; 900000 women were infected by syphilis in the world. Furthermore, the inability of culture of the pathogenic microorganism in vitro and the limited availability of nucleic acid amplification techniques makes the diagnosis of this infection difficult [1]. Serology is therefore considered to be the pillar of the syphilis diagnosis. The serological diagnosis of syphilis is based with detection of the two types antibodies directed against the cardiolipin antigen and treponemal-specific antibodies [2, 3]. A major limitation of diagnosis is encountered with the use of tests based on antiphospholipid antibodies (non-treponemal test) giving false positive results [4, 5, 6]. It is therefore recommended to use non-treponemal tests International Journal of Current Microbiology and Applied Sciences ISSN: 2319-7706 Volume 6 Number 8 (2017) pp. 783-788 Journal homepage: http://www.ijcmas. com
The impact of individual and relationship factors on sexual dysfunction among males and females

Abstract Few studies have evaluated the relative contribution of childhood, adolescent and current individual factors on sexual dysfunction. The present study was concerned with an exploration of how these factors, as well as relationship factors have an impact on sexual dysfunction. Participants were sexually functional males and females from the general population (43 males, 102 females) and clients attending a university clinic for the treatment of sexual dysfunction (1 14 males, 84 females). Results demonstrated that there were no dafferences between the sexually functional males and any group of sexually dysfunctional males (lack of desire, erectile problems, premature ejaculation) in their reporting of problems in childhood or adolescence. There were also no differences between the sexually functional females, and any group of sexually dysfunctional females (lack of desire, lack of arousal, inorgasmia) in their reporting of problems during childhood. However, all groups of dysfunctional females were.
The Role of Partisan Sources and Audiences' Involvement in Bias Perceptions of Controversial News

Based on the hostile media effect (HME), this 2 (audiences' opinion) × 2 (partisan source) × 2 (news valence) factorial experiment (N = 229) investigated the effects of partisan sources and audiences' different types of involvement on bias perceptions of slanted news coverage regarding a controversial issue. The results show that participants rated a news article, regardless of its valence (congruent vs. incongruent), as less biased when it was attributed to a partisan source that was consistent with their own position than when it came from a partisan source that was inconsistent with their position. Moderating effects of value-relevant involvement on the source effects were found. The effects of partisan sources on bias perceptions were only significant among those with moderate or high levels of value-relevant involvement. The implications of the source effects and the role of value-relevant involvement as a moderator of such effects were discussed.
Modified maximum time difference intracardiac conduction velocity estimation

The cardiac conduction velocity vector (VV) at a desired point in any chamber of the heart can be estimated by processing the local intracardiac electrograms, i.e., the activation times (ATs) and the locations of the recording catheter's electrodes can be used for the VV estimation. In this paper, we modify the maximum time difference (MTD) method, which is a simple computational efficient cardiac VV estimation approach. In the MTD, first, the ATs of the electrograms are extracted, and the corresponding wavefronts are estimated. For each wavefront, the VV is estimated as the vector connecting the first to the last activated electrodes of the catheter divided by the time duration between the activation of those two electrodes. In the proposed modified MTD (MMTD) approach, which is slightly more computationally complex than the MTD, we divide the ATs of each considered wavefront into two groups, such that one group contains the electrodes with early activations, and the other contains those with late activations. We properly assign a time value and a location value to these groups and follow the same procedure as the MTD method to estimate the VV using the assigned values. Using synthetic data, we show that the proposed MMTD improves the quality of the cardiac conduction VV estimation of the MTD method, i.e., the MMTD is more robust to the AT estimation error and is able to determine the VV of the planar wavefronts more accurately.