Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Social Topic Models for Community Extraction

With social interaction playing an increasingly important role in the online world, the capability to extract latent communities based on such interactions is becoming vital for a wide variety of applications. However, existing literature on community extraction has largely focused on methods based on the link structure of a given social network. Such link-based methods ignore the content of social interactions, which may be crucial for accurate and meaningful community extraction. In this paper, we present a Bayesian generative model for community extraction which naturally incorporates both the link and content information present in the social network. The model assumes that actors in a community communicate on topics of mutual interest, and the topics of communication, in turn, determine the communities. Further, the model naturally allows actors to belong to multiple communities. The model is instantiated in the context of an email network, and a Gibbs sampling algorithm is presented to do inference. Through extensive experiments and visualization on the Enron email corpus, we demonstrate that the model is able to extract well-connected and topically meaningful communities. Additionally, the model extracts relevant topics that can be mapped back to corresponding real-life events involving Enron.
Functional MR evaluation of temporal and frontal language dominance compared with the Wada test

Objective: To evaluate the reliability of temporal and frontal functional MRI (fMRI) activation for the assessment of language dominance, as compared with the Wada test. Patients and Methods: Ten patients with temporal lobe epilepsy were studied using blood oxygen level dependent fMRI and echoplanar imaging (1.5-T). Three tasks were used: semantic verbal fluency, covert sentence repetition, and story listening. Data were analyzed using pixel by pixel autocorrelation and cross-correlation. fMRI laterality indices were defined for several regions of interest as the ratio (L − R)/(L + R), L being the number of activated voxels in the left hemisphere and R in the right hemisphere. Wada laterality indices were defined as the difference in the percentages of errors in language tests between left and right carotid injections. Results: Semantic verbal fluency: The asymmetry of frontal activation was correlated with Wada laterality indices. The strongest correlation was observed in the precentral/middle frontal gyrus/inferior frontal sulcus area. Story listening: The asymmetry of frontal, but not temporal, activation was correlated with Wada laterality indices. Covert sentence repetition: No correlation was observed. Conclusions: There was a good congruence between hemispheric dominance for language as assessed with the Wada test and fMRI laterality indices in the frontal but not in the temporal lobes. The story listening and the covert sentence repetition tasks increased the sensitivity of detection of posterior language sites that may be useful for brain lesion surgery.
Antibody Array Analysis with Label-based Detection and Resolution of Protein Size *S

Elements from DNA microarray analysis, such as sample labeling and micro-spotting of capture reagents, have been successfully adapted to multiplex measurements of soluble cytokines. Application in cell biology is hampered by the lack of mono-specific antibodies and the fact that many proteins occur in complexes. Here, we incorporated a principle from Western blotting and resolved protein size as an additional parameter. Proteins from different cellular compartments were labeled and separated by size exclusion chromatography into 20 fractions. All were analyzed with replicate antibody arrays. The elution profiles of all antibody targets were compiled to color maps that resemble Western blots with bands of antibody reactivity across the size separation range (670–10 kDa). A new solid phase designed for processing in microwell plates was developed to handle the large number of samples. Antibodies were bound to protein G-coupled microspheres surface-labeled with 300 combinations of four fluorescent dyes. Fluorescence from particle color codes and the protein label were measured by high-speed flow cytometry. Cytoplasmic protein kinases were detected as bands near predictable elution points. For proteins with atypical elution characteristics or multiple contexts, two or more antibodies were used as internal references of specificity. Membrane proteins eluted near the void volume, and additional bands corresponding to intracellular forms were detected for several targets. Elution profiles of cyclin-dependent kinases (cdks), cyclins, and cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitors, were compatible with their occurrence in complexes that vary with the cell cycle phase and subcellular localization. A two-dimensional platform circumvents the need for mono-specific capture antibodies and extends the utility of antibody array analysis to studies of protein complexes.
The Weak Instrument Problem of the System GMM Estimator in Dynamic Panel Data Models

A multi-purpose emergency room trauma board having a rigid plastic backboard which is removably mounted in parallel and spaced-apart fashion on a rigid base. The rigid base includes an elevated lip around the perimeter thereof to define a drip pan on the top surface thereof and support means mounted thereon to removably support the backboard in spaced-apart relationship to the base at a sufficient height to allow slidable positioning of an X-ray cassette therebetween.
Factors Influencing a Farmer's Decision to Invest in Long-Term Conservation Improvements

This investigation considers factors affecting the investment in long-term conservation improvements during the 1980s. A sample of 541 Kansas farms was used to investigate the effects of various factors on the probability and expected level of conservation investment. The results suggest differences in farm sizes, incomes, and types and farming practices influence conservation investment decisions. Farmers whose farms are corporately organized make larger conservation investments. Farmers who are older invest less in conservation. Participation in government programs does not affect the investment in long-term conservation improvements. Conservation investment fell dramatically throughout the 1980s.
Determinants of multiple sexual partnerships in South Africa.

BACKGROUND This paper aims to examine determinants of multiple sexual partnerships (MSPs) among South African men and women using a nationally representative sample. METHODS Quantitative and qualitative data from a 2008 population-based cross-sectional survey were used. The analysis focused on the 6990 (33.6% of total sample) who were 15 years and older and reported sexual activity in the prior 12 months. The qualitative component consisted of 15 focus group interviews investigating values underlying MSP behaviors. RESULTS Predictors of MSP common across gender were race, having a history of STI, being in a short relationships (<1 year) and suspecting the current partner of infidelity. MSP among men enjoyed greater community acceptance and was mainly done for social status. Furthermore, men reporting MSP were mostly younger (15-24 years old) and use condom at last sex. Among women, determinants of MSP included economic vulnerability, younger age at sexual debut and living in formal urban rather than formal rural areas. CONCLUSIONS The data presented in this paper reinforces the importance of MSP as a risk factor for HIV and outline factors that should strongly be considered in strengthening condom use promotion and of partner reduction programs messaging in South Africa.
Efficient Depth Propagation for Constructing a Layered Depth Image from a Single Image

In this paper, we propose an interactive technique for constructing a 3D scene via sparse user inputs. We represent a 3D scene in the form of a Layered Depth Image (LDI) which is composed of a foreground layer and a background layer, and each layer has a corresponding texture and depth map. Given user‐specified sparse depth inputs, depth maps are computed based on superpixels using interpolation with geodesic‐distance weighting and an optimization framework. This computation is done immediately, which allows the user to edit the LDI interactively. Additionally, our technique automatically estimates depth and texture in occluded regions using the depth discontinuity. In our interface, the user paints strokes on the 3D model directly. The drawn strokes serve as 3D handles with which the user can pull out or push the 3D surface easily and intuitively with real‐time feedback. We show our technique enables efficient modeling of LDI that produce sufficient 3D effects.
The Circadian Clock Maintains Cardiac Function by Regulating Mitochondrial Metabolism in Mice

Cardiac function is highly dependent on oxidative energy, which is produced by mitochondrial respiration. Defects in mitochondrial function are associated with both structural and functional abnormalities in the heart. Here, we show that heart-specific ablation of the circadian clock gene Bmal1 results in cardiac mitochondrial defects that include morphological changes and functional abnormalities, such as reduced enzymatic activities within the respiratory complex. Mice without cardiac Bmal1 function show a significant decrease in the expression of genes associated with the fatty acid oxidative pathway, the tricarboxylic acid cycle, and the mitochondrial respiratory chain in the heart and develop severe progressive heart failure with age. Importantly, similar changes in gene expression related to mitochondrial oxidative metabolism are also observed in C57BL/6J mice subjected to chronic reversal of the light-dark cycle; thus, they show disrupted circadian rhythmicity. These findings indicate that the circadian clock system plays an important role in regulating mitochondrial metabolism and thereby maintains cardiac function.
Inequality, bankruptcy and the macroeconomy

This thesis examines the determinants inequality and its eﬀects on macroeconomic outcomes, and in particular the economic eﬀects of bankruptcy law. The ﬁrst two chapters are joint work with Jochen Mankart. In the ﬁrst chapter, we examine the eﬀects of Chapter 7 of the US bankruptcy law on entrepreneurs. Entrepreneurs are subject to production risk. They can borrow and if they fail they can default on their debt. We examine the optimal wealth exemption level and the optimal credit market exclusion duration in this environment. In the second chapter, we introduce secured credit, in addition to unsecured credit in a model that is similar to the one in the ﬁrst chapter. Secured credit lowers the cost of a generous bankruptcy regime because agents who are rationed out of the unsecured credit market can still obtain secured credit. Therefore, the optimal exemption level is very high. In the third chapter, I estimate stochastic process for earnings of Italian individuals. I ﬁnd that individual’s earnings present statistically signiﬁcant heterogeneity both in levels and in growth rates that is determined before the beginning of economic activity. In the fourth chapter, I analyze the quantitative eﬀects of introducing immediate debt discharge (fresh start) in the procedures of personal bankruptcy law on the saving and default decisions of Italian household. I ﬁnd that introducing fresh start in the Italian bankruptcy law would worsen credit conditions, without almost any beneﬁt in terms of better insurance. The ﬁfth chapter is joint work with Emanuele Tarantino and Nicolas Serrano-Velarde. In this chapter we exploit the recent reform of bankruptcy law in Italy to analyze the eﬀects of bankruptcy regulation on the cost of credit. We ﬁnd that strengthening ﬁrms’ rights to renegotiate outstanding deals with creditors increased the costs of funding, while simplifying the procedure of liquidation decreased the costs of funding. In the sixth chapter, I show that credit market imperfections are not necessary to generate an individual poverty trap.
Biological Activity of Carbazole Alkaloids and Essential Oil of Murraya koenigii Against Antibiotic Resistant Microbes and Cancer Cell Lines

A total of three carbazole alkaloids and essential oil from the leaves of Murraya koenigii (Rutaceae) were obtained and examined for their effects on the growth of five antibiotic resistant pathogenic bacteria and three tumor cell lines (MCF-7, P 388 and Hela). The structures of these carbazoles were elucidated based on spectroscopy data and compared with literature data, hence, were identified as mahanine (1), mahanimbicine (2) and mahanimbine (3). The chemical constituents of the essential oil were identified using Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectroscopy (GCMS). These compounds exhibited potent inhibition against antibiotic resistant bacteria such as Staphylococcus aureus (210P JTU), Psedomonas aeruginosa (ATCC 25619), Klebsiella pneumonia (SR1-TU), Escherchia coli (NI23 JTU) and Streptococcus pneumoniae (SR16677-PRSP) with significant minimum inhibition concentration (MIC) values (25.0–175.0 mg/mL) and minimum bacteriacidal concentrations (MBC) (100.0–500.0 μg/mL). The isolated compounds showed significant antitumor activity against MCF-7, Hela and P388 cell lines. Mahanimbine (3) and essential oil in particular showed potent antibacteria and cytotoxic effect with dose dependent trends (≤5.0 μg/mL). The findings from this investigation are the first report of carbazole alkaloids’ potential against antibiotic resistant clinical bacteria, MCF-7 and P388 cell lines.
Computing High Dimensional Integrals with Applications to Finance

High-dimensional integrals are usually solved with Monte Carlo algorithms although theory suggests that low discrepancy algorithms are sometimes superior. We report on numerical testing which compares low discrepancy and Monte Carlo algorithms on the evaluation of nancial derivatives. The testing is performed on a Collateralized Mortgage Obligation (CMO) which is formulated as the computation of ten integrals of dimension up to 360. We tested two low discrepancy algorithms (Sobol and Halton) and two randomized algorithms (classical Monte Carlo and Monte Carlo combined with antithetic variables). We conclude that for this CMO the Sobol algorithm is always superior to the other algorithms. We believe that it will be advantageous to use the Sobol algorithm for many other types of nancial derivatives. Our conclusion regarding the superiority of the Sobol algorithm also holds when a rather small number of sample points are used, an important case in practice. We built a software system which runs on a network of heterogeneous workstations under PVM 3.2 (Parallel Virtual Machine). Since workstations are ubiquitous, this is a cost-e ective way to do very large computations fast. The measured speedup is at least :9N for N workstations, N 25. The software can also be used to compute high dimensional integrals on a single workstation. 2
Dating the emergence of pandemic influenza viruses

Pandemic influenza viruses cause significant mortality in humans. In the 20th century, 3 influenza viruses caused major pandemics: the 1918 H1N1 virus, the 1957 H2N2 virus, and the 1968 H3N2 virus. These pandemics were initiated by the introduction and successful adaptation of a novel hemagglutinin subtype to humans from an animal source, resulting in antigenic shift. Despite global concern regarding a new pandemic influenza, the emergence pathway of pandemic strains remains unknown. Here we estimated the evolutionary history and inferred date of introduction to humans of each of the genes for all 20th century pandemic influenza strains. Our results indicate that genetic components of the 1918 H1N1 pandemic virus circulated in mammalian hosts, i.e., swine and humans, as early as 1911 and was not likely to be a recently introduced avian virus. Phylogenetic relationships suggest that the A/Brevig Mission/1/1918 virus (BM/1918) was generated by reassortment between mammalian viruses and a previously circulating human strain, either in swine or, possibly, in humans. Furthermore, seasonal and classic swine H1N1 viruses were not derived directly from BM/1918, but their precursors co-circulated during the pandemic. Mean estimates of the time of most recent common ancestor also suggest that the H2N2 and H3N2 pandemic strains may have been generated through reassortment events in unknown mammalian hosts and involved multiple avian viruses preceding pandemic recognition. The possible generation of pandemic strains through a series of reassortment events in mammals over a period of years before pandemic recognition suggests that appropriate surveillance strategies for detection of precursor viruses may abort future pandemics.
Complete roughness and conductivity corrections for Casimir force measurement

We consider detailed roughness and conductivity corrections to the Casimir force in the recent Casimir force measurement employing an Atomic Force Microscope. The roughness of the test bodies-a metal plate and a sphere- was investigated with the Atomic Force Microscope and the Scanning Electron Microscope respectively. It consists of separate crystals of different heights and a stochastic background. The amplitude of roughness relative to the zero roughness level was determined and the corrections to the Casimir force were calculated up to the fourth order in a small parameter (which is this amplitude divided by the distance between the two test bodies). Also the corrections due to finite conductivity were found up to the fourth order in relative penetration depth of electromagnetic zero point oscillations into the metal. The theoretical result for the configuration of a sphere above a plate taking into account both corrections is in excellent agreement with the measured Casimir force.
Gamma-Ray Burst Formation Rate Inferred from the Spectral Peak Energy-Peak Luminosity Relation

We estimate a gamma-ray burst (GRB) formation rate based on the new relation between the spectral peak energy (Ep) and the peak luminosity. The new relation is derived by combining the data of Ep and the peak luminosities by BeppoSAX and BATSE, and it looks considerably tighter and more reliable than the relations suggested by the previous works. Using the new Ep-luminosity relation, we estimate redshifts of the 689 GRBs without known distances in the BATSE catalog and derive a GRB formation rate as a function of the redshift. For the redshift range of 0 ≤ z ≤ 2, the GRB formation rate increases and is well correlated with the star formation rate, while it keeps constant toward z ~ 12. We also discuss the luminosity function and the redshift dependence of the intrinsic luminosity (luminosity evolution).
Student Cultural Diversity: Understanding and Meeting the Challenge

Note: Each chapter ends with a Conclusion, a Summary of Major Ideas, Extending Your Experience, and Resources for Further Study. I. Student Diversity in Context 1. Cultural Diversity in America's Schools An Introduction A Portrait of Change and Challenge The Extent of Cultural Diversity Among U.S. Students Today Student Diversity and Educational Vulnerability The Implications for Educators The Language Minority Student Federal and State Educational Policies The Five Rs of Educational Reform 2. Views of Culture and Education New Contexts for Education What Is Culture? Culture as Central to Development and Education The Role of Cultural Capital The Culture of the School Teaching in a Cultural Context 3. Educational Approaches to Student Cultural Diversity A Historical Survey Beyond Multicultural Education New Theoretical Perspectives II. The Roots of Diversity 4. An Ecology of Family, Home, and School The Meeting of Cultures The Role of the Family in the Socialization of Children Social Ecology Ethnic Image and Its Effects A Cultural Systems Account of Underachievement Educational Implications 5. Language and Communication The Nature of Communication The Development of Language Bilingualism and Second-Language Acquisition New Areas of Emerging Research in U. S. Bilingual Schooling Special Language Minority Populations 6. Language, Culture, and Cognition The Role of Culture in Cognition An Assessment of Intelligence Testing School Reform-Standards-Based Accountability Assessments Two Aspects of Effective Teaching in Culturally Diverse Classrooms That Focus on Language and Cognition III. The Educational Response 7. The Effective Teacher: Preparation, Assessment, and Characteristics The Current System of Professional Preparation and Assessment Professional Credentialing of Teachers Changes in Teacher-Preparation Programs Effective Teaching and Learning The Principal's Role in Effective Schooling 8. Effective Instruction of Linguistically and Culturally Diverse Children A Theoretical Framework: Two Divergent Views Characteristics of Effective Schools Effective Instructional Practices 9. Educational Approaches at the Middle and Secondary School Level Then and Now: A Personal Rendition of What Works The Genesis of Project Theme Project Theme: Principles and Strategies The Results of Project Theme Rethinking, Rebuilding, and Engaging Change at the High School Level Project AVANCE Programs That Work to Enhance College Participation Implications for Intervention Programs
Increased Neurogenesis in Adult mCD24-Deficient Mice

mCD24, a glycosylphosphatidylinositol-anchored highly glycosylated molecule, is expressed on differentiating neurons during development. In the adult CNS, its expression is restricted to immature neurons located in two regions showing ongoing neurogenesis: the subventricular zone (SVZ) of the lateral ventricle pathway and the dentate gyrus (DG) of the hippocampal formation. Here, combining bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU) and proliferating cell nuclear antigen labelings we confirmed that mCD24 is expressed on proliferating cells. To determine whether the inactivation of the molecule may affect adult neurogenesis, we analyzed the phenotype of mCD24-deficient mice (mCD24−/−). We labeled cells in S-phase with a pulse, a long, or a cumulative administration of BrdU and analyzed cells in different zones according to their dividing rate (rapid and slow) both in the control and mCD24−/−. We found a significant increase in the number of rapid (in the SVZ and the DG) and slow (in the SVZ) proliferating cells. Cumulative assays revealed a global reduction of the total cell cycle duration of rapidly proliferating precursors of SVZ. We investigated the fate of supernumerary cells and observed an increased number of apoptotic cells (terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated biotinylated UTP nick end labeling) in the mutant SVZ. Furthermore, we found no difference in the size of the olfactory bulb between wild-type (WT) and mutant mice. In support, mCD24 deletion did not appear to affect migration in the migratory stream. A comparison of the organization of migrating precursors between WT and mCD24 −/−, bothin vivo at the optic and electron microscopic levels and in SVZ cultured explants, did not show any changes in the arrangement of neuroblasts in chain-like structures. Altogether, our data suggest that mCD24 regulates negatively cell proliferation in zones of secondary neurogenesis.