Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Inhibition of Receptor-mediated Endocytosis Demonstrates Generation of Amyloid β-Protein at the Cell Surface*

Sequential cleavages of the amyloid β-protein precursor (APP) by the β- and γ-secretases generate the amyloid β-protein (Aβ), which plays a central role in Alzheimer's disease. Previous work provided evidence for involvement of both the secretory and endocytic pathways in Aβ generation. Here, we used HeLa cells stably expressing a tetracycline-regulated dominant-negative dynamin I (dyn K44A), which selectively inhibits receptor-mediated endocytosis, and analyzed the effects on the processing of endogenous APP. Upon induction of dyn K44A, levels of mature APP rose at the cell surface, consistent with retention of APP on the plasma membrane. The α-secretase cleavage products of APP were increased by dyn K44A, in that α-APPs in medium and the C83 C-terminal stub in the membrane both rose. The β-secretase cleavage of APP, C99, also increased modestly. The use of specific γ-secretase inhibitors to study the accumulation of α- and β-cleavage products independent of their processing by γ-secretase confirmed that retention of APP on the plasma membrane results in increased processing by both α- and β-secretases. Unexpectedly, endogenous Aβ secretion was significantly increased by dyn K44A, as detected by three distinct methods: metabolic labeling, immunoprecipitation/Western blotting, and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Levels of p3 (generated by sequential α- and γ-cleavage) also rose. We conclude that endogenous Aβ can be produced directly at the plasma membrane and that alterations in the degree of APP endocytosis may help regulate its production. Our findings are consistent with a role for the γ-secretase complex in the processing of numerous single-transmembrane receptors at the cell surface.
On Ethnographic Authority

THE 1724 FRONTISPIECE of Father Lafitau's Moeurs des sauvages ameriquains portrays the ethnographer as a young woman sitting at a writing table amidst artifacts from the New World and from classical Greece and Egypt. The author is accompanied by two cherubs who assist in the task of comparison and by the bearded figure of Time who points toward a tableau representing the ultimate source of the truths issuing from the writer's pen. The image toward which the young woman lifts her gaze is a bank of clouds where Adam, Eve and the serpent appear. Above them stand the redeemed man and woman of the Apocalypse on either side of a radiant triangle bearing the Hebrew script for Yahweh. The frontispiece for Malinowski's Argonauts of the Western Pacific is a photograph with the caption "A Ceremonial Act of the Kula. " A shell necklace is being offered to a Trobriand chief who stands at the door of his dwelling. Behind the man presenting the necklace is a row of six bowing youths, one of them sounding a conch. All the figures stand in profile, their attention apparently concentrated on the rite of exchange, a real event of Melanesian life. But on closer inspection one of the bowing Trobrianders may be seen to be looking at the camera. Lafitau's allegory is the less familiar: his author transcribes rather than originates. Unlike Malinowski's photo, the engraving makes no reference to ethnographic experience-despite Lafitau's five years of research among the Mohawks, research that has earned him a respected place among the fieldworkers of any generation. His account is presented not as the product of first-hand observation but of writing, in a crowded workshop. The frontispiece from Argonauts, like all photographs, asserts presence, that of the scene before the lens. But it suggests also another presence-the ethnographer actively composing this fragment of Trobriand reality. Kula exchange, the subject of Malinowski's book, has been made perfectly visible, centered in the perceptual frame. And a participant's glance redirects our attention to the observational standpoint we share, as readers, with the ethnographer and his camera. The predominant mode of modern fieldwork authority is signaled: "You are there, because I was there. " The present essay traces the formation and breakup of this authority in twentieth century social anthropology. It is not a complete account, nor is it based on a fully realized theory of ethnographic interpretation and textuality.1 Such a theory's contours are problematic, since the activity of cross cultural representation is now more than usually in question. The present predicament is linked to the breakup and redistribution of colonial power in the decades after 1950 and to the echoes of
Spectacles, Contact Lenses, and Children's Self‐Concepts: A Longitudinal Study

The purpose of this study was to search for changes in children's self-concepts after the replacement of their spectacles with contact lenses. From a sample of 125 children 10− to 13-years-old who wore spectacles, 69 children were randomly designated to receive contact lenses. Over a 3-year span, self-concepts of the children who retained their spectacles and the children who switched to contact lenses were monitored for changes. Self-concept measures of the two groups did not change at significantly different rates, nor did rate of change vary with severity of myopia or how long glasses had been worn before the children entered the study, but boys' self-concepts changed more than girls' self-concepts. Theoretical and clinical implications of these results are discussed.
Characteristics of Practical Work in Science Classrooms in Namibia

This paper presents a study into science practical work conducted in Namibian classrooms. Lesson plans, task sheets, student work, lesson transcripts and observation notes were used to identify intended learning outcomes. In addition, aspects of task design (inductive-deductive; open-closed; nature of student involvement) and the context of the practical task (duration; interaction patterns; types of task information and apparatus; nature of the student record) were explored. A profile form was used and its usefulness evaluated for the analysis of 12 practical tasks. The findings showed an emphasis on conceptual as opposed to procedural objectives, and a frequent change from an inductive to a deductive approach during the execution of the tasks. Pupil practical activity was rarely consolidated as a laboratory report but functioned as an enjoyable introduction to a set of general questions on the content covered in the practical. Suggestions are made for the modification of the profile form, and for in-service activities to support teachers to use practical work more effectively.
“HEADHUNTER” OR “REAL COP”?

This article examines the ways in which internal affairs (IA) officers cope with the stigma associated with their role within police organizations. IA officers in four police departments in the Southwest were interviewed about relations with non-IA officers, and two broad strategies of identity management were found. First, IA officers used the justifications of “denial of the victim” and “appeals to higher loyalty” to account for their actions. Second, they used the destigmatization techniques of “aristocratization” and “transcendence” to refute the “headhunter” stereotype of IA officers. The article concludes with a discussion of the theoretical significance of these strategies and notes the functional nature of the IA stigma for various groups.
Genetic Analysis of the Methanol- and Methylamine-Specific Methyltransferase 2 Genes of Methanosarcina acetivorans C2A

ABSTRACT The entry of methanol into the methylotrophic pathway of methanogenesis is mediated by the concerted effort of two methyltransferases, namely, methyltransferase 1 (MT1) and methyltransferase 2 (MT2). The mtaA1, mtaA2, and mtbA genes of Methanosarcina acetivorans C2A encode putative methanol- or methylamine-specific MT2 enzymes. To address the in vivo roles of these genes in growth and methanogenesis from known substrates, we constructed and characterized mutants with deletions of each of these genes. The mtaA1 gene is required for growth on methanol, whereas mtaA2 was dispensable. However, the mtaA2 mutant had a reduced rate of methane production from methanol. Surprisingly, deletion of mtaA1 in combination with deletions of the genes encoding three methanol-specific MT1 isozymes led to lack of growth on acetate, suggesting that MT1 and MT2 enzymes might play an important role during growth on this substrate. The mtbA gene was required for dimethylamine and monomethylamine (MMA) utilization and was important, but not required, for trimethylamine utilization. Analysis of reporter gene fusions revealed that both mtaA1 and mtbA were expressed on all methanogenic substrates tested. However, mtaA1 expression was induced on methanol, while mtbA expression was down-regulated on MMA and acetate. mtaA2 was expressed at very low levels on all substrates. The mtaA1 transcript had a large 5′ untranslated region (UTR) (275 bp), while the 5′ UTR of the mtbA transcript was only 28 bp long.
Bacterial endophytes enhance phytostabilization in soils contaminated with uranium and lead

ABSTRACT The combined use of plants and bacteria is a promising approach for the remediation of polluted soil. In the current study, the potential of bacterial endophytes in partnership with Leptochloa fusca (L.) Kunth was evaluated for the remediation of uranium (U)- and lead (Pb)-contaminated soil. L. fusca was vegetated in contaminated soil and inoculated with three different endophytic bacterial strains, Pantoea stewartii ASI11, Enterobacter sp. HU38, and Microbacterium arborescens HU33, individually as well as in combination. The results showed that the L. fusca can grow in the contaminated soil. Bacterial inoculation improved plant growth and phytoremediation capacity: this manifested in the form of a 22–51% increase in root length, 25–62% increase in shoot height, 10–21% increase in chlorophyll content, and 17–59% more plant biomass in U- and Pb-contaminated soils as compared to plants without bacterial inoculation. Although L. fusca plants showed potential to accumulate U and Pb in their root and shoot on their own, bacterial consortia further enhanced metal uptake capacity by 53–88% for U and 58–97% for Pb. Our results indicate that the combination of L. fusca and endophytic bacterial consortia can effectively be used for the phytostabilization of both U- and Pb-contaminated soils.
Changing times in the classroom: teaching as a ‘crowded profession’

Abstract This article reports on a study of teachers in New South Wales (Australia) and their practices surrounding outcomes assessment and reporting, which took place in 2003 and 2004 as a follow-up to a major study in 1995. The study explored whether the main focus of a teacher's work involves planning, teaching, assessing, rewarding and sharing in their classroom and with colleagues, and whether this focus suffered many distractions in the flurry of reforms of the past decade. One example of ‘changing times’ in the classroom has been the devolution of school management, which caused a number of diversions of energy and time away from teaching and learning. Yet even in the area of curriculum schools were struggling with a range of issues, many brought on by the advent of outcomes-based curricula. In seeking to change what happens in schools, teachers argued that they needed clear and well-argued reasons to change. This article thus provides an update on the relevant research, beginning with national and international experiences, before a discussion of workload, the place of parents and school organizational effects. One finding is that alongside a ‘crowded curriculum’, teaching has become a ‘crowded profession’. The article concludes with reflections on how changing times in the classroom mean social reform as well as educational reform, in which teaching and learning shape effects and consequences from educational events so that knowledge grows through experiences, measuring possibilities not outcomes.
The impact of reasons for attending university on academic resourcefulness and adjustment

It is a well-known phenomenon that generally resourceful students are more likely to employ specific self-control skills, such as academic resourcefulness, to overcome stressors in their life, and as a result, are more likely to be better adjusted, to receive higher grades, and to remain in university than their less resourceful counterparts. To what extent the reasons students attend university further explains academic resourcefulness and why some students fail to persevere with academic challenges were examined in this study. A sample of 481 undergraduate students completed scales assessing general and academic resourcefulness, academic self-efficacy, explanatory style, university adaptation, and reasons for attending university. Students were also asked questions concerning retention, and expected and past grade performance. The results showed that students attending university for more internal reasons and less so to please others and to delay responsibilities uniquely contributed to higher levels of academic resourcefulness. Insight as to why some students may attribute academic failure to lack of effort and personal ability, be less adjusted, decide to leave university, and be expecting and attaining lower grades is provided.
A characterisation of the methodology of qualitative research on the nature of perceived risk: trends and omissions

The issue of how risk is ‘perceived’ is one of significant research interest and immense practical importance. In spite of this wide interest, however, it is probably fair to say that most emerging ‘risk’ crises – whether related to natural or technological phenomena – come as a surprise to researchers and to society as a whole. Prediction of human responses to novel potential hazards (or novel manifestations of old hazards) is neither reliable nor complete; strategies to ameliorate inappropriate concerns when they arise (or to make realistic inappropriate absences of concern) do not appear totally effective. It therefore seems apt to ask the question: just what have we learned about ‘risk perception’? In this paper we conduct a structured review of qualitative research on perceived risk – to be followed by a subsequent analysis of quantitative research in a later paper – focusing upon methodological issues. Qualitative research often precedes quantitative research, and ideally informs it; it seeks depth and meaning from few subjects rather than identifying patterns within larger samples and populations. Without adequate qualitative research, quantitative research risks misanalysis of the target phenomenon, at the very least by the omission of relevant factors and inclusion of irrelevant ones. Our analysis here – of qualitative studies conducted across a range of disciplines, not all of which will be familiar to the readers of this journal – suggests that this research suffers from an incomplete coverage of the ‘risk perception universe’, typified by a focus on atypical hazards and study samples. We summarise the results of this research, while pointing out its limitations, and draw conclusions about future priorities for research of this type.
The quality and effectiveness of marketing strategy: Effects of functional and dysfunctional conflict in intraorganizational relationships

By examining only dysfunctional conflict and ignoring functional conflict, empirical research in marketing has presented only part of the story. This research offers the first systematic look at the antecedents and consequences of both functionaland dysfunctional conflict in intraorganiational relationships. The authors develop and empirically test a causal model for key organizational antecedents of new product strategy quality and market performance. They find that dysfunctional conflict in the decision-making process has deleterious consequences for quality of strategy and market performance, whereas functional conflict improves both quality of strategy and performance. Specifically, organizational design characteristics such as formalization, interdepartmental interconnectedness, low communication barriers, and team spirit improve new product performance by enhancing functional conflict, whereas centralization and high communication barriers lower new product performance by increasing dysfunctional conflict. A post hoc test for common method bias or variance suggests that bias or variance alone cannot explain these findings.
Black mothering, paid work and identity

Recent figures suggest that in Britain today, 77.3% of black women are engaged in full-time paid work, a figure which has remained fairly consistent since the introduction of statistical data assessing the work activity of African-Caribbean women from post-war years (CRE 1997). The study addresses the extent to which black women's high work rate derives from a combination of historical cultural and structural economic factors. Historical and cultural, because the experiences of slavery, colonialism and economic migration have had a direct impact on black women's relationship to full-time paid work today in contemporary Britain. In addition, structural economic factors such as high rates of unemployment for black men and lower rates of pay for black men and women compared to their white male and female counterparts, actively encourage a high proportion of black women towards full-time paid work in order to make up for this economic shortfall. A primary consequence of these inter-locking factors is that full-time paid work becomes central to black women's mothering and black mothers' work status is part of their everyday family experience.
Studies of Individual Environmental Concern

The article deals with analyses concerning the interplay of environmentally relevant knowledge, attitudes, and behavior as well as gender differences in environmental concern and the role of "background variables" for the prediction of (self-reported) behavior. In a sample of 167 German adults, the results showed that knowledge and gender moderated the relationship between attitudes and behavior. For a second sample of 105 people active in conservation groups, these moderator effects were not as clear. For both samples, women were more environmentally concerned in those topical areas that refer to household behavior, whereas men knew more about environmental problems. Possible reasons for these effects are discussed. Finally, the role of "background variables" is investigated by means of stepwise regression and discriminant analyses, using self-reported behavior as the central dependent variable. For the purpose of this study, a new measurement instrument was constructed and validated. Compared with other scales, a new aspect is the substantially broader spectrum covered. Moreover, various topical areas of environmental concern (e.g., residential energy conservation, environmentally aware purchasing, recycling of solid wastes, and so forth) can be measured simultaneously with the well-established conceptual variables (knowledge, attitude, behavior).
Combination Strategies in Multi-Atlas Image Segmentation: Application to Brain MR Data

It has been shown that employing multiple atlas images improves segmentation accuracy in atlas-based medical image segmentation. Each atlas image is registered to the target image independently and the calculated transformation is applied to the segmentation of the atlas image to obtain a segmented version of the target image. Several independent candidate segmentations result from the process, which must be somehow combined into a single final segmentation. Majority voting is the generally used rule to fuse the segmentations, but more sophisticated methods have also been proposed. In this paper, we show that the use of global weights to ponderate candidate segmentations has a major limitation. As a means to improve segmentation accuracy, we propose the generalized local weighting voting method. Namely, the fusion weights adapt voxel-by-voxel according to a local estimation of segmentation performance. Using digital phantoms and MR images of the human brain, we demonstrate that the performance of each combination technique depends on the gray level contrast characteristics of the segmented region, and that no fusion method yields better results than the others for all the regions. In particular, we show that local combination strategies outperform global methods in segmenting high-contrast structures, while global techniques are less sensitive to noise when contrast between neighboring structures is low. We conclude that, in order to achieve the highest overall segmentation accuracy, the best combination method for each particular structure must be selected.
A morpho-graphemic approach for the recognition of spontaneous speech in agglutinative languages - like Hungarian

A coupled acoustic- and language-modeling approach is presented for the recognition of spontaneous speech primarily in agglutinative languages. The effectiveness of the approach in large vocabulary spontaneous speech recognition is demonstrated on the Hungarian MALACH corpus. The derivation of morphs from word forms is based on a statistical morphological segmentation tool while the mapping of morphs into graphemes is obtained trivially by splitting each morph into individual letters. Using morphs instead of words in language modeling gives significant WER reductions in case of both phoneme- and grapheme-based acoustic modeling. The improvements are larger after speaker adaptation of the acoustic models. In conclusion, morphophonemic and the proposed morpho-graphemic ASR approaches yield the same best WERs, which are significantly lower than the word-based baselines but essentially without language dependent rules or pronunciation dictionaries in the latter case. Index Terms: spontaneous speech recognition, morphology.
Unsupervised cross-lingual speaker adaptation for accented speech recognition

In this paper we present investigations on how the acoustic models in automatic speech recognition can be adapted across languages in unsupervised fashion to improve recognition of speech with a foreign accent. Recognition systems were trained on large Finnish and English corpora, and tested both on monolingual and bilingual material. Adaptation with bilingual and monolingual recognisers was compared. We found out that recognition of foreign accented English with help of Finnish adaptation training data from the same speaker was not improved significantly. However, the recognition of native Finnish using foreign accented English adaptation data was improved significantly.
An Uncertain Inheritance: The Imperial Travels of Legal Migrants, from British India to Ottoman Iraq

Like many nineteenth-century travelers, Iqbal al-Daulah, a cousin of the Nawab of the Indian princely state of Awadh, navigated multiple legal systems as he migrated across Asia, Europe, and the Middle East. Living through the absorption of Awadh into the expanding British Empire, he eventually joined a community of Indian Shias in Ottoman Iraq, who regularly used British consular courts. While still in India, Iqbal al-Daulah composed a tribute in Persian and English to British justice. He described British courts in the following laudatory terms: “What Ease is afforded to Petitioners! The Doors of the numerous Courts being open, if any by reason of his dark fate, should be disappointed in the attainment of his desire, in one Court, in another he may obtain the Victory and Succeed. ” Iqbal al-Daulah secured a sizeable pension and knighthood from the British government. However, at the end of his life, he had lost faith in British courts. In his will he lamented: “British courts are uncertain, stock in trade of bribery, wrong, delay…the seekers of redress, are captives of the paw of the Court officials; and business goes on by bribery not to be counted or described. ” Despite Iqbal al-Daulah's words of caution, his friends and relatives became enmeshed in legal battles over his inheritance in British courts in India and Ottoman Iraq. In doing so, they joined the crowds of colonial subjects who flooded the courts, enduring expense and annoyance despite the prospect of uncertain outcomes.