Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Metabolic alterations following visceral fat removal and expansion

Increased visceral adiposity is a risk factor for metabolic disorders such as dyslipidemia, hypertension, insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes, whereas peripheral (subcutaneous) obesity is not. Though the specific mechanisms which contribute to these adipose depot differences are unknown, visceral fat accumulation is proposed to result in metabolic dysregulation because of increased effluent, e.g., fatty acids and/or adipokines/cytokines, to the liver via the hepatic portal vein. Pathological significance of visceral fat accumulation is also attributed to adipose depot/adipocyte-specific characteristics, specifically differences in structural, physiologic and metabolic characteristics compared with subcutaneous fat. Fat manipulations, such as removal or transplantation, have been utilized to identify location dependent or independent factors that play a role in metabolic dysregulation. Obesity-induced alterations in adipose tissue function/intrinsic characteristics, but not mass, appear to be responsible for obesity-induced metabolic dysregulation, thus “quality” is more important than “quantity. ” This review summarizes the implications of obesity-induced metabolic dysfunction as it relates to anatomic site and inherent adipocyte characteristics.
Adherence to tactical choices mediates regulatory fit effects in table tennis

The present work examines how regulatory fit affects table tennis performance. We find a player’s adherence to their chosen tactic (offensive vs. defensive) to be a mediator of the observed fit effects. Expert table tennis players (N = 39) were given verbal instructions (i.e. regulatory frames), before they played 6 matches each; we created baseline, fit, and non-fit conditions with each player’s chronic regulatory focus. Results replicate previously found positive effects of regulatory fit on performance. We also find evidence for a novel mediator of this effect. Players under fit were more likely to adhere to their chosen tactic, which led to higher likelihood of winning the point.
CLOB: communication support for efficient replicated database recovery

Replication protocols using an eager update propagation strategy commonly need a reliable broadcast service; i.e., a broadcast primitive with atomic delivery and, in some cases, also with total order. This communication service provides some appropriate features for the recovery tasks, although in some cases this leads to partial blocking of the replica taken as the source in the updating process. CLOB is a framework for reliable broadcast protocols that log the missed update messages in case of failure, being able to automatically resend these updates when the faulty destinations recover. This behaviour is easily configurable and allows an efficient recovery mechanism in case of short-term failures, which can be combined with other version-based recovery protocols in order to manage long-term outages.
How General is Specific Human Capital?

Previous studies assume that labor market skills are either fully general or specific to the firm. This paper uses patterns in mobility and wages to analyze how portable specific skills are in the labor market. The empirical analysis combines data on tasks performed in different jobs with a large panel on complete working histories and wages. Our results demonstrate that labor market skills are partially transferable across occupations. We find that individuals move to occupations with similar task requirements and that the distance of moves declines with time in the labor market. Further, tenure in the last occupation affects current wages, and the effect is stronger if the two occupations are similar. Our estimates suggest that task-specific human capital is the most important source of wage growth for university graduates. For the low- and medium-skilled, returns to task human capital are also sizeable, though smaller than for labor market experience.
Coping Humor of 354 Chinese University Students

Objectives:Comparing Chinese with Canadians in using coping humor;exploring the relationship between coping humor and mental health.Methods:354 university students filled out the Coping Humor Scale (CHS)and the Self-rated Symptom Check-List-90 questionnaire.Results:The Cronbach alpha of the CHS was 0.65 and its test-retest reliability with 74 university students was 0.79. The Cronbach alpha of the CHS by deleting item 4 increased to 0.70. The reliability and validity of the CHS by deleting item 4 were moderately acceptable.It is found that Chinese university male students used more coping humor in comparison with their female counterparts.Chinese university students used less coping humor than their Canadian counterparts.The CHS correlated negatively with the subscales and general symptomatic index of SCL-90.Conclusions:The CHS by deleting item 4 can be applied in the Chinese context,but further revision is also recommended.There are cultural differences in using coping humor.
NTHU-Route 2.0: A Robust Global Router for Modern Designs

This paper presents a robust global router called NTHU-Route 2.0 that improves the solution quality and runtime of NTHU-Route by the following enhancements: 1) a new history based cost function; 2) new ordering methods for congested region identification and rip-up and reroute; and 3) two implementation techniques. We report convincing experimental results to show the effectiveness of each individual enhancement. With all these enhancements together, NTHU-Route 2.0 solves all ISPD98 benchmarks with very good quality. Moreover, NTHU-Route 2.0 routes 7 of 8 ISPD07 benchmarks and 12 of 16 ISPD08 benchmarks without any overflow. Compared with other state-of-the-art global routers, NTHU-Route 2.0 is able to produce better solution quality and/or run more efficiently.
Effects of Experimenter Awareness and Sex of Subject and Experimenter on Reactions to Dependency Relationship

Previous experimental research has demonstrated that college students become motivated to help a peer who needs their assistance even though (a) they themselves will gain no tangible benefits through their effort, and (b) the peer, someone they probably will not meet again, will not find out about their work in his behalf for several months. The present study was conducted primarily to determine whether the immediacy with which the experimenter would learn about the subject's work affects the effort exerted in the dependent peer's behalf. Employing a 24 factorial design, it was found that the extent to which the peer needed help significantly influenced work in behalf of
RDMA over Commodity Ethernet at Scale

Over the past one and half years, we have been using RDMA over commodity Ethernet (RoCEv2) to support some of Microsoft's highly-reliable, latency-sensitive services. This paper describes the challenges we encountered during the process and the solutions we devised to address them. In order to scale RoCEv2 beyond VLAN, we have designed a DSCP-based priority flow-control (PFC) mechanism to ensure large-scale deployment. We have addressed the safety challenges brought by PFC-induced deadlock (yes, it happened! ), RDMA transport livelock, and the NIC PFC pause frame storm problem. We have also built the monitoring and management systems to make sure RDMA works as expected. Our experiences show that the safety and scalability issues of running RoCEv2 at scale can all be addressed, and RDMA can replace TCP for intra data center communications and achieve low latency, low CPU overhead, and high throughput.
Optimizing transactions for captured memory

In this paper, we identify transaction-local memory as a major source of overhead from compiler instrumentation in software transactional memory (STM). Transaction-local memory is memory allocated inside a transaction, which cannot escape (i.e., is captured by) the allocating transaction. Accesses to such memory do not require calls to STM memory access functions (also called STM barriers). A compiler unaware of that, however, may translate simple memory load/store operations accessing such memory into more expensive STM barriers. This presents us opportunities to improve STM performance. Our measurements with the STAMP benchmark suite (version 0.9.9) revealed that as many as 60% of the STM barriers generated by our baseline compiler can be accesses to captured memory, which include 90% of the write barriers and 45% of the read barriers. We propose runtime and compiler optimizations to elide STM barriers to captured memory. Similar techniques can also be used to elide barriers for accesses to thread-local and read-only data. We implemented those optimizations in the Intel C++ STM compiler. Our experiments with the STAMP benchmark suite on a Intel Dunnington system (with 24 cores in a 4-node SMP system) showed that upto 18% performance improvement could be achieved at 16 threads.
Functional connectivity in the resting brain: A network analysis of the default mode hypothesis

Functional imaging studies have shown that certain brain regions, including posterior cingulate cortex (PCC) and ventral anterior cingulate cortex (vACC), consistently show greater activity during resting states than during cognitive tasks. This finding led to the hypothesis that these regions constitute a network supporting a default mode of brain function. In this study, we investigate three questions pertaining to this hypothesis: Does such a resting-state network exist in the human brain? Is it modulated during simple sensory processing? How is it modulated during cognitive processing? To address these questions, we defined PCC and vACC regions that showed decreased activity during a cognitive (working memory) task, then examined their functional connectivity during rest. PCC was strongly coupled with vACC and several other brain regions implicated in the default mode network. Next, we examined the functional connectivity of PCC and vACC during a visual processing task and show that the resultant connectivity maps are virtually identical to those obtained during rest. Last, we defined three lateral prefrontal regions showing increased activity during the cognitive task and examined their resting-state connectivity. We report significant inverse correlations among all three lateral prefrontal regions and PCC, suggesting a mechanism for attenuation of default mode network activity during cognitive processing. This study constitutes, to our knowledge, the first resting-state connectivity analysis of the default mode and provides the most compelling evidence to date for the existence of a cohesive default mode network. Our findings also provide insight into how this network is modulated by task demands and what functions it might subserve.
Aging-Dependent Exclusion of Antigen-Inexperienced Cells from the Peripheral B Cell Repertoire1

Aging is accompanied by greatly reduced B cell production in the bone marrow, yet peripheral B cell numbers do not decline. We hypothesize that this may reflect filling of the peripheral pool with B cells that are long-lived as a consequence of specificity for, and chronic stimulation by, environmental Ags. To begin to explore this possibility, we analyzed the effects of aging on B cell population dynamics in the anti-H2k/b 3-83μδ Ig-transgenic mouse. We predicted that, because they presumably do not bind environmental Ags, B cells bearing the transgenic receptor may be lost in aged animals. As seen in nontransgenic animals, total splenic B cell numbers remained constant with age in the Ig-transgenic animals despite reduced B cell production. Importantly, although the few newly produced B cells in the bone marrow of aged mice are 3-83 positive, the peripheral compartment of these mice is dominated by B cells that express endogenous Ig genes rather than the transgenes. This population includes large numbers of marginal zone-like and CD21low/−CD23low/−IgMlow B cells, as well as elevated numbers of CD5+ B cells. Many of these cells express only non-B220 CD45 isoforms, suggesting that they may be memory cells. A significant proportion of aged transgenic animals produce autoantibodies that are reactive with ssDNA, dsDNA, or histones. Results support the hypothesis that, in the face of severely reduced production with age, B cells are selected based on reactivity to environmental Ags, accumulate, and display activated phenotypes. Cells bearing 3-83-transgenic receptors are excluded from this population due to their specificity. Beyond their importance in aging, these findings define a novel form of receptor revision in which B cells are selected rather than deleted based on Ag reactivity.
The star formation history of the LSB galaxy UGC 5889

We present HST photometry of the LSB galaxy UGC 5889 and derive its recent star formation history. In the last 200 Myr the star formation proceeded in modest bursts at a rate of the order of 10 2 -10 3 M⊙/yr, with periods of extremely low SFR or even quiescence. The rate derived from the present study for the last 20 Myr is in agreement with the Hα emission from the galaxy. The presence of a consistent population older than 200 Myr is suggested by the data. However, observational errors and completeness correction prevent any firm conclusion on the oldest age. The total mass of stars is of the order of 5.5 ×10 7 M⊙. Even if the recent episodes of star formation have heated the gas and carved a hole in the disk, blow-away of the gas is unlikely to occur.
Simulation-Based Computation of Information Rates for Channels With Memory

The information rate of finite-state source/channel models can be accurately estimated by sampling both a long channel input sequence and the corresponding channel output sequence, followed by a forward sum-product recursion on the joint source/channel trellis. This method is extended to compute upper and lower bounds on the information rate of very general channels with memory by means of finite-state approximations. Further upper and lower bounds can be computed by reduced-state methods
Cohesion as a Principle of Object Persistence in Infancy

A critical challenge for visual perception is to represent objects as the same persisting individuals over time and motion. Across several areas of cognitive science, researchers have identified cohesion as among the most important theoretical principles of object persistence: An object must maintain a single bounded contour over time. Drawing inspiration from recent work in adult visual cognition, the present study tested the power of cohesion as a constraint as it operates early in development. In particular, we tested whether the most minimal cohesion violation — a single object splitting into two — would destroy infants’ ability to represent a quantity of objects over occlusion. In a forced-choice crawling paradigm, 10and 12-month-old infants witnessed crackers being sequentially placed into containers, and typically crawled toward the container with the greater cracker quantity. When one of the crackers was visibly split in half, however, infants failed to represent the relative quantities, despite controls for the overall quantities and the motions involved. This result helps to characterize the fidelity and specificity of cohesion as a fundamental principle of object persistence, suggesting that even the simplest possible cohesion violation can dramatically impair infants’ object representations and influence their overt behavior.
Systematic In Vivo Analysis of the Intrinsic Determinants of Amyloid β Pathogenicity

Protein aggregation into amyloid fibrils and protofibrillar aggregates is associated with a number of the most common neurodegenerative diseases. We have established, using a computational approach, that knowledge of the primary sequences of proteins is sufficient to predict their in vitro aggregation propensities. Here we demonstrate, using rational mutagenesis of the Aβ42 peptide based on such computational predictions of aggregation propensity, the existence of a strong correlation between the propensity of Aβ42 to form protofibrils and its effect on neuronal dysfunction and degeneration in a Drosophila model of Alzheimer disease. Our findings provide a quantitative description of the molecular basis for the pathogenicity of Aβ and link directly and systematically the intrinsic properties of biomolecules, predicted in silico and confirmed in vitro, to pathogenic events taking place in a living organism.
Using the EM38DD soil sensor to delineate clay lenses in a sandy forest soil

The objective of this study was to locate clay lenses in a sandy forest soil. The study site was a Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) plantation in the Campine region of Belgium, which has been selected as a European Union-funded Level II Research Site for soil monitoring. Typically, the soils in the area have homogeneous sandy soil profiles, but clay lenses occur locally within a depth of 2 m of the soil surface. Locating these clay lenses is necessary because they can have a substantial impact on soil processes. Therefore, we used the EM38DD soil sensor to measure the soil apparent electrical conductivity (ECa) simultaneously in two orientations. Apparent electrical conductivity maps were generated and it was found that the variation in ECa was mainly driven by the spatial variability of soil texture across the study site. The ratio of the two orientations (profile ratio or PR) clearly revealed a circular pattern with decreased PR values (<1), which was identified as a clay lens. To delineate the extent of this lens, two numerical methods were used: (i) a fuzzy-k-means classification of the PR map focusing on the lowest centroid class, and (ii) a probability approach through indicator kriging. Using a validation image obtained from directed auguring, cell-by-cell comparisons were made for these two methods complemented with spatial accuracy measures. Although both methods tended to underestimate the spatial extent of the clay lens, the indicator kriging method was the most accurate, with an overall accuracy of 0.838, a proportion of error due to locational errors (K-loc) of 0.864, and an average similarity of 0.841.
Quantification of microcirculatory parameters by joint analysis of flow‐compensated and non‐flow‐compensated intravoxel incoherent motion (IVIM) data

The aim of this study was to improve the accuracy and precision of perfusion fraction and blood velocity dispersion estimates in intravoxel incoherent motion (IVIM) imaging, using joint analysis of flow‐compensated and non‐flow‐compensated motion‐encoded MRI data. A double diffusion encoding sequence capable of switching between flow‐compensated and non‐flow‐compensated encoding modes was implemented. In vivo brain data were collected in eight healthy volunteers and processed using the joint analysis. Simulations were used to compare the performance of the proposed analysis method with conventional IVIM analysis. With flow compensation, strong rephasing was observed for the in vivo data, approximately cancelling the IVIM effect. The joint analysis yielded physiologically reasonable perfusion fraction maps. Estimated perfusion fractions were 2.43 ± 0.81% in gray matter, 1.81 ± 0.90% in deep gray matter, and 1.64 ± 0.72% in white matter (mean ± SD, n = 8). Simulations showed improved accuracy and precision when using joint analysis of flow‐compensated and non‐flow‐compensated data, compared with conventional IVIM analysis. Double diffusion encoding with flow compensation was feasible for in vivo imaging of the perfusion fraction in the brain. The strong rephasing implied that blood flowing through the cerebral microvascular system was closer to the ballistic limit than the diffusive limit. © 2016 The Authors NMR in Biomedicine published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
Evaluation of CDSS for Drug Prescriptions Based on Success Measures

Objective: The Clinical Decision Support System (CDSS) for drug prescriptions was developed by integrating the com- puterized physician order entry (CPOE) system to support doctors and pharmacists in making correct decisions on prescribing drugs in line with the prescription guidelines by the Health Insurance Review Agency (HIRA). The objective of this study was to evaluate the performance of the CDSS with respect to system quality, information quality, and user satisfaction in reducing prescription errors. Methods: The study was based on survey data from 38 hospitals that were using the CDSS for drug prescriptions. To identify factors influencing the performance of CDSS, multiple linear regression and chi-square analyses were performed. Results: Regression analysis showed that the variables for system quality and information quality significantly influenced the overall system performance. Specifically, ease of understanding the results and terminology assy- stem quality measures significantly influenced user satisfaction. Furthermore, based on chi-square analysis, two independent variables (ease of understanding results and decision support functions) were statistically significant with respect to all four dependent variables (information satisfaction, system satisfaction, willingness to recommend to other hospitals, and drug safety). Conclusion: Based on this study, users should be educated to improve their understanding of the system,and system and information quality should be continuously monitored to improve user satisfaction. (Journal of Korean Society of Medical Informatics 15-3, 293-301, 2009)
The Role of Personality in Predicting (Change in) Students’ Academic Success Across Four Years of Secondary School

Abstract. Little longitudinal research has addressed the question of whether the Big Five personality traits (i.e., O, C, E, A, N) predict educational outcomes and whether the Big Five provide incremental predictive validity for educational outcomes when prior achievement, intelligence, and academic self-concept are controlled for. Also, little is known about whether noncognitive factors are related to change in academic success, especially grades, after controlling for its stability. To address these research questions, we used data from the Luxembourg longitudinal extension of the 2009 cycle of the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA). We included data from two student cohorts that were followed across 4 years: The first cohort was in ninth grade when they participated in PISA (N = 240); the second cohort in 10th grade (N = 276). Correlational results showed that Conscientiousness and Openness were substantially related to subject-specific grades in Mathematics, French, and German across .
Optimized neural coding? control mechanisms in large cortical networks implemented by connectivity changes

Using functional magnetic resonance imaging, we show that a distributed fronto‐parietal visuomotor integration network is recruited to overcome automatic responses to both biological and nonbiological cues. Activity levels in these areas are similar for both cue types. The functional connectivity of this network, however, reveals differential coupling with thalamus and precuneus (biological cues) and extrastriate cortex (nonbiological cues). This suggests that a set of cortical areas equally activated in two tasks may accomplish task goals differently depending on their network interactions. This supports models of brain organization that emphasize efficient coding through changing patterns of integration between regions of specialized function. Hum Brain Mapp, 2013. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.