Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
TAIL BITING IN PIGS

Tail biting represents both a major animal welfare and economic problem for the pig industry with losses due to reduced weight gain, increased on-farm veterinary treatment, culling and carcass condemnation. Tail biting has a multifactorial origin. It is known to be sporadic, making outbreaks difficult to predict and understand, even within the same facilities and under similar management systems. Nowadays, more than two third of the growing pig farms report some tail damage due to tail biting.
INDUCTION OF B CELL TOLERANCE IN VITRO TO 2,4-DINITROPHENYL COUPLED TO A COPOLYMER OF D-GLUTAMIC ACID AND D-LYSINE (DNP-D-GL)

Spleen cells from CBA or congenitally athymic ("nude") mice were pretreated with various concentrations of DNP coupled to a copolymer of D-glutamic acid and D-lysine (DNP37-D-GL), under various conditions of time and temperature. After washing, they were then cultured for 3 days with the direct B cell immunogen, DNP coupled to Salmonella adelaide flagella (DNP-FLA). Under all circumstances tried, exposure of cells to 1 µg/ml DNP-D-GL caused a 70–100% depression in the subsequent DNP-specific PFC response, and 100 ng/ml caused a lesser but still substantial effect. At the concentrations used, DNP-D-GL did not affect irrelevant antibody responses. Though cells from nude mice responded somewhat less well to DNP-FLA than those from CBA mice, no significant difference in the reaction of the two populations to the tolerogen was noted. This demonstrates that DNP-D-GL can, as previously suspected, directly cause unresponsiveness in B lymphocytes.
Overexpression of the cyclin‐dependent kinase inhibitor p21WAF1/GIP1 in human cutaneous malignant melanoma

p2lWAFI/CIPI (p21) is an inhibitor of cyclin‐dependent kinases recently identified as the downstream effector of wild‐type p53‐me‐diated cell cycle arrest. The gene coding for p21 may function as a negative regulator of melanoma growth, progression, and metastasis. Using immunohistochemistry and Western blotting, we investigated the expression of p21 in human melanocytic proliferations. Immunohistochemical staining was performed on 13 common acquired nevi, 12 dysplastic nevi, 23 primary malignant melanomas, and 12 metastatic melanomas. Common acquired nevi showed minimal p21 staining (1.8±0.3%, mean±SEM). The percentage of positive nuclei was slightly elevated in dysplastic nevi (8.9±1.7%). Both primary malignant melanoma (29±3%) and metastatic melanoma (33±5%) demonstrated a significantly increased number of p21‐positive nuclei compared to benign lesions (p<0.001). p21 was strongly expressed even in actively proliferating lesions as confirmed by MIB‐1 labelling, and although the majority of p21‐positive cells likely represent a non‐proliferating population, staining was occasionally observed in cells undergoing mitosis, suggesting abnormal function of this cell cycle inhibitor in malignant melanoma. Overexpression of p21 in metastatic melanoma compared to common acquired nevi was confirmed by Western blot analysis of human tumor samples. These findings suggest that increased p21 expression relative to benign nevi is not sufficient to control melanoma growth in vivo.
Pediatric and Youth Traffic-Collision Injuries in Al Ain, United Arab Emirates: A Prospective Study

Aim To study the mechanism of road traffic collisions (RTC), use of safety devices, and outcome of hospitalized pediatric and youth RTC injured patients so as to give recommendations regarding prevention of pediatric RTC injuries. Methods All RTC injured children and youth (0–19-year-olds) who were admitted to Al Ain City’s two major trauma centers or who died after arrival to these centers were prospectively studied from April 2006 to October 2007. Demography of patients, road-user and vehicle types, crash mechanism, usage of safety devices, injured body regions, injury severity, Revised Trauma Score, Glasgow Coma Scale, intensive care unit admissions, hospital stay and mortality were analyzed. Results 245 patients were studied, 69% were vehicle occupants, 15% pedestrians, 9% motorcyclists and 5% bicyclists. 79% were males and 67% UAE citizens. The most common mechanism of RTC was rollover of vehicle (37%) followed by front impact collision (32%). 32 (13%) of vehicle occupants were ejected from car. 63% of ejected occupants and 70% of motorcyclists sustained head injuries. Only 2% (3/170) vehicle passengers used seatbelts and 13% (3/23) motorcyclists a helmet. Conclusions Male drivers and UAE nationals were at high risk of RTC as drivers and as motorcyclists. Ejection rate was high because safety restraint use was extremely low in our community. More education and law enforcement focusing especially on car/booster seat use is needed.
An Intercomparison of VLF and Sounding Rocket Techniques for Measuring the Daytime D Region Ionosphere: Theoretical Implications

We compare the two approaches that have been used to measure the lowermost ionosphere, the measurement of the propagation of very low frequency (VLF) radio waves and the in situ sampling by sounding rockets. We focus on the altitude, latitude, and zenith angle variation of the electron density profiles inferred from these two observational techniques as compared with a theoretical photochemical model. Our results show that below 68–70 km, the VLF data and the model agree better with each other than with the sounding rocket profile. At the lowest altitudes, near 60 km, both the VLF data and the model show a greater electron density at higher latitudes, consistent with a cosmic ray flux that increases with latitude, whereas the limited rocket data show a maximum at the tropics. Above 68–70 km, the VLF data and the sounding rockets agree better and at tropical latitudes, the model fails to reproduce the observations. Specifically, the calculated electron density is lower than the data by up to a factor of 2. Possible reasons for the model deficit include underestimates of the solar Lyman alpha flux, the solar X‐ray flux and the mesospheric nitric oxide density. Once these three factors are mitigated, the model is in agreement with the observations between 60 and 80 km.
Interpretation of Heat‐Pulse Tracer Tests for Characterization of Three‐Dimensional Velocity Fields in Hyporheic Zone

Heat‐pulse tracers are a promising field method to measure Darcy flux in the hyporheic zone. Interpretation of data collected from such tests typically assumes knowledge of the direction of local Darcy flux (vertical) and relies on simplified heat transport models with one‐dimensional fluid flow and heat transfer. These assumptions are seldom valid due to complex flow geometry, heterogeneity, and the presence of localized heat sources. We derive a set of analytical expressions that obviate the need for these simplifying assumptions, thus substantially improving the capabilities of existing field instruments without requiring additional measurements. These closed‐form solutions account for tensorial nature of heat‐transfer parameters, and are obtained by using Green's functions and rotational coordinate transformations. The approach simplifies data collection, estimates three‐dimensional Darcy flux, relates fluid flow to heat‐transfer properties of the host medium, and can facilitate inverse modeling. Field applications of our solutions and their ramifications for data collection and analysis are discussed.
Simple Integer Risk Score to Determine Prognosis of Patients With Hypertension and Chronic Stable Coronary Artery Disease

Background It is difficult to accurately determine prognosis of patients with hypertension and chronic stable coronary artery disease (CAD). Our aim was to construct a risk score for predicting important adverse events in this population. Methods and Results Patients with hypertension and chronic stable CAD enrolled in the INternational VErapamil‐SR/Trandolapril STudy (INVEST) comprised the study cohort. Candidate predictor variables were obtained from patients with at least 1 postbaseline visit. Patients were divided into development (n=18 484) and validation cohorts (n=2054). Cox regression model identified predictors of the primary outcome: all‐cause mortality, myocardial infarction, or stroke at a mean follow‐up of 2.3 years. The hazard ratio of each variable was rounded to the nearest integer to construct score weights. A score 0 to 4 defined low‐risk, 5 to 6 intermediate‐risk and ≥7 high‐risk. The following variables were retained in the final model: age, residence, body mass index, on‐treatment heart rate and BP, prior myocardial infarction, heart failure, stroke/transient ischemic attack, smoking, diabetes, peripheral arterial disease, and chronic kidney disease. The primary outcome occurred in 2.9% of the low‐risk group, 6.5% of the intermediate‐risk group, and 18.0% of the high‐risk group (P for trend <0.0001). The model was good at discriminating those who had an event versus those who did not (C‐statistic=0.75). The model performed well in a validation cohort (C‐statistic=0.77). Conclusion Readily available clinical variables can rapidly stratify patients with hypertension and chronic stable CAD into useful risk categories.
Evaluation effort, reliability and reusability in XML retrieval

The Initiative for the Evaluation of XML retrieval (INEX) provides a TREC-like platform for evaluating content-oriented XML retrieval systems. Since 2007, INEX has been using a set of precision-recall based metrics for its ad hoc tasks. The authors investigate the reliability and robustness of these focused retrieval measures, and of the INEX pooling method. They explore four specific questions: How reliable are the metrics when assessments are incomplete, or when query sets are small? What is the minimum pool/query-set size that can be used to reliably evaluate systems? Can the INEX collections be used to fairly evaluate “new” systems that did not participate in the pooling process? And, for a fixed amount of assessment effort, would this effort be better spent in thoroughly judging a few queries, or in judging many queries relatively superficially? The authors' findings validate properties of precision-recall-based metrics observed in document retrieval settings. Early precision measures are found to be more error-prone and less stable under incomplete judgments and small topic-set sizes. They also find that system rankings remain largely unaffected even when assessment effort is substantially (but systematically) reduced, and confirm that the INEX collections remain usable when evaluating nonparticipating systems. Finally, they observe that for a fixed amount of effort, judging shallow pools for many queries is better than judging deep pools for a smaller set of queries. However, when judging only a random sample of a pool, it is better to completely judge fewer topics than to partially judge many topics. This result confirms the effectiveness of pooling methods. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
FATHER–CHILD INTERACTIONS AT 3 MONTHS AND 24 MONTHS: CONTRIBUTIONS TO CHILDREN'S COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT AT 24 MONTHS

ABSTRACT The quality of father–child interactions has become a focus of increasing research in the field of child development. We examined the potential contribution of father–child interactions at both 3 months and 24 months to children's cognitive development at 24 months. Observational measures of father–child interactions at 3 and 24 months were used to assess the quality of fathers’ parenting (n = 192). At 24 months, the Mental Developmental Index (MDI) of the Bayley Scales of Infant Development, Second Edition (N. Bayley, 1993) measured cognitive functioning. The association between interactions and cognitive development was examined using multiple linear regression analyses, adjusting for paternal age, education and depression, infant age, and maternal sensitivity. Children whose fathers displayed more withdrawn and depressive behaviors in father–infant interactions at 3 months scored lower on the MDI at 24 months. At 24 months, children whose fathers were more engaged and sensitive as well as those whose fathers were less controlling in their interactions scored higher on the MDI. These findings were independent of the effects of maternal sensitivity. Results indicate that father–child interactions, even from a very young age (i.e., 3 months) may influence children's cognitive development. They highlight the potential significance of interventions to promote positive parenting by fathers and policies that encourage fathers to spend more time with their young children.
Structural correlates of early and late onset Alzheimer’s disease: voxel based morphometric study

Objective: To examine the brain structural correlates of age at onset in patients with Alzheimer’s disease. Methods: We studied nine patients with early onset (age ⩽65 years), nine with late onset (age >65) Alzheimer’s disease (EOAD and LOAD, respectively) of mild-moderate severity, and 26 controls who were stratified into younger (YC, age ⩽65, n = 9) and older (OC, age >65, n = 17) subjects. The patients were closely matched for clinical severity: 3/2/3/1 patients had clinical dementia rating of 0.5/1/2/3, respectively, in both the groups. High resolution magnetic resonance images of the brain of the EOAD and YC groups and the LOAD and OC groups were compared on a voxel by voxel basis with statistical parametric mapping to detect areas specifically atrophic. Results: The patients with EOAD showed greater neocortical atrophy at the temporoparietal junction while the patients with LOAD showed greater hippocampal atrophy. The results could not be accounted for by the apolipoprotein E genotype. Conclusions: Since genetic factors are believed to play a relevant pathogenetic role in EOAD and environmental factors in LOAD, genetic and environmental factors may differentially predispose the neocortical and limbic areas to the development of Alzheimer’s neuropathology.
Experimental Games on Networks: Underpinnings of Behavior and Equilibrium Selection

In this paper, we describe a series of laboratory experiments that implement specific examples of a general network structure. Specifically, actions are either strategic substitutes or strategic complements, and participants have either complete or incomplete information about the structure of a random network. Since economic environments typically have a considerable degree of complementarity or substitutability, this framework applies to a wide variety of settings. We examine behavior and equilibrium selection. The degree of equilibrium play is striking, in particular with incomplete information. Behavior closely resembles the theoretical equilibrium whenever this is unique; when there are multiple equilibria, general features of networks, such as connectivity, clustering, and the degree of the players, help to predict informed behavior in the lab. People appear to be strongly attracted to maximizing aggregate payoffs (social efficiency), but there are forces that moderate this attraction: (1) people seem content with (in the aggregate) capturing only the lion's share of the efficient profits in exchange for reduced exposure to loss, and (2) uncertainty about the network structure makes it considerably more difficult to coordinate on a demanding, but efficient, equilibrium that is typically implemented with complete information.
In-office use of a steroid-eluting implant for maintenance of frontal ostial patency after revision sinus surgery

Achieving long-term, successful outcomes with endoscopic sinus surgery (ESS) can be challenging in patients with recalcitrant chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS). Local complications, including scar formation and ostial stenosis, can lead to recurrent blockage and subsequent relapse. The frontal sinus is particularly vulnerable to surgical failure given its narrow outflow and inaccessibility to topical therapies. The advent of steroid-eluting sinus implants has enhanced ESS outcomes, with significant reductions in synechiae, inflammation, and secondary postoperative interventions when placed in the ethmoid cavity. However, use of this technology in the frontal sinus has yet to be described. The purpose of this report is to present two cases, in which in-office frontal placement of a mometasone furoate (MF)-eluting implant facilitated maintenance of ostial patency after revision ESS. The clinical presentation, in-office intervention, and treatment outcomes were examined. Two patients (male, 63 and 68 years of age) with a history of multiple ESS presented with recurrent unilateral frontal headache refractory to medical therapy. Nasal endoscopy/imaging revealed frontal sinus outflow obstruction. Both declined revision ESS under general anesthesia and underwent endoscopic frontal sinustomy/ostial dilation in the clinic. A MF-eluting implant was placed in the frontal sinus at the end of the procedure, with preservation of ostial patency upon last follow-up at 3 and 11 months, respectively. In-office placement of a MF-eluting implant successfully maintained frontal ostial patency in patients with a history of multiple ESS. Additional randomized trials are necessary to determine statistical significance, cost-effectiveness analysis, and long-term efficacy of frontal sinus implantation.
Partitioning of multivariate phenotypes using regression trees reveals complex patterns of adaptation to climate across the range of black cottonwood (Populus trichocarpa)

Local adaptation to climate in temperate forest trees involves the integration of multiple physiological, morphological, and phenological traits. Latitudinal clines are frequently observed for these traits, but environmental constraints also track longitude and altitude. We combined extensive phenotyping of 12 candidate adaptive traits, multivariate regression trees, quantitative genetics, and a genome-wide panel of SNP markers to better understand the interplay among geography, climate, and adaptation to abiotic factors in Populus trichocarpa. Heritabilities were low to moderate (0.13–0.32) and population differentiation for many traits exceeded the 99th percentile of the genome-wide distribution of FST, suggesting local adaptation. When climate variables were taken as predictors and the 12 traits as response variables in a multivariate regression tree analysis, evapotranspiration (Eref) explained the most variation, with subsequent splits related to mean temperature of the warmest month, frost-free period (FFP), and mean annual precipitation (MAP). These grouping matched relatively well the splits using geographic variables as predictors: the northernmost groups (short FFP and low Eref) had the lowest growth, and lowest cold injury index; the southern British Columbia group (low Eref and intermediate temperatures) had average growth and cold injury index; the group from the coast of California and Oregon (high Eref and FFP) had the highest growth performance and the highest cold injury index; and the southernmost, high-altitude group (with high Eref and low FFP) performed poorly, had high cold injury index, and lower water use efficiency. Taken together, these results suggest variation in both temperature and water availability across the range shape multivariate adaptive traits in poplar.
A Novel Optimizing Network Architecture with Applications

We present a novel optimizing network architecture with applications in vision, learning, pattern recognition, and combinatorial optimization. This architecture is constructed by combining the following techniques: (1) deterministic annealing, (2) self-amplification, (3) algebraic transformations, (4) clocked objectives, and (5) softassign. Deterministic annealing in conjunction with self-amplification avoids poor local minima and ensures that a vertex of the hypercube is reached. Algebraic transformations and clocked objectives help partition the relaxation into distinct phases. The problems considered have doubly stochastic matrix constraints or minor variations thereof. We introduce a new technique, softassign, which is used to satisfy this constraint. Experimental results on different problems are presented and discussed.
An Empirical Study of Semi-supervised Structured Conditional Models for Dependency Parsing

This paper describes an empirical study of high-performance dependency parsers based on a semi-supervised learning approach. We describe an extension of semi-supervised structured conditional models (SS-SCMs) to the dependency parsing problem, whose framework is originally proposed in (Suzuki and Isozaki, 2008). Moreover, we introduce two extensions related to dependency parsing: The first extension is to combine SS-SCMs with another semi-supervised approach, described in (Koo et al., 2008). The second extension is to apply the approach to second-order parsing models, such as those described in (Carreras, 2007), using a two-stage semi-supervised learning approach. We demonstrate the effectiveness of our proposed methods on dependency parsing experiments using two widely used test collections: the Penn Treebank for English, and the Prague Dependency Tree-bank for Czech. Our best results on test data in the above datasets achieve 93.79% parent-prediction accuracy for English, and 88.05% for Czech.
Pitch memory, labelling and disembedding in autism.

BACKGROUND Autistic musical savants invariably possess absolute pitch ability and are able to disembed individual musical tones from chords. Enhanced pitch discrimination and memory has been found in non-savant individuals with autism who also show superior performance on visual disembedding tasks. These experiments investigate the extent that enhanced disembedding ability will be found within the musical domain in autism. METHOD High-functioning children with autism, together with age- and intelligence-matched controls, participated in three experiments testing pitch memory, labelling and chord disembedding. RESULTS The findings from experiment 1 showed enhanced pitch memory and labelling in the autism group. In experiment 2, when subjects were pre-exposed to labelled individual tones, superior chord segmentation was also found. However, in experiment 3, when disembedding performance was less reliant on pitch memory, no group differences emerged and the children with autism, like controls, perceived musical chords holistically. CONCLUSION These findings indicate that pitch memory and labelling is superior in autism and can facilitate performance on musical disembedding tasks. However, when task performance does not rely on long-term pitch memory, autistic children, like controls, succumb to the Gestalt qualities of chords.
Matching with Couples: Stability and Incentives in Large Markets

Accommodating couples has been a longstanding issue in the design of centralized labor market clearinghouses for doctors and psychologists, because couples view pairs of jobs as complements. A stable matching may not exist when couples are present. We find conditions under which a stable matching exists with high probability in large markets. We present a mechanism that finds a stable matching with high probability, and which makes truth-telling by all participants an approximate equilibrium. We relate these theoretical results to the job market for psychologists, in which stable matchings exist for all years of the data, despite the presence of couples.
Real-Time Camera Tracking Using a Particle Filter

We describe a particle filtering method for vision based tracking of a hand held calibrated camera in real-time. The ability of the particle filter to deal with non-linearities and non-Gaussian statistics suggests the potential to provide improved robustness over existing approaches, such as those based on the Kalman filter. In our approach, the particle filter provides recursive approximations to the posterior density for the 3-D motion parameters. The measurements are inlier/outlier counts of likely correspondence matches for a set of salient points in the scene. The algorithm is simple to implement and we present results illustrating good tracking performance using a ‘live’ camera. We also demonstrate the potential robustness of the method, including the ability to recover from loss of track and to deal with severe occlusion.