Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Do psychosocial work factors and social relations exert independent effects on sickness absence? A six year prospective study of the GAZEL cohort

Study objectives: The objective of this prospective cohort study was to determine whether psychosocial work characteristics and social relations exert independent effects on the incidence of sickness absence in a population of middle aged French employees over six years of follow up. Design: This study included 9631 men and 3595 women participating in the French GAZEL cohort. Social relations (social networks, personal social support, and social relations satisfaction) were measured in 1994 by self report. Psychosocial work characteristics (decision latitude, psychological demands, and social support at work) were ascertained in 1995. Sickness absence data were collected independently. The authors studied the incidence of short (>7 days), intermediate (7–21 days), and long (>21 days) spells of absence from 1995 to 31 December 2001. Rate ratios associated with psychosocial exposures, adjusted on sociodemographic characteristics, and health behaviours, were calculated by means of log-linear Poisson regression. Setting: A cohort of 20000 employees of France’s national gas and electricity company (the GAZEL study). Main results: Among men and women, levels of decision latitude and personal social support below the median predicted 17% to 24% increases in absence rates. Low satisfaction with social relations and low social support at work lead to a 10% to 26% excess in sick leaves among men. No interactive effects were found between the variables under study. Conclusions: The quality of the work environment and of social relations affect sickness absence over an extended period of follow up. This study supports the hypothesis of independent, not interactive effects.
[Opinions and expectations of primary care professionals concerning team work].

OBJECTIVE To find the views and expectations of professionals working at primary care centres on team-work. DESIGN Qualitative study. Focus group. SETTING The study was conducted during May 1997 at the following primary care centres: Terrassa North, Sant Llatzer (Terrassa) and Antón de Borja (Rubí). These PCCs depend on the Department of Health and Social Security and are managed by the Terrassa Health Consortium. PARTICIPANTS 38 primary care professionals, distributed in 5 independent groups of 8 doctors, 9 nurses, 3 social workers, 9 clerical staff and 9 auxiliaries. MEASUREMENTS AND RESULTS Qualitative methodology and focal group technique were used. Contents of session transcriptions were analysed and the information classified according to themes. Views on the definition of team-work, basic aspects of its proper functioning, restrictions met by professionals at present and suggestions to overcome these restrictions were all identified. CONCLUSIONS The setting of objectives, the clear and structured definition of the functions of each professional group, the participation of all the team components in decision-taking, communication, and positive enabling approaches to team-work were all specified as basic features of the team's proper functioning. Ill-defined functions, few meetings, heterogeneity within the teams, scant team-work training, and passive and ill-adapted approaches were seen as restrictions. Training, the coordinator's activities, more meetings and changes in attitude were posed as alternatives.
Specific inactivation of Twist1 in the mandibular arch neural crest cells affects the development of the ramus and reveals interactions with hand2

Background: The basic helix‐loop‐helix (bHLH) transcription factor Twist1 fulfills an essential function in neural crest cell formation, migration, and survival and is associated with the craniosynostic Saethre‐Chotzen syndrome in humans. However, its functions during mandibular development, when it may interact with other bHLH transcription factors like Hand2, are unknown because mice homozygous for the Twist1 null mutation die in early embryogenesis. To determine the role of Twist1 during mandibular development, we used the Hand2‐Cre transgene to conditionally inactivate the gene in the neural crest cells populating the mandibular pharyngeal arch. Results: The mutant mice exhibited a spectrum of craniofacial anomalies, including mandibular hypoplasia, altered middle ear development, and cleft palate. It appears that Twist1 is essential for the survival of the neural crest cells involved in the development of the mandibular ramal elements. Twist1 plays a role in molar development and cusp formation by participating in the reciprocal signaling needed for the formation of the enamel knot. This gene is also needed to control the ossification of the mandible, a redundant role shared with Hand2. Conclusion: Twist1, along with Hand2, is essential for the proximodistal patterning and development of the mandible and ossification. Developmental Dynamics, 2012. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Poisson-Like Spiking in Circuits with Probabilistic Synapses

Neuronal activity in cortex is variable both spontaneously and during stimulation, and it has the remarkable property that it is Poisson-like over broad ranges of firing rates covering from virtually zero to hundreds of spikes per second. The mechanisms underlying cortical-like spiking variability over such a broad continuum of rates are currently unknown. We show that neuronal networks endowed with probabilistic synaptic transmission, a well-documented source of variability in cortex, robustly generate Poisson-like variability over several orders of magnitude in their firing rate without fine-tuning of the network parameters. Other sources of variability, such as random synaptic delays or spike generation jittering, do not lead to Poisson-like variability at high rates because they cannot be sufficiently amplified by recurrent neuronal networks. We also show that probabilistic synapses predict Fano factor constancy of synaptic conductances. Our results suggest that synaptic noise is a robust and sufficient mechanism for the type of variability found in cortex.
Observation of microstructure and corrosion behaviour of some aluminium bronzes

AbstractThe short term corrosion behaviour of four as-cast commercial aluminium bronzes has been examined by immersing the materials in artificial sea water for various lengths of time. Optical and scanning electron microscopy showed that the phases which underwent selective attack were: martensitiβ in the aluminium bronze, ABI; martensitic β and lamellar eutectoidal fcc α phase in nickel aluminium bronze; the cph y phase present both as a lamellar and matrix constituent in silicon aluminium bronze; and the ordered β phase and the fcc dendritic phase, rich in iron and manganese, in copper manganese aluminium bronze. The rates of corrosion of these phases were influenced by their volume fractions, morphologies, and distributions in the alloys.
Backstepping and Sliding-mode Techniques Applied to an Indoor Micro Quadrotor

The latest technological progress in sensors, actuators and energy storage devices enables the developments of miniature VTOL systems. In this paper we present the results of two nonlinear control techniques applied to an autonomous micro helicopter called Quadrotor. A backstepping and a sliding-mode techniques. We performed various simulations in open and closed loop and implemented several experiments on the test-bench to validate the control laws. Finally, we discuss the results of each approach. These developments are part of the OS4 project in our lab.
Single-Channel Kinetics, Inactivation, and Spatial Distribution of Inositol Trisphosphate (IP3) Receptors in Xenopus Oocyte Nucleus

Single-channel properties of the Xenopus inositol trisphosphate receptor (IP3R) ion channel were examined by patch clamp electrophysiology of the outer nuclear membrane of isolated oocyte nuclei. With 140 mM K+ as the charge carrier (cytoplasmic [IP3] = 10 μM, free [Ca2+] = 200 nM), the IP3R exhibited four and possibly five conductance states. The conductance of the most-frequently observed state M was 113 pS around 0 mV and ∼300 pS at 60 mV. The channel was frequently observed with high open probability (mean P o = 0.4 at 20 mV). Dwell time distribution analysis revealed at least two kinetic states of M with time constants τ < 5 ms and ∼20 ms; and at least three closed states with τ ∼1 ms, ∼10 ms, and >1 s. Higher cytoplasmic potential increased the relative frequency and τ of the longest closed state. A novel “flicker” kinetic mode was observed, in which the channel alternated rapidly between two new conductance states: F1 and F2. The relative occupation probability of the flicker states exhibited voltage dependence described by a Boltzmann distribution corresponding to 1.33 electron charges moving across the entire electric field during F1 to F2 transitions. Channel run-down or inactivation (τ ∼ 30 s) was consistently observed in the continuous presence of IP3 and the absence of change in [Ca2+]. Some (∼10%) channel disappearances could be reversed by an increase in voltage before irreversible inactivation. A model for voltage-dependent channel gating is proposed in which one mechanism controls channel opening in both the normal and flicker modes, whereas a separate independent mechanism generates flicker activity and voltage- reversible inactivation. Mapping of functional channels indicates that the IP3R tends to aggregate into microscopic (<1 μm) as well as macroscopic (∼10 μm) clusters. Ca2+-independent inactivation of IP3R and channel clustering may contribute to complex [Ca2+] signals in cells.
Amino Acid Degradations Produced by Lipid Oxidation Products

Differently to amino acid degradations produced by carbohydrate-derived reactive carbonyls, amino acid degradations produced by lipid oxidation products are lesser known in spite of being lipid oxidation a major source of reactive carbonyls in food. This article analyzes the conversion of amino acids into Strecker aldehydes, α-keto acids, and amines produced by lipid-derived free radicals and carbonyl compounds, as well as the role of lipid oxidation products on the reactions suffered by these compounds: the formation of Strecker aldehydes and other aldehydes from α-keto acids; the formation of Strecker aldehydes and olefins from amines; the formation of shorter aldehydes from Strecker aldehydes; and the addition reactions suffered by the olefins produced from the amines. The relationships among all these reactions and the effect of reaction conditions on them are discussed. This knowledge should contribute to better control food processing in order to favor the formation of desirable beneficial compounds and to inhibit the production of compounds with deleterious properties.
Young, adult, and old rats have similar changes in mRNA expression of many skeletal genes after fracture despite delayed healing with age

Genes active in fracture healing are not well understood. Because age slows skeletal repair, the change in gene expression between animals of differing ages may illuminate novel pathways important to this healing response. To explore this, 6‐, 26‐, and 52‐week‐old female Sprague‐Dawley rats were subjected to mid‐diaphyseal femoral fracture with intramedullary fixation. The fracture callus was collected at 0, 0.4 (3 days), 1, 2, 4, or 6 weeks after fracture. RNA was extracted and pooled between two animals for each sample. Three samples were done for each time point for each age for a total of 54 Affymetrix U34A GeneChip microarrays. Of the 8700 genes on each array, 3300 were scored as present. Almost all of these genes were affected by femoral fracture with either upregulation or downregulation in the 6 weeks after fracture. Upregulated genes included markers for matrix genes for both cartilage and bone, osteoblasts, osteocytes, osteoclasts, fibroblasts, and mast cells. Downregulated genes included genes related to blood cell synthesis. Nearly all genes presently associated with bone metabolism showed the same response to fracture healing regardless of the age of the animal. In conclusion, skeletal fracture led to similar changes in RNA expression for most skeletal genes despite the delay in the formation of bone to bridge the fracture gap in old rats. Defects in the healing of skeletal trauma in older rats may lie in systems not normally studied by skeletal biologists. © 2006 Orthopaedic Research Society. Published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Orthop Res 24:1933–1944, 2006
Resource Bound Certiication

Various code certiication systems allow the certiication and static veriication of important safety properties such as memory and control-ow safety. These systems are valuable tools for verifying that untrusted and potentially malicious code is safe before execution. However, one important safety property that is not usually included is that programs adhere to speciic bounds on resource consumption, such as running time. We present a decidable type system capable of specifying and certifying bounds on resource consumption. Our system makes two advances over previous resource bound certiica-tion systems, both of which are necessary for a practical system: We allow the execution time of programs and their subroutines to vary, depending on their arguments, and we provide a fully automatic compiler generating certiied ex-ecutables from source-level programs. The principal device in our approach is a strategy for simulating dependent types using sum and inductive kinds. 1 Introduction A current trend in systems software is to allow untrusted extensions to be installed in protected services, relying on language technology to protect the integrity of the service instead of hardware-based protection mechanisms 11, 20, 1, 16, 14]. For example, the SPIN project 1] relies on the Modula-3 type system to protect an operating system kernel from erroneous extensions. Similarly, web browsers rely on the Java Virtual Machine bytecode veriier 11] to protect users from malicious applets. In both situations, the goal is to eliminate expensive inter-process communications or boundary crossings by allowing extensions to access directly the resources they require. Recently, Necula and Lee 16, 15] have proposed Proof-Carrying Code (PCC) and Morrisett et al. 14] have proposed Typed Assembly Language (TAL) as language technologies that provide the security advantages of high-level languages, but without the overheads of interpretation or just-in-time compilation. In both systems, low-level machine code can be heavily optimized, by hand or by compiler , and yet be automatically veriied through proof-or type-checking.
The Comparison of M-B CDI-K Short Form and K-ASQ as Screening Test for Language Development

Objective To investigate the usefulness of the communication domain in the Korean version of Ages and Stages Questionnaire (K-ASQ), and short form of the Korean version of MacArthur-Bates Communicative Development Inventories (M-B CDI-K), as screening tests for language developmental delay. Methods Data was collected between April 2010 and December 2013, from children who visited either the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation or the Developmental Delay Clinic, presenting with language development delay as their chief complaint. All the children took the short form of M-B CDI-K and K-ASQ as screening tests, and received diagnostic language assessments including Sequenced Language Scale for Infants (SELSI) or Preschool Receptive-Expressive Language Scale (PRES). Results A total of 206 children, mean age 29.7 months, were enrolled. The final diagnoses were developmental language disorder, global developmental delay, autism spectrum disorder, cerebral palsy, etc. The M-B CDI-K short form and the communication domain of the K-ASQ had 95.9% and 76.7% sensitivity, and 82.4% and 85.3% specificity, with regards to diagnostic language assessments. The M-B CDI-K short form showed higher negative predictive value and better accuracy than the communication domain of the K-ASQ. Conclusion The screening ability of K-ASQ was not sufficient for children with language development delay, and the M-B CDI-K short form should be implemented for additional screening.
External Gradient Time Synchronization in Wireless Sensor Networks

Synchronization to an external time source such as Coordinated Universal Time (UTC), i.e., external synchronization, while preserving tight synchronization among neighboring sensor nodes may be crucial for applications such as determining the speed of a moving object in wireless sensor networks. However, existing time synchronization protocols in the literature, which can be used for external synchronization, poorly synchronize neighboring nodes. On the other hand, the only protocol that aims at optimizing the synchronization error between neighboring nodes is lack of a mechanism which synchronizes sensor nodes to a reference node, and hence, it cannot provide external synchronization. Therefore, there is a lack in the literature of a time synchronization protocol, which can be used by applications demanding both external synchronization and tight synchronization among neighboring nodes. In this paper, we answer the question of whether it is possible for sensor nodes to synchronize to a reference node while they optimize the clock skew between their neighboring nodes at the same time. Within this context, we present a novel time synchronization protocol, namely External Gradient Time Synchronization Protocol (EGSync). In EGSync, each sensor node synchronizes to a reference node by using time information flooded by this node, as well as synchronizes to its neighboring nodes by employing the agreement algorithm. We implemented EGSync on the MICAz platform using TinyOS and evaluated it on a testbed setup including 20 sensor nodes. We present the experimental results on our testbed and the simulation results for networks with larger diameters and densities.
Cocaine-Induced Changes in Low-Dimensional Attractors of Local Field Potentials in Optogenetic Mice

Optogenetically evoked local field potential (LFP) recorded from the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) of mice during basal conditions and following a systemic cocaine administration were analyzed. Blue light stimuli were delivered to mPFC through a fiber optic every 2 s and each trial was repeated 100 times. As in the previous study, we used a surrogate data method to check that nonlinearity was present in the experimental LFPs and only used the last 1.5 s of steady activity to measure the LFPs phase resetting induced by the brief 10 ms light stimulus. We found that the steady dynamics of the mPFC in response to light stimuli could be reconstructed in a three-dimensional phase space with topologically similar “8”-shaped attractors across different animals. Therefore, cocaine did not change the complexity of the recorded nonlinear data compared to the control case. The phase space of the reconstructed attractor is determined by the LFP time series and its temporally shifted versions by a multiple of some lag time. We also compared the change in the attractor shape between cocaine-injected and control using (1) dendrogram clustering and (2) Frechet distance. We found about 20% overlap between control and cocaine trials when classified using dendrogram method, which suggest that it may be possible to describe mathematically both data sets with the same model and slightly different model parameters. We also found that the lag times are about three times shorter for cocaine trials compared to control. As a result, although the phase space trajectories for control and cocaine may look similar, their dynamics is significantly different.
On the interaction between turbulence grids and boundary layers

Turbulence grids are widely used in wind tunnels to produce representative turbulence levels when testing aerodynamic phenomena around models. Although the purpose of the grid is to introduce a desired turbulence level in the freestream flow, the wall boundary layers of the tunnel are subjected to modification due to the presence of such grids. This could have major implications to the flow around the models to be tested and hence there is a need to further understand this interaction. The study described in this paper examines wind tunnel wall boundary layer modification by turbulence grids of different mesh sizes and porosities to understand the effect of these parameters on such interaction. Experimental results are presented in the form of pressure loss coefficients, boundary layer velocity profiles and the statistics of turbulence modification.
Test battery assessment of auditory perceptual dysfunction in children

Seven central auditory tests were administered to 22 children, 8 to 10 years of age, considered as having auditory processing deficits. Analysis of the results indicated some tests to be significantly more sensitive than others in detecting auditory processing problems. Findings also demonstrated the advantages of a test battery over a single test and the value of employing central auditory tests for the detection of auditory processing difficulties in children. In addition, considerations for proper test battery construction are discussed in light of the results from this study.
Approximate shared-memory counting despite a strong adversary

A new randomized asynchronous shared-memory data structure is given for implementing an approximate counter that can be incremented once by each of <i>n</i> processes in a model that allows up to <i>n</i>−1 crash failures. For any fixed &epsis;, the counter achieves a relative error of Δ with high probability, at the cost of <i>O</i>(((1/Δ) log <i>n</i>)<sup><i>O</i>(1/&epsis;)</sup>) register operations per increment and <i>O</i>(<i>n</i><sup>4/5+&epsis;</sup>((1/Δ) log <i>n</i>)<sup><i>O</i>(1/&epsis;)</sup>) register operations per read. The counter combines randomized sampling for estimating large values with an expander for estimating small values. This is the first counter implementation that is sublinear the number of processes and works despite a strong adversary scheduler that can observe internal states of processes. An application of the improved counter is an improved protocol for solving randomized shared-memory consensus, which reduces the best previously known individual work complexity from <i>O</i>(<i>n</i> log <i>n</i>) to an optimal <i>O</i>(<i>n</i>), resolving one of the last remaining open problems concerning consensus in this model.