Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Reactions following the sudden death of a classmate

Findings from a study of adolescents grief reactions following the sudden death of a friend and a classmate are presented. The group (26 classmates) was followed up after one and nine months. Interviews and a questionnaire including the Imapact of Event Scale and the Hogan Grief Inventory were used. The general grief scores on the Hogan Grief Inventory indicated that the grief level was similar to that of adolescents who had lost siblings. The scores on the Impact of Event Scale showed a descline in distress level from 1 to 9 months. However, after 9 months about 1/5 of the students still scored above a clinical cut-off point indicating post-traumatic stress levels. Recommendations for improving help following such events are presented.
Real-Time Upper Limb Motion Estimation From Surface Electromyography and Joint Angular Velocities Using an Artificial Neural Network for Human–Machine Cooperation

A current challenge with human-machine cooperation systems is to estimate human motions to facilitate natural cooperation and safety of the human. It is a logical approach to estimate the motions from their sources (skeletal muscles); thus, we employed surface electromyography (SEMG) to estimate body motions. In this paper, we investigated a cooperative manipulation control by an upper limb motion estimation method using SEMG and joint angular velocities. The SEMG signals from five upper limb muscles and angular velocities of the limb joints were used to approximate the flexion-extension of the limb in the 2-D sagittal plane. The experimental results showed that the proposed estimation method provides acceptable performance of the motion estimation [normalized root mean square error (NRMSE) <;0.15, correlation coefficient (CC) >;0.9] under the noncontact condition. From the analysis of the results, we found the necessity of the angular velocity input and estimation error feedback due to physical contact. Our results suggest that the estimation method can be useful for a natural human-machine cooperation control.
More rigorous results on the Kauffman–Levin model of evolution

The purpose of this note is to provide proofs for some facts about the NK model of evolution proposed by Kauffman and Levin. In the case of normally distributed fitness summands, some of these facts have been previously conjectured and heuristics given. In particular, we provide rigorous asymptotic estimates for the number of local fitness maxima in the case when K is unbounded. We also examine the role of the individual fitness distribution and find the model to be quite robust with respect to this.
Electrophysiological evaluation of pharyngeal phase of swallowing in patients with Parkinson's disease

We studied the various physiological aspects of oropharyngeal swallowing in Parkinson's disease (PD). Fifty‐eight patients with PD were investigated by clinical and electrophysiological methods that measured the oropharyngeal phase of swallowing. All patients except 1 had mild to moderate degree of disability score. Dysphagia was demonstrated in 53% of all patients in whom the test of dysphagia limit was abnormal. All PD patients with or without dysphagia displayed the following abnormalities: (1) the triggering of the swallowing reflex was prolonged probably due to inadequate bolus control in the mouth and tongue and/or a specific delay in the execution of the swallowing reflex; (2) the duration of the pharyngeal reflex time was extremely prolonged due to slowness of the sequential muscle movements, especially those of the suprahyoid‐submental muscles; (3) cricopharyngeal muscle of the upper oesophageal sphincter was found to be electrophysiologically normal; and (4) the electrophysiological phenomena in PD patients could not be strongly correlated with the degree of the disability and clinical score of the PD. It was concluded that various motor disorders of PD have considerable influence on oropharyngeal swallowing: hypokinesia, reduced rate of spontaneous swallowing, and the slowness of segmented but coordinated sequential movements rather than any abnormalities in the central pattern generator of the bulbar center. Some compensatory mechanisms in the course of PD may explain the benign nature of swallowing disorder until the terminal stage of the disease. Similarly, the swallowing problems of PD are not only related with the dopamine deficiency; some other nondopaminergic mechanisms may also be involved. © 2002 Movement Disorder Society
Miniature All-Fiber High Temperature Sensor Based on Michelson Interferometer Formed With a Novel Core-Mismatching Fiber Joint

An miniature all-fiber high temperature sensor based on Michelson interferometer is experimentally demonstrated in common single-mode fiber. The sensor probe consists of a core-mismatching fiber joint (CMFJ) followed by a section of end-cleaved fiber. Generating of the CMFJ is due to fusion-splicing the prefusion-inducing micro-bend fiber end with a normal cleaved fiber end in axial alignment. Light coupled into the fiber cladding by the CMFJ is coupled back to the fiber core at the same point after being reflected by the cleaved fiber end-face, which then interferes with the reflected core propagating light. The dip wavelength in the reflected interferential spectrum presents a red shift in the temperature range of 50 °C to 600 °C. The maximum temperature sensitivity is 115.34 pm/°C at 550 °C, and the nonlinear correlation coefficient is 99.95%. The all-fiber temperature sensor owns the advantages of compactness, easy fabrication, low cost, and good repeatability, and has the ability to monitor temperature changes in different environments.
The use of negative emotions in health communication messages: Study of the effects of fear, guilt, and shame

This work examines the effects of the use of three negative emotions – fear, guilt and shame – in anti-alcohol messages. Perceptions of two types of threat – physical and social – create negative emotions related to fear, shame and guilt, which in turn have an impact on persuasion. More than 1000 young students were subjected to experiments manipulating the three negative emotions studied. The results show that, like fear, guilt and shame also increase persuasion. Specifically, the study argues for the use of shame in ads fighting against alcohol abuse among young people. Shame resulting from exposure to a social threat related to peer evaluation had the strongest impact on persuasion compared to the other two emotions. Moreover, some individual variables such as affect intensity and self-efficacy would promote persuasion.
Navigation over multilingual content using one concept space: Controlled experiment

Adaptive navigational support over the content available in different languages was tested in a controlled experiment. Adaptive web system XAPOS was developed and used for personalized navigation of two groups of users for two adaptive methods comparison. The used personalized adaptation approach is concept-based and adaptive algorithm uses concept space and keywords in English. However, the content is available in Czech, Turkish and English languages. Multilingual content is presented in language-corresponding user interface. The first statistical results seem to be good, navigational pattern analysis found usual patterns of the navigation of the user's behaviour for both Czech and Turkish participants of the controlled experiment. The most visited content was recognized and shown as a feedback for discussion and its corresponding modifications.
Exploring Common Ground: Comparing the Imagery of Dancers and Aesthetic Sport Performers

The imagery of aesthetic sport athletes and dancers was compared, and the relationship between imagery and self-confidence was explored. Materials included the Sport Imagery Questionnaire (SIQ; Hall, Mack, Paivio, & Hausenblas, 1998), the Dance Imagery Questionnaire (DIQ; Nordin & Cumming, 2006), the Trait Sport Confidence Inventory (TSCI; Vealey, 1986), and open-ended questions. Participants were 144 dancers and 124 aesthetic athletes, mainly female, 18.98 (SD = 3.91) years old, and ranging from recreational to elite levels. Aesthetic athletes engaged in less imagery of roles and movement quality than dancers, and seemingly less imagery overall. Dancers at higher levels imaged more frequently than lower level dancers, but this was not the case for athletes. Performers who imaged more frequently were more confident, and for dancers the DIQ predicted additional variance in self-confidence beyond that offered by the SIQ. Altogether, the DIQ might be suitable for investigating the imagery of aesthetic athletes as well as dancers.
Making ‘Hope Practical’ Rather than ‘Despair Convincing’: feminist post‐structuralism, gender reform and educational change

Abstract This paper explores the work and effects of gender reform in schools through the use of feminist post‐structuralist theory. Focusing on the discourses designed to enhance girls’ post‐school options, it examines the ways in which teachers and students, particularly girls, write, read and rewrite these discourses and on the basis of this suggests some new directions for researching, theorising and practicing gender reform in schools. In particular, it raises questions about the ways in which feminist pedagogies in schools deal with the female body, difference, pleasure and pain.
Dissection of a circulating and intrahepatic CD4(+)Foxp3(+) T-cell subpopulation in chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection: a highly informative strategy for distinguishing chronic HBV infection states.

BACKGROUND The definition of CD4(+)Foxp3(+) regulatory T cells (Tregs) is challenging as it relates to chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection. Recently, the heterogeneity of human CD4(+)Foxp3(+) T cells has been confirmed. METHODS Three circulating CD4(+)Foxp3(+) T-cell subpopulations in chronic HBV patients were identified, and their frequencies associated with clinical parameters were analyzed. Antigen specificity of Tregs was further studied. RESULTS We found that circulating and intrahepatic CD4(+)CD45RA(-)Foxp3(hi)-activated Tregs (aTregs) were selectively increased in patients with chronic active hepatitis B and acute-on-chronic liver failure (ACLF) but not in asymptomatic carriers. The aTreg frequency was strongly correlated with HBV DNA load but not liver damage. In both peripheral blood mononuclear cells and livers, ACLF patients showed a dramatically elevated frequency of interleukin 17A-secreting CD45RA(-)Foxp3(lo) nonsuppressive T cells (non-Tregs), which were shown to be associated with severe liver damage. Interestingly, an HBV core antigen (HBcAg)-derived peptide could preferentially expand CD4(+)CD25(+)Foxp3(+) T cells and aTregs in HLA-DR9(+) chronic active hepatitis B patients, and these Tregs required ligand-specific reactivation for suppressor function. CONCLUSIONS The delineation of a CD4(+)Foxp3(+) T-cell subpopulation is a highly informative strategy for distinguishing different chronic HBV infection states. HBcAg-derived peptides may be responsible for activation of Tregs that, in turn, specifically inhibit anti-HBV immune response but not liver inflammation.
Mutation of GmDMP genes triggers haploid induction in soybean

The development of homozygous lines is a key step in plant breeding and production. Generally, homozygous lines can be obtained through traditional time-consuming way of several generations selfing or through a way of doubled haploid (DH) technology, which has obvious advantages to accelerate breeding. However, no effective haploid production system so far has been established in soybean. Here we show that mutations of the soybean GmDMP1 and GmDMP2 genes can be used to induce haploid with an average haploid induction rate of 0.61%. We also found that 22.9% of soybean haploids can produce seeds through spontaneous chromosome doubling. Those findings laid a solid foundation for establishing DH technology in soybean, which will accelerate soybean breeding.
CD4+ T cells drive corneal nerve damage but are dispensable for corneal epitheliopathy development in dry eye disease

Dry eye disease (DED) is a disorder characterized by a dysfunctional tear film in which the corneal epithelium and its abundant nerves are affected by ocular desiccation, inflammation, and the local immune response. Although adaptive immunity and specifically CD4+ T cells play a role in DED pathogenesis, the exact contribution of these cells to corneal epithelial and neural damage remains undetermined. To address this, we explored the progression of a surgical DED model in wild-type (WT) and T cell-deficient mice. We observed that adaptive immune-deficient mice developed all aspects of DED comparably to WT mice except for the absence of functional and morphological corneal nerve changes, nerve damage-associated transcriptomic signature in the trigeminal ganglia, and sustained tear cytokine levels. Adoptive transfer of CD4+ T cells from DED WT mice to T cell-deficient mice reproduced corneal nerve damage but not epitheliopathy. Conversely, T cell-deficient mice reconstituted solely with naive CD4+ T cells developed corneal nerve impairment and epitheliopathy upon DED induction, thus replicating the WT DED phenotype. Collectively, our data show that while corneal neuropathy is driven by CD4+ T cells in DED, corneal epithelial damage develops independently of the adaptive immune response. These findings have implications for T cell-targeting therapies currently in use for DED.
Programming Effects of Short Prenatal Exposure to Dexamethasone in Sheep

Abstract—Recent studies have linked fetal exposure to a suboptimal intrauterine environment with adult hypertension. The aims of the present study were to see whether prenatal dexamethasone administered intravenously to the ewe between 26 to 28 days of gestation (1) resulted in high blood pressure in male and female offspring and whether hypertension in males was modulated by testosterone status, and (2) altered gene expression for angiotensinogen and angiotensin type 1 (AT1) receptors in the brain in late gestation and in the adult. Basal mean arterial pressure (MAP) at 2 years of age was significantly higher in wethers exposed to prenatal dexamethasone (group D; 106±5 mm Hg, n=9) compared with the control group (group S; 91±3 mm Hg, n=8;P <0.01). Infusion of testosterone for 3 weeks had no effect on MAP in either treatment group. At 130 days of gestation, dexamethasone administered between 26 to 28 days of gestation (group DF; n=8), resulted in an increased expression of angiotensinogen in hypothalamus (in arbitrary units: 2.5±0.3 versus 1.3±0.3 in the saline group [group SF], n=10;P <0.05). In addition, there was higher expression of the AT1 receptors in medulla oblongata in group DF (2.6±0.6 versus 1.1±0.2 in group SF;P <0.01). This effect of prenatal dexamethasone treatment was still evident in females at 7 years of age (group DA; n=5; 2.6±0.5 versus 1.1±0.2 in group SA; n=6, P <0.05). In conclusion, brief prenatal exposure of the pregnant ewe to dexamethasone leads to hypertension in adult animals of both sexes. Most interestingly, the mechanism leading to programming of hypertension might be linked with the brain angiotensin system.
Teaching Generalized Imitation Skills to a Preschooler With Autism Using Video Modeling

This study examined the effectiveness of video modeling to teach a preschooler with autism to imitate previously mastered and not mastered actions during song and toy play activities. A general case approach was used to examine the instructional universe of preschool songs and select exemplars that were most likely to facilitate generalization. Experimental control was evident in a multiple baseline design across three imitation activities. In addition to video modeling, additive components that included highlighting critical features of the video examples, prompting/fading, and social reinforcement were required to demonstrate a functional relationship. The results also showed generalized imitative performance to actions that were not previously mastered. The findings suggest that general case analysis, video modeling, and additive procedures can be combined to both teach new imitative behaviors and promote generalization of previously-mastered behaviors. The results are discussed with reference to future research directions and implications for practice in educational settings.
Women on Corporate Boards of Directors: Views of Canadian Chief Executive Officers

Highlights the historical set‐up of Canadian boards of directors, why and how women were first appointed to corporate boards. Examines factors related to women serving on corporate boards, detailing advantages and barriers to the appointments. Reports on a survey of Canadian Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) which considers factors related to the appointment of women to corporate boards. Results indicated the CEOs′ opinions on, for example, how important a variety of qualifications is to the appointment of female directors; the women with difficulties in finding women with these qualifications; preferred candidate profiles; issues which would benefit from a female perspective; effects of women on boards and companies; and the question of why there are not more women directors. Finally, with the survey as a background, looks at why there are so few women on the boards of directors of Canadian private sector organizations; and the future prospects of women as board members.
Factors of social adjustment to school: child’s personality, family and pre‐school

The role of child’s characteristics (gender, cognitive ability, mother‐perceived personality traits), family environment (maternal education, self‐reported parenting practices) and pre‐school experience (at least three years vs. no experience) in social adjustment to school, reflected through teacher reports on social competence and internalising and externalising behaviours, was investigated with six‐year‐olds (N = 366). Three blocks of factors, i.e. child, family and pre‐school, explained up to 19% of variance in social adjustment with child’s characteristics accounting for the major part. Family variables contributed significant, though small, portions of variance to social competence and internalising behaviour over and above the child factors. Pre‐school experience was additionally predictive of lower incidence of internalising behaviour and more frequent externalising behaviour.
Ectopia lentis as the presenting and primary feature in Marfan syndrome

Marfan syndrome (MFS) is a multisystem connective tissue disorder with primary involvement of the ocular, cardiovascular, and skeletal systems. We report on eight patients, all presenting initially with bilateral ectopia lentis (EL) during early childhood. These individuals did not have systemic manifestations of MFS, and did not fulfill the revised Ghent diagnostic criteria. However, all patients had demonstratable, disease‐causing missense mutations in the FBN1 gene. Based on molecular results, cardiovascular imaging was recommended and led to the identification of mild aortic root changes in seven of the eight patients. The remaining patient had mitral valve prolapse with a normal appearing thoracic aorta. The findings presented in this paper validate the necessity of FBN1 gene testing in all individuals presenting with isolated EL. As we observed, these individuals are at increased risk of cardiovascular complications. Furthermore, we also noted that the majority of our patient cohort's mutations occurred in the 5′ portion of the FBN1 gene, and were found to affect highly conserved cysteine residues, which may indicate a possible genotype–phenotype correlation. We conclude that in patients with isolated features of EL, FBN1 mutation analysis is necessary to aid in providing prompt diagnosis, and to identify patients at risk for potentially life‐threatening complications. Additionally, knowledge of the type and location of an FBN1 mutation may be useful in providing further clinical correlation regarding phenotypic progression and appropriate medical management. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Acoustic Packaging: Maternal Speech and Action Synchrony

The current study addressed the degree to which maternal speech and action are synchronous in interactions with infants. English-speaking mothers demonstrated the function of two toys, stacking rings and nesting cups to younger infants (6-9.5 months) and older infants (9.5-13 months). Action and speech units were identified, and speech units were coded as being ongoing action descriptions or nonaction descriptions (examples of nonaction descriptions include attention-getting utterances such as “Look! ” or statements of action completion such as “Yay, we did it! ”). Descriptions of ongoing actions were found to be more synchronous with the actions themselves in comparison to other types of utterances, suggesting that: 1) mothers align speech and action to provide synchronous “acoustic packaging” during action demonstrations; and 2) mothers selectively pair utterances directly related to actions with the action units themselves rather than simply aligning speech in general with actions. Our results complement past studies of acoustic packaging in two ways. First, we provide a quantitative temporal measure of the degree to which speech and action onsets and offsets are aligned. Second, we offer a semantically based analysis of the phenomenon, which we argue may be meaningful to infants known to process global semantic messages in infant-directed speech. In support of this possibility, we determined that adults were capable of classifying low-pass filtered action- and nonaction-describing utterances at rates above chance.
Examining Passive and Active Recruitment Methods for Low-Income Couples in Relationship Education

One of the most difficult aspects of studying low-income couples is the effective implementation of recruitment and retention strategies. Low-income couples face environmental stressors that make participation difficult, and research has yet to identify efficacious methods of recruiting and retaining low-income couples into funded studies. Researchers and practitioners targeting low-income participants rely on a “learn-as-they-go” approach. Therefore, we examined passive and active recruitment strategies for 394 married participants with children under age 18 and reporting a total household income within 200% of the Federal Poverty Guidelines who participated in a federally funded couples and relationship education program. Univariate ANOVAs indicated significant differences between recruitment method and total time spent in couples and relationship education workshops for both women and men. Further, results indicated a relationship exists between recruitment method and the number of follow-up contacts required before participants attended the initial intake appointment. Implications for practice and research are discussed.
A Survey of Service Oriented Development Methodologies

Service orientation is a new software engineering paradigm that introduces opportunities as well as challenges. Although existing processes and practices can be reused for service oriented development, novel techniques are required to address unique SOA requirements. Work in this area is quite active and only recently is producing some initial results. The aim of this paper is to present a state-of-the-art survey on current service oriented development approaches. The characteristics that distinguish between these approaches are discussed and a number of actual methodologies that have emerged or are still emerging are described and compared.