Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Conjectures and Exhumations: Citations of History, Philosophy and Sociology of Science in US Federal Courts

This article examines the circumstances in which a version of Sir Karl Popper’s philosophy of science became US law. Among historians, philosophers and sociologists of science, as well as legal commentators, the US Supreme Court’s Daubert v. Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals, . Inc. (1993) decision has received considerable attention. The case is signi cant because America’s most senior court produced a de nition of science (for legal purposes). This de nition was authorized by the symbolic exhumation, celebration and appropriation of key elements of the philosophy of science developed decades earlier by Popper. Signi cantly, it was not just Popper’s philosophy that was exhumed and resurrected but also his standing and the social authority of philosopy more generally. This article explores how the US Supreme Court invoked a mediated and essentialized representation of Popper’s philosophy of science — in a context where the quality of expert evidence seems to have been conceived as a pressing socio-legal problem — to support the inauguration of a more onerous response to admissibility decision making in federal courts. In undertaking this task we also re ect on the use of the writings of other philosophers, historians and sociologists of science which have appeared somewhat erratically in recent judgments. These later references have been conspicuously less in uential than the Supreme Court’s attempt to grapple with the nature of science in Daubert. In order to substantiate our claims we provide an analysis of references to the history, philosophy and sociology of science which have appeared in US federal court decisions. Our sample was gathered using the relatively straightforward methodology of searching the WESTLAW
Cognitions in marriage : The relationship between standards and attributions

The current investigation explored the relation between (a) spouses' standards for their marriages and (b) attributions for relationship problems and reported emotional and behavioral responses. Three dimensions of relationship standards were assessed: boundaries, distribution of power between partners, and demonstrated investment in the relationship. Findings indicate it is not the levels of boundaries, power, and investment reflected in spouses' standards that were related to their attributions, emotions, and self-reported behavioral responses to relationship problems. Instead, negative causal attributions; attributions to boundary, power, and investment issues; negative emotional responses to relationship problems; and reported active-destructive behavioral responses to relationship problems were associated with (a) spouses' unmet standards and (b) how upset spouses became when their relationship standards were not met.
Discovering unanticipated dependency schemas in class hierarchies

Object-oriented applications are difficult to extend and maintain, due to the presence of implicit dependencies in the inheritance hierarchy. Although these dependencies often correspond to well-known schemas, such as hook and template methods, new unanticipated dependency schemas occur in practice, and can consequently be hard to recognize and detect. To tackle this problem, we have applied concept analysis to automatically detect recurring dependency schemas in class hierarchies used in object-oriented applications. In this paper we describe our mapping of OO dependencies to the formal framework of concept analysis, we apply our approach to a non-trivial case study, and we report on the kinds of dependencies that are uncovered with this technique. As a result, we show how the discovered dependency schemas correspond not only to good design practices, but also to "bad smells" in design.
A review of the evidence for the effectiveness of sensory stimulation treatment for coma and vegetative states

Abstract This paper reviews fourteen studies that evaluate the efficacy of sensory stimulation treatment for patients in coma and vegetative states. The studies are divided according to whether they use outcome statistics, behaviour change, or physiological measures as their means of evaluation. There is also a review of the methodological considerations incumbent in research in this area. The authors conclude that sensory stimulation can alter behaviour in the unconscious patient and can reduce the duration of acute coma, and that further research is certainly warranted for economic as well as humanitarian reasons.
Differential regulation of inotropy and lusitropy in overexpressed Gsalpha myocytes through cAMP and Ca2+ channel pathways.

We investigated the mechanisms responsible for altered contractile and relaxation function in overexpressed Gsalpha myocytes. Although baseline contractile function (percent contraction) in Gsalpha mice was similar to that of wild-type (WT) mice, left ventricular myocyte contraction, fura-2 Ca2+transients, and Ca2+ channel currents (ICa) were greater in Gsalpha mice in response to 10(-8) M isoproterenol (ISO) compared with WT mice. The late phase of relaxation of the isolated myocytes and fura-2 Ca2+ transients was accelerated at baseline in Gsalpha but did not increase further with ISO. In vivo measurements using echocardiography also demonstrated enhanced relaxation at baseline in Gsalpha mice. Forskolin and CaCl2 increased contraction similarly in WT and Gsalpha mice. Rp-cAMP, an inhibitor of protein kinase, blocked the increases in contractile response and Ca2+ currents to ISO in WT and to forskolin in both WT and Gsalpha. It also blocked the accelerated relaxation in Gsalpha at baseline but not the contractile response to ISO in Gsalpha myocytes. Baseline measurements of cAMP and phospholambation phosphorylation were enhanced in Gsalpha compared with WT. These data indicate that overexpression of Gsalpha accelerates relaxation at end diastolic but does not affect baseline systolic function in isolated myocytes. However, the enhanced responses to sympathetic stimulation partly reflect increased Ca2+ channel activity; i.e the cellular mechanisms mediating these effects appear to involve a cAMP-independent as well as a cAMP-dependent pathway.
The Greater Male Variability Controversy: Science Versus Politics

Research on gender differences has consistently been surrounded by controversy because of the political implications of the findings. The conclusions drawn by Cattell, Hall, Thorndike, and other early proponents of the greater male variability hypothesis-recounted in my article and in Noddings's sociohistorical commentarywere not justified by the available data. Their conclusions, which almost certainly predated their examinations of data, were essentially these scholars' personal beliefs about differences between the sexes and their political opinions regarding the roles of men and women in society. It is unfortunate that their views were passed off as scientific facts to maintain the status quo of their era. Noddings described my article as "oddly neutral. " I prefer "appropriately scientific. " The points she raised have all been noted before by others (who were duly referenced in my review), and there was no need to rehash them. Instead, I detailed the limitations of past analyses, conducted new analyses with superior data sets, and interpreted the results by today's more rigorous standards. The scope of my quantitative review was intentionally narrow, as its main objective was to make a data-based contribution to the literature.
Secondary effect of aldosterone on Na-KATPase activity in the rabbit cortical collecting tubule.

The possibility that mineralocorticoids have a direct influence on renal Na-K ATPase activity has been the focus of intense research effort and some controversy for a number of years. Early studies were hindered by an inability to differentiate between possible glucocorticoid vs. mineralocorticoid effects on this enzyme within the multitude of cells that comprise the heterogeneous mammalian nephron. This study attempts to circumvent this problem by monitoring Na-K ATPase activity in the rabbit renal cortical collecting tubule (CCT), a proposed target epithelium for mineralocorticoids. Using an ultramicro assay, Na-K ATPase activity was measured in CCT from normal, adrenalectomized (adx), and adx rabbits subjected to one of several corticosteroid treatment protocols. The results indicate that Na-K ATPase activity in the CCT decreased by 86% subsequent to adrenalectomy. Injection of physiological doses of aldosterone (10 micrograms/kg) but not dexamethasone (100 micrograms/kg) restored CCT Na-K ATPase activity in adx rabbits to normal levels within 3 h after injection. An insignificant rise in activity was observed 1.5h after aldosterone treatment. In addition, spirolactone SC 26304, a specific mineralocorticoid antagonist, blocked the action of aldosterone on Na-K ATPase. Therefore an acute increase in Na-K ATPase activity participates in the action of aldosterone on Na transport in this segment. To differentiate between primary vs. secondary activation of this enzyme, adx animals were treated with amiloride before the injection of aldosterone with the intent of blocking luminal membrane Na entry into CCT. In these animals, pretreatment with amiloride blocked the increase in CCT Na-K ATPase act activity seen with aldosterone alone at 3 h. Thus the increase in activity with aldosterone appears to be a secondary adaptation that is dependent on an aldosterone-enhanced increase in the passive entry of Na across the luminal membrane. The subcellular mechanism by which Na modulates Na-K ATPase activity remains obscure.
Robust multi-pose face tracking by multi-stage tracklet association

We propose an approach for multi-pose face tracking by association of face detection responses in two stages using multiple cues. The low-level stage uses a two-threshold strategy to merge detection responses based on location, size and pose, resulting in short but reliable tracklets. The high-level stage uses different cues for computing a joint similarity measure between tracklets. The facial cue compares facial features of the most frontal face detections in pairs of tracklets. The classifier cue learns a discriminative appearance model for each tracklet, using detection pairs within reliable tracklets and between overlapping tracklets as training data. The constraint cue observes the compatibility of motion of two tracklets. The association of tracklets is globally optimized with the Hungarian algorithm. We validate our approach on two challenging episodes of two TV series and report a Multiple Object Tracking Accuracy (MOTA) of 82% and 68.2%, respectively.
Redox factor‐1/APE suppresses oxidative stress by inhibiting activity of the rac1 GTPase

Oxidative stress triggered by many environmental and clinical insults results in cellular injury and death. The small GTPase rac1 promotes oxidative stress via the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS). In turn, the homeostatic response to such stress includes up‐regulation of the dual function reducing protein/DNA repair enzyme APE/redox factor‐1(ref‐1). In this report we explore the function and relationship between ref‐1 and rac1 in the setting of oxidative stress triggered by re‐oxygenation/reperfusion. In a model of mouse hepatic ischemia/reperfusion (I/R), recombinant adenoviral overexpression of ref‐1 resulted in suppression of reperfusion‐stimulated oxidative stress, NF‐κB induction, apoptosis, and acute injury, whereas down‐regulation of endogenous ref‐1 by adenoviral expression of antisense ref‐1 led to an increase in these reperfusion‐induced parameters. Ref‐1 also mitigated ROS production induced by adenoviral expression of an active form of rac1. Finally, overexpression of ref‐1 in primary hepatocytes suppressed reoxygenation‐stimulated rac1 activity. This work demonstrates a novel function of ref‐1 in inhibition of rac1 activity, and rac1‐mediated oxidative stress and injury.
Framing student engagement in higher education

Student engagement is widely recognised as an important influence on achievement and learning in higher education and as such is being widely theorised and researched. This article firstly reviews and critiques the four dominant research perspectives on student engagement: the behavioural perspective, which foregrounds student behaviour and institutional practice; the psychological perspective, which clearly defines engagement as an individual psycho-social process; the socio-cultural perspective, which highlights the critical role of the socio-political context; and, finally, the holistic perspective, which takes a broader view of engagement. Key problems are identified, in particular poor definitions and a lack of distinction between the state of engagement, factors that influence student engagement, and the immediate and longer term consequences of engagement. The second part of the article presents a conceptual framework that overcomes these problems, incorporating valuable elements from each of the perspectives, to enable a better shared understanding of student engagement to frame future research and improve student outcomes.
Relational Maintenance in On-again/Off-again Relationships: An Assessment of How Relational Maintenance, Uncertainty, and Commitment Vary by Relationship Type and Status

Because on-again/off-again (on-off) relationships typically maintain their relationships in some form even after relational dissolution, a communication process that may be particularly relevant to understanding these relationships is relational maintenance. Using cross-sectional data, the current study assessed relational maintenance, uncertainty, and commitment to further understand how on-off relationships differ from relationships that do not have a history of renewals (i.e., noncyclical relationships). The sample of 487 participants completed a survey on either their current dating relationship or a postdissolution relationship. As predicted, on-off partners used less maintenance behaviors than noncyclical partners in current relationships, but, contrary to predictions, on-off partners did not use more maintenance behaviors in their postdissolution relationships than partners without a history of renewing. Path models assessing the interrelationships among maintenance, relationship uncertainty, and commitment also suggest relational maintenance operates somewhat differently in on-off and noncyclical relationships. Implications for on-off as well as dating relationships in general are discussed.
Distinctiveness of Faces or Distinctiveness of Persons?

Unusual faces are recognized easily. We wanted to see whether this effect of distinctiveness can be extended to other characteristics of the person. Exp. 1 involved episodic recognition tasks (faces, activities, names) and recall of the name or the activity of persons. The material was either distinctive (male faces, activities dealing with the circus, rare names) or typical. Results tend to show the effect is face-specific. Exp. 2 was designed to control the face distinctiveness on the recall tasks and to search for effects of the task order. We replicated and extended the results of Exp. 1. In Exps. 1 and 2, the distinctiveness of the faces was defined by the experimenters. So, in Exp. 3 distinctiveness was established by independent judges. Results show the effect is specific to faces. The three experiments suggest also that the distinctiveness of associations is independent of that of their components.
Thermal aging properties of transformer oil-based TiO2 nanofluids

The insulation properties of aged transformer oil-based TiO2 nanofluids were investigated in this paper. Firstly, both pure oil and TiO2 nanofluids were accelerated thermal aged at 130 °C for 36 days. During the accelerated thermal aging process AC (50 Hz) breakdown voltage, lightening impulse breakdown voltage, and partial discharge inception voltage (PDIV) of both samples were measured periodically. The results shows that TiO2 nanofluids possessed better insulation properties than pure oil even though insulation properties of both aged pure oil and nanofluids were decreased during the aging process. After aging for 36 days, the PDIV and AC breakdown strength of nanofluids was 1.1 and 1.4 times as that of pure oil respectively. Possible mechanisms of the phenomenon above were also discussed. In conclusion, the transformer oil-based TiO2 nanofluids process a better anti-aging property than that of pure oil,but the stability of nanofluids need be further improved to bear the complex and extreme condition inside high-voltage level and heavy load transformers in service.
Evolution of Operative Techniques for the Treatment of Single-Suture Metopic Synostosis

Purpose:Primary orbitocranioplasty for metopic craniosynostosis encompasses a variety of techniques, with variable long-term success. The authors present a series illustrating the evolution of surgical techniques and its impact on surgical outcomes. Methods:All patients with single-suture metopic synostosis treated at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia from 1975–2004 were included. Demographic information, preoperative clinical findings, operative technique, postoperative complications, postoperative clinical findings, and length of follow-up were all recorded. Five techniques are presented, reflecting a transition from mere reshaping with metallic fixation to the increased use of primary bone grafting and resorbable fixation to expand the frontal region. Preoperative covariates and technique type were analyzed for effect on outcomes. Results:Eighty-six patients were identified. Mean follow-up was 50 months. In terms of esthetic outcome, patients with preoperative frontal irregularities had a higher incidence of postoperative deformities (P = 0.026). Patients with preoperative mean intercanthal distance <20 had a higher incidence of postoperative frontal irregularities (P = 0.045). Maximal expansion of the supraorbital bar via interpositional bone graft and stabilization of the construct with strategic bone grafting and resorbable fixation resulted in a lower incidence of postoperative temporal hollowing (P = 0.029). Patients with expansion and lateral reinforcement of the expanded bar had a lower incidence of reoperation (P = 0.026). Conclusions:Undercorrection of metopic craniosynostosis is not an uncommon finding. To prevent long-term relapse, aggressive anterolateral expansion of the supraorbital bar via primary bone grafting and resorbable fixation with the overall goal of overcorrection may provide the best esthetic outcome.
Method validation for preparing serum and plasma samples from human blood for downstream proteomic, metabolomic, and circulating nucleic acid-based applications.

BACKGROUND Formal method validation for biospecimen processing in the context of accreditation in laboratories and biobanks is lacking. Serum and plasma processing protocols were validated for fitness-for-purpose in terms of key downstream endpoints, and this article demonstrates methodology for biospecimen processing method validation. METHODS Serum and plasma preparation from human blood was optimized for centrifugation conditions with respect to microparticle counts. Optimal protocols were validated for methodology and reproducibility in terms of acceptance criteria based on microparticle counts, DNA and hemoglobin concentration, and metabolomic and proteomic profiles. These parameters were also used to evaluate robustness for centrifugation temperature (4°C versus room temperature [RT]), deceleration (low, medium, high) and blood stability (after a 2-hour delay). RESULTS Optimal protocols were 10-min centrifugation for serum and 20-min for plasma at 2000 g, medium brake, RT. Methodology and reproducibility acceptance criteria were met for both protocols except for reproducibility of plasma metabolomics. Overall, neither protocol was robust for centrifugation at 4°C versus RT. RT gave higher microparticles and free DNA yields in serum, and fewer microparticles with less hemolysis in plasma. Overall, both protocols were robust for fast, medium, and low deceleration, with a medium brake considered optimal. Pre-centrifugation stability after a 2-hour delay was seen at both temperatures for hemoglobin concentration and proteomics, but not for microparticle counts. CONCLUSIONS We validated serum and plasma collection methods suitable for downstream protein, metabolite, or free nucleic acid-based applications. Temperature and pre-centrifugation delay can influence analytic results, and laboratories and biobanks should systematically record these conditions in the scope of accreditation.
Who Chooses Dual Language Education for Their Children and Why

Abstract A survey of 724 families of dual language enrichment students in the South-west USA explored what kinds of families had chosen dual language education for their children and why. Of those parents who chose dual language for their children, 45.4% speak primarily English with their child, while 54.6% speak primarily Spanish. English-dominant parents constitute 24.7% of those who so chose, while 34.2% are Spanish-dominant and 40.5% are bilingual. In terms of education level, 50% of them have a high school education or less, 32.1% have an undergraduate degree and 17.9% have a graduate education. Of all respondents, 93.6% said they chose dual language so that their child would be able to speak, read and write in two languages, making it the most frequently selected followed by to be successful in a global society (63.1%), to be more successful in school (61.3%) and to be comfortable relating to different people (60.7%). There are several implications: not all parents have the same motivations; bilingual parents are different from monolingual parents; and more needs to be known about parents of secondary students as well as parents opting out of dual language programmes.
A psychometric investigation of speech, language and cognitive communicative rating scales for adults with acquired neurogenic communication disorders in the acute hospital setting

Speech-language pathologists working in hospitals have limited opportunities to identify patients with newly acquired communication related impairments and to support patients with communication related impairments to communicate their healthcare needs. The International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health conceptualizes these different roles as within the Body Functions and Structures component and within the Activities and Participation component respectively. The Inpatient Functional Communication Interview (IFCI) is a measure of how well a patient is able to communicate their healthcare needs in hospital. This study investigated whether a speech-language pathologist could conduct the IFCI and have sufficient information to rate a patient's level of communication related impairments, on newly developed speech, language and cognitive communicative rating scales (named the OHW scales) in a reliable and valid way. This research indicated that the OHW scales had strong and significant concurrent criterion validity and significant interrater reliability. However the most important aspect of interrater reliability for the OHW scales was interrater agreement. Interrater agreement was moderately high for the OHW speech and cognitive communicative scales but low for the OHW language scale. Interrater agreement on the OHW language scale requires further investigation.