Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Changes in the Salmonella enterica Enteritidis phenotypes in presence of acyl homoserine lactone quorum sensing signals

Quorum sensing is used by bacteria to coordinate gene expression in response to population density and involves the production, detection and response to extracellular signaling molecules known as autoinducers (AIs). Salmonella does not synthesize the AI‐1, acyl homoserine lactone (AHL) common to gram‐negative bacteria; however, it has a receptor for AI‐1, the SdiA protein. The effect of SdiA in modulating phenotypes of Salmonella has not been elucidated. In this report, we provide evidence that the AIs‐1 affect Salmonella enterica serovar Enteritidis behavior by enhancing the biofilm formation and expression of virulence genes under anaerobic conditions. Biofilm formation by Salmonella was detected by the crystal violet method and by scanning electron microscopy. The presence of AHLs, particularly C12‐HSL, increased biofilm formation and promoted expression of biofilm formation genes (lpfA, fimF, fliF, glgC) and virulence genes (hilA, invA, invF). Our results demonstrated that AHLs produced by other organisms played an important role in virulence phenotypes of Salmonella Enteritidis.
Information Theory and Mixing Least-Squares Regressions

For Gaussian regression, we develop and analyze methods for combining estimators from various models. For squared-error loss, an unbiased estimator of the risk of the mixture of general estimators is developed. Special attention is given to the case that the component estimators are least-squares projections into arbitrary linear subspaces, such as those spanned by subsets of explanatory variables in a given design. We relate the unbiased estimate of the risk of the mixture estimator to estimates of the risks achieved by the components. This results in simple and accurate bounds on the risk and its estimate, in the form of sharp and exact oracle inequalities. That is, without advance knowledge of which model is best, the resulting performance is comparable to or perhaps even superior to what is achieved by the best of the individual models. Furthermore, in the case that the unknown parameter has a sparse representation, our mixture estimator adapts to the underlying sparsity. Simulations show that the performance of these mixture estimators is better than that of a related model-selection estimator which picks a model with the highest weight. Also, the connection between our mixtures with Bayes procedures is discussed
How nation‐states respond to immigration and ethnic diversity

Abstract Large scale migrations since 1945 have led to major changes in the ethnic composition of most highly‐developed countries. Nations have responded in a variety of ways, which have helped determine patterns of ethnic group formation. This article suggest a typology of policy models: the differential exclusion model, the assimilation model, and the pluralist model. Examples are discussed for each model. The models are then linked to different historical patterns of nation‐state formation. The differential exclusion model, which is based on the desire to prevent permanent settlement, has proved very hard to maintain because it leads to social tension and because it contradicts the democratic principle of including all members of civil society in the nation‐state. Countries applying the assimilation model have generally moved to a mixed approach, embodying some elements of the pluralist model. This has led to difficulties, because of contradictions between explicit goals and actual policies. Pluralist .
On the Sample Complexity of Predictive Sparse Coding

The goal of predictive sparse coding is to learn a representation of examples as sparse linear combinations of elements from a dictionary, such that a learned hypothesis linear in the new representation performs well on a predictive task. Predictive sparse coding algorithms recently have demonstrated impressive performance on a variety of supervised tasks, but their generalization properties have not been studied. We establish the first generalization error bounds for predictive sparse coding, covering two settings: 1) the overcomplete setting, where the number of features k exceeds the original dimensionality d; and 2) the high or infinite-dimensional setting, where only dimension-free bounds are useful. Both learning bounds intimately depend on stability properties of the learned sparse encoder, as measured on the training sample. Consequently, we first present a fundamental stability result for the LASSO, a result characterizing the stability of the sparse codes with respect to perturbations to the dictionary. In the overcomplete setting, we present an estimation error bound that decays as \tilde{O}(sqrt(d k/m)) with respect to d and k. In the high or infinite-dimensional setting, we show a dimension-free bound that is \tilde{O}(sqrt(k^2 s / m)) with respect to k and s, where s is an upper bound on the number of non-zeros in the sparse code for any training data point.
Building capacity in a self-managing schooling system: The New Zealand experience

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to evaluate two recent examples of the New Zealand Ministry of Education's approach to reducing the persistent disparities in achievement between students of different social and ethnic groups. The first example is cluster‐based school improvement, and the second is the development of national standards for literacy and numeracy across the primary sector.Design/methodology/approach – The evaluative framework used was derived from recent international analyses of the characteristics of school systems, which are either high performers or successful reformers on recent international surveys. Policy documents and evaluation reports provided the evidence on which the evaluation of the two New Zealand (NZ) examples is based.Findings – The six criteria associated with high system performance and/or reform success were: system‐wide commitment to educational improvement; ambitious universal standards; developing capacity at the point of delivery; professional forms of account.
Current Concepts in Pediatric Cervical Spine Trauma

Background: Pediatric spinal trauma is rare and challenging entity. Although cervical spine is commonly affected, it is often missed on routine imaging investigations. Therefore better understanding of growing spine and its patho-physiology is crucial. Methods: Articles related to pediatric cervical trauma were searched on Pubmed and other online research data banks. We have summarized unique anatomy of pediatric spine, investigations followed by common injury patterns, their diagnostic challenges and management. Results: Immature spine follows typical injury patterns, so thorough knowledge of its presentation should be known. Primary physicians should be able to perform initial assessment based on clinical examination and investigations for early diagnosis. High index of suspicion and strategic approach leads to early diagnosis and prevents further morbidity and mortality. Conclusion: Spinal injuries in children are rare and typical. They are often missed and can have fatal consequences. Thorough understanding of pediatric anatomy and injury patterns helps in early diagnosis.
Accuracy of Behavioral Predictions at Zero Acquaintance: A Social Relations Analysis

The accuracy of behavioral predictions based on minimal information was assessed using the Social Relations Model (D. A. Kenny & L. Albright, 1987). Eighty women in unacquainted groups of 4 completed round robin trait ratings and predictions about extraversion-related behaviors. Each S then had a 5-min videotaped 1-on-l interaction with each of the other group members. Behaviors corresponding to those predicted were coded from the videotapes. Significant consensus was obtained for ratings of Extraversion and for behavioral predictions. Cross-partner consistency emerged for all coded behaviors. Although predictions of behavior were not accurate at the dyadic level, significant generalized accuracy did emerge. Thus, if a person was consensually predicted to be talkative, for example, that person tended to be talkative across partners. Results are discussed in relation to the accuracy of interpersonal perception and Swann's (1984) theory of pragmatic accuracy. As social psychologists, we have long been amazed by how quickly human perceivers form judgments based on very limited information. We have taken advantage of this proclivity by giving subjects limited stimulus information and then examining the effect of that information on human judgment. This research often demonstrates the inadequacies of snap judgments. Some (e.g., Funder, 1987) have criticized this type of research because of its limited generalizability. Particularly relevant to the issue of generalizability is the accuracy of snap judgments. Many social psychologists believe that snap judgments are based on stereotypes and heuristics and are, therefore, not likely to be very accurate. Although common sense would seem to point to the view that perceptions based on limited information are likely to be quite erroneous, people not only make snap judgments but also use them as a primary basis for guiding future interaction. For example, individuals often base their decisions about who to get to know better and who to avoid in the future on snap judgments. Given that interpersonal perceptions based on minimal information can have dramatic effects on social outcomes, the accuracy of those initial perceptions is a critical question for research in interpersonal perception. Specifically, do initial perceptions provide a reasonable basis for inferring future behavior? The accuracy of snap judgments is the major focus of this article.
'It Hurts a Hell of a Lot...'

This article reports on a qualitative investigation of the effects of indirect aggression from peers (e.g. spreading false stories, exclusion from the group) on teenage girls. Focus groups, pair and individual interviews were conducted with teenage girls and their key teachers to explore the effects of indirect aggression on girls. The perceived characteristics of typical victims of indirect aggression also emerged from the study. The girls initially respond to indirect aggression with confusion and may deny suffering any ill-effects. However, as is the case with other forms of victimization, girls certainly experience a range of negative psychological effects including anxiety, loss of selfesteem and depression. This pain leads to a desire to escape through leaving the group or the school and even to thoughts of suicide. The girls fear that the harassment from peers may not end and witnesses or bystanders do not intervene for fear of what may happen to them. The pain of indirect aggression may be compounded by irrational self-talk by the girls. Some girls react to indirect aggression by retaliating against their aggressors and often conflict is resolved by girls who employ one-to-one strategies that avoid the power of the group. Some victims of indirect aggression are reported to bring the wrath of peers upon themselves through their actions in provoking others. However, the tendency to blame the victim may be a way of alleviating guilt on behalf of the perpetrators of aggression. Victims of indirect aggression may be particularly vulnerable if they are new or have few friends or lack assertiveness. An understanding of the painful effects of indirect aggression on girls is an important prelude to designing interventions to assist girls in their peer relationships.
The development of ethnic prejudice: An analysis of Australian immigrants

Abstract Prejudice is found in all societies, but it is a particular problem in immigrant societies. In this article we use Bogardus's social‐distance scale to identify patterns of ethnic prejudice in Australia and test four explanations to account for it: personality, socio‐psychology, social structure, and social contact. The data are a national sample of the Australian‐born and of three immigrant groups: Maltese, Lebanese, and Vietnamese. The results show that ethnic prejudice is not unidimensional and that there are at least two dimensions, which we label social prejudice and cultural prejudice. The analyses indicate that Australians and longer‐resident Maltese emphasize the social dimension of prejudice; the newly arrived Vietnamese emphasize the cultural dimension. For Australians, prejudice is rooted in personality factors; but for immigrants, none of the four explanations is significant. The results point to the interaction between personality factors and social learning within the society as the .
Subexponential fixed-parameter tractability of cluster editing

In the Correlation Clustering, also known as Cluster Editing, we are given an undirected n-vertex graph G and a positive integer k. The task is to decide if G can be transformed into a cluster graph, i.e., a disjoint union of cliques, by changing at most k adjacencies, i.e. by adding/deleting at most k edges. We give a subexponential algorithm that, in time 2^O(sqrt(pk)) + n^O(1) decides whether G can be transformed into a cluster graph with p cliques by changing at most k adjacencies. We complement our algorithmic findings by the following tight lower bounds on the asymptotic behaviour of our algorithm. We show that, unless ETH fails, for any constant 0 < s <= 1, there is p = Theta(k^s) such that there is no algorithm deciding in time 2^o(sqrt(pk)) n^O(1) whether G can be transformed into a cluster graph with p cliques by changing at most k adjacencies.
Children's and Parents' Discourses about Computers in the Home and School

Introduction A number of different theoretical frameworks exist for studying the interactions between children and computers in their homes. These include theories with strong elements of technological determinism, or social determinism, where the child is seen to be at the mercy of the ’powerful computer’ and/or the strongly gendered and classed power relations played out in the home. Few if any theories give ’agency’ to the child and recognise the reciprocity of influences between child, technology and the socio-cultural context. One theoretical approach that does offer some useful constructs within the framework of
Marketing and entrepreneurship: An integrated view from the entrepreneur’s perspective

This article explores the role and significance of marketing in the entrepreneurial process.Utilising an 11-year longitudinal study, supported by a context-rich interpretive approach, the interrelationship between marketing and entrepreneurship at different stages of the business life cycle are examined. Under an effectuation and enactment framework, entrepreneurship is neither ends-driven nor means-driven, but a consequence of the interplay between actors and social context through ongoing enactment. As the ‘joint core actors of the business’, entrepreneurs actively interact with their customers in shaping the marketing activities of the business to meet their ends.
The Effects of Self-confidence in Bilingual Abilities on Language Use: Perspectives on Pasifika Language Use in South Auckland

This paper considers speakers' differing degrees of self-confidence in their bilingual abilities and their effects on reported language use and observed patterns of language choice. One hundred and twenty individuals fromNewZealand's four largest Pasifika communities – Samoan, Cook Islands, Tongan and Niuean – reported on their selfconfidence in both their community language (CL) and English, and on the basis of these responses, five speaker types are distinguished. Analysis of their demographic profiles reveals differences with respect to first language, language of the childhood home and language of primary education. First language, for example, is an important variable for distinguishing those with limited self-confidence in their CL. Primary education singles out those who view themselves as English dominant (EDs), while differing CL use at home distinguishes CL dominant bilinguals (CDs), dual high proficiency speakers (DHPs) and English dominants (EDs). The findings show how analyses based on speakers' self-confidence in bilingual abilities may provide a community-friendly tool for describing patterns of language use and explaining the effects of social variables on language proficiency.
The Relationship between Importance and Achievement of Work Values and Job Satisfaction

This research addresses some of E. A. Locke's concerns about the nature of the relationship between values and satisfaction. Based on what Locke classified as causal theories of job satisfaction, answers were sought to two questions. How are the importance and achievement of work values related to various facets of job satisfaction, and what combinations of values are the best predictors of sarisfaction? First-line supervisors (N = 187) of a large manufacturing company ranked the importance and achievement of 16 work values and responded to measures of job satisfaction. Analyses showed that both important and achieved values, individually and combined, related significantly to satisfaction. Total variance explained by the work values included 63% for satisfaction with the work itself, 9% for satisfaction with pay, 43% for satisfaction with promorions, 16% for satisfaction with supervision, 29% for satisfaction with coworkers, and 35% for over-all job satisfaction.
The Belief in a Just World: A Fundamental Delusion

1. The Belief in a Just World. - 2. The First Experiment: The Effect of Fortuitous Reward. - 3. The Second Experiment: Observers' Reactions to the "Innocent Victim". - 4. The Third Experiment: The Martyred and Innocent Victims. - 5. Three Experiments That Assess the Effects of Sex and Educational Background of Observers, Experimenter and Observer Influence on One Another, and the Reactions of "Informed" and Nonimplicated Observers. - 6. Reactions to the Belief in a Just World Theory and Findings: The "Nay-Sayers". - 7. Condemning the Victimized. - 8. The Assignment of Blame. - 9. The Response to Victimization: Extreme Tests of the Belief in a Just World. - 10. Who Believes in a Just World: Dimension or Style. - 11. Deserving versus Justice. - References.
The Perceived Importance of Yalom’s Therapeutic Factors in Psychodynamic Group Psychotherapy for Patients with Psychosis

The aim of this study was to examine the importance of Yalom’s therapeutic factors in psychodynamic group psychotherapy based on the duration of patients’ participation in the group and their sociodemographic characteristics. A total of 57 outpatients with psychosis completed Yalom’s therapeutic factors questionnaire, and were divided into four groups according to the duration of their participation in the group. The instillation of hope, group cohesiveness and existential factors were the highest ranking, whereas identification was the lowest ranking therapeutic factor. Longer participation in the group was associated with greater perceived importance of catharsis and family re-enactment factors. The relationship between the perceived importance of the therapeutic factors and the participant’s gender, age, and level of education was examined. The findings of this study may contribute to an improved understanding of group processes in patients with psychosis, and may assist with the development of more effective therapeutic approaches in this population.
Pathways From Personality to Happiness

Personal sense of uniqueness, a major construct in humanistic psychology, has been recently shown to be a robust correlate of happiness. Yet the antecedents of this experience are not known. To address this limitation, we focused on extraversion and openness to experience, the two traits referred to as plasticity in higher-order framework of personality, as predictors of uniqueness and happiness. In light of theory and past empirical research, we proposed that the two traits representing plasticity would promote a sense of uniqueness, which in turn influence happiness. This model was tested in a college sample (N = 370) by relying on structural equation modeling. Results showed that uniqueness mediated the associations of extraversion and openness to experience with happiness. This model was supported when the effects of neuroticism, a marker of vulnerability to psychopathology, on uniqueness was taken into account. The implications of the findings for future research were addressed and sense of uniqueness as an element of a good life was highlighted.
Adaptive Interval Type-2 Fuzzy Logic Control for PMSM Drives With a Modified Reference Frame

In this paper, an adaptive interval type-2 fuzzy logic control scheme is proposed for high-performance permanent magnet synchronous machine drives. This strategy combines the power of type-2 fuzzy logic systems with the adaptive control theory to achieve accurate tracking and robustness to higher uncertainties. Unlike other controllers, the proposed strategy does not require electrical transducers and hence, no explicit currents loop regulation is needed, which yields a simplified control scheme. But, this limits the machine's operation range since it results in a higher energy consumption. Therefore, a modified reference frame is also proposed in this paper to decrease the machine's consumption. To better assess the performance of the new reference frame, comparison against its original counterpart is carried-out under the same conditions. Moreover, the stability of the closed-loop control scheme is guaranteed by a Lyapunov theorem. Simulation and experimental results for numerous situations highlight the effectiveness of the proposed controller in standstill, transient, and steady-state conditions.
[Infants with colic. A heterogenous group possible to cure? Treatment by pediatric consultation followed by a study of the effect of zone therapy on incurable colic].

INTRODUCTION The aim of the study was to investigate and treat infants with colic by conventional medicine followed by an investigation of the effect of reflexological treatment. MATERIAL AND METHODS The investigation was prospective, followed by a randomised, single-blind, double-controlled, prospective study of reflexological treatment with an interview and diary. Sixty-three infants aged 1-3 months referred by general practitioners with crying for > 90 minutes a day were given a paediatric examination and intervention. The cause of crying was discovered in 33 infants: Vitamin D (5), elimination of cow's milk protein (3), and anal stenosis (3); counselling on feeding, sleep, reduction of stimulation, and avoidance of passive smoking (22). Thirty infants without the benefit of paediatric consultation were randomised to three groups for a duration of two weeks: A: Presumed non-effective reflexological treatment vs B: Presumed effective reflexological treatment vs C: No treatment--only observation. The most important parameter was the number of crying hours over 24 hours. Cure was defined as crying for less than or equal to 30 minutes. RESULTS Examination by the paediatrician: Thirty-three of 63 infants benefited with a reduction in crying of less than 90 minutes and 13 of these infants were cured. The randomised study: In group C (control), none of the patients was cured. In groups A and B (presumed non-effective reflexological treatment and presumed effective treatment), half the patients were cured, which was significantly better than in group C. There was no significant difference between groups A and B, but B seemed better than group A. B was significantly better than C. DISCUSSION Infantile colic had a significant cure rate at paediatric consultation and the children who did not benefit from this intervention had a significantly better outcome after reflexological treatment than had the observation group. Further investigations in reflexological treatment in infants are recommended.