Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Duration of S1, the most recent sapropel in the eastern Mediterranean Sea, as indicated by accelerator mass spectrometry radiocarbon and geochemical evidence

Slowly accumulated (<5 cm kyr '1) and rapidly accumulated (5-20 cm kyr -1) sediments have been compared to define the initiation and termnation times of the most recent sapropel (S1) in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. The Ba/A1 ratio has been employed as a more persistent index of productivity than Cg. Accelerator mass spectrometry radiocarbon dating of pelagic foraminifera indicates a maximum duration for increased Ba/A1 levels in S 1 from -9500- 6000 (uncorrected radiocarbon convention years B.P.) in the rapidly accumulated sediments and -9500-5300 years B.P. in the slowly accumulated sediments. This difference is ascribed to bioturbation affecting the slower accumulated S1 sediments. In the two most rapidly accumulated S1 units, from the Adriatic and Aegean Seas, there is a "saddle" of lower values centered on 7500 years B.P. in the Corg and Ba/AI profiles, so that the visual S 1 unit appears as a doublet. Geochemical evidence indicates that this intervening period is best interpreted as an episode of increased ventilation and bottom water oxygenation during the period of sapropel accumulation.
Antimicrobial activity of biogenically produced spherical Se‐nanomaterials embedded in organic material against Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus strains on hydroxyapatite‐coated surfaces

In an effort to prevent the formation of pathogenic biofilms on hydroxyapatite (HA)‐based clinical devices and surfaces, we present a study evaluating the antimicrobial efficacy of Spherical biogenic Se‐Nanostructures Embedded in Organic material (Bio Se‐NEMO‐S) produced by Bacillus mycoides SelTE01 in comparison with two different chemical selenium nanoparticle (SeNP) classes. These nanomaterials have been studied as potential antimicrobials for eradication of established HA‐grown biofilms, for preventing biofilm formation on HA‐coated surfaces and for inhibition of planktonic cell growth of Pseudomonas aeruginosa NCTC 12934 and Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 25923. Bio Se‐NEMO resulted more efficacious than those chemically produced in all tested scenarios. Bio Se‐NEMO produced by B. mycoides SelTE01 after 6 or 24 h of Na2SeO3 exposure show the same effective antibiofilm activity towards both P. aeruginosa and S. aureus strains at 0.078 mg ml−1 (Bio Se‐NEMO6) and 0.3125 mg ml−1 (Bio Se‐NEMO24). Meanwhile, chemically synthesized SeNPs at the highest tested concentration (2.5 mg ml−1) have moderate antimicrobial activity. The confocal laser scanning micrographs demonstrate that the majority of the P. aeruginosa and S. aureus cells exposed to biogenic SeNPs within the biofilm are killed or eradicated. Bio Se‐NEMO therefore displayed good antimicrobial activity towards HA‐grown biofilms and planktonic cells, becoming possible candidates as new antimicrobials.
Hepatitis C among Predialysis Patients: Prevalence and Characteristics in a Large Cohort of Patients

Background: The factors associated with hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection in predialysis patients need to be better investigated. The aims of this study were to evaluate the prevalence, risk factors, clinical, biochemical and virological characteristics of chronic HCV infection in predialysis patients. Methods: Anti-HCV antibodies were determined in a large cohort of predialysis patients. Epidemiological and laboratorial characteristics of HCV infection were evaluated in predialysis patients and this group was matched to a control group consisting of predialysis patients without viral infection (1:3) and compared in terms of risk factors and alanine aminotransferase (ALT) levels. Logistic regression analysis was applied to identify variables independently associated with chronic HCV infection. Results: A total of 1,041 patients (61% males) with a mean age of 61 ± 15 years and mean creatinine clearance of 36 ± 18 ml/min were included. Forty-one (3.9%) patients were anti-HCV positive and, of these, 39 (95%) presented viremia. Predialysis patients with HCV more frequently showed a history of blood transfusion before 1992 (66.7 vs. 10.3%; p < 0.001) and major surgeries (53.8 vs. 17.1%; p < 0.001), a higher proportion of undetermined etiology of kidney disease (43.6 vs. 17.1%; p = 0.001), and higher ALT levels (1.3 vs. 0.4 ×ULN; p < 0.001). History of blood transfusion before 1992 (p < 0.001; OR: 19), intravenous drug abuse (p = 0.002; OR: 69) and ALT levels (p < 0.001; OR: 50) were the variables that were independently associated with chronic HCV infection. The accuracy of ALT in detecting HCV infection was 92%. The most prevalent HCV genotype was 1b (48.7%) and 56.5% of patients presented high HCV viral load. Conclusion: Chronic HCV infection among predialysis patients is related to increased parenteral exposure. Elevated ALT levels suggest the need for HCV screening as part of the predialysis care since ALT seems to be a good marker of this infection.
Evidence for the proximity of calcium to the manganese cluster of photosystem II: determination by X-ray absorption spectroscopy.

The photosynthetic oxygen-evolving complex contains a cluster of four manganese atoms and requires both Ca and Cl for activity. The question of Ca proximity to the Mn cluster has been investigated by performing Mn X-ray absorption experiments on native samples of photosystem II (PS II) and on samples depleted of Ca and reconstituted by either Ca or Sr. Analysis of X-ray K-edge spectra demonstrates no significant differences in oxidation state or symmetry between Ca- and Sr-reactivated preparations. Differences are observed in the extended X-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS). The amplitude of a Fourier transform peak due to scatters at distances greater than 3 A is larger for samples reactivated with strontium than for calcium-reactivated samples. Taking into account the stoichiometry of Mn and Ca atoms in PS II, and considering physically reasonable structures, curve-fitting analyses of the EXAFS data using FEFF5-calculated parameters favor a model where both manganese and calcium (or strontium) scatterers contribute to the Fourier peak at approximately 3 A. Other models for the approximately 3 A peak with multiple Mn-Mn interactions or multiple Mn-Ca(Sr) interactions can also be fit to the data, but are considered less likely. This result provides confirmation for the structural proximity of Ca to the Mn cluster suggested previously [Yachandra, V. K. , et al. (1993) Science 260, 675-679]. Possible structural arrangements for a calcium-binding site are discussed.
Genetic Disorders Associated with Gingival Enlargement

A number of genetic disorders present with gingival manifestations which may be in the form of desquamative, ulcerative lesions or an enlargement of the gingiva. Gingival enlargement is a broad term that refers to gingival overgrowth without cause suggestion i.e. a strictly clinical description of the condition avoiding the flawed pathologic implications of terms used such as hypertrophic gingivitis or gingival hyperplasia. In this chapter we will summarize gingival enlargement that can be attributed to gene pathology. Gingival enlargement may present in some genetic disorders secondary to certain treatments not to actual gene expression e.g. Cystinosis secondary to treatment with cyclosporine-A, or epilepsy treated with phenytoin. This category of genetic disorders will not be discussed in this chapter, but should be considered in the differential diagnosis. Genetic disorders associated with gingival enlargement fall into four main categories according to etiology, clinical presentation and histopathological findings (Table 1). This classification is suggested as a guiding tool in differential diagnosis. The first category is Hereditary Gingival Fibromatosis (HGF), which represents a heterogeneous group of disorders characterized by progressive enlargement of the gingiva. HGF may appear as an isolated entity i.e. as autosomal dominant Gingival Fibromatosis or as part of a syndrome. These syndromes are rather rare but they all have gingival fibromatosis as a constant feature. The second category is Lysosomal Storage Disorders which are a group of disorders characterized by deposition of macromolecules anywhere in the body including the gingiva leading to gingival enlargement. Gingival enlargement in this category is not always a constant feature. It ranges from being common to being a rare feature. The third category is referred to as Vascular Disorders while the last category includes syndromes characterized by the presence of characteristic dental abnormalities.
The influence of social contextual conditions and basic psychological need fulfillment on self-management and emotional distress among urban African American adults with type-2 diabetes mellitus : a mixed methods study.

THE INFLUENCE OF SOCIAL CONTEXTUAL CONDITIONS AND BASIC PSYCHOLOGICAL NEED FULFILLMENT ON SELF-MANAGEMENT AND EMOTIONAL DISTRESS AMONG URBAN AFRICAN AMEIRCAN ADULTS WITH TYPE-2 DIABETES MELLITUS: A MIXED METHODS STUDY Sui a Marie Hood August 7, 2012 Introduction: African Americans are disproportionally diagnosed with Type-2 diabetes, and have been observed to have poor self-management, which increases risk of complications. Social influences are commonly associated with diabetes-related outcomes. Purpose: The purpose of the study was to assess whether and how socio-contextual factors influence self-management and emotional distress in urban African American adults living with type-2 diabetes, as well as to assess whether social support facilitate relatedness need fulfillment within this population. The study also sought to gain an understanding of the psychosocial support needs and preferences of urban African American adults living with type-2 diabetes. Methods: The descriptive study employed a mixed-methods research design. African American adults were recruited to take a one-time written survey. Hypotheses one and two were tested using hierarchical linear regression, hypothesis three was assessed using
A General Computational Model for Word-Form Recognition and Production

The formalism of generative phonology has been widely used since its introduction in the 1960's. The generative formalism is general en ou gh to be ap pl ie d to the m o r p h o l o g y of any l a n ­ guage, and its rules are stated in l i n g u i s t i c a l l y rele va nt terms. The m o r p h o l o g y of a lang ua ge is d e s c r i b e d by a set of rules which start from a underlying lexical representation, and transform it step by step until the surface representation is reached. So -c al le d abst ra ct p h o n o l o g y insists on in va ri an t lexical representations for morphemes, and thus all variations a m o n g di s t i n c t surface f o rm s m u s t be a c c o u n t e d for by rules. This has Led to a need for re g u l a t i n g the order in w h i c h the rules may be applied. The generative formalism is conceptually unidirectional, because only the production of word-forms is guaranteed to be straight forward. As the rules are applied, they sometimes de­ form the context of other rules. Backwards application of rules would require either foresight or extensive trials of tentative rule applications. The generative formalism has proven to be computationally difficult, and therefore it has found little use in morphologi­ cal programs. Until recently only simulators of rules have been w r i t t e n and used for testing p h o n o l o g i c a l d e s c r i p t i o n s or in the teaching of phonology.
Four DNA methylation biomarkers in biliary brush samples accurately identify the presence of cholangiocarcinoma

Early detection of the highly aggressive malignancy cholangiocarcinoma (CCA) remains a challenge but has the potential to render the tumor curable by surgical removal. This study evaluates a biomarker panel for the diagnosis of CCA by DNA methylation analyses of biliary brush samples. The methylation status of 13 candidate genes (CDO1, CNRIP1, DCLK1, FBN1, INA, MAL, SEPT9, SFRP1, SNCA, SPG20, TMEFF2, VIM, and ZSCAN18) was investigated in 93 tissue samples (39 CCAs and 54 nonmalignant controls) using quantitative methylation‐specific polymerase chain reaction. The 13 genes were further analyzed in a test series of biliary brush samples (15 CCAs and 20 nonmalignant primary sclerosing cholangitis controls), and the methylation status of the four best performing markers was validated (34 CCAs and 34 primary sclerosing cholangitis controls). Receiver operating characteristic curve analyses were used to evaluate the performance of individual biomarkers and the combination of biomarkers. The 13 candidate genes displayed a methylation frequency of 26%‐82% in tissue samples. The four best‐performing genes (CDO1, CNRIP1, SEPT9, and VIM) displayed individual methylation frequencies of 45%‐77% in biliary brushes from CCA patients. Across the test and validation biliary brush series, this four‐gene biomarker panel achieved a sensitivity of 85% and a specificity of 98%, with an area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.944. Conclusion: We report a straightforward biomarker assay with high sensitivity and specificity for CCA, outperforming standard brush cytology, and suggest that the biomarker panel, potentially in combination with cytological evaluation, may improve CCA detection, particularly among primary sclerosing cholangitis patients. (Hepatology 2015;61:1651–1659)
FOREBRAIN SIZE AND INNOVATION RATE IN EUROPEAN BIRDS: FEEDING, NESTING AND CONFOUNDING VARIABLES

Previous work has shown a positive correlation between relative forebrain size and feeding innovation frequency, corrected for species number, over different taxonomic groups of birds. Several confounding variables could account for this relationship: ornithologists could notice and report innovations more often in certain taxa because of biased expectations, greater research effort, editorial bias in journals or large population sizes of the taxa. The innovationforebrain correlation could also be spuriously caused by phylogeny or juvenile development mode. We examined these possibilities by entering species number per taxon, population size, number of full length papers, expectations (assessed by a questionnaire), journal source and development mode in multiple regressions that also included relative forebrain size. We did this with and without phylogenetic corrections and tested two behavioural categories, feeding and nesting, where flexibility and learning are clearly thought to differ, but confounds should have similar effects. Through an exhaustive survey covering 30 years in 11 journals, a total of 683 innovations was gathered for the northwestern part of Europe, 507 for feeding and 176 for nesting. Species number per taxon was the only significant confound for both feeding and nesting reports; as predicted, forebrain size was a second significant predictor for feeding innovations, but not for nesting. The frequency of feeding innovations in the short notes of ornithology journals thus appears to be a valid and reliable way to operationalise behavioural flexibility in birds.
Individual placement and support versus individual placement and support enhanced with work-focused cognitive behaviour therapy: Feasibility study for a randomised controlled trial

Introduction Employment is a key goal for many people with long-term mental health issues. Evidence-based individual placement and support is a widely advocated approach. This study explored whether individual placement and support outcomes could be enhanced with work-focused counselling. Method The study was designed as a pragmatic randomised controlled trial comparing the cost-effectiveness, in severe mental illness, of work-focused intervention (intervention) as an adjunct to individual placement and support compared to individual placement and support alone (control). Results The original sample (330) proved impossible to attain so the design was revised to a pilot study from which information on feasibility of a full trial could be drawn. Twenty-five individuals out of 74 found paid work but no difference was found in the mean number of hours in paid employment between the intervention and control groups. Conclusion Results demonstrate that delivering work-focused counselling in tandem with individual placement and support is feasible and acceptable to service users. The study observed that, even during a period of recession (2010–13), individuals with mental health problems succeeded in obtaining paid employment. Any additional benefit of counselling over individual placement and support alone could not be ascertained, due mainly to the high drop-out rate from this study.
Network Topology Inference Using Information Cascades with Limited Statistical Knowledge

We study the problem of inferring network topology from information cascades, in which the amount of time taken for information to diffuse across an edge in the network follows an unknown distribution. Unlike previous studies, which assume knowledge of these distributions, we only require that diffusion along different edges in the network be independent together with limited moment information (e.g. the means). We introduce the concept of a separating vertex set for a graph, which is a set of vertices in which for any two given distinct vertices of the graph there exists a vertex whose distance to them is different. We show that a necessary condition for reconstructing a tree perfectly using distance information between pairs of vertices is given by the size of an observed separating vertex set. We then propose an algorithm to recover the tree structure using infection times whose differences have means corresponding to the distance between two vertices. To improve the accuracy of our algorithm, we propose the concept of redundant vertices, which allows us to perform averaging to better estimate the distance between two vertices. Though the theory is developed mainly for tree networks, we demonstrate how the algorithm can be extended heuristically to general graphs. Simulations using synthetic and real networks and experiments using real-world data suggest that our proposed algorithm performs better than some current state-of-the-art network reconstruction methods.
On (σ, τ)-Lie Ideals with Generalized (θ, θ)-Derivations in Prime Rings

Let R be a 2-torsion free prime ring, F a generalized (θ, θ)-derivation associated with a nonzero (θ, θ)-derivation d, and U a nonzero (σ, τ)-Lie ideal of R. In the present paper we prove that U ⊆ Z(R) if one of the following holds: (i) F(U )=0 (ii) F(U)a =0o raF(U) = 0 with a � (iii) F 2 (U) = 0 and d(U) ⊆ Z(R )( iv) F(U) ⊆ Z(R) and d(U) ⊆ Z(R). Moreover, we also prove if R admits a right generalized (θ, θ)-derivation F associated with a nonzero (θ, θ)-derivation d such that d(x)◦F(y )=0 for all x, y ∈ I, a nonzero ideal of R, then R is commutative. Mathematics Subject Classification: 16N60, 16U80, 16W25
Robot instruction by human demonstration

This thesis describes the approach of programming a robot by human demonstration. Our system observes a human performing a task, recognizes the human grasp, and maps it onto the manipulator. Using human actions to guide robot execution greatly reduces the planning complexity. In analyzing the task sequence, the system first divides the observed sensory data into meaningful temporal segments, namely the pregrasp, grasp, and manipulation phases. This is done by analyzing the human hand motion profiles. The features used are the fingertip polygon area (the fingertip polygon being the polygon whose vertices are the fingertips), hand speed, and the volume sweep rate, which is the product of the first two. Segmentation is achieved by using the fact that the pregrasp phase motion profiles have characteristic bell curves. Subsequent to task segmentation, a grasp taxonomy is used to recognize the human hand grasp. The grasp taxonomy is based on the contact web, which is a 3-D graphical representation of contact points between the hand and the grasped object. By considering the higher level concept of the virtual finger, which is the collection of physical fingers acting in a similar manner, we can recognize the type of human grasp used in the task. The recognized grasp is used to guide the grasp planning of the manipulator. Grasp planning is performed at two levels: the functional and physical levels. At the functional level, the grasp is planned using virtual finger information. Subsequently, at the physical level, the geometric properties of the object and manipulator are considered in fine-tuning the manipulator grasp. The trajectory of the manipulator follows that of the human hand during the execution of the task. The human grasp and trajectory information enables the robot system to replicate the task. In summary, this thesis describes a novel way of programming robots--by direct human demonstration of the task. This thesis shows that by appropriately segmenting the stream of observed data and producing abstract representations of the task, we can enable the robot to replicate human grasping tasks.
Predictability effects in auditory scene analysis: a review

Many sound sources emit signals in a predictable manner. The idea that predictability can be exploited to support the segregation of one source's signal emissions from the overlapping signals of other sources has been expressed for a long time. Yet experimental evidence for a strong role of predictability within auditory scene analysis (ASA) has been scarce. Recently, there has been an upsurge in experimental and theoretical work on this topic resulting from fundamental changes in our perspective on how the brain extracts predictability from series of sensory events. Based on effortless predictive processing in the auditory system, it becomes more plausible that predictability would be available as a cue for sound source decomposition. In the present contribution, empirical evidence for such a role of predictability in ASA will be reviewed. It will be shown that predictability affects ASA both when it is present in the sound source of interest (perceptual foreground) and when it is present in other sound sources that the listener wishes to ignore (perceptual background). First evidence pointing toward age-related impairments in the latter capacity will be addressed. Moreover, it will be illustrated how effects of predictability can be shown by means of objective listening tests as well as by subjective report procedures, with the latter approach typically exploiting the multi-stable nature of auditory perception. Critical aspects of study design will be delineated to ensure that predictability effects can be unambiguously interpreted. Possible mechanisms for a functional role of predictability within ASA will be discussed, and an analogy with the old-plus-new heuristic for grouping simultaneous acoustic signals will be suggested.
Hitmen and the Spaces of Contract Killing: The Doorstep Hitman

This exploratory paper considers the spaces where hits take place within Britain. It concentrates on those hits that have occurred on the doorstep of the victim and offers analysis of why this location might be chosen. It suggests an emerging modus operandi (MO) of doorstep hits and how knowledge of this MO might be useful to law enforcement. Two cold cases are re-considered in light of this MO. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.