Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Students point of view of the biology lecture taught with anICT assistance: Preliminary results

In our contribution, we focused on using of information and communication technologies in the biology lessons concretely on birds class. We find out the students points of view of this lesson. The five-point Likert scale questionnaire was used as a measurement tool. The questionnaire included 27 statements and there was a place for expressing of the own students opinion there. The results were processed by using of factor analysis and ANOVA. The sample consisted of 70 secondary grammar schools students. General results should goes first - it means what was found in the research? Was ICT assistance considered to be important for students/ positively appreciated? In every dimension, the students from bigger town (according to the number of inhabitants) reached more positive score in questionnaire than the other students in sample. Gender differences were generally weak.
Molecular Analysis of the Nitrate-Reducing Community from Unplanted and Maize-Planted Soils

ABSTRACT Microorganisms that use nitrate as an alternative terminal electron acceptor play an important role in the global nitrogen cycle. The diversity of the nitrate-reducing community in soil and the influence of the maize roots on the structure of this community were studied. The narG gene encoding the membrane bound nitrate reductase was selected as a functional marker for the nitrate-reducing community. The use of narG is of special interest because the phylogeny of the narG gene closely reflects the 16S ribosomal DNA phylogeny. Therefore, targeting the narG gene provided for the first time a unique insight into the taxonomic composition of the nitrate-reducing community in planted and unplanted soils. The PCR-amplified narG fragments were cloned and analyzed by restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP). In all, 60 RFLP types represented by two or more clones were identified in addition to the 58 RFLP types represented by only one clone. At least one clone belonging to each RFLP type was then sequenced. Several of the obtained sequences were not related to the narG genes from cultivated bacteria, suggesting the existence of unidentified nitrate-reducing bacteria in the studied soil. However, environmental sequences were also related to NarG from many bacterial divisions, i.e., Actinobacteria and α, β, and γ Proteobacteria. The presence of the plant roots resulted in a shift in the structure of the nitrate-reducing community between the unplanted and planted soils. Sequencing of RFLP types dominant in the rhizosphere or present only in the rhizosphere revealed that they are related to NarG from the Actinobacteria in an astonishingly high proportion.
A quantitative technique for analysing robot-human interactions

This paper proposes a technique for quantitatively describing and analysing robot-human interactions in terms of low-level behavioural criteria (so-called micro-behaviours). In order to demonstrate the usefulness of this technique, we describe a case study that was conducted as part of the Aurora project where we develop robotic toys as therapeutic tools for children with autism. In this project we made explicit choices of how to assess robot-human interaction and how to study the impact of interaction. Results of a comparative study with autistic children are shown where we focus on eye gaze behaviour. The results point out common tendencies as well as clear differences among the children, important information for future development of robots in the Aurora project. We propose that this technique is applicable to a wide range of application areas that involve robot-human interactions. The work presented in this paper is intended to open up a discussion on appropriate techniques to systematically assess robot-human interactions. Such research is important for the development of robots in human-inhabited environments.
Invoking Halanay Inequality to Conclude on Closed-Loop Stability of Processes with Input-Varying Delay

Abstract At the light of a simple tutorial example, this paper discusses the merits of a recently introduced technique to control a class of systems with a delay depending on the past values of the control variables. The convergence proof of the proposed control strategy is obtained by a boundedness analysis of a class of delay differential equation, inspired by the Halanay inequality. The relations of the proposed technique with previous works from the literature on predictor-based controllers are discussed. The treated example is representative of a wide class of systems often observed in process control and distributed parameter systems.
Correlation between ebv co-infection and HPV16 genome integrity in Tunisian cervical cancer patients

Infection with high risk Human papillomavirus (HR-HPV) is necessary but not sufficient to cause cervical carcinoma. This study explored whether multiple HR-HPV or coinfection with Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) influence the integration status of HPV16 genome. The presence and typing of HPV in a series of 125 cervical specimens were assessed by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) using the specific primers for the HPV L1 region. As for EBV infection, the viral EBNA1 gene was used for its detection through PCR amplification. Disruption of the HPV E2 gene was assessed by amplification of the entire E2 gene with single set of primers, while E2 transcripts were evaluated by a reverse transcription PCR method (RT-PCR). The overall prevalence of HPVDNA was of 81.8% in cervical cancers versus 26.9% in benign lesions. In HPV positive cases, HPV16 and HPV18 were the most prevalent types, followed by HPV types 33, 31. EBV EBNA1 prevalence was statistically more frequent in cervical carcinomas than in benign lesions (29.5%, vs 9.6%; P=0.01). No viral infection was detected in healthy control women. The uninterrupted E2 gene was correlated with the presence of E2 transcripts originating from the HPV episomal forms. It was observed that integration was more common in HPV18 and EBV coinfection. The presence of EBV caused a five-fold [OR= 5; CI= 1.15-21.8; P = 0.04] increase in the risk of HPV16 genome integration in the host genome. This study indicates that EBV infection is acting as a cofactor for induction of cervical cancer by favoring HPVDNA integration.
The familial influence of loss and trauma on refugee mental health: a multilevel path analysis.

Although the impact of human rights violations on the mental health of refugees has been well documented, little is known about these effects at a family level. In this study the authors examined the relationships among loss, trauma, and mental health at the individual and family levels in resettled Mandaean refugees (N = 315). Trauma, loss, posttraumatic stress disorder, depression, complicated grief, and mental health-related quality of life were assessed. A multilevel path analysis revealed that loss and trauma significantly impacted on psychological outcomes at both the individual and family levels. Effect sizes ranged from . 21 to . 68 at the individual level, and . 38 to . 99 at the family level, highlighting the importance of the family when considering the psychological impact of refugee-related trauma.
Effect of time of day on force variation in a human muscle

The effect of time of day on the neural activation and contractile properties of the human adductor pollicis muscle was investigated in 13 healthy subjects. Two different times of day were chosen, corresponding to the minimum (7 h) and maximum (18 h) levels of strength. The force produced was compared with the associated electromyographic (EMG) activity during voluntary and electrically induced contractions in order to determine whether peripheral or central mechanisms play a dominant role in diurnal force fluctuation. The results indicated that the force produced during a maximum voluntary contraction (MVC) was significantly higher (+8.9%) in the evening than the morning. Since the increase in force of the MVC and the tetanic contraction (100 Hz) were similar, it is suggested that peripheral mechanisms are responsible for diurnal fluctuations in force. This conclusion is supported by the observation that central activation, tested by the interpolated twitch method during an MVC, did not change, and that the EMG was less per unit force in the evening. In addition to the increase in maximum twitch and tetanus force, significant changes in muscle contractile kinetics were also observed. The maximum rate of tension development and the relaxation of the twitch and tetanus increased in the evening, and the twitch contraction time (CT) and the time to half‐relaxation (TR1/2) were reduced. Because the mean range of variation in skin temperature (2.6°C) observed over the course of the day was very low, this change cannot entirely explain those observed in muscle contractile properties. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Muscle Nerve 22: 1380–1387, 1999
Interactive effects of nitric oxide and glutathione in mitigating copper toxicity of rice (Oryza sativa L.) seedlings

Nitric oxide (NO) and glutathione (GSH) are 2 vital components of the antioxidant system that play diverse roles in plant responses to abiotic stresses. Recently, we have reported that exogenous supply of both these molecules reduced copper (Cu) toxicity in rice seedlings. Individual as well as co-treatment of sodium nitroprusside (SNP: a NO donor) and GSH with Cu significantly mitigated the adverse effects of Cu, evident in the reduced level of oxidative markers such as H2O2, superoxide (O2·−), malondialdehyde (MDA), and proline (Pro). GSH content and most of the antioxidative and glyoxalase enzymes were up-regulated upon Cu stress, indicating their responses were co-related with the level of stress. Our results indicated that direct ROS scavenging, reduced Cu uptake, and the balanced antioxidative and glyoxalase systems, at least in part, successfully executed NO- and GSH-mediated alleviation of Cu toxicity in rice seedlings. In addition, the combined effect of adding SNP and GSH together was more efficient than the effect of adding them individually. Here, we are speculating that 1) GSH and Pro could be used as potential markers for copper stress, and 2) adding SNP and GSH might produce S-nitrosoglutathione (GSNO) which could be a source of bioactive NO and may affect many regulatory processes involved in Cu-stress tolerance. We further note that the combined effect of adding SNP and GSH was pronounced in inhibiting the uptake and translocation of Cu in rice seedlings.
Why Women Wear High Heels: Evolution, Lumbar Curvature, and Attractiveness

Despite the widespread use of high-heeled footwear in both developing and modernized societies, we lack an understanding of this behavioral phenomenon at both proximate and distal levels of explanation. The current manuscript advances and tests a novel, evolutionarily anchored hypothesis for why women wear high heels, and provides convergent support for this hypothesis across multiple methods. Using a recently discovered evolved mate preference, we hypothesized that high heels influence women’s attractiveness via effects on their lumbar curvature. Independent studies that employed distinct methods, eliminated multiple confounds, and ruled out alternative explanations showed that when women wear high heels, their lumbar curvature increased and they were perceived as more attractive. Closer analysis revealed an even more precise pattern aligning with human evolved psychology: high-heeled footwear increased women’s attractiveness only when wearing heels altered their lumbar curvature to be closer to an evolutionarily optimal angle. These findings illustrate how human evolved psychology can contribute to and intersect with aspects of cultural evolution, highlighting that the two are not independent or autonomous processes but rather are deeply intertwined.
Single-blind vs Double-blind Peer Review in the Setting of Author Prestige.

Methods | This study was approved by the University of Washington institutional review board and conducted at Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research (CORR), an orthopedic journal (2015 impact factor, 3.127; acceptance rate, 20%) that allows authors to select single-blind or double-blind peer review. Potential reviewers (based on expertise) were identified from the journal’s database, informed that a study on peer review would occur in the coming year, and allowed to opt out. To avoid influencing behavior, the details and timing of the study were not described and the trial was registered after completion. The protocol appears in the Supplement. Between June 2014 and August 2015, reviewers were randomized via random number table (1:1 ratio in blocks of 8) to receive single-blind or double-blind versions of an otherwise identical fabricated manuscript, which was putatively written by 2 past presidents of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons from prominent institutions. The manuscript described a prospective study on a nonclinical topic of broad interest (team training to improve communication and safety in the operating room). Five subtle errors were included, ranging from numerical mistakes to an error in the conclusion, to determine differences in how critically the manuscript was examined. The primary outcome was recommendation of acceptance or rejection. Grades of “accept” and “reject” were taken at face value and, for grades of “major revision” and “minor revision,” reviewers’ comments were analyzed for language recommending rejection by researchers blinded to group allocation. Secondary outcomes were the number of intentionally placed errors detected and quality scores for the Methods. Post hoc, scores for the other categories usually solicited by CORR were compared. Based on 80% power and an α of . 05, 98 reviewers were needed to detect a 20% difference in acceptance rates. Statistical analysis used χ2, Fisher exact, student t, and negative binomial testing, and multivariable logistic regression (SAS [SAS Institute], version 9). Significance was defined as a 2-sided P value of less than . 05.
Underwater Acoustic Sensors Based on Fiber Bragg Gratings

We report on recent results obtained with a fiber optic hydrophone based on the intensity modulation of the laser light in a FBG (Fiber Bragg Grating) under the influence of the sound pressure. In order to control the behavior of the hydrophone in terms of sensitivity and bandwidth, FBGs have been coated with proper materials, characterized by different elastic modulus and shapes. In particular, new experiments have been carried out using a cylindrical geometry with two different coating, showing that the sensitivity is not influenced by the shape but by the transversal dimension and the material characteristics of the coating.
Freshly isolated astrocyte (FIA) preparations: A useful single cell system for studying astrocyte properties

Astrocytes are cell constituents of the mammalian CNS whose intricate relationships with neurons, blood vessels and meninges in situ are well documented. These relationships and their complex morphologies imply numerous functions. Over the past quarter century or so, however, the main experimental basis for determining which roles are likely have been derived from studies on primary astrocyte cultures, usually prepared from neonatal rodent brains. We list a number of examples where these cultures have shown quantitative and qualitative differences from the properties exhibited by astrocytes in situ. The absence of an adequate reliable database makes proposals of likely hypotheses of astrocyte function difficult to formulate. In this article we describe representative studies from our laboratory showing that freshly isolated astrocytes (FIAs), can be used to determine the properties of astrocytes that seem more in concordance with the properties exhibited in situ. Although the cells are most easily isolated from ≤15 day old rat hippocampi they can be isolated from up to 30 day old rats. The examples we describe are that several different types of K+ currents can be determined by patch clamp electrophysiology, of all the mGluRs only mGluR3 and 5 were detected by single cell RT‐PCR, and that single cell Ca2+ imaging shows that the mGluR5 receptor is functional. It was found that the frequency of cells expressing mGluR5 declines with the age of the animal with the mGluR5b type splice variant replacing the mGluR5a type, as occurs in the intact brain. It is concluded that FIAs can be used to determine the individual characteristics of astrocytes and their properties without the problems of indirect effects inherent in a heterogeneous system such as the slice, and without the problem of cultures unpredictably reflecting the in situ state. The FIAs obviously cannot be used to study interactions of astrocytes with the other CNS components but we propose that they will provide a good database on which hypotheses regarding such interactions can be tested in slices. FIAs can also be isolated from brain slices or intact brain after various pharmacological or electrophysiological perturbations to determine the changes in astrocyte properties that correlate with the perturbations. J. Neurosci. Res. 61:577–587, 2000. © 2000 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Genetic epidemiology of ischemic stroke : A bi-ethnic , population-based stroke surveillance study

ion. Five recurrent events were eliminated resulting in 400 ischemic stroke cases for the final analysis. Thirty-seven percent (n=147) of the interviews were conducted with proxies. In 80.7%, the proxy subject was a spouse (31.7%) or child (49.0%) of the patient. The use of proxies varied with age of the stroke case (p<0.0001). Median age of cases with a proxy interview was 78.8 years and median age of cases without a proxy interview was 69.6 years. Use of proxies did not differ by gender or ethnicity of the case. Of the 400 cases interviewed, 39.5% reported a positive family history of stroke among a first degree relative. Eleven percent (n=44) were unsure of a family history of stroke and for three cases (0.8%), this question was not answered. Table 2 displays baseline characteristics for stroke subjects with complete family history data (n=353). The study population was 53.0% (n=187) MA and 58.4% (n=206) female. Median age was 73.2 years (IQR: 65.2-79.7). There were no differences in the prevalence of stroke risk factors among those with and without a positive family history of stroke. The distribution of ischemic stroke subtype among the 400 cases was 21.0% cardioembolic, 14.3% large vessel, 19.3% small vessel, 22.8% large strokes with insufficient evidence for categorization into large artery atherosclerosis or cardioembolism, 21.5% undetermined etiology, and 1.3% other determined etiology. Family history of stroke was borderline significantly associated with ischemic stroke subtype (p=0.0563), with family history less frequent among those with large vessel strokes and more frequent among those with small vessel disease (Table 3).
Scalable Services Orchestration with Continuation-Passing Messaging

Services orchestration is typically supported with the traditional centralized workflow technology. The central engine becomes an intensive resource when the number of services to be orchestrated becomes large. Existing decentralized approaches, being primarily based on static process partitioning, exhibit some other shortcomings such as in resource utilization and fault handling. We present an approach to decentralized services orchestration that does not have these shortcomings and scales well for a large number of services. The approach is based on a new messaging scheme, continuation-passing messaging, where continuations, or the reminder of executions, are passed along with messages for services orchestration. The approach also supports services recovery, by automatically generating recovery plans into a second continuation called failure continuation. Our experimental results show that the new approach provides much better scalability than traditional centralized ones.
Assessing the relevance of neighbourhood characteristics to the household food security of low-income Toronto families

Abstract Objective Although the sociodemographic characteristics of food-insecure households have been well documented, there has been little examination of neighbourhood characteristics in relation to this problem. In the present study we examined the association between household food security and neighbourhood features including geographic food access and perceived neighbourhood social capital. Design Cross-sectional survey and mapping of discount supermarkets and community food programmes. Setting Twelve high-poverty neighbourhoods in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Subjects Respondents from 484 low-income families who had children and who lived in rental accommodations. Results Food insecurity was pervasive, affecting two-thirds of families with about a quarter categorized as severely food insecure, indicative of food deprivation. Food insecurity was associated with household factors including income and income source. However, food security did not appear to be mitigated by proximity to food retail or community food programmes, and high rates of food insecurity were observed in neighbourhoods with good geographic food access. While low perceived neighbourhood social capital was associated with higher odds of food insecurity, this effect did not persist once we accounted for household sociodemographic factors. Conclusions Our findings raise questions about the extent to which neighbourhood-level interventions to improve factors such as food access or social cohesion can mitigate problems of food insecurity that are rooted in resource constraints. In contrast, the results reinforce the importance of household-level characteristics and highlight the need for interventions to address the financial constraints that underlie problems of food insecurity.
Potentially inappropriate medication use in the community-dwelling elderly: findings from the 1996 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey.

CONTEXT Inappropriate medication use is a major patient safety concern, especially for the elderly population. Using explicit criteria, prior studies have found that 23.5% and 17.5% of the US community-dwelling elderly population used at least 1 of 20 potentially inappropriate medications in 1987 and 1992, respectively. OBJECTIVES To determine the prevalence of potentially inappropriate medication use in community-dwelling elderly persons in 1996, to assess trends over 10 years, categorize inappropriate medication use according to explicit criteria, and to examine risk factors for inappropriate medication use. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS Respondents aged 65 years or older (n = 2455) to the 1996 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey, a nationally representative survey of the US noninstitutionalized population were included. A 7-member expert panel was convened to categorize inappropriate medications. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE Prevalence of use of 33 potentially inappropriate medications. RESULTS In 1996, 21.3% (95% confidence interval [CI], 19.5%-23.1%) of community-dwelling elderly patients in the United States received at least 1 of 33 potentially inappropriate medications. Using the expert panel's classifications, about 2.6% of elderly patients (95% CI, 2.0%-3.2%) used at least 1 of the 11 medications that should always be avoided by elderly patients; 9.1% (95% CI, 7.9%-10.3%) used at least 1 of the 8 that would rarely be appropriate; and 13.3% (95% CI, 11.7%-14.9%) used at least 1 of the 14 medications that have some indications but are often misused. Use of some inappropriate medications declined between 1987 and 1996. Persons with poor health and more prescriptions had a significantly higher risk of inappropriate medication use. CONCLUSIONS Overall inappropriate medication use in elderly patients remains a serious problem. Despite challenges in using explicit criteria for assessing inappropriate medications for elderly patients, such criteria can be applied to population-based surveys to identify opportunities to improve quality of care and patient safety. Enhancements of existing data sources to include dosage, duration, and indication may augment national improvement and monitoring efforts.