Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Influence of soil properties on the performance of Folsomia candida: Implications for its use in soil ecotoxicology testing

Nineteen Mediterranean natural soils with a wide range of properties and the Organisation for Economic Co‐operation and Development (OECD) artificial soil were used to assess the influence of soil properties on the results of avoidance and reproduction tests carried out with the soil collembolan species Folsomia candida. Compared to natural soils, the OECD soil was mostly rejected by individuals when a natural soil was offered in avoidance tests, and the number of offspring produced was generally lower than the one obtained in natural soils. None of the soil properties assessed showed a significant influence on the avoidance behavior. More precisely, only soil moisture was included in the model explaining the avoidance response (avoidance increased with increasing differences in moisture), but its contribution was marginally not significant. The model derived explained only 16% of the variance in avoidance response. On the contrary, several soil properties significantly influenced reproduction (number of offspring increased with increasing moisture content, increasing coarse texture, and decreasing nitrogen content). In this case, the model explained 45% of the variance in reproduction. These results, together with the fact that most of the selected soils fulfilled the validity criteria in both avoidance and reproduction tests, confirm the literature experience showing that this species is relatively insensitive to soil properties and hence highly suitable to be used in ecotoxicological tests with natural soils. In addition, our study highlights the need for accuracy in soil moisture adjustment in soil ecotoxicological tests with this species. Otherwise, results of both avoidance and reproduction tests might be biased. Environ. Toxicol. Chem. 2011; 30:1497–1505. © 2011 SETAC
Ethics and the Neuroscientific Study of Leadership

This article represents a synthesis and rejoinder to the response articles by Ashkanasy, Cropanzano and Becker, and McLagan (this issue). First, I remind the readers of the key points I raised in the originating article (this issue), followed by clarifications on where respondents misunderstood my intentions and arguments. Third, I will synthesize the respondents’ main arguments by way of highlighting both converging and diverging perspectives on my critique. Finally, I conclude the article with some thoughts and suggestions for the future development of the debate.
The Impact of Mood Stabilizers on Suicide in Bipolar Disorder: A Comparative Analysis

Abstract Which mood stabilizers are the most effective in reducing suicide rates in patients with bipolar disorder? This paper reviews the literature and compares the data on two types of mood-stabilizing agents, lithium and anticonvulsants. Compared with the large amount of data on lithium, there is surprising little information available on the effects of anticonvulsants on mortality in manic-depressive illness. Each was also assessed in terms of suicide risk factors such as depression and mixed episodes, rapid cycling, substance abuse, anxiety and panic, and central serotonergic function. Only two studies that provide data demonstrating anticonvulsant efficacy in preventing suicide in bipolar disorder are available, and the data are incomplete at best. Further research in this area should include an emphasis on the outcome of mortality in patients treated with any of the anticonvulsants or with lithium-anticonvulsant combinations.
Clinical predictors of improved long‐term blood pressure control after successful stenting of hypertensive patients with obstructive renal artery atherosclerosis

Despite a high procedural success rate, long‐term blood pressure control after successful renal artery stenting of hypertensive patients has been inconsistent. This most likely reflects the absence of clinical guidelines for the selection of patients likely to benefit from renal revascularization. A cohort of 150 consecutive hypertensive patients (mean age, 66.7 years; 86 women) with 180 renal artery lesions (≥75%) underwent primary Palmaz stent deployment. Mean arterial blood pressure (MAP), serum creatinine, and antihypertensive medication requirements were monitored prospectively. Specific definitions of blood pressure cure, improvement, or treatment failure were followed. Renal artery duplex Doppler or angiography was performed to assess stent patency at a mean 13 months (range, 7–15 months). Multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to select clinical variables that best related to a beneficial blood pressure control at follow‐up. The procedural success rate was 97.3% (146 patients) and major in‐laboratory complications were infrequent (1.3%). Late MAP values in 127 patients (91%) fell from 110 ± 13.7 to 97.6 ± 10.6 mm Hg (P < 0.001); antihypertensive medication requirements decreased from 2.9 ± 1.2 to 1.9 ± 1.1 (P < 0.01). The 13‐month stent restenosis rate defined by duplex Doppler or angiography was 12%. Multivariate logistic regression analysis identified a preprocedure MAP of >110 mm Hg (odds ratio, 2.9; P = 0.003) and bilateral renal stenoses (odds ratio, 4.6; P = 0.009) as predictors of a beneficial blood pressure response at follow‐up. This study provides general preprocedure guidelines for the selection of hypertensive patients with atherosclerotic renal lesions likely to benefit from primary Palmaz stenting and confirms a high procedural success and low stent restenosis rate. Cathet. Cardiovasc. Intervent. 47:167–172, 1999. © 1999 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Magnetic resonance imaging predictors of temporomandibular joint pain.

BACKGROUND The authors conducted a study to evaluate whether temporomandibular joint, or TMJ, disorder subgroups are related to magnetic resonance imaging, or MRI, diagnoses of TMJ internal derangement, or ID; osteoarthrosis, or OA; effusion; and bone marrow edema. METHODS The TMJ disorder group was composed of 118 subjects with TMJ pain who were assigned a clinical unilateral single diagnosis of a specific TMJ disorder. The control group consisted of 46 subjects who did not have TMJ pain. Sagittal and coronal magnetic resonance images were obtained to establish the prevalence of ID, OA, effusion and bone marrow edema. The authors used a multiple logistic regression analysis to compute the odds ratios, or OR, for MRI features for control subjects versus four groups of subjects who had TMJ pain: ID type I (n = 35), ID type III (n = 39), capsulitis/synovitis (n = 26) and degenerative joint disease, or DJD, (n = 18). RESULTS MRI diagnoses that did not contribute to the risk of TMJ pain included disk displacement, or DD, with reduction and effusion. Significant increases in the risk of experiencing TMJ pain occurred selectively with DD without reduction (OR = 10.2:1; P = .007) and bone marrow edema (OR = 15.6:1, P = .003) for the ID type III group and with DD without reduction (OR = 11.7:1, P = .054) for the DJD group. Subjects in the group with ID type I were less likely to be associated with an MRI finding of OA than were control subjects (OR = 1:5.6). CONCLUSIONS While the contribution of MRI variables to the TMJ pain subgroups was not zero, most of the variation in each TMJ pain population was not explained by MRI parameters. Thus, MRI diagnoses may not be considered the unique or dominant factor in defining TMJ disorder populations. CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS Therapy for subjects with TMJ based on the evaluation of concomitant morphological abnormalities, whether prophylactically or as treatment for TMJ disorders, may be unwarranted.
Local Politics, Political Institutions, and Public Resource Allocation

This article examines how political institutions and local power structures interact with and influence local public resource allocation in the Indian state of Karnataka. We use data from 80 village councils and 225 villages to examine how this local political economy influences the allocation of public resources. Our empirical strategy exploits a unique policy of political representation in Karnataka that mandates representation, or reserves seats, in local governments for both historically disadvantaged groups and politically dominant groups. These policy-induced differences in the caste composition of these village councils therefore allow us to examine whether and how the form of such local politics distorts local public resource allocation. Representation in village councils is a nonlinear function of the demographic shares of these groups. Controlling for the latter allows us to identify the role of local power structures through the effect of social identities and the associated relative bargaining powers of different caste groups. We find that the design of political institutions matters to resource allocation. Although a formula-bound allocation of fiscal grants to the village councils was successfully implemented, the within-council allocation governed by a voting process reveals severe targeting failures. Importantly, we find that these targeting failures reflect elements of elite capture. Villages represented by politicians belonging to the historically disadvantaged groups get fewer fiscal resources. We also find evidence that villages represented by the politically dominant castes are likely to get more resources. Taken together, these results suggest that the capture of decentralized institutions by the local elite skews public resource allocation. The results also suggest that the use of a formula might lead to a more equitable intervillage allocation of public resources.
Voices of Resistance

Gender violence is a global human rights issue that presents serious risk to women in Pakistan. Multiple factors make leaving violence extremely challenging. This study examines the experiences of women who escaped violence and sought shelter services in Pakistan through an ecological lens within the social, cultural, and legal realities of Pakistan. Nineteen women residing at a private shelter were interviewed. Explored were the processes leading women to take action against violence, barriers encountered, and the consequences of the decision to go to a shelter, with a focus on the women’s strengths and resilience.
Reduction in medication errors in hospitals due to adoption of computerized provider order entry systems

Objective Medication errors in hospitals are common, expensive, and sometimes harmful to patients. This study's objective was to derive a nationally representative estimate of medication error reduction in hospitals attributable to electronic prescribing through computerized provider order entry (CPOE) systems. Materials and methods We conducted a systematic literature review and applied random-effects meta-analytic techniques to derive a summary estimate of the effect of CPOE on medication errors. This pooled estimate was combined with data from the 2006 American Society of Health-System Pharmacists Annual Survey, the 2007 American Hospital Association Annual Survey, and the latter's 2008 Electronic Health Record Adoption Database supplement to estimate the percentage and absolute reduction in medication errors attributable to CPOE. Results Processing a prescription drug order through a CPOE system decreases the likelihood of error on that order by 48% (95% CI 41% to 55%). Given this effect size, and the degree of CPOE adoption and use in hospitals in 2008, we estimate a 12.5% reduction in medication errors, or ∼17.4 million medication errors averted in the USA in 1 year. Discussion Our findings suggest that CPOE can substantially reduce the frequency of medication errors in inpatient acute-care settings; however, it is unclear whether this translates into reduced harm for patients. Conclusions Despite CPOE systems’ effectiveness at preventing medication errors, adoption and use in US hospitals remain modest. Current policies to increase CPOE adoption and use will likely prevent millions of additional medication errors each year. Further research is needed to better characterize links to patient harm.
Disgust and Happiness Recognition Correlate with Anteroventral Insula and Amygdala Volume Respectively in Preclinical Huntington's Disease

Patients with Huntington's disease (HD) can show disproportionate impairments in recognizing facial signals of disgust, but the neural basis of this deficit remains unclear. Functional imaging studies have implicated the anterior insula in the ability to recognize disgust, but have identified other structures as well, including the basal ganglia. In view of variable insula and basal ganglia volume changes in HD, we used voxel-based morphometry to map regional variations in gray matter (GM) volume in participants carrying the mutation for HD, and correlated this with their performance on a test of facial emotion recognition for six basic emotions (disgust, fear, anger, happiness, sadness, surprise). The volume of the anteroventral insula was strongly correlated with performance on the disgust recognition task. The amygdala volume (bilaterally) correlated with the ability to recognize happy facial expressions. There was marked specificity of the regional correlations for the emotion involved. Recognition of other emotion expressions, or more general cognitive or motor performance as measured by a standardized rating scale, did not correlate with regional brain volume in this group. Control participants showed no effect for any measure. The strong linear correlations for disgust and happiness recognition imply direct involvement of the anterior insula in disgust appreciation, and a similar role for the amygdala in recognizing happy facial expressions. The absence of a significant correlation with the basal ganglia suggests a less critical role for these structures in disgust recognition than has previously been suggested. The findings also highlight the role of neurodegenerative diseases combined with statistical imaging techniques in elucidating the brain basis of behavior and cognition.
Pursuing the elusive construct of distributed leadership

Distributed leadership is one of the most prominent contemporary leadership theories in education. Its attraction in education is perhaps due to its potential to bring about school improvement. A review of the literature, however, reveals broadness in the way the construct is being conceptualized and operationalized; thus making it elusive. The elusive nature of distributed leadership could be down to the lack of attempts to unpack and measure this construct, and/or because of the contested definition of the term ‘leadership’ itself. The purpose of this article is to elucidate this construct by addressing possible dimensionality issues. To do this, exploratory factor analysis was performed using Rasch (linearized) standardized residuals to examine the factor structure of distributed leadership. The analysis provided a lucid interpretation of the data to build a theoretical (measurement) model of distributed leadership. The distributed leadership instrument consists of 25 items, and the sample involved 1,232 schools leaders from Singapore. The findings indicated the presence of four possible factors of distributed leadership which include bounded empowerment, developing leadership, shared decision and collective engagement.
Analysing Spanish Learners' Beliefs about EFL Learning

With the hope that research into learner beliefs will enrich our understanding of how learners actually approach and discover a new language, this paper aims to find out what Spanish learners actually believe and expect from their English classes, whether or not they are satisfied with the progress made and the English education received so far. The results suggest that the beliefs learners hold about EFL learning are largely induced by their past classroom learning experiences. Additionally, this study found evidence of unsatisfied learning expectations which may have a negative effect on classroom instruction and, thus, ultimate learning outcomes
In vitro selection of a neutralization-resistant hepatitis C virus escape mutant

Effective immunization against hepatitis C virus (HCV) infections is likely to require the induction of both robust T and B cell immunity. Although neutralizing antibodies may play an important role in control of infection, there is little understanding of the structure of the HCV envelope glycoproteins and how they interact with such antibodies. An additional challenge for vaccine design is the genetic diversity of HCV and the rapid evolution of viral quasispecies that escape antibody-mediated neutralization. We used a cell culture-infectious, chimeric HCV with the structural proteins of genotype 1a virus to identify envelope residues contributing to the epitope recognized by a broadly neutralizing, murine monoclonal antibody, AP33. By repetitive rounds of neutralization followed by amplification, we selected a population of viral escape mutants that resist stringent neutralization with AP33 and no longer bind the antibody. Two amino acid substitutions, widely separated in the linear sequence of the E2 envelope protein (N415Y and E655G), were identified by sequencing of cloned cDNA and shown by reverse genetics analysis to contribute jointly to the AP33 resistance phenotype. The N415Y mutation substantially lowered virus fitness, most likely because of a defect in viral entry, but did not reduce binding of soluble CD81 to immobilized HCV-pseudotyped retrovirus particles. The in vitro selection of an HCV escape mutant recapitulates the ongoing evolution of antigenic variants that contributes to viral persistence in humans and reveals information concerning the conformational structure of the AP33 epitope, its role in viral replication, and constraints on its molecular evolution.
Psychological treatment of sexual problems. Thematic analysis of guidelines and recommendations, based on a systematic literature review 2001–2010

ABSTRACT In order to explore the basis for evaluation of quality in psychological treatment of sexual problems, a literature search, confined to publications between 2001 and 2010, was conducted in 2012. Two hundred sixty one articles were found and ordered according to the subject and type of publication. Thematic analysis of 37 articles on guidelines and recommendations for treatment of sexual problems is presented. Guidelines and recommendations published in the period from 2001 up to and including 2010 provides an overview of the discussion among professionals in the first decade of the 21st century. Six themes are analysed: (1) definitions of male and female dysfunctions, (2) prevalence of sexual problems, (3) lack of randomized and controlled trials, (4) need for a bio-psycho-social approach, (5) the subjective perspective, and (6) recommendations. Excerpts from the material pertaining to discussions and/or reflections on these themes are presented and discussed. The main conclusions are (1) the definition of psychological treatment is imprecise and needs clarification, (2) not every therapist should work with sexual problems, (3) sexual problems cannot be regarded as “dysfunctions” in the traditional biomedical understanding, but must be understood in a bio-psycho-social perspective, (4) psychological treatment is recommended in spite of lack of evidence, (5) the literature reflects a more reserved belief in pharmacological treatment, (6) material that qualifies as scientific evidence includes more than randomized and controlled trials and (7) combination treatment is recommended.
Incorporated identity in interaction with a teleoperated android robot: A case study

In near future artificial social agents embodied as virtual agents or as robots with humanoid appearance, will be placed in public settings and used as interaction tools. Considering the uncanny-valley-effect or images of robots as threat for humanity, a study about the acceptance and handling of such an interaction tool in the broad public is of great interest. The following study is based on qualitative methods of interaction analysis focusing on tendencies of peoples' ways to control or perceive a teleoperated android robot in an open public space. This field study shows the tendency of the users to ascribe an own identity to the teleoperated android robot Geminoid HI-1, which is independent from the identity of the controlling person. Both sides of the interaction unit were analyzed for 1) verbal cues about identity presentation on the side of the teleoperator, controlling the robot and for 2) verbal cues about identity perception of Geminoid HI-1 from the side of the interlocutor talking to the robot. The study unveils identity-creation, identity-switching, identity-mediation and identity-imitation of the teleoperators' own identity cues and the use of metaphorical language of the interlocutors showing forms to anthropomorphize and mentalize the android robot whilst interaction. Both sides of the interaction unit thus confer an ‘incorporated identity’ towards the android robot Geminoid HI-1 and unveil tendencies to treat the android robot as social agent.
Melting and solidification characteristics of Zr-, Ni-, and Mn-containing 354-type Al-Si-Cu-Mg cast alloys

ABSTRACT This study investigated the effects of adding Zr, as a base alloying element, besides Ni and Mn in different amounts and combinations on the melting and solidification characteristics of 354-type Al-Si-Cu-Mg alloys. Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) was used to characterise the sequence of reactions occurring during the heating and/or cooling cycles; whereas scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) techniques were used to observe and identify existing intermetallic phases. Nickel proved to have a retarding effect on the kinetics of precipitation of the α-Al network and the eutectic Al-Si structure. Also, the presence of Ni consumed a considerable amount of Cu to form Al-Cu-Ni particles instead of Al2Cu particles. Results revealed that solution treatment at 495°C for 5 h was sufficient to dissolve a large amount of Al2Cu particles in the α-Al matrix, which is mandatory for a successful aging treatment of the alloys studied. Additions of these transition elements produced new intermetallic phases such as (Al,Si)3(Ti,Zr), (Al,Si)3Zr, Al9FeNi, Al3Ni, Al3CuNi, and Al9FeSi3Ni4Zr, in addition to the other phases, namely α-Al, eutectic silicon, Al2Cu, Mg2Si, Q-phase (Al5Cu2Mg8Si6), commonly observed in 354-type alloys, and Fe-based intermetallic phases including β-Al5FeSi, α-Al15(Fe, Mn)3Si2, and π-Al8FeMg3Si6. Superheating the melt at 800°C instead of 750°C had an advantageous effect in that Al3Zr particles originating from the Al-15%Zr master alloy were dissolved and hence coarse Zr-containing particles were barely spotted in the microstructures examined.
Identity Confirmation Networks and Cooperation in Workgroups

Integrating social psychological and network theory, this field study demonstrates a positive association between identity confirmation-based networks and cooperation and performance in work groups. Mutual identity confirmation (of positive and negative identities) increased cooperation in work group dyads. With position in conventional social networks controlled, structural equivalence in identity confirmation networks also increased cooperation. Advantageous positions in identity confirmation networks enhanced performance through greater cooperation, and identity confirmation mediated effects of race-based diversity.