Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Unsupervised Learning of Feature Hierarchies

The applicability of machine learning methods is often limited by the amount of available labeled data, and by the ability (or inability) of the designer to produce good internal representations and good similarity measures for the input data vectors. The aim of this thesis is to alleviate these two limitations by proposing algorithms to learn good internal representations, and invariant feature hierarchies from unlabeled data. These methods go beyond traditional supervised learning algorithms, and rely on unsupervised, and semi-supervised learning. In particular, this work focuses on “deep learning” methods, a set of techniques and principles to train hierarchical models. Hierarchical models produce feature hierarchies that can capture complex non-linear dependencies among the observed data variables in a concise and efficient manner. After training, these models can be employed in real-time systems because they compute the representation by a very fast forward propagation of the input through a sequence of non-linear transformations. When the paucity of labeled data does not allow the use of traditional supervised algorithms, each layer of the hierarchy can be trained in sequence starting at the bottom by using unsupervised or semi-supervised algorithms. Once each layer has been trained, the whole system can be fine-tuned in an end-to-end fashion. We propose several unsupervised algorithms that can be used as building block to train such feature hierarchies. We investigate algorithms that produce sparse overcomplete representations and features that are invariant to known and learned transformations. These algorithms are designed using the Energy-Based Model framework and gradient-based optimization techniques that scale well on large datasets. The principle underlying these algorithms is to learn representations that are at the same time sparse, able to reconstruct the observation, and directly predictable by some learned mapping that can be used for fast inference in test time. With the general principles at the foundation of these algorithms, we validate these models on a variety of tasks, from visual object recognition to text document classification and retrieval.
Two‐stage support vector regression approach for predicting accessible surface areas of amino acids

We address the problem of predicting solvent accessible surface area (ASA) of amino acid residues in protein sequences, without classifying them into buried and exposed types. A two‐stage support vector regression (SVR) approach is proposed to predict real values of ASA from the position‐specific scoring matrices generated from PSI‐BLAST profiles. By adding SVR as the second stage to capture the influences on the ASA value of a residue by those of its neighbors, the two‐stage SVR approach achieves improvements of mean absolute errors up to 3.3%, and correlation coefficients of 0.66, 0.68, and 0.67 on the Manesh dataset of 215 proteins, the Barton dataset of 502 nonhomologous proteins, and the Carugo dataset of 338 proteins, respectively, which are better than the scores published earlier on these datasets. A Web server for protein ASA prediction by using a two‐stage SVR method has been developed and is available (http://birc.ntu.edu.sg/∼pas0186457/asa.html). Proteins 2006. © 2006 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Difference in Results of Ultrasonography and Diuretic Renograms after Pyeloplasty in Children with Unilateral Ureteropelvic Junction Obstruction

Purpose: Controversies persist on pyeloplasty follow-up, and the aim of this study was to assess the differences and interpretations in results of postoperative ultrasonography and diuretic renograms. Materials and Methods: The study population consisted of 46 patients who underwent pyeloplasty between 1997 and 2003. The average patient age was 7.0 months (range, 2-36 months). Serial changes in hydronephrosis were evaluated by consecutive ultrasonography at 1, 4, 10, and 24 months after pyeloplasty, and a diuretic Tc-MAG3 renal scan was performed 4 months after the surgery. Results: Ultrasonography showed that 11 (24%), 27 (59%), 35 (76%), and 39 (89%) patients had improved in hydronephrosis at 1, 4, 10, and 24 months after pyeloplasty, respectively. Diuretic renal scans showed that of 27 patients who showed improvements in hydronephrosis at 4 months after pyeloplasty, only 17 (63%) had improved excretion and 22 (81%) had preservation of different renal function (DRF). Among 19 patients with persistent or worsened hydronephrosis, 10 (53%) had improved excretion and 13 (68%) had preserved DRF. Conclusions: The results of ultrasonography and diuretic renal scan studies can differ in the same case after pyeloplasty. We recommend that improvements in hydronephrosis be assessed individually by ultrasonography, renal scans, and clinical status to determine surgical outcomes. (Korean J Urol 2009;50:596-601) 󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏󰠏
Blockade of renin–angiotensin system in antifibrotic therapy

Recent studies have shown that the renin–angiotensin system (RAS) plays a pivotal role in liver fibrosis. An intrahepatic RAS is expressed in chronically damaged livers, and angiotensin‐II (AT‐II) reportedly stimulates contraction and proliferation of the activated hepatic stellate cells (Ac‐HSC), and increases the transforming growth factor‐β (TGF‐β) expression through angiotensin type‐I receptors (AT1‐R). Some studies have demonstrated that the clinically used angiotensin‐converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitor (ACE‐I), and AT1‐R blockers (ARB) significantly attenuated experimental liver fibrosis along with suppression of the Ac‐HSC and hepatic TGF‐β expression. Angiotensin‐II also stimulates the tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinases‐1 (TIMP‐1) in a dose‐ and time‐dependent manner via protein kinase‐C as an intracellular signaling cascade in the Ac‐HSC, and these effects are completely suppressed by ARB. Combination treatment with low‐dose interferon (IFN) and ACE‐I exerts a stronger inhibitory effect than either single agent on its own. In humans it has been reported that ARB markedly improved the liver fibrosis score and TGF‐β expression in patients with chronic hepatitis C and non‐alcoholic steatohepatitis. Serum fibrosis markers also significantly improved by treatment with low‐dose IFN and ACE‐I in patients with chronic hepatitis C, refractory to IFN monotherapy. Collectively, these data suggest that the interaction between AT‐II and AT1‐R plays a pivotal role in liver fibrosis development. Because both ACE‐I and ARB are widely used in clinical practice without serious side‐effects, these drugs in combination with IFN may provide a new strategy for antifibrosis therapy.
Statistical learning in children with specific language impairment.

PURPOSE In this study, the authors examined (a) whether children with specific language impairment (SLI) can implicitly compute the probabilities of adjacent sound sequences, (b) if this ability is related to degree of exposure, (c) if it is domain specific or domain general and, (d) if it is related to vocabulary. METHOD Children with SLI and normal language controls (ages 6;5-14;4 [years;months]) listened to 21 min of a language in which transitional probabilities within words were higher than those between words. In a second study, children with SLI and Age-Nonverbal IQ matched controls (8;0-10;11) listened to the same language for 42 min and to a second 42 min "tone" language containing the identical statistical structure as the "speech" language. RESULTS After 21 min, the SLI group's performance was at chance, whereas performance for the control group was significantly greater than chance and significantly correlated with receptive and expressive vocabulary knowledge. In the 42-minute speech condition, the SLI group's performance was significantly greater than chance and correlated with receptive vocabulary but was no different from chance in the analogous 42-minute tone condition. Performance for the control group was again significantly greater than chance in 42-minute speech and tone conditions. CONCLUSIONS These findings suggest that poor implicit learning may underlie aspects of the language impairments in SLI.
Risk of Unwanted Sex for College Women: Evidence for a Red Zone

Objective: University and college health and counseling centers frequently warn female students about the red zone—a period early in a student's first year at college during which she may be at higher risk for unwanted sexual experiences (UWS). The authors designed this study to assess temporal risk for UWS in 1st- and 2nd-year college women. Participants and Methods: In March 2006, the authors randomly selected 50 first-year and 52 second-year students (representing one-sixth of each class year) to complete a modified Sexual Experiences Survey. Results: First-year women were at higher risk for UWS than were second-year women—particularly, early in the fall semester. The authors observed a significant linear effect during participants' combined first years in school, with more reports of UWS occurring early in the year. Conclusion: This study provides support for a red zone and highlights the need for investigating local norms for UWS.
Implementing an in-depth expanded science model in elementary schools: Multi-year findings, research issues, and policy implications

Summarized are research findings and policy implications obtained over a 5 year period (51 teachers, 1200 students) from the implementation of an in-depth expanded applications of science (IDEAS) model with average, above average, and at-risk students in grades 2-5. The IDEAS model replaced the time allocated for traditional reading/language arts instruction with a daily 2 hour time-block dedicated solely to in-depth science concept instruction which encompassed reading comprehension and language arts skills (e.g. concept-focused teaching, hands-on activities, utilization of science process skills, reading of science print materials, concept map construction, journal writing). The multi-year results revealed a consistent pattern of the model's effectiveness in improving both the science understanding (effects on the Metropolitan Achievement Test-Science ranged from 0.93 to 1.6 grade equivalents) and reading achievement (effects on the Iowa Test of Basic Skills-Reading and the Stanford Achievement Tests-Reading ranged from 0.3 to 0.5 grade equivalents). Participating students also consistently displayed significantly more positive attitudes and self-confidence toward both science and reading. Interpreting the findings, the IDEAS model was considered to provide clear evidence for the importance of focusing the teaching-learning process on the conceptual structure of the curricular knowledge to be learned in a fashion consistent with research and policy issues raised by the recent TIMSS study. Also discussed was the role of the IDEAS model as a means for linking theoretical perspectives from instructional design and cognitive science to science educational reform.
Gender Inequality in Interaction – An Evolutionary Account

In this article I argue that evolutionary theorizing can help sociologists and feminists better understand gender inequality. Evolutionary theory explains why control of the sexuality of young women is a priority across most human societies both past and present. Evolutionary psychology has extended our understanding of male violence against women. Here I add to these theories and present a sexual selection argument to postulate possible evolved predispositions that promote young female deference to adult males in interaction and the converse, lack of male deference to young females. According to this argument, the pattern of greater female deference disappears when the women involved are past menopause. Put together, these ideas form an evolutionary account of gender inequality that complements and extends traditional sociological and feminist theories.
Curcumol Inhibits Growth and Induces Apoptosis of Colorectal Cancer LoVo Cell Line via IGF-1R and p38 MAPK Pathway

Curcumol, isolated from the traditional medical plant Rhizoma Curcumae, is the bioactive component of Zedoary oil, whose potential anti-tumor effect has attracted considerable attention in recent years. Though many researchers have reported curcumol and its bioactivity, the potential molecular mechanism for its anti-cancer effect in colorectal cancer LoVo cells still remains unclear. In the present study, we found that curcumol showed growth inhibition and induced apoptosis of LoVo cells in a dose- and time-dependent manner. The occurrence of its proliferation inhibition and apoptosis came with suppression of IGF-1R expression, and then increased the phosphorylation of p38 mitogen activated protein kinase (MAPK), which might result in a cascade response by inhibiting the CREB survival pathway and finally triggered Bax/Bcl-2 and poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase 1 (PARP-1) apoptosis signals. Moreover, curcumol inhibited colorectal cancer in xenograft models of nude mice. Immunohistochemical and Western blot analysis revealed that curcumol could decrease the expression of ki-67, Bcl-2 as well as CREB1, and increase the expression of Bax and the phosphorylation of p38, which were consistent with our in vitro study. Overall, our in vitro and in vivo data confirmed the anti-cancer activity of curcumol, which was related to a significant inhibition of IGF-1R and activation of p38 MAPKs, indicating that curcumol may be a potential anti-tumor agent for colorectal carcinoma therapy.
Why do people use different forms of complementary medicine? Multivariate associations between treatment and illness beliefs and complementary medicine use

This study investigated associations between complementary medicine use and treatment and illness beliefs. Previously validated questionnaire measures of treatment beliefs, illness beliefs, and complementary medicine use were presented and advertised online. Completed questionnaires were received from 247 participants. Logistic regression analysis showed that demographic characteristics, treatment beliefs, and illness beliefs accounted for approximately 36% of the variance in complementary medicine use. Separate analyses were conducted to predict use of different types of complementary medicine. The strength of associations between beliefs and complementary medicine use was related to the type of complementary medicine used. The results suggest that people use complementary medicine because they are attracted to it rather than because they are disillusioned with orthodox medicine, and that both treatment and illness beliefs have an important role in explaining why people use complementary medicine.
Why Do Parents Homeschool? A Systematic Examination of Parental Involvement

Although homeschooling is growing in popularity in the United States, little systematic research has focused on this population. Grounded in the parental involvement literature, this study examines why parents decide to home-school. Parents of 136 homeschooled elementary children completed questionnaires assessing constructs derived from the parental involvement literature and personal beliefs identified in the homeschooling literature as important to parents’ decisions to homeschool. Results suggest that home-schooling parents appear to be motivated by an active role construction, strong sense of efficacy for helping the child learn, and positive perceptions of life context. Homeschool parents’ beliefs about the values, content, adequacy, and methods of public school education appear to be implicated less strongly in their decisions. Findings are discussed with reference to the development of a systematic and theoretically grounded knowledge base on parents’ motivations for involvement in their children’s education.
Localization of penicillin-binding proteins to the splitting system of Staphylococcus aureus septa by using a mercury-penicillin V derivative

Precise localization of penicillin-binding protein (PBP)-antibiotic complexes in a methicillin-sensitive Staphylococcus aureus strain (BB255), its isogenic heterogeneous methicillin-resistant transductant (BB270), and a homogeneous methicillin-resistant strain (Col) was investigated by high-resolution electron microscopy. A mercury-penicillin V (Hg-pen V) derivative was used as a heavy metal-labeled, electron-dense probe for accurately localizing PBPs in situ in single bacterial cells during growth. The most striking feature of thin sections was the presence of an abnormally large (17 to 24 nm in width) splitting system within the thick cross walls or septa of Hg-pen V-treated bacteria of all strains. Untreated control cells possessed a thin, condensed splitting system, 7 to 9 nm in width. A thick splitting system was also distinguishable in unstained thin sections, thereby confirming that the electron contrast of this structure was not attributed to binding of bulky heavy metal stains usually used for electron microscopy. Biochemical analyses demonstrated that Hg-pen V bound to isolated plasma membranes as well as sodium dodecyl sulfate-treated cell walls and that two or more PBPs in each strain bound to this antibiotic. In contrast, the splitting system in penicillin V-treated bacteria was rarely visible after 30 min in the presence of antibiotic. These findings suggest that while most PBPs were associated with the plasma membrane, a proportion of PBPs were located within the fabric of the cell wall, in particular, in the splitting system. Inhibition of one or more high-M(r) PBPs by beta-lactam antibiotics modified the splitting system and cross-wall structure, therefore supporting a role for these PBPs in the synthesis and architectural design of these structures in S. aureus.
Advances in Thermodynamics of Ferroelectric Phase Transitions

The thermodynamics of ferroelectric phase transitions is an important constituent part of the phenomenological theories of them, as well as the interface dynamics of them. In particular, if we confine the thermodynamics to the equilibrium range, we can say that the LandauDevonshire theory is a milestone in the process of the development of ferroelectric phase transition theories. This can be found in many classical books such as [1,2]. Many studies centering on it, especially the size-effects and surface-effects of ferroelectric phase transitions, have been carried out. For the reason of simplicity, we just cite a few [3,4]. But we think these are a kind of technical but not fundamental progress.
The Good Teacher and Good Teaching: Comparing Beliefs of Second-Grade Students, Preservice Teachers, and Inservice Teachers

Most teacher educators would agree that one of the primary goals of a teacher preparation program is to teach individuals how to become good teachers. What is open to debate is exactly what characteristics define good teachers. Although there is a vast literature on good teaching, few studies have compared the beliefs of individuals at various educational levels using a variety of investigative techniques. The purpose of this study was to explore second-grade students', preservice teachers', and inservice teachers' beliefs about good teachers and good teaching by using a combination of survey, drawing, and interview tasks. Results indicated that beliefs about good teaching seem to be formed at an early age with clear distinctions between second-grade students and inservice teachers. By comparison, the preservice teachers seemed to possess beliefs that mirrored both the second graders and inservice teachers. Implications for research, teaching, and teacher education are discussed.
Environmentalism as a context for expressing identity and generativity: patterns among activists and uninvolved youth and midlife adults.

Previous qualitative studies have identified themes of generativity and identity development in the interviews of environmental activists (Chan, 2009; Horwitz, 1996), suggesting their importance as motives for environmental behavior. The purpose of our study was to extend this work by identifying positive relationships between identity maturity, generativity, and environmentalism using quantitative methodologies. To explore these relationships, we designed quasi-experimental and correlational studies. We recruited 54 environmental activists and 56 comparison individuals, half of whom were youth (mean age = 22 years) and the other half midlife adults (mean age = 43 years). Sixty-three percent of our sample was female. Participants completed several environmental, generativity, and identity questionnaires. We found that activists and comparison individuals differed on the identity maturity, generativity, and environmental measures overall. Further, greater identity maturity and generativity were associated with higher environmental engagement. And generativity was found to mediate the relation between identity maturity and environmentalism. Our findings suggest that engaging in generative behaviors may be an important part of the process in forming an environmental identity and engaging in environmental actions.
Leadership at the front line: Impact of practice leadership management style on staff experience in services for people with intellectual disability and challenging behaviour

Abstract Background The aim of this research was to explore the impact of a particular management style called practice leadership upon the experience of staff working in services for people with intellectual disability and challenging behaviour. Such staff have been shown to experience high stress and lack of job satisfaction. Support by the immediate manager may be an important ameliorating factor. However, style of manager support requires further exploration. Method A single point-in-time survey of staff in adult residential services within the South East of England collected data on practice leadership, stress, and positive work experiences. Results Practice leadership was positively associated with lower stress, greater positive work experiences for staff, and more strongly associated with “developmental” than “supportive” leadership. Effect sizes were small to medium. Conclusions Staff experience of working in challenging environments may be improved by style of front-line leadership. However, further conceptualisation and research of staff experience and practice leadership is required.
The Effects of Maximum Strength Training on Throwing Velocity and Muscle Strength in Female Team‐Handball Players

The effect of maximum strength bench-press training combines with normal team skill training in handball was investigated. Subjects, female team-handball players from the Norwegian second division, were randomly divided into a training group (TG) that participated in normal handball training plus maximal heavy progressive resistance training with free weights, and a control group (CG) that underwent handball training only. Dependent variables were standing-throw velocity, throwing velocity with a 3-step run-in-set shot, and one repetition maximum (1-RM) in the bench press. TG improved significantly in all variables (bench press; 41.6 to 55.1 kg; standing throw, 19.8 to 23.3 m · sec−1) Whereas CG had significant improvements in the throwing variables only (standing throw, 18.5 to 21.1 m · sec−1, running throw, 22.6 to 24.6 m · sec−1). TG had significantly larger improvement than CG in the bench press and throwing velocity with a 3-step run-in.