Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The affordability of alcoholic beverages in the European Union.

Alcohol has historically been consumed in an unproblematic way by many people across the European Union (EU). However, a significant proportion of alcohol consumption is problematic and generates harms for individuals and societies. Europe has the highest proportion of drinkers and the highest levels of alcohol consumption per population in the world. The high levels of alcohol consumption recorded in the EU have been linked to a number of public health and other problems, including violence and crime, diseases such as liver cirrhosis, lost productivity and absenteeism, family breakdown and accidental deaths. In spite of extensive evidence that raising alcohol prices reduces consumption on a societal level, the trend is that the real price of alcoholic beverages and the real value of alcohol taxation are decreasing across the EU. Against this background, the European Commission asked RAND Europe to conduct a study of the affordability of alcoholic beverages across the EU, and of the potential impacts of affordability on harmful use of alcohol. Specifically, the study is intended to provide evidence on whether alcohol affordability could be a useful policy lever to public authorities seeking to reduce harmful alcohol consumption in Europe. In order to do this, the study: 1) examines the link between the affordability of alcoholic beverages, alcohol consumption and alcohol-related harms; 2) examines the impact of cross-border tax-driven or competition-driven price differentials; and 3) investigates the policy levers that can influence the affordability of alcohol, by providing an overview of current alcohol pricing policies in place across the EU. Chapter One: Introduction Chapter Two: The price of alcohol Chapter Three: Affordability of alcoholic beverages in the EU Chapter Four: Consumption Chapter Five: Harms Chapter Six: Cross-border alcohol consumption in the EU: three case studies Chapter Seven: EU and national legislation affecting alcohol pricing Chapter Eight: Implications for alcohol pricing policy Chapter Nine: Final remarks Appendix A: Excise duty tables Appendix B: Workshop participants
Minimum-width control-current pulse for Josephson logic gates

For a given level of overdrive, there exists a minimum-width control-current pulse that must be applied to switch a Josephson logic gate. Determination of this minimum pulsewidth is useful in setting limits on the speed of various Josephson circuit configurations and also in finding the narrowest pulse that a Josephson-junction gate can detect when it is employed as a pulse detector. The minimum control-current pulsewidth is a strong function of the overdrive factor of the control current. It scales as(C/I_{m})^{1/2}, where Imis the junction critical current, andCis the capacitance, and is on the order of 10 ps for Josephson quantum interferometers in 5-µm technology. Computer simulations have been done to find the dependence of minimum control-current pulsewidths on overdrive magnitude for a single-junction gate and for two- and three-junction interferometers. Analytic expressions of the minimum control-current pulsewidth that are in good agreement with simulations have been obtained for these three types of Josephson logic gates.
Divergent and convergent projections to the two parallel olfactory centers from two neighboring, pheromone‐receptive glomeruli in the male American cockroach

Many animals utilize sex pheromone for detecting conspecific mates. Sex pheromone is usually a blend of two or more components with similar chemical compositions. The pheromone receivers are equipped with localized olfactory glomeruli in the first‐order olfactory center for specifically processing these pheromone components. In the American cockroach, Periplaneta americana, either periplanone A or periplanone B emitted by virgin females evokes identical sexual behaviors in males. The antennal lobes of adult male cockroaches have enlarged, neighboring A‐ and B‐glomeruli, which preferentially process periplanones A and B, respectively. By using intracellular recording and staining of neurons in the same preparations, we provide the first detailed projection maps of output neurons (projection neurons; PNs) from the A‐glomerulus and the B‐glomerulus. Although both PNs project to the mushroom body calyces and the lateral horn, their proximities in the two centers largely differ: in the calyces, the axon terminals of the A‐PN were located more predominantly in the periphery compared with those of the B‐PN, whereas axon terminals of both PNs were highly congruent in the anteromedial region of the lateral horn. These results suggest that pheromone component signals are dispersed in the mushroom body for specific odor discrimination but are integrated in the lateral horn for generating behaviors common to the pheromone components. Stimulation of the ipsilateral antenna with various odors showed that the odor specificity of A‐PN is higher than that of B‐PN. The different developmental lineages of A‐ and B‐PNs suggested by these results are discussed. J. Comp. Neurol. 520:3428–3445, 2012. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Apoptotic Cell Death in the Fission Yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe Induced by Valproic Acid and Its Extreme Susceptibility to pH Change

Schizosaccharomyces pombe treated with valproic acid died with apoptotic markers such as DNA fragmentation, loss of a mitochondrial electrochemial gradient and chromatin condensation, independently of metacaspase, a yeast homolog of metazoan caspase. Sensitivity to valproic acid was strongly dependent on growth phase. Cells in a later growth phase were much more sensitive to valproic acid than those in an earlier one. Altering the pH of the medium with HCl and with NaOH also caused remarkable changes in sensitivity. Cells in an acidic medium were more sensitive to valproic acid. This pH-dependent change in sensitivity did not require de novo protein synthesis, and a change in pH 60 min after the administration of valproic acid affected sensitivity. These results suggest that the intracellular cell death process was susceptible to extracellular pH. Although a sir2 mutant of Saccharomyces cerevisiae has been reported to be resistant to valproic acid, mutations in sir2 did not affect the sensitivity to valproic acid of S. pombe.
Launching the Effect: Representations of Causal Movements are Influenced by what they Lead to

We investigated whether the representation of an observed causal movement is influenced by its observed effect. Subjects watched displays showing collisions between two objects. In this “launching event” (Michotte, 1946/1963), one of the two objects (Object A) started to move and set a second, initially stationary, object (Object B) into motion, which gave a strong impression of apparent causality. The apparent effectiveness of A's movement was manipulated by varying the velocities of A and B. When the velocity of B was higher than that of A, the effectiveness of the collision was high; when it was smaller it was low. Then, subjects were asked to reproduce the velocity of the causal movement. Reproduced velocity followed the velocity of both Object A and Object B, which supports the hypothesis that the effect of a movement is integrated with its apparent cause. However, when apparent causality was reduced by changing the direction of motion of B or by covering the point of collision, the influence of the effect on the representation of the cause persisted, suggesting that retroactive interference may account for the findings. The interference effect could not be reduced to temporal recency or spatial integration and was not obtained in the reverse temporal order (proactive interference). Rather, the two successive movements were blended in memory.
An architecture for a global Internet host distance estimation service

There is an increasing need for Internet hosts to be able to quickly and efficiently learn the distance, in terms of metrics such as latency or bandwidth, between Internet hosts. For example, to select the nearest of multiple equal content Web servers. This paper explores technical issues related to the creation of a public infrastructure service to provide such information. In so doing, we suggest an architecture, called IDMaps, whereby Internet distance information is distributed over the Internet, using IP multicast groups, in the form of a virtual distance map. Systems listening to the groups can estimate the distance between any pair of IP addresses by running a spanning tree algorithm over the received distance map. We also presents the results of experiments that give preliminary evidence supporting the architecture. This work thus lays the initial foundation for future work in this new area.
Myogenin regulates denervation‐dependent muscle atrophy in mouse soleus muscle

Muscle inactivity due to injury or disease results in muscle atrophy. The molecular mechanisms contributing to muscle atrophy are poorly understood. However, it is clear that expression of atrophy‐related genes, like Atrogin‐1 and MuRF‐1, are intimately tied to loss of muscle mass. When these atrophy‐related genes are knocked out, inactive muscles retain mass. Muscle denervation stimulates muscle atrophy and Myogenin (Myog) is a muscle‐specific transcription factor that is highly induced following muscle denervation. To investigate if Myog contributes to muscle atrophy, we have taken advantage of conditional Myog null mice. We show that in the denervated soleus muscle Myog expression contributes to reduced muscle force, mass, and cross‐sectional area. We found that Myog mediates these effects, at least in part, by regulating expression of the Atrogin‐1 and MuRF‐1 genes. Indeed Myog over‐expression in innervated muscle stimulates Atrogin‐1 gene expression and Myog over‐expression stimulates Atrogin‐1 promoter activity. Thus, Myog and the signaling cascades regulating its induction following muscle denervation may represent novel targets for therapies aimed at reducing denervation‐induced muscle atrophy. J. Cell. Biochem. 112: 2149–2159, 2011. © 2011 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
From ‘Omics to Otoliths: Responses of an Estuarine Fish to Endocrine Disrupting Compounds across Biological Scales

Endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) cause physiological abnormalities and population decline in fishes. However, few studies have linked environmental EDC exposures with responses at multiple tiers of the biological hierarchy, including population-level effects. To this end, we undertook a four-tiered investigation in the impacted San Francisco Bay estuary with the Mississippi silverside (Menidia audens), a small pelagic fish. This approach demonstrated links between different EDC sources and fish responses at different levels of biological organization. First we determined that water from a study site primarily impacted by ranch run-off had only estrogenic activity in vitro, while water sampled from a site receiving a combination of urban, limited ranch run-off, and treated wastewater effluent had both estrogenic and androgenic activity. Secondly, at the molecular level we found that fish had higher mRNA levels for estrogen-responsive genes at the site where only estrogenic activity was detected but relatively lower expression levels where both estrogenic and androgenic EDCs were detected. Thirdly, at the organism level, males at the site exposed to both estrogens and androgens had significantly lower mean gonadal somatic indices, significantly higher incidence of severe testicular necrosis and altered somatic growth relative to the site where only estrogens were detected. Finally, at the population level, the sex ratio was significantly skewed towards males at the site with measured androgenic and estrogenic activity. Our results suggest that mixtures of androgenic and estrogenic EDCs have antagonistic and potentially additive effects depending on the biological scale being assessed, and that mixtures containing androgens and estrogens may produce unexpected effects. In summary, evaluating EDC response at multiple tiers is necessary to determine the source of disruption (lowest scale, i.e. cell line) and what the ecological impact will be (largest scale, i.e. sex ratio).
Separating the North and South Pacific Meridional Modes Contributions to ENSO and Tropical Decadal Variability

North and South Pacific Meridional Modes (NPMM and SPMM) are known precursors of El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and Tropical Pacific decadal variability (TPDV). However, the relative importance of these precursors and the timescale on which they impact the tropics remain unclear. Using a 30‐member ensemble of the Community Earth System Model as the control climate, we generate two additional members where the NPMM and SPMM are selectively suppressed. We find that both meridional modes energize the tropical variance independently on different timescales. The absence of NPMM leads to a significant reduction of the tropical interannual variability (~35%), while the absence of the SPMM has no appreciable impact on ENSO but significantly reduces the TPDV (~30%). While the relative importance of the NPMM and SPMM may be model dependent, the stochastic atmospheric variability in the extratropics that energizes the meridional modes emerges as a key source of TPDV.
Orchestrating massively distributed CDNs

We consider a content delivery architecture based on geographically dispersed groups of "last-mile" CDN servers, e.g., set-top boxes located within users' homes. These servers may belong to administratively separate domains, such as multiple ISPs. We propose a set of scalable, adaptive mechanisms to jointly manage content replication and request routing within this architecture. Relying on primal-dual methods and fluid-limit techniques, we formally prove the optimality of our design. We further evaluate its performance on both synthetic and trace-driven simulations, based on real BitTorrent traces, and observe a reduction of network costs by more than 50% over traditional mechanisms such as LRU/LFU with closest request routing.
The division map of principal bundles with groupoid structure and generalized gauge transformations

Motivated by the computations done in \cite{C1}, where I introduced and discussed what I called the groupoid of generalized gauge transformations, viewed as a groupoid over the objects of the category $\mathsf{Bun}_{G,M}$ of principal $G$-bundles over a given manifold $M$, I develop in this paper the same ideas for the more general case of {\em principal $\calG$-bundles or principal bundles with structure groupoid $\calG$}, where now $\calG$ is a Lie groupoid in the sense of \cite{Moer2}. Most of the concepts introduced in \cite{C1} can be translated almost verbatim in the framework of principal bundles with structure groupoid $\calG$; in particular, the key r�le for the construction of generalized gauge transformations is again played by (the equivalent in the framework of principal bundles with groupoid structure of) the division map $f_P$. Of great importance are also the generalized conjugation in a groupoid and the concept of (twisted) equivariant maps between groupoid-spaces.
Product Line Implementation using Aspect-Oriented and Model-Driven Software Development

Software product line engineering aims to reduce development time, effort, cost, and complexity by taking advantage of the commonality within a portfolio of similar products. The effectiveness of a software product line approach directly depends on how well feature variability within the portfolio is implemented and managed throughout the development lifecycle, from early analysis through maintenance and evolution. This paper presents an approach that facilitates variability implementation, management and tracing by integrating model-driven and aspect-oriented software development. Features are separated in models and composed by aspect-oriented composition techniques on model level. Model transformations support the transition from problem to solution domain. Aspect-oriented techniques enable the explicit expression and modularization of variability on model, code, and template level The presented concepts are illustrated with a case study of a home automation system.
Advanced glycation end products, oxidative stress and diabetic nephropathy

About 246 million people worldwide had diabetes in 2007. The global figure of people with diabetes is projected to increase to 370 million in 2030. As the prevalence of diabetes has risen to epidemic proportions worldwide, diabetic nephropathy has become one of the most challenging health problems. Therapeutic options such as strict blood glucose and blood pressure controls are effective for preventing diabetic nephropathy, but are far from satisfactory, and the number of diabetic patients on end-stage renal disease is still increasing. Therefore, a novel therapeutic strategy that could halt the progression of diabetic nephropathy should be developed. There is accumulating evidence that advanced glycation end products (AGEs), senescent macroprotein derivatives formed at an accelerated rate under diabetes, play a role in diabetic nephropathy via oxidative stress generation. In this paper, we review the pathophysiological role of AGEs and their receptor (RAGE)-oxidative stress system in diabetic nephropathy.
Does pronounceability modulate the letter string deficit of children with dyslexia? A study with the rate and amount model

The locus of the deficit of children with dyslexia in dealing with strings of letters may be a deficit at a pre-lexical graphemic level or an inability to bind orthographic and phonological information. We evaluate these alternative hypotheses in two experiments by examining the role of stimulus pronounceability in a lexical decision task (LDT) and in a forced-choice letter discrimination task (Reicher–Wheeler paradigm). Seventeen fourth grade children with dyslexia and 24 peer control readers participated to two experiments. In the LDT children were presented with high-, low-frequency words, pronounceable pseudowords (such as DASU) and unpronounceable non-words (such as RNGM) of 4-, 5-, or 6- letters. No sign of group by pronounceability interaction was found when over-additivity was taken into account. Children with dyslexia were impaired when they had to process strings, not only of pronounceable stimuli but also of unpronounceable stimuli, a deficit well accounted for by a single global factor. Complementary results were obtained with the Reicher–Wheeler paradigm: both groups of children gained in accuracy in letter discrimination in the context of pronounceable primes (words and pseudowords) compared to unpronounceable primes (non-words). No global factor was detected in this task which requires the discrimination between a target letter and a competitor but does not involve simultaneous letter string processing. Overall, children with dyslexia show a selective difficulty in simultaneously processing a letter string as a whole, independent of its pronounceability; however, when the task involves isolated letter processing, also these children can make use of the ortho-phono-tactic information derived from a previously seen letter string. This pattern of findings is in keeping with the idea that an impairment in pre-lexical graphemic analysis may be a core deficit in developmental dyslexia.
Association of sleep apnea and type II diabetes: a population-based study.

RATIONALE Cross-sectional association has been reported between sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) and insulin resistance, but no prospective studies have been performed to determine whether SDB is causal in the development of diabetes. OBJECTIVES The purpose of our study was to investigate the prevalence and incidence of type II diabetes in subjects with SDB and whether an independent relationship exists between them. METHODS A cross-sectional and longitudinal analysis was performed in 1,387 participants of the Wisconsin Sleep Cohort. Full polysomnography was used to characterize SDB. Diabetes was defined in two ways: (1) physician-diagnosis alone or (2) for those with glucose measurements, either fasting glucose > or = 126 mg/dl or physician diagnosis. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS There was a greater prevalence of diabetes in subjects with increasing levels of SDB. A total of 14.7% of subjects with an apnea-hypopnea index (AHI) of 15 or more had a diagnosis of diabetes compared with 2.8% of subjects with an AHI of less than 5. The odds ratio for having a physician diagnoses of diabetes mellitus with an AHI of 15 or greater versus an AHI of less than 5 was 2.30 (95% confidence interval, 1.28-4.11; p = 0.005) after adjustment for age, sex, and body habitus. The odds ratio for developing diabetes mellitus within 4 yr with an AHI of 15 or more compared with an AHI of less than 5 was 1.62 (95% confidence interval, 0.67-3.65; p = 0.24) when adjusting for age, sex, and body habitus. CONCLUSIONS Diabetes is more prevalent in SDB and this relationship is independent of other risk factors. However, it is not clear that SDB is causal in the development of diabetes.
Megakaryocytic morphology and clinical parameters in essential thrombocythemia, polycythemia vera, and primary myelofibrosis with and without JAK2 V617F.

CONTEXT Megakaryocytes are the "hallmark" of Philadelphia chromosome-negative myeloproliferative neoplasms, such as essential thrombocythemia, polycythemia vera, and primary myelofibrosis; their morphology in correlation with Janus kinase 2 (JAK2 V617F) mutation as well as clinical and laboratory parameters remains unknown. OBJECTIVE To assess the morphology of megakaryocytes in bone marrow biopsies of patients with and without JAK2 V617F mutation. DESIGN Assessment of morphologic features of megakaryocytes in 112 bone marrow biopsies (52 essential thrombocythemia, 38 polycythemia vera, and 22 primary myelofibrosis) and correlation with clinical and laboratory data. RESULTS JAK2 V617F mutation was detected in 24 of 52 essential thrombocythemia cases (46.2%), 36 of 38 polycythemia vera cases (97.5%), and 14 of 22 primary myelofibrosis cases (63.6%). By investigating morphometric and clinical parameters using multivariate analysis, we found that higher hemoglobin concentration, higher white blood cell counts, and lower platelet counts were significantly associated with JAK2 V617F. Striking morphologic similarities were found between polycythemia vera JAK2 V617F and primary myelofibrosis JAK2 V617F concerning the localization and cytoplasmic size of megakaryocytes. Although polycythemia vera JAK2 V617F and essential thrombocythemia JAK2 V617F shared similarities in localization, distribution, and amount of megakaryocytes, morphology was different. Megakaryocytic morphology also differed between primary myelofibrosis JAK2 V617F and essential thrombocythemia JAK2 V617F. CONCLUSION Our results indicate that primary myelofibrosis JAK2 V617F and polycythemia vera JAK2 V617F share pathogenetic pathways, resulting in morphologically similar megakaryocytes.
Age‐related differences in absolute numbers of skeletal muscle satellite cells

The absolute number of satellite cells (SC) in young and adult rat skeletal muscle was estimated by correlating data from light and electron microscopic quantitation of myofiber nuclei (myonuclei and satellite cell nuclei) with biochemical assays for determining total muscle DNA content. Expressed both as a proportion of total myofiber nuclei and as absolute numbers, satellite cells are more numerous in the predominantly oxidative soleus muscle than in the mixed glycolytic/oxidative extensor digitorum longus (EDL) muscle at 1, 12, and 24 months of age. Satellite cell proportions decline gradually in both muscles with advancing age, but absolute numbers increase significantly in the soleus between 1 and 12 months, while EDL exhibits a continuous significant decline in satellite cells between each of the ages examined.