Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
An Economic Analysis of Alcohol, Drugs, and Violent Crime in the National Crime Victimization Survey

The purpose of this paper is to examine the direct relationship between the prices of alcohol and drugs and the incidence of criminal violence in a nationally representative sample of individuals in the United States. The positive association between substance use and violence is well documented, as is the negative relationship between the quantity of alcohol or drugs consumed and their prices. These two relationships together form the principal hypothesis examining whether increases in substance prices will directly decrease the incidence of criminal violence. Violence is measured by assault, rape/sexual assault and robbery. Measures of alcohol or drug involved violent crimes are also considered. The data come from the 1992, 1993 and 1994 National Crime Victimization Surveys. A reduced form model is estimated in which the probability of being a victim of a violent crime is determined by the full prices of alcohol and illegal drugs, the arrest rates for violent crimes, and characteristics of the respondent. Individual- level fixed effects are also employed in some models. Results from the preferred specifications indicate that higher beer taxes lead to a lower incidence of assault, but not rape or robbery. Higher beer taxes will also lead to lower probabilities of alcohol- or drug-involved assault. Decriminalizing marijuana will result in a higher incidence of assault and robbery, while higher cocaine prices will decrease these crimes.
Meiotic actin rings are essential for proper sporulation in fission yeast

Sporulation is a unique form of cytokinesis that occurs following meiosis II in many yeasts, during which four daughter cells (spores) are generated within a single mother cell. Here we characterize the role of F-actin in the process of sporulation in the fission yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe. As shown previously, we find that F-actin assembles into four ring structures per ascus, referred to as the meiotic actin ring (MeiAR). The actin nucleators Arp2/3 and formin For3 assemble into ring structures that overlap with Meu14, a protein known to assemble into the so-called leading edge, a ring structure that is known to guide forespore membrane assembly. Interestingly, F-actin makes rings that occupy a larger region behind the leading edge ring. Time-lapse microscopy showed that the MeiAR assembles near the spindle pole bodies and undergoes an expansion in diameter during the early stages of meiosis II, followed by closure in later stages of meiosis II. MeiAR closure completes the process of forespore membrane assembly. Loss of the MeiAR leads to excessive assembly of forespore membranes with a deformed appearance. The rate of closure of the MeiAR is dictated by the function of the septation initiation network (SIN). We conclude that the MeiAR ensures proper targeting of the membrane biogenesis machinery to the leading edge, thereby ensuring the formation of spherical spores.
Hijacking of an autophagy-like process is critical for the life cycle of a DNA virus infecting oceanic algal blooms

Marine photosynthetic microorganisms are the basis of marine food webs and are responsible for nearly 50% of the global primary production. Emiliania huxleyi forms massive oceanic blooms that are routinely terminated by large double-stranded DNA coccolithoviruses. The cellular mechanisms that govern the replication cycle of these giant viruses are largely unknown. We used diverse techniques, including fluorescence microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, cryoelectron tomography, immunolabeling and biochemical methodologies to investigate the role of autophagy in host–virus interactions. Hallmarks of autophagy are induced during the lytic phase of E. huxleyi viral infection, concomitant with up-regulation of autophagy-related genes (ATG genes). Pretreatment of the infected cells with an autophagy inhibitor causes a major reduction in the production of extracellular viral particles, without reducing viral DNA replication within the cell. The host-encoded Atg8 protein was detected within purified virions, demonstrating the pivotal role of the autophagy-like process in viral assembly and egress. We show that autophagy, which is classically considered as a defense mechanism, is essential for viral propagation and for facilitating a high burst size. This cellular mechanism may have a major impact on the fate of the viral-infected blooms, and therefore on the cycling of nutrients within the marine ecosystem.
Risk of adverse pregnancy outcomes stratified for pre-pregnancy body mass index

Abstract Objective: To estimate the risk of adverse maternal and perinatal outcomes in women with different pre-pregnancy body mass index (BMI). Methods: We conducted a cohort study with 14 451 singleton pregnancies in 15 medical centers in Beijing between 20 June 2013 and 30 November 2013 using cluster random sampling. We divided participants into four groups based on pre-pregnancy BMI: Group A (underweight): BMI < 18.5 kg/m2, Group B (normal): 18.5–23.9 kg/m2, Group C (overweight): 24–27.9 kg/m2, Group D (obesity): ≥28 kg/m2. We used multivariate analysis to evaluate the association of the risk of adverse pregnancy outcomes and pre-pregnancy BMI. Results: The prevalence of maternal overweight and obesity was 14.82% (2142/14 451) and 4.71% (680/14 451) in the study population, respectively. Higher pre-pregnancy BMI is associated with higher prevalence of gestational diabetes (GDM), macrosomia, Cesarean section (C-section), preeclampsia and postpartum hemorrhage. Pre-pregnancy overweight or obesity increases the risk of adverse pregnancy outcomes, regardless of GDM status. Conclusions: Pre-pregnancy overweight or obesity is associated with increased risk of adverse pregnancy outcomes. Nutrition counseling is recommended before pregnancy in women who have overweight or obesity.
Attachment Representations and Brain Asymmetry during the Processing of Autobiographical Emotional Memories in Late Adolescence

Frontal and parietal asymmetries have repeatedly been shown to be related to specific functional mechanisms involved in emotion regulation. From a developmental perspective, attachment representations based on experiences with the caregiver are theorized to serve regulatory functions and influence how individuals deal with emotionally challenging situations throughout the life span. This study aimed to investigate neural substrates of emotion regulation by assessing state- and trait dependent EEG asymmetries in secure, insecure-dismissing and insecure-preoccupied subjects. The sample consisted of 40 late adolescents. The Adult Attachment Interview was administered and they were asked to report upon personally highly salient emotional memories related to anger, happiness and sadness. EEG was recorded at rest and during the retrieval of each of these emotional memories, and frontal and parietal hemispheric asymmetry were analyzed. We found attachment representations to differentially affect both the frontal and parietal organization of hemispheric asymmetry at rest and (for parietal region only) during the retrieval of emotional memories. During rest, insecure-dismissing subjects showed an elevated right-frontal brain activity and a reduced right-parietal brain activity. We interpret this finding in light of a disposition to use withdrawal strategies and low trait arousal in insecure-dismissing subjects. Emotional memory retrieval did not affect frontal asymmetry. However, both insecure groups showed an increase in right-sided parietal activity indicating increased arousal during the emotional task as compared to the resting state suggesting that their emotion regulation capability was especially challenged by the retrieval of emotional memories while securely attached subjects maintained a state of moderate arousal. The specific neurophysiological pattern of insecure-dismissing subjects is discussed with regard to a vulnerability to affective disorders.
Giving Away One's Poverty. on the Consumption of Scarce Resources within the Family

This article draws on qualitative data from a Belgian poverty research. Intensive in-depth interviews questioned parents of deprived households about the way they deal with their limited means. To make ends meet, they are forced to restrain their personal needs and desires until they are adapted to the financial stringency of their condition. Further analysis of their situation is somehow confronted with a marked contrast between the parental austerity and the sometimes affluent way in which the wants of their young children are gratified. The poor household's consumption is indeed favouring the kids. Although there is not that much to share, the respondents prefer to neglect their own basic needs in order to satisfy their children's desires. This self-sacrifice is upholding one's honour as a parent and it develops at the same time a relationship with the children marked by affection, care and loyalty. By giving one can take up the parental role of a responsible actor who preserves his/her children from economic adversities. Consequently the gift bestows an identity upon the parents and helps to constitute a family bond marked by internal solidarity. This altruism clearly shows that consumption is not a simple deduction of the available income, nor is it a strictly utilitarian business. The means of consumption are also cultural means of communication, through which people assume roles and create social ties, resulting in a moral economy that tries to counter the misfortune of the outside world.
The Effective Use of Role‐play: Practical Techniques for Improving Learning (2nd ed.)

1. Roles and role play - 2. The place of role-play in teaching and training - 3. The systematic approach - 4. Types of role-play - 5. Preparing for role-play - 6. The hidden agenda - 7. Running the role-play sessions - 8. Debriefing - 9. Other experiential methods - 10. Other uses of role-play - 11. Linked role-play - References - Index
Social Intelligence: From Brain to Culture

Introduction: Social intelligence: from brain to culture 1. Cognitive adaptations of social bonding in birds 2. Social cognition by food-caching corvids: the western scrub-jay as a natural psychologist 3. Social intelligence in the spotted hyena (Crocuta crocuta) 4. The adaptive value of soicality in mammalian agroups 5. Social brains, simple minds: does social complexity really require cognitive complexity? 6. Culture in great apes: using intricate complexity in feeding skills to trace the evolutionary origin of human technical prowess 7. Dolphin social intelligence: complex alliance relationships in bottlenose dolphins and a consideration of selective environments for extreme brain size evolution in mammals 8. The evolution of animal 'cultures' and social intelligence 9. Getting back to the rough ground: deception and 'social living' 10. Cooperation and human cognition: the Vygotskian intelligence hypothesis 11. Understanding primate brain evolution 12. Before and below 'theory of mind': embodied simulation and the neural correlates of social cognition 13. The social brain? 14. Socially intelligent robots: dimensions of human-robot interaction 15. Did farming arise from a misappliction of social intelligence? 16. Social intelligence, human intelligence and niche construction 17. On the lack of evidence that non-human animals possess anything remotely resembling a 'theory of mind' 18. The society of selves
Persistency of Priors-Induced Bias in Decision Behavior and the fMRI Signal

It is well known that people take advantage of prior knowledge to bias decisions. To investigate this phenomenon behaviorally and in the brain, we acquired fMRI data while human subjects viewed ambiguous abstract shapes and decided whether a shape was of Category A (smoother) or B (bumpier). The decision was made in the context of one of two prior knowledge cues, 80/20 and 50/50. The 80/20 cue indicated that upcoming shapes had an 80% probability of being of one category, e.g., B, and a 20% probability of being of the other. The 50/50 cue indicated that upcoming shapes had an equal probability of being of either category. The ideal observer would bias decisions in favor of the indicated alternative at 80/20 and show zero bias at 50/50. We found that subjects did bias their decisions in the predicted direction at 80/20 but did not show zero bias at 50/50. Instead, at 50/50 the subjects retained biases of the same sign as their 80/20 biases, though of diminished magnitude. The signature of a persistent though diminished bias at 50/50 was also evident in fMRI data from frontal and parietal regions previously implicated in decision-making. As a control, we acquired fMRI data from naïve subjects who experienced only the 50/50 stimulus distributions during both the pre-scan training and the fMRI experiment. The behavioral and fMRI data from the naïve subjects reflected decision biases closer to those of the ideal observer than those of the prior knowledge subjects at 50/50. The results indicate that practice making decisions in the context of non-equal prior probabilities biases decisions made later when prior probabilities are equal. This finding may be related to the “anchoring and adjustment” strategy described in the psychology, economics, and marketing literatures, in which subjects adjust a first approximation response – the “anchor” – based on additional information, typically applying insufficient adjustment relative to the ideal observer.
Enhancing Motor Learning Through Dyad Practice

Abstract It has been shown that practice in dyads, as compared to individual practice, can enhance motor learning and increase the efficiency of practice (as two participants can be trained at the same time; Shea, Wulf, & Whitacre, 1999). The dyad practice protocol used by Shea et al. included both observation and dialogue between partners. Thus, it was not clear whether the learning benefits of dyad practice were due to observation, dialogue, or both. The present study examined the individual and interactive effects of observation and dialogue. The task used was speed cup stacking. Participants practiced under one of four conditions: observation/dialogue, observation/no dialogue, no observation/dialogue, and no observation/no dialogue. The two conditions that included observational practice were more effective (i.e., produced faster movement times) than the two conditions without it, both during practice and on a retention test performed under individual performance conditions. This suggests that the learning advantages of dyad practice are primarily due to the opportunity to observe another learner.
How Much Do Study Habits, Skills, and Attitudes Affect Student Performance in Introductory College Accounting Courses?.

Background: Financial accounting is a skills course which to a large extent can be best learned through deliberate practice. Teachers implement this by continuously assigning homeworks, encouraging good study habits, asking students to budget time for studying, and generally exhorting students to "work hard". Aims: This paper examines the impact of "study habits, skills, and attitudes" (SHSAs) on the performance of students in an introductory financial accounting college course. Sample: 395 2 nd year business students in a Philippine university. Method: Data related to variables found to have influenced accounting performance in previous researches as well as SHSA variables are collected through student survey and school records. They are treated as independent variables using multiple regression analysis, with the accounting course final grade as the dependent variable. The paper also examines the factors that differentiate high- from low-performing students. Results: The study found that math proficiency, English proficiency, high school accounting, and academic aptitude influence accounting performance, supporting the findings of many previous researches on cognitive factors. Among the SHSA factors, only student perception of teacher effectiveness and level of effort influence accounting performance. Time spent studying, attendance in review classes conducted in tutorial centers, motivation, and study habits have no significant effect. Upon further analysis comparing high and low performers, study habits show up to be significant as well. In particular, students who performed better are those who did more in terms of reading ahead, doing their homework, participating in class, and cramming for exams. Conclusion: Since student perception of teacher effectiveness strongly influences accounting performance, it is critical that hiring and training of accounting faculty be given utmost importance. Level of effort and good study habits also help, but not the sheer number of study hours.
Asymptotic behaviour of a discrete dynamical system generated by a simple evolutionary process

A simple model of phenotypic evolution is introduced and analysed in a space of population states. The expected values of the population states generate a discrete dynamical system. The asymptotic behaviour of the system is studied with the use of classical tools of dynamical systems. The number, location and stability of fixed points of the system depend on parameters of a fitness function and the parameters of the evolutionary process itself. The influence of evolutionary process parameters on the stability of the fixed points is discussed. For large values of the standard deviation of mutation, fixed points become unstable and periodical orbits arise. An analysis of the periodical orbits is presented.
Contention-conscious, locality-preserving locks

Over the last decade, the growing use of cache-coherent NUMA architectures has spurred the development of numerous locality-preserving mutual exclusion algorithms. NUMA-aware locks such as HCLH, HMCS, and cohort locks exploit locality of reference among nearby threads to deliver high lock throughput under high contention. However, the hierarchical nature of these locality-aware locks increases latency, which reduces the throughput of uncontended or lightly-contended critical sections. To date, no lock design for NUMA systems has delivered both low latency under low contention and high throughput under high contention. In this paper, we describe the design and evaluation of an adaptive mutual exclusion scheme (AHMCS lock), which employs several orthogonal strategies---a hierarchical MCS (HMCS) lock for high throughput under high contention, Lamport's fast path approach for low latency under low contention, an adaptation mechanism that employs hysteresis to balance latency and throughput under moderate contention, and hardware transactional memory for lowest latency in the absence of contention. The result is a top performing lock that has most properties of an ideal mutual exclusion algorithm. AHMCS exploits the strengths of multiple contention management techniques to deliver high performance over a broad range of contention levels. Our empirical evaluations demonstrate the effectiveness of AHMCS over prior art.
Environmental and Genetic Risk Factors Associated with Venous Thromboembolism

Abstract Venous thromboembolism (VTE) includes deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism, and a combination of environmental and genetic risk factors contributes to VTE risk. Within environmental risk factors, some are provoking (e.g., cancer, surgery, trauma or fracture, immobilization, pregnancy and the postpartum period, long-distance travel, hospitalization, catheterization, and acute infection) and others are nonprovoking (e.g., age, sex, race/ethnicity, body mass index and obesity, oral contraceptive or hormone therapy use, corticosteroid use, statin use, diet, physical activity, sedentary time, and air pollution). Additionally, VTE has a strong genetic basis, with approximately 50 to 60% of the variance in VTE incidence attributed to genetic effects. Some genetic susceptibility variants that contribute to risk have been identified in candidate genes, mostly related to the clotting system and responsible for inherited hypercoagulable states (e.g., factor V Leiden, prothrombin, fibrinogen gamma, or blood group non-O). Other susceptibility single-nucleotide polymorphisms have been identified from genome-wide association studies, such as the two new loci in TSPAN15 (rs78707713) and SCL44A2 (rs2288904) genes. Risk factors are not always associated with VTE in isolation; however, and an understanding of how environmental and genetic factors interact may provide insight into the pathophysiology of VTE, possibly identifying opportunities for targeted prevention and treatment.
Gating of the polycystin ion channel signaling complex in neurons and kidney cells

Mutations in either polycystin‐2 (PC2) or polycystin‐1 (PC1) proteins cause severe, potentially lethal, kidney disorders and multiple extrarenal (including brain) disease phenotypes. PC2, a member of the transient receptor potential channel superfamily, and PC1, an orphan membrane receptor of largely unknown function, are thought to be part of a common signaling pathway. Here, we show that in rat sympathetic neurons and kidney cells, coassembly of full‐length PC1 with PC2 forms a plasmalemmal ion channel signaling complex in which PC1 stimulation simultaneously activates PC2 ion channels and Gi/o‐proteins. PC2 activation occurs through a structural rearrangement of PC1, independent of G‐protein activation. Thus, PC1 acts as a prototypical membrane receptor that concordantly regulates PC2 channels and G‐proteins, a bimodal mechanism that may account for the multifunctional roles of polycystin proteins in fundamental cellular processes of various cell types.
Carbonic Anhydrase IX Expression in Clear Cell Renal Cell Carcinoma: An Immunohistochemical Study Comparing 2 Antibodies

Carbonic anhydrase IX (CAIX)—a protein maintaining intracellular and extracellular pH—reportedly also influences regulation of cell proliferation, oncogenesis, and tumor progression. Its expression is von Hippel-Lindau–hypoxia inducible factor pathway dependent. Immunohistochemical (IHC) studies show that CAIX is diffusely overexpressed in clear cell renal cell carcinoma (CRCC), making it a potentially important differential diagnostic marker. Prognostically, low CAIX expression reportedly indicates poor survival and low response to interleukin therapy in CRCC. Most IHC studies have used clone M75 as the primary antibody, which is not commercially available. We evaluated a new commercially available antibody (clone NB100-417) to assess its expression in CRCC and compared its results with M75. On a tissue microarray of CRCC, IHC staining was performed using both antibodies. The immunoreactivity was graded as 0; 1+, 1% to 25%; 2+, 26% to 50%; and 3+, >50% tumor cells immunoreactive. Ninety-one out of ninety-five (96%) cases showed similar staining grade with excellent agreement (κ=0.65, weighted κ=0.75). Grade 3+ expression of CAIX was observed in 89 (94%) cases each, with both antibodies. Both antibodies produced intense membrane-predominant expression, limited to tumor cells. More than 95% of the tumors with low nuclear grade, compared with 84% and 88% of tumors with high nuclear grade, showed 3+ expression using both antibodies. Thus, most CRCC show strong and diffuse expression of CAIX, and the expression is comparable using both antibodies. Therefore, similar to the clone M75, NB100-417 can be used as a diagnostic and potentially a prognostic marker in CRCC, with the advantage of its commercial availability.