Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Database-Assisted Television White Space Technology: Challenges, Trends and Future Research Directions

Television white space (TVWS) technology is approaching the potential roll-out phase for commercial deployment, supported by recent pilot projects being conducted globally. Undeniably, TVWS technology is faced with daunting challenges that require attention. To enable an ecosystem in which TVWS technology can flourish, there is a need for a complete analysis of the challenges, trends and future research direction related to this technology. Database-assisted TVWS technology is market driven, geared toward the spectrum reuse paradigm, and faces fewer technical hurdles. Our goal in this paper is to present a tutorial review of the challenges related to database-assisted TVWS networks using the SLEPT (social, legal, economic, political, and technological) analysis framework. The SLEPT framework is a management model that is extensively used for quantitative analysis. A brief review of TVWS technology using the SLEPT model reveals that the technology has been socially accepted, legal challenges are evident in some countries, economic models are the way forward and are main focus of current research trends, TVWS technology cannot be implemented without political will emanating from spectrum reforms, and there are many coexistence-motivated technological issues confronting TVWS technology. In summary, this paper provides an up-to-date survey on TVWS and presents current trends and future research directions in the TVWS context.
The Landscape of Nucleotide Polymorphism among 13,500 Genes of the Conifer Picea glauca, Relationships with Functions, and Comparison with Medicago truncatula

Gene families differ in composition, expression, and chromosomal organization between conifers and angiosperms, but little is known regarding nucleotide polymorphism. Using various sequencing strategies, an atlas of 212k high-confidence single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) with a validation rate of more than 92% was developed for the conifer white spruce (Picea glauca). Nonsynonymous and synonymous SNPs were annotated over the corresponding 13,498 white spruce genes representative of 2,457 known gene families. Patterns of nucleotide polymorphisms were analyzed by estimating the ratio of nonsynonymous to synonymous numbers of substitutions per site (A/S). A general excess of synonymous SNPs was expected and observed. However, the analysis from several perspectives enabled to identify groups of genes harboring an excess of nonsynonymous SNPs, thus potentially under positive selection. Four known gene families harbored such an excess: dehydrins, ankyrin-repeats, AP2/DREB, and leucine-rich repeat. Conifer-specific sequences were also generally associated with the highest A/S ratios. A/S values were also distributed asymmetrically across genes specifically expressed in megagametophytes, roots, or in both, harboring on average an excess of nonsynonymous SNPs. These patterns confirm that the breadth of gene expression is a contributing factor to the evolution of nucleotide polymorphism. The A/S ratios of Medicago truncatula genes were also analyzed: several gene families shared between P. glauca and M. truncatula data sets had similar excess of synonymous or nonsynonymous SNPs. However, a number of families with high A/S ratios were found specific to P. glauca, suggesting cases of divergent evolution at the functional level.
Using n-grams for Korean text retrieval

There is a difficulty in applying the conventional word-based indexing to Korean+. The indexable segment of a word, i.e. stem is often a compound noun, which results in the serious decrease of retrieval effectiveness. The morpheme-based indexing, which decomposes a compound noun into simple nouns, has been developed to overcome the problem of compound nouns. It, however, requires a large dictionary and complex linguistic knowledge. In this paper we propose a new indexing method by combining the word-based indexing and the n-gram indexing. The proposed method alleviates the problem of compound nouns without dictionaries and linguistic knowledge. Experiment al results show that the proposed method might be almost as effective as the morpheme-based indexing.
Children Learning English

There is something special about teaching children. Jayne Moon's academic rigour and classroom experience inform every page of this book - but what shines through is a sense of the privilege it is to participate in someone's learning at this age in their lives. This is a practical handbook with lots of teaching suggestions - but it is also a source of inspiration. Children Learning English was highly commended in the Duke of Edinburgh English Language Competition in 2000.
Maximum Allowable Loss Probability for Consensus of Multi-Agent Systems Over Random Weighted Lossy Networks

This note studies the consensus seeking problem for a team of general linear dynamical agents that communicate via a weighted random lossy network. Linear state feedback consensus protocols are applied and both the weights and feedback gain are treated as control parameters in the protocol. It is shown that the weights and the link loss probabilities of a network have non-negligible effects on the consensus seeking ability of multi-agent systems. Firstly, a weight condition characterized by the eigenvalues of the weighted Laplacian matrix is given for systems over ideal communication networks without packet losses. Secondly, based on stochastic stability analysis a maximum allowable loss probability bound is proposed for systems over random lossy networks. As long as the link loss probabilities of the network are less than this bound and the mean topology has spanning trees, there exist linear protocols solving the mean-square consensus problem of the system.
Lifespan, lifetime reproductive performance and paternity loss of within-pair and extra-pair offspring in the coal tit Periparus ater

The hypothesis that females of socially monogamous species obtain indirect benefits (good or compatible genes) from extra-pair mating behaviour has received enormous attention but much less generally accepted support. Here we ask whether selection for adult survival and fecundity or sexual selection contribute to indirect selection of the extra-pair mating behaviour in socially monogamous coal tits (Periparus ater). We tracked locally recruited individuals with known paternity status through their lives predicting that the extra-pair offspring (EPO) would outperform the within-pair offspring (WPO). No differences between the WPO and EPO recruits were detected in lifespan or age of first reproduction. However, the male WPO had a higher lifetime number of broods and higher lifetime number of social offspring compared with male EPO recruits, while no such differences were evident for female recruits. Male EPO recruits did not compensate for their lower social reproductive success by higher fertilization success within their social pair bonds. Thus, our results do not support the idea that enhanced adult survival, fecundity or within-pair fertilization success are manifestations of the genetic benefits of extra-pair matings. But we emphasize that a crucial fitness component, the extra-pair fertilization success of male recruits, has yet to be taken into account to fully appreciate the fitness consequences of extra-pair matings.
Inefficient recruitment of kinesin-1 to melanosomes precludes it from facilitating their transport

ABSTRACT Microtubules and F-actin, and their associated motor proteins, are considered to play complementary roles in long- and short-range organelle transport. However, there is growing appreciation that myosin/F-actin networks can drive long-range transport. In melanocytes, myosin-Va and kinesin-1 have both been proposed as long-range centrifugal transporters moving melanosomes into the peripheral dendrites. Here, we investigated the role of kinesin-1 heavy chain (Kif5b) and its suggested targeting factor Rab1a in transport. We performed confocal microscopy and subcellular fractionation, but did not detect Kif5b or Rab1a on melanosomes. Meanwhile functional studies, using siRNA knockdown and dominant negative mutants, did not support a role for Kif5b or Rab1a in melanosome transport. To probe the potential of Kif5b to function in transport, we generated fusion proteins that target active Kif5b to melanosomes and tested their ability to rescue perinuclear clustering in myosin-Va-deficient cells. Expression of these chimeras, but not full-length Kif5b, dispersed melanosomes with similar efficiency to myosin-Va. Our data indicate that kinesin and microtubules can compensate for defects in myosin-Va and actin-based transport in mammals, but that endogenous Kif5b does not have an important role in transport of melanocytes due to its inefficient recruitment to melanosomes. Highlighted Article: We show that Kif5b can compensate for defects in myosin-Va-based transport in mammals, but that endogenous Kif5b plays a minimal role in transport in melanocytes due to inefficient recruitment to melanosomes.
Cod1p/Spf1p is a P-type ATPase involved in ER function and Ca2+ homeostasis

The internal environment of the ER is regulated to accommodate essential cellular processes, yet our understanding of this regulation remains incomplete. Cod1p/Spf1p belongs to the widely conserved, uncharacterized type V branch of P-type ATPases, a large family of ion pumps. Our previous work suggested Cod1p may function in the ER. Consistent with this hypothesis, we localized Cod1p to the ER membrane. The cod1Δ mutant disrupted cellular calcium homeostasis, causing increased transcription of calcium-regulated genes and a synergistic increase in cellular calcium when paired with disruption of the Golgi apparatus–localized Ca2+ pump Pmr1p. Deletion of COD1 also impaired ER function, causing constitutive activation of the unfolded protein response, hypersensitivity to the glycosylation inhibitor tunicamycin, and synthetic lethality with deletion of the unfolded protein response regulator HAC1. Expression of the Drosophila melanogaster homologue of Cod1p complemented the cod1Δ mutant. Finally, we demonstrated the ATPase activity of the purified protein. This study provides the first biochemical characterization of a type V P-type ATPase, implicates Cod1p in ER function and ion homeostasis, and indicates that these functions are conserved among Cod1p's metazoan homologues.
Attention, Self-Control, and Health Behaviors

Past research has shown that limitations on attention can lead to loss of control. Our model of self-control suggests that when attentional resources are restricted, individuals can focus on only the most salient behavioral cues, to the neglect of more distal stimuli. Subsequent action is then likely to be under the near-exclusive motivational influence of those “central” cues. This state of narrowed attentional focus, which we term “attentional myopia,” is predicted to lead to loss of control when salient cues serve to promote a behavior that violates self-standards. By contrast, limitations on attention can lead to more successful self-control when salient cues instead suggest restraint. We have investigated this model in the health domains of eating, smoking, and aggression, and we discuss its implications for individuals' efforts to respond to health-relevant messages.
Patient Outcome With Reinfection Following Reimplantation for the Infected Total Knee Arthroplasty

From 1976 to 1992, 24 knees (24 patients) were treated for reinfection after reimplantation of a prosthesis to treat an infected total knee arthroplasty. Including the index total knee arthroplasty, the average number of total procedures for the affected knee was 9.3 procedures (range, 5–23 procedures), and surgical procedures used for the affected knee after reinfection averaged 3.7 procedures (range, 1–12 procedures). The final outcome included 10 knees with a successful knee arthrodeses, 5 patients with infected prostheses who were prescribed suppressive oral antibiotic treatment, 4 above the knee amputations, 3 persistent pseudarthroses of the knee joint, 1 resection arthroplasty, and 1 uninfected total knee prosthesis. A poor prognosis was associated with use of a hinged knee design: 3 of the 4 amputations were done after a hinge knee prosthesis was implanted; 2 patients had a persistent pseudarthrosis after a failed attempt at knee arthrodesis; 1 patient had a resection arthroplasty; and 1 patient had a retained infected prosthesis. A successful arthrodesis in which the initial attempt included use of an external fixation device was more likely for prostheses without stems (75%) when compared with cemented stemmed prostheses (40%). Long intramedullary arthrodesis was successful in all 3 attempts. Aspiration for diagnosis followed by oral antibiotic suppression was universally unsuccessful in 4 patients, whereas early aggressive open debridement facilitated retention of the prosthesis in 4 of 6 patients. The increased difficulty in achieving a healed wound, a successful knee arthrodesis, and eradication of infection with subsequent nonprosthetic salvage procedures as well as the attendant morbidity associated with reinfection must be considered carefully and discussed with the patient before the reimplantation prosthesis is inserted to treat the infected total knee arthroplasty.
Functional evolution of free quantum fields

We consider the problem of evolving the state of a quantum field between any two (in general, curved) Cauchy surfaces. Classically, this dynamical evolution is represented by a canonical transformation on the phase space for the field theory. We show that this canonical transformation cannot, in general, be unitarily implemented on the Fock space for free quantum fields on flat spacetimes of dimension greater than 2. We do this by considering time evolution of a free Klein-Gordon field on a flat spacetime (with toroidal Cauchy surfaces) starting from a flat initial surface and ending on a generic final surface. The associated Bogolubov transformation is computed; it does not correspond to a unitary transformation on the Fock space. This means that functional evolution of the quantum state as originally envisioned by Tomonaga, Schwinger and Dirac is not a viable concept. Nevertheless, we demonstrate that functional evolution of the quantum state can be satisfactorily described using the formalism of algebraic quantum field theory. We discuss possible implications of our results for canonical quantum gravity.
Checked Your Bias Lately? Reasons and Strategies for Rural Teachers to Self-Assess for Grading Bias

Multiple factors influence teachers’ grading and scoring of students’ class work, homework, projects and tests. Put simply, bias in grading is giving different grades on student work of essentially equal quality, based on factors irrelevant to the scope and criteria for that work. Grading is to a degree subjective, but it need not be biased. Intentional bias is a common criticism of teachers and has been the topic of numerous studies and reports. However, less attention has been given to unintentional sources of grading bias. For teachers in any school, bias can creep into grading despite a teacher’s best efforts to be fair and impartial. Teachers in rural schools may face more challenges to preventing and reducing grading bias. This paper identifies some of the issues relevant to teachers’ unintentional grading biases and discusses both conventional and innovative ways to reduce it.
Nursing home administrator self-assessed preparedness.

BACKGROUND Nursing home administrators (NHAs) are in key positions to improve nursing home quality. NHAs require state-level licensure, which involves passing a national NHA licensure examination and fulfilling state-level licensure requirements that vary widely across states. With multiple pathways to NHA licensure, little is known about NHAs' preparation and training to meet the complex demands of this position. PURPOSE The aim of this study was to explore NHAs' self-assessed person-job fit based on NHAs' self-rated preparedness and the importance of the activities that supported their preparation. METHODOLOGY/APPROACH A descriptive cross-sectional design was used to collect data from NHAs (N = 175) randomly recruited from nursing homes in five states, with a mailed self-administered questionnaire. Data analysis included descriptive statistics, correlations, and t tests/ANOVA. FINDINGS Thirty percent of respondents reported they were well prepared, overall, for their first NHA position. The findings suggest NHA preferences for more formalized ways to develop their entry-level competencies, with lower preference for On-the-job training, Previous job experience, and Self-study and higher preference for Administrator-in-training, Bachelor's degree programs, and Mentoring. PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS There is an urgent need for NHAs who are well prepared to effectively address our nation's mandates for nursing home quality improvement. With multiple pathways to NHA licensure, this exploratory study provides initial insights about NHAs' self-assessed preparation and training. The findings suggest that NHAs prefer more formalized ways to prepare for the NHA position. Research is needed to identify specific teaching/learning practices and on-the-job training that maximize the NHAs' preparation to meet their job demands.
A Bayesian analysis of the PPP puzzle using an unobserved components model

The failure to describe the time series behaviour of most real exchange rates as temporary deviations from fixed long-term means may be due to time variation of the equilibria themselves, see Engel (2000). We implement this idea using an unobserved components model and decompose the observations on real exchange rates in long-term components, which capture the time-variation of the mean and in medium and short-term components which measure temporary deviations. A simulation-based Bayesian analysis is introduced to compute the posterior distribution of (functions) of the model parameters. A stationarity test in this setup indicates that the mean is slowly time-varying. Subsequently, we use our flexible model to derive the implied distributions of some key features of real exchange rates. Most notably, the half-life of deviations from the mean, which is a measure of persistence, is lowered. This provides a possible explanation for the PPP puzzle.
Fragility and cooperative motion in a glass-forming polymer-nanoparticle composite.

Polymer-nanoparticle composites play a vital role in ongoing materials development. The behavior of the glass transition of these materials is important for their processing and applications, and also represents a problem of fundamental physical interest. Changes of the polymer glass transition temperature Tg due to nanoparticles have been fairly well catalogued, but the breadth of the transition and how rapidly transport properties vary with temperature T - termed the fragility m of glass-formation - is comparatively poorly understood. In the present work, we calculate both Tg and m of a model polymer nanocomposite by molecular dynamics simulations. We systematically consider how Tg and m vary both for the material as a whole, as well as locally, for a range of nanoparticle (NP) concentrations and two polymer-NP interactions. We find large positive and negative changes in Tg and m that can be interpreted in terms of the Adam-Gibbs model of glass-formation, where the scale of the cooperative motion is identified with the scale of string-like cooperative motion. This provides a molecular perpective of fragility changes due to the addition of NPs and for glass formation more generally. We also contrast the behavior along isobaric and isochoric approaches to Tg , since these differing paths can be important to compare experiments (isobaric) and simulations (very often isochoric). Our findings have practical implications for understanding the properties of nanocomposites and fundamental significance for understanding the properties glass-forming materials more broadly.
Communicating brands playfully

An online experiment was conducted to study the effects of brand placements in computer games on brand attitude as well as game attitude (N = 521; between subject design: familiar vs unfamiliar brands vs no brand). Results show that particularly unfamiliar brands can achieve a better attitude, while the attitude towards the familiar brand worsens as a result of ad placements. In any case, the game will suffer as a result of the integration of advertising: attitude towards the game worsens as a result of ad placement. However, these effects were not moderated by ad scepticism. In terms of the process of attitude formation, attitude towards the game has a direct impact on attitude towards the advertised brand.
Established and new treatments of the idiopathic inflammatory myopathies: dermatomyositis and polymyositis.

Unità Operativa di Reumatologia, Arcispedale Santa Maria Nuova, Reggio Emilia, Italy. Nicolò Pipitone, MD, PhD; Carlo Salvarani, MD. Please address correspondence to: Dr. Nicolò Pipitone, MD, PhD, U.O. di Reumatologia, Salita 6, Piano 3, Arcispedale Santa Maria Nuova, Viale Risorgimento 80, 42100 Reggio Emilia, Italy. E-mail: pipitone.nicolo@asmn.re. it Received on March 27, 2007; accepted in revised form on October 2, 2007. Clin Exp Rheumatol 2007; 25: 896-906. © Copyright CLINICAL AND EXPERIMENTAL RHEUMATOLOGY 2007.
Discovering auditory objects through non-negativity constraints

We present a novel method for discovering auditory objects from scenes in a self-organized manner. Our approach is using non-negativity constraints to find the building elements of a monaural auditory input. Surprisingly, although devoid of any statistical measures, this approach discovers independent elements in the scene similarly to previously reported methods employing ICA algorithms. The use of non-negativity constraints makes this work best suited for spectral magnitude analysis and provides a fairly robust method for discovery and extraction of auditory objects from scenes.
Abdominal Aortic Aneurysms : Abundance of Membrane Chlamydia pneumoniae

In this article, we describe the results of a comparative study for the detection of Chlamydia pneumoniae in abdominal aortic aneurysm specimens of 19 patients through the use of immunocytochemistry (ICC), in situ hybridization (ISH), and polymerase chain reaction (PCR), along with the detection of cytomegalovirus (CMV) and herpes simplex virus (HSV) by ICC and PCR. C pneumoniae –specific membrane protein was detected in specimens of all 19 (100%; 95% confidence interval [CI] 82% to 100%) and of 15 (79%; 95% CI 54% to 94%) patients with monoclonal antibodies RR-402 and TT-401, respectively. Chlamydial lipopolysaccharide was detected in specimens of 15 (79%; 95% CI 54% to 94%) patients when the results of 4 different monoclonal antibodies were combined. Surprisingly, chlamydial heat shock protein 60 was not detected in any of the specimens by ICC. Furthermore, C pneumoniaeDNA was not detected by ISH when a C pneumoniaemajor outer membrane protein gene fragment was used as probe, nor was it reproducibly detected by PCR on extracted DNA. These results may be explained either by different kinetics of degradation of the different components of C pneumoniaeafter infection of the vessel wall or by the involvement of other Chlamydia-like microorganisms. Coexistence of C pneumoniaeantigens and HSV antigens but not CMV antigens was observed in specimens from 10 of 18 (56%; 95% CI 31% to 78%) patients by ICC. CMV and HSV DNAs were not detected by PCR. In conclusion, we have demonstrated the presence of antigens of C p eumoniae in the absence of specific DNA in abdominal aortic aneurysms, suggesting persistence of the antigens rather than a persistent infection. (Arterioscler Thromb Vasc Biol . 1999;19:2680-2686.)