Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Consumption of Milk Protein or Whey Protein Results in a Similar Increase in Muscle Protein Synthesis in Middle Aged Men

The differential ability of various milk protein fractions to stimulate muscle protein synthesis (MPS) has been previously described, with whey protein generally considered to be superior to other fractions. However, the relative ability of a whole milk protein to stimulate MPS has not been compared to whey. Sixteen healthy middle-aged males ingested either 20 g of milk protein (n = 8) or whey protein (n = 8) while undergoing a primed constant infusion of ring 13C6 phenylalanine. Muscle biopsies were obtained 120 min prior to consumption of the protein and 90 and 210 min afterwards. Resting myofibrillar fractional synthetic rates (FSR) were 0.019% ± 0.009% and 0.021% ± 0.018% h−1 in the milk and whey groups respectively. For the first 90 min after protein ingestion the FSR increased (p < 0.001) to 0.057% ± 0.018% and 0.052% ± 0.024% h−1 in the milk and whey groups respectively with no difference between groups (p = 0.810). FSR returned to baseline in both groups between 90 and 210 min after protein ingestion. Despite evidence of increased rate of digestion and leucine availability following the ingestion of whey protein, there was similar activation of MPS in middle-aged men with either 20 g of milk protein or whey protein.
Reducing Error Bars through the Intercalibration of Radioisotopic and Astrochronologic Time Scales for the Cenomanian/Turonian Boundary Interval, Western Interior Basin, USA

We develop an intercalibrated astrochronologic and radioisotopic time scale for the Cenomanian-Turonian boundary (CTB) interval near the Global Stratotype Section and Point in Colorado, USA, where orbitally influenced rhythmic strata host bentonites that contain sanidine and zircon suitable for 40Ar/39Ar and U-Pb dating. Paired 40Ar/39Ar and U-Pb ages are determined from four bentonites that span the Vascoceras diartianum to Pseudaspidoceras flexuosum ammonite biozones, utilizing both newly collected material and legacy sanidine samples of J. Obradovich. Comparison of the 40Ar/39Ar and U-Pb results underscores the strengths and limitations of each system, and supports an astronomically calibrated Fish Canyon sanidine standard age of 28.201 Ma. The radioisotopic data and published astrochronology are employed to develop a new CTB time scale, using two statistical approaches: (1) a simple integration that yields a CTB age of 93.89 ± 0.14 Ma (2σ; total radioisotopic uncertainty), and (2) a Bayesian intercalibration that explicitly accounts for orbital time scale uncertainty, and yields a CTB age of 93.90 ± 0.15 Ma (95% credible interval; total radioisotopic and orbital time scale uncertainty). Both approaches firmly anchor the floating orbital time scale, and the Bayesian technique yields astronomically recalibrated radioisotopic ages for individual bentonites, with analytical uncertainties at the permil level of resolution, and total uncertainties below 2‰. Using our new results, the duration between the Cenomanian-Turonian and the Cretaceous-Paleogene boundaries is 27.94 ± 0.16 Ma, with an uncertainty of less than one-half of a long eccentricity cycle.
Specifying Formative Constructs in Information Systems

While researchers go to great lengths to justify and prove theoretical links between constructs, the relationship between measurement items and constructs is often ignored. By default, the relationship between construct and item is assumed to be reflective, meaning that the measurement items Carol Saunders was the accepting senior editor for this paper. Traci Carte was the associate editor. Ron Thompson and Mark Gavin served as reviewers. are a reflection of the construct. Many times, though, the nature of the construct is not reflective, but rather formative. Formative constructs occur when the items describe and define the construct rather than vice versa. In this research, we examine whether formative constructs are indeed being mistaken for reflective constructs by information systems researchers. By examining complete volumes of MIS Quarterly and Information Systems Research over the last 3 years, we discovered that a significant number of articles have indeed misspecified formative constructs. For scientific results to be valid, we argue that researchers must properly specify formative constructs. This paper discusses the implications of different patterns of common misspecifications of formative constructs on both Type I and Type II errors. To avoid these errors, the paper provides a roadmap to researchers to properly specify formative constructs. We also discuss how to address formative constructs within a research model after they are specified.
Parsing with first-class derivatives

Brzozowski derivatives, well known in the context of regular expressions, have recently been rediscovered to give a simplified explanation to parsers of context-free languages. We add derivatives as a novel first-class feature to a standard parser combinator language. First-class derivatives enable an inversion of the control flow, allowing to implement modular parsers for languages that previously required separate pre-processing steps or cross-cutting modifications of the parsers. We show that our framework offers new opportunities for reuse and supports a modular definition of interesting use cases of layout-sensitive parsing.
Mott transition and dimerization in the one-dimensional SU (n) Hubbard model

The one-dimensional SU$(n)$ Hubbard model is investigated numerically for $n=2,3,4$, and 5 at half filling and $1/n$ filling using the density-matrix renormalization-group (DMRG) method. The energy gaps and various quantum information entropies are calculated. In the half-filled case, finite spin and charge gaps are found for arbitrary positive $U$ if $n > 2$. Furthermore, it is shown that the transition to the gapped phase at $U_{\rm c}=0$ is of Kosterlitz-Thouless type and is accompanied by a bond dimerization both for even and odd $n$. In the $1/n$-filled case, the transition has similar features as the metal-insulator transition in the half-filled SU(2) Hubbard model. The charge gap opens exponentially slowly for $U>U_{\rm c}=0$, the spin sector remains gapless, and the ground state is non-dimerized.
IgG subclass concentrations in certified reference material 470 and reference values for children and adults determined with the binding site reagents.

BACKGROUND There is currently no international reference preparation for IgG subclass (IgGSc) quantification. This situation has led to calibration differences among assays and a variety of reference interval values with consequential difficulties in comparing results. We therefore evaluated IgGSc concentrations in Certified Reference Material 470 (CRM 470). METHODS Pure, polyclonal IgG1, -2, -3, and -4 were prepared from a large serum pool for use as primary standards. The IgG mass in each preparation was calculated from amino-acid analysis data. IgGSc concentrations were assessed in CRM 470 by nephelometry with modern analytical techniques, using these reference preparations. Subsequently, IgGSc concentrations were measured in 380 healthy individuals (250 males and 130 females), and age-dependent reference intervals were established. RESULTS IgGSc concentrations in CRM 470 were as follows: IgG1, 5028 mg/L; IgG2, 3418 mg/L; IgG3, 579 mg/L, and IgG4, 381 mg/L, with a total IgG concentration of 9406 mg/L, 2.83% below the certified total IgG value of 9680 mg/L. Age-dependent percentile curves for the four IgGSc were constructed using a Box-Cox transformation. Maximum median values were as follows: IgG1, 6.02 g/L at 11 years; IgG2, 3.45 g/L at 31 years; IgG3, 0.63 g/L at 17 years; and IgG4, 0.48 g/L at 14 years. No significant sex-related differences were observed. CONCLUSIONS The correlation between the summation of individual IgGSc and separate measurements of total IgG concentrations was good and supports the accuracy of the results. The results are based on The Binding Site assays and should not be considered appropriate for other assays unless so demonstrated.
Mechanical properties of transparent funcional thin films for flexible displays

The present work investigates the mechanical integrity of multilayer films developed for flexible displays. The layers comprise tin-doped indium oxide (ITO) conductive coatings and alumina barrier coatings sputtered onto high temperature aromatic polyesters. The onset strain for tensile failure and related cohesive strength of the coatings, and their adhesion to the polymer substrate, are analyzed by means of bending tests and fragmentation tests. The former test enables accurate electrical resistivity measurements during bending of film specimens, and correlates the failure of the ITO coating to the abrupt increase of resistivity. In the fragmentation test, the progressive failure of the thin coating is examined in situ in an optical microscope as a function of tensile strain, with simultaneous measurement of the electrical resistance, for the ITO coatings. The results and their analysis enable to determine the influence of internal stresses and layer thickness on the failure mechanisms of the multilayer composite films, despite the occurrence of coupled failure processes between adjacent layers.
Fiscal Policy and Lending Relationships

This paper studies how fiscal policy affects loan market conditions. First, it conducts a Structural Vector-Autoregression analysis showing that the bank spread responds negatively to an expansionary government spending shock, while lending increases. Second, it illustrates that these results are mimicked by a Real Business Cycle model where the bank spread is endogenized via the inclusion of a banking sector exploiting lending relationships. Third, it shows that lending relationships represent a friction that generates a financial accelerator effect in the transmission of the fiscal shock.
Plasma growth differentiation factor 15 predicts first-ever stroke in hypertensive patients

AbstractGrowth differentiation factor 15 (GDF-15) is a relatively new biomarker that predicts adverse stroke outcomes. However, the association of GDF-15 with first-ever stroke in hypertensive patients has not yet been evaluated. The objective of this study was to evaluate the clinical implications of plasma GDF-15 on the development of first-ever stroke in patients with hypertension.In total, 254 patients with hypertension without a history of stroke were included from March 2010 to August 2010 and followed up until June 2013. The baseline circulating GDF-15 was determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays.During a follow-up of 3.0 ± 0.6 years, 22 (8.7%) first-ever strokes were identified, including 12 ischemic strokes and 10 intracerebral hemorrhages (ICH). According to tertiles of GDF-15, survival free of first-ever stroke was lower in the highest tertile of GDF-15 (log-rank P = 0.001). By backward stepwise Cox-regression analysis, adjusted for age, gender, diabetes mellitus, hyperlipidemia, hypertension stage, body mass index, cigarette smoking, anti-hypertensive drugs, and uric acid, every 100 pg/mL-increase in plasma of GDF-15 predicted an 11% greater risk of first-ever stroke (hazard ratios [HR]: 1.11, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.03–1.20, P = 0.010) and an 18% increase in ischemic stroke risk (HR: 1.18, 95% CI: 1.07–1.30, P = 0.001). Receiver operating characteristic analysis indicated that GDF-15 had reasonable accuracy to predict first-ever stroke (area under curve = 0.73, 95% CI: 0.62–0.83, P < 0.001). This study identifies that GDF-15 is an independent predictor of first-ever stroke, especially for ischemic stroke in the patients with hypertension.
Narrowband Interference Mitigation in SC-FDMA Using Bayesian Sparse Recovery

This paper presents a novel narrowband interference (NBI) mitigation scheme for single carrier-frequency division multiple access systems. The proposed NBI cancellation scheme exploits the frequency-domain sparsity of the unknown signal and adopts a low complexity Bayesian sparse recovery procedure. At the transmitter, a few randomly chosen data locations are kept data free to sense the NBI signal at the receiver. Furthermore, it is noted that in practice, the sparsity of the NBI signal is destroyed by a grid mismatch between the NBI sources and the system under consideration. Toward this end, first, an accurate grid mismatch model is presented that is capable of assuming independent offsets for multiple NBI sources, and second, the sparsity of the unknown signal is restored prior to reconstruction using a sparsifying transform. To improve the spectral efficiency of the proposed scheme, a data-aided NBI recovery procedure is outlined that relies on adaptively selecting a subset of data-points and using them as additional measurements. Numerical results demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed scheme for NBI mitigation.
Convergence Analysis of Jacobi Iterative Method Using Logarithmic Number System

This paper presents convergence analysis of Jacobi iterative method using logarithmic number system (LNS) for solving linear systems, where multiplications and divisions are replaced with additions and subtractions, respectively. Two major factors are identified and considered in our convergence analysis. First, in any hardware architecture for Jacobi iterative method, only a set of unknowns can be processed in parallel due to the constraint of hardware resources. Secondly, the conversions of logarithm-to-floating-point and floating-to-logarithm introduce additional error. The convergence analysis demonstrates to what extent the hardware resource constraints and additional conversion error affect the convergence of Jacobi iterative method.
Expertise-related differences in the performance of simple and complex tasks: an event-related potential evaluation of futsal players

ABSTRACT Background: In recent years, anecdotal evidence has pointed to the importance of futsal as a significant activity for the development of perceptual and technical skills, possibly due to the intensity of the game providing a multitude of different stimuli to the players. However, no scientific evidence to date exists regarding the processes that may underpin such benefits. The purpose of this study was to assess differences in electro-cortical activity and reaction time (RT) between expert and recreational futsal players. Methods: 11 expert and 12 recreational futsal players (mean age: 28.7 ± 4.9 years) performed congruent and incongruent trials of a modified Flanker task on a customised computer screen. RT generated by an index-finger mouse press was recorded via a customised micro-processing system and electro-cortical activity was recorded by electroencephalography during task performance. Results: There was a significant difference in RT and error rate in congruent and incongruent task performance, and difference in electro-cortical activity showing an enhanced N1 ERP mean amplitude within the parietal region in the expert compared to recreational group. Conclusion: Similar to previous research, a greater level of expertise leads to recruitment of brain areas necessary for the efficient integration and processing of information required to produce desired goal-directed behaviour.
Dissociating Hippocampal versus Basal Ganglia Contributions to Learning and Transfer

Based on prior animal and computational models, we propose a double dissociation between the associative learning deficits observed in patients with medial temporal (hippocampal) damage versus patients with Parkinson's disease (basal ganglia dysfunction). Specifically, we expect that basal ganglia dysfunction may result in slowed learning, while individuals with hippocampal damage may learn at normal speed. However, when challenged with a transfer task where previously learned information is presented in novel recombinations, we expect that hippocampal damage will impair generalization but basal ganglia dysfunction will not. We tested this prediction in a group of healthy elderly with mild-to-moderate hippocampal atrophy, a group of patients with mild Parkinson's disease, and healthy controls, using an acquired equivalence associative learning task. As predicted, Parkinson's patients were slower on the initial learning but then transferred well, while the hippocampal atrophy group showed the opposite pattern: good initial learning with impaired transfer. To our knowledge, this is the first time that a single task has been used to demonstrate a double dissociation between the associative learning impairments caused by hippocampal versus basal ganglia damage/dysfunction. This finding has implications for understanding the distinct contributions of the medial temporal lobe and basal ganglia to learning and memory.
Novel Cytochrome P450 Genes, CYP6EB1 and CYP6EC1, are Over-Expressed in Acrinathrin-Resistant Frankliniella occidentalis (Thysanoptera: Thripidae)

ABSTRACT Control of Frankliniella occidentalis (Pergande) is a serious problem for agriculture all over the world because of the limited range of insecticides that are available. Insecticide resistance in F. occidentalis has been reported for all major insecticide groups. Our previous studies showed that cytochrome P450-mediated detoxification is a major mechanism responsible for insecticide resistance in this pest. Degenerate polymerase chain reaction was used to identify P450 genes that might be involved in acrinathrin resistance, in a laboratory population of F. occidentalis. Associated sequences were classified as belonging to the CYP4 and CYP6 families. Real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction analyses revealed that two genes, CYP6EB1 and CYP6EC1, were over-expressed in adults and L2 larvae of the resistant population, when compared with the susceptible population, suggesting their possible involvement in resistance to acrinathrin.
The Contingent, Contextual Nature of the Relationship Between Needs for Security and Certainty and Political Preferences: Evidence and Implications

Research on the dispositional origins of political preferences is flourishing, and the primary conclusion drawn from this work is that stronger needs for security and certainty attract people to a broad-based politically conservative ideology. Though this literature covers much ground, most integrative assessments of it have paid insufficient attention to the presence and implications of contingencies in the relationship between dispositional attributes and political attitudes. In this article, we review research showing that relationships between needs for security and certainty and political preferences vary considerably—sometimes to the point of directional shifts—on the basis of (1) issue domain and (2) contextual factors governing the content and volume of political discourse individuals are exposed to. On the basis of this evidence, we argue that relationships between dispositional attributes and political preferences vary in the extent to which they reflect an organic functional resonance between dispositions and preferences or identity-expressive motivation to adopt a political attitude merely because it is discursively packaged with other need-congruent attitudes. We contend that such a distinction is critical to gaining a realistic understanding of the origins and nature of ideological belief systems, and we consequently recommend an increased focus on issue-based and contextual variation in relationships between dispositions and political preferences.
Fabrication of Micrometer- and Nanometer-Scale Polymer Structures by Visible Light Induced Dielectrophoresis (DEP) Force

We report in this paper a novel, inexpensive and flexible method for fabricating micrometer- and nanometer-scale three-dimensional (3D) polymer structures using visible light sources instead of ultra-violet (UV) light sources or lasers. This method also does not require the conventional micro-photolithographic technique (i.e., photolithographic masks) for patterning and fabricating polymer structures such as hydrogels. The major materials and methods required for this novel fabrication technology are: (1) any cross-linked network of photoactive polymers (examples of fabricated poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG)-diacrylate hydrogel structures are shown in this paper); (2) an Optically-induced Dielectrophoresis (ODEP) System which includes an “ODEP chip” (i.e., any chip that changes its surface conductivity when exposed to visible light), an optical microscope, a projector, and a computer; and (3) an animator software hosted on a computer that can generate virtual or dynamic patterns which can be projected onto the “ODEP chip” through the use of a projector and a condenser lens. Essentially, by placing a photosensitive polymer solution inside the microfluidic platform formed by the “ODEP chip” bonded to another substrate, and applying an alternating current (a.c.) electrical potential across the polymer solution (typically ~20 Vp-p at 10 kHz), solid polymer micro/nano structures can then be formed on the “ODEP chip” surface when visible-light is projected onto the chip. The 2D lateral geometry (x and y dimensions) and the thickness (height) of the micro/nano structures are dictated by the image geometry of the visible light projected onto the “ODEP chip” and also the time duration of projection. Typically, after an image projection with intensity ranging from ~0.2 to 0.4 mW/cm2 for 10 s, ~200 nm high structures can be formed. In our current system, the thickness of these polymer structures can be controlled to form from ~200 nanometers to ~3 micrometers structures. However, in the in-plane dimensions, only ~7 μm resolution can be achieved now, due to the optical diffraction limit and the physical dimensions of DMD mirrors in the projector. Nevertheless, with higher quality optical components, the in-plane resolution is expected to be sub-micron.