Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Personality and Social Psycholog Y Bulletin Social Loafing and Expectancy-value Theory

Expectancy value theory holds that goal-directed behavior is a function of (a) expectations—the belief that performance depends on effort, (b) instrumentality—the belief that outcome depends on performance, and (c) outcome value—the value attached to achieving the outcome. The present research provides a direct test of two factors involved in the instrumentality component: the contingency between individual performance and group performance and the contingency between group performance and group outcome. Experiment 1 revealed that collective participants worked hard when they perceived a contingency between individual performance and group performance. Experiment 2 revealed that collective participants worked hard when they perceived a contingency between group performance and the group outcome. Taken together, the results confirm the importance of high instrumentality in eliminating social loafing. Many human endeavors cannot be accomplished individually, requiring instead that people combine their efforts toward a common goal. Erecting a building such as the National Cathedral or the Eiffel Tower, playing a team sport such as football or baseball, and completing a group project such as writing a group paper all require that individuals pool their efforts to produce the desired outcome. However, group performance researchers have repeatedly observed that individuals exert less effort when their efforts are pooled than when their efforts are considered individually (e.g., Latané, Williams, & Harkins, 1979). Latané et al. (1979) coined the term " social loafing " to describe the reduction in effort of people working collectively as opposed to coac-tively and described it as a social disease. In the last two decades, researchers have documented a variety of causes of social loafing and related phenomena (e.g., free riding) and have proposed several cures for a review). More important, there is growing recognition that low motivation and effort in collective settings is best conceptualized within an expectancy-value theoretical The present research examines the instru-mentality component of an expectancy-value model of effort motivation in collective settings. Expectancy-Value Theory Expectancy-value theories typically consist of three components: expectancy, instrumentality, and value The expectancy component refers to the perception that performance is contingent on effort (i.e., that greater efforts will result in better performance). For example, a student may believe that if he or she works hard, he or she can write a good term paper (high effort expectancy). Alternatively, he or she may believe that writing a good paper is beyond his or her ability or that the amount of effort that he or she …
On the Capacity of Decode-and-Forward Relaying over Rician Fading Channels

In this letter, we derive the probability density function (PDF) and cumulative distribution function (CDF) of the minimum of two non-central Chi-square random variables with two degrees of freedom in terms of power series. With the help of the derived PDF and CDF, we obtain the exact ergodic capacity of the following adaptive protocols in a {decode-and-forward} (DF) cooperative system over dissimilar {Rician} fading channels: (i) constant power with optimal rate adaptation; (ii) optimal simultaneous power and rate adaptation; (iii) channel inversion with fixed rate. By using the analytical expressions of the capacity, it is observed that the optimal power and rate adaptation provides better capacity than the optimal rate adaptation with constant power from low to moderate signal-to-noise ratio values over dissimilar Rician fading channels. Despite low complexity, the channel inversion based adaptive transmission is shown to suffer from significant loss in capacity as compared to the other adaptive transmission based techniques over DF Rician channels.
Replicability of the Psychometric Properties of Trait-Levels Measures of Spontaneous and Deliberate Mind Wandering

Abstract. Recent research on individual differences in mind wandering has shown that two different forms, spontaneous and deliberate, can be distinguished and measured with the Mind Wandering-Spontaneous (MW-S) and the Mind Wandering-Deliberate (MW-D) scales. In this study we tested whether the psychometric properties of Italian versions of these scales replicated across two common administration methods (paper-and-pencil and online survey). We also investigated their construct validity with respect to other self-report measures of MW and daydreaming, and measures of attentional control (AC). These measures were completed by 123 psychology students using the paper-and-pencil versions and by 165 online participants. The factor structure of the MW scales and their correlations with the other measures were replicated almost perfectly across administration methods. A confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) performed on data from 270 community participants further supported the replicability of the factor structure of the MW and AC scales. Albeit moderately correlated, the MW-S and the MW-D scales showed discriminant validity, since the former had significantly higher correlations with the other MW and AC measures, but not with daydreaming. These findings further supported the distinctiveness of the two forms of MW and suggested that in correlational studies the administration method is unlikely to affect results.
A comparison of constrained and unconstrained reaching movements by people with and without autism spectrum disorders

Although not included in the definition of Autism spectrum disorder (ASD), motor performance differences are reported consistently. Specifically, individuals with ASD spend more time preparing movements. Currently there is a debate as to whether people with ASD require more time to execute reaching movements. The present study compared constrained and unconstrained reaching movements in order to determine if previous reports of a preference for proprioceptive feedback explains inconsistent movement time reports in the literature. Eleven ASD participants and 13 typically developing (TD) participants were recruited. All participants performed three types of reaching movements in the sagittal plane: 1) sliding along a track on a piece of Plexiglas (1D, constrained); 2) sliding along a smooth piece of Plexiglas (2D, constrained); and 3) aiming movements (3D, unconstrained). Movements were recorded using a 3D motion analysis system (3D Investigator, NDI) and muscle activity was recorded using surface electromyography (CED 1902 dual system amplifier). All dependent variables were submitted to a 2 Group (ASD, TD) by 3 Movement Type (1D, 2D, 3D) mixed analysis of variance. Results revealed a significant Group by Movement Type interaction for premotor reaction time, movement time, and time after peak velocity. The ASD group took longer to prepare and execute 3D (unconstrained) movements compared to the TD group. The current findings are consistent with previously reported behavioral and brain imaging research identifying altered brain connections in ASD participants indicative of a preference for haptic over visual feedback for movement control. Acknowledgments: Funding: Research Manitoba; The present research was also made possible by funding from the Canadian Foundation for Innovation. The authors would like to thank Kelsey Brown and Brie Page for their help collecting data and all of the participants for their time.
A Model-Independent Characterisation of Strong Gravitational Lensing by Observables

When light from a distant source object, like a galaxy or a supernova, travels towards us, it is deflected by massive objects that lie in its path. When the mass density of the deflecting object exceeds a certain threshold, multiple, highly distorted images of the source are observed. This strong gravitational lensing effect has so far been treated as a model-fitting problem. Using the observed multiple images as constraints yields a self-consistent model of the deflecting mass density and the source object. As several models meet the constraints equally well, we develop a lens characterisation that separates data-based information from model assumptions. The observed multiple images allow us to determine local properties of the deflecting mass distribution on any mass scale from one simple set of equations. Their solution is unique and free of model-dependent degeneracies. The reconstruction of source objects can be performed completely model-independently, enabling us to study galaxy evolution without a lens-model bias. Our approach reduces the lens and source description to its data-based evidence that all models agree upon, simplifies an automated treatment of large datasets, and allows for an extrapolation to a global description resembling model-based descriptions.
Media and Google: The Impact of Information Supply and Demand on Stock Returns

This is the first empirical paper to examine the joint effect of information supply and demand on stock returns. Unlike previous studies, I examine the relationship between cross-sectional stock returns and "pairs" of information supply and demand shifts. I use the number of news articles and Google search volume (for a company) as proxies for information supply and demand respectively. The result shows that only an upward shift in both information supply and demand predicts future returns among shift pairs. A monthly rebalanced portfolio of buying stocks with this shift “pair” and short selling the other stocks generates an abnormal return between 16% and 22% per year with the Sharpe ratio between 0.85 and 0.9 (compared with a Sharpe ratio of 0.049 for the S&P500 during the same period). The abnormal return increases to between 23% and 34% per year in a subsample of small stocks. These findings imply that the supply of information affects stock prices conditional on the demand for information. The result is consistent with the hypothesis that an increase in information supply drives stock prices up only when an increase in information demand confirms that information supply succeeds in raising new investors’ awareness and existing investors’ additional learning effort. The empirical finding affirms the importance of incorporating both information supply and demand in predicting stock returns.
Treatment of port wine stains with pulsed dye laser: a retrospective study of 848 cases in Shandong Province, People’s Republic of China

Background Currently, 595 nm pulsed dye laser (PDL) therapy is offered as one of the effective treatments of port wine stains (PWSs). However, the efficacy of PDL differs in different populations. Objective The purpose of the study was to investigate the efficacy, and related factors, of 595 nm PDL in the treatment of PWSs in Chinese patients with skin type III to IV. Methods A total of 848 cases that were treated with PDL were enrolled and analyzed in this study. An independent dermatologist evaluated these lesions according to the before and after photographs. Results The response rate (RR) of all the 848 PWS patients was 69.9%, within which the cure rate was 6.3%. The patients aged ≤1 year had the highest RR (93.9%), whereas those treated after age 50 reacted the worst (RR =25%). We analyzed the anatomical distribution of the lesion and found that the temporal region had the highest lesion clearance (RR =75.3%), while the extremities had the lowest clearance (RR =44.5%). Compared with the patients whose lesion size was larger than 80 cm2, the patients with small lesion size, of 0–20 cm2, had better clinical effect (RR =73.8% vs 53.2%). The reactions of the patients with hyperplastic lesion were worse than those with red patches (RR =36.4% vs 71.7%). As well, increasing treatment numbers could achieve higher clearance rates (P=0.005). Conclusion The PDL had a relatively high RR but a low clearance rate in Chinese patients with PWS, although the earlier the intervention, the better was the efficacy. The response of PDL was, not only related to the anatomical area, but also, to the lesion size, type of lesion (ie, the presence of existing hyperplastic lesions), and the number of treatment, all of which are essential for the evaluation of therapeutic effect and acquisition of patients consent before treatment.
The effect of mild-to-moderate hearing loss on auditory and emotion processing networks

We investigated the impact of hearing loss (HL) on emotional processing using task- and rest-based functional magnetic resonance imaging. Two age-matched groups of middle-aged participants were recruited: one with bilateral high-frequency HL and a control group with normal hearing (NH). During the task-based portion of the experiment, participants were instructed to rate affective stimuli from the International Affective Digital Sounds (IADS) database as pleasant, unpleasant, or neutral. In the resting state experiment, participants were told to fixate on a “+” sign on a screen for 5 min. The results of both the task-based and resting state studies suggest that NH and HL patients differ in their emotional response. Specifically, in the task-based study, we found slower response to affective but not neutral sounds by the HL group compared to the NH group. This was reflected in the brain activation patterns, with the NH group employing the expected limbic and auditory regions including the left amygdala, left parahippocampus, right middle temporal gyrus and left superior temporal gyrus to a greater extent in processing affective stimuli when compared to the HL group. In the resting state study, we observed no significant differences in connectivity of the auditory network between the groups. In the dorsal attention network (DAN), HL patients exhibited decreased connectivity between seed regions and left insula and left postcentral gyrus compared to controls. The default mode network (DMN) was also altered, showing increased connectivity between seeds and left middle frontal gyrus in the HL group. Further targeted analysis revealed increased intrinsic connectivity between the right middle temporal gyrus and the right precentral gyrus. The results from both studies suggest neuronal reorganization as a consequence of HL, most notably in networks responding to emotional sounds.
Plasticity of the cortical dentition representation after tooth extraction in naked mole‐rats

Naked mole‐rats (Heterocephalus glaber) have a large cortical representation of their behaviorally important front teeth, accounting for 30% of primary somatosensory cortex (SI). Here we investigated the plasticity of this dental representation after the extraction of a single lower tooth. The representation of the contralateral lower incisor normally accounts for ∼15% of somatosensory cortex in mole‐rats. In five mole‐rats the lower right incisor was extracted on either postnatal day 7 or 21. After 5–8 months the deprived tooth zone in S1 was investigated with multiunit microelectrode recordings. The results revealed a dramatic reorganization of the orofacial representation in SI. Neurons in the cortical lower tooth representation were responsive to tactile inputs from surrounding orofacial structures, including the contralateral upper incisor, ipsilateral lower incisor, tongue, chin, gums, and buccal pad. Neurons in the former lower tooth zone had complex receptive fields that often encompassed multiple sensory surfaces surrounding the extracted tooth in the periphery. These results suggest that the representation of the dentition in mammals is capable of significant reorganization after the loss of sensory inputs from the teeth. These data parallel findings in the somatosensory hand area of primates after deafferentation where cortex can become activated by a mixture of widely spaced surrounding sensory surfaces (e.g., chin and upper arm). J. Comp. Neurol. 485:64–74, 2005. © 2005 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Triple negative status is a poor prognostic indicator in Chinese women with breast cancer: a ten year review.

BACKGROUND Ethnic variation in tumor characteristics and clinical presentation of breast cancer is increasingly being emphasized. We studied the tumor characteristics and factors which may influence the presentation and prognosis of triple negative breast cancers (TNC) in a cohort of Chinese women. METHODS A prospective cohort of 1800 Chinese women with breast cancer was recruited in a tertiary referral unit in Hong Kong between 1995 and 2006 and was followed up with a median duration of 7.2 years. Of the total, 216 (12.0%) had TNC and 1584 (88.0%) had non-TNC. Their clinicopathological variables, epidemiological variables and clinical outcomes were evaluated. RESULTS Patients with TNC had similar age of presentation as those with non-TNC, while presenting at earlier stages (82.4% were stage 1-2, compared to 78.4% in non-TNC, p=0.035). They were likely to be associated with grade 3 cancer (Hazard Ratio(HR)=5.8, p<0.001). TNC showed higher chance of visceral relapse (HR=2.69, p<0.001), liver metastasis (HR=1.7, p=0.003) and brain metastasis (HR=1.8, p=0.003). Compared with non-TNC group, TNC had similar 10-year disease-free survival (82% vs 84%, p=0.148), overall survival (78% vs 79%, p=0.238) and breast cancer-specific mortality (18% vs 16%, p=0.095). However, TNC showed poorer 10-year stage 3 and 4 specific survival (stage 3: 53% vs. 67%, p=0.010; stage 4: 0% vs. 40%, p=0.035). CONCLUSIONS Chinese women with triple negative breast cancer do not have less aggressive biological behavior compared to the West and presentation at a later stage results in worse prognosis compared with those with non triple negative breast cancer.
Protective Effect of Vitamin E against Diabetes-Induced Oxidized LDL and Aorta Cell Wall Proliferation in Rat

Background: Hyperlipidemia and oxidized-low-density lipoproteins (Ox-LDL) are important independent cardiovascular risk factors that have been shown to stimulate vascular smooth muscle cell (VSMC) proliferation. The purpose of the present study was to investigate the effect of vitamin E on Ox-LDL, lipid profile, C-reactive protein (CRP), and VSMC proliferation of rat aorta. Methods: Male Wistar rats (n = 32) were divided into four groups namely: sham (SH), control (C), non-treated diabetic, and vitamin E-treated diabetic (VETD) groups. Ox-LDL, lipid profile, CRP and VSMC proliferation of aorta were measured after 42 days. Results: The results revealed that along with a significant increase in VSMC proliferation, the amount of CRP, Ox-LDL, and lipid profiles in diabetic rats. VSMC proliferation was significantly ameliorated, and elevated CRP, Ox-LDL, and lipid profiles were also restored to those of shams in VETD. Conclusions: These findings strongly support the idea that diabetes induces Ox-LDL-mediated oxidative stress and VSMC proliferation in aorta of rat and imply that vitamin E has a strong protective effect as an antioxidant.
Probiotics as Complementary Treatment for Metabolic Disorders

Over the past decade, growing evidence has established the gut microbiota as one of the most important determinants of metabolic disorders such as obesity and type 2 diabetes. Indeed, obesogenic diet can drastically alter bacterial populations (i.e., dysbiosis) leading to activation of pro-inflammatory mechanisms and metabolic endotoxemia, therefore promoting insulin resistance and cardiometabolic disorders. To counteract these deleterious effects, probiotic strains have been developed with the aim of reshaping the microbiome to improve gut health. In this review, we focus on benefits of widely used probiotics describing their potential mechanisms of action, especially their ability to decrease metabolic endotoxemia by restoring the disrupted intestinal mucosal barrier. We also discuss the perspective of using new bacterial strains such as butyrate-producing bacteria and the mucolytic Akkermansia muciniphila, as well as the use of prebiotics to enhance the functionality of probiotics. Finally, this review introduces the notion of genetically engineered bacterial strains specifically developed to deliver anti-inflammatory molecules to the gut.
On the Livingstone-Wagner Theorem

Let $G$ be a permutation group on the set $\Omega$ and let ${\cal S}$ be a collection of subsets of $\Omega,$ all of size $\geq m$ for some integer $m$. For $s\leq m$ let $n_{s}(G,\,{\cal S})$ be the number of $G$-orbits on the subsets of $\Omega$ which have a representative $y\subseteq x$ with $|y|=s$ and $y\subseteq x$ for some $x\in {\cal S}$. We prove that if $s
Everolimus with Optimized Cyclosporine Dosing in Renal Transplant Recipients: 6‐Month Safety and Efficacy Results of Two Randomized Studies

Two prospective, randomized studies evaluated everolimus 1.5 vs. 3 mg/day with steroids and low‐exposure cyclosporine (CsA) (C2 monitoring) in de novo renal transplant patients. Everolimus dosing was adjusted to maintain a minimum trough level of 3 ng/mL. Study 1 (A2306; n = 237) had no induction therapy; in Study 2 (A2307; n = 256) basiliximab was administered (Days 0 and 4). The primary endpoint was renal function at 6 months. CsA C2 target levels, initially 1200 ng/mL in Study 1 and 600 ng/mL in Study 2, were tapered over time post‐transplant. Median creatinine levels in Study 1 were 133 and 132 μmol/L at 6 months in the 1.5 and 3 mg/day groups, respectively, and 130 μmol/L in both groups in Study 2. Biopsy‐proven acute rejection (BPAR) occurred in 25.0% and 15.2% of patients in the 1.5 and 3 mg/day groups in Study 1, and 13.7% and 15.1% in Study 2. Incidence of BPAR was significantly higher in patients with an everolimus trough < 3 ng/mL. There were no significant between‐group differences in the composite endpoint of BPAR, graft loss or death, nor any significant between‐group differences in adverse events in either study. Concentration‐controlled everolimus with low‐exposure CsA provided effective protection against rejection with good renal function.
Regulation of transcription of genes of ribosomal rna during amphibian oogenesis. A biochemical and morphological study

Natural changes in the transcription of rRNA genes were studied in nucleoli from three oogenic stages of the newt Triturus alpestris with electron microscope, auto-radiographic, and biochemical techniques. From determinations of the uridine triphosphate pool sizes and [3H]uridine uptake, phosphorylation, and incorporation into 28S and 18S rRNAs in vivo it was estimated that the rate of rRNA synthesis was about 0.01% in previtellogenic oocytes and 13% in mature oocytes when compared to midvitellogenesis. Spread preparations of nucleoli showed significant morphological changes in the transcriptional complexes. The total number of lateral fibrils, i.e., ribonucleoproteins containing the nascent rRNA precursor, were drastically decreased in stages of reduced synthetic activity. This indicates that rRNA synthesis is regulated primarily at the level of transcription. The resulting patterns of fibril coverage of the nucleolar chromatin axes revealed a marked heterogeneity. On the same nucleolar axis occurred matrix units that were completely devoid of lateral fibrils, matrix units that were almost fully covered with lateral fibrils, and various forms of matrix units with a range of lateral fibril densities intermediate between the two extremes. Granular particles that were tentatively identified as RNA polymerase molecules were not restricted to the transciptional complexes. They were observed, although less regularly and separated by greater distances, in untranscribed spacer regions as well as in untranscribed gene intercepts. The results show that the pattern of transcriptional control of rRNA genes differs widely in different genes, even in the same genetic unit.