Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Distributed Online Laboratories

Abstract ¾ Within the Wallenberg Global Learning Network (WGLN) a group of researchers form the University of Stanford (Stanford Learning Lab) and the University of Hannover (Learning Lab Lower Saxony) are working on the development of new learning methods and appropriate equipment needed for distributed experiment-based learning and training. This constribution deals with the implementation and subsequent evaluation of our first distance learning experiment as a part of a laboratory of process controll for students of electrical engineering in the main section of their study. In one of our control laboratory experiment students have to design, implement and test a discrete controller for a process engineering plant. Last winter term we have started to investigate students motivation, acceptance and learning results in conjunction with online laboratory access. Index Terms¾ Learning network, remote control laboratory, problem based le arning, evaluation. T HE W ALLENERG G LOBAL L
H1 but not H2 histamine antagonist receptors mediate anxiety-related behaviors and emotional memory deficit in mice subjected to elevated plus-maze testing

This study investigated the role of H1 and H2 receptors in anxiety and the retrieval of emotional memory using a Trial 1/Trial 2 (T1/T2) protocol in an elevated plus-maze (EPM). Tests were performed on 2 consecutive days, designated T1 and T2. Before T1, the mice received intraperitoneal injections of saline (SAL), 20 mg/kg zolantidine (ZOL, an H2 receptor antagonist), or 8.0 or 16 mg/kg chlorpheniramine (CPA, an H1 receptor antagonist). After 40 min, they were subjected to the EPM test. In T2 (24 h later), each group was subdivided into two additional groups, and the animals from each group were re-injected with SAL or one of the drugs. In T1, the Student t-test showed no difference between the SAL and ZOL or 8 mg/kg CPA groups with respect to the percentages of open arm entries (%OAE) and open arm time (%OAT). However, administration of CPA at the highest dose of 16 mg/kg decreased %OAE and %OAT, but not locomotor activity, indicating anxiogenic-like behavior. Emotional memory, as revealed by a reduction in open arm exploration between the two trials, was observed in all experimental groups, indicating that ZOL and 8 mg/kg CPA did not affect emotional memory, whereas CPA at the highest dose affected acquisition and consolidation, but not retrieval of memory. Taken together, these results suggest that H1 receptor, but not H2, is implicated in anxiety-like behavior and in emotional memory acquisition and consolidation deficits in mice subjected to EPM testing.
Pricing corporate bonds in an arbitrary jump-diffusion model based on an improved Brownian-bridge algorithm

We provide an efficient and unbiased Monte-Carlo simulation for the computation of bond prices in a structural default model with jumps. The algorithm requires the evaluation of integrals with the density of the firstpassage time of a Brownian bridge as the integrand. Metwally and Atiya (2002) suggest an approximation of these integrals. We improve this approximation in terms of precision. From a modeler's point of view, we show that a structural model with jumps is able to endogenously generate stochastic recovery rates. It is well known that allowing a sudden default by a jump results in a positive limit of credit spreads at the short end of the term structure. We provide an explicit formula for this limit, depending only on the Levy measure of the logarithm of the firm-value process, the recovery rate, and the distance to default.
Effect of age on the pathogenesis of duck tembusu virus in Cherry Valley ducks

The effect of host age on the outcome of duck tembusu virus (DTMUV) infection was studied in ducks. Three groups of Cherry Valley ducks at 1, 3, and 7 weeks of age were intramuscularly infected with DTMUV to systematically observe the clinical symptoms, pathological changes, tissue viral loads, and immune responses. Severe clinical symptoms and neurological dysfunction were observed in 1-week-old ducks as early as 2 days post infection (dpi) and some died at 5–7 dpi. Three weeks-old ducks showed similar but milder symptoms and no deaths. However, 7-weeks-old ducks showed only transient loss of appetite. Gross lesions gradually reduced in severity as ducks matured. One-week-old ducks showed endocardial hemorrhage, splenomegaly, swelling in the lymph follicles of the ileum, liver, and kidney swelling with degeneration, and meningeal hyperemia. Three-weeks-old ducks showed only mild pathological lesions. No visible lesions were observed in 7-weeks-old ducks. However, pathological histology analysis demonstrated all infected ducks displayed viral encephalitis. DTMUV could be detected in the brains of 1-week-old ducks as early as 1 dpi and virus titers of most organs in 1-week-old ducks were significantly higher than that of 3- and 7-weeks-old ducks at 3–5 dpi. The patterns of IFN-γ, IL-2, and serum neutralizing antibodies were similar, and there were significant difference between the youngest ducks and the older ducks at early infection stage (P < 0.05). More important is that although the antibody titers of all infected ducks were similar from 9 to 17 dpi, reduced clearance of virus was observed in the youngest groups comparing with the other two groups, indicating that immune system maturity was more important than the presence of neutralizing antibody. In summary, this study demonstrates that viral pathogenesis is strongest in 1-week-old ducks and the age-related immune response plays an important role in the pathogenesis of DTMUV in ducks.
PERSONAL FACTORS AS PREDICTORS OF INTENTION TO USE IT

The relative power of personal factors such as innovativeness, perceived usefulness, ease of use, and attitude in predicting intention to use IT was tested with 35 students through a field experiment. A common employment website in Indonesia called jobstreet. com is used as a treatment channeling instrument as well as relevant audio and visual media. Simple and multiple regression were used to test the hypotheses. Our findings show that the personal factors such as personal innovation could predict perceived ease of use better than perceived usefulness. The other personal factors such as individual perception (perceived ease of use and perceived usefulness) could predict attitude for the next to effect intention to use IT
R educed atherosclerosis in interleukin-18 deficient apolipoprotein E-knockout mice

Objective: Atherosclerosis is an inflammatory disease in which T helper 1 (Th1) immunity has been proposed to play an important ̈ role. Naıve CD41 T cells differentiate into interferong (IFN-g) producing Th1 effector cells when stimulated by interleukin-18 (IL-18) 2 /2 and IL-12. We wanted to directly test whether the Th1 pathway is proatherogenic. Methods: We bred IL-18 mice with apolipoprotein 2 /2 2 /2 2 /2 E (apoE ) mice and assessed atherosclerosis in the aortic root of the offspring. Results: 24-week-old IL-18 deficient apoE mice 2 1 /1 2 /2 exhibited substantially reduced lesion size (93 866 611 273 vs. 144 019 69667mm in IL-18 3apoE mice,P50.005). Lesion cells b in compound knockout mice displayed reduced I-A expression, implying reduced local IFNg stimulation. These mice also had an increased proportion of a-SM-actin1 smooth muscle cells, compatible with a more stable lesion phenotype. Immunoglobulin G (IgG) subclass analysis of antibodies to malondialdehyde-modified low density lipoprotein indicated increased Th2 and reduced Th1 helper to B 2 /2 2 /2 cell antibody production. Surprisingly, serum cholesterol and triglyceride levels were significantly higher in IL-18 3apoE mice in spite of their reduced atherosclerosis. However, no changes in lipoprotein cholesterol patterns were registered. Conclusion: These data 2 /2 show reduced atherosclerosis and Th1 activity in spite of increased serum cholesterol in IL-18 deficient apoE mice. They support a proatherogenic role for IL-18.  2003 European Society of Cardiology. Published by Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.
In search of a reliable electrophysiological marker of oculomotor inhibition of return

Inhibition of return (IOR) operationalizes a behavioral phenomenon characterized by slower responding to cued, relative to uncued, targets. Two independent forms of IOR have been theorized: input-based IOR occurs when the oculomotor system is quiescent, while output-based IOR occurs when the oculomotor system is engaged. EEG studies forbidding eye movements have demonstrated that reductions of target-elicited P1 components are correlated with IOR magnitude, but when eye movements occur, P1 effects bear no relationship to behavior. We expand on this work by adapting the cueing paradigm and recording event-related potentials: IOR is caused by oculomotor responses to central arrows or peripheral onsets and measured by key presses to peripheral targets. Behavioral IOR is observed in both conditions, but P1 reductions are absent in the central arrow condition. By contrast, arrow and peripheral cues enhance Nd, especially over contralateral electrode sites.
Effect of Some Amino Acids on Growth and Essential Oil Content of Chamomile Plant

The effects of foliar application of different concentrations (0, 50, 100, 150 mgL) of three amino acids (ornithine, proline, phenylalanine) on the vegetative growth, essential oil and some metabolite of chamomile (Matricaria chamomilla L., Rausch.) were studied. The study was conducted in pot experiments in complete randomized block design with three replicates in two successive seasons (2001/2002 and 2002/2003). All treatments of ornithine, proline and phenylalanine led to significant increases in the plant height, number of branches, number of flowers per plant, fresh weight and dry weight of herb and flowers, the effect was more pronounced with 50 mgL ornithine, 100 mgL proline or phenylalanine. Essential oil percent and yield increased by all treatments of the three amino acids at all cuttings, more so with the second cut. The three amino acids treatments increased total phenols and total indoles but decreased total amino acids and total carbohydrates (except 100 mgL proline). Gas liquid chromatographic analysis revealed that the main identified components of essential oil were farnsene, bisabolol oxide B, α-bisabolol, chamazulene and bisabolol oxide A. Amino acid treatments resulted in quantitative differences in these components of the essential oil.
Statistical Usage Testing for Software Reliability Control

Software reliability is a frequently used term, but very seldom the reliability is under control during a software development project. This paper presents a method, Statistical Usage Testing (SUT), which gives the possibility to estimate and predict, and hence control software reliability. SUT is the reliability certihcation method described as a part of Cleanroom software engineering. The main objective of SUT is to certify the software reliability and to find the faults \vith high influence on reliability. SUT provides statistically based stopping rules during test as well as an effective use oftest resources, which is shown by practical application of this and similar methods. This paper presents the basic ideas behind SUT and briefly discusses the theoretical basis as well as theapplication of the method. (Less)
Amplify-and-Forward Relaying with M-FSK Modulation and Coherent Detection

This paper develops a detection scheme based on the implicit pilot-symbol-assisted architecture of M-ary frequency-shift-keying (FSK) modulation in amplify-and-forward (AF) multiple-relay networks. It is shown that, at the expense of the low spectral efficiency inherent in FSK modulation, every transmitted symbol from the source to the destination can be used as a pilot symbol. In the proposed detection scheme, the destination combines the signals from the source and the relays to perform detection by using the estimated channels obtained from the implicit pilot symbols. Using the Gaussian approximation for the effective noise at the destination, an upper bound of the approximated bit-error-rate (BER) is provided. Simulation results reveal that the proposed scheme can significantly improve the BER performance when compared to previously proposed schemes in a temporally-correlated fading environment. The simulation results also verify the obtained upper bound on the approximated BER.
Eye gaze is not coded by cardinal mechanisms alone

Gaze is an important social cue in regulating human and non-human interactions. In this study, we employed an adaptation paradigm to examine the mechanisms underlying the perception of another's gaze. Previous research has shown that the interleaved presentation of leftwards and rightwards gazing adaptor stimuli results in observers judging a wider range of gaze deviations as being direct. We applied a similar paradigm to examine how human observers encode oblique (e.g. upwards and to the left) directions of gaze. We presented observers with interleaved gaze adaptors and examined whether adaptation differed between congruent (adaptor and test along same axis) and incongruent conditions. We find greater adaptation in congruent conditions along cardinal (horizontal and vertical) and non-cardinal (oblique) directions suggesting gaze is not coded alone by cardinal mechanisms. Our results suggest that the functional aspects of gaze processing might parallel that of basic visual features such as orientation.
Innovation Insights from North American Forest Sector Research: A Literature Review

The promise of increased industry competitiveness through innovation has driven interest in innovation by industry managers, policy makers and academicians. Forest sector researchers have produced a strong body of work in recent years. This article provides a review of work originating in North America during the period 2000-2013. The review includes 28 journal articles focused on the forest sector in the U.S. and Canada. Seven important themes from the literature are identified and discussed: defining innovation and innovativeness; measuring innovativeness; factors influencing innovativeness; new product development; climate/culture; innovation systems; and innovativeness and firm performance. The positive culture and climate within a company has a clear connection to improved innovativeness and firm performance. Generally, findings describing the culture of the forest sector show a conservative group that fails to sufficiently invest in innovativeness and innovation. Culture change presents a significant opportunity within the industry to strive toward the improved development of new products, processes and business systems to reap the rewards of improved performance. The implications for managers and researchers are outlined.
The Impact of Organizational Culture on ERP Assimilation: The Mediating Role of User Participation

Despite the large-scale adoption of enterprise resource planning (ERP),attaining the expected benefits is still a challenging task.Organizational culture,a representative of holistic organizational context,is always neglected by prior studies when focusing on ERP assimilation.Through analyzing relative literatures, this paper drew upon five dimensions (interpersonal harmony, outcome orientation,innovation,control,and efficiency) of organizational culture in Chinese context,to explore its impact on ERP effective assimilation through the mediating roles of user participation.And then,a comprehensive research model was built, and then was tested. (Abstract)
Endorser and Bodily Addressing in Public Service Announcements: Effects and Underlying Mechanisms

Media psychology literature suggests that both celebrity and peer endorsers can be effective in persuasion when taking certain bodily addressing styles but via different mechanisms. To understand the psychological mechanisms underlying audiences’ reactions toward print public service announcements (PSAs) and to design effective PSAs accordingly, we explored this issue by conducting a 2 (endorser: peer vs. celebrity) x 2 (bodily addressing style: front vs. side) between-subjects online experiment (N = 423). Findings suggest that celebrity endorsers with a frontal bodily addressing style induced more parasocial interaction experience (PSE) with the endorser from the audiences, whereas peer endorsers with a side bodily addressing elicited a higher level of empathy toward the endorser. Both enhanced PSE and empathy contribute to effectiveness of the PSAs. Implications and limitations are discussed.
Does Objectification on Social Media Cost Young Men?

Using an experimental methodology, the present study assessed college students’ perceptions of a male peer who presented himself on Facebook in either an objectified or nonobjectified manner. One hundred eighty-nine college students (n = 111 women, n = 78 men) viewed a Facebook profile with either an objectified or a nonobjectified profile photo of the same young man and then evaluated the profile owner. They also reported on the desirability of dating the profile owner. Results indicated that the objectified profile owner was considered less competent but not less socially appealing or physically attractive. Participants liked the nonobjectified profile and profile photo better than the objectified profile and profile photo. There was also more interest in a committed dating relationship with the nonobjectified profile owner than the objectified profile owner. Findings suggest that using an objectified profile photo on Facebook may come with some costs for young men.
The Role of an Incubation Period in Creative Problem Solving

ABSTRACT This experimental study tested the spreading-activation hypothesis that an incubation period helps to sensitize problem solvers to relevant concepts. The study also tested the selective forgetting hypothesis that an incubation period helps to desensitize problem solvers to irrelevant concepts. Chinese Chess GO players, 28 experts and 29 novices, solved 18 remote association tasks (RAT) and lexical decision tasks (LDTs) under immediate, rest, and incubation conditions. After each RAT, a set of LDTs incorporating the RAT solution and the irrelevant concept were presented, either immediately, or after a 2-min delay, or after a 2-min delay filled with incubation tasks. The findings of the study support the spreading activation hypothesis and suggest that spreading activation occurs only in a fixated mind. No support was found for the selective forgetting hypothesis.
Majority Logic Representation and Satisfiability

Majority logic is a powerful generalization of common AND/OR logic. Original two-level and multi-level logic networks can use majority operators as primitive connective, in place of AND/ORs. In such a way, Boolean functions have novel means for compact representation and efficient manipulation. In this paper, we focus on two-level logic representation. We define a Majority Normal Form (MNF), as an alternative to traditional Disjunctive Normal Form (DNF) and Conjunctive Normal Form (CNF). After a brief investigation on the MNF expressive power, we study the problem of MNF-SATisfiability (MNF-SAT). We prove that MNF-SAT is NP-complete, as its CNF-SAT counterpart. However, we show practical restrictions on MNF formula whose satisfiability can be decided in polynomial time. We finally propose a simple algorithm to solve MNF- SAT, based on the intrinsic functionality of two-level majority logic. Although an automated MNF-SAT solver is still under construction, manual examples already demonstrate promising opportunities.
Rapid Topographical Plasticity of the Visuomotor Spatial Transformation

Information about the world is often encoded in the brain as topographic maps. These internal representations are not always static but can have a dynamic nature, allowing for constant adjustments that depend on factors like experience or injury. Recently, it has been shown that areas involved in visuomotor transformations also show topographical organization. These findings suggest that it could be possible to observe plastic modifications in specific parts of the representation in response to a local perturbation that affects only a part of the space that is represented. Here, we tested this hypothesis using an adaptation paradigm with hemiprisms. Our results suggest that, initially, the system tries to modify the visuomotor transformation in the whole spatial representation; however, if feedback is available from both hemifields, the system can perform specific regional topographical realignments. The results also suggest that access to the rearranged visuomotor transformation is independent of eye position, in contrast with previous studies that found a kind of conditional learning. Also, whereas prism adaptation experiments using ballistic movements do not show intermanual transfer of learning, the topographical modification found here is available to both hands. These results provide strong evidence for rapid topographical plasticity that can modify space transformations between two different modalities.
The Effects of Microsatellite Selection on Linked Sequence Diversity

The genome-wide scan for selection is an important method for identifying loci involved in adaptive evolution. However, theory that underlies standard scans for selection assumes a simple mutation model. In particular, recurrent mutation of the selective target is not considered. Although this assumption is reasonable for single-nucleotide variants (SNVs), a microsatellite targeted by selection will reliably violate this assumption due to high mutation rate. Moreover, the mutation rate of microsatellites is generally high enough to ensure that recurrent mutation is pervasive rather than occasional. It is therefore unclear if positive selection targeting microsatellites can be detected using standard scanning statistics. Examples of functional variation at microsatellites underscore the significance of understanding the genomic effects of microsatellite selection. Here, we investigate the joint effects of selection and complex mutation on linked sequence diversity, comparing simulations of microsatellite selection and SNV-based selective sweeps. We find that selection on microsatellites is generally difficult to detect using popular summaries of the site frequency spectrum, and, under certain conditions, using popular methods such as the integrated haplotype statistic and SweepFinder. However, comparisons of the number of haplotypes (K) and segregating sites (S) often provide considerable power to detect selection on microsatellites. We apply this knowledge to a scan of autosomes in the human CEU population (CEPH population sampled from Utah). In addition to the most commonly reported targets of selection in European populations, we identify numerous novel genomic regions that bear highly anomalous haplotype configurations. Using one of these regions—intron 1 of MAGI2—as an example, we show that the anomalous configuration is coincident with a perfect CA repeat of length 22. We conclude that standard genome-wide scans will commonly fail to detect mutationally complex targets of selection but that comparisons of K and S will, in many cases, facilitate their identification.