Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
An Integrated Strategy to Study Muscle Development and Myofilament Structure in Caenorhabditis elegans

A crucial step in the development of muscle cells in all metazoan animals is the assembly and anchorage of the sarcomere, the essential repeat unit responsible for muscle contraction. In Caenorhabditis elegans, many of the critical proteins involved in this process have been uncovered through mutational screens focusing on uncoordinated movement and embryonic arrest phenotypes. We propose that additional sarcomeric proteins exist for which there is a less severe, or entirely different, mutant phenotype produced in their absence. We have used Serial Analysis of Gene Expression (SAGE) to generate a comprehensive profile of late embryonic muscle gene expression. We generated two replicate long SAGE libraries for sorted embryonic muscle cells, identifying 7,974 protein-coding genes. A refined list of 3,577 genes expressed in muscle cells was compiled from the overlap between our SAGE data and available microarray data. Using the genes in our refined list, we have performed two separate RNA interference (RNAi) screens to identify novel genes that play a role in sarcomere assembly and/or maintenance in either embryonic or adult muscle. To identify muscle defects in embryos, we screened specifically for the Pat embryonic arrest phenotype. To visualize muscle defects in adult animals, we fed dsRNA to worms producing a GFP-tagged myosin protein, thus allowing us to analyze their myofilament organization under gene knockdown conditions using fluorescence microscopy. By eliminating or severely reducing the expression of 3,300 genes using RNAi, we identified 122 genes necessary for proper myofilament organization, 108 of which are genes without a previously characterized role in muscle. Many of the genes affecting sarcomere integrity have human homologs for which little or nothing is known.
Active training for amblyopia in adult rodents

Amblyopia is the most diffused form of visual function impairment affecting one eye, with a prevalence of 1–5% in the total world population. Amblyopia is usually caused by an early functional imbalance between the two eyes, deriving from anisometropia, strabismus, or congenital cataract, leading to severe deficits in visual acuity, contrast sensitivity and stereopsis. While amblyopia can be efficiently treated in children, it becomes irreversible in adults, as a result of a dramatic decline in visual cortex plasticity which occurs at the end of the critical period (CP) in the primary visual cortex. Notwithstanding this widely accepted dogma, recent evidence in animal models and in human patients have started to challenge this view, revealing a previously unsuspected possibility to enhance plasticity in the adult visual system and to achieve substantial visual function recovery. Among the new proposed intervention strategies, non invasive procedures based on environmental enrichment, physical exercise or visual perceptual learning (vPL) appear particularly promising in terms of future applicability in the clinical setting. In this survey, we will review recent literature concerning the application of these behavioral intervention strategies to the treatment of amblyopia, with a focus on possible underlying molecular and cellular mechanisms.
Coordination of Causal Relations in Discourse.

The goal of this paper is twofold. First, we aim to shed light on the need to distinguish French causal connectives which convey a semantic relation from those which convey a discourse relation. Next, we aim to put forward an analysis of coordination of causal relations, in comparison with coordination of facts. While the latter is well-known, the former has nearly never been studied.
A new trellis representation for source-channel rate allocation

In this paper, we consider the source-channel rate allocation for different transmission schemes. We propose a new trellis structure and a new algorithm that are able to deal with both variable length packet and fixed length packet problems. The trellis description allows to handle any kind of transmission schemes and can therefore be applied to Bit Interleaved Coded Modulations (BICM), parallel channels or Hybrid-Automatic Repeat reQuest (HARQ).
Altering Assessment for Greater Achievement: An Evaluation of Students’ Attitudes and Level of Engagement with mTuner

With technology at the fingertips of most undergraduate students, it has been difficult for instructors to fully engage them in the classroom, which has resulted in the creation of several innovative interventions, such as mTuner. mTuner integrates several cognitive learning strategies within an assessment, with the goal of actually enhancing learning, as opposed to just measuring it. In the current study, students’ attitudes, level of engagement, and performance were evaluated, with specific explorations into academic entitlement (AE), test anxiety (TA), learning orientation (LO) and grade orientation (GO). Results indicated that students had very positive attitudes toward mTuner, especially in comparison to traditional multiple-choice paper and pencil (MCPP) formats. Additionally, students had very high performance scores on the mTuner assessment despite their limited engagement in the cognitive learning features, putting to question mTuner’s facilitation of long-term learning. Implications and future recommendations of mTuner implementation in educational environments are discussed. ALTERING ASSESSMENT GREATER ACHIEVEMENT v
Characterisation of Titanium Dental Implants. II: Local Biomechanical Model

A theoretical model for estimation of the bone-to-implant interfacial shear strength induced by implant surface roughness has been developed. Two different assumptions regarding the constitutive behaviour of the interfacial bone were made. 1) The bone exhibits an ideally plastic deformation – the plastic mode. 2) The bone exhibits a linearly elastic deformation – the elastic mode. In the plastic mode it was found that the estimated interfacial shear strength was directly proportional to the 2D surface roughness parameter mean slope. For the elastic mode a new 2D surface roughness parameter was defined. With this parameter a direct proportionality between parameter value and estimated interfacial shear strength was also obtained in the elastic mode. The model was extended into 3D mode. The model was used to evaluate topographies of implant surfaces. The calculated results showed a similar trend to interfacial shear strength results reported in vivo.
Enhancement of thermoelectric figure-of-merit by resonant states of aluminium doping in lead selenide

By adding aluminium (Al) into lead selenide (PbSe), we successfully prepared n-type PbSe thermoelectric materials with a figure-of-merit (ZT) of 1.3 at 850 K. Such a high ZT is achieved by a combination of high Seebeck coefficient caused by very possibly the resonant states in the conduction band created by Al dopant and low thermal conductivity from nanosized phonon scattering centers.
Patterns and controls of the variability of radiation use efficiency and primary productivity across terrestrial ecosystems

Aim The controls of gross radiation use efficiency (RUE), the ratio between gross primary productivity (GPP) and the radiation intercepted by terrestrial vegetation, and its spatial and temporal variation are not yet fully understood. Our objectives were to analyse and synthesize the spatial variability of GPP and the spatial and temporal variability of RUE and its climatic controls for a wide range of vegetation types.
View invariants for human action recognition

This paper presents two approaches for the representation and recognition of human action in video, aiming for view-point invariance. The paper first presents new results using a 2D approach presented earlier. Inherent limitations of the 2D approach are discussed and a new 3D approach that builds on recent work on 3D model-based invariants, is presented. Each action is represented as a unique curve in a 3D invariance space, surrounded by an acceptance volume ('action volume'). Given a video sequence, 2D quantities from the image are calculated and matched against candidate action volumes in a probabilistic framework. The theory is presented followed by results on arbitrary projections of motion-capture data which demonstrate a high degree of tolerance to viewpoint change.
AVERAGE FROBENIUS DISTRIBUTION FOR INERTS IN Q(i)

Let E be an elliptic curve over Q with conductor NE . For all primes p of good reduction (i.e. p NE), E reduces to an elliptic curve over Fp with p+ 1− ap(E) points where |ap(E)| ≤ 2 √ p by Hasse’s Theorem. The case ap(E) = 0 corresponds to supersingular reduction. Fixing any r ∈ Z, let πE,r(x) = # {p ≤ x : ap(E) = r} . If E has complex multiplication, Deuring showed that ap(E) = 0 for half of the primes. For all other cases, Lang and Trotter [13] conjectured that
The influence of extracurricular activities on middle school students’ science learning in China

ABSTRACT Informal science learning has been found to have effects on students’ science learning. Through the use of secondary data from a national assessment of 7410 middle school students in China, this study explores the relationship among five types of extracurricular science activities, learning interests, academic self-concept, and science achievement. Structural equation modelling was used to investigate the influence of students’ self-chosen and school-organised extracurricular activities on science achievement through mediating interests and the academic self-concept. Chi-square tests were used to determine whether there was an opportunity gap in the student’s engagement in extracurricular activities. The students’ volunteer and school-organised participation in extracurricular science activities had a positive and indirect influence on their science achievement through the mediating variables of their learning interests and academic self-concept. However, there were opportunity gaps between different groups of students in terms of school location, family background, and especially the mother’s education level. Students from urban areas with better-educated mothers or higher socioeconomic status are more likely to access diverse science-related extracurricular activities.
Pay cuts

This paper tests the ‘morale’ theory of downward nominal wage rigidity. This theory relies on workers disliking nominal pay cuts: cuts should make workers less happy. We investigate this using panel data on individual employees’ pay and satisfaction. We confirm that nominal cuts do make workers less happy than if their pay had not fallen. But we find no difference in the effect on happiness of cuts and pay freezes. This represents important information about the nature of wage rigidity in practice and the applicability of the morale theory. The morale theory may be able to explain generalised downward wage rigidity, but apparently fails to explain downward nominal rigidity.
Role of anticipation in schizophrenia-related pursuit initiation deficits.

Schizophrenia patients exhibit several smooth pursuit abnormalities including poor pursuit initiation. Velocity discrimination is also impaired and is correlated with pursuit initiation performance-suggesting that pursuit deficits are related to impairments in processing velocity information. Studies suggest that pursuit initiation is influenced by prior target motion information and/or expectations and that this is likely caused by expectation-based changes in the perceptual inputs to the pursuit system. We examined whether poor pursuit initiation in schizophrenia results from inaccurate encoding of immediate velocity signals, or whether these deficits reflect a failure to use prior target motion information to "optimize" the response. Twenty-eight patients and 24 controls performed an adapted version of a "remembered pursuit task. " Trials consisted of a series of target motions, the first of which occurred unexpectedly, followed by four to seven identical targets each preceded by an auditory cue and a "catch target" in which a cue was given followed by target extinction. Initiation eye velocity in response to unexpected, first targets was similar in the patient and control groups. In contrast, patients showed lower eye velocity in response to repeated, cued targets compared with controls. Patients also showed reduced eye velocity in response to catch targets. Reduction in pursuit latency across repeated targets was less robust in patients. Results suggest that processing of immediate velocity information is unaffected in schizophrenia and that pursuit initiation deficits reflect an inability to accurately generate, store, and/or access "remembered" velocity signals.
Exploring the Learning Style Preferences Used by Accounting Students in a University of Technology in South Africa

Abstract The purpose of this study was to explore the learning style preferences used by accounting students at an institution of higher learning in South Africa. Kolb’s Learning Style Inventory (LSI) was used to identify the learning style preferences of the first, second and third year accounting students. A purposeful sample of 232 students was used in this study. The findings of the study revealed that students were mostly Convergers and the least popular group was that of Divergers. When the data was compared according to levels of study, the findings showed a significant rise in percentage of Divergers from 1st to 2nd year. In addition, Assimilators, Convergers and Accommodators decreased slightly from 1st to 2nd year. During 3rd year, all group percentages were constant. This means that the Convergers were predominant throughout all the levels. When the data was compared by gender, the results indicated that there was no statistical significance between male and female students in their choice of learning style preferences.
Status discrepancy as a driver of residential mobility: Evidence from Oslo

Planners have long advocated for “social mix” in neighborhoods without clear evidence that such mixing is stable over time. Indeed, if some groups perceive an intolerable discrepancy between their own economic status and that of their neighbors they may leave the neighborhood, thereby frustrating planners’ goals. We conduct a longitudinal analysis of Oslo household intrametropolitan residential mobility employing a panel model with fixed effects for both households and neighborhoods and interactions for status groups, which provides estimates of plausible causal effects. We theoretically and empirically identify two dimensions of intraneighborhood status discrepancy that prove important predictors of leaving a neighborhood, though impacts differ strongly depending on household income status as defined by Oslo-wide standards. More extreme relative standing above the neighborhood median income promotes exit (especially for low- and middle-status households), suggesting a status signaling motive. For high-status households, being below the median neighborhood income proves influential for out-mobility, suggesting a relative deprivation motive. The overall status composition of the neighborhood is a powerful mobility influence for both low- and high-status households, suggesting a strong preference for homophily. Results imply that policy-generated introduction of low-status households will encourage the exit of high- and, to a lesser degree, middle-status neighbors.
The mediation effects of achievement motivation and locus of control between academic stress and life satisfaction in undergraduate students

ABSTRACT This study investigated the mediation effect of locus of control and achievement motivation between academic stress and life satisfaction. A total of 307 undergraduate students recruited from a Hispanic Serving Institution in South Texas participated in the study. In the frame of the study, two mediation models were tested by utilising PROCESS Procedure for SPSS (Hayes, 2013. Introduction to mediation, moderation, and conditional process analysis: A regression-based approach. New York, NY: Guilford Press). The results indicated that bivariate correlations among study variables ranged from −. 24 to . 32. The overall composite indicated that academic stress contributed to 6% of the variance in life satisfaction (p < .01) among students (b = −.06), while the mediating effect of locus of control contributed to 10% of the variance in Life Satisfaction (p < .01) among students (b = −.4).
The incidence rate and economic burden of community-acquired pneumonia in a working-age population.

BACKGROUND Community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) is frequently associated with the very young and the elderly but is a largely underrecognized burden among working-age adults. Although the burden of CAP among the elderly has been established, there are limited data on the economic burden of CAP in the employed population. OBJECTIVE To assess the economic impact of CAP in US working-age adults from an employer perspective by estimating the incidence rate and costs of healthcare, sick time, and short-term disability for this patient population. METHODS This retrospective cohort study is based on data from 2 Truven Health Analytics databases. The study population consisted of commercially insured active employees aged 18 to 64 years, early retirees aged <65 years, and adult dependents of both cohorts. CAP was identified using medical claims with pneumonia diagnosis codes during the 2009 calendar year. Incidence rate, episode level, and annual costs were stratified by age and by risk based on the presence of comorbidities. Descriptive statistics were used to compare healthcare (ie, medical and pharmacy) costs, sick time, and short-term disability costs between the cohorts with and without CAP. Linear regression was used to estimate the average annual incremental healthcare cost in employed patients with inpatient or outpatient CAP versus individuals without CAP. RESULTS Study eligibility was met by 12,502,017 employed individuals, including 123,920 with CAP and 12,378,097 without CAP; the overall incidence rate of CAP was 10.6 per 1000 person-years. Among individuals with and without CAP, the costs of healthcare, sick time, and short-term disability increased with advancing age and with higher risk status. The mean annual healthcare costs were $20,961 for patients with CAP and $3783 for individuals without CAP. Overall, the mean costs of sick time and short-term disability were $1129 and $1016, respectively, in active employees with CAP, and $853 and $322, respectively, in their counterparts without CAP. Compared with individuals without CAP, the average annual incremental healthcare cost ranged from $39,889 to $113,837 for inpatient management of patients with CAP and from $4170 to $31,524 for outpatient management of patients with CAP, depending on the risk level. CONCLUSIONS CAP is a common and costly infection among working-age individuals, especially in patients with comorbidities. Prevention strategies, such as influenza and pneumococcal vaccination, that target working-age adults with underlying medical conditions may be the most valuable in reducing the morbidity and costs associated with CAP.
Epidemiological Change of Atopic Dermatitis and Food Allergy in School-Aged Children in Korea between 1995 and 2000

Little is known about the prevalence of atopic dermatitis and food allergy outside North America and Europe. We evaluated the prevalence of atopic dermatitis and food allergy with the comparison of prevalence between 1995 and 2000 in Korea and evaluated the correlation of prevalence between atopic dermatitis and food allergy. A cross-sectional questionnaire survey was conducted on random samples of schoolchildren 6 to 14 yr at two time points, 1995 and 2000 throughout Korea. The last twelve months prevalence of atopic dermatitis in Korean school-aged children was increased from 1995 to 2000. The twelve-month prevalence of atopic dermatitis and food allergy were higher in Seoul than in any other provincial cities in 1995, but the prevalence of both diseases in Seoul and Provincial Centers became to be similar in 2000. The rate responded to food allergy of children with atopic dermatitis (9.5%) was lower than that of the western countries (60%). And our data demonstrated paternal and maternal allergy history is very significantly correlated to developing atopic dermatitis in their offspring. The further objective evaluations are required to confirm these outcomes because the environmental and risk factors may be different among the countries according to their living cultures.
Investigación Original / Original Research Investigación Original / Original Research Infant and Young Child Feeding in Four Departments in Haiti: Mixed-method Study on Prevalence of Recommended Practices and Related Attitudes, Beliefs, and Other Determinants Key Words

Adequate nutrition during the first months and years of life is crucial to ensure child health. To promote optimal infant and young child feeding (IYCF), the World Health Organization (WHO) and United Nations' Children Fund (UNICEF) recommend that 1) infants be exclusively breastfed for the first six Objective. To determine and describe the prevalence and patterns of three recommended practices for infant and young child feeding—exclusive breastfeeding (EB), continued breastfeeding (CB), and achievement of minimum dietary diversity—in four regions in Haiti, and to identify the attitudes and beliefs that inform these practices and any other factors that may facilitate or impede their implementation. Methods. This study utilized a mixed-methods approach consisting of 1) a cross-sectional survey (n = 310) and 2) 12 focus group discussions among women ≥ 18 years old with children ≤ 2 years old. Multivariable logistic regression analyses were conducted to identify factors associated with 1) EB during the first six months of life, 2) CB for children ≥ 2 years old, and 3) receipt of a diverse variety of complementary foods. Qualitative data were recorded, transcribed verbatim, and analyzed for common themes. Data were collected in June and July 2013 in four departments in Haiti: Artibonite, Nippes, Ouest, and Sud-Est. Results. Prevalence of EB, CB, and achievement of minimum dietary diversity was 57.0%, 11.9%, and 21.2% respectively. EB was statistically significantly associated with infant's age when controlling for annual household income, location of most recent birth, or receipt of CB counseling (odds ratio (OR) = 0.67 (95% CI: 0.47–0.97)). CB was not statistically significantly associated with rural place of residence, receipt of CB counseling, parity, or infant's age. Meeting minimum dietary diversity was not significantly associated with parity, receipt of postnatal care, rural place of residence, location of most recent birth, receipt of infant and young child feeding counseling, or level of schooling. Beliefs surrounding the relationship between the mother's health and her diet on the quality of breast milk may prohibit EB and CB. Qualitative data revealed that dietary diversity may be low because 1) mothers often struggle to introduce complementary foods and 2) those that are traditionally introduced are not varied and primarily consist of grains and starches. Conclusions. Prevalence of the three recommended infant and young child feeding practices examined in this study is suboptimal, particularly CB and achievement of minimum dietary diversity. Future communication and programming efforts should address the misunderstandings and …