Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Derived Algebraic Geometry Over & E-Rings by

We develop a theory of less commutative algebraic geometry where the role of commutative rings is assumed by En-rings, that is, rings with multiplication parametrized by configuration spaces of points in Rn . As n increases, these theories converge to the derived algebraic geometry of TobnVezzosi and Lurie. The class of spaces obtained by gluing En-rings form a geometric counterpart to En-categories, which are higher topological variants of braided monoidal categories. These spaces further provide a geometric language for the deformation theory of general E, structures. A version of the cotangent complex governs such deformation theories, and we relate its values to E&-Hochschild cohomology. In the affine case, this establishes a claim made by Kontsevich. Other applications include a geometric description of higher Drinfeld centers of SE-categories, explored in work with Ben-Zvi and Nadler. Thesis Supervisor: Michael Hopkins Title: Professor of Mathematics, Harvard University
Dual AAV/IL-10 Plus STAT3 Anti-Inflammatory Gene Delivery Lowers Atherosclerosis in LDLR KO Mice, but without Increased Benefit

Both IL-10 and STAT3 are in the same signal transduction pathway, with IL-10-bound IL10 receptor (R) acting through STAT3 for anti-inflammatory effect. To investigate possible therapeutic synergism, we delivered both full-length wild-type human (h) STAT3 and hIL-10 genes by separate adenoassociated virus type 8 (AAV8) tail vein injection into LDLR KO on HCD. Compared to control Neo gene-treated animals, individual hSTAT3 and hIL-10 delivery resulted in significant reduction in atherogenesis, as determined by larger aortic lumen size, thinner aortic wall thickness, and lower blood velocity (all statistically significant). However, dual hSTAT3/hIL-10 delivery offered no improvement in therapeutic effect. Plasma cholesterol levels in dual hSTAT3/hIL-10-treated animals were statistically higher compared to hIL-10 alone. While no advantage was seen in this case, we consider that the dual gene approach has intrinsic merit, but properly chosen partnered genes must be used.
Accidental Outcomes Guide Punishment in a “Trembling Hand” Game

How do people respond to others' accidental behaviors? Reward and punishment for an accident might depend on the actor's intentions, or instead on the unintended outcomes she brings about. Yet, existing paradigms in experimental economics do not include the possibility of accidental monetary allocations. We explore the balance of outcomes and intentions in a two-player economic game where monetary allocations are made with a “trembling hand”: that is, intentions and outcomes are sometimes mismatched. Player 1 allocates $10 between herself and Player 2 by rolling one of three dice. One die has a high probability of a selfish outcome, another has a high probability of a fair outcome, and the third has a high probability of a generous outcome. Based on Player 1's choice of die, Player 2 can infer her intentions. However, any of the three die can yield any of the three possible outcomes. Player 2 is given the opportunity to respond to Player 1's allocation by adding to or subtracting from Player 1's payoff. We find that Player 2's responses are influenced substantially by the accidental outcome of Player 1's roll of the die. Comparison to control conditions suggests that in contexts where the allocation is at least partially under the control of Player 1, Player 2 will punish Player 1 accountable for unintentional negative outcomes. In addition, Player 2's responses are influenced by Player 1's intention. However, Player 2 tends to modulate his responses substantially more for selfish intentions than for generous intentions. This novel economic game provides new insight into the psychological mechanisms underlying social preferences for fairness and retribution.
The spectral response of spontaneous EEG occipital alpha activity

The desynchronisation and temporal response of the spontaneous EEG occipital alpha activity in the 8-13 Hz frequency band to a range of luminances and wavelengths from spectrally characterised illumination-sources under homogeneous viewing conditions, with and without the presence of foveal perturbations were examined. Insufficient evidence in the literature to substantiate the effect on occipital alpha to varying luminance conditions and the necessity of such knowledge for the operation of an environmental control system (ECS) provided the impetus for the work. A series of experiments were conducted in uniformly illuminated unpattemed visual fields provided by a sheet of white paper and an integrating sphere. Luminances in the range 2.6x10'5900 cd/m2 and peak wavelengths of 454 nm, 529 nm, 600 nm and 658 nm, for narrow band sources and white light were investigated. Results show that, (i) ECS operation based on the increased amplitude of alpha activity on eye closure is viable in the luminance range 2.6x10'4-900 cd/m2, (ii) Occipital alpha activity, in terms of maximum frequency, maximum amplitude and the frequency integrated amplitude, during the first 20 s of homogeneous visual stimulation or on fixation on a foveal perturbation in the field is equivalent to viewing in a typical patterned environment and (iii) Chromatic homogeneous stimulation effects ongoing alpha activity with respect to a wavelength dependency and a decrease in alpha amplitude on eye closure. The homogeneity of the visual field provides strong evidence of the occipital alpha wave behaviour in a such a visual field. The findings are at variance with previous reports because it is shown, (i) that the alpha amplitude in a homogeneous visual field does not increase to the amplitude observed on eye closure, (ii) that alpha behaviour is dependent on wavelength and (iii) that attenuation of alpha activity is observed on eye closure under red green and blue homogenous visual stimulation.
Socioeconomic Inequalities in Lung Cancer Treatment: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

In a systematic review and meta-analysis, Lynne Forrest and colleagues find that patients with lung cancer who are more socioeconomically deprived are less likely to receive surgical treatment, chemotherapy, or any type of treatment combined, compared with patients who are more socioeconomically well off, regardless of cancer stage or type of health care system.
Why Do People Believe What They Do? A Functionalist Perspective

Why do people believe what they do? Scholars and laypeople alike tend to answer this question by focusing on the representational functions of beliefs (i.e., representing the world accurately). However, a growing body of theory and research indicates that beliefs also can serve important hedonic functions (i.e., decreasing/increasing negative or positive emotional states). In this article, we describe: (a) the features of belief; (b) the functions served by beliefs, with a focus on the hedonic function; (c) an integrative framework highlighting the hedonic function and contrasting it with the representational function; and (d) the implications of our framework, and related future research directions for individual differences in belief, belief change, and the ways in which beliefs contribute to adaptive versus maladaptive psychological functioning.
Early Triassic Aggradational and Degradational Landscapes of the Karoo Basin and Evidence for Climate Oscillation Following the P–Tr Event

The Lower Triassic Katberg Formation (Beaufort Group, Karoo Supergroup) in South Africa is a fine-grained, arenaceous unit deposited under ephemeral bedload-dominated fluvial conditions and previously interpreted as representing a continuous stratigraphic record. Its genesis was linked directly to the end-Paleozoic extinction event and was considered to exhibit the results of a trend towards aridification. The present study documents the lowermost Katberg Formation exposed at Carlton Heights, Northern Cape Province, to test the aridification hypothesis. Four lithofacies vary in both vertical and lateral relationships, with feldspathic sandstone dominating the stratigraphy. Pisolith-size nodular conglomerate consists of pedogenically derived carbonate nodules originally precipitated within aridisols, none of which are either exposed or reported from the formation. Rather, the only evidence of extreme aridification is found within channel lag, barform, and overbank deposits marking landscape degradation. Landscape aggradation is characterized by two feldspathic sandstone geometries where (1) medium-bedded, planar bedded, or ripple-laminated sheet sandstone is interpreted as ephemeral sheetflood deposits, and (2) thick-bedded, cross-laminated multi-lateral, lenticular sandstone is interpreted as associated with deeper, sand-bed braided (anabranching) systems. Overbank fines consist of polyphase siltstone paleosols in which bioturbated inceptisols were overprinted by gleysols wherein large pedogenic carbonate nodules precipitated under a high regional water table. Evidence exists for periodic drying in these wet regimes, but no evidence exists for extreme aridity. Hence, the lowermost Katberg Formation superficially exhibits only an aggradational sedimentological record, but significant diastems exist as evidenced by the concentration of aridisol precipitates at the base of each degradational cycle. A model for the Early Triassic in this part of the Karoo Basin is presented wherein this record is interpreted as a function of climate oscillations rather than either episodic uplift in the Cape Fold Belt or any ecosystem response to the end-Permian extinction.
Bayesian hierarchical modelling of continuous non‐negative longitudinal data with a spike at zero: An application to a study of birds visiting gardens in winter

The development of methods for dealing with continuous data with a spike at zero has lagged behind those for overdispersed or zero‐inflated count data. We consider longitudinal ecological data corresponding to an annual average of 26 weekly maximum counts of birds, and are hence effectively continuous, bounded below by zero but also with a discrete mass at zero. We develop a Bayesian hierarchical Tweedie regression model that can directly accommodate the excess number of zeros common to this type of data, whilst accounting for both spatial and temporal correlation. Implementation of the model is conducted in a Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) framework, using reversible jump MCMC to explore uncertainty across both parameter and model spaces. This regression modelling framework is very flexible and removes the need to make strong assumptions about mean‐variance relationships a priori. It can also directly account for the spike at zero, whilst being easily applicable to other types of data and other model formulations. Whilst a correlative study such as this cannot prove causation, our results suggest that an increase in an avian predator may have led to an overall decrease in the number of one of its prey species visiting garden feeding stations in the United Kingdom. This may reflect a change in behaviour of house sparrows to avoid feeding stations frequented by sparrowhawks, or a reduction in house sparrow population size as a result of sparrowhawk increase.
Evaluation of the functional equivalence of major histocompatibility complex class II A and E complexes

Most mice display two conventional major histocompatibility complex class II isotypes, A and E. Several A+E- strains have been observed, but never any that are A-E+. Because of this and because of hints from several lines of functional analysis, it has been proposed that the two isotypes might not operate equivalently. This proposition has not been directly testable until now because of the lack of an E-only strain. We report the production of such mice, exploiting previously created class II-transgenic and class II-"knock-out" lines. A+E-, A-E-, and A-E+ littermates have been compared by a number of parameters. We find that E and A molecules are, for the most part, functionally equivalent. However, subtle differences are seen in their ability to engage CD4 molecules on immature thymocytes, and in the profile of receptors on T cells selected into the periphery.
Academic literacy across the curriculum: Towards a collaborative instructional approach

I respond to the conference theme ‘English across the Curriculum’ by suggesting that ‘Academic literacy’ should be taught across the curriculum. I first explain the concept of academic literacy, which describes the range of abilities that students have to acquire when starting out in a new academic discipline. I then discuss the dominant instructional provision at universities. As this provision fails to address students’ real learning needs, I argue for curriculum-integrated academic literacy instruction that is based on the collaboration between English for academic purposes (EAP) specialists and subject lecturers. I provide examples of collaborative, discipline-specific approaches to supporting student learning, and present some insights from an intervention study that I have carried out to explore feasible ways of teaching and collaboration. Finally, I discuss the need for lecturer training to achieve a curriculum-integrated approach, and report on my experience of running a professional development module which aimed to enable lecturers to embed academic literacy development into their teaching practice.
High-Pass Filtering of Input Signals by the Ih Current in a Non-Spiking Neuron, the Retinal Rod Bipolar Cell

Hyperpolarization–activated cyclic nucleotide–sensitive (HCN) channels mediate the If current in heart and Ih throughout the nervous system. In spiking neurons Ih participates primarily in different forms of rhythmic activity. Little is known, however, about its role in neurons operating with graded potentials as in the retina, where all four channel isoforms are expressed. Intriguing evidence for an involvement of Ih in early visual processing are the side effects reported, in dim light or darkness, by cardiac patients treated with HCN inhibitors. Moreover, electroretinographic recordings indicate that these drugs affect temporal processing in the outer retina. Here we analyzed the functional role of HCN channels in rod bipolar cells (RBCs) of the mouse. Perforated–patch recordings in the dark–adapted slice found that RBCs exhibit Ih, and that this is sensitive to the specific blocker ZD7288. RBC input impedance, explored by sinusoidal frequency–modulated current stimuli (0.1–30 Hz), displays band–pass behavior in the range of Ih activation. Theoretical modeling and pharmacological blockade demonstrate that high–pass filtering of input signals by Ih, in combination with low–pass filtering by passive properties, fully accounts for this frequency–tuning. Correcting for the depolarization introduced by shunting through the pipette–membrane seal, leads to predict that in darkness Ih is tonically active in RBCs and quickens their responses to dim light stimuli. Immunohistochemistry targeting candidate subunit isoforms HCN1–2, in combination with markers of RBCs (PKC) and rod–RBC synaptic contacts (bassoon, mGluR6, Kv1.3), suggests that RBCs express HCN2 on the tip of their dendrites. The functional properties conferred by Ih onto RBCs may contribute to shape the retina's light response and explain the visual side effects of HCN inhibitors.
Neighborhood school characteristics: what signals quality to homebuyers?

Popular wisdom and economic research suggest that the quality of the neighborhood school should be an important determinant of housing values. Many researchers have found that housing values are higher where school spending or student test scores are higher. However, few economists consider these characteristics good indicators of school quality. Meanwhile, no one has examined whether the economists' notion of school quality-the school's marginal effect on students-is a school characteristic that matters to homebuyers. ; Using a model of new home purchases and historical data on homes in the Dallas Independent School District (DISD), Kathy Hayes and Lori Taylor demonstrate that property values do reflect the characteristics of the neighborhood school. They present evidence that property values reflect student test scores but not school expenditures. Interestingly, they also find that the relationship between test scores and property values arises from an underlying relationship between property values and the marginal effects of schools. Thus, their analysis suggests that homebuyers and economists share the same definition of school quality.
Carbonate removal from coastal sediments for the determination of organic carbon and its isotopic signatures, δ13C and Δ14C: comparison of fumigation and direct acidification by hydrochloric acid

Acidification of a solid sample to separate inorganic carbon (IC) from organic carbon (OC) is a widely encountered procedure in limnology and oceanography. Traditionally, OC was isolated to determine the weight‐% of OC (%OC), but it is becoming increasingly common to determine the isotopic signatures of the OC (δ13COC and Δ14COC). This raises a need for a closer scrutiny of the currently used acidification methods. First, because IC and OC typically have distinct carbon‐isotopic signatures, δ13COC and Δ14COC values can be compromised if IC is not completely removed. Second, it is possible to isotopically fractionate a sample if a small portion of OC is lost during acidification, because OC itself is both chemically and isotopically heterogeneous. This study evaluated two acidification methods by HCl—in the vaporous (HClvap) and aqueous (HClaq) phases—to determine %OC, δ13COC, and Δ14COC in coastal sediments. Each method was assessed according to the criteria that it (1) has low blank levels, (2) is able to remove dolomite, (3) yields accurate %OC, and (4) yields accurate δ13COC and Δ14COC values. HClvap fulfilled all criteria, given that the samples were not overexposed to acid. Overexposure led to underestimation of δ13COC and Δ14COC values. HClaq gave similar results but was less reliable in that it consistently underestimated %OC and yielded inaccurate δ13COC value for one test sample. It is recommended that an optimal acid exposure is carefully determined for each sample type to obtain most accurate δ13COC and Δ14COC values.
Early parental loss, socioeconomic stressors, and health in later life: Evidence for gender disparity

Fu, Rong. Ph.D., Purdue University, August 2016. Early Parental Loss, Socioeconomic Stressors, and Health in Later Life: Evidence for Gender Disparity. Major Professor: James Anderson. Drawing from the stress process model and the cumulative disadvantage theory, this dissertation examined how childhood and later life stressors affected cognitive and subjective health in older adults. Using three main articles, this dissertation investigated (1) the effect of early parental loss on cognitive well-being in Chinese oldest old; (2) the effect of intergenerational socioeconomic mobility on cognitive and subjective health in advanced age; and (3) the effect of different dimensions of socioeconomic status and perceived financial strain on subjective health in later life. Data were derived from the 2002 and 2005 waves of the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey. Ordinary least squares models and logistic regression models were used to estimate the stresshealth association. Key findings of this dissertation include (1) losing a mother in early life predicted worse cognitive function in oldest old men; (2) experiencing downward intergenerational socioeconomic mobility was detrimental to cognitive and subjective health in advanced age, especially in oldest old women; and (3) perceived financial strain was associated with an elevated risk of reporting poor health for both urban and rural inhabitants. Findings of this dissertation suggest that traumatic events in early life
The Use of Metadata Visualisation to Assist Information Retrieval the Use of Metadata Visualisation to Assist Information Retrieval

Metadata is descriptive information about data, which can be used to manage, locate or retrieve information. Although tabular presentations of metadata can be extremely useful, the exploitation of such information may be improved by visualisation. There are a number of information visualisation interfaces available, and many of these utilise metadata. However, on the whole, these approaches have not been objectively evaluated, and there is little information about their validity and reliability. This study analyses some of these techniques, highlighting their strengths and weaknesses, and the areas where further research is required. A study is proposed, in which a simple interface will empirically assess the efficacy of a metadata visualisation technique. Executive Summary Metadata is a useful tool and resource that is able to communicate large amounts of information. Metadata is used extensively in library catalogues, research environments, sales and marketing, financial analysis, manufacturing industries and in the areas of police and defence intelligence. Most commonly, metadata is presented in a tabular manner, with each metadata tag placed in a separate column. The use of such metadata tables has become common practice in many real-world applications. In contrast, recent studies have demonstrated that users' ability to retrieve information can be significantly improved with the use of visualisations based on content similarity. Such techniques are rarely used in practical settings. For example, visualisation can provide an overview of the data; they allow quick and easy identification of clusters, trends, gaps or outliers; and enable a user to visually locate relationships and interactions in a way that is significantly easier than with metadata tables. This report examines methods of metadata presentation and how best to integrate these with content-based visualisations. Details of metadata and information visualisation interfaces in the previous literature will be discussed as well as existing evaluations of these tools. Finally, a proposed study evaluating the effectiveness of (1) metadata tables, (2) content-based visualisation and a combination of (1) and (2) is proposed. The literature survey revealed a lack of appropriate and robust research of the available tools. A major limitation of most studies is that they have been designed around small sample sizes, and this limits the ability to generalise results to other populations or other interfaces. Participants in these studies also have limited time to become accustomed to using a particular metadata interface, which means that results do not necessarily reflect potential performance. Additionally, testing of more realistic tasks …