Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Preattentive detection of rare audiovisual feature conjunctions by the human brain as reflected by the mismatch negativity

Preattentive detection of rare audiovisual feature conjunctions by the human brain as reflected by the mismatch negativity Author: Aarni Mustonen Supervisor: Piia Astikainen Master’s thesis in psychology University of Jyvaskyla December 2007 39 pages An influential view about feature binding, the feature integration theory (FIT), states that attention is needed in conjoining different features of a sensory object together. However, studies using the mismatch negativity (MMN), a component of the event-related potential (ERP) associated with automatic change detection after repeated sensory stimuli, have demonstrated that the MMN generating system can detect rare combinations of sensory features even though the features themselves are not rare. The purpose of the current study was to test whether unattended rare audiovisual stimulus combinations elicit an MMN. Event-related potentials (ERPs) were recorded from the scalp of ten female subjects while they were presented audiovisual oddball stimuli. Audiovisual stimuli consisted in visually presented bars with two alternating orientations paired with auditory tones with two alternating frequencies. Both bar orientations and both frequencies were presented at equal probability in both standard and deviant stimuli. However, in the standard stimuli, which were 90 per cent of the stimulus presentation trials, the higher frequency was combined with one orientation and the lower frequency, with the other orientation. In the remaining 10 per cent of the trials, the deviants, this rule was broken. During this audiovisual experiment, the subjects performed a somatosensory task, which prevented them attending the audiovisual stimuli. Differences in ERPs to standards and to deviants were obtained in three different time windows. At 90-110 ms after the stimulus onset, the difference in ERPs was negative at parietal and positive at frontal electrodes. At 160-180 ms period, the differential ERPs were negative at left hemisphere and at midline electrodes. At 330-350 ms time window, the potentials to deviants were more positive at one electrode, C4. This pattern of results is concluded to represent an audiovisual MMN, the MMN itself being either one of the two first differential peaks or some kind of double process consisting of both of these peaks. The implications of the results for the FIT are discussed and possible directions for future research are suggested.
Paracrine Mechanisms in Adult Stem Cell Signaling and Therapy

Animal and preliminary human studies of adult cell therapy following acute myocardial infarction have shown an overall improvement of cardiac function. Myocardial and vascular regeneration have been initially proposed as mechanisms of stem cell action. However, in many cases, the frequency of stem cell engraftment and the number of newly generated cardiomyocytes and vascular cells, either by transdifferentiation or cell fusion, appear too low to explain the significant cardiac improvement described. Accordingly, we and others have advanced an alternative hypothesis: the transplanted stem cells release soluble factors that, acting in a paracrine fashion, contribute to cardiac repair and regeneration. Indeed, cytokines and growth factors can induce cytoprotection and neovascularization. It has also been postulated that paracrine factors may mediate endogenous regeneration via activation of resident cardiac stem cells. Furthermore, cardiac remodeling, contractility, and metabolism may also be influenced in a paracrine fashion. This article reviews the potential paracrine mechanisms involved in adult stem cell signaling and therapy.
Pain related to cancer treatments and diagnostic procedures: a no man's land?

BACKGROUND While guidelines are available for the management of cancer-related pain, little attention is given to the assessment and treatment of pain caused by treatments and diagnostic procedures in cancer patients. METHODS We evaluated the literature on pain related to cancer treatment and diagnostic procedures within a critical analysis. RESULTS The data available are sparse, suggesting that little attention has been directed at this important aspect of oncology. This points to potentially suboptimal patient management. CONCLUSIONS Appropriate studies are necessary in order to understand the incidence and appropriate management of pain, both during and/or after oncological treatments and diagnostic procedures. At the same time, Health Care Professionals should have heightened awareness of the causes and treatment of pain with the aim of anticipating and managing pain most appropriately for each individual patient. This is clearly an important component of holistic patient care before, during, and after oncological treatment.
Visual P300 Effects Beyond Symptoms in Concussed College Athletes

In order to assess whether cerebral anomalies may be observed in the absence of clinical symptoms, the current study compared the effects of concussions on attentional capacities (reaction times, accuracy) and Event-Related Potentials (ERPs) in concussed athletes with (n = 10) or without (n = 10) symptoms as well as in athletes who never had a concussion (n = 10). The P300 response was recorded from 28 electrodes during a modified visual oddball paradigm. Participants were instructed to press a key upon the appearance of the frequent stimuli as well as when a rare nontarget stimulus followed the frequent one. The other key was to be pressed when the subsequent rare stimuli (rare target) appeared until a frequent one reappeared. The symptomatic athletes displayed longer reaction times than the other two groups of athletes. The P300 amplitude to the rare target stimuli was significantly more attenuated in the symptomatic athletes than in the other two groups. Moreover, the P300 amplitude varied inversely with the severity of postconcussion symptoms but was not influenced by time elapsed since injury. Although the clinical significance of the P300 differences shown by the symptomatic athletes is still uncertain, the results do indicate that symptom severity may be a crucial indicator of functional impairments following mild traumatic brain injury.
Essential polyunsaturated fatty acids, inflammation and mortality in dialysis patients.

BACKGROUND Polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) are essential nutrients with anti-inflammatory and cardioprotective properties. We investigated the association of essential dietary PUFA intake, reflected by plasma fatty acid composition, with inflammation and mortality in dialysis patients. METHODS We recruited 222 Swedish dialysis subjects (39% women) with median age of 57 years and average 12 months of dialysis vintage. Plasma phospholipid PUFA were assessed by gas-liquid chromatography. Overall mortality was assessed after 18.4 (10th-90th percentiles: 2.3-60) months of follow-up. RESULTS Linoleic acid (LA), Mead acid (MA), α-linolenic acid (ALA) and long-chain n-3 PUFA (LC n-3; the sum of eicosapentaenoic, docosapentaenoic and docosahexaenoic acids) represented 19.7, 0.26, 0.26 and 7.64% of all fatty acids in plasma, respectively. This may reflect an adequate n-3 PUFA intake. LA was negatively (β = - 0.21, P = 0.004) but MA positively (β = 0.25, P < 0.001) associated with interleukin (IL)-6 in multivariate analyses. Neither ALA nor LC n-3 were independently associated with IL-6. During follow-up, 61 deaths and 115 kidney transplants occurred. Fully adjusted competing risk models showed that every percent increase in the proportion of plasma LA was associated with 12% reduction in mortality risk before transplantation (hazard ratio 0.88, 95% confidence interval 0.79-0.99). MA was directly associated with mortality. Neither ALA nor LC n-3 predicted outcome. CONCLUSIONS The proportion of plasma phospholipid LA is inversely associated with IL-6 and all-cause mortality in Swedish dialysis patients. We raise the hypothesis that dialysis patients could benefit from increased intake of vegetable oils, the primary source of LA in the Western-type diet.
Distinct Expression Patterns of Natural Antisense Transcripts in Arabidopsis1[C][W]

It has been shown that overlapping cis-natural antisense transcripts (cis-NATs) can form a regulatory circuit in which small RNAs derived from one transcript regulate stability of the other transcript, which manifests itself as anticorrelated expression. However, little is known about how widespread antagonistic expression of cis-NATs is. We have determined how frequently cis-NAT pairs, which make up 7.4% of annotated transcription units in the Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) genome, show anticorrelated expression patterns. Indeed, global expression profiles of pairs of cis-NATs on average have significantly lower pairwise Pearson correlation coefficients than other pairs of neighboring genes whose transcripts do not overlap. However, anticorrelated expression that is greater than expected by chance is found in only a small number of cis-NAT pairs. The degree of anticorrelation does not depend on the length of the overlap or on the distance of the 5′ ends of the transcripts. Consistent with earlier findings, cis-NATs do not exhibit an increased likelihood to give rise to small RNAs, as determined from available small RNA sequences and massively parallel signature sequencing tags. However, the overlapping regions of cis-NATs appeared to be enriched for small RNA loci compared to nonoverlapping regions. Furthermore, expression of cis-NATs was not disproportionately affected in various RNA-silencing mutants. Our results demonstrate that there is a trend toward anticorrelated expression of cis-NAT pairs in Arabidopsis, but currently available data do not produce a strong signature of small RNA-mediated silencing for this process.
Mobile users: To update or not to update?

Tracking strategies for mobile users in wireless networks are studied. In order to save the cost of using the wireless links mobile users should not update their location whenever they cross boundaries of adjacent cells. This paper focuses on three natural strategies in which the mobile users make the decisions when and where to update: the time-based strategy, the number of movements-based strategy, and the distance-based strategy. We consider both memoryless movement patterns and movements with Markovian memory along a topology of cells arranged as a ring. We analyze the performance of each one of the three strategies under such movements, and show the performance differences between the strategies.
Breaking bad habits - a meditation on the neurocognitive mechanisms of compulsive behavior

Pathological gambling has been associated with dopamine transmission abnormalities, in particular dopamine D2-receptor deficiency, and reversal learning deficits. Moreover, pervasive theoretical accounts suggest a key role for dopamine in reversal learning. However, there is no empirical evidence for a direct link between dopamine, reversal learning and pathological gambling. The aim of the present study is to triangulate dopamine, reversal learning, and pathological gambling. Here we assess the hypothesis that pathological gambling is accompanied by dopamine-related problems with learning from reward and punishment by investigating effects of the dopamine D2-receptor antagonist sulpiride (400mg) on rewardand punishment-based reversal learning in 18 pathological gamblers and 22 healthy controls, using a placebo-controlled, double-blind, counter-balanced design. In line with previous studies, blockade of D2-receptors with sulpiride impaired reward versus punishment reversal learning in controls. By contrast, sulpiride did not have any outcomespecific effects in gamblers. These data demonstrate that pathological gambling is associated with a dopamine-related anomaly in reversal learning from reward and punishment.
Membrane Resonance Enables Stable and Robust Gamma Oscillations

Neuronal mechanisms underlying beta/gamma oscillations (20–80 Hz) are not completely understood. Here, we show that in vivo beta/gamma oscillations in the cat visual cortex sometimes exhibit remarkably stable frequency even when inputs fluctuate dramatically. Enhanced frequency stability is associated with stronger oscillations measured in individual units and larger power in the local field potential. Simulations of neuronal circuitry demonstrate that membrane properties of inhibitory interneurons strongly determine the characteristics of emergent oscillations. Exploration of networks containing either integrator or resonator inhibitory interneurons revealed that: (i) Resonance, as opposed to integration, promotes robust oscillations with large power and stable frequency via a mechanism called RING (Resonance INduced Gamma); resonance favors synchronization by reducing phase delays between interneurons and imposes bounds on oscillation cycle duration; (ii) Stability of frequency and robustness of the oscillation also depend on the relative timing of excitatory and inhibitory volleys within the oscillation cycle; (iii) RING can reproduce characteristics of both Pyramidal INterneuron Gamma (PING) and INterneuron Gamma (ING), transcending such classifications; (iv) In RING, robust gamma oscillations are promoted by slow but are impaired by fast inputs. Results suggest that interneuronal membrane resonance can be an important ingredient for generation of robust gamma oscillations having stable frequency.
Perceived impact of the Person of the Therapist Training model on Drexel University Master of Family Therapy postgraduates’ clinical work

ABSTRACT The Person-of-the-Therapist Training (POTT) model, developed by Harry J. Aponte, teaches trainees to intentionally and productively use all aspects of themselves for clinical effectiveness. The current study explored the perceived impact of POTT on the clinical work of 20 postgraduates of Drexel University’s Master of Family Therapy Program. Findings suggest that POTT is effective, generating a purposeful therapeutic presence that comprises the therapist’s way of being and the therapist’s way of doing. Also, participants express being transformed by POTT and employing learned skills beyond graduation. Implications for training and future research are discussed.
When Is Teleconsultation Acceptable to School Psychologists?

ABSTRACT School psychologists report a desire to increase consultation with teachers but are limited by competing job demands. Consultation via videoconference (i.e., teleconsultation) offers one possible means of increasing consultant availability to teachers, but little is known about the acceptability of this technology in actual practice. In this exploratory study, we conducted an online survey to assess the conditions under which school consultants would use teleconsultation to assist teachers remotely. Sixty-two school psychology practitioners, trainers, and trainees completed a choice-based conjoint survey designed to assess teleconsultation acceptability in the context of varying commute times, consultee comfort levels, and student problem severities. Findings suggest important differences in teleconsultation acceptability in the context of real-world tradeoffs. Implications of these results are discussed, as well as the potential for using conjoint analysis to better understand technology decisions among school consultants.
Design, Modeling, Optimization, and Experimental Tests of a Particle Beam Width Probe for the Aerodyne Aerosol Mass Spectrometer

Aerodynamic lens inlets have revolutionized aerosol mass spectrometry by allowing the introduction of a very narrow particle beam into a vacuum chamber for subsequent analysis. The real-time measurement of particle beam width after an aerodynamic lens is of interest for two reasons: (1) it allows a correction to be made to the measured particle concentration if the beam is so broad, due to poor focusing by non-spherical particles, that some particles miss the detection system; and (2) under constant lens pressure it can provide a surrogate particle non-sphericity measurement. For these reasons, a beam width probe (BWP) has been designed and implemented for the Aerodyne Aerosol Mass Spectrometer (AMS), although this approach is also applicable to other instruments that use aerodynamic lens inlets. The probe implemented here consists of a thin vertical wire that can be precisely positioned to partially block the particle beam at fixed horizontal locations in order to map out the width of the particle beam. A computer model was developed to optimize the BWP and interpret its experimental data. Model assumptions were found to be reasonably accurate for all laboratory-generated particle types to which the model was compared. Comparisons of particle beam width data from a number of publications are also shown here. Particle losses due to beam broadening are found to be minor for the AMS for both laboratory and ambient particles. The model was then used to optimize the choice of the BWP dimensions, and to guide its use during continuous operation. A wire diameter approximately 1.55 times larger than the beam width to be measured provides near optimal sensitivity toward both collection efficiency and surrogate non-sphericity information. Wire diameters of 0.62 mm and 0.44 mm (for the AMS “long” and “short” chambers, respectively) provide reasonable sensitivity over the expected range of particle beam widths, for both spherical and non-spherical particles. Three other alternative BWP geometries were also modeled and discussed.
Are Things Really Getting Better? How To Validate Latent Variable Models of Human Rights

Has respect for human rights improved? The validity of inferences made about human rights, treaty compliance, and any other difficult or impossible to observe concepts depends on specifying a theoretically informed model that best approximates our understanding of the specific concept under study. New latent variable models of human rights and treaty compliance (1) gather together diverse sources of information about human right abuse, (2) assess the relative quality of that information as it relates to the underlying theoretical concept and (3) quantify the uncertainty of estimates of human rights abuse that the models generate. Evidence from these models suggests that respect for human rights is improving over time and casts doubt on earlier claims that human rights treaties are associated with lower levels of respect for human rights. In a recent critique of Fariss, Cingranelli and Filippov raise several issues regarding the estimation of the latent variable model for human rights and the use of this variable in regression models of human rights treaty compliance. Their primary critiques rest on their argument that the latent variable estimates are not valid before the Cingranelli and Richards (CIRI) human rights data series begins in 1981 because the latent variable estimates are extrapolations ‘based on very sporadic and eclectic bits of information’. In addition to downplaying the validity of these other human rights variables, Cingranelli and Filippov present anomalous cases (for example, the United States in 1953) and replications of regression models presented in Fariss, which exclude data from 1965–80. These authors also argue that
A Comparison of Scheduling Algorithms for Multiprocessors

Scheduling multiple processors in a computer system while providing real-time guarantees remains an interesting and challenging problem, despite being a topic of study for decades. Throughout these years of investigation, many algorithms have been proposed, analyzed, and evaluated. In this study, we intend to compare and evaluate three of these multiprocessor scheduling algorithms: the classic, simple algorithm global EDF, the optimal P-fair algorithm PF, and a newer, optimal algorithm LLREF that intends to improve on existing P-fair algorithms and global EDF variants. We empirically investigate the ability of global EDF to schedule randomly generated task sets as compared to PF and LLREF, which can schedule any task set with a total utilization less than the number of processors. We also investigate the overhead of all three algorithms in terms of task migrations and required scheduler invocations for randomly generated tasks. Our results verify that LLREF outperforms PF. Additionally, they show that global EDF still outperforms LLREF and PF in terms of required scheduler invocations and task migrations; however, our results also demonstrate that global EDF cannot feasibly schedule the same variety of task sets as LLREF and PF.
Deadly combinations: how leadership contexts undermine the activation and enactment of followers’ high core self-evaluations in performance

ABSTRACT Employees with high core self-evaluations (CSE) generally perform well in their jobs. The enactment of CSE in performance occurs within contexts, and leadership is one form of context that influences the activation and expression of CSE. Drawing on theories of CSE and leader–member exchange (LMX), we characterized the leadership context as the interaction between leader CSE and LMX quality. Examination of 173 followers and their 31 leaders in a manufacturing organization showed a positive association between follower CSE and performance when the context comprised high leader CSE and high LMX. Conversely, leadership contexts comprising high leader CSE and low LMX, or low leader CSE and high LMX, resulted in a negative relationship between follower CSE and performance. We also show that low CSE followers have relatively high performance under some circumstances. Thus, we contribute to understanding how some leadership contexts undermine high CSE followers’ performance and promote low CSE followers’ performance.
Evaluation of Oromo-English Cross-Language Information Retrieval

This paper reports on the first Oromo-English CLIR system that is based on dictionary-based query translation techniques. The basic objective of the study is to design and develop an OromoEnglish CLIR system with a view to enable Afaan Oromo speakers to access and retrieve the vast online information sources that are available in English by using their own (native) language queries. We describe the major approaches and procedures that have been used in designing and developing Oromo-English CLIR system together with the information retrieval evaluation experiments recently conducted at CLEF 2006 ad hoc track. The purpose of the current initial evaluation experiments was to assess the over all performance of the Oromo-English CLIR system by using different fields of Afaan Oromo topics. Thus we submitted three official runs (experiments) that differed in terms of utilized fields in the topic set, i.e. title run (OMT), title and description run (OMTD), and title, description and narration run (OMTDN) to CLEF 2006. Since appropriate online language processing resources and information retrieval tools are not available for Afaan Oromo, only limited linguistic resources such as OromoEnglish dictionary and Afaan Oromo stemmer that had been designed and developed at our research center were used in conducting the experiments. Yet we found the performances of our evaluation experiments at CLEF 2006 very encouraging which is a good news for development and application of CLIR systems in other indigenous African languages.