Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
An optimal algorithm for the Thresholding Bandit Problem

We study a specific \textit{combinatorial pure exploration stochastic bandit problem} where the learner aims at finding the set of arms whose means are above a given threshold, up to a given precision, and \textit{for a fixed time horizon}. We propose a parameter-free algorithm based on an original heuristic, and prove that it is optimal for this problem by deriving matching upper and lower bounds. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first non-trivial pure exploration setting with \textit{fixed budget} for which optimal strategies are constructed.
Estrogen Receptor Silencing Induces Epithelial to Mesenchymal Transition in Human Breast Cancer Cells

We propose the hypothesis that loss of estrogen receptor function which leads to endocrine resistance in breast cancer, also results in trans-differentiation from an epithelial to a mesenchymal phenotype that is responsible for increased aggressiveness and metastatic propensity. siRNA mediated silencing of the estrogen receptor in MCF7 breast cancer cells resulted in estrogen/tamoxifen resistant cells (pII) with altered morphology, increased motility with rearrangement and switch from a keratin/actin to a vimentin based cytoskeleton, and ability to invade simulated components of the extracellular matrix. Phenotypic profiling using an Affymetrix Human Genome U133 plus 2.0 GeneChip indicated geometric fold changes ≥3 in approximately 2500 identifiable unique sequences, with about 1270 of these being up-regulated in pII cells. Changes were associated with genes whose products are involved in cell motility, loss of cellular adhesion and interaction with the extracellular matrix. Selective analysis of the data also showed a shift from luminal to basal cell markers and increased expression of a wide spectrum of genes normally associated with mesenchymal characteristics, with consequent loss of epithelial specific markers. Over-expression of several peptide growth factors and their receptors are indicative of an increased contribution to the higher proliferative rates of pII cells as well as aiding their potential for metastatic activity. Signalling molecules that have been identified as key transcriptional drivers of epithelial to mesenchymal transition were also found to be elevated in pII cells. These data support our hypothesis that induced loss of estrogen receptor in previously estrogen/antiestrogen sensitive cells is a trigger for the concomitant loss of endocrine dependence and onset of a series of possibly parallel events that changes the cell from an epithelial to a mesenchymal type. Inhibition of this transition through targeting of specific mediators may offer a useful supplementary strategy to circumvent the effects of loss of endocrine sensitivity.
Fistulizing anorectal Crohn disease in a child with severe HLA-B27-associated enthesitis-related arthritis.

Juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) represents a family of childhood arthropathies characterized by chronic synovial inflammation. Enthesitis-related arthritis (ERA), a subgroup of JIA and formerly known as juvenile ankylosing spondylitis, is frequently associated with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). ERA represents the pediatric form of spondyloarthropathy (SA) in adults. The typical presentations of ERA are seronegative oligoarthritis associated with enthesitis affecting the joints of the lower extremities. Abnormalities of the axial skeleton, including sacroiliitis, are absent in the early stages of the disease (1). The histocompatibility antigen HLA-B27 is strongly linked with adult ankylosing spondylitis (AS) (90%) and with the risk for the development of AS in IBD (2). This antigen is associated with 25% of cases of IBD and is present in 70% of patients with IBD having inflammation of the axial skeleton (3). The prevalence of the HLA-B27 antigen in adult patients with Crohn disease (CD) has been found to be 12%, although it is 78% in patients with CD and AS (4). The prevalence of IBD is increased in adults with other autoimmune diseases, particularly AS, and in those with reactive and psoriatic arthritis (5). Indeed, in 1 study, ileocolonoscopies confirmed gut inflammation in 57% of adults with SA (6). Another study also reported the eventual development of CD in patients with SA (7). Conversely, arthritic manifestations are common extraintestinal symptoms of CD in children (8). In another study, 35% of patients with CD fulfilled criteria consistent with the European Spondyloarthropathy Study Group for SA (1). To our best knowledge, this is the
Identification of Vietnamese Final Stops: Northern Dialect Speakers' Perception of Native and Non-Native Stops

Abstract This study examined the extent to which speakers' first language (L1) dialect affects the identification of word-final stops which are phonetically unreleased in Vietnamese. Furthermore, a /t/-/k/ merger has been reported for the Southern, but not the Northern dialect. Given this cross-dialectal phonetic difference, we tested the hypothesis that the stops produced by the speakers of the Southern dialect are identified less accurately than those produced by the speakers of the Northern dialect. The results showed that the speakers' dialect influenced the extent to which final stops are accurately identified and, in general, for all five vowels tested (/i a /), the stops spoken by the speakers of the Northern dialect were more accurately identified than those spoken by the speakers of the Southern dialect. However, the accuracy of stop place identification depended on the identity of the preceding vowels.
The role of physical activity in preventing obesity in midlife women

Introduction Obesity is one of the most common nutrition-related disorders worldwide and one of the major health problems in menopausal women, which significantly worsens the quality of life and can lead to severe diseases or even premature death. The aim of the study was to evaluate the relation between physical activity in different domains undertaken by menopausal women while performing daily activities and their body mass index (BMI). Material and methods The study was conducted on a random sample of 400 healthy Polish women aged 45-55. The questionnaire contained questions concerning the respondents’ socio-economic status, medical history and the long format of the International Physical Activity Questionnaire was used. Results Fifty-one percent (50.6%) of women had normal body mass, 43.75% of respondents were overweighed and 5.65% of women were obese. A moderate physical activity level was presented by most midlife women in domestic and garden domain, active transportation and leisure time. Pearson's correlation showed that such factors as age, education and physical activity level in different domains have a significant correlation with BMI. Conclusions Most respondents presented a moderate physical activity level in all domains except work, where the respondents had a high physical activity (PA) level. A high PA level especially at work (r = –0.5788) and during leisure time (r = –0.5175) strongly correlate with lower BMI.
Peer Supports and Inclusive Education: An Underutilized Resource

Successful inclusion of students with disabilities in general education classrooms requires a variety of supports. This article demonstrates the role that peers can play in supporting each other. Whole-classroom strategies such as Class-Wide Peer Tutoring (CWPT) and cross-age tutoring are highlighted as methods of supporting inclusive education. Information is also provided about peer tutoring efforts at the secondary level in which students receive elective credit for supporting students with disabilities in general education classes. Suggestions for providing guidance and support for peer tutors are included. Further, this article explores the concept of establishing a cooperative classroom by addressing the 4 types of helping that must become common to all classrooms: requesting help, accepting help, refusing help, and providing help.
Group membership and identity issues in second language learning

Language learning is inextricably linked to a social context, and this implies that context-related social variables, such as ethnicity or attitudes, can influence how language learning unfolds. Among the many group-engendered social factors, ethnic identity appears to have interesting consequences for language teaching and learning (Pavlenko & Blackledge 2004). Indeed, issues of personal and group identity often become important when individuals or groups come in contact with one another to learn a language. Briefly, ethnic identity refers to a person's subjective experience of being a part of an ethnic group (Ashmore, Deaux & McLaughlin-Volpe 2004). For second language (L2) learners, the two relevant groups are usually their primary (home) ethnic group and the L2 community. We report here on the research that we have been conducting at Concordia University in Montreal, as part of the Centre for the Study of Learning and Performance, with the goal of investigating the role of ethnic group identity in L2 learning.
Codelivery of CCR 7 Ligands as Molecular Adjuvants Enhances the Protective Immune Response against Herpes Simplex Virus Type 1

Humoral and cellular immunity, associated with long-term protective immunological memory, defines the efficacy of a given vaccine formulation. However, few vaccines achieve this target without the aid of a suitable adjuvant. Molecular adjuvants in vaccination against infectious agents offer a noninvasive means of enhancing the immune response against target antigens. To examine the potency of two -chemokines as immunomodulators, plasmid DNA encoding -chemokines CCL19 and CCL21 (CCR7L) was codelivered intranasally with plasmid DNA or recombinant vaccinia virus encoding herpes simplex virus (HSV) gB (HSV-gB) in a primeand-boost vaccination strategy. This vaccination regimen increased serum and vaginal immunoglobulin G (IgG) and IgA, respectively, as well as the numbers of HSV-gB498-505 peptide-specific gamma interferonproducing CD8 T cells. Distinctively, a high number of cytotoxic T lymphocytes was achieved when pCCR7L was applied at both prime and boost as opposed to omission of pCCR7L. A rapid-recall response was induced in the genital tract upon challenge with the HSV McKrae strain, affording a high level of protection and survival of vaccinated mice. Our results demonstrate that high innate immune kinetics and distribution of adaptive response induced in the nasal mucosa appears to be key factors in generating protective memory responses against HSV. Thus CCR7L expressed ectopically may serve as a molecular adjuvant to boost the immune response to a codelivered antigen in mucosal surfaces.
Aura, cult value, and the postmodern crowd: a Durkheimian reading of Walter Benjamin's artwork essay

This paper presents a reading of Walter Benjamin's much-read essay ‘The artwork in the age of mechanical reproduction'. Drawing on a Durkheimian conception of the relationship between the cult and its cult objects, I seek to differentiate (better than Benjamin himself) the notions of ‘aura' and of ‘cult value'. Thereby, I hope to contour a theoretical model for dealing with mediated sociality suitable for a postmodern reality. In this reality, de-auraticized objects – mass-produced objects and visual reproductions – proliferate concomitantly with forms of ‘cultic sociality'. First, I undertake a reading of Benjamin's essay. Second, I focus on the relation between aura and cult value. Third, I try to show the relevance of my Durkheimian approach through a critique of the Benjaminian literature and the standard readings of his essay.
Deception and its detection in children: A study of adult accuracy

Abstract Three groups of participants, 20 social workers in the final year of their training, 20 trainee teachers, and 20 student controls, were assessed on their effectiveness in deciding if children were lying or telling the truth. Although differences did occur across groups, no group displayed overall superiority. The clearest discriminator between correct and incorrect classification of children was parental experience, with parents clearly doing significantly better than non-parents. The indication is that life experience may be an important competency in this area.
Two different forms of long‐term potentiation at CA1–subiculum synapses

Distinct functional roles in learning and memory are attributed to certain areas of the hippocampus and the parahippocampal region. The subiculum as a part of the hippocampal formation is the principal target of CA1 pyramidal cell axons and serves as an interface in the information processing between the hippocampus and the neocortex. Subicular pyramidal cells have been classified as bursting and regular firing cells. Here we report fundamental differences in long‐term potentiation (LTP) between both cell types. Prolonged high‐frequency stimulation induced NMDA receptor‐dependent LTP in both cell types. While LTP relied on postsynaptic calcium in regular firing neurons, no increase in postsynaptic calcium was required in bursting cells. Furthermore, paired‐pulse facilitation revealed that the site of LTP expression was postsynaptic in regular firing neurons, while presynaptic in burst firing neurons. Our findings on synaptic plasticity in the subiculum indicate that regular firing and bursting cells represent two functional units with distinct physiological roles in processing hippocampal output.
Psychosocial predictors of health status

Abstract This prospective study examined, in a sample of male and female adults, the relationship between specific psychosocial factors and health status. Measures of stress, health habits, social support, Type A behaviour, and coping style were collected for 203 professional employees in a large aerospace organization in 1988. One year later a follow-up questionnaire assessing self-reported physical illness and job burn-out was administered resulting in a final sample of 95 employees. When adjustments for age, sex, education, and initial psychological well-being were made, perceived stress, physical exercise, and an avoidant coping style significantly contributed to predictions of physical illness in multiple regression analyses. Employees who possessed less hardy appraisals of work/life and expressed greater Type A behaviour reported significantly more fatigue and exhaustion one year later. Type A individuals also reported being significantly less sensitive and caring towards others. Finally, individual.
Marriage in a ‘Culture of Migration’. Emirdag Marrying into Flanders

The persistently high popularity of migration marriages within large immigrant populations in Western Europe is an intriguing phenomenon. Why do so many young people born and raised in Western Europe opt for an unknown partner coming from a region that, although it is where their parents or grandparents came from, is by and large unknown to them personally? This contribution attempts to shed some light on the dynamics of this particular kind of migration which impacts significantly on the social fabric of Western European societies. Our focus here is specifically on the Belgian case, namely the so-called ‘Emirdag connection’. In Belgium, the majority of immigrants with a Turkish background come from the region of Emirdag, in the province of Afyon. Over the last 40 years a close relationship has been established between this region of emigration and a number of Turkish communities in Flanders and Brussels. Over the last decade chain migration became for most the most popular means to enter Belgium; in other words, the majority of newcomers arrived in Belgium as (future) spouses of Belgian residents. This certainly applies to Turkish migration. Particular to the Turkish residents in Belgium, including the second generation, is that the majority still marry a person who grew up in Turkey.
UvA-DARE ( Digital Academic Repository ) Onion thrips , Thrips tabaci , have gut bacteria that are closely related to the symbionts of the western flower thrips , Frankliniella occidentalis

It has been shown that many insects have Enterobacteriaceae bacteria in their gut system. The western flower thrips, Frankliniella occidentalis Pergande [Thysanoptera: Thripidae], has a symbiotic relation with Erwinia species gut bacteria. To determine if other Thripidae species have similar bacterial symbionts, the onion thrips, Thrips tabaci, was studied because, like F. occidentalis, it is phytophagous. Contrary to F. occidentalis, T. tabaci is endemic in Europe and biotypes have been described. Bacteria were isolated from the majority of populations and biotypes of T. tabaci examined. Bacteria were present in high numbers in most individuals of the populations studied. Like F. occidentalis, T. tabaci contained one type of bacterium that clearly outnumbered all other types present in the gut. This bacterium was identified as an Erwinia species, as was also the case for F. occidentalis. However, its biochemical characteristics and 16S rDNA sequence differed from the bacteria present in F. occidentalis.
2 . Using Ontologies in Software Engineering and Technology

In this chapter, the state of the art on the use of ontologies in software engineering and technology (SET) is presented. The chapter is organized into four parts. In the second and third sections, serving as a supplement to Chap. 1,29 a wide review of the distinct kinds of ontologies and their proposed uses is presented respectively. In the fourth section, we offer a taxonomy for classifying ontologies in SET, in which two main categories are distinguished: (1) SET domain ontologies, created to represent and communicate agreed knowledge within some subdomain of SET, and (2) ontologies as software artifacts, with proposals in which ontologies play the role of an additional type of artifact in software processes. On the one hand, the former category is subdivided into those ontologies included in software engineering and those referring to other software technologies.
Multiple Hypothesis Tracking for Cluttered Biological Image Sequences

In this paper, we present a method for simultaneously tracking thousands of targets in biological image sequences, which is of major importance in modern biology. The complexity and inherent randomness of the problem lead us to propose a unified probabilistic framework for tracking biological particles in microscope images. The framework includes realistic models of particle motion and existence and of fluorescence image features. For the track extraction process per se, the very cluttered conditions motivate the adoption of a multiframe approach that enforces tracking decision robustness to poor imaging conditions and to random target movements. We tackle the large-scale nature of the problem by adapting the multiple hypothesis tracking algorithm to the proposed framework, resulting in a method with a favorable tradeoff between the model complexity and the computational cost of the tracking procedure. When compared to the state-of-the-art tracking techniques for bioimaging, the proposed algorithm is shown to be the only method providing high-quality results despite the critically poor imaging conditions and the dense target presence. We thus demonstrate the benefits of advanced Bayesian tracking techniques for the accurate computational modeling of dynamical biological processes, which is promising for further developments in this domain.
Linear stability analysis of FAST TCP using a new accurate link model

A link model which captures the queue dynamics when congestion windows of TCP sources change was recently proposed. By considering both the self-clocking and the link integrator effects, the model is a generalization of the known extreme cases and is more accurate in general. In this paper, we apply this model to the stability analysis of FAST TCP. It is shown that FAST TCP flows over a single link are always linearly stable regardless of delay distribution. This result resolves the notable discrepancy between empirical observations and previous theoretical predictions. The analysis highlights the critical role of self-clocking in TCP stability and the scalability of FAST TCP with respect to delay. The proof technique is new and much less conservative than existing ones.
Which Item Types are Better Suited to the Linking of Verbal Adapted Tests?

When a test is adapted from a source language (SL) into a target language (TL), the two forms are usually not psychometrically equivalent. If linking between test forms is necessary, those items that have had their psychometric characteristics altered by the translation (differential item functioning [DIF] items) should be eliminated from the anchor that is used for linking. Differences between item types were studied from an operational point of view: Which items are better suited to the linking? The Verbal Reasoning subtest of the Psychometric Entrance Test was used as the basis of the study. The translated item types were Analogies, Sentence Completions, Logic, and Reading Comprehension. The TL Verbal Reasoning was linked to the SL form using an anchor consisting of the common non-DIF items. Data were collected from 43 test forms in 4 TL languages. The main findings indicate that not all item types are equally effective for the linking of adapted tests. The best item types were Logic and Reading Comprehension. Verbal Analogies were highly problematic. It is proposed that since verbal analogies do not retain their psychometric characteristics when adapted, they should be excluded from the anchor. Furthermore, when constructing SL forms the translatability of the item types should be taken into account.
Inmates' Perception of the Helpfulness of Three Counselor Responses

The use of a Carkhuff level 3 response, a Carkhuff level 5 response, and probing with regard to their perceived helpfulness was investigated by having inmates view a videotape of eight role-played counselor-inmate interactions. Each interaction consisted of the statement of a problem by a role-playing inmate followed by three separate responses to the statement by a role-playing counselor. Subjects were 94 inmates in a prerelease and aftercare services program who ranked the counselor responses of each interaction from "most helpful" to "least helpful. " The level 5 response was perceived as the most helpful response, followed by probing and then the level 3 response. Implications of the findings are discussed and suggestions for future research are made.