Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Dual Pre-Motor Contribution to Songbird Syllable Variation

Many forms of learning, including songbird vocal learning, rely on the brain's ability to use pre-motor variation and sensory feedback to guide behavior toward a specific target or goal. In the vocal control system of zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata) the pre-motor mechanisms of vocal variation are thought to be vested primarily in a neural pathway that includes the basal ganglia. A second circuit that includes avian analogues of mammalian pre-motor and motor cortex (the vocal motor pathway) generates the patterned structure of learned adult song. Here, we tested the ability of the basal ganglia pathway to generate pre-motor vocal variation within the spectral and temporal dimensions of zebra finch song structure. In adult birds, ablation of the basal ganglia pathway significantly reduced the spectral and temporal dispersion of individual song syllables, with the exception of syllable pitch, where the reduction was not statistically significant when compared against surgical controls. We found a similar pattern of results using longitudinal comparisons (juvenile vs adult) to isolate the contribution of the basal ganglia pathway to spectral dispersion in populations of developing song syllables—variation in syllable pitch was significantly smaller than in all other measured spectral features. The results indicate that pre-motor variation generated by the basal ganglia pathway may be sufficient to adjust vocal output toward highly acoustically dispersed targets of imitation, but suggest that complete acquisition of the pronounced variation in syllable pitch that characterizes adult song will necessitate a gradual developmental interaction between the basal ganglia and vocal motor pathways.
Role of zooplankton in determining the efficiency of the biological carbon pump

Abstract. The efficiency of the ocean's biological carbon pump (BCPeff – here the product of particle export and transfer efficiencies) plays a key role in the air–sea partitioning of CO2. Despite its importance in the global carbon cycle, the biological processes that control BCPeff are poorly known. We investigate the potential role that zooplankton play in the biological carbon pump using both in situ observations and model output. Observed and modelled estimates of fast, slow, and total sinking fluxes are presented from three oceanic sites: the Atlantic sector of the Southern Ocean, the temperate North Atlantic, and the equatorial Pacific oxygen minimum zone (OMZ). We find that observed particle export efficiency is inversely related to primary production likely due to zooplankton grazing, in direct contrast to the model estimates. The model and observations show strongest agreement in remineralization coefficients and BCPeff at the OMZ site where zooplankton processing of particles in the mesopelagic zone is thought to be low. As the model has limited representation of zooplankton-mediated remineralization processes, we suggest that these results point to the importance of zooplankton in setting BCPeff, including particle grazing and fragmentation, and the effect of diel vertical migration. We suggest that improving parameterizations of zooplankton processes may increase the fidelity of biogeochemical model estimates of the biological carbon pump. Future changes in climate such as the expansion of OMZs may decrease the role of zooplankton in the biological carbon pump globally, hence increasing its efficiency.
Examining the Simple View of Reading Model for United States High School Spanish Students

The Simple View of Reading (SVR) model, which posits that reading comprehension is the product of word decoding and language comprehension that make independent contributions to reading skill, has been found to explain the acquisition of first language (L1) reading and second language (L2) reading in young English language learners (ELLs). Researchers have not examined the SVR for explaining L2 reading acquisition in older L2 learners several years after they acquired literacy in their L1. In this investigation, 165 US secondary level students in high school Spanish courses were administered measures of Spanish word decoding, reading comprehension, phonemic awareness, language comprehension, vocabulary, and fluency. Multiple regression analyses revealed that Spanish word decoding explained 35% and Spanish language comprehension explained 31% of the variance in Spanish reading comprehension. Participants were classified as having high, average, and low levels of Spanish reading comprehension and compared on all testing measures. Results revealed overall group differences with high-achieving Spanish readers exhibiting significantly stronger skills than average and low groups on all measures. Findings support the SVR model for older L2 readers and suggest that once a certain level of word decoding in the L2 is attained, L2 language comprehension and L2 vocabulary may be the limiting factors for proficient L2 reading comprehension.
Compliant Robot Motion II. A Control Approach Based on External Control Loops

A control approach for the execution of robot tasks in contact with the environment is worked out. The input to the con troller consists of the task specification described in part I. The control approach is based on external force and tracking loops, which are closed around the robot positioning system. The position control loops tend to decouple and linearize the complex robot dynamics, and therefore they present to the external controllers a system which is easy to model and easy to control. Design and properties of external control loops are discussed in great detail. In particular, the role of a passive compliance with respect to task execution speed and distur bance rejection is analyzed both qualitatively and quantita tively. The resulting compliant motion controller has been tested experimentally, and proved to be very robust and to yield the theoretically expected performance.
Sources of Power: Their Impact on Intrachannel Conflict

The sources of power that auto manufacturers use to obtain control over their dealer network are shown to have a significant impact on the level of conflict that dealers have with their manufacturers. Coercive sources tend to increase the level of intrachannel conflict whereas noncoercive sources tend to decrease it. Auto manufacturers need to be cognizant of this fact in order to use intelligently their available sources of power.
Fast multiple-view denoising based on image reconstruction by plane sweeping

Denoising is important in image processing because degradation by noise affects not only the quality of captured images but also the performance of visual applications that use them. For example, under low light levels, it is difficult to accurately estimate scene depths using noisy stereo images. Conventional methods for denoising find similar regions on an image or among multiple images by block matching(BM) to integrate them for suppressing noise effectively. However, such exhaustive BM incurs considerable costs for real-time applications, in particular, when multi-view images(MVI) are involved. We use view-dependent plane sweeping(PS) for image reconstruction to achieve effective MVI denoising with low computational cost. We use PS for converting MVI to multi-focus images(MFI) to suppress their noise. Then, we find regions in focus on the MFI solely by comparing them with the target view image. Finally, we simply merge the regions to obtain reconstructed images in which their noise is effectively suppressed.
MMSE interference suppression for direct-sequence spread-spectrum CDMA

We consider interference suppression for direct-sequence spread-spectrum code-division multiple-access (CDMA) systems using the minimum mean squared error (MMSE) performance criterion. The conventional matched filter receiver suffers from the near-far problem, and requires strict power control (typically involving feedback from receiver to transmitter) for acceptable performance. Multiuser detection schemes previously proposed mitigate the near-far problem, but are complex and require explicit knowledge or estimates of the interference parameters. In this paper, we present and analyze several new MMSE interference suppression schemes, which have the advantage of being near-far resistant (to varying degrees, depending on their complexity), and can be implemented adaptively when interference parameters are unknown and/or time-varying, Numerical results are provided that show that these schemes offer significant performance gains relative to the matched filter receiver. We conclude that MMSE detectors can alleviate the need for stringent power control. In CDMA systems, and may be a practical alternative to the matched filter receiver. >
The Framing of Frequent Sexual Behavior and/or Pornography Viewing as Addiction: Some Concerns for Social Work

Summary The application of an addiction framework to frequent sexual behavior and/or pornography viewing has increased significantly in recent years, particularly across North America. Herein, I refer to a multidisciplinary literature to explore critically whether or not application of an addiction framework is warranted. Findings The sex/pornography addiction model can be criticized based on the lack of quality scientific evidence to support it, sociocultural biases in interpreting sexual behavior, and assumptions involving diagnostic criteria. Applications While social workers should strive to help clients who desire to resolve various personal issues involving sexuality, workers should keep in mind that human sexuality is diverse and avoid using the addiction label.
Role of tiotropium in the treatment of COPD

Tiotropium is a potent, long-acting, selective anticholinergic bronchodilator. Treatment with tiotropium produces sustained improvements in lung function, particularly FEV1 (peak, trough, average, and area under the curve) compared with either placebo or ipratropium in patients with moderate to severe COPD. Preliminary evidence suggests that treatment with tiotropium may slow the rate of decline in FEV1, but this finding awaits confirmation. Tiotropium reduces lung hyperinflation, with associated improvements in exercise capacity. Tiotropium, compared with either placebo or ipratropium, improves a variety of patient-centered outcomes, including subjective dyspnea ratings and HRQL scores. Tiotropium reduces the frequency of COPD exacerbations and of hospitalizations due to exacerbations, but has not been shown to reduce all-cause mortality. Compared with the long-acting bronchodilators, tiotropium provides incrementally better bronchodilation, but it is not clearly superior in terms of patient-centered outcomes. Tiotropium has a good safety profile; however patients with severe cardiac disease, bladder outlet obstruction, or narrow angle glaucoma were excluded from all studies. Medico economic analyses suggest that treatment with tiotropium may also be cost-effective, primarily by reducing costs associated with hospitalizations.
Interrelationships between dietary restriction, the IGF‐I axis, and expression of vascular endothelial growth factor by prostate adenocarcinoma in rats

Human studies suggest that excessive energy intake and obesity may influence prostate cancer progression. Rodent experiments demonstrate that diet restriction attenuates tumor growth in parallel with reduced vascular density. The present study examines changes in the insulin‐like growth factor I (IGF‐I) axis caused by dietary restriction and their association with the expression of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in prostate cancer. Weanling male Copenhagen rats were randomized into control or 40% dietary restricted groups (n = 5). After 8 wk, rats were implanted with rat AT6.3 prostate adenocarcinoma cells. Two weeks later, the animals were sacrificed and serum, normal prostate, liver, and prostate tumor samples were collected for analyses. Dietary restriction reduced serum concentrations of IGF‐I by 35% (P < 0.05) and increased IGF‐binding protein‐3 (IGFBP3) by sevenfold (P < 0.0001). Lower circulating IGF‐I concentrations were correlated with reduced IGF‐I mRNA expression in the liver, the primary source of circulating IGF‐I. Dietary restriction also lowered mRNA expression of IGF‐I (45%, P = 0.0242) and its receptor IGFIR (40%, P = 0.0083) in prostate tumors. Similarly, reduced VEGF mRNA (30%, P = 0.0176) and secreted VEGF protein (33%, P = 0.0003) were observed in prostate cancer of restricted rats. An in vitro study employing AT6.3 prostate cancer cells demonstrated dose‐ and time‐dependent stimulation of VEGF expression by IGF‐I. These results suggest that dietary restriction reduces endocrine and prostate tumor autocrine/paracrine IGF‐I expression, which contributes to reduced VEGF expression and signaling, to inhibit tumor angiogenesis associated with prostate tumorigenesis. © 2007 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Plus ça Change? A Varieties of Capitalism Approach to Social Concern for the Environment

To what extent can society and business be sources of informal environmental governance? Because environmental damage occurs in the production process, and the act of consuming the outputs of it, this question is addressed by applying key insights of the Varieties of Capitalism (VOC) approach to social attitudes revealed through responses to the World Values Survey in respect of the United States, Germany and Japan. In addition to considerable variation in social concern between the states considered, from a VOC perspective it is shown why social concern is less likely to be a force for ameliorating environmental damage in the United States than in Germany and Japan. This is because enduring national institutional contexts frame firms' coordination strategies and constrain or enable the transmission of social concern for the environment to them. As such, an analytical framework is proposed in which national variations in capitalist relations of production are central to the impact that social concern has on corporate behaviour.
Validation of the Lund–Malmö, Chronic Kidney Disease Epidemiology (CKD-EPI) and Modification of Diet in Renal Disease (MDRD) equations to estimate glomerular filtration rate in a large Swedish clinical population

Abstract Objective. The aim of this study was to validate externally the Swedish Lund–Malmö revised creatinine-based glomerular filtration rate (GFR) equations (LM Revised) in a Swedish cohort in comparison with the North American Modification of Diet in Renal Disease (MDRD) and Chronic Kidney Disease Epidemiology (CKD-EPI) equations. Material and methods. The study included 1397 examinations [median age 61 years, median body mass index (BMI) 26 kg/m2] in 996 patients referred for iohexol clearance (median 44 ml/min/1.73 m2). Bias, precision [interquartile range (IQR)], accuracy expressed as percentage of estimates ± 10% (P 10) and ± 30% (P 30) of measured GFR, and classification ability for five GFR stages (<15, 15–29, 30–59, 60–89 and ≥90 ml/min/1.73 m2) were compared. Results. Overall, all three equations performed satisfactorily: LM Revised, MDRD, CKD-EPI showed, respectively, a median bias of –5.8%, –2.2% and 1.7%, IQR 11.9, 12.3 and 11.7 ml/min/1.73 m2, P 10 35%, 34% and 38%, P 30 84%, 79% and 79% and correctly classified GFR stages 68%, 65% and 69%. LM Revised was at least as accurate in terms of P 30 as the other equations at GFR intervals <90, while CKD-EPI was the only unbiased and the most accurate equation at ≥90 ml/min/1.73 m2. LM Revised was more stable in terms of bias and accuracy across age and BMI groups than MDRD and CKD-EPI. Both MDRD and CKD-EPI overestimated measured GFR among elderly patients and in the small group of underweight men. Conclusion. The ideal all-purpose GFR prediction equation does not exist. LM Revised should be preferred in patients with suspected or known renal insufficiency, while CKD-EPI is most useful in settings where patients with no a priori suspicion of renal impairment are evaluated. Differences in creatinine measurements between laboratories may limit the generalizability of the present validation.
Two patterns of neutral steroid conversion in the feces of normal North Americans.

Summary It has been suggested by other investigators that the extent of neutral and acid steroid conversion by human intestinal flora may be correlated with large-bowel carcinogenesis. Within a population of 31 normal North Americans, we found that two distinct patterns of neutral steroid conversion could be detected by gas-liquid chromatographic procedures. One pattern was characterized by extensive conversion of cholesterol, the other by little or no conversion of cholesterol. Similar conversion patterns were also observed for the plant steroids, sitosterol and campesterol. These patterns were found to be relatively stable over long periods of time. It is possible that there may be differences in the risk level for colon cancer between these two groups.
Perceived Shape Similarity among Unfamiliar Objects and the Organization of the Human Object Vision Pathway

Humans rely heavily on shape similarity among objects for object categorization and identification. Studies using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) have shown that a large region in human occipitotemporal cortex processes the shape of meaningful as well as unfamiliar objects. Here, we investigate whether the functional organization of this region as measured with fMRI is related to perceived shape similarity. We found that unfamiliar object classes that are rated as having a similar shape were associated with a very similar response pattern distributed across object-selective cortex, whereas object classes that were rated as being very different in shape were associated with a more different response pattern. Human observers, as well as object-selective cortex, were very sensitive to differences in shape features of the objects such as straight versus curved versus “spiky” edges, more so than to differences in overall shape envelope. Response patterns in retinotopic areas V1, V2, and V4 were not found to be related to perceived shape. The functional organization in area V3 was partially related to perceived shape but without a stronger sensitivity for shape features relative to overall shape envelope. Thus, for unfamiliar objects, the organization of human object-selective cortex is strongly related to perceived shape, and this shape-based organization emerges gradually throughout the object vision pathway.
Dreaming inside a Walled City: Imagination, Gender and the Roots of Immigration

Focusing on the phase before immigration occurs, this paper examines the social and cultural embeddedness, as well as gendered nature, of migration decisions. Based upon focus groups and interviews with recent immigrants from the People's Republic of China in Vancouver, Canada, I explore migrants' deeply personal and multi-layered reasons for departure, challenging economistic views that tend to overvalorize the desire for improving human capital. I also consider the phenomenon of the “adventuring wife” and her “agreeing husband” through a gender lens. The paper demonstrates the significance of context, and reveals the active role of the imagination in initiating migration.
Cyclophosphamide-Induced Morphological Changes in Dental Root Development of ICR Mice

Background Survivors of childhood cancer are at risk of late dental development. Cyclophosphamide is one of the most commonly used chemotherapeutic agents against cancer in children. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of cyclophosphamide on root formation in the molars of growing mice and to assess the morphological changes in these roots using three-dimensional structural images. Methods We treated 16 12-day-old ICR mice with cyclophosphamide (100 mg/kg, i.p.) and 16 control mice with saline. At 16, 20, 24, and 27 days of age, the mandibular left first molars were scanned using soft micro-computed tomography. After scanning, the structural indices were calculated using a three-dimensional image analysis system, and the images were subjected to three-dimensional reconstruction. The length and apical foramen area of all distal roots were assessed. Histological changes in the apical region were then assessed via hematoxylin and eosin staining. Results The mandibular molars of all experimental mice showed evidence of cytotoxic injury, which appeared in the form of anomalous root shapes. Although all roots developed further after cyclophosphamide injection, the three-dimensional structural images showed that the roots in the experimental group tended to develop more slowly and were shorter than those in the control group. At 27 days of age, the mean root length was shorter in the experimental group than in the control group. Conversely, the apical foramen of the roots in the experimental group tended to close faster than that of roots in the control group. In addition, hematoxylin and eosin staining of the distal roots in the experimental group showed increased dentin thickness in the apical region. Conclusion Our results suggest that cyclophosphamide can result in short root lengths and early apical foramen closure, eventually leading to V-shaped or thin roots.
Interval-Based Possibilistic Logic

Possibilistic logic is a well-known framework for dealing with uncertainty and reasoning under inconsistent knowledge bases. Standard possibilistic logic expressions are propositional logic formulas associated with positive real degrees belonging to [0,1]. However, in practice it may be difficult for an expert to provide exact degrees associated with formulas of a knowledge base. This paper proposes a flexible representation of uncertain information where the weights associated with formulas are in the form of intervals. We first study a framework for reasoning with interval-based possibilistic knowledge bases by extending main concepts of possibilistic logic such as the ones of necessity and possibility measures. We then provide a characterization of an interval-based possibilistic logic base by means of a concept of compatible standard possibilistic logic bases. We show that interval-based possibilistic logic extends possibilistic logic in the case where all intervals are singletons. Lastly, we provide computational complexity results of deriving plausible conclusions from interval-based possibilistic bases and we show that the flexibility in representing uncertain information is handled without extra computational costs.
The Parallelization of Monte-Carlo Planning - Parallelization of MC-Planning

Since their impressive successes in various areas of large- scale parallelization, recent techniques like UCT and other Monte-Carlo planning variants (Kocsis and Szepesvari, 2006a) have been extensively studied (Coquelin and Munos, 2007; Wang and Gelly, 2007). We here propose and compare various forms of parallelization of bandit-based tree-search, in particular for our computer- go algorithm XYZ.