Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A Universal Probability Distribution Function for Weak-lensing Amplification

We present an approximate form for the weak-lensing magnification distribution of standard candles, valid for all cosmological models, with arbitrary matter distributions, over all redshifts. Our results are based on a universal probability distribution function (UPDF), P(η), for the reduced convergence, η. For a given cosmological model, the magnification probability distribution, P(μ), at redshift z is related to the UPDF by P(μ) = P(η)/ , where η = 1 + (μ - 1)/(2|κmin|), and κmin (the minimum convergence) can be directly computed from the cosmological parameters (Ωm and ΩΛ). We show that the UPDF can be well approximated by a three-parameter stretched Gaussian distribution, where the values of the three parameters depend only on ξη, the variance of η. In short, all possible weak-lensing probability distributions can be well approximated by a one-parameter family. We establish this family, normalizing to the numerical ray-shooting results for a Λ cold dark matter (CDM) model by Wambsganss et al. (1997). Each alternative cosmological model is then described by a single function ξη(z). We find that this method gives P(μ) in excellent agreement with numerical ray-tracing and three-dimensional shear matrix calculations, and we provide numerical fits for three representative models (SCDM, ΛCDM, and OCDM). Our results provide an easy, accurate, and efficient method to calculate the weak-lensing magnification distribution of standard candles and should be useful in the analysis of future high-redshift supernova data.
Visual fixations and level of attentional processing

The analysis of visual fixations can provide rich information about the user's attention. We will show that it is possible to distinguish between preattentive scanning and cognitive elaboration using parameters of fixation duration. It is, however, not without difficldty to interpret fixation durations solely on the basis of averages. First of all, fixation durations show a log-normal rather than a normal distribution, with a more or less strong leftward skew. Van Zandt & Ratcliff [13 ] stipulated that frequency distributions contain information that is not always represented by the usual first order statistics. This is palticularly the case when the distribution is multimodal, but also when experimental factors provoke changes that do not affect the whole distribution, which is usually the case with fixation durations. Moreover, as will be shown below, the same mean fixation duration may result from quite different distributions. Furthermore, the mode is very stable, and can only be altered under few conditions. Finally, the distribution of fixation durations is not unimodal. In most of our experiments, a distinct bimodality can be observed with the second mode lying around 60 ms. These fixations are often ignored, possibly because of the low temporal resolution of the most recording devices. We found these "express-fixations" to be selectively sensitive to task conditions.
Early Numeracy Indicators

Two studies using similar methods in two states investigated the long-term predictive utility of two single-skill early numeracy Curriculum Based Measures (CBMs) and the degree to which they can adequately predict high-stakes test scores. Data were drawn from kindergarten and first-grade students. State standardized assessment data from the Iowa Test of Basic Skills (ITBS) and Missouri Assessment Program (MAP) were used as criterion measures to evaluate multi-year predictive utility. Logistic regression and Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curves were used to examine the extent to which the measures predicted success or failure on ITBS and MAP. Correlational and logistic regression results indicated the Early Numeracy CBMs effectively predict success or failure for the ITBS and MAP. However, further analysis of the diagnostic utility of the measures suggests that practitioners need to carefully consider specificity, sensitivity, and the degree to which the predictability of common screening measures can be generalized to all state standardized assessments.
Effect of broodstock sex ratio on growth and reproductive performance of blue tilapia Oreochromis aureus (Steindachner) Rered in Hapas.

The aim of the present study was to investigate the effects of different broodstock sex ratios on growth and seed out-put of blue tilapia Oreochromis aureus under the conditions of hapa inpondtilapia hatchery system. Three different broodstock sex ratios:1:1, 1:2 and 1:3 (male ♂: female ♀) of blue tilapia were tested using spawning hapas each measuring 4 (2X2X1 m) suspended in an earthen pond (10,000 m) at a depth of approximately 0.5 m height to attain a net volume of 2 m per hapa). Broodfish were stocked at a density of 6 fish/ m equivalent to 12 (6♂: 6♀), 12 (4♂:8♀) and 12 (3♂:9♀) fish per each spawning hapa, respectively for the 1, 2 and 3 experimental sex ratios. Body weights ranged between 146.67±2.33 and 147.67±1.54 g and 118.67±1.86 and 135.0±1.73 g, respectively for male and female blue tilapia broodstock. Tilapia broodstock were fed diet containing 35%CP/ 3760 K cal ME/ kg of diet). The three experimental sex ratios were subjected to be studied in one way analysis of variance with three replicates/ treatment giving total number of nine (2 m) spawning hapas. Female broodstock growth performance in terms of average weight gain (AWG), average daily gain (ADG) and specific growth rate (SGR) was not significantly (p>0.05) affected by different broodstock sex ratios, while the male ADG and SGR were significantly (P≤0.05) affected by the different experimental broodstock sex ratios. Male and female tilapia broodstock survival rates did not significantly (p>0.05) affected by the experimental treatments and all treatments had 100% survival rates. Seeds (egg, sac fry and swimup fry) were collected every 3 weeks. The experiment lasted for a total 110 days. The results also showed that, Female broodstock group of the 2 sex ratio (1 :2 ) produced more seed (P≤0.05) per female (911.17±10.93 seeds) as compared to the 1 (854.63±17.32 seeds) and the 3 (767.04±11.06 seeds) sex ratios. The absolute seed production (seed/ female), relative seed production (seed/ g female) and (seed/ female/ day) were in favor of the second sex ratio. Under the conditions tested in this study, fry production of blue tilapia was affected by different broodstock sex ratios and improved at a sex ratio 1:2 (male: female).
Maintaining Arc Consistency Asynchronously in Synchronous Distributed Search

We recently proposed No good-Based Asynchronous Forward Checking (AFC-ng), an efficient and robust algorithm for solving Distributed Constraint Satisfaction Problems (DisCSPs). AFC-ng performs an asynchronous forward checking phase during synchronous search. In this paper, we propose two new algorithms based on the same mechanism as AFC-ng. However, instead of using forward checking as a filtering property, we propose to maintain arc consistency asynchronously (MACA). The first algorithm we propose, MACA-del, enforces arc consistency thanks to an additional type of messages, deletion messages. The second algorithm, MACA-not, achieves arc consistency without any new type of message. We provide a theoretical analysis and an experimental evaluation of the proposed approach. Our experiments show the good performance of MACA algorithms, particularly those of MACA-not.
Molecular Analysis of the 18S rRNA Gene of Cryptosporidium Parasites from Patients with or without Human Immunodeficiency Virus Infections Living in Kenya, Malawi, Brazil, the United Kingdom, and Vietnam

ABSTRACT An 840-bp fragment of the 18S rRNA gene was used to identify Cryptosporidium spp. recovered from human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected and -uninfected patients from Kenya, Malawi, Brazil, the United Kingdom, and Vietnam. Initial identification was by Ziehl-Neelsen acid-fast staining. Confirmation was by nested PCR, targeting the most polymorphic region of the 18S rRNA gene. Genotyping was by restriction endonuclease digestion of the PCR product followed by nucleotide sequencing. Among 63 isolates analyzed, four genotypes of Cryptosporidium were identified; 75% of the isolates were of the C. parvum human genotype, while the potentially zoonotic species were of the C. parvum bovine genotype (21.7%), the C. meleagridis genotype (1.6% [one isolate]), and the C. muris genotype (1.6% [one case]). HIV-infected individuals were more likely to have zoonotic genotypes than the HIV-uninfected individuals. Among the C. parvum group, strains clustered distinctly into either human or bovine genotypes regardless of the geographical origin, age, or HIV status of the patients. The intragenotypic variation observed in the C. parvum human genotype was extensive compared to that within the C. parvum bovine genotype group. The variation within genotypes was conserved in all geographical regions regardless of the patients' HIV status. The extensive diversity within genotypes at the 18S rRNA gene locus may limit its application to phylogenetic analyses.
Antimycobacterial activity of bacteriocins and their complexes with liposomes.

OBJECTIVES Bacteriocins (Bcn) are natural peptides that are secreted by several taxonomically distant bacteria and exert bactericidal activity against other bacterial species. Their capacity to inhibit growth of virulent Mycobacterium tuberculosis H37Rv was evaluated in this study. METHODS Five different Bcn were isolated and purified from bacterial culture supernatants, their amino acid sequence was determined, and activity against mycobacteria assessed in three different models: in vitro mycobacterial cultures, in vitro infection of mouse macrophages and in vivo high-dose infection of inbred mice. RESULTS In the in vitro model, four out of five Bcn exhibited stronger antimycobacterial activity than equal concentrations of a widely used anti-TB antibiotic, rifampicin. These Bcn were non-toxic for mouse macrophages at a concentration of 0.1 mg/L (>MIC(90) of these compounds). Pure Bcn did not inhibit mycobacterial growth within murine macrophages when added at 0.01-0.1 mg/L, suggesting that at physiologically tolerable concentrations these molecules do not penetrate through the membrane of eukaryotic cells. However, when administered as a complex with phosphatidylcholine-cardiolipin liposomes, Bcn5 (selected as a model compound due to its cytotoxicity and antimycobacterial activity regular titration curves) demonstrated capacity both to inhibit intracellular growth of M. tuberculosis and to prolong survival of mice in an acute TB model. CONCLUSIONS Given that the mechanism of Bcn bactericidal activity differs from that of all commonly used antibiotics, their possible involvement in complex TB therapies deserves further study.
Nonlinear Contact Analysis of Gear Teeth for Malfunction Diagnostics

Gearboxes sustain a variety of faults such as broken-shafts, eroded, broken, or missing teeth, and even broken-cases. Casing mounted accelerometers can detect fault patterns but the signals are complicated and difficult to interpret. This study considers the tooth loading of ideal gears and gears with defects. A large industrial gearbox used in a 12m electric mining shovel is modeled. The nonlinear contact mechanics is analyzed to predict the bearing supporting force variation vs. the gear tooth loading after a 3-D CAD model of the gearbox is transferred into multi-body dynamics software. The contact mechanics model of the meshing teeth is built by careful calculation and selection of the contact simulation parameters such as the stiffness, force exponent, and damping and friction coefficients. To simulate the real working environment of the gearbox, simulated bearing support forces are mixed with white noise. The signal is subsequently processed by the Db5 wavelet of the MATLAB Wavelet toolbox. Wavelet analysis results show that bearing supporting force fluctuation cycle is almost the same with that of the meshing forces of the fault gearing pairs, which could be used to predict the tooth malfunction of the gearbox.
Does motivating language matter in leader–subordinate communication?

This study examines the relationships among motivating language, intrinsic motivation, supervisory effectiveness, job performance, and organizational citizenship behavior. It compares the effects of motivating language across different organizational categories. Of the 500 questionnaires that were distributed, 277 were found to be usable (161 for the airline organization and 116 for the army organization). The findings of the study contribute to the literature on human resource management, communication, leadership, and organizational behavior by showing the effects of motivating language on supervisory effectiveness and organizational citizenship behavior, as well as by identifying the mediators of intrinsic motivation. However, the study offers no evidence that motivating language has an effect on job performance. The study also notes that, regardless of whether a person is in an army or airline organization, motivating language can produce the same result and does not vary much across cultures.
Effects of gastrokine-2 expression on gastric cancer cell apoptosis by activation of extrinsic apoptotic pathways

Gastrokine-2 is a putative gastric cancer-specific tumor suppressor gene, the loss of which is known to be involved in the development and progression of gastric cancer, and restoration of gastrokine-2 expression inhibits growth of gastric cancer cells in vitro. However, the underlying mechanism of these effects requires elucidation. In the present study, expression patterns of gastrokine-2 protein were examined in gastric cancer tissues and cell lines. Expression of gastrokine-2 was restored in gastric cancer cells in order to assess its effect on cell viability, apoptosis and gene expression. A total of 76 gastric cancer tissues with corresponding normal mucosae samples, and two gastric cancer cell lines (SGC-7901 and AGS) were subjected to western blot analysis of gastrokine-2 expression. SGC-7901 cells were transiently transfected with gastrokine-2 cDNA and then treated with anti-CD95 and/or anti-Fas antibodies prior to analysis of cell viability, apoptosis and gene expression levels. Expression of gastrokine-2 protein was reduced or absent in gastric cancer tissues and gastric cancer cell lines. Following restoration of gastrokine-2 expression, the protein expression level of Fas was significantly increased, but no marked change was observed in the levels of bcl-2 and Bax proteins. Expression of gastrokine-2 protein reduced gastric cancer cell viability and induced apoptosis. Activity of caspase-3 and caspase-8 was increased, but caspase-9 activity remained unchanged in the SGC-7901 cells. Reduction or knockout of gastrokine-2 protein expression may contribute to gastric cancer development or progression, as the current study demonstrated that restoration of gastrokine-2 expression induces apoptosis of gastric cancer cells through the extrinsic apoptosis pathway.
A contemporary survival analysis of individuals with cystic fibrosis: a cohort study

Previously established predictors of survival may no longer apply in the current era of cystic fibrosis (CF) care. Our objective was to identify risk factors associated with survival in a contemporary CF population. We used the Canadian CF Registry, a population-based cohort, to calculate median age of survival and summarise patient characteristics from 1990 to 2012. Clinical, demographic and geographical factors, and survival were estimated for a contemporary cohort (2000–2012) using Cox proportional hazards models. There were 5787 individuals in the registry between 1990 and 2012. Median survival age increased from 31.9 years (95% CI 28.3–35.2 years) in 1990 to 49.7 years (95% CI 46.1–52.2 years) in the most current 5-year window ending in 2012. Median forced expiratory volume in 1 s improved (p=0.04) and fewer subjects were malnourished (p<0.001) over time. Malnourished patients (hazard ratio (HR) 2.1, 95% CI 1.6–2.8), those with multiple exacerbations (HR 4.5, 95% CI 3.2–6.4) and women with CF-related diabetes (HR 1.8, 95% CI 1.2–2.7) were at increased risk of death. Life expectancy in Canadians with CF is increasing. Modifiable risk factors such as malnutrition and pulmonary exacerbations are associated with an increased risk of death. The sex gap in CF survival may be explained by an increased hazard for death in women with CF-related diabetes. Malnutrition and pulmonary exacerbations increase the risk of death in CF but survival in CF has increased over time http://ow.ly/CUqA9
ScholarWorks at UMass Boston ScholarWorks at UMass Boston

This research compares results from laboratory experiments with predictions from theory for decisions made by competing suppliers. We consider a supply chain in which a single buyer outsources the manufacture of a commodity product to suppliers not on the basis of price, but rather on service. Three different criteria on which suppliers compete are evaluated: 1) a guaranteed specific inventory fill-rate, 2) guaranteed level of base-stock, and 3) a parameter optimizing the supply chain in the buyer’s favor. Our results show that in most cases, suppliers’ decisions are significantly different than the Nash equilibrium, meaning that they do not maximize profit. We examine loss aversion as an influence that might offer an explanation for this behavior
Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences Obesity and Cancer Risk: Evidence, Mechanisms, and Recommendations

and can also lead to poorer treatment and increased cancer-related mortality. Biological mechanisms underlying the relationship between obesity and cancer are not well understood. They include modulation of energy balance and calorie restriction, growth factors, multiple signaling pathways, and inflammatory processes. Key among the signaling pathways linking obesity and cancer is the PI3K/Akt/mTOR cascade, which is a target of many of the obesity-associated factors and regulates cell proliferation and survival. Understanding the molecular and cellular mechanisms of the obesity–cancer connection is important in developing potential therapeutics. The link between obesity and cancer underscores the recommendation to maintain a healthy body weight throughout life as one of the most important ways to protect against cancer.
Design and evaluation of tabu search method for job scheduling in distributed environments

The efficient allocation of jobs to grid resources is indispensable for high performance grid-based applications. The scheduling problem is computationally hard even when there are no dependencies among jobs. Thus, we present in this paper a new tabu search (TS) algorithm for the problem of batch job scheduling on computational grids. We consider the job scheduling as a bi-objective optimization problem consisting of the minimization of the makespan and flowtime. The bi-objectivity is tackled through a hierarchic approach in which makespan is considered a primary objective and flowtime a secondary one. An extensive experimental study has been first conducted in order to fine-tune the parameters of our TS algorithm. Then, our tuned TS is compared versus two well known TS algorithms in the literature (one of them is hybridized with an ant colony optimization algorithm) for the problem. The computational results show that our TS implementation clearly outperforms the compared algorithms. Finally, we evaluated the performance of our TS algorithm on a new set of instances that better fits with the concept of computational grid. These instances are composed of a higher number of -heterogeneous- machines (up to 256) and emulate the dynamic behavior of these systems.
Retail Services and Pricing Decisions in a Closed-Loop Supply Chain with Remanufacturing

Environmental and social responsibilities have led many manufacturers to used products recovery. Meanwhile, many manufacturers nowadays sell products via indirect retailer channels and direct Internet channels. This paper models a dual-channel closed-loop supply chain to improve the sustainability of products. We apply the two-stage optimization technique and the Nash game to examine the impacts of the retail services and the degree of customer loyalty to the retail channel on the pricing of players in a centralized and a decentralized dual-channel supply chain. Our results show that the retail services have a great impact on the manufacturer and the retailer’s pricing strategies. We also compare the differences of pricing strategies between a centralized and a decentralized dual-channel supply chain and suggest the optimal retail services and pricing decisions for the players in the supply chain.
The decrease in nonsplenic interleukin-6 (IL-6) production after splenectomy indicates the existence of a positive feedback loop of IL-6 production during endotoxemia in dogs

The spleen is involved in endotoxin-induced interleukin-6 (IL-6) production. To quantitate the relative contribution of the spleen to endotoxin-induced IL-6 production, we studied the effect of endotoxin (1.0 microg/kg of body weight) in control dogs (n = 7) and splenectomized dogs (n = 7). Blood for analysis of tumor necrosis factor (TNF) and IL-6 was sampled from the femoral artery and the portal, hepatic, and splenic (only in controls) veins. Arterial plasma endotoxin and cortisol levels were also measured. Whole-body IL-6 production was calculated by a deconvolution technique. Splenic IL-6 production in control dogs was measured from splenic blood flow and arteriovenous concentration differences. Endotoxin levels were higher in splenectomized dogs (P < 0.05) because of a decreased distribution volume (P < 0.05) and decreased clearance of endotoxin (P < 0.05). Endotoxin-induced plasma IL-6 levels were decreased by approximately 75% in splenectomized dogs (P < 0.01), and whole-body IL-6 production rates were severalfold lower (median of 8.7 mg/4 h and range of 3.9 to 11.4 mg/4 h versus a median of 32.3 mg/4 h and a range of 22.7 to 70.2 mg/4 h) (P < 0.05). However, in control dogs splenic IL-6 production (0.6 +/- 0.2 mg/4 h) was only approximately 2% of whole-body IL-6 production. Plasma TNF levels increased in both groups (P < 0.01) but were not different between the groups. Plasma cortisol levels were slightly higher in splenectomized dogs than in control dogs (P < 0.05). In conclusion, splenectomy decreases the distribution volume and clearance rate of endotoxin. Splenectomy results in decreased endotoxin-induced IL-6 production, which is caused not by the absence of splenic IL-6 production, but by a decrease in nonsplenic IL-6 production. Therefore, the spleen is an important mediator in the complete activation of nonsplenic IL-6 production by endotoxin.