Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The impact of perceived experience on likelihood judgments for self and others: an experimental approach

This study examines the effect of an experimental manipulation of perceived experience on self and others' likelihood ratings for a set of relatively commonplace misfortunes. Participants were randomly assigned to a condition in which they were asked whether they had ever experienced the events (designed to induce higher perceived experience) or whether they had done so frequently, typically, etc. (designed to induce lower perceived experience). The manipulation led to increases in ratings of both perceived self-likelihood and others' likelihood, in ease of imagining the outcome and recall of a past occurrence, and to decreases in perceived control over the events in the higher perceived experience condition. The increases in ease of imagining mediated the impact of manipulated experience on comparative likelihood whereas the decreases in perceived control did not. There was little evidence that event controllability moderated the impact of experience on comparative likelihood for these events. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Chronic Murine Typhoid Fever Is a Natural Model of Secondary Hemophagocytic Lymphohistiocytosis

Hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (HLH) is a hyper-inflammatory clinical syndrome associated with neoplastic disorders especially lymphoma, autoimmune conditions, and infectious agents including bacteria, viruses, protozoa and fungi. In both human and veterinary medicine, hemophagocytic histiocytic disorders are clinically important and frequently fatal. HLH in humans can be a primary (familial, autosomal recessive) or secondary (acquired) condition, with both types generally precipitated by an infectious agent. Previously, no mouse model for secondary HLH has been reported. Using Salmonella enterica serotype Typhimurium by oral gavage to mimic naturally-occurring infection in Sv129S6 mice, we characterized the clinical, hematologic and morphologic host responses to disease thereby describing an animal model with the clinico-pathologic features of secondary HLH as set forth by the Histiocyte Society: fever, splenomegaly, cytopenias (anemia, thrombocytopenia), hemophagocytosis in bone marrow and spleen, hyperferritinemia, and hypofibrinogenemia. Disease severity correlates with high splenic and hepatic bacterial load, and we show disease course can be monitored and tracked in live animals. Whereby secondary HLH is known to occur in human patients with typhoid fever and other infectious diseases, our characterization of a viable natural disease model of secondary HLH offers an important means to elucidate pathogenesis of poorly understood mechanisms of secondary HLH and investigation of novel therapies. We characterize previously unreported secondary HLH in a chronic mouse model of typhoid fever, and novel changes in hematology including decreased tissue ferric iron storage that differs from classically described anemia of chronic disease. Our studies demonstrate S. Typhimurium infection of mice is a natural infectious disease model of secondary HLH that may have utility for elucidating disease pathogenesis and developing novel therapies.
Personality, rejection sensitivity and perceptions of social support adequacy as predictors of college students' depressive symptoms

Depression is a common and potentially detrimental occurrence among emerging adults (18 to 25-year-olds), especially those enrolled in college. Underlying personality traits may predispose an individual to experience symptoms of depression, especially in the face of perceived rejection or inadequate social support. Contrary, adequate social support may “buffer” against the negative effects of certain personality traits (e.g., neuroticism) and the individual’s level of rejection sensitivity. Less is known about the interplay among these variables and the extent to which rejection sensitivity and perceived social support predict depressive symptoms above the more stable personality traits. Thus, the present study explored the role of personality, rejection sensitivity, and perceptions of social support from friends, family, and significant others in the prediction of depressive symptoms, with a specific aim of identifying possible variables for intervention with college students who may be at high risk of depression and its negative consequences. College students (N = 234) from a comprehensive southeastern regional college completed questionnaires pertaining to depression, personality, social support, rejection sensitivity, and life stress. Results indicated that, for the total sample, perceived social support, rejection sensitivity, perceived life stress, and the personality traits of neuroticism, agreeableness, extraversion, and conscientiousness, were all significantly correlated with depressive symptom scores. A regression equation for the five factor model (FFM) of personality determined that neuroticism and openness to experience contribute significant variance in depressive scores. Further, it was determined that perceived social support and perceived life stress also contribute significant variance to depressive symptom scores after controlling for the influence of personality. Results are suggestive of many targets of intervention in therapeutic settings, aimed at reducing depressive symptoms in college students.
Emission linewidths and QSO black hole mass estimates from the 2dF QSO Redshift Survey

We have used composite spectra generated from more than 22 000 quasi-stellar objects (QSOs) observed during the course of the 2dF and 6dF QSO Redshift Surveys to investigate the relationship between the velocity width of emission lines and QSO luminosity. We find that the velocity widths of the broad emission lines Hβ, Hy, Mg II, C III] and C IV are correlated with the continuum luminosity, with a significance of more than 99 per cent. Of the major narrow emission lines ([O III] λ5007, [O II] λ3727, [Ne III] λ3870 and [Ne V] λ3426) only [O III] exhibits a significant correlation between linewidth and luminosity. Assuming that the gas is moving in Keplerian orbits and that the radius of the broad line region is related to the QSO continuum luminosity, we use the velocity widths of the broad lines to derive average black hole masses for the QSOs contributing to the composite spectra. The resultant QSO mass-luminosity relationship is consistent with M α L 0 . 9 7 ′ 0 . 1 6 . We find that the correlation between linewidth and redshift, if present, must be weak, and only C IV shows significant evidence of evolution. This enables us to constrain the redshift evolution of the black hole mass-luminosity ratio to be ∼(1 + z) β with β ≤ 1, much less than the ∼(1 + z) 3 evolution seen in QSO luminosity evolution. Assuming that the motion of the broad line region gas is Keplerian and that its radius depends on the QSO luminosity, our models indicate that the observed weak redshift dependence is too small for the observed QSO luminosity function to be due to the evolution of a single long-lived population of sources.
Nonsuicidal Self-Injury Disorder: An Empirical Investigation in Adolescent Psychiatric Patients

Nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI) is a growing public health concern, especially among adolescents. In the current edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, NSSI is classified as a criterion of borderline personality disorder (BPD). However, a distinct NSSI disorder will now be included in DSM–5 as a “condition requiring further study. ” It is important to note that, at this time, there is little direct evidence supporting the DSM–5 proposal over the DSM–IV classification. To address this need, the current study examined the extent to which NSSI occurs independently of BPD and has clinical significance beyond a diagnosis of BPD in adolescent psychiatric patients. NSSI disorder was assessed based on the proposed DSM–5 criteria in 198 adolescents ages 12 to 18 (74% female; 64% Caucasian, 14% Hispanic, 10% African American, and 12% mixed/other ethnicity) from a psychiatric hospital. Major Axis I disorders, Axis II BPD, and suicide ideation and attempts were assessed with structured clinical interviews; emotion dysregulation and loneliness were measured with validated self-report questionnaires. First, results indicated that NSSI disorder occurred independently of BPD. Specifically, although there was overlap between the occurrence of BPD and NSSI disorder, this overlap was no greater than that between BPD and other Axis I disorders (e.g., anxiety and mood disorders). Second, NSSI disorder demonstrated unique associations with clinical impairment—indexed by suicide ideation and attempts, emotion dysregulation, and loneliness—over and above a BPD diagnosis. Taken together, findings support the classification of NSSI as a distinct and clinically significant diagnostic entity.
Computational Fluency Performance Profile of High School Students With Mathematics Disabilities

The purpose of this descriptive study was to develop a computational fluency performance profile of 224 high school (Grades 9—12) students with mathematics disabilities (MD). Computational fluency performance was examined by grade-level expectancy (Grades 2—6) and skill area (whole numbers: addition, subtraction, multiplication, division; rational numbers: fractions, decimals) using the Mathematics Operations Test— Revised (MOT-R). The findings indicated that these high school students with MD were fluent only in computational skills at the second- and third-grade levels. Computational fluency was found with most whole number basic facts in addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. Lack of computational fluency was demonstrated on many items dealing with subtraction of multiple digits or items requiring regrouping, most multiplication and division items, and rational number items involving fractions and decimals. The results are discussed in regard to instructional programs and curriculum organization for high school students with MD.
Principles of variationism for disambiguating language contact phenomena: The case of lone Spanish nouns in Catalan discourse

Using the variationist comparative method, the status of ambiguous lone Spanish-origin nouns in Catalan discourse is determined by analyzing their distribution and conditioning and by comparing them to their counterparts in unmixed Spanish or in multiple-word code-switches. Some areas of the nominal grammar have been selected for contrastive purposes (determination, complementation, gender, number) because they represent sites of coincidence as well as conflict between the two languages in contact, Spanish and Catalan. The main conclusion of this research is that Spanish-origin nouns in an otherwise Catalan context present grammatical variability similar to that of Catalan nouns, and that they behave differently from Spanish nouns in a monolingual context. In short, the grammar of these nouns is Catalan, and their categorial status is that of loanwords and not that of code-switches.
Perception and misperception in international politics

This study of perception and misperception in foreign policy was a landmark in the application of cognitive psychology to political decision making. The New York Times called it, in an article published nearly ten years after the book's appearance, "the seminal statement of principles underlying political psychology. " The perspective established by Jervis remains an important counterpoint to structural explanations of international politics, and from it has developed a large literature on the psychology of leaders and the problems of decision making under conditions of incomplete information, stress, and cognitive bias. Jervis begins by describing the process of perception (for example, how decision makers learn from history) and then explores common forms of misperception (such as overestimating one's influence). Finally, he tests his ideas through a number of important events in international relations from nineteenth- and twentieth-century European history. In a contemporary application of Jervis's ideas, some argue that Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait in 1990 in part because he misread the signals of American leaders with regard to the independence of Kuwait. Also, leaders of the United States and Iraq in the run-up to the most recent Gulf War might have been operating under cognitive biases that made them value certain kinds of information more than others, whether or not the information was true. Jervis proved that, once a leader believed something, that perception would influence the way the leader perceived all other relevant information.
Domestic Violence in Lesbian Relationships

Abstract Increasingly, therapists and researchers have focused attention on domestic violence in lesbian relationships. To date, however, most research has described the incidence and types of physical violence and abuse. The present study sought to explore predictors of domestic violence in lesbian relationships. Lesbian participants filled out a survey measuring physical violence and physical aggression as well as relational and personality variables. Results indicated that lesbians do report some degree of domestic violence, characterized more often by physical aggression than by physical violence. Physical aggression was best predicted by fusion, followed by self-esteem and independence. For physical violence, however, control was the most important predictor, followed by independence, self-esteem and fusion. Implications and directions for future research are discussed.
Evaluation of Glutathione S-Transferase GSTM1 and GSTT1 Deletion Polymorphisms on Type-2 Diabetes Mellitus Risk

Background Due to the activity of GSTs in the detoxification of oxidative stress products, deletion polymorphisms of GSTM1 and GSTT1 may contribute to susceptibility to T2DM, since B-cells express very low levels of antioxidant enzymes. Recently, some studies have shown an association between GSTM1-null/GSTT1-null genotypes and an increased susceptibility to T2DM. A relationship between these polymorphisms and changes in the clinical parameters of diabetic patients has also been investigated. However, the results diverge considerably among the studies. Thus, this case-control study was designed to contribute to existing knowledge, as there are no studies on this issue performed in the Brazilian population. Methods and Findings A total of 120 patients and 147 healthy individuals were included in this study. GSTT1 and GSTM1 deletion polymorphisms were genotyped by multiplex SYBR Green Real-Time PCR. The GSTT1-null genotype conferred a 3.2-fold increased risk to T2DM relative to the present genotype. There was no association between GSTM1-null and T2DM risk. In diabetic patients, GSTT1-null conferred higher levels of triglycerides and VLDL-cholesterol, while GSTM1-null was associated with increased levels of fasting blood glucose, glycated hemoglobin and blood pressure. We emphasized a necessity for applying log-linear analysis in order to explore an interaction between these polymorphisms properly. Conclusion These results suggest that the GSTT1 polymorphism may play an important role in the pathogenesis of T2DM in the Brazilian population. This gene could then be added to a set of genetic markers to identify individuals with an increased risk for developing T2DM and complications associated with dyslipidemia in diabetic patients. Although there was no association of GSTM1 deletion polymorphism with susceptibility to T2DM, the influence of this polymorphism on important clinical parameters related to glycemia and blood pressure levels was verified. This finding suggests that both GSTM1-null and GSTT1-null may contribute to the clinical course of T2DM patients.
Changing Conceptions and Uses of Computer Technologies in the Everyday: Literacy Practices of Sixth and Seventh Graders.

This study focused on 189 sixth and seventh graders in two large suburban schools and their use of computer technologies as part of their everyday literacy practices. We were especially interested in the students' conceptions of computer technologies and how computer use varied across grade and reading levels. The study included a survey completed by all 189 students that provided an overview of students' uses of computer technologies and other literacy practices. Interviews with 24 students provided more detailed information on how sixthand seventh-grade students at different reading levels used and conceptualized computer technologies in and out of school. Findings showed that many students, especially sixth graders, were far less interested in computer technologies than is suggested by common conceptions. Findings also showed an important shift between sixth and seventh graders toward more interest in practices that provided social interac tion or entertainment. Some of the conceptions these students held about computer technologies could be attributed to changing social and developmental needs, but a variety of factors, such as literacy skills and contexts of use, influenced these students as well.
Effects of antidiabetic drugs on the incidence of macrovascular complications and mortality in type 2 diabetes mellitus: a new perspective on sodium–glucose co-transporter 2 inhibitors

Abstract Elevated hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) values correlate with microvascular and macrovascular complications. Thus, patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) are at an increased risk of developing macrovascular events. Treatment of T2DM should be based on a multifactorial approach because of its evidence regarding reduction of macrovascular complications and mortality in T2DM. It is well known that intensive glucose control reduces the risk of microvascular complications in T2DM, but the effects of antidiabetic drugs on macrovascular complications and mortality in T2DM are less clear. The results of recent trials have demonstrated clear evidence that empagliflozin and liraglutide reduce cardiovascular (CV) and all-cause mortality in T2DM, an effect that is absent in other members of antidiabetic drugs. Empagliflozin is a member of a novel class of antidiabetic drugs, the sodium–glucose co-transporter 2 (SGLT2) inhibitors. Two ongoing randomized clinical trials involving other SGLT2 inhibitors, canagliflozin and dapagliflozin, will provide additional evidence of the beneficial effects of SGLT2 inhibitors in T2DM population. The aim of this paper is to systematically present the latest evidence regarding the usage of antidiabetic drugs, and the reduction of macrovascular complications and mortality. A special emphasis is put on the novel class of antidiabetic drugs, of SGLT2 inhibitors. Key messages Macrovascular complications and mortality are best clinical trial endpoints for evaluating the efficacy of antidiabetic drugs. The first antidiabetic drug that demonstrated a reduction in mortality in the treatment of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) was empagliflozin, a sodium–glucose co-transporter 2 (SGLT2) inhibitor. SGLT2 inhibitors are novel class of antidiabetic drugs that play a promising role in the treatment of T2DM.
Do Inspections Improve Primary School Performance?

This article investigates the effect of Dutch primary school inspections on test scores. These inspections are assessments of the educational quality of schools. The authors use two approaches to estimate the effect of the inspections. The first approach, based on a standard fixed effects model, indicates that inspections lead to slightly better school performance: Test scores increase by 2% to 3% of a standard deviation. However, the fixed effects model might be sensitive to selection bias. The second approach exploits a sample of randomly selected schools originally drawn for the purpose of compiling the annual report of the state of Dutch education. Based on this approach, the authors find that inspections do no harm but seem to have little or no effect on student performance.
T-Tubule Remodeling During Transition From Hypertrophy to Heart Failure

Rationale: The transverse tubule (T-tubule) system is the ultrastructural substrate for excitation–contraction coupling in ventricular myocytes; T-tubule disorganization and loss are linked to decreased contractility in end stage heart failure (HF). Objective: We sought to examine (1) whether pathological T-tubule remodeling occurs early in compensated hypertrophy and, if so, how it evolves during the transition from hypertrophy to HF; and (2) the role of junctophilin-2 in T-tubule remodeling. Methods and Results: We investigated T-tubule remodeling in relation to ventricular function during HF progression using state-of-the-art confocal imaging of T-tubules in intact hearts, using a thoracic aortic banding rat HF model. We developed a quantitative T-tubule power (TTpower) index to represent the integrity of T-tubule structure. We found that discrete local loss and global reorganization of the T-tubule system (leftward shift of TTpower histogram) started early in compensated hypertrophy in left ventricular (LV) myocytes, before LV dysfunction, as detected by echocardiography. With progression from compensated hypertrophy to early and late HF, T-tubule remodeling spread from the LV to the right ventricle, and TTpower histograms of both ventricles gradually shifted leftward. The mean LV TTpower showed a strong correlation with ejection fraction and heart weight to body weight ratio. Over the progression to HF, we observed a gradual reduction in the expression of a junctophilin protein (JP-2) implicated in the formation of T-tubule/sarcoplasmic reticulum junctions. Furthermore, we found that JP-2 knockdown by gene silencing reduced T-tubule structure integrity in cultured adult ventricular myocytes. Conclusions: T-tubule remodeling in response to thoracic aortic banding stress begins before echocardiographically detectable LV dysfunction and progresses over the development of overt structural heart disease. LV T-tubule remodeling is closely associated with the severity of cardiac hypertrophy and predicts LV function. Thus, T-tubule remodeling may constitute a key mechanism underlying the transition from compensated hypertrophy to HF.
Current trends in college cheating

The purpose of this study was to investigate the frequency, methods, and correlates of college cheating. A questionnnaire measuring 7 subject variables and 33 specific behaviors was administered to 200 students. The finding that about 75% of those surveyed had cheated in college was interpreted as supporting an hypothesized trend toward increasing dishonesty. Data on approval and guilt, reasons for cheating, reactions to cheating, and specific techniques were included. It was found that sex, year in shcool, grade point average, academic major, fraternity-sorority membership, and extracurricular participation were significantly related to cheating. The conclusions supported the importance of traditional explanatory variables and suggested an interpretation based on attribution theory.