Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Acrobatic Courtship Display Coevolves with Brain Size in Manakins (Pipridae)

Acrobatic display behaviour is sexually selected in manakins (Pipridae) and can place high demands on many neural systems. Manakin displays vary across species in terms of behavioural complexity, differing in number of unique motor elements, production of mechanical sounds, cooperation between displaying males, and construction of the display site. Historically, research emphasis has been placed on neurological specializations for vocal aspects of courtship, and less is known about the control of physical, non-vocal displays. By examining brain evolution in relation to extreme acrobatic feats such as manakin displays, we can vastly expand our knowledge of how sexual selection acts on motor behaviour. We tested the hypothesis that sexual selection for complex motor displays has selected for larger brains across the Pipridae. We found that display complexity positively predicts relative brain weight (adjusted for body size) after controlling for phylogeny in 12 manakin species and a closely related flycatcher. This evidence suggests that brain size has evolved in response to sexual selection to facilitate aspects of display such as motor, sensorimotor, perceptual, and cognitive abilities. We show, for the first time, that sexual selection for acrobatic motor behaviour can drive brain size evolution in avian species and, in particular, a family of suboscine birds.
An Extension to a Theorem of Jörgens

(1.1) det(D2u) = 1 in Rn must be a quadratic polynomial. For n = 2, a classical solution is either convex or concave; the result holds without the convexity hypothesis. A simpler and more analytical proof, along the lines of affine geometry, of the theorem was later given by Cheng and Yau [9]. The first author extended the result for classical solutions to viscosity solutions [4]. It was proven by Trudinger and Wang in [19] that the only open convex subset of Rn which admits a convex C2 solution of det(D2u) = 1 in with limx→∂ u(x) = ∞ is = Rn . In this paper we give the following extension to the theorem of Jörgens, Calabi, and Pogorelov: Let u be a convex viscosity solution of det(D2u) = 1 outside a bounded subset of
Distributions of C-reactive protein measured by high-sensitivity assays in apparently healthy men and women from different populations in Europe.

C-reactive protein (CRP), the classic marker of acute-phase response, is an indicator of a variety of pathologic processes, including infections, tissue damage, and chronic inflammatory diseases (1)(2). The majority of more than 15 well-conducted prospective studies in initially healthy individuals have shown a strong and independent association between concentrations of CRP within the reference interval (<5 mg/L) and future major cardiovascular events (3), although in some of them, no such association could be established (4)(5)(6)(7). The summary estimate of the relative risk in formal metaanalysis was 2.0 (95% confidence interval, 1.6–2.5) (3). Furthermore, CRP has been shown to add to risk prediction beyond and above established cardiovascular risk factors (8). On the basis of data from the Physicians’ Health Study and the Nurses’ Health Study, an algorithm for risk assessment of future coronary events that combines both CRP concentration and the ratio of total cholesterol to HDL-cholesterol has recently been proposed (9). Because atherosclerosis represents a low-grade inflammatory process in the vascular bed, high-sensitivity (hs) assays are needed when using circulating CRP concentrations for risk prediction in cardiovascular diseases. Such assays have been developed and are now commercially available (10)(11). However, before screening of individuals at risk can be recommended, CRP distributions in apparently healthy adults in the general population must be known. Such information is scarce. Furthermore, in previous reports, women using oral contraceptives or receiving hormone replacement therapy (HRT), both of which have been shown to significantly increase CRP concentrations, had not been excluded (12)(13)(14)(15). In this report, we describe the frequency distribution of CRP concentrations in 13 527 adult men and women from different representative populations in Western Europe. Furthermore, for one area [the MONICA (Monitoring Trends and Determinants in …
Tracko: Ad-hoc Mobile 3D Tracking Using Bluetooth Low Energy and Inaudible Signals for Cross-Device Interaction

While current mobile devices detect the presence of surrounding devices, they lack a truly spatial awareness to bring them into the user's natural 3D space. We present Tracko, a 3D tracking system between two or more commodity devices without added components or device synchronization. Tracko achieves this by fusing three signal types. 1) Tracko infers the presence of and rough distance to other devices from the strength of Bluetooth low energy signals. 2) Tracko exchanges a series of inaudible stereo sounds and derives a set of accurate distances between devices from the difference in their arrival times. A Kalman filter integrates both signal cues to place collocated devices in a shared 3D space, combining the robustness of Bluetooth with the accuracy of audio signals for relative 3D tracking. 3) Tracko incorporates inertial sensors to refine 3D estimates and support quick interactions. Tracko robustly tracks devices in 3D with a mean error of 6.5 cm within 0.5 m and a 15.3 cm error within 1 m, which validates Trackoffs suitability for cross-device interactions.
Theory of Credit Card Networks: A Survey of the Literature

Credit cards provide benefits to consumers and merchants not provided by other payment instruments as evidenced by their explosive growth in the number and value of transactions over the last 20 years. Recently, credit card networks have come under scrutiny from regulators and antitrust authorities around the world. The costs and benefits of credit cards to network participants are discussed. Focusing on interrelated bilateral transactions, several theoretical models have been constructed to study the implications of several business practices of credit card networks. The results and implications of these economic models along with future research topics are discussed.
Show Me the Honey! Effects of Social Exclusion on Financial Risk-Taking

This research examines the effects of social exclusion on a critical aspect of consumer behavior, financial decision-making. Specifically, four lab experiments and one field survey uncover how feeling isolated or ostracized causes consumers to pursue riskier but potentially more profitable financial opportunities. These daring proclivities do not appear driven by impaired affect or self-esteem. Rather, interpersonal rejection exacerbates financial risk-taking by heightening the instrumentality of money (as a substitute for popularity) to obtain benefits in life. Invariably, the quest for wealth that ensues tends to adopt a riskier but potentially more lucrative road. The article concludes by discussing the implications of its findings for behavioral research as well as for societal and individual welfare.
Language-literature integration in high-school EFL education: investigating students’ perspectives

ABSTRACT The use of literature in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) environments has had a long and controversial history. Currently, literature has returned to the language classroom once similarities between literary texts and everyday communication have been identified. However, literature is generally approached in a reductionist way in which students are expected to extract information from texts rather than experience them. The workshop investigated here innovates by engaging students in meaningful aesthetic creations. Our study contributes to research on an under-investigated topic, namely, the integration of literature in EFL education in a high-school context. It analyzes Brazilian students’ perceived learning/teaching gains/losses empirically after their completion of a language-literature integrated workshop unit on iconicity. The findings of this rigorous bottom-up analysis show students’ positive attitude, particularly regarding the teaching strategies, creative (or otherwise) exercises proposed, life and educational relevance of the workshop, and content/language learning. This article provides original empirical ground for the integration of language and literature in high-school EFL education, which stimulates autonomy and moves away from approaches where students tend to repeat interpretations validated by teachers or critics. Its significance expands beyond the focal country given that the improvement of students’ literacy is a major need observed in several countries (e.g. United Nation’s fourth development goal on ‘quality education’).
Parallel Transportation Management and Control System and Its Applications in Building Smart Cities

Advancements in complexity, complex systems, and the intelligence sciences, particularly smart city technologies, have shown great potential in aiding to ease traffic congestion. The overall approach and the main ideas in building smart transportation for smart cities, particularly ACP (artificial system, computational experiment, and parallel execution)-based parallel transportation management and control systems (PTMS), are presented. PTMS can be expanded to the new generation of intelligent transportation systems. The main components of the proposed architecture include social signal and social traffic, ITS clouds and services, agent-based traffic control, and transportation knowledge automation. Some technical details of these components are discussed. Finally, one case study is introduced, and the effectiveness is analyzed.
High‐resolution quantitative proteome analysis reveals substantial differences between phagosomes of RAW 264.7 and bone marrow derived macrophages

Macrophages are important immune cells operating at the forefront of innate immunity by taking up foreign particles and microbes through phagocytosis. The RAW 264.7 cell line is commonly used for experiments in the macrophage and phagocytosis field. However, little is known how its functions compare to primary macrophages. Here, we have performed an in‐depth proteomics characterization of phagosomes from RAW 264.7 and bone marrow derived macrophages by quantifying more than 2500 phagosomal proteins. Our data indicate that there are significant differences for a large number of proteins including important receptors such as mannose receptor 1 and Siglec‐1. Moreover, bone marrow derived macrophages phagosomes mature considerably faster by fusion with endosomes and the lysosome which we validated using fluorogenic phagocytic assays. We provide a valuable resource for researcher in the field and recommend careful use of the RAW 264.7 cell line when studying phagosome functions. All MS data have been deposited in the ProteomeXchange with identifier PXD001293 (http://proteomecentral.proteomexchange.org/dataset/PXD001293).
Faster algorithms for finding small edge cuts in planar graphs

In this paper, we consider partitioning a planar graph by removing either nodes or edges. In particular, we consider a cut to be either a set of nodes or edges whose removal divides the graph into two pieces. We define <italic>the balance of a cut</italic> as the ratio of the weight of the smaller side of the cut to the total weight in the graph. Thus, the best possible balance is 1/2. We define <italic>the quotient cost</italic> of a cut as the ratio of the cost of the cut to the size of the smaller side of the cut. Thus, a costly cut with a high balance may have lower quotient cost than a less costly cut with a lower balance. Finally, we define the <italic>flux</italic> of a graph as the minimum quotient cost of any cut in the graph. We are interested in finding small cuts with high balance; either finding the cut that minimizes the quotient cost of the cut, or finding the smallest cut of some specified balance. (For balance 1/3, this problem has been called the minimum separator problem.) We present a very simple algorithm for finding 1.5 times optimal quotient node or edge cuts in planar graphs in time <italic>O</italic>(<italic>n</italic><supscrpt>2</supscrpt> min (<italic>W, C</italic>)), where <italic>W</italic> is the total weight of the graph, and <italic>C</italic> is the total cost of the graph. In fact, these cuts are only nonoptimal when they have very good balance. Thus, the algorithms either find an optimal quotient cut or a nearly optimal quotient cut with very high balance. We can greatly improve the running time if we settle for finding 3.5 times optimal quotient node and edge cuts. We can accomplish this in <italic>O</italic>(<italic>n</italic><supscrpt>2</supscrpt>(log <italic>W</italic> + log <italic>C</italic>)) time. And, if we are willing to settle for <italic>O</italic>(<italic>k</italic>) times optimal solutions, we can make the running time quite fast; <italic>O</italic>(<italic>n</italic> <supscrpt>1+1/<italic>k</italic></supscrpt> log <italic>n</italic>(log <italic>W</italic> + log <italic>C</italic>)log <italic>C</italic>). If <italic>k</italic>=log <italic>m</italic>, and <italic>W</italic> and <italic>C</italic> are polynomial in <italic>n</italic>, this becomes <italic>O</italic>(<italic>n</italic> log<supscrpt>3</supscrpt><italic>n</italic>). Finally, we give approximation algorithms for finding nearly optimal <italic>balanced</italic> node or edge separators in planar graphs, based on the quotient cut algorithms. These algorithms improve upon previous algorithms by being much faster, much much simpler, and by applying to node separation as well as edge separation.
Endoscopic management of rhinocerebral mucormycosis with topical and intravenous amphotericin B.

OBJECTIVE Mucormycosis is an aggressive fungal infection which may still cause fatal complications. However, the rarity of this disease has made optimal treatment a controversial issue. This study aimed to evaluate the use of topical amphotericin B in endoscopic management of rhinocerebral mucormycosis. SUBJECTS AND METHODS Thirty patients with infection limited to the nose and sinuses were selected. Patients underwent endoscopic debridement of all necrotic tissue; cottonoid pledgets soaked in amphotericin B solution were then placed in the nasal cavity. Subsequently, long-term antifungal therapy was administered. RESULTS The overall survival rate was 60 per cent (18 cases); survival rates in the diabetic and malignancy groups were 70.58 and 40 per cent, respectively. Apart from predisposing factors, orbital and maxillary sinus involvement also had a significant correlation with patient outcome. CONCLUSION Topical use of amphotericin B combined with endoscopic surgical debridement, followed by intravenous amphotericin B treatment, may constitute acceptable management for selected patients, with less morbidity than conventional treatments.
What factors drive corporate customer satisfaction with e-banking services

Due to the burgeoning development of electronic commerce (e-commerce),the broader applications of emerging service—Internet baking (e-banking) services have been introduced and provided by financial holding companies or banks at an accelerating rate in recent years since they can provide efficient, reliable, securable, and convenient financial services, such as online payment, deposit/loan, trading, and clearing/settlement, via electronic channels (e-channels, e.g., Internet and phone) for customers. E-banking services not only can create new competitive advantages, perhaps, but also can improve their relationships with customers for banks. Obviously, e-banking can offer better services required by corporations and individuals, it could be a strategic niche no matter for banks or their customers. Conceivably, how to implement e-banking successfully is becoming a critical management issue. Unfortunately, research pays scarce attentions on what factors drive success of e-banking, particularly from corporate customers’ perspective. For the reason, this paper attempts to explore what factors affect corporate customer satisfaction with e-banking (CCSEB) which is one surrogate variable of success of e-banking services. Based on a survey of 178 respondents collected from Taiwan companies, the results support that environmental, organizational, and globalization factors will affect customer satisfaction with e-banking significantly. Furthermore, there exist a reciprocal relationship between customer satisfaction and post-usage favorite behavior. We believe the results and findings proposed in this paper not only can offer in-depth insights for practitioners about how to implement e-banking successfully, but also can be further directions for researchers interested in designing related theories.
The Regional Concept, Public Policy and Policy Spaces: The ARC and TVA

This paper examines two policy spaces—the ARC and TVA—and their spatialized politics. The research observes that the regional concept informs public policy and can contribute to the formation of stable policy initiatives. Using the subsystem framework to understand the political viability of policy regimes, the authors conclude policy geographies that appeal to traditional definitions of regions are more stable over time. In contrast, geographies that fail to reflect pre-existing representations of space are engaged in more competitive subsystem politics. The paper demonstrates that the spatial practices of policy regions and their directional politics influence the political viability of programs. The paper concludes that policy spaces should institutionalize pre-existing geographies—not manufacture new ones. Keywords—Agenda Setting, Politics, and Region. Regions are not, however, independent actors; they exist and ‘become’ in social practice. [1]
How Attention Can Create Synaptic Tags for the Learning of Working Memories in Sequential Tasks

Intelligence is our ability to learn appropriate responses to new stimuli and situations. Neurons in association cortex are thought to be essential for this ability. During learning these neurons become tuned to relevant features and start to represent them with persistent activity during memory delays. This learning process is not well understood. Here we develop a biologically plausible learning scheme that explains how trial-and-error learning induces neuronal selectivity and working memory representations for task-relevant information. We propose that the response selection stage sends attentional feedback signals to earlier processing levels, forming synaptic tags at those connections responsible for the stimulus-response mapping. Globally released neuromodulators then interact with tagged synapses to determine their plasticity. The resulting learning rule endows neural networks with the capacity to create new working memory representations of task relevant information as persistent activity. It is remarkably generic: it explains how association neurons learn to store task-relevant information for linear as well as non-linear stimulus-response mappings, how they become tuned to category boundaries or analog variables, depending on the task demands, and how they learn to integrate probabilistic evidence for perceptual decisions.
A systematic review of continuous performance task research in children prenatally exposed to alcohol.

AIMS The aim of this study was to review systematically, research investigating an association between the continuous performance task (CPT) in children and exposure to alcohol in utero, in order to identify any evidence of a specific deficit in performance. METHODS Seven electronic databases and three websites were searched. Papers were selected in accordance with specific inclusion criteria and scored in terms of the methodological quality using the Newcastle-Ottawa score. Marked methodological heterogeneity limited the validity of any statistical meta-analysis and a descriptive synthesis was performed instead. RESULTS A total of 14 papers were identified for inclusion. There was no consistent evidence of any association between prenatal alcohol exposure and correct responses, reaction time, commission or omission errors during CPT testing. Apparent trends in the reported results, however, suggest that a potential effect might have been missed. CONCLUSIONS Identifying a specific profile of CPT performance may assist in the detection and management of attention deficits amongst children with prenatal alcohol exposure. Future research with more consistent measures of exposure and outcome is, however, required before any valid generalizations about CPT performance can be made.
Control of Genetically Prescribed Protein Tyrosine Kinase Activities by Environment-Linked Redox Reactions

Recent observations on environment-linked control of genetically prescribed signaling systems for either cell activation or cell death have been reviewed with a focus on the regulation of activities of protein tyrosine kinases (PTKs). The environment-linked redox reactions seem to primarily affect cell surface receptors and cell membrane lipid rafts, and they induce generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in cells. ROS thus generated might upregulate the catalytic activities of PTKs through inactivating protein tyrosine phosphatases that dephosphorylate and inactivate autophosphorylated PTKs. Recent evidence has, however, demonstrated that ROS could also directly oxidize SH groups of genetically conserved specific cysteines on PTKs, sometimes producing disulfide-bonded dimers of PTK proteins, either for upregulation or downregulation of their catalytic activities. The basic role of the redox reaction/covalent bond-mediated modification of protein tertiary structure-linked noncovalent bond-oriented signaling systems in living organisms is discussed.
Genetic Dissection of QTL Associated with Grain Yield in Diverse Environments

Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) breeding programs strive to increase grain yield; however, the progress is hampered due to its quantitative inheritance, low heritability, and confounding environmental effects. In the present study, a winter wheat population of 159 recombinant inbred lines (RILs) was evaluated in six trials under rainfed, terminal drought, and fully-irrigated conditions, over four years. Quantitative trait locus/loci (QTL) mapping was conducted for grain yield main effect (GY) and the genotype × environment interaction (GEI) effect. A total of 17 QTL were associated with GY and 13 QTL associated with GEI, and nine QTL were mapped in the flanking chromosomal regions for both GY and GEI. One major QTL Q.Gy. ui-1B.2, explaining up to 22% of grain yield, was identified in all six trials. Besides the additive effect of QTL associated with GY, interactions among QTL (QTL × QTL interaction), QTL × environment, and QTL × QTL × environment were also observed. When combining the interaction effects, QTL Q.Gy. ui-1B.2 along with other QTL explained up to 52% of the variation in grain yield over the six trials. This study suggests that QTL mapping of complex traits such as grain yield should include interaction effects of QTL and environments in marker-assisted selection.
Insiders and Insider Threats - An Overview of Definitions and Mitigation Techniques

Threats from the inside of an organization’s perimeters are a signiﬁcant problem, since it is difﬁ-cult to distinguish them from benign activity. In this overview article we discuss deﬁning properties of insiders and insider threats. After presenting deﬁnitions of these terms, we go on to discuss a number of approaches from the technological, the sociological, and the socio-technical domain. We draw two main conclusions. Tackling insider threats requires a combination of techniques from the technical, the sociological, and the socio-technical domain, to enable qualiﬁed detection of threats, and their mitigation. Another important observation is that the distinction between insiders and outsiders seems to loose signiﬁcance as IT infrastructure is used in performing insider attacks.