Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Northern elephant seals adjust gliding and stroking patterns with changes in buoyancy: validation of at-sea metrics of body density

SUMMARY Many diving animals undergo substantial changes in their body density that are the result of changes in lipid content over their annual fasting cycle. Because the size of the lipid stores reflects an integration of foraging effort (energy expenditure) and foraging success (energy assimilation), measuring body density is a good way to track net resource acquisition of free-ranging animals while at sea. Here, we experimentally altered the body density and mass of three free-ranging elephant seals by remotely detaching weights and floats while monitoring their swimming speed, depth and three-axis acceleration with a high-resolution data logger. Cross-validation of three methods for estimating body density from hydrodynamic gliding performance of freely diving animals showed strong positive correlation with body density estimates obtained from isotope dilution body composition analysis over density ranges of 1015 to 1060 kg m–3. All three hydrodynamic models were within 1% of, but slightly greater than, body density measurements determined by isotope dilution, and therefore have the potential to track changes in body condition of a wide range of freely diving animals. Gliding during ascent and descent clearly increased and stroke rate decreased when buoyancy manipulations aided the direction of vertical transit, but ascent and descent speed were largely unchanged. The seals adjusted stroking intensity to maintain swim speed within a narrow range, despite changes in buoyancy. During active swimming, all three seals increased the amplitude of lateral body accelerations and two of the seals altered stroke frequency in response to the need to produce thrust required to overcome combined drag and buoyancy forces.
An Analysis of V-Notching in the Maine Lobster Fishery

In the face of declining stock and catch, fisheries stakeholders worldwide are evaluating conservation practices necessary for sustainability. Contrariwise, the Maine lobster fishery’s success in resource management, particularly with the v-notch law, stands as an exemplar for success. The v-notch law protects the reproductive stock via fishermen voluntarily marking egg-bearing females with a “notch” in the tail fin, indicating they may not be caught and sold. In 1948, lobstermen supported v-notch legislation having recognized the necessity of preserving their resource. This research provides an updated examination of the v-notch law’s role today in conservation efforts. Through an analysis of legislation over the past ten years and oral history interviews reflecting current lobstermen’s beliefs, this research assesses how lobstermen perceive and practice the law, while also exploring the broader historical and social-ecological context in which this law is situated.
Do managerial ties support or stifle open innovation?

Purpose - Research investigating the role of factors affecting open innovation remains scarce. This paper thus examines the role of managerial ties in facilitating the two types of open innovation - inbound and outbound.Design/Methodology/Approach - Data are collected using the questionnaire survey method from 339 middle and top managers working in four high-tech industries in Malaysia.Findings - Results show that in most high-tech industries in Malaysia, managerial ties with universities and with government officials facilitate in-bound open innovation, while ties with managers at other firms do not significantly relate to it in any high-tech industry. Further, managerial ties are not found to relate significantly to out-bound open innovation in any high-tech industry except in the aerospace and electronics industries wherein ties with government officials relate negatively and positively to out-bound innovation, respectively.Practical Implications - This study provides empirical evidence about the managerial ties practitioners should and should not forge to succeed in the open innovation paradigm.Originality/Value - This study is probably the only study so far that gauges the impact of managerial ties on open innovation. The results of this study fill a major gap in the current open innovation theory besides providing insights for practitioners.
Resting Network Plasticity Following Brain Injury

The purpose of this study was to examine neural network properties at separate time-points during recovery from traumatic brain injury (TBI) using graph theory. Whole-brain analyses of the topological properties of the fMRI signal were conducted in 6 participants at 3 months and 6 months following severe TBI. Results revealed alterations of network properties including a change in the degree distribution, reduced overall strength in connectivity, and increased “small-worldness” from 3 months to 6 months post injury. The findings here indicate that, during recovery from injury, the strength but not the number of network connections diminishes, so that over the course of recovery, the network begins to approximate what is observed in healthy adults. These are the first data examining functional connectivity in a disrupted neural system during recovery.
Agent-based decision support for actual-world procurement scenarios

Multi-item, multi-unit negotiations in industrial procurement pose serious challenges to buying agents when trying to determine the best set of providing agents' offers. Typically, a buying agent's decision involves a large variety of constraints that may involve attributes of separate items as well as attributes of different, multiple items. In this paper we present Ibundler, an agent-based service offered to buying agents to help them determine the optimal bundle of received offers based on their constraints and preferences. In this way, buying agents are relieved with the burden of solving too hard a problem (the problem can be proved to be NP) and concentrate on strategic issues. IBundler is intended as a negotiation service for buying agents and as a winner determination service for reverse combinatorial auctions with side constraints. To the best of our knowledge this is the first agent service for such type of complex negotiation scenarios.
The Electronic Journal for Virtual Organizations and Networks

A Living Lab is a new way to deal with community-driven innovation. Living Labs represent, mostly regional – innovation environments focusing on user communities embedded within real-life. In Europe the Living Labs concept seems to be largely accepted as a way to deal with innovation and to get insight into what triggers innovation. Several Living Labs are currently gathered in an European Network of Living Labs aiming to share best practices and lessons learned. However, is this emerging model for innovation also applicable to South African context? The current article explores how best practices and lessons learned can speed up innovation in South African’s rural communities.
Optimization of Gentisides Extraction from Gentiana rigescens Franch. ex Hemsl. by Response Surface Methodology

Gentisides are a class of chemical compounds which is considered as potential therapeutic substance for treatment of neurodegenerative disorders. The heat reflux extraction conditions were optimized for seven kinds of gentisides from the root and rhizome of Gentiana rigescens Franch. ex Hemsl. by employing response surface method. Based on univariate test, a Box-Behnken design (BBD) was applied to the survey of relationships between response value (gentisides yield) and independent variables which were chosen from various extraction processes, including extraction temperature, extraction time, and solvent-material ratio. The optimized conditions for this extraction are as follows: extraction time of 3.40 h, extraction temperature of 74.33°C, and ratio of solvent to raw material of 10.21 : 1 mL/g. Verification assay revealed that the predicted value (99.24%) of extraction parameters from this model was mainly conformed to the experimentally observed values (98.61 ± 0.61).
This Work Is Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License Watching Eyes on Potential Litter Can Reduce Littering: Evidence from Two Watching Eyes on Potential Litter Can Reduce Littering: Evidence from Two Field Experiments

This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, reproduction and adaptation in any medium and for any purpose provided that it is properly attributed. For attribution, the original author(s), title, publication source (PeerJ) and either DOI or URL of the article must be cited. ABSTRACT Littering constitutes a major societal problem, and any simple intervention that reduces its prevalence would be widely beneficial. In previous research, we have found that displaying images of watching eyes in the environment makes people less likely to litter. Here, we investigate whether the watching eyes images can be transferred onto the potential items of litter themselves. In two field experiments on a university campus, we created an opportunity to litter by attaching leaflets that either did or did not feature an image of watching eyes to parked bicycles. In both experiments, the watching eyes leaflets were substantially less likely to be littered than control leaflets (odds ratios 0.22–0.32). We also found that people were less likely to litter when there other people in the immediate vicinity than when there were not (odds ratios 0.04–0.25) and, in one experiment but not the other, that eye leaflets only reduced littering when there no other people in the immediate vicinity. We suggest that designing cues of observation into packaging could be a simple but fruitful strategy for reducing littering. GENERAL INTRODUCTION Littering constitutes a major societal problem. Litter is perceived as unsightly and deleterious to quality of life. It can cause health and safety problems as well as contributing to environmental contamination. Moreover, there is evidence that the presence of litter in an environment can increase the prevalence of other social problems such as crime through what has been termed 'the spreading of disorder' (Keizer, Lindenberg & Steg, 2008). Furthermore, it is well established that 'littering begets littering' Therefore, any intervention that reduces littering behaviour has the potential to produce large and synergistic benefits. Our recent research on littering is based on the 'watching eyes effect. ' This is the finding that placing images of human eyes in participants' environments often causes them to behave in a more prosocial manner than they otherwise would (Haley & Fessler, 2005; How to cite this article Bateson et al. (2015), Watching eyes on potential litter can reduce littering: evidence from two field experiments. Actions observed by others can …
Histopathology of Clarias Gariepinus fingerlings exposed to Kaduna Textile Limited (KTL) effluents

The static bioassays to determine the toxicological effects of Kaduna Textiles Limited (KTL) effluents on Clarias gariepinus fingerlings were conducted. The acute bioassay showed that the opercula ventilation rates initially increased but later dropped as both the concentrations of the effluent and days of exposure increased. Histopathology of the gills and liver of the fish showed that there was oedema and mutilation of the gill rakers leading to impaired oxygen uptake as well as liver necrosis and dilation of liver sinusoids.
Fraction n-Butanol of Radix Notoginseng Protects PC12 Cells from Aβ25–35-Induced Cytotoxicity and Alleviates Cognitive Deficits in SAMP8 Mice by Attenuating Oxidative Stress and Aβ Accumulation

Chinese medicine has been used for Alzheimer's disease (AD) treatment for thousands of years with more effective and fewer side effects. Therefore, developing effective potential candidates from Chinese medicine against AD would be considered as critical and efficient therapy for AD treatment. This study was designed to evaluate the neuronal protective effect of fraction n-butanol (NB) of Radix Notoginseng on Aβ25–35-induced PC12 cells, explore the effect of the tested fraction on spatial learning and memory, and characterize the impacts of fraction NB on antioxidant enzymes, Aβ production, and APP and BACE1 expressions. The results revealed that fraction NB could promote proliferation of PC12 cells and protect and rescue PC12 cells from Aβ25–35-induced cell death. Moreover, fraction NB could improve spatial learning and memory impairments of senescence-accelerated prone8 (SAMP8) mice and attenuate oxidative stress and reduce the production of Aβ by inhibiting the expressions of APP and BACE1 in the brains of SAMP8 mice. The result of single dose acute toxicity assay showed that fraction NB had a mild toxicity in vivo. The pronounced actions against AD and in vivo low toxicity of fraction NB suggest that fraction NB may be a useful alternative to the current AD treatment.
High-Maintenance-Dose Clopidogrel in Patients Undergoing Percutaneous Coronary Intervention: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Background Despite routine use of clopidogrel, adverse cardiovascular events recur among some patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). To optimize antiplatelet therapies, we performed a meta-analysis to quantify the efficacy of high versus standard-maintenance-dose clopidogrel in these patients. Methods Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) comparing high (>75 mg) and standard maintenance doses of clopidogrel in patients undergoing PCI were included. The primary efficacy and safety end-points were major adverse cardiovascular/cerebrovascular events (MACE/MACCE) and major bleeding. The secondary end-points were other ischemic and bleeding adverse effects. The pooled odds ratio (OR) for each outcome was estimated. Results 14 RCTs with 4424 patients were included. Compared with standard-maintenance-dose clopidogrel, high-maintenance-dose clopidogrel significantly reduced the incidence of MACE/MACCE (OR 0.60; 95% CI 0.43 to 0.83), stent thrombosis (OR 0.56; 95% CI 0.32 to 0.99) and target vessel revascularization (OR 0.38; 95% CI 0.20 to 0.74), without significant decrease of the risk of cardiovascular death (OR 0.92; 95% CI 0.74 to 1.13) and myocardial infarction (OR 0.83; 95% CI 0.51 to 1.33). For safety outcomes, it did not significantly increase the risk of major bleeding (OR 0.73; 95% CI 0.41 to 1.32), minor bleeding (OR 1.29; 95% CI 1.00 to 1.66) and any bleeding (OR 1.14; 95% CI 0.91 to 1.43). Conclusion High-maintenance-dose clopidogrel reduces the recurrence of most ischemic events in patients post-PCI without increasing the risk of bleeding complications.
Adiposity-Related Heterogeneity in Patterns of Type 2 Diabetes Susceptibility Observed in Genome-Wide Association Data

OBJECTIVE—This study examined how differences in the BMI distribution of type 2 diabetic case subjects affected genome-wide patterns of type 2 diabetes association and considered the implications for the etiological heterogeneity of type 2 diabetes. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS—We reanalyzed data from the Wellcome Trust Case Control Consortium genome-wide association scan (1,924 case subjects, 2,938 control subjects: 393,453 single-nucleotide polymorphisms [SNPs]) after stratifying case subjects (into “obese” and “nonobese”) according to median BMI (30.2 kg/m2). Replication of signals in which alternative case-ascertainment strategies generated marked effect size heterogeneity in type 2 diabetes association signal was sought in additional samples. RESULTS—In the “obese-type 2 diabetes” scan, FTO variants had the strongest type 2 diabetes effect (rs8050136: relative risk [RR] 1.49 [95% CI 1.34–1.66], P = 1.3 × 10−13), with only weak evidence for TCF7L2 (rs7901695 RR 1.21 [1.09–1.35], P = 0.001). This situation was reversed in the “nonobese” scan, with FTO association undetectable (RR 1.07 [0.97–1.19], P = 0.19) and TCF7L2 predominant (RR 1.53 [1.37–1.71], P = 1.3 × 10−14). These patterns, confirmed by replication, generated strong combined evidence for between-stratum effect size heterogeneity (FTO: PDIFF = 1.4 × 10−7; TCF7L2: PDIFF = 4.0 × 10−6). Other signals displaying evidence of effect size heterogeneity in the genome-wide analyses (on chromosomes 3, 12, 15, and 18) did not replicate. Analysis of the current list of type 2 diabetes susceptibility variants revealed nominal evidence for effect size heterogeneity for the SLC30A8 locus alone (RRobese 1.08 [1.01–1.15]; RRnonobese 1.18 [1.10–1.27]: PDIFF = 0.04). CONCLUSIONS—This study demonstrates the impact of differences in case ascertainment on the power to detect and replicate genetic associations in genome-wide association studies. These data reinforce the notion that there is substantial etiological heterogeneity within type 2 diabetes.
Modeling systems with internal state using evolino

Existing Recurrent Neural Networks (RNNs) are limited in their ability to model dynamical systems with nonlinearities and hidden internal states. Here we use our general framework for sequence learning, EVOlution of recurrent systems with LINear Outputs (Evolino), to discover good RNN hidden node weights through evolution, while using linear regression to compute an optimal linear mapping from hidden state to output. Using the Long Short-Term Memory RNN Architecture, Evolino outperforms previous state-of-the-art methods on several tasks: 1) context-sensitive languages, 2) multiple superimposed sine waves.
Green tea extract and (−)‐epigallocatechin‐3‐gallate, the major tea catechin, exert oxidant but lack antioxidant activities

Green tea is the most widely consumed beverage. It has attained high reputation as a health‐promoting dietary component ascribed to the antioxidant activity of (−)‐epigallocatechin‐3‐gallate (EGCG), its main polyphenolic constituent. Evidence is increasing that tea constituents can be cell damaging and pro‐oxidant themselves. These effects were suggested to be due to spontaneous H2O2 generation by polyphenols in solution. In the present study, we investigated the oxidant and antioxidant properties of green tea extracts (GTE) and of EGCG by means of the rodent macrophage‐like RAW 264.7 and human promyelocytic leukemic HL60 cell lines. The results obtained show that both under cell‐free conditions and in the presence of cells the oxidant activities of GTE and EGCG exceeded those of spontaneously generated H2O2 (FOX assay). Increase of intracellular oxidative stress was indicated by 2′,7′‐dichlorofluorescin probing, and the enhanced genotoxicity was demonstrated by the alkaline comet assay and by the micronucleus assay (cytokinesis block). Time‐ and dose‐dependent induction of cell death was monitored by trypan blue exclusion, MTT assay, and Hoechst staining. Furthermore, in our systems in vitro, EGCG neither directly scavenges H2O2 nor mediates other antioxidant activities but rather increased H2O2‐induced oxidative stress and DNA damage. In conclusion, our data suggest that detailed mechanistic studies on the effects of GTE and EGCG should be performed in vivo before excessive intake and/or topical application of green tea products can be recommended to healthy and/or diseased persons.
New Nonlinear Takagi–Sugeno Vehicle Model for State and Road Curvature Estimation via a Nonlinear PMI Observer

Abstract The present article deals with an observer design for nonlinear vehicle lateral dynamics. The contributions of the article concern the nonconsideration of any force model and the consideration that the longitudinal velocity is time varying, which is more realistic than the assumption that it is constant. The vehicle model is then represented by an exact Takagi–Sugeno (TS) model via the sector nonlinearity transformation. A proportional multiple integral (PMI) observer based on the TS model is designed to estimate simultaneously the state vector and the unknown input (lateral forces and road curvature). The convergence conditions of the estimation error are expressed under LMI formulation using the Lyapunov theory, which guaranties a bounded error. Simulations are carried out for comparison between the conventional PI observer, the enhanced PI observer, and the PMI observer. Finally, experimental results are provided to illustrate the performances of the proposed PMI observer.
Prognostic and predictive value of extended RAS mutation and mismatch repair status in stage III colorectal cancer

The prognostic and predictive value of KRAS gene mutations in stage III colorectal cancer is controversial because many recent clinical trials have not involved a surgery‐alone arm. Additionally, data on the significance of extended RAS (KRAS/NRAS) mutations in stage III cancer are not available. Hence, we undertook a combined analysis of two phase III randomized trials, in which the usefulness of adjuvant chemotherapy with tegafur–uracil (UFT) was evaluated, as compared with surgery alone. We determined the association of extended RAS and mismatch repair (MMR) status with the effectiveness of adjuvant chemotherapy. Mutations in KRAS exons 2, 3, and 4 and NRAS exons 2 and 3 were detected by direct DNA sequencing. Tumor MMR status was determined by immunohistochemistry. Total RAS mutations were detected in 134/304 (44%) patients. In patients with RAS mutations, a significant benefit was associated with adjuvant UFT in relapse‐free survival (RFS) (hazard ratio = 0.49; P = 0.02) and overall survival (hazard ratio = 0.51; P = 0.03). In contrast, among patients without RAS mutations, there was no difference in RFS or overall survival between the adjuvant UFT group and surgery‐alone group. We detected deficient DNA MMR in 23/304 (8%) patients. The MMR status was neither prognostic nor predictive for adjuvant chemotherapy. An interaction analysis showed that there was better RFS among patients treated with UFT with RAS mutations, but not for those without RAS mutations. Extended RAS (KRAS/NRAS) mutations are proposed as predictive indicators with respect to the efficacy of adjuvant UFT chemotherapy in patients with resected stage III colorectal cancer.
Treatment Outcome of Carcinoma Vulva Ten-Year Experience from a Tertiary Cancer Centre in South India

Background Carcinoma vulva is a rare disease accounting for 1.3% of all gynaecological malignancies. The present study is a 10-year retrospective review of our experience of the surgical options, morbidity, failure pattern, and survival for invasive carcinoma vulva. Materials and Methods Retrospective analysis of case records of 39 patients who underwent surgery for invasive vulval cancer between 2004 and 2013 in the Department of Surgical Oncology at the Government Royapettah Hospital, Chennai. Results The median age was 55 years. Radical vulvectomy was the preferred surgery. 31 patients underwent lymphadenectomy. Seroma formation and groin skin necrosis were the most common postoperative complications. With a median follow-up of 32 months, 8 patients (20.5%) developed recurrence (systemic = 1, regional = 4, and local = 3). The estimated 5-year disease-free survival (DFS) was 65.4% and the overall survival (OS) was 85.1%. On univariate analysis, stage and lymph node involvement significantly affected OS. Nodal involvement with extracapsular spread (ECS) significantly affected both DFS and OS. Conclusion The treatment of carcinoma vulva should be individualized with multidisciplinary cooperation. The paucity of data, especially from India, necessitates the need for more studies, preferably multicentric, keeping in mind the low prevalence.