Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Individual and Crew Level Determinants of Collective Efficacy in Rowing

The purpose of this study was to examine individual (i.e., task self-efficacy, rowing experience, and goal orientations) and group/boat level (perceptions of motivational climate and boat size) determinants of collective efficacy in the sport of rowing. Participants were 154 male and female rowers ages 13 to 18 years (M = 16.19, SD = 1.29). Approximately 24 hours prior to the regional championship regatta, participants completed a demographic measure, the Task and Ego Orientation in Sport Questionnaire, the Perceived Motivational Climate in Sport Questionnaire-2, and sport-specific individual and collective efficacy measures developed for the current study. Multilevel modeling revealed that task self-efficacy significantly predicted individual perceptions of collective efficacy, while perceptions of a mastery climate significantly predicted average collective efficacy scores at the group level.
How Effective are Different Accounts of Harm‐doing in Softening Victims’ Reactions? A Scenario Investigation of the Effects of Severity, Relationship, and Culture

In order to examine the effects of different types of accounts in terms of the victims’ reactions, we presented 193 American and 186 Japanese participants with scenarios in which an actor unintentionally harmed someone and then gave one of five different accounts. We asked the participants to estimate how the victim would react (emotional alleviation, impression improvement, or forgiveness) to these accounts. The participants rated that the victims would make more positive reactions to the mitigative accounts (apology or excuse) but more negative reactions to the assertive accounts (the denial). Although the reactions to accounts became generally more negative when the harm was severe, the mitigative accounts were more likely to be accepted by the victim than the assertive ones. As compared with the Japanese, the Americans rated the victim as more increasing their impression improvement reactions to one type of justification but more decreasing it to the denial. However, these results did not match the cultural preference of accounts, thereby casting doubt over the validity of cultural efficacy theory.
Proximal-Like Incremental Aggregated Gradient Method with Linear Convergence Under Bregman Distance Growth Conditions

We introduce a unified algorithmic framework, called the proximal-like incremental aggregated gradient (PLIAG) method, for minimizing the sum of a convex function that consists of additive relatively smooth convex components and a proper lower semicontinuous convex regularization function over an abstract feasible set whose geometry can be captured by using the domain of a Legendre function. The PLIAG method includes many existing algorithms in the literature as special cases, such as the proximal gradient method, the Bregman proximal gradient method (also called the NoLips algorithm), the incremental aggregated gradient method, the incremental aggregated proximal method, and the proximal incremental aggregated gradient method. It also includes some novel interesting iteration schemes. First, we show that the PLIAG method is globally sublinearly convergent without requiring a growth condition, which extends the sublinear convergence result for the proximal gradient algorithm to incremental aggregated-type first-order methods. Then, by embedding a so-called Bregman distance growth condition into a descent-type lemma to construct a special Lyapunov function, we show that the PLIAG method is globally linearly convergent in terms of both function values and Bregman distances to the optimal solution set, provided that the step size is not greater than some positive constant. The convergence results derived in this paper are all established beyond the standard assumptions in the literature (i.e., without requiring the strong convexity and the Lipschitz gradient continuity of the smooth part of the objective). When specialized to many existing algorithms, our results recover or supplement their convergence results under strictly weaker conditions.
Large-Scale ICT Innovation, Power, and Organizational Change

This article focuses on the multilevel context of power negotiations in understanding the relationship between large-scale information and communication technology (ICT) innovation and organizational change. The authors'analytical approach draws on the concept of networks of power to examine the changing interrelationships between institutional arrangements, people, ICTs, and work practices and how each plays a role in the adjustment, coordination, and integration of diverse interests and goals. The authors use this approach to examine the development and use of a regional health information network and conclude with some suggestions for effectively negotiating the process of change.
Dissociable Neural Mechanisms Underlying the Modulation of Pain and Anxiety? An fMRI Pilot Study

The down-regulation of pain through beliefs is commonly discussed as a form of emotion regulation. In line with this interpretation, the analgesic effect has been shown to co-occur with reduced anxiety and increased activity in the ventrolateral prefrontal cortex (VLPFC), which is a key region of emotion regulation. This link between pain and anxiety modulation raises the question whether the two effects are rooted in the same neural mechanism. In this pilot fMRI study, we compared the neural basis of the analgesic and anxiolytic effect of two types of threat modulation: a “behavioral control” paradigm, which involves the ability to terminate a noxious stimulus, and a “safety signaling” paradigm, which involves visual cues that signal the threat (or absence of threat) that a subsequent noxious stimulus might be of unusually high intensity. Analgesia was paralleled by VLPFC activity during behavioral control. Safety signaling engaged elements of the descending pain control system, including the rostral anterior cingulate cortex that showed increased functional connectivity with the periaqueductal gray and VLPFC. Anxiety reduction, in contrast, scaled with dorsolateral prefrontal cortex activation during behavioral control but had no distinct neural signature during safety signaling. Our pilot data therefore suggest that analgesic and anxiolytic effects are instantiated in distinguishable neural mechanisms and differ between distinct stress- and pain-modulatory approaches, supporting the recent notion of multiple pathways subserving top-down modulation of the pain experience. Additional studies in larger cohorts are needed to follow up on these preliminary findings.
Transfer and the Substrate Hypothesis in Creolistics

This article surveys the development and various versions of the substrate hypothesis, highlighting several of their shortcomings and identifying the conditions under which they become plausible. It also proposes a reinterpretation of the language bioprogram hypothesis, making it possible to see why substrate influence, the often-neglected superstrate influence, and bioprogrammatic factors may all be invoked to account for various, complementary aspects of Creole genesis. This proposal is formulated in the context of what is characterized as a variable-recipe approach. To complement this approach, a contextual and weighted interpretation of markedness is also proposed: markedness values are assigned variably from context to context and the factors determining them should be weighted to resolve possible value conflicts. This view is used to highlight the fact that substrate influence in creolization and transfer in second language acquisition (SLA) apply selectively as well to show how findings in either field of investigation can help research in the other. However, it is argued that creolization and SLA differ in some respects, even though they are related in a number of interesting ways. The purpose study is highlight and various interpretations of and, identify ways which transfer enrich influence, and vice I command research both second language acquisition meet my objectives the fewest possible
Biological, emotional, behavioral, and coping reactions to examination stress in high and low state anxious subjects

Abstract Responses to examination stress of high and low state anxious students (HSA/LSA) have rarely been investigated with respect to different levels of stress reactions simultaneously. The present study investigated if state anxiety influences biological, emotional, behavioral, and coping reactions to examination stress. According to the state anxiety score obtained immediately before an oral exam in Psychology, extreme groups of 29 LSA and 29 HSA were selected from a total group of 82 students. Dependent variables were biological measures (heart rate, cortisol, secretory immunoglobulin A), self-ratings of emotional states, observer ratings on behavior, situational coping behavior and achievement. While no significant differences in biological stress reactions between HSA and LSA students were observed, HSA subjects reported higher emotional and bodily discomfort than LSA, which corresponded to the observer ratings of their behavior, and they received lower grades. HSA subjects were characterized by s.
Subcutaneous adipose tissue remodeling during the initial phase of weight gain induced by overfeeding in humans.

CONTEXT Deciphering the early processes occurring in adipose tissue during weight gain is a major issue for understanding the development of fat mass and obesity. Experimental overfeeding in humans is a unique situation to tackle these events. OBJECTIVE Our aim was to identify the pathways involved in sc adipose tissue remodeling during the initial phase of weight gain. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS Forty-four healthy men were involved in an overfeeding protocol with a lipid-enriched diet (+760 kcal/d) for 2 months. Subcutaneous abdominal adipose tissue biopsies were taken for histology, transcriptomics, and Western blotting in the basal state, after 14 d, and at the end of the protocol. RESULTS Overfeeding significantly increased body weight (+2.5 kg) and fat mass. Reorganization of gene expression patterns occurred in adipose tissue with an up-regulation of numerous genes involved in lipid metabolism and storage, followed by clusters of genes related to angiogenesis and extracellular matrix remodeling. Histological examination showed increased microvascular density and connective tissue deposition after 56 d of overfeeding, with no changes in the number of macrophages or inflammatory cells. Inhibition of the canonical Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway and induction of the renin-angiotensin system might be implicated in the remodeling of sc adipose tissue. CONCLUSIONS We characterize the coordinated and time-dependent processes that occur in human adipose tissue during the early phase of weight gain in healthy subjects and identify pathways representing potential targets in pathologies of adipose development, including obesity.
Validating a Population Model of Tactile Mechanotransduction of Slowly Adapting Type I Afferents at Levels of Skin Mechanics, Single-Unit Response and Psychophysics

Previous models of touch have linked skin mechanics to neural firing rate, neural dynamics to action potential elicitation, and mechanoreceptor populations to psychophysical discrimination. However, no one model spans all levels. The objective of work herein is to build a multi-level, computational model of tactile neurons embedded in cutaneous skin, and then validate its predictions of skin surface deflection, single-afferent firing to indenter shift, and population response for sphere discrimination. The model includes a 3D finite element representation of the distal phalange with hyper- and visco-elastic mechanics. Distributed over its surface, a population of receptor models is comprised of bi-phasic functions to represent Merkel cells' transformation of stress/strain to membrane current and a leaky integrate-and-fire neuronal models to generate the timing of action potentials. After including neuronal noise, the predictions of two population encoding strategies (gradient sum and euclidean distance) are compared to psychophysical discrimination of spheres. Results indicate that predicted skin surface deflection matches Srinivasan's observations for 50 micron and 3.17 mm diameter cylinders and single-afferent responses achieve R2 = 0.81 when compared to Johnson's recordings. Discrimination results correlate with Goodwin's experiments, whereby 287 and 365 m-1 spheres are more discriminable than 287 and 296 m-1.
Researching Blue's Clues: Viewing Behavior and Impact

Blue's Clues is a preschool television series designed to promote mastery of thinking and problem-solving skills. This paper summarizes a series of studies concerning the impact of the program on television viewing behaviors and on cognitive development. Three studies of viewing behavior indicate that as preschool children were in the process of learning from the program they were relatively quiet and highly attentive. As they mastered the content they became increasingly vocal and interactive. Their tendency to interact with Blue's Clues transferred to another program from a different series. A longitudinal study comparing children who regularly watched Blue's Clues to demographically similar children who could not receive the program indicated that the program had a positive impact on cognitive development.
Structural constraints and dynamics of bacterial cell wall architecture

The peptidoglycan wall (PG) is a unique structure which confers physical strength and defined shape to bacteria. It consists of a net-like macromolecule of peptide interlinked glycan chains overlying the cell membrane. The structure and layout of the PG dictates that the wall has to be continuously modified as bacteria go through division, morphological differentiation, and adaptive responses. The PG is poorly known in structural terms. However, to understand morphogenesis a precise knowledge of glycan strand arrangement and of local effects of the different kinds of subunits is essential. The scarcity of data led to a conception of the PG as a regular, highly ordered structure which strongly influenced growth models. Here, we review the structure of the PG to define a more realistic conceptual framework. We discuss the consequences of the plasticity of murein architecture in morphogenesis and try to define a set of minimal structural constraints that must be fulfilled by any model to be compatible with present day information.
Statins modulate the mortality risk associated with obesity and cardiorespiratory fitness in diabetics.

CONTEXT Statins are commonly prescribed to avert cardiovascular disease in diabetics. Little information, however, exists about the interrelationship of obesity, fitness, and statin treatment on mortality. OBJECTIVE Our objective was to evaluate the influence of statin therapy on body mass index (BMI), cardiorespiratory fitness, and all-cause mortality risk in diabetics. DESIGN We gathered prospective observational data from Veterans Affairs Medical Centers in Washington, DC, and Palo Alto, California, on type 2 diabetic male veterans (n = 3775; mean age = 58.9 ± 9.9 years) who underwent an exercise tolerance test during the period of 1986 to 2011. RESULTS There were 930 deaths during a mean follow-up period of 10.5 years (37 826 person-years), with an average annual mortality of 24.6 events per 1000 person-years of observation. Adjusted Cox proportional hazard analysis revealed that mortality risk was 34% lower (hazard ratio [HR] = 0.66; confidence interval [CI] = 0.57-0.77) for individuals treated with statins compared with those not on statins. There was a paradoxical BMI-mortality association, with the highest mortality in those with a BMI of 18.5 to 24.9 kg/m(2) (HR = 1.54; CI = 1.26-1.87, P < .0001) compared with obese subjects (BMI of 30-34.9 kg/m(2)). However, this paradoxical association was evident only in those not treated with statins (HR = 1.79; CI = 1.39-2.29; P < .001) vs those on statins (HR = 1.06; CI = 0.75-1.54; P = .70). When statin therapy and fitness status were combined, mortality risk was 44% higher (HR = 1.44; CI = 1.16-1.78) in the least-fit not treated with statins compared with the least-fit treated with statins. Mortality risk declined progressively with increased fitness to 60% lower (HR = 0.40; CI = 0.24-0.66) and 49% lower (HR = 0.51; CI = 0.38-0.68) for the most highly fit individuals (>9 metabolic equivalents) treated and not treated with statins, respectively. CONCLUSION Statin therapy was associated with increased survival in diabetic veterans, which was further enhanced when fitness and statin therapy were combined. In addition, statin therapy eliminated the increased mortality risk associated with BMI <25 kg/m(2). The presence of a paradoxical BMI-mortality risk association, which is modulated by statin therapy has novel clinically relevant implications.
Development and validation of anthropometric prediction equations for estimation of lean body mass and appendicular lean soft tissue in Indian men and women

Lean body mass (LBM) and muscle mass remain difficult to quantify in large epidemiological studies due to the unavailability of inexpensive methods. We therefore developed anthropometric prediction equations to estimate the LBM and appendicular lean soft tissue (ALST) using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) as a reference method. Healthy volunteers (n = 2,220; 36% women; age 18-79 yr), representing a wide range of body mass index (14–44 kg/m2), participated in this study. Their LBM, including ALST, was assessed by DXA along with anthropometric measurements. The sample was divided into prediction (60%) and validation (40%) sets. In the prediction set, a number of prediction models were constructed using DXA-measured LBM and ALST estimates as dependent variables and a combination of anthropometric indices as independent variables. These equations were cross-validated in the validation set. Simple equations using age, height, and weight explained >90% variation in the LBM and ALST in both men and women. Additional variables (hip and limb circumferences and sum of skinfold thicknesses) increased the explained variation by 5–8% in the fully adjusted models predicting LBM and ALST. More complex equations using all of the above anthropometric variables could predict the DXA-measured LBM and ALST accurately, as indicated by low standard error of the estimate (LBM: 1.47 kg and 1.63 kg for men and women, respectively), as well as good agreement by Bland-Altman analyses (Bland JM, Altman D. Lancet 1: 307–310, 1986). These equations could be a valuable tool in large epidemiological studies assessing these body compartments in Indians and other population groups with similar body composition.
Alvino E. Fantini, Language acquisition of a bilingual child: A sociolinguistic perspective . Brattleboro, Vermont: The Experiment Press, 1976. Pp. xi + 308.

worries about epistemological problems. Indeed, these are made obvious to him by the attempt to deal with actual problems of semantic analysis. All in all, this is a very interesting book for those who are interested in the problems of language, thinking, and meaning. While this book is, in many senses, non-systematic and rambling, it is a serious attempt to deal with the analysis of meaning in all the nooks and crannies which embed our mentation processes to try to understand how we talk (and think) specifically about ourselves and others. It is the application of what theories there are, and the attempt to invent or apply others where there are gaps discovered. Theories of personality aside, a careful reading of the author's delights and dilemmas, helps to pinpoint many issues in the problem of meaning which might remain inobvious to an academic approach which eschews application. The fact is that there are practitioners of many medical and para-medical arts who (believe they) have and use detailed semantic theories. They are not lacking in the world. Each of us, as Bromley has said well, also embodies such theories. Their analysis can teach us a great deal. The author points out where the problems are the ways to think about them. But, finally, he does not take us into the experience of being a person. We remain outsiders in our own existence, as we enter a set of circles posited in the name of 'objectivity', toward a more 'useful' set of terms to characterize 'personalities'.
Career Competencies for the Modern Career

Career development gains new meaning in the context of employability demands in a knowledge economy. In this context, increased mobility, a dynamic work environment, and an increased level of career support from employers are seen as characteristics of a modern career. All of these characteristics put emphasis on individual and self-management in career development. This article presents the results of an empirical study that addressed the general question as to which competencies employees need to possess to realize career self-management. In a survey of 1,579 employees (51% response) in 16 Dutch companies, 6 career factors and competencies of career self-management prove to be relevant for career development: career development ability, reflection on capacities, reflection on motives, work exploration, career control, and networking. Among the explanatory variables that are considered, mobility perspective and career support at work and private life appear to be associated most strongly (statistical significance at .01) with career competencies.
Low and then high frequency oscillations of distinct right cortical networks are progressively enhanced by medium and long term Satyananda Yoga meditation practice

Meditation proficiency is related to trait-like (learned) effects on brain function, developed over time. Previous studies show increases in EEG power in lower frequency bands (theta, alpha) in experienced meditators in both meditation states and baseline conditions. Higher gamma band power has been found in advanced Buddhist meditators, yet it is not known if this occurs in Yoga meditation practices. This study used eLORETA to compare differences in cortical source activity underlying scalp EEG from intermediate (mean experience 4 years) and advanced (mean experience 30 years) Australian meditators from the Satyananda Yoga tradition during a body-steadiness meditation, mantra meditation, and non-meditation mental calculation condition. Intermediate Yoga meditators showed greater source activity in low frequencies (particularly theta and alpha1) during mental calculation, body-steadiness and mantra meditation. A similar spatial pattern of significant differences was found in all conditions but the number of significant voxels was double during body-steadiness and mantra meditation than in the non-meditation (calculation) condition. These differences were greatest in right (R) superior frontal and R precentral gyri and extended back to include the R parietal and occipital lobes. Advanced Yoga meditators showed greater activity in high frequencies (beta and especially gamma) in all conditions but greatly expanded during meditation practice. Across all conditions (meditation and non-meditation) differences were greatest in the same regions: R insula, R inferior frontal gyrus and R anterior temporal lobe. Distinct R core networks were identified in alpha1 (8–10 Hz) and gamma (25–42 Hz) bands, respectively. The voxels recruited to these networks greatly expanded during meditation practice to include homologous regions of the left hemisphere. Functional interpretation parallels traditionally described stages of development in Yoga proficiency.