Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Reading in the Brain Revised and Extended: Response to Comments

Reading in the Brain (Les neurones de la lecture, 2007) examined the origins of human reading abilities in the light of contemporary cognitive neuroscience. It argued that reading acquisition, in all cultures, recycles preexisting cortical circuits dedicated to invariant visual recognition, and that the organization of these circuits imposes strong constraints on the invention and cultural evolution of writing systems. In this article, seven years later, I briefly review new experimental evidence, particularly from brain imaging studies of illiterate adults, which indicates that reading acquisition invades culturally universal cortical circuits and competes with their prior function, including mirror-invariant visual recognition and face processing. In response to my critics, I emphasize how brain plasticity and brain constraints can be reconciled within the Bayesian perspective on learning. I also discuss the importance of a newly discovered gesture system in reading and writing. Finally, I argue that there is consistent evidence for deep cross-cultural universals in writing systems, as well as for the multiple subtypes of dyslexia that are expected given the broad set of areas recruited by the reading task.
Congestion aware routing metric for opportunistic routing in wireless ad-hoc networks

Opportunistic Routing is a new routing paradigm in wireless ad-hoc networks. In this paradigm, the packets are routed with no fixed and predetermined next hop in the network. Broadcast nature of wireless medium is used in opportunistic routing and the next hop will be selected of the receivers of a packet. A problem that has still remained in opportunistic routing is congestion occurrence along the shortest paths. This is due to unsuitable next hop selection through the utilized routing metric. Queue length consideration in the routing metric is necessary but not sufficient to avoid network congestion. Therefore, a routing metric is proposed in this paper that considers the transmission rate of the nodes in addition to their backlog queue. Simulation results show that the proposed metric has better performance compared to the metric that only considers the queue length in the next hop selection procedure.
Stress and ways of coping among first year nursing students: A Turkish perspective

Aim: The aim of this descriptive study was to assess stress and ways of coping among first year nursing students. Methods: The sample consisted of 90 nursing students from baccalaureate degree programs at a university in Turkey. The research tool consisted of demographic questions, the Pagana Clinical StressQuestionnaire (CSQ) and the Ways of Coping Questionnaire (WCQ). The data collection form was performed at the end of the first clinical practice day and the re-test was performed at the end of the last clinical practice day. Results: The average age of the population was 19.72±1.32, 78.9% of the students were female. In the research, average point of the students’ CSQ and WCQ were calculated as 50.50±9.36 and 71.06±13.64 before the clinical practice, 52.07±9.87 and 77.63±17.03 after the clinical practice respectivelyand it was found that nursing students had significantly higher stress in their clinical practices. Conclusions: Nursing students experience varying degrees of stress across clinical practices and they consistently report that their clinical experiences are stressful.
Hotel school alumni’s intentions to use communication channels – a cross-generational comparison study

ABSTRACT Alumni communication is vital in sustaining the relationship between alumni and their alma maters. This research investigated four cohorts of alumni, and their intentions to use a range of traditional and digital communication channels, including social media. An online questionnaire was sent to 8060 alumni and resulted in 595 usable responses, yielding a 7% response rate. The research results showed that alumni have the highest intentions to use the alumni e-newsletter and the alumni Website and the lowest intentions to use social media, e.g., Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube. Among alumni cohorts, significant statistical differences in their intentions to use these communication channels were identified. Given our findings, alumni communication staff are encouraged to leverage different communication channels targeting alumni in different age groups.
Visualization of Venous Compliance of Superficial Veins Using Non-Contact Plethysmography Based on Digital Red-Green-Blue Images

We propose the visualization of venous compliance (VC) using a digital red-green-blue (RGB) camera. The new imaging method, which transforms RGB values into VC, combines VC evaluation with blood concentration estimation from the RGB values of each pixel. We evaluate a non-contact plethysmography (NCPG) system for VC based on comparisons with conventional strain gauge plethysmography (SPG). We conduct in vivo measurements using both systems and investigate their differences by evaluating the VC. The results show that the two methods measure different blood vessels and that errors caused by interstitial fluid accumulation are negligible for the NCPG system, whereas SPG is influenced by such errors. Additionally, we investigate the relationship between VC and physical activity using NCPG.
The Effects of Sleep on an Emotional Memory Trade-off

Current research suggests that viewing complex scenes composed of a background and a negative, centralized image results in an emotion-induced memory trade-off. This trade-off is often characterized by high rates of memory accuracy for negative central images at the expense of a neutral background. In the present study, I explored whether the same trade-off effect is present for positive emotional stimuli. Therefore, when viewing complex scenes composed of a background and a positive central image, do people tend to remember the positive image more than they do the background? I examined two related research questions: (1) will positive scene components elicit an emotional memory trade-off effect? and (2) how does the passage of time, with and without sleep, influence positive scene components in comparison to negative scene components? Participants were separated into a sleep group and a wake group. The experiment consisted of two parts: the first was a viewing of 90 compound scenes and the second included a memory recognition test. Although the trade-off effect was present for negative valence items as well as positive objects, no main group effect was found. In other words, the emotional memory trade-off effect was not enhanced with sleep.
The Impact of Aging on Regulatory T-Cells

Age-related deviations of the immune system contribute to a higher likelihood of infections, cancer, and autoimmunity in the elderly. Senescence of T-lymphocytes is characterized by phenotypical and functional changes including the loss of characteristic T-cell surface markers, while an increase of stimulatory receptors, cytotoxicity as well as resistance against apoptosis is observed. One of the key mediators of immune regulation are naturally occurring regulatory T-cells (Tregs). Tregs express high levels of CD25 and the intracellular protein forkhead box P3; they exert their suppressive functions in contact-dependent as well as contact-independent manners. Quantitative and qualitative defects of Tregs were observed in patients with autoimmune diseases. Increased Treg activity was shown to suppress anti-tumor and anti-infection immunity. The effect of aging on Tregs, and the possible contribution of age-related changes of the Treg pool to the pathophysiology of diseases in the elderly are still poorly understood. Treg homeostasis depends on an intact thymic function and current data suggest that conversion of non-regulatory T-cells into Tregs as well as peripheral expansion of existing Tregs compensates for thymic involution after puberty to maintain constant Treg numbers. In the conventional T-cell subset, peripheral proliferation of T-cells is associated with replicative senescence leading to phenotypical and functional changes. For Tregs, different developmental stages were also described; however, replicative senescence of Tregs has not been observed yet.
Myocardial infarction vaccine? Evidence supporting the influenza vaccine for secondary prevention.

This editorial refers to ‘Influenza vaccination reduces cardiovascular events in patients with acute coronary syndrome’, by A. Phrommintikul et al. doi:10.1093/eurheartj/ehr004 Coronary heart disease (CHD) is one of the leading causes of morbidity and mortality worldwide. Both primary and secondary prevention strategies thus far substantially reduce the risk of acute cardiovascular events, but still a substantial number of patients have outcomes. As a result, there has been a call for newer avenues for risk reduction. The complex interplay between infection and atherosclerosis has been under scientific scrutiny for years. Many organisms have been implicated, including herpesviruses, Chlamydia pneumoniae , Mycoplasma pneumoniae , periodontal pathogens, and many others.1 There was much excitement regarding C. pneumoniae given its association with CHD and animal models suggesting a direct involvement in the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis, but trials using suppressive antibiotic therapy failed to show a reduction in clinical events.2,3 Although the evidence for chronic infections of intracellular pathogens and atherosclerosis exists, it was speculated that infection in CHD had begun the process of atherosclerosis decades before, thereby limiting the ability to employ antibiotic treatment so late in the evolution of CHD. However, the paradigm of inflammation significantly contributing to atherosclerosis and triggering acute cardiovascular events is firmly established, and as such there has been a continued interest in the role of infection as a contributor to this inflammatory response. Of acute infectious organisms, the influence of the influenza virus has been closely examined since it is one of the most severe respiratory viral pathogens and essentially the only one with …
Early maladaptive schemas in individualswith and without B cluster personality disorders

The purpose of this research was to examine the role of early maladaptive schemas in patients with and without B cluster personality disorders, based on gender, age and educational status. The sample consisted of 150 Iranian outpatients with borderline, histrionic, narcissistic, and antisocial personality disorders and controls, who were selected through the purposive sampling method. A demographic questionnaire and the Young Schema Questionnaire-Short Form (YSQ-SF) were used in this study. The results demonstrated that patients with B cluster personality disorders had significantly higher levels of early maladaptive schemas than the control group. A significant effect was found with regards to gender in relation to early maladaptive schemas. The findings did not support the influence of age or educational level in early maladaptive schemas.
MgrA activates expression of capsule genes, but not the α-toxin gene in experimental Staphylococcus aureus endocarditis.

BACKGROUND Staphylococcus aureus produces numerous virulence factors but little is known about their in vivo regulation during an infection. METHODS The production of capsule and α-toxin, and the expression of their respective genes, cap5 and hla, were analyzed by comparing CYL11481 (derivative of Newman) and its isogenic regulatory mutants in vitro. The temporal expression of cap5 and hla and the regulatory genes in vivo was carried out using a rat infective endocarditis model. RESULTS In vitro analyses showed that capsule was positively regulated by MgrA, Agr, Sae, ArlR, and ClpC, and negatively by CodY and SbcDC. The α-toxin was positively regulated by MgrA, Agr, Sae, ArlR, and SbcDC but negatively by ClpC and CodY. In vivo analyses showed that cap5 expression correlated best with mgrA expression, whereas hla expression correlated best with sae expression. Mutation in mgrA drastically reduced cap5 expression in vivo. CONCLUSIONS Our results suggest that, in vitro, Agr is the most important regulator for capsule and α-toxin production, as well as for cap5 transcription, but SaeR is the most critical for hla transcription. However, in vivo, MgrA is the major transcriptional regulator of capsule, but not α-toxin, whereas saeR expression correlates best with hla expression.
SEARCHING FOR TROUBLE: RECRUITING ASSISTANCE THROUGH EMBODIED ACTION

The recruitment of assistance constitutes a basic organisational problem for participants in social interaction. The methods of recruitment that we have identified include embodied displays of trouble, which create opportunities for others to give or offer assistance. In this report, we examine one coherent set of such embodied displays in detail: visible searches of the environment. We first distinguish between looking and searching as different forms of embodied action and then describe the specific embodied practices that participants use to produce visible searches.
Let’s Go Out For A Day Trip? Perspectives of Psychedelics (Ab)Users on the Safety of Acid (LSD) Tripping in Public Places

BACKGROUND : Novel psychoactive substances (NPS) represent a unique phenomenon of the 21 st century. These substances are of critical consequences on public health and national economies. Hallucinogens, also known as psychedelics and entheogens, represent one category of NPS. Numerous private groups do exist on the online drug fora and the online social platforms including Facebook . Psychedelic tripping or acid trip (using LSD) depicts one of the controversial life experiences; tripping can be indoor or in public. MATERIALS And METHODS : This study is observational and cross-sectional; it was based on an Internet Snapshot taken for a private group on Facebook ; the group is dedicated for (ab)users of psychedelic substances. The snapshot was captured for a thread in relation to a critical question which was posted on the safety of day tripping using acid (LSD) in public places. Individual accounts of commenters (n=172) were analyzed in relation to demographics, length and themes of comments, and the attitude towards public tripping. This study is the first of its kind; it aims to conclude with an inference whether outdoor tripping is favourable by psychedelics users or not. RESULTS : A total of 137 psychedelic users’ comments were analyzed out of 172 (79.7%); males contributed more (n=111, 81%); the mean age was 32.14 years; most were Caucasian males from the US. (Ab)users were mainly geo-mapped into the US (85.4%), Canada (5.1%), and UK (3.7%). Those who had a positive attitude in relation to day tripping public places accounted for three-quarters (75.2%). Ethnicities and nationalities had no differential effect on a psychedelic user’s age nor his (her) enthusiasm for day tripping. However, (ab)users from the US were found to be more enthused. Further, there was a significant difference in relation to the attitude in between individuals with; positive attitude and negative attitude ( p-value <0.001). CONCLUSION : Psychedelics (ab)users appeared to be in favour of having an acid trip in public; those were mainly geographically mapped into the developed countries, while the contribution of the developing countries was minimal. This study can be copied to populations of interest of different backgrounds, cultures, and ethnicities in an aim to infer changes in trends and preferences of individual users across time and place.
Some new Hermite-Hadamard-type inequalities for geometric-arithmetically s-convex functions

In this paper, motivated by the concept of " geometric-arithmetically s-convex function " , we establish some new Hermite-Hadamard-type inequalities for geometric-arithmetically s-convex functions, which not only recapture the recent results about Hermite-Hadamard-type inequalities for convex functions, but also give some new results as special cases.
Bottom tangles and universal invariants

A bottom tangle is a tangle in a cube consisting only of arc components, each of which has the two endpoints on the bottom line of the cube, placed next to each other. We introduce a subcategory B of the category of framed, oriented tangles, which acts on the set of bottom tangles. We give a finite set of generators of B, which provides an especially convenient way to generate all the bottom tangles, and hence all the framed, oriented links, via closure. We also define a kind of “braided Hopf algebra action” on the set of bottom tangles. Using the universal invariant of bottom tangles associated to each ribbon Hopf algebra H , we define a braided functor J from B to the category ModH of left H ‐modules. The functor J, together with the set of generators of B, provides an algebraic method to study the range of quantum invariants of links. The braided Hopf algebra action on bottom tangles is mapped by J to the standard braided Hopf algebra structure for H in ModH . Several notions in knot theory, such as genus, unknotting number, ribbon knots, boundary links, local moves, etc are given algebraic interpretations in the setting involving the category B. The functor J provides a convenient way to study the relationships between these notions and quantum invariants. 57M27; 57M25, 18D10
Modulation of Synaptic Plasticity by Glutamatergic Gliotransmission: A Modeling Study

Glutamatergic gliotransmission, that is, the release of glutamate from perisynaptic astrocyte processes in an activity-dependent manner, has emerged as a potentially crucial signaling pathway for regulation of synaptic plasticity, yet its modes of expression and function in vivo remain unclear. Here, we focus on two experimentally well-identified gliotransmitter pathways, (i) modulations of synaptic release and (ii) postsynaptic slow inward currents mediated by glutamate released from astrocytes, and investigate their possible functional relevance on synaptic plasticity in a biophysical model of an astrocyte-regulated synapse. Our model predicts that both pathways could profoundly affect both short- and long-term plasticity. In particular, activity-dependent glutamate release from astrocytes could dramatically change spike-timing-dependent plasticity, turning potentiation into depression (and vice versa) for the same induction protocol.
Sleep problems and daytime challenging behaviour in a clinical sample of children with a moderate to severe learning disability and/or autism: the relationship with maternal stress

4 CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION 6 1.1 General Overview of Thesis 6 1.2 Section One: Definitions andContextual Information 7 1.2.1 Definition ofLearningDisability. 8 1.2.2 Prevalence ofLearningDisability in Children 10 1.2.3 Definition ofChallengingBehaviour 11 1.2.4 Presentation andPrevalence ofChallengingBehaviour in Children with a Learning Disability 12 1.2. 5 Summary ofSection One 13 1.3 Section Two: Sleep, Parental Stress and Behaviour 14 1.3. 1 Prevalence andDefinition ofSleep Problems 14 1.3. 2 Prevalence ofSleep Problems in Children with a LearningDisability 16 1.3. 3 Prevalence ofSleep Problems in Children with Autism 20 1.3. 4Aetiological Factors 22 1.3. 5 ChallengingBehaviour and itsAssociation with Sleep Problems in Children with a Learning Disability. 28 1.3. 6 Challenging Behaviour and its Association with Sleep Problems in Children with Autism 31 1.3. 7 Parental Stress in Relation to Children with a Learning Disability 33 1.3. 8 The Impact on Parental Stress ofCaringfor a Child with a LearningDisability and Challenging Behaviour. 38 1.3. 9 The Impact on Parental Stress ofCaringfor a Childwith a Learning Disability and Sleep Problems. 43 1.3. 10 Summary ofSection Two 44 1.4 Section Three: Thesis Rationale 45 1.4. 1 The Importance ofResearch into Sleep Problems in Children with a Learning Disability46 1.4. 2 Limitations ofPrevious Studies 47 1.5 Research Aims and Hypotheses 49 1.5. 1 Aims. 49 1.5. 2 Hypotheses. 50 CHAPTER TWO: METHODOLOGY 52 2.1 Design 52 2.2 Pilot Study 53 2.2.1 Pilot Study Procedure 53 2.2.2 Pilot Study Participants 53 2.2.3 Pilot Study -Measures 54 2.2.4 Child's Sleep Habits Questionnaire (CSHQ) 54 2.2. 5 Aberrant Behaviour Checklist Community (ABC-C) 56 2.2. 6 The Parent Stress Index Short Form (PSI-SF) 58 2.2. 7Demographic Information 60 2.2. 8 Pilot Study Questionnaire 61 2.2. 9 Pilot Study -Results 62 2.3 Main study 62 2.4 Procedure 62 2.4. 1 Recruitment ofParents ofChildren with aModerate to Severe LearningDisability Currently Referred to the LearningDisability andAutism Service (Clinical Group) 62
Moving Least Square Reproducing Kernel Method (III): Wavelet Packet Its Applications

This work is a natural extension of the work done in Part II of this series. A new partition of unity | the synchronized reproducing kernel (SRK) interpolant|is proposed within the framework of moving least square reproducing kernel representation. It is a further development and generalization of the reproducing kernel particle method (RKPM), which demonstrates some superior computational capability in multiple scale numerical simulations. To form such an interpolant, a class of new wavelet functions are introduced in an unconventional way, and they form an independent sequence that is referred to as the wavelet packet. By choosing different combinations in the wavelet series expansion, the desirable synchronized convergence eeect in interpolation can be achieved. Based upon the built-in consistency conditions, the diierential consistency conditions for the wavelet functions are derived. It serves as an indispensable instrument in establishing the interpolation error estimate, which is theoretically proven and numerically validated. The procedure of generating wavelet functions in this study is remarkably simple, eecient, and quite diierent from the usual wavelet analysis. Several examples of such wavelets are constructed to illustrate their intrinsic properties. A wavelet Petrov-Galerkin procedure is also proposed using the wavelet packet to stabilize the numerical computation. Detailed analysis has been carried out on the stability and convergence of the numerical solution of the advective-diiusive equation obtained by wavelet Petrov-Galerkin method. Finally, a wavelet partition of unity, which can be viewed as a special case of p-reenement, is also formulated in the context of meshless method as well as the nite element method.