Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Bridging the great divide: Conspiracy theory research for the 21st century

This article starts from the observation that research on conspiracy theories is currently thriving, but that it is also fragmented. In particular there is an increasing divide between disciplines with culturalist and qualitative approaches, such as history, cultural studies and ethnology, and disciplines with quantitative and empirical approaches, such as psychology and political science. The article argues that this ‘great divide’ has to be bridged for research to arrive at a genuine understanding of conspiracy theories. As a first step in such a bridge-building process, the article engages, from the vantage point of (American) cultural studies, with research done on the other side of the divide, namely in psychology and political science. It summarizes the work done in these fields and evaluates it critically, concentrating on methodology; the assumptions about the dysfunctionality of conspiracy beliefs; the circularity of some arguments; the focus on individual rather than social and collective aspects; the lack of engagement with the definition of the phenomenon; and the neglect of cultural and historical difference. The article ends with recommendations for future collaborative research projects.
Physician Awareness and Utilization of Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-Approved Labeling for Pharmacogenomic Testing Information

We surveyed 10,303 United States physicians on where they obtain pharmacogenomic testing information. Thirty-nine percent indicated that they obtained this from drug labeling. Factors positively associated with this response included older age, postgraduate instruction, using other information sources, regulatory approval/ recommendation of testing, reliance on labeling for information, and perception that patients have benefited from testing. Physicians use pharmacogenomic testing information from drug labeling, highlighting the importance of labeling information that is conducive to practice application.
House cats as predators in the Australian environment: impacts and management

This paper provides an overview of the predatory activities of the house cat (Felis catus) in Australia, focusing principally on the interactions of domestic and stray cats with native species of prey. Like their free-living, or feral, counterparts, domestic cats take a broad range of prey, with small mammals, birds, and human-derived foods forming the bulk of the diet. Domestic and stray cats have contributed to declines of suburban populations of eastern barred bandicoots (Perameles gunnii) and superb lyrebirds (Menura novaehollandiae) in Victoria, Australia. The effects of cats on prey communities remain speculative. In Sydney, artifi cial nests placed in trees in forest remnants suffered less predation where cat activity was high rather than where it was low, indicating that cats benefi cially reduced damage by introduced rats and other nest predators. However, high cat activity was associated with reduced bird diversity. Legislation to encourage responsible cat ownership has been passed in Australia; it should have positive outcomes for both wildlife conservation and cat welfare.
The Impact of State Characteristics on College Graduation Rates at Land-Grant Institutions

As our nation’s economy has become increasingly knowledge-based, an educated citizenry is paramount to maintaining a competitive edge in a global marketplace. Thus, college participation and completion have emerged as the gateway to survival and growth for individuals, states, and the nation, making college completion rates a top priority. Stakeholders have begun to equate graduation rates with institutional quality and performance and often use such data to make judgments, create policies, and allocate funding. However, graduation rates are not fully understood and numerous scholars urge caution when interpreting and utilizing single outcome measures. The purpose of this cross-sectional ecological study was to analyze the relationship between selected state characteristics and college completion rates at land-grant institutions and use those findings to create a graduation rate prediction model, inclusive of student, institutional, and state characteristics, that is more accurate than traditional prediction models comprised solely of student and institutional characteristics. Results of correlation and regression analyses indicated that the addition of state variables to a regression model increased the accuracy of predicted graduation rates. Specifically, the size of the traditional college-age population, higher education appropriations, and the ratio of twoto four-year enrollment were found to be significant state predictors and explained an additional 9.3% of the variance in graduation rates at land-grant institutions. The landscape of higher education does appear to be ecological in nature as a wide range of student, institutional, and state characteristics provide a better understanding of educational success. These findings support recommendations for improved interpretation, evaluation, and prediction of graduation rates as well as planning for higher education in order to turn state and national educational attainment goals into reality. This dissertation is approved for recommendation to the Graduate Council
Understanding the Influence of Race/Ethnicity, Gender, and Class on Inequalities in Academic and Non-Academic Outcomes among Eighth-Grade Students: Findings from an Intersectionality Approach

Socioeconomic, racial/ethnic, and gender inequalities in academic achievement have been widely reported in the US, but how these three axes of inequality intersect to determine academic and non-academic outcomes among school-aged children is not well understood. Using data from the US Early Childhood Longitudinal Study—Kindergarten (ECLS-K; N = 10,115), we apply an intersectionality approach to examine inequalities across eighth-grade outcomes at the intersection of six racial/ethnic and gender groups (Latino girls and boys, Black girls and boys, and White girls and boys) and four classes of socioeconomic advantage/disadvantage. Results of mixture models show large inequalities in socioemotional outcomes (internalizing behavior, locus of control, and self-concept) across classes of advantage/disadvantage. Within classes of advantage/disadvantage, racial/ethnic and gender inequalities are predominantly found in the most advantaged class, where Black boys and girls, and Latina girls, underperform White boys in academic assessments, but not in socioemotional outcomes. In these latter outcomes, Black boys and girls perform better than White boys. Latino boys show small differences as compared to White boys, mainly in science assessments. The contrasting outcomes between racial/ethnic and gender minorities in self-assessment and socioemotional outcomes, as compared to standardized assessments, highlight the detrimental effect that intersecting racial/ethnic and gender discrimination have in patterning academic outcomes that predict success in adult life. Interventions to eliminate achievement gaps cannot fully succeed as long as social stratification caused by gender and racial discrimination is not addressed.
“Comet‐tail” ejecta streaks: A predicted cratering landform unique to Titan

Abstract— A model for an impact ejecta landform peculiar to Saturn's moon Titan is presented. Expansion of the ejecta plume from moderate‐sized craters is constrained by Titan's thick atmosphere. Much of the plume is collimated along the incoming bolide's trajectory, as was observed for plumes from impacts on Jupiter of P/Shoemaker‐Levy‐9, but is retained as a linear, diagonal ejecta cloud, unlike on Venus where the plume “blows out. ” On Titan, the blowout is suppressed because the vertically‐extended atmosphere requires a long wake to reach the vacuum of space, and the modest impact velocities mean plume expansion along the wake is slow enough to allow the wake to close off. Beyond the immediate ejecta blanket around the crater, distal ejecta is released into the atmosphere from an oblique line source: this material is winnowed by the zonal wind field to form streaks, with coarse radar‐bright particles transported less far than fine radar‐dark material. Thus, the ejecta form two distinct streaks faintly reminiscent of dual comet tails, a sharply W‐E radar‐dark one, and a less swept and sometimes comma‐shaped radar‐bright one.
Computing layouts with deformable templates

In this paper, we tackle the problem of tiling a domain with a set of deformable templates. A valid solution to this problem completely covers the domain with templates such that the templates do not overlap. We generalize existing specialized solutions and formulate a general layout problem by modeling important constraints and admissible template deformations. Our main idea is to break the layout algorithm into two steps: a discrete step to lay out the approximate template positions and a continuous step to refine the template shapes. Our approach is suitable for a large class of applications, including floorplans, urban layouts, and arts and design.
Diurnal Leaf Starch Content: An Orphan Trait in Forage Legumes

Forage legumes have a relatively high biomass yield and crude protein content, but their grazed and harvested biomass lacks the high-energy carbohydrates required to meet the productivity potential of modern livestock breeds. Because of their low carbohydrate content, forage legume diets are typically supplemented with starch rich cereal grains or maize (Zea mays), leading to the disruption of local nutrient cycles. Although plant leaves were first reported to accumulate starch in a diurnal pattern over a century ago, leaf starch content has yet to be exploited as an agronomic trait in forage crops. Forage legumes such as red clover (Trifolium pratense) have the genetic potential to accumulate up to one third of their leaf dry mass as starch, but this starch is typically degraded at night to support nighttime growth and respiration. Even when diurnal accumulation is considered with regard to the time the crop is harvested, only limited gains are realized due to environmental effects and post-harvest losses from respiration. Here we present original data for starch metabolism in red clover and place it in the broader context of other forage legumes such as, white clover (T. repens), and alfalfa (Medicago sativa). We review the application of recent advances in molecular breeding, plant biology, and crop phenotyping, to forage legumes to improve and exploit a potentially valuable trait for sustainable ruminant livestock production.
3D virtual environments: Businesses are ready but are our 'digital natives' prepared for changing landscapes?

Futurists anticipate that within just three years, 70-80% of businesses and Internet users willhave a 3D virtual presence. This should be welcome news to our current ‘digital native’undergraduates who have grown up in a digital era, and who are said to prefer environmentsthat are highly interactive, immersive, multi-modal and connected. 3D virtual learningenvironments not only fulfil these criteria, but also provide increased flexibility for studentswho are not on campus. It is perhaps not surprising, therefore, that 3D virtual worlds suchas
Identification of candidate genes and mutations in QTL regions for immune responses in chicken

Summary There are two categories of immune responses – innate and adaptive immunity – both having polygenic backgrounds and a significant environmental component. In our study, adaptive immunity was represented by the specific antibody response toward keyhole limpet hemocyanin (KLH); innate immunity was represented by natural antibodies toward lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and lipoteichoic acid (LTA). Defining genetic bases of immune responses leads from defining quantitative trait loci (QTL) toward a single mutation responsible for variation in the phenotypic trait. The goal of the reported study was to define candidate genes and mutations for the immune traits of interest in chicken by performing an association study of SNPs located in candidate genes defined in QTL regions. Candidate genes and SNPs in QTL regions were selected in silico. SNP association was based on a custom SNP panel, GoldenGate genotyping assay (Illumina) and two statistical models: random mixed model and CAR score. The most significant SNP for immune response toward KLH was located in the JMJD6 gene located on GGA18. Four SNPs in candidate genes FOXJ1 (GGA18), EPHB1 (GGA9), PTGER4 (GGAZ) and PRKCB (GGA14) showed association with natural antibodies for LPS. A single SNP in ITGB4 (GGA18) was associated with natural antibodies for LTA. All associated SNPs mentioned above showed additive effects.
Chlorophyll a Fluorescence Induction in Higher Plants : Modelling and Numerical Simulation

Chlorophyll a fluorescence induction is extensively used as a probe of photosynthesis, and thus, it has become necessary to quantitatively analyse it to extend its usefulness. We simulate the experimental data of fluorescence transients in strong light through numerical integration, both in darkand light-adapted plants. In the mathematical model used here we have considered for the first time the redox reactions at both the acceptor and the donor sides of photosystem II, and the non-photochemical quenching by the oxidised plastoquinone molecules from the lipid matrix of the thylakoid membrane. The model is based on assumptions established in the literature and also the values of input parameters used in simulations. The simulated fluorescence induction curves show the characteristic O : J : I : P steps as in the experimental ones and, in specific conditions, the presence of a dip (D) between the I and P steps of the transient. Moreover, it has been shown here how typical patterns of fluorescence kinetics are influenced by the state of the sample by studying the basic effects of the influence of some parameters [i.e. the connectivity between different PS II units, initial QB:QB ratio and the ratio of the starting states of the oxygen evolving complex (S1:S2), number of plastoquinone molecules in the plastoquinone pool, initial redox state of the plastoquinone pool, and the rate of plastoquinol oxidation]. In this way the information can be drawn from the experimental curves relative to these parameters. 7 1998 Academic Press
Sequential intranodal immunotherapy induces antitumor immunity and correlated regression of disseminated follicular lymphoma.

Advanced stage follicular lymphoma (FL) is incurable by conventional therapies. In the present pilot clinical trial, we explored the efficacy and immunogenicity of a novel in situ immunotherapeutic strategy. Fourteen patients with untreated or relapsed stage III/IV FL were included and received local radiotherapy to solitary lymphoma nodes and intranodal injections of low-dose rituximab (5 mg), immature autologous dendritic cells, and granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor at the same site. The treatment was repeated 3 times targeting different lymphoma nodes. Primary end points were clinical responses and induction of systemic immunity. Five out of 14 patients (36%) displayed objective clinical responses, including 1 patient with cutaneous FL who showed regression of skin lesions. Two of the patients had durable complete remissions. Notably, the magnitude of vaccination-induced systemic CD8 T-cell-mediated responses correlated closely with reduction in total tumor area (r = 0.71, P = .006), and immune responders showed prolonged time to next treatment. Clinical responders did not have a lower tumor burden than nonresponders pretreatment, suggesting that the T cells could eliminate large tumor masses once immune responses were induced. In conclusion, the combined use of 3 treatment modalities, and in situ administration in single lymphoma nodes, mediated systemic T-cell immunity accompanied by regression of disseminated FL. The trial was registered at www.clinicaltrials. gov as #NCT01926639.
An intelligent approach to information integration

Information sharing from multiple heterogeneous sources is a challenging issue which ranges from database to ontology areas. In this paper, we propose an intelligent approach to information integration which takes into account semantic connicts and contradictions, caused by the lack of a common shared ontology. Our goal is to provide an integrated access to information sources, allowing a user to pose a single query and to receive a single uniied answer. We propose a \semantic" approach for integration where the conceptual schema of each source is provided, adopting a common standard data model and language. Description Logics plus clustering techniques are exploited. Description Logics is used to obtain a semi-automatic generation of a Common Thesaurus (to solve semantic heterogeneities and to derive a common ontology) while clustering techniques are employed to build the global schema, i.e. the uniied view of the data to be used for query processing.
Examination of Sexual Differences in the Acute Effects of Haloperidol on Licking

Schizophrenia is a debilitating psychiatric condition affecting almost one percent of the US population. Typical antipsychotics (e.g., haloperidol) have been in use for several decades and are generally very effective in treating the emotional and cognitive effects of schizophrenia, but are used as the last line of treatment due to their severe extrapyramidal motor side effects under chronic exposure. The present study was conducted to investigate the role of sex in determining the oromotor side effects of typical antipsychotics via measuring different behavioral dimensions of male and female Sprague-Dawley rats licking sucrose after haloperidol treatment. The results showed a stronger sensitivity in female rats than male rats within total licking responses and inter-lick intervals. The present results suggest closer attention needs to be paid to the role that sexual hormones play in the motor slowing and behavior-reducing effects of antipsychotics.
The effect of message discrepancy and source beliefs : evidence from a non-weird sample in a real-world political context

1 CHAPTER 1: BACKGROUND AND RATIONALE . 3 Literature Review . 5 Belief and Belief Certainty . 5 Elaboration . 7 Effects of Message Discrepancy . 10 Effects of Existing Source Beliefs on Elaboration . 12 The Present Research . 15 CHAPTER 2: STUDY ONE . 17 Objectives . 17 Study Context . 17 Rationale for the Study Context . 17 Political Situation in Thailand . 18 Preliminary Study . 19 Participants . 19 Procedure . 22 Insights from the Preliminary Study . 23 Method . 25 Participants . 25 Procedure . 26 Questionnaire . 29 Coding Procedure . 33 Findings . 41 Association Between Message Discrepancy and the Type of Test . 41 Association Between Source Likability and the Type of Test . 49 Association Between Source Likability and the Type of Test Across Message Conditions . 52 Discussion . 56 CHAPTER 3: STUDY TWO . 59 Objectives . 59 Method . 62 Participants . 63 Stimuli . 65 Questionnaire Pretest . 66 Procedures . 67 Measures . 68 Findings . 81 Effects of Message Discrepancy and Existing Source Beliefs on the Type of Test and Belief Certainty . 82 Effects of Message Discrepancy and Existing Source Beliefs on the Amount of Elaboration and Belief Certainty . 85 Summary Model . 88 Ancillary Analyses . 90 Discussion . 95 Effects of Message Discrepancy . 96 Effects of Existing Source Beliefs . 101 Interaction Between Message Discrepancy and Existing Source Beliefs 104 Limitations . 107 CHAPTER 4: GENERAL DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION . 109 General Discussion . 109 Conclusion . 113 REFERENCES . 116 APPENDICES . 130 Appendix A: Key Political Events . 130 Appendix B: Questionnaire for the Preliminary Study . 132 Appendix C: Details of News Content Presented in the Preliminary Study 134 Appendix D: Details of News Content Presented in Study One . 136 Appendix E: Questionnaire for Study One . 138 Appendix F: Examples of Positive and Negative Tests for Each News Issue146 Appendix G: Measures for Study Two . 149
Communicating and Controlling Strategy: An Empirical Study of the Effectiveness of the Balanced Scorecard

This paper reports evidence on the effectiveness of the Balanced Scorecard (BSC) as a strategy communication and management‐control device. This study first reviews communication and management control literatures that identify attributes of effective communication and control of strategy. Second, the study offers a model of communication and control applicable to the BSC. The study then analyzes empirical interview and archival data to model the use and assess the communication and control effectiveness of the BSC. The study includes data from multiple divisions of a large, international manufacturing company. Data are from BSC designers, administrators, and North American managers whose divisions are objects of the BSC. The study accumulates evidence regarding the challenges of designing and implementing the BSC faced by even a large, well‐funded company. These findings may be general‐izable to other companies adopting or considering adopting the BSC as a strategic and management control device. Data in.
A method of collecting know-how knowledge based on question-answer examples and search engine suggests

This paper presents techniques of retrieving useful information from a mixture of Web pages collected from either question-answer sites (Q&A sites) or Web search engines. The proposed techniques are designed to discover the maximum possible amount of know-how knowledge from such collections of Web pages, where know-how knowledge is defined as text contents qualified as information source regarding specific domain of questions. The major intent is to build a framework that selects helpful information to provide answers to various problems of interest, such as useful tips to a question. Techniques in this paper primarily attempt to complement knowledge available on Q&A sites with pages collected from search engines via topic models. In order to argue that pages collected from search engine are truly supplements to know- how knowledge on Q&A sites we verify how much extra useful information the Web search engine is able to provide by manually inspecting Web pages aggregated by the topic model.
Effect of variation of impression material combinations, dual arch tray types, and sequence of pour on the accuracy of working dies: “An in vitro study”

Aims: To evaluate the accuracy of dies made from dual arch impressions using different sectional dual arch trays, combinations of elastomeric impression materials, and the sequence of pour of dies. Subjects and Methods: The dual arch impression materials were grouped into three groups depending on the combination of impression materials used and each group is subdivided into four subgroups. A sample size of 8 in each subgroup yielding a total 96 impressions will be made into three groups of 32 each (Group I, II, and III). Group I constitute impressions made using monophase (M) impression material, Group II constitute impressions made using combination of heavy body and light body (HL), and Group III constitute impressions made using combination of putty and light body (PL). Dies obtained were evaluated with a travelling microscope to measure the buccolingual width of the tooth at the margin by using the sharp corners of the notches as reference points. Statistical Analysis Used: Descriptive analysis namely mean and standard deviation, one-way analysis of variance test. Results: The results obtained in this study indicate that though not statistically significant, the metal dual arch trays performed better when compared to the plastic trays in reproducing die dimensions. Conclusions: From the results obtained, dies poured from combination of heavy body and light body impressions using plastic or metal dual arch trays showed least variation in bucco-lingual dimension from master model.