Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Evidence for the charmless annihilation decay mode B(s)(0)→π(+)π(-).

We search for annihilation decay modes of neutral b mesons into pairs of charmless charged hadrons with the upgraded Collider Detector at the Fermilab Tevatron. Using a data sample corresponding to 6 fb(-1) of integrated luminosity, we obtain the first evidence for the B(s)(0)→π(+)π(-) decay, with a significance of 3. 7σ, and a measured branching ratio B(B(s)(0)→π(+)π(-))=(0.57±0.15(stat)±0.10(syst))×10(-6). A search for the B(0)→K(+)K(-) mode in the same sample yields a significance of 2. 0σ, and a central value estimate B(B(0)→K(+)K(-))=(0.23±0.10(stat)±0.10(syst))×10(-6).
Repeated courses of granulocyte colony‐stimulating factor in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: Clinical and biological results from a prospective multicenter study

Granulocyte colony‐stimulating factor (G‐CSF) induces a transient mobilization of hematopoietic progenitor cells from bone marrow to peripheral blood. Our aim was to evaluate safety of repeated courses of G‐CSF in patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), assessing disease progression and changes in chemokine and cytokine levels in serum and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). Twenty‐four ALS patients entered an open‐label, multicenter trial in which four courses of G‐CSF and mannitol were administered at 3‐month intervals. Levels of G‐CSF were increased after treatment in the serum and CSF. Few and transitory adverse events were observed. No significant reduction of the mean monthly decrease in ALSFRS‐R score and forced vital capacity was observed. A significant reduction in CSF levels of monocyte chemoattractant protein‐1 (MCP‐1) and interleukin‐17 (IL‐17) was observed. G‐CSF treatment was safe and feasible in a multicenter series of ALS patients. A decrease in the CSF levels of proinflammatory cytokines MCP‐1 and IL‐17 was found, indicating a G‐CSF–induced central anti‐inflammatory response. Muscle Nerve 43: 189–195, 2011
The Effects of Work Load and Heart Rate on Filling of The Isolated Right Ventricle of The Dog Heart

Ventricular filling in the isolated right ventricle was studied. Mechanical impedance of the ventricle was estimated from simultaneous ventricular pressure and inflow measurements. Changes in work load or heart rate were accompanied by reproducible and characteristic changes in impedance and intraventricular pressure-curve contour. These were discussed in relation to changes in ventricular relaxation, elasticity, and viscosity. The right ventricle fills according to a pattern fixed by hemodynamic factors which affect the mechanical properties of the ventricle. The physical state of the ventricle early in diastole appears to be a determinant of stroke output.
Adolescent humor during peer interaction

Humor serves a number of purposes in interaction among adolescent friends. A study of predominantly female peer groups in a middle-school setting revealed that humor is utilized in different ways depending upon the size of the group and the degree of "closeness" among its members. Telling "memorized" jokes is something which occurs frequently within newly formed, mixed-sex, or mixed-age groups. Within this context, humor is often used to establish a sophisticated identity among acquaintances. Practical jokes, funny stories, and humorous behavior, on the other hand, are frequently shared by two or three close friends. These forms of humor are used to convey information about, peer norms, often by contrasting them with adult expectations. All forms of humor may be utilized to explore sensitive issues such as sexuality which normally are not discussed directly. The ways in which adolescent peers deal with the ambiguities found in humorous exchanges is discussed and the implications this research has for the development of social skills for this age-group are considered.
Exploring Informal Music Learning in a Professional Development Community of Music Teachers

The purpose of this instrumental case study was to explore the perceptions and practices of four music teachers as they participated in a professional development community (PDC) to discuss and implement informal music learning practices. Participants met bimonthly as a PDC to discuss research articles on informal music learning, share student work, socialize with peers, and develop ideas to use in their classrooms. Data included video recordings of PDC meetings, audio recordings of semistructured interviews, in-school observations of informal music learning activities, field notes, and written artifacts; these were coded and analyzed for emerging themes. Three themes that emerged from the data included experiments and modifications, pedagogical practices, and finding value. The participants implemented a variety of activities using informal processes, which they developed by modifying ideas presented in research articles they read and lessons they taught previously. They used many pedagogical practices during informal activities, which fell on a continuum of teacher and student control and a continuum of teacher scaffolding. The participants found value in informal music learning because it provided a new avenue for them to help students develop independent musicianship. Exploring informal music learning in the PDC helped participants feel validated in using this new pedagogical approach. Implications for the use of informal music learning with younger students and suggestions for professional development are also discussed.
The effect of cowpox virus infection on fecundity in bank voles and wood mice

Although epidemic infectious diseases are a recognized cause of changes in host population dynamics, there is little direct evidence for the effect of endemic infections on populations. Cowpox virus is an orthopoxvirus which is endemic in bank voles (Clethrionomys glareolus), wood mice (Apodemus sylvaticus) and field voles (Microtus agrestis) in Great Britain. It does not cause obvious signs of disease nor does it affect survival, but in this study we demonstrate experimentally that it can reduce the fecundity of bank voles and wood mice by increasing the time to first litter by 20–30 days. The pathogenic mechanisms causing this effect are at present not known, but this finding suggests that natural subclinical infection could have a considerable effect on the dynamics of wild populations.
Determination of the Minimum Distance Between Symbols of the Two Non-Orthogonal M-QAM Carriers

Multicarrier communication systems have become ubiquitous, mainly due to the popularization of orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM), in which carriers are separated in frequency by the inverse of the symbol duration. Recently, more spectrally efficient modulations based on nonorthogonal carriers (non-OFDM) have been put forward and shown numerically to have the same performance as OFDM employing up to 40% less bandwidth. This work addresses the problem of analytically deriving the minimum frequency separation which does not affect the minimum distance between multicarrier symbols. In doing so, it shows that the probability of error remains unaffected up to a certain degree of spectral superposition of the carriers, so that the performance of nonOFDM in terms of bit error rate (BER) remains the same as OFDM. Simulations and comparisons to previous numerical results are used to illustrate this conclusion. Keywords— Mutlicarrier communication, OFDM, non-OFDM, non-orthogonal multicarrier communication
Survey of Contrast Enhancement Techniques based on Histogram Equalization

This Contrast enhancement is frequently referred to as one of the most important issues in image processing. Histogram equalization (HE) is one of the common methods used for improving contrast in digital images. Histogram equalization (HE) has proved to be a simple and effective image contrast enhancement technique. However, the conventional histogram equalization methods usually result in excessive contrast enhancement, which causes the unnatural look and visual artifacts of the processed image. This paper presents a review of new forms of histogram for image contrast enhancement. The major difference among the methods in this family is the criteria used to divide the input histogram. Brightness preserving Bi-Histogram Equalization (BBHE) and Quantized Bi-Histogram Equalization (QBHE) use the average intensity value as their separating point. Dual Sub-Image Histogram Equalization (DSIHE) uses the median intensity value as the separating point. Minimum Mean Brightness Error Bi-HE (MMBEBHE) uses the separating point that produces the smallest Absolute Mean Brightness Error (AMBE). Recursive Mean-Separate Histogram Equalization (RMSHE) is another improvement of BBHE. The Brightness preserving dynamic histogram equalization (BPDHE) method is actually an extension to both MPHEBP and DHE. Weighting mean-separated sub-histogram equalization (WMSHE) method is to perform the effective contrast enhancement of the digital image.
The burden of the Leishmania chagasi/infantum infection in a closed rural focus of visceral leishmaniasis in Lara state, west‐central Venezuela

A prospective study was conducted in El Brazilar, Curarigua, Lara State, Venezuela, a small rural focus of visceral leishmaniasis (VL) to investigate the burden and the evolution of Leishmania infection in the human and canine population. The incidence of the disease from February 1998 to February 2002 was recorded and two cross‐sectional surveys using the leishmanin skin test (LST) and immunofluorescent antibody test (IFAT) were carried out. The dipstick test with recombinant r‐K39 antigen was also applied in 2002. The incidence of the disease per year among the population (n = 118) during the period of study was 0.004. The rate of new infections per year was 0.07 [95% confidence interval (95% CI): 0.15–1.09]. The overall prevalence of infection measured by LST was not significantly higher in 2002 (43.2%) than in 1998 (28.3%), but it was with IFAT [16.3%vs. 4.6%; odds ratio (OR): 4.01; 95% CI: 1.03–22.78; P = 0.022] which would indicate an increasing transmission. The dipstick test only detected infection in children up to 10 years (19.4%). Prevalence in dogs was not significantly different in 2002 (57%) vs. 1998 (33%). The parasite was isolated from dogs and identified by a polymerase chain reaction based on telomeric sequences as Leishmania chagasi/infantum.
Underdetermined source separation for colored sources

This contribution focuses on the source separation stage as important part of underdetermined blind source separation (BSS). So far nearly all approaches for underdetermined BSS assume independently, identically distributed (i.i.d.) sources. They completely ignore the redundancy that is in the temporal structure of colored sources like speech signals. Instead, we propose multivariate models based on the multivariate Student's t or multivariate Gaussian distribution and investigate their potential for underdetermined BSS. We provide a simple yet effective filter based on the sources' autocorrelations for recovering the sources as basis for further advances in underdetermined BSS. The challenge is estimating the filter coefficients blindly. The experimental results support the idea that source separation for underdetermined BSS can be reduced to the separation of their autocorrelations.
Measuring Large-Scale Social Networks with High Resolution

This paper describes the deployment of a large-scale study designed to measure human interactions across a variety of communication channels, with high temporal resolution and spanning multiple years—the Copenhagen Networks Study. Specifically, we collect data on face-to-face interactions, telecommunication, social networks, location, and background information (personality, demographics, health, politics) for a densely connected population of 1 000 individuals, using state-of-the-art smartphones as social sensors. Here we provide an overview of the related work and describe the motivation and research agenda driving the study. Additionally, the paper details the data-types measured, and the technical infrastructure in terms of both backend and phone software, as well as an outline of the deployment procedures. We document the participant privacy procedures and their underlying principles. The paper is concluded with early results from data analysis, illustrating the importance of multi-channel high-resolution approach to data collection.
Impact of race/ethnicity and gender on HCV screening and prevalence among U.S. veterans in Department of Veterans Affairs Care.

OBJECTIVES We assessed HCV screening and prevalence among veterans and estimated the potential impact of complete birth cohort screening, accounting for the disparate HCV disease burden by race/ethnicity and gender. METHODS We used the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Corporate Data Warehouse to identify birth dates, gender, race/ethnicity, and laboratory tests for veterans with at least 1 VA outpatient visit in 2012. We calculated HCV screening rates, prevalence, and HCV infection incident diagnosis. RESULTS Among 5,499,743 veterans, 54.7% had HCV screening through the VA. In more than 2.9 million veterans screened, HCV prevalence was 6.1% overall and highest among Blacks (11.8%), particularly Black men born in 1945 to 1965 (17.7%). HCV infection incident diagnosis in 2012 was 5.9% for men and 2.3% for women. An estimated additional 48,928 male veterans, including 12,291 Black men, and 1484 female veterans would potentially be identified as HCV infected with full birth cohort screening. CONCLUSIONS HCV prevalence was markedly elevated among veterans born in 1945 to 1965, with substantial variation by race/ethnicity and gender. Full adoption of birth cohort screening may reveal substantial numbers of veterans with previously unknown HCV infection.
Linear temperature model for fuel cell simulators

Alternative sources of energy has been the subject of study by researchers, is the need to master the technology or by the growing demand for renewable energy sources. Many studies have turned to survey models for simulation of fuel cells as an aid in the manufacture of electronic circuits for integration and use of energy generated by this kind of power source, due to the high cost of these equipments and used fuel (hydrogen). This work hereby presents a simulation model that includes the effect of the variation of temperature with the requested cell current. Such a model has been developed from tests on a fuel cell of 1,2kW - Nexa Power Module, using the identification by the method of least squares with pseudo-random binary signals and optimization tools.
Molecular immunocytochemistry of the CuZn superoxide dismutase in rat hepatocytes

The distribution of CuZn superoxide dismutase (SOD) molecules in subcellular organelles in rat liver hepatocytes was studied using integrated biochemical, stereological, and quantitative immunocytochemical techniques. A known concentration of purified CuZn SOD in 10% gelatin was embedded alongside the liver tissue for the calculation of CuZn SOD concentrations in hepatocyte organelles and total CuZn SOD in the rat liver. Most of the CuZn SOD was located in the cytoplasmic matrix (73.1%) and in the nucleus (11.9%) with concentrations of 1.36 and 0.71 mg/cm3, respectively. Lysosomes contained the highest concentration (5.81 mg/cm3). Only low concentrations were measured in mitochondria (0.21 mg/cm3). Membrane-bound spaces of rough endoplasmic reticulum (ER), smooth ER, and the Golgi system did not contain significant concentrations of the enzyme. By adding up the concentrations in all subcellular compartments, a total liver content of CuZn SOD was established from the immunocytochemical measurements (0.386 +/- 0.028 mg/gm liver) that agreed closely with those obtained by biochemical assays (0.380 +/- 0.058 mg/gm liver). The average distances between two CuZn SOD molecules can be calculated from enzyme concentrations. It was determined that CuZn SOD molecules in the cytoplasmic matrix and nucleus were 34 and 42 nm apart, respectively. In peroxisomes and mitochondria, average intermolecular distance increased to approximately 60 nm and increased to 136 nm in smooth ER. CuZn SOD is a relatively abundant protein in the cytosol of hepatocytes and its distribution overlaps with major sites of O2- production. The efficiency of protection CuZn SOD can provide to cytosolic proteins from attacks by superoxide anion depends on the rate of O2- production, distribution of CuZn SOD relative to cytosolic proteins, and the relative reaction rates between O2- with both cytosolic proteins and CuZn SOD. Future studies of these substrate-enzyme relationships in vivo can lead to a greater understanding of how cells handle oxidant stress.
Nonradioactive method to study genetic profiles of natural bacterial communities by PCR-single-strand-conformation polymorphism

We describe a new method for studying the structure and diversity of bacterial communities in the natural ecosystem. Our approach is based on single-strand-conformation polymorphism (SSCP) analysis of PCR products of 16S rRNA genes from complex bacterial populations. A pair of eubacterial universal primers for amplification of the variable V3 region were designed from the 16S rRNA sequences of 1,262 bacterial strains. The PCR conditions were optimized by using genomic DNAs from five gram-positive and seven gram-negative strains. The SSCP analysis of the PCR products demonstrated that a bacterial strain generated its characteristic band pattern and that other strains generated other band patterns, so that the relative diversity in bacterial communities could be measured. In addition, this method was sensitive enough to detect a bacterial population that made up less than 1.5% of a bacterial community. The distinctive differences between bacterial populations were observed in an oligotrophic lake and a eutrophic pond in a field study. The method presented here, using combined PCR amplification and SSCP pattern analyses of 16S rRNA genes, provides a useful tool to study bacterial community structures in various ecosystems.
Coarse Alignment of a Ship's Strapdown Inertial Attitude Reference System Using Velocity Loci

This paper presents a novel estimation method for fast initial coarse alignment of a ship's strapdown inertial attitude reference system using only inertial measurement unit (IMU) measurements for quasi-static alignment and IMU measurements with GPS aiding for moving-base alignment. Unlike several current techniques, the presented estimation method is effective with any initial attitude error. The estimator is based on the decomposition of the attitude quaternion into separate Earth motion, inertial rate, and alignment quaternions. The alignment quaternion is estimated using a minimum variance fit between loci of body- and navigation-frame velocity vectors using solutions to Wahba's problem. One set of vectors is derived from time integrals of measured vehicle motions, and the second set is derived from Earth motion and GPS data (when moving). For the case of quasi-static alignment, an algebraic expression for the covariance of the attitude estimate as a function of the variance of navigation-frame velocity disturbances is developed. It is shown that, by averaging and interleaving the velocity vectors, the resulting attitude estimate is improved over sequential sampling techniques. It is further shown, for a maneuvering vessel, that a continuous estimate of the attitude error covariance can be generated from the IMU data. This latter feature allows direct initialization of a follow-on fine-alignment stochastic estimator's covariance matrix. Results are presented for quasi-static alignment using inertial sensors only and for full in-motion alignment using navigation-frame GPS velocity and position aiding.
The effect of the PPARgamma ligand rosiglitazone on energy balance regulation.

BACKGROUND AND AIM Fat mass generation requires an energy surplus and the activity of the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPARgamma). We investigated if the PPARgamma ligand rosiglitazone influences substrate usage, energy expenditure (EE) and energy intake (EI) and, thereby, how PPARgamma activity contributes to susceptibility to obesity. METHODS Twenty healthy males (20-29 years) were randomly assigned to receive a placebo (n = 10) or rosiglitazone (8 mg/d) (n = 10) for seven consecutive days, while staying in a respiration chamber. Food intake was ad libitum. Body composition was determined by underwater weighing (day 1) and deuterium dilution (day 1 and 8). RESULTS Mean (+/-SE) EI was 15.9 +/- 0.9 MJ/d in the placebo group and 18.9 +/- 1.2 MJ/d in the rosiglitazone group. Mean EE was 11.3 +/- 0.3 MJ/d and 12.5 +/- 0.5 MJ/d for the placebo and rosiglitazone groups respectively. This resulted in a cumulative positive energy balance (EB) of 32.3 +/- 5.1 MJ for placebo and 44.7 +/- 6.9 MJ for rosiglitazone. There were no significant differences in EI, EE, and EB between treatments. Both groups did not adjust their fat oxidation to the increased fat intake, but fat oxidation decreased faster in the rosiglitazone group (significantly lower on days 6 and 7). During treatment with rosiglitazone, significantly more fat storage was seen in overweight subjects while this was not the case in the placebo group. CONCLUSIONS Our results suggest a shift in substrate usage during PPARgamma stimulation leading to a preference for fat storage, especially in subjects with a higher BMI.
Delayed Disadvantage: Neighborhood Context and Child Development

Abstract:Neighborhood effects scholarship suggests that neighborhoods may impart different effects across the early life-course because children’s interactions with neighborhood actors and institutions evolve across the stages of child development. This paper expands our understanding of neighborhood effects on cognitive and non-cognitive development across childhood and early adolescence by capitalizing on thirteen waves of restricted and never-before-used longitudinal data from the NLSY Child and Young Adult (1986–2010) sample. The findings from within-child fixed-effects interaction models suggest that while younger children are immune to neighborhood effects on their cognitive development, older children consistently suffer a steep penalty for growing up in disadvantaged neighborhoods. This neighborhood disadvantage penalty persists among older children despite alternative age constructs. Further, the results are robust to various adjustments for observed and unobserved sources of bias, model specifications, and also manifest as cumulative and lagged effects.
B Cells and Antibody Play Critical Roles in the Immediate Defense of Disseminated Infection by West Nile Encephalitis Virus

ABSTRACT West Nile virus (WNV) causes severe central nervous system (CNS) infection primarily in humans who are immunocompromised or elderly. In this study, we addressed the mechanism by which the immune system limits dissemination of WNV infection by infecting wild-type and immunodeficient inbred C57BL/6J mice with a low-passage WNV isolate from the recent epidemic in New York state. Wild-type mice replicated virus extraneuronally in the draining lymph nodes and spleen during the first 4 days of infection. Subsequently, virus spread to the spinal cord and the brain at virtually the same time. Congenic mice that were genetically deficient in B cells and antibody (μMT mice) developed increased CNS viral burdens and were vulnerable to lethal infection at low doses of virus. Notably, a ∼500-fold difference in serum viral load was detected in μMT mice as early as 4 days after infection, a point in the infection when low levels of neutralizing immunoglobulin M antibody were detected in wild-type mice. Passive transfer of heat-inactivated serum from infected and immune wild-type mice protected μMT mice against morbidity and mortality. We conclude that antibodies and B cells play a critical early role in the defense against disseminated infection by WNV.