Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Development and implementation of online training modules on abuse, neglect, and exploitation

ABSTRACT Online training for care managers to identify, report, and prevent abuse, neglect, and exploitation was developed for a demonstration involving the dually eligible Medicare and Medicaid population. It was composed of three modules covering background, screening, and reporting abuse. Of 453 enrollees, 273 completed at least one module and 212 completed all three. Pre- and post-training surveys for each module were used to examine changes in the proportion of correct answers for each question, using the related-samples Cochran’s Q statistic. Improvements in knowledge from pre- to post-training were evident in modules covering background on abuse and reporting abuse, but not in the module about communication principles and screening for abuse. Its content may have already been familiar to the trainees, who were primarily social workers and nurses. Lessons learned are being used to adapt the training for a wider audience to increase public awareness of abuse.
Non-standard compactifications with mass gaps and Newton's law

The four-dimensional Minkowski space-time is considered as a three-brane embedded in five dimensions, using solutions of five-dimensional supergravity. These backgrounds have a string theoretical interpretation in terms of D3-brane distributions. By studying linear fluctuations of the graviton we find a zero-mode representing the massless graviton in four-dimensional space-time. The novelty of our models is that the graviton spectrum has a genuine mass gap (independent of the position of the world-brane) above the zero-mode or it is discrete. Hence, an effective four-dimensional theory on a brane that includes the massless graviton mode is well defined. The gravitational force between point particles deviates from the Newton law by Yukawa-type corrections, which we compute explicitly. We show that the parameters of our solutions can be chosen such that these corrections lie within experimental bounds.
Threshold and subthreshold generalized anxiety disorder among US adolescents: prevalence, sociodemographic, and clinical characteristics

Background Threshold and subthreshold forms of generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) are highly prevalent and impairing conditions among adults. However, there are few general population studies that have examined these conditions during the early life course. The primary objectives of this study were to: (1) examine the prevalence, and sociodemographic and clinical characteristics of threshold and subthreshold forms of GAD in a nationally representative sample of US youth; and (2) test differences in sociodemographic and clinical characteristics between threshold and subthreshold forms of the disorder. Method The National Comorbidity Survey-Adolescent Supplement is a nationally representative face-to-face survey of 10 123 adolescents 13 to 18 years of age in the continental USA. Results Approximately 3% of adolescents met criteria for threshold GAD. Reducing the required duration from 6 months to 3 months resulted in a 65.7% increase in prevalence (5.0%); further relaxing the uncontrollability criterion led to an additional 20.7% increase in prevalence (6.1%). Adolescents with all forms of GAD displayed a recurrent clinical course marked by substantial impairment and co-morbidity with other psychiatric disorders. There were few significant differences in sociodemographic and clinical characteristics between threshold and subthreshold cases of GAD. Results also revealed age-related differences in the associated symptoms and clinical course of GAD. Conclusions Findings demonstrate the clinical significance of subthreshold forms of GAD among adolescent youth, highlighting the continuous nature of the GAD construct. Age-related differences in the associated symptoms and clinical course of GAD provide further support for criteria that capture variation in clinical features across development.
Sound Retrieval and Ranking Using Sparse Auditory Representations

To create systems that understand the sounds that humans are exposed to in everyday life, we need to represent sounds with features that can discriminate among many different sound classes. Here, we use a sound-ranking framework to quantitatively evaluate such representations in a large-scale task. We have adapted a machine-vision method, the passive-aggressive model for image retrieval (PAMIR), which efficiently learns a linear mapping from a very large sparse feature space to a large query-term space. Using this approach, we compare different auditory front ends and different ways of extracting sparse features from high-dimensional auditory images. We tested auditory models that use an adaptive polezero filter cascade (PZFC) auditory filter bank and sparse-code feature extraction from stabilized auditory images with multiple vector quantizers. In addition to auditory image models, we compare a family of more conventional mel-frequency cepstral coefficient (MFCC) front ends. The experimental results show a significant advantage for the auditory models over vector-quantized MFCCs. When thousands of sound files with a query vocabulary of thousands of words were ranked, the best precision at top-1 was 73 and the average precision was 35, reflecting a 18 improvement over the best competing MFCC front end.
Mutations in the Type II Protein Arginine Methyltransferase AtPRMT5 Result in Pleiotropic Developmental Defects in Arabidopsis1[C][OA]

Human PROTEIN ARGININE METHYLTRANSFERASE5 (PRMT5) encodes a type II protein arginine (Arg) methyltransferase and its homologs in animals and yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Schizosaccharomyces pombe) are known to regulate RNA processing, signal transduction, and gene expression. However, PRMT5 homologs in higher plants have not yet been reported and the biological roles of these proteins in plant development remain elusive. Here, using conventional biochemical approaches, we purified a plant histone Arg methyltransferase from cauliflower (Brassica oleracea) that was nearly identical to AtPRMT5, an Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) homolog of human PRMT5. AtPRMT5 methylated histone H4, H2A, and myelin basic protein in vitro. Western blot using symmetric dimethyl histone H4 Arg 3-specific antibody and thin-layer chromatography analysis demonstrated that AtPRMT5 is a type II enzyme. Mutations in AtPRMT5 caused pleiotropic developmental defects, including growth retardation, dark green and curled leaves, and FlOWERING LOCUS C (FLC)-dependent delayed flowering. Therefore, the type II protein Arg methyltransferase AtPRMT5 is involved in promotion of vegetative growth and FLC-dependent flowering time regulation in Arabidopsis.
A Single-Subject Meta-Analysis of the Effectiveness of Time-Out in Reducing Disruptive Classroom Behavior

One current area of dispute in the psychological literature is the inclusion of and proper meta-analytic data analysis procedures for single-subject designs. The current single-subject meta-analysis (N = 25) investigated the effect of time-out for the reduction of disruptive classroom behaviors in nondevelopmentally delayed children. Two separate analyses were conducted on the same sample–an effect size generated with a computer program (ITSACORR) and a percentage of nonoverlapping data (PND) score. Results suggest time-out may be most effective with male students below the age of 7. When combined with additional interventions, negative procedures appear to produce the best results. Implications of the current results are discussed including the limited sample size, comparison of meta-analytic methods, and future areas for investigation
Recombinant human tumor necrosis factor induces acute reductions in food intake and body weight in mice

We examined the effects of treatment with rHuTNF on food consumption and body weight in C3H/HeJ mice. rHuTNF was administered intraperitoneally either by injections of 3, 12, or 24 micrograms twice a day or by implantation of osmotic pumps that released 0.75, 3, or 12 micrograms per day. Dose-dependent reductions in both food intake and weight were induced by rHuTNF. However, in spite of continued exposure to rHuTNF, the mice developed a resistance to rHuTNF and resumed their pretreatment food intake and weight. Non-immunological factors may play a role in the development of this tolerance, since it developed rapidly and faded within 2 wk of cessation of exposure to rHuTNF.
A Quantitative Analysis of an Eating Disorder Prevention Program

Quantitative Analysis of an Eating Disorder Prevention Program Rachel G. Doyle Department of Counseling Psychology and Special Education Educational Specialist in School Psychology The purpose of this study was to test the effectiveness of a preventative curriculum entitled Eating Disorders: Physical, Social, and Emotional Consequences, A High School Curriculum about Anorexia, Bulimia, and Compulsive Eating (EDPSEC), a preventative curriculum for eating disorders. Participants included an experimental group of 72 students enrolled in a ninth grade health class and a control group of 39 ninth grade students enrolled in a physical education class. The research examined the administration integrity of the curriculum and participating students’ change in eating attitudes and behaviors according to group membership. The Eating Attitudes Test (EAT-26) and the Eating Survey (ES) were utilized in a pre-post test design to determine the participants’ change. There was a high correlation between the students’ scores on the ES and the EAT-26 (r = .873). Results indicated low treatment integrity and no significant change on students’ EAT-26 or ES scores according to group. However due to low treatment integrity this study was unable to determine the effectiveness of this EDPSEC curriculum. There was a high correlation between the students’ scores on the ES and the EAT-26 (r = .873).
Induction of toll-like receptor expression by Porphyromonas gingivalis.

BACKGROUND Toll-like receptors (TLRs) play pivotal roles in host immune responses and have been suggested to be involved in the development of many infectious diseases. In this study, the mRNA expression levels of TLR2, TLR4, and TLR9 and their relationship with periodontopathic bacteria in periodontal tissue are examined. Furthermore, the mechanism of TLR induction by Porphyromonas gingivalis is investigated in human gingival fibroblasts (HGFs). METHODS Gingival tissue and subgingival plaque samples were collected from 19 patients with chronic periodontitis (CP) and 16 control individuals without periodontitis. Gene expression levels in the tissues and in HGFs were analyzed by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). The numbers of periodontopathic bacteria were determined by quantitative real-time PCR. RESULTS The expression levels of TLR2 and TLR9 were significantly higher in the tissues of patients with CP compared to the tissues of control individuals. The mRNA levels of TLR2 and TLR9, but not TLR4, were positively correlated with the number of P. gingivalis in subgingival plaque. P. gingivalis sonicated extract, P. gingivalis lipopolysaccharide, P. gingivalis DNA, and tumor necrosis factor-α(TNF-α) could significantly upregulate the mRNA expression of TLR2 in HGFs. Furthermore, P. gingivalis-mediated TLR2 expression was suppressed by TNF-α antibody. CONCLUSIONS This study suggests that P. gingivalis infection induces TLR2 and TLR9 upregulation in patients with CP. P. gingivalis-induced TLR2 expression in HGFs is partially dependent on TNF-α and may lead to sensitization of HGFs to bacterial components encountered in the periodontal microenvironment.
Hierarchical Procrustes Matching for Shape Retrieval

We introduce Hierarchical Procrustes Matching (HPM), a segment-based shape matching algorithm which avoids problems associated with purely global or local methods and performs well on benchmark shape retrieval tests. The simplicity of the shape representation leads to a powerful matching algorithm which incorporates intuitive ideas about the perceptual nature of shape while being computationally efficient. This includes the ability to match similar parts even when they occur at different scales or positions. While comparison of multiscale shape representations is typically based on specific features, HPM avoids the need to extract such features. The hierarchical structure of the algorithm captures the appealing notion that matching should proceed in a global to local direction.
Online Investment Banking Phase I: Distribution via the Internet and Its Impact on IPO Performance

In the past few years, there has been a growth in Internet markets run by online investment bankers, where companies and investors can buy and sell initial public offerings (IPOs) of corporate stock. In this study, we confine our examination to the first of what we anticipate will be several phases in the evolution of Internet IPOs: the online distribution of shares. This implies the beginning of a general
Were Rivers Flowing across the Sahara During the Last Interglacial? Implications for Human Migration through Africa

Human migration north through Africa is contentious. This paper uses a novel palaeohydrological and hydraulic modelling approach to test the hypothesis that under wetter climates c.100,000 years ago major river systems ran north across the Sahara to the Mediterranean, creating viable migration routes. We confirm that three of these now buried palaeo river systems could have been active at the key time of human migration across the Sahara. Unexpectedly, it is the most western of these three rivers, the Irharhar river, that represents the most likely route for human migration. The Irharhar river flows directly south to north, uniquely linking the mountain areas experiencing monsoon climates at these times to temperate Mediterranean environments where food and resources would have been abundant. The findings have major implications for our understanding of how humans migrated north through Africa, for the first time providing a quantitative perspective on the probabilities that these routes were viable for human habitation at these times.
The Fundamental Plane of Gravitational Lens Galaxies and The Evolution of Early-Type Galaxies in Low-Density Environments

Most gravitational lenses are early-type galaxies in relatively low density environments—a "field" rather than a "cluster" population. Their average properties are the mass-averaged properties of all early-type galaxies. We show that field early-type galaxies with 0 < z < 1, as represented by the lens galaxies, lie on the same fundamental plane as those in rich clusters at similar redshifts. We then use the fundamental plane to measure the combined evolutionary and K-corrections for early-type galaxies in the V, I, and H bands. Only for passively evolving stellar populations formed at zf ≳ 2 (H0 = 65 km s-1 Mpc-1, Ω0 = 0.3, λ0 = 0.7) can the lens galaxies be matched to the local fundamental plane. The high formation epoch and the lack of significant differences between the field and cluster populations contradict many current models of the formation history of early-type galaxies. Lens galaxy colors and the fundamental plane provide good photometric redshift estimates with an empirical accuracy of ⟨zFP - zl⟩ = -0.04 ± 0.09 for the 20 lenses with known redshifts. A mass model dominated by dark matter is more consistent with the data than either an isotropic or radially anisotropic constant M/L mass model, and a radially anisotropic model is better than an isotropic model.
Utility-optimal random-access control

This paper designs medium access control (MAC) protocols for wireless networks through the network utility maximization (NUM) framework. A network-wide utility maximization problem is formulated, using a collision/persistence-probabilistic model and aligning selfish utility with total social welfare. By adjusting the parameters in the utility objective functions of the NUM problem, we can also control the tradeoff between efficiency and fairness of radio resource allocation. We develop two distributed algorithms to solve the utility-optimal random-access control problem, which lead to random access protocols that have slightly more message passing overhead than the exponential-backoff protocols, but significant potential for efficiency and fairness improvement. We provide readily-verifiable sufficient conditions under which convergence of the proposed algorithms to a global optimality of network utility can be guaranteed, and numerical experiments that illustrate the value of the NUM approach to the complexity-performance tradeoff in MAC design.
Teaching and learning science : towards a personalized approach

In pursuit of scientific literacy towards a personalized science the significance of prior knowledge in science and learning constructivist approaches to teaching and learning science the paradox of constructivism prioritizing the affective exploring some social dimensions of learning science education as enculturation problems of assimilation and exclusion authenticity in science and learning walking the line - enculturation without assimilation exploring and developing personal understanding through practical work exploring and developing personal understanding through language making it work - the role of the teacher.
Biochemical and Functional Studies on the Burkholderia cepacia Complex bceN Gene, Encoding a GDP-D-Mannose 4,6-Dehydratase

This work reports the biochemical and functional analysis of the Burkholderia cenocepacia J2315 bceN gene, encoding a protein with GDP-D-mannose 4,6-dehydratase enzyme activity (E.C.4.2.1.47). Data presented indicate that the protein is active when in the tetrameric form, catalyzing the conversion of GDP-D-mannose into GDP-4-keto-6-deoxy-D-mannose. This sugar nucleotide is the intermediary necessary for the biosynthesis of GDP-D-rhamnose, one of the sugar residues of cepacian, the major exopolysaccharide produced by environmental and human, animal and plant pathogenic isolates of the Burkholderia cepacia complex species. Vmax and Km values of 1.5±0.2 µmol. min−1.mg−1 and 1024±123 µM, respectively, were obtained from the kinetic characterization of the B. cenocepacia J2315 BceN protein by NMR spectroscopy, at 25°C and in the presence of 1 mol MgCl2 per mol of protein. The enzyme activity was strongly inhibited by the substrate, with an estimated Ki of 2913±350 µM. The lack of a functional bceN gene in a mutant derived from B. cepacia IST408 slightly reduced cepacian production. However, in the B. multivorans ATCC17616 with bceN as the single gene in its genome with predicted GMD activity, a bceN mutant did not produce cepacian, indicating that this gene product is required for cepacian biosynthesis.
Forest vehicle routing problem solved by New Insertion and meta-heuristics

The main objective of the paper is to propose a mathematical method, based on New Insertion technique and meta-heuristics to solve forest transportation routing problem. To perform this work, firstly a mathematical model is proposed; secondly a New Insertion algorithm is used to build an initial solution and thirdly the extended great deluge and reactive tabu search are used to improve this solution. The objective is to minimize the total cost by respecting the time window of all customers, which is sometimes important in this field. Finally, the experimental results obtained with the extended great deluge for the named vehicle routing problem are showed, discussed and compared to its reactive tabu search results obtained using the same initial solution. The reactive tabu search is quicker than the extended great deluge; but instead of only one parameter to control in the extended great deluge, we have to control six parameters in reactive tabu search.
Region-Specific Integration of Embryonic Stem Cell-Derived Neuronal Precursors into a Pre-Existing Neuronal Circuit

Enduring reorganization is accepted as a fundamental process of adult neural plasticity. The most dramatic example of this reorganization is the birth and continuously occurring incorporation of new neurons into the pre-existing network of the adult mammalian hippocampus. Based on this phenomenon we transplanted murine embryonic stem (ES)-cell derived neuronal precursors (ESNPs) into murine organotypic hippocampal slice cultures (OHC) and examined their integration. Using a precise quantitative morphological analysis combined with a detailed electrophysiology, we show a region-specific morphological integration of transplanted ESNPs into different subfields of the hippocampal tissue, resulting in pyramidal neuron-like embryonic stem cell-derived neurons (ESNs) in the Cornu Ammonis (CA1 and CA3) and granule neuron-like ESNs in the dentate gyrus (DG), respectively. Subregion specific structural maturation was accompanied by the development of dendritic spines and the generation of excitatory postsynaptic currents (EPSCs). This cell type specific development does not depend upon NMDA-receptor-dependent synaptic transmission. The presented integration approach was further used to determine the cell-autonomous function of the pan-neurotrophin receptor p75 (P75NTR), as a possible negative regulator of ESN integration. By this means we used p75NTR-deficient ESNPs to study their integration into a WT organotypic environment. We show here that p75NTR is not necessary for integration per se but plays a suppressing role in dendritic development.
Abundance analysis of seven $\mathsf{\delta}$ Scuti stars

Context. The current knowledge of the abundance pattern in δ Scuti stars is based on analysis of just a few field stars. Aims. We aim to determine the general chemical properties of the atmospheres of δ Scuti stars based on a statistically relevant sample of stars and investigate whether the abundance pattern is close to solar, an assumption generally made for pulsation models. Methods. We analysed high-resolution, high signal-to-noise ratio spectra of seven field δ Scuti stars. We derived the fundamental parameters and the photospheric abundances and than compared them to a similar sample of cluster δ Scuti stars. Results. With the use of a t-test we demonstrate that there is no difference between the two samples, which allows us to merge them, resulting in a sample of fifteen δ Scuti stars. We do not find any substantial difference between the abundance pattern of our sample of δ Scuti stars and a sample of normal early A- and late F-type stars. One field star in our sample, HD 124953, is most likely a pulsating Am star.