Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Resource islands predict the distribution of heterotrophic bacteria in chihuahuan desert soils

The resource island hypothesis predicts that soil resources such as nitrogen, phosphorus, and water will be distributed evenly in grasslands but have a patchy distribution focused around plants in shrublands. This hypothesis predicts that microorganism numbers will follow resources and be (i) evenly distributed in grasslands, (ii) concentrated around individual plants in shrublands, and (iii) higher where resources are higher when comparing the same vegetation type. This study enumerated total heterotrophic bacteria and a subset of these, the nitrogen-efficient guild (NEG), in three shrublands (playa fringe mesquite, tar bush, and creosote) and two grasslands (playa and bajada). Both heterotrophs and NEG members followed the distribution pattern predicted by the resource island hypothesis. There were no significant differences in heterotroph or NEG numbers comparing at-plant and interplant samples for both the playa and bajada grasslands. Furthermore, populations were generally higher in nutrient-rich playa grasslands than nutrient-poor bajada grasslands. In contrast, both heterotroph and NEG numbers were higher at shrubs than between shrubs in all three shrub sites. These results suggest that resource abundance in resource islands predicts the distribution of heterotrophic bacterial numbers in desert soils.
Aberrant Calcium/Calmodulin-Dependent Protein Kinase II (CaMKII) Activity Is Associated with Abnormal Dendritic Spine Morphology in the ATRX Mutant Mouse Brain

In humans, mutations in the gene encoding ATRX, a chromatin remodeling protein of the sucrose-nonfermenting 2 family, cause several mental retardation disorders, including α-thalassemia X-linked mental retardation syndrome. We generated ATRX mutant mice lacking exon 2 (ATRXΔE2 mice), a mutation that mimics exon 2 mutations seen in human patients and associated with milder forms of retardation. ATRXΔE2 mice exhibited abnormal dendritic spine formation in the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC). Consistent with other mouse models of mental retardation, ATRXΔE2 mice exhibited longer and thinner dendritic spines compared with wild-type mice without changes in spine number. Interestingly, aberrant increased calcium/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II (CaMKII) activity was observed in the mPFC of ATRXΔE2 mice. Increased CaMKII autophosphorylation and activity were associated with increased phosphorylation of the Rac1-guanine nucleotide exchange factors (GEFs) T-cell lymphoma invasion and metastasis 1 (Tiam1) and kalirin-7, known substrates of CaMKII. We confirmed increased phosphorylation of p21-activated kinases (PAKs) in mPFC extracts. Furthermore, reduced protein expression and activity of protein phosphatase 1 (PP1) was evident in the mPFC of ATRXΔE2 mice. In cultured cortical neurons, PP1 inhibition by okadaic acid increased CaMKII-dependent Tiam1 and kalirin-7 phosphorylation. Together, our data strongly suggest that aberrant CaMKII activation likely mediates abnormal spine formation in the mPFC. Such morphological changes plus elevated Rac1-GEF/PAK signaling seen in ATRXΔE2 mice may contribute to mental retardation syndromes seen in human patients.
Data-aided approach to I/Q mismatch and DC offset compensation in communication receivers

A digital signal processing technique for compensating both the I/Q mismatch and the DC offset in communication receivers is derived with an emphasis on direct-conversion architectures. The I/Q mismatch and DC offset are estimated in a least-squares sense using a training sequence. Also, a group of training sequences that minimizes the mean square error of the estimate is determined. The advantages of the proposed technique are demonstrated through computer simulation.
A new Eocene swift‐like bird with a peculiar feathering

A new taxon of swift-like birds is described from the Middle Eocene of Messel (Germany). It is tentatively assigned to the extinct family Jungornithidae and exhibits a completely unexpected feathering, which contrasts sharply with that of recent swifts. The short and rounded wings clearly show that it was not adapted to gliding, but might have caught its prey by sallying flights from a perch. The tail of the new taxon is very long and the tail feathers are broad and nearly symmetrical. The phylogenetic relationships between the Jungornithidae and other apodiform birds are still not convincingly resolved. The early Oligocene genus Jungornis itself shares unique derived characters with hummingbirds which are, however, absent in the Eocene genus Argornis and in the new taxon from Messel.
Pancreatitis and hyperparathyroidism

Three patients with acute pancreatitis were found also to have hyperparathyroidism, two of them also formed pancreatic cysts. There appears to be more than an incidental relationship between the two diseases. The importance of serum calcium estimations in patients with pancreatitis is stressed. Theories as to why these diseases co-exist are reviewed.
Exclusion of small terminase mediated DNA threading models for genome packaging in bacteriophage T4

Tailed bacteriophages and herpes viruses use powerful molecular machines to package their genomes. The packaging machine consists of three components: portal, motor (large terminase; TerL) and regulator (small terminase; TerS). Portal, a dodecamer, and motor, a pentamer, form two concentric rings at the special five-fold vertex of the icosahedral capsid. Powered by ATPase, the motor ratchets DNA into the capsid through the portal channel. TerS is essential for packaging, particularly for genome recognition, but its mechanism is unknown and controversial. Structures of gear-shaped TerS rings inspired models that invoke DNA threading through the central channel. Here, we report that mutations of basic residues that line phage T4 TerS (gp16) channel do not disrupt DNA binding. Even deletion of the entire channel helix retained DNA binding and produced progeny phage in vivo. On the other hand, large oligomers of TerS (11-mers/12-mers), but not small oligomers (trimers to hexamers), bind DNA. These results suggest that TerS oligomerization creates a large outer surface, which, but not the interior of the channel, is critical for function, probably to wrap viral genome around the ring during packaging initiation. Hence, models involving TerS-mediated DNA threading may be excluded as an essential mechanism for viral genome packaging.
Effects of culture, social presence, and group composition on trust in technology‐supported decision‐making groups

This study examines trust in technology‐supported groups from the perspectives of culture, social presence and group composition. Our results demonstrate that, in culturally homogeneous groups, individualism has a negative impact on the level of interpersonal trust; however, in culturally heterogeneous groups consisting of Chinese and U.S. participants, individualism has a positive impact on interpersonal trust among members. There were also significant differences in the level of trust between homogeneous Chinese groups and heterogeneous groups consisting of Chinese and U.S. participants. In addition, the mediating role of communication quality was identified to explain the effect for trust‐of social presence on trust. These findings have important implications on building and communication in global technology‐supported decision‐making groups.
Performance Evaluation of WordNet-based Semantic Relatedness Measures for Word Prediction in Conversational Speech

The recognition of conversational speech is a hard problem. Semantic relatedness measures can improve speech recognition performance when using contextual information, as Demetriou [5] has shown. The standard n-gram approach in language modeling for speech recognition cannot cope with long distance dependencies [4]. Therefore J. Bellegarda [2] proposed combining n-gram language models, which are effective for predicting local dependencies, with latent semantic analysis for long distance dependencies. WordNetbased semantic relatedness measures can be used for word prediction using long distance dependencies, as in these examples from our experiments:
B-Cell Depletion Therapy in Systemic Sclerosis: Experimental Rationale and Update on Clinical Evidence

Systemic sclerosis (SSc) is a systemic rheumatic disease with poor prognosis since therapeutic options are limited. Recent evidence from animal models suggests that B-cells may be actively involved in the fibrotic process. B-cells from tight skin mice, an animal model of scleroderma, display a “hyperresponsive” phenotype; treatment with rituximab (RTX) significantly attenuates skin fibrosis in this animal model. In humans, B-cell infiltration is a prominent finding in most lung biopsies obtained from patients with SSc-associated interstitial lung disease. Several open label studies have assessed the clinical efficacy of RTX in SSc. In most patients skin fibrosis improved; lung function either improved or remained stable. Definite conclusions regarding the clinical efficacy of RTX in SSc cannot be drawn but further exploration with a multicenter, randomized study is warranted.
Animating human lower limbs using contact-invariant optimization

We present a trajectory optimization approach to animating human activities that are driven by the lower body. Our approach is based on contact-invariant optimization. We develop a simplified and generalized formulation of contact-invariant optimization that enables continuous optimization over contact timings. This formulation is applied to a fully physical humanoid model whose lower limbs are actuated by musculotendon units. Our approach does not rely on prior motion data or on task-specific controllers. Motion is synthesized from first principles, given only a detailed physical model of the body and spacetime constraints. We demonstrate the approach on a variety of activities, such as walking, running, jumping, and kicking. Our approach produces walking motions that quantitatively match ground-truth data, and predicts aspects of human gait initiation, incline walking, and locomotion in reduced gravity.
The Developmental Approach to Artiicial Intelligence: Concepts, Developmental Algorithms and Experimental Results

This article introduces the developmental approach to arti cial intelligence, which is di erent from other existing major approaches: knowledge-based, behavior-based, learning-based, and evolutionary approaches. The developmental approach is motivated by human cognitive development from infancy to adulthood, during which human individuals develop their intelligence through interactions with the environment. A developmental algorithm of a species, either natural or arti cial, starts to run at the \birth" of the individual and it runs continuously through the entire life span. It automates the process of system development. The developmental approach does not mean just from small to big and from simple to complex. It requires the system to learn new tasks and new aspects of each complex task without a need of reprogramming. We introduce AA-learning as a basic mode for developmental learning. This paper introduces the basic concepts, the architecture, some developmental algorithms, and some experimental results from our SAIL project, which aims to built agents that are capable of performing developmental learning. 1 Figure 1: The SAIL robot under construction in a machine shop, awaiting its \birth. " What can it learn after its birth? Can it recognize humans it has been introduced to? Can it identify gender? Can it learn to act according to what it perceives? For example, in this case, can it be taught to present the right present to guests?
Occupation-Level Income Shocks and Asset Returns: Their Covariance and Implications for Portfolio Choice

This paper develops and applies a simple graphical approach to portfolio selection that accounts for covariance between asset returns and an investor's labor income. Our graphical approach easily handles income shocks that are partly hedgable, multiple risky assets, many periods and life cycle considerations. We apply the approach to occupation-level components of individual income innovations estimated from repeated cross-sections of the current population survey. We characterize several properties of these innovations, including their covariance with aggregate equity returns, long-term bond returns, and returns on several other assets. Aggregate equity returns are uncorrelated with the occupation-level income innovations, but a portfolio formed on firm size is significantly correlated with income innovations for several occupations, and so are selected industry-level equity portfolios. An application of the theory to the empirical results shows (a) large predicted levels of risky asset holdings compared to observed levels, (b) considerable variation in optimal portfolio allocations over the life cycle, and (c) large departures from the two-fund separation principle.
Multicenter Study of Chronic Asthma Severity Among Emergency Department Patients With Acute Asthma

Objective. The initiation of controller therapy for asthma depends on chronic asthma severity. To facilitate initiation of inhaled corticosteroids (ICSs), the preferred controller therapy, in the emergency department (ED), the objective of the study was to describe chronic asthma severity, as defined by the national asthma guidelines, among children presenting to the ED with acute asthma. Methods. Investigators at 14 U.S. sites prospectively enrolled consecutive children 2–17 years presenting to the ED with acute asthma. Three factors (daytime symptoms, nighttime symptoms, and medication usage) were used to categorize children into four chronic asthma severity groups: intermittent, mild persistent, moderate persistent or severe persistent. Results. This multistate cohort of 311 children had a mean age of 7.7 years, was 51% Black, and 89% had a primary care provider (PCP). Regarding chronic severity, 18% were intermittent and 82% persistent: 37% mild persistent, 24% moderate persistent, and 20% severe persistent. Chronic severity groups did not differ by demographics or PCP status. Patients with persistent asthma were more likely to report moderate-severe asthma symptoms (58% versus 19%; p < .001), poor asthma control (2% versus 18%; p = .002), and more ED visits (median, 2 versus 1; p < .001) in the past year. The groups did not differ in acute asthma severity, ED treatment, or admission rate. Rate of discharge prescription for ICSs was low, albeit higher among children with persistent asthma (24% versus 4%; p = .003). Conclusions. The high prevalence of persistent asthma among ED patients exceeds the prevalence reported previously, and supports ED initiation of ICS, as recommended by national guidelines.
Mafic and ultramafic igneous rocks of the Raisduoddar-Halti area in the Finnish-Norwegian Caledonides. Petrography, mineralogy and geochemistry

and ultramafic igneous rocks of the Raisduoddar- area in the Finnish-Norwegian Bull. 63, Part The mafic and ultramafic rocks in the Raisduoddar-Halti area constitute a shal-low horizontal allochthonous plate in the highest tectono-stratigraphic position of the Finnish Caledonides. They are located close to the boundary of the lower part of the Vaddas Nappe in the Upper Allochthon and the Kalak Nappe Complex in the Middle Allochthon. The mafic and ultramafic rocks in the area are Ridnitsohkka gabbro sills in the east and dunite-troctolite-olivine gabbro cumulates at Rais- duoddar-Halti. They are syngenetic and belong to the same nappe. The lower contact with the Nabar schists of the Kalak Nappe Complex on the cumulate side is distinctly tectonic and may continue as a tectonic contact in the sill area, too. The gabbro sills, which are tholeiitic in chemical composition, are enriched in LREE and show a small positive Eu anomaly. Close to the cumulate the gabbro sills contain olivine. The cumulate massif crystallized mainly as a closed system, as shown by the linear change in the composition of the rocks and minerals. The cumulates are in- truded by coarse grained gabbro pegmatoids. The same pegmatoid magma gave rise to the metasomatic olivine gabbro with augite porphyroblasts between the cu- mulate massif and the sill area. Before last nappe movements the rocks of the cumulate massif were partly amphibolitized across the lithologic contacts and mag- matic layering. As suggested lithologic composition and the mineral composition, the magmatism in the area contains evidence of at least two major magmatic events. First, tholeiitic gabbro sills intruded the acid schists. Then, the magma type having become more primitive the Raisduoddar-Halti cumulates fractionated. A new U-Pb age of 434 + 4 Ma on baddeleyite from Ridnitsohkka gabbro sills shows that the mafic and ultramafic rocks in the area can be correlated with the synorogenic Scandian mafic intrusive rocks in the Scandinavian Caledonides.
Magnetic resonance lymphography in gynaecological malignancies

Abstract Following the submission of this article to Cancer Imaging, unfortunately the European manufacturer of ferumoxtran-10 (Guerbet) has withdrawn the product pending further phase III studies. This is secondary to the view of the Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use that the phase III data did not provide adequate statistical demonstration of the product's efficacy. Magnetic resonance lymphography holds much promise for the non-invasive evaluation of lymph nodes. The technique utilizes ultrasmall superparamagnetic particles of iron oxide and has been shown to be highly sensitive and specific in the diagnosis of malignant lymph nodes. This article reviews the technique and the performance of magnetic resonance lymphography in studies to date; alternative newer methods of nodal assessment such as fluorodeoxyglucose-positron emission tomography/computed tomography and diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging are also discussed, with emphasis on gynaecological malignancies.
Why is PIN Priced?

Recent empirical work suggests that a proxy for the probability of informed trading (PIN) is an important determinant of the cross-section of average returns. This paper examines whether PIN is priced because of information asymmetry or because of other liquidity effects that are unrelated to information asymmetry. Our starting point is a model that decomposes PIN into two components, one related to asymmetric information and one related to illiquidity. In a two-pass Fama-MacBeth [1973. Risk, return, and equilibrium: empirical tests. Journal of Political Economy 81, 607-636] regression, we show that the PIN component related to asymmetric information is not priced, while the PIN component related to illiquidity is priced. We conclude, therefore, that liquidity effects unrelated to information asymmetry explain the relation between PIN and the cross-section of expected returns.
Major Bleeding Complications and Persistence With Oral Anticoagulation in Non‐Valvular Atrial Fibrillation: Contemporary Findings in Real‐Life Danish Patients

Background The nonvitamin K antagonist oral anticoagulants have recently become available as an alternative to warfarin as stroke prophylaxis in atrial fibrillation, but data on real‐life patient experience, including bleeding risk, are lacking. Our objective was to compare major bleeding events and nonpersistence between the nonvitamin K antagonist oral anticoagulant apixaban and other nonvitamin K antagonist oral anticoagulants (dabigatran and rivaroxaban) and warfarin in a contemporary, nation‐wide cohort of patients with nonvalvular atrial fibrillation. Methods and Results Of 54 321 patients (median age, 73 years; 56% male; mean CHA 2 DS 2‐VASc score, 2.9), 7963, 6715, 15 413, and 24 230 patients initiated apixaban, rivaroxaban, dabigatran, and warfarin, respectively. Apixaban and rivaroxaban initiators were older, less often male, with higher HAS‐BLED and CHA 2 DS 2‐VASc scores compared with dabigatran and warfarin initiators. A total of 2418 patients (4.5%) experienced a major bleeding event over all available follow‐up. In this period, rivaroxaban (hazard ratio [HR] [95% CI], 1.49 [1.27–1.77]), dabigatran (HR, 1.17 [1.00–1.38]), and warfarin (HR, 1.23 [1.05–1.43]) users were significantly more likely to bleed than apixaban users. Findings were similar when restricted to the first 30 days after OAC initiation. Risk of nonpersistence was higher for dabigatran (HR, 1.45 [1.33–1.59]) and warfarin initiators (HR, 1.22 [1.12–1.33]), but not for rivaroxaban initiators (HR, 1.07 [0.96–1.20]) compared with apixaban initiators. Conclusions In a real‐world cohort of nonvalvular atrial fibrillation patients, apixaban had a lower adjusted major bleeding risk compared with rivaroxaban, dabigatran, and warfarin. Apixaban had a lower risk of nonpersistence compared with dabigatran and warfarin and similar risk compared with rivaroxaban.
Right atrial pressure is not adequate to calculate portal pressure gradient in cirrhosis: A clinical‐hemodynamic correlation study

Hepatic venous pressure gradient (HVPG), the difference between wedge and free hepatic venous pressure, is the preferred method for estimating portal pressure. However, it has been suggested that hepatic atrial pressure gradient (HAPG)—the gradient between wedge hepatic venous pressure and right atrial pressure (RAP)—might better reflect variceal hemodynamics. The aim of this study was to (1) investigate whether HAPG with nonselective beta‐blockers correlates with prognosis in cirrhotic patients with portal hypertension at baseline and during treatment; (2) compare the prognostic value of HAPG with that of HVPG; and (3) investigate the agreement between portoatrial gradient (PAG) and portocaval gradient (PCG) in patients with transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt (TIPS). We included 154 cirrhotic patients with varices with a complete hemodynamic study at baseline and on chronic treatment for primary (n = 71) or secondary (n = 83) prophylaxis for bleeding and 99 patients with TIPS. All patients were followed for up to 2 years; portal hypertensive‐related bleeding and bleeding‐free survival were analyzed. HVPG was equal or lower than HAPG in all patients (−3.2 mm Hg; P < 0.001). Agreement between HAPG and HVPG was modest, especially in patients with increased intra‐abdominal pressure. One hundred two patients were HVPG nonresponders and 52 patients were HVPG responders to nonselective beta‐blockers, whereas 101 patients were HAPG nonresponders and 53 patients were HAPG responders (k = 0.610). HVPG response revealed an excellent predictive value for bleeding risk and bleeding‐free survival; HAPG did not. In our TIPS patients, 20% had a PCG ≤12 mm Hg and a PAG >12 mm Hg, which may have induced unnecessary overdilation of the TIPS. Conclusion: The excellent prognostic information provided by HVPG response to drug therapy is lost if HAPG response is considered. RAP should not be used for the calculation of portal pressure gradient in patients with cirrhosis. Hepatology 2010;51:2108–2116