Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Resting state functional connectivity in early blind humans

Task-based neuroimaging studies in early blind humans (EB) have demonstrated heightened visual cortex responses to non-visual paradigms. Several prior functional connectivity studies in EB have shown altered connections consistent with these task-based results. But these studies generally did not consider behavioral adaptations to lifelong blindness typically observed in EB. Enhanced cognitive abilities shown in EB include greater serial recall and attention to memory. Here, we address the question of the extent to which brain intrinsic activity in EB reflects such adaptations. We performed a resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging study contrasting 14 EB with 14 age/gender matched normally sighted controls (NS). A principal finding was markedly greater functional connectivity in EB between visual cortex and regions typically associated with memory and cognitive control of attention. In contrast, correlations between visual cortex and non-deprived sensory cortices were significantly lower in EB. Thus, the available data, including that obtained in prior task-based and resting state fMRI studies, as well as the present results, indicate that visual cortex in EB becomes more heavily incorporated into functional systems instantiating episodic recall and attention to non-visual events. Moreover, EB appear to show a reduction in interactions between visual and non-deprived sensory cortices, possibly reflecting suppression of inter-sensory distracting activity.
A Probabilistic Earley Parser as a Psycholinguistic Model

In human sentence processing, cognitive load can be defined many ways. This report considers a definition of cognitive load in terms of the total probability of structural options that have been disconfirmed at some point in a sentence: the surprisal of word wi given its prefix wo.i-1 on a phrase-structural language model. These loads can be efficiently calculated using a probabilistic Earley parser (Stolcke, 1995) which is interpreted as generating predictions about reading time on a word-by-word basis. Under grammatical assumptions supported by corpus-frequency data, the operation of Stolcke's probabilistic Earley parser correctly predicts processing phenomena associated with garden path structural ambiguity and with the subject/object relative asymmetry.
Caregiver Burden and Health in Bipolar Disorder: A Cluster Analytic Approach

To identify caregivers at risk for adverse health effects associated with caregiving, the stress, coping, health and service use of 500 primary caregivers of patients with bipolar disorder were assessed at baseline, 6, and 12 months. K-means cluster analysis and ANOVA identified and characterized groups with differing baseline stress/coping profiles. Mixed effects models examined the effects of cluster, time, and covariates on health outcomes. Three groups were identified. Burdened caregivers had higher burden and avoidance coping levels, and lower mastery and social support than effective and stigmatized caregivers; stigmatized caregivers reported the highest perceived stigma (p < 0.05). Effective and stigmatized groups had better health outcomes and less service use than the burdened group over time; stigmatized caregivers had poorer self-care than effective caregivers. Cluster analysis is a promising method for identifying subgroups of caregivers with different stress and coping profiles associated with different health-related outcomes.
High throughput cell nanomechanics with mechanical imaging interferometry

The dynamic nanomechanical properties of a large number of cells (up to hundreds), measured in parallel with high throughput, are reported. Using NIH 3T3 and HEK 293T fibroblasts and actin depolymerizing drugs, we use a novel nanotechnology to quantify the local viscoelastic properties with applied forces of 20 pN–20 nN, a spatial resolution of <20 nm, and a mechanical dynamic range of several Pa up to ∼200 kPa. Our approach utilizes imaging interferometry in combination with reflective, magnetic probes attached to cells. These results indicate that mechanical imaging interferometry is a sensitive and scalable technology for measuring the nanomechanical properties of large arrays of live cells in fluid.
A Randomized Placebo-Controlled Pilot Study of the Impact of Healing Touch on Fatigue in Breast Cancer Patients Undergoing Radiation Therapy

Purpose. This is a pilot study investigating the effect of healing touch (HT) on fatigue in breast cancer patients undergoing radiation therapy (RT). Methods/Design. This study presents the results of a within-subjects design randomized clinical trial where the treatment group was treated with HT, whereas the control group experienced sham therapy. The setting was a university RT clinic. The participants were breast cancer patients treated with lumpectomy or mastectomy, 21 to 75 years old with an Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) score of 0 to 2. The intervention was a 45-minute session of HT or sham therapy once a week during RT. Outcome measures included fatigue, quality of life (QOL), and anxiety/depression. Results. A total of 70 patients were approached, with 41 completing the study. At completion, the HT participants tended to report higher levels of fatigue, statistically significant for interference (P = .010) and usual fatigue (P = .024). The control group tended to report greater reductions in fatigue relative to their own means than the HT group (Cohen’s d = 0.30 to 0.49 vs 0.06 to 0.18, respectively). There were no statistically significant differences between the groups for QOL. Conclusions. Our enrollment and retention indicate that HT is feasible for women during RT. Our pilot findings do not support a beneficial effect of HT on fatigue or QOL. Future research may explore increasing dose and teasing out therapist effect.
Playing video games does not make for better visual attention skills

The current study aimed to replicate and extend the findings of Green and Bavelier (2003) which showed video game players (VGPs) to have superior temporal attention, spatial distribution of attention and enhanced attentional capacity compared to non-video game players (NVGPs). Sixty-five males aged 17 to 25 years completed an Attentional Blink task (temporal attention), a Useful Field of View task (spatial distribution of attention), an Inattentional Blindness task (attentional capacity) and a Repetition Blindness task (attentional processing ability). It was expected that VGPs due to their superior attentional skills would perform better on all tasks than the NVGPs. Results for all tasks replicated the standard effects. VGPs were found to perform better than NVGPs in the Attentional Blink task only at the shortest target interval. There were no other group differences for any task suggesting a limited role for video game playing in the modification of visual attention.
Does local endometrial injury in the nontransfer cycle improve the IVF-ET outcome in the subsequent cycle in patients with previous unsuccessful IVF? A randomized controlled pilot study

BACKGROUND: Management of repeated implantation failure despite transfer of good-quality embryos still remains a dilemma for ART specialists. Scrapping of endometrium in the nontransfer cycle has been shown to improve the pregnancy rate in the subsequent IVF/ET cycle in recent studies. AIM: The objective of this randomized controlled trial (RCT) was to determine whether endometrial injury caused by Pipelle sampling in the nontransfer cycle could improve the probability of pregnancy in the subsequent IVF cycle in patients who had previous failed IVF outcome. SETTING: Tertiary assisted conception center. DESIGN: Randomized controlled study. MATERIALS AND METHODS: 100 eligible patients with previous failed IVF despite transfer of good-quality embryos were randomly allocated to the intervention group and control groups. In the intervention group, Pipelle endometrial sampling was done twice: One in the follicular phase and again in the luteal phase in the cycle preceding the embryo transfer cycle. OUTCOME MEASURE: The primary outcome measure was live birth rate. The secondary outcome measures were implantation and clinical pregnancy rates. RESULTS: The live birth rate was significantly higher in the intervention group compared to control group (22.4% and 9.8% P = 0.04). The clinical pregnancy rate in the intervention group was 32.7%, while that in the control group was 13.7%, which was also statistically significant (P = 0.01). The implantation rate was significantly higher in the intervention group as compared to controls (13.07% vs 7.1% P = 0.04). CONCLUSIONS: Endometrial injury in nontransfer cycle improves the live birth rate, clinical pregnancy and implantation rates in the subsequent IVF-ET cycle in patients with previous unsuccessful IVF cycles.
Subchronic Systemic Toxicity and Bioaccumulation of Fe3O4 Nano- and Microparticles Following Repeated Intraperitoneal Administration to Rats

Aqueous suspensions of 10 nm, 50 nm, or 1 μm Fe3O4 particles were injected intraperitoneally (ip) to rats at a dose of 500 mg/kg in 4 mL of sterile deionized water 3 times a week for 5 weeks. Following exposure, functional and biochemical indices and histopathological examinations of spleen and liver tissues of exposed rats were evaluated for signs of toxicity. The iron content of the blood was measured photometrically, and that of the liver and the spleen by atomic adsorption spectroscopy (AAS) and electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) methods. It was found that, given equal mass doses, Fe3O4 nanoparticles possess considerably higher systemic toxicity than microparticles, but within the nanometric range the relationship between particle size and resorptive toxicity is intricate and nonunique. The latter fact may be attributed to differences in different nanoparticles' toxicokinetics, which are controlled by both more or less substantial direct penetration of nanoparticles through biological barriers and their unequal solubility.
Three-stage pipeline implementation for SHA2 using data forwarding

The security hash algorithm 512 (SHA-512), which is used to verify the integrity of a message, involves computation iterations on data. The huge computation delay generated in that iteration limits the entire throughput of the system, and makes it difficult to pipeline the computation. To shorten the computation time in an iteration of the main loop, we used the data forwarding method. Here we introduce an architecture that simultaneously does data computation of an iteration and data movement of the next one. Then the computations are broken into two stages for one operand and three stages for another operand. The implementation occupies 1,520 hardware slices on Xilinx Virtex-4 family FPGA chip, and achieves nearly 2.2 Gbps. Thus, the implementation achieved a better area performance rate (throughput/area) in comparison with the related work.
Pinning impulsive directed coupled delayed dynamical network and its applications

The main objective of the present paper is to further investigate pinning synchronisation of a complex delayed dynamical network with directionally coupling by a single impulsive controller. By developing the analysis procedure of pinning impulsive stability for undirected coupled dynamical network previously, some simple yet general criteria of pinning impulsive synchronisation for such directed coupled network are derived analytically. It is shown that a single impulsive controller can always pin a given directed coupled network to a desired homogenous solution, including an equilibrium point, a periodic orbit, or a chaotic orbit. Subsequently, the theoretical results are illustrated by a directed small-world complex network which is a cellular neural network (CNN) and a directed scale-free complex network with the well-known Hodgkin–Huxley neuron oscillators. Numerical simulations are finally given to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed control methodology.
Object matching on real-world problems

Object matching (also referred to as duplicate identification, record linkage, entity resolution or reference reconciliation) is a crucial task for data integration and data cleaning. The task is to detect multiple representations of the same real-world object. This is a challenging task particularly for objects that are highly heterogeneous and of limited data quality, e.g., regarding completeness and consistency of their descriptions. To gain a better overview about the current state of the art in object matching, we survey the existing frameworks and their evaluations. According to the defined criteria, we review various frameworks published in the literature. We characterize them in some detail and compare them with each other and with our own framework, FEVER. With FEVER we introduce a new generic and comprehensive framework for object matching and comparative object matching evaluation. FEVER offers numerous operators for constructing non-learning as well as learning-based match workflows. Moreover, FEVER allows match approaches to be automatically executed and evaluated under different parameter configurations. Therefore FEVER sets the platform for conducting a comparative evaluation on the relative effectiveness and efficiency of alternate match approaches. Despite the huge amount of recent research efforts on object matching there has not yet been such an evaluation. With FEVER we fill this gap and present an evaluation of existing implementations on challenging real-world match tasks. We use the FEVER framework to automatically execute the approaches and to find favourable parameter settings in a comparable way. We consider approaches both with and without using machine learning to find suitable parameterization and combination of similarity functions. In addition to approaches from the research community we also consider a state-of-the-art commercial object matching implementation. Our results indicate significant quality and efficiency differences between different approaches. We also find that some challenging matching tasks such as matching product offers from online shops are not sufficiently solved with conventional approaches based on the similarity of attribute values. Furthermore, this thesis addresses the product offer matching problem. Product of-
Prrxl1 is required for the generation of a subset of nociceptive glutamatergic superficial spinal dorsal horn neurons

Perception of noxious events relies on activation of complex central neuronal circuits. The spinal cord dorsal horn plays a pivotal role in the process relaying to the brain various types of somatosensory input. These functions are accomplished by distinct sensory neurons specifically organized in different laminae. They differentiate during development in a spatial‐temporal order due to the expression of combinatorial sets of homeodomain transcription factors. Here we demonstrate that the differential expression of the homeodomain transcription factors Prrxl1 (DRG11), Tlx3, and Lmx1b defines various subpopulations of spinal cord dorsal horn glutamatergic early born and late born neurons. Accordingly, in the superficial dorsal horn of Prrxl1−/− mice, the number of glutamatergic neurons is reduced by 70%, while the number of Golgi‐impregnated and noxious‐induced Fos immunoreactive neurons is reduced by 85%. These results suggest a crucial role for Prrxl1 in the generation of various subpopulations of nociceptive glutamatergic superficial dorsal horn neurons. Developmental Dynamics 239:1684–1694, 2010. © 2010 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Dietary factors and incident atrial fibrillation: the Framingham Heart Study.

BACKGROUND There have been conflicting reported associations between dietary factors and incident atrial fibrillation (AF). OBJECTIVE We evaluated associations between consumption of alcohol, caffeine, fiber, and polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) and incident AF in the Framingham Heart Study. DESIGN Participants without AF (n = 4526; 9640 examinations; mean age: 62 y; 56% women) from the original and offspring cohorts completed food-frequency questionnaires and were followed prospectively for 4 y. We examined the associations between dietary exposures and AF with Cox proportional hazards regression. RESULTS A total of 296 individuals developed AF (177 men, 119 women). In multivariable analyses, there were no significant associations between examined dietary exposures and AF risk. Hazard ratios (HRs) for increasing quartiles of dietary factors were as follows: for alcohol, 0.73 (95% CI: 0.5, 1.05), 0.85 (95% CI: 0.61, 1.18), and 1.12 (95% CI: 0.83, 1.51) (P for trend = 0.48); for caffeine, 0.84 (95% CI: 0.62, 1.15), 0.87 (95% CI: 0.64, 1.2), and 0.98 (95% CI: 0.7, 1.39) (P for trend = 0.84); for total fiber, 0.86 (95% CI: 0.61, 1.2), 0.64 (95% CI: 0.44, 0.92), and 0.81 (95% CI: 0.54, 1.2) (P for trend = 0.16); and for n-3 (omega-3) PUFAs, 1.11 (95% CI: 0.81, 1.54), 0.92 (95% CI: 0.65, 1.29), and 1.18 (95% CI: 0.85, 1.64) (P for trend = 0.57; quartile 1 was the reference group). In exploratory analyses, consumption of >4 servings of dark fish/wk (5 cases and 21 individuals at risk) was significantly associated with AF risk compared with the consumption of <1 serving of dark fish/wk (HR: 6.53; 95% CI: 2.65, 16.06; P < 0.0001). CONCLUSIONS Consumption of alcohol, caffeine, fiber, and fish-derived PUFAs was not significantly associated with AF risk. The observed adverse association between the consumption of dark fish and AF merits further investigation. Our findings suggest that the dietary exposures examined convey limited attributable risk of AF in the general population.
Trading for Status ∗ Harrison Hong †

We test the hypothesis that status preference amplifies trading activity in stock markets. This preference leads to demand for local stocks to track neighbors that rises with the stock market and generates trading between status and non-status seekers. We use an empirical design from China, where we measure intensity of status concerns by province based on income and luxury brand internet searches controlling for income. Using large stocks to control for investment sets across provinces, we find higher share turnover and a higher sensitivity of turnover to returns for small relative to big stocks in high-status concern compared to low-status concern provinces. These differences have increased in recent years with a rising middle class in China. Local small stocks in high-status concern provinces also have higher prices. ∗Hong acknowledges support from the National Science Foundation through grant SES-0850404. We are grateful for the comments of Warren Bailey, and seminar participants at New York University, University of Amsterdam, Fudan University, Southwestern University of Finance and Economics, and Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. †Princeton University, NBER, and China Academy of Financial Research (e-mail: hhong@princeton.edu) ‡Yale University (e-mail: wenxi.jiang@yale.edu) §Shanghai Advanced Institute of Finance and China Academy of Financial Research (e-mail: bzhao@saif.sjtu.edu.cn)
Impact of Elevated Serum Uric Acid Levels on Systemic Inflammation in Patients With Psoriasis

Patients with psoriasis have increased systemic inflammation and serum uric acid (SUA) levels compared with the general population. However, the role of SUA in modulating inflammation in these patients is not known. We evaluated the associations of SUA with inflammation and psoriasis severity; 199 patients with psoriasis and 54 healthy volunteers were included in the study. Demographic features, Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI) scores, and laboratory data including SUA, C-reactive protein (CRP), and neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio (NLR) were collected. Patients with psoriasis had higher fasting blood glucose, body mass index (BMI), CRP, SUA, white blood cell (WBC) count, neutrophil count, and NLR compared with controls. The PASI score positively correlated only with CRP (r = .185, P = .012) and NLR (r = .313, P < .001). The BMI, WBC count, PASI score, and CRP, but not SUA, appeared as independent associates of NLR in patients with psoriasis in linear regression analysis. Neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio and SUA were significantly increased in patients with psoriasis compared with controls. Neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio and CRP were independent predictors of PASI score, whereas SUA was not. Serum uric acid seemed not to modulate the inflammation seen in patients with psoriasis in our cohort.
Epilepsy in India I: Epidemiology and public health

Of the 70 million persons with epilepsy (PWE) worldwide, nearly 12 million PWE are expected to reside in India; which contributes to nearly one-sixth of the global burden. This paper (first of the two part series) provides an in-depth understanding of the epidemiological aspects of epilepsy in India for developing effective public health prevention and control programs. The overall prevalence (3.0-11.9 per 1,000 population) and incidence (0.2-0.6 per 1,000 population per year) data from recent studies in India on general population are comparable to the rates of high-income countries (HICs) despite marked variations in population characteristics and study methodologies. There is a differential distribution of epilepsy among various sociodemographic and economic groups with higher rates reported for the male gender, rural population, and low socioeconomic status. A changing pattern in the age-specific occurrence of epilepsy with preponderance towards the older age group is noticed due to sociodemographic and epidemiological transition. Neuroinfections, neurocysticercosis (NCC), and neurotrauma along with birth injuries have emerged as major risk factors for secondary epilepsy. Despite its varied etiology (unknown and known), majority of the epilepsy are manageable in nature. This paper emphasizes the need for focused and targeted programs based on a life-course perspective and calls for a stronger public health approach based on equity for prevention, control, and management of epilepsy in India.
One-Unambiguous Regular Languages

Abstract The ISO standard for the Standard Generalized Markup Language (SGML) provides a syntactic meta-language for the definition of textual markup systems. In the standard, the right-hand sides of productions are based on regular expressions, although only regular expressions that denote words unambiguously, in the sense of the ISO standard, are allowed. In general, a word that is denoted by a regular expression is witnessed by a sequence of occurrences of symbols in the regular expression that match the word. In an unambiguous regular expression as defined by Book et al. (1971, IEEE Trans. Comput. C-20 (2), 149–153), each word has at most one witness. But the SGML standard also requires that a witness be computed incrementally from the word with a one-symbol lookahead; we call such regular expressions 1- unambiguous . A regular language is a 1- unambiguous language if it is denoted by some 1-unambiguous regular expression. We give a Kleene theorem for 1-unambiguous languages and characterize 1-unambiguous regular languages in terms of structural properties of the minimal deterministic automata that recognize them. As a result we are able to prove the decidability of whether a given regular expression denotes a 1-unambiguous language; if it does, then we can construct an equivalent 1-unambiguous regular expression in worst-case optimal time.