Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Semantic-based local search in multiobjective genetic programming

We report a series of experiments within a multiobjective genetic programming (GP) framework using semantic-based local GP search. We have made comparison with the Random Desired Operator (RDO) of Pawlak et al. and find that a standard generational GP followed by a carefully-designed single-objective GP implementing semantic-based local search yields results statistically comparable to those obtained with the RDO operator. The trees obtained with our GP-based local search technique are, however, around half the size of the trees resulting from the use of the RDO.
Suicide and epilepsy: do antiepileptic drugs increase the risk?

Introduction: Years after the US FDA issued an alert on an increased risk of suicide ideation and behavior in people with epilepsy treated with antiepileptic drugs (AEDs), this issue still remains controversial. The FDA alert was based on a meta-analysis of clinical trials of AEDs in all indications. Areas covered: We discuss major methodological problems of this meta-analysis. Available evidence coming from the published studies is also discussed highlighting that the majority of them are also affected by major methodological limitations, which do not allow an absolute conclusion. Expert opinion: Suicide in epilepsy is a complex phenomenon but most agree that suicide rates are higher in people with epilepsy when compared to the general population. Screening for suicide seems to be appropriate and well-designed prospective studies are urgently needed in order to clarify fully a possible role of AEDs.
Morphological Change at the Snowy River Ocean Entrance, Victoria, Australia (1851–2008)

Abstract Analysis of data, including historical documentation, survey and navigation charts, and aerial imagery, representing a time series of 1851–2008 for the Snowy River ocean entrance area (located in East Gippsland, Victoria, Australia) shows that much morphological change has occurred, including entrance channel migration along 8000 m of Holocene sandy barrier formation. Increasingly frequent episodes of Snowy River entrance channel closure to Bass Strait is apparent from reference to the 1981–2008 record. The deployment of GIS technology allows such long-term coastal zone change to be visualised and documented, and, to some extent, quantified. Explanations for this change relate primarily to altered stream flow regimes. Within the Snowy River catchment, hydrological processes have been irretrievably altered after the development of the Snowy Mountains Hydro-electricity Scheme (SMHS) from 1951, which currently appropriates the vast majority of annual discharge from the high rainfall and snowfall areas of the upper Snowy River catchment. Loss of Snowy River discharge volume in the post-SMHS period also refers to a steady diminution of stream flow yield from the unregulated sub-catchments, due to a reduction in catchment rainfall. Whilst ebb-flow augmentation via stream flow discharge is essential to the maintenance of the Snowy River entrance, both long-term below-average catchment rainfall and snow coverage, together with future climate change predictions, leave provision of legislated flow targets for the lower Snowy River in question. Thus, the Snowy River entrance is likely to remain ephemeral in the future as a direct consequence of inter-regional water transfer and climate change.
A Political-Economy Theory of Trade Agreements

We develop a model where trade agreements - in addition to correcting terms-of-trade externalities - help governments to commit vis-a-vis domestic industrial lobbies. We explore how trade liberalization is affected by the characteristics of the political environment, such as the degree to which governments are politically motivated and the influence of lobbies during the negotiation of the agreement. We find that governments may prefer to commit to tariff ceilings, rather than exact tariff levels. We also find that trade liberalization is deeper when capital is more mobile across sectors. In a dynamic extension of the model, the optimal agreement entails an immediate slashing of tariffs followed by a phase of gradual trade liberalization. In the gradual phase, the speed of liberalization is higher when capital is more mobile.
Negative Regulation of Pulmonary Th17 Responses by C3a Anaphylatoxin during Allergic Inflammation in Mice

Activation of complement is one of the earliest immune responses to exogenous threats, resulting in various cleavage products including anaphylatoxin C3a. In addition to its contribution to host defense, C3a has been shown to mediate Th2 responses in animal models of asthma. However, the role of C3a on pulmonary Th17 responses during allergic inflammation remains unclear. Here, we show that mice deficient in C3a receptor (C3aR) exhibited (i) higher percentages of endogenous IL-17-producing CD4+ T cells in the lungs, (ii) higher amounts of IL-17 in the bronchoalveolar lavage fluid, and (iii) more neutrophils in the lungs than wild-type mice when challenged with intranasal allergens. Moreover, adoptive transfer experiments showed that the frequencies of antigen-specific IL-17-producing CD4+ T cells were significantly higher in the lungs and bronchial lymph nodes of C3aR-deficient recipients than those of wild-types recipients. Bone-marrow reconstitution study indicated that C3aR-deficiency on hematopoietic cells was required for the increased Th17 responses. Furthermore, C3aR-deficient mice exhibited increased percentages of Foxp3+ regulatory T cells; however, depletion of these cells minimally affected the induction of antigen-specific Th17 cell population in the lungs. Neutralization of IL-17 significantly reduced the number of neutrophils in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid of C3aR-deficient mice. Our findings demonstrate that C3a signals negatively regulate antigen-specific Th17 responses during allergic lung inflammation and the size of Foxp3+ regulatory T cell population in the periphery.
"Everything You Want is There": The Place of the Reserve in First Nations' Homeless Mobility

This study examines the role of rural reserves in the mobility strategies of First Nations homeless participants, who were interviewed in Prince Albert, Saskatchewan, a town in Canada's central prairie province. Although increasing attention is being paid to homelessness in rural areas, existing geographic work on homeless mobility has provided little in the way of a framework for identifying the paths homeless people take through different urban and rural places. Reserves are places where First Nations (indigenous) people have unique rights and/or residency. Created through colonial legislation, the expectation was that reserves would disappear as First Nations people were assimilated. However, colonialism shaped reserves as places of poverty, poor housing, and economic disadvantage, but they also became places where First Nations experienced family connections and where they had some special rights. Our research showed that many First Nations people interviewed in the city had reserves as origins or destinations in their mobility paths in the year and a half prior to the interview. Circumstances on reserves led individuals to move elsewhere, but lack of resources and the desire to maintain social connections led them back. The results show the ongoing effects of colonial history on homeless people's lives. They also indicate the importance of studying the geographic pattern and scale of homeless individuals' mobility patterns.
Navigating the Waves of Social and Political Capriciousness: Inspiring Perspectives From DREAM-Eligible Immigrant Students

This article examines the psychological and sociological impacts of the proposed Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act and in-state tuition legislation on DREAM-eligible students in the Midwestern United States. The researchers sought to capture the lived experiences of undocumented immigrant students through their rich interpretations of current immigration policy and how participants described their situation, their identity, and their dreams in relation to the volatility of their external environment. Este manuscrito examina el impacto psicológico y sociológico del propuesto Acto de Desarrollo, Asistencia, y Educación para Menores Extranjeros (DREAM) y la ley de educación para residentes estatales sobre estudiantes elegibles del DREAM en el medio-oeste de los Estados Unidos de América. Los investigadores buscaron capturar las experiencias vividas por estudiantes inmigrados sin documentos a través de interpretaciones ricas de la política actual de inmigración y cómo los participantes describieron sus situaciones, su identidad, y sus sueños y la relación de ellos con la volatilidad de su ambiente externo.
Differential vulnerability of interneurons in the epileptic hippocampus

The loss of hippocampal interneurons has been considered as one reason for the onset of temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) by shifting the excitation-inhibition balance. Yet, there are many different interneuron types which show differential vulnerability in the context of an epileptogenic insult. We used the intrahippocampal kainate (KA) mouse model for TLE in which a focal, unilateral KA injection induces status epilepticus (SE) followed by development of granule cell dispersion (GCD) and hippocampal sclerosis surrounding the injection site but not in the intermediate and temporal hippocampus. In this study, we characterized the loss of interneurons with respect to septotemporal position and to differential vulnerability of interneuron populations. To this end, we performed intrahippocampal recordings of the initial SE, in situ hybridization for glutamic acid decarboxylase 67 (GAD67) mRNA and immunohistochemistry for parvalbumin (PV) and neuropeptide Y (NPY) in the early phase of epileptogenesis at 2 days and at 21 days after KA injection, when recurrent epileptic activity and GCD have fully developed. We show that SE extended along the entire septotemporal axis of both hippocampi, but was stronger at distant sites than at the injection site. There was an almost complete loss of interneurons surrounding the injection site and expanding to the intermediate hippocampus already at 2 days but increasing until 21 days after KA. Furthermore, we observed differential vulnerability of PV- and NPY-expressing cells: while the latter were lost at the injection site but preserved at intermediate sites, PV-expressing cells were gone even at sites more temporal than GCD. In addition, we found upregulation of GAD67 mRNA expression in dispersed granule cells and of NPY staining in ipsilateral granule cells and ipsi- and contralateral mossy fibers. Our data thus indicate differential survival capacity of interneurons in the epileptic hippocampus and compensatory plasticity mechanisms depending on the hippocampal position.
Draining or gaining? The social networks of public housing movers in Boston

The social networks of low-income residents have been simultaneously described as supportive, strained, localized, and limited in providing access to necessary resources and information. Using a longitudinal qualitative approach, this study investigated the social networks of low-income women in one US high-poverty public housing project. Existing sociological frameworks for studying networks did not fully capture the women's social ties, particularly their “draining” ties. As the women were relocated as part of a mixed-income housing initiative targeting their neighborhood, a changing flow of resources and stress passed through social ties. A change in neighborhood prompted changes in low-income people's social networks far different than expected. Findings also raise questions about the importance of weak or bridging ties in linking low-income women with mobility opportunities.
Differentiation of Salmonella phase 1 flagellar antigen types by restriction of the amplified fliC gene

The large antigenic diversity (over 2,300 serotypes) expressed by Salmonella strains can probably be observed at the genetic level. The phase 1 flagellin gene fliC was amplified, and the amplified fragment was cleaved with a mixture of both endonucleases TaqI and ScaI. The restriction patterns observed allowed differentiation of flagellar types b, i, d, j, l,v, and z10. Flagellar group g (g,m, g,p, or g,m,s) could be differentiated from the other flagellar types. Flagellar types r and e,h could not be separated, although they could be distinguished from the other flagellar types studied. Practical applications of flagellar gene restriction are the distinction between serotype Gallinarum-Pullorum, which carries a cryptic gene for flagellar type g,m, and nonmotile Vi-negative variants of serotype Typhi, and the tentative assignation of nonmotile variants of Salmonella serotypes to a flagellar type.
Efficient Quantum Key Distribution

We devise a simple modification that essentially doubles the efficiency of a well-known quantum key distribution scheme proposed by Bennett and Brassard (BB84). Our scheme assigns significantly different probabilities for the different polarization bases during both transmission and reception to reduce the fraction of discarded data. The actual probabilities used in the scheme are announced in public. As the number of transmitted signals increases, the efficiency of our scheme can be made to approach 100%. An eavesdropper may try to break such a scheme by eavesdropping mainly along the predominant basis. To defeat such an attack, we perform a refined analysis of accepted data: Instead of lumping all the accepted data together to estimate a single
“Good” and “Bad” Kids? A Race and Gender Analysis of Effective Behavioral Support in an Elementary School

Using 8,265 positive behavior cards and 544 conduct reports for 244 students, regressions of how race and gender influence the allocation of punishments or rewards for students at a New England elementary school with an Effective Behavioral Support (EBS) program were examined. Girls were most likely to receive a positive behavior card for respectful actions and white students were most likely to receive a positive card for safe behavior. Boys and Black students were more likely to receive a conduct report for “bad” behavior than girls and white students. Implications regarding race and gender bias in behavior-based programs are discussed.
Different effects of telithromycin on MUC5AC production induced by human neutrophil peptide-1 or lipopolysaccharide in NCI-H292 cells compared with azithromycin and clarithromycin.

OBJECTIVES Mucus hypersecretion is a prominent feature in patients with chronic respiratory tract infections such as cystic fibrosis and diffuse panbronchiolitis, and the clinical effectiveness of macrolide antibiotics has been reported in these patients. Because human neutrophil peptide-1 (HNP-1), an antimicrobial peptide in neutrophils, exists in high concentrations in the airway fluid of these patients, we examined the direct effect of HNP-1 on MUC5AC mucin production using NCI-H292 cells. The effects of macrolide antibiotics on the response were also examined. METHODS MUC5AC synthesis was assayed using RT-PCR and ELISA. Phosphorylation of ERK1/2 was determined by western blotting. RESULTS Stimulation with HNP-1 or lipopolysaccharide (LPS) derived from Pseudomonas aeruginosa increases the production of MUC5AC mRNA and protein, and an additive effect was found upon co-stimulation with both HNP-1 and LPS. Azithromycin and clarithromycin had inhibitory effects on overproduction of MUC5AC induced by HNP-1 or LPS stimulation. Telithromycin also had an inhibitory effect on MUC5AC production induced by LPS, but not on production by HNP-1. Phosphorylation of ERK1/2 was induced by HNP-1 or LPS stimulation, and azithromycin, clarithromycin and telithromycin had inhibitory effects on ERK1/2 phosphorylation induced by LPS, but not by HNP-1. CONCLUSIONS These findings suggest that neutrophil-derived defensins as bacterial components contribute to excessive mucus production in patients with respiratory tract infections, and that macrolide and ketolide antibiotics directly inhibit these actions by interfering with intracellular signal transduction. However, the mechanism of telithromycin inhibition of MUC5AC synthesis may differ from the response induced by azithromycin and clarithromycin.
The Melanogenesis Alteration Effects of Achillea millefolium L. Essential Oil and Linalyl Acetate: Involvement of Oxidative Stress and the JNK and ERK Signaling Pathways in Melanoma Cells

The mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) family, including extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK)1/2, c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK)1/2 and p38 MAPK, is known to be activated by ultraviolet (UV) radiation in melanocytes to regulate melanin production. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) play important roles in the pathway of ERK and JNK activation. It has been established that the essential oil of Achillea millefolium L. (AM-EO) has activities that suppress the oxidative stress and inflammatory responses. Thus, we analyzed the effects of AM-EO on melanogenesis in melanocyte stimulating hormone (α-MSH) treated melanoma cells. The results demonstrated that AM-EO suppresses melanin production by decreasing tyrosinase activity through the regulation of the JNK and ERK signaling pathways. This effect might be associated with the AM-EO activity leading to the suppression of ROS, and linalyl acetate is its major functional component. Therefore, we propose that AM-EO has the potential to treat hyperpigmentation in the future.
REIONIZATION AFTER PLANCK: THE DERIVED GROWTH OF THE COSMIC IONIZING EMISSIVITY NOW MATCHES THE GROWTH OF THE GALAXY UV LUMINOSITY DENSITY

Thomson optical depth τ measurements from Planck provide new insights into the reionization of the universe. In pursuit of model-independent constraints on the properties of the ionizing sources, we determine the empirical evolution of the cosmic ionizing emissivity. We use a simple two-parameter model to map out the evolution in the emissivity at z ≳ 6 from the new Planck optical depth τ measurements, from the constraints provided by quasar absorption spectra and from the prevalence of Lyα emission in z ∼ 7–8 galaxies. We find the redshift evolution in the emissivity N ˙ ion ( z ) ? > required by the observations to be ( d log 10 N ˙ ion / dz ) z = 8 = − 0.15 − 0.11 + 0.08 ? > ( ( d log 10 N ˙ ion / dz ) z = 8 = − 0.19 − 0.11 + 0.09 ? > for a flat prior), largely independent of the assumed clumping factor CH ii and entirely independent of the nature of the ionizing sources. The trend in N ˙ ion ( z ) ? > is well-matched by the evolution of the galaxy UV-luminosity density ( d log 10 &rgr; UV / dz = − 0.11 ± 0.04 ? > ) to a magnitude limit ≳−13 mag, suggesting that galaxies are the sources that drive the reionization of the universe. The role of galaxies is further strengthened by the conversion from the UV luminosity density ρUV to N ˙ ion ( z ) ? > being possible for physically plausible values of the escape fraction fesc, the Lyman-continuum photon production efficiency ξion, and faint-end cut-off Mlim to the luminosity function. Quasars/active galactic nuclei appear to match neither the redshift evolution nor normalization of the ionizing emissivity. Based on the inferred evolution in the ionizing emissivity, we estimate that the z ∼ 10 UV-Iuminosity density is 8−4+15× lower than at z ∼ 6, consistent with the observations. The present approach of contrasting the inferred evolution of the ionizing emissivity with that of the galaxy UV luminosity density adds to the growing observational evidence that faint, star-forming galaxies drive the reionization of the universe.
Fast Parallel Implementation for Random Network Coding on Embedded Sensor Nodes

Network coding is becoming essential part of network systems since it enhances system performance in various ways. To take full advantage of network coding, however, it is vital to guarantee low latency in the decoding process and thus parallelization of random network coding has drawn broad attention from the network coding community. In this paper, we investigate the problem of parallelizing random network coding for embedded sensor systems with multicore processors. Recently, general purpose graphics processing unit (GPGPU) technology has paved the way for parallelizing random network coding; however, it is not an option on embedded sensor nodes without GPUs and thus it is indispensable to leverage multicore processors which are becoming more common in embedded sensor nodes. We propose a novel random network coding parallelization technique that can fully exploit multicore processors. In our experiments, our parallel method exhibits over 150% throughput enhancement compared to existing state-of-the-art implementations on an embedded system.
Changes in oxidative stress from tracheal aspirates sampled during chest physical therapy in hospitalized intubated infant patients with pneumonia and secretion retention

Objective This study aimed to show the changes in oxidative stress and clinical condition from either chest physical therapy (CPT) or CPT with aerosol treatment in infant patients with pneumonia. Methods From 52 intubated patients, three groups were composed: groups A, B, and C comprising 21 patients aged 5.3±0.6 months (CPT program), 20 patients aged 5.6±0.7 months (aerosol treatment before CPT program), and eleven patients aged 5.0±0.35 months (control), respectively. CPT was composed of manual percussion and vibration before suction in a specific position for draining secretion and re-expanding collapsed lungs. Groups A and B received three sessions of treatment three times daily for 6 days, when tracheal aspirates were collected for evaluating oxidative stress markers for the thiol group: vitamin E, thiobarbituric acid reactive substances-malondialdehyde, and hyarulonan. Furthermore, lung injury score and oxygenation index (PvO2/FiO2 ratio) were recorded daily. Results All parameters in group C did not change statistically during study. The thiol group increased significantly in group A after day 4, and increased significantly on days 3 and 6 when compared to day 1 in group B. Vitamin E levels increased significantly on days 3, 5, and 6 in group A, and days 3, 4, and 6 in group B, when compared to day 1. Whereas, the thiobarbituric acid reactive substances-malondialdehyde adduct showed a significant reduction after day 4 in groups A and B, when compared to day 1. Hyarulonan levels showed a significant reduction after day 3 in group A and on day 2 in group B. In addition, lung injury score decreased slightly and nonsignificantly in groups A and B, whereas the oxygenation index increased significantly after day 4 in group A and on day 6 in group B. Conclusion These preliminary results suggest that CPT with or without aerosol treatment possibly reduces oxidative stress and enhances oxygenation status in infant patients.