Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Inspecting Pictures for Information to Verify a Sentence: Eye Movements in General Encoding and in Focused Search

When we see combinations of text and graphics, such as photographs and their captions in printed media, how do we compare the information in the two components? Two experiments used a sentence–picture verification task in which statements about photographs of natural scenes were read in order to make a true/false decision about the validity of the sentence, and in which eye movements were recorded. In Experiment 1 the sentence and the picture were presented concurrently, and objects and words could be inspected in any order. In Experiment 2 the two components were presented one after the other, either picture first or sentence first. Fixation durations on pictures were characteristically longer than those on sentences in both experiments, and fixations on sentences varied according to whether they were being encoded as abstract propositions or as coreferents of objects depicted in a previously inspected picture. The decision time data present a difficulty for existing models of sentence verification tasks, with an inconsistent pattern of differences between true and false trials.
Remote data checking for network coding-based distributed storage systems

Remote Data Checking (RDC) is a technique by which clients can establish that data outsourced at untrusted servers remains intact over time. RDC is useful as a prevention tool, allowing clients to periodically check if data has been damaged, and as a repair tool whenever damage has been detected. Initially proposed in the context of a single server, RDC was later extended to verify data integrity in distributed storage systems that rely on replication and on erasure coding to store data redundantly at multiple servers. Recently, a technique was proposed to add redundancy based on network coding, which offers interesting tradeoffs because of its remarkably low communication overhead to repair corrupt servers. Unlike previous work on RDC which focused on minimizing the costs of the prevention phase, we take a holistic look and initiate the investigation of RDC schemes for distributed systems that rely on network coding to minimize the combined costs of both the prevention and repair phases. We propose RDC-NC, a novel secure and efficient RDC scheme for network coding-based distributed storage systems. RDC-NC mitigates new attacks that stem from the underlying principle of network coding. The scheme is able to preserve in an adversarial setting the minimal communication overhead of the repair component achieved by network coding in a benign setting. We implement our scheme and experimentally show that it is computationally inexpensive for both clients and servers.
Why is Binocular Rivalry Uncommon? Discrepant Monocular Images in the Real World

When different images project to corresponding points in the two eyes they can instigate a phenomenon called binocular rivalry (BR), wherein each image seems to intermittently disappear such that only one of the two images is seen at a time. Cautious readers may have noted an important caveat in the opening sentence – this situation can instigate BR, but usually it doesn’t. Unmatched monocular images are frequently encountered in daily life due to either differential occlusions of the two eyes or because of selective obstructions of just one eye, but this does not tend to induce BR. Here I will explore the reasons for this and discuss implications for BR in general. It will be argued that BR is resolved in favor of the instantaneously stronger neural signal, and that this process is driven by an adaptation that enhances the visibility of distant fixated objects over that of more proximate obstructions of an eye. Accordingly, BR would reflect the dynamics of an inherently visual operation that usually deals with real-world constraints.
Light Adaptation in Drosophila Photoreceptors: I. Response Dynamics and Signaling Efficiency at 25°C

Besides the physical limits imposed on photon absorption, the coprocessing of visual information by the phototransduction cascade and photoreceptor membrane determines the fidelity of photoreceptor signaling. We investigated the response dynamics and signaling efficiency of Drosophila photoreceptors to natural-like fluctu- ating light contrast stimulation and intracellular current injection when the cells were adapted over a 4-log unit light intensity range at 25 8 C. This dual stimulation allowed us to characterize how an increase in the mean light in- tensity causes the phototransduction cascade and photoreceptor membrane to produce larger, faster and increas- ingly accurate voltage responses to a given contrast. Using signal and noise analysis, this appears to be associated with an increased summation of smaller and faster elementary responses (i.e., bumps), whose latency distribution stays relatively unchanged at different mean light intensity levels. As the phototransduction cascade increases, the size and speed of the signals (light current) at higher adapting backgrounds and, in conjunction with the photore- ceptor membrane, reduces the light-induced voltage noise, and the photoreceptor signal-to-noise ratio improves and extends to a higher bandwidth. Because the voltage responses to light contrasts are much slower than those evoked by current injection, the photoreceptor membrane does not limit the speed of the phototransduction cas- cade, but it does filter the associated high frequency noise. The photoreceptor information capacity increases with light adaptation and starts to saturate at z 200 bits/s as the speed of the chemical reactions inside a fixed number of transduction units, possibly microvilli, is approaching its maximum.
Performance analysis of layer3 switch: case of flow-driven connection setup

The layer3 switch enables us to fast transmit IP datagrams using the cut-through technique. The current layer3 router would become a bottleneck in terms of delay performance, as the amount of traffic injected into high speed networks gets relatively large. Thus, the layer3 switch should be an important element in constructing the next generation Internet backbone. We analyze the cut-through rate, the datagram waiting time and the mis-ordered rate of a layer3 switch in case of flow-driven connection setup. In the analysis, by using a 3-state Markov modulated Bernoulli process (MMBP), we model the arrival process of IP flow and IP datagram from each source. Furthermore, we investigate impacts of the arrival rate and the average datagram length on performance.
Both Fasting and Glucose-Stimulated Proinsulin Levels Predict Hyperglycemia and Incident Type 2 Diabetes: A Population-Based Study of 9,396 Finnish Men

Background Hyperproinsulinemia is an indicator of β-cell dysfunction, and fasting proinsulin levels are elevated in patients with hyperglycemia. It is not known whether proinsulin levels after a glucose load are better predictors of hyperglycemia and type 2 diabetes than fasting proinsulin. Methods Participants were 9,396 Finnish men (mean±SD, age 57.3±7.1 years, BMI 27.0±4.0 kg/m2) of the population-based METabolic Syndrome In Men Study who were non-diabetic at the recruitment, and who participated in a 6-year follow-up study. Proinsulin and insulin levels were measured in the fasting state and 30 and 120 min after an oral glucose load. Area under the curve (AUC) and proinsulin to insulin ratios were calculated. Results Fasting proinsulin, proinsulin at 30 min and proinsulin AUC during the first 30 min of an oral glucose tolerance test significantly predicted both the worsening of hyperglycemia and type 2 diabetes after adjustment for confounding factors. Further adjustment for insulin sensitivity (Matsuda index) or insulin secretion (Disposition index) weakened these associations. Insulin sensitivity had a major impact on these associations. Conclusion Our results suggest that proinsulin in the fasting state and after an oral glucose load similarly predict the worsening of hyperglycemia and conversion to type 2 diabetes.
Interorganizational Governance of Information Technology

This study aims at better understanding how information technology (IT) governance supports organizations in their business exchanges with other organizations. Its main objective is to define the various modes of IT governance contributing to successful interorganizational relationships. Borrowing from the network governance area, three major constructs - structure, processes, and participants - are considered to study these modes. The maturity state of the interorganizational relationships is also taken into account to better explain the level of success of each observed relation. Through pilot cases, we want to provide both practitioners and academics with an enriched understanding of the challenges related to the governance of IT during interorganizational relationships.
Distributed linear blind source separation over wireless sensor networks with arbitrary connectivity patterns

Broad areal coverage and low cost make wireless sensor networks natural platforms for blind source separation (BSS). In this context, distributed processing is attractive because of low power requirements and scalability. However, existing distributed BSS algorithms either require a fully connected pattern of connectivity or require a high computational load at each sensor node. We introduce a distributed robust BSS algorithm that uses a fully shared computation and can be applied over any connected graph. This enables us to facilitate a low computational load at each node as well as low data transmission rates. Comparative experimental results confirm the effectiveness of the new method.
Apoptotic Activity of MeCP2 Is Enhanced by C-Terminal Truncating Mutations

Methyl-CpG binding protein 2 (MeCP2) is a widely abundant, multifunctional protein most highly expressed in post-mitotic neurons. Mutations causing Rett syndrome and related neurodevelopmental disorders have been identified along the entire MECP2 locus, but symptoms vary depending on mutation type and location. C-terminal mutations are prevalent, but little is known about the function of the MeCP2 C-terminus. We employ the genetic efficiency of Drosophila to provide evidence that expression of p.Arg294* (more commonly identified as R294X), a human MECP2 E2 mutant allele causing truncation of the C-terminal domains, promotes apoptosis of identified neurons in vivo. We confirm this novel finding in HEK293T cells and then use Drosophila to map the region critical for neuronal apoptosis to a small sequence at the end of the C-terminal domain. In vitro studies in mammalian systems previously indicated a role of the MeCP2 E2 isoform in apoptosis, which is facilitated by phosphorylation at serine 80 (S80) and decreased by interactions with the forkhead protein FoxG1. We confirm the roles of S80 phosphorylation and forkhead domain transcription factors in affecting MeCP2-induced apoptosis in Drosophila in vivo, thus indicating mechanistic conservation between flies and mammalian cells. Our findings are consistent with a model in which C- and N-terminal interactions are required for healthy function of MeCP2.
The effects of angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors on peritoneal protein loss and solute transport in peritoneal dialysis patients

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to examine the effects of angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors on peritoneal membrane transport, peritoneal protein loss, and proteinuria in peritoneal dialysis patients. METHODS: Fifty-four peritoneal dialysis patients were included in the study. The patients were divided into two groups. Group 1 (n = 34) was treated with angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors. Group 2 (n = 20) did not receive any antihypertensive drugs during the entire follow-up. Eleven patients were excluded from the study thereafter. Thus, a total of 30 patients in Group 1 and 13 patients in Group 2 completed the study. We observed the patients for six months. Group 1 patients received maximal doses of angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors for six months. Parameters at the beginning of study and at the end of six months were evaluated. ClinicalTrial.gov: NCT01575652. RESULTS: At the end of six months, total peritoneal protein loss in 24-hour dialysate effluent was significantly decreased in Group 1, whereas it was increased in Group 2. Compared to the baseline level, peritoneal albumin loss in 24-hour dialysate effluent and 4-hour D/P creatinine were significantly increased in Group 2 but were not significantly changed in Group 1. A covariance analysis between the groups revealed a significant difference only in the decreased amount of total protein loss in 24-hour dialysate. Proteinuria was decreased significantly in Group 1. CONCLUSION: This study suggests that angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors reduce peritoneal protein loss and small-solute transport and effectively protect peritoneal membrane transport in peritoneal dialysis patients.
Learning in the Finnish outdoor classroom: Pupils’ views

ABSTRACT Finnish nature schools are environmental education organisations offering outdoor programmes for classes in natural environments. They are intended to contribute to the aims of the national curriculum in various subjects. This qualitative study examines how students describe their learning in a nature school context and how they describe differences between learning in nature and learning in the classroom. After a nature school day, 30 10–11-year-old pupils participated in focus groups interviews. The data were analysed through inductive content analysis. Nature school learning was described as cognitive, affective, social and as providing practical skills learning, although some pupils claimed that they had not learned anything. The differences between the learning environments were described as differences in learning activities, concreteness, external conditions, learning topics, perceived ability to concentrate and differences in motivation. We stress the importance of reflection on learning in order to raise pupils’ awareness of their outdoor learning.
High Expression of Urokinase-Type Plasminogen Activator Is Associated with Lymph Node Metastasis of Invasive Ductal Carcinoma of the Breast

Purpose In the present study, we evaluated the levels of urokinase-type plasminogen activator (uPA) and plasminogen activator inhibitor 1 (PAI-1) by performing immunohistochemical staining to determine whether they were reliable prognostic markers in patients with breast cancer. Methods Demographic and clinicopathological parameters of 214 patients with invasive ductal carcinoma (IDC) and 80 patients with ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) who were diagnosed and treated from 2006 to 2010 were analyzed. Tissue microarray was constructed and immunohistochemical staining was performed for each specimen. Results Univariate analyses showed that age at diagnosis, history of hormone replacement therapy, radiation therapy, skin and chest wall invasion, Paget disease, lymphovascular invasion, estrogen receptor positivity, and triple-negative subtype were significantly associated with patient prognosis (p<0.005). Patients with DCIS showed higher PAI-1 expression than patients with IDC (82.5% and 36.2%, respectively; p=0.012). Lymph node metastasis was more frequent in patients with high uPA levels than in patients with low uPA levels (p=0.001). Conclusion Our results suggested that PAI-1 was involved in tumor progression in the early stages of breast cancer, such as DCIS. In addition, our results suggested that high uPA levels were associated with the lymph node metastasis of IDC.
Intracellular signaling leads to the hypertrophic effect of neuropeptide Y.

Signal transduction pathways involved in the hypertrophic effect of neuropeptide Y (NPY) were investigated in adult cardiomyocytes. Reduction of transforming growth factor-β activity in serum-supplemented media abolished the induction of hypertrophic responsiveness to NPY. In responsive cells, NPY (100 nM) increased protein synthesis, determined as incorporation of [14C]phenylalanine, by 35 ± 15% ( P < 0.05, n = 16 cultures). In these cells, NPY activated pertussis toxin (PTx)-sensitive G proteins and phosphatidylinositol (PI) 3-kinase. PTx and inhibition of PI 3-kinase abolished the hypertrophic effect of NPY. NPY also activated protein kinase C (PKC) and mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinase. Inhibition of these two kinases attenuated the induction of creatine kinase (CK)-BB but not the growth response to NPY. In conclusion, NPY stimulates protein synthesis in adult cardiomyocytes via activation of PTx-sensitive G proteins and PI 3-kinase and it induces the fetal-type CK-BB via activation of PKC and MAP kinase.
Actin Depolymerizing Factor (ADF/Cofilin) Enhances the Rate of Filament Turnover: Implication in Actin-based Motility

Actin-binding proteins of the actin depolymerizing factor (ADF)/cofilin family are thought to control actin-based motile processes. ADF1 from Arabidopsis thaliana appears to be a good model that is functionally similar to other members of the family. The function of ADF in actin dynamics has been examined using a combination of physical–chemical methods and actin-based motility assays, under physiological ionic conditions and at pH 7.8. ADF binds the ADPbound forms of G- or F-actin with an affinity two orders of magnitude higher than the ATP- or ADP-Pi– bound forms. A major property of ADF is its ability to enhance the in vitro turnover rate (treadmilling) of actin filaments to a value comparable to that observed in vivo in motile lamellipodia. ADF increases the rate of propulsion of Listeria monocytogenes in highly diluted, ADF-limited platelet extracts and shortens the actin tails. These effects are mediated by the participation of ADF in actin filament assembly, which results in a change in the kinetic parameters at the two ends of the actin filament. The kinetic effects of ADF are end specific and cannot be accounted for by filament severing. The main functionally relevant effect is a 25-fold increase in the rate of actin dissociation from the pointed ends, while the rate of dissociation from the barbed ends is unchanged. This large increase in the rate-limiting step of the monomer-polymer cycle at steady state is responsible for the increase in the rate of actin-based motile processes. In conclusion, the function of ADF is not to sequester G-actin. ADF uses ATP hydrolysis in actin assembly to enhance filament dynamics.
Photometric Properties of Kiso Ultraviolet-Excess Galaxies in the Lynx-Ursa Major Region

We have performed a systematic study of several regions in the sky where the number of galaxies exhibiting star formation (SF) activity is greater than average. We used Kiso ultraviolet-excess galaxies (KUGs) as our SF-enhanced sample. By statistically comparing the KUG and non-KUG distributions, we discovered four KUG-rich regions with sizes of ~10° × 10°. One of these regions corresponds spatially to a filament of length ~60 h-1 Mpc in the Lynx-Ursa Major region (α~9h-10h, δ~42°-48°). We call this "the Lynx-Ursa Major (LUM) filament. " We obtained V(RI)C surface photometry of 11 of the KUGs in the LUM filament and used these to investigate the integrated colors, the distribution of SF regions, the morphologies, and the local environments. We found that these KUGs consist of distorted spiral galaxies and compact galaxies with blue colors. Their star formation occurs in the entire disk and is not confined to just the central regions. The colors of the SF regions imply that active star formation in the spiral galaxies occurred 107-8 yr ago, while that in the compact objects occurred 106-7 yr ago. Though the photometric characteristics of these KUGs are similar to those of interacting galaxies or mergers, most of these KUGs do not show direct evidence of merger processes.
Neural correlates of set-shifting: decomposing executive functions in schizophrenia.

BACKGROUND Although there is considerable evidence that patients with schizophrenia have impaired executive functions, the neural mechanisms underlying these deficits are unclear. Generation and selection is one of the basic mechanisms of executive functioning. We investigated the neural correlates of this mechanism by means of functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) in patients with schizophrenia and healthy controls. METHODS We used the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST) in an event-related fMRI study to analyze neural activation patterns during the distinct components of the WCST in 36 patients with schizophrenia and 28 controls. We focused our analyses on the process of set-shifting. After participants received negative feedback, they had to generate and decide on a new sorting rule. RESULTS A widespread activation pattern encompassing the inferior and middle frontal gyrus, parietal, temporal and occipital cortices, anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), supplementary motor area, insula, caudate, thalamus and brainstem was observed in patients with schizophrenia after negative versus positive feedback, whereas in healthy controls, significant activation clusters were more confined to the cortical areas. Significantly increased activation in the rostral ACC after negative feedback and in the dorsal ACC during matching after negative feedback were observed in schizophrenia patients compared with controls. Controls showed activation in the bilateral dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (Brodmann area 46), whereas schizophrenia patients showed activation in the right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex only. LIMITATIONS All patients were taking neuroleptic medication, which has an impact on cognitive function as well as on dopaminergic and serotonergic prefrontal metabolism. CONCLUSION Our data suggest that, in patients with schizophrenia, set-shifting is associated with increased activation in the rostral and dorsal ACC, reflecting higher emotional and cognitive demands, respectively.
Colonization-extinction dynamics of an epiphyte metapopulation in a dynamic landscape

Metapopulation dynamics have received much attention in population bi- ology and conservation. Most studies have dealt with species whose population turnover rate is much higher than the rate of patch turnover. Models of the dynamics in such systems have assumed a static patch landscape. The dynamics of many species, however, are likely to be significantly affected by the dynamics of their patches. We tested the relative im- portance of local conditions, connectivity, and dynamics of host tree patches on the meta- population dynamics of a red-listed epiphytic moss, Neckera pennata, in Sweden. Repeated surveys of the species and its host trees were conducted at three sites over a period of six years. There was a positive effect of connectivity, and colonizations mainly occurred in the vicinity of occupied trees. Colonizations were also less likely on strongly leaning trees. Local extinctions sometimes occurred from small trees with low local abundances but were most often caused by treefall. Simulations of the future (100 years) dynamics of the system showed that the metapopulation size will be overestimated unless the increased local ex- tinction rate imposed by the dynamics of the trees is accounted for. The simulations also suggested that local extinctions from standing trees may be disregarded in dynamic models for this species. This implies that the dynamics of N. pennata can be characterized as a patch-tracking metapopulation, where local extinctions are caused by patch destruction.