Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Toward an Ecological Theory of Concepts

Psychology has had difficulty accounting for the creative, context-sensitive manner in which concepts are used. We believe this stems from the view of concepts as identifiers rather than bridges between mind and world that participate in the generation of meaning. This article summarizes the history and current status of concepts research and provides a nontechnical summary of work toward an ecological approach to concepts. We outline the rationale for applying generalizations of formalisms originally developed for use in quantum mechanics to the modeling of concepts, showing how it is because of the role of context that deep structural similarities exist between the two. A concept is defined not just in terms of exemplary states and their features or properties but also by the relational structures of these properties and their susceptibility to change under different contexts. The approach implies a view of mind in which the union of perception and environment drives conceptualization, forging a web of conceptual relations or “ecology of mind. ”
Pressor effect mediated by bradykinin in the paratrigeminal nucleus of the rat

1 The participation of the paratrigeminal nucleus (Pa5) in the pressor response produced by bradykinin in the dorsolateral medulla of rats was investigated. The microinjection of 6 pmol of bradykinin directly over the paratrigeminal nucleus of unanaesthetized rats produced a significant increase in arterial pressure and a moderate increase in heart rate. 2 Bradykinin microinjections in different sites surrounding the Pa5 compromising the external cuneate nucleus, the trigeminal nucleus, the lateral and ventral spinal trigeminal tract and the dorsal trigeminal tract rostral and caudal to the Pa5 did not elicit significant pressor responses. In contrast, microinjections in the paratrigeminal nucleus produced pressor effects. Injections in the dorsolateral medulla directly over the paratrigeminal nucleus produced larger responses than when injections were made in the nucleus. Saline injections in the different nuclei did not produce pressor effects. 3 Neurochemical lesioning of the Pa5, with microinjections of ibotenic acid in the Pa5, abolished the pressor response to bradykinin injected over the lesioned nucleus. The effect was present, however, when bradykinin was injected on the contralateral side to the lesion, over the intact nucleus of the same animal. Pretreatment with capsaicin (injected in the lateral cerebral ventricle), which causes selective degeneration of afferent sensory fibres, did not alter the pressor effect of bradykinin injected over the paratrigeminal nucleus. 4 Dose‐related responses were produced by different concentrations of bradykinin (0.6–1.8 pmol) microinjected over the nucleus. The bradykinin receptor antagonist HOE 140, injected over the paratrigeminal nucleus 30 min earlier, abolished the pressor response caused by bradykinin. 5 Low doses of bradykinin injected in or directly over the paratrigeminal nucleus increased arterial pressure and caused a small increase in heart rate by stimulating kinin receptors of the paratrigeminal nucleus in the dorsolateral medulla of awake and unrestrained rats. The pattern of the response was consistent with that of sympathetic stimulation. The paratrigeminal nucleus, which receives primary afferents and projects to the nucleus tractus solitarii and the rostral ventral lateral medulla, may be positioned as relay nucleus possibly connecting sensory input to structures that regulate blood pressure.
Embodied Comprehension of Stories: Interactions between Language Regions and Modality-specific Neural Systems

The embodied view of language processing proposes that comprehension involves multimodal simulations, a process that retrieves a comprehender's perceptual, motor, and affective knowledge through reactivation of the neural systems responsible for perception, action, and emotion. Although evidence in support of this idea is growing, the contemporary neuroanatomical model of language suggests that comprehension largely emerges as a result of interactions between frontotemporal language areas in the left hemisphere. If modality-specific neural systems are involved in comprehension, they are not likely to operate in isolation but should interact with the brain regions critical to language processing. However, little is known about the ways in which language and modality-specific neural systems interact. To investigate this issue, we conducted a functional MRI study in which participants listened to stories that contained visually vivid, action-based, and emotionally charged content. Activity of neural systems associated with visual-spatial, motor, and affective processing were selectively modulated by the relevant story content. Importantly, when functional connectivity patterns associated with the left inferior frontal gyrus (LIFG), the left posterior middle temporal gyrus (pMTG), and the bilateral anterior temporal lobes (aTL) were compared, both LIFG and pMTG, but not the aTL, showed enhanced connectivity with the three modality-specific systems relevant to the story content. Taken together, our results suggest that language regions are engaged in perceptual, motor, and affective simulations of the described situation, which manifest through their interactions with modality-specific systems. On the basis of our results and past research, we propose that the LIFG and pMTG play unique roles in multimodal simulations during story comprehension.
Type II Secretion by Aeromonas salmonicida: Evidence for Two Periplasmic Pools of Proaerolysin

ABSTRACT Aeromonas salmonicida containing the cloned gene for proaerolysin secretes the protein via the type II secretory pathway. Here we show that altering a region near the beginning ofaerA led to a dramatic increase in the amount of proaerolysin that was produced and that a large amount of the protein was cell associated. All of the cell-associated protein had crossed the cytoplasmic membrane, because the signal sequence had been removed, and all of it was accessible to processing by trypsin during osmotic shock. Enlargement of the periplasm was observed by electron microscopy in overproducing cells, likely caused by the osmotic effect of the very large concentrations of accumulated proaerolysin. Immunogold electron microscopy localized nearly all of the proaerolysin in the enlarged periplasm; however, only half of the protoxin was released from the cells by osmotic shocking. Cross-linking studies showed that this fraction contained normal dimeric proaerolysin but that proaerolysin in the fraction that was not shockable had not dimerized, although it appeared to be correctly folded. Both periplasmic fractions were secreted by the cells; however, the nonshockable fraction was secreted much more slowly than the shockable fraction. We estimated a rate for maximal secretion of proaerolysin from the bacteria that was much lower than the rates that have been estimated for inner membrane transit, which suggests that transit across the outer membrane is rate limiting and may account for the periplasmic accumulation of the protein. Finally, we show that overproduction of proaerolysin inhibited the release of the protease that is secreted by A. salmonicida.
Comparing Rule-Based and Data-Driven Dependency Parsing of Learner Language

We explore the performance of two dependency parsing approaches, the rulebased WCDG approach (Foth and Menzel 2006) and the data-driven dependency parser MaltParser (Nivre et al. 2007) on texts written by language learners. We show that WCDG outperforms MaltParser in identifying the main functorargument relations, whereas MaltParser is more successful than WCDG in establishing optional, adjunct dependency relations. This can be interpreted as a tradeoff between the rich, hand-crafted lexical resources capturing obligatory argument relations in WCDG and the ability of a datadriven parser to identify optional, adjunct relations based on the linguistic and world knowledge encoded in the gold-standard training corpora.
A Unifying Framework for ` 0-Sampling Algorithms

The problem of building an `0-sampler is to sample near-uniformly from the support set of a dynamic multiset. This problem has a variety of applications within data analysis, computational geometry and graph algorithms. In this paper, we abstract a set of steps for building an `0-sampler, based on sampling, recovery and selection. We analyze the implementation of an `0-sampler within this framework, and show how prior constructions of `0-samplers can all be expressed in terms of these steps. Our experimental contribution is to provide a first detailed study of the accuracy and computational cost of `0-samplers. G. Cormode AT&T Labs–Research, E-mail: graham@research.att. com D. Firmani Sapienza University of Rome, E-mail: firmani@dis.uniroma1. it This paper is an extended version of (Cormode and Firmani 2013). 2 Graham Cormode, Donatella Firmani
Cow milk coagulation: process description, variation factors and evaluation methodologies. A review

Introduction. For dairy producers who want to transform their milk, the ability of milk to coagulate is an important parameter. It makes it possible to transform milk into cheese. Therefore, it is necessary to understand the coagulation process and the techniques to measure it in order to achieve the best transformation performance. The objective of this review is to describe the milk coagulation process, the factors influencing it and the methods for measuring the coagulation of milk at lab level. Literature. The processing of milk into cheese involves three steps: coagulation, dewatering and refining. Coagulation is a key step which involves the use of rennet and depends on several parameters (pH, calcium content, temperature, etc.). Some milks never coagulate. To measure the coagulation ability of milk and identify different parameters in milk coagulation properties, the Formagraph, the computerized renneting meter and the Optigraph have been developed (reference methods). Equations have been developed using infrared spectrometry to predict the parameters obtained by the reference methods. Conclusions. The milk coagulation mechanism is known. However, the issue of non-coagulating milk persists and represents a real challenge in terms of yield. The use of infrared is a faster alternative to reference methods that measure the coagulation properties of milk, but still requires an improvement in prediction equations.
Etiological heterogeneity in the development of antisocial behavior: the Virginia Twin Study of Adolescent Behavioral Development and the Young Adult Follow-Up

ABSTRACT Background Longitudinal, genetically informed, prospective data collected on a large population of male twins (n=1037) were used to examine developmental differences in the etiology of antisocial behavior. Method Analyses were carried out on both mother- and child-reported symptoms of conduct disorder (CD) in 10- to 17-year-old twins from the Virginia Twin Study of Adolescent Behavioral Development (VTSABD) and self-reported antisocial behavior by the twins as young adults from the Young Adult Follow-Up (YAFU) study. Results The following trends were identified: (1) a single genetic factor influencing antisocial behavior beginning at age 10 through young adulthood (‘life-course persistent’); (2) a shared-environmental effect beginning in adolescence (‘adolescent-onset’); (3) a transient genetic effect at puberty; and (4) a genetic influence specific to adult antisocial behavior. Conclusions Overall, these etiological findings are consistent with predictions from Moffitt's developmental theory of antisocial behavior. The genetic effect at puberty at ages 12–15 is also consistent with a genetically mediated influence on the timing of puberty affecting the expression of genetic differences in antisocial outcomes.
The Distribution of Rainfall over Oceans from Spaceborne Radars

A combination of rainfall estimates from the 13.8-GHz Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) precipitation radar (PR) and the 94-GHz CloudSat Cloud Profiling Radar (CPR) is used to assess the distribution of rainfall intensity over tropical and subtropical oceans. These two spaceborne radars provide highly complementary information: the PR provides the best information on the total rain volume because of its ability to estimate the intensity of all but the lightest rain rates while the CPR’s higher sensitivity provides superior rainfall detection as well as estimates of drizzle and light rain. Over the TRMM region between 358S and 358N, rainfall frequency from the CPR is around 9%, approximately 2.5 times that detected by the PR, and the CPR estimates indicate a contribution by light rain that is undetected by the PR of around 10% of the total. Stratifying the results by total precipitable water (TPW) as a proxy for rainfall regime indicates dramatic differences over stratus-dominated subsidence regions, with nearly 20% of the total rain occurring as light rain. Over moist tropical regions, the CPR substantially underestimates rain from intense convective storms because of large attenuation and multiple-scattering effects while the PR misses very little of the total rain volume because of a lower relative contribution from light rain. Over low-TPW regions, however, inconsistencies between estimates from the PR and the CPR point to uncertainties in the algorithm assumptions that remain to be understood and addressed.
Fast Pairwise Structural RNA Alignments by Pruning of the Dynamical Programming Matrix

It has become clear that noncoding RNAs (ncRNA) play important roles in cells, and emerging studies indicate that there might be a large number of unknown ncRNAs in mammalian genomes. There exist computational methods that can be used to search for ncRNAs by comparing sequences from different genomes. One main problem with these methods is their computational complexity, and heuristics are therefore employed. Two heuristics are currently very popular: pre-folding and pre-aligning. However, these heuristics are not ideal, as pre-aligning is dependent on sequence similarity that may not be present and pre-folding ignores the comparative information. Here, pruning of the dynamical programming matrix is presented as an alternative novel heuristic constraint. All subalignments that do not exceed a length-dependent minimum score are discarded as the matrix is filled out, thus giving the advantage of providing the constraints dynamically. This has been included in a new implementation of the FOLDALIGN algorithm for pairwise local or global structural alignment of RNA sequences. It is shown that time and memory requirements are dramatically lowered while overall performance is maintained. Furthermore, a new divide and conquer method is introduced to limit the memory requirement during global alignment and backtrack of local alignment. All branch points in the computed RNA structure are found and used to divide the structure into smaller unbranched segments. Each segment is then realigned and backtracked in a normal fashion. Finally, the FOLDALIGN algorithm has also been updated with a better memory implementation and an improved energy model. With these improvements in the algorithm, the FOLDALIGN software package provides the molecular biologist with an efficient and user-friendly tool for searching for new ncRNAs. The software package is available for download at http://foldalign.ku. dk.
Use of mobile phone text messaging to deliver an individualized smoking behaviour intervention in Chinese adolescents

Summary We evaluated the effectiveness of a mobile phone text-messaging based smoking cessation intervention package among Chinese adolescent smokers. Students aged 16–19 years were recruited from six vocational high schools located in Shanghai. We assigned the six schools to an intervention group or a control group by cluster randomization. The 92 participants in the intervention group were given tailored information via mobile phone text-messaging for 12 weeks. The 87 participants in the control group were provided with a self-help pamphlet about smoking cessation instead. After the intervention, attitudes towards the disadvantages of smoking were significantly improved, and the level of nicotine dependence and cigarette dependence significantly decreased in the intervention group. The intervention group had a relatively higher self-reported 7-day abstinence compared to the control group and 30-day abstinence, but the differences were not significant. However, the intervention group had a significantly higher rate of smoking reduction (66% vs. 35%) and moving forward in quitting stages (52% vs. 18%) compared to the control group. The interactive and tailored assistance provided by the mobile phone text-messaging was effective in smoking behaviour intervention in Chinese adolescent smokers.
The membrane-induced proton motive force influences the metal binding ability of Bacillus subtilis cell walls

Bacillus subtilis 168 is a gram-positive bacterium whose cell wall contains the highly electronegative polymers peptidoglycan (chemotype A1 gamma) and glycerol-based teichoic acid to produce a surface with a net negative charge with high metal binding capacity. During metabolism, a membrane-induced proton motive force continuously pumps protons into the wall fabric. As a result, a competition between protons and metal ions for anionic wall sites occurs, and less metal is bound in living cells than in nonliving cells or those in which the plasma membrane has been uncoupled. This was shown by using two metallic ions, UO2(2+) and Sc3+, on control cells, cells uncoupled with either carbonyl cyanide m-chlorophenylhydrazone or NaN3, or cells killed by gamma radiation. Transmission electron microscopy, energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, and inductively coupled plasma atomic-emission spectroscopy showed that more metal was retained in the walls of nonliving cells and those with deenergized membranes than in their living counterparts.
Early glaucoma involves both deep local, and shallow widespread, retinal nerve fiber damage of the macular region.

PURPOSE To better understand the nature of early glaucomatous damage of the macula by comparing the results from 10-2 visual fields, optical coherence tomography (OCT) macular cube scans, and OCT circumpapillary circle scans. METHODS One eye of each of 66 glaucoma patients or suspects, with a mean deviation (MD) on the 24-2 visual field (VF) test of better than -6 decibels (dB), was prospectively tested with 10-2 VFs and OCT macular cube and circumpapillary circle scans. Thickness and probability maps of the retinal ganglion cell plus inner plexiform (RGC+) layers were generated. A hemifield was considered abnormal if both the macular RGC+ and the 10-2 probability plots were abnormal (cluster criteria). The thickness plots of the circumpapillary retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) were analyzed in the context of a model that predicted the region of the disc associated with macular damage. RESULTS Twenty-seven hemifields (20 eyes) had abnormal 10-2 and RGC+ probability plots: 7 in upper VF/inferior retina, 6 in lower VF/superior retina, and 7 in both hemifields. Both shallow widespread and deep local thinning of the circumpapillary RNFL were observed. The local defects were more common and closer to fixation in the upper VF/inferior retina as predicted. CONCLUSIONS A model of glaucomatous damage of the macula predicted the location of both the widespread and local defects in the temporal and inferior disc quadrants. Optical coherence tomography scans of the circumpapillary RNFL and the macular RGC+ layer can aid in the identification of these defects and help in the interpretation of 24-2 and 10-2 VF tests.
Aspirin Inhibits Chlamydia pneumoniae–Induced Nuclear Factor-&kgr;B Activation, Cytokine Expression, and Bacterial Development in Human Endothelial Cells

Objective—Chlamydia pneumoniae has been associated with atherosclerosis. Infection of vascular endothelial cells with C pneumoniae increases the expression of proatherogenic cytokines mediated by nuclear factor (NF)-&kgr;B, a transcription factor. The present study was designed to test the effect of aspirin on C pneumoniae–induced NF-&kgr;B activation, interleukin expression, and bacterial development in cultured human endothelial cells. Methods and Results—Aspirin, its metabolite salicylic acid, and 2 other unrelated NF-&kgr;B inhibitors showed a strong concentration-dependent inhibitory effect on chlamydial growth, indicated by the reduction of bacterial inclusions and the titer of infectious progeny. Involvement of the transcription factor NF-&kgr;B was confirmed by electrophoretic mobility shift assay and by transfection experiments with appropriate decoy oligodeoxynucleotides. Attenuation of the C pneumoniae–induced activation of NF-&kgr;B by aspirin also reduced the secretion of interleukin-6 and interleukin-8, indicating efficient inhibition of NF-&kgr;B gene expression. Reduction of chlamydial growth was not caused by apoptosis of the host cell, as determined by monitoring characteristic chromatin condensation. Conclusions—These data provide evidence that NF-&kgr;B–mediated gene activation represents a crucial step in the developmental cycle of C pneumoniae. Aspirin exerts an anti-chlamydial effect that is due to the inhibition of C pneumoniae–induced NF-&kgr;B activation, which might account for some of the cardioprotective activity of aspirin.
Cooperative gestures for industry: Exploring the efficacy of robot hand configurations in expression of instructional gestures for human–robot interaction

Fast and reliable communication between human worker(s) and robotic assistants is essential for successful collaboration between the agents. This is especially true for typically noisy manufacturing environments that render verbal communication less effective. In this work, we investigate the efficacy of nonverbal communication capabilities of robotic manipulators that have poseable, three-fingered end-effectors (hands). We explore the extent to which different poses of a typical robotic gripper can effectively communicate instructional messages during human–robot collaboration. Within the context of a collaborative car door assembly task, we conducted a series of three studies. We first observed the type of hand configurations that humans use to nonverbally instruct another person (Study 1, N = 17); based on the observation, we examined how well human gestures with frequently used hand configurations are understood by recipients of the message (Study 2, N = 140). Finally, we implemented the most human-recognized human hand configurations on a seven-degree-of-freedom robotic manipulator to investigate the efficacy of having human-inspired hand poses on a robotic hand compared to an unposed hand (Study 3, N = 100). Contributions of this work include presentation of a set of hand configurations humans commonly use to instruct another person in a collaborative assembly scenario, as well as recognition rate and recognition confidence measures for the gestures that humans and robots express using different hand configurations. Results indicate that most gestures are better recognized with a higher level of confidence when displayed with a posed robot hand.