Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The temporal structure of natural telephone conversations (directory enquiry calls)

Investigations of face-to-face conversation have suggested that visuallymediated cues play an important role in the regulation of speaker-turns. By implication, conversational structure should be disrupted in no-vision conditions. This study tested this hypothesis by focussing on natural telephone conversations — directory enquiry calls. The results suggest that the management of speaker-switching, as measured by the temporal characteristics of the transitions, was not impaired in natural telephone conversations. The vast majority of the measures also indicated that operators and subscribers were behaving very similarly in terms of the temporal characteristics of switching, despite considerable differences in their experience.
Developing teachers’ cultural competence: application of appreciative inquiry in ESL teacher education

This study described the application of Appreciative Inquiry (AI) in a graduate-level teacher education course to guide teacher candidates’ interactions with culturally and linguistically diverse student populations. Through the process of Discover, Dream, Design, and Delivery, teacher candidates reflected on their own learning experiences, discovered students’ strengths and community assets, envisioned educational possibilities and provided recommendations for other teachers. A parallel mixed-methods design was employed to examine the impact of this experience on 21 teacher candidates who completed this course. Quantitative data were collected using the Cultural Competence Scale in a pre and post manner, and qualitative data were collected from teachers’ weekly blog entries and their reports based on their field experiences working with English learners. The findings of this study demonstrate teachers’ enhanced cultural competencies in working with English learners and illustrate their development as teachers.
CSCD: A simple channel scan protocol to discover and join a cognitive PAN

The paper describes a simple channel scan protocol through which a station can quickly discover and join an existing piconet following a specified channel-hopping MAC protocol piconet in its vicinity. The proposed MAC protocol is simple and does not need a dedicated control channel. Moreover, the cognitive piconet can operate normally throughout the search, unlike Bluetooth where piconet operation is temporarily suspended during the inquiry/inquiry scan procedure. The performance of the proposed protocol is evaluated through discrete event simulation.
The effect of social support on state anxiety levels during pregnancy

In this study our aim was to determine the effect of pregnant women’s perception of level of multidimensional social support during pregnancy on their state anxiety level. The sample comprised 160 pregnant women who were pregnant and attending antenatal polyclinics at Corum State Hospital between March 2011 and June 2011. The data were assessed using percentages, arithmetic means, standard deviations, t test, and 1-way analysis of variance (ANOVA). We found a correlation between anxiety levels and the score for social support of a significant person and total social support score. According to our results it may be said that high social support given during pregnancy has the effect of reducing the pregnant woman’s anxiety.
[Oral toxicity at 60-days of sacha inchi oil (Plukenetia volubilis L.) and linseed (Linum usitatissimum L.), and determination of lethal dose 50 in rodents].

OBJECTIVES To evaluate the oral toxicity at 60 days and to determine the lethal dose 50 (LD 50) of raw sacha inchi (Plukenetia volubilis L.) and linseed (Linum ussitatisimum) oils in Holtzman rats and mice of the strain Balb C57 respectively. MATERIALS AND METHODS For the evaluation of the oral toxicity of repeated doses for 60 days, 24 male Holtzman rats were used, divided in three groups of 8 each, the groups were: physiologic saline solution 4 mL/kg (FSS), sacha inchi oil 0.5 mL/kg (SI05) and linseed oil 0.5 mL/kg (L05), during the experiment the body weight was controlled weekly, and signs of toxicity in the research groups, as well as total cholesterol, HDL, glucose, triglycerides and alkaline phosphatase at days 30 and 60 after initiating the experiment. For the evaluation of the LD50 male mice of the Balb C57 strain were used in groups of 10 animals, and they were administered increasing oral doses of raw oils until reaching 1 mL/kg (37 g/kg). RESULTS The serum parameters in the rats indicated there is no toxicity at 60 days and that the administration of the oils lowered the levels of cholesterol, triglycerides and increased the HDL in comparison with the control group. The LD50 shows that the raw sacha inchi and linseed oils have doses above 37 g/kg of body weight. CONCLUSIONS Sacha inchi and linseed oils are harmless at 60 days and present a LD50 above the 37 g/kg of animal.
Beyond single words: the most frequent collocations in spoken English

This study presents a list of the highest frequency collocations of spoken English based on carefully applied criteria. In the literature, more than forty terms have been used for designating multi-word units, which are generally not well defined. To avoid this confusion, six criteria are strictly applied. The ten million word BNC spoken section was used as the data source, and the 1,000 most frequent spoken word types from that corpus were all investigated as pivot words. The most striking finding was that there is a large number of collocations meeting the six criteria and a large number of these would qualify for inclusion in the most frequent 2,000 words of English, if no distinction was made between single words and collocations. Many of these collocations could be usefully taught in an elementary speaking course. © The Author 2007. Published by Oxford University Press; all rights reserved.
Essential Role for IL-10 in Resistance to Lipopolysaccharide-Induced Preterm Labor in Mice1

IL-10 is highly expressed in the uterus and placenta and is implicated in controlling inflammation-induced pathologies of pregnancy. To investigate the role of IL-10 in regulating preterm labor, the response of IL-10 null mutant mice to low-dose LPS in late gestation was evaluated. When IL-10 null mutant C57BL/6 (IL-10−/−) and control (IL-10+/+) mice were administered LPS on day 17 of pregnancy, the dose of LPS required to elicit 50% preterm fetal loss was 10-fold lower in IL-10−/− mice than in IL-10+/+ mice. Surviving fetuses in IL-10−/− mice exhibited fetal growth restriction at lower doses of LPS than IL-10+/+ mice. Marked elevation of LPS-induced immunoactive TNF-α and IL-6 was evident in the serum, uterus, and placenta of IL-10−/− mice, and TNF-α and IL-6 mRNA expression was elevated in the uterus and placenta, but not the fetus. Serum IL-1α, IFN-γ, and IL-12p40 were increased and soluble TNFRII was diminished in the absence of IL-10, with these changes also reflected in the gestational tissues. Administration of rIL-10 to IL-10−/− mice attenuated proinflammatory cytokine synthesis and alleviated their increased susceptibility to preterm loss. Exogenous IL-10 also protected IL-10+/+ mice from fetal loss. These data show that IL-10 modulates resistance to inflammatory stimuli by down-regulating proinflammatory cytokines in the uterus and placenta. Abundance of endogenous IL-10 in gestational tissues is therefore identified as a critical determinant of resistance to preterm labor, and IL-10 may provide a useful therapeutic agent in this common condition.
Dialysate related cytokine induction and response to recombinant human erythropoietin in haemodialysis patients.

BACKGROUND Chronic inflammatory disorders or infections represent a major cause of hyporesponsiveness to recombinant human erythropoietin (rHuEpo). To test the hypothesis that dialysate-related cytokine induction alters the response to rHuEpo, we conducted a prospective study with matched pairs of chronic haemodialysis patients. We compared the effect of two dialysis fluids, differing in their microbiological quality, on the rHuEpo therapy. METHODS Thirty male patients with end-stage renal disease maintained on regular haemodialysis were assigned either to a group treated with conventional (potentially microbiologically contaminated) dialysate (group I) or to a group treated with online-produced ultrapure dialysate (group II). Randomization was stratified according to the maintenance dose of rHuEpo necessary to maintain a target haemoglobin level of 10-10.5 g/dl. Patients were followed for 12 months. Kt/V was calculated by the formula of Daugirdas. Haemoglobin levels were measured weekly and serum ferritin concentrations were determined at 6-week intervals. C-reactive protein (CRP) and interleukin-6 (IL-6) was measured by an ELISA at the start of the study and after 3, 6 and 12 months. RESULTS In group I, continuous use of bicarbonate dialysate did not change the rHuEpo dosage given to achieve the target haemoglobin level and was associated with elevated surrogate markers (CRP, IL-6) of cytokine-induced inflammation. The switch from conventional to online-produced ultrapure dialysate in group II resulted in a lower bacterial contamination with a significant decrease of CRP and IL-6 blood levels. It was accompanied by a significant and sustained reduction of the rHuEpo dosage, which was required to correct the anaemia. Using multiple regression analysis, IL-6 levels are shown to have a strong predictive value for rHuEpo dosage in both groups. CONCLUSIONS Our data demonstrate that dialysate-related factors such as low bacterial contamination can induce the activation of monocytes, resulting in elevated serum levels of IL-6. Dialysate-related cytokine induction might diminish erythropoiesis. The use of pyrogen free ultrapure dialysate resulted in a better response to rHuEpo. Not only would it save money, but it would also help to maintain an optimal haemoglobin level without further increase in rHuEpo dosage.
Social Contexts, Social Networks, and Urban Neighborhoods: Environmental Constraints on Friendship Choice

This article considers the influence of neighborhood social contexts on the content of social networks. Contextual explanations for individual behavior argue that (1) individual preferences and actions are influenced through social interaction, and (2) social interaction is structured by the social composition of the individual's environment. Thus, a preliminary step to constructing contextual theories of individual behavior is an examination of the way that the social context structures social encounters and friendship choice. The empirical correspondence between the content of neighborhood social contexts and the content of social networks is examined using a sample of white male Detroit residents. A mathematical model of associational choice is developed that incorporates the ability of individuals to enforce social preferences on their choice of friends while it maintains the role of the social context in structuring that choice.
PAR-1 Deficiency Protects against Neuronal Damage and Neurologic Deficits after Unilateral Cerebral Hypoxia/Ischemia

Cardiovascular and neurologic surgeries often involve a temporary reduction in cerebral blood flow. In these conditions, as well as during cerebral ischemia and traumatic brain injury, the temporary loss of oxygen and glucose initiates a cascade of cellular events that culminate in neuronal death and damage. Understanding the mechanisms that contribute to neuronal death after hypoxia/ischemia is critically important for treatment of such brain injury. Here, we use a model of combined cerebral hypoxia/ischemia (H/I) to examine the role of protease-activated receptor-1 (PAR-1) in hypoxic/ischemic neuronal damage. Our data show that PAR-1-deficient mice have smaller lesion volumes than wild-type controls after 45 minutes of H/I. The results of the genetic block of PAR-1 were corroborated using a PAR-1 antagonist, which decreased infarct volume in wild-type C57Bl6 mice. Examination of cellular responses to H/I reveals that PAR-1 -/- animals have less cellular death and diminished glial fibrillary acidic protein expression. Additionally, PAR-1 -/- mice exhibit less motor behavior impairment in rotorod and inverted wire-hang tests. These data suggest that PAR-1 contributes to hypoxic/ischemic brain injury and are consistent with other studies that implicate serine proteases and their receptors in neuropathology after cerebral insults.
Acetaminophen modifies hippocampal synaptic plasticity via a presynaptic 5-HT2 receptor

Acetaminophen (APAP) has recently been found to target COX-3, a newly identified COX isozyme. We discovered previously that selective COX-2 inhibitors reduce membrane excitability and long-term potentiation (LTP) in the hippocampus. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether APAP had effects on hippocampal LTP. We found that APAP reduced LTP induction and increased the paired-pulse facilitation (PPF). APAP-induced changes in LTP and PPF were blocked by a 5-hydroxytryptamine (serotonin, 5-HT2/1) receptor antagonist. The results suggest that APAP-induced modification of synaptic plasticity at hippocampal lateral perforant path–dentate granule cell synapses may be mediated by a presynaptic 5-HT2 receptor.
Autonomous Agents Research in Robotics: A Report from the Trenches

This paper surveys research in robotics in the AAMAS (Au- tonomous Agents and Multi-Agent Systems) community. It argues that the autonomous agents community can, and has, impact on robotics. Moreover, it argues that agents re- searchers should proactively seek to impact the robotics com- munity, to prevent independent re-discovery of known results, and to benefit autonomous agents science. To support these claims, I provide evidence from my own research into multi- robot teams, and from others’.
Challenges in Securing Vehicular Networks

In the near future, most new vehicles will be equipped with shortrange radios capable of communicating with other vehicles or with highway infrastructure at distances of at least one kilometer. The radios will allow new applications that will revolutionize the driving experience, providing everything from instant, localized traffic updates to warning signals when the car ahead abruptly brakes. While resembling traditional sensor and ad hoc networks in some respects, vehicular networks pose a number of unique challenges. For example, the information conveyed over a vehicular network may affect life-or-death decisions, making fail-safe security a necessity. However, providing strong security in vehicular networks raises important privacy concerns that must also be considered. To address these challenges, we propose a set of security primitives that can be used as the building blocks of secure applications. The deployment of vehicular networks is rapidly approaching, and their success and safety will depend on viable security solutions acceptable to consumers, manufacturers and governments.
Lack of Cross-Resistance of Imidazolinone-Resistant Cell Lines of Datura innoxia P. Mill. to Chlorsulfuron : Evidence for Separable Sites of Action on the Target Enzyme.

Two cell lines of Datura innoxia resistant to two imidazolinone herbicides, imazapyr and imazaquin, were isolated from mutagenized, predominantly haploid cell suspension cultures. Both of the resistant variants were >1000-fold more resistant than the wild-type to the two imidazolinones. The variant resistant to imazapyr showed cross-resistance to imazaquin and vice versa, but no cross-resistance to a structurally different inhibitor, chlorsulfuron, a sulfonylurea herbicide, was observed. The target enzyme, acetolactate synthase, extracted from imidazolinone-resistant cell lines was not inhibited by imazapyr or imazaquin but was sensitive to chlorsulfuron indicating separable sites of action for these inhibitors. The variation in resistance and cross-resistance of chlorsulfuron-resistant (PK Saxena, J King [1988] Plant Physiol 86: 863-867) and imidazolinone-resistant cell lines of Datura innoxia demonstrates the possibility of separate mutations of acetolactate synthase gene resulting in specific phenotypes.
Self-Starters, Can-Doers and Mobile Phoneys: Situations Vacant Columns and the Personality Culture in Employment

This paper speculates on the significance of an apparent increase in the use of personality language in job advertisements in situations vacant columns. The findings of my study appear to reflect broader social developments and the concerns of sociologists in the field. The impact of a self-description lexicography upon the individual is evaluated in terms of reflexivity and commodification. My contention is that corporations have appropriated a language of personality, and have contributed in transforming personality traits into virtual commodities whose value is determined according to which characteristics are in greatest demand. As individuals come to recognise themselves through corporatised personality language, the synthesis between business and personality leads to a post-ironic disposition and reflexive exploitation.
Immunohistological analysis in the distribution of cells in the fetal porcine adenohypophysis

Adenohypophyses of porcine fetuses from 25 to 110 days of gestation were studied by immunohistochemical staining to ascertain the ontogeny of specific cell types and their spatial distribution in the pars distalis. No hormonecontaining cells were found before 30 days of gestation. ACTH cells were observed first at 40 days, while GH and LH cells appeared first at 60 days. PRL cells were initially detected at 105 days. ACTH immunoreactive cells were also observed in the pars intermedia at 40 days.
Are human bodies represented differently from other objects? Experience shapes object representations

This study investigated the cognitive organization of the human body representation and its relationship to other object representations. It addressed whether (1) all objects and their parts were organized similarly, (2) animate objects and their parts were organized differently from inanimate objects and their parts, and (3) the human body was organized differently from all other objects. The relations among the parts of three exemplar objects (human body, bear, and bicycle) were examined. Participants performed a series of sorting tasks using stimulus cards illustrating various part and part combinations of these objects; the cards were constructed so that the same strategies could be used to categorize all three objects. Dissimilarity data were analysed using multidimensional scaling techniques. Results indicated that the human body was organized differently from the other objects, and that categorization did not follow the animate–inanimate distinction. Although animate objects were represented more on their visual characteristics and inanimate objects were represented more on functional characteristics, the human body was represented on its ability to perform actions. Representations of the other objects suggested that their organization was embodied in that they appear to be shaped by how the human body interacts, or doesn't interact, with the object.
What's in a Frame? A Content Analysis of Media Framing Studies in the World's Leading Communication Journals, 1990-2005

This paper provides a systematic analysis of media framing studies in the world's leading communication journals. A quantitative content analysis of 131 studies published in fifteen international journals demonstrates how frames are conceptualized and measured. Current problems in framing research include lack of operational precision, the descriptive focus of many analyses, neglect of visuals, and insufficient reporting of reliability.
Human Connective Tissue Growth Factor mRNA Expression of Epiretinal and Subretinal Fibrovascular Membranes: A Report of Three Cases

Purpose: To investigate the correlation between connective tissue growth factor (CTGF) mRNA expression and immunohistochemical characteristics (expression of type I collagen and tenascin) of fibrovascular membranes of proliferative retinal diseases under in vivo conditions. Methods: CTGF mRNA expression was investigated using in situ hybridization. Expression of type I collagen and tenascin was detected by immunohistochemical staining. Results: CTGF mRNA is produced in transformed retinal pigment epithelial cells and appears also in fibroblast-like cells, which are embedded in epiretinal and subretinal membranes of proliferative retinal diseases as well as in surgically removed subretinal membranes. In all examined membranes, expression of human CTGF mRNA appears in concurrence with the expression of type I collagen and tenascin. Conclusions: The predominant expression of CTGF mRNA in the development of fibrovascular membranes of proliferative retinal diseases suggests a significant role of CTGF in the pathological course of these ocular disorders.
Event-related potentials as an index of similarity between words and pictures.

This report examines the ERP correlates of processing nontarget stimuli that are conceptually, but not perceptually, similar to a target. In two studies, the P300 component was examined in healthy adults during a multistimulus oddball paradigm. The stimuli were pictures of five objects and their five corresponding names. Participants were required to keep a mental count of number of target presentations. In Experiment 1, the target was the word "globe. " Both the word target and the nontarget picture of the globe elicited large P300s, though the P300 to the picture was smaller in amplitude. No other stimulus elicited a prominent P300. In Experiment 2, the target was the picture of the globe, and the word was considered to be the related nontarget. Again, the target elicited a large P300. However, in this case the related nontarget stimulus failed to elicit a P300. The relevance of the data to theories of word/picture processing is discussed.
Dielectrophoretic Assembly of Electrically Functional Microwires from Nanoparticle Suspensions

A new class of microwires can be assembled by dielectrophoresis from suspensions of metallic nanoparticles. The wires are formed in the gaps between planar electrodes and can grow faster than 50 micrometers per second to lengths exceeding 5 millimeters. They have good ohmic conductance and automatically form electrical connections to conductive islands or particles. The thickness and the fractal dimension of the wires can be controlled, and composite wires with a metallic core surrounded by a latex shell can be assembled. The simple assembly process and their high surface-to-volume ratio make these structures promising for wet electronic and bioelectronic circuits.
The Subtle Effects of Language Anxiety on Cognitive Processing in the Second Language

Previous research has shown language anxiety to be associated with broad-based indices of language achievement, such as course grades. This study examined some of the more specific cognitive processes that may be involved in language acquisition in terms of a three-stage model of learning: Input, Processing, and Output. These stages were represented in a set of nine tasks that were employed to isolate and measure the language acquisition stages. A new anxiety scale was also developed to measure anxiety at each of the stages. Generally, significant correlations were obtained between the stage-specific anxiety scales and stage-specific tasks (e.g., output anxiety with output tasks) suggesting that the effects of language anxiety may be both pervasive and subtle.