Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Synaptic Learning Rules and Sparse Coding in a Model Sensory System

Neural circuits exploit numerous strategies for encoding information. Although the functional significance of individual coding mechanisms has been investigated, ways in which multiple mechanisms interact and integrate are not well understood. The locust olfactory system, in which dense, transiently synchronized spike trains across ensembles of antenna lobe (AL) neurons are transformed into a sparse representation in the mushroom body (MB; a region associated with memory), provides a well-studied preparation for investigating the interaction of multiple coding mechanisms. Recordings made in vivo from the insect MB demonstrated highly specific responses to odors in Kenyon cells (KCs). Typically, only a few KCs from the recorded population of neurons responded reliably when a specific odor was presented. Different odors induced responses in different KCs. Here, we explored with a biologically plausible model the possibility that a form of plasticity may control and tune synaptic weights of inputs to the mushroom body to ensure the specificity of KCs' responses to familiar or meaningful odors. We found that plasticity at the synapses between the AL and the MB efficiently regulated the delicate tuning necessary to selectively filter the intense AL oscillatory output and condense it to a sparse representation in the MB. Activity-dependent plasticity drove the observed specificity, reliability, and expected persistence of odor representations, suggesting a role for plasticity in information processing and making a testable prediction about synaptic plasticity at AL-MB synapses.
More than Bags of Words: Sentiment Analysis with Word Embeddings

ABSTRACT Moving beyond the dominant bag-of-words approach to sentiment analysis we introduce an alternative procedure based on distributed word embeddings. The strength of word embeddings is the ability to capture similarities in word meaning. We use word embeddings as part of a supervised machine learning procedure which estimates levels of negativity in parliamentary speeches. The procedure’s accuracy is evaluated with crowdcoded training sentences; its external validity through a study of patterns of negativity in Austrian parliamentary speeches. The results show the potential of the word embeddings approach for sentiment analysis in the social sciences.
Intraperitoneal aerosolization of bupivacaine is a safe and effective method in controlling postoperative pain in laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass

Introduction Obesity is a worldwide problem and has grown in severity in the last few decades making bariatric surgery and, in particular, laparoscopic banding and Roux-en-Y gastric bypass efficacious and cost-effective procedures. The laparoscopic approach has been shown to offer significant healthcare benefits, of particular interests are reports of decreased postoperative pain resulting in a shorter hospital stay and an earlier return to normal activity. However, many patients still experience significant pain, including shoulder tip pain, that require strong analgesia including opiates during their early recovery period. The aims of this study were to establish the safe use of the aerosolization technique in bariatric surgery and to investigate the possible benefits in reducing postoperative pain. Methods In this study, fifty patients undergoing laparoscopic gastric bypass were recruited and divided into two groups; control (n = 25) and therapeutic (n = 25). The control group received intraperitoneal aerosolization of 10 mL of 0.9% normal saline while the therapeutic group received 10 mL of 0.5% bupivacaine. All the patients had standard preoperative, intraoperative, and postoperative care. Pain scores were carried out by the nursing staff in recovery and 6 h, 12 h and 24 h postoperatively using a standard 0–10 pain scoring scale. In addition, opiate consumption via patient-controlled analgesia (PCA) was recorded. Results Aerosolized bupivacaine reduced postoperative pain in comparison to normal saline (p < 0.05). However, PCA usage showed no statistically significant change from the control group. Conclusion The aims of this study were achieved and we were able to establish the safe use of the aerosolization technique in bariatric surgery and its benefits in reducing postoperative pain.
Relationships Among Teachers’ Use of Mental State Verbs and Children’s Vocabulary Growth

ABSTRACT Research Findings: Mental state verbs (MSV), a component of literate and academic language, may facilitate vocabulary growth, as they relate to metacognitive and metalinguistic awareness as well as decontextualized talk, all of which have been associated with vocabulary growth. In this study, we examined teacher MSV use in group content instruction and book reading in Head Start classrooms (N = 49) to determine the prevalence of teachers’ use of MSV. We sought to determine whether there was an association between teachers’ MSV use and children’s (N = 402) receptive and expressive vocabulary scores across 1 year of preschool. Results from hierarchical linear modeling revealed that teachers’ use of MSV in group content instruction was positively associated with children’s end-of-year receptive, but not expressive, vocabulary scores. No significant relations emerged for book reading. Positive associations between MSV in which the child was the referent of the verb and children’s receptive vocabulary were found, which indicates a potential scaffolding effect. Practice or Policy: Results indicate that teachers should consider including MSV in their content-rich instruction and provide support by placing the child as the referent of the verb. Additional instructional implications are addressed.
Higher Language Ability is Related to Angular Gyrus Activation Increase During Semantic Processing, Independent of Sentence Incongruency

This study investigates the relation between individual language ability and neural semantic processing abilities. Our aim was to explore whether high-level language ability would correlate to decreased activation in language-specific regions or rather increased activation in supporting language regions during processing of sentences. Moreover, we were interested if observed neural activation patterns are modulated by semantic incongruency similarly to previously observed changes upon syntactic congruency modulation. We investigated 27 healthy adults with a sentence reading task—which tapped language comprehension and inference, and modulated sentence congruency—employing functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). We assessed the relation between neural activation, congruency modulation, and test performance on a high-level language ability assessment with multiple regression analysis. Our results showed increased activation in the left-hemispheric angular gyrus extending to the temporal lobe related to high language ability. This effect was independent of semantic congruency, and no significant relation between language ability and incongruency modulation was observed. Furthermore, there was a significant increase of activation in the inferior frontal gyrus (IFG) bilaterally when the sentences were incongruent, indicating that processing incongruent sentences was more demanding than processing congruent sentences and required increased activation in language regions. The correlation of high-level language ability with increased rather than decreased activation in the left angular gyrus, a region specific for language processing, is opposed to what the neural efficiency hypothesis would predict. We can conclude that no evidence is found for an interaction between semantic congruency related brain activation and high-level language performance, even though the semantic incongruent condition shows to be more demanding and evoking more neural activation.
The Evolution of Representation in Simple Cognitive Networks

Representations are internal models of the environment that can provide guidance to a behaving agent, even in the absence of sensory information. It is not clear how representations are developed and whether they are necessary or even essential for intelligent behavior. We argue here that the ability to represent relevant features of the environment is the expected consequence of an adaptive process, give a formal definition of representation based on information theory, and quantify it with a measure R. To measure how R changes over time, we evolve two types of networks—an artificial neural network and a network of hidden Markov gates—to solve a categorization task using a genetic algorithm. We find that the capacity to represent increases during evolutionary adaptation and that agents form representations of their environment during their lifetime. This ability allows the agents to act on sensorial inputs in the context of their acquired representations and enables complex and context-dependent behavior. We examine which concepts (features of the environment) our networks are representing, how the representations are logically encoded in the networks, and how they form as an agent behaves to solve a task. We conclude that R should be able to quantify the representations within any cognitive system and should be predictive of an agent's long-term adaptive success.
Ontogenetic Variation in Biological Activities of Venoms from Hybrids between Bothrops erythromelas and Bothrops neuwiedi Snakes

Lance-headed snakes are found in Central and South America, and they account for most snakebites in Brazil. The phylogeny of South American pitvipers has been reviewed, and the presence of natural and non-natural hybrids between different species of Bothrops snakes demonstrates that reproductive isolation of several species is still incomplete. The present study aimed to analyze the biological features, particularly the thrombin-like activity, of venoms from hybrids born in captivity, from the mating of a female Bothrops erythromelas and a male Bothrops neuwiedi, two species whose venoms are known to display ontogenetic variation. Proteolytic activity on azocoll and amidolytic activity on N-benzoyl-DL-arginine-p-nitroanilide hydrochloride (BAPNA) were lowest when hybrids were 3 months old, and increased over body growth, reaching values similar to those of the father when hybrids were 12 months old. The clotting activity on plasma diminished as hybrids grew; venoms from 3- and 6-months old hybrids showed low clotting activity on fibrinogen (i.e., thrombin-like activity), like the mother venom, and such activity was detected only when hybrids were older than 1 year of age. Altogether, these results point out that venom features in hybrid snakes are genetically controlled during the ontogenetic development. Despite the presence of the thrombin-like enzyme gene(s) in hybrid snakes, they are silenced during the first six months of life.
Generating Equilibrium Dark Matter Halos: Inadequacies of the Local Maxwellian Approximation

We describe an algorithm for constructing N-body realizations of equilibrium spherical systems. A general form for the mass density ρ is used, making it possible to represent most of the popular density profiles found in the literature, including the cuspy density profiles found in high-resolution cosmological simulations. We demonstrate explicitly that our models are in equilibrium. In contrast, many existing N-body realizations of isolated systems have been constructed under the assumption that the local velocity distribution is Maxwellian. We show that a Maxwellian halo with an initial ρ(r) ∝ r-1 central density cusp immediately develops a constant-density core. Moreover, after just one crossing time the orbital anisotropy has changed over the entire system, and the initially isotropic model becomes radially anisotropic. These effects have important implications for many studies, including the survival of substructure in cold dark matter (CDM) models. Comparing the evolution and mass-loss rate of isotropic Maxwellian and self-consistent Navarro, Frenk, & White (NFW), satellites orbiting inside a static host CDM potential, we find that the former are unrealistically susceptible to tidal disruption. Thus, recent studies of the mass-loss rate and disruption timescales of substructure in CDM models may be compromised by using the Maxwellian approximation. We also demonstrate that a radially anisotropic, self-consistent NFW satellite loses mass at a rate several times higher than that of its isotropic counterpart on the same external tidal field and orbit.
Markets for emission permits with free endowment: A vintage capital analysis

In this paper, we develop a vintage capital model for a firm involved in a market for tradable emission permits. We analyze both the firm's optimal investment plans and the market equilibrium. This allows us to scrutinize how firms use permits free endowment, and to highlight the implications of non‐optimal uses both at the firm and at the market level. We provide a new rationale for the market of tradable permits not to be cost‐efficient. The novel technical points in this context are the use of a distributed (vintage) optimal control model of the firm, the use of optimality conditions for non‐smooth problems, and the involvement of a nonlinear Fredholm integral equation of the first kind for the description of the equilibrium price of permits, and its practical meaning for market regularization. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Verb Phrase Ellipsis Resolution Using Discriminative and Margin-Infused Algorithms

Verb Phrase Ellipsis (VPE) is an anaphoric construction in which a verb phrase has been elided. It occurs frequently in dialogue and informal conversational settings, but despite its evident impact on event coreference resolution and extraction, there has been relatively little work on computational methods for identifying and resolving VPE. Here, we present a novel approach to detecting and resolving VPE by using supervised discriminative machine learning techniques trained on features extracted from an automatically parsed, publicly available dataset. Our approach yields state-of-the-art results for VPE detection by improving F1 score by over 11%; additionally, we explore an approach to antecedent identiﬁ-cation that uses the Margin-Infused-Relaxed-Algorithm, which shows promising results.
Investigation of six plasmid-mediated quinolone resistance genes among clinical isolates of pseudomonas: a genotypic study in Saudi Arabia

Background: Quinolones are among the most effective antibiotics against Pseudomonas spp. Several chromosomal and/or plasmid-mediated quinolone-resistance mechanisms have been found in Pseudomonas. Plasmid-mediated quinolone-resistance (PMQR) is mediated by quinolone-resistance (QNR) proteins, modifying enzymes or efflux pumps. Only a few previous studies examined the prevalence of quinolone-resistance in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) and showed it is increasing. Mechanisms of quinolone-resistance among Pseudomonas spp. in the KSA; examined herein; have not been extensively studied. Methods: Ninety-two Pseudomonas isolates were collected and their resistance to seven different types of quinolones was determined by the microbroth dilution method. PMQR mechanisms were examined using a PCR screen to identify six PMQR genes including qnrA, qnrB, qnrD, qnrS, aac(6´)-Ib-cr, and qepA. Clonal relatedness of the quinolone-resistant isolates was determined by ERIC-PCR. Results: Of the isolates, 42.4% (39/92) were resistant to 1-7 of the tested quinolones. Gemifloxacin resistance was the lowest (28.3%) while resistance to the other six quinolones were ≥ 35%. The most common biotype among the 39 quinolone-resistant isolates was resistance to the seven tested quinolones (26/39; 66.7%). qnrD, qnrS, and aac(6´)-Ib-cr were found in 31 (79.5%), 31 (79.5%) and 28 (71.8%) of the 39 isolates, respectively, and all three genes together were found in 22 of the 39 isolates (56.4%). qnrA, qnrB, and qepA were not detected in any of the isolates and two isolates did not harbor any of the six tested genes. The isolates showed 38 different ERIC profiles and only two isolates (Pa16 and Pa17) had an identical profile. Conclusion: This is the first description of PMQR mechanisms among clinical Pseudomonas isolates from the KSA, which appears to be mainly mediated by qnrD, qnrS, and aac(6´)-Ib-cr.
A new current mirror layout technique for improved matching characteristics

This paper proposes a new current mirror layout technique to improve matching characteristics in the presence of parameter gradient. Effects of threshold gradients across a mirror on the matching characteristics of current mirrors are discussed. New and the existing layouts are compared with computer simulations for threshold voltage gradients at all angles across the active area. Results show a significant improvement in matching characteristics of the proposed structures over what is achievable with existing layout techniques.
Differences in Winter Browning among Japanese-cedar Cultivars Are Not Due to Variation in Ploidy Levels

There isa great deal of variation among japanese-cedar cultivars withregard to growth form, foliar characteristics, and winter browning. Differences in winter brown- ing have been observed and documented by a number of authors. Previous research has established thattherearedifferences inwinter foliagecolorbetween cultivarsincluded in the current study; however, no quantitative analysis under standardized conditions was conducted. Because of a previous report that tetraploid forms of japanese-cedar remain green during winter as a result of increased antioxidant enzyme activity, we hypothesized that cultivars that exhibit reduced winter browning were polyploids. We screened 56 accessionsofjapanese-cedarusingflowcytometryanalysisof4#,6-diamidino-2-phenylindole (DAPI)-stained nuclei and performed chromosome counts on three cultivars. All accessions were diploid (2n =2 x = 22), although there were significant differences in genome sizes among the cultivars. Holoploid genome sizes ranged from 18.9 pg for var. sinensis JCRA to 22.3 pg for 'Viridis' with a mean of 20.1 pg. Chromosome counts for cultivars Ogon,OyeKeme,and Viridissupported the flow cytometry results.Although the underlying cause of the variability in morphology and winter browning among cultivars is unclear, our results show that differences in ploidy level are not responsible, because all tested genotypes were diploid. Chemical name: 4#,6-diamidino-2-phenylindole (DAPI).
Superfield integrals in high dimensions

We present an efficient, covariant, graph-based method to integrate superfields over fermionic spaces of high dimensionality. We illustrate this method with the compu- tation of the most general sixteen-dimensional Majorana-Weyl integral in ten dimensions. Our method has applications to the construction of higher-derivative supergravity actions as well as the computation of string and membrane vertex operator correlators.
Effects of a selective cyclooxygenase-2 inhibitor on endometrial epithelial cells from patients with endometriosis.

BACKGROUND Celecoxib, a selective cyclooxygenase (COX)-2 inhibitor, also has anti-proliferative properties and pro-apoptotic effects on different in vivo and in vitro models, two actions that may be efficacious in therapy for endometriosis. We evaluated the effects of celecoxib on apoptosis and proliferation, and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) production and COX-2 expression and activity in endometrial epithelial cells (EECs). METHODS AND RESULTS Thirty-two endometriosis and 13 control women were included in the study. EECs from eutopic endometrium and control biopsies were cultured with different doses of celecoxib. Celecoxib at 50, 75 and 100 microM (versus vehicle control) inhibited EEC proliferation in cultures from controls (P < 0.05, P < 0.01 and P < 0.01, respectively) and patients with endometriosis (P < 0.05, P < 0.01 and P < 0.01), as assessed by (3)H-thymidine uptake. Celecoxib at 50, 75 and 100 microM induced apoptosis in EEC from controls (P < 0.05, P < 0.001 and P < 0.001) and patients with endometriosis (P < 0.001, P < 0.001 and P < 0.01), as revealed by the Acridine Orange-Ethidium Bromide technique. Western blot analysis showed that celecoxib was effective at increasing COX-2 protein at 100 microM in EEC from endometriosis patients (P < 0.05). In EEC from endometriosis patients, celecoxib at 25, 50 and 100 microM was also effective in reducing COX-2 activity, reflected in the reduction of prostaglandin E(2) (PGE(2)) synthesis (P < 0.001), and VEGF secretion (P < 0.001; P < 0.05 and P < 0.001), assessed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Exogenous PGE(2) did not reverse celecoxib-induced growth inhibition. CONCLUSIONS This study suggests a direct effect of celecoxib on reduction of endometrial growth and supports further research on selective COX-2 inhibition as a novel therapeutic modality in endometriosis.
Performance of the bdfm as a generator and motor

The performance of the brushless doubly-fed machine (BDFM) is analysed using a per-phase equivalent circuit. An expression for the rating of the machine as a function of magnetic and electric loadings is developed, and the rating is compared to those of the doubly-fed induction machine and cascaded induction machines. As the magnetic field in a BDFM is complex, the magnetic loading is considered in detail and a new generalised loading is derived. The BDFM suffers a reduction rating of about one-quarter in comparison to comparable conventional machines, arising from penalties in magnetic and electric loadings consequent on the presence of two stator to rotor couplings. The handling of reactive power has an important effect on the machine performance and this point is illustrated with experimental results from a frame size 180 BDFM. The tests were carried out at modest flux densities to avoid the effects of saturation, but the implications of saturation are considered.
Mean field models for spin glasses

Translation from physics: ‘Glass’: a material which is hard and inflexible (like a solid) but is not completely ordered or lattice-like in its microscropic structure (thus, unlike a crystal or simple metals). ‘Spin’: pertaining to the magnetic spins of ions in a material. ‘Spin glass’: a material, effectively solid, which contains some irregular distribution of magnetizable ions. Basic laboratory examples: Cadmium telluride (a non-magnetizable crystalline compound of cadmium and tellurium) doped some easily-magnetized atoms, e.g. of iron or nickel. Some weak natural examples: meteorites1. Spin glasses are complicated because the magnetic interactions between ions depend heavily on the exact distance between them, the irregular distances in a spin glass give rise to irregular interactions and hence a locally highly-complicated response to an external magnetic field. (Possible application: verification that a rock is a meteorite1.) I learned this from a stranger on a bus who hunts meteorites for a living, so I won’t swear by it.
An Archaic Homo Molar from Northern Vietnam1

fabrice demeter, anne-marie bacon, nguyen kim thuy, vu the long, hirofumi matsumura, ha huu nga, mathieu schuster, nguyen mai huong, and yves coppens Laboratoire de Paleoanthropologie et Prehistoire, College de France, 11 Place Marcelin Berthelot, 75005 Paris, France (fabrice.demeter@college-de-france.fr) (Demeter and Coppens)/Unite Ecoanthropologie et Ethnobiologie UMR 5145 du CNRS, Departement Homme, Nature, Societes du MNHN (Demeter)/UPR 2147 du CNRS, 44, rue du l’Amiral Mouchez, 75014 Paris, France (Bacon)/National Center for Social Sciences and Humanities of Vietnam, Institute of Archaeology, 61, Phan Chu Trinh, Hanoi, Vietnam (Thuy, Long, Nga, Huong)/Sapporo Medical University, Department of Anatomy, Minami 1, Mishi 17, ChuoKu, Sapporo 060-8556, Japan (Matsumura)/ULP, Universite Louis Pasteur, Institut de Geologie (EOSTCGS CNRS-UMR 7517), 1, rue Blessig, 67084 Strasbourg cedex, France (Schuster). 28 i 04