Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Scaling laws for cognitive radio network with heterogeneous mobile secondary users

We study the capacity and delay scaling laws for cognitive radio network (CRN) with static primary users and heterogeneous mobile secondary users coexisting in the unit planar area. The primary network consists of n randomly and uniformly distributed static primary users (PUs) with higher priority to access the spectrum. The secondary network consists of m = (h + 1)n1+ϵ heterogeneous mobile secondary users (SUs) which should access the spectrum opportunistically, here h = O(log n) and ϵ >; 0. Each secondary user moves within a circular area centered at its initial position with a restricted speed. The moving area of each mobile SU is n-α, where a is a random variable which follows the discrete uniform distribution with h + 1 different values, ranging from 0 to α0 (α0 >; 0). α0 and h together determine the mobility heterogeneity of secondary users. By allowing the secondary users to relay the packets for primary users, we have proposed a joint routing and scheduling scheme to fully utilize the mobility heterogeneity of secondary users. We show that the primary network and secondary network can achieve optimal capacity and delay scalings if we increase the mobility heterogeneity of secondary users, i.e., the value of h and α0, until h = Θ(log n) and α0 ≥ 1 + ϵ. In this optimal condition, both the primary network and part of the secondary network can achieve almost constant capacity and delay scalings except for poly-logarithmic factor.
Chemotherapy in Elderly Patients with Gastric Cancer

Gastric cancer (GC) is one of the most frequent malignant diseases in the elderly. Systemic chemotherapy showed an improvement of quality of life and survival benefit compared to supportive care alone in patients with advanced GC. Because comorbidities or age-related changes in pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics may lead to higher toxicity, however, many oncologists hesitate to recommend elderly patients to receive chemotherapy. Available data suggest that elderly patients with GC are able to tolerate and benefit from systemic chemotherapy to the same extent as younger patients. The age alone should not be the only criteria to preclude effective chemotherapy. However, proper patient selection is extremely important to deliver effective treatment safely. A comprehensive geriatric assessment (CGA) is a useful method to assess life expectancy and risk of morbidity in older patients and to guide providing optimal treatment. Treatment should be personalized based on the nature of the disease, the life expectancy, the risk of complication, and the patient's preference. Combination chemotherapy can be considered for older patients with metastatic GC who are classified as non-frail patients by CGA. For frail or vulnerable patients, however, monotherapy or only symptomatic treatment may be desirable. Targeted agents seem to be promising treatment options for elderly patients with GC considering their better efficacy and less toxicity.
The Predictive Validity of Dynamic Assessment Using ZPD with Expressive Language Delayed Children

본 연구는 한 단어 발화 수준의 표현언어장애 아동 24명을 대상으로 학습잠재력의 치료예측 타당도를 연구하였다. 연구는 (1) 학습 전 정적평가, (2) 학습 전 ZPD에 기반한 역동적평가, (3) 단기학습(3주), (4) 학습 후 정적평가의 순으로 진행되었다. 이런 일련의 절차를 거쳐, ZPD와 실제 학습향상도(학습 후 정적평가-학습 전 정적평가)간의.
Genome-Wide Association for Growth Traits in Canchim Beef Cattle

Studies are being conducted on the applicability of genomic data to improve the accuracy of the selection process in livestock, and genome-wide association studies (GWAS) provide valuable information to enhance the understanding on the genetics of complex traits. The aim of this study was to identify genomic regions and genes that play roles in birth weight (BW), weaning weight adjusted for 210 days of age (WW), and long-yearling weight adjusted for 420 days of age (LYW) in Canchim cattle. GWAS were performed by means of the Generalized Quasi-Likelihood Score (GQLS) method using genotypes from the BovineHD BeadChip and estimated breeding values for BW, WW, and LYW. Data consisted of 285 animals from the Canchim breed and 114 from the MA genetic group (derived from crossings between Charolais sires and ½ Canchim + ½ Zebu dams). After applying a false discovery rate correction at a 10% significance level, a total of 4, 12, and 10 SNPs were significantly associated with BW, WW, and LYW, respectively. These SNPs were surveyed to their corresponding genes or to surrounding genes within a distance of 250 kb. The genes DPP6 (dipeptidyl-peptidase 6) and CLEC3B (C-type lectin domain family 3 member B) were highlighted, considering its functions on the development of the brain and skeletal system, respectively. The GQLS method identified regions on chromosome associated with birth weight, weaning weight, and long-yearling weight in Canchim and MA animals. New candidate regions for body weight traits were detected and some of them have interesting biological functions, of which most have not been previously reported. The observation of QTL reports for body weight traits, covering areas surrounding the genes (SNPs) herein identified provides more evidence for these associations. Future studies targeting these areas could provide further knowledge to uncover the genetic architecture underlying growth traits in Canchim cattle.
Patient-derived xenografts for individualized care in advanced sarcoma

Patients with advanced, metastatic sarcoma have a poor prognosis, and the overall benefit from the few standard‐of‐care therapeutics available is small. The rarity of this tumor, combined with the wide range of subtypes, leads to difficulties in conducting clinical trials. The authors previously reported the outcome of patients with a variety of common solid tumors who received treatment with drug regimens that were first tested in patient‐derived xenografts using a proprietary method (“TumorGrafts”).
Ingestion of Microplastics by Ichthyofauna in the Southern Coastline of Cameroon

The study was designed to provide evidence of microplastic ingestion, abundance and composition in the catches of Pseudotolithus senegalensis, Pseudotolithus typus and Ethmalosa fimbriata in the dockyard of Londji and Mboa-manga on the Southern Coastline of Cameroon. The methodology involved visual observation and identification of anthropogenic particles in the stomach content (SC) and an extraction procedure involving hypochlorite digestion and isolation. In this study 45(18.37%) of a total 372 of the E. fimbriata and Pseudotolithus sp had ingested microplastics. We also found a majority abundance of 12 microplastic particle in four size classes [18-21] cm for E. fimbriata, and 20 and 23 microplastic particles in six size classes [40-45] cm and [35-39] cm for P. senegalensis and P. typus respectively. The average percentage composition of the microplastics included rope filaments (23%), fishing lines (47%), strings (13 %), pieces of plastic cloth (9%) and others (8%) with a colour diversity of white, red, yellow, grey and light blue. The results provided an improved evidence base to support policy and management decisions on measures to develop adaptation and mitigation strategies for plastic debris in the Southern coastline of Cameroon.
The Collapse of the Indus-Script Thesis: The Myth of a Literate Harappan Civilization

have long claimed the Indus Valley as one of the four literate centers of the early ancient world, complete with long texts written on perishable materials. We demonstrate the impossibility of the lost-manuscript thesis and show that Indus symbols were not even evolving in linguistic directions after at least 600 years of use. Suggestions as to how Indus symbols were used are noted in nonlinguistic symbol systems in the Near East that served key religious, political, and social functions without encoding speech or serving as formal memory aids. Evidence is reviewed that the Harappans' lack of a true script may have been tied to the role played by their symbols in controlling large multilinguistic populations; parallels are drawn to the later resistance of Brahmin elites to the literate encoding of Vedic sources and to similar phenomena in esoteric traditions outside South Asia. Discussion is provided on some of the political and academic forces that helped sustain the Indus- script myth for over 130 years and on ways in which our findings transform current views of the Indus Valley and of literacy in the ancient world in general.
Consistent estimation of dynamic and multi-layer block models

Significant progress has been made recently on theoretical analysis of estimators for the stochastic block model (SBM). In this paper, we consider the multi-graph SBM, which serves as a foundation for many application settings including dynamic and multi-layer networks. We explore the asymptotic properties of two estimators for the multi-graph SBM, namely spectral clustering and the maximum-likelihood estimate (MLE), as the number of layers of the multi-graph increases. We derive sufficient conditions for consistency of both estimators and propose a variational approximation to the MLE that is computationally feasible for large networks. We verify the sufficient conditions via simulation and demonstrate that they are practical. In addition, we apply the model to two real data sets: a dynamic social network and a multi-layer social network with several types of relations.
Frontal and Temporal Microbleeds Are Related to Cognitive Function: The Radboud University Nijmegen Diffusion Tensor and Magnetic Resonance Cohort (RUN DMC) Study

Background and Purpose— Cerebral small vessel disease, including white matter lesions and lacunar infarcts, is related to cognitive impairment. Cerebral microbleeds (MBs) are increasingly being recognized as another manifestation of small vessel disease and are also related to cognitive function. However, it remains unclear whether this relation is independent of white matter lesions and lacunar infarcts and if location of MB plays a role. We investigated the relation between the presence, number, and location of MB and cognitive performance adjusted for white matter lesions and lacunar infarcts. Methods— Presence, number, and location of MB were rated on a gradient echo T2*-weighted MRI in 500 nondemented elderly patients with small vessel disease. Cognitive performance was assessed in different domains. Analyses were adjusted for age, sex, education, depressive symptoms, total brain volume, white matter lesion volume, and lacunar and territorial infarcts. Results— Mean age was 65.6 years (SD 8.8) and 57% were male. MBs were present in 10.4% of the participants. Subjects with MBs were significantly older, had a higher white matter lesion volume, and more lacunar infarcts (P<0.001). Presence and number of MBs were related to global cognitive function (&bgr;−0.10, P=0.008; &bgr;−0.20, P=0.002), psychomotor speed (&bgr;−0.10, P=0.012; &bgr;−0.19, P=0.006), and attention (&bgr;−0.10, P=0.02; &bgr;−0.205, P=0.001). The relations with cognitive performance were mainly driven by frontal, temporal, and strictly deep located MB. Conclusions— Frontal and temporal located MBs correlate with cognitive performance in nondemented elderly patients independent of coexisting other small vessel disease-related lesions. MBs are clinically not silent and may help to understand the role of vascular disease in cognitive decline.
Mind-Reading and Telepathy for Beginners and Intermediates: What People Think Machines Can Know About the Mind, and Why Their Beliefs Matter

Author(s): Merrill, Nick | Advisor(s): Chuang, John | Abstract: What can machines know about the mind, even theoretically? This dissertation examines what people (end-users and software engineers) believe the answer to this question might be, where these beliefs come from, and what effect they have on social behavior and technical practice. First, qualitative and quantitative data from controlled experiments show how basic biosignals, such as heartrate, meet with both social context and prior beliefs about the body to produce mind-related meanings, and affect social decision-making. Second, a working brain-computer interface probes the diverse beliefs that software engineers hold about the mind, and uncovers their shared belief that the mind can and will be read by machines. These cases trace an unstable boundary–one heavily mediated by human beliefs–between sensing bodies and sensing minds. I propose the porousness of this boundary as a site for studying the futures of computer-mediated communication, of security, privacy and surveillance, and of minds themselves.
The clinical impact of multidrug-resistant gram-negative bacilli in the management of septic shock

Multi-antibiotic drug-resistant (MDR) gram-negative bacilli are becoming a major threat to the standard care of septic patients. Empiric antimicrobial drug regimens to cover likely bacterial pathogens have to be altered in keeping with the spread of MDR pathogens in the health care setting and in the community. Reliable antibiotics for broad spectrum coverage for sepsis such as extended spectrum β-lactam antibiotics, carbapenems, and fluoroquinolones can no longer be counted upon to provide activity against a range of common, virulent pathogens that cause sepsis. In some regions of Asia, South America, and Eastern Europe in particular, MDR pathogens have become a major concern, necessitating the use of potentially toxic and costly antibiotic combinations as initial antibiotic therapy for septic shock. In this brief review, we will focus on the emergence of MDR gram-negative pathogens, resistance mechanisms, and suggest some management and prevention strategies against MDR pathogens.
The Value of Groups

We present the results of an experiment that attempts to measure the social value of groups. In the experiment, group membership is induced artificially: subjects interact with insiders and outsiders in trust games and periodically enter markets where they can trade group membership. We find that trust falls with groups because of negative discrimination against outsiders. Against this, however, there is evidence that group membership provides a psychological benefit, albeit one that may induce social inertia. Overall, the welfare effects of groups are at best neutral and could be negative. (JEL: D17, Z13)
Clinical significance of tumor expression of major histocompatibility complex class I-related chains A and B (MICA/B) in gastric cancer patients

Gastric cancer (GC) is the third most common cause of cancer death worldwide. Natural killer cells play an important role in the immune defense against transformed cells. They express the activating receptor NKG2D, whose ligands belong to the MIC and ULBP/RAET family. Although it is well established that these ligands are generally expressed in tumors, the association between their expression in the tumor and gastric mucosa and clinical parameters and prognosis of GC remains to be addressed. In the present study, MICA and MICB expression was analyzed, by flow cytometry, in 23 and 20 pairs of gastric tumor and adjacent non-neoplasic gastric mucosa, respectively. Additionally, ligands expression in 13 tumors and 7 gastric mucosa samples from GC patients were evaluated by immunohistochemistry. The mRNA levels of MICA in 9 pairs of tumor and mucosa were determined by quantitative PCR. Data were associated with the clinicopathological characteristics and the patient outcome. MICA expression was observed in 57% of tumors (13/23) and 44% of mucosal samples (10/23), while MICB was detected in 50% of tumors (10/20) and 45% of mucosal tissues (9/20). At the protein level, ligand expression was significantly higher in the tumor than in the gastric mucosa. MICA mRNA levels were also increased in the tumor as compared to the mucosa. However, clinicopathological analysis indicated that, in patients with tumors >5 cm, the expression of MICA and MICB in the tumor did not differ from that of the mucosa, and tumors >5 cm showed significantly higher MICA and MICB expression than tumors ≤5 cm. Patients presenting tumors >5 cm that expressed MICA and MICB had substantially shorter survival than those with large tumors that did not express these ligands. Our results suggest that locally sustained expression of MICA and MICB in the tumor may contribute to the malignant progression of GC and that expression of these ligands predicts an unfavorable prognosis in GC patients presenting large tumors.
Compositional Studies: Antioxidant and Antidiabetic Activities of Capparis decidua (Forsk.) Edgew

Capparis decidua is one of the traditional remedies used for various medicinal treatments in Pakistan. This study presents the determination of proximate composition, amino acids, fatty acids, tocopherols, sterols, glucosinolate and phenolic content in extracts obtained from different aerial parts of C. decidua, as well as their antidiabetic and antioxidant activity. All examined extracts were prominently rich in phenolics and glucosinates, and they showed potent antidiabetic and antihemolytic activity. The present study could be helpful in developing medicinal preparations for the treatment of diabetes and related symptoms.
Anti-cancer Therapies in High Grade Gliomas

High grade gliomas represent one of the most aggressive and treatment-resistant types of human cancer, with only 1–2 years median survival rate for patients with grade IV glioma. The treatment of glioblastoma is a considerable therapeutic challenge; combination therapy targeting multiple pathways is becoming a fast growing area of research. This review offers an up-to-date perspective of the literature about current molecular therapy targets in high grade glioma, that include angiogenic signals, tyrosine kinase receptors, nodal signaling proteins and cancer stem cells related approaches. Simultaneous identification of proteomic signatures could provide biomarker panels for diagnostic and personalized treatment of different subsets of glioblastoma. Personalized medicine is starting to gain importance in clinical care, already having recorded a series of successes in several types of cancer; nonetheless, in brain tumors it is still at an early stage.
Doing Is for Thinking!

Three studies demonstrate that stereotypic movements activate the corresponding stereotype. In Study 1, participants who were unobtrusively induced to move in the portly manner that is stereotypic of overweight people subsequently ascribed more overweight-stereotypic characteristics to an ambiguous target person than did control participants. In Study 2, participants who were unobtrusively induced to move in the slow manner that is stereotypic of elderly people subsequently ascribed more elderly-stereotypic characteristics to a target than did control participants. In Study 3, participants who were induced to move slowly were faster than control participants to respond to elderly-stereotypic words in a lexical decision task. Using three different movement inductions, two different stereotypes, and two classic measures of stereotype activation, these studies converge in demonstrating that stereotypes may be activated by stereotypic movements.
Impact of the -174G/C interleukin-6 (IL-6) gene polymorphism on the risk of paediatric ischemic stroke, its symptoms and outcome.

OBJECTIVES Ischemic stroke remains one of the top ten causes of death in children. There is evidence for the role of pro-inflammatory cytokines, such as IL-6 and the -174G>C promoter polymorphism of the IL-6 gene, in the occurrence and outcome of stroke in adults. The aim of the present study was to determine a possible association between the -174G>C IL-6 polymorphism and occurrence of paediatric stroke, its symptoms and outcome. MATERIAL AND METHODS The study group consisted of 340 individuals: 80 stroke children, 122 parents of patients and 138 controls. The -174G/C polymorphism was genotyped using the RFLP method. For the analysis of the relationship between genotypes and stroke we used two alternative methods: the case-control model and the transmission test for linkage disequilibrium using data from families. RESULTS We observed no differences in the transmission of alleles from parents to children. We also did not find any statistical differences in distribution of genotypes and alleles between patients and controls. However, the analysis showed that post-stroke epilepsy was genotype-dependent. All children with epilepsy were G allele carriers and none of them was a CC homozygote whereas about 25% of children without epilepsy had the CC genotype. CONCLUSIONS Our study did not show any associations between the IL-6 -174 G>C polymorphism and the occurrence of stroke but we observed a relation between post-stroke epilepsy and the G allele carrier-state.
Species Identification and Clarithromycin Susceptibility Testing of 278 Clinical Nontuberculosis Mycobacteria Isolates

Purpose of this paper is to analyze different species' proportion of nontuberculosis mycobacteria (NTM) and susceptibility to clarithromycin of different species. 278 clinical NTM isolates were identified into species by using 16S rRNA, rpoB and hsp65. Then clarithromycin susceptibility testing against different species was done separately, using microplate Alamar Blue assay. Finally, resistance isolates' erm(41) of M. abscessus were sequenced in order to analyze mechanisms for clarithromycin resistant. In this test, 131 isolates (47%) belonged to M. avium complex (MAC), and 70 isolates (25%) belonged to M. abscessus. Nearly all the M. abscessus subsp. abscessus resistant to clarithromycin had T28 in erm(41). However, all the M. abscessus subsp. abscessus susceptible to clarithromycin had C28 in erm(41). In this study, we find that MAC was the most common pathogens of NTM, and the second one was M. abscessus. However, M. chelonei, M. fuerth, and M. gordon were rare. Clarithromycin had a good inhibition activity against all the NTM species except M. abscessus subsp. abscessus. The erm(41) genotype is of high relevance to clarithromycin resistance.
Inflation in Australia: Measurement and Modelling

Since 1993, monetary policy in Australia has targeted CPI infl ation of between 2 and 3 per cent, on average, over the course of the cycle. Over this period, the average of CPI infl ation has fallen markedly to 21⁄2 per cent, the lowest it has been for a sustained period since the 1960s (Figure 1). This paper examines two topics that are important for understanding and interpreting the behaviour of infl ation: the measurement of underlying infl ation and exchange rate pass-through. These topics are of particular interest in the current context because effective implementation of