Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Modelling the Galactic magnetic field on the plane in two dimensions

We present a method for parametric modelling of the physical components of the Galaxy's magnetized interstellar medium, simulating the observables and mapping out the likelihood space using a Markov Chain Monte Carlo analysis. We then demonstrate it using total and polarized synchrotron emission data as well as rotation measures of extragalactic sources. With these three data sets, we define and study three components of the magnetic field: the large-scale coherent field, the small-scale isotropic random field and the ordered field. In this first paper, we use only data along the Galactic plane and test a simple two-dimensional (2D) logarithmic spiral model for the magnetic field that includes a compression and a shearing of the random component giving rise to an ordered component. We demonstrate with simulations that the method can indeed constrain multiple parameters yielding measures of, for example, the ratios of the magnetic field components. Though subject to uncertainties in thermal and cosmic ray electron densities and depending on our particular model parametrization, our preliminary analysis shows that the coherent component is a small fraction of the total magnetic field and an ordered component comparable in strength to the isotropic random component is required to explain the polarization fraction of synchrotron emission. We outline further work to extend this type of analysis to study the magnetic spiral arm structure, the details of the turbulence as well as the 3D structure of the magnetic field.
Constrained delegation

Sometimes it is useful to be able to separate management of a set of resources, and access to the resources themselves. However, current accounts of delegation do not allow such distinctions to be easily made. We introduce a new model for delegation to address this issue. The approach is based on the idea of controlling the possible shapes of delegation chains. We use constraints to restrict the capabilities at each step of delegation. Constraints may reflect e.g. group memberships, timing constraints, or dependencies on external data. Regular expressions are used to describe chained constraints. We present a number of example delegation structures, based on a scenario of collaborating organisations.
Mentoring the Mentor: Professional development through a school-university partnership

ABSTRACT Governments worldwide have invested in teaching standards and performance benchmarks to improve teacher preparation and teacher quality that impacts student achievement. As a means of addressing these imperatives, the Australian government has recently encouraged formal partnerships between tertiary providers, schools and education systems in delivering teacher education and professional development, in particular for mentors. This article documents challenges and initial findings of the first year of a school-university partnership involving an Australian regional university and K-12 teacher-mentors located in rural schools. It describes the design and implementation of a contextualised professional development model, using participatory action research to build teacher capacity for mentoring and foster a culture of collaborative inquiry. The model discussed reflects a systematic approach to constructing knowledge, skills and roles essential to effective mentoring.
Domestic violence beyond representation: finding a feminist subject in the Allison Baden-Clay murder case

ABSTRACT Allison Baden-Clay’s 2012 murder by her husband, Gerard, was the tragic end of years of living with his abuse. It was also one of Australia’s most high-profile news stories over the four years it took for Gerard Baden-Clay to exhaust his legal avenues for appeal. As feminist media scholars argue, the media representation of one victim standing for all is itself contradictory and ideologically invested. This paper explores the representation of this murdered “wife and mother” as a process of gendered subject construction that exceeds media and legal definitions. I argue for a return to this representational subject as a way of accounting for gender ideological work in discourse and beyond. My concern is with Allison’s loss of choice, before and after death, in how her circumstances were disclosed, and how her story shifted from “female tragedy” to her legacy as a “face of family violence. ” Following Teresa de Lauretis 1987, I also consider how finding a feminist subject in the margins of stories about this high-profile case can account for the unrepresentability of different forms of loss, and women’s multiple experiences of violence.
Hubble Space Telescope NICMOS Observations of NGC 1333: The Ratio of Stars to Substellar Objects

We present an analysis of NICMOS photometry and low-resolution grism spectroscopy of low-mass stars and substellar objects in the young star-forming region NGC 1333. Our goal is to constrain the ratio of low-mass stars to substellar objects down to 20MJup in the cluster, as well as constrain the cluster initial mass function (IMF) down to 30MJup, in combination with a previous survey of NGC 1333 by Wilking et al. Our survey covers four fields of 51.2″ × 51.2″, centered on brown dwarf candidates previously identified in Wilking et al. We extend previous work based on the use of a water vapor index for spectral typing to wavelengths accessible with NICMOS on the Hubble Space Telescope. Spectral types were derived for the 14 brightest objects in our fields, ranging from ≤M0 to M8, which, at the age of the cluster (0.3 Myr), correspond to a range in mass of ≥0.25-0.02 M⊙. In addition to the spectra, we present an analysis of the color-magnitude diagram using pre-main-sequence evolutionary models of D'Antona & Mazzitelli. Using an extinction-limited sample, we derive the ratio of low-mass stars to brown dwarfs. Comparisons of the observed ratio to that expected from the field IMF of Chabrier indicate that the two results are consistent. We combine our data with those of Wilking et al. to compute the ratio of intermediate-mass stars (0.1-1.0 M⊙) to low-mass objects (0.03-0.1 M⊙) in the cluster. We also report the discovery of a faint companion to the previously confirmed brown dwarf ASR 28, as well as a possible outflow surrounding ASR 16. If the faint companion is confirmed as a cluster member, it would have a mass of ≈5MJup (mass ratio 0.15) at a projected distance of 350 AU, similar to that of 2MASS 1207-3923B.
Cold Dark Clouds: The Initial Conditions for Star Formation

AbstractCold dark clouds are nearby members of the densest and coldest phase in the Galactic interstellar medium, and represent the most accessible sites where stars like our Sun are currently being born. In this review we discuss recent progress in their study, including the newly discovered IR dark clouds that are likely precursors to stellar clusters. At large scales, dark clouds present filamentary mass distributions with motions dominated by supersonic turbulence. At small, subparsec scales, a population of subsonic starless cores provides a unique glimpse of the conditions prior to stellar birth. Recent studies of starless cores reveal a combination of simple physical properties together with a complex chemical structure dominated by the freeze-out of molecules onto cold dust grains. Elucidating this combined structure is both an observational and theoretical challenge whose solution will bring us closer to understanding how molecular gas condenses to form stars.
Distribution of systemically administered ampicillin, benzylpenicillin, and flucloxacillin in excisional wounds in diabetic and normal rats and effects of local topical vasodilator treatment

The present study assessed the suitability of the streptozotocin-treated diabetic rat as a model for the study of diabetes-impaired wound healing. The distribution of three antibiotics, ampicillin, benzylpenicillin, and flucloxacillin, in wound and adjacent tissue sites on the abdomens and legs of normal and diabetic rats was determined 30 min after intravenous administration of a single bolus containing 50 mg of all three antibiotics per kg of body weight. Tissue/plasma ratios showed that antibiotic tissue penetration appeared to be related to protein binding. The treatment of wound sites with vasodilators (1% solution) to increase local blood flow and antibiotic delivery to the site was then determined and appeared to be more effective with endothelium-independent sodium nitroprusside than with endothelium-dependent acetylcholine in diabetic rats. These results suggest that coadministration of topical vasodilators to wound sites in neuropathic diabetic patients undergoing antibiotic therapy for infected ulcers could increase antibiotic delivery to wound tissue sites.
Investigating the Effects of Performance Feedback and Choice as a Writing Fluency Intervention

of the Dissertation Investigating the Effects of Performance Feedback and Choice as a Writing Fluency Intervention By Samantha J. Steinman, M.S. Doctor of Psychology in School Psychology College of Graduate Studies and Research Minnesota State University, Mankato, 2017 Despite a need for more support in the area of writing, few interventions currently exist to target elementary students’ writing fluency skills. Performance feedback has been identified as an effective intervention used to increase students’ writing productivity. Additionally, the use of choice as a writing fluency intervention has recently been identified as a viable option. Therefore, this study investigated the effects of combining performance feedback plus choice as a writing fluency intervention on the writing skills of eight third grade students. Using standard curriculum-based measure written expression procedures, students were provided performance feedback, choice, and the combination of the two strategies. Using a multiple baseline across subjects design, with withdrawal phases, baseline levels of total words written (TWW) on curriculum based measures were compared across each intervention phase for each student, in addition to one follow-up probe. Results demonstrated improvements in all eight students’ TWW over the course of the study. Overall, this study provides strong evidence that the combination of performance feedback plus choice results in increases in students’ writing productivity. Table of
Characterizing user sessions on YouTube

In this study, we characterize user sessions of the popular multimedia Web 2.0 site, YouTube. We observe YouTube user sessions by making measurements from an edge network perspective. Several characteristics of user sessions are considered, including session duration, inter-transaction times, and the types of content transferred by user sessions. We compare and contrast our results with "traditional" Web user sessions. We found that YouTube users transfer more data and have longer think times than traditional Web workloads. These differences have implications for network capacity planning and design of next generation synthetic Web workloads.
Gene expression patterns of breast carcinomas distinguish tumor subclasses with clinical implications

The purpose of this study was to classify breast carcinomas based on variations in gene expression patterns derived from cDNA microarrays and to correlate tumor characteristics to clinical outcome. A total of 85 cDNA microarray experiments representing 78 cancers, three fibroadenomas, and four normal breast tissues were analyzed by hierarchical clustering. As reported previously, the cancers could be classified into a basal epithelial-like group, an ERBB2-overexpressing group and a normal breast-like group based on variations in gene expression. A novel finding was that the previously characterized luminal epithelial/estrogen receptor-positive group could be divided into at least two subgroups, each with a distinctive expression profile. These subtypes proved to be reasonably robust by clustering using two different gene sets: first, a set of 456 cDNA clones previously selected to reflect intrinsic properties of the tumors and, second, a gene set that highly correlated with patient outcome. Survival analyses on a subcohort of patients with locally advanced breast cancer uniformly treated in a prospective study showed significantly different outcomes for the patients belonging to the various groups, including a poor prognosis for the basal-like subtype and a significant difference in outcome for the two estrogen receptor-positive groups.
Large-scale study of the ngc 1399 globular cluster system in fornax

We present a Washington C and Kron-Cousins R photometric study of the globular cluster system of NGC 1399, the central galaxy of the Fornax cluster. A large areal coverage of 1 square degree around NGC 1399 is achieved with three adjoining fields of the MOSAIC II Imager at the CTIO 4-m telesc ope. Working on such a large field, we can perform the first indicative determination of the total size of the NGC 1399 globular cluster system. The estimated angular extent, measured from the NGC 1399 centre and up to a limiting radius where the areal density of blue globular clusters falls to 30 per cent of the background level, is 45± 5 arcmin, which corresponds to 220 - 275 kpc at the Fornax distance. The bimodal colour distribution of this globular cluster system, as well as the different radial distribution of blue and red clusters, up to the se large distances from the parent galaxy, are confirmed. The azimuth al globular cluster distribution exhibits asymmetries tha t might be understood in terms of tidal stripping of globulars from NGC 1387, a nearby galaxy. The good agreement between the areal density profile of blue clusters and a projected dark-matter NFW density profile is emphasized.
Precoder and equalizer design for multi-user MIMO FBMC/OQAM with highly frequency selective channels

In this contribution we propose two new designs of transmit and receive processing for multi-user multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) downlink systems that employ filter bank based multicarrier with offset quadrature amplitude modulation (FBMC/OQAM). Our goal is to overcome the limits on the channel frequency selectivity and/or the allowed number of receive antennas per user terminal that are imposed on the state-of-the-art solutions. In the first method the design of precoders and equalizers is iterative and minimum mean square error (MMSE) based. The second is a closed-form design based on the signal-to-leakage ratio (SLR). Via numerical simulations we evaluate the performance of both methods and demonstrate their superiority over two other approaches in the literature.
Identifying individual patients' socio-economic position : a basis for vertical equity approaches in primary health care

This thesis develops an original approach to identify the socio economic position of individual patients at GP practices. In diverse and densely populated inner city areas, there is reason to expect that an individually based measure of socio-economic position of individuals may be a useful tool to support effective use of resources in primary case. An innovative method of classifying individual patients' socio-economic positions when registering at a GP practice was developed for this purpose. It is argued that this method could be used as a basis for a vertical equity approach to healthcare. Logistic regression techniques and measures of sensitivity and specificity are used in an original method designed to identify patients to two socioeconomic benchmarks. Criteria are provided for a framework in which decisions can be made to target patients. The thesis adopts a critical perspective on current thinking around equity in healthcare. Interviews establish that NHS professionals agree that a vertical equity approach would be an effective means to address health inequities. However, they also see significant barriers to adoption of such an approach. A complex and sophisticated set of issues emerge from qualitative comments from patients concerning this research method. The comments demonstrate a deep engagement with the NHS. They include views on the determinants of health and the way in which healthcare is organised that relate directly to equity in healthcare. The findings are contextualised in the light of recent government policy proposals and challenge the direction of that policy as being ineffective in addressing health inequities. They also highlight possible future tensions between NHS professionals and patients.
Performance Assessment of New Multiplex Probe Assay for Identification of Mycobacteria

ABSTRACT A new DNA probe assay (INNO LiPA Mycobacteria; Innogenetics, Ghent, Belgium) for the simultaneous identification, by means of reverse hybridization and line-probe technology, of Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex, Mycobacterium kansasii,Mycobacterium xenopi, Mycobacterium gordonae, the species of the Mycobacterium avium complex (MAC),Mycobacterium scrofulaceum, and Mycobacterium chelonae was evaluated on a panel of 238 strains including, besides representatives of all the taxa identifiable by the system, a number of other mycobacteria, some of which are known to be problematic with the only other commercial DNA probe system (AccuProbe; Gen-Probe, San Diego, Calif.), and two nocardiae. The new kit, which includes a control probe reacting with the whole genus Mycobacterium, correctly identified 99.6% of the strains tested; the one discrepancy, which remained unresolved, concerned an isolate identified as MAC intermediate by INNO LiPA Mycobacteria and as Mycobacterium intracellulare by AccuProbe. In five cases, because of an imperfect checking of hybridization temperature, a very slight, nonspecific, line was visible which was no longer evident when the test was repeated. Two strains whose DNA failed amplification at the first attempt were regularly identified when the test was repeated. Interestingly, the novel kit dodged all the pitfalls presented by the strains giving anomalous reactions with AccuProbe. A unique feature of INNO LiPA Mycobacteria is its ability to recognize different subgroups within the species M. kansasii and M. chelonae, while the declared overlapping reactivity of probe 4 with some M. kansasii and Mycobacterium gastri organisms and of probe 9 with MAC, Mycobacterium haemophilum, andMycobacterium malmoense, may furnish a useful aid for their identification. The turnaround time of the method is approximately 6 h, including a preliminary PCR amplification.
Design Space Exploration of Object Caches with Cross-Profiling

To avoid data cache trashing between heap-allocated data and other data areas, a distinct object cache has been proposed for embedded real-time Java processors. This object cache uses high associativity in order to statically track different object pointers for worst-case execution-time analysis. However, before implementing such an object cache, an empirical analysis of different organization forms is needed. We use a cross-profiling technique based on aspect-oriented programming in order to evaluate different object cache organizations with standard Java benchmarks. From the evaluation we conclude that field access exhibits some temporal locality, but almost no spatial locality. Therefore, filling long cache lines on a miss just introduces a high miss penalty without increasing the hit rate enough to make up for the increased miss penalty. For an object cache, it is more efficient to fill individual words within the cache line on a miss.
Autoantigen-Specific B Cell Activation in FAS-Deficient Rheumatoid Factor Immunoglobulin Transgenic Mice

In systemic autoimmune disease, self-tolerance fails, leading to autoantibody production. A central issue in immunology is to understand the origins of activated self-reactive B cells. We have used immunoglobulin (Ig) transgenic mice to investigate the regulation of autoreactive B cells with specificity for self-IgG2a (the rheumatoid factor [RF] specificity) to understand how normal mice regulate RF autoantibodies and how this fails in autoimmune mice. We previously showed that normal mice do not tolerize the AM14 RF clone, nor do they appear to activate it. Here we show that in Fas-deficient autoimmune mice, the picture is quite different. RF B cells are activated to divide and secrete, but only when the autoantigen is present. Thus, B cells that are ignored rather than anergized in normal mice can be stimulated to produce autoantibody in Fas-deficient mice. This demonstrates a novel developmental step at which intact Fas–Fas ligand signaling is required to regulate B cells in order to prevent autoimmunity. These data also establish the relevance of ignorant self-specific B cells to autoantibody production in disease and prove that in the case of the RF specificity, the nominal autoantigen IgG2a is the driving autoantigen in vivo.
Traveling Theta Waves in the Human Hippocampus

The hippocampal theta oscillation is strongly correlated with behaviors such as memory and spatial navigation, but we do not understand its specific functional role. One hint of theta's function came from the discovery in rodents that theta oscillations are traveling waves that allow parts of the hippocampus to simultaneously exhibit separate oscillatory phases. Because hippocampal theta oscillations in humans have different properties compared with rodents, we examined these signals directly using multielectrode recordings from neurosurgical patients. Our findings confirm that human hippocampal theta oscillations are traveling waves, but also show that these oscillations appear at a broader range of frequencies compared with rodents. Human traveling waves showed a distinctive pattern of spatial propagation such that there is a consistent phase spread across the hippocampus regardless of the oscillations' frequency. This suggests that traveling theta oscillations are important functionally in humans because they coordinate phase coding throughout the hippocampus in a consistent manner. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT We show for the first time in humans that hippocampal theta oscillations are traveling waves, moving along the length of the hippocampus in a posterior–anterior direction. The existence of these traveling theta waves is important for understanding hippocampal neural coding because they cause neurons at separate positions in the hippocampus to experience different theta phases simultaneously. The theta phase that a neuron measures is a key factor in how that cell represents behavioral information. Therefore, the existence of traveling theta waves indicates that, to fully understand how a hippocampal neuron represents information, it is vital to also account for that cell's location in addition to conventional measures of neural activity.
MATRIX MEASURE AND APPLICATION TO STABILITY OF MATRICES AND INTERVAL DYNAMICAL SYSTEMS

Using some properties of the matrix measure, we obtain a general condition for the stability of a convex hull of matrices that will be applied to study the stability of interval dynamical systems. Some classical results from stability theory are reproduced and extended. We present a relationship between the matrix measure and the real parts of the eigenvalues that make it possible to obtain stability criteria.