Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Distinct behaviors of neural stem and progenitor cells underlie cortical neurogenesis

Neocortical precursor cells undergo symmetric and asymmetric divisions while producing large numbers of diverse cortical cell types. In Drosophila, cleavage plane orientation dictates the inheritance of fate‐determinants and the symmetry of newborn daughter cells during neuroblast cell divisions. One model for predicting daughter cell fate in the mammalian neocortex is also based on cleavage plane orientation. Precursor cell divisions with a cleavage plane orientation that is perpendicular with respect to the ventricular surface (vertical) are predicted to be symmetric, while divisions with a cleavage plane orientation that is parallel to the surface (horizontal) are predicted to be asymmetric neurogenic divisions. However, analysis of cleavage plane orientation at the ventricle suggests that the number of predicted neurogenic divisions might be insufficient to produce large amounts of cortical neurons. To understand factors that correlate with the symmetry of cell divisions, we examined rat neocortical precursor cells in situ through real‐time imaging, marker analysis, and electrophysiological recordings. We find that cleavage plane orientation is more closely associated with precursor cell type than with daughter cell fate, as commonly thought. Radial glia cells in the VZ primarily divide with a vertical orientation throughout cortical development and undergo symmetric or asymmetric self‐renewing divisions depending on the stage of development. In contrast, most intermediate progenitor cells divide in the subventricular zone with a horizontal orientation and produce symmetric daughter cells. We propose a model for predicting daughter cell fate that considers precursor cell type, stage of development, and the planar segregation of fate determinants. J. Comp. Neurol. 508:28–44, 2008. © 2008 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Remote Usability Evaluation: Overview and Case Studies

Traditional laboratory-based usability evaluations have many costs associated with them: financial costs, temporary loss in participant productivity, travel issues. For this reason, many human-computer interaction practitioners cannot conduct as many test iterations as they would like or may fail to secure representative samples, especially as user groups become more global. In recent years, we have begun to use less expensive remote evaluation techniques to complement traditional methods. This article describes some collaborative software that allows remote evaluations, along with the necessary hardware, to reproduce, as closely as possible, traditional evaluation techniques. It also describes the types of activities that lend themselves to this sort of approach and provides tips for conducting these sorts of sessions. Finally, this article provides data that suggest remote techniques are not only effective at improving interface designs, but also produce results comparable to traditional approaches for typical measures.
A Short History of Tax Compliance in Italy

This study retraces the history of tax compliance in Italy from unification to today. We review the attempts at evaluating the gap between actual and potential tax revenue, from nineteenth-century descriptive statistics up until the formal estimates of recent decades, which distinguish lawful tax erosion from avoidance and evasion. Secondly, we analyze the explanations given and solutions proposed to increase tax compliance, grouping them into five "theses": excessive tax burden, structural deficiencies in specific taxes, inefficiency of tax administration, taxpayersi? ½ reluctance and the complexity of tax laws. We also assess the changing attitudes of taxpayers towards tax and the tax authorities over the same period. The excursus shows that compliance problems are a long-term constant of the Italian tax system, even if their scale has diminished over time, at least in percentage terms. The problems have always originated from a specific group of taxpayers (self-employed workers and sole proprietorships). On the other hand the causes, and therefore the solutions to be taken into consideration, are complex and multifaceted.
Captive Housing during Water Vole (Arvicola terrestris) Reintroduction: Does Short-Term Social Stress Impact on Animal Welfare?

Background Animals captive bred for reintroduction are often housed under conditions which are not representative of their preferred social structure for at least part of the reintroduction process. Specifically, this is most likely to occur during the final stages of the release programme, whilst being housed during transportation to the release site. The degree of social stress experienced by individuals during this time may negatively impact upon their immunocompetence. Methodology/Principal Findings We examined two measure of stress - body weight and Leukocyte Coping Capacity (LCC) - to investigate the effects of group size upon captive-bred water voles destined for release within a reintroduction program. Water voles were housed in laboratory cages containing between one and eight individuals. LCC scores were negatively correlated with group size, suggesting that individuals in larger groups experienced a larger degree of immuno-suppression than did individuals housed in smaller groups or individually. During the course of the study mean body weights increased, in contrast to expectations from a previous study. This was attributed to the individuals sampled being sub-adults and thus growing in length and weight during the course of the investigation. Conclusions/Significance The reintroduction process will inevitably cause some stress to the release cohort. However, for water voles we conclude that the stress experienced may be reduced by decreasing group size within captive colony and/or transportation housing practises. These findings are of significance to other species' reintroductions, in highlighting the need to consider life-history strategies when choosing housing systems for animals being maintained in captivity prior to release to the wild. A reduction in stress experienced at the pre-release stage may improve immunocompetence and thus animal welfare and initial survival post-release.
War! What is it Good for?

Whatever gains may come from fighting wars, economic growth is not among them. We examine the long-run impact of interstate conflict on real GDP per capita for a cross section of countries between 1960 and 2000. We construct a fatality-weighted conflict variable that accounts for both the severity and endogeneity of individual confrontations. We include our conflict measure in a deep determinants income regression in which we control for trade, institutions and geography. We find that a 10 percent increase in fatality-weighted conflict over the period 1960 to 2000 results in an average decrease of 1.2 to 1.6 percent in 2000 real GDP per capita.
Generalized adaptive output-feedback form with unknown parameters multiplying high output relative-degree states

We propose a global high-gain scaling based observer/controller for systems in the uncertain generalized output-feedback canonical form. Time-varying nonlinear parametric uncertainty is allowed to occur coupled with unmeasured states in the system dynamics. This represents a significant generalization from existing results which allow unknown parameters only in output-dependent terms. This restriction in previous results is mainly owing to the fact that no general solution is known for systems involving bilinear terms in unmeasured states. The design utilizes the dual architecture of a high-gain observer and controller with the underlying state scaling being dynamically output-dependent. The proposed observer/controller structure provides a globally asymptotically stabilizing output-feedback solution for the benchmark open problem proposed in our earlier work with the provision that a magnitude bound on the unknown parameter be given.
The hydrodynamic force on a rigid particle undergoing arbitrary time-dependent motion at small Reynolds number

The hydrodynamic force acting on a rigid spherical particle translating with arbitrary time-dependent motion in a time-dependent flowing fluid is calculated to O(Re) for small but finite values of the Reynolds number, Re, based on the particle's slip velocity relative to the uniform flow. The corresponding expression for an arbitrarily shaped rigid particle is evaluated for the case when the timescale of variation of the particle's slip velocity is much greater than the diffusive scale, a2/v, where a is the characteristic particle dimension and v is the kinematic viscosity of the fluid. It is found that the expression for the hydrodynamic force is not simply an additive combination of the results from unsteady Stokes flow and steady Oseen flow and that the temporal decay to steady state for small but finite Re is always faster than the t-½ behaviour of unsteady Stokes flow. For example, when the particle accelerates from rest the temporal approach to steady state scales as t-2.
The relationship between alexithymia, irrational beliefs, positive and negative emotions with mental disorders

Introduction: University students, as the future manpower resources, are of high importance for communities. One of the aspects to focus on is their mental health. The present study was conducted to determine the relationship between alexithymia, irrational beliefs, positive and negative emotions with mental disorders in students. Methods: There were 400 students, selected randomly through stratified sampling from different disciplines at Razi University (Kermanshah, Iran). The design of the study was descriptive-correlational. The questionnaires used for collecting data were: Mental Disorders Symptoms (SCL_90), Alexithymia (FTAS-20), Jones Irrational Beliefs tests, and Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANAS-X). Collected data were analyzed using statistical indices including correlation, regression and fundamental correlation. Results: Data analysis indicated that there was a significant relationship between alexithymia, irrational beliefs and negative emotions with mental disorders. There was a negative significant relationship between positive emotions and mental disorders. Alexithymia, irrational beliefs and negative emotions were capable of predicting mental disorders while positive emotions did not have this capacity. Although about 73% of mental disorders were predicted by irrational beliefs, alexithymia, negative and positive emotions, but negative emotions and alexithymia contributed more than other variables. Conclusion: Alexithymia and irrational beliefs play major roles in mental disorders. These variables explain a high variability rate of mental disorders. They are the predisposing factors for mental disorders. They need more attention in clinical studies.
Dual Control of Dopamine Synthesis and Release by Presynaptic and Postsynaptic Dopamine D2 Receptors

Dysfunctions of dopaminergic homeostasis leading to either low or high dopamine (DA) levels are causally linked to Parkinson's disease, schizophrenia, and addiction. Major sites of DA synthesis are the mesencephalic neurons originating in the substantia nigra and ventral tegmental area; these structures send major projections to the dorsal striatum (DSt) and nucleus accumbens (NAcc), respectively. DA finely tunes its own synthesis and release by activating DA D2 receptors (D2R). To date, this critical D2R-dependent function was thought to be solely due to activation of D2Rs on dopaminergic neurons (D2 autoreceptors); instead, using site-specific D2R knock-out mice, we uncover that D2 heteroreceptors located on non-DAergic medium spiny neurons participate in the control of DA levels. This D2 heteroreceptor-mediated mechanism is more efficient in the DSt than in NAcc, indicating that D2R signaling differentially regulates mesolimbic- versus nigrostriatal-mediated functions. This study reveals previously unappreciated control of DA signaling, shedding new light on region-specific regulation of DA-mediated effects.
National Assessment of Climate Resources for Tourism Seasonality in China Using the Tourism Climate Index

Abstract: Tourism is a very important industry, and it is deeply affected by climate. This article focuses on the role of climate in tourism seasonality and attempts to assess the impacts of climate resources on China’s tourism seasonality by using th e Tourism Climate Index (TCI). Seasonal distribution maps of TCI scores indicate that the climates of most regions in China are comfortable for tourists during spring and autumn, while the climate conditions differ greatly in summer and winter, with “excellent”, “good”, “acceptable” and “unfavorable” existing almost by a latitudinal gradation. The number of good months throughout China varies from zero (the Tibetan Plateau area) to 10 (Yunnan Province), and most localities have five to eight good months. Moreover, all locations in China can be classified as winter peak, summer peak and bi-modal shoulder peak. The results will provide some useful information for tourist destinations, travel agencies, tourism authorities and tourists. Keywords:
Measuring and enhancing the social connectivity of UGC video systems: A case study of YouKu

The social connections among users have significant impacts on UGC video systems. The goal of this paper is to study the social connectivity of such systems by measuring YouKu, the most popular UGC video system in China. We have collected 627 thousand user profiles, 3 million social connections and 13.6 million videos' information. The analysis results have shown that the social connectivity is extremely weak and there are a considerable proportion of friend pairs sharing common semantic interests. These facts motivate us to enhance the connectivity by recommending semantically relevant users as friends. We thus propose a friend recommendation algorithm which locates potential friends quickly and accurately through the links to related videos, a unique feature of YouKu and similar sites. We apply the algorithm on our dataset of YouKu and evaluate it through one-hop video search. The social connectivity is greatly enhanced and the number of matched videos on friends is greatly increased. To the best of our knowledge, this work is the first to identify the semantic relevance of friend pairs in UGC video systems and to study the friend recommendation.
Droplet Characterization and Penetration of an Ultra-Low Volume Mosquito Adulticide Spray Targeting the Asian Tiger Mosquito, Aedes albopictus, within Urban and Suburban Environments of Northeastern USA

Adult control of Aedes albopictus via ultra-low volume is difficult because this species occurs primarily in peridomestic habitats where obstacles such as buildings and vegetation can disrupt spray plumes and droplet dispersion. We determined droplet penetration and characterization of a pyrethroid adulticide applied from the ground at mid (46.77 ml/ha) and maximum (93.53 ml/ha) label rates within cryptic habitats of urban and suburban environments. Droplets were collected from all habitats, with no significant differences detected between locations within the same application rate or collection method. No differences were detected in droplet densities (drops per mm2) between rates within urban environments, but more droplets were collected in urban (149.93 ± 11.07 SE) than suburban sites (114.37 ± 11.32) at the maximum label rate (P = 0.003). The excellent penetration of aerosols into cryptic habitats of an urban site was likely due to the shorter spray paths afforded by our network of roads and alleys. Mid label rates displayed similar droplet density values as maximum label rates in urban areas, indicating that lower rates may be used effectively to reduce costs, lessen non-target effects, and increase environmental stewardship. Advances in formulations and technology are driving changes in adulticide applications, leading to use of the minimum effective dose for maximum efficacy, precision, and accountability.
Famines and Economics

The author observes that famine, defined as widespread hunger or starvation, has occurred in most parts of the world in the twentieth century. Famines are more avoidable now than ever before. Famines defy simple explanations and geographic boundaries. They have occurred under both socialist and capitalist economic systems, with and without wars, or unusual political or social instability. Economic analysis can help explain famines. Under certain conditions, the threat of mass starvation can emerge from seemingly small economic shocks, or from a steady decline in average living standards. Similar shocks in similar settings can have very different consequences. Market and nonmarket institutions can fail under unusual stresses, making poor people highly vulnerable. Famine can be viewed as a tragic magnification of normal market and governmental failure. The factors that transform a shock into mass starvation seem to be intrinsic features of normal economies rather than peculiar features of highly distorted or badly managed economies. Normally hidden from view, they can surface in a number of ways. Certain elements increase a region's vulnerability to famine: poverty; weak social and physical infrastructure; weak and unprepared government; and a relatively closed political regime. Arguably the same factors constrain longer term economic development.
Preparing for a Swedish Papy Boom : On ageing as a concept in a design process

Sweden has to prepare for a papy boom, a French term forthe increasing proportion of senior citizens in society, viz.those aged 65 years or older. This paper focuses on amunicipal organizer’s decision-making process to arrangean open, municipal architecture competition with the aim ofpromoting future-oriented architecture for senior citizens. Asample comprising twenty-seven informants (municipalemployees, political officials and other representatives)was selected, and these people were interviewed using aqualitative, interviewing guide. A section in the guideincluded a photograph compilation in order to encouragediscussion about both the competition brief and theSwedish guideline of hominess in architecture intended forelderly, frail people. The aim of this study was to explorenotions about the appropriate, future-oriented habitats ofthe aging population. Such findings describe spatialaspects possible to use as primary generators in anarchitectural design process, and to assist the creativework of architects, when they conceive new architectureand built environments for the future, aging society. Theresult of this study suggests that the photographcompilation was effective in defining twelve key aspects ofappropriate architecture for aging. The results of this studylend support to an overarching conclusion that theappropriate habitat for aging in the future society mustexploit the aesthetic and sensuous dimension ofarchitecture.
Mullerian Adenosaroma of the Cervix with Sarcomatous Overgrowth and Heterologous Elements Presenting as a Recurrent Cervical Polyp

Mullerian adenosarcoma of the cervix is a rare tumor composed of benign epithelial and malignant stromal components. Sarcomatous overgrowth and heterologous elements in cervical adenosarcoma are extremely infrequent. We report the case of a 26-year-old woman admitted at the gynaecology department for a painless mass protruding from her vagina. The initial pathological exam concluded to endocervical polyp. Six months later, the patient was readmitted with a recurrence of the polyp. The pathological exam demonstrated interlacing fascicles of elongated spindle cells with few mitotic activity and no glandular formation. After reviewing of the initial polyp the diagnosis of mullerian adenosarcoma was suggested. A second recurrence of the polyp was noted one month later. Histopathological exam of the recurrent polyp confirmed the diagnosis of adenosarcoma with sarcomatous overgrowth and heterologous elements. The patient was lost for follow-up. Cervical adenosarcoma with sarcomatous overgrowth and heterologous element is a rare tumor that occurs in younger age in contrast to endometrium/corpus uterin mullerian adenosarcoma. In young women with recurrent cervical polyp, mullerian adenosarcoma must be considered and should be excluded by careful histopathological exam. Sarcomatous overgrowth and myometrial invasion are the most important prognostic factors. Treatment strategy is still unclear.
Overcapacity and the East Asian Crisis

Abstract: The historic success of East Asian economies prior to the 1997 financial crisis depended on their ability to escape the trap of deteriorating terms through a regional pattern of development known as the flying geese model. However, this pattern of development has come under increasing strain in the second half of 1980s. As competitive pressures intensified, producers throughout the region early-exited their niches of production in a futile attempt to safeguard their competitive position. The investment boom this has caused in the early 1990s led to the creation overcapacity throughout the region and the reemergence of the fallacy of composition inherent in a generalized system of export led growth, paving the way for the financial crisis of 1997.
Can subjective survival expectations explain retirement behaviour

Theory predicts a number of mechanisms through which survival expectations influence retirement decisions: a wealth effect of a longer lifespan; an uncertainty effect through the return on savings; a longevity risk effect; and, an adverse selection effect from pooling within pensions. We use data from the first three waves of the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing to test whether the timing of retirement is responsive to subjective survival expectations. Measurement error in reported survival chances is allowed for by instrumenting using parental longevity and smoking behaviour. We find a significant concave relationship between the propensity to retire and survival expectations. Men who are extremely pessimistic about their survival chances are least likely to retire, but after initially rising steeply the propensity to retire falls as survival expectations improve over most of their range. This is consistent with some of the theory. For women, the results are more sensitive to allowing for endogeneity. Surprisingly, the retirement behaviour of the less educated is more sensitive to survival expectations.
The Transcriptional Coactivator Querkopf Controls Adult Neurogenesis

The adult mammalian brain maintains populations of neural stem cells within discrete proliferative zones. Understanding of the molecular mechanisms regulating adult neural stem cell function is limited. Here, we show that MYST family histone acetyltransferase Querkopf (Qkf, Myst4, Morf)-deficient mice have cumulative defects in adult neurogenesis in vivo, resulting in declining numbers of olfactory bulb interneurons, a population of neurons produced in large numbers during adulthood. Qkf-deficient mice have fewer neural stem cells and fewer migrating neuroblasts in the rostral migratory stream. Qkf gene expression is strong in the neurogenic subventricular zone. A population enriched in multipotent cells can be isolated from this region on the basis of Qkf gene expression. Neural stem cells/progenitor cells isolated from Qkf mutant mice exhibited a reduced self-renewal capacity and a reduced ability to produce differentiated neurons. Together, our data show that Qkf is essential for normal adult neurogenesis.