Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Taking words to a new level: a preliminary investigation of discourse intervention in primary progressive aphasia

ABSTRACT Background: Despite a growing literature characterising connected speech and discourse impairments associated with primary progressive aphasia (PPA), intervention in PPA has focused predominantly on lexical retrieval and picture-naming treatments, with limited generalisation of therapy gains reported. Recent developments in the post-stroke aphasia literature with discourse-level approaches have provided highly promising findings for the generalisation of language gains to everyday communication, and an opportunity to investigate whether the same benefits may be found in the PPA population. Aims: This study evaluated the effectiveness of a discourse intervention in two individuals with PPA to determine whether significant improvements were seen in word retrieval and discourse organisation in everyday discourse. Methods & Procedures: KW, a 54-year-old man, who presented with semantic variant PPA, and AS, a 59-year-old woman, presenting with logopenic variant PPA, completed the NARNIA intervention programme (Whitworth, Leitão et al., 2015) in 20 sessions over a 10-week period. Discourse performance was sampled prior to intervention across 10 tasks involving four different genres, at one time point, and compared to performance immediately and four weeks post intervention. The multilevel intervention protocol aimed to increase awareness of word retrieval, sentence structure, and macrostructure of a range of discourse genre. Outcomes & Results: Both participants made significant gains in discourse production immediately after intervention and when reassessed four weeks later, in the absence of change on naming tasks and in the context of stable overall cognitive performance. Significant gains were seen in the amount of overall output, noun and verb usage, and the number of body elements in macrostructure in everyday discourse in topics that were not trained in treatment. Further to the findings of the original NARNIA study in post-stroke aphasia, significant gains were also seen in narrative discourse across lexical categories for both participants. Informativeness and efficiency of communication also improved significantly for KW across all genres. Both participants reported significant gains in measures of social communication and participation. Conclusions: The study suggests that improvements in everyday discourse may be possible when the discourse level is directly targeted, that lexical access can improve in the absence of targeting lexical items, and that discourse-level interventions have the potential to impact real-life communication in individuals with PPA. As the first known study to trial a multilevel intervention in the context of PPA, the findings may be of clinical and theoretical significance, and warrant further investigation.
A Study on the Roles of Teachers in CLT Classrooms by Metaphor Analysis

Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) approach has been a well-recognized language pedagogy for decades in the world. While most of the research of CLT approach focuses on the nature of teaching and learning, teacher roles in CLT approach are less discussed and examined in the literature. The present study thus intends to look into the roles of teachers in a communicative English course through questionnaires. The questionnaires were distributed to a group of 103 university students who had learnt a communicative English course at the university for at least one year. Students were required to use metaphors to indicate how they perceived their English teachers in the CLT course by completing the stem “While learning the communicative English course, the English teacher of the course is (like) ________ because ___________. ” After data were collected and later coded, categorized and analyzed, results showed that the roles of teachers in the communicative English course mainly fell into four groups: the cognitive category of providing knowledge, the affective category of interesting students with authentic learning materials and interactive learning activities, the managerial category of assisting, guiding, monitoring the learning processes as well as designing learning activities for the class, and finally the fourth group of mainly negative perceptions. The researcher holds that the role of providing and transmitting knowledge is a constituent part of the teacher role of CLT approach. Furthermore, the affective category and the managerial category unveil more inherent traits of CLT teacher roles and characterize more intrinsic features of CLT approach.
Six myths of polynomial interpolation and quadrature

It is a pleasure to offer this essay for Mathematics Today as a record of my Summer Lecture on 29 June 2011 at the Royal Society. Polynomials are as basic a topic as any in mathematics, and for numerical mathematicians like me, they are the starting point of numerical methods that in some cases go back centuries, like quadrature formulae for numerical integration and Newton iterations for finding roots. You would think that by now, the basic facts about computing with polynomials would be widely understood. In fact, the situation is almost the reverse. There are indeed widespread views about polynomials, but some of the important ones are wrong, founded on misconceptions entrenched by generations of textbooks. Since 2006, my colleagues and I have been solving mathematical problems with polynomials using the Chebfun software system (www.maths.ox.ac.uk/chebfun). We have learned from daily experience how fast and reliable polynomials are. This entirely positive record has made me curious to try to pin down where these misconceptions come from, and this essay is an attempt to summarise some of my findings. Full details, including precise definitions and theorems, can be found in my draft book Approximation Theory and Approximation Practice, available at www.maths. ox.ac. uk/~trefethen. The essay is organised around ‘six myths’. Each myth has some truth in it — mathematicians rarely say things that are simply false! Yet each one misses something important. Throughout the discussion, f is a continuous function defined on the interval [−1, 1], n + 1 distinct points x0, . , xn in [−1, 1] are given, and pn is the unique polynomial of degree at most n with pn(xj) = f(xj) for each j. Two families of points will be of particular interest: equispaced points, xj = −1 + 2j/n, and Chebyshev points, xj = cos(jπ/n). I will also mention Legendre points, defined as the zeros of the degree n+ 1 Legendre polynomial Pn+1. The discussion of each myth begins with two or three representative quotations from leading textbooks, listed anonymously with the year of publication. Then I say a word about the mathematical truth underlying the myth, and after that, what that truth overlooks.
TOROIDAL DEHN FILLINGS ON LARGE HYPERBOLIC 3-MANIFOLDS

We show that if a hyperbolic 3-manifold M with a single torus boundary admits two Dehn fillings at distance 5, each of which contains an essential torus, then M is a rational homology solid torus, which is not large in the sense of Wu. Moreover, one of the surgered manifold contains an essential torus which meets the core of the attached solid torus minimally in at most two points. This completes the determination of best possible upper bounds for the distance between two exceptional Dehn fillings yielding essential small surfaces in all ten cases for large hyperbolic 3-manifolds.
Seeing Through the Avatar’s Eyes: Effects of Point-of-View and Gender Match on Identification and Enjoyment

This study examines the mediating role of identification in the relationship between gameplay point-of-view, gender-swapping, and enjoyment of the gaming experience, taking a multidimensional perspective of identification. In a 2 × 2 factorial experiment, we manipulated avatar point-of-view and gamer-avatar gender match and measured the influence on physical similarity, homophily, customization, perspective-taking, wishful identification, and liking. In addition, we tested both how the independent variables influence enjoyment and how each identification dimension may predict enjoyment. Results provided initial support for a multidimensional view of gaming identification. In addition, some of the identification dimensions were found to mediate the relationship between game point-of-view and enjoyment, but the nature of these relationships depended on gender match. Implications for conceptualizations of identification and video game experiences, as well as the theoretical implications for understanding awareness, are discussed.
Minimum dwell time for stability and stabilization of switched linear systems

In this paper, the problem of minimum dwell time for the stability and stabilization of switched linear systems is considered. First, using the method of multiple Lyapunov functions, we obtain an estimate for the minimum dwell time(MDT), which assures the exponential stability of switched linear systems. Using the stability result obtained for free system, we then investigate the problem of MDT for stabilization of switched linear control system subject to input constraints. Under certain conditions the exponential stabilization can be achieved by using controls with restricted amplitudes as long as the switching laws satisfy the MDT time requirement. An illustrative example is presented to show the validity of the results.
Marriage Advantage in Subjective Well-Being: Causal Effect or Unmeasured Heterogeneity?

ABSTRACT I investigate whether the marriage advantage in subjective well-being is a true protective effect vs. being attributable to self-selection into (or out of) marriage based on pre-existing mental health. I utilize 1,240 respondents from the GSS panel, a three-wave longitudinal survey collected from 2010–2014. I use a pseudo-treatment approach to informally test for the presence of self-selection. This is followed by a fixed-effect regression analysis to eliminate its influence when estimating the marriage effect. Results support the existence of self-selection: the currently married who in later waves will be exiting marriage are already more distressed than other married respondents in wave 1. And the currently not married who in later waves will be entering marriage are not more distressed in wave 1 than those remaining continuously married. A protective effect is also supported: at any given time, net of self-selection, the currently married are less distressed than the unmarried.
Biosynthesis of Von Willebrand Protein by Human Endothelial Cells" Processing and Their Intracellular Localization Steps

Biosynthesis of von Willebrand protein by human umbilical vein endothelial cells involved distinct processing steps marked by the presence of several intermediate molecular species. Examination of endoglycosidase H sensitivity of these intracellular intermediates indicated that the processing steps occurred in at least two separate cellular compartments. In the pre-Golgi apparatus (most probably the endoplasmic reticulum), the high mannose carbohydrates were added onto the precursor monomer chains and the 260,000-mol-wt monomers dimerized by interchain disulfide bond formation. The other processing steps have been localized to the Golgi apparatus and later compartments (e.g., WeibeI-Palade bodies). High mannose carbohydrate was converted to the complex type, leading to the appearance of a larger precursor subunit of 275,000 mol wt. The 275,000-mol-wt species was not formed if carbohydrate processing was inhibited by the ionophore monensin. From the large pool of dimers of precursor subunits, the high molecular weight multimers were built. These dimer molecules appeared to have free sulfhydryls which might have been involved in the interdimer disulfide bond formation. Simultaneously with multimerization, the precursor subunits were cleaved to the 220,000-mol-wt form. The cleavage of the pro-sequence was not likely to be an absolute requirement for von Willebrand protein multimerization or secretion, as the 275,000-mol-wt precursor subunit was present in secreted high molecular weight multimers of the protein. von Willebrand (vW) ~ protein is a large glycoprotein of complex multimeric structure held together by disulfide bonds (1, 2). Absence of or molecular defects in the protein may cause a bleeding disorder owing to inadequate binding of platelets at sites of injury (1, 3, 4). vW protein is synthesized by megakaryocytes (5) and by endothelial cells that are likely to be responsible for the presence of vW protein in blood and subendothelium. In the endothelial cells, vW protein is concentrated in organelles called Weibel-Palade bodies (6). En-dothelial cells synthesize vW protein subunits first as large precursors of 260,000-mol-wt (7, 8), which undergo several processing steps including carbohydrate addition, polymeri-zation by disulfide bond formation, and proteolytic cleavage to a mature subunit form of 220,000-mol-wt. Although the ~Abbreviations used in this paper. DTNB, 5,5'-dithiobis(2-nitro-benzoic acid); HMW, high molecular weight; vW, von Willebrand. presence of high molecular weight (HMW) polymers of vW protein in cell lysates of trypsin-treated cells indicates that they form within the cells (7), the intracellular locations of the processing steps are not known. Pulse-chase experiments on human umbilical vein endothelial cells have demonstrated that cleavage …
Social Belonging and College Retention: Results From a Quasi-Experimental Pilot Study

Educators, policymakers, and institutions have worked for decades to increase rates of college graduation, but about half of students who enter college drop out without completing a bachelor’s degree (National Student Clearinghouse, 2014). Although the rate of student attrition is higher in the United States than in any other industrialized nation (Harvard Graduate School of Education, 2011), about 30% of U.S. students will drop out during their first year of college (Schneider, 2010). Persistence and retention point to an array of negative individual-level consequences that can have implications for society in general. Higher education persistence and retention programs seek to avoid the negative consequences of attrition by offering support for students (Habley, Bloom, & Robbins, 2012; Tinto, 2006). Models of academic and social integration provide the conceptual foundations for such programs (Lee, Donlan, & Brown, 2010; Longwell-Grice & LongwellGrice, 2008; Wolf-Wendel, Ward, & Kinzie, 2009). Those models reflect the evidence that integration within a campus community and an individual-level sense of belonging are important dimensions of student persistence in higher education (Hoffman, Richmond, Morrow, & Salomone, 2002; Palmer, Wood, Dancy, & Strayhorn, 2014; Strayhorn, 2012). Walton and Cohen (2007) described social belonging as a central human need to have positive relationships with others. The alternative, acute belonging uncertainty culminating in social exclusion in the long term, results in poor health and many wellness issues. Within college systems, some racial minorities (e.g., African Americans, Hispanics, and Native Americans) and stigmatized groups (e.g., firstgeneration or sexual-minority students) question their social belongingness (Hobson-Horton & Owens, 2004; Hollifield-Hoyle & Hammons, 2015; Walton & Cohen, 2011). Interventions similar to the one in this study that affirm and cultivate social belonging can positively affect student behavior over time and may have broad relevance as university programs are increasingly focusing on reten tion (Patterson, & ButlerBarnes, 2015). For instance, Walton and Cohen (2007) tested a social-belonging intervention that exposed students to statements about social difficulties in college. Findings indicate that the intervention successfully protected participants’ sense of belonging and that overall academic performance was better among participants than among nonparticipants. A randomized controlled trial subsequently replicated the findings on academic performance using a sample comprising African American and
Information Aggregation and Fat Tails in Financial Markets

This paper demonstrates that fat-tailed distributions of trading volume and stock price emerge in a model of information aggregation. I consider a simultaneous-move model of traders who infer other traders’ private information on the value of assets by observing aggregate actions. Without parametric assumptions on the private information, I show that the traders’ aggregate actions follow a power-law distribution with exponential truncation. By combining the power law with the composition uncertainty that a market maker faces, the model is able to mimic the non-normal distribution of the stock returns.
The Efficiency of Internal Resource Allocation Decisions in Customer-owned Firms : The Influence Costs Problem

Influence costs arguments explain the level of efficiency attained by internal capital markets in investor-oriented firms (IOFs). Using these developments in the theory of economic organization we study internal capital markets in diversified customer-owned firms. In such firms, influence costs may be considerably higher than in IOFs of comparable size and scope, due to multiple principle—agency costs and heterogeneous member interests. Our arguments are supported by an empirical investigation of the organizational, governance, and property rights structures, which affect the degree of efficiency achieved by internal capital markets in producer cooperative organizations. As a by-product of our empirical analysis, we are also able to identify the dimensions of stakeholder interest heterogeneity, which critically affect internal capital market efficiency. Our results suggest that a comprehensive theory of the firm should relate influence activities to efficiency maximization in economic organizations. 1 The authors are Visiting Scholar and Professor, respectively, in the Agribusiness Program, University of MissouriColumbia. 1 The Efficiency of Internal Resource Allocation Decisions in Customer-owned Firms: The Influence Costs Problem
Aquaporin Deletion in Mice Reduces Intraocular Pressure and Aqueous Fluid Production

Aquaporin (AQP) water channels are expressed in the eye at sites of aqueous fluid production and outflow: AQP1 and AQP4 in nonpigmented ciliary epithelium, and AQP1 in trabecular meshwork endothelium. Novel methods were developed to compare aqueous fluid dynamics in wild-type mice versus mice lacking AQP1 and/or AQP4. Aqueous fluid production was measured by in vivo confocal microscopy after transcorneal iontophoretic introduction of fluorescein. Intraocular pressure (IOP), outflow, and anterior chamber compliance were determined from pressure measurements in response to fluid infusions using micropipettes. Aqueous fluid volume and [Cl−] were assayed in samples withdrawn by micropipettes. In wild-type mice (CD1 genetic background, age 4–6 wk), IOP was 16.0 ± 0.4 mmHg (SE), aqueous fluid volume 7.2 ± 0.3 μl, fluid production 3.6 ± 0.2 μl/h, fluid outflow 0.36 ± 0.06 μl/h/mmHg, and compliance 0.036 ± 0.006 μl/mmHg. IOP was significantly decreased by up to 1.8 mmHg (P < 0.002) and fluid production by up to 0.9 μl/h in age/litter-matched mice lacking AQP1 and/or AQP4 (outbred CD1 and inbred C57/bl6 genetic backgrounds). However, AQP deletion did not significantly affect outflow, [Cl−], volume, or compliance. These results provide evidence for the involvement of AQPs in intraocular pressure regulation by facilitating aqueous fluid secretion across the ciliary epithelium. AQP inhibition may thus provide a novel approach for the treatment of elevated IOP.
Esaim: Control, Optimisation and Calculus of Variations A-quasiconvexity: Relaxation and Homogenization

Integral representation of relaxed energies and of Γ-limits of functionals (u, v) → Ω f (x, u(x), v(x)) dx are obtained when sequences of fields v may develop oscillations and are constrained to satisfy a system of first order linear partial differential equations. This framework includes the treatement of divergence-free fields, Maxwell's equations in micromagnetics, and curl-free fields. In the latter case classical relaxation theorems in W 1,p are recovered.
Synthesizing Microstrip Branch-Line Couplers With Predetermined Compact Size and Bandwidth

A new method for designing the microstrip branch- line couplers with predetermined compact size and bandwidth is proposed in this paper. With the proposed approach, the size of the quarter-wavelength transmission line in the branch-line coupler can be reduced greatly. In addition, the proposed couplers can be easily fabricated on the printed circuit board without any lumped element. A chart concludes the relationship between bandwidth and size reduction rate. It shows that open stubs with low impedance perform better than those with high impedance; moreover, the more open stubs with low impedance utilized, the broader the bandwidth will be. Furthermore, the measured frequency responses show good agreement with the theoretical results.
Corporate Customers Usage of Internet Banking in East Africa

The purpose of this paper was to identify the factors that influence corporate customers’ adoption of Internet banking services in Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania and Rwanda. The hypotheses are empirically evaluated by using Trade Finance customers of an East African bank as the target sample. The study involved 137 respondents from Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania and Rwanda. Due to the quantitative nature of the study, the results are analysed with statistical measures. The analysis reveals that corporate users are not motivated by the same factors as private users. In order to become Internet banking customers, it is extremely important for corporate users to have a system that is easy to use and operate with full support from the bank.
Buffers Improve the Performance of Relay Selection

We show that the performance of relay selection can be improved by employing relays with buffers. Under the idealized assumption that no buffer is full or empty, the best source-relay and the best relay-destination channels can be simultaneously exploited by selecting the corresponding relays for reception and transmission, respectively. The resulting relay selection scheme is referred to as max-max relay selection (MMRS). Since for finite buffer sizes, empty and full buffers are practically unavoidable if MMRS is employed, we propose a hybrid relay selection (HRS) scheme, which is a combination of conventional best relay selection (BRS) and MMRS. We analyze the outage probabilities of MMRS and HRS and show that both schemes achieve the same diversity gain as conventional BRS and a superior coding gain. Furthermore, our results show that for moderate buffer sizes (e.g. 30 packets) HRS closely approaches the performance of idealized MMRS and the performance gain compared to BRS approaches 3 dB as the number of relays increases.
Nonexistence of random gradient Gibbs measures in continuous interface models in d=2

We consider statistical mechanics models of continuous spins in a disordered environment. These models have a natural interpretation as eective interface models. It is well-known that without disorder there are no interface Gibbs measures in infinite volume in dimension d = 2, while there are “gradient Gibbs measures” describing an infinite-volume distribution for the increments of the field, as was shown by Funaki and Spohn. In the present paper we show that adding a disorder term prohibits the existence of such gradient Gibbs measures for general interaction potentials in d = 2. This non-existence result generalizes the simple case of Gaussian fields where it follows from an explicit computation. In d = 3 where random gradient Gibbs measures are expected to exist, our method provides a lower bound of the order of the inverse of the distance on the decay of correlations of Gibbs expectations w.r. t. the distribution of the random environment.