Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Why from Teaching to Learning?

This article explores the changes in learning research that have been visible over recent decades. It describes how such concepts as learning, knowledge and learning environment have changed and what kinds of claims these transformations make in education in Europe. At the end of the article the author reflects how education should apply new concepts of learning, knowledge and learning environments in order to enhance quality of life. The important message is that teachers and teaching still play an important role in educational institutions but learning arenas have widened, crossing boundaries from formal settings. Teachers' role as facilitators and mediators is like scaffolding for a new building. It is a process of creating minds through providing new tools based on multidisciplinary learning research, and continuous dialogue with new artefacts, human beings and environments. It is empowering people through learning. The article also illustrates how learning research and education can support each other. As a case, the author describes the major results of the Finnish national research programme entitled Life as Learning, and new initiatives to promote learning research through the multidisciplinary CICERO Learning Network. In many European countries corresponding research initiatives have been launched. The author claims that a stronger international cooperation of national research programmes and wider multidisciplinarity would provide more additional value, and sets these as a future challenge in Europe.
Children's strategies on the Internet

This paper presents the results of an interview study of 104 12‐year old children. The aim was to learn more about how children use the Internet, what they find negative on the Internet and what coping strategies they use. The media debate seems to display consensus regarding what threats the Internet poses to young people. However, this study shows a discrepancy between children's and adults' views on this subject. The children in the study handle the drawbacks of the Internet well, but they do not discuss this with adults. The study does not paint a picture of naïve children, unable to see actual threats, but of responsible people aware of the threats that exist in their digital environment and with developed methods to avoid such threats.
Evaluating Event Credibility on Twitter

Though Twitter acts as a realtime news source with people acting as sensors and sending event updates from all over the world, rumors spread via Twitter have been noted to cause considerable damage. Given a set of popular Twitter events along with related users and tweets, we study the problem of automatically assessing the credibility of such events. We propose a credibility analysis approach enhanced with event graph-based optimization to solve the problem. First we experiment by performing PageRanklike credibility propagation on a multi-typed network consisting of events, tweets, and users. Further, within each iteration, we enhance the basic trust analysis by updating event credibility scores using regularization on a new graph of events. Our experiments using events extracted from two tweet feed datasets, each with millions of tweets show that our event graph optimization approach outperforms the basic credibility analysis approach. Also, our methods are significantly more accurate (∼86%) than the decision tree classifier approach (∼72%).
The Role of the Structural Transformation in Aggregate Productivity

In this paper, we document the reallocation of employment over time between agriculture, manufacturing, and services (the process of structural transformation) and the growth rate of sectoral labor productivity across countries. We find that countries are going through a remarkably similar process of structural transformation, although with a substantial lag for some countries. We investigate whether sectoral differences in labor productivity can account for differences in the process of structural transformation and aggregate productivity across countries. We consider a model of the structural transformation and calibrate it to the experience of the United States. We use the model to measure sectoral labor productivity differences across countries and show that these differences are large and systematic both at a point in time and over time. In particular, labor productivity differences are large in agriculture and services and smaller in manufacturing. We show that the implied sectoral labor productivity differences help explain the process of structural transformation and aggregate productivity experiences across countries
What do Sensory Scales Measure?

Abstract It is indeed an honour to have drawn Professor Stevens' fire (1964), in view of the magnitude of his research achievement in the field of sensory scaling. If I shall differ with him on certain of his conclusions, it is in full awareness of the debt we all owe him for the experimentation and thinking which has provided much of the factual basis and theoretical stimulus to further research and development in this area. Professor Stevens (1960, 1964) advocates a psychophysical power law, while I have questioned it (Treisman, 1961, 1962, 1963a, 1963b, 1964a). I shall here examine the main points of disagreement lying behind these differing positions.
Magnetic resonance imaging predictors of cognition in mild cognitive impairment.

OBJECTIVES To describe magnetic resonance imaging characteristics in a large sample of subjects with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and to investigate associations between these characteristics and cognition. DESIGN Cohort study. SETTING Baseline data of a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial of galantamine in MCI. PATIENTS Included in the study were 896 subjects with MCI (age [mean +/- SD], 70 +/- 9 years; 54% women) with available clinical and magnetic resonance imaging data. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Neuropsychology: Alzheimer Disease Assessment Scale, cognitive subscale, MCI version, assessing global cognition; delayed recall on the New York University Paragraph Recall Test, assessing episodic memory; and Digit Symbol Substitution Test, assessing executive function. Neuroimaging: Medial Temporal Lobe Atrophy (MTA) Rating Scale (0-4) and Age-Related White Matter Changes Scale (0-30), assessing white matter hyperintensities (WMHs); and lacune counts. RESULTS Median MTA score was 2 (range, 0-4), and mean (+/- SD) Age-Related White Matter Changes Scale score 6.0 (+/- 4.7). Lacunes were present in 33% of subjects. In unadjusted models, increasing MTA and WMHs were associated with poorer performance on all cognitive tests, and lacunes with poorer performance on the Alzheimer Disease Assessment Scale, cognitive subscale, MCI version, and the Digit Symbol Substitution Test. In multivariable models, including magnetic resonance imaging measures simultaneously, MTA remained a predictor of cognition, whereas WMH had no independent predictive value. There was an interaction between MTA and lacunes: the strength of the association with the Digit Symbol Substitution Test increased with decreasing MTA. CONCLUSIONS Medial temporal lobe atrophy seems to be a more important predictor of cognition than small-vessel disease in MCI. Lacunes were associated with performance on the Digit Symbol Substitution Test, especially in subjects with milder MTA. Although WMHs were prevalent and associated with cognition in unadjusted analyses, there was no discernible association between WMHs and the cognitive measures in this study after adjustment for age.
Identification and Biological Activity of Synthetic Macrophage Inducible C-Type Lectin Ligands

The macrophage inducible C-type lectin (Mincle) is a pattern recognition receptor able to recognize both damage-associated and pathogen-associated molecular patterns, and in this respect, there has been much interest in determining the scope of ligands that bind Mincle and how structural modifications to these ligands influence ensuing immune responses. In this review, we will present Mincle ligands of known chemical structure, with a focus on ligands that have been synthetically prepared, such as trehalose glycolipids, glycerol-based ligands, and 6-acylated glucose and mannose derivatives. The ability of the different classes of ligands to influence the innate, and consequently, the adaptive, immune response will be described, and where appropriate, structure–activity relationships within each class of Mincle ligands will be presented.
Immunoglobulin G1 (IgG1) and IgG3 antibodies are markers of progressive disease in leprosy

Mycobacterium leprae-specific and polyclonal immunoglobulin G (IgG) subclass and IgE antibodies in leprosy patients across the histopathological spectrum were determined by using a quantitative enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Antibody responses to M. leprae sonicates were detected only in IgG1, -2, and -3 subclasses. Even at 100-times-lower dilutions, very little IgG4 and IgE antibody activity against M. leprae was detected in any group of leprosy patients. Quantitatively, antibody responses were highest at the lepromatous pole and decreased towards the tuberculoid pole. The greatest quantitative difference in antibodies between the lepromatous and tuberculoid poles was observed with IgG1 (140-fold), this was followed by the difference with IgG3 antibodies (32-fold). Polyclonal antibodies, on the other hand, were elevated for all four IgG subclasses as well as IgE in both lepromatous and tuberculoid leprosy patients compared with healthy controls from a leprosy-endemic area. Selective elevation of M. leprae-specific antibody responses in IgG1 and IgG3 subclasses, therefore, could not be attributed to selective polyclonal activation in these particular subclasses. Furthermore, polyclonal activation for IgE was observed in both lepromatous and tuberculoid leprosy patients, with higher levels in the tuberculoid group, which does not support selective TH2 activation in lepromatous leprosy patients. IgG1 and IgG3 antibodies also showed the highest Spearman rank correlation with the bacterial index in these patients (rho = 0.748 and P < 0.001 for IgG1; rho = 0.721 and and P < 0.001 for IgG3). Thus, disease progression in leprosy showed a significant correlation with selective increases in IgG1 and IgG3 responses.
An area-based material and social deprivation index for public health in Québec and Canada.

OBJECTIVES To overcome the absence of socio-economic information in administrative databases and to monitor social inequalities in health, a material and social deprivation index was developed for Québec and Canada. METHODS The index is based on the smallest area unit used in Canadian censuses, with 400 to 700 persons on average. It includes six socio-economic indicators grouped along two dimensions - material and social - produced from principal component analyses. The index exists for 1991, 1996, 2001 and 2006 and in different versions, from local areas to the whole of Canada. Numerous products related to the index are available online free of charge. RESULTS The index has been used extensively in the field of health and social services, mainly in the province of Québec but also elsewhere in Canada. It has had four main uses, all related to public health: describing geographic variations of deprivation, illustrating inequalities in population health status and in service use according to deprivation, supporting the development of health reports and policies, and guiding regional resource allocation. These applications are facilitated by a close partnership between the producers and users of the index. CONCLUSION The deprivation index is a marker of social inequalities in health. It allows for monitoring of inequalities over time and space, and constitutes a useful tool for public health planning, intervention and service delivery.
IL-1 receptor antagonist (IL-1Ra) gene polymorphism in patients with inflammatory bowel disease in India

Objective An association between polymorphism in the gene coding for the anti-inflammatory cytokine interleukin-1-receptor antagonist (IL-1Ra) and ulcerative colitis (UC) has been reported. To date, there is no report from India confirming this association. In the present study the aim was to assess the allele frequencies and carriage rates of different alleles of 86 bp (base pair) variable number tandem repeat (VNTR) in intron 2 of the IL-1Ra gene in patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and healthy controls from northern India. Material and methods Eighty-two patients with UC, 21 with Crohn's disease (CD) and 141 ethnically matched controls were enrolled in this study. Genotyping was done using a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplification of the intron-2 fragment harboring a VNTR nucleotide sequence. The PCR products were separated on 2% agarose gel. Statistical analysis was performed using the chi-squared (χ2) test. Results The frequencies of allele 2 in UC, CD and healthy controls were 26%, 50% and 24%, respectively. The frequency of allele 2 in CD was higher than that in UC (p=0.002; OR = 2.9) and healthy controls (p=0.001; OR = 3.1; 95% CI = 1.5--6.3). Alleles 3 and 4 were absent in patients with CD, while allele 5 was absent in all three groups. Conclusions The present study demonstrated an association between allele 2 and patients with CD but not with UC. Interestingly, the allele frequency and carriage rates of allele 2 were significantly higher in patients with CD than in patients with UC and in healthy subjects. Ethnic differences, genetic heterogeneity and sample size could be the reasons for such differences in comparison with studies from the West.
Can the Frontal Assessment Battery (FAB) help in the diagnosis of behavioural variant frontotemporal dementia? A pragmatic study

The diagnosis of the behavioural (or frontal) variant of frontotemporal lobar degeneration (bvFTLD) may prove challenging in psychiatry clinics because of overlap of some typical symptoms (e.g. apathy, disinhibition–impulsivity, loss of insight, decreased emotion) with primary psychiatric disorders. Delayed diagnosis is common, averaging nearly three years in one series wherein nearly three-quarters of patients initially received nondementia diagnoses (Rosness et al., 2008). A simple ‘bedside’ measure to identify bvFTLD cases would be desirable. The Frontal Assessment Battery (FAB) is a brief bedside test reported to identify frontal lobe dysfunction, comprising tests of similarities (conceptualisation), lexical fluency (mental flexibility), motor series (programming), conflicting instructions (sensitivity to interference), Go-No-Go (inhibitory control) and prehension behaviour (environmental autonomy), each scored out of 3 (overall score range 0–18). FAB cutoff of 12/18 was reported useful in the early differentiation of frontotemporal dementia (FTD) from Alzheimer’s disease (AD) (Slachevsky et al., 2004) although this finding was not replicated by others (e.g. Castiglioni et al., 2006). These studies examined predefined diagnostic groups (FTD, AD), a methodology alien to daily clinical practice in which patient selection by diagnosis does not occur. A pragmatic study to examine FAB screening utility in patients with clinically suspected bvFTLD was undertaken.
IL‐33 is a mediator rather than a trigger of the acute allergic response in humans

IL‐33 enhances FcεRI‐induced mediator release in human basophils without inducing degranulation itself. In contrast, studies in mice suggested that in the presence of high IgE levels, IL‐33 triggers degranulation and anaphylaxis of similar severity as specific allergen. Consistent with this view, sera of atopic patients contain elevated levels of IL‐33 after anaphylaxis. In this study, we determined whether IL‐33 is potentially anaphylactogenic in humans with high IgE levels by regulating exocytosis independent of FcεRI cross‐linking. Furthermore, we investigated whether IL‐33 is released upon allergen provocation in vivo.
Hollywood in the Classroom: Using Feature Films to Teach

Feature films have been successfully used in other disciplines to teach both undergraduate and graduate students but are seldom used in nursing. The purpose of this study was to evaluate two classes of BSN student's perceptions of viewing films as an alternative to some clinical time in a psychiatric mental-health nursing course. A 12-item, 7-point Likert-type scale was constructed to assess students' beliefs about the value of films as a learning experience. An experienced faculty member evaluated the instrument for content validity. Coefficient alpha for the 12-item scale was . 95. The film experience was highly rated by the students in learning and liking. Using films to teach nursing is a creative way to engage students in learning complex material.
“Taking the State at Its Word”: The Arts of Consentful Contention in the German Democratic Republic1

Following the popular uprisings of 1989–91 in Eastern Europe, subsequent research on contention in state socialism has typically focused on transgressive repertoires implicated in the system's collapse. In contrast, this article investigates certain alternative, more “consentful” forms of contention, in which citizens openly contested official directives by appealing to the state's own dominant ideology. Drawing on evidence from the German Democratic Republic, as well as other cases, the article develops a dramaturgical framework that classifies contentious repertoires along three dimensions: behavior, standpoint, and stance. This framework is then used to analyze two types of data: a retrospective “resistance” narrative by an ordinary citizen and a secret transcript from the well‐known Biermann protest. The conclusion proposes an explanatory model, as well as a regime typology to aid future research.
Precoding-Aided Spatial Modulation With Increased Robustness to Channel Correlations

We present a precoding approach for spatial modulation (SM) for increased robustness against spatial correlations over slow fading Rayleigh channels. This approach, based on phase-rotation of the transmitted symbol according to the active transmit antenna, can be implemented without changing the power budget or needing any explicit knowledge of the channel state information at the transmitter. The optimum precoding coefficients are determined so as to minimize the asymptotic average bit-error rate. Both theoretical analysis and simulation results indicate significant performance improvements even in the case of heavily correlated transmit antennas.
Evaluating and modelling Hanabi-playing agents

Agent modelling involves considering how other agents will behave, in order to influence your own actions. In this paper, we explore the use of agent modelling in the hidden-information, collaborative card game Hanabi. We implement a number of rule-based agents, both from the literature and of our own devising, in addition to an Information Set-Monte Carlo Tree Search (IS-MCTS) agent. We observe poor results from IS-MCTS, so construct a new, predictor version that uses a model of the agents with which it is paired. We observe a significant improvement in game-playing strength from this agent in comparison to IS-MCTS, resulting from its consideration of what the other agents in a game would do. In addition, we create a flawed rule-based agent to highlight the predictor's capabilities with such an agent.
Integrating media and community practice: a case of television report production

This article explores the potential for active participation of social work students in the media and addresses the question of whether this combination increases their involvement in community practice. The article describes research that was conducted among 38 students who participated in a course entitled ‘Community Practice Through Production of Television Reports’ in Israel. In the course the students took an active part in various stages of production: (a) investigation and idea development; (b) scriptwriting; (c) filming and recording; (d) editing; and (e) broadcasting and dialogue. The production process focused on promotion of social change. The findings reveal that the students, who had no previous experience, usually succeeded in producing valuable reports and were involved in several aspects of community practice. The findings also indicate, however, that some challenges should be considered when planning and operating such courses. These include mobilizing resources, developing teams with both ‘task’ and ‘social’ orientations, technology training, integrating community practice, and coping with ethical issues. The article discusses the course characteristics, the stages of production, and the involvement of the students in community practice through the media, with emphasis on the different challenges that educators must address in planning and operating similar courses or productions.
The prevalence and associated risk factors of renal artery stenosis in patients undergoing cardiac catheterization.

Renal artery stenosis may be a cause of hypertension and a potential contributor to progressive renal insufficiency. However, the prevalence of renal artery disease in a general population is poorly defined. The purposes of this study were to evaluate the prevalence of angiographically-determined renal artery narrowing in a patient population undergoing routine cardiac catheterization, and to identify the risk factors for renal artery stenosis. After left ventriculography, abdominal aortography was performed to screen for the presence of renal artery stenosis. A total of 427 patients (274 males, 153 females) were studied and the mean age was 59 years. Renal artery narrowing was identified in 10.5% of patients. Significant (> or = 50% diameter narrowing) renal artery stenosis was found in 24 patients (5.6%) and insignificant stenosis was found in 21 patients (4.9%). Significant unilateral stenosis was present in 4.2% of patients and bilateral stenosis was present in 1.4%. The stem of the renal artery was a more common site of stenosis in 62.2% of patients than in the ostium (37.8%), but the severity of stenosis was not significantly different according to the site of stenosis. By univariate and multivariate logistic regression analysis, the association of clinical variables with renal artery stenosis was assessed. Multivariable predictors included age, hypertension and peripheral vascular disease (p < 0.05). The variables such as sex, smoking history, hyperlipidemia, renal insufficiency, as well as the presence of obesity, severity of coronary heart disease and D.M. , were not associated. In conclusion, the prevalence of angiographically-determined renal artery narrowing in a patient population undergoing cardiac catheterization is 10.5%. Old age, hypertension and evidence of peripheral vascular disease represent the predictors of renal artery stenosis.
Deep Radial Kernel Networks: Approximating Radially Symmetric Functions with Deep Networks

We prove that a particular deep network architecture is more efficient at approximating radially symmetric functions than the best known 2 or 3 layer networks. We use this architecture to approximate Gaussian kernel SVMs, and subsequently improve upon them with further training. The architecture and initial weights of the Deep Radial Kernel Network are completely specified by the SVM and therefore sidesteps the problem of empirically choosing an appropriate deep network architecture.