Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A Renaissance of Political Culture

Theory: Cultural differences drive significant elements of political and economic life. Hypotheses: (1) effective govemance hinges critically on traditions of civic engagement; (2) political culture fundamentally drives economic performance and democratic stability. Method: Reanalysis of two data sets: (1) the first includes information collected by Putnam (1993) on a variety of political, economic and social indicators for the 20 Italian regions; (2) the second includes comparable information collected by Inglehart (1990) for the industrial democracies. Results: We find little evidence to indicate a systematic relationship between political culture and political and economic performance.
Use of a New Sodium/Lithium (Na/Li) Geothermometric Relationship for High-Temperature Dilute Geothermal Fluids from Iceland

This paper presents the study which has allowed determining the best adapted Na/Li thermometric relationship for the High-Temperature (HT) dilute waters collected from wells located in the Krafla geothermal area, North-east Iceland. This work was carried out in the framework of the European HITI project (HIgh Temperature Instruments for supercritical geothermal reservoir characterization and exploitation). This relationship, which can give estimations of temperature ranging from 200 to 325°C with an uncertainty of ± 20°C, was also successfully used on HT dilute fluids collected from wells located in other Icelandic geothermal areas (Namafjall, Nesjavellir and Hveragerdi). So, a more general Na/Li geothermometric relationship including these other geothermal areas was obtained. These new relationships determined for Icelandic HT dilute geothermal fluids, which are very different from that commonly used for the dilute world geothermal waters, will be tested on the fluids collected during the international Iceland Deep Drilling Project (IDDP) for which the main objective is to drill deep wells (> 5 km) in supercritical reservoir conditions (T > 375°C), located in the Krafla and Reykjanes geothermal areas. Another Na/Li relationship determined for HT saline geothermal fluids derived from sea water and basalt interaction processes will be tested on the Reykjanes supercritical reservoirs. The existence of several different Na/Li geothermometric relationships seems to show that the Na/Li ratios not only depend on the temperature but also on other parameters such as the fluid salinity and origin, or the nature of the geothermal reservoir rocks in contact with the deep hot fluids. Thermodynamic considerations and some case studies in the literature suggest that the Na/Li and Na/K ratios for the HT dilute geothermal waters from Iceland could be controlled by a full equilibrium reaction involving a mineral association constituted, at least, of Albite, K-Feldspar, Quartz and Clay minerals such as Kaolinite, Illite and Na-, Li-Micas.
Public Debt in a Long Term Discretionary Model

This paper combines two approaches to optimal monetary policy in a unified analytical framework One is the liquidity aspect, which usually deals with the Friedman rule in the context of a long term model, and the other focuses on the motivation to erode the public debt by surprise inflation, which is usually conducted in the framework of a short term model (from the point of view of the individuals). Contrary to the existing literature, we show that it is possible to have a steady state solution of the long term model with positive financial wealth in the discretionary regime, but this requires an extra monetary instrument in addition to base money. For this purpose we use interest on money. We show that the Friedman rule does not hold in the discretionary model when financial wealth is positive. We compare the results of the discretionary regime with an ihonest governmenti model.
Statistical properties of aerosol-cloud-precipitation interactions in South America

Abstract. Given the complex interaction between aerosol, cloud, and atmospheric properties, it is difficult to extract their individual effects to observed rainfall amount. This research uses principle component analysis (PCA) that combines Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) aerosol and cloud products, NCEP Reanalysis atmospheric products, and rainrate estimates from the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) precipitation radar (PR) to assess if aerosols affect warm rain processes. Data collected during September 2006 over the Amazon basin in South America during the biomass-burning season are used. The goal of this research is to combine these observations into a smaller number of variables through PCA with each new variable having a unique physical interpretation. In particular, we are concerned with PC variables whose weightings include aerosol optical thickness (AOT), as these may be an indicator of aerosol indirect effects. If they are indeed occurring, then PC values that include AOT should change as a function of rainrate. To emphasize the advantage of PCA, changes in aerosol, cloud, and atmospheric observations are compared to rainrate. Comparing no-rain, rain, and heavy rain only (>5 mm h−1) samples, we find that cloud thicknesses, humidity, and upward motion are all greater during rain and heavy rain conditions. However, no statistically significant difference in AOT exists between each sample, indicating that atmospheric conditions are more important to rainfall than aerosol concentrations as expected. If aerosols are affecting warm process clouds, it would be expected that stratiform precipitation would decrease as a function increasing aerosol concentration through either Twomey and/or semi-direct effects. PCA extracts the latter signal in a variable labeled PC2, which explains 15% of the total variance and is second in importance the variable (PC1) containing the broad atmospheric conditions. PC2 contains weightings showing that AOT is inversely proportional to low-level humidity and cloud optical thickness. Increasing AOT is also positively correlated with increasing low-level instability due to aerosol absorption. The nature of these weightings is strongly suggestive that PC2 is an indicator of the semi-direct effect with larger values associated with lower rainfall rates. PC weightings consistent with the Twomey effect (an anti-correlation between AOT and cloud droplet effective radius) are only present in higher order PC variables that explain less than 1% of the total variance, and do not vary significantly as a function of rainrate. If the Twomey effect is occurring, it is highly non-linear and/or being overshadowed by other processes. Using the raw variables alone, these determinations could not be made; thus, we are able to show the advantage of using advanced statistical techniques such as PCA for analysis of aerosols impacts on precipitation in South America.
Temporal Patterns in Bacterioplankton Community Composition in Three Reservoirs of Similar Trophic Status in Shenzhen, China

The bacterioplankton community composition’s (BCC) spatial and temporal variation patterns in three reservoirs (Shiyan, Xikeng, and LuoTian Reservoir) of similar trophic status in Bao’an District, Shenzhen (China), were investigated using PCR amplification of the 16S rDNA gene and the denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) techniques. Water samples were collected monthly in each reservoir during 12 consecutive months. Distinct differences were detected in band number, pattern, and density of DGGE at different sampling sites and time points. Analysis of the DGGE fingerprints showed that changes in the bacterial community structure mainly varied with seasons, and the patterns of change indicated that seasonal forces might have a more significant impact on the BCC than eutrophic status in the reservoirs, despite the similar Shannon-Weiner index among the three reservoirs. The sequences obtained from excised bands were affiliated with Cyanobacteria, Firmicutes, Bacteriodetes, Acidobacteria, Actinobacteria, Planctomycetes, and Proteobacteria.
A General Framework for Learning an Ensemble of Decision Rules

In the context of binary classification, we analyze a decision rule classifier based on boosting. We consider different loss functions and minimization techniques along with shrinking and sampling. The results show that minimization techniques influence rule construction, particularly rule coverage. The performance of the classifier seems not to be highly affected by the chosen loss function, and the crucial element is proper selection of shrinking and sampling method. The experiment shows the algorithm presented here is competitive to well-known decision rule learners such as SLIPPER, LRI and RuleFit.
Leucine-Rich Repeat Kinase 2 (LRRK2)-Deficient Rats Exhibit Renal Tubule Injury and Perturbations in Metabolic and Immunological Homeostasis

Genetic evidence links mutations in the LRRK2 gene with an increased risk of Parkinson’s disease, for which no neuroprotective or neurorestorative therapies currently exist. While the role of LRRK2 in normal cellular function has yet to be fully described, evidence suggests involvement with immune and kidney functions. A comparative study of LRRK2-deficient and wild type rats investigated the influence that this gene has on the phenotype of these rats. Significant weight gain in the LRRK2 null rats was observed and was accompanied by significant increases in insulin and insulin-like growth factors. Additionally, LRRK2-deficient rats displayed kidney morphological and histopathological alterations in the renal tubule epithelial cells of all animals assessed. These perturbations in renal morphology were accompanied by significant decreases of lipocalin-2, in both the urine and plasma of knockout animals. Significant alterations in the cellular composition of the spleen between LRRK2 knockout and wild type animals were identified by immunophenotyping and were associated with subtle differences in response to dual infection with rat-adapted influenza virus (RAIV) and Streptococcus pneumoniae. Ontological pathway analysis of LRRK2 across metabolic and kidney processes and pathological categories suggested that the thioredoxin network may play a role in perturbing these organ systems. The phenotype of the LRRK2 null rat is suggestive of a complex biology influencing metabolism, immune function and kidney homeostasis. These data need to be extended to better understand the role of the kinase domain or other biological functions of the gene to better inform the development of pharmacological inhibitors.
Nonverbal affect attunement in mentalization-based treatment for patients with borderline personality disorder

Abstract The aim of this study was to describe and analyse the nonverbal affect attunement in relation to the verbal dialogue in mentalization-based treatment (MBT) for patients with borderline personality disorder (BPD). The therapists’ nonverbal affect attunement documented in five video recorded individual sessions in MBT, with five women, diagnosed with BPD, was analysed with part process analysis, a qualitative method developed for video recorded material. Four categories of nonverbal affect attunement were identified in the results: (1) nonverbal affect attunement that supports the therapeutic process; (2) nonverbal misattunement that supports the therapeutic process; (3) nonverbal misattunement that does not support the therapeutic process; (4) no nonverbal affect attunement that does not support the therapeutic process. The study suggests that making therapists more aware of the significance of nonverbal affect attunement could be supportive in helping patients to develop their ability to regulate affects and develop and stabilize the mentalizing ability.
Neural representations of the target (goal) of visually guided arm movements in three motor areas of the monkey.

1. This study was designed to determine whether the supplementary motor area (SMA), the primary motor cortex (MC), and the putamen, all of which are components of the basal ganglia-thalamocortical "motor circuit," contain neural representations of the target or goal of a movement, independent of specific features of the movement itself. Four rhesus monkeys were trained to perform two visuomotor delayed step-tracking tasks in which the subject used a cursor to track targets on a display screen by making flexion and extension movements of the elbow. Single-cell activity was recorded from the SMA, MC, and putamen while the monkeys performed the two tasks. In the Standard task, the cursor and the forearm moved in the same direction. The Cursor/Limb Inversion task was identical to the Standard task except that there was an inverse relationship between the directions of movement of the forearm and cursor. Together, these tasks dissociated the spatial features of the target or goal of the movement from those of the movement itself. Both tasks also included features that made it possible to distinguish neuronal activity related to the preparation for movement from that related to movement execution. A total of 554 directionally selective, task-related neurons were tested with both tasks (SMA, 207; MC, 198; putamen, 149). 2. Two types of directionally selective preparatory activity were seen in each motor area. Cells with target-dependent preparatory activity showed selective discharge prior to all preplanned movements of the cursor toward one of the side targets (right or left), irrespective of whether the limb movement involved extension or flexion of the elbow. Comparable proportions of target-dependent preparatory cells were seen in the SMA (36%), MC (40%), and putamen (38%). Cells with limb-dependent preparatory activity showed selective discharge prior to all preplanned elbow movements in a particular direction (extension or flexion), irrespective of whether the target to which the cursor was moved was located on the right or left side of the display. The SMA contained a higher proportion of limb-dependent preparatory cells (40%) than either MC (15%) or putamen (9%). 3. Two types of directionally selective movement-related activity were also seen in each motor area. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)
Determination of the etiology of presumptive feline leprosy by 16S rRNA gene analysis

PCR-amplified 16S rRNA gene sequences were obtained directly from tissue specimens from eight cats with presumptive feline leprosy. Acid-fast bacilli were observed in sections from all eight specimens, but culture for mycobacteria was successful for one specimen only. Analysis of the V2 variable region of each 16S rRNA PCR product identified a sequence with 100% nucleotide identity to the sequences of Mycobacterium lepraemurium, Mycobacterium avium, and Mycobacterium paratuberculosis in four of the specimens from cats with feline leprosy. Separate M. paratuberculosis- and M. avium-specific PCR amplifications of the four specimens were negative, thus substantiating the identification of M. lepraemurium in these specimens from cats with feline leprosy. Further sequence analysis of the V3 variable region of one of the four specimens provided conclusive evidence of the presence of M. lepraemurium. This is the first report of the definitive identification of M. lepraemurium in cats with feline leprosy by molecular biology-based analyses. M. avium, which is rarely reported in cats, and Mycobacterium chitae, a reported nonpathogenic, rapidly growing mycobacterial species found in the environment, were identified in the specimen from which acid-fast bacilli were cultured. Two of the specimens from cats were infected with a potentially novel species of mycobacteria which had a 16S rRNA gene sequence sharing the closest nucleotide sequence identity with that of Mycobacterium malmoense. Molecular biology-based analyses provided for the accurate and rapid diagnosis of mycobacterial infections in cats and circumvented the problems of culture and misdiagnosis of feline leprosy associated with traditional methods.
Reproducibility, bioinformatic analysis and power of the SAGE method to evaluate changes in transcriptome

The serial analysis of gene expression (SAGE) method is used to study global gene expression in cells or tissues in various experimental conditions. However, its reproducibility has not yet been definitively assessed. In this study, we have evaluated the reproducibility of the SAGE method and identified the factors that affect it. The determination coefficient (R2) for the reproducibility of SAGE is 0.96. However, there are some factors that can affect the reproducibility of SAGE, such as the replication of concatemers and ditags, the number of sequenced tags and double PCR amplification of ditags. Thus, corrections for these factors must be made to ensure the reproducibility and accuracy of SAGE results. A bioinformatic analysis of SAGE data is also presented in order to eliminate these artifacts. Finally, the current study shows that increasing the number of sequenced tags improves the power of the method to detect transcripts and their regulation by experimental conditions.
Comparison of the L-asparaginases from Escherichia coli and Erwinia carotovora as immunosuppressants.

Summary The immunosuppressive effects of Escherichia coli and Erwinia carotovoral-asparaginases were examined in three systems: (a) the in vitro phytohemagglutinin-induced blastogenic response of rabbit blood leukocytes; (b) the humoral response of mice to sheep erythrocytes; and (c) the cell-mediated immune response of guinea pigs. The Er. carotovoral-asparaginase was 10 times more effective than the E. coli enzyme in inhibiting the blastogenic response in vitro. This was attributable to the greater glutaminase activity of the Er. carotovora enzyme, although it remains possible that the critical factor in blastogenesis is asparagine availability. In contrast to differences in the inhibition of transformation, the two microbial enzymes were equally effective in suppressing the antibody response to sheep erythrocytes, provided that the daily administration of enzyme was maintained until the time of serum sampling. When only a single enzyme dose was given together with antigen, then the E. coli enzyme was the more effective, an observation that could be interpreted solely in terms of the different half-lives of the two enzymes in the circulation. Neither enzyme influenced the cell-mediated immune response of guinea pigs to a protein-hapten conjugate, a test system in which glutaminase activity alone could have been expressed.
Stability of Groups with Costly Beliefs and Practices

Costly signaling theory has been employed to explain the persistence of costly displays in a wide array of species, including humans. Henrich (2009) builds on earlier signaling models to develop a cultural evolutionary model of costly displays. Significantly, Henrich's model shows that there can be a stable equilibrium for an entire population committed to costly displays, persisting alongside a no-cost stable equilibrium for the entire population. Here we generalize Henrich's result to the more realistic situation of a population peppered with subgroups committed to high-cost beliefs and practices. The investigative tool is an agent-based model in which agents have cognitive capacities similar to those presupposed in Henrich's population-level cultural evolutionary model, and agents perform similar fitness calculations. Unlike in Henrich's model, which has no group differentiation within the population, our model agents use fitness calculations to determine whether to join or leave high-cost groups. According to our model, high-cost groups achieve long-term stability within a larger population under a wide range of circumstances, a finding that extends Henrich's result in a more realistic direction. The most important emergent pathway to costly group stability is the simultaneous presence of high charisma and consistency of the group leader and high cost of the group. These findings have strategic implications both for leading groups committed to costly beliefs and practices and for controlling their size and influence within wider cultural settings.
FUN-NRC: Paraphrase-augmented Phrase-based SMT Systems for NTCIR-10 PatentMT

This paper describes FUN-NRC group’s machine translation systems that participated in the NTCIR-10 PatentMT task. The central motivation of this participation was to clarify the potential of automatically compiled collections of sub-sentential paraphrases. Our systems were built using our baseline phrase-based SMT system by augmenting its phrase table with novel translation pairs generated by combining paraphrases with translation pairs learned directly from the training bilingual data. We investigated two methods for phrase table augmentation: source-side augmentation and target-side augmentation. Among the systems we submitted, the two that worked best were (a) the one that paraphrased only unseen phrases into translatable phrases at the source side and (b) the one that paraphrased target phrases only into phrases that were seen in the original phrase table. Both these systems were trained on not only bilingual, but also monolingual data. The other two systems were trained using only bilingual data. This paper also reports on our follow-up experiments focusing on the relationship between reordering restriction and system performance.
Examining the impact of four teaching development programmes for engineering teaching assistants*

Abstract As current graduate instructors of labs and class discussions, teaching assistants (TAs) play a critical role in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) undergraduate education, especially as some graduate students may choose a faculty career in the future. Because of the importance of TAs and their development as scholars and instructors, we sought to determine the most effective methods of preparing engineering TAs at two research universities. We compare the impact of a teaching orientation with one of four teaching development programmes (Pedagogy Course, Advanced Practice Teaching, Workshop Attendance with Written Reflection, or Mid-Semester Student Feedback with Written Reflection) on engineering TAs’ teaching efficacy and definitions of active learning. Results indicated that the Pedagogy Course consistently increased TAs’ teaching efficacy and attitudes toward teaching compared with the other programmes. We also found that stand-alone Mid-Semester Student Feedback with Written Reflection enhanced TAs’ efficacy for reflection and beliefs about teaching. We discuss implications for providing teaching development for graduate students and directions for future research.
A biologically-inspired clustering algorithm dependent on spatial data in sensor networks

Sensor networks in environmental monitoring applications aim to provide scientists with a useful spatio-temporal representation of the observed phenomena. This helps to deepen their understanding of the environmental signals that cover large geographic areas. In this paper, the spatial aspect of this data handling requirement is met by creating clusters in a sensor network based on the rate of change of an oceanographic signal with respect to space. Inspiration was drawn from quorum sensing, a biological process that is carried out within communities of bacterial cells. The paper demonstrates the control the user has over the sensitivity of the algorithm to the data variation and the energy consumption of the nodes while they run the algorithm.