Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Effects of Forage:Concentrate Ratio on Growth Performance, Ruminal Fermentation and Blood Metabolites in Housing-feeding Yaks

The objective of this study was to determine the effect of forage: concentrate ratio (F:C) on growth performance, ruminal fermentation and blood metabolites of housing-feeding yaks. Thirty-two Maiwa male yaks (initial body weight = 207.99±3.31 kg) were randomly assigned to four dietary treatments (8 yaks per treatment). Experimental diets were: A, B, C, D which contained 70:30, 60:40, 50:50 and 40:60 F:C ratios, respectively. Dry matter intake and average daily gain in yaks fed the C and D diets were greater (p<0.05) than yaks fed the A and B diets. No differences were found in ruminal NH3-N, total volatile fatty acids, acetate, butyrate, valerate, and isovalerate concentrations. The propionate concentration was increased (p<0.05) in the C and D groups compared with the A and B diets. In contrast, the acetate to propionate ratio was decreased and was lowest (p<0.05) in the C group relative to the A and B diets, but was similar with the D group. For blood metabolites, no differences were found in serum concentrations of urea-N, albumin, triglyceride, cholesterol, low density lipoprotein, alanine aminotransferase, and aspartate aminotransferase (p>0.05) among treatments. Treatment C had a higher concentration of total protein and high density lipoprotein (p<0.05) than A and B groups. In addition, there was a trend that the globulin concentration of A group was lower than other treatments (p = 0.079). Results from this study suggest that increasing the level of concentrate from 30% to 50% exerted a positive effect on growth performance, rumen fermentation and blood metabolites in yaks.
A Unified attentional bottleneck in the human brain

Human information processing is characterized by bottlenecks that constrain throughput. These bottlenecks limit both what we can perceive and what we can act on in multitask settings. Although perceptual and response limitations are often attributed to independent information processing bottlenecks, it has recently been suggested that a common attentional limitation may be responsible for both. To date, however, evidence supporting the existence of such a “unified” bottleneck has been mixed. Here, we tested the unified bottleneck hypothesis using time-resolved fMRI. Experiment 1 isolated brain regions involved in the response selection bottleneck that limits speeded dual-task performance. These same brain regions were not only engaged by a perceptual encoding task in Experiment 2, their activity also tracked delays to a speeded decision-making task caused by concurrent perceptual encoding (Experiment 3). We conclude that a unified attentional bottleneck, including the inferior frontal junction, superior medial frontal cortex, and bilateral insula, temporally limits operations as diverse as perceptual encoding and decision-making.
Pre-synaptic efficacy directs normalization of synaptic strength in layer 2 / 3 rat neocortex following paired activity

Paired neuronal activity is known to induce changes in synaptic strength which result in the synapse in question having different properties to unmodified synapses. Here we show that in paired layer 2/3 excitatory connections in young adult rat cortex paired activity acts to normalize the strength and quantal parameters of connections. Paired action potential firing produces long term potentiation (LTP) in only a third of connections, while a third remain with their amplitude unchanged and a third exhibit long term depression (LTD). Furthermore, the direction of plasticity can be predicted by the initial strength of the connection: weak connections potentiate and strong connections depress. A quantal analysis reveals that changes in synaptic efficacy were predominantly presynaptic in locus, and that the key determinant of the direction and magnitude of synaptic modification was the initial release probability (Pr), which correlated inversely with change in Pr after pairing. Furthermore, distal synapses also exhibited postsynaptic increases in efficacy, while more proximal inputs did not. This may represent a means by which distal synapses preferentially increase their efficacy in order to achieve equal weighting at the soma. Paired activity thus acts to normalize synaptic strength, via both pre and post synaptic mechanisms. Page 3 of 50
SELF‐ORGANIZING PEER‐TO‐PEER SOCIAL NETWORKS

Peer‐to‐peer (P2P) systems provide a new solution to distributed information and resource sharing because of its outstanding properties in decentralization, dynamics, flexibility, autonomy, and cooperation, summarized as DDFAC in this paper. After a detailed analysis of the current P2P literature, this paper suggests to better exploit peer social relationships and peer autonomy to achieve efficient P2P structure design. Accordingly, this paper proposes Self‐organizing peer‐to‐peer social networks (SoPPSoNs) to self‐organize distributed peers in a decentralized way, in which neuron‐like agents following extended Hebbian rules found in the brain activity represent peers to discover useful peer connections. The self‐organized networks capture social associations of peers in resource sharing, and hence are called P2P social networks. SoPPSoNs have improved search speed and success rate as peer social networks are correctly formed. This has been verified through tests on real data collected from the Gnutella system. Analysis on the Gnutella data has verified that social associations of peers in reality are directed, asymmetric and weighted, validating the design of SoPPSoN. The tests presented in this paper have also evaluated the scalability of SoPPSoN, its performance under varied initial network connectivity and the effects of different learning rules.
Selective Categories and Linear Canonical Relations

A construction of Wehrheim and Woodward circumvents the problem that com- positions of smooth canonical relations are not always smooth, building a category suitable for functorial quantization. To apply their construction to more examples, we introduce a notion of highly selective category, in which only certain morphisms and certain pairs of these morphisms are \good". We then apply this notion to the category SLREL of linear canonical relations and the result WW(SLREL) of our version of the WW construction, identifying the morphisms in the latter with pairs (L;k) consisting of a linear canonical relation and a nonnegative integer. We put a topology on this category of indexed linear canonical relations for which composition is continuous, unlike the composition in SLREL itself. Subsequent papers will consider this category from the viewpoint of derived geometry and will concern quantum counterparts.
Donation after Cardiac Death Liver Transplantation: Predictors of Outcome

We aimed to identify recipient, donor and transplant risk factors associated with graft failure and patient mortality following donation after cardiac death (DCD) liver transplantation. These estimates were derived from Scientific Registry of Transplant Recipients data from all US liver‐only DCD recipients between September 1, 2001 and April 30, 2009 (n = 1567) and Cox regression techniques. Three years post‐DCD liver transplant, 64.9% of recipients were alive with functioning grafts, 13.6% required retransplant and 21.6% died. Significant recipient factors predictive of graft failure included: age ≥ 55 years, male sex, African–American race, HCV positivity, metabolic liver disorder, transplant MELD ≥ 35, hospitalization at transplant and the need for life support at transplant (all, p ≤ 0.05). Donor characteristics included age ≥ 50 years and weight >100 kg (all, p ≤ 0.005). Each hour increase in cold ischemia time (CIT) was associated with 6% higher graft failure rate (HR 1.06, p < 0.001). Donor warm ischemia time ≥ 35 min significantly increased graft failure rates (HR 1.84, p = 0.002). Recipient predictors of mortality were age ≥ 55 years, hospitalization at transplant and retransplantation (all, p ≤ 0.006). Donor weight >100 kg and CIT also increased patient mortality (all, p ≤ 0.035). These findings are useful for transplant surgeons creating DCD liver acceptance protocols.
Donor influence in international financial institutions: Deciphering what alignment measures measure

This paper explores U.S. influence in the World Bank using panel data on World Bank lending to 148 developing countries between 1984 and 2005. I compare a range of UN alignment variables (with differing interpretations), introduce other measures of U.S. interests, and control for voting alignment with the G7 donors. Estimation results suggest that partial correlations for U.S. UN voting alignment partly reflect vote buying and partly reflect broader alliances. The results convincingly reject the hypothesis that U.S. UN voting alignment merely proxies for G7 influence in the allocation of World Bank funds.
Software-in-the-Loop simulation of embedded control applications based on Virtual Platforms

One challenge in developing complex software for embedded systems is the missing option of rapid prototyping in early stages of the development cycle. In this paper we present the use of the High Level Simulation Framework “Open Virtual Platforms” (OVP) for Software-in-the-Loop simulation of embedded control applications. Therefore, we investigate and evaluate different methods allowing the data exchange between the simulated platform and the host machine running the simulation environment. The insights we gain are used to design peripherals which appear to the simulated processor system like devices available on the targeted hardware platform and allow the access to files stored on the host machine on one hand, and the communication with hardware devices connected to the host on the other hand. In both cases the cross-compiled application code for the targeted embedded platform including the operating system (OS) and the hardware abstraction layer (HAL) can be executed by the virtual platform (VP) without any modifications. Additionally, we introduce a method for controlling the synchronization of OVP with the host, which can be used to either run simulations in fast motion mode, or to collaborate with hardware devices or other applications. The approach is verified with two use cases: (1) a motor control application processing data by accessing files and (2) an image processing application interacting with real hardware devices directly coupled with the virtual platform.
Footy sheilas: a memoir and exegesis

The Project is about multigenerational fans of Australian football. The artefact is a memoir focussed upon a family that has followed the Collingwood Football Club over five generations. It involves humour, self-insights, and visual and verbal ethnography. It is a family archive of narratives with an Australian narrator's voice. The academic framework is an exegesis that identifies and addresses a gap in the literature about women football fans with a commitment to a football club. The two elements add significantly to new scholarship about narrative discourse, autoethnography and social identity as applied to football fandom and family narratives about it.
PIP2-Mediated HCN3 Channel Gating Is Crucial for Rhythmic Burst Firing in Thalamic Intergeniculate Leaflet Neurons

Hyperpolarization-activated cyclic nucleotide-gated (HCN) channels generate a pacemaking current, Ih, which regulates neuronal excitability and oscillatory activity in the brain. Although all four HCN isoforms are expressed in the brain, the functional contribution of HCN3 is unknown. Using immunohistochemistry, confocal microscopy, and whole-cell patch-clamp recording techniques, we investigated HCN3 function in thalamic intergeniculate leaflet (IGL) neurons, as HCN3 is reportedly preferentially expressed in these cells. We observed that Ih recorded from IGL, but not ventral geniculate nucleus, neurons in HCN2+/+ mice and rats activated slowly and were cAMP insensitive, which are hallmarks of HCN3 channels. We also observed strong immunolabeling for HCN3, with no labeling for HCN1 and HCN4, and only very weak labeling for HCN2. Deletion of HCN2 did not alter Ih characteristics in mouse IGL neurons. These data together indicate that the HCN3 channel isoform generated Ih in IGL neurons. Intracellular phosphatidylinositol-4,5-bisphosphate (PIP2) shifted Ih activation to more depolarized potentials and accelerated activation kinetics. Upregulation of HCN3 function by PIP2 augmented low-threshold burst firing and spontaneous oscillations; conversely, depletion of PIP2 or pharmacologic block of Ih resulted in a profound inhibition of excitability. The results indicate that functional expression of HCN3 channels in IGL neurons is crucial for intrinsic excitability and rhythmic burst firing, and PIP2 serves as a powerful modulator of Ih-dependent properties via an effect on HCN3 channel gating. Since the IGL is a major input to the suprachiasmatic nucleus, regulation of pacemaking function by PIP2 in the IGL may influence sleep and circadian rhythms.
Support Structures and Their Impacts on Employee Outcomes: A Longitudinal Field Study of an Enterprise System Implementation

Despite the impressive progress in understanding the benefits and challenges related to enterprise system (ES) implementations--such as enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems--little is known about how the support structures traditionally used by organizations to help employees cope with a new ES affect employee outcomes related to the system and their jobs. Likewise, little is known about how existing peer advice ties in the business unit influence these outcomes after an ES implementation. Understanding employee outcomes is critical because of their ramifications for long-term ES success. This paper examines the impacts of four traditional support structures (namely, training, online support, help desk support, and change management support), and peer advice ties on four key employee outcomes (namely, system satisfaction, job stress, job satisfaction, and job performance). This paper also seeks to show that it is peer advice ties that best fill the complex informational needs of employees after an ES implementation by providing the right information at the right time and in the right context. The proposed model was tested in a field study conducted in one business unit of a large telecommunications company and gathered data from 120 supplier liaisons over the course of a year. Both traditional support structures and peer advice ties were found to influence the various outcomes, even after controlling for pre-implementation levels of the dependent variables. In all cases, peer advice ties was the strongest predictor, thus underscoring the importance of this critical internal resource.
The halo effect: Evidence for unconscious alteration of judgments.

Although the halo effect is one of the oldest and most widely known of psychological phenomena, surprisingly little is known about its nature. The halo effect is generally defined as the influence of a global evaluation on evaluations of individual attributes of a person, but this definition is imprecise with respect to the strength and character of the influence. At one extreme, the halo effect might be due simply to an extrapolation from a general impression to unknown attributes. Global evaluations might color presumptions about specific traits or influence interpretation of the meaning or affective value of ambiguous trait information. Thus, if we like a person, we often assume that those attributes of the person about which we know little are also favorable. (Politicians often seem to capitalize on this tendency by appearing warm and friendly but saying little about the issues.) Such a phenomenon could best be described as a de
Toxicological assessment of polyhexamethylene biguanide for water treatment

Abstract Polyhexamethylene biguanide (PHMB) is an antiseptic with antiviral and antibacterial properties used in a variety of products including wound care dressings, contact lens cleaning solutions, perioperative cleansing products, and swimming pool cleaners. There are regulatory concerns with regard to its safety in humans for water treatment. We decided to assess the safety of this chemical in Sprague-Dawley rats. PHMB was administered in a single dose by gavage via a stomach tube as per the manufacturer’s instruction within a dose range of 2 mg/kg to 40 mg/kg. Subchronic toxicity studies were also conducted at doses of 2 mg/kg, 8 mg/kg and 32 mg/kg body weight and hematological, biochemical and histopathological findings of the major organs were assessed. Administration of a dose of 25.6 mg/kg, i.e. 1.6 mL of 0.4% PHMB solution (equivalent to 6.4×103 mg/L of 0.1% solution) resulted in 50% mortality. Histopathological analysis in the acute toxicity studies showed that no histopathological lesions were observed in the heart and kidney samples but 30% of the animals had mild hydropic changes in zone 1 of their liver samples, while at a dosage of 32 mg/kg in the subchronic toxicity studies, 50% of the animals showed either mild hepatocyte cytolysis with or without lymphocyte infiltration and feathery degeneration. Lymphocyte infiltration was, for the first time, observed in one heart sample, whereas one kidney sample showed mild tubular damage. The acute studies showed that the median lethal dose (LD50) is 25.6 mg/kg (LC50 of 1.6 mL of 0.4% PHMB. Subchronic toxicological studies also revealed few deleterious effects on the internal organs examined, as seen from the results of the biochemical parameters evaluated. These results have implications for the use of PHMB to make water potable.
ANALISIS FAKTOR DALAM MENGGUNAKAN LAYANAN E-BILL DENGAN PENDEKATAN TECHNOLOGY ACCEPTANCE MODEL (TAM)

The purpose of this research is to examine some factors which will influence the revenue and the use of e-bill or electronic billing by using Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) approach. The constructions which have been applied in this research i.e. Perceived ease of use, perceived of usefulness, attitude toward usage, behavioral intention to use, and actual use. In this research, the Perceived ease of use will be correlated to perceived of usefulness. Perceived ease of use and perceived of usefulness will be correlated to attitude toward usage. Furthermore attitude toward usage will be correlated to behavioral intention. Moreover, behavioral intention to use will be correlated to actual use. The object of the research is all corporate HALO card prepaid customers at PT. Telkomsel Surabaya who have been applied e-bill. The sample collection in this research has been done by using purposive sampling. The data is the primary data which has been done by issuing questionnaires. The primary data has resulted 254 questionnaires which can be processed by using SEM (Structural Equation Model) analysis technique and Partial Least Square (PLS) methods.The result of the research shows that Perceived ease of use has positive influence to the perceived of usefulness. Perceived ease of use and perceived of usefulness has positive influence to the attitude toward usage. Attitude toward usage does not have any influence to the behavioral intention to use. Meanwhile, behavioral intention to use does not have influence to the actual use in using e-bill. Keywords: e-bill, Technology Acceptance Model, Perceived ease of use, perceived of usefulness, attitude, behavioral intention to use, actual use
Renormalization group flow of quantum gravity in the Einstein-Hilbert truncation

The exact renormalization group equation for pure quantum gravity is used to derive the nonperturbative \ensuremath{\beta}-functions for the dimensionless Newton constant and cosmological constant on the theory space spanned by the Einstein-Hilbert truncation. The resulting coupled differential equations are evaluated for a sharp cutoff function. The features of these flow equations are compared to those found when using a smooth cutoff. The system of equations with a sharp cutoff is then solved numerically, deriving the complete renormalization group flow of the Einstein-Hilbert truncation in $d=4. $ The resulting renormalization group trajectories are classified and their physical relevance is discussed. The nontrivial fixed point which, if present in the exact theory, might render quantum Einstein gravity nonperturbatively renormalizable is investigated for various spacetime dimensionalities.
The Spectrum of the Black Hole X-Ray Nova V404 Cygni in Quiescence as Measured by XMM-Newton

We present XMM-Newton observations of the black hole X-ray nova V404 Cyg in quiescence. Its quiescent spectrum can be best fitted by a simple power law with slope Γ ~ 2. The spectra are consistent with that expected for the advection-dominated accretion flow (ADAF). V404 Cyg was roughly equal in luminosity compared to the previous observation of Chandra. We see variability of a factor of 4 during the observation. We find no evidence for the presence of fluorescent or H-like/He-like iron emission, with upper limits of 52 and 110 eV, respectively. The limit on the fluorescent emission is improved by a factor of 15 over the previous estimate, and the restriction on H-like/He-like emission is lower than predicted from models by a factor of roughly 2.
Dynamic Measurement of Dielectric Properties of Materials at High Temperature During Microwave Heating in a Dual Mode Cylindrical Cavity

A microwave cavity and heating system for microwave processing and in situ dynamic measurements of the complex permittivity of dielectric materials at high temperatures ( ~ 1000 °C) has been developed. The method is based on a dual-mode cylindrical cavity where heating and testing are performed by two different swept frequency microwave sources. A cross-coupling filter isolates the signals coming from both sources. By adjusting the frequency bandwidth of the heating source and the level of coupling to the cavity, an automatic procedure allows for the establishment of a desirable level of heating rate to the dielectric sample to reach high temperatures in short cycles. Dielectric properties of materials as a function of temperature are calculated by an improved cavity perturbation method during heating. Accuracy of complex permittivity results has been evaluated and an error lower than 5% with respect to a rigorous analysis of the cavity has been achieved. The functionality of the microwave dielectric measurement system has been demonstrated by heating and measuring glass and ceramic samples up to 1000 °C. The correlation of the complex permittivity with the heating rate, temperature, absorbed power, and other processing parameters can help to better understand the interactions that take place during microwave heating of materials at high temperatures compared to conventional heating.
Public Attitudes toward Climate Change and Other Environmental Issues across Countries

This article explores whether public attitudes vary between environmental issues. We focus on climate change caused by global warming, and compare it with other environmental issues. We find significant differences in the attitude toward climate change vis-à-vis other environmental issues between respondents’ educational attainments and between politician partisanships. We argue that the relative complexity of the climate issue compared to other environmental problems may be a reason for this variation, and stress the importance of political views in shaping an attitude toward complex issues. This finding implies the importance of nonscientific factors in raising awareness of a complex environmental issue such as climate change.