Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Questionable Research Practices and Evidence-Based Practices in School Psychology.

By Joseph D'Intino, Ekaterina Lysenko & Steven R. Shaw Evidence-based practices (EBP) in psychology and education are necessary for the development of best practices and required by law. However, EBP is a term that is often freely applied in these settings without considering the implications of the meaning of “evidence-based. ” Evidence-based practices are defined as the process of carefully, conscientiously, and judiciously evaluating the best available research evidence in the application to clinical practice and service delivery. Similarly, the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA, 2015) presents four levels of EBP to guide practitioners in selecting the most appropriate interventions, tools, and techniques. Those levels are:
Human SCARB2 Transgenic Mice as an Infectious Animal Model for Enterovirus 71

Enterovirus 71 (EV71) and coxsackievirus (CVA) are the most common causative factors for hand, foot, and mouth disease (HFMD) and neurological disorders in children. Lack of a reliable animal model is an issue in investigating EV71-induced disease manifestation in humans, and the current clinical therapies are symptomatic. We generated a novel EV71-infectious model with hSCARB2-transgenic mice expressing the discovered receptor human SCARB2 (hSCARB2). The challenge of hSCARB2-transgenic mice with clinical isolates of EV71 and CVA16 resulted in HFMD-like and neurological syndromes caused by E59 (B4) and N2838 (B5) strains, and lethal paralysis caused by 5746 (C2), N3340 (C4), and CVA16. EV71 viral loads were evident in the tissues and CNS accompanied the upregulated pro-inflammatory mediators (CXCL10, CCL3, TNF-α, and IL-6), correlating to recruitment of the infiltrated T lymphocytes that result in severe diseases. Transgenic mice pre-immunized with live E59 or the FI-E59 vaccine was able to resist the subsequent lethal challenge with EV71. These results indicate that hSCARB2-transgenic mice are a useful model for assessing anti-EV71 medications and for studying the pathogenesis induced by EV71.
Scheduling with AND/OR Precedence Constraints

A procedure for controlling a data processing system by a computer program that compares two versions of a source program and identifies the difference between the two. The program compares the two versions until a noncomparison is determined. The program then continues to compare each line in the base version to each line in the modified version until a comparison is found. The program then verifies that it is in the same area of both files by checking for an identical symbolic address and proceeds to check the statements preceding the identical symbolic addresses by working backwards until a noncompare is again detected. The test that defines the smallest area of noncomparison delineates the changes. The program then examines the statements in the noncomparing area to signify whether the noncomparison is due to an addition, deletion or modification.
Competitive Outcomes in Product-Differentiated Oligopoly

This paper analyzes the effect of market concentration and product differentiation on the observed outcomes of competition among oligopolists. The empirical framework is designed to examine whether competition is less intense in markets with equal levels of concentration but more differentiation among the products offered. A two-stage estimation procedure is proposed to address the endogeneity problem inherent in comparing outcomes across different market structures. I estimate the competitive effects using data from a cross section of oligopoly motel markets located along U.S. interstate highways. The results indicate that firms benefit substantially by offering differentiated products. The presence of any market competitor drives down prices, but the effect is much smaller when the competitor is a different product type. Differentiation is optimal product choice behavior because the resulting competition among firms is less tough when their products are differentiated.
Interchangeable alpha chain cytoplasmic domains play a positive role in control of cell adhesion mediated by VLA-4, a beta 1 integrin

Integrins can exist in a range of functional states, depending on the cell type and its state of activation. Although the mechanism that controls activity is unknown, it has been suggested that for some integrins, alpha chain cytoplasmic domains may exert either a negative effect or no effect on adhesion function. To address this issue for VLA- 4 (an alpha 4 beta 1 heterodimer), we constructed an alpha 4 cytoplasmic deletion mutant and chimeric alpha chains composed of the extracellular domains of alpha 4 and the cytoplasmic domains of alpha 2, alpha 4, or alpha 5. Upon stable transfection of wild-type alpha 4, VLA-4 heterodimer was obtained that mediated (a) poor adhesion to CS1 peptide, fibronectin, or vascular cell adhesion molecule 1 (VCAM-1) (in K562 cells); (b) poor adhesion to CS1 peptide but moderate adhesion to VCAM-1 (in MIP101 cells); and (c) moderate adhesion to both CS1 peptide and VCAM-1 (in PMWK cells). Chimeric alpha 4 constructs and wild-type alpha 4 yielded similar results in these cell lines. In contrast, truncation of the alpha 4 cytoplasmic domain (after the conserved GFFKR motif) caused an almost complete loss of adhesive activity in all three cell lines. Thus, several interchangeable alpha chain cytoplasmic domains play a fundamentally positive role in determining the state of constitutive activity for VLA-4. The alpha chain cytoplasmic domain is also required for agonist-stimulated adhesion, since phorbol ester stimulated the cell adhesion mediated by wild-type and chimeric alpha chains, but not by the cytoplasmic deletion mutant. The inactivity of both wild-type VLA-4 (in K562 cells), and truncated VLA-4 (in all three cell lines) was overcome by the addition of a stimulatory anti-beta 1 monoclonal antibody. Thus, the alpha cytoplasmic domain-dependent cellular mechanism controlling both constitutive and agonist-stimulated VLA-4 activity could be bypassed by external manipulation of the integrin.
Distinct types of astroglial cells in the hippocampus differ in gap junction coupling

Previous studies have shown that two subpopulations of cells with astrocytic properties coexist in the mouse hippocampus, which display distinct morphological and functional characteristics, specifically a nonoverlapping expression of either AMPA‐type glutamate receptors (GluR cells) or glutamate transporters (GluT cells). Use of transgenic mice with hGFAP promoter‐controlled EGFP expression and patch‐clamp recordings allow reliable identification of the two cell types in hippocampal slices. Extending functional characterization, we report here the complete lack of gap junctional tracer coupling in GluR cells, while GluT cells are shown to be extensively coupled. This distinction is valid in immature as well as adult animals. Analysis of transgenic mice expressing β‐Gal under regulatory elements of the Cx43 promoter revealed the absence of Cx43 in GluR cells. Experiments using gap junction blockers demonstrated that passive currents, displayed primarily by GluT cells, do not reflect intercellular coupling but are attributable to intrinsic membrane properties of individual cells. This study supports the notion that the two subpopulations of hGFAP‐EGFP‐positive cells represent distinct cell types with contrasting physiological properties. Since GluR cells do not participate in the astrocytic gap junctional network, their functional role must be different from spatial buffering of ions or signaling molecules, i.e., properties generally assigned to astrocytes. © 2004 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Lossless Multi-Grid Chain Code with Optimized Cell Usage for Contour Description of Visual Objects

In the context of object-based image compression, shape encoders that describe the contour of the objects, called chain codes, tend to be more efficient than that the one based on bitmap, which is the MPEG-4 Part 2 framework. Among the chain codes, those based on grid cells are expected to outperform the ones that employ a symbol to code each particular boundary pixel. This paper presents a lossless chain code based approach for binary shapes encoding, called OCULMGCC (Optimized Cell Usage Lossless Multi Grid Chain Code). The OCU-LMGCC solves shortcomings in the original MGCC, optimizes the required extra parallel information to the decoder and uses a new set of coding symbols, better suited to the novel cell-switching schemes proposed. Results showed a compression gain noticeable larger than the known algorithms reported in the literature. Keywords-shape encoding, object-based image compression, MPEG-4, chain code, grid cell.
A Data-Driven Variable-Gain Control Strategy for an Ultra-Precision Wafer Stage With Accelerated Iterative Parameter Tuning

Wafer stage is an important mechatronic unit of industrial lithography tool for manufacturing integrated circuits. To overcome the inherent limitations of fix-gain feedback control and improve the servo performance, a performance-oriented variable-gain control strategy with accelerated iterative parameter tuning is proposed for an ultra-precision wafer stage. The variable-gain controller comprises a fix-gain proportional-integral-derivative (PID) controller and add-on variable-gain elements, which are the focus of this paper. Specifically, the add-on variable-gain elements are significantly designed based on the main tracking error sources and error frequency of different reference trajectory phases. A weighted two-norm regarding the performance indexes of wafer stages, i.e., moving average (MA) and moving standard deviation (MSD) of the tracking error, is synthesized as the objective function, and the data-driven Levenberg-Marquardt-based iterative parameter tuning scheme is employed to find the optimal parameter values of the proposed variable-gain controller. Furthermore, to improve the convergence rate, a multiparameter accelerated iterative method is developed based on Aitken's method. Finally, the proposed variable-gain control strategy is implemented on an ultra-precision wafer stage developed in our laboratory. Comparative experimental results demonstrate that the strategy performs best and achieves excellent improvement on both MA and MSD. During the scanning phase, MA and MSD are less than 1.02 and 2.35 nm, respectively. The proposed variable-gain control strategy is also suitable for other industrial applications.
Cooperation and Directionality: A Co-opdirectional MAC for Wireless Ad Hoc Networks

Advances in cooperative communications and directional antenna design so far have taken place in parallel, if not in isolation from each other. To explore the role they may play in the next generation of wireless networks, it is important to design and evaluate protocols that can provide co-opdirectionality, the capability of tapping into the combined potential of both cooperation and transmission directionality. Inspired by the protocols presented in [1] and [2], we propose a novel co-opdirectional MAC that fully leverages both cooperation diversity and transmission directionality1. Special attention has been paid to the protocol design so that the new MAC would not only inherit the advantages of two previous protocols, but also avoid their weaknesses in the wireless ad hoc environment. The protocol thus delivers a superior performance, as our extensive simulations confirm. To the best knowledge of the authors, this paper represents the first effort to deal with the challenges of integrating cooperation and directional capabilities at the MAC layer.
C O M M E N T a R Y Open Access

On 12 February 1988 (by coincidence Charles Darwin's birthday), a paper published in Science by Katherine Field, Rudy Raff, and colleagues presented the first credible molecular analysis of metazoan phylogeny based on sequences from the small subunit ribosomal RNA gene (SSU). Here I examine the main conclusions reached in this manuscript. I reconstitute their dataset and, by recompiling software available in 1988, I consider how they might have achieved a more accurate tree. I show how three common methods to avoid systematic error-more data, careful taxon sampling and superior models of evolution-overcome the errors that exist in the original paper. This approach illustrates the basis of some of the major advances of the past 25 years resulting in our current understanding of animal phylogeny.
Chandra Observations of Point Sources in A2255

In our search for "hidden" active galactic nuclei (AGNs), we present results from a Chandra observation of the nearby cluster A2255. Eight cluster galaxies are associated with pointlike X-ray emission, and we classify these galaxies based on their X-ray, radio, and optical properties. At least three are associated with AGNs with no optical signatures of nuclear activity, with a further two being potential AGNs. Of the potential AGNs, one corresponds to a galaxy with a post-starburst optical spectrum. The remaining three X-ray-detected cluster galaxies consist of two starbursts and an elliptical with luminous hot gas. Of the eight cluster galaxies, five are associated with luminous (massive) galaxies, and the remaining three lie in much lower luminosity systems. We note that the use of X-ray-to-optical flux ratios for classification of X-ray sources is often misleading and strengthens the claim that the fraction of cluster galaxies hosting an AGN based on optical data is significantly lower than the fraction based on X-ray and radio data.
Gene Polymorphism of Toll-Like Receptors and Lung Function at Five to Seven Years of Age after Infant Bronchiolitis

Aim Toll-like receptors (TLR) play a crucial role in innate immunity, protecting the host from pathogens such as viruses. Genetic variations in TLRs have been associated with the severity of viral bronchiolitis in infancy and with the later occurrence of post-bronchiolitis asthma. The aim of the present study was to evaluate if there are any exploratory associations between TLR gene polymorphisms and lung function at 5 to 7 years of age in former bronchiolitis patients. Methods We performed impulse oscillometry (IOS) at the median age of 6.3 years for 103 children who had been hospitalized for bronchiolitis at less than six months of age. The main parameters evaluated were airway resistance and reactance at 5Hz in baseline and post-exercise measurements. Data on single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) of TLR1 rs5743618, TLR2 rs5743708, TLR6 rs5743810 and TLR10 rs4129009 (TLR2 subfamily) and TLR3 rs3775291, TLR4 rs4986790, TLR7 rs179008, TLR8 rs2407992 and TLR 9 rs187084 were available for analyses. Results The TLR4 rs4986790 wild genotype A/A was associated with a greater Rrs5 response (0.72 vs. -0.42, p = 0.03) to exercise. In TLR6 rs5743810, the minor allele T was associated with greater Rrs5 response (0.80 vs. -0.03, p = 0.04) to exercise. In TLR7 rs179008, the major allele A was associated with baseline decline in dRrs/df (-1.03 vs 0.61, p = 0.01) and increased Fres (2.28 vs. 0.89, p = 0.01) in girls. Conclusion Among the nine studied TLRs, only TLR7 rs179008 showed some exploratory associations with post-bronchiolitis lung function deficiency, and polymorphisms of TLR4 rs4986790, and TLR6 rs5743810 in particular, with airway reactivity. These findings call for further confirmatory studies.
Maximizing spatial reuse in indoor environments

Wireless technologies have gained tremendous popularity over the last couple of years. Such popularity causes dense and usually chaotic, i.e., unplanned and unmanaged, deployments of wireless devices in indoor environments such as homes and offices. Due to the broadcast nature of wireless communication, wireless interference is becoming the most serious issue in these dense and usually chaotic wireless deployments. Existing techniques, however, cannot solve the interference problem at this scale and meet this growing demand for wireless capacity. In this dissertation, we propose to tackle the interference problem by optimizing spatial reuse (increase the number of simultaneous transmissions in an area without using additional frequencies) using directional transmission and power control. We propose two directional systems: DIRC for enterprise wireless networks with directional APs and omni-directional clients, and Speed for future wireless networks with directional APs and directional clients. While directional antennas can be very useful, there are certain cases where deploying directional antennas can be very difficult, e.g., due to cost or size issues. Thus, in order to extend the optimization of spatial reuse to existing omni-directional antenna networks, we also propose Opera that uses the technique of power control to achieve spatial reuse for these networks. Both techniques of directional transmission and power control can allow multiple transmissions to happen simultaneously even in the same channel and even when the nodes are closely located in an area. While there are many systems use directional transmission and/or power control in outdoor application scenarios, achieving spatial reuse in our application scenario, i.e., chaotic deployment of wireless devices in indoor environments, is decidedly more complicated. This is primarily due to the key characteristics of these scenarios: Due to both rich scattering and unplanned node locations, the signal and interference patterns from the senders to the receivers are rather unpredictable. The problem is further complicated by the fact that today's carrier sensing based medium access control (MAC) protocols interact poorly with both techniques. In this dissertation, we first show that contrary to conventional wisdom, directional transmission and power control can be very effective even in rich-scattered indoor environments. Then, we show how to build the three systems in a practical and lightweight fashion to exploit the capabilities of directional transmission and power control. Specifically, we use the SINR model to facilitate choosing the appropriate antenna orientations and power levels, and we also use a timeslot and timeslot reservation based MAC protocol (both centralized and distributed versions) to coordinate the APs and the clients. Finally, we evaluate our systems in several indoor testbeds to illustrate their effectiveness in practice. Our contributions demonstrate that there exist practical and lightweight solutions to maximize indoor wireless spatial reuse.
Long term survival after evidence based treatment of acute myocardial infarction and revascularisation: follow-up of population based Perth MONICA cohort, 1984-2005

Objective To examine trends in long term survival in patients alive 28 days after myocardial infarction and the impact of evidence based medical treatments and coronary revascularisation during or near the event. Design Population based cohort with 12 year follow-up. Setting Perth, Australia. Participants 4451 consecutive patients with a definite acute myocardial infarction according to the World Health Organization MONICA (monitoring trends and determinants in cardiovascular disease) criteria admitted to hospital during 1984-7, 1988-90, and 1991-3. Main outcome measures All cause mortality identified from official mortality records and the hospital morbidity data, with death from cardiovascular disease as a secondary end point. Results In the 1991-3 cohort, 28 day survivors of acute myocardial infarction had a 7.6% absolute event reduction (95% confidence interval 4% to 11%) or a 28% lower relative risk reduction (16% to 38%), unadjusted for risk of death, over 12 years after the incident admission compared with the 1984-7 cohort, similar to the survival of the 1988-90 cohort. The improved survival for the 1991-3 cohort persisted after adjustment for demographic factors, coronary risk factors, severity of disease, and event complications with an adjusted relative risk reduction of 26% (14% to 37%), but this was not apparent after further adjustment for medical treatments in hospital and coronary revascularisation procedures within 12 months of the incident myocardial infarction. Conclusion The improving trends in 12 year survival after a definite acute myocardial infarction are associated with progressive use of evidence based treatments during the initial admission to hospital and in the 12 months after the event. These changes in the management of acute myocardial infarction are probably contributing to the continuing decline in mortality from coronary heart disease in Australia.
Is the “Unmotivated” Client a Myth? Reconstructing Human Service Practices

ABSTRACT Although there many factors outside of the human service context that influence client motivation, the label of an “unmotivated client” obscures the fact that in some significant measure the problem is not “unmotivated clients” but a missed opportunity for the social worker/counselor to engage the client. Assigning culpability for disengagement to the client, rather than the context, disinclines social workers to explore opportunities to support motivation. Reframing motivation as an attribute contingent on counseling practices provides opportunities to influence client motivation. This paper examines the implications for human service practices.
Equipment interface: the relationship between simulation and emulation

This paper aims to explain how simulation and emulation are interrelatd, and why they are of benefit to Automatic Material Handling Systems (AMHS) projects at different times and in different ways. More specifically, the paper documents current thinking on the use of simulation models to provide feedback to industrial control systems in order to test their logical operation prior to commissioning. The concept of what is meant by emulation in this context is defined, and the differences and similarities between emulation and simulation are detailed. Several emulation case studies are described to illustrate the use of a simulation model in this domain, and an overview of the technical background to emulation is included to aid understanding of how this is achieved. The paper concludes with a discussion of where emulation is most usefully applicable, how current standards have allowed its ready adoption to date, and possible areas of future development.
Performance of Adaptive Transmit Diversity with Orthogonal Space-Time Block Coding in Microcell and Macrocell Channel Environments

Recently an adaptive transmit eigenbeamforming with orthogonal space-time block coding (Eigen-OSTBC) has been proposed. This model was simulated over macrocell environment with a uniform linear array (ULA) at the base station (BS). In this paper we investigate the impact of various antenna geometries on the performance of this scheme as well as the performance over microcell and macrocell channel environments. The geometrical-based hyperbolically distributed scatterers (GB- HDS) channel models were simulated with angular spreads (AS) taken from experimental data. The ULA and the uniform circular array (UCA) are considered at the BS. In the simulation conducted, results have shown that the Eigen-OSTBC system has a higher performance gain than OSTBC systems in macrocell than microcell environment (where the AS gets larger). It is also observed that BS antenna array with different separation distances also affects the performance of both Eigen-OSTBC and OSTBC systems. However, the error-rate performance curves of ULA and UCA configurations are very similar.
Evaluation of West Kent Clinical Commissioning Group Clinical Microsystems Programme for General Practice

This evaluation was commissioned by West Kent Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) who have invested in training senior managers in the role of coach to facilitate implementation of the clinical microsystems programme developed by the Dartmouth Institute, USA (Nelson et al., 2008). The approach shows promise in improving quality within the NHS (Williams, Dickinson, Robinson, & Allen, 2009, p126) and accords with new ways of working identified in the General Practice Forward View (NHS England, 2016). To-date, nearly thirty general practices in West Kent have been involved in the programme carrying out a range of quality improvement programmes (Arnold & Kankam, 2017).