Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Health Professions Students Academic and Personal Motivations for Using Social Media

As 72% of online adults are using social media, it is vital for health professions schools and institutions to understand and adapt to the online needs of health professions students (HPS). This research was designed to examine how HPS are utilizing the Internet and online activity, specifically focusing on social media, and to determine HPS’ motivations for using social media. In 2012, 4,370 health professions students from the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center participated in an institutional review board (IRB) approved online survey. Of those contacted, 187 completed the survey, ranging in age from 20 to 56. Completing the survey was voluntary and anonymous. Applying the uses and gratifications theoretical framework, the authors quantitatively analyzed whether HPS’ motivations for online interaction through social media are academic, personal, or a combination. Analysis revealed HPS were motivated by convenience of information, social entertainment, and professional development. The findings indicated that Facebook was the most commonly used social media outlet both academically and personally. Yet, this study also indicates that HPS have little interest in interacting with clients online for fear of violating patient privacy and liability as the primary deterrents. This study offers insight into HPS’ motivations behind and use of social media. The increased use of online interaction through social media websites is impacting health professions education. Future research needs to compare health professionals’ and students’ use, frequency, and motivations for utilizing social media websites to communicate and interact with patients and the medical community.
Protein targeting to glycogen mRNA expression is stimulated by noradrenaline in mouse cortical astrocytes

Brain glycogen levels are dynamically regulated by certain neurotransmitters, including noradrenaline (NA) and vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP). In particular, glycogen synthesis involves activation by NA and VIP of the transcription factors C/EBPβ and ‐δ as well as the induction of glycogen synthase. Glycogen accumulation is found in a variety of neuropathological conditions, including reactive astrocytosis after CNS lesions, as well as in Alzheimer's disease. Protein targeting to glycogen (PTG) belongs to a family of proteins that play a key role in glycogen synthesis in peripheral tissues. In this study, we report the presence of PTG mRNA in adult mouse brain, as well as in astrocytes, a non‐neuronal cell type that contains most of brain glycogen. Using primary cultures of mouse cortical astrocytes, we observed that NA leads to time‐ and concentration‐dependent induction of PTG mRNA expression. This effect, concomitant to an enhancement of glycogen synthesis in these cells, depends on the activation of β1‐adrenergic receptors. Induction of PTG mRNA expression was mimicked by the adenylate cyclase activator forskolin and by dibutyryl cAMP, suggesting the involvement of the cAMP‐dependent signal transduction cascade. Among other neuroactive substances known to elevate glycogen levels in astrocytes, VIP had a comparable effect to that of noradrenaline, whereas insulin and glutamate were without effect on PTG mRNA expression. These data suggest that increased PTG expression by neurotransmitters such as noradrenaline and VIP could represent a major event leading to enhancement of glycogen levels in astrocytes. GLIA 30:382–391, 2000. © 2000 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
MQTT based home automation system using ESP8266

By the virtue of blooming automation industry and wireless connectivity, all the devices within the home can be connected. This improves the comfort, energy efficiency, indoor security, cost savings of the home. Small and constrained embedded devices are used to remotely monitor the conditions within home and control the home appliances. In such case, power consumption and network bandwidth become a major concern. We need a low power device that transmits messages through a less verbose protocol. Owing to the ubiquitous availability of WiFi, all the appliances within home can be connected through a common gateway. This paper presents an overview of a light weight Message Queuing Telemetry Transport (MQTT) protocol. In the prototype, we attempt to implement MQTT on ESP8266, a WiFi based development board. Sensors and actuators are connected to ESP8266 and a Mosquitto based MQTT broker is established for remote monitoring and control.
Treating acute stress disorder following mild traumatic brain injury.

OBJECTIVE Acute stress disorder permits early identification of trauma survivors who are at risk of developing chronic posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). This study aimed to prevent PTSD in people who developed acute stress disorder after a mild brain injury by early provision of cognitive behavior therapy. METHOD Twenty-four civilian trauma survivors with acute stress disorder were given five individually administered sessions of either cognitive behavior therapy or supportive counseling within 2 weeks of their trauma. RESULTS Fewer patients receiving cognitive behavior therapy than supportive counseling met criteria for PTSD at a posttreatment evaluation (8% versus 58%, respectively). There were also fewer cases of PTSD at a 6-month follow-up evaluation among those receiving cognitive behavior therapy (17%) than among those receiving supportive counseling (58%). Patients in the cognitive behavior therapy condition displayed less reexperiencing and avoidance symptoms at the follow-up evaluation than patients receiving supportive counseling. CONCLUSIONS These findings suggest that PTSD following mild brain injury can be effectively prevented with early provision of cognitive behavior therapy.
Optimization and validation of a robust human T-cell culture method for monitoring phenotypic and polyfunctional antigen-specific CD4 and CD8 T-cell responses.

BACKGROUND AIMS Monitoring cellular immune responses is one prerequisite for the rational development of cancer vaccines. METHODS We describe an extensive effort to optimize and validate quantitatively an in vitro T-cell culture method by determining the phenotype and function of both CD4(+) and CD8(+) T cells, including measurement of the phenotype markers CCR7, CD45RA, CD28 and CD27 and the functional markers interferon (IFN)-gamma, interleukin (IL)-2, macrophage inflammatory protein (MIP)-1beta, tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha and CD107a. RESULTS Autologous peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) were potent stimulators that expanded antigen (Ag)-specific CD8(+) T cells during short-term culture with the addition of IL-2 and IL-15 cytokines. Polyfunctional Ag-specific CD4(+) and CD8(+) T cells were detectable using this method. CONCLUSIONS Our culture system represents a robust human T-cell culture protocol that permits phenotypic, quantitative and qualitative evaluation of vaccine-induced CD4(+) and CD8(+) T-cell responses.
Dlx1 and Dlx2 function is necessary for terminal differentiation and survival of late-born retinal ganglion cells in the developing mouse retina

Dlx homeobox genes, the vertebrate homologs of Distal-less, play important roles in the development of the vertebrate forebrain, craniofacial structures and limbs. Members of the Dlx gene family are also expressed in retinal ganglion cells (RGC), amacrine and horizontal cells of the developing and postnatal retina. Expression begins at embryonic day 12.5 and is maintained until late embryogenesis for Dlx1, while Dlx2 expression extends to adulthood. We have assessed the retinal phenotype of the Dlx1/Dlx2 double knockout mouse, which dies at birth. The Dlx1/2 null retina displays a reduced ganglion cell layer (GCL), with loss of differentiated RGCs due to increased apoptosis, and corresponding thinning of the optic nerve. Ectopic expression of Crx, the cone and rod photoreceptor homeobox gene, in the GCL and neuroblastic layers of the mutants may signify altered cell fate of uncommitted RGC progenitors. However, amacrine and horizontal cell differentiation is relatively unaffected in the Dlx1/2 null retina. Herein, we propose a model whereby early-born RGCs are Dlx1 and Dlx2 independent, but Dlx function is necessary for terminal differentiation of late-born RGC progenitors.
BRAIN LACTATE IS CENTRAL TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF BRAIN EDEMA IN RATS WITH CHRONIC LIVER DISEASE

Background & Aims The pathogenesis of brain edema in patients with chronic liver disease (CLD) and minimal hepatic encephalopathy (HE) remains undefined. This study evaluated the role of brain lactate, glutamine and organic osmolytes, including myo-inositol and taurine, in the development of brain edema in a rat model of cirrhosis. Methods Six-week bile-duct ligated (BDL) rats were injected with 13 C-glucose and de novo synthesis of lactate, and glutamine in the brain was quantified using 13 C nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (NMR). Total brain lactate, glutamine, and osmolytes were measured using 1 H NMR or high performance liquid chromatography. To further define the interplay between lactate, glutamine and brain edema, BDL rats were treated with AST-120 (engineered activated carbon microspheres) and dichloroacetate (DCA: lactate synthesis inhibitor). Results Significant increases in de novo synthesis of lactate (1.6-fold, p <0.001) and glutamine (2.2-fold, p <0.01) were demonstrated in the brains of BDL rats vs. SHAM-operated controls. Moreover, a decrease in cerebral myo-inositol (p <0.001), with no change in taurine, was found in the presence of brain edema in BDL rats vs. controls. BDL rats treated with either AST-120 or DCA showed attenuation in brain edema and brain lactate. These two treatments did not lead to similar reductions in brain glutamine. Conclusions Increased brain lactate, and not glutamine, is a primary player in the pathogenesis of brain edema in CLD. In addition, alterations in the osmoregulatory response may also be contributing factors. Our results suggest that inhibiting lactate synthesis is a new potential target for the treatment of HE.
The Impact of Real Options on Corporate Cash Holdings

We posit that firms with valuable real options have higher demand for liquid assets, particularly cash. Higher cash holdings enable firms to optimally exercise their options without reliance on capital markets, which could reveal the firm’s strategic decisions to its competitors. We propose a simple procedure for separating firms with valuable real options from other firms. Our procedure assumes that, all else being equal, real options are more valuable when the underlying volatility is high and when managers possess significant flexibility to optimally exercise these options. We propose alternative measures of underlying risk and managerial flexibility. Using a large sample from the Compustat data, we categorize firms as having high (low) volatility and high (low) managerial flexibility. We then study the determinants of demand for cash holdings for each group of firms. We find that firms with valuable real options (high volatility and high managerial flexibility) hold significantly higher cash levels. Moreover, we find that factors that derive demand for liquidity are very different across the two types of firms. Our finding brings new insights to the literature on demand for corporate cash holdings.
CONVERSION OF THE MODIFIED KOVÁCS MODEL PARAMETERS TO THE BROOKS & COREY AND VAN GENUCHTEN MODEL PARAMETERS FOR GRANULAR SOILS

The modified Kovacs (MK) model can be considered as one of the most versatile predictive models available to estimate the unsaturated hydraulic functions. The MK model relies on basic geotechnical properties to obtain the water retention curve (WRC), which can then be used to define the relative permeability function. In addition, the model can also take into consideration hysteresis effects and volume changes. However, the MK model has not yet been introduced in many codes, as most numerical applications needing a mathematical equation to represent the WRC of soils use the Brooks & Corey (BC) (1964) and/or the van Genuchten (vG) (1980) models. To allow for a wider application of the MK model, the authors propose in this paper a direct conversion of MK model parameters to the BC and vG parameters for granular soils taken from the Grizzly soil data base (Haverkamp et al. 1998). The proposed equations were developed using data from 15 granular soils. Results show that BC and vG parameters can be deduced adequately from MK model
FINITE SUBNORMAL COVERINGS OF CERTAIN SOLVABLE GROUPS

A group is said to have a finite covering by subgroups if it is the set theoretic union of finitely many subgroups. A theorem of B. H. Neumann [11] characterizes groups with finite coverings by proper subgroups as precisely those groups with finite non-cyclic homomorphic images. R. Baer (see [13, Theorem 4.16]) proved that a group has a finite covering by abelian subgroups if and only if it is central-by-finite. Refinements of the above two results were given in [1] where finite coverings by normal subgroups were investigated. Specifically, the following theorems were established:
Towards Question Improvement on Knowledge Sharing Platforms: A Stack Overflow Case Study

Community-driven Knowledge Sharing (KS) platforms have gained immense popularity in recent years among the Internet users to seek, learn measured as the reputation on platforms. Thus, peers on the platform dissuade other users to post low quality content by closing, disliking or not answering their questions. The aggressive attitude of the community leads to a negative impact on the users' experience (especially for newbies) and the users tend to lose interest in the platform. Since the quality management on KS platforms is a necessity, we aim to emphasize the need of a mechanism to help users in improving their questions. To study this, we perform experiments on the Stack Overflow (SO) platform, however, the study can be adapted for other KS platforms.The SO community aggressively mark questions, even with slightest deformity, as closed. The non-triviality of reopening process and the rigorous review mechanism can be handled only by proper editing of the closed questions. Thus we present first-of-a-kind study, to assist the SO platform users, in the reopening process of their closed questions. We build predictive models to suggest the users that if their edited version of closed question will lead to a successful reopen or not. This can assist users at large by retracting them from entering the review process with improper edits. To learn these models effectively, we consider the user categories on the platform, based on their reputation: established & non-established. In addition to being the major contributor to closed questions, the non-established users have lower odds of getting their closed questions reopened than established users. Thus, we leverage the better editing skills of established users to learn question edit models by employing their reopened closed questions. We present the results of predictive model and suggest insights on the useful edits in the reopening process on the SO platform.
Emergence of Locomotion Behaviours in Rich Environments

The reinforcement learning paradigm allows, in principle, for complex behaviours to be learned directly from simple reward signals. In practice, however, it is common to carefully hand-design the reward function to encourage a particular solution, or to derive it from demonstration data. In this paper explore how a rich environment can help to promote the learning of complex behavior. Specifically, we train agents in diverse environmental contexts, and find that this encourages the emergence of robust behaviours that perform well across a suite of tasks. We demonstrate this principle for locomotion -- behaviours that are known for their sensitivity to the choice of reward. We train several simulated bodies on a diverse set of challenging terrains and obstacles, using a simple reward function based on forward progress. Using a novel scalable variant of policy gradient reinforcement learning, our agents learn to run, jump, crouch and turn as required by the environment without explicit reward-based guidance. A visual depiction of highlights of the learned behavior can be viewed following this https URL .
Effects of chronic exposure to hexavalent chromium in water on oxidative stress parameters in Wistar rats

Hexavalent chromium [Cr (VI)] is a metal utilized in different industries and consequently disposed in the environment. It is a toxic substance and its reduction to trivalent Cr [Cr (III)] generates intermediates, which are responsible for the oxidation of molecules, and cause the oxidative stress. Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate if Cr (VI) could induce oxidative stress in Wistar rats. In this study, Wistar rats were chronically exposed to 25 and 50 ppm of potassium dichromate in drinking water for 30 days. The levels of Cr were evaluated in the blood and tissues (liver, kidneys, and lungs). Oxidative stress was determined in the liver, kidneys, and lungs and was evaluated by DFCH, TBA-RS and carbonyl test. Antioxidant enzymes were evaluated through catalase (CAT), superoxide dismutase (SOD) and glutathione peroxidase (GPx) activities. Regarding the results, Cr concentration was significantly elevated in all tissues, however, it was lower in the lungs. In relation to the oxidative stress parameters, there was a significant increase of DCFH levels in the kidneys and carbonyls in liver and kidneys. Regarding the antioxidant enzymes, SOD was decreased in all organs and GPx was diminished in the kidneys. These data indicated that Cr (VI) could induce oxidative stress in the kidneys and liver due to an imbalance between oxidative and antioxidant parameters. The lungs were little affected, possibly by the lowest chromium accumulation.
Anorexia nervosa and family relationships : Perceived family functioning , coping strategies , beliefs , and attachment to parents and peers 1

This ex post facto study explored the differences in perceived family characteristics between a group of 34 female patients with anorexia nervosa and 34 females without eating pathology. All participants filled out the following self-report scales: FACES II, F-COPES, IPPA and the Family Beliefs Questionnaire. The results showed that, in contrast with participants without pathology, patients perceived their families as less cohesive and less capable of redefining stressful events in order to make them more manageable. However, they perceived their families as being more able to acquire and accept help, and presented more family beliefs related to a sense of an individual responsibility/ self-blaming. In addition, patients seemed to trust less their mothers and peers and to communicate less with their peers, and to show more detachment to mothers, fathers, and peers. Of all studied variables, detachment from friends and mother, as well as perceived higher family capacity to seek out community resources and accept help were the most important variables to the discrimination between groups.
CREB SUMOylation by the E3 Ligase PIAS1 Enhances Spatial Memory

cAMP-responsive element binding protein (CREB) phosphorylation and signaling plays an important role in long-term memory formation, but other posttranslational modifications of CREB are less known. Here, we found that CREB1Δ, the short isoform of CREB, could be sumoylated by the small ubiquitin-like modifier (SUMO) E3 ligase protein inhibitor of activated STAT1 (PIAS1) at Lys271 and Lys290 and PIAS1 SUMOylation of CREB1Δ increased the expression level of CREB1Δ. CREB1Δ could also be sumoylated by other PIAS family proteins, but not by the E3 ligases RanBP2 and Pc2 or by the E2 ligase Ubc9. Furthermore, water maze training increased the level of endogenous CREB SUMOylation in rat CA1 neurons determined by in vitro SUMOylation assay, but this effect was not observed in other brain areas. Moreover, transduction of Lenti-CREBWT to rat CA1 area facilitated, whereas transduction of Lenti-CREB double sumo-mutant (CREBK271RK290R) impaired, spatial learning and memory performance. Transduction of Lenti-CREBWT-SUMO1 fusion vector to rat CA1 area showed a more significant effect in enhancing spatial learning and memory and CREB SUMOylation. Lenti-CREBWT transduction increased, whereas Lenti-CREBK271RK290R transduction decreased, CREB DNA binding to the brain-derived neurotrophic factor (bdnf) promoter and decreased bdnf mRNA expression. Knock-down of PIAS1 expression in CA1 area by PIAS1 siRNA transfection impaired spatial learning and memory and decreased endogenous CREB SUMOylation. In addition, CREB SUMOylation was CREB phosphorylation dependent and lasted longer. Therefore, CREB phosphorylation may be responsible for signal transduction during the early phase of long-term memory formation, whereas CREB SUMOylation sustains long-term memory.
Practical suggestions on how to differentiate dementia with Lewy bodies from Alzheimer's disease with common cognitive tests

Dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB) is the second most common neurodegenerative dementia, but it is often underdiagnosed and mistaken for Alzheimer's disease (AD) with sometimes lethal consequences. Over 35 studies have established the differences between DLB and AD in neuropsychological tests, but none have provided easy interpretations of common tests suitable for the clinician. The aim of this study was to suggest practical interpretations of the Mini‐Mental State Examination (MMSE), clock drawing, and cube‐copying to identify DLB and differentiate it from AD.
Internet usage and cosmopolitanism in Europe: a multilevel analysis

ABSTRACT Despite the transnational interconnected nature of the internet, cross-national comparisons in internet usage and their effects are still relatively scarce. Moreover, one of the core intrinsic properties that internet theorists have distinguished, the ability to increase democracy and ‘global understanding’ through its connectivity, has hardly been empirically studied. This paper examines how internet usage affects individuals’ openness to other cultures: cosmopolitanism. I analyze two manifestations of such openness: first, the cosmopolitan orientation toward other cultures in the broad sense; second, the interest in foreign cultural expressions. Using Eurobarometer data on 29 European countries, the results show that interactive internet practices are positively associated with openness to foreign culture. Buying culture online is positively related to interest in concrete expressions, but negatively to cosmopolitan orientation. Importantly, individual effects on cosmopolitan orientation are often moderated by the country people live in, whereas effects on interest in foreign expressions are more stable across Europe.