Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Amygdala Represents Diverse Forms of Intangible Knowledge, That Illuminate Social Processing and Major Clinical Disorders

Amygdala is an intensively researched brain structure involved in social processing and multiple major clinical disorders, but its functions are not well understood. The functions of a brain structure are best hypothesized on the basis of neuroanatomical connectivity findings, and of behavioral, neuroimaging, neuropsychological and physiological findings. Among the heaviest neuroanatomical interconnections of amygdala are those with perirhinal cortex (PRC), but these are little considered in the theoretical literature. PRC integrates complex, multimodal, meaningful and fine-grained distributed representations of objects and conspecifics. Consistent with this connectivity, amygdala is hypothesized to contribute meaningful and fine-grained representations of intangible knowledge for integration by PRC. Behavioral, neuroimaging, neuropsychological and physiological findings further support amygdala mediation of a diversity of such representations. These representations include subjective valence, impact, economic value, noxiousness, importance, ingroup membership, social status, popularity, trustworthiness and moral features. Further, the formation of amygdala representations is little understood, and is proposed to be often implemented through embodied cognition mechanisms. The hypothesis builds on earlier work, and makes multiple novel contributions to the literature. It highlights intangible knowledge, which is an influential but insufficiently researched factor in social and other behaviors. It contributes to understanding the heavy but neglected amygdala-PRC interconnections, and the diversity of amygdala-mediated intangible knowledge representations. Amygdala is a social brain region, but it does not represent species-typical social behaviors. A novel proposal to clarify its role is postulated. The hypothesis is also suggested to illuminate amygdala’s involvement in several core symptoms of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Specifically, novel and testable explanations are proposed for the ASD symptoms of disorganized visual scanpaths, apparent social disinterest, preference for concrete cognition, aspects of the disorder’s heterogeneity, and impairment in some activities of daily living. Together, the presented hypothesis demonstrates substantial explanatory potential in the neuroscience, social and clinical domains.
The Epigenetic Factor Landscape of Developing Neocortex Is Regulated by Transcription Factors Pax6→ Tbr2→ Tbr1

Epigenetic factors (EFs) regulate multiple aspects of cerebral cortex development, including proliferation, differentiation, laminar fate, and regional identity. The same neurodevelopmental processes are also regulated by transcription factors (TFs), notably the Pax6→ Tbr2→ Tbr1 cascade expressed sequentially in radial glial progenitors (RGPs), intermediate progenitors, and postmitotic projection neurons, respectively. Here, we studied the EF landscape and its regulation in embryonic mouse neocortex. Microarray and in situ hybridization assays revealed that many EF genes are expressed in specific cortical cell types, such as intermediate progenitors, or in rostrocaudal gradients. Furthermore, many EF genes are directly bound and transcriptionally regulated by Pax6, Tbr2, or Tbr1, as determined by chromatin immunoprecipitation-sequencing and gene expression analysis of TF mutant cortices. Our analysis demonstrated that Pax6, Tbr2, and Tbr1 form a direct feedforward genetic cascade, with direct feedback repression. Results also revealed that each TF regulates multiple EF genes that control DNA methylation, histone marks, chromatin remodeling, and non-coding RNA. For example, Tbr1 activates Rybp and Auts2 to promote the formation of non-canonical Polycomb repressive complex 1 (PRC1). Also, Pax6, Tbr2, and Tbr1 collectively drive massive changes in the subunit isoform composition of BAF chromatin remodeling complexes during differentiation: for example, a novel switch from Bcl7c (Baf40c) to Bcl7a (Baf40a), the latter directly activated by Tbr2. Of 11 subunits predominantly in neuronal BAF, 7 were transcriptionally activated by Pax6, Tbr2, or Tbr1. Using EFs, Pax6→ Tbr2→ Tbr1 effect persistent changes of gene expression in cell lineages, to propagate features such as regional and laminar identity from progenitors to neurons.
Self-supervised learning of a facial attribute embedding from video

We propose a self-supervised framework for learning facial attributes by simply watching videos of a human face speaking, laughing, and moving over time. To perform this task, we introduce a network, Facial Attributes-Net (FAb-Net), that is trained to embed multiple frames from the same video face-track into a common low-dimensional space. With this approach, we make three contributions: first, we show that the network can leverage information from multiple source frames by predicting confidence/attention masks for each frame; second, we demonstrate that using a curriculum learning regime improves the learned embedding; finally, we demonstrate that the network learns a meaningful face embedding that encodes information about head pose, facial landmarks and facial expression, i.e. facial attributes, without having been supervised with any labelled data. We are comparable or superior to state-of-the-art self-supervised methods on these tasks and approach the performance of supervised methods.
Circumvention of Pedestrians While Walking in Virtual and Physical Environments

Virtual environments (VEs) are increasingly used in the context of scientific inquiries and rehabilitation for tasks that are otherwise difficult to control or perform safely in physical environments (PEs), such as avoiding other pedestrians during locomotion. The usefulness of VEs, however, remains constrained by the extent to which they can elicit natural responses. The objectives of the study were to examine circumvention strategies in response to pedestrians approaching from different directions in the VE versus PE and to determine the effects of repeated practice on the circumvention strategies. Twelve participants were assessed over five blocks of eight trials that consisted of walking toward a target while circumventing pedestrians approaching from different directions (0°, ± 30° right or left or none) in the VE and the PE. Similar onset distances of circumvention strategy and preferred side of circumvention were observed between the two environments. Participants, however, maintained enlarged minimum distances from the interferer (13%) and walked slower (11.5%) in the VE. Repeated practice resulted in walking speed increments of 7.4% over the entire session that were similar in the VE versus PE. While the changes observed in VE may reflect the use of more cautious circumvention strategies, the similarities in strategies between the two environments and the advantages of VEs (e.g., controlled exposure, reproduction of ecologically valid conditions, and safety) suggest that virtual reality is a valuable tool to study visually guided locomotor tasks, such as pedestrian circumvention, and shows great potential for assessment and intervention in physical rehabilitation.
Test Command Auto-Wait Mechanisms for Record and Playback-Style Web Application Testing

Test case recording and playback technology, normally implemented as a test case recorder, has been widely applied in the industry. One of the key research topics is how to determine if a web page has entered a ready state before the recorder can perform the next test command? If a web element is incorrectly selected during playback, the related test command will fail to process. This research puts forward four kinds of automatic waiting mechanism for playing test commands. The experiment result shows that the waiting time can be determined dynamically and automatically, so that testers do not have to manually add waiting commands thereby reducing the time and error of artificial discrimination. The proposed mechanisms were implemented as parts of the SideeX open source web testing software and have been further adopted by the new Selenium IDE and Katalon Recorder. Currently, over 60,000 web testers around the world run the mechanisms.
Epidemiology of and Risk Factors for BK Polyomavirus Replication and Nephropathy in Pediatric Renal Transplant Recipients: An International CERTAIN Registry Study.

BACKGROUND BK polyomavirus-associated nephropathy (BKPyVAN) constitutes a serious cause of kidney allograft failure, but large-scale data in pediatric renal transplant recipients and a comprehensive analysis of specific risk factors are lacking. METHODS We analyzed data of 313 patients in the Cooperative European Paediatric Renal Transplant Initiative (CERTAIN) registry, with an observation period of 3.3 years (range, 1 - 5). The net state of immunosuppressive therapy was assessed by the modified Vasudev score. RESULTS Presumptive BKPyVAN (defined as sustained (>3 weeks) high-level BK viremia >10 copies/mL) within 5 years posttransplant occurred in 49/311 (15.8%) of patients, and biopsy-proven BKPyVAN in 14/313 (4.5%). BKPyV viremia was observed in 115/311 patients (36.7%), of whom 11 of 115 (9.6%) developed viremia late, ie, after the second year posttransplant. In 6/48 patients (12.5%) with high-level viremia and in 3/14 (21.4%) with BKPyVAN this respective event occurred late. According to multivariable analysis, BKPyV viremia and/or BKPyVAN were associated with a higher net state of immunosuppression (OR 1.3, p<0.01) and with tacrolimus- vs. ciclosporin-based immunosuppression (OR 3.6, p<0.01), but also with younger recipient age (OR 1.1 per year younger, p<0.001) and obstructive uropathy (OR 12.4, p<0.01) as primary renal disease. CONCLUSIONS Uncontrolled BKPyV replication affects a significant proportion of pediatric renal transplant recipients, and is associated with unique features of epidemiology and risk factors such as young recipient age, obstructive uropathy and overall intensity of immunosuppressive therapy. BKPyV surveillance should be considered beyond 2 years posttransplant in pediatric patients at higher risk.
Musculoskeletal problems among string instrumentalists in South Africa

Background Musicians who play string instruments are affected more by musculoskeletal injuries when compared to other instrument playing groups. Musculoskeletal problems are commonly found in the upper extremities and trunk. Several risk factors such as gender, practice hours and instrument played are associated with the prevalence and distribution of musculoskeletal problems among string instrumentalists. Objectives The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence, distribution, severity and risk factors for musculoskeletal problems among string instrumentalists. Method A cross-sectional study design using both online and paper-based questionnaires were used to collect data from string instrumentalists playing in both amateur and professional orchestras in South Africa. Results A total of 114 string instrumentalists participated in the study, of which 86 (77%) reported problems in one or more anatomic regions while 39 (35%) were currently experiencing musculoskeletal problems that affected their performance. The trunk and both shoulders were the most commonly affected body regions. The majority of the participants reported the severity of the complaints as mild to moderate with aching, soreness, tingling and fatigue being the most commonly used descriptors of the symptoms of playing-related musculoskeletal problems. Conclusion The results of this study showed that the prevalence of musculoskeletal problems that affect performance is high among string instrumentalists in South Africa. An evaluation of associated risk factors with the aim of reducing injuries may be important in improving performance.
A Mobile App (iBeni) With a Neuropsychological Basis for Cognitive Stimulation for Elderly Adults: Pilot and Validation Study

Background Cognitive impairment is considered one of the most feared chronic conditions among the older adult population since its incidence is approximately twice more frequent than that of dementia. In Mexico, no studies or reports of older adults using technology for cognitive interventions have been published, given that institutions usually frame cognitive stimulation tasks in paper and pencil (ie, in the traditional manner). Objective The objective of this study was to create and analyze the effect, viability, and impact of a mobile app for cognitive stimulation implemented among a group of elderly adults (over 60 years of age) from the state of Hidalgo in Mexico. Methods This study was a nonprobabilistic pilot trial using convenience sampling. An intervention was implemented among a group of 22 older adults between 60 and 80 years of age over 12 weeks. Half of the older adults were stimulated with the mobile app (experimental group) and the other half followed the traditional paper and pencil training (control group). Assessments with the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) and the Neuropsi, a neuropsychological test validated in Mexico, were done before and after both cognitive stimulations. Results According to the analyzed data, 6/11 (55%) participants from the experimental group obtained better results in their cognitive skills, and 5 (45%) of the adults maintained their score, given that the participants were able to execute the exercises repetitively. Meanwhile, for the control group, only 3/11 (27%) participants obtained better results in the postevaluation. Significant values for results of the MMSE were obtained in the postevaluation for the experimental group compared to the control group, while results did not show significant differences in the Neuropsi. Regarding the validation of the app, all the participants evaluated its pertinence positively. Conclusions The intervention data show that the experimental group obtained better results in the postevaluation given that the participants were able to execute the exercises repetitively. The control group could not accomplish this since they had to respond on the manual and no further attempts were provided. However, both groups increased their score in the neuropsychological evaluations. This suggests that a longer and more frequent intervention is required. Registered Report Identifier RR1-10.2196/9603
Genetic expression of pobA and fabHB in Bacillus licheniformis M2-7 in the presence of benzo[a]pyrene

Bacillus licheniformis M2-7 is a heat-resistant bacterium able to biotransform polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. It can transform a wide range of these compounds as naphthalene, phenanthrene, pyrene and benzo[a]pyrene. Benzo[a]pyrene is a polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon of high molecular weight considered as potentially toxic and carcinogenic for humans. Aiming to discover the genes involved in the biotransformation of benzo[a]pyrene, we made a B. licheniformis M2-7 genomic library in E. coli. We isolated two E. coli strains that were able to grow in minimal salt medium supplemented with benzo[a]pyrene. From the analysis of the DNA fragments in the clones H23 and H38, we identified open reading frames coding for 5 possible genes, among them pobA and fabHB, which products are the enzymes 4-hydroxybenzoate 3-monooxygenase and the ketoacyl-ACP synthase III, respectively. To evaluate the role of these genes in the metabolism of benzo[a]pyrene in B. licheniformis M2-7, we estimated their relative expression through reverse transcription quantitative PCR. Finally, we observed that the genes pobA and fabHB were overexpressed after 3 h under induction with benzo[a]pyrene, suggesting that this strain could use these genes during the metabolism of this PAH, plus it does it in a faster time than that reported for other bacterial genera
EFFECTS OF BIOCHAR APPLICATION TO SOILS ON SEEDLING GROWTH OF WHEAT

Biochar is a carbon-rich byproduct that arises from pyrolyzing organic compounds under high temperature and oxygen starved conditions. It has been shown that biochar improves the physical and chemical soil quality, enhances nutrient availability and reduces the acidity. In this work, we examined the effect of biochar on seed germination and seedling growth of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) under different soil conditions. The study was carried out as pot experiments using infertile and fertile type of soils with or without biochar applications. Germination percentage, shoot length, shoot fresh weight and shoot dry weight of wheat were measured at the end of the experiment. In both soil types, no significant difference in germination percentage was found between treatments. Shoot growth parameters were increased significantly after low and medium dose of biochar application in infertile soil. On the other hand, biochar had not positive or negative effect on these parameters in fertile soil.
UNIQ

We present a novel method for neural network quantization. Our method, named UNIQ, emulates a non-uniform k-quantile quantizer and adapts the model to perform well with quantized weights by injecting noise to the weights at training time. As a by-product of injecting noise to weights, we find that activations can also be quantized to as low as 8-bit with only a minor accuracy degradation. Our non-uniform quantization approach provides a novel alternative to the existing uniform quantization techniques for neural networks. We further propose a novel complexity metric of number of bit operations performed (BOPs), and we show that this metric has a linear relation with logic utilization and power. We suggest evaluating the trade-off of accuracy vs. complexity (BOPs). The proposed method, when evaluated on ResNet18/34/50 and MobileNet on ImageNet, outperforms the prior state of the art both in the low-complexity regime and the high accuracy regime. We demonstrate the practical applicability of this approach, by implementing our non-uniformly quantized CNN on FPGA.
Differentiation of Cotton from Other Crops at Different Growth Stages Using Spectral Properties and Discriminant Analysis

The spectral reflectance properties of cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.), corn (Zea mays L.), soybean [Glycine max (L.)], and sorghum [Sorghum bicolor (L.)] crops during their different growth stages were examined, and spectral data were used to distinguish cotton from other crops. Two field blocks with two different soil types, Belk clay (BaA) and Ships clay (ShA), were set up with cotton, corn, soybean, and sorghum in each block and grown using conventional production practices for the area. Spectral information was collected from all crops at different growth stages from May to July 2009. Reflectance spectra and the first derivative of the spectra were analyzed to characterize the spectral properties of crop types and compare the crops grown in different soil types. The red-edge points of cotton, soybean, and sorghum shifted with the growth stage. Principal component analyses were successful in reducing the dimensionality of the hyperspectral data and identifying significant features from the original data. Most significant wavelengths selected were in the 548-556 nm, 679-682 nm, 756-764 nm, and 928-940 nm regions of the spectrum. Discriminant analysis was able to differentiate cotton from other crop types at four critical growth stages with 100% accuracy of classification for all four observation dates.
The Triadic Componential Framework for Task Classification and the Cognition Hypothesis

The Cognition Hypothesis proposed by Peter Robinson (2001a, 2003, 2005, 2007a) has stimulated considerable research over the last 12 years. This paper briefly reviews the research on task complexity, an area where the majority of task-based language teaching (TBLT) studies have aggregated—specifically, where the connection between the task complexity, task types, and task condition was a focus. Although the research data to date were not in full consensus, the results showed a number of valuable and testable insights: (a) there is an effect of task complexity on L2 performance; (b) there is an effect of task types on L2 performance; (c) there is an effect of task complexity on L2 development; (d) there is an effect of task condition on L2 performance; and (e) there is an effect of the interaction between task complexity and task condition on L2 performance. The existing research has offered not only some important insights that future research should seek to build on (e.g., the fact that manipulating task complexity, task types, and task condition has an influence on language learning), but also has provided some pedagogical implications to actual teaching practice (e.g., having language teachers design and implement tasks with varying complexity levels is best for encouraging fluency and accuracy).
SPATIO-TEMPORAL ASSESSMENT OF LAND USE/ LAND COVER DYNAMICS AND URBAN HEAT ISLAND OF JAIPUR CITY USING SATELLITE DATA

Abstract. Urban Heat Island (UHI) refers to the phenomena of higher surface temperature occurring in urban areas as compared to the surrounding countryside attributable to urbanization. Spatio-temporal changes in UHI can be quantified through Land Surface Temperature (LST) derived from satellite imageries. Spatial variations in LST occur due to complexity of land surface – combination of impervious surface materials, vegetation, exposed soils as well as water surfaces. Jaipur city has observed rapid urbanization over the last decade. Due to rising population pressure the city has expanded considerably in areal extent and has also observed substantial land use/land cover (LULC) changes. The paper aims to determine changes in the LST and UHI phenomena for Jaipur city over the period from 2000 to 2011 and analyzes the spatial distribution and temporal variation of LST in context of changes in LULC. Landsat 7 ETM+ (2000) and Landsat 5 TM (2011) images of summer season have been used. Results reveal that Jaipur city has witnessed considerable growth in built up area at the cost of greener patches over the last decade, which has had clear impact on variation in LST. There has been an average rise of 2.99 °C in overall summer temperature. New suburbs of the city record 2° to 4 °C increase in LST. LST change is inversely related to change in vegetation cover and positively related to extent of built up area. The study concludes that UHI of Jaipur city has intensified and extended over new areas.