Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Inter-hemispheric recruitment as a function of task complexity, age and cognitive reserve

ABSTRACT In a behavioral divided visual field study, we investigated the efficiency of inter-hemispheric cooperation according to (1) task computational complexity (physical-identity versus name-identity letter matching), (2) age (younger versus older adults) and (3) educational attainment, used as a proxy for cognitive reserve. Overall, the results indicated a shift from within- to across-hemisphere processing advantage with increasing task complexity, suggesting that bilateral engagement leads to enhanced performance under high-demand conditions. This pattern was influenced by age, with older adults showing no within-hemisphere advantage in the simpler task and a greater across-hemisphere advantage in the more complex one, consistent with an age-compensatory view of inter-hemispheric recruitment. Moreover, for older adults, more years of education was associated with a weaker across-hemisphere advantage. Thus, we propose that cognitive reserve may account for bilateral engagement efficiency. Finally, the groups differed in terms of laterality effects, with only younger adults demonstrating a left visual field advantage in the name-identity task, lending some support to the right hemi-aging hypothesis.
Emerging strategies and flexible forms of governance: The dynamics of role exchange in local value chains

The phasing out of the Multi-Fibre Agreement in 2005 triggered a global reorganization and relocation of the textile and garment industry. There is a rich literature on how global buyers with headquarters located in developed countries have played a dominant role in this reorganization process. The literature is less clear on how local firms have reacted or which new industrial structures are emerging in middle-income countries in response to these developments. This article examines how the textile and garment industry in Brazil is adapting to this new competitive environment. We show how large and small producers have transformed their relationships and created dynamic exchanges of roles in response to international competition, and how these new dynamic relationships are influencing the fast creation and fast destruction of value in fashion.
Fetal beat detection in abdominal ECG recordings: global and time adaptive approaches

We present a method for location of fetal QRS in maternal abdominal ECG recordings. This method’s initial, global approach was proposed in the context of the 2013 PhysioNet/Computing in Cardiology Challenge where it was tested on the 447 four channel one-minute recordings. The first step is filtering to eliminate baseline wander and high frequency noise. Upon detection, maternal QRS is removed on each channel using a filter applied to the other three channels. Next we locate fetal QRS on each channel and select the channel with the best set of detections. The method was awarded the third-best score in the Challenge event 1 with 278.755 (beats/minute) and the fourth-best score on event 2 with 28.201 ms. The 5 min long recordings of the Abdominal and Direct Fetal ECG Database were used to further test the method. This database contains five recordings obtained from women in labor. Results in these longer recordings were not satisfactory. This appears to be particularly the case in recordings with a more clearly non-stationary nature. In a new approach to our method, some changes are introduced. Two features are updated over time: the filter used to eliminate maternal QRS and the channel used to detect fetal beats. These changes significantly improved the QRS detection performance on longer recordings, but the scores on the 1 minute Challenge recordings were degraded.
Cardiovascular Disease and Air Pollutants: Evaluating and Improving Epidemiological Data Implicating Traffic Exposure

Evidence suggests that traffic-related pollutants play a role in the observed associations between air pollution and adverse cardiovascular health effects. The contribution of traffic to individual exposures is difficult to quantify in traditional epidemiological studies, however, and researchers have employed various approaches in attempt to isolate its effects. Many investigators have employed ambient measurements such as nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide, or black carbon as surrogates for traffic in studying associations with health outcomes. Source-apportionment techniques also have been used in a few studies to identify associations with the mixture of pollutants from specific origins, including traffic. In other studies, estimates of traffic near a person's home have predicted cardiovascular endpoints, and local traffic levels have modified the effect of regional air pollution. More recently, studies have linked changes in cardiovascular health to time spent in traffic. In this article, we review the epidemiological evidence regarding the impact of traffic-related pollution on cardiovascular diseases and examine the different techniques used to examine this important research question. We conclude with a discussion of the future directions being used in ongoing epidemiological studies to identify the cardiovascular health impacts of traffic.
High True Ileal Digestibility but Not Postprandial Utilization of Nitrogen from Bovine Meat Protein in Humans Is Moderately Decreased by High-Temperature, Long-Duration Cooking.

BACKGROUND Meat protein digestibility can be impaired because of indigestible protein aggregates that form during cooking. When the aggregates are subsequently fermented by the microbiota, they can generate potentially harmful compounds for the colonic mucosa. OBJECTIVE This study evaluated the quantity of bovine meat protein escaping digestion in the human small intestine and the metabolic fate of exogenous nitrogen, depending on cooking processes. METHODS Sixteen volunteers (5 women and 11 men; aged 28 ± 8 y) were equipped with a double lumen intestinal tube positioned at the ileal level. They received a test meal exclusively composed of 120 g of intrinsically (15)N-labeled bovine meat, cooked either at 55°C for 5 min (n = 8) or at 90°C for 30 min (n = 8). Ileal effluents and blood and urine samples were collected over an 8-h period after the meal ingestion, and (15)N enrichments were measured to assess the digestibility of meat proteins and the transfer of dietary nitrogen into the metabolic pools. RESULTS Proteins tended to be less digestible for the meat cooked at 90°C for 30 min than at 55°C for 5 min (90.1% ± 2.1% vs. 94.1% ± 0.7% of ingested N; P = 0.08). However, the particle number and size in ileal digesta did not differ between groups. The appearance of variable amounts of intact fibers was observed by microscopy. The kinetics of (15)N appearance in plasma proteins, amino acids, and urea were similar between groups. The amount of exogenous nitrogen lost through deamination did not differ between groups (21.2% ± 0.8% of ingested N). CONCLUSIONS Cooking bovine meat at a high temperature for a long time can moderately decrease protein digestibility compared with cooking at a lower temperature for a short time and does not affect postprandial exogenous protein metabolism in young adults. The study was registered at www.clinicaltrials. gov as NCT01685307.
Correlation and Path-coefficient Studies in Tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.)

The present investigation was conducted at Department of Plant Breeding and Genetics, Horticulture farm, Indira Gandhi Krishi Vishwavidyalaya, Raipur (C.G.) during Rabi 2008-09. The experimental material comprised of nineteen genotypes alongwith two checks of tomato and the experiment was laid out in Randomized block design with three replications. Correlation and path analysis revealed that fruit weight influenced the fruit yield per plant with high direct effect and significant positive correlation therefore, fruit weight as an important character which may be included in selection criterion for improvement in fruit yield per plant.
Prevalence of various comorbidities among veterans with chronic kidney disease and its comparison with other datasets

Abstract Chronic kidney disease (CKD) has a complicated interrelationship with various comorbidities. The purpose of this study was to describe the prevalence of various comorbidities among veterans with CKD and compare it with other datasets like Kidney Early Evaluation Program (KEEP), National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) and Medicare. Patients who had at least one outpatient visit in year 2007 (1 January 2007 to 31 December 2007) were included in the study (n = 75,787). Glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) was estimated by the Modification of Diet in Renal Disease (MDRD) study equation. CKD prevalence was calculated based on one or two serum creatinine values at least 3 months apart. Demographic data were obtained including age, gender, race, weight, height and body mass index (BMI). The prevalence of various comorbidities was also collected based on ICD 9 codes from the problem list. The prevalence of CKD among veterans was 47.3%, much higher than estimated in the US population. Patients with CKD were more likely to have any vascular disease (36.89% vs. 14.87%), diabetes (34.18% vs. 17.83%), hypertension (86.65% vs. 57.56%), and cancer (18.69% vs. 9.23%). Irrespective of age, the prevalence of vascular disease was much higher among veterans with CKD. The prevalence of coronary artery disease, peripheral vascular disease, and cancer was much higher among elderly veterans with CKD as compared to other datasets. CKD is a growing endemic associated with a high frequency of concomitant chronic illnesses. Public health resources should be applied for early recognition and risk modification of CKD.
Role of gamma interferon in the pathogenesis of bacteremic pneumococcal pneumonia

Gamma interferon (IFN-gamma) concentrations in blood, but not in lungs, rose significantly at 24 to 48 h after murine pulmonary infection with virulent pneumococci. In contrast, infection with avirulent pneumococcal strains produced minimal rises in serum IFN-gamma concentrations. Compared with that of immunocompetent mice, mortality was appreciably increased after pulmonary infection of IFN-gamma gene knockout mice, suggesting a protective role for IFN-gamma in host response to pneumococcal disease.
Diversity in geoscience: Participation, behaviour, and the division of scientific labour at a Canadian geoscience conference

Effective policies promoting diversity in geoscience require understanding of how the values and practices of the community support the inclusion of different social groups. As sites of knowledge exchange and professional development, academic conferences are important culturing institutions that can alleviate or reproduce barriers to diversity in geoscience. This study examines diversity at a 2017 geoscience conference, the joint Canadian Geophysical Union and Canadian Society of Agricultural and Forest Meteorology annual meeting, through observation of participation, presentation content, and behaviour in conference sessions. Across 256 observed presentations, women constituted 28% of speakers, whereas women of colour made up only 5%. Participation rates differed between disciplinary sections, with the most populous sessions (Hydrology and Earth Surface) having the lowest percentage of women. Examination of presentation content reveals that the methods and scholarly contributions of both women and people of colour differed from the majority, suggesting an intellectual division of labour in geoscience. Examination of audience behaviours between presenters reveals how a “chilly climate” can be experienced by women and other marginalized demographics in conferences. We argue that there is more to be done than simply increasing numbers of women or other minorities in geoscientific spaces, and we suggest pathways to making geoscience a more inclusive and democratic pursuit.
Mental health and Islamic religion online: An intertextual analysis

In this article, the discursive construction of mental health and the role religion plays in its representation are examined using four psychological consultations collected in fall 2016 from Islamweb.net , the largest network for Islamic information. Using computer mediated discourse analysis (Herring 2004), intertextuality was identified as a communicative strategy psychologists draw upon to turn mental health consultations into platforms to perpetuate Islamic authoritative discourses (e. g. submission to God, prayer, and collectivity). Mental illnesses were also constructed within the Islamic context as supernatural and cured by religion, rather than as conditions treated through medical and psychological intervention. Intertextually, the authoritative discourses are evoked overtly through direct quotations from the books of Islam and covertly through referencing certain ritualistic discourses (words, themes, and practices) in the opening, main, and closing sections of the consultations. Permeating consultations with religious discourse, and cementing them with the speech acts of warning, scolding, and advice to not think or act otherwise, create religious authority in the context of health online. These actions also maintain Islamic authoritative discourses, and reaffirm Islamic cultural identity, while blurring the lines between medicine and religion online.
Understanding ciliated epithelia: The power of Xenopus

Ciliated epithelia are important in a wide variety of biological contexts where they generate directed fluid flow. Here we address the fundamental advances in understanding ciliated epithelia that have been achieved using Xenopus as a model system. Xenopus embryos are covered with a ciliated epithelium that propels fluid unidirectionally across their surface. The external nature of this tissue, coupled with the molecular tools available in Xenopus and the ease of microscopic analysis on intact animals has thrust Xenopus to the forefront of ciliated epithelia biology. We discuss advances in understanding the molecular regulators of ciliated epithelia cell fate as well as basic aspects of ciliated epithelia cell biology including ciliogenesis and cell polarity. genesis 50:176–185, 2012. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Human Papillomavirus Oncoprotein E7 Targets the Promyelocytic Leukemia Protein and Circumvents Cellular Senescence via the Rb and p53 Tumor Suppressor Pathways

ABSTRACT Cellular senescence can be triggered by a variety of signals, including loss of telomeric integrity or intense oncogenic signaling, and is considered a potent, natural tumor suppressor mechanism. Previously, it was shown that the promyelocytic leukemia protein (PML) induces cellular senescence when overexpressed in primary human fibroblasts. The mechanism by which the PML IV isoform elicits this irreversible growth arrest is believed to involve activation of the tumor suppressor pathways p21/p53 and p16/Rb; however, a requirement for either pathway has not been demonstrated unequivocally. To investigate the individual contributions of p53 and Rb to PML-induced senescence, we used oncoproteins E6 and E7 from human papillomaviruses (HPVs), which predominantly target p53 and Rb. We show that E7, but not E6, circumvents PML-induced senescence. Using different E7 mutant proteins, dominant negative cyclin-dependent kinase 4, and p16 RNA interference, we demonstrate that Rb-related and Rb-independent mechanisms of E7 are necessary for subversion of PML-induced senescence and we identify PML as a novel target for E7. Interaction between E7 and a functional prosenescence complex composed of PML, p53, and CBP perturbs transcriptional activation of p53, thus highlighting a significant effect also on the p53 tumor suppressor pathway. Given the importance of HPV in the pathogenesis of cervical cancer, our results warrant a more detailed analyses of PML in HPV infections.
Motivation Counts: Autonomous But Not Obligated Sharing Promotes Happiness in Preschoolers

Research has demonstrated that prosocial sharing is emotionally rewarding, which leads to further prosocial actions; such a positive feedback loop suggests a proximal mechanism of human’s tendency to act prosocially. However, it leaves open a question as to how the emotional benefits from sharing develop in young children and whether sharing under pressure promotes happiness as well. The current study directly compared 3- and 5-year-old Chinese children’s happiness when sharing was autonomous (the recipient did not contribute to getting the reward) with when sharing was obligated (the recipient and the actor jointly earned the reward). We found that children shared more items overall when sharing was obligated than autonomous, demonstrating their conformity to social norms of merit-based sharing. In children who eventually shared with others, 5-year-olds gave out more stickers in the obligated sharing condition than in the autonomous sharing condition, but 3-year-olds shared the same amount between the conditions, suggesting that 5-year-olds adhered to the merit-based sharing norm more strictly than 3-year-olds. Moreover, in the autonomous sharing condition, children displayed greater happiness when they shared with the recipient than when they kept stickers for themselves, suggesting that costly prosocial giving benefited children with positive mood; however, children did not gain happiness when they shared with the recipient in the obligated sharing condition. These findings demonstrate that children’s affective benefits depend on the motivation underlying their prosocial behavior, and further imply that normative force and emotional gains may independently drive preschoolers’ prosocial behaviors.
Employment structure, casualization and wage differential in rural Uttar Pradesh: a disaggregated analysis

ABSTRACT A transformation of the rural employment structure of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh has seen a movement of workers from agriculture to non-agricultural sectors, which was contingent upon regional and individual characteristics. The share of casual workers in non-farm employment grew steadily, especially in the construction sector. Almost 90% of casual labourers belonged to either the Schedule Castes/Scheduled Tribes or Other Backward Castes. This study confirms that the conversion of cultivators, especially small and medium farmers into casual labourers, implies distress-driven diversification. A multinomial logit regression shows that women and workers with lower educational levels and larger landholdings are less likely to be involved in non-farm activities.
Performance Analysis of a Novel Magnetic-Geared Tubular Linear Permanent Magnet Machine

This paper presents a novel tubular linear permanent magnet machine for direct-drive applications, in which a magnetic gear is integrated with a tubular linear machine, aiming to improve the thrust force density and enhance the machine efficiency. The operating principle of the proposed machine is introduced and the machine design with improved thrust force density is presented and discussed. By using circuit-field-motion coupled time-stepping axisymmetric finite element method (FEM), the steady-state as well as transient performances of the machine are simulated. The FEM computation results are consistent with those obtained theoretically, hence verifying the validity of the machine design.
S100B Serum Levels and Word Memory Processing in Remitted Major Depression as Reflected by Brain Potentials

Objective: Memory processes, as reflected by ‘old/new’ effects of event-related potentials (ERPs), have been shown to be impaired in depressed patients. This variability might be partly explained by biological factors. S100B is a glial calcium-binding protein with neuroplastic properties; S100B serum levels have been shown to be increased in depressive patients. The pathophysiologic role of S100B in depression, however, is not yet sufficiently understood. Methods: In the present study, ERPs recorded in a visual continuous word recognition paradigm were therefore investigated in patients with remitted major depression in relation to S100B serum levels. Results: Patients with moderately increased S100B serum levels (n = 6) showed a normal old/new effect in contrast to a reduced old/new effect in patients with normal S100B levels (n = 6) compared to aged-matched controls. Conclusions: These findings provide evidence of an association between S100B levels and memory processes in patients with recurrent depression and further suggest a neuroprotective role of moderately increased S100B serum levels in the course of affective disorders.
Normative data on the sleep habits of Australian children and adolescents.

STUDY OBJECTIVE To provide normative sleep data on 9-18 year old Australians. DESIGN Cohort study. SETTING Participants' homes. PARTICIPANTS 4032 Australians aged 9-18 years. INTERVENTIONS N/A. MEASUREMENTS AND RESULTS Participants completed a 48h use of time recall, comprising sleep data for one complete night. Sleep duration, bedtime and wake time were compared across age groups, between genders, and between school and non-school days using ANOVA. Sleep duration declined with age (P < 0.0001) at the rate of 12 min/night per year of age on school days, and 4 min on non-school days. Girls slept slightly longer than boys (5 min/night; P = 0.03). Non-school day sleep was 16 min longer than school day sleep (P < 0.0001), with the difference increasing with age. Bedtimes got later with age (P < 0.0001), however there were no differences in bedtimes between boys and girls. Bedtimes occurred 34 min later on non-school days (P < 0.0001). Wake times were very similar across age groups on school days, but increased at the rate of 10 min/year of age on non-school days. Wake times were similar for boys and girls, and occurred on average 82 min later on non-school days (P < 0.0001). Overall, 17% of school days and 20% of non-school days failed to meet the American Centers for Disease Control and Prevention sleep duration guidelines. CONCLUSIONS Normative sleep data will provide a valuable yardstick for health and education professionals when dealing with sleep-related issues.
Multiple sensitive volume based soft error rate estimation with machine learning

We propose a new methodology for soft error rate estimation using multiple sensitive volumes and machine learning. The proposed methodology assigns multiple sensitive volumes to a unit circuit (e.g. SRAM cell) and constructs a discriminator from TCAD simulations by machine learning. For each ion reproduced by radiation transport simulation, the discriminator judges whether an upset occurs or not, and consequently we can obtain soft error rate by counting the number of events judged as upset events. Advantages of the proposed methodology are: (1) empirical construction and adjustment of sensitive volume and critical charge is no longer necessary, (2) multiple transistors can be easily considered, and (3) event-wise accuracy can be improved. We confirmed the correlation between irradiation results and simulation results for 65-nm silicon on thin buried oxide (SOTB) SRAM. The estimation error was 7% without any empirical optimization of sensitive volume and critical charge.