Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Physical effects of the Immirzi parameter in loop quantum gravity

The Immirzi parameter is a constant appearing in the general-relativity action used as a starting point for the loop quantization of gravity. The parameter is commonly believed not to appear in the equations of motion and not to have any physical effect besides nonperturbatrive quantum gravity. We show that this is not true in general: in the presence of minimally coupled fermions, the parameter appears in the equations of motion: it determines the coupling constant of a four-fermion interaction. Under some general assumptions, there is therefore a relation between the Immirzi parameter and physical effects that are observable in principle, independently from nonperturbative quantum gravity.
A Proposal-based Paradigm for Self-supervised Sound Source Localization in Videos

Humans can easily recognize where and how the sound is produced via watching a scene and listening to corresponding audio cues. To achieve such cross-modal perception on machines, existing methods only use the maps generated by interpolation operations to localize the sound source. As semantic object-level localization is more attractive for potential practical applications, we argue that these existing map-based approaches only provide a coarse-grained and indirect description of the sound source. In this pa-per, we advocate a novel proposal-based paradigm that can directly perform semantic object-level localization, without any manual annotations. We incorporate the global re-sponse map as an unsupervised spatial constraint to weight the proposals according to how well they cover the esti-mated global shape of the sound source. As a result, our proposal-based sound source localization can be cast into a simpler Multiple Instance Learning (MIL) problem by filtering those instances corresponding to large sound-unrelated regions. Our method achieves state-of-the-art (SOTA) per-formance when compared to several baselines on multiple datasets.
Pembrolizumab Plus Brentuximab-Vedotin in a Patient with Pretreated Metastatic Germ Cell Tumor

We hereby report the outcome of using a combination of brentuximab- vedotin with immunotherapy (pembrolizumab) in a patient with a metastatic extragonadal embryonal carcinoma after multiple lines of chemotherapy. Based on the tumor’s expression of CD30 we first initiated therapy with brentuximab- vedotin and later added pembrolizumab because of PD-L1 positive immune-cell infiltration. This treatment resulted in a notable and durable response, calling for further investigation of combined immunotherapy in germ cell cancers. liver resection were performed. Histology revealed necrotic tumor tissue in the liver with negative margins (R0 resection) and tumor-free tissue of the spleen and the lymph nodes. The patient went on to receive a second course of high-dose chemotherapy as consolidation treatment, consisting of gemcitabine,
Challenges in SIM to Create a Coordination Program for Time and Frequency | NIST

The Sistema Interamericano de Metrologia (SIM) is one of five major regional metrology organizations (RMOs) recognized by the Bureau International des Poids et Mesures (BIPM). SIM is composed of the national metrology institutes (NMIs) located in the 34 member nations of the Organization of American States (OAS). Its goal is to create a unified measurement network that extends to the entire SIM region, ensuring the uniformity of measurements and strengthening traceability throughout North, Central, and South America back to the International System (SI) of units. To help reach this goal, SIM sponsors working groups in ten different metrological fields, including time and frequency. Developing a unified time and frequency measurement network in the SIM region has been a challenging task, but much progress has been made in recent years and many obstacles have been overcome. This paper summarizes work done by the SIM Time and Frequency metrology working group from 2004 to 2010. It discusses the challenges faced by the working group, the progress made by individual laboratories, and the important role played by metrology education. It also provides an overview of two major achievements of the working group, the SIM Time Network (SIMTN) and the SIM Time (SIMT) scale.
University of Birmingham Influence of powder characteristics on the microstructure and mechanical properties of HIPped CM247LC Ni superalloy

This work investigates the in ﬂ uence of gas atomised powder particle size and characteristics on the microstruc- ture and mechanical properties of hot isostatically pressed (HIPped) CM247LC nickel-base superalloy powders. ThreedifferentGApowders(particlesizeranges:53 – 150 μ m;0 – 150 μ m;15 – 53 μ m)ofverysimilarcompositions were HIPped at the γ ' solvus temperature. Microstructural analysis and tensile testing were conducted on as- HIPped samples. It was found that the ﬁ ne powders promote the formation of prior particle boundaries (PPBs) decorated with carbide and oxy-carbide clusters due to the higher oxygen content per weight in ﬁ ne powders, which adversely affects the mechanical properties. It was also found that coarse powder particles are bene ﬁ cial for minimising PPBs and increasing the twin boundaries fraction. Nonetheless, the best balance of high temper- ature tensile properties was in the wide range powder (0 – 150 μ m). The effect of particle size was further investigated by sieving the wide range powder into two particle size distributions. Tensile testing of these conditions showed that the hot ductility could be further improved by removing the very ﬁ ne powder particles. Both of the sievedpowdersexhibitedbetterhotductilitythanthewiderangepowderandalsooutperformedthe53 – 150 μ m and 15 – 53 μ m powders. © 2019 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
Why do ﬁrms issue equity? Some evidence from an emerging economy, India

In contrast to the existing empirical research on the pecking order hypothesis which has been largely confined to the United States and a few other advanced countries, this paper attempts to test the hypothesis for an emerging economy through a case study of the Indian Corporate sector. A well diverse sample of 556 manufacturing firms over the period 1997-2007 is used in the paper to test the pecking order hypothesis. The study finds strong evidence in favour of the pecking order hypothesis – a result that stands startlingly odd to the most recent evidences against pecking order theory in developed countries (Fama and French, (2005), Frank And Goyal (2003, Lemmon and Zender (2004), Leary and Roberts (2004)). In contrast to the existing empirical research on the pecking order hypothesis which has been largely confined to the United States and a few other advanced countries, this paper attempts to test the hypothesis for an emerging economy through a case study of the Indian Corporate sector. A well diverse sample of 556 manufacturing firms over the period 1997-2007 is used in the paper to test the pecking order hypothesis. The study finds strong evidence in favour of the pecking order hypothesis – a result that stands startlingly odd to the most recent evidences against pecking order theory in developed countries (Fama and French, (2005), Frank And Goyal (2003, Lemmon and Zender (2004), Leary and Roberts (2004)).
Title : Spatiotemporal structure of sensory-evoked and spontaneous activity revealed by 1 mesoscale imaging in anesthetized and awake mice 2 3 4

Title: Spatiotemporal structure of sensory-evoked and spontaneous activity revealed by 1 mesoscale imaging in anesthetized and awake mice 2 3 4 Authors: Navvab Afrashteh, Samsoon Inayat, Edgar Bermudez Contreras, Artur Luczak, 5 Bruce L. McNaughton, Majid H. Mohajerani 6 University of Lethbridge, Faculty of Arts and Sciences, Department of Neuroscience, 4401 7 University Dr. W. , Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada, T1K 3M4. 8 Center for Neurobiology of Learning and Memory, Department of Neurobiology and Behavior, 9 University of California, Irvine. 10 These authors contributed equally. 11 * Corresponding author: Majid H. Mohajerani (mohajerani@uleth.ca) 12 13 14
Antimicrobial distribution and costs in primary care

Universidade Federal do Piauí, Teresina, PI, Brazil. Escola de Enfermagem de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, SP, Brazil. Instituto de Medicina e Higiene Tropical, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Lisbon, Portugal. Confl icts of interest: there are no confl icts of interest to declare. Abstract Objective: To analyze antimicrobial distribution and costs in primary care of a capital city in the Northeast region of Brazil. Methods: Cross-sectional, analytical study, developed in the city of Teresina, in the state of Piauí, Brazil. Data cover the period from June 2015 to July 2016. Descriptive statistics and the Kruskal-Wallis test were calculated to compare the medians of the independent data distributions. Results: A total of 1,651,516 antimicrobials were distributed in 15 different types, with amoxicillin (500mg) being the most distributed (75%) in psychosocial care centers, and in the basic health units (47%). The total cost for the period was 98,705.00 BRL. There were no statistically signifi cant differences among the costs medians in each zone of the studied municipality. Conclusion: These drugs are irregularly distributed among the units, according to the demand. The supply does not follow a specifi c protocol, and a possible increase or reduction in demand is not investigated.
Asteroid Masses and Densities

Before 1966, when Hertz (1966) published his first direct determination of the mass of Vesta, all our knowledge on asteroid masses was based on estimates. The masses of the first four minor planets resulted from the measured diameters by Barnard (1900) (see the paper by Dollfus in this volume) and from estimated mean densities. The diameters of the smaller objects were derived from their brightness and an estimate of their reflectivity (usually the reflectivity of the Moon was adopted). In 1901, Bauschinger and Neugebauer (1901) derived a value for the total mass of the first 458 asteroids. All the diameters were computed from the brightness with an assumed value for the reflectivity. The diameter of Ceres found in this way is very close to Barnard's (1900) value. The mean density of the 458 asteroids was put equal to that of Earth, and their total mass resulted as 3 X 10~ solar mass. Stracke (1942) used the same method with an increased material, but the addition of more than 1000 faint asteroids did not bring a significant change in the estimate of the total mass. The report on the McDonald asteroid survey (Kuiper et al., 1958) does not contain another estimate of the total mass of the asteroid ring, but it points to the possibility of a very rapid increase in the number of asteroids with decreasing absolute brightness. If this increase is strong enough, each interval of 1 mag in absolute magnitude can contribute the same amount to the total mass. In the range of magnitudes covered by the Palomar-Leiden survey (PLS) (van Houten et al., 1970), there are no indications for such a strong increase. The attempts to find gravitational evidence on asteroid masses started with the total mass, but von Brunn (1910) demonstrated that at his time it was not possible to detect gravitational effects caused by the total mass of the asteroids. In the paper mentioned above, Stracke (1942) expressed the hope that accurate orbital theories of the first four minor planets and of Eros can answer the question of the gravitational effects of the total mass, if these theories are compared with the observations of a sufficiently long interval of time.
Observations and models of dynamic topography: Current status and future directions

The slow creeping motion of Earth’s mantle drives transient changes in surface topography across a variety of spatial and temporal scales. Recent decades have seen substantial progress in understanding this so-called ‘dynamic topography’, with a growing number of studies highlighting its fundamental role in shaping the surface of our planet. In this review, we outline the current frontiers of geodynamical research into dynamic topography. It begins with a summary of ongoing observational, theoretical and computational eﬀorts that aim to quantify the present-day expression of dynamic topography, including its geographical distribution and sensitivity to diﬀerent components of the mantle’s ﬂow regime. Next, observational constraints that shed light on how dynamic topography has changed over time are summarised, and compared with predictions from a range of geodynamical modelling studies, to highlight our current understanding of its evolution through the geological past. Although many model predictions can be reconciled with the available observational constraints, these comparisons demonstrate that there remain inconsistencies, particularly at shorter spatial and temporal scales. These discrepancies allow us to isolate the shortcomings of existing modelling approaches and identify pathways towards improving future reconstructions of dynamic topography through space and time. Such reconstructions are vital if we are to robustly connect the evolution of Earth’s surface environments to the processes that are occurring deep within its interior.
Balance in Humans (Th1/Th17)/Anti-Inflammatory (Th2) Proinflammatory The CD226/CD155 Interaction Regulates the

CD226 costimulatory signals strongly promote Th1 differentiation, enhancing IFN- g production by naive T cells. We recently reported that knockdown of CD226 on human T cells resulted in a decrease in T-bet and IFN- g expression. However, the role of CD226 on Th2 and Th17 cells remains unknown. In this study, we found that CD226 and its ligand CD155 were decreased on Th2-polarized naive T cells, whereas both were highly expressed under Th17 conditions. Most IFN- g – and IL-17–producing cells expressed high levels of CD226, but production of IL-13 did not correlate with CD226 expression. CD226 knockdown by lentiviral transduction resulted in increased STAT-6 phosphorylation, enhanced GATA3 expression, and consequently higher production of IL-4 and IL-13. Under Th17 conditions, CD226-depleted cells showed slightly impaired IL-17 secretion, suggesting that CD226 contributes, in part, to IL-17 production but is dispensable for Th17 cell generation. In line with these results, CD226 blockade with neutralizing Abs efﬁciently inhibited T cell activation and proliferation and production of IFN- g and IL-17, whereas IL-13 secretion remained functional. Taken together, our results establish an important role for CD226 in differentially regulating the proinﬂammatory (Th1/Th17)/anti-inﬂammatory (Th2) balance, suggesting that the CD226/CD155 interaction could potentially be targeted in therapeutic approaches to human autoimmune diseases. The Journal of Immunology , 2013, 191: 000–000.
THE EFFECTS OF INTEREST RATES VOLATILITY ON STOCK MARKET RETURNS IN MALAYSIA AND SINGAPORE

This research examines the e ﬀ ects of interest rates volatility on stock market returns in Malaysia and Singapore. The data used are market returns on the FBM Kuala Lumpur Composite Index (FBM KLCI) and 3-months deposit yields in Malaysia over the period of September 1999 to December 2010. For the Singaporean market, the monthly data of market returns on the Straits Times Index (STI) and 3-months deposit yields in Singapore during the same period are used. Two separate GARCH (1,1) models are applied for Malaysia and Singapore. Results suggest that interest rate volatility in each country has a strong positive relationship with its respective stock market volatility. The results also show that the volatility of interest rates has a negative relationship with the stock market return but the relationship is insigni ﬁ cant.
EFFECT OF VIDEO-BASED ANCHORED INSTRUCTION ON STUDENTS’ ACHIEVEMENT AND RETENTION IN MOTOR VEHICLE MECHANICS WORK IN ABUJA AND NIGER STATES, NIGERIA

The study investigated the effects of video-based anchored instruction on students’ achievement and retention in Motor Vehicle Mechanics (MVM) work in Abuja and Niger State, Nigeria. Two research questions were raised and two hypotheses were formulated and tested at . 05 level of significance. Pre-test Post-test non-equivalent control group design of quasi experimental study was used for the study. The population for the study consisted of 428 National Technical College (NTC) II MVM work students. The sample size for this study consisted of 180 students, with 68 students in the experimental group and 112 students in the control group. The instrument used for data collection was Motor Vehicle Mechanics Work Achievement and Retention Test (MVMWART). The reliability coefficient of MVMWART was found to be 0.76 using Pearson Product Moment Correlation coefficient. Mean was used to answer the research questions; while ANCOVA was employed to test the hypotheses. Findings of the study revealed that video-based anchored instruction is more effective in improving student’s achievement and retention in MVM work than conventional teaching method. It was therefore recommended that teachers, especially those teaching MVM work should adopt video-based anchored instruction to teach students at technical colleges to enhance students’ cognitive achievements and retention in MVM work.
Parathyroid hormone and risk of heart failure in the general population A meta-analysis of prospective studies Meta-Analysis of Observational Studies in Epidemiology

Inconsistent ﬁ ndings have been reported on the association between the parathyroid hormone (PTH) level and risk of heart failure. We aimed to systematically evaluate the association between circulating level of PTH and risk of heart failure in the general population by conducting a meta-analysis. We made a comprehensive literature search in PubMed, Embase, VIP, CNKI, and Wanfang databases published until January 2016. Only prospective observational studies reporting the association between circulating level of PTH and risk of heart failure in the general population were selected. Pooled adjusted hazard ratio (HR) and corresponding 95% con ﬁ dence intervals (CIs) were calculated for the highest versus lowest PTH category. Six studies with 25,207 participants identi ﬁ ed. Higher circulating level of PTH was associated with an increased risk of heart failure (HR: 1.38; 95% CI 1.09 – 1.74) in a random effect model. Subgroup analyses revealed that the risk of heart failure was more pronounced among men (HR: 1.75; 95% CI 1.38 – 2.22) than in both genders. However, the risk increment was not statistically signi ﬁ cant (HR: 1.12; 95% CI 0.76 – 1.66) in the middle-aged population. Higher PTH level is independently associated with an exacerbated risk of heart failure in the general population.
Economic Burden of Cancer in the US: Estimates, Projections, and Future Research

The economic burden of cancer in the US is substantial and expected to increase significantly in the future due to expected growth and aging of the population and improvements in survival as well as trends in treatment patterns and costs of care following cancer diagnosis. In this paper, we describe measures of the economic burden of cancer and present current estimates and projections of the national burden of cancer in the US. We discuss ongoing efforts to characterize the economic burden of cancer in the US and identify key areas for future work, including developing and enhancing research resources, improving estimates and projections of economic burden, evaluating targeted therapies, and assessing the financial burden for patients and their families. This work will inform efforts by health care policy makers, healthcare systems, and employers to improve the cancer survivorship experience in the US.
Uncertainties in the 18 F(p, α ) 15 O reaction rate in classical novae

Context. Direct observation of γ -ray emission from the decay of 18 F ejected in classical nova outbursts remains a major focus of the nuclear astrophysics community. However, modeling the abundance of ejected 18 F, and thus the predicted detectability distance of a γ -ray signal near 511keV emitted from these transient thermonuclear episodes, is hampered by signiﬁcant uncertainties in our knowledge of the key 18 F(p, α ) reaction rate. Aims. We analyze uncertainties in the most recent nuclear physics experimental results employed to calculate the 18 F(p, α ) reaction rate. Our goal is to determine which uncertainties have the most profound inﬂuence on the predicted abundance of 18 F ejected from novae in order to guide future experimental works. Methods. We calculated a wide range of 18 F(p, α ) reaction rates using the R -Matrix formalism, which allowed us to take all interference e ﬀ ects into account. Using a selection of 16 evenly spaced rates over the full range, we performed 16 new hydrodynamic nova simulations. Results. We have performed one of the most thorough theoretical studies of the impact of the 18 F(p, α ) reaction in classical novae to date. The 18 F(p, α ) rate remains highly uncertain at nova temperatures, resulting in a factor of ∼ 10 uncertainty in the predicted abundance of 18 F ejected from nova explosions. We also found that the abundance of 18 F may be strongly correlated with that of 19 F. Conclusions. Despite numerous nuclear physics uncertainties a ﬀ ecting the determination of the 18 F(p, α ) reaction rate, dominated by unknown interference signs between 1 / 2 + and 3 / 2 + resonances, future experimental work should focus on ﬁrmly and precisely determining the directly measurable quantum properties of the subthreshold states in the compound nucleus 19 Ne near 6.13 and 6.29MeV.
Psychometric Characteristics of Patient Health Questionnaire-2 (PHQ-2) in Iranian Psychiatric Outpatients

Depression is a serious public health problem in community settings and primary care in the worldwide. The Patent Health Questionnaire-2 (PHQ-2) is an ultra-brief depression screener. It has been used in both research and practice settings. The PHQ-2 has not had its validity examined in psychiatric and psychological settings in Iran. A cross-sectional study was conducted to investigate reliability, validity, and factorial structure of the Farsi version of Patent Health questionnaire-2 (PHQ-2) in a convenience sample of 130 Iranian volunteer psychiatric outpatients was selected from the psychiatric and psychological clinics at the School of Behavioral Sciences and Mental Health-Tehran Institute of Psychiatry at the Iran University of Medical Sciences. They were completed the Patent Health Questionnaire-2 (PHQ-2), the Patent Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), the Patent Health Questionnaire-15 (PHQ-15), the World Health Organization-five Well-Being Index (WHO-5), and the short form of the Beck Depression Inventory-13 (BDI-13). The mean score of the PHQ-2 was 3.53 (SD=1.73). The Cronbach alpha, Spearman-Brown, Guttman Split-Half coefficients, and one-week test-retest reliability for the PHQ-2 were 0.74, 0.74, 0.74, and 0.76, respectively. The PHQ-2 correlated 0.80 with the PHQ-9, 0.45 with the PHQ-15, -0.45 with the WHO-5, and 0.69 with the BDI-13, indicating good construct and criterion-related validity. The results of the factor analysis of the PHQ-2 items identified 1 factor labeled: General depression (79.44% of the variance). The PHQ-2, therefore, appears to have a uni dimensional structure, acceptable validity and reliability, and it can be used in the primary care, general population, clinical, and research settings in Iran society. indicated that although the PHQ-2 has sensitivity and specificity, and is adequate for initial first step assessment of depression in primary care, but it cannot confirm a clinical diagnosis. Nevertheless, using of very shorter and brief screening tools for diagnosis and management of depression has been interested in many settings [15]. The PHQ-2 has not had its validity examined in psychiatric and psychological settings in Iran. We examined psychometric and screening properties for depression of this questionnaire in a sample of Iranian psychiatric outpatients.