Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Discrimination and identification of Cantonese tones by postlingually deaf cochlear implant users

This study investigated the relationship between discrimination and identification of Cantonese tones by postlingually deaf cochlear implantees. Secondly, it examined which tone pairs are perceived more easily. Finally, the study investigated the effect of stimulating rate and coding strategies of the cochlear implants, age at implantation, age at testing, duration of deafness and duration of implant use on performances in tone perception. (64.45%) More half of 12) both These results suggest that postlingually deaf implantees perform better than prelingually deaf implantees in tone identification by comparing with previous studies (Aisha, 2000; Chan, 2001; Lee, 1997). In Aisha's (2000) and Wong's (2000) studies on prelingually deaf implantees, their participants performed at chance. In this and other studies on Cantonese tone perception by postlingually deaf implantees (Chan, 2001 and Lee et al/s, 1997), at least some of the participants performed significantly above chance.
Using smartphones and shared displays to connect and coordinate people in playful contexts

This paper explores the social aspects of a new kind of mobile games where players interact with each other in a shared physical space as well as in-game. As technology spreads throughout layers of culture and everyday life, and gaming becomes increasingly widespread, we see a future in social digital games through the use of smartphones, because of their prevalence and their technical versatility. This poses new challenges for designers. By using the context of music selection in semi-public to public situations and with the help of prototypes, we explore the problems of making selections and connections in large groups as well as delivering feedback. As a result of this project we arrive at elements such as participation, competition, scalability and the importance of social interactions between participants which can be used when designing systems in similar contexts.
Sleep-Related Hypermotor Epilepsy: Etiology, Electro-Clinical Features, and Therapeutic Strategies

Abstract Sleep-related hypermotor epilepsy (SHE) is a group of clinical syndromes with heterogeneous etiologies. SHE is difficult to diagnose and treat in the early stages due to its diverse clinical manifestations and difficulties in differentiating from non-epileptic events, which seriously affect patients’ quality of life and social behavior. The overall prognosis for SHE is unsatisfactory, but different etiologies affect patients’ prognoses. Surgical treatment is an effective method for carefully selected patients with refractory SHE; nevertheless, preoperative assessment remains challenging because of the low sensitivity of noninvasive scalp electroencephalogram and imaging to detect abnormalities. However, through a careful analysis of semiology, the clinician can deduce the potential epileptogenic zone. This paper summarizes the research status of the background, etiology, electro-clinical features, diagnostic criteria, prognosis, and treatment of SHE to provide a more in-depth understanding of its pathophysiological mechanism, improve the accuracy in the diagnosis of this group of syndromes, and further explore more targeted therapy plans.
Immediate Effects of Whole-Body Vibration Associated with Squatting Exercises on Hemodynamic Parameters in Sarcopenic Older People: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Whole-body vibration (WBV) exercises have recently been introduced as a nonpharmacological therapeutic strategy for sarcopenic older people. The present study aimed to evaluate the effect of WBV exercise on hemodynamic parameters in sarcopenic older people. Forty older people, divided into groups of nonsarcopenic (NSG = 20) and sarcopenic (SG = 20), participated in the study and were cross randomized into two interventions of eight sets of 40 s each, these being squatting with WBV and squatting without WBV. Heart rate (HR), peak heart rate (peak HR), systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure (DBP), double product (DP), mean arterial pressure (MAP), and subjective perception of effort (SPE), were assessed at baseline, during, and after a single WBV session. The HR, peak HR, and DP variables were similar at baseline between groups. WBV exercise increased all the hemodynamic parameters both during and immediately after the intervention, in both groups (SG and NSG). The MAP values were similar at baseline between groups; however, in the NSG there was a significant increase during and immediately after the squatting with WBV intervention (p < 0.05). The HR behavior, in both groups, showed that there was an increase in HR after the first set of exercises with vibration and this increase was maintained until the final set. The absence of adverse effects of WBV exercise on the cardiovascular system and fatigue suggests this exercise modality is adequate and safe for sarcopenic older people.
Lexical interference in non-native resolution of possessives?

Research on non-native pronoun resolution has predominantly been concerned with (i) ‘ordinary’ 3rd person pronouns/anaphors like En. "he", "she", "they" or "himself", "herself", "themselves", (ii) language pairs involving English as the native (L1) or the foreign (L2) language, and (iii) the role that binding constraints and syntactic structure in general play in L2 versus L1 processing. The present paper – a follow-up study to Pitz et al. (2017) – deviates from this trend in all three respects: We investigate how L1-Norwegian learners of L2-German interpret the two German possessive pronouns/determiners "sein" (≈ his) and "ihr" (≈ her or their), arguing that lexical divergence between the possessive systems, and in particular the formal similarity between binding-neutral L2-German "sein" and the L1-Norwegian reflexive possessive "sin", may enhance or interfere with L2 comprehension, depending on the structural conditions. In Section 2 we briefly present the two possessive systems. Section 3 summarizes relevant research on pronoun resolution, with a special view to possessives. Sections 4–6 present a pilot study on L1-Norwegian learners’ grammaticality judgments of "sein" and "ihr" in simple sentences (Sect. 5) and a forced-choice resolution experiment involving a group of L1-Norwegian learners with a background two or three years’ teaching of L2-German at high-school level and a control group of native speakers of German (Sect. 6). The final Section 7 provides a summary and concluding discussion of our findings.
Improving spatial normalization of brain diffusion MRI to measure longitudinal changes of tissue microstructure in the cortex and white matter

Background Fractional anisotropy (FA) and mean diffusivity (MD) are frequently used to evaluate longitudinal changes in white matter microstructure. Recently, there has been a growing interest in identifying experience-dependent plasticity in gray matter using MD. Improving registration has thus become a major goal to enhance the detection of subtle longitudinal changes in cortical microstructure. Purpose To optimize normalization to improve registration in gray matter and reduce variability associated with multi-session registrations. Study Type Prospective longitudinal study Subjects Twenty-one healthy subjects (18-31 years old) underwent 9 magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanning sessions each. Field Strength/Sequence 3.0T, diffusion-weighted multiband-accelerated sequence, MP2RAGE sequence. Assessment Diffusion-weighted images were registered to standard space using different pipelines that varied in the features used for normalization, namely the non-linear registration algorithm (FSL vs ANTs), the registration target (FA-based vs T1-based templates), and the use of intermediate individual (FA-based or T1-based) targets. We compared the across-session test-retest reproducibility error from these normalization approaches for FA and MD in white and gray matters. Statistical Tests Reproducibility errors were compared using a repeated-measures analysis of variance with pipeline as within-subject factor. Results The registration of FA data to the FMRIB58 FA atlas using ANTs yielded lower reproducibility errors in white matter (p<0.0001) with respect to FSL. Moreover, using the MNI152 T1 template as the target of registration resulted in lower reproducibility errors for MD (p<0.0001), whereas the FMRIB58 FA template performed better for FA (p<0.0001). Finally, the use of an intermediate individual template improved reproducibility when registration of the FA images to the MNI152-T1 was carried out within modality (FA-FA) (p<0.05), but not via a T1-based individual template. Data Conclusion A normalization approach using ANTs to register FA images to the MNI152 T1 template via an individual FA template minimized test-retest reproducibility errors both for gray and white matter.
Back to the Future? Immunoglobulin Therapy for Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

The findings of controlled trials on use of intravenous immunoglobulin G (IV IgG) to treat myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) are generally viewed as representing mixed results. On detailed review, a clearer picture emerges, which suggests that the potential therapeutic value of this intervention has been underestimated. Our analysis is consistent with the propositions that: (1) IgG is highly effective for a proportion of patients with severe and well-characterised ME/CFS; (2) responders can be predicted with a high degree of accuracy based on markers of immune dysfunction. Rigorous steps were taken in the research trials to record adverse events, with transient symptom exacerbation commonly experienced in both intervention and placebo control groups, suggesting that this reflected the impact of participation on people with an illness characterised by post-exertional symptom exacerbation. Worsening of certain specific symptoms, notably headache, did occur more commonly with IgG and may have been concomitant to effective treatment, being associated with clinical improvement. The findings emerging from this review are supported by clinical observations relating to treatment of patients with severe and very severe ME/CFS, for whom intramuscular and subcutaneous administration provide alternative options. We conclude that: (1) there is a strong case for this area of research to be revived; (2) pending further research, clinicians would be justified in offering a course of IgG to selected ME/CFS patients at the more severe end of the spectrum. As the majority of trial participants had experienced an acute viral or viral-like onset, we further suggest that IgG treatment may be pertinent to the care of some patients who remain ill following infection with SARS-CoV-2 virus.
Genetic and Proteomic Basis of Sclerotinia Stem Rot Resistance in Indian Mustard [Brassica juncea (L.) Czern & Coss.]

Sclerotinia stem rot is one of the utmost important disease of mustard, causing considerable losses in seed yield and oil quality. The study of the genetic and proteomic basis of resistance to this disease is imperative for its effective utilization in developing resistant cultivars. Therefore, the genetic pattern of Sclerotinia stem rot resistance in Indian mustard was studied using six generations (P1, P2, F1, F2, BC1P1, and BC1P2) developed from the crossing of one resistant (RH 1222-28) and two susceptible (EC 766300 and EC 766123) genotypes. Genetic analysis revealed that resistance was governed by duplicate epistasis. Comparative proteome analysis of resistant and susceptible genotypes indicated that peptidyl-prolyl cis-trans isomerase (A0A078IDN6 PPIase) showed high expression in resistant genotype at the early infection stage while its expression was delayed in susceptible genotypes. This study provides important insight to mustard breeders for designing effective breeding programs to develop resistant cultivars against this devastating disease.
Effect of Corporate Social Responsibility on Business Sustainability: The Dual Mediation

Abstract: Companies are constantly trying to maintain customer trust and loyalty in an effort to preserve business sustainability. Implementing environmental concerns in the form of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is expected to achieve both of these aims. This study aims to analyze the roles of CSR, customer trust, and customer loyalty in business sustainability. Questionnaires were filled by 10 customers from each of 100 Rural Banks spread over 9 districts/cities in Bali, Indonesia. Data analysis was performed with SmartPLS 3.3. 2 software. The research found that CSR, customer trust, and customer loyalty have a significant impact on business sustainability. The results also found that customer trust and customer loyalty function as mediation in the relationship between CSR and business sustainability. Keywords: Corporate Social Responsibility, customer trust, customer loyalty, business sustainability Pengaruh Tanggung Jawab Sosial Perusahaan terhadap Keberlanjutan Bisnis: Mediasi GandaAbstrak: Perusahaan senantiasa berusaha menjaga kepercayaan dan loyalitas pelanggan dalam upaya menjaga keberlangsungan bisnis. Implementasi kepedulian lingkungan dalam bentuk Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) diharapkan dapat mencapai kedua tujuan tersebut. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk menganalisis peran CSR, kepercayaan pelanggan, dan loyalitas pelanggan dalam keberlanjutan bisnis. Kuesioner diisi oleh 10 nasabah dari masing-masing 100 BPR yang tersebar di 9 kabupaten/kota di Bali, Indonesia. Analisis data dilakukan dengan software SmartPLS 3.3. 2. Hasil penelitian menemukan bahwa CSR, kepercayaan pelanggan, dan loyalitas pelanggan memiliki pengaruh yang signifikan terhadap keberlangsungan bisnis. Hasil penelitian juga menemukan bahwa kepercayaan pelanggan dan loyalitas pelanggan berfungsi sebagai mediasi dalam hubungan antara CSR dan keberlanjutan bisnis.Kata kunci: Tanggung Jawab Sosial Perusahaan, kepercayaan pelanggan, loyalitas pelanggan, keberlangsungan usaha
Electrospray surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (ES-SERS) for studying organic coatings of atmospheric aerosol particles

Abstract Heterogeneous reactions between atmospheric aerosol particles and gaseous pollutants, such as those forming brown carbon (BrC), represent an important mechanism. These reactions alter the particle chemical compositions and aerosol-climate interactions. While most studies assume homogeneous particle compositions, organic coatings can be formed on solid or highly viscous particles due to heterogeneous reactions but the underlying mechanism is relatively less examined. We used electrospray surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (ES-SERS) to directly probe the formation of BrC coatings on methylaminium sulfate, nitrate, and chloride particles from heterogeneous reactions with gas-phase glyoxal. To create BrC coatings on particle surfaces, heterogeneous reactions were performed under low relative humidity (RH) conditions (i.e., 10 or 30% RH). The reacted particles fluoresced when irradiated at 532 nm in normal Raman analysis, indirectly suggesting the presence of light-absorbing species in them. Further ES-SERS analyses showed Raman bands of 1,3-dimethylimidazole, one of the major known products of reactions of glyoxal with methylaminium, from all the reacted particles at 30% RH. However, only methylaminium sulfate particles showed the formation of BrC coatings at 10% RH. We speculate that methylaminium sulfate particles may have more surface adsorbed water (SAW) than the other particle samples to initiate the formation of BrC coatings detectable by ES-SERS. The present study highlights the surface sensitivity of ES-SERS as well as the potential importance of SAW in heterogeneous reactions of atmospheric particles with gaseous pollutants. Copyright © 2019 American Association for Aerosol Research
TSH Combined with TSHR Aggravates Diabetic Peripheral Neuropathy by Promoting Oxidative Stress and Apoptosis in Schwann Cells

Subclinical hypothyroidism (SCH) is associated with diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN); however, the mechanism underlying this association remains unknown. This study is aimed at examining neurofunctional and histopathological alterations in a type 2 diabetes (T2DM) mouse model of SCH and investigating the impact of thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) in an in vitro DPN cell model established using RSC96 cells under high glucose (HG) and palmitic acid (PA) stimulation. Our results indicated that T2DM, in combination with SCH, aggravated abnormal glucose and lipid metabolism in T2DM and dramatically destroyed the peripheral nervous system by increasing paw withdrawal latency, decreasing motor nerve conduction velocity, and exacerbating ultrastructural deterioration of the damaged sciatic nerve caused by diabetes. Furthermore, the results of our in vitro experiments showed that TSH intensified HG/PA-induced RSC96 cell damage by inducing oxidative stress, mitochondrial dysfunction, and apoptosis. More importantly, TSHR knockout or inhibition of PA-induced TSHR palmitoylation could alleviate the apoptosis induced by TSH. Overall, in this study, the novel mechanisms by which TSH, as an independent risk factor for DPN progression, aggravating Schwann cell apoptosis and demyelination, are elucidated. These findings indicate that TSHR could be a potential target for both the prevention and treatment of DPN and, possibly, other microvascular diseases, and have implication in the clinical management of patients with DPN.
Impact of snow‐albedo feedback termination on terrestrial surface climate at midhigh latitudes: Sensitivity experiments with an atmospheric general circulation model

To examine the effect of the snow‐albedo feedback (SAF) on the current surface climate across terrestrial regions at mid–high latitudes, we perform a series of idealized sensitivity experiments using an atmospheric general circulation model (AGCM), in which the snow albedo is assumed to be considerably smaller than that in the control experiment. When the snow albedo is reduced, the fall and spring surface air temperatures (SATs) in northern Eurasia are considerably higher than those in the control experiment. Particularly, the spring SAT at terrestrial high latitudes rises by more than 10°C, due to low snow albedo. Despite the small surface snow albedo during both fall and spring, the fall temperature difference between the two experiments is smaller than that during spring. The feedback with the hydrological effect, which accelerates snowmelt, is either nonexistent or weak during periods of seasonally low air temperatures. This result indicates that the hydrological effect significantly influences the SAF, and different magnitudes of the hydrological effect including cloud differences are a possible source of SAF uncertainty between models. The radiative albedo effect also impacts the evolution of the snow area in central Asia and eastern Europe through changes in lateral water vapour transport. Furthermore, the experiments indicate that the cooling effect of snow on land is necessary for the strength of the Siberian High and the pattern of Arctic Oscillation, suggesting that snow cover may also significantly extend the duration of Arctic Oscillation effects.
Impact of Electric Vehicles on High-Voltage Grids: A Swiss Case Study

An increasing number of electric vehicles (EV) will have an impact on required capacity of transmission and distribution grids. For target grid planning, it is essential to identify local impact in terms of infrastructure overloads. We study the impact of EV charging loads on the Swiss high-voltage grid under diff erent EV penetration and pricing scenarios. The simulation model uses real driving pro files, substation load data from a Swiss grid operator and Swisselectricity prices.The results indicate that under flat electricity tariff s and EV penetration levels around 16 % the current substation capacity will be sufficient to cover additional EV charging load. However, at higher penetration levels a number of substations will be overloaded. More significantly, the introduction of market-based variable electricity rates for EV charging may induce substation overloads already at 16 % penetration levels. These results signify that EV charging coordination is required at high EV penetration levels and that exogenous price incentives give rise to strong over-coordination e ffects.
Probiotics in Counteracting the Role of Neutrophils in Cancer Metastasis

Neutrophils are known for their role geared towards pathogen clearance by different mechanisms that they initiate, primarily by the release of neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs). However, their immune-surveillance capacity accompanied with plasticity in existing as interchangeable subsets, discovered recently, has revealed their property to contribute to complex cancer pathologies including tumor initiation, growth, angiogenesis and metastasis. Although there is a growing body of evidence suggesting a critical balance between the protumoral and antitumoral neutrophil phenotypes, an in-depth signaling pathway analysis would aid in determination of anticipatory, diagnostic and therapeutic targets. This review presents a comprehensive overview of the potential pathways involved in neutrophil-triggered cancer metastasis and introduces the influence of the microbial load and avenues for probiotic intervention.
Effects of Human-Likeness on Robot Use in High-Risk Environments

Previous research has shown that the design of robots can impact the level of trust, liking, and empathy that a user feels towards a robot. Additionally, this empathy can have direct impacts on users’ interactions with the system. Existing research has looked at how empathy can influence user willingness to, for example, put the robot in harm’s way or to destroy the robot. However, these studies have been inherently reliant upon narrative driven manipulations, which may result in experimental demands which could have influenced the results. As such, we provide a human-likeness manipulation in order to evaluate the impacts of design which may evoke empathy, on use of robots in high-risk environments. Results indicate no significant difference in robot use between conditions. These results are in conflict with previous research. More research is needed to understand when users are/are not willing to use a robot in a high-risk environment.
Effect of Procedural Elements on Trust and Compliance with anImperfect Decision Aid

We sought to establish to what extent incorporating a dichotomized procedural variable (in this case, maritime ‘rules of the road’) and incentives into a decision aiding algorithm would change a previously found non-compliance bias when the algorithm contradicted the known procedure. We also sought to examine the relationship between trust in and dependence on an automated system. An experiment was conducted using a simple, simulated maritime collision avoidance task featuring an imperfect, but highly reliable (87%), decision aid. Adding the dichotomous procedural variable into the algorithms recommendations increased compliance with the system, even for recommendations that violated learned procedures. Performance was still not perfectly calibrated to the actual reliability of the system (underreliance and under-trust). Results also revealed the dissociation between rated trust in, and behavioral dependence on decision aiding automation.