Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Lats1 Deletion Causes Increased Germ Cell Apoptosis and Follicular Cysts in Mouse Ovaries1

ABSTRACT The Hippo signaling pathway is essential for regulating proliferation and apoptosis in mammalian cells. The LATS1 kinase is a core member of the Hippo signaling pathway that phosphorylates and inactivates the transcriptional co-activators YAP1 and WWTR1. Deletion of Lats1 results in low neonate survival and ovarian stromal tumors in surviving adults, but the effects of Lats1 on early follicular development are not understood. Here, the expression of Hippo pathway components including Wwtr1, Stk4, Stk3, Lats2, and Yap1 transcripts were decreased by 50% in mouse ovaries between 2 and 8 days of age while expression was maintained from 8 days to 21 days and after priming with eCG. LATS1, LATS2, and MOB1B were localized to both germ and somatic cells of primordial to antral follicles. Interestingly, YAP1 was predominantly cytoplasmic, whereas WWTR1 was nuclear in oocytes and somatic cells. Deletion of Lats1 caused an increase in germ cell apoptosis from 1.7% in control ovaries to 3.6% in Lats1 mutant ovaries and a 58% and 32% decrease in primordial and activated follicle numbers in cultured mutant ovaries. Surprisingly, there was an increase in Bmp15 but not Gdf9, Figla, Nobox transcripts or the somatic-specific transcripts Amh and Wnt4 in cultured Lats1 mutant ovaries. Last, Lats1 mutant ovaries developed ovarian cysts at a higher frequency (43%) than heterozygous (24%) and control ovaries (8%). Results showed that the Hippo pathway is active in ovarian follicles and that LATS1 is required to maintain the pool of germ cells and primordial follicles.
Metaphors for 'good' and 'bad' deaths:a health professional view

This paper discusses the metaphors used by sixteen palliative healthcare professionals from around the United Kingdom in semi-structured interviews to describe what they see as ‘good’ and ‘bad’ deaths. The interviews, conducted for the large-scale Metaphor in End-of-Life Care project, are set against the background of contemporary practices and discourses around end-of-life care, dying and quality of death. To date, the use of metaphor in descriptions of different types of deaths has not received much attention. Applying the Metaphor Identification Procedure (Pragglejaz Group, 2007) we find that the difference between good and bad deaths is partly expressed via different frequencies of contrasting metaphors, such as ‘peacefulness’ and ‘openness’ as opposed to ‘struggle’ and ‘pushing away’ professional help. We show how metaphors are used to: evaluate deaths and the dying; justify those evaluations; present a remarkably consistent view of different types of deaths; and promote a particular ‘framing’ of a good death, which is closely linked with the dominant sociocultural and professional contexts of our interviewees. We discuss the implications of these consistent evaluations and framings in broader end-of-life care contexts, and reflect on the significance of our findings for the role of metaphor in communication about sensitive experiences.
Ieee Computer Graphics and Applications Corporate Briefing Center Cinematic Meeting Facilities Using Large Displays

17 M ost people think of using large-display installations for highly technical visualization work such as scientific visualization of a large data set, process control, or technical design. In the past several years at Alias, we have investigated these types of applications, 1 for example, using large displays that let automotive stylists view and design on full-size displays of automobile exteriors. 2 Recently, however, we have begun extending our work with large-display technology into the domain of corporate meeting facilities. At our corporate headquarters in Toronto, we have designed and built the Alias Visualization Studio (the VizStudio), a unique meeting facility that makes use of large-display technology to support digital visual communication and collaboration with corporate clients, future customers , employees, and corporate partners (see Figure 1). We have discovered that using large displays in this type of corporate meeting facility produces its own unique set of challenges and solutions. Early in the conceptual design phase for the VizStudio we realized that we were not just designing a flexible meeting space but, more broadly, a user experience. Aligned with the premise from Pine and Gilmore's book, The Experience Economy, 3 our design approach was to consider a visitors' total experience, including arrival and initial impression, work requirements, all-day meeting needs, overall comfort, social needs, departure feelings , and so on. Moreover, in Computers as Theatre, Laurel proposes a theater metaphor for designing interactions with digital information. 4 Combining this metaphor with the experience approach and large-display technology has yielded a facility with many cine-matic and theatrical characteristics. In this article, we highlight the subtle but important interplay between large-display technologies, interior design, and social and corporate dynamics. A fundamental challenge for any company is to communicate , listen, and converse with its customers, employees, and partners. The aim of these communications is to build awareness, understanding, and shared goals and values between the various entities. For example , the company wants customers to understand its vision so that people can critique and provide input to the company, ultimately leading to the company building the right products for its markets. While advertising, sales campaigns, and Web sites help make customers aware of new products or features, there still remains a need to discuss with customers more general issues such as, where do you see your business going? and, how do you think our products should evolve to support the direction of …
Efficient Online Summarization of Microblogging Streams

The large amounts of data generated on microblogging services are making summarization challenging. Previous research has mostly focused on working in batches or with filtered streams. Input data has to be saved and analyzed several times, in order to detect underlying events and then summarize them. We improve the efficiency of this process by designing an online abstractive algorithm. Processing is done in a single pass, removing the need to save any input data and improving the running time. An online approach is also able to generate the summaries in real time, using the latest information. The algorithm we propose uses a word graph, along with optimization techniques such as decaying windows and pruning. It outperforms the baseline in terms of summary quality, as well as time and memory efficiency.
High performance image processing of satellite images using graphics processing units

This paper presents preliminary results of studies concerning possibilities of high performance processing of satellite images using graphics processing units. Even if numerical procedures used for this kind of computation are not complicated and fast, size of typical satellite scene makes them time consuming. This problem is especially troublesome when many, sometimes hundredths of scenes, have to be processed in one computational task. At the present state of the study, using distributed GPU-based computational infrastructure allows to reduce time of typical computation 5 to 6 times. It should be stressed that these results were obtained using three old CUDA 2.1 NVIDIA Quadro 1600M card cluster which efficiency cannot be compared to efficiency of modern GPUs.
An enhanced zero-forcing equalizer for combinerless LINC-OFDM systems

The energy efficiency of OFDM systems is known to be low due to the high peak-to-average power ratio problem. The linear-amplification-with-nonlinear-component (LINC) technique can solve the problem by decomposing the input signal into two constant-envelop component signals and applying high-efficient nonlinear amplifiers. However, the power combiner, a key component used to combine the amplified signals, is difficult to implement. Combinerless LINC systems employ two transmit antennas such that two component signals can be naturally combined at the receiver. Unfortunately, the performance of combinerless LINC-OFDM systems is seriously degraded if difference exists, even small, between the two channels that the two component signals propagate. In this paper, we propose an enhanced zero-forcing equalizer to solve this problem. The main idea is to reduce a self-interference induced by the channel difference. A closed-form expression for the optimum parameter of the proposed equalizer is also derived. Simulations show that the proposed equalizer can effectively enhance the performance of combinerless LINC-OFDM systems.
Wages of Wins: Could an Amateur Make Money from Match Outcome Predictions?

Evaluating the accuracies of models for match outcome predictions is nice and well but in the end the real proof is in the money to be made by betting. To evaluate the question whether the models developed by us could be used easily to make money via sports betting, we evaluate three cases: NCAAB post-season, NBA season, and NFL season, and find that it is possible yet not without its pitfalls. In particular , we illustrate that high accuracy does not automatically equal high pay-out, by looking at the type of match-ups that are predicted correctly by different models.
Modelling, simulation and optimization for a SThm nanoprobe

This paper presents modelling, simulation and optimization results for a novel SThm probe. The model takes into account thermo-electro-mechanical equations. Moreover, a tip-surface contact model derived by taking into account microscopic multi-asperity contact is proposed and discussed. Results of multi-objective optimization are reported, and finally a multi-scale model that should reduce the simulation time is stated.
Symbolic Meanings of Sex in Relationships: Developing the Meanings of Sexual Behavior Inventory

Consistent with symbolic interactionism and motivation research, the study explored the meanings of sexual behavior in romantic relationships in a sample of 3,003 online respondents. Starting with a pool of 104 respondent-generated items, Exploratory and Confirmatory Factor analyses in separate sample halves revealed a stable set of 9 dimensions within that item pool that formed 2 higher-order factors representing positive (to share pleasure, to bond, to de-stress, to energize the relationship, to learn more about each other) and negative (to manage conflict, as an incentive, to express anger, and to control partner) meanings of sexual behavior within relationships. Item Response Theory analyses helped select the 4–5 most effective items of each dimension for inclusion in the Meanings of Sexual Behavior Inventory (MoSBI). Generalizability analyses suggested that the MoSBI subscale scores continued to show high levels of internal consistency across a broad range of demographic subgroups (e.g., racial/ethnic groups, gay and lesbian respondents, and various levels of education). The MoSBI subscales demonstrated moderate and distinct patterns of association with a range of conceptual boundary scales (e.g., relationship and sexual satisfaction, emotional support, negative conflict behavior, and frequency of sexual behavior) suggesting that these scales represent novel relationship processes. Consistent with this, analyses in the 862 respondents completing a 2-month follow-up assessment suggested that the meanings of sexual behavior predicted residual change in relationship satisfaction, even after controlling for frequency of sexual behavior within the relationships. Implications are discussed.
Shoulder Strength and Range of Motion in Symptomatic and Pain-Free Elite Swimmers

To evaluate differences in shoulder strength and range of motion between painful and pain-free shoulders we examined two matched groups of athletes. Fifteen competitive swimmers were allocated to two groups. Group 1 consisted of seven swimmers with unilateral shoulder pain related to swimming (Neer and Welsh phase I to II). The control group (Group 2) consisted of eight swimmers with no present or previous history of shoulder pain. Concentric and eccentric internal rota tional torques were reduced in painful shoulders in between-group comparisons as well as in side-to-side comparisons. The decrease in internal rotational torque resulted in significantly greater concentric and eccentric external-to-internal rotational strength ratios of the painful shoulder in Group 1 swimmers compared with the controls. Furthermore, the functional ratio (ec centric external rotation:concentric internal rotation) was significantly greater in the painful shoulder in both between-group and side-to-side comparisons. Both groups of swimmers exhibited increased external range of motion and reduced internal range of motion compared with normalized data, but no between-group or side-to-side differences were detected. Our findings suggest that prevention or rehabilitation of swimmer's shoulder might not solely involve strengthening of the external rotators of the shoulder joint. Attention might also be drawn toward correction of a possible deficit in internal rotational strength. Changes in shoulder range of motion seem unrelated to the occurrence of shoul der pain.
Misdiagnosis in patients with diclofenac‐induced hemolysis: new cases and a concise review

Diclofenac has been implicated in many cases of life‐threatening immune hemolytic anemia (IHA). Nevertheless, confusion still occurs at the bedside and in the laboratory. Herein we report nine new patients and summarize all published cases (total, n = 61). Direct and indirect antiglobulin tests were performed according to standard procedures. Tests for drug‐dependent antibodies were performed in the presence and absence of the target drugs and their ex vivo antigens (in the urine of patients treated with the drug). Diclofenac‐ and/or ex‐vivo‐antigen‐dependent red cell antibodies were detected in all new cases. We identified nine new cases with diclofenac‐dependent IHA. All cases were initially suspected to have an abdominal illness and/or autoimmune hemolytic anemia of warm type. Acute renal failure was present in three of the 9 new patients and in 20 of 37 published patients. Seven of the 46 patients died (15%), and clinical information is lacking in 15 other published cases. Diclofenac‐dependent and/or ex‐vivo‐antigen‐dependent IHA should always be considered when a patient on diclofenac develops acute renal failure and/or IHA. Am. J. Hematol. 81:128–131, 2006. © 2006 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Quasi-Periodicity of the Black Sea Wind Spatial-Temporal Variability and its Relation with the North Atlantic Oscillation Phases

Quasi-periodic features of the inter-annual and inter-decadal spatial-temporal variability of the wind speed absolute value (W) in the Black Sea area are assessed based on a series of 60–100-year-long direct observations performed at eight coastal stations, and also on the reanalysis data obtained from the NDP-048, WDC, NCDC, NCEP/NCAR (1948–2011) and MERRA (1980–2015) arrays. Three groups of oscillations with the periods T about 60–90, 20–40 and 3–15 years that present in the W direct data are shown by means of the wavelet analysis. As for long-period oscillations (Т ~ 60–90 years), possible relations of such quasi-periodicity with the phases of the North Atlantic Oscillation index characterizing the atmospheric circulation features are investigated. Calculated according to the MERRA array reanalysis, the mean anomalies of January – February average W series separately for groups of years with the values of the NAO index > +1 and <-1 demonstrated in their dynamics the values of different signs for the same Black Sea areas. It is revealed that during the periods when the index positive phase is mainly predominant, the W positive anomaly is formed over the southwestern, south-eastern and eastern parts of the sea adjacent to the coast at a distance 20–100 km from it, and the W negative anomaly – over the rest of the sea. During the years when the index phase is mainly negative, the signs of the W anomalies over almost the same regions change to the opposite ones.
Multimodal References in GEORAL TACTILE

The paper specifically presents how linguistic (oral) and tactile references are dealt with in the GEORAL system which has already been described in other papers. In this system, users can formulate their queries and provide their responses using the oral (linguistic) modality and the tactile modality separately or together. We describe the referential phenomena which occur in such a context and we point out why the oral modality has to be the basis of the processing of the references and why robustness problems have to be dealt with. We then provide details about the three steps of the reference processing (linguistic analysis, processing of the tactile events and merging process) as well as the modeling of the communicative acts used in the system (as planning operators).
Using multicast-SNMP to coordinate distributed management agents

This paper presents a mechanism that allows one to implement coordination primitives for cooperating management agents based on the Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP). The multicast extensions presented in this paper allow one to maintain group information of cooperating SNMP agents. We also show how an election algorithm can be implemented by multicasting SNMP messages. Election algorithms can be seen as a base functionality for the implementation of fully distributed management applications.
Finite Element Simulation of Saturated-Unsaturated Subsurface Flow

A two-dimensional transient model for flow through saturated-unsaturated porous media is developed, The nodel numerically solves the pressure head dependent or moisture content dependent form of Richard's equation. The model code uses isoparametric quadratic triangular and/or quadrilateral finite elements for the geometric representation and for the weak Galerkin spacial integrations. An implicit, unconditionally stable single-step numerical time integration scheme with an oscilliatory noise reduction option is utilized for the temporal discretization. The highly efficient symmetric skyline (profile) solution scheme is used to solve the resulting s irr.ultar. eous equations. The nonlinear subsurface flow parameters are approximated using cubic spline interpolation. The ele~ent material properties can be independently defined thus permitting the modelling of layered geologic formations, Derivative smoothing is presented for the post-calculation of Darcian velocities. Currently, the program is limited to time varying specification of pressure head or moisture content and fluxes. Several sample problems are presented illustrating the accuracy and validity of the developed model.
A residual deficit for global motion processing after acuity recovery in deprivation amblyopia.

PURPOSE In a case of bilateral deprivation amblyopia due to congenital cataracts, the global motion sensitivity for stimuli that were well within the passband of the amblyopic visual system were assessed. METHODS A stochastic global motion stimulus was used, comprising spatially narrow elements with varied spatial frequency, density, contrast, and area distribution. To determine threshold, a two-alternate, forced-choice direction discrimination task was used. RESULTS There was a selective deficit for global motion processing that was not due to the visibility of the stimuli and was nonselective for spatial scale. The eye with the more complete recovery (acuity 20/20) from pattern deprivation in childhood exhibited the more severe global motion deficit. discussion. The results suggest a primary extrastriate deficit in the dorsal pathway, possibly involving the middle temporal (MT) and the medial superior temporal (MST) cortical areas, that is unrelated to the acuity deficit thought to be in area V1. A similar deficit has recently been shown in strabismic amblyopia.
Automatic validation of terminology translation consistenscy with statistical method

This paper presents a novel method to automatically validate terminology consistency in localized materials. The goal of the paper is two-fold. First, we explore a way to extract phrase pair translations for compound nouns from a bilingual corpus using word alignment data. To validate the quality of the extracted phrase pair translations, we use a Gaussian mixture model (GMM) classifier. Second, we quantify consistency of translation as a measurement of quality. With this approach, a quality assurance process for terminology translation can be fully automated. It can also be used for maintaining bilingual training data quality for machine translation.
On the Minimum Differential Feedback for Time-Correlated MIMO Rayleigh Block-Fading Channels

In this paper, we investigate the differential channel state information (CSI) feedback problem for a general multiple input multiple output (MIMO) system over time-correlated Rayleigh block-fading channels. Specifically, we derive the closed-form minimum differential feedback rate in the presence of channel estimation errors and quantization distortion. With the feedback-channel capacity constraint, we further study the ergodic capacity in a periodic feedback system in terms of the minimum differential feedback rate and the feedback interval. Through theoretical analysis, we find that there exists an optimal differential feedback interval to achieve the maximum ergodic capacity. Analytical results are verified by simulations in a practical periodic differential feedback system employing water-filling precoder and Lloyd's quantization algorithm.
Insight into the Structure of Amyloid Fibrils from the Analysis of Globular Proteins

The conversion from soluble states into cross-β fibrillar aggregates is a property shared by many different proteins and peptides and was hence conjectured to be a generic feature of polypeptide chains. Increasing evidence is now accumulating that such fibrillar assemblies are generally characterized by a parallel in-register alignment of β-strands contributed by distinct protein molecules. Here we assume a universal mechanism is responsible for β-structure formation and deduce sequence-specific interaction energies between pairs of protein fragments from a statistical analysis of the native folds of globular proteins. The derived fragment–fragment interaction was implemented within a novel algorithm, prediction of amyloid structure aggregation (PASTA), to investigate the role of sequence heterogeneity in driving specific aggregation into ordered self-propagating cross-β structures. The algorithm predicts that the parallel in-register arrangement of sequence portions that participate in the fibril cross-β core is favoured in most cases. However, the antiparallel arrangement is correctly discriminated when present in fibrils formed by short peptides. The predictions of the most aggregation-prone portions of initially unfolded polypeptide chains are also in excellent agreement with available experimental observations. These results corroborate the recent hypothesis that the amyloid structure is stabilised by the same physicochemical determinants as those operating in folded proteins. They also suggest that side chain–side chain interaction across neighbouring β-strands is a key determinant of amyloid fibril formation and of their self-propagating ability.