Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Smoothing and Equating Methods Applied to Different Types of Test Score Distributions and Evaluated with Respect to Multiple Equating Criteria. Research Report. ETS RR-11-20.

In equating research and practice, equating functions that are smooth are typically assumed to be more accurate than equating functions with irregularities. This assumption presumes that population test score distributions are relatively smooth. In this study, two examples were used to reconsider common beliefs about smoothing and equating. The first example involves a relatively smooth population test score distribution and the second example involves a population test score distribution with systematic irregularities. Various smoothing and equating methods (presmoothing, equipercentile, kernel, and postsmoothing) were compared across the two examples with respect to how well the test score distributions were reflected in the equating functions, the smoothness of the equating functions, and the standard errors of equating. The smoothing and equating methods performed more similarly in the first example than in the second example. The results of the second example illustrate that when dealing with systematically irregular test score distributions, smoothing and equating methods can be used in different ways to satisfy different equating criteria.
Emotional and social functioning after stroke in childhood: a systematic review

Abstract Purpose To provide an overview of the effects of pediatric stroke on emotional and social functioning in childhood. Methods A literature review was completed in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews. A systematic search of studies on internalizing problems and social functioning after pediatric stroke in PsycInfo, PsycArticles, and PubMed databases was conducted from inception to November 2021. A total of 583 studies were identified, and 32 met the inclusion criteria. Results The review suggests that children after stroke are at risk of developing internalizing problems and a wide range of social difficulties. Internalizing problems are often associated with environmental factors such as family functioning and parents’ mental health. In addition, a higher risk of developing psychosocial problems is associated with lower cognitive functioning and severe neurological impairment. Conclusions The assessment of psychological well-being and social functioning after pediatric stroke is helpful to provide adequate support to children and their families. Future studies are needed to better investigate these domains and to develop adequate methodologies for specific interventions. Implication for rehabilitation This paper reviews research concerning emotional and social functioning following pediatric stroke in order to provide helpful information to clinicians and families and to improve rehabilitation pathways. Emotional and social functioning should be addressed during post-stroke evaluation and follow-up, even when physical and cognitive recovery is progressing well. Care in pediatric stroke should include volitional treatment and address emotional and social issues.
Stepping up with GGIR: Validity of step cadence derived from wrist-worn research-grade accelerometers using the verisense step count algorithm

ABSTRACT The Verisense Step Count Algorithm facilitates generation of steps from wrist-worn accelerometers. Based on preliminary evidence suggesting a proportional bias with overestimation at low steps/day, but underestimation at high steps/day, the algorithm parameters have been revised. We aimed to establish validity of the original and revised algorithms relative to waist-worn ActiGraph step cadence. We also assessed whether step cadence was similar across accelerometer brand and wrist. Ninety-eight participants (age: 58.6±11.1 y) undertook six walks (~500 m hard path) at different speeds (cadence: 92.9±9.5–127.9±8.7 steps/min) while wearing three accelerometers on each wrist (Axivity, GENEActiv, ActiGraph) and an ActiGraph on the waist. Of these, 24 participants also undertook one run (~1000 m). Mean bias for the original algorithm was −21 to −26.1 steps/min (95% limits of agreement (LoA) ~±65 steps/min) and mean absolute percentage error (MAPE) 17–22%. This was unevenly distributed with increasing error as speed increased. Mean bias and 95%LoA were halved with the revised algorithm parameters (~-10 to −12 steps/min, 95%LoA ~30 steps/min, MAPE ~10-12%). Performance was similar across brand and wrist. The revised step algorithm provides a more valid measure of step cadence than the original, with MAPE similar to recently reported wrist-wear summary MAPE (7–11%).
A “transmission gap” between research and practice? A Q-methodology study of perceptions of the application of attachment theory among clinicians working with children and among attachment researchers

ABSTRACT Clinical practitioners are frequently encouraged, through literature, training, and policy, to learn, understand, refer to and use their knowledge of attachment theory and research when working to meet the needs of children and families. However, there has been very little empirical study of how practitioners understand and perceive the relevance of attachment concepts and methods. Q-methodology was used to examine the perceptions of attachment knowledge and its applications for practice among 30 UK clinicians working with children and an international group of 31 attachment researchers. Factor analysis revealed three perspectives, described as: i) pragmatic, developmental, and uncertain, ii) academic, and iii) autodidactic and therapeutic. Participants agreed on core tenants of theory, their aspirations for clinical practice and the inaccessibility of current assessment measures for practitioners. Yet they diverged on their understandings of attachment insecurity, disorganisation, and the implications of both for various aspects of child development.
Obliquely interacting solitary waves

Nonlinear oblique interactions between two slightly dispersive gravity waves (in particular, solitary waves) of dimensionless amplitudes α1 and α2 (relative to depth) and relative inclination 2ϕ (between wave normals) are classified as weak if sin2ϕ α1,2 or strong if ϕ2 = O(α1,2). Weak interactions permit superposition of the individual solutions of the Korteweg-de Vries equation in first approximation; the interaction term, which is O(α1α2), then is determined from these basic solutions. Strong interactions are intrinsically nonlinear. It is shown that these interactions are phase-conserving (the sum of the phases of the incoming waves is equal to the sum of the phases of the outgoing waves) if |α2-α1 > (2ϕ)2 but not if |α2-α1| (2ϕ)2 (e.g. the reflexion problem, for which the interacting waves are images and α2 = α1). It also is shown that the interactions are singular, in the sense that regular incoming waves with sech2 profiles yield singular outgoing waves with - csch2 profiles, if \[ \psi_{-}< |\psi| < \psi_{+},\quad{\rm where}\quad\psi_{\pm}={\textstyle\frac{1}{2}}\left|(3\alpha_2)^{\frac{1}{2}}\pm(3\alpha_1)^{\frac{1}{2}}\right|. \] Regular interactions appear to be impossible within this singular regime, and its end points, |ϕ| = ϕ±, are associated with resonant interactions.
In through the Out Exit: the Role of the Exocyst in Listeria monocytogenes Cell Entry

The intracellular pathogen Listeria monocytogenes is one of the leading causes of death from foodborne illness in the United States. Internalin A is the key surface protein that drives Listeria uptake by epithelial cells expressing E-cadherin. ABSTRACT The intracellular pathogen Listeria monocytogenes is one of the leading causes of death from foodborne illness in the United States. Internalin A is the key surface protein that drives Listeria uptake by epithelial cells expressing E-cadherin. G. C. Gyanwali, T. U. B. Herath, A. Gianfelice, and K. Ireton (Infect Immun 90:e00326-22, 2022, https://doi.org/10.1128/iai.00326-22) unravel the close relationship between internalin A and the exocyst, adding another layer of complexity to the bacterial internalization process.
PPARγ Acetylation Orchestrates Adipose Plasticity and Metabolic Rhythms

Systemic glucose metabolism and insulin activity oscillate in response to diurnal rhythms and nutrient availability with the necessary involvement of adipose tissue to maintain metabolic homeostasis. However, the adipose‐intrinsic regulatory mechanism remains elusive. Here, the dynamics of PPARγ acetylation in adipose tissue are shown to orchestrate metabolic oscillation in daily rhythms. Acetylation of PPARγ displays a diurnal rhythm in young healthy mice, with the peak at zeitgeber time 0 (ZT0) and the trough at ZT18. This rhythmic pattern is deranged in pathological conditions such as obesity, aging, and circadian disruption. The adipocyte‐specific acetylation‐mimetic mutation of PPARγ K293Q (aKQ) restrains adipose plasticity during calorie restriction and diet‐induced obesity, associated with proteolysis of a core circadian component BMAL1. Consistently, the rhythmicity in glucose tolerance and insulin sensitivity is altered in aKQ and the complementary PPARγ deacetylation‐mimetic K268R/K293R (2KR) mouse models. Furthermore, the PPARγ acetylation‐sensitive downstream target adipsin is revealed as a novel diurnal factor that destabilizes BMAL1 and mediates metabolic rhythms. These findings collectively signify that PPARγ acetylation is a hinge connecting adipose plasticity and metabolic rhythms, the two determinants of metabolic health.
Designing Intergenerational Spaces: What to Learn From Children

Objectives: Adopting recommendations of the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child, this study addresses the value of children’s input on the architectural design of the built environment of intergenerational shared sites and the intergenerational interactions that took place there. Background: Intergenerational programs bring children and older adults together, inviting them to interact, exchange ideas and support each other. Most intergenerational programs are planned by staff and often take place in a multipurpose room without direct input from child or older adult participants. Methods: Data for this study were collected through interviews and drawings from 16 children at three intergenerational centers in Hawaii, Kansas, and Virginia. The interviews were transcribed, analyzed, coded, and categorized. Child development experts analyzed the drawings to better understand how children experience their surrounding environment. Results: Four themes emerged from the triangulated data: (1) outdoor spaces offer rich opportunities for shared programming, (2) children enjoy sharing meals and snacks with intergenerational partners, (3) children recognize environmental features that facilitate or limit intergenerational interaction, and (4) varied spaces support to informal, brief intergenerational interaction. Our findings provide evidence in the value of involving children in designing intergenerational centers and programming. Conclusion: The children who participated in this study provided meaningful insight reflecting the experience of intergenerational activities and the impacts of the built environment on the quality and variety of these interactions.
Evidence for the decay 
B0→pp¯π0

We report a search for the charmless baryonic decay $B^0\to p\bar{p}\pi^0$ with a data sample corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 711~$\rm fb^{-1}$ containing $(772\pm 10)\times 10^6$ $B^0\bar{B}^0$ pairs. The data was collected by the Belle experiment running on the $\Upsilon(4S)$ resonance at the KEKB $e^+e^-$ collider. We measure a branching fraction $\mathcal{B}(B^0\to p\bar{p}\pi^0)= (5.0\pm1.8\pm0.6 )\times 10^{-7}$, where the first uncertainty is statistical and the second is systematic. The signal has a significance of 3.1 standard deviations and constitutes the first evidence for this decay mode. We also search for the intermediate two-body decays $B^{0}\to\Delta^+\bar{p}$ and $B^0\to\bar{\Delta}^-p$, and set an upper limit on the branching fraction: $\mathcal{B}(B^0\to \Delta^+\bar{p})+\mathcal{B}(B^0\to\bar{\Delta}^-p)<1.6\times10^{-6}$ at 90% confidence level.
Kaon semileptonic decay form-factors in two-flavor QCD

We present a calculation of the kaon form factors in two-flavor QCD with the non-perturbatively O(a)-improved Wilson quark action. In order to achieve a few percent accuracy in the study of SU(3) breaking effects, we use a set of double ratios of the matrix elements, with which the bulk of the statistical fluctuation and the multiplicative renormalization factors cancel.
Stable and Unstable Accretion Flows with Angular Momentum near a Point Mass

The properties of axisymmetric accretion flows of cold adiabatic gas with zero total energy in the vicinity of a Newtonian point mass are characterized by a single dimensionless parameter, the thickness of incoming flow. In the limit of thin accretion flows with vanishing thickness, we show that the governing equations become self-similar, involving no free parameters. We study numerically thin accretion flows with finite thickness as well as those with vanishing thickness. Mass elements of the incoming flow enter the computational regime as thin rings. In the case with finite thickness, after a transient period of initial adjustment, an almost steady-state accretion shock with a small oscillation amplitude forms, confirming the previous work by Molteni, Lanzafame, \& Chakrabarti (1994). The gas in the region of vorticity between the funnel wall and the accretion shock follows closed streamlines, forming a torus. This torus, in turn, behaves as an effective barrier to the incoming flow and supports the accretion shock which reflects the incoming gas away from the equatorial plane. The postshock flow, which is further accelerated by the pressure gradient behind the shock, goes through a second shock which then reflects the flow away from the symmetry axis to form a conical outgoing wind. As the thickness of the inflowing layer decreases (or if the ratio of the half thickness to the distance to the funnel wall along the equatorial plan is smaller than $\sim0.1$), the flow becomes unstable. In the case with vanishing thickness, the accretion shock formed to stop the incoming flow behind the funnel wall oscillates quasi-periodically with an amplitude comparable to the thickness. The structure between the funnel wall and the accretion shock is destroyed as the shock moves inwards toward the central mass and re-generated
On the choice of lens density profile in time delay cosmography

Time delay lensing is a mature and competitive cosmological probe. However, it is limited in accuracy by the well-known problem of the mass-sheet degeneracy: too rigid assumptions on the density profile of the lens can potentially bias the inference on cosmological parameters. I investigate the degeneracy between the choice of the lens density profile and the inference on the Hubble constant, focusing on double image systems. By expanding lensing observables in terms of the local derivatives of the lens potential around the Einstein radius, and assuming circular symmetry, I show that three degrees of freedom in the radial direction are necessary to achieve a few percent accuracy in the time-delay distance. Additionally, while the time delay is strongly dependent on the second derivative of the potential, observables typically used to constrain lens models in time-delay studies, such as image position and radial magnification information, are mostly sensitive to the first and third derivatives, making it very challenging to accurately determine time-delay distances with lensing data alone. Tests on mock observations show that the assumption of a power-law density profile results in a 5% average bias on $H_0$, with a 6% scatter. Using a more flexible model and adding unbiased velocity dispersion constraints allows to obtain an inference with 1% accuracy. A power-law model can still provide 3% accuracy if velocity dispersion measurements are used to constrain its slope. Although this work is based on the assumption of axisymmetry, its main findings can be generalized to cases with moderate ellipticity.
The Stellar Mass Function of Galaxies to z ~ 5 in the FORS Deep and GOODS-South Fields

We present a measurement of the evolution of the stellar mass function (MF) of galaxies and the evolution of the total stellar mass density at 0 < z < 5, extending previous measurements to higher redshift and fainter magnitudes (and lower masses). We use deep multicolor data in the FORS Deep Field (FDF; I-selected reaching IAB ~ 26.8) and the Great Observatories Origins Deep Survey-South (GOODS-S)/Chandra Deep Field-South region (K-selected reaching KAB ~ 25.4) to estimate stellar masses based on fits to composite stellar population models for 5557 and 3367 sources, respectively. The MF of objects from the K-selected GOODS-S sample is very similar to that of the I-selected FDF down to the completeness limit of the GOODS-S sample. Near-IR-selected surveys hence detect the more massive objects of the same principal population as do I-selected surveys. We find that the most massive galaxies harbor the oldest stellar populations at all redshifts. At low z, our MF follows the local MF very well, extending the local MF down by a decade to 108 M☉. Furthermore, the faint-end slope is consistent with the local value of α ~ 1.1 at least up to z ~ 1.5. Our MF also agrees very well with the Munich Near-Infrared Cluster Survey and K20 results at z ≲ 2. The MF seems to evolve in a regular way at least up to z ~ 2, with the normalization decreasing by 50% to z = 1 and by 70% to z = 2. Objects with M > 1010 M☉, which are the likely progenitors of today's L > L* galaxies, are found in much smaller numbers above z ~ 2. However, we note that massive galaxies with M > 1011 M☉ are present even to the largest redshift we probe. Beyond z ~ 2, the evolution of the MF becomes more rapid. We find that the total stellar mass density at z = 1 is 50% of the local value. At z = 2, 25% of the local mass density is assembled, and at z = 3 and z = 5, we find that at least 15% and 5% of the mass in stars is in place, respectively. The number density of galaxies with M > 1011 M☉ evolves very similarly to the evolution at lower masses. It decreases by 0.4 dex to z ~ 1, by 0.6 dex to z ~ 2, and by 1 dex to z ~ 4.
The ever-surprising blazar OJ 287: multi-wavelength study and appearance of a new component in X-rays

We present a multi-wavelength spectral and temporal investigation of OJ 287 emission during its strong optical-to-X-ray activity between July 2016 - July 2017. The daily $\gamma$-ray fluxes from \emph{Fermi}-LAT are consistent with no variability. The strong optical-to-X-ray variability is accompanied by a change in power-law spectral index of the X-ray spectrum from $ 2$, with variations often associated with changes in optical polarization properties. Cross-correlations between optical-to-X-ray emission during four continuous segments show simultaneous optical-ultraviolet (UV) variations while the X-ray and UV/optical are simultaneous only during the middle two segments. In the first segment, the results suggest X-rays lag the optical/UV, while in the last segment X-rays lead by $\sim$ 5-6 days. The last segment also shows a systematic trend with variations appearing first at higher energies followed by lower energy ones. The LAT spectrum before the VHE activity is similar to preceding quiescent state spectrum while it hardens during VHE activity period and is consistent with the extrapolated VHE spectrum during the latter. Overall, the broadband spectral energy distributions (SEDs) during high activity periods are a combination of a typical OJ 287 SED and an HBL SED, and can be explained in a two-zone leptonic model, with the second zone located at parsec scales, beyond the broad line region, being responsible for the HBL-like spectrum. The change of polarization properties from systematic to chaotic and back to systematic, before, during and after the VHE activity, suggest dynamic roles for magnetic fields and turbulence.
The complete chloroplast genome sequence of Persicaria perfoliata (L.) H. Gross: a medicinal plant

Abstract Persicaria perfoliata (L.) H. Gross is an herbal medicine with a long history of common use in China. In this study, we sequenced and assembled the complete chloroplast genome sequence of P. perfoliata and investigated its phylogenetic relationship in the family Polygonaceae. The total genome size is 160,585 bp in length with 37.96% GC content, consisting of a small single-copy (SSC) of 12,876 bp, a large single-copy (LSC) of 85,439 bp, and two inverted repeats (IRs) of 31,135 bp. The cp genome contains 128 genes, including 35 tRNA genes, eight rRNA genes, and 85 protein-coding genes. The phylogenetic tree showed that P. perfoliata was closely related to P. maackiana, and Persicaria exhibited a closer relationship with Bistorta in the family Polygonaceae. This work provides a molecular basis for investigating the evolutionary status, phylogenetic relationships, and population genetics of this species.
The Faint End of the Centaurus A Satellite Luminosity Function

The Panoramic Imaging Survey of Centaurus and Sculptor (PISCeS) is constructing a wide-field map of the resolved stellar populations in the extended halos of these two nearby, prominent galaxies. We present new Magellan/Megacam imaging of a ∼3 deg2 area around Centaurus A (Cen A), which filled in much of our coverage to its south, leaving a nearly complete halo map out to a projected radius of ∼150 kpc and allowing us to identify two new resolved dwarf galaxies. We have additionally obtained deep Hubble Space Telescope (HST) optical imaging of 11 out of the 13 candidate dwarf galaxies identified around Cen A and presented in Crnojević et al. 2016a: seven are confirmed to be satellites of Cen A, while four are found to be background galaxies. We derive accurate distances, structural parameters, luminosities, and photometric metallicities for the seven candidates confirmed by our HST/ACS imaging. We further study the stellar population along the ∼60 kpc long (in projection) stream associated with Dw3, which likely had an initial brightness of MV ∼ −15 and shows evidence for a metallicity gradient along its length. Using the total sample of 11 dwarf satellites discovered by the PISCeS survey, as well as 13 brighter previously known satellites of Cen A, we present a revised galaxy luminosity function for the Cen A group down to a limiting magnitude of MV ∼ −8, which has a slope of −1.14 ± 0.17, comparable to that seen in the Local Group and in other nearby groups of galaxies.