Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Concurrent Sourcing in Local Public Services: Theory, Evidence and Avenues for Future Research

HAL is a multi-disciplinary open access archive for the deposit and dissemination of scientific research documents, whether they are published or not. The documents may come from teaching and research institutions in France or abroad, or from public or private research centers. L’archive ouverte pluridisciplinaire HAL, est destinée au dépôt et à la diffusion de documents scientifiques de niveau recherche, publiés ou non, émanant des établissements d’enseignement et de recherche français ou étrangers, des laboratoires publics ou privés. Concurrent Sourcing in Local Public Services: Theory, Evidence and Avenues for Future Research Simon Porcher
Personality traits in late-life depression: from group comparison to individual trajectories

The concept of personality is gradually shifting from the stability of a categorical model of personality disorders towards a dimensional model (DSM-V). Personality traits, as defined by the Five-Factor Model (FFM, Costa & McCrae, 1992), impact on the clinical expression and outcome of late-life depression. They predict remission of depressive symptoms, clinical progress and improved quality of life in old age. Neuroticism is a predictor of depression, even after adjusting for physical burden and subjective impact of life stressors. Personality dimensions are associated with quality of life in old age, but not in young age, after controlling for acute depression features, physical health and psychosocial variables. FFM dimensions influence the poor recognition of late-life depression in old age patients by general hospital physicians. The dimensional FFM of personality offers a promising theoretical framework for clinicians who wish to adopt a person-centred approach that takes into account the patients’ individual differences.
ePubWU Institutional Repository

Reschenhofer, Erhard and Hauser, Michael A. (1997) Tests of the Efficient Markets Hypothesis. Austrian Journal of Statistics, 26 (1). p. 31. ISSN 1026597X This version is available at: https://epub.wu. ac.at/6613/ Available in ePubWU: October 2018 License: Creative Commons: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) ePubWU, the institutional repository of the WU Vienna University of Economics and Business, is provided by the University Library and the IT-Services. The aim is to enable open access to the scholarly output of the WU. This document is the publisher-created published version.
PPA_A_232935 2217..2224

Zi Chen Jia-Li Zhou Wei Liu Hui-Dan Yu 1School of Health Sciences, Wuhan University, Wuhan, Hubei 430071, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Cardiovascular Medicine, Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan, Hubei 430060, People’s Republic of China Objective: Patients with coronary artery disease (CAD) are susceptible to the negative emotion and its adverse influence on the disease prognosis. It is of great necessity to have a simple measurement to timely assess negative emotions in patients with CAD. The Negative Emotions due to Chronic Illness Screening Test (NECIS) is a newly developed tool to measure negative emotions. However, the construct validity has not been established yet. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to test the construct validity of the NECIS in individuals with CAD in mainland China. Methods: The tool was administered in a convenience sample of 376 patients with CAD hospitalized in three general hospitals in Wuhan City, China. Construct validity was evaluated through factorial validity, convergent validity and discriminant validity. Additionally, the assumed relationship between negative emotions with other associated variables (perceived control and perceived social support) was tested to provide additional evidence of the construct validity of the NECIS. Results: Exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis established and confirmed a two-factorial structure of the NECIS. Convergent validity and discriminant validity of the NECIS were proven to be adequate. Two hypotheses regarding the relationship between negative emotions and associated variables (perceived control and perceived social support) were confirmed, which supported the satisfactory construct validity of the NECIS. Conclusion: The NECIS had sound construct validity when applied to patients with CAD in mainland China. This study added new knowledge regarding the construct validity of the NECIS, which supported its psychometric properties for future use.
Studies on the Dynamic Changes of the Level of IL-2,IFN-γ and TNF-α in Porcine Serum after Heat Stress

The effect of heat stress on the level of IL-2,IFN-γ and TNF-α in porcine serum were investigated in this study.Twelve healthy three-month-old pigs were divided into two groups at random,heat stress group and control group.The two groups were put into different AGCs(artificial climate chambers),one of which simulated high temperature in summer(the temperature changed from 26 ℃ to 39 ℃ and lasted four hours at 39 ℃),the other always keep at 22 ℃. The experiment lasted ten days and in the 1st,3rd,5th,7th and 9th day,5 mL blood were drawn out of jugular vein soon after 39 ℃ heat stress and level of IL-2,IFNγ and TNF-α in porcine serum was determined by using ELISA.Contrast with the control group,the level of IL-2 in porcine serum of heat stress group increased dramatically(P0.05) on the 1st and the 3rd day after heat stress;The level of IFN-γ in porcine serum decreased dramatically(P0.05) on the 3rd and the 5th day;The level of TNF-α in porcine serum of heat stress group increased,but not dramatically.With the experiment going,the level of IL-2,IFN-γ and TNF-α in porcine serum of heat stress group increased or decreased gradually.On the 10th day,the level of these cytokines of the two groups was similar.The data presented indicated that heat stress restrained immune functions and the conclusion was in accordance with forepassed reports.
Criopreservación de semen de bagre rayado Pseudoplatystoma magdaleniatum con tres diferentes crioprotectores

El objetivo fue criopreservar semen de bagre rayado Pseudoplatystoma magdaleniatum con tres crioprotectores internos diferentes: dimetilsulfóxido (DMSO), dimetilacatamida (DMA) y etilenglicol (ETG) a dos porcentajes de inclusiones (5 y 10%), combinados con glucosa 6%, leche en polvo descremada 3% y vitamina E (0,4%). Cinco machos en fase de espermiación fueron inducidos con 0,4 ml de Ovaprim®/Kg. El semen fue diluido en la solución crioprotectora (1:3) en tubos de 2,5 ml, congelado en vapores de nitrógeno y descongelado a 35°C durante 90 segundos. El análisis estadístico incluyó un diseño factorial 3x2 y semen fresco (SF) como tratamiento testigo. En semen fresco, precongelado y descongelado se evaluó la movilidad total (Mt), tipos de movilidad, progresividad total y velocidades espermáticas con la ayuda de Sperm Class Analyzer SCA®. El SF registró volumen de 6,1±4,3 ml, Mt de 72,6±17,1%, activación de 31,2±2,1 segundos y concentración espermática de 54,7±22,9 millones/μl. En semen precongelado, el crioprotector (p<0,05) y porcentaje de inclusión (p<0,01), pero no su interacción, tuvieron un efecto significativo en la Mt, velocidad curvilínea (VCL) y velocidad lineal (VSL); mientras que en semen descongelado sólo la interacción de los factores (p<0,05) fue significativa en Mt, porcentajes de espermatozoide estáticos y VCL. La Mt cayó entre 36-67% en semen precongelado y entre 74-86% en semen descongelado con relación a SF. Los resultados sugieren que DMSO, DMA y ETG incluidos a 5 o 10%, combinados con leche en polvo 3%, glucosa 6% y vitamina E 0,4% son alternativas viables de criopreservación del semen de bagre rayado.
Black-flanked rock-wallaby: Potential for dietary competition with sympatric western grey kangaroo

Overabundant western grey kangaroo Macropus fuliginosus are known to impact agriculture, but how are they impacting threatened fauna sharing their habitat? In Paruna Wildlife Sanctuary, southwest Western Australia, kangaroos are suspected of competing with the sympatric and endangered black-flanked rock-wallaby Petrogale lateralis lateralis, however there is no research to support this. If kangaroos are negatively impacting rock-wallabies, kangaroo densities may need to be managed to ameliorate competitive pressures on rock-wallabies. We investigated the potential for dietary competition between M. fuliginosus and P. l. lateralis by measuring the overlap in their diets and foraging patches, as well as food resource availability. A combination of scat analysis, motion sensor camera trapping and vegetation surveys were employed. Petrogale lateralis lateralis diets were dominated by forbs and overlapped with those of M. fuliginosus which featured mostly browse and forbs (Schoener index: 0.56). Some of their shared preferred food resources were spatially and/or temporally limited. Their foraging patches also overlapped (33.9%), however these macropod species predominantly used different areas of the outcrop. Evidence over the duration of the study indicates potential for low levels of dietary competition, however the availability of shared food resources and resource partitioning suggest that P. l. lateralis were not being adversely impacted. In terms of the threatening processes limiting P. l. lateralis recovery, predation has been ranked higher than competition, a finding that is likely supported by the present study. This will likely remain true even if M. fuliginosus densities increase in the future. Conservation actions should therefore continue to prioritise the mitigation of predation threats to P. l. lateralis populations.
A Review of Permissible Computing in Education, values, assumptions, and needs

Research has shown that there are challenges associated with the various uses of computers in education from an educational technology perspective (Dintoe, 2018; Lockhard & Abrams, 2004). Ragsdale (1988) showed that the successful use of computers depends on the willingness of education institutions (schools, colleges, universities, or other organizations), faculty, students/learners and parents to collaboratively work together to meet common goals. Although Ragsdale wrote this book in 1988, this book review discusses its value and relevance in terms of current educational technology use for pedagogies. Ragsdale’s purpose in this book was to “make explicit some of the value bases that support the various uses of computers in education”. The author shares his views on “Permissible Computing in Education, Values, Assumptions and Needs”. He argues that the assumptions that science and technology should be seen as ‘value-free pragmatism’ in terms of using tools and procedures for work are partly true. He further notes that values and needs are influenced by the use of science, emphasizing that permissible things, such as computers in education might not be beneficial or constructive. Therefore, the purpose of this book review is to discuss how Ragsdale’s book relates to the current literature on computers use in pedagogies and the strengths, weaknesses and/or areas not identified or those that are identified but not discussed in detail.
Chronic Fatigue, Unrefreshing Sleep, and Nocturnal Polysomnography

Patients with chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) complain of fatigue and, often, poor-quality sleep. However, studies have not shown a consistent association between CFS and either sleep apnea or excessive sleepiness. In this study, researchers examined the association between CFS and less-frequently used measures of disordered sleep, such as rate of cyclic alternating patterns (CAP) and quantitative EEG …
THE EFFECTS OF GAPS AND DISPARITIES ON ECONOMIC GROWTH. A STUDY OF 10 FORMER SOCIALIST COUNTRIES FROM CENTRAL EASTERN EUROPE, MEMBERS OF THE EU

The goal of this research paper is to empirically assess the potential effects of macroeconomic determinants of economic growth and to determine the impact of income inequality on economic growth in the long-run in ten former socialist countries from Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) which are members of the European Union (EU) during the period 2006-2014, using the System Generalized Method of Moments (GMM) as the research method. In order to achieve all the desired research objectives the following explanatory variables were used: income inequality (Gini Index), foreign direct investments (FDI), education, research and development expenditure, exports, population growth, labour productivity, tax rate, inflation rate and the Corruption Perception Index (CPI). The dependent variable employed in the empirical analysis, a proxy for the economic growth, is GDP per capita growth (annual %). The main finding of this paper’s investigations is that income inequality has a positive and statistically significant impact on economic growth and a 1% increase in the Gini coefficient enhances the GDP by 0.68% in the ten former socialist Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries which are members of the European Union (EU) during the period 2006-2014.
Somatic growth and age of selected commercial fish species of the Cullera Coast, Iberian Peninsula, south-east Spain

This work provides data on the somatic growth and age of selected commercial fish species of the Cullera Coast, Spain. The biological information available that permits responsible fishing management of these species is relatively scarce. This study was conducted in the Bay of Cullera, Spain (39º 12’to 38º 59’N, and 0º 09’to 0º 15’W); and selected benthic fish species were analysed that are frequently fished by trammel nets (mesh size 28-76 mm) at a maximum depth of 30 m. Maturity , age and growth of 63 torpedoes, Torpedo torpedo (L., 1758), 115 red scorpionfish, Scorpaena scrofa Linnaeus, 1758, 280 red mullets, Mullus surmuletus Linnaeus, 1758, 139 stargazers, Uranoscopus scaber Linnaeus, 1758, and 476 Portuguese soles, Dagetichthys lusitanicus de Brito Capello, 1868 were analysed. The data obtained in this study revealed that 50% of individuals of all the species reached sexual maturity at a TL (total length) of 20.0-36.5 cm and at an age of 2-6 years. The von Bertalanffy growth equation derived were: TL=37.0 (1 - e(-0.2(t + 0.33))); TL =31.5(1 - e(-0.38(t + 0.54))); TL =35.5(1 - e(-0.2(t + 2.08))); and TL =34.3(1 - e(-0.14(t + 2.16))) for S. scrofa, M. surmuletus; U. scaber and D. lusitanicus respectively.
Date of publication xxxx 00, 0000, date of current version xxxx 00, 0000

Deep neural networks have shown high accuracy on image classification tasks while being difficult to train. Due to its complexity and vanishing gradient, it usually takes a long time and a lot of computational resources to train deeper neural networks. Deep Residual Networks (ResNets) introduced by Microsoft Research can make the training process quicker and easier while achieving significantly improved accuracy as compared to their equivalent plain neural networks. Deep Residual Networks have proved to be a very effective model for image classification tasks yielding highly accurate results never seen before. This research comprises of two parts. First is the fine-tuning of the pre-trained ResNet model trained on 1.2 million images of the ImageNet dataset to observe the impact of hyper-parameters on training and find the optimal values of these hyperparameters. In the second part of this research, we proposed a new cognitive ResNet architecture that alters the existing ResNet layers architecture. This cognitive model outperforms the original ResNet at image classification task by showing 2.5% better results on Cifar-10, 3% better results on Cifar-100 dataset, 13% better results on the 17-Flowers dataset, 9% better results on FTVL dataset and 13% better results on Caltech-101. Against GoogleNet architecture, competitive accuracy 25%, 1.1%, 32.1%, 0.61 and 15.02% is obtained for Cifar-10, Cifar-100, 17-Flowers, FTVL, Caltech-101 datasets respectively. INDEX TERMS Deep learning, Image classification, residual network, convolutional neural network.
Minimal modules over valuation domains

LetRbe a valuation domain. We say that a torsion-free R-module isminimal if it is isomorphic to all its submodules of finite index. Here, the usual concept of finite index for groups is replaced by the more appropriate (for module theory) definition: a submodule H of the moduleG is said to be of finite index inG if the quotientG/H is a finitely presented torsion module. We investigate minimality in various settings and show inter alia that over a maximal valuation domain, all torsion-free modules are minimal. Constructions of non-minimal modules are given by utilizing realization theorems of May and the authors. We also show that direct sums of minimal modules may fail to be minimal. © 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. MSC:13G05; 13A15; 13A17
Small Group Learning is Associated with Reduced Salivary Cortisol and Testosterone in Undergraduate Students

Small group learning activities have been shown to improve student academic performance and educational outcomes. Yet, we have an imperfect understanding of the mechanisms by which this occurs. Group learning may mediate student stress by placing learning in a context where students have both social support and greater control over their learning. We hypothesize that one of the methods by which small group activities improve learning is by mitigating student stress. To test this, we collected physiological measures of stress and self-reported perceived stress from 26 students in two undergraduate classes. Salivary cortisol and testosterone were measured within students across five contexts: a) preinstructional baseline, b) following a traditional lecture, c) after participating in a structured small group learning activity, d) following completion of multiple choice, and e) essay sections of an exam. Results indicate students have lower salivary cortisol after small group learning activities, as compared to traditional lectures. Further, there is no evidence of a relationship between physiological measures of stress and self-reported perceived stress levels. We discuss how structured small group activities may be beneficial for reducing stress and improving student-learning outcomes. Snopkowski, Demps, Scaggs, Griffiths, Fulk, May, Neagle, Downs, Eugster, and Amend Journal of the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, Vol. 19, No. 5, December 2019. josotl.indiana. edu
Deep learning for skin lesion classification : augment, train, and ensemble = Aprendizado profundo para classificação de lesões de pele: aumento, treino e conjunto

Early diagnosis is critical for a patient with melanoma, the most lethal type of skin cancer. Automated melanoma diagnosis may improve patient care by broadening the population with access to diagnosis, and accelerating diagnosis, and thus treatment for all patients. Those are particularly important as the number of new cases rises globally. Deep learning and convolutional neural networks (CNNs) have revolutionized medical imaging, including skin lesion analysis. In this work, we investigate automated skin lesion classification with a focus on two essential components of deep learning: data and model architecture. We divide our experiments into three main parts: 1) data augmentation, 2) multi-class skin lesion classification, and 3) CNN architecture and model selection. While deep learning models are data-hungry, public skin lesion datasets are small since lesion images are hard to collect and annotate. We tackled that problem with data augmentation, a technique to simulate new data through image transformations. We analyzed the effects of different augmentation scenarios in CNNs for melanoma classification, confirming gains with both training and testing augmentation. Later, we explored multi-class skin lesion classification with highly imbalanced datasets in the context of the ISIC Challenge 2018, where we ranked the 4 best group without external data. Finally, we explored modern CNN architectures and investigated which factors may help us to select good models for melanoma classification and how to effectively ensemble them. Our results contribute to the goal of producing reliable models for automated skin lesion classification, with the ultimate aim to provide to better healthcare to the population, and reduce deaths due to skin cancers.
Effects of zinc oxide nanoparticles on enzymatic and nonenzymatic antioxidant content, germination, and biochemical and ultrastructural cell characteristics of Portulaca oleracea L.

This report focuses on the application of zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO NPs) carrying phycomolecule ligands as a novel plant growth promoter aimed at increasing the crop productivity of purslane ( Portulaca oleracea L.). Experiments were performed under controlled greenhouse conditions using a completely randomized design with nine replications. Purslane seeds were treated with four concentrations of ZnO NPs (0, 10, 100, and 500 mg L −1 ) and four concentrations of bulk ZnO (0, 10, 100, and 500 mg L −1 ). The ultrastructural characteristics of the leaves of the plants treated with of 500 mg L −1 ZnO NPs were determined using transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The results indicated that the treatment with ZnO NPs increased the content of chlorophyll a and chlorophyll b , carotenoids, and total phenolic and flavonoid compounds significantly more than the treatment with bulk ZnO. Our findings also showed that the application of high concentrations of ZnO NPs is the most effective strategy to considerably induce the antioxidant capacity and enzymes of purslane plants. Furthermore, the seed germination percentage and sprout growth rates were significantly higher in the plants treated with 500 mg L −1 of ZnO NPs (100% ±0.00), compared to the control plants (93.33% ±1.66). The TEM images revealed the concentration of ZnO NPs and cell membrane rupture, as well as a deformation in the shape of chloroplasts and a decrease in their number in the plants treated with 500 mg L −1 ZnO NPs, compared to the control plants. Owing to their toxicity, high concentrations of ZnO NPs lead to oxidative stress in plants. Thus, our findings provide a new alternative strategy for increasing crop productivity, i.e., the application of ZnO NPs as a novel plant growth booster, in comparison with the bulk ZnO treatment.
Award Number: W81XWH-07-1-0489 TITLE: Breast Density Assessment by Dual Energy X-ray Absorptiometry in Women and Girls

Breast density, the radiographically opaque fraction of the breast in a mammogram, is one of the strongest biomarkers of breast cancer risk. However, younger populations do not typically have mammograms due to radiation concerns. This study explored a commercially available dual-energy X-ray absorptiometer (DXA) system as a low-dose method to measure breast fibroglandular density in adolescent girls. Eighteen girls (13-14 years old) indicated their breast development according to Tanner and underwent three dedicated DXA scans, two of their left and one of their right breasts. Total projected breast area was manually delineated on each image and percent fibroglandular volume density (%FGV), absolute fibroglandular volume (FGV), total breast area, and volume were computed. It was possible to image breasts representing all five Tanner stages; %FGV ranged from 31.9% to 92.2%with amean of 71.1F 14.8%, whereas FGV ranged from 80 to 270 cm with a mean of 168 F 54 cm. Left and right breast %FGV were highly correlated (rp = 0.97, P < 0.0001) and of the same magnitude (P = 0.18). However, left total volume and FGV were larger than the right by 38 cm (P = 0.04) and 19 cm (P = 0.02), respectively. Total volume and FGV increased by Tanner stage, whereas %FGV did not. Our method had excellent precision for %FGV and moderate precision for FGV (root mean square SDs of 2.4% and 16.6 cm). These pilot data indicate that dedicated DXA breast scans may be useful in studies exploring breast density in girls. (Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2008;17(7):1709–13)