Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Cognitive Demands of Mothers of Young Children in the Presence of Emotional Distraction

Cognitive Demands of Mothers of Young Children in the Presence of Emotional Distraction Michelle Duersch Neuroscience Center, BYU Master of Science Stress and parenting often go hand in hand, with high physical and emotional demands from children often coupled with pressures and responsibilities adults bear from work, school, and other involvements outside the home. Parents often prioritize their children's needs above their own physical, emotional, and social needs. While current literature addresses stress in mothers, it has yet to understand under what circumstances her children may modify her stress levels and whether her stress response, in turn, affects cognition. This study seeks to investigate the impact of such a taxing environment on mothers’ stress and cognition using a challenging mnemonic discrimination paradigm. It was hypothesized that the auditory distraction of a mother’s own children during the task would impair her ability to encode and retrieve images and also increase her physiological stress response. Prior research has outlined how irrelevant noise and induced stress modify behavioral outcomes, and how mnemonic discrimination of emotional stimuli differs from that of neutral stimuli. However, to our knowledge, there have been no tests in any group using distracting noise (a type of induced stress) during emotionally valenced mnemonic discrimination tasks. This led to the development of our task in order to better understand stress and distraction coupled with valenced imagery. Encoding was divided into two blocks, with one block occurring during the presentation of white noise and the alternate block occurring during the presentation of noise from children, either live audio feed to a mother’s own children (experimental condition) or prerecorded audio of a group of children (control condition). We found that retrieval did decrease as a result of child noise, and that memory performance for neutral stimuli was greater than for negative or positive stimuli. Physiological measurements (electrodermal activity and heart rate) were also obtained to view the stress response, but only electrodermal activity showed significance. A significant relationship was found between electrodermal activity and behavioral scores in the experimental group. Our results also suggest that perceived and induced stress coupled with distraction leads to lower memory performance and increased physiological stress responses.
Fire and Rodent Consumer Effects on Plant Community Assembly and Invasion in North American Deserts

Fire and Rodent Consumer Effects on Plant Community Assembly and Invasion in North American Deserts Rebekah L. Stanton Department of Plant and Wildlife Sciences, BYU Doctor of Philosophy This dissertation explores the differential effects of fires and rodent communities on native and invasive desert plant communities. Chapter one examines the impacts of fire and repeat fires on fuel loads in two different Utah desert sites, one in the cool Great Basin Desert and one in the hyper-arid Mojave Desert, over the course of four years. We found that both desert sites responded with varying intensities to a single burn, but the effects of a reburn was not as pronounced. We also found that our Great Basin Desert site had a stronger response to fire than our Mojave Desert site, producing a higher plant fuel loads that could potentially exacerbate the changing fire regimes. These data can be used to help map the effects that climate change may have on fuel loads and the fire potential of these deserts. Chapter two uses a full factorial experimental design to compare the effects of rodent herbivory and fire on native versus invasive seedlings at our Mojave Desert field site. We found that rodent herbivory has a more negative impact on the survival of native seedlings than invasive seedlings. This could be because the invasives are grasses that tend to tolerate herbivory better than the native shrubs and forbs. Chapter three again uses a full factorial experimental design to assess the impacts of rodents and fire on the fate of native and invasive seeds at our field site in the Mojave Desert. We found that rodents removed seeds, and they did show preferences for some species of seed over others, but these preferences were not different between native and invasive seeds or seed mass. We propose that the preferences may be influenced by other seed traits such as water content, handling time or physical and chemical defenses. As with the seedlings in chapter two, fire did not have any impact on rodent seed preferences. These data highlight the importance of considering rodent effects on seeds used in restoration effects following wildfires.
IS ONE PLUS ONE ALWAYS TWO? INSURING LONGEVITY RISK WHILE HAVING MULTIPLE SAVING ACCOUNTS

We investigate the possible consequences of having multiple savings accounts for payout decisions at retirement. Our results contribute to the literature on individual annuitization decisions and the discussions about asset liability management (ALM) and reserve management of long-term-savings providers. Our study is based on proprietary data comprising 15,293 Israeli retirees’ annuitization decisions during the years 2009–2013, an online experimental study and a laboratory experiment. We document a significant effect of the size of accumulated funds on the decision to annuitize. Retirees with smaller accounts have a significantly higher propensity to cash out their accounts upon retirement (controlling for related variables). These findings may be driven either by specific characteristics and attitudes of individuals who save less, or by behavior arising from managing multiple accounts possibly related to mental accounting, or both. Our results are consistent with the mental accounting argument and were obtained using a unique identification strategy that takes occupation information into account. Our data also suggest that insurance companies might consider treating small and large accounts differently in their ALM strategies. We conduct an Internet experimental survey with a large representative sample as well as a laboratory experiment both confirm these empirical results. Further, our findings suggest that the composition of multiple accounts affects the annuitization rates of the total savings portfolio, mostly regarding the propensity to either fully annuitize or fully cash out the accumulated funds.
Closed-form modelling and design analysis of V- and Z-shaped electrothermal microactuators

This paper presents the modelling and design analysis of V- and Z-shaped electrothermal microactuators. First, a comprehensive but concise closed-form multiphysical analytical model is developed to predict the output displacement and force of both V- and Z-shaped electrothermal microactuators operating either in vacuum or in air conditions. The analytical model is verified by finite element analysis and experimental testing. Then, a novel comparison benchmark is proposed for the design and analysis of the V- and Z-shaped microactuators. With the multiphysical model and comparison benchmark, comprehensive performance comparison and analysis of the V- and Z-shaped beams are performed with the aim of providing insight and guidance on selection and design of the two typical types of electrothermal microactuators. Finally, the application of the comparison model into the design analysis is demonstrated using a design example of an electrothermal microactuator, and the detailed investigation is conducted to examine the effects of the material properties and structural parameters on the microactuator outputs.
Least Squares Shadowing for sensitivity analysis of large chaotic systems and fluid flows

Computational methods for sensitivity analysis have proven to be incredibly useful to a wide range of engineers. Aerospace engineers have used these methods to optimize aerodynamic shapes and aircraft configurations, automatically adapt the computational mesh to reduce errors in Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulations, and to quantify uncertainties in these simulations. However, conventional sensitivity analysis methods, including the widely used adjoint method, break down when applied to long-time-averages of chaotic systems. This is problematic as many aerospace applications involve physical phenomena that exhibit chaotic dynamics, most notably high-resolution large eddy and direct numerical simulations of turbulent aerodynamic flows. Also, engineers are often interested in long-time-averaged quantities, such as the long-time-averaged lift of a flight vehicle. To efficiently apply design optimization, mesh adaptation, and uncertainty quantification to chaotic systems and high fidelity aerodynamic simulations, a new approach to sensitivity analysis is needed. A recently proposed method, Least Squares Shadowing (LSS) presents a promising alternative that avoids the break down encountered by conventional sensitivity analysis approaches. However, LSS has some issues, including high computational costs and a lack of robustness to certain errors. The following thesis will assess LSS for a fluid flow simulated by a large-scale CFD solver, then propose and investigate methods to increase the robustness and efficiency of LSS implementations. Thesis Supervisor: Qiqi Wang Title: Associate Professor of Aeronautics and Astronautics Thesis Committee Member: David L. Darmofal Title: Professor of Aeronautics and Astronautics Thesis Committee Member: Themistoklis Sapsis Title: Assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering
Discrete wavelet transformation in spectral analysis of vibration processes at hydropower units

The paper presents application of wavelet transform in vibration diagnostics of hydropower units. It lies in the fact that, in view of a considerable nonstationarity of vibroacoustic signals, the spectral analysis thereof comprises discrete wavelet transformation so that spectral information both in frequency and time domain could be obtained and applied for hydropower unit diagnosis. Streszczenie. Artykuł prezentuje zastosowanie transformaty falkowej do wibracyjnej diagnostyki hydrogeneratorów. Biorąc pod uwagę niestacjonarny charakter sygnałów wibroakustycznych i dokonując analizy za pomocą dyskretnej transformaty falkowej uzyskuje się informację potrzebne do diagnostyki hydrogeneratora (Dyskretna transformata falkowej w analizie spektralnej zjawisk wibracyjnych hydrogeneratorów).
Mortality in Switzerland in 2021

Objective: To analyze mortality trends in Switzerland in 2021, the second year of the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: Using data from the Swiss Federal Statistical Office, we compared mortality in Switzerland in 2021 with that of previous years in terms of standardized weekly deaths, standardized (annual) mortality rates (overall and stratified by age and sex) and life expectancy. Results: After a favorable first half of the year and a fairly standard second half in terms of mortality in Switzerland, the year 2021 ended with a wave of deaths of moderate intensity related to the 5th wave of COVID-19. Overall, and after a notable increase in mortality in 2020 (+9.2% compared to 2019), the pre-pandemic mortality level was approximately recovered in 2021 (+0.6% compared to 2019). Life expectancy, after declining by 10 months for men and 6 months for women in 2020, returned in 2021 to levels slightly above those of 2019 for women (85.7 years, +0.1 years from 2019) and regained 2018 levels for men (81.6 years, still -0.3 years from 2019). The age group responsible for the small remaining loss for men was the 50-70 age group, which had similar mortality in 2020 and 2021. Conclusions: The second year of the COVID-19 pandemic in Switzerland was characterized by an approximate return to pre-pandemic mortality levels, with a faster recovery for women than for men compared to 2020.
Pretend play predicts receptive and expressive language trajectories in young children with autism

The effect of pretend play in 2 to 5-year-old children with ASD was investigated in the largest and the longest observational study to-date. Parents assessed the development of 7,069 children quarterly for three years on five subscales: combinatorial receptive language, expressive language, sociability, sensory awareness, and health. Pretend play was associated with superior developmental trajectories: 1.9-fold faster improvement of combinatorial receptive language (p<0.0001), 1.4-fold faster improvement of expressive language (p<0.0001), and 1.3-fold faster improvement of sensory awareness (p=0.0009). Pretend play had little effect on sociability and health. The strong association of pretend play with combinatorial receptive language remained significant even when controlling for expressive language. Similarly, the effect of pretend play on expressive language remained significant even when controlling for combinatorial receptive language. The effect of pretend play on combinatorial receptive language (but not on the expressive language) was stronger than the effects of seizures, sleep problems or high-TV exposure. The strong effect of pretend-play supports earlier studies indicating that it is an important stepping stone for language acquisition, particularly, the acquisition of combinatorial language.
Age-based variability in the association between restraint use and injury type and severity

Purpose: Previous studies have shown elderly individuals receive less relatively less protection from seat belts against fatal injuries, however it is less clear how seat belt protection against severe and torso injury changes with age. We estimated age-based variability in seat belt protection against fatal injuries, injuries with maximum abbreviated injury scale greater than 2 (MAIS3+), and torso injuries. Methods: We leveraged the Crash Outcome Data Evaluation System (CODES) to analyze binary indicators of fatal, MAIS3+, and torso injuries. Using a matched cohort design and conditional Poisson regression, we estimated age-based relative risks (RR) of the outcomes associated with seat belt use. Results: Seat belts were highly protective against fatal injuries for all ages. For ages 16-30, seat belt use was associated with 66% lower risk of MAIS3+ injury (RR 0.34, 95% CI 0.30, 0.38), whereas for ages 75 and older, seat belt use was associated with 38% lower risk of MAIS3+ injury (RR 0.62; 95% CI 0.45, 0.86). The association between restraint use and torso injury also appeared to attenuate with age. Conclusions: Seat belt protection against MAIS3+ and torso injury attenuated with age. We encourage that injury prevention continues to be tailored to vulnerable populations like the elderly.
Genetic and Environmental Factors Underlying Parallel Changes in Body Mass Index and Alcohol Consumption: A 36-Year Longitudinal Study of Adult Twins

Introduction: While the genetic and environmental underpinnings of body weight and alcohol use are fairly well-known, determinants of simultaneous changes in these traits are still poorly known. We sought to quantify the environmental and genetic components underlying parallel changes in weight and alcohol consumption and to investigate potential covariation between them. Methods: The analysis comprised 4,461 adult participants (58% women) from the Finnish Twin Cohort with four measures of alcohol consumption and body mass index (BMI) over a 36-year follow-up. Trajectories of each trait were described by growth factors, defined as intercepts (i.e., baseline) and slopes (i.e., change over follow-up), using latent growth curve modeling. Growth values were used for male (190 monozygotic pairs, 293 dizygotic pairs) and female (316 monozygotic pairs, 487 dizygotic pairs) same-sex complete twin pairs in multivariate twin modeling. The variances and covariances of growth factors were then decomposed into genetic and environmental components. Results: The baseline heritabilities were similar in men (BMI: h2 = 79% [95% confidence interval: 74, 83]; alcohol consumption: h2 = 49% [32, 67]) and women (h2 = 77% [73, 81]; h2 = 45% [29, 61]). Heritabilities of BMI change were similar in men (h2 = 52% [42, 61]) and women (h2 = 57% [50, 63]), but the heritability of change in alcohol consumption was significantly higher (p = 0.03) in men (h2 = 45% [34, 54]) than in women (h2 = 31% [22, 38]). Significant additive genetic correlations between BMI at baseline and change in alcohol consumption were observed in both men (rA = −0.17 [−0.29, −0.04]) and women (rA = −0.18 [−0.31, −0.06]). Non-shared environmental factors affecting changes in alcohol consumption and BMI were correlated in men (rE = 0.18 [0.06, 0.30]). Among women, non-shared environmental factors affecting baseline alcohol consumption and the change in BMI were inversely correlated (rE = −0.11 [−0.20, −0.01]). Conclusions: Based on genetic correlations, genetic variation underlying BMI may affect changes in alcohol consumption. Independent of genetic effects, change in BMI correlates with change in alcohol consumption in men, suggesting direct effects between them.
The origins of cognitive flexibility in chimpanzees

Abstract Cognitive flexibility is a core component of executive function, a suite of cognitive capacities that enables individuals to update their behavior in dynamic environments. Human executive functions are proposed to be enhanced compared to other species, but this inference is based primarily on neuroanatomical studies. To address this, we examined the nature and origins of cognitive flexibility in chimpanzees, our closest living relatives. Across three studies, we examined different components of cognitive flexibility using reversal learning tasks where individuals first learned one contingency and then had to shift responses when contingencies flipped. In Study 1, we tested n = 82 chimpanzees ranging from juvenility to adulthood on a spatial reversal task, to characterize the development of basic shifting skills. In Study 2, we tested how n = 24 chimpanzees use spatial versus arbitrary perceptual information to shift, a proposed difference between human and nonhuman cognition. In Study 3, we tested n = 40 chimpanzees on a probabilistic reversal task. We found an extended developmental trajectory for basic shifting and shifting in response to probabilistic feedback—chimpanzees did not reach mature performance until late in ontogeny. Additionally, females were faster to shift than males were. We also found that chimpanzees were much more successful when using spatial versus perceptual cues, and highly perseverative when faced with probabilistic versus consistent outcomes. These results identify both core features of chimpanzee cognitive flexibility that are shared with humans, as well as constraints on chimpanzee cognitive flexibility that may represent evolutionary changes in human cognitive development.
Inspiratory muscle training in addition to whole body vibration for functional and physical outcomes in pre-frail older women: a randomized controlled trial.

BACKGROUND to investigate the efficacy of addition of inspiratory muscle training (IMT) to the whole body vibration (WBV) on functional outcomes, physical performance, muscle strength and metabolism in pre-frail older women. METHODS this study was a randomized double-blind trial. Forty-two older women aged 60-80 years who meet the Cardiovascular Health Study frailty criteria for pre-frailty were randomly allocated to IMT + WBV, IMTsham + WBV or Sham groups. IMT + WBV group received 12 weeks of both trainings, whereas IMTsham + WVB received 12 weeks of WBV alone. Sham group received 12 weeks of IMT with a low fixed load and were positioned at the vibratory platform without therapeutic effect. Participants were evaluated before and after the intervention for the following outcomes: 6-min walk test distance (6MWD), balance using Tinetti test, functional mobility using timed up and go test (TUG), handgrip strength (HGS) and peripheral muscle metabolism (glucose and lactate levels). RESULTS after the training, both groups IMT + WBV and IMTsham + WBV improved 6MWD [mean percentage changes = 20.31 (SD = 14.62) and 13.02 (SD = 12.14), respectively] compared with Sham [0.27 (SD = 6.51)], P <0.01. There was also a significant decrease of mean percentage changes on time of the TUG for IMT + WBV [-21.87 (SD = 7.87)] and IMTsham + WBV [-11.15 (SD = 13.64)] compared with Sham [-4.25 (SD = 13.25)], P <0.01. IMT + WBV group improved balance when compared with IMTsham + WBV and Sham groups (P <0.05 and < 0.01, respectively). HGS and levels of lactate and glucose were similar between groups. CONCLUSIONS the addition of IMT to the WBV was effective to improve functionality, balance and physical performance in pre-frail older women.
Role of inflexible minorities in the evolution of alcohol consumption

In this work we study a simple contagion model for drinking behavior evolution, but including the presence of inflexible or zealot agents, i.e. individuals that never change their behavior (never drink or always drink a lot). We analyze the impact of such special agents in the evolution of drinking behavior in the population. Our analytical and numerical results indicate that the presence of only one class of inflexible agents destroys one of the two possible absorbing phases that are observed in the model without such inflexibles. In the presence of the both kinds of inflexible agents simultaneously, there are no absorbing states anymore. Since absorbing states are collective macroscopic states with the presence of only one kind of individuals in the population, we argue that the inclusion of inflexible agents in the population makes the model more realistic. Furthermore, the presence of inflexible agents are similar to the introduction of quenched disorder in the model, and here we observe the suppression of a nonequilibrium phase transition to absorbing states, which had not been reported before.
Spatiotemporal Augmentation on Selective Frequencies for Video Representation Learning

Recent self-supervised video representation learning meth-ods focus on maximizing the similarity between multiple augmented views from the same video and largely rely on the quality of generated views. In this paper, we propose frequency augmentation (FreqAug), a spatio-temporal data augmentation method in the frequency domain for video representation learning. FreqAug stochastically removes undesirable information from the video by filtering out specific frequency components so that learned representation captures essential features of the video for various downstream tasks. Specifically, FreqAug pushes the model to focus more on dynamic features rather than static features in the video via dropping spatial or temporal low-frequency components. In other words, learning invariance between remaining frequency components results in high-frequency enhanced representation with less static bias. To verify the generality of the proposed method, we experiment with FreqAug on multiple self-supervised learning frameworks along with standard augmentations. Transferring the improved representation to five video action recognition and two temporal action localization down-stream tasks shows consistent improvements over baselines.
Color My World: Deterministic Tagging for Memory Safety

Hardware-assisted memory protection features are increas-ingly being deployed in COTS processors. ARMv8.5 Memory Tagging Extensions (MTE) is a recent example, which has been used to provide probabilistic checks for memory safety. This use of MTE is not secure against the standard adversary with arbitrary read/write access to memory. Consequently MTE is used as a software development tool. In this paper we present the ﬁrst design for deterministic memory protection using MTE that can resist the standard adversary, and hence is suitable for post-deployment memory safety. We describe our compiler extensions for LLVM Clang implementing static analysis and subsequent MTE instrumentation. Via a comprehensive evaluation we show that our scheme is effective.