Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Play, Cognitive Development, and the Social World: Piaget, Vygotsky, and Beyond

This article provides a critical overview of research on play and cognitive development and an analysis of the two major theoretical frameworks that have informed it. Until recently, the dominant influence in this area has been that of Piaget, whose approach to play formed an integral part of his larger theory of cognitive development. Although the Piagetian research program is far from exhausted, the absence of a sociocultural dimension in his approach created a space for the influence of Vygotsky, whose developmental theory has increasingly emerged as the major alternative framework. However, this second stream of research has thus far taken up the Vygotskian ‘inspiration’ in a limited and inadequate way. In particular, it is too narrowly focused on interaction and does not address the wider sociocultural elements that define and shape the play context. The article concludes by suggesting the outlines of a more powerful research perspective. Among other sources, this approach builds on some of the unexplored possibilities within the Piagetian and Vygotskian perspectives themselves – in part by reconnecting certain elements in these perspectives with their roots in Durkheim and Freud – as well as drawing on the approach to cultural interpretation championed by Geertz.
Is the Investment Really Worth It?

The title of this paper has been borrowed to two major players in our field Larry Cuban and Linda Roberts, it develops a high level view of the major changes of the last period. Importantly, despite greater access to technology and the gathering of a critical mass of equipment, usage in schools remains limited. It examines, through the use of dialogue between the French and the US educational systems, the constructivism issue and concludes that we are facing an unprecedented situation. L'investissement en vaut-il la peine? Le titre de cet article a été emprunté À deux acteurs importants du domaine, Larry Cuban et Linda Roberts. Il développe une approche générale des principaux changements intervenus dans les dernières périodes. Il insiste notamment sur un fait marquant : malgré un accès facilité À la technologie et le déploiement d'une masse critique d'équipement, l'usage demeure limité dans les établissements scolaires. Instaurant un dialogue entre les situations franÇaise et américaine, il examine ensuite la question du constructivisme et conclue sur le caractère inédit de la situation actuelle. Lohnt sich die Investition wirklich? Der Titel dieses Beitrags wurde von zwei Experten unseres Arbeitsbereiches 'geborgt': Larry Cuban und Linda Roberts. Versucht wird eine übersicht über die wichtigsten Entwicklungen der letzten Jahre: Trotz besserem Zugang zur Technologie und ausreichender Ausstattung bleibt die Nutzung der neuen Technologien in den Schulen begrenzt. Vermittels eines Dialogs zwischen dem französischen und dem Amerikanischen Bildungssystem wird ein konstruktivistischer Ansatz geprüft. Der Betrag schließt mit der Feststellung, dass wir mit einer beispiellosen Situation konfrontiert sind.
THE MEDIATING ROLE OF OVERALL FAIRNESS AND THE MODERATING ROLE OF TRUST CERTAINTY IN JUSTICE-CRITERIA RELATIONSHIPS: TESTING FUNDAMENTAL TENETS OF FAIRNESS HEURISTIC THEORY.

This article concentrates on two field studies in which the authors tested the fundamentals of fairness heuristic theory as it pertains to the perceptions of overall fairness. An understanding of fairness heuristic theory, which is a theory that proposes individuals care about fairness mainly because it helps with uncertainty, is presented. An overview of the methods and participants of the two studies is presented as well. Both studies found that interpersonal justice was a strong predictor of fairness and employee outcomes and that procedural justice had a non-significant effect on overall fairness, among other results.
On-chip communication architecture for OC-768 network processors

The need for network processors capable of forwarding IP packets at OC-192 and higher data rates has been well established. At the same time, there is a growing need for complex tasks, like packet classification and differentiated services, to be performed by network processors. At OC-768 data rate, a network processor has 9 nanoseconds to process a minimum-size IP packet. Such ultra high-speed processing, involving complex memory-intensive tasks, can only be achieved by multi-CPU distributed memory systems, using very high performance on-chip communication architectures. In this paper, we propose a novel communication network architecture for 8-CPU distributed-memory systems that has the potential to deliver the throughput required in next generation routers. We then show that our communication architecture can easily scale to accommodate a much greater number of network nodes. Our network architecture yields higher performance than the traditional bus and crossbar yet has low implementation cost. It is quite flexible and can be implemented in either packet or circuit switched mode. We compare and contrast our proposed architecture with busses and crossbars using metrics such as throughput and physical layout cost.
The Effects of High and Low Fear Messages about Drugs

This paper reports two studies of the effects of high and low fear messages about drugs. In the first study three levels of threat appeal about marijuana were used. The interaction between the value of these messages and anxiety level was examined. The second study concerned attitudes toward a non-existent drug-MOT, on the expectation that attitudes to MOT would have few extraneous influences (outside the message itself). It was found that differences among the persuasive messages were very small and insignificant. However, the effects of fear level for MOT were very large and indicate that high fear appeals are superior. Where a new drug is involved it would be expected that a high threat will discourage use more than a low threat.
T‐cell epitopes of the La/SSB autoantigen: Prediction based on the homology modeling of HLA‐DQ2/DQ7 with the insulin‐B peptide/HLA‐DQ8 complex

T‐cell epitopes are important components of the inappropriate response of the immune system to self‐proteins in autoimmune diseases. In this study, the candidate T‐cell epitopes of the La/SSB autoantigen, the main target of the autoimmune response in patients with Sjogren's Syndrome (SS), and Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) were predicted using as a template the HLA‐DQ2 and DQ7 molecules, which are genetically linked to patients with SS and SLE. Modeling of DQ2 and DQ7 was based on the crystal structure of HLA‐DQ8, an HLA molecule of high risk factor of type I diabetes, which is also an autoimmune disease. The quality and reliability of the modeled DQ2 and DQ7 was confirmed by the Ramachandran plot and the TINKER molecular modeling software. Common and/or similar candidate T‐cell epitopes, obtained by comparing three different approaches the Taylor's sequence pattern, the TEPITOPE quantitative matrices, and the MULTIPRED artificial neural network, were subjected to homology modeling with the crystal structure of the insulin‐B peptide complexed with HLA‐DQ8, and the best superposed candidate epitopes were placed into the modeled HLA‐DQ2 and DQ7 binding grooves to perform energy minimization calculations. Six T‐cell epitopes were predicted for HLA‐DQ7 and nine for HLA‐DQ2 covering parts of the amino‐terminal and the central regions of the La/SSB autoantigen. Residues corresponding to the P1, P4, and P9 pockets of the HLA‐DQ2 and DQ7 binding grooves experience very low SASA because they are less exposed to the microenvironment of the groove. The proposed T‐cell epitopes complexed with HLA‐DQ2/DQ7 were further evaluated for their binding efficiency according to their potential interaction energy, binding affinity, and IC50 values. Our approach constitutes the ground work for a rapid and reliable experimentation concerning the T‐cell epitope mapping of autoantigens, and could lead to the development of T‐cell inhibitors as immunotherapeutics in autoimmune diseases. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Comput Chem 27: 1033–1044, 2006
Novel approach to enhance face recognition using depth maps

Face recognition, although being a popular area of research and study, still has many challenges, and with the appearance of the Microsoft Kinect device, new possibilities of research were uncovered, one of which is face recognition using the Kinect. With the goal of enhancing face recognition, this paper is aiming to prove how depth maps, since not effected by illumination, can improve face recognition with a benchmark algorithm based on the Eigenface. This required some experiments to be carried out, mainly in order to check if algorithms created to recognize faces using normal images can be as effective if not more effective with depth map images. The OpenCV Eigenface algorithm implementation was used for the purpose of training and testing both normal and depth-map images. Finally, results of the experiments are presented to prove the ability of the tested algorithm to function with depth maps, also, proving the capability of depth maps face recognition's task in poor illumination.
Screening for Autism Spectrum Disorders Using the PEDS and M-CHAT

Early detection of autism spectrum disorders (ASD) is a prerequisite for early intervention. Questionnaires may offer a cost-effective alternative to clinician-led screening in identifying toddlers and preschoolers in primary-care settings requiring specialized ASD assessment. Parents of 97 children aged 16–60 months attending childcare centers were recruited. Parents completed the 10-item Parents' Evaluations of Developmental Status (PEDS) and an ASD screening questionnaire—the 23-item Modified Checklist for Autism in Toddlers (M-CHAT). Five percent of children required specialized ASD assessment based on their M-CHAT scores. Using a PEDS total score cutoff of 4 or more, these children were detected with an adjusted rate of 65% sensitivity and 88% specificity. These data provide some support for tiered screening with the PEDS and M-CHAT in identifying children requiring specialized ASD assessment. Given PEDS is a universally administered developmental screen in many jurisdictions, further research using PEDS and M-CHAT is warranted.
Rho GTPases Control Polarity, Protrusion, and Adhesion during Cell Movement

Cell movement is essential during embryogenesis to establish tissue patterns and to drive morphogenetic pathways and in the adult for tissue repair and to direct cells to sites of infection. Animal cells move by crawling and the driving force is derived primarily from the coordinated assembly and disassembly of actin filaments. The small GTPases, Rho, Rac, and Cdc42, regulate the organization of actin filaments and we have analyzed their contributions to the movement of primary embryo fibroblasts in an in vitro wound healing assay. Rac is essential for the protrusion of lamellipodia and for forward movement. Cdc42 is required to maintain cell polarity, which includes the localization of lamellipodial activity to the leading edge and the reorientation of the Golgi apparatus in the direction of movement. Rho is required to maintain cell adhesion during movement, but stress fibers and focal adhesions are not required. Finally, Ras regulates focal adhesion and stress fiber turnover and this is essential for cell movement. We conclude that the signal transduction pathways controlled by the four small GTPases, Rho, Rac, Cdc42, and Ras, cooperate to promote cell movement.
Site-specific phosphorylation of the middle molecular weight human neurofilament protein in transfected non-neuronal cells

We expressed the human midsized neurofilament subunit (NF-M) using genomic DNA in mouse L cells and showed that it is transcribed and translated into a protein capable of assembly into the cytoskeleton and of forming a filamentous network that colocalizes with the endogenous vimentin filaments. Moreover, human NF-M expressed in L cells is phosphorylated at sites within the multiphosphorylation repeat (MPR), i.e., the major sites of phosphorylation of NF-M in vivo. We also expressed a genomic construct lacking the MPR domain in the native molecule and showed that this MPR(-) protein also was expressed and formed a filamentous network despite diminished incorporation of radiolabeled phosphate. Two major conclusions emerged from the work described in this paper: human NF-M is translated, assembled, and phosphorylated at physiological sites without the need of any other specific neuronal proteins; phosphorylation sites other than the MPR are present within NF-M which may play a role in synthesis, assembly, and degradation of NF protein in humans.
Effective variation management for pseudo periodical streams

Many database applications require the analysis and processing of data streams. In such systems, huge amounts of data arrive rapidly and their values change over time. The variations on streams typically imply some fundamental changes of the underlying objects and possess significant domain meanings. In some data streams, successive events seem to recur in a certain time interval, but the data indeed evolves with tiny differences as time elapses. This feature is called pseudo periodicity, which poses a non-trivial challenge to variation management in data streams. This paper presents our research effort in online variation management over such streams, and the idea can be applied to the problem domain of medical applications, such as patient vital signal monitoring. We propose a new method named Pattern Growth Graph (PGG) to detect and manage variations over pseudo periodical streams. PGG adopts the wave-pattern to capture the major information of data evolution and represent them compactly. With the help of wave-pattern matching algorithm, PGG detects the stream variations in a single pass over the stream data. PGG only stores the different segments of the pattern for incoming stream, and hence it can substantially compress the data without losing important information. The statistical information of PGG helps to distinguish meaningful data changes from noise and to reconstruct the stream with acceptable accuracy. Extensive experiments on real datasets containing millions of data items demonstrate the feasibility and effectiveness of the proposed scheme.
A new social contract for technology? – On the policy dynamics of uncertainty

This paper proposes a typology of two fundamentally opposing conceptualizations of managing technology under uncertainty: ‘technology governability’ and ‘technology selection’. A wide variety of different versions of these idealized conceptualizations can be shown to underlie the controversies about scientific‐technological development. The example of genetic engineering indicates that such points of view are reconstructed over time in different forms and diverse settings, not only by the scientific community or during regulatory decision making, but by a rather wide‐reaching spectrum of social actors. Thus, the current efforts to open up science and technology decision making to a wider range of participants is interpreted here as an effort of generating a new social contract for technology management, by way of bridging the differences between the two opposing conceptualizations.
EXPLORING USES AND GRATIFICATIONS

This project explored two questions: (1) whether uses are specific to program type or medium and (2) whether the factorial solutions are replicable. Two separate studies were conducted. For each study two versions of a uses questionnaire were administered. The Medium version asked respondents to answer in terms of television. The Program Type version asked respondents to answer in terms of their favorite program type. In Study, I, 142 persons answered the Medium version and 128 answered the Program-Type version. In Study II, ns were 227 and 219, respectively. The general pattern of results indicates respondents do not identify Medium-specific or Program-specific uses. The lack of differentiation found here suggests: (1) additional assessment of the relationship of medium and content in needed, (2) pending additional evidence, medium and content should be considered related variables in uses and gratifications research and research not incorporating their interaction should be evaluated carefully, and (3) additional theoretical analysis of the meaning of uses and gratifications reports is necessary to define the relationship suggested here.
A conceptual framework for ubiquitous mobile environments.

The aim of this paper is to reflect upon and develop a conceptual framework that addresses the relationship between real and virtual life, with a particular focus on mobile gaming as one potential methodology for learning. The comprehension of the virtual-real life relationship is relevant not only to mobile gaming, but also to the ongoing discussions about and development of ubiquitous computing.
Up to 427 GHz All Optical Frequency Down-Conversion Clock Recovery Based on Quantum-Dash Fabry–Perot Mode-Locked Laser

This paper reports on all optical frequency down conversion clock recovery based on Quantum-Dash Fabry-Perot mode-locked laser diode (QD-MLLD). A first section is dedicated to the generation of a tunable repetition rate pulse source based on a first QD-MLLD. The principle is to select three lines in the QD-MLLD spectrum with a filtering technique; the lines spacing are properly chosen to generate the desired repetition rate. In this paper, a frequency of 427 GHz was reached and observed with an optical sampling oscilloscope. Moreover, an encoded 170.8 GHz pulse source was characterized showing no penalty in comparison with our reference obtained by Optical Time Division Multiplexing (OTDM), which confirms the quality of the optical clock. In a second section, we show a clock frequency down conversion based on a second QD-MLLD, which is optically injected by a pulse source, whose repetition rate is 10 times higher than its self pulsating frequency. The 42.7 GHz down converted clock is then encoded and analyzed showing no penalty in comparison to a standard 42.7 Gbit/s reference, demonstrating its quality. Finally, in a third section, we demonstrate sub-harmonic clock recovery with a QD-MLLD, when a data stream is injected. We measure a penalty of 0.3 dB when compared to a standard 42.7 Gbit/s reference.
Studies on Efficient Operation of an X-Band Oversized Slow-Wave HPM Generator in Low Magnetic Field

The efficient operation of high-power microwave (HPM) sources using slow-wave structures (SWSs) in low magnetic field has been an attractive aim pursued by HPM researchers. This paper presents the latest experimental results of an X-band oversized SWS HPM source operating at low guiding magnetic field with both power and efficiency enhancements. Driven by an electron accelerator with diode voltages of 450-900 kV, the generator operated with the output microwave power ranging from 0.5 to 3 GW and the efficiency being kept at about 25%. The optimized magnetic field was in the 0.5-0.75 T range, depending on diode voltages. Without the employment of superconductive-solenoid system, a very stable 100-Hz repetitive operation with 1.5-GW output microwave power was realized in the 1-s-burst mode.
In utero exposure to antidepressant drugs and risk of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder: a nationwide Danish cohort study

Objective To investigate whether in utero exposure to antidepressants is associated with increased risk of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Design Cohort study. Setting Denmark. Participants All Danish singletons born alive from 1996 to 2009 were included. Using national medical registries, we defined in utero exposure to antidepressants as redemption of an antidepressant prescription by the mother 30 days prior to or during pregnancy. We defined maternal former users of antidepressants as women, who had redeemed a prescription up to 30 days prior to pregnancy, and never users as women who had never redeemed a prescription. Main outcome measures ADHD was defined as redemption of a prescription for ADHD medication or an ADHD hospital diagnosis. Children were followed through 2010, and we used proportional-hazards regression to compute adjusted HRs comparing children exposed in utero and children born to former antidepressant users with children born to never users. To adjust for confounding from family-related factors, we conducted a within-mother between-pregnancy analysis comparing exposed children with unexposed siblings using conditional logistic regression. Results We identified a cohort of 877 778 children, of whom 1.7% were exposed in utero. The overall median follow-up time was 8 years; selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors were the most commonly used class of antidepressant during pregnancy (78% of users). The adjusted HR comparing children exposed to any antidepressant in utero with children born to never users was 1.2 (95% CI 1.1 to 1.4), and 1.6 (95% CI 1.5 to 1.8) comparing children born to former users to children born to never users of antidepressants. In the within-mother between-pregnancy analysis (n=867), the adjusted OR was 0.7 (95% CI 0.4 to 1.4). Conclusions This study provides no evidence to support a causal association between in utero exposure to antidepressants and risk of ADHD.
Activation of neutrophils by factors released from alveolar macrophages stimulated with collagen-like polypeptides.

Oxidant-induced injury is associated with breakdown of interstitial collagen and the accumulation of inflammatory cells in the lungs. In previous studies, we demonstrated that phagocyte accumulation is mediated, in part, by chemotactic factors generated from damaged collagen. To determine if alveolar macrophages also mediate the migration of polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMN) into the lungs, we examined the release of chemotactic factors from alveolar macrophages treated with native or synthetic collagenous peptides. These included fragments of bovine collagen digested with bacterial collagenase (CG) or cyanogen bromide (CB) as well as small molecular weight synthetic polypeptides containing proline (Pro), glycine (Gly), and hydroxyproline (Hyp), the major amino acids that comprise collagen. We found a dose- and time-related generation of PMN chemotactic activity by collagen peptide-treated macrophages. The maximum activity was released 72 h after pretreatment of macrophages for 1 to 3 h with 0.1 to 1 microM CG-, CB-, or (Pro-Pro-Gly)5-peptides. The native peptides derived from CG-digested collagen were more active than synthetic peptides containing Pro and Gly. Neither trypsin digests of bovine serum albumin nor synthetic peptides containing Hyp stimulated chemotactic factor release from macrophages. The alveolar macrophage-derived chemotactic factor was found to lose activity when dialyzed and after heat or trypsin treatment. The release of PMN-activating factors by collagen peptide-treated macrophages was also examined. Alveolar macrophage-conditioned medium was found to stimulate PMN production of reactive oxygen intermediates as well as elastase and gelatinase. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)