Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Deep thinking and high ceilings: Using philosophy to challenge ‘more able’ pupils

At different times in their school career and across different subject areas, some pupils may require additional and/or more complex tasks from their teachers, since they find the work set to be insufficiently challenging. Recommendations for coping with these pupils’ needs are varied, but among other responses, it is common, in the field of ‘gifted and talented’ education, to advocate the use of critical thinking programmes. These can be very effective in providing the missing challenge through helping develop pupils’ facilities for building and defending rational argument. However, the exercises can be just that; mental agility tasks that lack relevant context. When children engage in learning philosophy in school, they benefit from the experience of developing logical, rigorous argument; but the subject can offer more than critical skills practice. Since philosophy attends to questions about things that matter in pupils’ lives, discussions can have an ethical and moral dimension and as such can be more than an intellectual exercise. Pupils of all abilities and propensities can become involved in the discussions, but the open nature of the areas of debate lends itself particularly well to providing challenge for pupils who need enriched and extended tasks in order to remain engaged. Some of the well-rehearsed Philosophy with/for Children methods are also designed to help develop mutual respect and understanding and so philosophy not only appeals to the cognitive and intellectual in children, but places this development in a context that fosters positive personal qualities.
Characterization of the flow behavior of alginate/hydroxyapatite mixtures for tissue scaffold fabrication

Mixtures of alginate and hydroxyapatite (HA) are promising materials for biomedical applications such as the fabrication of tissue scaffolds. In this paper, the flow behavior of alginate/HA mixtures was investigated and determined to be dependent on the concentration of both alginate and HA, and temperature. The relationships were mathematically established and verified with experimental results. As applied to the tissue scaffold fabrication, the flow rate of the biomaterial solution was predicted from the established flow behavior and verified by experiments. On this basis, the moving speed of the needle was determined and used in the tissue scaffold fabrication. The results obtained show that the knowledge of the flow behavior is essential to the fabrication of tissue scaffolds with an interconnected microstructure.
Avidin-biotin technology in targeted therapy

Importance of the field: The goal of drug targeting is to increase the concentration of the drug in the vicinity of the cells responsible for disease without affecting healthy cells. Many approaches in cancer treatment are limited because of their broad range of unwanted side effects on healthy cells. Targeting can reduce side effects and increase efficacy of drugs in the patient. Areas covered in this review: Avidin, originally isolated from chicken eggs, and its bacterial analogue, streptavidin, from Streptomyces avidinii, have extremely high affinity for biotin. This unique feature is the basis of avidin-biotin technology. This article reviews the current status of avidin-biotin systems and their use for pretargeted drug delivery and vector targeting. What the reader will gain: The reader will gain an understanding of the following approaches using the avidin-biotin system: i) targeting antibodies and therapeutic molecules are administered separately leading to a reduction of drug dose in normal tissues compared with conventional (radio)immunotherapies; ii) introducing avidin gene into specific tissues by local gene transfer, which subsequently can sequester and concentrate considerable amounts of therapeutic ligands; and iii) enabling transductional targeting of gene therapy vectors. Take home message: Avidin and biotin technology has proved to be an extremely versatile tool with broad applications, such as pretargeting, delivering avidin gene into cells enabling targeting of biotinylated compounds and targeting of viral vectors.
DDoS Attack Detection Using Unique Source IP Deviation

In this paper we present a low cost yet robust DDoS detection method to identify all classes of DDoS attacks. Our method attempts to detect DDoS attack by monitoring the deviation of the count of unique source IPs and the count of source IPs whose transmission rate is higher than a given threshold value. Unlike other similar existing methods, our method does not need to maintain a list of source IPs which makes our detection method faster. Another advantage of our method is the ability to detect attack performed by small size bot net. In case of such an attack the packet rate of the attack sources deviate from its mean value signiﬁcantly and thus we can detect this change. We use a non-parametric change point modeling technique to identify ﬂooding attacks of all types in real time. An other contribution of this work is the development of an attack took referred to as TU-CANNON, to generate diﬀerent variations of DDoS attack under a controlled test-bed environment.
The effect of contrast on the visual response of lagged and nonlagged cells in the cat lateral geniculate nucleus

Abstract The response vs. contrast characteristics of different cell classes in the dorsal lateral geniculate nucleus (LGN) were compared. The luminance of a stationary flashing light spot was varied stepwise while the background luminance was constant. Lagged X cells had lower slope of the response vs. contrast curve (contrast gain), and they reached the midpoint of the response range over which the cells' response varied (dynamic response range) at higher contrasts than nonlagged X cells. These results indicated that nonlagged cells are well suited for detection of small contrasts, whereas lagged cells may discriminate between contrasts over a larger range. The contrast gain and the contrast corresponding to the midpoint of the dynamic response range were similar for X and Y cells. The latency to onset and to half-rise of the visual response decreased with increasing contrast, most pronounced for lagged cells. Even at the highest contrasts, the latency of lagged cells remained longer than for nonlagged cells. For many lagged cells, the latency to half-fall decreased with increasing contrast. It is shown that the differences in the response vs. contrast characteristics between lagged and nonlagged X cells in the cat are similar to the differences between the parvocellular and magnocellular neurones in the monkey.
Vicissitudes of pain and suffering: Chronic pain and liminality

This article looks at how the Finnish experience of chronic pain is shaped by socio‐cultural practices. Along with the ambiguity that is necessarily present in all chronic illnesses, the invisibility of chronic pain blurs biomedical categorization and confuses diagnostics. This results in a double delegitimation—that of suffering a chronic illness and that of suffering chronic pain—which, obviously, has a serious effect on one's experience of pain as well as on one's self‐identity. I draw upon data collected from my interviews (conducted in a pain clinic in Finland) with patients who, for years, have suffered from chronic pain. People who are in pain feel that they have lost something precious, and, as a result, their subjectivity—their sense of who they are—becomes altered. This finding is in keeping with what we have learned from previous studies of chronicity. However, unlike Sue Estroff's (1993) and Jean Jackson's (1994) findings with regard to chronic illness (i.e., that it may be specifically located on a continuum of subjectness), my findings with regard to chronic pain indicate that it is ambiguous, that it involves a continuous back‐and‐forth movement along a continuum of subjectness. This movement involves reconciling one's self with, as well as distancing one's self from, pain; and it reflects the biomedical construction of chronic pain. In contrast to those narrative studies of chronic illness that represent illness as a “biographical disruption,” my interviews with Finnish patients indicate that those living with chronic pain experience continual disruptions—chronic pain being one among many.
Geometric Enclosing Networks

Training model to generate data has increasingly attracted research attention and become important in modern world applications. We propose in this paper a new geometry-based optimization approach to address this problem. Orthogonal to current state-of-the-art density-based approaches, most notably VAE and GAN, we present a fresh new idea that borrows the principle of minimal enclosing ball to train a generator G\left(\bz\right) in such a way that both training and generated data, after being mapped to the feature space, are enclosed in the same sphere. We develop theory to guarantee that the mapping is bijective so that its inverse from feature space to data space results in expressive nonlinear contours to describe the data manifold, hence ensuring data generated are also lying on the data manifold learned from training data. Our model enjoys a nice geometric interpretation, hence termed Geometric Enclosing Networks (GEN), and possesses some key advantages over its rivals, namely simple and easy-to-control optimization formulation, avoidance of mode collapsing and efficiently learn data manifold representation in a completely unsupervised manner. We conducted extensive experiments on synthesis and real-world datasets to illustrate the behaviors, strength and weakness of our proposed GEN, in particular its ability to handle multi-modal data and quality of generated data.
Lack of association between the angiotensin-converting enzyme gene (I/D) polymorphism and diabetic nephropathy in Tunisian type 2 diabetic patients

Objective. The aim of the present study was to investigate whether the angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) insertion/deletion (I/D) polymorphism is associated with diabetic nephropathy and type 2 diabetes in the Tunisian population. Design. A case-control study was conducted among 141 unrelated type 2 diabetic patients with (90 patients) or without nephropathy (51 patients) and 103 non-diabetic controls with normal fasting blood glucose. Genotyping was performed using a nested polymerase chain reaction amplification in order to identify correctly heterozygous individuals. Results. The distribution of DD, ID and II genotypes did not significantly differ between type 2 diabetic patients with or without nephropathy (DD: 44%; ID: 46%; II: 10% vs. DD: 41%; ID: 47 %; II: 12%, respectively). There was also no significant statistical difference between the genotype distribution and allele frequencies of the (I/D) polymorphism in all type 2 diabetic subjects compared to non-diabetic controls with normal fasting blood glucose (DD: 43%; ID: 46%; II: 11% vs. DD: 37%; ID: 48% ;II: 15%, respectively). Conclusions. In the present preliminary study, the (I/D) polymorphis within the ACE gene is likely not associated with diabetic nephropathy nor with type 2 diabetes in the Tunisian studied population.
Product Complexity in International Production Networks: Comparing EU Core and Old and New EU Periphery

ABSTRACT This paper focuses on analyzing the complexity level of the basket of parts and components exported by EU countries and how it is related to trade linked to international production networks. Three blocks of EU countries, which enjoy different available comparative advantages, are distinguished (Core, New Periphery, and Old Periphery). Our analysis shows that more than one third of exports of P&Cs are of very high complexity in the three blocks of countries. By estimating a panel data gravity model, we find that the higher the product complexity, the higher the volume of trade linked to international production networks, with the impact larger for EU Core countries that exhibit a wider set of high capabilities.
Competition Between Software-as-a-Service Vendors

We propose a model of software-as-a-service (SaaS) in a competitive marketplace that brings clarity to the choices that competing vendors must make for pricing and quality strategy. We focus on several features of SaaS competition, including differences in vendor offerings, incomplete information on application functionality, the potential lock-in risk of SaaS clients, and their cost of learning about what it will take to make the vendors' software work well. Clients can sample the fit costs of adoption, but can switch to another vendor. We obtained several findings through the use of a game-theoretic model. First, a client's switching cost is important for its decision-making regarding SaaS adoption. With a relatively high switching cost, a more cost-efficient vendor of IT services will be able to drive the less cost-efficient competitor out of its market. Second, the impact of the client's switching cost on vendors works differently. An increase in switching cost enables one vendor to charge a higher price and achieve higher profit, while the other will be forced to charge a lower price and hardly make a profit. Third, what matters is not how much a vendor can enhance service quality, but instead how costly it will be to improve quality enough to attract sufficient customer interest to achieve profitability.
Register Transfer Level Concurrent Error Detection in Elliptic Curve Crypto Implementations

In this paper we present an register transfer level (RTL) concurrent error detection (CED) technique targeting hardware implementations of elliptic curve cryptography (ECC). The proposed mixed hardware- and time-redundancy based CED techniques use the mathematical properties of the underlying Galois field as well as the ECC primitives to detect both soft errors and permanent faults with low area overhead. Results for sequential implementations of GF multiplication and inverse operations yielded an area overhead of 30% and a time overhead of 120%.
Exploring High-Commitment International Growth of High-Technology New Ventures: The Contingent Model of Formal Alliances

Abstract Although the importance of alliances to international entrepreneurs’ international growth is well acknowledged, we know little about how INVs benefit from both alliance partnership and their own capabilities for a high-commitment international growth. Using a sample of 231 international high-technology ventures, we find that technological knowledge drives high-commitment international growth of new ventures, and this relationship is moderated by both domestic and foreign alliances joined by the INVs we studied. Discussion and conclusions are offered.
On the Determinants of Output Co-Movements in the CEMAC Zone: Examining the Role of Trade, Policy Channel, Economic Structure and Common Factors

This paper aims to examine the forces driving co-movements in the CEMAC. For that purpose, a two-step methodology is employed. First, a DCC-GARCH is used to assess correlations between member states. Second, panel models are employed to examine whether and the extent to which trade, policies, economic structure and common factors determine output growth correlations. Results from the DCC-GARCH model suggest that spikes of co-movements appear during high volatility oil prices episodes namely the 1998 oil crisis, the 2008 financial crisis and the recent 2014 collapse. Panel regressions suggest that trade has negative effects on output co-movements. The differential fiscal policy displays strong and significant positive effects on output correlations while the role of the single monetary policy is not robust across models. The degree of specialization has negative effects while the financial development increase co-movements. The landlocked situation of Chad and Central Africa reduces their co-movements with other member states. Results also reveal non-linearities in the effects of trade linkages which are non-significant when the country is landlocked. As a policy implication, national governments may limit the cyclical behaviour of their fiscal policy in order to in increase co-movements in the region.
Risk management by SPV partners in toll road public private partnerships

ABSTRACT Research on risk management in Public Private Partnerships (PPPs) has largely overlooked that the Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) is made up of several project partners with different interests and objectives to manage risk. This paper makes an important contribution to this literature as it articulates SPV partners’ perceptions of how they manage risk in toll road PPPs. Our case studies show that the different skillsets of both the international and domestic partners with their sub-contractors provide opportunities for mitigating and managing risk but also pose potential problems in terms of measuring and obtaining value for money for taxpayers.
Content Validity of CASA-Q Cough Domains and UCSD-SOBQ for Use in Patients with Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis

Purpose: The study objective was to assess the content validity of the Cough and Sputum Assessment Questionnaire (CASA-Q) cough domains and the UCSD Shortness of Breath Questionnaire (SOBQ) for use in patients with Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis (IPF). Methods: Cross-sectional, qualitative study with cognitive interviews in patients with IPF. Study outcomes included relevance, comprehension of item meaning, understanding of the instructions, recall period, response options, and concept saturation. Results: Interviews were conducted with 18 IPF patients. The mean age was 68.9 years (SD 11.9), 77.8% were male, and 88.9% were Caucasian. The intended meaning of the CASA-Q cough domain items was clearly understood by most of the participants (89–100%). All participants understood the CASA-Q instructions; the correct recall period was reported by 89% of the patients, and the response options were understood by 76%. The intended meaning of the UCSD-SOBQ items was relevant and clearly understood by all participants. Participants understood the instructions (83%) and all patients understood the response options (100%). The reported recall period varied based on the type of activity performed. No concepts were missing, suggesting that saturation was demonstrated for both measures. Conclusions: This study provides evidence for content validity for the CASA-Q cough domains and the UCSD-SOBQ for patients with IPF. Items of both questionnaires were understood and perceived as relevant to measure the key symptoms of IPF. The results of this study support the use of these instruments in IPF clinical trials as well as further studies of their psychometric properties.
The simultaneity of feeling German and being American: Analyzing 150 years of private migrant correspondence

Analyzing the long-term dynamics of migrant integration is a significant challenge for researchers. This paper traces how ‘ordinary’ German-speaking migrants in the USA expressed their sense of participation and belonging throughout the 19th and early 20th centuries in the letters they wrote to their families ‘back home. ’ We study a large collection of migrant letters written by German-speaking immigrants in the USA between 1830 and 1970 and analyze this new data with methods of computerized text analysis. The investigation shows how migrants continuously make and re-make identities within and across their heterogeneous migrant ‘groups. ’ Our paper highlights the strong incentives for social and cultural integration in the absence of restrictive host state policies. We also show that political events and crises affecting both the country of origin and the destination country act as a catalyst in redefining, at least temporarily, parts of the migrant identities in relation to both the sending and host states.
Comparison of the effects of crude and highly purified bovine inhibin (Mr 32,000) on plasma concentrations of FSH and LH in chronically ovariectomized prepubertal heifers.

Chronically ovariectomized prepubertal heifers were used for a comparison of the effects of highly purified bovine inhibin (Mr 32,000) and steroid-free bovine follicular fluid (bFF) on the secretion of FSH and LH. In view of the limited availability of highly purified inhibin, an initial study was undertaken to establish the optimal method for administration of bFF inhibin activity. In comparison with the FSH response to a single large i.v. bolus injection of bFF (50 ml; 3250 mg protein), a far more effective suppression of plasma FSH concentrations was achieved when considerably less bFF (6.3 ml; 410 mg protein) was administered gradually over an extended time-period (2 days) either as a continuous i.v. infusion or as a series of 2-hourly i.v. injections. Following a single i.v. bolus injection of bFF, immunoreactive inhibin was cleared rapidly from the circulation (half-life 51 +/- 8 (S.E.M.) min, n = 5), presumably accounting for its limited ability to suppress FSH secretion when administered in this manner. In a second experiment, treatment of ovariectomized heifers (three per group) with highly purified Mr 32,000 bovine inhibin at a dose rate of 15 micrograms/2 h for 2 days significantly (P less than 0.05) suppressed plasma FSH concentrations, which reached their minimum values (40% suppression) during day 2 of treatment. At a lower dose rate (5 micrograms/2 h), inhibin did not significantly affect plasma FSH levels. Administration of bFF was also associated with a dose-dependent suppression of FSH secretion. For each of three dose rates tested (three heifers per group), plasma FSH concentrations were maximally suppressed during day 2 of treatment (65 mg/2 h, 86% suppression, P less than 0.001; 21.7 mg/2 h, 66% suppression, P less than 0.001; 7.2 mg/2 h, 15% suppression, P greater than 0.05). Neither highly purified inhibin nor bFF significantly affected mean plasma LH concentrations, LH pulse frequency or LH pulse amplitude. Thus we have shown for the first time that highly purified Mr 32,000 bovine inhibin does possess in-vivo biological activity in cattle, promoting a selective suppression of plasma FSH concentrations qualitatively similar to that evoked by steroid-free bFF. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Opposing Actions of Extracellular Signal-regulated Kinase (ERK) and Signal Transducer and Activator of Transcription 3 (STAT3) in Regulating Microtubule Stabilization during Cardiac Hypertrophy*

Excessive proliferation and stabilization of the microtubule (MT) array in cardiac myocytes can accompany pathological cardiac hypertrophy, but the molecular control of these changes remains poorly characterized. In this study, we examined MT stabilization in two independent murine models of heart failure and revealed increases in the levels of post-translationally modified stable MTs, which were closely associated with STAT3 activation. To explore the molecular signaling events contributing to control of the cardiac MT network, we stimulated cardiac myocytes with an α-adrenergic agonist phenylephrine (PE), and observed increased tubulin content without changes in detyrosinated (glu-tubulin) stable MTs. In contrast, the hypertrophic interleukin-6 (IL6) family cytokines increased both the glu-tubulin content and glu-MT density. When we examined a role for ERK in regulating cardiac MTs, we showed that the MEK/ERK-inhibitor U0126 increased glu-MT density in either control cardiac myocytes or following exposure to hypertrophic agents. Conversely, expression of an activated MEK1 mutant reduced glu-tubulin levels. Thus, ERK signaling antagonizes stabilization of the cardiac MT array. In contrast, inhibiting either JAK2 with AG490, or STAT3 signaling with Stattic or siRNA knockdown, blocked cytokine-stimulated increases in glu-MT density. Furthermore, the expression of a constitutively active STAT3 mutant triggered increased glu-MT density in the absence of hypertrophic stimulation. Thus, STAT3 activation contributes substantially to cytokine-stimulated glu-MT changes. Taken together, our results highlight the opposing actions of STAT3 and ERK pathways in the regulation of MT changes associated with cardiac myocyte hypertrophy.