Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Using Peer Writing Fellows in British Universities: Complexities and Possibilities.

This article examines the potential role of peer tutors and writing fellows in higher education in the United Kingdom. It argues that scepticism surrounding the use of peer tutors in writing is unfounded. In fact, the disciplinary nature of UK Higher Education suggests that undergraduate peer tutors and writing fellows may have an important role in helping other students to develop academic literacies and in promoting Writing-in-the-Disciplines initiatives among academic staff. It looks at recent initiatives in this area at London Metropolitan University. Writing fellows schemes and undergraduate peer tutoring in writing are a feature of student and academic life on most US campuses. Universities in many other countries, however, have been slower to implement such initiatives to help students improve their writing. This is the case in the United Kingdom, where undergraduate peer tutoring in writing and writing fellows are largely unheard of by most academic staff. [2] This essay looks at the potential role of such schemes in the UK context. I argue that writing fellows in particular may be ideally suited to the British disciplinary degree model and have a valuable role to play in bringing Writing-in-the-Disciplines initiatives to the consciousness of UK academics. I will also report on the activities of a program recently established at London Metropolitan University where a small number of undergraduates have been hired to work both as writing fellows and as "writing mentors" in a newly opened writing centre. A potential obstacle to writing fellows schemes taking off in the UK is the faculty's reluctance to make use of students to help their fellow students with their writing. UK writing support practitioners have recently suggested that peer writing collaboration may not be appropriate in the UK context. Given the potential for controversy over this issue, reflection and research on this topic is imperative for all those concerned with teaching writing in UK universities. I hope that consideration of the contested nature of these issues in an international context will also be of interest to US scholars and teachers who take such programs largely for granted. O tempora! O mores! Our students can't write! In 2006, the Royal Literary Fund published Writing Matters, a report written by Royal Literary Fund Fellows, professional writers who have been working in various UK universities, offering one-to-one writing tutorials to students. The report is an attempt to expose what the Fellows see as a crisis in student writing. The tone borders on the indignant:
A Class of Distance Functions with Rearranging Techniques

In this paper, a class of distance functions are proposed to appropriately measure the distance between the vectors. First we build an elementary inequality, based on which we introduce the new distance functions combining some classic vector norms with the rearranging techniques. These distance functions could be helpful in eigenvalue computation or other scientific computations. Some basic and interesting properties of the involved distance functions are discussed.
A Teenager in Love: Multidimensional Human Capital and Teenage Pregnancy in Ghana

Abstract I examine teenage pregnancy in Ghana, focusing on the role and interplay of Ghanaian and English reading skills, formal educational attainment, and adult literacy programme participation. Pursuing several alternative identification strategies three main results are established. First, I confirm the finding from previous studies that educational attainment is negatively related to teenage pregnancy. Second, however, once Ghanaian and English reading skills are introduced, the association between educational attainment and teenage pregnancy decreases or disappears altogether. Third, for the girls who have not completed primary school, adult literacy programme participation is associated with a much lower probability of experiencing a teenage pregnancy. A bright future is the best contraceptive. –Marian Wright Edelman
Draft Genome Sequences of Clostridium Strains Native to Colombia with the Potential To Produce Solvents

ABSTRACT Genomes from four Clostridium sp. strains considered to be mesophilic anaerobic bacteria, isolated from crop soil in Colombia, with a strong potential to produce alcohols like 1,3-propanediol, were analyzed. We present the draft genome of these strains, which will be useful for developing genetic engineering strategies.
Prosody generation in the speech-to-speech translation framework

This paper deals with speech synthesis in the framework of speech-to-speech translation. Our current focus is to translate speeches or conversations between humans so that a third person can listen to them in its own language. In this framework the style is not written but spoken and the original speech includes a lot of non-linguistic information (as speaker emotion). In this work we propose the use of prosodic features in the original speech to produce prosody in the target language. Relevant features are found using an unsupervised clustering algorithm that nds, in a bilingual speech corpus, intonation clusters in the source speech which are relevant in the target speech. Preliminary results already show a signicant improvement in the synthetic quality.
p38 Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinase Contributes to Adenosine A1 Receptor-Mediated Synaptic Depression in Area CA1 of the Rat Hippocampus

Adenosine is arguably the most potent and widespread presynaptic modulator in the CNS, yet adenosine receptor signal transduction pathways remain unresolved. Here, we demonstrate a novel mechanism in which adenosine A1 receptor stimulation leads to p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) activation and contributes to the inhibition of synaptic transmission. Western blot analysis indicated that selective A1 receptor activation [with N6-cyclopentyladenosine (CPA)] resulted in rapid increases in phosphorylated p38 (phospho-p38) MAPK immunoreactivity in membrane fractions, and decreases in phospho-p38 MAPK in cytosolic fractions. Immunoprecipitation with a phospho-p38 MAPK antibody revealed constitutive association of this phosphoprotein with adenosine A1 receptors. Phospho-p38 MAPK activation by A1 receptor stimulation induced translocation of PP2a (protein phosphatase 2a) to the membrane. We then examined the actions of p38 MAPK activation in A1 receptor-mediated synaptic inhibition. Excitatory postsynaptic field potentials evoked in area CA1 of the rat hippocampus markedly decreased in response to adenosine (10 μm), the A1 receptor agonist CPA (40 nm), or a 5 min exposure to hypoxia. These inhibitory responses were mediated by A1 receptor activation because the selective antagonist DPCPX (8-cyclopentyl-1,3-dipropylxanthine) (100 nm) prevented them. In agreement with the biochemical analysis, the selective p38 MAPK inhibitor SB203580 [4-(4-fluorophenyl)-2-(4-methylsulfinylphenyl)-5-(4-pyridyl)-1H-imidazole] (25 μm) blocked the inhibitory actions of A1 receptor activation, whereas both the inactive analog SB202474 [4-ethyl-2-(p-methoxyphenyl)-5-(4′-pyridyl)-1H-imidazole] (25 μm) and the ERK 1/2 (extracellular signal-regulated kinase 1/2) MAPK inhibitor PD98059 [2′-amino-3′-methoxyflavone] (50 μm) were ineffective. In contrast, the p38 MAPK inhibitors did not inhibit GABAB-mediated synaptic depression. These data suggest A1 receptor-mediated p38 MAPK activation is a crucial step underlying the presynaptic inhibitory effect of adenosine on CA3–CA1 synaptic transmission.
COMPACT MICROSTRIP BANDPASS FILTER WITH MULTISPURIOUS SUPPRESSION

A compact microstrip bandpass filter (BPF) with multispurious suppression is presented. The filter consists of two coupled half-wavelength stepped impedance resonators (SIRs) and tapped input/output (I/O) lines. With tuning the impedance ratio (K) and length ratio (α) of SIRs, a very wide stopband can be easily achieved. The filter is designed at 2.4 GHz (f0) with a wide stopband to 20GHz (8.16f0) and an average rejection level better than 25 dB. This study provides a simple and effective method to achieve a filter with very wide stopband and compact circuit size simultaneously. Good agreement between the full-wave electromagnetic (EM) simulation and measurement is compared. Received 16 June 2010, Accepted 23 July 2010, Scheduled 29 July 2010 Corresponding author: H. -W. Wu (qqq25q@gmail.com).
Parallel Linear Octree Meshing with Immersed Surfaces

A parallel octree-based mesh generation method is proposed to create reasonable-quality, geometry-adapted unstructured hexahedral meshes automatically from triangulated surface models. We present algorithms for the construction, 2:1 balancing and meshing large linear octrees on distributed memory machines. Our scheme uses efficient computer graphics algorithms for surface detection, allowing us to represent complex geometries. Is granular analysis is performed on a variety of input surfaces and demonstrates good scalability. Our implementation is able to execute the 2:1 balancing operations over 4.0e08 octants on 128 cores in less than 10 seconds per 2e05 octants/core.
Hardness Results on Curve/Point Set Matching with Fréchet Distance

Let P be a polygonal curve in R^d of length n, and S be a point-set of size k. We consider the problem of finding a polygonal curve Q on S such that all points in S are visited and the Fr\'echet distance from $P$ is less than a given epsilon. We show that this problem is NP-complete, regardless of whether or not points from S are allowed be visited more than once. However, we also show that if the problem instance satisfies certain restrictions, the problem is polynomial-time solvable, and we briefly outline an algorithm that computes Q.
Role of deceleration effect in efficient and fast convergent gait generation

This paper discusses the problem of how to achieve high speed, energy efficient, and fast convergent limit cycle walking. We newly introduce the convergence speed of the generated gait as a criterion for evaluation. Through mathematical and numerical investigations, we clarify the role and importance of deceleration effect in fast convergent gait generation. First, we generate ballistic gaits of the simplest 1-DOF active walker by applying a simple control torque, and show that the stance phase is destabilized in the case only of acceleration effect. Second, we propose another method for generating a fast convergent gait by adding deceleration effect and investigate the validity through numerical simulations. Furthermore, we extend our analysis to the cases taking joint viscosity and time delay into account and discuss the effects on the gait properties.
A realization of FIR system for on-line writer recognition

This paper presents a realization of finite impulse response (FIR) system for on-line writer recognition. The FIR system is realized using Fourier coefficients of a barycenter of trajectory of pen-tip movement (BTP) and its velocity in handwriting process. The input and output of the FIR system are the Fourier coefficients of the velocity and the BTP, respectively. With the realized FIR system, writer can be recognized by comparing the output to the input for unknown writer with the reference output for a particular writer. Experimental results are given to show the effectiveness of the proposed method. In our experiments, FRR (false rejection rate) and FAR (false acceptance rate) were 1.50% and 0.65%, respectively.
Rules versus ideas in landscape protection: is a Green Heart attack imminent?

ABSTRACTLandscape protection in metropolitan areas is an ongoing activity that lies outside the remit of political office-holders. As political agendas change, the importance of landscape protection on strategic planning agendas may also change. This paper raises the question whether this strategic level of landscape protection ought to rest on rules or ideas, and uses the Dutch Green Heart as a case study. The success of Dutch planning has been attributed to a planning doctrine which has evolved around a principle of spatial organization consisting of an open landscape (a Green Heart) in the middle of a ‘rim’ city – in this case the Dutch Randstad. After this success had been recognized, policies were developed to formalize the protection of the Green Heart in strategic planning rules. Political controversies ensued, which resulted in the abolition of Green Heart policies at national level. Recently, the province of Zuid-Holland adopted a new structural vision and a byelaw in which there is no role for t.
Tempo and mode of evolutionary radiation in Diabroticina beetles (genera Acalymma, Cerotoma, and Diabrotica)

Abstract Adaptive radiation is an aspect of evolutionary biology encompassing microevolution and macroevolution, for explaining the principles of lineage divergence. There are intrinsic as well as extrinsic factors that can be postulated to explain that adaptive radiation has taken place in specific lineages. The Diabroticina beetles are a prominent example of differential diversity that could be examined in detail to explain the diverse paradigms of adaptive radiation. Macroevolutionary analyses must present the differential diversity patterns in a chronological framework. The current study reviews the processes that shaped the differential diversity of some Diabroticina lineages (i.e. genera Acalymma, Cerotoma, and Diabrotica). These diversity patterns and the putative processes that produced them are discussed within a statistically reliable estimate of time. This was achieved by performing phylogenetic and coalescent analyses for 44 species of chrysomelid beetles. The data set encompassed a total of 2,718 nucleotide positions from three mitochondrial and two nuclear loci. Pharmacophagy, host plant coevolution, competitive exclusion, and geomorphological complexity are discussed as putative factors that might have influenced the observed diversity patterns. The coalescent analysis concluded that the main radiation within Diabroticina beetles occurred between middle Oligocene and middle Miocene. Therefore, the radiation observed in these beetles is not recent (i.e. post-Panamanian uplift, 4 Mya). Only a few speciation events in the genus Diabrotica might be the result of the Pleistocene climatic oscillations.
INVOLVEMENT OF SOMATOSTATIN RECEPTOR SUBTYPES IN MEMBRANE ION CHANNEL MODIFICATION BY SOMATOSTATIN IN PITUITARY SOMATOTROPES

1 Growth hormone (GH) secretion from pituitary somatotropes is mainly regulated by two hypothalamic hormones, GH‐releasing hormone (GHRH) and somatotrophin releasing inhibitory factor (SRIF). 2 Somatotrophin releasing inhibitory factor inhibits GH secretion via activation of specific membrane receptors, somatostatin receptors (SSTRs) and signalling transduction systems in somatotropes. 3 Five subtypes of SSTRs, namely SSTR1, 2, 3, 4 and 5, have been identified, with the SSTR2 subtype divided into SSTR2A and SSTR2B. All SSTRs are G‐protein‐coupled receptors. 4 Voltage‐gated Ca2+ and K+ channels on the somatotrope membrane play an important role in regulating GH secretion and SRIF modifies both channels to reduce intracellular free Ca2+ concentration and GH secretion. 5 Using specific SSTR subtype‐specific agonists, it has been found that reduction in Ca2+ currents by SRIF is mediated by SSTR2 and an increase in K+ currents is mediated by both SSTR2 and SSTR4 in rat somatotropes.
DEREVERBERATION BY CONSTRAINED AND REGULARIZED MULTI-CHANNEL SPECTRAL DECOMPOSITION : EVALUATED ON REVERB CHALLENGE

We present our contribution to the REVERB Challenge in this paper. A multi-channel speech dereverberation system combines cross-channel cancellation and spectral decomposition. The reverberation is modeled as a convolution operation in the spectral domain. Using the generalized Kullback-Leibler (KL) divergence, we decompose the reverberant magnitude spectrum into clean magnitude spectrum convolved with a deconvolution filter. The magnitude spectrum is constrained and regularized by non-negativity and sparsity, respectively, while the deconvolution filter is constrained by non-negativity and cross-channel cancellation. Spectral decomposition of individual channels and cross-channel cancellation are jointly optimized by a multiplicative algorithm to achieve multi-channel speech dereverberation. Experimental evaluations on “speech enhancement task” are carried out according to the evaluation guidelines of the REVERB challenge, showing promising results. The objective metrics for measuring reverberation are investigated through the algorithm evaluation.
The ovarian response to controlled stimulation in IVF cycles may be predictive of the age at menopause.

STUDY QUESTION Can the number of oocytes retrieved in IVF cycles be predictive of the age at menopause? SUMMARY ANSWER The number of retrieved oocytes can be used as an indirect assessment of the extent of ovarian reserve to provide information on the duration of the reproductive life span in women of different ages. WHAT IS KNOWN ALREADY Menopause is determined by the exhaustion of the ovarian follicular pool. Ovarian reserve is the main factor influencing ovarian response in IVF cycles. As a consequence the response to ovarian stimulation with the administration of gonadotrophins in IVF treatment may be informative about the age at menopause. STUDY DESIGN, SIZE, DURATION In the present cross-sectional study, participants were 1585 infertile women from an IVF clinic and 2635 menopausal women from a more general population. PARTICIPANTS/MATERIALS, SETTING, METHODS For all infertile women, the response to ovarian stimulation with gonadotrophins was recorded. For menopausal women, relevant demographic characteristics were available for the analysis. MAIN RESULTS AND THE ROLE OF CHANCE A cubic function described the relationship between mean numbers of oocytes and age, with all terms being statistically significant. From the estimated residual distribution of the actual number of oocytes about this mean, a distribution of the age when there would be no oocytes retrieved following ovarian stimulation was derived. This was compared with the distribution of the age at menopause from the menopausal women, showing that menopause occurred about a year later. LIMITATIONS, REASONS FOR CAUTION The retrieved oocyte data were from infertile women, while the menopausal ages were from a more general population. WIDER IMPLICATIONS OF THE FINDINGS In the present study, we have shown some similarity between the distributions of the age when no retrieved oocytes can be expected after ovarian stimulation and the age at menopause. For a given age, the lower the ovarian reserve, the lower the number of retrieved oocytes would be and the earlier the age that menopause would occur. STUDY FUNDING/COMPETING INTERESTS This work was supported by a grant from the Italian Ministry of Health (GR-2009-1580036). There are no conflicts of interest.
Therapeutic Efficacy of DTI-015 using Diffusion Magnetic Resonance Imaging as an Early Surrogate Marker

To investigate diffusion weighted magnetic resonance imaging as a quantitative surrogate marker for evaluating the therapy-induced cellular changes in an orthotopic experimental glioma model, tumors were treated with direct intratumoral administration of DTI-015, a solution of 1,3-bis(2-chloroethyl)-1-nitrosourea (BCNU) in 100% EtOH. Intracerebral 9L tumors were induced in Fischer 344 rats, and three treatment groups were established: DTI-015, EtOH, and sham. Two groups of rats received intratumoral injection of either 67 mg/mL BCNU in EtOH or EtOH alone at 50% of the tumor volume up to a maximum of 30 μl under stereotactic guidance. Diffusion magnetic resonance images were acquired before treatment and after treatment at 1, 24, 48, and 72 hours and then 3 times per week thereafter. Tumor cell viability was examined using multislice diffusion weighted magnetic resonance imaging with diffusion weighted transverse magnetic resonance images and histogram plots of each tumor quantified over time. Control animals (EtOH- or sham-treated animals) showed mean apparent diffusion coefficients (ADCs) that remained essentially unchanged over the experimental time course. In contrast, rats treated with DTI-015 showed a significant increase in ADC relative to the pretreatment within 24 hours, which further increased over time, followed by a significant therapeutic response as evidenced by subsequent tumor volume shrinkage, development of a cystic region, and enhanced animal survival. Finally, not only were ADC measurements predictive of differences between treatment groups, but they also yielded spatial and temporal data regarding the efficacy of treatment within individual treated animals that could be used to guide subsequent therapy.
XMT enabled prediction of structure and permeability of flocculated structures and sediments

Abstract3D visualisations of the microstructure of flocculated particulates and sediments using optical confocal laser microscopy and high resolution X-ray microtomography (XMT) methods are described. Data obtained from in-situ measurements should enable direct computation of the properties of solids assembly (shape, size, contact area) and their permeability to fluids. A specific application relating to the formation of silica aggregates is described from which the behaviour of sediments containing these materials can be predicted on the basis of a bench-top test and the use of a Lattice Boltzman simulation. It is proposed that the method can potentially be used to predict trends such as the filtration behaviour of porous structures under different states of compression. This offers a significant benefit in assisting the formulation design of flocculated materials pertinent to a number of industrial sectors wishing to design optimal filtration or relevant operations.
SNANA: A Public Software Package for Supernova Analysis

We describe a general analysis package for supernova (SN) light curves, called SNANA, that contains a simulation, a light-curve fitter, and a cosmology fitter. The software is designed with the primary goal of using SNe Ia as distance indicators for the determination of cosmological parameters, but it can also be used to study efficiencies for analyses of SN rates, estimate contamination from non-Ia SNe, and optimize future surveys. Several SN models are available within the same software architecture, allowing technical features such as K-corrections to be consistently used among multiple models, and thus making it easier to make detailed comparisons between models. New and improved light-curve models can be easily added. The software works with arbitrary surveys and telescopes and has already been used by several collaborations, leading to more robust and easy-to-use code. This software is not intended as a final product release, but rather it is designed to undergo continual improvements from the community as more is learned about SNe. We give an overview of the SNANA capabilities, as well as some of its limitations.