Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Relationship between Hand-Eye Dominance and Lateral Errors in Basketball Free-Throw Shooting

86 subjects took a total of 50 free throws, with 10 shots on each of 5 days. Handedness was determined by the preferred hand for performing basketball skills; eye dominance by the “hole-in-card test. ” No statistically significant differences were found on comparing the lateral errors made by the unilaterally dominant subjects with those made by the contralaterally dominant subjects. Subjects using a one-hand shot made a significantly greater percentage of errors toward the side of the non-dominant hand than did subjects using a two-hand shot.
Interictal EEG discharges, reproductive hormones, and menstrual disorders in epilepsy

We evaluated reproductive endocrine function in women with unilateral temporolimbic epilepsy and normal control subjects to assess the effects of epilepsy, epilepsy laterality, and antiepileptic drug use on the cerebral regulation of hormonal secretion. The findings indicate that reproductive endocrine function differs between women with epilepsy and normal control subjects. Significant differences exist at all levels of the reproductive neuroendocrine axis, that is, hypothalamus, pituitary, and peripheral gland. Differences show significant relationships to the epilepsy itself as well as to medication use. Reproductive neuroendocrine changes occur in a stochastic manner such that the laterality of unilateral temporolimbic discharges is associated with predictable directional changes in hormonal secretion at all levels of the reproductive neuroendocrine axis. These directional changes are consistent with the finding that different reproductive disorders may develop in relation to left‐ and right‐sided temporolimbic epilepsy. Hormonal changes can show close temporal relationship to the occurrence of interictal epileptiform discharges and may vary in relation to the laterality of the discharges. Antiepileptic drugs differ in their effects on reproductive hormone levels. There are notable differences between enzyme‐inducing and noninducing drugs. Menstrual disorders are more common among women with interictal discharges as well as women with abnormal hormonal findings. Ann Neurol 2003;54:625–637
The Traumatic Impact of the September 11, 2001, Terrorist Attacks and the Potential Protection of Optimism

This study examined the impact of the September 11 terrorist attacks on graduate and undergraduate students and the role of optimism in posttraumatic distress. A sample of 457 students who attended courses at three schools of social work (Nevada, Pennsylvania, and Washington) participated in the study. A quarter of them had a known person as an immediate victim of the attacks. Multivariate analysis showed that posttraumatic stress disorder symptom scores were positively related to personal loss and two types of previous trauma reactivated by the attacks, and levels of initial negative emotional response. Optimism and its interaction with personal loss were inversely associated with posttraumatic stress disorder symptom scores.
Increased Inflammatory Properties of Adipose Tissue Macrophages Recruited During Diet-Induced Obesity

Although recent studies show that adipose tissue macrophages (ATMs) participate in the inflammatory changes in obesity and contribute to insulin resistance, the properties of these cells are not well understood. We hypothesized that ATMs recruited to adipose tissue during a high-fat diet have unique inflammatory properties compared with resident tissue ATMs. Using a dye (PKH26) to pulse label ATMs in vivo, we purified macrophages recruited to white adipose tissue during a high-fat diet. Comparison of gene expression in recruited and resident ATMs using real-time RT-PCR and cDNA microarrays showed that recruited ATMs overexpress genes important in macrophage migration and phagocytosis, including interleukin-6 (IL-6), inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), and C-C chemokine receptor 2 (CCR2). Many of these genes were not induced in ATMs from high-fat diet–fed CCR2 knockout mice, supporting the importance of CCR2 in regulating recruitment of inflammatory ATMs during obesity. Additionally, expression of Apoe was decreased, whereas genes important in lipid metabolism, such as Pparg, Adfp, Srepf1, and Apob48r, were increased in the recruited macrophages. In agreement with this, ATMs from obese mice had increased lipid content compared with those from lean mice. These studies demonstrate that recruited ATMs in obese animals represent a subclass of macrophages with unique properties.
Indexing the Spatiotemporal . . .

In Geographic InfolTnation Systems spatial objects may change their spatiallocation and/or shapes over time. Query processing of such spatiotemporal objects consists of spatial query conditions and temporal query conditions. Dur study focuses on representing the spatiotemporal monitoring of a polygonal object and aims at developing an efficient data structure supporting queries and operations that refer to both spatial and temporal monitoring. In this paper, we present a first perfolTnance comparison which indicates that spatial indexing offers apossibility of efficient query processing of a spatiotemporal object
Inference by Conversion

We are discussing a modeling technique based on the idea to generate data sequences with a number of suggested models. These sequences are transformed, or converted, into an observed data sequence by a suitable function, or a program. The motivation for doing so is in cases where the likelihood of observed data is hard to compute, which is circumvented with an indirect approximation by trying to replicate the data. It is shown that this approach produces desirable metrics on the models of interest and a consistent method for model selection, at least in some cases. Keywords— Kolmogorov complexity, algorithmic information theory, data compression, randomness, randomized algorithms, statistical inference, model selection, minimum description length, Bayesian data analysis, prediction.
A Novel Scheme for Frequency Offset Estimation in OFDM Systems

In this paper, a novel integer frequency offset estimation scheme which is not affected by the timing offset is proposed for orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) systems. Most of the schemes proposed for the integer frequency offset estimation assume the absence of the timing offset; however, such an assumption is not appropriate in practical systems. In this paper, using differential combining between two successive subcarriers, we propose a novel frequency offset estimation scheme. The simulation results show that the proposed scheme is robust to the timing offset variation, and thus, performs better than the conventional scheme when the timing offset range is not known.
Web tracking: Overview and applicability in digital investigations

Abstract Nowadays, website owners, advertisers, and data vendors can draw on a variety of techniques to track users on the Web. Here, the tracking range can vary from single websites to long-term browsing sessions across several websites and devices. Even though they are widely used, most of these techniques have in common that they are not familiar to average and even web-minded users. Therefore, most users are not able to realize the magnitude of web tracking and its consequences, not to mention to resist tracking. In times of rising concerns about data protection and privacy, this paper is intended to illustrate how web tracking works and which standard techniques are commonly used. The paper also provides an outlook on promising new tracking techniques based on behavioral biometrics. Furthermore, since browser forensics is already a subject to digital investigations, the usefulness of tracking techniques for forensic purposes and their applicability in light of the principle of proportionality is discussed. Finally, possible countermeasures and their effectiveness are indicated.
Peak-to-average power ratio reduction in CDMA systems using metric-based symbol predistortion

In this paper, we propose a simple peak-to-average power ratio (PAPR) reduction algorithm for code-division multiple access (CDMA) systems. The described algorithm is based on predistorting a set of symbols using an appropriate metric and does not need sending any side information to the receiver. Using binary phase-shift keying (BPSK) modulation, we show that performance of this algorithm approaches that of the optimum PAPR reduction procedure while avoiding its excessive complexity
Quantitative Testing of fMRI-Compatibility of an Electrically Active Mechatronic Device for Robot-Assisted Sensorimotor Protocols

Objective: To develop a quantitative set of methods for testing the functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) compatibility of an electrically-active mechatronic device developed to support sensorimotor protocols during fMRI. Methods: The set of methods includes phantom and in vivo experiments to measure the effect of a progressively broader set of noise sources potentially introduced by the device. Phantom experiments measure the radio-frequency (RF) noise and temporal noise-to-signal ratio (tNSR) introduced by the device. The in vivo experiment assesses the effect of the device on measured brain activation for a human subject performing a representative sensorimotor task. The proposed protocol was validated via experiments using a 3T MRI scanner operated under nominal conditions and with the inclusion of an electrically-active mechatronic device — the MR-SoftWrist — as the equipment under test (EUT). Results: Quantitative analysis of RF noise data allows detection of active RF noise sources both in controlled RF noise conditions, and in conditions resembling improper filtering of the EUT’s electrical signals. In conditions where no RF noise was detectable, the presence and operation of the EUT did not introduce any significant increase in tNSR. A quantitative analysis conducted on in vivo measurements of the number of active voxels in visual and motor areas further showed no significant difference between EUT and baseline conditions. Conclusion and significance: The proposed set of quantitative methods supports the development and troubleshooting of electrically-active mechatronic devices for use in sensorimotor protocols with fMRI, and may be used for future testing of such devices.
HAWK@QALD5 - Trying to Answer Hybrid Questions with Various Simple Ranking Techniques

The growing amount of data available in the Document Web as well as in the Linked Data Web has lead to an information gap. Information needed to answer complex questions might often require full-text data as well as Linked Data. Thus, HAWK combines unstructured and structured data sources. In this article, we introduce HAWK, a novel entity search approach for hybrid question answering based on combining Linked Data and textual data. In this article, we compare three ranking mechanism and evaluate their performance on the QALD-5 challenge. Finally, we identify the weak points of our current version of HAWK and give directions for future development.
Panta rhei: The APC/C at steady state

The anaphase-promoting complex or cyclosome (APC/C) is a conserved, multisubunit E3 ubiquitin (Ub) ligase that is active both in dividing and in postmitotic cells. Its contributions to life are especially well studied in the domain of cell division, in which the APC/C lies at the epicenter of a regulatory network that controls the directionality and timing of cell cycle events. Biochemical and structural work is shedding light on the overall organization of APC/C subunits and on the mechanism of substrate recognition and Ub chain initiation and extension as well as on the molecular mechanisms of a checkpoint that seizes control of APC/C activity during mitosis. Here, we review how these recent advancements are modifying our understanding of the APC/C.
Video monitoring of slope failure using spatiotemporal Gabor filtering

We propose a method for detecting precursors, such as small rock and/or soil fall, which occur prior to massive slope failure. The key feature of our method is directly recognizing the trajectory of a small collapse using spatiotemporal Gabor filtering. Simulation analysis, where the conditions of the simulation are quantitatively defined, reveals the effectiveness of the proposed method in detecting a tiny moving object with low contrast in the background under low frame-rate video monitoring. Experiments using actual monitoring videos of a hazardous slope confirmed the effectiveness of our method. The effects of error factors in an outdoor environment, which may inhibit recognition, are also evaluated.
Strigolactones Suppress Adventitious Rooting in Arabidopsis and Pea1[C][W][OA]

Adventitious root formation is essential for the propagation of many commercially important plant species and involves the formation of roots from nonroot tissues such as stems or leaves. Here, we demonstrate that the plant hormone strigolactone suppresses adventitious root formation in Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) and pea (Pisum sativum). Strigolactone-deficient and response mutants of both species have enhanced adventitious rooting. CYCLIN B1 expression, an early marker for the initiation of adventitious root primordia in Arabidopsis, is enhanced in more axillary growth2 (max2), a strigolactone response mutant, suggesting that strigolactones restrain the number of adventitious roots by inhibiting the very first formative divisions of the founder cells. Strigolactones and cytokinins appear to act independently to suppress adventitious rooting, as cytokinin mutants are strigolactone responsive and strigolactone mutants are cytokinin responsive. In contrast, the interaction between the strigolactone and auxin signaling pathways in regulating adventitious rooting appears to be more complex. Strigolactone can at least partially revert the stimulatory effect of auxin on adventitious rooting, and auxin can further increase the number of adventitious roots in max mutants. We present a model depicting the interaction of strigolactones, cytokinins, and auxin in regulating adventitious root formation.
Identification of Driving ALK Fusion Genes and Genomic Landscape of Medullary Thyroid Cancer

The genetic landscape of medullary thyroid cancer (MTC) is not yet fully understood, although some oncogenic mutations have been identified. To explore genetic profiles of MTCs, formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded tumor tissues from MTC patients were assayed on the Ion AmpliSeq Cancer Panel v2. Eighty-four sporadic MTC samples and 36 paired normal thyroid tissues were successfully sequenced. We discovered 101 hotspot mutations in 18 genes in the 84 MTC tissue samples. The most common mutation was in the ret proto-oncogene, which occurred in 47 cases followed by mutations in genes encoding Harvey rat sarcoma viral oncogene homolog (N = 14), serine/threonine kinase 11 (N = 11), v-kit Hardy-Zuckerman 4 feline sarcoma viral oncogene homolog (N = 6), mutL homolog 1 (N = 4), Kiesten rat sarcoma viral oncogene homolog (N = 3) and MET proto-oncogene (N = 3). We also evaluated anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) rearrangement by immunohistochemistry and break-apart fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH). Two of 98 screened cases were positive for ALK FISH. To identify the genomic breakpoint and 5’ fusion partner of ALK, customized targeted cancer panel sequencing was performed using DNA from tumor samples of the two patients. Glutamine:fructose-6-phosphate transaminase 1 (GFPT1)-ALK and echinoderm microtubule-associated protein-like 4 (EML4)-ALK fusions were identified. Additional PCR analysis, followed by Sanger sequencing, confirmed the GFPT1-ALK fusion, indicating that the fusion is a result of intra-chromosomal translocation or deletion. Notably, a metastatic MTC case harboring the EML4-ALK fusion showed a dramatic response to an ALK inhibitor, crizotinib. In conclusion, we found several genetic mutations in MTC and are the first to identify ALK fusions in MTC. Our results suggest that the EML4-ALK fusion in MTC may be a potential driver mutation and a valid target of ALK inhibitors. Furthermore, the GFPT1-ALK fusion may be a potential candidate for molecular target therapy.
Status of Red Cell Membrane Protein Phosphorylation in Thalassemia

The steady-state levels of β-spectrin phosphorylation in HbH (α-thalassemia 1/α-thalassemia 2), HbH/HbConstant Spring (α-thalassemia 1/HbCS, hereafter called HbH/HbCS) and nonsplenectomized β-thalassemia/HbE (hereafter called β-thal/HbE) red cells were quantitated using Western hybridization. Phosphorylation of β-spectrin serine and threonine residues from thalassemic samples was not significantly different from normal control. However, tyrosine phosphorylation was higher than normal control in HbH (p<0.01), HbH/HbCS (p<0.05) and β-thal/HbE (p<0.05) samples. Tyrosine phosphorylation of β-spectrin was observed only in the presence of vanadate, a phenomenon not hitherto reported. As tyrosine kinase activity has been linked to oxidative stress, loss of membrane lipid asymmetry and procoagulant activity of the red cell membrane, the observed increase in β-spectrin tyrosine phosphorylation of the thalassemic red cells is likely, at least in part, to account for these parameters.
Determining the Optimal Number of Stimuli per Cranial Site during Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation Mapping

The delivery of five stimuli to each cranial site is recommended during transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) mapping. However, this time-consuming practice restricts the use of TMS mapping beyond the research environment. While reducing the number of stimuli administered to each cranial site may improve efficiency and decrease physiological demand, doing so may also compromise the procedure's validity. Therefore, the aim of this study was to determine the minimum number of stimuli per cranial site required to obtain valid outcomes during TMS mapping. Map volume and centre of gravity (CoG) recordings obtained using five stimuli per cranial site were retrospectively compared to those obtained using one, two, three, and four stimuli per cranial site. For CoG longitude, one stimulus per cranial site produced valid recordings (ICC = 0.91, 95% CI 0.82 to 0.95). However, this outcome is rarely explored in isolation. As two stimuli per cranial site were required to obtain valid CoG latitude (ICC = 0.99, 95% CI 0.99 to 0.99) and map volume (ICC = 0.99, 95% CI 0.99 to 0.99) recordings, it is recommended that a minimum of two stimuli be delivered to each cranial site during TMS mapping in order to obtain valid outcomes.
Handling Unknown Words in Statistical Latent-Variable Parsing Models for Arabic, English and French

This paper presents a study of the impact of using simple and complex morphological clues to improve the classification of rare and unknown words for parsing. We compare this approach to a language-independent technique often used in parsers which is based solely on word frequencies. This study is applied to three languages that exhibit different levels of morphological expressiveness: Arabic, French and English. We integrate information about Arabic affixes and morphotactics into a PCFG-LA parser and obtain state-of-the-art accuracy. We also show that these morphological clues can be learnt automatically from an annotated corpus.
Metronidazole Therapy in Mice Infected with Tuberculosis

ABSTRACT The capacity of metronidazole to inhibit the growth ofMycobacterium tuberculosis was tested in in vitro and in vivo mouse models. In vitro addition of metronidazole to cultures of infected bone marrow-derived macrophages had no effect, nor did it increase the reduction in bacterial load due to isoniazid. In vivo, metronidazole did not reduce bacterial numbers in the lungs of aerosol-infected mice during the active stage of the disease, during a phase of containment, or after prolonged isoniazid therapy (Cornell model). A small but significant reduction was seen if metronidazole therapy was given during an established chronic disease state 100 days after aerosol administration. These data indicate that under most conditions M. tuberculosis organisms are not in a metabolic state in which they are susceptible to the action of metronidazole and, hence, that this drug would be of limited clinical value.
NMDA/glutamate mechanism of anxiolytic-like action of zinc in Vogel conflict test in mice

–The objective of our study is to investigate the possible anxiolytic-like effect of zinc using one of the most useful animal models of anxiety, which is the Vogel conflict test (VCT) and to investigate the possible involvement of the glutamatergic system and NMDA receptors in this postulated effect. The anxiolytic-like effect of ZnCl2 (20 mg/kg, i.p.) in the VCT was abolished by the pretreatment of animals with N-methyl-D-Aspartic acid (75 mg/kg, i.p., NMDA receptor agonist) that per se produced no effect in VCT. Moreover, the treatment of mice with CGP37849 (0.3 mg/kg, i.p., a competitive NMDA receptor antagonist) or MK-801 (0.05 mg/kg, i.p., a non-competitive NMDA receptor antagonist) was able to potentiate the action of sub-effective dose of ZnCl2 (10 mg/kg, i.p.). Overall results indicate that zinc induces the anxiolytic-like effect in mice without development of tolerance and inhibition of the NMDA receptor activity is involved in the mechanism of this effect. Keywords––Anxiety, Glutamate, NMDA receptor, Vogel conflict test, Zinc.
Predictive validity of the PCL‐R for offenders with intellectual disability in a high security hospital: Treatment progress

Abstract Background Among mainstream offenders, the severe personality disorder of psychopathy has considerable importance as a construct. The disorder has long been associated with failure to make treatment progress. Previous work has identified that psychopathy as a disorder occurs in samples of offenders with intellectual disability (ID), and suggests that the Psychopathy Checklist – Revised (PCL‐R: Hare, 1991, 2003) as a measure of the disorder has adequate reliability and validity (Morrissey et al., 2005). The present study aimed to compare the predictive power of the PCL‐R in relation to treatment progress with a more general assessment of violence risk, the HCR‐20 (Webster, Douglas, Eaves, & Hart, 1997). Method A sample of 73 residents in a high security intellectual disability service, who had previously been assessed using the PCL‐R and the HCR‐20, were followed up at 2 years post‐assessment, and their outcome determined in terms of two distinct dichotomous variables reflecting definite positive treatment progress and definite negative treatment progress respectively. Results In line with predictions, the PCL‐R Total score and Factor 1 score (Interpersonal and Affective aspects of psychopathy) and the HCR‐20 Total score were significantly inversely associated with a positive move from high to medium security hospital conditions within 2 years of assessment. However against prediction, the PCL‐R Total score had incremental validity over the HCR‐20. The PCL‐R Total and Factor 1, but not the HCR‐20 Total score, were also significantly associated with negative treatment progress in terms of a move to more restricted treatment conditions. Conclusion Psychopathy, and in particular its interpersonal and affective manifestations, is a construct which appears to be associated with indirect measures of treatment progress in this high security ID group. However, caution should be applied in the use of a construct with potentially negative connotations in an already devalued population.