Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Cryptococcus neoformans Directly Stimulates Perforin Production and Rearms NK Cells for Enhanced Anticryptococcal Microbicidal Activity

ABSTRACT NK cells, in addition to possessing antitumor and antiviral activity, exhibit perforin-dependent microbicidal activity against the opportunistic pathogen Cryptococcus neoformans. However, the factors controlling this response, particularly whether the pathogen itself provides an activation or rearming signal, are largely unknown. The current studies were performed to determine whether exposure to this fungus alters subsequent NK cell anticryptococcal activity. NK cells lost perforin and mobilized lysosome-associated membrane protein 1 to the cell surface following incubation with the fungus, indicating that degranulation had occurred. Despite a reduced perforin content during killing, NK cells acquired an enhanced ability to kill C. neoformans, as demonstrated using auxotrophs that allowed independent assessment of the killing of two strains. De novo protein synthesis was required for optimal killing; however, there was no evidence that a soluble factor contributed to the enhanced anticryptococcal activity. Exposure of NK cells to C. neoformans caused the cells to rearm, as demonstrated by increased perforin mRNA levels and enhanced loss of perforin when transcription was blocked. Degranulation alone was insufficient to provide the activation signal as NK cells lost anticryptococcal activity following treatment with strontium chloride. However, NK cells regained the activity upon prolonged exposure to C. neoformans, which is consistent with activation by the microbe. The enhanced cytotoxicity did not extend to tumor killing since NK cells exposed to C. neoformans failed to kill NK-sensitive tumor targets (K562 cells). These studies demonstrate that there is contact-mediated microbe-specific rearming and activation of microbicidal activity that are necessary for optimal killing of C. neoformans.
BUM: Bayesian user model for distributed social robots

In this work we present a Bayesian User Model for inferring the characteristics and inter-user patterns of a population users. The model can receive evidence gathered by various interactive devices, such as social robots or wearable devices. The system is modular, with each module being responsible for gathering information and observations from persons present in the system's operation scenario. This information enables each module to determine a single characteristic of the person. New observations and measurements received by the system are fused with previous knowledge by a sub-process based on an information theory technique. This allows the system to be implemented in diverse heterogeneous distributed system topologies, extending beyond robotics. We have conducted experiments involving a team of social robots and simulated user population. Our experiments have shown that the system is able to learn and classify the persons' characteristics, and to find relevant user groups via clustering. This system can potentially be used to gather information on a large set of persons, as well as to be an information source for user-adaptive applications in areas such as Robotics, Ambient Assisted Living (AAL) and Internet of Things.
Modelling and Forecasting UK Public Finances

In this paper, we present a new model of UK public finances which aims to shed light on recent problems of forecasting the PSBR. The main elements of public spending are treated as endogenous variables which rise in line with GDP over the medium term. Also, the cyclical response of public borrowing to rises in the level of economic activity is more muted when growth is export-led than when it is consumer-led. These two features go a long way towards explaining the rapid deterioration of public finances in the early 1990s and the slow pace of improvement since 1993. JEL classification: C53, E62, H62.
Spatial Variability of Western Bean Cutworm (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) Pheromone Trap Captures in Sprinkler Irrigated Corn in Eastern Colorado

ABSTRACT Strategies for controlling pests are an integral part of any agricultural management plan. Most field crops, such as wheat (Triticum spp.) and corn (Zea mays L.) are managed as if they are homogeneous units. However, pests within fields are rarely homogenous. Development of plans that use targeted pest control tactics requires knowledge of the ecological drivers of the pest species. That is, by understanding the spatio-temporal factors influencing pest populations, we can develop management strategy to prevent or reduce pest damage. This study was conducted to quantify variables influencing the spatial variability of adult male western bean cutworm, Striacosta albicosta (Smith). Striacosta albicosta moths were collected in pheromone traps in two center pivot, irrigated corn fields near Wiggins, CO. We hypothesized that moth abundance would be influenced by the distance from the edge of the field, distance to nearest alternative corn crop and affected by anisotropic effects, such as prevailing wind direction. Greater trap catches of S. albicosta in each of the fields were found with increased proximity to the edge of the field, if the nearest neighboring crop was corn. Prevailing wind direction and directional effects were found to influence abundance. Results serve as a first step toward building a precision pest management system for controlling S. albicosta.
How and When Do Firms Adjust Their Capital Structures Toward Targets?

If firms adjust their capital structures toward targets, and if there are adverse selection costs associated with asymmetric information, how and when do firms adjust their capital structures? We suggest a financing needs-induced adjustment framework to examine the dynamic process by which firms adjust their capital structures. We find that most adjustments occur when firms have above-target (below-target) debt with a financial surplus (deficit). These results suggest that firms move toward the target capital structure when they face a financial deficit/surplus-but not in the manner hypothesized by the traditional pecking order theory. Copyright (c) 2008 The American Finance Association.
Locating Nose-Tips and Estimating Head Poses in Images by Tensorposes

This paper introduces a head pose estimation system that automatically localizes the nose-tips of the faces and estimates head poses in images simultaneously. In the training stage, the nose-tips of the faces are first manually labeled. The appearance variations caused by head pose changes are then characterized by a tensorposes model. Given an image with unknown head pose and nose-tip location, the nose-tip of the face is automatically localized in a coarse-to-fine fashion after the skin color segmentation. The head pose is also estimated simultaneously. The performance of our system is evaluated on the Pointing'04 head pose image data set. We first evaluate the classification performance of the tensorposes models with image patches of the faces cropped according to the manually labeled nose-tip locations of the faces in the Pointing '04 data set. By leaving-one-person-out evaluation strategy, we obtain the optimal parameters of the Tensorposes model, and evaluate the discriminative power of the tensorposes model built based on high order singular value decomposition (HOSVD) and multilinear independent component analysis (MICA), and naive principal component analysis (PCA) subspace models. It is shown Tensorposes model by HOSVD and MICA decomposition performs similarly good but much better than naive PCA subspace models. The tensorposes model is then utilized to automatically localize nose-tip location in the testing image and to simultaneously estimate the head pose. The nose-tip localization and pose estimation accuracy of the proposed system are evaluated against the ground truth. Finally, cross-database evaluation of the performance of our system is carried out on Pointing'04 database, a selected subset of CMU PIE database, and some pictures from CLEAR'07 head pose evaluation database. The experiments show that our system generalizes reasonably well to the real-world scenarios.
Understanding the Rise of Talk Radio

Abstract The number of radio stations airing political talk shows—predominantly conservative talk radio—has surged in the past few years. This massive change in the radio industry says something about the demand for such shows, but attributing the rise of talk radio to a corresponding rise in conservative popular opinion is misleading. We argue that this remarkable growth is better explained by the collision of two changes that have transformed the radio business: deregulation and the mainstreaming of digital music technologies. Regulatory changes have shifted much of radio production and control from local to mass production (managed by industry giants such as Clear Channel Communications) and created a context ripe for nationally syndicated hosts such as Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck, and Mark Levin. Meanwhile, rapid technological changes have given consumers more control over the way they listen to music. Technologies such as MP3 players, Internet radio, smart phones, and Pandora Radio have made it more difficult for stations with a music format to be profitable. As music programming has become more problematic, many stations have developed a highly successful business model by converting to talk formats airing nationally syndicated shows.
Matrix metalloproteinase-2 may be involved with increased bone loss associated with experimental periodontitis and smoking: a study in rats.

BACKGROUND Smoking has been associated with periodontitis severity and is considered a risk factor for its development. It has been reported that matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) produced by host cells plays a major role in periodontal tissue destruction. Thus, the present study tested, in rats, the hypothesis that local increased levels of MMP-2 would be associated with the enhanced periodontitis-related bone loss after intermittent cigarette smoke inhalation (CSI). METHODS Twenty-seven adult male Wistar rats were used. A ligature was placed around one of the mandibular first molars of each animal and they were randomly assigned to the following control (N = 13) or CSI (N = 14) group. Sixty days later, the animals were sacrificed, the gingival tissues harvested, and the specimens processed for decalcified sections. Extracts from the gingival tissues were prepared and assayed for MMP-2 expression. RESULTS Intergroup comparisons (unligated sites) showed that CSI might directly affect alveolar bone (0.16 +/- 0.03 mm2 versus 0.24 +/- 0.09 mm2 for non-smokers and smokers, respectively; P = 0.001). Moreover, CSI significantly enhanced bone loss resulting from experimental periodontitis (0.64 +/- 0.36 mm2 versus 1.50 +/- 0.50 mm2 for non-smokers and smokers, respectively; P<0.05). In addition, zymography demonstrated that CSI also enhanced both MMP-2 levels and activity in the gingival tissues around ligated teeth. CONCLUSION Within the limits of the present investigation, it can be assumed that the effect of CSI on MMP-2 levels and activity may account for the increased periodontitis progression rate observed in smokers.
Efficacy and safety of ultrasound-guided local injections of etanercept into entheses of ankylosing spondylitis patients with refractory Achilles enthesitis.

OBJECTIVES Enthesitis is one of the most common and specific manifestations of ankylosing spondylitis (AS). However, the treatment of enthesitis is still a challenge for rheumatologist so far, especially to those AS patients with serious enthesitis. This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of ultrasound (US)-guided local injection of etanercept into entheses of AS patients with refractory Achilles enthesitis. METHODS Twelve AS patients with severe unilateral refractory Achilles enthesitis were enrolled. Among them, 5 patients received US-guided local injection of etanercept and the other 7 received betamethasone. BASDAI, BASFI, VAS of the affected heel, the percentage of ASAS20 responders, CRP, ESR and any adverse events were recorded at baseline, 2, 4, 8 and 12 weeks after the treatment. US was also used to evaluate the corresponding entheses at baseline and every follow-up visit. RESULTS The BASDAI, BASFI, VAS of the affected heel, CRP, ESR, the percentage of ASAS20 responders and the regional blood flow signals detected by colour Doppler were all improved in both the etanercept group and the betamethasone group, at each follow-up visit compared to the baseline data (p<0.05). There were no significant differences in the improvements of any of the above parameters between the two groups (p>0.05). In addition, there were no adverse events from the etanercept group, except for the mild acid bilges feeling during the injection procedure, while 1 patient from the betamethasone group developed mild local atrophoderma since the week 4 follow-up visit and the atrophoderma kept stable at the 2 subsequent visits. CONCLUSIONS US-guided local injection of etanercept might be a highly effective, safe and well tolerated treatment for Achilles enthesitis in patients with AS.
Eye-tracking in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: A longitudinal study of saccadic and cognitive tasks

A relative preservation of eye movements is notable in ALS, but saccadic functions have not been studied longitudinally. ALS overlaps with FTD, typically involving executive dysfunction, and eye-tracking offers additional potential for the assessment of extramotor pathology where writing and speaking are both impaired. Eye-tracking measures (including anti-saccade, trail-making and visual search tasks) were assessed at six-monthly intervals for up to two years in a group of ALS (n = 61) and primary lateral sclerosis (n = 7) patients, compared to healthy age-matched controls (n = 39) assessed on a single occasion. Task performance was explored speculatively in relation to resting-state functional MRI (R-FMRI) network connectivity. Results showed that ALS patients were impaired on executive and visual search tasks despite normal basic saccadic function, and impairments in the PLS patients were unexpectedly often more severe. No significant progression was detected longitudinally in either group. No changes in R-FMRI network connectivity were identified in relation to patient performance. In conclusion, eye-tracking offers an objective means to assess extramotor cerebral involvement in ALS. The relative resistance of pure oculomotor function is confirmed, and higher-level executive impairments do not follow the same rate of decline as physical disability. PLS patients may have more cortical dysfunction than has been previously appreciated.
Transferring knowledge during dyadic interaction: The role of the expert in the learning process

Physical interaction between man and machines is increasing the interest of the research as well as the industrial community. It is known that physical coupling between active persons can be beneficial and increase the performance of the dyad compared to an individual. However, the factors that may result in performance benefits are still poorly understood. The aim of this work is to investigate how the different initial skill levels of the interacting partners influence the learning of a stabilization task. Twelve subjects, divided in two groups, trained in couples in a joint stabilization task. In the first group the couples were composed of two naive, while in the second a naive was trained together with an expert. Results show that training with an expert results in the greatest performance in the joint task. However, this benefit is not transferred to the individual when performing the same task bimanually.
Beyond Parent Training: Predictors of Clinical Status and Service Use Two to Three Years After Scallywags

The aim of this study is to investigate the predictors of clinical status and service use of a representative sample of children who participated in an innovative multicomponent intervention called Scallywags, a secondary prevention programme for young children at risk of developing conduct disorder. A representative sample of 81 families agreed to contribute to a longitudinal follow-up study two to three years after participation in the intervention. Results showed that participation in the programme was associated with a `non-clinical' outcome for nearly 50% of children. Predictors of `clinical' status included family demographics (carer relationship status and family income), child variables (initial problem behaviour level and parent-reported neurodevelopmental disorder) and family factors (parenting stess). Children who participated successfully in the intervention were subsequently significantly less likely to require further specialist children's services. Implications for integrated children's services and future research are explored.
Female labour force participation in the 1980s: the case of Spain

This paper is motivated by the large increase in the labour force participation of prime age women that, like in many other countries, took place in Spain during the last decade. We develop an empirical time series participation equation for women aged 25-44, in which education and fertility are treated as endogenous variables. We regard participation, education and fertility as variables that jointly respond to changes in the demand for skilled non-physical labour and the wage structure. Although we find a significant business cycle effect on participation, we conclude that the dominant forces determining the increase in participation during the sample period were structural factors that shifted female earnings potential.
Demand following and supply leading relationships: An empirical analysis for India

The study investigates the effects of activities of financial institutions (FIs). In particular, an econometric study has been undertaken to examine the ‘supply-leading’ and ‘demand-following’ characteristics of FI activities. The investigation is conducted by employing time series data using certain macro variables over the period 1962-63 to 1996-97. Our analysis shows the existence of a strong supply-leading (SL) relationship from real disbursements to real investments. The SL relation is further confirmed through the Sims causality tests. The demand-following (DF) relationship from real investments to real disbursements finds weak confirmation via the Sims causality test. Evidence therefore supports the presence of a strong SL link in the Indian context.
Internal service encounters in hotels: an empirical study

Over the last two decades, the hospitality industry has witnessed a considerable shift of focus towards customer orientation, however, the vast body of the relevant hospitality research literature – with few exceptions concentrating on the concept of internal marketing and internal service constructs – is focused on the external customer neglecting the importance of the quality of internal service encounters, where one department in the hotel serves another. The purpose of this study was to explore an “internal service chain” in three international city hotels and identify the events and behaviours (service dimensions) that distinguish a successful internal service encounter from a non‐successful one. Although internal customers were usually not recognised as such, it was found that interpersonal relations affect to a great extent all internal service encounters in a hotel. Other factors influencing the internal service encounters are the professionalism, the dependability, the conscientiousness of the in.
Brand substitution involved identical alternatives: a nationwide study undertaken among Australian community pharmacists

This article documented the Australian community pharmacists' brand substitution practices using identical alternatives (pseudo-generics) and the patients' acceptability. A national mail survey was conducted among 500 Australian community pharmacies from different geographical areas in year 2008. The data of the first 25 original PBS prescription items dispensed on one working day and eligible for generic substitution were collected from each pharmacy. Brand substitution which involved identical alternatives of the originator medicines were identified based on the manufacturers' information stated in the Schedule of Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS). Responses were received from 82 pharmacies for a response rate of 16.4%. The pharmacists offered brand substitution for 96.4% of the prescription items which eligible for substitution. About 10% of the substitution recommendations were involved switching of originator medicine to its pseudo-generic alternatives. A total of 10.1% of the pseudo-generic substitution recommendations were declined by the patients. This resulted in an average of AUD$4.44 per item of unnecessary extra-costs paid by the patients for purchasing the originator medicines. This indicated that the existence of pseudo-generics in the PBS market can negatively affect the consumers' welfare in terms of unnecessary extra expenditures for originator medicines that have cheaper identical alternative brands.
Intraday return and order imbalance relation in NASDAQ speculative new highs

According to previous studies, speculative trades generate positively autocorrelated returns. Therefore, we focus on speculative stocks that reach to 52-week new high records. They might be possibly with more information inside because they have kept good performance in earnings or revenues. Order imbalance (OI) is employed as a proxy of information asymmetry in this article. Relation between intraday return and OI is investigated under a time-varying framework. A contemporaneous significant positive relation exists in all kinds of interval tests, especially for 90-second and 3-minute intervals. The coefficients of lagged OIs are negative but not significant. It can be explained as asymmetric information effect. After controlling for contemporaneous OI, it shows continuation in lag-one relations in 90-second interval. In 3-minute and 15-minute interval tests, the results are mixed. Finally, the relation of contemporaneous coefficients and market capitalization is significantly negative. It implies that there is more information asymmetry in smaller firms.
Differential Effects of Instructor Feedback and Computerized Feedback in Online Learning

Feedback is increasingly given in electronic channels, and the ability of information systems to generate feedback continues to increase in the meantime. In online learning, computerized feedback generated by information systems can reduce instructors’ workload as well as enhance learners’ self-regulation. However, information systems research lacks a systematic examination of the relative effects of computerized feedback and instructor feedback in online learning. The current study aims to fill this gap. Specifically, this study examines how different feedback choices, i.e., feedback source and feedback sign, influence online learners’ information processing and perceived social support, which in turn influence their learning outcomes. A laboratory experiment will be conducted to test the proposed hypotheses. Theoretically, this study is expected to add knowledge to feedback and human-computer interactions research. Practically, this study has potential to guide the design and management of online feedback systems
Waveform decorrelation for multitarget localization in bistatic MIMO radar systems

The autocorrelation and crosscorrelation properties of transmit waveform set have great effect on the performance of MIMO radar systems. However, it is difficult to design waveform set which have ideal autocorrelation property as well as crosscorrelation one. In this paper, a decorrelation method has been proposed to cancel the effects of the autocorrelation and crosscorrelation of the transmit waveform by exploiting the given statistical properties of waveform. The correlation property of noise after decorrelation is also analyzed. Then a close form solution for localization of the multiple targets is presented via ESPRIT. Simulation results demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed methods.