Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Human visual cortical responses to specular and matte motion flows

Determining the compositional properties of surfaces in the environment is an important visual capacity. One such property is specular reflectance, which encompasses the range from matte to shiny surfaces. Visual estimation of specular reflectance can be informed by characteristic motion profiles; a surface with a specular reflectance that is difficult to determine while static can be confidently disambiguated when set in motion. Here, we used fMRI to trace the sensitivity of human visual cortex to such motion cues, both with and without photometric cues to specular reflectance. Participants viewed rotating blob-like objects that were rendered as images (photometric) or dots (kinematic) with either matte-consistent or shiny-consistent specular reflectance profiles. We were unable to identify any areas in low and mid-level human visual cortex that responded preferentially to surface specular reflectance from motion. However, univariate and multivariate analyses identified several visual areas; V1, V2, V3, V3A/B, and hMT+, capable of differentiating shiny from matte surface flows. These results indicate that the machinery for extracting kinematic cues is present in human visual cortex, but the areas involved in integrating such information with the photometric cues necessary for surface specular reflectance remain unclear.
Gene expression profiling of HUH7-ins: Lack of a granulogenic function for Chromogranin A.

Previously, the insulin producing liver cell line HUH7-ins has been shown to synthesize, store and secrete insulin in response to glucose via secretory granules. The current study characterized the gene expression profile of HUH7-ins with the aim to identify changes possibly involved in the formation of granules. Additionally, experiments were conducted to determine the influence of chromogranin A (CgA) on secretory granule biogenesis (SGB) in HUH7-ins. Expression of 165 genes were significantly changed in HUH7-ins,though interestingly the majority of secretory granule associated genes, such as the chromogranins were unchanged. CgA was over-expressed in glucose unresponsive HUH7-ins cells to test whether CgA played a role in SGB and would restore the regulated secretory phenotype. Over-expression affected neither the storage nor regulated secretion of insulin. These data suggest that SGB may by regulated at a post-transcriptional level with no evidence to indicate that CgA regulates SGB in the cell line HUH7-ins.
MODERNIZATION OF THE CHINESE FAMILY BUSINESS

Abstract In order to study the modernization of the Chinese family business, the contrast between formal rationality and substantive rationality was used to characterize significant features of Western culture and Chinese culture respectively. A theoretical model of Chinese social behaviors as influenced by the substantive ethics of Confucianism was adopted to describe the organizational behaviors which were frequently observed in Chinese family business. Several empirical studies comparing organizational climates as perceived by employees working in foreign-invested business, private business with Formal regulations, and family business were cited to support the argument that such Confucian virtues as loyalty to the organization, working hard, maintaining interpersonal harmony, etc., are most likely to be manifested in organizations where formal regulations of Western-style management were enforced.
Intraspecific patterns of ectoparasite abundances on Paraguayan bats: effects of host sex and body size

Abstract: Although levels of parasitism can vary greatly among individual bats of the same species, little is known about the characteristics of hosts that affect such variation. Bats were captured via mist nets from June 1995 to July 1997 from 28 localities throughout Paraguay. Over 17 500 ectoparasites were collected from 2909 bats; however, analyses of ectoparasite abundance were restricted to more abundant taxa of host and ectoparasite. We quantified the abundances of 29 taxa of ectoparasite on 19 species of bat host, as well as total abundance of ectoparasites regardless of taxonomic affiliation for 22 species of bat from Paraguay. The effects of host sex and host body size on these estimates of ectoparasite abundance were evaluated separately for each species of host. Ectoparasites did not respond consistently to host body size: ectoparasite abundance increased with host body size in 12 instances and decreased with host body size in 11 instances. Regardless of the existence or direction of effects of host body size on ectoparasite abundance, female hosts generally harboured more ectoparasites than did male hosts. Differences in host quality associated with the sex of bats, especially those related to behaviour, may be a more important determinant of ectoparasite abundance than are differences in size. Opportunities for host transfer are critical for species persistence of ectoparasites; consequently, ectoparasite populations on host individuals that form social groups or colonies should be larger, less prone to stochastic extinction, and have greater opportunity for speciation.
GestUI: A Model-driven Method and Tool for Including Gesture-based Interaction in User Interfaces

Among the technological advances in touch-based devices, gesture-based interaction have become a prevalent feature in many application domains. Information systems are starting to explore this type of interaction. As a result, gesture specifications are now being hard-coded by developers at the source code level that hinders their reusability and portability. Similarly, defining new gestures that reflect user requirements is a complex process. This paper describes a model-driven approach to include gesture-based interaction in desktop information systems. It incorporates a tool prototype that captures user-sketched multi-stroke gestures and transforms them into a model by automatically generating the gesture catalogue for gesture-based interaction technologies and gesture-based user interface source codes. We demonstrated our approach in several applications ranging from case tools to form-based information systems.
Understanding the Different Realities, Experience, and Use of Self-Esteem Between Black and White Adolescent Girls

African American adolescent females possess higher self-esteem than any other racial or ethnic adolescent female group. This article tests two popular empirically supported explanations for Black high self-esteem: contingency of self-esteem theory and the locus of control model. This article builds on past research to illustrate the specific mechanisms of self-esteem for Black and White adolescent girls. To facilitate an investigation of these theories, self-esteem was explored as a bidimensional construct consisting of self-worth and self-deprecation. The sample consisted of 453 Black and 1,902 White adolescent females. Multivariate regression analyses produced the following outcomes: The contingency of self-esteem theory and the locus of control model were not supported. A significant race by social support interaction found that even in low support situations Black adolescent females reported less self-deprecation than White females.
Planar Digraphs without Large Acyclic Sets

Given a directed graph, an acyclic set is a set of vertices inducing a directed subgraph with no directed cycle. In this note, we show that for all integers n≥g≥3 , there exist oriented planar graphs of order n and digirth g for which the size of the maximum acyclic set is at most ⌈n(g−2)+1g−1⌉ . When g=3 this result disproves a conjecture of Harutyunyan and shows that a question of Albertson is best possible.
Rapid Concerted Evolution of Nuclear Ribosomal DNA in Two Tragopogon Allopolyploids of Recent and Recurrent Origin Sequence data from this article have been deposited with the EMBL/GenBank Data Libraries under accession nos. AY458586, AY458588, AY458589, and AY458587

We investigated concerted evolution of rRNA genes in multiple populations of Tragopogon mirus and T. miscellus, two allotetraploids that formed recurrently within the last 80 years following the introduction of three diploids (T. dubius, T. pratensis, and T. porrifolius) from Europe to North America. Using the earliest herbarium specimens of the allotetraploids (1949 and 1953) to represent the genomic condition near the time of polyploidization, we found that the parental rDNA repeats were inherited in roughly equal numbers. In contrast, in most present-day populations of both tetraploids, the rDNA of T. dubius origin is reduced and may occupy as little as 5% of total rDNA in some individuals. However, in two populations of T. mirus the repeats of T. dubius origin outnumber the repeats of the second diploid parent (T. porrifolius), indicating bidirectional concerted evolution within a single species. In plants of T. miscellus having a low rDNA contribution from T. dubius, the rDNA of T. dubius was nonetheless expressed. We have apparently caught homogenization of rDNA repeats (concerted evolution) in the act, although it has not proceeded to completion in any allopolyploid population yet examined.
Negative aspects of close relationships as a predictor of increased body mass index and waist circumference: the Whitehall II study.

OBJECTIVES We investigated whether exposure to negative aspects of close relationships was associated with subsequent increase in body mass index (BMI) and waist circumference. METHODS Data came from a prospective cohort study (Whitehall II) of 9425 civil servants aged 35 to 55 years at baseline (phase 1: 1985-1988). We assessed negative aspects of close relationships with the Close Persons Questionnaire (range 0-12) at phases 1 and 2 (1989-1990). We measured BMI and waist circumference at phases 3 (1991-1994) and 5 (1997-1999). Covariates at phase 1 included gender, age, marital status, ethnicity, BMI, employment grade, smoking, physical activity, fruit and vegetable consumption, and common mental disorder. RESULTS After adjustment for sociodemographic characteristics and health behaviors, participants with higher exposure to negative aspects of close relationships had a higher likelihood of a 10% or greater increase in BMI and waist circumference (odds ratios per 1-unit increase 1.08 [95% confidence interval (CI) =1.02, 1.14; P = . 007] and 1.09 [CI = 1.04, 1.14; P ≤ . 001], respectively) as well as a transition from the overweight (25 ≤ BMI < 30) to the obese (BMI ≥ 0) category. CONCLUSIONS Adverse social relationships may contribute to weight gain.
Maltreated Children: A Systems Approach to Treatment Planning in Clinical Settings

Children exposed to significant abuse, neglect and household dysfunction often present a confusing and difficult-to-treat clinical picture. This paper discusses the use of systems theory to develop treatment plans for maltreated children in clinical settings. Although its value is well recognised in the literature, systems thinking is not easy to implement in ordinary clinical settings and the systemic approach is not universally practised. Systems theory is an integrative theory, which helps clinicians identify and prioritise key areas of difficulty, and organise information from multiple system levels into a well-defined treatment plan. Treatment plans take into account not only patient but also service factors, and to be viable in clinical settings must function within the limits of organisational reality. A case vignette is provided. (author abstract)
Standard cell level parasitics assessment in 20nm BPL and 14nm BFF

It is shown that the performance impact of middle-of-line (MOL) patterning process variations can be reduced by 30% by relaxing the standard cell gate pitch by 10% in both 20nm bulk planar (BPL) and 14nm bulk finFET (BFF). Tungsten can safely replace copper in local interconnect IM2, which allows the MOL critical dimensions (CD) to be reduced by 40% in 20nm BPL, resulting in 5% performance improvement. In 14nm BFF, 10% performance degradation can be traded in for 40% smaller IM1 contact area, allowing for a cell silicon footprint benefit of up to 20%.
Drizzle in Stratiform Boundary Layer Clouds. Part I: Vertical and Horizontal Structure

Detailed observations of stratiform boundary layer clouds on 12 days are examined with specific reference to drizzle formation processes. The clouds differ considerably in mean thickness, liquid water path (LWP), and droplet concentration. Cloud-base precipitation rates differ by a factor of 20 between cases. The lowest precipitation rate is found in the case with the highest droplet concentration even though this case had by far the highest LWP, suggesting that drizzle can be severely suppressed in polluted clouds. The vertical and horizontal structure of cloud and drizzle liquid water and bulk microphysical parameters are examined in detail. In general, the highest concentration of r 20 m drizzle drops is found toward the top of the cloud, and the mean volume radius of the drizzle drops increases monotonically from cloud top to base. The resulting precipitation rates are largest at the cloud base but decrease markedly only in the upper third of the cloud. Below cloud, precipitation rates decrease markedly with distance below base due to evaporation, and are broadly consistent in most cases with the results from a simple sedimentation– evaporation model. Evidence is presented that suggests evaporating drizzle is cooling regions of the subcloud layer, which could result in dynamical feedbacks. A composite power spectrum of the horizontal spatial series of precipitation rate is found to exhibit a power-law scaling from the smallest observable scales to close to the maximum observable scale (30 km). The exponent is considerably lower (1.1–1.2) than corresponding exponents for LWP variability obtained in other studies (1.5–2), demonstrating that there is relatively more variability of drizzle on small scales. Singular measures analysis shows that drizzle fields are much more intermittent than the cloud liquid water content fields, consistent with a drizzle production process that depends strongly upon liquid water content. The adiabaticity of the clouds, which can be modeled as a simple balance between drizzle loss and turbulent replenishment, is found to decrease if the time scale for drizzle loss is shorter than roughly 5–10 eddy turnover time scales. Finally, the data are compared with three simple scalings derived from recent observations of drizzle in subtropical stratocumulus clouds.
Markovian Models for Medical Signals on Wireless Sensor Networks

Medical monitoring is a very important Wireless Sensor Network (WSN) application, because collecting vital infor- mation (such as heart rate, temperature, blood oxygen saturation level, electrocardiogram (ECG) and electroencephalogram (EEG) signals) using wireless sensors and making it available on time can improve the safety of the patient's care and save lives. Medical support networking has very stringent performance requirements and a complete WSN design must rely on accurate traffic models: being able to efficiently model data generated by each WSN node can be fundamental for correctly simulating network traffic, net- work congestion, interference between nodes, energy expended by each node and selecting the most appropriate routing protocols. This paper proposes two different Markovian models, the Markov Modulated Poisson Process (MMPP) and the Markov Modulated Deterministic Process (MMDP), to model the signal generated by a single WSN node monitoring electroencephalogram (EEG) data. Since some medical WSN nodes will employ source coding to reduce the amount of data that must be transmitted, thus conserving energy, the first model is found to be appropriate for modeling the EEG signal while the second one is more suitable for fitting the power that is used to transmit the encoded EEG signal. The accuracy of the models was tested using empirical data from public domain medical signal databases and the results obtained show that the proposed models are able to accurately fit the probability density function and the autocovariance function of EEG signals and the power that is used to transmit them.
Downregulation of miR-138 Sustains NF-κB Activation and Promotes Lipid Raft Formation in Esophageal Squamous Cell Carcinoma

Purpose: Constitutive activation of NF-κB signaling plays vital roles in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) progression. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of miR-138 on NF-κB activation and ESCC progression. Experimental Design: Expression of miR-138 in ESCC cell lines, ESCC tissues, and 205 archived ESSC specimens was determined using real-time PCR analysis. Anchorage-independent growth, chicken chorioallantoic membrane, Transwell matrix invasion and Annexin V–binding assays, and a xenograft tumor model were used to determine the role of miR-138 in ESCC progression. The effect of miR-138 on NF-κB activation was investigated using IKK in vitro kinase, electrophoretic mobility shift, lipid raft isolation, and luciferase reporter assays. Results: miR-138 was downregulated and inversely correlated with tumor progression and patient survival in ESCCs. Downregulation of miR-138 enhanced, whereas upregulation of miR-138 reduced, the aggressive phenotype of ESCC cells both in vitro and in vivo. Silencing miR-138 promoted K63-linked polyubiquitination of the NF-κB signaling intermediaries TRAF2 and RIP1 and sustained NF-κB activation. Furthermore, downregulation of miR-138 induced lipid raft formation via upregulating multiple components of lipid rafts, including FLOT1, FLOT2, and caveolin-1. Importantly, the in vitro analysis was consistent with a significant inverse correlation between miR-138 expression and NF-κB hyperactivation in a cohort of human ESCC specimens. Conclusion: Our results show that miR-138 functions as a tumor-suppressive miRNA and that downregulation of miR-138 contributes to constitutive NF-κB activation and ESCC progression. Clin Cancer Res; 19(5); 1083–93. ©2013 AACR.
Instantiation, interference, and the change of standard effect : context functions in reconstructive memory

Experiment 1 manipulated the personality test scores and reactions of context students (high vs. low) both at encoding and retrieval 1 week later. A change of standard effect was replicated for memory of the target's scores but not his reactions. Behavioral reactions or expressions appear to be more strongly instantiated in terms of a concept activated by the Time 1 context than are numerical scores themselves. Experiments 2 and 3 showed evidence of retroactive interference, in the form of response competition, as an additional influence of context on reconstructive memory. Experiment 2 used a situation in which an a priori standard was assumed
Path Sensitive Program Analysis Using Boolean Satisfiability

Recent advances in boolean satisfiability (SAT) solvers have made it possible to solve structured formulas on the order of a million variables. In this work we show how to efficiently transform program analysis problems directly into SAT instances. The translation is similar to generating verification conditions, but we avoid exponential growth by introducing temporary variables in place of using substitution. Unlike most approaches based on general purpose theorem provers, our transformation deals with modular arithmetic and bit operations in a natural and efficient manner. Our goal is to use SAT to solve some of the more difficult problems in applying dataflow techniques to automatically finding bugs in programs. We separate this task into two parts. First, an input program in a conventional programming language is filtered through a program abstractor. The output of the abstractor is a program in a simplified imperative programming language, with some properties annotated with assertions. Next, we translate this simplified language into SAT to check these assertions. We apply this technique to checking state machine properties, determining path feasibility, and detecting buffer overruns.
On Impedance Bandwidth of Resonant Patch Antennas Implemented Using Structures With Engineered Dispersion

In this letter, we consider resonant patch antennas, implemented using loaded transmission-line networks and other exotic structures having engineered dispersion. An analytical expression is derived for the ratio of radiation quality factors of such antennas and conventional patch antennas loaded with (reference) dielectrics. In the ideal case this ratio depends only on the propagation constant and wave impedance of the structure under test, and it can be conveniently used to study what kind of dispersion leads to improved impedance bandwidth. We illustrate the effect of dispersion by implementing a resonant patch antenna using a periodic network of lumped reactive (LC) elements. The analytical results predicting enhanced impedance bandwidth compared to the reference results are validated using a commercial circuit simulator. Discussion is conducted on the practical limitations for the use of the proposed expression
Language Countertrading In Courtroom Exchanges in Nigeria: A Discursive Study

The view of discourse as serving transactional and interactional purposes cascades into practical realities in courtroom exchanges. As an institutional setting, the law courts exemplify a typical social domain where language provides the basis for conveying information; promoting meaningful and goal-directive social and interactional exchanges. Whether in civil or criminal litigations, the proceedings rely on linguistic facilities for accomplishing communicative actions. Language thus remains the sole ‘legal tender’ and the major instrument for prosecuting the cases and resolving conflicts brought before the courts. This paper is motivated by the increasing but interesting challenges lay participants face in the courtrooms as they are confronted with language use that is different from their day-to-day experiences. The study discusses these peculiar communicative interactions in a law court in Lagos, Nigeria against the backdrop of very little efforts in courtroom discourse in non-native English speaking contexts. Specifically, this paper focuses mainly on an aspect of courtroom discourse (i.e. examination-in-chief ), a procedural questioning session which provides the basis for presenting the plaintiff’s arguments and information through the plaintiff’s counsel. The data used in this work were drawn from a civil suit filed in a Lagos High Court by a complainant in connection with a dispute on a property in central Lagos. Using insights from discourse analysis and theoretical construct based on Genre Analysis (e.g. Hasan’s Generic Structure Potential) as well as other relevant constructs, the study analyses discourse features and strategies deployed by active participants in the proceedings. The study finds that legal proceedings contextualized within a given L 2 sociolinguistic and lingual-legal jurisdiction helps to project some of the peculiar features of a non-native English in legal domains. Apart from identifying some peculiar discourse patterns that are institutional-based, courtroom proceedings in this legal culture demonstrates discourse strategies that conflate with similar features in other jurisdictions. That only supports the belief of a common source for most legal systems with colonial experiences as well as the universal applicability of judicial decisions. The complex natures of legal texts that are highlighted merely corroborate previous works in this area. The study concludes by demonstrating how language is used to perform actions that are goal-directive in this domain using the Speech Act model.