Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
18F-FDG PET in sarcoidosis: an observational study in 12 patients treated with infliximab.

BACKGROUND 18F-FDG PET is a promising technique in sarcoidosis imaging, although it is not incorporated in routine activity assessment. The purpose of this study was to correlate 18F-FDG PET with standard sarcoidosis activity parameters during infliximab treatment. METHODS Twelve patients with refractory sarcoidosis were treated with 6 cycles of infliximab. Pre- and post-therapy 18F-FDG PET was visually evaluated and SUVmax was measured. In addition, the effect of infliximab was evaluated by changes in symptoms, angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE), soluble interleukin-2 receptor (sIL-2R), vital capacity (VC), diffusion capacity of the lung for carbon monoxide (DLCO) and chest radiography. SUVmax and conventional parameters were correlated. RESULTS Clinical improvement as judged by conventional parameters was seen in all patients, though with a minor response in one. Symptoms improved in 11/12 patients while chest radiographic stages did not change. The decrease in ACE was 39% and in sIL-2R 47% (p<0.01). Improvement of VC and DLCO was 5.4% and 3.3% (p<0.05), respectively. 18F-FDG PET revealed either improvement or normalization in 11/12 (92%) clinically responding patients. The overall decrease in SUVmax was 55% (p<0.01); the patient with a limited response showed a 34% increase. A decrease in SUVmax of the lung parenchyma correlated with an improvement of VC (r=-0.75, p<0.01). No significant correlation between SUVmax and other parameters was found. CONCLUSION Changes imaged by 18F-FDG PET during infliximab treatment in sarcoidosis patients correlate with signs of clinical improvement to a considerate extent, which supports the hypothesis that 18F-FDG uptake represents disease activity.
Fusion of raft-like lipid bilayers operated by a membranotropic domain of the HSV-type I glycoprotein gH occurs through a cholesterol-dependent mechanism.

A wealth of evidence indicates that lipid rafts are involved in the fusion of the viral lipid envelope with the target cell membrane. However, the interplay between these sterol- and sphingolipid-enriched ordered domains and viral fusion glycoproteins has not yet been clarified. In this work we investigate the molecular mechanism by which a membranotropic fragment of the glycoprotein gH of the Herpes Simplex Virus (HSV) type I (gH625) drives fusion of lipid bilayers formed by palmitoyl oleoyl phosphatidylcholine (POPC)-sphingomyelin (SM)-cholesterol (CHOL) (1 : 1 : 1 wt/wt/wt), focusing on the role played by each component. The comparative analysis of the liposome fusion assays, Dynamic Light Scattering (DLS), spectrofluorimetry, Neutron Reflectivity (NR) and Electron Spin Resonance (ESR) experiments, and Molecular Dynamics (MD) simulations shows that CHOL is fundamental for liposome fusion to occur. In detail, CHOL stabilizes the gH625-bilayer association by specific interactions with the peptide Trp residue. The interaction with gH625 causes an increased order of the lipid acyl chains, whose local rotational motion is significantly hampered. SM plays only a minor role in the process, favoring the propagation of lipid perturbation to the bilayer inner core. The stiffening of the peptide-interacting bilayer leaflet results in an asymmetric perturbation of the membrane, which is locally destabilized thus favoring fusion events. Our results show that viral fusion glycoproteins are optimally suited to exert a high fusogenic activity on lipid rafts and support the relevance of cholesterol as a key player of membrane-related processes.
Parylene coated poly(dimethylsiloxane) microfluidic channel for nonpolar solvent based nanocrystals growth

Poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS), a transparent elastomeric polymer, has been widely used in the microfluidic field. However, applications of microfluidic device fabricated in PDMS have been limited to a bioanalysis based on water rather than nonpolar solvents because PDMS swells by absorbing the solvents. In case of inorganic nanocrystals growth into a superlattice structure, a PDMS microfluidic device can be used as long as a solvent-resistant capillary is inserted and assembled with the PDMS device for the growth of nanocrystals localized in nanoliter droplets. To solve the PDMS swelling problem and additional assembly process, we propose that a parylene film coated inside PDMS channel can serve as an effective barrier to the chemical solvents and prevent swelling. We found that a parylene coated PDMS microfluidic channel has a potential for the droplet based nanocrystals growth.
Fast feature selection with genetic algorithms: a filter approach

The goal of the feature selection process is, given a dataset described by n attributes (features), to find the minimum number m of relevant attributes which describe the data as well as the original set of attributes do. Genetic algorithms have been used to implement feature selection algorithms. Previous algorithms presented in the literature used the predictive accuracy of a specific learning algorithm as the fitness function to maximize over the space of possible feature subsets. Such an approach to feature selection requires a large amount of CPU time to reach a good solution on large datasets. This paper presents a genetic algorithm for feature selection which improves previous results presented in the literature for genetic-based feature selection. It is independent of a specific learning algorithm and requires less CPU time to reach a relevant subset of features. Reported experiments show that the proposed algorithm is at least ten times faster than a standard genetic algorithm for feature selection without a loss of predictive accuracy when a learning algorithm is applied to reduced data.
Phonological Awareness Instruction for Middle School Students with Learning Disabilities

The purpose of this study was to determine if middle school students with learning disabilities (LD) identified as having phonological awareness deficits could improve their phonological awareness skills after instruction, and if these skills could impact word recognition skills. Forty middle school students with LD who were identified as having phonological awareness deficits were matched and split into two groups, A and B. Both groups received the same type of phonological awareness instruction. Results indicated that there was no group effect for the word identification subtest. However, there was main effect for occasion; for both groups, posttest scores were significantly higher than the midtest scores, and midtest scores were significantly higher than the pretest scores. With respect to the CTOPP scores, results showed an interaction effect. Followup t-tests indicated that for the midtest, Group A significantly outperformed Group B on the CTOPP, suggesting that the intervention had an effect on phonological awareness skills. Both groups also had significantly higher posttest scores compared to the pretest scores, implying that both groups improved their phonological awareness skills over time.
A Survey of Computational Semantics: Representation, Inference and Knowledge in Wide-Coverage Text Understanding

The aim of computational semantics is to capture the meaning of natural language expressions in representations suitable for performing inferences, in the service of understanding human language in written or spoken form. First-order logic is a good starting point, both from the representation and inference point of view. But even if one makes the choice of first-order logic as representation language, this is not enough: the computational semanticist needs to make further decisions on how to model events, tense, modal contexts, anaphora and plural entities. Semantic representations are usually built on top of a syntactic analysis, using unification, techniques from the lambda-calculus or linear logic, to do the book-keeping of variable naming. Inference has many potential applications in computational semantics. One way to implement inference is using algorithms from automated deduction dedicated to first-order logic, such as theorem proving and model building. Theorem proving can help in finding contradictions or checking for new information. Finite model building can be seen as a complementary inference task to theorem proving, and it often makes sense to use both procedures in parallel. The models produced by model generators for texts not only show that the text is contradiction-free; they also can be used for disambiguation tasks and linking interpretation with the real world. To make interesting inferences, often additional background knowledge is required (not expressed in the analysed text or speech parts). This can be derived (and turned into first-order logic) from raw text, semistructured databases or large-scale lexical databases such as WordNet. Promising future research directions of computational semantics are investigating alternative representation and inference methods (using weaker variants of first-order logic, reasoning with defaults), and developing evaluation methods measuring the semantic adequacy of systems and formalisms.
Access on Demand on Wi-Fi Networks : the Impact of Dynamic Switching of Providers for the Mobile User

With the access on demand the mobile device manages the handovers and might not need to have a service contract for connecting to a network. These features may improve or worsen the user access experience and cause some impacts related to, for instance, the received throughput, paid price and number of handovers. This paper presents the performance evaluation results of an access on demand environment with Wi-Fi networks compared to the traditional access (not on demand), through simulation. It also shows how the application, the speed of the mobile and the traffic of other users can influence the number of handovers, paid price and the total of received bytes by a mobile. The mobile device can prioritize price, received signal strength or load on the access point.
Jain states in a matrix theory of the quantum Hall effect

The U(N) Maxwell-Chern-Simons matrix gauge theory is proposed as an extension of Susskind's noncommutative approach. The theory describes D0-branes, nonrelativistic particles with matrix coordinates and gauge symmetry, that realize a matrix generalization of the quantum Hall effect. Matrix ground states obtained by suitable projections of higher Landau levels are found to be in one-to-one correspondence with the expected Laughlin and Jain hierarchical states. The Jain composite-fermion construction follows by gauge invariance via the Gauss law constraint. In the limit of commuting, ``normal'' matrices the theory reduces to eigenvalue coordinates that describe realistic electrons with Calogero interaction. The Maxwell-Chern-Simons matrix theory improves earlier noncommutative approaches and could provide another effective theory of the fractional Hall effect.
Mothers' extratextual comments during storybook reading: Stylistic differences over time and across texts

This study examines longitudinally how mothers structure shared book reading interactions with their children across the preschool period, focusing on possible individual stylistic differences in White, middle‐class mothers' extratextual comments. Analyses addressed consistency of individual maternal styles over time and comparability of storybook reading styles across familiar and unfamiliar stories. At each of two time points, when the children were 40 and 58 months old, mothers read an unfamiliar and a familiar storybook with their children. For readings of each book type, three distinct maternal stylistic groups were found: Describers, Comprehenders, and Collaborators. Most importantly, maternal storybook reading styles are reasonably consistent over the 18‐month time course of study, but are considerably less consistent across types of books. Further, results suggest that these storybook reading styles related differentially to children's print and story skills assessed at 70 months of age. Implicati.
Mobilities and sustainable tourism: path-creating or path-dependent relationships?

This paper advances understanding of tourism mobility trajectories and outcomes by discussing if the trajectory of tourism mobility is path-dependent or path-creating and, therefore, whether tourism is locked into existing sub-optimal pathways, or is there scope for creating significantly more sustainable future pathways. Tourism mobilities are understood in the context of overall shifts in corporeal mobilities, especially the impact of migration on networks and visiting friends and relatives (VFR) tourism. Four main tourism mobilities drivers are considered – technology, markets, cultures of mobility and state intervention – but their impact on mobilities is contested. The concepts of enfolded and substitutable mobilities, and of scapes and flows, are explained and used as intermediary concepts for engaging with the key relationships influencing tourism mobilities. Path dependency is shown to be backed by existing technologies, cultures and markets, together with deeply embedded scapes and substantial investments in existing infrastructure. Trends towards path creation are shown to depend on technological breakthroughs, including virtual tourism, alternative lifestyles bringing cultural change, market conditions brought about by possible sustained high oil prices, and state intervention leading to behavioural change. The concept of “path-dependent path-creation” is discussed along with the powerful influence of uncertainties and unknown future tipping-points.
Viral etiology of respiratory infections in children in southwestern Saudi Arabia using multiplex reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction

Objectives: To investigate 15 respiratory viruses in children with acute respiratory tract infections (ARTIs) using multiplex reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), and to analyze the clinical and epidemiological features of these viruses. Methods: In a cross-sectional study, 135 children, ≤5 years of age who presented with ARTIs in Najran Maternity and Children Hospital, Najran, Saudi Arabia between October 2012 and July 2013 were included. The clinical and sociodemographic data, and the laboratory results were recorded using a standardized questionnaire. Two nasopharyngeal swabs were collected from each child: one for bacteriological examination, and the second for viral detection using multiplex RT-PCR. Results: A single viral pathogen was detected in 76 patients, viral coinfections in 9, and mixed viral and bacterial pathogens in 15. Respiratory syncytial virus was isolated in 33 patients, human rhinovirus (hRV) in 22, adenovirus (AdV) in 19, human metapneumovirus in 13, influenza virus in 10, parainfluenza virus in 7, human corona virus (hCoV) in 4, and human bocavirus in one. Conclusion Respiratory syncytial virus, hRV, and AdV were the most frequent viruses, accounting for more than two-thirds of the cases. Other viruses, such as MPV, hCoV NL63, and hCoV OC43, may play a role in pediatric ARTIs. Of significance is the potential use of multiplex RT-PCR to provide epidemiological and virological data for early detection of the emergence of novel respiratory viruses in the era of the Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus.
A Local View on Transformations within the Academic Labor Process

One of the recent developments in the field of critical organization studies is the attention shown to studying the labor process of academic workers (Ehrensal, 1999). To date, most of the work in this area has analyzed the emergence of the ‘new university’ system within the United Kingdom (Jary and Parker, 1999). The results of these studies generally indicate that university academicians in the UK are experiencing working environments that are increasingly intensified, standardized, computerized, rationalized, and deskilled, in other words, more ‘McDonaldized’ (Ritzer, 1996). Common to this work is the finding that changes in the ways in which academicians generate and disseminate knowledge at UK universities are tied to global, national, and local institutional change, including the spread of free-enterprise ideology, increased market competition among universities to attract the best students, demands by ‘customers’ (i.e. employers) for students who are trained to help them meet global competitive challenges, and the development of information systems like the Internet. However, these findings have not been ‘replicated’ in the context of other countries. To the extent that they do reflect broader globalization trends, similar developments should be evident in other countries. But, to the extent that the influences are national and local, there should be differences as well. I studied transformations within the academic labor process of a university in the United States. I then drew upon my findings to address theoretical and practical issues raised by my results and the UK-based literature. This story is based on those findings.
Web latency reduction via client-side prefetching

The rapid growth of the WWW has inspired numerous techniques to reduce Web latency. While some of these techniques have not been implemented because they either increase network traffic or require cooperation between tiers, recent studies cast a shadow on techniques already in use (e.g. proxy caching) as a result of the increasingly dynamic aspects of the WWW. In particular, the proliferation of dynamically generated Web pages (i.e. cgi, ASP), which are either linked to a database, or extract information from cookies, reduces the effectiveness of caching techniques. Most techniques attempt to improve on part of the overall latency, and often neglect to address the internal latency, which can be a serious bottleneck in heterogeneous environments. We propose a client-side prefetching mechanism, where the decision of what to prefetch is left to the user. We found it has the potential of reducing latency by up to 81% in a homogeneous environment and 63% in a heterogeneous environment. In data taken on the client, the technique depicted the potential to decrease latency by three-fold. Client-side prefetching does not increase network traffic, it attempts to improve on all parts of latency, and it can be implemented on the client side, without the cooperation of any other tier. Moreover, it can work seamlessly with any other latency reduction technique. We advocate the inclusion of a suitable mechanism in future Web browsers to support client-side prefetching.
Bayesian Estimation of Mixture Models with Prespecified Elements to Compare Drug Resistance in Treatment-Naïve and Experienced Tuberculosis Cases

We propose a Bayesian approach for estimating branching tree mixture models to compare drug-resistance pathways (i.e. patterns of sequential acquisition of resistance to individual antibiotics) that are observed among Mycobacterium tuberculosis isolates collected from treatment-naïve and treatment-experienced patients. Resistant pathogens collected from treatment-naïve patients are strains for which fitness costs of resistance were not sufficient to prevent transmission, whereas those collected from treatment-experienced patients reflect both transmitted and acquired resistance, the latter of which may or may not be associated with lower transmissibility. The comparison of the resistance pathways constructed from these two groups of drug-resistant strains provides insight into which pathways preferentially lead to the development of multiple drug resistant strains that are transmissible. We apply the proposed statistical methods to data from worldwide surveillance of drug-resistant tuberculosis collected by the World Health Organization over 13 years.
Gender Differences in the Evolution of Standard English

This article focuses on a sociolinguistic issue that is for the first time evidenced on a nationwide scale in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. It is the supralocaliza - tion of a number of regional features that in the course of time became part of the morphology of Standard English. I will argue that the social variable of gender had an important role to play in the diffusion of these supralocal features. This is of con - siderable interest, especially as overt prescriptivism and normative grammar had little or no influence on these processes before the late seventeenth century. In present-day British English, processes of supralocalization are typically wit- nessed in phonology. These ongoing processes of dialect leveling include such well-known cases as the diffusion to Norwich and the rest of East Anglia of a number of London features. A case in point is the initial fricative merger in words such as thing and thought. The merger diffused rapidly: in Trudgill's (1986, 54) Norwich surveys, adolescents born in 1957 did not have it at all, whereas those born in 1967 used it extensively. Other processes of supralocalization may be slower. The loss of /h/, for instance, has been diffusing outward from London into East An- glia over the past 150 years and is now well established (Trudgill 1986, 44).
The extraction of plantation with texture feature in high resolution remote sensing image

Remote sensing technology is widely used in land cover survey. In this experiment, firstly VSVI (vegetation sample-based vegetation index) method is used to extract the forests in experiment area, and then adding texture feature to distinguish the natural forest and plantation in forests class. Then average contrast of objects (ACO) method is used to determine the best scale of chessboard segmentation when classify, and classification accuracy of different scales is compared. It is proved that the optimal segmentation scale through ACO and the best classification results have certain consistency, and achieved high classification accuracy.
ADULT LEARNING ACTIVITIES, SOCIAL NETWORKS AND DIFFERENT NEIGHBOURHOODS

ABSTRACT This is a paper on adult education and learning activities within the neighbourhood that pays special attention to the social networks of the individual. It starts off with the thesis that life circumstances and social networks (especially family and neighbourhood) have a greater influence upon the understanding of the role and importance of education then age. We have analysed the quantitative and qualitative data from the research on social networks of the elderly in Slovenia and focused on two generations (parents and grandparents) at two different points in time (1987 and 2005). We have established that regardless of the various external encouragements, the most important factors for further learning are family values and the individual's attitude towards learning that is formed throughout life and is influenced by social networks.
Ethnomedical Properties of Taxus Wallichiana Zucc. (Himalayan Yew)

Taxus wallichiana Zucc. , known as Himalayan yew, belongs to the family Taxaceae. It is a medium-sized, temperate, Himalayan forest tree of medicinal importance. In India, this evergreen tree is found at altitudes between 1800 and 3300 m above mean sea level (MSL). It has been used by the native populations for treating common cold, cough, fever, and pain. Its uses are described in Ayurveda and Unani medicine. It received attention recently as its leaves and bark were found to be the prime source of taxol, a potent anticancer drug. It possesses many other biological activities also. We focus on its importance in traditional medicine for its multiple medicinal properties.