Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A Multi-Domain Framework for Textual Similarity. A Case Study on Question-to-Question and Question-Answering Similarity Tasks

Community Question Answering (CQA) websites have become a very popular and useful source of information, which helps users to ﬁnd out answers to their corresponding questions. On one hand, if a user’s question does not exist in the forum, a new post is created so that other users can contribute and provide answers or comments. On the other hand, if similar or related questions already exist in the forum, the system should be able to detect them and redirect the user towards the corresponding threads. This procedure of detecting similar questions is also known as question-to-question similarity task in the NLP research community. Once the correct posts have been detected, it is important to provide the correct answer since some posts can contain tens or hundreds of answers/comments which make the user’s research more difﬁcult. This procedure is also known as the question-answering similarity task. In this paper, we address both tasks and aim at providing the ﬁrst framework on the evaluation of similar questions and question-answering detection on a multi-domain corpora. For that purpose, we use the community question answering forum Stack-Exchange to extract posts and pairs of questions and answers from multiple domains. We evaluate two baseline approaches over 19 domains and provide preliminary results on multiple annotated question-answering datasets to deal with question-answering similarity task.
Bridging Mental Boundaries in a Postcolonial Microcosm: Identity and Development in Vanuatu

This text looks at the long-term effects of the joint Franco-British administration in public policy, political disputes, and social cleavages in post-independence Vanuatu. It emphasizes the strong imprint left by what the author terms "condocolonialism" in dividing ni-Vanuatu into "Anglophones" and "Francophones", but also suggests how this division is being replaced by divisions based on urban or rural residence, traditional or modern employment and disparities between the status and activities of men and women. The volume aims to provide more than an analysis of a unique case of colonialism and its effects, it is an interpretation of the evolution of an insular society beset by particularly intense pre-colonial, colonial and post-colonial fractures. The analysis is also enriched by comparisons between Vanuatu and other colonized societies including Niger, Nigeria, Martinique, Mauritius and Pondicherry.
Optical Neural Networks

We develop a novel optical neural network (ONN) framework which introduces a degree of scalar invariance to image classification estima- tion. Taking a hint from the human eye, which has higher resolution near the center of the retina, images are broken out into multiple levels of varying zoom based on a focal point. Each level is passed through an identical convolutional neural network (CNN) in a Siamese fashion, and the results are recombined to produce a high accuracy estimate of the object class. ONNs act as a wrapper around existing CNNs, and can thus be applied to many existing algorithms to produce notable accuracy improvements without having to change the underlying architecture.
Profiling Medical Journal Articles Using a Gene Ontology Semantic Tagger

In many areas of academic publishing, there is an explosion of literature, and sub-division of fields into subfields, leading to stove-piping where sub-communities of expertise become disconnected from each other. This is especially true in the genetics literature over the last 10 years where researchers are no longer able to maintain knowledge of previously related areas. This paper extends several approaches based on natural language processing and corpus linguistics which allow us to examine corpora derived from bodies of genetics literature and will help to make comparisons and improve retrieval methods using domain knowledge via an existing gene ontology. We derived two open access medical journal corpora from PubMed related to psychiatric genetics and immune disorder genetics. We created a novel Gene Ontology Semantic Tagger (GOST) and lexicon to annotate the corpora and are then able to compare subsets of literature to understand the relative distributions of genetic terminology, thereby enabling researchers to make improved connections between them.
The Effect of IV Amino Acid Supplementation on Mortality in ICU Patients May Be Dependent on Kidney Function: Post Hoc Subgroup Analyses of a Multicenter Randomized Trial

Objectives: We investigated whether preexisting kidney function determines if ICU patients may benefit from increased (2.0 g/kg/d) protein intake. Design: Post hoc, hypothesis-generating, subgroup analysis of a multicenter, phase 2, randomized clinical trial. All analyses were conducted by intention to treat and maintained group allocation. Ninety-day mortality was the primary outcome. Setting: ICUs of 16 hospitals throughout Australia and New Zealand. Patients: Adult critically ill patients expected to remain in the study ICU for longer than 2 days. Interventions: Random allocation to receive a daily supplement of up to 100 g of IV amino acids to achieve a total protein intake of 2.0 g/kg/d or standard nutrition care. Measurements and Main Results: A total of 474 patients were randomized: 235 to standard care and 239 to IV amino acid supplementation. There was a statistically significant interaction between baseline kidney function and supplementation with study amino acids (p value for interaction = 0.026). Within the subgroup of patients with normal kidney function at randomization, patients who were allocated to receive the study amino acid supplement were less likely to die before study day 90 (covariate-adjusted risk difference, –7.9%; 95% CI, –15.1 to –0.7; p = 0.034). Furthermore, amino acid supplementation significantly increased estimated glomerular filtration rate in these patients (repeated-measures treatment × time interaction p = 0.009). Within the subgroup of patients with baseline kidney dysfunction and/or risk of progression of acute kidney injury, a significant effect of the study intervention on mortality was not found (covariate-adjusted risk difference, –0.6%; 95% CI, –16.2 to 15.2; p = 0.95). Conclusions: In this post hoc, hypothesis-generating, subgroup analysis, we observed reduced mortality and improved estimated glomerular filtration rate in ICU patients with normal kidney function who were randomly allocated to receive increased protein intake (up to 2.0 g/kg/d). We strongly recommend confirmation of these results in trials with low risk of bias before this treatment is recommended for routine care.
Nearly Ballistic Electron Transport in an Out-of-Plane Nanoscale Defect-Void Channel

Future nanoelectronics will require a high packing density of semiconductor devices so that electrons can be transported at speeds approaching their ultimate limit while operating at low power. Herein, we employ high-voltage pulses to create a nanoscale defect-void channel in an oxide to conduct an out-of-plane electron current from 2-D electron gas in a p-Si substrate to a metal electrode of metal–oxide–semiconductor structure. With this approach, we exploit the advantage of changes in the SiO2/Si structure after oxide breakdown and carrier transport properties to increase device performance. The electrical characteristics of the two-terminal device indicate ballistic electron transport in the nanochannel, providing potential energy-efficient and high-speed (in the picosecond regime) applications for computing systems and logic circuits with low-cost fabrication. Space-charge-limited current models offer physical insights into the formation of nanochannels containing a combination of free space and dielectric solid. Hot carrier injection in the nanochannel also provides an understanding of the defect physics via atomic luminescence and localized surface topography, as well as substantial insights via optical emission spectroscopy and atomic force microscopy into how defects rearrange themselves locally when their electronic state changes.
Cartel Rivalry and the World Price of Oil

The title of this paper emphasizes collusion rather than competition in crude oil pricing and is in contrast to the orientation of Professor Adelman [1; 2; 3]. Since Adelman's analyses are based upon a theory of oligopoly and cartel behavior which is widely known and generally accepted, it is not surprising that arguments and conclusions similar to his dominate the thought of academic economists and public authorities. Nevertheless, the dominant theory is inadequate because it considers neither the possibility that one cartel may supplant another nor the fact that cartel formation takes place in an historical context and over an extended period of time. Furthermore, a rather naive version of the dominant theory of cartel behavior has been applied to the world petroleum industry: Adelman has argued the international corporate cartel broke down through chiseling and that the OPEC cartel would succumb to similiar endogenous pressures [1, 8]; more recently he has argued the OPEC cartel will succeed because the consuming countries have a vested interest in high oil prices [3, 59-60]. It will be shown that the theory of cartel behavior admits the possibility of either extreme or an intermediate solution. Thus Adelman's conclusions do not derive directly and exclusively from the theory. The purpose of this paper is two fold: the first is to extend the received theory of cartel behavior to include cartel rivalry; and the second is to apply the extended model to the experience of the world petroleum industry. The ultimate aim is to determine the probable stability of world oil prices. Adelman's analysis of world oil prices is deficient because competition is assumed to predominate over collusion. It is also deficient because the theory of cartel behavior is underdeveloped. In the case of world oil one should consider the rise of OPEC and the decline of the international corporate cartel as coincident phenomena. But the theory of oligopoly and of cartel behavior is formulated so that the analyst is prone to treat the decline of one cartel and the emer-
Competition in the Medical Profession: An Application of the Economic Theory of Regulation

Although economists generally believe that the medical profession earns above normal returns by restricting entry,' this proposition has never been directly tested. There have been indirect attempts to determine the existence and extent of above normal returns in medicine by comparing the rate of return to investment in medicine with various other occupations. The first work along these lines was performed by Friedman and Kuznets [9]. Using income data generated for various professions in the 1930s, they found physicians enjoyed a substantial premium over dentists in terms of the rate of return to their educational expenses. Friedman and Kuznet's results, however, are not without critics [13; 14]. In addition to the findings of Friedman and Kuznets, Kessel [11; 12] has criticized the medical profession for cartel behavior; again others disagree with this contention. The debate continues, but no test of the actual effect of licensing limitations on the salaries of physicians, and hence rate of return to investment in medical education, has been performed. That task is the purpose of this study. Peltzman [15] has provided a general theory of regulation which may be employed to test the effect of restrictive practices of the medical profession on the level of physicians' earnings, and thus provide evidence as to the intent and result of physicians' restrictive practices. Section II of this paper is a review and critique of the literature concerned with restrictive practices and above normal returns to the medical profession. The third section extends Peltzman's theory to the case of a self-regulating profession, the structure of regulation in medicine. Section IV empirically tests the model and discusses its implication. The fifth and final section contains a summary and conclusions.
SAMHD1 Phosphorylation Coordinates the Anti-HIV-1 Response by Diverse Interferons and Tyrosine Kinase Inhibition

ABSTRACT Macrophages are susceptible to human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) infection despite abundant expression of antiviral proteins. Perhaps the most important antiviral protein is the restriction factor sterile alpha motif domain and histidine/aspartic acid domain-containing protein 1 (SAMHD1). We investigated the role of SAMHD1 and its phospho-dependent regulation in the context of HIV-1 infection in primary human monocyte-derived macrophages and the ability of various interferons (IFNs) and pharmacologic agents to modulate SAMHD1. Here we show that stimulation by type I, type II, and to a lesser degree, type III interferons share activation of SAMHD1 via dephosphorylation at threonine-592 as a consequence of signaling. Cyclin-dependent kinase 1 (CDK1), a known effector kinase for SAMHD1, was downregulated at the protein level by all IFN types tested. Pharmacologic inhibition or small interfering RNA (siRNA)-mediated knockdown of CDK1 phenocopied the effects of IFN on SAMHD1. A panel of FDA-approved tyrosine kinase inhibitors potently induced activation of SAMHD1 and subsequent HIV-1 inhibition. The viral restriction imposed via IFNs or dasatinib could be overcome through depletion of SAMHD1, indicating that their effects are exerted primarily through this pathway. Our results demonstrate that SAMHD1 activation, but not transcriptional upregulation or protein induction, is the predominant mechanism of HIV-1 restriction induced by type I, type II, and type III IFN signaling in macrophages. Furthermore, SAMHD1 activation presents a pharmacologically actionable target through which HIV-1 infection can be subverted. IMPORTANCE Our experimental results demonstrate that SAMHD1 dephosphorylation at threonine-592 represents a central mechanism of HIV-1 restriction that is common to the three known families of IFNs. While IFN types I and II were potent inhibitors of HIV-1, type III IFN showed modest to undetectable activity. Regulation of SAMHD1 by IFNs involved changes in phosphorylation status but not in protein levels. Phosphorylation of SAMHD1 in macrophages occurred at least in part via CDK1. Tyrosine kinase inhibitors similarly induced SAMHD1 dephosphorylation, which protects macrophages from HIV-1 in a SAMHD1-dependent manner. SAMHD1 is a critical restriction factor regulating HIV-1 infection of macrophages. Our experimental results demonstrate that SAMHD1 dephosphorylation at threonine-592 represents a central mechanism of HIV-1 restriction that is common to the three known families of IFNs. While IFN types I and II were potent inhibitors of HIV-1, type III IFN showed modest to undetectable activity. Regulation of SAMHD1 by IFNs involved changes in phosphorylation status but not in protein levels. Phosphorylation of SAMHD1 in macrophages occurred at least in part via CDK1. Tyrosine kinase inhibitors similarly induced SAMHD1 dephosphorylation, which protects macrophages from HIV-1 in a SAMHD1-dependent manner. SAMHD1 is a critical restriction factor regulating HIV-1 infection of macrophages.
TSix: A Human-involved-creation Dataset for Tweet Summarization

We present a new dataset for tweet summarization. The dataset includes six events collected from Twitter from October 10 to November 9, 2016. Our dataset features two prominent properties. Firstly, human-annotated gold-standard references allow to correctly evaluate extractive summarization methods. Secondly, tweets are assigned into sub-topics divided by consecutive days, which facilitate incremental tweet stream summarization methods. To reveal the potential usefulness of our dataset, we compare several well-known summarization methods. Experimental results indicate that among extractive approaches, hybrid term frequency – document term frequency obtains competitive results in term of ROUGE-scores. The analysis also shows that polarity is an implicit factor of tweets in our dataset, suggesting that it can be exploited as a component besides tweet content quality in the summarization process.
Determinants of Long-Term Unions: Who Survives the “Seven Year Itch”?

Most studies of union formation focus on short-term probabilities of marrying, cohabiting, or divorcing in the next year. In this study, we take a long-term perspective by considering joint probabilities of marrying or cohabiting by certain ages and maintaining the unions for at least 8, 12, or even 24 years. We use data for female respondents in the 1979 National Longitudinal Survey of Youth to estimate choice models for multiple stages of the union-forming process. We then use the estimated parameters to simulate each woman’s sequence of union transitions from ages 18–46, and use the simulated outcomes to predict probabilities that women with given characteristics follow a variety of long-term paths. We find that a typical, 18 year-old woman with no prior unions has a 22 % chance of cohabiting or marrying within 4 years and maintaining the union for 12+ years; this predicted probability remains steady until the woman nears age 30, when it falls to 17 %. We also find that unions entered via cohabitation contribute significantly to the likelihood of experiencing a long-term union, and that this contribution grows with age and (with age held constant) as women move from first to second unions. This finding reflects the fact that the high probability of entering a cohabiting union more than offsets the relatively low probability of maintaining it for the long-term. Third, the likelihood of forming a union and maintaining it for the long-term is highly sensitive to race, but is largely invariant to factors that can be manipulated by public policy such as divorce laws, welfare benefits, and income tax laws.
Facilitating Adoption of an Electronic Documentation System

Best practice recommends the integration of clinical documentation into the hospital electronic health record to support safe, efficient, and timely patient care. A major barrier to successful adoption and optimization of computerized documentation systems is user satisfaction. The purpose of this descriptive, performance improvement initiative was to implement and evaluate user satisfaction with an electronic documentation system to facilitate successful adoption. The Clinical Procedure Flowsheets application was implemented in a geriatric extended care unit of a large healthcare system. Rogers’ Diffusion of Innovation and Davis’ Technology Acceptance Model were used to guide system adoption and improve user experience of the innovation. The Perceived Usefulness and Perceived Ease of Use questionnaire was distributed to 24 nursing staff working in the unit 9 weeks after implementation. Results indicated that respondents perceived the Clinical Procedure Flowsheets as easy to use and useful in accomplishing their documentation tasks. The overall mean satisfaction score of 72.17 (SD, 12.13) implied a strong level of user acceptance. The positive perception of the nursing staff in the geriatric extended care unit suggests a high probability of system use that can enhance the documentation of patient care. Further research is recommended to evaluate factors related to system adoption and user satisfaction.
Tensor Completion via Generalized Tensor Tubal Rank Minimization Using General Unfolding

This letter addresses the problem of tensor completion. The properties of the tensor tubal rank (TTR) and tensor Kronecker rank are first discussed, and then a novel generalized tubal Kronecker decomposition together with a new tensor rank referred to as generalized tensor tubal rank (GTTR) are defined. It is shown that the GTTR is suitable for revealing both the Kronecker and tubal structures of a tensor. The general tensor completion idea is then presented following the procedure of alternate projection between tensor rank minimization and Frobenius-norm optimization. Furthermore, the GTTR minimization is relaxed to the problem of generalized tensor nuclear norm (TNN) minimization, and two solutions are derived. The first one is based on the idea of combining all generalized TNNs as a weighted sum, while the second one employs the alternate cancelation scheme. Experiments are also carried out using both simulated data and real datasets for comparison of the proposed and the state-of-the-art approaches.
Ceragenin CSA-13 as free molecules and attached to magnetic nanoparticle surfaces induce caspase-dependent apoptosis in human breast cancer cells via disruption of cell oxidative balance

Natural antimicrobial peptides and ceragenins, as non-peptide amphipathic mimics, have been proposed as anti-cancer agents. To date, it has been confirmed that cathelicidin LL-37 and ceragenin CSA-13, both in free form and immobilized on the surface of magnetic nanoparticles (MNP@LL-37, MNP@CSA-13) induce apoptosis in colon cancer cells. Nevertheless, the question remains whether ceragenins, as synthetic analogs of LL-37 peptide and mimicking a number of its properties, act as antineoplastic agents in breast cancer cells, where LL-37 peptide stimulates oncogenesis. Considering potential anticancer activity, we determined whether CSA-13 and MNP@CSA-13 might be effective against breast cancer cells. Our study provides evidence that both CSA-13 and MNP@CSA-13 decreased viability and inhibit proliferation of MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231 cells despite the protumorigenic properties of LL-37 peptide. Flow cytometry-based analyses revealed that ceragenin treatment results in increases in dead and PI-negative/low-viability cells, which was associated with glutathione (GSH) depletion and increased reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation followed by mitochondrial membrane depolarization, caspase activation, and DNA fragmentation. These findings demonstrate that both CSA-13 and MNP@CSA-13 cause disruption of the oxidative balance of cancer cells. This novel mechanism of ceragenin-mediated eradication of cancer cells suggest that these agents may be developed as a possible treatment of breast cancer.
A Comparison of Online Electrochemical Spectroscopy Impedance Estimation of Batteries

This paper compares the methods of undertaking on-line electrochemical impedance spectroscopy that have been published in the literature. This paper describes the different published methodologies and sorts these into categories. This paper looks at the theoretical analysis of the circuits and control techniques and follows up with simulation and/or experimental studies of these methods. This paper focuses on battery systems.