Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Onwards and upwards? Migration and social mobility of the UK graduates

ABSTRACT Ensuring equal opportunity for people from diverse backgrounds is a major political concern, and spatial aspects to this debate relate to the availability of opportunity in different regions of the UK. In particular, migration between the regions of the UK is common amongst domestic students and graduates, and has been shown to have consequences for both the region of origin and the destination. Despite the recognition that migration is not a one-off event, but an ongoing process, empirical studies rarely operationalize it in ways reflecting this continuity. This study contributes to filling the above-described gap by investigating how the patterns of graduates’ migration across their life-course relate to their intra-generational social mobility. Longitudinal data, extracted from the 1970 British Cohort Study, and sequence analysis are used to derive the typologies of these patterns. A set of logistic regressions is used to investigate the relationship between these two, simultaneous aspects of graduates’ life-courses over the long term. The findings indicate that graduates’ migration across their life-course is significantly related to their intra-generational social mobility. In particular, temporary migration safeguards the advantaged position of the most privileged, in line with the notion of a ‘glass floor’. At the same time, it can create a ‘glass ceiling’ for those on less privileged trajectories. In the light of these findings, both academics and policy-makers are encouraged to incorporate migration, both theoretically and practically, into their research approaches.
A step towards the prediction of a rock collapse: analysis of micro-acoustic bursts

Forecasting collapses in a rock face is still an unresolved issue due to the lack of clearly noticeable forerunners. However, technological advances carried out in our research group have made possible the acquisition of micro-acoustic emissions induced by the enlargement of cracks in the rock. At the same time, both the geological literature and evidence propose an evolutionary model for the burst spectrum, which is expected to shrink towards low frequencies once getting closer to the rock collapse. Bursts, acquired through accelerometers sampled at 2kHz, need to be suitably processed to remove outliers and false positives, before any forecast action can be envisaged. For the first time we are in possess of a dataset of micro-acoustic emissions acquired by our systems on the Alps. These signals have been analyzed through a computational intelligence approach, to interpret and classify them in bursts associated with proper fractures in the rock or false alarms (e.g., due to stone falls, and outliers).
Long‐term outcome of treatment with infliximab in pediatric‐onset Crohn's disease: A population‐based study

Background: We examined short‐ and long‐term benefits and safety of infliximab (IFX) in a population‐based cohort of Crohn's disease (CD) patients <17 years old at diagnosis. Methods: The following parameters were assessed: short‐ and long‐term efficacy of IFX, impact of drug efficacy, and mode of administration on rate of resection surgery, growth and nutritional catch‐up, and adverse events (AEs). Results: In all, 120 patients (69 female) required IFX with a median duration of 32 months (Q1 = 8–Q3 = 60). Median age at diagnosis was 14.5 years (12–16) and median interval between diagnosis and IFX initiation was 41 months (22–78). Median follow‐up since CD diagnosis was 111 months (75–161). Fifty patients (42%) received episodic and 70 (58%) maintenance therapy. Sixty‐five (54%) patients were in the “IFX efficacy” group: 38 (32%) still receiving IFX at the last visit and 27 (22%) stopping IFX while in remission. The “IFX failure” group included 55 (46%) patients: 17 (14%) who stopped IFX due to AEs and 38 (32%) nonresponders. The risk of surgery was reduced (P = 0.009) in the “IFX efficacy” group and lower (P = 0.03) in patients with scheduled versus episodic therapy. Patients in the “IFX efficacy” group had significant catch‐up growth (P = 0.04), while those in the “IFX failure” group did not. Twenty‐four patients presented AEs leading to cessation of IFX in 17 of them. Conclusions: In this population‐based cohort of pediatric‐onset CD, IFX treatment was effective in more than half of patients during a median follow‐up of 32 months. Long‐term IFX responders had a lower rate of surgery and improved catch‐up in growth, especially when receiving scheduled IFX therapy. (Inflamm Bowel Dis 2011;)
The diffusion network of research knowledge in operations management

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine how the research knowledge in OM has been obtained and distributed since the first journals in OM began publication in 1980, changes in the interests of OM over the decades and where they are heading in the future; and to explore the changing roles of individual journals in the development of OM. Design/methodology/approach A two-stage bibliometric study was employed, first using citation analysis to examine the changing research interests in OM through an analysis of the OM journals. Then the top journals of most importance to OM were analyzed to determine the role that each one played in the knowledge distribution network and how that changed over the decades. Findings OM’s journal base consists of 7 research knowledge sources, 12 transmitters linking different journal groups, and 11 sinks with limited input. Research attention changed from practice, engineering, and OR to general management, strategy, and production management in the 2000s, with strategy, organizational issues, and logistics surfacing in the 2010s. OM features increasingly academic research with less interest in practice. OM journals’ network importance has increased substantially, with JOM now a bridge between the quantitative and management journals. Practical implications Both researchers and managers gain in understanding the history and identifying the future direction of OM, as well as which journals will have the most relevant papers to their interests. Originality/value This research identifies the history of the OM field in terms of its constituents and where it is going in the future. This history is related to the role OM plays among the knowledge network of top journals and presents a novel way of classifying and labeling journals based on their contribution.
The Mcgurk illusion in the oddity task

Despite many studies of audiovisual integration in speech perception very few studies have addressed the issue of crossmodal response bias. Using synthetic acoustic speech, the current study demonstrates the McGurk illusion in the oddity task which is not prone to cross-modal response bias. This new method may be an useful tool for determining under which conditions audiovisual integration of speech occurs.
Policies, people, projects. School building as development aid in postcolonial Sub-Saharan Africa. PhD Thesis in Architectural History, under the supervision of Johan Lagae and Maarten Van Den Driessche, Ghent University, October 2017

This dissertation started from the ambition to contribute to the mapping of post-World War II architectural globalization. Africa played a central role in this phenomenon, with intense exchanges of architectural expertise and practices taking place from the late colonial period onwards. Yet comparatively speaking, Africa remains surprisingly absent in the canon of architectural history, with authoritative survey works of twentieth-century architecture still addressing the continent only margi.
ID card identification system based on image recognition

At present, ID card identification technology plays a very important role in our society which is used to establish information database file in the various departments. In this paper, we design an ID card identification system which includes these parts image pretreatment, character segmentation, the processing of single character, character recognition and information preservation. The system can achieve the requirements of the ID card recognition and have some reference significance.
Extrapulmonary effects of temporal exposure to cigarette smoke

This study aimed to evaluate the extrapulmonary effects of exposure to cigarette smoke (CS) through the analysis of blood components and histopathological examinations of the trachea and diaphragm muscle (DM) in C57BL/6 mice. Thirty-six animals were exposed to six cigarettes per day for 5 days. The mice were divided into a control group (CG) and groups exposed to CS for 1 (CS1D), 2 (CS2D), 3 (CS3D), 4 (CS4D), and 5 (CS5D) days. The trachea, DM, and blood were collected for morphometric and biochemical analyses. In comparison with the CG, CS4D and CS5D mice showed an increased influx of inflammatory cells into the DM and trachea. Increased glycogen deposits in the tracheal tissue of CS3D mice were observed, compared with that in CG, CS1D, and CS2D mice. In the blood serum, the number of inflammatory cells and the concentration of cholesterol increased in CS1D mice, compared with the CG. Alanine aminotransferase (ALT) levels were elevated in CS5D mice, compared with those in CS3D and CS4D mice. Aspartate aminotransferase (AST) levels were elevated in CS3D and CS5D mice, compared with those in the CG. Urea levels were significantly increased in CS5D mice, compared with CS1D mice. Our results showed extrapulmonary effects of short-term exposure to CS in adult mice.
Effects of aging on the neuroglial cells and pericytes within area 17 of the rhesus monkey cerebral cortex

An electron microscopic analysis has been carried out to compare the neuroglial cells and pericytes within the primary visual cortex, area 17, of young (5–6 years) and old (25–35 years) rhesus monkeys. All of the neuroglial cell types accumulate inclusions within their cytoplasm as they age, and the inclusions within the astrocytes and oligodendrocytes are essentially characteristic of those cell types. The astrocytes probably acquire their inclusions by phagocytosis, and it is suggested that the inclusions in the oligodendrocytes are caused by an agerelated degeneration of the myelin sheaths they produce. The inclusions within the microglia are very heterogeneous. They are more massive than in the other neuroglial cells, so that their inclusions may almost fill the microglia. Pericytes also accumulate inclusions with age and there is evidence to suggest that they empty the contents of their inclusion vacuoles directly into the capillaries. On the basis of counts of the numbers of profiles of neuroglial cells displaying nuclei in thin sections, the only cells to increase in number with age are the microglia. They show an increase of about 44% when the cortices of young and old monkeys are compared.
Wireless sensor/actuator device configuration by NFC with secure key exchange

Modern building automation systems are networks of sensors (heat, power, light, humidity, air presure, etc.), actuators (air conditioners, door openers, window openers, lamps, switches, alarms, etc.) and control units. The network technology is typically hybrid. Cables, communication via power lines and wireless technologies are used in one logical network. Large buildings (like office or public buildings) or even plants require the installation of a large amount of such devices. All devices need to be personalized after their installation, i.e., they need a unique ID in order to be locatable and logically addressable. In security critical environments they need to obtain initial secret keys to enable secure communication methods. The initialization is usally done after the installation of the device. This can be done with special wired initialization equipment or wirelessly by radio or, as it is assumend in this paper, by Near Field Communication (NFC). As NFC itself is a publically readable protocol, it needs a secure public key exchange method to provide devices with initial keys. This paper shows how to initialize new or replaced devices using an Android app with NFC and focusses on the public key exchange mechanism by Diffie-Hellman to prepare the device for encryption.
An Evaluative Look Behind the Curtain: World Bank Group Staff's Early Experience with the Shared Prosperity Goal

In 2013, the Board of Executive Directors of the World Bank Group endorsed two ambitious goals: eliminating extreme poverty in the world by 2030 and boosting shared prosperity. The latter is defined as fostering the growth in the income of the poorest 40 percent of the population in each country. In 2016-17, the World Bank's Independent Evaluation Group conducted an evaluation on how well the World Bank Group has been pursuing the shared prosperity goal in its strategies, projects, and key knowledge products, and what lessons can be learned from the early implementation experience with the new goal of shared prosperity. To inform that evaluation, a comprehensive survey among World Bank Group staff graded F and above was set up to elicit staff views and understanding of the goal and gauge how World Bank Group staff have operationalized the objective in their day-to-day work. The survey builds on good practice design in the literature as well as actions to strengthen the response rate. This paper reports on the design, methodology (including issues of sampling, questionnaire testing, data collection, and response rate), implementation, and results from that web-based survey. The results imply potential institutional actions to strengthen the World Bank Group's effectiveness in implementing the goal in the future.
Inorganic nanoparticles for transfection of mammalian cells and removal of viruses from aqueous solutions

Owing to their small size, synthetic nanoparticles show unprecedented biophysical and biochemical properties which may foster novel advances in life‐science research. Using flame‐spray synthesis technology we have produced non‐coated aluminum‐, calcium‐, cerium‐, and zirconium‐derived inorganic metal oxide nanoparticles which not only exhibit high affinity for nucleic acids, but can sequester such compounds from aqueous solution. This non‐covalent DNA‐binding capacity was successfully used to transiently transfect a variety of mammalian cells including human, reaching transfection efficiencies which compared favorably with classic calcium phosphate precipitation (CaP) procedures and lipofection. In this straightforward protocol, transfection was enabled by simply mixing nanoparticles with DNA in solution prior to addition to the target cell population. Transiently transfected cells showed higher production levels of the human secreted glycoprotein SEAP compared to isogenic populations transfected with established technologies. Inorganic metal oxide nanoparticles also showed a high binding capacity to human‐pathogenic viruses including adenovirus, adeno‐associated virus and human immunodeficiency virus type 1 and were able to clear these pathogens from aqueous solutions. The DNA transfection and viral clearance capacities of inorganic metal oxide nanoparticles may provide cost‐effective biopharmaceutical manufacturing and water treatment in developing countries. Biotechnol. Bioeng. 2007;98: 1083–1093. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Coupling the Vibrant Soundbridge to Cochlea Round Window: Auditory Results in Patients With Mixed Hearing Loss

Objective: To assess the functional results of the Vibrant Soundbridge (VBS) placed on the round window (RW) in patients with mixed hearing loss. Study Design: Retrospective evaluation of functional hearing, with measurements performed 7 to 9 months postoperatively. Settings: Two tertiary referral hospital centers. Subjects: Twelve individuals with mixed severe hearing loss associated with chronic suppurative otitis media and otosclerosis. Intervention: Surgical placement of the VBS mechanical effector in close contact with the RW membrane to directly drive the inner ear fluids. Main Outcome Measurement: Functional hearing gain as analyzed via pure-tone audiometry and speech audiometry with VBS off and on in quiet and in noise. Results: We observed a mean gain of 37.5 dB (0.5-4 kHz) with wide individual differences. The overall gain is mainly due to the air-bone gap recovery, whereas a further 12-dB mean improvement of air-conducted threshold is evident at 2 kHz. The speech reception threshold in quiet shows a mean gain of 24 dB, whereas in noise, it requires a signal-to-noise ratio 7 to 13 dB greater than normal-hearing controls. All patients are daily users of their VBS device. Conclusion: A middle ear implant capable of directly driving the cochlear fluids seems to be a promising alternative for individuals with a severe to profound mixed hearing loss. However, variability in hearing recovery is great, likely reflecting variability in responsiveness of the cochlea associated with chronic pathologic findings and, possibly, variability in how the VBS effector interfaces with the RW. Modifying the shape of the VBS effector can improve the mechanical coupling to the RW to better exploit the device's amplification power.
A feasibility study of brief group-based acceptance and commitment therapy for chronic pain in general practice: recruitment, attendance, and patient views

Background Acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), a form of cognitive-behavioral therapy, may help meet a need for accessible and cost-effective treatments for chronic pain. ACT has a growing evidence base, but has not yet been tested within general practice settings. Aim The purpose of the present study was to examine the feasibility of conducting a full-scale randomized controlled trial of ACT in general practice. Methods A total of 481 potential participants with chronic pain identified from general practice in southwest England were invited into a treatment trial. Subsequently, 102 (21.2%) of those invited were screened, and 73 (71.6%) of those screened were allocated to ACT plus usual care or usual care alone. The ACT treatment included four, four-hour group-based sessions over two weeks. Results Twenty-six (70.3%) of the patients allocated to ACT attended three or four sessions. Those who received ACT rated it as credible in a short survey, with Mdn rating 7.0 on a 0–10 scale, across five credibility items. During a post-treatment interview considering 12 aspects of the study from invitation to treatment termination, a median of 79.2% of participants rated the aspects ‘acceptable. ’ Qualitative data from the interviews showed a mixed picture of patient experiences, revealing possible tensions between patients’ wishes to avoid discomfort and confusion, and treatment methods that explicitly ask patients to, in essence, ‘live with’ some discomfort and confusion. Conclusions These data suggest that further study of ACT, as a treatment for chronic pain, is feasible in general practice and it may be possible to further optimize the treatment experience.
Measuring economic outcomes of alcohol treatment using the Economic Form 90.

OBJECTIVE This article assesses the ability of the economic outcome measures in the Economic Form 90 to detect differences across levels of alcohol dependence as measured by the Alcohol Dependence Scale. METHOD We used baseline data from the Combining Medications and Behavioral Interventions (COMBINE) Study, a large, multisite clinical trial, to assess the extent to which the economic items on the Economic Form 90 instrument can detect differences across levels of alcohol dependence. RESULTS After adjusting for differences in demographic characteristics, the Economic Form 90 can detect significant differences across a range of dependence severity levels for the economic outcomes of inpatient medical care, emergency-department medical care, behavioral health care, being on parole or probation, and missed workdays, conditional on being employed. We did not detect significant differences across dependence severity for employment status, outpatient medical care, other criminal justice involvement, or motor vehicle accidents. CONCLUSIONS The Economic Form 90 can identify differences in many economic outcomes associated with differing levels of alcohol dependence. This suggests that the Economic Form 90 may be useful in assessing changes in economic outcomes that result from changes in alcohol dependence.
A Compact “Water Window” Microscope with 60 nm Spatial Resolution for Applications in Biology and Nanotechnology

Abstract Short illumination wavelength allows an extension of the diffraction limit toward nanometer scale; thus, improving spatial resolution in optical systems. Soft X-ray (SXR) radiation, from “water window” spectral range, λ=2.3–4.4 nm wavelength, which is particularly suitable for biological imaging due to natural optical contrast provides better spatial resolution than one obtained with visible light microscopes. The high contrast in the “water window” is obtained because of selective radiation absorption by carbon and water, which are constituents of the biological samples. The development of SXR microscopes permits the visualization of features on the nanometer scale, but often with a tradeoff, which can be seen between the exposure time and the size and complexity of the microscopes. Thus, herein, we present a desk-top system, which overcomes the already mentioned limitations and is capable of resolving 60 nm features with very short exposure time. Even though the system is in its initial stage of development, we present different applications of the system for biology and nanotechnology. Construction of the microscope with recently acquired images of various samples will be presented and discussed. Such a high resolution imaging system represents an interesting solution for biomedical, material science, and nanotechnology applications.
A Linkcache Invalidation Mechanism for Dynamic Source Routing (DSR) in AD HOC Networks

Dynamic source routing (DSR) is an efficient on-demand routing protocol for ad hoc networks, in which only needed routes are found and maintained. Route caching is necessary to avoid the need for discovering a route before each data packet is sent. The best cache structure is the link cache, which, in contrast to path cache, effectively utilizes all of the information that nodes have the potential to learn. Because of mobility, cached links might become stale. A mechanism to delete invalid links from the cache is necessary. The goal of this work is to develop a caching strategy that permits nodes to update their cache, when the topology of the network changes. To achieve it, all reachable nodes that have cached a broken link are notified when it fails. The designed caching strategy and the normal operation of DSR are compared showing that our approach outperforms the DSR protocol.
Relation of exploratory behaviour to plasma corticosterone and Wfs1 gene expression in Wistar rats

Male Wistar rats exhibit significant variations in exploratory behaviour in the elevated plus-maze (EPM) model of anxiety. We have now investigated the relation between exploratory behaviour and levels of corticosterone and systemic oxidative stress. Also, the expression levels of endocannabinoid-related and wolframin (Wfs1) genes were measured in the forebrain structures. The rats were divided into high, intermediate and low exploratory activity groups. Exposure to EPM significantly elevated the serum levels of corticosterone in all rats, but especially in the high exploratory group. Oxidative stress indices and expression of endocannabinoid-related genes were not significantly affected by exposure to EPM. Wfs1 mRNA level was highly dependent on exploratory behaviour of animals. In low exploratory activity rats, Wfs1 gene expression was reduced in the temporal lobe, whereas in high exploratory activity group it was reduced in the mesolimbic area and hippocampus. Altogether, present study indicates that in high exploratory activity rats, the activation of brain areas related to novelty seeking is apparent, whereas in low exploratory activity group the brain structures linked to anxiety are activated.