Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
EPIZOOTIOLOGY OF CHRONIC WASTING DISEASE IN FREE-RANGING CERVIDS IN COLORADO AND WYOMING

Surveillance and epidemic modeling were used to study chronic wasting disease (CWD), a transmissible spongiform encephalopathy that occurs naturally among sympatric, free-ranging deer (Odocoileus spp.) and Rocky Mountain elk (Cervus elaphus nelsoni) populations in contiguous portions of northeastern Colorado and southeastern Wyoming (USA). We used clinical case submissions to identify endemic areas, then used immunohistochemistry to detect CWD-infected individuals among 5,513 deer and elk sampled via geographically-focused random surveys. Estimated overall prevalence (prevalence, 95% confidence interval) in mule deer (4.9%, 4.1 to 5.7%) was higher than in white-tailed deer (2.1%, 0.5 to 3.4%) or elk (0.5%, 0.001 to 1%) in endemic areas; CWD was not detected in outlying portions of either state. Within species, CWD prevalence varied widely among biologically- or geographically-segregated subpopulations within the 38,137 km2 endemic area but appeared stable over a 3-yr period. The number of clinical CWD cases submitted from an area was a poor predictor of local CWD prevalence, and prevalence was typically ≥1% before clinical cases were first detected in most areas. Under plausible transmission assumptions that mimicked field data, prevalence in epidemic models reached about 1% in 15 to 20 yr and about 15% in 37 to 50 yr. Models forecast population declines once prevalence exceeded about 5%. Both field and model data supported the importance of lateral transmission in CWD dynamics. Based on prevalence, spatial distribution, and modeling, we suggest CWD has been occurring in northeastern Colorado and southeastern Wyoming for >30 yr, and may be best represented as an epizootic with a protracted time-scale.
Improved detection of lupus anticoagulants by the dilute Russell's Viper venom time

Accurate and timely detection of lupus anticoagulants (LAs) is of diagnostic and prognostic importance due to the association of persistent LAs with thrombotic disease. A review of LA screening results by kaolin clotting time and dilute Russell's Viper venom time (dRVVT) on 2843 patient samples demonstrated that only 40.7% (417 of 1024) of elevated dRVVT ratios could be interpreted as consistent with the presence of an LA by confirmatory procedures. Apart from those due to the effects of anticoagulant therapy, the remainder generated inconclusive interpretations, necessitating significant numbers of costly repeat investigations. Manipulation of dRVVT assay conditions by increasing confirmatory reagent concentration, and altering venom concentration to maintain analytical parity with the standard assay, revealed LAs not fully neutralized by confirmatory tests at standard concentrations. Further experiments were performed using Russell's Viper venom reagents from five different manufacturers to demonstrate that the findings were not a reagent-specific phenomenon. Higher detection rates were achieved using multiple conventional assays but samples remained that required a modified confirmatory test to demonstrate LA activity. A previously unreported group of LAs was identified with raised dRVVT ratios that failed to correct with any of the dRVVT assays but demonstrated significant correction with all reagents in the modified confirmatory test. Use of modified confirmatory tests enhances sensitivity and specificity, and doubles LA detection rates by dRVVT. Adoption of the technique will significantly increase cost-effectiveness of LA detection in clinical practice.
Methylphenidate Transdermal System in Adults With Past Stimulant Misuse

Objective: This 8-week, open-label trial assessed the efficacy of methylphenidate transdermal system (MTS) in 14 adult individuals diagnosed with ADHD and with a history of stimulant misuse, abuse, or dependence. Method: The primary efficacy endpoint was the Wender-Reimherr Adult ADHD Scale (WRAADS), and secondary efficacy endpoints included the Clinical Global Impression (CGI) ratings and substance abuse as quantified by urine drug screens and self-reported use. Results: Significant improvements from baseline were found on both the WRAADS and CGI measurements. No abuse of the study medication was observed. Conclusion: The findings suggested that MTS may improve ADHD symptoms in adults with a history of stimulant misuse; however, there were limitations. The study data showed the need for subsequent randomized studies that further explore findings made in this study.
Bilingual signs at an ‘English only’ Korean university: place-making and ‘global’ space in higher education

ABSTRACT Higher education in Korea has recently undergone drastic changes introduced by internationalisation policies aimed at global competitiveness in the educational markets. While the widespread student mobility has been studied by numerous scholars, little attention has been paid to both international and local students’ interpretations of the global culture created by the policy. In this paper, we explore the ways in which Korean and international students actively engage in interpreting the meanings of ‘global’ brand created by the institution. It draws upon ethnographic data collected at a Korean university where English has been adopted as an official language. Extending the discussions in recent semiotic studies of linguistic landscapes and place-making, we analysed the ways in which public signs on campus are represented and interpreted. While the institutional language policy is designed to utilise English as an emblem of ‘global’ brand, the stakeholders such as Korean and international students have contested ideologies about the role of English in creating the campus space as a place to which they belong. The findings of this paper suggest that linguistic landscape is an intertextual product, rather than a materiality that reflects fixed values of Korean and English.
Automated skin lesion assessment using mobile technologies and cloud platforms

This paper presents a smart phone based system for storing digital images of skin areas depicting regions of interest (lesions) and performing self-assessment of these skin lesions within these areas. The system consists of a mobile application that can acquire and identify moles in skin images and classify them according their severity into melanoma, nevus and benign lesions. The proposed system includes also a cloud infrastructure exploiting computational and storage resources. This cloud-based architecture provides interoperability and support of various mobile environments as well as flexibility in enhancing the classification model. Initial evaluation results are quite promising and indicate that the application can be used for the task of skin lesions initial assessment.
Quantification of three-dimensional tongue motion during speech using zHARP

To understand the role of the tongue in speech production, it is desirable to directly image the motion and strain of the muscles within the tongue. Magnetic resonance tagging-which was originally developed for cardiac imaging-has previously been applied to image both two-dimensional and three-dimensional tongue motion during speech. However, to quantify three-dimensional motion and strain, multiple images yielding two-dimensional motion must be acquired at different orientations and then interpolated - a time-consuming task both in image acquisition and processing. Recently, a new MR imaging and image processing method called zHARP was developed to encode and track 3D motion from a single slice without increasing acquisition time. zHARP was originally developed and applied to cardiac imaging. The application of zHARP to the tongue is not straightforward because the tongue in repetitive speech does not move as consistently as the heart in its beating cycle. Therefore tongue images are more susceptible to motion artifacts. Moreover, these artifacts are greatly exaggerated as compared to conventional tagging because of the nature of zHARP acquisition. In this work, we re-implemented the zHARP imaging sequence and optimized it for the tongue motion analysis. We also optimized image acquisition by designing and developing a specialized MRI scanner triggering method and vocal repetition to better synchronize speech repetitions. Our method was validated using a moving phantom. Results of 3D motion tracking and strain analysis on the tongue experiments demonstrate the effectiveness of this method.
Signal transduction to the Azotobacter vinelandii NIFL–NIFA regulatory system is influenced directly by interaction with 2‐oxoglutarate and the PII regulatory protein

PII‐like signal transduction proteins, which respond to the nitrogen status via covalent modification and signal the carbon status through the binding of 2‐oxoglutarate, have been implicated in the regulation of nitrogen fixation in several diazotrophs. The NIFL–NIFA two‐component regulatory system, which integrates metabolic signals to fine‐tune regulation of nitrogenase synthesis in Azotobacter vinelandii, is a potential target for PII‐mediated signal transduction. Here we demonstrate that the inhibitory activity of the A.vinelandii NIFL protein is stimulated by interaction with the non‐uridylylated form of PII‐like regulatory proteins. We also observe that the NIFL–NIFA system is directly responsive to 2‐oxoglutarate. We propose that the PII protein signals the nitrogen status by interaction with the NIFL–NIFA system under conditions of nitrogen excess, and that the inhibitory activity of NIFL is relieved by elevated levels of 2‐oxoglutarate when PII is uridylylated under conditions of nitrogen limitation. Our observations suggest a model for signal transduction to the NIFL–NIFA system in response to carbon and nitrogen status which is clearly distinct from that suggested from studies on other diazotrophs.
Fast and Efficient Outlier Detection Method in Wireless Sensor Networks

Outlier detection is the task of classifying test data that differ in some respect from the data that are available during training. This may be seen as one-class classification, in which a model is constructed to describe normal training data. In wireless sensor networks (WSNs), the outlier detection process is a necessary step in building sensor network systems to assure data quality for perfect decision making. For this case, the task amounts to create a useful model based on kernel principal component analysis (KPCA) to recognize data as normal or outliers. Recently, KPCA has used for nonlinear case which can extract higher order statistics. KPCA mapping the data onto another feature space and using nonlinear function. On account of the attractive capability, KPCA-based methods have been extensively investigated, and it have showed excellent performance. Within this setting, we propose KPCA-based Mahalanobis kernel as a new outlier detection method using Mahalanobis distance to implicitly calculate the mapping of the data points in the feature space so that we can separate outlier points from normal pattern of data distribution. The use of KPCA-based Mahalanobis kernel on real-word data obtained from Intel Berkeley are reported showing that the proposed method performs better in finding outliers in WSNs when compared with the original reconstruction error-based variant and the one-class support vector machine detection approach. All computation are done in the original space, thus saving computing time using Mahalanobis kernel.
Placing ethics within the formal science curriculum: a case study

The Learning and Teaching Academic Standards Project for Science has defined nationally agreed learning outcomes for Australian graduates of bachelor-level degrees in science. One Science learning outcome requires graduates to demonstrate knowledge of the regulatory frameworks relevant to their discipline area and to personally practise ethical conduct. In a longitudinal study, we surveyed students over all years of a Zoology undergraduate course to seek evidence that graduates understand the regulatory and ethical environment within which animal-based science is conducted and personally reflect on animal ethics issues. The results indicate that after completing their first semester of study, students in this course are highly likely to report consciously thinking about animal ethics issues relating to the use of animals, and that they understand that this learning is directly relevant to their future professional work. Within the case study, we identified two assessment tasks that require students to provide overt evidence that they can construct a scientific research question within an ethical framework. The vertically integrated approach to exposing students to animal ethics is effective, but now requires a more rigorous approach to embedding aligned assessment tasks within the curriculum.
Patient engagement activities with health care professionals in continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis therapy: an exploratory pilot study

Background This pilot study aimed to explore the engagement activities between patients on continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD) therapy and their health care professionals. Methods An exploratory qualitative study was conducted. In-depth semi-structured interviews were undertaken involving four CAPD patients who were selected through purposive sampling. The participants were asked questions about their engagement experiences with their health care professionals. Results Six main engagement activities were derived from the interview analysis: obtaining initial knowledge, developing knowledge and skills, feeling confident, following clinical advice, updating health condition, and supporting CAPD therapy. Conclusion Patients engagement activities played an important role in CAPD therapy. The engagement activities covered the cognitive, emotional, and behavioral dimensions. Obtaining initial knowledge as well as developing knowledge and skills are essential engagement activities before patients perform CAPD therapy.
Developmental changes of glycosphingolipids and expression of glycogenes in mouse brains

Glycosphingolipids (GSLs) and their sialic acid‐containing derivatives, gangliosides, are important cellular components and are abundant in the nervous system. They are known to undergo dramatic changes during brain development. However, knowledge on the mechanisms underlying their qualitative and qualitative changes is still fragmentary. In this investigation, we have provided a detailed study on the developmental changes of the expression patterns of GSLs, GM3, GM1, GD3, GD1a, GD2, GD1b, GT1b, GQ1b, A2B5 antigens (c‐series gangliosides such as GT3 and GQ1c), Chol‐1α (GT1aα and GQ1bα), glucosylceramide, galactosylceramide (O1 antigen), sulfatide (O4 antigen), stage‐specific embryonic antigen‐1 (Lewis x) glycolipids, and human natural killer‐1 glycolipid (sulfoglucuronosyl paragloboside) in developing mouse brains [embryonic day 12 (E12) to adult]. In E12–E14 brains, GD3 was a predominant ganglioside. After E16, the concentrations of GD3 and GM3 markedly decreased, and the concentrations of a‐series gangliosides, such as GD1a, increased. GT3, glucosylceramide, and stage‐specific embryonic antigen‐1 were expressed in embryonic brains. Human natural killer‐1 glycolipid was expressed transiently in embryonic brains. On the other hand, Chol‐1α, galactosylceramide, and sulfatide were exclusively found after birth. To provide a better understanding of the metabolic basis for these changes, we analyzed glycogene expression patterns in the developing brains and found that GSL expression is regulated primarily by glycosyltransferases, and not by glycosidases. In parallel studies using primary neural precursor cells in culture as a tool for studying developmental events, dramatic changes in ganglioside and glycosyltransferase gene expression were also detected in neurons induced to differentiate from neural precursor cells, including the expression of GD3, followed by up‐regulation of complex a‐ and b‐series gangliosides. These changes in cell culture systems resemble that occurring in brain. We conclude that the dramatic changes in GSL pattern and content can serve as useful markers in neural development and that these changes are regulated primarily at the level of glycosyltransferase gene expression.
Knowledge Economy in India: Challenges and Opportunities

India, along with some of the other middle low income countries like Brazil, Russia, China and the Republic of Korea is competing with high income developed nations like USA and Japan in the knowledge sector. India has to its advantage a big pool of knowledge workers like scientists, engineers, and researchers available at low cost. The pertinent question is whether the flow of knowledge has resulted in inclusive growth. This research paper is a critical analysis of the challenges and opportunities on the pathway to India's journey towards becoming a global leader in knowledge economy with respect to the four pillars as defined by the Knowledge Assessment Model (KAM) of the World Bank, namely, economic and institutional regime, education, information and communication technology, and innovation.
5,5′-(Ethyne-1,2-diyl)diisophthalic acid dimethyl sulfoxide tetrasolvate

In the title compound, C18H10O8·4C2H6OS, the mid-point of the triple bond of the main molecule is located on a special position, i.e. about an inversion center. The carboxyl groups are twisted slightly out of the planes of the aromatic rings to which they are attached, making dihedral angles of 24.89 (1) and 7.40 (2)°. The cystal packing features strong O—H⋯O hydrogen bonds, weaker C—H⋯O interactions and O⋯S contacts [3.0981 (11) Å] and displays channel-like voids extending along the a-axis direction which contain the dimethyl sulfoxide solvent molecules.
Phases at finite winding number of an Abelian lattice gauge theory

Pure gauge theories are rather different from theories with pure scalar and fermionic matter, especially in terms of the nature of excitations. For example, in scalar and fermionic theories, one can create ultra-local excitations. For a gauge theory, such excitations need to be closed loops that do not violate gauge invariance. In this proceedings, we present a study on the condensation phenomenon associated with the string-like excitations of an Abelian lattice gauge theory. These phenomena are studied through numerical simulations of a $U(1)$ quantum link model in 2+1 dimensions in a ladder geometry using matrix product states. In this proceedings, we show the existence of ground states characterized by the presence of such string-like excitations. These are caused due to the condensation of torelons. We also study the relationship between the properties of the plaquettes in the ground state and the presence of such condensation phenomenon.
Pathogenic properties of Yersinia enterocolitica

A total of 88 isolates of Yersinia enterocolitica was examined for heat-stable enterotoxin production and ability to penetrate HeLa cells and evoke keratoconjunctivitis in guinea pigs (Séreny test) as potential pathogenic properties. All 49 isolates belonging to serotypes O:3, O:8, O:9, and O:5,27 and only 5 of 39 strains of other serotypes were HeLa positive. Séreny-positive strains were found only in serotype O:8. Heat-stable enterotoxin production was almost ubiquitous in all serotypes. Y. enterocolitica strains were classified into five groups with regard to their potential pathogenic properties.
Weak-Form Efficiency: Testimony of Dhaka Stock Exchange

The focus of this paper is to seek evidence whether Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) is efficient in the weak form or not by hypothesizing normality of the distribution series and random walk assumption. Both non-parametric tests [(Kolmogrov-Smirnov goodness of fit test), run test, Lilliefors test], Q-Q probability plots and parametric-tests [Auto-correlation coefficient test and ARIMA (0,1,0) for testing random walk model] have been used. Each statistical test has been performed separately on two data sets. The data sets include daily All-Share Price Indices (ASPI) and DSE General Price Indices (DSE-GEN) for 12 years ranging from 1994 to 2005. In addition, daily stock price data for 33 companies have been used. The daily return series, in the aspect of skewness and kurtosis, were found non-normal, which can be categorized as positively skewed distribution. Same thing resulted from Kolmogorov-Smirnov (K-S) test. As a result, null hypothesis of normality has been rejected and alternative hypothesis remained in effect. Run test and auto-correlation results rejected the randomness of the return series of DSE simultaneously. Overall results from the empirical analysis suggest that the Dhaka Stock Market of Bangladesh is not efficient in weak-form.
Effect of monthly prophylaxis on caries and gingivitis in schoolchildren.

The effect of professional prophylaxis given each month to individual children was investigated. A total of 225 schoolchildren, 10–12 years of age, participated during the experimental year. Each prophylactic session required about 15 min, and included tooth-brushing instructions, professional tooth cleansings and fluoride rinses. Significantly fewer new interproximal carious lesions were obtained in the experimental group compared with the control group. No differences were observed for occlusal, buccal or lingual surfaces. The frequency of gingivitis was significantly reduced during the year of trial in the experimental group. The efficacy of the preventive treatment was most noticeable in children with high caries experience. For clinical practice monthly prophylaxes could be recommended to the most susceptible individuals.
A Hybrid Brain Computer Interface to Control the Direction and Speed of a Simulated or Real Wheelchair

Brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) are used to translate brain activity signals into control signals for external devices. Currently, it is difficult for BCI systems to provide the multiple independent control signals necessary for the multi-degree continuous control of a wheelchair. In this paper, we address this challenge by introducing a hybrid BCI that uses the motor imagery-based mu rhythm and the P300 potential to control a brain-actuated simulated or real wheelchair. The objective of the hybrid BCI is to provide a greater number of commands with increased accuracy to the BCI user. Our paradigm allows the user to control the direction (left or right turn) of the simulated or real wheelchair using left- or right-hand imagery. Furthermore, a hybrid manner can be used to control speed. To decelerate, the user imagines foot movement while ignoring the flashing buttons on the graphical user interface (GUI). If the user wishes to accelerate, then he/she pays attention to a specific flashing button without performing any motor imagery. Two experiments were conducted to assess the BCI control; both a simulated wheelchair in a virtual environment and a real wheelchair were tested. Subjects steered both the simulated and real wheelchairs effectively by controlling the direction and speed with our hybrid BCI system. Data analysis validated the use of our hybrid BCI system to control the direction and speed of a wheelchair.