Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Classification of schizophrenia and bipolar patients using static and time-varying resting-state FMRI brain connectivity

Recently, there is a growing interest in designing objective prognostic/diagnostic tools based on neuroimaging and other data that display high accuracy and robustness. Small training subjects and very large amount of high dimensional data make it a challenging task to design robust and accurate classifiers for heterogeneous disorders such as schizophrenia. Majority of previous works have focused on classification of schizophrenia from healthy controls while automatic differential diagnosis of schizophrenia from bipolar disorder has been rarely investigated. In this work, we propose a framework for automatic classification of schizophrenia, bipolar and healthy control subjects based on static and dynamic functional network connectivity (FNC) features. Our results show that disrupted functional integration in schizophrenia and bipolar patients as captured by FNC analysis reveal powerful information for automatic discriminative analysis.
Derivatives Discounting Explained

Derivative pricing is about cash flow discounting at the riskfree rate. This teaching has lost its meaning post the financial crisis, due to the addition of extra value adjustments (XVA), which also made derivatives pricing and valuation a very difficult task for investors. This article recovers a properly defined discount rate that corresponds to different collateral and margin schemes. A binomial tree model is developed, enabling end-users to price in counterparty default and funding risk. Coherent XVAs, if needed, naturally result from decomposing the discount rate, and can be computed on the same tree.
The democratic deficit on salient issues: immigration and healthcare in the states

Abstract We update past work on the democratic deficit, defined as incongruence between majority public preference and public policy in the American states. We reconsider public opinion and state policy on seven issues related to immigration and health questions. Using original data from the 2014 Cooperative Congressional Election Survey as well as new data on state policy and other predictors, we show that these seven issues have distinct qualities from Lax and Phillips’s larger basket of 39 policy questions in different issue areas. From 2008 to 2014, the democratic deficit on these issues diminished somewhat in the presence of a heightened level of issue salience.
Effects of social information on life history and mating tactics of males in the orb‐web spider Argiope bruennichi

Abstract Informed mating decisions are often based on social cues providing information about prospective mating opportunities. Social information early in life can trigger developmental modifications and influence later mating decisions. A high adaptive value of such adjustments is particularly obvious in systems where potential mating rates are extremely limited and have to be carried out in a short time window. Males of the sexually cannibalistic spider Argiope bruennichi can achieve maximally two copulations which they can use for one (monogyny) or two females (bigyny). The choice between these male mating tactics should rely on female availability that males might assess through volatile sex pheromones emitted by virgin females. We predict that in response to those female cues, males of A. bruennichi should mature earlier and at a smaller body size and favor a bigynous mating tactic in comparison with controls. We sampled spiders from two areas close to the Southern and Northern species range to account for differences in mate quality and seasonality. In a fully factorial design, half of the subadult males from both areas obtained silk cues of females, while the other half remained without female exposure. Adult males were subjected to no‐choice mating tests and could either monopolize the female or leave her (bigyny). We found that Southern males matured later and at a larger size than Northern males. Regardless of their origin, males also shortened the subadult stage in response to female cues, which, however, had no effects on male body mass. Contrary to our prediction, the frequencies of mating tactics were unaffected by the treatment. We conclude that while social cues during late development elicit adaptive life history adjustments, they are less important for the adjustment of mating decisions. We suggest that male tactics mostly rely on local information at the time of mate search.
SELF-EFFICACY: A NEW RESEARCH CONSTRUCT IN INDONESIAN ENGLISH TEACHERS STUDY

Due to the significance of self-efficacy, it has been becoming a research concern in many fields such as health, business and education. Self-efficacy is defined as a degree of someone’s belief to be able to deal with constrains to perform the given task well (Bandura, 1977). In education, there have been many studies conducted in self-efficacy. English teachers’ efficacy is one of the areas that has been become a concern for many researchers in EFL context due to its benefit to the teachers and students. This research is qualitative research with the observation data collection technique. There were three observation objects: TEFLIN Journal, Indonesia Journal of Applied Linguistics, and Google Scholar. The result of the observation indicated that there was no any topic regarding self-efficacy in Indonesian context in the two journals, TEFLIN Journal and Indonesian Journal of Applied Linguistics; however in the Google Scholar there were some self-efficacy researches in Indonesian context but the issues which were being discussed were not self-efficacy in English Teaching context. Therefore, English teachers’ sense of self-efficacy has not been a research area yet in the context of English teaching in Indonesia.
Cold face test in the assessment of trigeminal‐brainstem‐ vagal function in humans

Study of the reflex heart rate response in humans to apneic facial immersion (simulated diving) and its modifications showed that bradycardia caused by simple application of cold compresses to the face (cold face test) correlated well with that produced by the simulated diving reflex. Bilateral application of cold stimulus to the individual divisions of the trigeminal nerve revealed the ophthalmic division to be the most sensitive pathway for this reflex. The cold face test was standardized in 50 normal individuals and further validated in 10 patients by comparison with the simulated diving reflex, the Valsalva maneuver, and administration of atropine. Patients with diabetes mellitus, brainstem stroke, multiple sclerosis, or Shy‐Drager syndrome developed less than normal bradycardia or minimal tachycardia in response to the cold facial stimulus. The cold face test is a novel, simple, safe, and economical test of the integrity of trigeminal‐brainstem‐vagal reflex pathways, can be utilized practically to assess vagal and brainstem dysfunctions, and has the special advantage of being applicable even in an uncooperative or comatose patient.
Enzymatic synthesis of ethyl esters from waste oil using mixtures of lipases in a plug‐flow packed‐bed continuous reactor

This work describes the continuous synthesis of ethyl esters via enzymatic catalysis on a packed‐bed continuous reactor, using mixtures of immobilized lipases (combi‐lipases) of Candida antarctica (CALB), Thermomyces lanuginosus (TLL), and Rhizomucor miehei (RML). The influence of the addition of glass beads to the reactor bed, evaluation of the use of different solvents, and flow rate on reaction conditions was studied. All experiments were conducted using the best combination of lipases according to the fatty acid composition of the waste oil (combi‐lipase composition: 40% of TLL, 35% of CALB, and 25% of RML) and soybean oil (combi‐lipase composition: 22.5% of TLL, 50% of CALB, and 27.5% of RML). The best general reaction conditions were found to be using tert‐butanol as solvent, and the flow rate of 0.08 mL min−1. The combi‐lipase reactors operating at steady state for over 30 days (720 h), kept conversion yields of ∼50%, with average productivity of 1.94 gethyl esters gsubstrate−1 h−1, regardless of the type of oil in use. © 2018 American Institute of Chemical Engineers Biotechnol. Prog. , 34:952–959, 2018
Precision of a new tool to measure visceral adipose tissue (VAT) using dual‐energy X‐Ray absorptiometry (DXA)

A new tool to quantify visceral adipose tissue (VAT) over the android region of a total body dual‐energy x‐ray absorptiometry (DXA) scan has recently been reported. The measurement, CoreScan, is currently available on Lunar iDXA densitometers. The purpose of the study was to determine the precision of the CoreScan VAT measurement, which is critical for understanding the utility of this measure in longitudinal trials.
Arachidonic Acid Activates the Noncapacitative Entry of Ca2+ during [Ca2+]i Oscillations*

Current models for agonist-activated Ca2+ entry in nonexcitable cells focus on the capacitative mechanism where entry is activated as a downstream result of the sustained depletion of agonist-sensitive stores without any direct requirement for inositol phosphates. This mechanism has been shown to be important for the sustained Ca2+ signals seen in a variety of nonexcitable cells under conditions of maximal stimulation. In contrast, relatively little attention has been given to Ca2+ entry under more physiological levels of agonist where, for example, oscillating Ca2+ responses are common. In recent studies using cells from the exocrine avian nasal gland, we have shown that agonist-activated Ca2+ entry under these conditions demonstrates properties that are inconsistent with current versions of the capacitative model. We now report that activation of this novel noncapacitative Ca2+ entry is via a distinct signaling pathway involving an agonist-induced, phospholipase A2-mediated generation of arachidonic acid.
Influence of different fibre sources on digestibility and nitrogen and energy balances in growing pigs

Abstract The present study was undertaken to investigate how three different fibre sources, sugar beet pulp, soya bean hulls and pectin residue, constituting 15% of diets for growing pigs, influenced daily body gain, feed conversion, apparent faecal digestibility and nitrogen and energy balances. Eight castrated crossbreed pigs (30 – 80 kg live weight) were used in a replicated 4 × 4 Latin-square design with one control diet and three fibre containing diets. Daily body weight gain and feed conversion were not affected by the dietary treatments. The apparent faecal digestibility of organic matter (OM) and energy were significantly lower for the fibre diets (OM: 0.81 – 0.85; energy: 0.78 – 0.83) compared to the control diet (OM: 0.88; energy: 0.86). The apparent faecal digestibility of crude protein (CP) was lower for the fibre diets (0.71 – 0.78) compared to the control diet (0.83), although it was only significantly lower for the sugar beet pulp and pectin residue diets. The pectin residue diet, which contained the highest amount of dietary fibre, lignin and insoluble non-starch polysaccharides, had the lowest digestibility of OM, CP and energy. There was a tendency (p = 0.07) for a diet effect on retained nitrogen in proportion to digested nitrogen, where the sugar beet pulp and pectin residue diets had numerically the highest values. Heat production and retained energy in proportion to metabolizable energy intake were not affected by fibre inclusion. It was concluded that the inclusion of sugar beet pulp, soya bean hulls and pectin residue in diets for growing pigs decreased the apparent faecal digestibility and in the diets with sugar beet pulp and pectin residue higher utilization of digested nitrogen for retention compensated for the lower amount of digested nitrogen.
Baculovirus Expression of Chicken Nonmuscle Heavy Meromyosin II-B

We have expressed two truncated isoforms of chicken nonmuscle myosin II-B using the baculovirus expression system. One of the expressed heavy meromyosins (HMMexp) consists of two 150-kDa myosin heavy chains (MHCs), comprising amino acids 1-1231 as well as two pairs of 20-kDa and 17-kDa myosin light chains (MLCs) in a 1:1:1 molar ratio. The second HMMexp was identical except that it contained an insert of 10 amino acids (PESPKPVKHQ) at the 25-50-kDa domain boundary in the subfragment-1 region of the MHC. These 10 amino acids include a consensus sequence (SPK) for proline-directed kinases. Expressed HMMs were soluble at low ionic strength and bound to rabbit skeletal muscle actin in an ATP-dependent manner. These properties afforded a rapid purification of milligram quantities of expressed protein. Both isoforms were capable of moving actin filaments in an in vitro motility assay and manifested a greater than 20-fold activation of actin-activated MgATPase activity following phosphorylation of the 20-kDa MLC. HMMexp with the 10-amino acid insert was phosphorylated by Cdc2, Cdk5, and mitogen-activated protein kinase in vitro to 0.3-0.4 mol of PO4/mol of MHC. The site phosphorylated in the MHC was identified as the serine residue present in the 10-amino acid insert and its presence was confirmed in bovine brain MHCs. Characterization of the baculovirus expressed noninserted and inserted MHC isoforms with respect to actin-activated MgATPase activity and ability to translocate actin filaments in an in vitro motility assay produced the following average values following MLC phosphorylation: noninserted HMMexp, Vmax = 0.28 s−1, Km = 12.7 μM; translocation rate = 0.077 μm/s; inserted HMMexp, Vmax = 0.37 s−1, Km = 15.1 μM; translocation rate = 0.092 μm/s.
Genomic profiling of pelvic genital type leiomyosarcoma in a woman with a germline CHEK2:c.1100delC mutation and a concomitant diagnosis of metastatic invasive ductal breast carcinoma

We describe a woman with the known pathogenic germline variant CHEK2:c.1100delC and synchronous diagnoses of both pelvic genital type leiomyosarcoma (LMS) and metastatic invasive ductal breast carcinoma. CHEK2 (checkpoint kinase 2) is a tumor-suppressor gene encoding a serine/threonine-protein kinase (CHEK2) involved in double-strand DNA break repair and cell cycle arrest. The CHEK2:c.1100delC variant is a moderate penetrance allele resulting in an approximately twofold increase in breast cancer risk. Whole-genome and whole-transcriptome sequencing were performed on the leiomyosarcoma and matched blood-derived DNA. Despite the presence of several genomic hits within the double-strand DNA damage pathway (CHEK2 germline variant and multiple RAD51B somatic structural variants), tumor profiling did not show an obvious DNA repair deficiency signature. However, even though the LMS displayed clear malignant features, its genomic profiling revealed several characteristics classically associated with leiomyomas including a translocation, t(12;14), with one breakpoint disrupting RAD51B and the other breakpoint upstream of HMGA2 with very high expression of HMGA2 and PLAG1. This is the first report of LMS genomic profiling in a patient with the germline CHEK2:c.1100delC variant and an additional diagnosis of metastatic invasive ductal breast carcinoma. We also describe a possible mechanistic relationship between leiomyoma and LMS based on genomic and transcriptome data. Our findings suggest that RAD51B translocation and HMGA2 overexpression may play an important role in LMS oncogenesis.
ICARE: a component-based approach for multimodal interaction

Mobile and ubiquitous systems support multiple interaction techniques such as the synergistic use of active modalities (speech, gesture, etc.) and passive modalities (gaze, localization of a user, etc.). The flexibility they offer results in an increased complexity that current software development tools do not address appropriately. In this paper we describe a component-based approach, called ICARE, for specifying and developing interfaces combining active and passive modalities. Our approach relies on two types of components: (1) elementary components that describe pure modalities (active and passive) and (2) composition components (Complémentarité, Redundancy and Equivalence) that enable the designer to specify combined usage of modalities. The designer graphically assembles the ICARE components and the code of the multimodal user interface is automatically generated. Although the ICARE platform is not fully developed, we illustrate the applicability of the approach with the implementation of three mobiles systems: two GeoNote systems and one prototype of cockpit commands of Rafale (French military plane).
When biotoxins are tools of terror

PREVIEW Capable of causing disease as well as being therapeutic, toxins have been both a curse and a blessing for millennia. Now, the threat of rogue countries or terrorist organizations using toxins as weapons of war is very real. In this article, Drs Blazes, Lawler, and Lazarus review the clinical and epidemiologic features of the toxin-mediated diseases most likely to occur as a result of a biological warfare event.
Targeted maximum likelihood estimation for a binary treatment: A tutorial

When estimating the average effect of a binary treatment (or exposure) on an outcome, methods that incorporate propensity scores, the G‐formula, or targeted maximum likelihood estimation (TMLE) are preferred over naïve regression approaches, which are biased under misspecification of a parametric outcome model. In contrast propensity score methods require the correct specification of an exposure model. Double‐robust methods only require correct specification of either the outcome or the exposure model. Targeted maximum likelihood estimation is a semiparametric double‐robust method that improves the chances of correct model specification by allowing for flexible estimation using (nonparametric) machine‐learning methods. It therefore requires weaker assumptions than its competitors. We provide a step‐by‐step guided implementation of TMLE and illustrate it in a realistic scenario based on cancer epidemiology where assumptions about correct model specification and positivity (ie, when a study participant had 0 probability of receiving the treatment) are nearly violated. This article provides a concise and reproducible educational introduction to TMLE for a binary outcome and exposure. The reader should gain sufficient understanding of TMLE from this introductory tutorial to be able to apply the method in practice. Extensive R‐code is provided in easy‐to‐read boxes throughout the article for replicability. Stata users will find a testing implementation of TMLE and additional material in the Appendix S1 and at the following GitHub repository: https://github.com/migariane/SIM‐TMLE‐tutorial
An approach to instruction stream generation for functional verification of microprocessor designs

The paper proposes an approach to instruction stream generation for verification of microprocessor designs. The approach is based on using formal specifications of the instruction set architecture as a source of knowledge about the design under verification. This knowledge is processed with generic engines implementing an extensible set of generation strategies to produce stimuli in the form of instruction sequences. Generation tasks are formulated using high-level descriptions that specify target instructions and strategies of sequence construction and data generation. This provides a flexible way to generate deterministic, random and constraint-based stimuli for verification of arbitrary architectures with minimum effort. The proposed approach has been successfully applied in industrial projects for verification of ARMv8 and MIPS64 microprocessor designs.
The effect of group-based exercise on cognitive performance and mood in seniors residing in intermediate care and self-care retirement facilities: a randomised controlled trial

Objective: To determine the effect of a general group-based exercise programme on cognitive performance and mood among seniors without dementia living in retirement villages. Design: Randomised controlled trial. Setting: Four intermediate care and four self-care retirement village sites in Sydney, Australia. Participants: 154 seniors (19 men, 135 women; age range 62 to 95 years), who were residents of intermediate care and self-care retirement facilities. Intervention: Participants were randomised to one of three experimental groups: (1) a general group-based exercise (GE) programme composed of resistance training and balance training exercises; (2) a flexibility exercise and relaxation technique (FR) programme; or (3) no-exercise control (NEC). The intervention groups (GE and FR) participated in 1-hour exercise classes twice a week for a total period of 6 months. Main outcome measures: Using standard neuropsychological tests, we assessed cognitive performance at baseline and at 6-month re-test in three domains: (1) fluid intelligence; (2) visual, verbal and working memory; and (3) executive functioning. We also assessed mood using the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS) and the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS). Results: The GE programme significantly improved cognitive performance of fluid intelligence compared with FR or NEC. There were also significant improvements in the positive PANAS scale within both the GE and FR groups and an indication that the two exercise programmes reduced depression in those with initially high GDS scores. Conclusions: Our GE programme significantly improved cognitive performance of fluid intelligence in seniors residing in retirement villages compared with our FR programme and the NEC group. Furthermore, both group-based exercise programmes were beneficial for certain aspects of mood within the 6-month intervention period.
Analysis and Development of Submillimeter-Wave Stacked-FET Power Amplifier MMICs in 35-nm mHEMT Technology

This paper reports on the first stacked field-effect transistor (stacked-FET) submillimeter-wave monolithic integrated circuit (S-MMIC) power amplifier cell operating at 0.3 THz and the first stacked-FET medium power amplifier (MPA) at 240 GHz. Both circuits are fabricated using a 35-nm InGaAs-on-GaAs metamorphic high electron mobility transistor (mHEMT) technology with grounded coplanar waveguide lines. In both cases, compactness and performance are enhanced thanks to the use of an in-house process, based on three-metallization layers, instead of the usual two-layer process. The single-stacked cell exhibits an ultrawide small-signal 3-dB relative bandwidth (RBW) of $\hbox{47.3}{\%}$, with output power levels higher than 4.3 dBm from 280 to 308 GHz (9.5%). The MPA MMIC combining four triple-stacked mHEMT cells in parallel achieves a small-signal 3-dB RBW of 24.2%, 10.8 dBm of output power, and a power-added efficiency of 5.02%. These values outperform the state-of-the-art results of MPAs published within a comparable technology.
Transfer of GRP94(Gp96)‐Associated Peptides onto Endosomal MHC Class I Molecules

GRP94 (gp96)‐associated peptides can elicit cellular immune responses, an activity thought to reflect the presence of a cell surface receptor (CD91) on antigen‐presenting cells that mediates GRP94 internalization and trafficking to an amenable site for peptide transfer to major histocompatibility complex class I molecules. We report that GRP94 internalized by receptor‐mediated endocytosis is trafficked to a Rab5a, CD1 and transferrin‐negative, Fc receptor and major histocompatibility complex class I‐positive endocytic compartment. Receptor‐internalized GRP94 did not access the endoplasmic reticulum of antigen‐presenting cells. To identify the site of re‐presentation of GRP94‐associated peptides, kinetic analyses were performed utilizing GRP94‐OVA (SIINFEKL) peptide complexes, with peptide re‐presentation assayed with the Kb‐SIINFEKL‐specific MAb, 25‐D1.16. Analyses of the kinetics of re‐presentation of GRP94‐associated peptides, under conditions in which de novo synthesis of major histocompatibility complex class I molecules was inhibited, identified a post‐endoplasmic reticulum compartment, accessed by mature major histocompatibility complex class I, as the predominant site of GRP94‐associated peptide exchange onto major histocompatibility complex class I.