Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Editoriali The US National Comorbidity Survey : overview and future directions

This report presents an overview of the results of the US National Comorbidity Survey (NCS) (Kessler et al., 1994) and future directions based on these results. The NCS is a survey that was mandated by the US Congress to study the comorbidity of substance use disorders and nonsubstance psychiatric disorders in the general population of the US. It is the first survey to administer a structured psychiatric interview for DSM-IH-R disorders to a representative national sample in the US. The need for such a survey was noted nearly two decades ago in the report of the President's Commission on Mental Health and Illness (1978). It was impossible to undertake such a survey at that time, though, due to the absence of a structured research diagnostic interview capa-) ble of generating reliable psychiatric diagnoses in general population samples. Recognizing this need, the National Institute of Mental Health funded the development of the Diagnostic Interview Schedule (DIS) (Robins et al., 1981), a research diagnostic interview that can be administered by trained interviewers who are not clinicians. The DIS was first used in the Epidemiologic Catchment Area (ECA) Study, a landmark study that interviewed over 20,000 respondents in a series of five community epidemiologic surveys of the US. The ECA has been the main sour-
Computing the stereo matching cost with a convolutional neural network

We present a method for extracting depth information from a rectified image pair. We train a convolutional neural network to predict how well two image patches match and use it to compute the stereo matching cost. The cost is refined by cross-based cost aggregation and semiglobal matching, followed by a left-right consistency check to eliminate errors in the occluded regions. Our stereo method achieves an error rate of 2.61% on the KITTI stereo dataset and is currently (August 2014) the top performing method on this dataset.
Development of a Genetic-Algorithm-Based Nonlinear Model Predictive Control Scheme on Velocity and Steering of Autonomous Vehicles

Model predictive controller (MPC) has demonstrated its competency in controlling autonomous vehicles. But to apply the current MPC-based schemes, it has to be formulated into certain formats and meet all prerequisites in order to fit the optimization solvers. To eliminate the gaps, in this paper, we propose a nonlinear MPC controller which controls the vehicle velocity and steering simultaneously. The optimization solver is based on genetic algorithms (GA). As compared to other solvers, using GA in the optimization enables a more flexible structure for MPC formulation. The cost function and constraints can be designed in a more accurate, meaningful, and direct way. Both simulation and on-field test results showed that the vehicle under the control of the proposed nonlinear MPC is able to follow the road center line accurately and consistently, even at sharp corners. Moreover, the results also showed that passengers' safety and comfort can be well taken care of under the proposed MPC scheme as both the vehicle movement acceleration and steering acceleration are well confined within a safety range. The promising results indicate that the proposed GA-based nonlinear MPC can be a suitable solution to autonomous vehicle control.
Experience Management Wikis for Reflective Practice in Software Capstone Projects

Software engineering curriculum guidelines state that students should practice methods, techniques, and tools. A capstone project is one possibility to address this aim. A capstone project helps the students to increase their problem solving competencies, improve their social skills (e.g., communication skills), and gather practical experience. A crux of such projects is that students perform ldquoreflectiverdquo practice in order to learn from their experiences. The authors believe that experience gathering and reuse are effective techniques to stimulate reflective activities. An adapted free- and open-source Wiki-based system called software organization platform (SOP) is used to support students in managing their observations and experiences. The system can be used for experience exchange within the team and for experience reuse in forthcoming projects. The results of a case study show that standard Wiki functions improve communication and information sharing by means of explicit observation and experience documentation. A total of 183 documented observations and experiences at the end of the project provide a measure for the amount of reflection students have had during the capstone project. Still, the advantages of using Wikis will decrease when no technical adaptations of the Wiki to the learning objectives and to the software engineering tasks are made. Limitations of the case study, future evaluation steps, and planned developments of SOP will be provided in this paper.
A ML-Based Detector Considering Transmit Power Allocation for SC-FDMA Systems

In this paper, we propose a new detection algorithm for single carrier-frequency division multiple access (SC-FDMA) systems called duo maximum likelihood detector with transmit power allocation (DMLD-TPA). The proposed scheme is based on iteratively detecting two symbols out of Q transmit symbols by an orthogonal projection. It can make the detection complexity less than that of the maximum likelihood detector (MLD). In addition, we also propose a transmit power allocation scheme without the channel information feedback to enhance the BER performance. As a result, DMLD-TPA can keep the complexity low and its BER performance approaches that of the MLD.
Low STAT3 expression sensitizes to toxic effects of β-adrenergic receptor stimulation in peripartum cardiomyopathy

Abstract Aims The benefit of the β1-adrenergic receptor (β1-AR) agonist dobutamine for treatment of acute heart failure in peripartum cardiomyopathy (PPCM) is controversial. Cardiac STAT3 expression is reduced in PPCM patients. Mice carrying a cardiomyocyte-restricted deletion of STAT3 (CKO) develop PPCM. We hypothesized that STAT3-dependent signalling networks may influence the response to β-AR agonist treatment in PPCM patients and analysed this hypothesis in CKO mice. Methods and results Follow-up analyses in 27 patients with severe PPCM (left ventricular ejection fraction ≤25%) revealed that 19 of 20 patients not obtaining dobutamine improved cardiac function. All seven patients obtaining dobutamine received heart transplantation (n = 4) or left ventricular assist devices (n = 3). They displayed diminished myocardial triglyceride, pyruvate, and lactate content compared with non-failing controls. The β-AR agonist isoproterenol (Iso) induced heart failure with high mortality in postpartum female, in non-pregnant female and in male CKO, but not in wild-type mice. Iso induced heart failure and high mortality in CKO mice by impairing fatty acid and glucose uptake, thereby generating a metabolic deficit. The latter was governed by disturbed STAT3-dependent signalling networks, microRNA-199a-5p, microRNA-7a-5p, insulin/glucose transporter-4, and neuregulin/ErbB signalling. The resulting cardiac energy depletion and oxidative stress promoted dysfunction and cardiomyocyte loss inducing irreversible heart failure, which could be attenuated by the β1-AR blocker metoprolol or glucose-uptake-promoting drugs perhexiline and etomoxir. Conclusions Iso impairs glucose uptake, induces energy depletion, oxidative stress, dysfunction, and death in STAT3-deficient cardiomyocytes mainly via β1-AR stimulation. These cellular alterations may underlie the dobutamine-induced irreversible heart failure progression in PPCM patients who frequently display reduced cardiac STAT3 expression.
Pratiques associatives, pratiques citoyennes

La citoyennete ne se reduit pas uniquement a l'exercice du droit de vote, c'est-a-dire a la designation democratique de la representation parlementaire. Etre citoyen, c'est aussi agir collectivement dans des regroupements volontaires. Dans la societe francaise, ou priorite a ete donnee depuis longtemps a la democratie representative, la vie associative, souvent consideree comme une forme moins «noble» de citoyennete, vient enrichir la democratie participative. Et tente de demontrer qu'une autre conception de la citoyennete, qui reconnaitrait l'action collective des citoyens, pourrait donner une reelle legitimite aux pratiques associatives.
Perceptions of support among older African American cancer survivors.

PURPOSE/OBJECTIVES To explore the perceived social support needs among older adult African American cancer survivors. RESEARCH APPROACH Qualitative design using grounded theory techniques. SETTING Outpatient oncology clinics in the southeastern United States. PARTICIPANTS Focus groups with 22 older adult African American cancer survivors. METHODOLOGIC APPROACH Purposeful sampling technique was used to identify focus group participants. In-depth interviews were conducted and participants were interviewed until informational redundancy was achieved. MAIN RESEARCH VARIABLES Social support needs of older adult African American patients with cancer. FINDINGS Social support was influenced by (a) symptoms and treatment side effects, (b) perceptions of stigma and fears expressed by family and friends, (c) cultural beliefs about cancer, and (d) desires to lessen any burden or disruption to the lives of family and friends. Survivors navigated within and outside of their networks to get their social support needs met. In some instances, survivors socially withdrew from traditional sources of support for fear of being ostracized. Survivors also described feeling hurt, alone, and socially isolated when completely abandoned by friends. CONCLUSIONS The support from family, friends, and fellow church members is important to positive outcomes among older African American cancer survivors. However, misconceptions, fears, and negative cultural beliefs persist within the African American community and negatively influence the social support available to this population. INTERPRETATION Early identification of the factors that influence social support can facilitate strategies to improve outcomes and decrease health disparities among this population.
Obesity and migraine: A population study

To the Editor: We read with interest the recent article by Bigal et al.1 concerning migraine and obesity. They concluded that obesity is not comorbid to migraine but is significantly associated with the number of headache days, severity, and some clinical features. We would like to introduce our survey of headache in nurses who are working in our hospital. Almost 700 nurses participated in this survey, and 10% of them have migraine. According to the results, the proportion of migraine subjects with 10 or more headache days per month is nearly 10% in normal or underweight subjects. There was no one whose body mass index was greater than 25 and who had headache of 10 days or more. We would like the authors to clarify the following points. Are those who are obese in childhood or adolescence at greater risk for developing migraine than those who are not? In addition, overweight people may have sleep apnea syndrome (SAS), hyperglycemia, and hypercholesteremia. These factors may also play a role in migraine. Migraine is associated with elevated cholesterol level2 and mitochondria plays a role in migraine pathogenesis.3 In addition, is it possible that reduction of body weight may improve headache in obese subjects? It would be interesting to investigate whether reduction of body weight in normal or underweight subjects would impact migraine.
Regulatory roles of RNA binding proteins in the nervous system of C. elegans

Neurons have evolved to employ many factors involved in the regulation of RNA processing due to their complex cellular compartments. RNA binding proteins (RBPs) are key regulators in transcription, translation, and RNA degradation. Increasing studies have shown that regulatory RNA processing is critical for the establishment, functionality, and maintenance of neural circuits. Recent advances in high-throughput transcriptomics have rapidly expanded our knowledge of the landscape of RNA regulation, but also raised the challenge for mechanistic dissection of the specific roles of RBPs in complex tissues such as the nervous system. The C. elegans genome encodes many RBPs conserved throughout evolution. The rich analytic tools in molecular genetics and simple neural anatomy of C. elegans offer advantages to define functions of genes in vivo at the level of a single cell. Notably, the discovery of microRNAs has had transformative effects to the understanding of neuronal development, circuit plasticity, and neurological diseases. Here we review recent studies unraveling diverse roles of RBPs in the development, function, and plasticity of C. elegans nervous system. We first summarize the general technologies for studying RBPs in C. elegans. We then focus on the roles of several RBPs that control gene- and cell-type specific production of neuronal transcripts.
Automatic content targeting on mobile phones

The mobile phone industry has reached a saturation point. With low growth rates and fewer new customers available to acquire, competition among mobile operators is now focused on attracting competitors' customers. This leads to a significant downward price pressure, the inability by mobile phone providers in deriving reasonable returns from basic telephony services, and an increasing reliance on value added services (VAS) for revenue growth. There are today thousands of such services available for companies to sell to their customers daily. These services include, for example, the provision of sports information, ring-tones, personalized news, weather forecast, and financial trends. Because of the many possible offers, and of the limited contact opportunities (operators tend to cap the number of commercial messages sent to their users and phones have limited-size screens), data mining can play an important role in optimizing message targeting. In this paper we describe our experience in developing a successful automatic system to target users with the most relevant offers. We describe the proposed data mining methods and report on their performance. In addition, we discuss several experiments we implemented on live data. These experiments have been useful to tailor our approach to the specific characteristics of the market under study. We believe this is a very interesting domain for data miners though it is still fairly unexplored. This is despite the availability of very large and detailed logs of customer activity.
Facial expression morphing and animation with local warping methods

In this paper, we applied local warping techniques to construct a framework of image-based morphing for facial expression animation with low complexity. From the experience we obtained in various spatial transformations, the local warping methods are more adequate for facial expression morphing. We utilized two transformations that can deal with local deformations: the piecewise polynomial transformation and radial basis function transformation. The simulation results are satisfactory. The facial warping techniques could be applied to various applications, such as face recognition, authentication, dynamic imagery, speech (action) semantic animation, multimedia and virtual reality construction, low-bandwidth videoconferencing, image transmission, and intelligent man-machine interface.
THE SYNTHESIS AND TURNOVER OF RAT LIVER PEROXISOMES

Rat liver peroxisomes have been separated according to size by zonal sedimentation. A method is described for calculating the size of the particles from their final position in the gradient. Peroxisomes seem biochemically homogeneous throughout their size distribution. 3 hr after injection of tritiated leucine, the specific radioactivity of catalase is the same in peroxisomes of different sizes, and it remains so for up to 1 wk after administration of the precursor. This observation rules out the possibility that peroxisomes have an extended period of independent growth. If individual particles maintain an independent existence, they must be formed very rapidly. The other possible explanation is that peroxisomes exchange material within the liver cell.
PyCO: A parallel genetic algorithm optimization tool for analog circuits

Analog designers are challenged by increasingly complex device models and lowered signal swing as the CMOS processes scale. At the same time, new trends and emerging technologies pose tighter design constraints. However, the cheap computational resources nowadays enable the use of the mature electrical simulators and device models in simulation-in-a-loop optimization techniques. In this work, we present a flexible circuit optimization tool for analog designs which relies on evolutionary algorithms. Moreover, we employ logistic functions to determine the fittest individuals. The benchmarking test shows that the program is able to dimension an operational transconductance amplifier (OTA) based on the topology netlist in less than 15 minutes, without resorting to any knowledge base, initial guess or simplified models. The achieved performance suggests that the tool may be integrated in an existing design flow with huge benefits.
Ric‐8: Different cellular roles for a heterotrimeric G‐protein GEF

Signaling via heterotrimeric G‐proteins is evoked by agonist‐mediated stimulation of seven transmembrane spanning receptors (GPCRs). During the last decade it has become apparent that Gα subunits can be activated by receptor‐independent mechanisms. Ric‐8 belongs to a highly conserved protein family that regulates heterotrimeric G‐protein function, acting as a non‐canonical guanine nucleotide exchange factors (GEF) over a subset of Gα subunits. In this review we discuss the roles of Ric‐8 in the regulation of diverse cell functions, emphasizing the contribution of its multiple domain protein structure in these diverse functions. J. Cell. Biochem. 113: 2797–2805, 2012. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Low-Power Fully Integrated CMOS DTV Tuner Front-End for ATSC Terrestrial Broadcasting

A low-cost low-power DTV tuner for current digital television application is described. In order to increase integration level and reduce power consumption for off-air DTV tuner application, an SAW-filterless tuner front-end architecture is adopted. As a part of the concept, key building blocks for this architecture are implemented on a main stream 0.35 μm CMOS technology. Experimental measurements for the prototype chip validate the system architecture; the prototype consumes 300 mw and achieves 45 dB of image rejection ratio within the entire 750 MHz frequency band.
Flexible control Lyapunov functions

A central tool in systems theory for synthesizing control laws that achieve stability are control Lyapunov functions (CLFs). Classically, a CLF enforces that the resulting closed-loop state trajectory is contained within a cone with a fixed, predefined shape, and which is centered at and converges to a desired converging point. However, such a requirement often proves to be overconservative. In this paper we propose a novel idea that improves the design of CLFs in terms of flexibility, i.e. the CLF is permitted to be locally non-monotone along the closed-loop trajectory. The focus is on the design of optimization problems that allow certain parameters that define a cone associated with a standard CLF to be decision variables. In this way non-monotonicity of the CLF is explicitly linked with a decision variable that can be optimized on-line. Conservativeness is significantly reduced compared to classical CLFs, which makes flexible CLFs more suitable for stabilization of constrained discrete-time nonlinear systems and real-time control.
Exxon at Grand Bois, Louisiana: A Three-Level Analysis of Management Decision Making and Corporate Conduct

Abstract: In the early 1990s, managers at Exxon decided to seek lower cost disposal in Louisiana for oil-field wastes declared hazardous in Alabama. This decision resulted in injuries to the residents of Grand Bois, Louisiana; the disposal company; Exxon; and the oil industry in the state. Given the need for business and society to manage business operations for mutual benefit, it is essential to understand why businesses injure the public so that similar incidents do not happen again. The authors use three analytical perspectives to suggest how corporations may make unethical decisions without purposefully setting out to do so: their managers may fail to understand changing social expectations for corporate behavior; they may adopt organizational structures, policies, and procedures that block ethical action in the name of efficiency; and they may follow unwritten rules of behavior for career success that exclude ethics. These perspectives suggest that individual Exxon managers may not have been making greed-based decisions, weighing corporate gains against harms to others. The situation more likely involved a failure, for the reasons discussed, to raise ethics questions in making business decisions. This explanation does not make much difference to those injured nor does it absolve those who made the decisions. It does make a difference to society and to companies seeking to understand factors that have to be overcome in any large corporation that wishes to prevent such events from occurring.
Aspirin Inhibits In Vitro Maturation and In Vivo Immunostimulatory Function of Murine Myeloid Dendritic Cells1

Aspirin is the most commonly used analgesic and antiinflammatory agent. In this study, at physiological concentrations, it profoundly inhibited CD40, CD80, CD86, and MHC class II expression on murine, GM-CSF + IL-4 stimulated, bone marrow-derived myeloid dendritic cells (DC). CD11c and MHC class I expression were unaffected. The inhibitory action was dose dependent and was evident at concentrations higher than those necessary to inhibit PG synthesis. Experiments with indomethacin revealed that the effects of aspirin on DC maturation were cyclooxygenase independent. Nuclear extracts of purified, aspirin-treated DC revealed a decreased NF-κB DNA-binding activity, whereas Ab supershift analysis indicated that aspirin targeted primarily NF-κB p50. Unexpectedly, aspirin promoted the generation of CD11c+ DC, due to apparent suppression of granulocyte development. The morphological and ultrastructural appearance of aspirin-treated cells was consistent with immaturity. Aspirin-treated DC were highly efficient at Ag capture, via both mannose receptor-mediated endocytosis and macropinocytosis. By contrast, they were poor stimulators of naive allogeneic T cell proliferation and induced lower levels of IL-2 in responding T cells. They also exhibited impaired IL-12 expression and did not produce IL-10 after LPS stimulation. Assessment of the in vivo function of aspirin-treated DC, pulsed with the hapten trinitrobenzenesulfonic acid, revealed an inability to induce normal cell-mediated contact hypersensitivity, despite the ability of the cells to migrate to T cell areas of draining lymphoid tissue. These data provide new insight into the immunopharmacology of aspirin and suggest a novel approach to the manipulation of DC for therapeutic application.
Quantitative Photo Activated Localization Microscopy: Unraveling the Effects of Photoblinking

In this work we discuss how to use photophysical information for improved quantitative measurements using Photo Activated Localization Microscopy (PALM) imaging. We introduce a method that reliably estimates the number of photoblinking molecules present in a biological sample and gives a robust way to quantify proteins at the single-cell level from PALM images. We apply this method to determine the amount of β2 adrenergic receptor, a prototypical G Protein Coupled Receptor, expressed on the plasma membrane of HeLa cells.