Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Talk about IT: Views of people with aphasia and their partners on receiving remotely monitored computer‐based word finding therapy

Background: Research into computerised aphasia therapy has investigated effects of computer therapy on language skills. Little is known about views of people with aphasia on using computers in therapy. New technology has made possible delivery of therapy via the Internet ( “remotely”), without face‐to‐face contact with the therapist. The acceptability to clients and carers of this novel mode of delivering aphasia therapy warranted investigation. Aims: This paper reports an exploratory investigation of the views and experiences of six people with aphasia and their partners on receiving computer‐based word‐retrieval therapy delivered remotely. Methods & Procedures: Six people with aphasia received therapy via computer over a 6‐month period. A speech and language therapist monitored therapy remotely via the Internet. In‐depth interviews were carried out with participants and carers after therapy, by a therapist not involved in treatment, to elicit views on expectations, experiences, and effects of therapy. Five men and one woman with aphasia were interviewed (median age 63 years). Participants ranged from 2 to 12 years post CVA (median 2yrs 6 months). All had word retrieval difficulties. Five had partners, all of whom were interviewed. Outcomes & Results: All participants responded positively to this mode of therapy delivery and all perceived gains to have been made. Organisation of practice varied but all reported a sense of increased autonomy for the person with aphasia and believed this mode of therapy had facilitated more intensive practice than previously experienced. Intensity of practice was seen as crucial in leading to benefits at the level of language impairment. Benefits to functional communication were attributed not only to improved language skills but also to improved confidence and self‐esteem. Negative effects all related to amount of time spent in practice and reduced time available for other activities. Conclusions: A wide range of benefits to functional communication was reported from receiving therapy that was purely impairment‐based and involved no face‐to‐face contact with a therapist. Participants valued the increased autonomy and increased opportunity for practice associated with the remotely monitored therapy but viewed the supervisory role of the speech and language therapist as crucial. The remote mode of therapy delivery may offer potential advantages compared with face‐to‐face therapy, which warrant further investigation.
Evolutionary algorithm for state assignment of finite state machines

The paper proposes an evolutionary algorithm (EA) for the state assignment problem (SAP). Two original crossover operators are presented. They are experimentally compared with other known crossovers for SAP using a set of benchmark finite state machines. Solutions generated by EA (using different crossover operators) are compared with the random ones and with the state assignments generated by the MAX+PLUS II system. Experimental results show that the solutions found by EA are significantly better (up to 55%) than those from MAX+PLUS II. Moreover, EA equipped with proposed crossover operators found better results than those obtained with the use of other compared crossovers.
Practice effects and test–re-test reliability of the Five Digit Test in patients with stroke over four serial assessments

Abstract Objectives: To investigate practice effect and test–re-test reliability of the Five Digit Test (FDT) over four serial assessments in patients with stroke. Design: Single-group repeated measures design. Methods: Twenty-five patients with stroke were administered the FDT in four consecutive assessments every 2 weeks. The FDT contains four parts with five indices: ‘basic measures of attention and processing speed’, ‘selective attention’, ‘alternating attention’, ‘ability of inhibition’ and ‘ability of switching’. Results: The five indices of the FDT showed trivial-to-small practice effects (Cohen’s d = 0.03–0.47) and moderate-to-excellent test–re-test reliability (intra-class correlation coefficient = 0.59–0.97). Practice effects of the five indices all appeared cumulative, but one index, ‘basic measures of attention and processing speed’, reached a plateau after the second assessment. The minimum and maximum values of the 90% confidence interval (CI) of reliable change index modified for practice (RCIp) for this index were [−17.6, 11.2]. Conclusions: One of five indices of the FDT reached a plateau, whose minimum and maximum values of the 90% CI RCIp are useful to determine whether the change in an individual’s score is real. However, clinicians and researchers should be cautious when interpreting the test results of these four indices over repeated assessments.
Complete mitochondrial genome of the spotted scat Scatophagus argus (Perciformes: Scatophagidae)

Abstract The spotted scat, Scatophagus argus (Perciformes, Scatophagidae), is a recreational and commercial fish in China. In this paper, the complete mitochondrial genome of S. argus was firstly determined. It is 16,783 bp in length and consists of 13 protein-coding genes, 22 tRNA genes, 2 rRNA genes and 1 control region. Except for the eight tRNA and ND6 genes, all other mitochondrial genes are encoded on the heavy strand. The mitochondrial DNA information would be useful in species identification and natural resources conservation.
Phenotypic and Gene Expression Changes among Clonal Type I Strains of Toxoplasma gondii

ABSTRACT Toxoplasma gondii has an unusual population structure consisting of three clonal lineages that predominate in North America and Europe. This simple pattern has encouraged the use of only a few laboratory isolates that are representative of each lineage. Principle among these is the type I RH strain, originally isolated from a child with encephalitis some 70 years ago. Comparison of different passages of the RH strain that have been propagated differently over the intervening time period revealed that the commonly used clonal line called RH-ERP was not representative of natural isolates of the type I lineage. Notably, RH-ERP formed much larger plaques than other type 1 strains, including a separate, earlier derived isolate of the RH strain. The RH-ERP variant also showed enhanced extracellular survival, faster growth, and decreased differentiation compared to the prototype type I strain GT1. Comparison of gene expression differences in the RH-ERP line revealed that several ABC transporters were upregulated, which may provide a growth advantage in vitro. These findings illustrate that dramatic phenotypic changes can arise in laboratory strains, emphasizing the need for comparison with recent clinical isolates.
Interleukin‐1 exacerbates focal cerebral ischemia and reduces ischemic brain temperature in the rat

The proinflammatory cytokine interleukin‐1 (IL‐1) is a key mediator of inflammation in cerebral ischemia, but its precise mechanisms of action remain elusive. Temperature is critical to outcome in brain injury and given the importance of IL‐1 in pyrogenesis this has clear mechanistic implications. IL‐1 exacerbates ischemia independently of core (rectal) temperature. However, it is temperature in the ischemic brain that influences outcome and rectal temperature is likely to be a poor surrogate marker. This study tested the hypothesis that IL‐1 exacerbates cerebral ischemia by increasing ischemic brain temperature. Wistar rats undergoing transient middle cerebral artery occlusion received either 4 μg/kg IL‐1 (n = 9) or vehicle (n = 10) intraperitoneally. NMR‐generated maps of brain temperature, tissue perfusion, and the trace of the diffusion tensor were collected during occlusion, early reperfusion, and at 24 hr. IL‐1 significantly increased ischemic damage at 24 hr by 35% but rectal temperature did not vary significantly between groups. However, ischemic brain was 1.7°C cooler on reperfusion in IL‐1‐treated animals (vs. vehicle) and a corresponding reduction in cerebral blood flow was identified in the ischemic striatum. Contrary to the stated hypothesis, IL‐1 reduced ischemic brain temperature during reperfusion and this may be due to a reduction in tissue perfusion. Magn Reson Med, 2008. © 2008 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
The impact of organizational change on the perceptions of UK managers

Redundancy, delayering, downsizing, and various other forms of organizational change have become increasingly prevalent. This article focuses on the impact of different forms of organizational change on managers' perceptions of the organizations they work within and the comparison between changes that involve redundancy and/or delayering and those that do not involve such changes. The literature has many accounts of the negative effects associated with redundancy and delayering, but are these effects unique to these types of change or are they a consequence of negative experiences of a range of organizational changes? Hypotheses were tested to assess, first, whether there are differences between different levels of management, notably between directors and nondirectors in the way they perceive organizational change, second, to assess how change has affected managers' perceptions of their organizations and their working lives, and third, to explore if different forms of change are associated with differences in managers' perceptions of their organizations “as a place to work”. Hypotheses were tested with data from a cross-sectional survey with 830 managers from the UK. Organizational changes include cost reduction and culture change programmes, delayering, mergers/demergers, outsourcing, redundancy programmes, and contract/ temporary workers. The analyses reported here indicate clearly that specific forms of change are associated with managers' reports of their experiences at work; some forms of change (notably redundancy and delayering) seem to have particularly damaging implications for managers' experiences in the workplace. The analyses also show that there is a difference in the way directors and nondirectors perceive the changes. Finally, the article considers strategies for ameliorating the effects of change including the role of HR.
Isoforms of Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor Act in a Coordinate Fashion To Recruit and Expand Tumor Vasculature

ABSTRACT Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) is an essential regulator of vascularization. It is expressed as several splice variants; the major forms contain 120 amino acids, 164 amino acids, and 188 amino acids. We utilized transformed cells nullizygous for VEGF to specifically express each of these isoforms in isolation, in order to determine the role of each in tumorigenic neo-vascularization. We found that only the intermediate isoform, VEGF164, could fully rescue tumor growth; VEGF120 partially rescued tumor growth, and VEGF188 failed completely to rescue tumor expansion. Surprisingly, the vascular density of VEGF188 isoform-expressing tumors is significantly greater than that of wild-type VEGF cells and the other isoform-specific tumors. The failure of the hypervascular VEGF188-expressing tumors to grow may be due to inadequate perfusion of the massive number of microvessels in these tumors; three-dimensional imaging of the tumorigenic vasculature indicated little or no recruitment of the peripheral vasculature. This demonstrates that the VEGF isoforms perform unique functions which together enable tumorigenic vascularization.
Binding spatial location and stimulus identity in short-term memory

In the working memory model, phonological and visuospatial information are stored by separate and independent systems. However, sometimes binding of visual and verbal information must occur. This study investigated whether these memory systems cooperate in the recall of spatial location of a stimulus defined by both types of information. Participants memorized the spatial locations in which name-and-face pairs were presented and either recalled the position of a test stimulus in which the two types of information were always present (Experiment 1) or recalled the position of a test stimulus that non-predictively contained either the visual or verbal information (Experiment 2). The results showed no cooperation between visuospatial and phonological systems when both types of information were present in the test stimulus. Rather, a clear preference for verbal information was found (Experiment 1). When the test stimulus contained only one type of information, recall based on both verbal and visual information was impaired (Experiment 2). These results suggest that visual and verbal information are not automatically integrated into memory and that storage capacity is smaller for integrated information than for isolated information.
Broadband ultrafast pulse generation with double wall carbon nanotubes

Materials with nonlinear optical properties are much sought after for ultrafast photonic applications. Mode-locked lasers can generate ultrafast pulses using saturable absorbers[1]. Currently, the dominant technology is based on semiconductor saturable absorber mirrors (SESAMs). However, narrow tuning range (tens of nm), complex fabrication and packaging limit their applications[2]. Single wall nanotubes (SWNTs) and graphene offer simpler and cost-effective solutions[1]. Broadband operation can be achieved in SWNTs using a distribution of tube diameters[1,3], or by using graphene[4–8], due to the gapless linear dispersion of Dirac electrons[8,9].
Chromosome-Based Genetic Complementation System for Xylella fastidiosa

ABSTRACT Xylella fastidiosa is a xylem-limited, gram-negative bacterium that causes Pierce's disease of grapevine. Here, we describe the construction of four vectors that facilitate the insertion of genes into a neutral site (NS1) in the X. fastidiosa chromosome. These vectors carry a colE1-like (pMB1) replicon and DNA sequences from NS1 flanking a multiple-cloning site and a resistance marker for one of the following antibiotics: chloramphenicol, erythromycin, gentamicin, or kanamycin. In X. fastidiosa, vectors with colE1-like (pMB1) replicons have been found to result primarily in the recovery of double recombinants rather than single recombinants. Thus, the ease of obtaining double recombinants and the stability of the resulting insertions at NS1 in the absence of selective pressure are the major advantages of this system. Based on in vitro and in planta characterizations, strains carrying insertions within NS1 are indistinguishable from wild-type X. fastidiosa in terms of growth rate, biofilm formation, and pathogenicity. To illustrate the usefulness of this system for complementation analysis, we constructed a strain carrying a mutation in the X. fastidiosa cpeB gene, which is predicted to encode a catalase/peroxidase, and showed that the sensitivity of this mutant to hydrogen peroxide could be overcome by the introduction of a wild-type copy of cpeB at NS1. Thus, this chromosome-based complementation system provides a valuable genetic tool for investigating the role of specific genes in X. fastidiosa cell physiology and virulence.
HAUPTBEITRAG / UNSPOKEN EMOTIONS IN MOVIES } Unspoken Emotions in Movies The Basis of Emotion-Driven Storytelling Systems

Introduction Stories are the core of many types of entertainment. Although developers and designers strive to develop new forms of entertainment that deliver richer audiovisual experiences to the audience, one of the key elements – a good story – remains the same. Storytelling is intertwined in people’s lives and has deeply influenced human societies for generations. It ranges from the simplest forms, such as bedtime stories for children, to more complex forms such as plays, movies, and games. Just as children love often-told bedtime stories, sometimes adults enjoy watching classic movies over and over again and never tire of them. Storytelling is not only a matter of how well the stories are memorized but also the overall emotional experience over the course of the storyline. The link between the story and the corresponding emotions is an intriguing topic for developing new interactive storytelling systems. The scope of storytelling systems is remarkably broad in the domain of entertainment applications. Depending on the level of interaction, storytelling systems range from passive forms, such as movies, to active forms, such as video games. Traditional storytelling, as exemplified by movies and plays, follows a linear arc to construct a storyline in which the audience passively receives the stories that are presented on the screen or stage. In order to enhance the interactivity, new types of digital entertainment encourage the audience to become involved in the stories in different ways. The audience is invited to create or influence the storyline in real time by acting as the protagonist or the director of the narrative. This mechanism has been adopted in many video games, particularly role-playing games. Fig. 1 A conceptual framework of an emotion-driven storytelling system
An adaptive image amplification method with integer multiples

As an important image processing technique, image interpolation has wide applications, such as digital photos, video communication, medical imaging, object identification. A new adaptive image amplification technique is presented in this paper. The proposed method is able to cope with arbitrary integer multiples image amplification. For a low-resolution (LR) image and a given integer magnification factor n, every LR pixel is corresponding to a n ×n block of unknown HR pixels. The LR image is firstly zoomed n times by Bicubic interpolation. Then for every LR pixel belonging to edge area, weighted least-square estimation technique is adopted to compute its eight orientation model parameters for its associated n ×n block. Subsequently, each pixel in the associated n ×n block is substituted by a linear weighted summation using its eight surrounding HR pixels and the obtained model parameters. Finally, a correction strategy is implemented based on every n × n block to refine each tentative HR pixel. Compared with other image zooming methods, experimental results demonstrate the superiority of the proposed image zooming algorithm.
Variable Selection Using SVM-based Criteria

We propose new methods to evaluate variable subset relevance with a view to variable selection. Relevance criteria are derived from Support Vector Machines and are based on weight vector ||w||2 or generalization error bounds sensitivity with respect to a variable. Experiments on linear and non-linear toy problems and real-world datasets have been carried out to assess the effectiveness of these criteria. Results show that the criterion based on weight vector derivative achieves good results and performs consistently well over the datasets we used.
A component-based method for software architecture refinement

As a formal method from abstraction to concretion, architecture refinement gradually becomes an important academic research field of modern software engineering since it was presented. Well architecture refinement not only could ensure the integrity and consistency of software architecture, but also could cut down the cost and improve the quality of software. But the research of stepwise architecture refinement for software architecture is considered to be an underway stage on the facts of the complexity of the conversion from the abstract to the specific architecture. The article illustrates the features and usefulness of component-based refinement method and proposes a novel architecture refinement approach framework. It is based on the component of the architecture and on a series of formal languages for architecture refinement. In this refinement steps, different levels of architecture has been formally refined from points of both structure and behavior, both static and dynamic. A simple example will be illustrated to show the eminent feasibility and effectiveness of this approach with ∏-ARL(Architecture Refinement Language).
Long-Term Outcome of Non-Sustained Ventricular Tachycardia in Structurally Normal Hearts

Background The impact of non-sustained ventricular tachycardia (NSVT) on the risk of thromboembolic event and clinical outcomes in patients without structural heart disease remains undetermined. This study aimed to evaluate the association between NSVT and clinical outcomes. Methods The study population of 5903 patients was culled from the “Registry of 24-hour ECG monitoring at Taipei Veterans General Hospital” (REMOTE database) between January 1, 2002 and December 31, 2004. Of that total, we enrolled 3767 patients without sustained ventricular tachycardia, structural heart disease, and permanent pacemaker. For purposes of this study, NSVT was defined as 3 or more consecutive beats arising below the atrioventricular node with an RR interval of <600 ms (>100 beats/min) and lasting < 30 seconds. Result There were 776 deaths, 2042 hospitalizations for any reason, 638 cardiovascular (CV)-related hospitalizations, 350 ischemic strokes, 409 transient ischemic accident (TIA), 368 new-onset heart failure (HF), and 260 new-onset atrial fibrillation (AF) with a mean follow-up duration of 10 ± 1 years. In multivariate analysis, the presence of NSVT was independently associated with death (hazard ratio [HR]: 1.362, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.071–1.731), CV hospitalization (HR: 1.527, 95% CI: 1.171–1.992), ischemic stroke (HR: 1.436, 95% CI: 1.014–2.032), TIA (HR 1.483, 95% CI: 1.069–2.057), and new-onset HF (HR: 1.716, 95% CI: 1.243–2.368). There was no significant association between the presence of NSVT and all-cause hospitalization or new-onset AF. Conclusion In patients without structural heart disease, presence of NSVT on 24-hour monitoring was independently associated with death, CV hospitalization, ischemic stroke, TIA, and new onset heart failure.
A room temperature polyaniline nanofiber hydrogen gas sensor

Electro-conductive polyaniline (PANI) nanofiber based surface acoustic wave (SAW) gas sensors have been investigated with hydrogen (H 2) gas. A template-free, rapidly mixed method was employed to synthesize polyaniline nanofibers using chemical oxidative polymerization of aniline. The nanofibers were deposited onto a layered ZnO/64deg YX LiNbO3 SAW transducer for gas sensing applications. The novel sensor was exposed to various concentrations of H2 gas at room temperature. The sensor response, defined as the relative variation in operating frequency of oscillation due to the introduction of the gas, was 3.04 kHz towards a 1% H2 concentration. A relatively fast response time of 8 sec and a recovery time of 60 sec with good repeatability were observed at room temperature. Due to room temperature operation, the novel gas sensor is promising for environmental and industrial applications
Assessing Multicultural Effectiveness Among Young Swiss People Factor Structure and Consistency in the French Adaptation of the Multicultural Personality Questionnaire

The present paper examines the reliability and validity of the French-language version of the Multicultural Personality Questionnaire (MPQ) among young participants (N = 7,180) in French-speaking Switzerland. Consistent with previous research (Van der Zee & Van Oudenhoven, 2000, 2001; Van der Zee, Zaal, & Piekstra, 2003), exploratory analysis in one subsample confirmed the presence of the five factors underpinning the MPQ: Open-Mindedness, Cultural Empathy, Emotional Stability, Social Initiative, and Flexibility. Confirmatory factor analyses in a second subsample and in the total sample further confirmed the same five-factor structure. This model was modified to include correlated residuals between items with high semantic proximity. This final model obtained a satisfactory fit to the overall data. We conclude that the French version of the 37-item MPQ scale can be used to examine the attitudes associated with multicultural effectiveness in French-speaking populations.