Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Study tours and inter-city policy learning: Mobilizing Bogotá’s transportation policies in Guadalajara

While modern urban planning has traditionally been shaped by policies and instruments from European and North American cities, in recent decades there has been an increase in South-South policy learning and a number of cities of the global South have emerged as alternative urban planning models. Yet, less is known about the practices through which urban policy actors in cities of the South learn from other Southern cities’ policies. This paper examines the case of Guadalajara, Mexico, where different local public and private actors introduced a new policy issue—sustainable transportation—in the local and state government agenda making extensive references to Bogotá, Colombia. Study tours are identified as key practices that facilitated the adoption of Bogotá’s transportation policies in Guadalajara. Using qualitative and ethnographic methods, I show that study tours were powerful instruments to promote policy change thanks to their capacity to: (1) educate the attention of influential local policy actors through hands-on “experiential learning”; (2) expand local coalitions through the building of trust and consensus around a policy model; and (3) mobilize public opinion through references to already existing policies. In doing so, I suggest that study tours should be conceptualized as both learning and governance instruments that a variety of actors can use to translate their shifting beliefs of how the city should be organized into public policy. The analysis of the actors that organized these tours also reveals the friction between local and transnational agendas shaping the apparent South-South circulations of Bogotá's transportation policies.
Influence Without Reason : How Religious Identity and Emotion Shape Catholics ’ Social Conservatism

Citizens often feel pressured to adopt the beliefs held by their peers, conforming to the views of the majority even in the absence of rational argument. However, few scholars have investigated the mechanisms underlying this “mindless” conformity to group pressure. Drawing on recent research in psychology, this manuscript puts forward a new theory of group influence called Social-Emotional Influence Theory which states that subjective group identification and self-conscious emotions (e.g., pride and shame) are critical to understanding political conformity. We feel pride when we conform to, and shame when we deviate from, in-group beliefs and behaviors; these emotional reactions motivate conformity. SEI Theory is tested with an experimental study of group influence among Midwestern American Catholics with respect to social conservatism. The evidence supports SEI theory: Identification with other Catholics mediated group influence over participants’ conservative views, and self-conscious emotions appeared to play a key role in explaining that influence.
Atomistic models of pyrolytic carbons obtained with the IGAR method

This study aims at obtaining atomistic representations of these RL and ReL pyCs and at describing their nano-texture/structure. We will first describe some improvements in the IGAR method. Then, the nature of defects in these materials, in terms of non-hexagonal rings and screw dislocations, as well as their hydrogen atoms contents and locations, will be thoroughly compared and discussed. These models will also be validated against experimental HRTEM images and pair distribution functions (PDF) (and structure factors) obtained from neutron diffraction.
A Secure and Robust Image Watermarking System Using Normalization and Arnold Scrambling

This article proposes an image watermarking scheme to improve the robustness and security of watermark against several attacks. To achieve this, image normalization is utilized where affine transformation is applied on the image and which makes it as invariant to geometric trans- formations. The Lifting Wavelet Transform (LWT) and block based Discrete Cosine Transform (DCT) is applied to the cover image after normalizing an image. Then, the DC coefficients from all blocks are gathered and singular value matrix is constructed using Singular Value Decomposition (SVD). The watermark image is embedded in this singular value matrix after scrambling the image, which increases the security of the proposed scheme. The robustness and invisibleness of the proposed scheme is measured using Peak Signal to Noise Ratio (PSNR), Signal to noise Ratio (SNR) and Structural Similarity (SSIM). The comparison was made with existing schemes and it reveals that the proposed scheme provides high robustness than the existing one.
The what, why and how of aromatase inhibitors: hormonal agents for treatment and prevention of breast cancer

The third‐generation aromatase inhibitors (AIs) anastrozole, exemestane and letrozole have largely replaced tamoxifen as the preferred treatment for hormone receptor – positive breast cancer in postmenopausal women. Approximately 185,000 new cases of invasive breast cancer are diagnosed yearly, and at least half of these women are both postmenopausal and eligible for adjuvant therapy with AIs. In addition, AIs are currently being tested as primary prevention therapy in large randomised trials involving tens of thousands of women at increased risk for breast cancer. Given the volume of use, internists will increasingly see postmenopausal women who are taking or considering treatment with AIs. Physicians need to be able to: (i) briefly discuss the pros and cons of using a selective estrogen receptor modulator such as tamoxifen or raloxifene vs. an AI for risk reduction and (ii) recognise and manage AI‐associated adverse events. The primary purpose of this review is to help internists with these two tasks.
NUTRIGENOMICS FOR POULTRY-NEW TOOLS FOR MAXIMIZING PERFORMANCE

Technology has catapulted science from simple descriptive observations to highly parallel quantitative assessments of the intricacies of our natural world. The recent technologies that have led to the new field of functional genomics (how the genome of an organism regulates homeostasis and responds to stimuli) are providing a clearer understanding of how organisms interact with their environment and in particular their diet. The alimentary canal (gut) constitutes the largest surface area with which higher organisms intimately interact with their environment. In the following discussion, the role of functional genomics in the future of nutrition research (nutrigenomics) and the potential for improving poultry production will be discussed.
Phencyclidine withdrawal disrupts episodic-like memory in rats: reversal by donepezil but not clozapine.

Episodic memory is the capacity to recall an event in time and place (What? Where? When? ). Impaired episodic memory is a debilitating cognitive symptom in schizophrenia but is poorly controlled by currently available antipsychotic drugs. Consistent with glutamatergic abnormality in schizophrenia, the NDMA receptor antagonist, phencyclidine (PCP), induces persistent 'schizophrenia-like' symptoms including memory deficits in humans and rodents and is widely used as an animal model of the disorder. However, in contrast to humans, PCP and PCP withdrawal-induced memory deficits in rodents are reversed by antipsychotic drugs such as clozapine. One possible explanation is that the memory tasks used in animal studies do not simultaneously test the What? Where? When? components that characterize episodic memory in human tasks. We investigated whether subchronic PCP withdrawal disrupts memory in rats in a task that requires simultaneous integration of memory for object, place and context. Rats learn to discriminate objects under specific spatial and contextual conditions analogous to the What? Where? When? components of human episodic memory. We found that PCP withdrawal impaired performance on this task and that the atypical antipsychotic drug clozapine did not reverse this impairment. However the acetylcholinesterase inhibitor (AChEI) donepezil, which has been shown to improve episodic memory in humans did reverse the effect of PCP. This suggests that PCP withdrawal disruption of object-place-context recognition in rats may prove to be a useful model to investigate episodic memory impairment in schizophrenia and supports the suggestion that AChEIs could prove to be a useful pharmacological strategy to specifically treat episodic memory problems in schizophrenia.
Human-to-robot skill transfer through haptic rendered environment

A new paradigm for programming of robotics manipulator is being studied. The teaching of the machine will begin with the necessary skills being demonstrated by the human operator in a virtual environment with tactile sensing (haptics). Position and contact force/torque data generated in the virtual environment combined with a priori knowledge about the task will be used to identify and learn the skills in the newly demonstrated tasks and then to reproduce them in the robotics system. The peg-in-hole insertion problem is used as a case study. The overall concept is described. The methodologies developed to build the virtual environment and to learn the basic skills are presented. The results obtained so far are reported.
The design of QoS broker algorithms for QoS-capable Web services

QoS (quality of service) support in Web services is an important issue. We present a QoS-capable Web service architecture, QCWS, by introducing a QoS broker module between service clients and providers (servers). The functions of the QoS broker module include collecting QoS information about servers, making selection decisions for clients, and negotiating with servers to get QoS commitments. We propose two resource allocation algorithms (HQ and RQ) used by QoS broker when broker acts as the front-end of a server. The goals of algorithms are to maximize the server resource usage while minimizing the QoS instability for each client. The QoS performance and instability tradeoffs of both algorithms are studied by simulation.
Re-contextualising human rights education: some decolonial strategies and pedagogical/curricular possibilities

Abstract This paper argues that a decolonising approach in human rights education (HRE) needs to examine human rights issues through a critical lens that interrogates the Eurocentric grounding of human rights universals and advances the project of re-contextualising human rights in the historical horizon of modernity/coloniality. This alternative configuration of HRE as ‘critical’ and ‘transformative’ offers pedagogical and curricular possibilities that go beyond conventional forms of HRE and create openings for pedagogical praxis along social justice lines. The quest to create these openings and possibilities is a fundamental element for decolonising the theory and pedagogical practices of human rights. It is argued that the move to create spaces for decolonising pedagogy and curriculum in HRE can take HRE theory and practice to a less Eurocentric outlook and thus a more multiperspectival and pluriversal understanding of human rights – one that recognises the histories of coloniality, the entanglements with human rights, and the consequences for social justice projects.
SARC Power Estimation Methodology

In modern CMOS technologies, power consumption is becoming a significant challenge for the integrated circuits industry. Accurate estimation of power dissipation is very important during micro-architectural design of every computational structure. This work presents the methodology we intent to use in future investigations regarding power consumption of the SARC architecture. SARC project is targeting next generation scalable computer architectures where multiple cores will be responsible for the performance gains. Proposing new approaches to reduce power consumption and scale for power and performance in the architectural development is one of the main challenges of this project. Therefore, adequate methodology to estimate it is needed. In this paper, we introduce the tools (i.e., Unisim simulator and Cacti 4.0) and the proposed methodology to investigate the problem of power consumption in such architecture. Keywords—Power Estimation, Low Power Design, Power Management, Unisim Simulator, Cacti 4.0
Optimal power analysis for network lifetime balance in wireless sensor networks

Energy usage is one of the most critically important problems in the exploitation of wireless sensor networks. Using the information redundancy typically present in the data streams in sensor networks due to spatial correlation we may address how to optimize the useful life span of a sensor network under energy constraints for each sensor. A new cost criterion for power optimization amongst sensors is presented. Its implementation and the implications of which are discussed in the context of a star network topology.
Bundling of actin filaments by elongation factor 1 alpha inhibits polymerization at filament ends

Elongation factor 1 alpha (EF1 alpha) is an abundant protein that binds aminoacyl-tRNA and ribosomes in a GTP-dependent manner. EF1 alpha also interacts with the cytoskeleton by binding and bundling actin filaments and microtubules. In this report, the effect of purified EF1 alpha on actin polymerization and depolymerization is examined. At molar ratios present in the cytosol, EF1 alpha significantly blocks both polymerization and depolymerization of actin filaments and increases the final extent of actin polymer, while at high molar ratios to actin, EF1 alpha nucleates actin polymerization. Although EF1 alpha binds actin monomer, this monomer-binding activity does not explain the effects of EF1 alpha on actin polymerization at physiological molar ratios. The mechanism for the inhibition of polymerization is related to the actin-bundling activity of EF1 alpha. Both ends of the actin filament are inhibited for polymerization and both bundling and the inhibition of actin polymerization are affected by pH within the same physiological range; at high pH both bundling and the inhibition of actin polymerization are reduced. Additionally, it is seen that the binding of aminoacyl-tRNA to EF1 alpha releases EF1 alpha's inhibiting effect on actin polymerization. These data demonstrate that EF1 alpha can alter the assembly of F-actin, a filamentous scaffold on which non- membrane-associated protein translation may be occurring in vivo.
Comparison on prediction wood moisture content using ARIMA and improved neural networks

Wood moisture content (MC) is one of the key parameters which influenced on wood product cost, qualities and efficiency, etc. The fiber saturation point (FSP) cannot be measured directly based the principle of electrical method. In this paper, two prediction measuring algorithms based the autoregressive integrated moving average (ARIMA) and functional link artificial neural network models are considered along with various combinations of these models for predicting wood moisture content (MC) around the fiber saturation point. The predicting principle and procedure of these methods are presented in detail. Measurement experiments are performed to get the time series data of wood moisture content. Simulation comparison of predicting performances shows that the improved neural network models with functional link ANN give a better performance in solving the wood moisture content prediction problem.
Affinity-Based Thread and Data Mapping in Shared Memory Systems

Shared memory architectures have recently experienced a large increase in thread-level parallelism, leading to complex memory hierarchies with multiple cache memory levels and memory controllers. These new designs created a Non-Uniform Memory Access (NUMA) behavior, where the performance and energy consumption of memory accesses depend on the place where the data is located in the memory hierarchy. Accesses to local caches or memory controllers are generally more efficient than accesses to remote ones. A common way to improve the locality and balance of memory accesses is to determine the mapping of threads to cores and data to memory controllers based on the affinity between threads and data. Such mapping techniques can operate at different hardware and software levels, which impacts their complexity, applicability, and the resulting performance and energy consumption gains. In this article, we introduce a taxonomy to classify different mapping mechanisms and provide a comprehensive overview of existing solutions.
Combination Therapy Reverses Hyperglycemia in NOD Mice With Established Type 1 Diabetes

An increasing number of therapies have proven effective at reversing hyperglycemia in the nonobese diabetic (NOD) mouse model of type 1 diabetes (T1D), yet situations of successful translation to human T1D are limited. This may be partly due to evaluating the effect of treating immediately at diagnosis in mice, which may not be reflective of the advanced disease state in humans at disease onset. In this study, we treated NOD mice with new-onset as well as established disease using various combinations of four drugs: antithymocyte globulin (ATG), granulocyte-colony stimulating factor (G-CSF), a dipeptidyl peptidase IV inhibitor (DPP-4i), and a proton pump inhibitor (PPI). Therapy with all four drugs induced remission in 83% of new-onset mice and, remarkably, in 50% of NOD mice with established disease. Also noteworthy, disease remission occurred irrespective of initial blood glucose values and mechanistically was characterized by enhanced immunoregulation involving alterations in CD4+ T cells, CD8+ T cells, and natural killer cells. This combination therapy also allowed for effective treatment at reduced drug doses (compared with effective monotherapy), thereby minimizing potential adverse effects while retaining efficacy. This combination of approved drugs demonstrates a novel ability to reverse T1D, thereby warranting translational consideration.
Newer method of string comparison: the Modified Moving Contracting Window Pattern Algorithm

This paper presents a new algorithm, the Modified Moving Contracting Window Pattern Algorithm (CMCWPM), for the calculation of field similarity. It strongly relies on previous work by Yang et al. (2001), correcting previous work in which characters marked as inaccessible for further pattern matching were not treated as boundaries between subfields, occasionally leading to higher than expected scores of field similarity. A reference Python implementation is provided.
Towards Automatic Meal Plan Recommendations for Balanced Nutrition

Food recommenders have been touted as a useful tool to help people achieve a healthy diet. Here we incorporate nutrition into the recommender problem by examining the feasibility of algorithmically creating daily meal plans for a sample of user profiles (n=100), combined with a diverse set of food preference data (n=64) collected in a natural setting. Our analyses demonstrate it is possible to recommend plans for a large percentage of users which meet the guidelines set out by international health agencies
The final nail in WEP's coffin

The 802.11 encryption standard Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP) is still widely used today despite the numerous discussions on its insecurity. In this paper, we present a novel vulnerability which allows an attacker to send arbitrary data on a WEP network after having eavesdropped a single data packet. Furthermore, we present techniques for real-time decryption of data packets, which may be used under common circumstances. Vendor produced mitigation techniques which cause frequent WEP re-keying prevent traditional attacks, whereas our attack remains effective even in such scenarios. We implemented a fully automatic version of this attack which demonstrates its practicality and feasibility in real networks. As even rapidly re-keyed networks can be quickly compromised, we believe WEP must now be abandoned rather than patched yet again
Hierarchical Competition in Femtocell-Based Cellular Networks

This paper considers the downlink power allocation problem in a cellular network where a bi-level hierarchy exists. The network is comprised of the macrocells underlaid with femtocells. The objective of each station in the network is to maximize its capacity under power constraints. The problem is formulated as a Stackelberg game with the macrocell base stations as the leaders and the femtocell access points as the followers. The leaders are assumed to have enough information and foresight to consider the response of the followers while formulating their strategies. To characterize such interaction between leaders and followers, Stackelberg equilibrium is introduced; and it is shown to exist under the assumption of continuity of best response function of the leader sub-game. %For the case of Nash games, the relationship between the upper and lower sub-game equilibrium is explored.
Opioid-free total intravenous anaesthesia reduces postoperative nausea and vomiting in bariatric surgery beyond triple prophylaxis.

BACKGROUND Patients undergoing bariatric surgery are at high risk of postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV). Despite triple PONV prophylaxis, up to 42.7% of patients require antiemetic rescue medication (AERM). METHODS This prospective, randomized study was conducted from November 2011 to October 2012. In the Classic group (n=59), patients underwent general anaesthesia with volatile anaesthetics and opioids. In the Total i.v. anaesthesia (TIVA) group (n=60), patients underwent opioid-free TIVA with propofol, ketamine, and dexmedetomidine. The severity of PONV was assessed using a Likert scale (none, mild, moderate, and severe). RESULTS Patients in both groups had similar clinical characteristics, surgical procedure, and PONV risk scores and required similar amounts of postoperative opioid. In the Classic group, 22 patients (37.3%) reported PONV compared with 12 patients (20.0%) in the TIVA group [P=0.04; risk 1.27 (1.01-1.61)]. The absolute risk reduction was 17.3% (number-needed-to-treat=6). The severity of nausea was statistically different in both groups (P=0.02). The severity of PONV was significantly worse in the Classic group. There was no difference either in the number of patients requiring AERM in the postoperative period or in the number of AERM doses required. CONCLUSIONS This prospective randomized study demonstrates that opioid-free TIVA is associated with a large reduction in relative risk of PONV compared with balanced anaesthesia. Clinical trial registration NCT 01449708 (ClinicalTrials.gov).
Production Possibility Frontier and Stochastic Programming

By its nature, Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) leaves no room for uncertainty in data such as measurement errors. To improve this fact, we consider �-stochastic efficiency concept, and we relate this problem tothe stochastic programming problem. Two types of probability inequalities are employed for introducing new criteria for efficiency.