Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Testing the Theory of Electronic Propinquity: Organizational Teleconferencing

The present article reports an experiment conducted in order to test the recently formulated “Theory of Electronic Propinquity. ” In the original study, the author proposed a structural-functional approach to mediated communication in which perceived propinquity was considered to be the essential system trait for the continuation of the human communication system in organizations. Psychological propinquity was considered to affect the degree to which members of an organization experience communication satisfaction. A 3 times 2 experiment was conducted where the treatments were three business conference situations (face-to-face, video. and audio only) with two different levels of complexity of information in a problem-solving task. The results of the equation for perceived propinquity indicated that only perceived feedback was a significant contributor. The results of the equation for communication satisfaction indicated that perceived feedback, perceived level of communication rules, and psychological propinquity were significant contributors. The major finding of the study, was the importance of perceived feedback in accounting for variance in communication satisfaction. Psychological propinquity, however, was found to mediate the impact of perceived feedback on the communication satisfaction of the participants. Finally, the shortcomings of the experiment were discussed as well as the implications of the study for future research and theory-building efforts.
Sexual Dimorphism and Retinal Mosaic Diversification following the Evolution of a Violet Receptor in Butterflies

Numerous animal lineages have expanded and diversified the opsin-based photoreceptors in their eyes underlying color vision behavior. However, the selective pressures giving rise to new photoreceptors and their spectral tuning remain mostly obscure. Previously, we identified a violet receptor (UV2) that is the result of a UV opsin gene duplication specific to Heliconius butterflies. At the same time the violet receptor evolved, Heliconius evolved UV-yellow coloration on their wings, due to the pigment 3-hydroxykynurenine (3-OHK) and the nanostructure architecture of the scale cells. In order to better understand the selective pressures giving rise to the violet receptor, we characterized opsin expression patterns using immunostaining (14 species) and RNA-Seq (18 species), and reconstructed evolutionary histories of visual traits in five major lineages within Heliconius and one species from the genus Eueides. Opsin expression patterns are hyperdiverse within Heliconius. We identified six unique retinal mosaics and three distinct forms of sexual dimorphism based on ommatidial types within the genus Heliconius. Additionally, phylogenetic analysis revealed independent losses of opsin expression, pseudogenization events, and relaxation of selection on UVRh2 in one lineage. Despite this diversity, the newly evolved violet receptor is retained across most species and sexes surveyed. Discriminability modeling of behaviorally preferred 3-OHK yellow wing coloration suggests that the violet receptor may facilitate Heliconius color vision in the context of conspecific recognition. Our observations give insights into the selective pressures underlying the origins of new visual receptors.
Character Strengths and Virtues: A Handbook and Classification

The classification of strengths presented in this book is intended to reclaim the study of character and virtue as legitimate topics of psychological inquiry and informed societal discourse. By providing ways of talking about character strengths and measuring them across the life span, this classification will start to make possible a science of human strengths that goes beyond armchair philosophy and political rhetoric. We believe that good character can be cultivated, but to do so, we need conceptual and empirical tools to craft and evaluate interventions.
FIVE REASONS WHY THE “BIG FIVE” ARTICLE HAS BEEN FREQUENTLY CITED

This study investigated the relation of the “Big Five” personality dimensions (Extraversion, Emotional Stability, Agreeableness, Conscientiousness, and Openness to Experience) to three job performance criteria (job proficiency, training proficiency, and personnel data) for five occupational groups (professionals, police, managers, sales, and skill/semi-skilled). Results indicated that one dimension of personality, Conscientiousness, showed consistent relations with all job performance criteria for all occupational groups. For the remaining personality dimensions, the estimated true score correlations varied by occupational group and criterion type. Extraversion was a valid predictor for two occupations involving social interaction, managers and sales (across criterion types). Also, both Openness to Experience and Extraversion were valid predictors of the training proficiency criterion (across occupations). Other personality dimensions were also found to be valid predictors for some occupations and some criterion types, but the magnitude of the estimated true score correlations was small (p <10). Overall, the results illustrate the benefits of using the 5-factor model of personality to accumulate and communicate empirical findings. The findings have numerous implications for research and practice in personnel psychology, especially in the subfields of personnel selection, training and development, and performance appraisal.
A Band-Notched Absorber Designed With High Notch-Band-Edge Selectivity

In this paper, a band-notched absorber with high notch-band-edge selectivity is proposed and investigated. It is formed by introducing a narrower and full reflectance band into a wider absorption band. For each absorbing unit cell, two independently magnetic and electric resonances with adjacent resonant frequencies are employed to develop the narrower and full reflectance band, while a dipole-shaped metal strip with a resister printed on one side of the supporting substrate and a ground plane is used to realize the wider absorption band. By retrieving relative equivalent circuits of each cell, the performance of the proposed absorber can be qualitatively analyzed. Simply through tuning the frequencies of the independently magnetic and electric resonances, the performance of the notched band can be adjusted with high notch-band-edge selectivity. A sample of an absorber with the notched band frequency from 8.2 to 9.8 GHz, good absorption band from 4.8 to 8.0 GHz and 10.2 to 16 GHz has been designed, fabricated, and measured. Good agreement among circuit analysis, simulation results, and measurement results is finally obtained.
A novel fabrication method of tapered-cone microneedle for drug delivery by using the microlens mask and UV contact printing

This study presents a novel and precision process to fabricate microneedle. The process includes microlens array mask with the contact printing in ultraviolet (UV) lithography. The tip of micro tapered cone microneedle utilizes the microlens array mask with geometrical optics. Due to the light pass through a plano convex microlen, a microlen have a focal point. An optical system is set up to characterize the optical performace of the machined microneedle, and then compared with their theoretical data. The derived results of the length of mcironeedle of special the height and the diameter microlens, the photoresist microcone mold can be fabricated. The micro cone tip will have great potential in the area of the drug delivery application.
Integrating High Resolution Water Footprint and GIS for Promoting Water Efficiency in the Agricultural Sector: A Case Study of Plantation Crops in the Jordan Valley

Addressing the global challenges to water security requires a better understanding of humanity's use of water, especially the agricultural sector that accounts for 70% of global withdrawals. This study combined high resolution-data with a GIS system to analyze the impact of agricultural practices, crop type, and spatial factors such as drainage basins, climate, and soil type on the Water Footprint (WF) of agricultural crops. The area of the study, the northern Lower Jordan Valley, covers 1121 ha in which three main plantation crops are grown: banana (cultivated in open-fields or net-houses), avocado and palm-dates. High-resolution data sources included GIS layers of the cultivated crops and a drainage pipe-system installed in the study area; meteorological data (2000–2013); and crop parameters (yield and irrigation recommendations). First, the study compared the WF of the different crops on the basis of yield and energy produced as well as a comparison to global values and local irrigation recommendations. The results showed that net-house banana has the lowest WF based on all different criteria. However, while palm-dates showed the highest WF for the yield criteria, it had the second lowest WF for energy produced, emphasizing the importance of using multiple parameters for low and high yield crop comparisons. Next, the regional WF of each drainage basin in the study area was calculated, demonstrating the strong influence of the Gray WF, an indication of the amount of freshwater required for pollution assimilation. Finally, the benefits of integrating GIS and WF were demonstrated by computing the effect of adopting net-house cultivation throughout the area of study with a result a reduction of 1.3 MCM irrigation water per year. Integrating the WF methodology and local high-resolution data using GIS can therefore promote and help quantify the benefits of adopting site-appropriate crops and agricultural practices that lower the WF by increasing yield, reducing water consumption, and minimizing negative environmental impacts.
Antibacterial Properties of Gemifloxacin and Trovafloxacin in Urine Ex Vivo: Phase I Study

ABSTRACT Urine bactericidal titers (UBTs) againstEscherichia coli ATCC 25922 and Staphylococcus saprophyticus ATCC 1970 were determined after the administration of single oral doses of gemifloxacin at 320 mg and trovafloxacin at 200 mg to healthy volunteers. Gemifloxacin presented significantly lower experimental versus mathematically predicted UBTs over 72 h, due to the effect of urine on the susceptibility of the E. colistrain. Experimental UBTs were significantly higher for gemifloxacin than trovafloxacin against both strains over 72 h.
GeOpps: Geographical Opportunistic Routing for Vehicular Networks

Vehicular networks can be seen as an example of hybrid delay tolerant network where a mixture of infostations and vehicles can be used to geographically route the information messages to the right location. In this paper we present a forwarding protocol which exploits both the opportunistic nature and the inherent characteristics of the vehicular network in terms of mobility patterns and encounters, and the geographical information present in navigator systems of vehicles. We also report about our evaluation of the protocol over a simulator using realistic vehicular traces and in comparison with other geographical routing protocols.
Patient and Physician Predictors of Peritoneal Dialysis Technique Failure: A Population Based, Retrospective Cohort Study

♦ Background: The use of peritoneal dialysis (PD) has been declining over the past decade in Canada, and high technique failure rates have been implicated. Studies have examined clinical risk factors for PD technique failure, but few studies have addressed sociodemographic factors driving technique failure. There are no studies examining the effect of physician factors on technique failure. ♦ Methods: We conducted a retrospective cohort study using Ontario healthcare databases from 1 April 1995 to 31 March 2005 to examine the effects of patient sociodemographic and physician characteristics on PD technique failure. The primary outcome was time to technique failure. Secondary outcomes included the proportion of patients experiencing technique failure during the first year and the proportion of patients experiencing death during the study period. A competing risks analysis was applied to the Cox proportional hazards model to determine the predictors of technique failure, death, and kidney transplantation. ♦ Results: In 5162 incident PD patients, the probability of technique success and patient survival at 5 years was 58.2% and 46.9% respectively. Of patients failing PD, 43.5% failed during the first year of treatment. Statistically significant predictors of technique failure included increasing age [hazard ratio (HR) 1.02], diabetes mellitus (HR 1.32), lower neighborhood education level (HR 2.93), and receiving transient (≤ 3 months) hemodialysis before starting PD (HR 1.24). Predictors of patient death included increasing age (HR 1.05), diabetes mellitus (HR 1.44), coronary artery disease (HR 1.26), congestive heart failure (HR 1.58), and late referral to the nephrologist (HR 1.27). Distance from treating dialysis center and residing in a rural area did not impact the risk of technique failure or death. Male physician gender increased the risk of technique failure (HR 1.31). Increased PD patient volume decreased the risk of technique failure (HR 0.98). None of the physician factors were predictors of patient death. ♦ Conclusion: These findings support the need for implementing strategies to reduce technique failure, which could include increasing educational resources for patients initiating PD, aggressive risk factor modification in patients with multiple comorbidities, and increasing physician awareness regarding the detrimental outcomes associated with late referral and late PD start.
Impact of relay gain allocation on the performance of cooperative diversity networks

We consider a wireless network with one source/destination pair and several linear amplify-and-forward relays. The influence of the gain allocation at the relays on the performance in cooperative relay communication links is analyzed. We present an optimal gain allocation which results in a coherent combining of all signal contributions at the destination and maximizes the instantaneous throughput of the link. If the channel state information (CSI) at the relays is limited, cooperative diversity schemes can be used. We show that the right choice of the amplification gains is crucial to achieve high outage throughput.
Optimization flow control—I: basic algorithm and convergence

We propose an optimization approach to flow control where the objective is to maximize the aggregate source utility over their transmission rates. We view network links and sources as processors of a distributed computation system to solve the dual problem using a gradient projection algorithm. In this system, sources select transmission rates that maximize their own benefits, utility minus bandwidth cost, and network links adjust bandwidth prices to coordinate the sources' decisions. We allow feedback delays to be different, substantial, and time varying, and links and sources to update at different times and with different frequencies. We provide asynchronous distributed algorithms and prove their convergence in a static environment. We present measurements obtained from a preliminary prototype to illustrate the convergence of the algorithm in a slowly time-varying environment. We discuss its fairness property.
Inhibition of endotoxin-induced uveitis by methylprednisolone acetate nanosuspension in rabbits.

PURPOSE In this study, nanoformulations of methylprednisolone acetate (MPA) were formulated by using a copolymer of poly(ethylacrylate, methyl-methacrylate and chlorotrimethyl-ammonioethyl methacrylate) to study their impacts on the inhibition of inflammatory symptoms in rabbits with endotoxin-induced uveitis (EIU). METHODS A modified quasiemulsion solvent diffusion technique was used for the preparation of the nanoparticles. The drug-release profiles and physicochemical characteristics of the nanoformulations were studied by means of X-ray crystallography, differential scanning calorimetry, and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. Particle-size analysis yielded mean diameters of approximately 380, 460, and 580 (nm) for copolymer nanoparticles at the ratios of 1:2.5, 1:5, and 1:10, respectively. Major clinical symptoms of EIU (e.g., morphologic changes, leukocytes numbers, and protein levels within the aqueous humor) were examined. RESULTS Upon the physicochemical characterizations, no crystal changes or chemical interactions were observed for the copolymer nanoparticles. The 1:2.5 ratio of drug polymer resulted in the most controlled release of MPA. The in vivo examinations revealed that the endotoxin-induced inflammation can be inhibited by the copolymer nanosuspension more significantly than by the microsuspension of MPA itself in the rabbits with EIU. CONCLUSIONS Based on our findings, we suggest that the copolymer nanosuspension may favor the localized, controlled ocular delivery of MPA for the prevention of inflammatory symptoms in ocular diseases.
Activation of a cryptic 5′ splice site reverses the impact of pathogenic splice site mutations in the spinal muscular atrophy gene

Abstract Spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) is caused by deletions or mutations of the Survival Motor Neuron 1 (SMN1) gene coupled with predominant skipping of SMN2 exon 7. The only approved SMA treatment is an antisense oligonucleotide that targets the intronic splicing silencer N1 (ISS-N1), located downstream of the 5′ splice site (5′ss) of exon 7. Here, we describe a novel approach to exon 7 splicing modulation through activation of a cryptic 5′ss (Cr1). We discovered the activation of Cr1 in transcripts derived from SMN1 that carries a pathogenic G-to-C mutation at the first position (G1C) of intron 7. We show that Cr1-activating engineered U1 snRNAs (eU1s) have the unique ability to reprogram pre-mRNA splicing and restore exon 7 inclusion in SMN1 carrying a broad spectrum of pathogenic mutations at both the 3′ss and 5′ss of the exon 7. Employing a splicing-coupled translation reporter, we demonstrate that mRNAs generated by an eU1-induced activation of Cr1 produce full-length SMN. Our findings underscore a wider role for U1 snRNP in splicing regulation and reveal a novel approach for the restoration of SMN exon 7 inclusion for a potential therapy of SMA.
Generalized Interpolation in Decision Tree LM

In the face of sparsity, statistical models are often interpolated with lower order (backoff) models, particularly in Language Modeling. In this paper, we argue that there is a relation between the higher order and the backoff model that must be satisfied in order for the interpolation to be effective. We show that in n-gram models, the relation is trivially held, but in models that allow arbitrary clustering of context (such as decision tree models), this relation is generally not satisfied. Based on this insight, we also propose a generalization of linear interpolation which significantly improves the performance of a decision tree language model.
Multi-Channel Broadband Brillouin Slow Light With Multiple Longitudinal Mode Pump

Independent delay control of multi-channel signals based on stimulated Brillouin scattering slow light is proposed and demonstrated for the first time by using a multiple longitudinal mode fiber laser. Two independent broadband Brillouin pumps are generated by a fiber ring laser, which use a semiconductor optical amplifier as gain medium. The spectrum of each pump is comprised of a large number of longitudinal lasing modes, separated by 7 MHz and spanning a bandwidth of 11.6 and 11.2 GHz, respectively. The multi-channel broadband Brillouin slow light is demonstrated by using 8 Gb/s data signals. The signals in both channels are continuously delayed by as much as 80 ps at 21 dBm pump power, and the maximal delay-time with error free operation (bit error rate <; 10-9) are up to 56.4 and 56 ps at 19 dBm pump power.
Multivariate approaches to classification in extragalactic astronomy

Clustering objects into synthetic groups is a natural activity of any science. Astrophysics is not an exception and is now facing a deluge of data. For galaxies, the one-century old Hubble classification and the Hubble tuning fork are still largely in use, together with numerous mono-or bivariate classifications most often made by eye. However, a classification must be driven by the data, and sophisticated multivariate statistical tools are used more and more often. In this paper we review these different approaches in order to situate them in the general context of unsupervised and supervised learning. We insist on the astrophysical outcomes of these studies to show that multivariate analyses provide an obvious path toward a renewal of our classification of galaxies and are invaluable tools to investigate the physics and evolution of galaxies.
Subjective Evaluation of Performance Through Individual Evaluation Interview: Empirical Evidence from France

Individual evaluation interviews have become a widespread practice. 52 % of employees in French manufacturing firms over 50 employees declared an annual individual evaluation interview in 1997. However whereas the problem of constructing an optimal contract with subjective evaluation (which is defined simply as a signal in most papers) receives a large attention, firm-level evaluation interviews are strikingly left aside from economic analysis. This paper aims at identifying the underlying logics of individual evaluation interviews in the case of individual production and of team production. Especially, it aims at analyzing the relationships between effort, wage distribution within the firms and individual evaluation interviews. From a theoretical standpoint, three papers by Alchian and Demsetz (1972), by Che and Yoo (2001) and by MacLeod (2003) are closely related to our paper and from an empirical point of view, a recent paper by Engellandt and Riphahn (2004). We test in our paper four predictions. First, evaluation interviews have a positive impact on effort. Second, evaluation interviews increase the effort through twoeffects : the classical incentive effect and also a high selection effect. Third, evaluation interviews are associated with positive beliefs regarding wage and work recognition. Finally, evaluation interviews are associated with monetary gains for employees. These predictions are tested using a matched employer/employee survey on Computerization and Organizational Change (survey «Changements Organisationnels et Informatisation», C.O.I.), conducted in 1997 over a sample of about 4 000 firms and 9 000 employees.
Attention-Based Colour Correction

This paper proposes a new algorithm that extracts colour correction parameters from pairs of images and enables the perceived illumination of one image to be imposed on the other. The algorithm does not rely upon prior assumptions regarding illumination constancy and operates between images that can be significantly different in content. The work derives from related research on visual attention and similarity in which the performance distributions of large numbers of randomly generated features reveal characteristics of images being analysed.
Pax3 and Pax7 have distinct and overlapping functions in adult muscle progenitor cells

The growth and repair of skeletal muscle after birth depends on satellite cells that are characterized by the expression of Pax7. We show that Pax3, the paralogue of Pax7, is also present in both quiescent and activated satellite cells in many skeletal muscles. Dominant-negative forms of both Pax3 and -7 repress MyoD, but do not interfere with the expression of the other myogenic determination factor, Myf5, which, together with Pax3/7, regulates the myogenic differentiation of these cells. In Pax7 mutants, satellite cells are progressively lost in both Pax3-expressing and -nonexpressing muscles. We show that this is caused by satellite cell death, with effects on the cell cycle. Manipulation of the dominant-negative forms of these factors in satellite cell cultures demonstrates that Pax3 cannot replace the antiapoptotic function of Pax7. These findings underline the importance of cell survival in controlling the stem cell populations of adult tissues and demonstrate a role for upstream factors in this context.