Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Views of individuals with spinal cord injury on the use of wearable cameras to monitor upper limb function in the home and community

Objective: Hand function impairment after cervical spinal cord injury (SCI) can significantly reduce independence. Unlike current hand function assessments, wearable camera systems could potentially measure functional hand usage at home, and thus benefit the development of neurorehabilitation strategies. The objective of this study was to understand the views of individuals with SCI on the use of wearable cameras to track neurorehabilitation progress and outcomes in the community. Design: Questionnaires. Setting: Home simulation laboratory. Participants: Fifteen individuals with cervical SCI. Outcome Measures: After using wearable cameras in the simulated home environment, participants completed custom questionnaires, comprising open-ended and structured questions. Results: Participants showed relatively low concerns related to data confidentiality when first-person videos are used by clinicians (1.93 ± 1.28 on a 5-point Likert scale) or researchers (2.00 ± 1.31). Storing only automatically extracted metrics reduced privacy concerns. Though participants reported moderate privacy concerns (2.53 ± 1.51) about wearing a camera in daily life due to certain sensitive situations (e.g. washrooms), they felt that information about their hand usage at home is useful for researchers (4.73 ± 0.59), clinicians (4.47 ± 0.83), and themselves (4.40 ± 0.83). Participants found the system moderately comfortable (3.27 ± 1.44), but expressed low desire to use it frequently (2.87 ± 1.36). Conclusion: Despite some privacy and comfort concerns, participants believed that the information obtained would be useful. With appropriate strategies to minimize the data stored and recording duration, wearable cameras can be a well-accepted tool to track function in the home and community after SCI.
EXOGENOUS OR ENDOGENOUS MONEY SUPPLY: EVIDENCE FROM AUSTRALIA

This paper investigates the nature of money supply in Australia over two separate monetary policy regimes: monetary and inflation targeting. The post-Keynesian theory on endogenous money was tested with the aim of investigating whether endogenous money supply, if it did exist, followed the accomodationist, structuralist or liquidity preference viewpoints. Data used are quarterly series from 1977 to 2007 and we used vector error-correction model for long-run and short-run causality tests. We found that money supply is endogenous in Australia even when the central bank targeted monetary aggregates during the period 1977 to 1993.
The paradox of employee retention for knowledge transfer

Employee retention is widely held to positively influence an organisation's knowledge transfer outcomes. This positive relationship is most widely recognised through the impact that employee retention has on increasing a firm's level of the knowledge transfer antecedent, absorptive capacity, thereby increasing the potential value of the stocks of knowledge within the organisation. A paradoxical outcome, however, is discovered when the effect of employee retention on knowledge transfer is considered from the perspective of knowledge flows across the organisation rather than knowledge stocks within. Case study analysis from research conducted in a multinational hotel chain identifies this paradox. Primarily the findings indicate that while employee retention increases individual absorptive capacity it may prevent a relative increase in organisational level absorptive capacity. Further, the creation of knowledge sharing networks is facilitated through longer term retention of staff. However, where they manifest as a result of retention they remain closed to the larger organisation. As a result this paper identifies significant implications for the management of longer term employees' knowledge sharing behaviour.
The Effects of Foreign Strategic Investors on Bank Prudential Behavior: Evidence from China

ABSTRACT Using China’s data between 1995 and 2014, we employ the propensity score matching and difference in differences approaches to investigate the effects of foreign strategic investors (FSIs) on bank prudential behavior, and find the following results. First, lending behavior and reserve behavior become prudential after introducing FSIs. Second, FSIs assigning directors or managers could improve the bank’s prudence. Third, the effects of FSIs on bank prudence are weaker in state-owned banks than in non-state-owned banks. Finally, further analyses show that FSIs may reduce bank risk through improving prudential behavior, that is, prudential behavior is a mediator between FSIs and bank risk.
Toll IL-1 Receptors Differ in Their Ability to Promote the Stabilization of Adenosine and Uridine-Rich Elements Containing mRNA1

Several ligands for Toll IL-1R (TIR) family are known to promote stabilization of a subset of short-lived mRNAs containing AU-rich elements (AREs) in their 3′ untranslated regions. It is now evident however, that members of the TIR family may use distinct intracellular signaling pathways to achieve a spectrum of biological end points. Using human embryonic kidney 293 cells transfected to express different TIRs we now report that signals initiated through IL-1R1 or TLR4 but not TLR3 can promote the stabilization of unstable chemokine mRNAs. Similar results were obtained when signaling from endogenous receptors was examined using a mouse endothelial cell line (H5V). The ability of TIR family members to stabilize ARE-containing mRNAs results from their differential use of signaling adaptors MyD88, MyD88 adaptor-like protein, Toll receptor IFN-inducing factor (Trif), and Trif-related adaptor molecule. Overexpression of MyD88 or MyD88 adaptor-like protein was able to promote enhanced stability of ARE-containing mRNA, whereas Trif and Trif-related adaptor molecule exhibited markedly reduced capacity. Hence the ability of TIRs to signal stabilization of mRNA appears to be linked to the MyD88-dependent signaling pathway.
Silicon nanowire FET arrays for real time detection of chemical activation of cells

Silicon nanowire FET arrays have been designed and fabricated with a relatively low-cost, but wafer-scale process without the use of e-beam lithography. An optimized fabrication process that improves the etching uniformity of NWs and also provides a better control of the NW dimensions is presented. The fabricated devices are electrically characterized and their performance is discussed. A dedicated measurement set-up and a preparation procedure to employ these SiNW FET arrays for real time monitoring of the substance P activation of neurokinin (NK1) receptors in HEK 293 cells are presented.
3D laser omnimapping for 3D reconstruction of large-scale scenes

There are many needs for the ability to fast acquiring 3D data from environmental surroundings, but the technology for acquiring dense, wide ranging, accurate 3D data is too expensive to be used widely. A low-cost, 360° continuous scanning, 3D laser scanner (AESINGCH MStar 8000) is presented. The data quality of AESINGCH MStar 8000 was analyzed in detail, and the algorithms of 3D feature extraction and range scan registration were given. The experimental results show that AESINGCH MStar 8000 has the higher measuring accuracy and better data quality. Its max range of the scanner is 80m, and its accuracy can achieved 6 mm. it can measure black objects, its weight is only 8kg.
HPGraph: A High Parallel Graph Processing System Based on Flash Array

Large graphs analytics has been an important aspect of many big data applications, such as web search, social networks and recommendation systems. Many research focuses on processing large scale graphs using distributed system over past few years. And numbers of studies turn to construct graph processing system on a single server-class machine in consideration of cost, usability and maintainability. HPGraph is a high parallel graph processing system which adopts the edge-centric model, our contributions are as follows: (1) designing an efficient data allocation and access strategy for NUMA machine, and providing tasks scheduling to keep load balance, (2) raising a fine-grained edge-block filtering mechanism to avoid accessing unnecessary edge data, (3) constructing a high-speed flash array as the second storage. We made a detailed evaluation on a 16-core machine using asset of popular real word and synthetic data sets, and the results show that HPGraph always outperforms the state-of-the-art single machine graph processing systems-GridGraph. And HPGraph can achieve 1.27X faster than GridGraph for specific application. Our source code is available at https://github.com/xinghuan1990/HPGraph.
Notice of Violation of IEEE Publication PrinciplesUnited optimization of transceivers used in multiuser MIMO wireless system

We consider multiuser wireless transmissions with multiple transmit antennas and multiple receive antennas. Every user multiplexes its symbols through its own linear precoder before being transmitted. In order to enhance the system performance by a system-level mean squared error rule, we propose algorithms to jointly optimize the linear precoders at each transmitter and linear decoders at each receiver Simulation results show that our novel algorithm has a faster convergence speed.
How much does firm-specific intellectual capital vary? Cross-industry and cross-national comparison

This study examines the level of firm-specific intellectual capital (IC) and then goes on to find out whether there are differences across national and industry contexts in this regard. The study focuses on firms in two European countries, Finland and Spain, and on low- and high-tech sectors. Utilising survey data, we analysed six different categories of intellectual capital with multiple-item scales, tested for their reliability and validity, and compared the means of IC categories between high- and low-tech firms in Finland and Spain. The findings show that the level of IC in high-tech firms is sufficiently similar in Finland and Spain, while in the low-tech sector there are major differences. Furthermore, we find that in Spain there are more major differences in IC between high- and low-tech firms than in the case of Finnish firms. Overall, this study provides new understanding of how IC varies across countries and industries.
Leukoaraiosis Severity and List-Learning in Dementia

In patients with dementia, leukoaraiosis (LA) was hypothesized to result in differential patterns of impairment on a verbal serial list-learning test. Using a visual rating scale, 144 dementia patients with ischemic scores <4 were re-categorized as having mild (n = 73), moderate (n = 44), or severe LA (n = 27). Mild LA was predicted to be associated with an amnestic list-learning profile, while severe LA was predicted to be associated with a dysexecutive profile. List-learning performances were standardized to a group of healthy older adults (n = 24). Analyses were conducted on a set of four factors derived from the list-learning paradigm, as well as error scores. Data indicate that LA severity is an important marker for understanding list learning in dementia.
Docking and MD Simulations of the Interaction of the Tarantula Peptide Psalmotoxin-1 with ASIC1a Channels Using a Homology Model

The interaction of the tarantula toxin PcTx1 with the hASIC1a ion channel is investigated here along homology modeling (using the crystal structure of the cASIC1 channel as a template and the known sequence of hASIC1a), automated docking (using the NMR solution structure of PcTx1), and molecular dynamics simulations (taking into account proton-binding sites), in what represents the first modeling and computational chemistry in the whole family of ASIC/DEG/ENaCs/FaNaCh channels. The results agree with binding and electrophysiological data for the interaction of mutant (125)I-PcTx1Y(N) with rASIC1a chimeras and PcTx1 itself with hASIC1a chimeras. They go even farther by revealing that only two hASIC1a subunits can be directly involved in the binding, to which four domains - instead of the only two identified by the experiments - participate. Mapping the closest lying amino acids of the homology model and PcTx1 can have heuristic value in stimulating ideas, software, and experimentation.
Nondestructive imaging of human cartilage glycosaminoglycan concentration by MRI

Despite the compelling need mandated by the prevalence and morbidity of degenerative cartilage diseases, it is extremely difficult to study disease progression and therapeutic efficacy, either in vitro or in vivo (clinically). This is partly because no techniques have been available for nondestructively visualizing the distribution of functionally important macromolecules in living cartilage. Here we describe and validate a technique to image the glycosaminoglycan concentration ([GAG]) of human cartilage nondestructively by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). The technique is based on the premise that the negatively charged contrast agent gadolinium diethylene triamine pentaacetic acid (Gd(DTPA)2‐) will distribute in cartilage in inverse relation to the negatively charged GAG concentration. Nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy studies of cartilage explants demonstrated that there was an approximately linear relationship between T1 (in the presence of Gd(DTPA)2‐) and [GAG] over a large range of [GAG]. Furthermore, there was a strong agreement between the [GAG] calculated from [Gd(DTPA)2‐] and the actual [GAG] determined from the validated methods of calculations from [Na+] and the biochemical DMMB assay. Spatial distributions of GAG were easily observed in T1‐weighted and T1‐calculated MRI studies of intact human joints, with good histological correlation. Furthermore, in vivo clinical images of T1 in the presence of Gd(DTPA)2‐ (i.e., GAG distribution) correlated well with the validated ex vivo results after total knee replacement surgery, showing that it is feasible to monitor GAG distribution in vivo. This approach gives us the opportunity to image directly the concentration of GAG, a major and critically important macromolecule in human cartilage. Magn Reson Med 41:857–865, 1999. © 1999 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Latency factor in worldwide IP routed networks

Current Border Gateway Protocol (BGP) serves for worldwide internet backbone connections between different Autonomous Systems (AS) on the routing level. Continuously in real-time changing environment core routers calculate routing decisions based on path-vector database entries. AS path-vector database may contain multiple paths for various Internet Protocol (IP) prefix destinations where smallest entity in the path-vector is AS. In real world AS can be internet service operator, university or any other organization willing to participate in internet network via multi-homed uplinks. Unfortunately, internal part of AS is hidden in path-vector database thus excluding factors like latency, packet loss or throughput from influencing routing decisions. With easier virtual presence possibilities leading European internet operators has direct BGP connections called peering with mostly every other largest operators thus narrowing routing decision objectivity because mostly routing decisions are taken based on AS path length which tends to one. In this paper, a method of measuring latency is proposed and analyzed through lab measurements. The results of this study permit to discuss about requirements and possibilities to extrapolate this technique from small testbed to worldwide routed networks.
The SH3 domain of p56lck is involved in binding to phosphatidylinositol 3'-kinase from T lymphocytes

Many of the Src-like tyrosine kinases are thought to participate in multiprotein complexes that modulate transmembrane signalling through tyrosine phosphorylation. We have used in vitro binding studies employing bacterially expressed glutathione S-transferase-p56lck fusion proteins and cell extracts to map regions on p56lck that are involved in binding to phosphatidylinositol 3'-kinase (PI3K). Deletions within the SH3 domain of p56lck abolished binding of PI3K activity from T-cell lysates, whereas deletion of the SH2 domain caused only a slight reduction in the level of PI3K activity bound to p56lck sequences. The binding of PI3K from T-cell extracts to p56lck was not blocked by antiphosphotyrosine antibodies, but p56lck-bound PI3K activity was sensitive to phosphatase treatment. The SH3 domain of p56lck also bound the majority of PI3K activity from uninfected chicken embryo fibroblasts. However, a drastically different binding specificity was observed with use of extracts of Rous sarcoma virus v-src-transformed cells, in which the majority of PI3K activity bound to the SH2 domain of p56lck in a phosphotyrosine-dependent manner. These results suggest that are two modes of PI3K binding to p56lck, and presumably to other Src-like tyrosine kinases. In one mode, PI3K from T cells or uninfected chicken embryo fibroblasts binds predominantly to the SH3 domain of p56lck. In the other mode, involving PI3K from Rous sarcoma virus-transformed cells, binding is largely phosphotyrosine dependent and requires the SH2 domain of p56lck.
Staphylococcus aureus Escapes More Efficiently from the Phagosome of a Cystic Fibrosis Bronchial Epithelial Cell Line than from Its Normal Counterpart

ABSTRACT Staphylococcus aureus is frequently the initial bacterium isolated from young cystic fibrosis (CF) patients, and yet its role in CF disease progression has not been determined. Recent data from our lab demonstrates that S. aureus can invade and replicate within the CF tracheal epithelial cell line (CFT-1). Here we describe the finding that the fate of internalized S. aureus in CFT-1 cells differs from its complemented counterpart (LCFSN). S. aureus strain RN6390 was able to replicate within the mutant CFT-1 cells after invasion but not in the complemented LCFSN cells. At 1 h postinvasion, S. aureus containing vesicles within both cell lines acquired vacuolar-ATPase, lysosomal markers LAMP 1 and 2, and the lysomotrophic dye LysoTracker to a similar degree. However, at 4 h postinvasion, the percentage of S. aureus within CFT-1 cells associated with these markers decreased significantly compared to LCFSN, where the association approached 100%. Transmission electron microscopic analysis revealed that the majority of bacteria within CFT-1 cells were free in the cytosol at 4 h after invasion, whereas most S. aureus bacteria internalized by LCFSN cells remained within vesicles. These results demonstrate a fundamental difference in the fate of live S. aureus after invasion of CFT-1 versus LCFSN cell lines and may explain the propensity of S. aureus to cause chronic lung infection in CF patients.
T‐cell expansions in patients with multiple myeloma have a phenotype of cytotoxic T cells

The presence of T‐cell clones in peripheral blood has been previously shown to be associated with a survival advantage in patients with multiple myeloma and suggests that the expanded T‐cell populations may be involved in an anti‐tumour response. We studied the T‐cell receptor (TCR) repertoire of 38 patients with myeloma to identify and characterize the expanded T‐cell populations by flow cytometry. T‐cell expansions were found in 79% of the patients. The expansions occurred randomly among the 21 variable regions of the TCR β chain (Vβ) studied, representing 62% of the V‐β repertoire, and were stable during an 18‐month follow‐up. The phenotype of the expanded V‐β populations was predominantly CD8+, CD57+, CD28− and perforin+, which differed significantly from the other non‐expanded Vβ populations. The expression of the apoptosis markers Fas (CD95) and bcl‐2 were similar between the expanded and non‐expanded Vβ populations. In conclusion, expanded T‐cell populations were frequent in patients with myeloma, they remained unchanged during follow‐up and had phenotypic characteristics of cytotoxic T cells. These data add further support to the concept that the T‐cell expansions may have an immunoregulatory role in myeloma.
Mobile guide technologies (smartphone apps): Collaborative Heuristic Evaluation (CHE) with expert and novice users

Providing quality and meaningful experiences to the users are vital particularly with the devices that users are familiar with. Usability issues should be discarded before the systems/designs are deployed to the users. In this study, we compared the usability issues found by expert and novice users using Collaborative Heuristic Evaluation (CHE). This study was carried out with 6 experts and 9 novice users. There are 3 different mobile guides used in this study, 2 were designed to be used in museum and another mobile guide was designed to be used at a tourist attraction. Results showed that expert users found significantly more heuristic problems than novice users during the CHE procedure across the 3 different mobile guides (smartphone apps). On the other hand, there were heuristic problems found by the novices that were not noticeable to the expert.
Effect of irradiation on gallium arsenide solar cells with multi quantum well structures

In this paper, a complex analysis of the radiation response of GaAs solar cells with multi quantum wells (MQW) incorporated in the i-region of the device is presented. Electronic transport properties of the MQW i-region were assessed experimentally by the electron beam induced current (EBIC) technique. A 2-D EBIC diffusion model was applied to simulate EBIC line scans across device structure for different radiation doses. The results are interpreted using numerical modeling of the electrical field distribution at different radiation levels. Type conversion from n- to p-type was found in MQW i-region at displacement damage dose as low as low as ~9.88E9 MeV/g. This is supported by experimental and simulated EBIC and electric field distribution results.
Patch‐clamp analysis in canine cardiac Purkinje cells of a novel sodium component in the pacemaker range

A putative Na+ component playing a role in the initiation and maintenance of spontaneous discharge in Purkinje fibres was studied by means of the whole‐cell patch‐clamp technique in canine cardiac single Purkinje cells. In 4 mm[K+]o, during depolarising clamp steps, a slowly inactivating current appeared at ∼−58 mV, negative to the threshold for the fast Na+ current (INa; ∼−50 mV). During depolarising ramps, the current underwent inward rectification with a negative slope region that began at ∼−60 mV. The current underlying the negative slope increased during faster ramps, decreased as a function of time when the initial depolarising ramp was over, decreased during depolarisations positive to ∼−35 mV and was much larger than the current during the symmetrical repolarising ramp. Increasing biphasic (‘oscillatory’) voltage ramps required much smaller currents at a holding potential (Vh) of −60 mV than at −80 mV and were associated with a marked decrease in slope conductance. At Vh−50/−40 mV, the oscillatory ramp currents and superimposed pulse currents reversed direction. The negative slope in the I‐V relation as well as the change in current direction at −50/−40 mV were markedly reduced by tetrodotoxin (15 μm) and lidocaine (lignocaine, 100 μm) and therefore are due to a slowly inactivating Na+ current, labelled here INa3. Lower [K+]o (2.7 mm) reduced the steady state slope conductance as well as the current in the diastolic range, and increased as well as shifted INa3 in a negative direction. High [K+]o had the opposite effects. Cs+ (2 mm) and Ba2+ (2 mm) reduced the initial current during depolarising ramps but not INa3. In current‐clamp mode, current‐induced voltage oscillations elicited action potentials through a gradual transition between diastolic depolarisation and upstroke, consistent with the activation of INa3. Thus, the initiation and maintenance of spontaneous discharge in Purkinje strands appear to involve a voltage‐ and K+‐dependent decrease in K+ conductance as well as the activation of a voltage‐ and time‐dependent inward Na+ current (INa3) with slow inactivation kinetics.