Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Predicting personality traits of Chinese users based on Facebook wall posts

Automatically recognizing personality based on historical action logs in online social networks is a promising method to infer a person's behaviors, and it has received a lot of attention lately as it might lead to the construction of a better personal recommendation system. However, very few previous works in the literature put their focus on predicting personality from Chinese texts. As Chinese texts are much more difficult to delimit than English texts, it poses more challenges in recognizing personality from Chinese texts. In this paper, we attempt to classify the personality traits from Chinese texts. We collected a dataset with posts and personality scores of 222 Facebook users who use Chinese as their main written language. Then, we used Jieba, a Chinese text segmentation tool, as the tokenizer for the task of text segmentation, and the Support Vector Machine (SVM) as the learning algorithm for personality classification. Our experimental results show that the performance in precision and recall can be significantly improved with the help of text segmentation. Moreover, exploiting side information, such as the number of friends, could improve the performance further. One interesting finding from our experiments is that extraverts seem to write more sentences and use more common words than introverts. This indicates that extraverts are more willing to share their mood and life with others than introverts.
Application of the Graph Clustering Algorithm to Analog Systems Diagnostics

The paper presents the method for analysis of the learning data sets, used to create automated diagnostic modules. Graph clustering algorithm is presented and applied to the detection of the similarity between the learning examples. Possible applications of the method to the alternative fault codes labeling, ambiguity groups detection, and optimization of the existing diagnostic modules are considered. Experiments using electric machine model are presented and conclusions drawn.
Quorum-Sensing Systems LuxS/Autoinducer 2 and Com Regulate Streptococcus pneumoniae Biofilms in a Bioreactor with Living Cultures of Human Respiratory Cells

ABSTRACT Streptococcus pneumoniae forms organized biofilms in the human upper respiratory tract that may play an essential role in both persistence and acute respiratory infection. However, the production and regulation of biofilms on human cells is not yet fully understood. In this work, we developed a bioreactor with living cultures of human respiratory epithelial cells (HREC) and a continuous flow of nutrients, mimicking the microenvironment of the human respiratory epithelium, to study the production and regulation of S. pneumoniae biofilms (SPB). SPB were also produced under static conditions on immobilized HREC. Our experiments demonstrated that the biomass of SPB increased significantly when grown on HREC compared to the amount on abiotic surfaces. Additionally, pneumococcal strains produced more early biofilms on lung cells than on pharyngeal cells. Utilizing the bioreactor or immobilized human cells, the production of early SPB was found to be regulated by two quorum-sensing systems, Com and LuxS/AI-2, since a mutation in either comC or luxS rendered the pneumococcus unable to produce early biofilms on HREC. Interestingly, while LuxS/autoinducer 2 (AI-2) regulated biofilms on both HREC and abiotic surfaces, Com control was specific for those structures produced on HREC. The biofilm phenotypes of strain D39-derivative ΔcomC and ΔluxS QS mutants were reversed by genetic complementation. Of note, SPB formed on immobilized HREC and incubated under static conditions were completely lysed 24 h postinoculation. Biofilm lysis was also regulated by the Com and LuxS/AI-2 quorum-sensing systems.
Correlation bundle statistics in fMRI data

Traditionally fMRI data analysis aims at identifying brain areas in which the amplitude of the BOLD signal responds to experimental stimulations. However, since the brain acts as a network, we would expect differential effects on network topology. Therefore, the target of statistical inference should not only be individual voxels or brain areas but rather network connections. Here we introduce a new approach to correlation-based statistics in fMRI. At the heart of our approach is the concept of correlation bundles as a functional analogy to anatomical fibre bundles. Statistical tests are applied to these bundles using large-scale inference methods such as FDR. We call this approach correlation bundle statistics (CBS). In contrast to previous correlation-based approaches to fMRI statistics, CBS does not require a presegmentation or smoothing of the data so that anatomical specificity is preserved. The result of a CBS analysis is not a set of voxels or brain regions but rather a set of correlation bundles that are found to be significantly affected by some experimental manipulation.
The use of an Internet-based Ask the Doctor Service involving family physicians: evaluation by a web survey.

BACKGROUND Internet consultation without a previous relationship between the doctor and the enquirer seems to be increasing in popularity. However, little is known about the advantages, disadvantages or other differences compared with regular health care when using this kind of service. OBJECTIVE To investigate how an Internet-based Ask the Doctor service out with any pre-existing doctor-patient relationship was used and evaluated by the enquirers. METHODS We recruited to a web-based survey users of the non-commercial Swedish Internet-based Ask the Doctor service run by family physicians. The survey was conducted between November 2001 and January 2002. Questions included both multiple choice and free text formats, and the results were analysed quantitatively and qualitatively. RESULTS The survey was completed by 1223 participants. It was mainly women who submitted questions to the service (29% men, 71% women) and also who participated in the survey (26% men, 74% women). Most participants (77%) wrote their question at home, and 80% asked on their own behalf. Almost half of the enquiries (45%) concerned a medical matter that had not been evaluated by a medical professional before. After reading the answer, 43% of the participants indicated that they would not pursue their question further having received sufficient information in the answer provided. The service was appreciated for its convenience and flexibility, but also for reasons to do with the mode of communication such as the ability to reflect on the written answer without having to hurry and to read it more than once. CONCLUSION In the present study, we found that an Internet-based Ask the Doctor service run by family physicians on the whole was evaluated positively by the participants both in terms of the answers and the service. Internet-based consultation may act as a complement to regular health care. In future studies, the cost-effectiveness, patient security, responsibilities of the Internet doctor and the role of Ask the Doctor services compared with regular health care should be evaluated.
Allelic expression imbalance of the schizophrenia susceptibility gene CHI3L1: evidence of cis-acting variation and tissue specific regulation

Objective To identify cis-acting regulatory variants influencing the expression of the schizophrenia susceptibility gene chitinase 3-like 1 gene (CHI3L1) in human lymphoblasts and post-mortem brain tissue. Methods To investigate the role of cis-acting regulatory variants in controlling gene expression of CHI3L1 we quantified relative allelic abundance in individuals heterozygous for the transcribed polymorphism rs880633. Allelic quantification was performed using RNA derived from 45 individuals from the HapMap CEU panel and 41 postmortem brain samples. Association of allelic imbalance with genetic variants was determined at a gene-wide level for the HapMap samples using available genotyping data. Results Expression of the CHI3L1 transcript is under the control of potently acting cis-variation in lymphoblasts. Polymorphisms in the promoter region of CHI3L1 were significantly associated with this allelic imbalance. In the single postmortem brain tissue investigated, only moderate allelic imbalance was detected and was restricted to a small number of individuals. Conclusion CHI3L1 contains common cis-acting regulatory variants that affect gene expression in lymphoblasts. A previously identified schizophrenia susceptibility variant was significantly associated with allelic imbalance in lymphoblasts. These findings do not support the notion that the schizophrenia-associated CHI3L1 variants influence gene expression in BA46 of the adult brain. We confirm that CHI3L1 contains cis-acting variation but is subject to tissue-specific regulation.
Studies of locomotor network neuroprotection by the selective poly(ADP‐ribose) polymerase‐1 inhibitor PJ‐34 against excitotoxic injury to the rat spinal cord in vitro

Delayed neuronal destruction after acute spinal injury is attributed to excitotoxicity mediated by hyperactivation of poly(ADP‐ribose) polymerase‐1 (PARP‐1) that induces ‘parthanatos’, namely a non‐apoptotic cell death mechanism. With an in vitro model of excitotoxicity, we have previously observed parthanatos of rat spinal cord locomotor networks to be decreased by a broad spectrum PARP‐1 inhibitor. The present study investigated whether the selective PARP‐1 inhibitor N‐(6‐oxo‐5,6‐dihydrophenanthridin‐2‐yl)‐(N,N‐dimethylamino)acetamide.HCl (PJ‐34) not only protected networks from kainate‐evoked excitotoxicity, but also prevented loss of locomotor patterns recorded as fictive locomotion from lumbar (L) ventral roots (VRs) 24 h later. PJ‐34 (60 μm) blocked PARP‐1 activation and preserved dorsal, central and ventral gray matter with maintained reflex activity even after a large dose of kainate. Fictive locomotion could not, however, be restored by either electrical stimulation or bath‐applied neurochemicals (N‐methyl‐D‐aspartate plus 5‐hydroxytryptamine). A low kainate concentration induced less histological damage that was widely prevented by PJ‐34. Nonetheless, fictive locomotion was observed in just over 50% of preparations whose histological profile did not differ (except for the dorsal horn) from those lacking such a rhythm. Our data show that inhibition of PARP‐1 could amply preserve spinal network histology after excitotoxicity, with return of locomotor patterns only when the excitotoxic stimulus was moderate. These results demonstrated divergence between histological and functional outcome, implying a narrow borderline between loss of fictive locomotion and neuronal preservation. Our data suggest that either damage of a few unidentified neurons or functional network inhibition was critical for ensuring locomotor cycles.
Hedging of Option Portfolios and Options on Several Assets with Transaction Costs and Nonlinear Partial Differential Equations

The knowledge of the Leland’s hedging strategy is important for optimal hedging of options and option portfolios in the presence of transaction costs. In this paper we extend the Leland’s (1985) option pricing and hedging method to cover the cases of pricing and hedging of a portfolio of options on a futures contract, a portfolio of strongly pathdependent options on a stock, and options on several assets. In all the cases as a result we obtain a nonlinear partial differential equation for the option portfolio price. Generally, these nonlinear partial differential equations must be solved numerically and we present some examples of finite difference schemes to solve them. The ultimate practical goal, however, is not the solution for the option portfolio price, but the solution for the values of the Leland’s hedging delta. We illustrate the advantages of the Leland’s hedging strategy against the Black-Scholes hedging strategy.
Dynamic loss comparison between Fixed-State and Reconfigurable Solar Photovoltaic Array

A Fixed-State Solar Photo-Voltaic array delivers reduced power output when subject to Non-Uniform Illumination conditions. In [1] we have proposed a SPV array reconfiguration scheme which dynamically reconnects the modules based on a Bi-State (BRIGHT/DARK) reconfiguration approach which shows improvement in power output. In [2] the reconfiguration algorithm has been modified to incorporate an additional GREY state in order to better match real-life conditions. This paper compares the power losses between the Reconfigurable array and the Fixed-State array. For a Fixed-State [m×n] SPV array (bypass diodes NOT present) when a string (column) is subject to solar insolation corresponding to BRIGHT, GREY and DARK states, the effective string (column) current will equal the output from the Dark State Modules (since IPV increases with increase in the solar insolation and vice versa). With bypass diodes present (to allow excess flow of current from BRIGHT State and GREY State Modules in the example above), there is still power loss due to the following three factors: a) Voltage drop across each bypass diode that has been activated due to increase in dynamic series resistance of the SPV modules under low solar insolation. The V-I losses are significant if the string (column) current is large. b) Cumulative voltage drops due to multiple activated bypass diodes will shift the string (column) voltage left (lower) on the Power-Voltage (output) characteristics. c) As a consequence of (b), a high-gain, downstream DC-DC converter is required in order to match output load specifications (boost the lowered operating voltage). This is problematic since we have observed that the converter losses increase with increasing conversion ratio. In this report, we examine in detail, the impact of Dynamic Loss Elements for a 4×4 Fixed-State SPV array (bypass diodes and downstream DC-DC converters) vis-à-vis a Tri-State Reconfigurable SPV array (MOSFET switches). The average total energy production by a mono-crystalline SPV array is also shown. A real-time Tri-state algorithm based reconfiguration controller unit helps determine an optimal configuration of the SPV array on the basis of dynamic inputs from module-integrated current (Im, di/dt) and temperature (Tm) sensors. It has been demonstrated that reconfiguration approach leads to a lowering of dynamic losses over a wide range of Non-Uniform Illumination conditions.
Stemming as a feature reduction technique for Arabic Text Categorization

In this paper, a comparative study is conducted for three text preprocessing techniques in the context of the Arabic text categorization problem using an in-house Arabic dataset. We evaluated and compared three Stemming techniques. They are: Light-Stemming, Root-Based-Stemming and Dictionary-Lookup-Stemming. The purpose is to reduce the feature space into an input space of much lower dimension for two different state-of-the art classifiers: Artificial Neural Networks and support vector machines. The results illustrated that using light stemmer enhances the performance of Arabic Text Categorization. The results also showed that the proposed Artificial Neural Networks model was able to achieve high categorization effectiveness as measured by Macro-Average F1 measure.
Integrating H-A-α with fully convolutional networks for fully PolSAR classification

Classification in remote sensing, similar to semantic segmentation in computer vision, is aimed to assign a label to each pixel in images to indicate which class it belongs to. Fully convolutional networks (FCN), one of semantic segmentation methods, is proposed to tackle this problem in fully PolSAR images in this paper. To exploit the polarimetric information in PolSAR images, H-A-α polarimetric decomposition is integrated with FCN. PolSAR images acquired by Gaofen-3, China's SAR satellite, in the C-band with a spatial resolution of 1 meter are utilized. Three variations of FCN, i.e., FCN-32s, FCN-16s, and FCN-8s, and SVM are trained and validated. Experimental results reveal that the both user and product accuracy of the three FCN architectures is more than 2% higher than support vector machine (SVM) for water pixels, 16% higher for vegetation, and 24% higher for the building study areas in the whole image. Besides, the three architectures of FCN are 75 times faster than SVM.
The Inhibitory Effect of 2-Halo Derivatives of d-Glucose on Glycolysis and on the Proliferation of the Human Malaria Parasite Plasmodium falciparum

The intraerythrocytic stage of the human malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum relies on glycolysis for ATP generation, and because it has no energy stores, a constant supply of glucose is necessary for the parasite to grow and multiply. The 2-substituted glucose analogs 2-deoxy-d-glucose (2-DG) and 2-fluoro-2-deoxy-d-glucose (2-FG) have been previously shown to inhibit the in vitro growth of P. falciparum and have been suggested to do so by inhibiting glycosylation in the parasite. In this study, we have investigated the antiplasmodial mechanism of action of 2-DG and 2-FG and compared it with that of other 2-substituted-glucose analogs. The compounds tested inhibited parasite growth to varying degrees, with 2-FG being the most effective. The antiplasmodial activity of some, but not all, of the analogs could be altered by varying the glucose concentration in the culture medium, increasing the antiplasmodial activity of the analogs as the glucose concentration is reduced. A trend was observed between the antiplasmodial activity of these analogs and their ability to inhibit glucose accumulation, glucose phosphorylation by hexokinase, and cytosolic pH regulation within the intraerythrocytic stage of the parasite. Our data are consistent with inhibition of glycolysis being a primary mechanism by which 2-DG and 2-FG inhibit parasite growth, and they validate the early steps in glycolysis as viable drug targets.
Systemic interleukin-1 induces early and late patterns of c-fos mRNA expression in brain

This study was designed to examine the mechanisms by which systemic interleukin-1 affects neuroendocrine systems in the brain. Intraperitoneal injections of interleukin-1 beta (1.25 micrograms/rat) were administered to rats. One or three hours after injection, the expression levels of the immediate-early gene c-fos and of genes for several neuropeptides, receptors, and enzymes were examined by in situ hybridization histochemistry. In the brainstem at 1 hr, c-fos mRNA was elevated in the area postrema and nucleus of the solitary tract, but not in the locus coeruleus. At 3 hr, the c-fos mRNA levels had increased further in the nucleus of the solitary tract. Rostrally, elevations in c-fos mRNA levels were found in the hypothalamic and thalamic paraventricular nuclei, central nucleus of amygdala, bed nucleus of the stria terminalis, and medial preoptic area, peaking at 1 hr and diminishing at 3 hr. In addition, at 3 hr a new pattern of c-fos activity emerged--the arcuate nucleus and cells at the external margins throughout the brain now expressed c-fos mRNA. Corticotropin-releasing hormone mRNA levels were doubled in the paraventricular nucleus at 1 and 3 hr, concomitant with elevations in plasma adrenocorticotrophic hormone (ACTH) and corticosterone. Tyrosine hydroxylase mRNA levels in the brainstem did not change. The c-fos mRNA induction patterns reveal a temporally dynamic response to interleukin-1 administration. We propose that the early set of structures responding to interleukin-1 initiates the neuroendocrine response to cytokines. Coactivation of the area postrema and nucleus of the solitary tract may reflect entry into the brain and neural transduction of the peripheral signal. The late set--including the nucleus of the solitary tract, arcuate nucleus, and the brain's edge--may reflect cellular activation along the diffusion routes traveled by interleukin-1 or a bioactive transduction product, because the pattern of edge labeling is similar to the autoradiographic pattern of flow lf radiolabeled tracer substances in the cerebrospinal fluid. The late c-fos mRNA response to interleukin-1, therefore, may represent a demonstration of information transfer in the parasynaptic mode, also known as volume transmission.
Interlaminar Insulation Faults Detection and Quality Assessment of Magnetic Cores Using Flux Injection Probe

Interlaminar faults between laminations of the magnetic cores increase core losses and could cause major damage to electrical machines. A system has been developed to detect an interlaminar fault between the laminations of the magnetic cores by means of the flux injection probe (FIP). Experimental work was carried out to calibrate the measuring system and qualify its accuracy over a wide measurement range. Application of a prototype FIP to quality assessment of transformer laminations was investigated in two stages: 1) inspection of stack of laminations with known interlaminar faults applied by artificial shorts and 2) inspection of stack of laminations with unknown quality. The experimental results show that the developed system is capable of detecting an interlaminar fault between as few as two laminations.
Dissociative experience during childbirth

Objective: A dissociative experience refers to phenomena such as depersonalization, derealization, amnesia, out of body experience, altered time perception and body image. The aim of this study was to assess dissociative experience during childbirth and the possible related variables. Method: A total of 328 women, up to 72 hours postpartum, completed the peritraumatic dissociative experience questionnaire (PDEQ), the socio-demographic and obstetrical questionnaire, the pain numeric rating scale, the Trauma History Questionnaire and an SCID-I for traumatic events. Results: A total of 11.3% of the sample experienced significant dissociation. In particular, symptoms like a sensation of time changes during the event/things seemed to be happening in slow motion, not being aware of things that happened, and disorientation. A traumatic childbirth, previous trauma, obstetrical complications, forceps, prematurity, complications with the baby, dissatisfaction with the maternity care, unemployment, high score pain during labor and years of schooling were the factors considered. Conclusion: Dissociative experiences can occur during childbirth.
Genetic Diversity in Alpine and Foothill Populations of Campanula rotundifolia (Campanulaceae)

Climatic constraints on insects in alpine environments have important consequences for the biology of their plant mutualists; in particular, reduced insect diversity and activity in alpine plant populations can result in pollinator‐limited seed set and, potentially, in low genetic diversity. However, highly effective pollination by bumblebees in alpine populations can compensate for low visitation rates. In this study we hypothesized that, because of highly effective pollination by bumblebees, alpine populations of Campanula rotundifolia would not experience more frequent cycles of pollinator limitation than low‐elevation populations and would therefore exhibit comparable levels of genetic variability and inbreeding to those found in foothill populations. Enzyme electrophoresis was used to assess genetic variability at nine putative loci in alpine and foothill populations of C. rotundifolia in Colorado. Genetic variability in C. rotundifolia was found to be comparable to that reported for other long‐lived herbaceous perennials. Measures of genetic variability and fixation indices did not differ between high‐ and low‐elevation populations and were consistent with Hardy‐Weinberg expectations. Nonsignificant FST values indicated no genetic differentiation among all populations.