Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Changing Understandings of African Pastoralism and the Nature of Environmental Paradigms

The recent debate about the sustainability of African pastoralism is taken to illustrate four general issues in environmental management: (i) the extent to which the institutionalization of environmental paradigms has made them conform to the Kuhnian model; (ii) the intimate link between environmental policies and paradigms; (iii) the need to understand the dialogue between scientists, policy-makers and educators and the environment; and (iv) the theoretical and practical weakness of an environmental science that does not rest on a dialogue with cultural geography. The 'old paradigm' in range ecology depended on three main sets of actors: (i) range ecologists who believed in Clement's (1916) model of succession and ecological stability; (ii) economists who believed in Hardin's (1968) concepts of the 'tragedy of the commons'; and (iii) authoritarian administrations which saw pastoralists as backward and destructive, and which had the power and the structures to use and perpetuate scientific paradigms. The so-called 'new paradigm' sees semi-arid ecosystems as being in permanent disequilibrium but persistent on broad temporal and spatial scales whilst many indigenous pastoral strategies are carefully adapted to these characteristics.
Enhancing Recreation, Parks, Tourism Courses: Using Movies as Teaching Tools

The use of movies provides educators with a valuable tool for presenting information as learners are able to benefit from the powerful images being presented before them. The purpose of this study was to identify the value of the use of movies as a teaching tool. This was an exploratory study aimed at identifying characteristics of movie use as an educational device in recreation, parks, and tourism classes. In this study, respondents (n = 67) indicated that the use of movies in the classroom was supported, and the findings of this study suggest that most instructors provided advance preparation activities and reflection activities on the use of movies, and their relationship to the curricular topics. Additionally, future considerations regarding using movies as a teaching tool and the educational value associated with purposeful inclusion of movies into curricular efforts are identified.
Detecting boundaries of structural differences in long time-span image samples for remote sensing images and medical applications

Finding structural changes in long time-span image samples is an important challenge: background may substantially change and saliency objects must be detected as the change of overall structure. The paper introduces novel methodologies to find salient changes against altering background. We will show that remote sensing and medical images have some common issues for similar tasks, and we also point at the differences. The proposed method finds changes in images scanned by a long time-interval difference in various lighting and radiometry conditions. The presented method is basically an exploitation of Harris saliency function and its derivatives for finding featuring points among image samples. To fit together the definition of keypoints and their active contour around them, we have introduced the Harris corner detection approach as an outline detector instead of the simple edge functions. Saliency points support the boundary hull definition of objects, constructing by graph based connectivity detection and neighborhood description. This graph based shape descriptor works on the saliency points of the difference and in-layer features. We prove the method in finding structural changes on remote sensing images.
Be Careful What You Look for: The Effect of Trait Competitiveness and Long Hours on Salesperson Deviance and Whether Meaningfulness of Work Matters

Ask sales managers and recruiters what they look for in a salesperson, and they will report that they seek competitive, hard-working professionals who match the culture of their company, and research would support the contention that such things generally help the sales organization. But could two of these factors—specifically, trait competitiveness and working long hours—actually be associated with counterproductive sales behavior? This research examines the effect of trait competitiveness, hours worked, and person-organization fit on the three forms of deviant salesperson behavior (organizational deviance, interpersonal deviance, and frontline deviance) and, in addition to testing these main effects, investigates whether managers can attenuate these relationships by investing time explaining the meaningfulness of the salesperson's job to the salesperson. Using survey data collected from 160 business-to-business salespeople from multiple companies and multiple industries, results support five of seven hypothesized main effects as well as three of four hypothesized interactions. The research concludes with an analysis of the findings, a discussion of their managerial implications, and suggestions for future scholarly inquiry.
Online and Official Price Indexes: Measuring Argentina’s Inflation

Prices collected from online retailers can be used to construct daily price indexes that complement official statistics. This paper studies their ability to match official inflation estimates in five Latin American countries, with a focus on Argentina, where official statistics have been heavily criticized in recent years. The data were collected between October 2007 and March 2011 from the largest supermarket in each country. In Brazil, Chile, Colombia, and Venezuela, online price indexes approximate both the level and main dynamics of official inflation. By contrast, Argentina's online inflation rate is nearly three times higher than the official estimate.
Associations between Environmental Exposures and Incident Colorectal Cancer by ESR2 Protein Expression Level in a Population-Based Cohort of Older Women

Background: Cigarette smoking (smoking), hormone therapy (MHT), and folate intake (folate) are each thought to influence colorectal cancer risk, but the underlying molecular mechanisms remain incompletely defined. Expression of estrogen receptor β (ESR2) has been associated with colorectal cancer stage and survival. Methods: In this prospective cohort study, we examined smoking, MHT, and folate-associated colorectal cancer risks by ESR2 protein expression level among participants in the Iowa Women's Health Study (IWHS). Self-reported exposure variables were assessed at baseline. Archived, paraffin-embedded colorectal cancer tissue specimens were collected and evaluated for ESR2 protein expression by IHC. Multivariate Cox regression models were fit to estimate relative risks (RR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) for associations between smoking, MHT, or folate and ESR2-defined colorectal cancer subtypes. Results: Informative environmental exposure and protein expression data were available for 491 incident colorectal cancer cases. Positive associations between ESR2-low and -high tumors and several smoking-related variables were noted, most prominently with average number of cigarettes per day (RR, 4.24; 95% CI, 1.81–9.91 for ESR2-low and RR, 2.15; 95% CI, 1.05–4.41 for ESR2-high for ≥40 cigarettes compared with nonsmokers). For MHT, a statistically significant association with ESR2-low tumors was observed with longer duration of exposure (RR, 0.54; 95% CI, 0.26–1.13 for >5 years compared with never use). No associations were found for folate. Conclusions: In this study, smoking and MHT were associated with ESR2 expression patterns. Impact: These data support possible heterogeneous effects from smoking and MHT on ERβ-related pathways of colorectal carcinogenesis in older women. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev; 24(4); 713–9. ©2015 AACR.
Selective screening for GDM in Italy: application and effectiveness of National Guidelines

Abstract In September 2011 the Italian Public Health Authority established selective screening for GDM to be performed based on the presence of risk factors. In a cohort of 2552 Caucasian pregnant women we evaluated to which extent the new national guidelines (NGL) are correctly applied; moreover we estimated the prevalence of GDM assessed by NGL. Our data show that the NGL are still properly implemented since the screening test was performed in nearly the totality of the women at 24th and 28th week of gestation. GDM prevalence is 10.9%, 25% greater as compared to the one determined with the old criteria 10 years ago.
Evolution of BRET Biosensors from Live Cell to Tissue-Scale In vivo Imaging

Development of bioluminescence resonance energy transfer (BRET) based genetic sensors for sensing biological functions such as protein–protein interactions (PPIs) in vivo has a special value in measuring such dynamic events at their native environment. Since its inception in the late nineties, BRET related research has gained significant momentum in terms of adding versatility to the assay format and wider applicability where it has been suitably used. Beyond the scope of quantitative measurement of PPIs and protein dimerization, molecular imaging applications based on BRET assays have broadened its scope for screening pharmacologically important compounds by in vivo imaging as well. In this mini-review we focus on an in-depth analysis of engineered BRET systems developed and their successful application to cell-based assays as well as in vivo non-invasive imaging in live subjects.
The Authoritarian Specter

Introduction: Twenty Stories 1. Previous Research on Right-Wing Authoritarianism 2. Studying Authoritarianism: Research Methodology and Methodology Research 3. The Personal Origins of Right-Wing Authoritarianism 4. The Cognitive Behavior of Authoritarians 5. Inconsistency and Blindness in the Authoritarian Mind 6. Authoritarianism and Religion 7. Sex and the Single Authoritarian 8. Dogmatism 9. Left-Wing Authoritarianism 10. The Effects of Hate Literature 11. The Authoritarianism of Legislators in North America Conclusion: A Few Last Words on the Subject Notes References Index
EXPERIMENT OF CONTROLLING A WHEELCHAIR USING VIRTUAL AND AUGMENTED REALITY WITH BRAINWAVES

This paper describes a development of a non- invasive experiment based on automated navigation. In operation, the subject faces a screen with a real-time virtual of the convention center scenario, and concentrates on the area of the space to reach. First, a visual training process for register the neurological phenomenon and the EEG signal processing as preparation of the navigation system, which drives the person to the desired place while avoiding collisions. In this work presents a general introduction to the topic of EEG, data-acquisition, processing of the EEG-signal and evaluation about interfaces, implications on the performance to translating through into actions.
17 b -Estradiol corrects hemostasis in uremic rats by limiting vascular expression of nitric oxide synthases

17 b -Estradiol corrects hemostasis in uremic rats by limiting vascular expression of nitric oxide synthases. Am J Physiol Renal Physiol 279: F626–F635, 2000. —Conjugated estrogens shorten the prolonged bleeding time in uremic patients and are similarly effective in a rat model of uremia. We have previously demonstrated that the shortening effect of a conjugated estrogen mixture or 17 b estradiol on bleeding time was abolished by the nitric oxide (NO) precursor L -arginine, suggesting that the effect of these drugs on hemostasis in uremia might be mediated by changes in the NO synthetic pathway. The present study investigated the biochemical mechanism(s) by which conjugated estrogens limit the excessive formation of NO. 17 b estradiol (0.6 mg/kg), given to rats made uremic by reduction of renal mass, signiﬁcantly reduced bleeding time within 24 h and completely normalized plasma concentrations of the NO metabolites, nitrites and nitrates, and of NO synthase (NOS) catalytic activity, determined by NADPH-diaphorase staining in the thoracic aorta. Endothelial NOS (ecNOS) and inducible NOS (iNOS) immunoperoxidase staining in the endothelium of uremic aortas of untreated rats was signiﬁcantly more intense than in control rats, while in uremic rats receiving 17 b -estradiol staining was comparable to controls. Thus 17 b -estradiol corrected the prolonged bleeding time of uremic rats and fully normalized the formation of NO by reducing the expression of ecNOS and iNOS in vascular endothelium. These results provide a possible biochemical explanation of the well-known effect of estrogens on primary hemostasis in uremia, in experimental animals and humans. chronic renal failure; conjugated estrogens; bleeding time; endothelium.
Single-channel recordings from cultured human retinal pigment epithelial cells

We have applied patch-clamp techniques to on-cell and excised-membrane patches from human retinal pigment epithelial cells in tissue culture. Single-channel currents from at least four ion channel types were observed: three or more potassium-selective channels with single- channel slope conductances near 100, 45, and 25 pS as measured in on- cell patches with physiological saline in the pipette, and a relatively nonselective channel with subconductance states, which has a main-state conductance of approximately 300 pS at physiological ion concentrations. The permeability ratios, PK/PNa, measured in excised patches were 21 for the 100-pS channels, 3 for the 25-pS channels, and 0.8 for the 300-pS nonselective channel. The 45-pS channels appeared to be of at least two types, with PK/PNa's of approximately 41 for one type and 3 for the other. The potassium-selective channels were spontaneously active at all potentials examined. The average open time for these channels ranged from a few milliseconds to many tens of milliseconds. No consistent trend relating potassium-selective channel kinetics to membrane potential was apparent, which suggests that channel activity was not regulated by the membrane potential. In contrast to the potassium-selective channels, the activity of the nonselective channel was voltage dependent: the open probability of this channel declined to low values at large positive or negative membrane potentials and was maximal near zero. Single-channel conductances observed at several symmetrical KCl concentrations have been fitted with Michaelis-Menten curves in order to estimate maximum channel conductances and ion-binding constants for the different channel types. The channels we have recorded are probably responsible for the previously observed potassium permeability of the retinal pigment epithelium apical membrane.
Reliability and Validity of a Korean Version of the Leicester Cough Questionnaire

Purpose There are no specific tools for measurement of the severity of chronic cough in Korea. We developed a Korean version of the Leicester Cough Questionnaire (LCQ) and tested its scaling and clinical properties. Methods The LCQ was adapted for Korean conditions following a forward-backward translation procedure. All patients referred to chronic cough clinics at 5 university hospitals between May 2011 and October 2013 completed 2 questionnaires, the LCQ and the Short-Form 36 (SF-36), upon presentation and completed the LCQ and the Global Rating of Change (GRC) upon follow-up visits after 2 or 4 weeks. Concurrent validation, internal consistency, repeatability, and responsiveness were determined. Results For the concurrent validation, the correlation coefficients (n=202 patients) between the LCQ and SF-36 varied between 0.42 and 0.58. The internal consistency of the LCQ (n=207) was high for each of the domains with a Cronbach's alpha coefficient of 0.82-0.94. The repeatability of the LCQ in patients with no change in cough (n=23) was high, with intra-class correlation coefficients of 0.66-0.81. Patients who reported an improvement in cough (n=30) on follow-up visits demonstrated significant improvement in each of the domains of the LCQ. Conclusions The Korean version of the LCQ is a valid and reliable questionnaire for measurement of the severity of cough in patients with chronic cough.
A Ranked-Based Learning Approach to Automated Essay Scoring

Automated essay scoring is the computer techniques and algorithms that evaluate and score essays automatically. Compared with human rater, automated essay scoring has the advantage of fairness, less human resource cost and timely feedback. In previous work, automated essay scoring is regarded as a classification or regression problem. Machine learning techniques such as K-nearest-neighbor (KNN), multiple linear regression have been applied to solve this problem. In this paper, we regard this problem as a ranking problem and apply a new machine learning method, learning to rank, to solve this problem. We will introduce detailed steps about how to apply learning to rank to automated essay scoring, such as feature extraction, scoring. Experiments in this paper show that learning to rank outperforms other classical machine learning techniques in automated essay scoring.
Eukaryotic translation initiation factor eIF5 promotes the accuracy of start codon recognition by regulating Pi release and conformational transitions of the preinitiation complex

eIF5 is the GTPase activating protein (GAP) for the eIF2·GTP·Met-tRNAiMet ternary complex with a critical role in initiation codon selection. Previous work suggested that the eIF5 mutation G31R/SUI5 elevates initiation at UUG codons by increasing GAP function. Subsequent work implicated eIF5 in rearrangement of the preinitiation complex (PIC) from an open, scanning conformation to a closed state at AUG codons, from which Pi is released from eIF2·GDP·Pi. To identify eIF5 functions crucial for accurate initiation, we investigated the consequences of G31R on GTP hydrolysis and Pi release, and the effects of intragenic G31R suppressors on these reactions, and on the partitioning of PICs between open and closed states. eIF5-G31R altered regulation of Pi release, accelerating it at UUG while decreasing it at AUG codons, consistent with its ability to stabilize the closed complex at UUG. Suppressor G62S mitigates both defects of G31R, accounting for its efficient suppression of UUG initiation in G31R,G62S cells; however suppressor M18V impairs GTP hydrolysis with little effect on PIC conformation. The strong defect in GTP hydrolysis conferred by M18V likely explains its broad suppression of Sui− mutations in numerous factors. We conclude that both of eIF5's functions, regulating Pi release and stabilizing the closed PIC conformation, contribute to stringent AUG selection in vivo.
On the Existence of Step-To-Step Breakpoint Transitions in Accelerated Sprinting

Accelerated running is characterised by a continuous change of kinematics from one step to the next. It has been argued that breakpoints in the step-to-step transitions may occur, and that these breakpoints are an essential characteristic of dynamics during accelerated running. We examined this notion by comparing a continuous exponential curve fit (indicating continuity, i.e., smooth transitions) with linear piecewise fitting (indicating breakpoint). We recorded the kinematics of 24 well trained sprinters during a 25 m sprint run with start from competition starting blocks. Kinematic data were collected for 24 anatomical landmarks in 3D, and the location of centre of mass (CoM) was calculated from this data set. The step-to-step development of seven variables (four related to CoM position, and ground contact time, aerial time and step length) were analysed by curve fitting. In most individual sprints (in total, 41 sprints were successfully recorded) no breakpoints were identified for the variables investigated. However, for the mean results (i.e., the mean curve for all athletes) breakpoints were identified for the development of vertical CoM position, angle of acceleration and distance between support surface and CoM. It must be noted that for these variables the exponential fit showed high correlations (r2>0.99). No relationship was found between the occurrences of breakpoints for different variables as investigated using odds ratios (Mantel-Haenszel Chi-square statistic). It is concluded that although breakpoints regularly appear during accelerated running, these are not the rule and thereby unlikely a fundamental characteristic, but more likely an expression of imperfection of performance.
Development of Sensation Seeking Scale for Japanese Adolescents

本研究は，青年用刺激希求尺度を作成して，その信頼性と妥当性を検討することを目的とした。 研究1では，先行研究と予備調査において収集された126項目について探索的因子分析を行った。 大学生189名のデータから，スリルと冒険 (TAS)，抑制の解放 (Dis)，内的刺激希求 (IS)，日常的な新奇性希求 (DNS) の4因子が抽出された。 研究2では，大学生480名のデータを用いたSEMにより，4因子構造と男女間での因子パターン不変性の確認，さらに男女間で因子得点の平均構造の比較を行った。 結果は4因子構造の因子的不変性とTAS, Dis, DNSにおける因子得点の有意な男女差を示した。 研究3ではα係数と再検査信頼性が検討され，SSS-JAの下位尺度における充分な内的一貫性と安定性が示された。 さらに，他尺度との相関分析から，収束的妥当性と弁別的妥当性が論じられた。
Cholangiocyte cilia detect changes in luminal fluid flow and transmit them into intracellular Ca2+ and cAMP signaling.

BACKGROUND & AIMS Cholangiocytes have primary cilia extending from the apical plasma membrane into the ductal lumen. While the physiologic significance of cholangiocyte cilia is unknown, studies in renal epithelia suggest that primary cilia possess sensory functions. Here, we tested the hypothesis that cholangiocyte cilia are sensory organelles that detect and transmit luminal bile flow stimuli into intracellular Ca2+ ([Ca2+]i) and adenosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate (cAMP) signaling. METHODS Scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and immunofluorescent confocal microscopy of rat isolated intrahepatic bile duct units (IBDUs) were used to detect and characterize cholangiocyte cilia. The fluid flow-induced changes in Ca2+ and cAMP levels in cholangiocytes of microperfused IBDUs were detected by epifluorescence microscopy and a fluorescence assay, respectively. RESULTS In microperfused IBDUs, luminal fluid flow induced an increase in [Ca2+]i and caused suppression of the forskolin-stimulated cAMP increase. The fluid flow-induced changes in [Ca2+]i and cAMP levels were significantly reduced or abolished when cilia were removed by chloral hydrate or when ciliary-associated proteins polycystin-1 (a mechanoreceptor), polycystin-2 (a Ca2+ channel), and the Ca2+-inhibitable adenylyl cyclase isoform 6 were individually down-regulated by small interfering RNAs. CONCLUSIONS Cholangiocyte cilia are sensory organelles containing polycystin-1, polycystin-2, and adenylyl cyclase isoform 6 through which luminal fluid flow affects both [Ca2+]i and cAMP signaling in the cell. The data suggest a new model for regulation of ductal bile secretion involving cholangiocyte cilia.
A Cognitive View on Cultural-Historical Typology

The problem of cultural-historical typology is one of the most intriguing issues at the crossroads of psychology and cultural theory. This paper presents a preliminary sketch of the fourlevel-cognitive-development theory to look at this issue from a new perspective. According to the model suggested, three cultural types are marked out: prehistoric and hunter-gatherer culture, early theoretical culture, and modern industrial culture.