Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
QueTy: A Cloud service collaboration framework based on time marginal utility

In the dynamic environment of the Internet, cloud services present the characteristics of heterogeneous cores, large data and dynamic changes. Using the multi agent system (MAS) with independent decision-making ability to solve the allocation and management of cloud services has gradually become a hot research topic in recent years. While most of the proposed categories did not consider the time factor acted on the overall utility fully. In order to tracking the variation trend of the utility affected by time factor and to optimize the cloud services collaborative strategy further, this paper proposes a collaborative framework named QueTy based on the SaaS layer of the Cloud Service. The framework introduces time marginal utility for broker, provider and executor of cloud services, which lays the foundation for communication attenuation algorithm and selective broadcast algorithms. It is not only to achieve controlling service process, but also further to weigh the overall utility and communication loss.
Burnout among Volunteers in the Social Services: The Impact of Gender and Employment Status.

This study examines whether gender and employment status affect burnout, motives for volunteering, and difficulties associated with volunteer activity in social and community services in Israel. The sample included 375 men and women aged 16 through 80. Participants were divided into four groups by employment status: high school students, employed persons, retirees, and unemployed persons. The findings revealed that employment status had a more significant impact on the research variables than did gender. Burnout correlated positively with difficulty in relations with beneficiaries among men, and with difficulty in relations with the provider organization among women. Female students and unemployed men were found to be particularly vulnerable to burnout. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Variability Abstractions: Trading Precision for Speed in Family-Based Analyses

Family-based (lifted) data-flow analysis for Software Product Lines (SPLs) is capable of analyzing all valid products (variants) without generating any of them explicitly. It takes as input only the common code base, which encodes all variants of a SPL, and produces analysis results corresponding to all variants. However, the computational cost of the lifted analysis still depends inherently on the number of variants (which is exponential in the number of features, in the worst case). For a large number of features, the lifted analysis may be too costly or even infeasible. In this paper, we introduce variability abstractions defined as Galois connections and use abstract interpretation as a formal method for the calculational-based derivation of approximate (abstracted) lifted analyses of SPL programs, which are sound by construction. Moreover, given an abstraction we define a syntactic transformation that translates any SPL program into an abstracted version of it, such that the analysis of the abstracted SPL coincides with the corresponding abstracted analysis of the original SPL. We implement the transformation in a tool, reconfigurator that works on Object-Oriented Java program families, and evaluate the practicality of this approach on three Java SPL benchmarks.
Metagenomic identification of active methanogens and methanotrophs in serpentinite springs of the Voltri Massif, Italy

The production of hydrogen and methane by geochemical reactions associated with the serpentinization of ultramafic rocks can potentially support subsurface microbial ecosystems independent of the photosynthetic biosphere. Methanogenic and methanotrophic microorganisms are abundant in marine hydrothermal systems heavily influenced by serpentinization, but evidence for methane-cycling archaea and bacteria in continental serpentinite springs has been limited. This report provides metagenomic and experimental evidence for active methanogenesis and methanotrophy by microbial communities in serpentinite springs of the Voltri Massif, Italy. Methanogens belonging to family Methanobacteriaceae and methanotrophic bacteria belonging to family Methylococcaceae were heavily enriched in three ultrabasic springs (pH 12). Metagenomic data also suggest the potential for hydrogen oxidation, hydrogen production, carbon fixation, fermentation, and organic acid metabolism in the ultrabasic springs. The predicted metabolic capabilities are consistent with an active subsurface ecosystem supported by energy and carbon liberated by geochemical reactions within the serpentinite rocks of the Voltri Massif.
Gift giving: An interdisciplinary review

The issue of why individuals choose to support charity has been the focus of considerable research in the disciplines of economics, psychology, social psychology, sociology, anthropology and more recently, management and marketing. This paper draws together extant work, developing a content model of giving behavior that fundraisers may use to inform their professional practice. A number of specific propositions are developed from the literature to assist in this goal. The paper provides summary tables of existing empirical studies categorized by the dimensions of the model, explores ambiguity in research findings, and concludes by highlighting opportunities for further research Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Adaptive Approach of Patch Size Selection Using GA in Exemplar Based Image In-painting

A Conference on Wireless Communication and Android Apps "WiCAA–15" 1. INTRODUCTION The Image in-painting is a hot spot in computer graphics and an active area in research in image processing. Image in-painting is also known as image disocclusion or completion. Object removal from images is an image manipulation technique that has a long history. The purpose of removing objects varies from remove undesired object to improve the quality of the image, to airbrushing out political enemies from portraits of important events. Modern photographical manipulations, such as red eye removal from pictures, also utilized this technique. The process of removing objects from images starts with mask out the undesired object, making the area where the object previously occupies a gap. Then the gap will be filled using graphical techniques such as in-painting. The main goal of this process is to fill the missing region/restoring lost part of an image based on the background information. And this process reconstruct image in such a way so that the change cannot be noticeable by an observer. Image in-painting technique is used in so many fields like preservation of heritage films and television and for special effects production. It is used to restore old/damaged photographs, object removal from an image without affecting the image, image coding [3], [4] and transmission [5] (recovery of the missing blocks) etc. Following are the Mostly used in-painting methods:-1. Geometry-based method 2. Exemplar-based method We can also call Geometry based methods as structure in-painting methods. In this method missing region is filled by diffusing the image information from the known region into the missing region at the pixel level. This type of algorithm is basically based on PDE (partial differential equation). Geometry-based in-painting methods shows good result in propagating smooth level line or gradients or filling the non-textured target region. This method is generally used when the inpainted region is small. The drawback of this method is, it introduces blurring artifacts in textured or when filling large missing region. The second category is exemplar-base in-painting algorithm. It provide an efficient approach for reconstructing large target regions. Basically it consists of two main steps: The first step is of priority assignment and the second step consists of the selection of the best matching exemplar and update all the priorities. Exemplar based in-painting iteratively synthesizes the target region, by the most similar patch in source region. They provide good results in recovering …
Initial stages of influenza hemagglutinin-induced cell fusion monitored simultaneously by two fluorescent events: cytoplasmic continuity and lipid mixing

We have monitored the mixing of both aqueous intracellular and membrane- bound fluorescent dyes during the fusion of human red blood cells to influenza hemagglutinin-expressing fibroblasts using fluorescence spectroscopy and low light, image-enhanced video microscopy. The water- soluble fluorescent dye, N-(7-nitrobenzofurazan-4-yl)taurine, was incorporated into intact human red blood cells. The fluorescence of the dye in the intact red blood cell was partially quenched by hemoglobin. The lipid fluorophore, octadecylrhodamine, was incorporated into the membrane of the same red blood cell at self-quenching concentrations (Morris, S. J., D. P. Sarkar, J. M. White, and R. Blumenthal. 1989. J. Biol. Chem. 264: 3972-3978). Fusion, which allowed movement of the water-soluble dye from the cytoplasm of the red blood cell into the hemagglutinin-expressing fibroblasts, and movement of octadecylrhodamine from membranes of red blood cell to the plasma membrane of the fibroblasts, was observed by fluorescence microscopy as a spatial relocation of dyes, and monitored by spectrofluorometry as an increase in fluorescence. Upon lowering the pH below 5.4, fluorescence increased after a delay of about 30 s at 37 degrees C, reaching a maximum within 3 min. The kinetics, pH profile, and temperature dependence were similar for both fluorescent events measured simultaneously, indicating that influenza hemagglutinin-induced fusion rapidly establishes bilayer continuity and exchange of cytoplasmic contents.
Motor Dysfunction Correlates with Frontal White Matter Ischemic Changes in Patients with Leukoaraiosis

Objectives. To test the relation between white matter lesions (WML) location and physical performance, in aged patients. Methods. Subjects: 29 patients (17 males), aged >65 (mean age 72.6 ± 5.2), with leukoaraiosis. WML was quantified with a visual scale; Apparent Diffusion Coefficient (ADC) was measured bilaterally in frontal periventricular lesioned white matter and frontal and parieto-occipital normal appearing white matter (NAWM). Motor performance was studied using the Short Physical Performance Battery (SPPB), single leg stand time, finger tapping and grooved pegboard tests (GPT). Results. There were significant correlations between the frontal region visual scale scores and SPPB chair stands (r = −0.379; P = .039) and Grooved Pegboard (r = 0.393; P = .032); frontal NAWM ADC values and SPPB standing balance (r = −0.450; P = .014) and SPPB 4 meter walk (r = −0.379; P = .043). Conclusion. Frontal WML are negatively related to motor performance in patients with leukoaraiosis. DWI results suggest that this may be true even for NAWM.
The effect of audio tours on learning and social interaction: An evaluation at Carlsbad Caverns National Park

Auditory forms of nonpersonal communication have rarely been evaluated in informal settings like parks and museums. This study evaluated the effect of an interpretive audio tour on visitor knowledge and social behavior at Carlsbad Caverns National Park. A cross-sectional pretest/posttest quasi-experimental design compared the responses of audio tour users (n = 123) and nonusers (n = 131) on several knowledge questions. Observations (n = 700) conducted at seven sites within the caverns documented sign reading, time spent listening to the audio, within group conversation, and other social behaviors for a different sample of visitors. Pretested tour users and nonusers did not differ in visitor characteristics, knowledge, or attitude variables, suggesting the two populations were similar. On a 12-item knowledge quiz, tour users' scores increased from 5.7 to 10.3, and nonusers' scores increased from 6.2 to 8.4. Most visitors were able to identify some of the park's major messages when presented with a multiple-choice question, but more audio users than nonusers identified resource preservation as a primary message in an open-ended question. Based on observations, audio tour users and nonusers did not differ substantially in their interactions with other members of their group or in their reading of interpretive signs in the cave. Audio tour users had positive reactions to the tour, and these reactions, coupled with the positive learning outcomes and negligible effects on social interaction, suggest that audio tours can be an effective communication medium in informal educational settings. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Sci Ed91:260–277, 2007
80 MHz Intravascular Ultrasound (IVUS) transducer

[Pb(Mg1/3Nb2/3)O3]0.63[PbTiO3]0.37 (PMN-PT) free-standing film of comparable piezoelectric properties to bulk material with thickness of 30 μm has been fabricated using a modified precursor coating approach. At 1 kHz, the dielectric permittivity and loss were 4,364 and 0.033, respectively. The remnant polarization and coercive field were 28 μC/cm2 and 18.43 kV/cm. The electromechanical coupling coefficient kt was measured to be 0.55, which was close to that of bulk PMN-PT single crystal material. Based on this film, high frequency (82 MHz) miniature ultrasonic transducers were fabricated with 65% bandwidth and 23 dB insertion loss. Axial and lateral resolutions were determined to be as high as 35 μm and 176 μm. In vitro intravascular imaging on healthy rabbit aorta and human coronary artery was performed from the thin film transducers. In comparison with a 35 MHz IVUS transducer, the 80 MHz one showed superior resolution and contrast with satisfactory penetration depth. The imaging results suggest that PMN-PT free-standing thin film technology is a feasible and efficient way in fabricating very high frequency ultrasonic transducers.
Collegiate natural drinking groups: Characteristics, structure, and processes

College students typically consume alcohol in groups. To examine group characteristics, structure, processes, and group drinking, we conducted semi-structured, in-depth interviews with 30 (50% female; 60% non-Latino White) college students (18–24 years old). Participants described the last event they attended where alcohol was present. The interviews were fully transcribed and coded using an inductive approach with the software ATLAS.ti 5.2. The findings revealed that group formation often involved minimal planning and was facilitated by technologies such as phone, text messaging, and social networking Internet sites. Multiple roles were identified that supported the groups and that pertained to the drinking event organization, to drinking activities, or group regulation. As the groups reached drunkenness, decision negotiations were replaced by random actions that often exemplified the loss of judgment resulting from alcohol impairment, leading to risky situations. Understanding group dynamics and social roles in drinking groups could inform prevention efforts by identifying new loci of interventions; promoting pro-social roles in the group could encourage peers to become effective agents of prevention within the group.
LcrQ and SycH function together at the Ysc type III secretion system in Yersinia pestis to impose a hierarchy of secretion

LcrQ is a regulatory protein unique to Yersinia. Previous study in Yersinia pseudotuberculosis and Yersinia enterocolitica prompted the model in which LcrQ negatively regulates the expression of a set of virulence proteins called Yops, and its secretion upon activation of the Yop secretion (Ysc) type III secretion system permits full induction of Yops expression. In this study, we tested the hypothesis that LcrQ’s effects on Yops expression might be indirect. Excess LcrQ was found to exert an inhibitory effect specifically at the level of Yops secretion, independent of production, and a normal inner Ysc gate protein LcrG was required for this activity. However, overexpression of LcrQ did not prevent YopH secretion, suggesting that LcrQ’s effects at the Ysc discriminate among the Yops. We tested this idea by determining the effects of deletion or overexpression of LcrQ, YopH and their common chaperone SycH on early Yop secretion through the Ysc. Together, our findings indicated that LcrQ is not a negative regulator directly, but it acts in partnership with SycH at the Ysc gate to control the entry of a set of Ysc secretion substrates. A hierarchy of YopH secretion before YopE appears to be imposed by SycH in conjunction with both LcrQ and YopH. LcrQ and SycH in addition influenced the deployment of LcrV, a component of the Yops delivery mechanism. Accordingly, LcrQ appears to be a central player in determining the substrate specificity of the Ysc.
Revisão sobre posturografia baseada em plataforma de força para avaliação do equilíbrio

CONTEXTUALIZACAO: A manutencao do equilibrio e da orientacao corporal em humanos e garantida pelo adequado funcionamento do sistema de controle postural. A investigacao desse controle tem despertado interesse em profissionais de diversas areas, tais como, Fisioterapia, Educacao Fisica, Engenharia, Fisica, Medicina, Psicologia, entre outras. OBJETIVOS: Revisar os metodos de analise experimental de dados utilizados para investigacao do controle postural em seres humanos e demonstrar o calculo e rotinas de programacao das principais medidas utilizadas na avaliacao desse controle. CONCLUSAO: Os procedimentos experimentais e as medidas utilizadas na avaliacao do controle postural apresentados nesta revisao poderao auxiliar na padronizacao da investigacao do controle postural.
Replicating the Impact of a Supplemental Beginning Reading Intervention: The Role of Instructional Context

Abstract The purpose of this varied replication study was to evaluate the effects of a supplemental reading intervention on the beginning reading performance of kindergarten students in a different geographical location and in a different instructional context from the initial randomized trial. A second purpose was to investigate whether students who received the intervention across both the initial and replication studies demonstrated similar learning outcomes. Kindergarten students (n = 162) identified as at risk of reading difficulty from 48 classrooms were assigned randomly at the classroom level either to a commercial program (i.e., Early Reading Intervention; Pearson/Scott Foresman, 2004) that included explicit/systematic instruction (experimental group) or school-designed typical practice intervention (comparison group). Both interventions were taught by classroom teachers for 30 min per day in small groups for approximately 100 sessions. Multilevel hierarchical linear analyses revealed no statistically significant differences between conditions on any measure. Combined analyses that included students from both the initial and replication studies suggested that differences in the impact of the intervention across studies were largely explained by mean differences in the comparison group students’ response to school-designed intervention.
I don’t want to get involved: Shyness, psychological control, and youth activities

Although activity involvement has been associated with youths’ social adjustment, shy youth may be hesitant to get involved due to fear of negative evaluation, especially in the context of parents’ psychologically controlling behaviors. The present study assessed youths’ shyness and parents’ psychological control as predictors of youth activity involvement in a grade five Canadian sample (N = 153). Females and youth reporting high parental control reported less sports involvement. Shyness especially attenuated boys’ sports involvement. Being male and parental control predicted less music involvement. Shy youth reporting high parental control were less involved in music and fewer types of activities. Results suggest the importance of parental autonomy-granting to encourage greater activity participation.
Service Innovation in Business Value Networks

Business value networks offer new opportunities and chances for innovation-related cooperation. This paper introduces a new innovation process and framework which has been developed in the Texo use case of the Theseus project and which provides a comprehensive yet flexible approach to support multi-stakeholder innovation projects in business ecosystems. One major aim of the proposed framework is to involve communities into innovation projects as has been proposed within the idea of “open innovation”.
Dielectronic Recombination of Fe XXI and Fe XXII via N = 2→N′ = 2 Core Excitations

We have measured dielectronic recombination (DR) resonance strengths and energies for carbon-like Fe XXI forming Fe XX and for boron-like Fe XXII forming Fe XXI via N = 2 → N′ = 2 core excitations. All measurements were carried out using the heavy-ion Test Storage Ring at the Max-Planck-Institute for Nuclear Physics in Heidelberg, Germany. We have also calculated these resonance strengths and energies using three independent, state-of-the-art perturbative techniques: a multiconfiguration Breit-Pauli (MCBP) method using the code AUTOSTRUCTURE, a multiconfiguration Dirac-Fock (MCDF) method, and a relativistic configuration interaction method using the Flexible Atomic Code (FAC). Overall, reasonable agreement is found between our experimental results and our theoretical calculations. The most notable discrepancies tend to occur for relative collision energies ≲3 eV. We have used our measured 2 → 2 results to produce Maxwellian-averaged rate coefficients for Fe XXI and Fe XXII. Our experimentally derived rate coefficients are estimated to be accurate to better than ≈20% both for Fe XXI at kBTe > 0.5 eV and for Fe XXII at kBTe > 0.001 eV. For these results, we provide fits that are accurate to better than 0.5% for Fe XXI at 0.001 eV ≤ kBTe ≤ 10,000 eV and for Fe XXII at 0.02 eV ≲ kBTe ≤ 10,000 eV. Our fitted rate coefficients are suitable for ionization balance calculations involving Fe XXI and Fe XXII in photoionized plasmas. Previous published Burgess formula and LS-coupling calculations are in poor agreement with our experimentally derived rate coefficients. None of these published calculations reliably reproduce the magnitude or temperature dependence of our experimental results. Our previously published Fe XXI MCDF results are in good agreement with our experimental results for kBTe ≳ 0.07 eV. For both ions in this temperature range our new MCBP, MCDF, and FAC results are in excellent agreement with our experimentally derived rate coefficient.
What’s to like about the prion-like hypothesis for the spreading of aggregated α-synuclein in Parkinson disease?

α-Synuclein is a key protein in Parkinson disease. Not only is it the major protein component of Lewy bodies, but it is implicated in several cellular processes that are disrupted in Parkinson disease. Misfolded α-synuclein has also been shown to spread from cell-to-cell and, in a prion-like fashion, trigger aggregation of α-synuclein in the recipient cell. In this mini-review we explore the evidence that misfolded α-synuclein underlies the spread of pathology in Parkinson disease and discuss why it should be considered a prion-like protein.
An Extended Expectation Confirmation Model for Information Systems Continuance

Initial adoption is an important indicator of information systems (IS) success, and IS continuance or post-adoption is more critical toward long-term IS performance. However, compared with much work done on initial IS adoption, little systematic theory-based models have been developed to provide deep insight into continued IS use over time. Additionally most studies on IS continuance only examine cognitive factors. This paper reviews the previous research on IS continuance, and examines the utility of the expectation confirmation model (ECM) from the consumer behavior literature. Then it suggests an expended ECT which is combined with the affective construct (perceived enjoyment) of individual users. Finally the proposed model was empirically validated with data collected from undergraduate students. The objective of this paper is to provide a perspective of combination of cognitive and affective factors for further research on IS continuance.