Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Memory bias in the temporal bisection point

The ability to time intervals confers organisms, including humans, with many remarkable capabilities. A common method for studying interval timing is classification, in which a subject must indicate whether a given probe duration is nearer a previously learned short or long reference interval. This task is designed to reveal the probe duration that is equally likely to be labeled as short or long, known as the temporal bisection point. Studies have found that this bisection point is influenced by a variety of factors including the ratio of the target intervals, the spacing of the probe durations, the modalities of the stimuli, the attentional load, and the inter-trial duration. While several of these factors are thought to be mediated by memory effects, the prototypical classification task affords no opportunity to measure these memory effects directly. Here, we present a novel bisection task, termed the “Bisection by Classification and Production” (BiCaP) task, in which classification trials are interleaved with trials in which subjects must produce either the short or long referents or their midpoint. Using this method, we found a significant correlation between the means of the remembered referents and the bisection points for both classification and production trials. We then cross-validated the bisection points for production and classification trials by showing that they were not statistically differentiable. In addition to these population-level effects, we found within-subject evidence for co-variation across a session between the production bisection points and the means of the remembered referents. Finally, by using two sets of referent durations, we showed that only memory bias-corrected measures were consistent with a previously reported effect in which the ratio of the referents affects the location of the bisection point. These results suggest that memory effects should be considered in temporal tasks.
Dynamic Information Acquisition for Efficient Prediction

The past several years have seen a growing need for intelligent systems that work in real time and interact with humans, such as self-driving cars and personal assistants. Most existing learning methods are passive: we feed in the data and request a prediction. These methods are often not sufficient for interactive systems due to their assumption of a fixed data distribution and the lack of a communication channel. My research builds upon the insight that a model is always situated in a dynamic environment and that information acquisition is an integral part of learning. Two themes of my work to date are: prediction with adaptive information and interacting with humans. I have developed models that make dynamic predictions by deciding when and what information is needed for a particular instance, as well as agents that collaborate with humans and communicate in natural language. More broadly, my goal is to build intelligent agents that work with people in a dynamic environment. Such interactive applications require us to rethink the learning paradigm. My research approach emphasizes on integrating predictions with decisions about exchanging information with the environment and the users. To develop effective interactive learning paradigms, one must combine innovations from machine learning, natural language processing, and human-computer interaction. As a result, my work spans from principled learning algorithms [1, 2] to live interactive platforms [3, 4].
Theoretical analysis of control properties for the brushless doubly fed reluctance machine

The brushless doubly fed induction machine (BDFIM) has been extensively researched for approximately 30 years, but a related machine [the brushless doubly fed reluctance machine (BDFRM)], has not. This was mainly due to the fact that reluctance rotor designs were not capable of generating saliency ratios large enough to make the BDFRM competitive with other machines. However, recent developments in reluctance rotors, spurred on by research into synchronous reluctance machines, has resulted in high saliency ratio rotors that are economic to build. This, together with the promise of higher efficiency and simpler control compared to the BDFIM, means that further investigation of the BDFRM is warranted. A relatively limited amount of work to date has been published on the BDFRM. This paper attempts to fill this void by presenting a theoretical analysis of some of the important control properties of the ideal BDFRM.
The Essential Role of the 3′ Terminal Template Base in the First Steps of Protein-Primed DNA Replication

Bacteriophages φ29 and Nf from Bacillus subtilis start replication of their linear genomes at both ends using a protein-primed mechanism by means of which the DNA polymerase initiates replication by adding dAMP to the terminal protein, this insertion being directed by the second and third 3′ terminal thymine of the template strand, respectively. In this work, we have obtained evidences about the role of the 3′ terminal base during the initiation steps of φ29 and Nf genome replication. The results indicate that the absence of the 3′ terminal base modifies the initiation position carried out by φ29 DNA polymerase in such a way that now the third position of the template, instead of the second one, guides the incorporation of the initiating nucleotide. In the case of Nf, although the lack of the 3′ terminal base has no effect on the initiation position, its absence impairs further elongation of the TP-dAMP initiation product. The results show the essential role of the 3′ terminal base in guaranteeing the correct positioning of replication origins at the polymerization active site to allow accurate initiation of replication and further elongation.
An antiphishing strategy based on visual similarity assessment

The authors' proposed antiphishing strategy uses visual characteristics to identify potential phishing sites and measure suspicious pages similarity to actual sites registered with the system. The first of two sequential processes in the SiteWatcher system runs on local email servers and monitors emails for keywords and suspicious URLs. The second process then compares the potential phishing pages against actual pages and assesses visual similarities between them in terms of key regions, page layouts, and overall styles. The approach is designed to be part of an enterprise antiphishing solution.
Profit Sharing in Renewable Resource Industries : Implications for Labor and Investment

In renewable resource industries, labor is commonly paid with a share of operating profit rather than with a per unit-of-effort wage. This paper shows that the sharing agreements interact with fluctuations in the natural capital stock to cause inefficient investment levels and skew industry rents toward labor. As a consequence, optimal regulatory policy for such industries must account for the implications of such sharing arrangements on industry level investment. The model demonstrates why management tools like individual transferable quotas in fisheries, may have had unexpected ecological benefits in terms of increasing and stabilizing fishery stocks. The paper provides an illustrative example using the US Albacore fishery. JEL Classification: Q22, J31, D24, Q58
Non-native populations of an invasive tree outperform their native conspecifics

We compared the seedling growth performance of native and non-native Siberian elm populations in a common greenhouse experiment to gain knowledge about possible changes in life history traits in populations of non-native woody species. Our results showed that non-native Siberian elm populations are characterized by an enhanced early life cycle performance which likely contributes to its invasion success. This study contributes to a better understanding of the still little-known invasion processes of woody non-native species.
Comparable Endotoxic Properties of Lipopolysaccharides Are Manifest in Diverse Clinical Isolates of Gram-Negative Bacteria

ABSTRACT In general there is a poor correlation between serum lipopolysaccharide (LPS; the biologically active constituent of endotoxin) levels and mortality in septic patients. The objective of this study was to determine if chemical, structural, or biological differences among LPS from different clinical isolates of gram-negative bacteria might explain this discrepancy. LPS preparations were made using the hot phenol-water extraction method from eight clinical isolates of gram-negative bacteria. As a percentage of the total weight of the LPS, the phosphate content ranged from 3.0 to 13.8% (average, 6.7 ± 3.6%), and the 2-keto-3-deoxyoctonate content ranged from 1.9 to 27.4% (average, 8.9 ± 8.5%). These values were not dissimilar to those obtained for a reference endotoxin. In a standard measure of LPS activity, the Limulus amoebocyte lysate assay, there was approximately a twofold difference between the least and most active preparations. The two preparations with the greatest difference in their ability to elicit the secretion of tumor necrosis factor alpha from a mouse peritoneal macrophage cell line were similar in lethality when administered to mice sensitized to the effects of LPS by d(+)-galactosamine. These relatively minor differences in LPS activity seem unlikely to explain the generally observed discrepancy between serum endotoxin levels and mortality in patients with gram-negative sepsis.
Cache-oblivious algorithms

This paper presents asymptotically optimal algorithms for rectangular matrix transpose, FFT, and sorting on computers with multiple levels of caching. Unlike previous optimal algorithms, these algorithms are cache oblivious: no variables dependent on hardware parameters, such as cache size and cache-line length, need to be tuned to achieve optimality. Nevertheless, these algorithms use an optimal amount of work and move data optimally among multiple levels of cache. For a cache with size Z and cache-line length L where Z=/spl Omega/(L/sup 2/) the number of cache misses for an m/spl times/n matrix transpose is /spl Theta/(1+mn/L). The number of cache misses for either an n-point FFT or the sorting of n numbers is /spl Theta/(1+(n/L)(1+log/sub Z/n)). We also give an /spl Theta/(mnp)-work algorithm to multiply an m/spl times/n matrix by an n/spl times/p matrix that incurs /spl Theta/(1+(mn+np+mp)/L+mnp/L/spl radic/Z) cache faults. We introduce an "ideal-cache" model to analyze our algorithms. We prove that an optimal cache-oblivious algorithm designed for two levels of memory is also optimal for multiple levels and that the assumption of optimal replacement in the ideal-cache model. Can be simulated efficiently by LRU replacement. We also provide preliminary empirical results on the effectiveness of cache-oblivious algorithms in practice.
Accuracy Comparison of Implant Impression Techniques: A Systematic Review.

BACKGROUND Several studies link the seamless fit of implant-supported prosthesis with the accuracy of the dental impression technique obtained during acquisition. In addition, factors such as implant angulation and coping shape contribute to implant misfit. PURPOSE The aim of this study was to identify the most accurate impression technique and factors affecting the impression accuracy. MATERIAL AND METHODS A systematic review of peer-reviewed literature was conducted analyzing articles published between 2009 and 2013. The following search terms were used: implant impression, impression accuracy, and implant misfit. A total of 417 articles were identified; 32 were selected for review. RESULTS All 32 selected studies refer to in vitro studies. Fourteen articles compare open and closed impression technique, 8 advocate the open technique, and 6 report similar results. Other 14 articles evaluate splinted and non-splinted techniques; all advocating the splinted technique. Polyether material usage was reported in nine; six studies tested vinyl polysiloxane and one study used irreversible hydrocolloid. Eight studies evaluated different copings designs. Intraoral optical devices were compared in four studies. CONCLUSIONS The most accurate results were achieved with two configurations: (1) the optical intraoral system with powder and (2) the open technique with splinted squared transfer copings, using polyether as impression material.
Higher education and civic engagement: International perspectives

Contents: Foreword, Elizabeth Hollander Introduction, Iain Mac Labhrainn and Lorraine McIlrath. Part 1 Higher Education and Civic Engagement: Conceptual Issues: Concepts of citizenship in the context of political education, Richard Taylor Love, reason and the future of civil society, Michael Edwards Recovering the civic university, Ronald Barnett The case for service learning, Edward Zlotkowski. Part 2 Institutional Considerations: Rethinking the place of community-based engagement at universities, Ahmed C. Bawa Institutionalizing service-learning in higher education, Andrew Furco The process of localising pedagogies for civic engagement in Ireland: the significance of conceptions, culture and context, Josephine A. Boland and Lorraine McIlrath. Part 3 Embedding Process and Practice: Identifying and teaching civic engagement skills through service learning, Marshall Welch Towards enhanced citizenship: the potential of service learning in teacher education - a national and international perspective, Timothy R. Murphy Service learning's challenge to the educator, Mark Doorley Serving, learning and reflective practice at Roehampton University, London, Jennifer Iles Civic youth work and implications for service learning - lessons from Northern Ireland, Ross Velure Roholt and Paul Smyth Place matters: partnerships for civic learning, Nan Kari and Nan Skelton Service learning as a shared developmental journey: tapping the potential of the pedagogy, Brandon Whitney, Julie McClure, Alissa Respet and Patti Clayton Index.
Switching from alpha 1- to beta-subtypes in adrenergic response during primary culture of adult-rat hepatocytes as affected by the cell-to-cell interaction through plasma membranes.

The alpha 1-adrenergic response was predominant over the beta-adrenergic one in adult rat hepatocytes, when the responses were measured as the agonist-induced generations of Ins(1,4,5)P3 and cyclic AMP, respectively. During primary culture of the adult rat hepatocytes, the beta-adrenergic response developed rapidly, whereas the alpha 1-response decreased gradually. Such receptor-subtype switching did not occur unless the cells were cultured under conditions favourable for cell growth, i.e. at low cell density (10(4) cells/cm2). The switching was prevented progressively as the cell culture density was increased up to 20-fold or the low-density culture was achieved by addition of increasing amounts of liver plasma membranes. The gradual decrease in alpha 1-response was accounted for by a concurrent decrease in the receptor site density, whereas rapid development of the beta-response definitely preceded the increase in beta-ligand binding sites during the culture. This rapid development of the beta-response reflected enhanced coupling of the receptor to G-protein during the early stage of culture, as evidenced by the progressively developed ability of GTP to lower the affinity of beta-agonist binding to membranes prepared from these short-time-cultured hepatocytes.
A scheme for the assignment of unique addresses to support self-organization in wireless sensor networks

We propose a scheme for the assignment of unique addresses to facilitate self-organization in a wireless sensor network. The field of wireless sensor networks has experienced tremendous growth in the last few years, and their usage is rapidly increasing; however there still remain several issues that hinder the usability of such networks. One such issue is self-organization, where the nodes form a network by collaboration with each other without using manual intervention and using little external help. We propose a scheme to facilitate sensor nodes to organize themselves into a network. Our scheme uses unique addresses and requires only (3N-2) messages to assign addresses to all N nodes. The scheme is based on the concept of hierarchical levels and repeated patterns in order to achieve scalability. The paper describes our scheme and the advantages of using it.
Video in ethnographic research

Biographical research may take a range of forms and may vary in its application and approach but has the unified and coherent aim to give 'voice' to individuals. The central concern of this collection is to assemble articles (from sociology, social psychology, education, health, criminology, social gerontology, epidemiology, management and organizational research) that illustrate the full range of debates, methods and techniques that can be combined under the heading 'biographical research.
A Vision-Based Algorithm for Landing Unmanned Aerial Vehicles

Autonomous landing is an important part of the autonomous control of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). In this article we present the design and implementation of a vision algorithm for autonomous landing. We use an onboard camera to obtain the image of the ground where the landing target (landmark) is laid and a method based on Zernike moments will be responsible for the target detection and recognition. Then the pose and position of the UAV will be estimated using the image of the landmark. As an important part of the article, the results of experiments on an OpenGL-developed testbed are presented as well as the trial results using simulated flight video sequences to demonstrate the accuracy and efficiency of our algorithm.
Dynamic Load Balancing in Real-Time Distributed Transaction Processing

Transaction processing in distributed environments can lead to load imbalances resulting in performance degradation despite resources being available. This can have adverse consequences in a real-time environment where transactions are expected to complete by their deadlines. We propose a novel load balancing protocol, Earliest Completion Load Balancing (ECLB) that monitors the distribution of system load and network latency in an attempt to dynamically create and maintain an evenly loaded system, even in the case of heterogeneous nodes or heavy load conditions. We have assessed its performance against other load balancing protocols under normal and extreme situations. In scenarios of high load or high latency, ECLB is competitive with protocols that would otherwise be better suited to only one or the other. In heterogeneous environments, ECLB outperforms all other protocols. Among other factors, the completion of transactions before their deadlines depends upon both the network latency and load on each node. Thus, ECLB serves as a versatile load balancing protocol for realistic environments. The results are obtained using various network topologies in a parameterized distributed real-time transaction processing simulator.
A Unified Framework for Design and Analysis of Networked and Quantized Control Systems

We generalize and unify a range of recent results in quantized control systems (QCS) and networked control systems (NCS) literature and provide a unified framework for controller design for control systems with quantization and time scheduling via an emulation-like approach. A crucial step in our proofs is finding an appropriate Lyapunov function for the quantization/time-scheduling protocol which verifies its uniform global exponential stability (UGES). We construct Lyapunov functions for several representative protocols that are commonly found in the literature, as well as some new protocols not considered previously. Our approach is flexible and amenable to further extensions which are briefly discussed.
Intra-operative rectal washout with saline solution can effectively prevent anastomotic recurrence: a meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE Rectal washout with saline solution may theoretically prevent anastomotic recurrence in patients with resectable rectal cancer, although exact clinical effects have not yet been determined. In order to derive a more precise estimation of the relationship, the present meta-analysis was performed. METHOD Relevant studies were identified by a search of Medline, Embase and Google Website with no restrictions to September 1, 2013, and included in the systematic review and meta-analysis. RESULTS 5 trials (642 participants) were included to assess the association between rectal washout with saline solution and anastomotic recurrence. The rate of anastomotic recurrence (AR) was 6.23% (40/642), with the pooled OR derived from the five studies being 0.32 (95 % CI=0.15-0.70, P=0.004). The pooled OR derived from the TME and radical resection subgroups were 0.72 (95%CI=0.16-3.12, P=0.66) and 0.51 (95%CI=0.13-1.96, P=0.32), respectively. CONCLUSION Results from this analysis show that intra-operative rectal washout with mere saline solution largely reduces the risk of anastomotic recurrences in patients with resectable rectal cancer.
Effect of Individual Cognitive Behavioral Therapy on Depression and Anxiety in Older Adults with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease : a Feasibility Study

The progression of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in older adults has been associated with a high prevalence of depression and anxiety (Kunik et al., 2005). The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of a COPD-specific individual cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) intervention on depression and anxiety in older adults with COPD. Three older adult patients with moderate to severe COPD and comorbid depression and anxiety were recruited from a large hospital affiliated pulmonary practice to participate in this single subject multiple baseline feasibility study. Pre-testpost test assessments were conducted utilizing the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS), the State Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI), the COPD Self-Efficacy Scale, the St . George Respiratory Questionnaire (SGRQ-C), the Social Problem-Solving Inventory-R (SPSI-R), the MRC Dyspnea Scale, and the Six Minute Walk Distance Test (6MWD). It was hypothesized that this intervention would decrease depression and anxiety; increase selfefficacy and positive problem orientation; increase exercise tolerance; and improve dyspnea management and quality of life for older adults with COPD. The results suggest that depression and anxiety were decreased and self-efficacy increased for all three participants. Dyspnea management and overall quality of life were improved for the two participants who completed the protocol. Changes in exercise tolerance and problem orientation varied by participant. This study has implications for the use of this protocol in a pilot study with a larger sample of older adults with COPD and co-morbid depression and anxiety.
Clinical Practice and Epidemiology in Mental Health Psychological Problems in Gastroenterology Outpatients: a South Australian Experience. Psychological Co-morbidity in Ibd, Ibs and Hepatitis C

Background: In independent studies, IBD, IBS and HCV have each been associated with a substantially increased risk of psychological problems such as depression and anxiety and impairment of quality of life compared to the general healthy population. However, the relative psychological burden for each of these diagnoses is unknown as it has never been compared contemporaneously at one institution. Current local data are therefore needed to enable an evidence-based allocation of limited clinical psychological resources.
Fixation of bilateral condylar fractures with maxillary and mandibular nerve blocks

Mandibulo facial injuries present special problems to the anesthesiologist in terms of the difficult airway. Hence, if regional anesthesia could be possible, it necessarily removes the major concern with airway access. We present a case of bilateral mandibular condylar fracture dislocation with the maxillary and mandibular nerve blocks on both sides. The surgery went on smoothly without any perioperative problems.