Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
"Hands off our language!" : deaf sign language teachers' perspectives on sign language standardisation

In light of the absence of codified standard varieties of British Sign Language (BSL) and German Sign Language (Deutsche Gebclrdensprache, DGS), there have been repeated calls for the standardisation of both languages primarily from outside the deaf communities. The development of standard varieties has been suggested to facilitate political recognition and the establishment of linguistic norms which could enable sign language users to gain equal access to education, administration and commerce. Although frequently labelled as sociolinguistic enquiry, much research in standardisation and language planning displays a certain preference for investigating the linguistic aspects of language. Explicit discussion of social-theoretical perspectives is scarce. In order to address this imbalance, this study focuses on the social aspect of the subject matter by investigating the concept of sign language standardisation from the perspective of deaf sign language teachers. Taking a comparative approach, research findings are based on 17 in-depth interviews conducted in Germany and the UK which were analysed drawing on grounded theory. Participants in both countries conceptualised sign language standardisation predominantly as externally imposed language change pertaining to the eradication of regional dialects. Given that in contrast to hearing learners of sign languages, participants did not regard regional variation as a problem but as a highly valued feature of BSL and DGS, sign language standardisation was seen as a threat to sign languages. Moreover, the subject matter was also perceived as embodying hearing people's hegemony by bringing to the fore traditional power imbalances between deaf people and hearing stake holders in the political and educational realms. This study is the first to explore and examine perceptions of and attitudes towards sign language standardisation in the UK and Germany. It thereby contributes to knowledge in respect to sign language sociolinguistics, as well as standardisation and language planning in the wider field. Moreover, taking an explicitly sociolinguistic approach and in drawing on social research methodology, this study offers an atypical perspective on the issue of language standardisation in general.
Modeling and analysis of the single-core phase shifting transformer and its differential protection

In this paper, the analysis and simulation of a single-core asymmetrical phase shifting transformer (PST) is presented. PSTs are usually used for varying the voltage phase angle between the two systems, which provides controlling active power flow through transmission (tie) line. The essential part of this work was related to developing an appropriate simulation model of the single-core phase shifting transformer in MATLAB/ Simulink environment. In addition, this paper presents testing results of a selected PST differential protection scheme (proposed in the literature) for various disturbances. The testing outcomes provide useful information about limitations of the selected algorithm and create basis for further research.
An intraoperative irrigation regimen to reduce the surgical site infection rate following adolescent idiopathic scoliosis surgery.

INTRODUCTION The aim of this study was to compare the efficacy of a gentamicin antibiotic intraoperative irrigation regimen (regimen A) with a povidone-iodine intraoperative irrigation regimen (regimen B) and to evaluate the ability of adjunctive local vancomycin powder (regimen C) to reduce the surgical site infection (SSI) rate following idiopathic scoliosis correction. METHODS This was a retrospective, single centre, two-surgeon cohort study of paediatric scoliosis procedures involving 118 patients under the age of 18 years who underwent correction for idiopathic scoliosis over a period of 42 months. Patients' baseline characteristics, pseudarthrosis and rates of SSI were compared. RESULTS Baseline characteristics were comparable in all three groups, with the exception of sex distribution. Over a quarter (27%) of patients with regimen B were male compared with 13% and 6% for regimens A and C respectively. Patients were mostly followed up for a minimum of 12 months. The SSI rate for both superficial and deep infections was higher with regimen A (26.7%) than with regimens B and C (7.0% and 6.3% respectively). The SSI rates for regimens B and C were comparable. No patients developed complications related to vancomycin toxicity, metalwork failure or pseudarthrosis. CONCLUSIONS Wound irrigation with a povidone-iodine solution reduces SSIs following adolescent idiopathic scoliosis surgery. The direct application of vancomycin powder to the wound is safe but does not reduce the SSI rate further in low risk patients. Additional studies are needed to elucidate whether it is effective at higher doses and in high risk patient groups.
Clinical application of a CT-guided lung biopsy system: core needle biopsy at the IVR center.

Prior reports of CT-guided lung biopsy of the small lung nodules of less than 2 cm have been unsatisfactory. In January 1998, we began a preliminary study of CT-guided lung biopsy in our conventional CT room. With the basic results achieved, we constructed a novel CT-guided lung biopsy system. Together with Hitachi Corporation we have developed CT, the Radix Prima, exclusive for interventional procedures especially for CT-guided lung biopsy. As reconstruction delay time of the procedures has been shortened from 1.0 sec. to 0.6 sec. , real time CT fluoroscopy monitoring is possible on the Cathode Ray Tube (CRT) monitor in the CT room, very closed to the patient. Multiple confirmations of the tip of the biopsy needle have been possible with this specially equipped CT. A semi-automatic-type needle have been selected for reliable biopsy, because the old fully-automatic-type needle was very heavy and easily misfired. Multiple punctures have been also used, because single punctures have a greater risk of obtaining inadequate specimens. In our clinical study at our IVR center, the subjects comprised 41 patients (26 males, 15 females, ranging in age from 34 to 79, mean 64 years old). The mean nodule diameter was 1.9 cm, the mean distance from skin surface to lesion was 5.5 cm, and the mean number of punctures was 3.0. The biopsy results included 23 malignancies. In 13 patients the results were benign tumors or specific inflammation. In 4 patients the results were nonspecific inflammation. In only 1 patient was the specimen inadequate. There was no false negative. The correct rate of benign/malignant diagnoses was 98%. A complication of pneumothorax was observed in 22 patients, but all were improved by conservative treatment. Pulmonary hemorrhage was observed in 21 patients, 7 of whom also had hemoptysis. Each of these patients also responded to conservative treatment from specialist medical staff at the IVR center. The 98%accuracy of our results indicates that multiple punctures using a semi-automatic-type biopsy needle and multiple confirmations of the needle tip on our method of real time CT fluoroscopy are extremely important for CT-guided lung biopsy of small lung nodules of less than 2 cm.
Forecasts for leverage heterogeneous autoregressive models with jumps and other covariates

For leverage heterogeneous autoregressive (LHAR) models with jumps and other covariates, called LHARX models, multistep forecasts are derived. Some optimal properties of forecasts in terms of conditional volatilities are discussed, which tells us to model conditional volatility for return but not for the LHARX regression error and other covariates. Forecast standard errors are constructed for which we need to model conditional volatilities both for return and for LHAR regression error and other blue covariates. The proposed methods are well illustrated by forecast analysis for the realized volatilities of the US stock price indexes: the S&P 500, the NASDAQ, the DJIA, and the RUSSELL indexes.
Aging, Focus Switching, and Task Switching in a Continuous Calculation Task: Evidence Toward a New Working Memory Control Process

ABSTRACT This study examined switching of the focus of attention in working memory in relation to global task switching in a continuous calculation task using two rules (midpoint and up-and-down) in a group of 25 younger adults and a group of 23 older adults. Age differences emerged in accuracy when participants worked on two strings simultaneously (necessitating a focus switch); focus switching did not interact with age in the response time domain. No age differences were obtained for global task switching. Ex-Gaussian decomposition showed a shift due to focus switching in all parameters, but a shift in leading edge only for task switching. The results suggest that task switching and focus switching rely on different processes, and that there is a specific age-related deficit in focus switching.
A general purpose reconfigurable MEMS-based attenuator for Radio Frequency and microwave applications

In this paper we present a power attenuator for RF (RadioFrequency) and microwave signals entirely designed in MEMS (MicroElectroMechanical-System) technology. It is fabricated in the RF-MEMS technology available at Fondazione Bruno Kessler (FBK) based on a surface micromachining process. The network is realized in a low-cost manufacturing process and its dimensions are significantly compact compared to traditional implementations of RF power attenuators. More interestingly, employment of MEMS technology for such architecture enables a very large reconfigurability, making the network compatible with different standards and usable in several wireless communication systems. Electromechanical and RF behaviour of the discussed network are simulated and compared against experimental results collected by the first fabricated samples. RF measured performances are rather promising in spite a technology issue occurred during the fabrication deteriorating the attenuator low-frequency characteristic. RF modelling of such issue (already fixed in the batches being currently fabricated) is shown and discussed through this paper.
Seeing through the lizard’s trick: do avian predators avoid autotomous tails?

Counter-adaptations of predators towards their prey are a far less investigated phenomenon in predator-prey interactions. Caudal autotomy is generally considered an effective last-resort mechanism for evading predators. However, in victim-exploiter relationships, the efficacy of a strategy will obviously depend on the antagonist’s ability to counter it. In the logic of the predator-prey arms race, one would expect predators to develop attack strategies that minimize the chance of autotomy of the prey and damage on the predator. We tested whether avian predators preferred grasping lizards by their head. We constructed plasticine models of the Italian wall lizard (Podarcis sicula) and placed them in natural habitat of the species. Judging from counts of beak marks on the models, birds preferentially attack the head and might also avoid the tail and limb regions. While a preference for the head might not necessarily demonstrate tail and limb avoidance, this topic needs further exploration because it suggests that even unspecialised avian predators may see through the lizard’s trick-of-the-tail. This result may have implications for our understanding of the evolution of this peculiar defensive system and the loss or decreased tendency to shed the tail on island systems with the absence of terrestrial predators.
Melatonin treatment following stroke induction modulates l‐arginine metabolism

Abstract: The efficacy of melatonin treatment in experimental stroke has been established. Some of the neuroprotective properties have been attributed to its anti‐oxidant and anti‐inflammatory effects. Nitric oxide synthases (NOS) and cyclooxygenases (COX) are considered to have a significant role in the inflammatory milieu occurring in acute stroke. While previous reports have shown that pretreatment with melatonin in a stroke model can modulate NOS isoforms, the effect of post‐treatment with melatonin on l‐arginine metabolism has not been investigated. This study initially examined the effect of melatonin (1 nm–1 mm) on l‐arginine metabolism pathways in human fibrosarcoma fibroblasts (HT‐1080) fibroblasts. Evidence of neuroprotection with melatonin was evaluated in rats subjected to middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO). Animals were treated with three daily doses of 5 mg/kg i.p., starting 1 hr after the onset of ischemia. Constitutive NOS activity but not expression was significantly increased by in vitro exposure (72 hr) to melatonin. In addition, melatonin treatment increased arginase activity by increasing arginase II expression. In vivo studies showed that melatonin treatment after MCAO significantly inhibited inducible NOS activity and attenuated expression of the inducible isoform, resulting in decreased total NOS activity and tissue nitrite levels. COX activity was significantly reduced with melatonin treatment. The neuroprotective anti‐inflammatory effects of melatonin were consistent with the substantial reduction in infarct volume throughout the cortex and striatum and recovery of mitochondrial enzyme activities. The evidence presented here suggests that modulation of l‐arginine metabolism by melatonin make it a valuable neuroprotective therapy for stroke.
Disseminating the Community Advocacy Project in Mexico: A Feasibility Study

The Community Advocacy Project is an evidence-based practice that has been shown to lead to numerous positive changes in the lives of intimate partner violence (IPV) survivors. Prior research conducted in the Midwest United States, and with primarily African American and Anglo American survivors, has shown that this short-term, community-based advocacy intervention results in increased safety and quality of life even 2 years after the intervention ends. The current study describes the process of culturally adapting and disseminating this program in Monterrey, Mexico, with a sample of low-income Mexican IPV survivors exposed to a variety of considerable contextual stressors. Interviews were conducted with advocates, advocate supervisors, and survivors to examine the acceptability and utility of the intervention. Twenty-seven IPV survivors, seven advocates, and four advocate supervisors participated in the intervention research. Advocates and their supervisors were highly laudatory, believing the intervention to be culturally relevant and effective. Encouraging changes were found for survivors as well, with positive changes over time being found on safety, quality of life, social support, and depression.
Development of Coliphage N4: Ultrastructural Studies

The basic properties of bacteriophage N4 development have been investigated in Escherichia coli Hfr 3300 under one-step growth and high cell density conditions. N4r+ -infected bacteria are lysis inhibited in mass culture, burst asynchronously starting 180 min postinfection, and release over 3,000 phage per cell. During lysis inhibition the bacteria continuously elongate, increase in girth, and undergo characteristic morphological changes represented by the appearance of dark spots located at the cell poles. In thin sections, during the late stages of replication and assembly, the phage particles are localized exclusively in restricted areas of the cytoplasm near the polar regions. Large paracrystalline arrays of virions are found in over 7% of the cells before lysis. The most common mechanism of lysis consists in the formation of bulges located at random in the cell circumference; these burst and, without extensive disruption of the cell wall, the phage progeny escapes into the medium.
FDI Inspired Energy Consumption in Selected Emerging Markets: Does Financial Development Matter?

Abstract The study investigated the impact of the complementarity between foreign direct investment (FDI) and financial development on energy consumption in emerging markets. Although the relevance of the FDI-led energy consumption hypothesis is no longer contestable, the combined influence of FDI and financial development on energy consumption is not yet resolved. Random and fixed effects show that the interaction between outstanding domestic private debt securities and FDI had a significant positive influence on energy consumption whereas pooled ordinary least squares (OLS) noted that the interaction between FDI and outstanding domestic public debt securities positively and significantly affected energy consumption. The dynamic generalized methods of moments (GMM) shows that the interaction between (1) FDI and stock market capitalization and (2) FDI and stock market value traded had a significant negative influence on energy consumption. The study urges emerging markets to deepen the bond sector market in order to enhance FDI-led energy consumption.
Canine Distemper Virus Infection Requires Cholesterol in the Viral Envelope

ABSTRACT Cholesterol is known to play an important role in stabilizing particular cellular membrane structures, so-called lipid or membrane rafts. For several viruses, a dependence on cholesterol for virus entry and/or morphogenesis has been shown. Using flow cytometry and fluorescence microscopy, we demonstrate that infection of cells by canine distemper virus (CDV) was not impaired after cellular cholesterol had been depleted by the drug methyl-β-cyclodextrin. This effect was independent of the multiplicity of infection and the cellular receptor used for infection. However, cholesterol depletion of the viral envelope significantly reduced CDV infectivity. Replenishment by addition of exogenous cholesterol restored infectivity up to 80%. Thus, we conclude that CDV entry is dependent on cholesterol in the viral envelope. Furthermore, reduced syncytium formation was observed when the cells were cholesterol depleted during the course of the infection. This may be related to the observation that CDV envelope proteins H and F partitioned into cellular detergent-resistant membranes. Therefore, a role for lipid rafts during virus assembly and release as well is suggested.
Comparison of melanoblast expression patterns identifies distinct classes of genes

A full understanding of transcriptional regulation requires integration of information obtained from multiple experimental datasets. These include datasets annotating gene expression within the context of an entire organism under normal and genetically perturbed conditions. Here we describe an expression dataset annotating pigment cell‐expressed genes of the developing melanocyte and retinal pigmented epithelium lineages. Expression images are annotated and available at http://research.nhgri. nih.gov/manuscripts/Loftus/March2009/. Data are also summarized in a standardized manner using a universal melanoblast scoring scale that accounts for the embryonic location of cells and regional cell density. This approach allowed us to classify 14 pigment genes into four groupings classified by cell lineage expression, temporal‐spatial context, and differential alteration in response to altered MITF and SOX10 status. Significant differences in regional populations were also observed across inbred strain backgrounds, highlighting the value of this approach to identify modifier allele influences on melanoblast number and distributions. This analysis revealed novel features of in vivo expression patterns that are not measurable by in vitro‐based assays, providing data that in combination with genomic analyses will allow modeling of pigment cell gene expression in development and disease.
Event analysis of systemic teamwork (EAST): a novel integration of ergonomics methods to analyse C4i activity

C4i is defined as the management infrastructure needed for the execution of a common goal supported by multiple agents in multiple locations and technology. In order to extract data from complex and diverse C4i scenarios a descriptive methodology called Event Analysis for Systemic Teamwork (EAST) has been developed. With over 90 existing ergonomics methodologies already available, the approach taken was to integrate a hierarchical task analysis, a coordination demand analysis, a communications usage diagram, a social network analysis, and the critical decision method. The outputs of these methods provide two summary representations in the form of an enhanced operation sequence diagram and a propositional network. These offer multiple overlapping perspectives on key descriptive constructs including who the agents are in a scenario, when tasks occur, where agents are located, how agents collaborate and communicate, what information is used, and what knowledge is shared. The application of these methods to live data drawn from the UK rail industry demonstrates how alternative scenarios can be compared on key metrics, how multiple perspectives on the same data can be taken, and what further detailed insights can be extracted. The ultimate aim of EAST is, by applying it across a number of scenarios in different civil and military domains, to provide data to develop generic models of C4i activity and to improve the design of systems aimed at enhancing this management infrastructure.
1/f Magnetic Noise Dependence on Free Layer Thickness in Hysteresis Free MgO Magnetic Tunnel Junctions

The noise spectrum of MgO magnetic tunnel junctions with linear transfer curves for varying CoFeB free layer thickness was studied. For continuous ferromagnetic free layers (tCoFeB ges 15.5 A), the noise spectrum in the linear range is dominated by 1/f magnetic noise and random telegraph noise. When superparamagnetic behavior sets on the free layer (tCoFeB < 14.5 A) the junctions do not present 1/f magnetic noise. This cancellation of 1/f magnetic noise is done at the expense of field sensitivity. In terms of field detection limit, the junctions with thin and thick free layer show the same detection limit of 25 nT/Hz1/2 low frequency (500 Hz). At high frequency (100 kHz), however, junctions with thicker free layer show detection limit of 1.5 nT/Hz1/2, which is three times better than for thin free layer.
A series of cinnamic acid derivatives and their inhibitory activity on intestinal α-glucosidase

Inhibition of α-glucosidase and α-amylase delays the digestion of starch and disaccharides to absorbable monosaccharides, resulting in a reduction of postprandial hyperglycemia. Finding effective mammalian α-glucosidase inhibitors from natural sources can be beneficial in the prevention and treatment of diabetes mellitus. We investigated the inhibitory activity of cinnamic acid derivatives against rat intestinal α-glucosidase and porcine pancreatic α-amylase in vitro. Among 11 cinnamic acid derivatives, caffeic acid, ferulic acid, and isoferulic acid were the most potent inhibitors against intestinal maltase with IC50 values of 0.74 ± 0.01, 0.79 ± 0.04, and 0.76 ± 0.03 mM, respectively, whereas ferulic acid (IC50 = 0.45 ± 0.01 mM) and isoferulic acid (IC50 = 0.45 ± 0.01 mM) were effective intestinal sucrase inhibitors. However, all cinnamic acid derivatives were found to be inactive in pancreatic α-amylase inhibition. Kinetic analysis revealed that intestinal maltase was inhibited by caffeic acid, ferulic acid, and isoferulic acid in a mixed-inhibition manner. In addition, ferulic acid and isoferulic acid inhibited intestinal sucrase in a mixed type manner, whereas caffeic acid was a non-competitive inhibitor. The combination of isoferulic acid and acarbose showed an additive inhibition on intestinal sucrase. This study could provide a new insight into naturally occurring intestinal α-glucosidase inhibitors that could be useful for treatment of diabetes and its complications.