Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Effects of Collaboration on Teacher Empowerment

The purpose of this action research project was to measure the effects that collaborative curriculum planning had on three early childhood classrooms in a private Montessori school. The study population included six early childhood teachers who collectively designed a curriculum and helped collect data for the first seven weeks of the intervention. Each participant filled out a teacher feedback form which was based on Spreitzer’s (1995) psychological empowerment scale to measure changes in perceptions of four different aspects of empowerment: meaning, competence, self-determination, and impact. The primary researcher also analyzed data from individual teacher journals, notes from weekly discussions, and observations in all three classrooms. Analysis of the data indicated that collaborative curriculum planning led to a heightened sense of competence, self-determination and impact among the six participants. Further research is needed to determine the correlations between collaborative curriculum planning and student engagement.
Targeted In Vivo Inhibition of Specific Protein–Protein Interactions Using Recombinant Antibodies

With the growing availability of genomic sequence information, there is an increasing need for gene function analysis. Antibody-mediated “silencing” represents an intriguing alternative for the precise inhibition of a particular function of biomolecules. Here, we describe a method for selecting recombinant antibodies with a specific purpose in mind, which is to inhibit intrinsic protein–protein interactions in the cytosol of plant cells. Experimental procedures were designed for conveniently evaluating desired properties of recombinant antibodies in consecutive steps. Our selection method was successfully used to develop a recombinant antibody inhibiting the interaction of ARABIDOPSIS HISTIDINE PHOSPHOTRANSFER PROTEIN 3 with such of its upstream interaction partners as the receiver domain of CYTOKININ INDEPENDENT HISTIDINE KINASE 1. The specific down-regulation of the cytokinin signaling pathway in vivo demonstrates the validity of our approach. This selection method can serve as a prototype for developing unique recombinant antibodies able to interfere with virtually any biomolecule in the living cell.
National Innovation System of India: An Empirical Analysis

The present article aims to analyse empirically the national innovation system (NIS) of India. Specifically, the objectives were to (a) examine the different innovation-related input and output variables that reflect the structure of NIS over the years, and (b) examine the factors determining NIS. However, it was very difficult to identify the variables that could reflect the NIS of the country. Individual indicators of innovation, both from input and output side, are largely inconclusive. However, relatively more reflective indicators were chosen for the period 1980–2012. It was found that although India’s GDP has increased over the years, but its share in total world’s GDP was very meagre. Further, it was also found that as compared to major developed and comparable emerging economies, India lagged behind in both innovation inputs variables like expenditure on R&D and S&T manpower; and innovation output indicators like patents, proportion of high-tech manufacturing exports, etc. Further, for the second objective of the article concerning the determinants of NIS, a modified version of the Crepon, Duguet and Mairesse (CDM) model (1998) was used. The estimation using three-stage least square (3SLS) estimator for simultaneous equations shows that expenditure on R&D by government, stock of science and technology personnel, world’s stock of patents and openness index have positive impact on innovation performance indicators. Therefore, policies should be framed in a manner that they emphasize more on innovation inputs like expenditure on R&D and building human capital in the form of S&T personnel.
Zimbabwe Economic Sanctions and Post-Colonial Hangover: A Critique of Zimbabwe Democracy Economic Recovery Act (ZDERA) – 2001 a2018

Scholarship on imperialism in Zimbabwe has not been documented in terms of establishing its roots. What has evaded contemporary researchers and academics on post-land reform programme economic sanctions of 2001 is that their roots lie in colonial domination and imperialism. The Scramble for Africa of 1884 is an adjunct of the Berlin Colonial Conference of 1884-1885 which marked long dark days of imperialism in Africa. It was about colonial domination, exploitation of mineral and extraction of natural resources. Western Europe became principal beneficiaries of newly ‘discovered’ wealth – pillaging and looting to their countries through exploitation, false pretenses, deception and outright theft. The insidious process was complemented by subjective constructs of political, social, religious and cultural domination of indigenous populations or ‘natives’ as imperialism defined unbalanced framework of economic relationships. Pronunciations like subjugation, suppression, cultural genocide, expropriation and repression have been touted by historians to highlight the depth and intensity of coloniality. The economic sanctions are part of a strategic neo-colonial era in which former colonial powers continue clutching to vein glories of the past. Yet that past is the present. Zimbabwe is being punished for reclaiming land through land reform programmes of 2001 which helped to empower Zimbabweans. In this research we look at the Janus face of Western decoloniality efforts- with specific reference to how Zimbabwe has fought ferocious battles for reclamation and restitution of its land. We also examine instruments of repression including statutes like the 1965 Unilateral Declaration of Independence (UDI) and the Zimbabwe Democracy and Economic Recovery Act of 2001 as amended in 2018 (ZDERA). In our analytical narratives, we illustrate how the such instruments are designed to maintain imperialist status quo through specified punitive measures under ZDERA.
Topical thrombin and acquired coagulation factor inhibitors: Clinical spectrum and laboratory diagnosis

Topical bovine thrombin preparations are used extensively in cardiovascular, neurosurgical, and otolaryngologic procedures. Patients who are treated with these topical thrombin preparations may develop antibodies to bovine coagulation factors that may cross‐react with the endogenous human clotting proteins. We have identified four patients with acquired factor inhibitors following exposure to topical thrombin at Duke University Medical Center and summarize these cases in addition to 13 patients previously reported in the literature. In most cases, the inhibitor developed following a second (or subsequent) exposure to topical thrombin. The clinical course was extremely variable, ranging from totally asymptomatic to life‐threatening hemorrhage. The most consistent laboratory abnormality was a prolonged bovine thrombin clotting time, which corrected, at least partially, when human thrombin was substituted for bovine thrombin. Some of these patients also developed factor V inhibitors with prolonged prothrombin and activated partial thromboplastin times. Although these patients have prolonged clotting times, they should not be considered “autoanticoagulated,” since thromboembolic complications can still occur. Therapeutic intervention is largely empirical and depends on the clinical manifestations of the individual patient. © 1994 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Reliability Concern on Extended E-SOA of SOI Power Devices With P-Sink Structures

The P-sink structure is widely used in silicon-on-insulator (SOI) power devices (SOI-LIGBT and SOI-LDMOS) to extend the electrical safe operating area (E-SOA) as it can suppress the trigger of the parasitic transistor. In this paper, the electrical behavior and reliability issues in the extended E-SOA for 200-V SOI power devices with P-sink structures are investigated for the first time. For SOI-LIGBT, the normal I-V curve and small hot-carrier-induced degradation are observed in the extended E-SOA; thereby, the P-sink structure plays a good role. However, for SOI-LDMOS, two mechanisms dominate the electrical behavior in the extended E-SOA so as to bring the unusual “hump” in the I- V curve; meanwhile, it results in serious hot-carrier-induced degradation, reducing the lifetime of the device in practical applications. As a result, the P-sink structure is not the best choice to extend the E-SOA of SOI-LDMOS.
Modelling heat-induced radiosensitization: clinical implications

Clinically achievable minimum tumour temperatures are in the order of about 41°C. Therefore, it is important to evaluate mechanisms by which temperatures in this range might enhance cytotoxicity. Previous in vitro studies have demonstrated that 1–4 h (depending on the sequencing of modalities) of heating at 41°C produces substantial heat-induced radiosensitization with little or no cell killing by heat alone. The increased radiation sensitivity is best modelled as a change in the single hit, α, parameter (with no significant effect on the two-hit parameter, β) of the cell survival curve. The implications of heat-induced radiosensitization being mediated by a change in α on the traditional thermal enhancement ratio (for various radiation doses/fraction and α/β) are reviewed. Response rates for a cohort of 60 patients enrolled on a prospective thermal dose escalation study are modelled assuming that the thermal dose dependence of heat-induced radiosensitization is modulated by a heat-induced ▵α. The clinical data are fitted with ▵α about 0.05–0.1 Gy−1. Randomized trials reported in the literature and the implication for the design of future prospective trials are reviewed in light of these observations.
Syllable structure in Government Phonology

(3) in support of (2) a. yers, cf. general intro b. French Liaison le cafés vs. lez écoles le gran café vs. le grand (h)omme SPE: /. -C/ --> [C] / #V. C is lexical because its nature cannot be predicted explanation only with lexically present Onset preceding [V]-initial words. c. vowel-zero alternations in Czech prefixes, Scheer 1996,97 1. +e -e beze-dný bezø-kv! tný "without bottom/ without flowers" vze-dmout vzø-hled "blow up/ expression (face)" pÍede-vím pÍedø-skok "before all/ test-jump ('before-jump')" roze-dmout rozø-dmýchat "blow up/ fan" roze-pÍít rozø-pÍahat "strut/ remove"
Green Opportunistic and Efficient Resource Block Allocation Algorithm for LTE Uplink Networks

This work proposes a new radio resource allocation scheme for the green uplink Long-Term Evolution (LTE) networks. The proposed scheme aims at efficiently allocating the resource blocks (RBs) and the transmission power of the user equipment (UE). The allocation of RBs is based on the opportunistic and efficient RB allocation (OEA) algorithm, whose objective is to maximize the aggregate throughput while being subjected to single-carrier frequency-division multiple-access (SC-FDMA) constraints. An evolution of the algorithm, which is called quality-of-service (QoS)-based OEA, providing QoS differentiation, is also presented. It allocates a given maximum number of RBs to each UE, which is set according to the user's QoS requirements. Once the allocation of RBs is completed, the allocation of the UE transmission power is performed. The transmission power considers the UE channel conditions over its whole allocated RBs. Its value is reduced as much as possible and adjusted such that the user's required QoS satisfies throughput demand previously determined by the RB allocation. The proposed radio resource management algorithm has several interesting properties. It maximizes the aggregate throughput, decreases the ratio of inefficiently allocated RBs, cancels the RB's wastage, and increases the energy efficiency without affecting the user's throughput. Furthermore, the OEA algorithms can be implemented in LTE hardware equipment devices on account of their low computational complexity.
Farmers’ vulnerability to climate shocks: insights from the Niger basin of Benin

ABSTRACT This paper investigates the vulnerability of farm-based livelihood systems to climate shocks in the Niger basin of Benin using a household survey dataset relative to the 2012–2013 agricultural year. The integrated approach is used to assess the vulnerability to climate shocks as function of exposure, sensitivity, and adaptive capacity, and the indices are used as a dependent variable in an Ordinary Least Squares regression. The results reveal that 57.43% of the farm households are vulnerable to climate shocks (31.74% are very vulnerable). The findings highlight that the lowest adaptive capacity does not necessarily coincide with highest exposure and sensitivity to result in the highest vulnerability. Social capital is very important in building the resilience of farm-based livelihood systems. Vulnerability of farm-based livelihoods depends on the nature of climate shocks. Indeed, the econometric estimations show that vulnerability levels increase differently with respect to the type of shock; the increase is 0.87, 0.77, 1.27, and 1.28 for droughts, strong winds, heat waves, and erratic rainfall, respectively. Floods appear to be beneficial to the farm households as they negatively influence vulnerability to climate shocks. The simulations suggest that vulnerability to climate shocks will increase in the absence of adaptation.
Segmenting tourists using sustainable values: a cluster analysis of Tanzanian inbound tourism

ABSTRACT This study aimed at examining different segments of visitors to Tanzania with respect to their values around sustainability. Using a self-administered questionnaire, 286 cases were analyzed through a combination of non-hierarchical and hierarchical cluster analyses. The results indicated three clusters of visitors, each with different sustainable values. A follow-up analysis using ANOVA and Chi-square indicates the three clusters are significantly different in their sustainable values, their travel motives, and their demographics. These results provide insights for both public and private organizations on how to market and manage different destination elements to visitors in a sustainable manner.
Non‐linear survival analysis using neural networks

We describe models for survival analysis which are based on a multi‐layer perceptron, a type of neural network. These relax the assumptions of the traditional regression models, while including them as particular cases. They allow non‐linear predictors to be fitted implicitly and the effect of the covariates to vary over time. The flexibility is included in the model only when it is beneficial, as judged by cross‐validation.
Distinct frequency of ret rearrangements in papillary thyroid carcinomas of children and adults from Belarus

Rearrangements of the ret oncogene were investigated in papillary thyroid carcinomas (PTC) from 51 Belarussian children with a mean age of 3 years at the time of the Chernobyl radiation accident. For comparison, 16 PTC from exposed Belarussian adults and 16 PTC from German patients without radiation history were included in the study. ret rearrangements were detected and specified by RT‐PCR and direct sequencing using specific primers for ret/PTC1, 2 and 3. Only ret/PTC1, and no ret/PTC3, was found in the adult patients, with a frequency of 69% for the Belarussian cases, but of only 19% in the German patients. In contrast, 13 ret/PTC3 (25.5%) and 12 ret/PTC1 (23.5%) rearrangements were present in PTC from Belarussian children. Thus, our study reveals about a 1:1 ratio of ret/PTC3 and ret/PTC1, in contrast to earlier studies with lower numbers of cases and exhibiting a high predominance of ret/PTC3 (ratio about 3:1). A ratio (2.5:1) similar to that in earlier investigations (diagnosed 1991–94) was obtained for cases included in our study that were diagnosed in 1993/94. The present data suggest that ret/PTC3 may be typical for radiation‐associated childhood PTC with a short latency period, whereas ret/PTC1 may be a marker for later‐occurring PTC of radiation‐exposed adults and children. Int. J. Cancer 80:32–38, 1999. © 1999 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
A formal approach to discrepancy generation for systematic testing of execution monitoring algorithms in simulation

Successful plan generation for autonomous systems is necessary but not sufficient to guarantee reach a goal state by an execution of the plan, since various discrepancies between the expected state and the observed state may occur during the plan execution (e.g., due to unexpected exogenous events, changes in the goals, or failure of robot parts) and these discrepancies may lead to plan failures. For that reason, these systems should be equipped with execution monitoring algorithms so that they can autonomously recover from such discrepancies. Before execution monitoring algorithms are deployed on autonomous systems, comprehensive testing and simulation is needed to evaluate their performances and to understand their applicability. With this motivation, we introduce formal methods for discrepancy generation with respect to the plan being executed and by utilizing feasibility checks of robotic actions, and we propose a novel generic algorithm for simulation of execution monitoring algorithms that enables systematic testing of them in simulation. We illustrate an application of our methods on an execution monitoring algorithm that involves guided replanning and diagnosis, in the context of some service robotics scenarios that utilize multiple bi-manual mobile manipulators.
PD-1:PD-L1 Interactions Contribute to the Functional Suppression of Virus-Specific CD8+ T Lymphocytes in the Liver1

Mechanisms contributing to the development of chronic viral infections, including chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infections, are not well understood. We have shown recently that production of IFN-γ, an important antiviral cytokine, by HBV-specific CTLs is rapidly induced when they enter the liver of HBV transgenic mice, and then rapidly suppressed, despite the continued presence of Ag. Suppression of IFN-γ production by the CTLs coincides with the up-regulation of programmed cell death (PD)-1, a cell surface signaling molecule known to inhibit T cell function. To determine whether PD-1 plays a role in the functional suppression of IFN-γ secretion by CTLs, we treated HBV transgenic mice with blocking Abs specific for PD ligand (PD-L)1, the most widely expressed PD-1 ligand, and adoptively transferred HBV-specific CTLs. Treatment with anti-PD-L1 Abs resulted in a delay in the suppression of IFN-γ-producing CTLs and a concomitant increase in the absolute number of IFN-γ-producing CTLs in the liver. These results indicate that PD-1:PD-L1 interactions contribute to the suppression of IFN-γ secretion observed following Ag recognition in the liver. Blockade of inhibitory pathways such as PD-1:PD-L1 may reverse viral persistence and chronic infection in cases in which the CTL response is suppressed by this mechanism.
Cost-effectiveness of colorectal cancer screening with computed tomography colonography or fecal blood tests

Objective To assess the cost-effectiveness of colorectal cancer screening using computed tomography colonography (CTC) and immunological fecal occult blood test (iFOBT). Methods CTC and iFOBT strategies were compared with Nn screening or guaiac FOBT (gFOBT) using Markov modeling. CTC was proposed at 50, 60, and 70 years, whereas gFOBT and iFOBT were performed every 2 years beginning at 50 years until 74 years of age with a 30-year time horizon. We calculated incremental cost-effectiveness ratios and efficiency ratios (ERs). Then, we performed univariate and probabilistic sensitivity analyses. Results With gFOBT as reference, colorectal cancer prevention rate was 18% for CTC and 11% for iFOBT. The incremental cost-effectiveness ratio of CTC and iFOBT were respectively 3204 and 5458&OV0556; per life years gained (LYG), the ER for CTC was 0.22 and the ER for iFOBT was 2.08 colonoscopies per LYG. Cost-effectiveness results were sensitive to CTC cost. In the probabilistic sensitivity analysis, compared with CTC, iFOBT strategy was cost-effective for 84.6% of simulations when we assumed a willingness to pay (WTP) of 20 000&OV0556;/LYG. Conclusion CTC requires substantially less colonoscopies than iFOBT and is cost-effective for low values of WTP. However, iFOBT is the preferred screening strategy for a WTP greater than 6207&OV0556;/LYG.
Results of an aortic endograft trial: impact of device failure beyond 12 months.

PURPOSE Analysis endpoints of patient survival and aortic rupture at a reporting interval of 12 months are regularly used to compare endograft aortic aneurysm (EAG) repair to conventional open surgical (COS) repair. This study reports a multicenter EAG repair versus COS repair parallel cohort trial at 12 months and additional observations of specific device failure types and their impact on an aortic endograft design beyond that follow-up period. METHODS From August 1997 to September 1998, 240 patients who were treated with bifurcation EAG repairs and 28 patients who were treated with straight EAG repairs were compared with 98 patients who were treated with COS repair for elective infrarenal aortic aneurysm repair. Allocation to treatment was based on aneurysm anatomy. All cohorts underwent infrarenal procedures. Data from concurrent, nonrandomized patient accrual from 17 United States institutions were prospectively gathered and independently adjudicated for safety and efficacy. An independent core laboratory evaluated all imaging data. RESULTS There were 308 men and 58 women (mean age, 72 years; range, 42-94 years) treated for infrarenal aortic aneurysm (mean diameter, 55 mm; range, 40-115 mm). Mean preoperative aneurysm diameters were clinically similar (EAG repair, 54 mm vs COS repair, 57 mm). The two cohorts were not significantly different in terms of gender (P = .30) or age (P = .32). EAG repair technical success (aneurysm exclusion, graft patency, patient survival) at 30 days was 89.2%. Five patients required immediate conversion to COS repair, four caused by access complications and one caused by operator-induced EAG repair malposition. The 30-day mortality rate was 1.5% for EAG repair and 3.1% for COS repair (P = .59). The 12-month survival rate was 94.3% for EAG repair and 95.9% for COS repair. The intermediate-term cumulative survival rate at 24 months was 84.9% for EAG repair and 80.3% for COS repair (P = .48). EAG repair device failure occurred from fabric erosion in six patients, with two deaths from ruptured aneurysm at 18 and 28 months after endografting and four device failures resolved by secondary procedures. Five endograft limb dislocations were all resolved by secondary endovascular procedures. Major or minor endograft migration required secondary procedures in five patients, including conversion in two patients. CONCLUSION The clinical outcome at 12 months demonstrated effective aneurysm treatment and comparable safety between EAG repair and COS repair by conventional endpoints. Ongoing follow-up beyond 12 months revealed device-related adverse events that required endograft design changes. Diligent surveillance of outcomes beyond 12 months is necessary to adequately evaluate EAG repair devices.
Exploring embodiment and dueling bandit learning for preference adaptation in human-robot interaction

Adaptation for social companions is a crucial requirement for future applications. Personalized interaction seems to be an important factor for long-term commitment to interact with a social robot. We present a study evaluating the feasibility of a dueling bandit learning approach for preference learning (PL) in Human-Robot Interaction (HRI). Furthermore, we explore whether the embodiment of the PL agent has an influence on the user's evaluation of the learner. We conducted a study (n=53) comparing a graphical user interface (GUI), a virtual robot and a real robot. We found no difference regarding the preference for the virtual or real robot. We used the obtained study data to compare the PL approach against a strategy that randomly selects preference rankings. The results show that that the dueling bandit PL approach can be used to learn a user's preference in HRI.