Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Are clusters of patients with distinct clinical expression present in Behçet's disease?

OBJECTIVE Studies from Israel and Turkey have proposed that patient clusters with discriminating clinical features may exist in Behçet's disease (BD); such clusters could help to better understand pathogenetic mechanisms and guide therapeutic decisions. Herein, we searched for specific associations between each disease manifestation to all other manifestations in Greek patients with BD. METHODS Specific clinical features were retrospectively recorded in 142 consecutive patients (80 men) fulfilling the International Study Group criteria, seen between 2000-2008 in our Departments (mean follow-up of 37 months). All possible associations between distinct clinical features were examined; further analysis in relation to HLA-B51 status and pathergy test positivity, available in 89 patients, was performed. RESULTS No significant associations between various manifestations of BD were found, either among all patients, or among men or women analysed separately. Uveitis was present more frequently in men, but not women, who were HLA-B51 carriers (p<0.02). A positive pathergy reaction was associated with oral ulcers (p<0.001) and central nervous involvement (p=0.008) in women, and folliculitis in men (p=0.046). CONCLUSION In contrast to studies from other countries, no subgroups of patients with distinct positive or negative associations between clinical features were found. HLA-B51 may have some prognostic significance in men only. Whether differences in disease expression between geographical areas may reflect different triggers of pathogenetic mechanisms operating among ethnic groups could be further explored in comparative studies.
“Bexibùdim!”: Ritualized sharing among Israeli children

ABSTRACT An ethnographic-folkloristic approach to the study of children's peer group culture is illustrated with a study of children's practice of and lore about the sharing of treats in ritualized exchanges that are a widely recognized feature of Israeli childhood culture. These exchanges are a taken-for-granted part of children's daily experiences yet become the topic of intense gossip and the measure of “character” when the norm of generalized reciprocity which underlies them is breached. The rules of verbal and nonverbal conduct associated with them are formulated, and the social function they play in delineating and reaffirming the boundaries of a child's larger, diffuse affiliative group is discussed. (Ethnography of communication, interaction rituals, exchange, communication competence, peer group culture)
Robustness from structure: Inference with hierarchical spiking networks on analog neuromorphic hardware

How spiking networks are able to perform probabilistic inference is an intriguing question, not only for understanding information processing in the brain, but also for transferring these computational principles to neuromorphic silicon circuits. A number of computationally powerful spiking network models have been proposed, but most of them have only been tested, under ideal conditions, in software simulations. Any implementation in an analog, physical system, be it in vivo or in silico, will generally lead to distorted dynamics due to the physical properties of the underlying substrate. In this paper, we discuss several such distortive effects that are difficult or impossible to remove by classical calibration routines or parameter training. We then argue that hierarchical networks of leaky integrate-and-fire neurons can offer the required robustness for physical implementation and demonstrate this with both software simulations and emulation on an accelerated analog neuromorphic device.
The Role of Tangible Interaction in Exploring Information on Public Visualization Displays

A rising number of public displays are becoming equipped with tangible interfaces. Especially in the context of the visualization of data in the public realm, offering tangible interaction modalities might actively attract and engage passer-bys, and lead to increased information discovery. We therefore present a novel public visualization installation that deploys different forms of tangible interaction in combination with a public display in order to communicate civic data to a lay audience. During a comparative, deployment-based study in an urban context, we compared three distinct tangible interaction modalities in terms of the types of engagement and insight generation they facilitated. We report on our findings and discuss a number of design recommendations for tangible interaction on public information displays.
Conductivity measurements of MFCG armature material under shock and high strain rates utilizing a split-hopkinson pressure bar apparatus

Modeling and characterization of a Magnetic Flux Compression Generator (MFCG) requires detailed knowledge of the changes in conductivity of the MFCG materials during the shock-loading phase. A Split-Hopkinson Pressure Bar apparatus (SHPB) and current source/ differential amplifier setup was used to study shock-loading under controlled conditions while monitoring changes in resistivity in armature material samples. The SHPB apparatus was capable of producing strain rates up to the fracture limit of the samples tested. Actual fracturing of samples would not have allowed detailed analysis of thermal and mechanical effects in sample resistivity changes. Sample strain rate levels of up to lx104 strain sec-¿ were achieved with the apparatus on OFHC copper and aluminum samples.
Postmenopausal obesity: 12,500 steps per day as a remedy? Relationships between body composition and daily steps in postmenopausal women

Introduction To verify relationships between physical activity (steps per day) and obesity (components of body composition) among postmenopausal women. Material and methods Physical activity (ActiGraph GT1M accelerometer; worn for 7 days) and obesity (body composition analyzer InBody 720) were assessed among 79 healthy postmenopausal women (age 63.25 ± 5.51 years; range: 51-81 years). In order to determine differences in body composition in women with different levels of physical activity, one-way analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) was conducted, with age of participants as a covariate. Results Significant intergroup differences in almost all analyzed components of the body composition (weight, body mass index, waist-hip ratio, visceral fat area, body fat mass and percent of body fat) were obtained. Highly active women (≥ 12,500 steps/day) had lower weight and adiposity parameters than those that represented low (< 7,500 steps/day) or somewhat active (7,500-9,999 steps/day) groups. Besides, a noteworthy difference between active (10,000-12,499 steps/day) and low active women was recorded. Noticeably, only in the most active group was the BMI within normal ranges. Conclusions The higher physical activity, the lower obesity in postmenopausal women. The recommended 10,000 steps/day seems insufficient for this age group. Based on the obtained results, postmenopausal women should walk at least 12,500 steps per day to improve their health.
THE DD GENOTYPE OF THE ACE GENE POLYMORPHISM IS ASSOCIATED WITH DIABETIC NEPHROPATHY IN TYPE-1 DIABETICS

Genetic factors are involved in the development of diabetic nephropathy in type-1 diabetes. We are examining the association of the angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE), insertion/deletion (I/D) polymorphism with the presence of diabetic nephropathy in type-1 diabetic patients. 52 type-1 diabetic patients with diabetic nephropathy (30 with either microalbuminuria or macroalbuminuria and 22 with end stage renal disease on dialysis) were compared with 10 type-1 diabetic patients with normoalbuminuria and duration of disease longer than 15 years and 27 non-diabetic healthy subjects. We found that the D-allele frequency was higher in patients with nephropathy than in the healthy and normoalbuminuric controls. There was an association in the DD polymorphism of the ACE gene with patients with diabetic nephropathy and not with the control subjects. We conclude that the DD genotype of ACE gene polymorphism is associated with diabetic nephropathy in patients with type-1 diabetes mellitus.
National élites, national masses: oral history and the (re)production of the Welsh nation

The paper examines the distinction that has been made in the social science literature on nationalism between national élites and national masses. While the distinction is useful as a way of beginning to conceptualize the mechanisms through which nations and nationalisms are (re)produced, it can also underplay the significance of the iterative relationship that exists between national élites and national masses. We argue that detailed empirical research can enable us to complicate the historical geographies that lead to the production and reproduction of nations. As a way of illustrating the saliency of these claims, we focus on the nationalist agitation—with respect to the campaign for a Welsh higher education—that was taking place in the University College and town of Aberystwyth during the late 1960s and early 1970s. Oral history research with members of the national élite and the national masses, who were active within this campaign, enables us to show the poly-vocal production of the Welsh nation at this time.
Learning Style Preferences of Gifted, Average-Ability, and Special Needs Students: A Multivariate Perspective

Abstract The purpose of this study was to determine if there were differences in the learning style preferences of gifted, average-ability, and special needs students. One hundred seventy-two elementary school students from two large school jurisdictions from a large urban area in Western Canada were administered the Dunn, Dunn, & Price (1985) Learning Style Inventory (LSI). A multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) was performed. Type of Learner (Gifted, Average-Ability, Special Needs) and Gender were the independent variables. The 22 scales of the LSI served as dependent variables. Discriminant analysis was used to follow up each significant multivariate F ratio. Significant main effects were found for both Type of Learner and Gender. Results of the discriminant analyses indicated that gifted students preferred learning alone, being self-motivated, and using tactile approaches to learning. Males preferred peer-oriented learning situations.
Re-enter the United Nations: A role for the Peacebuilding Commission in East Timor?

On 23 June 2006 the UN proudly launched its Peacebuilding Commission (PBC) seeking to reverse a situation where international efforts to rebuild war-torn societies had, more often than not, failed. Mindful of such cases as Haiti, Cambodia, Somalia, and Liberia, where security deteriorated once international support was withdrawn, obviously the drafters of the PBC had much to learn from the East Timor (Timor-Leste) example. This was highlighted by the massive civil unrest sparked off in East Timor in early 2006, returning to world attention in February 2008 with the near assassination of the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste (RDTL) president and the continuing humanitarian crisis.Initially, only Burundi and Sierra Leone came under the purview of the PCB, although emergency funding had also been advanced to Ivory Coast and the Central African Republic. In December 2007, Guinea-Bissau, became the third country to win PBC support as a state in danger of backsliding into violence. Given the ad hoc nature of past UN missions in East Timor/Timor-Leste, the hybrid character of security operations conducted independent of the UN flag, and the general lack of governance capacity inside the new nation, this article explicitly argues in favor of extending PBC commitment to Timor-Leste.
Multi Path Based on Cache Notification Algorithm in Wireless Sensor Networks

The congestions in wireless sensor networks have two types: link congestion and node congestion. The primary method for congestion avoidance is to control sending rate, through the mechanism of distribution rate and cache notification. Multi path is the primary method for guaranteeing transmission reliability in wireless sensor networks. Aiming at the node congestion, MPCN-multi path based on cache notification algorithm is presented. Comprehensive simulations have validated the distinguished performance in reliability and throughput. Keywords-WSN; congestion control; cache notification; multi path
Application of Mathematical Morphology to automatically extract roads on radar images

The new constellation of remote sensing satellite COSMO/SkyMed will guarantee a combination of spatial and temporal resolution never reached by previously systems. The full exploitation of this system can allow the development of new applications, like these aiming at providing insight into the magnitude of a disaster and a detailed assessment of the damages as required by first responders for planning relief actions.
Threat analysis and misuse patterns of federated inter-cloud systems

We have previously proposed a new type of pattern, the misuse pattern. The misuse pattern describes how a misuse is performed from the point of view of the attacker, what system units it uses and how, provides ways of stopping the attack by enumerating possible security patterns that can be applied for this purpose, and provides forensic information. A catalog of misuse patterns is needed to let designers evaluate their designs with respect to possible threats. On the other hand, Inter-Cloud systems grow in popularity, and some of them are federated Inter-Clouds, which allow their Service Providers to share resources when needed. We present here a misuse pattern for this kind of system. The possibility of using a false Service offered by a malicious Service Provider could lead to the leakage of information. The purpose of this paper is threefold. First, analyze the federated Inter-Cloud proposals in order to determine a list of Actors and their respective use cases. Second, describe how to reveal threats from the use cases. In third place, add a new misuse to the misuse catalog for federated Inter-Cloud systems. These misuse patterns will be used to improve the design of federated Inter-Cloud systems.
A manually curated ChIP-seq benchmark demonstrates room for improvement in current peak-finder programs

Chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) followed by high throughput sequencing (ChIP-seq) is rapidly becoming the method of choice for discovering cell-specific transcription factor binding locations genome wide. By aligning sequenced tags to the genome, binding locations appear as peaks in the tag profile. Several programs have been designed to identify such peaks, but program evaluation has been difficult due to the lack of benchmark data sets. We have created benchmark data sets for three transcription factors by manually evaluating a selection of potential binding regions that cover typical variation in peak size and appearance. Performance of five programs on this benchmark showed, first, that external control or background data was essential to limit the number of false positive peaks from the programs. However, >80% of these peaks could be manually filtered out by visual inspection alone, without using additional background data, showing that peak shape information is not fully exploited in the evaluated programs. Second, none of the programs returned peak-regions that corresponded to the actual resolution in ChIP-seq data. Our results showed that ChIP-seq peaks should be narrowed down to 100–400 bp, which is sufficient to identify unique peaks and binding sites. Based on these results, we propose a meta-approach that gives improved peak definitions.
Factors Influencing Flicker Sensitivity: A Review

Recent literature on sensitivity measurements of flicker is briefly reviewed and its relevance for psychopharmacological research is discussed. One of the important factors for meas uring flicker sensitivity is the applieation of Fourier's theorem to the analysis of visual stimuli; abrief account of this meth od is given. Subsequent sections describe how certain physi cal parameters of a flickering field (e
Spatial Multiplexing in the Multi-User MIMO Downlink Based on Signal-to-Leakage Ratios

Spatial multiplexing in the multi-user MIMO (MU-MIMO) downlink allows each user in the system to receive multiple data subchannels simultaneously using the same time and spectral resources. In this paper, we propose an iterative interference minimization scheme for the MU-MIMO downlink which is capable of transmitting multiple data subchannels to each user, at a relaxed constraint compared to schemes that rely on perfect cancellation of the co-channel interference (CCI). The proposed scheme minimizes inter-user interference (IUI) based on signal-to-leakage ratio (SLR) maximization and performs subchannel decoupling to eliminate the inter-symbol interference (ISI) within each user's signal.
Teachers’ experiences of engagement with and in educational research: what can be learned from teachers’ views?

In this paper, we explore what is known about teachers’ engagement in and with educational research with a special emphasis on teachers’ voice evoking their experience of participating in research. This will draw upon international contexts in order to suggest ways of utilising the benefits of research in practice. Our review is framed around five key themes between which there are interesting links. The first theme is purpose and consequence, which highlights the dimensions of teachers’ control and autonomy. This is related to the second theme—teachers’ learning and affective response. The third theme, agency, addresses the contextual factors influencing teachers’ experience of research, which opens up the fourth theme concerning the degree of trust and collaboration that is experienced by teacher researchers. The final theme is contradiction. This phenomenon is understood in the context of socio-cultural theory in that the teacher researcher is evolving practice and questioning the focus on aggregate examination results/targets and its associated technology. While the available evidence of teachers’ experience of research is overwhelmingly positive, providing an acceleration of professional understanding and new perspectives, which re-invigorates those teachers who do engage, it is not always experienced as such. Overall, we underline the importance of dialogic approaches and ecological agency, which relate to teachers’ multi-dimensional perceptions of and participation in research.
Politics and Freedom

True freedom involves choices whose scope is not limited in advance by a particular dogma. When we attempt to understand it, a number of questions arise. It is unclear, for example, how the openness of real choice can fit into the organized structures of political life. What prevents the expressions of freedom from disrupting this life? What sets limits to their arbitrariness? The general question here concerns the adaptability of freedom to a political context. In this paper, I argue that freedom is inherently political because its origin is social. It gains its content from the multiple interactions that make up social life.
Molecular Analysis of Potential Hinge Residues in the Inactivation Gate of Brain Type IIA Na+ Channels

During inactivation of Na+ channels, the intracellular loop connecting domains III and IV is thought to fold into the channel protein and occlude the pore through interaction of the hydrophobic motif isoleucine-phenylalanine-methionine (IFM) with a receptor site. We have searched for amino acid residues flanking the IFM motif which may contribute to formation of molecular hinges that allow this motion of the inactivation gate. Site-directed mutagenesis of proline and glycine residues, which often are components of molecular hinges in proteins, revealed that G1484, G1485, P1512, P1514, and P1516 are required for normal fast inactivation. Mutations of these residues slow the time course of macroscopic inactivation. Single channel analysis of mutations G1484A, G1485A, and P1512A showed that the slowing of macroscopic inactivation is produced by increases in open duration and latency to first opening. These mutant channels also show a higher probability of entering a slow gating mode in which their inactivation is further impaired. The effects on gating transitions in the pathway to open Na+ channels indicate conformational coupling of activation to transitions in the inactivation gate. The results are consistent with the hypothesis that these glycine and proline residues contribute to hinge regions which allow movement of the inactivation gate during the inactivation process of Na+ channels.
Integrating Climate Change Resilience Features into the Incremental Refinement of an Existing Marine Park

Marine protected area (MPA) designs are likely to require iterative refinement as new knowledge is gained. In particular, there is an increasing need to consider the effects of climate change, especially the ability of ecosystems to resist and/or recover from climate-related disturbances, within the MPA planning process. However, there has been limited research addressing the incorporation of climate change resilience into MPA design. This study used Marxan conservation planning software with fine-scale shallow water (<20 m) bathymetry and habitat maps, models of major benthic communities for deeper water, and comprehensive human use information from Ningaloo Marine Park in Western Australia to identify climate change resilience features to integrate into the incremental refinement of the marine park. The study assessed the representation of benthic habitats within the current marine park zones, identified priority areas of high resilience for inclusion within no-take zones and examined if any iterative refinements to the current no-take zones are necessary. Of the 65 habitat classes, 16 did not meet representation targets within the current no-take zones, most of which were in deeper offshore waters. These deeper areas also demonstrated the highest resilience values and, as such, Marxan outputs suggested minor increases to the current no-take zones in the deeper offshore areas. This work demonstrates that inclusion of fine-scale climate change resilience features within the design process for MPAs is feasible, and can be applied to future marine spatial planning practices globally.
Naïve Bayes ensemble: A new approach to classifying unlabeled multi-class asthma subjects

Heterogeneity of complex human diseases makes it difficult to control and treat diseases effectively. Recent clinical efforts involve redefining subtypes of the diseases using cluster analysis. However, follow-up studies for the new clusters/subtypes identified from these efforts have been limited by the fact that clinical datasets collected from different times and cohorts often have different subjects and variables. A typical way to address this problem is to use only the common subjects and the variables among the datasets for analysis, which will inevitably result in loss of power and information. In this work, we developed a supervised learning strategy and a new classification algorithm called Naïve Bayes ensemble, which can classify unlabeled subjects from a new dataset into the clusters/subtypes previously identified from an earlier dataset so that one can make full use of the new dataset for further analysis. The Naïve Bayes ensemble employs a probability framework to summarize votes from single classifiers and take into account misclassification rates of each class predicted by each single classifier. We also propose a procedure to automatically select single classifiers to be included in the ensemble, which are based on both classification performance and the diversity of the single classifiers. The Naïve Bayes ensemble outperforms 7 single classifiers and other ensemble methods when we evaluated their performance using leave-one-out cross validation (LOOCV) on our asthma clinical datasets. Furthermore, using biological functional validation, our results show that the supervised learning strategy and the Naïve Bayes ensemble we proposed can indeed greatly increase the power of the downstream analysis and help yield biologically/clinically meaningful results.