Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The effect of same-age and mixed-age grouping in day care on parent-child attachment security.

In this pilot study we investigated the effect on parent-child attachment relationships of same-age versus mixed-age grouping in daycare centers in the Netherlands. For 45 children in the age range of 2 to 6 years, parent-child attachment relationships were assessed by means of the Attachment Q-Sort. It was found that attachment security did not differ significantly for children who had been in mixed-age or in same-age grouping, or who had experienced a change of daycare center.
Compressed bitmap indexes: beyond unions and intersections

Compressed bitmap indexes are used to speed up simple aggregate queries in databases. Indeed, set operations like intersections, unions and complements can be represented as logical operations (AND, OR and NOT) that are ideally suited for bitmaps. However, it is less obvious how to apply bitmaps to more advanced queries. For example, we might seek products in a store that meet some, but maybe not all, criteria. Such threshold queries generalize intersections and unions; they are often used in information‐retrieval and data‐mining applications. We introduce new algorithms that are sometimes three orders of magnitude faster than a naïve approach. Our work shows that bitmap indexes are more broadly applicable than is commonly believed. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
A Study of LoRa: Long Range & Low Power Networks for the Internet of Things

LoRa is a long-range, low-power, low-bitrate, wireless telecommunications system, promoted as an infrastructure solution for the Internet of Things: end-devices use LoRa across a single wireless hop to communicate to gateway(s), connected to the Internet and which act as transparent bridges and relay messages between these end-devices and a central network server. This paper provides an overview of LoRa and an in-depth analysis of its functional components. The physical and data link layer performance is evaluated by field tests and simulations. Based on the analysis and evaluations, some possible solutions for performance enhancements are proposed.
Verifying efficient function calls in CakeML

We have designed an intermediate language (IL) for the CakeML compiler that supports the verified, efficient compilation of functions and calls. Verified compilation steps include batching of multiple curried arguments, detecting calls to statically known functions, and specialising calls to known functions with no free variables. Finally, we verify the translation to a lower-level IL that only supports closed, first-order functions. These compilation steps resemble those found in other compilers (especially OCaml). Our contribution here is the design of the semantics of the IL, and the demonstration that our verification techniques over this semantics work well in practice at this scale. The entire development was carried out in the HOL4 theorem prover.
Degradation of Postsynaptic Scaffold GKAP and Regulation of Dendritic Spine Morphology by the TRIM3 Ubiquitin Ligase in Rat Hippocampal Neurons

Changes in neuronal activity modify the structure of dendritic spines and alter the function and protein composition of synapses. Regulated degradation of postsynaptic density (PSD) proteins by the ubiquitin-proteasome system is believed to play an important role in activity-dependent synaptic remodeling. Stimulating neuronal activity in vitro and in vivo induces the ubiquitination and degradation of GKAP/SAPAP and Shank, major scaffold proteins of the PSD. However, the specific ubiquitin ligases that regulate postsynaptic protein composition have not been identified. Here we identify the RING finger-containing protein TRIM3 as a specific E3 ubiquitin ligase for the PSD scaffold GKAP/SAPAP1. Present in PSD fractions from rat brain, TRIM3 stimulates ubiquitination and proteasome-dependent degradation of GKAP, and induces the loss of GKAP and associated scaffold Shank1 from postsynaptic sites. Suppression of endogenous TRIM3 by RNA interference (RNAi) results in increased accumulation of GKAP and Shank1 at synapses, as well as enlargement of dendritic spine heads. RNAi of TRIM3 also prevented the loss of GKAP induced by synaptic activity. Thus, TRIM3 is a novel E3 ligase that mediates activity-dependent turnover of PSD scaffold proteins and is a negative regulator of dendritic spine morphology.
Uplink acquisition of a new user accessing a fixed wireless DS-CDMA system

In this paper, we consider synchronization and detection in a space-time bit-interleaved coded modulation (BICM) scheme for an asynchronous direct-sequence code division multiple access (DS-CDMA) uplink transmission over static frequency selective channels for fixed wireless transmission. We propose a strategy to synchronize and detect a new user accessing the system by exploiting the knowledge of the synchronization parameters of previously synchronized users. In this way, we can synchronize one user at a time and hereby avoid complex multi-dimensional optimization problems. To limit the number of pilot symbols required for this problem, we exploit all available information, i.e., pilot symbols and the unknown coded symbols of all users. We resort to the iterative space alternating generalized expectation maximization (SAGE) algorithm to tackle this problem in a systematic manner.
Towards effective improvement of the Bayesian Belief Network Structure learning

Summary form only given.The Bayesian Belief Network (BBN) is a very powerful tool for causal relationship modeling and probabilistic reasoning. A BBN has two components. First is its structure a directed acyclic graph (DAG) whose nodes represent random variables and whose arcs represent the dependencies between the variables. The second component is its parameter in the form of Conditional Probability Tables (CPTs). The BBN is widely used in many different areas, excelling itself in Prediction, Risk Analysis, Diagnosis and Decision Support.
Mitochondrial function in intact skeletal muscle fibres of creatine kinase deficient mice

Creatine kinase (CK) has a central role in skeletal muscle, acting as a fast energy buffer and shuttle between sites of energy production (mitochondria) and consumption (cross‐bridges and ion pumps). Unexpectedly, isolated fast‐twitch skeletal muscle cells of mice deficient in both cytosolic and mitochondrial CK (CK‐/‐) are highly fatigue resistant during stimulation protocols that stress aerobic metabolism. We have now studied different aspects of mitochondrial function in CK‐/‐ skeletal muscle. Intact, single fibres of flexor digitorum brevis (FDB) muscles were fatigued by repeated tetanic stimulation (70 Hz, 350 ms duration, duty cycle 0.14). Under control conditions, CK‐/‐ FDB fibres were more fatigue resistant than wild‐type fibres. However, after mitochondrial inhibition with cyanide, force declined markedly faster in CK‐/‐ fibres than in wild‐type fibres. The rapid force decline in CK‐/‐ fibres was not due to decreased myoplasmic [Ca2+] during tetani (measured with indo‐1), which in these fibres remained virtually constant during fatigue in the presence of cyanide. Intact, single fibres of highly oxidative soleus muscles were fatigued by repeated tetani (50 Hz, 500 ms duration, duty cycle 0.5). All CK‐/‐ soleus fibres tested (n= 9) produced > 40% force at the end of the fatiguing stimulation period (500 tetani), whereas force fell to < 40% before 500 tetani in two of three wild‐type fibres. Mitochondrial [Ca2+] (measured with rhod‐2 and confocal microscopy) increased during repeated tetanic stimulation in CK‐/‐ but not in wild‐type FDB fibres. In conclusion, mitochondria and energy shuttling operate effectively in CK‐/‐ fibres and this is associated with an increase in mitochondrial [Ca2+].
Multiple Novel Prostate Cancer Predisposition Loci Confirmed by an International Study: The PRACTICAL Consortium

A recent genome-wide association study found that genetic variants on chromosomes 3, 6, 7, 10, 11, 19 and X were associated with prostate cancer risk. We evaluated the most significant single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) in these loci using a worldwide consortium of 13 groups (PRACTICAL). Blood DNA from 7,370 prostate cancer cases and 5,742 male controls was analyzed by genotyping assays. Odds ratios (OR) associated with each genotype were estimated using unconditional logistic regression. Six of the seven SNPs showed clear evidence of association with prostate cancer (P = 0.0007-P = 10−17). For each of these six SNPs, the estimated per-allele OR was similar to those previously reported and ranged from 1.12 to 1.29. One SNP on 3p12 (rs2660753) showed a weaker association than previously reported [per-allele OR, 1.08 (95% confidence interval, 1.00-1.16; P = 0.06) versus 1.18 (95% confidence interval, 1.06-1.31)]. The combined risks associated with each pair of SNPs were consistent with a multiplicative risk model. Under this model, and in combination with previously reported SNPs on 8q and 17q, these loci explain 16% of the familial risk of the disease, and men in the top 10% of the risk distribution have a 2.1-fold increased risk relative to general population rates. This study provides strong confirmation of these susceptibility loci in multiple populations and shows that they make an important contribution to prostate cancer risk prediction. (Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2008;17(8):2052–61)
Modeling of the Bacterial Growth Curve

Several sigmoidal functions (logistic, Gompertz, Richards, Schnute, and Stannard) were compared to describe a bacterial growth curve. They were compared statistically by using the model of Schnute, which is a comprehensive model, encompassing all other models. The t test and the F test were used. With the t test, confidence intervals for parameters can be calculated and can be used to distinguish between models. In the F test, the lack of fit of the models is compared with the measuring error. Moreover, the models were compared with respect to their ease of use. All sigmoidal functions were modified so that they contained biologically relevant parameters. The models of Richards, Schnute, and Stannard appeared to be basically the same equation. In the cases tested, the modified Gompertz equation was statistically sufficient to describe the growth data of Lactobacillus plantarum and was easy to use.
Isolation and Characterization of CvIV4: A Pain Inducing α- Scorpion Toxin

Background Among scorpion species, the Buthidae produce the most deadly and painful venoms. However, little is known regarding the venom components that cause pain and their mechanism of action. Using a paw-licking assay (Mus musculus), this study compared the pain-inducing capabilities of venoms from two species of New World scorpion (Centruroides vittatus, C. exilicauda) belonging to the neurotoxin-producing family Buthidae with one species of non-neurotoxin producing scorpion (Vaejovis spinigerus) in the family Vaejovidae. A pain-inducing α-toxin (CvIV4) was isolated from the venom of C. vittatus and tested on five Na+ channel isoforms. Principal Findings C. vittatus and C. exilicauda venoms produced significantly more paw licking in Mus than V. spinigerus venom. CvIV4 produced paw licking in Mus equivalent to the effects of whole venom. CvIV4 slowed the fast inactivation of Nav1.7, a Na+ channel expressed in peripheral pain-pathway neurons (nociceptors), but did not affect the Nav1.8-based sodium currents of these neurons. CvIV4 also slowed the fast inactivation of Nav1.2, Nav1.3 and Nav1.4. The effects of CvIV4 are similar to Old World α-toxins that target Nav1.7 (AahII, BmK MI, LqhIII, OD1), however the primary structure of CvIV4 is not similar to these toxins. Mutant Nav1.7 channels (D1586A and E1589Q, DIV S3–S4 linker) reduced but did not abolish the effects of CvIV4. Conclusions This study: 1) agrees with anecdotal evidence suggesting that buthid venom is significantly more painful than non-neurotoxic venom; 2) demonstrates that New World buthids inflict painful stings via toxins that modulate Na+ channels expressed in nociceptors; 3) reveals that Old and New World buthids employ similar mechanisms to produce pain. Old and New World α-toxins that target Nav1.7 have diverged in sequence, but the activity of these toxins is similar. Pain-inducing toxins may have evolved in a common ancestor. Alternatively, these toxins may be the product of convergent evolution.
Performance of turbo coded partial response quaternary CPM over correlated fading channels

This paper investigates the performance of a turbo coded system transmitted over correlated flat fading channels using quaternary partial response continuous phase modulation (CPM). The system provides an attractive option for spectral efficient communications systems. We consider both Rayleigh and Rician fading and compare the performances of a maximum a posteriori (MAP) algorithm and a soft output Viterbi algorithm (SOVA). The paper considers the hybrid concatenation of a parallel designed turbo encoder and a partial response quaternary CPM modulator. Based on the decomposition theory of CPM, the quaternary CPM modulator is decomposed into a quaternary ring continuous phase encoder (CPE) and a memoryless modulator (MM). This allows a quaternary convolutional encoder to be combined with the CPE without the need of a mapper. The hybrid design combined with iterative decoding yield very good performances. The results show the considerable superiority of the MAP algorithm to that of the SOVA.
Deliberative Democracy and “Human Nature”: An Empirical Approach

The idea of deliberative democracy is based upon an implicit and questionable assumption that the ability for a meaningful participation in deliberation is a common characteristic of citizens of democratic countries. This paper discusses that assumption and describes the results of empirical research aimed at finding out (1) whether ordinary people are able to solve important ideological and moral controversies by means of deliberation, (2) what factors may facilitate this process, and (3) what are the effects of the deliberation. The research consisted in studying 20 small groups of parents of school-aged children who were asked to participate in a debate about sex education in Polish schools (N = 195). The debates were conducted by a facilitator. Before and after the debate participants filled out questionnaires testing their attitudes and some psychological variables. The debates were recorded on videotapes. We found that it is possible to conduct a debate on ideologically contentious issues that meets some criteria of the deliberative functioning and such a debate may have some of the effects postulated by deliberative theorists.
Pre-Professional Skills Test Scores as College of Education Admission Criteria

Abstract The authors examined aspects of concurrent, predictive, and consequential validity evidence of the Pre-Professional Skills Test (PPST) scores as college of education admission criteria. American College Test (ACT) scores and PPST subtest scores of 372 graduates, and PPST scores, undergraduate grade point averages (GPAs), and student-teaching ratings of 1,062 graduates of a southwestern urban teacher education program were investigated. Findings of correlation and hierarchical regression analyses suggest evidence of a concurrent relationship between corresponding PPST and ACT subtest scores, no predictive relationship between PPST scores and student-teaching ratings, and a weak predictive relationship between PPST scores and student undergraduate GPAs. In addition, a differential impact of the use of the PPST on ethnic minorities was apparent. The plausibility of waiving PPST requirements for applicants with above-average ACT subtest scores is discussed.
Local voices, global issues: a comparative study of the perceptions student teachers hold in relation to their pre‐service education in the United States of America, England, and the United Arab Emirates

idea that is difficult to define (Winch, 2004). In teaching there is often a binary created concerning knowledge between the declarative and procedural knowledge that is fundamental to teaching. Noddings (1984) attempts to collapse and trouble this binary by examining how we can relate the content knowledge to the ‘real’ world of classroom teaching and, in the process, create an applied knowledge that has practical purpose within the practical field of teaching. This may be possible, but the lack of organization to order relevant knowledge related to teaching is a limiting factor in the field (Goodlad, 1991). Like many other professions, teaching, and learning to teach, is cumulative in nature and teachers learn from their previous experiences and, ideally, use this gained knowledge to filter future teaching and learning (Greene and Magliaro, 2005). This constructivist approach to teaching, the formation of the practice as one progresses through the experience (Chen, 2001), follows a view that teaching is an extension of individual personality (Smith, 1971). If this is the case, is it possible to have a knowledge base for teaching? If teaching is a personal endeavor, albeit carried out in a very public arena, where can a teacher or
Erythropoietin prevention trial of coronary restenosis and cardiac remodeling after ST-elevated acute myocardial infarction (EPOC-AMI): a pilot, randomized, placebo-controlled study.

BACKGROUND Erythropoietin (EPO) enhances re-endothelialization and anti-apoptotic action. Larger clinical studies to examine the effects of high-dose EPO are in progress in patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI). METHODS AND RESULTS The aim of this multi-center pilot study was to investigate the effect of `low-dose EPO' (6,000 IU during percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), 24 h and 48 h) in 35 patients with a first ST-elevated AMI undergoing PCI who was randomly assigned to EPO or placebo (saline) treatment. Neointimal volume, cardiac function and infarct size were examined in the acute phase and 6 months later (ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT00423020). No significant regression in in-stent neointimal volume was observed, whereas left ventricular (LV) ejection fraction was significantly improved (49.2% to 55.7%, P=0.003) and LV end-systolic volume was decreased in the EPO group (47.7 ml to 39.0 ml, P=0.036). LV end-diastolic volume tended to be reduced from 90.2% to 84.5% (P=0.159), whereas in the control group it was inversely increased (91.7% to 93.7%, P=0.385). Infarction sizes were significantly reduced by 38.5% (P=0.003) but not in the control group (23.7%, P=0.051). Hemoglobin, peak creatine kinase values, and CD34(+)/CD133(+)/CD45(dim) endothelial progenitors showed no significant changes. No adverse events were observed during study periods. CONCLUSIONS This is a first study demonstrating that short-term `low-dose' EPO to PCI-treated AMI patients did not prevent neointimal hyperplasia but rather improved cardiac function and infarct size without any clinical adverse effects.
Cultural Capital, Educational Attainment, and Marital Selection

Although Weber distinguished sharply between "class" (an individual's market position) and "status" (participation in a collectivity bound together by a shared status culture), only measures of the former have been included in most empirical analyses of the stratification process. In this article a measure of status-culture participation (or cultural capital) is developed from the responses of men and women interviewed in 1960 by Project Talent. Questions tapped a range of high-cultural interests and activities. Analyses of data from a follow-up study 11 years later show significant effects of cultural capital (with appropriate controls) on educational attainment, college attendence, college completion, graduate attendance, and marital selection for both men and women.
A novel mechanism of control of NF&kgr;B activation and inflammation involving A2B adenosine receptors

Summary The nuclear factor kappa B (NF&kgr;B) pathway controls a variety of processes, including inflammation, and thus, the regulation of NF&kgr;B has been a continued focus of study. Here, we report a newly identified regulation of this pathway, involving direct binding of the transcription factor NF&kgr;B1 (the p105 subunit of NF&kgr;B) to the C-terminus of the A2B adenosine receptor (A2BAR), independent of ligand activation. Intriguingly, binding of A2BAR to specific sites on p105 prevents polyubiquitylation and degradation of p105 protein. Ectopic expression of the A2BAR increases p105 levels and inhibits NF&kgr;B activation, whereas p105 protein levels are reduced in cells from A2BAR-knockout mice. In accordance with the known regulation of expression of anti- and pro-inflammatory cytokines by p105, A2BAR-null mice generate less interleukin (IL)-10, and more IL-12 and tumor necrosis factor (TNF-&agr;). Taken together, our results show that the A2BAR inhibits NF&kgr;B activation by physically interacting with p105, thereby blocking its polyubiquitylation and degradation. Our findings unveil a surprising function for the A2BAR, and provide a novel mechanistic insight into the control of the NF&kgr;B pathway and inflammation.
Anoxia, acidosis, and intergenic interactions selectively regulate methionine sulfoxide reductase transcriptions in mouse embryonic stem cells

Methionine sulfoxide reductases (Msr) belong to a gene family that contains one MsrA and three MsrBs (MsrB1, MsrB2, and MsrB3). We have identified all four of the genes that are expressed in mouse embryonic stem cell cultures. The vital cellular functions of the Msr family of genes are to protect cells from oxidative damage by enzymatically reducing the oxidized sulfide groups of methionine residues in proteins from the sulfoxide form (SO) back to sulfide thus restoring normal protein functions as well as reducing intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS). We have performed studies on the Msr family genes to examine the regulation of gene expression. Our studies using real‐time RT‐PCR and Western blotting have shown that expression levels of the four Msr family genes are under differential regulation by anoxia/reoxygenation treatment, acidic culture conditions and interactions between MsrA and MsrB. Results from these in vitro experiments suggest that although these genes function as a whole in oxidative stress protection, each one of the Msr genes could be responsive to environmental stimulants differently at the tissue level. J. Cell. Biochem. 112: 98–106, 2011. © 2010 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
A Power-Efficient Highly Linear Reconfigurable Biopotential Sensing Amplifier Using Gate-Balanced Pseudoresistors

A low-power reconfigurable biopotential sensing amplifier with highly linear feedback pseudoresistors is presented. Due to the gate-balanced pseudoresistors, amplifier linearity has been significantly improved, achieving a dynamic range more than 62.8 dB, with total harmonic distortion better than 60 dB across the whole bandwidth. An array of proposed amplifiers was fabricated in a 0.35-μm CMOS process. Measured input-referred noise is 2.81 μV rms with a midband gain of 40.3 dB. The noise efficiency factors corresponding to the bandwidth settings of 100 Hz, 1 kHz, and 10 kHz are 1.88, 1.93, and 2.05, respectively. Using a supply voltage of 2.5 V, each amplifier consumes 3.6 μA of current to achieve a bandwidth of 10 kHz, with a dynamic range of 63.7 dB. The electrocardiogram (ECG) measurement results are shown in this brief to substantiate the necessary low-frequency linearity improvement.