Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Superior Plasma Retention of a Cross-Linked Human Serum Albumin Dimer in Nephrotic Rats as a New Type of Plasma Expander

Human serum albumin (HSA) is used clinically as a plasma expander in patients with hypoalbuminemia and can also function as a drug carrier. However, the administered HSA is readily eliminated from the blood circulation under pathological conditions, especially the nephrotic syndrome. In this study, we present data on the pharmacokinetics of a structurally defined HSA dimer [two HSA molecules that are cross-linked by reaction with 1,6-bis(maleimido)hexane via Cys34] in nephrotic rats and its superior circulation persistence, owing to the molecular size effect. The half-time (t1/2) of the HSA dimer persisted in the circulation 1.3 times longer than that of monomeric HSA in normal rats, primarily because of the suppression of the accumulation of the HSA dimer in the skin and muscle. In nephrotic rats, the t1/2 of the HSA monomer decreased considerably, whereas the HSA dimer remained unaltered in the blood stream, similar to that for normal rats. As a result, the t1/2 of the HSA dimer was 2-fold longer than that of the HSA monomer. This longer t1/2 can be attributed to the fact that accumulation in the kidney and urinary excretion of the HSA dimer were significantly suppressed. The cross-linked HSA dimer shows a longer blood circulation than native HSA monomer in nephrotic rats, which can be attributed to the suppression of renal filtration and leakage into the extravascular space. This HSA dimer has the potential for use as a drug carrier, new plasma expander, and an artificial albumin-based oxygen carrier under a high glomerular permeability condition such as nephrosis.
Incorporating User Reviews as Implicit Feedback for Improving Recommender Systems

Recommendation systems have become extremely common in recent years due to the ubiquity of information across various applications. Online entertainment (e.g., Netflix), E-commerce (e.g., Amazon, Ebay) and publishing services such as Google News are all examples of services which use recommender systems. Recommendation systems are rapidly evolving in these years, but these methods have fallen short in coping with several emerging trends such as likes or votes on reviews. In this paper we have proposed a new method based on collaborative filtering by considering other users' feedback on each review. To validate our approach we have compared our method with several known methods on Yelp data set. Our algorithm outperforms other approaches in terms of accuracy by as much as 9.5%. We also present our results using comparative analysis for particular categories of users and items. Our algorithm has promising results when handling several difficult user and item categories.
Conceptual note: Exploring the cognitive significance of organizational strategizing: A dual-process framework and research agenda

The considerable volume of theory and research that has sought to illuminate the nature and significance of cognitive processes in strategy formulation and implementation represents but an important first step in the re-humanization of strategy research. In order to achieve the sorts of fine-grained analyses that will ultimately advance understanding of cognition in action, strategy researchers need to move beyond the static analysis of actors’ cognitive maps to a deeper understanding of what lies behind the actions of strategists as they engage with particular strategy practices in their praxis. To accomplish this key goal, strategy researchers need to become more reflective in their own practices, augmenting the observational and interview techniques advocated by various leading contributors to the strategy-as-practice (s-as-p) perspective with a profiling of the cognitive characteristics of strategists, based on psychometrically robust procedures. To this end, drawing on dual-process theories from cognitive psychology and social cognition, we outline a basic two-dimensional framework to inform the investigation of the impact of individual differences in cognitive style (analytical and intuitive approaches to the processing of information) on the observed behaviours of strategy workers in strategy-making episodes and consider its implications for the advancement of theory, research and practice.
Ontological Foundations for Scholarly Debate Mapping Technology

Mapping scholarly debates is an important genre of what can be called Knowledge Domain Analytics (KDA) technology --i.e. technology which combines both quantitative and qualitative methods of analysing specialist knowledge domains. However, current KDA technology research has emerged from diverse traditions and thus lacks a common conceptual foundation. This paper reports on the design of a KDA ontology that aims to provide this foundation. The paper then describes the argumentation extensions to the ontology for supporting scholarly debate mapping as a special form of KDA and demonstrates its expressive capabilities using a case study debate.
Time-for-Money Exchanges Between Older and Younger Generations in Swedish Families

Despite the maturation of welfare states, family solidarity continues to be strong and a growing body of research has shown that substantial financial transfers are passed from older to younger generations within the family. At the same time, family solidarity in terms of instrumental and social support is found to be mutual. This study examines eventual reciprocity in time-for-money exchanges, by combining two large-scale Swedish representative longitudinal studies. It analyzes how earlier social contacts (time) are related to financial transfers (money) and to what extent social class and gender differentials are visible. The findings indicate that parents provide economic transfers if they have more frequent social contact with any of their children, and that these time investments pay off for children who were of higher social class origins. In contrast, no support for gender-specific patterns is found. In conclusion, family solidarity seems to have different bases in different social strata.
A Configurable Asynchronous Pseudorandom Bit Sequence Generator

We present a method of building pseudorandom bit sequence (PRBS) generators using coupled asynchronous FIFO rings. A traditional PRBS generator using a linear feedback shift register (LFSR) can only generate a single maximal-length pattern with a fixed period. Our proposed FIFO implementation allows a single circuit to produce many different patterns of different periods, all of which are maximal-length, based on the initialization of the circuit. It also provides intrinsic fine-grain pipelining which alleviates the large feedback logic overhead in configurations with many taps, making such implementations practical. With an asynchronous-to-clocked interface, one can use the circuit in a synchronous environment. Detailed simulation results are presented.
Five-stage procedure for the evaluation of simulation models through statistical techniques

This paper recommends the following sequence for the evaluation of simulation models. 1) Validation: the availability of data on the real system determines the proper type of statistical technique. 2) Screening: in the simulation's pilot phase the important inputs are identified through a novel technique, namely sequential bifurcation, which uses aggregation and sequential experimentation. 3) Sensitivity or what-if analysis: the important inputs are analyzed in more detail, including interactions between inputs; relevant techniques are design of experiments (DOE) and regression analysis. 4) Uncertainty or risk analysis: important environmental inputs may have values not precisely known, so the resulting uncertainties in the model outputs are quantified; techniques are Monte Carlo and Latin hypercube sampling. 5) Optimization: policy variables may be controlled, applying Response Surface Methodology (RSM), which combines DOE, regression analysis, and steepest-ascent hill-climbing. This paper summarizes case studies for each stage.
Why do frequency formats improve Bayesian reasoning? Cognitive algorithms work on information, which needs representation

Abstract In contrast to traditional research on base-rate neglect, an ecologically-oriented research program would analyze the correspondence between cognitive algorithms and the nature of information in the environment. Bayesian computations turn out to be simpler when information is represented in frequency formats as opposed to the probability formats used in previous research. Frequency formats often enable even uninstructed subjects to perform Bayesian reasoning.
An Analysis of Artificial Neural Network Pruning Algorithms in Relation to Land Cover Classification Accuracy

Artificial neural networks (ANNs) have been widely used for many classification purposes and generally proved to be more powerful than conventional statistical techniques. However, the use of ANNs requires decisions on the part of the user which may affect the accuracy of the resulting classification. One of these decisions concerns the determination of the optimum network structure for a particular problem. In fact, network structure has a direct effect on the generalisation capabilities of the network. Pruning techniques can be used to reduce network size and thus improve generalisation capabilities. In this study, a feed-forward artificial neural network learning a classification task by backpropagation algorithm was used to classify agricultural crops from microwave SAR and optical SPOT images. Three major pruning algorithms (magnitude based pruning, optimum brain damage, and optimal brain surgeon) were then analysed to find out their performance and visualised to understand their behavior. Results show that these algorithms can be quite effective, even when the number of links in the network is reduced by around 60%. Comparison of the analyses shows that the optimal brain surgeon algorithm is the most effective and reliable method. Overall, pruning techniques appear to have great potential for future studies.
Hybrid instruction cache partitioning for preemptive real-time systems

Cache memories have been historically avoided in real-time systems because of their unpredictable behavior. In addition to the research focused at obtaining the worst-case execution time of cached programs (typically assuming no preemption), some techniques have been presented to deal with the cache interference due to preemptions (extrinsic or inter-task cache interference). These techniques either account for the extrinsic (cache) interference in the schedulability analysis, or annuls it by partitioning the cache. This paper describes a new technique, hybrid partitioning, which is a mixture of the former two. It either provides a task with a private partition or accounts for the extrinsic interference that may arise. The hybrid technique outperforms the original two for any workload or hardware configuration. In conclusion, it represents a powerful yet general framework for dealing with extrinsic cache interference.
Reduction of pro-tumorigenic activity of human prostate cancer-associated fibroblasts using Dlk1 or SCUBE1

SUMMARY Human prostatic cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) can elicit malignant changes in initiated but non-tumorigenic human prostate epithelium, demonstrating that they possess pro-tumorigenic properties. We set out to reduce the pro-tumorigenic activity of patient CAFs using the Dlk1 and SCUBE1 molecules that we had previously identified in prostate development. Our hypothesis was that mesenchymally expressed molecules might reduce CAF pro-tumorigenic activity, either directly or indirectly. We isolated primary prostatic CAFs and characterised their expression of CAF markers, expression of Notch2, Dlk1 and SCUBE1 transcripts, and confirmed their ability to stimulate BPH1 epithelial cell proliferation. Next, we expressed Dlk1 or SCUBE1 in CAFs and determined their effects upon tumorigenesis in vivo following recombination with BPH1 epithelia and xenografting in SCID mice. Tumour size was reduced by about 75% and BPH1 proliferation was reduced by about 50% after expression of Dlk1 or SCUBE1 in CAFs, and there was also a reduction in invasion of BPH1 epithelia into the host kidney. Inhibition of Notch signalling, using inhibitor XIX, led to a reduction in BPH1 cell proliferation in CAF-BPH1 co-cultures, whereas inhibition of Dlk1 in NIH3T3-conditioned media led to an increase in BPH1 growth. Our results suggest that pro-tumorigenic CAF activity can be reduced by the expression of developmental pathways.
Therapeutic effect of androgen therapy in a mouse model of aplastic anemia produced by short telomeres

Aplastic anemia is a rare but life-threatening disorder characterized by cytopenia in at least two of the three blood lineages. A frequent feature of patients with aplastic anemia is that they have shorter telomeres than those of age-matched controls. Testosterone has been used for over half a century in the treatment of aplastic anemia. However, although remissions are frequent following hormone therapy, the molecular mechanism underlying the response to treatment has remained unknown. Here we explored the possibility that the recently described regulation of telomerase activity by sex hormones may be the mechanism responsible. To this end, we used a mouse model of aplastic anemia induced by short telomeres in the bone marrow compartment. We found that testosterone therapy results in telomerase up-regulation, improved blood counts, and a significant extension of life-span of these mice. Importantly, longitudinal follow-up studies revealed longer telomeres in peripheral blood in mice subjected to hormone treatment. Our results demonstrate that testosterone-mediated telomerase activation can attenuate or reverse aplastic anemia disease progression associated with the presence of short telomeres.
Reconsidering the Marketing Strategies over Social Network - On the Perspective of Network Topology

In this paper, the concept of an interdisciplinary research, including Network Topology and Innovation Diffusion Theory, is presented to reveal the impacts of social network structures on marketing strategies. This paper represents another explanation for Virtual Reality Integration (VRI), that is, as the ¡§randomness¡¨ of a social network increases, more individual (consumers) in this social network will accept the information delivered from the "further" individuals (even strangers) and thus adopt or purchase the products/services. Therefore, by integrating social network marketing, physical logistics/storefront can attract more consumers' attentions.
Soil and Worm: On Eating as Relating

Earthworms and soil combine in an ecotoxicological experiment in the Vrije Universiteit in Amsterdam. To determine the effects of a toxic compound produced by genetically modified broccoli, ecotoxicologists use the earthworm in a standardized test to understand the conditions of the soil. In the experiment a variety of elements are brought together and associated in a stable network, but the worm and the soil do not only associate; rather, the worm emerges entangled in different kinds of relations with the soil, both as bioindicator and as bioturbator. Eating provides a good tool to analyze these relations: keeping close to the tangible materialities of the lab practices, eating highlights the complex, asymmetrical relationality of worm and soil. This pushes the understanding of association that circulates in social theory, bringing back its original critical stance towards given notions of liberal, autonomous agents with renewed empirical strength. Thus eating not only frames worms that emerge from the practices of ecotoxicologists as bioindicators and as bioturbators, but it also offers a different language for what has been called the ‘politics of nature’, or how to bring nature into politics without accepting it as a given. In responding to the question on how to live with our planet, eating reminds us that we would do well to start from practices instead of agency in framing our ‘politics of nature’.
A Qualitative Exploration of Researcher Trauma and Researchers’ Responses to Investigating Sexual Violence

Vicarious trauma can be a problem for those who work and research in areas where clients or participants are survivors of sexual violence. The aim of this study was to explore the trauma experiences of sexual violence researchers from different countries, identifying the issues that traumatized them and the protective strategies they found effective. This article reports on a moderated electronic discussion board run for 4 weeks from September to October 2009 and four purposeful interviews. A total of 15 researchers participated, 4 males and 11 females. Institutions and organizations researching in this area should consider researcher safety in project design.
THE CONSTRUCTION AND RECONSTRUCTION OF A DIALOGICAL SELF

Many contemporary conceptions of the self are, often unwittingly, based on Cartesian notions of the mind as individualized, ahistorical, noncultural, disembodied, and centralized. In opposition to these assumptions, the dialogical self is conceived of as socialized, historical, cultural, embodied, and decentralized. Based on these theoretical considerations, a method is sketched for the assessment and change of the organization of the Personal Position Repertoire (PPR). Finally, therapeutic material is discussed around three topics: the innovation of the self, the creation of a dialogical space, and the development of a metaposition.
Speech bandwidth extension using Gaussian mixture model-based estimation of the highband mel spectrum

The quality and intelligibility of narrowband telephone speech can be enhanced by artifical bandwidth extension. This study combines Gaussian mixture model-based (GMM) mel spectrum extension with a filter bank implementation for generating the missing spectral content in the highband at 4–8 kHz. The narrowband mel spectrum is calculated from input speech and the GMM is used to estimate the mel spectrum in the highband. An excitation signal for the highband is generated as a combination of upsampled linear prediction residual and modulated noise. The excitation is divided into sub-bands that are weighted and summed to realize the estimated mel spectrum. The bandwidth-extended output is obtained as the sum of the artificial highband signal and narrowband speech. Listening tests indicate that this method is preferred over narrowband speech and over a previously presented artificial bandwidth extension method which is implemented in some mobile phone models.
The delay of contrast arrival in magnetic resonance first-pass perfusion imaging: a novel non-invasive parameter detecting collateral-dependent myocardium

Aim: To establish the regional delay of contrast arrival in magnetic resonance perfusion imaging (MRPI) for the detection of collateral-dependent myocardium in patients with coronary artery disease. Design and setting: Observational study, case series; single centre, university hospital. Patients: 30 patients with coronary artery disease and collateral-dependent myocardium and 17 healthy volunteers. Methods: Resting and hyperaemic (adenosine) MRPI was used to determine the delay time (Δtd) of contrast arrival between the left ventricle and collateral-dependent or antegradely perfused myocardium, and myocardial perfusion (MP, ml/min/g). Results: In healthy volunteers, mean (SD) Δtd at rest and during hyperaemia were 0.8 (0.4) and 0.3 (0.3) s, and MP was 1.14 (0.21) and 4.23 (1.12) ml/min/g. In patients Δtd in antegradely perfused vs collateral-dependent myocardium was 0.9 (0.7) vs 1.7 (1.0) s at rest (p<0.001), and 0.4 (0.3) vs 1.1 (0.6) s (p<0.001) during hyperaemia. MP was 1.12 (0.11) and 0.98 (0.28) ml/min/g (p = NS) at rest and 2.46 (0.85) vs 1.86 (0.91) ml/min/g (p<0.01) during hyperaemia. Receiver operating characteristics analysis showed the best sensitivity and specificity of 90% and 83% for hyperaemic Δtd of >0.6 s (area under the curve (AUC) = 0.89) to detect collateral-dependent myocardium, while resting Δtd (AUC = 0.77) and perfusion (AUC = 0.69 at rest or 0.70 during hyperaemia) were less accurate. Conclusions: MRPI-derived hyperaemic delay of contrast arrival detects collateral-dependent myocardium with high sensitivity and specificity. Perfusion was less sensitive, emphasising the clinical role of Δtd in non-invasive detection of collateral-dependent myocardium.
Does perception of justice effect psychological well-being of employees?

The present study has been initiated with a viewpoint that research pertaining to the unique effects of justice dimensions on psychological well-being would be a nascent area of study in management discourse. It attempts to investigate the relationship between the perception of justice and psychological well-being of employees. A total sample of 195 managers was selected from the banking and automobile industry in India. The collected data were subjected to exploratory factor analysis, confirmatory factor analysis, Pearson correlation and stepwise regression analysis. The results show the emergence of a new justice dimension labelled as empowerment justice. The findings also indicate that justice is a significant predictor of psychological well-being. However, interestingly none of the justice dimension predicted purpose in life dimension of psychological well-being. It was supported that employees who are cognitively satisfied experience well-being at the workplace.
Multi-sensor Information Processing using Prediction Market-based Belief Aggregation

We considerthe problemofinformation fusion frommultiple sensorsofdiﬀer-ent types with the objective of improving the conﬁdence of inference tasks, suchas object classiﬁcation, performed from the data collected by the sensors. Wepropose a novel technique based on distributed belief aggregation using a multi-agent prediction market to solve this information fusion problem. To monitorthe improvement in the conﬁdence of the object classiﬁcation as well as to dis-incentivize agents from misreporting information, we have introduced a marketmaker that rewards the agents instantaneously as well as at the end of the infer-ence task, based on the quality of the submitted reports. We have implementedthe market maker’s reward calculation in the form of a scoring rule and haveshown analytically that it incentivizes truthful revelation or accurate reportingby each agent. We have experimentally veriﬁed our technique for multi-sensorinformation fusion for an automated landmine detection scenario. Our experi-mental results show that, for identical data distributions and settings, using ourinformation aggregation technique increases the accuracy of object classiﬁcationfavorably as compared to two other commonly used techniques for informationfusion for landmine detection.
Robust controller for a full-bridge rectifier using the IDA approach and GSSA modeling

An interconnection-and-damping assignment passivity-based control (IDA-PBC) for a full-bridge rectifier is presented in this paper. The closed-loop system performance fulfils unity power factor in the ac mains and output dc voltage regulation. The controller design takes advantage of the generalized state space averaging (GSSA) modeling technique to convert the quoted nonstandard problem (in actual variables) into a standard regulation one (in GSSA variables). In this approach, the output current is the measured signal instead of the line current; therefore, the number of sensors does not increase in comparison with traditional approaches. The whole system is robust with respect to load variations.