Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Living in (or Leaving) the Streets: Why Street Youth Choose the Streets Despite Opportunities in Shelters

The study looks at the different factors that make street youth decide whether to leave the streets and stay in shelters or to continue to choose life in the streets, despite opportunities provided them in shelters. Qualitative methods primarily, focused group discussions (FGD), in-depth interviews and indigenous methods were employed. Participants were street youth from Metro Manila ages 11 to 18 who have tried the life inside the shelter. Results show that the important factors that make street youth leave shelters and return to the streets are: (1) relationships; (2) boredom; and, (3) loss of their sense of freedom and control; while the underlying factors that keep them in shelters are: (1) fulfillment of dreams; (2) determination; (3) welcoming and cordial environment; and (4) security and safety particularly in having their basic necessities met.
Dynamic frequency scaling algorithms for improving the CPU's energy efficiency

This paper approaches the problem of improving the service center server CPU's energy efficiency by executing dynamic frequency scaling actions and performing tradeoffs between CPU's computational performance and its power consumption. Two different algorithms are designed and implemented: an immune inspired algorithm and a fuzzy logic based algorithm. The immune inspired algorithm uses the human antigen as a model to represent the server power / performance state. Using a set of detectors the antigens are classified as self for optimal power consumption state or non-self for non-optimal power consumption state. For the non-self antigens a biologically inspired clonal selection approach is used to determine the actions that need to be executed to bring the server's CPU in an optimal power consumption state. The fuzzy logic based algorithm adaptively changes the processor performance states to the incoming workload. The algorithm also filters workload spikes because frequent p-states transition costs can outweigh the benefit of adaptation.
A PIANO MODEL INCLUDING LONGITUDINAL STRING VIBRATIONS

In this paper a mixed-paradigm piano model is presented. The major development is the ability of modeling longitudinal string vibrations. Longitudinal string motion is the reason for the metallic sound of low piano notes, therefore its modeling greatly improves the perceptual quality of synthesized piano sound. In this novel approach the transversal displacement of the string is computed by a finite-difference string model and the longitudinal motion is calculated by a set of second-order resonators, which are nonlinearly excited by the transversal vibration. The soundboard is modeled by a multi-rate filter based on measurements of real pianos. The piano model is able to produce high-quality piano sounds in real-time with about 5–10 note polyphony on an average personal computer.
The struggle of autonomy and authenticity: framing the savage refugee

James Hathaway has described refugee law as ‘fundamentally oriented to the promotion of autonomy’. Borrowed from the Kantian roots of liberal rights theory, this theme has come to the fore as refugee advocates decry increasingly draconian experiments in deflection and deterrence. But what exactly does it mean for a refugee to exercise autonomy? And how is it connected to that other popular refrain – that those who arrive irregularly by boat in Australia, despite high recognition rates, are not ‘genuine’ refugees? By examining the assumptions underpinning autonomy as a contemporary political value, and working within the theoretical construct that identifies a state's ‘recognition’ of autonomy with authenticity, this article explores tensions within both public discourse on refugees and the discipline of refugee law itself. It considers how and why the refugee exercising ‘authentic’ moral agency by boarding a boat is depicted not just as a threat, but as inherently irrational (and thus not ‘authentically’ autonomous) and less ‘genuine’ (and thus virtuous) than the ‘passive’ refugee languishing in a camp overseas, awaiting ‘our’ redemptive touch. Finally, it asks whether refugee law similarly suffers from the contradictory moral promise of human rights law which places autonomy at its heart while in practice requiring that humanity be split between victim, savage and redeemer.
Does Prone or Supine Position Influence Pain Responses in Preterm Infants at 32 Weeks Gestational Age?

ObjectiveThe purpose of this study was to examine the influence of prone and supine position in preterm infants during acute pain of blood collection. SettingLevel III Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). Study DesignThirty-eight preterm infants (birthweight 1339 [590–2525] g, GA 29 [25– 32] wks) were in 2 groups depending on their position in the isolette prior to and during heel lance at 32 weeks post-conceptional age. The study design was a comparison between groups (Prone, Supine) during 2 events (Baseline, Heel lance). Outcome MeasurePain measures were multidimensional, including behavioral (sleep–wake state and facial activity) and physiological (heart rate) responses measured continuously prior to (Baseline) and during blood collection (Lance). ResultsBoth groups of infants displayed statistically significant shifts in sleep–wake state to greater arousal, and increased facial activity and heart rate, from Baseline to Lance. Prone position was associated with significantly more deep sleep during Baseline, compared with Supine position, but there were no differences in sleep-wake state during Lance. Minor increased facial activity was shown in some time segments of Baseline for infants in Supine compared with Prone, but did not differ overall between positions. Prone and Supine position did not affect heart rate significantly during Baseline or Lance events. ConclusionsProne position promotes deep sleep in preterm neonates at 32 weeks post-conceptional age when they are undisturbed. However, placement in prone position is not a sufficient environmental comfort intervention for painful invasive procedures such as heel lance for blood sampling in the NICU. Neonates require other environmental supports to promote coping with this stressful event.
Challenging Gifted and Talented Children During Literacy Hour

This article discusses the language and literacy provision that should be made for gifted and talented pupils in Key Stages 1 and 2 in UK primary schools. It considers whether Literacy hour lessons offer an appropriate medium for literacy learning and suggests practical ways in which more able pupils can be challenged to higher levels of achievement across the Programmes of Study of the English National Curriculum. The importance of providing pupils with imaginative, creative, problem-solving tasks is explored and the significance of pupils' gaining metacognitive awareness acknowledged. Suggestions are made about how to differentiate Literacy hour teaching and learning appropriately, so that the needs of gifted and talented pupils can be successfully met.
An Information-Intensive Approach to the Molecular Pharmacology of Cancer

Since 1990, the National Cancer Institute (NCI) has screened more than 60,000 compounds against a panel of 60 human cancer cell lines. The 50-percent growth-inhibitory concentration (GI50) for any single cell line is simply an index of cytotoxicity or cytostasis, but the patterns of 60 such GI50 values encode unexpectedly rich, detailed information on mechanisms of drug action and drug resistance. Each compound's pattern is like a fingerprint, essentially unique among the many billions of distinguishable possibilities. These activity patterns are being used in conjunction with molecular structural features of the tested agents to explore the NCI's database of more than 460,000 compounds, and they are providing insight into potential target molecules and modulators of activity in the 60 cell lines. For example, the information is being used to search for candidate anticancer drugs that are not dependent on intact p53 suppressor gene function for their activity. It remains to be seen how effective this information-intensive strategy will be at generating new clinically active agents.
A Design Pattern for Decentralised Decision Making

The engineering of large-scale decentralised systems requires sound methodologies to guarantee the attainment of the desired macroscopic system-level behaviour given the microscopic individual-level implementation. While a general-purpose methodology is currently out of reach, specific solutions can be given to broad classes of problems by means of well-conceived design patterns. We propose a design pattern for collective decision making grounded on experimental/theoretical studies of the nest-site selection behaviour observed in honeybee swarms (Apis mellifera). The way in which honeybee swarms arrive at consensus is fairly well-understood at the macroscopic level. We provide formal guidelines for the microscopic implementation of collective decisions to quantitatively match the macroscopic predictions. We discuss implementation strategies based on both homogeneous and heterogeneous multiagent systems, and we provide means to deal with spatial and topological factors that have a bearing on the micro-macro link. Finally, we exploit the design pattern in two case studies that showcase the viability of the approach. Besides engineering, such a design pattern can prove useful for a deeper understanding of decision making in natural systems thanks to the inclusion of individual heterogeneities and spatial factors, which are often disregarded in theoretical modelling.
Efficient Minimization and Manipulation of Linearly Transformed Binary Decision Diagrams

Binary decision diagrams are widely used in many applications in VLSI CAD. Linear transformations are one way to increase the computational power of BDD. In this paper, we study linearly transformed BDD (LTBDD) from a practical point of view. First, we describe minimization techniques for LTBDD. Then, we present efficient manipulation algorithms for LTBDD. We give a large set of experimental results to demonstrate the efficiency of the algorithms.
The contribution of the medical history for the diagnosis of simulated cases by medical students

Objectives: The case history is an important part of diagnostic reasoning. The patient management problem method has been used in various studies, but may not reflect the actual reasoning process because a list of choices is given to the subjects in advance. This study investigated the contribution of the history to making the correct diagnosis by using clinical case simulation, in which students obtained clinical information by themselves. Methods: A prospective study was conducted. Ninety-four fifth-year medical students from Chiba University who underwent supervised clinical clerkships in 2009 were surveyed. Each student randomly selected 1 of 4 test cases and attempted to make a diagnosis through medical interview, physical examination, and laboratory tests, while the teacher acted as a patient. The student ranked the disease(s) diagnosed at each stage of the process. Diagnostic accuracy rates were compared using analysis of the χ2-test. Results: Sixty students (63.8%) made a correct diagnosis, which was based on the history in 43 students (71.7%), physical findings in 11 students (18.3%), and laboratory data in 6 students (10.0%). Compared with students who considered the correct diagnosis in their differential diagnosis after taking a history, students who failed to do so were 5.0 times (95%CI = 2.5-9.8) more likely to make a final misdiagnosis (χ2(1) = 30.73; p<0.001). Conclusions: History taking is especially important for making a correct diagnosis when students perform clinical case simulation. To improve the diagnostic reasoning skills, medical students should be trained in methods for inferring the correct diagnosis from the case history.
Transgenerational effect of infection in Plasmodium-infected mosquitoes

Transgenerational effects of infection have a huge potential to influence the prevalence and intensity of infections in vectors and, by extension, disease epidemiology. These transgenerational effects may increase the fitness of offspring through the transfer of protective immune factors. Alternatively, however, infected mothers may transfer the costs of infection to their offspring. Although transgenerational immune protection has been described in a dozen invertebrate species, we still lack a complete picture of the incidence and importance of transgenerational effects of infection in most invertebrate groups. The existence of transgenerational infection effects in mosquito vectors is of particular interest because of their potential for influencing parasite prevalence and intensity and, by extension, disease transmission. Here we present what we believe to be the first study on transgenerational infection effects in a mosquito vector infected with malaria parasites. The aim of this experiment was to quantify both the benefits and the costs of having an infected mother. We find no evidence of transgenerational protection in response to a Plasmodium infection. Having an infected mother does, however, entail considerable fecundity costs for the offspring: fecundity loss is three times higher in infected offspring issued from infected mothers than in infected offspring issued from uninfected mothers. We discuss the implications of our results and we call for more studies looking at transgenerational effects of infection in disease vectors.
Exploring Prostate Cancer Genome Reveals Simultaneous Losses of PTEN, FAS and PAPSS2 in Patients with PSA Recurrence after Radical Prostatectomy

The multifocal nature of prostate cancer (PCa) creates a challenge to patients’ outcome prediction and their clinical management. An approach that scrutinizes every cancer focus is needed in order to generate a comprehensive evaluation of the disease, and by correlating to patients’ clinico-pathological information, specific prognostic biomarker can be identified. Our study utilized the Affymetrix SNP 6.0 Genome-wide assay to investigate forty-three fresh frozen PCa tissue foci from twenty-three patients. With a long clinical follow-up period that ranged from 2.0–9.7 (mean 5.4) years, copy number variation (CNV) data was evaluated for association with patients’ PSA status during follow-up. From our results, the loss of unique genes on 10q23.31 and 10q23.2–10q23.31 were identified to be significantly associated to PSA recurrence (p < 0.05). The implication of PTEN and FAS loss (10q23.31) support previous reports due to their critical roles in prostate carcinogenesis. Furthermore, we hypothesize that the PAPSS2 gene (10q23.2–10q23.31) may be functionally relevant in post-operative PSA recurrence because of its reported role in androgen biosynthesis. It is suggestive that the loss of the susceptible region on chromosome 10q, which implicates PTEN, FAS and PAPSS2 may serve as genetic predictors of PSA recurrence after radical prostatectomy.
The Phenomenon of On‐Line Learning

L'auteur analyse le recent phenomene de l'apprentissage en ligne, qui resulte de l'exploitation au niveau educatif des innovations technologiques recentes, tournant principalement autour de l'Internet, de sa generalisation et de celle des applications qui le font fonctionner. Ce bouleversement du monde pedagogique et du caractere traditionnel de l'enseignement a des effets positifs a plusieurs niveaux. L'auteur se propose de presenter les differents modes d'apprentissage rendus possibles par ces innovations, les benefices au niveau du cout d'implementation et de fonctionnement, la qualite des programmes de formation offerts et les effets relatifs aux conditions d'acces a ces methodes.
Hong Kong student teachers' beliefs about children's learning: Influences of a cross-cultural early childhood teaching experience

Twenty-one in-service early childhood students participated in a teaching practicum in Australia as part of the final year of a Bachelor of Arts in Hong Kong. Students spent two weeks visiting a university and early childhood settings in Australia. The university based component of the program included workshops and discussions with lecturing staff located in both the Australian and Hong Kong universities. Students were asked to complete written statements about "What is children's learning? " before and after their practicum experience. An inductive analysis of students' written statements and practicum evaluations revealed an increase in beliefs about children's learning as "active understanding" over the two-week period. Implications for teacher education programs are discussed.
African Self-Consciousness and Health-Promoting Behaviors among African American College Students

Empirical research has not examined the explicit relationship between cultural identity and health-promoting behavior. This study proposed three models of relationships between African self-consciousness (ASC), health consciousness (HC), and health-promoting behaviors (HPB) in a sample of African American college students. One model suggested that the relationship between ASC and HPB would be mediated by HC, whereas a second model hypothesized a moderating effect of HC. A third model denoted that ASC and HC might be orthogonal predictors of HPB. Eighty participants completed measures of ASC, HC, and HPB. Statistical analyses lent support for the third model and indicated that ASC contributes unique variance to HPB beyond that contributed by HC. These results emphasize the need for sound research that examines the role of cultural identity in health promotion among African Americans.
Bounding the Computational Complexity of Flowchart Programs with Multi-dimensional Rankings

Proving the termination of a flowchart program can be done by exhibiting a ranking function, i.e., a function from the program states to a well-founded set, which strictly decreases at each program step. A standard method to automatically generate such a function is to compute invariants for each program point and to search for a ranking in a restricted class of functions that can be handled with linear programming techniques. Our first contribution is to propose an efficient algorithm to compute ranking functions: It can handle flowcharts of arbitrary structure, the class of candidate rankings it explores is larger, and our method, although greedy, is provably complete. Our second contribution is to show how to use the ranking functions we generate to get upper bounds for the computational complexity (number of transitions) of the source program, again for flowcharts of arbitrary structure. This estimate is a polynomial, which means that we can handle programs with more than linear complexity. We applied the method on a collection of test cases from the literature. We also point out important extensions, mainly to do with the scalability of the algorithm and, in particular, the integration of techniques based on cutpoints.
Garcinielliptone FC, a polyisoprenylated benzophenone from Platonia insignis Mart., promotes vasorelaxant effect on rat mesenteric artery

Polyisoprenylated benzophenones represent a group of chemical compounds commonly identified in Clusiaceae species and are responsible for a large amount of biological activities. In this work, the vasorelaxant effect induced by garcinielliptone FC (GFC) isolated from Platonia insignis Mart. (Clusiaceae), a monotype species from Platonia genus, was investigated. GFC promoted an endothelium-independent vasorelaxation on phenylephrine (PHE, 10− 5 mol L− 1)-induced vasoconstriction, but not on KCl (80 mmol L− 1)-induced vasoconstriction, on rat superior mesenteric artery rings. In addition, a concentration-dependent decrease of PHE- or serotonin-induced cumulative concentration–response curves was observed for GFC, and a slight decrease of pD2 value on CaCl2-induced vasoconstriction. In a Ca2+-free medium, GFC interfered in calcium mobilisation from PHE (10− 5 mol L− 1)-sensitive intracellular stores. GFC-induced vasorelaxant effect is probably mediated by a dual effect on mobilisation of calcium intracellular stores and attenuation of transmembrane calcium influx.
Formation of Tunable, Emulsion Micro-Droplets Utilizing Flow-Focusing Channels and a Normally-Closed Micro-Valve

A mono-dispersed emulsion is of great significance in many chemical, biomedical and industrial applications. The current study reports a new microfluidic chip capable of forming tunable micro-droplets in liquids for emulsification applications. It can precisely generate size-tunable, uniform droplets using flow-focusing channels and a normally-closed valve, which is opened by a pneumatic suction force. Experimental data showed that micro-droplets with a diameter ranging from several to tens of micrometers could be precisely generated with a high uniformity. The droplet size is experimentally found to be dependent on the velocity of the dispersed-phase liquid, which is controlled by the deflection of the suction membrane. Emulsions with droplet sizes ranging from 5.5 to 55 μm are successfully observed. The variation in droplet sizes is from 3.8% to 2.5%. The micro-droplets have a uniform size and droplets smaller than those reported in previous studies are possible with this approach. This new microfluidic device can be promising for emulsification and other related applications.
Challenges in compiler construction for secure two-party computation

The problem of secure two-party computation has received great attention in the years that followed its introduction by Yao. The solutions proposed follow one of the two research directions of either using homomorphic encryption techniques or implementing Yao's "Garbled Circuit" solution. The latter requires circuits to implement a given functionality. Recently, the compiler CBMC-GC was introduced, the first compiler capable of translating programs written in a general purpose language (ANSI-C) into circuits suitable for secure two-party computation. In this paper, we discuss the current limitations of CBMC-GC and propose directions for future research.