Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Target Existence Based Resource Allocation Darko Mušicki

Assume an ESA (electronically steered antenna) radar. In between the surveillance mode operations (where the radar completes one scan of the surveillance area), this radar has spare time for (at least one) additional mode which could be optimized for various special requirements. The optimization is often translated to the choice of the next track to update. In this paper we propose a resource allocation scheme designed to minimize the time to confirmation of tracks following new targets, as well as to minimize the time to terminate tracks whose targets are lost or have disappeared from the view. The resource allocation cost is a function of the probability of target existence of individual tracks. Simulation results show that resource allocation based on this cost significantly increases the number of targets that can be reliably tracked in the sense of them being quickly followed by confirmed tracks upon arrival, and of their tracks being quickly terminated when the targets themselves disappear. The penalty of this approach is an increase in the root mean square target trajectory estimation errors of confirmed true tracks, as they are not updated as often.
Sir2 links chromatin silencing, metabolism, and aging.

Aging is manifested by a progressive decline in vitality over time leading to death. Studies in budding yeast allow aging to be followed in individual pedigrees of cells, that is, those of mother cells, consequent to many rounds of cell division (Mortimer and Johnston 1959). These studies have led to the general conclusion that the silencing protein Sir2 is a limiting component of longevity; deletions of SIR2 shorten life span and an extra copy of this gene increases life span (Kaeberlein et al. 1999). Recent studies have spurred interest in Sir2 as a candidate longevity factor in a broad spectrum of eukaryotic organisms. SIR2 gene homologs have been found in a very wide range of organisms ranging from bacteria to humans (Brachmann et al. 1995). Moreover, a biochemical activity of Sir2 likely responsible for chromatin silencing, nicotinamide–adenine dinucleotide (NAD)-dependent histone deacetylase, has recently been discovered and shown to be broadly conserved (Imai et al. 2000). In this review, I will briefly discuss silencing as it pertains to SIR2 and its relationship to aging. I will then trace the studies that led to the discovery of the NADdependent histone deacetylase. I will next speculate how the regulation of Sir2 by NAD could represent the link between caloric intake and the pace of aging, which is widely observed in many organisms (Weindruch et al. 1986). Finally, I will present a speculative model of how a gradual disruption in chromatin silencing may occur and how such a change may cause aging.
An ArsR/SmtB Family Member Is Involved in the Regulation by Arsenic of the Arsenite Oxidase Operon in Thiomonas arsenitoxydans

ABSTRACT The genetic organization of the aioBA operon, encoding the arsenite oxidase of the moderately acidophilic and facultative chemoautotrophic bacterium Thiomonas arsenitoxydans, is different from that of the aioBA operon in the other arsenite oxidizers, in that it encodes AioF, a metalloprotein belonging to the ArsR/SmtB family. AioF is stabilized by arsenite, arsenate, or antimonite but not molybdate. Arsenic is tightly attached to AioF, likely by cysteine residues. When loaded with arsenite or arsenate, AioF is able to bind specifically to the regulatory region of the aio operon at two distinct positions. In Thiomonas arsenitoxydans, the promoters of aioX and aioB are convergent, suggesting that transcriptional interference occurs. These results indicate that the regulation of the aioBA operon is more complex in Thiomonas arsenitoxydans than in the other aioBA containing arsenite oxidizers and that the arsenic binding protein AioF is involved in this regulation. On the basis of these data, a model to explain the tight control of aioBA expression by arsenic in Thiomonas arsenitoxydans is proposed.
Co-evolution analysis to predict protein-protein interactions within influenza virus envelope

Interactions between integral membrane proteins hemagglutinin (HA), neuraminidase (NA), M2 and membrane-associated matrix protein M1 of influenza A virus are thought to be crucial for assembly of functionally competent virions. We hypothesized that the amino acid residues located at the interface of two different proteins are under physical constraints and thus probably co-evolve. To predict co-evolving residue pairs, the EvFold ( http://evfold.org ) program searching the (nontransitive) Direct Information scores was applied for large samplings of amino acid sequences from Influenza Research Database ( http://www.fludb.org/ ). Having focused on the HA, NA, and M2 cytoplasmic tails as well as C-terminal domain of M1 (being the less conserved among the protein domains) we captured six pairs of correlated positions. Among them, there were one, two, and three position pairs for HA-M2, HA-M1, and M2-M1 protein pairs, respectively. As expected, no co-varying positions were found for NA-HA, NA-M1, and NA-M2 pairs obviously due to high conservation of the NA cytoplasmic tail. The sum of frequencies calculated for two major amino acid patterns observed in pairs of correlated positions was up to 0.99 meaning their high to extreme evolutionary sustainability. Based on the predictions a hypothetical model of pair-wise protein interactions within the viral envelope was proposed.
Informant Discrepancies in the Assessment of Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder

An attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) diagnosis requires symptoms to be present across two or more settings, thus requiring information from multiple informants. Research consistently shows low to moderate agreement between parents and teachers; however, the mechanisms underlying these discrepancies remain unclear. This study examined (a) agreement between parents and teachers, (b) effects of using different combination rules in assigning diagnoses, and (c) the role of contextual influences and/or personal biases in informants’ reports. Fifty-five children, their parents, and teachers participated. Parent and teacher ratings on the Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder Rating Scale–Fourth edition (ADHD-RS-IV) and clinician ratings on the Behavioral Observation of Students in Schools (BOSS) were obtained. Results indicated moderate agreement among parent and teacher ratings on the ADHD-RS. Diagnostically, the rule for combining information from multiple informants dramatically altered the ADHD classification assigned to the child. With regard to rater differences, the clinician-rated school observation gave some support for the notion that ratings are person rather than context specific.
XML TECHNOLOGIES IN BROADCASTING DVB-HTML — an optional declarative language within MHP 1.1

MHP 1.0. 1 [1] specifies an extensive application execution environment for digital interactive TV terminals, independent of the underlying vendor-specific hardware and software. It capitalises on the existing DVB open standards to provide enhancements to the incoming and outgoing signals, necessary to guarantee an open and interoperable interactive TV environment. This execution environment is based on the use of a Java virtual machine and the definition of generic APIs that provide access to the interactive digital TV terminals typical resources and facilities. A Java application using those generic APIs is called a DVB-J application.
The geographies of UK university halls of residence: examining students' embodiment of social capital

Recent investigations into ‘student geographies’ have recognised the complex ways in which students from different backgrounds go about ‘fitting in’ among their peers within university-managed accommodation. Halls have been characterised in the literature as highly pressurised spaces in which multiple (and potentially conflicting) identities can perpetuate disadvantage through incongruous accessibility to student-centric social activities and behaviours. This paper joins these debates by critically examining universities' ‘Student Accommodation’ web pages alongside qualitative interviews in order to question notions of halls being inclusive and encouraging a cultural mix. Using Bourdieu's reading of social capital this paper suggests that, while these spaces may perpetuate disadvantaged access to social capital, some students may transcend this, drawing on other forms of non-student social capital which legitimises their position among their peers in halls. This adds to previous discussions of ‘difference’ by highlighting the power of social capital in transforming individuals' positions within social groupings.
Comparative phylogenetic analysis of bacterial associates in Pyrrhocoroidea and evidence for ancient and persistent environmental symbiont reacquisition in Largidae (Hemiptera: Heteroptera)

The ancient insect order Hemiptera, one of the most well-studied insect lineages with respect to bacterial symbioses, still contains major branches which lack robust phylogenies and comprehensive characterization of associated bacterial symbionts. The Pyrrhocoroidea (Largidae [220 species]; Pyrrhocoridae [~300 species]) is a superfamily of the primarily-herbivorous hemipteran infraorder Pentatomomorpha, though relationships to related superfamilies are controversial. Studies on bacterial symbionts of this group have focused on members of Pyrrhocoridae, but recent examination of species of two genera of Largidae demonstrated divergent symbiotic complexes between these putative sister families. We surveyed bacterial diversity of this group using paired-end Illumina and targeted Sanger sequencing of bacterial 16S amplicons of 30 pyrrhocoroid taxa, including 17 species of Largidae, in order to determine the identity of bacterial associates and similarity of associated microbial communities among species. We also constructed the first comprehensive phylogeny of this superfamily (4,800 bp; 5 loci; 57 ingroup + 12 outgroup taxa) in order accurately trace the evolution of symbiotic complexes among Pentatomomorpha. We undertook multiple lines of investigation (i.e., experimental rearing, FISH microscopy, phylogenetic and co-evolutionary analyses) to understand potential transmission routes of largid symbionts. We found a prevalent, specific association of Largidae with plant-beneficial-environmental clade Burkholderia housed in midgut tubules. As in other distantly-related Heteroptera, symbiotic bacteria seem to be acquired from the environment every generation. We review current understanding of symbiotic complexes within the Pentatomomorpha and discuss means to further investigations of the evolution and function of these symbioses. Importance Obligate symbioses with bacteria are common in insects, particularly for Hemiptera wherein varied forms of symbiosis occur, though knowledge of symbionts remains incomplete for major lineages. Thus, an accurate understanding of how these partnerships evolved and changed over millions of years is not yet achievable. We contribute to our understanding of the evolution of symbiotic complexes in Hemiptera by characterizing bacterial associates of Pyrrhocoroidea focusing on the family Largidae and by constructing a phylogeny to establish evolutionary relationships of and within this group. Members of Largidae are associated with specific symbiotic Burkholderia from a different clade than Burkholderia symbionts in other Hemiptera and are members of the earliest-diverging superfamily of Burkholderia-associated Hemiptera. Evidence suggests that species of Largidae reacquire specific symbiotic bacteria every generation environmentally, a rare strategy for insects with potentially volatile evolutionary ramifications, but one that has persisted in Largidae and other related lineages since the Cretaceous.
Review on variants of reliable and security aware peer to peer content distribution using network coding

Content distribution system can transmit large files rapidly between multiple users, and it has become the most widely used in internet. Network coding is a technique which can enhance the performance and reliability of P2P networks. P2P content distribution networks can suffer from malicious participants that corrupt content. Existing systems verify distributed blocks of file with conventional encryption techniques and hash functions. However, these techniques do not apply well to more well-designed schemes that use network coding techniques for efficient content distribution. In such networks, it is necessary that some security mechanisms will be applied with the aim of avoiding attacks based on non authorized content modifications. Some threats like pollution attack, entropy attack, jamming attack degrade the performance of content delivery in P2P networks. To identify the polluted blocks is difficult and needs the use of homomorphic hashing functions, whose implementation is expensive. This paper review a security scheme for network coding that reduces the cost of verifying blocks on the way before decoding while efficiently preventing the propagation of malicious blocks. In this scheme, users not only cooperate to distribute the content, but users also cooperate to protect themselves against malicious users by informing affected nodes when a malicious block is found. In this paper we analyze and study such cooperative security schemes.
Two Critiques of Homans' Social Behavior: Its Elementary Forms

In 1950 George Homans published The Human Group, one of the handful of sociological works in this century which deserves the term "classic. " Using findings from a number of field studies of small groups, he developed a theoretical system to describe the process by which work affects patterns of interaction, which in turn lead to the development of subgroups characterized by positive sentiments and distinctive patterns of behavior and attitudes; how such subgroups develop status orders and mechanisms of social control; and how the inherent ambivalence of reactions to authority molds social structure. Apparently one of the few people who was dissatisfied with the book was its author, who was worried not about whether the propositions were true but about why they were true. Why should interaction lead to liking? Why should the activities of one subgroup become increasingly differentiated from those of other subgroups? Why should individuals who come close to realizing the norms of the group as a whole receive high rank? Such "why" questions can ultimately lead up to cosmology or down to biochemistry, but in the immediate vicinity of the original problem there are only two likely possibilities: a group level theory such as "functionalism" or a theory of individual psychology. Those who have read Homans' comments on functionalism in The Human Group or Homans and Schneider on MarSocial Behavior is thus a theory of motivation designed to predict the propositions of The Human Group. I think it is important to understand the massive challenge of such an enterprise. Of all the areas of the more behavioral social sciences, the theory of motivation is probably in the worst mess today. Logically, the area is booby-trapped with concealed tautologies; empirically, the problems of measurement are horrendous; and conceptually, the area is a battleground of guerrilla warfare between psychologists of the veterinary persuasion and the brawling grandchildren of Sigmund Freud. Sociological theorists usually detour around the problem by taking motivation as "given" or assuming that all these things are learned during something called socialization. It takes a brave man to enter this area, much less to conquer it. What then is this theory? Chapters ii, iii, and iv present the fundamental concepts and principles of a theory which turns out to be an amalgam of Skinnerian operant conditioning and classical economics, which make a better pair than one might think offhand. From Skinner come the concepts of operant conditioning, positive and negative reinforcement, and satiation, presented lucidly in chapter ii and, as far as I can tell, straight from Skinner. Chapters iii and iv add the key economic components of the theory: cost, profit, and exchange plus a final concept which is neither really Skinnerian nor economic but Homansian, "distributive justice. " The addition of "cost," defined as "the value of * Socil Behavior: Its Elementary Forms. By George Caspar Homans. New York: Harcourt, Brace & Co. 1961. Pp. x4-404. $5.50.
DNA microarray assay and real‐time PCR as useful tools for studying the respiratory tract Mycoplasma populations in young dairy calves

Purpose. With more than 120 species, the genus Mycoplasma is one of the largest taxa in the class Mollicutes, a group of micro‐organisms that are characterized by apparent simplicity and to which important animal pathogens belong. Mycoplasma bovis is the most frequently identified pathogenic Mycoplasma in cattle; however, the prevalence of other Mycoplasma species living in calves’ airways is poorly understood. The aim of this work was to characterize the respiratory tract mycoplasma populations in calves on one of the largest dairy farms in Italy using a real‐time PCR assay and a DNA microarray assay. Methodology. A total of 49 nasal swabs and 49 trans‐tracheal aspirations from non‐vaccinated veal calves were analysed. Genomic DNA was extracted from the samples and then tested using a real‐time PCR targeting the oppD gene of M. bovis and a DNA microarray that was able to identify more than 70 Mycoplasma species. Results. Forty‐two out of 49 calves tested positive for Mycoplasma spp. (85.7%). None of the samples tested positive for M. bovis. A majority (73.5%) of the 98 samples tested positive for M. dispar, while 8 samples tested positive for M. bovirhinis (8.2%). Conclusion. Our results expand our knowledge regarding the diversity of Mycoplasma populations in the respiratory airways of very young veal calves and add data regarding M. bovis prevalence in the Italian cattle population. However, the importance of these species in the respiratory diseases of calves still remains to be determined.
Social capital and home literacy engagement: case studies of low-SES single mothers’ access to literacy resources

Abstract Drawing on the theory of social capital, this paper explores how difference in mothers’ social networks might impact on low-SES’ children’s literacy development at home. A cross-case analysis of the influence of two low-SES single-mothers’ social networks on their children’s home literacy practices suggests that difference in mother’s social capital has a disparate impact on their access to literacy resources, their home literacy engagement with their children, and their interaction/connection with school teachers and contributes to their children’s differential school literacy achievement. The findings suggest that for low-SES children to achieve school success, parents must be able to access resources that support their ability to engage in literacy activities that align with those valued in the school. Therefore, there is a need for schools and teachers to provide not only services that allow more networking opportunities but also support to understand school-literacy practices and expectations for low-SES families, especially single-parents who might be more socially isolated.
Spotlighting Social Class: An Exploration of One Adolescent's Language and Literacy Practices

Drawing on five years of data, this case study presents an exploration of the influences of social class on one adolescent's language and literacy practices as she moved from high school in an isolated rural community to college in an urban environment. The study draws on several theoretical frameworks, including multiple literacies (Gallego & Hollingsworth, 2000), Gee's (1996) theory of Discourses, and sociocultural conceptions of social class (Anyon, 1981; Fine & Weis, 1998). Although Crystal, the focal informant, was a successful learner by most conventional standards, she experienced considerable struggle to stay in school and to adopt the dominant discourses of postsecondary education. As a rural high school student, she used a variety of language and literacy practices to “pose” as middle class. When she crossed to college, some of these practices served her better than others. Ultimately, she became alienated by college courses that did not acknowledge language competencies related to her status as a working-class person and that did not allow links between her interests in popular culture and her formal assignments. Implications for practice include the following: that secondary literacy teachers make social class a more salient category for inquiry and that college instructors make deliberate attempts to learn about the preferred discourse practices of their students. The study also suggests the importance of “insider” knowledge in studying the influence of social class on literacy and the need for further research examining how learners negotiate workplace discourses after college.
Anti-Oxidative Activity of Pectin and Its Stabilizing Effect on Retinyl Palmitate

The purpose of this study was to examine the anti-oxidative activity of pectin and other polysaccharides in order to develop a cosmeceutical base having anti-oxidative effects towards retinyl palmitate (RP). The anti-oxidative stabilizing effects of pectin and other polysaccharides on RP were evaluated by DPPH assay and then the stabilizing effect of pectin on RP was examined as a function of time. Among the polysaccharides we examined, pectin exhibited a considerably higher anti-oxidative activity, with an approximately 5-fold greater DPPH radical scavenging effect compared to other polysaccharides. The DPPH radical scavenging effect of pectin increased gradually with increasing concentrations of pectin. At two different RP concentrations, 0.01 and 0.1% in ethanol, addition of pectin improved the stability of RP in a concentration dependent manner. The stabilizing effect of pectin on RP was more effective for the lower concentration of RP (0.01%, v/v). Further, degradation of RP was reduced following the addition of pectin as measured over 8 hours. From the results obtained, it can be suggested that pectin may be a promising ingredient for cosmeceutical bases designed to stabilize RP or other pharmacological agents subject to degradation by oxidation.
Teaching Leadership through Aikido

Aikido is presented as a Japanese martial art that has many direct parallels to principles of modern leadership. The authors outline how they use aikido to present physical metaphors of powerful leadership principles in a 2-hour experiential session. Both MBA students and executive program participants respond very favorably. This exercise provides a useful complement to more Western and traditional methods of teaching leadership. Concepts conveyed include focusing and goal setting (centering), attitudinal impacts on behavior, viewing a larger context, succeeding without being "hard," leader/follower trust and communications, rechanneling energy, and finding win/win solutions.