Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Structure of Signaling: A Combinatorial Optimization Model with Network-Dependent Estimation

Who talks with whom in national policymaking? How do lobbyists allocate their social resources to best receive information? And how does network position condition which lobbyists get access? We analyze communication networks among lobbyists and government actors in national politics. We begin by wedding rational choice models to network analysis with a formal analysis of lobbyists’ choice of contacts in a network, adopting the classic combinatorial optimization approach of Boorman (1975). The model predicts that when the demand for political information is low, a cocktail equilibrium prevails: lobbyists will invest their time in gaining “weak tie” acquaintances rather than in gaining “strong tie” trusted partners. When the demand for information in a policy domain is high, then both cocktail equilibria and “chum” equilibria (all strong-tie networks) prevail. We then turn to an empirical analysis of lobbying networks and access, using the data of Laumann and Knoke in The Organizational State. We analyze the communication structure of the policy domains in health policy, using count data models that are adjusted for “structural autocorrelation” by the networks we study. The results support the cocktail equilibrium hypothesis, and offer a result that portends rich questions for future research: Washington lobbyists appear to overinvest in strong ties, reducing the informational efficiency of lobbying networks. Note: An earlier and different version of this paper was prepared for presentation at the annual meetings of the Midwest Political Science Association, Chicago, Illinois, April 10-13, 1997. We thank John Brehm and Paul Teske for helpful comments on this earlier version.
Personal Finance for Dummies

Introduction. Part I: Assessing Your Fitness and Setting Goals. Chapter 1: Improving Your Financial Literacy. Chapter 2: Measuring Your Financial Health. Chapter 3: Determining Where Your Money Goes. Chapter 4: Establishing and Achieving Goals. Part II: Saving More, Spending Less. Chapter 5: Dealing with Debt. Chapter 6: Reducing Your Spending. Chapter 7: Trimming Your Taxes. Part III: Building Wealth with Wise Investing. Chapter 8: Considering Important Investment Concepts. Chapter 9: Understanding Your Investment Choices. Chapter 10: Investing in Funds. Chapter 11: Investing in Retirement Accounts. Chapter 12: Investing in Taxable Accounts. Chapter 13: Investing for Educational Expenses. Chapter 14: Investing in Real Estate: Your Home and Beyond. Part IV: Insurance: Protecting What You Have. Chapter 15: Insurance: Getting What You Need at the Best Price. Chapter 16: Insurance on You: Life, Disability, and Health. Chapter 17: Covering Your Assets. Part V: Where to Go for More Help. Chapter 18: Working with Financial Planners. Chapter 19: Using a Computer to Manage Your Money. Chapter 20: On Air and in Print. Part VI: The Part of Tens. Chapter 21: Survival Guide for Ten Life Changes. Chapter 22: Ten Tactics to Thwart Identity Theft and Fraud. Glossary. Index.
Increasing the ovulation rate in ewes by immunisation

The single most important factor contributing to the variation between flocks in lamb tailing percentage is the ovulation rate (Kelly and Knight, 1979). Whilst it is possible to increase the ovulation rate and lambing percentage dramatically by means of flushing with pasture or silage (Smith et al., 1979; Rattray et al., 1980) it is not always possible to obtain the necessary pasture growth or conserved feed needed. The discovery that ewes immunised against the ovarian steroids androstenedione and oestrone have increased ovulation rates (Cox et al., 1976; Scaramuzzi et al., 1977) led to speculation that such techniques may have commercial application. Studies on larger numbers of animals (Martin et al., 1979; Scaramuzzi, 1980) have confirmed that immunisation can increase the ovulation rate but this is not always reflected in increased lamb production. It was therefore proposed to test the effects of immunisation against these steroids on oestrus, ovulation and lamb production in two breeds under New Zealand conditions.
Bridging the gap between access and success: A study of the impact of an access and success program on academic outcomes of low-income college freshmen

In response to the increasing cost of college, colleges and universities are leveraging financial aid and academic support services to implement access and success programs intended to help financially disadvantaged students afford and persist through a baccalaureate degree program. This research is a study of the efficacy of one such program at a large research university in the southwestern region of the United States. The study sample included low-income program participants in four cohorts of freshmen enrolling for the first time in college from fall 2007 (Cohort 1) to fall 2010 (Cohort 4) and a comparison group of almost 400 low-income freshmen who enrolled for the first time in college in fall 2006 (the year prior to program implementation) for a sample total of over 2150 students. Approximately 64% were female, 36 % were males, over 60% were African American and Hispanic, and over 75% were first generation college students. Logistic regression was used to measure probability and odds of their academic success and retention in the first year of college utilizing gender, ethnicity, parental degree attainment, and program participation as the independent variables. The logistic regression models illustrated that participation in the program netted a consistently positive and significant impact on academic success across all cohorts, increasing the odds ratio for academic success no less than three times in favor of program participants vis-a-vis the comparison group. The statistical models illustrated that the program netted a slight positive impact on the odds of retention, particularly for African American students. Therefore, the principle implication that might be drawn from this study is that by strategically leveraging financial aid and academic support services, access and success programs can facilitate higher rates of academic success and retention for financially disadvantaged college students.
Robust expression of TNF-α, IL-1β, RANTES, and IP-10 by human microglial cells during nonproductive infection with herpes simplex virus

Cytokine (TNF-α/β, IL-1β, IL-6, IL-18, IL-10, and IFN-α/β/γ) and chemokine (IL-8, IP-10, MCP-1, MIP-1α/β, and RANTES) production during herpes simplex virus (HSV) 1 infection of human brain cells was examined. Primary astrocytes as well as neurons were found to support HSV replication, but neither of these fully permissive cell types produced cytokines or chemokines in response to HSV. In contrast, microglia did not support extensive viral replication; however, ICP4 was detected by immunochemical staining, demonstrating these cells were infected. Late viral protein (nucleocapsid antigen) was detected in <10% of infected microglial cells. Microglia responded to nonpermissive viral infection by producing considerable amounts of TNF-α, IL-1β, IP-10, and RANTES, together with smaller amounts of IL-6, IL-8, and MlP-1α as detected by RPA and ELISA. Surprisingly, no interferons (α,β, or γ) were detected in response to viral infection. Pretreatment of fully permissive astrocytes with TNF-α prior to infection with HSV was found to dramatically inhibit replication, resulting in a 14-fold reduction of viral titer. In contrast, pretreatment of astrocytes with IL-1β had little effect on viral replication. When added to neuronal cultures, exogenous TNF-α or IL-1β did not suppress subsequent HSV replication. Exogenously added IP-10 inhibited HSV replication in neurons (with a 32-fold reduction in viral titer), however, similar IP-10 treatment did not affect viral replication in astrocytes. These results suggest that IP-10 possesses direct antiviral activity in neurons and support a role for microglia in both antiviral defense of the brain as well as amplification of immune responses during neuroinflammation.
Avoiding Chinese Whispers: Controlling End-to-End Join Quality in Linked Open Data Stores

Today Linked Open Data is a central trend in information provisioning. Data is collected in distributed data stores, individually curated with high quality, and made available over the Web for a wide variety of Web applications providing their own business logic for data utilization. Thus, the key promise of Linked Open Data is to provide a holistic view for a wide range of data items or entities. But parallel to the problems of database integration or schema matching, linking data over several sources remains a challenge and is currently severely hampering the vision of a working Semantic Web. One possible solution are instance matching systems that automatically create owl:sameAs links between data stores. According to existing benchmarks, the matching quality has even reached a satisfying level. However, our extensive analysis shows that instance matching systems are not yet ready for large-scale data interlinking. This is because query processors joining even via a single incorrectly created link implicitly use also all transitive owl:sameAs links that may in turn be mismatched again. The result is similar to the game Chinese Whispers: watered-down sameAs semantics step-by-step lead to a terrible end-to-end quality of joins. We develop innovative structural mechanisms on top of instance matching systems to significantly improve query processing avoiding Chinese Whispers.
Stochastic delocalization of finite populations

The localization of populations of replicating bacteria, viruses or autocatalytic chemicals arises in various contexts, such as ecology, evolution, medicine or chemistry. Several deterministic mathematical models have been used to characterize the conditions under which localized states can form, and how they break down due to convective driving forces. It has been repeatedly found that populations remain localized unless the bias exceeds a critical threshold value, and that close to the transition the population is characterized by a diverging length scale. These results, however, have been obtained upon ignoring number fluctuations (‘genetic drift’), which are inevitable given the discreteness of the replicating entities. Here, we study the localization/delocalization of a finite population in the presence of genetic drift. The population is modeled by a linear chain of subpopulations, or demes, which exchange migrants at a constant rate. Individuals in one particular deme, called ‘oasis’, receive a growth rate benefit, and the total population is regulated to have constant size N. In this ecological setting, we find that any finite population delocalizes on sufficiently long time scales. Depending on parameters, however, populations may remain localized for a very long time. The typical waiting time to delocalization increases exponentially with both population size and distance to the critical wind speed of the deterministic approximation. We augment these simulation results by a mathematical analysis that treats the reproduction and migration of individuals as branching random walks subject to global constraints. For a particular constraint, different from a fixed population size constraint, this model yields a solvable first moment equation. We find that this solvable model approximates very well the fixed population size model for large populations, but starts to deviate as population sizes are small. Nevertheless, the qualitative behavior of the fixed population size model is properly reproduced. In particular, the analytical approach allows us to map out a phase diagram of an order parameter, characterizing the degree of localization, as a function of the two driving parameters, inverse population size and wind speed. Our results may be used to extend the analysis of delocalization transitions to different settings, such as the viral quasi-species scenario.
Reduced expression of FILIP1L, a novel WNT pathway inhibitor, is associated with poor survival, progression and chemoresistance in ovarian cancer

Filamin A interacting protein 1-like (FILIP1L) is an inhibitor of the canonical WNT pathway. WNT/β-catenin signaling and its downstream pathway, epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT), play a key role in ovarian cancer metastasis and chemoresistance. To study the clinical implications of FILIP1L in regulating the WNT/β-catenin pathway, the expression of FILIP1L, β-catenin, SNAIL and SLUG was analyzed by immunohistochemistry on tissue microarrays of 369 ovarian samples ranging from normal to metastatic. In addition, the results were validated in mouse model and in vitro cell culture. In the present study, we demonstrated that FILIP1L expression was inversely correlated with poor prognosis, stage and chemoresistance in ovarian cancer. Notably, low FILIP1L expression was independent negative prognostic factor with respect to overall and disease-free survival. FILIP1L inhibited peritoneal metastases in orthotopic mouse model. FILIP1L knockdown induced chemoresistance in ovarian cancer cells and this phenotype was rescued by simultaneous knockdown of FILIP1L and SLUG, an EMT activator. We also demonstrated that FILIP1L regulates β-catenin degradation. FILIP1L co-localizes with phospho-β-catenin and increases phospho-β-catenin at the centrosomes, destined for proteosomal degradation. Finally, we showed that FILIP1L regulates EMT. Overall, these findings suggest that FILIP1L promotes β-catenin degradation and suppresses EMT, thereby inhibiting metastases and chemoresistance. Our study provides the first clinical relevance of FILIP1L in human cancer, and suggests that FILIP1L may be a novel prognostic marker for chemotherapy in ovarian cancer patients. Further, the modulation of FILIP1L expression may have the potential to be a target for cancer therapy.
Information and Communication Technologies and Development of Learners' Critical Thinking: Primary School Teachers' Attitudes

The Information and Communication Technologies exercise a great impact on the ways people work, communicate and interact, and contribute considerably to the development of learners’ skills. However, the use of Information and Communication Technologies cannot lead to the development of high-order skills and of critical thinking, if not combined with the appropriate teaching methods. In the light of the above, the aim of the present research is to identify and record Primary School teachers’ beliefs about the impact of Information and Communication Technologies on the enhancement of critical thinking. An analysis of the skills taught within the Greek educational context and considered to be necessary for the development of critical thinking, is also provided. The data elicitation tool is a questionnaire devised for the needs of the specific research and the sample is comprised by 118 Primary School teachers working on the Greek island of Lesvos.
An automated parallel image registration technique based on the correlation of wavelet features

With the increasing importance of multiple multiplatform remote sensing missions, fast and automatic integration of digital data from disparate sources has become critical to the success of these endeavors. Our work utilizes maxima of wavelet coefficients to form the basic features of a correlation-based automatic registration algorithm. Our wavelet-based registration algorithm is tested successfully with data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) and the Landsat Thematic Mapper (TM), which differ by translation and/or rotation. By the choice of high-frequency wavelet features, this method is similar to an edge-based correlation method, but by exploiting the multiresolution nature of a wavelet decomposition, our method achieves higher computational speeds for comparable accuracies. This algorithm has been implemented on a single-instruction multiple-data (SIMD) massively parallel computer, the MasPar MP-2, as well as on the CrayT3D, the Cray T3E, and a Beowulf cluster of Pentium workstations.
Proximal Hypospadias Repair Outcomes in Patients with a Specific Disorder of Sexual Development Diagnosis

Boys with undermasculinized external genital and/or 46,XY disorders of sex development (DSD) often receive masculinizing genitoplasty. Such procedures are done to correct ventral curvature of the phallus, reposition a proximally located urethral meatus, and cosmetically correct the appearance of labioscrotal folds. No studies to date have assessed if patients with a specific DSD diagnosis have worse outcomes for severe proximal hypospadias procedures or whether or not these patients require more extensive surgical maneuvers than severe proximal hypospadias patients without a specific DSD diagnosis. We retrospectively reviewed consecutive proximal hypospadias repairs performed at our institution from 1998 to 2010 and compared the anatomy, surgical technique required for repair, and outcomes in patients with and without a definitive DSD diagnosis. Boys with a specific DSD diagnosis do have significantly more atypical anatomy when undergoing proximal hypospadias masculinizing genitoplasties. They are more likely to require associated gonad procedures but do not have an increased risk of complications or number of surgeries when compared to other proximal hypospadias patients without a specific DSD diagnosis. The risk of complications is consistent with reports in the literature, and the mean number of procedures in this contemporary study is fewer than in historic reports.
Amphetamine Activation of Hippocampal Drive of Mesolimbic Dopamine Neurons: A Mechanism of Behavioral Sensitization

The repeated administration of psychostimulants induces an enhanced behavioral response to a subsequent drug challenge. This behavioral sensitization is proposed to model the increased drug craving observed in human psychostimulant abusers. Using in vivo extracellular recordings from identified ventral tegmental area dopamine (DA) neurons, we report that amphetamine-sensitized rats display an activation of ventral hippocampal neuron firing and a significantly greater number of spontaneously active DA neurons compared with saline-treated rats. Moreover, TTX inactivation of the ventral hippocampus restores DA neuron activity to control levels and also blocks the expression of locomotor sensitization. Taken as a whole, we propose that behavioral sensitization to psychostimulant drugs is attributable, at least in part, to persistent activation of the ventral hippocampus–nucleus accumbens pathway, with the resultant increase in tonic DA neuron firing enabling an abnormally higher response to subsequent psychostimulant administration.
Understanding and use of inhaler medication by asthmatics in specialty care in Trinidad: a study following development of Caribbean guidelines for asthma management and prevention.

STUDY OBJECTIVES Following the development of the Caribbean Guidelines for Asthma Care, we examined the utilization of inhaled medications in asthmatic patients in Trinidad, West Indies. SETTING Chest Clinic, Ministry of Health, Trinidad. PARTICIPANTS Physician-diagnosed asthmatic patients who attended the Chest Clinic between July 1998 and August 2000. MEASUREMENTS AND RESULTS A consecutive sample of patients who were > 7 years of age (n = 402) was interviewed about compliance with, understanding of, and use of inhaler medication. The inhaler technique of these patients was directly observed. Inhaled steroid therapy was prescribed in 83% of patients but were prescribed the least in elderly patients (63%) and children (62%). Salbutamol was prescribed in 98% of patients, and ipratropium and sodium cromoglycate were selectively prescribed in elderly men and children, respectively. Only 33% of patients used the inhaler correctly, and children and the elderly were the least efficient in its use. The use of a spacer device was advised in 19% of patients, including only 6% of the elderly patients. Explanations for different inhaler therapies were given to 62% of patients, and 53% of patients could describe these reasons. The reported 40% noncompliance rate among patients in the sample was primarily a result of long waiting periods at the pharmacy (58%) and the personal cost incurred on purchasing the medication (52%). CONCLUSIONS Educating patients, with a focus on children and the elderly, in inhaler techniques and reinforcing understanding of asthma medications can improve asthma management in Trinidad. Asthma caregivers in the Caribbean should ensure the appropriate dissemination of the guidelines and should outline strategies for their implementation.
The Methodology and Practice of the Evaluation of Image Retrieval Systems and Segmentation Methods

Content-Based Image Retrieval is important for two reasons. First, the oft-cited growth of image archives in many fields, and the rapid expansion of the Web, mean that successful image retrieval systems are fast becoming a necessity if the mass of accumulated data is to be useful. Second, database retrieval provides a framework within which the important questions of machine vision are brought into focus: successful retrieval is likely to require genuine image understanding. In view of these points, the evaluatio- n of retrieval systems becomes a matter of priority. There is already a substantial literature evaluating specific systems, but little high-level discussion of the evaluation methodologies themselves seems to have taken place. In the first part of the report, we propose a framework within which such issues can be addressed, analyse possible evaluation methodologies, indicate where they are appropriate and where they are not, and critique query-by-example and evaluation methodologies related to it. In the second part of the report, we apply the results of this analysis to a particular dataset. The dataset is problematic but typical: no ground truth is available for its semantics. Considering retrieval based on image segmentation- s, we present a novel method for its evaluation. Unlike methods of evaluation that rely on the existence or creation of ground truth, the proposed evaluatio- n procedure subjects human subjects to a psychovisual test comparing the results of different segmentation schemes. The test is designed to answer two questions: does consensus about a `best' segmentation exist, and if it does, what do we learn about segmentation schemes for retrieval? The results confirm that human subjects are consistent in their judgements, thus allowing meaningful evaluation.