Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Theory of Mind, Old Age, and Educational Opportunity in Colombia

Studies of theory of mind (ToM) abilities in older age groups have yielded mixed results. Thirteen earlier studies are reviewed: these often had small sample sizes, and varied in educational level of older participants. We hypothesized that educational level would be an important factor for ToM in elderly participants, and especially in a non-Western country. We investigated performance on ToM and non-mental story tasks in 250 participants in three age groups (young, middle-aged, and old) in Colombia. There was a decline with ToM as well as non-mental task abilities with age. However, a strong effect of education was found in the old group; those with good educational attainment performed at the same level as young participants, and outperformed the middle-aged group. The possibility of a cohort effect for the middle-aged group is discussed. It is concluded that educational opportunities are a significant protective factor for ToM abilities in elderly populations.
Sulphated polysaccharides, corticosteroids and lymphocyte recirculation.

Intermediate lymph was collected from the efferent duct of a single, superficial lymph node in unanaesthetised sheep for a few days before and after they were given an intravenous (i.v.) injection of a sulphated polysaccharide, fucoidan, at a dose of 10 mg per kg. Within an hour or so of the injection, the recirculation of lymphocytes through the node under study fell by over 80% and remained low for a few hours. This acute reduction in lymphocyte recirculation could be duplicated almost exactly by giving an i.v. dose (250 micrograms per kg) of a synthetic corticosteroid, dexamethasone, instead of fucoidan. Also, during the fall in lymphocyte recirculation that followed the injection of fucoidan, the concentration of cortisol in the blood plasma increased nearly 10-fold. These findings strongly suggest that much of the effect of exogenous sulphated polysaccharides on the recirculation of lymphocytes is neither direct nor specific, but secondary to an increased secretion of corticosteroid hormones.
Selective Increase in Dopamine Utilization in the Shell Subdivision of the Nucleus Accumbens by the Benzodiazepine Inverse Agonist FG 7142

Abstract: We examined the effects of the benzodiazepine inverse agonist FG 7142 on dopamine metabolism in the core and shell subdivisions of the nucleus accumbens. FG 7142 (15 mg/kg i.p.) or vehicle was administered to adult male rats 30 min before they were killed. Selected brain regions, including samples from the whole nucleus accumbens as well as core and shell subdivisions, were collected and assayed for tissue concentrations of dopamine and its major metabolite, 3,4‐dihydroxyphenylacetic acid. Consistent with previous reports, FG 7142 administration increased dopamine utilization in the medial prefrontal cortex but not the whole nucleus accumbens. Examination of subdivisions revealed that FG 7142 produced increased dopamine utilization in the shell subdivision of the nucleus accumbens. No effect of FG 7142 on dopamine utilization in the core region of the nucleus accumbens was observed. These data are discussed in terms of in vivo microdialysis studies reporting increased dopamine release in the nucleus accumbens after FG 7142 administration.
Large electrooptic modulation in a thermally-poled germanosilicate fiber

A large linear electro-optic phase shift observed in a germanosilicate fiber has been induced by thermal poling at about 250/spl deg/C for 20-60 min with an electric field of >8/spl times/10/sup 5/ V/cm and a 3.3-cm electrode length. Polarization dependence of the V/sub /spl pi//L product in a birefringent germanosilicate fiber has been found, and the lowest V/sub /spl pi//L product has been measured for TE-polarization of 224 V/cm at 633 nm. Furthermore, it has been found that the electrical resistance between the electrodes is reduced by thermal poling. <<ETX>>
A study on persistent scheduling for VoIP services in UMB system

In next-generation cellular systems including 3.9G and IMT-advanced systems, voice-over-IP (VoIP) services will be provided to users instead of conventional circuit switch-based voice calls. VoIP packets have peculiar characteristics that the packet length is short and packets are frequently generated. These phenomena require significant radio resources to send control channels in which resource assignment messages are conveyed ahead of VoIP packets transmission. In order to deal with this issue, persistent scheduling was proposed. There are several reports on persistent scheduling; however, sufficient study on it has not yet been conducted. This paper proposes persistent scheduling schemes that allow multiple resource usages using a threshold of queuing latency and then shows performance results based on ultra mobile broadband (UMB) system, which was standardized by the Third Generation Partnership Project 2 (3GPP2) as a 3.9G cellular system. Through computer simulations, it turns out that the proposed persistent scheduler gives improvement of 30% in terms of VoIP capacity compared to the basic persistent scheduler.
Characteristics of Skeletal Muscle Fibers of SOD1 Knockout Mice

Cu/Zn superoxide dismutase (SOD1) knockout (KO) mice are known as an aging model in some aspects, but the damage and regeneration process of each fiber type have not been sufficiently studied. In this study, we investigated the damage and satellite cell state of the gastrocnemius muscle in SOD1 KO mice (6 months old) using immunohistochemical staining and real-time RT-PCR. The proportion of central nuclei-containing Type IIx/b fibers in the deep and superficial portions of the gastrocnemius muscle was significantly higher in SOD1 KO than control mice. The number of satellite cells per muscle fiber decreased in all muscle fiber types in the deep portion of the gastrocnemius muscle in SOD1 KO mice. In addition, the mRNA expression levels of Pax7 and myogenin, which are expressed in satellite cells in the activation, proliferation, and differentiation states, significantly increased in the gastrocnemius muscle of SOD1 KO mice. Furthermore, mRNA of myosin heavy chain-embryonic, which is expressed in the early phase of muscle regeneration, significantly increased in SOD1 KO mice. It was suggested that muscle is damaged by reactive oxygen species produced in the mitochondrial intermembrane space in Type IIxb fibers, accelerating the proliferation and differentiation of satellite cells through growth factors in SOD1 KO mice.
Digit Training in Noise Can Improve Cochlear Implant Users' Speech Understanding in Noise

Objective:While auditory training in quiet has been shown to improve cochlear implant (CI) users' speech understanding in quiet, it is unclear whether training in noise will benefit speech understanding in noise. The present study investigated whether auditory training could improve CI users' speech recognition in noise and whether training with familiar stimuli in an easy listening task (closed-set digit recognition) would improve recognition of unfamiliar stimuli in a more difficult task (open-set sentence recognition). Design:CI users' speech understanding in noise was assessed before, during, and after auditory training with a closed-set recognition task (digits identification) in speech babble. Before training was begun, recognition of digits, Hearing in Noise Test (HINT) sentences, and IEEE sentences presented in steady speech-shaped noise or multitalker speech babble was repeatedly measured to establish a stable estimate of baseline performance. After completing baseline measures, participants trained at home on their personal computers using custom software for approximately 30 mins/day, 5 days/wk, for 4 wks, for a total of 10 hrs of training. Participants were trained only to identify random sequences of three digits presented in speech babble, using a closed-set task. During training, the signal-to-noise ratio was adjusted according to subject performance; auditory and visual feedback was provided. Recognition of digits, HINT sentences, and IEEE sentences in steady noise and speech babble was remeasured after the second and fourth week of training. Training was stopped after the fourth week, and subjects returned to the laboratory 1 mo later for follow-up testing to see whether any training benefits had been retained. Results:Mean results showed that the digit training in babble significantly improved digit recognition in babble (which was trained) and in steady noise (which was not trained). The training benefit generalized to improved HINT and IEEE sentence recognition in both types of noise. Training benefits were largely retained in follow-up measures made 1 mo after training was stopped. Conclusions:The results demonstrated that auditory training in noise significantly improved CI users' speech performance in noise, and that training with simple stimuli using an easy closed-set listening task improved performance with difficult stimuli and a difficult open-set listening task.
Competitive Algorithms for Mulitstage Online Scheduling

We study an online flow shop scheduling problem where each job consists of several tasks that have to be completed in t different stages and the goal is to maximize the total weight of accepted jobs. The set of tasks of a job contains one task for each stage and each stage has a dedicated set of identical parallel machines corresponding to it that can only process tasks of this stage. In order to gain the weight (profit) associated with a job j, each of its tasks has to be executed between a task-specific release date and deadline subject to the constraint that all tasks of job j from stages 1, . , i − 1 have to be completed before the task of the ith stage can be started. In the online version, jobs arrive over time and all information about the tasks of a job becomes available at the release date of its first task. This model can be used to describe production processes in supply chains when customer orders arrive online. We show that even the basic version of the offline problem with a single machine in each stage, unit weights, unit processing times, and fixed execution times for all tasks (i.e., deadline minus release date equals processing time) is APX-hard. Moreover, we show that the approximation ratio of any polynomialtime approximation algorithm for this basic version of the problem must depend on the number t of stages. For the online version of the basic problem, we provide a (2t−1)-competitive deterministic online algorithm and a matching lower bound. Moreover, we provide several (sometimes tight) upper and lower bounds on the competitive ratio of online algorithms for several generalizations of the basic problem involving different weights, arbitrary release dates and deadlines, different processing times of tasks, and several identical machines per stage.
Occult blood and fecal leukocytes as screening tests in childhood infectious diarrhea: an old problem revisited

During a 24-month period 446 children with diarrhea and 16 controls had examination of their stools for leukocytes and for occult blood. Fecal leukocytes were found in 36, 16 and 18% of children with Salmonella-Shigella-Campylobacter, rotavirus or enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli, or cryptosporidial diarrhea, respectively. Similarly 43, 39 and 38% of these groups, respectively, as well as 13% of controls had occult blood. Notably 70% of 10 Shigella cases had fecal leukocytes. In 166 children with mixed pathogens leukocytes were seen in 27 and 8% of children with Salmonella-Shigella-Campylobacter or noninvasive pathogen, respectively. Likewise 44 and 18% of these groups had occult blood. Agreement between both tests being positive was poor, the highest result being 5O7o for Shigella. Dysentery combined with both tests positive was associated with 15 (88%) cases of invasive agents present in stool cultures, and combination of dysentery with fecal leukocytes was associated with 21 (72%) cases of invasive agents recovered. The results of these tests should be interpreted in the context of the clinical situation. A combined clinical-epidemiologic and screening tests-based approach to infectious diarrhea of childhood is suggested.
Immunomagnetic CD45 depletion does not improve cytokeratin 20 RT-PCR in colorectal cancer

Abstract Background: Cytokeratin 20 reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (CK20 RT-PCR) of blood and bone marrow specimens has been suggested for assessment of hematogenously disseminated tumor cell (DTC) spread in colorectal cancer (CRC) patients. Considerable discrepancies among the studies reported indicate a need for better evaluation procedures. We investigated whether mononucleated cell (MNC) enrichment by Ficoll density gradient centrifugation followed by immunomagnetic depletion of CD45-positive cells (extended enrichment) allows better detection of DTC-associated CK20 mRNA compared to MNC enrichment by Ficoll density gradient centrifugation alone (Ficoll enrichment). Methods: We analyzed 53 samples [38 peripheral blood (PB), 15 bone marrow (BM)] from 38 CRC patients. Extended enrichment was performed for 30 specimens (PB and BM, n=15 each), and Ficoll enrichment for 23 blood specimens. Total RNA was extracted, reverse-transcribed and analyzed by real-time RT-PCR using a LightCycler instrument. Results: Despite extended enrichment, 10 PB and 8 BM samples could not be analyzed because of low cellular yield. The depletion efficiency of CD45 separation was 2 log. RT-PCR of the housekeeping gene PBGD resulted in high and varied crossing point values (mean 37.1+3.0) for five PB and seven BM specimens. Ficoll enrichment yielded 23 analyzable blood specimens for which the mean crossing point value was 26.7+0.5 in PBGD RT-PCR. CK20 RT-PCR of 23 blood samples (all from Dukes D patients) revealed CK20 transcripts in four cases (17%). Conclusions: Extended enrichment was not superior to Ficoll enrichment; in fact, the sensitivity was lower. Improvement of the reported CK20 RT-PCR assay of Ficoll-enriched MNC populations is warranted. Clin Chem Lab Med 2007;45:351–6.
Congenital diaphragmatic hernia: experience of 14 years.

AIM Over the last two decades, new therapies have emerged for the management of congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH). The aim of this paper was to review our experience in the management of newborns diagnosed with CDH over a 14-year period. METHODS Review of maternal and infant medical records, 1997-2010. RESULTS Eighty newborns with CDH; 21 (26%) were preterm and 28 (35%) of low birthweight (<2500 g), including 3 (4%) of very low birthweight (< 1500 g). Prenatal diagnosis was made in 53 (66%) cases. The location of the hernia was: left side 48 (90.5%); right 4 (7.5%); bilateral 1 (1%). Corrective surgery was performed in 58 (73%) patients. High frequency oscillatory ventilation was used in 10 (12.5%), inhaled nitric oxide in 18 (22.5%), sildenafil in 15 (18.7%) and extracorporeal membrane oxygenation in 1 (1%). The overall survival was 49% (N.=39). Since 2003, the overall survival raised to 64%. The survival rate of the appropriate for gestational age term newborns without other congenital/chromosomal anomaly or hydrops fetalis was 67% (24/36). CONCLUSION Our survival rate for congenital diaphragmatic hernia has improved over the last 14 years, associated to the use of new therapies, such as high-frequency oscillation ventilation (HFOV), inhaled nitric oxide and sildenafil.
Magnetic effects of defect pair formation in ZnO

In order to gain insight into the so-called d0-magnetic properties of defective ZnO we have carried out first principles calculations on various types of defects formed by intrinsic defects and doped atoms as well as pairs of them. The doped atoms include N and H. In agreement with previous works we find several possibilities to create magnetic defects especially by hole formation. Our results also show that two defects which are in the vicinity of each other and that are magnetic when isolated, in general become non-magnetic if one of them is acceptor-like and the other one donor-like. Furthermore, we have investigated the magnetic interaction of different defect pairs via total energy calculations, the results of which show in all cases the stability of ferromagnetic configurations. In order to reproduce the experimentally found localization of the magnetic hole states we have investigated the effect of applying correlation corrections on the p orbitals containing these holes.
Structure and folding of disulfide‐rich miniproteins: Insights from molecular dynamics simulations and MM‐PBSA free energy calculations

The fold of small disulfide‐rich proteins largely relies on two or more disulfide bridges that are main components of the hydrophobic core. Because of the small size of these proteins and their high cystine content, the cysteine connectivity has been difficult to ascertain in some cases, leading to uncertainties and debates in the literature. Here, we use molecular dynamics simulations and MM‐PBSA free energy calculations to compare similar folds with different disulfide pairings in two disulfide‐rich miniprotein families, namely the knottins and the short‐chain scorpion toxins, for which the connectivity has been discussed. We first show that the MM‐PBSA approach is able to discriminate the correct knotted topology of knottins from the laddered one. Interestingly, a comparison of the free energy components for kalata B1 and MCoTI‐II suggests that cyclotides and squash inhibitors, although sharing the same scaffold, are stabilized through different interactions. Application to short‐chain scorpion toxins suggests that the conventional cysteine pairing found in many homologous toxins is significantly more stable than the unconventional pairing reported for maurotoxin and for spinoxin. This would mean that native maurotoxin and spinoxin are not at the lowest free energy minimum and might result from kinetically rather than thermodynamically driven oxidative folding processes. For both knottins and toxins, the correct or conventional disulfide connectivities provide lower flexibilities and smaller deviations from the initial conformations. Overall, our work suggests that molecular dynamics simulations and the MM‐PBSA approach to estimate free energies are useful tools to analyze and compare disulfide bridge connectivities in miniproteins. Proteins 2008. © 2008 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Towards Playing a 3D First-Person Shooter Game Using a Classification Deep Neural Network Architecture

In this work, we present a network architecture to solve a supervised learning problem, the classification of a handwritten dataset, and a reinforcement learning problem, a complex First-Person Shooter 3D game environment. We used a Deep Neural Network model to solve both problems. For classification, we used a Softmax regression and cross entropy loss to train the network. To play the game, we used a Q-Learning adaptation for Deep Learning to train the autonomous agent. In both cases, the input was only the pixels of an image. We show that this single network architecture is suitable for the classification task and is capable of playing the 3D game. This result gives us an insight into the possibility of a general network architecture, capable of solving any kind of problems, regardless of the learning paradigm.
Evaluation of TruCount Absolute-Count Tubes for Determining CD4 and CD8 Cell Numbers in Human Immunodeficiency Virus-Positive Adults

ABSTRACT A single-platform technology that uses an internal bead standard and three-color flow cytometry to determine CD4 and CD8 absolute counts was evaluated for reproducibility and agreement. Values obtained using TruCount absolute-count tubes were compared to those obtained using a two-color predicate methodology. Sixty specimens from human immunodeficiency virus type 1-infected donors were shipped to five laboratories. Each site also analyzed replicates of 14 human immunodeficiency virus type 1-infected local specimens at 6 h and again at 24 h. The interlaboratory variability was significantly less with TruCount (median difference in percent coefficient of variation [%CV] between the two methods was −8% and −3% for CD4 and CD8, respectively) than with the predicate method. Intralaboratory variability was smaller, with a median difference in %CV of −1% for both CD4 and CD8 with 6-h samples and −2% and −3% for CD4 and CD8, respectively, with 24-h samples. Use of TruCount for shipped samples resulted in a median CD4 count change of 7 cells (50th estimated percentile) when all laboratories and CD4 strata were combined. For on-site samples, the median CD4 count change was 10 CD4 cells for 6-h samples and 2 CD4 cells for 24-h samples. Individual site biases occurred in both directions and cancelled each other when the data were combined for all laboratories. Thus, the combined data showed a smaller change in median CD4 count than what may have occurred at an individual site. In summary, the use of TruCount decreased both the inter- and intralaboratory variability in determining absolute CD4 and CD8 counts.
Electric field strengths, ion energy distributions, and ion density decay for low-pressure, moderate-current nitrogen discharges.

Steady-state and time-dependent electric fields, ion densities, and ion velocity distributions are measured in the positive column of pulsed discharges in ${\mathrm{N}}_{2}$ for conditions of moderate energy input per molecule, i.e., 0.1 eV/molecule. A nonintrusive laser absorption technique is used to determine axial velocity distributions of ${\mathit{N}}_{2}^{+}$ ions and the time dependence of the ${\mathrm{N}}_{2}^{+}$ density from the shape and magnitude of absorption profiles of lines of the A $^{2}\mathrm{\ensuremath{\Pi}}_{\mathrm{u}}$\ensuremath{\leftarrow}X $^{2}\mathrm{\ensuremath{\Sigma}}_{\mathrm{g}}^{+}$ Meinel band of ${\mathrm{N}}_{2}^{+}$. The discharges were operated at pressures from 0.3 to 1 Torr, electric field to gas density ratios E/n from 130 to 75 Td, pulse lengths of 10 to 20 \ensuremath{\mu}s, peak currents of about 1.5 A, and ion densities of 5\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}${10}^{17}$ ions/${\mathrm{m}}^{3}$. Here 1 Td=${10}^{\mathrm{\ensuremath{-}}21}$V ${\mathrm{m}}^{2}$ and 1 Torr=133 Pa. The line profiles were found to be consistent with the convolution of a theoretical, high field velocity distribution appropriate to charge transfer collisions and an above-thermal Maxwellian distribution. The electric field strength to gas density ratios E/n determined from the ion drift velocities are significantly lower than the predictions of the theory for a cold gas and suggest high ionization rates resulting from vibrationally excited ${\mathrm{N}}_{2}$. The ${\mathrm{N}}_{2}^{+}$ density decay following the pulsed discharge is consistent with ion loss by electron-ion recombination and ambipolar diffusion for electrons heated by the vibrationally excited ${\mathrm{N}}_{2}$ at a calculated vibrational temperature of about 1900 K. The discharge conditions are briefly discussed so as to indicate the dominant processes and data needed for detailed models.
The inescapable smart impact detection system (ISIS): An ubiquitous and personalized fall detector based on a distributed “divide and conquer strategy”

Despite the intense research in the last decade with the aim of developing a reliable solution for fall detection in the elderly and other risk populations, it can be asserted that the diffusion of fall detectors in the geriatric practice is near null. This scenario is similar to the very scarce use of telemedicine in healthcare. The present work begins analyzing why fall detectors have not achieved to permeate the industry. That road is used to know the drawbacks of current devices and systems, besides to allow studying several important concepts underlying the principles of fall detection. A novel smart detection system based on that survey is finally briefly presented. The design of this device is founded on the experience and results obtained by an earlier device that was designed in the framework of the thesis of one of the authors.