Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Vitamin D attenuates nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor induced human skeletal muscle mitochondria DNA depletion

Objective:To evaluate the impact of the active metabolite of vitamin D, 1&agr;,25-dihydroxycholecalciferol (1,25D3), on nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor (NRTI) induced mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) depletion in human skeletal muscle myoblasts and myotubes. Design:mtDNA was quantified in human skeletal muscle myoblasts and myotubes following 1,25D3 and NRTI treatment using real-time PCR. Methods:Human skeletal muscle myoblasts and myotubes were treated with didanosine (ddI), stavudine (d4T), zidovudine (ZDV), lamivudine (3TC) and abacavir (ABC) alone or in combination either in the presence or absence of 1,25D3 for 5 days. Cells were harvested, DNA extracted and mtDNA quantified. Results:ddI and ddI-d4T significantly decreased both myoblast and myotube mtDNA in the absence of 1,25D3 compared with untreated controls (P ⩽ 0.029). In addition, the ZDV-3TC combination resulted in a 47% decrease in myotube mtDNA (P = 0.005). 1,25D3 increased myotube mtDNA levels in ddI, ZDV, 3TC, ABC, ddI-d4T, d4T-3TC, ZDV-3TC, ZDV-ABC and ZDV-3TC-ABC-containing regimens and myoblast mtDNA levels in ddI, d4T, ZDV, 3TC, ddI-d4T, ZDV-3TC and ZDV-ABC-containing regimens. Of note, 1,25D3 protected against myotube mtDNA depletion following ZDV-3TC treatment, rendering them similar to 1,25D3 untreated controls (P = 0.62), and increased both myotube and myoblast mtDNA two to three-fold in ddI-containing regimens (P < 0.05). Conclusion:1,25D3 confers a protective effect against NRTI-induced mitochondrial toxicity in skeletal muscle myoblasts and myotubes. These findings support a protective role for vitamin D in preventing mitochondrial toxicity and suggest that supplemental vitamin D may protect against NRTI-associated mitochondrial toxicity.
Novice Teachers and their Geographical Persuasions.

This paper explores the nature of a novice teacher's geographical persuasion and its influence on professional learning. The implementation of a naturalistic methodology is discussed in order to illuminate aspects of the novice teacher's experience. Analysis of the data endeavours to attribute meaning to an individual novice teacher's experience. Two themes emerging from this research are presented and discussed. Firstly, that novice teachers hold diverse interests and perspectives on the study of geography and feel strongly about particular aspects of the subject; and secondly, during their early school experiences novice teachers suspend their geographical persuasion in their thinking and planning. It is proposed that these findings may have implications for current practice.
Modeling user and item biases with Gaussian distribution for collaborative filtering

The collaborative filtering approach to recommender systems focuses on learning predictive models of user preferences, interests and behavior from community data, that is, the behavior of other available users. Matrix Factorization (MF) based approaches have been proven to be efficient collaborative filtering algorithm for rating-based recommender systems. But existing MF algorithms have several disadvantages, including ignoring the distribution of the ubiquitous user and item biases. In this work we present an improved probabilistic matrix factorization (IPMF) algorithm and its graphical model. We analyzed the statistical pattern of user and item biases in the MovieLens dataset. The user and item biases are normally distributed. The improved model takes user and item preference biases into account, thereby building a more accurate model. Further accuracy improvements are achieved by extending this model with nonnegative user feature vectors. We evaluated these methods on the MovieLens dataset, and we show that our experimental results are better than those previously reported on this dataset.
Readers’ Perceptions of Lexical Cohesion in Text

Preliminary results from an experimental study of readers’ perceptions of lexical cohesion and lexical semantic relations in text are presented. Readers agree on a common “core” of groups of related words and exhibit individual differences. The majority of relations reported are “non-classical” (not hyponymy, meronymy, synonymy, or antonymy). A group of commonly used relations is presented. These preliminary results indicate potential for improving both relations existing in lexical resources, and methods dependent on lexical cohesion analysis.
Neuron-synapse level problem decomposition method for cooperative coevolution of recurrent networks for time series prediction

The decomposition of a particular problem can become a tiresome task if little connections between the elements is needed. In cooperative coevolution of recurrent networks, synapse and neuron level are the two noteworthy problem decomposition methods. Through combination of both of the problem decomposition methods, the individual problem decomposition methods can share its strengths to solve the problem at hand better. In this paper, a recently proposed problem decomposition method known as Neuron-Synapse problem decomposition method is modified for Elman recurrent neural networks. The results reveal that the proposed method has got better results in selected datasets when compared to standalone methods. The results are better in some cases for proposed method when compared to other approaches from the literature.
Father Involvement During Early Childhood and Its Association with Children's Early Learning: A Meta-Analysis

Research Findings: In the present meta-analysis, information from 21 studies (representing 22 separate samples) was pooled across a 10-year period (1998–2008). Across 2 primary dimensions of direct father involvement (frequency of positive engagement activities and aspects of parenting quality) and 5 dimensions of children's early learning (representing social and cognitive domains), findings revealed small to moderate associations. Among group differences tested to further explain the relationships between these constructs, residential status and the ethnic/racial identification of fathers' surfaced as significant moderators, whereas income status was only meaningful at the trend level. Practice or Policy: In recent years, national attention has increased concerning the important influence of fathers on children's development. Concurrently, national interest has turned to the early childhood period as marking a major transition for young children, during which children are confronted with new and diverse developmental challenges that require emotional, social, and cognitive competence across their home and school environments. Although there is a growing body of research on fatherhood and father involvement, this literature has not been examined systematically to determine the strength of associations between specific dimensions of father involvement and young children's early learning that could inform the efforts of early childhood practitioners and family engagement programming decisions.
Platelets and Erythrocyte-Bound Platelets Bind Infectious HIV-1 in Plasma of Chronically Infected Patients

Chronic HIV-1 infection is associated with persistent viremia in most patients, but it remains unclear how free virus may survive the potential hostile effects of plasma. We investigated whether sites might exist on the surfaces of circulating blood cells for protection of infectious HIV-1 particles. Red blood cells (RBC) either from blood of uninfected normal individuals, or from blood obtained without EDTA from chronically infected HIV-1 patients, invariably contained a small number of RBC having attached platelets as determined by flow cytometry, light microscopy, and immunofluorescence microscopy. After mixing normal RBC with platelet-rich plasma, discrete populations of RBC, platelets, and complexes of platelets attached to RBC were purified by fluorescence-activated cell sorting. Upon incubation of purified cells or platelets with HIV-1 followed by washing and co-incubation with CD4-positive peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC), platelets, and platelet-RBC complexes, but not platelet-free RBC, caused infection of PBMC. Infection was prevented by pre-treating the platelet-RBC complexes with EDTA. Plasma and RBC (comprising a RBC/platelet-RBC mixture) from chronically infected patients with low viral loads were also co-incubated with PBMC ex vivo to determine the presence of infectious HIV-1. All freshly isolated plasmas from the HIV-1-infected donors, obtained in the absence of anticoagulant, were noninfectious. Interestingly, the RBC from most of the patients caused cell-cell infection of PBMC that was prevented by stripping the RBC with EDTA. A monoclonal antibody to DC-SIGN partially inhibited cell-cell HIV-1 infection of PBMC by normal RBC pre-incubated with platelets and HIV-1. We conclude: (a) platelet-free EDTA-free plasma from chronically infected HIV-1 patients, although containing viral RNA, is an environment that lacks detectable infectious HIV-1; (b) platelets and platelet-RBC complexes, but not purified RBC, bind infectious HIV-1; (c) DC-SIGN, and possibly other C-type lectins, may represent binding sites for infectious HIV-1 on platelets and platelet-RBC complexes.
Modelling and simulating the impact of a small solar plant to the low-voltage network

This paper focuses on modelling and simulation of a small solar power plant connected to a low-voltage network. The modelling principles of different power system elements are elaborated, and simulations of the network operation are carried out. The analysis covers the state of the network before the connection of the plant, as well as after the connection of a small solar power plant. The emphasis of analysis is on voltage conditions and power losses in the grid. For a complete insight into the influence of the solar power plant to the existing low-voltage network, the analysis of contribution to the short-circuit current has also been conducted. Obtained results of a real-world case study are compared with technical requirements prescribed by the Grid Code.
Imaging ATUM ultrathin section libraries with WaferMapper: a multi-scale approach to EM reconstruction of neural circuits

The automated tape-collecting ultramicrotome (ATUM) makes it possible to collect large numbers of ultrathin sections quickly—the equivalent of a petabyte of high resolution images each day. However, even high throughput image acquisition strategies generate images far more slowly (at present ~1 terabyte per day). We therefore developed WaferMapper, a software package that takes a multi-resolution approach to mapping and imaging select regions within a library of ultrathin sections. This automated method selects and directs imaging of corresponding regions within each section of an ultrathin section library (UTSL) that may contain many thousands of sections. Using WaferMapper, it is possible to map thousands of tissue sections at low resolution and target multiple points of interest for high resolution imaging based on anatomical landmarks. The program can also be used to expand previously imaged regions, acquire data under different imaging conditions, or re-image after additional tissue treatments.
Application of Zernike Moments as Features in KNN and SVM as Semi-Blind Detectors for STBC MIMO-OFDM Systems in Impulsive Noise Environments

In space time block coded (STBC) MIMO-OFDM, most receivers assume the channel noise to be Gaussian, this paper considers the semi-blind detection of symbols in non-Gaussian channels. Our aim is to introduce a new receiver for STBC MIMO-OFDM transmission over Rayleigh fading channels using Zernike moments which apply either k-nearest neighbor (KNN) or support vector machine (SVM) for classification. The detrimental effects of multipath on the transmitted symbols are alleviated using invariance to rotation, and scaling properties of the Zernike moments. The performance of the new method is shown in symmetric α-stable (SaS) and Middleton noise environments.
LEB-MAC: Load and energy balancing MAC protocol for energy harvesting powered wireless sensor networks

Ambient energy from solar, vibration, heat and wind provide alternative energy sources to power sensors and extend the lifetime of wireless sensor networks which have traditionally been powered by batteries. This paper aims to enhance the performance of energy harvesting powered wireless sensor networks in three aspects: relaying, scheduling, and medium access control. To better adapt to the characteristics of energy harvesting, an asynchronous receiver-initiated duty-cycling approach is preferred in energy harvesting powered wireless sensor networks. This reduces the duty cycle of senders, and regulates the active and sleep intervals according to the energy levels of sensors. When nodes run out of power and need time to recharge, network holes or voids develop, forcing data packets to be routed via other paths, like detours. The proposed relaying strategy aims to prevent holes by balancing the load across the network according to nodes' energy harvesting characteristics. This is a natural consequence of the asynchronous duty cycling by scheduling transmission based on the receiver's availability. The simulation results show that our scheme outperforms in terms of sender duty cycle, end-to-end delay and delivery ratio, especially in challenged conditions where other protocols fail.
Influence of age, gender, and menstrual cycle on the normal electrogastrogram.

OBJECTIVES Dyspeptic symptoms, which are more prevalent in females, are associated with gastric myoelectric and motor abnormalities. Age, gender, and menstrual cycle affect gastric emptying, but their effects on gastric myoelectric activity are not well characterized. The aim of this study was to determine the effects of age, gender, and menstrual cycle on gastric myoelectric activity. METHODS Healthy subjects (34 male, 49 female; ages 20-79 yr) underwent cutaneous electrogastrography with 60-min fasting and 60-min postprandial recordings. Premenopausal females were studied during days 1-3, 8-10, and 18-20 after onset of menses. Dominant slow wave frequency (DF), power of the DF, and percent time the DF was in a 2- to 4-cpm rhythm were determined for fasting and postprandial periods. RESULTS The DF, power of the DF, and percent time the DF was in a 2- to 4-cpm rhythm increased from the fasting to the postprandial period. The postprandial increase in the DF was less in females (5.3 +/- 1.2%) than in males (13.0 +/- 2.6%; p < 0.01). In premenopausal females, the DF increased from fasting to the postprandial period for days 1-3 (6.6 +/- 1.5%; p < 0.01) and 8-10 (6.6 +/- 2.3%; p < 0.01), but not during days 18-20 of the menstrual cycle (1.3 +/- 1.8%). The postprandial frequency increase in DF was less for male subjects > or = 60 yr (3.8 +/- 4.0%) than for males < 60 yr (14.6 +/- 2.8%; p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS The DF of the electrogastrogram is affected by age, gender, and phase of the menstrual cycle. The influence of these factors should be recognized when interpreting electrogastrograms in symptomatic patients.
Interactive Visual Hull Refinement for Specular and Transparent Object Surface Reconstruction

In this paper we present a method of using standard multi-view images for 3D surface reconstruction of non-Lambertian objects. We extend the original visual hull concept to incorporate 3D cues presented by internal occluding contours, i.e., occluding contours that are inside the object's silhouettes. We discovered that these internal contours, which are results of convex parts on an object's surface, can lead to a tighter fit than the original visual hull. We formulated a new visual hull refinement scheme -- Locally Convex Carving that can completely reconstruct concavity caused by two or more intersecting convex surfaces. In addition we develop a novel approach for contour tracking given labeled contours in sparse key frames. It is designed specifically for highly specular or transparent objects, for which assumptions made in traditional contour detection/tracking methods, such as highest gradient and stationary texture edges, are no longer valid. It is formulated as an energy minimization function where several novel terms are developed to increase robustness. Based on the two core algorithms, we have developed an interactive system for 3D modeling. We have validated our system, both quantitatively and qualitatively, with four datasets of different object materials. Results show that we are able to generate visually pleasing models for very challenging cases.
Yahoo! Distributed Agile: Notes from the World Over

In an ideal world, everyone on an Agile team is in the same physical location, fostering cooperation and collaboration all throughout the teampsilas growth. Unfortunately the real world doesn't always work that way. The current trend to cut costs and increase revenue by off-shoring and establishing multiple company campuses around the world for continuous development is inherently anti-Agile. Does this mean that we cannot do Agile with distributed teams? As Scrum coaches at Yahoo! , we experience challenges with distributed Agile teams on a day-to-day basis. Some teams have failed miserably, while others have succeeded well - surprising us with their novel solutions in order to make Agile work. Our objective is to highlight successful patterns that we have noticed that significantly helped in making these distributed teams thrive.
Towards a methodology driven by relationships of quality attributes for qos-based analysis

Engineering high quality software is a tough task. In order to know whether a certain quality attribute has been achieved or degraded, it has to be quantified by analysis or measured. However, determining what to quantify and how these quantities are related to each other is the difficult part. Early analysis of the quality attributes of a software system on the basis of the system's planned architecture allows informed decisions on design trade-offs. Such decisions can be later validated by measurements on the running system. In this paper, we revisit software quality attributes. In particular, we introduce a generic taxonomy of quality attributes, the relationship between the attributes is argued, and finally we devise future work leading to an attribute-based methodology for evaluating software architectures. The goal is reasoning about multiple quality attributes of software systems to achieve the ability to quantitatively evaluate and trade-off them.
Localized factor models for multi-context recommendation

Combining correlated information from multiple contexts can significantly improve predictive accuracy in recommender problems. Such information from multiple contexts is often available in the form of several incomplete matrices spanning a set of entities like users, items, features, and so on. Existing methods simultaneously factorize these matrices by sharing a single set of factors for entities across all contexts. We show that such a strategy may introduce significant bias in estimates and propose a new model that ameliorates this issue by positing local, context-specific factors for entities. To avoid over-fitting in contexts with sparse data, the local factors are connected through a shared global model. This sharing of parameters allows information to flow across contexts through multivariate regressions among local factors, instead of enforcing exactly the same factors for an entity, everywhere. Model fitting is done in an EM framework, we show that the E-step can be fitted through a fast multi-resolution Kalman filter algorithm that ensures scalability. Experiments on benchmark and real-world Yahoo! datasets clearly illustrate the usefulness of our approach. Our model significantly improves predictive accuracy, especially in cold-start scenarios.
A miniaturized planar crossover using dual transmission lines

This paper presents a miniaturized four-port crossover consisting two cascaded branch-line couplers implemented by dual transmission lines. A dual transmission line is composed of two parallel-connected transmission lines with high impedance and different electrical lengths. This design has the advantage of circuit layout flexibility and size reduction. The electrical size is 21% reduced comparing with the size of a crossover utilized with two cascaded branch-line couplers.
Early real-world evidence of persistence on oral anticoagulants for stroke prevention in non-valvular atrial fibrillation: a cohort study in UK primary care

Objectives To examine the characteristics and persistence in patients newly initiated with oral anticoagulants (OACs) for stroke prevention in non-valvular atrial fibrillation (NVAF). Design Cohort study in Clinical Practice Research Datalink. Setting UK primary care. Participants 15 242 patients with NVAF newly prescribed apixaban, rivaroxaban, dabigatran or vitamin K antagonists (VKAs) between 1 December 2012 and 31 October 2014. 13 089 patients were OAC naïve. Outcome measures Patient characteristics and risk of non-persistence compared to apixaban using Cox regression models over the entire follow-up and using a time-partitioned approach to handle non-proportional hazards. Results Among the OAC naïve patients, VKAs were most common (78.1%, n=10 218), followed by rivaroxaban (12.1%, n=1589), dabigatran (5.7%, n=741) and apixaban (4.1%, n=541). High baseline stroke risk (CHA2DS2VASc ≥2) ranged from 80.2% (dabigatran) to 88.4% (apixaban and rivaroxaban). History of stroke and bleeding was the highest among apixaban (23.7% and 31.6%) and lowest among VKA patients (15.9% and 27.5%). Across the entire follow-up period, adjusting for differences in characteristics, there was no evidence of a difference in non-persistence between VKA and apixaban (HR 0.92 (95% CI 0.68 to 1.23)). Non-persistence was higher with dabigatran (HR 1.67 (1.20 to 2.32)) and rivaroxaban (HR 1.41 (1.02 to 1.93)) than apixaban. Using the partitioned approach, non-persistence was lower with VKA (HR 0.33 (0.22 to 0.48)), and higher with dabigatran (HR 1.65 (1.08 to 2.52)) compared to apixaban in the first 2 months of follow-up. After 2 months, non-persistence was higher with VKA (HR 1.70 (1.08 to 2.66)) and dabigatran (HR 2.10 (1.30 to 3.41)). Pooling OAC naïve and experienced patients, non-persistence was also higher with rivaroxaban compared to apixaban after 2 months of follow-up (HR 1.69 (1.19 to 2.39)). Conclusions Observed differential prescribing of OACs can result in channelling bias in comparative effectiveness research. Persistence patterns changed over follow-up time, but there are indications of improved persistence rates with apixaban over other OACs in the UK. A larger study with longer follow-up is needed to corroborate findings. This study is registered on ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT02488421).