Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Fiber-dependent Approach for Fast Dynamic Character Animation

Creating secondary motion of character animation including jiggling of fat is demanded in the computer animation. In general, secondary motion from the primary motion of the character are expressed based on shape matching approaches. However, the previous methods do not account for the directional stretch characteristics and local stiffness at the same time, that is problematic to represent the effect of anatomical structure such as muscle fiber. Our framework allows user to edit the anatomical structure of the character model corresponding to creature’s body containing muscle and fat from the tetrahedral model and bone motion. Our method then simulates the elastic deformation considering anatomical structures defined directional stretch characteristics and stiffness on each layer. In addition, our method can add the constraint for local deformation (e.g. biceps) considering defined model’s characteristics.
n vivo models of cortical acquired epilepsy

The neocortex is the site of origin of several forms of acquired epilepsy. Here we provide a brief review of experimental models that were recently developed to study neocortical epileptogenesis as well as some major results obtained with these methods. Most of neocortical seizures appear to be nocturnal and it is known that neuronal activities reveal high levels of synchrony during slow-wave sleep. Therefore, we start the review with a description of mechanisms of neuronal synchronization and major forms of synchronized normal and pathological activities. Then, we describe three experimental models of seizures and epileptogenesis: ketamine–xylazine anesthesia as feline seizure triggered factor, cortical
Historical Ecology and Biogeography of North Pacific Pinnipeds: Isotopes and Ancient DNA from Three Archaeological Assemblages

ABSTRACT Zooarchaeology has the potential to make significant contributions to knowledge of pinniped biogeography of import to both archaeologists and environmental scientists. We analyzed northern fur seal remains found in three archaeological sites located along the outer coast of the Northeast Pacific Ocean: Cape Addington Rockshelter in southeast Alaska, Ts’ishaa on the west coast of Vancouver Island, and the Netarts Sandspit site on the Oregon Coast. These three sites occur along an 850 km stretch of coastline between 45° to 55° N. and 123° to 134° W. , far southeast of the primary breeding area for northern fur seals today, located on the Pribilof Islands at 57° N. 170° W. We use ancient DNA (aDNA) and carbon (δ13C) and nitrogen (δ15N) isotopes to investigate whether northern fur seal remains from these archaeological sites originated with migratory Pribilof Islands populations. For sites located in Oregon and points north, the isotope values are not distinct from those of the Pribilof fur seals. Although aDNA was recovered from three pinniped species (northern fur seal, Steller sea lion, and Guadalupe fur seal), the paucity of published genetic data from modern northern fur seals prevents us from distinguishing the archaeological specimens from modern Pribilof seals.
Stellenbosch, South Africa 13.1 PRINCIPLES OF ION EXCHANGE 13.1-1 Ion-Exchange Resins

POLYSTYRENE SULFONIC ACID CATION RESINS Styrene (vinylbenzene) is polymerized readily, using an organic peroxide catalyst, to form linear polystyrene. If divinylbenzene (DVB) (usually about 8% of the total) is mixed with the styrene, a three-dimensional polymer network is formed. The DVB cross-links give a three-dimensional structure that renders the polymer insoluble. The characteristic spherical ion-exchange beads therefore are made by suspension polymerization. The catalyzed monomer mixture is stirred into water under conditions designed to give the desired droplet size which, after several hours heating, will yield solid spherical beads. At this stage, the beads are hydrophobic but can absorb some organic liquids such as toluene, swelling as a result. The extent of swelling is used in fact as a measure of the crosslinking of the polymer. The beads are converted into an ion-exchange resin, by first swelling the polymer with an inert solvent such as ethylene dichloride. They are then treated with concentrated sulfuric acid, at about 80C, to make a cation exchanger. The cation exchanger is totally insoluble but is freely permeable by water and contains about 50% H2O by weight in an apparently dry state. The final material is sulfonated crosslinked polystyrene which is the most widely used cation-exchange resin in commercial use. The total capacity of the resin for sorbing any ion is about 0.00525 equivalent per gram, normally expressed as 5.25 meq/g, calculated on oven-dried resin.
Impulsivity interacts with momentary PTSD symptom worsening to predict alcohol use in male veterans

ABSTRACT Background: Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is prevalent among veterans who served post-9/11, and co-occurs with problem alcohol and substance use. Studies using ecological momentary assessment have examined the temporal association between time-varying PTSD symptoms and alcohol use. Results suggest individual differences in these associations. Objectives: We tested hypotheses that alcohol use measured by momentary assessment would be explained by acute increases in PTSD symptoms, and the PTSD–alcohol association would be moderated by trait impulsivity. Methods: A sample of 28 male post-9/11-era veterans who reported past-month PTSD symptoms and risky alcohol use were enrolled. On a quasi-random schedule, participants completed three electronic assessments daily for 28 days measuring past 2-h PTSD symptoms, alcohol, and substance use. At baseline, trait impulsivity was measured by the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale. Past-month PTSD symptoms and alcohol use were measured. Using three-level hierarchical models, number of drinks recorded by momentary assessment was modeled as a function of change in PTSD symptoms since last assessment, controlling for lag-1 alcohol and substance use and other covariates. A cross-level interaction tested moderation of the within-time PTSD–alcohol association by impulsivity. Results: A total of 1,522 assessments were completed. A positive within-time association between PTSD symptom change and number of drinks was demonstrated. The association was significantly moderated by impulsivity. Conclusion: Results provide preliminary support for a unique temporal relationship between acute PTSD symptom change and alcohol use among veterans with trait impulsiveness. If replicated in a clinical sample, results may have implications for a targeted momentary intervention.
Coccidiostats in milk: development of a multi-residue method and transfer of salinomycin and lasalocid from contaminated feed

ABSTRACT A confirmatory multi-residue method was developed for the determination in milk of 19 coccidiostats (amprolium, arprinocid, clazuril, clopidol, decoquinate, diclazuril, ethopabate, halofuginone, lasalocid, maduramicin, monensin, narasin, nicarbazin, nequinate, robenidine, salinomycin, semduramicin, toltrazuril sulfone and toltrazuril sulfoxide). Sample preparation utilising extraction with organic solvent and clean up by SPE and freezing was found reliable and time-efficient. Optimised chromatography and MS conditions with positive and negative ESI achieved sufficient sensitivity and selectivity. Validation experiments has proven method usefulness for routine analysis of coccidiostats in milk samples. An on-farm study conducted on dairy cows fed with experimentally contaminated feed with salinomycin and lasalocid showed negligible transfer to milk. No residues of lasalocid were found in collected samples. Salinomycin was found only in 5 of 168 samples analysed, while the concentrations of salinomycin in those samples (0.119–0.179 µg kg–1) was significantly below the limit of salinomycin in milk set by European Union legislation. Such low concentrations of both coccidiostats cannot be explained by conjugation during dairy cows’ metabolism, as shown by experiments with enzymatic hydrolysis.
Our Evolving Understanding of the Mechanism of Quinolones

The maintenance of DNA supercoiling is essential for the proper regulation of a plethora of biological processes. As a consequence of this mode of regulation, ahead of the replication fork, DNA replication machinery is prone to introducing supercoiled regions into the DNA double helix. Resolution of DNA supercoiling is essential to maintain DNA replication rates that are amenable to life. This resolution is handled by evolutionarily conserved enzymes known as topoisomerases. The activity of topoisomerases is essential, and therefore constitutes a prime candidate for targeting by antibiotics. In this review, we present hallmark investigations describing the mode of action of quinolones, one of the antibacterial classes targeting the function of topoisomerases in bacteria. By chronologically analyzing data gathered on the mode of action of this imperative antibiotic class, we highlight the necessity to look beyond primary drug-target interactions towards thoroughly understanding the mechanism of quinolones at the level of the cell.
Influence of bone morphological properties on a new expandable orthopaedic fastener

Previous studies have demonstrated that bone morphological properties are a significant determinant of orthopaedic fastener fixation strength. The authors previously tested a new design of unthreaded expandable fastener (UEF) prototype against screws and demonstrated a significant increase in pull-out strength. However the effect of bone morphology on the pull-out strength of the UEF and expandable fasteners in general is unknown. This study assessed the correlation between failure force and maximum force against five microstructural parameters. The failure force of the UEF was correlated to the trabecular bone volume fraction, as with screws. Unlike screws, however, the maximum force of the UEF has an inverse relationship with cortical volume. No correlation was found between failure force and the Structural Model Index (SMI). Additionally the critical volume of interest (VOI) for the UEF is around the bottom of the fastener where the expansion occurs, whereas for the screw a full height VOI is critical. Furthermore, we observed that screw mechanical performance may be affected more by bone morphological parameters that are associated with poorer quality bone. Therefore the UEF may perform better than screws in low quality osteoporotic bone.
Towards a middleware for mobile edge-cloud applications

In the last decade, technological advances and improved manufacturing processes have significantly dropped the price tag of mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets whilst augmenting their storage and computational capabilities. Their ubiquity fostered research on mobile edge-clouds, formed by sets of such devices in close proximity, with the goal of mastering their global computational and storage resources. The development of crowd-sourcing applications that take advantage of such edge-clouds is, however, hampered by the complexity of network formation and maintenance, the intrinsic instability of wireless links and the heterogeneity of the hardware and operating systems in the devices. In this paper we present a middleware to deal with this complexity, providing a building block upon which crowd-sourcing applications may be built. We motivate the development of the middleware through a discussion of real-world applications, and present the middleware's architecture along with the associated components and current development status. The middleware takes form as a Java API for Android devices that allows for the establishment of links using heterogeneous communication technologies (e.g., Wifi-Direct, Bluetooth), and the combination of these links to form a logical edge-cloud network. On top of this functionality, services for edge computation, storage, and streaming are also being developed.
Enhancement of Ebola Virus Infection via Ficolin-1 Interaction with the Mucin Domain of GP Glycoprotein

ABSTRACT Ebola virus infection requires the surface viral glycoprotein to initiate entry into the target cells. The trimeric glycoprotein is a highly glycosylated viral protein which has been shown to interact with host C-type lectin receptors and the soluble complement recognition protein mannose-binding lectin, thereby enhancing viral infection. Similarly to mannose-binding lectin, ficolins are soluble effectors of the innate immune system that recognize particular glycans at the pathogen surface. In this study, we demonstrate that ficolin-1 interacts with the Zaire Ebola virus (EBOV) glycoprotein, and we characterized this interaction by surface plasmon resonance spectroscopy. Ficolin-1 was shown to bind to the viral glycoprotein with a high affinity. This interaction was mediated by the fibrinogen-like recognition domain of ficolin-1 and the mucin-like domain of the viral glycoprotein. Using a ficolin-1 control mutant devoid of sialic acid-binding capacity, we identified sialylated moieties of the mucin domain to be potential ligands on the glycoprotein. In cell culture, using both pseudotyped viruses and EBOV, ficolin-1 was shown to enhance EBOV infection independently of the serum complement. We also observed that ficolin-1 enhanced EBOV infection on human monocyte-derived macrophages, described to be major viral target cells,. Competition experiments suggested that although ficolin-1 and mannose-binding lectin recognized different carbohydrate moieties on the EBOV glycoprotein, the observed enhancement of the infection likely depended on a common cellular receptor/partner. In conclusion, ficolin-1 could provide an alternative receptor-mediated mechanism for enhancing EBOV infection, thereby contributing to viral subversion of the host innate immune system. IMPORTANCE A specific interaction involving ficolin-1 (M-ficolin), a soluble effector of the innate immune response, and the glycoprotein (GP) of EBOV was identified. Ficolin-1 enhanced virus infection instead of tipping the balance toward its elimination. An interaction between the fibrinogen-like recognition domain of ficolin-1 and the mucin-like domain of Ebola virus GP occurred. In this model, the enhancement of infection was shown to be independent of the serum complement. The facilitation of EBOV entry into target host cells by the interaction with ficolin-1 and other host lectins shunts virus elimination, which likely facilitates the survival of the virus in infected host cells and contributes to the virus strategy to subvert the innate immune response.
Malignant Mesothelioma Disease Diagnosis using Data Mining Techniques

ABSTRACT Malignant mesothelioma (MM) is very aggressive progress tumors of the pleura. MM in humans results from exposure to asbestos and asbestiform fibers. The incidence of MM is extremely high in some Turkish villages. Under computationally efficient data mining (DM) techniques, classification procedures were performed for MM disease diagnosis. The support vector machine (SVM) achieved promising results, outperforming the multilayer perceptron ensembles (MLPE) neural network method. It was observed that SVM is the best classification with 99.87% accuracy obtained via 10-fold crossvalidation in 5 runs when compare to MLPE neural network, which gives 99.56% classification accuracy. Sensitivity analysis is performed to find the important inputs for MM disease diagnosis under SVM model. Alkaline phosphatase (ALP) ranging from 300 to 500 gives the maximum possibility of having the MM disease. The MM disease dataset was prepared from a faculty of medicine’s database using new patient’s hospital reports from the south east region of Turkey.
Urbanicity of residence and depression among adults 50 years and older in Ghana and South Africa: an analysis of the WHO Study on Global AGEing and Adult Health (SAGE)

ABSTRACT Objectives: As the primary cause of disability worldwide, depression is a significant contributor to global morbidity and mortality and often disproportionately affects older adults. Several studies have demonstrated a link between urban residence and depression, but few studies have examined this association among older adult populations, and even fewer have studied it within an African context. Given that African societies are aging and urbanizing at rapid rates, this study aimed to assess the relationship between urbanicity and depression within older adult populations in two African countries. Method: Data were drawn from the Ghana and South Africa samples of the World Health Organization Study on Global AGEing and Adult Health (SAGE) wave 1 (2007–2008). Depression over the past 12 months was measured using self-reported treatment and depressive symptoms based on ICD-10 criteria in 4209 Ghanaian and 3148 South African adults aged 50 years and older residing in their current location for over one year. Results: The 12-month prevalence of depression was 7.5% and 4.0% in Ghana and South Africa, respectively; 41.1% and 65.6%, respectively, lived in urban areas. Comparing urban to rural residents, the adjusted odds ratio (OR) for depression in multivariable analysis was 1.13 (95% CI: 0.71–1.79) in South Africa and 0.85 (95% CI: 0.55–1.31) in Ghana. Conclusion: Results do not support a significant urban-rural difference in 12-month depression among Ghanaian or South African SAGE participants. Mental health resources in rural areas should therefore be enhanced in these countries for more equitable distributions between the two settings given similar need.
echanisms underlying weight status and healthcare avoidance in omen : A study of weight stigma , body-related shame and guilt , and ealthcare stress

Studies show that women with high BMI are less likely than thinner women to seek healthcare. We aimed to determine the mechanisms linking women’s weight status to their healthcare avoidance. Women (N = 313) were surveyed from a U.S. health-panel database. We tested a theory-driven model containing multiple stigma and body-related constructs linking BMI to healthcare avoidance. The model had a good fit to the data. Higher BMI was related to greater experienced and internalized weight stigma, which were linked to greater body-related shame. Internalized weight stigma was also related to greater body-related eight bias internalization
How do brochures encourage walking in natural environments in the UK? A content analysis

Abstract Although walking for leisure can support health, there has been little systematic attempt to consider how recreational walking is best promoted. In the UK, local authorities create promotional materials for walking networks, but little is known about whether they effectively encourage walking through persuasive messaging. Many of these materials pertain to walks in natural environments which evidence suggests are generally visited less frequently by physically inactive individuals. Consequently the present study explores whether and how recreational walking brochures use persuasive messages in their promotion of walks in natural environments. A coding taxonomy was developed to classify text in recreational walking brochures according to five behavioural content areas and 87 categories of potentially persuasive messages. Reliability of the taxonomy was ascertained and a quantitative content analysis was applied to 26 brochures collected from Devon, UK. Brochures often provided information about an advertised route, highlighted cultural and aesthetic points of interest, and provided directions. Brochures did not use many potentially effective messages. Text seldom prompted behaviour change or built confidence for walking. Social norm related information was rarely provided and there was a general lack of information on physical activity and its benefits for health and well-being. The limited range of message strategies used in recreational walking brochures may not optimally facilitate walking in natural environments for inactive people. Future research should examine the effects of theory-informed brochures on walking intentions and behaviour. The taxonomy could be adapted to suit different media and practices surrounding physical activity in natural environments.
Mobile Web Browser Optimizations in the Cloud Era: A Survey

As most mobile devices are capable of accessing the Internet with a mobile web browser, the performance of mobile web browsers has become an interesting research topic recently. Due to network bandwidth and processing power limitations, mobile web browsers are slower compared to PC web browsers when dealing with large-size web contents and computation-intensive operations. In order to improve the performance of web browsers, researchers have attempted different techniques, including parallel optimization, web page prefetching, speculative loading, etc. With the introduction of mobile cloud computing, the performance of mobile devices can be augmented with the capability of the cloud. Mobile web browsers can also benefit from mobile cloud computing to improve the responsiveness and energy efficiency. This paper surveys current issues of mobile web browsers and approaches to optimize mobile web browsers, including client side approaches and cloud-based approaches. We also discuss the challenges and future directions in mobile web browser optimization.
An Optimized Method for Bayesian Connectivity Change Point Model

The brain undergoes functional dynamic changes at all times. Investigating functional dynamics has been recently verified to be helpful for detecting psychological conditions and powerful for analyzing disease-related abnormalities of the brain. This article aims to detect functional dynamics. Specifically, we focus on how to effectively distinguish corresponding functional connectivity and change points from functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data. By combining Bayesian connectivity change point model (BCCPM), a modified genetic algorithm (GA) is presented to optimize the evolutionary procedure toward the most probable distributions of real change points in fMRI. We randomly initialize different binary indicator vectors to represent different distributions of change points. Each indicator vector represents an individual in GA, and together they form an initial population. Then we calculate Bayesian posterior probability and use it as the fitness of each individual. Finally, we evolve individuals of current generation toward the next higher fitness generation by a series of modified genetic operators. After several evolutionary procedures, individuals in the final generation may have outstanding fitness and the one with highest fitness can represent the most likely change point distribution in the corresponding fMRI data. Furthermore, the most probable change point distribution could be resolved. We test the optimized method for BCCPM on several synthesized data sets, and the experimental results verify that the proposed model produces higher accuracy results with lower time consumption. Also, we apply the new model to real block-designed task-based fMRI data set and excellent results are obtained.