Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Student Satisfaction, Needs, and Learning Outcomes

A study of student satisfaction, needs, and learning outcomes was commissioned by a comprehensive university in Western Europe to provide a professional evaluation of student services and the co-curricular activities of students. Such a study had not been completed in the past and was needed to align student services with the mission, long-range goals, and strategic planning of the university. The research involved both qualitative and quantitative methodologies conducted through volunteers divided into five focus groups of 33 national and international students and a survey involving 104 national students, of whom 86 provided complete data. The results were analyzed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (Version 22) and the constant comparison method. The study demonstrated that students view interactions outside the classroom as important opportunities to develop and hone a myriad of personal knowledge and skill sets important to becoming global citizens and internationally competent professionals.
On computation rates for arithmetic sum

For zero-error function computation over directed acyclic networks, existing upper and lower bounds on the computation capacity are known to be loose. In this work we consider the problem of computing the arithmetic sum over a specific directed acyclic network that is not a tree. We assume the sources to be i.i. d. Bernoulli with parameter 1/2. Even in this simple setting, we demonstrate that upper bounding the computation rate is quite nontrivial. In particular, it requires us to consider variable length network codes and relate the upper bound to equivalently lower bounding the entropy of descriptions observed by the terminal conditioned on the function value. This lower bound is obtained by further lower bounding the entropy of a so-called clumpy distribution. We also demonstrate an achievable scheme that uses variable length network codes and in-network compression.
Applying Reinforcement Learning to Competitive Tetris

For our project, we attempt to apply reinforcement learning to the game of Tetris. The game is played on a board with 20 rows and 10 columns, and each turn a player drops one of seven pieces (the seven tetrominoes) onto the field. Points are gained by dropping pieces in such a way that all ten squares in some line (row) are filled, at which point the line is cleared. Multiple lines may be cleared with a single piece drop and will result in more points being earned. A player loses if the height of the pieces on his board exceeds the height of the board itself. The fully observable nature of the Tetris board and the simple probabilistic transitions from state to state (i.e. adding a randomly selected piece to the end of the piece queue each turn) naturally suggest the use of reinforcement learning for Tetris. Specifically, Tetris can be modeled as a Markov Decision Process. However, the state space of Tetris is extremely large the number of ways to fill in a 20× 10 board is 2200, and the Tetris requirement that no row be completely filled only reduces this to (210 − 1)20. As a result, the complete MDP for Tetris is entirely intractable. In our paper, we will outline the different approaches we took to dealing with this intractability. We begin by describing our initial, unsuccessful attempts, and commenting on the reasons why they may have failed. Next, we describe the approach that eventually suceeded fitted value iteration and give a detailed analysis of its results. Finally, we conclude by considering the strengths and weaknesses of our implementation of fitted value iteration, and highlight other potential approaches that we did not try.
Assessment of acoustic characteristics of voice in patients after injection laryngoplasty with hyaluronan.

BACKGROUND Glottal incompetence is one of the most common contributing factors in patients who suffer from dysphonia. One of the different treatment approaches is injection laryngoplasty. The aim of the study was to assess the quality of voice in patients who were treated with hyaluronic acid injection into the vocal fold in the long-term follow-up. MATERIAL AND METHODS The material included 39 patients with dysphonia who were referred for injection augmentation. The studied group included patients with presbyphonia, scar, sulcus, unilateral vocal fold paralysis and with atrophy of the vocal fold. Preoperative and postoperative examination was based on laryngovideostroboscopy. Patients' voice was assessed using the subjective GRBAS scale, and objective evaluation provided by Multidimensional Voice Program (MDVP) was applied. All the patients underwent injection laryngoplasty with hyaluronic acid into the vocal folds. Follow-up examinations were conducted 6, 12 and 24 months postoperatively. RESULTS Perceptual voice quality assessed with the GRBAS scale was improved and the results were stable in the long-term follow-up periods. MDVP showed a significant statistical improvement within the group of frequency, amplitude and noise parameters. The differences in value between follow-up periods were not statistically significant. CONCLUSIONS Acoustic analysis of voice is a reliable method for objective assessment of voice quality after applied treatment. Injection of the hyaluronic acid into the vocal fold improves the quality of voice in patients suffering from glottic insufficiency.
Identification of phosphorylation sites in mammalian mitochondrial ribosomal protein DAP3

Mammalian mitochondrial ribosomes synthesize 13 proteins that are essential for oxidative phosphorylation. In addition to their role in protein synthesis, some of the mitochondrial ribosomal proteins have acquired functions in other cellular processes such as apoptosis. Death‐associated protein 3 (DAP3), also referred to as mitochondrial ribosomal protein S29 (MRP‐S29), is a GTP‐binding pro‐apoptotic protein located in the small subunit of the ribosome. Previous studies have shown that phosphorylation is one of the most likely regulatory mechanisms for DAP3 function in apoptosis and may be in protein synthesis; however, no phosphorylation sites were identified. In this study, we have investigated the phosphorylation status of ribosomal DAP3 and mapped the phosphorylation sites by tandem mass spectrometry. Mitochondrial ribosomal DAP3 is phosphorylated at Ser215 or Thr216, Ser220, Ser251 or Ser252, and Ser280. In addition, phosphorylation of recombinant DAP3 by Protein kinase A and Protein kinase Cδ at residues that are endogenously phosphorylated in ribosomal DAP3 suggests both of these kinases as potential candidates responsible for the in vivo phosphorylation of DAP3 in mammalian mitochondria. Interestingly, the majority of the phosphorylation sites detected in our study are clustered around the highly conserved GTP‐binding motifs, speculating on the significance of these residues on protein conformation and activity. Site‐directed mutagenesis studies on selected phosphorylation sites were performed to determine the effect of phosphorylation on cell proliferation and PARP cleavage as indication of caspase activation. Overall, our findings suggest DAP3, a mitochondrial ribosomal small subunit protein, is a novel phosphorylated target.
Grain-Orientation Induced Work Function Variation in Nanoscale Metal-Gate Transistors—Part I: Modeling, Analysis, and Experimental Validation

This paper highlights and experimentally verifies a new source of random threshold-voltage (V_th) fluctuation in emerging metal-gate transistors and proposes a statistical framework to investigate its device and circuit-level implications. The new source of variability, christened work-function (WF) variation (WFV), is caused by the dependence of metal WF on the orientation of its grains. The experimentally measured data reported in this paper confirm the existence of such variations in both planar and nonplanar high-k metal-gate transistors. As a result of WFV, the WFs of metal gates are statistical distributions instead of deterministic values. In this paper, the key parameters of such WF distributions are analytically modeled by identifying the physical dimensions of the devices and properties of materials used in the fabrication. It is shown that WFV can be modeled by a multinomial distribution where the key parameters of its probability distribution function can be calculated in terms of the aforementioned parameters. The analysis reveals that WFV will contribute a key source of V_th variability in emerging generations of metal-gate devices. Using the proposed framework, one can investigate the implications of WFV for process, device, and circuit design, which are discussed in Part II.
Participation of KCNQ (Kv7) potassium channels in myogenic control of cerebral arterial diameter

KCNQ gene expression was previously shown in various rodent blood vessels, where the products of KCNQ4 and KCNQ5, Kv7.4 and Kv7.5 potassium channel subunits, respectively, have an influence on vascular reactivity. The aim of this study was to determine if small cerebral resistance arteries of the rat express KCNQ genes and whether Kv7 channels participate in the regulation of myogenic control of diameter. Quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (QPCR) was undertaken using RNA isolated from rat middle cerebral arteries (RMCAs) and immunocytochemistry was performed using Kv7 subunit‐specific antibodies and freshly isolated RMCA myocytes. KCNQ4 message was more abundant than KCNQ5=KCNQ1, but KCNQ2 and KCNQ3 message levels were negligible. Kv7.1, Kv7.4 and Kv7.5 immunoreactivity was present at the sarcolemma of freshly isolated RMCA myocytes. Linopirdine (1 μm) partially depressed, whereas the Kv7 activator S‐1 (3 and/or 20 μm) enhanced whole‐cell Kv7.4 (in HEK 293 cells), as well as native RMCA myocyte Kv current amplitude. The effects of S‐1 were voltage‐dependent, with progressive loss of stimulation at potentials of >−15 mV. At the concentrations employed linopirdine and S‐1 did not alter currents due to recombinant Kv1.2/Kv1.5 or Kv2.1/Kv9.3 channels (in HEK 293 cells) that are also expressed by RMCA myocytes. In contrast, another widely used Kv7 blocker, XE991 (10 μm), significantly attenuated native Kv current and also reduced Kv1.2/Kv1.5 and Kv2.1/Kv9.3 currents. Pressurized arterial myography was performed using RMCAs exposed to intravascular pressures of 10–100 mmHg. Linopirdine (1 μm) enhanced the myogenic response at ≥20 mmHg, whereas the activation of Kv7 channels with S‐1 (20 μm) inhibited myogenic constriction at >20 mmHg and reversed the increased myogenic response produced by suppression of Kv2‐containing channels with 30 nm stromatoxin (ScTx1). These data reveal a novel contribution of KCNQ gene products to the regulation of myogenic control of cerebral arterial diameter and suggest that Kv7 channel activating drugs may be appropriate candidates for the development of an effective therapy to ameliorate cerebral vasospasm.
ROLE OF CYTOCHROME B5 IN MODULATING PEROXIDE-SUPPORTED CYP3A4 ACTIVITY: EVIDENCE FOR A CONFORMATIONAL TRANSITION AND CYTOCHROME P450 HETEROGENEITY

The role of cytochrome b5 (b5) in the α-naphthoflavone (α-NF)-mediated inhibition of H2O2-supported 7-benzyloxyquinoline (7-BQ) debenzylation by heterologously expressed and purified cytochrome P450 3A4 (CYP3A4) was studied. Although α-NF showed negligible effect in an NADPH-dependent reconstituted system, inhibition of 7-BQ oxidation was observed in the H2O2 system. Analysis of the effect of various constituents of a standard reconstituted system on H2O2-supported activity showed that b5 alone resulted in a 2.5-fold increase in the kcat value and reversed the inhibitory effect of α-NF. In addition, titration with b5 suggested that only 65% of the CYP3A4 participated in the interaction with b5, consistent with cytochrome P450 (P450) heterogeneity. Study of the influence of b5 on the kinetics of H2O2-dependent destruction of the P450 heme moiety suggested two distinct conformers of CYP3A4 with different sensitivity to heme loss. In the absence of b5, 66% of the wild-type enzyme was bleached in the fast phase, whereas the addition of b5 decreased the fraction of the fast phase to 16%. Finally, to locate amino acid residues that might influence b5 action, several active site mutants were tested. Substitution of Ser-119, Ile-301, Ala-305, Ile-369, or Ala-370 with the larger Phe or Trp decreased or even abolished the activation by b5. Ser-119 is in the B′-C loop, a predicted b5-P450 interaction site, and Ile-301 and Ala-305 are closest to the heme. In conclusion, the interaction of b5 with P450 apparently leads to a conformational transition, which results in redistribution of the CYP3A4 pool.
System oder Netzwerk? Veränderungen forschungspolitischer Strategien in Österreich

Der Artikel beschaftigt sich mit der Frage, warum und auf welche Weise sich forschungspolitische Strategien im nationalstaatlichen Gefuge verandern. Zur Beantwortung dieser Fragen ziehen wir zwei Fallbeispiele aus der osterreichischen Forschungspolitik heran: Wir behandeln die Neuregelung des Doktoratstudiums („Doktorat neu“) an den osterreichischen Universitaten, und die institutionelle Umstrukturierung innerhalb der osterreichischen Forschungsforderung durch die Errichtung der Osterreichischen Forschungsforderungsgesellschaft (FFG). Mit Hilfe von Policy-Dokumenten und ExpertInnen-Interviews gehen wir dabei jeweils den Fragen nach, wie diese Entscheidungen – vom agenda setting bis hin zur (insoweit vorhandenen) Implementierung – zustande gekommen sind, welche AkteurInnen involviert waren, und insbesondere, woher die entscheidenden Impulse zur Veranderung gekommen sind. Diesen Wandel der forschungspolitischen Strategien analysieren wir unter der Zuhilfenahme von systemanalytischen und Netzwerk-orientierten Zugangen und nehmen dies zum Anlass zu Ausfuhrungen daruber, welcher der beiden Ansatze fruchtbarere Einsichten liefert.
How powerful are folding/unfolding transformations?

Abstract This paper discusses the transformation power of Burstall and Darlington's folding/unfolding system, i.e. what kind of programs can be derived from a given one. A necessary condition of derivability is proved. The notion of inherent complexity of recursive functions in introduced. A bound on efficiency gain by folding/unfolding transformations is obtained for all reasonable computation models. The well-known partial correctness and incompleteness of the system are corollaries of the result. Examples of underivability are given, e.g. binary searching cannot be derived from linear searching, merge sorting cannot be derived from insert sorting.
Identification of amino acid residues of the Agrobacterium tumefaciens quorum‐sensing regulator TraR that are critical for positive control of transcription

The LuxR‐type quorum‐sensing transcription factor TraR regulates replication and conjugal transfer of the tumour‐inducing (Ti) plasmid in the plant pathogen Agrobacterium tumefaciens. TraR is a two‐domain protein with an N‐terminal domain that binds to the quorum‐sensing signal N‐3‐oxooctanoyl‐ l‐homoserine lactone (OOHL) and a C‐terminal domain that binds to specific DNA sequences called tra boxes. TraR–OOHL complexes form homodimers that activate transcription of at least seven promoters on the Ti plasmid. At five promoters, a tra box overlaps the binding site of core RNA polymerase (class II promoters), while in the other two promoters, this site is located farther upstream (class I promoters). In this study, we performed saturating point mutagenesis of the surface residues of the TraR C‐terminal domain. Each mutant was tested for proteolytic stability and transcription activity in vivo, and for DNA binding activity in vitro. Mutants of TraR with single substitutions at positions W184, V187, K189, E193Q, V197 and D217 have wild‐type levels of accumulation and DNA binding, but are defective in transcription of both types of promoters. These residues constitute a patch on the surface of the DNA‐binding domain. We propose that this patch is an activating region that recruits RNA polymerase to TraR‐dependent promoters through direct contact. As residues of this patch are critical for activation at both a class I and a class II promoter, we predict that these residues may contact the C‐terminal domain of the RNA polymerase α‐subunit.
ON CROSS‐CULTURAL COMPARABILITY

Abstract La necessite se fait sentir, pour les psychologizes qui travaillent dans une perspective interculturelle, d'expliciter leurs methodes et de parvenir a un certain consensus qui permette de juger et de comparer les resultats. L'auteur propose ici un cadre de travail methodologique pour la recherche interculturelle, qui s'inspire des discussions passees de certains anthropologues. Trois conditions s'averent necessaires si l'on veut donner quelque validite aux comparaisons interculturelles des comportements: 1° Il faut d'abord demontrer qu'il y a equivalence fonctionnelle des comportements dans l'une et l'autre des cultures considerees; c'est-a-dire que seul, un comportement qui cst une reponse a un probleme identique peut ětre compare. 2° On peut, a titre d'essai, partir d'une conception du comportement observe qui est independante des cultures considerees (generalite hypothetique) a condition que ce soit seulement comme point de depart et que ce comportement soit ensuite concu dans les termes měmes.
Channel reliability factor estimation for LTE systems

This paper addresses the problem of turbo decoding in the presence of non-ideal knowledge of the channel parameters. A practical OFDM system employing an interpolation based channel estimator is considered and a scheme for deriving the corresponding channel reliability factor to be passed to the turbo decoder is presented. Simulations are carried out for a realistic multicarrier system operating in the framework of a Long Term Evolution air interface. Our results show that a performance gain can be achieved with a limited increase in complexity by estimating the channel reliability factor with the proposed method in contrast to a system that ignores the imperfections in the channel estimates.
Pharmacology of therapeutic botulinum toxin preparations

Therapeutic preparations of botulinum toxin (BT) consist of botulinum neurotoxin (BNT), complexing proteins and excipients. Depending on the target tissue BT can block the cholinergic neuromuscular or the cholinergic autonomic innervation of exocrine glands and smooth muscles. Additional effects can be demonstrated on the muscle spindle organ. Indirect effects on the central nervous system are numerous, direct ones have not been recorded after intramuscular injections. BT type A is being distributed as Botox®, Dysport® and Xeomin®, BT type B as NeuroBloc®/Myobloc®. Adverse effects can be obligate, local or systemic. The adverse effect profiles of the available BT preparations are similar. BT type B, however, has additional systemic autonomic adverse effects. Long-term treatment does not produce additive adverse effects. BNT can be partially or completely blocked by antibodies. The major risk factors for antibody-induced therapy failure are the amount of BNT applied at each injection series, the interval between injection series and the specific biological activity (SBA) of the BT preparation used. The SBA is 5 for NeuroBloc®, 60 for Botox®, 100 for Dysport® and 167MU-E/ng BNT for Xeomin® (MU-E: equivalence mouse units). Therapeutic BT preparations are a group of highly potent drugs with an intriguing mechanism of action. With the advent of new competitors comparative studies amongst different therapeutic BT preparations will become more and more interesting.
Sleep Pattern and Efficiency in Thai Children Aged 3-6 Years

The ultimate purpose of this study was the provision of care that is more conductive to children’s rest and sleep. This study was the descriptive research and aimed to determine the characteristics of sleep pattern and sleep efficiency in Thai children. Comparison of sleep efficiency in terms of sleep efficiency index (SEI), the time spent in each sleep stage (stage 1, 2, 3, 4 and rapid eye movement (REM) sleep), sleep latency (SL), and total sleep time (TST) between the night and day time would be presented. In the comparison of the sleep efficiency between the night and day time recording of the participants with 3-6 years, the mean percentage of stage 1, 2 NREM and REM sleep during the night time recording was longer than during the day time recording with statistically significant difference between the two recording periods at level of . 05. In the comparison of the sleep efficiency between the night and day time recording, the mean percentage of stage 1, 2 NREM and REM sleep during the night time recording was longer than during the day time recording. Sleep has been shown to be an essential component of health, affecting the well-being and quality of life of individuals.
Automated Large-Scale Simulation Test-Data Generation for Object-Oriented Software Systems

Enterprise information systems must be populated with large-scale live data to ensure the testing and evaluating effectiveness, but current development processes typically implement test-data generation as an isolated task and incorporate very little automation for this step. The paper proposes a novel framework that seamlessly integrates data analysis, simulation, and automated generation into the life cycle of object- oriented software development. Along with system analysis, design and implementation, statistical properties of objects are identified, modeled, and built into the software products; afterward simulation and test tools can automatically distill these properties, generate accurate simulation data, and perform system tests close to their real-world usage. The paper also presents SDGen, an implementation of an automated software tool for the framework.
Demarcating curves for shape illustration

Curves on objects can convey the inherent features of the shape. This paper defines a new class of view-independent curves, denoted demarcating curves. In a nutshell, demarcating curves are the loci of the "strongest" inflections on the surface. Due to their appealing capabilities to extract and emphasize 3D textures, they are applied to artifact illustration in archaeology, where they can serve as a worthy alternative to the expensive, time-consuming, and biased manual depiction currently used.
Real Options Analysis and Strategic Decision Making

The real options approach is frequently advocated as an approach that offers a positive and radical reassessment of the value of risk and exploration. We examine a recent case where Merck used the real options approach to justify an investment in an R&D project. This case is used to highlight some of the problems associated with using real options. We note that the assumptions incorporated in most standard option valuation models can conflict with the conclusions reached by strategic analysis. As a result, users of real options models should understand the quantitative aspects of these models, and may often need to create a customized model for each situation. The difficulty of developing customized models may explain, in part, the limited use of the real options approach in strategic analysis.