Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Too Few, Too Weak: Conflict of Interest Policies at Canadian Medical Schools

Introduction The education of medical students should be based on the best clinical information available, rather than on commercial interests. Previous research looking at university-wide conflict of interest (COI) policies used in Canadian medical schools has shown very poor regulation. An analysis of COI policies was undertaken to document the current policy environment in all 17 Canadian medical schools. Methods A web search was used to initially locate COI policies supplemented by additional information from the deans of each medical school. Strength of policies was rated on a scale of 0 to 2 in 12 categories and also on the presence of enforcement measures. For each school, we report scores for all 12 categories, enforcement measures, and summative scores. Results COI policies received summative scores that ranged from 0 to 19, with 0 the lowest possible score obtainable and 24 the maximum. The highest mean scores per category were for disclosure and ghostwriting (0.9) and for gifts and scholarships (0.8). Discussion This study provides the first comprehensive evaluation of all 17 Canadian medical school-specific COI policies. Our results suggest that the COI policy environment at Canadian medical schools is generally permissive. Policy development is a dynamic process. We therefore encourage all Canadian medical schools to develop restrictive COI policies to ensure that their medical students are educated based on the best clinical evidence available, free of industry biases and COI relationships that may influence the future medical thinking and prescribing practices of medical students in Canada once they graduate.
Insight versus analysis: Evidence for diverse methods in problem solving

Since the Gestalt psychologists made the distinction approximately 100 years ago, psychologists have differentiated between solving problems through analysis versus insight. The present paper presents evidence to support the idea that, rather than conceptualising insight versus analysis as distinct modes of solving problems, it is more useful to conceive of insight and analysis as two approaches within a set of possible solving methods. In the present research, 60 participants solved insight problems while thinking aloud, which provided evidence concerning the processes underlying problem solution. Comparison with performance of a nonverbalisation control group (n = 35) indicated no negative effects of thinking aloud on insight in problem solving. The results supported the idea that various methods are utilised in solving insight problems. The “classic” impasse–restructuring–insight sequence occurred in only a small minority of solutions. A number of other solution methods were found, ranging from relatively direct applications of knowledge, to various heuristic methods, to restructuring arising from new information gleaned from a failed solution. It is concluded that there is not a sharp distinction between solving a problem through analysis versus insight, and implications of that conclusion are discussed.
Dynamical-Systems Behavior in Recurrent and Non-Recurrent Connectionist Nets

A broad approach is developed for training dynamical behaviors in connectionist networks. General recurrent networks are powerful computational devices, necessary for di cult tasks like constraint satisfaction and temporal processing. These tasks are discussed here in some detail. From both theoretical and empirical considerations, it is concluded that such tasks are best addressed by recurrent networks that operate continuously in time|and further, that e ective learning rules for these continuous-time networks must be able to prescribe their dynamical properties. A general class of such learning rules is derived and tested on simple problems. Where existing learning algorithms for recurrent and non-recurrent networks only attempt to train a network's position in activation space, the models presented here can also explicitly and successfully prescribe the nature of its movement through activation space. I am indebted to Jay Rueckl, my advisor, both for his suggestions and for his support. Jay Rueckl and Greg Galperin provided computational facilities that proved indispensable. I would also like to thank my family and the many friends whose encouragement saw this project through its nal stages.
A MEDIUM ACCESS PROTOCOL FOR COGNITIVE RADIO NETWORKS BASED ON PACKET'S COLLISION AND CHANNELS' USAGE

In Cognitive Radio Networks (CRNs); the unlicensed users named Secondary Users (SUs) are allowed to share the licensed wireless spectrum band with its licensed users name Primary Users (PUs) but without degradation in the PU's Quality of Service (QoS). As all the SUs have the same priority to access the licensed spectrum band; a spectrum sharing protocol is needed to fairly divide the available spectrum band among these SUs. Spectrum sharing protocols in CRNs are similar to Medium Access Control (MAC) protocols in regular networks. In this paper; a time slotted spectrum sharing protocol named Channel Usage and Collision Based MAC protocol (CUCB-MAC) is proposed. It is a modification of a MAC protocol named Collision-Based MAC protocol (CB-MAC), it depends on three parameters for the allocation of channels to the SUs; 1) counting collisions number for each SU, 2) predicting the availability probability for all the available channels and then 3) excluding some of the available channels. It has been proved that using the proposed CUCB-MAC protocol outperforms the original CB-MAC protocol on all the measured performance metrics
On-site monitoring of soil condition for precision agriculture by using multimodal microchip integrated with EC and temperature sensors

For precise control of the growth conditions for plants, miniaturized sensor which is capable to insert and measure in medium culture directly is required. Insertion type multimodal sensor including electrical conductivity (EC) and temperature sensor was fabricated. For a visualization of nutrient solution diffusion and a real time monitoring of decreasing concentration for rarifying nutrient solution, the multimodal sensor monitored three difference depths in soil and a limited extent in closed soil, in real time. We achieved to visualize in actual cultivation environment by using the multimodal sensor, for the first time.
ONE USE OF A NON - UNIDIMENSIONAL SCALI NG (NOUS) MODEL TRANSFERRING INFORMATION ACROSS DIMENSIONS AND SUBSCALES

Test administrators sometimes ask for student performance on test subscales having few items, rendering them unreliable and hard to equate. Worse, subscales sometimes embody orthogonally distinct secondary dimensions as well. Traditional Rasch analysis offers reasonable solutions in some cases, but not all, and is not a general solution. This paper proposes a general solution using a Raschderived non-unidimensional scaling measurement model, called NOUS, which transfers information across items, subscales, and dimensions. Drawing examples from a recent state exam, it shows that NOUS yields measures for short subscales that are comparable to unidimensiona l measures computed using long forms of the same subscale. It concludes by discussing applications for multidimensional equating, student-level diagnostics, and measurement of performance on open ended items.
Autonomous biconnected networks of mobile robots

Groups of robots can be used in a coordinated fashion to achieve goals that individual robots cannot. One of the key requirements for this is being able to communicate amongst themselves in a timely and robust manner. This capability has been assumed as available in many multi-robot solutions but has not received enough attention in research. We approach the subproblem of moving from a connected network of robots to achieving biconnectivity. Biconnectivity provides both robustness to change in links and better bandwidth for communication by providing multiple paths to the destination. We take two approaches to the same problem - one a deterministic graph-based approach and the other a Markov random field approach. Both have their advantages. Preliminary results indicate much promise in both these directions.
An architecture for the simultaneous execution of hard real-time threads

Simultaneous multithreading (SMT) processors might be good candidates to fulfill the ever increasing performance needs of embedded applications. However, off-the-shelves SMT architectures do not fit the timing predictability requirements of hard real-time systems: to schedule critical threads so that they are guaranteed to meet their deadlines, it is necessary to estimate their worst-case execution times which is not possible when simultaneous threads might interfere. In this paper, we propose an SMT architecture designed to enforce isolation between hard real-time threads so that their worst-case execution time can be safely estimated. We report experimental results that show that this architecture still provides a high level of performance and we give an insight into how the thread isolation feature could be controlled by a real-time task scheduler.
Cloning and sequencing of the LYS1 gene encoding homocitrate synthase in the yeast Yarrowia lipolytica

The α‐aminoadipate pathway for the biosynthesis of lysine is present only in fungi and euglena. The first step in the pathway is the condensation of acetyl‐CoA and α‐ketoglutarate into homocitrate, and this step is carried out by the enzyme homocitrate synthase (EC 4.1.3.21). In spite of extensive genetic analysis, no mutation affecting this step has been isolated until now in model organisms such as Saccharomyces cerevisiae or Neurospora crassa, although identification of mutations affecting the structural gene (LYS1) for homocitrate synthase was reported in the yeast Yarrowia lipolytica several years ago. Here we used these mutants for the cloning and sequencing of the Yarrowia LYS1 gene. The LYS1 gene encodes a predicted 446 amino acid polypeptide, with a molecular mass of 48 442 Da. The Lys1p sequence displays two regions, one near the N‐terminal section and the other in the central region, that contain conserved signatures found in prokaryotic homocitrate synthases (nifV genes of Azotobacter vinelandii and Klebsiella pneumoniae), as well as in all α‐isopropyl malate synthases so far described. A putative mitochondrial targeting signal of 41–45 amino acids is predicted at the N‐terminus. The Lys1p sequence shows 84% identity at the amino acid level with the putative product of open reading frame D1298 of S. cerevisiae. Northern blot hybridizations revealed a LYS1 transcript of approximately 1·7 kb in Y. lipolytica. Deletion of the LYS1 gene resulted in a Lys− phenotype. Our results indicate that we cloned the structural gene for homocitrate synthase in Y. lipolytica, and that the enzyme is encoded by a single gene in this yeast. The sequence presented here has been submitted to the EMBL data library under Accession Number Z49114.
Spectral properties of the spin-boson Hamiltonian

Nous considerons un atome a deux niveaux couple au champ de rayonnement. A l'aide des techniques de Mourre, nous donnons une caracterisation complete du spectre d'un hamiltonien couplant bosons et spins en regime de couplage faible non nul. En particulier, le spectre singulier continu est vide et le spectre ponctuel se reduit a l'energie de l'etat fondamental. Nous etendons la technique de Mourre a un operateur conjugue qui n'est que le generateur d'un semi-groupe d'isometries. Nous illustrons cette extension sur le modele de Friedrichs et nous l'appliquons aussi a l'approximation des ondes tournantes du modele de spin-boson
A convex multi-view stereo formulation with robustness to occlusions and time-varying clutter

We present a novel framework for multi-view stereo that poses the problem of recovering a 3D surface in the scene as a regularized minimal partition problem of the visibility function in the presence of clutter. We introduce a simple and robust method to integrate estimates from several views that tolerates both static and time-varying clutter. Our formulation does not rely on the visual hull, 2D silhouettes, or make use of initial surface estimates. Furthermore, we use a globally optimal framework, so that the solution does not depend on initialization and computationally efficient numerical methods can be used to find the solution. We also strive for simplicity so that more general models of image formation can be used without compromising the estimation process. Experimental results on synthetic and publicly available real data show that our method performs on a par with state-of-the-art methods that have been used on clutter-free data.
Cortical Inputs and GABA Interneurons Imbalance Projection Neurons in the Striatum of Parkinsonian Rats

The striatum receives massive cortical excitatory inputs and is densely innervated by dopamine. Striatal projection neurons form either the direct or indirect pathways. Models of Parkinson's disease propose that dopaminergic degeneration imbalances both pathways, although direct electrophysiological evidence is lacking. Here, striatal neurons were identified by electrophysiological criteria and Neurobiotin labeling combined with either immunohistochemistry or in situ hybridization. Their spontaneous discharge activity and spike response to cortical stimulation were recorded in vivo in anesthetized rats rendered hemi-parkinsonian by 6-hydroxydopamine. We showed that striatonigral neurons (direct pathway) were inhibited whereas striatopallidal neurons (indirect pathway) were activated by dopaminergic lesion. We also identified, with antidromic stimulations, corticostriatal neurons that preferentially innervate striatonigral or striatopallidal neurons and showed that dopaminergic depletion selectively decreased the spontaneous activity of the former. Therefore, dopamine degeneration induces a cascade of imbalances that spread out of the basal ganglia and affect the whole basal ganglia-thalamo-cortical circuits. Fast-spiking GABA interneurons provide potent feedforward inhibition of striatal projection neurons. We showed here that these interneurons narrowed the time window of the responses of projection neurons to cortical stimulation. In the dopamine-depleted striatum, because the intrinsic activity of these interneurons was not altered, their feedforward inhibition worsened the striatal imbalance. Indeed, the time window of the evoked responses was narrower for striatonigral neurons and wider for striatopallidal neurons. Therefore, after dopaminergic depletion, cortical inputs and GABA interneurons might imbalance striatal projection neurons and represent two novel nondopaminergic mechanisms that might secondarily contribute to the pathophysiology of Parkinson's disease.
Metal matrix composites with high thermal conductivity

A process for preparing a composite metal matrix with very high thermal conductivity, said composite metal matrix containing a formed particles dispersed therein diamond, comprising the steps of powder comprising: (a1) providing particles respective diamond comprising diamond powder with a thin layer of SiC by contacting said diamond particles with a gaseous species containing Si while said particles is subjected to heat at a temperature sufficient to cause the Si gas reacts with carbon the surface of the diamond particles, thereby converting the surface layer of the diamond particles in a thin layer of SiC, or (a2) providing particles respective diamond comprising diamond powder with a thin layer of SiC preparing a mixture of phenolic resin, said Si powder and diamond powder, compressing said mIX the to form a preform, and heating said preform to a temperature sufficient to cause a chemical reaction between the Si powder and the surfaces of carbon particles respective diamond, which results in the formation of a conversion layer surface of SiC thin on the particles of respective diamond, (b) placing the diamond particles laminated with SiC in a die cavity of a casting apparatus for compression, (c) introducing pressurized wash compression of a molten metal selected to form the matrix in said die cavity containing the powder coated diamond, in hot conditions and effective to infiltrate pressure diamond dust with molten metal and cooling the die pressure, wherein the metal used for the metal matrix consists of aluminum, magnesium or copper, or an alloy of one or more of these metals, and the resulting metal matrix composite you Jan higher thermal conductivity of 300 W / mk
A Combined Music Label Propagation Model

Music labels, especially those related to high level semantics are very useful in music retrieval and recommendation, but normally hard to acquire. In the submission to ISMIR'07, Mohamed Sordo proposed a novel model, i.e., propagation of labels, to annotate music with existing labels, by using the content-based music similarity distance. In that model, a partially annotated collection with a lot of non-labeled music was annotated at a high precision and recall. In this paper, we proposed a new model -- label probability prediction model -- and introduce it into the Sordo's work, which makes a combined model, to improve the accuracy of propagation without exploiting any other information. In addition, we also made some modifications to the original Sordo's model that could make the algorithm works better. Then we compare the result of combined model to that yielded by the original on a publicly accessible ground truth data, and find that, the new approach can reach a higher recall. Furthermore, with the same recall, our method obtains a better precision.
A Classification-Based Algorithm for Building 3D Maps of Environmental Objects

In this paper, a method for building a 3D map of some objects detected in an indoor environment is presented. The pecularity of the proposed algorithm is that it works with a simple consumer-grade webcam. With the webcam, pictures of the environment are taken. The proposed method first extracts the regions which may contain an object from the pictures. The regions are then classified to identify the objects, further their pose and height are estimated. A 3D map of the environment is finally reconstructed where icons roughly resembling the object categories are added to the 3D map at the estimated object position and with the estimated height. Regions of Interest (ROIs) extraction is performed using Haar-like algorithm. Before classification, the images containing the ROIs are processed to extract the edges of the objects. Non relevant edges are removed using a novel fuzzy technique. Object classification is performed with a pseudo2D-HMM algorithm. Experimental results are presented for an office environments.
Rac1 inhibition prevents tissue contraction and MMP mediated matrix remodeling in the conjunctiva.

PURPOSE To evaluate the efficiency of Rac1 inhibition in preventing matrix contraction by Tenon's capsule fibroblasts. METHODS The involvement of Rac1 in serum-stimulated matrix contraction by human Tenon's fibroblasts (HTFs) was investigated in a classic collagen contraction model and our ex vivo model of tissue contraction using immunocytochemistry, chemical inhibitors, and small interfering RNA (siRNA) technology. Matrix integrity was assessed using confocal reflection microscopy and Coomassie blue staining. Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (QRT-PCR) and Western blot analysis were used to assess matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) expression. RESULTS Serum induced Rac1 activation in HTF-populated collagen gels and stimulated HTFs to contract collagen matrices down to ~90% of their original size. Rac1 inhibition using NSC23766 or depletion using siRNA both significantly reduced HTF-mediated contraction. Early brief exposure to NSC23766 reduced HTF-mediated gel contraction by 70%, while transient treatment with the Rac1 inhibitor once a week decreased ex vivo tissue contraction down to serum-free levels. Transient exposure to NSC23766 prevented early cell protrusions, fiber alignment, and matrix degradation, as seen upon continuous exposure to broad-spectrum MMP inhibitor. However, unlike MMP inhibition, transient treatment with NSC23766 led to a significant reduction in MMP1 mRNA and protein expression during contraction, without increasing MMP2 and MMP14 expression. CONCLUSIONS Rac1 inhibition efficiently prevents conjunctival tissue and collagen matrix contraction and prevents matrix degradation.
Including visually impaired students in physical education lessons: a case study of teacher and pupil experiences

Following recent education policy and curriculum changes in England, the notion of inclusion of children with special educational needs in physical education has increasingly become a topic of research interest and concern. It was the aim of this study to explore personal experiences and perspectives of inclusion in physical education. To this end this study used a series of interviews and observations with a visually impaired (blind) pupil, a physical education teacher and a learning support assistant at a school for children with moderate learning difficulties. The findings highlighted four significant areas of impact: the role of teacher training and development; the role of learning support assistants; resources; and the limitations of the National Curriculum in Physical Education as a framework for inclusion. Recommendations on how to address these issues in order to improve the standards of inclusion for visually impaired pupils in physical education are made.
Splice site skipping in polyomavirus late pre-mRNA processing

Polyomavirus late nuclear primary transcripts contain tandem repeats of the late strand of the viral genome, as a result of inefficient transcription termination and polyadenylation. Pre-mRNA processing involves the splicing of short noncoding late leader exons to each other (removing genome-length introns) and the splicing of the last leader to a coding body exon (such as for the major virion structural protein, VP1). As a result, cytoplasmic mRNAs contain 1 to 12 tandem leader exons at their 5' ends that are followed by a single coding exon. To understand more about how polyomavirus exons are spliced together, we studied a double-genome construct consisting of two tandem but nonidentical polyomavirus late transcription units. The alternating leader exons are distinguishable from one another but retain identical flanking RNA-processing signals, as for the alternating VP1 exons. We transfected this construct and derivatives of it into mouse cells and determined which leader exons are spliced to which others and which VP1 exons are utilized. Results showed that leader exons are almost never skipped during splicing and are spliced sequentially to one another. On the other hand, VP1 exons were often skipped, with the VP1 exon closest to the polyadenylation site splicing to the nearest upstream leader exon. Splice site replacement experiments showed that VP1 exon skipping is not due to a relative weakness of its 3' splice site or to any sequence upstream of the VP1 3' splice site. Exon skipping is also not the result of sequences within the VP1 exon. Rather, VP1 3' splice site skipping can be eliminated by replacing the inefficient late polyadenylation signal with an efficient one, or by inserting a 5' splice site between the VP1 3' splice site and the late polyadenylation site. Thus, sequences that compose the distal border of the VP1 exon can influence usage of the upstream 3' splice site.
Rendering physical effects in tabletop controls

We introduce dynamic physical properties as an additional degree of freedom for passive tabletop controls. Using electromagnetic actuation, we manipulate attributes of tangibles on the fly, such as perceived weight, spring resistance, friction, and latching. We describe our actuation concepts, prototypes, and measurements showing that magnetic fields can change physical effects in a linear way. Controlled experiments reveal that participants can tactually distinguish four rendered resistance levels of a button prototype and easily detect dynamic detents in a continuous slider. Finally, we describe how adjustable physical properties in tangibles can enhance tabletop interaction.