Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Piecewise Structural Equation Model (SEM) Disentangles the Environmental Conditions Favoring Diatom Diazotroph Associations (DDAs) in the Western Tropical North Atlantic (WTNA)

Diatom diazotroph associations (DDAs) are important components in the world’s oceans, especially in the western tropical north Atlantic (WTNA), where blooms have a significant impact on carbon and nitrogen cycling. However, drivers of their abundances and distribution patterns remain unknown. Here, we examined abundance and distribution patterns for two DDA populations in relation to the Amazon River (AR) plume in the WTNA. Quantitative PCR assays, targeting two DDAs (het-1 and het-2) by their symbiont’s nifH gene, served as input in a piecewise structural equation model (SEM). Collections were made during high (spring 2010) and low (fall 2011) flow discharges of the AR. The distributions of dissolved nutrients, chlorophyll-a, and DDAs showed coherent patterns indicative of areas influenced by the AR. A symbiotic Hemiaulus hauckii-Richelia (het-2) bloom (>106 cells L-1) occurred during higher discharge of the AR and was coincident with mesohaline to oceanic (30–35) sea surface salinities (SSS), and regions devoid of dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN), low concentrations of both DIP (>0.1 μmol L-1) and Si (>1.0 μmol L-1). The Richelia (het-1) associated with Rhizosolenia was only present in 2010 and at lower densities (10-1.76 × 105 nifH copies L-1) than het-2 and limited to regions of oceanic SSS (>36). The het-2 symbiont detected in 2011 was associated with H. membranaceus (>103 nifH copies L-1) and were restricted to regions with mesohaline SSS (31.8–34.3), immeasurable DIN, moderate DIP (0.1–0.60 μmol L-1) and higher Si (4.19–22.1 μmol L-1). The piecewise SEM identified a profound direct negative effect of turbidity on the het-2 abundance in spring 2010, while DIP and water turbidity had a more positive influence in fall 2011, corroborating our observations of DDAs at subsurface maximas. We also found a striking difference in the influence of salinity on DDA symbionts suggesting a niche differentiation and preferences in oceanic and mesohaline salinities by het-1 and het-2, respectively. The use of the piecewise SEM to disentangle the complex and concomitant hydrography of the WTNA acting on two biogeochemically relevant populations was novel and underscores its use to predict conditions favoring abundance and distributions of microbial populations.
Gastrointestinal and liver disease in Adult Life After Childhood Cancer in Scandinavia: A population‐based cohort study

Survival after childhood cancer diagnosis has remarkably improved, but emerging evidence suggests that cancer‐directed therapy may have adverse gastrointestinal late effects. We aimed to comprehensively assess the frequency of gastrointestinal and liver late effects among childhood cancer survivors and compare this frequency with the general population. Our population‐based cohort study included all 1‐year survivors of childhood and adolescent cancer in Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden diagnosed from the 1940s and 1950s. Our outcomes of interest were hospitalization rates for gastrointestinal and liver diseases, which were ascertained from national patient registries. We calculated standardized hospitalization rate ratios (RRs) and absolute excess rates comparing hospitalizations of any gastrointestinal or liver disease and for specific disease entities between survivors and the general population. The study included 31,132 survivors and 207,041 comparison subjects. The median follow‐up in the hospital registries were 10 years (range: 0–42) with 23% of the survivors being followed at least to the age of 40 years. Overall, survivors had a 60% relative excess of gastrointestinal or liver diseases [RR: 1.6, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.6–1.7], which corresponds to an absolute excess of 360 (95% CI: 330–390) hospitalizations per 100,000 person‐years. Survivors of hepatic tumors, neuroblastoma and leukemia had the highest excess of gastrointestinal and liver diseases. In addition, we observed a relative excess of several specific diseases such as esophageal stricture (RR: 13; 95% CI: 9.2–20) and liver cirrhosis (RR: 2.9; 95% CI: 2.0–4.1). Our findings provide useful information about the breadth and magnitude of late complications among childhood cancer survivors and can be used for generating hypotheses about potential exposures related to these gastrointestinal and liver late effects.
Insight to neoplastic thyroid lesions by fine needle aspiration cytology

Background: Fine needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) is a valuable adjunct to pre-operative screening in the diagnosis of thyroid nodules, and in most cases, it can distinguish between benign and malignant lesions. Aim: To study the cytology of neoplastic thyroid lesions to minimize surgical intervention and for confirmation of the diagnosis by histopathological study. Materials and Methods: 100 cases of thyroid FNAC smears were analyzed and cyto-histopathological correlation was done in 47 cases. Galen and Gambino's method was used to calculate the sensitivity and positive predictive value. Results: Of the 100 cases, 90 were diagnosed as neoplastic lesions by FNAC and ten cases as non-neoplastic lesions, which turned out to be neoplasms on histopathological study. Among 100 cases, 47 were biopsied and subjected to histopathological study. The sensitivity of FNAC was 75.60%, and positive predictive value was 83.78% for malignant lesions. Conclusions: FNAC is a rapid, efficient, cost-effective, relatively painless procedure with a high diagnostic accuracy. It has high rate of sensitivity and positive predictive value in diagnosing thyroid neoplastic lesions. Hence, it is a valuable tool in the diagnosis and management of patients.
Psychometrics versus Datametrics: Comment on Vacha-Haase’s “Reliability Generalization” Method and Some Epm Editorial Policies

The present article reviews issues regarding test reliability, which is psychometric terminology, and score reliability, which is score-centric terminology. These issues have arisen, in part, due to some EPM editorial policies and Vacha-Haase’s “reliability generalization” proposal. The article includes (a) a brief historical review of reliability terminology, (b) discussion on the emergence of datametrics (loosely defined as the application of psychometry to scores as opposed to an instrument) including a review of textbook authors’uses of psychometric versus datametric terminology, (c) discussion of problems with datametrics, and (d) a critique of Vacha-Haase’s proposed meta-analytic reliability generalization via dummy-coded regression. The article concludes with a brief summary that presents several suggestions.
An Iterative Data Collection Approach for Multimodal Dialogue Systems

This paper deals with the way in which data for multimodal dialogue systems are collected. We argue that for multimodal data, an iterative data collection strategy should be followed. Instead of a single major data collection effort using a “Wizard of OZ” (WOZ) or “prompting” experimental setup, several smaller data collections should accompany the system development. We also describe the “script” experimental setup we developed. It is in between the WOZ and prompting setup, and can be used as a cost effective design for the first data collection within the iterative data collection strategy.
Asymptotic Ergodic Capacity Analysis for MIMO Amplify-and-Forward Relay Networks

In this letter, we analyze asymptotic ergodic capacity of MIMO amplify-and-forward (AF) relaying systems which employ linear processing at the relay. By exploiting the asymptotic results for eigenvalue distributions, we derive the ergodic capacity in various asymptotic antenna regimes as a closed-form expression with arbitrary system parameters. The analyzed results demonstrate that increasing the number of source antennas causes the capacity shrink phenomenon which is analogous to the channel hardening effect in multi-user MIMO systems. Although we assume asymptotically large antennas to obtain the closed-form expressions, simulation results show that our derived expressions are surprisingly accurate even with the moderate number of antennas, and thus can serve for analyzing practical MIMO relay networks.
Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews Social Memories in Rodents: Methods, Mechanisms and Modulation by Stress

Social transmission of food preference Social hierarchy Oxytocin Vasopressin Stress Glucocorticoids a b s t r a c t Intact social memory forms the basis of meaningful interactions between individuals. Many factors can modulate the quality of social memory, and these have been studied in detail in rodents. Social memory, however, cannot be considered a single entity. The term social memory reflects different processes, such as social recognition of a novel conspecific individual and social learning (or 'learning from others'). This review summarizes the findings obtained with behavioral paradigms that were developed for the study of memory formation by social recognition and social learning. In particular, we focus on studies that include tests for social habituation/discrimination paradigms, tests for memory of a previously established social hierarchy and the social transmission of the food preference test. The role of individual differences and the main neurobiological mechanisms (i.e., the brain regions and neurochemical systems involved) that have been implicated in each of these types of social-related memories are reviewed. In addition, we address the key modulatory influence of stress on the formation of these types of memories; discussing the contribution of central (corticotropin-releasing factor, CRF) and peripheral (glucocorticoids) stress systems and their interactions with the social neuropeptide systems. Overall, we present here a general overview of the current state of a thriving research area within the field of social neuroscience.
A Short-Form Dogmatism Scale for Use in Field Studies

Rokeach recently introduced a theory about different styles of belief systems that people have. The theory is an outgrowth of work on the Authoritarian Personality. The theory has not been utilized much in field studies because the primary measuring instrument, the "dogmatism" scale, contains 40 items. In this article, the authors recommend shorter versions of the dogmatism scale, indicating which items should be used to maintain the reliability of the measuring instrument. The short forms were developed from data collected in two field studies. J{R okeach's theory of belief systems is currently receiving considerable attention from social scientists. ' This recent attention to the theory may be due to the current interest in cognitive theories in general, and to the fact Rokeach's work derives from the much-studied Authoritarian Personality. Unfortunately, Rokeach's belief-systems theory has been tested primarily with relatively homogeneous samples of subjects, primarily students or other intact groups. Probably the main reason Rokeach's theory has been tested so little in field studies is the length of the primary measuring instrument used to test the theory-the 40-item self-administered dogmatism scale. It takes about 20 minutes to administer it. Despite this time problem, the authors have included the 40-item dogmatism scale in two field studies. The scale was included in a study of 227 Boston suburbanites who subscribed to a county agricultural newspaper, to test whether it could be meaningfully administered to general-population samples.2 A method of having interviewers read the items in the scale to respondents was developed to avoid the problems of self-administration. From these data, a short form of the scale was developed. Although a 10-item short form of the dogmatism scale has already been proposed by Schulze, his short form was developed from the responses of college students.3 Therefore, it was felt that its application in field studies was not advisable without further analysis. The results of this study indicated that field and classroom situations produce quite different results. The complete 40-item dogmatism scale was also included in a field study of Lansing, Michigan, residents.4 The Lansing data were used to cross-validate the abbreviated versions of the scale developed from the Boston data. PERSONAL-INTERVIEWING TECHNIQUE In the Boston study, interviewers read the items to respondents instead of having respondents self-administer the scale. The interviewing administration of the scale is quite simple, but interviewers must be briefed carefully if they are to administer the scale quickly. Just before the dogmatism scale is administered, the interviewer reads a set of instructions that are almost the same as Rokeach's original instruc-
Finnish Campylobacter jejuni Strains of Multilocus Sequence Type ST-22 Complex Have Two Lineages with Different Characteristics

Background Campylobacter jejuni is the major cause of human bacterial gastroenteritis worldwide, and in a minority of cases, post-infectious complications may occur. ST-22 complex (usually Penner serotype 19) strains have been overrepresented among patients with postinfectious complications of campylobacteriosis. We here present a characterization of a collection of 27 Finnish C. jejuni strains of ST-22 complex, from humans (22 strains) and animal sources (five strains), with the aim of contributing to our knowledge of the pathogenesis of C. jejuni infections. Methodology/Principal Findings All strains were analyzed by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) genotyping, lipo-oligosaccharide (LOS) locus class, Y-glutamyl transpeptidase (GGT) activity, in vitro biofilm formation ability, invasion and adhesion in HeLa cells and induction of IL-8 production. ST-22 complex contained five STs (ST-22; ST-1947; ST-1966; ST-3892; ST-3996) which were homogeneous in having sialylated LOS class A1 but on the other hand were distinguished into two major lineages according to the major STs (ST-22 and ST-1947) by different PFGE genotypes and certain other characteristics. All ST-22 strains had similar SmaI PFGE profiles, were GGT positive, and formed biofilms, except one strain, while ST-1947 strains were all GGT negative, did not form biofilm, had significantly higher motility than ST-22 (p<0.05) and had their SmaI PFGE profile. Invasion and adhesion as well as induction of IL-8 production on HeLa cells were strain-dependent characteristics. Conclusions/Significance ST-22 complex strains, reveal potential for molecular mimicry in host interactions upon infection as they all express sialylated LOS class A1. The two major STs, ST-22 and ST-1947 formed two homogeneous lineages, which differed from each other both phenotypically and genetically, suggesting that the strains may have evolved separately, perhaps by interacting with different spectra of hosts. Further studies are needed in order to understand if these two lineages are associated with different disease outcomes.
Haiku Poetry and Metaphorical Thought: An Invitation to Interdisciplinary Study

Haiku, a Japanese form of short poetry, enjoys international popularity. The combination of simplicity of form and profoundness of meaning makes haiku an ideal topic for the interdisciplinary study of creativity. Haiku is unusual among poetic genres in that poets are cautioned to avoid the use of figurative language such as metaphor, which may obscure the expression of a simple perceptual truth. In the same breath, the poet is told that good haiku usually have two elements in tension that create in the reader a new insight--a definition that sounds remarkably like modern views of metaphor. In this article, we examine this interesting paradox and describe some preliminary data from an ongoing series of studies. We suggest that the negative view of metaphor often expressed by teachers and poets may be primarily definitional. Modern views of metaphor suggest that it is much more than literary embellishment and, in fact, often speak of it as closely akin to perceptual processes. Unfortunately, this new perspe.
Testing the validity of social capital measures in the study of information and communication technologies

Social capital has been considered a cause and consequence of various uses of new information and communication technologies (ICTs). However, there is a growing divergence between how social capital is commonly measured in the study of ICTs and how it is measured in other fields. This departure raises questions about the validity of some of the most widely cited studies of social capital and ICTs. We compare the Internet Social Capital Scales (ISCS) developed by Williams [2006. On and off the ’net: scales for social capital in an online era. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 11(2), 593–628. doi: 10.1111/j.1083-6101.2006. 00029.x] – a series of psychometric scales commonly used to measure ‘social capital’ – to established, structural measures of social capital: name, position, and resource generators. Based on a survey of 880 undergraduate students (the population to which the ISCS has been most frequently administered), we find that, unlike structural measures, the ISCS does not distinguish between the distinct constructs of bonding and bridging social capital. The ISCS does not have convergent validity with structural measures of bonding or bridging social capital; it does not measure the same concept as structural measures. The ISCS conflates social capital with the related constructs of social support and attachment. The ISCS does not measure perceived or actual social capital. These findings raise concerns about the interpretations of existing studies of ‘social capital’ and ICTs that are based on the ISCS. Given the absence of measurement validity, we urge those studying social capital to abandon the ISCS in favor of alternative approaches.
Speech Acts Within Facebook Status Messages

This research examines the use of speech acts in computer-mediated communication, specifically in the status messages of the social network site Facebook, to communicate in both a mass and an interpersonal medium. A total of 204 status messages created by 46 participants were captured 3 times daily over 14 consecutive days. Content analysis of these data revealed that status messages were most frequently constructed with expressive speech acts, followed by assertives. Additionally, humor was integrated into almost 20% of these status messages. These findings demonstrate differences in how users express themselves in alternate media. Findings address implications for self-presentation in social networks and theoretical implications for computer-mediated communication research.
Biophysical Modeling of the Temporal Niche: From First Principles to the Evolution of Activity Patterns

Most mammals can be characterized as nocturnal or diurnal. However infrequently, species may overcome evolutionary constraints and alter their activity patterns. We modeled the fundamental temporal niche of a diurnal desert rodent, the golden spiny mouse, Acomys russatus. This species can shift into nocturnal activity in the absence of its congener, the common spiny mouse, Acomys cahirinus, suggesting that it was competitively driven into diurnality and that this shift in a small desert rodent may involve physiological costs. Therefore, we compared metabolic costs of diurnal versus nocturnal activity using a biophysical model to evaluate the preferred temporal niche of this species. The model predicted that energy expenditure during foraging is almost always lower during the day except during midday in summer at the less sheltered microhabitat. We also found that a shift in summer to foraging in less sheltered microhabitats in response to predation pressure and food availability involves a significant physiological cost moderated by midday reduction in activity. Thus, adaptation to diurnality may reflect the “ghost of competition past”; climate-driven diurnality is an alternative but less likely hypothesis. While climate is considered to play a major role in the physiology and evolution of mammals, this is the first study to model its potential to affect the evolution of activity patterns of mammals.
Sensor-Based Arm Skill Training in Chronic Stroke Patients: Results on Treatment Outcome, Patient Motivation, and System Usability

As stroke incidence increases, therapists' time is under pressure. Technology-supported rehabilitation may offer new opportunities. The objective of this study was to evaluate patient motivation for and the feasibility and effects of a new technology-supported task-oriented arm training regime (T-TOAT). Nine chronic stroke patients performed T-TOAT (2 × 30 min/day, four days/week) during eight weeks. A system including movement tracking sensors, exercise board, and software-based toolkit was used for skill training. Measures were recorded at baseline, after four and eight weeks of training, and six months posttraining. T-TOAT improved arm-hand performance significantly on Fugl-Meyer, Action Research Arm Test, and Motor Activity Log. Training effects lasted at least six months posttraining. Health-related-quality-of-life had improved significantly after eight weeks of T-TOAT with regard to perceived physical health, but not to perceived mental health (SF-36). None of the EuroQol-5D components showed significant differences before and after training. Participants were intrinsically motivated and felt competent to use the system. Furthermore, system usability was rated very good. However, exercise challenge as perceived by participants decreased significantly over eight weeks of training. The results of this study indicate that T-TOAT is feasible. Despite the small number of stroke patients tested, significant and clinically relevant improvements in skilled arm-hand performance were found.
Effects of Ginseng Ingestion on Growth Hormone, Testosterone, Cortisol, and Insulin‐Like Growth Factor 1 Responses to Acute Resistance Exercise

Ginseng, an herbal plant, has been ingested by many athletes in Oriental regions of the world in order to improve stamina and to facilitate rapid recovery from injuries. However, adequate investigation has not been conducted to examine the ergogenic effects of ginseng. To examine the effects of ginseng supplements on hormonal status following acute resistance exercise, eight male college students were randomly given water (control; CON) or 20 g of ginseng root extract (GIN) treatment immediately after a standardized exercise bout. Venous blood samples were drawn before and immediately after exercise and at 4 time points during a 2-hour recovery period. Human growth hormone, testosterone, cortisol, and insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1) levels were determined by radioimmunoassay. The responses of plasma hormones following ginseng consumption were not significant between CON and GIN treatments during the 2-hour recovery period. These results do not support the use of ginseng to promote an anabolic hormonal status following resistance exercise.