Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
More than a Feeling: Personality and Congressional Behavior

Political scientists have long considered the primacy of ideology, party affiliation, and constituency preferences in determining how members of the U.S. Congress make decisions. At the same time, psychologists have held that individuals' immutable personality traits play a central role in individual decision-making. In this paper, we seek to bridge these literatures by offering a rational-choice based characterization of how personality informs legislator decision-making, independently of policy preferences. Specifically, we provide an decision-theoretic grounding for the "Big Five'' personality model and identify how different personality traits affect the legislative behavior -- broadly defined -- of members of Congress. We apply recent advances in computer science to estimate personality across each of the "Big Five" dimensions using speeches recorded in the Congressional Record. In particular, we use Support Vector Machines (SVM) models to connect linguistic cues in legislator speech with known personality correlates of those cues. These results in hand, we study how legislators personality traits affect their behavior in Congress. Our results are substantively fascinating and a significant contribution to the discipline, as they show that personality has a strong relationship with legislator behavior -- even after controlling for legislator ideology.
Unobtrusive anomaly detection in presence of elderly in a smart-home environment

In the paper we present a method for anomaly detection in user's activities utilizing data from unobtrusive sensors. A service for a smart-home environment using this method adapts to behaviour of a user and may provide alarms to a carer or other responsible person if unusual activity is detected. As an unusual activity we consider: long periods of inactivity, lacking activity, unusual presence and changes in daily activity patterns. Anomaly detection is based on a composition of unsupervised classification technique Self Organizing Maps and next activity prediction employing Markov model. Finally we present a short experimental study realized on a dataset provided by MavHome project.
A trivalent approach for determining in vitro toxicology: Examination of oxime K027

Unforeseen toxic effects contribute to compound attrition during preclinical evaluation and clinical trials. Consequently, there is a need to correlate in vitro toxicity to in vivo and clinical outcomes quickly and effectively. We propose an expedited evaluation of physiological parameters in vitro that will improve the ability to predict in vivo toxicity of potential therapeutics. By monitoring metabolism, mitochondrial physiology and cell viability, our approach provides insight to the extent of drug toxicity in vitro. To implement our approach, we used human hepatocellular carcinoma cells (HepG2) and neuroblastoma cells (SH‐SY5Y) to monitor hepato‐ and neurotoxicity of the experimental oxime K027. We utilized a trivalent approach to measure metabolism, mitochondrial stress and induction of apoptosis in 96‐well formats. Any change in these three areas may suggest drug‐induced toxicity in vivo. K027 and pralidoxime, an oxime currently in clinical use, had no effect on glycolysis or oxygen consumption in HepG2 and SH‐SY5Y cells. Similarly, these oximes did not induce oxidant generation nor alter mitochondrial membrane potential. Further, K027 and pralidoxime failed to activate effector caspases, and these oximes did not alter viability. The chemotherapeutic agent, docetaxel, negatively affected metabolism, mitochondrial physiology and viability. Our studies present a streamlined high‐throughput trivalent approach for predicting toxicity in vitro, and this approach reveals that K027 has no measurable hepatotoxicity or neurotoxicity in vitro, which correlates with their in vivo data. This approach could eliminate toxic drugs from consideration for in vivo preclinical evaluation faster than existing toxicity prediction panels and ultimately prevent unnecessary experimentation. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Miniature reconfigurable multi-antenna system for IMT-Advanced band

This paper presents a compact reconfigurable multi-antenna system addressing the IMT-Advanced band. The antenna system is built using compact antennas whose miniaturization is obtained by limiting instantaneous operating bandwidth. Frequency agility technique it then used to enlarge the operating frequency in accordance with the whole operating band and communication standard waveform. Good decoupling performances are achieved with the multi-antenna device thanks to a particular arrangement of the antennas. This system has been introduced for small mobile terminals, where form factor is very important. The use of two antennas could bring benefits to limit fast fading effects introduced by mobility.
Cop Has New Chemotherapy and Interventional Radiology Changed the Treatment Paradigm ?

embolization. The search on aneurysmal bone cyst and selective Study Design. Clinically based systematic review. Objective. To determine the role of (A) medical treatment and (B) interventional radiology as either adjuvant or stand-alone treatment in primary benign bone tumors of the spine. Methods. A multidisciplinary panel of spine surgeons, radiation oncologists, and medical oncologists elaborated specific focused questions regarding aneurysmal bone cyst, giant cell tumor, and osteoid osteoma. Denosumab, bisphosphonate, interferon, bone marrow aspirate, doxycycline, thermal ablation, and selective arterial embolization were identified as areas of interest for the article. A systematic review was performed through MEDLINE and EMBASE. Recommendations based on the literature review and clinical expertise were issued using the GRADE system. Results. The overall quality of the literature is very low with few multicenter prospective studies. For giant cell tumor, combination with Denosumab identified 14 pertinent articles with four multicenter prospective studies. Nine studies were found on bisphosphonates and six for selective arterial
The interpretation of ambiguous words in psychosis

i Acknowledgements . iii Contributions. iv List of Tables . xiii List of Figures. ix List of Abbreviations . x Chapter 1: Introduction . 1 Semantic Ambiguity . 1 Schizophrenia. 4 Semantic Ambiguity Resolution in Schizophrenia . 5 Building Estimates of Meaning Dominance. 6 Individual Differences Affecting Ambiguity Resolution. 8 Thought Disorder . 8 Working Memory. 8 Present Investigation . 11 Chapter 2: Methods . 15 Participants. 15 Stimuli . 17 Procedure. 18 vi Speech Tasks. 20 Insight Questions . 24 Cognitive Tasks . 24 Clinical Measures. 27 Chapter 3: Results. 28 Relatedness Judgment (RJ) . 28 Word Association (WA). 28 Explicit Memory (EM) . 35 Insight Questions . 38 Definition Task (DEF) . 39 Clinical Measures . 41 Cognitive Tasks. 42 Relationship among Speech Tasks and Other Measures . 46 Chapter 4: Discussion . 49 Immediate Interpretation . 49 Delayed Interpretation. 51 Effect of Priming. 51 Implicit versus Explicit Memory . 53 Effect of Context Position on Priming. 56 Building Meaning Dominance and the Dominant-Meaning Bias. 57 Limitations . 60 Conclusion . 61 vii References. 62 Appendices. 72 Appendix A. Symptom Severity of Clinical Participants. 72 Appendix B. Complete List of Stimuli . 74 Appendix C. Equations for EM Outcome Variables . 85 Appendix D. Insight Questions.86 Appendix E. Psychiatric History Questionnaire . 87 Appendix F. Research Ethics Board Approval Letter. 88
Improving Indoor BlueTooth Localization By Using Bayesian Reasoning To Explore System Parameters

With the advent of smaller, more mobile electronic devices, a wide variety of services can now be augmented with the additional context that is provided by positional information. Systems commonly used for outdoor localization, such as GPS, cannot necessarily be used for indoor localization because often, separating a localizing device from system infrastructure with walls and other obstacles lowers accuracy. Instead, indoor localization systems can be deployed to replace the contextual information required for some situated services, that would otherwise be lost when a device moves indoors. For example, the trilateration algorithm that GPS uses to combine distance estimates from satellites can be repeated using Bluetooth (BT) devices spread throughout an environment. The signal strength of a set of beacons can be read by a localizing device, and those signal strengths can be equated to the distance between the localizing device and the beacon. These distances can then be combined using trilateration. A major source of error in such a system is that BT signal strength does not map directly to only one distance. Because microwave frequency propagation is susceptible to multipath effects and antenna direction, two devices at a fixed location can read a variety of signal strengths, which may not map to the ideal line-of-sight calibrated value. Therefore, any given signal strength reading cannot be interpreted as a single distance without introducing the potential for substantial error. One solution is to probabilistically model the relationship between distance and signal strength by modelling BT localization using a Bayesian network. In a Bayesian network, the distance versus signal strength relationship is stored as the conditional probability of a signal strength reading given a specific distance. Using a Bayesian inference algorithm, one can then reason backwards from a signal strength to a probability distribution representing the estimated position of the localizing BT device. In this thesis, I explore some of the effects of modelling BT localization with a Bayesian network. I first extend the probabilistic calibration to include the influence of the relative orientation of device antennae on the attenuation of BT signal strength between them. I then experiment with the effects of the position of a receiver within a discrete spatial bin,
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Deep Learning (DL) methods are notoriously data hungry. Their adoption in robotics is challenging due to the cost associated with data acquisition and labeling. In this paper we focus on the problem of object detection, i.e. the simultaneous localization and recognition of objects in the scene, for which various DL architectures have been proposed in the literature. We propose to use an automatic annotation procedure, which leverages on human-robot interaction and depth-based segmentation, for the acquisition and labeling of training examples. We fine-tune the Faster R-CNN [36] network with these data acquired by the robot autonomously. We measure the performance on the same dataset and investigate the generalization abilities of the network on different settings and in absence of explicit segmentation, showing good detection performance. Experiments on the iCub humanoid robot [25] show that the proposed strategy is effective and can be used to deploy deep object detection algorithms on a robot.
Modeling and Separate Extraction of Gate-Bias- and Channel-Length-Dependent Intrinsic and Extrinsic Source–Drain Resistances in MOSFETs

A new technique for a separate extraction of the current-path-dependent resistance (R<sub>SD0</sub>) from the contact-dependent source and drain resistances (R<sub>Se</sub> and R<sub>De</sub>) is reported for a single MOSFET. We also report a technique for a separation of V<sub>GS</sub>-dependent source and drain resistance (R<sub>SDi</sub>) from the V<sub>GS</sub>- and L<sub>eff</sub>-dependent channel resistance (R<sub>ch</sub>) with multiple MOSFETs. We confirm the proposed techniques applied to n-channel MOSFETs with various W/L combinations and obtain R<sub>Se</sub> = 10.5 - 12.4 Ω , R<sub>De</sub> ≅ 12.7 Ω, and R<sub>SD0</sub> = 4.7 Ω for W = 10 μm. V<sub>GS</sub>-dependent but L-independent R<sub>SDi</sub> is extracted to be 2.8 - 4.2 Ω.
Use of projector-camera system for human-computer interaction

The use of a projector in place of traditional display device would dissociate display size from device size, making portability much less an issue. Associated with camera, the projector-camera system allows simultaneous video display and 3D acquisition through imperceptible structured light sensing, providing a vivid and immersed platform for natural human-computer interaction. Key issues involved in the approach include: (1) Simultaneous Display and Acquisition: how to make normal video projector not only a display device but also a 3D sensor even with the prerequisite of incurring minimum disturbance to the original projection; (2) 3D Information Interpretation: how to interpret the spare depth information with the assistance of some additional cues to enhance the system performance; (3) Segmentation: how to acquire accurate segmentation in the presence of the incessant variation of the projected video content; (4) Posture Recognition: how to infer 3D posture from single image. This thesis aims at providing improved solutions to each of these issues. To address the conflict between imperceptibility of the embedded codes and the robustness of code retrieval, noise-tolerant schemes to both the coding and decoding stages are introduced. At the coding end, specifically designed primitive shapes and large Hamming distance are employed to enhance tolerance toward noise. At the decoding end, pre-trained primitive shape detectors are used to detect and identify the embedded codes – a task difficult to achieve by segmentation that
Cultures of participation—for students, by students

Culturally relevant health information is said to benefit diverse populations and is critical for health dissemination and user experience creation. Social media and online content provide mechanisms to engage specific populations while helping to reduce barriers that can often hinder participation and engagement. Using action research and informed by co‐creation theory, the MyHealthImpactNetwork.org initiative seeks to provide a user experience targeting Black female college students. Data were collected from females at a large university located in the Southeast United States. Through focus group participants' feedback, co‐creation with students as design delegates and reviews of social media resentments, MyHealthImpactNetwork.org evolved to include user‐driven content. Results indicate that Black females are interested in HIV prevention information that uses simple, non‐technical health jargon. The information should be, however, socially engaging to enable their voices to be heard, absent of cultural assumptions and biases about Black women, and embody an ownership ethos relative to social content. Informed by principals of canonical action research and the co‐creation that results between the researcher and potential user, these findings suggest that the hedonic dimension underpins the key design lessons. This research helps to fill a void in the literature regarding the creation of user experiences for health‐related messages, particularly those regarding stigmatized conditions, such as HIV, while designing for cultures of participation among under‐represented groups.
PROTECTIVE EFFECT OF NARINGENIN ON GLUTAMATE-INDUCED NEUROTOXICITY IN CULTURED HIPPOCAMPAL CELLS

Monosodium glutamate induces excitotoxicity in the central nervous system through hyperactiva - tion of both ionotropic and metabotropic glutamate receptors, which leads to neuronal cell death. In this study, we investigated the neuroprotective effects of naringenin on excitotoxicity induced by glutamate in primary hippocampal neurons of neonatal mice. The expression levels of apoptosis-inducing proteins and as well as ischemic factors were observed by Western blot analysis. Immunocytochemistry and morphometric analysis of hippocampal cells with or without glutamate and naringenin treatment were performed. We observed that naringenin regulated Erk1/2 and Akt phosphorylation and reduced the demise of dendrites due to glutamate exposure in cultured hippocampal neurons. Furthermore, naringenin induced the brain-derived neurotrophic factor and other neuroprotective cytokines, and markedly improved the survival rates of the neurons 24 h fol- lowing glutamate exposure. The observed results suggest that the naturally occurring bioflavonoid (naringenin) exerts neuroprotective effects via highly specific molecular targets in neurons.
Total anthocyanin content and antioxidant activity of germinated colored rice.

The objective of this study was to determine effect of germination on total anthocyanin content (TAC) and antioxidant activity of colored rice (Oryza sativa L). The normal, non-waxy rice variety Phitsanulok 2 was used as a control and two pigmented rice including black glutinous rice (local name Niew Dam), and black non-waxy rice (local name Hom Nil) were used in this study. Rough rice and dehulled rice kernels were steeped in water for 12 and 6 hrs, respectively before further left to germinate for 0, 6, 12, 18, and 24 hr. Rice samples were evaluated for TAC, trolox equivalent antioxidant capacity (TEAC), and ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP). Rice grains without husk showed higher germination rate compared to those of rough rice. After germination, the results showed that TAC and TEAC of black glutinous rice were significantly higher than that of the other two samples. Black rice germinated from rough rice showed higher TAC content and TEAC than that germinated from grains without husk. Therefore, rice with husk intact should be employed for the preparation of germinated pigmented rice to protect TAC loss during germination process.
A yeast‐based recombinogenic targeting toolset for transgenic analysis of human disease genes

Transgenic mouse models are valuable resources for analyzing functions of genes involved in human diseases. Mouse models provide critical insights into biological processes, including in vivo visualization of vasculature critical to our understanding of the immune system. Generating transgenic mice requires the capture and modification of large‐insert DNAs representing genes of interest. We have developed a methodology using a yeast‐bacterial shuttle vector, pClasper, that enables the capture and modification of bacterial artificial chromosomes (BAC)‐sized DNA inserts. Numerous improvements and technical advances in the original pClasper vector have allowed greater flexibility and utility in this system. Examples of such pClasper mediated gene modifications include: Claspette‐mediated capture of large‐insert genomic fragments from BACs‐human polycystic kidney disease‐1 (PKD1); modification of pClasperA clones by the RareGap method‐PKD1 mutations; Claspette‐mediated modification of pClasper clones—mouse albumin‐1 gene; and, of most relevance to our interest in lymph node vasculature—Claspimer‐mediated modification of pClasper clones‐high endothelial venule and lymphatic vessel genes. Mice that have been generated with these methods include mice with fluorescent high endothelial venules.
Allergen Drives Class Switching to IgE in the Nasal Mucosa in Allergic Rhinitis1

IgE-expressing B cells are over 1000 times more frequent in the nasal B cell than the peripheral blood B cell population. We have investigated the provenance of these B cells in the nasal mucosa in allergic rhinitis. It is generally accepted that expression of activation-induced cytidine deaminase and class switch recombination (CSR) occur in lymphoid tissue, implying that IgE-committed B cells must migrate through the circulation to the nasal mucosa. Our detection of mRNA for activation-induced cytidine, multiple germline gene transcripts, and ε circle transcripts in the nasal mucosa of allergic, in contrast to nonallergic control subjects, however, indicates that local CSR occurs in allergic rhinitis. The germline gene transcripts and ε circle transcripts in grass pollen-allergic subjects are up-regulated during the season and also when biopsies from allergic subjects are incubated with the allergen ex vivo. These results demonstrate that allergen stimulates local CSR to IgE, revealing a potential target for topical therapies in allergic rhinitis.
A Hierarchal Approach to Facial Expression Recognition using Active Appearance Models for Service Robots

For better interaction between human beings and service robots we need to detect the emotional state of the human user. This can help the robot adapt to the user's needs and can be used to increase the naturalness of the interaction. Our work proposes a hierarchal approach to facial expression recognition based extracting some facial features with the help of an Active Appearance Model. We introduce a concept of dynamic feature parameters and then make use of both local static features and dynamic features for classification.
C4d Deposition and Clearance in Cardiac Transplants Correlates With Alloantibody Levels and Rejection in Rats

Antibody‐mediated rejection of human cardiac transplants is correlated with C4d deposits and macrophage infiltrates in capillaries of endomyocardial biopsies. We produced an antibody to rat C4d to study C4d deposition and clearance in Lewis rats that were sensitized with a blood transfusion from DA rats 7, 14 or 21 days before cardiac transplantation. Cyclosporin A (CsA) immunosuppression was initiated after transplantation at a dose that inhibited graft rejection, antibody production and C4d deposition in unsensitized recipients. Blood transfusion elicited high levels of circulating IgG alloantibodies, predominantly of the complement‐activating IgG2b subclass, that peaked 14 days after transplantation. At this time, macrophages accumulated in capillaries, and C4d deposits were diffuse and intense on arteries, capillaries and veins. Grafts that survived 90 days in sensitized recipients still had deposits of C4d that were associated with increased interstitial fibrosis and vasculopathy in arteries. Clearance of C4d was determined by retransplanting DA cardiac allografts from Lewis recipients back to DA recipients. C4d deposits were decreased to minimal levels within 5 days after retransplantation. Thus, C4d deposition is not limited to the capillaries, but extends throughout the arterial tree, and despite formation of a covalent bond, C4d is cleared within days.
The Tom1L1-Clathrin Heavy Chain Complex Regulates Membrane Partitioning of the Tyrosine Kinase Src Required for Mitogenic and Transforming Activities

ABSTRACT Compartmentalization of Src tyrosine kinases (SFK) plays an important role in signal transduction induced by a number of extracellular stimuli. For example, Src mitogenic signaling induced by platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF) is initiated in cholesterol-enriched microdomain caveolae. How this Src subcellular localization is regulated is largely unknown. Here we show that the Tom1L1-clathrin heavy chain (CHC) complex negatively regulates the level of SFK in caveolae needed for the induction of DNA synthesis. Tom1L1 is both an interactor and a substrate of SFK. Intriguingly, it stimulates Src activity without promoting mitogenic signaling. We found that, upon association with CHC, Tom1L1 reduced the level of SFK in caveolae, thereby preventing its association with the PDGF receptor, which is required for the induction of mitogenesis. Similarly, the Tom1L1-CHC complex reduced also the level of oncogenic Src in cholesterol-enriched microdomains, thus affecting both its capacity to induce DNA synthesis and cell transformation. Conversely, Tom1L1, when not associated with CHC, accumulated in caveolae and promoted Src-driven DNA synthesis. We concluded that the Tom1L1-CHC complex defines a novel mechanism involved in negative regulation of mitogenic and transforming signals, by modulating SFK partitioning at the plasma membrane.