Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Digital Media and Learning Evolution: A Research on Sustainable Local Empowerment

It is generally agreed upon that Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) are of vital importance for the social and economical development of a country. Following this idea, various initiatives have been made to address technical, cultural, rural and community development issues through projects of digital inclusion, with the direct or indirect supervision of international institutions or local agencies. Many initiatives, though, suffer from the inability to acknowledge essential cultural outlines, leading to a one-size-fits-all view of development interventions. This paper aims to expose some issues associated with the impact of ICT projects for education, going beyond a linear (and simplistic) relationship between technology and knowledge. It highlights some important perspectives on research into cognitive access and digital literacy, while understanding the process of learning as a social output. The framework proposed is a digital inclusion model based on cultural needs analysis and subsequent promotion of didactics innovation, alongside the enhancement of social and intellectual capital. The results of the empirical research conducted on deployments of the One Laptop Per Child project in Italy and in Ethiopia are used to illustrate parts of the model and possible theoretical outcomes for future research.
RNA synthesis in growing and stationary cells of a culture of Scarlet rose. Disproportionate synthesis of ribosomal subunits in the stationary state

RNA synthesis has been investigated in resting and growing cells of a culture of Scarlet rose. The rates of messenger RNA (mRNA) and ribosomal RNA (rRNA) synthesis are five‐ and ten‐fold higher, respectively, in the growing culture. In stationary phase cultures, newly synthesized 26S and 18S rRNA do not appear in the cytoplasm in equimolar amounts. Rather, the 26S/18S ratio of [3H]‐uridine labeled rRNA of stationary cells ranged from 0.9 to 1.3 while the ratio of the corresponding fraction from growing cells was 1.6 to 2.0. A similar result was obtained when cells were labeled with [3H‐CH3] methionine. Pulse chase experiments demonstrated that the nascent pre‐rRNA in resting cells could be chased into polysomes. These data are interpreted to indicate that a major part of the regulation of rRNA synthesis in stationary cells is at the level of the processing of the rRNA transcript.
Complexity and temporal dynamics of frequency coding in the awake rat auditory cortex

Auditory cortical neurons are elements of a neuronal network that decomposes sounds into spectral and temporal information. In particular, their frequency selectivity has been investigated in great detail. Most studies used anaesthetized preparations and found mainly simple V‐shaped tuning. The few data available from awake animals indicate that more complex forms of spectral receptive fields, i.e. frequency response areas, can be found there. We investigated frequency response areas in the awake rat primary auditory cortex using statistical evaluation and found complex forms of frequency response areas with several separate subregions in many neurons, besides classical V‐shaped tuning. Response areas, as determined with narrow band noise, were very similar to those measured with pure tones. Their width was well correlated to the response strength to white noise stimulation. These results suggest that the excitatory subregions of frequency response areas were the neurons' predominant characteristic, relevant also for the processing of more complex types of stimuli. Investigating the spectrotemporal dynamics of frequency response areas revealed that approximately one‐third of the neurons showed long‐lasting excitatory or inhibitory components in addition to the typical ON‐response. Inhibition was usually of longer duration and occurred mainly in frequency ranges outside the range of initial excitatory responses. These results indicate that auditory cortical neurons in awake animals can represent spectrotemporal information of rather different complexity.
Model-assisted credibility rating for health insurance claims

The Nigerian heath insurance industry is faced with the challenge of accurately estimating future premiums paid by policyholders. Credibility theory is the branch of mathematics of insurance that explores model-based principles to produce fairness in pricing and rate making, dynamic concept to keep pricing near experience, and put customers’ and other stakeholders’ interests into consideration. This article investigates an actuarial experience rating regime using novel model-assisted methods with a view of developing robust, credible and fair rates for Nigerian health insurance industry. Empirical results findings suggest the adequacy of the Generalized Extreme Value loss distribution over its competitors in modelling the health insurance claims. It also shows the superiority of the empirical Bayesian model over the traditional risk theory approach. Moreover, techniques based on the Bootstrap and Monte Carlo simulations provided robust estimates of the credibility factor and future premiums. The resulting confidence intervals provide reliable bounds for adequate flexible rate fixing. This is important to health actuaries as pricing, valuations, and product management decisions should be databased experience rating. The paper also discusses the policy implications.
Treatment of Pseudodendrites in Herpes Zoster Ophthalmicus With Topical Ganciclovir 0.15% Gel

Purpose: There is no standard of treatment for epithelial pseudodendrites in herpes zoster ophthalmicus (HZO). The purpose of this study is to report the topical antiviral drug, 0.15% ganciclovir for treatment of these lesions. Methods: This is a retrospective, interventional case series of 4 patients who were diagnosed with HZO epithelial pseudodendrites despite being given oral antiviral treatment and who underwent 0.15% ganciclovir gel topical treatment. Main outcome measures included epithelial healing time, visual acuity, and corneal sensation. Results: All 4 patients were immunocompetent and had epithelial lesions unresponsive to antiviral treatment with oral valacyclovir. Treatment with topical 0.15% ganciclovir gel 5 times a day resulted in the lesions healing successfully within 7 days with improved visual acuity in 3 patients and an increase in corneal sensation in 2 of the 4 patients. Conclusions: Topical 0.15% ganciclovir gel, 5 times a day until pseudodendritic lesion healing and tapering to bid for 2 to 4 weeks thereafter, is an effective treatment for pseudodendrites in HZO-affected cases that are often a challenge to manage with other oral or topical antivirals.
Marx Multilevel Bipolar Modulator Dynamic Models for Load Transient Analysis

This paper presents generalized dynamic models for Marx derived multilevel half-bridge bipolar modulators. This high-voltage topology uses modular Marx multilevel converter diode (<inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\text{M}^{\mathrm {{3}}}$ </tex-math></inline-formula>CD) cells to generate positive and negative (bipolar) pulses or unipolar (positive or negative voltage pulses). The developed models are tested in transient studies of pulse voltages and currents in the load. Simulation and experimental results are presented and compared.
Synthesis through Simulation: Insights on the Epidemiology of Mood and Anxiety Disorders in Canada

Objective: Prevalence estimates for mood and anxiety disorders in Canada are available, but various methodological approaches have produced inconsistent results. Simulation studies involve careful examination of available data by an expert modelling team working together with subject matter experts. Simulation can integrate datasets and literature-based estimates from various sources into a coherent mathematical representation of the underlying total population epidemiology. Methods: Supported by the Mental Health Commission of Canada, a simulation modelling project for mental disorders in Canada was recently undertaken. The modelling was carried out by RiskAnalytica using their Life at Risk platform. Specification and calibration of the model occurred in consultation with national and international experts. Results: To reconcile estimates of incidence and prevalence, recall bias needed to be represented in the model. This suggests that the population prevalence of mood and anxiety disorders has been underestimated by population surveys and may explain a discrepancy observed in the age-specific prevalence in population surveys as compared with studies using administrative data. The number of Canadians with mood and anxiety disorders is projected to increase in upcoming decades as a result of population growth, but, based on conservative assumptions, an increased prevalence proportion is not anticipated. Conclusions: Simulation models can act as a platform for economic analyses and epidemiologic projections and can support the rapid exploration of what-if scenarios, thereby informing policy decisions. This first national-level simulation provides a high level overview of mood and anxiety disorder epidemiology in Canada.
Readability of Wikipedia

Wikipedia is becoming widely acknowledged as a reliable source of encyclopedic information. However, concerns have been expressed about its readability. Wikipedia articles might be written in a language too difficult to be understood by most of its visitors. In this study, we apply the Flesch reading ease test to all available articles from the English Wikipedia to investigate these concerns. The results show that overall readability is poor, with 75 percent of all articles scoring below the desired readability score. The ‘Simple English’ Wikipedia scores better, but its readability is still insufficient for its target audience. A demo of our methodology is available at www.readabilityofwikipedia. com .
Comparing the test of practical judgment with the neuropsychological assessment battery judgment subtest in a neurodegenerative disease clinic population

ABSTRACT The Test of Practical Judgment (TOP-J) and the Judgment subtest from the Neuropsychological Assessment Battery (NAB-JDG) are both brief interview-based measures that assess judgment. This study compared estimates of judgment obtained from these measures in a neurodegenerative disease population. Records from 61 referrals seen for neuropsychological evaluation in a neurodegenerative disorders clinic were reviewed. Measures of interest included the TOP-J and NAB-JDG. Concordance correlation coefficients (CCC) and root mean square differences (RMSD) were calculated between judgment T-scores. Discrepancy scores were calculated by subtracting NAB-JDG scores from TOP-J scores. CCC showed poor agreement between the judgment measures, with evidence of fixed bias, such that the NAB-JDG systematically generates higher scores than the TOP-J. This fixed bias was present whether NAB-JDG scores are demographically adjusted or unadjusted. There was no evidence of proportional bias. In a neurodegenerative disease clinic population, the TOP-J and NAB-JDG provide estimates of judgment ability that are systematically different. These two measures may be assessing different aspects within the larger construct of judgment and the inconsistency between measures would contraindicate using them interchangeably. Clinicians will need to carefully consider patient characteristics, clinical needs, and review specific item content when selecting between these measures.
Survival Benefit: Quality Versus Quantity and Trade‐offs in Developing New Renal Allocation Systems

Almost every patient with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) who can survive a renal transplant operation will benefit from the transplant in terms of improved quality and quantity of life compared with continued dialysis (1). Moreover, because dialysis is very effective at preventing patients with ESRD from dying of their renal failure, patients being considered for renal transplantation do not face an immediate, short-term risk of dying once entered on the deceased donor waiting list. These two facts mean that the determination of need for renal transplantation and the prioritization of waiting renal transplant candidates cannot be adequately assessed by pretransplant mortality risk alone. Currently, most deceased donor kidney allocation protocols are primarily based on waiting time and this first-come, first-served, method for ranking patients gives no weight to waiting list mortality risk or probability of posttransplant patient or graft survival. It also does not take into account the heterogeneous spectrum of donor quality being offered at any given time. While there are advantages to waiting time-based systems such as simplicity and a degree of individual justice (‘if I wait long enough, I’ll get my turn’) there is increasing dissatisfaction with several aspects of the current system.
Advances on Sensing Technologies for Smart Cities and Power Grids: A Review

This paper aims to highlight the advancement on the emergent technologies, implementations, and applications in smart power grid and city. Advanced sensing systems and smart transducers are used to improve the performances of electric grid and city services. The final aim is to provide readers with a clearer understanding of the current state of the art about this topic by describing some applications and suggesting new features and ideas in the field of sensors and sensing systems dedicated to smart electric grid, power networks, and smart cities.
Implementing a Triangulation Protocol in Bereavement Research: A Methodological Discussion

Triangulation is a comparative strategy for examining data that strengthens qualitative and multi-method research. Despite the benefits of triangulation noted in the research methods literature, few concrete models for operationalization of protocols exist. Lack of documentation of explicit triangulation procedures is especially true in the area of bereavement research. This article describes how an interdisciplinary research team implemented a triangulation protocol in a study of the needs of bereaved parents. Triangulation enabled the integration of diverse data sources, methods, and disciplinary perspectives. These processes yielded a more meaningful typology of bereaved parents' needs than would have otherwise been possible. Extending the use of triangulation will enhance multi-faceted understandings of bereavement.
Meiotic and epigenetic aberrations in Dnmt3L‐deficient male germ cells

The DNA methyltransferase‐like protein Dnmt3L is necessary for the establishment of genomic imprints in oogenesis and for normal spermatogenesis (Bourc'his et al., 2001 ; Hata et al., 2002 ). Also, a paternally imprinted gene, H19, loses DNA methylation in Dnmt3L−/− spermatogonia (Bourc'his and Bestor, 2004 ; Kaneda et al., 2004 ). To determine the reason for the impaired spermatogenesis in the Dnmt3L−/− testes, we have carried out a series of histological and molecular studies. We show here that Dnmt3L−/− germ cells were arrested and died around the early meiotic stage. A microarray‐based gene expression‐profiling analysis revealed that various gonad‐specific and/or sex‐chromosome‐linked genes were downregulated in the Dnmt3L−/− testes. In contrast, expression of retrovirus‐like intracisternal A‐particle (IAP) sequences was upregulated; consistent with this observation, a specific IAP copy showed complete loss of DNA methylation. These findings indicate that Dnmt3L regulates germ cell‐specific gene expression and IAP suppression, which are critical for male germ cell proliferation and meiosis. Mol. Reprod. Dev. © 2005 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Precision motion control of a novel electromagnetic linear actuator based on a modified active disturbance rejection controller

A modified active disturbance rejection controller is proposed in this paper to accomplish precision motion control of a novel electromagnetic linear actuator. The working principle and characteristics of the actuator are analyzed. A reference acceleration feedforward is added to the conventional active disturbance rejection controller to improve the trajectory tracking accuracy besides the original excellent disturbance rejection performance. Comparative simulations and experimental results demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed controller, and good tracking and positioning performance has been achieved in the presence of both model uncertainties and external disturbances.
Spectroelectrochemistry of Redox Enzymes

The spectroelectrochemistry of camphor-bound cytochrome P450cam (P450cam) using gold electrodes is described. The electrodes were modiﬁed with either 4,4 0 -dithiodipyridin or sodium dithionite. Electrolysis of P450cam was carried out when the enzyme was in solution, while at the same time UV–visible absorption spectra were recorded. Reversible oxidation and reduction could be observed with both 4,4 0 -dithiodipyridin and dithionite modiﬁed electrodes. A formal potential ( E 0 0 ) of ) 373 mV vs Ag/AgCl 1 M KCl was determined. The spectra of P450cam complexed with either carbon monoxide or metyrapone, both being inhibitors of P450 catalysis, clearly indicated that the protein retained its native state in the electrochemical cell during electrolysis.
A Dichotomy Theorem on Fixed Points of Several Nonexpansive Mappings

The problem of finding a fixed point of a nonexpansive mapping on a hypercube is that it has a polynomial time algorithm. In fact, it is known that one can find a 2-satisfiability characterization of the set of all fixed points in polynomial time. This implies that the problem of finding a vertex that is a common fixed point of several given nonexpansive mappings on a hypercube is that it has a polynomial time algorithm. We consider the problem of finding a vertex that is a common fixed point of several given nonexpansive mappings on a more general Cartesian product of graphs. For a single nonexpansive mapping, a known polynomial time algorithm finds a fixed point and a 2-satisfiability-like characterization of all fixed points. We introduce graphs with a farthest point property (also called apiculate graphs in [H. J. Bandelt and V. Chepoi, The Algebra of Metric Betweenness: Subdirect Representations, Retracts, and Axiomatics, manuscript]), and show that finding a common fixed point of several nonexpansive mappings on Cartesian products of such graphs involves using a polynomial time algorithm. We generalize this result to any family of graphs having a majority function. By contrast, the smallest graph (in the sense of having the fewest vertices, and the fewest edges of those having the fewest vertices) without the farthest point property is K2,3, and finding a vertex that is a fixed point of two given nonexpansive mappings (retractions) on a Cartesian product of graphs isomorphic to K2,3 is NP-complete. More generally, we exhibit an infinite family of graphs without the farthest point property giving NP-completeness. We show that for any family of graphs not having a majority function, the existence of a common fixed point of two nonexpansive mappings on Cartesian products of such graphs is NP-complete. This proves a dichotomy for the problem based on the existence of a majority function; a similar dichotomy is obtained for the special case of nonexpansive mappings that are retractions. Finally we characterize the families of chordal graphs corresponding to both dichotomies.
The protein kinase PKR is required for p38 MAPK activation and the innate immune response to bacterial endotoxin

Protein kinase RNA‐regulated (PKR) is an established component of innate antiviral immunity. Recently, PKR has been shown to be essential for signal transduction in other situations of cellular stress. The relationship between PKR and the stress‐activated protein kinases (SAPKs), such as p38 mitogen‐activated protein kinase (MAPK), is not clear. Using embryonic fibroblasts from PKR wild‐type and null mice, we established a requirement for PKR in the activation of SAPKs by double‐stranded RNA, lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and proinflammatory cytokines. This does not reflect a global failure to activate SAPKs in the PKR‐null background as these kinases are activated normally by anisomycin and other physicochemical stress. Activation of p38 MAPK was restored in immortalized PKR‐null cells by reconstitution with human PKR. We also show that LPS induction of interleukin‐6 and interleukin‐12 mRNA is defective in PKR‐null cells, and that production of these cytokines is impaired in PKR‐null mice challenged with LPS. Our findings indicate, for the first time, that PKR is required for p38 MAPK signaling and plays a potentially important role in the innate response against bacterial endotoxin.
MK-0626, a selective DPP-4 inhibitor, attenuates hepatic steatosis in ob/ob mice.

AIM To investigate the mechanism and in vivo effects of MK-0626, a dipeptidyl peptidase-4 inhibitor, on hepatic steatosis using ob/ob mice. METHODS We analyzed obese (ob/ob) 8-wk-old male mice that had been randomly divided into two groups of ob/ob mice (n = 16 each) and were treated with 1.5 or 3 mg/kg MK-0626 and two control groups of untreated ob/ob mice and lean littermates (n = 16 each). All mice were fed a normal chow diet with or without MK-0626 for either four or eight weeks. Blood samples were collected, and total hepatectomy was performed. RESULTS The administration of dietary MK-0626 ameliorated the hepatic lipid accumulation in ob/ob mice treated with 3 mg/kg MK-0626 (3 MK), P < 0.05, vs untreated ob/ob mice (ob/ob). The MK-0626 treatment reduced the serum alanine aminotransferase levels (both treatment groups, P < 0.05 vs ob/ob) and glucoses/insulin levels/calculated HOMA scores (1.5 MK, P < 0.05 vs ob/ob; 3 MK, P < 0.01 vs ob/ob) and increased the serum adiponectin levels (3 MK, P < 0.05 vs ob/ob) in a dose-dependent manner. The MK-0626 treatment increased the mRNA expression of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor α/microsomal triglyceride transfer protein (1.5 MK, P < 0.05 vs ob/ob; 3 MK, P < 0.01 vs ob/ob) but reduced the sterol regulatory element binding transcription factor-1c/fatty acid synthase/stearoyl-CoA desaturase-1 (both treatment groups, P < 0.01 vs ob/ob). The MK-0626 treatment increased the activity of AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) (both treatment groups, P < 0.01 vs ob/ob). CONCLUSION MK-0626 could attenuate hepatic steatosis through enhancing AMPK activity, inhibiting hepatic lipogenic gene expression, enhancing triglyceride secretion from liver and increasing serum adiponectin levels.
A new optimization approach for multi-machine power system stabilizer design using a smart bacteria foraging algorithm

This paper presents a new optimization method for designing the parameters of a power system stabilizer (PSS) using a smart bacteria foraging algorithm (SBFA). The proposed technique, which is a modification of the bacteria foraging method (BFA), can direct bacteria by performing a tumble with a smart unit of length, decreasing the cost function better than the conventional BFA method. This algorithm not only considers social intelligence, but also emphasizes the individual intelligence of bacteria for finding a better nutritional path. A new cost function in the proposed SBFA has been used for specifying the direction of movement after a tumble. This approach led to a higher convergence speed and also better performance than the BFA. The effectiveness of the proposed method has been tested on a multi-machine power system while considering a frequency error-based objective function to enhance damping of the electromechanical oscillation modes. Simulation results for the proposed method are compared with conventional PSS, BFA- and fuzzy-based PSS methods. The results show the superior performance of the proposed SBFA-based PSS in comparison with other techniques for damping power system oscillations.