Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Pairwise Piecewise-Linear Embedding for Efficient Non-Linear Classification

Linear classifiers are much faster to learn and test than non-linear ones. On the other hand, non-linear kernels offer improved performance, albeit at the increased cost of training kernel classifiers. To use non-linear mappings with efficient linear learning algorithms, explicit embeddings that approximate popular kernels have recently been proposed. However, the embedding process is often costly and the results are usually less accurate than kernel methods. In this work we propose a non-linear feature map that is both very efficient, but at the same time highly expressive. The method is based on discretization and interpolation of individual features values and feature pairs. The discretization allows us to model different regions of the feature space separately, while the interpolation preserves the original continuous values. Using this embedding is strictly more general than a linear model and as efficient as the second-order polynomial explicit feature map. An extensive empirical evaluation shows that our method consistently outperforms other methods, including a wide range of kernels. This is in contrast to other proposed embeddings that were faster than kernel methods, but with lower accuracy.
Pain, range of motion and activity level as correlates of dynamic balance among elderly people with musculoskeletal disorder.

BACKGROUND Assessment of impairment and disability measures on dynamic balance status of elderly patients is well documented in the rehabilitation of neuromuscular disorders. Few studies however considered similar evaluation in musculoskeletal disorders. OBJECTIVE To determine the influence of pain, hip range of motion and level of activity on dynamic balance among elderly people with hip osteoarthritis (OA). METHODS Elderly patients with hip OA participated in the cross-sectional survey. The impairment measures were assessed using the visual analogue scale and double-arm universal goniometer whilst their levels of activity were assessed with the Barthel Index. Participants performed Turn-180 on two trials by taking steps clockwise and anti-clockwise round a sturdy arm chair. The total number of steps taken to complete each Turn- 180 was determined. Descriptive statistics were used to summarize data whilst Pearson moment correlation coefficient determined the correlations of the variables at 95% confidence interval. RESULTS The study involved 87 participants comprising 40(46%) males and 47(54%) females. The age of the participants ranged from 60 to 74 years with a mean of 65.8±4.5 years. There was a positive and significant correlation (r=0.596; p<0.001) between the participants' pain and steps taken to complete Turn-180. The participants' hip flexibility and the level of activity were also significantly and inversely correlated with the performance of Turn-180. CONCLUSION The dynamic balance of the sampled elderly patients was considerably influenced by pain, hip flexibility and level of activity, thereby putting premium on the assessment of the variables during musculoskeletal rehabilitation of elderly patients.
SH2-containing Inositol Phosphatase 2 Predominantly Regulates Akt2, and Not Akt1, Phosphorylation at the Plasma Membrane in Response to Insulin in 3T3-L1 Adipocytes*

SH2-containing inositol phosphatase 2 (SHIP2) is a physiologically important negative regulator of insulin signaling by hydrolyzing the phosphatidylinositol (PI) 3-kinase product PI 3,4,5-trisphosphate in the target tissues of insulin. Targeted disruption of the SHIP2 gene in mice resulted in increased insulin sensitivity without affecting biological systems other than insulin signaling. Therefore, we investigated the molecular mechanisms by which SHIP2 specifically regulates insulin-induced metabolic signaling in 3T3-L1 adipocytes. Insulin-induced phosphorylation of Akt, one of the molecules downstream of PI3-kinase, was inhibited by expression of wild-type SHIP2, whereas it was increased by expression of 5′-phosphatase-defective (ΔIP) SHIP2 in whole cell lysates. The regulatory effect of SHIP2 was mainly seen in the plasma membrane (PM) and low density microsomes but not in the cytosol. In this regard, following insulin stimulation, a proportion of Akt2, and not Akt1, appeared to redistribute from the cytosol to the PM. Thus, insulin-induced phosphorylation of Akt2 at the PM was predominantly regulated by SHIP2, whereas the phosphorylation of Akt1 was only minimally affected. Interestingly, insulin also elicited a subcellular redistribution of both wild-type and ΔIP-SHIP2 from the cytosol to the PM. The degree of this redistribution was inhibited in part by pretreatment with PI3-kinase inhibitor. Although the expression of a constitutively active form of PI3-kinase myr-p110 also elicited a subcellular redistribution of SHIP2 to the PM, expression of SHIP2 appeared to affect the myr-p110-induced phosphorylation, and not the translocation, of Akt2. Furthermore, insulin-induced phosphorylation of Akt was effectively regulated by SHIP2 in embryonic fibroblasts derived from knockout mice lacking either insulin receptor substrate-1 or insulin receptor substrate-2. These results indicate that insulin specifically stimulates the redistribution of SHIP2 from the cytosol to the PM independent of 5′-phosphatase activity, thereby regulating the insulin-induced translocation and phosphorylation of Akt2 at the PM.
Depressive mood in women at childbirth predicts their mood and relationship with infant and partner during the first year postpartum.

BACKGROUND Although many studies have reported negative impact of maternal depressive symptoms on family relations, few studies have explored whether or not early depressive symptoms influence interfamily relationships. The aim was to describe first-time mothers' feelings for their infant and partner during the first postpartum year in relation to maternal depressive symptoms. Research questions were addressed about: What is the prevalence of maternal depressive symptoms 10 days postpartum? How does maternal depressive symptoms on day 10 relate to her mood and feelings for the infant and partner at days 3 and 10, and at 6 and 12 months postpartum? METHODS A longitudinal study with first-time mothers, normal pregnancies, giving birth to healthy babies participated in the study; altogether, n = 419. Depressive symptoms were measured by Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) at 3 and 10 days. Additional questionnaires assessing the woman's mood and relationship with her infant and partner were filled out at days 3 and 10, and at 6 and 12 months postpartum. RESULTS Twenty-two per cent of the women scored high on EPDS on day 10 postpartum. In addition, low mood seemed to remain prevalent over the baby's first year, as confirmed by the mood scale at 6 and 12 months postpartum. Women with depressive symptoms showed less closeness, warmth and confidence as measured by the infant and partner relationship scales over the first year. Mothers with a high EPDS score on day 3 scored less optimal on the relationship scale to the infant at days 3 and 10, but not 6 or 12 months postpartum. CONCLUSIONS To screen women for depressive symptoms, 10 days postpartum seems to be predictive of maternal assessment of maternal-infant relationship throughout the first year and enables early intervention.
Ressources mobilisées par des stagiaires pour enseigner : faible part des savoirs théoriques

Dans une etude portant sur la construction de competences, 22 stagiaires de deuxieme, troisieme et quatrieme annees en formation a l’enseignement secondaire ont enregistre et analyse des lecons sur video. L’approche methodologique (Fenstermacher, 1996) permet d’expliciter ce qui fonde l’action. La categorisation de Le Boterf (2002) et la typologie de Cochran, DeRuiter et King (1993) ont ete utilisees pour identifier les ressources evoquees dans le discours des stagiaires relativement au sujet des competences liees a l’acte d’enseigner, a l’aide d’un logiciel d’analyse qualitative. Ce texte vise a explorer les ressources revelees par les etudiants et a examiner plus particulierement la faible part des savoirs theoriques.
Operation of a DSTATCOM in Voltage Control Mode

This paper presents the operating principles of a distribution static compensator (DSTATCOM) that is used to maintain the voltage of a distribution bus. A three-phase, four-wire distribution system is assumed in this study. A three-phase bridge inverter circuit that is supplied by two neutral-clamped dc storage capacitors realizes the DSTATCOM. Three filter capacitors, one for each phase, are connected in parallel with the DSTATCOM to eliminate high-frequency switching components. The voltage across the filter capacitor is controlled by a dead-beat controller to maintain the ac bus voltage. The magnitude of the bus voltage is chosen as a nominal value, i.e., 1.0 per unit, while its phase angle is obtained through a feedback loop that maintains the voltage across the dc storage capacitors. Through detailed simulation and experimental results it has been shown that the DSTATCOM can maintain the voltage against any unbalance and distortion in either the load or supply side.
What's Additional and/or New Since the First Printing of Survival Analysis Using S: Analysis of Time-to-Event Data?

Heat-expandable molded synthetic resin seal and baffle components adapted for use in automobile body cavities or the like are provided which are designed to preferentially expand upon heating in desired directions and to a desired degree, in order to properly seal irregular or special cavity shapes. The molded components of the invention have selected body surface portions thereof UV crosslinked to a depth of up to about 0.5 mm, while other portions of the molded body are not crosslinked; upon heating, the crosslinked portions expand at a slower rate and to a lesser extent than non-crosslinked body portions. The preferred synthetic resin includes a grafted anhydride polymer, a terminal epoxide polymer additive, a blowing agent, a UV photoinitiator and a UV crosslinkable resin system.
Oscillation of Human Period 1 (hPER1) Reporter Gene Activity in Human Neuroblastoma Cells In Vivo

The mammalian period (Per) genes, which are components of the circadian clock, are mainly regulated via an autoregulatory feedback loop. Here we provide evidence that human Per1 (hPER1) reporter gene activity shows circadian rhythmicity in a human neuroblastoma, but not in a astrocytoma or a hepatoma cell line. Medium change and various pharmacological stimuli differentially induce this behavior. This circadian oscillation was strongly dampened and could be followed over maximally three cycles. It was even possible to phase‐shift the course of this oscillation by repeated application of stimuli.
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We propose a new approach to analyze multiclass queueing systems in heavy traffic based on what we consider as fundamental laws in queueing systems, namely distributional and conservation laws. Methodologically, we extend the distributional laws from single class queueing systems to multiple classes and combine them with conservation laws to find the heavy traffic behavior of the following systems: a) EGI/G/1 queue under FIFO, b) EGI/G/1 queue with priorities, c) Polling systems with general arrival distributions. Compared with traditional heavy traffic analysis via Brownian processes, our approach gives more insight to the asymptotics used, solves systems that traditional heavy traffic theory has not fully addressed, and more importantly leads to closed form answers, which compared to simulation are very accurate even for moderate traffic.
The media and the literacies: media literacy, information literacy, digital literacy

With the advent of digital technologies, awareness of media is acquiring crucial importance. Media literacy, information literacy and digital literacy are the three most prevailing concepts that focus on a critical approach towards media messages.This article gives an overview of the nature of these literacies, which show both similarities to and differences from each other. The various contexts of their functioning are outlined and additional literacies are mentioned. Especial attention is given to the question of the blurring line between media consumers and producers.
Observer linearization by output-dependent time-scale transformations

We study the problem of observer linearization for single-output dynamical systems in the presence of output-dependent time-scaling changes. An alternative algorithm for the solution of the observer linearization problem is introduced. The algorithm employs an exterior calculus approach that provides a simple procedure for the solution of the observer linearization problem by means of an output dependent time-scale transformation.
Data Use for School Improvement: School Practices and Research Perspectives

In The World is Flat, Thomas Friedman (2005) describes how decades pass between discoveries and the practical productivity gains from them. Two examples are illustrative: (1) the ability to generate and distribute electricity evolved in the 1890s, yet it was 30 years before electric motors produced widespread productivity increases, and (2) computer technologies began evolving in the 1940s toward the productivity gains given by our current worldwide information systems. In both cases, multiple vectors had to converge beyond the initial inventions in order to produce the vibrant U.S. economy of the twentieth century and the world economy of the twenty-first century. In the case of the ongoing productivity increases from the computer/information revolution, Friedman’s first “convergence” was of rapidly evolving computer hardware with the subsequent development of “work flow software. ” This allowed businesses to move information much more rapidly. Friedman (2005, 177) notes that, while such a convergence can be valuable in isolation, “the big spurts in productivity come when a new technology is combined with new ways of doing business. ” In the case of the information economy, these include the integrated use of sophisticated computers and the evolution of large, sophisticated data “warehouses” to “flatten” not only macro-level world businesses but also the work lives and productivity of an unexpectedly wide array of persons. He documents this spread of data use and subsequent increases in productivity in contexts ranging from the U.S. Army to Wal-Mart. Education has been relatively slow in coming to the rapidly evolving worlds
The Story of the Theory of Critical Mass

The theory of a “critical mass” seems to live a life of its own, in spite of reservations expressed by researchers, my own reservations included. In debates about women's political representation, the importance of a certain number or percentage of women in political assemblies is often stressed. According to conventional wisdom, research has shown that it takes a certain minimum representation, for example, 30%, before the minority, here women, are able to make a substantial difference in politics.
THE ISOLATION, PERCEIVED ORGANIZATIONAL SUPPORT (POS), AND OCCUPATIONAL ROLE STRESS OF MENTAL HEALTH PRACTITIONERS IN SCHOLASTIC AND RELATED APPLIED SETTINGS.

Mental health practitioners in scholastic settings, such as K though 12 schools or universities, and in related applied settings, such as agencies or children’s hospitals, may be feeling isolated and lacking support. As a result, these professionals may perceive higher levels of occupational role stress due to the demands that their respective organizations place on them. These practitioners include: trained school psychologists, psychiatrists, psychology professors, scientist-practitioner researchers, counselors, therapists, and/or social workers. As Basset and Lloyd (2001) note in their research on human service professionals: Stress and burn-out in human service workers has been receiving increasing attention over a number of years. For workers in the field of mental health, additional stressors are present owing to organizational restructuring and new models of care.Various issues have been raised about this new way of working, such as professional isolation. Yet, as noted by Cropanzano (1997), empirical data between work stress and support from workers’ organizations has been minimal. This quantitative and exploratory study will investigate the relationships between the isolation, POS, and occupational role stress of mental health practitioners employed in scholastic and related applied settings.
Hyperthermia Applicator Compatible with "NMR"

Microwave thermotherapy is being used in medicine for the cancer treatment and treatment of some other diseases since early eighties [1,2,3,4]. Until now in temperature monitoring and control there is a lack of non-invasive 3D thermometry system, e. g. either Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) or ultrasound (US). The goal of this paper is to describe design and experimental evaluation of a new type applicator for microwave thermotherapy, which will be compatible with NMR. The first applicator of this type is just being used for a hyperthermia treatment of the experimentally induced pedicle tumours of the rat.
A novel extension of the anisotropic rotation-invariant built-up presence index to SAR data

Abstract Although the mechanisms underlying remote sensing images by optical and SAR sensors are very different, specific environments are represented on both types of imagery as largely similar spatial patterns. The anisotropic rotation-invariant built-up presence index makes use of these patterns on optical imagery for delineating and characterizing human settlements. This paper focuses on the necessity of a different definition for this index when it is applied to SAR data. Although the extension from optical to radar data is not straightforward, the formulation proposed in this paper makes it suitable for a good characterization of large urban areas and small informal settlements as well. After introducing and validating the slant-range version of the anisotropic rotation-invariant built-up presence index, a comparison of its effectiveness with respect to different radar viewing geometries and frequencies on the same test area is carried out, suggesting that the methodology works well in any situation.
‘Valence Politics’: How Britain Votes Now

Earlier studies did not disappoint. Not only did they provide masses of useful data but in theoretical terms they defined the agenda for British electoral studies. Political Change in Britain by David Butler and Donald Stokes (1969), which covered the elections of 1964 and 1966 and was extended to include the 1970 election in the second (1974) edition, was a landmark. The authors developed what came to be known as ‘the Butler-Stokes model’ of party choice. This emphasised the role of long-term factors such as class and party identification in determining vote and suggested that short-term factors, including issue opinions and evaluations of party leaders, had only a marginal impact. The emphasis was on the stability of party choice rather than change, which was slow and gradual. Although there was some criticism at the time and the events of the electorally volatile 1970s soon cast doubt on at least some aspects of the model, the work of Butler and Stokes remained, nonetheless, the essential starting point for all subsequent survey-based electoral analysis in Britain.
Fungal photoreceptors: sensory molecules for fungal development and behaviour

Light regulates fungal development and behaviour and activates metabolic pathways. In addition, light is one of the many signals that fungi use to perceive and interact with the environment. In the ascomycete Neurospora crassa blue light is perceived by the white collar (WC) complex, a protein complex formed by WC-1 and WC-2. WC-1 is a protein with a flavin-binding domain and a zinc-finger domain, and interacts with WC-2, another zinc-finger domain protein. The WC complex operates as a photoreceptor and a transcription factor for blue-light responses in Neurospora . Proteins similar to WC-1 and WC-2 have been described in other fungi, suggesting a general role for the WC complex as a fungal receptor for blue light. The ascomycete Aspergillus nidulans uses red light perceived by a fungal phytochrome as a signal to regulate sexual and asexual development. In addition, other photoreceptors, rhodopsins and cryptochromes, have been identified in fungi, but their functional relevance has not been elucidated. The investigation of fungal light responses provides an opportunity to understand how fungi perceive the environment and to identify the mechanisms involved in the regulation by light of cellular development and metabolism.
New Anti-Monocyte Chemoattractant Protein-1 Gene Therapy Attenuates Atherosclerosis in Apolipoprotein E-Knockout Mice

BackgroundMonocyte recruitment into the arterial wall and its activation may be the central event in atherogenesis. Monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1) is an important chemokine for monocyte recruitment, and its receptor (CCR2) may mediate such in vivo response. Although the importance of the MCP-1/CCR2 pathway in atherogenesis has been clarified, it remains unanswered whether postnatal blockade of the MCP-1 signals could be a unique site-specific gene therapy. Methods and ResultsWe devised a new strategy for anti-MCP-1 gene therapy to treat atherosclerosis by transfecting an N-terminal deletion mutant of the human MCP-1 gene into a remote organ (skeletal muscle) in apolipoprotein E-knockout mice. This strategy effectively blocked MCP-1 activity and inhibited the formation of atherosclerotic lesions but had no effect on serum lipid concentrations. Furthermore, this strategy increased the lesional extracellular matrix content. ConclusionsWe conclude that this anti-MCP-1 gene therapy may serve not only to reduce atherogenesis but also to stabilize vulnerable atheromatous plaques. This strategy may be a useful and feasible form of gene therapy against atherosclerosis in humans.
LCD-Net: lowest cost denominator networking

"The Internet is for everyone" claims Vint Cerf, the father of the Internet via RFC 3271. The Internet Society's recent global Internet survey reveals that the Internet should be considered as a basic human birth right. We strongly agree with these and believe that basic access to the Internet should be made free, at least to access the essential services. However the current Internet access model, which is governed by market economics makes it practically infeasible for enabling universal access especially for those with socio-economic barriers. We see enabling benevolence in the Internet (act of sharing resources) as a potential solution to solve the problem of digital exclusion caused due to socio-economic barriers. In this paper, we propose LCD-Net: Lowest Cost Denominator Networking, a new Internet paradigm that architects multi-layer resource pooling Internet technologies to support benevolence in the Internet. LCD-Net proposes to bring together several existing resource pooling Internet technologies to ensure that users and network operators who share their resources are not affected and at the same time are incentivised for sharing. The paper also emphasizes the need to identify and extend the stakeholder value chain to ensure such benevolent access to the Internet is sustainable.