Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Cell Division * 3. Nuclear Envelope Structure and Dynamics Ce-man1 (lem-2)

The C. elegans embryo is a powerful model system for studying the mechanics of metazoan cell division. Its primary advantage is that the architecture of the syncytial gonad makes it possible to use RNAi to generate oocytes whose cytoplasm is reproducibly (typically >95%) depleted of targeted essential gene products via a process that does not depend exclusively on intrinsic protein turnover. The depleted oocytes can then be analyzed as they attempt their first mitotic division following fertilization. Here we outline the characteristics that contribute to the usefulness of the C. elegans embryo for cell division studies. We provide a timeline for the first embryonic mitosis and highlight some of its key features. We also summarize some of the recent discoveries made using this system, particularly in the areas of nuclear envelope assembly/ dissassembly, centrosome dynamics, formation of the mitotic spindle, kinetochore assembly, chromosome
Text-based Learning vs . Learning with Computer Simulations : Does Gender Matter ?

Investigating multimedia learning has a long tradition and we can refer to a large body of empirical results. Gender-based differences and further individual factors, however, have not been considered as moderating variables to a large extent. The current article presents some preliminary results of a large-scale study aiming at investigating the efficacy and efficiency of multimedia learning objects for the use in higher medical education. The experiment described here compared text-based learning of blood flow effects with simulation-based learning. Interestingly, the results show that males as well as females could use both types of learning objects equally well and that they did not differ in learning styles and strategies. However, the results yielded very distinct differences in the impact of different learning strategies on learning performance.
Symmetric is Not the Optimal Local Context Window in Chinese Word Sense Disambiguation

Word Sense Disambiguation (WSD) is a task of classification, where the local context is the basic features to identify the sense of ambiguous word. Most systems choose optimal local context window on empirical grounds, which is usually symmetric, the distance from the ambiguous word to both sides of the window is same, such as [-1, +1] or [-2, +2]. Is symmetric window better than asymmetric window? In this paper, we take Senseval-3 Chinese data set as example. First find the optimal window estimated by cross–validation using only the training set, which is a symmetric window. Then, perform a WSD evaluation on the test data using this symmetric window for comparison with other classical symmetric window. The results show that asymmetric is better than symmetric window, and symmetric window is not always the best option.
Multi-scale single image self-example-based super resolution based on adaptive kernel regression

Recently self-similarity has been used for super resolution which generates favorable results. In this paper, single image super resolution method using self-example-based method is proposed. Patch redundancy cross-scale images is fully considered and patch similarity in image pyramids is used to improve the image resolution. Also the local structural constraints with steering kernel regression for patch similarity are used in the image reconstruction. For avoiding over-smoothing the structure of image, an automatic metric is presented to preserve the structure better. The patch self-similarity and local structure regularity in the image pyramids are combined to get the high resolution image. The results show that the proposed method has higher quality as compared to other state-of-art super resolution methods.
Critical behavior at superconductor-insulator phase transitions near one dimension

I argue that the system of interacting bosons at zero temperature and in random external potential possesses a simple critical point which describes the proliferation of disorder-induced topological defects in the superfluid ground state, and which is located at weak disorder close to and above one dimension. This makes it possible to address the critical behavior at the superfluid-Bose glass transition in dirty boson systems by expanding around the lower critical dimension d=1. Within the formulated renormalization procedure near d=1 the dynamical critical exponent is obtained exactly and the correlation length exponent is calculated as a Laurent series in the parameter \sqrt{\epsilon}, with \epsilon=d-1: z=d, \nu=1/\sqrt{3\epsilon} for the short range, and z=1, \nu=\sqrt{2/3\epsilon}, for the long-range Coulomb interaction between bosons. The identified critical point should be stable against the residual perturbations in the effective action for the superfluid, at least in dimensions 1\leq d \leq 2, for both short-range and Coulomb interactions. For the superfluid-Mott insulator transition in the system in a periodic potential and at a commensurate density of bosons I find \nu=(1/2\sqrt{\epsilon})+ 1/4+O(\sqrt{\epsilon}), which yields a result reasonably close to the known XY critical exponent in d=2+1. The critical behavior of the superfluid density, phonon velocity and the compressibility in the system with the short-range interactions is discussed.
Power flow calculations for small distribution networks under time-dependent and uncertain input data

The advances in distribution system automation, smart metering and exploitation of microgrids call for the adoption of more flexible options for power flow calculation. This paper illustrates the structure of a tool implemented to deal with time-dependent and uncertain data, as well as changing network structures during time. The focus is then set on including data uncertainty in probabilistic power flow calculations extended over a time period, in which the changing load and generation patterns are generally represented by correlated random variables. Exemplificative results are shown for a case study application.
Serum immunoglobulin E level of children infected with intestinal parasite in Okada, Nigeria

Children especially in rural areas of Okada have high rates of intestinal parasitosis with a prevalence of 50%. Stool and blood sample were collected of 334 children which comprised of 152 females and 185 males. Intestinal parasitosis was confirmed by direct smear technique and formol-ether concentration method. Serum IgE level was estimated by ELISA method. It was revealed that children between the ages of 11 - 15 years had the highest incidence of intestinal parasite in both sex (73.3% of the males and 62.5% of the females). About 2-fold elevation in serum IgE level was demonstrated. Intervention program including early introduction of health education to children is advocated and environmental sanitation should be encouraged.
Lukasz Faber Krzysztof Boryczko PORTABLE USERSPACE VIRTUAL FILESYSTEM SWITCH

Multiple different filesystems — including disk-based, network, distributed, abstract — are an integral part of every operating system. They are usually written as kernel modules and abstracted to the user via a virtual filesystem switch. In this paper, we analyze the feasibility of reimplementing the virtual filesystem switch as a userspace daemon and applicability of this approach in real-life usage. Such reimplementation will require a way to virtualize processes behavior related to filesystem operations. The problem is non-trivial, as we assume limited capabilities of the VFS switch implemented in userspace. We present a layered architecture comprising of a monitoring process, the VFS abstraction and real filesystem implementations. All working in userspace. Then, we evaluate this solution in four areas: portability, feasibility, usability, and performance. Our results demonstrate possible gains in the use of a userspacebased approach with monolithic kernels, but also underline problems that are encountered in this approach.
What are Emotions? Structure and Function of Emotions

Abstract This paper attempts to coin a stipulative definition of “emotions” to determine their functions. In this sense, “emotion” is a complex phenomenon consisting of an accurate (reliable) determination of the state of affairs in relation to the state of the subject and specific “points of adaptation”. Apart from the cognitive aspect, this phenomenon also includes behavior, physiological changes and expressions (facial expression, voice, posture), feelings, and “execution” of emotions in the nervous system. Emotions fulfill informative, calibrating, identifying, existential, and motivating functions. Emotions capture the world as either positive or negative, important or unimportant, and are used to determine and assign weightings (to set up a kind of hierarchy). They emerge automatically (involuntarily), are difficult (or hardly possible) to control and are (to some extent) influenced by culture.
Paradigmatic Clustering for NLP

How can we retrieve meaningful information from a large and sparse graph? Traditional approaches focus on generic clustering techniques and discovering dense cumulus in a network graph, however, they tend to omit interesting patterns such as the paradigmatic relations. In this paper, we propose a novel graph clustering technique modelling the relations of a node using the paradigmatic analysis. We exploit node's relations to extract its existing sets of signifiers. The newly found clusters represent a different view of a graph, which provides interesting insights into the structure of a sparse network graph. Our proposed algorithm PaC (Paradigmatic Clustering) for clustering graphs uses paradigmatic analysis supported by a asymmetric similarity, in contrast to traditional graph clustering methods, our algorithm yields worthy results in tasks of word-sense disambiguation. In addition we propose a novel paradigmatic similarity measure. Extensive experiments and empirical analysis are used to evaluate our algorithm on synthetic and real data.
The Suprachiasmatic Nucleus, Circadian Clocks, and the Liver

The circadian clock system adapts phasic physiological activities, such as sleeping and eating, to environmental cycles. The “master clock” is in the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) and the principal cue (Zeitgeber) is the light–dark cycle, around which most mammalian (and those of all living organisms) functions have evolved. In our society, with activity 24 h per day, the clock is frequently overridden or does not match the activity schedule, with increased susceptibility to disease (obesity, type 2 diabetes, and their cardiovascular sequelae) resulting. In the SCN and in other cells, the core molecular clock mechanism consists of specific genes (“clock” genes). These include Clock (and Npas2) , Bmal , the period homologs, Per1 and Per2 , and cryptochrome 1 ( Cry1 ) and Cry2 . The circadian clock mechanism revolves around transcription–translation feedback loops, in which repression and activation of transcriptional activity are dependent on dimerization, posttranslational modification, and degradation rate constants that define the reactions. Kinetically (in conjunction with a secondary feedback loop comprising nuclear receptor genes, Reverbs and Rors ), this system defines an oscillator with a period that is near 24 h (1,2). Photic cues channeled via the SCN fine-tune the period to correspond to that of the environment. Information on this period is then transmitted to the periphery. The same molecular clocks are also found in peripheral cells (e.g., kidney, liver, pancreas). They can function autonomously. However, the master clock in the SCN generally coordinates these peripheral clocks by way of the autonomic or humoral (e.g., corticosteroids, melatonin) routes to generate a synchronized signal that aligns metabolic and other activities with environmental conditions (1,3). Sleep–waking cycles are clearly set by the light–dark cycle. Disrupted sleep patterns impose alterations in this cycle. As, for example, with jet lag, the circadian clock adapts to these changes (4 …
Chirp Decomposition of Speech Signals for Glottal Source Estimation

In a previous work, we showed that the glottal source can be estimated from speech signals by computing the Zeros of the ZTransform (ZZT). Decomposition was achieved by separating the roots inside (causal contribution) and outside (anticausal contribution) the unit circle. In order to guarantee a correct deconvolution, time alignment on the Glottal Closure Instants (GCIs) was shown to be essential. This paper extends the formalism of ZZT by evaluating the Z-transform on a contour possibly different from the unit circle. A method is proposed for determining automatically this contour by inspecting the root distribution. The derived Zeros of the Chirp Z-Transform (ZCZT)-based technique turns out to be much more robust to GCI location errors.
On the robustness of event detection evaluation: a case study

Research on evaluation of IR systems has led to the insight that a robust evaluation strategy requires tests on a large number of events/queries. However, especially for event detection, the number of manually labeled events may be limited. In this paper we investigate how to optimize the evaluation strategy in those cases to maximize robustness. We also introduce two new vector space models for event detection that aim to incorporate bursty information of terms and compare these with existing models. Experiments show that exploiting graded relevance levels reduces the impact of subjectivity and ambiguity of event detection evaluation. We also show that although user disagreement is significant, it has no real impact on result ranking.
Statistical leakage minimization through joint selection of gate sizes, gate lengths and threshold voltage

This paper proposes a novel methodology for statistical leakage minimization of digital circuits. A function of mean and variance of the circuit leakage is minimized with constraint on a-percentile of the delay using physical delay models. Since the leakage is a strong function of the threshold voltage and gate length, considering them as design variables can provide significant amount of power savings. The leakage minimization problem is formulated as a multivariable convex optimization problem. We demonstrate that statistical optimization can lead to more than 37% savings in nominal leakage compared to worst-case techniques that perform only gate sizing
Children with Kaposi Sarcoma in Two Southern African Hospitals: Clinical Presentation, Management, and Outcome

Introduction. In 2010 more than 3 million children with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) were living in Sub-Saharan Africa. The AIDS epidemic has contributed to an abrupt increase of the frequency of Kaposi sarcoma (KS), especially in Southern Africa. There is a need to describe the clinical features of this disease, its management, and its outcome in HIV positive children in Southern Africa. The aim of the study is to describe two different populations with HIV and KS from two African hospitals in Namibia and South Africa. Material and Methods. A retrospective descriptive study of patients with KS who presented to Tygerberg Hospital (TH) and Windhoek Central Hospital (WCH) from 1998 to 2010. Demographic data, HIV profile, clinical picture of KS, and survival were documented. Results. The frequency of KS declined from 2006 to 2010 in TH but showed an increase in the same period in WCH. Children in TH were diagnosed at a much younger age than those in WCH (44.2 months versus 90 months). Cutaneous lesions were the most common clinical presenting feature, followed by lymphadenopathy, intrathoracic and oral lesions. Conclusions. The clinical characteristics of KS in South Africa and Namibia differ in many aspects between the 2 countries.
Time-Driven Activity-Based Costing: designing a model in a Portuguese production environment

Purpose - By designing a pilot time-driven activity-based costing (TDABC) model, this study aims to examine in depth the suitability and the complexity of TDABC in a manufacturing company. Design/methodology/approach - To obtain a deeper understanding on the matters to analyse, this research adopts an interventionist approach. The host organisation is GP, a Portuguese company in the frozen food sector. Findings - The authors’ experience allows them to assert that TDABC is suitable for a manufacturing company and it is able to deal with the variability of the industrial processes. Nonetheless, through a comparison with the models presented in the literature, TDABC appears to be more complex for manufacturing. The authors argue that this happens for two reasons. First, the two types of resources (human labour and machinery) used in production areas create a need to split tasks and to create two equations for each process, something that does not happen in service companies. Second, times are difficult to individualise for certain highly automated procedures, which could also give rise to some errors. Research limitations/implications - The designed model is compared to other models presented in the literature. Practical implications - This study shows a real example of TDABC in manufacturing and the procedural innovation of the time equations. Originality/value - As the TDABC literature has been mostly focused on examples of service companies, the authors examine the technical suitability and the complexity of TDABC in manufacturing companies.
Evaluation of lysyl oxidase-like 1 gene polymorphisms in pseudoexfoliation syndrome in a Korean population

Purpose The purpose of this study was to evaluate association profiles of lysyl oxidase-like 1 (LOXL1) gene polymorphisms with pseudoexfoliation syndrome (XFS) in a Korean population. Methods A total of 110 Korean patients with XFS and 127 control subjects were included in this study. Genotypes of three single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of LOXL1 (rs1048661, rs3825942, and rs2165241) were analyzed with direct sequencing, and a case-control association study was performed. Genotype frequencies of each SNP were compared according to the XFS phenotypes. Results All three SNPs were significantly associated with XFS. The T allele at rs1048661 (odds ratio [OR]=14.29, 95% confidence interval [CI]=6.25–33.3) and the C allele at rs2165241 (OR=7.14, 95% CI=1.59–33.3) were risk alleles in Korean subjects, which was consistent with findings in other Asian populations. However, our findings were opposite to results from Caucasian populations in which the risk alleles at rs1048661 and rs2165241 were G and T, respectively. At the rs3825942, the G allele (OR=12.50, 95% CI=2.94–50.0) was a risk allele for XFS, which was similar to results from most other ethnic groups except black South Africans in whom the A allele increased the risk. In the haplotype analysis, the T-G-C haplotype composed of all three risk alleles was significantly overrepresented in XFS and conferred an 11.36 fold (95% CI=5.97–23.49) increased likelihood of XFS. There was no significant association between the genotype frequencies of the three SNPs and the XFS phenotypes. Conclusions Three SNPs of LOXL1 (rs1048661, rs3825942, and 2,165,241) are highly associated with XFS in a Korean population. The risk alleles of these SNPs were similar to those of other Asian populations, such as Japanese or Chinese, but differed from non-Asian populations, suggesting that still unidentified genetic or environmental factors may contribute to disease expression.
Age-related changes in learning, memory and memory processing

This first section of this chapter discusses the problems with interpretation of the different rodent experiments on the effects of aging on acquisition, retention and recall. The second section discusses the major cognitive changes seen in humans. The importance of inter-individual variability is stressed. Major age-related changes are seen in working memory, episodic memory, semantic knowledge, visuospatial ability and the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale. Many of these changes are already present by 50 years of age.
Molecular phylogenetics and the evolution of fruit and leaf morphology of Dichaea (Orchidaceae: Zygopetalinae).

BACKGROUND AND AIMS The orchid genus Dichaea, with over 100 species found throughout the neotropics, is easily recognized by distichous leaves on long stems without pseudobulbs and flowers with infrastigmatic ligules. The genus has previously been divided into four sections based primarily on presence of ovary bristles and a foliar abscission layer. The aim of this work is to use DNA sequence data to estimate phylogenetic relationships within Dichaea and map the distribution of major morphological characters that have been used to delimit subgenera/sections. METHODS Sequence data for the nuclear ribosomal internal transcribed spacers and plastid matK, trnL intron, trnL-F spacer and ycf1 for 67 ingroup and seven outgroup operational taxonomic units were used to estimate phylogenetic relationships within Dichaea. Taxa from each of the four sections were sampled, with the greatest representation from section Dichaea, the most diverse and taxonomically puzzling group. KEY RESULTS Molecular data and morphology support monophyly of Dichaea. Results indicate that section Dichaeopsis is polyphyletic and based on symplesiomorphies, including deciduous leaves and smooth ovaries that are widespread in Zygopetalinae. There are at least three well-supported clades within section Dichaeopsis. Section Pseudodichaea is monophyletic and defined by setose ovaries and leaves with an abscission layer. Sections Dichaea and Dichaeastrum are monophyletic and defined by pendent habit and persistent leaves. Section Dichaeastrum, distinguished from section Dichaea primarily by a glabrous ovary, is potentially polyphyletic. CONCLUSIONS The leaf abscission layer was lost once, occurring only in the derived sections Dichaea and Dichaeastrum. The setose fruit is a more homoplasious character with several losses and gains within the genus. We propose an informal division of the genus based upon five well-supported clades.
Gene regulatory networks simplified by nonlinear balanced truncation

The complexity of gene regulatory networks described by coupled nonlinear differential equations is often an obstacle for analysis purposes. Therefore, the development of effective model reduction techniques is of paramount importance in the field of systems biology. In this paper, we apply the theory of nonlinear balanced truncation for model reduction for gene regulatory networks based only on standard matrix computations. The method is based on finding a controllability and observability function of the nonlinear system and thus obtain a balanced representation that produces singular value functions which are functions of the state. As a result, we obtain a ranked contribution of the states from an input - output perspective.