Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Investigating the supersymmetric explanation of anomalous CDF lepton(s) photon(s) missing-ET events

The recent excess over the Standard Model prediction in the μγ missing-ET channel reported by CDF can be well-explained by resonant smuon production with a single dominant R-parity violating coupling λ'211, in the context of models where the gravitino is the lightest supersymmetric particle. The slepton decays to the lightest neutralino and a muon followed by neutralino decaying to a gravitino and photon. The kinematical distributions are fitted well by our hypothesis and we use them to constrain the available parameter space. The model also provides an explanation for the eeγγmissing-ET event observed in Run I of the Tevatron by the CDF experiment. Our model predicts an excess of between 5 and 35 events in a γmissing-ET channel at Run I. We provide predictions for signatures expected by the model at Run II.
Promoting Teenage Online Safety With an i-Safety Intervention: Enhancing Self-efficacy and Protective Behaviors

Frequent Internet use makes teens susceptible to online frauds and covert threats such as phish, spyware, and viruses, threatening the integrity of their computers and personal information. Most high school curricula fall short of providing students with the knowledge and skills needed to tackle the i-safety threats and dangers which one inevitably encounters through regular Internet exposure. Self-efficacy is considered one of the strongest antecedents to protective behavior, especially in situations where performing the behavior requires a certain level of skill or understanding. Using a Protection Motivation Paradigm, an i-Safety self-efficacy intervention, specifically designed and developed to increase self-efficacy and to promote protective behaviors was tested in the present study. Coping appraisals, parental monitoring, previous safe behaviors and issue involvement emerged as significant predictors of intentions to engage in protective behaviors. The i-Safety intervention significantly increased self-efficacy, and offers a foundation for the development of future interactive interventions.
Harmonious Haptics: Enhanced Tactile Feedback Using a Mobile and a Wearable Device

Smartwatches now allow information to be conveniently accessed directly from the user's wrist. However, the smartwatches currently available in the market offer a limited number of applications. In this paper, we propose a new interaction technique named Harmonious Haptics, which provides users with enhanced tactile sensations by utilizing smartwatches as additional tactile displays for smartphones. When combined with typical mobile devices, our technique enables the design of a wide variety of tactile stimuli. To illustrate the potential of our approach, we developed a set of example applications that provide users with rich tactile feedback such as feeling textures in a graphical user interface, transferring a file between the tablet and the smartwatch device, and controlling UI components.
Neurobiological Abnormalities in the First Few Years of Life in Individuals Later Diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Review of Recent Data

Background. Despite the widely-held understanding that the biological changes that lead to autism usually occur during prenatal life, there has been relatively little research into the functional development of the brain during early infancy in individuals later diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Objective. This review explores the studies over the last three years which have investigated differences in various brain regions in individuals with ASD or who later go on to receive a diagnosis of ASD. Methods. We used PRISMA guidelines and selected published articles reporting any neurological abnormalities in very early childhood in individuals with or later diagnosed with ASD. Results. Various brain regions are discussed including the amygdala, cerebellum, frontal cortex, and lateralised abnormalities of the temporal cortex during language processing. This review discusses studies investigating head circumference, electrophysiological markers, and interhemispheric synchronisation. All of the recent findings from the beginning of 2009 across these different aspects of defining neurological abnormalities are discussed in light of earlier findings. Conclusions. The studies across these different areas reveal the existence of atypicalities in the first year of life, well before ASD is reliably diagnosed. Cross-disciplinary approaches are essential to elucidate the pathophysiological sequence of events that lead to ASD.
Predictions of Normative Drug Use by College Students

Abstract The Core Alcohol and Drug Survey was administered to 2,642 students between 1993 and 1996 at three liberal arts colleges. Overall, the average predicted drug use was significantly higher (p <0.0005) than the average reported use for 8 of the 11 drugs surveyed. However, an analysis by level of reported use for the three most popular drugs (tobacco, alcohol, and marijuana) showed that the predicted average use was about the same at each level of reported use. “False Consensus” and “False Uniqueness” effects were discussed. Moreover, the effectiveness of intervention programs may depend upon perceptions as to how much other people use drugs relative to oneself.
Optimal position and velocity navigation filters with discrete-time delayed measurements

This paper presents the design and performance evaluation of a continuous-time Kalman filter with discrete-time delayed measurements for a class of time-varying kinematic systems with application to the estimation of linear motion quantities, in three dimensions, of mobile platforms. The design is based on the Kalman filter solution for an equivalent linear time invariant realization and allows for the natural use of frequency weights to explicitly achieve adequate disturbance rejection and measurement noise attenuation on the state estimates. Moreover, the proposed solution is optimal with respect to all signals assuming exact angular measurements. Two applications in the field of ocean robotics are presented and simulation results are included that illustrate the achievable performance in the presence of both extreme environmental disturbances and realistic measurements, with noise and delays.
Near‐perfect hashing of large word sets

This article presents a procedure for constructing a near‐perfect hashing function. The procedure, which is a modification of Cichelli's algorithm, builds the near‐perfect hashing function sufficiently fast to allow larger word sets to be used than were previously possible. The improved procedure is the result of examining the original algorithm for the causes of its sluggish performance and then modifying them. In doing so an attempt was made to preserve the basic simplicity of th original algorithm. The improved performance comes at the expense of more storage. The six modifications used to improve performance are explained in detail and experimental results are given for word sets of varying sizes.
Growth and differentiation of primary tracheal epithelial cells in culture: Regulation by extracellular calcium

Growth and differentiation of primary monkey tracheal epithelial (MTE) cells maintained on collagen gel substrata were studied in a defined serum‐free culture medium containing 0.03 to 3.0 mM extracellular calcium. Cell attachment efficiency (40‐60%) was not altered by different calcium levels. Growth of primary MTE cells on collagen gel substrata, which was vitamin A dependent, was enhanced 50% in the medium supplemented with high calcium (≥ 0.3 mM). High calcium medium also increased cell‐cell interactions, formation of desmosomes, and multi‐cell layering. The relative content of mucous cells, which were identified by a mucin‐specific monoclonal antibody and the presence of mucus‐secreting granules at the ultrastructural level, was greater in the high‐calcium medium. Furthermore, the secretion of mucin into the medium, determined either by an ELISA or by the incorporation of 3H‐glucosamine into mucous glycoprotein fractions, was also increased more than 5‐fold in media containing high calcium content ( ≥ 0.6 mM). In contrast, MTE cells cultured in low calcium medium ( < 0.15 mM) were squamous‐like with prominent tonofiiaments, and their secretory product was mainly hyaluronate. These results demonstrate that media containing a high calcium content promote conducting airway epithelium to express mucous cell differentiation, while media with low calcium content promote squamous cell differentiation.
Individual differences make a difference: On the use and the psychometric properties of difference scores in social psychology

Much social psychological research is concerned with the question whether and how behavior changes because of a “treatment” (e.g., a situation that triggers a psychological reaction). One easy way to investigate such changes would be to analyze intraindividual differences before (Time 1) and after the treatment (Time 2). Interestingly, many scholars refrain from using difference scores because they think they are inherently unreliable. However, the bad reputation of difference scores is, in many cases, unwarranted: difference scores can be sufficiently reliable when standard deviations differ between measurement occasions, and standard deviations are likely to differ between measurement occasions because of differential treatment effects (i.e., interindividual differences in responsiveness to a treatment) and/or “strong situation” treatments. In the present article, we will (1) summarize classic and current arguments regarding the reliability of difference scores, (2) discuss the use of residual change scores as an alternative to difference scores, and (3) argue that latent difference score models are a particularly useful tool that social psychologists should consider using more frequently. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Selection of test-setup parameters to target specific signal-to-noise regions in speech-on-speech intelligibility testing

Abstract Objective: To investigate the magnitude of the change in speech-reception threshold (SRT) provided by altering four different test-setup parameters. Furthermore, to determine whether these changes in SRT are of a sufficient magnitude, such that they can be used to design a test-setup in future experiments that target a predefined signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) region. This could be particularly important if the test contrast investigated is confounded with test SNR. Design: The investigated test-setup parameters were: Spatial separation between target (0°) and maskers (±15°, ±30°, ±45°, or ±75°), number of maskers (two, four or six), scoring method (scoring percent-correct words or sentences) and masker gender (same or opposite to target). Twenty SRTs were measured per test subject. Study sample: Twenty hearing-impaired test subjects participated over two visits. Results: Alteration of masker gender, spatial separation between target and masker (±15°, ±30°, ± 45°), and scoring method was shown to offer SRT changes of a sufficient magnitude. The different test setups resulted in average SRTs ranging from −4.0 to 3.3 dB. Conclusion: Deliberately selecting test setup parameters can change the overall difficulty of the test by up to 7.3 dB SRT. Thus, a future experiment can, to this extent, be designed to target a specific SNR region.
Regulations, Market Structure, Institutions, and the Cost of Financial Intermediation

This paper examines the impact of bank regulations, market structure, and national institutions on bank net interest margins and overhead costs using data on over 1400 banks across 72 countries while controlling for bankspecific characteristics. The data indicate that tighter regulations on bank entry and bank activities boost the cost of financial intermediation. Inflation also exerts a robust, positive impact on bank margins and overhead costs. While concentration is positively associated with net interest margins, this relationship breaksdownwhencontrolling for regulatory impediments to competition and inflation. Furthermore, bank regulations become insignificant when controlling for national indicators of economic freedom or property rights protection, while these institutional indicators robustly explain cross-bank net interest margins and overhead expenditures. Thus, bank regulations cannot be viewed in isolation; they reflect broad, national approaches to private property and competition.
Electrocardiographic Abnormalities and 30‐Year Mortality Among White and Black Men of the Charleston Heart Study

BackgroundThe long-term predictive significance of a single ECG tracing for mortality was explored among the white and black men of the Charleston Heart Study. Methods and ResultsThe 1960 baseline tracings of men ages 35 to 74 in the Charleston Heart Study cohort were coded according to the Minnesota classification. Tracings were categorized as being normal or having minor or major abnormalities. The 30-year vital status was ascertained for the cohort, and the association between ECG findings and coronary and all-cause mortality was evaluated. The proportion of black men with major abnormalities at the 1960 baseline examination was almost twice that ofwhite men. Rates of all-cause mortality increased with severity of abnormalities for white and black men. The absolute excess risk for black men with major abnormalities was 23.3 per 1000 person-years and 12.8 for white men. The excess risk for coronary mortality was 73 for white men and 6.5 for black men. ConclusionsMany of the findings in this study confirm earlier associations derived from studies ofwhite populations and extend the observations to black men. However, the magnitude of the relative risk for mortality was different for white and black men. After controlling for traditional coronary disease risk factors and minor abnormalities, white men with major abnormalities were 2.72 (95% confidence interval, 1.47, 5.04) times more likely to die of coronary disease compared with black men, who were 1.95 (95% confidence interval, 0.93, 4.11) times more likely to die of coronary disease.
SELF: Intensifier and ‘long distance’ effects in ASL

I argue that the apparent long distance anaphors (LDA) in ASL is just that—apparent, and that anaphors are strictly local. I claim that the apparent LDA effect arises because the lexical item SELF is homophonous between a true local anaphor (himself) and an intensifier. Since ASL is a pro-drop language, the intensifier SELF can combine with pro, yielding [pro + SELF], which, for all purposes, looks like the local anaphor. That the account of the reflexive along the lines of [pro + intensifier] is plausible is supported by a) the theory of intensifiers (Eckardt 2002); b) the theory of ASL pronouns (Lillo-Martin & Klima 1990); and c) the theory of the null arguments in ASL (Lillo-Martin 1986). The account also independently captures the otherwise “ill-behaved” “anaphoric” constructions in other pro-drop languages, such as Japanese and Chinese.
Complexity reduction scheme in encoding and decoding for polar codes

Polar coding has received a lot of consideration due to its nature of capacity achieving under various condition of coding. Low complexity is introduced by using successive cancelation decoding method. By using this large-error correction capacity is achieved for finite length of codes.in this work we propose a new approach for polar codes to achieve the better performance. Reduction of complexity is performed by reducing the number of XOR operations and the performance of the system is enhanced by using systematic polar codes. XOR operations are discarded by using path searching method, in this approach only desired path is considered others are discarded with the help of a posteriori probability. The proposed approach is implemented using MATLAB tool and the performance is achieved and compared in terms of bit error rate and frame error rate.
Tumor Necrosis Factor α and Interleukin 1β Enhance the Cortisone/Cortisol Shuttle

Endogenously released or exogenously administered glucocorticosteroids are relevant hormones for controlling inflammation. Only 11β-hydroxy glucocorticosteroids, but not 11-keto glucocorticosteroids, activate glucocorticoid receptors. Since we found that glomerular mesangial cells (GMC) express 11β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase 1 (11β-OHSD1), which interconverts 11-keto glucocorticosteroids into 11β-hydroxy glucocorticosteroids (cortisone/cortisol shuttle), we explored whether 11β-OHSD1 determines the antiinflammatory effect of glucocorticosteroids. GMC exposed to interleukin (IL)-1β or tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α) release group II phospholipase A2 (PLA2), a key enzyme producing inflammatory mediators. 11β-hydroxy glucocorticosteroids inhibited cytokine-induced transcription and release of PLA2 through a glucocorticoid receptor–dependent mechanism. This inhibition was enhanced by inhibiting 11β-OHSD1. Interestingly, 11-keto glucocorticosteroids decreased cytokine-induced PLA2 release as well, a finding abrogated by inhibiting 11β-OHSD1. Stimulating GMC with IL-1β or TNF-α increased expression and reductase activity of 11β-OHSD1. Similarly, this IL-1β– and TNF-α–induced formation of active 11β-hydroxy glucocorticosteroids from inert 11-keto glucocorticosteroids by the 11β-OHSD1 was shown in the Kiki cell line that expresses the stably transfected bacterial β-galactosidase gene under the control of a glucocorticosteroids response element. Thus, we conclude that 11β-OHSD1 controls access of 11β-hydroxy glucocorticosteroids and 11-keto glucocorticosteroids to glucocorticoid receptors and thus determines the anti-inflammatory effect of glucocorticosteroids. IL-1β and TNF-α upregulate specifically the reductase activity of 11β-OHSD1 and counterbalance by that mechanism their own proinflammatory effect.
Prognostic value of left atrial reservoir function in patients with severe aortic stenosis: a 2D speckle-tracking echocardiographic study.

AIMS The aim of this article is to assess the left atrial (LA) reservoir function in patients with severe aortic stenosis (AS) and to evaluate its impact on the recurrence of major adverse cardiac events (MACEs). METHODS AND RESULTS About 128 patients (mean age 79 ± 9 years) with severe AS were included in the study. Global peak LA strain (PLAS) measured by two-dimensional speckle-tracking echocardiography (STE) during left ventricular (LV) systole represented the LA reservoir function. Overall death, hospitalization for cardiac cause, and worsening heart failure were defined as MACEs. With respect to the values observed in a control group of 20 healthy patients, PLAS resulted significantly reduced in AS. According to the multivariate linear regression analysis, LV global longitudinal strain, mitral E/e' ratio, and systolic pulmonary arterial pressure (sPAP) were the best correlates to PLAS. During follow-up, the predefined MACEs occurred in 39 patients. According to the multivariate Cox regression analysis, a PLAS <21% was a significant predictor of MACEs [hazard ratio (HR) 2.88, P = 0.04], as was coronary artery disease (HR 2.68, P = 0.004) and the New York Heart Association functional class (HR 2.08, P = 0.03). CONCLUSION In patients with severe AS, a global PLAS <21% is an independent predictor of prognosis. Given the combined influence of LV diastolic and systolic function and of LA performance on sPAP, the decline of PLAS might be considered a marker of global myocardial impairment in AS. Further studies are needed to confirm the critical role of LA relaxation in prognosis and to validate its relevance in routine clinical practice.
An embedded system for automatic classification of neonatal cry

An implementation of neonatal cry classification on an embedded platform is presented in this paper. It was perceived that diagnosis of the cause of human baby cry can be aided with an electronic device which can help parents and doctors comfort their baby. The present work gives detail of such a mobile device which runs on Android operating system and includes an Android application for neonatal cry classification. The proposed Android application features automatic detection of neonatal cry, classification of the cry in four classes (“Hunger”, “Pain”, “Wet Diaper” and “Others”), displaying the cause of cry and taking user feedback on each cry. The objective of the device has been tested with an accuracy of around 56% and a confusion matrix on generated test result has been discussed in the results section.
Investigation of a New Control Strategy for Electronic Ballasts Based on Variable Inductor

In this paper, a new control method for electronic ballasts based on the use of a variable inductor is presented. The main goal is to perform the complete control of the electronic ballast by maintaining the switching frequency constant and without using other parameters of the power converter, such as input voltage or duty cycle. The magnetic regulator is controlled by means of a dc current, which allows performing both lamp soft starting and lamp dimming. Apart from the important advantage of keeping a constant frequency during full electronic ballast operation, the proposed method presents additional advantages when compared to other control methods, such as inherent isolated control, more linear control characteristics, constant electrode power, and higher efficiency. Experimental results from a 36-W linear fluorescent lamp prototype are presented.
Calibration of the Great American Interchange

From radioisotopic (potassium-argon) age determinations of tuffs and magnetostratigraphy of Late Tertiary mammal-bearing beds in Catamarca Province, northwest Argentina, refined estimates have been obtained for the durations and boundaries of beds of Chasicoan (Middle Miocene) through Chapadmalalan (Pliocene) age. An age of 9.0 million years is tentatively accepted for the Chasicoan-Huayquerian boundary, 5.0 million years for the Huayquerian-Montehermosan boundary, and 3.0 million years for the Montehermosan-Chapadmalalan boundary. Procyonids (raccoons and their allies), a group of North American origin, are first recorded in South America in a level immediately below a unit dated at 6.0 million years. Cricetine rodents of the tribe Sigmodontini are first recorded in South America in beds of Montehermosan age in Argentina. Ground sloths, a group of South American origin, first appear in North America in Early Hemphillian time in beds dated between 9.5 and 9.0 million years. The Panamanian land bridge was established by 3.0 million years ago, and an interchange of the terrestrial faunas was well under way by Late Blancan time (around 2.5 million years before present) in North America and by Chapadmalalan time in South America.
Fast gradient distance based image registration

Phase Correlation is many times faster than feature correspondence based image registration methods, but is still relatively computationally complex. To register images using phase correlation related by similarity transforms a translation invariant log-polar remapping of the images is required. This operation requires the computation of an additional two 2D FFTs plus two log-polar transforms. This paper proposes an alternative approach that eliminates the need to compute the log-polar transforms that reduces the number of FFTs required to register images and reduces overall computation time.