Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Neural Correlates of Alerting and Orienting Impairment in Multiple Sclerosis Patients

Background A considerable percentage of multiple sclerosis patients have attentional impairment, but understanding its neurophysiological basis remains a challenge. The Attention Network Test allows 3 attentional networks to be studied. Previous behavioural studies using this test have shown that the alerting network is impaired in multiple sclerosis. The aim of this study was to identify neurophysiological indexes of the attention impairment in relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis patients using this test. Results After general slowing had been removed in patients group to isolate the effects of each condition, some behavioral differences between them were obtained. About Contingent Negative Variation, a statistically significant decrement were found in the amplitude for Central and Spatial Cue Conditions for patient group (p<0.05). ANOVAs showed for the patient group a significant latency delay for P1 and N1 components (p<0.05) and a decrease of P3 amplitude for congruent and incongruent stimuli (p<0.01). With regard to correlation analysis, PASAT-3s and SDMT showed significant correlations with behavioral measures of the Attention Network Test (p<0.01) and an ERP parameter (CNV amplitude). Conclusions Behavioral data are highly correlated with the neuropsychological scores and show that the alerting and orienting mechanisms in the patient group were impaired. Reduced amplitude for the Contingent Negative Variation in the patient group suggests that this component could be a physiological marker related to the alerting and orienting impairment in relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis. P1 and N1 delayed latencies are evidence of the demyelination process that causes impairment in the first steps of the visual sensory processing. Lastly, P3 amplitude shows a general decrease for the pathological group probably indexing a more central impairment. These results suggest that the Attention Network Test give evidence of multiple levels of attention impairment, which could help in the assessment and treatment of relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis patients.
Simple, Fast Semantic Parsing with a Tensor Kernel

We describe a simple approach to semantic parsing based on a tensor product kernel. We extract two feature vectors: one for the query and one for each candidate logical form. We then train a classifier using the tensor product of the two vectors. Using very simple features for both, our system achieves an average F1 score of 40.1% on the WebQuestions dataset. This is comparable to more complex systems but is simpler to implement and runs faster.
SECURITY IN WIRELESS SENSOR NETWORKS : KEY MANAGEMENT MODULE IN SOOAWSN

Due to high restrictions in wireless sensor networks, where the resources are limited, clustering protocols for routing organization have been proposed in much research for increasing system throughput, decreasing system delay and saving energy. Even these algorithms have proposed some levels of security, but because of their dynamic nature of communication, most of their security solutions are not suitable. In this paper we focus on how to achieve the highest possible level of security by applying new key management technique that can be used during wireless sensor networks communications. For our proposal to be more effective and applicable to a large number of wireless sensor networks applications, we work on a special kind of architecture that have been proposed to cluster hierarchy of wireless sensor networks and we pick one of the most interesting protocols that have been proposed for this kind of architecture, which is LEACH. This proposal is a module of a complete solution that we are developing to cover all the aspects of wireless sensor networks communication which is labeled Secure Object Oriented Architecture for Wireless Sensor Networks (SOOAWSN) .
Authentication and Integrity in the Smart Grid: An Empirical Study in Substation Automation Systems

The smart grid is an emerging technology that integrates power infrastructures with information technologies to enable intelligent energy managements. As one of the most important facilities of power infrastructures, electrical substations undertake responsibilities of energy transmissions and distributions by operating interconnected electrical devices in a coordinated manner. Accordingly, it imposes a great challenge on information security, since any falsifications may trigger mal-operations, and result in damages to power usage. In this paper, we aim at authentication and integrity protections in substation automation systems (SAS), by an experimental approach on a small scale SAS prototype, in which messages are transmitted with commonly-used data origin authentication schemes, such as RSA, Message Authentication Code, and One-Time Signature. Through experimental results, we find that, current security solutions cannot be applied directly into the SAS due to insufficient performance considerations in response to application constraints, including limited device computation capabilities, stringent timing requirements and high data sampling rates. Moreover, intrinsic limitations of security schemes, such as complicated computations, shorter key valid time and limited key supplies, can easily be hijacked by malicious attackers, to undermine message deliveries, thus becoming security vulnerabilities. Our experimental results demonstrate guidelines in design of novel security schemes for the smart grid.
Language-independent hybrid MT with PRESEMT

The present article provides a comprehensive review of the work carried out on developing PRESEMT, a hybrid language-independent machine translation (MT) methodology. This methodology has been designed to facilitate rapid creation of MT systems for unconstrained language pairs, setting the lowest possible requirements on specialised resources and tools. Given the limited availability of resources for many languages, only a very small bilingual corpus is required, while language modelling is performed by sampling a large target language (TL) monolingual corpus. The article summarises implementation decisions, using the Greek-English language pair as a test case. Evaluation results are reported, for both objective and subjective metrics. Finally, main error sources are identified and directions are described to improve this hybrid MT methodology.
A Very Private Business

This article considers whether there is a specific demand for migrant domestic workers in the UK, or for workers with particular characteristics that in theory could be met by citizens. It discusses how immigration status can make it easier not only to recruit domestic workers, but also to retain them. `Foreignness' may also make the management of the employment relation easier with employers anxious to discover a coincidence of interest with the worker. Employers are not only looking for generic `foreignness' however, but typically also seek particular nationalities or ethnicities of worker, which can raise difficulties for agencies who are not allowed to discriminate on the basis of `race'.
Specificity of coaggregation reactions between human oral streptococci and strains of Actinomyces viscosus or Actinomyces naeslundii

Coaggregation reactions between actinomycete and streptococcal cells occurred frequently when human strains of Actinomyces viscosus or A. naeslundii were mixed with human isolates of Streptococcus sanguis or S. mitis, but were infrequent with other oral actinomycetes and streptococci. Two groups of actinomycetes and four groups of streptococci were defined by the patterns of their coaggregation reactions and by the ability of beta-linked galactosides (i.e., lactose) to reverse these reactions. Coaggregations occurred by one of the following three kinds to cell-cell interactions: (i) coaggregation that was blocked by heating the streptococcus but not the actinomycete and was not reversed by lactose; (ii) coaggregation that was blocked by heating the actinomycete but not the streptococcus and was reversed by lactose; and (iii) coaggregation that was blocked only by heating both cell types. The latter reaction was a combination of the first two since lactose reversed coaggregation between heated streptococci and unheated actinomycetes but did not reverse coaggregations between unheated streptococci and heated actinomycetes. Cells that could be heat inactivated also were inactivated by amino group acetylation or protease digestion, whereas cells that were unaffected by heat were not inactivated by these treatments. Coaggregation reactions of each kind were Ca2+ dependent and insensitive to dextranase treatment. These findings are consistent with the hypothesis that human strains of A. viscosus and A. naeslundii coaggregate with strains of S. sanguis and S. mitis by a system of specific cell surface interactions between protein or glycoprotein receptors on one cell type and carbohydrates on the other type.
Picturization partners: Elinor Glyn and the Thalberg contract affair

This article addresses the relationship of Elinor Glyn, Louis B. Mayer and Irving Thalberg at the time of the formation of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. Through the use of newly available archival materials it focuses specifically on the contractual negotiations over motion picture rights to Glyn's stories, negotiations that were of definite significance in establishing the practices of cross-media collaboration that existed between novelists and moviemakers in Hollywood in the 1920s. It also serves to indicate how the economic, artistic and legal processes involved in moviemaking in this period were inextricably connected, and suggests that personal and professional conflicts were often an essential part of the evolving practices of Hollywood in the silent era.
The State and Multiethnicity

Tensions and open conflict between ethnic and racial groups is one of the most pressing problems of our contemporary world (Cohen, 1978; Horwitz, 1985; Toland, 1993). There is a widespread assumption that these conflicts are atavistic outcroppings from less enlightened times. It is also assumed that progressive forces are bound to bring a more enlightened understanding and appreciation of ethnic diversity. Increased tensions, fundamentalism, and ethnocentrism are simply reactionary downward blips on the upward curve to a more tolerant and decent tomorrow. Possibly But in no way demonstrated by science or by the events of the past few years. In what follows, I amend these partially valid but also naively flawed conceptions. Ethnic conflict is not just atavistic. It has been affected very drastically by early adaptations related to the origins of the state. And it is an inevitable and essential part of that formation. Ethnicity also helps us to understand what is most likely to appear as the state gives way to emergent adaptations
Optimization and evaluation of surface-enhanced laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (SELDI-TOF MS) with reversed-phase protein arrays for protein profiling

Abstract Surface-enhanced laser desorption/ionization (SELDI) time-of-flight mass spectrometry with protein arrays has facilitated the discovery of disease-specific protein profiles in serum. Such results raise hopes that protein profiles may become a powerful diagnostic tool. To this end, reliable and reproducible protein profiles need to be generated from many samples, accurate mass peak heights are necessary, and the experimental variation of the profiles must be known. We adapted the entire processing of protein arrays to a robotics system, thus improving the intra-assay coefficients of variation (CVs) from 45.1% to 27.8% (p<0.001). In addition, we assessed up to 16 technical replicates, and demonstrated that analysis of 2–4 replicates significantly increases the reliability of the protein profiles. A recent report on limited long-term reproducibility seemed to concord with our initial inter-assay CVs, which varied widely and reached up to 56.7%. However, we discovered that the inter-assay CV is strongly dependent on the drying time before application of the matrix molecule. Therefore, we devised a standardized drying process and demonstrated that our optimized SELDI procedure generates reliable and long-term reproducible protein profiles with CVs ranging from 25.7% to 32.6%, depending on the signal-to-noise ratio threshold used.
Measurement of the dynamics in ski jumping using a wearable inertial sensor-based system

Abstract Dynamics is a central aspect of ski jumping, particularly during take-off and stable flight. Currently, measurement systems able to measure ski jumping dynamics (e.g. 3D cameras, force plates) are complex and only available in few research centres worldwide. This study proposes a method to determine dynamics using a wearable inertial sensor-based system which can be used routinely on any ski jumping hill. The system automatically calculates characteristic dynamic parameters during take-off (position and velocity of the centre of mass perpendicular to the table, force acting on the centre of mass perpendicular to the table and somersault angular velocity) and stable flight (total aerodynamic force). Furthermore, the acceleration of the ski perpendicular to the table was quantified to characterise the skis lift at take-off. The system was tested with two groups of 11 athletes with different jump distances. The force acting on the centre of mass, acceleration of the ski perpendicular to the table, somersault angular velocity and total aerodynamic force were different between groups and correlated with the jump distances. Furthermore, all dynamic parameters were within the range of prior studies based on stationary measurement systems, except for the centre of mass mean force which was slightly lower.
Changes in Astroglial Markers in a Maternal Immune Activation Model of Schizophrenia in Wistar Rats are Dependent on Sex

Data from epidemiological studies suggest that prenatal exposure to bacterial and viral infection is an important environmental risk factor for schizophrenia. The maternal immune activation (MIA) animal model is used to study how an insult directed at the maternal host can have adverse effects on the fetus, leading to behavioral and neurochemical changes later in life. We evaluated whether the administration of LPS to rat dams during late pregnancy affects astroglial markers (S100B and GFAP) of the offspring in later life. The frontal cortex and hippocampus were compared in male and female offspring on postnatal days (PND) 30 and 60. The S100B protein exhibited an age-dependent pattern of expression, being increased in the frontal cortex and hippocampus of the MIA group at PND 60, while at PND 30, male rats presented increased S100B levels only in the frontal cortex. Considering that S100B secretion is reduced by elevation of glutamate levels, we may hypothesize that this early increment in frontal cortex tissue of males is associated with elevated extracellular levels of glutamate and glutamatergic hypofunction, an alteration commonly associated with SCZ pathology. Moreover, we also found augmented GFAP in the frontal cortex of the LPS group at PND 30, but not in the hippocampus. Taken together data indicate that astroglial changes induced by MIA are dependent on sex and brain region and that these changes could reflect astroglial dysfunction. Such alterations may contribute to our understanding of the abnormal neuronal connectivity and developmental aspects of SCZ and other psychiatric disorders.
Excitation‐contraction coupling in skeletal muscle fibres of rat and toad in the presence of GTP gamma S.

1. Rapid force responses were elicited in single mechanically skinned fibres from extensor digitorum longus (EDL) muscle of the rat when the fibres were depolarized by substituting K+ in the bathing solution with Na+. The properties of these depolarization‐induced responses, the responses to lowered [Mg2+], and the characteristics of the slow prolonged response ('second component’) produced in ‘loaded’ fibres by choline chloride (ChCl) substitution, were virtually identical to those observed previously in skinned fibres from toad muscle. 2. At physiological levels of [Mg2+] (1 mM) and Ca2+ loading, application of 50 microM‐ to 1 mM‐GTP gamma S (guanosine‐5'‐O‐(3‐thiotriphosphate), a non‐hydrolysable analogue of GTP) did not produce a response in any mammalian or amphibian fibre, even though the depolarization‐induced coupling was totally functional. Furthermore, the presence of GTP gamma S had no apparent effect on the size, the threshold or the maximum number of responses which could be elicited by depolarization. 3. GTP gamma S did not elicit any response when excitation‐contraction coupling was abolished by prolonged depolarization or by chemically skinning the fibre with saponin or by 24 h exposure to low [Ca2+] (5 mM‐EGTA). 4. GDP beta S (guanosine‐5'‐O‐(2‐thiodiphosphate), 250 microM or 1 mM) neither evoked a response nor affected the responses to depolarization or caffeine. 5. When the [Mg2+] was lowered to 0.2 mM and the fibres were heavily loaded with Ca2+, addition of GTP gamma S (250 microM or 1 mM) induced a small response in about 50% of fibres, but depolarization‐induced responses were not affected in any fibres. 6. Asymmetric charge movement recorded in EDL fibres with the vaseline‐gap voltage clamp was not affected by the application of 1 mM‐GTP gamma S to the cut ends of the fibres for up to 1 h. 7. These data imply that GTP‐binding proteins (G‐proteins) are not involved in coupling the voltage sensors to Ca2+ release in skeletal muscle. Furthermore, there was no evidence that G‐proteins play any role in modulating the voltage sensors, though this possibility could not be totally excluded.
On the Role of Hierarchy for Neural Network Interpretation

In this paper, we concentrate on the expressive power of hierarchical structures in neural networks. Recently, the so-called SplitNet model was introduced. It develops a dynamic network structure based on growing and spl i t t ing Kohonen chains and it belongs to the class of topology preserving networks. We briefly introduce the basics of this model and explain the different sources of information bui l t up during the training phase, namely the neuron distr ibut ion, the final topology of the network, and the emerging hierarchical structure. In contrast to most other neural models in which the structure is only a means to get desired results, in SplitNet the structure itself is part of the aim. Our focus then lies on the interpretation of the hierarchy produced by the training algorithm and we relate our findings to a common data analysis method, the hierarchical cluster analysis. We il lustrate the results of network application to a real medical diagnosis and monitoring task in the domain of nerve lesions of the human hand.
The Impact of Caregiving on Caregivers’ Medication Adherence and Appointment Keeping

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationships between care demands and caregivers’ medication adherence and health appointment keeping. A cross-sectional correlational design was used to survey a convenience sample of 45 informal caregivers of persons with dementia. Pearson product–moment correlations and hierarchical multiple regressions were used to examine the relationships among study variables. Nearly one third of caregivers reported frequently or occasionally missing medication doses and nearly a half reported not being able to fully keep appointments with health care providers. Female gender, care duration, and care-recipient activities of daily living were significant predictors for medication adherence and appointment keeping. Caregivers’ education and weekly caregiving hours contributed significantly to their medication adherence. Interventions are needed to help caregivers keep health appointments and adhere to their medications.
Collective asynchronous reading with polylogarithmic worst-case overhead

The Collect problem for an asynchronous shared-memory system has the objective for the processors to learn all values of a collection of shared registers, while minimizing the total number of read and write operations. First abstracted by Saks, Shavit, and Woll [37], Collect is among the standard problems in distributed computing, The model consists of $n$ asynchronous processes, each with a single-writer multi-reader register of a polynomial capacity. The best previously known deterministic solution performs O(n3/2log n) reads and writes, and it is due to Ajtai, Aspnes, Dwork, and Waarts [3]. This paper presents a new deterministic algorithm that performs O(n log7 n) read/write operations, thus substantially improving the best previous upper bound. Using an approach based on epidemic rumor-spreading, the novelty of the new algorithm is in using a family of expander graphs and ensuring that each of the successive groups of processes collect and propagate sufficiently many rumors to the next group. The algorithm is adapted to the Repeatable Collect problem, which is an on-line version. The competitive latency of the new algorithm is O(log7 n) vs. the much higher competitive latency O(√nlog n) given in [3]. A result of independent interest in this paper abstracts a gossiping game that is played on a graph and that gives its payoff in terms of expansion.
Polyomavirus‐associated nephropathy: update in diagnosis

Abstract: The histological diagnosis of BK or JC polyomavirus allograft nephritis (PVAN) requires evaluation of a renal biopsy with demonstration of the polyomavirus cytopathic changes and confirmation with an ancillary technique such as immunohistochemistry. Three histological patterns of PVAN (A, B, and C) are identified in renal biopsies. Pattern A corresponds to the early disease, whereas patterns B and C identify intermediate and very advanced histological changes, respectively. The histological pattern found in the first biopsy correlates with graft outcome. Because PVAN affects the kidney in a random, multifocal manner, a negative biopsy does not rule out the disease. Patients with BK PVAN characteristically have high levels of BK viruria and viremia. Although the cutoff values of viral loads have not been fully determined, there is general agreement that BK viruria of >107/mL and BK viremia of >104 are typical of patients with a biopsy showing BK PVAN. Prospective evaluation of viruria with urine cytology (decoy cells) and/or quantitative polymerase chain reaction can aid in the identification of patients at risk for developing PVAN. In addition to histological evaluation, viremia has emerged as the most specific test for the diagnosis of BK PVAN. JC PVAN is very infrequent in comparison with BK PVAN, but is also characterized by large viruria (>104). On the other hand, JC viremia appears to be lower, in the order of 103/mL. The inflammatory changes in PVAN need further characterization. Currently, there are no tools to differentiate acute cellular rejection from viral specific T‐cell response.