Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The effect of a misapplied progesterone-releasing intravaginal device on fertility in a Holstein-Friesian cow.

________________________________________________________________________________________ KAYA, D. , S. S. AY, S. ASLAN: The effect of a misapplied progesterone-releasing intravaginal device on fertility in a Holstein-Friesian cow. Vet. arhiv 84, 189-197, 2014. ABSTRACT In this case report, the surgical removal of a progesterone-releasing intravaginal device (PRID®, 1.55 g of progesterone) found adhered to the uterus was performed, and its effect on fertility in a Holstein-Friesian cow evaluated. No data older than six months was available on the cow; however, during the preceding sixmonth period, the animal showed no signs of estrus. Interestingly, in the course of a reproductive examination, a PRID-like spiral mass was identifi ed on the right uterine horn. Following diagnosis of the mass, surgical removal was considered. Right fl ank laparotomy was selected as the surgical entry site. Approximately one month after surgery, the cow showed signs of estrus, but no insemination was performed until the third cycle. After insemination, the cow become pregnant and completed the gestation period. Therefore, we concluded that the PRID may have caused anestrus, and that right fl ank laparotomy was a safe procedure for the removal of a PRID from the uterus, and particularly to recover fertility, in this case.
A near-infrared/optical/X-ray survey in the centre of σ Orionis

Because of the intense brightness of the OB-type multiple star system σ Ori, the low-mass stellar and substellar populations close to the centre of the very young σ Orionis cluster is poorly know. I present an IJHKs survey in the cluster centre, able to detect from the massive early-type stars down to cluster members below the deuterium burning mass limit. The near-infrared and optical data have been complemented with X-ray imaging. Ten objects have been found for the first time to display high-energy emission. Previously known stars with clear spectroscopic youth indicators and/or X-ray emission define a clear sequence in the I vs. I – Ks diagram. I have found six new candidate cluster members that follow this sequence. One of them, in the magnitude interval of the brown dwarfs in the cluster, displays X-ray emission and a very red J – Ks colour, indicative of a disc. Other three low-mass stars have excesses in the Ks band as well. The frequency of X-ray emitters in the area is 80±20 %. The spatial density of stars is very high, of up to 1.6±0.1 arcmin–2. There is no indication of lower abundance of substellar objects in the cluster centre. Finally, I also report two cluster stars with X-ray emission located at only 8000–11000 AU to σ Ori AB, two sources with peculiar colours and an object with X-ray emission and near-infrared magnitudes similar to those of previously-known substellar objects in the cluster. (© 2007 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
RDFMatView : Indexing RDF Data using Materialized SPARQL queries

The Semantic Web aims to create a universal medium for the exchange of semantically tagged data. The idea of representing and querying this information by means of directed labelled graphs, i.e., RDF and SPARQL, has been widely accepted by the scientific community. However, even when most current implementations of RDF/SPARQL are based on ad-hoc storage systems, processing complex queries on large data sets incurs a high number of joins, which may slow down performance. In this article we propose materialized SPARQL queries as indexes on RDF data sets to reduce the number of necessary joins and thus query processing time. We provide a formal definition of materialized SPARQL queries, a cost model to evaluate their impact on query performance, a storage scheme for the materialization, and an algorithm to find the optimal set of indexes given a query. We also present and evaluate different approaches to integrate materialized queries into an existing SPARQL query engine. An evaluation shows that our approach can drastically decrease the query processing time compared to a direct evaluation.
Professional Knowledge Building within an Elementary Teacher Professional Development Experience on Computational Thinking in Science Education

We investigated teacher learning within a professional development (PD) workshop series on computational thinking (CT) for elementary-level mentor teachers. The purpose of the PD was to prepare mentor teachers to support preservice teachers in integrating CT into their classroom practice, toward the broader goal of advancing CT for all in the early grades. We examined the ways in which participants collaboratively built on existing professional knowledge as they engaged in professional learning activities designed to introduce CT and related pedagogies for elementary science education. Our data sources were field notes, artifacts, drawings, written reflections, and focus group interviews. We describe how participants developed new understandings of CT integration and made connections to existing professional knowledge of their students, their curriculum, and their school contexts. We discuss implications for teacher learning and PD design relevant to CT, and make recommendations for future research.
Suboptimal Plasma Long Chain n-3 Concentrations are Common among Adults in the United States, NHANES 2003–2004

Population data on long-chain omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid (LCn-3 PUFA) status from biomarkers of dietary intake is lacking. The objectives were to describe plasma LCn-3 PUFA concentrations and compare them to concentrations associated with cardiovascular health and dietary recommendations for two servings of seafood/week. Fasting plasma fatty acids were measured among 1386 subjects ≥20 years from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, 2003–2004. LCn-3 concentrations represent the sum of eicosapentaenoic acid, docosapentaenoic acid and docosahexaenoic acid relative to total fatty acids (expressed as a percentage). Mean LCn-3 PUFA concentration was 2.07% (95% CI 1.95–2.19). Overall, 80.6% of participants had LCn-3 below concentrations recommended for cardiovascular health. Hispanic participants were the most likely to have LCn-3 PUFA below recommended levels. Nearly all participants (95.7%) had LCn-3 below concentrations associated with cardiovascular protection. Older participants (≥60 years) had higher LCn-3 PUFA concentrations than those aged 20–39 years but not aged 40–59 years. LCn-3 PUFA concentrations were lower for Hispanic participants relative to non-Hispanic black participants. Suboptimal LCn-3 concentrations are common among U.S. adults. These findings highlight the need to increase LCn-3 intake among Americans.
Comorbidity of Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder (ADHD) and major depression in primary school children

The study investigated comorbid Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and depression in a sample of rural primary school children in Limpopo Province, South Africa. A total of 320 learners participated in this study of whom 160 learners had teacher and parent identified ADHD symptoms (females = 50%; age range 6–14 years). All the learners took the Beck Depression Youth Inventory, second edition. Data were analysed applying ANOVA to investigate the possible differences between and within age, gender, and ADHD subtype group differences in depression symptomatology. Results indicated no statistically significant differences in the scores on the depression scale between the children with ADHD as identified by parents and teachers and the comparison group peers.
Trait Ratings for the Radboud Faces Database

Since its publication, the Radboud Faces Database (RaFD; Langner et al., 2010) has become one of the most widely used face databases. At the time of writing, it has been cited more than 1,400 times. The database includes validation data such as rated genuineness, clarity, and intensity of the displayed facial expression. Ratings of models’ attractiveness based on their neutral, frontal gaze image is also available and age data for most models can be found at http://gijsbijlstra.nl/rafd-ratings/. These ratings are useful for researchers who want to (a) select models who score particularly low or high on a certain characteristic, (b) ensure that different image sets do not significantly differ on certain characteristics, or (c) control for these characteristics in statistical analyses. Here, additional trait ratings for all 39 models of the RaFD’s Caucasian Adult Subset (neutral expression, frontal gaze) are presented. The models were rated on 19 trait dimensions: trustworthiness, dominance, attractiveness, competence, openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, emotional stability, aggressiveness, friendliness, health, intelligence, anger, disgust, fear, happiness, sadness, surprise.
An active backscatter wake-up and tag identification extraction protocol for low cost and low power active RFID

In this paper we present a Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) protocol used to wake up and extract the ID of every tag (or a subset thereof) within reach of a reader in an active backscatter RFID system. We also study the effect on tag energy cost and read-out delay incurred when using the protocol, which is based on a frequency binary tree. Simulations show that, when using the 2.45 GHz ISM band, more than 1500 tags can be read per second. With a population of 1000 tags, the average read-out delay is 319 ms, and the expected lifetime of the RFID tags is estimated to be more than 2.5 years, even in a scenario when they are read out very often.
“And what is a Seasnake?” Modelling the acquisition of concept prototypes in a developmental framework

The use of concepts is regarded as fundamental to human-level cognition, but there remain a number of open questions as to the functions of, and structures supporting, this competence. In the context of autonomous cognitive systems, the processes by which such concept functionality could be acquired would be particularly useful - indeed, a developmental account would obviate the need for the provision of explicit information or training supervision by the system designer. This paper seeks to explore this issue by applying a set of principles within a developmental framework that support a wide range of cognitive competencies to this problem, thus seeking to embed the development of concepts into a wider framework of cognitive processing. Comparison with a benchmark conceptual modelling system indicates that the proposed approach can account for a number of features, namely concept-based classification, and its extension to prototype-like functionality.
The Impact of Crowds on News Engagement: A Reddit Case Study

Today, users are reading the news through social platforms. These platforms are built to facilitate crowd engagement, but not necessarily disseminate useful news to inform the masses. Hence, the news that is highly engaged with may not be the news that best informs. While predicting news popularity has been well studied, it has not been studied in the context of crowd manipulations. In this paper, we provide some preliminary results to a longer term project on crowd and platform manipulations of news and news popularity. In particular, we choose to study known features for predicting news popularity and how those features may change on reddit.com, asocial platform used commonly for news aggregation. Along with this, we explore ways in which users can alter the perception of news through changing the title of an article. We find that news on Reddit is predictable using previously studied sentiment and content features and that posts with titles changed by Reddit users tend to be more popular than posts with the original article title.
Real-time depth-based tracking using a binocular camera

Depth map provides rich information and it can be utilized in object tracking to handle some challenging problems in conventional RGB tracking such as occlusions and model drift. In this paper, we present a tracker that provides an effective real-time target tracking method based on a binocular camera. The proposed tracker is an extension of the popular KCF algorithm that leverages a circulant structure of tracking-by-detection with kernels for tracking. On this basis, we design a simple yet effective method to detect occlusions and recover tracking using noisy depth map obtained from a binocular camera. Firstly, one needs to identify exact and reasonable peak number of the target region's depth histogram and apply GMM model to evaluate the depth distribution. The occlusion is then detected based on the depth evaluation and the maximum response from KCF. When the occlusion happens, it is segmented to build the corresponding search region for recovery. The experimental results demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed method and the superiority to the KCF tracker.
Genome-Wide Analysis of the RNA-DEPENDENT RNA POLYMERASE6/DICER-LIKE4 Pathway in Arabidopsis Reveals Dependency on miRNA- and tasiRNA-Directed Targeting[W][OA]

Posttranscriptional RNA silencing of many endogenous transcripts, viruses, and transgenes involves the RNA-DEPENDENT RNA POLYMERASE6/DICER-LIKE4 (RDR6/DCL4)-dependent short interfering RNA (siRNA) biogenesis pathway. Arabidopsis thaliana contains several families of trans-acting siRNAs (tasiRNAs) that form in 21-nucleotide phased arrays through the RDR6/DCL4-dependent pathway and that negatively regulate target transcripts. Using deep sequencing technology and computational approaches, the phasing patterns of known tasiRNAs and tasiRNA-like loci from across the Arabidopsis genome were analyzed in wild-type plants and silencing-defective mutants. Several gene transcripts were found to be routed through the RDR6/DCL4-dependent pathway after initial targeting by one or multiple miRNAs or tasiRNAs, the most conspicuous example of which was an expanding clade of genes encoding pentatricopeptide repeat (PPR) proteins. Interestingly, phylogenetic analysis using Populus trichocarpa revealed evidence for small RNA–mediated regulatory mechanisms within a similarly expanded group of PPR genes. We suggest that posttranscriptional silencing mechanisms operate on an evolutionary scale to buffer the effects of rapidly expanding gene families.
Construction, De-Novo Assembly and Analysis of Transcriptome for Identification of Reproduction-Related Genes and Pathways from Rohu, Labeo rohita (Hamilton)

Rohu is a leading candidate species for freshwater aquaculture in South-East Asia. Unlike common carp the monsoon breeding habit of rohu restricts its seed production beyond season indicating strong genetic control over spawning. Genetic information is limited in this regard. The problem is exacerbated by the lack of genomic-resources. We identified 182 reproduction-related genes previously by Sanger-sequencing which were less to address the issue of seasonal spawning behaviour of this important carp. Therefore, the present work was taken up to generate transcriptome profile by mRNAseq. 16GB, 72bp paired end (PE) data was generated from the pooled-RNA of twelve-tissues from pre-spawning rohu using IlluminaGA-II-platform. There were 64.97 million high-quality reads producing 62,283 contigs and 88,612 numbers of transcripts using velvet and oases programs, respectively. Gene ontology annotation identified 940 reproduction-related genes consisting of 184 mainly associated with reproduction, 223 related to hormone-activity and receptor-binding, 178 receptor-activity and 355 embryonic-development related-proteins. The important reproduction-relevant pathways found in KEGG analysis were GnRH-signaling, oocyte-meiosis, steroid-biosynthesis, steroid-hormone biosynthesis, progesterone-mediated oocyte-maturation, retinol-metabolism, neuroactive-ligand-receptor interaction, neurotrophin-signaling and photo-transduction. Twenty nine simple sequence repeat containing sequences were also found out of which 12 repeat loci were polymorphic with mean expected-&-observed heterozygosity of 0.471 and 0.983 respectively. Quantitative RT-PCR analyses of 13-known and 6-unknown transcripts revealed differences in expression level between preparatory and post-spawning phase. These transcriptomic sequences have significantly increased the genetic-&-genomic resources for reproduction-research in Labeo rohita.
Tracking multiple targets using a particle filter representation of the joint multitarget probability density

This paper addresses the problem of tracking multiple moving targets by estimating their joint multitarget probability density (JMPD). The JMPD technique is a Bayesian method for tracking multiple targets that allows nonlinear, non-Gaussian target motions and measurement to state coupling. JMPD simultaneously estimates both the target states and the number of targets. In this paper, we give a new grid-free implementation of JMPD based on particle filtering techniques and explore several particle proposal strategies, resampling techniques, and particle diversification methods. We report the effect of these techniques on tracker performance in terms of tracks lost, mean squared error, and computational burden.
Estimating Multivariate Latent-Structure Models

A constructive proof of identification of multilinear decompositions of multiway arrays is presented. It can be applied to show identification in a variety of multivariate latent structures. Examples are finite-mixture models and hidden Markov models. The key step to show identification is the joint diagonalization of a set of matrices in the same non-orthogonal basis. An estimator of the latent-structure model may then be based on a sample version of this simultaneous-diagonalization problem. Simple algorithms are available for computation. Asymptotic theory is derived for this joint approximate-diagonalization estimator.
An In Vitro SEM Study on the Effectiveness of Smear Layer Removal of Four Different Irrigations

Introduction The aim of this study was to compare the smear layer removal efficacies of 3% sodium hypochlorite (NaOCl), 17% Ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA), SmearClear and BioPure MTAD using a common irrigation protocol. Materials and Methods Fifty freshly extracted human single rooted maxillary and mandibular teeth were prepared by a ProTaper rotary system up to an apical preparation file size F3. Prepared teeth were randomly divided into five groups (n=10); distilled water (Group A; negative control), EDTA (Group B), SmearClear (Group C), BioPure MTAD (Group D) and NaOCl (Group E). After final irrigation with tested irrigants the teeth were decoronated, split into two halves longitudinally and observed under a scanning electron microscope (SEM) for removal of the smear layer. The SEM images were then analyzed for the amount of smear layer present using a three score system. Data were analyzed using the Kruskal-Wallis test and Mann-Whitney U test. Results Intergroup comparison of groups B, C, and D showed no statistical significant differences in the coronal and middle thirds, however, in the apical third the canal surfaces were cleaner in samples from group D (P<0.05). Conclusion BioPure MTAD was the most effective agent for the purpose of smear layer removal in the apical third of the root canals.
Real-time contrast preserving decolorization

Decolorization -- the process to transform a color image to a grayscale one -- is a basic tool in digital printing, stylized black-and-white photography, and in many single channel image and video processing applications. While recent research focuses on retaining meaningful visual features and color contrast, less attention has been paid to the complexity issue of the conversion. Consequently, the resulting decolorization methods could be orders of magnitude slower than simple procedures, e.g., Matlab built-in rgb2gray function, which could hamper them from being used practically. In this paper, we propose a very fast and yet effective decolorization approach. The effectiveness of the method is borne out by a new quantitative metric as well as qualitative comparisons with state-of-the-art methods.
A construction approach to innovative verbs in Japanese

Abstract Innovative verbs in Japanese are formed from nouns of various sources including loanwords, Sino-Japanese nouns, mimetics, and proper names. Regardless of their different origin, these innovative denominal verbs exhibit a collection of intriguing properties, ranging from phonological, morphological, to semantic and pragmatic. These properties are not strictly predictable from the component parts including the nature of the parent noun and verbal morphology. Such an unpredictable nature is suggestive of a constructional analysis. The form-meaning-function complex takes a templatic representation, which expresses the phonological and morphological characteristics, and associated with it are semantic and pragmatic properties. These phonological, morphological, semantic, and pragmatic properties combine to capture the nature of innovative denominal verbs as a construction. The analysis supports the idea of applying construction grammar to morphology along the lines of the developing field of construction morphology (e.g., Booij, Compounding and derivation: Evidence for construction morphology, John Benjamins, 2005, Construction morphology and the lexicon: 34–44, Cascadilla Press, 2007, Linguistische Berichte 19: 1–14, 2009a, Compounding and construction morphology, Oxford University Press, 2009b). We further show how insights from templatic (or prosodic) morphology (e.g., McCarthy and Prince, Prosodic morphology, University of Massachusetts and Brandeis University, 1986, Natural Language and Linguistic Theory 8: 209–282, 1990) can be conceptualized in terms of construction grammar.
A computerized system for the application of Basso, Beattie and Bresnahan scale in Wistar rats

OBJECTIVES: To develop and test a computer program to assist researchers in assigning scores in the application of the Basso, Beattie and Bresnahan (BBB) scale and to compare these scores when doing so in free, targeted and automated computer-assisted modes. METHOD: To test the program, the participants used the Impactor methodology recommended by the New York University (USA), in which 12 Wistar rats submitted to spinal cord injury were filmed on the 28th day after the injury. Eight researchers from the Laboratory of Medical Investigation, Faculdade de Medicina da Universidade de São Paulo, SP, Brazil took part in the study. The two heads of the laboratory, with 15 years of experience in the application of the scale, were considered the gold standard. RESULTS: The results of the scale application were not significantly different in relation to the gold standard, considering the mean of the evaluators in each method: free, targeted and automated form (with the help of the computer). CONCLUSIONS: The application of the BBB scale in the automated mode, using the computer program, did not present any difference in relation to the gold standard for all the evaluators. Level of Evidence II, Diagnostic Studies.
Hand Gesture Recognition Using Object Based Key Frame Selection

The sign language recognition is the most popular research area involving computer vision, pattern recognition and image processing. It enhances communication capabilities of the mute person. In this paper, we present an object based key frame selection. Hausdorff distance and Euclidean distance are used for shape similarity for hand gesture recognition. We proposed the use of nonlinear time alignment model with key frame selection facility and gesture trajectory features for hand gesture recognition. Experimental results demonstrate the effectiveness of our proposed scheme for recognizing American Sign Language.