Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Speed and accuracy in nest-mate recognition: a hover wasp prioritizes face recognition over colony odour cues to minimize intrusion by outsiders

Social insects have evolved sophisticated recognition systems enabling them to accept nest-mates but reject alien conspecifics. In the social wasp, Liostenogaster flavolineata (Stenogastrinae), individuals differ in their cuticular hydrocarbon profiles according to colony membership; each female also possesses a unique (visual) facial pattern. This species represents a unique model to understand how vision and olfaction are integrated and the extent to which wasps prioritize one channel over the other to discriminate aliens and nest-mates. Liostenogaster flavolineata females are able to discriminate between alien and nest-mate females using facial patterns or chemical cues in isolation. However, the two sensory modalities are not equally efficient in the discrimination of ‘friend’ from ‘foe’. Visual cues induce an increased number of erroneous attacks on nest-mates (false alarms), but such attacks are quickly aborted and never result in serious injury. Odour cues, presented in isolation, result in an increased number of misses: erroneous acceptances of outsiders. Interestingly, wasps take the relative efficiencies of the two sensory modalities into account when making rapid decisions about colony membership of an individual: chemical profiles are entirely ignored when the visual and chemical stimuli are presented together. Thus, wasps adopt a strategy to ‘err on the safe side’ by memorizing individual faces to recognize colony members, and disregarding odour cues to minimize the risk of intrusion from colony outsiders.
A HENKIN-STYLE PROOF OF COMPLETENESS FOR FIRST-ORDER ALGEBRAIZABLE LOGICS

Abstract This paper considers Henkin’s proof of completeness of classical first-order logic and extends its scope to the realm of algebraizable logics in the sense of Blok and Pigozzi. Given a propositional logic L (for which we only need to assume that it has an algebraic semantics and a suitable disjunction) we axiomatize two natural first-order extensions L∀m and L∀ and prove that the former is complete with respect to all models over algebras from , while the latter is complete with respect to all models over relatively finitely subdirectly irreducible algebras. While the first completeness result is relatively straightforward, the second requires non-trivial modifications of Henkin’s proof by making use of the disjunction connective. As a byproduct, we also obtain a form of Skolemization provided that the algebraic semantics admits regular completions. The relatively modest assumptions on the propositional side allow for a wide generalization of previous approaches by Rasiowa, Sikorski, Hájek, Horn, and others and help to illuminate the “essentially first-order” steps in the classical Henkin’s proof.
Improvement of a 4-Channel Spiral-Loop RF Coil Array for TMJ MR Imaging at 7T

+ maps were measured in 7T. Results: In the EM simulation result and MRI study at 7T, the 4-channel spiral-loop coil array found a superior B1 perfor- mance and a higher B1 + profile inside the human head as well as a slightly better SNR than the 4-channel single-loop coil array. Conclusion: Although B 1 fields are produced under the influence of the dielectric properties of the subject rather than the coil configuration alone at 7T, each RF coil exhibited not only special but also specific characteristics that could make it suited for specific application such as TMJ imaging.
Grand minima in a buoyancy-driven solar dynamo

Numerical simulations of a 2D mean-field model are presented which show that grand minima, typical for the long- term behaviour of solar magnetic activity, can be produced by a dynamo that features an alpha effect based on the buoyancy instability of magnetic fluxtubes. The buoyancy-driven alpha effect functions only if the magnetic field strength exceeds a minimal value necessary for instability. It opens the possibil- ity of dynamo action within the solar overshoot layer, where a strong magnetic field, B 10 5 G, is thought to be stored. The existence of a magnetic threshold for dynamo action can lead to interruptions of the magnetic cycle, similar to the grand minima of solar activity. Transitions across the instability threshold are triggered by magnetic-flux injections from the convection zone. This is modelled by allowing for a small-scale kinematic alpha effect in the convection zone, and convective downdrafts that penetrate the overshoot layer.
Physical Self and Physical Activity Relationships in College Women: Does Social Physique Anxiety Moderate Effects?

Abstract This research assessed whether social physique anxiety moderated the relationship between physical self-perceptions and the level of physical activity involvement in young women. Participants were 354 female students who completed the Social Physique Anxiety Scale (SPAS), Physical Self-Perception Profile, Self-Administered 7-Day Physical Activity Recall (PAR), and Leisure Time Exercise Questionnaire (LTEQ). Both physical activity measures were significantly related to the SPAS and all physical self-perceptions. Multiple regressions showed that only self-perceptions of conditioning significantly predicted PAR (R2 = .24) and LTEQ (R2 = .30). SPA did not add any unique variance in predicting activity, and no moderator effects were found for either PAR or LTEQ. Findings suggest that perception of physical conditioning is the dominant predictor of physical activity levels in young women, and social physique anxiety does not moderate this relationship.
Dissecting Neural Circuits for Vision in Nonhuman Primates using fMRI-Guided Electrophysiology and Optogenetics

The visual system is a remarkable platform that evolved to solve difficult computational problems such as detection, recognition, and classification of objects. Of great interest is the face-processing network, a sub-system buried deep in the temporal lobe, dedicated for analyzing specific type of objects (faces). In this thesis, I focus on the problem of face detection by the face-processing network. Insights obtained from years of developing computer-vision algorithms to solve this task have suggested that it may be efficiently and effectively solved by detection and integration of local contrast features. Does the brain use a similar strategy? To answer this question, I embark on a journey that takes me through the development and optimization of dedicated tools for targeting and perturbing deep brain structures. Data collected using MR-guided electrophysiology in early face-processing regions was found to have strong selectivity for contrast features, similar to ones used by artificial systems. While individual cells were tuned for only a small subset of features, the population as a whole encoded the full spectrum of features that are predictive to the presence of a face in an image. Together with additional evidence, my results suggest a possible computational mechanism for face detection in early face processing regions. To move from correlation to causation, I focus on adopting an emergent technology for perturbing brain activity using light: optogenetics. While this technique has the potential to overcome problems associated with the de-facto way of brain stimulation (electrical microstimulation), many open questions remain about its applicability and effectiveness for perturbing the non-human primate (NHP) brain. In a set of experiments, I use viral vectors to deliver genetically encoded optogenetic constructs to the frontal eye field and faceselective regions in NHP and examine their effects side-by-side with electrical microstimulation to assess their effectiveness in perturbing neural activity as well as behavior. Results suggest that cells are robustly and strongly modulated upon light delivery and that such perturbation can modulate and even initiate motor behavior, thus, paving the way for future explorations that may apply these tools to study connectivity and information flow in the face processing network.
Clinical Experience With the Dynesys Semirigid Fixation System for the Lumbar Spine: Surgical and Patient-Oriented Outcome in 50 Cases After an Average of 2 Years

Study Design. Retrospective study on a consecutive series of patients. Objectives. To examine patient-oriented outcome after Dynesys implantation. Summary of Background Data. The dynamic neutralization system for the spine, Dynesys, is a nonfusion pedicle screw stabilization system, which was developed in an attempt to overcome the inherent disadvantages of rigid instrumentation and fusion. Although the system has been in clinical use for more than 5 years, no studies from disinterested research groups have reported on patient-oriented outcome after surgery with Dynesys. Methods. A total of 50 consecutive patients instrumented with Dynesys over the preceding 40 months were invited to complete a postal, patient-oriented follow-up questionnaire. The data from 31 of 31 of these, with at least 2 years’ follow-up, were analyzed (mean age, 50 years; SD, 13 years; 20 women, 11 men). The primary indication for surgery was degenerative disease (disc/stenosis) with associated “instability”; 11 of 31 (35%) patients had had prior spinal surgery. In 32% cases, 1 level was instrumented, in 52% 2 levels, 13% 3 levels, and 3% 4 levels. Thirteen of 31 (42%) patients underwent additional decompression. Results. Within the 2-year follow-up period, 6 of 31 (19%) patients had required or were scheduled for a further surgical intervention. At follow-up, mean (SD) back and leg pain (0–10 VAS) were 4.7 (3.2) and 3.8 (3.6), respectively. The following global outcomes were reported: back symptoms, 67% improved, 30% same, 3% worse; leg symptoms, 64% improved, 21% same, 14% worse; ability to do physical activities/sports, 40% improved, 33% same, 27% worse; quality of life, 50% improved, 37% same, 13% worse; how much the operation helped, 29% helped a lot, 23% helped, 10% only helped a little, 35% didn’t help, 3% made things worse. Conclusion. The results of the present study indicate that both back and leg pain are, on average, still moderately high 2 years after instrumentation with the Dynesys system. Only half of the patients declared that the operation had helped and had improved their overall quality of life; less than half reported improvements in functional capacity. The reoperation rate after Dynesys was relatively high. The results provide no support for the notion that semirigid fixation of the lumbar spine results in better patient-oriented outcomes than those typical of fusion.
Manipulation Manifolds : Explorations into Uncovering Manifolds in Sensory-motor Spaces

This paper presents results from the application of dimensionality reduction algorithms to sensory-data time-series that were recorded from Robonaut – NASA’s humanoid robot – while it was being teleoperated through four tool manipulation tasks. The algorithms tested were Principal Component Analysis, Multidimensional Scaling, and Spatio-Temporal Isomap. Structures were shown to exist in some cases, but their detection required careful analysis and a correct choice of parameters.
Is Assembly of the SNARE Complex Enough to Fuel Membrane Fusion?

The three key players in the exocytotic release of neurotransmitters from synaptic vesicles are the SNARE (soluble N-ethylmaleimide-sensitive factor attachment protein receptor) proteins synaptobrevin 2, syntaxin 1a, and SNAP-25. Their assembly into a tight four-helix bundle complex is thought to pull the two membranes into close proximity. It is debated, however, whether the energy generated suffices for membrane fusion. Here, we have determined the thermodynamic properties of the individual SNARE assembly steps by isothermal titration calorimetry. We found extremely large favorable enthalpy changes counterbalanced by positive entropy changes, reflecting the major conformational changes upon assembly. To circumvent the fact that ternary complex formation is essentially irreversible, we used a stabilized syntaxin-SNAP-25 heterodimer to study synaptobrevin binding. This strategy revealed that the N-terminal synaptobrevin coil binds reversibly with nanomolar affinity. This suggests that individual, membrane-bridging SNARE complexes can provide much less pulling force than previously claimed.
Pengaruh Intelectual Capital terhadap Kinerja Keuangan dan Nilai Perusahaan

Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengetahui secara empiris pengaruh Intellectual Capital terhadap kinerja keuangan dan nilai perusahaan. penelitian ini menggunakan model Pulic dan menggunakan sampel sebanyak 38 perusahaan publik Manufaktur yang listing di Bursa Efek Indonesia selama tiga tahun yaitu 2007 sampai 2009. Penelitian ini menggunakan model regresi untuk mengetahui pengaruh Intellectual Capital terhadap kinerja keuangan, serta pengaruh Intellectual Capital terhadap nilai perusahaan. Hasil penelitian ini mendukung hipotesis bahwa Intellectual Capital perusahaan memiliki dampak positif terhadap kinerja keuangan dan nilai perusahaan. namun, secara parsial hasil yang ditujukkan menemukan bahwa tidak semua komponen pembentuk Intellectual Capital mempengaruhi kinerja keuangan dan nilai perusahaan. Kesimpulannya, pemahaman tentang Intellectual Capital lebih lanjut dapat menguntungkan perusahaan dalam meningkatkan kinerja keuangan dan nilai perusahaan.
Environmental Sources of Prion Transmission in Mule Deer

Whether transmission of the chronic wasting disease (CWD) prion among cervids requires direct interaction with infected animals has been unclear. We report that CWD can be transmitted to susceptible animals indirectly, from environments contaminated by excreta or decomposed carcasses. Under experimental conditions, mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus) became infected in two of three paddocks containing naturally infected deer, in two of three paddocks where infected deer carcasses had decomposed in situ ≈1.8 years earlier, and in one of three paddocks where infected deer had last resided 2.2 years earlier. Indirect transmission and environmental persistence of infectious prions will complicate efforts to control CWD and perhaps other animal prion diseases.
Methods and Rationale for Derivation of a Reference Dose for Methylmercury by the U.S. EPA

In 2001, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency derived a reference dose (RfD) for methylmercury, which is a daily intake that is likely to be without appreciable risk of deleterious effects during a lifetime. This derivation used a series of benchmark dose (BMD) analyses provided by a National Research Council (NRC) panel convened to assess the health effects of methylmercury. Analyses were performed for a number of endpoints from three large longitudinal cohort studies of the neuropsychological consequences of in utero exposure to methylmercury: the Faroe Islands, Seychelles Islands, and New Zealand studies. Adverse effects were identified in the Faroe Islands and New Zealand studies, but not in the Seychelles Islands. The NRC also performed an integrative analysis of all three studies. The EPA applied a total uncertainty factor (UF) of 10 for intrahuman toxicokinetic and toxicodynamic variability and uncertainty. Dose conversion from cord blood mercury concentrations to maternal methylmercury intake was performed using a one‐compartment model. Derivation of potential RfDs from a number of endpoints from the Faroe Islands study converged on 0.1 μg/kg/day, as did the integrative analysis of all three studies. EPA identified several areas for which further information or analyses is needed. Perhaps the most immediately relevant is the ratio of cord:maternal blood mercury concentration, as well as the variability around this ratio. EPA assumed in its dose conversion that the ratio was 1.0; however, available data suggest it is perhaps 1.5–2.0. Verification of a deviation from unity presumably would be translated directly into comparable reduction in the RfD. Other areas that EPA identified as significant areas requiring further attention are cardiovascular consequences of methylmercury exposure and delayed neurotoxicity during aging as a result of previous developmental or adult exposure.
A High Performance BICMOS Current Sensing Circuit

We proposed a high performance BICMOS current sensing circuit for current-mode control boost dc-dc converter implemented in UMC 0.6mum BICMOS process. Simulation results show it offers significant performance improvement compared with existing circuits while comprising no op amplifier, thus fewer transistors are needed and lower power consumption is achieved
Weak relationship between risk assessment studies and recorded mortality in wind farms

Summary 1. Wind farms generate little or no pollution. However, one of their main adverse impacts is bird mortality through collisions with turbine rotors. 2. Environmental impact assessment (EIA) studies have been based on observations of birds before the construction of wind farms. We analysed data from 53 EIAs in relation to the actual recorded bird mortalities at 20 fully installed wind farms to determine whether this method is accurate in predicting the risk of new wind farm installations. 3. Bird data from EIAs were compared with bird collisions per turbine and year at functional postconstructed wind farms to identify any relationship between pre- and post-construction studies. 4. Significant differences in birds recorded flying among the 53 proposed wind farms were found by the EIAs. Similar results were obtained when only griffon vultures Gyps fulvus and other raptors were considered. There were significant differences in indexes, including the relative index of breeding birds close to proposed locations, among the 53 proposed wind farm sites. 5. The collision rate of birds with turbines was one of the highest ever recorded for raptors, and the griffon vulture was the most frequently killed species. Bird mortality varied among the 20 constructed wind farms. 6. No relationship between variables predicting risk from EIAs and actual recorded mortality was found. A weak relationship was found between griffon vulture and kestrel Falco sp. mortality and the numbers of these two species crossing the area. 7. Synthesis and applications. There was no clear relationship between predicted risk and the actual recorded bird mortality at wind farms. Risk assessment studies incorrectly assumed a linear relationship between frequency of observed birds and fatalities. Nevertheless, it is known that bird mortality in wind farms is related to physical characteristics around individual wind turbines. However, EIAs are usually conducted at the scale of the entire wind farm. The correlation between predicted mortality and actual mortality must be improved in future risk assessment studies by changing the scale of these studies to focus on the locations of proposed individual wind turbine sites and working on a species specific level.
Gene Expression Analysis of Toll-Like Receptor Pathways in Heterophils from Genetic Chicken Lines that Differ in Their Susceptibility to Salmonella enteritidis

Previously conducted studies using two chicken lines (A and B) show that line A birds have increased resistance to a number of bacterial and protozoan challenges and that heterophils isolated from line A birds are functionally more responsive. Furthermore, when stimulated with Toll-like receptor (TLR) agonists, heterophils from line A expressed a totally different cytokine and chemokine mRNA expression pattern than heterophils from line B. A large-scale gene expression profile using an Agilent 44K microarray on heterophils isolated from line A and line B also revealed significantly differential expression in many immune-related genes following Salmonella enteritidis (SE) stimulation, which included genes involved in the TLR pathway. Therefore, we hypothesize the differences between the lines result from distinctive TLR pathway signaling cascades that mediate heterophil function and, thus, innate immune responsiveness to SE. Using quantitative RT-PCR on mRNA from heterophils isolated from control and SE-stimulated heterophils of each line, we profiled the expression of all chicken homologous genes identified in a reference TLR pathway. Several differentially expressed genes found were involved in the TLR-induced My88-dependent pathway, showing higher gene expression in line A than line B heterophils following SE stimulation. These genes included the TLR genes TLR4, TLR15, TLR21, MD-2, the adaptor proteins Toll-interleukin 1 receptor domain-containing adaptor protein (TIRAP), Tumor necrosis factor-receptor associated factor 3 (TRAF3), the IκB kinases transforming growth factor-β-activating kinase 1 (TAK1), IKKε and IKKα, the transcription factors NFkB2 and interferon regulatory factor 7, phosphatidylinositol-3 kinase (PI-3K), and the mitogen-activated protein kinase p38. These results indicate that higher expression of TLR signaling activation of both MyD88-dependent and TRIF-dependent pathways are more beneficial to avian heterophil-mediated innate immunity and a complicated regulation of downstream adaptors is involved in stronger induction of a TLR-mediated innate response in the resistant line A. These findings identify new targets for genetic selection of chickens to increase resistance to bacterial infections.
Current insights regarding neurological and developmental abnormalities in children and young adults with complex congenital cardiac disease

Over a decade ago, I co-authored a review in Cardiology in the Young regarding neurological outcomes following surgery for congenital cardiac disease.1 In that review, I placed much emphasis on the conduct of cardiopulmonary bypass, and its role in neurodevelopmental disabilities. Much has been learned in the intervening years regarding the multifactorial causes of abnormal school-age development, in particular, the role of prenatal, perioperative, socioeconomic, and genetic influences. In this update, I will highlight some of the recent advances in our understanding of the protean causes of neurological, behavioral, and developmental abnormalities in children and young adults with complex forms of congenital cardiac disease. In addition, I will summarize the current data on patients at particular high-risk for adverse neurodevelopmental outcomes, specifically those with a functionally univentricular heart who have had staged reconstruction with ultimate conversion to the Fontan circulation.
Irritable Bowel Syndrome, Gut Microbiota and Probiotics

Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a complex disorder characterized by abdominal symptoms including chronic abdominal pain or discomfort and altered bowel habits. The etiology of IBS is multifactorial, as abnormal gut motility, visceral hypersensitivity, disturbed neural function of the brain-gut axis and an abnormal autonomic nervous system are all implicated in disease progression. Based on recent experimental and clinical studies, it has been suggested that additional etiological factors including low-grade inflammation, altered gut microbiota and alteration in the gut immune system play important roles in the pathogenesis of IBS. Therefore, therapeutic restoration of altered intestinal microbiota may be an ideal treatment for IBS. Probiotics are live organisms that are believed to cause no harm and result in health benefits for the host. Clinical efficacy of probiotics has been shown in the treatment or prevention of some gastrointestinal inflammation-associated disorders including traveler's diarrhea, antibiotics-associated diarrhea, pouchitis of the restorative ileal pouch and necrotizing enterocolitis. The molecular mechanisms, as cause of IBS pathogenesis, affected by altered gut microbiota and gut inflammation-immunity are reviewed. The effect of probiotics on the gut inflammation-immune systems and the results from clinical trials of probiotics for the treatment of IBS are also summarized.