Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
QUINE AND DAVIDSON ON DISTAL AND PROXIMAL STIMULI

This paper aims to undertake a brief recollection of a debate between Quine and Davidson on where the element providing the empirical content of observation sentences should be placed in the causal chain world- speaker. According to Quine, who holds what may be called "Proximal Conception," such an element might be placed on the sensory surface of the speaker, i.e. near to this element in that causal chain − proximal stimulus; Davidson, on the other hand, criticizes Proximal Conception arguing that it would lead, in the last instance, to skepticism and a relativization of truth; he suggests Quine abandon it and adopt Distal Conception, which he advocates, a position that holds this stimulus might be placed on the objects and events by themselves about which the sentences speak, i.e. in a position farther away from the speaker − distal stimulus. Despite Davidson's suggestion, Quine refuses till the end to officially adopt Distal Conception, although he makes some modifications in his Proximal Conception to avoid the criticism predicted by that author. From the analysis of the terms of this debate one may conclude that, considering Davidson's criticism, we must recognize that Proximal Conception, at least in its initial formulation, experiences considerable difficulties. Nevertheless, the suggestion made by Davidson to Quine should not be considered a satisfactory solution to the latter, given his own philosophical commitments.
The Role of the Lateral Intraparietal Area of the Monkey in the Generation of Saccades and Visuospatial Attention

Abstract: The brain cannot monitor or react towards the entire world at a given time. Instead, using the process of attention, it selects objects in the world for further analysis. Neuronal activity in the monkey intraparietal area has the properties appropriate for a neuronal substrate of attention: instead of all objects being represented in the parietal cortex, only salient objects are. Such objects can be salient because of their physical properties (recently flashed objects or moving objects) or because they can be made important to the animal by virtue of a task. Although lateral intraparietal area (LIP) neurons respond through the delay period of a memory‐guided saccade, they also respond in an enhanced manner to distractors flashed during the delay period of a memory‐guided saccade being generated to a position outside the receptive field. This activity parallels the monkey's psychophysical attentional process: attention is ordinarily pinned at the goal of a memory‐guided saccade, but it shifts briefly to the locus of a task‐irrelevant distractor flashed briefly during the delay period and then returns to the goal. Although neurons in LIP have been implicated as being directly involved in the generation of saccadic eye movements, their activity does not predict where, when, or if a saccade will occur. The ensemble of activity in LIP, however, does accurately describe the locus of attention.
Thromboelastogram as a Tool to Predict Hypercoagulability in Children With Cystic Fibrosis

Increased thrombophilic tendency in patients with cystic fibrosis (CF) has recently been reported. The determinants of thrombosis in children with CF remain largely unknown. Our aim in this study was to evaluate the thromboelastography (TEG) profile of children with CF through ROTEM (whole blood rotation thromboelastometry). Nineteen patients with CF and 20 controls were included in the study. Whole blood count, prothrombin time, activated prothrombin time, fibrinogen, d-dimer levels, and ROTEM assays (INTEM, EXTEM) were performed. Clotting time, clot formation time (CFT), and maximum clot firmness (MCF) were determined by INTEM and EXTEM analysis. In INTEM assay, MCF (P = .001) value was significantly increased and CFT (P = .031) value was decreased in patients with CF compared with those of the control group. In the EXTEM assay, there was a similar significant increase in MCF (P = .023) value in patients with CF compared with that of the control group. There was a significant positive correlation between fibrinogen levels and MCF in EXTEM (r = .72) and INTEM (r = .76) assays, whereas there was a negative correlation with CFT in EXTEM (r = −.61) and INTEM (r = −.67). The results of our study indicated that TEG profiles in patients with CF were more hypercoagulable compared with those of the control group.
Alignment of US and EU health cooperation vis-à-vis the developing world

Aid effectiveness has become an important concern among some of the major donors in relation to the progress being made on the prominent world initiative on international cooperation, namely the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). The evidence has shown that although some progress has been made, without faster action it will not be possible to meet the MDGs targets by 2015. The purpose of this study is to analyze whether the reorientation of the major donor health policies are adjusted to the MDGs and partner countries ownership. This essay deals with the alignment of international cooperation of some of most important donors – the United States and the European Union. It shows that the new models of cooperation are adjusted to the MDGs, prioritize the strengthening of comprehensive health systems and are centered on partner country ownership. The U.S. and EU initiatives clearly offer an opportunity to improve global health. Palavras-chave: international cooperation in health; MDGs; global health; North-South cooperation; alignment
Retarded growth rate caused by glucocorticoid treatment or dietary restriction: associated changes duodenal, jejunal, and ileal calcium absorption in the chick.

Calcium (Ca) absorption is reportedly stimulated in the ileum of glucocorticoid-treated rats. Our study was designed to investigate this phenomenon in the chick; to determine to what extent any stimulation might compensate for inhibition of Ca absorption in the duodenum; and to compare any changes seen with those caused by growth retardation induced by dietary restriction alone. We assessed CA absorption from different sites in the intestine of chicks treated with betamethasone (BM; 25 micrograms/kg . day for 14 days), or diet-restricted to permit growth at the same rate as those treated with BM, using the ligated loop technique in vivo. There was a similar significant inhibition of Ca absorption in both BM-treated and diet-restricted chicks in both duodenum (to 73% and 67% of the control level, respectively) and jejunum (to 74% and 77% of the control level, respectively). Absorption of Ca from the ileum of BM-treated birds equaled that in controls, but diet-restricted chicks unexpectedly showed a 100% stimulation. We conclude that in the chick, BM treatment does not stimulate ileal calcium absorption, but diet-restriction does. The lack of effect of bM in the ileum may reduce the magnitude of the decrease in Ca absorption from the entire small intestine when compared to the duodenum and jejunum alone, but the stimulated absorption seen in the ileum of diet-restricted birds is almost sufficient to restore Ca absorption from the entire small intestine to the control level.
Differential involvement of the prelimbic cortex and striatum in conditioned heroin and sucrose seeking following long‐term extinction

Relapse to drug taking is triggered by stimuli previously associated with consumption of drugs of misuse (cues) and involves brain systems controlling motivated behaviour towards natural reinforcers. In this study, we aimed to identify and compare neuronal pathways in corticostriatal systems that control conditioned heroin or natural reward (sucrose) seeking. To that end, rats were trained to self‐administer heroin or sucrose in association with an identical compound cue. After more than 3 weeks of abstinence during extinction training, cue exposure robustly reinstated heroin and sucrose seeking, but induced distinct and even opposing changes in the expression of the neuronal activation marker zif268 in the prelimbic cortex and striatal complex, respectively. Because in the prelimbic area zif268 expression was enhanced during cue‐induced heroin seeking but unaffected during sucrose seeking, a pharmacological intervention was aimed at this prefrontal region. Injection of a GABA agonist mixture within the prelimbic area enhanced conditioned heroin seeking, but had no effect on conditioned sucrose seeking. Our findings suggest a differential role of the prelimbic area and the striatum in the persistence of heroin vs. sucrose seeking following long‐term extinction.
Intrathoracic Pressure Regulation Improves 24-Hour Survival in a Porcine Model of Hypovolemic Shock

BACKGROUND:The intrathoracic pressure regulator (ITPR) plus positive pressure ventilation (PPV) has been shown to improve coronary and cerebral perfusion pressures during hypovolemia by improving mean arterial blood pressure and by decreasing right atrial and intracranial pressures. We hypothesized that application of intermittent negative intrathoracic pressure in a pig model of severe hypovolemic hypotension would increase 24-h neurological intact survival rates. METHODS:Eighteen isoflurane-anesthetized pigs were bled 55% of their estimated blood volume and were then prospectively randomized to either ITPR treatment with −8 mm Hg endotracheal pressure plus PPV or only PPV alone for 90 min. All survivors were reinfused with their own blood. Arterial blood gases, end-tidal CO2, and aortic pressures were monitored for the 90 min and neurological evaluation was performed at 12 and 24 h after reinfusion. RESULTS:ITPR plus PPV treatment for 90 min prevented the progression of metabolic acidosis and significantly improved mean arterial blood pressure (mean over 90 min, 55 ± 3 vs 35 ± 2.4 mm Hg, P < 0.001) when compared with controls. Twenty-four hour survival significantly improved with use of the ITPR when compared with untreated controls: 9/9 (100%) vs 1/9 (11%), P < 0.01. CONCLUSIONS:Use of the ITPR plus PPV for 90 min significantly increased arterial blood pressure and 24 h neurologically intact survival rates compared with controls treated with PPV alone.
Theoretical analysis of XtreMOS™ power transistors

This work provides a new theoretical approach addressed to the XtreMOSTM and equivalent structures. An analytical sRonxBVdss model is provided to demonstrate the superior electrical performance of XtreMOSTM structure in the domain of the high power MOSFETs at medium voltage capability (50-200 V). Moreover, geometrical and technological parameters can be easily optimized by means of simple expressions. In order to support and validate the theoretical approach, numerical simulation and experimental data are included.
Dual Phosphorylation of Suppressor of Fused (Sufu) by PKA and GSK3β Regulates Its Stability and Localization in the Primary Cilium*

Suppressor of fused (Sufu) is an essential negative regulator of the sonic hedgehog (Shh) pathway, but little is known about how Sufu itself is normally regulated. Here, we report that Sufu is phosphorylated at Ser-342 and Ser-346 by GSK3β and cAMP-dependent protein kinase A (PKA), respectively, and phosphorylation at this dual site stabilizes Sufu against Shh signaling-induced degradation. We further show that localization of Sufu in the primary cilium is induced by Shh signaling and is required for the turnover of both phosphorylated and total Sufu. Perturbing Sufu phosphorylation with PKA inhibitors or replacing Ser-346 with alanine reduced the stay and replacing Ser-342 and Ser-346 with aspartic acid prolonged the stay of Sufu in the cilia. Finally, ciliary localization of Gli2/3 also required Smo and was similarly influenced by perturbations of PKA activity or mutations at the dual Sufu phosphorylation site. Thus, Shh likely induced trafficking of phospho-Sufu into the primary cilium in a complex with Gli2/3, and dephosphorylation triggered a retrograde export, allowing Sufu to be degraded by the ubiquitin-proteasome system.
Global Transcriptional Analysis of Olfactory Genes in the Head of Pine Shoot Beetle, Tomicus yunnanensis

The most important proteins involved in olfaction include odorant binding protein (OBP), chemosensory protein (CSP), olfactory receptor (OR), and gustatory receptor (GR). Despite that the exhaustive genomic analysis has revealed a large number of olfactory genes in a number of model insects, it is still poorly understood for most nonmodel species. This is mostly due to the reason that the small antenna is challenging for collection. We can generally isolate one or few genes at a time by means of the traditional method. Here, we present the large-scale identifying members of the main olfactory genes from the head of Tomicus yunnanensis using Illumina sequencing. In a single run, we obtained over 51.8 million raw reads. These reads were assembled into 57,142 unigenes. Nearly 29,384 of them were functionally annotated in the NCBI nonredundant database. By depth analysis of the data, 11 OBPs, 8 CSPs, 18 ORs, and 8 GRs were retrieved. Sequences encoding full length proteins were further characterised for one OBP and two CSPs. The obtained olfactory genes provide a major resource in further unraveling the molecular mechanisms of T. yunnanensis chemoperception. This study indicates that the next generation sequencing is an attractive approach for efficient identification of olfactory genes from insects, for which the genome sequence is unavailable.
Ultrafast Energy Transfer in LHC-II Revealed by Three-Pulse Photon Echo Peak Shift Measurements

We report the results of three-pulse photon echo peak shift (3PEPS) measurements on the light-harvesting complex II (LHC-II) of the green algae Chlamydomonas reinhardtii. Experiments were performed at two different excitation wavelengths, 670 and 650 nm, corresponding to Chl-a and Chl-b excitation, respectively. The 3PEPS data are analyzed using a new theory that incorporates the effect of energy transfer on third-order response functions. Our theoretical model separates energy transfer dynamics from the solvation dynamics arising from coupling of the electronic transitions to the protein environment. We suggest that the protein fluctuations can be described by an ultrafast solvation on a sub-100 fs time scale and a long time correlation (static disorder). Decay of the 670 nm peak shift reveals spectral equilibration time scales for Chl-a molecules that range from 300 fs to 6 ps and agree well with other experiments. 3PEPS data at 650 nm (Chl-b excitation) reveal rapid Chl-b to Chl-b energy transfer (<1 p.
Ontology Visualization for Domain Experts: A New Solution

In the last few years ontologies have emerged in many fields as efficient knowledge representation. Some of the visualization tools that should ease ontology understanding and exploration, are sometimes too complex to be used by domain experts, or are too simple and do not support all necessary user tasks. We present a multiple view visualization tool, which enables users a good hierarchical and relations overview as well as observation from different viewpoints. The tool embeds hierarchical connected circle, indented tree and node-link diagram. Basic and advanced functionalities allow searching, location of interest, exploration and understanding, while well thought design enables intuitive usage.
Emotion detection via discriminative kernel method

Human emotion detection is of substantial importance in diverse pervasive applications in assistive environments. Because facial expressions provide a key mechanism for understanding and conveying emotion, automatic emotion detection through facial expression recognition has attracted increased attention in both scientific research and practical applications in recent years. Traditional facial expression recognition methods normally use only one type of facial expression data, either static data extracted from one single face image or motion dependent data obtained from dynamic face image sequences, but seldom employ both. In this work, we propose a novel Discriminative Kernel Facial Emotion Recognition (DKFER) method to integrate these two types of facial expression data using a hybrid kernel, such that the advantages of both of them are exploited. In addition, by using Linear Discriminant Analysis (LDA) to transform the two types of original facial expression data into two more discriminative lower-dimensional subspaces, the succeeding classification for emotion detection can be carried out in a more efficient and effective way. Encouraging experimental results in empirical studies demonstrate the practical usage of the proposed DKFER method for emotion detection.
Induction of apoptosis and caspase activation in cells obtained from familial haemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis patients

Familial haemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (FHL) is a rare and uniformly fatal disorder of early childhood characterized by fever, hepatosplenomegaly, cytopenia and widespread infiltration of vital organs by activated lymphocytes and macrophages. In order to test whether the massive accumulation of immune cells in these patients is associated with a perturbation of apoptosis, lymphocytes were isolated from eight patients and subjected to the chemotherapeutic agent etoposide or agonistic anti‐Fas monoclonal antibodies in vitro. These stimuli elicited a normal apoptotic response in FHL patient cells when compared to healthy controls, as determined by phosphatidylserine exposure, DNA fragmentation, in vitro cleavage of the caspase‐3‐like substrate aspartate‐glutamate‐valine‐aspartate‐7‐amino‐4‐methyl‐coumarin (DEVD‐AMC) and proteolysis of the anti‐apoptotic protein Bcl‐2. In addition, the degree of constitutive and Fas‐triggered apoptosis in freshly isolated neutrophils was monitored in three children, with similar results. These studies indicate that immune cells derived from FHL patients are not inherently resistant to apoptosis induction. Specifically, etoposide‐induced and Fas‐triggered activation of intracellular caspases appears to remain intact in these individuals. However, the degree of spontaneous activation of caspase‐3‐like enzymes in activated lymphocytes was attenuated in three of the four patients tested prior to initiation of therapy, suggesting a possible biological deficiency in these individuals.
Patterns of anti-tuberculosis drug resistance among HIV-infected patients in Maputo, Mozambique, 2002-2003.

SETTING Two tuberculosis (TB) reference hospitals in Maputo, Mozambique. OBJECTIVES To assess the pattern of TB drug resistance and its risk factors in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) patients. DESIGN Adult HIV-positive patients with TB diagnosed by culture of sputum or bronchial washing were enrolled during 2002-2003. Cultures of 111 patients were tested for rifampicin, isoniazid, streptomycin and ethambutol sensitivity. Chest X-ray, haemoglobin (Hb), total lymphocyte and CD4 counts were also performed. RESULTS Overall resistance to any drugs was found in 18% and multidrug-resistant TB (MDR-TB) in 9%. New cases of TB accounted for 62% of the studied group. Drug resistance in this subgroup was 13% compared with 26.3% in the previously treated subgroup, and MDR-TB was 5.8% vs. 15.8%. All patients presented Hb levels < 9 g/dl and total lymphocyte counts < 1200/microl. CD4 counts were significantly low in the drug resistance subgroup, with levels mostly < 100/microl. Cavities on X-ray were seen only in drug-sensitive patients. No risk factors for drug resistance were detected. CONCLUSIONS Overall observed drug resistance was 18%, and MDR-TB 9%. Previously treated patients had high drug resistance (26.3%) and MDR-TB (15.8%).
Journal of Graph Algorithms and Applications a Framework for the Static and Interactive Visualization of Statecharts

We present a framework for the automatic generation of layouts of stat-echart diagrams. Statecharts [16] are widely used for the requirements specification of reactive systems. Our framework is based on several techniques that include hierarchical drawing, labeling, and floorplanning, designed to work in a cooperative environment. Therefore, the resulting drawings enjoy several important properties: they emphasize the natural hierarchical decomposition of states into substates; they have a low number of edge crossings; they have good aspect ratio; and require a small area. We also present techniques for interactive operations. We have implemented our framework and obtained drawings for several statechart examples.
Neuraminidase Receptor Binding Variants of Human Influenza A(H3N2) Viruses Resulting from Substitution of Aspartic Acid 151 in the Catalytic Site: a Role in Virus Attachment?

ABSTRACT Changes in the receptor binding characteristics of human H3N2 viruses have been evident from changes in the agglutination of different red blood cells (RBCs) and the reduced growth capacity of recently isolated viruses, particularly in embryonated eggs. An additional peculiarity of viruses circulating in 2005 to 2009 has been the poor inhibition of hemagglutination by postinfection ferret antisera for many viruses isolated in MDCK cells, including homologous reference viruses. This was shown not to be due to an antigenic change in hemagglutinin (HA) but was shown to be the result of a mutation in aspartic acid 151 of neuraminidase (NA) to glycine, asparagine, or alanine, which caused an oseltamivir-sensitive agglutination of RBCs. The D151G substitution was shown to cause a change in the specificity of NA such that it acquired the capacity to bind receptors, which were refractory to enzymatic cleavage, without altering its ability to remove receptors for HA. Thus, the inhibition of NA-dependent agglutination by the inclusion of oseltamivir carboxylate in the assay was effective in restoring the anti-HA specificity of the hemagglutination inhibition (HI) assay for monitoring antigenic changes in HA. Since the NA-dependent binding activity did not affect virus neutralization, and virus populations in clinical specimens possessed, at most, low levels of the “151 mutant,” the biological significance of this feature of NA in, for example, immune evasion is unclear. It is apparent, however, that an important role of aspartic acid 151 in the activity of NA may be to restrict the specificity of the NA interaction and its receptor-destroying activity to complement that of HA receptor binding.
Explorer Reconciling Compressive Sampling Systems for Spectrally Sparse Continuous-Time Signals

The Random Demodulator (RD) and the Modulated Wideband Conv erter (MWC) are two recently proposed compressed sensing (CS) techniques for the acquis ition of continuous-time spectrally-sparse signals. They extend the standard CS paradigm from sampling discrete, finite dimensional signals to sampling continuous and possibly infinite dimensional ones , and thus establish the ability to capture these signals at sub-Nyquist sampling rates. The RD and the M WC have remarkably similar structures (similar block diagrams), but their reconstruction algori thms and signal models strongly differ. To date, few results exist that compare these systems, and owin g to the potential impacts they could have on spectral estimation in applications like electroma gnetic scanning and cognitive radio, we more fully investigate their relationship in this paper. Sp ecifically, we show that the RD and the MWC are both based on the general concept of random filtering, but that the sampling functions characterising the systems differ significantly. We next de monstrate a previously unreported model sensitivity the MWC has to short duration signals that resem bl s the known sensitivity the RD has to nonharmonic tones. We also show that block convolution is a fundamental aspect of the MWC, allowing it to successfully sample and reconstruct block-s par e (multiband) signals. This aspect is lacking in the RD, but we use it to propose a new CS based acquis ition ystem for continuous-time signals whose amplitudes are block sparse. The paper includ es detailed time and frequency domain analyses of the RD and the MWC that differ, sometimes substan tially, from published results.