Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Variability of Transition Rate and Gender Parity in Rural Primary School Level in Gopiballavpur Circle (West), Paschim Medinipur, West Bengal: A Case Specific Study

This paper assesses variability of transition rate and gender parity in rural primary school level in Gopiballavpur Circle (West), Paschim Medinipur, West Bengal. With respect to 2003-2012 (ten academic sessions) registered enrolment record in two primary schools, the variability of transition rates was calculated for each school using actual values of measurable parameters relating to study. Thus, a transition rates was assigned to each of the schools according to the degree of transition rates. Similarly, gender parity for each school was derived from male and female registered pupils. The ratio of female and male was used to calculate the gender parity for the schools, which was then multiplied by the percent of value occurrences to obtain the gender parity index (GPI). This analysis was used to divide the transition rate into four assigned threshold including on the basis of positive and negative numeric a) very low transition rate (0% - 25%); b) medium transition rate (26% - 50%); c) high transition rate (51% - 75%); and d) very high transition rate (76% - 100%). Whereas, gender parity divided into three assigned attributes (a) gender parity index (=1) for parity between females and males pupils; (b) gender parity index (1) disparity in favour of female pupils. However, the interpretation should be the other way rounded for indicators that should ideally approach tends to be 0% (e.g. repetition, dropout, illiteracy rates, etc.). Overall, this type of transition rates and gender parity assessment may prove useful for future school planning and management programs in rural primary school.
Segment-based approach to the recognition of emotions in speech

A new framework for the context and speaker independent recognition of emotions from voice, based on a richer and more natural representation of the speech signal, is proposed. The utterance is viewed as consisting of a series of voiced segments and not as a single object. The voiced segments are first identified and then described using statistical measures of spectral shape, intensity, and pitch contours, calculated at both the segment and the utterance level. Utterance classification is performed by combining the segment classification decisions using a fixed combination scheme. The performance of two learning algorithms, support vector machines and K nearest neighbors, is compared. The proposed approach yields an overall classification accuracy of 87% for 5 emotions, outperforming previous results on a similar database.
Rapid induction and reversal of a bacteriostatic condition by controlled expression of toxins and antitoxins

RelE and ChpAK (MazF) toxins of Escherichia coli have previously been described as proteins that mediate efficient cell killing. We show here that induction of relE or chpAK transcription does not confer cell killing but, instead, induces a static condition in which the cells are still viable but unable to proliferate. Later induction of transcription of the antitoxin genes relB or chpAI fully reversed the static condition induced by RelE and ChpAK respectively. We also provide a mechanistic explanation for these findings. Thus, induction of relE transcription severely inhibited translation, whereas induction of chpAK transcription inhibited both translation and replication. Hence, most likely, lack of colony formation is due to inhibition of translation in the case of relE and inhibition of translation and/or replication in the case of chpAK. Consistent with this proposal, later induction of transcription of the cognate antitoxin genes simultaneously reversed cell stasis and the inhibitory effects of RelE and ChpAK on macromolecular syntheses. These results preclude that RelE and ChpAK mediate cell killing during the conditions used here. In vivo and in vitro analyses of a mutant RelE protein supported that inhibition of colony formation was due to inhibition of translation.
Wideband Excitations of Higher-Order Mode Substrate Integrated Waveguides and Their Applications to Antenna Array Design

The utilization of substrate integrated wave-guide (SIW) higher-order modes can significantly reduce the number of metal posts and thus simplify the component structure. In this paper, two wideband excitation structures for higher-order modes in SIWs are proposed and investigated to implement slot arrays. Two parallel coupling slots along the SIW are used to excite the TE<sub>40</sub> mode. The excitation structures exhibit broad bandwidth and good mode purity. Moreover, they can be extended to realize transitions exciting TE<sub>60</sub>, TE<sub>80</sub>, <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\ldots $ </tex-math></inline-formula>, TE<inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$_{m\mathrm {0}}[m = 6, 8,\ldots 2 \times (n + 3$ </tex-math></inline-formula>), n is a natural number] modes. As application examples, a <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$4 \times 4$ </tex-math></inline-formula>-element slot array is designed. Measured results demonstrate that the slot array inherits the merits of the excitation and shows a simple structure, broadside radiation, high aperture efficiency, and good radiation efficiency.
A Symmetric Band Lanczos Process Based on Coupled Recurrences and Some Applications

The symmetric band Lanczos process is an extension of the classical Lanczos algorithm for symmetric matrices and single starting vectors to multiple starting vectors. After $n$ iterations, the symmetric band Lanczos process has generated an $n\times n$ projection, ${\mathbf{T}}_n^{\rm s}$, of the given symmetric matrix onto the $n$-dimensional subspace spanned by the first $n$ Lanczos vectors. This subspace is closely related to the $n$th block-Krylov subspace induced by the given symmetric matrix and the given block of multiple starting vectors. The standard algorithm produces the entries of ${\mathbf{T}}_n^{\rm s}$ directly. In this paper, we propose a variant of the symmetric band Lanczos process that employs coupled recurrences to generate the factors of an LDL$^{\mathrm{T}}$ factorization of a closely related $n\times n$ projection, rather than ${\mathbf{T}}_n^{\rm s}$. This is done in such a way that the factors of the LDL$^{\mathrm{T}}$ factorization inherit the ``fish-bone'' structure of ${\mathbf{T}}_n^{\rm s}$. Numerical examples from reduced-order modeling of large electronic circuits and algebraic eigenvalue problems demonstrate that the proposed variant of the band Lanczos process based on coupled recurrences is more robust and accurate than the standard algorithm.
Dissection of Hexosyl- and Sialyltransferase Domains in the Bifunctional Capsule Polymerases from Neisseria meningitidis W and Y Defines a New Sialyltransferase Family*

Background: Capsule polymerases of Neisseria meningitidis serogroups W and Y comprise hexosyl- and sialyltransferase activity. Results: Hexosyltransferase activity is encoded by the predicted N-terminal GT-B fold. Sialyltransferase activity requires 168 additional amino acids upstream of the predicted C-terminal GT-B fold. Conclusion: The sialyltransferase domains of NmW/Y define a new glycosyltransferase (CAZy) family. Significance: The new CAZy family comprises sequences from distantly related species. Crucial virulence determinants of disease causing Neisseria meningitidis species are their extracellular polysaccharide capsules. In the serogroups W and Y, these are heteropolymers of the repeating units (→6)-α-d-Gal-(1→4)-α-Neu5Ac-(2→)n in NmW and (→6)-α-d-Glc-(1→4)-α-Neu5Ac-(2→)n in NmY. The capsule polymerases, SiaDW and SiaDY, which synthesize these highly unusual polymers, are composed of two predicted GT-B fold domains separated by a large stretch of amino acids (aa 399–762). We recently showed that residues critical to the hexosyl- and sialyltransferase activity are found in the predicted N-terminal (aa 1–398) and C-terminal (aa 763–1037) GT-B fold domains, respectively. Here we use a mutational approach and synthetic fluorescent substrates to define the boundaries of the hexosyl- and sialyltransferase domains. Our results reveal that the active sialyltransferase domain extends well beyond the predicted C-terminal GT-B domain and defines a new glycosyltransferase family, GT97, in CAZy (Carbohydrate-Active enZYmes Database).
Airway and tissue mechanics in anesthetized paralyzed children

To estimate the mechanical properties of the airways and respiratory tissues, respiratory system impedance (Zrs) was measured with low‐frequency forced oscillations in 26 anesthetized, paralyzed children (aged 3 months–10 years) undergoing surgical correction of congenital heart diseases. Zrs was determined from the signals of tracheal flow and pressure between 0.4–12 Hz before surgery at zero mean transrespiratory pressure. The pulmonary (ZL) and chest wall (ZW) components of Zrs were also determined in 5 children by measuring esophageal pressure. A model containing frequency‐independent resistance (R) and inertance (I), and coefficients of tissue‐damping (G) and elastance (H), was fitted to the Zrs, ZL, and ZW spectra. The total respiratory parameters normalized to body weights were 82.2 ± 8.5 (SE) hPa · sec · l−1 · kg, 0.152 ± 0.05 hPa · sec2 · l−1 · kg, 293.8 ± 20.0 hPa · l−1 · kg, and 1,583 ± 65.5 hPa · l−1 · kg, for R, I, G, and H, respectively. The measurements of ZL and ZW revealed the dominance of the lungs in R (91 ± 4.3%) and I (109 ± 16%), and the major contribution of the lung parenchyma to G (61 ± 7.3%) and H (66 ± 7.4%) of the total respiratory system. It is concluded that anesthesia‐paralysis provides an ideal condition for the measurement of low‐frequency forced oscillatory impedance and its partitioning into airway and tissue components in mechanically ventilated children. The separation of pulmonary and chest wall mechanics demonstrates that airway properties can be estimated appropriately from Zrs data, while the chest wall may damp the changes in parenchymal properties. Pediatr Pulmonol. 2003; 35:169–176. ©2003 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Heart Rate Reduction After Heart Transplantation With Beta-Blocker Versus the Selective If Channel Antagonist Ivabradine

Background. Graft denervation in heart transplant recipients causes sinus tachycardia, occasionally requiring pharmacologic heart rate reduction. The If channel antagonist ivabradine has not been compared to beta-blocker after heart transplantation. Heart rate control, tolerability, short-term safety, and effects on exercise capacity were studied consecutively with an established heart rate–reducing drug (metoprolol succinate) compared to a novel agent (ivabradine) in heart transplant recipients. Methods. In 25 heart transplant recipients, heart rate, exercise capacity, and patient preference were assessed under no medication (baseline) and after consecutive 8-week treatment periods under metoprolol and ivabradine. Results. Drug discontinuation following side effects occurred in 5 patients (metoprolol: 4, ivabradine: 1); per-protocol analysis was performed on 20 patients completing both consecutive treatment periods. Mean heart rate was reduced from baseline (96.5±7.0 bpm) to 84.4±8.8 bpm on beta-blocker (P=0.0004 vs. baseline) and to 76.2±8.9 bpm with ivabradine (P=0.0001 vs. baseline and P=0.003 vs. beta-blocker). Exercise capacity by spiroergometry was not altered by either drug. Relevant pharmacokinetic interaction with immunosuppressants was not seen under ivabradine; safety laboratory values were unchanged. Mild adverse effects were noted in 45% of patients during beta-blocker and 20% during ivabradine treatment. Questionnaire analysis demonstrated patient preference for heart rate reduction with ivabradine. Conclusions. Heart rate reduction with ivabradine is effective and potentially better tolerated than beta-blocker therapy in heart transplant recipients. Although the prognostic role of heart rate after HTX is unknown, ivabradine may offer relevant symptomatic benefit, especially in cases of beta-blocker intolerance.
Osteonecrosis of the Jaw: More Heat Than Light

Osteonecrosis of the jaw has received a great deal of attention in the past few years. The earliest case reports claimed that the only time it ever occurred was as a complication of therapy with bisphosphonates and that both oral and intravenous bisphosphonates were implicated (1). These reports led to use of terms such as BRONJ (bisphosphonate-related osteonecrosis of the jaw). The speculation about pathogenic mechanisms, including any relationship with bisphosphonate therapy, has shifted in emphasis over time, starting with the notion that the mechanism might be a form of avascular necrosis of bone and more recently emphasizing the importance of
Long-term effects of chronic otitis media on binaural hearing in children.

OBJECTIVE To determine the long-term effect of otitis media with effusion (OME) on binaural hearing in children. DESIGN Longitudinal testing over a 4-year period following insertion of tympanic membrane grommets, employing clinical and normal control groups. SUBJECTS Twenty-two children with a history of OME were tested before insertion of grommets and at 3 months and 1 year after surgery; 14, 11, and 8 of the children were followed up for 2, 3, and 4 years after surgery, respectively. An age-matched control group of 40 children was tested. METHODS The masking-level difference (MLD) paradigm was used to measure the ability of the binaural auditory system to aid the detection of a pure-tone signal presented in a random masking noise. RESULTS Although the results indicated a significant improvement in the MLD with increasing time after middle ear surgery, the MLD remained significantly reduced even 2 years after hearing threshold correction. The MLDs of the OME group did not differ significantly from those of the control group when tested 3 years after middle ear surgery, even though a small proportion of subjects with a history of OME continued to have MLDs smaller than normal limits. CONCLUSIONS In general, the results suggest a slow recovery of binaural function in children with OME after restoration of normal hearing thresholds.
Structural Biology and Crystallization Communications Structures of the First Representatives of Pfam Family Pf06938 (duf1285) Reveal a New Fold with Repeated Structural Motifs and Possible Involvement in Signal Transduction

The crystal structures of SPO0140 and Sbal_2486 were determined using the semiautomated high-throughput pipeline of the Joint Center for Structural Genomics (JCSG) as part of the NIGMS Protein Structure Initiative (PSI). The structures revealed a conserved core with domain duplication and a superficial similarity of the C-terminal domain to pleckstrin homology-like folds. The conservation of the domain interface indicates a potential binding site that is likely to involve a nucleotide-based ligand, with genome-context and gene-fusion analyses additionally supporting a role for this family in signal transduction, possibly during oxidative stress.
The Negative Effects of Positive Reinforcement in Teaching Children with Developmental Delay

Interactive modeling is frequently used in teaching skills to children with developmental delay. This study compared the performance of 12 children (7 males, 5 females; 4–10 years of age) each trained in two tasks, one through interactive modeling (with or without verbal reinforcement) and the other through passive observation. Results showed that passive modeling produced better rated performance than interactive modeling and that verbal reinforcement was counterproductive. These findings suggest that current instructional strategies may need to be reconsidered for children with developmental delay.
Self-Monitoring of Attention versus Self-Monitoring of Performance: Effects on Attention and Academic Performance

This study compared the effects of two types of self-monitoring on attention and academic performance. Twenty-eight students with learning disabilities were taught a spelling study procedure (SSP), followed by instruction in self-monitoring of performance (SMP) and self-monitoring of attention (SMA). Results showed that on-task behavior was significantly higher in both SMA and SMP than in SSP. Number of correct practices was significantly higher in SMP than in SSP. Spelling achievement was significantly lower in SMA than in SSP, and spelling maintenance was significantly lower in SMA than in SSP and SMP. Student interviews indicated that SMA is experienced as intrusive. The type of self-monitoring used may have direct, significant effects on academic outcomes; there does not appear to be a “best” method of self-monitoring for all students on all tasks.
World Geographical Ontology Model

days have witnessed an explosive growth in generating data in geographic domain which leads to increasing the applications of geographical information system (GIS). Due to this increasing of GIS, GIS faced the problem of effective management of the spatial information from different resources and in different forms. So, Geographical ontologies have been introduced to the geographical domain not only as a concept model which can represent objects on semantic and knowledge level, but also to integrate geographical data from different sources and in different forms for reasoning and to facilitate knowledge sharing, in addition to assist in recognizing spatial terms. In this research, the World geographical ontology model has been developed to meet the needs of the recognition of the terminologies and the semantic relationships between geographical terms related to any location in the world. It will enable search engine to perform a spatially aware search. The design of World ontology model has been developed based on the analysis and finding relations between different parts of World locations to adopt ontology concepts. Logical formulation has been used to describe the ontology to be able to infer more intelligent relations. Then the model has been implemented using protege tool, a sample of related data has been collected and finally the system has been tested. Query answers integrate data from different sources. KeywordsGeo-Ontology, OWL, Semantic Web
Behavior of Salmonella heidelberg in fruit juices

The aim of the study is determination of the behavior of Salmonella heidelberg under acidic conditions and variable temperatures. The growth and survival of Salmonella heidelberg (10 isolates) in fresh fruit juices including; apple (pH, 3.2-1.4), orange (pH, 5.4 –1.5), mango (pH, 5.4-2.8), guava (pH, 5.7-2.4), pineapple (pH, 5.6-2.3), and cocktail (pH, 5.7-2.3) were determined after 0, 3, 6, 9, 12, 15, 18 and 21 days of storage at 10 oC, 0, 3, 6, 9, 12 and 15 days of storage at 25 oC, and 0, 3, 6 and 9 days of storage at 37 oC. Survival in fruit juices depended upon their pH, the type of strain, the type of juices and the incubation temperature. Salmonella heidelberg Survived for up to 18 d in mango, guava, pineapple and cocktail juices, orange juice for up to 15 d and apple juice for up to 12 d stored at 10 oC. At 20 oC, Salmonella heidelberg was survived for up to 12 d in guava, pineapple and cocktail juices, 9 d for mango juice, orange juice for up to 9 d and apple juice for up to 6 d. The shortest survival time was observed at 37 oC for 9 d in mango, guava, pineapple, cocktail juices, 6 d for orange as well as 3 d for apple juices respectively. These findings indicated that, as temperatures of acidify fresh fruit juices (apple, orange, mango, guava, pineapple and cocktail juices, respectively) increase as Salmonella heidelberg population decrease. The author reported that, Acid foods, especially if kept at refrigeration temperatures, support survival of Salmonella heidelberg and may cause Salmonella heidelberg food poisoning.
Evidence for TeV gamma ray emission from TeV J2032+4130 in Whipple archival data

A reanalysis of data taken on the Cygnus region in 1989-90 using the Whipple Observatory atmospheric Cherenkov imaging telescope confirms the existence of the TeV J2032+4130 source reported by the Crimean Astrophysical Observatory and published by the HEGRA Collaboration. The significance at the a priori HEGRA position is 3. 3σ. The peak signal was found at RA = 20h32m, Dec =+ 41 ◦ 33 � . T his is 0.6 ◦ north of Cygnus X-3 which was the original target of the observations. The flux level (12% of the level of the Crab Nebula) is intermediate between the two later observations and suggests that the TeV source is variable.
Membrane-Active Sequences within gp41 Membrane Proximal External Region (MPER) Modulate MPER-Containing Peptidyl Fusion Inhibitor Activity and the Biosynthesis of HIV-1 Structural Proteins

The membrane proximal external region (MPER) is a highly conserved membrane-active region located at the juxtamembrane positions within class I viral fusion glycoproteins and essential for membrane fusion events during viral entry. The MPER in the human immunodeficiency virus type I (HIV-1) envelope protein (Env) interacts with the lipid bilayers through a cluster of tryptophan (Trp) residues and a C-terminal cholesterol-interacting motif. The inclusion of the MPER N-terminal sequence contributes to the membrane reactivity and anti-viral efficacy of the first two anti-HIV peptidyl fusion inhibitors T20 and T1249. As a type I transmembrane protein, Env also interacts with the cellular membranes during its biosynthesis and trafficking. Here we investigated the roles of MPER membrane-active sequences during both viral entry and assembly, specifically, their roles in the design of peptidyl fusion inhibitors and the biosynthesis of viral structural proteins. We found that elimination of the membrane-active elements in MPER peptides, namely, penta Trp→alanine (Ala) substitutions and the disruption of the C-terminal cholesterol-interacting motif through deletion inhibited the anti-viral effect against the pseudotyped HIV-1. Furthermore, as compared to C-terminal dimerization, N-terminal dimerization of MPER peptides and N-terminal extension with five helix-forming residues enhanced their anti-viral efficacy substantially. The secondary structure study revealed that the penta-Trp→Ala substitutions also increased the helical content in the MPER sequence, which prompted us to study the biological relevance of such mutations in pre-fusion Env. We observed that Ala mutations of Trp664, Trp668 and Trp670 in MPER moderately lowered the intracellular and intraviral contents of Env while significantly elevating the content of another viral structural protein, p55/Gag and its derivative p24/capsid. The data suggest a role of the gp41 MPER in the membrane-reactive events during both viral entry and budding, and provide insights into the future development of anti-viral therapeutics.
Measuring General Computer Self-Efficacy: The Surprising Comparison of Three Instruments in Predicting Performance, Attitudes, and Usage

General computer self-efficacy is an individual’s perception of ability across multiple computer applications and is conceptually distinct from specific CSE, which targets a single activity. General CSE is currently measured using both general and global instruments, and in many studies, it has been a significant predictor of computing behaviors. But there have been weak or inconsistent results, which have confounded its value as a construct of interest. One reason for such results is a lack of research concerning instrument suitability; another is that current instruments do not adequately isolate the construct. This study introduces a new measure of general CSE, one calculated by summing application-specific CSEs (SGCSE). It then compares SGCSE with two current general measures, in predicting ability, attitudes, and usage. Results suggest that the choice of instrument significantly affects study results. SGCSE was best for performance predictions and the global measure was surprisingly robust.