Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Leading through change: A study of the role of central office leadership in the process of secondary change

The purpose of this study was to more fully understand the actions of district level leaders in a major change effort and their effects on the change process. Furthermore this study aimed to provide additional information about the factors that school district central office administrators confront when making the decision to add another high school and the actions taken by these administrators to lead the district through this process so that other school districts and leaders may learn from this. The methodology for this study was a qualitative case study approach in which central office leaders in a district that had recently gone through this process were interviewed using a semi-structured interview technique. Five research questions framed this study. 1. What were the antecedents and major factors used to determine the need for a second high school? 2. How did district leaders plan for change? 3. How did district leaders lead the community through change? 4. What impact has this process had on the district leaders? 5. What new challenges has this process brought about? The findings in this study showed that Jackson central office leaders demonstrated significant attention to leading through change. Key change leadership strategies were used effectively by the district level leaders in Jackson as they moved through the transition planning process to a two high school system. Effective communication created a link between the vision for the future of Jackson and the importance of the work. Stakeholders were involved in the planning process at every step. District leaders took responsibility for the plans and they took action. Through this they also remained flexible, adjusting the pace of the work as necessary. Ultimately, a process was put in motion to address change. The areas of relationships, communication, culture, and community involvement were key focus areas in the change process in the Jackson school district. These areas along with continued growth and equity will continue to be areas of concentration for the district leaders. Despite the fact that each of the participants has undergone professional changes, the district leaders demonstrated a remarkable overall positivity concerning the transition process. LEADING THROUGH CHANGE: A STUDY OF THE ROLE OF CENTRAL OFFICE LEADERSHIP IN THE PROCESS OF SECONDARY CHANGE A Dissertation Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Education
THE INFLUENCE OF THE COMPLEX BACTERIAL PREPARATION AZOGRAN ON SOME PHYSIOLOGICAL-BIOCHEMICAL PROPERTIES AND PRODUCTIVITY OF POTATO PLANTS INFECTED BY THE POTATO VIRUS X

study the eff ect of the complex bacterial preparation Azogran on the growth, some physiological and biochemical properties, and productivity of potato plants, uninfected and infected by the potato virus X. Methods . Microbiological (obtaining the bacterial preparation Azogran, used in granular form (0.25 g)), virological (isolation of potato virus X, inoculation of plants with potato virus X), serological (testing for the presence or absence of the virus), biochemical (determination of chlorophylls a, b and carotenoids), spectrophotometric
Common synaptic input to motor neurons and neural drive to targeted reinnervated muscles 4

Common synaptic input to motor neurons and neural drive to targeted reinnervated muscles D. Farina, Am. Castronovo, I. Vujaklija, A. Sturma, S. Salminger, C. Hofer and O. C. Aszmann Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College London, SW7 2AZ London, UK Christian Doppler Laboratory for Restoration of Extremity Function, Medical University of Vienna, 1090 Vienna, AUSTRIA Division of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Department of Surgery, Medical University of Vienna, 1090 Vienna, AUSTRIA Otto Bock Healthcare Products GmbH, 1110 Vienna, AUSTRIA
Title: Association between cannabis use and brain imaging phenotypes in UK Biobank: an observational and Mendelian randomization study

Cannabis use during adolescence and young adulthood has been associated with brain structure and functional connectivity, yet despite a rapid increase in cannabis use among older adults in the past decade, the impact on brain structure and function in this population remains understudied. We examined 3,641 lifetime cannabis users (mean age = 61.00 years, standard deviation (SD) = 7.07) and 12,255 controls (mean age = 64.49 years, SD = 7.51) from the UK Biobank. Insufficient data were available on cannabis use disorders in the UK Biobank to perform an analysis. Brain structure and functional connectivity were measured using multiple imaging-derived phenotypes. Associations with cannabis use were assessed using multiple linear regression while controlling for potential confounders. Additionally, we conducted a two-sample Mendelian randomization analysis to investigate the potential causal relationship. After correcting for false discovery rate for multiple testing, participants with lifetime cannabis use had significantly lower fractional anisotropy and higher mean diffusivity in the genu of the corpus callosum. A weaker resting-state functional connectivity was observed in brain regions underlying the default mode and central executive networks. Furthermore, bidirectional two-sample Mendelian randomization analyses found no support for a causal relationship between either cannabis use or cannabis dependence and brain structure or function. Our findings indicate that associations between lifetime cannabis use and later life brain structure and function are not likely causal in nature and may represent residual confounding
Auditory Machine Learning Training and Testing Pipeline: AMLTTP v3.0

The purpose of the Two! Ears Auditory Machine Learning Training and Testing Pipeline (AMLTTP) is to build and evaluate models for auditory sound object annotation and assigning attributes to them. The models are obtained by inductive learning from labeled training data. The framework is tightly coupled with the Two! Ears system. While the pipeline is designed with flexibility in mind and is extendable to new target attributes, data features, or model and training algorithms, it so far serves the specific purpose of training and evaluation of block-based auditory object-type, object-location, and number-of-sources classifiers using data from simulated auditory scenes generated within the same framework. We recommend always checking at Github whether there is a new version available.
ScholarWorks@UARK ScholarWorks@UARK

Rice is a crucial contributor to global food security and is an important staple for over half the world’s population. In Colombia, total rice consumption has grown by 25% in the last decade (2011-2021), reaching 1.9 MMT in 2021, yet in 2021 around 15.5 million Colombians were classified as food insecure. Colombia is the third largest rice producer in Latin America, producing 1.8 million metric tons (milled basis) in 2021. Increasing rice consumption coupled with high levels of food insecurity highlights the necessity that rice markets effectively price rice according to consumer preferences. Therefore, the goal of this study focuses on consumer preferences for rice with different broken percentages. Broken rice not only lowers the economic value of the rice crop but also can reduce the rice available for food consumption. A choice experiment and hedonic price model were implemented in Cali and Palmira, Colombia, in April of 2022 to analyze the revealed versus stated preferences for rice quality attributes. The findings of this study highlight potential inefficiencies between what consumers are willing to pay for regarding broken rice versus what is revealed in the market. It gives the rice industry important information about using broken rice for human or non-human consumption. The results also spark a discussion about the importance of knowing the food quality consumers prefer and the potential implications of those choices from an economic and food-security point of view.
Robust Bipedal Walking with Closed-Loop MPC: Adios Stabilizers

—We present a new walking control scheme based on the extended dynamics of the inverted pendulum. Our scheme includes re-planning of the steps locations and steps timings, feet force control, and a walking pattern generation that is closed-loop thanks to feedback in the state of the real humanoid robot pendulum (CoM position/speed and ZMP). No additional control policy is used to maintain static and dynamic balance of the humanoid. We experimented this framework on ﬁve different humanoid robots over multiple disturbances including sudden pushes during walking or in a static state and by achieving locomotion over uneven and compliant grounds.
dependent protein kinase-I1 after transient ischemia in gerbil

Transient cerebral ischemia induces, besides delayed neurodegeneration in selected brain structures, a number of early responses which may mediate ischemic injurylrepair processes. Here we report that 5 min exposure to cerebral ischemia in gerbils induces a rapid inhibition and subsequent translocation of ~a~~lc almodulin--dependent protein kinase I1 (CaMKII). These changes were partially reversible during a 24 h post-ischemic recovery. Concomitantly the total amount of the enzyme protein, as revealed by Western blotting (a-subunit specific), remained stable. This is consistent with our previous hypothesis, that the mechanism of ischemic CaMKII down-regulation involves a reversible posttranslational modification-(auto)phosphorylation, rather than the degradation of enzyme protein. The effectiveness of known modulators of postischemic outcome in counteracting CaMKII inhibition was tested. Three of these drugs, namely dizocilpine (MK-801), N-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester (L-NAME) and gingkolide (BN52021), all significantly attenuated the enzyme response to ischemia, whereas an obvious diversity in the time-course of their actions implicates different mechanisms involved.
Population genetics and habitat selection behaviour of Vancouver Island white-tailed ptarmigan

I examined the habitat selection behaviour arid compared regional variation in population performance of a threatened alpine grouse subspecies, the Vancouver Island white-tailed ptarmigan (Lagopus leucura saxatilis). I also examined the genetic population structure and levels of gene flow among 7 populations of white-tailed ptarmigan on Vancouver Island, British Columbia. Population performance was compared between 2 distinct mountain areas of Vancouver Island. The southern region was a more fragmented landscape with smaller isolated alpine patches compared to the more continuous central region of the island. The habitat selection modelling revealed that, unlike other white-tailed ptarmigan subspecies, Vancouver Island white-tailed ptarmigan use a generalist strategy for habitat selection. Individuals preferred areas with a combination of predator cover, food availability and high moisture. The analysis of population performance showed that populations in the central region of the island outperform southern populations. This difference could result from moisture levels which are lower in the southern portion of the island, but likely is not influenced by food abundance during the brood rearing period. I presented data on microsatellite primer optimization and described generalized heterozygote deficiencies and high levels of diversity in Vancouver Island populations. All 7 populations demonstrated high levels of diversity (mean H E = 0.78) combined with high Fis values (0.22) and significant heterozygote deficiencies. The apparent paradox of high diversity combined with high Fis and generalized heterozygote deficiencies are best explained by two scenarios. First, sampling may have captured a snapshot of a group of populations progressing towards severe isolation. This scenario suggests that significant geographic isolation between populations has existed long enough for the increase of inbreeding but not long enough for drift to result in strong population differentiation and a corresponding decrease in diversity. The second scenario evokes a pattern of infrequent dispersal between populations sufficient to maintain high levels of diversity, combined with low densities and" limited mate choice resulting in the relatively quick accumulation of homozygosity levels within populations. I addressed patterns of dispersal using genetic data and direct measures by following the inter-seasonal movements of radio-collared birds. The results showed low, but significant, genetic differentiation between most populations and direct and genetic estimates of dispersal suggested limited gene flow among populations. Analysis of molecular data also demonstrated a generally consistent pattern of isolation-by-distance. However, large areas of unsuitable low elevation habitat might act as barriers to gene flow. The levels of isolation and lack of gene flow imply serious conservation concern for the most southern population. ii T A B L E O F C O N T E N T S
Cities and the Environment (CATE) Cities and the

We examined the diet of a portion of Calgary’s urban coyotes to provide baseline data on feeding ecology, to determine spatial and seasonal effects on diet, and to assess whether anthropogenic food sources (primarily garbage) and domestic cats or dogs were part of coyote diet. Bi-weekly surveys of seven study sites were conducted between August 2006 and September 2007. We analyzed 484 coyote scats. The top five prey types consumed by the coyotes studied were small mammals (84.71%), herbaceous plants (44.63%), crabapples (33.88%), woody plants (16.94%) and anthropogenic food sources (14.05%). Domestic animals – cats (Felis catus) and dogs (Canis familiaris) – were found in 6 scats (1.24% of all scats sampled). Large parks had the greatest amount of scats containing native berries ( χ 26 =1700, p<0.001) while smaller parks had higher levels of crabapples ( χ 26 =3700, p<0.001) and anthropogenic content ( χ 26 =413.4, p<0.001) in scats. Scats containing domestic animals were relatively few, highly localized and occurred primarily in the Calgary neighbourhood with the most frequent reports of aggression/predation behaviour in coyotes. Herbaceous plants ( χ 2 2 =89.273, p<0.001), crabapples ( χ 22 =5023, p<0.001) small mammals ( χ 22 =755.3, p<0.001) and anthropogenic food sources ( χ 22 =183.9, p<0.001) were all consumed most during the Dispersal season. Woody plants ( χ 22 =998.0, p<0.001) were consumed significantly more during Pup-Rearing. Coyotes in Calgary consume predominantly natural prey items. However, the presence of anthropogenic food items in 14% of scats suggests heightened risk of food conditioning, a potential for habituation to humans, which can increase human-coyote conflict. We recommend stricter enforcement of garbage laws, responsible husbandry practices with domestic pets (leash animals), and targeted educational campaigns.
Listen, You are Writing! Speeding up Online Spelling with a Dynamic Auditory BCI

Representing an intuitive spelling interface for brain–computer interfaces (BCI) in the auditory domain is not straight-forward. In consequence, all existing approaches based on event-related potentials (ERP) rely at least partially on a visual representation of the interface. This online study introduces an auditory spelling interface that eliminates the necessity for such a visualization. In up to two sessions, a group of healthy subjects (N = 21) was asked to use a text entry application, utilizing the spatial cues of the AMUSE paradigm (Auditory Multi-class Spatial ERP). The speller relies on the auditory sense both for stimulation and the core feedback. Without prior BCI experience, 76% of the participants were able to write a full sentence during the first session. By exploiting the advantages of a newly introduced dynamic stopping method, a maximum writing speed of 1.41 char/min (7.55 bits/min) could be reached during the second session (average: 0.94 char/min, 5.26 bits/min). For the first time, the presented work shows that an auditory BCI can reach performances similar to state-of-the-art visual BCIs based on covert attention. These results represent an important step toward a purely auditory BCI.
Development of Epoxyeicosatrienoic Acid Analogs with in Vivo Anti-Hypertensive Actions

Epoxyeicosatrienoic acids (EETs) contribute importantly to the regulation of vascular tone and blood pressure control. The purpose of this study was to develop stable EET analogs and test their in vivo blood pressure lowering effects in hypertensive rats. Using the pharmacophoric moiety of EETs, ether EET analogs were designed with improved solubility and resistance to auto-oxidation and metabolism by soluble epoxide hydrolase. Ether EET analogs were chosen based on their ability to dilate afferent arterioles and subsequently tested for blood pressure lowering effects in rodent models of hypertension. Initially, 11,12-ether-EET-8-ZE failed to lower blood pressure in angiotensin hypertension or spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR). Esterification of the carboxylic group of 11,12-ether-EET-8-ZE prevented blood pressure increase in SHR when injected at 2 mg/day for 12 days (MAP Δ change at day 8 of injection was −0.3 ± 2 for treated and 12 ± 1 mmHg for control SHR). Amidation of the carboxylic group with aspartic acid produced another EET analog (NUDSA) with a blood pressure lowering effect when injected at 3 mg/day in SHR for 5 days. Amidation of the carboxylic group with lysine amino acid produced another analog with minimal blood pressure lowering effect. These data suggest that esterification of the carboxylic group of 11,12-ether-EET-8-ZE produced the most effective ether-EET analog in lowering blood pressure in SHR and provide the first evidence to support the use of EET analogs in treatment of cardiovascular diseases.
The Moderating Role of Adversity Quotient in The Relationship between Achievement Motivation and Orientation to Future Work among University Students

Work is one of the basic needs of humans that should be that should be pursued. During the study, University students must prepare their career by developing plans and strategies to pursue a desired career and a dream job once they graduate from university despite many challenges and obstacles. To do this, university students need adversity quotient skills to be able to get through all the difficulties. This study aims to determine the relationship between achievement motivation and orientation to the future career among university students and to examine whether adversity quotient moderated the relationship between the variables. This study involved 90 students of the at the Faculty of Psychology State Islamic University of Maulana Malik Ibrahim Malang. The instruments used were the Achievement Motivation Scale, the Orientation to the Future Career Scale in the Field of Work, and the Adversity Quotient Scale. The results showed a significant correlation between achievement motivation and future orientation in the field of work Furthermore, Adversity quotient was found to moderate the relationship between achievement motivation and orientation to future work among university students.
Question-and-Answer Session

Dr. Mclntyre: In the area of bipolar disorder, if the patient is presenting to my office with a predominantly manic presentation with typical manic symptoms or a syndromal mixed state, I would not use a psychostimulant in that state. The more typical patient that clinicians encounter in the real world is a patient who presents with major depressive disorder (MDD) and various admixtures of hypomanic features, which historically has been referred to as depressive mixed states. Also, there has been the appellation "agitated depression. " This is a bit more challenging. I discussed the principle of assuring that bipolar disorder is treated first and ADHD treated second, which is admittedly in some cases an arbitrary distinction. Nevertheless, there have been many situations I have encountered when patients have bipolar depression and have minimal features of the typical symptoms of hypomania, yet they have very prominent distractibility and very prominent problems with focusing themselves as well as cognitive problems. In that case, I have often found myself treating what I believed to be symptoms that would comport with ADHD as well as a major depressive episode in bipolar disorder. Granted, in that case, I am using a stimulant primarily to target some ADHD symptoms, and some may ask if there is an additional benefit in treating the depressive episode with a stimulant, which is an entirely different question. Thus, the principle of treating bipolar disorder first is very much the principle. The fine print would be that there are many cases of treating a depressed bipolar patient who is not progressing through mixed hypomania or mixed mania, where I may use a stimulant with an aim to target some of the ADHD features in this patient who is still not stable from bipolar disorder.
functional MR and magnetic source imaging. Mapping of the sensorimotor cortex:

PURPOSE: To assess the reliability and comparability of functional MR imaging and magnetic source imaging for mapping the somatosensory cortex. METHODS: Parallel studies were performed in eight volunteer subjects in whom both hemispheres were measured with the use of painless tactile stimulation of the tip of each index finger. Magnetic source imaging was performed using a 37-channel biomagnetometer; evoked magnetic fields were analyzed using the single-equivalent dipole representation to ascertain the neuronal source. Functional MR imaging was performed on a 1.5-T MR unit. Blocks of images during periods of rest and activation were acquired using gradient-echo echo-planar imaging. Correlation analysis identified pixels in which signal intensity correlated with the stimulus function. A subsequent requirement for spatial connectivity of activation was imposed to reduce the random occurrence of pixels satisfying the correlation criteria. RESULTS: Using temporal and spatial statistical criteria for activation, we found that functional MR imaging showed activation in 11 of 16 hemispheres. In three cases, this was accompanied by activity either frontally or ipsilateral to the stimulus. Magnetic source imaging showed parietal contralateral location in all 16 cases. Where successful localization was achieved with both methods, the separation between sources appeared to be between 1 and 4 cm. Functional MR imaging localizations tended to lie more superficially than the magnetic source imaging localizations. Performance of a simple motor task, rather than use of somatosensory stimulation, resulted in a cortical signal change detectable with a similar functional MR imaging approach in all cases, suggesting the more robust nature of this stimulus. CONCLUSIONS: Functional mapping of the somatosensory cortex can be achieved with functional MR imaging or magnetic source imaging. Functional MR imaging yields more spurious locations and fails to show localization more often. If neuronal signal propagation pathways are of interest, the temporal resolution of functional MR imaging alone may be inadequate. A combination of magnetic source imaging and functional MR imaging may allow improved sensitivity, fewer false-positive results, and high spatial and temporal resolution.
Using Analog Complex Mixers for Low-IF Mixing

—IQ mixers and complex mixers are both used to cancel the image band signal. In this paper, we analyse a complex IF sub-THz receiver architecture aimed for splitting a multi-GHz baseband signal into narrower sub-bands for easier A/D conversion. The architecture consists of a normal IQ direct downconversion, followed by complex mixers to center the chosen sub-carriers to DC. Image rejection versus mismatch errors is calculated both analytically and on system and circuit-level simulations. It was seen that the image rejection is dominated by the IQ downconversion stage. It is demonstrated that the mismatches in the IQ stage can be corrected digitally by weighted summing of the digital sub-bands.