Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The neutral stimuli detection deficits in delusion-prone individuals

Summary Aim. The aim of the study was to investigate whether the delusion-prone individuals tend to select relevant information among distractors in order to examine whether the occurrence of overt delusions could be preceded by specific features of attention functioning. Methods. Individuals with high and low susceptibility to delusions completed the experimental task relying on the search for the specified signal hidden among distractors. results . The delusion-prone individuals did not select emotionally neutral signal more effectively than the non delusion-prone ones. What is more, they made more ‘false-alarm’ mistakes than the control group, especially at the later stage of the task related to the increased fatigue level. Conclusion. The delusion-proneness is not related to the excessive information selection ability. delusion-proneness / signal detection / selective attention
An Evaluation of Structure Based Similarity Indexes for Collaborative Filtering

Recommender systems are significant for web based e-commerce, and collaborative filtering(CF) algorithms are proved to be the most successful recommendation techniques. For CF algorithms, the similarity index is the heart, and many indexes have been proposed. Recently, with the development of complex networks, the structure based similarity indexes have become a hot topic. In this paper, we implemented six structure based local similarity indexes, i.e., \emph{salton index},\emph{jaccard index}, \emph{ adamic-adar index},\emph{common neighbors},\emph{s{\o}rensen index}, and \emph{RA index}, compared with two common used benchmark indexes, i.e., \emph{cosine index} and \emph{Pearson correlation coefficient}, using seven evaluation metrics, i.e., \emph{mean absolute error}, \emph{rooted mean square error}, \emph{Precise}, \emph{Recall}, \emph{F1},\emph{diversity and novelty } and \emph{half-life utility}. Experimental results demonstrate that the structural based similarity indexes outperform the benchmark indexes.
Underlying Representation in Optimality Theory

This paper addresses how we should deal with underlying representation (UR) in Optimality Theory (OT), focusing in particular on the proper method of Lexicon Optimization (LO), a mechanism in OT that determines a 'real' input among various possible inputs. After closely examining previous proposals, I conclude that Kager's (1999) model of LO is most promising, only if it is controlled by a meta-principle, Input-Output Isomorphy, that guarantees a UR to be identical to its surface form in the cases where underlying contrasts are expressed at surface level. I demonstrate that LO performed in this way provides a good account of UR for allomorphy cases without posing any problem to Richness of the Base, one of the fundamental concepts in OT.
Expression of keratinocyte growth factor/fibroblast growth factor‐7 and its receptor in human lung cancer: correlation with tumour proliferative activity and patient prognosis

Keratinocyte growth factor (KGF)/fibroblast growth factor‐7 (FGF‐7), a mesenchymal cell‐derived paracrine growth factor that specifically stimulates epithelial cell proliferation, has been implicated in the repair of lung tissue. The present study was designed to determine the expression and role of KGF and its receptor (KGFR) in human lung cancer tissues, particularly in relation to cancer cell kinetics and prognosis. Thirty‐one adenocarcinomas and 30 squamous cell carcinomas, and ten normal lung tissues as a control, were examined. The expression of KGF and KGFR proteins was examined using rabbit polyclonal anti‐human KGF and anti‐human KGFR antisera raised in the authors' laboratories against synthetic peptides corresponding to parts of human KGF KGFR, respectively. Their specificity was confirmed in lung tumour tissues by western blotting various controls. Proliferative activity was assessed by determining the labelling index (LI) for Ki‐67 antigen. Immunohistochemistry revealed that tissue co‐expression of KGF KGFR correlated significantly with higher differentiation grades in squamous cell carcinoma. Conversely, in adenocarcinoma, co‐expression correlated with lower differentiation grades high Ki‐67 LI, was significantly associated with lymph node metastasis shorter 5‐year survival. Therefore, the results indicate that co‐expression of KGF KGFR correlates significantly with poor prognosis in adenocarcinoma, but not in squamous cell carcinoma, of the lung. Copyright © 2004 Pathological Society of Great Britain and Ireland. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
A Neurocomputational Approach to Trained and Transitive Relations in Equivalence Classes

A stimulus class can be composed of perceptually different but functionally equivalent stimuli. The relations between the stimuli that are grouped in a class can be learned or derived from other stimulus relations. If stimulus A is equivalent to B, and B is equivalent to C, then the equivalence between A and C can be derived without explicit training. In this work we propose, with a neurocomputational model, a basic learning mechanism for the formation of equivalence. We also describe how the relatedness between the members of an equivalence class is developed for both trained and derived stimulus relations. Three classic studies on stimulus equivalence are simulated covering typical and atypical populations as well as nodal distance effects. This model shows a mechanism by which certain stimulus associations are selectively strengthened even when they are not co-presented in the environment. This model links the field of equivalence classes to accounts of Hebbian learning and categorization, and points to the pertinence of modeling stimulus equivalence to explore the effect of variations in training protocols.
Nigrostriatal Dysfunction in Familial Alzheimer's Disease-Linked APPswe/PS1ΔE9 Transgenic Mice

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is often accompanied by extrapyramidal signs attributed to nigrostriatal dysfunction. The association between amyloid deposition and nigrostriatal degeneration is essentially unknown. We showed previously that the striatum and the substantia nigra of transgenic mice harboring familial AD (FAD)-linked APPswe/PS1ΔE9 mutants exhibit morphological alterations accompanied by amyloid-β (Aβ) deposition (Perez et al., 2004). In the present study, we further investigated the interaction between Aβ deposition and dopaminergic nigrostriatal dysfunction, by correlating morphological and biochemical changes in the nigrostriatal pathway with amyloid deposition pathology in the brains of 3- to 17-month-old APPswe/PS1ΔE9 transgenic mice and age-matched wild-type controls. We show that Aβ deposition is pronounced in the striatum of APPswe/PS1ΔE9 mice at 6 months of age, and the extent of deposition increases in an age-dependent manner. Tyrosine hydroxylase (TH)-positive dystrophic neurites with rosette or grape-like cluster disposition are observed adjacent to Aβ plaques and display multilaminar, multivesicular, and dense-core bodies as well as mitochondria. In addition, an age-dependent increase of TH protein levels are shown in nigral cells in these mutant mice. Using HPLC analysis, we found a reduction in the dopamine metabolite DOPAC in the striatum of these mice. These findings show a close association between amyloid deposition and nigrostriatal pathology and suggest that altered FAD-linked amyloid metabolism impairs, at least in part, the function of dopaminergic neurons.
Preferential tumour accumulation of gold nanoparticles, visualised by magnetic resonance imaging: Radiosensitisation studies in vivo and in vitro

Purpose: To investigate the radiosensitisation of gold nanoparticles (GNP) with an average diameter of 5 nm coated with the gadolinium chelating agent dithiolated diethylenetriaminepentaacetic gadolinium (Au@DTDTPA:Gd) in vitro and in mice bearing tumours (MC7-L1). Materials and methods: In vivo, the gadolinium chelate coating allows one to perform real-time Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) pharmacokinetic analysis during intravenous infusion. Experiments were performed following treatment with 10 Gy of 150 kVp X-rays. In vitro experiments were also performed with clonogenic assays to generate dose response curves for the same cells. Results: We observed a preferential accumulation of Au@DTDTPA:Gd in tumours; a substantial toxicity for tumour cells in vitro, but no obvious toxicity for mice; and the absence of a synergistic effect with Au@DTDTPA:Gd and radiation in all experiments. Conclusions: The additional absorption of radiation and the subsequent increase in secondary electrons, attributable to the presence of gold in Au@DTDTPA:Gd, does not lead to radiosensitisation. However, this chelating agent exhibits a chemotherapeutic action which warrants further investigation. When compared to positive results obtained by others on radiosensitisation by GNP, the present study suggests that the chemotherapeutic and radiosensitising properties of GNP may depend strongly on the nature of the coating.
Design of Distributed Remote Real-Time Monitoring and Control System Based on Internet

Distributed remote real-time monitoring and control system is based on the ideas and framework of the Internet of Things, composed by the three parts: Zib Bee distributed wireless sensor network, Embedded WEB server based on ARM and GSM for network access services. The system can real-timely monitor the remote environmental parameters and configure the remote equipments. Zig Bee wireless sensor network which uses a star configuration can real-timely transmit the collected data to the embedded system server. Users can get the remote environmental parameters or control the working status of the remote equipments by accessing the embedded WEB server which uses the structure of B/S. GSM network access services can provide the voice and SMS inquiry services and control the working status of the remote equipment for users. For reducing the communication data, the system uses a mechanism with querying, regular report or exception report, which can be widely used in family, warehouses and greenhouses, etc.
Digital Addiction: The Cultural Production of Online and Video Game Junkies

This paper examines the ways in which a concept of ‘digital addiction’ is produced in academic discourse, news media and contemporary popular culture. Digital addiction is used here as a collective term for the phenomena of internet/online addiction and addiction to electronic games. By showing how these are produced individually and together in the popular imaginary, the paper explores several of the ways in which the digital is likened to chemical, illicit or hallucinogenic drugs. It is shown that this association is made through normative discourses which work through a reductive and over-simplified representation of a real/virtual dichotomy that favours the real as physical and local over the virtual, which is represented as dangerous, false and addictive.
Binary Differential Evolution

The ability of differential evolution (DE) to perform well in continuous-valued search spaces is well documented. The arithmetic reproduction operator used by differential evolution is simple, however, the manner in which the operator is defined, makes it practically impossible to effectively apply the standard DE to other problem spaces. An interesting and unique mapping method is examined which will enable the DE algorithm to operate within binary space. Using angle modulation, a bit string can be generated using a trigonometric generating function. The DE is used to evolve the coefficients to the trigonometric function, thereby allowing a mapping from continuous-space to binary-space. Instead of evolving the higher-dimensional binary solution directly, angle modulation is used together with DE to reduce the complexity of the problem into a 4-dimensional continuous-valued problem. Experimental results indicate the effectiveness of the technique and the viability for the DE to operate in binary space.
Managing Patients With Screen-Detected Nodules: The Nodule Clinic.

Introduction Lung cancer screening with low-dose computed tomography (LDCT) has become a public health recommendation since the publication of the National Lung Screening Trial in 2011. This landmark trial showed a significant decrease in lung cancer-specific mortality as a result of screening with LDCT compared with chest radiography. The number of lung screening programs throughout the country has since markedly increased. The configuration of lung screening programs can vary significantly between institutions, health care systems, and regions. In some areas patients have centralized visits followed by screening studies and follow-up communication with results and navigation. Other programs have a more decentralized approach with primary care doctors originating the order for lung screening LDCT and then following up on results of patients. Indeterminate pulmonary nodules detected in the setting of lung cancer screening add to the increasing number of indeterminate nodules detected by diagnostic computed tomography (CT) scans obtained for other reasons. More than 1.5 million people are already found to have pulmonary nodules each year and this number is likely to increase as the use of diagnostic CT scans continues to rise. The workup of these indeterminate nodules requires additional scans and medical follow-up. This has created the need for structured and dedicated multidisciplinary clinics to manage indeterminate pulmonary nodules.
The Short‐Term Effects and Unintended Long‐Term Consequences of Binge Drinking in College: A 10‐Year Follow‐Up Study

This study addresses binge drinking in college as a risk factor for heavy drinking and alcohol dependence after college. A national probability sample of 1972 college students from the National Longitudinal Surveys of Youth (NLSY79) was interviewed in 1984 and reinterviewed again as adults in 1994. The short‐term effects of binge drinking in college were assessed as well as the extent to which experiences of negative effects in college predicted patterns of alcohol use across the transition from college into postcollege years. As expected, college binge drinkers were comparatively more likely than nonbinge drinkers to experience one or more alcohol‐related problems while in college. In addition, weighted estimates of DSM‐IV‐defined diagnostic criteria in logistic regression models indicated that the binge drinking patterns exhibited during the college years, for some former college students of both genders, posed significant risk factors for alcohol dependence and abuse 10 years after the initial interview, in conjunction with evidence of academic attrition, early departure from college and less favorable labor market outcomes.
CURVE NEIGHBORHOODS AND THE QUANTUM CHEVALLEY FORMULA

A previous result of the authors with Chaput and Perrin states that the union of all rational curves of fixed degree passing through a Schubert variety in a homogeneous space G/P is again a Schubert variety. In this paper we identify this Schubert variety explicitly in terms of the Demazure product, and we use combinatorics of the Weyl group to obtain bounds on its dimension. This provides an explicit formula for any two-point Gromov-Witten invariant. We apply this to give a new proof of the quantum Chevalley formula for G/P as well as its equivariant generalization.
Effects of critically damped total PDN impedance in chip-package-board co-design

As CMOS LSIs operate at higher clock frequency and at lower supply voltage, power integrity is becoming a critical issue to maintain digital electronic systems more stable. Power supply fluctuation excited by core circuits or I/O circuits induces logic instability and electromagnetic radiation. Therefore, total impedance of power distribution network (PDN) must be taking into consideration in the chip-package-board co-design. Especially, anti-resonance peaks in the PDN due to the parallel combination of on-chip capacitance and package inductance induces the unwanted power supply fluctuation, and results in the degradation of signal integrity and electromagnetic interference (EMI). In this paper, effects of critical damping condition for the total PDN impedance on power supply noise has been studied by designing different on-chip PDN properties. The measured power supply noises for the four test chips successfully showed typical characteristics of 3 different regions. The critical damping condition against the anti-resonance peak has been proved to be effective to suppress the power supply noise on a chip.
A geometric-primitives-based compression scheme for testing systems-on-a-chip

The increasing complexity of systems-on-a-chip with the accompanied increase in their test data size has made the need for test data reduction imperative. In this paper we introduce a novel and very efficient lossless compression technique for testing systems-on-a-chip based on geometric shapes. The technique exploits reordering of test vectors to minimize the number of shapes needed to encode the test data. The effectiveness of the technique in achieving high compression ratio is demonstrated on the largest ISCAS85 and full-scanned versions of ISCAS89 benchmark circuits. In this paper, it is assumed that an embedded core will be used to execute the decompression algorithm and decompress the test data.
Growth Factors Prevent Mitochondrial Dysfunction, Loss of Calcium Homeostasis, and Cell Injury, but Not ATP Depletion in Hippocampal Neurons Deprived of Glucose

The mechanism of growth factor protection against metabolic/excitotoxic insults was examined. The time course of changes in ATP levels, mitochondrial transmembrane potential, intracellular free calcium levels ([Ca2+]i), and cell survival resulting from glucose deprivation were assessed in cultured hippocampal neurons. ATP levels were significantly reduced within 1 h of the onset of glucose deprivation and reached less than 20% of control levels by 12 h. Mitochondrial transmembrane potential (assessed by rhodamine 123 accumulation in mitochondria) declined progressively between 4 and 20 h following the onset of glucose deprivation. The [Ca2+]i was reduced during the first 1 h of glucose deprivation, gradually rose through 12 h, and then rose rapidly and was elevated five- to sevenfold after 16 h. The [Ca2+]i did not increase, and mitochondrial dysfunction and cell damage were prevented, in hypoglycemic neurons incubated in Ca(2+)-deficient medium. Elevation of [Ca2+]i by exposure of neurons to glutamate caused loss of rhodamine 123 fluorescence and structural damage to mitochondria. Mitochondrial function could be restored and cell survival maintained by addition of glucose prior to the late elevation of [Ca2+]i. Nerve growth factor (NGF), basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF), and insulin-like growth factor II (IGF-II) prevented loss of both [Ca2+]i homeostasis and mitochondrial transmembrane potential, and protected hippocampal neurons against hypoglycemic injury, but did not prevent the hypoglycemia-induced reduction in ATP levels. NaCN and 2,4-dinitrophenol (DNP) caused a large elevation of [Ca2+]i, mitochondrial dysfunction, and cell death. NGF, bFGF, and IGF-II each significantly reduced the adverse effects of NaCN and DNP on [Ca2+]i, mitochondrial function, and cell survival. Loss of [Ca2+]i homeostasis may be a critical event leading to mitochondrial damage and cell death resulting from energy failure. Preventing loss of [Ca2+]i homeostasis may be a general mechanism for the neuroprotective action of growth factors.
Potent Malaria Transmission-Blocking Antibody Responses Elicited by Plasmodium falciparum Pfs25 Expressed in Escherichia coli after Successful Protein Refolding

ABSTRACT Production of Pfs25, a Plasmodium falciparum transmission-blocking vaccine target antigen, in functional conformation with the potential to elicit effective immunogenicity still remains a major challenge. In the current study, codon-harmonized recombinant Pfs25 (CHrPfs25) was expressed in Escherichia coli, and purified protein after simple oxidative refolding steps retained reduction-sensitive conformational epitopes of transmission-blocking monoclonal antibodies. CHrPfs25 formulated in several adjuvants elicited strong immunogenicity in preclinical studies in mice. Antibodies elicited after immunization recognized native Pfs25 on the surface of live gametes of P. falciparum and demonstrated complete malaria transmission-blocking activity. The transmission-blocking efficacy was 100% even after a 1:128 dilution of sera from immunized mice in the complete Freund's adjuvant and Montanide ISA51 groups and after a 1:16 dilution of sera from mice in the alum group. The blocking was mediated by antibodies; purified IgG at concentrations as low as 31.25 μg/ml exhibited 100% transmission blocking in membrane feeding assays employing two different species of mosquitoes, Anopheles gambiae and Anopheles stephensi. This study provides the first evidence for successful expression of biologically functional rPfs25 in E. coli. The extremely potent malaria transmission-blocking activity of antibodies elicited by immunization with purified protein provides strong support for further evaluation of E. coli-derived CHrPfs25 as a malaria transmission-blocking vaccine in human clinical trials.
Variability compensation in small data: Oversampled extraction of i-vectors for the classification of depressed speech

Variations in the acoustic space due to changes in speaker mental state are potentially overshadowed by variability due to speaker identity and phonetic content. Using the Audio/Visual Emotion Challenge and Workshop 2013 Depression Dataset we explore the suitability of i-vectors for reducing these latter sources of variability for distinguishing between low or high levels of speaker depression. In addition we investigate whether supervised variability compensation methods such as Linear Discriminant Analysis (LDA), and Within Class Covariance Normalisation (WCCN), applied in the i-vector domain, could be used to compensate for speaker and phonetic variability. Classification results show that i-vectors formed using an over-sampling methodology outperform a baseline set by KL-means supervectors. However the effect of these two compensation methods does not appear to improve system accuracy. Visualisations afforded by the t-Distributed Stochastic Neighbour Embedding (t-SNE) technique suggest that despite the application of these techniques, speaker variability is still a strong confounding effect.
Speaker normalization using efficient frequency warping procedures

In an effort to reduce the degradation in speech recognition performance caused by variation in vocal tract shape among speakers, a frequency warping approach to speaker normalization is investigated. A set of low complexity, maximum likelihood based frequency warping procedures have been applied to speaker normalization for a telephone based connected digit recognition task. This paper presents an efficient means for estimating a linear frequency warping factor and a simple mechanism for implementing frequency warping by modifying the filter-bank in mel-frequency cepstrum feature analysis. An experimental study comparing these techniques to other well-known techniques for reducing variability is described. The results showed that frequency warping was consistently able to reduce word error rate by 20% even for very short utterances.