Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Antioxidant defense and aging in C. elegans: Is the oxidative damage theory of aging wrong?

The oxidative damage theory of aging once seemed almost proven. Yet recently the buzzards have been assembling in the blue skies above it. New challenges to the theory from work using nematode worms seem set to bring them down to peck at its bones. But is the theory really dead, or does it just need to be modified?
Ein Design Space für internale Gamification-Anwendungen

Aktuell existieren viele verschieden ausgestaltete Gamification-Anwendungen zur Erhöhung der Mitarbeitermotivation. Dabei ist weitestgehend unerforscht, wie eine Anwendung gestaltet sein sollte, um tatsächliche Vorteile mit sich zu bringen. In diesem Paper wird deshalb ein Design Space zur Klassifikation von Anwendungen vorgestellt, um Übereinstimmungen und Abweichungen zwischen diesen aufzudecken und somit Grundlagen für zukünftige Untersuchungen zum Einfluss verschiedener Gestaltungselemente zu schaffen. Eine erste Einordnung von Systemen konnte aufzeigen, dass meist extrinsische Anreizstrukturen genutzt werden, die Anwendungen oft nur wenige spielerische Elemente beinhalten und Spieler kaum Einflussmöglichkeiten auf das System besitzen. Nur vereinzelt passen sich Systeme an sich ändernde Spielerfähigkeiten an oder nutzen realweltliche Aufgaben.
Marked Reduction in Prevalence of Malaria Parasitemia and Anemia in HIV-Infected Pregnant Women Taking Cotrimoxazole With Or Without Sulfadoxine-Pyrimethamine Intermittent Preventive Therapy during Pregnancy in Malawi

Background. Effectiveness of cotrimoxazole (CTX) compared with sulfadoxine-pyrimethamine (SP) intermittent-preventive-therapy (IPTp) for malaria in HIV-infected pregnant women is unknown. We examined effectiveness of CTX with or without SP-IPTp versus SP-IPTp at reducing malaria parasitemia and anemia. Methods. From 2005 to 2009, we conducted a cross-sectional study of HIV-infected pregnant women at Thyolo Hospital, Malawi. Blood was tested for malaria parasitemia and anemia (hemoglobin<11g/dl). Data were collected on use of anti-malaria interventions and other risk factors. CTX prophylaxis policy for HIV-infected pregnant women was introduced in 2007, but implementation problems resulted in some women receiving both CTX and SP-IPTp. Findings. We enrolled 1,142 women, of whom 1,121 had data on CTX and/or SP-IPTp intake. Of these, 49.7%, 29.8%, and 15.4% reported taking SP-IPTp only, CTX only and SP-IPTp plus CTX, respectively. Compared with women taking SP-IPTp, those taking SP-IPTp plus CTX and CTX were less likely to have malaria parasitemia (OR, [95%CI]: 0.09, [0.01-0.66] and 0.43, [0.19-0.97], respectively) or anemia (PR, [95% CI]: 0.67, [0.54-0.83] and 0.72, [0.61-0.83], respectively). Conclusion. In HIV-infected pregnant women, daily CTX was associated with reduced malaria parasitemia and anemia compared with SP-IPTp. CTX plus SP-IPTp was associated with further reduction in malaria parasitemia but toxicity was not fully assessed.
Involvement of the molecular chaperone BiP in maturation of Sindbis virus envelope glycoproteins

Sindbis virus codes for two membrane glycoproteins, E1 and PE2, which assemble into heterodimers within the endoplasmic reticulum. We have examined the role of the molecular chaperone BiP (grp78) in the maturation of these two proteins. E1, which folds into its mature conformation via at least three intermediates differing in the configurations of their disulfide bonds, was found to interact strongly and transiently with BiP after synthesis. ATP depletion mediated by carbonyl cyanide m-chlorophenylhydrazone treatment results in the stabilization of complexes between BiP and E1. The depletion of intracellular ATP levels also greatly inhibits conversions between the E1 folding intermediates and results in the slow incorporation of E1 into disulfide-stabilized aggregates. These results suggest that the ATP-regulated binding and release of BiP have a role in modulating disulfide bond formation during E1 folding. In comparison with E1, very little PE2 is normally recovered in association with BiP. However, under conditions in which E1 folding is aberrant, increased amounts of PE2 become directly associated with BiP. The formation of these BiP-PE2 interactions occurs after E1 begins to misfold or fails to fold efficiently. We propose that nascent PE2 is stable prior to pairing with E1 for only a limited period of time, after which unpaired PE2 becomes recognized by BiP. This implies that the productive association of PE2 and E1 must occur within a restricted time frame and only after E1 has accomplished certain folding steps mediated by BiP binding and release. Kinetic studies which show that the pairing of E1 with PE2 is delayed after translocation support this conclusion.
Cyclosporine A protects against apoptosis in ischaemic/reperfused rat kidneys

1. Renal ischaemia followed by reperfusion leads to acute renal failure in both native kidneys and renal allografts. Cyclosporine A (CsA) has been used as an immunosuppressive agent in organ transplantation. In the present study, the effect of CsA on ischaemia/reperfusion‐induced apoptosis in the kidney was investigated.
Basic skills in psychotherapy and counseling

Part I: PRELIMINARY ISSUES. 1. Traits of Successful Therapists and Counselors. 2. Self-Awareness Skills. 3. Self-Care Skills. Part II: SKILLS TO FACILITATE COMMUNICATION IN PSYCHOTHERAPY AND COUNSELING. 4. Attending Skills: Nonverbal Communication and Listening. 5. Questions to Encourage Communication. 6. Response Types: Verbal Communication and Client Disclosure. 7. Moving Beyond Simple Communication: The Process of Empathy. Part III: SKILLS FOR COGNITIVE AWARENESS IN PSYCHOTHERAPY AND COUNSELING. 8. Working with Thought and Cognition: Overview and Basic Skills. 9. Working with Thought and Cognition: Advanced Interventions. Part IV: SKILLS FOR AFFECTIVE AWARENESS IN PSYCHOTHERAPY AND COUNSELING. 10. Working with Affect and Emotion: Overview and Basic Skills. 11. Working with Affect and Emotion: Focus on the Body. 12. Working with Affect and Emotion: Focus on Feelings. Closure. References. Author Index. Subject Index.
Improving physical layer security via multiple-level relay network

Cooperative relay is considered as an efficient scheme to improve the physical layer security of a wireless relay system in the presence of eavesdroppers. In this paper, multiple-level relay scheme is proposed. We consider relay weight design for secrecy rate maximization subject to a power constraint. The results show that a higher achievable secrecy rate is achieved in the two-level relay channel than that of the one-level relay channel when the destination node is far away from the source node. Therefore, the performance of the two-level relays channel is generally better under the circumstances of the long distance transmission.
The Massive Knowledge Web

vision for the future Web, this paper proposes Massive Knowledge Web (MKW), a referential architecture that will support effective sharing of versatile knowledge in a large-scale decentralized network, and establish effective and efficient means to manage massive knowledge which may be created, derived and shared by various sources including individual end-users on the Web 2.0. The architecture incorporates a virtual P2P overlay into the server side platform to support efficient knowledge management, semantics-rich and personalized query processing for huge amounts of dynamic and personalized Web contents in a large-scale distributed network environment. Three major components are discussed herein: (1) semantic data model for massive Web2.0 content, (2) semantics-rich query model, and (3) scalable distributed semantic indexing model. Among other advantages, MKW provides a feasible architectural solution to build more accessible, scalable and intelligent services on the future Web.
A decoder-based switch box to mitigate soft errors in SRAM-based FPGAs

This paper proposes a new switch box architecture in SRAM-based FPGAs to mitigate soft error effects. In this switch box architecture, the number of SRAM bits required for programming switch box is reduced to 67% without any impact on routing capability of the switch box. This architecture does not require any modification of the existing placement and routing algorithms. The architecture was evaluated based on several MCNC benchmarks using VPR tool. The experimental results show that this architecture decreases the susceptibility of switch boxes to SEUs about 20% on average compared to the traditional ones.
A New Gaussian Mixture Algorithm for GMTI Tracking Under a Minimum Detectable Velocity Constraint

This paper introduces a new methodology to account for Doppler blind zone constraints, arising, for example, in ground moving target indicator (GMTI) tracking applications. In such problems, target measurements are suppressed when the range rate (Doppler) of the target drops below a specified threshold in magnitude (the minimum detectable velocity). The proposed method, employing Gaussian mixture approximations to the filtering density, differs from earlier Gaussian mixture approaches in the way missed measurements are modelled. The distinctive feature of the algorithm, as compared with other Gaussian mixture filters, is that it is based on an exact calculation of the filtering density when a measurement is not recorded. Algorithms that result from applying this methodology are simple to implement and computationally undemanding. Simulation results indicate a uniform improvement in estimation accuracy over that of earlier proposed analytic techniques, and a tracking performance comparable to that of state-of-the-art particle filters.
When You Smile, Do I Smile? A Proposed Study Examining Conscious Level Emotion Regulation in a Developmental Sample

The ability to conceal a proponent emotional response and instead, express a more socially appropriate facial expression has had phylogenetic and ontogenetic advantages throughout human evolution and development. Understanding the developmental trajectory of this type of emotion regulation is imperative and can be empirically examined using a facial mimicry paradigm to study inhibitory control. Facial mimicry enables an individual to imitate the emotional expression of a social other, whereas inhibitory control examines an individual’s ability to suppress a dominant responses in favour of a correct response. The present paper proposes a paradigm during which individuals are instructed to imitate the opposite facial expression of that displayed on a screen. In addition, the neural correlates of emotion regulation are proposed to be simultaneously measured using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Expected results are discussed with a critical focus on clinical implications for individuals with deficits in emotion regulation, in particular, those with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) and individuals prone to psychopathic symptoms in adulthood.
Layered Space-Time Coding for 3×n Transmit Antenna Communication Systems

We present a new architecture of layered space-time codes as a combination of BLAST architecture and of special STTC codes which are variations about the codes first introduced by Jafarkhani et al. and named super orthogonal space-time trellis codes (SOSTTC). Using powerful set partitioning, these codes are able to combine the coding advantage of STTC's together with the advantage diversity of orthogonal space-time block codes (STBC). The system we propose is named super quasi orthogonal horizontal layered space time trellis code (SQOHLSTTC). It consists in a powerful STBC based STTC originally derived for a three transmit antenna system, together with an original block based decoding algorithm which enables to use a higher number of transmit antennas. The decoding of SQOHLSTTC combines group interference suppression and group interference cancellation techniques. To implement the system, we propose a low complexity hard decision iterative decoding method. System performances are illustrated and confirm the great interest of the proposed transmission scheme
An Embrittlement Mechanism of Impact Fracture of Sn–Ag–Cu Solder Joints on BGA Using Electroplated Ni/Au Surface Finishes

The impact toughness evaluation and fracture mechanism analysis in board level of Sn-3 mass%Ag-0.5 mass%Cu solder joints of ball grid arrays (BGAs) using electrolysis Ni/Au plating were performed. The cause of impact toughness degradation of BGA solder ball joints is the segregation of impurities to the (Cu, Ni)6Sn5 intermetallic compound grain boundary formed in the solder joints. The impurities, consisting of Cl and organic matters, are taken in the Ni plating film at the time of Ni plating. The organic matter impurities come primarily from the solder mask of the BGA interposer substrates. To improve the impact toughness of the Sn-3 mass%Ag-0.5 mass%Cu solder joint of the BGA, it is necessary to lower the concentration of these impurities. This, in turn, places importance on solder mask material selection (to minimize Ni plating bath contamination) as well as contamination prevention and plating bath sanitization.
Four dimensions of self-defining memories (specificity, meaning, content, and affect) and their relationships to self-restraint, distress, and repressive defensiveness.

This study examines four dimensions of self-defining memory (specificity, meaning, content, and affect) and their relationship to self-restraint, distress, and defensiveness. The development and validation of a protocol for measuring specificity, meaning, and affect in self-defining memories is discussed. Specificity is operationalized as the temporal and detailed specificity of the narrative. Meaning refers to the participant's stepping back from the narrative to derive higher personal meaning or a life lesson. Affect reflects subjective emotion upon recall. Agreement between two raters scoring 1040 memories was kappa=. 83 for specificity and kappa=. 72 for meaning. The protocol is compatible with Thorne and McLean's scoring system for content (the types of events in memories). The current study compared individual differences in the four dimensions of 10 self-defining memories collected from 103 undergraduates to scores of self-restraint, distress, and repressive defensiveness, as measured by the Weinberger Adjustment Inventory. Memory specificity was inversely related to repressive defensiveness, while greater memory meaning was linked to moderate and high levels of self-restraint. Memory content and affect predicted individuals' degree of subjective distress. Based on these findings, the authors discuss the place of self-defining memories in Conway and Pleydell-Pearce's Self-Memory System model of autobiographical memory and personality, more generally.
CD8+ T Cells from a Novel T Cell Receptor Transgenic Mouse Induce Liver-Stage Immunity That Can Be Boosted by Blood-Stage Infection in Rodent Malaria

To follow the fate of CD8+ T cells responsive to Plasmodium berghei ANKA (PbA) infection, we generated an MHC I-restricted TCR transgenic mouse line against this pathogen. T cells from this line, termed PbT-I T cells, were able to respond to blood-stage infection by PbA and two other rodent malaria species, P. yoelii XNL and P. chabaudi AS. These PbT-I T cells were also able to respond to sporozoites and to protect mice from liver-stage infection. Examination of the requirements for priming after intravenous administration of irradiated sporozoites, an effective vaccination approach, showed that the spleen rather than the liver was the main site of priming and that responses depended on CD8α+ dendritic cells. Importantly, sequential exposure to irradiated sporozoites followed two days later by blood-stage infection led to augmented PbT-I T cell expansion. These findings indicate that PbT-I T cells are a highly versatile tool for studying multiple stages and species of rodent malaria and suggest that cross-stage reactive CD8+ T cells may be utilized in liver-stage vaccine design to enable boosting by blood-stage infections.
Exposure to sediment enhances primary acquisition of Symbiodinium by asymbiotic coral larvae

Many symbiotic marine invertebrates acquire free-living Symbiodinium from the envi- ronment. Abundance and diversity of free-living Symbiodinium could influence recovery from bleaching, resilience, and the long-term adaptation of host organisms. Although free-living Symbio- dinium have been detected in the water column and substrates of coral reefs, their diversity and availability to the hosts are poorly understood. Tank experiments were conducted to test whether asymbiotic coral larvae of Acropora monticulosa acquired free-living Symbiodinium from the water column or sediment to become symbiotic. Treatments included filtered (0.22 µm) seawater (FSW), unfiltered seawater (SW), FSW and sediment, and SW and sediment. Our results showed that greater proportions of larvae in sediment-containing treatments acquired Symbiodinium earlier and had greater in hospite Symbiodinium densities when compared to seawater-only treatments. Addition- ally, clade A Symbiodinium was only recovered in the larvae from the sediment-containing treat- ments, whereas clades B and C were recovered from all treatments. Differences in distribution, abun- dance, replication and motility patterns of Symbiodinium, as well as larval behavior, may have contributed to the observed differences between uptake from the sediment and the water column. However, our results suggest that the sediment may represent an important source of free-living Symbiodinium available for uptake during primary acquisition by coral larvae.
The production of pronominal clitics: Implications for theories of lexical access

In three experiments we investigated the locus of the frequency effect in lexical access and the mechanism of gender feature selection. In Experiment 1, participants were asked to produce gender-marked verb plus pronominal clitic utterances in Italian (e.g., “portalo” (bring it [masculine]) in response to a written verb and pictured object. We found that pronominal clitic production is sensitive to the frequency of the noun it replaces. This result locates the effect of word frequency in lexical access at the level where a word's grammatical features are represented. In Experiments 2, 3A, and 3B we used a picture-word interference naming task and found that the gender of a distractor word does not affect the production of gender-marked clitics. This result, together with those of Experiments 3A and 3B, which show a semantic interference effect and the absence of a phonological facilitation effect in clitic production, respectively, allows the inference that the retrieval of grammatical gender is an automatic consequence of lexical node selection and not an independent selection process that operates on the principle of selection-by-activation level.
ROBUST ENCODING OF THE FS1016 LSF PARAMETERS : APPLICATION OF THE CHANNEL OPTIMIZED TRELLIS CODED VECTOR QUANTIZATION

Speech coders operating at low bit rates necessitate efficient encoding of the linear predictive coding (LPC) coefficients. Line spectral Frequencies (LSF) parameters are currently one of the most efficient choices of transmission parameters for the LPC coefficients. In this paper, we present an optimized trellis coded vector quantization (OTCVQ) scheme designed for robust encoding of the LSF parameters. The objective of this system, called initially "LSF-OTCVQ Encoder", is to achieve a low bit-rate quantization of the FS1016 LSF parameters. The efficiency of the LSF-OTCVQ encoder (with weighted distance) was first proved in the ideal case of transmissions over noiseless channel. After that we were interested on the improvement of its robustness for real transmissions over noisy channel. To protect implicitly the transmission parameters of the LSF-OTCVQ encoder incorporated in the FS1016, we used a joint source-channel coding carried out by the channel optimized vector quantization (COVQ) method. In the case of transmissions over noisy channel, we will show that the new encoding system, called "COVQ-LSF-OTCVQ Encoder", would be able to contribute significantly to the improvement of the FS1016 performances by ensuring a good coding robustness of its LSF spectral parameters.
Comparison of MPPT performance under stepped I–V characteristics with/without temperature variation

Performances of the typical Maximum Power Point Trackers (MPPTs) are compared and analyzed based on the simulation results. In the simulation, whole current-voltage (I–V) characteristics are calculated by 0.01 [s] to realize the stepped I–V characteristics affected by a partial shadow. In the previous research, the temperature variation was not taken into consideration. In this study, two cases, with considering and without considering the temperature variation are simulated and compared. Three conventional MPPT algorithms, the perturb and observation, the incremental conductance, and the constant voltage are simulated and analyzed in detail based on their trends of the operating point and the total output energies.
De novo truncating FUS gene mutation as a cause of sporadic amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

Mutations in the gene encoding fused in sarcoma (FUS) were recently identified as a novel cause of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), emphasizing the genetic heterogeneity of ALS. We sequenced the genes encoding superoxide dismutase (SOD1), TAR DNA‐binding protein 43 (TARDBP) and FUS in 99 sporadic and 17 familial ALS patients ascertained at Mayo Clinic. We identified two novel mutations in FUS in two out of 99 (2.0%) sporadic ALS patients and established the de novo occurrence of one FUS mutation. In familial patients, we identified three (17.6%) SOD1 mutations, while FUS and TARDBP mutations were excluded. The de novo FUS mutation (g.10747A>G; IVS13‐2A>G) affects the splice‐acceptor site of FUS intron 13 and was shown to induce skipping of FUS exon 14 leading to the C‐terminal truncation of FUS (p.G466VfsX14). Subcellular localization studies showed a dramatic increase in the cytoplasmic localization of FUS and a reduction of normal nuclear expression in cells transfected with truncated compared to wild‐type FUS. We further identified a novel in‐frame insertion/deletion mutation in FUS exon 12 (p.S402_P411delinsGGGG) which is predicted to expand a conserved poly‐glycine motif. Our findings extend the mutation spectrum in FUS leading to ALS and describe the first de novo mutation in FUS. © 2010 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Message Framing and Buying A Field Experiment

The article examines the impact of message flaming on real life buying behavior. Customers of a credit card company who did not use the card for a three-month period received a communication explaining the benefits of the card. These benefits were explained either in terms of gains the customers could obtain from using the card or in terms of losses they could suffer flora not using it. Card usage was monitored for two months after the message. Results indicated that the impact of the loss-flamed message was much stronger than the impact of the gain-flamed message. The percentage of customers who started to use the card in the loss condition was more than double the percentage in the gain conditions, and the charges of the former customers were more than twice as much as the charges of the latter customers. In addition, an interview conducted with some of the customers 6 months after the initial contact revealed an effect of framing on persuasiveness and recall of the message and on involvement with the method of payment. j BUSN RES. 1995. 32.11-17