Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Psychological Capital of Employees of the Tehran University of Medical Sciences During 2010-2011

Background: Psychological capital with components of hope, self efficacy, optimism, and resiliency has been recently proposed to bring positive psychology to the workplace. Objectives: We investigated Psychological Capital states of employees of the Tehran university of medical sciences (TUMS) headquarter offices in Tehran, Iran. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional, descriptive and analytical study was conducted among all (1260) employees of the Tehran university of medical sciences headquarter offices in Tehran, Iran during the 2010-2011 time period. They were asked to respond to the PsyCap questionnaire, consisting of four subscales include hope, optimism, self-efficacy and resilience, each comprising of six items. Data were recorded and analyzed by SPSS software, using Chi-square statistical methods. Results: Descriptive statistics showed that the mean for positive psychological capital score was 4.05 (SD = 0.43), state of hope was 4.2 (SD = 0.64), optimism was 4.03 (SD = 0.85), self-efficacy was 3.9 (SD = 0.67), and resilience was 4.06. It seems that TUMS employees score higher in hope state subscale of positive psychological capital inventory. Conclusions: The relatively upper scores on the positive psychological states may be explained by the fact that TUMS employees worked and lived under good job that more likely to be associated with higher organizational performance. This is similar to USA sample and incompatible with Chinese workers. This study finding is only a first step towards an empirical examination of PsyCap states of psychological capital in Iran. However, our findings show the potentially important role of PsyCap capacities in health care organizations in Iran.
Realization of arbitrary filters in the STFT domain

It is well known that FIR filters can be efficiently realized in the short-time Fourier transform domain, namely using sliding windows and FFTs. In some scenarios, however, the standard overlap-add or overlap-save block convolution algorithms may be impractical due to the need for large transforms to implement long filters. In this paper, we show how to realize arbitrary FIR and IIR filters in an STFT framework whose block size, hop size, and transform size are not constrained by the target filter response. First, we review a subband filtering approach which enables implementation of arbitrarily long FIR filters in such a fixed-size STFT system via an overlap-add decomposition of the target filter impulse response. We then extend the subband filtering framework to the case of IIR filtering: first, we show how to map a single-pole filter into single-pole subband filters; then, we show how to map any arbitrary IIR filter into a subband filtering scheme. These approaches are useful for applications such as filter realization in modular frequency-domain systems, filter implementation on restricted hardware, compressed-domain processing in frequency-domain coding systems, and subband adaptive filtering.
Noninvasive bioluminescence imaging of the dynamics of sanguinarine induced apoptosis via activation of reactive oxygen species

Most chemotherapeutic drugs exert their anti-tumor effects primarily by triggering a final pathway leading to apoptosis. Noninvasive imaging of apoptotic events in preclinical models would greatly facilitate the development of apoptosis-inducing compounds and evaluation of their therapeutic efficacy. Here we employed a cyclic firefly luciferase (cFluc) reporter to screen potential pro-apoptotic compounds from a number of natural agents. We demonstrated that sanguinarine (SANG) could induce apoptosis in a dose- and time-dependent manner in UM-SCC-22B head and neck cancer cells. Moreover, SANG-induced apoptosis was associated with the generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and activation of c-Jun-N-terminal kinase (JNK) and nuclear factor-kappaB (NF-κB) signal pathways. After intravenous administration with SANG in 22B-cFluc xenograft models, a dramatic increase of luminescence signal can be detected as early as 48 h post-treatment, as revealed by longitudinal bioluminescence imaging in vivo. Remarkable apoptotic cells reflected from ex vivo TUNEL staining confirmed the imaging results. Importantly, SANG treatment caused distinct tumor growth retardation in mice compared with the vehicle-treated group. Taken together, our results showed that SANG is a candidate anti-tumor drug and noninvasive imaging of apoptosis using cFluc reporter could provide a valuable tool for drug development and therapeutic efficacy evaluation.
Meta-cognitive processes in reasoning and intuition: the role of feedback information and individual thinking styles

One composite topic addressed by researchers within cognitive sciences concerns the way people manage their mental effort in order to solve a problem, and how people feel about their decision-making process. The theoretical background of this thesis is centred on the extant models describing human mind through a dual-process account. Moreover, a metacognitive approach has recently brought new insights in this field, emphasizing the importance of monitoring and control processes in reasoning. The present dissertation adds to this literature by exploring the role of context-related features, and of individual characteristics, that relate to cognitive and meta-cognitive processes in reasoning. The first part is focused on the function of feedback information: in Study 1, participants primed for the adoption of intuitive or reflective thinking processes got information about their accuracy or inaccuracy during the resolution of reasoning tasks. Study 2 investigates the effects of feedback anticipation, that is how people adapt their mental effort according to the knowledge that their performance will be evaluated. The second part explores individual differences that could predict distinct levels of confidence in one’s reasoning process: in Study 3, performance and metacognitive feelings of individuals with a preference for intuitive thinking were compared with those of individuals with a preference for rational thought. Finally, in Study 4, individual characteristics of decision-making style (namely, propensity to experience regret, and maximizing vs satisficing tendencies) were examined as potential predictors of meta-reasoning components. Overall, this thesis highlights the importance of developing a metacognitive perspective inside the psychology of higher cognition.
Gray Codes Faulting Matchings

A (cyclic) n -bit Gray code is a (cyclic) ordering of all 2 n binary strings of length n such that consecutive strings diﬀer in a single bit. Equivalently, an n -bit Gray code can be viewed as a Hamiltonian path of the n -dimensional hypercube Q n , and a cyclic Gray code as a Hamiltonian cycle of Q n . In this paper we study Hamiltonian paths and cycles of Q n avoiding a given set of faulty edges that form a matching, brieﬂy called (cyclic) Gray codes faulting a given matching. Given a matching M and two vertices u, v of Q n , n ≥ 4, our main result provides a necessary and suﬃcient condition, expressed in terms of forbidden conﬁgurations for M , for the existence of a Gray code between u and v faulting M . As a corollary, we obtain a similar characterization for a cyclic Gray code faulting M . In particular, in case that M is a perfect matching, Q n has a (cyclic) Gray code faulting M if and only if Q n − M is a connected graph. This complements a recent result of Fink, who proved that every perfect matching of Q n can be extended to a Hamiltonian cycle.
Continuous quantum immune clonal optimization and its application to calculation and analysis of electromagnetic in induction motor

A new kind of quantum immune clonal algorithm for continuous space optimization is proposed in this paper, by the introduction of quantum computation into immune clonal optimization. The antibodies are represented by a group of quantum bits. Quantum bits are updated by quantum rotation gate to accelerate convergence. And some quantum bits are mutated by quantum non-gate to avoid premature convergence. Numerical simulation results show that new algorithm has better global search capability and faster convergence rate than classical immune clonal algorithm and genetic algorithm. Furthermore, the new algorithm is successfully applied to motor structure parameters optimization, and satisfactory optimization results are obtained. A new effective method for motor structure optimization has been suggested based on continuous quantum immune clonal optimization.
Human Milk MicroRNA and Total RNA Differ Depending on Milk Fractionation

MicroRNA have been recently discovered in human milk signifying potentially important functions for both the lactating breast and the infant. Whilst human milk microRNA have started to be explored, little data exist on the evaluation of sample processing, and analysis to ensure that a full spectrum of microRNA can be obtained. Human milk comprises three main fractions: cells, skim milk, and lipids. Typically, the skim milk fraction has been measured in isolation despite evidence that the lipid fraction may contain more microRNA. This study aimed to standardize isolation of microRNA and total RNA from all three fractions of human milk to determine the most appropriate sampling and analysis procedure for future studies. Three different methods from eight commercially available kits were tested for their efficacy in extracting total RNA and microRNA from the lipid, skim, and cell fractions of human milk. Each fraction yielded different concentrations of RNA and microRNA, with the highest quantities found in the cell and lipid fractions, and the lowest in skim milk. The column‐based phenol‐free method was the most efficient extraction method for all three milk fractions. Two microRNAs were expressed and validated in the three milk fractions by qPCR using the three recommended extraction kits for each fraction. High expression levels were identified in the skim and lipid milk factions for these microRNAs. These results suggest that careful consideration of both the human milk sample preparation and extraction protocols should be made prior to embarking upon research in this area. J. Cell. Biochem. 116: 2397–2407, 2015. © 2015 The Authors. Journal of Cellular Biochemistry Published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Culture Shock and Job Expectations Adjustment among Nigerian Self-Initiated Expatriates in the United Kingdom

Purpose: A great number of people in the world today, live and work outside the shores of their nations of origin. It is imperative to investigate how they are faring in the face of job satisfaction/dissatisfaction and the divergent cultural environment of their sojourn in order to correctly harness their inter-cultural usefulness across the globe. This research investigated the factors that influenced the relocation of Nigerians to the United Kingdom and sustained them there, in spite of their job experiences and culture shock.Methodology/Approach: Methodology triangulation of both questionnaire survey on seventy-six participants and six in-depth interviews was employed. Reflexivity, thick description and grounded theory were the approaches engaged in the data analysis and Interpretation of results.Findings: The findings revealed that multiple reasons like education, economic, socio-political and personal, are ‘pushing’ Nigerians from home and ‘pulling’ them to the United Kingdom. It was also discovered that the Nigerians in the United Kingdom, are experiencing different forms of job dissatisfaction and culture shock but for some salient reasons, they adjust fairly well to the environment.Keywords: Self-initiated expatriates, job expectations, culture shock, and socio-cultural adjustment.
Understanding Dynamic Knowledge and Organisational Learning in Supply Chain Integration: The Case of Organisation W

This paper examines the experience of dynamic knowledge transfer in supply chain integration during a project undertaken by the Bejing consulting arm of a multinational computer company. Various challenges during knowledge transfer in the team undertaking the project are described This paper explores those challenges, how the organisation culture influenced knowledge sharing, and the organisational learning that occurred. A Knowledge Creation Life Cycle is presented and discussed. It was found that both single and double loop learning occurred within a unique Knowledge Creation Life Cycle.
Adolescent triangulation into interparental conflict: Role of cognitive appraisals and birth-order

ABSTRACT Triangulation of adolescents into interparental conflict has since long been recognized as a risk factor for adolescents’ psychological adjustment. However, there is a scarcity in research focusing on exploring the variables that make adolescents more vulnerable to get triangulated. This study used a cross-section research design to examine the relationship between interparental conflict and adolescent triangulation into that conflict in an under-researched population of Pakistani school going adolescents (N = 521), with an age range of 13-19 years (M = 15.25; SD = 1.46); while exploring the role of adolescent’s cognitive appraisals (threat and self-blame) and birth-order. The results indicated that interparental conflict, appraisal of threat and appraisal of self-blame are significant predictors of adolescent triangulation. Moreover, this study also revealed the moderating role of adolescent birth order in the relationship between interparental conflict and triangulation, as well as between appraisal of self-blame and triangulation; indicating that the ‘only’ child in the family was at the highest risk of being triangulated into their parents’ arguments, while the youngest child was least likely to get involved.
Evaluation of the Outcome Questionnaire-45.2 with a Mexican-American Population

We reported the evaluation of the Outcome Questionnaire 45.2 (OQ 45.2; Lambert et al., 1996) with a Mexican-American population for use in research and practice settings. Participants were 186 women and 80 men from South Texas and Mexican-American border locations. The procedure used to examine the psychometric properties of the OQ-45.2 assessment is described. The final analysis revealed a modest fit of the data for each of the hypothesized measurement models of the symptom distress, interpersonal relations, and social role subscales which have useful implications for treatment planning, evaluating outcomes, and developing programs. Counseling practice and future research implications are discussed.
Immunization of apoE-/- mice with aldehyde-modified fibronectin inhibits the development of atherosclerosis.

AIMS Oxidation of low-density lipoprotein in the extracellular matrix of the arterial wall results in the formation of malondialdehyde (MDA) that modifies surrounding matrix proteins. This is associated with the activation of an immune response against modified extracellular matrix proteins present in atherosclerotic plaques. Clinical studies have revealed an inverse association between antibodies to MDA-modified fibronectin and risk for development of cardiovascular events. To determine the functional role of these immune responses in atherosclerosis, we performed studies in which apoE-deficient mice were immunized with MDA-modified fibronectin. METHODS AND RESULTS Immunization of apoE-deficient mice with MDA-modified fibronectin resulted in a 70% decrease in plaque area and a less inflammatory phenotype of remaining plaques. Immunization shifted a weak naturally occurring Th1 antibody response against MDA-fibronectin into a Th2 antibody response. Cytokine expression and flow cytometry analyses of spleen cells from immunized mice showed an activation of regulatory T cells. Immunization with MDA-fibronectin was also found to reduce plasma fibronectin levels. CONCLUSION Immunization with MDA-fibronectin significantly reduces the development of atherosclerosis in apoE-deficient mice suggesting that the immune response observed in humans may have a protective effect. MDA-fibronectin represents a possible novel target for immunomodulatory therapy in atherosclerosis.
GeneDB: a resource for prokaryotic and eukaryotic organisms

GeneDB (http://www.genedb.org/) is a genome database for prokaryotic and eukaryotic organisms. The resource provides a portal through which data generated by the Pathogen Sequencing Unit at the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute and other collaborating sequencing centres can be made publicly available. It combines data from finished and ongoing genome and expressed sequence tag (EST) projects with curated annotation, that can be searched, sorted and downloaded, using a single web based resource. The current release stores 11 datasets of which six are curated and maintained by biologists, who review and incorporate information from the scientific literature, public databases and the respective research communities.
Influence of Erythrocyte Concentrate Storage Time on Postsurgical Morbidity in Cardiac Surgery Patients

Background The transfusion of erythrocytes that have been stored for long periods of time can produce visceral ischemia and favor the acquisition of postsurgical infections. To estimate the role of the duration of storage of erythrocytes on morbidity in cardiac surgery, we performed an observational study. Methods All patients (n = 897) undergoing cardiac surgery during three consecutive years were included. Morbidity (main outcome measure) was evaluated by means of four surrogate measures: duration of stay in the intensive care unit longer than 4 days, mechanical ventilation time longer than 1 day, perioperative myocardial infarction rate, and severe postoperative infection rate. The mean duration of storage of all erythrocytes transfused and the duration of storage of the oldest unit transfused were used as storage variables. Results After considering multiple confounding variables related to patient severity, illness, and surgical difficulty, the duration of storage of erythrocytes was found to be associated neither with a more prolonged stay in the intensive care unit or mechanical ventilation time nor with increased rates of perioperative infarction, mediastinitis, or sepsis. However, each day of storage of the oldest unit was associated with an increment of the risk of pneumonia of 6% (95% confidence interval, 1–11;P = 0.018). The cutoff point of maximum sensitivity and specificity (54.8 and 66.9%) associated with a greater risk for pneumonia corresponded to 28 days of storage for the oldest unit (odds ratio, 2.74; 95% confidence interval, 1.18–6.36;P = 0.019). Conclusions Prolonged storage of erythrocytes does not increase morbidity in cardiac surgery. However, storage for longer than 28 days could be a risk factor for the acquisition of nosocomial pneumonia.
Black Rice Anthocyanins Suppress Metastasis of Breast Cancer Cells by Targeting RAS/RAF/MAPK Pathway

Overexpression of human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) drives the biology of 30% of breast cancer cases. As a transducer of HER2 signaling, RAS/RAF/MAPK pathway plays a pivotal role in the development of breast cancer. In this study, we examined the molecular mechanisms underlying the chemopreventive effects of black rice anthocyanins (BRACs) extract and identified their molecular targets in HER2+ breast cancer cells. Treatment of MDA-MB-453 cells (HER2+) with BRACs inhibited cell migration and invasion, suppressed the activation of mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase kinase (RAF), mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase (MEK), and c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK), and downregulated the secretion of matrix metalloproteinase 2 (MMP2) and MMP9. BRACs also weakened the interactions of HER2 with RAF, MEK, and JNK proteins, respectively, and decreased the mRNA expression of raf, mek, and jnk. Further, we found combined treatment with BRACs and RAF, MEK, or JNK inhibitors could enhance the antimetastatic activity, compared with that of each treatment. Transient transfection with small interfering RNAs (siRNAs) specific for raf, mek, and jnk inhibited their mRNA expression in MDA-MB-453 cells. Moreover, cotreatment with BRACs and siRNA induces a more remarkable inhibitory effect than that by either substance alone. In summary, our study suggested that BRACs suppress metastasis in breast cancer cells by targeting the RAS/RAF/MAPK pathway.
A Cloud-Based BIM Platform for Information Collaboration

The Model View Definition (MVD) approach to interoperability of BIM models requires software vendors to write export functions that can map their internal representation to the whole scope of each of many domain-specific target MVDs. However, in everyday practical use of models, a user receiving an exchanged model often requires information that is outside the scope of the exporting application. Thus the need arises to enrich the model for different uses. We propose a cloud-based mode of working in which users can freely query and enrich model objects. The data structure uses the IFC schema but enables addition of dynamically user-defined properties. The approach has been implemented using a NoSQL cloud based database and its use is illustrated with an example of semantic enrichment of a BIM model representing a damaged reinforced concrete beam reconstructed from laser scanning data
Existence of an intermediate phase for oriented percolation

We consider the following oriented percolation model of $\mathbb {N} \times \mathbb{Z}^d$: we equip $\mathbb {N}\times \mathbb{Z}^d$ with the edge set $\{[(n,x),(n+1,y)] | n\in \mathbb {N}, x,y\in \mathbb{Z}^d\}$, and we say that each edge is open with probability $p f(y-x)$ where $f(y-x)$ is a fixed non-negative compactly supported function on $\mathbb{Z}^d$ with $\sum_{z\in \mathbb{Z}^d} f(z)=1$ and $p\in [0,\inf f^{-1}]$ is the percolation parameter. Let $p_c$ denote the percolation threshold ans $Z_N$ the number of open oriented-paths of length $N$ starting from the origin, and study the growth of $Z_N$ when percolation occurs. We prove that for if $d\ge 5$ and the function $f$ is sufficiently spread-out, then there exists a second threshold $p_c^{(2)}>p_c$ such that $Z_N/p^N$ decays exponentially fast for $p\in(p_c,p_c^{(2)})$ and does not so when $p> p_c^{(2)}$. The result should extend to the nearest neighbor-model for high-dimension, and for the spread-out model when $d=3,4$. It is known that this phenomenon does not occur in dimension 1 and 2.
Dense Rigid Reconstruction from Unstructured Discontinuous Video

Although 3D reconstruction from a monocular video has been an active area of research for a long time, and the resulting models offer great realism and accuracy, strong conditions must be typically met when capturing the video to make this possible. This prevents general reconstruction of moving objects in dynamic, uncontrolled scenes. In this paper, we address this issue. We present a novel algorithm for modelling 3D shapes from unstructured, unconstrained discontinuous footage. The technique is robust against distractors in the scene, background clutter and even shot cuts. We show reconstructed models of objects, which could not be modelled by conventional Structure from Motion methods without additional input. Finally, we present results of our reconstruction in the presence of shot cuts, showing the strength of our technique at modelling from existing footage.
Knowledge transfer in deep reinforcement learning

Tesis presentada en cumplimentacion de los requisitos del Master en Ingenieria Computacional y Sistemas Inteligentes en el Grupo de Robotica y Sistemas Autonomos. Departamento de Ciencias de la Computacion e Inteligencia Artificial con la colaboracion de Fundacion Deusto (DeustoTech).