Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Academic and Social Integration and Persistence of International Students at U.S. Two-Year Institutions

As a growing number of international students discover two-year institutions as the possible gateway to U.S. higher education, it is important to have a better understanding of who these students are, what attracts them to two-year colleges, and how they engage with the campus community. To address these questions, the study used the data from the Beginning Postsecondary Students Longitudinal Study (BPS:04/06) survey to examine the profile of international students attending two-year versus four-year institutions in the United States. More specifically, the study explored to what extent international students engaged academically and socially on two-year college campuses in their first-year of study in the U.S. It also examined how students' integration related to their likelihood of persistence through the second year. The results of this study revealed that location, cost, and coursework were among the primary considerations for international students enrolling at two-year institutions in the U.S. The study found that academic advising and faculty interactions played a significant role in the first-to-second-year persistence of international students. Considering these findings, developing relationships and interactions with faculty, academic advisors, and peers should be reinforced and supported.
Religion as agent for social transformation : a case study from the Western Cape

The premise of this paper is that religion could play a significant role in transformation processes. This paper develops this hypothesis, firstly, by unpacking the concept of social transformation. Secondly, the issue of the contribution of religion as a force in change in social transformation in particular is addressed. The paper presents a short overview of the most recent debates on this issue in South Africa. Thirdly, a case study from the Western Cape will be considered and the question is posed whether the Christian religion can influence the process of social transformation and, if so, under what circumstances.
Life Task Pursuit in Social Groups: Balancing Self-Exploration and Social Integration

Personal well-being and resilience are contingent on the ability to negotiate and successfully pursue personal goals through life tasks and opportunities afforded by one's social environment. Our research addresses these processes by examining college students' participation in campus groups. We investigated simultaneous strivings toward the development of a distinct personal identity and toward social integration. Specifically, we argue that group participation is critical to selfdefinition because its enables personal exploration within the context of a network of stable social relationships. We also demonstrate that individual goals interact with group structure in shaping the nature and extent of group engagement. We conclude that successful resilience of self is a reflection of balance in life task participation, in which individuals integrate personal self-development with maintaining social connections.
Preexposure of Murine Macrophages to CpG Oligonucleotide Results in a Biphasic Tumor Necrosis Factor Alpha Response to Subsequent Lipopolysaccharide Challenge

ABSTRACT Bacterial DNA and synthetic oligonucleotides containing CpG sequences (CpG-DNA and CpG-ODN) provoke a proinflammatory cytokine response (tumor necrosis factor alpha [TNF-α], interleukin-12 [IL-12], and IL-6) and increased mortality in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-challenged mice via a TNF-α-mediated mechanism. It was hypothesized that preexposure of macrophages to CpG-ODN would result in an increased TNF-α response to subsequent LPS challenge in vitro. Using the murine macrophage cell line RAW 264.7, we demonstrated both a rapid proinflammatory cytokine response (TNF-α) and a delayed inhibitory cytokine response (IL-10) with CpG-ODN. Preexposure of macrophages to CpG-ODN for brief periods (1 to 3 h) augmented TNF-α secretion and mRNA accumulation following subsequent LPS challenge (1 μg/ml). However, prolonged preexposure to CpG-ODN (6 to 9 h) resulted in suppression of the TNF-α protein and mRNA response to LPS. The addition of anti-IL-10 antibody to CpG-ODN during preexposure resulted in an increase in the LPS-induced TNF-α response over that induced by CpG-ODN preexposure alone. Thus, while brief preexposure of macrophages to CpG-ODN augments the proinflammatory cytokine response to subsequent LPS challenge, prolonged preexposure elicits IL-10 production, which inhibits the TNF-α response. Although the initial proinflammatory effects of CpG-DNA are well established, the immune response to CpG-DNA may also include autocrine or paracrine feedback mechanisms, leading to a complex interaction of proinflammatory and inhibitory cytokines.
Investigating the validity of IEEE 802.11 MAC modeling hypotheses

As WLANs employing IEEE 802.11 have become pervasive, many analytic models for predicting their performance have been developed in recent years. Due to the complicated nature of the 802.11 MAC operation, approximations must be made to enable tractable mathematical models. In this article, through simulation we investigate the veracity of the approximations shared by many models that have been developed starting with the fundamental hypotheses in Bianchipsilas (1998 and 2000) seminal papers. We find that even for small numbers of station these assumptions that hold true for saturated stations (those that always have a packet to send) and for unsaturated stations with small buffers. However, despite their widespread adoption, we find that the commonly adopted assumptions that are used to incorporate station buffers are not appropriate. This raises questions about the predictive power of models based on these hypotheses.
Classification of Healthy Subjects and Alzheimer's Disease Patients with Dementia from Cortical Sources of Resting State EEG Rhythms: A Study Using Artificial Neural Networks

Previous evidence showed a 75.5% best accuracy in the classification of 120 Alzheimer's disease (AD) patients with dementia and 100 matched normal elderly (Nold) subjects based on cortical source current density and linear lagged connectivity estimated by eLORETA freeware from resting state eyes-closed electroencephalographic (rsEEG) rhythms (Babiloni et al., 2016a). Specifically, that accuracy was reached using the ratio between occipital delta and alpha1 current density for a linear univariate classifier (receiver operating characteristic curves). Here we tested an innovative approach based on an artificial neural network (ANN) classifier from the same database of rsEEG markers. Frequency bands of interest were delta (2–4 Hz), theta (4–8 Hz Hz), alpha1 (8–10.5 Hz), and alpha2 (10.5–13 Hz). ANN classification showed an accuracy of 77% using the most 4 discriminative rsEEG markers of source current density (parietal theta/alpha 1, temporal theta/alpha 1, occipital theta/alpha 1, and occipital delta/alpha 1). It also showed an accuracy of 72% using the most 4 discriminative rsEEG markers of source lagged linear connectivity (inter-hemispherical occipital delta/alpha 2, intra-hemispherical right parietal-limbic alpha 1, intra-hemispherical left occipital-temporal theta/alpha 1, intra-hemispherical right occipital-temporal theta/alpha 1). With these 8 markers combined, an accuracy of at least 76% was reached. Interestingly, this accuracy based on 8 (linear) rsEEG markers as inputs to ANN was similar to that obtained with a single rsEEG marker (Babiloni et al., 2016a), thus unveiling their information redundancy for classification purposes. In future AD studies, inputs to ANNs should include other classes of independent linear (i.e., directed transfer function) and non-linear (i.e., entropy) rsEEG markers to improve the classification.
Cityscape Residential Mobility and Neighborhood Change: Real Neighborhoods under the Microscope Residential Mobility: Implications for Families and Communities

Residential mobility is a process that changes lives and neighborhoods. Efforts to build strong communities are unavoidably caught up with this dynamic but have insufficient understanding of its complexities. To shed light on the underlying forces of residential mobility, this study uses a unique panel survey from the Casey Foundation's Making Connections initiative targeting poor neighborhoods in 10 cities. The study classified households in the 10 cities as movers, newcomers, or stayers, and it evaluated the push and pull factors related to their mobility decisions. Cluster analysis revealed discernible types based on life cycle, household economic factors, and neighborhood attachment. The study also investigated the effect of residential mobility on neighborhood composition, finding that neighborhood change was primarily due to differences between movers and newcomers rather than changes for stayers. Combining information on the mix of household types with the components of neighborhood change, the study suggests these neighborhoods functioned in quite different ways that are relevant to family well-being and community development.
A Study on the Geophylogeny of Clinical and Environmental Vibrio cholerae in Kenya

Cholera remains a significant public health challenge in many sub-Saharan countries including Kenya. We have performed a combination of phylogenetic and phenotypic analysis based on whole genome DNA sequences derived from 40 environmental and 57 clinical V. cholerae from different regions of Kenya isolated between 2005 and 2010. Some environmental and all clinical isolates mapped back onto wave three of the monophyletic seventh pandemic V. cholerae El Tor phylogeny but other environmental isolates were phylogenetically very distinct. Thus, the genomes of the Kenyan V. cholerae O1 El Tor isolates are clonally related to other El Tor V. cholerae isolated elsewhere in the world and similarly harbour antibiotic resistance-associated STX elements. Further, the Kenyan O1 El Tor isolates fall into two distinct clades that may have entered Kenya independently.
Exploring urban creativity: visitor experiences of Spitalfields, London.

This article critically examines visitor experiences of a creative urban area, to help explore the relationships between creative industries, consumption, and the development of urban tourism. After reviewing available literature on creative areas and their appeal for emerging types of contemporary tourists, the article concentrates on one creative area in London: Spitalfields. Drawing on 50 semistructured interviews conducted with visitors between November 2007 and March 2008, the article explores the role of the creative industries in developing urban tourism, via an analysis of visitors' perceptions, experiences, and characteristics, as well as the tangible and intangible qualities of an emerging tourism area. The findings suggest that Spitalfields is an established offthe-beaten-track destination that is starting to attract more mainstream tourists with the consequent departure of some groups of visitors. “Atmosphere” appears to be crucial to the visitor experience and is created by a number of elements including independent shops, a high number of young artists, new fashions, and cultural diversity. All these elements contribute to make the area seem distinctive, but at the same time “typically London. ” The findings shed light on the complexity of the tourist experience, interrogating some key concepts such as atmosphere, perceived authenticity, and new forms of cultural capital in the context of a creative urban area.
Secret Ingredients: The Politics of Coca in US–Peruvian Relations, 1915–65

This article explores the hidden politics around so-called 'Merchandise No. 5 ', a secret formula extract of Peruvian coca-leaf used in the American beverage Coca-Cola since the early twentieth century. It analyses the peculiar early political economy of US cocaine control which by the 1920s lent the Coca-Cola Company (and its associate, Maywood Chemical Co. of New Jersey) special roles in drug diplomacy with Peru. It then follows the paradoxical transnational politics of this coca flow during the era of emerging world restrictions on cocaine and coca (1915--6 5). Coca-Cola was deeply engaged in drug politics with Peru. This article seeks to contribute to the incipient historical scholarship on 'drug diplomacy' between the United States and Latin America during the twentieth century. It focuses on the US-Peruvian relationship around cocaleaf and cocaine between 915 and 1965, the half-century prior to the booming illicit trade that gave Andean cocaine such global notoriety in the 1970s. A complex pre-history of drug-war diplomacy lies here, much of it well hidden. Yet it involves a surprising famous corporate intermediary: the Coca-Cola Company. In the Latin American context, diplomatic, business and the newer field of 'drugs history' still remain worlds apart. Ample scholarship addresses efforts to construct international drug-control regimes in the early twentieth century. These works focus overwhelmingly on opiates (rather than understudied cocaine) and on conferences, treaties and legal structures, but rarely on dayto-day or behind-the-scenes workings of regional drug diplomacy, such as between the United States and the states of the Andes. Moreover, most diplomatic drug histories, rooted in official, legal or political narratives, overlook corporate or business roles in the formation of these drug-policy Paul Gootenberg is Professor of History and Director of Latin American and Caribbean Studies at Stony Brook University (New York). * The author thanks the Wilson Center, Washington, for the year of research and writing that produced this article. This article is based on declassified DEA Record Group 170, documents on coca at the US National Archives. Dr Steven Karch alerted me to their possibilities and NA archivist Fred Romansky vigorously helped to declassify them via the US Freedom of Information act. Laura Hein, among others, commented on earlier drafts. This content downloaded from 207.46. 13.105 on Wed, 25 May 2016 06:43:17 UTC All use subject to http://about.jstor. org/terms
Effect of Desipramine and Citalopram Treatment on Forced Swimming Test-Induced Changes in Cocaine-and Amphetamine-Regulated Transcript ( CART ) Immunoreactivity in Mice

Recent study demonstrates antidepressant-like effect of cocaineand amphetamine-regulated transcript (CART) in the forced swimming test (FST), but less is known about whether antidepressant treatments alter levels of CART immunoreactivity (CART-IR) in the FST. To explore this possibility, we assessed the treatment effects of desipramine and citalopram, which inhibit the reuptake of norepinephrine and serotonin into the presynaptic terminals, respectively, on changes in levels of CART-IR before and after the test swim in mouse brain. Levels of CART-IR in the nucleus accumbens shell (AcbSh), dorsal bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (dBNST), and hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus (PVN) were significantly increased before the test swim by desipramine and citalopram treatments. This increase in CART-IR in the AcbSh, dBNST, and PVN before the test swim remained elevated by desipramine treatment after the test swim, but this increase in these brain areas returned to near control levels after test swim by citalopram treatment. Citalopram, but not desipramine, treatment increased levels of CART-IR in the central nucleus of the amygdala (CeA) and the locus ceruleus (LC) before the test swim, and this increase was returned to control levels after the test swim in the CeA, but not in the LC. These results suggest common and distinct regulation of CART by desipramine and citalopram treatments in the FST and raise the possibility that CART in the AcbSh, dBNST, and CeA may be involved in antidepressant-like effect in the FST.
Event Valence Matters

Previous research has revealed that people feel past target events are more distant when they recall more intervening events, event markers, that are both accessible in memory and perceived to be related to that target event (Zauberman, Levav, Diehl, and Bhargave 2010). This phenomenon was called the systematic effect of event markers (SEEM). In this research, we explore the moderating effect of the valence of the target event on SEEM and suggest the difficulty of recalling event markers as the possible mechanism. Study 1 shows that SEEM mainly occur when the valence of the target event is negative rather than positive. Study 2 showed that even though people have more difficulty recalling four event markers than one regardless of event valence, the difficulty of recalling event markers only mediates SEEM when the target event valence is negative. Furthermore, when the target event is positive, SEEM does not exist, confirming that the mediating role of the difficulty of recalling event markers on SEEM is moderated by the valence of the target event.
Overview: the modulation of ageing through altered proteostasis

Popular press does well in its coverage of extreme longevity and feats of physical performance into old age. These stories provide optimism that we can enjoy good health and physical ability well into later years. The stories inevitably highlight the secret to old age such as a diet of yogurt, soup, cheese, chicken and a glass of red wine at dinner (105 year old cyclist, Robert Marchand), smoking 10–15 cigars a day (actor/comedian, George Burns) or not really doing anything special for health (122 year old Jeanne Clement). These examples, and a commercial market that sells products based on the ‘science’ of ageing, have left many confused on how to slow the ageing process. Thankfully, scientists have made great strides in the real science of ageing. Ageing research benefited greatly from the formulation of the concept of Geroscience by the Buck Institute in 2007 (Hayden, 2007), which was later adopted by the trans-NIH Geroscience Interest Group (Kennedy et al. 2014). Geroscience refers to the field of research that strives to understand ageing and the link to age-related disease. As opposed to treating one disease, the discipline seeks to understand ageing in order to simultaneously slow the onset of a number of chronic diseases that share ageing as a risk factor. By slowing the ageing process, Geroscience research seeks not necessarily to increase lifespan, but rather to increase healthspan which is the period spent free of age-related disease.
An Efficient Path Precomputation Technique for QoS Routing

To enable QoS routing it is necessary to compute the QoS metrics of the paths through the network. Path precomputation, which consists of computing the QoS metrics of the paths at regular intervals can be used for this purpose. The precomputed paths are then used to select a suitable one to route a requested QoS connection. The primary drawback of path precomputation is that the precomputed paths may not be an accurate depiction of the present network state when they are used for routing, which may lead to inefficient and inaccurate routing decisions. The discrepancy between the precomputed paths and the current network state increases as the time elapsed from the last precomputation process increases. In order to alleviate this issue, path precomputation must be performed frequently and to facilitate frequent precomputation, the communication and the computation overheads associated with path precomputation must be reduced. In this paper we present an efficient path precomputation technique which reduces the overheads associated with path precomputation significantly over the prevalent precomputation techniques. We compare the overheads of the proposed technique with the prevalent techniques via extensive simulations. Since the proposed technique offers a significant reduction in the path precomputation overheads, for given level of overheads, it can be employed more frequently than the prevalent techniques. Intuitively, this suggests that the quality and the efficiency of the routing decisions facilitated by the proposed technique will be better compared to the prevalent techniques for the same level of overheads. Our simulation results confirm this intuition
Structural variants of prolactin: occurrence and physiological significance.

I. Introduction PROLACTIN (PRL) is one of the most versatile hormones of the pituitary gland in terms of biological actions. More than 100 different and distinct effects of the hormone have been documented (1), ranging from mammary development and initiation of lactation in mammals to osmoregulation in fishes, nesting behavior in birds, and growth and metamorphosis in amphibians. These are far in excess of the reported actions of all other adenohypophyseal hormones combined. But how does a single molecule evoke so many different responses? Studies in the last few years have shown that the hormone exists in several molecular forms, some arising from posttranslational modifications and others from genetically determined factors. Such findings have led to the suggestion that PRL is perhaps a prohormone, which is synthesized as a precursor molecule and then converted to different bioactive forms as it traverses the secretory pathway. The purpose of this review is to provide an account of the recent advances i.
Antibodies to Oxidized LDL in Relation to Intima-Media Thickness in Carotid and Femoral Arteries in 58-Year-Old Subjectively Clinically Healthy Men

Abstract—Antibody (Ab) titers to oxidized low density lipoprotein (OxLDL) have been found to be independent predictors of the progression of carotid atherosclerosis. Ab titers against OxLDL may be related to the entire burden of atherosclerosis in the vascular tree or, more specifically, to the disease process in different arterial regions. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to investigate the relationship between IgG and IgM titers to modified LDL and intima-media thickness (IMT) in the carotid and femoral arteries in subjectively clinically healthy 58-year-old men. IMT was measured by ultrasound, and Ab titers to modified LDL were measured by ELISA. The results showed that the common carotid artery IMT was associated with elevated titers of IgG-OxLDL Ab and independently with systolic blood pressure, smoking, and body mass index. The femoral artery IMT showed a negative correlation to IgM-OxLDL Ab and independent associations with smoking, systolic blood pressure, and total cholesterol. To summarize, in 58-year-old subjectively clinically healthy men recruited from the general population, there was a positive association between IgG-OxLDL Ab and IMT in the common carotid artery and a negative association between IgM-OxLDL Ab and IMT in the common femoral artery. However, these associations were not independent of other risk factors.
Flow control and routing techniques for integrated voice and data networks

Abstract : We consider a model of integrated voice and data networks. In this model the network flow problem is formulated as a convex optimization problem. The objective function comprises two types of cost functions: the congestion cost functions, which limit the average input traffic to values compatible with the network conditions; and the rate limitation cost functions, which ensure that all conversations are fairly treated. A joint flow control and routing algorithm is constructed which determines the routes for each conversation, and effects flow control by setting voice packet lengths and data input rates in a manner that achieves optimal tradeoff between each user's satisfaction and the cost of network congestion. An additional congestion control protocol is specified which could be used in conjunction with the algorithm to make the latter respond more dynamically to network congestion.