Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Processing Metrical Information in Silent Reading: An ERP Study

Listeners are sensitive to the metric structure of words, i.e., an alternating pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables, in auditory speech processing: Event-related potentials recorded as participants listen to a sequence of words with a consistent metrical pattern, e.g., a series of trochaic words, suggest that participants register words metrically incongruent with the preceding sequence. Here we examine whether the processing of individual words in silent reading is similarly impacted by rhythmic properties of the surrounding context. We recorded participants’ EEG as they read lists of either three trochaic or iambic disyllabic words followed by a target word that was either congruent or incongruent with the preceding metric pattern. Event-Related Potentials (ERPs) to targets were modulated by an interaction between metrical structure (iambic vs. trochaic) and congruence: for iambs, more positive ERPs were observed in the incongruent than congruent condition 250–400 ms and 400–600 ms post-stimulus, whereas no reliable impact of congruence was found for trochees. We suggest that when iambs are in an incongruent context, i.e., preceded by trochees, the context contains the metrical structure that is more typical in participants’ native language which facilitates processing relative to when they are presented in a congruent context, containing the less typical, i.e., iambic, metrical structure. The results provide evidence that comprehenders are sensitive to the prosodic properties of the context even in silent reading, such that this sensitivity impacts lexico-semantic processing of individual words.
Experimental Evaluation of Three Designs of Electrodynamic Flexural Transducers

Three designs for electrodynamic flexural transducers (EDFT) for air-coupled ultrasonics are presented and compared. An all-metal housing was used for robustness, which makes the designs more suitable for industrial applications. The housing is designed such that there is a thin metal plate at the front, with a fundamental flexural vibration mode at ∼50 kHz. By using a flexural resonance mode, good coupling to the load medium was achieved without the use of matching layers. The front radiating plate is actuated electrodynamically by a spiral coil inside the transducer, which produces an induced magnetic field when an AC current is applied to it. The transducers operate without the use of piezoelectric materials, which can simplify manufacturing and prolong the lifetime of the transducers, as well as open up possibilities for high-temperature applications. The results show that different designs perform best for the generation and reception of ultrasound. All three designs produced large acoustic pressure outputs, with a recorded sound pressure level (SPL) above 120 dB at a 40 cm distance from the highest output transducer. The sensitivity of the transducers was low, however, with single shot signal-to-noise ratio (SNR)≃15 dB in transmit–receive mode, with transmitter and receiver 40 cm apart.
Virtualization of cellular network EPC gateways based on a scalable SDN architecture

The gateways in mobile cellular networks are capable to handle the traffic from millions of subscribers at the same time, while providing high availability guarantee. Such entities are not only expensive, but also inflexible in terms of system deployment and maintenance. In this work, we investigate the feasibilities to virtualize gateway entities used in the Long Term Evolution (LTE) Evolved Packet Core (EPC). We propose a novel PDN Gateway (PGW) architecture, which decouples the control plane from the user plane by using Software Defined Network (SDN) technology. Moreover, we propose to run the user plane forwarding function on low cost IT hardware. The major advantages of our proposal are two-fold. First, our proposal lowers down the expenditure of operating services in LTE networks. Second, fine-grained resource management policies can be implemented in our virtualized gateway, which brings agility and reliability for the mobile cellular network.
Effects of Third Party Intercession on Bystander Intervention

Summary Seventy-two sets of people walking along a pathway in a large public park witnessed a person on the ground moaning, in need of assistance. Four groups of Ss were tested: alone, and in groups of two or more; with half of the Ss in each of those groups being asked by a stranger, “Do you think we should do something? ” Results indicated that 75% of the people helped when a C asked the prescribed question, compared with only 16.7% of people helping in the absence of the C. Contrary to prior research, in the absence of the C, Ss viewing the victim singly were not more likely to help than were Ss in groups.
Lone mothers and paid work: the ‘family-work project’

When a mother starts work, her daily life changes in various ways: time, money, relationships, quality of life, and well-being are all subject to modification and potentially greater uncertainty. This is also true for her children, who must adapt to changed circumstances and perhaps play a different role within the family as a consequence. Sustaining work and care over time means that the situation of being a working family must become part of the everyday and regular practice of the family, and this actively involves all family members. This article explores this concept of a ‘family-work project’ through a qualitative longitudinal study of British lone mothers and their children, starting as the mothers took up work and following the families for four to five years. The research captured the experiences of the families as they negotiated the demands of sustaining employment while living on a low, but complex, income.
NEUROPSYCHOLOGICAL OUTCOME IN RELATION TO HEAD INJURY SEVERITY: Contributions of Coma Length and Focal Abnormalities

ABSTRACTNeuropsychological test performances of 102 consecutive head-injured patients were evaluated at 1 mo and 1 yr after injury. The results of the study indicated that both coma length and the presence of focal abnormalities on computed tomography (CT) scans contribute independently to neuropsychological outcome. The effects of coma length are stronger than the effects of focal abnormalities evident on CT scans and continue to exert a stronger influence on neuropsychological outcome over the year postinjury. These results suggest that the extent of diffuse pathology may be a more important determinant of long-term behavioral outcome than the presence of focal lesions.
Visually controlled locomotion and visual orientation in animals.

A general theory of locomotor behavior in relation to physical objects is presented. Since the controlling stimulation for such behavior is mainly optical, this involves novel assumptions about object perception and about what is called visual kinaesthesis. Evidence for these assumptions is cited. On the basis of this theory it is possible to suppose that animals are visually oriented to the surfaces of their environment, not merely to light as such. In short, it is possible to explain why they seem to have space perception. Implications of this approach for maze-learning are pointed out.
Molecular Cancer

Open Access Research O 6-methylguanine-DNA methyltransferase is downregulated in transformed astrocyte cells: implications for anti-glioma therapies Abstract Background: A novel alkylating agent, temozolomide, has proven efficacious in the treatment of malignant gliomas. However, expression of O 6-methylguanine-DNA methyltransferase (MGMT) renders glioma cells resistant to the treatment, indicating that identification of mechanisms underlying the gene regulation of MGMT is highly required. Although glioma-derived cell lines have been widely employed to understand such mechanisms, those models harbor numerous unidentified genetic lesions specific for individual cell lines, which complicates the study of specific molecules and pathways.
Distant-Time Location Prediction in Low-Sampling-Rate Trajectories

With the growth of location-based services and social services, low-sampling-rate trajectories from check-in data or photos with geo-tag information becomes ubiquitous. In general, most detailed moving information in low-sampling-rate trajectories are lost. Prior works have elaborated on distant-time location prediction in high-sampling-rate trajectories. However, existing prediction models are pattern-based and thus not applicable due to the sparsity of data points in low-sampling-rate trajectories. For example, it becomes difficult to derive trajectory patterns, let alone utilizing trajectory patterns for distant-time location prediction. In this paper, given a query time, the current location and time, we aim to predict the location of an object at the query time. To address the sparsity in low-sampling-rate trajectories, we develop a Reachability-based prediction model on Time-constrained Mobility Graph (abbreviated as RTMG) to predict locations for distant-time queries. Specifically, we design an adaptive temporal exploration approach to extract effective supporting trajectories that are temporally close to the query time. These data points are then represented as a Time-constrained user mobility Graph (refers to as TG). In light of TG, we further derive the reachability probabilities among locations in TG. Thus, a location with maximum reachability from the current location among all possible locations in supporting trajectories is considered as the prediction result. To efficiently process queries, we proposed an index structure SOIT to organize location records for on-line query processing. We conduct extensive experiments on real low-sampling-rate datasets and demonstrate the effectiveness and efficiency of RTMG.
A Cross-Entropy Based Algorithm for Combinatorial Optimization Problems

Cross Entropy has been recently applied to combinatorial optimization problems with promising results. This paper proposes a new cross-entropy based algorithm for monotonic integer programming problems with knapsack-type constraints. We show how the metaheuristic method can be adapted to tackle constrained problems, provided that some basic mathematical properties are enforced. Furthermore, some insight on the convergence of the method is provided. Finally, the algorithm is tested on a number of problems drawn from the reliability realm. The proposed algorithm has been extensively tested both on problems from the literature and on randomly generated large scale instances. Computational results prove the effectiveness as well as the robustness of the algorithm on different classes of problems.
Designing exergames combining the use of fine and gross motor exercises to support self-care activities

Motor coordination problems are common in different developmental disorders including autism and dyspraxia. Gross and fine motor coordination skills are critical to the appropriate motor coordination development that is relevant to support individuals' independence. Exergames are a good tool to help children practice motor skills as they find them engaging. In this work, we present how FroggyBobby an exergame designed for practicing gross motor coordination skills, can be extended to combine gross and fine motor exercises for supporting children with motor problems to practice self-care activities that require motor coordination.
Achievement goals in aïkido and judo: A comparative study among beginner and experienced practitioners

Abstract The purpose of this study was to determine whether achievement goal orientations (task and ego) vary as a function of the type of fighting sport that is practiced (competitive: judo vs. non-competitive: aïkido), of the level of experience (beginner vs. experienced), and of gender. Children and adult practitioners of these sports were asked to respond to a French version of the Perception of Success Questionnaire (Roberts & Balague, 1991). MANOVAs and follow-up ANOVAs revealed that in the children's group, aïkidokas proved to be generally more task-oriented than judokas, experienced aïkidokas were less ego-oriented than beginner aïkidokas and experienced judokas, and experienced judokas were more ego-oriented than beginner judokas. In the adult group, experienced aïkidokas were curiously both less task- and ego-oriented than beginner aïkidokas and experienced judokas. No effects involving gender reached significance. These findings stress the compatibility of a competitive context and task orientation.
Professional Development Effects on Teacher Efficacy: Results of Randomized Field Trial

We designed a professional development (PD) program to increase the teacher efficacy of mathematics teachers. We randomly assigned 106 Grade 6 teachers in 1 school district to treatment and control conditions in a delayedtreatment design. The PD explicitly addressed 4 sources of teacher-efficacy information identified in social-cognition theory (Bandura, 1997). Treatment teachers outperformed control-group teachers on 3 measures of teacher efficacy, but results were statistically significant only for efficacy for classroom management. We attributed the teacher-efficacy effects of the PD (6% of the variance) to the priority given in the PD to management of classroom discussions and overt attempts by PD leaders to redefine teacher conceptions of classroom success.
Length of residence, cultural adjustment difficulties, and psychological distress symptoms in Asian and Latin American international college students

The authors examined cultural adjustment and psychological distress issues in 190 Asian and Latin American international college students. Findings revealed that Latin American students reported higher levels of psychological distress than did their Asian peers. Moreover, length of residence in the U.S. was negatively associated with psychological distress symptoms, and acculturative distress and intercultural competence concerns were positively related to psychological distress in both groups. Implications of the findings are discussed.
Child versus parent report of parental influences on children's weight-related attitudes and behaviors.

OBJECTIVE To compare parent and child report of parental weight-related behaviors and examine their respective associations with child's weight-related outcomes. METHODS Seventy-three parent-child dyads completed self-administered surveys that assessed parent and child report of parental direct weight-related behaviors (comments to child about weight, encourage child to diet) and indirect behaviors (dieting, comments about own weight/appearance). Outcome variables included child's body dissatisfaction, weight concerns, and dieting. RESULTS Considerable disagreement (21-30%) was found between parent and child report of parental weight-related behaviors. Both the parent and child report of direct parental behaviors were associated with child's outcomes. Child report of parental indirect behaviors was more consistently associated with child's outcomes than parent report. CONCLUSION Parent weight-related behaviors, both direct and indirect, are positively associated with child's weight-related attitudes and behaviors.
Energy-efficient transmission for wireless powered multiuser communication networks

This paper considers wireless powered communication networks (WPCN). Our goal is to investigate the maximum network energy efficiency (EE) by joint time allocation and power control while taking account the initial battery energy level of each user. It is shown that the EE maximization problem for the WPCN can be cast into the EE maximization problems for two independent networks, i.e., purely wireless powered communication networks (PWPCN) or initial energy limited communication networks (IELCN). For the PWPCN, we find that: 1) in the wireless energy transfer (WET) stage, the power station always transmits with its maximum power; 2) it is not necessary for all users to transmit signals in the wireless information transmission (WIT) stage, but all scheduled users will deplete all of their energy; 3) the maximum system EE can always be achieved by exhausting all the available time. Based on these observations, we derive a closed-form expression for the system EE based on the user EE, which transforms the original problem into a user scheduling problem that can be solved efficiently. While for the IELCN, we reveal that the most energy-efficient transmission strategy is to only schedule the user who has the highest user EE. Simulation results validate our theoretical findings and demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed scheme.
Structural Analysis of Username Segment in E-Mail Addresses of Engineering Institutes of Gujarat State of India

E-mail has become a key mechanism of electronic communication. This is true for professional organizations that like to communicate with their subjects online and are slowly shifting to paper-less office. The current paper focuses specifically on academic institutions offering Engineering course in Gujarat state and attempts for textual analysis of the usernames of the institutional e-mail addresses. We found that the institutions tend to design the username segment of their e-mail addresses by choosing words or combination of words from specific categories. The paper also highlights the use of special characters, digits and random words in designing the usernames. On the sidelines, the paper lists the style of employing department names and designations for the design process. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first formal attempt to analyze the selection of words employed for designing username segment of email addresses of engineering institutions. Keywords—E-mail address, Institute, Engineering, Username.
An Examination of the Cognitive Mechanisms by Which Assigned Goals Affect Task Performance and Reactions to Performance1

In this study, cognitive mechanisms by which assigned goals affect task performance and reactions to performance were examined. Subjects working on a creativity task were assigned one of three performance goals varying in difficulty. Ratings of subjective probability of goal attainment, expected performance, expected satisfaction with goal attainment, and desired performance were obtained prior to each of five blocks of trials. Ratings of satisfaction with performance were obtained after each trial block and ratings of ability were obtained after all trials were completed. As predicted, with increased goal difficulty, subjective probability of goal attainment decreased, but expected performance, expected satisfaction with goal attainment, and desired performance increased. Contrary to prediction, the effect of goal difficulty on task performance was not significant. LISREL analyses revealed that goal difficulty exerted both positive (through expected and desired performance) and negative (through subjective probability of goal attainment) effects on performance. Goal difficulty had a negative effect on satisfaction with performance and ratings of perceived ability. The importance of identifying the cognitive mechanisms by which assigned goals affect performance and the need to consider consequences of assigned goals other than task performance are discussed.
Inhibition of Spontaneous Rat Osteosarcoma Lung Metastasis by 3S‐[4‐(Nhydroxyamino)‐2R‐isobutylsuccinyl]amino‐1‐methoxy‐3,4‐dihydrocarbostyril, a Novel Matrix Metalloproteinase Inhibitor

In the present experiment, we examined the effects of OPB‐3206, 3S‐[4‐(N‐hydroxyamino)‐2R isobutylsuccinyl] amino‐1‐methoxy‐3,4‐dihydrocarbostyril, a novel metalloproteinase inhibitor, on the growth and metastasis of transplantable osteosarcomas (spontaneous osteosarcoma, selected lung metastatic lesions; S‐SLM), which were previously established in rats. OPB‐3206 inhibited the activities of interstitial collagenase, gelatinases A and B, and stromelysin in vitro. After oral administration to rats, its serum concentration peaked at 40 min and the drug was no longer detectable at 8 h. When OPB‐3206 was orally administered at 0%, 0.1% and 0.4% in the diet for 4 weeks, starting 7 days after subcutaneous transplantation of osteosarcomas to male Fischer 344 rats, numbers of lung metastatic nodules were significantly reduced by the highest dose, while the growth of subcutaneous tumors was not affected. Zymographic analysis showed the presence of pro matrix metalloproteinase (proMMP)‐2, proMMP‐9 and MMP‐9 activities in S‐SLM. In animals fed 0.4% OPB‐3206, the activity of proMMP‐9 was increased, but that for MMP‐9 had become undetectable. The results thus suggest that OPB‐3206 selectively inhibits lung metastasis of rat transplantable osteosarcomas by inhibiting MMP‐9 activation.
C-reactive protein adversely alters the protein-protein interaction of the endothelial isoform of nitric oxide synthase.

BACKGROUND C-reactive protein (CRP) inhibits the activity of the endothelial isoform of nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) via uncoupling of the enzyme both in vitro and in vivo. eNOS activity appears to be related in part to its interaction with other cellular proteins, including heat shock protein 90 (Hsp90), caveolin-1, and porin. In this study, we examined the effect of CRP treatment of human aortic endothelial cells (HAECs) on eNOS interaction with caveolin-1, Hsp90, and porin. METHODS We incubated HAECs with CRP (0, 12.5, and 25 mg/L) for 1, 6, or 24 h and assessed the interaction of these proteins with eNOS by immunoprecipitation and western blotting. RESULTS CRP treatment (12.5 and 25 mg/L) of HAECs for 24 h significantly increased eNOS binding to caveolin-1 (40% and 54% increase, respectively; P < 0.05) and decreased binding to Hsp90 (33% and 66% decrease, respectively; P < 0.05). CRP (25 mg/L) also significantly decreased the binding of porin to eNOS (11% decrease, P < 0.05). Similar results were seen when HAECs were treated with CRP for 6 h. CONCLUSIONS These negative protein-protein interactions of eNOS were able to partly explain the CRP-induced decreases in the activity of this critical enzyme, which caused endothelial dysfunction.
An Approach for Pit Pattern Recognition in Colonoscopy Images

In this worka new multistage approach is proposed for pit pattern recognition and classification of colonicmucosa, based on Kudoetal. Classifications system. Itconsistsoffollowingstages: narrow band (NB) colonoscopy image enhancement, binary transformation by adaptive threshold and shape recognition for obtaining pit contours. Thenthe best match for each pit contour is found by comparing each contour of the examined image with all the contours that are contained in the training sets by using Hu-moments algorithm.Finally, each pit appears outlined in a different colour according to its recognised type and each pit area is calculated.The ratio neopastic to non-neoplastic lesions is calculated for obtaining information about dangerous cases, which need immediate medical attention.The basic advantages of the proposed method are better quality of the processed image and the simple and faster algorithmfor pit pattern classification. It would help the physician by faster and more accurate recognition of colorectal cancer and to choosetherighttreatmentaccording to therespectivestage.In the paper are given also some results obtained by computer simulation of the proposed algorithm, applied on real NB images.