Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Detection of Facial Expressions of Emotions in Depression

Research on perceptual and attentional processes in depression has shown that depressed as opposed to nondepressed individuals do not exhibit a positive perceptual bias in multistimulus representations. In the present study a face-in-the-crowd task was applied to examine the relationship between depression and spatial detection of facial expression of positive and negative emotions. A face-in-the-crowd task was administered to 30 subjects (15 clinically stabilized depressed inpatients and 15 normal subjects) using displays of schematic faces. Depressed subjects showed no performance differences in the detection of negative faces and no differences in decision latency for the control condition (all neutral faces) compared to normal subjects. Depressed subjects, however, were significantly slower in responding to positive faces than normal subjects. Our data suggest that depressive mood is associated with a reduced spatial attention to positive facial expression and not with an abnormal spatial processing of negative facial expression. An implication is that lowered vigilance for facial expressions of joy and happiness may affect adversely interpersonal relationships in depressed subjects.
Design and application of Soft Sensor using Ensemble Methods

Industries are faced with the choice of suitable process control policies to improve costs, quality and raw material consumption. In the paper pulp industry, it is important to estimate quickly the Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD), a parameter that is highly correlated to product quality. Soft Sensors (SSs) have been established as alternative to hardware sensors and laboratory measurements for monitoring and control purposes. However, in real setups it is often difficult to get sufficient data for SS development. This work proposes Ensemble Methods (EMs) as a way to improve the SS performance for small datasets. EMs use a set of models to obtain better prediction. Their success is usually attributed to the diversity. Bootstrap and noise injection are used to produce diverse models. Several combinations of EMs are compared. The SS is successfully applied to estimate COD in a pulp process.
Meta‐analysis of neuropsychological functioning in euthymic bipolar disorder: an update and investigation of moderator variables

Mann‐Wrobel MC, Carreno JT, Dickinson D. Meta‐analysis of neuropsychological functioning in euthymic bipolar disorder: an update and investigation of moderator variables. Bipolar Disord 2011: 13: 334–342. © 2011 The Authors. Journal compilation © 2011 John Wiley & Sons A/S.
Pre-Analytical Sample Quality: Metabolite Ratios as an Intrinsic Marker for Prolonged Room Temperature Exposure of Serum Samples

Advances in the “omics” field bring about the need for a high number of good quality samples. Many omics studies take advantage of biobanked samples to meet this need. Most of the laboratory errors occur in the pre-analytical phase. Therefore evidence-based standard operating procedures for the pre-analytical phase as well as markers to distinguish between ‘good’ and ‘bad’ quality samples taking into account the desired downstream analysis are urgently needed. We studied concentration changes of metabolites in serum samples due to pre-storage handling conditions as well as due to repeated freeze-thaw cycles. We collected fasting serum samples and subjected aliquots to up to four freeze-thaw cycles and to pre-storage handling delays of 12, 24 and 36 hours at room temperature (RT) and on wet and dry ice. For each treated aliquot, we quantified 127 metabolites through a targeted metabolomics approach. We found a clear signature of degradation in samples kept at RT. Storage on wet ice led to less pronounced concentration changes. 24 metabolites showed significant concentration changes at RT. In 22 of these, changes were already visible after only 12 hours of storage delay. Especially pronounced were increases in lysophosphatidylcholines and decreases in phosphatidylcholines. We showed that the ratio between the concentrations of these molecule classes could serve as a measure to distinguish between ‘good’ and ‘bad’ quality samples in our study. In contrast, we found quite stable metabolite concentrations during up to four freeze-thaw cycles. We concluded that pre-analytical RT handling of serum samples should be strictly avoided and serum samples should always be handled on wet ice or in cooling devices after centrifugation. Moreover, serum samples should be frozen at or below -80°C as soon as possible after centrifugation.
La flexibilité du leadership et ses relations avec la présence attentive et les facteurs de personnalité conscience et ouverture

Chapitre 1 : La problematique de recherche. Les organisations d'aujourd'hui evoluent dans un environnement instable et rencontrent une quantite importante de nouveaux defis. Le leadership represente un facteur important pour faire face a ceux-ci. Les modeles portant sur le leadership sont tres souvent prescriptifs, c. -a-d. que certains comportements precis y sont associes. Ainsi, un leader repond ou non aux criteres pour etre classe dans un type de leadership particulier. Dans le monde en constant changement dans lequel evoluent les organisations, recourir a des modeles de leadership tenant davantage compte du contexte semble particulierement approprie. A cet effet, l'interet des chercheurs pour le modele du leadership flexible est grandissant, mais peu d'etudes ont ete menees a ce sujet. Nous n'en connaissons que peu sur les determinants d'un tel leadership. Par contre, la documentation scientifique laisse presager qu'une personne possedant un haut niveau de presence attentive pourrait avoir un style de leadership plus flexible. Cette recherche vise a evaluer dans quelle mesure la presence attentive est associee a la flexibilite du leadership. Chapitre II : Le cadre theorique. L'examen des differentes conceptualisations sur le leadership flexible nous amene a choisir le modele des valeurs concurrentes de Kaiser et Overfield (2010), qui est inspire des travaux de Quinn (1988). Ceux-ci definissent le leadership flexible comme l'ajustement de « son style de leadership, sa methode ou son approche en reponse a des demandes contextuelles differentes ou changeantes de maniere a faciliter la performance de groupe ». La presence attentive quant a elle se definit comme l'attention qu'une personne porte « a son experience (interne et externe), telle qu'elle se deploie dans l'instant present et ce, sans jugement » (Kabat- Zinn, 2003). Le modele elabore par Glomb et al. (2011) suggere que la presence attentive pourrait etre liee a la flexibilite du leadership. Pour finir, les relations entretenues entre certains traits de personnalite (l'ouverture aux experiences et la conscience) avec le leadership et la presence attentive seront evaluees. Chapitre III : Le cadre methodologique. Suivant un devis correlationnel, cette etude a ete menee aupres d'un echantillon de convenance de 162 gestionnaires provenant d'organisations differentes. Un questionnaire regroupant 3 questionnaires deja existant dont la validite et la fidelite ont ete demontrees a ete utilise. Les donnees ont ete recoltees en un seul temps. Chapitre IIII : Les resultats. Les analyses correlationnelles font ressortir un lien entre la presence attentive et la flexibilite du leadership. Des resultats significatifs permettent de supporter trois de nos hypotheses et de soutenir partiellement la quatrieme. ______________________________________________________________________________ MOTS-CLES DE L’AUTEUR : Leadership flexible, presence attentive, conscience, ouverture aux experiences
Modelling Liquid Flow Through Carbon Nanotubes

In this paper, the structure of a liquid and character of its flow in carbon nanotube is investigated. A review of the literature and the results of experiments show that the simulation of fluid flow for nanoscale systems should be based on the continuum hypothesis taking into account the quantized character of the liquid in the length scale of intermolecular distances. Consideration of the flow characteristics allowed construction of the analogy of behavior of the liquid in a nanotube with a flow of a viscoplastic Bingham fluid. A model of mass transfer of liquid in a nanotube, based on the possibility of forming an empty interlayer between the moving fluid particles and the particles of the wall of the nanotube, is presented.
Teaching Students Struggling with Trauma: A Qualitative Investigation of Impact upon Curricular Goals

The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological study is to understand the impact of childhood trauma upon curricular goals for elementary school teachers in the northeastern United States. A qualitative effort was employed in an effort to examine the lived experiences of teachers working with students affected by trauma. Data were collected from interviews with six female elementary school teachers (mean experience: 18.3 years) working within what might be characterized as a small urban district, with the interview transcripts analyzed according to processes provided by Moustakas (1994). All of those interviewed were able to identify numerous students within their classrooms (past and present) who had experienced a trauma, from sexual victimization to abandonment, and noted that these experiences often manifest themselves in behaviors that are disruptive to the delivery of instruction. Teachers reported on great lengths in attempting to support and manage students struggling in the aftermath of trauma; however, most of these efforts are characterized as trial-and-error with none of the participants able to identify having received any formal training on how to best support these students. Teachers reported an increasing amount of aggression among these students over time, with the issue becoming a growing concern in recent years due to a corresponding escalation in disruptive behaviors that interrupt or cease instruction.  Download
Application of HTB-SiHa Cells Transfected with a Recombinant Plasmid for External Quality Assessment of Chlamydia trachomatis PCR

Background The participation of laboratories in external quality assessment (EQA) programs is required for the quality assurance of nucleic acid amplification of Chlamydia trachomatis. This study aimed to construct a new quality control (QC) material applicated in EQA of C. trachomatis PCR. Methods A QC material-HTB-SiHa cells transfected with a recombinant plasmid containing the cryptic plasmid sequence-was constructed for C. trachomatis PCR detection, and four different panels, each consisting of 4 positive samples with serial dilution of the constructed QC material and 1 negative sample, were distributed by the National Center for Clinical Laboratories among four groups of 275, 268, 317, and 304 participants across China from 2011 through 2012. A total of eight commercial kits were used for C. trachomatis PCR detection in participants. Results Nine laboratories reported false-positive results (0.9%). As the series dilution increased, the correct reporting of the data sets decreased; the lowest correct rate was 96.3% in the weakest positive samples (104 copies/mL). Eight laboratories reported false-positive results, and 42 laboratories reported false-negative results in the EQA detection of C. trachomatis. No significant differences were observed in the detection of the constructed C. trachomatis positive samples (97.9%, 98.5%, 100%, 98.5%; P=0.36) and negative samples (100%, 99.0%, 100%, 99.0%; P=0.764) using four commercial kits commonly used in China. Conclusions The results of the EQA study indicated that the constructed material provides a noninfectious, stable control material with sufficient volume for PCR detection of C. trachomatis.
Flow shop scheduling algorithm to optimize warehouse activities

Article history: Received April 22 2015 Received in Revised Format July 23 2015 Accepted July 28 2015 Available online August 1 2015 Successful flow-shop scheduling outlines a more rapid and efficient process of order fulfilment in warehouse activities. Indeed the way and the speed of order processing and, in particular, the operations concerning materials handling between the upper stocking area and a lower forward picking one must be optimized. The two activities, drops and pickings, have considerable impact on important performance parameters for Supply Chain wholesaler companies. In this paper, a new flow shop scheduling algorithm is formulated in order to process a greater number of orders by replacing the FIFO logic for the drops activities of a wholesaler company on a daily basis. The System Dynamics modelling and simulation have been used to simulate the actual scenario and the output solutions. Finally, a t-Student test validates the modelled algorithm, granting that it can be used for all wholesalers based on drop and picking activities. © 2016 Growing Science Ltd. All rights reserved
Hyperactivity in a Weimaraner dog

A 9-month-old intact male Weimaraner dog was referred because of pica, as an aggravating factor for a food intolerance problem. The detailed history and the behavioral examination revealed not only pica but also impulse-control problems, increased excitability, destructiveness, attention deficits and inability to relax. Hyperkinesis was discarded considering normal vital signs and the non-clear paradoxical effect during the central nervous system (CNS) stimulant test. The presumptive diagnosis was hyperactivity. Treatment initially included avoiding conflict situations and never reinforcing nor punishing the dog if these occurred, as well as reinforcing calm states, increasing both play and exercise and starting with obedience training sessions. The dog really improved at home but not outside, which led the owners to drastically shorten walks. This situation, in turn, made the dogs’ behavior worse, as he showed redirected aggression toward the owners when they tried to move him away from any new social and non-social stimuli during the walk. The improvement of the dog was finally achieved through management measures and behavioral therapy combined with fluoxetine (1.5 mg/kg, PO, q 24h), castration and the control of medical problems. The negative role of confinement of hyperactive dogs as a consequence of their excessive behavior, other contributing factors to canine hyperactivity, as well as the effect of medical conditions on behavioral problems are discussed.
Brain reserve and cognitive reserve in multiple sclerosis

Objective: We first tested the brain reserve (BR) hypothesis in multiple sclerosis (MS) by examining whether larger maximal lifetime brain volume (MLBV; determined by genetics) protects against disease-related cognitive impairment, and then investigated whether cognitive reserve (CR) gained through life experience (intellectually enriching leisure activities) protects against cognitive decline independently of MLBV (BR). Methods: Sixty-two patients with MS (41 relapsing-remitting MS, 21 secondary progressive MS) received MRIs to estimate BR (MLBV, estimated with intracranial volume [ICV]) and disease burden (T2 lesion load; atrophy of gray matter, white matter, thalamus, and hippocampus). Early-life cognitive leisure was measured as a source of CR. We assessed cognitive status with tasks of cognitive efficiency and memory. Hierarchical regressions were used to investigate whether higher BR (ICV) protects against cognitive impairment, and whether higher CR (leisure) independently protects against cognitive impairment over and above BR. Results: Cognitive status was positively associated with ICV (R2 = 0.066, p = 0.017). An ICV × disease burden interaction (R2 = 0.050, p = 0.030) revealed that larger ICV attenuated the impact of disease burden on cognition. Controlling for BR, higher education (R2 = 0.047, p = 0.030) and leisure (R2 = 0.090, p = 0.001) predicted better cognition. A leisure × disease burden interaction (R2 = 0.037, p = 0.030) showed that leisure independently attenuated the impact of disease burden on cognition. Follow-up analyses revealed that BR protected against cognitive inefficiency, not memory deficits, whereas CR was more protective against memory deficits than cognitive inefficiency. Conclusion: We provide evidence of BR in MS, and show that CR independently protects against disease-related cognitive decline over and above BR. Lifestyle choices protect against cognitive impairment independently of genetic factors outside of one's control.
Identification of Chronic Heart Failure Patients with a High 12-Month Mortality Risk Using Biomarkers Including Plasma C-Terminal Pro-Endothelin-1

Objectives We hypothesised that assessment of plasma C-terminal pro-endothelin-1 (CT-proET-1), a stable endothelin-1 precursor fragment, is of prognostic value in patients with chronic heart failure (CHF), beyond other prognosticators, including N-terminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP). Methods We examined 491 patients with systolic CHF (age: 63±11 years, 91% men, New York Heart Association [NYHA] class [I/II/III/IV]: 9%/45%/38%/8%, 69% ischemic etiology). Plasma CT-proET-1 was detected using a chemiluminescence immunoassay. Results Increasing CT-proET-1 was a predictor of increased cardiovascular mortality at 12-months of follow-up (standardized hazard ratio 1.42, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.04–1.95, p = 0.03) after adjusting for NT-proBNP, left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF), age, creatinine, NYHA class. In receiver operating characteristic curve analysis, areas under curve for 12-month follow-up were similar for CT-proET-1 and NT-proBNP (p = 0.40). Both NT-proBNP and CT-proET-1 added prognostic value to a base model that included LVEF, age, creatinine, and NYHA class. Adding CT-proET-1 to the base model had stronger prognostic power (p<0.01) than adding NT-proBNP (p<0.01). Adding CT-proET-1 to NT-proBNP in this model yielded further prognostic information (p = 0.02). Conclusions Plasma CT-proET-1 constitutes a novel predictor of increased 12-month cardiovascular mortality in patients with CHF. High CT-proET-1 together with high NT-proBNP enable to identify patients with CHF and particularly unfavourable outcomes.
The Roots of the Theoretical Basis for Information Retrieval

Over many years a number of theoretical constructs and models have evolved for the study of information retrieval in its various manifestations. Gradually these have settled down into a small number of generally accepted techniques. Some of these are based on logic, probability theory, or vector space theory. In my talk I will go back in time and show how these techniques took shape, and how they were based on some standard theories in formal logic, decision theory, and linear algebra. The struggle to establish these techniques is in itself of interest, especially in relation to the need to deploy a sensible theory of measurement to quantify retrieval effectiveness. In discussing this earlier work I will emphasise the research of some of the early pioneers in our field: Fairthorne, Maron, Cooper, Cleverdon, Salton and Sparck Jones.
Human cytotoxic T-cell memory: long-lived responses to vaccinia virus

Peripheral T lymphocytes can be classified into two groups: naive and memory T cells. The focus of this study was to examine the duration of T-cell memory in humans. Vaccinia virus replicates in the cytoplasm of infected cells and is not thought to persist or become latent after the acute phase of infection. We identified long-lived vaccinia virus-specific memory cytotoxic T cells in adults who had been immunized against smallpox as children. Initially, we detected vaccinia virus-specific T cells in peripheral blood mononuclear cells while screening for human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1)-specific T-cell responses in HIV-1-seropositive subjects. These individuals had not had contact with vaccinia virus since their primary immunization in early childhood. Several vaccinia virus-specific CD4+ T-cell clones were derived from these donors and characterized. Healthy, HIV-1-seronegative donors who had been immunized against smallpox many (35 to 50) years earlier were also screened for vaccinia virus-specific T-cell immunity. We found significant CD8+ and CD4+ cytotoxic T-cell responses to vaccinia virus after in vitro stimulation, indicating that these memory cells are maintained in vivo for many years. The peripheral blood mononuclear cells of young adults with no history of immunization against smallpox did not develop vaccinia virus-specific T-cell responses after in vitro stimulation. Precursor frequency analysis of the vaccinia virus-specific memory CD4+ T cells from a donor immunized with vaccinia virus 35 years earlier revealed a frequency of 1 in 65,920 CD4+ T cells. We concluded that specific vaccinia virus T-cell immunity can persist for up to 50 years after immunization against smallpox in childhood in the presumed absence of exposure to vaccinia virus.
ADAPT: a dynamically self-adjusting media access control protocol for ad hoc-networks

This paper presents a dynamically adaptive protocol for transmission (ADAPT) for ad hoc networks that combines, in a novel way, a collision-free allocation based protocol and a contention based protocol while retaining the advantages of each. At low loads, ADAPT uses its contention mechanism to reclaim/reuse bandwidth that would otherwise be wasted by a pure allocation based protocol. At high loads, ADAPT provides bounded delay guarantees by dynamically changing its operation to that of its allocation based protocol, avoiding the fundamental problem of instability associated with pure contention based protocols. Thus, ADAPT self-adjusts its behavior according to the prevailing network conditions. Both analysis and simulation results demonstrate that the two protocols interact in a positive way, showing that it is possible to combine the advantages of two fundamentally different design philosophies without suffering from their drawbacks.
Central Retinal Artery Doppler Flow Parameters Reflect the Severity of Cerebral Small-Vessel Disease

Background and Purpose— We investigated the usefulness of central retinal artery (CRA) Doppler flowmetry in patients with cerebral small-vessel disease (SVD). Methods— CRA Doppler flowmetry was performed in 103 SVD patients who underwent MRI. Sixty-four adjusted control subjects were also registered. We assessed average CRA flow parameter values for both eyes with the clinical and MRI findings. Results— Each Doppler flowmetry was performed within 5 minutes. Patients with SVD had significantly lower end-diastolic and mean velocities of the CRA than control subjects; they also had higher pulsatility and resistive indexes. Multivariate analysis showed that the number of small infarcts was an independent predictor of peak systolic and mean velocities. Grade of periventricular hyperintensities was an additional independent predictor of peak systolic and mean velocities, whereas the number of small infarcts was predictive of end-diastolic velocity. Conclusions— Flow parameters may be useful for the quantitative assessment of SVD severity.