Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Blogging, the nihilist impulse

Weblogs or blogs are the successors of the ’90s Internet “homepage” and create a mix of the private (online dairy) and the public (self-PR management). According to the latest rough estimates of the Blog Herald, [1] there are 100 million blogs worldwide, and it is nearly impossible to make general statements about their “nature” and divide them into proper genres. I will nonetheless attempt to do this. It is of strategic importance to develop critical categories of a theory of blogging that takes the specific mixture of technology, interface design, software architecture, and social networking into account.
Organ Donation Posters: Developing Persuasive Messages

Posters are a general form of mass media that have often been used by organ procurement organizations to promote organ donation; however, to date, there are no studies discussing the procurement efficacy of organ donation posters. The present study collected organ donation posters, analyzed their categories, and discussed the persuasive power of their graphic and text contents using the message-framing theory. Fifty-three professionally designed posters from 15 countries were selected from 2,000-plus organ donation-related websites. The posters were classified into instructional, educational, evidential, and charitable categories, and the methods and contents of their framed messages were analyzed. Results of this study showed that the posters seldom reflected knowledge about effective ways to frame their messages. Most of the posters only directly and plainly presented, but did not promote, donation messages to the audience. Only some of the posters used promotional strategies such as designing the graphics and text specifically for different populations, displaying celebrity endorsements, providing knowledge and statistical data, dispelling myths, using narrative stories, presenting successful transplantation cases, or emphasizing the well-being of others or public welfare. If the above strategies could be combined with gain-framed messages, these posters would be more persuasive. Suggestions for gain-framed message are offered, but these recommendations must be tested empirically.
Optimization of Split-And-Combine Relaying

Relays play an important role for increasing rate and reducing energy consumption of wireless networks. In this paper we consider a three-node network (source, relay, destination) in which we want to minimize total energy consumption for a given transmission rate. We analyze and optimize the Split-Combine-Relaying (SCR) protocol that for many typical parameter settings performs better than traditional decode-and-forward. SCR splits a data packet into two fragments, which are then transmitted in two phases. In the first phase of transmission, the source sends the first fragment to the relay. In the second phase of the transmission, the source sends the second fragment to the destination, while, at the same time, the relay forwards the first fragment to the destination. We provide an optimization framework to decide the amount of data in each fragment, the amount of time spent in each of the phases, and the corresponding transmission powers. We also show that an extension of SCR that employs Slepian-Wolf coding of the fragments leads to further reduction of energy consumption.
Improving assessment of analyst-relevant divergent thinking Test validation , automated scoring , and brain signature

Language analysts and other intelligence analysts must have good divergent thinking—that is, the ability to think of all relevant possibilities during problem solving. Recently, the University of Maryland Center for Advanced Study of Language (CASL) piloted and delivered an interactive one-day course that teaches analysts cognitive strategies to improve their divergent thinking. CASL also recently delivered the materials for an Analyst-Relevant Divergent Thinking Task (ARDTT). The broad aim of the present study was to address the following three questions related to the ARDTT and the divergent thinking course: (A) Is the ARDTT a valid test that (1) consists of items that are rated as highly relevant to analysis, (2) correlates positively with an existing measure of general divergent thinking ability, and (3) can be divided into two highly correlated tests for future use in course evaluation? A positive answer to these questions would motivate the use of ARDTT in future studies aimed at providing evidence that the divergent thinking course or other methods improve analyst-relevant divergent thinking. (B) Is it feasible to automatically score the flexibility of a person’s divergent thinking by computer? Flexibility is a key aspect of divergent thinking performance that reflects the number of categories or domains in which ideas are generated (e.g., use of an airplane as a transportation vehicle versus missile). Automated scoring is challenging since divergent thinking tests have no finite set of correct responses that can be known prior to testing. Nevertheless, automated scoring is worthwhile to develop since human scoring of responses is very time intensive. (C) Is there a neurophysiological signature of good verbal divergent thinking, and can this signature be identified with a simple noninvasive method for changing brain waves (e.g., listening to periodically repeated tones or acoustic beats)? Methods for changing brain waves that are inspired by the neurophysiological results could be incorporated in a neural-inspired version of the divergent thinking course.
Experience with Path Analysis and Testing of Programs

There are a number of practical difficulties in performing a path testing strategy for computer programs. One problem is in deciding which paths, out of a possible infinity, to use as test cases. A hierarchy of structural test metrics is suggested to direct the choide and to monitor the coverge of test paths. Another problem is that many of the chosen paths may be infeasible in the sense that no test data can ever execute them. Experience with the use of "allegations" to circumvent this problem and prevent the static generation of many infeasible paths is reported.
Transformation-based and Memory-based Learning for Detecting Speech Recognition Errors

This paper presents some initial experiment with transformation-based and memory-based learning for detecting errors on the word level in speech recognition results. Features that were tested include word confidence scores along with lexical, contextual and pragmatic information. The results show that the best classifier performs 11.9% better than baseline for all words, and 17.9% for content words, with the richest set of feature. Both learners’ performance was approximately equal. However, the classifiers often disagreed, which indicates that an ensemble method may be useful.
The role of queueing theory in the design and analysis of wireless sensor networks: An insight

Most research on the mathematical modelling of wireless sensor networks (WSNs) have focussed mainly on the optimization aspects, such as those relating to sensor placements, data routing, reliability, etc. Surprisingly the issue relating to performance analysis of data processing and transmission at the nodes, have not received as much attention. A considerable amount of delay to data actually happens at the nodes as a result of queue build up. Hence, understanding the role of queueing in WSN modelling is very important. In this paper we study the literature of queueing as applied to WSNs and provide insight to the current state of the art and directions for the future. The utilization of queueing theory in WSNs is broadly classified into four categories, namely, congestion control methods, power allocation schemes, network performance evaluation techniques and scheduling schemes.
Alkane Biosynthesis Genes in Cyanobacteria and Their Transcriptional Organization

In cyanobacteria, alkanes are synthesized from a fatty acyl-ACP by two enzymes, acyl–acyl carrier protein reductase and aldehyde deformylating oxygenase. Despite the great interest in the exploitation for biofuel production, nothing is known about the transcriptional organization of their genes or the physiological function of alkane synthesis. The comparison of 115 microarray datasets indicates the relatively constitutive expression of aar and ado genes. The analysis of 181 available genomes showed that in 90% of the genomes both genes are present, likely indicating their physiological relevance. In 61% of them they cluster together with genes encoding acetyl-CoA carboxyl transferase and a short-chain dehydrogenase, strengthening the link to fatty acid metabolism and in 76% of the genomes they are located in tandem, suggesting constraints on the gene arrangement. However, contrary to the expectations for an operon, we found in Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 specific promoters for the two genes, sll0208 (ado) and sll0209 (aar), which give rise to monocistronic transcripts. Moreover, the upstream located ado gene is driven by a proximal as well as a second, distal, promoter, from which a third transcript, the ~160 nt sRNA SyR9 is transcribed. Thus, the transcriptional organization of the alkane biosynthesis genes in Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 is of substantial complexity. We verified all three promoters to function independently from each other and show a similar promoter arrangement also in the more distant Nodularia spumigena, Trichodesmium erythraeum, Anabaena sp. PCC 7120, Prochlorococcus MIT9313, and MED4. The presence of separate regulatory elements and the dominance of monocistronic mRNAs suggest the possible autonomous regulation of ado and aar. The complex transcriptional organization of the alkane synthesis gene cluster has possible metabolic implications and should be considered when manipulating the expression of these genes in cyanobacteria.
Exploring the Dynamics of Large-Scale Biochemical Networks: A Computational Perspective

The complexity of even comparatively simple biochemical systems necessitates a computational description to explore and eventually understand the dynamics emerging from the underlying networks of cellular interactions. Within this contribution, several aspects relating to a computational description of large-scale biochemical networks are discussed. Topics range from a brief description of the rationales for computational modeling to the utilization of Monte Carlo methods to explore dynamic properties of biochemical networks. The main focus is to outline a path towards the construction of large-scale kinetic models of metabolic networks in the face of incomplete and uncertain knowledge of kinetic parameters. It is argued that a combination of phenotypic data, large-scale measurements, heuristic assumptions about generic rate equations, together with appropriate numerical schemes, allows for a fast and efficient way to explore the dynamic properties of biochemical networks. In this respect, several recently proposed strategies that are based on Monte Carlo methods are an important step towards large-scale kinetic models of cellular metabolism.
BNSI Slovenian broadcast news database - speech and text corpus

This paper presents the BNSI Slovenian Broadcast News database project. The result of the project is a database with speech and text corpus oriented toward large vocabulary continuous speech recognition in general domain. The speech corpus consists of 36 hours of transcribed evening and late night news. The raw database material was captured in the archive of national broadcaster RTV Slovenia that was a partner in the project. General Broadcast News transcription conventions were supplemented with language speciﬁc rules. The Tran-scriber tool was used to produce the transcriptions. All additional tools needed during the annotation process were also installed on a computer. Statistics of speech corpus is presented in the paper. The BNSI text corpus is generated from broadcasts’ scenarios for a period of 7 years. 600 monthly shows’ collections of text are included. They will be used to improve the language modeling in highly inﬂectional Slovenian language. The BNSI Slovenian Broadcast News database will be available through ELRA/ELDA.
Comment cientific comment on tumor suppressor p 53 rotein expression : prognostic significance in atients with low-risk myelodysplastic syndrome lvira

repaired, the p53-dependent apoptotic pathway is activated 9 yelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) are a heterogeneous group f clonal hematopoietic neoplasms, characterized by dysplasic findings with variable degree of bone marrow failure and roliferation of blast cells.1 It is the most common neoplastic isease of the bone marrow, with an estimated incidence f 1.3–5 per 100,000 people annually, and reaching 36 per 00,000 in patients aged 80 years or over. Risk factors include: dvanced age (MDS de novo, corresponding to 90% of cases), revious exposure to chemotherapy or radiation therapy therapy-related MDS), aplastic anemia and constitutional iseases, particularly those with abnormal DNA repair, such s Fanconi anemia.2 The clinical course is highly variable with survival ranging rom several years to a few months and variable risk of proression to acute myeloid leukemia (AML). Because of this eterogeneity, the study of prognostic factors is very imporant. Factors related to the individual (such as performance tatus, co-morbidities, age and nutritional status), biological severity of cytopenias, transfusion need, cytogenetic abnoralities, percentage of blasts, bone marrow fibrosis, primary r secondary disease) and social (access to health care and edications) impact the survival. The models most commonly sed in prognostic score for MDS de novo, such as the Internaional Prognostic Scoring System (IPSS), the WHO Prognostic coring System (WPSS), and the Revised International Prognotic Scoring System (IPSS-R) basically use biological variables, btained from the study of blood cell counts (cytopenias), per-
Consequence of Two-handed Manipulation on Speed, Precision and Perception on Spatial Input Task in 3D Modelling Applications

We developed a free form deformation application for an immersive envi- ronment in which users can interact freely using data gloves. To ensure better comfort and performances, we added the possibility of bi-manual interaction in our environ- ment. To investigate the actual gain obtained by this interaction technique we designed an experimental protocol based on spatial input tasks. In our experiment, we asked our subjects to use only the dominant hand to achieve the different tasks or, on the con- trary, to use both hands. Comparison of users' performances - i-e, time and precision - shows that, without proper training, executing a task using two hands can be more time consuming than using one hand. In fact, the degree of symmetry of the tasks per- formed with each hand seem to have a significant impact on whether or not users take advantage of bi-manual possibilities. Our results also show that bi-manual interaction can introduce proprioceptive cues that can be of help to achieve more precision in the placement or selection only when proper visual information are missing. In this study, we also wanted to investigate if bi-manual interaction can help users in their perception of the task. Even if there aren't statistically significant, our results shows that using symmetric bi-manual interaction, proprioception cues can improve user's perception.
Delocalized $L^2$-Invariants

We define extensions of the $L^2$-analytic invariants of closed manifolds, called delocalized $L^2$-invariants. These delocalized invariants are constructed in terms of a nontrivial conjugacy class of the fundamental group. We show that in many cases, they are topological in nature. We show that the marked length spectrum of an odd-dimensional hyperbolic manifold can be recovered from its delocalized $L^2$-analytic torsion. There are technical convergence questions.
A Study of Power Saving Techniques in Mobile Ad hoc Network

An ad hoc network is a group of mobile wireless nodes that cooperatively form a network among themselves without any fixed infrastructure. Most of these devices run on lithium-ion rechargeable batteries. These batteries have a lifetime of few hours of active lifetime. To improve this crucial factor, researcher tried to optimized power consumption in every aspect of mobile devices. Power consumption can be optimized or saved at device level, by controlling transmission power of packet delivery from one node to another node or by using optimized power aware routing protocol. In this paper we have studied a different existing power saving techniques and given a comparative analysis of these techniques.
Freeness with amalgamation, limit theorems and S-transform in non-commutative probability spaces of type B

The present material addresses several problems left open in the Trans. AMS paper " Non-crossing cumulants of type B" of P. Biane, F. Goodman and A. Nica. The main result is that a type B non-commutative probability space can be studied in the framework of freeness with amalgamation. This view allows easy ways of constructing a version of the S-transform as well as proving analogue results to Central Limit Theorem and Poisson Limit Theorem.
GENETIC CONTROL OF THE ANTIBODY RESPONSE

Immunization of CBA and C57 mice with a branched, multichain synthetic polypeptide, poly (tyr,glu)-poly DL-ala--poly lys, ((T,G)-A--L), in Freund's complete adjuvant results in a tenfold or more difference in the antigen-binding capacity of sera from the two strains, although they respond equally to bovine serum albumin. Immunization of CBA x C57 F1, F1 x CBA, and F1 x C57 mice reveals definite genetic control of the response to (T,G)-A--L, which appears to be due to a single major genetic factor, with perhaps one or more modifying factors. Immunization of CBA and C57 mice with (H,G)-A--L, a synthetic polypeptide in which histidine replaces tyrosine, gives the opposite result, CBA's respond and C57's do not. From this, it appears that the genetic control of the response to (T,G)-A--L is specific for the antigenic determinant. The implications of these results are discussed.
The PAAFID project: exploring the perspectives of autism in adult females among intellectual disability healthcare professionals

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore the perspectives of healthcare professionals on autism in adult females with intellectual disability (ID), including regarding the gender ratio of autism, the clinical manifestation of autism in females, and the recognition, screening and diagnosis of autism. Design/methodology/approach The questionnaire was developed following a review of the relevant literature and distributed to professionals within three healthcare trusts as well as members of two clinical research groups. The questionnaire was completed by 80 ID healthcare professionals. Data were aggregated and analysed using Microsoft Excel. Findings ID healthcare professionals had a lack of recognition of the smaller gender ratio of autism in patients with ID as compared to those without ID. Most respondents reported believing that autism manifests differently in females; with women demonstrating a greater ability to mask their symptoms. A considerable proportion of participants reported feeling less confident in recognising, screening and diagnosing autism in female patients, with many endorsing a wish for additional training in this area. Practical implications These findings suggest that ID healthcare professionals are keen to improve their skills in providing services for women with autism. Training programmes at all levels should incorporate the specific needs of women with ASD, and individual professionals and services should actively seek to address these training needs in order to promote best practice and better outcomes for women with autism. Originality/value This is the first published questionnaire exploring the perspectives of healthcare professionals regarding autism in adult females with ID.
Laser Immunonephelometryfor RoutineQuantificationof UrinaryAlbuminExcretion

We describea laser-immunonephelometricmethodforquantifyingurinaryalbuminexcretion (UAE) in large numbersof samples. For a 150-jL sample incubatedat roomtemperature for 45 mm with 40 p.L of antiserumspecificfor human serum albumin,the assay rangeforalbuminwas 0.34 to 430 mg/L. For samples analyzed undilutedand diluted 10-fold, the range of measurable albumin was from 0.34 to 430.0 mg/L. With an automated version of this method, one can assay240 samplesper hour. Intra-and interassayCVs were <6% and 9%, respectively.Measurementsby this method (y correlatedwellwiththoseobtainedby a RIA method(x): y 1.OOx+ 0.163 mg/L (n = 233; r = 0.996). The day-to-day CV forUAE was determinedfor threeconsecutivedeterminationsdone on each of 60 controlsaccordingto the time of collectionand in212 diabeticsaccordingtothe amountof24h UAE. For controls,UAE was 8.0 ± 8.1 mg/24 h (mean ± SD), CV 44 ±23%. The CV was similarfordiurnal(50 ±28%) and overnight(58 ±32%) collectionsfrom controls;and for diabeticswith normal values for UAE: 35 ± 32%, with slight albuminuria(25-300 mg/24 h): 37 ±28%, orwithmacroalbuminuna(>300 mg/24 h): 47 ±42%.
Pre-service ELT Teachers’ Beliefs and Perceptions on 21st Century Learning and Innovation Skills (4Cs)

This study investigated ELT pre-service teachers’ beliefs and perceptions on 21 st century learning and innovation skills with a special emphasis on critical, creative thinking, collaboration and communication skills (4Cs) in particular. Data were collected with a customized questionnaire including closed and open ended questions and semi-structured interviews. Results demonstrated that pre-service teachers mainly perceived 21 st century learning as the integration of technology into classrooms teaching. They were also moderately aware of and involved in 4Cs though they had high positive perceptions towards them. The words and phrases they used for the definition of critical, creative thinking, collaboration and communication were associated with the ones used in the educational context although 21 st century skills may have divergent or specialized meanings in different context. Pre-service teachers also held negative beliefs about emphasis of 4Cs in the national curriculum and assessment, but positive beliefs about professional development for 4Cs.
A Within-Subjects, Within-Task Demonstration of Intact Spatial Reference Memory and Impaired Spatial Working Memory in Glutamate Receptor-A-Deficient Mice

Gene-targeted mice lacking the AMPA receptor subunit glutamate receptor-A (GluRA) (GluR1) and wild-type controls were compared on a radial-maze task in which the same three of six arms were always baited, but in which the rewards of milk were not replaced within a trial. This procedure allowed not only a within-subjects but also a within-trials assessment of both spatial working memory (WM) and reference memory (RM) in GluRA−/− mice, using identical spatial cues. In experiment 1, the GluRA−/− mice made more WM and RM errors during task acquisition. However, separate groups of GluRA−/− and wild-type mice (experiment 2) acquired a purely RM version of the task at a similar rate, using a paradigm with which it was not possible to make WM errors (doors prevented mice from re-entering an arm that they had already visited on that trial). In contrast, mice with hippocampal lesions were dramatically impaired. These results are consistent with the possibility that the WM impairment in the GluRA−/−mice during experiment 1 produced interference that disrupted RM acquisition. A WM component was therefore introduced after RM acquisition in experiment 2 (i.e., the mice were no longer prevented from re-entering a previously visited arm). The GluRA−/− mice now made considerably more WM errors than did wild-type mice, but simultaneously, RM was only mildly and transiently impaired. These experiments provide additional evidence of a selective spatial WM deficit coexisting with intact spatial RM acquisition in GluRA−/− mice, suggesting that different neuronal mechanisms within the hippocampus may support these different kinds of information processing.