Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Managing researcher development: ‘drastic transition’?

Academics are expected to write for publication and meet publication targets in research assessment processes. These targets are set by national bodies and institutions, and they can be daunting for academics at the start of a research career. This article reports on an intervention designed to address this issue, writer’s retreat, where academics simultaneously engaged with research assessment and developed writing projects. Using Gardner’s model of researcher development, an evaluation study showed that retreat participants quickly adopted the programmatic element, made some progress in the relational element, but made little or no progress with the personal element. This analysis shows that the structured, facilitated writer’s retreat is an effective method of researcher development, and points to specific areas where development did and did not occur. It shows that this new retreat format allows emerging researchers to negotiate their relationship with research assessment through writing, but it also identifies areas where further support is needed.
The experience of community sport development: a case study of Blaenau Gwent

In this paper, the experience of community sport development (CSD) is explored through case study evidence from Blaenau Gwent County Borough Council – an area of social disadvantage in the South Wales valleys. An empirically informed theoretical account is presented based on three key themes: (a) community development and social capital; (b) nurturing citizenship; and (c) resistance to paternalism. As a result, a re-conceptualisation of CSD is advanced in which there is an explicit recognition of the tripartite relationship between community, citizens and providers as part of an understanding of new governance. This in turn requires a shift away from dichotomous ‘bottom–up’ and ‘top–down’ approaches towards a non-hierarchical emphasis for CSD.
Expression of the Developmental Transcription Factor Fezf2 Identifies a Distinct Subpopulation of Layer 5 Intratelencephalic-Projection Neurons in Mature Mouse Motor Cortex

The transcription factor encoded by Fez family zinc finger 2 (Fezf2) is necessary for normal development of the cerebral cortex. However, Fezf2 continues to be expressed in the mature brain, indicating that it might also be necessary for cortical function throughout life. Here, we show a unique identity of Fezf2-expressing intratelencephalic-projection neurons (IT-PNs) in layer 5 of the mature mouse motor cortex, using a Fezf2–Gfp reporter mouse, in vivo retrograde labeling, whole-cell electrophysiology with morphology reconstruction, and cluster analysis. Fezf2-expressing IT-PNs occupy layer 5A and display an apical dendritic tuft; functionally, they fire broad, adapting action potentials and exhibit an Ih-mediated voltage sag that influences their synaptic properties. In contrast, IT-PNs without Fezf2 expression mainly occupy layer 5B, do not display a tuft, and exhibit regular action potential firing and little sag. Both groups of IT-PNs demonstrated distinct frequency-selective synaptic responses to commissural inputs, indicating unique contributions within the cortical microcircuitry. Our findings establish a new, distinct physiological identity of Fezf2-expressing neurons within mature motor cortex.
‘All We Did was Things Like Forces and Motion …’: Multiple Discourses in the development of primary science teachers

Previous research has highlighted challenges associated with embracing an inquiry approach to science teaching for primary teachers, often associating these challenges with insecurity linked to the lack of content knowledge. We argue that in order to understand the extent to which primary student teachers are able to embrace science teaching informed by scientific literacy for all, it is important to take into account various, sometimes competing, science teacher and primary teacher Discourses. The aim of this paper is to explore how such Discourses are constituted in the context of learning to teach during a 1-year university-based Post Graduate Certificate of Education course. The empirical data consist of semi-structured interviews with 11 student teachers. The analysis identifies 5 teacher Discourses and we argue that these can help us to better understand some of the tensions involved in becoming a primary teacher with a responsibility for teaching science: for example, in terms of the interplay between the student teachers' own educational biographies and institutionally sanctioned Discourses. One conclusion is that student teachers' willingness and ability to embrace a Discourse of science education, informed by the aim of scientific literacy for all, may be every bit as constrained by their experience of learning science through ‘traditional schooling’ as it is by their confidence with respect to their own subject knowledge. The 5 Discourses, with their complex interrelations, raise questions about which identity positions are available to students in the intersections of the Discourses and which identity positions teacher educators may seek to make available for their students.
Network Motifs Analysis of Croatian Literature

In this paper we analyse network motifs in the co-occurrence directed networks constructed from five different texts (four books and one portal) in the Croatian language. After preparing the data and network construction, we perform the network motif analysis. We analyse the motif frequencies and Z-scores in the five networks. We present the triad significance profile for five datasets. Furthermore, we compare our results with the existing results for the linguistic networks. Firstly, we show that the triad significance profile for the Croatian language is very similar with the other languages and all the networks belong to the same family of networks. However, there are certain differences between the Croatian language and other analysed languages. We conclude that this is due to the free word-order of the Croatian language.
Dimensioning IRGA gas sampling systems: laboratory and field experiments

Abstract. Both laboratory and field experiments were carried out in order to define suitable configuration ranges for the gas sampling systems (GSSs) of infrared gas analyzers (IRGAs) used in eddy covariance measurements. In the laboratory, an original dynamic calibration bench was developed in order to test the frequency attenuation and pressure drop generated by filters. In the field, three IRGAs of the same type equipped with different filters or different rain caps were installed and run and the real frequency response of the complete setup was tested. The main results are as follows. – Filters may have a strong impact on the pressure drop in the GSS and this impact increases with flow rate. – Conversely, no impact of the tested filters on cut-off frequency was found, GSSs with and without filters presenting similar cut-off frequencies. – The main limiting factor of cut-off frequency in the field was found to be the rain cap design. In addition, the impact of this design on pressure drop was also found to be noteworthy.
TCP Vegas-like Algorithm for Layered multicast Transmission

Layered multicast is probably the most elegant solution to tackle the heterogene ity problem in multicast delivery of real-time multimedia streams. However, the multiple join experiments carried out by different receivers in order to detect the available bandwidth make it hard to achieve fairness. In the present paper, we present a simple protocol, inspired from TCP-Vegas, that reduces considerably the unnecessary join experiments while achieving intra-session and inter-session fairness as well as being TCP-Friendly.
Choroidal thickness in patients with coronary artery disease

Purpose To evaluate choroidal thickness (CTh) in patients with coronary artery disease (CAD) compared to healthy controls. Design Cross-sectional. Methods Setting: Ambulatory clinic of a large city hospital. Patient population: Thirty-four patients had documented CAD, defined as history of >50% obstruction in at least one coronary artery on cardiac catheterization, positive stress test, ST elevation myocardial infarction, or revascularization procedure. Twenty-eight age-matched controls had no self-reported history of CAD or diabetes. Patients with high myopia, dense cataracts, and retinal disease were excluded. Observation procedures: Enhanced depth imaging optical coherence tomography and questionnaire regarding medical and ocular history. Main outcome measures: Subfoveal CTh and CTh 2000 μm superior, inferior, nasal, and temporal to the fovea in the left eye, measured by 2 readers. Results CTh was significantly lower in patients with CAD compared to controls at the subfoveal location (252 vs. 303 μm, P = 0.002) and at all 4 cardinal macular locations. The mean difference in CTh between the 2 groups ranged from 46 to 75 μm and was greatest in the inferior location. Within the CAD group, CTh was significantly lower temporally (P = 0.007) and nasally (P<0.001) than subfoveally, consistent with the pattern observed in controls. On multivariate analysis, CAD was negatively associated with subfoveal CTh (P = 0.006) after controlling for diabetes, hypertension, and hypercholesterolemia. Conclusions and relevance Patients with CAD have a thinner macular choroid than controls, with preservation of the normal spatial CTh pattern. Decreased CTh might predispose patients with CAD to high-risk phenotypes of age-related macular degeneration such as reticular pseudodrusen and could serve as a potential biomarker of disease in CAD.
Complexity, Emergence, Resilience and Coherence - Gaining perspective on organizations and their study

We should view organizations as complex cognitive systems, made up of people who see and interpret the world around them, and who strive to create values which have meaning to them and coherence with the group. Our corporations are populated with individuals who are striving for meaning, trying to understand what the company is about and what they have to do to succeed. If we view organizations in this way, we must have an acute awareness of how we create meaning in our organizations, of the messages which are sent, the symbols which define our organizations, and the cues given by the policies and practices. (Gratton, 2000) Managerial texts, both trade and academic, have jumped on a new bandwagon: combining cognitive reasoning with complexity “theory” as a means of explaining both the degree of change experienced in the current economy and the high level of stress and anxiety that accompanies the reactions to such change. As the Gratton quote above reveals, however, these attempts at popular psychology can only “work” if they address the more philosophical questions of meaning, identity, and coherence. We have taken this lesson to heart. Our recently completed book, Converging on Coherence (Lissack & Letiche, 2004), examines organizational coherence as an experienced phenomenon intimately associated with meaning and identity. In the book, we distinguish the phenomenology of experience from the retrospection of judgment, and critically examine the day-to-day reality of action in the absence of reflective thought. In this article we summarize our perspective. Managers will note that we are rejecting much of the foundation on which MBA programs and management consultants build their respective product offerings. Organizational studies-oriented academics will note that we are suggesting a need for a narrative turn. Both audiences are advised that this article is not intended as a persuasive argument but as an introduction. The takeaway is that complexity science notions, and cognitive science notions, cannot be literally applied to managerial situations as “readable models” capable of generating or revealing answers in some problem space. Instead, the value of these models and perspectives lies in the questions they evoke and the narratives that get told in response to such questions. It is in the questions and the resulting narratives that renewed organizational understanding and guidance lie—not in complexity; not in cognition; and not in the models of traditional organization science.
Footsteps and Inchworms: Illusions Show That Contrast Affects Apparent Speed

A horizontal grey bar that drifts horizontally across a surround of black and white vertical stripes appears to stop and start as it crosses each stripe. A dark bar appears to slow down on a black stripe, where its edges have low contrast, and to accelerate on a white stripe, where its edges have high contrast. A light-grey bar appears to slow down on a white stripe and to accelerate on a black stripe. If the background luminances at the leading and trailing edges of the moving bar are the same, the bar appears to change speed, and if they are different the bar appears to change in length. A plaid surround can induce 2-D illusions that modulate the apparent direction, not just the speed, of moving squares. Thus, the motion salience of a moving edge depends critically on its instantaneous contrast against the background.
Norms for Five Parameters of Anger: How Do Incarcerated Adults Differ From the Community?

The present study generated normative data for anger in a forensic sample in comparison to a non-forensic sample. The former sample comprised 125 incarcerated adults from an adult detention center in a large metropolitan city and the latter consisted of 182 adult patrons of a public library within the same city. Anger was assessed using the Anger Parameters Scale which taps into five parameters: Frequency, Duration, Intensity, Latency, and Threshold. Significant differences were found between both samples on three of the five parameters: incarcerated individuals experienced anger more frequently, more intensely, and for longer periods of time than participants within the non-forensic sample. These findings indicate that certain specific aspects of anger experience require greater clinical attention when treating detainees. The modest but nonsignificant gender differences across these five parameters is consistent with previous research, thus making it appropriate for treatment to target the same parameters of anger in male and female detainees.
Choice of abdominal operative incision in the obese patient: a study using blood gas measurements.

Although many factors may influence the choice of the operative incision, physiologic safety in terms of the degree of postoperative hypoxemia should be considered. No data currently exist to delineate in markedly obese patients the effect of the operative incision on the extent or duration of this hypoxemia. Fifty-four consecutive patients of both sexes, scheduled for elective jejunoileal bypass for morbid exogenous obesity, were studied. In 23 patients the operation was performed through a transverse incision and in 25 patients through a vertical incision. In 6 patients, cholecystectomy was also performed in addition to the jejunoileal bypass. Postoperatively there was a significant fall in PAO2 both in the transverse and vertical incision groups and this continued through day 4. On day 5 statistically significant hypoxemia was present only in the vertical incision group. In addition, the decrease in PaO2 was significantly greater on days 4 and 5 in the vertical group than in the transverse group. On days 2 and 3 again the mean decrease in PaO2 was greater in the vertical group but this was not statistically significant. The effect of added cholecystectomy on PaO2 was studied in 6 women with midline incisions. The results were compared with 6 subjects who had small bowel bypass without cholecystectomy and who were matched for incision, age weight, girth/height ratio, weight/height ratio, smoking habit, and percentage of predicted ERV. In both groups there was a significant fall of PAO2 from day 1 through day 4, but there was no significant difference between the two groups. Although the numbers studied were small, these limited results would suggest that the type of incesion rather than the intraoperative procedure is the important factor in determining postoperative PAO2 changes. These studies also suggest that in patients with an increased potential for postoperative hypoxemia (i.e., markedly obese), the transverse abdominal approach shoudl always be seriously considered.
Habituation of exploratory behaviour in VPA rats: animal model of autism

ABSTRACT Autism is a neurodevelopmental disorder with multifactorial aetiology, represented as impairment in social behaviour, communication and the occurrence of repetitive activities, which can be observed in the early life. The core features are frequently accompanied by other manifestations, including limited environmental exploration. The aim of the presented study, realised on an animal model of autism - VPA rats, i.e. animals prenatally affected with valproic acid on gestation day 12.5, was to investigate the habituation process of exploratory activity (manifested by a gradual decrease in the intensity of locomotor activity), which reflects the stage of the central nervous system. VPA rats were tested in open-field in three developmental periods - weaning (postnatal day 21 - PND 21), puberty (PND 42) and adulthood (PND 72). In each period of ontogenesis, the rapidity of habituation was evaluated by using the method of linear regression. Compared to controls, VPA rats showed a significant decrease in the intensity and an increase in the rapidity of exploratory activity habituation during puberty and adulthood. Our results indicate that the animal model of autism, i.e. VPA rats, showed disabilities in the development of the nervous system. These findings can help confirm not only the validity of this animal model of autism but can also help better understand neuronal changes in humans with autism
Complete Genome Sequence of Germline Chromosomally Integrated Human Herpesvirus 6A and Analyses Integration Sites Define a New Human Endogenous Virus with Potential to Reactivate as an Emerging Infection

Human herpesvirus-6A and B (HHV-6A, HHV-6B) have recently defined endogenous genomes, resulting from integration into the germline: chromosomally-integrated “CiHHV-6A/B”. These affect approximately 1.0% of human populations, giving potential for virus gene expression in every cell. We previously showed that CiHHV-6A was more divergent than CiHHV-6B by examining four genes in 44 European CiHHV-6A/B cardiac/haematology patients. There was evidence for gene expression/reactivation, implying functional non-defective genomes. To further define the relationship between HHV-6A and CiHHV-6A we used next-generation sequencing to characterize genomes from three CiHHV-6A cardiac patients. Comparisons to known exogenous HHV-6A showed CiHHV-6A genomes formed a separate clade; including all 85 non-interrupted genes and necessary cis-acting signals for reactivation as infectious virus. Greater single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) density was defined in 16 genes and the direct repeats (DR) terminal regions. Using these SNPs, deep sequencing analyses demonstrated superinfection with exogenous HHV-6A in two of the CiHHV-6A patients with recurrent cardiac disease. Characterisation of the integration sites in twelve patients identified the human chromosome 17p subtelomere as a prevalent site, which had specific repeat structures and phylogenetically related CiHHV-6A coding sequences indicating common ancestral origins. Overall CiHHV-6A genomes were similar, but distinct from known exogenous HHV-6A virus, and have the capacity to reactivate as emerging virus infections.
Ordinal Decision Models for Markov Decision Processes

Setting the values of rewards in Markov decision processes (MDP) may be a difficult task. In this paper, we consider two ordinal decision models for MDPs where only an order is known over rewards. The first one, which has been proposed recently in MDPs [23], defines preferences with respect to a reference point. The second model, which can been viewed as the dual approach of the first one, is based on quantiles. Based on the first decision model, we give a new interpretation of rewards in standard MDPs, which sheds some interesting light on the preference system used in standard MDPs. The second model based on quantile optimization is a new approach in MDPs with ordinal rewards. Although quantile-based optimality is state-dependent, we prove that an optimal stationary deterministic policy exists for a given initial state. Finally, we propose solution methods based on linear programming for optimizing quantiles.
Designing a Study to Examine Peer-Operated Self-Help Centers

There has been a growing knowledge base that describes the feasibility and value of peer-operated services. An abundance of unpublished peeroperated service literature was discovered during my review of the research literature. Most research consisted of descriptive program reports and surveys of member characteristics. In the early 1990s, a number of researchers made attempts toward more rigorous examination; however, few studies have examined distinct aspects of a peer-operated service environment and its associations with outcomes. Empowerment and satisfaction are two outcomes identified by mental health peer leaders and studied with scales developed to measure these constructs. Peer-operated services seem to offer a unique service and environment that offer peers both an alternative and a complement to traditional mental health services. The literature is very limited regarding the association between social environment and participant outcomes in peer-delivered services. As the level of public resources for these services increased, the need for an evaluation of their effectiveness seemed warranted. In order to provide further support for peer-operated services as an adjunct to traditional mental health services, it seemed important to better understand characteristics of the peer-operated self-help center environment and their relationships to participant outcomes. Few studies have examined the relationship among the variables of
Exploring Test Suite Diversification and Code Coverage in Multi-Objective Test Case Selection

Test case selection is a classic testing technique to choose a subset of existing test cases for execution, due to the limited budget and tight deadlines. While 'code coverage' is the state of practice among test case selection heuristics, recent literature has shown that `test case diversity' is also a very promising approach. In this paper, we first compare these two heuristics for test case selection in several real-world case studies (Apache Ant, Derby, JBoss, NanoXML and Math). The results show that neither of the two techniques completely dominates the other, but they can potentially be complementary. Therefore, we next propose a novel approach that maximizes both code coverage and diversity among the selected test cases using NSGA-II multi- objective optimization, and the results show a significant improvement in fault detection rate. Specifically, sometimes this novel approach detects up to 16%(Ant), 10%(JBoss), and 14% (Math) more faults compared to either of coverage or diversity-based approaches, when the testing budget is less than 20% of the entire test suite execution cost.