Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
CONDITIONS FOR SOCIOLOGICAL RESEARCH IN BIOGRAPHY

Sociological research in biography examines how, under continually changing social conditions, subjectivity is constituted in intersubjective processes. The reciprocity of the individual and society is not only stated as a matter of fact but is also made a guideline in sociological research. At all levels of this research area, society is the subject of discussion, ranging from a general view on social modernisation processes to issues like properties of specific milieus and family structures, and up to the socialised subject.
Peer-Con: A process contracting overlay

A peer to peer process contracting overlay what we call Peer-Con is developed. The system is an extension of Java agent development framework (JADE) and uses IEEE Foundation for Intelligent Physical Agents (FIPA) agent communication language (ACL) standard. Cost aware flexible representation of process capabilities; description of an operator to decide on whether given capabilities turnout to an agreement or not and self organization of peer connectivity for better contracting performance are distinguishing features of the system. The system can easily be adapted to different domains while the core functionality remains the same. Practical use of Peer-Con is shown by an application from digital signal processing module (DSPM) product planning domain.
A solution for multi-alignment by transformation synchronisation

The alignment of a set of objects by means of transformations plays an important role in computer vision. Whilst the case for only two objects can be solved globally, when multiple objects are considered usually iterative methods are used. In practice the iterative methods perform well if the relative transformations between any pair of objects are free of noise. However, if only noisy relative transformations are available (e.g. due to missing data or wrong correspondences) the iterative methods may fail. Based on the observation that the underlying noise-free transformations can be retrieved from the null space of a matrix that can directly be obtained from pairwise alignments, this paper presents a novel method for the synchronisation of pairwise transformations such that they are transitively consistent. Simulations demonstrate that for noisy transformations, a large proportion of missing data and even for wrong correspondence assignments the method delivers encouraging results.
Communication In Intercultural Interaction

This study examined the communication styles of East Asians and Anglo-European New Zealanders (Pakeha). Results indicated that in general, Asians exhibited more sociocentric communication behavior whereas Pakeha exhibited more idiocentric behavior. In intercultural interactions, both the frequency and intensity of these behavior styles were exacerbated. Results further indicated that task accomplishment required more time in the intercultural condition as compared to homogeneous conditions. Implications for international management research and practice are discussed.
Limits to Interstellar C4 and C5 toward ζ Ophiuchi

We have made a sensitive search for the origin bands in the known electronic transitions of the linear carbon chains C4 and C5 at 3789 and 5109 Å toward ζ Oph (Av ≤ 1). The incentive was a recent detection of C3 in this interstellar cloud with a column density of 1.6 × 1012 cm-2, plus the availability of laboratory gas phase spectra of C4 and C5. Further, some models of diffuse interstellar clouds predict that the abundance of these latter species should be within an order of magnitude of C3. Despite achieving a signal-to-noise ratio (S/N) of 2300 to 2600 per pixel at a resolution of ~110,000, the searches were negative, leading to 3 σ upper limits to the column density of N(C5)= 2 × 1011 cm-2 and N(C4)= 4 × 1012 to 1013 cm-2 where these values rely on theoretically calculated oscillator strengths. The implication of these limits is discussed along with the identification of molecules for study in future attempts to identify the carriers of the stronger diffuse interstellar bands.
Synthesis, antimicrobial and antiviral activity of substituted benzimidazoles

In the present study we have synthesized (4-nitrophenyl)-[2-(substituted phenyl)-benzoimidazol-1-yl]-methanones, (2-bromophenyl)-[2-(substituted phenyl)-benzoimidazol-1-yl]-methanone analogues (1–14) and evaluated them for their antimicrobial and antiviral potential. The results of antimicrobial screening indicated that none of the synthesized compounds were effective against the tested bacterial strains. Compounds 3, 11, 13 and compounds 5, 11, 12 were found to be active against Aspergillus niger and Candida albicans respectively, and may be further developed as antifungal agents. Furthermore, evaluation against a panel of different viruses pointed out the selective activity of compounds 5 and 6 against vaccinia virus and Coxsackie virus B4.
Towards an exemplar-based model of stress in English noun–noun compounds1

It is well known that stress assignment in English noun–noun compounds is non-uniform (compare e.g. left-prominent ópera glasses and right-prominent steel brídge), and recent corpus-based studies (e.g. Plag et al. 2007, 2008) have shown that categorical, rule-based approaches that make use of argument structure (e.g. Giegerich 2004) or semantics (e.g. Fudge 1984) are not able to account satisfactorily for the existing variability. Using data from the corpus studies by Plag and collegues, I argue in this paper that an exemplar-based approach is better-suited to accounting for stress assignment in English noun–noun compounds than a traditional, rule-based paradigm. Specifically, it is shown that two current implementations of exemplar-based algorithms, TiMBL (Daelemans et al. 2007) and AM::Parallel (Skousen & Stanford 2007), clearly outperform comparable rule models in terms of how well they predict stress assignment in the corpora. Furthermore, systematic testing reveals that the reasons for the differences between exemplar and rule models mainly lie in their ability to incorporate detailed, non-abstract information (specifically, constituent family information). The present study therefore adds to the growing evidence in favour of the importance of constituent family information in compounding (e.g. Gagné 2001, Krott, Schreuder & Baayen 2002).
Generic and Effective Specification of Structural Test Objectives

A large amount of research has been carried out to automate white-box testing. While a wide range of different and sometimes heterogeneous code-coverage criteria have been proposed, there exists no generic formalism to describe them all, and available test automation tools usually support only a small subset of them. We introduce a new specification language, called HTOL (Hyperlabel Test Objectives Language), providing a powerful generic mechanism to define a wide range of test objectives. HTOL comes with a formal semantics, and can encode all standard criteria but full mutations. Besides specification, HTOL is appealing in the context of test automation as it allows handling criteria in a unified way.
Localized boundary layer below the mid-Pacific velocity anomaly identified from a PcP precursor

Dense record sections from deep earthquakes in Fiji and Argentina recorded on hundreds of short-period stations in California at distances of 81° to 85° are used to investigate the detailed P wave velocity structure above the core-mantle boundary (CMB). In the Fiji data a secondary phase arriving 2 to 4 s after the direct P is identified as a precursor to PcP. This phase provides good evidence for a reflection off the top of a thin low-velocity layer above the CMB. Comparisons to synthetic seismograms indicate a layer thickness of 10 km and a velocity reduction of 5%–10% compared to the overlying mantle. A record section from an Argentina event does not show the PcP precursor, indicating that the low-velocity layer is not a global feature. This thin low-velocity layer is in the same place as a much larger S wave velocity anomaly in the lower mantle and is probably indicative of a boundary layer just above the CMB under the mid-Pacific.
Prevalence of psychological problems and relationships with condom use and HIV prevention behaviors among Chinese female sex workers in Hong Kong

Abstract The present study investigated the prevalence of psychological problems and their relationships with relevant HIV prevention behaviors among female sex workers (FSWs). An anonymous cross-sectional survey was conducted. With a mapping exercise, 293 Chinese FSWs were recruited from a red-light district in Hong Kong. Results showed high prevalence of psychological problems among FSWs: substance use (40.4%), probable depression (53.9%), self-harm tendencies (34–38%), poor self-esteem (48–52%), and pessimistic future outlook (46–47%). Inconsistent condom use was common (51% with clients, 23% with one-night-stand sex partner, and 73% with boyfriends). Over 70% had not used HIV-related prevention services in the last 6 months. Multivariate analyses indicated that psychological problems were significantly associated with inconsistent condom use and non-use of prevention services. The poor psychological well-beings of FSWs have important public health implications. Relevant professional services should be provided and integrated with HIV prevention efforts.
A framework for studying mechanisms underlying terminal decline in well-being

Multiple facets of well-being are known to show steep end-of-life deteriorations. However, the underlying mechanisms and pathways are vague. Capitalizing on an earlier review of the existing empirical literature on terminal decline, we present a conceptual/methodological framework that can be used as a tool to structure future inquiry aimed at refining the precision and specificity of the terminal decline concept. Specifically, we propose a model of terminal decline in well-being in which within-person mean levels of, inconsistencies in, or couplings among multiple domains of functioning serve as indicators or sources of well-being. The model, based on time-varying dynamic factor analysis of intensive longitudinal data, provides for concise articulation and testing of central tenets of theories of successful aging, including hypotheses regarding shifts in goals away from some domains and towards others (e.g. secondary control). We conclude by suggesting routes for empirical research.
When Good Water Goes Bad: How It Happens, Clinical Consequences and Possible Solutions

Dialysis fluid produced by state-of-the-art water preparation and distribution is contaminated with gram-negative bacteria and cytokine-inducing substances (CIS) derived from these microorganisms. The presence of a biofilm increases the risk of continuous contamination of dialysis fluid. Depending on the type of dialyzer membrane (cellulosic vs. synthetic) and the mode of dialysis (low flux vs. high flux with backfiltration), CIS may penetrate intact dialyzer membranes, induce cytokine production in the patient’s blood and contribute to chronic inflammation associated with long-term hemodialysis therapy. Measures to improve the microbiological quality of dialysis fluid are: (1) the awareness of the problem and regular testing of dialysate samples using adequate methods; (2) disinfection of the entire water preparation and distribution system on a regular basis, replacement of biofilm-containing tubings, and (3) installation of ultrafilters in the dialysate circuit in particular when high-flux hemodialysis modalities are performed.
The effect of permeant ions on single calcium channel activation in mouse neuroblastoma cells: ion‐channel interaction.

1. Single low‐threshold inactivating (LTI or T‐type) Ca2+ channels of undifferentiated neuroblastoma cells (clone N1E‐115) were investigated using the patch‐clamp technique. 2. Single‐channel conductance, gi, for Ca2+, Sr2+ or Ba2+ as a permeant cation was similar (7.2 pS). Mean channel open time, tau op, was also practically independent of the divalent ion species; it decreased from 0.7 to 0.3 ms between ‐40 and 0 mV. 3. Modification of the calcium channel selectivity by lowering the external Ca2+ concentration to 10(‐8) M produced an increase in gi for Na+ and Li+ ions and a shift of potential‐dependent characteristics in the hyperpolarizing direction. Voltage sensitivity and absolute values of tau op were also changed. These changes were dependent on both permeant monovalent ion type and concentration. 4. At high [Na+]o, tau op was almost potential independent (congruent to 0.3 ms). Decrease in [Na+]o and substitution of Li+ for Na+ increased tau op and the steepness of its potential dependency. 5. The divalent and monovalent cations that were tested had much smaller effect on the mean intraburst shut time, tau cl(f), which was nearly independent of membrane potential (congruent to 0.6 ms). By contrast, mean burst duration was strongly potential dependent and noticeably affected by permeant ion type. 6. All kinetic changes were analysed in terms of a four‐state sequential model for channel activation. According to this model the channel enters the open state through three closed states. Transitions between closed states can be formally related to the transmembrane movement of two charged gating particles (m2 process). The interaction between ion flux and a sterical region of the Ca2+ channel selectivity filter may, depending on ion transfer rate and ionic radius, lead to a local increase of the dielectric constant, resulting in redistribution of the electric field and changes in potential dependency of tau op.
Glucose utilization and glycogen turnover are accelerated in hypertrophied rat hearts during severe low-flow ischemia.

We undertook this study to determine if the metabolism of exogenous glucose and glycogen in hypertrophied hearts differed from that in normal hearts during severe ischemia. Thus, rates of glycolysis (3H2O production) and oxidation (14CO2 production) from exogenous glucose and glycogen were measured in isolated working control (n = 13) and hypertrophied (n = 12) hearts from sham-operated and aortic-banded rats during 40 min of severe low-flow ischemia. Hearts, in which glycogen was prelabelled with [5-3H]- or [14C]-glucose, were paced and perfused with Krebs-Henseleit solution containing 1.2 mM palmitate, 5.5 mM [5-3H]- or [14C]-glucose (different from the isotope used to label glycogen), 0.5 mM lactate and 100 microU/ml insulin during ischemia. Rates of glycolysis from exogenous glucose (3301 +/- 122 v 2467 +/- 167 nmol/min/g dry wt, mean +/- S.E.M., P < 0.05) and glucose from glycogen (808 +/- 27 v 725 +/- 21 nmol/min/g dry wt, P < 0.05) were accelerated in hypertrophied hearts compared to control hearts. However, rates of oxidation of exogenous glucose and glucose from glycogen were not significantly different between the two groups. As observed in normoxic non-ischemic hearts, glucose from glycogen was preferentially oxidized compared to exogenous glucose. Additionally, rates of glycogen synthesis (167 +/- 7 v 140 +/- 9 nmol/min/g dry wt, P < 0.05) were increased in hypertrophied hearts compared to control hearts during severe low-flow ischemia indicating that glycogen turnover (i.e. simultaneous synthesis and degradation) was accelerated in the hypertrophied heart. Thus, we demonstrate that glucose utilization and glycogen turnover are accelerated in the hypertrophied heart during severe low-flow ischemia as compared to the normal heart.
SPEECH-COCO: 600k Visually Grounded Spoken Captions Aligned to MSCOCO Data Set

This paper presents an augmentation of MSCOCO dataset where speech is added to image and text. Speech captions are generated using text-to-speech (TTS) synthesis resulting in 616,767 spoken captions (more than 600h) paired with images. Disfluencies and speed perturbation are added to the signal in order to sound more natural. Each speech signal (WAV) is paired with a JSON file containing exact timecode for each word/syllable/phoneme in the spoken caption. Such a corpus could be used for Language and Vision (LaVi) tasks including speech input or output instead of text. Investigating multimodal learning schemes for unsupervised speech pattern discovery is also possible with this corpus, as demonstrated by a preliminary study conducted on a subset of the corpus (10h, 10k spoken captions).
Religious coping and personality in later life

A stratified random subsample of 100 older adults from long‐term participants of the Second Duke Longitudinal Study was interviewed concerning how they coped with three stressful event periods. Responses to open‐ended coping questions were categorized as religious or non‐religious in nature. Mean scores on 16 personality traits were compared between religious copers. Few differences were observed in personality scores between these groups. Compared with non‐religious copers, religious copers scored lower on factor E (less aggressive or hostile, more humble, submissive); there was also a tendency towards being higher on factor G (more responsible, conscientious, and moralistic). Over a six‐year period between wave 1 and wave 4, stability or change in personality was not related to coping style. No evidence was found for negative personality traits among older religious copers that have commonly been reported in younger religious individuals.
Género y autocuidado de la diabetes mellitus tipo 2 en el Estado de México

La diabetes mellitus es un problema epidemiologico nacional poco tratado en los estudios de genero. La obesidad, la inadecuada alimentacion y el sedentarismo son factores de riesgo de esta patologia que se diagnostica con mayor frecuencia a edades mas tempranas, impactando en el equilibrio de las familias. Aunque esta enfermedad se presenta en ambos generos, la prevalencia es mas elevada en mujeres. Se realizo un estudio de diseno transversal con una muestra no probabilistica de 239 personas de dos comunidades del Estado de Mexico, a quienes previo consentimiento informado se aplico un cuestionario para analizar el genero como factor de riesgo para el autocuidado en diabetes mellitus tipo 2. El estudio da a conocer los factores no clinicos que pueden considerarse como diferenciales de genero. La prevencion considera aspectos educativos de autocuidado con un abordaje transdisciplinario e incorporando a la familia para el cuidado de la salud, por sus creencias, saberes y practicas.
Long-distance conformational changes in a protein engineered by modulated sequence duplication

There are few, if any, known instances in which a biological signal is transmitted via a large conformational change through the body of a protein. We describe here a mutant of T4 lysozyme that was engineered to permit structural change at a distance. The design uses a tandem sequence repeat that makes it possible to transmit large-scale structural changes from one end of an α-helix to the other over a distance of 17–25 Å. The method should be of general applicability and may make it possible to introduce a mutation at one site in a protein that will induce large-scale changes in the structure at a spatially remote site.
Virtual Reality Skills Training for Health Care Professionals in Alcohol Screening and Brief Intervention

Background: Educating physicians and other health care professionals about the identification and treatment of patients who drink more than recommended limits is an ongoing challenge. Methods: An educational randomized controlled trial was conducted to test the ability of a stand-alone training simulation to improve the clinical skills of health care professionals in alcohol screening and intervention. The “virtual reality simulation” combined video, voice recognition, and nonbranching logic to create an interactive environment that allowed trainees to encounter complex social cues and realistic interpersonal exchanges. The simulation included 707 questions and statements and 1207 simulated patient responses. Results: A sample of 102 health care professionals (10 physicians; 30 physician assistants or nurse practitioners; 36 medical students; 26 pharmacy, physican assistant, or nurse practitioner students) were randomly assigned to a no training group (n = 51) or a computer-based virtual reality intervention (n = 51). Professionals in both groups had similar pretest standardized patient alcohol screening skill scores: 53.2 (experimental) vs 54.4 (controls), 52.2 vs 53.7 alcohol brief intervention skills, and 42.9 vs 43.5 alcohol referral skills. After repeated practice with the simulation there were significant increases in the scores of the experimental group at 6 months after randomization compared with the control group for the screening (67.7 vs 58.1; P < .001) and brief intervention (58.3 vs 51.6; P < .04) scenarios. Conclusions: The technology tested in this trial is the first virtual reality simulation to demonstrate an increase in the alcohol screening and brief intervention skills of health care professionals.
(F, K, b)-vex sets and some related properties

In this paper, we introduce the concept of (F, K, b)-vex sets in vector spaces which is a generalization of (E-b)-vex sets given by Mishra, Mohapatra and Youness. Some properties of (F, K, b)-vex sets are investigated.
Drive-thru Internet: IEEE 802.11b for "automobile" users

This paper reports on measurement results for the use of IEEE 802.11 networks in drive-thru scenarios: we have measured transmission characteristics for sending and receiving high data volumes using UDP and TCP in vehicles moving at different speeds that pass one or more IEEE 802.11 access points at the roadside. We discuss possibilities and limitations for the use of scattered WLAN cells by devices in fast moving vehicles and provide an analysis of the performance that can he expected for the communication in such scenarios. Based on these observations, we discuss implications for higher-layer protocols and applications.
Baroreceptor Reflex Control of Heart Rate: A Predictor of Sudden Cardiac Death

To explore the possibility that the analysis of autonomic reflexes could identify subgroups at high risk of ventricular fibrillation, we studied chronically instrumented mongrel dogs randomly divided into two groups. Twelve dogs served as controls and 17 were studied 3-4 weeks after anterior wall myocardial infarction (MI). After recovery, the dogs were given bolus i.v. injections of phenylephrine, 10 tg/kg, and nitroprusside, 100 ptg/kg, to raise or lower systolic arterial pressure 30-50 mm Hg. The RR intervals were plotted against the systolic pressure during the preceding beats, and the slope (baroreflex slope) was determined by least-squares-fit linear regression. On a subsequent day, the left circumflex coronary artery was occluded for 2 minutes, beginning with the last minute of an exercise stress test and continuing for 1 minute after the cessation of exercise (MI group only). The dogs could be divided into two groups based on their response to this test; 11 dogs (65%) had ventricular fibrillation (susceptible), whereas six dogs (35%) did not (resistant). The baroreflex slope (control 20.49 ± 8.59; resistant 10.95 ± 4.68; susceptible 4.60 ± 1.77 msec/mm Hg) and the heart rate response to a 30-mm Hg increase in arterial pressure (control - 56.5 ± 14.8; resistant -40.0 ± 12.2; susceptible - 12.9 ± 5.0 beats/min) for the susceptible dogs were significantly different from those of the control and resistant dogs. This may indicate that the resistant dogs have a greater capability to activate strong vagal reflexes, which reduce vulnerability to ventricular fibrillation. We conclude that anterior wall MI significantly attenuates the baroreceptor reflex control of heart rate and that analysis of the heart rate response to arterial pressure increases allows identification of subgroups of dogs at higher risk for ventricular fibrillation. A prospective study in patients with MI is warranted.