Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Can a Naturally Occurring Pathogen Threat Change Social Attitudes? Evaluations of Gay Men and Lesbians During the 2014 Ebola Epidemic

Previous evidence linking disease threat and social attitudes suggests that a highly salient society-wide pathogen threat should lead to more negative attitudes toward gay men and lesbians. Using a sample of 248,922 Americans recruited via the Project Implicit website, we tested whether implicit attitudes toward gay men and lesbians shifted as a result of the 2014 Ebola virus outbreak. Regression discontinuity analyses, but not t-tests, showed evidence of a small shift in implicit (but not explicit) attitudes at the height of public concern over Ebola. These results could be interpreted as providing partial support for the effects of naturally occurring pathogen threats on social attitudes. Alternatively, given the large size of our sample, the mixed evidence and small effects may reflect a boundary condition for the operation of the behavioral immune system.
Mid-latitude tropospheric ozone columns from the MOZAIC program: climatology and interannual variability

Several thousands of ozone vertical profiles collected in the course of the MOZAIC programme (Measurements of Ozone, Water Vapour, Carbon Monoxide and Nitrogen Oxides by In-Service Airbus Aircraft) from August 1994 to February 2002 are investigated to bring out climatological and interannual variability aspects. The study is centred on the most frequently visited MOZAIC airports, i.e. Frankfurt (Germany), Paris (France), New York (USA) and the cluster of Tokyo, Nagoya and Osaka (Japan). The analysis focuses on the vertical integration of ozone from the ground to the dynamical tropopause and the vertical integration of stratospheric-origin ozone throughout the troposphere. The characteristics of the MOZAIC profiles: frequency of flights, accuracy, precision, and depth of the troposphere observed, are presented. The climatological analysis shows that the Tropospheric Ozone Column ( TOC ) seasonal cycle ranges from a wintertime minimum at all four stations to a spring-summer maximum in Frankfurt, Paris, and New York. Over Japan, the maximum occurs in spring presumably because of the earlier springtime sun. The incursion of monsoon air masses into the boundary layer and into the mid troposphere then steeply diminishes the summertime value. Boundary layer contributions to the TOC are 10% higher in New York than in Frankfurt and Paris during spring and summer, and are 10% higher in Japan than in New York, Frankfurt and Paris during autumn and early spring. Local and remote anthropogenic emissions, and biomass burning over upstream regions of Asia may be responsible for the larger low- and mid-tropospheric contributions to the tropospheric ozone column over Japan throughout the year except during the summer-monsoon season. A simple Lagrangian analysis has shown that a minimum of 10% of the TOC is of stratospheric-origin throughout the year. Investigation of the short-term trends of the TOC over the period 1995–2001 shows a linear increase 0.7%/year in Frankfurt, 0.8%/year in Japan, 1.1%/year in New York and 1.6%/year in Paris for the reduced 1995–1999 period. Dominant ingredients of these positive short-term trends are the continuous increase of wintertime tropospheric ozone columns from 1996 to 1999 and the positive contributions of the mid troposphere whatever the season.
Novel Pathway of Metabolism of α-Linolenic Acid in the Guinea Pig

Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) plays an important role in the nervous system. The capacity of the infant to use the essential fatty acid α-linolenic acid (ALA) as a substrate for neural DHA has been the subject of much debate recently. In this study, we explored the metabolic fate of an oral dose of 14C-labeled ALA in guinea pigs fed a defined diet for 3 wk from weaning. Of the 14C-labeled ALA administered, more than 46% was associated with the skin and fur lipids, mostly in the FFA fraction, and less than 0.1% was in brain lipids. About 39% of the label was not recovered in the body lipids and was assumed to be expired as CO2 or unabsorbed. The fur and skin were almost equally labeled; however, because of the very low mass of ALA in the fur, the specific activity of the fur was very high. These data identify a new route of metabolism of ALA in this species, presumably through the sebaceous glands onto fur. If this pathway exists in other species, including humans, it may account for the poor efficiency of conversion of ALA to DHA, because dietary ALA would not be available for anabolic pathways such as DHA synthesis. The relevance of these data to infants is that ALA may play an important hitherto unidentified role in the skin related to barrier function or epidermal integrity. This calls for more research into the importance of ALA as an essential fatty acid in its own right in human infants.
Vision-based autonomous quadrotor landing on a moving platform

We present a quadrotor system capable of autonomously landing on a moving platform using only onboard sensing and computing. We rely on state-of-the-art computer vision algorithms, multi-sensor fusion for localization of the robot, detection and motion estimation of the moving platform, and path planning for fully autonomous navigation. Our system does not require any external infrastructure, such as motion- capture systems. No prior information about the location of the moving landing target is needed. We validate our system in both synthetic and real-world experiments using low-cost and lightweight consumer hardware. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first demonstration of a fully autonomous quadrotor system capable of landing on a moving target, using only on-board sensing and computing, without relying on any external infrastructure.
Secure Defensive Mechanisms: An Appropriate Categorisation

A defensive mechanism, which encompasses a variety of services and protections, has been proposed by several researchers for many organizations to protect system resources from misuse. In the practical use of defensive mechanisms such as CAPTCHAs and spam filters, attackers and defenders exchange 'victories,' each celebrating (temporary) success in breaking and defending. In this paper, since most of these defensive mechanisms depend on a single algorithm as a defence mechanism, we present a confusion matrix that helps to understand how a defensive mechanism performs a correct/incorrect classification. Specifically, the expected results, of a defensive mechanism from the confusion matrix, lead to categorising defensive mechanisms into two main categories: Assertive and Predictive defensive mechanisms. Moreover, the predicted results of a predictive defensive mechanism can be divided into two types: Interactive and non-Interactive defensive mechanisms. The result of this categorization scheme is useful to interested parties such as researchers, defensive mechanism designers and developers, as a tool to classify a defensive mechanism. Also, the view of interactive defensive mechanisms (IDMs) is important and useful, since it provides a consistent and clear understanding of the problem of IDMs in a system. Having such a view enables various interested parties, such as researchers, defensive mechanism design and defensive mechanism developers, to work from the same reference point, which is as unambiguous as possible.
Practical lessons of data mining at Yahoo!

The usage of data in many commercial applications has been growing at an unprecedented pace in the last decade. While successful data mining efforts lead to major business advances, there were also numerous, less publicized efforts that for one or another reason failed. In this paper, we discuss practical lessons based on years of our data mining experiences at Yahoo! and offer insights into how to drive the data mining effort to success in a business environment. We use two significant Yahoo's applications as illustrative examples: shopping categorization and behavioral targeting; and reflect on four success factors: methodology, data, infrastructure, and people.
Nucleotide sequence of the papA gene encoding the Pap pilus subunit of human uropathogenic Escherichia coli

The papA gene of the uropathogenic strain Escherichia coli J96, coding for the Pap pili subunit, was subjected to DNA sequencing, and found to code for an 185-amino acid-long polypeptide with a 22-amino acid-long signal peptide. Here we present the primary sequence, the hydrophilicity profile, and the predicted polypeptide secondary structure of the Pap pili subunit.
Interference Fusion Multi-Access: A Novel Multiple User Superposition Transmission Scheme for Cellular Networks

The adjacent cell interference (ACI) issue faced when applying multiple user superposition transmission (MUST) scheme to uplink transmission in cellular networks is considered in this article. To dealing with ACI we proposed a novel MUST scheme called interference fusion multiple access (IFMA). In our scheme transmission rate of superimposed ACI is reduced via compute-and-forward framework. As a result the superimposed ACI can be detected with lower complexity and its adverse effect on system performance is minimized. Both theoretical analysis and numerical results show that our scheme outperforms the available MUST schemes in cellular network scenarios.
Canine and incisor microwear in pitheciids and Ateles reflects documented patterns of tooth use.

OBJECTIVES Platyrrhine species differ in the extent to and the manner in which they use their incisors and canines during food ingestion. For example, Ateles uses its anterior teeth to process mechanically nondemanding soft fruits, while the sclerocarp-harvesting pitheciids rely extensively on these teeth to acquire and process more demanding foods. Pitheciids themselves vary in anterior tooth use, with the pitheciines (Cacajao, Chiropotes, and Pithecia) noted to use their robust canines in a variety of ways to predate seeds, while Callicebus, which rarely predates seeds, uses its incisors and exceptionally short canines to scrape tough mesocarp from fruits. To investigate the relationship between tooth use and dental wear, microwear textures were investigated for the anterior teeth of these five genera of platyrrhine primates. METHODS Using a white light confocal microscope, 12 microwear texture attributes that reflect feature size, anisotropy, density, and complexity were recorded from high-resolution epoxy casts of the incisors and canines of adult wild-collected Brazilian specimens of Ateles, Callicebus, Cacajao, Chiropotes, and Pithecia. RESULTS Pitheciine canines tend to have deep microwear features and complex, anisotropic microwear textures, while Ateles anterior teeth tend to have very small features, low feature density, and less complex and anisotropic surfaces. Callicebus incisor and canine microwear is generally intermediate in size and complexity between those extremes. CONCLUSIONS These findings align with expectations from reported field observations of tooth use and illustrate the potential for using microwear texture analysis to infer patterns of anterior tooth use in extinct primates. Am J Phys Anthropol 161:6-25, 2016. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
The GR2 Gripper: An Underactuated Hand for Open-Loop In-Hand Planar Manipulation

Performing dexterous manipulation of unknown objects with robot grippers without using high-fidelity contact sensors, active/sliding surfaces, or a priori workspace exploration is still an open problem in robot manipulation and a necessity for many robotics applications. In this paper we present a two-fingered gripper topology that enables an enhanced predefined in-hand manipulation primitive controlled without knowing the size, shape, or other particulars of the grasped object. The in-hand manipulation behavior, namely, the planar manipulation of the grasped body, is predefined thanks to a simple hybrid low-level control scheme and has an increased range of motion due to the introduction of an elastic pivot joint between the two fingers. Experimental results with a prototype clearly show the advantages and benefits of the proposed concept. Given the generality of the topology and in-hand manipulation principle, researchers and designers working on multiple areas of robotics can benefit from the findings.
The influence of high-level beliefs on self-regulatory engagement: evidence from thermal pain stimulation

Determinist beliefs have been shown to impact basic motor preparation, prosocial behavior, performance monitoring, and voluntary inhibition, presumably by diminishing the recruitment of cognitive resources for self-regulation. We sought to support and extend previous findings by applying a belief manipulation to a novel inhibition paradigm that requires participants to either execute or suppress a prepotent withdrawal reaction from a strong aversive stimulus (thermal pain). Action and inhibition responses could be determined by either external signals or voluntary choices. Our results suggest that the reduction of free will beliefs corresponds with a reduction in effort investment that influences voluntary action selection and inhibition, most directly indicated by increased time required to initiate a withdrawal response internally (but not externally). It is likely that disbelief in free will encourages participants to be more passive, to exhibit a reduction in intentional engagement, and to be disinclined to adapt their behavior to contextual needs.
Maternal malnutrition during lactation reduces skull growth in weaned rat pups: experimental and morphometric investigation

The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the effects of maternal protein and energy restriction during lactation on the bodyweight and skull dimensions of pups at weaning. At parturition, Wistar rat dams were randomly assigned to the following groups: (i) control group (C), free access to a standard laboratory diet containing 23% protein; (ii) protein-energy-restricted group (PER), free access to an isoenergetic, protein-restricted diet containing 8% protein; and (iii) energy-restricted group (ER), restricted amounts of a standard laboratory diet. The dimensions of excised pup skulls were measured directly using pre-established anatomical points. Morphometrical analysis of the skulls showed that most of the measurements in the ER and PER groups were significantly lower than in the control group, with the greatest reductions occurring in the PER group. These results show that protein and energy restriction during lactation have an important influence on pup skull development.
Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation Improves Word Retrieval in Healthy and Nonfluent Aphasic Subjects

A number of studies have shown that modulating cortical activity by means of transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) affects performances of both healthy and brain-damaged subjects. In this study, we investigated the potential of tDCS to enhance associative verbal learning in 10 healthy individuals and to improve word retrieval deficits in three patients with stroke-induced aphasia. In healthy individuals, tDCS (20 min, 1 mA) was applied over Wernicke's area (position CP5 of the International 10–20 EEG System) while they learned 20 new “words” (legal nonwords arbitrarily assigned to 20 different pictures). The healthy subjects participated in a randomized counterbalanced double-blind procedure in which they were subjected to one session of anodic tDCS over left Wernicke's area, one sham session over this location and one session of anodic tDCS stimulating the right occipito-parietal area. Each experimental session was performed during a different week (over three consecutive weeks) with 6 days of intersession interval. Over 2 weeks, three aphasic subjects participated in a randomized double-blind experiment involving intensive language training for their anomic difficulties in two tDCS conditions. Each subject participated in five consecutive daily sessions of anodic tDCS (20 min, 1 mA) and sham stimulation over Wernicke's area while they performed a picture-naming task. By the end of each week, anodic tDCS had significantly improved their accuracy on the picture-naming task. Both normal subjects and aphasic patients also had shorter naming latencies during anodic tDCS than during sham condition. At two follow-ups (1 and 3 weeks after the end of treatment), performed only in two aphasic subjects, response accuracy and reaction times were still significantly better in the anodic than in the sham condition, suggesting a long-term effect on recovery of their anomic disturbances.
Acculturation and its association with physical activity among Latinas in San Diego, California

OF THE THESIS Acculturation and its Association With Physical Activity Among Latinas in San Diego, California by Elhaum Garakani Rezaii Master of Public Health with a Concentration in Health Promotion & Behavioral Science San Diego State University, 2015 Acculturation appears to have a relationship to physical activity participation among Latinos, yet studies are inconsistent on the directionality of this relationship. The objective of this study was to understand how acculturation is related to leisure time moderate-tovigorous physical activity (MVPA) participation among Latina women. Data were drawn from the Familias Sanas y Activas II study, restricted to bilingual (or monolingual Spanish) Latinas aged 18-69 (n=414). Acculturation was assessed by proxy measures and an acculturation scale: generation status, years of residence in the U.S., age of arrival in the U.S., and Marín & Gamba’s Bidimensional Acculturation Scale. Leisure time MVPA was defined as at least 10 minute bouts of physical activity that increase the heart rate during sports, fitness, and recreational activities, and was measured through self-reported metabolic equivalent task (MET) minutes per week using the Global Physical Activity Questionnaire. Spearman’s correlations were performed to identify potential confounders. Of the Latinas studied, 82.9% were first generation immigrants. The mean years of residence was 15.1 years and the mean age of arrival was at 24.4 years of age. Sixty two percent of the women were classified as traditional and 37.4% were classified as bicultural based on the acculturation scale. An independent samples t-test indicated that women who arrived in the U.S. prior to age 25 engaged in more MET minutes of leisure time MVPA compared to women who arrived in the U.S. after age 25 (p < .05). Generation status, years of residence in the U.S., and acculturation domains were not significantly related to physical activity. Findings suggest that future public health interventions that aim to increase physical activity among Latino immigrants should target those who arrive in the U.S. as adults. Worksite or community-based interventions may be key to achieving this aim.
Novel Approach for Baseline Detection and Text Line Segmentation

Baseline detection and line segmentation are essential preprocessing steps of any OCR system. In this paper we have proposed a robust and fast method for base lines detection based on projected pattern analysis of Radon Transform. The algorithm have been tested on more than 350 samples including both printed and handwriting of Persian/Arabic, English and also multilingual documents. Obtained results indicate that in spite of narrow interline spaces and noisy components our method is capable to extract baseline in documents precisely. In addition, in the case of multi-frequencies pattern, it has been shown that proposed method can reach its performance to accurate detection of base lines.
Verbal monitoring in production and perception : a cognitive neuroscience approach

The goal of this dissertation is to investigate the process of verbal monitoring. Specifically, this thesis investigates whether internal and external monitoring proceeds via the same, perception-based process, as proposed by the perceptual loop theory. We compare verbal internal and external monitoring with the use of eye-tracking, fMRI and Parkinson patient data. The data obtained suggest that verbal monitoring is not perception based, and that is a domain general process. We therefore propose the improvement of current monitoring models by describing a domain general monitoring mechanism for internal monitoring and external monitoring, by which conflict is resolved in a process-independent manner.
Bitter taste receptors and α-gustducin regulate the secretion of ghrelin with functional effects on food intake and gastric emptying

Ghrelin is a hunger hormone with gastroprokinetic properties but the factors controlling ghrelin secretion from the stomach are unknown. Bitter taste receptors (T2R) and the gustatory G proteins, α-gustducin (gust) and α-transducin, are expressed in the gut and are involved in the chemosensation of nutrients. This study aimed to investigate whether T2R-agonists affect (i) ghrelin release via α-gustducin and (ii) food intake and gastric emptying via the release of ghrelin. The mouse stomach contains two ghrelin cell populations: cells containing octanoyl and desoctanoyl ghrelin, which were colocalized with α-gustducin and α-transducin, and cells staining for desoctanoyl ghrelin. Gavage of T2R-agonists increased plasma octanoyl ghrelin levels in WT mice but the effect was partially blunted in gust−/− mice. Intragastric administration of T2R-agonists increased food intake during the first 30 min in WT but not in gust−/− and ghrelin receptor knockout mice. This increase was accompanied by an increase in the mRNA expression of agouti-related peptide in the hypothalamus of WT but not of gust−/− mice. The temporary increase in food intake was followed by a prolonged decrease (next 4 h), which correlated with an inhibition of gastric emptying. The delay in emptying, which was partially counteracted by ghrelin, was not mediated by cholecystokinin and GLP-1 but involved a direct inhibitory effect of T2R-agonists on gastric contractility. This study is unique in providing functional evidence that activation of bitter taste receptors stimulates ghrelin secretion. Modulation of endogenous ghrelin levels by tastants may provide novel therapeutic applications for the treatment of weight -and gastrointestinal motility disorders.
Glutamate Receptor Activity Is Required for Normal Development of Tectal Cell Dendrites In Vivo

Glutamatergic retinotectal inputs mediated principally by NMDA receptors can be recorded from optic tectal neurons early during their morphological development in Xenopus tadpoles. As tectal cell dendrites elaborate, retinotectal synaptic responses acquire an AMPA receptor-mediated synaptic component, in addition to the NMDA component. Here, we tested whether glutamatergic activity was required for the elaboration of dendritic arbors in Xenopus optic tectal neurons. In vivo time-lapse imaging of single DiI-labeled neurons shows that the NMDA receptor antagonist APV (100 μm) blocked the early development of the tectal cell dendritic arbor, whereas the AMPA receptor antagonist CNQX (20 μm) or the sodium channel blocker TTX (1 μm) did not. The decreased dendritic development is attributable to failure to add new branches and extend preexisting branches. These observations indicate that NMDA-type glutamatergic activity promotes the initial development of the dendritic arbor. At later stages of tectal neuron development when AMPA receptor-mediated synaptic transmission is strong, both APV and CNQX decrease dendritic arbor branch length, consistent with a role for glutamatergic synaptic transmission in maintaining dendritic arbor structure. These results indicate that AMPA and NMDA receptors can differentially influence dendritic growth at different stages of neuronal development, in correlation with changes in the relative contribution of the receptor subtype to synaptic transmission.