Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Direct current stimulation of the left temporoparietal junction modulates dynamic humor appreciation

The aim of this study was to evaluate the influence of transcranial direct current stimulation targeting the left temporoparietal junction (TPJ) on humor appreciation during a dynamic video rating task. In a within-participants design, we targeted the left TPJ with anodal, cathodal, or no transcranial direct current stimulation, centered at electrode site C3 using a 4×1 targeted stimulation montage. During stimulation, participants dynamically rated a series of six stand-up comedy videos for perceived humor. We measured event-related (time-locked to crowd laughter) modulation of humor ratings as a function of stimulation condition. Results showed decreases in rated humor during anodal (vs. cathodal or none) stimulation; this pattern was evident for the majority of videos and was only partially predicted by individual differences in humor style. We discuss the possibility that upregulation of neural circuits involved in the theory of mind and empathizing with others may reduce appreciation of aggressive humor. In conclusion, the present data show that neuromodulation of the TPJ can alter the mental processes underlying humor appreciation, suggesting critical involvement of this cortical region in detecting, comprehending, and appreciating humor.
Increase of gap junctions between pancreatic B-cells during stimulation of insulin secretion

The development of gap junctions between pancreatic B-cells was quantitatively assessed in freeze-fracture replicas of isolated rat islets under different conditions of insulin secretion. The results show that in resting B-cells, gap junctions are small and scarce but that these junctions increase when insulin secretion is stimulated. Both a short (90 min) stimulation by glucose in vitro and a prolonged (2.5 d) stimulation by glibenclamide in vivo raise the number of gap junctions; in addition, the glibenclamide stimulation causes an increase in the size of individual gap junctions. As a consequence, the total area occupied by gap junctions on the B-cell membrane and the ratio of this area to the cell volume were found significantly increased in the latter condition. The slight increase of these values observed after the glucose stimulation did not reach significance. These data indicate a change of gap junctions during the secretory activity of the pancreatic B-cells. The possibility that the coupling of the cells is affected by the treatment is discussed.
Using Game Elements to Make Studying More Engaging

A lot of potential exists for systems that enhance learner engagement using game elements. In particular, elements that support the activity of learning, that are designed around learning but that are distinct from the subject matter a learner is studying. This paper describes such a system, the particular support focussed on is goal setting setting custom learning goals, independent of the course being undertaken, and tracking progress on these goals in a game like way. Students’ approaches to study have been classified by a number of different inventories, perhaps the most popular is Biggs’ Study Process Questionnaire (SPQ) which divides students into one of three categories Utilising (studying no more than is necessary), Internalising (where studying is an intrinsically motivating activity), and Achieving (getting grades for their own sake). Is it possible to facilitate the state of flow, to enable more students to experience study as an intrinsically motivating activity more often? This work explores the design of a system with the goal of answering this question. This system has been trialled with a class of final year BSc computing students in order to assist them with the activity of studying for exams. The aim of the trial was to determine the degree to which the game-like system succeeded in making studying for exams more engaging. This paper describes the design of the system, and the design and results of the trial.
Cutaneous leucocytoclastic vasculitis caused by cyclosporin A (Sandimmun)

In an interesting prospective study, Papageorgiou et al ,1 reported that in a low back pain free population dissatisfaction with work status doubled the risk of reporting a new low back pain episode in the employed and non-employed. This is an interesting finding that adds to the literature on the importance of worker job perceptions to the development of low back pain episodes. In this report, however, Papageorgiou et al 1 neglected to discuss previous research on the importance of pre-injury job perceptions to chronic …
Efficient hashing with lookups in two memory accesses

The study of hashing is closely related to the analysis of balls and bins. Azar et. al. [1] showed that instead of using a single hash function if we randomly hash a ball into two bins and place it in the smaller of the two, then this dramatically lowers the maximum load on bins. This leads to the concept of two-way hashing where the largest bucket contains O(log log n) balls with high probability. The hash look up will now search in both the buckets an item hashes to. Since an item may be placed in one of two buckets, we could potentially move an item after it has been initially placed to reduce maximum load. Using this fact, we present a simple, practical hashing scheme that maintains a maximum load of 2, with high probability, while achieving high memory utilization. In fact, with n buckets, even if the space for two items are pre-allocated per bucket, as may be desirable in hardware implementations, more than n items can be stored giving a high memory utilization. Assuming truly random hash functions, we prove the following properties for our hashing scheme. • Each lookup takes two random memory accesses, and reads at most two items per access. • Each insert takes O(log n) time and up to log log n+O(1) moves, with high probability, and constant time in expectation. • Maintains 83.75% memory utilization, without requiring dynamic allocation during inserts.We also analyze the trade-off between the number of moves performed during inserts and the maximum load on a bucket. By performing at most h moves, we can maintain a maximum load of O(log log n/h log (log log n/h)). So, even by performing one move, we achieve a better bound than by performing no moves at all.
Rapid transmission of hepatitis C virus among young injecting heroin users in Southern China.

BACKGROUND Hepatitis C virus (HCV) is quickly spread through injection drug use. The prevalence and incidence of HCV in Chinese heroin users has been rarely reported. METHODS A longitudinal cohort of young injection drug users (IDU) from southern China was established to study the risk factors for blood-borne infections (597 subjects). Individuals underwent analysis for the presence of hepatitis B surface antigen and antibodies to human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1), HCV and hepatitis B surface antigen. Using self-reported risk behaviours, multivariate regression analysis was performed for factors associated with HCV prevalence and seroconversion. RESULTS At baseline, HIV-1 and HCV prevalence was 17% and 72%, respectively. Significant factors associated with HCV seroprevalence included age >25 years (odds ratio [OR] = 1.71) and injection drug use for >2 years (OR = 2.60). HCV prevalence within one year of starting heroin use was 57% for any route of administration, and 80% if restricted to injectors. After two 6-month follow-up visits, 56 out of 159 baseline HCV seronegative individuals (148.9 total person years [py]), underwent seroconversion at an incidence rate of 37.6 per 100 py. Individuals who reported injection drug use were more likely to undergo HCV seroconversion (rate ratio [RR] = 6.59). CONCLUSIONS HCV infection is rapidly acquired in heroin users who adopt injection in southern China. This study emphasizes the urgent need to implement and expand injection prevention and primary substance abuse prevention programmes in China.
Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization Motivation, money, prestige and cheats

This paper investigates the effects of supervision and incentives on subjects’ performance and cheating behavior in a real effort task. With a sample of 540 participants in three different experiments, we investigated the interaction between motivation and monetary and social rewards, with and without supervision. Our results suggest: (1) lack of supervision promotes cheating, though workers tend to cheat moderately; (2) both economic and social incentives increase motivation but only when workers like their jobs; (3) workers do not increase their band of acceptable dishonest behavior for possible economic rewards, but they do increase dishonest behavior for possible social rewards, like prestige.
Synthesis of correct and distributed adaptors for component-based systems: an automatic approach

Building a distributed system from third-party components introduces a set of problems, mainly related to compatibility and communication. Our approach to solve these problems is to build an adaptor which forces the system to exhibit only a set of safe or desired behaviors. By exploiting an abstract and partial specification of the global behavior that must be enforced, we automatically build a centralized adaptor. It mediates the interaction among components by both performing the specified behavior and, simultaneously, avoiding possible deadlocks. However in a distributed environment it is not always possible or convenient to insert a centralized adaptor. In contrast, building a distributed adaptor might increase the applicability of the approach in a real-scale context. In this paper we show how it is possible to automatically generate a distributed adaptor by exploiting an approach to the definition of distributed IDS (Intrusion Detection Systems) filters developed by us to increase security measures in component based systems. Firstly, by taking into account a high level specification of the global behavior that must be enforced, we synthesize a behavioral model of a centralized adaptor that allows the composed system to only exhibit the specified behavior and, simultaneously, avoid possible unspecified deadlocks. This model represents a lower level specification of the global behavior that is enforced by the adaptor. Secondly, by taking into account the synthesized adaptor model, we generate a set of component filters that validate the centralized adaptor behavior by simply looking at local information. In this way we address the problem of mechanically generating correct and distributed adaptors for real-scale component-based systems.
A Nonparametric Model for Event Discovery in the Geospatial-Temporal Space

The availability of geographical and temporal tagged documents enables many location and time based mining tasks. Event discovery is one of such tasks, which is to identify interesting happenings in the geographical and temporal space. In recent years, several techniques have been proposed. However, no existing work has provided a nonparametric algorithm for detecting events in the joint space crossing geographical and temporal dimensions. Furthermore, though some prior works proposed to capture the periodicities of topics in their solutions, some restrictions on the temporal patterns are often placed and they usually ignore the spatial patterns of the topics. To break through such limitations, in this paper we propose a novel nonparametric model to identify events in the geographical and temporal space, where any recurrent patterns of events can be automatically captured. In our approach, parameters are automatically determined by exploiting a Dirichlet Process. To reduce the influence from noisy terms in the detection, we distinguish its event role from its background role using a Bernoulli model in the solution. Experimental results on three real world datasets show the proposed algorithm outperforms previous state-of-the-art approaches.
Dynamic Animation of Elastic Bodies Rog

We describe an animation system that simulates the dynamics of viscoelastic bodies subject to equality and inequality constraints. The equations of motion are derived from Lagrange's equation, and constraint forces are computed by the method of Lagrange multipliers. Each elastic body is modeled as a collection of tetrahedral nite elements whose deformation is restricted to a ne transformations of their rest shapes. We use an original non-linear formula for the elastic forces, especially devised to prevent elements from collapsing to zero or negative volume. We also describe a general algorithm to detect violation of inequality constraints. For collisions, in particular, we use the optimization technique of Lin and Manocha to cut the detection time from quadratic to almost linear. Collisions are handled by temporary contact springs.
Asymptotics of Jack polynomials as the number of variables goes to infinity

In this paper we study the asymptotic behavior of the Jack rational functions as the number of variables grows to infinity. Our results generalize the results of A. Vershik and S. Kerov obtained in the Schur function case (theta=1). For theta=1/2,2 our results describe approximation of the spherical functions of the infinite-dimensional symmetric spaces $U(\infty)/O(\infty)$ and $U(2\infty)/Sp(\infty)$ by the spherical functions of the corresponding finite-dimensional symmetric spaces.
Top-k Query Processing Over Outsourced Encrypted Data

Nowadays, cloud data outsourcing provides users and companies with powerful capabilities to store and process their data in third-party data centers. However, the privacy of the outsourced data is not guaranteed by the cloud providers. One solution for protecting the user data against security attacks is to encrypt the data before being sent to the cloud servers. Then, the main problem is to evaluate user queries over the encrypted data. In this paper, we address the problem of top-k query processing over encrypted data, and propose an efficient approach called BuckTop. Our approach uses the bucketization technique to manage the encrypted data in the remote server. It includes a top-k query processing algorithm that works on the encrypted data of the buckets, and returns a set that contains the encrypted top-k results. It also has a filtering algorithm that efficiently eliminates the false positives in the server side. We implemented BuckTop, and compared its response time for processing top-k queries over encrypted data with that of the TA algorithm over original (plaintext) data. Our results show excellent performance gains. They show that the response time of BuckTop over encrypted data is close to TA over plaintext data.
ABCA1 and ABCG1 Synergize to Mediate Cholesterol Export to ApoA-I

Objective—To study the acceptor specificity for human ABCG1 (hABCG1)-mediated cholesterol efflux. Methods and Results—Cells overexpressing hABCG1 were created in Chinese Hamster Ovary (CHO-K1) cells and characterized in terms of lipid composition. hABCG1 expressed in these cells formed homodimers and was mostly present intracellularly. Cholesterol efflux from hABCG1 cells to HDL2 and HDL3 was increased but not to lipid-free apolipoproteins. A range of phospholipid containing acceptors apart from high-density lipoprotein (HDL) subclasses were also efficient in mediating ABCG1-dependent export of cholesterol. Importantly, a buoyant phospholipid-containing fraction generated from incubation of lipid-free apoA-I with macrophages was nearly as efficient as HDL2. The capacity of acceptors to induce ABCG1-mediated efflux was strongly correlated with their total phospholipid content, suggesting that acceptor phospholipids drive ABCG1-mediated efflux. Most importantly, acceptors for ABCG1-mediated cholesterol export could be generated from incubation of cells with lipid-free apoA-I through the action of ABCA1 alone. Conclusions—These results indicate a synergistic relationship between ABCA1 and ABCG1 in peripheral tissues, where ABCA1 lipidates any lipid-poor/free apoA-I to generate nascent or pre–β-HDL. These particles in turn may serve as substrates for ABCG1-mediated cholesterol export.
Merging of Use Case Models: Semantic Foundations

Use case models are the artifact of choice for capturing functional requirements. This typically collaborative activity makes merging a necessity. Use cases however, are often neglected when it comes to model merging, since they are commonly treated as text only items. By defining a formal syntax and semantics for use case models, manipulated within a generic metamodel for operation-based merging, we show how use case models can be effectively merged. This formal foundation allows for the modeling of use cases; defining meaningful change operations on them; and for detecting modeling inconsistencies, inconformities, and conflicts. Several practical examples validate the concepts presented: existing and planned tool support is introduced.
USE OF CYTOTOXIC DRUGS WITH AN END‐LINE FILTER—A STUDY OF FOUR DRUGS COMMONLY ADMINISTERED TO PAEDIATRIC PATIENTS

The absorption of Novantrone® (Mitozantrone), Adriamycin® (Doxorubicin Hydrochloride), Cerubidin® (Daunorubicin) and methotrexate to 0·2‐μM endotoxin‐retentive end‐line filters was studied under simulated infusion conditions.
Hermes - Erforschung eines Evakuierungsassistenten für den Krisenfall bei Großveranstaltungen

Das vom Bundesministerium für Forschung und Bildung geförderte Forschungsprojekt Hermes soll die Sicherheit der Personen in großen, multifunktionalen Bauwerken wie auch bei Großveranstaltungen im Freien durch die Erforschung eines Evakuierungsassistenten verbessern. Ziel des Projektes ist es, Echtzeit-Simulationen für bis zu 60.000 Personen durchzuführen und den Einsatzkräften von Polizei, Feuerwehr und Sicherheitsdienst eine Prognose zur Verfügung zu stellen, an welchen Stellen es in den nächsten Minuten zu gefährlichen Stauungen kommen wird. An dem interdisziplinären Forschungsvorhaben mit einer dreijährigen Laufzeit sind Partner aus Forschung und Wirtschaft sowie die vor Ort verantwortlichen Einsatzkräfte beteiligt. Im Mai 2011 wird die Testphase in der ESPRIT Arena in Düsseldorf beginnen.
Towards brain-robot interfaces in stroke rehabilitation

A neurorehabilitation approach that combines robot-assisted active physical therapy and Brain-Computer Interfaces (BCIs) may provide an additional mileage with respect to traditional rehabilitation methods for patients with severe motor impairment due to cerebrovascular brain damage (e.g., stroke) and other neurological conditions. In this paper, we describe the design and modes of operation of a robot-based rehabilitation framework that enables artificial support of the sensorimotor feedback loop. The aim is to increase cortical plasticity by means of Hebbian-type learning rules. A BCI-based shared-control strategy is used to drive a Barret WAM 7-degree-of-freedom arm that guides a subject's arm. Experimental validation of our setup is carried out both with healthy subjects and stroke patients. We review the empirical results which we have obtained to date, and argue that they support the feasibility of future rehabilitative treatments employing this novel approach.
Stratified sampling for even workload partitioning applied to single source shortest path algorithm

An efficient implementation of large graph processing algorithms on distributed-memory machines requires a balanced partitioning of the graph across the machines. In a previous paper we presented an algorithm, named Workload Partitioning and Scheduling (WPS), that uses domain-specific knowledge to guide a sampling procedure in large implicitly-defined graphs. WPS's sampling procedure is used for partitioning the workload into parts of similar size which is then distributed amongst different machines. This article extends that earlier study and presents an investigation of the parallel and distributed implementation of Meyer's Δ-Stepping algorithm for solving the Single-Source Shortest Path (SSSP) problem for directed graphs. Our implementation leverages the WPS algorithm for evenly distributing the workload involved in processing the vertices of the input graph across distributed-memory machines. In contrast with the previous study, which focussed on implicitly-defined graphs, this work demonstrates that WPS is also equally applicable on explicitly-defined graphs. Empirical evidence shows that applying WPS to Meyer's SSSP algorithm yields significant performance benefits.
Asymmetric fMRI adaptation reveals no evidence for mirror neurons in humans

Neurons in macaque ventral premotor cortex and inferior parietal lobe discharge during both the observation and the execution of motor acts. It has been claimed that these so-called mirror neurons form the basis of action understanding by matching the visual input with the corresponding motor program (direct matching). Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) adaptation can be used to test the direct matching account of action recognition by determining whether putative mirror neurons show adaptation for repeated motor acts independently of whether they are observed or executed. An unambiguous test of the hypothesis requires that the motor acts be meaningless to ensure that any adaptation effect is directly because of movement recognition/motor execution and not contextually determined inferences. We found adaptation for motor acts that were repeatedly observed or repeatedly executed. We also found adaptation for motor acts that were first observed and then executed, as would be expected if a previously seen act primed the subsequent execution of that act. Crucially, we found no signs of adaptation for motor acts that were first executed and then observed. Failure to find cross-modal adaptation for executed and observed motor acts is not compatible with the core assumption of mirror neuron theory, which holds that action recognition and understanding are based on motor simulation.
A note on the bottleneck counting argument

Both the bottleneck counting argument and Razborov's approximation method have been used to prove exponential lower bounds for monotone circuits. We show that under the monotone circuit model for every proof by the approximation method, there is a bottleneck counting proof and vice versa. We also illustrate the elegance of the bottleneck counting technique with a simple self-explained example: the proof of a (previously known) lower bound for the 3-CLIQUE/sub n/ problem by the bottleneck counting argument.
Automatic Identification of Infrequent Word Senses

In this paper we show that an unsupervised method for ranking word senses automatically can be used to identify infrequently occurring senses. We demonstrate this using a ranking of noun senses derived from the BNC and evaluating on the sense-tagged text available in both SemCor and the SENSEVAL-2 English all-words task. We show that the method does well at identifying senses that do not occur in a corpus, and that those that are erroneously filtered but do occur typically have a lower frequency than the other senses. This method should be useful for word sense disambiguation systems, allowing effort to be concentrated on more frequent senses; it may also be useful for other tasks such as lexical acquisition. Whilst the results on balanced corpora are promising, our chief motivation for the method is for application to domain specific text. For text within a particular domain many senses from a generic inventory will be rare, and possibly redundant. Since a large domain specific corpus of sense annotated data is not available, we evaluate our method on domain-specific corpora and demonstrate that sense types identified for removal are predominantly senses from outside the domain.