Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Assessment of Locus of Control: Situational Specificity in the Sexual Context

Abstract Past research indicates that one's beliefs about the control of rewards and aversive events critically affect the quality of one's life. The concept of locus of control (LC) has been a focal point for this prior work. Few studies have examined the explanatory power of the LC concept in sexual (excluding reproductive) contexts. Problematic for past work has been the use of LC measures not developed specifically for sex research. The present study discusses methodological and conceptual issues involved in assessing LC, reports on the development of an LC measure relevant to the sexual dyad (the DSR), and compares the DSR to a general LC measure not developed expressly for sex research (the NSLC). The DSR was found to (a) have satisfactory reliability and validity, (b) correlate with sexual dyadic variables (e.g., frequency of orgasm, dyadic sexual satisfaction) but not monadic variables (e.g., masturbation frequency, masturbation attitudes), and (c) have significantly larger correlations with dyadi.
In Bonobos Yawn Contagion Is Higher among Kin and Friends

In humans, the distribution of yawn contagion is shaped by social closeness with strongly bonded pairs showing higher levels of contagion than weakly bonded pairs. This ethological finding led the authors to hypothesize that the phenomenon of yawn contagion may be the result of certain empathic abilities, although in their most basal form. Here, for the first time, we show the capacity of bonobos (Pan paniscus) to respond to yawns of conspecifics. Bonobos spontaneously yawned more frequently during resting/relaxing compared to social tension periods. The results show that yawn contagion was context independent suggesting that the probability of yawning after observing others' yawns is not affected by the propensity to engage in spontaneous yawns. As it occurs in humans, in bonobos the yawing response mostly occurred within the first minute after the perception of the stimulus. Finally, via a Linear Mixed Model we tested the effect of different variables (e.g., sex, rank, relationship quality) on yawn contagion, which increased when subjects were strongly bonded and when the triggering subject was a female. The importance of social bonding in shaping yawn contagion in bonobos, as it occurs in humans, is consistent with the hypothesis that empathy may play a role in the modulation of this phenomenon in both species. The higher frequency of yawn contagion in presence of a female as a triggering subject supports the hypothesis that adult females not only represent the relational and decisional nucleus of the bonobo society, but also that they play a key role in affecting the emotional states of others.
Essentialism and Folksociology: Ethnicity Again

The aim of this article is to show that empirical evidence suggests that no particular causal process of essence acquisition is constitutive for essentialism in folksociology. Innate potential and biological inheritance, however powerful they may be for the human cognitive mind in the domain of folkbiology, are far from necessary in essentialist folksociological classifications. Essentialism in folksociology is not defined by any particular causal process of essence acquisition. Even when we are able to detect the innateness in a particular folksociology, we should always look for other features of essentialism (inherence, sharp boundaries, immutability of identity, etc.). The article reviews some influential cognitive proposals concerning folksociology (Astuti, Gil-White, Hirschfeld), and provides arguments and empirical evidence collected in Western Ukraine in favour of the claim that the innateness is not the constitutive part of sociology, let alone of psychological essentialism.
Hole filling method of triangle mesh

This paper presents an algorithm of hole filling in triangle mesh. There are four steps in this algorithm. First, the hole's boundary information is obtained by the relations of vertex, edge and angle in the triangle mesh. Secondly, the hole is directly filled by triangles according to the order of the angles in the hole. Thirdly, the new triangles with high curvature are divided. Finally, adjust the filled mesh according to the surrounding mesh. Experimental results show the proposed algorithm is efficient and stable, and holes with complicated shape can be filled smoothly.
Towards a Sociology of Happiness: The Case of an Age Perspective on the Social Context of Well-Being

This article examines what can be the contribution of Sociology to the ‘new science of happiness’, and what can such happiness studies contribute to Sociology? It does so by presenting the example of a quantitative analysis of European Social Survey data for the UK on social capital and life satisfaction by age. It reveals heterogeneity in the relationship between social capital and SWB by age with, for instance, socialising being more strongly associated with SWB among younger and older people compared to a mid-age group. Using this analysis as a case study, the first aim is to illustrate how sociological theory can crucially enrich research on SWB by relating the under-theorised field to broader narratives. While a range of empirical findings on the correlates of subjectively reported happiness have been dutifully collected over decades, solid theory building has often been neglected. It is crucial, however, to draw the various pieces of evidence together in order to formulate viable theoretical frameworks. Sociology is a science rich in useful approaches for the study of well-being. Role-identity theory as well as socialisation theory allow us in this paper to develop testable hypotheses for well-being data and give the research field a much-needed grounding. At the same time, it is demonstrated in this article how analysing data on life satisfaction can deliver much needed empirical tests of and new perspectives on long-standing sociological theories. For instance, the unresolved debate about homo sociologicus and homo economicus as competing conceptions of man can gain new perspectives from data on SWB.
The American Journalist in the 21st Century

The good news is that the average pay for American journalists has risen to $43,588. The bad news is that the purchasing power of journalists remains below that of the early 1970s. That is according to the results of a survey of 1,150 journalists, as well as additional interviews with more than 300 online and minority journalists. This is the fourth book in a series about who U.S. journalists are and, in the process, describes how the industry is changing (or in some ways—not changing). According to the statistical profile, the average U.S. journalist in 2002 was a married White male just above 40—older than the average age a decade earlier. Also, compared to the 1992 findings, the average journalist was less likely to come from a Protestant religious background and slightly more likely to hold a bachelor’s degree (p. 1). Female journalists were less likely to be married in the 2002 study— 67% of male journalists were married and 48% of female journalists were married (p. 184). The authors’ 1992 study found that journalists were no more likely to be women than a decade earlier despite the increasing number of female journalism majors. The picture is the same in the 2002 study. Women continue to make up only one-third of the overall news media workforce, according to the study. Once again, there was slight progress toward a balance of work and family but the authors noted: ‘‘Change toward a sort of equality in family life seems to be occurring, but the pace seems more glacial than revolutionary’’ (p. 184).
An alternative helix in the 26S rRNA promotes excision and integration of the Tetrahymena intervening sequence

A highly conserved ribosomal stem-loop immediately upstream of the Tetrahymena splice junction can inhibit both forward and reverse self-splicing by competing with base pairing between the 5' exon and the guide sequence of the intervening sequence. Formation of this unproductive hairpin is preferred in precursor RNAs with short exons and results in a lower rate of splicing. Inhibition of self-splicing is not observed in longer precursors, suggesting that additional interactions in the extended exons can influence the equilibrium between the productive and unproductive hairpins at the 5' splice site. An alternative pairing upstream of the 5' splice site has been identified and is proposed to stabilize the active conformer of the pre-rRNA. Nucleotide changes that alter the ability to form this additional helix were made, and the self-splicing rates were compared. Precursors in which the proposed stem is stabilized splice more rapidly than the wild type, whereas RNAs that contain a base mismatch splice more slowly. The ability of DNA oligomers to bind the RNA, as detected by RNase H digestion, correlates with the predicted secondary structure of the RNA. We also show that a 236-nucleotide RNA containing the natural splice junction is a substrate for intervening sequence integration. As in the forward reaction, reverse splicing is enhanced in ligated exon substrates in which the alternative rRNA pairing is more stable.
Evaluation on ESD robustness of LTPS diode and TFT device by transmission line pulsing (TLP) technique

ESD robustness of Low Temperature Poly-Si (LTPS) diodes and TFT devices has been investigated in this paper. By using the Transmission Line Pulsing (TLP) techniques, the It2 (secondary breakdown current) of LTPS diodes and TFT devices were measured. To evaluate the ESD robustness of components for ESD protection, the shifts of breakdown voltage and cut-in voltage of LTPS diode and TFT devices after TLP stress are considered into failure threshold judgment. From the experimental results, It2 of LTPS diodes under forward-biased stress is better than that of LTPS TFT devices. Furthermore, the It2 of LTPS TFT devices under reverse-biased stress is more robust than it under forward-biased stress. Such investigation results can help us to design a successful ESD protection for the circuits on glass.
Biomass estimation of Pinus radiata (D. Don) stands in Northwestern Spain by unmixing CCD CBERS data

Remote sensing techniques provide information about volume, biomass and other biophysical parameters of forest stands. The estimation of biomass by satellite remote sensing has been tested considering a wide range of spatial scales, environments and methods. Although both its spatial resolution (20×20 m) and spectral resolution (5 bands) enable important applications in forestry research, Chinese-Brazilian Earth Resources Satellite (CBERS) data had not been used for this purpose in Europe yet. In this work, we examined the potential of the fraction images obtained by unmixing the Charge-Coupled Device (CCD) CBERS data for estimating Pinus radiata (D. Don) stand attributes, especially biomass, in a Northwestern Spain region. Fraction images from spectral unmixing show biophysics properties more easily than original bands because they represent physics aspects of ground covers. Preliminary results are satisfactory and reinforce the conviction of usefulness of CCD CBERS fraction images in assessing forestry systems in Spain.
Interaction Profile for : Atrazine , Deethylatrazine , Diazinon , Nitrate , and Simazine

PREFACE The Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) mandates that the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) shall assess whether adequate information on health effects is available for the priority hazardous substances. Where such information is not available or under development, ATSDR shall, in cooperation with the National Toxicology Program, initiate a program of research to determine these health effects. The Act further directs that where feasible, ATSDR shall develop methods to determine the health effects of substances in combination with other substances with which they are commonly found. To carry out the legislative mandate, ATSDR's Division of Toxicology and Environmental Medicine (DTEM) has developed and coordinated a mixtures program that includes trend analysis to identify the mixtures most often found in environmental media, in vivo and in vitro toxicological testing of mixtures, quantitative modeling of joint action, and methodological development for assessment of joint toxicity. These efforts are interrelated. For example, the trend analysis suggests mixtures of concern for which assessments need to be conducted. If data are not available, further research is recommended. The data thus generated often contribute to the design, calibration or validation of the methodology. This pragmatic approach allows identification of pertinent issues and their resolution as well as enhancement of our understanding of the mechanisms of joint toxic action. All the information obtained is thus used to enhance existing or developing methods to assess the joint toxic action of environmental chemicals. Over a number of years, ATSDR scientists in collaboration with mixtures risk assessors and laboratory scientists have developed approaches for the assessment of the joint toxic action of chemical mixtures. As part of the mixtures program a series of documents, Interaction Profiles, are being developed for certain priority mixtures that are of special concern to ATSDR. The purpose of an Interaction Profile is to evaluate data on the toxicology of the " whole " priority mixture (if available) and on the joint toxic action of the chemicals in the mixture in order to recommend approaches for the exposure-based assessment of the potential hazard to public health. Joint toxic action includes additivity and interactions. A weight-of-evidence approach is commonly used in these documents to evaluate the influence of interactions in the overall toxicity of the mixture. The weight-of-evidence evaluations are qualitative in nature, although ATSDR recognizes that observations of toxicological interactions depend greatly on exposure doses and that some interactions …
Two cases of telbivudine-induced myopathy in siblings with chronic hepatitis B

Telbivudine is an L-nucleoside analogue with potent antiviral activity against hepatitis B virus (HBV). Clinical trials have shown that telbivudine has a more potent and sustained antiviral activity with a lower frequency of viral resistance than lamivudine. Although there are several reports concerning the safety profile of telbivudine, most adverse events are described as mild and transient in nature. Here we report two cases of telbivudine-induced myopathy in patients with chronic hepatitis B who were siblings.
de novo Design and Synthesis of Candida antarctica Lipase B Gene and α-Factor Leads to High-Level Expression in Pichia pastoris

Candida antarctica lipase B (CALB) is one of the most widely used and studied enzymes in the world. In order to achieve the high-level expression of CALB in Pichia, we optimized the codons of CALB gene and α-factor by using a de novo design and synthesis strategy. Through comparative analysis of a series of recombinants with different expression components, we found that the methanol-inducible expression recombinant carrying the codon-optimized α-factor and mature CALB gene (pPIC9KαM-CalBM) has the highest lipase production capacity. After fermentation parameters optimization, the lipase activity and protein content of the recombinant pPIC9KαM-CalBM reached 6,100 U/mL and 3.0 g/L, respectively, in a 5-L fermentor. We believe this strategy could be of special interest due to its capacity to improve the expression level of target gene, and the Pichia transformants carrying the codon-optimized gene had great potential for the industrial-scale production of CALB lipase.
Probabilistic Local Features in Uncertain Vector Fields with Spatial Correlation

In this paper methods for extraction of local features in crisp vector fields are extended to uncertain fields. While in a crisp field local features are either present or absent at some location, in an uncertain field they are present with some probability. We model sampled uncertain vector fields by discrete Gaussian random fields with empirically estimated spatial correlations. The variability of the random fields in a spatial neighborhood is characterized by marginal distributions. Probabilities for the presence of local features are formulated in terms of low‐dimensional integrals over such marginal distributions. Specifically, we define probabilistic equivalents for critical points and vortex cores. The probabilities are computed by Monte Carlo integration. For identification of critical points and cores of swirling motion we employ the Poincaré index and the criterion by Sujudi and Haimes. In contrast to previous global methods we take a local perspective and directly extract features in divergence‐free fields as well. The method is able to detect saddle points in a straight forward way and works on various grid types. It is demonstrated by applying it to simulated unsteady flows of biofluid and climate dynamics.
A real-time vision-interactive guiding system

This paper presents a real-time vision-interactive guiding system, which could be interactive with users based on the computer vision technology. A real-time front-view face detection using Harr-like features is used to decide when the guiding system should wake up and become interactive with the user. After system initialization, some feature points within the detected face area are going to be found. Then the orientation of user's head will be estimated via pyramidal Lucas-Kanade optical flow tracking. Compared to the traditional guiding system, our system has more flexibility. Guiding providers could choose a suitable display equipment according to the surround environment. With the comparison to other non-vision-based input devices system, such like gloves or markers, our system offers a simple, useful and economical solution for the real-time interaction between the user and computer
Changing Patterns Of South African Income Distribution: Towards Time Series Estimates Of Distribution And Poverty

Research on income distribution in South Africa has, for obvious reasons, focused on inter-racial (inter-group) income distribution. Quite dramatic changes have occurred in inter-racial income distribution patterns since the 1970s, with the black share of income rising for the first time and at times exceeding the rise in their population share. This implies a narrowing inter-racial income gap. Data on income distribution remain scarce, so that it remains difficult to obtain the full picture about changes in income distribution. In particular, widening inequality within the black population has received much attention. Rises in black unemployment and in black wages have had inequality-inducing effects on black incomes. Is maldistribution of income between races now making way for maldistribution of income within race groups? Put differently, is inequality shifting from inter-group to intra-group inequality (from between group to within group inequality)? This paper pieces together information from various sources of data (censuses, household surveys, marketing surveys, published wage data series, etc.) to inform estimates of inter- and intra-group distribution over a longer time frame, in an effort to improve analysis of income inequality and poverty trends. These income distribution patterns also have considerable implications for the growth and evolution of the South African consumer market.
The Complete Sequence of the Mitochondrial Genome of Butomus umbellatus – A Member of an Early Branching Lineage of Monocotyledons

In order to study the evolution of mitochondrial genomes in the early branching lineages of the monocotyledons, i.e., the Acorales and Alismatales, we are sequencing complete genomes from a suite of key taxa. As a starting point the present paper describes the mitochondrial genome of Butomus umbellatus (Butomaceae) based on next-generation sequencing data. The genome was assembled into a circular molecule, 450,826 bp in length. Coding sequences cover only 8.2% of the genome and include 28 protein coding genes, four rRNA genes, and 12 tRNA genes. Some of the tRNA genes and a 16S rRNA gene are transferred from the plastid genome. However, the total amount of recognized plastid sequences in the mitochondrial genome is only 1.5% and the amount of DNA transferred from the nucleus is also low. RNA editing is abundant and a total of 557 edited sites are predicted in the protein coding genes. Compared to the 40 angiosperm mitochondrial genomes sequenced to date, the GC content of the Butomus genome is uniquely high (49.1%). The overall similarity between the mitochondrial genomes of Butomus and Spirodela (Araceae), the closest relative yet sequenced, is low (less than 20%), and the two genomes differ in size by a factor 2. Gene order is also largely unconserved. However, based on its phylogenetic position within the core alismatids Butomus will serve as a good reference point for subsequent studies in the early branching lineages of the monocotyledons.
Inferring the Most Likely Geographical Origin of mtDNA Sequence Profiles

In a number of practical cases it is important to determine the likely geographical origin of an individual or a biological sample. A dead body, old bones or a sample of semen may be available. Information on where the sample might come from can assist investigation or research. The first part of this paper is independent of specific data structure. We formulate the problem as a classification problem. Bayes' theorem allows different sources of information or data to be reconciled conveniently. The main part of the paper involves high dimensional data for which simple, standard methods are not likely to work properly. Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) data is a typical example of such data. We propose a procedure involving essentially two steps. First, principal component analysis is used to reduce the dimension of the data. Next, quadratic discriminant analysis performs the actual classification. A cross validation procedure is implemented to select the optimal number of principal components. The importance of using separate data sets for model fitting and testing is emphasized. This method distinguishes well between individuals with a self reported European (Icelandic or German) origin and SE Africans. In this case the error rate is 2.0%.