Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Brucella abortus as a potential vaccine candidate: induction of interleukin-12 secretion and enhanced B7.1 and B7.2 and intercellular adhesion molecule 1 surface expression in elutriated human monocytes stimulated by heat-inactivated B. abortus

Development of a vaccine which is capable of generating a strong cellular immune response associated with gamma interferon (IFN-gamma) production and cytotoxic T-cell development requires that the immunogen be capable of inducing the secretion of interleukin-12 (IL-12), which is a pivotal factor for the differentiation of Th1 or Tc1 cells. We have previously shown that the heat-inactivated gram-negative bacterium Brucella abortus can induce IFN-gamma secretion by T cells. In the present study, we demonstrate that B. abortus and lipopolysaccharide (LPS) from B. abortus can induce IL-12 p40 mRNA expression and protein secretion by human elutriated monocytes (99% pure). p40 mRNA was detected within 4 h, and p40 protein could be measured at 24 h. This induction was abrogated by anti-CD14 monoclonal antibody, suggesting that monocytes recognize B. abortus via their receptor for LPS. The biological activity of IL-12 secreted by B. abortus-stimulated monocytes was demonstrated by its ability to upregulate IFN-gamma mRNA expression in T cells separated from monocytes and B. abortus by a transwell membrane. The B. abortus-induced IL-12 also enhanced NK cytolytic activity against K562 target cells. B. abortus was shown to rapidly increase the expression of the costimulatory molecules B7.1 and B7.2 and intercellular adhesion molecule 1 on human monocytes. Together, these data indicate that B. abortus can directly activate human monocytes and provide the cytokine milieu which would direct the immune response towards Th1-Tc1 differentiation.
Sensitive Periods, Vasotocin-Family Peptides, and the Evolution and Development of Social Behavior

Nonapeptides, by modulating the activity of neural circuits in specific social contexts, provide an important mechanism underlying the evolution of diverse behavioral phenotypes across vertebrate taxa. Vasotocin-family nonapeptides, in particular, have been found to be involved in behavioral plasticity and diversity in social behavior, including seasonal variation, sexual dimorphism, and species differences. Although nonapeptides have been the focus of a great deal of research over the last several decades, the vast majority of this work has focused on adults. However, behavioral diversity may also be explained by the ways in which these peptides shape neural circuits and influence social processes during development. In this review, I synthesize comparative work on vasotocin-family peptides during development and classic work on early forms of social learning in developmental psychobiology. I also summarize recent work demonstrating that early life manipulations of the nonapeptide system alter attachment, affiliation, and vocal learning in zebra finches. I thus hypothesize that vasotocin-family peptides are involved in the evolution of social behaviors through their influence on learning during sensitive periods in social development.
Educational Leadership: A Critical Pragmatic Perspective (Critical Studies in Education and Culture Series)

Series Introduction Introduction: The Quest for Leadership Research on Leadership in Education Administrative Leadership, Democracy, and the Qualities of Philosophic Mind Educational Leadership and Policy Leadership and the Education of Young Children Moral Imagination and School Leadership Postmodernity and the Preparation of Educational Leaders for the Future Empowerment and Educational Leadership The Artist-Leader and the Problem of Design Conclusion Bibliography Index
A Comparison of Eubacterial and Archaeal Structure-specific 5′-Exonucleases*

The 5′-exonuclease domains of the DNA polymerase I proteins of Eubacteria and the FEN1 proteins of Eukarya and Archaea are members of a family of structure-specific 5′-exonucleases with similar function but limited sequence similarity. Their physiological role is to remove the displaced 5′ strands created by DNA polymerase during displacement synthesis, thereby creating a substrate for DNA ligase. In this paper, we define the substrate requirements for the 5′-exonuclease enzymes from Thermus aquaticus, Thermus thermophilus,Archaeoglobus fulgidus, Pyrococcus furiosus,Methanococcus jannaschii, and Methanobacterium thermoautotrophicum. The optimal substrate of these enzymes resembles DNA undergoing strand displacement synthesis and consists of a bifurcated downstream duplex with a directly abutted upstream duplex that overlaps the downstream duplex by one base pair. That single base of overlap causes the enzymes to leave a nick after cleavage and to cleave several orders of magnitude faster than a substrate that lacks overlap. The downstream duplex needs to be 10 base pairs long or greater for most of the enzymes to cut efficiently. The upstream duplex needs to be only 2 or 3 base pairs long for most enzymes, and there appears to be interaction with the last base of the primer strand. Overall, the enzymes display very similar substrate specificities, despite their limited level of sequence similarity.
The two components of a fair price: social and personal

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to isolate the effects of personal fairness (the consumer's evauation of the magnitude of the price) and the social fairness (the acceptability of the price given the social norms of the society). Design/methodology/approach – This research adapted the scenarios used in the pivotal fair pricing study conducted by Kahneman, Knetsch and Thaler. To demonstrate the difference between their results and the results when personal and social fairness were separated, the analysis replicated that of Kahneman, Knetsch and Thaler.Findings – The paper finds that an individual's self‐serving concern for a personally fair price is moderated by their other‐serving concern for a socially fair price.Research limitations/implications – This research demonstrates that there is a significant difference in the personal and social fairness of price, whether it is a price for goods, wages or rents.Practical implications – Sellers, employers and realtors can benefit from the knowledge that pr.
Reflections on Sraffa's Legacy in Economics: A review essay

Abstract This paper reviews Heinz D. Kurz's edited collection of Critical Essays on Piero Sraffa's Legacy in Economics. Besides providing an evaluation of the various contributions to the volume, the paper discusses some broad issues such as the notion of ‘price’ emerging from Sraffa's Production of Commodities, the role of demand in Sraffa's theory, the classical approach to political economy, the Hayek–Keynes–Sraffa debate and the capital controversy.
Envisioning Workforce Training Differently: The Obama ‘Free’ Community College Initiative

Education, particularly at the post-secondary level, does not come cheaply in the USA, with the increase in annual tuition costs far outpacing the inflation rate during the same time period. A core tenet of US President Obama's domestic policy agenda is the belief that increased educational attainment can potentially lead to better economic prospects. As a result of the financial hardship that higher education brings to low-income and middle-income individuals and families, access to these educational opportunities and their benefits are not then fully realized. In response, President Obama has called for a ‘universal community college’, where tuition costs are reduced to zero. The intent and effect of the ‘universal community college’ initiative are identified and this commentary also suggests that additional scrutiny is needed with four questions to ensure that the programme design will later translate into meaningful outcomes, if this policy were to pass in Congress.
Development of a potentially implantable pressure sensing platform with RFID interface

This work deals with the development of an active RFID tag, ISO 15693 compliant, aimed to monitor blood pressure continuously and to determine its minimum and maximum values with an embedded algorithm. The results are stored onboard in a non-volatile memory, providing the data under interrogation by means of an external RFID reader. The prototype which has been developed is a miniaturized and low-power pressure sensing platform that is mainly intended as a potentially implantable system in test animals for pharmacological research, but could also operate in environmental and industrial applications.
Probabilistic Primitive Refinement algorithm for colored point cloud data

In this work we present the Probabilistic Primitive Refinement (PPR) algorithm, an iterative method for accurately determining the inliers of an estimated primitive (such as planes and spheres) parametrization in an unorganized, noisy point cloud. The measurement noise of the points belonging to the proposed primitive surface are modelled using a Gaussian distribution and the measurements of extraneous points to the proposed surface are modelled as a histogram. Given these models, the probability that a measurement originated from the proposed surface model can be computed. Our novel technique to model the noisy surface from the measurement data does not require a priori given parameters for the sensor noise model. The absence of sensitive parameters selection is a strength of our method. Using the geometric information obtained from such an estimate the algorithm then builds a color-based model for the surface, further boosting the accuracy of the segmentation. If used iteratively the PPR algorithm can be seen as a variation of the popular mean-shift algorithm with an adaptive stochastic kernel function.
Temporal Dimension and Equilibrium Exchange Rate

Abstract This paper investigates the temporal links between two models of equilibrium exchange rate, namely the behavioral and the fundamental approaches. Our results show that, even though in the long-run they are closely related, important differences are observed for some countries and/or some periods. Contrary to previous contributions, we analyze the factors that explain this disconnection. We outline structural changes in matter of competitiveness, the dynamics of foreign assets and valuation effects as explanations. This novel evidence is important if the two approaches for assessing misalignments are used for policy decisions such as setting tariffs to cope with the “currency war”.
How to predict the risk of postoperative complications after coronary artery bypass grafting in patients under 50 and over 80 years old. A retrospective cross-sectional study

Background: Coronary artery disease (CAD) remains the leading cause of death in developed countries, and there is an increasing number of both young and elderly patients requiring surgical treatment. Despite improvement of more common among older patients, and MACCE is usually fatal in this age group. Individuals with risk factors for MACCE (higher NYHA class, renal failure, lower LVEF) should be carefully evaluated and qualified, and closely monitored post-surgery.
Personalization in Croatian Presidential Election in 2000: How Personal Did the Candidates Go and What Did the Press Cover?

Using content analysis methodology this study of three Croatian daily newspapers investigated the ‘ personalisation’ in Croatian presidential elections in 2000. The research conceptualised personalisation on two different levels – as a media phenomenon and as a candidate’ s strategy. Using two different units of analysis – the article and the statement - the research first examined the attention newspapers in their election coverage devoted to candidates’ personal profiles as compared to other contents. In the second part, the study examined to what extent and in which form each of the two front-running candidates relied on some personal cues to communicate with the press and voters.The findings revealed that the press interest in candidates’ personalities in presidential elections in Croatia in 2000 was relatively high. However, individual traits that came to the forefront of the newspaper reports remained mostly within the realm of their political profiles. Findings from the second part concluded that there were significant differences in the way candidates communicated their messages to the press and the voters.
Bismuth triple therapy: still a very important drug regimen for curing Helicobacter pylori infection.

Bismuth triple therapy (bismuth compound, metronidazole and tetracycline) is the oldest effective regimen to cure Helicobacter pylori infection. When tetracycline is replaced by amoxycillin the cure rate decreases. In 1990, it was the first-line regimen. However, the great number of pills in the rather complicated regimen, together with a relative high rate of side-effects, have stimulated the search for other regimens. In developed countries, it has now mainly been surpassed by the simpler, but much more expensive proton-pump inhibitor-based triple therapies. In many developing countries however, bismuth-based therapy is the only effective therapy patients can afford. Worldwide, this drug combination is therefore probably one of the most widely used regimens. The efficacy of bismuth triple therapy can be improved by adding acid suppressants (quadruple therapy), increasing treatment duration or increasing the total daily dose of metronidazole. The choice of the bismuth compound and the total daily dose of tetracycline seem less important. Treatment can be shorter (7 days) in areas with a low rate of metronidazole resistance or when acid inhibition is added. Bismuth is usually given four times daily; tetracycline is usually given 500 mg q.i. d. in a 7- or 10-day treatment, but this can probably be reduced to 250 mg q.i. d. in a 14-day regimen. A higher total daily dose of metronidazole increases the cure rate but also gives more side-effects. A daily dose of 1000-1200 mg metronidazole in three or four divided doses for one week suffices in areas with a low rate of metronidazole resistance. In areas with a higher rate of resistance one can either increase the treatment duration to 10-14 days or increase the daily dose of metronidazole to 1500-1600 mg and leave the treatment duration at 7 days.
Portraying the self in online contexts: context-driven and user-driven online identity profiles

The emergence of online environments created a space where individuals can work on the construction and reconstruction of the self. Introducing a case study developed at the University of Aveiro – Portugal, this paper discusses the importance and challenges of building a representation the self in online contexts and addresses the main differences between building the self in physical and online environments. Data were collected through the application of questionnaires, direct observation and in-depth interviews, made to the participants of the study, 13 individuals, convenience sample. From the analysis of the collected data, a framework and a model have emerged: the Online Identity Analysis Model. By applying the model to the information shared by each participant in three online spaces (Facebook, Twitter and SAPO Campus, an institutionally supported platform), two main online identity profiles were outlined: the context-driven online identity profile and the user-driven online identity profile. By presenting the main results of a study focused on the construction of the self in online contexts, this paper should be understood as an approach and/or a starting point for a more wider and profound analysis of the online self and therefore contribute to the understanding of the importance of building a presence over the web, advantages and challenges included.
Risk Management and Calculative Cultures

Enterprise risk management (ERM) has recently emerged as a widespread practice in financial institutions. It has been increasingly codified and encrypted into regulatory, corporate governance and organisational management blueprints. A burgeoning literature of regulatory and practitioner texts is indicative of the apparent diversity of ambitions, objectives and techniques that constitute the ERM agenda. Making sense of these developments is a challenge. This paper presents field-based evidence from two large banking organisations suggesting that systematic variations in ERM practices exist in the financial services industry. The cases illustrate four risk management ideal types and show how they form the 'risk management mix' in a given organisation. Further, drawing on the literature of the roles and uses of management control systems (MCS), the paper explores how ERM achieved organisational significance in the studied settings. The findings are indicative of the current co-existence of alternative models of ERM. In particular, two types of ERM models are postulated: one driven by a strong shareholder value imperative (ERM by the numbers), the other corresponding to the demands of the risk-based internal control imperative (holistic ERM). This paper explains the differences in the two risk management mixes pointing towards alternative logics of calculation (Power, 2007), which I conceptualise and describe as different calculative cultures. The study suggests that calculative cultures, which in these cases shaped managerial predilections towards ERM practices, are relevant, albeit so far neglected, constituents of the fit between MCS and organizational contexts.
Incidence of childhood obesity in the United States.

BACKGROUND Although the increased prevalence of childhood obesity in the United States has been documented, little is known about its incidence. We report here on the national incidence of obesity among elementary-school children. METHODS We evaluated data from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 1998-1999, a representative prospective cohort of 7738 participants who were in kindergarten in 1998 in the United States. Weight and height were measured seven times between 1998 and 2007. Of the 7738 participants, 6807 were not obese at baseline; these participants were followed for 50,396 person-years. We used standard thresholds from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to define "overweight" and "obese" categories. We estimated the annual incidence of obesity, the cumulative incidence over 9 years, and the incidence density (cases per person-years) overall and according to sex, socioeconomic status, race or ethnic group, birth weight, and kindergarten weight. RESULTS When the children entered kindergarten (mean age, 5.6 years), 12.4% were obese and another 14.9% were overweight; in eighth grade (mean age, 14.1 years), 20.8% were obese and 17.0% were overweight. The annual incidence of obesity decreased from 5.4% during kindergarten to 1.7% between fifth and eighth grade. Overweight 5-year-olds were four times as likely as normal-weight children to become obese (9-year cumulative incidence, 31.8% vs. 7.9%), with rates of 91.5 versus 17.2 per 1000 person-years. Among children who became obese between the ages of 5 and 14 years, nearly half had been overweight and 75% had been above the 70th percentile for body-mass index at baseline. CONCLUSIONS Incident obesity between the ages of 5 and 14 years was more likely to have occurred at younger ages, primarily among children who had entered kindergarten overweight. (Funded by the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development.).
Combined experimental and modeling analysis to study accommodation phenomenon

Accurate modeling of accomodation in magnetic hysteresis requires the development of new experiments and measurement methods and it is well established that measurements can not correctly be made without the help of a theoretical and modeling study. This paper aims at jointing the results of an accurate measurement technique and a phenomenological vector hysteresis model for reciprocal validation and investigation of the accommodation phenomenon. In the extended version of the paper we will show the validation of the model of vector magnetic accommodation applied to soft commercial ferrites.
Political Conflict in Western Europe

Part I. Theory and Methods: 1. The transformative power of globalization and the structure of political conflict in Western Europe Edgar Grande and Hanspeter Kriesi 2. Exploring the new cleavage across arenas and public debates: design and methods Martin Dolezal, Swen Hutter and Bruno Wuest Part II. The Development of the 'Integration-Demarcation' Cleavage: 3. Participation and party choice: comparing the demand-side of the new cleavage across arenas Martin Dolezal and Swen Hutter 4. Restructuring the national political space: the supply side of national electoral politics Hanspeter Kriesi 5. Restructuring the European political space: the supply side of European electoral politics Martin Dolezal 6. Restructuring protest politics: the terrain of cultural winners Swen Hutter 7. Congruence, counterweight, or different logics? Comparing electoral and protest politics Swen Hutter Part III. Public Debates: The Articulation of the New Cleavage in Detail: 8. The impact of arenas in public debates over globalization Marc Helbling, Dominic Hoglinger and Bruno Wuest 9. Culture versus economy: the framing of public debates over issues related to globalization Dominic Hoglinger, Bruno Wuest and Marc Helbling 10. Actor configurations in the public debates on globalization Bruno Wuest, Marc Helbling and Dominic Hoglinger Part IV. Conclusion: 11. Conclusion: how much change can we observe and what does it mean? Edgar Grande.
Ontology-based data quality framework for data stream applications

Data Stream Management Systems (DSMS) have been proposed to address the challenges of applications which produce continuous, rapid streams of data that have to be processed in real-time. Data quality (DQ) plays an important role in DSMS as there is usually a trade-off between accuracy and consistency on the one hand, and timeliness and completeness on the other hand. Previous work on data quality in DSMS has focused only on specific aspects of DQ. In this paper, we present a flexible, holistic ontology-based data quality framework for data stream applications. Our DQ model is based on a threefold notion of DQ. First, content-based evaluation of DQ uses semantic rules which can be user- defined in an extensible ontology. Second, query-based evaluation adds DQ information to the query results and updates it while queries are being processed. Third, the application-based evaluation can use any kind of function which computes an application-specific DQ value. The whole DQ process is driven by the metadata managed in an ontology which provides a semantically clear definition of the DQ features of the DSMS. The evaluation of our approach in two case studies in the domain of traffic information systems has shown that our framework provides the required flexibility, extensibility, and performance for DQ management in DSMS.
Polish Return and Double Return Migration

Regional surveys indicate that about half the Poles who migrated since 2004 are living back in Poland. However, surveys of returnees also suggest that most are not committed to settling. This article explores why, looking at re-integration problems common worldwide, but also at the specifics of post-communist Poland, such as regional inequalities, job insecurity and low social trust. Although many returnees will continue to migrate temporarily, for others (notably those aged around 30) the experience of failed return to Poland inclines them to settle abroad. Such double return migrants engage in new, less transnational livelihood strategies, integrating more abroad and burning bridges back to Poland.