Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Epidemiology of Pediatric Functional Abdominal Pain Disorders: A Meta-Analysis

Objective We aimed to review the literature regarding epidemiology of functional abdominal pain disorders in children and to assess its geographic, gender and age distribution including associated risk factors of developing functional abdominal pain. Methods The Cochrane Library, MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL and PsychInfo databases were systematically searched up to February 2014. Study selection criteria included: (1) studies of birth cohort, school based or general population samples (2) containing data concerning epidemiology, prevalence or incidence (3) of children aged 4-18 years (4) suffering from functional abdominal pain. Quality of studies was rated by a self-made assessment tool. A random-effect meta-analysis model was used to estimate the prevalence of functional abdominal pain in childhood. Results A total of 58 articles, including 196,472 children were included. Worldwide pooled prevalence for functional abdominal pain disorders was 13.5% (95% CI 11.8-15.3), of which irritable bowel syndrome was reported most frequently (8.8%, 95% CI 6.2-11.9). The prevalence across studies ranged widely from 1.6% to 41.2%. Higher pooled prevalence rates were reported in South America (16.8%) and Asia (16.5%) compared to Europe (10.5%). And a higher pooled prevalence was reported when using the Rome III criteria (16.4%, 95% CI 13.5-19.4). Functional abdominal pain disorders are shown to occur significantly more in girls (15.9% vs. 11.5%, pooled OR 1.5) and is associated with the presence of anxiety and depressive disorders, stress and traumatic life events. Conclusion Functional abdominal pain disorders are a common problem worldwide with irritable bowel syndrome as most encountered abdominal pain-related functional gastrointestinal disorder. Female gender, psychological disorders, stress and traumatic life events affect prevalence.
Microglial Priming and Alzheimer’s Disease: A Possible Role for (Early) Immune Challenges and Epigenetics?

Neuroinflammation is thought to contribute to Alzheimer’s disease (AD) pathogenesis that is, to a large extent, mediated by microglia. Given the tight interaction between the immune system and the brain, peripheral immune challenges can profoundly affect brain function. Indeed, both preclinical and clinical studies have indicated that an aberrant inflammatory response can elicit behavioral impairments and cognitive deficits, especially when the brain is in a vulnerable state, e.g., during early development, as a result of aging, or under disease conditions like AD. However, how exactly peripheral immune challenges affect brain function and whether this is mediated by aberrant microglial functioning remains largely elusive. In this review, we hypothesize that: (1) systemic immune challenges occurring during vulnerable periods of life can increase the propensity to induce later cognitive dysfunction and accelerate AD pathology; and (2) that “priming” of microglial cells is instrumental in mediating this vulnerability. We highlight how microglia can be primed by both neonatal infections as well as by aging, two periods of life during which microglial activity is known to be specifically upregulated. Lasting changes in (the ratios of) specific microglial phenotypes can result in an exaggerated pro-inflammatory cytokine response to subsequent inflammatory challenges. While the resulting changes in brain function are initially transient, a continued and/or excess release of such pro-inflammatory cytokines can activate various downstream cellular cascades known to be relevant for AD. Finally, we discuss microglial priming and the aberrant microglial response as potential target for treatment strategies for AD.
Breaking down barriers: The ambivalent nature of technologies in the classroom

This article provides a critical study of the ambivalent nature of educational technology. Departing from the fact that the contemporary classroom is no longer a bounded and discrete space, the article uses ethnographic participant observation to provide thick descriptions of technologies-in-use at a Danish business college. These observations suggest that educational technologies play much more nuanced roles than hitherto imagined. Building on the notion of spatial imaginaries, the article explores two complementary patterns of spatial relations in the classroom: Educational technologies open a gateway to the world that can be used both to bring relevant information into the space of the classroom (“outside-in”) and to escape educational activities in favor of off-task activity (“inside-out”). By exploring these twin movements, this article hopes not only to provide a glimpse into the 21st-century digitized classroom but also to showcase the uneasy position of educational technology between burden and blessing.
Evaluating OO example programs for CS1

Example programs play an important role in learning to program. They work as templates, guidelines, and inspiration for learners when developing their own programs. It is therefore important to provide learners with high quality examples. In this paper, we discuss properties of example programs that might affect the teaching and learning of object-oriented programming. Furthermore, we present an evaluation instrument for example programs and report on initial experiences of its application to a selection of examples from popular introductory programming textbooks.
Social Capital and Poverty Reduction in Niger State, Nigeria: A Structural Equation Modelling Approach

Despite the numerous policy/strategy put in place by the Nigeria government since independent in other to reduce the poverty rate in the country, evidence shows that the rate of poverty is still on the increase. This paper looked at the impact of social capital on poverty reduction in Niger State, Nigeria. Based on the important and relevance of social capital to economic performance both at the micro and macro level, it is argued that it has an important role in poverty reduction. Social capital has seen as a missing link to poverty reduction. To this end, social capital has been depicted as an empirically elusive concept, and as the glue that holds society together. Using a set of household data generated from the administration of structured questionnaire to 479 households in Niger State. This paper aims to investigate the impact of social capital on poverty reduction in Niger State, Nigeria, using structural equation modelling approach (AMOS). The social capital variables considered are the one suggested by Putman which includes, community volunteerism, community organizational life, commitment in public affairs, informal cooperation and trust. The results obtained shows that apart from commitment in public affairs, all other variables were statistically significant, thus, fulfilling our a priori expectation that the more the people of the study area are engage in social capital activities the more they find themselves out of poverty. This result notwithstanding, policy measures that would continue to make social capital more relevant to poverty reduction in Niger State, Nigeria in particular and the world in general were suggested.
Goal-oriented adaptivity in control constrained optimal control of partial differential equations

Dual-weighted goal-oriented error estimates for a class of pointwise control constrained optimal control problems for second order elliptic partial differential equations are derived. It is demonstrated that the constraints give rise to a primal-dual weighted error term representing the mismatch in the complementarity system due to discretization. Besides a theoretical foundation, numerical results are presented.
Immune responsiveness of SM/J mice. Cellular characteristics and genetic analysis of hyperresponsiveness to B cell mitogens

We tested the proliferative responses of splenocytes from a panel of inbred mouse strains to AVIS, a B cell mitogen from Actinomyces viscosus bacteria. The SM/J strain was found to exhibit severalfold higher responsiveness than any of the other strains. SM/J splenocytes were also hyperresponsive to the B cell mitogens lipopolysaccharide, dextran sulfate, and purified protein derivative of tuberculin, but responsiveness to the T cell mitogen phytohemagglutinin was normal. (B6 X SM)F1 and F1 x B6 backcross mice were tested for AVIS and lipopolysaccharide responsiveness, and it was determined that hyperresponsiveness was under polygenic, autosomal, non-H-2-linked gene control. Genetic control of response to B mitogens in SM/J mice appears to be expressed solely through the B lymphocyte because removal of T lymphocytes or macrophages did not reduce the magnitude of responsiveness in vitro. SM/J mice may provide a useful model for testing questions regarding B cell triggering, differentiation, and function, and to examine the genes involved with B cell proliferation.
Optical activity measurements on solids. 3. Non-optically active synthetic polymers

Measurements of the non-existence of optical activity in suspensions of synthetic optically inactive polymer powders were made to evaluate the limitation of our measurement technique. A particle size of less than 150 μm was necessary to obtain accurate measurements. A high degree of crystallinity interfered with the measurements and gave erratic results. In all cases, for various types of commonly used polymers, the optical activity measurements with a zero value for optical rotation demonstrated that reliable measurements could be made with an accuracy of about ±3%
A dual algorithm for the constrained shortest path problem

In this paper we develop a Lagrangian relaxation algorithm for the problem of finding a shortest path between two nodes in a network, subject to a knapsack-type constraint. For example, we may wish to find a minimum cost route subject to a total time constraint in a multimode transportation network. Furthermore, the problem, which is shown to be at least as hard as NP-complete problems, is generic to a class of problems that arise in the solution of integer linear programs and discrete state/stage deterministic dynamic programs. One approach to solving the problem is to utilize a kth shortest path algorithm, terminating with the first path that satisfies the constraint. This approach is impractical when the terminal value of k is large. Using Lagrangian relaxation we propose a method that is designed to reduce this value of k. Computational results indicate orders of magnitude savings when the approach is applied to large networks.
Context-aware platform for mobile device-based communication assistance

Thanks to advances made in ICT in recent years, there is now a wide range of communication means available to users. This raises an issue when it comes to communicating with our contacts, as we have little or no help to decide which communication means to use in each case. In this paper we present a platform that enables users to register the communication means at their disposal and set up use preferences for them. Then, using this information, the platform is able to suggest to end-users which communication means to use when they want to communicate with their contacts.
On characterizing BGP routing table growth

BGP routing table sizes have increased by an order of magnitude over the last six years. This dramatic growth can decrease packet forwarding speed and demand more router memory space. We explore the extent that various factors contribute to the routing table size and characterize the growth of each contribution. We begin with a measurement study using the routing tables of an Oregon route views server to determine the contributions of multi-homing, load balancing, address fragmentation, and failure-to-aggregate to routing table size. Address fragmentation makes the greatest contribution and it is three times those of multihoming or load balancing. The contribution of failure-to-aggregate is the least. Although multihoming and load balancing contribute less to routing table size than address fragmentation, we observe that their contributions grow faster than the routing table does and that load balancing has surpassed multihoming, becoming the fastest growing contributor. Moreover, we find that both load balancing and multihoming contribute to routing table growth by introducing more prefixes of length between 17 and 25, which are the fastest growing prefixes. Next, we examine the growth routable IP addresses, and conclude that their growth is much slower than that of routing table size. Lastly, we demonstrate that our findings based on views derived from the Oregon server are accurate through an evaluation using 15 additional routing tables collected from different locations in the Internet.
Analysis of mammogram using self-organizing neural networks based on spatial isomorphism

The correct segmentation and measurement of mammography images is of fundamental importance for the development of automatic or computer-aided cancer detection systems. In this paper we propose a method to segment mammogram image using a self-organizing neural network based on spatial isomorphism. The method used is a modified version of the algorithm proposed by Venkatesh and Rishikesh [1] to extract object boundaries in an image. This model explores the principle of spatial isomorphism and self-organization in order to create flexible contours that characterize shapes in images. We modified the original algorithm to overcame problems of local minimum, poor performance for image object with large concavity and imprecise results when simple or far from object border contour are chosen. A comparison of both algorithm and original segmentation used by the MIAS database [9] is presented.
Neurobiological Factors Linking Personality Traits and Major Depression

Objective: To examine the neurobiological basis of personality and depression. Method: We examined preclinical and clinical studies related to neuroanatomy, neuroendocrine, molecular, and genetic alterations in depressed patients. We considered whether common neurobiological factors might be shared between personality and depression. Results: Preclinical studies provide insights into the neurobiological mechanisms underlying the pathophysiology of depression including neuroendocrine alterations in hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal (HPA) function, neuroanatomical alterations in key brain regions, and alterations in neurotrophin and serotonergic signalling systems. Clinical studies show similar alterations in depressed patients. Evidence suggests that neuroendocrine alterations in HPA function may contribute to personality traits. Brain regions implicated in depression, including the hippocampus and the anterior cingulate cortex, might play a role in personality. Key molecules implicated in depression have been extensively studied with reference to personality traits, particularly neuroticism. To date, physiological measures (serum and positron emission tomography) provide the strongest evidence implicating brain-derived neurotrophic factor and serotonin in personality, while genetic evidence is less convincing. Conclusions: A neurobiological link exists between personality and depression; however, more work is needed to provide an understanding of the nature of this relation and to link this work with clinical studies examining the influence of personality factors on depression.
The impact of energy prices on energy efficiency: Evidence from the UK refrigerator market

It is commonly believed that large energy efficiency gaps exist in the energy-using durables markets. We develop a broad analytical framework capturing consumer purchase behavior and suppliers� pricing and innovation decisions to estimate the effect of household electricity price variations on the refrigerator market outcomes. Using UK product-level panel data from 2002 to 2007, we find that the main factor limiting the full effect of rising price signals on curbing energy consumption of refrigerators is not consumer myopia, but changes in relative prices of products in favor of the less efficient models. We also find that manufacturers strongly respond to rising electricity prices by changing their product portfolio. This suggests shifting policy attention towards suppliers� pricing and innovation behaviors would be effective in achieving energy efficiency gains in the durables market.
Thrombopoietin alone stimulates the early proliferation and survival of human erythroid, myeloid and multipotential progenitors in serum‐free culture

We examined the effects of recombinant human thrombopoietin (TPO, c‐Mpl ligand) on the proliferation and differentiation of human haemopoietic progenitors other than megakaryocytic progenitors using serum‐free cultures. TPO alone supported the generation of not only megakaryocytic (MK) but also blast cell (blast) colonies from cord blood CD34+ cells. Delayed addition of a cytokine cocktail (cytokines; interleukin (IL)‐3, IL‐6, stem cell factor, erythropoietin, granulocyte‐macrophage colony‐stimulating factor, and TPO) to cultures with TPO alone on day 7 induced various colonies including granulocyte‐macrophage (GM) colonies, erythroid bursts (E), granulocyte‐erythrocyte‐macrophage‐megakaryocyte (GEMM) colonies. Replating experiments of blast colonies supported by TPO alone for culture with cytokines revealed that approximately 60% of the blast colonies contained various haemopoietic progenitors. Single cell cultures of clone‐sorted CD34+ cells indicated that TPO supported the early proliferation and/or survival of both primitive and committed haemopoietic progenitors. In serum‐free suspension cultures, TPO alone significantly stimulated the production of progenitors for MK, GM, E and GEMM colonies as well as long‐term culture‐initiating cells. These effects were completely abrogated by anti‐TPO antibody. These results suggest that TPO is an important cytokine in the early proliferation of human primitive as well as committed haemopoietic progenitors, and in the ex vivo manipulation of human haemopoietic progenitors.
Design of a new variable stiffness actuator and application for assistive exercise control

Focusing on the physical interaction between people and machines within safety constraints in versatile situations, this paper proposes a new, efficient actuation approach, continuous-state coupled elastic actuation (CCEA), to provide oncoming human-machine systems with an intrinsic programmable stiffness capacity to shape output force corresponding to the deviation between human motions and set positions of the system. As one of all the possible CCEA systems, a prototype of a 2-DOF coupled elastic actuator is designed to provide a compromise between performance and safety. Using a pair of antagonistic four-bar linkages, the inherent stiffness of the system can be adjusted dynamically. Compared to the state-of-the-art variable stiffness actuators, the CCEA system is unique in that it can achieve near zero mechanical stiffness in an efficient way. In addition, a human-robot interaction model is built to investigate the controlled bandwidth and safety of the CCEA system. For the application of assistive exercises, this study also proposes two kinds of controls for assistive exercises. Finally, a CCEA exoskeleton is built for elbow rehabilitation. Both simulations and experiments are conducted to show some desired properties of the proposed CCEA system.
Short Day–Mediated Cessation of Growth Requires the Downregulation of AINTEGUMENTALIKE1 Transcription Factor in Hybrid Aspen

Day length is a key environmental cue regulating the timing of major developmental transitions in plants. For example, in perennial plants such as the long-lived trees of the boreal forest, exposure to short days (SD) leads to the termination of meristem activity and bud set (referred to as growth cessation). The mechanism underlying SD–mediated induction of growth cessation is poorly understood. Here we show that the AIL1-AIL4 (AINTEGUMENTALIKE) transcription factors of the AP2 family are the downstream targets of the SD signal in the regulation of growth cessation response in hybrid aspen trees. AIL1 is expressed in the shoot apical meristem and leaf primordia, and exposure to SD signal downregulates AIL1 expression. Downregulation of AIL gene expression by SDs is altered in transgenic hybrid aspen plants that are defective in SD perception and/or response, e.g. PHYA or FT overexpressors. Importantly, SD–mediated regulation of growth cessation response is also affected by overexpression or downregulation of AIL gene expression. AIL1 protein can interact with the promoter of the key cell cycle genes, e.g. CYCD3.2, and downregulation of the expression of D-type cyclins after SD treatment is prevented by AIL1 overexpression. These data reveal that execution of SD–mediated growth cessation response requires the downregulation of AIL gene expression. Thus, while early acting components like PHYA and the CO/FT regulon are conserved in day-length regulation of flowering time and growth cessation between annual and perennial plants, signaling pathways downstream of SD perception diverge, with AIL transcription factors being novel targets of the CO/FT regulon connecting the perception of SD signal to the regulation of meristem activity.
Using syntactic and confusion network structure for out-of-vocabulary word detection

This paper addresses the problem of detecting words that are out-of-vocabulary (OOV) for a speech recognition system to improve automatic speech translation. The detection system leverages confidence prediction techniques given a confusion network representation and parsing with OOV word tokens to identify spans associated with true OOV words. Working in a resource-constrained domain, we achieve OOV detection F-scores of 60-66 and reduce word error rate by 12% relative to the case where OOV words are not detected.
Straight-Line Programs: A Practical Test

We present an improvement of Rytter's algorithm that constructs a straight-line program for a given text and show that the improved algorithm is optimal in the worst case with respect to the number of AVL-tree rotations. Also we compare Rytter's and ours algorithms on various data sets and provide a comparative analysis of compression ratio achieved by these algorithms, by LZ77 and by LZW.
Moduli of p-divisible groups

We prove several results about p-divisible groups and Rapoport-Zink spaces. Our main goal is to prove that Rapoport-Zink spaces at infinite level are naturally perfectoid spaces, and to give a description of these spaces purely in terms of p-adic Hodge theory. This allows us to formulate and prove duality isomorphisms between basic Rapoport-Zink spaces at infinite level in general. Moreover, we identify the image of the period morphism, reproving results of Faltings. For this, we give a general classification of p-divisible groups over the ring of integers of a complete algebraically closed field in the spirit of Riemann's classification of complex abelian varieties. Another key ingredient is a full faithfulness result for the Dieudonn\'e module functor for p-divisible groups over semiperfect rings (meaning rings on which the Frobenius map is surjective).
Graphene aerogel composites derived from recycled cigarette filters for electromagnetic wave absorption

Assembling graphene nanosheets into three dimensional aerogels has attracted considerable interest due to their unique properties and potential applications in many fields. Here, graphene aerogels constructed from interconnected graphene nanosheet-coated carbon fibers are fabricated by using cigarette filters as templates via a simple dip-coating method. The composite aerogels are ultralight (ρ = 7.6 mg cm−3) yet have high mechanical strength (0.07 MPa); when used as electromagnetic wave absorbers, they showed a minimum reflection loss value of −30.53 dB at 14.6 GHz and the bandwidth of reflection loss less than −10 dB (90% absorption) was 4.1 GHz. Furthermore, coating polypyrrole onto the composite aerogels can increase the minimum reflection loss value to −45.12 dB. Our results provide a promising approach to fabricate graphene-based composite aerogels with a strong electromagnetic wave absorption ability.