Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Fluorescent implantable elastomer tags for the measurement of oxygen in insects

ii Lay abstract . iv Preface . v Table of contents . vi List of tables. ix List of figures . x Acknowledgements . xi 1: Introduction . 1 1.1 The importance of insects and their respiratory physiology . 1 1.2 Current knowledge of insect respiration and future directions . 3 1.3 Current methods for monitoring O2 in vivo . 9 1.4 Fundamentals of fluorescence and quenching . 10 1.5 Fluorescent Implantable Elastomer Tags . 13 1.6 Microfluidics and implantable elastomer tags . 16 1.7 Thesis goals . 22 2: Research chapter . 23 2.
Sociable robot improves toddler vocabulary skills

We report results of a study in which a low cost sociable robot was immersed at an Early Childhood Education Center for a period of 2 weeks. The study was designed to investigate whether the robot, which operated fully autonomously during the intervention period, could improve target vocabulary skills of 18-24 month of age toddlers. The results showed a 27% improvement in knowledge of the target words taught by the robot when compared to a matched set of control words. The results suggest that sociable robots may be an effective and low cost technology to enrich Early Childhood Education environments.
Manometric Changes to the Lower Esophageal Sphincter After Magnetic Sphincter Augmentation in Patients With Chronic Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease

Objective: To evaluate the manometric changes, function, and impact of magnetic sphincter augmentation (MSA) on the lower esophageal sphincter (LES). Background: Implantation of a MSA around the gastroesophageal junction has been shown to be a safe and effective therapy for gastroesophageal reflux disease, but its effect on the LES has not been elucidated. Methods: Retrospective case control study (n = 121) evaluating manometric changes after MSA. Inclusion criteria consisted of a confirmed diagnosis of gastroesophageal reflux disease by an abnormal esophageal pH study (body mass index <35 kg/m2, hiatal hernia <3 cm, and absence of endoscopic Barrett disease). Manometric changes, pH testing, and proton pump inhibitor use were assessed preoperatively and 6 and 12 months after MSA. Results: MSA was associated with an overall increase in the median LES resting pressure (18 pre-MSA vs 23 mm Hg post-MSA; P = 0.0003), residual pressure (4 vs 9 mm Hg; P < 0.0001), and distal esophageal contraction amplitude (80 vs 90 mm Hg; P = 0.02). The percent peristalsis remained unaltered (94% vs 87%; P = 0.71). Overall, patients with a manometrically defective LES were restored 67% of the time to a normal sphincter with MSA. Those with a structurally defective or severely defective LES improved to a normal LES in 77% and 56% of patients, respectively. Only 18% of patients with a normal preoperative manometric LES deteriorated to a lower category. Conclusion: MSA results in significant manometric improvement of the LES without apparent deleterious effects on the esophageal body. A manometrically defective LES can be restored to normal sphincter, whereas a normal LES remains stable.
The egr‐1 promoter contains information for constitutive and inducible expression in transgenic mice

Egr‐1 is an immediate early gene that couples short‐term changes in the extracellular milieu to long‐term changes in gene expression. Under in vitro conditions, the Egr‐1 gene is expressed in many cell types and is induced by a wide variety of extracellular signals. The mechanisms by which the Egr‐1 gene is regulated in vivo remain poorly understood. In this study, we have generated transgenic mice with a construct containing 1200 bp of the mouse Egr‐1 promoter coupled to nuclear localized LacZ. In multiple independent lines of mice, reporter gene expression was detected in subsets of endothelial cells, vascular smooth‐muscle cells, cardiomyocytes, neurons, and hepatocytes. This pattern closely resembled that of the endogenous gene. After partial hepatectomy, reporter gene activity was upregulated between two‐ and fivefold in regenerating livers. Taken together, these findings suggest that the Egr‐1 promoter contains information for appropriate spatial and temporal expression in vivo.
A low-cost noncontact capacitance-type level transducer for a conducting liquid

In this paper, an attempt has been made to design a low-cost noncontact capacitance-type level sensor for a conducting liquid. The sensor is in the form of a uniform circular cylinder made of insulating material like glass, ceramic, plastic, etc. The sensor is connected with the metallic- or nonmetallic-type liquid storage tank, in which the conducting liquid column is taken as one electrode, and a noninductively wound short-circuited outside coil is taken as the other electrode of a variable capacitor. The change in capacitance due to the change of liquid level is measured by a modified linear operational-amplifier-based De' Sauty bridge network with adjustable bridge sensitivity. The bridge output after amplification and rectification may be used to drive a direct current indicator calibrated in level. The studies have been made with high-density polyethylene and glass tube sensors separately in both metallic and nonmetallic storage tanks with tap water as the conducting liquid, and the experimental results of the static characteristics of the level sensors with percentage error from linearity are presented in the paper. These results are found to have good linearity and repeatability within acceptable limits
The Downside of Downsizing

With the help of data obtained from open-endedinterviews conducted with the various stakeholders indownsizing operations and applied within a clinicalframework, individual reaction patterns are explored in the victims, the survivors (those stayingwith a company after layoffs), and the“executioners” (those responsible for theimplementation of downsizing). Special emphasis is givento the reactions of the executives implementing the downsizingoperation. Among this group of people, a number of waysof coping can be discerned, described ascompulsive/ritualistic, abrasive, dissociative,alexithymic/anhedonic, and depressive. The article ends with a numberof practical recommendations about how to facilitate thedownsizing process. From the interviews conducted, itappears that downsizing, in the more narrow sense of the word, can be a quite destructiveprocess. Reframing the concept so that downsizing isviewed as a continuous process of corporatetransformation and change, a way to plan for thecontinuity of the organization, seems to be a moreconstructive approach.
Increasing trends of syphilis among men who have sex with men in high income countries.

UNLABELLED Background The epidemiology of syphilis, and therefore the population most impacted, differs between countries. Many developed countries have reported an increase in syphilis notifications among men who have sex with men (MSM) over the past decade. METHODS The rates of syphilis notifications between 2000 and 2013 in the 31 countries categorised by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) as high income were investigated. Data was taken primarily from published national surveillance reports, and a male-to-female ratio substantially greater than two in syphilis notifications was taken as a proxy for the infection being disproportionately diagnosed in MSM. RESULTS Data was available for 27 high-income countries. The male-to-female ratio exceeded two in all but four countries. This ratio significantly increased across all geographical areas over time. Globally, the male-to-female ratio in these countries increased from 4.1 in 2000 to 7.9 in 2013 (P=0.001). Furthermore, the proportion of male cases reported as being among MSM increased over time from 26.8% to 55.0% between 2000 and 2013 (P<0.001). CONCLUSION These data show that in countries with high income, there is a near universal finding of increasing rates of syphilis in MSM. It is therefore clear that no country has identified an effective method to control syphilis in this population.
Temporal variability in phosphorus transfers: classifying concentration-discharge event dynamics

Abstract. The importance of temporal variability in relationships between phosphorus (P) concentration (Cp) and discharge (Q) is linked to a simple means of classifying the circumstances of Cp–Q relationships in terms of functional types of response. New experimental data at the upstream interface of grassland soil and catchment systems at a range of scales (lysimeters to headwaters) in England and Australia are used to demonstrate the potential of such an approach. Three types of event are defined as Types 1–3, depending on whether the relative change in Q exceeds the relative change in Cp (Type 1), whether Cp and Q are positively inter-related (Type 2) and whether Cp varies yet Q is unchanged (Type 3). The classification helps to characterise circumstances that can be explained mechanistically in relation to (i) the scale of the study (with a tendency towards Type 1 in small scale lysimeters), (ii) the form of P with a tendency for Type 1 for soluble (i.e., Keywords: phosphorus, concentration, discharge, lysimeters, temporal dynamics, overland flow
Expression of the Bundle-Forming Pilus by Enteropathogenic Escherichia coli Strains of Heterologous Serotypes

ABSTRACT The production of the bundle-forming pilus subunit BfpA was investigated in 44 enteropathogenic Escherichia coli (EPEC) diarrheal isolates after growth on several conventional bacteriological media. In all, the use of brucella agar supplemented with 4.5 mM sodium bisulfite resulted in a higher detection of BfpA-producing EPEC.
Distribution and morphology of human cone photoreceptors stained with anti‐blue opsin

Primate cones maximally sensitive to short wavelength light (blue cones) have been previously identified by using indirect methods. We stained 7 wholemounted human retinas obtained from 6 female donors, using an affinity purified antibody to a 19 amino acid peptide sequence at the N‐terminus of blue opsin (Lerea et al., '89: Neuron 3:367–376), standard PAP immunocytochemistry, and controls. Cones were counted where all outer segments could be traced to inner segments and were measured where cells were well aligned vertically.
Hypermedia design, analysis, and evaluation issues

ence both in developing several hypermedia applications , and systematically inspecting and evaluating many commercial applications and prototypes. We evaluate an application by its very nature, our method addresses neither software design (which can be evaluated with general software evaluation techniques), nor how well the application relates to a domain or to specific user needs (a main concern of other usabili-ty evaluation techniques). Our approach complements more general evaluation methods [1, 11, 12, 18, 19, 21] for the field of hypermedia. In this article we describe our design-oriented evaluation method and apply it to a highly popular commercial application: Microsoft's Art Gallery, a hypermedia guide to the National Gallery in Lon-don's painting collection. Art Gallery is an outstanding and enjoyable application. Initially designed only for the museum's visitors [20], it is now widely available as a CD-ROM [17]. We also discuss aspects of reuse in hypermedia applications and propose some initial suggestions for designing for reuse. Analysis Dimensions We have identified several dimensions for analyzing a hypermedia application: content, structure, presentation , dynamics, and interaction. • Content: The pieces of information included in the application. These may consist of static (passive) media (such as formatted data, text strings, images, and graphics) or active (dynamic) media (such as video clips, sound tracks, and anima-F r a n c a G a r z o t t o , L u c a M a i n e t t i , ne can perform a heuristic evaluation of a hypermedia application effectively by coupling a systematic analysis of the application based on a hypermedia design model with general usability criteria, independent of the specific application area, user profile(s), and user task(s). We call our method design-oriented evaluation (as opposed to the user-oriented evaluation commonly applied in usability testing), since it evaluates the internal strength of the design underlying the hypermedia application.
Necessary conditions for a nonlinear few-mode excitation of modes in single-mode optical fiber

This paper presents the investigation of the necessary conditions for the non-linear excitation of higher order modes in the single mode optical fiber with step index profile. The required peak optical power for the non-linear excitation of higher modes was calculated. The dependency of this optical power from the normalized frequency of a step index optical fiber was studied. Calculations were performed for optical fiber with core of doped silica glass by germanium and cladding of pure silica glass. It was shown that for such a single mode optical fiber under pulse duration of less than 500 fs it is possible to create the necessary conditions for the nonlinear excitation of high order mode before the laser damage.
Automated Detection of Discontinuities in Models Inferred from Execution Traces

Modern applications (e.g., the so called Future Internet applications) exhibit properties that make them hard to model once for all. In fact, they dynamically adapt to the user's habits, to the context, to the environment, they dynamically discover new services and components to integrate, they modify themselves through reflection, automatically. Model inference techniques are based on the observation of the application behavior (trace collection) and on its generalization into a model. Model inference supports testing, understanding and evolution of the software. However, inferred models may become obsolete at run time, due to the evolution or the self-modifications of the software. We investigate an approach for the automated detection of model discontinuities, based on a trade off between delay of the detection and accuracy, measured in terms of few false negatives.
Cdc28 provides a molecular link between Hsp90, morphogenesis, and cell cycle progression in Candida albicans

The molecular chaperone Hsp90 regulates morphogenesis of the leading human fungal pathogen Candida albicans. Hsp90 inhibition induces filaments with a delay in mitotic exit mediated by the checkpoint protein Bub2. Hsp90 depletion destabilizes the cyclin-dependent kinase Cdc28, providing a link between Hsp90, cell cycle regulation, and morphogenesis.
Delayed Arterial Healing and Increased Late Stent Thrombosis at Culprit Sites After Drug-Eluting Stent Placement for Acute Myocardial Infarction Patients: An Autopsy Study

Background— The long-term safety of drug-eluting stents (DES) for acute myocardial infarction (AMI) remains uncertain. Using autopsy data, we evaluated the pathological responses of the stented segment in patients treated with DES for AMI and compared with patients with stable angina. Methods and Results— From the CVPath Registry of 138 DES autopsies, we identified 25 patients who presented with AMI and had an underlying necrotic core with a ruptured fibrous cap. Twenty-six patients who had stable angina with thick-cap fibroatheroma treated by DES were selected as controls. Histomorphometric analysis was performed in patients with >30-day stent duration. We compared the response to stenting at the culprit site in these 2 groups and to nonculprit sites within each stent. Late stent thrombosis was significantly less frequent in stable (11%) than in AMI (41%; P=0.04) patients. Although neointimal thickness in the AMI culprit site was significantly less (median, 0.04 mm; interquartile range [IQR], 0.02 to 0.09 mm), the prevalence of uncovered struts (49%; IQR, 16% to 96%), fibrin deposition (63±28%), and inflammation (35%; IQR, 27% to 49%) were significantly greater compared with the culprit site in stable patients (neointimal thickness: 0.11 mm [IQR, 0.07 to 0.21 mm], P=0.008; uncovered struts: 9% [IQR, 0% to 39%], P=0.01; fibrin: 36±27%, P=0.008; inflammation, 17% [IQR, 7% to 25%], P=0.003) and the nonculprit site within each stent. Conclusions— Vessel healing at the culprit site in AMI patients treated with DES is substantially delayed compared with the culprit site in patients receiving DES for stable angina, emphasizing the importance of underlying plaque morphology in the arterial response to DES. Our data suggest an increased risk of thrombotic complications in patients treated with DES for AMI.
Scalable Sampling and Prioritization for Product-Line Testing

Exhaustively testing every product of a software product line (SPL) is a difficult task due to the combinatorial explosion of the number of products. Several sampling approaches have been proposed to select a subset of the products that can be used to test the SPL. However, these approaches do not scale to large SPLs such as the Linux kernel. Since the time budget of testing is usually limited, the order in which products are tested is important. Products have been prioritized based on domain knowledge or feature-model criteria, but not much attention has been paid to source code. We plan to use evolutionary testing approaches with different inputs to fitness functions to explore the configuration space of feature models. The configurations will be generated and prioritized automatically. Using criteria from feature model and source code, we want to investigate whether we can increase the efficiency of SPL testing. In this proposal, we present research questions that investigate how we can employ evolutionary testing approaches to increase the efficiency of SPL testing.
METHYLXANTHINES AND BENIGN BREAST DISEASE

SIR: The Australian College of Paediatrics notes with concern the apparently increasing popularity of food fadism and the use of cult diets and their potential risk of causing severe nutritional disorders in infants and children. ' 2 3 4 Reports of these risks have appeared in publications from North America and Britain, and a trend towards increased use of cult diets is now appearing in Australia. Attention is drawn to the nutritional hazards for infants and young children fed these diets and to the need for professional nutritional advice for the parents of such children if their beliefs are such as to persuade them to give cult diets to their children. PETER PHELAN. Australian College of Paediatrics, . Royal Children's Hospital, Flemington Road, Parkville, Vic. 3052.
Social networks as mediators of the effect of Alcoholics Anonymous.

AIMS This study tested the hypothesis that the relationship between Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) involvement and reduced substance use is partially explained (or 'mediated') by changes in social networks. DESIGN This is a naturalistic longitudinal study of the course of alcohol problems. SETTING Study sites were the 10 largest public and private alcohol treatment programs in a northern California county. PARTICIPANTS Three hundred and seventy-seven men and 277 women were recruited upon seeking treatment at study sites. MEASUREMENTS At baseline and 1-year follow-up, we assessed alcohol consequences and dependence symptoms, consumption, social support for abstinence, pro-drinking social influences and AA involvement. FINDINGS In the structural equation model, AA involvement was a significant predictor of lower alcohol consumption and fewer related problems. The size of this effect decreased by 36% when network size and support for drinking were included as mediators. In logistic regression models predicting abstinence at follow-up, AA remained highly significant after including social network variables but was again reduced in magnitude. Thirty-day abstinence was predicted by AA involvement (OR=2.9), not having pro-drinking influences in one's network (OR=0.7) and having support for reducing consumption from people met in AA (versus no support; OR=3.4). In contrast, having support from non-AA members was not a significant predictor of abstinence. For alcohol-related outcomes other than abstinence, significant relationships were found for both AA-based and non-AA-based support. CONCLUSIONS The type of social support specifically given by AA members, such as 24-hour availability, role modeling and experientially based advice for staying sober, may help to explain AA's mechanism of action. Results highlight the value of focusing on outcomes reflective of AA's goals (such as abstinence) when studying how AA works.
Activation of T cells recognizing self 60-kD heat shock protein can protect against experimental arthritis

Lewis rats are susceptible to several forms of experimental arthritis- induced using heat-killed Mycobacterium tuberculosis (adjuvant arthritis, or AA), streptococcal cell walls, collagen type II, and the lipoidal amine CP20961. Prior immunization with the mycobacterial 65-kD heat shock protein (hsp65) was reported to protect against AA, and other athritis models not using M. tuberculosis, via a T cell-mediated mechanism. Hsp65 shares 48% amino acid identity with mammalian hsp60, which is expressed at elevated levels in inflamed synovia. Several studies have reported cross-reactive T cell recognition of mycobacterial hsp65 and self hsp60 in arthritic and normal individuals. We previously described nine major histocompatibility complex class II- restricted epitopes in mycobacterial hsp65 recognized by Lewis rat T cells. Of these only one, covering the 256-270 sequence, primed for cross-reactive T cell responses to the corresponding region of rat hsp60. Here we have tested each hsp65 epitope for protective activity by immunizing rats with synthetic peptides. A peptide containing the 256-270 epitope, which induced cross-reactive T cells, was the only one able to confer protection against AA. Similarly, administration of a T cell line specific for this epitope protected against AA. Preimmunization with the 256-270 epitope induced T cells that responded to heat-shocked syngeneic antigen-presenting cells, and also protected against CP20961-induced arthritis, indicating that activation of T cells, recognizing an epitope in self hsp60 can protect against arthritis induced without mycobacteria. Therefore, in contrast to the accepted concept that cross-reactive T cell recognition of foreign and self antigens might induce aggressive autoimmune disease, we propose that cross-reactivity between bacterial and self hsp60 might also be used to maintain a protective self-reactive T cell population. This discovery might have important implications for understanding T cell- mediated regulation of inflammation.
Pre_GI: a global map of ontological links between horizontally transferred genomic islands in bacterial and archaeal genomes

Abstract The Predicted Genomic Islands database (Pre_GI) is a comprehensive repository of prokaryotic genomic islands (islands, GIs) freely accessible at http://pregi.bi. up.ac. za/index.php . Pre_GI, Version 2015, catalogues 26 744 islands identified in 2407 bacterial/archaeal chromosomes and plasmids. It provides an easy-to-use interface which allows users the ability to query against the database with a variety of fields, parameters and associations. Pre_GI is constructed to be a web-resource for the analysis of ontological roads between islands and cartographic analysis of the global fluxes of mobile genetic elements through bacterial and archaeal taxonomic borders. Comparison of newly identified islands against Pre_GI presents an alternative avenue to identify their ontology, origin and relative time of acquisition. Pre_GI aims to aid research on horizontal transfer events and materials through providing data and tools for holistic investigation of migration of genes through ecological niches and taxonomic boundaries. Database URL: http://pregi.bi. up.ac. za/index.php , Version 2015