Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Ethnic minority migrant women entrepreneurs and the imperial imprimatur

Purpose – This paper aims to explore the work experiences of ethnic minority migrant Indian women and their reasons for entering entrepreneurship in post‐colonial New Zealand.Design/methodology/approach – Over a period of five years, in‐depth semi‐structured interviews were conducted with 45 Indian women migrant entrepreneurs in New Zealand. A total of approximately 50 hours of interviews with 200 hours of transcription and member checks contributed to the understanding of these women. The interpretations were enhanced by congruence of ethnicity and gender of the researcher‐author.Findings – The qualitative interviews surfaced issues of being non‐white, exclusionary employment practices and negotiating post‐colonial New Zealand in order to follow the migrant dream despite the prevalence of softwares of colonialism in the mindset of the host country.Research limitations/implications – The study was conducted in one country (New Zealand) on one ethnicity (Indian); hence, there needs to be caution in general.
Identification of Midgut and Salivary Glands as Specific and Distinct Barriers to Efficient Tick-Borne Transmission of Anaplasma marginale

ABSTRACT Understanding the determinants of efficient tick-borne microbial transmission is needed to better predict the emergence of highly transmissible pathogen strains and disease outbreaks. Although the basic developmental cycle of Anaplasma and Ehrlichia spp. within the tick has been delineated, there are marked differences in the ability of specific strains to be efficiently tick transmitted. Using the highly transmissible St. Maries strain of Anaplasma marginale in Dermacentor andersoni as a positive control and two unrelated nontransmissible strains, we identified distinct barriers to efficient transmission within the tick. The Mississippi strain was unable to establish infection at the level of the midgut epithelium despite successful ingestion of infected blood following acquisition feeding on a bacteremic animal host. This inability to colonize the midgut epithelium prevented subsequent development within the salivary glands and transmission. In contrast, A. marginale subsp. centrale colonized the midgut and then the salivary glands, replicating to a titer indistinguishable from that of the highly transmissible St. Maries strain and at least 100 times greater than that previously associated with successful transmission. Nonetheless, A. marginale subsp. centrale was not transmitted, even when a large number of infected ticks was used for transmission feeding. These results establish that there are at least two specific barriers to efficient tick-borne transmission, the midgut and salivary glands, and highlight the complexity of the pathogen-tick interaction.
Dual process theories versus massive modularity hypotheses

Two prevailing accounts of the structure of the mind have been provided, respectively, by the Dual System Theory and by the Massive Modularity Hypothesis. It has been claimed, however, that they cannot both be true at the same time, i.e., that they are incompatible and, thus, that one of them must be abandoned. I will offer some arguments to challenge this claim. I will show that a plausible understanding of each theory makes it possible for them both to be true at the same time. Moreover, I will argue that by appealing to each other they can offer a more complete and detailed account of the architecture of the mind.
Helicobacter Pylori and Periodontal diseases: An update and proposal of a multidisciplinary clinical protocol

Helicobacter Pylori has been closely linked to chronic gastritis, peptic ulcers and increased risk of gastric carcinoma. Oral cavity, in particular dental plaque in periodontal pockets, may be a possible reservoir harboring H. Pylori, and may therefore be involved in the gastric reinfection by the bacterium, even after triple therapy regimen. This report is an update of scientific data showing the potential localization of H. Pylori in the oral cavity of periodontitis patients. A multidisciplinary clinical protocol combining full-mouth disinfection and triple therapy is also suggested. This protocol could permit to enhance oral H. Pylori eradication.
Social policy approaches to intercountry adoption

English This article proposes a social policy framework for thinking about inter country adoption, drawing on theories of welfare regimes and globalization. The model highlights the tensions and ambiguities of its policy contexts and consequences. It also shows the possibilities for a radical approach, discussing Romania’s ban on intercountry adoption as an example. French Cet article propose d’utiliser le cadre des politiques sociales pour considérer l’adoption internationale, en s’inspirant des théories des régimes de ‘ welfare’ (sécurité sociale) et de la mondialisation. Le modèle met en évidence les tensions et les ambiguïtés des contextes de ces politiques et leurs conséquences. Il montre aussi les possibilités d’émergence d’une radicalisation de l’approche, en prenant en exemple l’interdiction de la Roumanie pour l’adoption internationale. Spanish Este artículo propone un marco de acción de política social para reflexionar en torno a la adopción entre países, con base en las teorías de los regímenes de bienestar en la globalización. El modelo subraya las tensiones y ambigüedades de los contextos de política y sus consecuencias. Asimismo muestra las pos ibilidades para un acercamiento radical, mediante la discusión de la prohibición Rumana de la adopción entre países, como ejemplo.
Accurate Prediction of Classifcation Score using DenseNet for Acute Pneumonia

Pneumonia, an acute lung infection, presents varying severity levels, necessitating swift and accurate assessment for timely intervention and improved patient outcomes. While chest X-rays conventionally serve as the primary diagnostic tool, manual interpretation introduces subjectivity and time constraints. This study advocates harnessing deep learning, specifically the DenseNet-121 architecture, to automate pneumonia severity assessment in chest X-ray images. This approach marks a substantial leap toward more effective and cost-efficient health-care practices, leveraging the power of advanced technologies to address the challenges posed by pneumonia diagnosis and severity evaluation. The integration of the proposed deep learning model stands as a promising avenue for improving both diagnostic accuracy and resource optimization in the context of pneumonia management. Pneumonia is a leading cause of mortality world-wide, particularly in developing countries. Accurate and timely detection can help reduce mortality rates by enabling healthcare professionals to intervene before the condition becomes severe. In clinical practice, the ability to detect pneumonia in real-time is crucial for timely intervention. Research is needed to develop efficient models and algorithms that can provide rapid and accurate results suitable for deployment in healthcare settings.
A research-led approach to establishing foundation degrees

Abstract This article discusses the research approach adopted by one higher education institution in the United Kingdom (UK) to explore employers' and employees' responses to local skills, recruitment and training issues and how these responses were used to develop a curriculum for Foundation degrees. The article discusses skills issues, the varying research methods employed, barriers to development and how specific problems were resolved. A brief discussion on reactions and attitudes towards Foundation degrees and responses from public and private sector organisations is also presented. The results of the research are currently being used to inform curriculum development processes.
Pricing Non-Convexities in an Electricity Pool

Electricity pools are generally cleared through auctions that are conveniently formulated as mixed-integer linear programming problems. Since a mixed-integer linear programming problem is non-continuous and non-convex, marginal prices cannot be easily derived. However, to trade electricity, prices are needed. Thus, a relevant question arises: how does one generate appropriate prices? This paper addresses this important issue and proposes a primal-dual approach to derive efficient revenue adequate uniform prices that guarantee that dispatched producers are willing to remain in the market. Such prices may not significantly deviate from the marginal prices obtained if integrality conditions are relaxed in the original mixed-integer linear programming problem. Two case studies illustrate the functioning of the proposed pricing scheme.
« L'écart culturel dans les coopératives »

Dans cette etude de cas exploratoire de deux magasins cooperatifs, l’objectif est d’etablir leur profil culturel et de verifier s’il y a un ecart entre leur culture actuelle et leur culture souhaitee. Une approche qualitative comportant des entretiens approfondis, des observations et des revues documentaires est suivie d’une approche quantitative visant le personnel et les dirigeants. Le cadre des valeurs concurrentes est inclus dans un questionnaire ainsi que des questions sur l’orientation misant sur la primaute des membres. Les reponses pour les deux cooperatives indiquent que la culture organisationnelle souhaitee est celle ou les attributs du clan predominent. La cooperative qui obtient le resultat le plus eleve dans l’auto-evaluation de son orientation est aussi celle ou il n’y a pas d’ecart culturel. La recherche presente des pistes quant a l’application de l’orientation misant sur la primaute des membres et quant a la culture ou l’identite cooperative comme avantage concurrentiel.
The immunomodulator ginsan induces resistance to experimental sepsis by inhibiting Toll‐like receptor‐mediated inflammatory signals

Ginsan, a polysaccharide extracted from Panax ginseng, has multiple immunomodulatory effects. In this study, we show that pretreatment of ginsan (25 μg/kg) protected mice from lethality induced by Staphylococcus aureus challenge. This survival benefit was associated with enhanced bacterial clearance from circulation, spleen and kidney. The phagocytic activity of macrophages treated with ginsan was significantly enhanced against S. aureus. However, the production of proinflammatory cytokines, such as TNF‐α, IL‐1β, IL‐6, IFN‐γ, IL‐12, and IL‐18, was markedly down‐regulated in ginsan‐treated mice compared with those of control‐infected mice. The expression of Toll‐like receptor (TLR) 2 and the adaptor molecule MyD88, which was greatly increased in septic macrophages, was significantly reduced by ginsan treatment in vitro. Similarly, the expression of phospho‐JNK1/2, phospho‐p38 MAPK, and NF‐κB was decreased in the same culture system. These results illustrate that the antiseptic activity of ginsan can be attributed to enhanced bacterial clearance, and reduced proinflammatory cytokines via the TLR signaling pathway.
Building and Searching Tandem Mass Spectral Libraries for Peptide Identification*

Spectral library searching is an emerging approach in peptide identifications from tandem mass spectra, a critical step in proteomic data analysis. Conceptually, the premise of this approach is that the tandem MS fragmentation pattern of a peptide under some fixed conditions is a reproducible fingerprint of that peptide, such that unknown spectra acquired under the same conditions can be identified by spectral matching. In actual practice, a spectral library is first meticulously compiled from a large collection of previously observed and identified tandem MS spectra, usually obtained from shotgun proteomics experiments of complex mixtures. Then, a query spectrum is then identified by spectral matching using recently developed spectral search engines. This review discusses the basic principles of the two pillars of this approach: spectral library construction, and spectral library searching. An overview of the software tools available for these two tasks, as well as a high-level description of the underlying algorithms, will be given. Finally, several new methods that utilize spectral libraries for peptide identification in ways other than straightforward spectral matching will also be described.
An electronic knot in the handkerchief: “Content free cueing” and the maintenance of attentive control

Abstract Rapid changes in consumer technology mean that many of us now carry a range of automated cueing devices. The value of organisers and pagers in cueing specific to-be-remembered items, particularly for people with memory deficits, is clear. Here we investigate whether cueing can serve a more general purpose—not in reminding us of a particular event or action, but in helping us to periodically take a more “executive” stance to our activities. In these studies we use a highly reduced “model task”, the Sustained Attention to Response Test (SART)—designed to provoke “absentminded” lapses in action. Seven patients with right hemisphere stroke and who experienced difficulties in maintaining attention completed the task under two conditions. Periodic auditory cues that carried no content other than by association with the patient's remembered goal and which had no predictive value for events in the task were, nevertheless, associated with significant improvements in accuracy compared with an un-cued condition. A second experiment suggests that these improvements are not necessarily accompanied by an overall slowing in performance or a generally decreased tendency to make responses. We speculate that the transient hiatus in responses observed immediately following a cue serves a role in disrupting automatic, stimulus-driven responding and allows a more attentive stance to be re-established. Consistent with this view, in a final study we show that disruption to responses is substantially greater in a variant of the task designed to maximally encourage “unsupervised” action. We suggest that interruption to current activity can—at times—be a useful aid to keeping track of one's overall goals. The potential role of such cueing in helping dysexecutive patients to generalise training from the clinic to everyday settings is discussed.
Noise-driven Synchronization in Coupled Map Lattices

Synchronization is shown to occur in spatially extended systems under the effect of additive spatio-temporal noise. In analogy to low dimensional systems, synchronized states are observable only if the maximum Lyapunov exponent $\Lambda$ is negative. However, a sufficiently high noise level can lead, in map with finite domain of definition, to nonlinear propagation of information, even in non chaotic systems. In this latter case the transition to synchronization is ruled by a new ingredient : the propagation velocity of information $V_F$. As a general statement, we can affirm that if $V_F$ is finite the time needed to achieve a synchronized trajectory grows exponentially with the system size $L$, while it increases logarithmically with $L$ when, for sufficiently large noise amplitude, $V_F = 0$ .
Performance of P2P live video streaming systems on a controlled test-bed

We evaluate and compare the performance of three P2P streaming systems that are capable of streaming live video on the Internet by testing them on a carefully controlled, traffic-shaped network test-bed. We first describe the construction of the test-bed based upon Internet measurements between geographically distributed hosts. Then, we present a methodology for evaluating these P2P video streaming systems by performing video quality and network usage analysis from the log information obtained via running these systems on the test-bed. Our methodology to assess P2P live video streaming systems comprises analyzing the objective quality of the received video, waiting time to receive the first data byte, and several network usage measures such as P2P protocol overhead, load on the server due to the inefficiencies of the P2P overlay, and measurements of the number of bytes exchanged between the peers. It is essential that every peer buffers packets for some time before playing out the video in order to ensure good quality. We report the time that the user has to wait before he can see the video playing. These measurements not only gauge the performance of currently available P2P streaming systems but also highlight desired improvements in current P2P video streaming systems.
Left-Handedness in Fencers: An Attentional Advantage?

The present research investigated the relationship between handedness and performance on an attentional task for 24 skilled subjects. It is well known that in some sports the percentage of left-handed people is higher than in the normal population, e.g., tennis and fencing. It is also true that the most highly skilled in these sports are usually left-handed. Is this due to some disorientation of right-handed people when they face a left-handed opponent or are there some differences in competence? To test the last hypothesis an attentional task was constructed. In this task the subjects had to orient or to divide their attention between the two hemifields. An advantage for the left hand in the left-handed fencers was found only for the unattended situation. The results are discussed in the light of some anatomical evidence for right-hemispheric control of attention.
On the existence of certainty equivalents of various relevant types

We tackle the problem of associating certainty equivalents with preferences over stochastic situations, which arises in a number of different fields (e.g., the theory of risk attitudes or the analysis of stochastic cooperative games). We study the possibility of endowing such preferences with certainty equivalence functionals that satisfy relevant requirements (such as positive homogeneity, translation invariance, monotonicity with respect to first-order stochastic dominance, and subadditivity). Uniqueness of the functional is also addressed in fairly general conditions.
6G-BRICKS: Building Reusable Testbed Infrastructures for Cloud-to-Device Breakthrough Technologies

Sixth generation (6G)-enabled massive network MANO orchestration, alongside distributed supervision and fully reconfigurable control logic that manages dynamic arrangement of network components, such as cell-free, Open-Air Interface (OAI) and RIS, is a potent enabler for the upcoming pervasive digitalization of the vertical use cases. In such a disruptive domain, artificial intelligence (AI)-driven zero-touch “Network of Networks” intent-based automation shall be able to guarantee a high degree of security, efficiency, scalability, and sustainability, especially in cross-domain and interoperable deployment environments (i.e., where points of presence (PoPs) are non-independent and identically distributed (non-IID)). To this extent, this paper presents a novel breakthrough, open, and fully reconfigurable networking architecture for 6G cellular paradigms, named 6G-BRICKS. To this end, 6G-BRICKS will deliver the first open and programmable O-RAN Radio Unit (RU) for 6G networks, termed as the OpenRU, based on an NI USRP-based platform. Moreover, 6G-BRICKS will integrate the RIS concept into the OAI alongside Testing as a Service (TaaS) capabilities, multi-tenancy, disaggregated Operations Support Systems (OSS) and Deep Edge adaptation at the forefront. The overall ambition of 6G-BRICKS is to offer evolvability, granularity, while, at the same time, tackling big challenges such as interdisciplinary efforts and big investments in 6G integration.
Does a C3‐C4 propriospinal system transmit corticospinal excitation in the primate? An investigation in the macaque monkey

1 Synaptic responses to electrical stimulation of the contralateral pyramidal tract were measured in intracellular recordings from 206 upper limb motoneurones in ten chloralose‐anaesthetized macaque monkeys. The objective was to search for evidence of a disynaptic excitatory pathway via C3‐C4 propriospinal interneurones similar to that in the cat. 2 In monkeys with intact spinal cords, only a small proportion of motoneurones (19 %) responded with late EPSPs to repetitive stimulation of the pyramid; only 3 % had segmental latencies that were appropriate for a disynaptic pathway. 3 From previous studies in the cat, it was expected that a lesion to the dorsolateral funiculus (DLF) at C5 would interrupt the corticospinal input to the spinal segments supplying upper limb muscles, whilst leaving intact excitation transmitted via a C3‐C4 propriospinal system, the descending axons of which travel in the ventral part of the funiculus. In five of the monkeys a lesion was made to the DLF at C5 which spared the ventrolateral columns. It severely reduced the monosynaptic EPSPs and disynaptic IPSPs evoked from the pyramidal tract that were present in the intact monkey spinal cord, and which might have masked the presence of disynaptic EPSPs. However, even after the lesion the proportion of motoneurones with such late EPSPs was still low (18 %); 14 % of motoneurones had EPSPs within the disynaptic range. 4 In addition, some EPSPs with relatively long segmental latencies (> 1·1 ms) were recorded before and after the C5 lesions, but since these effects could be evoked by single stimuli, had stable latencies and did not facilitate with repetitive shocks, it is likely that they represent monosynaptic EPSPs evoked by slowly conducting corticospinal fibres which survived the lesions. 5 In seven of the monkeys motoneurone responses to stimulation of the ipsilateral lateral reticular nucleus (LRN) were also tested. Most motoneurones showed EPSPs with short latencies (1·2‐2·5 ms) and other properties characteristic of monosynaptic activation. This is consistent with the presence of collaterals of C3‐C4 propriospinal neurones to the LRN, as demonstrated in the cat. 6 These short‐latency EPSPs evoked from the LRN were just as common before (77 %) as after (75 %) the C5 lesion. They had small amplitudes both before (mean ± s.d. 1·1 ± 0·59 mV) and after (1·2 ± 0·72 mV) the lesion. Unlike the situation in the cat, only a small proportion (16 %) of motoneurones activated from the LRN showed late EPSPs after repetitive stimulation of the pyramid. 7 The results provide little evidence for significant corticospinal excitation of motoneurones via a system of C3‐C4 propriospinal neurones in the monkey. The general absence of responses mediated by such a system in the macaque, under experimental conditions similar to those in which they are seen in the cat, show that extrapolation of results from the cat to the primate should be made with considerable caution.
Whizzing through the High North: Motorists' Psychological Experience of the Countryside

Abstract Exposure to natural environments can positively influence us, yet it is unknown whether that is also the case for people who drive through natural environments, often at fast speeds. What restorative impact might driving through High North countrysides have on motorists and how might that affect their feelings of curiosity and interest relevant for the desire to explore where they are? Psychological mechanisms that may contribute to transforming rural spaces into such eudaimonically engaging places were explored with questionnaire data collected from 98 motorists in the North American High North. They were grouped by mindset (journey and/or destination) and then compared in terms of four aspects of perceived restorativeness (being away, extent, fascination and compatibility), emotion (positive and negative) and their effect on two curiosity measures (exploration and absorption) and affective interest. We found that travel mindset was related mostly to perceived restorativeness, particularly among those who were more destination-oriented, and to interest. Regression analyses revealed that feelings of restorativeness also enhanced the predictability of curiosity and interest, though the four aspects of perceived restorativeness did so in different ways. The complexity of these experiences is discussed in terms of their theoretical value and possible implications for practice.