Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
L'imputabilité des dirigeants publics

Cet article [1] traite de l’imputabilite des dirigeants publics dans un contexte ou la gestion des interfaces entre elus, fonctionnaires et managers de haut rang des organisations publiques se complexifie sans cesse. Les auteurs proposent d’abord une grille conceptuelle qui permet de saisir cette complexite generatrice de tensions a quatre niveaux : institutionnel, organisationnel, managerial et artefactuel. Ils l’illustrent ensuite plus concretement en expliquant la trajectoire historique de la notion d’imputabilite et des facons de la concretiser au sein du systeme de gouvernance publique du Quebec. Ils plaident au fond en faveur d’un jumelage des approches institutionnelle et instrumentale de l’imputabilite politico-administrative et manageriale. Celle-ci devrait etre concue et deployee en pretant particulierement attention aux dilemmes, paradoxes et incertitudes que l’action publique genere inevitablement.
Chemical Speciation of Copper in a Salt Marsh Estuary and Bioavailability to Thaumarchaeota

The concentrations of dissolved copper (Cud), copper-binding ligands, thiourea-type thiols and humic substances (HSCu) were measured in estuarine waters adjacent to Sapelo Island, Georgia, USA, on a monthly basis from April to December 2014. Here we present the seasonal cycle of copper speciation within the estuary and compare it to the development of an annually occurring bloom of Ammonia Oxidising Archaea (AOA), which require copper for many enzymes. Two types of complexing ligands (L1 and L2) were found to dominate with mean complex stabilities (log K′CuL) of 14.5 and 12.8. Strong complexation resulted in lowering the concentration of free cupric ion (Cu2+) to femtomolar (fM) levels throughout the study and to sub-fM levels during the summer months. A Thaumarchaeota bloom during this period suggests that this organism manages to grow at very low Cu2+ concentrations. Correlation of the concentration of the L1 ligand class with a thiourea-type thiol and the L2 ligand class with HSCu provide an interesting dimension to the identity of the ligand classes. Due to the stronger complex stability, 82 - 99% of the copper was bound to L1. Thiourea-type thiols typically form Cu(I) species, which would suggest that up to ~90% copper could be present as Cu(I) in this region. In view of the very low concentration of free copper (pCu >15 at the onset and during the bloom) and a reputedly high requirement for copper, it is likely that the Thaumarchaeota are able to access thiol-bound copper directly.
In early inflammatory polyarthritis more intensive management according to the 2010 ACR/EULAR criteria leads to higher rates of clinical remission: comparison of two cohorts treated according to different treat-to-target protocols.

OBJECTIVES The aim of this study was to compare the 12-month probability of remission in early inflammatory arthritis with a milder treatment based on the 1987 criteria or a more intensive protocol based on the 2010 criteria. METHODS Patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) or undifferentiated arthritis (UA) (2005-2012) were included. Before October 2010, patients fulfilling the 1987 criteria received methotrexate (MTX) and possibly low-dose prednisone, while UA hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) (1987-driven cohort). From October 2010, patients fulfilling the 2010 criteria received higher dose MTX and low-dose prednisone, while UA HCQ (2010-driven cohort). Treatment was increased to achieve DAS28 low disease activity. Clinical remission, defined by DAS28, was evaluated at subsequent visits in the whole population. Hazard ratios (HR) adjusted for age, sex, baseline DAS28, symptoms duration, MTX dose and prednisone were calculated by Cox regression. RESULTS 677 patients were included (468 in 1987-driven cohort, 209 in 2010-driven cohort), with no significant differences in age, gender, autoantibodies and pain. The 2010-driven cohort had significantly fewer tender and swollen joints, lower acute phase reactants, DAS28 and HAQ and achieved more frequently remission even when the analysis was adjusted for all confounders (adjusted HR (95% CI) 1.73 (1.34, 2.22)) and limited to per protocol patients (adjusted HR (95%CI) 1.49 (1.11, 2.02). CONCLUSIONS Treating patients with early arthritis according to a more intensive protocol leads to higher remission rate. The results of this study support the use of a strategy led by the 2010 criteria with more intensive treatment strategies in the management of early arthritis.
Pomalidomide is active in the treatment of anemia associated with myelofibrosis.

PURPOSE Thalidomide and lenalidomide can alleviate anemia in myelofibrosis. However, their value is undermined by their respective potential to cause peripheral neuropathy and myelosuppression. We therefore evaluated the safety and therapeutic activity of another immunomodulatory drug, pomalidomide. METHODS In a phase II randomized, multicenter, double-blind, adaptive design study, four treatment arms were evaluated: pomalidomide (2 mg/d) plus placebo, pomalidomide (2 mg/d) plus prednisone, pomalidomide (0.5 mg/d) plus prednisone, and prednisone plus placebo. Pomalidomide was administered for up to 12 28-day treatment cycles. Prednisone (30 mg/d) was given in a tapering dose schedule during the first three cycles. Response was assessed by International Working Group criteria. RESULTS Eighty-four patients with myelofibrosis-associated anemia were randomly assigned to the aforementioned treatment arms: 22, 19, 22, and 21, respectively. Response in anemia was documented in 20 patients, including 15 who became transfusion independent. Response rates in the four treatment arms were 23% (95% CI, 5% to 41%), 16% (95% CI, 0% to 33%), 36% (95% CI, 16% to 56%), and 19% (95% CI, 2% to 36%). The corresponding figures for patients receiving > or = 3 cycles of treatment (n = 62) were 38%, 23%, 40%, and 25%. Response to pomalidomide with or without prednisone was durable (range, 3.2 to 16.9+ months) and significantly better in the absence of leukocytosis (37% v 8%; P = .01); JAK2V617F or cytogenetic status did not affect response. Grade > or = 3 toxicities were infrequent and included (in each treatment arm) neutropenia (9%; 16%; 5%; 5%), thrombocytopenia (14%; 16%; 9%; 5%), and thrombosis (9%; 5%; 0%; 0%). CONCLUSION Pomalidomide therapy at 0.5 or 2 mg/d with or without an abbreviated course of prednisone is well tolerated in patients with myelofibrosis and active in the treatment of anemia.
Forward Gradient-Based Frank-Wolfe Optimization for Memory Efficient Deep Neural Network Training

Training a deep neural network using gradient-based methods necessitates the calculation of gradients at each level. However, using backpropagation or reverse mode differentiation, to calculate the gradients necessities significant memory consumption, rendering backpropagation an inefficient method for computing gradients. This paper focuses on analyzing the performance of the well-known Frank-Wolfe algorithm, a.k. a. conditional gradient algorithm by having access to the forward mode of automatic differentiation to compute gradients. We provide in-depth technical details that show the proposed Algorithm does converge to the optimal solution with a sub-linear rate of convergence by having access to the noisy estimate of the true gradient obtained in the forward mode of automated differentiation, referred to as the Projected Forward Gradient. In contrast, the standard Frank-Wolfe algorithm, when provided with access to the Projected Forward Gradient, fails to converge to the optimal solution. We demonstrate the convergence attributes of our proposed algorithms using a numerical example.
Differentiated Services Network Simulation

This paper describes the Network Modeler application that helps differentiated services network design, planning and configuration testing. This application allows a user to draw a network, configure it, and evaluate its performance through simulation. A simple scenario is presented, showing the potentialiti es of the Network Modeler, the advantages of using differentiated services, and proving that this application is an excellent learning and testing tool.
Current Concepts and Advances in Clinical Parallel Magnetic Resonance Imaging

Parallel imaging (PI) is one of the most promising recent advances in MRI technology and has, similar to the introduction of multidetector helical scanning in CT, revolutionized MR imaging. The speed of all conventional MRI methods has been limited by either gradient strength or their switching times. The basic idea in PI is to use some of the spatial information contained in the individual elements of a radiofrequency (RF) receiver coil array to increase imaging speed. These PI techniques are removing some of the previous limitations in speed of MRI scanners and set the basis for accelerated image formation. Initially, PI was motivated by the wish to accelerate image acquisition without reducing the spatial resolution of the image. However, depending on the application, it turned out that PI harbors several other advantages. Among those is the possibility for higher spatial resolution, shorter breath-holds or multiple averaging to diminish motion artifacts, reduced image blurring and geometric distortions, better temporal resolution, and means for navigator correction. This overview focuses on technical aspects, clinical applications, and ongoing research in different areas of the human body. The critical review demonstrates PI’s great versatility as well as the current trends to use this unique technique in the majority of clinical scan protocols.
Implicit individual differences: relationships between implicit self‐esteem, gender identity, and gender attitudes

The study examined whether the magnitude of same-sex-favouring implicit gender bias depends on individual differences in self-esteem and gender identity as theorized by Greenwald et al. The Implicit Association Test (IAT) was used to measure implicit self-esteem, gender identity, and gender attitudes. Explicit self-esteem and gender identity were measured with questionnaires. The IAT revealed a strong automatic preference for female words in 34 female undergraduates but, surprisingly, no significant gender bias in 32 males. Individual levels of this gender bias were predicted in both sexes by IAT-derived implicit measures of self-esteem and gender identity, as well as by their interaction. Neither declared gender identity nor explicit self-esteem added to the prediction. The results are discussed in terms of balanced identity design and the potential influence of method effects on the findings. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Leishmania salvage and remodelling of host sphingolipids in amastigote survival and acidocalcisome biogenesis

Sphingolipids (SLs) play essential roles in most eukaryotes, but in the trypanosomatid protozoan Leishmania major their functions differ significantly. Previously we showed that null mutants defective in de novo sphingoid base synthesis (spt2–) lacked SLs but grew well and retained lipid rafts while replicating as promastigotes in vitro. However, they experienced catastrophic defects in membrane trafficking on entry into stationary phase, and failed to differentiate to the infective metacyclic form. Here we showed this mutant retained the ability to enter macrophages silently and inhibit activation, although as expected most parasites were destroyed. However, in mouse infections, after a delay rapidly progressive lesions appeared, and purified amastigotes were fully virulent to macrophages and mice. Mass spectrometry of spt2– amastigote lipids revealed the presence of high levels of parasite‐specific inositol phosphorylceramides (IPCs) not synthesized by the mammalian hosts. Inhibitor studies showed that salvage occurs at the level of complex SLs, suggesting that parasites carry out ‘headgroup’ remodelling. Additionally, we describe a new defect of the spt2– promastigotes involving ‘empty’ acidocalcisomes (ACs), which may point to the origin of this organelle from the lysosome‐related organelle/multivesicular body biogenesis pathway. However, ACs in spt2– amastigotes appeared quantitatively and morphologically normal. Thus salvage of SLs and other molecules by intracellular amastigotes play key roles in AC biogenesis and parasite survival in the host.
Respiratory gated SPAMM sequence for magnetic resonance cardiac tagging

SPAMM (spatial modulation of magnetization) sequences for tissue tagging suffer from fading of the tags due to tissue Tl decay. This fading is especially important in cardiac imaging, since it affects the frames acquired in the second half of the cardiac cycle. On the other hand, breath-hold sequences are difficult to hold along a prolonged exploration. We present an alternative SPAMM sequence with respiratory gating that alleviates the mentioned drawbacks. We compare images acquired with the sequence provided by the manufacturer in a Philips Intera 1.5T scanner with images acquired with the proposed sequence. Normal volunteers (n=5) have been scanned with each sequence. The most remarkable result is that tissue-tag contrast almost doubles in the last frames with the proposed sequence as compared to the sequence supplied by the manufacturer.
Immersive Visual Information Mining for exploring the content of TerraSAR-X archives

The amount of collected Earth Observation (EO) data is increasing intensively in order of several Terabytes a day. Consequently, new trends to explore and retrieve information from the available data is highly demanded. Recent proposed methods for exploring EO data are mainly based on Image Information Mining (IIM). Because the main steps of this approach are image features extraction, data reduction, and labeling, developing a new process chain, mainly based on human interaction, might be a promising solution. More precisely, this chain provides an active learning system by interacting human users with features descriptors in a virtual environment. The focus of this article is an Immersive Visual Information Mining in which feature descriptors/images are visualized in a 3-D virtual environment, so called CAVE. This environment also allows the users to manipulate the feature space to increase the performance of learning process in an interactive manner. In our experiments, we use a dataset of Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) images. To process the data, the contents of images are represented by three different feature descriptors comprising Gabor, adapted WLD, and Bag-of-Words.
Epoch extraction of voiced speech

A general theory of epoch extraction of overlapping nonidentical waveforms is presented. The theory is applied to outputs of models of voiced speech production mechanism and to actual speech data. Some typical glottal waveshapes are considered to explain their effect on the speech output. It is shown that the points of excitation of the vocal tract can be precisely identified for continuous speech. It is possible to obtain accurate pitch information by this method even for high-pitched sounds. The epoch extraction has wide applications in speech analysis, speaker verification, speech synthesis, and pitch perception studies.
Improving interrupt response time in a verifiable protected microkernel

Many real-time operating systems (RTOSes) offer very small interrupt latencies, in the order of tens or hundreds of cycles. They achieve this by making the RTOS kernel fully preemptible, permitting interrupts at almost any point in execution except for some small critical sections. One drawback of this approach is that it is difficult to reason about or formally model the kernel's behavior for verification, especially when written in a low-level language such as C. An alternate model for an RTOS kernel is to permit interrupts at specific preemption points only. This controls the possible interleavings and enables the use of techniques such as formal verification or model checking. Although this model cannot (yet) obtain the small interrupt latencies achievable with a fully-preemptible kernel, it can still achieve worst-case latencies in the range of 10,000s to 100,000s of cycles. As modern embedded CPUs enter the 1 GHz range, such latencies become acceptable for more applications, particularly when they come with the additional benefit of simplicity and formal models. This is particularly attractive for protected multitasking microkernels, where the (inherently non-preemptible) kernel entry and exit costs dominate the latencies of many system calls. This paper explores how to reduce the worst-case interrupt latency in a (mostly) non-preemptible protected kernel, and still maintain the ability to apply formal methods for analysis. We use the formally-verified seL4 microkernel as a case study and demonstrate that it is possible to achieve reasonable response-time guarantees. By combining short predictable interrupt latencies with formal verification, a design such as seL4's creates a compelling platform for building mixed-criticality real-time systems.
Oral Malodor and its Relevance to Periodontal Disease in the Dog

Oral malodor has been studied extensively in humans but very little work has been done in dogs where it constitutes a significant problem. In this article we review its causes, methods of detection, and strategies for preventing it. Oral malodor arises from microbial metabolism of exogenous and endogenous proteinaceous substrates in the oral cavity and is exacerbated by periodontal disease and poor oral hygiene. Gram negative bacteria found in plaque, in periodontal pockets, and on the dorsum of the tongue are primarily responsible for odor production. The volatile sulfur compounds (VSCs) hydrogen sulfide and methyl mercaptan, which are produced by these bacteria, are not only primarily responsible for the objectionable odor but have been implicated in the pathogenesis of periodontal disease. Assessment of malodor by portable sulfide monitors correlates well with organoleptic measurements. Reduction of microbial load in the oral cavity due to good oral hygiene practices (such as tooth-brushing) or by the use of appropriate diets or chews may reduce malodor formation.
Phallometric Assessment of Sexual Arousal: A Review of Validity and Diagnostic Issues

While phallometric assessment of sexual offenders logically follows from sexual deviance theories of offending, we conclude that the evidence for this assessment process is inconsistent. A wide variety of methodologies, poorly specified and poorly chosen, or the absence of control groups has resulted in a fragmented literature in this area. Nonetheless, recent meta-analyses continue to portray sexual deviance (usually phallometrically determined) as the best predictor of future sexual violence. Recent studies have suggested that proxy measures of such deviance may provide sufficient evidence of deviance. We suggest that only by the use of research protocols with very rigorous methodology will the validity of phallometry be determined.
HER2/neu Testing In 432 Consecutive Breast Cancer Cases using FISH and IHC - A Comparative Study.

INTRODUCTION The development of trastuzumab, a HER-2/neu targeted monoclonal antibody resulted in significant improvements in clinical response and survival in HER-2/neu gene amplified group of patients. Thus, accurate assessment of HER-2/neu status becomes critical. Fluorescence In Situ Hybridization (FISH) and Immunohistochemistry (IHC) are the most commonly used methods for this purpose and specific recommendations exist with regard to the concordance to be observed between the two tests. AIM Here, we report and evaluate the concordance rate between FISH and IHC for HER-2/neu status in breast cancer specimens. MATERIALS AND METHODS Archival paraffin blocks of tumour tissue from 450 patients of breast cancer were analyzed for Her-2/neu status using FISH and IHC. RESULTS There was a highly significant concordance between the results of FISH and IHC assays in HER-2/neu status assessment in invasive breast cancer cases. There were inverse associations between the expression of Oestrogen Receptors/Progesterone Receptors (ER/PR) and HER-2/neu amplification. CONCLUSION Although, IHC gave significant concordant results with FISH in determining HER-2/neu status, its subjective grading system precludes its use as a gold standard. FISH should always be used to determine true gene amplification when the IHC results are equivocal.
Effect of Self-awareness on Negative Affect Among Individuals with Discrepant Low Self-esteem

Past research suggests that individuals with discrepant low self-esteem (low explicit and high implicit self-esteem) may hold themselves against higher standards and judge themselves more critically when they fall short of those standards (Zeigler-Hill & Terry, 2007). We postulated that for discrepant low self-esteem individuals, self-awareness would activate their stringent standards and the fact that they have failed to meet those standards, thereby increasing negative affect. In this study, 144 participants completed implicit and explicit self-esteem measures, and half were then made to be self-aware by completing a task with a mirror in front of them for 3 minutes. We found that self-awareness increased negative affect among discrepant low self-esteem participants.
Analysis of Green Fluorescent Protein Expression in Transgenic Rats for Tracking Transplanted Neural Stem/Progenitor Cells

Green fluorescent protein (GFP) expression was evaluated in tissues of different transgenic rodents—Sprague-Dawley (SD) rat strain [SD-Tg(GFP)Bal], W rat strain [Wistar-TgN(CAG-GFP)184ys], and M mouse strain [Tg(GFPU)5Nagy/J]—by direct fluorescence of native GFP expression and by immunohistochemistry. The constitutively expressing GFP transgenic strains showed tissue-specific differences in GFP expression, and GFP immunohistochemistry amplified the fluorescent signal. The fluorescence of stem/progenitor cells cultured as neurospheres from the ependymal region of the adult spinal cord from the GFP SD and W rat strains was assessed in vitro. After transplantation of the cells into wildtype spinal cord, the ability to track the grafted cells was evaluated in vivo. Cultured stem/progenitor cells from the SD strain required GFP immunostaining to be visualized. Likewise, after transplantation of SD cells into the spinal cord, immunohistochemical amplification of the GFP signal was required for detection. In contrast, GFP expression of stem/progenitor cells generated from the W strain was readily detected by direct fluorescence both in vitro and in vivo without the need for immunohistochemical amplification. The cultured stem/progenitor cells transplanted into the spinal cord survived for at least 49 days after transplantation, and continued to express GFP, demonstrating stable expression of the GFP transgene in vivo.
Active site dynamics in the zinc-dependent medium chain alcohol dehydrogenase superfamily

Despite being the subject of intensive investigations, many aspects of the mechanism of the zinc-dependent medium chain alcohol dehydrogenase (MDR) superfamily remain contentious. We have determined the high-resolution structures of a series of binary and ternary complexes of glucose dehydrogenase, an MDR enzyme from Haloferax mediterranei. In stark contrast to the textbook MDR mechanism in which the zinc ion is proposed to remain stationary and attached to a common set of protein ligands, analysis of these structures reveals that in each complex, there are dramatic differences in the nature of the zinc ligation. These changes arise as a direct consequence of linked movements of the zinc ion, a zinc-bound bound water molecule, and the substrate during progression through the reaction. These results provide evidence for the molecular basis of proton traffic during catalysis, a structural explanation for pentacoordinate zinc ion intermediates, a unifying view for the observed patterns of metal ligation in the MDR family, and highlight the importance of dynamic fluctuations at the metal center in changing the electrostatic potential in the active site, thereby influencing the proton traffic and hydride transfer events.