Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Identification of genes implicated in toxin production in the cyanobacterium Cylindrospermopsis raciborskii

Cylindrospermopsis raciborskii is a bloom‐forming cyanobacterium found in both tropical and temperate climates which produces cylindrospermopsin, a potent hepatotoxic secondary metabolite. This organism is notorious for its association with a significant human poisoning incident on Palm Island, Australia, which resulted in the hospitalization of 148 people. We have screened 13 C. raciborskii isolates from various regions of Australia and shown that both toxic and nontoxic strains exist within this species. No association was observed between geographical origin and toxin production. Polyketide synthases (PKSs) and peptide synthetases (PSs) are enzymes involved in secondary metabolite biosynthesis in cyanobacteria. Putative PKS and PS genes from C. raciborskii strains AWT205 and CYP020B were identified by PCR using degenerate primers based on conserved regions within each gene. Examination of the strain‐specific distribution of the PKS and PS genes in C. raciborskii isolates demonstrated a direct link between the presence of these two genes and the ability to produce cylindrospermopsin. Interestingly, the possession of these two genes was also linked. They were also identified in an Anabaena bergii isolate that was demonstrated to produce cylindrospermopsin. Taken together, these data suggest a likely role for these determinants in secondary metabolite and toxin production by C. raciborskii. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Environ Toxicol 16: 413–421, 2001
Metacognition in understanding multimedia presentations

The symposium is aimed at highlighting the role that the awareness about the mental processes which are activated and the control over such processes play in comprehending and memorizing notions presented through texts and pictures. The attempt is to support the notion that promoting metacognition could improve the effectiveness of multimedia tools. In fact, metacognition should bring students to develop adequate strategies to learn from text-picture combinations. The contributions included in the symposium present a set of different ways of interpreting the links between metacognition and multimedia learning and show a series of experimental approaches that can be followed to investigate such links.
Talking about maths

This article looks at why talk is important for young children learning mathematics, how talk fosters mathematical understanding and the importance of having something to talk about by relating maths to real situations. It then looks at the revealing comments of some four and five year old children talking about simple number activities linked to a favourite rhyming story song they had been singing.
Towards a Systematic Exploration of the Optimization Space for Many-Core Processors

The architecture diversity of many-core processors - with their different types of cores, and memory hierarchies - makes the old model of reprogramming every application for every platform infeasible. Therefore, inter-platform portability has become a desirable feature of programming models. While functional portability is ensured by standards and compilers (e.g., OpenCL), to achieve high performance across platforms remains a much more challenging task. In this thesis, we have investigated the enabling/disabling techniques for platform-specific optimizations with a unified programming model. We have selected OpenCL as our research vehicle, and identified that each platform has a specific optimization space for a given kernel. Taking two concrete examples, we have proposed solutions on how to (semi-) automatically tackle platform-specific optimizations with a unified programming model. We use a case study (in computer vision) to illustrate optimization’s dependency on platform. To deal with the difference in processing cores, we propose two approaches to vectorize scalar kernels (i.e., explicitly using vector data types), and reveal the vectorization needs with explicitly parallel programs. To deal with the difference in memory hierarchy, we first present a method to quantify the performance impact of using local memory starting from the memory access patterns. This work produces a performance database, which serves as an indicator of whether using local memory is beneficial. Once this indication is given, we propose a portable solution to simplify programming with local memory. Specifically, we present an easy-to-use API (ELMO) to enable local memory usage and a compiling pass (Grover) to automatically disable the local memory usage for applications where local memory is natively used. Much like vectorization and local memory usage, other architectural features require performance portable approaches. Therefore, we present our vision for a portable programming framework, called SESAME, which expands to architectural features beyond SIMD units and local memory. This thesis has given evidence that this problem can be addressed successfully. We conclude that tools such as SESAME help improving the state-of-the-art of existing programming models (like OpenCL, in our case) and ease the task of programmers when dealing with different many-core architectures. This work serves an essential step towards portable performance by systematically exploring the optimization space.
Acquisition of Esophageal Speech following Laryngectomy

Even with prolonged treatment fewer than half of laryngectomees acquire proficient esophageal speech. The study reported in this paper concerns the psychological processes characterizing individuals who succeed and those who fail in learning esophageal speech. The research was undertaken in the context of mainstream psychological theories of stress-coping and self-efficacy. It was demonstrated through prospective analysis that self-referent cognitions relating to speech learning were more powerful predictors of which individuals achieved esophageal speech than less situational-specific appraisals or demographic, biomedical, rehabilitative, and personality characteristics. Over a period of six months following surgery, a person's beliefs concerning their capability for acquiring esophageal speech (self-efficacy perceptions) became an increasingly accurate indicator of eventual success or failure. Self-efficacy in relation to speech correlated with ultimate outcome as early as six weeks following laryngecto.
SGT Framework: Social, Geographical and Temporal Relevance for Recreational Queries in Web Search

While location-based social networks (LBSNs) have become widely used for sharing and consuming location information, a large number of users turn to general web search engines for recreational activity ideas. In these cases, users typically express a query combining desired activity type, constraints and suitability, around an explicit location and time -- for example, "parks for kids in NYC in winter", or "cheap bars for bachelor party in san francisco". In this work we characterize such queries as recreational queries, and propose a relevance framework for ranking points of interest (POIs) to present in the web search recreational vertical using signals from query logs and LBSNs. The first part of this framework is a taxonomy of recreational intents, which we derive from those previously seen in query logs and other behavioral data. Based on the most popular recreational intents, we proceed to outline a new relevance model combining social, geographical and temporal information. We implement a prototype and conduct a preliminary user-study evaluation. Results show the proposed relevance model and bundles greatly improve user satisfaction for recreational queries.
Estimating the global burden of low back pain attributable to combined occupational exposures.

BACKGROUND There is little information about the global burden of non-traumatic low back pain (LBP) attributable to the effects of physical and psychosocial occupational stressors. METHODS Based on a review of the epidemiological evidence, occupation-specific relative risks were used to compute attributable proportions by age, gender, and geographical sub-region for the economically active population aged 15 and older. The reference group was professional/administrative workers; other risk categories were Low, clerical and sales; Moderate, operators (production workers) and service; and High, farmers. RESULTS Worldwide, 37% of LBP was attributed to occupation, with twofold variation across regions. The attributable proportion was higher for men than women, because of higher participation in the labor force and in occupations with heavy lifting or whole-body vibration. Work-related LBP was estimated to cause 818,000 disability-adjusted life years lost annually. CONCLUSIONS Occupational exposures to ergonomic stressors represent a substantial source of preventable back pain. Specific research on children is needed to quantify the global burden of disease due to child labor.
Developmental pathways: Sonic hedgehog-Patched-GLI.

Developmental pathways are networks of genes that act coordinately to establish the body plan. Disruptions of genes in one pathway can have effects in related pathways and may result in serious dysmorphogenesis or cancer. Environmental exposures can be associated with poor pregnancy outcomes, including dysmorphic offspring or children with a variety of diseases. An important goal of environmental science should be reduction of these poor outcomes. This will require an understanding of the genes affected by specific exposures and the consequence of alterations in these genes or their products, which in turn will require an understanding of the pathways critical in development. The ligand Sonic hedgehog, the receptors Patched and Smoothened, and the GLI family of transcription factors represent one such pathway. This pathway illustrates several operating principles important in the consideration of developmental consequences of environmental exposures to toxins. ImagesFigure 1Figure 2
Towards a Taxonomy of Dynamic Reconfiguration Approaches

Dynamic reconfiguration is essential part of software evolution. Several approaches to support dynamic reconfiguration have been proposed in the literature. These approaches are different in various criteria. The goal of this work is to make a comparative study between various dynamic reconfiguration approaches by exploring the features of these approaches and to classify them with respect to these features.
Production and Release of Neuroprotective Tumor Necrosis Factor by P2X7 Receptor-Activated Microglia

After a brain insult, ATP is released from injured cells and activates microglia. The microglia that are activated in this way then release a range of bioactive substances, one of which is tumor necrosis factor (TNF). The release of TNF appears to be dependent on the P2X7 receptor. The inhibitors 1,4-diamino-2,3-dicyano-1,4-bis[2-amino-phenylthio]butadiene (U0126), anthra[1,9-cd]pyrazol-6(2H)-one (SP600125), and 4-(4-fluorophenyl)-2-(4-methylsulfinylphenyl)-5-(4-pyridyl)IH-imidazole (SB203580), which target MEK (mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase), JNK (c-Jun N-terminal kinase), and p38, respectively, all potently suppress the production of TNF in ATP-stimulated microglia, whereas the production of TNF mRNA is strongly inhibited by U0126 and SP600125. SB203580 did not affect the increased levels of TNF mRNA but did prevent TNF mRNA from accumulating in the cytoplasm. The ATP-provoked activation of JNK and p38 [but not extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK)] could be inhibited by brilliant blue G, a P2X7 receptor blocker, and by genistein and 4-amino-5-(4-chlorophenyl)-7-(t-butyl)pyrazolo[3,4-d]pyrimidine, which are general and src-family-specific tyrosine kinase inhibitors, respectively. Most important, we found that treatment of the microglia in neuron-microglia cocultures with the P2X7 agonist 2′-3′-O-(benzoyl-benzoyl) ATP led to significant reductions in glutamate-induced neuronal cell death, and that either TNF-α converting enzyme inhibitor or anti-TNF readily suppressed the protective effect implied by this result. Together, these findings indicate that both ERK and JNK are involved in the regulation of TNF mRNA expression, that p38 is involved in the nucleocytoplasmic transport of TNF mRNA, and that a PTK (protein tyrosine kinase), possibly a member of the src family, acts downstream of the P2X7 receptor to activate JNK and p38. Finally, our data suggest that P2X7 receptor-activated microglia protect neurons against glutamate toxicity primarily because they are able to release TNF.
Long Series of Information and Nonprofessional Investors' Belief Revision

This paper reports the results of an experiment designed to examine the effect of disclosure pattern (sequential versus simultaneous) and direction of information (positive/negative versus negative/positive) on nonprofessional investors' belief revisions. An important feature of the experiment is that long series of information are used. Prior research has largely examined individuals' belief revisions using short series of information. Results indicate that individuals revise beliefs to a larger extent when the disclosure pattern is sequential rather than simultaneous. The findings extend the prior belief revision literature by providing evidence that results hold using long series of information: the current experiment uses 20 pieces of information, whereas most accounting studies only use four pieces of information. Results also contribute to the extant financial accounting literature on nonprofessional investors that is particularly relevant given the larger number of inexperienced investors entering .
Correlation of rapid changes in the average water diffusion constant and the concentrations of lactate and ATP breakdown products during global ischemia in cat brain

Rapid changes in the average water diffusion constant, Dav = 1/3{Dxx + Dyy + Dzz}, and in the concentrations of lactate and purine nucleotides and nucleosides were measured upon global ischemia (cardiac arrest) in cat brain, at a combined time resolution of 36 s (n = 7). At this time resolution, the normalized time curves of 1 ‐ Dav and the increases in ATP breakdown products did not coincide, with the changes in Dav being most rapid. The normalized curves of 1 ‐ Dav and the lactate increase coincided for the first 2‐2.5 min after which the change in Dav was more rapid. After this time point, an excellent correlation was found between the drop in Dav and the decrease in energy utilization rate, which was calculated from the measured time curves of lactate formation and ATP breakdown, and from the time curve for phosphocreatine use reported in the literature. These results are in agreement with the expected biphasic changes in ion and water homeostasis during ischemia and with the model of diffusional changes being a consequence of a water shift from interstitial to intra‐cellular space.
Streit Family Workshops: Creating Change in a Family Environment

To test the hypothesis that Streit Family Communication Workshops improve perception, this study utilized a pretest-posttest design to evaluate several families who participated in the Streit Workshop. Changes in perception, as well as other variables, were measured by the Moos Family Environment Scale. Significant results were found on two scales: Conflict and Moral-Religious Emphasis, thus indicating the viability of the Streit Workshop in changing perception. In brief, changes occurred in the experimental population which should lead toward decreased use of drugs. These findings suggest further evaluation of duration of change as well as correlation of change with future drug usage.
Analyzing Basic Representation Choices in Oversubscribed Scheduling Problems

Both direct schedule representations as well as indirect permutation-based representations in conjunction with schedule builders are successfully employed in oversubscribed scheduling research. Recent work has indicated that in some domains, searching the space of permutations as opposed to the schedule space itself can be more productive in maximizing the number of scheduled tasks. On the other hand, research in domains where task priority is treated as a hard constraint has shown the effectiveness of local repair methods that operate directly on the schedule representation. In this paper, we investigate the comparative leverage provided by techniques that exploit these alternative representations (and search spaces) in this latter oversubscribed scheduling context. We find that an inherent difficulty in specifying a permutation-based search procedure is making the tradeoff in guaranteeing that priority is enforced while giving the search sufficient flexibility to progress. Nonetheless, with some effort spent in tuning the move operator, we show that a permutation-space technique can perform quite well on this class of problem in cases of low oversubscription and in fact was able to find new optimal solutions to a few previously published benchmark problems. Not surprisingly, the permutation-space search does not perform as well as the schedule-space search in terms of maintaining schedule stability.
The place of investigations in practical work in the UK National Curriculum for Science

The introduction of the National Curriculum in the UK has meant that teachers are having to take a closer look at practical work, particularly in view of the priority apportioned to scientific investigations. Consequently there is a need to clarify the principal learning outcomes of different types of practical work. In order to do this, the aims of the science curriculum as a whole are considered in terms of conceptual and procedural understanding and, in particular, with the key issue of understanding ‘concepts of evidence’. The role of different types of practical work is then considered in the light of the overall aims of the science curriculum. Investigations emerge as a way of providing pupils with the opportunity to achieve an understanding of the concepts of evidence and hence a thorough grasp of procedural understanding whilst at the same time allowing pupils to use and develop their conceptual understanding.
Dysplasia and colorectal cancer surveillance in inflammatory bowel disease

ABSTRACT Introduction: Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) patients are at an increased risk of developing colorectal cancer (CRC), a devastating complication of which intestinal dysplasia is the precursor. Considerable progress has been made to determine CRC risk in IBD, identification & management of dysplasia and preventative methods. Traditionally, surveillance colonoscopies with random colonic biopsies was used. However recent data suggests that chromoendoscopy is a better method of surveillance. Using 5-aminosalicylic acid agents primarily for chemoprevention is an ongoing debate however, when prescribed along with other strategies to control inflammation, their use is considered of benefit. This review presents current understanding of risk factors of neoplasia focusing on dysplasia and preventive strategies. Areas covered: PubMed search was done using key words to assess current evidence. Along with genetics, risk factors, strategies that modify the risk of dysplasia, and CRC in IBD are discussed in detail. Expert commentary: The role of our strategies in modifying CRC risk needs further assessment. Future research should aim to fill knowledge gaps such as high quality evidence for Chromoendoscopy and development of molecular markers for dysplasia detection. Our ultimate goal would be to eliminate CRC and is possible by better understanding of key pathogenic mechanisms in IBD.
The art and science of software release planning

Incremental development provides customers with parts of a system early, so they receive both a sense of value and an opportunity to provide feedback early in the process. Each system release is thus a collection of features that the customer values. Furthermore, each release serves to fix defects detected in former product variants. Release planning (RP) addresses decisions related to selecting and assigning features to create a sequence of consecutive product releases that satisfies important technical, resource, budget, and risk constraints.
Distinctive Patterns of PDGF-A, FGF-2, IGF-I, and TGF-β1 Gene Expression during Remyelination of Experimentally-Induced Spinal Cord Demyelination

Although remyelination is a well-recognized regenerative process following both experimental and naturally occurring CNS demyelination, remarkably little is known about the molecules involved in its orchestration. In this study we have examined the mRNA expression of seven growth factors that influence oligodendrocyte lineage cells, during the remyelination of lysolecithin-induced demyelination in the rat spinal cord. These lesions involve rapid demyelination of axons, which undergo extensive remyelination between 10 and 28 days. The distribution and levels of expression of PDGF-A, IGF-I, CNTF, FGF-2, TGF-beta1, GGF-2, and NT-3 mRNAs were examined at 2, 5, 7, 10, 14, 21, and 28 days post-lesion induction, both within the lesion and within dorsal root ganglia whose axons transverse the lesion, by quantitative in situ hybridization using 35S-labeled oligonucleotide probes. large increases in IGF-I and TGF-beta1 mRNAs were evident within the spinal cord by 5 days. These levels peaked at 10 days at a time when new myelin sheaths appear and had declined by 28 days. Increases in FGF-2 and PDGF-A mRNAs were less intense and less widely distributed than those of IGF-I and TGF-1, but remained elevated for a longer duration. There were no changes in expression of CNTF, NT-3, or GGF-2 mRNAs within the lesioned cords; neither were ther changes in levels of expression of any growth factor mRNAs in the dorsal root ganglia. This work therefore indicates that some but not all members of the family of growth factors that affect the oligodendrocyte lineage are expressed during remyelination of demyelinated spinal cord axons and provides the data on which future studies on the specific roles of these factors in orchestrating this important regenerative process will be based.
Breast cancer surgery in New Zealand: consensus or variation?

AIMS To explore how patients with early breast cancer are managed surgically in New Zealand. METHODS A questionnaire was mailed to 195 surgeons registered as general surgeons. RESULTS Replies were received from 112 of the 186 currently working surgeons (60%), of whom 76 indicated that they treated patients with breast disease. Six per cent indicated that they treated > 50 newly diagnosed breast cancer patients in 1994. A minority, 29%, had formal protocols documented for the surgical management of breast cancer patients in their unit. One-third would make the decision about treatment themselves, two-thirds would involve other specialties. Almost all would offer the patient a choice of treatment when this was appropriate. Only 9% would recommend mastectomy for a T1/2NO tumour located in the upper outer breast quadrant. There were no significant differences between surgeons when divided by regional health authority, type of hospital and numbers of patients treated annually. CONCLUSIONS There appears to be agreement amongst surgeons regarding the preferred form of surgical treatment of patients with stage I or II disease. The results indicate that the surgical treatment of early stage disease is consistent with published guidelines.