Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
DSM-IV substance abuse and dependence: are there really two dimensions of substance use disorders in adolescents?

AIM To examine the distinctness of the DSM-IV substance abuse and dependence constructs in a large, general adolescent population. DESIGN Data were collected using the 1995 Minnesota Student Survey. Survey items were designed to correspond to DSM-IV diagnostic criteria for substance abuse and dependence. SETTINGS Public schools, alternative schools and area learning centers. PARTICIPANTS Of the 78,800 students between the ages of 14 and 18 years who completed the survey, 18,803 reported substance use and at least one substance use disorder diagnostic criterion during the previous 12 months and were used for the analyses. The sample was divided randomly into two groups in order to conduct data analyses on one group (n = 9490) and confirm the findings in the other group (n = 9313). MEASUREMENTS Confirmatory factor analyses were conducted to test three competing factor structure models consisting of a single factor model, a two-factor model of distinct dimensions and a two-factor model with interrelated dimensions. FINDINGS The single factor and correlated two-factor models had similar parameter estimates and fit the data better than the competing two-factor model with distinct dimensions. Findings were confirmed in a second sample. CONCLUSIONS The study findings indicate that DSM-IV substance abuse and dependence criteria may be more optimally structured as a unidimensional construct rather than as bidimensional constructs for adolescents.
Channel estimation and tracking using implicit training

In this paper, a new method for channel estimation using superimposed (implicit) training is proposed. By adding the uncorrelated training to the information sequence at the transmitter, an accurate estimation can be achieved without loss of information rate. We prove the effectiveness of our method and a closed form solution for the estimation is derived. In addition, an adaptive algorithm is derived to track the time-and frequency-selective (doubly selective) channel. The performance of the method is then compared with existing approaches, and computer simulations show that the proposed algorithm exhibits good estimation behavior.
Significance of Macrophage Migration Inhibitory Factor (MIF) and Anti P 53 Antibodies in Prognosis of Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Background and aim: Prognosis of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is very poor and determining the prognosis rely many factors and we aim at defining the prognostic factor of macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF) , anti P53 and its correlation with other prognostic factors in HCC. Patients: Serum macrophage migration inhibitory factor and anti-p53 antibodies were measured in139 patients diagnosed with HCC using a specific enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) kit. The clinicopathological characteristics of the patients were compared with respect to the presence of serum anti-p53 antibodies. Results: In univariate analysis, the prognostic factors of overall survival with statistical significance were portal vein thrombosis, total serum bilirubin, serum albumin, serum AST, serum ALT, Prothrombin time, viral marker and anti p53 antibody and MIF and on multivariate analysis the prognostic factors were BCLC staging, presence of extrahepatic metastases, the patient received treatment or not, anti p53 antibody and MIF. Conclusion: Both MIF and Anti p53 antibody are associated with poor prognosis in HCC and it increased the prognostic potential of alpha fetoprotein.
Sonifying the quantified self: Rhythmanalysis and performance research in and against the reduction of life-time to labour-time

Today there is a proliferation of wearable and app-based technologies for self-quantification and self-tracking. This article explores the potential of an Open Marxist reading of Henri Lefebvre’s rhythmanalysis to understand data as an appearance assumed by the quantitative abstraction of everyday life, which negates a qualitative disjuncture between different natural and social rhythms – specifically those between embodied circadian and biological rhythms and the rhythms of work and organisations. It takes as a case study a piece of performance research investigating the methodological and practical potential of quantified-self technologies to tell us about the world of work and how it sits within life as a whole. The prototype performance research method developed in the case study reconnects the body to its forms of abstraction in a digital age by means of the collection, interpretation and sonification of data using wearable tech, mobile apps, synthesised music and modes of visual communication. Quantitative data were selectively ‘sonified’ with synthesisers and drum machines to produce a 40-minute electronic symphony performed to a public audience. The article theorises the project as a ‘negative dialectical’ intervention reconnecting quantitative data with the qualitative experience it abstracts from, exploring the potential for these technologies to be used as tools to recover the embodied social subject from its abstraction in data. Specifically, we explore how the rhythmanalytical method works in and against the reduction of life-time to labour-time by situating labour within the embodied time of life as a whole. We close by considering the capacity of wearable technologies to be repurposed by workers in constructing new forms of measurement around which to organise and bargain.
Particle Swarm Optimization with Quasi-Newton Local Search for Solving Economic Dispatch Problem

Particle swarm optimization (PSO) is a population-based swarm intelligence algorithm driven by the simulation of a social psychological metaphor instead of the survival of the fittest individual. Based on the swarm intelligence theory, this paper discusses the use of PSO with a Quasi-Newton (QN) local search method. The PSO is used to produce good potential solutions, and the QN is used to fine-tune of final solution of PSO. The hybrid methodology is validated for a test system consisting of 13 thermal units whose incremental fuel cost function takes into account the valve-point loading effects.
Dégradation physique des sols agricoles et forestiers liée au tassement : principaux résultats du projet GESSOL-ADD DST

La degradation physique des sols agricoles et forestiers liee au tassement lors des passages d'engins est une preoccupation importante des acteurs de l'agriculture et de la foret. Mais au-dela de ce cercle, elle concerne egalement tous ceux qui se preoccupent des consequences environnementales de l'agriculture et de la gestion forestiere. En effet, le tassement des sols modifie a des consequences lourdes sur plusieurs processus tels que l'erosion hydrique, la denitrification, le stockage du carbone, la preservation de la biodiversite, la production. Dans ce cadre, le projet DST (Degradation physique des Sols agricoles et forestiers liee au Tassement) proposait cinq volets de recherche : impact, prevision, prevention, suivi et cartographie du tassement en France metropolitaine. Il a repose sur l'utili- sation de modeles de tassement des sols et de fonctionnement du systeme sol/plante pour etudier les consequences sur les cultures et l'environnement, via la modification des proprietes (stockage, transfert, mecaniques) des sols. Ce projet transversal, associant des laboratoires de recherche travaillant en agriculture, en geophysique ou en genie civil et des organismes professionnels, s'est aussi appuye sur des experimentations variees, en laboratoire et sur le terrain. Les principaux resultats sont presentes dans cet article. Ils concernent : (i) l'impact du tassement, avec la mise en evidence d'un seuil d'indice des vides en sol limoneux (0,15 m3.m 3 dans les sols limoneux), au-dela duquel les performances des cultures et les proprietes hydrodynamiques sont a coup sur affectees, (ii) la modelisation, le projet ayant debouche sur la mise au point d'un modele 2-D de prevision de la deformation des sols, (iii) le suivi, avec l'evaluation de methodes geophysiques, non destructrices, permettant la cartographie des zones tassees, (iv) la prevention, a travers le developpement d'un outil de prevision de l'humidite du sol et des jours disponibles et, (v) la cartographie des zones a risques en France.
BCL2 Family of Apoptosis-Related Genes: Functions and Clinical Implications in Cancer

One of the most effective ways to combat different types of cancer is through early diagnosis and administration of effective treatment, followed by efficient monitoring that will allow physicians to detect relapsing disease and treat it at the earliest possible time. Apoptosis, a normal physiological form of cell death, is critically involved in the regulation of cellular homeostasis. Dysregulation of programmed cell death mechanisms plays an important role in the pathogenesis and progression of cancer as well as in the responses of tumours to therapeutic interventions. Many members of the BCL2 (B-cell CLL/lymphoma 2; Bcl-2) family of apoptosis-related genes have been found to be differentially expressed in various malignancies, and some are useful prognostic cancer biomarkers. We have recently cloned a new member of this family, BCL2L12, which was found to be differentially expressed in many tumours. Most of the BCL2 family genes have been found to play a central regulatory role in apoptosis induction. Results have made it clear that a number of coordinating alterations in the BCL2 family of genes must occur to inhibit apoptosis and provoke carcinogenesis in a wide variety of cancers. However, more research is required to increase our understanding of the extent to which and the mechanisms by which they are involved in cancer development, providing the basis for earlier and more accurate cancer diagnosis, prognosis and therapeutic intervention that targets the apoptosis pathways. In the present review, we describe current knowledge of the function and molecular characteristics of a series of classic but also newly discovered genes of the BCL2 family as well as their implications in cancer development, prognosis and treatment.
Allocation of Cells in Mouse Blastocyst Is Not Determined by the Order of Cleavage of the First Two Blastomeres

Abstract The second cleavage of the mouse embryo is asynchronous. Some recent investigators have proposed that the sequence of division of blastomeres in two-cell embryos may predict the ultimate location of the descendants of these blastomeres within the blastocyst. To verify this model, we tracked the cells derived from two-cell stage blastomeres using tetramethylrhodamine-conjugated dextran as a lineage tracer. In the first variant of the experiment, we labeled one of two blastomeres in two-cell embryos and subsequently recorded which blastomere cleaved first. In the second variant of the experiment, fluorescent dextran was injected at the three-cell stage into the blastomere that had not yet cleaved. Subsequently, the fate of the progeny of labeled and unlabeled blastomeres was followed up to the blastocyst stage. Our results suggest that allocation of cells into the embryonic and abembryonic parts of the blastocyst is not determined by the order of cleavage of the first two blastomeres.
The Effect of Methanol Extract of Talinum Triangulare (Water Leaf) on the Hematology and Some Liver Parameters of Experimental Rats

The percentage yield of Talinum triangulare was found to be 4.84%. The preliminary phytochemical screening of plant extract revealed the presence of alkaloids and flavonoids in larger amounts while saponins, tannins, resins, steroids and glycosides were in lower amounts. The administration of methanol extract of Talinum triangulare at 100, 200 and 400/kg b.w had no effect on the level of alanine amino transferase and alkaline phosphatase (p>0.05), but the administration of extract at these doses gave significant increase (p<0.05) in the levels of serum aspartate amino transferase and RBC but significant decrease (p<0.05) were recorded in PCV and bilirubin. There was a significant increase (p<0.05) in the AST levels at 100mg/kg dose and this could have been due to the physiological conditions of animal because AST is also found in other organs of the body such as the heart, but at 200 and 400 mg/kg there was a decrease in AST when compared to the one at 100mg/kg. There was significant decrease in the PCV level of the rats. For the bilirubin concentration there was a significant decrease (p<0.05) between the control and the test groups. At 200mg/kg, the extract gave the lowest serum total bilirubin concentration. The RBC concentration was significantly increased when compared to the control and the highest RBC level was obtained at 200mg/kg. This shows that T. triangulare leaf could be used for treatment of disease conditions such as anaemia and could also be used by pregnant women and growing children to boost their blood level. The clearance of bilirubin from blood shows that the plant could help red cells stay longer and be used by the body. Since these vegetables are readily available almost everywhere, it means they are used by almost everyone including those in remote areas and so they have access to a lot of health benefits that is provided by this plant.
3-D scene reconstruction with viewpoint adaptation on stereo displays

We propose a generic algorithm for the geometrically correct reconstruction of 3-D scenes on stereo displays with viewpoint adaptation. This forms the basis of multiviewpoint systems, which are currently the most promising candidates for real-time implementations of 3-D visual communication systems. The reconstruction algorithm needs 3-D tracking of the viewers' eyes with respect to the display. We analyze the effect of eye-tracking errors. A simple bound is derived, below which reconstruction errors cannot be observed. We design a multiviewpoint system using a recently introduced image-based scene representation. The design formed the basis of the real-time multiviewpoint system that was recently built in the European PANORAMA project. Experiments with both natural and synthetic scenes show that the proposed reconstruction algorithm performs well. The experiments are performed by computer simulations and the real-time PANORAMA system.
Cellular Ras and Cyclin D1 Are Required during Different Cell Cycle Periods in Cycling NIH 3T3 Cells

ABSTRACT Novel techniques were used to determine when in the cell cycle of proliferating NIH 3T3 cells cellular Ras and cyclin D1 are required. For comparison, in quiescent cells, all four of the inhibitors of cell cycle progression tested (anti-Ras, anti-cyclin D1, serum removal, and cycloheximide) became ineffective at essentially the same point in G1 phase, approximately 4 h prior to the beginning of DNA synthesis. To extend these studies to cycling cells, a time-lapse approach was used to determine the approximate cell cycle position of individual cells in an asynchronous culture at the time of inhibitor treatment and then to determine the effects of the inhibitor upon recipient cells. With this approach, anti-Ras antibody efficiently inhibited entry into S phase only when introduced into cells prior to the preceding mitosis, several hours before the beginning of S phase. Anti-cyclin D1, on the other hand, was an efficient inhibitor when introduced up until just before the initiation of DNA synthesis. Cycloheximide treatment, like anti-cyclin D1 microinjection, was inhibitory throughout G1 phase (which lasts a total of 4 to 5 h in these cells). Finally, serum removal blocked entry into S phase only during the first hour following mitosis. Kinetic analysis and a novel dual-labeling technique were used to confirm the differences in cell cycle requirements for Ras, cyclin D1, and cycloheximide. These studies demonstrate a fundamental difference in mitogenic signal transduction between quiescent and cycling NIH 3T3 cells and reveal a sequence of signaling events required for cell cycle progression in proliferating NIH 3T3 cells.
Antiferromagnetism in R u2MnZ (Z=Sn, Sb, Ge, Si) full Heusler alloys: Effects of magnetic frustration and chemical disorder

We present systematic theoretical investigations to explore the microscopic mechanisms leading to the formation of antiferromagnetism in Ru2MnZ (Z= Sn,Sb,Ge,Si) full Heusler alloys. Our study is based on first-principles calculations of inter-atomic Mn-Mn exchange interactions to set up a suitable Heisenberg spin-model and on subsequent Monte-Carlo simulations of the magnetic properties at finite temperature. The exchange interactions are derived from the paramagnetic state, while a realistic account of long-range chemical disorder is made in the framework of the Coherent Potential Approximation. We find that in case of the highly ordered alloys (Z=Sn and Sb) the exchange interactions derived from the perfectly ordered L21 structure lead to N\'eel temperatures in excellent agreement with the experiments, whereas, in particular, in case of Si the consideration of chemical disorder is essential to reproduce the experimental N\'eel temperatures. Our numerical results suggest that improving a heat treatment of the samples to suppress the intermixing between the Mn and Si atoms, the N\'eel temperature of the Si-based alloys can potentially be increased by more than 30%. Furthermore, we show that in strongly disordered Ru2MnSi alloys a distinct change in the antiferromagnetic ordering occurs.
Is There a Role for Intravenous Stem Cell Delivery in Nonischemic Cardiomyopathy?

The delivery of stem cells to the heart in the setting of ischemic or nonischemic cardiomyopathy has almost exclusively relied on intramyocardial (IM) or intracoronary (IC) routes of administration. This strategy is based on several preclinical1 and human studies2 demonstrating minimal engraftment of cells in the heart when delivered by an intravenous (IV) infusion and the demonstration that higher engraftment in the heart is associated with greater improvement in left ventricular (LV) function.3,4 In patients with nonischemic cardiomyopathy, Vrtovec et al2 randomized 110 patients to IC autologous CD34+ stem cells (n=55) or control. During a 5-year period, those patients randomized to IC delivery of CD34+ cells had a higher event-free survival and sustained improvements in left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) and exercise capacity by 6-minute walk test. In a subgroup of patients (n=43) that received labeled cells to measure engraftment (5.7% at 18 hours), only those patients with homing above the median sustained an improvement in LVEF at 1 year, supporting the importance of cell engraftment in mediating efficacy. In a second study,4 the same group compared IC versus IM delivery of the same dose of CD34+ stem cells to a similar group (n=40) of patients with nonischemic cardiomyopathy. They observed that retention of cells measured by SPECT (single photon emission computed tomography) at 18 hours after delivery was 4-fold greater by IM delivery versus IC (19.2 versus 4.4%) and that IM delivery was associated with a significantly greater increase in LVEF (8.1 versus 4.2%) and 6-minute walk test distance at 6 months. These findings strongly support the concept that the initial engraftment of cells strongly correlates with improved LV function and exercise capacity. Article, see p 332 Imaging of IV delivered radiolabeled stem cells in humans and animals reveals …
Native American ancestry is associated with severe diabetic retinopathy in Latinos.

PURPOSE Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is a leading cause of blindness in working age adults. Studies have observed that Latinos have a higher prevalence of DR than whites. The purpose of this study is to test the association between genetic admixture and severe DR in Latinos with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). METHODS We conducted a case-control study using 944 T2DM subjects from the Los Angeles Latino Eye Study. Cases (n = 135) were defined as proliferative or severe nonproliferative DR subjects. Controls (n = 809) were other diabetic subjects in the cohort. Genotyping was performed on the Illumina OmniExpress BeadChip. We estimated genetic ancestry in Latinos using STRUCTURE with the HapMap reference panels. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were used to test the relationship between the proportions of genetic ancestry and severe DR. RESULTS Native American ancestry (NAA) in Latino T2DM subjects is associated significantly with severe DR (P = 0.002). The association remained significant (P = 0.005) after adjusting for age, sex, duration of diabetes, hemoglobin A1c, body mass index, systolic blood pressure, education, and income. We also validated the NAA estimates in Latinos using ADMIXTURE with the 1000 Genomes Project reference panels and obtained consistent results. CONCLUSIONS Our results demonstrate for the first time to our knowledge that NAA is a significant risk factor for severe DR in Latinos.
El Impacto De La Inversiã“N Pãšblica Sobre El Crecimiento Econã“Mico. Una Revisiã“N Del Caso Ecuatoriano

Krugman cit. por Ramos Llanos & Berumen (2012) define al crecimiento econA³mico como â€œla capacidad que tiene una economA­a para producir cada vez mAis bienes y serviciosâ€ . Dicha capacidad tiene como fin el desarrollo econA³mico en sus tres dimensiones: EconA³mico, Social y Medioambiental, si se satisface esos tres frentes entonces se puede concluir que dicho crecimiento es sostenible y por tanto permite asegurar una mejor calidad de vida en los ciudadanos. Existen algunos enfoques para medir este crecimiento, sin embargo, el mAis utilizado es la variaciA³n del PIB. Debido a las recientes crA­ticas efectuadas sobre los modelos neoclAisicos como causantes de sendas crisis financieras en los paA­ses desarrollados, tanto los estudiosos como los gobiernos han regresado a los esquemas keynesianos de anAilisis del comportamiento econA³mico pero incorporando el papel de la racionalidad limitada y la informaciA³n, lo cual ha dado vida a la corriente Neokeynesiana cuya proposiciA³n principal es recuperar el rol de regulador y planificador del Gobierno como mecanismo de coordinaciA³n entre las decisiones que toman hogares y empresas. El principal elemento de acciA³n de la escuela Neokeynesiana para estimular el crecimiento econA³mico es la polA­tica fiscal, dentro del cual destacan como herramientas bAisicas el marco tributario, el gasto social y de capital y los subsidios. El uso de esas herramientas son fundamentalmente para dotar de capital humano y fA­sico que apuntale a la productividad del trabajo, de esa manera se logra mayor competitividad del producto local, incrementando la producciA³n e influyendo sobre el crecimiento econA³mico. En el presente trabajo se analiza el uso de dos de las herramientas mencionadas: Gasto Social en EducaciA³n y Gasto de Capital (inversiones en infraestructura) y si han tenido influencia en el proceso de crecimiento econA³mico en el contexto ecuatoriano en los Aoltimos 30 aA±os (1984 â€“ 2014).
Sap concentrations in halophytes and some other plants.

Freezing point depression in xylem sap of mangroves was found to range from 0.05 to 0.5 degrees , in desert plants from 0.01 to 0.16 degrees . In crush juices from leaves of Batis and Salicornia, 90% or more of the freezing point depression was made up of sodium and chlorine ions; in mangroves they constituted 50 to 70%, the rest probably being organic solutes. Plants growing in seawater have -30 to -60 atmospheres pressure in the xylem sap. As shown earlier, at zero turgor pressure the intracellular freezing point of the parenchyma cells matches closely the negative pressure in the xylem sap. This agrees with the present data, that the fluid which exudes from the xylem by applying gas pressure on the leaves is practically pure water; freezing point is rarely above 0.01 to 0.02 degrees . To perform this ultrafiltration, the plasma membrane is subjected to a hydrostatic pressure gradient which in some cases may exceed 100 atmospheres.