Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Model Selection in Bayesian Neural Networks via Horseshoe Priors

Bayesian Neural Networks (BNNs) have recently received increasing attention for their ability to provide well-calibrated posterior uncertainties. However, model selection---even choosing the number of nodes---remains an open question. In this work, we apply a horseshoe prior over node pre-activations of a Bayesian neural network, which effectively turns off nodes that do not help explain the data. We demonstrate that our prior prevents the BNN from under-fitting even when the number of nodes required is grossly over-estimated. Moreover, this model selection over the number of nodes doesn't come at the expense of predictive or computational performance; in fact, we learn smaller networks with comparable predictive performance to current approaches.
Hypertension susceptibility genes on chromosome 2p24-p25 in a general Japanese population

Background Genome-wide scans from Italy and China suggest a hypertension-susceptible locus between D2S2278 (nucleotides 11 245 080–11 245 358) and D2S168 (nucleotides 11 467 214–11 467 422) on chromosome 2. Methods We performed a large association study of polymorphisms in this region with blood pressure modulation in a Japanese general population. Forty-seven polymorphisms in 14 genes between nucleotide 8 845 292 and nucleotide 11 946 689, which contains D2S2278 and D2S168, were genotyped in 1880 individuals, 796 of whom were hypertensive and 1084 normotensive. Results Multivariate logistic regression analysis with adjustment for age, body mass index, presence of hyperlipidemia, diabetes mellitus, and current smoking and drinking revealed that one single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP), IMS-JST126186, in HPCAL1 (hippocalcin-like 1) in women and two SNPs, IMS-JST149391 and IMS-JST149390, in GREB1 (gene regulated by estrogen in breast cancer 1) in men were significantly associated with both prevalence of hypertension and blood pressure levels. To examine the role of GREB1 in more detail, we identified 38 additional genetic variations in GREB1 by direct sequencing, and eight polymorphisms were genotyped. One SNP, 45718A>G, was significantly associated with hypertension and blood pressure level in men, and this SNP was in linkage disequilibrium with a SNP present at the 3′ splice site of intron 11. Conclusion Our study suggests that GREB1 and HPCAL1 are candidate hypertension-susceptibility genes in the Japanese general population and supports previous studies that also identified hypertension-related loci in this narrow region.
Increased plaque burden in brains of APP mutant MnSOD heterozygous knockout mice

A growing body of evidence suggests a relationship between oxidative stress and β‐amyloid (Aβ) peptide accumulation, a hallmark in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease (AD). However, a direct causal relationship between oxidative stress and Aβ pathology has not been established in vivo. Therefore, we crossed mice with a knockout of one allele of manganese superoxide dismutase (MnSOD), a critical antioxidant enzyme, with Tg19959 mice, which overexpress a doubly mutated human β‐amyloid precursor protein (APP). Partial deficiency of MnSOD, which is well established to cause elevated oxidative stress, significantly increased brain Aβ levels and Aβ plaque burden in Tg19959 mice. These results indicate that oxidative stress can promote the pathogenesis of AD and further support the feasibility of antioxidant approaches for AD therapy.
A Psychoevolutionary Approach to Identifying Preferred Nature Scenes With Potential to Provide Restoration From Stress

Background: Research supports therapeutic use of nature scenes in healthcare settings, particularly to reduce stress. However, limited literature is available to provide a cohesive guide for selecting scenes that may provide optimal therapeutic effect. Objective: This study produced and tested a replicable process for selecting nature scenes with therapeutic potential. Psychoevolutionary theory informed the construction of the Importance for Survival Scale (IFSS), and its usefulness for identifying scenes that people generally prefer to view and that hold potential to reduce stress was tested. Methods: Relationships between Importance for Survival (IFS), preference, and restoration were tested. General community participants (N = 20 males, 20 females; M age = 48 years) Q-sorted sets of landscape photographs (preranked by the researcher in terms of IFS using the IFSS) from most to least preferred, and then completed the Short-Version Revised Restoration Scale in response to viewing a selection of the scenes. Results: Results showed significant positive relationships between IFS and each of scene preference (large effect), and restoration potential (medium effect), as well as between scene preference and restoration potential across the levels of IFS (medium effect), and for individual participants and scenes (large effect). Conclusions: IFS was supported as a framework for identifying nature scenes that people will generally prefer to view and that hold potential for restoration from emotional distress; however, greater therapeutic potential may be expected when people can choose which of the scenes they would prefer to view. Evidence for the effectiveness of the IFSS was produced.
Two cases of systemic mantle cell lymphoma involving the skin

Mantle cell lymphoma (MCL) is a form of non-Hodgkin lymphoma that rarely affects skin. Cutaneous involvement is non-specific but usually indicates widespread disease. Herein we present two cases of MCL with secondary skin involvement. One case presented as an acneiform eruption on the face and had aberrant expression of bcl-2 and bcl-6 with weak CD5 expression. The second presented with multiple tumors on the abdomen and thighs. In both cases expression of Cyclin-D1 by the tumor cells was seen. Both patients died shortly after the diagnosis was established.
Anti-inflammatory Compounds Parthenolide and Bay 11-7082 Are Direct Inhibitors of the Inflammasome*

Activation of the inflammasome generates the pro-inflammatory cytokines interleukin-1β and -18, which are important mediators of inflammation. Abnormal activation of the inflammasome leads to many inflammatory diseases, including gout, silicosis, neurodegeneration, and genetically inherited periodic fever syndromes. Therefore, identification of small molecule inhibitors that target the inflammasome is an important step toward developing effective therapeutics for the treatment of inflammation. Here, we show that the herbal NF-κB inhibitory compound parthenolide inhibits the activity of multiple inflammasomes in macrophages by directly inhibiting the protease activity of caspase-1. Additional investigations of other NF-κB inhibitors revealed that the synthetic IκB kinase-β inhibitor Bay 11-7082 and structurally related vinyl sulfone compounds selectively inhibit NLRP3 inflammasome activity in macrophages independent of their inhibitory effect on NF-κB activity. In vitro assays of the effect of parthenolide and Bay 11-7082 on the ATPase activity of NLRP3 demonstrated that both compounds inhibit the ATPase activity of NLRP3, suggesting that the inhibitory effect of these compounds on inflammasome activity could be mediated in part through their effect on the ATPase activity of NLRP3. Our results thus elucidate the molecular mechanism for the therapeutic anti-inflammatory activity of parthenolide and identify vinyl sulfones as a new class of potential therapeutics that target the NLRP3 inflammasome.
Concentrating Power to Accomplish Big Things: The CCP’s Pishi System and Operation in Contemporary China

ABSTRACT This article discusses the operations of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) pishi system from the perspective of decision making. As an authoritarian regime, the CCP ‘concentrates power to accomplish big things’, demonstrating the extent of the CCP’s state capacity. This article argues that, through a wide range of documentation, the CCP provides leaders with a channel for resource accumulation, to issue pishi (written directives). Next, mishu (secretaries) play an extremely important role in the transmission of documents and the execution of pishi. This article then goes on to point out that the CCP’s practice of nomenklatura is a key means to ensure that pishi are executed as expected. Finally, this article discusses the advantages and disadvantages of the pishi system.
Doctors on-line: using diffusion of innovations theory to understand internet use.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES Family physicians must be aware of the latest and best evidence for a broad range of clinical and public health topics. The Internet is an important source of this information, but not all family physicians use the Internet. This study used "diffusion of innovations" theory to identify strategies for increasing Internet use by family physicians. METHODS We conducted a mail survey of 58 family physicians in a midsized Northeastern metropolitan area in the United States to assess Internet use and identify sources from which physicians obtain medical information. We then used diffusion of innovations theory to describe the process by which physicians learn and develop skills at using the Internet. RESULTS Internet use begins when physicians are not constrained by a heavy patient volume and are able to learn about and observe the benefits of Internet use. When they experience its usefulness, their Internet browsing and searching develop and become more effortless and less time-consuming. CONCLUSIONS The innovation attributes of diffusion of innovations theory act as predictors of Internet use among family physicians. Internet use by family physicians might be increased by providing them time to learn about how to use it and to experience its benefits. Integration of continuing medical education courses created for the purpose of developing and enhancing Internet usage skills into their schedule may be a workable solution. Demographic factors such as gender and training recency have no influence on Internet use by family physicians.
The effects of review form and task complexity on auditor performance*

Abstract This study examines the effects of review form and task complexity levels on auditor performance. Adopting a 2 × 2 (face-to-face vs. e-mail review and low vs. high task complexity) between-subjects design, we recruit auditors with limited experience to perform going-concern evaluations in an experimental setting. Our results reveal that auditors in the face-to-face review group perform better than those in the e-mail review group, and that auditor performance is lower for more complex tasks. More importantly, consistent with our hypotheses, auditors in the face-to-face review group perform better than those in the e-mail review group when task complexity is low, but not when task complexity is high.
Prevention of exercise-induced asthma by a natural isomer mixture of beta-carotene.

BACKGROUND The unicellular alga Dunaliella bardawil was previously shown to contain very high concentrations of beta-carotene composed of equal amounts of the all-trans and 9-cis stereoisomers which differ in their physicochemical features and antioxidative activity. Due to the controversy regarding the beneficial effect of antioxidants on asthma, the acute effects of beta-carotene of Dunaliella was assessed on airway hyperreactivity in patients with exercise-induced asthma (EIA). METHODS Thirty-eight patients with EIA participated in our study to verify the antioxidative effect. The test was based on the following sequence: baseline pulmonary function, 7 minutes exercise session on a motorized treadmill, 8 minutes rest, 1-week oral random, double-blind supplementation of placebo or 64 mg/day beta-carotene, pulmonary functions at rest, 7 minutes exercise session, 8 minutes rest and again pulmonary functions. RESULTS All patients given placebo showed a significant postexercise reduction of more than 15% in their forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1). Of the 38 patients who received a daily dose of 64 mg of beta-carotene for 1 week, 20 (53%) were protected against EIA. CONCLUSIONS Our results indicate that a daily dose of Dunaliella beta-carotene exerts a protective effect against EIA in some patients most probably through in vivo antioxidative effect.
Getting Debt Relief Right

Today 41 of the world's poorest countries are bankrupt. These nations, identified by the World Bank as "heavily indebted poor countries" (hipcs), owe some $170 billion to foreign creditors, while half of their 600 million citizens get by on less than $1 a day. Nine out often hipcs cannot sustain their debts, given their low export earnings and GNPs. Unless some of this debt is forgiven, they will be paying in perpetuity. Their creditors, on the other hand, include the wealthiest countries in the world, as well as the international financial institutions that are meant to support economic development. In the spirit of the Jubilee (a semicentennial forgiveness of debts described in the Old Testament), a diverse and powerful coalition of political and religious leaders, Nobel Peace Prize winners, economists, rock stars, and rioting activists has rallied for a complete debt write-off. Arguing that high interest payments "crowd out" government spending on the poor, these advocates claim that forgiving national debts will help relieve the world's worst poverty. Using powerful emotional rhetoric, they offer heart-wrenching descriptions of the millions of people lacking security, adequate food, clean water, and basic health care and education. But as moving as this testimony may be, the reality is that the windfall of the current hipc Initiative? a $28 billion debt-relief package administered by the International Monetary Fund (imf) and the World Bank? does not go to the poor. Instead, it goes to the same governments that racked up the debt in the first
The role of gravity in human walking: pendular energy exchange, external work and optimal speed

1 During walking on Earth, at 1.0 g of gravity, the work done by the muscles to maintain the motion of the centre of mass of the body (Wext) is reduced by a pendulum‐like exchange between gravitational potential energy and kinetic energy. The weight‐specific Wext per unit distance attains a minimum of 0.3 J kg−1 m−1 at about 4.5 km h−1 in adults. 2 The effect of a gravity change has been studied during walking on a force platform fixed to the floor of an aircraft undergoing flight profiles which resulted in a simulated gravity of 0.4 and 1.5 times that on Earth. 3 At 0.4 g, such as on Mars, the minimum Wext was 0.15 J kg−1 m−1, half that on Earth and occurred at a slower speed, about 2.5 km h−1. The range of walking speeds is about half that on Earth. 4 At 1.5 g, the lowest value of Wext was 0.60 J kg−1 m−1, twice that on Earth; it was nearly constant up to about 4.3 km h−1 and then increased with speed. The range of walking speeds is probably greater than that on Earth. 5 A model is presented in which the speed for an optimum exchange between potential and kinetic energy, the ‘optimal speed’, is predicted by the balance between the forward deceleration due to the lift of the body against gravity and the forward deceleration due to the impact against the ground. 6 In conclusion, over the range studied, gravity increases the work required to walk, but it also increases the range of walking speeds.
A review of the capabilities of ICP-MS for trace element analysis in body fluids and tissues.

ICP-MS is a powerful analytical technique for the determination of trace and ultra-trace elements in biological materials. Results are given of the analysis of human serum and of several biological reference materials (bovine liver, milk powder, wheat flour and pig kidney). Because concentrations of many trace metals of interest in these materials are low, dilution should be kept as limited as possible, although concentrations of certain concomitant elements (e.g. Na, K) can be high enough to cause significant suppression or enhancement of the ion signal. The result is that the dissolution procedure becomes a critical step in the analysis. Microwave digestion, wet digestion with several acids (HNO3, HClO4, HF) and simple dilution are compared with each other. In addition, three possible approaches to overcome these problems are discussed, namely the internal standardization method, the standard addition method and the isotope dilution method. Furthermore, ICP-MS is also more susceptible than initially expected to isobaric interferences arising from the plasma, the acids used in the sample preparation or the sample itself. These interferences are generally less important above a mass number of 80. Nevertheless, several researchers have investigated the possibility of removing the trace metals from the matrix or of using correction formulae based on the isotopic abundances of the elements. Some of these are evaluated. The need for identifying and quantifying chemical species, not just the elements, is well recognized. One of the reasons why elemental determination may not suffice is that different species of the same element may have a different chemical and toxicological behaviour. Arsenic (As(III), As(V)) and mercury (organomercury) are typical examples. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Ethyl pyruvate exerts combined anti-inflammatory and anticoagulant effects on human monocytic cells

Summary Sepsis is characterized by a concurrent activation of inflammation and coagulation. Recently, recombinant human activated protein C was shown to decrease mortality in patients with severe sepsis presumably due to a combined anti-inflammatory and anticoagulant effect.These promising findings led to a search for other products that influence both the inflammatory and the procoagulant response to severe infection. Ethyl pyruvate (EP) was recently identified as an experimental anti-inflammatory agent during endotoxemia and sepsis. The aim of the present study was to investigate whether EP influences coagulation besides its anti-inflammatory effects. For this we investigated the effects of EP on the expression and function of tissue factor (TF), the principal initiator of coagulation activation in sepsis, in human monocytic (THP-1) cell cultures. EP dose-dependently inhibited the production of tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, macrophage inflammatory protein (MIP)-1α and MIP-1β by lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated THP-1 cells at mRNA and protein level, thereby confirming its anti-inflammatory properties in this in-vitro system.In addition, EP dose-dependently attenuated the increases in TF mRNA levels,TF-protein-surface expression and cell-surface-associated TF activity in LPS-stimulated THP-1 cells. These results demonstrate for the first time that EP is a compound with combined anti-inflammatory and anticoagulant effects.
Association of autoantibodies against platelet glycoproteins Ib/IX and IIb/IIIa, and platelet‐reactive anti‐HIV antibodies in thrombocytopenic narcotic addicts

The levels of platelet‐associated Igs (PAIgs) and plasma circulating antiplatelet antibodies were evaluated by a flow cytometric immunofluorescence assay (FCIFA), an enzyme‐linked immunoassay (ELISA), and a platelet radioactive antiglobulin test (PRAT), in a group of 45 human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)‐infected intravenous drug users (IVDUs), with or without thrombocytopenia (TCP). Direct tests demonstrated an increased amount of PAIgs in 40% of the patients, irrespective of their platelet count. These PAIgs were mainly of IgG class and could not be eluted with ether. Plasma IgG with antiplatelet activity was found in 70% of the thrombocytopenic individuals, whereas it was detected in only one patient without TCP. The relative frequencies of antibodies against the platelet glycoproteins (GPs) Ib/IX and IIb/ IIIa were assessed in plasma from all patients by means of the monoclonal antibody‐specific immobilization of platelet antigens assay (MAIPA). Plasmas from all non‐thrombocytopenic patients were negative when tested by indirect MAIPA. In contrast, 10/23 plasmas from thrombocytopenic patients reacted with either GP IIb/IIIa, GP Ib/IX, or both GPs. Finally, aiming to investigate whether HIV antibodies from these patients are reactive with normal platelets, we performed absorption‐elution experiments, followed by evaluation of HIV antibodies in the indirect eluates by ELISA and Western blot. Interestingly, we detected anti‐HIV antibodies that bind to normal platelet antigens in 50% of the ether eluates prepared from control platelets sensitized with plasma from patients with TCP, but in only 5% of eluates obtained from platelets sensitized with plasma from non‐thrombocytopenic patients. The present study provides direct evidence that specific autoantibodies against platelet membrane GPs Ib/IX and IIb/IIIa are common in HIV positive thrombocytopenic individuals. The finding in these patients of HIV antibodies cross‐reactive with normal platelets, suggests that mimicry of human antigens by HIV could play a key role in the pathophysiology of the HIV‐related TCP.
The Diaphanous-related Formin FHOD1 Associates with ROCK1 and Promotes Src-dependent Plasma Membrane Blebbing*

Diaphanous-related formins (DRFs) mediate GTPase-triggered actin rearrangements to regulate central cellular processes, such as cell motility and cytokinesis. The DRF FHOD1 interacts with the Rho-GTPase Rac1 and mediates formation of actin stress fibers in its deregulated form; the physiologically relevant activities and molecular mechanisms of endogenous FHOD1, however, are still unknown. Here we report that FHOD1 physically associates via the N-terminal part of its FH2 domain with the central domain of ROCK1. Although FHOD1 does not affect the kinase activity of ROCK1, the DRF is an efficient substrate for phosphorylation by ROCK1. Co-expression of FHOD1 and ROCK1 results in the generation of nonapoptotic plasma membrane (PM) blebs, to which the DRF is efficiently recruited. Blebbing induced by FHOD1 and ROCK1 depends on F-actin integrity, the Rho-ROCK cascade, and Src activity and is reminiscent of the recently described PM blebs triggered by expression of Src homology 4 (SH4) domain PM targeting signals. Consistently, endogenous FHOD1 is required in SH4 domain expressing cells for efficient PM blebbing and rounded cell morphology in two-dimensional cultures or three-dimensional matrices, respectively. Efficient association of FHOD1 with ROCK1, as well as recruitment of the DRF to blebs, depends on Src activity, suggesting that the functional interaction between both proteins is regulated by Src. These results define a role for endogenous FHOD1 in SH4 domain-induced blebbing and suggest that its activity is regulated by ROCK1 in a Src-dependent manner.
BEYOND THE PROFITABLE PRODUCT DEATH SPIRAL: MANAGING PRODUCT MIX IN AN ENVIRONMENT OF CONSTRAINED RESOURCES

Notwithstanding the wide-spread inclusion of product-mix decisions in marketing simulation games, little theoretical work has been done to ensure that the algorithms driving them reflect current knowledge regarding product-mix strategy. Recent work based on relationship marketing theory has sought to address this problem, focusing on the impact of demand correlation within the product mix. This paper extends this line of research, using Goldrattâ€™s theory of constraints to address the impact of supply constraints on product-mix interactions. It shows how these factors can be incorporated into a standard simulation objective function.