Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Interlimb Coordination: Real Constraints and False Dichotomies

Abstract Despite the recent advances in the field of coordination dynamics addressing the interplay of constraints of different natures in the emergence of human coordination, F. Mechsner (2004) invites us to revive hierarchical and dichotomous thinking by offering again his exclusive position that coordinated movements are (purely) perceptual-cognitive/psychological in nature. In this comment, the authors address a number of theoretical and methodological issues that might potentially puzzle the readers of Mechsner's article. They contend that the dichotomy proposed by Mechsner (i.e., perceptual-cognitive vs. motor) constitutes a restrictive framework for understanding human coordination.
Epidemiology of Panic Disorder

International community surveys generally agree that panic disorder occurs in adults with a lifetime prevalence of up to 3 per cent and a 6‐month or 1‐year prevalence of about 1 per cent. Although all sociodemographic groups are affected, panic disorder is most prevalent in women, people under the age of 50 years, people who are divorced or separated and those who live in an urban area. Aetiological factors include familial and genetic aspects, and developmental variables, such as parental loss and separation during childhood, stressful life events and social environmental difficulties. A major problem associated with panic disorder is risk of suicide. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
De toon waarop: Wat is intonatie en hoe kan het afwijken van de norm?

Simpel gezegd verwijst intonatie of zinsmelodie naar veranderingen in toonhoogte die in mondelinge communicatie gebruikt worden voor het weergeven van informatie. Kinderen krijgen intonatie meestal probleemloos onder de knie, ook al duurt het een tijdje voordat ze intonatie op een volwassen manier gebruiken. Toch hebben sommige mensen moeite met intonatie. Dat is niet verwonderlijk want intonatie is complex. Intonatie behelst namelijk meer dan alleen het produceren van stijgende en dalende toonhoogtebewegingen. Een ander belangrijk aspect van intonatie is het koppelen van deze bewegingen aan een functionele betekenis. Dit omvat het leren van de inventaris van fonologisch verschillende intonatiecontouren van een bepaalde taal, het uitzoeken wat hun betekenis is, wat de gebruiksfrequentie van intonatiecontouren is, en hoe ze precies uitgesproken worden onder verschillende omstandigheden. Het produceren van taalspecifieke intonatie is dus een complexe taak. Het is niet verwonderlijk dat tweede taalverwervers dit slechts zelden perfect onder de knie krijgen. Gezien de complexiteit van intonatie is het ook niet vreemd dat in sommige spraakstoornissen afwijkingen in de intonatie worden vastgesteld. In recente jaren zijn nieuwe technieken ontwikkeld om intonatie te analyseren. Deze kunnen identificeren in hoeverre en op welke manier intonatie afwijkt van de verwachting en kunnen daarmee een bijdrage leveren aan het ontwikkelen van een gericht interventieplan.
Development and experimental verification of a mathematical model for robot force control design

Describes the development and experimental verification of a mathematical model for a force control system consisting of a PUMA 560 manipulator, force sensor, and environment. The main contribution is an argument that explicit dynamic models of manipulation systems used for force control are of little relevance or use. Identification techniques are used to model the system as a black box, measuring only an input/output relationship. The explicit dynamics of the mechanical, hardware, and software elements of the manipulator are neglected; they are considered as parts of the measured input/output relationship. P+D loops are closed around each joint of the manipulator before identification to reduce the uncertainties, to overcome nonlinearities, and thus to linearize the system. Close correspondence between the experimental and the simulated Bode plots for frequencies below 30 Hz indicates that the model developed accurate enough to be used to analyze and design a force control strategy for hard-on-hard contact applications, e.g., robotic drilling.
[Chemokine receptor expression of hepatitis B virus-specific CD8+ lymphocyte in chronic B viral infection].

BACKGROUND/AIMS The protective role of HBV-specific CD8+ cells is dependent on their ability to efficiently migrate to the infected liver, where they may exert an effector function. The migratory behavior of CD8+ cells is influenced by their expression of different chemokine receptors. This study was intended to analyse the pattern of chemokine receptor expression of HBV specific CD 8+ cells in chronic B viral infection. METHODS We analysed the CCR5 and CCR3 profile of HBV-specific CD8+ cells isolated from the blood and liver of patients with different patterns of HBV infection. Purified T cells were stained directly ex vivo, or after antigen-specific stimulation, using HBV peptide-specific HLA tetramers and monoclonal antibodies to CD8, CCR5 and CCR3, with analysis by flow cytometry. RESULTS In patients with chronic hepatitis B characterised by low levels of virus (serum HBV DNA <0.5 pg/mL) and minimal liver inflammation, analysis of circulating and intrahepatic CD8+ cells demonstrated that liver infiltrating Tc18-27-specific cells were preferentially CCR5+ (up to 80% of HBV-specific CD8+ cells), in contrast to cells of the same specificity within the circulating compartment (up to 35% of HBV-specific CD8+ cells). Furthermore, CCR3 was expressed by about 10% of Tc18-27+ cells infiltrating the liver, but was absent from circulating cells. Following HBV-specific stimulation in vitro the CCR5 expression of circulating Tc18-27-specific cells was up-regulated, to levels found in liver infiltrating cells, whereas CCR3 expression was unchanged. CONCLUSIONS The chemokine receptor profile of HBV-specific CD8+ cells is influenced by the anatomical site of these cells, and the clinical pattern of disease. The ability of circulating HBV-specific CD8+ cells of patients with low replicating virus to upregulate CCR5 suggests that these cells may respond to increases in virus replication by efficiently migrating into the infected liver.
Applying cognitive science to the teaching of science: commentary on "The Role of Communication in Learning to Model" edited by Paul Brna, Michael Baker, Keith Stenning, and André Tiberghien.

All articles available through Birkbeck ePrints are protected by intellectual property law, including copyright law. Any use made of the contents should comply with the relevant law. Copyright © 2003 by the Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois. Used with the permission of the University of Illinois Press. Material may not be copied, distributed, or used in any manner without the prior, express written permission of the University of Illinois Press.
Listeners′ sensitivity to talker differences in voice-onset-time: Phonetic boundaries and internal category structure

Recent findings indicate that listeners are sensitive to talker differences in phonetic properties of speech, including voice-onset-time (VOT) in word-initial stop consonants. The current work extends our earlier research by examining the degree to which listeners adjust the initial mapping from acoustic signal to segmental representation on a talker-specific basis. Two groups of listeners are exposed to a talker producing “cane. ” Word-initial VOTs are manipulated such that one group hears “cane” produced with short VOTs and the other group hears “cane” produced with relatively longer VOTs. Following training, listeners’ voicing boundary for a /g/-/k/ continuum is tested. In addition, listeners are tested on phonetic category space by rating members of the continuum for typicality as /k/. If listeners adjust segmental mapping to accommodate talker differences in phonetic properties of speech, then we expect to observe a displacement in the voicing boundaries in line with earlier exposure. Moreover, if thi.
Donald Trump and the Rise of White Identity Politics

Ingroup identification is generally less prevalent and politically potent for white Americans than it is for other racial groups. We argue, however, that presidential candidates who appeal to racial threats posed to whites from non-whites, such as Donald Trump in 2016, Pat Buchanan in 1996, and George Wallace in 1968, should activate the dormant political power of white consciousness. We show that white consciousness had a significantly stronger impact on evaluations of Trump than on evaluations of eighteen other political figures in two different 2016 surveys. Furthermore, white consciousness was powerfully associated with support for Donald Trump in the 2016 presidential primaries—much more so than it was for Mitt Romney in 2012. We also show that white consciousness was more strongly associated with vote choice in the 2016 general election than in prior elections and more strongly associated with support for Donald Trump against Hillary Clinton than it was when other Republican candidates were pitted against Clinton in trial heats. Finally, we show that George Wallace’s and Pat Buchanan’s prior presidential campaigns also activated white identity. These results suggest that white consciousness can be a potent force in mass political behavior, and could foreshadow a rising white identity politics in the Age of Trump. Paper prepared for “The 2016 U.S. Presidential Election: Tumult at Home, Retreat Abroad? ” conference at the Mershon Center, Ohio State University, November 2017.
Prognostic value of intracoronary flow velocity and diameter stenosis in assessing the short- and long-term outcomes of coronary balloon angioplasty: the DEBATE Study (Doppler Endpoints Balloon Angioplasty Trial Europe).

BACKGROUND The aim of this prospective, multicenter study was the identification of Doppler flow velocity measurements predictive of clinical outcome of patients undergoing single-vessel balloon angioplasty with no previous Q-wave myocardial infarction. METHODS AND RESULTS In 297 patients, a Doppler guidewire was used to measure basal and maximal hyperemic flow velocities proximal and distal to the stenosis before and after angioplasty. In 225 patients with an angiographically successful percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty (PTCA), postprocedural distal coronary flow reserve (CFR) and percent diameter stenosis (DS%) were correlated with symptoms and/or ischemia at 1 and 6 months, with the need for target lesion revascularization, and with angiographic restenosis (defined as DS > or = 50% at follow-up). Logistic regression and receiver operator characteristic curve analyses were applied to determine the prognostic cutoff value of CFR and DS separately and in combination. Optimal cutoff criteria for predictors of these clinical events were DS, 35%; CFR, 2.5. A distal CFR after angioplasty > 2.5 with a residual DS < or = 35% identified lesions with a low incidence of recurrence of symptoms at 1 month (10% versus 19%, P=.149) and at 6 months (23% versus 47%, P=.005), a low need for reintervention (16% versus 34%, P=.024), and a low restenosis rate (16% versus 41%, P=.002) compared with patients who did not meet these criteria. CONCLUSIONS Measurements of distal CFR after PTCA, in combination with DS%, have a predictive value, albeit modest for the short- and long-term outcomes after PTCA, and thus may be used to identify patients who will or will not benefit from additional therapy such as stent implantation.
Working Paper No . 2010-09 Sports Participation and Happiness : Evidence from U . S . Micro Data

We investigate the relationship between participation in physical activity and self reported happiness in the United States. IV estimates based on data from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System between 2005 and 2009 and County Business Patterns indicate that individuals living in a county with greater access to sports facilities are more likely to participate in physical activity and also report higher life satisfaction. Both men and women gain happiness from participation, and men appear to benefit more from participation than women. JEL classification: L83, I18, C39, D60
Anti‐influenza agents from plants and traditional Chinese medicine

Influenza is a serious threat to health in all parts of the world. The control and treatment of influenza depends mainly on chemical or biochemical agents and, to date, some anti‐influenza agents have been isolated from plants as a result of chemical and pharmacological studies. These agents include a variety of polyphenols, flavonoids, saponins, glucosides and alkaloids. Traditional medicine focuses on the use of herbs and traditional Chinese medicine has performed well in clinical practice and shows a potential in the therapy of influenza and its symptoms. The present paper reviews some constituents and extracts from plants and traditional Chinese medicine with anti‐influenza activity. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Multi-Objective Genetic Algorithm with Strategies for Dying of Solution

Genetic Algorithm GA mimics natural evolutionary process. Since dying of an organism is important part of natural evolutionary process, GA should have some mechanism for dying of solutions just like GA have crossover operator for birth of solutions. In nature, occurrence of event of dying of an organism has some reasons like aging, disease, malnutrition and so on. In this work we propose three strategies of dying or removal of solution from next generation population. Multi-objective Genetic Algorithm MOGA takes decision of removal of solution, based on one of these three strategies. Experiments were performed to show impact of dying of solutions and dying strategies on the performance of MOGA.
Bardet-Biedl Syndrome: A Rare Case Report

The Bardet-Biedl syndrome (BBS) is a rare genetically heterogeneous, autosomal recessive inherited disorder with wide variability in expression. It presents with varied clinical manifestations like retinitis pigmentosa, post-axial polydactyly, central obesity, mental retardation and renal dysfunction. Other rare manifestations include diabetes mellitus, heart disease, hepatic fibrosis and neurological manifestations. Its presentation with type 1 diabetes mellitus is a rare manifestation. We report a case of Bardet-Biedl syndrome presenting with type1 diabetes mellitus.
A new approach in cluster analysis

A new clustering approach that is capable of finding clusters that are separated by some complex hypersurface is proposed. The approach can be useful for performing analysis of big amounts of unlabeled images that can be nowadays easily gathered, in particular by using unmanned aerial vehicle with mounted cameras. The approach is based on “softening” the initial clustering criterion and then using nonlinear optimization to find the optimal hypersurface that separates clusters.
SPC11-1: A Soft-Output Tree/Trellis Multiuser Equalizer for an Iterative FEC-coded DS-CDMA system in Frequency Selective Fading

This paper presents a reduced-complexity soft- output trellis/tree multiuser equalizer for an iterative DS-CDMA system undergoing Rayleigh frequency selective fading. The algorithm first expands the equalizer-trellis to an equivalent trellis/tree structure. Then it applies the M-algorithm to the equivalent structure twice, once to reduce the number of states in the trellis, and the other to reduce the number of branches emanating from each state. To compute soft-information, the algorithm utilizes not only those fully-extended paths reaching the end of the trellis, but also paths that are traversed and discarded in the pruned trellis. We show a simple and effective method of using these discarded paths without having to store them. BER performance is presented for convolutional-coded CDMA system employing random spreading sequences. Our results demonstrate that the proposed algorithm is capable of achieving single-user performance with a much reduced complexity.
Effects if Fertilizer Subsidies in Zambia: Have the Goals been Achieved?

Fertilizer subsidies are again part of the policy agenda in Sub-Saharan Africa since the 1990s. Governments spend large shares of their agricultural budgets and their means to fight poverty on such programmes, but economists formulated doubts whether these investments will pay off. This paper reviews the existing literature on effects of fertilizer subsidies in Zambia, presents an analytical framework on input subsidies and compares the empirical evidence to the goals of the fertilizer subsidy. Major findings are that the subsidy programme has failed to substantially reduce poverty and to improve food security via decreased maize prices. Farm incomes have increased moderately, but the overall costs exceed the benefits by far. Reasons for this are identified as poor targeting, diversion and leakage. The paper concludes with a review of policy recommendations, mainly focused on improved targeting and diversification away from pure fertilizer subsidies.
Ozone Toxicity and Walking Response of Populations of Sitophilus zeamais (Coleoptera: Curculionidae)

ABSTRACT Ozone is a recognized alternative to the fumigants methyl bromide and phosphine for the control of stored product insects. However, as with fumigants in general, the potential sublethal effects of ozone on targeted insect species may compromise its efficacy and has yet to be investigated. Here, we determined ozone toxicity of 30 field-collected populations of the maize weevil, Sitophilus zeamais (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), and assessed the walking response of adult insects from these populations to sublethal ozone exposure. Time-mortality toxicity to ozone at 50 ppm concentration in a continuous 2 liter/min flow indicated uniform susceptibility among the populations studied without any indication of ozone resistance (toxicity ratios [at LT50] > two-fold). In contrast, there was significant variation in walking activity among the maize weevil populations, which was not correlated with ozone susceptibility. This was not surprising because of the relatively uniform susceptibility to ozone among the maize weevil populations. Respiration rate affected ozone toxicity but not walking activity, whereas body mass was negatively correlated with walking activity but was not correlated with ozone toxicity. Based on our data, lower respiration rates may potentially lead to reduced ozone uptake whereas larger body mass limits walking activity. Ozone seems a promising alternative fumigant with low short-term risk of resistance development because of the high susceptibility and low variability of response to this compound. Furthermore, ozone reduces walking activity of S. zeamais that implies it likely reduces the chances of insects escaping exposure at the early stages of fumigation.
The amelioration of myopia using biofeedback of accommodation: a review

The purpose of this review is to give an account of the issues raised by reports that myopia can be treated by operant conditioning or biological feedback. Devices are available that provide auditory feedback of accommodative state such that variation in tone frequency provides a means by which the patient can monitor his or her ability to induce changes in accommodation response, the task thus being to change the pitch of the tone in a direction corresponding lo a more distant far point. The aim of a training programme is to reinforce and establish control over the accommodative response by a process akin lo operant conditioning and subsequently to transfer the skill to normal visual environments such that a manifest reduction in myopia becomes apparent. Although there are reports that the technique can induce a reduction in myopia by up to 3 D the findings are of limited value owing to the tack of objective data, for example pre‐ and post‐training cycloplegic refraction. The pre‐ and post‐training measures of subjective letter acuity used by many studies are, with repeated trials, particularly vulnerable to individual differences in the ability to learn how to discriminate and interpret blurred images. The review concludes that more comprehensive clinical trials arc needed before accommodation biofeedback can qualify as an established method of clinical treatment of myopia. The trials should be designed to encompass the following issues: the characteristics of a feasible physiological model linking accommodation and myopia development; the rationale with regard to patient selection: the technical performance of the optometer employed; the characteristics of the control group used; the criteria for assessment of myopic change: the transfer of training to performance in normal visual environments; the economic viability of the programme of training and equipment: and the skill, training and knowledge of the clinician implementing the training programme.
Stethoscope disinfection campaign in a Nigerian teaching hospital:results of a before-and-after study.

INTRODUCTION This study aimed to assess the impact of a stethoscope disinfection sensitization campaign among doctors and nurses in a Nigerian teaching hospital. METHODOLOGY The design was a before-and-after study. Pre-program measurements were used to provide a baseline against which the post-program results were compared. Interventions that promoted compliance with stethoscope disinfection practice that were implemented included training and education on stethoscope disinfection and introduction of 70% isopropyl alcohol disinfectant at points-of-care places. Microbiological assessment of stethoscopes used by health workers was conducted after the intervention and the outcome was compared with the pilot study results. RESULTS After the intervention, of the 89 stethoscopes screened, 18 (20.2%) were contaminated with bacterial agents. A higher prevalence of stethoscope contamination was observed among stethoscopes from the intensive care unit (66.7%), the VIP unit (50%), and the antenatal unit (37.5%). The main isolates were Staphylococcus aureus (44.4%) and Escherichia coli (50%). The antibiotic sensitivity assessment indicated that the bacterial isolates were resistant to nearly all the antibiotics tested. All the 89 health workers whose stethoscopes were screened after the intervention admitted to cleaning their stethoscopes after seeing each patient, representing a compliance rate of 100%, unlike the 15% compliance at the pilot phase. The baseline stethoscope contamination rate was 78.5% versus 20.2% post-intervention. CONCLUSIONS Training and education and introduction of alcohol-based disinfectants inexpensive but very effective methods to improve stethoscope disinfection compliance among health workers in low-income settings.
Activation and Maturation of Alloreactive CD4‐Independent, CD8+ Cytolytic T Cells

The goal of this study was to determine the in vivo conditions that promote activation of the (CD4‐independent) CD8+ T cell‐mediated rejection pathway. We have previously noted that hepatocellular but not islet allografts readily activate this rejection pathway. In the current study, we utilized these two cell transplant models to investigate whether differences in host cell recruitment to the graft site, expression of T‐cell activation markers by CD8+ graft infiltrating cells (GICs), and/or development of delayed‐type hypersensitivity (DTH) and cytotoxic T lymphocyte cell‐mediated effector functions could account for the differential transplant outcomes. The collective results demonstrate that recruitment of CD8+ T cells to the site of transplant, CD103 or CD69 expression on CD8+ GICs, and activation of alloreactive DTH responses are insufficient to initiate CD4‐independent, CD8‐dependent transplant rejection. Instead, rejection by alloreactive (CD4‐independent) CD8+ T cells correlated with expression of CD25, CD154 and CD43 by CD8+ GICs, in vitro alloproliferation by recipient CD8+ T cells, and the development of in vivo allospecific cytolytic effector function. These results suggest that tissue‐derived factors influence the activation and maturation of (CD4‐independent) CD8+ T cells into cytolytic effectors, which correlates with transplant rejection.