Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Compensate for Age-Related Decline

Without brain systems that modulate arousal, we would not be able to have daily sleep-wake cycles, focus attention when needed, experience emotional responses, or even maintain consciousness. Thus, it is not surprising that there are multiple overlapping neurotransmitter systems that control arousal. In aging, most of these systems show decline in basic features such as number of receptors and transporters, and sometimes even in neuron count. These declines have the potential to disrupt basic arousal functions. Compensatory increases in activity in some of these systems allow for maintained levels of circulating neurotransmitters in those systems – but at the cost of reduced dynamic range in arousal responses.
ATTENTION-BASED CONVOLUTIONAL NEURAL NETWORK FOR AUDIO EVENT CLASSIFICATION WITH FEATURE TRANSFER LEARNING

Audio event classiﬁcation is an urgent Content based Information Retrieval (CBIR) unsolved problem with numerous applications that it can beneﬁt. This paper is explaining Pin-drop’s submission to the ”Making Sense of Sound” challenge. In this submission we address the challenge of classifying audio excerpts based on their origin by using Convolutional Neural Networks with feature transfer learning. We use pre-trained VGGish network to extract feature embeddings. Our results show a remarkable improvement of the baseline sys-tem with achieving average recall rate of up to 92% across all the classes.
PRODUCTION oF IMPRovED TITANIUM PGMENTS

This invention relates to a process for the manufacture of improved titanium pigments. More particularly, it relates to the production of titanium oxide pigments which when incor porated in enamel paints of the air-drying and baking types provide enamel films which have excellent color and are weather resistant, non chalking, non-yellowing, and exhibit excellent gloss and gloss retention characteristics. Still more particularly it relates to the production of hydrated aluminum oxide treated titanium oxide pigments of improved fineness and texture, adapted for direct use through simple mixing in coating compositions, such as enamel, flat, or egg shell types of paints, without prolonged milling in the composition vehicles. Prior art titanium pigments employed in paints and similar coating compositions chalked and faded badly on exposure to weathering influences and light. Additionally, when employed in in terior paints, such as air dried enamel paints or high temperature baked enamel paints, such pigments exhibited a marked tendency towards discoloration or yellowing. Furthermore, when such pigments were formulated in enamel paints of the air-drying or baking types the films there of applied to wood, metal, oilcloth, linoleum, paper, and the like, tended to exhibit poor gloss characteristics and the films of many of such formulations had an objectionably dull, matte appearance. Moreover said films had poor gloss retention properties, i. e. , when exposed to at mospheric conditions for a relatively short period of time they lost whatever gloss they might have had. Furthermore, prior art titanium pigments are deficient in fineness properties. In the prep aration of said pigments, aggregates of fine par ticles are formed during the precipitation step. During subsequent calcination these cement to gether through compacting or sintering manifest ing themselves in the final product as coarse, hard, gritty particles. Substantial improvements in the art of pro ducing Weather resistant and discoloration re sistant titanium oxide pigments adapted for use in enamel paints are disclosed, for example, in U. S. Patents 1,368.392, 2,161,975 and 2,187,050. For example, U. S. Patent 1,368,392 discloses a process whereby titanium oxygen compounds suitable for use as pigments are covered with such substances as the relatively insoluble com pounds of aluminum, calcium, lead, zinc, and similar metals. It is stated that the process is preferably carried into effect by treating particles of the titanium compound suspended in water 55 untreated pigments. 0
3D Skeleton Action Recognition for Security Improvement

—Most of action recognition methods allow achieving high action recognition accuracy, but only after processing the entire video sequence, however, for security issues, it is primordial to detect dangerous behavior occurrence as soon as possible allowing early warnings. In this paper, we present a human activity recognition method using 3D skeleton information, recovered by an RGB-D sensor by proposing a new descriptor modeling the dynamic relation between 3D locations of skeleton joints expressed in Euclidean distance and spherical coordinates between the normalized joints, A PCA dimension reduction is used to remove noisy information and enhance recognition accuracy while improving calculation and decision time. We also study the accuracy of the proposed descriptor calculated on limited few first frames and using limited skeleton joint number, to perform early action detection by exploring several classifiers. We test this approach on two datasets, MSR Daily Activity 3D and our own dataset called INDACT. Experimental evaluation shows that the proposed approach can robustly classify actions outperforming state-of-the-art methods and maintain good accuracy score even using limited frame number and reduced skeleton joints.
CONTEMPORARY MARKETING STRATEGIES AND PERFORMANCE OF AGRICULTURAL MARKETING FIRMS IN NIGERIA

In past decades, the focus of research on marketing productivity has been on efficiency, and effectiveness based on control costs related to transaction marketing with its customer-centric emphasis while little attention is being paid to contemporary marketing strategies. This shows that agricultural marketing firms are yet to understand fully the complexities of customers’ needs and how services are designed and delivered to match the organisation’s expected sales and volume of operations, all of which are possible through transaction, database analysis, interactive mix and network marketing. The general objective of the paper was to examine the application of contemporary Marketing Strategies and the Performance of agricultural Marketing firms in Nigeria’s buyer-seller relationships. The paper adopted the descriptive survey design. Data for this research were obtained through structured questionnaires administered to sampled agricultural marketing firms’ managers involved in three major divisions of Industrial, Food and other Agro sectors. 110 copies of the questionnaire were administered, out of which 81 were collated for the analysis. The statistical test tools used was Analysis of Variance. The results showed that there is combined contribution of Transaction Marketing; data based marketing and network marketing on the performance of agricultural marketing firms. The paper concludes that contemporary marketing strategy of Interactive mix, Network and Database Marketing has a significant impact on the performance of agricultural marketing firms in Nigeria and recommends that agricultural marketing firms should integrate Transaction Marketing, data based marketing and network marketing to yield results greater than the sum of their individual contributions.
Assessing the Role of Long-run and Valuation Risks in Explaining Nominal Bond Yields

This paper assesses the relative importance of long-run risk and valuation risk in accounting for the behavior of stock returns and nominal bond yields. I do so by estimating a consumption-based asset-pricing model that allows for both types of risk. I argue that valuation risk, modeled as persistent shocks to agents’ discount rates, plays a key role in accounting for the salient properties of the nominal yield curve. I also show that valuation risks are more correlated with statistical affine factors than longrun risks. I find that the valuation risks enter into the standard affine term structure model in a statistically significant manner, playing a particular role in accounting for movements in the long end of the yield curve.
OTT_A_240081 2469..2481

*These authors contributed equally to this work Background: Several studies have indicated that the anoikis effector Bcl-2 inhibitor of transcription 1 (Bit1) can promote or inhibit tumor progression depending on the nature of the malignancy. However, its regulatory effects on gliomas are unknown. Methods: This study aimed at assessing Bit1 expression in glioma tissues and cells, its subsequent effects on glioma cell apoptosis, proliferation, invasion, and migration, and the underlying molecular mechanisms. Results: The findings showed that lower Bit1 expressions in glioma tissues as well as a negative correlation between Bit1 expression and glioma grade. Additional findings also revealed that Bit1 silencing significantly inhibited anoikis and enhanced glioma cell proliferation, invasion, and migration. Further analysis showed that the decrease in Bit1 expressions led to malignancy proliferation and anoikis resistance through activation of the IL-6/ STAT3 signaling pathway. Conclusion: Our data suggested that Bit1 may play an anti-oncogenic role in glioma cells and that a decrease in its expressions might induce glioma cell proliferation, migration, and invasion through the IL-6/STAT3 signaling pathway.
Concentration phenomena for solutions of superlinear ellipt problems Phénomènes de concentration pour les solutions de problèm elliptiques surlinéaires

In this paper we look for positive solutions of the problem − u + λu = up−1 in Ω, u = 0 on∂Ω, whereΩ is a bounded domain inRn, n 3,p > 2 andλ is a positive parameter. We describe new concentration phenomena, which occur as λ → +∞, and exploit them to construct (for λ large enough) positive solutions that concentrate near spheres of codimension 2 as λ → +∞; these spheres approach the boundary of Ω asλ → +∞. Notice that the existence and multiplicity results we obtain hold als contractible domains arbitrarily close to starshaped domains (no solution can exist if p 2n n−2 andΩ is starshaped, because Pohožaev’s identity). The method we use is completely variational and based on a blow up analysis in the equivarian In order to avoid concentration phenomena near points and to overcome some difficulties related to the lack of com we first modify the nonlinear term in a suitable region, then we solve the modified problem by minimizing the related functional on a suitable infinite dimensional manifold and, finally, we show that the solutions of the modified problem also our problem, for λ large enough, because they are localized in the prescribed region where the nonlinear term has modified.  2005 Elsevier SAS. All rights reserved. Résumé Nous démontrons l’existence de solutions positives pour le problème − u + λu = up−1 en Ω, u = 0 sur∂Ω, où Ω est un domaine borné de Rn, n 3, p > 2 etλ > 0. Nous décrivons de nouveaux phénomènes de concentration qui appar quandλ → +∞. Grâce à ceux-ci nous construisons des solutions positives pour λ assez grand donc qui se concentrent p ✩ Work supported by the Italian national research project “Metodi variazionali e topologici nello studio di fenomeni non lineari”. * Corresponding author. E-mail address:molle@mat.uniroma2. it (R. Molle). 0294-1449/$ – see front matter  2005 Elsevier SAS. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.anihpc. 2005.02. 002 64 R. Molle, D. Passaseo / Ann. I. H. Poincaré – AN 23 (2006) 63–84 ilés (quand ons pour compacts, isant la e modifié ’a pas été
The Relationship between Specific Fluctuations, Liquidity Risk, and Stock Return in Listed Companies on Tehran Stock Exchange

The main purpose of this research is to investigate the relationship between specific fluctuations, liquidity risk, and stock returns in companies listed on Tehran Stock Exchange. This research reveals the importance of information such as special fluctuations and liquidity risk and their role in determining the additional return on portfolios of companies to assist the decision-making of actual and potential investors in the stock market. For purpose of this research, quarterly financial information of 152 companies among companies listed on Tehran Stock Exchange during the period 2012-2016 was examined. After collecting the required research data, panel data was used to test the hypotheses. Also, Eviews Software has been used to test the hypotheses. The results showed that special fluctuations have a positive and significant impact on liquidity risk and stock return. Moreover, results showed that no reliable evidence is found to indicate the impact of liquidity risk on stock return at 95% significance level.
Disability due to Neck Pain

Neck pain is the complaint which can hurt anyone in the society at least once the life and may cause interruption of day to day activities. The intensity of pain varies from one individual to individual depending upon the cause from simple mechanical neck pain to disco genic pain. The aim of this study was to evaluate and identify the disability due to neck pain at first session of physical therapy. The data has been collected from all the participants on neck disability index to prior to the physical therapy intervention to measure the level of disability due to neck pain. The result yield that the participants took consultation of physical therapist with moderate level of disability. Although the physical therapist can plan a good prognosis at moderate disability, there is still a lot work to do to avoid and treat the patient with neck pain prior to become disabled moderately.
Method Development and Validation for Simultaneous estimation of Metformin Hcl and Sitagliptin by RP-HPLC in Tablet Dosage Form

A simple, accurate, precise and rapid reversed-phase high performance liquid chromatographic (RP-HPLC) method has been developed and subsequently validated for the simultaneous estimation of Metformin Hydrochloride and Sitagliptin Phosphate in pure and tablet formulation. The proposed method is based on the separation of the two drugs in reversed-phase mode using zodiac C18 (250×4.6 mm, 5 μm particle size). The optimum mobile phase consisted of phosphate buffer : acetonitrile in the ratio of 55:45 v/v (Phosphate buffer pH 5.8 was adjusted with sodium hydroxide) was selected as a mobile phase, flow rate of 1.0 ml/min and UV detection was set at 244 nm. The retention times were 2.1 and 4.90 min for Metformin Hydrochloride and Sitagliptin Phosphate respectively. The method was validated according to ICH guidelines. It was found to be accurate and reproducible. Linearity was obtained in the concentration range of 75-175 μg/ml for Metformin Hydrochloride and 7.5-17.5 μg/ml Sitagliptin Phosphate. Mean percent recovery of samples at each level for both drugs were found in the range of 99.70% for Metformin Hydrochloride and 99.40s % for Sitagliptin Phosphate. The proposed method can be successfully applied in the quality control of bulk and pharmaceutical dosage forms.
BGI Cognitive Genomics Lab: Proposal for Gene-Trait Association Study of g

∗PhD in Mathematics, University of California San Diego; Project Manager, BGI Cognitive Genomics Lab †PhD in Physics, University of California Berkeley; Professor of Theoretical Physics, University of Oregon ‡PhD in Psychology, Harvard University §Masters (expected) in Bioinformatics, University of Copenhagen; Chief Data Officer, BGI Cognitive Genomics Lab ¶PhD (expected) in Psychology, Brown University; Director, Psychology Arm, BGI Cognitive Genomics Lab ‖Director, Bioinformatics Arm, BGI Cognitive Genomics Lab
Teenage Pregnancy: Obstetric and Perinatal Outcome in a Tertiary Centre in Indonesia

Background The incidence of teenage pregnancy is increasing in the world. It is a high-risk condition leading to adverse perinatal and obstetric outcomes. This study aims to evaluate the obstetric and perinatal outcomes of teenage pregnancy in Indonesian population. Method A retrospective study was conducted to evaluate obstetric and perinatal outcomes among teenagers and average maternal age (AMA) women. We assessed all singleton live pregnancies during the year period of 2013 in Dr. Cipto Mangunkusumo National General Hospital, Jakarta, Indonesia. Results We studied 1,676 eligible subjects during the one-year period in our centre. The prevalence of teenage pregnancy (12 to 19 years old) was 11.40% (191/1676). We found higher prevalence of eclampsia (AOR: 4.03; 95% CI: 1.73–9.39), preterm delivery (AOR: 1.5; 95% CI: 0.88–2.53), anaemia at labour (AOR: 2.42; 95% CI: 1.60–3.67), postpartum haemorrhage (AOR: 2.59; 95% CI: 0.86–7.37), and low birth weight (AOR: 2.28; 95% CI: 1.60–3.25) among teenagers. However, caesarean section was found to be significantly lower among teenage pregnancies. Conclusion Teenage pregnancy carries significant obstetric complications that should draw physicians' serious attention. A holistic, comprehensive antenatal, and preventive program should be conducted to prevent teenage pregnancy-related adverse outcomes.
The Impact of Volume on Cataract Surgery Visual Outcome

_____________________________________________________________ Background: To compare High Vs. Low Volume SIC Surgery Outcomes in tertiary Institute in Central India,in terms of Quality as gauged by Visual acuity parameters at 1 month follow-up. Methods: A prospective, randomized, observational study done on 230 eyes of 230 patients at a tertiary Institute In Central India, with a total duration of 4 months. Patients underwent MSICS by 3 experienced surgeons & were divided into 2 groups:(A) patients coming in low volume season (summer month) & (B)patients in the high volume season (winter month). BCVA in these 2 groups were compared at 1 month follow up. Independent T test was used for analysis. Results: In high vs. low volume setting Best Corrected Visual Acuity (p=0.06) was not statistically significant at 1 month follow up. Conclusions: Gauged in Visual Acuity parameters, High Volume MSICS does not affect the quality when compared with Low Volume MSICS Surgery over a 30-days period in a tertiary institute in Central India.
In-Hospital Cardiac Death: Preventive Strategies

Acute pulmonary embolism is a cardiovascular emergency commonly observed in hospitalized patients with an associated mortality rate of 5-30% [3]. The most effective and safe strategies preventing deep vein thrombosis and APE are: 1) evaluation and control of risk factors; 2) early mobilization; 3) mechanical methods; and 4) and thromboprophylaxis for those patients without contraindications [4,5]. In-hospital AMI has a incidence of 5% [6] and a mortality rate higher than 15% [7]. Several therapies have been suggested for patients at risk such as those undergoing non-cardiac surgery [8]; however, no preventive strategy has demonstrated to be effective. Consequently, these patients should be managed as follow: 1) evaluation and control of risk factors; 2) perform the surgery according to current guidelines, including preoperative cardiovascular assessment and management [8]; 3) for those patients requiring emergency surgery, preoperative, transoperative and postoperative correction of hypotension, hypoxemia, electrolytic imbalance and metabolic disorders as soon as possible, as well as early antibiotic therapy; and 4) early correction of acute pathophysiological disturbances during and after surgical intervention such as hypotension, hypoxemia, pain and infections.
Iterative Soft-Input Soft-Output Decoding of Reed-Solomon Codes by Adapting the

An iterative algorithm is presented for soft-input soft-output (SISO) decoding of Reed-Solomon (RS) codes. The proposed iterative algo- rithm uses the sum-product algorithm (SPA) in conjunction with a binary parity-check matrix of the RS code. The novelty is in reducing a submatrix of the binary parity-check matrix that corresponds to less reliable bits to a sparse nature before the SPA is applied at each iteration. The proposed algorithm can be geometrically interpreted as a two-stage gradient descent with an adaptive potential function. This adaptive procedure is crucial to the convergence behavior of the gradient descent algorithm and, therefore, significantly improves the performance. Simulation results show that the proposed decoding algorithm and its variations provide significant gain over hard-decision decoding (HDD) and compare favorably with other pop- ular soft-decision decoding methods.
Annual Bands in Vertebrae Validated by Bomb Radiocarbon Assays Provide Estimates of Age and Growth of Whale Sharks

Conservation and management strategies for endangered and threatened species require accurate estimates of demographic parameters such as age and growth. The whale shark, Rhincodon typus, is the largest fish in the world and is highly valued in the eco-tourism sector. Despite conservation concerns and advances in our understanding of their life history, basic demographic parameters for growth, longevity and mortality are of questionable accuracy; previous growth studies could not agree whether the vertebral growth bands were formed annually or biannually. Here, we provide the first validation of the annual formation of growth bands within the vertebrae of the whale shark using bomb radiocarbon assays. Ages of up to 50 years were estimated from sectioned vertebrae of sharks collected in Taiwan and Pakistan. There was no cessation of the formation of growth bands in the vertebrae of older sharks and our study provides the oldest observed longevity for this species. Initial estimates of growth (k = 0.01–0.12) and natural mortality rates (M = 0.09–0.14) are consistent with those expected of long-lived sharks, which highlights their sensitivity to fishing pressure and conservation concerns.
Human Resources Practices in the Romanian Banking System: Rewards, Job Satisfaction, and Job Performance

Abstract This research aims to analyze the relationships established among rewards, job satisfaction and job performance in the Romanian banking system. In order to achieve this goal, a single-case study is used as a research strategy and a survey-based on a questionnaire is developed among the 60 employees the BCR-BpL branch from Bucharest, Sector 3. The relationships established among rewards, job satisfaction, and job performance are tested using Partial Least Square – Structural Equation Modelling. The results prove that: (i) rewards have a positive influence on job satisfaction; (ii) the relationship between job satisfaction and job performance is not statistically significant; and (iii) the relationship between rewards and job performance is not statistically significant. These findings have both theoretical and practical implications. On the one hand, they extend the theory from the human resources management field by analyzing the relationships established among rewards, job satisfaction, and job performance, within the Romanian banking system. On the other hand, they help managers understand the importance of using rewards as a strategic organizational tool, capable to increase employees’ satisfaction.