Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Dynamic Brain Activation during Processing of Emotional Intonation: Influence of Acoustic Parameters, Emotional Valence, and Sex

Appreciation of the emotional tone of verbal utterances represents an important aspect of social life. It is still unsettled, however, which brain areas mediate processing of intonational information and whether the presumed right-sided superiority depends upon acoustic properties of the speech signal. Functional magnetic resonance imaging was used to disentangle brain activation associated with (i) extraction of specific acoustic cues and (ii) detection of specific emotional states. Stimulus material comprised pairs of emotionally intonated utterances, exclusively differing either in pitch range or in the length of stressed vowels. Hemodynamic responses showed a dynamic pattern of cerebral activation including sequenced bilateral responses of various cortical and subcortical structures. Activation associated with discrimination of emotional expressiveness predominantly emerged within the right inferior parietal lobule, within the bilateral mesiofrontal cortex and--with an asymmetry toward the right hemisphere--at the level of bilateral dorsolateral frontal cortex. Lateralization did not depend upon acoustic structure or emotional valence of stimuli. These findings might prove helpful in reconciling the controversial previous clinical and experimental data.
Measurement of the natural contents of RaD (Pb210) and RaF (Po210) in human bone--estimates of whole-body burdens.

The natural RaD (Pb210) concentration in man was determined from measurement of the RaF (Po210) in bone samples obtained from surgery and autopsy of unexposed individuals, mostly from Illinois. About 63 per cent of the RaD is in the skeleton in apparent equilibrium with RaF and, within a factor of 2, it is uniformly distributed in the skeleton. The average RaD concentration found in 128 bone samples was 0.146 plus or minus 0.020 pC/g ash as compared to an average Ra226 concentration of 0.037 plus or minus 0.007 pC/g ash. Little correlation between the two nuclides was observed. The average RaD concentrations in the skeleton were 0.161 pC/g ash in men and 0.119 pC/g ash in women. These concentrations were generally higher in trabecular than in cortical bone, 0.184 and 0.105 pC/g ash, respectively. No particular correlation was found between the residence histories of the donors and the RaD concentrations in their skeletons. Calculations based on some of the metabolic parameters of lead and on the known concentrations of Ra226,Rn222, and RaD in the human biosphere, show food and air to be the major contributors of RaD in the subjects studied. The RaDEF decay chain is shown to contribute amore » radiation dose to the human skeleton more than double that from Ra226 and about equal to that from Ra226 and Ra228 combined. « less
Superior mesenteric vein thrombosis with radiologically occult cause: a retrospective study of 43 cases.

OBJECTIVE Our purpose was to examine the clinical presentation, imaging appearance, etiology, and clinical outcome in patients who had acute thrombosis of the superior mesenteric vein with radiologically occult cause. CONCLUSION The most common predisposing factors in superior mesenteric vein thrombosis with radiologically occult cause are recent abdominal surgery, infection, and hypercoagulable states. Although no correlation was noted between risk factor and outcome, the presence of bowel wall thickening and mesenteric congestion on CT or MR imaging was associated with the development of bowel ischemia. Prognosis is good in this group of patients, with a mortality of only 7%, although bowel ischemia was noted in 21%.
The evolution and testing of a model-based object recognition system

A benchmark evaluation test of a model-based recognition system is discussed. The system was tested on a series of aerial reconnaissance images to evaluate recognition performance on the task of airfield monitoring. The effectiveness of the model pose constraint for recognition is discussed as well as an approach for selection of model features. The use of distance transforms for model hypothesis confirmation is also discussed. <<ETX>>
Comparison of the Immediate Effects of Surgical Incision on Dorsal Horn Neuronal Receptive Field Size and Responses during Postnatal Development

Background:Pain behavior in response to skin incision is developmentally regulated, but little is known about the underlying neuronal mechanisms. The authors hypothesize that the spatial activation and intensity of dorsal horn neuron responses to skin incision differ in immature and adult spinal cord. Methods:Single wide-dynamic-range dorsal horn cell spike activity was recorded for a minimum of 2 h from anesthetized rat pups aged 7 and 28 days. Cutaneous pinch and brush receptive fields were mapped and von Frey hair thresholds were determined on the plantar hind paw before and 1 h after a skin incision was made. Results:Baseline receptive field areas for brush and pinch were larger and von Frey thresholds lower in the younger animals. One hour after the incision, brush and pinch receptive field area, spontaneous firing, and evoked spike activity had significantly increased in the 7-day-old animals but not in the 28-day-old animals. Von Frey hair thresholds decreased at both ages. Conclusions:Continuous recording from single dorsal horn cells both before and after injury shows that sensitization of receptive fields and of background and afferent-evoked spike activity at 1 h is greater in younger animals. This difference is not reflected in von Frey mechanical thresholds. These results highlight the importance of studying the effects of injury on sensory neuron physiology. Injury in young animals induces a marked and rapid increase in afferent-evoked activity in second-order sensory neurons, which may be important when considering long-term effects and analgesic interventions.
The Effects of the Workplace on Jail Staff: The Issue of Perceptions of Pay Fairness

ABSTRACT Drawing from person–environment fit theory, the current study adds to recent empirical inquires that have considered how workplace factors affect jail staff. In doing so, the focus is on how perceptions of pay fairness effect the job stress, job involvement, and organizational commitment of jail personnel. Utilizing survey data from a large county correctional system in Orlando, Florida, the results of multivariate analyses reveal that staff that hold more favorable perceptions of pay fairness are more involved in their jobs and more committed to the overall organization. The implications of these findings for correctional research and practice are considered.
Dominant recognition of a cross‐reactive B‐cell epitope in Mycobacterium leprae 10 K antigen by immunoglobulin G1 antibodies across the disease spectrum in leprosy

Mycobacterium leprae‐specific immunoglobulin G1 (IgG1) antibodies in patients with leprosy show a direct correlation with bacterial load (ρ=0·748; P<0002) suggesting that IgG1 B‐cell responses may be surrogate markers of disease progression. To investigate if this upregulation was a general feature of IgG1 responses to all M. leprae (ML) antigens, we analysed responses to several recombinant purified ML heat‐shock proteins (HSP). Three recombinant HSPs (ML10 K, ML 18 K and ML 65 K) were tested for their ability to induce various IgG subclasses in patients with either the lepromatous (LL/BL, n=26) or tuberculoid form (BT/TT, n=39) of the disease as well as in healthy households (HC, n=14) and endemic controls (EC=19). Our major findings were: (1) selective augmentation of IgG1 antibody responses to ML10 K; (2) recognition of a restricted number of epitopes across the disease spectrum and healthy controls by IgG1 antibodies; (3) dominant recognition of cross‐reactive epitopes which were common to both ML and MT 10 K. This response was not related to contamination with endotoxin. Epitope mapping using 15‐mer overlapping peptides spanning the ML 10 000 MW revealed an immunodominant IgG1 binding peptide (aa41–55) in patients as well as healthy controls. This peptide is a shared epitope with M. tuberculosis 10 K suggesting that postswitched IgG1 B cells recognizing this epitope rather than naive B cells are being expanded.
Complex interactions among mammalian carnivores in Australia, and their implications for wildlife management

Mammalian carnivore populations are often intensively managed, either because the carnivore in question is endangered, or because it is viewed as a pest and is subjected to control measures, or both. Most management programmes treat carnivore species in isolation. However, there is a large and emerging body of evidence to demonstrate that populations of different carnivores interact with each other in a variety of complex ways. Thus, the removal or introduction of predators to or from a system can often affect other species in ways that are difficult to predict. Wildlife managers must consider such interactions when planning predator control programmes. Integrated predator control will require a greater understanding of the complex relationships between species.
Risk management disclosure practices in accordance with king ii and iii: the case of selected jse listed companies

The ongoing collapse of large international companies could have been partially prevented if good corporate governance principles and, more specifically, effective risk management practices had been implemented and adhered to. Research reveals that the majority of financial institutions in Europe do not manage risk effectively and the global financial crisis proved that excessive risktaking can result in corporate failure. Similar trends are prevalent in South Africa. The aim of this research was to investigate the compliance of Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) listed companies with recommended risk management practices and disclosure requirements after the introduction of King II and III. To achieve this the annual reports of selected JSE listed companies were evaluated to establish the quality of their reporting on risk management practices as recommended in King II and III. The results of the study indicated that the minority of the companies investigated, fully complied with all the recommended requirements. This study contributed to literature by showing that although disclosure on risk management practices improved significantly since King II became operational in 2002, companies still did not adhere to all the requirements as stipulated even after King III became effective in 2010. The finding, therefore, supports the notion that full compliance is an evolutionary process, rather than a revolutionary process and will therefore only be achieved over time.
Integrierte Spezifikation und Dokumentation von E-Business-Standards mit XML Schema-Annotationen

Mit der Verfugbarkeit von XML als Metasprache fur den Datenaustausch im Internet sind zahlreiche E-Business-Standards fur vielfaltige Anwendungsbereiche und Branchen entstanden. Daraus folgend hat die strukturelle und inhaltliche Komplexitat der definierten Geschaftssprachen und Nachrichtentypen stark zugenommen. Vergleichbar mit der Softwareentwicklung erfordert die Entwicklung von E-Business-Standards Konzepte, Modelle und Werkzeuge, die diese Komplexitat beherrschbar machen. Der vorliegende Beitrag untersucht, inwieweit XML Schema-Annotationen geeignet sind, den Entwicklungsprozess dahingehend zu unterstutzen, dass die formale Spezifikation und die erganzenden Dokumentationen eines E-Business-Standards integriert werden konnen.
Association between p53 immunostaining and cigarette smoking in squamous cell carcinoma of the esophagus.

BACKGROUND It is generally accepted that cigarette smoking is closely associated with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma. This study investigated the molecular targets of cigarette smoke in carcinogenesis of the esophagus. METHODS Seventy-four patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) were grouped according to daily cigarette consumption: heavy smoking group (group H) (n = 26), moderate smoking group (group M) (n = 39) and non-smoking group (group N) (n = 9). We compared p53 and retinoblastoma (RB) expression among the three groups by immunohistochemistry. In addition, fresh tumor tissues from 30 smokers with esophageal SCC were tested for p53 mutations in exons 5-8 by direct sequencing. RESULTS Staining for the p53 product was positive in 65.4% of group H, 38.5% of group M and 44.4% of group N. The frequency of positive staining in the group H was significantly higher than in group M (p = 0.033) and in group M + group N (p = 0.034). The difference with respect to the frequency of overexpression of RB was not significant. The patterns of p53 base-pair mutations in direct sequencing study were of five types, most commonly G:C to T:A transversion (35.3%). CONCLUSIONS Our study suggests that one of the molecular targets of cigarette smoke is the p53 gene. The pattern of p53 point mutations involved a wide range of base-pair changes.
Sustainability Reporting: Possible Ways of Rethinking Hospitality Accounting

The concept of sustainability reporting has emerged from developments in accounting, with roots over a period of the last forty years in a broader sense and in the narrow sense over the last ten years. While the term sustainability accounting is used to describe accounting methods that aim to create and provide high quality information to support a corporation in its movement towards sustainability, sustainability reporting, describes new formalized means of communication, which provides information about corporate sustainability. Sustainability accounting is a framework that can be used to reflect economic, social and environmental impacts and demonstrate their connection. In order to get an idea of whether sustainability reporting has been implemented in Croatian companies, the purpose of the paper is to investigate the achieved level of sustainability reporting in Croatia. The paper will also critically review previous research results about sustainability reporting in the hospitality industry and develop a framework for hotel sustainability reporting, in accordance with the Uniform System of Accounts for the Lodging Industry – USALI (11th edition, 2014), Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) and the new EU Directive about disclosure of non- financial and diversity information.
Truth Discovery : CoTruth ∗

More and more people choose to obtain news online in today’s world. However, in recent times, there exists many fake claims on web. Rumor detection has been a popular topic. Recent search on truth discovery still doesn’t satisfy the realistic requirments now. As most of them focus on structured data, others proposed a new method to detect fake news with unstructured data. That is combine source reliability with stance classifier to determine the truth. But this method still have limitations with poor performance in stance classifier and neglection of source bias. This paper overcomes the limitations in prior work by imporving stance classifier with non-linear training method. In addition, we also propose a new source reliability assessment method BiasR to solve the problem before.
The Birth of the Centromere

The centromere is the region of the eukaryotic chromosome that determines kinetochore formation and sister chromatid cohesion. Centromeres interact with spindle microtubules to ensure chromatid segregation during mitosis and homologous chromosome segregation during meiosis I. In recent years, the overall organization of centromeres in several eukaryotic species has been described, yet the mechanisms of centromere definition remain elusive. Understanding the evolutionary origin of the centromere may well elucidate aspects of its function. With such intention, we hypothesize that centromeres were derived from telomeres during the evolution of the eukaryotic chromosome. We propose that the proto-eukaryotic cell could not have evolved a nucleus without concurrently evolving a new tubulin-based cytoskeleton, the microtubules, and a specific chromosomal region that enabled the chromosome-microtubule interaction, the centromere. The repetitive nature of the subtelomeric regions that gave rise to the centromeres forced the concerted evolution of the centromeres. Although this implies the absence of a conserved primary sequence, a conserved centromere-specific structural motif could still exist and determine where in the chromosome the centromere is to be formed.To support the “centromeres-from-telomeres” hypothesis, we discuss several situations, in meiosis and mitosis, where telomeric regions took over centromeric roles. The recently discovered phenomenon of centromere repositioning is also discussed because it has revealed new insights into how neocentromeres evolve.
Research on district partitioning in P2P network

With the rapid development of P2P, there are some new applications such as P2PSIP and intercommunication of heterogeneous DHTs (Distri buted Hash Table). In those scenarios, there need some nodes acting as proxies and gateways. Such nodes as proxies or gateways in P2P overlays were called Supernodes[1,2,3]. The problem of which nodes could be the supernode s was answered by SN election. To choose an eligible supernode in P2P overlay is time -consumed and it's a NP-hard problem. To decrease the message complexity and to accelerate the election speed, the district or area partitioning model was brought forth. In this paper, the authors mainly analyzed four kinds of district partitioning models, they were models based upon geographical information, IP structure, DHT characteristics and pre-placed supernode.
Determinants of Audit Firm Change in the United States

This master thesis investigates the determinants of audit firm change in the United States before and after implementation of the SOX. Prior literature shows mixed findings based on different methodologies. This thesis will provide a comprehensive research, based on 1803 auditor changes in the US between 2000-2015. The results show that the only factors that influence auditor changes are firm size, return on assets and whether or not the current auditor is a Big 4 auditor. Moreover, the likelihood of auditor change decreased after the SOX implementation, which is a signal of the effectiveness of this regulation.
Czech Pattern Recognition Society Taking in Shape : Detection and Tracking of Basic 3 D Shapes in a Robotics Context

Segmenting and tracking generic objects in an unknown dynamic scene remains an elusive goal for computer vision. In this paper we tackle a simplified problem, namely detecting and tracking objects from a class of basic shapes (cuboids, cylinders, cones, spheres) in scenes containing a ground plane. We use perceptual grouping of edges to identify generic views of basic shapes, instantiate 3D wire-frame models assuming that objects initially rest on the ground and subsequently track these using a particle-filter based tracker. During tracking we augment the wire-frame models with surface texture which substantially increases the robustness of tracking with respect to background clutter as well as occlusions and lighting effects.
Depth Estimation from Three Cameras Using Belief Propagation: 3D Modelling of Sumo Wrestling

We propose a method to estimate depth from three wide-baseline camera images using belief propagation. With this method, message propagation is restricted to reduce the effects of boundary overreach, and max and min values and kurtosis of message energy distribution are used to reduce errors caused by large occlusion and texture less areas. In experiments, we focused on scenes of the traditional Japanese sport of sumo and created 3D models from three HD images using our method. We displayed them on a 3D display using the principle of integral photography (IP). We confirmed from the experimental results that our method was effective for estimating depth.
Die zeitliche Entwicklung von Abschlussprüferhonoraren in Deutschland – Eine empirische Untersuchung der Jahre 2009 bis 2013

Since 2005, German audit clients are obliged to publish auditor fees in the notes to their financial statements. The fees have to be differentiated into four categories: audit services, audit-related services, tax advisory services, and other services. Such a disclosure enables stakeholders to evaluate auditor independence. This paper analyses the temporal development of auditor fees as well as their composition for the period 2009-2013. Fees for audit services are by far the highest and decline over time. However, this development is exclusively driven by DAX30 companies. With regard to auditor independence, the share of non-audit fees is critical for DAX30 but also for SDAX companies.
An embedded uniform linear monopole antenna array in a wing structure of a UAV

In this work we present the design and fabrication of a linear array of printed monopole antennas embedded within the wing structure of a small Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) and operating in the 2.4 GHz ISM band. Integration of antenna elements within UAV structures will reduce the weight and cost. Also, the use of embedded antenna arrays will increase the communication range and data throughput. A 4-element array is considered. Simulation and measurement results are shown and compared.
INTEGRATING AHP AND DYNAMIC SIMULATION: EXPERIENCES, CONCEPTUALIZATIONS AND BUSINESS EXPERIMENTS

In this paper we first summarize shortly our long experience in integrating Analytic Hierarchy Processes to the dynamic simulation of business systems. Then we show by an actual production-distribution case the obvious benefits of the integrative approach. Production- distribution systems are related to most functions within the firm, beginning from the materials management and ending with deliveries to markets. In such a case, the complex, direct and indirect relationships imply that the straightforward, traditional evaluation techniques do not necessarily lead to the best result. We cannot convert every intangible effect into monetary gains or expenses. In addition, we also have to use such criteria as flexibility, material availability, product quality, system stability, etc. In this research we show how an integrated simulation- evaluation system can support the management of intangible production-distribution systems in an efficient manner. As a descriptive example we analyze the investment decisions in a production-distribution case. New methods and technologies (EDI, Internet) have changed dramatically the ways in which firms manage their operations and their relations with customers. The production-distribution systems are at the center of these changes. The need of high quality and high efficiency has become characteristics of new logistics systems. One of the main problems with the production-distribution management is the issue of investment decisions. Because the logistics systems are highly related to most functions within the firm beginning from the materials management and ending with marketing they have also a lot of direct and indirect effects on the operation of the firm. These complicated interrelations imply that we cannot use only straightforward, traditional techniques of investment analyses. We cannot convert every outcome into monetary incomes or expenses. In addition, we also have to use such criteria as flexibility, material availability, product quality, system stability, etc.