Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Endogenous regulatory T lymphocytes ameliorate amyotrophic lateral sclerosis in mice and correlate with disease progression in patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis is a relentless and devastating adult-onset neurodegenerative disease with no known cure. In mice with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, CD4+ T lymphocytes and wild-type microglia potentiate protective inflammatory responses and play a principal role in disease pathoprogression. Using this model, we demonstrate that endogenous T lymphocytes, and more specifically regulatory T lymphocytes, are increased at early slowly progressing stages, augmenting interleukin-4 expression and protective M2 microglia, and are decreased when the disease rapidly accelerates, possibly through the loss of FoxP3 expression in the regulatory T lymphocytes. Without ex vivo activation, the passive transfer of wild-type CD4+ T lymphocytes into amyotrophic lateral sclerosis mice lacking functional T lymphocytes lengthened disease duration and prolonged survival. The passive transfer of endogenous regulatory T lymphocytes from early disease stage mutant Cu2+/Zn2+ superoxide dismutase mice into these amyotrophic lateral sclerosis mice, again without ex vivo activation, were substantially more immunotherapeutic sustaining interleukin-4 levels and M2 microglia, and resulting in lengthened disease duration and prolonged survival; the stable disease phase was extended by 88% using mutant Cu2+/Zn2+ superoxide dismutase regulatory T lymphocytes. A potential mechanism for this enhanced life expectancy may be mediated by the augmented secretion of interleukin-4 from mutant Cu2+/Zn2+ superoxide dismutase regulatory T lymphocytes that directly suppressed the toxic properties of microglia; flow cytometric analyses determined that CD4+/CD25+/FoxP3+ T lymphocytes co-expressed interleukin-4 in the same cell. These observations were extended into the amyotrophic lateral sclerosis patient population where patients with more rapidly progressing disease had decreased numbers of regulatory T lymphocytes; the numbers of regulatory T lymphocytes were inversely correlated with disease progression rates. These data suggest a cellular mechanism whereby endogenous regulatory T lymphocytes are immunocompetent and actively contribute to neuroprotection through their interactions with microglia. Furthermore, these data suggest that immunotherapeutic interventions must begin early in the pathogenic process since immune dysfunction occurs at later stages. Thus, the cumulative mouse and human amyotrophic lateral sclerosis data suggest that increasing the levels of regulatory T lymphocytes in patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis at early stages in the disease process may be of therapeutic value, and slow the rate of disease progression and stabilize patients for longer periods of time.
Accelerating seismicity of moderate-size earthquakes before the 1999 Chi-Chi, Taiwan, earthquake: Testing time-prediction of the self-organizing spinodal model of earthquakes

SUMMARY Seismic activation of moderate-size earthquakes for the 1999 Chi-Chi, Taiwan, earthquake has been found. A self-organizing spinodal (SOS) model can explain some observations concerning seismic activation, but the equal time durations of the mid and precursory periods during an earthquake cycle conjectured in the original, published, SOS model have not been supported in this case. The Chi-Chi test presented here shows unequal time durations of the mid and precursory periods of an earthquake cycle. This, in turn, makes the possibility of time prediction of a characteristic earthquake impossible in the context of the SOS model. In addition, comparisons with numerical simulations of the sliding-block model suggest the change in the system’s stiffness is a potential mechanism of seismic activation.
Classification of Retinal Ganglion Cells : A Statistical Approach

[PDF] [Full Text] [Abstract] , February 11, 2004; 24 (6): 1459-1467. J. Neurosci. J. R. Sinclair, A. L. Jacobs and S. Nirenberg Selective Ablation of a Class of Amacrine Cells Alters Spatial Processing in the Retina [PDF] [Full Text] [Abstract] , April 1, 2006; 95 (4): 2277-2292. J Neurophysiol R. Segev, J. Puchalla and M. J. Berry II Functional Organization of Ganglion Cells in the Salamander Retina [PDF] [Full Text] [Abstract] , November 15, 2006; 26 (46): 11857-11869. J. Neurosci. R. C. Renteria, N. Tian, J. Cang, S. Nakanishi, M. P. Stryker and D. R. Copenhagen Intrinsic ON Responses of the Retinal OFF Pathway Are Suppressed by the ON Pathway. [PDF] [Full Text] [Abstract] , March 1, 2008; 99 (3): 1408-1421. J Neurophysiol S. F. Stasheff Responses in Ganglion Cells of the Retinal Degeneration (rd1) Mouse Emergence of Sustained Spontaneous Hyperactivity and Temporary Preservation of OFF [PDF] [Full Text] [Abstract] , March 5, 2008; 28 (10): 2342-2352. J. Neurosci. O. L. Wong D. Kerschensteiner, H. Liu, C. W. Cheng, J. Demas, S. H. Cheng, C. -c. Hui, R. L. Chow and R. Contrast Adaptation in the Mouse Retina Genetic Control of Circuit Function: Vsx1 and Irx5 Transcription Factors Regulate
Knickpoints and hillslope failures: Interactions in a steady state experimental landscape

Hillslope stability depends strongly on local conditions, such as lithology and rock strength, degree of saturation, and critical slope angle. Common triggers for slope failure include severe storms, earthquakes, and removal of material from the toe of the hillslope. In this paper, we focus on the latter, in a model in which streams incise the toe and destabilize the hillslope. We investigate possible interactions between migrating knickpoints and hillslope failures in a small-scale, steadily eroding experimental landscape that experiences steady rainfall and base-level fall conditions. We monitored knickpoint propagation and hillslope failure activity with time lapse photography over a time period in which numerous knickpoints migrated through the drainage basin. We then investigated temporal and spatial relationships between hillslope failures and knickpoints and compared these results to Monte Carlo simulations of hillslope failure distributions. When focusing along a single channel, we found that, statistically (significant at the 98% confidence level), a greater number of failures occur downstream from a migrating knickpoint. These results highlight both the organized and random nature of hillslope and knickpoint interactions.
New Functional Materials and High Technology NFMaHT-2015 29-30 June 2015 , Tivat , Montenegro SOCIO-ECONOMIC ASPECT OF HAZARDOUS CHEMICALS ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS

The paper deals with the issue of analysis and assessment of the socio-economic impacts of environmental pollution by the hazardous chemicals. Special emphasis was placed on the effects of pollution from specific groups of dangerous chemicals known as persistent organic pollutants, e.g. POPs chemicals. The characteristics of POPs, including persistence, bioaccumulation and high toxicity, are making the environmental impacts of these chemicals particularly complex and dangerous. The process of socio-economic analysis of hazardous chemicals impacts includes identifying anthropogenic activities which include dangerous chemicals; analysis their adverse effects on the environment and assessing their impacts. Number of methods and indicators for measuring of those impacts are developed in order to quantify and when possible monetize them.
Water treeing theories-current status, views and aims

The matter of water treeing is both phenomenal in its economic impact and fascinating from scientific point of view. This is reflected in the vast number of papers that appeared since water trees were discovered in Japan. Still, the subject requires attention to maintain and increase insulation reliability. Recently, a review was performed on the understanding of water treeing up to 1997. The present paper is a condensed version of that review to which the reader be referred for further details and little over 140 references. Subsequently, this paper discusses: the term 'water treeing'; the most important properties of water trees; the main water treeing theories; countermeasures.
Seismic-wave propagation through a cracked solid: polarization as a possible dilatancy diagnostic

Summary. A new technique is presented for modelling the elastic constants of cracked structures with application to systems with weak concentrations of parallel cracks, and of simple biplanar and triplanar cracks. The velocities and V,lVs ratios of these anisotropic structures are used to provide quantitative models for some earthquake precursors. These results indicate the great importance of crack geometry to the behaviour of precursors. The velocities of saturated cracks appear to favour the dilatancy-diffusion model of precursory phenomena. Synthetic seismograms are calculated for propagation through possible dilatancy zones. The seismograms show some characteristic features which may be useful for the investigation of earthquake dilatancy .
Planning Support Systems: Progress, Predictions, and Speculations on the Shape of Things to Come

In this paper, we review the brief history of planning support systems, sketching the way both the fields of planning and the software that supports and informs various planning tasks have fragmented and diversified. This is due to many forces which range from changing conceptions of what planning is for and who should be involved, to the rapid dissemination of computers and their software, set against the general quest to build ever more generalized software products applicable to as many activities as possible. We identify two main drivers – the move to visualization which dominates our very interaction with the computer and the move to disseminate and share software data and ideas across the web. We attempt a brief and somewhat unsatisfactory classification of tools for PSS in terms of the planning process and the software that has evolved, but this does serve to point up the state-ofthe- art and to focus our attention on the near and medium term future. We illustrate many of these issues with three exemplars: first a land usetransportation model (LUTM) as part of a concern for climate change, second a visualization of cities in their third dimension which is driving an interest in what places look like and in London, a concern for high buildings, and finally various web-based services we are developing to share spatial data which in turn suggests ways in which stakeholders can begin to define urban issues collaboratively. All these are elements in the larger scheme of things – in the development of online collaboratories for planning support. Our review far from comprehensive and our examples are simply indicative, not definitive. We conclude with some brief suggestions for the future.
Geographic Oversampling for Race/Ethnicity Using Data from the 2010 U.S. Population Census

Using 1980 and 1990 U.S. Census data, Waksberg, Judkins, and Massey (1997) examined the effectiveness of disproportionate stratification to oversample areas with greater concentrations of a minority population in order to achieve a specified effective sample size for a national survey of that minority. The areas considered were Census block and block groups. The effectiveness of this oversampling depends on the degree of the minority’s geographical concentration and on the relative cost of the full data collection to the screening cost. This paper updates the Waksberg et al. findings using 2010 U.S. Census data and compares these findings with those from the 1990 Census. In addition, the paper extends the application to subnational surveys that are concerned with a single census region or with Core Based Statistical Areas (CBSAs) or non-CBSAs, and with use of these variables for prior stratification for a national survey. It also examines the effect of using different cutpoints for defining the density strata.
Community Commitment: How Affect, Obligation, and Necessity Drive Online Behaviors

Online communities have become a major medium for social interaction amongst Internet users. However, communities addressing similar topics often have a considerable overlap in resources, which makes them at least partial substitutes for each other. Given the ease with which these resources can be accessed, why would individuals choose to return repeatedly to one community, and indeed go on to invest additional time and energy in doing the voluntary work necessary to keep that community going? We draw on organizational commitment theory to propose an integrated framework for understanding why community members perform three essential kinds of voluntary behaviors – community citizenship behaviors, content provision, and audience engagement. Commitment theory argues that three kinds of bonds (affect-based, norm-based, and cost-based) may form between individuals and organizations, and we adapt this theory to an online community context. Our results indicate that each form of commitment has a contrasting influence on members’ performance of voluntary behaviors in the community. Community citizenship behaviors are driven by affective and normative commitment, content provision by affective and continuance commitment, and audience engagement by continuance commitment alone. Using this established theoretical framework allows us to model and simultaneously test a range of motivations, thereby producing a more integrated perspective that offers greater precision in predicting a variety of important online behaviors.
Agricultural Development and its Impact on Malaria: Azerbaijan

This paper discusses the malaria situation in Azerbaijan during the period 1991-2000, drawing lessons from the past and suggesting measures to avoid future epidemics. Statistical methods are applied and geographical maps produced to determine the key agricultural and environmental determinants of malaria. Results strongly suggest that the fight against malaria should give priority to the effective use of irrigation water, to the reduction of land salinization, and to the rehabilitation of rural road networks. This fight should involve the agricultural, environmental, and health sectors, and critical gaps should be identified in understanding of where joined forces can make a difference in livelihood of the infected population. Such a multi-sectoral framework should help prevent the future threats due to changing crop pattern, rising water levels in the Caspian Sea, and sleeping parasites in the communities already hit worse.
Accurate emulation of CPU performance

This paper addresses the question of CPU performance emulation, which allows experimenters to evaluate applications under a wide range of reproducible experimental conditions. Specifically, we propose Fracas, a CPU emulator that leverages the Linux Completely Fair Scheduler to achieve performance emulation of homogeneous or heterogeneous multi-core systems. Several benchmarks reproducing different types of workload (CPU-bound, IO-bound) are then used to thoroughly compare Fracas with another CPU emulator and hardware frequency scaling. We show that the design of Fracas results in a more accurate and a less intrusive CPU emulation solution. Key-words: emulation, processor, scheduler ∗ INRIA Nancy – Grand Est † LORIA / Nancy-Université in ria -0 04 90 10 8, v er si on 3 26 O ct 2 01 0 in ria -0 04 90 10 8, v er si on 4 23 S ep 2 01 1 Émulation précise de la performance du processeur Résumé : Cet article s’intéresse à la question de l’émulation de la performance du processeur, afin de permettre aux expérimenteurs d’évaluer des applications sous un large intervalle de conditions experimentales. Plus précisément, nous proposons Fracas, un émulateur de processeur qui utilise le Linux Completely Fair Scheduler pour obtenir une émulation des performances de machines multicoeurs homogènes ou hétérogènes. Plusieurs benchmarks, reproduisant différents types de charge (CPU-intensif, I/O-intensif) sont ensuite utilisés pour comparer de manière extensive Fracas avec un autre émulateur, et avec le réglage matériel de la fréquence du processeur. Nous montrons que la conception de Fracas résulte en une émulation plus précise et moins intrusive. Mots-clés : émulation, processeur, ordonnnanceur in ria -0 04 90 10 8, v er si on 3 26 O ct 2 01 0 in ria -0 04 90 10 8, v er si on 4 23 S ep 2 01 1 Accurate emulation of CPU performance 3
Chapman University Digital Commons Chapman University Digital Commons

The design of wearable applications supporting children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorders (ADHD) requires a deep understanding not only of what is possible from a clinical standpoint but also how the children might understand and orient towards wearable technologies, such as a smartwatch. Through a series of participatory design workshops with children with ADHD and their caregivers, we identified tensions and challenges in designing wearable applications supporting the self-regulation of children with ADHD. In this paper, we describe the specific challenges of smartwatches for this population, the balance between self-regulation and co-regulation, and tensions when receiving notifications on a smartwatch in various contexts. These results indicate key considerations—from both the child and caregiver viewpoints—for designing technological interventions supporting children with ADHD.
Chapman University Digital Commons Chapman University Digital Commons

: Small-conductance Ca 2+ -activated potassium (K Ca 2.x) channels are gated exclusively by intracellular Ca 2+ . The activation of K Ca 2.3 channels induces hyperpolarization, which augments Ca 2+ signaling in endothelial cells. Cilia are specialized Ca 2+ signaling compartments. Here, we identified compound 4 that potentiates human K Ca 2.3 channels selectively. The subtype selectivity of compound 4 for human K Ca 2.3 over rat K Ca 2.2a channels relies on an isoleucine residue in the HA/HB helices. Positive modulation of K Ca 2.3 channels by compound 4 increased flow-induced Ca 2+ signaling and cilia length, while negative modulation by AP14145 reduced flow-induced Ca 2+ signaling and cilia length. These findings were corroborated by the increased cilia length due to the expression of Ca 2+ -hypersensitive K Ca 2.3_G351D mutant channels and the reduced cilia length resulting from the expression of Ca 2+ -hyposensitive K Ca 2.3_I438N channels. Collectively, we were able to associate functions of K Ca 2.3 channels and cilia, two crucial components in the flow-induced Ca 2+ signaling of endothelial cells, with potential implications in vasodilation and ciliopathic hypertension.
Experimental Study of the Composition Join NaAlSiO4-CaCO3-H2O and the Genesis of Alkalic Rock-Carbonatite Complexes

Phase equilibrium studies have been carried out on the composition join NaAlSiO_4-CaCO_3-H_2O with 25 wt per cent H_2O at 1 kb pressure in the temperature range 600–960 °C. Liquid, in equilibrium with crystalline phases and a sodic, aqueous vapor phase persists across the join down to temperatures of about 600 °C. Fractional crystallization of a carbonated nepheline-rich liquid in equilibrium with vapor is capable of generating successively the crystalline assemblages (1) nepheline, (2) melilite+nepheline, (3) hydroxyhauyne+melilite, (4) cancrinite+melilite, and (5) calcite+cancrinite+melilite. Late-stage liquid fractions are rich in CaCO3, whereas the vapor phase is enriched in Na. The experimental assemblages are strikingly similar to rocks in alkalic rock-carbonatite complexes in general and in the Oka, Quebec, complex in particular. The succession of assemblages at Oka and at other melilite rock-bearing complexes may be interpreted as the products of fractionation of a carbonated nephelinite magma by analogy with the experimental results. The sodium-bearing vapor phase of the experiments may be analogous to the fenitizing agent of some carbonatite complexes.
A Robotic Wheelchair Based on the Integration of Human and Environmental Observations Look Where You ’ re Going

ith the increase in the number of senior citizens, there is a growing demand for humanfriendly wheelchairs as mobility aids. Recently, robotic/intelligent wheelchairs have been proposed to meet this need [1]-[5]. Most important evaluation factors for such wheelchairs are safety and ease of operation. Providing autonomy is a way to improve both factors. The avoidance of obstacles using infrared, ultrasonic, vision, and other sensors has been investigated. The ultimate goal is a wheelchair that will take users automatically to the destination that they specify. Such autonomous capability has been also studied. However, in addition to going to certain designated places, we often want to move as freely as we wish. In this case, a good human interface becomes the key factor. Instead of a joystick, like on conventional power wheelchairs, voice can be used in issuing commands [3], [5]. In the Wheelesly robotic wheelchair system [4], the user can control the system by picking up a command icon on the CRT screen by gaze. Eye movements are measured through five electrodes placed on the user’s head. Although autonomous capabilities are important, the techniques required are mostly common with those developed for autonomous mobile robots. Thus, we concentrate on the human-interface issue in our research and implement conventional autonomous capabilities with necessary modifications to realize an actual working system. We need environmental information to realize autonomous capabilities. Static information can be given by maps. Vision, ultrasonic, and other sensors are used to obtain current information. On the other hand, we need the user’s information for human interfaces. Although the user’s information is obtained through joystick operation in conventional power wheelchairs, we would like to use much simpler actions to realize a user-friendly interface. This requires the wheelchair to observe the user’s actions to understand his/her intentions. However, simple actions tend to be noisy; even if users do not intend to issue commands, they may show movements that can be seen as command actions to the wheelchair. To solve this problem, we propose to integrate the observation of the user with the environmental observations, which are usually used to realize autonomy. In our proposed robotic wheelchair, we choose to use face direction to convey the user’s intentions to the system. When users want to move in a certain direction, it is a natural action for them to look in the direction. Using face direction to control motion has another merit: when the user wants to turn to the left or right, he/she needs to see in the direction by turning the head intentionally. As the turn is getting completed, the user should turn his/her head back to the frontal position to adjust the wheelchair’s direction. However, this behavior is so natural that it happens almost unconsciously. If the user uses a steering lever or wheel to control the vehicle’s
Analysis of the tourism efficiency and its decomposition based on DEA

This article calculated tourism industry efficiency of China in 1999-2008 using the method of data envelopment analysis(DEA),which could set multi input and output indexes,avoiding inadequacy of using only one input and output index.Then it classified the tourism industry efficiency into two categories,pure technological efficiency and scale efficiency for seeking the cause of diverse land production efficiency.The results suggest the following. (1) The tourism industry efficiency fluctuated in 1999-2008,with the average being 0.330,indicating that tourism industry efficiency was low. (2) Tourism industry efficiency was different among 31 provinces in China.A few provinces in eastern China had high tourism efficiency,while some provinces in central China and western China had lower efficiency. (3) Tourism industry efficiency and pure technological efficiency had the same changing trend,which showed that the changes of tourism industry efficiency were mainly due to pure technological efficiency. (4) Almost all the provinces had an increasing trend.