SIRIS-Lab/unlabelled-sti-corpus huggingface dataset:
Cerebellar Contributions to Reach Adaptation and Learning Sensory Consequences of Action

When we use a novel tool, the motor commands may not produce the expected outcome. In healthy individuals, with practice the brain learns to alter the motor commands. This change depends critically on the cerebellum as damage to this structure impairs adaptation. However, it is unclear precisely what the cerebellum contributes to the process of adaptation in human motor learning. Is the cerebellum crucial for learning to associate motor commands with novel sensory consequences, called forward model, or is the cerebellum important for learning to associate sensory goals with novel motor commands, called inverse model? Here, we compared performance of cerebellar patients and healthy controls in a reaching task with a gradual perturbation schedule. This schedule allowed both groups to adapt their motor commands. Following training, we measured two kinds of behavior: in one case, people were presented with reach targets near the direction in which they had trained. The resulting generalization patterns of patients and controls were similar, suggesting comparable inverse models. In the second case, participants reached without a target and reported the location of their hand. In controls, the pattern of change in reported hand location was consistent with simulation results of a forward model that had learned to associate motor commands with new sensory consequences. In patients, this change was significantly smaller. Therefore, in our sample of patients, we observed that while adaptation of motor commands can take place despite cerebellar damage, cerebellar integrity appears critical for learning to predict visual sensory consequences of motor commands.
Gottardo-Lake Maggiore cross-border cycle tour through the San Giacomo Pass: connection between the Swiss National Routes 1 and 3 and the Via del Mare

The project intends to complete the Gottardo-Airolo-Domodossola-Lago Maggiore cross-border bike path (MTB) through P.so San Giacomo. This axis, now interrupted at the border, will connect the Swiss National Routes n.1 and n.3 with the Piedmont regional interest route "Via del Mare" and to connect 3 MTB districts: Gottardo Bike Arena ( CH), Blenio Bike (CH) and Ossola Bike Arena (IT). The objective is to establish a single large BIKE district in the highly attractive cross-border region which, in dialogue with the Laghi bike district, can overcome the limitations of the individual areas. It provides for the arrangement, organization, signage of the network of routes, 1 bikegrill at P.so S.Giacomo, as well as the organization of an e-bike rental network with charging and delivery points in IT and CH and the cross-border network of specific services for bikers.
Use of In Vivo Biotinylation for Chromatin Immunoprecipitation

This unit describes a system for expression of biotinylated proteins in mammalian cells in vivo, and its application to chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP). The system is based on co-expression of the target protein fused to a short biotin acceptor domain, together with the biotinylating enzyme BirA from Escherichia coli. The superior strength of the biotin-avidin interaction in the modified ChIP protocol presented here allows one to employ more stringent washing conditions, resulting in a better signal/noise ratio. Methods for interpreting the data obtained from ChIP samples analyzed by qPCR, and methods for testing the efficiency of biotinylation using a streptavidin gel-shift are also presented. In addition, a complementary method, based on isothermal multiple strand displacement amplification (IMDA) of circular concatemers generated from the DNA fragments obtained after ChIP, is described. This method helps to decrease bias in DNA amplification and is useful for the analysis of complex mixtures of DNA fragments typically generated in miniscale ChIP experiments. Curr. Protoc. Cell Biol. 51:17.12.1-17.12.22. © 2011 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
The Mediterranean aromatic plants and their culinary use.

Over the centuries, aromatic plants have acquired both practical relevance and socio-cultural meanings that have influenced the evolution of humanity itself and created relevant economic value. In fact, since a long time ago spices were promoted to a leading economic role, and their profitability has been often comparable to that of other commodities traded in much larger volumes. Many geographical discoveries, explorations, worldwide relationships between populations in different continents, were undertaken in order to meet the quest for new flavours, new tastes, new medicinal plants or to find new markets for those already known. While the use of plants in medicine offers an extensive written documentation produced by most ancient human civilizations, the same can not be said for food herbs and flavouring spices. However, without the adequate selection of edible, reliable and valuable plants from the whole biodiversity pool operated by folk cultures everywhere in the world, their proper combination would have never been elaborated and cuisines, like the Mediterranean ones, would have not attained such unique mix of flavour, taste and nutrient content that has no equal in the world. Therefore, any consideration on herbs and aromatic plants in the kitchen leads inequivocally to a journey into tradition.
AUTOMATED SAMPLE COLLECTION WORKSTATION

An automated sample collection workstation comprises a motor actuated sealing assembly having upper (23) and lower (25) clamping plates and fixtures to which particle-containing components of a particle testing unit such as an inertial impactor are mounted. The workstation also includes a sampling module (SM) including a plurality of sampling needles (SN) movable along two axes, and a solvent flow-through system. The solvent flow-through system includes a pump and multi-position valve arrangement communicating with the sealing assembly and the sampling module. The workstation can also include a pump calibration system communicating with the solvent flow-through system.
Diseño de un plan estratégico y de operaciones para reducir los tiempos extensos y los altos costos en el transporte para el personal de la empresa General Motors – Ómnibus BB del Ecuador, ubicada en la ciudad de Quito

Nowadays, vehicles industries face a big challenge, more taxes, restrictions on vehicles and CKD import quotas, a Free Trade Agreement with European Union, etc., requires that local industry become more competitive. In this regard, General Motors - Omnibus BB of Ecuador, encourages its employees to find improvements in their processes, costs reductions, higher quality products and a better service to both internal and external customer.
To be aligned with this vision, this project is focusing at one of the many processes that the company has; in this case, the transportation service that the company provides to its employees, to and from their homes.
It will analyze the current status of this service, from the most general to the most specific aspects. First, analyzing some factors of the environment such as: Demographic, economic, socio-cultural and technological. And then it will be analyzed internal factors such as: The department that manages the service, the current state of the service and the employees that use the transportation.
After understanding the current status of the service, and identified opportunities for improvement, it will be proposed some strategies that allow reaching the objectives, such as costs reduction and a better service to the internal customer.
Mucosal antibody and b cell responses during tuberculosis

Tuberculosis (TB), an infectious disease caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb), kills up to 1.5 million people every year. Despite sustained scientific attention, there is no effective vaccine, multidrug-resistant Mtb strains are on the rise, and impoverished people with little access to long, expensive treatments continue to bear the brunt of disease.  A critical barrier to the development of an effective TB vaccine is our incomplete understanding of what constitutes a protective immune response.

Accumulating evidence suggests a role for B cells and antibodies in preventing and alleviating TB. Existing studies show that some Mtb-specific antibodies found in blood may confer protection against infection. However, whether such protective antibodies exist at the site of infection and in what quantity remains unknown. The goal of this project is to characterise antibody responses in the lung mucosa of mycobacteria-infected mice and humans, and to assess their relationship to protection versus disease. First, I will identify the antigenic targets of antibodies isolated from lung and lymphoid organs of infected mice by proteomics.  Then I will use tetramer-based enrichment and single cell RNA sequencing to investigate the dynamics, transcriptional regulation and B cell receptor repertoires of lung-resident, antigen-specific B cells – the source of lung mucosal antibodies. Finally, I will translate these findings from the mouse model to humans, using bronchoalveolar lavage fluid from a clinical study of TB patients with different grades of TB susceptibility. This approach will allow me to assess the existence of these mucosal antibodies in humans and to investigate their function and protective potential. Combining the mouse infection model with this unique TB patient cohort represents a unique opportunity to address the impact of humoral immunity in the lung mucosa, thus providing a sound basis for the development of mucosal airway vaccines against TB.
Heterocoagulated clay-derived adsorbents for phosphate decontamination from aqueous solution

A series of nanocomposite adsorbents were prepared by heterocoagulation of negatively charged delaminated montmorillonite (Mt) and positively charged synthetic layered double hydroxide (LDH) colloids with different LDH loading amounts. The mineralogy and physicochemical properties of the resulting nanocomposites were characterized. Their potential applications for phosphate (P) removal from aqueous solution, as a function of P concentration (2.5-200 mg/L), contact time (1 min-48 h) and pH (3-10), were evaluated by using batch adsorption modes. It was found that the adsorption data could be well described by both Freundlich and Langmuir isotherm models. The maximum adsorption capacity of three different LDH heterocoagulated montmorillonites (LDH-Mts) for P removal was found to increase with LDH loadings, reaching 12.6, 16.2 and 23.3 mg/g respectively; Adsorption kinetic data revealed that 90% of adsorption onto LDH-Mts was completed within 1 h (h) and the adsorption process could be well described by the pseudo-second-order model. These results demonstrated that heterocoagulation of Mt and LDH could preserve the adsorption capacity of LDH for P and enhance the stability of both clay minerals, and LDH-Mts could be effectively used as a potential promising filtration medium for P removal.
Field control of cold molecular collisions

It is a long held dream of chemical physicists to study (and to control!) the interactions between individual molecules in completely specified collisions. This project brings this goal within reach. I will develop novel methods to study collisions between individual molecules at temperatures between 10 mK and 10 K, and to manipulate their interaction using electric and magnetic fields. Under these cold conditions, the collisions are dominated by quantum effects such as interference and tunneling. Scattering resonances occur that respond sensitively to external electric or magnetic fields, yielding the thrilling perspective to provide “control knobs” to steer the outcome of a collision. Building on my unique experience with state-of-the-art molecular beam deceleration methods, I will study scattering resonances for chemically relevant systems involving molecules such as OH, NO, NH3 and H2CO in crossed beam experiments. Using external electric or magnetic fields, we will tune the positions and widths of resonances, such that collision rates can be changed by orders of magnitude. This type of “collision engineering” will be used to induce and study hitherto unexplored quantum phenomena, such as the merging of individual resonances, and resonant energy transfer in bimolecular collisions. Measurements of exotic collision phenomena under yet unexplored conditions as proposed here provide excellent tests for quantum theories of molecular interactions, and pave the way towards the engineering of novel quantum structures, or the collective properties of interacting molecular systems. The proposed research program will transform this field from merely “probing nature” with the highest possible detail to “manipulating nature” with the highest possible level of control. It will open up a new and intellectually rich research field in chemical physics and physical chemistry, and will be a major breakthrough in the emerging research field of cold molecules.
Cross-border marketing initiatives for the networking of the region's natural and cultural heritage

The overall objective of the project is to strengthen cross-border cooperation between the municipalities of Tarvisio and Arnoldstein in the field of strengthening territorial marketing and the soft valorisation of the common cultural heritage along the Alps Adria radweg (cycling route Which is a direct link between the European Central Bicycle Network and the Adriatic Sea). Its route crosses the territory of the municipalities of Tarvisio and Arnoldstein at the height of the former customs located on the Coccau pass. The complex of the buildings here will be converted into a multifunctional structure that can serve as a tourist information service at the service of the cycling network of Carinthia and FVG, museum boundary and museum hub integrated for the networking of cultural and natural heritage area. This area will enable the development of an integrated cross-border network able to exploit places and sites of historical and cultural importance in order to ensure better enjoyment by tourists and local communities by transforming a structure designed to divide into a pole of valorisation of the territory and community.
Radial basis functional model for multi-objective sheet metal forming optimization

Fracture and wrinkling are two major defects in sheet metal forming and can be eliminated via an appropriate drawbead design. This article proposes to adopt a multi-objective particle swarm optimization (MOPSO) approach, which differs from traditional multi-objective optimization with construction of a single cost function. MOPSO shows a certain advantage over other single cost function or population-based algorithms. While radial basis function (RBF) has shown considerable promise in highly non-linear problems, there has been no report in sheet metal forming design. Here RBF is attempted to establish the metamodels for fracture and wrinkling criteria in sheet metal forming design. In this article, a sophisticated automobile inner stamping case is exemplified, which demonstrated that RBF provides a better surrogate accuracy and MOPSO is more effective than the other methods studied. The use of RBF driven MOPSO procedure significantly improved the formability and can be recommended for sheet metal process ...
A Safe Pseudotyped Lentivirus-Based Assay to Titer SARS-CoV-2 Neutralizing Antibodies

Measuring the neutralizing potential of SARS-CoV-2 antigens-exposed sera informs on effective humoral immunity. This is relevant to 1-monitor levels of protection within an asymptomatic population, 2-evaluate the efficacy of existing and novel vaccines against emerging variants, 3-test prospective therapeutic monoclonal neutralizing antibodies (NAbs) and, overall, to contribute to understand SARS-CoV-2 immunity. However, the goldstandard method to titer NAbs is a functional assay of virus-mediated infection, which requires biosafety level 3 (BSL-3) facilities. As these facilities are insufficient in Latin American countries, including Mexico, scant information has been obtained about NAb in these countries during the COVID-19 pandemic. An alternative solution to acquire NAb information locally is to use non-replicative viral particles that display the SARS-CoV-2 Spike (S) protein on their surface, and deliver a reporter gene into target cells upon transduction. Here we present the development of a NAb-measuring assay based on Nanolucmediated luminescence measurements from SARS-CoV-2 S-pseudotyped lentiviral particleinfected cells. The successive steps of development are presented, including lentiviral particles production, target cell selection, and TCID50 determination. We applied the optimized assay in a BSL-2 facility to measure NAbs in 15 pre-pandemic, 18 COVID-19 convalescent and 32 BNT162b2 vaccinated serum samples, which evidenced the assay with 100% sensitivity, 86.6% specificity and 96% accuracy. The assay highlighted heterogeneity in neutralization curves which are relevant in discussing neutralization potency dynamics. This is the first report of a safe functional assay to measure SARS-CoV-2 in Mexico and a cornerstone methodology necessary to measure NAb in the context of limited resources settings.Funding Information:We acknowledge the financial support received by CONACYT (scholarships 1007842 and 657487), Secretaría de Relaciones Exteriores, Tecnológico de Monterrey and StrainBiotech S.A de C.V, that made this work possible.Conflict of Interests: None to declare. Ethical Approval: Protocols for the use of human samples for this work were approved by the IRB of the Instituto Mexicano del Seguro Social (IMSS) with reference number R-2020-785-068 prior to starting this work.
User-centered Design of m-Learning System: Moodle On The Go

In order to truly integrate e-Learning system into regular curriculum at a university, mobile access to Learning Management Systems has to be enabled. Mobile devices have the potential to be integrated into the classroom, because they contain unique characteristics such as portability, social interactivity, context sensitivity, connectivity and individuality. Adoption of Learning Management Systems by students is still on the low rate, mostly because of poor usability of existing e-Learning systems. Our initial research has confirmed this hypothesis. Usability issue is rising to the higher level on the mobile platform, because of the mobile devices’ limited screen size, input interfaces and bandwidth, and also because of the context of use. Our second hypothesis was that it is wrong to consider a mobile device as a surrogate for desktop or laptop personal computer (PC). By just adopting the existing Learning Management System on mobile devices with adaptive technologies such as Google proxy, we do not acquire the satisfactory results. Usability can prove to be even lower compared to desktop application. One possible solution to the problem could be development of rich client applications for today’s mobile devices that would raise the usability to a higher level. We developed a PocketPC prototype application by using user-centered design principles, which we presented as a third alternative in usability research conducted among university students. Results gathered in such a way have confirmed that the development of e-Learning systems, in order to be widely accepted by students, needs to have the user (student) in the center of development process.
Effect of Bahir Dar municipal effluents on water quality of the head of Blue Nile River

The study was conducted with the main objective of determining the effect of Bahir Dar municipal effluents on water quality of the head of Blue Nile River. Physico-chemical parameters were measured at seven points, whereas aquatic macro invertebrates were sampled at six sites. A total of 6813 aquatic macro-invertebrate individuals belonging to 30 families were collected. The Shannon–Wiener diversity Index, the Hilsenhoff family-level biotic index, Family richness and percent dipterans were calculated and differed significantly among sampling sites (p < 0.05). Physico-chemical parameter mean values differed significantly among sampling sites (p < 0.05), dissolved oxygen mean value being higher at sampling site (A) and BOD 5 , TDS and conductivity values being higher at (C5). BOD 5 , conductivity and total alkalinity mean values were above permissible levels set for municipal effluents to be discharged to surface water. DO, BOD 5 and total alkalinity mean values at head of Blue Nile River were lower than WHO recommended values for drinking water. The study concludes that the Bahir Dar municipal effluents severely affected the water quality of the head of the Blue Nile River.  Therefore, a municipal waste water treatment system is urgently recommended. Keywords : Bio-monitoring, macro invertebrates, physico-chemical parameters
Engineered conductive proteins for bioelectronics

Proteins—the building blocks of natural systems—offer advantageous structural properties for the design of functional materials and present rare and modest but appealing electrical conduction features. The e-Prot project vision encompasses the rational design of efficient conductive protein systems (e-Ps), and the fabrication of all-protein based conductive structures and materials, targeting a radical change in design of ""green"" electronic and energy storage devices. This breakthrough relies on a multidisciplinary scientific approach that combines i) a profound understanding of protein building blocks, biomolecular design principles, state-of-the-art synthetic biology, and chemical tools, to systematically fabricate new protein materials; and ii) cutting-edge characterization techniques and computational models that will provide an unprecedented fundamental understanding of protein conduction thus building a solid foundation for their technological implementation. Selected engineered conductive proteins will be upscaled and implemented as smart ink-based conductors and ionic electrolytes in energy storage devices, as a first demonstration of the feasibility of an inherently biocompatible and fully sustainable all-protein (e-Prot) bioelectronics platform. This groundbreaking approach surpasses current bio-inspired technologies, transforming the emerging research field of protein-based bioelectronics, currently still limited to basic research, to a new level of sophistication facilitating real-world applications.