julilili42/papers huggingface dataset:
Zooarchaeology by Mass Spectrometry (ZooMS) for bone material - AmBiC protocol v1
2020-04-22

This collection details the different established protocols for Zooarchaeology by Mass Spectrometry (ZooMS) for use on archaeological bone. ZooMS allows for taxonomic identification by the peptide mass fingerprinting of collagen type I. These protocols can be used individually or combined depending on the preservation, sample size, and ability to do destructive analysis. All the protocols are optimized for bone as the starting material. The AmBic protocol can be used on samples where distructive analysis cannot be undertaken. Samples are pretreated by soaking in ammonium bicarbonate at room temperature followed by a brief heating step to melt a small amount of collagen out of the bone. The bone can then be dried. The extracted collagen is then digested with trypsin and the peptides are purified using C18 ZipTips. This protocol is best suited for well preserved remains with good collagen preservation. The protocol suggests 10-20mg of bone material, but as it is non-destructive larger bones or objects can be used. This method is more likely to fail than the acid based methods as collegen preservation decreases. If you are using this protocol, please cite the DOI for the protocol and the following two papers on which it is based: Buckley, M., Collins, M., Thomas-Oates, J., &amp; Wilson, J. C. (2009). Species identification by analysis of bone collagen using matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionisation time-of-flight mass spectrometry. Rapid Communications in Mass Spectrometry: RCM, 23(23), 3843–3854. https://doi.org/10.1002/rcm.4316 van Doorn, N. L., Hollund, H., &amp; Collins, M. J. (2011). A novel and non-destructive approach for ZooMS analysis: ammonium bicarbonate buffer extraction. Archaeological and Anthropological Sciences, 3(3), 281. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12520-011-0067-y
Weapons of the Rich: Strategic Action of Private Entrepreneurs in Contemporary China
2020-04-22

"This book provides a fresh perspective on the political agency of private entrepreneurs in contemporary China. Most Chinese scholarship describes this group as being politically acquiescent due to systematic co-optation by the party state. This book, however, argues that private entrepreneurs should be understood, and analytically conceptualized, as a 'strategic group' that makes use of different formal and informal channels to safeguard and expand its interests, though so far it has not challenged the current regime. State-business relations in contemporary China should thus be understood not in terms of mere clientelism, but as a dynamic symbiosis in which private entrepreneurs contribute substantially to policy and institutional change. This book is based on several years of comparative empirical fieldwork across China. With its rich and unique qualitative data and insights, this volume contributes significantly to our understanding of the political behaviour and impact of private entrepreneurs in contemporary China"--Publisher's website
Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry (ABC): tradition and vision
2020-04-22

In contrast to other analytical chemistry journals, Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry (ABC) has not only a publisher but it also has a number of European chemistry societies as coowners.One reason for the multiple owners is the origin of ABC, which was originally founded as Zeitschrift für Analytische Chemie (Journal for Analytical Chemistry) by Karl Remigius Fresenius nearly 160 years ago.In 1990, Wilhelm Fresenius changed the journal's name to Fresenius' Journal of Analytical Chemistry to emphasize the international reputation of the journal, which received its first submissions in English in the 1950s [1].In the mid-1990s, ten European chemical societies and two commercial publishers established a collaboration "to provide a combination of excellent scientific quality, reasonable subscription rates and high commercial efficiency... with the intention of publishing the best chemistry from Europe and the rest of the world, while promoting and preserving the desirable and necessary diversity of the scientific publications" [2].When Fresenius' Journal of Analytical Chemistry was sold in
Cancer-Selective Treatment of Cancerous and Non-Cancerous Human Cervical Cell Models by a Non-Thermally Operated Electrosurgical Argon Plasma Device
2020-04-23

Cold atmospheric plasma (CAP) treatment is developing as a promising option for local anti-neoplastic treatment of dysplastic lesions and early intraepithelial cancer. Currently, high-frequency electrosurgical argon plasma sources are available and well established for clinical use. In this study, we investigated the effects of treatment with a non-thermally operated electrosurgical argon plasma source, a Martin Argon Plasma Beamer System (MABS), on cell proliferation and metabolism of a tissue panel of human cervical cancer cell lines as well as on non-cancerous primary cells of the cervix uteri. Similar to conventional CAP sources, we were able to show that MABS was capable of causing antiproliferative and cytotoxic effects on cervical squamous cell and adenocarcinoma as well as on non-neoplastic cervical tissue cells due to the generation of reactive species. Notably, neoplastic cells were more sensitive to the MABS treatment, suggesting a promising new and non-invasive application for in vivo treatment of precancerous and cancerous cervical lesions with non-thermally operated electrosurgical argon plasma sources.
Cancer cell elimination by cytotoxic T cell cooperation and additive damage
2020-04-23

Summary Cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTL) eliminate tumor target cells in an antigen and cell-contact dependent manner. Lethal hit delivery occurs as a rapid and binary, “yes/no” process when immunogenicity is very high 1–3 , however in vivo CTL often fail to kill solid tumor cells during 1:1 conjugations 4–6 . Using long-term time-lapse microscopy in three distinct tumor cytotoxicity models and statistical modeling, we here show that migrating CTL transit between target cells and initiate apoptosis by a series of sublethal interactions (‘additive cytotoxicity’), while individual conjugations rarely induced apoptosis. Sublethal damage included perforin-dependent membrane pore formation, nuclear lamina rupture and DNA damage, and these events resolved within minutes to hours. In immunogenic B16F10 melanoma tumors in vivo , frequent serial engagements and sublethal hit delivery of CTL was largely confined to interstitial niches in the invasion front, resulting in eradication of invading tumor cells. Thus, additive cytotoxicity is a probabilistic process achieved by a series of CTL-target cell engagements and sublethal events. The need for additive “hits” has implications for the topographic mechanisms of elimination or immune evasion of tumor cells and microenvironmental regulation of CTL accumulation and cooperation by targeted therapy.
Cognitive Research and Mathematics Education—How Can Basic Research Reach the Classroom?
2020-04-23

Numeracy is critically associated with personal and vocational life-prospects (Evans et al., 2017; Grotlüschen et al., 2019); yet, many adults and children lack a basic level of proficiency (Jonas, 2018). At the same time, research interest in numerical cognition, and its neuro-cognitive foundations (e.g., Cohen Kadosh and Dowker, 2015), as well as in mathematics education (e.g., Dennis et al., 2016) continues to grow. In this opinion, we argue that more intensive discussion across the disciplines is necessary to answer the question how results from basic research can make it to the classroom, how classroom practices can be validated by research, and discuss a theoretical framework for guiding future transfer endeavors.&#13;\\n&#13;\\nTransferring basic research results to educational praxis is not a new challenge. As early as 1899, James (1958) noted the difficulty of directly deriving suggestions for pedagogical practice from psychological research. Even when successful, research in psychology might not be enough to derive effective suggestions or direct conclusions for educational practice without considering environmental challenges and requirements of teaching. Clearly not all basic research aims at informing educational practice; however, failure of important results from research to successfully impact practice reflects missed opportunities at some point during dissemination—as is failing to validate effective existing practices through research to allow for what may be called practice-based evidence.
Sensory Neurons: The Formation of T-Shaped Branches Is Dependent on a cGMP-Dependent Signaling Cascade
2020-04-23

Axon bifurcation – a specific form of branching of somatosensory axons characterized by the splitting of the growth cone – is mediated by a cGMP-dependent signaling cascade composed of the extracellular ligand CNP (C-type natriuretic peptide), the transmembrane receptor guanylyl cyclase Npr2 (natriuretic peptide receptor 2), and the kinase cGKI (cGMP-dependent protein kinase I). In the absence of any one of these components, the formation of T-shaped axonal branches is impaired in neurons from DRGs (dorsal root ganglia), CSGs (cranial sensory ganglia) and MTNs (mesencephalic trigeminal neurons) in the murine spinal cord or hindbrain. Instead, axons from DRGs or from CSGs extend only either in an ascending or descending direction, while axons from MTNs either elongate within the hindbrain or extend via the trigeminal ganglion to the masseter muscles. Collateral formation from non-bifurcating stem axons is not affected by impaired cGMP signaling. Activation of Npr2 requires both binding of the ligand CNP as well as phosphorylation of serine and threonine residues at the juxtamembrane regions of the receptor. The absence of bifurcation results in an altered shape of termination fields of sensory afferents in the spinal cord and resulted in impaired noxious heat sensation and nociception whereas motor coordination appeared normal.
Nuclear prominence in ellipsis: Evidence from aggressively non-D-linked phrases
2020-04-23

This paper investigates the reason why aggressively non-D-linked items such as wh-the-hell (WTH) are allowed in swiping, but not in sluicing. Investigating the potential syntactic, semantic and prosodic licensors of WTH in sluicing and swiping in the British English variety, we conclude that syntactic or semantic constraints cannot be the source of the difference. Instead, we propose a novel prosodic account in which the WTH must satisfy the prosodic licensing condition that it cannot bear nuclear accent. We show that this is satisfied in swiping, but not in sluicing contexts. On the basis of the novel findings of an acceptability rating study of swiping, which reveal that both ‘given’ and ‘new’ prepositions are equally acceptable for British English speakers, we argue that the preposition is accentuated in this elliptical construction because it is structurally the deepest element. The licensing condition on WTHs in sluicing and swiping is therefore not mediated directly by the conditions on ellipsis, but by the particular prosodic distribution that a WTH happens to have in sluicing and swiping. We extend the account to similar constructions in Dutch.
Changes in the Building Stock of Da Nang between 2015 and 2017
2020-04-23

This descriptor introduces a novel dataset, which contains the number and types of buildings in the city of Da Nang in Central Vietnam. The buildings were classified into nine distinct types and initially extracted from a satellite image of the year 2015. Secondly, changes were identified based on a visual interpretation of an image of the year 2017, so that new buildings, demolished buildings and building upgrades can be quantitatively analyzed. The data was aggregated by administrative wards and a hexagonal grid with a diameter of 250 m to protect personal rights and to avoid the misuse of a single building’s information. The dataset shows an increase of 19,391 buildings between October 2015 and August 2017, with a variety of interesting spatial patterns. The center of the city is mostly dominated by building changes and upgrades, while most of the new buildings were constructed within a distance of five to six kilometers from the city center.
Naïve orangutans (Pongo abelii & Pongo pygmaeus) individually acquire nut-cracking using hammer tools
2020-04-23

Abstract Nut-cracking using hammer tools has been argued to be one of the most complex tool-use behaviours observed in non-human animals (henceforth: animals). Recently, even the United Nations Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species (CMS) recognised the unique nature of chimpanzee nut-cracking by making it the first animal behaviour to be awarded UN-protected status (Picheta, 2020). So far, only chimpanzees, capuchins and macaques have been observed using tools to crack nuts in the wild (Boesch &amp; Boesch, 1990; Gumert, Kluck, &amp; Malaivijitnond, 2009; Ottoni &amp; Mannu, 2001). However, the learning mechanisms behind this behaviour, and the extent of nut-cracking in other primate species are still unknown. The aim of this study was two-fold. First, we aimed to examine whether other great ape species would develop nut-cracking when provided with all the tools and motivation to do so. Second, we wanted to examine the mechanisms behind the emergence of nut-cracking in a naïve sample. Orangutans ( Pongo abelii; pygmaeus ) have not been observed cracking nuts in the wild, despite having the second most extensive tool-use repertoire of the great apes (after chimpanzees), having the materials for the behaviour in the wild (albeit rarely) and possessing flexible problem-solving capacities. Therefore, orangutans are a valid candidate species for the investigation of the development of nut-cracking. Four nut-cracking-naïve orangutans at Leipzig zoo ( Pongo abelii ; M age =16; age range=10-19; 4F; at time of testing) were provided with nuts and hammers but were not demonstrated the nut-cracking behavioural form, in order to control for the role of copying social learning in the acquisition of this behaviour. Additionally, we report data from a previously unpublished study by one of the authors (MF) with eight orangutans housed at Zürich zoo (10 Pongo abelii and two Pongo pygmaeus; M age =14; age range =2-30; 5F; at time of testing) that followed a similar testing paradigm. Out of the twelve orangutans across both testing institutions, at least four individuals, one from Leipzig ( Pongo abelii ) and three from Zürich ( Pongo abelii ; pygmaeus ), spontaneously expressed nut-cracking with a wooden hammer. These results suggest that the behavioural form of nut-cracking using hammer tools can emerge in orangutans when required through individual learning combined, in some cases, with non-copying social learning mechanisms.
The Relation of Teaching Quality to the Task Difficulty in Word Problems
2020-04-23

The ability to solve various types of word problems is an important prerequisite in general problem-solving skills and a central topic in mathematics curriculum. It has been shown that the difficulty of word problems arises from characteristics of the problems themselves (e.g., arithmetic and linguistic characteristics), the solver, and the environment. Yet, little is known about how teaching quality influences the successful solution of different types of word problems. This study examines the relation between student-perceived teaching quality and word problem solving performance in a sample of 387 5th and 6th grade students by independently manipulating the linguistic (lexical consistency and nominalization) and arithmetic (operation and carry/borrow) complexity. Multilevel analysis showed that teaching quality influenced word problem performance. In the face of nominalization, it also indicates that teachers’ frequency of activating cognitive processes and a supportive climate increased students’ solution accuracy of problems with greater reading difficulty. These results provide evidence that teaching quality has a differential impact on performance in different types of word problems.
A candidate culture-dependent form in apes, nut-cracking, can be individually learnt by naïve orangutans (Pongo abelii)
2020-04-23

Several species of non-human apes have been suggested to rely on copying to acquire some of their behavioural forms. One of the most cited examples - and UN-protected - is nut-cracking in chimpanzees. However, copying might not be the most parsimonious explanation for nut-cracking, considering the lack of evidence for spontaneous copying in this species. The zone of latent solutions (ZLS) hypothesis argues instead that the behavioural form of nut-cracking is individually learnt, whilst non-copying social learning fosters frequency differences across populations. In order to differentiate between the copying and the ZLS hypothesis, four nut-cracking-naive orangutans (Mage=16; age range=10-19; 4F; at time of testing) were provided with nuts and hammers but were not demonstrated the behaviour. Whilst the adults in the group were able to open nuts with their teeth, one juvenile spontaneously expressed nut-cracking with a wooden hammer. We therefore show that the behavioural form of nut-cracking does not necessarily rely on copying in orangutans.
A Dataset of an Auditory Electrooculogram-based Communication System for Patients in Locked-In State
2020-04-23

&lt;p&gt;The dataset presented here contains electroencephalogram (EEG) and electrooculogram (EOG) recordings from four advanced locked-in state (LIS) patients.&nbsp; Data were recorded from 4 patients during a variable range of visits (from 2 to 10), each visit comprised of 3.22&plusmn;1.21 days and consisted of 5.57&plusmn;2.61 sessions recorded per day. The patients performed four different types of sessions, namely, training, feedback, copy spelling, and free spelling sessions.&nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
A Dataset of an Auditory Electrooculogram-based Communication System for Patients in Locked-In State
2020-04-23

The dataset presented here contains electroencephalogram (EEG) and electrooculogram (EOG) recordings from four advanced locked-in state (LIS) patients. Data were recorded from 4 patients during a variable range of visits (from 2 to 10), each visit comprised of 3.22±1.21 days and consisted of 5.57±2.61 sessions recorded per day. The patients performed four different types of sessions, namely, training, feedback, copy spelling, and free spelling sessions.
Leveraging open hardware to alleviate the burden of COVID-19 on global health systems
2020-04-24

With the current rapid spread of COVID-19, global health systems are increasingly overburdened by the sheer number of people that need diagnosis, isolation and treatment. Shortcomings are evident across the board, from staffing, facilities for rapid and reliable testing to availability of hospital beds and key medical-grade equipment. The scale and breadth of the problem calls for an equally substantive response not only from frontline workers such as medical staff and scientists, but from skilled members of the public who have the time, facilities and knowledge to meaningfully contribute to a consolidated global response. Here, we summarise community-driven approaches based on Free and Open Source scientific and medical Hardware (FOSH) as well as personal protective equipment (PPE) currently being developed and deployed to support the global response for COVID-19 prevention, patient treatment and diagnostics.
Nonmetastatic Medulloblastoma of Early Childhood: Results From the Prospective Clinical Trial HIT-2000 and An Extended Validation Cohort
2020-04-24

PURPOSE The HIT-2000-BIS4 trial aimed to avoid highly detrimental craniospinal irradiation (CSI) in children &lt; 4 years of age with nonmetastatic medulloblastoma by systemic chemotherapy, intraventricular methotrexate, and risk-adapted local radiotherapy. PATIENTS AND METHODS From 2001-2011, 87 patients received systemic chemotherapy and intraventricular methotrexate. Until 2006, CSI was reserved for nonresponse or progression. After 2006, local radiotherapy was introduced for nonresponders or patients with classic medulloblastoma (CMB) or large-cell/anaplastic medulloblastoma (LCA). DNA methylation profiles of infantile sonic hedgehog-activated medulloblastoma (SHH-INF) were subdivided into iSHH-I and iSHH-II subtypes in the HIT-2000-BIS4 cohort and a validation cohort (n = 71) from the HIT group and Russia. RESULTS Five years after diagnosis, patients with desmoplastic medulloblastoma (DMB) or medulloblastoma with extensive nodularity (MBEN; n = 42) had 93% progression-free survival (5y-PFS), 100% overall survival (5y-OS), and 93% CSI-free (5y-CSI-free) survival. Patients with CMB/LCA (n = 45) had 37% 5y-PFS, 62% 5y-OS, and 39% 5y-CSI-free survival. Local radiotherapy did not improve survival in patients with CMB/LCA. All DMB/MBEN assessed by DNA methylation profiling belonged to the SHH-INF subgroup. Group 3 patients (5y-PFS, 36%; n = 14) relapsed more frequently than the SHH-INF group (5y-PFS, 93%; n = 28) or group 4 patients (5y-PFS, 83%; n = 6; P &lt; .001). SHH-INF split into iSHH-I and iSHH-II subtypes in HIT-2000-BIS4 and the validation cohort, without prognostic impact (5y-PFS: iSHH-I, 73%, v iSHH-II, 83%; P = .25; n = 99). Intelligence quotient (IQ) was significantly lower in patients after CSI (mean IQ, 90 [no radiotherapy], v 74 [CSI]; P = .012). CONCLUSION Systemic chemotherapy and intraventricular methotrexate led to favorable survival in both iSHH subtypes of SHH-activated DMB/MBEN with acceptable neurotoxicity. Survival in patients with non-wingless (WNT)/non-SHH disease with CMB/LCA was not improved by local radiotherapy. Patients with group 4 disease had more favorable survival rates than those with group 3 medulloblastoma.
Kv1 potassium channels control action potential firing of putative GABAergic deep cerebellar nuclear neurons
2020-04-24

Abstract Low threshold voltage activated Kv1 potassium channels play key roles in regulating action potential (AP) threshold, neural excitability, and synaptic transmission. Kv1 channels are highly expressed in the cerebellum and mutations of human Kv1 genes are associated to episodic forms of ataxia (EAT-1). Besides the well-established role of Kv1 channels in controlling the cerebellar basket-Purkinje cells synapses, Kv1 channels are expressed by the deep cerebellar nuclear neurons (DCNs) where they regulate the activity of principal DCNs carrying the cerebellar output. DCNs include as well GABAergic neurons serving important functions, such as those forming the inhibitory nucleo-olivary pathway, the nucleo-cortical DCNs providing feed-back inhibition to the cerebellar cortex, and those targeting principal DCNs, but whether their function is regulated by Kv1 channels remains unclear. Here, using cerebellar slices from mature GAD67-GFP mice to identify putative GABAergic-DCNs (GAD + DCN) we show that specific Kv1 channel blockers (dendrotoxin-alpha/I/K, DTXs) hyperpolarized the threshold of somatic action potentials, increased the spontaneous firing rate and hampered evoked high frequency repetitive responses of GAD + DCNs. Moreover, DTXs induced somatic depolarization and tonic firing in previously silent, putative nucleo-cortical DCNs. These results reveal a novel role of Kv1 channels in regulating GABAergic-DCNs activity and thereby, cerebellar function at multiple levels.