Probabilistic Topic Modeling of the Russian Text Corpus on Musicology

The paper describes the results of experiments on the development of a statistical model of the Russian text corpus on musicology. We construct a topic model based on Latent Dirichlet Allocation and process corpus data with the help of the GenSim statistical toolkit. Results achieved in course of experiments allow us to distinguish general and special topics which describe conceptual structure of the corpus in question and to analyze paradigmatic and syntagmatic relations between lemmata within topics.The research discussed in the paper is supported by the grant of St.-Petersburg State University № 30.38.305.2014 «Quantitative linguistic parameters for defining stylistic characteristics and subject area of texts»

Treatment success for overactive bladder with urinary urge incontinence refractory to oral antimuscarinics: a review of published evidence

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Treatment options for overactive bladder (OAB) with urinary urge incontinence (UUI) refractory to oral antimuscarinics include: botulinum toxin type A (BoNTA), sacral neuromodulation (SNM), and augmentation cystoplasty (AC). A standard treatment success metric that can be used in both clinical and economic evaluations of the above interventions has not emerged. Our objective was to conduct a literature review and synthesis of published measures of treatment success for OAB with UUI interventions and to identify a treatment success outcome.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>We performed a literature review of primary studies that used a definition of treatment success in the OAB with UUI population receiving BoNTA, SNM, or AC. The recommended success outcome was compared to generic and disease-specific health-related quality-of-life (HRQoL) measures using data from a BoNTA treatment study of neurogenic incontinent patients.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Across all interventions, success outcomes included: complete continence (n = 23, 44%), ≥ 50% improvement in incontinence episodes (n = 16, 31%), and subjective improvement (n = 13, 25%). We recommend the OAB with UUI treatment success outcome of ≥ 50% improvement in incontinence episodes from baseline. Using data from a neurogenic BoNTA treatment study, the average change in the Incontinence Quality of Life questionnaire was 8.8 (95% CI: -4.7, 22.3) higher for those that succeeded (N = 25) versus those that failed (N = 26). The average change in the SF-6D preference score was 0.07 (95% CI: 0.02, 0.12) higher for those that succeeded versus those that failed.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>A treatment success definition that encompasses the many components of underlying OAB with UUI symptoms is currently not practical as a consequence of difficulties in measuring urgency. The treatment success outcome of ≥ 50% improvement in incontinence episodes was associated with a clinically meaningful improvement in disease-specific HRQoL for those with neurogenic OAB with UUI. The recommended success definition is less restrictive than a measure such as complete continence but includes patients who are satisfied with treatment and experience meaningful improvement in symptoms. A standardized measure of treatment success will be useful in clinical and health economic applications.</p

Inducing Ni Sensitivity in the Ni Hyperaccumulator Plant Alyssum inflatum Nyárády (Brassicaceae) by Transforming with CAX1, a Vacuolar Membrane Calcium Transporter

The importance of calcium in nickel tolerance was studied in the nickel hyperaccumulator plant Alyssum inflatum by gene transformation of CAX1, a vacuolar membrane transporter that reduces cytosolic calcium. CAX1 from Arabidopsis thaliana with a CaMV35S promoter accompanying a kanamycin resistance gene was transferred into A. inflatum using Agrobacterium tumefaciens. Transformed calli were subcultured three times on kanamycin-rich media and transformation was confirmed by PCR using a specific primer for CAX1. At least 10 callus lines were used as a pool of transformed material. Both transformed and untransformed calli were treated with varying concentrations of either calcium (1–15 mM) or nickel (0– 500 lM) to compare their responses to those ions. Increased external calcium generally led to increased callus biomass, however, the increase was greater for untransformed callus. Further, increased external calcium led to increased callus calcium concentrations. Transformed callus was less nickel tolerant than untransformed callus: under increasing nickel concentrations callus relative growth rate was significantly less for transformed callus. Transformed callus also contained significantly less nickel than untransformed callus when exposed to the highest external nickel concentration (200 lM). We suggest that transformation with CAX1 decreased cytosolic calcium and resulted in decreased nickel tolerance. This in turn suggests that, at low cytosolic calcium concentrations, other nickel tolerance mechanisms (e.g., complexation and vacuolar sequestration) are insufficient for nickel tolerance. We propose that high cytosolic calcium is an important mechanism that results in nickel tolerance by nickel hyperaccumulator plants

A global database of lake surface temperatures collected by in situ and satellite methods from 1985–2009

Global environmental change has influenced lake surface temperatures, a key driver of ecosystem structure and function. Recent studies have suggested significant warming of water temperatures in individual lakes across many different regions around the world. However, the spatial and temporal coherence associated with the magnitude of these trends remains unclear. Thus, a global data set of water temperature is required to understand and synthesize global, long-term trends in surface water temperatures of inland bodies of water. We assembled a database of summer lake surface temperatures for 291 lakes collected in situ and/or by satellites for the period 1985–2009. In addition, corresponding climatic drivers (air temperatures, solar radiation, and cloud cover) and geomorphometric characteristics (latitude, longitude, elevation, lake surface area, maximum depth, mean depth, and volume) that influence lake surface temperatures were compiled for each lake. This unique dataset offers an invaluable baseline perspective on global-scale lake thermal conditions as environmental change continues

Towards confidentiality-by-construction

\u3cp\u3eGuaranteeing that information processed in computing systems remains confidential is vital for many software applications. To this end, language-based security mechanisms enforce fine-grained access control policies for program variables to prevent secret information from leaking through unauthorized access. However, approaches for language-based security by information flow control mostly work post-hoc, classifying programs into whether they comply with information flow policies or not after the program has been constructed. Means for constructing programs that satisfy given information flow control policies are still missing. Following the correctness-by-construction approach, we propose a development method for specifying information flow policies first and constructing programs satisfying these policies subsequently. We replace functional pre- and postcondition specifications with confidentiality properties and define rules to derive new confidentiality specifications for each refining program construct. We discuss possible extensions including initial ideas for tool support. Applying correctness-by-construction techniques to confidentiality properties constitutes a first step towards security-by-construction.\u3c/p\u3

Neuronal correlates of encoding and retrieval in episodic memory during a paired-word association learning task : a functional magnetic resonance imaging study

The investigation of memory function using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) is an expanding field of research. The aim of this study was to demonstrate brain-activity patterns related to a word-pair association task employing a whole-brain EPI sequence. Six right-handed, healthy male volunteers (mean age: 27.5 years) took part in the study. fMRI was performed at a field strength of 1.5 Tesla with 26–32 slices parallel to the AC-PC line, depending on individual brain size. Distributed brain regions were activated in episodic encoding and retrieval with similarities, but also (distinct) differences in activation patterns. Bilateral prefrontal cortical areas were involved when comparing encoding as well as retrieval to the reference condition (nonsense words). Furthermore, activation was observed in cerebellar areas during encoding, and activation in bilateral parietal areas (precuneus and inferior parietal cortex) was differentially more pronounced during retrieval. The activation of left dorsomedial thalamus during retrieval of high imagery-content word-pair associates may point to the role of this structure in episodic retrieval. The direct cognitive subtraction of encoding minus retrieval yielded a differentially larger left prefrontal activation. There was a differentially higher right prefrontal activation during retrieval than during encoding, underlining the proposed right/left asymmetry for episodic memory processes