LLukas22/scidocs huggingface dataset:
Design and recovery of 2-D and 3-D shapes using rational Gaussian curves and surfaces

A new representation for parametric curves and surfaces is introduced here. It is in rational form and uses rational Gaussian bases. This representation allows design of 2-D and 3-D shapes, and makes recovery of shapes from noisy image data possible. The standard deviations of Gaussians in a curve or surface control the smoothness of a recovered shape. The control points of a surface in this representation are not required to form a regular grid and a scattered set of control points is sufficient to reconstruct a surface. Examples of shape design, shape recovery, and image segmentation using the proposed representation are given.
Risk factors for intraventricular hemorrhage in very low birth weight premature infants: a retrospective case-control study.

OBJECTIVE
High-grade intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH) is an important cause of severe cognitive and motor neurologic impairment in very low birth weight infants and is associated with a high mortality rate. The risk of IVH is inversely related to gestational age and birth weight. Previous studies have proposed a number of risk factors for IVH; however, lack of adequate matching for gestational age and birth weight may have confounded the results. The purpose of this study was to identify variables that affect the risk of high-grade IVH, using a retrospective and case-control clinical study.


METHODS
From a cohort of 641 consecutive preterm infants with a birth weight of <1500 g, 36 infants with IVH grade 3 and/or 4 were identified. A control group of 69 infants, closely matched for gestational age and birth weight, was selected. Maternal factors, labor and delivery characteristics, and neonatal parameters were collected in both groups. Results of cranial ultrasound examinations, whether routine or performed in presence of clinical suspicion, were also collected. Univariate analysis and multivariate logistic regression analysis were performed.


RESULTS
High fraction of inspired oxygen in the first 24 hours, pneumothorax, fertility treatment (mostly IVF), and early sepsis were associated with an increased risk of IVH. A higher number of suctioning procedures, a higher first hematocrit, and a relatively low arterial pressure of carbon dioxide during the first 24 hours of life were associated with a lower occurrence. In the multivariate logistic regression model, early sepsis (odds ratio [OR]: 8.19; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.55-43.1) and fertility treatment (OR: 4.34; 95% CI: 1.42-13.3) were associated with a greater risk of high-grade IVH, whereas for every dose of antenatal steroid treatment there was a lower risk of high-grade IVH (OR: 0.52; 95% CI: 0.30-0.90) and each decrease in a mmHg unit of arterial pressure of carbon dioxide during the first 24 hours was associated with a lower risk of IVH (OR: 0.91; 95% CI: 0.83-0.98). This multivariate model had a sensitivity of 77%, a specificity of 75%, and a positive predictive value of 76%. The area under the curve derived from the receiver operator characteristic plots is 0.82.


CONCLUSIONS
Our results confirm that the development of IVH is associated with early sepsis and failure to give antenatal steroid treatment. We propose that fertility treatment (and especially IVF) may be a new risk factor, and more research is needed to assess its role.
Mortality of a cohort of French uranium miners exposed to relatively low radon concentrations.

A cohort mortality study has been performed on French uranium miners having experienced more than 2 years of underground mining, with first radon exposure between 1946 and 1972. Vital status has been ascertained from the date of entry to the 31 December 1985 for 99% of the members of this cohort; causes of death are identified for 95.5% of the decedents. The different causes of death are compared to the age specific national death rates by indirect standardisation and expressed by standardised mortality ratios (SMR). A statistically significant excess has been observed for lung and laryngeal cancer deaths. The Poisson trend test shows a statistically significant trend for the risk of lung cancer death as a function of cumulative radon exposure, assuming a lag time of 5 years; for laryngeal cancer no significant trend has been observed. Poisson regression modelling has been applied to the following exposure groups: < 10 WLM (Working Level Month); 10-49 WLM; 50-149 WLM; 150-299 WLM; > or = 300 WLM; it indicates an increase in the SMR for lung cancer of 0.6% per WLM (standard error: 0.4%) with an estimated intercept at 0 WLM of 1.68 (standard error: 0.4). The distinction of two working periods, differing by their annual radon concentration (before/since 1956) does not modify this exposure-response relationship. This coefficient of risk per unit of exposure is lower than in most of the other uranium miners' studies but it lies in the range of the evaluation of the ICRP 50 committee and the 'BEIR IV' report of the U.S. National Academy of Science. It is observed in a cohort having experienced low cumulative exposure to radon (mean: 70 WLM) spread over a mean duration of 14.5 years. Even though occupational exposure in mines differs in several particulars from domestic exposure, this study presents characteristics of low annual exposure comparable to radon gas concentrations in houses of 500-1000 Bq.m-3, and will contribute to the evaluation of cancer risk for the public.
Coordination control of ULTC transformer and STATCOM based on an artificial neural network

This paper presents an artificial neural network (ANN)-based coordination control scheme for under load tap changing (ULTC) transformer and STATCOM. The objective of the coordination controller is to minimize both the amount of tap changes of the transformer and STATCOM output while maintaining an acceptable voltage magnitude at the substation bus. The coordination controller is designed to substitute for a classical ULTC mechanism by utilizing active and reactive powers, tap position, and STATCOM output. A competitive ANN is used as a classifier for tap positions and trained by a proposed iterative condensed nearest neighbor (ICNN) rule.
Factorials as sums

In this paper we give an additive representation of the factorial, which can be proven by a simple quick analytical argument. We also present some generalizations, which are linked, on the one hand to an arithmetical theorem proven by Euler (decomposition of primes as the sum of two squares), and, on the other hand, to modern combinatorics (Stirling numbers).
Effect of supplementation with B vitamins and antioxidants on levels of asymmetric dimethylarginine (ADMA) and C-reactive protein (CRP): a double-blind, randomised, factorial design, placebo-controlled trial.

PURPOSE
Cardiovascular risk factors such as elevated levels of asymmetric dimethylarginine (ADMA)/C-reactive protein (CRP) and homocysteine are potentially related to essential micronutrients such as certain B vitamins and antioxidant vitamins. The aim of the present study was to investigate whether supplementation with moderate doses of B vitamins and/or antioxidants could alter either ADMA and/or CRP concentrations in middle-aged, apparently healthy men with mildly elevated homocysteine levels.


METHODS
A randomised, double-blind, factorial design, intervention study was carried out on 132 men with mildly elevated homocysteine levels, allocated to four groups (a) B vitamins alone--1 mg folic acid, 7.2 mg pyridoxine, 0.02 mg cyanocobalamin daily, (b) antioxidants alone--150 mg ascorbic acid, 67 mg vitamin E, 9 mg β-carotene daily, (c) B vitamins with antioxidant vitamins, or (d) placebo. A total of 101 men completed the study to 8 weeks.


RESULTS
When the percentage of baseline ADMA and CRP was examined at 8 weeks, no statistically significant differences were observed between the four groups (p = 0.21 and p = 0.90, respectively). Similar non-significant results were observed when analysis was stratified based on baseline CRP levels (<1.0 mg/L, p = 0.10; ≥1.0 mg/L, p = 0.64) and smoking status (all p ≥ 0.05).


CONCLUSIONS
Supplementation with moderate doses of B vitamins and/or antioxidants did not alter either ADMA or CRP concentrations in these middle-aged, apparently healthy men with mildly elevated homocysteine levels.
Preserving order in a forest in less than logarithmic time

We present a data structure, based upon a stratified binary tree, which enables us to manipulate on-line a priority queue whose priorities are selected from the interval 1...n, with an average and worst case processing time of O(log log n) per instruction. The structure is used to obtain a mergeable heap whose time requirements are about as good.
Cascode voltage switch logic: A differential CMOS logic family

A differential CMOS Logic family that is well suited to automated logic minimization and placement and routing techniques, yet has comparable performance to conventional CMOS, will be described. A CMOS circuit using 10,880 NMOS differential pairs has been developed using this approach.
Does Silybum marianum play a role in the treatment of chronic hepatitis C?

OBJECTIVES
The recent boom in patient education on chronic hepatitis C has resulted in a worldwide increase in the diagnosis of this condition. Available treatment is expensive and associated with significant side effects; therefore, many patients seek for alternative medicine. Silybum marianum is a natural herb known to mankind for over 2,000 years that has been used as a liver-protecting agent due to its antioxidant properties. The objective of this study is to evaluate the safety profile and the effects of this herb, using a commercially available extract; in the liver chemistry and viral load of hepatitis C in chronically infected patients.


METHODS
Patients aged 21-65 years old with a diagnosis of chronic hepatitis C who were not using antiviral therapy were asked to participate. Patients were randomized to treatment with S. marianum 160 mg orally three times a week for four weeks or to no-treatment (control). Blood tests for viral load and liver enzymes (ALT and AST) were done at randomization and at the end of treatment. Paired-t test was used to measure differences between baseline and week 4 values for ALT, AST and viral load. The percent change for ALT, AST and viral load of both groups was analyzed using the Mann Whitney statistical test.


RESULTS
34 patients were enrolled. Men and women were equally distributed. Mean age was 50 years old. Mean baseline measurements of AST, ALT and viral load in the treatment group were 85 +/- 12.41 IU/ml, 120 +/- 20.57 IU/ml and 8.77 +/- 4.12 copies x 10(6)/ml while for the no-treatment group were 71 +/- 9.46 IU/ml, 97 +/- 15.35 IU/ ml and 1.8 +/- 0.62 copies x 10(6)/ml respectively. For treated subjects the mean values of AST, ALT and viral load demonstrated a decrease from baseline values, but this difference was not statistically significant. For control patients the values of ALT (p= .049), AST (p = .005) and viral load (p = .005) showed a statistically significant increase at week 4. Week 4 measurement changes from baseline values were calculated for each participant. The percent change for ALT (p = .014), AST (p = .002) and viral load (p = .326) were compared between the treated and control group demonstrating a statistically significance difference for ALT and AST, but not for viral load. No side effects were reported using the herb extract.


CONCLUSION
Sylibum marianum is a well-tolerated plant extract associated with a decrease in liver chemistries but with no apparent effect on viral load when given for 4 weeks. These results suggest that S. marianum may have a protective effect in the inflammatory response to HCV, but no role as an antiviral agent. Further investigations may consider using this plant extract for a longer period of time or as adjuvant to the standard therapy of chronic hepatitis C.
The Mediterranean diet: science and practice.

OBJECTIVE
To provide an overview of research relevant to the Mediterranean diet.


DESIGN
Personal perspectives.


SETTING
International.


SUBJECT
Populations in Europe, North America, Asia.


RESULTS
Approximately 50 years ago, Keys and colleagues described strikingly low rates of coronary heart disease in the Mediterranean region, where fat intake was relatively high but largely from olive oil. Subsequent controlled feeding studies have shown that compared to carbohydrate, both monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats reduce LDL and triglycerides and increase HDL cholesterol. Importantly, these beneficial metabolic effects are greater in the presence of underlying insulin resistance. In a detailed analysis within the Nurses' Health Study, trans fat from partially hydrogenated vegetable oils (absent in traditional Mediterranean diets) was most strongly related to risk of heart disease, and both polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fat were inversely associated with risk. Epidemiologic evidence has also supported beneficial effects of higher intakes of fruits and vegetables, whole grains, fish, and daily consumption of moderate amounts of alcohol. Together with regular physical activity and not smoking, our analyses suggest that over 80% of coronary heart disease, 70% of stroke, and 90% of type 2 diabetes can be avoided by healthy food choices that are consistent with the traditional Mediterranean diet.


CONCLUSION
Both epidemiologic and metabolic studies suggest that individuals can benefit greatly by adopting elements of Mediterranean diets.
Ageing, government budgets, retirement, and growth

We analyze the short and long run effects of demographic ageing—increased longevity and reduced fertility—on per-capita growth. The OLG model captures direct effects, working through adjustments in the savings rate, labor supply, and capital deepening, and indirect effects, working through changes of taxes, government spending components and the retirement age in politico-economic equilibrium. Growth is driven by capital accumulation and productivity increases fueled by public investment. The closed-form solutions of the model predict taxation and the retirement age in OECD economies to increase in response to demographic ageing and per-capita growth to accelerate. If the retirement age were held constant, the growth rate in politico-economic equilibrium would essentially remain unchanged, due to a surge of social security transfers and crowding out of public investment. JEL-Code: E620, H500, J260.
Conflicts and alliances in insect families

Hamilton’s principle of inclusive fitness implies that reproductive altruism can evolve, because individuals can pass on genes not only through their own offspring, but also through the offspring of their relatives. Social insects are spectacular examples of how some individuals may be selected to forgo reproduction and instead help others reproduce. Social Hymenoptera are also special because relatedness patterns within families can be asymmetrical, so that optimal sex-ratios, preferred male parentage or preferred mating frequencies become objects of reproductive conflict. The now extensive inclusive fitness theory provides precise qualitative predictions with respect to the emergence of such conflicts. Recent advances in the power of genetic markers applied to resolve family structure in insect societies have brought about a series of studies that have tested these predictions. In support of kin selection as a major evolutionary force, the results suggest that workers frequently control sex allocation. However, the very establishment of such worker control has made new conflicts come to light, between mothers and fathers and between adult individuals and brood. Evidence for these conflicts is only just beginning to be gathered. Recent studies tend to include issues such as ‘information’ and ‘power’ (i.e. the ability to perceive signals and the opportunity to act upon this information), and to address selection for selfishness at the individual level with costs of social disruption at the colony level.
On the Perception of Molecules from 3D Atomic Coordinates

A method is presented for perceiving chemical types of atoms in molecules given 3D atomic coordinates and element identities. The method assigns hybridizations, bond orders, and formal charges for structures whether hydrogen atoms are present. The Maximum Weighted Matching algorithm for nonbipartite graphs is used to assign bond orders with weights derived from statistics of a large collection of organic molecules. Results form tests on a collection of functional groups, heterocycles, entries from the Protein Data Bank, and Cambridge Structural Database as well as a comparison to other methods, are presented and discussed.
The Diamond Model of Intrusion Analysis A Summary By Sergio Caltagirone

The model establishes the basic atomic element of any intrusion activity, the event, composed of four core features: adversary, infrastructure, capability, and victim. It further defines two important meta-features, technology connecting the infrastructure and capability enabling operations and the social-political meta-feature describing the always-existing, and sometimes enduring, relationship between adversary and victim.
Network security - private communication in a public world

Textbook: No required textbook References: 1. Network Security Private Communication in a Public World Charlie Kaufman, Radia Perlman, Mike Speciner 2. Cryptography and Network Security William Stallings 3. Applied Cryptography Bruce Schneier 4. Hackers Beware Eric Cole 5. Hacking Exposed: Network Security Secrests & Solutions Stuart McClure, Joel Scambray, George Kurtz 6. Security in Computing Charles Pfleeger, Shari Pfleeger
Combining Activity Recognition and AI Planning for Energy-Saving Offices

Energy-saving offices require autonomous and optimised control of integrated devices and appliances with the objective of saving energy while the occupant comfort and productivity are preserved. We propose an approach that analyses and controls an office space and accounts for the objectives of energy-saving offices. The approach considers ontology-based occupant activity recognition using simple sensors to process the context information, and employs Artificial Intelligence planning to control appliances. The approach is evaluated in a semi-simulated setting. The activity recognition strategy is tested in an actual living lab and shows recognising accuracy of about 80%. The planning technique is able to cope efficiently under a simulated and increasing number of offices and recognised activities. The overall solution shows intriguing potential for energy saving in the order of 70%, given mostly sunny days and a provisional set of devices for experimentation.
The effectiveness of a basic exercise intervention to improve strength and balance in women with osteoporosis

OBJECTIVE
To determine the effects of a simple exercise program on the balance and strength of postmenopausal women with osteoporosis.


METHODS
This program was based on low intensity strength and balance exercises, and was carried out with simple, readily available equipment. Sixty five women were randomly assigned to either the experimental group (EG; n=33, age: 57.4±4.8 years) or the control group (CG; n=32, age: 58.8±4.5 years). Participants in the EG underwent balance and strength training for 60 min, three times/week for 6 months. Each session consisted of warm-up exercises (10 min), balance training (20 min), strength training (20 min), and cooldown (10 min). Participants from the CG were asked not to modify their usual habits during the course of the study. Static balance was evaluated using the blind monopodal stance static balance test. In contrast, dynamic balance was assessed using the "8-foot up and go" test, whereas the strength of the upper and lower limbs was measured using the "arm curl" and "30 s chair stand" tests, respectively. All these variables were assessed at baseline and upon program completion.


RESULTS
The EG showed significant improvements (P<0.001) in static balance (21%), dynamic balance (36%), and in the strength of the upper (80%) and lower (47%) limbs in comparison to the CG after the sixth month. Participants in the CG showed significantly lower values (P<0.001) in the four tests. In addition, a significant inverse relationship between static balance and the strength of the upper (r=-0.390; P=0.001) and lower (r=-0.317; P=0.01) limbs was found.


CONCLUSION
The present study demonstrates that a physical exercise program based on balance and strength exercises, carried out with simple and readily available equipment, is capable of significantly improving the strength and balance of women with osteoporosis.
Commentary: after the fall

A. Introduction Let me thank the organizers of this conference for the invitation to come to this beautiful place and to attend what is always an intellectually challenging conference. In fact, the challenges today are not just intellectual, but they also have enormously important practical implications. How can we restore growth, and how can we do so in a sustainable way? This paper by Carmen and Vince Reinhart is essentially a paper about facts, assuming of course that historical data is more or less factually correct. Someone once said that facts can be awkward things, indeed even ugly things, but they can also be useful things—and that applies whether you prefer the use of inductive or deductive methods , or even some healthy mixture of both. Keynes famously addressed the awkwardness of facts when he replied to a journalist, " When the facts change, I change my mind. What do you do, sir? " Both Keynes and Hayek began their analysis of the 1930s with the observation of a simple fact: Deep slumps are possible, and the evidence presented in this paper further confirms that fact. The awkward thing is that much of modern macro theory seems to deny this possibility. New Keynesian and New
Physiologic growth and development during adolescence.

2004;25;194 Pediatrics in Review David S. Rosen Physiologic Growth and Development During Adolescence http://pedsinreview.aappublications.org/content/25/6/194 located on the World Wide Web at: The online version of this article, along with updated information and services, is http://pedsinreview.aappublications.org/content/suppl/2005/01/26/25.6.194.DC1.html Data Supplement (unedited) at: Pediatrics. All rights reserved. Print ISSN: 0191-9601. Boulevard, Elk Grove Village, Illinois, 60007. Copyright © 2004 by the American Academy of published, and trademarked by the American Academy of Pediatrics, 141 Northwest Point publication, it has been published continuously since 1979. Pediatrics in Review is owned, Pediatrics in Review is the official journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics. A monthly