LLukas22/scidocs huggingface dataset:
Evaluation of intramuscularly administered sodium pentosan polysulfate for treatment of experimentally induced osteoarthritis in horses.

OBJECTIVE
To assess clinical, radiographic, histologic, and biochemical effects of sodium pentosan polysulfate (NaPPS) administered IM for treatment of experimentally induced osteoarthritis in horses.


ANIMALS
18 horses.


PROCEDURES
Osteoarthritis was induced arthroscopically in 1 middle carpal joint of all horses. Nine horses received NaPPS (3 mg/kg, IM) on study days 15, 22, 29, and 36. Nine control horses received the same volume of saline (0.9% NaCl) solution IM on study days 15, 22, 29, and 36. Clinical, radiographic, gross, histologic, histochemical, and biochemical findings as well as findings of synovial fluid analysis were evaluated.


RESULTS
No adverse treatment-related events were detected. Induced osteoarthritis caused a substantial increase in lameness, response to flexion, joint effusion, radiographic findings, synovial membrane inflammation, and articular cartilage fibrillation. Articular cartilage fibrillation was substantially reduced by NaPPS treatment, and concentrations of chondroitin sulfate 846 epitope were significantly increased in the synovial fluid of osteoarthritic and non-osteoarthritic joints of treated horses.


CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE
Results indicated that NaPPS has some beneficial disease-modifying effects and may be a therapeutic option for osteoarthritis in horses.
Island Model genetic Algorithms and Linearly Separable Problems

Parallel Genetic Algorithms have often been reported to yield better performance than Genetic Algorithms which use a single large panmictic population. In the case of the Island Model Genetic Algorithm, it has been informally argued that having multiple subpopulations helps to preserve genetic diversity, since each island can potentially follow a di erent search trajectory through the search space. On the other hand, linearly separable functions have often been used to test Island Model Genetic Algorithms; it is possible that Island Models are particular well suited to separable problems. We look at how Island Models can track multiple search trajectories using the in nite population models of the simple genetic algorithm. We also introduce a simple model for better understanding when Island Model Genetic Algorithms may have an advantage when processing linearly separable problems.
Automated robot-assisted surgical skill evaluation: Predictive analytics approach.

BACKGROUND
Surgical skill assessment has predominantly been a subjective task. Recently, technological advances such as robot-assisted surgery have created great opportunities for objective surgical evaluation. In this paper, we introduce a predictive framework for objective skill assessment based on movement trajectory data. Our aim is to build a classification framework to automatically evaluate the performance of surgeons with different levels of expertise.


METHODS
Eight global movement features are extracted from movement trajectory data captured by a da Vinci robot for surgeons with two levels of expertise - novice and expert. Three classification methods - k-nearest neighbours, logistic regression and support vector machines - are applied.


RESULTS
The result shows that the proposed framework can classify surgeons' expertise as novice or expert with an accuracy of 82.3% for knot tying and 89.9% for a suturing task.


CONCLUSION
This study demonstrates and evaluates the ability of machine learning methods to automatically classify expert and novice surgeons using global movement features.
Truck Scheduling in the Postal Service Industry

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Biosimilars 101: considerations for U.S. oncologists in clinical practice

Biosimilars of biologics used for cancer treatment and supportive care are expected to enter the U.S. market soon. Biosimilars will be highly similar to their reference products, but unlike generic drugs, not identical. Differences between a biosimilar and its reference product may arise because of the complexity of biologics, and differences in the cell lines and processes used during manufacturing. Biosimilars will be approved in the United States through a regulatory pathway based on comparative analytical and clinical studies for their characterization and demonstration of no clinically meaningful differences from their reference products. Unlike generics, initial approval may not include interchangeability, as additional evidence may be required before a biosimilar could be approved as interchangeable with its reference product; interchangeable designation could allow pharmacy-level substitution without prescriber intervention. In some cases, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) may extrapolate an indication that has not been formally investigated for the biosimilar but that is approved for the reference product. Robust safety monitoring of all biologics is important to track and accurately attribute adverse events, particularly because their inherent complexity and manufacturing differences make them susceptible to structural changes that can affect safety (e.g., immunogenicity). Accuracy of postapproval safety reports will partly depend on the biosimilar naming approach. Potential cost savings should be evaluated in the context of differences in manufacturers' patient-assistance programs, copayments, and institutional costs. A manufacturer's ability to ensure reliable supply of high-quality biosimilars should also be considered. Broad understanding of these issues is critical for oncologists preparing for their use in clinical practice.
Sensorimotor enhancement with a mixed reality system for balance and mobility rehabilitation

We have developed a mixed reality system incorporating virtual reality (VR), surface perturbations and light touch for gait rehabilitation. Haptic touch has emerged as a novel and efficient technique to improve postural control and dynamic stability. Our system combines visual display with the manipulation of physical environments and addition of haptic feedback to enhance balance and mobility post stroke. A research study involving 9 participants with stroke and 9 age-matched healthy individuals show that the haptic cue provided while walking is an effective means of improving gait stability in people post stroke, especially during challenging environmental conditions such as downslope walking.
TeV-scale electron Compton scattering in the Randall-Sundrum scenario

The spin-2 graviton excitations in the Randall-Sundrum gravity model provide a t-channel contribution to electron Compton scattering which competes favorably with the standard QED contributions. The phenomenological implications of these contributions to the unpolarized and polarized cross sections are evaluated.
V-lab: a cloud-based virtual laboratory platform for hands-on networking courses

For computer-network education, hands-on laboratories are essential in addition to lectures. Existing laboratory solutions are usually expensive to build, configure and maintain, while still lacking reusability, flexibility and scalability. This paper presents a cloud-based virtual laboratory education solution, called V-Lab, where instructors can use an interactive web GUI to configure computer network testbeds based on a set of dedicated virtual computers interconnected through VLAN-based virtual networks. The established virtual network system can be accessed by students via remote access using standard Secure Shell (SSH), Virtual Network Computing (VNC), or Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP). By using a flexible and re-configurable design, V-Lab greatly reduces the effort needed to establish and maintain a physical laboratory, while providing a secure and reliable environment that encourages students to use the resources based on their own schedule. V-Lab also helps re-design laboratory curriculum to focus on six educational factors, and the survey results show that V-Lab system is easy to use and setup and has satisfactory performance and reliability. It is also indicated that V-Lab helps students understand and solve real-world problems with sufficient laboratory resources and improved efficiency.
Mucoepidermoid carcinoma of the parotid gland in children: A 10-year experience.

OBJECTIVE
To determine the presentation, pathologic features, treatment outcome, and prognosis of mucoepidermoid carcinoma of the parotid gland in children.


DESIGN
Retrospective clinical and histopathologic study with institutional review board approval.


SETTING
Tertiary pediatric medical center.


PATIENTS
Seven children (4 girls and 3 boys) presented with mucoepidermoid carcinoma of the parotid gland between 1994 and 2004.


MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES
Clinical presentation, pathologic features, treatment outcome, complications, local recurrence, distant metastasis, and overall survival.


RESULTS
All patients presented with an asymptomatic parotid mass. Initial treatment in 7 patients included total parotidectomy (n = 3), superficial parotidectomy (n = 3), transoral enucleation (n = 1), and supraomohyoid neck dissection (n = 1). Four patients required additional surgical procedures because of a close and/or positive margin, including revision parotidectomy (n = 2), total parotidectomy (n = 1), superficial parotidectomy (n = 1), and supraomohyoid neck dissection (n = 1). One patient required postoperative radiation therapy. No evidence of local recurrence or distant metastasis was noted with a mean follow-up of 3.4 years.


CONCLUSIONS
Mucoepidermoid carcinoma of the parotid gland is very rare in children. Clinical stage and histologic grade are the main prognostic factors. Complete excision (superficial or total parotidectomy) with preservation of facial nerve is the treatment of choice. Neck dissection should be considered when there is clinical evidence of regional metastasis, high TNM stage, high histologic grade, and involvement of regional nodes. Because of the possibility of long-term adverse effects in pediatric patients, radiotherapy should be used only in selected cases. Long-term follow-up is essential to rule out late recurrence.
Security Issues in Mobile Agents

Software security to protect mobile agent consists of lots of aspects like cryptography, access control and trust management, intrusion detection and tamper resistance, authentication and privacy, signature schemes, e-commerce, security analysis, mobile computing security etc. So, to design and develop security mechanisms for mobile agents against malicious hosts this paper identifies different kinds of attacks and relationships between them. Security objectives and requirements are analyzed with security measures taken to protect mobile code, state and data. Reference "Designing Autonomous Agents,pgs 49-70,The MIT
Mobile Robotics in Education and Research

Mobile robotics is a new field. Mobile robots range from the sophisticated space robots, to the military flying robots, to the lawn mower robots at our back yard. Mobile robotics is based on many engineering and science disciplines, from mechanical, electrical and electronics engineering to computer, cognitive and social sciences (Siegwart & Nourbakhsh, 2004). A mobile robot is an autonomous or remotely operated programmable mobile machine that is capable of moving in a specific environment. Mobile robots use sensors to perceive their environment and make decisions based on the information gained from the sensors. The autonomous nature of mobile robots is giving them an important part in our society. Mobile robots are everywhere, from military application to domestic applications. The first mobile robots as we know them today were developed during World War II by the Germans and they were the V1 and V2 flying bombs. In the 1950s W. Grey Walter developed Elmer and Elsie, two autonomous robots that were designed to explore their environment. Elmer and Elsie were able to move towards the light using light sensors, thus avoiding obstacles on their way. The evolution of mobile robots continued and in the 1970s Johns Hopkins University develops the “Beast”. The Beast used an ultrasound sensor to move around. During the same period the Stanford Cart line follower was developed by Stanford University. It was a mobile robot that was able to follow a white line, using a simple vision system. The processing was done off-board by a large mainframe. The most known mobile robot of the time was developed by the Stanford Research Institute and it was called Shakey. Shakey was the first mobile robot to be controlled by vision. It was able to recognize an object using vision, find its way to the object. Shakey, shown in Figure 1, had a camera, a rangefinder, bump sensors and a radio link. These robots had limitations due to the lack of processing power and the size of computers, and thus industrial robotics was still dominating the market and research. Industrial manipulators are attached to an off-board computer (controller) for their processing requirements and thus do not require an onboard computer for processing. Unlike industrial robots, mobile robots operate in dynamic and unknown environments and thus require many sensors (i.e. vision, sonar, laser, etc.) and therefore more processing power. Another important requirement of mobile robots is that their processing must be done onboard the moving robot and cannot be done off-board. The computer technology of the time was too bulky and too slow to meet the requirements of mobile robots. Also, sensor technology had to advance further before it could be used reliably on mobile robots.
Association of socioeconomic position with insulin resistance among children from Denmark, Estonia, and Portugal: cross sectional study.

OBJECTIVES
To examine the association between socioeconomic position and insulin resistance in children from three countries in northern Europe (Denmark), eastern Europe (Estonia), and southern Europe (Portugal) that have different physical, economic, and cultural environments.


DESIGN
Cross sectional study.


PARTICIPANTS
3189 randomly selected schoolchildren aged 9 and 15 years from Denmark (n = 933), Estonia (n = 1103), and Portugal (n = 1153).


MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE
Insulin resistance (homoeostasis model assessment).


RESULTS
Family income and parental education were inversely associated with insulin resistance in Danish children but were positively associated with insulin resistance in Estonian and Portuguese children. Among Danish children, insulin resistance was 24% lower (95% confidence interval -38% to -10%) in those whose fathers had the most education compared with those with the least education. The equivalent results were 15% (2% to 28%) higher for Estonia and 19% (2% to 36%) higher for Portugal. These associations remained after adjustment for a range of covariates: -20% (-36% to -5%) for Denmark, 10% (-4% to 24%) for Estonia, and 18% (-1% to 31%) for Portugal. Strong statistical evidence supported differences between the associations in Denmark and those in the other two countries in both unadjusted and adjusted models (all P < 0.03).


CONCLUSIONS
Among Danish children, those with the most educated and highest earning parents had least insulin resistance, whereas the opposite was true for children from Estonia and Portugal.
Process and post-process: A discursive history

While the term post-process can be useful as a heuristic for expanding the scope of the field of second language writing, the uncritical adoption of this and other keywords can have serious consequences because they often oversimplify the historical complexity of the intellectual developments they describe. In order to provide a critical understanding of the term post-process in its own historical context, this article examines the history of process and post-process in composition studies, focusing on the ways in which terms such as current-traditional rhetoric, process, and post-process have contributed to the discursive construction of reality. Based on this analysis, I argue that the use of the term post-process in the context of L2 writing needs to be guided by a critical awareness of the discursive construction process. I further argue that the notion of post-process needs to be understood not as the rejection of process but as the recognition of the multiplicity of L2 writing theories and pedagogies. # 2002 Elsevier Science Inc. All rights reserved.
MS disease activity in RESTORE

OBJECTIVE
RESTORE was a randomized, partially placebo-controlled exploratory study evaluating multiple sclerosis (MS) disease activity during a 24-week interruption of natalizumab.


METHODS
Eligible patients were relapse-free through the prior year on natalizumab and had no gadolinium-enhancing lesions on screening brain MRI. Patients were randomized 1:1:2 to continue natalizumab, to switch to placebo, or to receive alternative immunomodulatory therapy (other therapies: IM interferon β-1a [IM IFN-β-1a], glatiramer acetate [GA], or methylprednisolone [MP]). During the 24-week randomized treatment period, patients underwent clinical and MRI assessments every 4 weeks.


RESULTS
Patients (n = 175) were randomized to natalizumab (n = 45), placebo (n = 42), or other therapies (n = 88: IM IFN-β-1a, n = 17; GA, n = 17; MP, n = 54). Of 167 patients evaluable for efficacy, 49 (29%) had MRI disease activity recurrence: 0/45 (0%) natalizumab, 19/41 (46%) placebo, 1/14 (7%) IM IFN-β-1a, 8/15 (53%) GA, and 21/52 (40%) MP. Relapse occurred in 4% of natalizumab patients and in 15%-29% of patients in the other treatment arms. MRI disease activity recurred starting at 12 weeks (n = 3 at week 12) while relapses were reported as early as 4-8 weeks (n = 2 in weeks 4-8) after the last natalizumab dose. Overall, 50/167 patients (30%), all in placebo or other-therapies groups, restarted natalizumab early because of disease activity.


CONCLUSIONS
MRI and clinical disease activity recurred in some patients during natalizumab interruption, despite use of other therapies.


CLASSIFICATION OF EVIDENCE
This study provides Class II evidence that for patients with MS taking natalizumab who are relapse-free for 1 year, stopping natalizumab increases the risk of MS relapse or MRI disease activity as compared with continuing natalizumab.
A phase II trial of gemcitabine in combination with 5-fluorouracil (24-hour) and folinic acid in patients with chemonaive advanced pancreatic cancer.

BACKGROUND
Gemcitabine (Gemzar) and 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) plus folinic acid (FA) both have proven activity in the treatment of patients with advanced pancreatic cancer. The present study was initiated to investigate the efficacy of gemcitabine in combination with 5-FU-FA.


PATIENTS AND METHODS
Thirty-eight patients, median age 60 years (range 34-70) with inoperable, stage IV, pancreatic cancer were enrolled into the study and treated on an outpatient basis. All except one patient received at least one cycle of treatment with gemcitabine (1000 mg/m2), followed by FA (200 mg/m2) and 5-FU (750 mg/m2) administered as a 24-hour continuous infusion on days 1, 8, 15 and 22 of a 42-day schedule. No patient had received prior chemotherapy or radiotherapy. All 38 patients were assessed for efficacy, toxicity and time to progressive disease.


RESULTS
Two patients (5%), achieved a partial response and thirty-four patients (89%) achieved stable disease. There were two early deaths (< or = 4 weeks). The median time to progression was 7.1 months (range 0.4-18.1+; 95% confidence interval (95% CI): 5.3-7.9 months). Three patients had a progression-free interval of greater than 12 months and 12 of 38 patients (32%) survived longer than 12 months. The median overall survival was 9.3 months (range 0.5-26.5; 95% CI: 7.3-13.0 months). The incidence of grade 3 and 4 toxicities was low.


CONCLUSIONS
The combination of gemcitabine and 5-FU-FA is active and well tolerated and seems to offer an improvement in progression-free interval over both gemcitabine monotherapy and 5-FU-FA therapy.
Economic Cost of Dengue in Puerto Rico

Dengue, endemic in Puerto Rico, reached a record high in 2010. To inform policy makers, we derived annual economic cost. We assessed direct and indirect costs of hospitalized and ambulatory dengue illness in 2010 dollars through surveillance data and interviews with 100 laboratory-confirmed dengue patients treated in 2008-2010. We corrected for underreporting by using setting-specific expansion factors. Work absenteeism because of a dengue episode exceeded the absenteeism for an episode of influenza or acute otitis media. From 2002 to 2010, the aggregate annual cost of dengue illness averaged $38.7 million, of which 70% was for adults (age 15+ years). Hospitalized patients accounted for 63% of the cost of dengue illness, and fatal cases represented an additional 17%. Households funded 48% of dengue illness cost, the government funded 24%, insurance funded 22%, and employers funded 7%. Including dengue surveillance and vector control activities, the overall annual cost of dengue was $46.45 million ($12.47 per capita).
Parameterized Models for Facial Animation

Parameterized models can produce realistic, manipulable images of human faces&mdash; with a surprisingly small number of parameters.
Smart wearable systems: Current status and future challenges

OBJECTIVE
Extensive efforts have been made in both academia and industry in the research and development of smart wearable systems (SWS) for health monitoring (HM). Primarily influenced by skyrocketing healthcare costs and supported by recent technological advances in micro- and nanotechnologies, miniaturisation of sensors, and smart fabrics, the continuous advances in SWS will progressively change the landscape of healthcare by allowing individual management and continuous monitoring of a patient's health status. Consisting of various components and devices, ranging from sensors and actuators to multimedia devices, these systems support complex healthcare applications and enable low-cost wearable, non-invasive alternatives for continuous 24-h monitoring of health, activity, mobility, and mental status, both indoors and outdoors. Our objective has been to examine the current research in wearable to serve as references for researchers and provide perspectives for future research.


METHODS
Herein, we review the current research and development of and the challenges facing SWS for HM, focusing on multi-parameter physiological sensor systems and activity and mobility measurement system designs that reliably measure mobility or vital signs and integrate real-time decision support processing for disease prevention, symptom detection, and diagnosis. For this literature review, we have chosen specific selection criteria to include papers in which wearable systems or devices are covered.


RESULTS
We describe the state of the art in SWS and provide a survey of recent implementations of wearable health-care systems. We describe current issues, challenges, and prospects of SWS.


CONCLUSION
We conclude by identifying the future challenges facing SWS for HM.