LLukas22/scidocs huggingface dataset:
Mobile telemonitoring for arrhythmias in outpatients in the Republic of Georgia: a brief report of a pilot study.

As the very first trial of mobile telemedicine in the Republic of Georgia, in June-December 2010 we investigated 35 outpatients with different types of arrhythmia (male/female ratio=16/19; 12-80 years old), among them 5 patients with concomitant epilepsy. The control group comprised 7 clinically healthy sportsmen (soccer players, all men; 15-17 years old), during a 30-min velo ergometer stress test. A three-lead electrocardiogram (ECG) loop recorder (Vitaphone BT 3300; Vitasystems GmbH, Mannheim, Germany) was used in automatic mode, using special LRMA software (MDT, Lázně Bohdaneč, Czech Republic) and a Nokia (Espoo, Finland) model 6730 Symbian phone. Automatically recorded arrhythmia events were transmitted from the loop recorder by Bluetooth(®) (Bluetooth SIG, Inc., Kirkland, WA) to a phone and then by 3G (through our partner mobile operator, MagtiCom Ltd. [Tbilsi, Georgia]) to the Vitasystems server in Germany and were available to Georgian physicians via e-mail/Internet. Arrhythmias were recorded/monitored during 7-68 h of observation. The number of automatically recorded ECG events varied between 3 and 170 per observation, or 0.4-10.7 hourly. Cases of sinus brady- and tachyarrhythmia, sinus node weakness syndrome, atrial fibrillation, supraventricular tachycardia, supraventricular premature complexes, and ventricular premature complexes were correctly recognized by automatic recognition software and recorded. In 3 patients and 1 sportsman previously unspecified (despite multiple investigations), arrhythmias were recorded: paroxysmal tachycardia (n=1), sinus node weakness syndrome (n=1), and ventricular premature complexes (n=2). In 3 cases (all women) light insomnia and nervousness were reported. In 2 patients with neurosis (both elderly men, 1 with epilepsy) we had to stop investigation prematurely because of anxiety/agitation. Mobile telecardiology represents feasible methodology to monitor arrhythmias in outpatients in Georgia, promoting earlier discharge of non-life-threatening cases, improving patients' comfort of life, and increasing their mobility with enhanced safety. Mobile telehealth might also represent significant cost-saving for insurance companies (this is an ongoing study). Finally, in remote areas mobile telemonitoring of patients will improve quality of care by timely provision of a second opinion in cases when local expertise is not sufficient.
“Filling the maize basket” supports crop diversity and quality of household diet in Malawi

Food security and dietary quality are broadly supported development goals, yet few studies have addressed how agricultural subsidy policies and promotion of modern crop varieties impact smallholder farm production and household diet. Crop intensification through subsidies could have indirect impacts through gains/losses in income and purchasing power, as well as direct influences on local availability. An integrated household survey conducted multiple times in Malawi provided evidence-based insights into the complex interactions between agriculture and nutrition. The nationally representative dataset indicated that agricultural input subsidies did not preclude crop or dietary diversity. Two pathways of subsidy impact appeared to be operating: an association with diversified cropping for a direct influence on available food quality; and an association with adoption of modern maize varieties for an indirect influence through commercialization and income that supports diverse food purchases. Although crop diversity was positively associated with dietary diversity, we found that education, income, market access, and availability of improved storage technologies had higher influence on dietary diversity. Finally, we provide evidence supporting the need for complementary investments in both education and employment creation, particularly for female heads of households.
On the kinetics between CO2 and alkanolamines both in aqueous and non-aqueous solutions—II. Tertiary amines

The reaction between COz and tertiary alkanolamines (MDEA, DMMEA, TREA) has been studied in aqueous solutions at various temperatures. Also the absorption of CO1 in a solution of MDEA in ethanol has been studied. Reaction kinetics have been established by chemically enhanced mass transfer of COz into the various solutions. The experiments were performed in a stirred vessel with a horizontal interface which appeared to the eye to be completely smooth. The reaction of CO2 with tertiary amines can be described satisfactorily with the base-catalysis mechanism proposed by Donaldson and Nguyen (1980). Also attention has been paid to the influence of reversibility and small amounts of impurities (primary and secondary amines) on the measured mass transfer rate. For the reaction rate constant, kz. of the reaction between carbon dioxide and tertiary amines exists a Br@nsted relation. There is a linear relation between the logarithm of k2 and pK, at 293 K.
Convolutional Neural Networks for Crop Yield Prediction using Satellite Images

Crop yield forecasting during the growing season is useful for farming planning and management practices as well as for planning humanitarian aid in developing countries. Common approaches to yield forecast include the use of expensive manual surveys or accessible remote sensing data. Traditional remote sensing based approaches to predict crop yield consist of classical Machine Learning techniques such as Support Vector Machines and Decision Trees. More recent approaches include using deep neural network models, such as CNN and LSTM. We identify the additional gaps in the literature of existing machine learning methods as lacking of (1) standardized training protocol that specifies the optimal time frame, both in terms of years and months of each year, to be considered in the training set, (2) verified applicability to developing countries under the condition of scarce data, and (3) effective utilization of spatial features in remote sensing images. In this thesis, we first replicate the state-of-the-art approach of You et al. [1], in particular their CNN model for crop yield prediction. To tackle the first identified gap, we then perform control experiments to determine the best temporal training settings for soybean yield prediction. To probe the second gap, we further investigate whether this CNN model could be trained on source locations and then be transfered to new target locations and conclude that it is necessary to use source regions that have a similar or generalizable ecosystem to the target regions. This allows us to assess the transferability of CNN-based regression models to developing countries, where little training data is available. Additionally, we propose a novel 3D CNN model for crop yield prediction task that leverages the spatiotemporal features. We demonstrate that our 3D CNN outperforms all competing machine learning methods, shedding light on promising future directions in utilizing deep learning tools for crop yield prediction.
Using scrum in a globally distributed project: a case study

While seemingly incompatible, combining global software development and agile practices is a challenge undertaken by many companies. Case study reports on the successful use of agile practices in small distributed projects already exist. How these practices can be applied to larger projects, however, remains unstudied. This paper reports a case study on agile practices in a 40person development organization distributed between Norway and Malaysia. Based on seven interviews in the development organization, we describe how scrum practices were successfully applied, e.g. using teleconferencing and web cameras for daily scrum meetings, synchronized 4-week sprints, weekly scrum-of-scrums, and Jira for backlog management. Non-scrum agile practices included nightly builds, automated testing, and team rooms. Supportig global software development practices, e.g. frequent visits, unofficial distributed meetings, domain expert networks, and annual gatherings are described. Positive experiences of using scrum included improved communication, trust and motivation, as well as better perceived quality. Challenges included misunderstood requirements, lack of videoconferencing possibilities, and awkward communication in distributed meetings due to cultural and geographical distance. Copyright  2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Medical student musculoskeletal education: an institutional survey.

BACKGROUND
Since the 1910 Flexner Report, medical education continues to undergo curriculum and graduation guideline reform to meet the needs of physicians and patients. Our aims were to (1) assess the quality of musculoskeletal education at our institution's School of Medicine by reporting the results of the Freedman and Bernstein examination among our medical students across all four years of training, and (2) stratify results according to medical school year, educational module, and intended career.


METHODS
We surveyed the 460 2009-2010 School of Medicine students via e-mail. The survey contained a validated orthopaedic examination of musculoskeletal competency (passing grade, 70%), demographic questions (e.g., year in training, clinical area of interest, and time dedicated to musculoskeletal topics in medical school education), and a 10-point tool for determining confidence in assessing musculoskeletal disorders. There were 354 responses (77.0%); six were excluded for incompleteness, leaving 348 for analysis. Linear regression analysis was used to determine the association between test scores and days spent studying musculoskeletal material. The unpaired Student t test was used to compare performance among areas of interest and training years, with p < 0.05 being considered significant.


RESULTS
The mean score was 51.1%; only sixty-seven (19.3%) of the students passed. Fourth-year students scored significantly higher (59.0%) compared with first-year students (37.3%), but >65% of students in both groups failed. Only 34.2% of the graduating students had completed a musculoskeletal elective. Students who participated in elective musculoskeletal education had a higher pass rate (67.5%) than those who did not (43.9%, p < 0.001). A minimum of fifteen days dedicated to elective study of musculoskeletal medicine significantly increased the chance of passing this examination. First-year through fourth-year students ranked their level of confidence in dealing with musculoskeletal issues as 3.18, 3.82, 3.57, and 4.77, respectively.


CONCLUSIONS
To our knowledge, this is the first study to test this examination with medical school class years and have quantifiable results that advocate for incorporation of a dedicated musculoskeletal block in medical student education.
Automatic remote monitoring of implantable cardioverter-defibrillator lead and generator performance: the Lumos-T Safely RedUceS RouTine Office Device Follow-Up (TRUST) trial.

BACKGROUND
Monitoring performance of implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) generators and leads is important. Methods available are with in-person evaluations or by automatic remote home monitoring (HM). These were prospectively evaluated and compared in the TRUST trial. The HM technology tested performed daily self-checks and databasing with rapid event notifications for out-of-range (including asymptomatic) conditions.


METHODS AND RESULTS
Patients (n=1339) were randomly assigned after ICD implant 2:1 to HM or to conventional groups. Both groups underwent scheduled checks every 3 months and were followed for 15 months. In HM, in-person office visits were scheduled at 3 and 15 months. At 6, 9, and 12 months, HM only was used with subsequent office visits if necessary. Between these time points, ICDs triggered event notifications for system integrity problems. Patients randomly assigned to conventional follow-up were evaluated with office visits only. HM and conventional patients were similar (age, 63.3±12.8 versus 64.0±12.1 years; 72.0% versus 73.1% male; New York Heart Association II class, 55.9% versus 60.4%; left ventricular ejection fraction, 29.0±10.7% versus 28.5±9.8%; coronary artery disease, 64.8% versus 71.7%; primary prevention, 72.2% versus 73.8%; DDD devices, 57.8% versus 56.6%). Four patients crossed over from conventional to HM because of advisories. Scheduled checks were more successfully accomplished in HM (92.7% versus 89.2% in conventional, P<0.001). Sixty-two device-related events (53 in HM versus 9 in conventional) were observed in 46 patients (40 [4.4%] in HM versus 6 [1.39%] in conventional, P=0.004). Forty-seven percent were asymptomatic. HM detected generator and lead problems earlier (HM versus conventional: median, 1 versus 5 days; P=0.05). A total of 20 device problems (eg, lead fracture, elective replacement indicators) requiring surgical revision (0.012 per patient-year) were found, 15 in HM and 5 in the conventional groups. Other events were managed nonsurgically (eg, reprogramming, initiation of antiarrhythmics).


CONCLUSIONS
ICD lead and generator malfunction was infrequent and often asymptomatic. Only a minority of detected events required surgical intervention. Automatic HM enhanced discovery, permitted prompt detection, and facilitated management decisions. Longitudinal parameter trending, with component function evaluated daily by remote monitoring, may enable long-term performance assessment.


CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION
URL: http://clinicaltrials.gov. Unique identifier: NCT00336284.
Neural network models of sensory integration for improved vowel recognition

Automatic speech recognizers currently perform poorly in the presence of noise. Humans, on the other hand, often compensate for noise degradation by extracting speech information from alternative sources and then integrating this information with the acoustical signal. Visual signals from the speaker’s face are one source of supplemental speech information. We demonstrate that multiple sources of speech information can be integrated at a subsymbolic level to improve vowel recognition. Feedforward and recurrent neural networks are trained to estimate the acoustic characteristics of the vocal tract from images of the speaker‘s mouth. These estimates are then combined with the noise-degraded acoustic information, effectively increasing the signal-to-noise ratio and improving the recognition of these noise-degraded signals. Alternative symbolic strategies, such as direct categorization of the visual signals into vowels, are also presented. The performances of these neural networks compared favorably with human performance and with other pattern-matching and estimation techniques.
Competency Based Future Leadership Requirements

NOTE: The views, opinions, and findings in this Technical Report are those of the author(s) and should not be construed as an official Department of the Army position, policy, or decision unless so designated by other authorized documents. Public reporting burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 1 hour per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing this collection of information. Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing Respondents should be aware that notwithstanding any other provision of law, no person shall be subject to any penalty for failing to comply with a collection of information if it does not display a currently valid OMB control number. The purpose of this research was to develop leadership requirements for the future Army. A competency framework that is used consistently throughout the force and that focuses on the functions of leadership will help align training, development, and performance management processes and better convey what leaders need to do. Numerous considerations were combined to generate the framework including: identification of the future of technological, geopolitical, and demographic factors; review of leadership theory; review of the evolution of Army leadership doctrine; identification of literature sources of leadership requirements; specification of the relationships leaders have with others; and comparisons of competency frameworks from the other military services. Through an iterative process, analysts developed competencies, components, and sample actions that were then reviewed by subject matter experts. A core leadership competency framework was developed that includes eight competencies and 55 components. The proposed core leadership competency framework serves to provide an analytically based description of leader requirements for the future. The incorporation of the framework into leader development processes is discussed as well as how the framework can be presented in doctrine.
Introducing the non-invasive prenatal test for trisomy 21 in Belgium: a cost-consequences analysis

BACKGROUND
The first- and second-trimester screening for trisomy 21 (T21) are reimbursed for all pregnant women in Belgium. Using a cut-off risk of 1:300 for T21, about 5% of all pregnant women are referred for definitive prenatal diagnosis using an invasive test, at a sensitivity of (only) 72.5%. The sensitivity and specificity of the non-invasive prenatal test (NIPT) are over 99% but come at a cost of €460 (£373) per test. The objective is to estimate the consequences of introducing NIPT for the detection of T21.


METHODS
A cost-consequences analysis was performed presenting the impact on benefits, harms and costs. Context-specific real-world information was available to set up a model reflecting the current screening situation in Belgium. This model was used to construct the second and first line NIPT screening scenarios applying information from the literature on NIPT's test accuracy.


RESULTS
Introducing NIPT in the first or second line reduces harm by decreasing the number of procedure-related miscarriages after invasive testing. In contrast with NIPT in the second line, offering NIPT in the first line additionally will miss fewer cases of T21 due to less false-negative test results. The introduction of NIPT in the second line results in cost savings, which is not true for NIPT at the current price in the first line. If NIPT is offered to all pregnant women, the price should be lowered to about €150 to keep the screening cost per T21 diagnosis constant.


CONCLUSIONS
In Belgium, the introduction and reimbursement of NIPT as a second line triage test significantly reduces procedure-related miscarriages without increasing the short-term screening costs. Offering and reimbursing NIPT in the first line to all pregnant women is preferred in the long term, as it would, in addition, miss fewer cases of T21. However, taking into account the government's limited resources for universal reimbursement, the price of NIPT should first be lowered substantially before this can be realised.
Once- vs twice-daily budesonide/formoterol in 6- to 15-year-old patients with stable asthma.

OBJECTIVE
To assess efficacy/tolerability of once-daily budesonide/formoterol pressurized metered-dose inhaler (pMDI) versus budesonide pMDI (primary) and twice-daily budesonide/formoterol (secondary) in children/adolescents with asthma stabilized with twice-daily budesonide/formoterol.


METHODS
This 12-week multicenter, double-blind randomized controlled study (www.clinicaltrials.gov identifier NCT00646321) included 521 patients aged 6 to 15 years with mild/moderate persistent asthma. Patients stabilized during a 4- to 5-week run-in with twice-daily budesonide/formoterol pMDI 40/4.5 microgx2 inhalations (160/18 microg daily) received twice-daily budesonide/formoterol pMDI 40/4.5 microgx2 inhalations (160/18 microg daily), once-daily budesonide/formoterol pMDI 80/4.5 microgx2 inhalations (160/9 microg daily; evening), or once-daily budesonide pMDI 80 microgx2 inhalations (160 microg daily; evening).


RESULTS
Once- or twice-daily budesonide/formoterol was more effective than budesonide for evening peak expiratory flow (primary variable) at the end of the 24-hour once-daily dosing interval (P<or=.027). Twice-daily budesonide/formoterol demonstrated better efficacy versus once-daily treatments for evening predose forced expiratory volume in 1 second (P<or=.011), versus budesonide for daytime/nighttime rescue medication (P<or=.023), and versus once-daily budesonide/formoterol for daytime rescue medication (last 12 hours of once-daily dosing) (P=.032). There were no significant between-group differences for daytime/nighttime asthma symptoms, nighttime awakenings attributed to asthma, or health-related quality of life. Fewer patients experienced asthma worsening (predefined criteria) with twice-daily budesonide/formoterol (8.2%) versus once-daily budesonide (15.5%) (P=.036) or once-daily budesonide/formoterol (19.6%) (P=.002). All treatments were well tolerated.


CONCLUSIONS
Once-daily budesonide/formoterol demonstrated significantly better efficacy than once-daily budesonide for most pulmonary-function variables. Twice-daily budesonide/formoterol (160/18 microg daily) maintenance therapy was generally more effective than stepping down to once-daily dosing (160/9 microg daily). Treatments were well tolerated, and there was no evident safety benefit for once- versus twice-daily dosing.
Probability Approximation in Asymmetric Numeral Systems

Asymmetric Numeral Systems (ANS) are a family of entropy coders for information sources with a finite alphabet, and usually require approximating the source distribution to rational numbers to associate the source symbols with the internal states of ANS. In the range variant of ANS, each source symbol corresponds to a continuous interval of the state set. ANS assigns shorter codewords to states with smaller numbers and longer codewords to states with larger numbers. Therefore, it is not fair or valid to make the lengths of state intervals proportional to symbol probabilities. To overcome this problem, this paper proposes a new source approximation formula, and shows that it leads to an improvement of compression efficiency of ANS.
Combining Technical Analysis with Sentiment Analysis for Stock Price Prediction

This paper proposes a stock price prediction model, which extracts features from time series data and social networks for prediction of stock prices and evaluates its performance. In this research, we use the features such as numerical dynamics (frequency) of news and comments, overall sentiment analysis of news and comments, as well as technical analysis of historic price and volume. We model the stock price movements as a function of these input features and solve it as a regression problem in a Multiple Kernel Learning regression framework. Experimental results show that our proposed method outperforms other baseline methods in terms of magnitude prediction measures such as RMSE, MAE and MAPE for three famous Japan companies' stocks in US stock market. The results indicate that features other than mining from stock prices themselves improved the performance.