LLukas22/scidocs huggingface dataset:
Antioxidant, antibacterial activity, and phytochemical characterization of Melaleuca cajuputi extract

BACKGROUND
The threat posed by drug-resistant pathogens has resulted in the increasing momentum in research and development for effective alternative medications. The antioxidant and antibacterial properties of phytochemical extracts makes them attractive alternative complementary medicines. Therefore, this study evaluated the phytochemical constituents of Melaleuca cajuputi flower and leaf (GF and GL, respectively) extracts and their antioxidant and antibacterial activities.


METHODS
Radical scavenging capacity of the extracts was estimated using 2,2-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl and Fe(2+)-chelating activity. Total antioxidant activity was determined using ferric reducing antioxidant power assay. Well diffusion, minimum inhibitory concentration, and minimum bactericidal concentration assays were used to determine antibacterial activity against eight pathogens, namely Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Bacillus cereus, Staphylococcus epidermidis, Salmonella typhimurium, Klebsiella pneumonia, Streptococcus pneumoniae, and Pasteurella multocida. We identified and quantified the phytochemical constituents in methanol extracts using liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry (LC/MS) and gas chromatography (GC)/MS.


RESULTS
This study reports the antioxidant and radical scavenging activity of M. cajuputi methanolic extracts. The GF extract showed better efficacy than that of the GL extract. The total phenolic contents were higher in the flower extract than they were in the leaf extract (0.55 ± 0.05 and 0.37 ± 0.05 gallic acid equivalent per mg extract dry weight, respectively). As expected, the percentage radical inhibition by GF was higher than that by the GL extract (81 and 75 %, respectively). A similar trend was observed in Fe(2+)-chelating activity and β-carotene bleaching tests. The antibacterial assay of the extracts revealed no inhibition zones with the Gram-negative bacteria tested. However, the extracts demonstrated activity against B. cereus, S. aureus, and S. epidermidis.


CONCLUSIONS
In this study, we found that M. cajuputi extracts possess antioxidant and antibacterial activities. The results revealed that both extracts had significant antioxidant and free radical-scavenging activity. Both extracts had antibacterial activity against S. aureus, S. epidermidis, and B. cereus. The antioxidant and antimicrobial activities could be attributed to high flavonoid and phenolic contents identified using GC/MS and LC/MS. Therefore, M. cajuputi could be an excellent source for natural antioxidant and antibacterial agents for medical and nutraceutical applications.
Efficacy of rivastigmine in comparison to ginkgo for treating Alzheimer's dementia.

OBJECTIVES
To assess the efficacy of the Ginkgo biloba in patients with dementia of the Alzheimer type in slowing down the disease's degenerative progression and the patients' cognitive impairment compared with rivastigmine.


METHODS
Total 56 patients aged 50-75 years, suffering from dementia, were allocated into one of the two treatments: group 1) Ginkgo biloba (120 mg daily dose); group 2) rivastigmine (4.5 mg daily dose) in a 24-week randomized double blind study. The degree of severity of dementia was assessed by the Seven Minute test and the Mini-Mental State Examination.


RESULTS
Our results confirm the clinical efficacy of rivastigmine in the dementia of the Alzheimer type, comparing to Ginkgo biloba. There are few published trials that have directly compared a cholinesterase inhibitor with Ginkgo for dementia. This study directly compares a cholinesterase inhibitor with Ginkgo biloba for dementia of the Alzheimer type.


CONCLUSION
Our study suggests that there are differences in the efficacy of Ginkgo biloba and rivastigmine in the treatment of Alzheimer's dementia. In addition, this study suggested that cholinesterase inhibitors should be used in preference to Ginkgo biloba in patients with mild to moderate AD.
Meat, fish, and colorectal cancer risk: the European Prospective Investigation into cancer and nutrition.

BACKGROUND
Current evidence suggests that high red meat intake is associated with increased colorectal cancer risk. High fish intake may be associated with a decreased risk, but the existing evidence is less convincing.


METHODS
We prospectively followed 478 040 men and women from 10 European countries who were free of cancer at enrollment between 1992 and 1998. Information on diet and lifestyle was collected at baseline. After a mean follow-up of 4.8 years, 1329 incident colorectal cancers were documented. We examined the relationship between intakes of red and processed meat, poultry, and fish and colorectal cancer risk using a proportional hazards model adjusted for age, sex, energy (nonfat and fat sources), height, weight, work-related physical activity, smoking status, dietary fiber and folate, and alcohol consumption, stratified by center. A calibration substudy based on 36 994 subjects was used to correct hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for diet measurement errors. All statistical tests were two-sided.


RESULTS
Colorectal cancer risk was positively associated with intake of red and processed meat (highest [>160 g/day] versus lowest [<20 g/day] intake, HR = 1.35, 95% CI = 0.96 to 1.88; Ptrend = .03) and inversely associated with intake of fish (>80 g/day versus <10 g/day, HR = 0.69, 95 % CI = 0.54 to 0.88; Ptrend<.001), but was not related to poultry intake. Correcting for measurement error strengthened the associations between colorectal cancer and red and processed meat intake (per 100-g increase HR = 1.25, 95% CI =1.09 to 1.41, Ptrend = .001 and HR = 1.55, 95% CI = 1.19 to 2.02, Ptrend = .001 before and after calibration, respectively) and for fish (per 100 g increase HR = 0.70, 95% CI = 0.57 to 0.87, Ptrend<.001 and HR = 0.46, 95% CI = 0.27 to 0.77, Ptrend = .003; before and after correction, respectively). In this study population, the absolute risk of development of colorectal cancer within 10 years for a study subject aged 50 years was 1.71% for the highest category of red and processed meat intake and 1.28% for the lowest category of intake and was 1.86% for subjects in the lowest category of fish intake and 1.28% for subjects in the highest category of fish intake.


CONCLUSIONS
Our data confirm that colorectal cancer risk is positively associated with high consumption of red and processed meat and support an inverse association with fish intake.
Transit smart card data mining for passenger origin information extraction

The automated fare collection (AFC) system, also known as the transit smart card (SC) system, has gained more and more popularity among transit agencies worldwide. Compared with the conventional manual fare collection system, an AFC system has its inherent advantages in low labor cost and high efficiency for fare collection and transaction data archival. Although it is possible to collect highly valuable data from transit SC transactions, substantial efforts and methodologies are needed for extracting such data because most AFC systems are not initially designed for data collection. This is true especially for the Beijing AFC system, where a passenger’s boarding stop (origin) on a flat-rate bus is not recorded on the check-in scan. To extract passengers’ origin data from recorded SC transaction information, a Markov chain based Bayesian decision tree algorithm is developed in this study. Using the time invariance property of the Markov chain, the algorithm is further optimized and simplified to have a linear computational complexity. This algorithm is verified with transit vehicles equipped with global positioning system (GPS) data loggers. Our verification results demonstrated that the proposed algorithm is effective in extracting transit passengers’ origin information from SC transactions with a relatively high accuracy. Such transit origin data are highly valuable for transit system planning and route optimization.
Field-oriented developments for LineScout Technology and its deployment on large water crossing transmission lines

Condition assessments for power transmission line infrastructure and conductors are essential to maintain a reliable and efficient system. LineScout is a high-performance robot designed to undertake detailed, comprehensive inspections of transmission lines, which contributes to maintaining the integrity of equipment and the safety of inspection crews. This paper outlines Hydro-Québec’s LineScout Technology, describing briefly the main systems and key design issues and discussing the technology’s impact and benefits on power transmission line inspection and maintenance practices. The paper then focuses on field results gathered over the past 2 years with LineScout Technology. Very important lessons were learned from more than 20 field deployments of the robot on live transmission lines. An appreciable amount of significant feedback came from these field visits and was decisive in improving the technology. Specifically, transportation and installation methods and onboard energy management strategy are presented. Also discussed, for the first time, is a simplified wheel contact radius estimate, useful for improving the wheel odometer readings. Finally, one field deployment on a large water crossing transmission line is presented in detail. The paper discusses the importance of the work done and of newly implemented features in terms of the quality and efficiency of inspections, the reliability of systems, and the safe operation of the technology. C © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Reproducibility of a 3-dimensional gyroscope in measuring shoulder anteflexion and abduction

BACKGROUND
Few studies have investigated the use of a 3-dimensional gyroscope for measuring the range of motion (ROM) in the impaired shoulder. Reproducibility of digital inclinometer and visual estimation is poor. This study aims to investigate the reproducibility of a tri axial gyroscope in measurement of anteflexion, abduction and related rotations in the impaired shoulder.


METHODS
Fifty-eight patients with either subacromial impingement (27) or osteoarthritis of the shoulder (31) participated. Active anteflexion, abduction and related rotations were measured with a tri axial gyroscope according to a test retest protocol. Severity of shoulder impairment and patient perceived pain were assessed by the Disability of Arm Shoulder and Hand score (DASH) and the Visual Analogue Scale (VAS). VAS scores were recorded before and after testing.


RESULTS
In two out of three hospitals patients with osteoarthritis (n = 31) were measured, in the third hospital patients with subacromial impingement (n = 27).There were significant differences among hospitals for the VAS and DASH scores measured before and after testing. The mean differences between the test and retest means for anteflexion were -6 degrees (affected side), 9 (contralateral side) and for abduction 15 degrees (affected side) and 10 degrees (contralateral side).Bland & Altman plots showed that the confidence intervals for the mean differences fall within -6 up to 15 degrees, individual test - retest differences could exceed these limits.A simulation according to 'Generalizability Theory' produces very good coefficients for anteflexion and related rotation as a comprehensive measure of reproducibility. Optimal reproducibility is achieved with 2 repetitions for anteflexion.


CONCLUSIONS
Measurements were influenced by patient perceived pain. Differences in VAS and DASH might be explained by different underlying pathology. These differences in shoulder pathology however did not alter the reproducibility of testing. The use of a tri axial gyroscope is a simple non invasive and reproducible method for the recording of shoulder anteflexion and abduction. Movements have to be repeated twice for reproducible results.
Maternal obesity: implications for pregnancy outcome and long-term risks-a link to maternal nutrition.

As obesity becomes a worldwide epidemic, its prevalence during reproductive age is also increased. Alarming reports state that two-thirds of adults in the USA are overweight or obese, with half of them in the latter category, and the rate of obese pregnant women is estimated at 18-38%. These women are of major concern to women's health providers because they encounter numerous pregnancy-related complications. Obesity-related reproductive health complications range from infertility to a wide spectrum of diseases such as hypertensive disorders, coagulopathies, gestational diabetes mellitus, respiratory complications, and fetal complications such as large-for-gestational-age infants, congenital malformations, stillbirth, and shoulder dystocia. Recent reports suggest that obesity during pregnancy can be a risk factor for developing obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular diseases in the newborn later in life. This review will address the implication of obesity on pregnancy and child health, and explore recent literature on obesity during pregnancy.
TREC 2006 at Maryland: Blog, Enterprise, Legal and QA Tracks

In TREC 2006, teams from the University of Maryland participated in the Blog track, the Expert Search task of the Enterprise track, the Complex Interactive Question Answering task of the Question Answering track, and the Legal track. This paper reports our results.
Sexual behaviors, relationships, and perceived health status among adult women in the United States: results from a national probability sample.

INTRODUCTION
Past surveys of sexual behavior have demonstrated that female sexual behavior is influenced by medical and sociocultural changes. To be most attentive to women and their sexual lives, it is important to have an understanding of the continually evolving sexual behaviors of contemporary women in the United States.


AIMS
The purpose of this study, the National Survey of Sexual Health and Behavior (NSSHB), was to, in a national probability survey of women ages 18-92, assess the proportion of women in various age cohorts who had engaged in solo and partnered sexual activities in the past 90 days and to explore associations with participants' sexual behavior and their relationship and perceived health status. Past year frequencies of masturbation, vaginal intercourse, and anal intercourse were also assessed.


METHODS
A national probability sample of 2,523 women ages 18 to 92 completed a cross-sectional internet based survey about their sexual behavior.


MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES
Relationship status; perceived health status; experience of solo masturbation, partnered masturbation, giving oral sex, receiving oral sex, vaginal intercourse, anal intercourse, in the past 90 days; frequency of solo masturbation, vaginal intercourse, and anal intercourse in the past year.


RESULTS
Recent solo masturbation, oral sex, and vaginal intercourse were prevalent among women, decreased with age, and varied in their associations with relationship and perceived health status. Recent anal sex and same-sex oral sex were uncommonly reported. Solo masturbation was most frequent among women ages 18 to 39, vaginal intercourse was most frequent among women ages 18 to 29 and anal sex was infrequently reported.


CONCLUSION
Contemporary women in the United States engage in a diverse range of solo and partnered sexual activities, though sexual behavior is less common and more infrequent among older age cohorts.
Short Proofs of Some Extremal Results

We prove several results from different areas of extremal combinatorics, giving complete or partial solutions to a number of open problems. These results, coming from areas such as extremal graph theory, Ramsey theory and additive combinatorics, have been collected together because in each case the relevant proofs are quite short.
The Virtual Skeleton Database: An Open Access Repository for Biomedical Research and Collaboration

BACKGROUND
Statistical shape models are widely used in biomedical research. They are routinely implemented for automatic image segmentation or object identification in medical images. In these fields, however, the acquisition of the large training datasets, required to develop these models, is usually a time-consuming process. Even after this effort, the collections of datasets are often lost or mishandled resulting in replication of work.


OBJECTIVE
To solve these problems, the Virtual Skeleton Database (VSD) is proposed as a centralized storage system where the data necessary to build statistical shape models can be stored and shared.


METHODS
The VSD provides an online repository system tailored to the needs of the medical research community. The processing of the most common image file types, a statistical shape model framework, and an ontology-based search provide the generic tools to store, exchange, and retrieve digital medical datasets. The hosted data are accessible to the community, and collaborative research catalyzes their productivity.


RESULTS
To illustrate the need for an online repository for medical research, three exemplary projects of the VSD are presented: (1) an international collaboration to achieve improvement in cochlear surgery and implant optimization, (2) a population-based analysis of femoral fracture risk between genders, and (3) an online application developed for the evaluation and comparison of the segmentation of brain tumors.


CONCLUSIONS
The VSD is a novel system for scientific collaboration for the medical image community with a data-centric concept and semantically driven search option for anatomical structures. The repository has been proven to be a useful tool for collaborative model building, as a resource for biomechanical population studies, or to enhance segmentation algorithms.
Chatbots are natural web interface to information portals

In this paper we describe a way to access information using chatbot, without the need for sophisticated natural language processing or logical inference. FAQs are Frequently-Asked Questions documents, designed to capture the logical ontology of a given domain. Any Natural Language interface to an FAQ is constrained to reply with the given Answers, so there is no need for NL generation to recreate well-formed answers, or for deep analysis or logical inference to map user input questions onto this logical ontology; simple (but large) set of pattern-template matching rules will suffice. In this paper and as an evidence for this argument, the FAQ in the School of Computing (SoC) at the University of Leeds as well as Perl, Linux, and Python were used to retrain the ALICE chat-bot system, producing FAQchat. The replies from FAQchat looks like results generated by WWW search engines such as AskJeeves or Google. User trials with AskJeeves, Google and FAQchat demonstrate that FAQchat is a viable alternative, and in fact many users prefer it to Google as tool to access FAQ databases. The restricted domain of an FAQ is special case of QuestionAnswering which does not require the sophisticated analysis techniques.
The pillars of metrology

The more I study metrology, the more I get persuaded that the measuring activity is an implicit part of our lives, something we are not really aware of, though we do or rely on measurements several times a day. When we check time, put fuel in our cars, buy food, just to mention some everyday activity, either we measure something or we trust measurements done by somebody else. It is quite immediate to conclude that, nowadays, everything is measured and measurement results are the basis of many important decisions. Interestingly enough, measurement has always played an important role in mankind�s evolution and I fully agree with Bryan Kibble�s statement that the measuring stick came before the wheel, otherwise the wheel could not have been built [1]. The measuring stick is also one of the most ancient instruments, and we find it together with time measuring instruments and weighs in almost every civilization of the past, proving that measurement is one of the most important branches of science, and there is no civilization without measurement. It proves also the intimate connection existing between instrumentation and measurement, being the two sides of a single medal: the measurement science, or metrology.
When Security Meets Usability: A User-Centric Approach on a Crossroads Priority Problem

Effective and efficient methodologies are essential for developing and maintaining information systems that are both secure and usable, especially in the case of Internet applications that require a combined effort from application, system, network, security, and human-computer interaction design areas. In this paper, we propose a user-centric approach towards achieving "usable security". As a case study we apply the proposed approach on the password management problem. Our work demonstrates that the "user-centric usable security" is a viable and promising future research direction.
Artificial Intelligence - Foundations of Computational Agents

Artificial Intelligence: Foundations of Computational Agents is about the science of artificial intelligence (AI). It presents AI as the study of the design of intelligent computational agents. The book is structured as a textbook, but it is accessible to a wide audience of professionals and researchers. The past decades have witnessed the emergence of AI as a serious science and engineering discipline. This book provides the first accessible synthesis of the field aimed at undergraduate and graduate students. It provides a coherent vision of the foundations of the field as it is today, in terms of a multidimensional design space that has been partially explored. As with any science worth its salt, AI has a coherent, formal theory and a rambunctious experimental wing. The book balances theory and experiment, showing how to link them intimately together. It develops the science of AI together with its engineering applications.
Synthesis of separation processes by using case-based reasoning

The paper presents a new approach to chemical process synthesis, case-based reasoning (CBR). CBR is based on the reuse of proven process solutions, which are used for solving new problems. Examples are given to demonstrate the principles of conceptual reasoning of separation systems. The phases of reasoning in this application are: the search for specific separation methods for a single separation phase, search for creative new solutions by using analogies, using negative cases to exclude some solutions, adaptation by engineering formulas and comparison of cases. Two quality factors, maturity and performance, can be used to evaluate the quality of the cases. © 2001 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.
Why Aren't Operating Systems Getting Faster As Fast as Hardware?

This note evaluates several hardware platforms and operating systems using a set of benchmarks that test memory bandwidth and various operating system features such as kernel entry/exit and file systems. The overall conclusion is that operating system performance does not seem to be improving at the same rate as the base speed of the underlying hardware. Copyright  1989 Digital Equipment Corporation d i g i t a l Western Research Laboratory 100 Hamilton Avenue Palo Alto, California 94301 USA