LLukas22/scidocs huggingface dataset:
Effects of Electronic Cigarette Liquid Nicotine Concentration on Plasma Nicotine and Puff Topography in Tobacco Cigarette Smokers: A Preliminary Report.

INTRODUCTION
Electronic cigarettes (ECIGs) aerosolize a liquid that usually contains propylene glycol and/or vegetable glycerin, flavorants, and the dependence-producing drug nicotine in various concentrations. This study examined the extent to which ECIG liquid nicotine concentration is related to user plasma nicotine concentration in ECIG-naïve tobacco cigarette smokers.


METHODS
Sixteen ECIG-naïve cigarette smokers completed four laboratory sessions that differed by the nicotine concentration of the liquid (0, 8, 18, or 36 mg/ml) that was placed into a 1.5 Ohm, dual coil "cartomizer" powered by a 3.3V battery. In each session, participants completed two, 10-puff ECIG use bouts with a 30-second inter-puff interval; bouts were separated by 60 minutes. Venous blood was sampled before and after bouts for later analysis of plasma nicotine concentration; puff duration, volume, and average flow rate were measured during each bout.


RESULTS
In bout 1, relative to the 0mg/ml nicotine condition (mean = 3.8 ng/ml, SD = 3.3), plasma nicotine concentration increased significantly immediately after the bout for the 8 (mean = 8.8 ng/ml, SD = 6.3), 18 (mean = 13.2 ng/ml, SD = 13.2), and 36 mg/ml (mean = 17.0 ng/ml, SD = 17.9) liquid concentration. A similar pattern was observed after bout 2. Average puff duration in the 36 mg/ml condition was significantly shorter compared to the 0mg/ml nicotine condition. Puff volume increased during the second bout for 8 and 18 mg/ml conditions.


CONCLUSIONS
For a given ECIG device, nicotine delivery may be directly related to liquid concentration. ECIG-naïve cigarette smokers can, from their first use bout, attain cigarette-like nicotine delivery profiles with some currently available ECIG products.


IMPLICATIONS
Liquid nicotine concentration can influence plasma nicotine concentration in ECIG-naïve cigarette smokers, and, at some concentrations, the nicotine delivery profile of a 3.3V ECIG with a dual coil, 1.5-Ohm cartomizer approaches that of a combustible tobacco cigarette in this population. Finding a product that delivers nicotine as effectively as a tobacco cigarette, as we report here, may be essential for smokers who want to replace completely their combustible tobacco cigarettes with ECIGs.
BRIGHT: A concept for a decentralized rights management system based on blockchain

We propose a concept for a new rights management system based on the blockchain technology, which is famous for supporting the reliability of the bitcoin. We clarify problems that occur when we apply the blockchain technology to the rights management system, and we also describe our trial implementation.
Brief cognitive behavioural intervention for depression and anxiety symptoms improves quality of life in chronic haemodialysis patients.

OBJECTIVES
Psychological treatment of depression in end-stage renal disease (ESRD) has focused on severely depressed patients. We designed and tested a brief (5 weeks) cognitive behavioural intervention (CBI) to reduce mild and moderate depression and anxiety symptoms in patients with ESRD.


DESIGN
For the purpose of this study, a single-blind, randomized controlled design was used to compare patients with ESRD under haemodialysis treatment with and without the CBI.


METHODS
Depression and anxiety symptoms were screened in 152 subjects (18-60 years old, 84 male). Sixty participants (age 41.8 ± 14.7, 29 males) with mild or moderate scores of depression (Beck Depression Inventory) and anxiety (Beck Anxiety Inventory) were randomly assigned to CBI or the control group. CBI techniques consisted of positive self-reinforcement, deep breathing, muscle relaxation, and cognitive restructuring. Depression, anxiety, quality of life (QoL), and cognitive distortion scores were evaluated at baseline, after 5 weeks (end of treatment) and after 4-week follow-up. All scores were compared by ANOVA for repeated measures with post-hoc tests adjusted by Bonferroni's method (p < .05 was considered significant).


RESULTS
At follow-up, depression, anxiety, and cognitive distortions had decreased, and QoL had increased in the intervention group, and there were no changes in the control group. Clinical utility was 33% for depression and 43% for anxiety.


CONCLUSIONS
A brief CBI of 5 weeks is effective for decreasing mild or moderate depression and anxiety symptoms and improving QoL in ESRD haemodialysis patients.


PRACTITIONER POINTS
A brief, systematic and structured cognitive behavioural intervention (CBI) decreases anxiety and depression symptoms and improves quality of life in patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) who are being treated with haemodialysis. These benefits are not achieved when anxiety and depression symptoms are identified but not treated psychologically. This CBI consisted of cognitive restructuring of the distorted thoughts (perfectionism, catastrophic thinking, negative self-labelling, and dichotomous thinking) that are correlated with depression and anxiety symptoms and that can be assessed by a validated questionnaire designed for patients with ESRD. The handbooks that were developed for this study are structured and systematic. They could be valuable in supporting the efforts and participation of non-specialized health professionals in CBI such as nurses, physicians, social workers, and psychologists, raising the possibility of further application in a variety of clinical populations. Both the therapy and the client workbooks are available in Spanish upon request.
An Engagement-Based Student Typology and Its Relationship to College Outcomes

Using data from the 2006 cohort of the Wabash National Study of Liberal Arts Education, we developed a student typology based on student responses to survey items on the National Survey of Student Engagement. We then examined the utility of this typology in understanding direct-assessment learning outcomes, self-reported gains, grade-point average, and persistence from the first to second year of college. Results from linear and logistic regression models indicated there were relationships between student types and the various outcomes, and that an engagement-based student typology could help deepen our understanding of the college student experience and college outcomes.
Analysis of outcome in retrieved dropout patients in a rivastigmine vs placebo, 26-week, Alzheimer disease trial.

BACKGROUND
Treatment with cholinesterase inhibitors improves cognition in patients with Alzheimer disease (AD). In studies designed with a washout period at the end of the study, after treatment with a cholinesterase inhibitor is discontinued, the cognitive benefits of therapy are no longer apparent following washout. The rivastigmine trials discussed in this article were not designed with a posttreatment washout period at the end of the study. Therefore, to evaluate the effect of discontinuing treatment, we analyzed the retrieved dropout (RDO) population.


OBJECTIVE
To evaluate the change in cognition (at week 26 vs baseline) observed in patients from 3 large clinical trials of AD who prematurely discontinued treatment with placebo or rivastigmine.


DESIGN AND METHODS
Eligible patients with AD (Mini-Mental State Examination [MMSE] score, 10-26, inclusive) were enrolled in 1 of three 26-week, double-blind, placebo-controlled studies (Novartis US Pivotal [dose-range] Trial, US fixed-dose study, and a Global Pivotal [dose-range] Trial) that compared rivastigmine therapy with placebo. Patients who discontinued study participation (for any reason) (considered to be the RDO population) were encouraged to return for their scheduled week 26 efficacy evaluations. Effects on cognition were assessed using the Alzheimer's Disease Assessment Scale-Cognitive subscale (ADAS-Cog).


RESULTS
The results for the Novartis US Pivotal Trials and for the 3 studies combined (Novartis studies B352, B351, and B303) are reported. In the US pivotal trial, RDO patients in the 6- to 12-mg/d group had been not receiving the drug (to be called "off drug") for 102 (57.7) days (mean [SD]) compared with 68 (51.7) days in the RDO placebo group. In these RDO analyses, a statistically significantly greater worsening on the ADAS-Cog mean change score was observed in the placebo group (n = 17) compared with the rivastigmine 6- to 12-mg/d group (n = 33) at week 26 (MMSE score, -8.2 vs -3.0; P =.009). In the pooled studies, the mean (SD) number of days off treatment was 95 (52.0) days for the rivastigmine 6- to 12-mg/d group and 66 (52.7) days for the placebo group. The RDO analysis also showed a statistically significantly greater decline in cognitive function as measured by the ADAS-Cog mean change score in the placebo group (n = 38) compared with the rivastigmine 6- to 12-mg/d group (n = 88) at week 26 (MMSE score, -5.69 vs -2.5; P =.004). A significantly greater proportion of patients in the placebo group exhibited at least a 4-point and 7-point worsening in ADAS-Cog scores at week 26 compared with the rivastigmine 6- to 12-mg/d group in both the Novartis US Pivotal Trials (P =.007, P =.009) and the pooled studies (P =.002, P =.017).


CONCLUSIONS
After discontinuation of therapy, rivastigmine-treated patients exhibited less deterioration in cognitive function compared with placebo-treated patients. The less severe worsening of cognition after withdrawal of treatment in patients previously treated with rivastigmine suggests an effect on disease progression.
Teachers’ Attitudes and Levels of Technology Use in Classrooms: The Case of Jordan Schools

Throughout the world there is awareness of the fundamental role of new Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) in the field of education. Theoretical and empirical studies have considered the importance of ICTs in the process of teaching and learning. This current paper investigates the level of ICT use for educational purposes by teachers in Jordanian rural secondary schools. The paper will contribute to the body of knowledge regarding the level of ICT use and also, concerning the importance of teachers' attitudes towards the use of ICT for educational purposes. The data for the study were collected through the use of quantitative data. In October 2008, a questionnaire was distributed to 650 teachers in Jordan, randomly selected. Four hundred sixty teachers responded to the questionnaire. The survey included questions concerning the level of ICT use as well as questions related to the attitudes of teachers towards the use of ICT. The findings of the study, which were obtained by analyzing the data collected from the teachers revealed that, teachers had a low level of ICT use for educational purpose, teachers hold positive attitudes towards the use of ICT, and a significant positive correlation between teachers’ level of ICT use and their attitudes towards ICT was found. The findings suggest that ICTs use for educational purposes should be given greater consideration than it currently receives. In general, the results were consistent with those previously reported in studies related to the use of ICT in the educational settings.
A Delphi study of knowledge management systems: Scope and requirements

We empirically explored the roles and scope of knowledge management systems in organizations. Building on a knowledgebased view of the firm, we hypothesized and empirically tested our belief that more integration is needed between technologies intended to support knowledge and those supporting business operations. Findings from a Delphi study and in-depth interviews illustrated this and led us to suggest a revised approach to developing organizational knowledge management systems. # 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
Cue-Induced Reactivity, Cortisol Response and Substance Use Outcome in Treated Heroin Dependent Individuals

BACKGROUND
Environmental stimuli associated with drug taking have been known to elicit drug craving and physiologic arousal, as well as hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis activation. However, the relationship between these responses and substance use outcomes in heroin-dependent subjects has not been previously studied. We investigated the relationship among subjective and physiologic reactivity, biological stress response evoked in the laboratory, and relapse to substance use in treated opiate-dependent individuals.


METHODS
Eighteen opiate-abstinent methadone- or buprenorphine-treated patients and 13 control subjects were exposed to neutral- and drug-cue exposure laboratory sessions with a 3-month follow-up period. Exposure to cues involved both videotapes and handling during a 100-min session. Subjective craving, agonistic effects, withdrawal feelings, galvanic skin resistance, and salivary cortisol were assessed. Substance use outcome among patients was examined during the follow-up phase. Differences between relapsers, nonrelapsers, and controls were analyzed with respect to the data on drug-cue responsivity and on cortisol responses using repeated-measures analysis of variance. The association with substance use outcome was assessed using a nominal logistic model.


RESULTS
Relapsers experienced greater drug-cue induced subjective responses and an increased cortisol response compared with both nonrelapsers and control subjects. After adjusting on covariates, cue-induced cortisol response was associated with the relapser group and was highly correlated with self-reports of "high."


CONCLUSIONS
Subjects defined as relapsers presented a higher cue-induced reactivity during the drug-cue exposure as well as an increased cortisol response to drug cues. Higher cortisol response to drug cues may increase relapse vulnerability in stable-dose buprenorphine or methadone-maintained subjects.
Quality-of-Life Analysis of the German Prospective Multicentre Trial of Single-cycle Adjuvant BEP Versus Retroperitoneal Lymph Node Dissection in Clinical Stage I Nonseminomatous Germ Cell Tumours.

BACKGROUND
The superiority of one course of bleomycin, etoposide, and cisplatin (BEP) over retroperitoneal lymph node dissection (RPLND) as adjuvant treatment in patients with clinical stage I nonseminomatous germ cell tumours (CSI-NSGCT) in terms of recurrence has been shown. However, studies providing validated prospective quality-of-life (QoL) data in patients with CSI-NSGCT treated with only one cycle of BEP are lacking.


OBJECTIVE
To examine and compare QoL issues in patients with CSI-NSGCT after adjuvant treatment.


DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS
Between 1996 and 2005, we randomly assigned a total of 382 patients with CSI-NSGCT to receive either one course of BEP or RPLND after orchiectomy. The European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC) Quality of Life Questionnaire (QLQ-C30) plus additional scales questionnaire (QLQ-C30+) was completed prospectively according to an a priori schedule, with a final assessment in 2011.


OUTCOME MEASUREMENTS AND STATISTICAL ANALYSIS
We used the Mann-Whitney U test to detect a difference ≥17% on the global QoL item "overall strain."


RESULTS AND LIMITATIONS
Of 382 patients randomised to receive either one course of BEP (n=191, arm A) or RPLND (n=191, arm B), completed QLQ-C30+ and data on treatment response were available in 162 and 164 patients, respectively. All participants were included for intention-to-treat analysis. We evaluated treatment-related changes in QoL for the follow-up period up to 3 yr after treatment. We observed no significant differences between the treatment groups in any QoL domain except alopecia. Compared to QoL assessments in the general population, both arms had already recovered to normal values in all items by 6 mo.


CONCLUSIONS
The QoL assessment of this large randomised trial was not able to detect significant differences in QoL scores between patients undergoing RPLND and BEP in a community-based setting.


PATIENT SUMMARY
Retroperitoneal lymph node dissection and bleomycin, etoposide, and cisplatin are two adjuvant treatment options for patients with CSI-NSGCT after orchiectomy. Quality of life had already recovered to normal levels in both groups by 6 mo after treatment. No clinically relevant differences were detected.
Mobility-aware Web prefetching over heterogeneous wireless networks

This paper presents a predictive framework for mobility-aware prefetching to enhance the experience of a mobile Web user roaming between heterogeneous wireless access networks. We consider a heterogeneous two-tier wireless access network system, composed of smaller, but faster and cheaper wireless local area networks (WLAN) placed within a much larger, but slower and more expensive cellular wireless data network. An optimal prefetch threshold algorithm is proposed, which takes into consideration the user mobility pattern, the relative characteristics of the networks, and the user perceived value of time. Using current industry network parameters, we study the performance of the proposed prefetching algorithm. Our numerical results show how user mobility and the heterogeneous network configuration significantly alter the prefetching threshold. The performance of this algorithm is compared with that of a static prefetching algorithm, demonstrating that mobility-aware prefetching can significantly improve the performance of future-generation heterogeneous wireless networks.
A Pure Object-Oriented Embedding of Attribute Grammars

Attribute grammars are a powerful specification paradigm for many language processing tasks, particularly semantic analysis of programming languages. Recent attribute grammar systems use dynamic scheduling algorithms to evaluate attributes by need. In this paper, we show how to remove the need for a generator, by embedding a dynamic approach in a modern, object-oriented programming language to implement a small, lightweight attribute grammar library. The Kiama attribution library has similar features to current generators, including cached, uncached, circular, higher-order and parameterised attributes, and implements new techniques for dynamic extension and variation of attribute equations. We use the Scala programming language because of its combination of object-oriented and functional features, support for domain-specific notations and emphasis on scalability. Unlike generators with specialised notation, Kiama attribute grammars use standard Scala notations such as pattern-matching functions for equations and mixins for composition. A performance analysis shows that our approach is practical for realistic language processing.
Quantification of five neuropsychological approaches to defining mild cognitive impairment.

OBJECTIVES
Operational definitions of cognitive impairment have varied widely in diagnosing mild cognitive impairment (MCI). Identifying clinical subtypes of MCI has further challenged diagnostic approaches because varying the components of the objective cognitive assessment can significantly impact diagnosis. Therefore, the authors investigated the applicability of diagnostic criteria for clinical subtypes of MCI in a naturalistic research sample of community elders and quantified the variability in diagnostic outcomes that results from modifying the neuropsychological definition of objective cognitive impairment.


DESIGN
Cross-sectional and longitudinal study.


SETTING
San Diego, CA, Veterans Administration Hospital.


PARTICIPANTS
Ninety nondemented, neurologically normal, community-dwelling older adults were initially assessed and 73 were seen for follow-up approximately 17 months later.


MEASUREMENTS
Participants were classified via consensus diagnosis as either normally aging or having MCI via each of the five diagnostic strategies, which varied the cutoff for objective impairment and the number of neuropsychological tests considered in the diagnostic process.


RESULTS
A range of differences in the percentages identified as MCI versus cognitively normal were demonstrated, ranging from 10-74%, depending on the classification criteria used. A substantial minority of individuals demonstrated diagnostic instability over time and across diagnostic approaches. The single domain nonamnestic subtype diagnosis was particularly unstable (e.g., prone to reclassification as normal at follow up).


CONCLUSION
Our findings provide empirical support for a neuropsychologically derived operational definition of clinical subtypes of MCI and point to the importance of using comprehensive neuropsychological assessments. Diagnoses, particularly involving nonamnestic MCI, were variable over time. The applicability and utility of this particular MCI subtype warrants further investigation.
“ Affetto ” : towards a design of robots who can physically interact with people , which biases the perception of affinity ( beyond “ uncanny ” ) *

This article presents the upper-torso design issue of Affeto who can physically interact with humans, which biases the perception of affinity beyond the uncanny valley effect. First, we review the effect and hypothesize that the experience of physical interaction with Affetto decreases the effect. Then, the reality of physical existence is argued with existing platforms. Next, the design concept and a very preliminary experiment are shown. Finally, future issues are given. I. THE UNCANNY VALLEY REVISITED The term “Uncanny” is a translation of Freud’s term “Der Unheimliche” and applied to a phenomenon noted by Masahiro Mori who mentioned that the presence of movement steepens the slopes of the uncanny valley (Figure 2 in [1]). Several studies on this effect can be summarised as follows1. 1) Multimodal impressions such as visual appearance, body motion, sounds (speech and others), and tactile sensation should be congruent to decrease the valley steepness. 2) Antipathetic expressions may exaggerate the valley effect. The current technologies enable us to minimize the gap caused by mismatch among cross-modal factors. Therefore, the valley effect is expected to be reduced gradually. For example, facial expressions and tactile sensations of Affetto [2] are realistic and congruent due to baby-like face skin mask of urethane elastomer gel (See Figure 1). Generated facial expressions almost conquered the uncanny valley. Further, baby-like facial expressions may contribute to the reduction of the valley effect due to 2). In addition to these, we suppose that the motor experience of physical interactions with robots biases the perception of affinity as motor experiences biases the perception of movements [3]. To verify this hypothesis, Affetto needs its body which realizes physical interactions naturally. The rest of this article is organized as follows. The next section argues about the reality of physical existence with existing platforms. Then, the design concept and a very preliminary experiment are shown, and the future issues are given.