LLukas22/scidocs huggingface dataset:
Hepatitis B surface antigen quantification: why and how to use it in 2011 - a core group report.

Quantitative HBsAg had been suggested to be helpful in management of HBV, but assays were cumbersome. The recent availability of commercial quantitative assays has restarted the interest in quantitative serum hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) as a biomarker for prognosis and treatment response in chronic hepatitis B. HBsAg level reflects the transcriptional activity of cccDNA rather than the absolute amount of cccDNA copies. Serum HBsAg level tends to be higher in hepatitis B e antigen (HBeAg)-positive than HBeAg-negative patients. Among patients with a low HBV DNA (<2000IU/ml), HBsAg <1000IU/ml in genotype D HBV infection and HBsAg <100IU/ml in genotype B/C HBV infection is associated with inactive carrier state in HBeAg-negative patients. The HBsAg reduction by nucleos(t)ide analogues (NA) is not as pronounced as by interferon treatment. On peginterferon treatment, sustained responders tend to show greater HBsAg decline than the non-responders. The optimal on-treatment HBsAg cutoff to predict response needs further evaluation in HBeAg-positive patients, but an absence of HBsAg decline together with a <2 log reduction in HBV DNA at week 12 can serve as stopping rule in HBeAg-negative patients with genotype D HBV infection. A rapid serum HBsAg decline during NA therapy may identify patients who will clear HBsAg in the long-term. There are early reports among Asian patients that an HBsAg level of <100IU/ml might predict lower risk of relapse after stopping NA treatment. In clinical practice, serum HBsAg level should be used together with, but not as a substitute for, HBV DNA.
Public policy making in a post-apartheid South Africa: A preliminary perspective

This article discusses public policy making in South Africa since the end of apartheid in 1994, concentrating on ‘nation building’. Contrary to the characterisation and conclusions reached by Luiz (2002) and Wenzel (2007), among others, on the South African public service and public policy making and associated ‘outcomes’, this article concludes that public policy making in South Africa has been undertaken relatively well and that the consequent ‘results’ are commendable. It presents a preliminary perspective on public policy making in South Africa, describing relevant institutions (including non-state actors) and highlighting some high-level ‘outcomes’ of the South African policy-making approach, as well as presenting some broad views on developments taking place with regard to nation building.
Influence of surface treatment on osseointegration of dental implants: histological, histomorphometric and radiological analysis in vivo

The aim of this article is to compare the influence of surface treatment on the integration (at 2, 4 and 8 weeks) of 120 dental implants inserted in 60 tibiae of rabbits. Four different surfaces were double-blind tested: blasted, acid-etched and discrete crystal deposition (DCD) (group A); blasted (group B); acid-etched (group C) and blasted and acid-etched (group D). Bone-to-implant contact plus reverse torque and bone level were measured at the time of implant insertion and at 14, 28 and 56 days of healing. Group A showed the highest early and late bone-to-implant contact (BIC) values: 40.8 ± 2.3 % at 14 days decreasing to 27.7 ± 1.1 % after 28 days and 39.4 ± 1.4 % at 56 days. For group B, the average BIC values at 14, 28 and 56 days were 23.34 ± 2.1, 23.77 ± 1.9 and 29.47 ± 1.7 %, respectively. Group C showed a value of 25.72 ± 2.3 % after 14 days of integration, 34.92 ± 2.2 % at 28 days and 32.91 ± 1.6 % at 56 days. Group D showed a BIC value of 32 ± 2.5 % at 14 days, 32.85 ± 1.4 % at 28 days and 34.04 ± 2.3 % at 56 days. In the scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analysis, no statistically significant differences were found. The Ca/P ratio values were 1.762 for surface A, 1.625 for surface B, 1.663 for surface C and finally 1.722 for surface D. Therefore, we conclude that even if there seems to be a tendency to obtain better BIC results with surface A (blasted-etched and covered with hydroxyapatite (HA)), no statistical differences were obtained in this study. The study shows the influence of different implant surfaces in increasing osseointegation for immediate loading implants.
[ 151 ] Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale—fourth Edition Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale—fourth Edition

scores at high levels of adaptive functioning will have poorer precision (i.e., higher SEMs) than those at low levels. SUMMARY. The Vineland–II was designed to be an easily used, standardized measure of key domains of adaptive behavior–Communication, Daily Living Skills, and Socialization–that play a prominent role in the diagnosis of mental retardation and other developmental disabilities. The instrument clearly meets its goals of ease of use, clear procedures for the calculation of both raw and scaled scores, and clear and comprehensive information regarding its reliability and validity. The Vineland–II deserves to be considered among the best measures of adaptive behavior currently available, and the use of this instrument for making high-stakes decisions regarding individuals is recommended. Purpose: " Designed to assess the cognitive ability of adolescents and adults " ; " provides subtest and composite scores that represent intellectual functioning in specific cognitive domains, as well as a composite score that represents general intellectual ability. " Population: Ages 16-0 to 90-11. DESCRIPTION. The Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Fourth Edition (WAIS-IV) is the most recent version of the most frequently administered intelligence test for older adolescents and adults, which traces its roots back to the 1939 Wechsler-Bellevue Intelligence Scale (Wechsler, 1939). Consistent with Wechsler's definition of intelligence (i.e., " global capacity " ; Wechsler, 1939, p. 229) and all versions of his tests, the WAIS-IV seeks to measure general intelligence through the administration of numerous subtests, each of which is an indicator and estimate of intelligence. The WAIS-IV is a major and important revision of its predecessor and clinicians should appreciate many of the changes. DEVELOPMENT. In revising the WAIS-IV, several goals were noted in the technical and interpretive manual including updating theoretical foundations, increasing developmental appropriate-ness, increasing user-friendliness, enhancing clinical utility, and improving psychometric features. Object Assembly and Picture Arrangement subtests were dropped, thus reducing subtests with manipula-tive objects to one (Block Design), as were Digit Symbol-Incidental Learning and Digit Symbol-Copy. New subtests to the WAIS-IV are Visual Puzzles, Figure Weights, and Cancellation. Verbal IQ (VIQ) and Performance IQ (PIQ) are no longer provided as with the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children–Fourth Edition (WISC-IV; 16:262). Administration and scoring rules were modified, easier and more difficult items were added to subtests to improve coverage and range, and discontinue rules were reduced for many subtests. Stimulus materials were enlarged as was writing space for Coding. Item bias investigations were reportedly conducted but data …
Posttraumatic stress disorder and depression among new mothers at 8 months later of the 2008 Sichuan earthquake in China

On May 12, 2008, a magnitude 8.0 earthquake struck China's southwestern Sichuan province. Recent studies have identified mental health problems among the survivors, but little is known about the impact of the Sichuan earthquake on the mental health of new mothers in the area. The main objective was to assess the impact of the Sichuan earthquake on the posttraumatic stress disorders (PTSD) and depression of new mothers. A total of 317 new mothers were interviewed in the hospital from January 2009 to March 2009. Symptoms of PTSD were measured using the impact of event scale-revised, and symptoms of postpartum depression were measured using the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression scale. The prevalence rates of PTSD and postpartum depression were 19.9% and 29.0%, respectively. Women with high earthquake exposure had higher risks of PTSD (odds ratio (OR), 5.91; 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.75–19.97; P < 0.001) and postpartum depression (OR, 7.28; 95% CI, 2.51–21.08; P < 0.001) than women without earthquake experience. In addition, women with low monthly family income and farm workers had a higher risk of having PTSD; women who were unemployed or with lower monthly family income and poor sleep had a higher risk of having depression. Earthquake experience increased the risks of having PTSD and depression among new mothers at 8 months later of the earthquake.
Mining community and inferring friendship in mobile social networks

Along with the rapidly growth of mobile terminals and wireless technologies, mobile social networking services are very popular with peoples. Recently many mobile social platforms based on location-based service are developed to allow users to share their check-ins and events with friends. Check-ins data in location-based mobile social networks, as well as call detail records (CDR) in mobile communication network may provide insight into community structure, relationships and members in the network. In this paper, we study the problem of community detection and friendship prediction in mobile social networks. We have presented a method to find community structure built on combination entropy, and evaluate modularity of a virtual campus mobile network (V-Net). The outcomes demonstrate that the proposed algorithm mine meaningful communities according to users’ registration. We investigate the potential friendship among users by taking into account both users’ links with friends and their check-ins at various positions in Gowalla. This work describes the probability distributions of friendships per number of friends, number of check-ins and number of visited places. The findings confirm that our approaches achieve well performance with aggregated features of user similarity and place entropy than other methods. Moreover, members reveal different social properties in the two networks, in the V-Net influence users tend to hold community together, while in Gowalla community members are likely to visit the common positions.
Regulation of soluble guanylyl cyclase by phosphorylation

Results In vitro kinase assays revealed that the α1, but not the β1, subunit of sGC is a PKG substrate and that the phosphorylation site is located within the first 360 residues of the α1. A constitutively active form of PKG stimulated incorporation of 32P into the α1 subunit in vivo. In addition, PKG could be detected in sGC immunoprecipitates, suggesting that the two proteins interact in cells. Serine to alanine mutation of putative PKG sites revealed that Ser64 is the main phosphorylation site for PKG. After generating a phospho-specific antibody for Ser64, we could demonstrate that phosphorylation of endogenous sGC on Ser64 increases in cells and tissues exposed to NO. Phosphorylation of sGC in cells following SNP stimulation was blocked by the peptide inhibitor of PKG, DT-3. Wild-type (wt) sGC when co-expressed in COS cells with a constitutively active form of PKG exhibited lower basal and NOstimulated cGMP accumulation. In contrast, the S64A α1/ β1 sGC was resistant to the PKG-induced reduction in activity. Moreover, co-cultures of endothelial cells with smooth muscle expressing a phosphorylation-resistant form of sGC, exhibited higher levels of cGMP (both basally and following stimulation with bradykinin) compared to co-cultures expressing wild-type sGC. Phosphorylation of the α1 subunit did not alter its ability to form heterodimers with β1. Using purified sGC and mutants, we observed that the S64D α1 phosphomimetic/β1 dimer exhibited lower Vmax; moreover, the decrease in Km after NO stimulation was less pronounced in S64D α1/β1 compared to wt sGC. Expression of a phosphorylation deficient form of sGC showed reduced desensitization to acute NO exposure and allowed for greater VASP phosphorylation.
Autonomy, competence, and relatedness in the classroom: Applying self-determination theory to educational practice

Autonomy, competence, and relatedness in the classroom Applying self-determination theory to educational practice a b s t r a c t Self-determination theory (SDT) assumes that inherent in human nature is the propensity to be curious about one's environment and interested in learning and developing one's knowledge. All too often, however, educators introduce external controls into learning climates, which can undermine the sense of relatedness between teachers and students, and stifle the natural, volitional processes involved in high-quality learning. This article presents an overview of SDT and reviews its applications to educational practice. A large corpus of empirical evidence based on SDT suggests that both intrinsic motivation and autonomous types of extrinsic motivation are conducive to engagement and optimal learning in educational con texts. In addition, evidence suggests that teachers' support of students' basic psychological needs for autonomy, competence, and relatedness facilitates stud-ents' autonomous self-regulation for learning, academic performance, and well-being. Accordingly, SDT has strong implications for both classroom practice and educational reform policies. Inherent in human nature is the proactive tendency to engage one's physical and social surroundings and to assimilate ambient values and cultural practices. That is, people are innately curious, interested creatures who possess a natural love of learning and who desire to internalize the knowledge, customs , and values that surround them. These evolved tendencies to be curious
IT doesn't matter

This publication contains reprint articles for which IEEE does not hold copyright. Full text is not available on IEEE Xplore for these articles.
2 Machine Learning Methods for Computer Security 1 Executive Summary

The study of learning in adversarial environments is an emerging discipline at the juncture between machine learning and computer security. The interest in learning-based methods for securityand system-design applications comes from the high degree of complexity of phenomena underlying the security and reliability of computer systems. As it becomes increasingly difficult to reach the desired properties solely using statically designed mechanisms, learning methods are being used more and more to obtain a better understanding of various data collected from these complex systems. However, learning approaches can be evaded by adversaries, who change their behavior in response to the learning methods. To-date, there has been limited research into learning techniques that are resilient to attacks with provable robustness guarantees The Perspectives Workshop, “Machine Learning Methods for Computer Security” was convened to bring together interested researchers from both the computer security and machine learning communities to discuss techniques, challenges, and future research directions for secure learning and learning-based security applications. As a result of the twenty-two invited presentations, workgroup sessions and informal discussion, several priority areas of research were identified. The open problems identified in the field ranged from traditional applications of machine learning in security, such as attack detection and analysis of malicious software, to methodological issues related to secure learning, especially the development of new formal approaches with provable security guarantees. Finally a number of other potential applications were pinpointed outside of the traditional scope of computer security in which security issues may also arise in connection with data-driven methods. Examples of such applications are social media spam, plagiarism detection, authorship identification, copyright enforcement, computer vision (particularly in the context of biometrics), and sentiment analysis. Perspectives Workshop 09.–14. September, 2012 – www.dagstuhl.de/12371 1998 ACM Subject Classification C.2.0 Computer-Communication Networks (General): Security and Protection (e.g., firewalls), D.4.6 Operating Systems (Security and Protection), I.2.6 Artificial Intelligence (Learning), I.2.7 Artificial Intelligence (Natural Language Processing), I.2.8 Artificial Intelligence (Problem Solving, Control Methods, and Search), K.4.1 Computers and Society (Public Policy Issues): Privacy, K.6.5 Management of Computing and Information Systems (Security and Protection)
Experimental and Theoretical Investigations of Intensity-Modulation and Direct-Detection Optical Fast-OFDM Over MMF-Links

We demonstrate the first experimental implementation of a 3.9-Gb/s differential binary phase-shift keying (DBPSK)-based double sideband (DSB) optical fast orthogonal frequency-division-multiplexing (FOFDM) system with a reduced subcarrier spacing equal to half the symbol rate over 300 m of multimode fiber (MMF) using intensity-modulation and direct-detection (IM/DD). The required received optical power at a bit-error rate (BER) of 10-3 was measured to be ~-14.2 dBm with a receiver sensitivity penalty of only ~0.2 dB when compared to the back-to-back case. Experimental results agree very well with the theoretical predictions.
Inter-rater reliability and validity of the action research arm test in stroke patients.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE
The Action Research arm test (ARAT) was constructed for assessing recovery of upper extremity function after cortical injury. The objective of the study was to verify the inter-rater reliability and validity of the ARAT in stroke patients.


METHODS
50 stroke patients participated in the study. For the purpose of inter-rater study, the ARAT was administered by three experienced raters on each patient within a 3-day period. Validity was assessed by comparing the patients' scores on the ARAT with those obtained for the other well-validated measurements evaluating upper extremity motor impairment and disability.


RESULTS
Intra-class correlation coefficient (ICC) for the total score was 0.98 indicating very high inter-rater reliability. ICCs were also very high in each of the subscales. The score of the ARAT was closely correlated with that of the upper extremity part of the motor assessment scale, the arm sub-score of the motricity index and the upper extremity movements of the modified motor assessment chart (Pearson r = 0.96, 0.87 and 0.94, respectively).


CONCLUSION
The preliminary results of this study support the value of the ARAT for measuring recovery of arm-hand function in stroke patients.
Effect of high flow oxygen on mortality in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease patients in prehospital setting: randomised controlled trial

OBJECTIVES
To compare standard high flow oxygen treatment with titrated oxygen treatment for patients with an acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease in the prehospital setting.


DESIGN
Cluster randomised controlled parallel group trial.


SETTING
Ambulance service in Hobart, Tasmania, Australia.


PARTICIPANTS
405 patients with a presumed acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease who were treated by paramedics, transported, and admitted to the Royal Hobart Hospital during the trial period; 214 had a diagnosis of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease confirmed by lung function tests in the previous five years.


INTERVENTIONS
High flow oxygen treatment compared with titrated oxygen treatment in the prehospital (ambulance/paramedic) setting.


MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE
Prehospital or in-hospital mortality.


RESULTS
In an intention to treat analysis, the risk of death was significantly lower in the titrated oxygen arm compared with the high flow oxygen arm for all patients (high flow oxygen n=226; titrated oxygen n=179) and for the subgroup of patients with confirmed chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (high flow n=117; titrated n=97). Overall mortality was 9% (21 deaths) in the high flow oxygen arm compared with 4% (7 deaths) in the titrated oxygen arm; mortality in the subgroup with confirmed chronic obstructive pulmonary disease was 9% (11 deaths) in the high flow arm compared with 2% (2 deaths) in the titrated oxygen arm. Titrated oxygen treatment reduced mortality compared with high flow oxygen by 58% for all patients (relative risk 0.42, 95% confidence interval 0.20 to 0.89; P=0.02) and by 78% for the patients with confirmed chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (0.22, 0.05 to 0.91; P=0.04). Patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease who received titrated oxygen according to the protocol were significantly less likely to have respiratory acidosis (mean difference in pH 0.12 (SE 0.05); P=0.01; n=28) or hypercapnia (mean difference in arterial carbon dioxide pressure -33.6 (16.3) mm Hg; P=0.02; n=29) than were patients who received high flow oxygen.


CONCLUSIONS
Titrated oxygen treatment significantly reduced mortality, hypercapnia, and respiratory acidosis compared with high flow oxygen in acute exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. These results provide strong evidence to recommend the routine use of titrated oxygen treatment in patients with breathlessness and a history or clinical likelihood of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease in the prehospital setting.


TRIAL REGISTRATION
Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Register ACTRN12609000236291.
Antinociceptive, antipyretic, and anti-inflammatory activities of Putranjiva roxburghii Wall. leaf extract in experimental animals

The effects of the ether extract from the leaves of Putranjiva roxburghii (P. roxburghii) Wall. were assessed on nociceptive responses in mice by using writhing, hot plate, and formalin tests and the antipyretic activity was determined in yeast-induced fever in rats. Anti-inflammatory activities were also investigated using carrageenin-induced paw edema in rats and croton oil-induced ear and anus edemas. The ether extract (100, 200, and 400 mg/kg, p.o.) of P. roxburghii dose-dependently produced analgesic activity in acetic acid-induced writhing in mice. The extract had no significant effect in the hot plate test in mice. At the dose of 400 mg/kg, the extract significantly suppressed the licking activity in the late phase of the formalin test in mice and decreased fever induced by yeast in rats. The extract exhibited moderate inhibitory activity of inflammation in carrageenin-induced paw edema in rats. The extract inhibited croton oil-induced ear edema in a dose-dependent manner (1.25, 2.5, and 5.0 mg/ear) in mice. The extract decreased anus edema induced by croton oil at the high dose of 800 mg/kg in rats. The results indicated that the ether extract of P. roxburghii leaves possesses analgesic, antipyretic, and anti-inflammatory activities.