Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Evaluation of hsp65 Nested PCR-Restriction Analysis (PRA) for Diagnosing Tuberculosis in a High Burden Country

Current study evaluated the hsp65 Nested PCR Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism Analysis (hsp65 Nested PCR-PRA) to detect and identify Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex directly in clinical samples for a rapid and specific diagnosis of tuberculosis (TB). hsp65 Nested PCR-PRA was applied directly to 218 clinical samples obtained from 127 patients suspected of TB or another mycobacterial infection from July 2009 to July 2010. The hsp65 Nested PCR-PRA showed 100% sensitivity and 95.0 and 93.1% specificity in comparison with culture and microscopy (acid fast bacillus smear), respectively. hsp65 Nested PCR-PRA was shown to be a fast and reliable assay for diagnosing TB, which may contribute towards a fast diagnosis that could help the selection of appropriate chemotherapeutic and early epidemiological management of the cases which are of paramount importance in a high TB burden country.
Painful faces-induced attentional blink modulated by top–down and bottom–up mechanisms

Pain-related stimuli can capture attention in an automatic (bottom–up) or intentional (top–down) fashion. Previous studies have examined attentional capture by pain-related information using spatial attention paradigms that involve mainly a bottom–up mechanism. In the current study, we investigated the pain information-induced attentional blink (AB) using a rapid serial visual presentation (RSVP) task, and compared the effects of task-irrelevant and task-relevant pain distractors. Relationships between accuracy of target identification and individual traits (i.e., empathy and catastrophizing thinking about pain) were also examined. The results demonstrated that task-relevant painful faces had a significant pain information-induced AB effect, whereas task-irrelevant faces showed a near-significant trend of this effect, supporting the notion that pain-related stimuli can influence the temporal dynamics of attention. Furthermore, we found a significant negative correlation between response accuracy and pain catastrophizing score in task-relevant trials. These findings suggest that active scanning of environmental information related to pain produces greater deficits in cognition than does unintentional attention toward pain, which may represent the different ways in which healthy individuals and patients with chronic pain process pain-relevant information. These results may provide insight into the understanding of maladaptive attentional processing in patients with chronic pain.
The Impact of EFL Teachers' Mediation in Wiki-Mediated Collaborative Writing Activities on Student-Student Collaboration.

This paper focuses on how teachers mediate wiki collaborative writing activities, and the impact of their mediations on students’ collaboration. It is based on a study conducted with three English as a Foreign Language (EFL) teachers and their students (aged 17-18 years) at two government-funded girls’ high schools in Kuwait. The selected groups of students, supported by their class teachers, carried out wiki collaborative writing activities over a period of eight weeks. The writing activities were tracked from conception to completion, by closely analysing the wiki discussion and edits, in order to explore the process of interaction. This was triangulated with interview data with teachers and students to gain deeper insights. The results show that, despite the fact that all groups of learners and teachers received a similar type of training and worked on the same activity, there were some variations in the level of their collaboration. Teachers played an essential role in shaping the way that learners collaborated; i.e. some teachers’ behaviours promoted collaboration, while others hindered it. Although it can be acknowledged that the wiki is a powerful tool for student-centred collaborative writing, it can also be argued that the role of the teacher is indispensable, and the right kind of teacher intervention is critical to the success of collaborative writing, especially in educational contexts that are similar to Kuwaiti schools. Therefore, professional training is required in order to raise teachers’ awareness of effective pedagogy in supporting wiki-mediated collaborative writing activities.
LARGE TIME ASYMPTOTICS OF NONLINEAR DRIFT-DIFFUSION SYSTEMS WITH POISSON COUPLING

We study the asymptotic behavior as t→ +∞ of a system of densities of charged particles satisfying nonlinear drift-diffusion equations coupled by a damped Poisson equation for the drift-potential. In plasma physics applications the damping is caused by a spatio-temporal rescaling of an “unconfined” problem, which introduces a harmonic external potential of confinement. We present formal calculations (valid for smooth solutions) which extend the results known in the linear diffusion case to nonlinear diffusion of e.g. Fermi–Dirac or fast diffusion/porous media type.
The medial division of the medial geniculate body of the cat: implications for thalamic organization

The structure of neurons and axons was studied in the medial division of the medial geniculate body of the cat with the Golgi methods. The results show that the medial division consists of morphologically heterogeneous neurons. The main types, in descending order of frequency, are medium-sized neurons with (1) radiate, (2) tufted, or (3) elongate dendrites; (4) small stellate or radiate neurons, including Golgi type II cells with a locally arborizing, sparsely branching axon collateral system; (5) large neurons, which are weakly tufted. A variety of afferent axons impose a reticulate appearance on the fiber architecture of the medial division. The dominant element in the neuropil consists of axons terminating in the medial division as well as a collateral system of fibers traveling to the adjacent ventral and dorsal divisions of the medial geniculate body. Four types of extrinsic axons are described, including two kinds of thin axons with collateral systems, thick fibers with restricted branches, and large axons with elaborate, serpentine collaterals. Compared to the dorsal and ventral divisions of the medial geniculate body, where, respectively, radiate and tufted neurons are more frequent, the medial division is intermediate in a sense-not that the degree of radiate or tufted dendritic branching is less well developed, but neither type of cell predominates. Moreover, all of the cell types are overlapping in distribution, although the large ones tend to be more common rostrally in the medial division. Likewise, there is no clear-cut regional segregation of axonal types. The ascending projections to the medial division originate in many different structures, involving purely auditory tracts from the inferior colliculus, spinal inputs, and pathways from polysensory regions, such as the midbrain tegmentum and deep layers of the superior colliculus. The spinothalamic tract projects most heavily to the rostromedial region of the medial division bordering the ventrobasal complex. The auditory input from the central nucleus of the inferior colliculus tends to project more heavily to the caudolateral region next to the ventral nucleus of the medial geniculate body. However, these inputs overlap in the medial division. Moreover, the pathways from the tegmentum and the superior colliculus have a broad distribution in the medial division. Still other inputs are known, not to mention those from the cerebral cortex and a widespread and complicated pattern of thalamocortical projections. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)
ELECTRIC UTILITY FIRMS

I am deeply grateful to two anonymous SMJ reviewers and Associate Editor, Ed Zajac, for their insightful comments and suggestions which significantly improved this manuscript. In addition, I would like to thank James Cordeiro, Deepak Datta, Yong Min Kim, Julia Liebeskind, Abdul Rasheed, and Gretchen Spreitzer for their helpful comments on earlier drafts of this paper; Mahnaz Sharbati for research assistance; and, John H. Grant and the Strategic Management Institute, University of Pittsburgh for supporting the questionnaire survey which provided partial data for the study.
A performance comparison of Mobile IPv6, hierarchical Mobile IPv6, and Mobile IPv6 regional registrations

IETF proposed mobile IPv6 to address the IP mobility problem in the next generation Internet protocol (IPv6) by which mobile nodes are reachable while roaming in the Internet. Nevertheless, mobile IPv6 is optimized for macro-level mobility. Hence, several micro-mobility (local-area) protocols were proposed for fast moving mobile nodes. We conducted a performance evaluation of mobile IPv6 and its proposed micro-mobility solutions, namely. Hierarchical mobile IPv6 (HMIPv6) and mobile IPv6 regional registrations (RRMIPv6). Our simulations showed that within the local domain, the performance of HMIPv6 and RRMIPv6 are much better than that of MIPv6, that the performances of HMIPv6 and RRMIPv6 are similar (e.g., for packet loss per handoff), and Mobile IPv6 slightly outperforms HMIPv6 and RRMIPv6 at higher mobile node movement rates for TCP bandwidth measurements.
Ex vivo micro-computed tomography analysis of bleomycin-induced lung fibrosis for preclinical drug evaluation

Research into the pathogenesis underlying the development of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis is hampered by a repertoire of animal models that fail to recapitulate all the features of the human disease. Better use and understanding of what the animal models represent may improve clinical predictability. We interrogated ex vivo micro-computed tomography (CT) as a novel end-point measure in the mouse model of bleomycin-induced lung fibrosis (BILF), and to evaluate a therapeutic dosing regimen for preclinical drug evaluation. A detailed characterisation of BILF was performed using standard end-point measures (lung hydroxyproline and histology). High resolution micro-CT (∼13.7 &mgr;m voxel size) was evaluated for quantifying the extent and severity of lung fibrosis. The period from 14 to 28 days following bleomycin instillation represents progression of established fibrosis. A therapeutic dosing regimen during this period was validated using a transforming growth factor-&bgr; receptor-1 kinase inhibitor, and micro-CT provided a highly sensitive and quantitative measure of fibrosis. Moreover, fibrotic lesions did not completely resolve, but instead persisted for ≥6 months following a single insult with bleomycin. Ex vivo micro-CT analysis of BILF allows robust evaluation of therapeutic dosing once fibrosis is already well established, requiring fewer mice than conventional biochemical end-points. Micro-CT has improved out understanding of the bleomycin model of fibrotic lung disease for preclinical drug evaluation http://ow.ly/p73De
Age-Sensitive Effects of Enduring Work with Alternating Cognitive and Physical Load. A Study Applying Mobile EEG in a Real Life Working Scenario

Ergonomic assessment of a workplace requires the evaluation of physical as well as cognitive aspects of a particular working situation. In particular the latter is hardly possible without interfering in the natural setting. Mobile acquisition of neurophysiological measures (such as parameters of the EEG) may close this gap. At a simulated workplace we tracked older and younger participants with mobile EEG during a 4–5 h work shift. They had to perform either a monotonous cognitive task, a self-paced cognitive task or a self-paced physical task in a predefined order. Self assessment, behavioral performance and spectral measures of the EEG (before most alpha power) indicated that younger participants suffered from monotony. Older adults, on the other hand, were overall impaired by inefficient information processing. This was visible in EEG variations time-locked to eye blinks (blink-related synchronizations), a new measure to investigate cognitive processing in real life environments. Thus, we were able to distinguish between active and passive task-related aspects of mental fatigue without impinging on the natural working situation.
WORK PLACE BULLYING ON DEVIANT WORK BEHAVIOR AMONG NURSES IN PAKISTAN: MEDIATING ROLE OF INTERPERSONAL CONFLICT

This study investigates the relationship between workplace bullying, interpersonal conflict and deviant work behavior among nurses in the public sector in Pakistan. For this purpose the data were collected from 277 nurses working in government hospitals by using convenience sampling method. Findings showed that work place bullying results in deviant work behavior among nurses and this relationship is mediated by interpersonal conflict like negative emotional reaction, perceived disagreements and interference from and towards colleagues. The implications of the findings for hospital administrators and directions for future research are provided.
Group Decision Making with Partial Preferences

Group Decision Making with Partial Preferences Tyler Lu Doctor of Philosophy Graduate Department of Computer Science University of Toronto 2015 Group decision making is of fundamental importance in all aspects of a modern society. Many commonly studied decision procedures require that agents provide full preference information. This requirement imposes significant cognitive and time burdens on agents, increases communication overhead, and infringes agent privacy. As a result, specifying full preferences is one of the contributing factors for the limited real-world adoption of some commonly studied voting rules. In this dissertation, we introduce a framework consisting of new concepts, algorithms, and theoretical results to provide a sound foundation on which we can address these problems by being able to make group decisions with only partial preference information. In particular, we focus on single and multi-winner voting. We introduce minimax regret (MMR), a group decision-criterion for partial preferences, which quantifies the loss in social welfare of chosen alternative(s) compared to the unknown, but true winning alternative(s). We develop polynomial-time algorithms for the computation of MMR for a number of common of voting rules, and prove intractability results for other rules. We address preference elicitation, the second part of our framework, which concerns the extraction of only the relevant agent preferences that reduce MMR. We develop a few elicitation strategies, based on common ideas, for different voting rules and query types. While MMR can be applied in a distribution-free context, in many practical environments decision makers have access to historical datasets of, and probabilistic knowledge of agent preferences. To leverage such information, we first address the problem of learning probabilistic models of preferences from pairwise comparisons—the building block
Effect of Saffron (Fan Hong Hua) On the Readiness of The Uterine Cervix In Term Pregnancy: A Placebo-Controlled Randomized Trial

Background Readiness of the cervix is required for successful induction of labor, and there are a number of ways in which this can be achieved. Objectives The aim of the present study was to assess whether taking saffron orally could have an effect on the cervical readiness (primary outcome) and some delivery and neonatal outcomes (secondary outcomes) in women in the stage of term pregnancy. Patients and Methods In this double-blind trial, 50 women with a gestational age of 39 to 41 weeks, no indication of cesarean section, a Bishop’s score of less than 4, who had plan to have vaginal delivery at Shohada hospital of Bonab, Iran were randomized into two groups receiving three 250mg saffron or placebo pills in 24 hours. The readiness of the cervix was assessed using the Bishop’s score. The Mann-Whitney U test was used to compare the scores between the groups. Results There were no significant differences between the groups in terms of the Bishop’s score at the baseline (P = 0.792) and 10-12 hours after starting the intervention (P = 0.159). The Bishop’s score was significantly higher in the saffron group 20 - 24 hours after the intervention was started (P = 0.029) and just after onset of active uterine contractions (P = 0.003). In the saffron group, there was no cesarean section and 1 meconium staining of the fetus, but 3 and 4, respectively, in the placebo group. There was no statistically significant difference between the groups in terms of the timing of the onset of spontaneous active uterine contractions, the duration of the first and second stages of labor, the need for delivery augmentation, and the first and fifth minutes of neonatal Apgar (P > 0.05). No adverse event was reported in any of the groups. Conclusions Saffron can increase the readiness of the cervix in term pregnancies. However, the study limitations do not allow for any definite conclusions for its use in clinical practice, and more research is needed to assess its effect on delivery and neonatal outcomes.
LES algorithm for turbulent reactive flows simulation

The paper presents the development and implementation of a Large Eddy Simulation numerical algorithm for simulating turbulent reactive flows. The numerical algorithm is based on a 5 step modified Runge - Kutta numerical scheme with a dual time stepping numerical convergence acceleration technique, and employs a Localized Dynamic Turbulent Kinetic Energy turbulence model. The chemical reaction part of the algorithm is handled by a Linear Eddy Mixing combustion model. The paper described in brief the numerical algorithm, the turbulence model and the combustion model, highlighting the improvements they bring to the numerical solution in terms of accuracy and suitability to real life combustion problems. The algorithm validation is also performed, by comparison to experimental data and the literature and the superior algorithm accuracy is highlighted by comparison to numerical data resulting from previous numerical studies. The algorithm presented here is, to the knowledge of the authors, the first such complex implementation on Romania and will be used by Romanian researchers to tackle complex turbulent combustion problems with state-of-the-art methods and computational tools.
Association between online social networking and depression in high school students: behavioral physiology viewpoint.

BACKGROUND Frequent use of Facebook and other social networks is thought to be associated with certain behavioral changes, and some authors have expressed concerns about its possible detrimental effect on mental health. In this work, we investigated the relationship between social networking and depression indicators in adolescent population. SUBJECTS AND METHODS Total of 160 high school students were interviewed using an anonymous, structured questionnaire and Back Depression Inventory - second edition (BDI-II-II). Apart from BDI-II-II, students were asked to provide the data for height and weight, gender, average daily time spent on social networking sites, average time spent watching TV, and sleep duration in a 24-hour period. RESULTS Average BDI-II-II score was 8.19 (SD=5.86). Average daily time spent on social networking was 1.86 h (SD=2.08 h), and average time spent watching TV was 2.44 h (SD=1.74 h). Average body mass index of participants was 21.84 (SD=3.55) and average sleep duration was 7.37 (SD=1.82). BDI-II-II score indicated minimal depression in 104 students, mild depression in 46 students, and moderate depression in 10 students. Statistically significant positive correlation (p<0.05, R=0.15) was found between BDI-II-II score and the time spent on social networking. CONCLUSIONS Our results indicate that online social networking is related to depression. Additional research is required to determine the possible causal nature of this relationship.
How well can adolescents really judge risk? Simple, self reported risk factors out-predict teens’ self estimates of personal risk

Recent investigations of adolescents’ beliefs about risk have led to surprisingly optimistic conclusions: Teens’ self estimates of their likelihood of experiencing various life events not only correlate sensibly with relevant risk factors (Fischhoff et al., 2000), but they also significantly predict later experiencing the events (Bruine de Bruin et al., 2007). Using the same dataset examined in previous investigations, the present study extended these analyses by comparing the predictive value of self estimates of risk to that of traditional risk factors for each outcome. The analyses focused on the prediction of pregnancy, criminal arrest, and school enrollment. Three findings emerged. First, traditional risk factor information tended to out-predict self assessments of risk, even when the risk factors included crude, potentially unreliable measures (e.g., a simple tally of self-reported criminal history) and when the risk factors were aggregated in a nonoptimal way (i.e., unit weighting). Second, despite the previously reported correlations between self estimates and outcomes, perceived invulnerability was a problem among the youth: Over half of the teens who became pregnant, half of those who were not enrolled in school, and nearly a third of those who were arrested had, one year earlier, indicated a 0% chance of experiencing these outcomes. Finally, adding self estimates of risk to the other risk factor information produced only small gains in predictive accuracy. These analyses point to the need for greater education about the situations and behaviors that lead to negative outcomes.
Beliefs towards sales promotion technique: the perspective of Malaysia emerging market

The purpose of this study is to determine the general behavioural and normative beliefs towards preferred sales promotion technique from the perspective of Malaysian consumers. Behavioural and normative beliefs towards preferred sales promotion technique are investigated so as to determine what contributes to attitude and subsequently behavioural intention towards a preferred sales promotion technique. This study utilised a two-stage methodologies, in which the first stage used an exploratory elicitation design and the second stage utilised a quantitative approach using descriptive and partial least square structural equation modelling. The findings from the second stage validate the findings from the earlier exploratory study stage conducted. The findings from this study have expanded the current knowledge and academic studies done on similar areas of research, where this research details the association of behavioural beliefs, normative beliefs of preferred sales promotion technique on consumers' attitude and behavioural intention towards it. This study suggests to managers in Malaysia that it is crucial to understand their customers' behavioural and normative beliefs towards preferred sales promotion technique for better market segmentation and targeting. This study is the first of its type where only a minimal number of studies have looked into these issues (behavioural beliefs, normative beliefs of preferred sales promotion technique) from a business perspective. This study therefore articulates the present view of preferred sales promotion technique within an emerging market such as Malaysia, and its implication to academia and business.