Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Breast Cancer Risk in Relation to the Interval Between Menopause and Starting Hormone Therapy

Background Although breast cancer risk is greater in users of estrogen–progestin than estrogen-only formulations of menopausal hormonal therapy, reports on their effects have been somewhat inconsistent. We investigated whether the timing of these therapies affected breast cancer incidence. Methods A total of 1 129 025 postmenopausal UK women provided prospective information on hormonal therapy use and other factors relevant for breast cancer risk. We used Cox regression to estimate adjusted relative risks (RRs) of breast cancer in hormonal therapy users vs never users and calculated standardized incidence rates. All statistical tests were two-sided. Results During 4.05 million woman-years of follow-up, 15 759 incident breast cancers occurred, with 7107 in current users of hormonal therapy. Breast cancer incidence was increased in current users of hormonal therapy, returning to that of never users a few years after use had ceased. The relative risks for breast cancer in current users were greater if hormonal therapy was begun before or soon after menopause than after a longer gap (Pheterogeneity < .001, for both estrogen-only and estrogen-progestin formulations). Among current users of estrogen-only formulations, there was little or no increase in risk if use began 5 years or more after menopause (RR = 1.05, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.89 to 1.24), but risk was statistically significantly increased if use began before or less than 5 years after menopause (RR = 1.43, 95% CI = 1.35 to 1.51). A similar pattern was observed among current users of estrogen–progestin formulations (RR = 1.53, 95% CI = 1.38 to 1.70, and RR = 2.04, 95% CI = 1.95 to 2.14, respectively). At 50–59 years of age, annual standardized incidence rates for breast cancer were 0.30% (95% CI = 0.29% to 0.31%) among never users of hormone therapy and 0.43% (95% CI = 0.42% to 0.45%) and 0.61% (95% CI = 0.59% to 0.64%), respectively, among current users of estrogen-only and estrogen–progestin formulations who began use less than 5 years after menopause. Conclusions There was substantial heterogeneity in breast cancer risk among current users of hormonal therapy. Risks were greater among users of estrogen–progestin than estrogen-only formulations and if hormonal therapy started at around the time of menopause than later.
Reasons And Real Selves

Most accounts of responsibility begin from either of two prominent points of departure: the idea that an agent must have some characterological or expressive connection to the action, or alternately, the idea that an agent must be in some sense responsive to reasons. Here, I will argue that the relation between these two approaches to moral responsibility is much more complicated than is ordinarily assumed. I shall argue that there are reasons to think that one of these views may ultimately collapse into the other, and if not, that there is nevertheless reason to think one of these views has misidentified the features of agency relevant to moral responsibility. The view that follows is one that we might call the primacy of reasons . In the second half of the article I consider whether recent experimental work speaks in favor of the alternative to the primacy of reasons. Its proponents argue that it does. I argue that it does not.
A FAST CONVOLUTION ALGORITHM FOR BIORTHOGONAL WAVELET IMAGE COMPRESSION †

Symmetric filters and symmetric extension of image edges have been widely used in wavelet image compression. Since the filters are symmetric, it is possible to take advantage of the symmetric property to reduce the computational complexity for the filtering. In this paper, we present a fast convolution algorithm for the discrete wavelet transform (DWT) and the inverse DWT (IDWT) such that the transform time can be greatly reduced. Compared with regular convolution, the new algorithm can decrease the multiplication operations by nearly one half. Converted into real programming, it sped up the DWT and IDWT in our experiments by at least 12% and 55%, respectively. Incorporated with enhancing zerotree coding, the proposed algorithm results in a rapid and efficient coder. Experimental results showed that the coder is competitive with other high performance coders. The proposed convolution algorithm is also suitable for many types of wavelet-based coding, including wavelet video coding.
Consensual and Conflictual Democratization

Abstract This paper studies the interactions between democratization and the emergence of rule of law. We propose a model in which heterogeneous individuals can make costly investments to protect their income against expropriation. The public enforcement of property rights is chosen by the enfranchised population whose composition depends on the political regime in place. We characterize the politico-economic equilibria in terms of property rights protection and political regime, and study the role of the different scenarios of democratization. The results suggest: (i) unequal control of natural resources is a central structural determinant of the democratization scenario; (ii) democratic transitions under conflict may lead to failed democracies with poor rule of law; (iii) that democratic transitions supported by a large consensus may serve as a coordination device thereby leading to better protection of property rights and more stable polities.
Self-organized criticality, evolution and the fossil extinction record

Statistical analysis indicates that the fossil extinction record is compatible with a distribution of extinction events whose frequency is related to their size by a power law with exponent т ≈ 2. This result is in agreement with predictions based on self-organized critical models of extinction, and might well be taken as evidence of critical behaviour in terrestrial evolution. We argue however that there is a much simpler explanation for the appearance of a power law in terms of extinctions caused by stresses (either biotic or abiotic) to which species are subjected by their environment. We give an explicit model of this process and discuss its properties and implications for the interpretation of the fossil record.
Iterated Second-Order Label Sensitive Pooling for 3D Human Pose Estimation

Recently, the emergence of Kinect systems has demonstrated the benefits of predicting an intermediate body part labeling for 3D human pose estimation, in conjunction with RGB-D imagery. The availability of depth information plays a critical role, so an important question is whether a similar representation can be developed with sufficient robustness in order to estimate 3D pose from RGB images. This paper provides evidence for a positive answer, by leveraging (a) 2D human body part labeling in images, (b) second-order label-sensitive pooling over dynamically computed regions resulting from a hierarchical decomposition of the body, and (c) iterative structured-output modeling to contextualize the process based on 3D pose estimates. For robustness and generalization, we take advantage of a recent large-scale 3D human motion capture dataset, Human3.6M[18] that also has human body part labeling annotations available with images. We provide extensive experimental studies where alternative intermediate representations are compared and report a substantial 33% error reduction over competitive discriminative baselines that regress 3D human pose against global HOG features.
Subtypes of Psychotic-Like Experiences and Their Significance for Mental Health

More recently, the interest in studying subclinical psychosis has increased, as it might provide critical information regarding mechanisms that are implicated in the exacerbation of subclinical symptoms and the maintenance of mental health. However, psychosis research has tended to focus on clinical outcomes and not to differentiate between sub types of psychotic-like experiences (PLE) that might differ regarding their psychopatho - logical significance . Importantly, this might have obscured a more accurate picture of the complex structure of psychosis and the significance of particular risk and protective factors. Notably, while studies point toward a continuity of psychotic experiences and accompanying factors across the general population, there is evidence indicating that some PLE in healthy individuals might also be associated with a weaker expression of other subclinical symptoms, increased well-being and even resilience to some degree. Importantly, such findings might have implications on strategies in psychosis prevention and therapy, early detection, as well as the construction of continuum models of psycho- sis. The present chapter aims at drawing together findings that necessitate a more dif ferentiated view and assessment of PLE. It intends to provoke new questions that might offer starting points for future investigations, such as longitudinal studies investigating the interplay of subclinical symptoms.
Changes in Mindful Parenting: Associations With Changes in Parenting, Parent–Youth Relationship Quality, and Youth Behavior

Objective: There is growing interest in mindful parenting and how this form of intentional, compassionate interactions with youth are associated with developmental outcomes. We investigated how mindful parenting changes over time, either naturally or in response to interventions, and how that change is associated with other proximal developmental changes. Method: We used data from a longitudinal, randomized-controlled study design (N = 432 families) to investigate the associations between changes in mindful parenting and 3 outcomes: positive parenting, parent–youth relationship quality, and youth aggression. Differences across 3 intervention conditions and between mothers and fathers were tested. Results: Across conditions, changes in mindful parenting were strongly associated with changes in all 3 outcomes for both fathers and mothers. Changes in mindful parenting showed considerable variability within and across conditions. For fathers, differences in mindful parenting change were driven primarily by changes in the core mindful parenting dimension of emotional awareness. Mothers showed comparable changes in mindful parenting across conditions. Conclusions: Findings illustrate how changes in mindful parenting are associated with proximal changes that could lead to reduced youth behavior problems (e.g., aggression or substance use) and provide additional evidence for the contribution that mindfulness activities can make to standard parent training.
The effect of recall on estimation of incidence rates for injury in Ghana.

BACKGROUND Injury is a major public health problem in many developing countries. Due to limitations of vital registry and health service data, surveys are an important tool to obtain information about injury in these countries. The value of such surveys can be limited by incomplete recall. The most appropriate recall period to use in surveys on injury in developing countries has not been well addressed. METHODS A household survey of injury in Ghana was conducted. Estimated annual non-fatal injury incidence rates were calculated for 12 recall periods (1-12 months prior to the interview, with each successively longer period including the preceding shorter periods). RESULTS There was a notable decline in the estimated rate from 27.6 per 100 per year for a one-month recall period to 7.6 per 100 per year for a 12-month recall period (72% decline). The extent of this decline was not influenced by age, gender, rural versus urban location, nor by type of respondent (in-person versus proxy). Rate of decline was influenced by severity of injury. Injuries resulting in <7 days of disability showed an 86% decline in estimated rates from a one-month to a 12-month recall period, whereas injuries resulting in > or =30 days of disability showed minimal decline. CONCLUSIONS In this setting, longer recall periods significantly underestimate the injury rate compared to shorter recall periods. Shorter recall periods (1-3 months) should be used when calculating the overall non-fatal injury incidence rate. However, longer recall periods (12 months) may be safely used to obtain information on the more severe, but less frequent, injuries.
The Adoption of Open Source Desktop Software in a Large Public Administration

Several public administrations are currently migrating towards open source software (OSS) on the desktop. In this paper, we describe a case study of a large Belgian public administration that is currently migrating its desktops towards Linux and OpenOffice.org. The goal of the paper is to discuss whether such a migration is feasible, and why and how the migration could be undertaken. We describe the implementation trajectory followed and compare our findings to previous studies in this field. We offer several guidelines that can contribute to the formation of “best practices” for the transition towards OSS on the desktop. Our results indicate that a migration towards OSS on the desktop is feasible, but requires a change in the attitude of end users.
The role of technology when teaching mathematics

The availability of technology has changed enormously during the last 20-30 years. From the large and clumsy desk calculators of the 1970’s over to the so called functional calculators in the 1980’s and during the last 10-15 years we have got graphing calculators as well as symbolic calculators. There are also calculators which include software for geometrical constructions on the market today. If we shift to computers, the availability of software for all kinds of undergraduate mathematics is enormous, both commercial and freeware is easy to get. This significant change in availability naturally raise questions concerning mathematics education at all different levels, questions concerning content, teaching & learning, and assessment.
The RR Lyrae Period-Luminosity-(Pseudo)Color and Period-Color-(Pseudo)Color Relations in the Strömgren Photometric System: Theoretical Calibration

We present a theoretical calibration of the RR Lyrae period-luminosity-color and period-color-color relations in the multiband uvby Strömgren photometric system. Our theoretical work is based on calculations of synthetic horizontal branches (HBs) for four different metallicities, fully taking into account evolutionary effects for a wide range in metallicities and HB morphologies. While our results show that “pure” period-luminosity and period-color relations do not exist in the Strömgren system, which is due to the large scatter that is brought about by evolutionary effects when the uvby bandpasses are used, they also reveal that such scatter can be almost completely taken into account by incorporating Strömgren pseudocolor [C0 ≡ (u − v)0 − (v − b)0] terms into those equations, thus leading to tight period-luminosity-pseudocolor (PLpsC) and period-color-pseudocolor (PCpsC) relations. We provide the latter in the form of analytical fits, so that they can be applied with high precision even in the case of field stars. In view of the very small sensitivity of C0 to interstellar reddening, our PLpsC and PCpsC relations should be especially useful for the derivation of high-precision distance and reddening values. In this sense, we carry out a first application of our relations to field RR Lyrae stars, finding evidence that the stars RR Lyr, SU Dra, and SS Leo, but not SV Hya, are somewhat overluminous (by amounts ranging from ≃0.05 to 0.20 mag in y, and thus V) with respect to the average for other RR Lyrae stars of similar metallicity.
The Effect of Microteaching on Science Teaching Self-Efficacy Beliefs in Preservice Elementary Teachers

ABSTRACT What teachers believe about their own effectiveness in the classroom influences what and how they teach, so teacher preparation programs should work to cultivate strong self-efficacy beliefs (SEBs) in future teachers. I designed a science content course for future elementary teachers around the simultaneous goals of teaching science content and improving SEBs by activating Bandura’s 4 factors that influence SEBs (performance accomplishments, vicarious experience, verbal and social persuasion, and physical and emotional arousal). During the semester, future teachers taught 3 45-min elementary school science lessons to small groups of peers, received detailed anonymous feedback, and reflected on their own teaching. I tracked the SEBs of 830 future teachers in this course using the Science Teaching Efficacy Belief Instrument-Preservice. I performed a multiple regression analysis to isolate factors that influenced initial SEBs and how SEBs changed during the course. I also qualitatively analyzed written reflections to gain insight into the quantitative changes. Two factors had the most significant influence on SEBs: science content mastery and quality of microteaching as measured by peers. Initial SEBs correlated with prequiz scores, whereas final SEBs correlated with postquiz scores. Among participants with identical quiz scores, those who recognized the benefits of science content mastery were more likely to increase their SEBs than otherwise identical participants who did not mention science content in their reflections. Future teachers trusted their peers’ rating of their teaching more than their own self-assessment, which suggests that verbal and social persuasion may have been more important than performance accomplishment.
Extensive reading and L2 development: a study of Hong Kong secondary learners of English

Although extensive reading is regarded by many practitioners as a potentially very useful means of assisting L2 development, experimental enquiry into its effectiveness has so far produced little more than a collection of somewhat disparate findings. Nor has any attempt been made to categorically link any such research findings with second language acquisition theory. Consequently, we have no coherent, research-based theory of L2 extensive reading. Using data from a large-scale project implemented in Hong Kong secondary schools, the L2 English writing of students participating in an extensive reading scheme as part of the school curriculum was compared to that of non-participant students. Samples of timed narrative writing from 392 students in Secondaries 2 and 3 were rated holistically on a scale of 1 6 for overall quality, grammatical complexity, grammatical accuracy, vocabulary range, coherence, spelling and conventions of presentation. A subset of 150 compositions from two control and two experimental classes were further evaluated on a range of objective measures. Results from the two evaluation procedures were cross-referenced, and indicate that extensive reading in an L2 may benefit language development in quite specific ways. Findings are discussed within the context of current psycholinguistic and neurolinguistic theory and an explanation consistent with such theory is proposed. It is argued that, because it is likely to be subserved by a different memory system from that which subserves formal classroom instruction, extensive reading may enhance levels of automaticity, thus favouring the development of fluency, and, concomitantly, complexity and coherence. At low levels of L2 competence, extensive reading may also accelerate the acquisition of basic grammar through frequency effects.
Law, Relationships and Private Enforcement: Transactional Strategies of Russian Enterprises

We examine how Russian enterprises do business with one another, focusing on the strategies used to obtain efficiency and predictability in their transactions. Using survey data, the paper analyzes the relative importance of relational contracting, self-enforcement, enterprise networks, private security firms, administrative institutions, and courts. Enterprise-to-enterprise negotiations are preferred, but courts are used when disputes resist resolution through negotiation. Consistently, little evidence suggests enterprises resort to private enforcement, indicating overstatement in the supposed connection between weakness in law and the mafia's rise. Legacies of the old administrative enforcement mechanisms are few, although enterprise networks from Soviet days remain resilient.
Effect of Plasticizer Type and Concentration on Tensile, Thermal and Barrier Properties of Biodegradable Films Based on Sugar Palm (Arenga pinnata) Starch

The use of starch based films as a potential alternative choice to petroleum derived plastics is imperative for environmental waste management. This study presents a new biopolymer (sugar palm starch) for the preparation of biodegradable packaging films using a solution casting technique. The effect of different plasticizer types (glycerol (G), sorbitol (S) and glycerol-sorbitol (GS) combination) with varying concentrations (0, 15, 30 and 45, w/w%) on the tensile, thermal and barrier properties of sugar palm starch (SPS) films was evaluated. Regardless of plasticizer types, the tensile strength of plasticized SPS films decreased, whereas their elongation at break (E%) increased as the plasticizer concentrations were raised. However, the E% for G and GS-plasticized films significantly decreased at a higher plasticizer concentration (45% w/w) due to the anti-plasticization effect of plasticizers. Change in plasticizer concentration showed an insignificant effect on the thermal properties of S-plasticized films. The glass transition temperature of SPS films slightly decreased as the plasticizer concentration increased from 15% to 45%. The plasticized films exhibited increased water vapor permeability values from 4.855 × 10−10 to 8.70 × 10−10 g·m−1·s−1·Pa−1, irrespective of plasticizer types. Overall, the current study manifested that plasticized sugar palm starch can be regarded as a promising biopolymer for biodegradable films.
Cultural Hybridity

Research on migration and its relation to culture, cultural identity and cultural processes, is becoming increasingly ‘globalized’ not only in scope but also with regard to the perspectives on ‘culture’ which are being applied and implied. A consequence of this agenda is that transgression concepts – such as ‘hybridity’, and – have to an increasing extent become various at the study
Region-Specific Developmental Specialization of GABA–Glycine Cosynapses in Laminas I–II of the Rat Spinal Dorsal Horn

The spinal dorsal horn is the first level of the CNS in which nociceptive input from sensory afferents is integrated and transmitted. Although inhibitory control in this region has a crucial impact on pain transmission, the respective contribution of GABA and glycine to this inhibition remains elusive. We have previously documented co-release of GABA and glycine at the same inhibitory synapse in spinal laminas I–II of adult rats [older than postnatal day 30 (P30)]. However, despite this co-release, individual miniature inhibitory postsynaptic currents (mIPSCs) were mediated by either glycine receptors (GlyR) or GABAA receptors (GABAAR), yet never by the two together. In contrast, recent studies of ventral horn immature inhibitory synapses (≤P21) reported individual mIPSCs that were mediated by both GABAARs and GlyRs. This raises the question of whether mixed mIPSCs are present in immature lamina I–II neurons yet are lost through a maturation-dependent synaptic specialization. To test this, we recorded mIPSCs using patch-clamp techniques in lamina I–II neurons in spinal slices taken at different stages of development. We found that, in neurons younger than P23, both GlyR-only and GABAAR-only mIPSCs could be recorded, in addition to mixed GABAAR–GlyR mIPSCs. With maturation however, both lamina I–II neurons gradually discontinued exhibiting mixed mIPSCs, although with differing patterns of specialization. Yet, at all developmental stages, benzodiazepine administration could unmask mixed mIPSCs. Together, these findings indicate that, although GABA and glycine are continually co-released throughout development, junctional codetection ceases by adulthood. This indicates an age-dependent postsynaptic tuning of inhibitory synapses that occurs in a region-specific manner.