Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Cost and Utility of Renal Transplantation in Malaysia

Background Kidney transplantation is the optimal therapy for the majority of patients with end-stage renal disease. However, the cost and health outcomes of transplantation have not been assessed in a middle-income nation with a low volume of transplantation, such as Malaysia. Aim and Methods This study used microcosting methods to determine the cost and health outcomes of living and deceased donor kidney transplantation in adult and pediatric recipients. The perspective used was from the Ministry of Health Malaysia. Cost-effectiveness measures were cost per life year (LY) and cost per quality-adjusted LYs. The time horizon was the lifetime of the transplant recipient from transplant to death. Results Records of 206 KT recipients (118 adults and 88 children) were obtained for microcosting. In adults, discounted cost per LY was US $8609(Malaysian Ringgit [RM]29 482) and US $13 209(RM45 234) for living-donor kidney transplant (LKT) and deceased donor kidney transplant (DKT), respectively, whereas in children, it was US $10 485(RM35 905) and US $14 985(RM51 317), respectively. Cost per quality-adjusted LY in adults was US $8826 (RM30 224) for LKT and US $13 592(RM46 546) for DKT. Total lifetime discounted costs of adult transplants were US $119 702 (RM409 921) for LKT, US $147 152 (RM503 922) for DKT. Total costs for pediatric transplants were US $154 841(RM530 252) and US $159 313(RM545 566) for the 2 categories respectively. Conclusions Both LKT and DKT are economically favorable for Malaysian adult and pediatric patients with ESRD and result in improvement in quality of life.
Resource Allocation in Multi-Cellular DF Relayed OFDMA Systems

This paper considers the downlink of a multi- cellular decode-and-forward (DF) relayed OFDMA system, in which multiple base stations (BSs) and relay stations (RSs) are coordinated by a centralized resource allocation (RA) scheme. We consider the problem of maximizing the sum rate of all cells subject to a total power constraint. Three iterative RA schemes are proposed to optimize subcarrier allocation, mode selection (decision whether a relay should help and which one) and power allocation alternatively with the sum rate increasing until convergence. During each iteration, the subcarrier allocation and mode selection (SAMS) is either initialized by a conditioned subcarrier allocation and mode selection (CSAMS) algorithm or updated by a joint subcarrier allocation and mode selection (JSAMS) algorithm with the tentative power allocation result. The power allocation (PA) is updated by either single condensation based geometric programming power allocation (SC-GPPA) or conditioned water filling power allocation (CWFPA). The performances of the three RA schemes are compared by means of numerical experiments and the convergence is also illustrated.
Older people's attitudes towards death in England

The Mass-Observation Archive at the University of Sussex seeks to involve members of the British public in the recording of everyday life. A panel of several hundred correspondents responds regularly to open-ended 'directives' asking them to write about topics of contemporary interest. The April 1994 directive asked panel members to report their personal experiences of death and bereavement and to respond to questions about 'death and society'. A sample of 54 correspondents in the 65-80 age range (28 men and 26 women) was selected for detailed analysis of their personal experiences of death and bereavement and their views of changing societal attitudes towards death. Experiences of the Second World War appeared to have been of particular importance in shaping personal responses and attitudes towards death and dying. Religion also played a part, for both the religious and non-believers. While all correspondents acknowledged societal changes in behaviours and attitudes towards death in contemporary society as compared to their childhood, they varied in their assessment of these changes. Some welcomed new attitudes and behaviours, others saw them as generally bad and yet others liked some changes but disliked others. Correspondents did not generally describe any great personal fear of death, although there were concerns about the nature of their dying. However, neither were these older people ready to die; even those who accepted their nearness to death expressed the desire to continue living for as long as possible. The persistence of memory and loss is strikingly revealed by vivid accounts of deaths, bereavements and emotions that occurred in childhood, adolescence and young adulthood.
Focal Seizures and EEG: Prognostic Considerations

The goal of this study was to determine whether the EEG could predict if patients with focal seizures would eventually be uncontrolled (U), more than two seizures per month, or be controlled (C), fewer than two seizures per year. Using these latter criteria, U and C patients were randomly selected from our files, 150 in each of these two groups; 804 EEGs were found in the U and 674 in the C group. Excluded were patients with generalized epilepsy and also the benign epilepsies of childhood. Age was an important factor since patients 5–18 yrs old were more often under good control (C group), and those 21–48 yrs of age were more often under poor control (U group). With rare exceptions, focal spikes and focal slow waves in every area were much more often seen in U patients than C patients. No spikes or rare spikes appeared especially in the controlled patients, and many or very many spikes in the uncontrolled patients, mainly on the first or second EEG. No slow waves or a mild degree of slowing was seen especially in the C patients, while greater degrees of slow wave abnormalities were noted much more often in the U patients. For conditions to identify the C group, the best predictors were no spikes or rare spikes, especially on the first or second EEG, properly identifying two-thirds of the C patients and misidentifying only one-fourth of the U group. To identify the U patients on any EEG, many or very many spikes at any location or frontal spikes correctly designated a U patient in 84%, but incorrectly predicted a C patient as uncontrolled in 29%. For the first or second EEG, these values were 61% and 21%. Thus, the EEG, especially by its first or second record, can predict well the probable future of the uncontrolled patient, so that extraordinary means may be instituted early to avoid a deteriorating condition. When complete EEGs are done with sleep records and the results are quantified, reasonable prediction of eventual outcome can usually occur that is much more timely than waiting over 9 yrs, using only clinical data.
Accuracy of emergency physician assessment of left ventricular ejection fraction and central venous pressure using echocardiography.

OBJECTIVES Emergency department (ED) bedside echocardiography may offer useful information on cardiac function and volume status. The authors evaluated the accuracy of emergency physician (EP) performance of echocardiography in the assessment of left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) and central venous pressure (CVP). METHODS The authors conducted a cross-sectional observational study at an urban teaching ED, involving a convenience sample of patients presenting to the ED between September 2000 and February 2001. Level III-credentialed EP sonographers who had undergone a three-hour training session in limited echocardiography, focusing on LVEF and CVP measurement, performed echocardiograms. Vital signs and indication for echocardiography were documented on a study data sheet. LVEF was rated as poor (<30%), moderate (30%-55%), or normal (>55%) and an absolute percentage. Central venous pressure categories included low (<5 cm), moderate (5-10 cm), and high (>10 cm). Formal echocardiograms were obtained within a four-hour window on all patients and interpreted by a staff cardiologist. Correlation analysis was performed using the kappa correlation coefficient for LVEF and CVP categories and a Pearson correlation coefficient for LVEF measurement. RESULTS A total of 115 patients were assessed for LVEF, and 94 patients had complete information for CVP. Indications for echocardiography included chest pain (45.1%), congestive heart failure (38.1%), dyspnea (5.7%), and endocarditis (10.6%). Results showed a LVEF correlation of r(2) = 0.712 with 86.1% overall agreement. Subgroup analysis revealed the highest agreement (92.3%) between EP and formal echocardiograms within the normal LVEF category, followed by 70.4% agreement in the poor LVEF category and 47.8% in the moderate LVEF category. Central venous pressure measurements resulted in 70.2% overall raw agreement between EP and formal echocardiograms. Subgroup analysis revealed the highest agreement (83.3%) within the high CVP category followed by 66.6% in the moderate and 20% in the low categories. CONCLUSIONS Experienced EP sonographers with a small amount of focused additional training in limited bedside echocardiography can assess LVEF accurately in the ED.
Negative Emotional Reactions to Project Failure and the Self-Compassion to Learn from the Experience

Project failure is likely to generate a negative emotional response for those involved in the project. But do all people feel the same way? And are some better able to regulate their emotions to learn from the failure experience? In this paper we develop an emotion framework of project failure that relies on self-determination to explain variance in the intensity of the negative emotions triggered by project failure and self-compassion to explain variance in learning from project failure. We discuss the implications of our model for research on entrepreneurial and innovative organizations, employees' psychological ownership, and personal engagement at work.
Intersectional work and precarious positionings: Black middle-class parents and their encounters with schools in England

This paper reports on data drawn from a study exploring the educational strategies of 62 Black Caribbean heritage middle-class parents. In this paper, we consider the respective roles of race and class in the shaping of parents’ educational strategies, deploying an analysis that focuses on their intersection and seeks to hold both race and class in productive tension. Drawing on empirical data, we illustrate how parents’ classed and raced identities shape their interactions with school staff.
The rational Schur algebra

We extend the family of classical Schur algebras in type A, which determine the polynomial representation theory of general linear groups over an infinite field, to a larger family, the rational Schur algebras, which determine the rational representation theory of general linear groups over an infinite field. This makes it possible to study the rational representation theory of such general linear groups directly through finite dimensional algebras. We show that rational Schur algebras are quasihereditary over any field, and thus have finite global dimension. We obtain explicit cellular bases of a rational Schur algebra by a descent from a certain ordinary Schur algebra. We also obtain a description, by generators and relations, of the rational Schur algebras in characteristic zero.
Concepts of Fairness in Marriage and Divorce

Discourses of fairness are bound up with Western ideals of companionate marriage. They are also central to the ways people talk about their approaches to divorce, especially in relation to the division of property and finances. How fairness is understood within marriage, however, is gendered, with husbands more likely to take equity-based approaches and wives equality-based approaches. In this article I discuss previous research on how fairness is understood within marriage, and compare this with data from a study of people going through divorce proceedings in England and Wales. I suggest that some, but not all, understandings about fairness are carried over from marriage into divorce, and note that in many ways English and Welsh divorce law supports a particular conception of fairness that redresses objectively unfair divisions of labor within the marital relationship.
Towards a conceptual framework for understanding post-traumatic stress symptoms following childbirth and implications for further research

This paper provides a synthesis of current knowledge about post-traumatic stress symptoms following childbirth. In particular it presents a two dimensional conceptual framework for understanding the development of symptoms based upon predisposing (pre-pregnancy/pregnancy), precipitating (perinatal) and maintaining (postnatal) factors, which relate to internal (within individual), external (environmental) and interactional factors. In addition key methodological issues and areas for further research are identified.
Neurotensin receptors and dopamine transporters: Effects of MPTP lesioning and chronic dopaminergic treatments in monkeys

The effect of denervation with 1‐methyl‐4‐phenyl‐1,2,3,6‐tetrahydropyridine (MPTP) of the dopamine (DA) nigrostriatal pathway on neurotensin (NT) receptor and DA transporter (DAT) in basal ganglia of monkeys (Macaca fascicularis) was investigated. The MPTP lesion induced a marked depletion of DA (90% or more vs. control) in the caudate nucleus and putamen. The densities of NT agonist binding sites labeled with [125I]NT and the NT antagonist binding sites labeled with [3H]SR142948A decreased by half in the caudate‐putamen of MPTP‐monkeys. In addition, the densities of [125I]NT and [3H]SR142948A binding sites markedly decreased (−77 and −63%, respectively) in the substantia nigra of MPTP‐monkeys. Levocabastine did not compete with high affinity for [125I]NT binding in the monkey cingulate cortex, suggesting that only one class of NT receptors was labelled in the monkey brain. An extensive decrease of [3H]GBR12935 DAT binding sites (−92% vs. Control) was observed in the striatum of MPTP‐monkeys and an important loss of DAT mRNA (−86% vs. Control) was observed in substantia nigra. Treatments for 1 month with either the D1 agonist SKF‐82958 (3 mg/kg/day) or the D2 agonist cabergoline (0.25 mg/kg/day) had no effect on the lesion‐induced decrease in NT and DAT binding sites or DAT mRNA levels. The decrease of striatal NT binding sites was less than expected from the decrease of DA content in this nucleus, suggesting only partial localization of NT receptors on nigrostriatal DAergic projections. These data also suggest that under severe DA denervation, treatment with D1 or D2 DA agonists does not modulate NT receptors and DAT density. Synapse 32:153–164, 1999. © 1999 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Design optimization of 12Slot-10Pole hybrid excitation flux switching synchronous machine with 0.4kg permanent magnet for hybrid electric vehicles

Hybrid excitation flux switching synchronous machine (HEFSSM) has several attractive features compared to interior permanent magnet synchronous machines (IPMSM) conventionally employed in hybrid electric vehicles (HEV). Among various types of HEFSSM, the machine with both permanent magnet (PM) and field excitation coil (FEC) on the stator has the advantages of robust rotor structure together with variable flux control capabilities that make this machine becoming more attractive to apply for high-speed motor drive systems. This paper presents an investigation into the design possibility and parameter optimization study of 12Slot-10Pole HEFSSM for traction drives in HEV. The research target is to design a machine with reduced amount of rare-earth magnet, a maximum torque of 210Nm, a maximum power of more than 123kW, and a maximum power density of more than 3.5kW/kg. Extensions in speed and torque ranges are chosen for optimization aims. The deterministic design approach is used to treat ten design parameters in an effort to achieve the target performances. As a result, the designed HEFSSM with 0.4kg PM is able to get much higher power density compared to existing IPMSM installed on a commercial SUV-HEV.
Genetic Markers Associated with Clinical Outcomes in Patients with Inflammatory Bowel Disease

Abstract:Genetic factors play a significant role in determining inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) susceptibility. Epidemiologic data support genetic contribution to the pathogenesis of IBD, which include familial aggregation, twin studies, and racial and ethnic differences in disease prevalence. Recently, several new genes have been identified to be involved in the genetic susceptibility to IBD. The characterization of novel genes potentially will lead to the identification of therapeutic agents and clinical assessment of phenotype and prognosis in patients with IBD. The development of genetic markers associated with clinical outcomes in patients with IBD will be very important in the future. The progress of molecular biology tools (microarrays, proteomics, and epigenetics) have progressed the field of the genetic markers discovery. The advances in bioinformatics coupled with cross-disciplinary collaborations have greatly enhanced our ability to retrieve, characterize, and analyze large amounts of data generated by the technological advances. The techniques available for markers development are genomics (single nucleotide polymorphism genotyping, pharmacogenetics, and gene expression analyses) and proteomics. This could be a potential great benefit in predicting the course of disease in individual patients and in guiding appropriate medical therapy.
Triggered star formation in expanding shells

We discuss fragmentation processes which induce star formation in the dense walls of expanding shells. We test the influence of the energy input, the interstellar medium scaleheight and the speed of sound in the ambient medium, and formulate the condition for the gravitational fragmentation of expanding shells: if the total surface density of the disc is higher than a certain critical value, the shells are unstable. The value of the critical density depends on the energy of the shell and the sound speed in the interstellar medium.
Visual Cells Remember Earlier Applied Target: Plasticity of Orientation Selectivity

Background A canonical proposition states that, in mature brain, neurons responsive to sensory stimuli are tuned to specific properties installed shortly after birth. It is amply demonstrated that that neurons in adult visual cortex of cats are orientation-selective that is they respond with the highest firing rates to preferred oriented stimuli. Methodology/Principal Findings In anesthetized cats, prepared in a conventional fashion for single cell recordings, the present investigation shows that presenting a stimulus uninterruptedly at a non-preferred orientation for twelve minutes induces changes in orientation preference. Across all conditions orientation tuning curves were investigated using a trial by trial method. Contrary to what has been previously reported with shorter adaptation duration, twelve minutes of adaptation induces mostly attractive shifts, i.e. toward the adapter. After a recovery period allowing neurons to restore their original orientation tuning curves, we carried out a second adaptation which produced three major results: (1) more frequent attractive shifts, (2) an increase of their magnitude, and (3) an additional enhancement of responses at the new or acquired preferred orientation. Additionally, we also show that the direction of shifts depends on the duration of the adaptation: shorter adaptation in most cases produces repulsive shifts, whereas adaptation exceeding nine minutes results in attractive shifts, in the same unit. Consequently, shifts in preferred orientation depend on the duration of adaptation. Conclusion/Significance The supplementary response improvements indicate that neurons in area 17 keep a memory trace of the previous stimulus properties, thereby upgrading cellular performance. It also highlights the dynamic nature of basic neuronal properties in adult cortex since repeated adaptations modified both the orientation tuning selectivity and the response strength to the preferred orientation. These enhanced neuronal responses suggest that the range of neuronal plasticity available to the visual system is broader than anticipated.
Stray Dogs in an Island Community: A Case Study From New Providence, The Bahamas

The "stray dog problem" in New Providence, The Bahamas, has been a recurring social complaint throughout the 20th century. This article looks at some aspects of the problem's background and reports the findings of a resident perception study. The results suggest that it is unlikely that short-term policies will be successful in eradicating free-roaming dogs from the island.
Effect of Suspended Particles on Thermal Convection in Rivlin-Ericksen Fluid in a Darcy-Brinkman Porous Medium

In this paper, the effect of suspended particles on thermal convection of incompressible Rivlin-Ericksen elastico-viscous fluid in a porous medium is considered. For the porous medium, the Brinkman model is employed. By applying normal mode analysis method, the dispersion relation has been derived and solved analytically. It is observed that the medium permeability, suspended particles, gravity field and viscoelasticity introduce oscillatory modes. For stationary convection, it is observed that the Darcy number has stabilizing effect whereas the suspended particles and medium permeability has destabilizing effects on the system. The effects of suspended particles, Darcy number and medium permeability has also been shown graphically to depict the stability characteristics which are in good agreement with the results derived analytically.
Facial image clustering in 3D video using constrained Ncut

In this paper a novel variant of the Normalized Nut (N-Cut) clustering algorithm that incorporates imposed constraints is implemented and evaluated on facial image clustering for 3D video analysis. The clustering problem is seen as a graph cut problem through a similarity matrix representing the relation among the vertices, i.e. facial images in this work. Mutual Information is used as similarity metric, applied on the HSV color space of the original images. This work considers the incorporation of constraints either regarding similarity or dissimilarity derived from a priori available information in the clustering procedure and evaluates the performance increase by their use. Experiments are conducted on 3D videos where a priori information about the facial images exists.
Evolutionary Conservation of a GPCR-Independent Mechanism of Trimeric G Protein Activation

Trimeric G protein signaling is a fundamental mechanism of cellular communication in eukaryotes. The core of this mechanism consists of activation of G proteins by the guanine-nucleotide exchange factor (GEF) activity of G protein coupled receptors. However, the duration and amplitude of G protein-mediated signaling are controlled by a complex network of accessory proteins that appeared and diversified during evolution. Among them, nonreceptor proteins with GEF activity are the least characterized. We recently found that proteins of the ccdc88 family possess a Gα-binding and activating (GBA) motif that confers GEF activity and regulates mammalian cell behavior. A sequence similarity-based search revealed that ccdc88 genes are highly conserved across metazoa but the GBA motif is absent in most invertebrates. This prompted us to investigate whether the GBA motif is present in other nonreceptor proteins in invertebrates. An unbiased bioinformatics search in Caenorhabditis elegans identified GBAS-1 (GBA and SPK domain containing-1) as a GBA motif-containing protein with homologs only in closely related worm species. We demonstrate that GBAS-1 has GEF activity for the nematode G protein GOA-1 and that the two proteins are coexpressed in many cells of living worms. Furthermore, we show that GBAS-1 can activate mammalian Gα-subunits and provide structural insights into the evolutionarily conserved determinants of the GBA–G protein interface. These results demonstrate that the GBA motif is a functional GEF module conserved among highly divergent proteins across evolution, indicating that the GBA-Gα binding mode is strongly constrained under selective pressure to mediate receptor-independent G protein activation in metazoans.