Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Depression and adherence to antiretroviral treatment in HIV-positive men in São Paulo, the largest city in South America: Social and psychological implications

OBJECTIVES: The aim of the present study was to investigate the prevalence of depression and adherence to antiretroviral treatment in two groups of individuals: men who have sex with men (MSM) and men who have sex with women (MSW). METHODS: Two hundred and sixteen participants (MSM=116; MSW=100) who visited the Clinics Hospital of the School of the Medicine of the University of São Paulo completed two independent surveys (the BECK Depression Inventory and an adherence self-declared questionnaire) to evaluate their depression status and adherence to antiretroviral treatment, respectively. RESULTS: The study highlighted a positive relationship between depression and low adherence to Highly Active Antiretroviral Therapy in these patients regardless of age and sexual orientation. In addition, MSM subjects were two times more prone than MSW subjects to develop depression symptoms. White or mixed race men showed 7.6 times greater adherence to treatment than black men. The probability of complete adherence to treatment was 3.8 times higher in non-depressed subjects than in depressed subjects regardless of their ethnicity. The chance of developing depression was 4.17 times higher for an individual with non-adherent behavior than for an adherent individual. CONCLUSIONS: Individuals with low adherence rates have proportionally higher depression rates. Depressed men tend to show less adherence to treatment. Black but not mixed race or white men show less adherence to Highly Active Antiretroviral Therapy and have a greater chance of developing depression, which directly interferes with adherence. The chances of developing depression are four times greater for a patient with non-adherent behavior than for a patient with adherent behavior.
Toward a theory of generalization and learning in XCS

Takes initial steps toward a theory of generalization and learning in the learning classifier system XCS. We start from Wilson's generalization hypothesis, which states that XCS has an intrinsic tendency to evolve accurate, maximally general classifiers. We analyze the different evolutionary pressures in XCS and derive a simple equation that supports the hypothesis theoretically. The equation is tested with a number of experiments that confirm the model of generalization pressure that we provide. Then, we focus on the conditions, termed "challenges," that must be satisfied for the existence of effective fitness or accuracy pressure in XCS. We derive two equations that suggest how to set the population size and the covering probability so as to ensure the development of fitness pressure. We argue that when the challenges are met, XCS is able to evolve problem solutions reliably. When the challenges are not met, a problem may provide intrinsic fitness guidance or the reward may be biased in such a way that the problem will still be solved. The equations and the influence of intrinsic fitness guidance and biased reward are tested on large Boolean multiplexer problems. The paper is a contribution to understanding how XCS functions and lays the foundation for research on XCS's learning complexity.
Behavioral and Brain Functions

Background: It is unclear whether a stimulus that cannot be recognized consciously, could elicit a well-processed cognitive response. Methods: We used functional imaging to examine the pattern of cortical activation elicited by unrecognized stimuli during memory processing. Subjects were given a recognition task using recognizable and non-recognizable subliminal stimuli. Results: Unrecognized stimuli activated the cortical areas that are associated with retrieval attempt (left prefrontal), and novelty detection (left hippocampus). This indicates that the stimuli that were not consciously recognized, activated neural network associated with aspects of explicit memory processing. Conclusion: Results suggest that conscious recognition of stimuli is not necessary for activation of cognitive processing. Background Experiments have demonstrated that subliminal stimuli elicit a variety of cognitive and behavioral responses [1,2]. These stimuli, when used as cues, facilitate identification of primed stimuli [3,4], and improve the speed and accuracy of responses in numerical processing and lexical decision tasks [5-7]. It has been argued that these effects do not necessarily indicate that subliminal stimuli are processed cognitively. The responses elicited by these stimuli could be due to conditioned association of orthographic features of stimuli with the motor response [8-10]. A stimulus driven sensory-motor association could enable subjects to learn to associate non-semantic visual features of the stimulus with a response if stimulus is presented repeatedly [10]. Since most of the experiments on subliminal stimuli have used a limited number of stimuli [e.g., [5,6]], it is difficult to exclude the possibility that responses in these experiments were driven by sensorymotor association. Thus, these results do not provide compelling evidence to suggest that the effects of unrecognized stimuli are driven by cognitive processing, and not by subsemantic sensory-motor association. Study of the pattern of cortical activation elicited by unrecognized stimuli during performance of a cognitive task could provide additional useful information to help us understand whether these stimuli are cognitively processed. Activation of relevant cortical areas could indicate initiation of cognitive activity, at least at the cortical level. The evidence suggests that the subliminal stimuli become recognizable if they are primed [3,6,7]. In the present experiment this evidence was exploited to understand the pattern of cortical activation elicited by unrecognized stimuli in an explicit memory task. Published: 16 May 2006 Behavioral and Brain Functions 2006, 2:17 doi:10.1186/1744-9081-2-17 Received: 30 November 2005 Accepted: 16 May 2006 This article is available from: http://www.behavioralandbrainfunctions. com/content/2/1/17 © 2006 Badgaiyan; licensee BioMed Central Ltd. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Laboratory study of parameters influencing tornado flow field and tornado loading on low-rise buildings

Tornado is one of the deadliest natural hazards in the U.S. with a 10-year average fatality exceeding 100. The annual property-insured loss of more than $1 billion makes it even more problematic. To mitigate and address the loss caused by this natural hazard, it is important to (a) understand the tornado flow field and parameters that affect it, as well as (b) assess the tornado-induced wind loads on low-rise buildings and their components and the parameters that affect the peak wind loads for the purpose of improving their design. The above reasoning drives the two primary objectives of this research presented in this doctoral dissertation. The first objective is to study the parameters that influence the tornado flow field, and the second objective is to assess the peak tornado-induced wind loads for a building, considering its location and orientation with respect to the tornado’s mean path, as well as the maximum local loads on its components. To satisfy the first objective, the influence of tornado’s translation speed and swirl ratio, and the effects of ground roughness or terrain and topographic features on the tornado flow field were studied. For this purpose, a unique translating tornado simulator at Iowa State University was used. The terrain and topographic features of the ground on the tornado flow field were investigated by comparing the laboratory-simulated flow over a set of scaled ground roughness elements that represented a rough terrain, as well as scaled models of three types of topographies -2D-ridge, 2D-valley, and 2D-escarpment to the flow over a smooth flat ground surface. Topographies were set to have a constant geometric aspect ratio (height to along-wind length) following the latest edition of the ASCE7 standard for building design. Results show that a tornado passing over a smooth terrain out of the two terrains (smooth and rough) investigated, a tornado with a lower translation
Direct and Remote Sensing Observations of the Effects of Ships on Clouds

Under certain conditions ships can affect the structure of shallow layer clouds. Simultaneous observations of two ship track signatures in stratus clouds from a satellite and in situ from an aircraft show that in the ship tracks the droplet sizes were reduced and total concentrations of both droplets and particles were substantially increased from those in adjacent clouds. In situ measurements of the upwelling radiance within the ship tracks was significantly enhanced at visible wavelengths, whereas radiance at 2.2 micrometers was significantly reduced. Cloud reflectivity along the tracks was enhanced at 0.63 and 3.7 micrometers. These observations support the contention that ship track signatures in clouds are produced primarily by particles emitted from ships.
Recognizing authors: an examination of the consistent programmer hypothesis

Software developers have individual styles of programming. This paper empirically examines the validity of the consistent programmer hypothesis: that a facet or set of facets exist that can be used to recognize the author of a given program based on programming style. The paper further postulates that the programming style means that different test strategies work better for some programmers (or programming styles) than for others. For example, all‐edges adequate tests may detect faults for programs written by Programmer A better than for those written by Programmer B. This has several useful applications: to help detect plagiarism/copyright violation of source code, to help improve the practical application of software testing, and to help pursue specific rogue programmers of malicious code and source code viruses. This paper investigates this concept by experimentally examining whether particular facets of the program can be used to identify programmers and whether testing strategies can be reasonably associated with specific programmers. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Quality of inguinal hernia operative reports: room for improvement.

BACKGROUND Operative reports (ORs) serve as the official documentation of surgical procedures. They are essential for optimal patient care, physician accountability and billing, and direction for clinical research and auditing. Nonstandardized narrative reports are often of poor quality and lacking in detail. We sought to audit the completeness of narrative inguinal hernia ORs. METHODS A standardized checklist for inguinal hernia repair (IHR) comprising 33 variables was developed by consensus of 4 surgeons. Five high-volume IHR surgeons categorized items as essential, preferable or nonessential. We audited ORs for open IHR at 6 academic hospitals. RESULTS We audited 213 ORs, and we excluded 7 femoral hernia ORs. Tension-free repairs were the most common (82.5%), and the plug-and-patch technique was the most frequent (52.9%). Residents dictated 59% of ORs. Of 33 variables, 15 were considered essential and, on average, 10.8 ± 1.3 were included. Poorly reported elements included first occurrence versus recurrent repair (8.3%), small bowel viability in incarcerated hernias (10.7%) and occurrence of intraoperative complications (32.5%). Of 18 nonessential elements, deep vein thrombosis prophylaxis, preoperative antibiotics and urgency were reported in 1.9%, 11.7% and 24.3% of ORs, respectively. Repair-specific details were reported in 0 to 97.1% of ORs, including patch sutured to tubercle (55.1%) and location of plug (67.0%). CONCLUSION Completeness of IHR ORs varied with regards to essential and nonessential items but were generally incomplete, suggesting there is opportunity for improvement, including implementation of a standardized synoptic OR.
Modified Newtonian dynamics in the Milky Way

Both microlensing surveys and radio-frequency observations of gas flow imply that the inner Milky Way is completely dominated by baryons, contrary to the predictions of standard cold dark matter (CDM) cosmology. We investigate the predictions of the modified Newtonian dynamics (MOND) formula for the Galaxy given the measured baryon distribution. Satisfactory fits to the observationally determined terminal-velocity curve are obtained for different choices of MOND’s interpolating function µ(x). However, with simple analytical forms of µ(x), the local circular speed v c(R 0) can be as large as 220 km s −1 only for values of the parameter a0 that are excluded by observations of NGC 3198. Only a numerically specified interpolating function can produce v c(R 0) = 220 km s −1 , which is therefore an upper limit in MOND, while the asymptotic velocity is predicted to be v c(∞) = 170 ± 5k m s −1 . The data are probably not consistent with the functional form of µ(x) that has been explored as a toy model in the framework of Bekenstein’s covariant theory of gravity. Ke yw ords: gravitation ‐ Galaxy: kinematics and dynamics.
Mediated by Bone Morphogenetic Protein Prostate Cancer-Induced Osteoblast Differentiation Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor Contributes to the Updated

Human prostate cancer has a high predisposition to metastasize to bone, resulting in the formation of osteoblastic metastases. The mechanism through which prostate cancer cells promote osteoblastic lesions is undefined. Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) has been implicated as a mediator of osteoblast activity. In the present study, we examined if prostate cancer cells promote osteoblastic activity through VEGF. We found that LNCaP and C4-2B prostate cancer cell lines and primary tumor and metastatic prostate cancer tissues from patients expressed VEGF. Bone morphogenetic proteins (BMPs), which are normally present in the bone environment, induced VEGF protein and mRNA expression in C4-2B cells. Furthermore, BMP-7 activated the VEGF promoter. Noggin, a BMP inhibitor, diminished VEGF protein expression and promoter activity in C4-2B cells. Conditioned media (CM) from C4-2B cells induced pro-osteoblastic activity (increased alkaline phosphatase, osteocalcin, and mineralization) in osteoblast cells. Both noggin alone and anti-VEGF antibody alone diminished C4-2B CM-induced pro-osteoblastic activity. Transfection of C4-2B cells with VEGF partially rescued the C4-2B CM-induced pro-osteoblastic activity from noggin inhibition. These observations indicate that BMPs promote osteosclerosis through VEGF in prostate cancer metastases. These results suggest a novel function for VEGF in skeletal metastases. Specifically, VEGF promotes osteoblastic lesion formation at prostate cancer bone metastatic sites.
Mitochondrial permeability transition pore (MPTP) desensitization increases sea urchin spermatozoa fertilization rate

Mitochondrial permeability transition pore (MPTP) is a protein complex whose opening promotes an abrupt increase in mitochondrial inner membrane permeability. Calcium signaling pathways are described in gametes and are involved in the fertilization process. Although mitochondria may act as Ca2+ store and have a fast calcium‐releasing mechanism through MPTP, its contribution to fertilization remains unclear. The work aimed to investigate the MPTP phenomenon in sea urchin spermatozoa and its role on the fertilization. Several pharmacological tools were used to evaluate the MPTP's physiology. Our results demonstrated that MPTP occurs in male gametes in a Ca2+‐ and voltage‐dependent manner and it is sensitive to cyclosporine A. Additionally, our data show that MPTP opening does not alter ROS generation in sperm cells. Inhibition of MPTP in spermatozoa strongly improved the fertilization rate, which may involve mechanisms that increase the spermatozoa lifespan. The present work is the first report of the presence of a voltage‐ and Ca2+‐dependent MPTP in gametes of invertebrates and indicates MPTP opening as another evolutionary feature shared by sea urchins and mammals. Studies about MPTP in sea urchin male gametes may contribute to the elucidation of several mechanisms involved in sperm infertility.
Analogical representations of programs

In order to enhance the process of discovering and understanding unknown programs, we developed Zeugma: a programming environment for the construction, development and experimentation of analogical representations of programs. We consider an analogical representation of programs as a representation where the different parts, for example houses in a city or spiders on a web, illustrate, in an analogical manner, particular aspects of the program-its composition, its behavior or the underlying algorithm-according to a user determined task like maintenance, optimization, program understanding and algorithm animation. Zeugma includes a special sub-system permitting to dynamically define desired representations by specifying formal relationships between chosen representations and the chosen aspects of the program under consideration. It is these relations, which permit Zeugma to automatically generate corresponding static or dynamic representations.
“The Young Ones are the Condom Generation”: Condom Use amongst Out-of-School Adolescents in Rural Southwest Uganda

This article reports on factors influencing condom use among out-of-school adolescents in rural southwest Uganda. Despite an abundance of negative discourses and myths about condoms in the community, these adolescents believe condoms protect them from sexually transmitted infections, HIV, and premarital pregnancies. Girls want partners to use condoms, but most lack the confidence to insist. Girls aged 13 to 14 reported the least difficulty asking for condoms; older girls attributed this to coming-of-age in the era of AIDS when condom use is the norm. Boys under 16 years want to use condoms, but lack confidence in application skills. Boys over 17 years always use condoms with casual partners, but only occasionally for pregnancy prevention with steady partners. Girls need skills training to improve confidence in negotiating condom use. Younger boys require training to improve confidence in skills with condom application. These findings are compared with studies conducted with in-school adolescents in the same study area. Health promotions that provide this skills training and focus on the need to think of the health of future family would be most effective for out-of-school adolescents. This study shows that it is self-confidence, rather than years of schooling, that has the greatest impact on condom use in this cohort.
New light on the formation and evolution of M 31 and its globular cluster system

We present spectroscopic ages, metallicities, and (α/Fe) ratios for 70 globular clusters in M 31 that were derived from Lick line-index measurements. A new interpolation technique of age-metallicity and α/Fe-diagnostic grids is used to account for changes in index strength as a response to abundance-ratio variations, in particular for all of the Balmer-line Lick indices. In addition to a population of old (>10 Gyr) globular clusters with a wide range of metallicities, from about −2. 0d ex to solar values, we find evidence for a population of intermediate-age globular clusters with ages between ∼ 5a nd 8G yr and a mean metallicity (Z/H) ≈− 0.6. We also confirm the presence of young M 31 globular clusters that were recently identified by Beasley et al. (2004, AJ, 128, 1623), which have ages 9 Gyr), has a bimodal metallicity distribution, and super-solar (α/Fe). Disk globular clusters have a wider range of ages, are on average more metal-rich, and have a slightly smaller mean (α/Fe) ratio. A cross-correlation of structural parameters for M 31 globular clusters with spectroscopically derived ages, metallicities, and (α/Fe) ratios shows a correlation between half-light/tidal radius and metallicity, which is most likely due to the correlation of half-light/tidal radius and galactocentric distance. We compare our results for M 31 globular clusters with those obtained with the same technique for globular clusters in the Milky Way, Large Magellanic Cloud, M 81, and other spiral galaxies in the Sculptor group. Finally, we compare the globular cluster systems of the two Local Group spirals, M 31 and Milky Way, with their integrated bulge light.
Increased sodium concentrations in drinking water increase blood pressure in neonates

Background In a previous study, we found that increased sodium concentrations in the drinking water led to an increase in mean arterial pressure (MAP) and systolic blood pressure (SBP) in fourth- and fifth-grade school children. Milk powder formulae have a low content of sodium, almost identical to that of breast milk. However, the final sodium concentration in the milk formula depends upon the concentration of sodium in the diluting water, which varies remarkably. Objective To evaluate changes in blood pressure during the first 2 months of life in neonates receiving low-sodium mineral water (LSMW), high-sodium tap water (HSTW), or breast milk. Design A randomized, prospective study in a teaching hospital. Methods Fifty-eight Jewish term infants maintained on milk formula were randomly assigned to two groups. Group 1 consisted of 25 infants whose formula was diluted with LSMW (Eden Spring Mineral Water) having a sodium concentration of 32 mg/l (1.4 mmol/l). Group 2 contained 33 infants whose formula was diluted with HSTW having a sodium concentration of 196 mg/l (8.5 mmol/l). Fifteen breastfed babies served as the control group (group 3). Weekly weight, height, head circumference, heart rate, and systolic (SBP), diastolic (DBP) and mean (MAP) blood pressures were recorded for each infant for 8 consecutive weeks after birth. After 8 weeks, group 1 reverted to a diet similar to that of group 2. At 6 months of age (week 24), a follow-up blood pressure measurement was performed in 11, 20 and seven infants in groups 1, 2 and 3, respectively. Blood pressure was measured during sleep. Urinary sodium : creatinine ratio was determined monthly during the initial 2 months. Results Increases in weight and height were equal in all groups. Heart rate did not differ between groups during the entire study period. From the age of 6 weeks until week 8, MAP, SBP and DBP were found to be significantly greater in the group 2 (HSTW). In parallel, the urinary sodium : creatinine ratio was significantly greater in this group. At week 24, blood pressure values in group 1 increased towards those of group 2. Conclusions Diluting milk formula with tap water containing a high concentration of sodium will result in the infant being fed a high-salt diet. To equilibrate with breast milk, formula should be diluted with low-salt water. Blood pressure in the neonate is increased by a high sodium intake via drinking water.