Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Gender differences in the communication of christian conversion narratives

Scholars have long sought to find the differences in the ways men and women communicate. Also, researchers have studied the field of religious conversion. Thisfirst-of-a-kind study has sought to find if gender differencesarise when men and women communicate the story of their religious conversion. Forty structured in-depth interviews with 20 male and 20 female undergraduate students at a small, private Christian liberal arts university in the Midwest were used to address the stated research question. Five male and five females were selected from each grade level. A non-probability sampling procedure was used to select subjects. The final sample consisted of two Hispanics, one Black, and 37 White non-Hispanic participants. The average age of each participant was 20. Although some authors have suggested that conversion stories of men and women would be similar due to a rhythmic narrative formula and common structural elements, this study has found that significant gender differences in the communication of such narratives do arise in certain specific areas. The majority of men used adventurous metaphors, while the majority of women used peaceful metaphors to describe their conversion experiences. It was also found that the majority of men focused on themselves as the control character while most women focused on someone else. And, men described themselves as clever whereas women described themselves as foolish in their narratives.
Restless leg syndrome and rheumatoid arthritis.

Comparaison de 70 malades atteints de polyarthrite rhumatoide, 30 atteints d'arthrose de la hanche ou du genou et 70 sujets temoins. Les symptomes de dysesthesie des jambes sont tres nettement plus frequents (30%) en cas de polyarthrite rhumatoide que dans les autres groupes (3% et 6%)
Bosentan‐improved cardiopulmonary vascular performance and increased plasma levels of endothelin‐1 in porcine endotoxin shock

1 To evaluate the possible contribution of endothelin‐1 (ET‐1) to the pathophysiology of porcine septic shock, the non‐peptide, mixed ET‐receptor antagonist, bosentan (RO 47–0203) was administered (5 mg kg−1, i.v.) 30 min before infusion of lipopolysaccharide (LPS) (E. coli., serotype 0111:B4) (15 μg kg−1 h−1) and at 3.5 h of endotoxaemia in six anaesthetized and mechanically ventilated pigs. Six other pigs served as controls and received only LPS infusion. Pulmonary and systemic haemodynamics as well as splenic, renal and intestinal blood flows were measured continuously. Release and synthesis of ET‐1 and Big ET‐1 were also measured. 2 Only three of the six pigs in the control group survived 3 h of LPS infusion while in the bosentan‐treated group all six pigs were alive at that time. A biphasic increase in mean pulmonary arterial pressure (MPAP) and pulmonary vascular resistance (PVR) was seen in control pigs. Pretreatment with bosentan did not influence the first peak but markedly attenuated the second, more prolonged increase in MPAP and PVR. The second dose of bosentan completely restored these parameters to pre‐LPS levels. The LPS‐induced changes in mean arterial blood pressure, heart rate and systemic vascular resistance were similar in both groups, while cardiac output (CO) was significantly higher in the bosentan‐treated group. The second bosentan dose increased CO and splenic and intestinal blood flow without further lowering of blood pressure. 3 Bosentan caused an increase of the basal arterial plasma levels of ET‐1‐like immunoreactivity (LI), from 16.8 ± 1.3 pM to 49.6 ± 10.0 pM (n = 6, P < 0.01). However, the rate of the increase of ET‐1 levels during the LPS infusion was not affected by bosentan. Repeated administration of bosentan during LPS infusion caused an additional increase of ET‐1‐LI levels. Neither the basal levels of Big ET‐LI nor the LPS induced 8 fold increase in Big ET‐LI were changed by bosentan. The level of preproET‐1 mRNA in the lung was increased about 3 fold after 4.5 h of LPS treatment. This elevation was not influenced by bosentan. 4 From these studies using bosentan, a non‐peptide, selective and mixed ET‐receptor antagonist, we conclude that during LPS‐induced shock bosentan can abolish the late phase pulmonary hypertension and improve cardiac output as well as increase blood flow to the splenic and intestinal vascular beds without causing a further decrease in mean arterial blood pressure. Further investigations in the clinical setting are needed to evaluate the use of ET‐receptor antagonists, such as bosentan, in treatment of septic shock.
Parents Dealing with Anorexia Nervosa: Actions and Meanings

This paper examines parents’ actions in response to anorexia nervosa, and how these are shaped by the ways they construct or understand the eating disorder. The findings indicate that parents try to influence their daughters by searching for help, providing practical support, avoiding confrontation, complying with special requirements, persuading, explaining, and pressuring, using ploys and force, providing emotional support, and mediating interactions. Parents’ actions are influenced by how they construct anorexia, such as whether they see it as an eating issue, an illness, a psychological problem, a choice, or a mystery. Understanding parents’ actions and constructions can help clinicians develop collaborative partnerships with parents.
Asian Drama: An Inquiry into the Poverty of Nations . 3 volumes. By Gunnar Myrdal. (New York: Pantheon Books, Twentieth Century Fund, 1968, Pp. 2,284. $8.50. paper bound.)

either a rigidly deterministic or a looser, more probabilistic interpretation, although he inclines to the latter. Perhaps his illuminating analysis would have been even more successful if he had utilized, in addition to the concept of modernization, the categories for the analysis of political development and revolutionary change employed by some contemporary social scientists. He often seems to say that bolder, more enlightened and rational policies on the part of the tsars and their chief ministers might have "saved" Russia. However, he also presents impressive evidence indicating that these products of an essentially unscientific, authoritarian socialization process, working under conditions of great stress, generated by foreign and domestic resource allocation problems, lack of adequate internal political support, and widespread disaffection, could scarcely have been expected to possess either the inclinations or the capabilities to cope with the challenges by which they were beset, which to a surprising degree resembled those which have been dealt with more successfully, and far more ruthlessly, by the bolshevik successors to a less efficient centralized structure. The two regimes are very different in Weltanschauung, but similar in their "siege-mindedness," exemplified in a propensity to identify dissent with treason.
Detecting Bimodality in Astronomical Datasets

We discuss statistical techniques for detecting and quantifying bimodality in astronomical datasets. We concentrate on the KMM algorithm, which estimates the statistical significance of bimodality in such datasets and objectively partitions data into sub-populations. By simulating bimodal distributions with a range of properties we investigate the sensitivity of KMM to datasets with varying characteristics. Our results facilitate the planning of optimal observing strategies for systems where bimodality is suspected. Mixture-modeling algorithms similar to the KMM algorithm have been used in previous studies to partition the stellar population of the Milky Way into subsystems. We illustrate the broad applicability of KMM by analysing published data on globular cluster metallicity distributions, velocity distributions of galaxies in clusters, and burst durations of gamma-ray sources. PostScript versions of the tables and figures, as well as FORTRAN code for KMM and instructions for its use, are available by anonymous ftp from kula.phsx. ukans.edu.
Caffeic acid phenethyl ester (CAPE): synthesis and X-ray crystallographic analysis.

The structure of caffeic acid phenethyl ester [2-propenoic acid, 3-(3,4-dihydroxyphenyl)-, 2-phenethyl ester] (I), C17H16O4 x 1/2C6H6, synthesized by base-catalyzed alkylation of caffeic acid salt with beta-bromoethylbenzene in HMPA (hexamethylphosphoramide) and recrystallized from benzene, was confirmed by single crystal X-ray diffraction. The crystals are triclinic, space group P1, Z=2, unit cell dimension a=5.8129 (9) A, b=11.122 (2) A, c=13.226 (2) A, alpha=97.080 (3) degrees, beta=101.467 (3) degrees, gamma=95.405 (3) degrees , V=825.4 (2) A3, Dcalc=1.301 g/cm3, F(000)=342. The packing of the molecule is stabilized by intermolecular O1H.O4 (2.69 A) and O1.HO2 (2.82 A) hydrogen bonds.
Quantum Dot Based Semiconductor Disk Lasers for 1–1.3 μm

Optically pumped quantum dot (QD)-based semiconductor disk lasers (SDLs) have been under intense research after their first demonstration and important enhancements of their parameters have been achieved since then. In this paper, we present recent developments in QD-based SDLs emitting in the 1-1.3 μm spectral region. Three different wavelength ranges of 1040, 1180, and 1260 nm were explored. Power scaling up to 6 W was achieved for 1040 and 1180 nm devices and up to 1.6 W for 1260 nm device. New spectral regions were covered by direct emission and frequency doubling was used to demonstrate spectral conversion into visible region with green, orange, and red light. Also, the broad gain bandwidth of QD materials was explored and wavelength tuneability up to 60 nm around 1040 nm, 69 nm around 1180 nm, and 25 nm around 1260 nm was demonstrated. The efficiency of excited and ground state emission in QDs was also compared. All these improvements allow new possibilities in applications of QD SDLs, reveal their potential, and suggest the aims for future research in the field.
Neutrino Mixing as a Source for Cosmological Constant

We report on recent results showing that neutrino mixing may lead to a non-zero contribution to the cosmological constant. This contribution is of a completely different nature with respect to the usual one by a massive spinor field. We also study the problem of field mixing in Quantum Field Theory in curved space-time, for the case of a scalar field in the Friedmann-Robertson-Walker metric.
Working Memory in Generalized Anxiety Disorder: Effects of Verbal and Image-Based Worry and Relation to Cognitive and Emotional Processes

Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) is characterized by excessive, uncontrollable worry and is associated with cognitive and emotional difficulties including threat interpretation bias (IB). Worry, especially in a verbal mode, has been shown to cause a temporary restriction in working memory (WM). This study examined the effects of verbal and image-based worry on WM, whether the effect of worry on WM accounts for IB in persons with GAD, and the degree to which WM correlates with cognitive and emotional processes associated with GAD. At baseline, participants (N = 32) with GAD completed questionnaires assessing worry, and related processes, and WM and IB tasks. Participants were then trained to worry in verbal or imagery form, per Leigh and Hirsch (2011), and completed WM and IB tasks a second time. At baseline, in the absence of induced worry, lower WM was related to greater emotion dysregulation, intolerance of uncertainty, negative problem orientation, and lower attentional control. Induced worry, regardless of the form, did not significantly affect WM or IB.
Using negative pressure therapy for improving skin graft taking on genital area defects following Fournier gangrene.

OBJECTIVE Fournier's gangrene is an infective necrotizing fasciitis of the perineal, genital and perianal regions. Treatment includes aggressive surgical debridement that often results in extensive loss of genital skin. Skin grafts may be used for reconstruction but skin grafting of the male genitalia is diffucult because the penis and scrotum are mobile and deformable. A variety of methods are used to secure skin graft to recipient beds. We used negative pressure therapy (NPT) to secure skin grafts and improve skin graft taking. MATERIAL AND METHODS We used negative pressure therapy for graft fixation in 13 male patients who underwent debridements with the indication of Fournier gangrene, and whose defects formed were reconstructed with grafts between January 2009, and January 2014. Information about age of the patients, sessions of negative pressure therapy applied before, and after reconstruction, duration of hospital stay, and graft losses during postoperative period were recorded. RESULTS Median age of the patients was 56.15 (46-72) years. NPT was applied to patients for an average of 6.64 sessions (4-12) before and 1 sessions after graft reconstruction. Patients were hospitalized for an average of 26.7 (20-39) days. Any graft loss was not seen after NPT. CONCLUSION Because of the peculiar anatomy of the genital region, anchoring of grafts is difficult so graft losses are often encountered. Use of NPT for ensuring graft fixation on the genital region prevents skin graft shearing.
The welfare cost of terrorism

Abstract Data from 117 countries over the period 2006 to 2011 are used to estimate a macroeconomic cross-country system of equations that examines the association between terrorism, self-reported life satisfaction, and national income. Results indicate that terrorism is negatively associated with life satisfaction, whereas no such association is found between terrorism and real GDP per worker. Stark contrasts are found, however, between OECD and non-OECD members. In all, our results suggest that the social costs of terrorism are potentially much higher than the economic costs, and measuring only the conventional economic costs of terrorism significantly underestimates the true costs.
Functional signatures of protective antiviral T‐cell immunity in human virus infections

Summary: The most common human viruses have different abilities to establish persistent chronic infection. Virus‐specific T‐cell responses are critical in the control of virus replication and in the prevention of disease in chronic infection. A large number of phenotypic markers and a series of functions have been used to characterize virus‐specific CD4+ and CD8+ T‐cell responses, and these studies have shown great phenotypic and functional heterogeneity of the T‐cell responses against different viruses. The heterogeneity of the T‐cell response has been proposed to be specific to each virus. However, over the past 2 years, several studies have provided evidence that the phenotypic and functional heterogeneity of CD4+ and CD8+ T‐cell responses is predominantly regulated by the levels of antigen load. The levels of antigen load modulate the phenotypic and functional patterns of the T‐cell response within the same virus infection. Furthermore, the functional characterization of virus‐specific CD4+ and CD8+ T‐cell responses has identified signatures of protective antiviral immunity. Polyfunctional, i.e. interleukin‐2 and interferon‐γ (IFN‐γ) secretion and proliferation, and not monofunctional, i.e. IFN‐γ secretion, CD4+ and CD8+ T‐cell responses represent correlates of protective antiviral immunity in chronic virus infections.
Albumin and furosemide therapy in hypoproteinemic patients with acute lung injury*

ObjectiveHypoproteinemia, fluid retention, and weight gain are associated with development of acute lung injury and mortality in critically ill patients, without proof of cause and effect. We designed a clinical trial to determine whether diuresis and colloid replacement in hypoproteinemic patients with acute lung injury would improve pulmonary physiology. DesignProspective, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. SettingAll adult intensive care units from two university hospitals. PatientsThirty-seven mechanically-ventilated patients with acute lung injury and serum total protein ≤5.0 g/dL. InterventionsFive-day protocolized regimen of 25 g of human serum albumin every 8 hrs with continuous infusion furosemide, or dual placebo, targeted to diuresis, weight loss, and serum total protein. Measurements and Main ResultsMeasured outcomes included change in weight, serum total protein, fluid balance, hemodynamics, respiratory system compliance, and oxygenation. Baseline characteristics were similar between groups (treatment, n = 19; control, n = 18), with trauma being the major cause of acute lung injury. Diuresis and weight loss over 5 days (5.3 kg more in the treatment group, p = .04) was accompanied by improvements in the Pao2/Fio2 ratio in the treatment group within 24 hrs (from 171 to 236, p = .02). Respiratory mechanics were unchanged. Mean arterial pressure increased from 80 to 88 mm Hg (p = .10), and heart rate decreased from 110 to 95 beats/min (p = .008) over time in the treatment group. No difference in mortality was observed, with favorable trends in measures of intensive care. ConclusionsAlbumin and furosemide therapy improves fluid balance, oxygenation, and hemodynamics in hypoproteinemic patients with acute lung injury. Determining the effect of this simple therapy on cost, outcomes, and other patient populations requires further study.
Responsivity to food cues in bulimic women and controls

The current study investigated responsivity to individualized food cues consisting of binge/favourite foods in 17 women with bulimic nervosa (BN) and 17 women with no history or current symptoms of eating disorders (C). The hypothesis that increasing cue salience would be associated with an increase in responsivity was tested by comparison of self reported urges, affective responses and salivation to the sight and smell (SS) and the sight, smell and taste (SST) of a binge/favourite food compared to a neutral stimulus (lettuce leaf). As predicted, the BN group reported a greater urge to binge and higher levels of stress/arousal to selected binge/favourite food cues compared to the C group. The BN group also reported lower confidence to resist the urge to binge and control over food intake compared to the C group. Further, a series of planned comparisons in the BN group found that the urge to binge, stress, and loss of control were greater when participants were exposed to the SST cue than to the SS cue. There was no difference between the groups in salivary responsivity to food cues. These results are discussed in terms of a conditioning model of cue reactivity.
[Biological evaluation of some medicinal plant extracts for contraceptive efficacy in females].

In a search for traditional medicinal plants having contraceptive efficacy, plants were identified and collected throughout India, generally by purchase from sellers of Ayurvedic remedies. The plants were air dried, cut, and processed using different organic solvents. The contraceptive properties of the plants were studied in rats, mice, and hamsters. Doses of 100-200 mg/kg of 137 plants were given orally to 5-6 animals for each plant. 27 appeared promising enough for further testing in which 2-3 extracts of each plant were administered to adult rats. The contraceptive action of 14 plants was confirmed. Significant contraceptive effects were seen after administration of Crotalaria juncea Linn, Verbena hybrida Linn, Verbena bonariensis Linn, and Pueraria tuberosa. Embelia ribes Burm and Artabotrys odoratissimus Linn were found to have interesting biologic properties but strong toxic effects. P. tuberosa had strong estrogenic and progestational effects but was not toxic in a dose of 500 mg/kg for 30 days in adult rats. A hormone study and trial with P. tuberosa should be undertaken with a view to eventual development of an oral contraceptive.
The Transcriptome of a Human Polar Body Accurately Reflects Its Sibling Oocyte*

Background: Clinicians need additional metrics for predicting quality of human oocytes for IVF procedures. Results: Human polar bodies reflect the oocyte transcript profile. Conclusion: Quantitation of polar body mRNAs could allow for both oocyte ranking and embryo preferences in IVF applications. Significance: The transcriptome of a polar body has never been reported in any organism. Improved methods are needed to reliably and accurately evaluate oocyte quality prior to fertilization and transfer into the woman of human embryos created through in vitro fertilization (IVF). All oocytes that are retrieved and matured in culture are exposed to sperm with little in the way of evaluating the oocyte quality. Furthermore, embryos created through IVF are currently evaluated for developmental potential by morphology, a criterion lacking in quantitation and accuracy. With the recent successes in oocyte vitrification and storage, clear metrics are needed to determine oocyte quality prior to fertilizing. The first polar body (PB) is extruded from the oocyte before fertilization and can be biopsied without damaging the oocyte. Here, we tested the hypothesis that the PB transcriptome is representative of that of the oocyte. Polar body biopsy was performed on metaphase II (MII) oocytes followed by single-cell transcriptome analysis of the oocyte and its sibling PB. Over 12,700 unique mRNAs and miRNAs from the oocyte samples were compared with the 5,431 mRNAs recovered from the sibling PBs (5,256 shared mRNAs or 97%, including miRNAs). The results show that human PBs reflect the oocyte transcript profile and suggests that mRNA detection and quantification through high-throughput quantitative PCR could result in the first molecular diagnostic for gene expression in MII oocytes. This could allow for both oocyte ranking and embryo preferences in IVF applications.
Attenuation of Typical Sex Differences in 800 Adults with Autism vs. 3,900 Controls

Sex differences have been reported in autistic traits and systemizing (male advantage), and empathizing (female advantage) among typically developing individuals. In individuals with autism, these cognitive-behavioural profiles correspond to predictions from the “extreme male brain” (EMB) theory of autism (extreme scores on autistic traits and systemizing, below average on empathizing). Sex differences within autism, however, have been under-investigated. Here we show in 811 adults (454 females) with autism and 3,906 age-matched typical control adults (2,562 females) who completed the Empathy Quotient (EQ), the Systemizing Quotient-Revised (SQ-R), and the Autism Spectrum Quotient (AQ), that typical females on average scored higher on the EQ, typical males scored higher on the SQ-R and AQ, and both males and females with autism showed a shift toward the extreme of the “male profile” on these measures and in the distribution of “brain types” (the discrepancy between standardized EQ and SQ-R scores). Further, normative sex differences are attenuated but not abolished in adults with autism. The findings provide strong support for the EMB theory of autism, and highlight differences between males and females with autism.
Renewal theory and computable convergence rates for geometrically ergodic Markov chains

We give computable bounds on the rate of convergence of the transition probabilities to the stationary distribution for a certain class of geometrically ergodic Markov chains. Our results are dierent from earlier estimates of Meyn and Tweedie, and from estimates using coupling, although we start from essentially the same assumptions of a drift condition towards a “small set”. The estimates show a noticeable improvement on existing results if the Markov chain is reversible with respect to its stationary distribution, and especially so if the chain is also positive. The method of proof uses the first-entrance last-exit decomposition, together with new quantitative versions of a result of Kendall from discrete renewal theory.