Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Spirituality and Self-Esteem for Chinese People With Severe Mental Illness

This study aims at exploring the relationship between spirituality and self-esteem for people with severe mental illness. One-hundred and forty-nine Chinese people with severe mental illness who have contacted with community-based rehabilitation services in Hong Kong are included in this study. All participants have completed self-administered questionnaires on spirituality and self-esteem. Spirituality is found positively related to individual's self-esteem for participants (r = 0.3; p = .000). In the regression analysis, spirituality accounts for 9.0% of variance in overall self-esteem. When self-esteem is analyzed of composing two dimensions, that is, self-worth and self-depreciation, spirituality is found to promote individuals' self-esteem by enhancing individual's self-worth, but not self-depreciation.
Learning Optimal Seeds for Diffusion-Based Salient Object Detection

In diffusion-based saliency detection, an image is partitioned into superpixels and mapped to a graph, with superpixels as nodes and edge strengths proportional to superpixel similarity. Saliency information is then propagated over the graph using a diffusion process, whose equilibrium state yields the object saliency map. The optimal solution is the product of a propagation matrix and a saliency seed vector that contains a prior saliency assessment. This is obtained from either a bottom-up saliency detector or some heuristics. In this work, we propose a method to learn optimal seeds for object saliency. Two types of features are computed per superpixel: the bottom-up saliency of the superpixel region and a set of mid-level vision features informative of how likely the superpixel is to belong to an object. The combination of features that best discriminates between object and background saliency is then learned, using a large-margin formulation of the discriminant saliency principle. The propagation of the resulting saliency seeds, using a diffusion process, is finally shown to outperform the state of the art on a number of salient object detection datasets.
Results of the First Phase I/II Clinical Vaccination Trial With Direct Injection of mRNA

Vaccination against tumor antigens has been shown to be a safe and efficacious prophylactic and therapeutic antitumor treatment in many animal models. Clinical studies in humans indicate that specific immunotherapy can also result in clinical benefits. The active pharmaceutical ingredient in such vaccines can be DNA, RNA, protein, or peptide and can be administered naked, encapsulated, or after delivery in vitro into cells that are then adoptively transferred. One of the easiest, most versatile and theoretically safest technologies relies on the direct injection of naked messenger RNA (mRNA) that code for tumor antigens. We and others have shown in mice that intradermal application of naked mRNA results in protein expression and the development of an immune response. We used this protocol to vaccinate 15 melanoma patients. For each patient a growing metastasis was removed, total RNA was extracted, reverse-transcribed, amplified, and cloned. Libraries of cDNA were transcribed to produce unlimited amounts of copy mRNA. Autologous preparations were applied intradermally in combination with granulocyte macrophage colony-stimulating factor as adjuvant. We demonstrate here that such treatment is feasible and safe (phase 1 criteria). Furthermore, an increase in antitumor humoral immune response was seen in some patients. However, a demonstration of clinical effectiveness of direct injection of copy mRNA for antitumor immunotherapy was not shown in this study and must be evaluated in subsequent trials.
[Central corneal thickness measurements in children].

PURPOSE To evaluate central corneal thickness in children. MATERIAL AND METHODS Central corneal thickness was measured with the use of ultrasound pachymeter in 360 children aged 0-14 years. RESULTS Mean central corneal thickness was 537 microm after the birth and 567 microm in the age of 14 years. Wide differences between minimum and maximum recorded values were observed (410-650 microm) in first 2 years of life, and 420-640 microm in years 2-14. CONCLUSIONS 1. Mean central corneal thickness in children (even in small one's) does not differ significantly from adults and does not change with age. 2. Great differences between minimum and maximum recorded values were observed in children (especially in first two years of life), exceeding the range in adults. 3. IOP measurements in children should be corrected according to the results of central corneal thickness.
Proximate composition, phytochemical analysis, and in vitro antioxidant potentials of extracts of Annona muricata (Soursop)

Abstract Numerous bioactive compounds and phytochemicals have been reported to be present Annona muricata (Soursop). Some of these chemical compounds have been linked to the ethnomedicinal properties of the plant and its antioxidant properties. The aim of this study was to assess the proximate composition, phytochemical constituents and in vitro antioxidant properties of A. muricata using standard biochemical procedures. The defatted Annona muricata crude methanolic extracts of the different parts of the plant were used for the estimation of proximate composition and phytochemical screening. The crude methanolic extracts of the different parts of the plant were also fractionated using solvent–solvent partitioning. Petroleum ether, chloroform, ethyl acetate, methanol, and methanol‐water (90:10) were the solvents used for the fractionation. The different fractions obtained were then used to perform in vitro antioxidant analyses including, 1, 1‐diphenyl‐2‐picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging ability, ferric reducing properties, and hydroxyl radical scavenging ability. The leaf methanolic extract had a higher lipid content, whereas its chloroform fraction demonstrated a better ability to quench DPPH free radical. The root‐bark methanol‐water, leaf methanol, fruit pulp chloroform, and leaf petroleum ether fractions demonstrated potent ferric reducing properties. The leaf and stem‐bark petroleum ether fractions demonstrated better hydroxyl‐free radical scavenging abilities. The leaf and fruit pulp of Annona muricata have a very potent antioxidant ability compared to the other parts of the plant. This can be associated with the rich phytochemicals and other phytoconstituents like phenols, flavonoids, alkaloids, and essential lipids, etc. Significant correlations were observed between the antioxidant status and phytochemicals present. These results thus suggest that some of the reported ethnomedicinal properties of this plant could be due to its antioxidant potentials.
Resting energy expenditure in dogs with nonhematopoietic malignancies before and after excision of tumors.

OBJECTIVE To determine whether apparently resting dogs with nonhematopoietic malignancies have increased resting energy expenditure (REE), compared with clinically normal dogs. ANIMALS 46 client-owned dogs with nonhematopoietic malignancies and 30 client-owned dogs that were clinically normal. PROCEDURE Apparently resting, client-owned dogs with nonhematopoietic malignancies before (n = 46) and 4 to 6 weeks after (n = 30) surgical removal of tumors were compared with apparently resting, clinically normal, client owned dogs (n = 30). An open flow indirect calorimetry system was used to determine the following: rate of oxygen consumption (ml/min/kg of body weight); rate of carbon dioxide production (mls/min/kg), REE (kcal/kg/d) and respiratory quotient. Because of the wide range of body weight, REE and oxygen consumption were also expressed per kg of body weight 0.75. RESULTS Surgical removal of the tumor did not significantly alter any of the variables measured when all dogs with tumors were assessed as a single group, or when the dogs were divided on the basis of having the following types of tumors: carcinomas and sarcomas, osteosarcomas, and mammary adenocarcinomas. None of the data obtained prior to surgical treatment from any of the dogs grouped by tumor type were significantly different from clinically normal dogs. CONCLUSIONS REE (54.4 +/- 16 kcal/kg/d or 125 +/- 19 kcal/kg0.75/d) and, presumably, caloric requirements of dogs with nonhematopoietic malignancies are not significantly different from those obtained from clinically normal dogs (53.9 +/- 16 kcal/kg/d or 116 +/- 32 kcal/kg0.75/d). Furthermore, these variables do not change significantly when the tumor is excised and the dog is reassessed after 4 to 6 weeks. CLINICAL RELEVANCE Knowledge that REE in dogs with solid tumors is not significantly different from REE of clinically normal dogs may be of value when planning nutritional treatment for dogs with nonhematopoietic malignancies.
Multidiscipline Modeling in Materials and Structures Emerald Article : Computational investigation of shock-mitigation efficacy of polyurea when used in a combat helmet : A core sample analysis

Purpose – Polyurea falls into a category of elastomeric co-polymers in which, due to the presence of strong hydrogen bonding, the microstructure is of a heterogeneous nature and consists of a compliant/soft matrix and stiff/hard nanometer size hard domains. Recent investigations have shown that the use of polyurea as an external or internal coating/lining had substantially improved ballistic-penetration resistance of metallic structures. The present work aims to use computational methods and tools in order to assess the shock-mitigation ability of polyurea when used in the construction of different components (suspension-pads, internal lining and external coating) of a combat helmet. Design/methodology/approach – Shock-mitigation capability of combat helmets has become an important functional requirement as shock-ingress into the intra-cranial cavity is known to be one of the main causes of traumatic brain injury (TBI). To assess the shock mitigation capability of polyurea, a combined Eulerian/Lagrangian fluid/solid transient non-linear dynamics computational analysis of an air/helmet/head core sample is carried out and the temporal evolution of the axial stress and particle velocities (for different polyurea augmented helmet designs) are monitored. Findings – The results obtained show that improvements in the shock-mitigation performance of the helmet are obtained only in the case when polyurea is used as a helmet internal lining and that these improvements are relatively small. In addition, polyurea is found to slightly outperform conventional helmet foam, but only under relatively strong (greater than five atm) blastwave peak overpressures. Originality/value – The present approach studies the effect of internal linings and external coatings on combat helmet blast mitigation performance.
Sexual dysfunction during treatment of major depressive disorder with vilazodone, citalopram, or placebo: results from a phase IV clinical trial

Sexual dysfunction commonly occurs with major depressive disorder (MDD). Vilazodone, a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor and 5-HT1A receptor partial agonist antidepressant approved for the treatment of MDD in adults, was evaluated to determine its effects on sexual function. The primary study was a double-blind, randomized, controlled trial comparing vilazodone 20 and 40 mg/day with placebo; citalopram 40 mg/day was an active control (NCT01473381; http://www.clinicaltrials.gov). Post-hoc analyses evaluated change from baseline to week 10 on the Changes in Sexual Functioning Questionnaire (CSFQ); no inferential statistics were performed. CSFQ scores increased for women [1.2 (citalopram) to 3.0 (vilazodone 40 mg)] and men [1.2 (vilazodone 40 mg) to 3.5 (placebo)] in all treatment groups. Greater changes in CSFQ scores were seen in responders [women: 2.33 (citalopram) to 5.06 (vilazodone 40 mg); men: 2.26 (vilazodone 40 mg) to 4.35 (placebo)] versus nonresponders. CSFQ change from baseline was small for patients with normal baseline sexual function; in patients with baseline sexual dysfunction, CSFQ scores improved across groups [women: 2.35 (citalopram) to 4.52 (vilazodone 40 mg); men 2.83 (vilazodone 40 mg) to 6.43 (placebo)]. Across treatment groups, baseline sexual function improved in women and men, MDD responders, and patients with baseline sexual dysfunction.
A robust multi-batch L-BFGS method for machine learning*

ABSTRACT This paper describes an implementation of the L-BFGS method designed to deal with two adversarial situations. The first occurs in distributed computing environments where some of the computational nodes devoted to the evaluation of the function and gradient are unable to return results on time. A similar challenge occurs in a multi-batch approach in which the data points used to compute function and gradients are purposely changed at each iteration to accelerate the learning process. Difficulties arise because L-BFGS employs gradient differences to update the Hessian approximations, and when these gradients are computed using different data points the updating process can be unstable. This paper shows how to perform stable quasi-Newton updating in the multi-batch setting, studies the convergence properties for both convex and non-convex functions, and illustrates the behaviour of the algorithm in a distributed computing platform on binary classification logistic regression and neural network training problems that arise in machine learning.
Primitive neuroectodermal tumor in the spinal canal: A case report

Primitive neuroectodermal tumors (PNETs) are rare tumors of uncertain histogenesis that occur predominantly in children and young adults. The current study reports a case of PNET in a 60-year-old female, which presented clinically as an intraspinal tumor, causing symptoms of lower back pain, numbness and pain in the right lower extremity. The patient underwent tumorectomy. Following primary therapy, the symptoms of spinal cord compression were relieved. The patient underwent several courses of radiotherapy following surgery but refused to continue with chemotherapy. After a further four months, the tumors recurred and the patient succumbed to the disease.
Myocardial infarction, ST-elevation and non-ST-elevation myocardial infarction and modelled daily pollution concentrations: a case-crossover analysis of MINAP data

Objectives To investigate associations between daily concentrations of air pollution and myocardial infarction (MI), ST-elevation MI (STEMI) and non-ST-elevation MI (NSTEMI). Methods Modelled daily ground-level gaseous, total and speciated particulate pollutant concentrations and ground-level daily mean temperature, all at 5 km×5 km horizontal resolution, were linked to 202 550 STEMI and 322 198 NSTEMI events recorded on the England and Wales Myocardial Ischaemia National Audit Project (MINAP) database. The study period was 2003–2010. A case-crossover design was used, stratified by year, month and day of the week. Data were analysed using conditional logistic regression, with pollutants modelled as unconstrained distributed lags 0–2 days. Results are presented as percentage change in risk per 10 µg/m3 increase in the pollutant relevant metric, having adjusted for daily mean temperature, public holidays, weekly influenza consultation rates and a sine-cosine annual cycle. Results There was no evidence of an association between MI or STEMI and any of O3, NO2, PM2.5, PM10 or selected PM2.5 components (sulfate and elemental carbon). For NSTEMI, there was a positive association with daily maximum 1-hour NO2 (0.27% (95% CI 0.01% to 0.54%)), which persisted following adjustment for O3 and adjustment for PM2.5. The association appeared to be confined to the midland and southern regions of England and Wales. Conclusions The study found no evidence of an association between the modelled pollutants (including components) investigated and STEMI but did find some evidence of a positive association between NO2 and NSTEMI. Confirmation of this association in other studies is required.
Staphylococcus aureus Induces Eosinophil Cell Death Mediated by α-hemolysin

Staphylococcus aureus, a major human pathogen, exacerbates allergic disorders, including atopic dermatitis, nasal polyps and asthma, which are characterized by tissue eosinophilia. Eosinophils, via their destructive granule contents, can cause significant tissue damage, resulting in inflammation and further recruitment of inflammatory cells. We hypothesised that the relationship between S. aureus and eosinophils may contribute to disease pathology. We found that supernatants from S. aureus (SH1000 strain) cultures cause rapid and profound eosinophil necrosis, resulting in dramatic cell loss within 2 hours. This is in marked contrast to neutrophil granulocytes where no significant cell death was observed (at equivalent dilutions). Supernatants prepared from a strain deficient in the accessory gene regulator (agr) that produces reduced levels of many important virulence factors, including the abundantly produced α-hemolysin (Hla), failed to induce eosinophil death. The role of Hla in mediating eosinophil death was investigated using both an Hla deficient SH1000-modified strain, which did not induce eosinophil death, and purified Hla, which induced concentration-dependent eosinophil death via both apoptosis and necrosis. We conclude that S. aureus Hla induces aberrant eosinophil cell death in vitro and that this may increase tissue injury in allergic disease.
EFEKTIVITAS PEMBERIAN REWARD MELALUI METODETOKEN EKONOMI UNTUK MENINGKATAN KEDISIPLINANANAK USIA DINI

Disiplin merupakan suatu cara untuk memperbaiki tingkahlaku yang salah. Disiplin juga mendorong, membimbing dan membantu anak agar memperoleh perasaan puas karena kesetiaan, kepatuhan, dan mengajarkan kepada anak bagaimana berpikir secara teratur. Reward juga merupakan salah satu alat pendidikan untuk mendidik anak supaya dapat merasa senang, karena perbuatan atau pekerjaannya mendapat penghargaan. Hurlock menyatakan bahwa sepanjang masa kanak-kanak, penghargaan mempunyai nilai edukatif yang penting. Untuk itu setiap kali anak menunjukkan sikap disiplin mereka maka akan mendapatkan sebuah imbalan atau token ekonomi yang dapat dikumpulkan dan ditukarkan dengan sesuatu yang berharga. Tujuan dari penelitian ini adalah untuk mengetahui token ekonomi efektif atau tidak dalam meningkatkan kedisiplinan anak usia dini. Penelitian ini jenis penelitian eksperimen kuasi Nonequivalent Control Group Design. Pengambilan sample menggunakan teknik Nonprobability Sampling. Sedangkan jenis sampel yang digunakan dalam penelitian ini adalah purposive sampling, yang menyebutkan bahwa penentuan sampel dilakukan dengan pertimbangan tertentu. Uji t paired antara pretest dan posttest kelompok eksperimen menghasilkan nilai significant (2-tailed) < 0,05 yaitu 0,000 yang berarti terdapat perbedaan yang signifikan antara kelompok kontrol dan kelompok eksperimen. Berdasarkan nilai thitung 5,872 > dari nilai ttabel 2,069 menunjukkan bahwa ada perbedaan antara pretest dan posttest kelompok eksperimen. Hasil perhitungan uji t paired antara pretest dan posttest kelompok kontrol menghasilkan nilai significant (2-tailed) > 0,05 yaitu 0,071 yang berarti tidak terdapat perbedaan yang signifikan. Berdasarkan nilai thitung 1,899 < dari nilai ttabel 2,069 menunjukkan bahwa tidak terjadi perbedaan antara hasil pretest dan posttest kelompok kontrol. Hasil uji t paired posttest kelompok eksperimen dan kontrol adalah ada perbedaan yang signifikan karena memiliki nilai significant (2-tailed) < 0,05 yaitu 0,000 yang berarti terdapat perbedaan yang signifikan. Berdasarkan nilai thitung 9,470 > dari nilai ttabel 2,069 menunjukkan bahwa ada perbedaan antara hasil posttest kelompok kontrol dan eksperimen, dimana kelompok eksperimen menghasilkan nilai posttest yang lebih tinggi dibandingkan kelompok kontrol. Ada perbedaan tingkat kedisiplinan pada kelompok eksperimen sebelum dan sesudah diberikan token ekonomi dan terlihat perbedaan tingkat kedisiplinan pada kelompok eksperimen dan kontrol setelah diberikan perlakuan. Maka token ekonomi efektif digunakan untuk meningkatkan kedisiplinan anak usia dini.
Extensions to media richness theory: a test of the task-media fit hypothesis

The richness of the communication environment and the type of task formed by dyads was contrasted in a laboratory experiment. Dyads communicated using face-to-face, videophone, telephone, and synchronous computer-mediated communication. One task was an intellective task while the other was a value-laden cognitive conflict task. For the intellective task, subjects were given different information (i.e. one subject received a directory from the Yellow Pages and the other a city map) and asked to locate the closest doctor's office listed in the Yellow Pages directory to a location marked on the map. For the value-laden task, subjects were added to allocate limited funds to one or more of six controversial social causes. The results of this study help to provide theoretical extensions to normative views of media richness theory by discussing how variations in task processes may act to mediate both perceptions and performance. <<ETX>>
Using conjunction of attribute values for classification

Advances in the efficient discovery of frequent itemsets have led to the development of a number of schemes that use frequent itemsets to aid developing accurate and efficient classifiers. These approaches use the frequent itemsets to generate a set of composite features that expand the dimensionality of the underlying dataset. In this paper, we build upon this work and (i) present a variety of schemes for composite feature selection that achieve a substantial reduction in the number of features without adversely affecting the accuracy gains, and (ii) show (both analytically and experimentally) that the composite features can lead to improved classification models even in the context of support vector machines, in which the dimensionality can automatically be expanded by the use of appropriate kernel functions.