Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Language profiles in nonspeaking individuals of normal intelligence with severe cerebral palsy

Evidence is presented that verbal intelligence may be relatively superior to nonverbal intelligence in many nonspeaking individuals of normal intelligence with severe cerebral palsy and that unqualified generalizations about language abilities in this patient population should be avoided. Standardized tests of different levels of processing oral language (phonemic analysis, vocabulary knowledge, sentence syntax, discourse comprehension), of processing written language (word decoding out of sentence context and sentence and paragraph comprehension), and of producing written language (spelling single dictated words) were administered to a nonspeaking adult, adolescent, and child of normal intelligence with severe cerebral palsy. Intraindividual differences and common patterns across language profiles were examined. Not all subjects showed the same pattern within their language profiles, but all showed relatively better receptive oral language at the discourse level than any other level and were relatively b.
White Women Teaching White Women about White Privilege, Race Cognizance and Social Action: Toward a pedagogical pragmatics

In this article, the authors describe a four-phase pedagogical project they undertook in response to the strong resistance they encountered from a number of their white women students who objected to the readings and discussions of white skin privilege. In an interdisciplinary program where 73% of the students are white women, the authors teach upper-level university social science courses that include the study of racism. White women themselves, the authors found their stories of students' resistance to be useful springboards for reflection. Reading and discussing the literature on teaching about whiteness as they worked with their stories, the authors were able to reframe their own initial concerns about how to read their students' discontent. This article reviews key themes from the literature on student resistance in anti-racist classrooms, describes the interview process the authors used to elicit each other's teaching stories, analyzes five of these stories, and presents some of the approaches that they developed to better reach their students.
Cognitive measures predict pathologic Alzheimer disease.

BACKGROUND Neuropsychologic testing is often used to infer neuropathologic processes, but clinicopathologic correlations for individual cognitive measures are based on a small number of published studies. OBJECTIVE To examine the usefulness of the age- and education-adjusted Mayo Cognitive Factor Scales (MCFS) obtained at participants' initial assessments for predicting the presence or absence of pathologic Alzheimer disease (AD). DESIGN This was a longitudinal study of a cohort of elderly patients with and without cognitive complaints who were followed up until death. Mayo Cognitive Factor Scales age- and education-adjusted standard scores from the participants' initial evaluations were used to calculate classification accuracy statistics for neuropathologic AD diagnosis obtained approximately 6 years after testing. Subjects with non-AD diagnoses or substantial non-AD-related changes were excluded from the study. SETTING Academic medical center. PARTICIPANTS One hundred two participants were evaluated clinically and underwent neuropathologic examination at autopsy. All were part of the Mayo Clinic Alzheimer's Disease Patient Registry or Alzheimer Disease Research Center. RESULTS All Mayo Cognitive Factor Scale scores were significantly correlated with AD criteria. Logistic regression modeling including Mayo Cognitive Factor Scales Verbal Comprehension and Retention indices revealed high positive predictive value with moderate sensitivity and specificity for pathologic AD. CONCLUSION Neuropsychologic test scores at initial evaluations were predictive of pathologic AD.
The generalized distributive law

We discuss a general message passing algorithm, which we call the generalized distributive law (GDL). The GDL is a synthesis of the work of many authors in information theory, digital communications, signal processing, statistics, and artificial intelligence. It includes as special cases the Baum-Welch algorithm, the fast Fourier transform (FFT) on any finite Abelian group, the Gallager-Tanner-Wiberg decoding algorithm, Viterbi's algorithm, the BCJR algorithm, Pearl's "belief propagation" algorithm, the Shafer-Shenoy probability propagation algorithm, and the turbo decoding algorithm. Although this algorithm is guaranteed to give exact answers only in certain cases (the "junction tree" condition), unfortunately not including the cases of GTW with cycles or turbo decoding, there is much experimental evidence, and a few theorems, suggesting that it often works approximately even when it is not supposed to.
Effect of moderate alcohol consumption on hypertriglyceridemia: a study in the fasting state.

BACKGROUND Patients with hypertriglyceridemia (HTG) are generally advised to avoid alcohol, even though moderate alcohol consumption is cardioprotective. Alcohol increases plasma triglyceride concentration transiently in normolipidemic subjects, but whether alcohol consumption per se increases triglyceride concentrations in patients with HTG is unclear. OBJECTIVE To assess whether baseline fasting triglyceride concentration determines plasma triglyceride concentration after acute oral alcohol intake. METHODS Twelve persons with fasting triglyceride concentrations of 2.3 to 8.5 mmol/L (200-750 mg/dL) and 12 persons as a non-HTG group were enrolled. Obesity, current smoking, and history of hypertension, diabetes, or excessive alcohol use were exclusionary. Fasted subjects consumed 38 mL of ethanol in water (equivalent, 2 alcoholic drinks); blood samples were collected at baseline and at intervals thereafter for 10 hours. No less than 1 week later, the subjects consumed water alone in a control test. RESULTS Mean triglyceride values were 4.04+/-0.41 mmol/L (358+/-36.9 mg/dL) and 1.00+/-0.11 mmol/L (89+/-10.2 mg/dL) for the HTG and non-HTG groups, respectively. Despite similar changes with alcohol feeding in plasma ethanol, nonesterified fatty acid, and acetate concentrations, the groups differed in triglyceride response. At 6 hours (peak) compared with baseline, triglyceride concentration increased only 3% in the HTG group but 53% in the non-HTG group. The former change was not significantly different from the effect with water alone (-9.2% from baseline; P = .43), whereas the latter was (-8.0%; P = .003). CONCLUSIONS Acute alcohol intake alone is not an important determinant of plasma triglyceride concentration in individuals with HTG. Other factors, such as the contemporaneous consumption of fat and alcohol, known to increase triglyceride concentrations synergistically in non-HTG individuals, may be more important.
A Medication Discharge Planning Program

Repeated hospitalizations result in high costs and may occur as a result of patient errors in their medication regimen. To reduce rehospitalizations (hospitalizations within 31 days of the previous discharge), health care professionals have turned to the discharge planning process. Using Orem's theory of self-care, a medication discharge planning program was developed to provide instruction on the requisites necessary for medication self-care. The purpose of this pilot study was to examine the effects of this program on readmissions within 31 days. Five nurses implemented the program for 54 patients with an admitting diagnosis of congestive heart failure. These patients were alternately assigned to a control or an experimental group. The experimental group received the medication discharge planning program. The control group received the usual informal discharge planning provided on the nursing unit. Eight (28.6%) of the 28 patients in the control group were readmitted within 31 days of the previous discharge. Two (7.7%) of the 26 patients in the experimental group were readmitted within 31 days. These results showed a statistically significant difference using Fisher's Exact Test (p = .05). Those receiving the medication discharge planning program were less likely to be readmitted, suggesting the importance of a medication discharge planning program.
Glucagon-Like Peptide-1 Increases Myocardial Glucose Uptake via p38&agr; MAP Kinase-Mediated, Nitric Oxide-Dependent Mechanisms in Conscious Dogs With Dilated Cardiomyopathy

Background—We have shown that glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1[7-36] amide) stimulates myocardial glucose uptake in dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) independent of an insulinotropic effect. The cellular mechanisms of GLP-1-induced myocardial glucose uptake are unknown. Methods and Results—Myocardial substrates and glucoregulatory hormones were measured in conscious, chronically instrumented dogs at control (n=6), DCM (n=9) and DCM after treatment with a 48-hour infusion of GLP-1 (7-36) amide (n=9) or vehicle (n=6). GLP-1 receptors and cellular pathways implicated in myocardial glucose uptake were measured in sarcolemmal membranes harvested from the 4 groups. GLP-1 stimulated myocardial glucose uptake (DCM: 20±7 nmol/min/g; DCM+GLP-1: 61±12 nmol/min/g; P=0.001) independent of increased plasma insulin levels. The GLP-1 receptors were upregulated in the sarcolemmal membranes (control: 98±2 density units; DCM: 256±58 density units; P=0.046) and were expressed in their activated (65 kDa) form in DCM. The GLP-1-induced increases in myocardial glucose uptake did not involve adenylyl cyclase or Akt activation but was associated with marked increases in p38&agr; MAP kinase activity (DCM+vehicle: 97±22 pmol ATP/mg/min; DCM+GLP-1: 170±36 pmol ATP/mg/min; P=0.051), induction of nitric oxide synthase 2 (DCM+vehicle: 151±13 density units; DCM+GLP-1: 306±12 density units; P=0.001), and GLUT-1 translocation (DCM+vehicle: 21±3% membrane bound; DCM+GLP-1: 39±3% membrane bound; P=0.005). The effects of GLP-1 on myocardial glucose uptake were blocked by pretreatment with the p38&agr; MAP kinase inhibitor or the nonspecific nitric oxide synthase inhibitor nitro-l-arginine. Conclusions—GLP-1 stimulates myocardial glucose uptake through a non-Akt-1-dependent mechanism by activating cellular pathways that have been identified in mediating chronic hibernation and the late phase of ischemic preconditioning.
The optimal design process of the plate heat exchanger

The purpose of this study is to find a simplified model which can be used in the optimal process to simplify the optimal design reasonably in conduits with corrugated wall, encountered in commercial plate heat transfer exchanger (PHE). The numerical model of this study is verified by the published experiment data in the previous literature. The results of this present study are shown that the proposed method is an effective and reliable tool for studying the optimal performance design of the PHE.
O sentido da velhice para homens e mulheres idosos

Este estudo de natureza qualitativa foi efetivado no grupo de convivencia Juventude Acumulada, do bairro popular de Cruz das Armas, do municipio de Joao Pessoa-PB. Da pesquisa, participaram dezoito mulheres e doze homens idosos que aceitaram, livremente, participar da investigacao. A coleta de dados foi realizada nos meses de abril e maio de 2008, mediante uma entrevista semiestruturada gravada. Na analise do material empirico, utilizamos a abordagem de analise de discurso proposta por Fiorin. No que se refere aos sentidos atribuidos a velhice, verificamos que boa parte dos homens se sentem jovens, "velhos so na idade" ou diante da desvalia social da aposentadoria. Os demais consideram a velhice algo negativo para suas vidas, que ameaca sua autonomia e independencia. As mulheres, em sua maioria, expressam e vivem a velhice de modo ambiguo, ou seja, apesar de entenderem a velhice como algo negativo e presente em suas vidas, essa fase do ciclo vital representa, para muitas, uma oportunidade de desfrutar os anos de vida que lhes restam de forma mais livre.
How to Ask for a Study in Qualitatisch

This article summarizes a keynote lecture presented to the Advances in Qualitative Methods conference. The core problem is the following: A variety of research approaches are now summarized under the term qualitative, yet it is not clear what such approaches have in common. Four characteristics are offered that describe a prototype for what are here called “translation” studies: rich points, abductive logic, a puzzle-solving mode of analysis, and a complexity theory representation. The prototype includes, but is not limited by, the usual terms used to describe such research approaches, including the term qualitative itself. Three examples are offered to show how the prototype applies to public health intervention as well as research.
Leardership, Job Perceptions, and Influence: A Conceptual Integration

A fundamental assumption adopted by most approaches to the study of leadership is that leaders somehow influence subordinate attitudes and behavior. Unfortunately, few systematic attempts have been made to address specifically how the influence process operates. Thus, we have been left with a large amount of research reflecting relationships between leadership and subordinate outcomes, but little in the way of explanation as to how or why such results come about. This paper reviews the effects of leadership on subordinate attitudes and behavior by incorporating subordinate perceptions of the job. A perspective is offered which more clearly articulates the operation of the leadership influence process, viewing it as a contextual influence that impacts on behavior and attitudes of subordinates through their perceptions of job characteristics. This alternative perspective thus casts the integration of leadership and job perceptions in a different conceptual framework. Suggestions for testing the proposed model and implications for future research are discussed.
Integrating serious content into serious games

This paper addresses the integration of training content into serious games. Many possibilities exist for how to approach this process, but there are also many opportunities and consequences afforded by these various approaches. Prior literature in the field gives us some sense about how to approach them, but much of this literature is based on theory in instructional systems or game design separately. Serious game designers utilize some of this theory, but also rely on other methods and processes for completing these games. This practitioner perspective is the one we adopt in this paper. This paper reviews current approaches suggested in research on serious games, derives what that research means for studies of serious game practice, and describes a study of how learning content is transformed in serious games. This paper finds practitioners have a learning objective focus to game design aiding their choices of the right mechanics and representation, balancing fun and education, and evaluating the game. We find serious game designers also must deal with a number of organizational and other exogenous factors as well. This study provides an important contribution to the literature on serious game design from this practitioner perspective.
Group Ties Protect Cognitive Health by Promoting Social Identification and Social Support

Objective: Social relationships are protective of cognitive health as we age and recent findings show that social group ties (e.g., with community and peer groups) are especially important. The present research examines this relationship further to explore (a) the contribution of group, relative to interpersonal, ties and (b) underlying mechanism. Method: Two cross-sectional survey studies were conducted. Study 1 was conducted online (N = 200) and Study 2 involved face-to-face interviews (N = 42). Results: The findings confirmed group ties as a stronger predictor of cognitive health than individual ties. It also supported our proposed sequential mediation model suggesting that the benefits of group ties arise from their capacity to enhance a sense of shared social identification and this, in turn, provides the basis for effective social support. Discussion: Both studies provided evidence consistent with claims that group ties were especially beneficial because they cultivated social identification that provided the foundation for social support.
Master Swimmers: How Are They Different From Younger Elite Swimmers? An Examination of Practice and Performance Patterns

Recent work in the area of sport expertise suggests that practice patterns can also play a critical role in maintaining athletic performance. This article examines the contribution of both physiological changes and practice patterns to swimming performances of master-, international-, junior-national-, and varsity-level swimmers. A comparison of the practice patterns of these groups suggests that master athletes spend significantly less time per week training for competition, and their training focus is on endurance, not strength. Younger swimmers train for endurance, strength, speed, and power. The authors suggest that these differences might be partly responsible for age-related performance changes. Performance changes for semilongitudinal and cross-sectional samples are characterized by significant quadratic beta weight, indicating increasing declines in performance starting at around 60 years of age. These data are discussed with respect to the role that practice plays in explaining performance change.
Epidemiology of cholelithiasis in southern Italy. Part II: Risk factors

Objective: To determine behavioural, dietary and other common factors associated with new cases of gallstones, diagnosed by ultrasonography, in a prospective cohort study conducted in southern Italy. Subjects and methods: Between May 1985 and June 1986, systematic sampling from the electoral register of Castellana, a small town in southern Italy, yielded 2472 subjects who had had their gallbladder checked for gallstones by ultrasonography. Between May 1992 and June 1993, 1962 out of the 2235 (87.7%) subjects without gallstones at baseline agreed to a further ultrasound examination. At the first survey a standardized questionnaire was administered, inquiring about medical history, diet, cigarette smoking and other behavioural characteristics. Height and weight were also measured, and blood levels of glucose, cholesterol, HDL-cholesterol and triglycerides were determined by standard methods. The same variables were measured at the second survey. The diagnosis of gallstones was made with the same echograph by echographists working in the same department. Multiple logistic regression was used to determine which factors measured at the first survey were associated with the incident cases of gallstones. Results: One hundred and four subjects had developed gallstones, an incidence of 9.7 per 1000 persons per year. Age, body mass index (BMI), weight change, a history of diabetes, constipation (shown by use of laxatives), cigarette smoking, years of schooling, consumption of fried foods and excessive oil, and pregnancy in females, were positively associated with the incidence of gallstones. Consumption of wine, coffee, fish and wholemeal bread was inversely associated. Sex, family history of cholelithiasis, use of oral contraceptives and serum lipids were not independent risk factors for gallstones. Conclusion: The results of this study confirm many gallstone-associated factors reported in previous cross-sectional and case-control studies, as well as in other cohort studies based on the clinical diagnosis of gallstones, such as BMI, ageing and wine consumption. Furthermore, use of laxatives, considered a proxy of constipation, appears to be another important independent risk factor for gallstones.
Montessori Improved Cognitive Domains in Adults with Alzheimer's Disease

Montessori materials were used in two adult day-care centers to slow cognitive decline in adults with Alzheimer's disease. Using a within-subject design, participants in one adult day care received three months of the Montessori materials, then standard intervention later. Participants were administered a battery of cognitive measures at baseline, three months, and six months. Favorable scores for the Montessori condition were significant with the subscales of the Ordinal Scale of Psychological Development-Modified (total, object permanence, means-ends), Dementia Rating Scale (total, attention, concept, memory), Parachek Geriatric Behavior Rating Scale (social behavior), and the Wechsler Memory Scale (digit forward). Montessori materials appeared instrumental in positively influencing basic cognitive abilities of attention, object permanence, and social behavior.
Payment Card Rewards Programs and Consumer Payment Choice

By using a unique data set that contains detailed information about consumer payment choice and consumers' attitudes toward each payment method, we estimate the effects of payment card rewards on consumer choice of payment methods. Our approach allows us to control for consumer heterogeneity. We find the effects of rewards to be statistically significant across five retail types. Our policy experiments suggest that for the sub-population who hold both credit and debit cards, removing rewards would increase their share of paper-based payment methods (i.e., cash and checks), measured in terms of in-store transactions, by no more than 4 percentage points.
Psychiatric disorder and policing the elderly offender

Information relating to elderly offenders' mental state is necessary if the English Home Office statement that cautioning is suitable for all age-groups is to be safely implemented by the police. This paper reports on the prevalence of mental disorder in a sample of 50 alleged offenders over the age of 60, and reports on the reasons given for the police action (i.e. taking no further action, cautioning or prosecution). Subjects were interviewed using the Geriatric Mental State (A) 3rd edition (GMSA3). Previous offending history and the stated reasons for the mode of disposal were obtained from the police. One hundred and fifty three individuals were identified and a sample of 50 were interviewed. Ninety-seven of the 153 offences (63%) involved shoplifting. Fourteen (28%) of all those interviewed were identified as cases by Automated Geriatric Examination for Computer Assisted Taxonomy (AGECAT). Amongst shoplifters, 38% were identified as cases, with nine out of the 11 cases belonging to AGECAT organic and depressive syndrome groups. No association between first onset offending in late life (age 60 or over) and mental disorder was identified. ‘No further action’ was associated with denial of intent and unclear or unreliable admission of the offence. Cautions were associated with police perceptions of attitude to offence and having a ‘clean record’. The police referred only half of the people later identified as psychiatric cases to welfare agencies (the Social Services being used infrequently). They were unlikely to refer on non-psychiatric cases (19%). Close cooperation between health care agencies and the police is required to ensure that offences that may be related to mental disorder in the elderly do not go unnoticed. Copyright © 1996 Whurr Publishers Ltd.