Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The COPD assessment test: a systematic review

The COPD assessment test (CAT) is a self-administered questionnaire that measures health-related quality of life. We aimed to systematically evaluate the literature for reliability, validity, responsiveness and minimum clinically important difference (MCID) of the CAT. Multiple databases were searched for studies analysing the psychometric properties of the CAT in adults with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Two reviewers independently screened, selected and extracted data, and assessed methodological quality of relevant studies using the COSMIN checklist. From 792 records identified, 36 studies were included. The number of participants ranged from 45 to 6469, mean age from 56 to 73 years, and mean forced expiratory volume in 1 s from 39% to 98% predicted. Internal consistency (reliability) was 0.85–0.98, and test–retest reliability was 0.80–0.96. Convergent and longitudinal validity using Pearson’s correlation coefficient were: SGRQ-C 0.69–0.82 and 0.63, CCQ 0.68–0.78 and 0.60, and mMRC 0.29–0.61 and 0.20, respectively. Scores differed with GOLD stages, exacerbation and mMRC grades. Mean scores decreased with pulmonary rehabilitation (2.2–3 units) and increased at exacerbation onset (4.7 units). Only one study with adequate methodology reported an MCID of 2 units and 3.3–3.8 units using the anchor-based approach and distribution-based approach, respectively. Most studies had fair methodological quality. We conclude that the studies support the reliability and validity of the CAT and that the tool is responsive to interventions, although the MCID remains debatable. Studies support the reliability, validity and responsiveness of the CAT as a HRQoL tool but its MCID remains unclear http://ow.ly/xkVNA
Further Results and Analysis of Icelandic Part of Speech Tagging

Data driven POS tagging has achieved good performance for English, but can still lag behind linguistic rule based taggers for morphologically complex languages, such as Icelandic. We extend a statistical tagger to handle fine grained tagsets and improve over the best Icelandic POS tagger. Additionally, we develop a case tagger for non-local case and gender decisions. An error analysis of our system suggests future directions. This paper presents further results and analysis to the original work (Dredze and Wallenberg, 2008). Comments University of Pennsylvania Department of Computer and Information Science Technical Report No. MSCIS-08-13. This technical report is available at ScholarlyCommons: http://repository.upenn.edu/cis_reports/878 Further Results and Analysis of Icelandic Part of Speech Tagging Mark Dredze Department of Computer and Information Science University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia, PA 19104 mdredze@cis.upenn.edu Joel Wallenberg Department of Linguistics University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia, PA 19104 joelcw@babel.ling. upenn.edu
A State Transition Diagram Language for Visual Programming

objects have been devdloped. The diagrams, flowcharts, and other iconic representations we have long employed to communicate with other people can now be used directly to describe algorithms to computers. With the availability of graphics-based, personal workstations, these visual modes can eliminate the need to convert algorithms to the linear strings of symbols traditionally required by most computers. Linear, symbolic computer languages have been studied and refined extensively over the past 30 years, but computer language designers now face a new challenge: to provide convenient and natural visual programming lan-
The Impact of Combination Antiretroviral Therapy and its Interruption on Anxiety, Stress, Depression and Quality of Life in Thai Patients

Objective: Investigation on anxiety, stress, depression, and quality of life (QoL) within STACCATO, a randomised trial of two treatment strategies: CD4 guided scheduled treatment interruption (STI) compared to continuous treatment (CT). Participants: Thai patients with HIV-infection enrolled in the STACCATO trial. Methods: Anxiety, depression assessed by the questionnaires Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) and DASS, stress assessed by the Depression Anxiety Stress Scale (DASS), and QoL evaluated by the HIV Medical Outcome Study (MOS-HIV) questionnaires. Answers to questionnaires were evaluated at 4 time-points: baseline, 24 weeks, 48 weeks and at the end of STACCATO. Results: A total of 251 patients answered the HADS/DASS and 241 answered the MOS-HIV of the 379 Thai patients enrolled into STACCATO (66.2 and 63.6% respectively). At baseline 16.3% and 7.2% of patients reported anxiety and depression using HADS scale. Using the DASS scale, 35.1% reported mild to moderate and 9.6% reported severe anxiety; 8.8% reported mild to moderate and 2.0% reported severe depression; 42.6% reported mild to moderate and 4.8% reported severe stress. We showed a significant improvement of the MHS across time (p=0.001), but no difference between arms (p=0.17). The summarized physical health status score (PHS) did not change during the trial (p=0.15) nor between arm (p=0.45). There was no change of MHS or PHS in the STI arm, taking into account the number of STI cycle (p=0.30 and 0.57) but MHS significant increased across time-points (p=0.007). Conclusion: Antiretroviral therapy improved mental health and QOL, irrespective of the treatment strategy.
Concept Release on Auditor Independence and Audit Firm Rotation

I was with Ernst & Young for 38 years, including 27 years as a partner in the Assurance Practice, serving publicly held companies primarily in the airline and retail industries. For the past three years I have been on the Board of Directors and Chairman of the Audit Committee of the Vitamin Shoppe, Inc., a publicly held company. Accordingly, my perspective regarding auditor independence, objectivity, and professional skepticism comes from both ends of the spectrum, i. e. as an audit professional and as someone responsible for ensuring that the audit firm and audit professionals serving Vitamin Shoppe, Inc. are independent, objective and professionally skepticaL.
Influence of dry bands on polluted insulator performance

This paper is aimed at the study of the influence of dry bands and the pollution distribution on insulator performance under impulse voltage. For that purpose, numerical simulation of electrical field and potential distribution along high voltage insulator model with different configurations of pollution layer is performed. Simulation results have showed that the increase of dry bands may improve the potential grading. The flashover voltage and critical leakage current for uniform, non uniform, continuous and discontinuous distributions of pollution deposits on insulator are also computed using a multi-arcs dynamic model. The computed results are found in a good accordance with the experimental ones.
Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics Long-term Field Performance of a Tunable Diode Laser Absorption Spectrometer for Analysis of Carbon Isotopes of Co 2 in Forest Air

Tunable diode laser absorption spectrometry (TD-LAS) is gaining in popularity for measuring the mole fraction [CO 2 ] and stable isotopic composition (δ 13 C) of carbon dioxide (CO 2) in air in studies of biosphere-atmosphere gas exchange. Here we present a detailed examination of the performance of a commercially-available TDLAS located in a high-altitude subalpine coniferous forest (the Niwot Ridge AmeriFlux site), providing the first multi-year analysis of TDLAS instrument performance for measuring CO 2 isotopes in the field. Air was sampled from five to nine vertical locations in and above the forest canopy every ten minutes for 2.4 years. A variety of methods were used to assess instrument performance. Measurement of two compressed air cylinders that were in place over the entire study establish the long-term field precision of 0.2 µmol mol −1 for [CO 2 ] and 0.35‰ for δ 13 C, but after fixing several problems the isotope precision improved to 0.2‰ (over the last several months). The TDLAS provided detail on variability of δ 13 C of atmospheric CO 2 that was not represented in weekly flask samples , as well as information regarding the influence of large-scale (regional) seasonal cycle and local forest processes on [CO 2 ] and δ 13 C of CO 2. There were also clear growing season and winter differences in the relative contributions of photosynthesis and respiration on the [CO 2 ] and δ 13 C of forest air.
Effects of Immunosuppressive Drugs on In Vitro Neogenesis of Human Islets: Mycophenolate Mofetil Inhibits the Proliferation of Ductal Cells

Assuming that neogenesis contributes to long‐term function of islet grafts, it is important to study the effects of immunosuppressive drugs on precursor cell proliferation and differentiation. We examined the effects of low‐dose immunosuppressive drugs on these processes in vitro. Immunosuppressive drugs, including sirolimus, tacrolimus, mycophenolate mofetil (MMF), daclizumab and their combinations were tested in parallel culture wells through either the expansion phase (5–7 days) or the entire culture period (4–5 weeks). MMF, alone or in combination with sirolimus or tacrolimus, severely hampered duct‐cell proliferation by 8‐fold during the expansion period, and significantly reduced the total DNA content by about 40% after 5‐week culture. After 4–5 week exposure to different drugs, only sirolimus and daclizumab showed no adverse effects on insulin content, whereas significant reductions of 30–60% in insulin content were seen in all other experimental groups. Only tacrolimus decreased the insulin content per DNA, as well as the proportion of insulin‐positive cells. In conclusion, MMF has a potent inhibitory effect on neogenesis primarily through an antiproliferative effect on the precursors, whereas tacrolimus mainly affects beta‐cell differentiation. Sirolimus and daclizumab have no adverse effects on these parameters. The immunosuppressive protocol may be an important determinant of long‐term clinical islet graft function.
Vibrotactile Stimulation Promotes Embodiment of an Alien Hand in Amputees With Phantom Sensations

Tactile feedback is essential to intuitive control and to promote the sense of self-attribution of a prosthetic limb. Recent findings showed that amputees can be tricked to experience this embodiment, when synchronous and modality-matched stimuli are delivered to biological afferent structures and to an alien rubber hand. Hence, it was suggested to exploit this effect by coupling touch sensors in a prosthesis to an array of haptic tactile stimulators in the prosthetic socket. However, this approach is not clinically viable due to physical limits of current haptic devices. To address this issue we have proposed modality-mismatched stimulation and demonstrated that this promotes self-attribution of an alien hand on normally limbed subjects. In this work we investigated whether similar effects could be induced in transradial amputees with referred phantom sensations in a series of experiments fashioned after the Rubber Hand Illusion using vibrotactile stimulators. Results from three independent measures of embodiment demonstrated that vibrotactile sensory substitution elicits body-ownership of a rubber hand in transradial amputees. These results open up promising possibilities in this field; indeed miniature, safe and inexpensive vibrators could be fitted into commercially available prostheses and sockets to induce the illusion every time the prosthesis manipulates an object.
Impact of Abcc2 [Multidrug Resistance-Associated Protein (Mrp) 2], Abcc3 (Mrp3), and Abcg2 (Breast Cancer Resistance Protein) on the Oral Pharmacokinetics of Methotrexate and Its Main Metabolite 7-Hydroxymethotrexate

The ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporters ABCC2 [multidrug resistance-associated protein (MRP) 2], ABCC3 (MRP3), and ABCG2 (breast cancer resistance protein) are involved in the efflux of potentially toxic compounds from the body. We have shown before that ABCC2, ABCC3, and ABCG2 together influence the pharmacokinetics of the anticancer and antirheumatic drug methotrexate (MTX) and its toxic metabolite 7-hydroxymethotrexate (7OH-MTX) after intravenous MTX administration. We now have used Abcc2;Abcc3;Abcg2(−/−) and corresponding single and double knockout mice to investigate the relative impact of these transporters on MTX and 7OH-MTX pharmacokinetics after oral MTX administration (50 mg/kg). The plasma areas under the curve (AUCplasma) in Abcg2(−/−) and Abcc2;Abcg2(−/−) mice were 1.7- and 3.0-fold higher than those in wild-type mice, respectively, suggesting additive effects of Abcc2 and Abcg2 on oral MTX pharmacokinetics. However, the AUCplasma in Abcc2;Abcc3;Abcg2(−/−) mice was not different from that in wild-type mice, indicating that Abcc3 protein is necessary for increased MTX plasma concentrations in the absence of Abcc2 and/or Abcg2. Furthermore, 2 h after administration, MTX liver levels were increased in Abcg2-deficient strains and MTX kidney levels were 2.2-fold increased in Abcc2;Abcg2(−/−) mice compared with those in wild-type mice. The absence of Abcc2 and/or Abcg2 also led to significantly increased liver and kidney levels of 7OH-MTX. Our results suggest that inhibition of ABCG2 and/or ABCC2, genetic polymorphisms or mutations reducing expression or activity of these proteins may increase the oral availability of MTX. Such conditions may also present risk factors for increased MTX-related toxicity in patients treated with oral MTX.
Economic evaluation of citalopram use and expenditures among recipients in the Texas Medicaid program.

OBJECTIVE To describe the trends in the utilization and expenditures of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) and venlafaxine within the Texas Medicaid program in 1999 and 2000; more specifically, to compare the use of citalopram with other SSRI agents and venlafaxine. METHODS A retrospective analysis of Texas Medicaid paid prescription claims data involving Texas Medicaid clients aged 18 to 64. The main outcome measures were allowed, discounted cost per day; dose per day; treatment days (persistence); adherence rates; and switching rates. RESULTS Citalopram had a significantly lower calculated cost per day than all other comparator agents. There were no statistically significant differences between study agent groups when comparing treatment days and adherence days for newly started patients, except for lower rates with venlafaxine IR. CONCLUSIONS Within the Texas Medicaid Program, citalopram had a positive economic impact on prescription drug costs compared to other comparator agents, while showing similar outcomes in utilization measures such as treatment days and adherence rates.
Trehalose 6-phosphate signal is closely related to sorbitol in apple (Malus domestica Borkh. cv. Gala)

ABSTRACT Trehalose-6-phosphate (Tre6P) is a precursor of trehalose, which is widespread in nature and greatly influences plant growth and development. Tre6P acts as a signal of carbon availability in many plants, but little is known about the function of Tre6P in rosaceous plants, which have specific sorbitol biosynthesis and transportation pathways. In the present study, Tre6P levels and Sorbitol:Tre6P ratios were analyzed in apple (Malus domestica, Borkh. cv. Gala). Tre6P levels were positively correlated with sorbitol content but negatively correlated with sucrose, glucose, and fructose content in developing fruit. However, under sorbitol-limited conditions, Tre6P levels were positively correlated with both sorbitol and sucrose. In the presence of different exogenous sugar supply, Tre6P levels increased corresponding with sorbitol, but this was not the case with sucrose. In addition, Tre6P content and sorbitol:Tre6P ratios were more highly correlated with ADP-glucose levels under sorbitol-limited conditions and fruit development stages, respectively. These results suggest that Tre6P is more closely related to sorbitol than other soluble sugars and has an important role in influencing carbon metabolism in apple. Summary: Metabolite analysis of the Tre6P pathway in apple fruit, Malus domestica, reveals that Tre6P levels were highly and positively correlated with sorbitol content, but not with sucrose content.
Titanium Surfaces with Nanostructures Influence on Osteoblasts Proliferation: a Systematic Review

ABSTRACT Objectives Nanothechnology found to be increasingly implemented in implantology sphere over the recent years and it shows encouraging effect in this field. The aim of present review is to compare, based on the recent evidence, the influence of various nanostructure surface modifications of titanium for implants, on osteoblasts proliferation. Material and Methods A literature review of English articles was conducted by using MEDLINE database restricted to 2009 - 2014 and constructed according PRISMA guidelines. Search terms included “Titanium implant”, “Titanium surface with nanostructure”, “Osteoblast”. Additional studies were identified in bibliographies. Only in vitro and/or in vivo studies on nano structured implant surfaces plus control sample, with specific evaluation method for osteoblasts proliferation and at least one Ti sample with nanostructure, were included in the review. Results 32 studies with 122 groups of examined samples were selected for present review. Each study conducted in vitro experiment, two studies conducted additional in vivo experiments. All studies were dispensed by type of surface modification into two major groups; “Direct ablative titanium implant surface nano-modifications” with 19 studies and ”Nanocomposite additive implant surface modifications” with 13 studies. Overall 24 studies reporting on positive effect of nanostructured surface, 2 studies found no significant advantage and 6 studies reported on negative effect compared to other structure scales. Conclusions From examination of selected articles we can notice marked advantage in implementation of various nanostructures onto implant surface. Yet for discovering the ultimate implant surface nanostructure, further comparable investigations of Ti surface nanostructures need to be done.
Monocyte chemoattractant protein 1, intercellular adhesion molecule 1, and vascular cell adhesion molecule 1 in exudative age-related macular degeneration.

OBJECTIVE To examine intraocular concentrations of monocyte chemoattractant protein 1 (MCP-1), soluble intercellular adhesion molecule 1 (sICAM-1), soluble vascular cell adhesion molecule 1 (sVCAM-1), and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in eyes with exudative age-related macular degeneration (AMD). METHODS The investigation included a study group of 28 patients (28 eyes) with exudative AMD and a control group of 25 patients (25 eyes) with cataract. The concentrations of MCP-1, sICAM-1, sVCAM-1, and VEGF in aqueous humor samples obtained during surgery were measured using a solid-phase chemiluminescence immunoassay. RESULTS The study group as compared with the control group had higher aqueous concentrations of sICAM-1 (mean [SD], 844 [2073] vs 246 [206] pg/mL, respectively; P < .001), sVCAM-1 (mean [SD], 7978 [7120] vs 2999 [1426] pg/mL, respectively; P < .001), and MCP-1 (mean [SD], 587 [338] vs 435 [221] pg/mL, respectively; P = .07). The concentration of VEGF did not vary significantly between the groups (P = .76). The MCP-1 concentration was significantly associated with macular thickness (r = 0.40; P = .004). It decreased significantly with the type of subfoveal neovascular membrane (classic membrane type, occult membrane, retinal pigment epithelium detachment) (P = .009). The concentrations of sICAM-1, sVCAM-1, and VEGF were not significantly associated with membrane type and macular thickness (P ≥ .18). CONCLUSIONS Concentrations of MCP-1, sICAM-1, and sVCAM-1 are significantly associated with exudative AMD, even in the presence of normal VEGF concentrations. Intraocular MCP-1 concentrations are correlated with the subfoveal neovascular membrane type and the amount of macular edema. One may infer that MCP-1, sICAM-1, and sVCAM-1 could potentially be additional target molecules in therapy for exudative AMD.
Watermarking for Multimedia Security Using Complex Wavelets

This paper investigates the application of complex wavelet transforms to the field of digital data hiding. Complex wavelets offer improved directional selectivity and shift invariance over their discretely sampled counterparts allowing for better adaptation of watermark distortions to the host media. Two methods of deriving visual models for the watermarking system are adapted to the complex wavelet transforms and their performances are compared. To produce improved capacity a spread transform embedding algorithm is devised, this combines the robustness of spread spectrum methods with the high capacity of quantization based methods. Using established information theoretic methods, limits of watermark capacity are derived that demonstrate the superiority of complex wavelets over discretely sampled wavelets. Finally results for the algorithm against commonly used attacks demonstrate its robustness and the improved performance offered by complex wavelet transforms.
An efficient insertion of the cyclic prefix/suffix for Frequency Domain Equalization in Faster-than-Nyquist signaling

This paper proposes an efficient method inserting the cyclic prefix (CP) and the cyclic suffix (CS) with inter-block interference (IBI) elimination scheme for the block transmission and reception based Frequency Domain Equalization (FDE) in Faster-than-Nyquist (FTN) signaling. Furthermore we show that the proposed the CP/CS appending method can reduce the overhead of the transmission over the wireless channel. Finally, we accomplish the performance evaluations to verify to yield better BER performance as the length of CP/CS increases.
Towards modular analysis of multi product lines

Software product-line engineering enables efficient development of tailor-made software by means of reusable artifacts. As practitioners increasingly develop software systems as product lines, there is a growing potential to reuse product lines in other product lines, which we refer to as multi product line. We identify challenges when developing multi product lines and propose interfaces for different levels of abstraction ranging from variability modeling to functional and non-functional properties. We argue that these interfaces ease the reuse of product lines and identify research questions that need to be solved toward modular analysis of multi product lines.
Performance study of tool materials and optimisation of pulse duration on EDM of zirconium di boride

Generally, ceramic components are manufactured through powder metallurgy route at net shaped production, but some features cannot be produced by this technique and hence needs additional machining. In this work, machinability of ZrB2 is studied using electrical discharge machining (EDM). Desirability functional analysis (DFA) is used for evaluating performance of the various tool materials and optimisation of pulse duration. DFA used to combine multiple quality characteristics into a single performance statistics through three different cases. In first case, equal weights are assigned to all the responses, in second case weights are assigned using particle swarm optimisation (PSO) and in third case weights are assigned using genetic algorithm (GA). GA and PSO produce same result. Robustness of these methods is compared, GA is better than other two. Interaction of pulse on time with tool material is investigated using ANOVA and it shows that tool material is most significant factor.