Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Opus: University of Bath Online Publication Store Prescribing of Antidiabetic Medicines Before, during and after Pregnancy: a Study in Seven European Regions

This version is made available in accordance with publisher policies. Please cite only the published version using the reference above. Abstract Aim To explore antidiabetic medicine prescribing to women before, during and after pregnancy in different regions of Europe. which ended in a live or stillbirth, were identified. Prescriptions for antidiabetic medicines issued (UK) or dispensed (non-UK) during pregnancy and/or the year before or year after pregnancy were identified. Prescribing patterns were compared across databases and over calendar time.
CROSS-CORRELATION OF VELOCITY MEASUREMENTS FOR WIND RESOURCE ASSESSMENT OVER A LARGE COMPLEX TERRAIN

In the present experimental investigation, the wind resource over a 5 km* complex-terrain potential site of a wind farm is being measured. For the wind measurements a new methodology is being introduced, in or&r to minimize the number of weather stations necessary to monitor the wind conditions and to increase the validity of the weather station measurements over a much wider range. The methodology is based on two-point space-time correlation measurements of the instantaneous velocity field Hot-wire anemometry was utilized in the Atmospheric Boundary Layer wind tunnel at UC Davis for the measurements. On site, correlation measurements were performed using two weather stations, one station was fixed and the other was portable. Since the correlation measurements do not require long measurement periods, the method appears to be inexpensive and gives reasonable velocity-field assessments over large complex sites using minimum number of measurement stations. The spatial correlation results gave more insight in the wind-flow field characteristics and pointed out locations, where a network of weather stations could be installed, for improving the tools for the creation of more reliable future prediction models for the wind resource assessment.
Communicative criteria for usability evaluation: experiences from analysing an e-service

Today we are primarily using computers for communication. We communicate via computers as professionals and at our spare time. One growing context of computer use is when we as citizens communicating with authorities. This paper suggests communication criteria for evaluation of public e- services. The suggested criteria are derived from a communication perspective and applied in a case study for evaluation of an e-service. Communication between authorities and citizens are often communication intensive and consequently conditions and consequences of communication should be evaluated. The aim of the suggested communication criteria is to be a complement to established traditional usability criteria.
Agent-Based Modeling and Simulation of Collaborative Social Networks

We describe a research framework for studying social systems. The framework uses agent-based modeling and simulation as key components in the process of discovery and understanding. A collaborative social network composed of open source software (OSS) developers and projects is studied and used to demonstrate the research framework. By continuously collecting developer and project data for over two years from SourceForge, we are able to infer and model the structural and the dynamic mechanisms that govern the topology and evolution of this social network. We describe the use of these empirically derived agent-based models of the SourceForge OSS developer network to specify simulations implemented using Java/Swarm. Several network models and simulations of the evolution of SourceForge, and the verification and validation processes of the framework are described. The nature of social network processes hidden from view that could plausibly generate the observed system properties can be discover through an iterative modeling, simulation, and validation and verification process. Such a process, dynamic fitness based on project life cycle, was discovered.
High-Velocity Collimated Outflows in Planetary Nebulae: NGC 6337, He 2-186, and K4-47

We have obtained narrowband images and high-resolution spectra of the planetary nebulae NGC 6337, He 2-186, and K4-47 with the aim of investigating the relation between their main morphological components and several low-ionization features present in these nebulae. The data suggest that NGC 6337 is a bipolar PN seen almost pole-on, with polar velocities of ≥200 km s-1. The bright inner ring of the nebula is interpreted to be the "equatorial" density enhancement. It contains a number of low-ionization knots and outward tails that we ascribe to dynamical instabilities leading to fragmentation of the ring or transient density enhancements due to the interaction of the ionization front with previous density fluctuations in the interstellar medium. The lobes show a pronounced point-symmetric morphology and two peculiar low-ionization filaments, the nature of which remains unclear. The most notable characteristic of He 2-186 is the presence of two high-velocity (≥135 km s-1) knots from which an S-shaped lane of emission departs toward the central star. K4-47 is composed of a compact core and two high-velocity, low-ionization blobs. We interpret the substantial broadening of line emission from the blobs as a signature of bow shocks, and using the modeling of Hartigan, Raymond, & Hartman, we derive a shock velocity of ~150 km s-1 and a mild inclination of the outflow on the plane of the sky. We discuss possible scenarios for the formation of these nebulae and their low-ionization features. In particular, the morphology of K4-47 hardly fits into any of the usually adopted mass-loss geometries for single asymptotic giant branch stars. Finally, we discuss the possibility that point-symmetric morphologies in the lobes of NGC 6337 and the knots of He 2-186 are the result of precessing outflows from the central stars.
On the Evolution of the Ionizing Emissivity of Galaxies and Quasars Required by the Hydrogen Reionization

The average rate of emission of ionizing radiation per unit volume (or emissivity) in the universe can be calculated as the ratio of the intensity of the ionizing background to the mean free path of ionizing photons. The intensity of the background is measured from the mean transmitted flux of the Lyα forest, and the mean free path is measured from the abundance of Lyman limit systems, which has been observed so far up to z = 4. This yields an emissivity that is not larger than seven ionizing photons per Hubble time for each atom in the universe at z = 4, which may reasonably arise from QSOs and star-forming galaxies. In order for the reionization to end by z = 6, and assuming that the clumping factor of ionized gas during the reionization epoch is close to unity, this ionizing comoving emissivity cannot decline from z = 4 up to z ~ 9 by more than a factor 1.5. If the clumping factor were much larger than unity, then the emissivity would need to rapidly increase with redshift. Unless the ionizing emissivity increases substantially from z = 4 to z ~ 10-20, the Thomson optical depth to the cosmic microwave background must be in the range 0.045 < τ < 0.09.
Here and now: perceptions of Indian Ocean islanders on the climate change and migration nexus

ABSTRACT Empirical studies exploring the links between climate change and migration are increasing. Often, perceptions are not fully explored from the people most affected by the climate change and migration nexus. This article contributes to filling this gap by eliciting and analysing perceptions regarding climate change and migration from an understudied population labelled as being amongst those most immediately and directly affected by climate change: Indian Ocean islanders. Open-ended, semi-structured interviews were conducted in two case-study communities in Maldives (Kaafu Guraidhoo with 17 interviews and Raa Dhuvafaaru with 18 interviews) and two case-study communities in Lakshadweep, India (Kavaratti with 35 interviews and Minicoy with 26 interviews). The results present the interviewees’ perceptions of climatic variability and change that they experience; how they perceive the causes of these changes; and links to migration decisions. The interviews demonstrate that perceptions of climate change, of migration, and of the links or lack thereof between the two are centred on the interviewees’ own experiences, their own locations, and the immediate timeframe. External information and direction have limited influence. Their perceptions are framed as being the ‘here and now’ through topophilia (here) and tempophilia (now). The islanders’ views do not avoid, but rather encompass, long-term livelihoods and the future. Such a future might be in another location, but the anchor is expressing future hopes and aspirations through the here and now. It is not linked to the wide-scale, long-term issue of climate change.
Near-infrared spectroscopy of the very low mass companion to the hot DA white dwarf PG 1234+482

We present a near-infrared spectrum of the hot ( T eff ≈ 55 000 K) hydrogen atmosphere (DA) white dwarf PG 1234+482. We confirm that a very low mass companion is responsible for the previously recognized infrared photometric excess. We compare spectra of M and L dwarfs, combined with an appropriate white dwarf model, to the data to constrain the spectral type of the secondary. We find that uncertainties in the Two-Micron All-Sky Survey HK photometry of the white dwarf prevent us from distinguishing whether the secondary is stellar or substellar, and assign a spectral type of L0±1 (M9–L1). Therefore, this is the hottest and youngest (≈ 10 6 yr) DA white dwarf with a possible brown dwarf companion.
Audio-visual emotion recognition: A dynamic, multimodal approach

Designing systems able to interact with students in a natural manner is a complex and far from solved problem. A key aspect of natural interaction is the ability to understand and appropriately respond to human emotions. This paper details our response to the continuous Audio/Visual Emotion Challenge (AVEC'12) whose goal is to predict four affective signals describing human emotions. The proposed method uses Fourier spectra to extract multi-scale dynamic descriptions of signals characterizing face appearance, head movements and voice. We perform a kernel regression with very few representative samples selected via a supervised weighted-distance-based clustering, that leads to a high generalization power. We also propose a particularly fast regressor-level fusion framework to merge systems based on different modalities. Experiments have proven the efficiency of each key point of the proposed method and our results on challenge data were the highest among 10 international research teams.
Must We Still Be Worried About Multiple Arteries in Kidney Transplantation?

Background Multiple renal arteries in kidney grafts have been associated with an increased rate of vascular and urologic complications. Our objective is to compare the outcome of transplanted patients who receive a single pedicle kidney with those who receive a multiple arterial graft. Objectives To find our the differences in the outcome and complications in patients undergoing kidney transplantation with one single artery or with multiple arteries. Patients and Methods We analyzed 147 kidney transplantations, (all performed in our hospital over a 3 year period). population divided into two groups: group A for those who presented with only one renal artery, or group B for those with more than one renal artery. Homogeneous vascular reconstructions and implantation rules were applied in all patients. We compared the rates of renal failure between the two groups, urinary and vascular complications, patient and graft survivals and the levels of creatinine clearance during the first year of post-transplantation. Results No significant differences were found between the two groups regarding to the values analyzed. Conclusions As many other authors, we do believe that the presence of multiple renal arteries in kidney grafts should not be considered as a predictive factor of transplantation failure.
Factions and Political Competition

This paper presents a new model of political competition in which candidates belong to factions. Before elections, factions compete to direct local public goods to their local constituencies. The model of factional competition delivers a rich set of implications relating the internal organization of the party to the allocation of resources. In doing so, the model provides a unified explanation of two prominent features of public resource allocations: the persistence of (possibly inefficient) policies and the tendency of public spending to favor incumbent party strongholds over swing constituencies.
Procurement Auctions with Avoidable Fixed Costs: An Experimental Approach

Bidders in procurement auctions often face avoidable fixed costs. This can make bidding decisions complex and risky, and market outcomes volatile. If bidders deviate from risk neutral best responses, either due to faulty optimization or risk attitudes, then equilibrium predictions can perform poorly. In this paper, we confront laboratory bidders with three auction formats that make bidding difficult and risky in different ways. We find that measures of `difficulty' provide a consistent explanation of deviations from best response bidding across the three formats. In contrast, risk and loss preferences cannot explain behavior across all three formats.
Sex-Related Differences in Neural Activity during Risk Taking: An fMRI Study

This study explored sex effects on the process of risk-taking. We observed that the female participants (n = 10) showed stronger activation in the right insula and bilateral orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) than did the male participants (n = 12) while they were performing in the Risky-Gains task. The female participants also showed stronger activations in the precentral, postcentral, and paracentral regions after receiving punishment feedback. In addition, the strength of neural activity in the insula correlated with the rate of risky behaviors for the female participants but not for the male participants. Similarly, the percent signal changes in the right OFC correlated negatively with the rate of selecting risky choices for the female group. These findings strongly suggest a sex-related influence modulating brain activity during risk-taking tasks. When taking the same level of risk, relative to men, women tend to engage in more neural processing involving the insula and the OFC to update and valuate possible uncertainty associated with risk-taking decision making. These results are consistent with the value-based decision-making model and offer insights into the possible neural mechanisms underlying the different risk-taking attitudes of men and women.
Attapulgite: Properties and Uses

The clay mineral attapulgite derives its non-swelling needle-like morphology from its three-dimensional crystal structure. The shape and size of the needles result in unique colloidal properties, especially resistance to high concentrations of electrolytes, and give high surface area, high porosity particles when thermally activated. Examples of industrial applications of attapulgite are reviewed with emphasis on how these characteristic properties function in the various end-uses.
Disease Similarity Calculation on Simplified Disease Knowledge Base for Clinical Decision Support Systems

For clinical decision support systems designed to help physicians make diagnostic decisions, “disease similarity” data is highly valuable in that they allow continuous recommendation of diagnostic candidates. To build such a recommendation algorithm, this paper explores a method to measure disease similarity between diseases on a simplified disease knowledge base. Our disease knowledge base comprises disease master data, symptom master data, and disease‐symptom relations that include clinical information of 1550 disorders. The calculation of the disease similarity is performed on this knowledge base, with i) standardized disease classification, ii) probabilistic calculation, and iii) machine learning, and the results are evaluated with a gold standard list audited by a physician. We also propose a novel metric for evaluation of the algorithms to calculate the disease similarity. A comparative study between the algorithms revealed that the machine learning approach outperforms the others. The results suggest that even a superficial calculation on a simplified knowledge base may satisfy the clinical needs in this problem domain.
Association between Long-Term Exposure to Traffic-Related Air Pollution and Subclinical Atherosclerosis: The REGICOR Study

Background: Epidemiological evidence of the effects of long-term exposure to air pollution on the chronic processes of atherogenesis is limited. Objective: We investigated the association of long-term exposure to traffic-related air pollution with subclinical atherosclerosis, measured by carotid intima media thickness (IMT) and ankle–brachial index (ABI). Methods: We performed a cross-sectional analysis using data collected during the reexamination (2007–2010) of 2,780 participants in the REGICOR (Registre Gironí del Cor: the Gerona Heart Register) study, a population-based prospective cohort in Girona, Spain. Long-term exposure across residences was calculated as the last 10 years’ time-weighted average of residential nitrogen dioxide (NO2) estimates (based on a local-scale land-use regression model), traffic intensity in the nearest street, and traffic intensity in a 100 m buffer. Associations with IMT and ABI were estimated using linear regression and multinomial logistic regression, respectively, controlling for sex, age, smoking status, education, marital status, and several other potential confounders or intermediates. Results: Exposure contrasts between the 5th and 95th percentiles for NO2 (25 µg/m3), traffic intensity in the nearest street (15,000 vehicles/day), and traffic load within 100 m (7,200,000 vehicle-m/day) were associated with differences of 0.56% (95% CI: –1.5, 2.6%), 2.32% (95% CI: 0.48, 4.17%), and 1.91% (95% CI: –0.24, 4.06) percent difference in IMT, respectively. Exposures were positively associated with an ABI of > 1.3, but not an ABI of < 0.9. Stronger associations were observed among those with a high level of education and in men ≥ 60 years of age. Conclusions: Long-term traffic-related exposures were associated with subclinical markers of atherosclerosis. Prospective studies are needed to confirm associations and further examine differences among population subgroups.
Original Articles : Durability of a sustained virological response in chronic hepatitis C patients treated with pegylated interferon alfa and ribavirin

Background/Aims: The reappearance rates of hepatitis C virus (HCV) RNA after a sustained virological response (SVR) have been reported to be 1-2%. We investigated the reappearance rate of HCV RNA after SVR in chronic hepatitis C (CHC) patients treated with pegylated interferon (PEG-IFN) and ribavirin. Methods: In total, 292 CHC patients who achieved an SVR after PEG-IFN and ribavirin treatment were included. They were treated with subcutaneous injections of either PEG-IFN-α 2a or 2b plus ribavirin orally. Liver function tests and qualitative HCV RNA assays were performed every 6 months during the follow-up period after an SVR. Results: Among the 292 patients, 224 (genotype 1, 92; genotype non-1, 132) were followed up for more than 6 months after SVR. These 224 patients were aged 48.1±11.5 years (mean±SD), and 129 of them were male. The median follow-up duration was 18 months (range 6-60 months). The reappearance rate of HCV RNA during follow-up was 0%. Two patients who achieved an SVR developed hepatocellular carcinoma during the follow-up period. Conclusions: An SVR was maintained in all CHC patients treated with PEG-IFN plus ribavirin during a median follow-up of 18 months. However, a screening test for hepatocellular carcinoma is needed for patients with an SVR. (Korean J Hepatol 2011;17:183-188)
Post-Ordering by Parsing with ITG for Japanese-English Statistical Machine Translation

Word reordering is a difficult task for translation between languages with widely different word orders, such as Japanese and English. A previously proposed post-ordering method for Japanese-to-English translation first translates a Japanese sentence into a sequence of English words in a word order similar to that of Japanese, then reorders the sequence into an English word order. We employed this post-ordering framework and improved upon its reordering method. The existing post-ordering method reorders the sequence of English words via SMT, whereas our method reorders the sequence by (1) parsing the sequence using ITG to obtain syntactic structures which are similar to Japanese syntactic structures, and (2) transferring the obtained syntactic structures into English syntactic structures according to the ITG. The experiments using Japanese-to-English patent translation demonstrated the effectiveness of our method and showed that both the RIBES and BLEU scores were improved over compared methods.
ECG Pattern Analysis for Emotion Detection

Emotion modeling and recognition has drawn extensive attention from disciplines such as psychology, cognitive science, and, lately, engineering. Although a significant amount of research has been done on behavioral modalities, less explored characteristics include the physiological signals. This work brings to the table the ECG signal and presents a thorough analysis of its psychological properties. The fact that this signal has been established as a biometric characteristic calls for subject-dependent emotion recognizers that capture the instantaneous variability of the signal from its homeostatic baseline. A solution based on the empirical mode decomposition is proposed for the detection of dynamically evolving emotion patterns on ECG. Classification features are based on the instantaneous frequency (Hilbert-Huang transform) and the local oscillation within every mode. Two experimental setups are presented for the elicitation of active arousal and passive arousal/valence. The results support the expectations for subject specificity, as well as demonstrating the feasibility of determining valence out of the ECG morphology (up to 89 percent for 44 subjects). In addition, this work differentiates for the first time between active and passive arousal, and advocates that there are higher chances of ECG reactivity to emotion when the induction method is active for the subject.
Revisiting Inter-Genre Similarity

We revisit the idea of “inter-genre similarity” (IGS) for machine learning in general, and music genre recognition in particular. We show analytically that the probability of error for IGS is higher than naive Bayes classification with zero-one loss (NB). We show empirically that IGS does not perform well, even for data that satisfies all its assumptions.