Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Results of a prospective surgical audit of bilateral paediatric cochlear implantation in the UK

Abstract Objectives Since being approved in 2009, bilateral simultaneous cochlear implantation (CI) has been the standard treatment for children in the UK who meet the criteria for CI. The aim was to report surgical outcomes of bilateral CI in the UK. Methods Between January 2010 and December 2011, 14 UK CI centres collected data prospectively: demographics, aetiology, use of imaging, device type, surgery duration, use of intra-operative electrophysiology, length of stay, and post-operative complications. Results 1397 CI procedures in 961 CI recipients were included; 436 bilateral simultaneous, 394 bilateral sequential, and 131 unilateral. The majority (85%) were congenitally deaf. The commonest causes of acquired deafness were meningitis and cytomegalovirus infection. The median age for congenitally deaf bilateral simultaneous CI was 2.2 years, mean surgical duration 4.5 hours. 6.3% surgeries were day case procedures. Eight cases (2.0%) of planned bilateral CI had unilateral surgery. The overall major complication rate was 1.6% (0.9% excluding device failures), including explantation due to infection (0.2%), cerebrospinal fluid leak (0.2%), and meningitis (0.1%). There were no permanent facial nerve palsies and no deaths. Sixty-two (6.5%) immediate minor complications included 12 (1.3%) children with significant vestibular impairment. The complication rate was similar following bilateral CI compared to sequential and unilateral CI, and is comparable to other published series. Conclusion This prospective multi-centre audit provides evidence that bilateral paediatric CI is a safe procedure in the UK, thus endorsing its role as a major therapeutic intervention in childhood deafness.
The structures of distant galaxies – II. Diverse galaxy structures and local environments at z= 4–6; implications for early galaxy assembly

We present an analysis of the structures, sizes, star formation rates and local environmental properties of galaxies at z ~ 4–6 (τ_(universe) 4 have a diversity in structure, with roughly 30 per cent appearing distorted and asymmetric, while the majority are smooth and apparently undisturbed systems. We utilize several methods to compute the inferred assembly rates for these distorted early galaxies including the CAS (concentration, asymmetry, clumpiness) system and pair counts. Overall, we find a similar fraction of galaxies which are in pairs as the fraction which have a distorted structure. Using the CAS methodology, and our best estimate for merger time-scales, we find that the total number of inferred effective mergers for M_* > 10^(9-10) M_⊙ galaxies at z 4 are likely in a relaxed state. Systems which are asymmetric do not display a correlation between size and half-light radii, and are generally larger than the symmetric smooth systems. The time-scale for the formation of these smooth systems is 0.5–1 Gyr, suggesting that most of these galaxies are formed through coordinated very rapid gas collapses and star formation over a size of 1–2 kpc, or from merger events at z > 10 . We finally investigate the relation between the UV measured star formation rates for these galaxies and their structures, finding a slight correlation such that more asymmetric systems have slightly higher star formation rates than symmetric galaxies.
A Study of Cognitive Processing and Inhibitions of Adopters and Non-Adopters of Technology Based Products

The research investigated consumers’ decision-making process during preadoption and consumption stages of consumer-based technologies via the context of mobile apps. In an attempt to integrate consumer resistance in predicting the enddecisions to adopt/not adopt or continue/discontinue the use of a technology, the study presented some interesting findings. Employing the theoretical framework of cognitive appraisal theory, the study integrated the TAM, paradoxes of technology, and coping strategies to propose and empirically validate a process-based model of decision-making. Data were collected via a self-administered web-based survey. Two versions of the questionnaire were used to elicit consumers’ responses from adopters and nonadopters of mobile apps. A total of 646 smartphone owners responded to the survey, of which, 375 respondents had downloaded apps in the past and 271 respondents had not downloaded any apps. The proposed hypotheses were tested using structural equation
The Development of Academic Geriatric Medicine: Progress Toward Preparing the Nation's Physicians to Care for an Aging Population

Academic geriatric medicine programs are critical for training the physician workforce to care effectively for aging Americans. This article describes the progress made by medical schools in developing these programs. Academic leaders in geriatrics at all 145 accredited allopathic and osteopathic medical schools in the United States were surveyed in the winter of 2005 (68% response rate) and results compared with findings from a similar 2001 survey. Physician faculty in geriatrics at U.S. medical schools increased from 7.5 (mean) full‐time equivalents (FTEs) in 2001 to 9.6 FTEs in 2005. Faculty and staff effort is mostly devoted to clinical practice (mean 36.9%) and education (mean 34.6%). A small number of programs focus on research; only six responding schools devote more than 40% of faculty effort to research. Seventy‐one percent reported that their medical school required a geriatrics medical student clerkship or that their geriatric training was integrated into a required clinical rotation. In summary, from 2001 to 2005, more fellows and faculty have been recruited and trained, and some academic programs have emerged with strong education, research, and clinical initiatives. Medical student exposure to geriatrics curriculum has increased, although few academic geriatricians are pursuing research careers, and the number of practicing geriatricians is declining. An expanded investment in training the physician workforce to care for older adults will be required to ensure adequate care for aging Americans.
Neural responses to uninterrupted natural speech can be extracted with precise temporal resolution

The human auditory system has evolved to efficiently process individual streams of speech. However, obtaining temporally detailed responses to distinct continuous natural speech streams has hitherto been impracticable using standard neurophysiological techniques. Here a method is described which provides for the estimation of a temporally precise electrophysiological response to uninterrupted natural speech. We have termed this response AESPA (Auditory Evoked Spread Spectrum Analysis) and it represents an estimate of the impulse response of the auditory system. It is obtained by assuming that the recorded electrophysiological function represents a convolution of the amplitude envelope of a continuous speech stream with the to‐be‐estimated impulse response. We present examples of these responses using both scalp and intracranially recorded human EEG, which were obtained while subjects listened to a binaurally presented recording of a male speaker reading naturally from a classic work of fiction. This method expands the arsenal of stimulation types that can now be effectively used to derive auditory evoked responses and allows for the use of considerably more ecologically valid stimulation parameters. Some implications for future research efforts are presented.
Increased power from bacterial genome-wide association conditional on known effects identifies Neisseria gonorrhoeae macrolide resistance mutations in the 50S ribosomal protein L4

The emergence of resistance to azithromycin complicates treatment of N. gonorrhoeae, the etiologic agent of gonorrhea. Population genomic analyses of clinical isolates have demonstrated that some azithromycin resistance remains unexplained after accounting for the contributions of known resistance mutations in the 23S rRNA and the MtrCDE efflux pump. Bacterial genome-wide association studies (GWAS) offer a promising approach for identifying novel resistance genes but must adequately address the challenge of controlling for genetic confounders while maintaining power to detect variants with lower effect sizes. Compared to a standard univariate GWAS, conducting GWAS conditioned on known resistance mutations with high effect sizes substantially reduced the number of variants that reached genome-wide significance and identified a G70D mutation in the 50S ribosomal protein L4 (encoded by the gene rplD) as significantly associated with increased azithromycin minimum inhibitory concentrations (β = 1.03, 95% CI [0.76, 1.30]). The role and prevalence of these rplD mutations in conferring macrolide resistance in N. gonorrhoeae had been unclear. Here, we experimentally confirmed our GWAS results, identified other resistance-associated mutations in RplD, and showed that in total these RplD binding site mutations are prevalent (present in 5.42% of 4850 isolates) and geographically and temporally widespread (identified in 21/65 countries across two decades). Overall, our findings demonstrate the utility of conditional associations for improving the performance of microbial GWAS and advance our understanding of the genetic basis of macrolide resistance in a prevalent multidrug-resistant pathogen.
POLIOMYELITIS IN THE CYNOMOLGUS MONKEY

1. Cynomolgus monkeys were subjected to a series of non-traumatic exposures of the mucous membranes of the alimentary tract, designed to test the relative permeability to poliomyelitis virus of its upper and lower portions. 2. In the first stage, dried poliomyelitis virus of tested potency was administered in fat-covered capsules to 26 monkeys in such a way as to avoid contamination of the oropharynx but to permit thorough exposure of the gastro-intestinal mucosae. No clinical evidence of poliomyelitic infection appeared. 3. Subsequent application of small amounts of virus to the tongues of 18 of the same monkeys caused paralytic poliomyelitis in one of them. 4. Virus given subsequently by enema to 11 of the monkeys caused no clinical manifestations of poliomyelitis. 5. Of 7 monkeys later treated with virus by oronasal spraying, one developed typical preparalytic signs of infection, and the distribution of lesions indicated that entry had occurred through the afferent nerves of the oropharynx and, possibly, the esophagus. 6. The 6 surviving monkeys were exposed to virus by inhalation. One of them developed paralytic poliomyelitis by olfactory entry. The others appeared to have acquired some resistance to infection. 7. The 5 surviving monkeys were inoculated intracerebrally, as a test of immunity. One of them developed paralytic poliomyelitis. The other 4 showed no clinical signs of infection, but all had typical lesions of varying extent and intensity in the central nervous system. 8. A histological examination of the peripheral nervous ganglia in 12 of the exposed monkeys sacrificed at various stages of the experiments revealed lesions compatible with poliomyelitis in all. Ganglia connected with the head alone (Gasserian, cervical sympathetic) were more constantly and, on the average, more severely involved than the celiac, which is connected only with the intestine. 9. While the celiac ganglion was involved in 7 cases, no evidence was found of the spread of infection from it to the spinal cord.
A cohort study of sciatic pain and measures of internal spinal load in professional drivers

In a prospective cohort study of 537 male professional drivers, the occurrence of sciatic pain showed stronger associations with measures of internal lumbar load expressed in terms of daily compressive dose, Sed (MPa), and risk factor, R (non-dimensional), according to ISO/WD 2631-5 (2013), than with measures of daily vibration exposure calculated as either 8-h energy-equivalent frequency-weighted acceleration (ms− 2 r.m.s.) or vibration dose value (ms− 1.75) according to the EU Directive on mechanical vibration (2002). Herniated lumbar disc, previous lumbar trauma and physical work load were also powerful predictors of the occurrence of sciatic pain over time. Psychosocial work environment was poorly associated with sciatic pain. The boundary values of risk factor (R) for low and high probabilities of adverse health effects on the lumbar spine, as proposed by international standard ISO/WD 2631-5 (2013), tend to underestimate the health risk in professional drivers. Practitioner Summary: In a prospective cohort study of professional drivers, measures of internal spinal load were better predictors of the occurrence of sciatic pain than the measures of daily vibration exposure established by the EU Directive (2002). Herniated lumbar disc, lumbar trauma and physical work load were also associated with sciatic pain.
The Communicative Functions of Touch in Humans, Nonhuman Primates, and Rats: A Review and Synthesis of the Empirical Research

Although touch is one of the most neglected modalities of communication, several lines of research bear on the important communicative functions served by the modality. The authors highlighted the importance of touch by reviewing and synthesizing the literatures pertaining to the communicative functions served by touch among humans, nonhuman primates, and rats. In humans, the authors focused on the role that touch plays in emotional communication, attachment, bonding, compliance, power, intimacy, hedonics, and liking. In nonhuman primates, the authors examined the relations among touch and status, stress, reconciliation, sexual relations, and attachment. In rats, the authors focused on the role that touch plays in emotion, learning and memory, novelty seeking, stress, and attachment. The authors also highlighted the potential phylogenetic and ontogenetic continuities and discussed suggestions for future research.
Search methodology with goal state optimization considering computational resource constraints - application of the method to the task of rearranging several movable objects

A searching methodology with goal state optimization considering computational resource constraints is proposed. The combination of "an extended graph search methodology" and "parallelization of task execution and on-line planning " makes it possible to solve the problem. The proposed method is evaluated with a rearrangement problem of 20 movable objects, and the effectiveness is shown through simulation results
Topographic Product Models Applied to Natural Scene Statistics

We present an energy-based model that uses a product of generalized Student-t distributions to capture the statistical structure in data sets. This model is inspired by and particularly applicable to natural data sets such as images. We begin by providing the mathematical framework, where we discuss complete and overcomplete models and provide algorithms for training these models from data. Using patches of natural scenes, we demonstrate that our approach represents a viable alternative to independent component analysis as an interpretive model of biological visual systems. Although the two approaches are similar in flavor, there are also important differences, particularly when the representations are overcomplete. By constraining the interactions within our model, we are also able to study the topographic organization of Gabor-like receptive fields that our model learns. Finally, we discuss the relation of our new approach to previous workin particular, gaussian scale mixture models and variants of independent components analysis.
Dendritic Cell-Based Vaccine Efficacy: Aiming for Hot Spots

Many approaches for cancer immunotherapy have targeted dendritic cells (DCs), directly or indirectly, for the induction of antitumor immune responses. DC-based vaccines have been developed using a wide variety of ex vivo DC culture conditions, antigen (Ag) source and loading strategies, maturation agents, and routes of vaccination. Adjuvants are used to activate innate immune cells at the vaccine injection site, to promote Ag transport to the draining lymph nodes (LNs) and to model adaptive immune responses. Despite years of effort, the effective induction of strong and durable antitumor T-cell responses in vaccinated patients remains a challenge. The study of vaccine interactions with other immune cells in the LNs and, more recently, in the injection site has opened new doors for understanding antitumor effector T-cell licensing and function. In this review, we will briefly discuss the relevant sites and up-to-date facts regarding possible targets for antitumor vaccine refinement. We will focus on the processes taking place at the injection site, adjuvant combinations and their role in DC-based vaccines, LN homing, and modeling vaccine-induced immune responses capable of controlling tumor growth and generating immune memory.
A temperature-stable mems oscillator on an ovenized micro-platform using a PLL-based heater control system

In this work, an oxide-refill process is used to null the first-order temperature coefficient of frequency (TCF) of silicon MEMS resonators and to achieve high thermal resistance isolation structures. The technology enables fabrication of a low-power ovenized micro-platform on which multiple MEMS devices can be integrated. The intrinsic frequency-temperature characteristic of two resonators is utilized for temperature sensing, and closed-loop oven control is realized by phase-locking two MEMS oscillators at a specific temperature. PLL-based control circuitry is implemented in 0.18 μm CMOS to interface with the MEMS resonators. The ovenized MEMS oscillator exhibits an overall frequency drift of ± 5.5 ppm over -40 °C to 70 °C. The MEMS oscillator exhibits near zero phase noise degradation in closed-loop operation.
Subjective risk and memory for driving situations

This thesis explores the relationship between subjective risk when driving and drivers' subsequent memory for everyday driving situations. Relationships are considered in the context of the wider literature on arousal and memory. In the first study subjects drove a set route around Cambridge giving verbal risk ratings; they then performed an unexpected free recall task. Drivers tended to recall situations which they had previously rated as risky. A series of laboratory studies explored this result. In these studies subjects watched films of actual driving situations in a simulator and were given subsequent recognition tests. In the first laboratory study subjective risk was only associated with improved recognition sensitivity for the most potentially dangerous situations. In generally safe situations feelings of risk appeared to impair recognition. These results were replicated in two further laboratory studies using different judgment tasks and stimuli. These results could be explained by subjective risk causing the focusing of attention in driving with a consequent enhancement of memory for central details at the expense of memory for peripheral details. To directly test the attention focusing hypothesis a laboratory study defined central information with respect to risk in driving situations. Then an on-road study found that drivers did indeed recall more central details than would be expected from risky situations. There thus appear to be two relationships between subjective risk and memory in driving. The first is an overall tendency for subjects to recall risky situations. This is assumed to be largely because such events are rare and distinctive. The second is a tendency for subjects to recall central details of risky situations at the expense of peripheral details. This is consistent with recent studies on attention focusing in eyewitness testimony. Some implications of these results for eyewitness testimony and for the psychology of driving are considered.
Impact evaluation of efforts to eliminate iodine deficiency disorders in Nigeria

Abstract Objective: The objective of the present review is to assess the impact of universal salt iodisation in Nigeria during the last five years, with reference to some of the sentinel sites studied previously during a 1995 multi-centre study. Design, setting and subjects: The method of goitre classification by palpation was employed using the new internationally accepted method in which the classification is simply graded as 0, 1 or 2. The multistage random sampling method was used and states and local government areas were already selected by virtue of their known status for iodine deficiency disorders (IDD). Schools were randomly chosen in each local government area and children aged 8–12 years in each school were determined. A percentage of the children was then included in the study to give a sample size greater than the minimum number allotted to the school. A total of 2372 schoolchildren (1420 males and 952 females) in 11 local government areas were examined; urine samples were collected from 537 children and analysed for urinary excretion of iodine. The method known as the Sandell–Kolthoff reaction was adopted, in which the iodide in the urine samples catalyses the reduction of ceric ammonium sulphate (yellow colour) to the cerous form (colourless) in the presence of arsenious acid. The degree of reduction in colour intensity of the yellow ceric ammonium sulphate is proportional to the iodine content in the urine sample. Results: The results from this study show that the median urinary iodine excretion for this sampled population in Nigeria, drawn mostly from IDD-endemic areas, is 14.65 μg dl−1 with a mean value of 13.39 μg dl−1. Conclusion: This finding would suggest that Nigeria, in general terms, has achieved the goal of universal salt iodisation and should now focus its attention on constant monitoring in order to sustain this iodisation level.
How interpersonal power affects empathic accuracy: differential roles of mentalizing vs. mirroring?

Empathic accuracy (EA)—the correct assessment of the affective states and thoughts of a social partner—affects social behavior and the outcome of interpersonal interactions. Growing evidence has shown that interpersonal power of a perceiver affects EA when assessing a target. This picture, however, is not obvious; there is evidence supporting both the idea that power can improve EA or impair it. Moreover, the mechanisms through which high power individuals are more (or less) accurate at reading others' minds are unknown. The present article provides a new perspective on the power-EA link by investigating how two core abilities involved in EA, mentalizing and mirroring, can explain when and how power is related to EA. The inclusion of findings from neuroimaging studies on mentalizing and mirroring adds a cognitive neuroscience perspective to the power-EA research that has traditionally been conducted in a social psychological framework. The extent to which a given EA-test requires mentalizing or mirroring and the way power affects both of them could explain the contrasting findings. In addition, the analysis of the neural substrates of mentalizing and mirroring may provide new insight into the relationship between power and EA.