Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Characteristics of gonococci isolated from men with urethritis in Dubai

Summary Neisseria gonorrhoeae were collected from men attending out-patient clinics in Dubai. The susceptibility to a range of therapeutic antibiotics and their auxotype and serotype was determined. The plasmid content of all penicillinase-producing strains was also analysed. Thirty-six strains of N. gonorrhoeae were isolated from specimens collected from 79 patients over a 24-day period. Of the 36 isolates, 9 (25%) were penicillinase-producing N. gonorrhoeae (PPNG) and 15 (42%) were chromosomally resistant N. gonorrhoeae (CMRNG). CMRNG exhibited higher levels of resistance to cefuroxime, chloramphenicol, tetracycline and erythromycin than PPNG. All isolates were susceptible to ceftriaxone and spectinomycin. Three (8%) isolates showed reduced susceptibility (MIC, ≥ 0·25 mg/1) to ciprofloxacin. Six isolates of PPNG carried the 4·4 MD and three the 3·2 MD penicillinase encoding plasmid. The total gonococcal population was phenotypically diverse, with 12 serovars, 6 auxotypes and 21 A/S classes. Gonorrhoea was found to be a major cause of urethritis in Dubai and the strains exhibited high levels of resistance to penicillin.
Photosynthetic and growth responses of three freshwater algae to phosphorus limitation and daylength

SUMMARY 1. Three common species of freshwater phytoplankton, the diatom Nitzschia sp. , green alga Sphaerocystis schroeteri and cyanobacterium Phormidium luridum, were grown under contrasting daylengths [18 : 6 h light : dark cycles (LD) versus 6 : 18 h LD] and phosphorus (P) regimes (P-sufficient versus 1 lM P). The rates of growth and photosynthesis, as well as growth efficiencies and pigment concentrations, were compared among treatments. 2. The growth and photosynthetic parameters of the three species depended on both P status and daylength in a species-specific way. The responses to P limitation depended on daylength and, conversely, the responses to daylength depended on P status. 3. Growth rates and the maximum rates of photosynthesis (Pmax) of all species decreased under P limitation under both light regimes. However, the decrease of Pmax because of P limitation was greater under long daylength. The Pmax of the green alga S. schroeteri decreased the most (ca. sixfold) under P limitation compared with the other two species. The photosynthesis saturation parameter Ik also decreased under P limitation; the decline was significant in Nitzschia and Sphaerocystis. P-limitation significantly increased photoinhibition (b )i nNitzschia and Sphaerocystis, but not in Phormidium. The excess photochemical capacity (the ratio of the maximum photosynthesis rate to the photosynthesis rate at the growth irradiance), characterising the ability to utilise fluctuating light, was significantly lower under P limitation. 4. The growth efficiency (growth rate normalised to daylength) declined with increasing daylength in all species. Under short daylength the cyanobacterium Phormidium had the lowest growth efficiency of the three species. 5. The cellular chlorophyll a concentration in both Nitzschia and Sphaerocystis was significantly higher under short daylength, but only under P-sufficient conditions. In Nitzschia, under short daylength, P-limitation significantly decreased cellular chlorophyll concentration. In contrast, P-limitation increased cellular chlorophyll concentration in Sphaerocystis, but under long daylength only. The ratio of chlorophyll a to b in the green alga also declined under short daylength and under P-limited conditions.
Releasing trapped thinking in colleges. Part 2: managing innovation and building innovation into ordinary work

Suggests that, in order to meet the challenges of the Learning and Skills Council, post‐compulsory education and training organisations need to develop a new organisational culture which is more open, informing and entrusting. Following on from the first part of the paper, dealing mainly with creative problem‐solving techniques at a more structural level, this second, and final, part deals with more systematic organisational ways of using creative ideas and approaches to manage innovation. Some examples of the benefits and outcomes of this approach are given along with an organisational “primer” for managing innovation.
Building social support for restorative justice through the media: is taking the victim perspective the most appropriate strategy?

Despite the encouraging results of public opinion assessments on restorative justice, people are not likely to spontaneously suggest restorative measures after a crime. Restorative justice thus seems in need of a public relations strategy. This paper discusses the strategy labeling victims as the universal remedy to promote restorative justice, and the proposal of promoting restorative justice through the media by foregrounding crime victims in media reports on crime. This strategy stems from a belief that the most appealing aspect of restorative justice to the public is its thoughtfulness to victims. However, I will argue that there are three problems with this approach. These concern: (1) the victim’s position in both restorative justice theory and practice; (2) the characteristics of media reporting on crime in general and victims in particular; and (3) the risk of attaining a result opposite to the initial objective (i.e. increasing punitive attitudes instead of promoting restorative justice).
Interleukin-10 Regulates the Tissue Factor Activity of Monocytes in an In Vitro Model of Bacterial Endocarditis

ABSTRACT Monocytes are important effector cells in the pathogenesis of bacterial endocarditis since they provide the tissue factor that activates the coagulation system and maintains established vegetations. Monocytes secrete cytokines that can modulate monocyte tissue factor activity (TFA), thereby affecting the formation and maintenance of vegetations. In this study, we show that monocytes cultured for 4 h on a Streptococcus sanguis-infected fibrin matrix mimicking the in vivo vegetational surface express high levels of TFA. This was accompanied by secretion of the proinflammatory cytokines tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), interleukin-1α (IL-1α), and IL-1β. After a 24-h incubation period the anti-inflammatory cytokine IL-10 could also be detected. Our data show that, whereas TNF-α and IL-1 have a minor role in the induction of TFA by monocytes cultured on a fibrin matrix, TNF-α but not IL-1 plays an important role in the induction of IL-10 by these cells. In turn, our data show that IL-10 is an important factor in the downregulation of monocyte TFA. In summary, we conclude that IL-10 is an important factor in the control of monocyte TFA in endocardial vegetations.
The Value of Play: Constructions of Play in Government Policy in England

This article reports one aspect of the findings from an assessment of the impact of national policies on children's opportunities for play in England, which was commissioned and funded by the Children's Play Council, London. Systematic analysis of policy documents and interviews with participants from local authorities and the voluntary sector revealed that the (Labour) Government does not promote a consistent conceptualisation of play in England. While some policy documents emphasise play's instrumental value and potential contributions to the priorities of government departments, others refer to its intrinsic value. In both cases, however, such constructions of play form a discourse that controls where and how children may play. This inconsistency has led to gaps in the mechanisms for delivery of extensive, sustainable and equitable play opportunities across the country.
Fault Diagnosis of Nonlinear Systems Using Dynamic Neural Networks

Abstract—This paper presents a novel integrated hybrid approach for fault diagnosis (FD) of nonlinear systems. Unlike most FD techniques, the proposed solution simultaneously accomplishes fault detection, isolation, and identification (FDII) within a unified diagnostic module. At the core of this solution is a bank of adaptive neural parameter estimators (NPE) associated with a set of singleparameter fault models. The NPEs continuously estimate unknown fault parameters (FP) that are indicators of faults in the system. Two NPE structures including series-parallel and parallel are developed with their exclusive set of desirable attributes. The parallel scheme is extremely robust to measurement noise and possesses a simpler, yet more solid, fault isolation logic. On the contrary, the series-parallel scheme displays short FD delays and is robust to closed-loop system transients due to changes in control commands. Finally, a fault tolerant observer (FTO) is designed to extend the capability of the NPEs to systems with partial-state measurement.
A New Thiamine Derivative, S-Benzoylthiamine O-Monophosphate

S-Benzoylthiamine O-monophosphate has been synthesized, and its physicochemical and biological properties have been investigated. It is a stable crystalline substance, it exerts thiamine activity approximately equivalent to that of thiamine hydrochloride in thiamine-requiring microorganisms, and it is easily absorbed in organisms, particularly by oral administration.
Hall Imaging of the History Dependence of the Magnetocaloric Effect in Gd<formula formulatype="inline"> <tex Notation="TeX">$_{5}$</tex></formula>Si<formula formulatype="inline"> <tex Notation="TeX">$_{2.09}$</tex></formula>Ge<formula formulatype="inline"> <tex Notation="TeX">$_{1.91}$</tex></formul

The isothermal entropy change of polycrystalline Gd 5Si 2.09Ge 1.91 during the magneto-structural transition is measured exposing the sample to two different temperature/field histories. The phase fraction involved in the transition is observed by using the Hall probe imaging technique. Both experiments confirm that the entropy change during the first-order phase transition depends on the history of the sample. This is understood by the hysteretic nature of the magneto-structural transition. A Preisach-type model accounting for hysteresis in field and temperature is able to predict the phase fractions involved in the transition. The result can be used to explain differences between different measurement methods of the isothermal entropy change of the magnetocaloric effect.
Virtual Violence: Gender and Aggression in Video Game Advertisements

Video games are increasing in popularity and use, with 42% of households in the United States owning a video game console (Interactive Digital Software Association, 2001a, 2001b). Children and young adults are frequent users (Roberts, Foehr, Rideout, & Brodie, 1999). Yet social scientific investigation of the advertising messages used to promote the games is rare. This study attempts to fill that gap with a quantitative content analysis of 1,054 advertisements for video games appearing in large-circulation video game magazines. The study examines the portrayal of gender and violence in the images and text of the ads, as well as the representation of race and ethnicity, the genre of the game, the rating/label, and the use of advertising appeals such as user identification. Results show that 55.8% of the games contained violence, an average of 2.5 weapons appeared per ad, and males outnumbered females by more than 3 to 1.
Perceptions and experiences of taking oral hypoglycaemic agents among people of Pakistani and Indian origin: qualitative study

Abstract Objective To explore British Pakistani and British Indian patients' perceptions and experiences of taking oral hypoglycaemic agents (OHAs). Design Observational cross sectional study using in-depth interviews in English or Punjabi. Setting and participants 32 patients of Pakistani and Indian origin with type 2 diabetes, recruited from primary care and community sources in Edinburgh, Scotland. Results Respondents reported complex and ambivalent views about OHAs, which reflected their ambivalent attitudes towards Western drugs in general. Respondents considered OHAs to be an important part of the diabetic regimen because they perceived British healthcare professionals to be competent and trustworthy prescribers, and they considered the medicines available in Britain to be superior to those on the Indian subcontinent. Despite this, some respondents made deliberate efforts to reduce their tablet intake without being advised to do so. Reasons for this included perceptions that drugs worked by providing relief of symptoms and concerns that OHAs could be detrimental to health if taken for long periods, in conjunction with other drugs, or without traditional foods. Conclusions British Pakistani and Indian patients' perceptions of their OHAs may partly derive from popular ideas about drugs on the Indian subcontinent. Cultural factors need to be understood and taken into consideration to ensure that these patients are given appropriate advice and to avoid unnecessary changes to prescriptions.
Reversible cerebral vasoconstriction syndrome

Reversible cerebral vasoconstriction syndrome is characterised by severe headaches with or without seizures and focal neurological deficits, and constriction of cerebral arteries which resolves spontaneously in 1–3 months. It affects females slightly more than males, and mean age of onset is around 45 years. Approximately 60% of cases are secondary, mainly postpartum and after exposure to vasoactive substances. The major complications are localised cortical subarachnoid haemorrhage (22%) and parenchymal ischaemic or haemorrhagic strokes (7%) which may leave permanent sequelae. Diagnosis requires the demonstration of the “string of beads” appearance of cerebral arteries on angiography, with complete or almost complete resolution on repeat angiography 12 weeks after onset. Nimodipine seems to reduce thunderclap headaches within 48 h but has no definite effect on the haemorrhagic and ischaemic complications.
Teacher Self-Disclosure and Student Classroom Participation Revisited

Objective observations of 22 classes across a variety of disciplines call into question Goldstein and Benassi's (1994) self report data suggesting that teacher self-disclosure may increase student participation. We found no relation between teacher self-disclosure and several measures of student participation, but self-disclosure did relate to other teacher behaviors. Class structure was a much more important determinant of student participation.
Stress, coping, and marital satisfaction in couples with a depressed wife

The present study was designed to evaluate the relationships among psychological distress, perceived stress, marital satisfaction, and coping in three groups of couples: one group in which the wife met RDC diagnostic criteria for major depression, one group of couples in which the wife met RDC criteria for minor depression, and one group in which the wife did not meet RDC criteria for depression. Consistent with a systems conceptualization of depression, the depressed women and their husbands both reported greater dissatisfaction in their marriages than did the non-depressed control couples. In addition, whereas both the minor and major depressed women differed from the non-depressed women with respect to psychological distress and preceived stress, only husbands of the minor depressed women differed significantly on these measures from husbands of the non-depressed women, reporting greater distress and a higher level of perceived stress. Implications of these and other results are discussed, and directions for further work in this area are offered.
Controllability of Periodically Switched Linear Systems with Delay in Control

The controllability for switched linear systems with time-delay in control are first formulated and investigated. A sufficient and necessary condition for controllability of periodically switched linear systems is presented. Furthermore, it is proved that the controllability can be realized in n + 1 periods at most. An example illustrates the above results. Some further results are also presented.
Maternal and neonatal seroprevalence of Hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) in Tripoli, Libya.

BACKGROUND Pregnant women with Hepatitis B virus HBV represent a major reservoir of the virus in the community. Data regarding the prevalence of HBV in pregnant women and maternal transmission of the virus in Libya are lacking. METHODOLOGY Hepatitis blood samples from 1,500 pregnant women and 1,500 cord blood samples of their neonates delivered at Tripoli Medical Center, Tripoli, were tested for HBsAg by ELISA technique. HBsAg-positive samples were also tested for HBeAg. RESULTS HBsAg was detected in 1.5% (23/1,500) pregnant women and in 0.9% (14/1,500) neonates. Although HBsAg was detected at higher rate in pregnant women aged > 25 years [1.8% (22/1,235)] than in pregnant women aged < 25 years [0.4% (1/265)], the difference was not statistically significant (P > 0.05). All HBsAg-positive neonates were born to HBsAg-positive mothers with a rate of maternal transmission at 60.9% (14/23). HBeAg was detected in 21.7% (5/23) and in 7.1% (1/14) of HBsAg-positive pregnant women and neonates, respectively. CONCLUSIONS Because of the high risk of developing chronic HBV infection at birth among infants born to HBsAg-positive mothers, administration of HBIG in combination with hepatitis B vaccine as post-exposure prophylaxis for such infants is of paramount importance. In addition, universal HBsAg screening of all pregnant women will greatly assist in reducing the maternal transmission of HBV in the country.
Joint OSC Receiver for Evolved GSM/EDGE Systems

This paper is focused on evolved GSM/EDGE systems complying to the new feature Voice services over Adaptive Multi-user channels on One Slot (VAMOS), recently introduced in the 3GPP GSM/EDGE radio access network (GERAN) standard. VAMOS enables the transmission of two GSM voice streams on the same radio resource through the so called Orthogonal Sub Channel (OSC) multiple access technique which aims at doubling the number of users served by a cell. When adopting this feature, the GSM network experiences a mixture of in-cell and out-of-cell interference which has to be handled by advanced receivers with interference rejection capabilities. In this paper, a novel two-stage receiver is proposed and tested for the uplink of GSM VAMOS systems. The new scheme combines a pre-filtering stage for out-of-cell interference mitigation with a multi-user detector (MUD) for joint equalization of the two multiplexed OSC streams. The approach is suited for either single-antenna or multi-antenna base stations and can accommodate multiple filters for each user to cope with complex multipath propagation scenarios. The new solution is compared with other existing interference cancellation techniques here applied to the specific OSC scenario. Numerical results show significant performance gains in realistic multi-cell simulated scenarios.
Characterization of Zirconium Hydrides and Phase Field Approach to a Mesoscopic-Scale Modeling of Their Precipitation

Zirconium alloys are currently used in nuclear power plants where they are submitted to hydrogen pick-up. Hydrogen in solid solution or hydride precipitation can affect the behavior of zirconium alloys during service but also in long term storage and in accidental conditions. Numerical modeling at mesoscopic scale using a “phase field” approach has been launched to describe hydride precipitation and its consequences on the mechanical properties of zirconium alloys. To obtain realistic results, it should take into account an accurate kinetic, thermodynamic, and structural database in order to properly describe hydride nucleation, growth, and coalescence as well as hydride interaction with external stresses. Therefore, an accurate structural characterization was performed on Zircaloy-4 plates and it allowed us to identify a new zirconium hydride phase called ζ. The ζ phase has a trigonal symmetry and is fully coherent with hcp αZr. The consequences of this new zirconium hydride phase on hydride transformation process and stress-reorientation phenomenon are discussed. A first attempt to numerically model the precipitation of this new zirconium hydride phase has been undertaken using the phase field approach.
The sufficiency of the theory of planned behavior for explaining information security policy compliance

Purpose – This paper aims to challenge the assumption that the theory of planned behaviour (TPB) includes all constructs that explain information security policy compliance and investigates if anticipated regret or constructs from the protection motivation theory add explanatory power. The TPB is an established theory that has been found to predict compliance with information security policies well. Design/methodology/approach – Responses from 306 respondents at a research organization were collected using a questionnaire-based survey. Extensions in terms of anticipated regret and constructs drawn from the protection motivation theory are tested using hierarchical regression analysis. Findings – Adding anticipated regret and the threat appraisal process results in improvements of the predictions of intentions. The improvements are of sufficient magnitude to warrant adjustments of the model of the TPB when it is used in the area of information security policy compliance. Originality/value – This study is t.
Seasonal cycles of isoprene concentrations in the Amazonian rainforest

Tropical forests are an important global source of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and other atmospheric trace gases. The high biodiversity in tropical rainforests complicates the extrapolation of biogenic volatile organic compound (BVOC) emissions from leaf-level measurements to landscape and regional or global scales. In Amazˆ onia, a 5 significant fraction of the carbon emitted from the biosphere to the atmosphere is emitted in the form of BVOCs, and the knowledge of these emissions is important to our understanding of tropical and global atmospheric chemistry and carbon cycling. As part of the Large scale Biosphere-atmosphere experiment in Amazˆ onia (LBA). VOC concentrations were measured at two sites near Santar´ em, Para State, Brazil. The 10
Category politics: deaf students’ inclusion in the ‘hearing university’

This article investigates the way in which deaf tertiary students’ identity is constructed within the university – an overwhelmingly ‘hearing’ institution. It is a descriptive and analytical account of the experiences of two deaf teacher education students as they reflect on their progress and experiences in higher education. Data have been analysed within an interpretive framework of category politics and the construction of difference. The study found that providing the same access to the same information in the same form did little to address the discursive marginality of these students.
Including Others in the Implicit Self: Implicit Evaluation of Significant Others

We argue that people include significant others in their implicit self-concepts. That is, people's implicit evaluations of their significant others are related to their own self-evaluations. Data from five different samples supported this idea by demonstrating that people's implicit self-esteem is related to their implicit evaluations of their close others (both implicit self-esteem and implicit evaluations of significant others were assessed using the name-letter measure). This finding held for parent–child, romantic, and sibling relationships as well as for friendships. This finding also held controlling for people's explicit self-esteem and how much people liked letters in general. These findings suggest that people include significant others in their implicit self-concepts, which appear to be distinct representations from people's explicit beliefs. The potential implications for relationship functioning are discussed.