Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Comparison of Functional Outcomes and Treatment Cost Between a Computer-Based Cognitive Rehabilitation Teletherapy Program and a Face-to-Face Rehabilitation Program

The authors compared outcomes of 19 participants who received computer-based cognitive teletherapy rehabilitation with 20 participants who received face-to-face speech–language rehabilitation. The study compared outcomes from 2 “real-word” treatment programs provided by an outpatient rehabilitation center. A total of 39 participants with moderate to severe closed head traumatic brain injuries and a minimum of 1 year following injury were analyzed. Outcome measures included clinical indicators of independent living status, return to work or school, and independent driving. Cost measures included the total cost of the treatment and a measure of service costs per hour. Time since injury was a covariate, and an analysis of covariance revealed no differences between groups in independent living, driving status, return to work or school, or total treatment costs. The computer-based teletherapy cognitive rehabilitation program provided similar functional outcomes as face-to-face speech–language therapy at a similar total cost.
Against Professional Development

This paper raises questions about the sort of knowledge which has come to count as professional development knowledge. The author interrogates the curriculum and pedagogy of academic professional development programs in Australian universities, drawing parallels with Third World development programs. She argues that professional development knowledge is privileged over disciplinary knowledge in setting lifelong learning agendas for academics, and notes some problematic consequences of this for academics engaged in professional development programs.
Dress rehearsal: a Bourdieusian analysis of body work in career portfolio programs

This article examines how career portfolio programs at two secondary schools establish corporeal regimes. Both programs require students to compose portfolios that plot their trajectories through school and into paid work. Prior to graduation, students defend their portfolios before panels of educators and businesspeople. Employing the Bourdieusian concepts of capital and habitus, this article investigates how these programs set up systems that value certain kinds of bodies. Further, it examines how students negotiate these systems and display different kinds of bodies in different kinds of ways. Ultimately, it is argued these disparate bodily performances are read by authorities as indicators of the types of paths students are travelling or should travel into the future.
Genome Sequencing and Analysis of BCG Vaccine Strains

Background Although the Bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG) vaccine against tuberculosis (TB) has been available for more than 75 years, one third of the world's population is still infected with Mycobacterium tuberculosis and approximately 2 million people die of TB every year. To reduce this immense TB burden, a clearer understanding of the functional genes underlying the action of BCG and the development of new vaccines are urgently needed. Methods and Findings Comparative genomic analysis of 19 M. tuberculosis complex strains showed that BCG strains underwent repeated human manipulation, had higher region of deletion rates than those of natural M. tuberculosis strains, and lost several essential components such as T-cell epitopes. A total of 188 BCG strain T-cell epitopes were lost to various degrees. The non-virulent BCG Tokyo strain, which has the largest number of T-cell epitopes (359), lost 124. Here we propose that BCG strain protection variability results from different epitopes. This study is the first to present BCG as a model organism for genetics research. BCG strains have a very well-documented history and now detailed genome information. Genome comparison revealed the selection process of BCG strains under human manipulation (1908–1966). Conclusions Our results revealed the cause of BCG vaccine strain protection variability at the genome level and supported the hypothesis that the restoration of lost BCG Tokyo epitopes is a useful future vaccine development strategy. Furthermore, these detailed BCG vaccine genome investigation results will be useful in microbial genetics, microbial engineering and other research fields.
A profile of New Agers: social and spiritual aspects

In the literature, New Agers are profiled as urban, educated, middle-class and middle-aged, the majority being women-a portrait mainly based on quantitative analyses. This article aims at providing a richer sociological description through a qualitative analysis of thirty-five interviews conducted in 1996-97 in Melbourne. This qualitative approach to New Agers will describe them as religious individualists, as technical mystics, and as people who locate authority in their inner self. However, even if they perceive themselves as unique in this spirituality, they also mix with other people in 'affinitive' networks. They tend to move in or toward New Age through crises and through a consumption of New Age symbols that predispose, provoke and reinforce alternation to New Age.
When should your asthmatic patients refill their MDI propelled with chlorofluorocarbons?

BACKGROUND The United States Food and Drug Administration has changed its policy regarding product labeling of asthma MDIs. All asthma MDIs propelled by CFCs should be discarded at the discard point labeled on the canister and box. This policy is in transition with inconsistent product information given to patients and physicians. Previously, patients had been educated to replace the canister by observing its floating pattern in water. Now FDA labeling asks users to count the number of actuations. OBJECTIVE To compare the discard point of sample and prescription-size Serevent (6.5 g and 13 g) and Vanceril 84 DS (5.4 g and 12.2 g) canisters to their floating pattern and total number of actuations in the canisters. DESIGN Seven canisters each of Serevent 6.5 g and 13 g as well as Vanceril 84 DS 5.4 g and 12.2 g were shaken vigorously prior to actuation. One minute separated each actuation. The floating pattern was observed beginning at 80 percent of the discard point. This was repeated to the last actuation of the canister. RESULTS The floating pattern (tilt point) indicative to replace the Serevent 6.5 g and 13 g canisters as well as Vanceril 84 DS 5.4 g canister occurred after the discard point was reached. CONCLUSION Floating patterns of the 6.5 g and 13 g Serevent inhaler as well as the 5.4 g Vanceril 84 DS do not assist the asthmatic patient in determining when to replace their canister. Because canisters have excess product and propellant beyond the labeled discard point, it may be possible for pharmaceutical companies to correlate the product's floating pattern to the drug concentration and particle size distribution up to and beyond the discard point. Through careful testing, floating patterns of MDIs may still be able to assist the asthmatic patient in determining when to discard the canister.
Memory-Work: The Method

Memory-work is a social constructionist and feminist research method that was developed in Germany by Frigga Haug and others explicitly to bridge the gap between theory and experience. It provides a way of exploring the process whereby individual women become part of society, and the ways in which women themselves participate in that process of socialization. It is a group method, involving always the collective analysis of individual written memories. It is feminist in being explicitly liberationist in its intent. The use of memory-work as a method in feminist social research has become well established in Australia and New Zealand. Increasingly, its use as a qualitative research method has come to challenge conventional mainstream research practices. However, for feminist researchers too, the method brings with it many fascinating dilemmas and issues of both a theoretical and methodological nature. This article identifies some of those issues.
Noninvasive Superoxide Monitoring of In Vitro Neuronal Differentiation Using a Cell-Based Biosensor

Membrane-engineered cells bearing superoxide dismutase (SOD) molecules on their surface offer the capability of ultrarapid and ultrasensitive detection of the superoxide anion () through the measurement of changes of their cell membrane potential. We herewith report the application of this technology for the noninvasive determination of superoxide levels during the in vitro differentiation of PC12 cells. We were able to detect changes in accumulation in the culture medium, which were closely associated with the progress of neuronal differentiation.
Validation of a Clinical Measure of Self-Esteem

This article describes a validation study of a newly developed measure of self-esteem. Two studies were conducted, with the second intended as a replication of the first. The first involved 246 persons, and the second involved 107. Several specific predictions were made about the correlations between scores on the newly developed scale, another measure of self-esteem, a measure of depression, and a number of demographic variables. The results suggest that the newly developed scale does in fact measure level of self-esteem. Limitations in this study and the use of the scale in social work practice are discussed.
Disciplinary Differences and University Teaching

In the past decade the importance and quality of teaching have received increased attention from policy makers as well as from higher educationalists. However, studies of university teaching and learning essentially remain focused on generic aspects, thus belying their complexity and diversity. This is in contrast to the recognition that academics identify most strongly with their discipline. Further, Becher's classic study of Academic Tribes and Territories demonstrated the strong interconnection between disciplinary culture and disciplinary knowledge. This article draws together existing, but largely scattered, research findings on teaching and learning under an established framework of broad disciplinary classifications. In doing so, it examines the nature of teaching, teaching and learning processes, and teaching outcomes across the different disciplines. The picture presented demonstrates scope for future macro, meso and micro level studies to seek explanations for systematic disciplinary differences. It suggests how the results of this research can be used to inform institutional and government policy to make the governance of higher education fairer and more effective.
Gain of Rod to Horizontal Cell Synaptic Transfer: Relation to Glutamate Release and a Dihydropyridine-Sensitive Calcium Current

We related rod to horizontal cell synaptic transfer to glutamate release by rods. Simultaneous intracellular records were obtained from dark-adapted rod–horizontal cell pairs. Steady-state synaptic gain (defined as the ratio of horizontal cell voltage to rod voltage evoked by the same light stimulus) was 3.35 ± 0.60 for dim flashes and 1.50 ± 0.03 for bright flashes. Under conditions of maintained illumination, there was a measurable increment of horizontal cell hyperpolarization for each light-induced increment of rod hyperpolarization over the full range of rod voltages. In separate experiments we studied glutamate release from an intact, light-responsive photoreceptor layer, from which inner retinal layers were removed. Steady light reduced glutamate release as a monotonic function of intensity; spectral sensitivity measures indicated that we monitored glutamate release from rods. The dependence of glutamate release on rod voltage was well fit by the activation function for a high-voltage-activated, dihydropyridine-sensitive L-type calcium current, suggesting a linear dependence of glutamate release on [Ca]i in the synaptic terminal. A simple model incorporating this assumption accounts for the steady-state gain of the rod to horizontal cell synapse.
Using WordNet-based Context Vectors to Estimate the Semantic Relatedness of Concepts

In this paper, we introduce a WordNetbased measure of semantic relatedness by combining the structure and content of WordNet with co–occurrence information derived from raw text. We use the co–occurrence information along with the WordNet definitions to build gloss vectors corresponding to each concept in WordNet. Numeric scores of relatedness are assigned to a pair of concepts by measuring the cosine of the angle between their respective gloss vectors. We show that this measure compares favorably to other measures with respect to human judgments of semantic relatedness, and that it performs well when used in a word sense disambiguation algorithm that relies on semantic relatedness. This measure is flexible in that it can make comparisons between any two concepts without regard to their part of speech. In addition, it can be adapted to different domains, since any plain text corpus can be used to derive the co–occurrence information.
Health effects of vegan diets 1 – 3

Recently, vegetarian diets have experienced an increase in popularity. A vegetarian diet is associated with many health benefits because of its higher content of fiber, folic acid, vitamins C and E, potassium, magnesium, and many phytochemicals and a fat content that is more unsaturated. Compared with other vegetarian diets, vegan diets tend to contain less saturated fat and cholesterol and more dietary fiber. Vegans tend to be thinner, have lower serum cholesterol, and lower blood pressure, reducing their risk of heart disease. However, eliminating all animal products from the diet increases the risk of certain nutritional deficiencies. Micronutrients of special concern for the vegan include vitamins B-12 and D, calcium, and long-chain n–3 (omega-3) fatty acids. Unless vegans regularly consume foods that are fortified with these nutrients, appropriate supplements should be consumed. In some cases, iron and zinc status of vegans may also be of concern because of the limited bioavailability of these minerals. Am J Clin Nutr 2009;89(suppl):1627S–33S.
Age Influences on Multi-Dimensional Set Switching

Using a task switching paradigm, we investigated age effects on switch costs as a function of the number of sets to be switched. In Experiment 1, younger and older subjects determined a color or shape of an object presented on the computer screen, responding either by moving the joystick or by pressing a button on the joystick. The switch costs were assessed with differences between switch trials (task-set switch, response-set switch, and double switch) and non-switch trials. Contrary to the prediction that age would negatively influence performance on the double switch trials, age effects on switch costs were observed only for the single switch trials (i.e., response-set switch condition). Additionally, both younger and older adults were capable of preparing for task and response-set switches in parallel. In Experiment 2, we manipulated the time available to prepare for a task and response-set switch. Both younger and older adults were able to utilize extra time to reduce switch costs. Furthermore, the age deficit found in Experiment 1 for response-set switching was eliminated in the second experiment in which preparation for task and response-set switching was temporally decoupled. The data are discussed in terms of task component coordination across the adult lifespan.
Alienation: Its meaning and measurement.

Unlike murder rates, those for suicide are increasing. This trend is historically related to increasing literacy, urbanization, and a larger middle class. Higher status and moral commitment for these persons preclude murder; suicide emerges as a manifestation of increasing numbers of persons in an insecure achieved status. Whether trends, rural-urban areas, or characteristics of individual cases are compared, there is basis for concluding that increasing participation in an achievement as opposed to an ascribed status system is a necessary precondition for increasing rates of specified forms of deviance. The relationships, however, depend on the proportion of persons in the various status positions of the population and the stresses and strains that are subjectively experienced. Conceptually, it appears that stresses of a status position induce varying orientations to society (subcultural norms as intervening variables) which in turn facilitate or inhibit certain types of deviance. Differential rates of homicide and suicide are the direct effects of variations in these normative orientations. disputes where assailant or victim own land 35 and neither own 13 per cent vs. 12 and 14 per cent (N=84, 38 vs. 51, 21, combining "own" and "neither own" for Kandyan and Ceylon Tamil, x2=l3.12, 2 d.f., P<.05).
A Macrohistoric Trend Toward World Government

From the days of the Mesopotamian Empire to the present, Julian Steward's cyclical empires have tended to grow larger, millennium by millennium. Here the areas of twenty-eight large Old World empires are measured. The results suggest that, if the trend continues, a peace ful world order is probable within three thousand years: 2,600 years later than Naroll's prediction.
Pempheris bexillon, a new species of sweeper (Teleostei: Pempheridae) from the Western Indian Ocean.

Pempheris bexillon new species is described from the 129 mm SL holotype and 11 paratypes (119-141 mm SL) from the Comoro Islands. Twelve other specimens have been examined from the Agaléga Islands, Mascarene Islands, and Bassas da India (Madagascar). It is differentiated from other Pempheris by the following combination of characters: a yellow dorsal fin with a black, distal margin along its full length, broadest on anterior rays (pupil-diameter width) and gradually narrowing posteriorly, the last ray with only a black tip; large, deciduous cycloid scales on the flank; dark, oblong spot on the pectoral-fin base; anal fin with a dark margin; segmented anal-fin rays 38-45 (usually >40); lateral-line scales 56-65; and total gill rakers on the first arch 31-35; iris reddish-brown. Tables of standard meristic and color data for type material of all nominal species of cycloid-scaled Pempheris in the Indo-Pacific are provided.
Sex differences in healthy life expectancy from self-perceived assessments of health in the City of São Paulo, Brazil

ABSTRACT Whether life is spent in good health or disability has a critical influence on the use of health-care services. It is also known that average healthy life expectancy differs by sex. This paper reports estimations of healthy and unhealthy life expectancy in old age using self-reported health assessments for the City of São Paulo, Brazil in 2000–01. The data derived from the Health, Well-being and Aging in Latin America and the Caribbean Project (SABE), and from population censuses and mortality statistics. Sullivan's estimation method was used. It combines the age-specific schedule of the current probabilities of death with the prevalence of self-perceived ‘poor’ and ‘good’ health. The paper also reports multivariate analyses of the factors associated with variations by age group and sex in self-perceived health. The findings revealed that, at all ages, women live longer than men and for more years in a healthy state. Among men, those aged 60, 65 and 70 years were expected to live a higher percentage of their remaining life than women in a healthy state, but among those aged 75, 80 and 85 years, the opposite held. Among women, the percentage of remaining years that were unhealthy did not increase as age increased, which differs from previous findings. The multivariate analyses showed that with increasing age, for women the number of chronic diseases decreased but dependency increased, and for men the opposite held. This finding indicated that the percentage of life spent in poor self-perceived health more accurately predicts mortality in men than women.
Bad for Practice - Good for Practice - From Economic Imperialism to Multidisciplinary Mapping

There is a growing debate about economics not only being bad for practice but also destroying good management practice. The focus of this debate has been on the negative influences of wrong assumptions in theory building which become a self-fulfilling prophecy. We analyze why standard economics indeed can be bad for managerial and political practice. Aside from wrong assumptions, economic imperialism is another important factor. We argue that psychological economics is better for practice than standard economics, but is still not good for practice, as long as it uses an imperialistic approach. We propose a different research strategy, which we call multidisciplinary mapping. It not only bridges between different disciplinary approaches but also between the knowledge of scholars and practitioners. It is good for practice as well as for theory building.
The rating scale preference measure as an evaluative measure in systemic lupus erythematosus

Preference measures may be useful tools to assess patients' overall health-related quality of life. We studied the validity and sensitivity to change of the rating scale preference measure in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), and compared its properties with those of the patient global assessment of SLE activity, in a prospective longitudinal observational study of changes in the symptoms and clinical disease activity of 23 patients. Patients were assessed every two weeks for up to 40 weeks. Construct validity was assessed by the strength of correlations between changes over time in the rating scale preference measure and patient global assessment and changes in the physician global assessment, Systemic Lupus Activity Measure (SLAM), European Consensus Lupus Activity Measure (ECLAM), the British Isles Lupus Assessment Group index (BILAG), and Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Disease Activity Index (SLEDAI). Changes in the rating scale were more highly correlated with changes in each of these standards than were changes in the patient global assessment, demonstrating the construct validity of this measure. Sensitivity to change was measured using the two-week interval of greatest change in either the physician global assessment or the SLE activity measures as standards. The rating scale preference measure was less sensitive to change than the patient global assessment when tested against four different standards. The sensitivity to change of the rating scale was less than one-half that of the patient global assessment when either the SLAM or ECLAM was used as the standard. Although these results support the validity of the rating scale as a measure of health-related quality of life in patients with SLE, its limited sensitivity to change may make it less attractive as an endpoint measure in clinical trials.
EpiSimdemics: An efficient algorithm for simulating the spread of infectious disease over large realistic social networks

Preventing and controlling outbreaks of infectious diseases such as pandemic influenza is a top public health priority. We describe EpiSimdemics - a scalable parallel algorithm to simulate the spread of contagion in large, realistic social contact networks using individual-based models. EpiSimdemics is an interaction-based simulation of a certain class of stochastic reaction-diffusion processes. Straightforward simulations of such process do not scale well, limiting the use of individual-based models to very small populations. EpiSimdemics is specifically designed to scale to social networks with 100 million individuals. The scaling is obtained by exploiting the semantics of disease evolution and disease propagation in large networks. We evaluate an MPI-based parallel implementation of EpiSimdemics on a mid-sized HPC system, demonstrating that EpiSimdemics scales well. EpiSimdemics has been used in numerous sponsor defined case studies targeted at policy planning and course of action analysis, demonstrating the usefulness of EpiSimdemics in practical situations.