Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A CNN Based Scene Chinese Text Recognition Algorithm With Synthetic Data Engine

Scene text recognition plays an important role in many computer vision applications. The small size of available public available scene text datasets is the main challenge when training a text recognition CNN model. In this paper, we propose a CNN based Chinese text recognition algorithm. To enlarge the dataset for training the CNN model, we design a synthetic data engine for Chinese scene character generation, which generates representative character images according to the fonts use frequency of Chinese texts. As the Chinese text is more complex, the English text recognition CNN architecture is modified for Chinese text. To ensure the small size nature character dataset and the large size artificial character dataset are comparable in training, the CNN model are trained progressively. The proposed Chinese text recognition algorithm is evaluated with two Chinese text datasets. The algorithm achieves better recognize accuracy compared to the baseline methods.
Non‐terminal behavior as a finger print to follow droplet deformation

It is well-established that rheology can trace structural dynamics and conjectures the forming/formed morphology. The objective of this work is to trace the droplet deformation via conducting fiber spinning process. In this regard, two types of polymer blends Polypropylene (PP)/Polyamide6 (PA6) and Polypropylene/Polytrimethylene terephthalate (PTT) with various ratios (99/1, 94/6, 90/10, and 80/20) were melt-blended on co-rotating twin screw extruder and thereafter, were spun. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images represent a droplet and fibrillar morphologies for as-extruded samples and spun blend fibers respectively. Unlike PA6 as dispersed phase, PTT droplets in PP/PTT blend system shows improved spinnability. Linear melt viscoelastic data were gathered by performing rheological approaches in linear region. Conducting frequency sweep at 240°C is revealed a terminal behavior for Gʹ and a Newtonian plateau for η* at low frequencies. However, at 195°C dynamic rheological data pertinent to fibers represent a non-terminal trend for Gʹ and viscosity upturn at low frequencies respectively. These distinguishable characteristics can be considered as spinnability of droplets which reflect fibrillation mechanism, and fibrillar growth can be followed by scanning the viscoelastic responses at low frequency region which enhanced upon fibril growth. According to SEM and rheological test results, PTT, as an engineering plastics, manifests higher capability of forming nano fibrils.
Studying the Prevalence, Species Distribution, and Detection of In vitro Production of Phospholipase from Candida Isolated from Cases of Invasive Candidiasis

Background and Aim: Candida spp. have emerged as successful pathogens both in invasive and mucosal infections. C. albicans is the sixth cause of most common nosocomial infections according to studies by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. A shift toward non-albicans species has been reported. There is a dearth of knowledge regarding the virulence factors of Candida, especially from this part of India. The aim was to study the prevalence of Candida, speciate, and determine antifungal sensitivity along with the detection of in vitro production of phospholipases in 100 Candida isolates. Materials and Methods: A total of 100 Candida isolates from various clinical specimens were studied (February 1, 2015–May 31, 2015; 4 months). Speciation was done by conventional methods and antifungal drugs fluconazole and voriconazole tested. Phospholipase activity (Pz value) was determined. Results: Of the 100 Candida spp. , 35% were C. albicans and 65% were nonalbicans Candida (NAC). Species spectrum was of the 100 isolates as follows: 35 were C. albicans, 17 Candida tropicalis, 6 Candida glabrata, 8 Candida guilliermondi, 1 Candida kefyr, 6 Candida krusei, 14 Candida parapsilosis, 2 Candida lusitaniae, and 1 Trichosporon and 10 Candida spp. (not speciated). Phospholipase production was seen in 81 (81%) of the total isolates. The majority (63%) of phospholipase producers were NAC. Among NAC spp. , the maximum phospholipase activity was seen in C. tropicalis (30%) and C. parapsilosis (24%). Of these, 60% of Candida was from patients admitted to the hospital. Sensitivity rates of C. albicans for fluconazole and voriconazole were 89.5% and 90.5%, respectively. Conclusion: Increasing usage of devices, total parenteral nutrition, broad-spectrum antibiotics, chemotherapies, and transplantation are factors contributing to the increase of candidal infections. Recent studies underline the increasing frequency of infections by NAC. The present study showcases the increased prevalence as well as virulence of NAC. In addition, early detection of virulence factors by Candida is useful in clinical decision-making.
Predictive Modeling of Opinion and Connectivity Dynamics in Social Networks

Recent years saw an increased interest in modeling and understanding the mechanisms of opinion and innovation spread through human networks. Using analysis of real-world social data, researchers are able to gain a better understanding of the dynamics of social networks and subsequently model the changes in such networks over time. We developed a social network model that both utilizes an agent-based approach with a dynamic update of opinions and connections between agents and reflects opinion propagation and structural changes over time as observed in real-world data. We validate the model using data from the Social Evolution dataset of the MIT Human Dynamics Lab describing changes in friendships and health self-perception in a targeted student population over a nine-month period. We demonstrate the effectiveness of the approach by predicting changes in both opinion spread and connectivity of the network. We also use the model to evaluate how the network parameters, such as the level of `openness' and willingness to incorporate opinions of neighboring agents, affect the outcome. The model not only provides insight into the dynamics of ever changing social networks, but also presents a tool with which one can investigate opinion propagation strategies for networks of various structures and opinion distributions.
Approximate joint measurements of qubit observables

Joint measurements of qubit observables have recently been studied in conjunction with quantum information processing tasks such as cloning. Considerations of such joint measurements have until now been restricted to a certain class of observables that can be characterized by a form of covariance. Here we investigate conditions for the joint measurability of arbitrary pairs of qubit observables. For pairs of noncommuting sharp qubit observables, a notion of approximate joint measurement is introduced. Optimal approximate joint measurements are shown to lie in the class of covariant joint measurements. The marginal observables found to be optimal approximators are generally not among the coarse-grainings of the observables to be approximated. This yields scope for the improvement of existing joint measurement schemes. Both the quality of the approximations and the intrinsic unsharpness of the approximators are shown to be subject to Heisenberg-type uncertainty relations.
Medically treated suicide attempts: a four year monitoring study of the epidemiology in The Netherlands.

OBJECTIVE--The incidence of medically treated attempted suicides was investigated in a defined area in the western part of The Netherlands, and demographic groups at risk were identified. DATA AND METHODS--Suicide attempts treated at general hospitals, psychiatric hospitals, and in general practice were monitored between 1 January 1989 and 1 January 1993. Information on demographic characteristics of the subjects who attempted suicide and characteristics of the attempts was registered through a monitoring system and there was maximum coverage. Data on the general population in the catchment area were derived from national, regional, and municipal bureaux of statistics. RESULTS--The mean annual incidences of medically treated suicide attempts (events) were 95/100,000 for males and 155/100,000 for females. At risk groups for attempted suicide were the young (< 40 years); females; people who were divorced, unemployed, or disabled; or those who had low levels of education. CONCLUSIONS--Apart from general hospitals and psychiatric hospitals, 28% of all reported suicide attempts were reported exclusively by general practitioners, which supports the conclusion that they are an important source of information. There were indications that the number of medically treated suicide attempts in this area is stabilising.
Prediagnostic Total and High-Density Lipoprotein Cholesterol and Risk of Cancer

Background: Circulating total cholesterol has been inversely associated with cancer risk; however, the role of reverse causation and the associations for high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol have not been fully characterized. We examined the relationship between serum total and HDL cholesterol and risk of overall and site-specific cancers among 29,093 men in the Alpha-Tocopherol, Beta-Carotene Cancer Prevention (ATBC) Study cohort. Methods: Fasting serum total and HDL cholesterol were assayed at baseline, and 7,545 incident cancers were identified during up to 18 years of follow-up. Multivariable proportional hazards models were conducted to estimate relative risks (RR). Results: Higher serum total cholesterol concentration was associated with decreased risk of cancer overall (RR for comparing high versus low quintile, 0.85; 95% confidence interval, 0.79-0.91; P trend <0.001; >276.7 versus <203.9 mg/dL), and the inverse association was particularly evident for cancers of the lung and liver. These associations were no longer significant, however, when cases diagnosed during the first 9 years of follow-up were excluded. Greater HDL cholesterol was also associated with decreased risk of cancer (RR for high versus low quintile, 0.89; 95% confidence interval, 0.83-0.97; P trend = 0.01; >55.3 versus <36.2 mg/dL). The inverse association of HDL cholesterol was evident for cancers of lung, prostate, liver, and the hematopoietic system, and the associations of HDL cholesterol with liver and lung cancers remained after excluding cases diagnosed within 12 years of study entry. Conclusion: Our findings suggest that prior observations regarding serum total cholesterol and cancer are largely explained by reverse causation. Although chance and reverse causation may explain some of the inverse HDL associations, we cannot rule out some etiologic role for this lipid fraction. (Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2009;18(11):2814–21)
Interspecies introgressive hybridization in spiny frogs Quasipaa (Family Dicroglossidae) revealed by analyses on multiple mitochondrial and nuclear genes

Abstract Introgression may lead to discordant patterns of variation among loci and traits. For example, previous phylogeographic studies on the genus Quasipaa detected signs of genetic introgression from genetically and morphologically divergent Quasipaa shini or Quasipaa spinosa. In this study, we used mitochondrial and nuclear DNA sequence data to verify the widespread introgressive hybridization in the closely related species of the genus Quasipaa, evaluate the level of genetic diversity, and reveal the formation mechanism of introgressive hybridization. In Longsheng, Guangxi Province, signs of asymmetrical nuclear introgression were detected between Quasipaa boulengeri and Q. shini. Unidirectional mitochondrial introgression was revealed from Q. spinosa to Q. shini. By contrast, bidirectional mitochondrial gene introgression was detected between Q. spinosa and Q. shini in Lushan, Jiangxi Province. Our study also detected ancient hybridizations between a female Q. spinosa and a male Q. jiulongensis in Zhejiang Province. Analyses on mitochondrial and nuclear genes verified three candidate cryptic species in Q. spinosa, and a cryptic species may also exist in Q. boulengeri. However, no evidence of introgressive hybridization was found between Q. spinosa and Q. boulengeri. Quasipaa exilispinosa from all the sampling localities appeared to be deeply divergent from other communities. Our results suggest widespread introgressive hybridization in closely related species of Quasipaa and provide a fundamental basis for illumination of the forming mechanism of introgressive hybridization, classification of species, and biodiversity assessment in Quasipaa.
The AlkB domain of mammalian ABH8 catalyzes hydroxylation of 5-methoxycarbonylmethyluridine at the wobble position of tRNA.

The ABH8 protein (also called ALKBH8) is a member of the AlkB (alkylated DNA repair protein) family of nonheme iron/ α-ketoglutarate (αKG)-dependent dioxygenases. [1] Other members of this protein family are known to catalyze oxidative demethylation to repair damaged DNA/RNA. [2] AlkB-like proteins exist in viruses, bacteria, and eukaryotic species. [3] Nine mammalian homologues of AlkB (ABH1-ABH8, and FTO, a protein associated with fat mass and obesity) have been identified through bioinformatics studies. [1b,4] Four of the homologues (ABH1, ABH2, ABH3, and FTO) show demethylation activity for N-methylated bases, in either DNA or RNA, through the hydroxylation of the N-methyl group and subsequent release of an aldehyde from the oxidized intermediate. [5] ABH2, which repairs m1A, m3C, and eA (1,N 6-ethenoadenine) in dsDNA, guards mammalian genomic DNA against methylation damage. [6] ABH3 appears to be involved in RNA repair. [7] FTO was first identified in a fused-toes malformation phenotype resulting from a mouse genome deletion,[8] and was later shown to significantly affect energy homeostasis and lead to obesity. [9] FTO has the highest activity in demethylating m3T in ssDNA and m3U in RNA;[4,10] however, the link between its biochemical activity and physiological phenotype is yet to be discovered. Aside from ABH1, ABH2, ABH3, and FTO, the biochemical activities of the other AlkB homologues are still unknown. Very recently Tet1, another iron(II)/αKG-dependent dioxygenase, has been shown to hydroxylate the 5-methyl group of m5C in dsDNA to form 5-hydroxymethylcytosine (hm5C) in certain neural and stem cells. This discovery has fueled speculation that this modification is important in epigenetics. [11]
Internal Consistency and the Inner Model Hypothesis

There are two standard ways to establish consistency in set theory. One is to prove consistency using inner models, in the way that Gödel proved the consistency of GCH using the inner model L. The other is to prove consistency using outer models, in the way that Cohen proved the consistency of the negation of CH by enlarging L to a forcing extension L[G]. But we can demand more from the outer model method, and we illustrate this by examining Easton's strengthening of Cohen's result: Theorem 1 (Easton's Theorem). There is a forcing extension L[G] of L in which GCH fails at every regular cardinal. Assume that the universe V of all sets is rich in the sense that it contains inner models with large cardinals. Then what is the relationship between Easton's model L[G] and V? In particular, are these models compatible, in the sense that they are inner models of a common third model? If not, then the failure of GCH at every regular cardinal is consistent only in a weak sense, as it can only hold in universes which are incompatible with the universe of all sets. Ideally, we would like L[G] to not only be compatible with V, but to be an inner model of V. We say that a statement is internally consistent iff it holds in some inner model, under the assumption that there are innermodels with large cardinals.
Screening for erectile dysfunction and associated cardiovascular risk factors in Israeli men.

BACKGROUND Erectile dysfunction is associated with treatable cardiovascular risk factors; therefore, screening for erectile dysfunction and its cardiovascular risk factors is of clinical importance. OBJECTIVES To detect erectile dysfunction cases and assess their severity among military personnel. METHODS The Sexual Health Inventory for Men questionnaire was handed out to military personnel aged 25-55 years during routine examinations. RESULTS A total of 19,131 men with a mean age of 34.0 +/- 7.1 years participated in routine physical examinations during the years 2001-2005. More than half of them (n=9956, 52%) completed the SHIM questionnaire. No significant differences were found between those who completed the SHIM questionnaire and those who did not, in terms of mean age, mean body mass index, and prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors. One out of every four men (25.2%) suffered from erectile dysfunction, which was mild in 18.9%, mild to moderate in 4.4%, moderate in 1.1%, and severe in 0.7%. Even though treatable cardiovascular risk factors were quite prevalent in the study group (45.2% of them suffered from dyslipidemia, 25.6% smoked, 4.2% suffered from essential hypertension, and 1.6% from diabetes mellitus), erectile dysfunction was significantly associated with age and diabetes mellitus alone (P<0.0001). CONCLUSIONS There is a high prevalence of erectile dysfunction and associated treatable cardiovascular risk factors in Israeli men aged 25-55, especially those with diabetes.
Attitudes about human papillomavirus vaccine in young women

Human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccines are under investigation, but little is known about attitudes regarding vaccination. The aims of this study were to identify attitudes about and intention to receive an HPV vaccine in young women using a theory-based model. Young women (n=52, mean age 25 years, range 18-30 years, 35% Black/Non-Hispanic) completed a survey assessing knowledge, attitudes about HPV vaccination, and risk behaviours. Associations between attitudes and intention to receive the vaccine were assessed using Mann-Whitney U or chi-square tests. Subjects reported positive attitudes about receiving an HPV vaccine and high intention to receive the vaccine both for themselves and their daughters. Variables associated significantly with intention included knowledge (P=0.004), personal beliefs about vaccination (P=0.004), belief that others would approve of vaccination (P=0.005), and higher number of sexual partners (P=0.028). Information on attitudes about HPV vaccination and predictors of intention to receive a vaccine may guide immunization initiatives for young adults.
Predicting the dative alternation

Theoretical linguists have traditionally relied on linguistic intuitions such as grammaticality judgments for their data. But the massive growth of computer-readable texts and recordings, the availability of cheaper, more powerful computers and software, and the development of new probabilistic models for language have now made the spontaneous useoflanguageinnaturalsettingsarichandeasilyaccessiblealternativesourceofdata. Surprisingly, many linguists believe that such ‘usage data’ are irrelevant to the theory of grammar. Four problems are repeatedly brought up in the critiques of usage data: 1. Correlated factors seeming to support reductive theories; 2. Pooled data invalidating grammatical inference; 3. Syntactic choices reducing to lexical biases; and 4. Cross-corpus differences undermining corpus studies. Presenting a case study of work on the English dative alternation, we show first,that linguistic intuitions of grammaticality are deeply flawed and seriously underestimate the space of grammatical possibility, and second, that the four problems in the critique of usage data are empirical issues that can be resolved by using modern statistical theory and modeling strategies widely used in other fields. The new models allow linguistic theory to solve more difficult problems than it has in the past, and to build convergent projects with psychology, computer science, and allied fields of cognitive science.
Vasopressors in septic shock: a systematic review and network meta-analysis

Objective Vasopressor agents are often prescribed in septic shock. However, their effects remain controversial. We conducted a systematic review and Bayesian network meta-analysis to compare the effects among different types of vasopressor agents. Data sources We searched for relevant studies in PubMed, Embase, and the Cochrane Library databases from database inception until December 2014. Study selection Randomized controlled trials in adults with septic shock that evaluated different vasopressor agents were selected. Data extraction Two authors independently selected studies and extracted data on study characteristics, methods, and outcomes. Data synthesis Twenty-one trials (n=3,819) met inclusion criteria, which compared eleven vasopressor agents or vasopressor combinations (norepinephrine [NE], dopamine [DA], vasopressin [VP], epinephrine [EN], terlipressin [TP], phenylephrine [PE], TP+NE, TP + dobutamine [DB], NE+DB, NE+EN, and NE + dopexamine [DX]). Except for the superiority of NE over DA, the mortality of patients treated with any vasopressor agent or vasopressor combination was not significantly different. Compared to DA, NE was found to be associated with decreased cardiac adverse events, heart rate (standardized mean difference [SMD]: −2.10; 95% confidence interval [CI]: −3.95, −0.25; P=0.03), and cardiac index (SMD: −0.73; 95% CI: −1.14, −0.03; P=0.004) and increased systemic vascular resistance index (SVRI) (SMD: 1.03; 95% CI: 0.61, 1.45; P<0.0001). This Bayesian meta-analysis revealed a possible rank of probability of mortality among the eleven vasopressor agents or vasopressor combinations; from lowest to highest, they are NE+DB, EN, TP, NE+EN, TP+NE, VP, TP+DB, NE, PE, NE+DX, and DA. Conclusion In terms of survival, NE may be superior to DA. Otherwise, there is insufficient evidence to suggest that any other vasopressor agent or vasopressor combination is superior to another. When compared to DA, NE is associated with decreased heart rate, cardiac index, and cardiovascular adverse events, as well as increased SVRI. The effects of vasopressor agents or vasopressor combinations on mortality in patients with septic shock require further investigation.
In utero ultrasonographic measurements of fetal aortic and pulmonary artery diameters during the first half of gestation

The study was conducted to construct a normal range for the diameters of the aortic root and pulmonary artery during the first half of gestation. With the use of transvaginal and transabdominal high‐resolution ultrasound techniques, a prospective, cross‐sectional study was performed on 139 normal singleton pregnancies at between 14 and 26 weeks. Great vessel diameters were measured by transvaginal ultrasonography until 17 weeks, and by transabdominal ultrasound between 18 and 26 weeks' gestation. The results showed that the aortic diameter (AD) as a function of gestational age (GA) was expressed by the regression equation AD = −16.0331 + 2.2563 × GA, and the pulmonary artery diameter (PD) by PD = −14.7637 + 2.4026 × GA; AD and PD are expressed in millimeters and GA in weeks. The correlation r2 = 0.94 was found to be highly statistically significant (p < 0.0001) for both great vessels. The normal mean of aortic and pulmonary artery diameter per week and the 95% prediction limits were also defined. During the study period we evaluated two cases with arterial diameters outside the 95% confidence limits; one had aortic coarctation and the other tetralogy of Fallot. The normative data established by us may be helpful in the prenatal diagnosis of congenital heart defects that include, among their manifestations, discordant diameters of the great vessels. Copyright © 1998 International Society of Ultrasound in Obstetrics and Gynecology