Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
One head, two languages : speech production and perception in Greek-English bilinguals

The way that bilinguals produce and perceive phonetic contrasts in each of their languages is thought to provide a window into the nature of the bilingual phonological space. Research has demonstrated that bilinguals usually show a persistent influence from their native language (L1) on the second language (L2) for both speech production and perception, but it has been suggested that bilinguals who are L2-dominant are the most likely to suppress this L1-interference. In addition, theories of bilingual language activation and inhibition posit that the situational language context biases bilinguals to select language-specific information when using their two languages; we extend this concept to address bilingual speech production and perception. Specifically, this thesis examined the production and perception of stop consonant voicing contrasts by L2-dominant bilinguals in opposing L1 or L2 language contexts. Greek–English bilinguals were chosen because Greek and English differ in their phonetic settings for stop-voicing distinctions, allowing for objective comparisons between monoand bilinguals, and for quantifying any L1-L2 interaction effects. In production, bilinguals matched monolinguals in Greek (L1) across all phonetic contexts tested, although English (L2) productions in complex medial contexts showed an L1 influence. In a codeswitching experiment, in which both languages were engaged, this L1-interference on L2 productions was exacerbated. Therefore, it appears that L2 dominance does not guard against an L1 influence on production of L2. In perception, bilinguals showed a strikingly different pattern of L1-L2 interaction: they were sensitive to L1 and L2 realisations of the same phoneme in categorisation and rating judgments about stop voicing, yet their discrimination was heavily biased toward their dominant L2 (English). Overall, the results are interpreted as indicating that bilinguals integrate both languages in a common phonetic space, swayed by their long-term dominant language environment, but they can selectively attend to language-specific phonetic information for phonologically-motivated judgments (category-goodness ratings). It is argued that the asymmetry observed between speech production and perception is a result of the bilinguals’ unique language learning histories and differences in communicative pressure in the domains of speech perception and production.
Impaired auditory functions underlying degraded speech perception in noise

Hearing-impaired people often experience great dif culty with speech communication when background noise is present. In most cases, the problem persists even if reduced audibility has been compensated for by hearing aids. Clearly, other impairment factors besides reduced audibility must be involved. In order to minimize confounding effects, the subjects participating in this study consisted of groups with homogeneous, symmetric audiograms. The perceptual listening experiments assessed the speech intelligibility in the presence of stationary as well as uctuating interferers, the individual’s frequency selectivity and the integrity of temporal fine-structure processing. The latter was addressed by measuring the lateralization threshold for low-frequency tones with ongoing interaural phase delays. In addition, this lateralization threshold was measured in a stationary noise background in order to assess the persistence of the ne- structure processing to interfering noise. This may play a crucial role for the ability to listen into the dips of fluctuating background interferers.
Comparison of Single‐Dose Ceftizoxime or Ceftriaxone in the Treatment of Uncomplicated Urethral Gonorrhea

Penicillinase-producing strains of Neisseria gonorrhoeae account for an increasing percentage of cases of gonorrhea in the United States. Although many strains of N. gonorrhoeae are still sensitive to penicillin, the CDC currently recommends one dose of ceftriaxone 250 mg IM for treatment of uncomplicated urethral gonorrhea. Ceftizoxime like ceftriaxone is a third generation cephalosporin that demonstrates excellent MICs against beta-lactamase positive and negative strains of N. gonorrhoeae. The clinical efficacy of a single-dose of ceftizoxime 250 mg IM was compared with ceftriaxone 250 mg IM in patients with uncomplicated urethral gonorrhea. In addition, the cost of each regimen was evaluated to determine the most cost-effective agent. A total of 106 and 98 patients were treated with ceftizoxime and ceftriaxone, respectively, with all cases cured. PPNG strains were observed in 25.5% of patients. No adverse events were observed or reported. The cost of ceftizoxime was approximately one-third that of ceftriaxone ($2.37 to $2.56 and $7.15 to $8.70 per dose, respectively). The data from this study suggest that ceftizoxime 250 mg IM is a safe, cost-effective alternative to the use of ceftriaxone 250 mg IM in the treatment of patients with PPNG-positive and -negative gonorrhea.
The effects of rod and cone loss on the photic regulation of locomotor activity and heart rate

Behavioral responses to light indirectly affect cardiovascular output, but in anesthetized rodents a direct effect of light on heart rate has also been described. Both the basis for this response and the contribution of rods, cones and melanopsin‐based photosensitive retinal ganglion cells (pRGCs) remains unknown. To understand how light acutely regulates heart rate we studied responses to light in mice lacking all rod and cone photoreceptors (rd/rd cl ) along with wild‐type controls. Our initial experiments delivered light to anesthetized mice at Zeitgeber time (ZT)16 (4 h after lights off, mid‐activity phase) and produced an increase in heart rate in wild‐type mice, but not in rd/rd cl animals. By contrast, parallel experiments in freely‐moving mice demonstrated that light exposure at this time suppressed heart rate and activity in both genotypes. Because of the effects of anesthesia, all subsequent studies were conducted in freely‐moving animals. The effects of light were also assessed at ZT6 (mid‐rest phase). At this timepoint, wild‐type mice showed an irradiance‐dependent increase in heart rate and activity. By contrast, rd/rd cl mice failed to show any modulation of heart rate or activity, even at very high irradiances. Increases in heart rate preceded increases in locomotor activity and remained elevated when locomotor activity ceased, suggesting that these two responses are at least partially uncoupled. Collectively, our results show an acute and phase‐dependent effect of light on cardiovascular output in mice. Surprisingly, this irradiance detection response is dependent upon rod and cone photoreceptors, with no apparent contribution from melanopsin pRGCs.
Biosurveillance of avian influenza and Newcastle disease viruses in the Barda region of Azerbaijan using real time RT-PCR and hemagglutination inhibition

The Azerbaijan State Veterinary Control Service (SVCS) has conducted active serological surveillance for avian influenza (AI) in poultry since 2006, when the first outbreak of AI H5N1 occurred in Azerbaijan. Samples are collected from September to May annually and tested using a hemagglutination inhibition (HI) assay to detect antibodies against H5 AI viruses. HI testing is also performed for Newcastle disease virus (NDV) upon request, but since this method cannot distinguish between natural infections and immune responses to vaccination, all positive results require follow-up epidemiological investigations. Furthermore, blood collection for the surveillance program is time-intensive and can be stressful to birds. In order to improve the national surveillance program, alternative sampling and testing methodologies were applied among a population of birds in the Barda region and compared with results of the national surveillance program. Tracheal and cloacal swabs were collected instead of blood. Rather than testing individual samples, RNA was pooled to conserve resources and time, and pools were tested by real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (rRT-PCR). Environmental sampling at a live bird market was also introduced as another surveillance mechanism. A total of 1,030 swabs were collected, comprising tracheal, and cloacal samples from 441 birds and 148 environmental surface samples from farms or the live bird market. During the same time, 3,890 blood samples were collected nationally for the surveillance program; 400 of these samples originated in the Barda region. Birds sampled for rRT-PCR were likely different than those tested as part of national surveillance. All swab samples tested negative by rRT-PCR for both AI and NDV. All blood samples tested negative for H5 by HI, while 6.2% of all samples and 5% of the Barda samples tested positive for exposure to NDV. Follow-up investigations found that positive samples were from birds vaccinated in the previous month. This study demonstrated that taking swabs was quicker and less invasive than blood collection. Results of rRT-PCR testing were similar to HI testing for H5 but also ruled out infection with all influenza type A viruses and not just H5. In addition, rRT-PCR testing was able to rule out active infections with NDV.
Risk factors of breast cancer in women in Kelantan, Malaysia.

INTRODUCTION Breast cancer is the commonest cancer for females in Malaysia, with a prevalence of 86.2 per 100,000 women in 1996. Breast cancer mortality rate shows an increasing trend in Malaysia from 0.61 in 1983 to 1.8 per 100,000 women in 1992. The aim of this study was to identify the risk factors for breast cancer in women in Malaysia. METHODS A matched case-control study was carried out at referral hospitals in Kelantan from July 2000 to June 2001. A standardised questionnaire that comprised socio-demographical factors, obstetrical and gynaecological histories, anthropometric measurements, and other potential risk factors for breast cancer, was used to interview 147 histologically-confirmed breast cancer patients and 147 controls. Controls were non-breast cancer patients who were matched for age and ethnicity, and excluded those with malignancies, or having gynaecological, hormonal or endocrine problems. Simple and multiple conditional logistic regressions were used for analyses. RESULTS Factors contributing toward increased risk of breast cancer were nulliparity (odds ratio [OR] of 15.3; 95 percent confidence interval [CI] of 3.2, 72.4), overweight (OR of 2.1; 95 percent CI of 1.1, 3.9), family history of breast cancer (OR of 4.3; 95 percent CI of 1.3, 14.1) and previous use of oral contraceptives (OR of 2.5; 95 percent CI of 1.3, 4.8). CONCLUSION This study reconfirmed that similar risk factors identified in Western populations were responsible for the occurrence of breast cancer in Kelantan. It also supported the theory that breast cancer occurrence was related to oestrogen exposure and familial factors. It suggested the importance of having children, maintaining ideal body weight and caution for oral contraceptive users and women with a family history of breast cancer.
OGRS 3:the revised Offender Group Reconviction Scale

The Offender Group Reconviction Scale (OGRS) is a predictor of re-offending based only on static risks – age, gender and criminal history. It allows probation, prison and youth justice staff to produce predictions for individual offenders even when the use of dynamic risk assessment tools (e.g. The Offender Assessment System (OASys) or Asset) is not possible. It will form the basis of an improved static/dynamic predictor in OASys, and also assist researchers in controlling for expected levels of re-offending when comparing samples.
Urinary Tract Infections in Kidney Transplant Patients Due to Escherichia coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae-Producing Extended-Spectrum β-Lactamases: Risk Factors and Molecular Epidemiology

Urinary tract infection (UTI) is a common complication after kidney transplantation, often associated to graft loss and increased healthcare costs. Kidney transplant patients (KTPs) are particularly susceptible to infection by Enterobacteriaceae-producing extended-spectrum β-lactamases (ESBLs). A retrospective case-control study was conducted to identify independent risk factors for ESBL-producing Escherichia coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae in non-hospitalized KTPs with UTI. Forty-nine patients suffering from UTI by ESBL-producing bacteria (ESBL-P) as case group and the same number of patients with UTI by ESBL negative (ESBL-N) as control-group were compared. Clinical data, renal function parameters during UTI episodes, UTI recurrence and relapsing rate, as well as risk factors for recurrence, molecular characterization of isolates and the respective antimicrobial susceptibility profile were evaluated. Diabetes mellitus (p <0.007), previous antibiotic prophylaxis (p=0.017) or therapy (p<0.001), previous UTI (p=0.01), relapsing infection (p=0.019) and patients with delayed graft function after transplant (p=0.001) represented risk factors for infection by ESBL positive Enterobacteriaceae in KTPs. Interestingly, the period of time between data of transplantation and data of UTI was shorter in case of ESBL-P case-group (28.8 months) compared with ESBL-N control-group (50.9 months). ESBL-producing bacteria exhibited higher resistance to fluoroquinolones (p=0.002), trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole (p<0.001) and gentamicin (p<0.001). Molecular analysis showed that bla CTX-M was the most common ESBL encoding gene (65.3%), although in 55.1% of the cases more than one ESBL gene was found. In 29.4% of K. pneumoniae isolates, three bla-genes (bla CTX-M-bla TEM-bla SHV) were simultaneously detected. Low estimated glomerular filtration rate (p=0.009) was found to be risk factor for UTI recurrence. Over 60% of recurrent UTI episodes were caused by genetically similar strains. UTI by ESBL-producing Enterobacteriaceae in KTPs represent an important clinical challenge regarding not only hospitalized patients but also concerning outpatients.
Meta-Analysis of Microarray Studies Reveals a Novel Hematopoietic Progenitor Cell Signature and Demonstrates Feasibility of Inter-Platform Data Integration

Microarray-based studies of global gene expression (GE) have resulted in a large amount of data that can be mined for further insights into disease and physiology. Meta-analysis of these data is hampered by technical limitations due to many different platforms, gene annotations and probes used in different studies. We tested the feasibility of conducting a meta-analysis of GE studies to determine a transcriptional signature of hematopoietic progenitor and stem cells. Data from studies that used normal bone marrow-derived hematopoietic progenitors was integrated using both RefSeq and UniGene identifiers. We observed that in spite of variability introduced by experimental conditions and different microarray platforms, our meta-analytical approach can distinguish biologically distinct normal tissues by clustering them based on their cell of origin. When studied in terms of disease states, GE studies of leukemias and myelodysplasia progenitors tend to cluster with normal progenitors and remain distinct from other normal tissues, further validating the discriminatory power of this meta-analysis. Furthermore, analysis of 57 normal hematopoietic stem and progenitor cell GE samples was used to determine a gene expression signature characteristic of these cells. Genes that were most uniformly expressed in progenitors and at the same time differentially expressed when compared to other normal tissues were found to be involved in important biological processes such as cell cycle regulation and hematopoiesis. Validation studies using a different microarray platform demonstrated the enrichment of several genes such as SMARCE, Septin 6 and others not previously implicated in hematopoiesis. Most interestingly, alpha-integrin, the only common stemness gene discovered in a recent comparative murine analysis (Science 302(5644):393) was also enriched in our dataset, demonstrating the usefulness of this analytical approach.
Smoking cessation: next steps for special populations research and innovative treatments.

OBJECTIVE The current introductory article provides the rationale for the special section on understudied smokers and innovative treatments. This article proposes a definition of "special populations" of smokers, outlines a priori criteria by which to judge whether an intervention should be adapted for these smokers, and delineates a process by which cultural adaptation of an intervention can be achieved. Next steps for innovative, theory-based treatments with special populations and with general populations of smokers are discussed. METHOD Special populations of smokers are defined as having (a) >10% higher smoking prevalence than the general population of smokers, (b) disproportionate tobacco-related health disparities, (c) less access to treatments, and (d) a lack of prospective, longitudinal treatment trials. RESULTS Cultural adaptation of evidenced-based treatments (EBTs) for underserved smokers should be applied more widely, outside the bounds of race and ethnicity, but also judiciously, following several a priori criteria. Cultural adaptation may be justified if the target population differs from the general population in (a) rates and patterns of smoking, (b) burden of tobacco-related health diseases, (c) predictors of smoking behavior, (d) risk factors for treatment failure, (e) protective factors that facilitate quitting, (f) treatment engagement, (g) treatment response, and (h) perceived social validity of the EBT. Once these criteria are met, four phases of cultural adaptation of an EBT for the target population are proposed. Innovative treatments need to be developed that use novel channels and linkages between channels; test novel theories or build on mechanisms research to more accurately pinpoint targets of change; and increase consumer demand for EBTs. CONCLUSION The process of cultural adaptation should be thoughtfully conducted with a priori definitions and criteria as well as standardized processes. Coupled with innovative, theory-based treatments, these considerations could help to jump-start stalled smoking cessation rates.
Operating room management: why, how and by whom?

Operating room (OR) is a cost‐intensive environment, and it should be managed efficiently. When improving efficiency, shortening case duration by parallel processing, training of the resident surgeons, the choice of anesthetic methods, effective scheduling, and monitoring of the overall OR performance are important. When redesigning the OR processes, changes should be given a clear target and the achieved results monitored and reported to everyone involved. Advanced, reliable, and easy to use information technology solutions for OR management are under development. Pre‐operative clinic and functionally designed facilities support efficiency. OR personnel must be kept motivated by clear management and leadership, supported by superiors.
The importance of fluctuations in fluid mixing

A ubiquitous example of fluid mixing is the Rayleigh–Taylor instability, in which a heavy fluid initially sits atop a light fluid in a gravitational field. The subsequent development of the unstable interface between the two fluids is marked by several stages. At first, each interface mode grows exponentially with time before transitioning to a nonlinear regime characterized by more complex hydrodynamic mixing. Unfortunately, traditional continuum modeling of this process has generally been in poor agreement with experiment. Here, we indicate that the natural, random fluctuations of the flow field present in any fluid, which are neglected in continuum models, can lead to qualitatively and quantitatively better agreement with experiment. We performed billion-particle atomistic simulations and magnetic levitation experiments with unprecedented control of initial interface conditions. A comparison between our simulations and experiments reveals good agreement in terms of the growth rate of the mixing front as well as the new observation of droplet breakup at later times. These results improve our understanding of many fluid processes, including interface phenomena that occur, for example, in supernovae, the detachment of droplets from a faucet, and ink jet printing. Such instabilities are also relevant to the possible energy source of inertial confinement fusion, in which a millimeter-sized capsule is imploded to initiate nuclear fusion reactions between deuterium and tritium. Our results suggest that the applicability of continuum models would be greatly enhanced by explicitly including the effects of random fluctuations.
Examining the Use of Web-Based Tests for Testing Academic Vocabulary in EAP Instruction.

Interest in Web-based and computer-assisted language testing is growing in the field of English for academic purposes (EAP). In this study, four groups of undergraduate EAP students (n=120), each group consisted of 30 students, were randomly selected from four different disciplines, i.e. biology, political sciences, psychology, and law. The four groups were homogeneous regarding their English proficiency. Four course-specific web-based tests of academic vocabulary were administered to each group with regard to their specific disciplines. Questionnaires were employed to explore the EAP students’ perceptions and self-efficacy concerning web-based language testing. Also, the perceptions of the four groups of undergraduates were compared in order to identify the differences among their attitudes. The findings would have implications for renewing assessment approaches and methods used in EAP instruction.
Composition, training needs and independence of ethics review committees across Africa: are the gate-keepers rising to the emerging challenges?

Background: The high disease burden of Africa, the emergence of new diseases and efforts to address the 10/90 gap have led to an unprecedented increase in health research activities in Africa. Consequently, there is an increase in the volume and complexity of protocols that ethics review committees in Africa have to review. Methods: With a grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the African Malaria Network Trust (AMANET) undertook a survey of 31 ethics review committees (ERCs) across sub-Saharan Africa as an initial step to a comprehensive capacity-strengthening programme. The number of members per committee ranged from 3 to 21, with an average of 11. Members of 10 institutional committees were all from the institution where the committees were based, raising prima facie questions as to whether independence and objectivity could be guaranteed in the review work of such committees. Results: The majority of the committees (92%) cited scientific design of clinical trials as the area needing the most attention in terms of training, followed by determination of risks and benefits and monitoring of research. The survey showed that 38% of the ERC members did not receive any form of training. In the light of the increasing complexity and numbers of health research studies being conducted in Africa, this deficit requires immediate attention. Outcome: The survey identified areas of weakness in the operations of ERCs in Africa. Consequently, AMANET is addressing the identified needs and weaknesses through a 4-year capacity-building project.