Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Women's preconceptional health and use of health services: implications for preconception care.

OBJECTIVE To improve understanding of women's use of health care before pregnancy, by analyzing how the health status and health risks of pre- and interconceptional women are associated with health services use. DATA SOURCE Data are from a cross-sectional random-digit dial telephone survey of a representative sample of 2002 women ages 18-45 years from the Central Pennsylvania Women's Health Study (CePAWHS). A subsample of 1,325 respondents with current reproductive capacity, classified by reproductive life stage (preconceptional or interconceptional), was analyzed. STUDY DESIGN Bivariate and multiple logistic regression analyses were conducted to determine how health needs (including indices of health status and health risks related to adverse pregnancy outcomes) are associated with five indicators of health services use (receipt of a regular physical exam, obstetrician-gynecologist [ob/gyn] visit, receipt of a set of recommended screening services, receipt of health counseling services on general health topics, and receipt of pregnancy-related counseling), controlling for predisposing and enabling variables. PRINCIPAL FINDINGS Only half of women at risk of pregnancy report receiving counseling about pregnancy planning in the past year. One-third of women surveyed did not receive routine physical examinations and screening services, and over half received little or no health counseling. Multivariate analyses showed that all the measures of health needs except for negative health behavior were related to some type of health services use. Psychosocial stress was associated with having a recent ob/gyn visit, with receiving general health counseling, and with receiving pregnancy planning counseling. Cardiovascular risk was positively associated with receiving general health counseling and a regular physical exam, but negatively associated with seeing an ob/gyn. Positive health behaviors were associated with receiving screening services and with receiving general health counseling. Preconceptional reproductive life stage was positively associated with receiving a regular physical exam and negatively associated with having an ob/gyn visit. CONCLUSIONS Pre- and interconceptional women with specific health care needs may not receive appropriate health care before pregnancy. Improving pregnancy experiences and outcomes requires more comprehensive preconception health care and more preventive care before the first pregnancy.
Evaluation of ‘Grasslands Matua’ prairie grass and ‘Grasslands Maru’ phalaris with and without lucerne in Canterbury

Abstract Mixtures of Matua prame grass and Maru phalaris with Saranac lucerne, grown on silt loam and cut infrequently, were compared with pure sowings of lucerne, Matua, Maru, and ‘Grasslands Nui’ ryegrass. Major nutrients returned in fertiliser mixture were equivalent to their content in the cut herbage. Of the mixtures, Matua yielded the most dry matter (DM) over 2 years (19 000-22 4000 kglha/a, cf. 18 500-19 500 kglha/a for pure lucerne). Pure swards of Matua and Maru yielded more than Nui in all seasons, highest annual DM yields being 16 800, 13 200, and 8600 kg/ha respectively. In the second year of measurement, grass contributed 40% of the total yield of the Matua mixture, the contribution being at a minimum of 17% in summer, increasing to 46% in autumn. The Matua mixture yielded 1300 kglha of grass DM in winter, whereas the Maru mixture yielded only 500 kg/ha. Spring yields of grass in the mixtures were similar, but in summer Matua yielded more than Maru.
A Comparison of Ellipse Fitting Methods and Implications for Multiple-View Geometry Estimation

After summarising the conceptual relationship between some old and new techniques for fitting ellipses to data, we conduct a thorough experimental comparison of the discussed methods. The newer techniques promise consistency, unbiasedness, or hyper-accuracy, but our experiments reveal that in practice the performance of these estimators is difficult to distinguish from the performance of established estimators. Since the newer techniques could potentially be extended to other estimation problems, we discuss what implications our experimental findings have for solving more general multiple-view geometry estimation problems.
Implications for palaeoenvironmental reconstruction of recent ice‐wedge development at Mayo, Yukon territory

Elevated tritium concentrations in ice veins and wedges recently exposed near Mayo, Yukon Territory, indicate that these features have formed or recracked from time to time during the past thirty years. The mean annual air temperature at Mayo is −4.0°C. Therefore, these features are active in an environment that conventionally would be regarded as too warm for thermal contraction cracking and ice-wedge development. Periodic cracking is probably related to below-normal winter air temperatures. Such conditions are not readily apparent in long-term climatic statistics. It follows that many ice-wedges whose casts are preserved in the geologic record may not have formed under conditions as cold as previously suggested. Des concentrations elevees de tritium dans des veines et des coins de glace recemment degages pres de Mayo (Yukon), montrent que ces structures se sont formees ou se sont elargies de temps en temps au cours des trente dernieres annees. La temperature moyenne annuelle est a Mayo de −4.0°C. Par consequent, ces structures sont actives dans un environnement qui pourrait ětre regarde conventionnellement comme trop chaud pour l'apparition de fissures de contraction thermique et le developpement de fentes de gel a remplissage de glace. L'ouverture de fissures se produit probablement lorsque les temperatures d'hiver sont plus basses que la normale. De telles conditions ne sont pas immediatement apparentes dans des statistiques climatiques a long terme. Il en resulte que de nombreux coins de glace dont les remplissages sont conserves peuvent ne pas s'ětre formes sous des conditions climatiques aussi froides qu'on ne le pensait precedemment.
On the global character of overlap between low and high clouds

The global character of overlap between low and high clouds is examined using active satellite sensors. Low‐cloud fraction has a strong land‐ocean contrast with oceanic values double those over land. Major low‐cloud regimes include not only the eastern ocean boundary stratocumulus and shallow cumulus but also those associated with cold air outbreaks downwind of wintertime continents and land stratus over particular geographic areas. Globally, about 30% of low clouds are overlapped by high clouds. The overlap rate exhibits strong spatial variability ranging from higher than 90% in the tropics to less than 5% in subsidence areas and is anticorrelated with subsidence rate and low‐cloud fraction. The zonal mean of vertical separation between cloud layers is never smaller than 5 km and its zonal variation closely follows that of tropopause height, implying a tight connection with tropopause dynamics. Possible impacts of cloud overlap on low clouds are discussed.
Prevalence of Hippocampal Malrotation in a Population without Seizures

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Hippocampal malrotation (HIMAL) is a failure of hippocampal inversion that occurs during normal fetal development and has been seen on MR imaging examinations of people with epilepsy, but it has not been studied in patients without epilepsy. We intended to evaluate the prevalence of HIMAL in MR imaging examinations of patients without seizures to better understand the significance of HIMAL in the population with seizure. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 497 MR imaging examinations with thin-section imaging through the temporal lobes of patients referred for conditions other than seizures were reviewed. The examinations were performed on 1.5T magnets. Sagittal T1-weighted and coronal T2-weighted images were used to evaluate each MR image for the distinctive features of HIMAL. As previously described in the literature, the criteria for HIMAL include unilateral involvement and incomplete rotation of a hippocampus that is normal in size and signal intensity but abnormally rounded in shape, with blurred inner structure. In addition, ipsilateral findings of an atypical collateral sulcus angle and atypical position and size of the fornix were noted. The corpus callosum is normal, and the temporal lobe remains normal in size, though the temporal horn may appear enlarged. RESULTS: None of the patients’ examinations fulfilled all of the HIMAL criteria. Six studies satisfied 2 or more criteria, which included an abnormally rounded hippocampus and a vertical collateral sulcus. These HIMAL findings were all seen on the left. Forniceal asymmetry was the most prevalent abnormality, with 289 patients manifesting a low position of 1 fornix. CONCLUSIONS: Hippocampal malrotation is a rare finding in patients without seizures. HIMAL is therefore likely to be a pathologic finding.
T Cell Responses + CD8Immunodominant Influenza Virus-Specific Impact Differentially on Two Immunoproteasome Subunit Deficiencies

Primary CD8 (cid:1) T cell (T CD8 (cid:1) ) responses to viruses are directed toward multiple Ags and shaped by both the level of Ag presentation and the underlying Ag-speciﬁc T CD8 (cid:1) repertoire. The relative importance of these factors in deciding the hierarchy of T CD8 (cid:1) responses and how they are inﬂuenced by the immunoproteasome are not well understood. Using an inﬂuenza infection model in mice deﬁcient in various immunoproteasome subunits, we observe that Ag presentation and T CD8 (cid:1) repertoire are altered in an epitope-speciﬁc and immunoproteasome subunit-dependent manner. More importantly, we ﬁnd that the level of Ag presentation and the extent of the underlying repertoire can work either alone or in concert to determine deﬁnitively the magnitude of the individual T CD8 (cid:1) responses and hence the overall T CD8 (cid:1) hierarchy. Together, these results provide a clearer understanding of how immunodominance hierarchies are established. The Journal of Immunology, 2006, 177: 7680–7688. critical effector the a the T narrowly fraction of the peptide epitopes, and, within fraction, hierarchically divided between epitopes repro-ducibly immunodominance hierarchies not only arise, but also change. Our ﬁndings also add further evidence to the role of immunoproteasomes in the T CD8 (cid:1) immune response. We have previously shown that the T CD8 (cid:1) response in LMP2 (cid:3) / (cid:3) mice is substantially altered following inﬂuenza infection (16). Here, using wild-type virus, we conﬁrm and extend these ﬁndings to MECL1 (cid:3) / (cid:3) and LMP7 (cid:3) / (cid:3) /MECL1 (cid:3) / (cid:3) animals, and we show that loss of LMP2, MECL1, or LMP7 and MECL1 has a distinct effect, which highlights the functional heterogeneity of the individual immunoproteasome subunits. Taken together, the results demonstrate that immunoproteasomes inﬂuence the T CD8 (cid:1) response by affecting not only Ag presentation (in this case, of the native immunodominant PA224 epitope) but also the peptide-speciﬁc T CD8 (cid:1) repertoire (of both PA224 and the codominant NP366 epitope). This repertoire impairment presumably arises because thymic APC express immunoproteasomes (41) and is supported by recent studies showing that TCR transgenic mice that are deﬁcient in either LMP2 or LMP7 have a defective repertoire of transgenic T CD8 (cid:1) (41, 42).
The interaction of cumulus convection with soil moisture distribution: An idealized simulation

In order to investigate the interaction between cumulus convection and soil moisture distribution, two-dimensional numerical experiments using a regional atmospheric model are performed. The model roughly resolves each convective cell and represents cloud processes by a microphysics parameterization. Two long-term (60-day) integrations with relatively dry and wet conditions are made with the atmosphere-land system in a quasi-equilibrium state. Though the initial and boundary conditions are horizontally homogeneous, horizontal contrasts in soil moisture spontaneously develop due to the spotty nature of convective precipitation. When intense soil moisture contrasts develop, they cause surface temperature contrasts through a change in evaporation. As a result, thermally induced local circulations occur in the daytime, with upward branches over the dry and hot regions and downward branches over the wet and cool regions. Most cumulus convection events are initiated by the upward motion of this local circulation over the dry region. They mostly occur in the afternoon (1300–1700 LT), while convection that forms over regions that are wet throughout may occur at any time during the day. The intense precipitation over the dry region “overdamps” the soil moisture contrast, which results in the maintenance of a heterogeneous distribution of soil moisture.
Strategic environmental assessment: one concept, multiple forms

Several approaches to strategic environmental assessment (SEA) have been developed recently, differing, for example, in openness, scope, intensity and duration. Differences stem from the specific contexts in which the SEA processes are meant to be used. This is illustrated with two current SEA processes in the Netherlands for drafting legislation (environmental test), and for plans and programmes (strategic environmental impact assessment). Although design for purpose enhances the effectiveness of SEA, the variety of approaches may also lead to confusion among non-SEA experts, such as politicians and other senior decision makers, about what SEA is. This could create an impediment to the acceptance and development of SEA in situations where currently no obligation for it exists. A set of principles is proposed as a starting point for further discussion.
Does Reduced IGF-1R Signaling in Igf1r +/− Mice Alter Aging?

Mutations in insulin/IGF-1 signaling pathway have been shown to lead to increased longevity in various invertebrate models. Therefore, the effect of the haplo- insufficiency of the IGF-1 receptor (Igf1r+/−) on longevity/aging was evaluated in C57Bl/6 mice using rigorous criteria where lifespan and end-of-life pathology were measured under optimal husbandry conditions using large sample sizes. Igf1r+/− mice exhibited reductions in IGF-1 receptor levels and the activation of Akt by IGF-1, with no compensatory increases in serum IGF-1 or tissue IGF-1 mRNA levels, indicating that the Igf1r+/− mice show reduced IGF-1 signaling. Aged male, but not female Igf1r+/− mice were glucose intolerant, and both genders developed insulin resistance as they aged. Female, but not male Igf1r+/− mice survived longer than wild type mice after lethal paraquat and diquat exposure, and female Igf1r+/− mice also exhibited less diquat-induced liver damage. However, no significant difference between the lifespans of the male Igf1r+/− and wild type mice was observed; and the mean lifespan of the Igf1r+/− females was increased only slightly (less than 5%) compared to wild type mice. A comprehensive pathological analysis showed no significant difference in end-of-life pathological lesions between the Igf1r+/− and wild type mice. These data show that the Igf1r+/− mouse is not a model of increased longevity and delayed aging as predicted by invertebrate models with mutations in the insulin/IGF-1 signaling pathway.
Anatomy of the normal brachial plexus revealed by sonography and the role of sonographic guidance in anesthesia of the brachial plexus.

OBJECTIVE The purpose of this study is to describe the sonographic appearance of the normal brachial plexus and to evaluate the use of imaging guidance for brachial plexus anesthesia. SUBJECTS AND METHODS Twenty adults requiring upper limb surgery underwent sonography with a high-frequency transducer to identify the brachial plexus at the interscalene (n = 16) and supraclavicular (n = 4) regions. Catheters for brachial plexus anesthesia were placed using sonographic guidance and evaluated using radiography and CT after injection of contrast material. The success of the neural blockade and surgical anesthesia was assessed. General anesthesia was chosen preoperatively or used for supplementation if blockade was incomplete. RESULTS The brachial plexus appeared as three discrete rounded hypoechoic nodules between the scalenus anterior and medius muscles on transverse sonography at the lower cervical (C6) region, representing the trunks in sagittal oblique section. A cluster of hypoechoic nodules corresponding to the divisions was seen cephalad to the subclavian artery on sagittal scans of the supraclavicular region. Radiography was used to verify correct catheter placement; the brachial plexus sheath appeared as a tubular area of contrast material in the neck that was well circumscribed in patients who had supraclavicular injections of contrast material and corrugated in those who had interscalene injections. CT scans showed contrast material spread around the scalenus muscles in most patients with interscalene injections. Successful neural blockade at 20 min and postoperative analgesia were achieved in all patients. Surgical anesthesia was achieved in nine of 15 patients. Five patients chose general anesthesia before surgery and therefore did not have surgical anesthesia assessed. CONCLUSION High-resolution sonography can show normal brachial plexus anatomy and facilitate catheter-based brachial plexus anesthesia without complications.
A Neural Network Based Distance Function for the k-Nearest Neighbor Classifier

Due to its simplicity and intuitivity, the k-nearest neighbor method is one of the most commonly used technique to address different classification problems. However, to apply such a classification technique, a distance metric is to be considered to define a certain distance in the feature space. Usually classic norms such as Minkowski, Mahalanobis, etc. Are used, but even though they can be applied to all type of feature spaces, there is a lack of specificity of these methods for the data in use. Our goal is to learn the distance function rather than providing an explicit one, by exploiting the specificity of the data. Several neural networks are trained to estimate the distance between two patterns, adapting the weight of the networks accordingly. For the experimental setup, we considered three well-known benchmark, publicly available data collections: MNIST digit data, Opt-digits data, and the Lampung character collection - for Arabic handwritten digits and Indonesian handwritten Lampung characters, respectively. The results of k-nearest neighbor considering network based estimated distance between the handwritten digits/characters proved to be very promising.
Interaction of Meloidogyne hapla and M. javanica Infecting Tomato

A soil temperature of 20 C was equally suitable for the invasion and development ofM. hapla and M. /avanica. However, M. /avanica predominated in a mixed species infection at this temperature. Predominance increased with increasing mixed-species inoculum levels. Invasion by M. hapla was more density-dependent than M. /avanica. M. hapla produced a greater incidence of terminal galls and lateral roots.
Motivational states activate distinct hippocampal representations to guide goal-directed behaviors

Adaptive behaviors are guided by motivation and memory. Motivational states specify goals, and memory can inform motivated behavior by providing detailed records of past experiences when goals were obtained. These 2 fundamental processes interact to guide animals to biologically relevant targets, but the neuronal mechanisms that integrate them remain unknown. To investigate these mechanisms, we recorded unit activity from the same population of hippocampal neurons as rats performed identical tasks while either food or water deprived. We compared the influence of motivational state (hunger and thirst), memory demand, and spatial behavior in 2 tasks: hippocampus-dependent contextual memory retrieval and hippocampus-independent random foraging. We found that: (i) hippocampal coding was most strongly influenced by motivational state during contextual memory retrieval, when motivational cues were required to select among remembered, goal-directed actions in the same places; (ii) the same neuronal populations were relatively unaffected by motivational state during random foraging, when hunger and thirst were incidental to behavior, and signals derived from deprivation states thus informed, but did not determine, hippocampal coding; and (iii) “prospective coding” in the contextual retrieval task was not influenced by allocentric spatial trajectory, but rather by the animal's deprivation state and the associated, non-spatial target, suggesting that hippocampal coding includes a wide range of predictive associations. The results show that beyond coding spatiotemporal context, hippocampal representations encode the relationships between internal states, the external environment, and action to provide a mechanism by which motivation and memory are coordinated to guide behavior.
Bregman Bubble Clustering: A Robust, Scalable Framework for Locating Multiple, Dense Regions in Data

In traditional clustering, every data point is assigned to at least one cluster. On the other extreme, one class clustering algorithms proposed recently identify a single dense cluster and consider the rest of the data as irrelevant. However, in many problems, the relevant data forms multiple natural clusters. In this paper, we introduce the notion of Bregman bubbles and propose Bregman bubble clustering (BBC) that seeks k dense Bregman bubbles in the data. We also present a corresponding generative model, soft BBC, and show several connections with Bregman clustering, and with a one class clustering algorithm. Empirical results on various datasets show the effectiveness of our method.
Understanding Soils in Urban Environments

With an ever-increasing proportion of the world’s population living in cities, soil properties such as salinity, acidity, water retention, erosion and pollution are becoming more significant in urban areas. While these are known issues for agriculture and forestry, as urban development increases, it is essential to recognise the potential of soil properties to create problems for the environment as well as structural concerns for buildings and other engineering works. Understanding Soils in Urban Environments explains how urban soils develop, change and erode. It describes their physical and chemical properties with a focus on specific soil problems that cause environmental damage, such as acid sulfate soils, and also affect the integrity of engineering structural works. This fully revised second edition addresses contemporary issues, including an increase in the use of green roofs and urban green space as well as manufactured soils in a variety of urban environments. Understanding Soils in Urban Environments provides a concise introduction to all aspects of soils in urban environments and will be extremely useful to students in a wide range of disciplines, from soil science and urban forestry and horticulture, to planning, engineering, construction and land remediation, as well as to engineers, builders, landscape architects, ecologists, planners and developers.